Wow.
That was Sirius Black's first thought when he saw her. She was...beautiful.
Sirius felt his articulacy sweeping away from him as he gazed at her tall, thin,
loveliness. Her hair was shimmering black with faint reddish highlights. When she
turned his way, he saw that her eyes were a brilliant blue.
She looked at him curiously. With a start, Sirius realized that he was staring at
her with his mouth hanging open. He shut it. She giggled and turned back to the
stage, listening to the blaring music.
Sirius collected himself as best he could and strolled casually over to The
Goddess, as he had begun to call her in his mind. He adjusted his black leather
jacket and ran a hand over his hair. As good as it's gonna get, he thought to
himself.
He continued his walk and reached the small table where she was sitting. He
carefully looked around, pretending to have accidentally meandered over to her.
"Hey," said a sweet voice below him.
He quickly looked at her, feigning surprise. "Oh, hello!" he said, flashing her
his classic Sirius smile. He had made several girls faint by smiling at them like
that. She, however, simply smiled back. "I'm Sirius, Sirius Black," he told her.
She lifted an eyebrow. "Serious?
He laughed a little. "No, Sirius, as in the Dog Star. The brightest star in the sky," He couldn't help adding with another smile. "And what might your name be?"
"Star," she said. "Just Star."
"Then I fear I must take back my last comment. I am not the brightest star in
the sky."
A/N: Yes, my name is also Star, but this Star is not me. I picked the name because I thought of the above line one time and it sparked this story. Can't you just see Sirius saying that? Hehe ^_^.
She giggled. "Are you new here? I don't think I've seen you before."
"I'm not from around here but I'm meeting some friends."
"Oh," she said.
Just then, a familiar voice called out to Sirius, "PADFOOT!"
He whipped around. There was James, grinning broadly. Sirius felt his own
face break into a smile. "PRONGS!" he yelled back.
James pushed through the crowd and reached Sirius. The two embraced,
looked at each other, realized they were hugging in public and quickly let go.
Star laughed.
The two looked down at her, sitting at the small table. Sirius had temporarily forgotten she was there.
"Um, James this is Star, Star this is James Potter," he introduced them.
"Pleased to meet you James," she said, her eyes twinkling as she stood up
and put out her hand.
" Pleased to meet you as well, " he said, shaking the offered hand and
shooting Sirius a look.
Sirius looked steadily back, "We just met," he said curtly. James grinned at
him. Star laughed.
"You two are quite the couple."
Before either could respond, Remus came inside the building. Peering through people(he was a bit shorter than Sirius and James) he spotted his friends.
Sirius saw him at the same time. "MOONY!" he yelled out.
Remus smiled as he reached his friends, 'Padfoot," he said in his quiet voice,
raised just enough to be heard over the music.
"Hey, Moony! What took you so long!" greeted James.
"I got held up a bit. Apparating makes me a little ill," he said apologetically, smiling.
"Aren't you going to introduce us?" asked Star.
"Where have my manners gone?" said Sirius.
"The one's you never had?" said James.
Sirius continued as if he hadn't heard him. "Remus this is Star. Star, Remus
Lupin."
Remus smiled and shook her hand courteously. "Pleased to meet you, Star."
He paused and looked at Sirius, catching his eye. He glanced back and forth
between Star and Sirius.
Sirius shook his head. "Geez! What is with you two! Any girl I talk to and you
assume I'm sleeping with her!" he exclaimed.
"Well, Sirius, if you didn't do it on such a regular basis, perhaps we wouldn't."
said Remus, for once in his life bluntly. James giggled.
Sirius sighed. Star laughed, a light, faerie-like laugh(at least in Sirius's mind).
"What?" he asked.
"Nothing," she said, "Nothing at all."
Remus snickered, quietly. "Oh, great, not you too." said Sirius, somewhat
half-heartedly. All four looked down at the tiny table and then looked at each
other.
"Hmmm," said James, "I suppose we'd best find a bigger table then."
The others nodded their agreement and they set off, somewhat slowly owing
to the crowd. They came upon a miraculously empty table and settled themselves around it. All but Star.
She looked around at the three of them and said tentatively, "Should I go? I
mean, you guys have obviously known each other for a long time and you did
come to meet each other..." She trailed off.
"Stay," said Remus, startling Sirius and James. "We'd love to have you."
She smiled at him sweetly, "Thanks."
Sirius glared at Remus, jealously, who smirked. The band came down off the stage and
the announcer told the crowd that they were taking a break. The room was filled
with only the low muttering sound of many voices talking at once. Then someone
turned on the stereo and music once again blared.
"Where's Peter?" questioned Sirius, who seemed to have regained his
composure and was at least hiding his resentment at Remus for getting smiled at
by Star.
"Said he couldn't make it," James said, "Something came up." His tone was
slightly skeptical.
"You scared him away James," cut in Sirius, "Do you never bathe? I'm
surprised Lily can stand it." James smacked Sirius lightly upside the head but
Sirius continued as though it hadn't happened. "Where is Lily anyway? I thought
you two came as a set."
