Chapter 9.

"I really don't understand how you walk in these," he said, motioning to the heels he was carrying. "The look like deathtraps."

Beth laughed, holding onto his arm tighter. "They feel like them," she agreed. "You should try a pair on one day."

"Oh, I have no doubt that I would look exquisite in them," Sirius replied. "I just wouldn't dare to put my feet through this torture."

If he was being honest with himself, this wasn't how he saw the night ending. Sure, before they had arrived at the wedding, he'd been hoping that this is how it would end, with her cuddled up next to him and the assurance that this very much was a date established. However, he'd be lying if he said that he wasn't excited by the idea of the several beautiful women practically throwing themselves at him, especially that bridesmaid (what was her name again?). He'd been thrilled when Beth had given him the all-clear to chase after them, convincing himself that he wouldn't ever have been able to persuade her anyway. He'd followed the bridesmaid eagerly, finding himself enraptured by her vivaciousness and life.

And yet, something hadn't felt right. He'd loved dancing with her, enjoyed feeling her arms wrap around him tightly, and hadn't come close to complaining when she'd traced her hands down the length of his body. There had been something wrong, though, and no matter how hard he'd tried to shake it away, the feeling remained.

He'd looked over at Beth multiple times, wishing she would make eye contact with him. If she gave him even the hope of a smile, he'd run over to her immediately. Her insistence that she wasn't a good dancer could be thwarted with enough determination, he decided, even if it meant physically picking her up and taking her to the dance floor. He'd wanted her there with him, wanted to have her laugh ringing in his ears as he twirled her around. He'd wanted her to come back to James' high on exhilaration and life, and for her smile to stay intently on her face. He'd wanted her to agree that absolutely yes, this was a date, and could they please go on another one very soon.

He'd wanted her to see the possibility of them.

But more and more girls kept coming over, and his attention shifted to the people in front of him. He'd smirked greedily as they came over, felt his ego puff up to an uncontrollable high, and danced wholeheartedly with any who was interested. He'd tried to keep count of the different people, wanting to surprise James with how many he danced with tonight, but he quickly lost track. Captivated by their presence, he let his mind drift away from Beth and onto the people in front of him.

All would have continued just the same, too, had Caitlin not pulled him aside.

Not even bothering to introduce herself, she'd immediately said, "Go dance with Beth."

"I tried to," he'd responded, holding up a finger to tell one of the girls to wait. "She said she didn't want to."

"Okay, well I just talked to her and asked what she'd say if you asked her again, and she said she would," Caitlin had declared.

His gaze had immediately went to Beth. She was sitting by herself, picking at a flower she had taken from the centerpiece. A grin had escaped his face as he took in the sight. "She said that?"

"Yes," Caitlin had assured him. "She tried to play it off like she wasn't interested in you, and I think that if you stay here amongst all these girls, the interest will eventually fade. But if you go to her right now," she'd said, turning to look at Beth as well, "I think it could lead to something very promising."

The bandleader had announced that they were going to change the pace slightly with a slower song as her statement finished. Caitlin had grabbed his arm in an instant. "Now is your moment," she'd said. "Are you going to take it?"

Sirius had looked back towards Beth with a sudden spark of hope, nodding to the bride standing next to him. He'd taken a step forward, ready to cross over to her, when he'd turned around and said, "Have I seen you somewhere before?"

Caitlin had rolled her eyes. "Yes, I was standing at the end of the altar next to the bridesmaid you were making eyes at. Now go!"

And so he had. He'd whisked her out into the dance floor, holding her close for the remainder of the song and asking her to stay when it finished. She'd bit her lip nervously, reminding him that she wasn't a good dancer, but Sirius had simply denied it and spun her around. She'd quickly proved herself to be a marvelous dancer, and Sirius made sure to tell her as often as possible. He'd denied every other girl that came up to him asking for a dance, replying every time, "Sorry, it's time I spent some time with my date." Beth had smirked and stated that it wasn't a date each time, but Sirius saw that her resolve was slowly chipping away.

They didn't part from each other the rest of the evening. They had talked, they had laughed, and they had danced like no one was watching. When it came time to leave, Beth grabbed his arm without a thought, holding onto it tightly. He hadn't even tried to hide back his grin at her action, the response encouraging him to wrap his hand around hers. That was how they had left: arm in arm, hand in hand, and both smiling ridiculously.

That was why, only a few feet away from James' flat, he had slowed his pace, unable and unwilling to let the night end yet. James, Remus, and Peter were expecting him, he knew, and he made himself promise that he wouldn't be too long, but the thought of pulling himself away from her suddenly seemed impossible. He would greedily take every moment he could with her, right up until the last second, and would apparate over to his friends. The full moon was here, and despite their being out of Hogwarts for well over a year now, the Marauders still met up every month to help keep their friend safe. But right now, this moment belonged to him.

