~*~ The Secret Life Of Sirius Black ~*~
~Dig in
~And take the time
~To find
~Something worthwhile
~About me
~Go ahead
~And look inside
~And see
~Something worth knowing
~About me
~So much
~For you to learn
~To know
~To understand and take me
~Seriously [Sirius-ly]
Sirius Black intrigued me. There was something about him, that, no matter what he did, how much he annoyed you or how much you wanted to hate him, you really couldn't help liking him. Because Sirius Black was a likable person.
He was funny, for example. I would bet my money on it that any story that involved Sirius had at least a little humour to it. I can tell you right now that I know every Sirius/serious joke in the book. With someone else I'd probably get sick of it, but it just never grew old with Sirius.
'Hey, I'm not joking about this. I'm serious.'
I mean, the moment one of us said that you could see everyone just waiting for Sirius to throw out something along the lines of, 'No you're not, I'm Sirius.' And it was funny every time.
I can understand why everyone seems to think Sirius doesn't take things seriously. But this isn't true. I happen to know that there are five things he takes very seriously: food, girls, pranks, annoying Snape, abusing Malfoy, and his friends. In that order.
And I'm sorry, but no matter how much McGonagall raves on that Sirius really needs to stop wasting time and study, she can't deny the fact that he is top of his class. Alongside James, that is.
Anyhow, no matter how much of a lovable person Sirius was, I was finding it very hard to tolerate him this particular evening. 'Sirius, stop it,' I said absent mindedly.
The week had passed since I had gone to stay at the Potter's, and I was back home. I'd had a really great time. The Potters went all out at Christmas, and had the whole traditional thing. Trees, snow, yule logs, stockings. And the food! It almost rivaled Hogwarts.
But anyway, Sirius had somehow convinced me into having a New Years party. And I had amazingly somehow convinced my mother. So we invited a few people: Sirius, James, Hilary, April, April's boyfriend Matt, Bella, Joey, René and Melody, David - Bella's cousin that was staying with them, but was coming late because of one reason or another, Peter - but he was busy, and three other friends of mine - Avril, Imogen and Tristan. Remus was possibly not coming, but he'd said he'd try. The party was scheduled for seven, and it was four. We still had to organise food.
Sirius was sitting cross-legged on the floor, doing whatever he could in his power to aggravate my cat. Storm Shadow was mewing pitifully.
'Sirius, leave him alone.'
'He loves it.'
'No, he doesn't. Leave him alone.'
Shadow hissed as if in agreement, and ran to stand at my feet, arching his back and flicking his tail angrily. I reached down and patted him behind the ears. He purred and looked at Sirius smugly in triumph.
'Aw, is that Sirius annoying my poor little Shadow?' I cooed. Shadow rubbed up against my legs in approval of the attention I was giving him before slinking off into the shadow being cast by the staircase. Sirius gaped at him as he disappeared from sight.
'He just disappeared!' he exclaimed.
'I know. He has the gift of stealth, Sirius. He can fade into shadows,' I said matter-of-factly.
'He has the gift of stealth, Sirius. He can fade into shadows,' Sirius mimicked in a girly voice. I rolled my eyes and chose to ignore him.
'What are we going to have to eat?' I asked. My mum was upstairs having a sleep, and had left a note saying that if we wanted to bake anything the stuff was in the kitchen. Otherwise we could order in. 'Just do pizza or something,' Bella called from her position on the floor. She was wrestling with Hilary.
At that moment in time, I had Hilary, Bella, James and Sirius over. I was expecting Joey at any minute. They had all offered to help with the organisation.
'Do you want dessert or anything?'
'A cake!' Sirius called gleefully as he chased Storm Shadow around the Christmas tree.
'Meringue!' James argued. I rolled my eyes. If there was one thing I had learnt from staying with the Potters, it was that James Harold Potter loved meringue.
'Scones,' Bella insisted. 'They're easy, and that way you can have them in a basket or something and people can just grab them when they feel like it.'
'Cool. Um, we should start now, to allow some time for, er, mishaps,' I said delicately, trying not to look at Sirius. But I think he got what I was getting at anyway, because he narrowed his eyes at me and poked his tongue out. 'Right back atcha, Siri.'
'I'll have you know I am a great cook.'
This was where I wasn't sure whether or not to trust him. Hilary and James I knew for sure couldn't cook, because they had magic to do everything they needed, and were waited on twenty four seven anyway. But Sirius lived with muggles. For all I knew, he could have been the next Jamie Oliver.
Just then, the doorbell rang.
'Joey's here!' I cried, jumping over Hilary and Bella to get to the door. I opened it breathlessly.
'Hey,' I breathed.
'Hi,' she said, stepping inside. I gave her the once over.
Joey had definitely changed since I had last seen her before school started. Just a few small changes, but they were there. For one, she was wearing designer jeans, a black tank and a mahogany fur coat. A couple of months ago you wouldn't have seen Joey in anything more look-good than a unicorn t-shirt and some worn-out slacks. The old Joey Taylor wouldn't have bothered with make up, either, yet I noticed that she was wearing eyeshadow and lip gloss. And I think it was the first time I had ever seen Joey without her trademark ponytail. Her hair was up in a clip.
'Looking good, girl. Has the good old unicorn been replaced?' I laughed as we walked into the kitchen.
'That old thing? I got rid of it just after you left.'
I raised an eyebrow, but said no more.
'We're in the kitchen!' James called.
