I'm a Fiend for You

by freyja-luna

In her final year at Hogwarts, Muggleborn Seer and Ravenclaw Kersti Ridgelow, aka Grindylow, attracts the attention of Lily Evans and the infamous Marauders. How? With a pumpkin-juice revenge prank on a Slytherin, of course! And who knew pumpkin juice would lead Kersti to casually sleeping with Sirius Black, and then accidentally falling in love with him. Updates once a week.

43. Chapter 43

Chapter 43: My Enigma

Love Me Harder by Ariana Grande and The Weeknd

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The morning before the Hogsmeade trip, I paced the forest to settle my nerves. When I could delay my arrival to the courtyard no longer, I trudged out of the trees and back up the grassy slope. I tried to slip through the groups of other students unnoticed; that seemed an impossible feat nowadays, not only after my confrontation with Avery, but also with my closeness to Sirius. Whispers, stares and turning heads followed me. Because I'd arrived at the last possible minute to the departure point, the boys were already there, and I felt bad when I saw Sirius who was standing with his hands in his pockets, his features composed into a haughty mask. I knew that he was doing this to hide his true feelings. When he saw me approaching them, he grinned in obvious relief.

"Sorry for worrying you," I whispered as I joined him.

He eyed me. "Who said you worried me?"

"I made you worry that I wasn't showing up. I know you better than that."

He offered me a half-smile. "I guess you do."

"Hey, you two," Lily said, turning her focus away from the conversation that she'd been having with James. "Fancy a double date?"

James wiggled his eyebrows. "What d'you say, Padfoot?"

Remus started laughing. "Nice, Prongs."

Sirius gave me the quickest, barely perceptible look, before answering, "Er, no thanks, Prongs."

"You two don't need to be supervised?"

"No. Don't you two need to be supervised?" Sirius shot back.

"Uh, no. I thought it was you two."

"Uh, no," Sirius parroted, making me, Remus and Lily crack up.

James stepped away from Lily in order to clobber Sirius with a headlock, reaching up to ruffle his hair. "Silly Padfoot."

"Why d'you always go straight for my hair!

"Should I go for your trousers next time?"

"No, you sod!"

"You don't want to show everyone your, er… shreddies?"

"My what?"

James ruffled Sirius's hair so hard that it fell into his face and covered his eyes. "Your underpants."

"NO!" Sirius said, barking with laughter and trying to claw his way out of James's headlock. "Look what you've done to my hair, you idiot!" he said, laughing and breaking free.

I snickered, watching Sirius pouting at James from under a curtain of disheveled black hair. He finger-combed it back into some semblance of order, though the back was still ruffled.

Lily laughed and linked hands with James as McGonagall finally unleashed all the students onto the path to Hogsmeade. "You two are so silly." She looked over her shoulder at me and Sirius walking together, wiggling her eyebrows.

I smiled good-naturedly. It wasn't like Sirius and I were walking by ourselves anyway; Remus was on my left, while Peter was on Sirius's other side, trotting to keep up with his long legs.

Remus smiled and glanced at me. "So, Kersti. Can I ask you something?"

"Sure."

"About your heritage?"

"Yep. I don't mind."

Sirius smiled at me.

"So," Remus began, "do you know which distant relative was a Squib? Or is it harder to find out with Muggle records?"

I frowned. "What?"

"Since you're a Muggleborn, do you know which one of your relatives was the Squib who passed on their magic as an inheritable trait?"

Mouth agape, I stared at him. "What… What?!"

He looked at me, perplexed. "Since all Muggleborns come from Squibs who had children with a Muggle, and the magical heritage is forgotten over time?" he said hesitantly.

"No!" I gasped.

"No?" he said, looking alarmed.

Sirius chuckled beside me. "I thought you knew that, kitten."

I stuttered. "No! Jesus Christ, I had no idea! I thought we just sort of… happened."

Remus smiled and shook his head. "No, magic is an inherited trait."

I burst out laughing. "God! I'm a Ravenclaw, how did this happen? You knew this, didn't you, Lily?"

She smiled over her shoulder. "Er, yes. Admittedly, I was told when I got my letter."

I laughed harder. "Oh, god! How did this happen! I'm a Ravenclaw, aren't I supposed to be all-knowing?"

"Don't try to sleep in the Gryffindor Common Room when they kick you out of Ravenclaw, Stripes," James said with a wily smile.

"I wouldn't even dream of it," I said.