"Are you staying here tonight, or are you actually going home?" Beth asked, bringing his thoughts back to the person standing next to him.

"Well, that depends," he teased, slowing their pace a little more. "What would you rather have me do?"

Beth shook her head, but he saw the traces of a smile forming. "Why do I have a feeling that my opinion wouldn't matter?"

"Because you're very intelligent," he responded, squeezing her hand slightly. "But no, I'm joining James tonight. Remus is sick."

"Oh no." Beth scrunched her face up with worry and glanced at him. "Is he okay?"

Sirius bit back a laugh. Oh, Beth, if only you knew. "He'll be fine," he stated. "It happens more frequently than you'd expect."

"Isn't there anything a doctor can do?"

Sirius shook his head. "Unfortunately, no. All we can do is band together whenever it happens. He gets pretty moody, too, so only the best of the best can stand to be around him."

"Is there anything I can do?" Beth offered.

They made it to the entrance, though Sirius kept a firm hold on Beth's hand. "For someone you haven't even met yet?"

Beth laughed, nodding her head in agreement. "Well, according to James and Lily, we're going to be married. I might as well meet him at his worst."

Sirius shook his head. "You're not going to marry him."

Beth leaned up against the door, their hands still joined together. Sirius began to battle her fingers with his own, teasingly entwining and removing them repeatedly. "I'm not?" Beth asked.

"Absolutely not," he confirmed, still battling with her. "You can't get married to him after such a marvelous date with me."

"Ah, well see," Beth began, bringing her other hand up to point at him. Sirius quickly grabbed it and continued his actions on both of her hands. She smiled and continued, "I'm still not convinced that this was a date."

"And why not?" he questioned. "Did me leaving to dance with that bridesmaid somehow convince you that I wasn't interested?"

He watched as Beth smiled at his tease, bringing her gaze to their joined hands. "Why did you come back?"

Sirius looked right at her, though she didn't look up to meet his eyes. "You could have stayed with her, or any other girl for that matter. I wouldn't have minded." She looked back up at him, ceasing the teasing of their hands and moving to stroke it with her thumb instead. "What made you come back?"

Sirius took in her gaze, steady but unsure, anxiously awaiting his reply. Smiling gently down at her, he replied, "The chance to have this moment with you."

Beth rolled her eyes, obviously believing that it was a line he'd used before, but before she could accuse him of it, he squeezed her hand. "Beth, I have to leave soon," he began, looking towards the large moon above them, "but before I leave, I have to tell you something."

"Ah," Beth said, leaning up against the door and crossing her arms. "I was wondering when this was going to come up. Go on and ask me whether this was a date or not."

Holding onto his Gryffindor courage, he took a small step closer to her, watching as her breath slightly hitched. The action gave him a small boost of confidence, and, clearing his throat, he began.

"Beth, before I ask you anything, before any answer is given, before any of this continues, I have to say this. No matter what you decide, I had a truly wonderful time with you tonight." She went to speak, but he held up his hand, silently asking her to wait. "I know you said that none of this was a date, and I know that it will take a lot to convince you that it was, and I know we didn't start out on the right foot, and I know I'm loud and brash and exhausting, but I need you to believe me when I say with absolute sincerity that you look and are entirely breathtaking."

"Sirius," Beth whispered, closing her eyes.

He gently placed his hands on either side of her face, stroking her hair slightly. She looked up at him, and Sirius nearly groaned at the look of expectation she gave him. "You are. I've thought so since the moment I met you."

Sirius felt a hand softly grasp his wrist as she looked up at him. "Sirius," she repeated, slightly more confident than the last time.

He didn't let her continue, however, simply lowered slightly to look right at her, his hands staying where they were. "I know you're only here for a couple of months," he said, never breaking eye contact. "I know you're only here to see James get married and to finish your bloody internship. I know that those are the reasons you're going to give me for not pursuing this, but Beth, you cannot deny that there's something between us."

She shook her head slightly, and Sirius found himself suddenly worried that he had misinterpreted everything. Steeling his gaze, he waited expectantly for her to respond, praying to everything holy that she would respond affirmatively.

"No," she finally said, taking her eyes away from him. "I can't deny it."

He breathed out a silent sigh of relief, moving to stand directly over her again. "Then why try to fight it?" he asked. "Why try to fight something we both want?"

"It's not a good idea," she said, bringing her gaze back to meet his.

"It's a great idea," he countered, not caring that his argument was pathetic. "A summer entirely for us. Think about how wonderful it could be."

She shook her head again. "I'm not looking for anything serious."

He let a grin release, and he couldn't help but notice the twinkle in her eye that followed it. "You're not looking for anything serious, or you're not looking for anything, Sirius?" he said, motioning towards himself. "Because the way I see it, one gives us at least the summer and is exactly what I'm suggesting, and the other makes me immensely worried that you'll be smart and end up with Remus anyway."