'Oh no,' I muttered, and dared to look around the doorway. Bella and Hilary were in hysterics while Sirius was parading an apron and chef hat. The sight was rather amusing. James was sitting on the floor looking extremely guilty.
And the room was covered in flour.
'My mum's kitchen!' I gasped. 'How did you guys make that kind of mess in five minutes?'
'Lily, we're talking about Sirius Black and James Potter here,' Hilary said dryly. 'Hey, Joey,' she added.
'Hey,' Joey replied with a smile.
'James did that, not me!' Sirius protested firmly, folding his arms. I slowly let my gaze wander over to lock James's. My own arms crossed slowly over my chest.
'Uh... sorry?' he offered.
'I should think so! James, look at this place!'
'Take some chill pills, Lily. It'll be cleaned up in no time,' Joey said coolly. James's eyes broke away from mine to meet Joey's. Mine, on the other hand, narrowed in amusement as I watched the look the two shared. They had a thing for each other!
Hiding my smile, I kicked James lightly with my foot.
'Out,' I sighed, pointing to the door. He stood up and dusted himself off. As he walked past, I grabbed the shoulder of his shirt.
'She's taken, James, and so are you,' I warned quietly.
'OK,' Joey said. 'What now?'
'We cook,' I replied.
'Who's doing what?' Joey asked, opening the pantry door to search for ingredients.
'You can leave the scones up to me and Sirius. He knows what he's doing,' Hilary said seriously.
'Are we talking about the same Sirius Black here?' I asked. 'What do you take me for?'
'Relax, Lily. He'll surprise you. He certainly shocked me.'
Half an hour later, Hilary and Sirius had finished the scones and were waiting for them to cook. Meanwhile, Joey, Bella and I were still working in the kitchen. In silence.
'So how's Sam, Jo?' I asked. Joey looked up at me in surprised. I could tell he had been the last thing on her mind when James had been around. 'Huh? Oh, great. He's been heaps nicer. It's like a totally different person.'
I nodded as the awkwardness settled in again. It was really starting to bug me. Just then, one of the worst possible things that could have happened occurred. Bella blew up the oven. While Joey's cakes were inside.
Do not ask me how exactly Bella blew up the oven, but she did. And the one thing I knew was that there would be no hope whatsoever of salvaging those cakes which, might I add, Joey had been very proud of.
So we all froze. Me, with my hands in a pile of dough, waiting for the claws to come out. Joey, washing some dishes, staring in surprise at Bella and the oven. And Bella, sitting on her backside in front of the oven in shock, her face smeared with black.
And then something unexpected happened.
Joey began to laugh.
It started out as a small giggle, then slowly grew louder, until she had to lean on the bench for support. And it wasn't mean, or cruel, it was a warm, happy laugh. And it caught on.
Bella and I took one look at each other and joined in. Soon, all three of us were on the floor, faces smudged with flour. We were laughing so loud that Hilary, James and Sirius came in to see what was going on. We even woke up my mum.
But inwardly, I breathed a great sigh of relief. Because I thought my two best friends had just taken the first step to accepting each other.
* * *
Sirius Black, as I discovered, wasn't entirely incapable of being serious. For example, he was surprisingly precise with his cooking. I had expected a big mess and at least half a dozen explosions and small fires. But what had I gotten? Nothing. Sure, the kitchen had been covered in flour, but that was courtesy of James Potter. And I know now to never let Bella near an oven. In fact, I learnt a lot about my friends that afternoon. But Sirius most of all.
Take his pranking. Did you know that he actually takes the time to draft all his prank ideas and plot out maps and so on? I didn't. I'd just thought it came to him naturally. Which it obviously does, but it just proves that all talents take work I suppose.
And you never would have picked it - but Sirius Black had done ballet lessons. Yeah - three things I learnt about Sirius that I had never known before and that had shocked me were that, the fact that he was scared of the dark and that he knew 'The Far Away Tree' off by heart. (I mean, Sirius? Read? Maybe he hired a tape.)
He was also, as I quickly found out, very good at getting people to loosen up.
My eyes wandered around the room.
It was party time. James was talking to my friend Avril, and looked a little uncomfortable. I was guessing she was asking about where he went to school. That was always a tricky one.
I also noticed that my Hogwarts friends, excluding James, were all over one side of the room, whereas my old friends were on the other. So much for my hopes that they'd get to know each other better. Oh well.
'So Lily, how is this new school of yours?' Tristan asked casually, leaning up against the wall next to me.
Tristan was actually more Joey's friend than mine, but we had slowly grown closer over the years and he was a nice enough person to be around, so I'd invited him. And was beginning to be glad I had.
'Oh, it's great. France is awesome.'
'You'll have to teach me French,' he laughed. 'I can't understand anything my teacher says. He's not very good at explaining it.'
'Oh, I actually don't know any French. It's an all-British school, mostly, so I don't need to. The older students learn it, though,' I lied. 'I've still got a few years to go.'
'That's odd,' Tristan laughed. 'So do you get to do any sight seeing?'
'Nup. We have to stay on campus. Which is pretty much this big castle surrounded by fields and forests. I might as well be back in Britain,' I laughed. Tristan smiled.
'Sounds more interesting than Stonewall. Stupid dump that it is,' he sighed rolling his eyes. Seeing Sirius sneaking up on Storm Shadow out of the corner of my eye, I decided that he could use a distraction. And considering that my friends weren't mixing too well, I thought I'd give them a little shove.