"I wouldn't let you. You can just sleep in my bed," Sirius whispered in my ear.

"Sounds really cozy," I whispered back, my breath stirring his hair.

"You should ask your parents if they know what relative might've been a Squib," Remus said.

The smile slipped from my face. I couldn't ask them anything anymore.

"What're you going to buy from Honeydukes this time, Moony?" Sirius jumped in before I had to answer that question.

Remus gave me a weighty look before looking at Sirius. "Er, chocolate would be nice. Should Wormtail and I pick up some sugar quills for you while we're there?"

Sirius grinned. "Oh, Moony. You know me too well."

"Hardly, Padfoot. You've always had a soft spot for sugar quills."

"Just like Wormtail has a soft spot for Chocolate Frogs."

"Oh, Padfoot," Wormtail said in a silly voice, "you know me so well."

Remus and Sirius burst out laughing.

"Nice impression, mate," James said over his shoulder, ruffling his hair.

I exchanged an amused look with Lily. Though, it wasn't like we didn't already know how goofy the boys were; we'd witnessed it countless times by now.

When we reached Hogsmeade, James and Lily split up to have their own private date, while Remus, Peter and Sirius dragged me along to Zonko's Joke Shop with many insistent claims that they were "running low on prank supplies." The crowd in the shop seemed to part around the three Marauders; every student knew why Remus, Peter and Sirius were in there, and perhaps were also fearing that the supplies that the boys were purchasing now would be used on them at a later, unknown date. I had to excuse myself halfway through to stand outside, as I began thinking about my parents and brother again and couldn't stop. I couldn't stand to be in such a happy environment when I was being drowned by an immense wave of grief.

Seeing that my mood had taken a turn for the worse, Sirius joined me outside and encouraged Remus and Peter to go on their own way to Honeydukes, after making them swear up and down that they would buy him sugar quills. We stood alone outside Zonko's, the cold air nipping at both of our exposed faces. Ignoring some younger girls who giggled and whispered amongst themselves as they passed him, Sirius turned to me.

"Can I show you something, kitten?" he asked.

I smiled, turning my gaze back to him. "Sure. Whatever you want."

He smiled slowly before inclining his head to the right. "It's not scary or anything."

We started walking. "I trust you," I said.

Sirius half-smiled, his hands deep in his pockets. "Was I right in assuming you didn't want to go on a double date with Prongs and Evans?"

"Yeah. Just not really… feeling it, you know?"

"Yeah, I know."

I tried not to glare at the girls who were ogling Sirius as we passed. He looked handsome, as he always did, but that was no consolation for my jealous feelings. I glanced at him, wondering if he would feel jealous if other blokes paid me any mind. He might, since he was protective, and clearly cared enough about me and my suffering to have consoled me so many times and to be invested in my happiness.

He led me out of Hogsmeade and up to the Shrieking Shack. When we were as far as we could go, we stopped and leaned against the ramshackle fence that edged the path.

"The Shrieking Shack because of what happens every month?" I asked.

"Yeah. Moony told us that he told you, and I would've wanted to tell you anyway."

"But you don't stay inside the Shack?"

He ran a hand along the top fence rail. "No, not anymore. We used to, Moony used to, but we started exploring more once we'd gotten the hang of it. Now, we go everywhere." He glanced at me. "What was it like with you in the beginning? After… Stripes and all that."

I smiled and looked at the dilapidated building on the hill. "I started out on the edges of the forest, then went deeper and deeper, and started roaming the grounds. Sometimes I like walking around the lake. But I do like climbing trees, so the forest is good for that."

He grinned and leaned his elbows on the fence. I studied the profile of his face as he paused. "I can't imagine what it would've been like without the monthly adventures," he said quietly. "They mean so much to all of us. Reckon they've kept us all from going mad."

"And the bonding."

He hummed in agreement. "They're… I can't overexaggerate how much they mean to me. My parents and homelife were so shitty, so Prongs, Moony and Wormtail became my family. My true family. I would've gone mad like the rest of the Blacks if it hadn't been for them."

I watched him, wondering if he had space in his heart for another person to be that close to him, and if it could ever be me.

"I'd show you the inside of the Shrieking Shack," he said, "but you can't get in from the outside. It's been magically sealed. The only way you can get in is the secret passage under the Whomping Willow. Moony told you about the passage too, yeah?"

"Yeah." Not to mention that I'd followed them and seen them go into it before.