She smiled at his comment about Remus, stroking his hand again. "What do you mean, exactly what you're suggesting?"

"I mean that you'll want some fun when you come back from work and James won't always be there," he explained. "Why not let me step in?"

"There's no need for any romantic entanglements for that, though," Beth pointed out. "Why not just agree to be my friend?"

"Because you want this too," he whispered. His eyes flicked down to her lips for a moment, and he noticed, not for the first time, how soft they looked. Prying his eyes away from them, he looked back at her face, watching as his words sank in. He swallowed heavily, anticipation flowing through every part of him. "You want someone to wrap your arms around, someone to hold tightly to you, someone who will willingly help you take the stress off from a rough day. And me? I like snogging attractive girls."

Beth chuckled, and slowly brought a hand up to rest on his chest. Sirius sucked in a breath at her touch, but noticed that she was also creating more distance between them. "I probably won't want to go past that," she stated.

"I'd never force you to do anything you weren't comfortable with," he assured her. "I was raised a gentleman."

"That's debatable," she teased, biting her lip as her smile widened. He saw it only through his peripheral vision, but it was still enough to set him on edge. He forced himself to focus solely on her, hoping that the end reward would be worth the struggle.

"Don't you see?" he asked. "We get along splendidly, we always see each other, and we're both astoundingly beautiful. Everything between us will be easy, comfortable, and fun. If you happen to meet someone that you believe is more bewitching than I am—which won't happen—then you see them. Extend the same courtesy to me, and we'll have the best summer imaginable."

"I don't know, Sirius."

"What's stopping you?"

She was silent for a moment, simply staring at him. "I don't know."

Sirius slowly leaned his forehead against hers, closing his eyes at the proximity. "I might know a way to convince you," he whispered. He felt his breath warm her skin, and heard her sigh gently as he slowly began to bring his face closer to hers. "If you tell me to stop, I will."

She didn't.

The second his lips touched hers, he felt a jolt of electricity race through him. The feeling was overwhelmingly beautiful, and it didn't take long for her to respond to him. She wrapped one arm around his neck, sliding her other hand up from his chest to his cheek as he grabbed her waist and her back, pressing her as closely to him as possible. Encouraged by her actions, he ran his tongue around the seam of the lips he had been staring at so diligently earlier, not even bothering to hide the groan that escaped when she opened her mouth to him.

He'd snogged plenty of women during his days at Hogwarts, though James would always insist that it was a lie. He'd even managed to steal one from Marlene a couple of weeks ago, though that one was the product of adrenaline and a worry that they wouldn't return from their last mission from the Order. This, though, this was unlike any kiss he had ever received. Unlike the conversation they had before this, Beth was not shy to extract what she wanted, and he shivered as she demanded dominance over their kiss. It spoke of years worth of sexual tension rather than a mere two weeks, and as he tilted his head to the other side for better access, he had an overwhelming feeling that she felt it too.

They continued like that a few moments more, hands exploring, heads moving, hearts pounding, before the need to breathe became too much for them. Sirius pulled back only slightly, returning his forehead to rest on hers again. She was breathing heavily, but a smile, her smile, was back, and Sirius decided it was the second best thing he'd ever seen her lips do.

"So," Sirius said, his head remaining on hers. "Was this a date?"

"No."

Sirius pulled back instantly, confused and bewildered. "No?"

Beth giggled, running her fingers down his face in an attempt to calm him down. "No, it wasn't a date. But—"

Sirius didn't give her a moment to respond after he heard the word. He swept down and kissed her again, moving them to press her against the door. He immediately began plundering her mouth, trying with everything he had in him to express how happy he was to hear the word "but". He tore his mouth away from her, wanting to start peppering small kisses all over her face, but she turned her head from him, giggling again.

"But—" she said, forcing him to look at her. "If you were to ask me on a real one, I wouldn't say no."

He instantly grabbed her hands and hastened to make eye contact with her, the words, "Bethwillyoupleasegoonadatewithme" coming out quicker than he realized (though he did notice her reply coming just as quickly).

After several minutes of an intense "thank you" kiss had passed, he stared down at her. Her face was flushed, her lips were swollen, and he had no doubt he looked just the same. This will be wonderful to explain to James, he thought. He brought one hand up to cup her cheek, stroking it slightly. "I have to go," he complained. "Tell me to stay."

Beth leaned up and kissed him softly once more, wrapping her arms around his neck to give him a warm hug. "Go take care of your friend," she said, holding him closely to her. "I promise, I'll be waiting."

A/N: I've missed you all! I'm so sorry it's taken me this long to post another chapter. I can't promise that it won't happen again, but I will try my hardest to update more frequently.

Nimblescrivener, what would I do without you? You're the absolute best.

Up next, Beth meets Remus and they talk about the date she had with Sirius. Do you think it went well?