'So Tristan, have you read Romeo and Juliet?'
'Yeah, we're doing it in English. I don't get the story though. I think it's way too complicated for our year level.'
'Maybe I should introduce you to my friend Sirius,' I said slowly. I'd have to tread carefully here. I didn't want to sound rude. 'He... er, knows a lot about Romeo and Juliet. He has a way of making sure you never forget it,' I said truthfully, his antics on the train coming to mind.
'Cool,' Tristan shrugged. 'I'm willing to try anything. English isn't a subject I can afford to fail.'
'Oi, Siri! Over here!' I called, just as he was about to ambush Storm Shadow. The cat turned at the noise, and Sirius scowled.
'What?'
'Come here. There's someone I'd like you to meet...'
* * *
The party wasn't as much of a disaster as I'd thought it was going to be. Tristan and Sirius got on pretty well, and Sirius eventually introduced Tristan to James. I was glad that Avril at least was making an effort of talking to people. Joey had been a lot more civil towards Bella since the oven incident, and even that was better than the previous hostility. Things were looking brighter.
About half an hour into the party, the doorbell rang. I made my way to the door, Bella close behind. I opened the door to be met by a tall boy with dark brown curls and large brown eyes.
'Davide!' Bella exclaimed. 'Buonasera!' [David! Good evening!]
'Buonasera, Arabella! Come stai?' [Good evening, Arabella! How are you?]
'Molto bene. E tu?' [Very good. And you?]
'Bene. E come ti chiami?' he asked, gesturing to me. [Good. And what is your name?]
'Questa è la mia amica, Lilianã. Lilianã non parlare la tua lingua.' [This is my friend, Lily. Lily does not speak your language.]
David nodded.
'Buongiorno, Lilianã. Come stai?' he queried. I had no clue what he had just said.
'He's asking how are you,' Bella translated.
'Oh! Good, thank you.'
'Bene, grazie,' she told him. He grinned at me.
'Prego.'
'You're welcome,' Bella converted. 'Lilianã è mia amica di scuola. A abita a Surrey.' [Lily is my friend from school. She lives in Surrey.] To me, she added, 'David goes to a smaller school of magic in Europe called Calberzio. Hogwarts and Beauxbatons are the main two, but there are a few others scattered around the place.'
'Do you like it there?' I asked.
'Tu piache Calberzio?' Bella echoed.
'Si. Io piache molte.'
'Yes, I like it a lot.'
I nodded.
'Does he live in Italy?'
'No, but he used to. They moved here a couple of days ago. He doesn't know much English.'
'Che?' asked David. [What?]
'Tu parlare piccolo inglese,' Bella explained. [You speak little English.]
'Si. Io non parlare inglese bene.'
'He said that he doesn't speak English very well.'
David whispered something to Bella in Italian, laughing. Bella gaped at him.
'Davide! Non appropriato!' she exclaimed. [David! Not appropriate!]
'What did he say?' I asked curiously.
'He said that if all the girls over here look like you, then he's lucky. It would be a country full of sexy girls,' Bella laughed. I blushed and self- consciously tucked a piece of hair behind my ear.
As we spoke, Davide had sat down on my mum's lounge. The lounge my mother never let anyone sit on. I quickly whispered to Bella, who frowned at him.
'Davide, impiede. Non piede giu a la sofa, comprehendo?' [David, stand up! Don't sit down on the couch, understand?]
David laughed.
'Si, cara cousina. Comprehendo.' [Yes, dear cousin. I understand.]
'How old is he?' I asked.
'To tell the truth, I don't really know. Quanti anni hai, Davide?' [How many years (old, are you), David?]
'Tredici.'
'Thirteen,' Bella told me.
I watched in interest as Storm Shadow faded into view and slinked out of the shadows to inspect David. David bent down to pat him.
'Questo che?' [What (who) is this?]
'Questo e un gatto di Lilianã,' Bella replied. [This is Lily's cat.]
'Oh, si. Un gatto piccolo bello.' [Oh, yes. This is a handsome little cat.]
'He likes Storm Shadow. David worked in an animal shelter in Rome. They have so many stray animals over there.'
'Che?' queried David. [What?]
'Tuo lavoro nell casa di animali nell Roma, no, Davide?,' Bella told him. [You worked in a house of animals (animal shelter) in Rome, didn't you, David?]
'Si - molto gatti e molto cani nell Roma. É terrible.' [Yes - many cats and many dogs in Rome. It is terrible.]
'Come into the dining room,' I said, and we all walked back to where everyone else was.
'Oh, you'll have to excuse me a moment,' I said politely after listening to Bella and David conversing in Italian for a few minutes. They nodded, and I left them to themselves.
'Having fun?' asked a voice from behind me. I spun around.
'Remus! You made it! When did you get here?'
'Your mum just let me in. She said she called to you, but the music was up too loud I guess. How's it been?'
'Not as bad as I had expected it to be,' I admitted.
'Lily, if anything that Sirius Black organizes goes down the drain, it goes down in style. That is the one thing you never have to worry about. Sirius would rather eat hippogriff dung than have an unsuccessful party.'
'It's going pretty good,' I said with satisfaction.
'I see James hasn't wasted any time in getting over Paige,' Remus commented. I turned to see Joey and James dancing, grinning broadly at each other.
'And she's taken,' I mused. 'When did James break up with Paige?'
'Just before school finished, actually. His father wasn't very happy.'
'Oh.'