"We've found lots of other passages in the castle too." He fixed me with a stare. "I could show you them sometime, if you want?"

I smiled. "I'd like that."

He pushed away a curly strand of hair that had fallen into his face and turned his focus back to the Shrieking Shack. "Fancy a closer look? We can go in our animagi forms."

"No, I can't. Tigers aren't exactly inconspicuous in the Scottish countryside. I can't blend in like you can as a dog. If anyone saw me, they'd think there was a breakout at the local zoo."

He barked with laughter. "Didn't think of that, kitten." He furrowed his brows suddenly. "What's a zoo?"

"It's a park where Muggles go to see exotic animals like lions and tigers. It's safe and all; the animals live in enclosures."

Sirius smiled to himself. "The more I learn about Muggles, the more fascinating they seem. You can imagine that this… admiration for Muggles and their inventions like motorbikes didn't go over well at all with my parents," he said, his voice taking a sombre turn.

"I can imagine," I murmured.

"I'm rather excited to see your car after we graduate, kitten," he said, offering me a grin.

My heart raced at the prospect of Sirius remaining in my life beyond Hogwarts, of spending time with him after we'd graduated. "I'm excited to see your motorcycle."

He turned suddenly and fixed me with an intense look. "Where will you go after we graduate?"

"Er…" I looked away, my cheeks flushing. "I reckon I'll be on my own. Since I don't have my house to go back to. I reckon I'll… I could always live in my car," I mumbled.

"You don't have anyone else to help you?" he asked quietly, taking a step closer so that he was standing inches from me.

I straightened up but kept on staring at the Shrieking Shack. "No. My family was all I had."

"What about your Ravenclaw friends?"

"No, I'd never feel comfortable enough to ask them. Besides, I don't… I wouldn't say I'm that close to them."

"Do you know what you'll do? I know we talked about how we both want to travel, but… do you have any plans?" he asked.

I finally met his eyes. "No, not really. I can't afford to travel right now, and I wouldn't want to leave the country while my family might still be in danger."

He smiled sadly. "Yeah, I reckon you're right." He opened his mouth to speak, closed it, swallowed, and then cleared his throat. "Do you… What would you, er… want for a place to stay?"

"Not much, I'm not picky. A bed would be nice."

"Anything else?"

"A loo."

He barked with laughter. "Yeah, I reckon you'd want a loo. Anything specific?"

"I'd like four walls and a roof."

We both burst out laughing. Sirius shook his head, his grey eyes alight. "I reckon most people would like those things in a place to stay."

I shrugged, grinning from ear to ear. "Like I said, I'm not picky."

He let out a bark of laughter before we continued walking, following the path as it looped around the outside of Hogsmeade, skirting the woods behind us. I glanced at Sirius, his eyes meeting mine. For the first, terrifying time, I realized that if this were to continue for much longer, I would be falling in love with him. My heart racing and my stomach flip-flopping, I looked away.

"I'm glad we didn't do another double date," he said.

"Me too."

"I mean, Prongs is my best mate and all, but I dunno…" He laughed and shrugged.

"I don't want to intrude on their date. It can't be easy to get away from everything in the castle, since they're Head Boy and Girl."

"Yeah, that's what I was thinking. And when Prongs is with us, Wormtail can be a bit… clingy."

I smiled but said nothing. It was one thing for Sirius to speak about Peter as his friend, but I knew that he might not take kindly to someone outside their friend group mentioning how bloody annoying Peter seemed to be. Friends were like that; no one was allowed to criticize them but you.

"Did you see them in the Prefects' Bath on the Map the other day, when you were in my dormitory?" he asked, grinning mischievously.

"Yeah, they looked like they were having fun."

"I swear to Merlin, they go there together at least once a week."

Laughing, I placed a hand on a tree trunk to balance myself as I descended a short slope in the path. "Do they really?"

"Oh, yeah. Bit excessive if you ask me."

I looked over my shoulder at him. "I didn't think you'd ever say that."

He shrugged and grinned. "I can see why though. It's rather nice in there."

"I've never seen it, so I wouldn't know."

"Really?"

"Yeah. I was never a Prefect and I didn't beg any Prefects I knew for the password." I raised an eyebrow. "I'm assuming that's what you did?"

Sirius smiled. "It's always been worth it. And it's been even easier this year, now that Prongs is Head Boy and Quidditch Captain." He added, "Fancy sneaking in there sometime with me?"

