After Noelle's birthday, there was only a week until the ball. She was looking forward to it, but it was mostly because Olivier was going to be there. She had received one owl from him, telling her that at the lat minute, his plans had changed and he would be attending by himself. She had also received an owl from Colin.
Dear Noelle,
I can't wait until Friday night. I need to know what color your robes are. I hope you are as excited as I am. Can't wait to see you.
Colin
She was relaxing on the beach with Lily when Etoile delivered Colin's letter. She sighed as she read it. As she was folding it, she glanced at Lily, who had an odd look in her eyes.
"What?" Noelle asked as she sipped some ice water.
"It's nothing. Just wondering who you will choose." Lily joked, but Noelle had a pained look in her navy eyes.
"Noelle I was only teasing you. I didn't mean to hurt your feelings."
"I know" Noelle said, but her body was still rigid.
Lily nudged her. Noelle relaxed and smiled.
"I should probably write back to him."
Etoile was hopping around uncomfortably on the hot sand so she tapped her shoulder. The owl landed on her shoulder as she wrote her reply. She fastened the parchement to his leg and told him who it was for. She watched him disappear, then checked her watch.
"It is getting late. I would like to go out tonight."
"Back to the nightclub?" Lily asked.
Noelle nodded.
"Want to see Sirius?"
Noelle blushed and nodded again.
Lily laughed, "It's fine with me."
She brushed the sand off her hands. Noelle felt the need to explain herself.
"I just want to see him. I want to see if the feelings that I thought I had for him went away when I saw Olivier the other night."
Lily glanced oddly at her friend. "You don't have to explain yourself to me, Noelle."
Noelle shoved her toes into the sand. "I know, but I want to." She squinted out over the waves. "I should not be thinking of either of them."
After dinner, the girls once again dressed to hit the club. This time, Noelle decided that she didn't care whether she got caught. She wore her shortest white skirt and a low cut bright red bustier. She curled her long blonde hair so that it tumbled seductively down her shoulders. She lined her eyes darkly with black and found a sheer ruby gloss to wear on her lips. She layered black mascara on her lashes until they looked thick and lush. She turned to Lily and struck a pose.
"How do I look?" she said, making her accent even thicker.
Lily laughed. "You look wonderful."
Noelle smiled. "Good. Sirius Black, eat your heart out."
They snuck out the same way they had gone last time. However this time at the door, there was trouble. The bouncer eyed Noelle carefully.
"You are Noelle Lemieux, n'est-ce pas?"
Noelle arrogantly threw her hair over her shoulder. "Oui, I am. Why?"
She gave the bouncer a superior look. He met her eye and thought better of tangling with her.
"No reason." He mumbled as he unclipped the velvet rope to let the girls inside.
Once inside, Noelle let her breath out slowly.
"That was very close." She whispered to Lily.
She gazed around the room, then walked to the bar to order a drink. They prowled the room, occasionally sipping their drinks as they scanned the room. Lily spotted James right away. He hurried to her side and kissed her cheek. Lily blushed faintly as he hugged Noelle.
"Remus is on the dance floor with Nicolette, and Sirius..." his voice trailed off.
Noelle raised her eyebrow, then peered over James' shoulder. She could see Remus and Nicolette, and another couple dancing near them. She practically growled when she recognized the girl as Bridgette, a girl she had never gotten along with. Her eyes widened in shock when she saw who Bridgette was dancing with. She looked at James with a question in her eyes.
"I tried to stop you from looking." He said apologetically.
Noelle blinked hard, as if she was trying to change the scene in front of her. Sirius was dancing. He told her he never danced. She swallowed hard and tried to compose herself. The song ended and both couples headed off the floor. Nicolette hugged both girls, and then they hugged Remus. Bridgette smiled snottily at Noelle.
"How are you feeling, Noelle?" Bridgette simpered.
Noelle clenched her jaw. She couldn't believe that she was bringing this up.
"I am fine. And I see that your parents allowed you to get your nose fixed." Noelle replied innocently.
Bridgette drew in her breath sharply. Just then, Sirius noticed Noelle and Lily. He hugged Lily quickly and then turned to Noelle. He put his arms around her tightly. She whispered into his ear,
"Thank you for taking care of me last week. I owe you."
As she pulled away, she looked enticingly into his grey eyes. Was Noelle just blatantly flirting with me? He thought to himself. He quickly shoved the thought out of his head. Bridgette was tugging at his hand. He barely knew this girl, but she had come over and started talking to Nicolette earlier. Nicolette had seemed pretty annoyed with her, but she hid it well. Sirius had finally agreed to dance one song with her so she would shut up. It figures, he thought, that Noelle would walk in at just that moment. The five Hogwarts students and Nicolette talked rapidly between themselves. Bridgette got annoyed and stalked off toward the bar. Noelle smiled to herself as she sipped her drink.