The night ended with a bang - literally. Courtesy of some great bon-bons that had pretty cool prizes for once. Sirius had done it all the muggle way, I might add - I had half expected a visit from the Ministry over some first-rate exposure. Overall, I think everyone had a great time.
Oh yeah, did I mention that Sirius has a hidden talent? He can do the best impersonation of Mickey Mouse mimicking Donald Duck.
It's amazing what you find out when you really get to know someone.
~*~ AUTHOR'S NOTE ~*~
OMG guys sorry this chapter took so long! I feel so bad! OK, thank you to EVERYONE that reviewed - keep it up. You've saved my back for the moment. OK, here's my thank you's. If i missed you, tell me please!
PurpleYin: I don't think there was a war around then, I just invented it. It was sort of a reference to what's going on right now in Iraq, because later on we'll get to see Lily's point of view on the war.
Vanessa: Thank you! I'm glad you like it! Krystal Diamond: He he. G'day Michelle. Certainly didn't expect to see you reading my story! I'll take what you said as a compliment. That was definitely nicer than the review you gave ~Family Portrait~ lol. Then again, Family Portrait is pretty sucky. He he. I'm going to flame one of your stories for revenge! He he he! Muhahaha! MY SUGAR JAR!
Cleabrook: I have one person saying it did count as romance, and another saying it didn't. Oh well. I happen to think they're too young to get together yet. And you LIKED that chapter? I think it was boring. Oh well. That's a good thing, I guess.
SiriDragon: I thought it was cute too :P Laters. Lol.
Candace: Thanx for the tip! Yeps, I got your other review, and tried to email you but you obviously haven't got it. I've posted it down the bottom, k, so just scroll down to read it. My email is hot_sezzy_babe@hotmail.com.
Clearbrook: You never knew that about Merlin's cat cause I made it up, lol! Actually, Merlin's cat was called Mim (in memory of Madam Mim, who Merlin unintentionally killed), and supposedly had the power to change it's shape for short periods of time. Betcha didn't know that, neither! But I reckon Storm Shadow is a better name than Mim. I learnt that in English. (See, I do pay attention to your lectures, Mr McGarr!)
Celine: Yes, there will be a chapter where James meets Petunia. And it is going to be somewhat humorous, I can assure you. As for them being too young, I totally agree.
Tinkerbellhp07: He-he. I reviewed your story. I was actually already reading it before you suggested it, I just was too lazy to review :P. I'm glad you laughed. Laughing is good. I believe laughter is very good. People who don't laugh should. It's something you just have to do to enjoy life. I love making people laugh. He-he. MY SUGAR JAR!
The Elfin Child: I'm allergic to cats. *sigh*
snowflake: This chapter is dedicated to you and your Sirius. Did you like it?
SiriDragon: James's dad turns into an even bigger jackass soon, I promise. And I'll introduce him better later on. Evil character. *shudders*
jodz: I feel very honoured (should i?) I really like where this story is going, too, which is a good sign. Sometimes I lose interest and cut it off quickly, but I have big plans for this one. It's already about seventy pages long and I haven't even finished first year, yet I'm planning to go until her death. Which is no mean feat. I hope I don't lose interest! *crosses fingers* Not now I have too many faithful readers!
SquorpionLady: You'll have to tell me your other fave so I can read it. By the way I love your story! I can't remember the name, but I just know I've read one of your stories that I really liked. Anyway, thanks a lot! And yes, I'm a girl!
Shinning Crystal: OMG thank you for the email and for helping me out. I'm slowly getting over the whole WB thing. And there's no way I'd give up this story just because of it!
MaNa SaMaH: *blushes* Why thank you!
Danimpa: Patience is a virtue! Lol. Sorry I made you guys wait so long. You all rock my world. And I agree they're too long; but they're actually eleven & twelve, not fifteen. Mary: Sorry. They aren't getting together til sixth year. And that's final I'm afraid.
Katelyn: You rule, darling! Thank you for contributing!
Harr`s girl: That's a really nice compliment to get. Thanks!
Moneky-see-monkey-do: I like English, but my opinion is that school work is for school. Can you believe they gave us homework on the holidays? That's just gaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay!
Sam: I'll keep it coming!
LizMaurder4eva: Yep. Definitely one of my fave reviewers!
Jodz: You tell him!
SiriDragon: Mr English teacher's reply: *raised eyebrows and mysterious smile* okaaaaaaay kind of creepy but that's him for you.
Angelxd14: I'm breathing again! I'm breathing!
~Anna Lady Rianna Dragoneye: Thank you for the reviews! Has anyone ever told you how much you rule?
Fanficfan: Thanx a lot! Everyone helped heaps!
¤~*Wish*~¤ :This story's going right until the end when she dies.
Wish Willow Hawkson: Awwwwwww shux!
Paisley: :)
Candy: Thank you for the faithful reviews!
Liat86: They'll get older. They get older every day! Lol.
Elisa-girl: Elisa to the rescue! Yay!
Nellie: Thank you!
Snowflake: Yeah, I do all the poems. You like?
Ok, if you reviewed, and I didn't mention you, I'll mention you next chapter. It's mostly those twenty odd people who helped me with my fifteen reviews. Everyone else will be thanked in the next chap, k? Get it? Cool. Also, I might only do thank yous every second chap coz I don't always have the time to read my reviews and write thank yous when I do a chap. But I do make sure I mention everyone. If I miss you out, tell me off.