James and Lily had gotten married about 6 months ago("Finally," as Sirius put
it, "We all knew they were going to get married since 4th year.") and had been
virtually inseparable. Rarely was the name James said without Lily coming soon after, and vice versa.
"Lily," said James. "is feeling ill."
Remus looked pointedly at him, his eyebrows raised. James gazed levelly
back, nodding ever so slightly. Remus's face broke into a big grin that even Sirius
noticed.
"What?" he asked. Remus and James ignored him and continued to smile
quietly to themselves. "What?" Sirius asked again. James recovered from his
smile the quickest.
"So, Star. Where are you from?" he asked, continuing to ignore Sirius.
"I've lived here most of my life, "she said, "Except for when I was at school."
"Where did you go?" asked Sirius.
"Hogwarts."
"Then why didn't I ever see you?!" he asked. "When did you graduate?" She
told him. "That's the same year we graduated! What house were you in?"
"Ravenclaw," she replied, "You?"
James cut in. "We were all in Gryffindor," he said, indicating the three of them
with his hand.
"I think I've heard of you!" Star said suddenly. "The Marauders!"
"Our reputation still stands!" exclaimed Sirius with a grin.
"No one's beat our record yet!" said James, high-fiving Sirius.
"Record?" asked Star curiously.
"The number of detentions gotten while at Hogwarts," explained Remus. "It
wasn't easy." he said, smiling.
"Don't YOU go on about it not being easy." said James. "YOU got out of half of them!"
"Why was that?" asked Star.
The three were suddenly silent. Sirius and James looked at Remus guiltily
while he calmly said, "I got sick a lot." (Not the best answer, but it was his standard.)
"Ah," said Star, clearly knowing there was more to it as well as knowing not to press the topic as they obviously were not eager to discuss it.
She made an attempt to get the conversation going again. "So, who's Lily?"
It appeared that she'd said the right thing, they all perked up. Sirius spoke up before James could say anything. "His wife," he said proudly, as though it was an accomplishment of his. "They've been going out since 3rd year. They only got married six months ago." and his tone grew slightly disgusted, "three years after we graduated."
James blushed, and Remus's knowing smile returned. "Would you stop that!" exclaimed Sirius.
"Stop what?" asked Remus innocently.
"That smiling thing!"
"What, I'm not allowed to smile?"
"You know something that you're not telling me!" Sirius cried. James giggled. "You too!" said Sirius.
"Should we tell him James?" asked Remus.
"Maybe we should wait for Lily to be here…"
"Would you tell me already!" yelled Sirius.
James gave in. "Alright, alright," he said. "Lily," he began proudly. "Is…" he stopped, blushed, and seemed unable to continue.
Remus sighed exasperatedly and said, "Lily and James are going to have a baby, Sirius."
Sirius stared at him. He seemed incapable of speech. Slowly, he turned to James, looking at him incredulously. "Y-y-you," he stuttered.
James grinned at his friend's discomposure. "Yeah," he said somewhat shyly.
"You're going to be a, a father?"
James nodded. "And you are going to be a godfather." He said bluntly.
"I'm going to be a what?!"
"You don't want to be a godfather?" asked James.
Sirius seemed to be attempting to collect himself. "Of course I want to! It's just…wow."
Remus laughed. Star giggled. James grinned. Sirius stood up, grabbed James by the hand, and pulled him to his feet. He wrapped him in a tight hug, this time with no hint of embarrassment.
Sitting down again, Sirius, though almost completely recovered, seemed to still be a bit shocked. "I'm going to be a godfather," he said, as though willing himself to believe it.
The announcer was telling the crowd that the band was leaving the stage. With a start, Sirius realized that they had come back on stage without him even noticing. From the looks of his friends, neither had they. James glanced at his watch. "It's getting late. Have to be getting home."
"Yeah, me too. I've got stuff to do tomorrow." said Sirius.
"Um, Sirius?" began Remus embarrassedly. "Could I perhaps stay at your place tonight?"
Sirius looked at Remus kindly. "Sure, Moony. No problem." He turned to Star. "You have anywhere to go?" he asked.
She looked at him curiously. "Why?"
He blushed. "No, no," he said hastily. "I just meant that, well, it seems like fewer and fewer people have a house to go home to. A family…" he trailed off.
"Voldemort," she said quietly.
All four of the group looked down.
"Actually, I'd really appreciate it," said Star unexpectedly.
"Great!" said Sirius with fake cheerfulness. "The more the merrier!"
Remus caught Star's eye and gave her a small, encouraging smile. The four started toward the door, allowing themselves to be carried along with the flow of the leaving crowd.
Outside, the cool, evening air flowed over them, a faint hint of the coming summer evident on the air. James pulled his wand out of a pocket.
"Bye, guys," he said, giving first Remus and then Sirius a quick hug. "It was great seeing you. Come visit us some time! Lily would love to see you again."
"Sounds great! See ya, Prongs!" said Sirius.
"Bye!" said Remus.