After two hours of dancing and talking, Noelle needed air. She wandered out to the patio. A waiter asked her if she wanted anything, and with a smile, she declined. Leaning on the railing, she stared out to sea. The things that Olivier had told her still invaded her brain. What was she supposed to do? Now that she knew her father had lied to her, and tried to keep someone she had loved deeply away from her, she didn't want to listen to his diatribe. She wanted to live, and be a normal sixteen year old witch again.
"Hey." A soft voice called behind her. She smiled as she turned.
"Hello Sirius. Hot in there, non?"
He did look rather flushed, in a handsome sort of way. His dark hair was tousled and his grey eyes glowed in his deeply tanned face. He was wearing a white button down shirt and dark grey pants. His shirt was open slightly at the neck, and she could see a thin gold chain winking in the lights from the club. Her fingers itched to unbutton the rest of the shirt, but she restrained herself. He walked over to where she stood and leaned against the railing next to her.
"You look beautiful tonight, by the way."
She blushed slightly. "Thank you." She sighed deeply. "I see you met Bridgette." She said tightly.
Sirius snorted.
"I see you like her about as much as I do."
Noelle looked at him in surprise. "You do not think much of her?"
Sirius laughed. "Not hardly. She's a weird one." He said, shaking his head.
Noelle wanted to do back flips she was so happy. She turned so she was standing in front of him, only inches apart.
"Sirius, there is something I've been meaning to ask you."
He took her hands in his. "Anything, Noelle. You know you can ask me anything."
She took a deep breath. "Do you remember that night at James'?"
He swung his eyes from hers for a second, then back. "Yes, of course." He said. "Why?"
She gazed into his beautiful eyes. "Do you ever think about when we kissed?" Her voice was husky and low.
His eyes widened. "All the time." he blurted out before he thought.
She smiled slowly at him. "You do?" she whispered.
He started to cover it up, but then stopped. He was sick of playing games with her.
"Yeah, Noelle. I think about it a lot."
She didn't give him a chance to say anything else. She launched forward, flung her arms around his neck and kissed him passionately. He was amazed, but not as much as Noelle. She had thought that kissing Olivier was the best thing in the world, but it paled in comparison to kissing Sirius. At that moment, she forgot everything. She forgot where she was, she forgot who she was. She even forgot every single promise she had made to her parents. All she knew was know she was finally in Sirius' arms and she didn't plan on ever letting him go.
When they finally broke apart, Sirius was breathless. Noelle was still pressed tightly to his body, and he could feel her heart pounding against his chest. She gazed into his eyes and he could feel the desire emanating from her eyes. She bit her lower lip softly and then looked down.
"Wow, Noelle. What was that for?"
She giggled. "I just wanted to see if it was as amazing as I remembered it."
He raised his eyebrows. "Well, was it?"
She pretended to think very hard and he gave her a playful shove. "Yes, of course. Actually, I think it was better than I remembered." She said, and pulled him closer again.
They kissed softer this time, discovering each other slowly. His hands caressed her back and she played with his silky hair. He lifted a hand to her face and stroked her cheek. She let out a soft moan and hugged him tighter. Finally he begged for mercy. She stepped away from him and ran her fingers through her hair. He sneaked a glance at her. Her porcelain skin was flushed, and her navy eyes twinkled. He was filled with a desire to grab her again, but managed to refrain when he heard someone approaching.
Lily and James were cautiously creeping onto the patio from the beach below. James looked up and caught Sirius' eyes.
"Uh oh...Busted Lily."
Lily quickly looked up. Noelle and Sirius waved cheerfully at the couple.
"Prongs my friend, have you been corrupting young Miss Evans?" Sirius teased.
"I would never! Ok, well, maybe a little."
Lily punched him in the shoulder as they all laughed.
"Remus and Nicolette had a great idea." James said, pushing his unruly hair away from his sweaty face. "They want to go back to Remus' and go swimming."
Sirius nodded. "I'm game."
James looked at Lily, who glanced at Noelle. She glanced at her watch. "We can go, but we cannot stay long. My parents do not know we have gone out."
After she said this, the boys hurried inside to tell Remus. Lily leaned over to Noelle.
"Are you sure this is all right? I don't want to get you in trouble."
Noelle nodded and crossed her fingers behind her back.
At Remus' aunt's house, Noelle realized that she and Lily didn't have suits. When she lamented on this, Sirius opened his mouth but Noelle cut him off.
"No, Sirius, we are not going without suits."
He grinned wickedly, while the others laughed. Nicolette decided to solve this problem. She jumped in the fireplace to travel back to her house. While she was gone, the boys changed and rushed down to the beach. Lily and Noelle relaxed on the couch in the parlor.
"What were you doing on the beach with James, Lily?" Noelle asked innocently.
Lily turned flame red. "We were just talking."