Bye.
Sezzie.
~Dig in
~And take the time
~To find
~Something worthwhile
~About me
~Go ahead
~And look inside
~And see
~Something worth knowing
~About me
~So much
~For you to learn
~To know
~To understand and take me
~Seriously [Sirius-ly]
Sirius Black intrigued me. There was something about him, that, no matter what he did, how much he annoyed you or how much you wanted to hate him, you really couldn't help liking him. Because Sirius Black was a likable person.
He was funny, for example. I would bet my money on it that any story that involved Sirius had at least a little humour to it. I can tell you right now that I know every Sirius/serious joke in the book. With someone else I'd probably get sick of it, but it just never grew old with Sirius.
'Hey, I'm not joking about this. I'm serious.'
I mean, the moment one of us said that you could see everyone just waiting for Sirius to throw out something along the lines of, 'No you're not, I'm Sirius.' And it was funny every time.
I can understand why everyone seems to think Sirius doesn't take things seriously. But this isn't true. I happen to know that there are five things he takes very seriously: food, girls, pranks, annoying Snape, abusing Malfoy, and his friends. In that order.
And I'm sorry, but no matter how much McGonagall raves on that Sirius really needs to stop wasting time and study, she can't deny the fact that he is top of his class. Alongside James, that is.
Anyhow, no matter how much of a lovable person Sirius was, I was finding it very hard to tolerate him this particular evening. 'Sirius, stop it,' I said absent mindedly.
The week had passed since I had gone to stay at the Potter's, and I was back home. I'd had a really great time. The Potters went all out at Christmas, and had the whole traditional thing. Trees, snow, yule logs, stockings. And the food! It almost rivaled Hogwarts.
But anyway, Sirius had somehow convinced me into having a New Years party. And I had amazingly somehow convinced my mother. So we invited a few people: Sirius, James, Hilary, April, April's boyfriend Matt, Bella, Joey, René and Melody, David - Bella's cousin that was staying with them, but was coming late because of one reason or another, Peter - but he was busy, and three other friends of mine - Avril, Imogen and Tristan. Remus was possibly not coming, but he'd said he'd try. The party was scheduled for seven, and it was four. We still had to organise food.
Sirius was sitting cross-legged on the floor, doing whatever he could in his power to aggravate my cat. Storm Shadow was mewing pitifully.
'Sirius, leave him alone.'
'He loves it.'
'No, he doesn't. Leave him alone.'
Shadow hissed as if in agreement, and ran to stand at my feet, arching his back and flicking his tail angrily. I reached down and patted him behind the ears. He purred and looked at Sirius smugly in triumph.
'Aw, is that Sirius annoying my poor little Shadow?' I cooed. Shadow rubbed up against my legs in approval of the attention I was giving him before slinking off into the shadow being cast by the staircase. Sirius gaped at him as he disappeared from sight.
'He just disappeared!' he exclaimed.
'I know. He has the gift of stealth, Sirius. He can fade into shadows,' I said matter-of-factly.
'He has the gift of stealth, Sirius. He can fade into shadows,' Sirius mimicked in a girly voice. I rolled my eyes and chose to ignore him.
'What are we going to have to eat?' I asked. My mum was upstairs having a sleep, and had left a note saying that if we wanted to bake anything the stuff was in the kitchen. Otherwise we could order in. 'Just do pizza or something,' Bella called from her position on the floor. She was wrestling with Hilary.
At that moment in time, I had Hilary, Bella, James and Sirius over. I was expecting Joey at any minute. They had all offered to help with the organisation.
'Do you want dessert or anything?'
'A cake!' Sirius called gleefully as he chased Storm Shadow around the Christmas tree.
'Meringue!' James argued. I rolled my eyes. If there was one thing I had learnt from staying with the Potters, it was that James Harold Potter loved meringue.
'Scones,' Bella insisted. 'They're easy, and that way you can have them in a basket or something and people can just grab them when they feel like it.'
'Cool. Um, we should start now, to allow some time for, er, mishaps,' I said delicately, trying not to look at Sirius. But I think he got what I was getting at anyway, because he narrowed his eyes at me and poked his tongue out. 'Right back atcha, Siri.'
'I'll have you know I am a great cook.'
This was where I wasn't sure whether or not to trust him. Hilary and James I knew for sure couldn't cook, because they had magic to do everything they needed, and were waited on twenty four seven anyway. But Sirius lived with muggles. For all I knew, he could have been the next Jamie Oliver.
Just then, the doorbell rang.
'Joey's here!' I cried, jumping over Hilary and Bella to get to the door. I opened it breathlessly.
'Hey,' I breathed.
'Hi,' she said, stepping inside. I gave her the once over.
Joey had definitely changed since I had last seen her before school started. Just a few small changes, but they were there. For one, she was wearing designer jeans, a black tank and a mahogany fur coat. A couple of months ago you wouldn't have seen Joey in anything more look-good than a unicorn t-shirt and some worn-out slacks. The old Joey Taylor wouldn't have bothered with make up, either, yet I noticed that she was wearing eyeshadow and lip gloss. And I think it was the first time I had ever seen Joey without her trademark ponytail. Her hair was up in a clip.
'Looking good, girl. Has the good old unicorn been replaced?' I laughed as we walked into the kitchen.
'That old thing? I got rid of it just after you left.'
I raised an eyebrow, but said no more.
'We're in the kitchen!' James called.