"Actually, yeah. A nice soak in the bath would be lovely for my tense shoulders. And it's not like you've never seen what's under here," I said, gesturing to my robes.

He smiled. "That's true." His expression went serious. "Do you want something to eat? We can go back to Hogsmeade."

I flushed and smiled, staring back at him. "Sure. Thank you for, er… caring so much," I said quietly.

He reached out to squeeze my hand. "You don't have to thank me. I want to."

Suddenly, he pulled me against his body and raised a hand to cup my jaw, the other still holding my hand. His eyes searched my face before he dipped his head and kissed me. His mouth on mine was slow again, memorizing every curve before his tongue poked out to intensify the kiss. Unlike before the holidays, this time when we kissed, when we had sex, Sirius worshipped my body; he treasured every touch as if it would be the last. Part of me was stupidly hopeful that this changed way we met in the heat of our shagging was caused by feelings he reciprocated. But that hope alone ripped into my heart. I gripped his hand harder in mine, clutching at his outer robes with my other to press myself against him. I wanted all of him. When his thumb on my jaw began moving back and forth over my skin, tingles wracked me and my stomach lurched. I moaned into his mouth.

This seemed to trigger something in him, because suddenly his lips on mine were furious, desperate, snogging me so hard that I felt like I was falling into him. He clutched my hand in a death grip, his other deftly diving past my outer layers and heading for the hem of my jumper. His cold fingers made contact with the warm skin of my stomach, and he groaned from low in his throat. I panted as his fingers roved along my abdomen before beginning to dip down into my knickers.

Sirius pulled his mouth away, his breath coming in heaves. He leaned his forehead against mine, his eyes fluttering closed. "Fuck, Kersti."

My throat swelled with emotion and my skin burned. "Mmm, Sirius," I whispered.

"Fuck," he groaned, eyes still closed, fingers still against my stomach. "Merlin, I missed you so fucking much over the holidays."

"Yeah?"

"So much. You've no idea. I thought about you constantly. Merlin, I couldn't stop thinking about you even if I tried."

"Really?" I breathed, placing a tender kiss against the corner of his mouth.

"I tried to, kitten. But I couldn't. Merlin, I've never been able to," he said, stroking his thumb over my jaw again.

"I missed you too. Every day," I whispered.

He sighed in pure contentment. "Every day?"

"Every day. I missed you so much that it hurt."

He opened his eyes and leaned back a hair's breadth from me. "I'm sorry about what you had to do. I wish I could've been there for you."

"I would've wanted you there too."

He smiled sadly, rubbing the tip of my nose with his. "I'm here now, though."

"Yeah," I whispered.

Sirius watched me for a moment before his lips were on mine again, the desperation from before bleeding through. Our breaths came in shaky gasps as his fingers began exploring my skin again and as I pressed my body flush against his, wanting to feel as close as possible to him.

He peeled his lips away, chest rising and falling rapidly. He grinned and said, "Fuck, even snogging you drives me mad."

I smiled and laced my fingers through his. "Me too."

His breaths were white puffs in the cold air as he tucked a curl behind my ear. "I can't get enough of you, kitten. I mean it."

"I feel the same way."

He placed the most tender kiss against my upturned mouth.

I grinned. "You've got a new habit of kissing me a lot."

"Mmm, I like kissing you. You're the best kisser, actually."

"Really?"

"Yeah. I really, really, really like kissing you."

"Good," I breathed before I leaned in and kissed him again, though it was sweet and brief.

He smiled, grey eyes alight with happiness, before he drew me close for a hug. I wrapped my arms around him, my head tucking under his chin so perfectly, his arms holding me close. I closed my eyes, cheek against his chest.

"I really like hugging you too," I said, inhaling his scent.

His hum of agreement rumbled through his chest. As we stood hugging, he nuzzled and kissed the top of my head, his deep sighs of satisfaction stirring my hair. We broke away, standing there and smiling at each other like a pair of idiots, until we laughed.

"Should we go back now?" I asked.

"Whatever you want, kitten," he said, giving my hand a last squeeze before letting go and leading the way onwards along the path.

I padded around a tree root in my way and fell into step beside him. Smiling, I studied his profile. He was the same as he'd been all those months ago in September, when I'd first met him. His features now held a different meaning for me, and I treasured every part of him. Inexplicably, he'd become the most dear person in my life, all because we'd initially been only physically attracted to each other. Now, I hopelessly fancied him and I couldn't imagine myself fancying anyone else at this moment. And if he didn't feel the same way, or if he rejected me, I knew that I'd be devastated by his loss.