James gave them a quick smile and a wave and disapperated. Sirius looked in the direction of his motorcycle, which was parked nearby. Then he looked at Remus and Star. "Hmmm," he said thoughtfully. "Well, I'd like to think that she could carry three, but I don't think it's worth the risk."
"A Muggle motorcycle?" said Star skeptically.
"It flies," said Remus bluntly.
Sirius gave him a hurt look. "It pains me to hear you describe her like that, Moony. But Star, he is right. And technically it is a Muggle motorcycle, but I've bewitched it to fly. Remus, you can apparate to my place, right?" He was feeling a bit concerned, the full moon had been only two days ago.
Remus gave him a look that plainly said he was feeling all right. "Yes."
"So that leaves you and me," he said, turning to Star.
She looked at him skeptically again, faint, but growing fear evident on her face. "I've never ridden a motorcycle before."
"That's alright, I have. All you have to do is hold on," said Sirius confidently.
Remus came up behind her and whispered quietly, "Just hold on really, really tight and keep your eyes closed."
She turned to see him smiling with gentle encouragement. "You've done this before?" she whispered back, while Sirius tapped at an almost invisible tear in his jacket, fixing it.
"If I can survive it," said Remus, "anyone can. I never was very good on a broomstick either; fear of heights."
Sirius looked up. "You ready to go?" he asked. "We've wasted enough time already." He seemed eager to be flying.
"See you soon, Padfoot," said Remus, and disappeared(or disapperated, to be precise).
"Milady," said Sirius, bowing deeply to Star and gesturing towards the motorcycle. Star giggled and stepped forward. Sirius handed her a helmet which had just appeared out of the air and climbed onto the bike. She nervously climbed on behind him, wrapping her arms around his waist, secretely enjoying it. With a roar, the motorcycle came to life, soaring into the air.
Star gasped accidentally, and attempted to stifle anymore such giveaways that she was terrified out of her mind. She wouldn't admit it to anyone, but secretly she did like, as in like like Sirius. She smiled to herself, for a moment forgetting that she was flying through the air.
Sirius smiled into the wind. He loved flying. Exhilaration poured into him from the motorcycle, the wind, the tie-dyed sunset sky, the universe. Life was sweet when he was flying. He felt Star tighten her grip around his waist. He laughed.
Star opened her eyes for a moment, forgetting Remus's advice. She gasped, this time not out of fear, but awe. The setting sun splashed the sky with colors; blue, lavender, pink, orange, yellow, green. The wind whipped her long, ebony hair back. "Wow," she whispered, giving herself up completely to the thrill of flight.
All too soon, they were at Sirius's home. A relatively small house, it was enough for him, as Sirius put it. A light was on inside, it seemed Remus had gotten in by himself. Sirius helped Star off the bike and sent it off to the shed where he kept it with a flick of his wand.
Silently, he went inside, Star following. Lights glowed from the walls, filling the house with a warm light. Glancing quickly around, Sirius saw that Remus had fallen fast asleep on the couch in the living room. Sirius smiled lovingly(A/N: *beating S/R shippers off with a stick*); his friends truly did mean everything to him.
Star came in behind him, saying, "Sirius-."
He cut her off with a nod towards Remus. She smiled her understanding and went over to the kitchen. Sirius walked quietly over to Remus and slowly pulled down a blanket from the back of the back of the couch. Gently, he covered Remus, who moved slightly, and made a small noise.
He turned to find Star leaning on the doorframe, smiling.
"Hey," she said softly. In her head, she was thinking how absolutely adorable Sirius was. There was nothing like seeing a guy caught in a moment of tenderness.
He grinned somewhat embarrassedly. "Ello." She continued to watch him smiling; with a start, he realized that he was doing the same. "So," he said, trying to pretend he hadn't been, "Looks like Moony's staked out the couch, so you're stuck with the extra room." He smiled.
She stepped to the side so he could pass. He started up the stairs, her following close behind. Coming to the top of the short staircase, he turned to the right, facing a door. He opened it and stepped back, bowing slightly and stretching out his arm, in the manner of a servant.
She stepped inside to see a small, but adequate room. Sirius waved his wand at a dresser and muttered something to himself. She looked at him curiously.
"Clothes," he said simply. "Um, bed, clothing, bathroom down the hall and to the left, food in the kitchen… Anything else you need, just ask."
"Seems just fine to me," she said.
"Well, good night then," said Sirius.
Star laughed and said, "Thanks, Sirius."
A/N Ok, so it just stops. I know, I know… But I can't write anymore! I swear! It refuses to go anywhere! L But I've seen soooo many unfinished stories on FF.N, that I figure I can post this much now, and continue it later, when the plot slaps me in the face. It will, too J. This could take days, this could take weeks, this could take months, it could take YEARS for all I know. If you really like this story, you probably want to kill me. If you hate this story, you are probably relieved that I am a horrible procrastinator. *grins* I certainly do enjoy rambling. Oh, and any flames will be used to toast marshmellows for s'mores. That sounds really good right now…
~Star~
Oh, yeah, Disclaimer: I own Star, a couple of other things(I think) and everything else belongs to the goddess, J.K. Rowling.