'Oh no,' I muttered, and dared to look around the doorway. Bella and Hilary were in hysterics while Sirius was parading an apron and chef hat. The sight was rather amusing. James was sitting on the floor looking extremely guilty.
And the room was covered in flour.
'My mum's kitchen!' I gasped. 'How did you guys make that kind of mess in five minutes?'
'Lily, we're talking about Sirius Black and James Potter here,' Hilary said dryly. 'Hey, Joey,' she added.
'Hey,' Joey replied with a smile.
'James did that, not me!' Sirius protested firmly, folding his arms. I slowly let my gaze wander over to lock James's. My own arms crossed slowly over my chest.
'Uh... sorry?' he offered.
'I should think so! James, look at this place!'
'Take some chill pills, Lily. It'll be cleaned up in no time,' Joey said coolly. James's eyes broke away from mine to meet Joey's. Mine, on the other hand, narrowed in amusement as I watched the look the two shared. They had a thing for each other!
Hiding my smile, I kicked James lightly with my foot.
'Out,' I sighed, pointing to the door. He stood up and dusted himself off. As he walked past, I grabbed the shoulder of his shirt.
'She's taken, James, and so are you,' I warned quietly.
'OK,' Joey said. 'What now?'
'We cook,' I replied.
'Who's doing what?' Joey asked, opening the pantry door to search for ingredients.
'You can leave the scones up to me and Sirius. He knows what he's doing,' Hilary said seriously.
'Are we talking about the same Sirius Black here?' I asked. 'What do you take me for?'
'Relax, Lily. He'll surprise you. He certainly shocked me.'
Half an hour later, Hilary and Sirius had finished the scones and were waiting for them to cook. Meanwhile, Joey, Bella and I were still working in the kitchen. In silence.
'So how's Sam, Jo?' I asked. Joey looked up at me in surprised. I could tell he had been the last thing on her mind when James had been around. 'Huh? Oh, great. He's been heaps nicer. It's like a totally different person.'
I nodded as the awkwardness settled in again. It was really starting to bug me. Just then, one of the worst possible things that could have happened occurred. Bella blew up the oven. While Joey's cakes were inside.
Do not ask me how exactly Bella blew up the oven, but she did. And the one thing I knew was that there would be no hope whatsoever of salvaging those cakes which, might I add, Joey had been very proud of.
So we all froze. Me, with my hands in a pile of dough, waiting for the claws to come out. Joey, washing some dishes, staring in surprise at Bella and the oven. And Bella, sitting on her backside in front of the oven in shock, her face smeared with black.
And then something unexpected happened.
Joey began to laugh.
It started out as a small giggle, then slowly grew louder, until she had to lean on the bench for support. And it wasn't mean, or cruel, it was a warm, happy laugh. And it caught on.
Bella and I took one look at each other and joined in. Soon, all three of us were on the floor, faces smudged with flour. We were laughing so loud that Hilary, James and Sirius came in to see what was going on. We even woke up my mum.
But inwardly, I breathed a great sigh of relief. Because I thought my two best friends had just taken the first step to accepting each other.
* * *
Sirius Black, as I discovered, wasn't entirely incapable of being serious. For example, he was surprisingly precise with his cooking. I had expected a big mess and at least half a dozen explosions and small fires. But what had I gotten? Nothing. Sure, the kitchen had been covered in flour, but that was courtesy of James Potter. And I know now to never let Bella near an oven. In fact, I learnt a lot about my friends that afternoon. But Sirius most of all.
Take his pranking. Did you know that he actually takes the time to draft all his prank ideas and plot out maps and so on? I didn't. I'd just thought it came to him naturally. Which it obviously does, but it just proves that all talents take work I suppose.
And you never would have picked it - but Sirius Black had done ballet lessons. Yeah - three things I learnt about Sirius that I had never known before and that had shocked me were that, the fact that he was scared of the dark and that he knew 'The Far Away Tree' off by heart. (I mean, Sirius? Read? Maybe he hired a tape.)
He was also, as I quickly found out, very good at getting people to loosen up.
My eyes wandered around the room.
It was party time. James was talking to my friend Avril, and looked a little uncomfortable. I was guessing she was asking about where he went to school. That was always a tricky one.
I also noticed that my Hogwarts friends, excluding James, were all over one side of the room, whereas my old friends were on the other. So much for my hopes that they'd get to know each other better. Oh well.
'So Lily, how is this new school of yours?' Tristan asked casually, leaning up against the wall next to me.
Tristan was actually more Joey's friend than mine, but we had slowly grown closer over the years and he was a nice enough person to be around, so I'd invited him. And was beginning to be glad I had.
'Oh, it's great. France is awesome.'
'You'll have to teach me French,' he laughed. 'I can't understand anything my teacher says. He's not very good at explaining it.'
'Oh, I actually don't know any French. It's an all-British school, mostly, so I don't need to. The older students learn it, though,' I lied. 'I've still got a few years to go.'
'That's odd,' Tristan laughed. 'So do you get to do any sight seeing?'
'Nup. We have to stay on campus. Which is pretty much this big castle surrounded by fields and forests. I might as well be back in Britain,' I laughed. Tristan smiled.
'Sounds more interesting than Stonewall. Stupid dump that it is,' he sighed rolling his eyes. Seeing Sirius sneaking up on Storm Shadow out of the corner of my eye, I decided that he could use a distraction. And considering that my friends weren't mixing too well, I thought I'd give them a little shove.