He glanced at me and smiled, and my heart leapt into my throat. Overwhelmed by my feelings for him, I blurted out, "Have you ever been in love?"

His face betrayed his shock and he regarded me for a laboured moment before turning to stare ahead again. I cringed inside, wanting to crawl into a hole and die. He ran a hand through his hair before he spoke slowly, deliberately. "Depends what kind of love you mean. With Prongs, Moony and Wormtail, I love them like they're my family, which they are. That's a different kind of love than the one you're meaning. At least," he added, glancing at me quickly, "if you mean what I think you're getting at?"

I squirmed and felt a blush staining my cheeks as I looked away. "Yeah. I was talking about, er… romantic love, I s'ppose."

"Well, in that case, no. I've never been in love like that." There was a long pause, where we drew steadily nearer to Hogsmeade and where I refused to meet his eyes as he watched my every move. Finally he asked, "Have you?"

I laughed bitterly. "God, no. I don't tend to fancy many people to begin with, and even then, I wasn't close to the people I fancied."

"Why not?"

My cheeks burned brighter and I cursed myself for letting my tongue wag. "Er, dunno. Well, I don't really… I've never been interested in many people because most of them seem a bit… boring. And I've never been close to anyone I've fancied before because, well… I wasn't interested in getting to know them. I only fancied them for their looks. It's never been like—" I abruptly stopped myself from saying "like this."

"'Like' what?" Sirius asked, eyes boring into me.

"Er, I dunno," I mumbled, hands shaking and cheeks flaming.

He cleared his throat nervously and pushed a dark curl of hair out of his face.

"So, er… why've you never been in love before?" I blurted out, and proceeded to cringe massively inside at how impulsive I was with my questions today. I couldn't help it; I was so bloody curious about everything to do with Sirius.

He buried his hands deep in his pockets, looking at the nearby roofs of the village. "Because I've never really properly fancied anyone…" His Adam's apple bobbed in his throat as he swallowed. "Before."

I stared at him. "'Before?'"

He looked ahead resolutely, hands crammed as far into his trouser pockets as they would go. "Yeah."

"Wh-what does that mean?"

"What did you mean before? 'Like' what?" he retorted.

"Uh, I… I d-dunno."

He grinned and looked at me, his grey eyes full of mirth, as we started down the main cobblestone street of Hogsmeade. Yet, he didn't say anything.

I laughed, conceding defeat. "You're such a tease."

He shrugged. "I can't help but tease you. You have the cutest reactions."

I bumped against him playfully. "I like teasing you too."

He poked me. "I can tell."

As we walked by Madam Puddifoot's, which was rife with couples glued at the lips and holding hands over the frilly pink tablecloths, I started laughing. "Do you remember when we went in there with James and Lily?" I said.

Sirius let out a short bark of laughter. "Merlin, that was… I reckon I don't have any words to describe that date."

"I recall I sneezed so much when we first came in that everyone was watching us."

He laughed. "Bloody hell, I'd forgotten about that. And then you nearly fell asleep on me at the table!"

"I'd had two hours of sleep the night before, can you really blame me?"

"You're the first and only girl to have fallen asleep on me during a date."

"Uh, nearly. I didn't actually fall asleep."

"Same thing."

"I didn't properly fall asleep at the table!"

"You didn't?"

I made a silly face at him. "Well, you were the one who got us kicked out of the bookstore because you scared me so much I screamed."

He barked with laughter, causing some nearby girls to ogle him. I curled my lip at them. Yes, Sirius looked ridiculously handsome when he was laughing and having fun, but that didn't mean that they were entitled to stare at him. "You're so fun to scare, kitten."

"Isn't that just lovely for me?" I said, trying to sound irritated, though the effect was marred when I met his eyes and started laughing too.

We went farther down the main street before we found an alley with an alcove in a boarded-up shop front. We ducked into it to have a smoke, like during our first Hogsmeade date.

Sirius pulled out his cigarette pack and handed me one. "I don't think I've told you about my parents' house yet, kitten."

"No, you've not."

He paused while we got our smokes lit and as we took some preliminary drags. He gave me a lop-sided grin. "Merlin, what a dreadful shithole."

"And what exactly made it a dreadful shithole?" I asked, watching him purse his perfect lips around the end of his cigarette.

"To begin with, it was where I lived with my shitty parents. But on top of that, it's about the most dreary and uninviting house you could possibly imagine."