'So Tristan, have you read Romeo and Juliet?'
'Yeah, we're doing it in English. I don't get the story though. I think it's way too complicated for our year level.'
'Maybe I should introduce you to my friend Sirius,' I said slowly. I'd have to tread carefully here. I didn't want to sound rude. 'He... er, knows a lot about Romeo and Juliet. He has a way of making sure you never forget it,' I said truthfully, his antics on the train coming to mind.
'Cool,' Tristan shrugged. 'I'm willing to try anything. English isn't a subject I can afford to fail.'
'Oi, Siri! Over here!' I called, just as he was about to ambush Storm Shadow. The cat turned at the noise, and Sirius scowled.
'What?'
'Come here. There's someone I'd like you to meet...'
* * *
The party wasn't as much of a disaster as I'd thought it was going to be. Tristan and Sirius got on pretty well, and Sirius eventually introduced Tristan to James. I was glad that Avril at least was making an effort of talking to people. Joey had been a lot more civil towards Bella since the oven incident, and even that was better than the previous hostility. Things were looking brighter.
About half an hour into the party, the doorbell rang. I made my way to the door, Bella close behind. I opened the door to be met by a tall boy with dark brown curls and large brown eyes.
'Davide!' Bella exclaimed. 'Buonasera!' [David! Good evening!]
'Buonasera, Arabella! Come stai?' [Good evening, Arabella! How are you?]
'Molto bene. E tu?' [Very good. And you?]
'Bene. E come ti chiami?' he asked, gesturing to me. [Good. And what is your name?]
'Questa è la mia amica, Lilianã. Lilianã non parlare la tua lingua.' [This is my friend, Lily. Lily does not speak your language.]
David nodded.
'Buongiorno, Lilianã. Come stai?' he queried. I had no clue what he had just said.
'He's asking how are you,' Bella translated.
'Oh! Good, thank you.'
'Bene, grazie,' she told him. He grinned at me.
'Prego.'
'You're welcome,' Bella converted. 'Lilianã è mia amica di scuola. A abita a Surrey.' [Lily is my friend from school. She lives in Surrey.] To me, she added, 'David goes to a smaller school of magic in Europe called Calberzio. Hogwarts and Beauxbatons are the main two, but there are a few others scattered around the place.'
'Do you like it there?' I asked.
'Tu piache Calberzio?' Bella echoed.
'Si. Io piache molte.'
'Yes, I like it a lot.'
I nodded.
'Does he live in Italy?'
'No, but he used to. They moved here a couple of days ago. He doesn't know much English.'
'Che?' asked David. [What?]
'Tu parlare piccolo inglese,' Bella explained. [You speak little English.]
'Si. Io non parlare inglese bene.'
'He said that he doesn't speak English very well.'
David whispered something to Bella in Italian, laughing. Bella gaped at him.
'Davide! Non appropriato!' she exclaimed. [David! Not appropriate!]
'What did he say?' I asked curiously.
'He said that if all the girls over here look like you, then he's lucky. It would be a country full of sexy girls,' Bella laughed. I blushed and self- consciously tucked a piece of hair behind my ear.
As we spoke, Davide had sat down on my mum's lounge. The lounge my mother never let anyone sit on. I quickly whispered to Bella, who frowned at him.
'Davide, impiede. Non piede giu a la sofa, comprehendo?' [David, stand up! Don't sit down on the couch, understand?]
David laughed.
'Si, cara cousina. Comprehendo.' [Yes, dear cousin. I understand.]
'How old is he?' I asked.
'To tell the truth, I don't really know. Quanti anni hai, Davide?' [How many years (old, are you), David?]
'Tredici.'
'Thirteen,' Bella told me.
I watched in interest as Storm Shadow faded into view and slinked out of the shadows to inspect David. David bent down to pat him.
'Questo che?' [What (who) is this?]
'Questo e un gatto di Lilianã,' Bella replied. [This is Lily's cat.]
'Oh, si. Un gatto piccolo bello.' [Oh, yes. This is a handsome little cat.]
'He likes Storm Shadow. David worked in an animal shelter in Rome. They have so many stray animals over there.'
'Che?' queried David. [What?]
'Tuo lavoro nell casa di animali nell Roma, no, Davide?,' Bella told him. [You worked in a house of animals (animal shelter) in Rome, didn't you, David?]
'Si - molto gatti e molto cani nell Roma. É terrible.' [Yes - many cats and many dogs in Rome. It is terrible.]
'Come into the dining room,' I said, and we all walked back to where everyone else was.
'Oh, you'll have to excuse me a moment,' I said politely after listening to Bella and David conversing in Italian for a few minutes. They nodded, and I left them to themselves.
'Having fun?' asked a voice from behind me. I spun around.
'Remus! You made it! When did you get here?'
'Your mum just let me in. She said she called to you, but the music was up too loud I guess. How's it been?'
'Not as bad as I had expected it to be,' I admitted.
'Lily, if anything that Sirius Black organizes goes down the drain, it goes down in style. That is the one thing you never have to worry about. Sirius would rather eat hippogriff dung than have an unsuccessful party.'
'It's going pretty good,' I said with satisfaction.
'I see James hasn't wasted any time in getting over Paige,' Remus commented. I turned to see Joey and James dancing, grinning broadly at each other.
'And she's taken,' I mused. 'When did James break up with Paige?'
'Just before school finished, actually. His father wasn't very happy.'
'Oh.'