"How so?"

"The inside is all dark and done in bloody Slytherin colours. And my dear father is so paranoid that he placed a million charms and wards on the house to hide it from wizards and Muggles. So when I was there, I always felt like I was being suffocated, and not just because of my shitty family. I never considered that my home. Hogwarts and Prongs's place have always been my homes." He paused to smile at the thought of something.

"What?" I asked, his smile infectious.

"I was just thinking about how I decorated my room in my parents' house." He flashed me a shit-eating grin. "Merlin, they were so angry when I redecorated. Perfect little Regulus did his bedroom in floor-to-ceiling Slytherin regalia, I didn't."

"So how'd you decorate, then?"

"I put up posters and pictures over every bit of the walls, some banners too. There was this rubbish gray silk wallpaper that I hated, so I hid it under loads of stuff. There were some Gryffindor banners, a lot of posters of Muggle motorcycles."

"When did you first become interested in motorcycles?" I asked with an exhalation of smoke.

He took another drag before replying. "I think it was in third year. So I had loads of time before I ran away to plaster the walls with posters of them. Of course, I put the Gryffindor banners up first, as soon as I got home for the holidays in first year. They're still on the walls, since I put a Permanent Sticking Charm on everything. And—" he paused to huff out a brief laugh— "what really drove my parents mad, my mum especially, were the posters of Muggle girls I had up there."

I looked at Sirius and laughed. "You are such a rebel!"

He cocked his head, a grin curling up his lips. "Yeah."

I laughed, my heart swelling with fondness. "And I think it's bloody amazing. I love that you're a rebel and that you do silly and rebellious things like that. You are so bloody amazing, Sirius."

He grinned, grey eyes drinking me in. "The Muggle girls were wearing bikinis in the posters."

"Your mum must've been royally pissed off, then."

"That's the understatement of the century. Merlin, I would've lost my head if I hadn't had such good quidditch reflexes."

My mood turned sombre at that detail. "I'm sorry that your family treated you so poorly. That's one of the things I think is so amazing about you; no matter what, you always rebel and do your own thing. It's… it's really courageous. Well, of course you would be courageous, because you're a Gryffindor at heart."

He smiled slowly, studying me. "Thanks, kitten. You know, you're amazing too."

I flushed and shrugged, breaking eye contact to take a thoughtful inhalation from my cigarette.

"I mean it, Kersti. I wouldn't just say that or lie about it."

I met his gaze. "And I wouldn't lie about that stuff either."

"I know."

We fell into a comfortable silence as we smoked the rest of our cigarettes, and when we'd finished, we went in search of Remus and Peter. We found them in the bookshop, Remus with his nose buried in a dusty volume and Peter getting scolded by the crotchety shop owner for bringing his sticky, sweets-covered hands into his establishment. Sirius and Peter opted to wait outside, cracking jokes and rough housing, while Remus and I browsed for books.

When we came back out of the bookshop, Remus and I were met with greetings from not only Sirius and Peter, but also James and Lily, who had come looking for us. I ignored Lily's knowing looks and James's wiggling eyebrows that were directed at me and Sirius walking together. Sirius and I retaliated by teasing them right back, and soon Remus and Peter were joining in on the fun too. Neither James nor Lily seemed to mind. After all, why should they? They hadn't developed feelings for each other by accident and unintentionally.

By the time that the Hogsmeade outing was drawing to a close and the six of us were heading back up to the castle, I couldn't have felt more happy. That is, until Sirius pulled me aside for a private word outside the Great Hall.

"So how does Wednesday sound, kitten?" Sirius said, eyes alight and lips curved in a half-smile.

"Wednesday? For what?" I asked, breathless at the proximity of our bodies and faces, and at how he was looking at me.

"Sneaking into the Prefects' Bath. Prongs told me last time I snuck in that Wednesdays nights are best, and it's when I went last time. I don't fancy having an actual pair of Prefects walk in on us."

I grinned. "Wednesday it is."

"Ten o'clock?"

"Sounds lovely, old man."

"Trust me, it will be, kitten," he said and threw in a charming wink for good measure.

I laughed and pinched his arse before sashaying past him into the Hall, the spring back in my step. I reckoned that I'd do anything he wanted to do with me at this point, so desperate I was to soak up as much of his presence as possible. And could anyone really blame me? Why wouldn't I want to spend as much time as possible with Sirius, especially when I fancied him so much?