The night ended with a bang - literally. Courtesy of some great bon-bons that had pretty cool prizes for once. Sirius had done it all the muggle way, I might add - I had half expected a visit from the Ministry over some first-rate exposure. Overall, I think everyone had a great time.
Oh yeah, did I mention that Sirius has a hidden talent? He can do the best impersonation of Mickey Mouse mimicking Donald Duck.
It's amazing what you find out when you really get to know someone.
~*~ AUTHOR'S NOTE ~*~
OMG guys sorry this chapter took so long! I feel so bad! OK, thank you to EVERYONE that reviewed - keep it up. You've saved my back for the moment. OK, here's my thank you's. If i missed you, tell me please!
PurpleYin: I don't think there was a war around then, I just invented it. It was sort of a reference to what's going on right now in Iraq, because later on we'll get to see Lily's point of view on the war.
Vanessa: Thank you! I'm glad you like it! Krystal Diamond: He he. G'day Michelle. Certainly didn't expect to see you reading my story! I'll take what you said as a compliment. That was definitely nicer than the review you gave ~Family Portrait~ lol. Then again, Family Portrait is pretty sucky. He he. I'm going to flame one of your stories for revenge! He he he! Muhahaha! MY SUGAR JAR!
Cleabrook: I have one person saying it did count as romance, and another saying it didn't. Oh well. I happen to think they're too young to get together yet. And you LIKED that chapter? I think it was boring. Oh well. That's a good thing, I guess.
SiriDragon: I thought it was cute too :P Laters. Lol.
Candace: Thanx for the tip! Yeps, I got your other review, and tried to email you but you obviously haven't got it. I've posted it down the bottom, k, so just scroll down to read it. My email is hot_sezzy_babe@hotmail.com.
Clearbrook: You never knew that about Merlin's cat cause I made it up, lol! Actually, Merlin's cat was called Mim (in memory of Madam Mim, who Merlin unintentionally killed), and supposedly had the power to change it's shape for short periods of time. Betcha didn't know that, neither! But I reckon Storm Shadow is a better name than Mim. I learnt that in English. (See, I do pay attention to your lectures, Mr McGarr!)
Celine: Yes, there will be a chapter where James meets Petunia. And it is going to be somewhat humorous, I can assure you. As for them being too young, I totally agree.
Tinkerbellhp07: He-he. I reviewed your story. I was actually already reading it before you suggested it, I just was too lazy to review :P. I'm glad you laughed. Laughing is good. I believe laughter is very good. People who don't laugh should. It's something you just have to do to enjoy life. I love making people laugh. He-he. MY SUGAR JAR!
The Elfin Child: I'm allergic to cats. *sigh*
snowflake: This chapter is dedicated to you and your Sirius. Did you like it?
SiriDragon: James's dad turns into an even bigger jackass soon, I promise. And I'll introduce him better later on. Evil character. *shudders*
jodz: I feel very honoured (should i?) I really like where this story is going, too, which is a good sign. Sometimes I lose interest and cut it off quickly, but I have big plans for this one. It's already about seventy pages long and I haven't even finished first year, yet I'm planning to go until her death. Which is no mean feat. I hope I don't lose interest! *crosses fingers* Not now I have too many faithful readers!
SquorpionLady: You'll have to tell me your other fave so I can read it. By the way I love your story! I can't remember the name, but I just know I've read one of your stories that I really liked. Anyway, thanks a lot! And yes, I'm a girl!
Shinning Crystal: OMG thank you for the email and for helping me out. I'm slowly getting over the whole WB thing. And there's no way I'd give up this story just because of it!
MaNa SaMaH: *blushes* Why thank you!
Danimpa: Patience is a virtue! Lol. Sorry I made you guys wait so long. You all rock my world. And I agree they're too long; but they're actually eleven & twelve, not fifteen. Mary: Sorry. They aren't getting together til sixth year. And that's final I'm afraid.
Katelyn: You rule, darling! Thank you for contributing!
Harr`s girl: That's a really nice compliment to get. Thanks!
Moneky-see-monkey-do: I like English, but my opinion is that school work is for school. Can you believe they gave us homework on the holidays? That's just gaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay!
Sam: I'll keep it coming!
LizMaurder4eva: Yep. Definitely one of my fave reviewers!
Jodz: You tell him!
SiriDragon: Mr English teacher's reply: *raised eyebrows and mysterious smile* okaaaaaaay kind of creepy but that's him for you.
Angelxd14: I'm breathing again! I'm breathing!
~Anna Lady Rianna Dragoneye: Thank you for the reviews! Has anyone ever told you how much you rule?
Fanficfan: Thanx a lot! Everyone helped heaps!
¤~*Wish*~¤ :This story's going right until the end when she dies.
Wish Willow Hawkson: Awwwwwww shux!
Paisley: :)
Candy: Thank you for the faithful reviews!
Liat86: They'll get older. They get older every day! Lol.
Elisa-girl: Elisa to the rescue! Yay!
Nellie: Thank you!
Snowflake: Yeah, I do all the poems. You like?
Ok, if you reviewed, and I didn't mention you, I'll mention you next chapter. It's mostly those twenty odd people who helped me with my fifteen reviews. Everyone else will be thanked in the next chap, k? Get it? Cool. Also, I might only do thank yous every second chap coz I don't always have the time to read my reviews and write thank yous when I do a chap. But I do make sure I mention everyone. If I miss you out, tell me off.
Bye.
Sezzie.