Noelle nodded convincingly. "Sure."
Lily blushed deeper. "We were! And what were you doing with Sirius on the patio? Hmm?" she demanded.
"We were kissing." Noelle said nonchalantly.
Lily gasped. "You were? But I thought..."
Noelle cut her off. "I am preferring not to think tonight, Lily. In fact, I have completely forgotten how to." She grinned at her friend.
Lily laughed. "Well, that's good. You think entirely too much sometimes."
Noelle whacked her friend with a pillow. Nicolette popped out of the fireplace, shaking two bathing suits at the other girls. They quickly changed and headed for the beach.
Remus was body surfing in the small waves that were coming ashore while Sirius and James raced to a rock about 50 feet out. Noelle put a toe in the water and shrieked.
"It is freezing!" She pulled her foot out.
"Oh, don't be a baby!" Remus grabbed her around the waist and she toppled into the water.
Screaming, she flailed until she could stand up. She growled at him and chased him into deeper water. They met James and Sirius about halfway to the rock.
"Where's Lily and Nicolette?" James asked, spitting water out of his mouth.
"They are being babies, and wading in." Noelle stated.
Remus guffawed. "Babies? It is freezing!!" he squealed in a high pitch imitation of Noelle's voice.
Noelle splashed him in the face. They treaded water for a few minutes until the other girls made their way to them.
Nicolette pushed Remus underwater, thus starting a water fight, boys vs. girls. After about 10 minutes, the girls declared themselves the winners, as none of the boys wanted to push them under. Sirius swam to where Noelle was standing in shoulder deep water. He pulled her into his arms and kissed her salty lips. She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him back, oblivious to the whistles coming from the others. Sirius held up his hand behind her back and gave the group a rude gesture. He pulled away from her and studied her intently. She was shivering slightly and her lips were turning blue.
"Time to get you out of the water. Don't want you getting sick again."
Her insides froze. "What do you mean? Sick again?" she asked nervously.
"Last winter, you got sick? Around Christmas?"
She breathed a sigh of relief and nodded, following him to shore.
He wrapped her in a warm towel and sat down beside her. She shivered again.
"Aren't you cold?" she asked.
"Me? Nah. I never get cold."
His shoulders glistened in the silvery moonlight. She stared at his profile, thinking again how breathtaking he was.
"What?" he said.
"Nothing. I was just looking at you."
He smiled seductively. "You can look at me anytime you want."
She laughed and pressed her cold lips to his. "You're getting colder. Let's go inside." She reluctantly nodded and rose.
Heading back to the main house, he grabbed her arm and steered her towards a small guest cottage.
"We're staying here...Remus' aunt said she didn't want a bunch a rowdy boys in her house."
Noelle laughed and allowed him to lead her inside. The living room was a mess. Shoes and robes were tossed everywhere, as well as empty pizza boxes and empty bottles of butterbeer. She laughed to herself as he scurried around, trying to clean.
"Sirius! Leave it, I do not mind."
He sheepishly looked at her and stopped cleaning. She gazed around the room and shivered violently.
"Let me go get you a sweater."
He raced up the stairs. Quietly, she followed him.
She heard him rummaging around in the room on her right. Silently, she pushed the door open. He turned around, a sweatshirt in his hand.
"Noelle...what are you doing up here?" he asked nervously.
She smiled sweetly. "I was lonely downstairs."
She slowly walked towards him, dropping the towel as she moved. He opened and closed his mouth, no words coming out. She wound her arms around his neck and parted her lips invitingly. Eagerly, he kissed her. They stood for a moment or two, kissing in the middle of his bedroom. She began pressing on his back. Confused, he started to pull away from her. She held on tight to him and began leading him to the bed. He took the hint, and slowly lowered her onto it. As she reclined on his pillows, he was overwhelmed with his desire for her. How many times had he dreamed about this? Noelle Lemieux was on his bed, wearing practically nothing, and it was her own doing! He couldn't believe his good luck. As he lowered his body to hers to keep kissing her, a little voice spoke in his head. He tried to silence it, but he knew it was right.
Reluctantly, he pulled away. "Noelle, as much as I want to do this, and I really, really want to do this..." he blew air sharply out of his mouth. "I think we should stop...before we can't".
She gave him an odd look, mixed with desire and pain. "You do not want to kiss me anymore?" she whispered.
He took her hand. "No, Noelle that's not it...I want to kiss you all night. But you and I both know that this could go beyond kissing. I'm not going to take advantage of you."
He swore to himself as he said the words. Noelle was practically throwing herself at him, and his stupid conscious was acting up. She gazed at him, and then looked down.
"I understand." She said softly.
"Hey." He reached for her and tilted her face to him. "It's not that I don't want to...you know...but I just don't think it is the right time."
A smile played on her lips. "I believe you, Sirius. And I agree." She said with a sigh.
She lay back on his pillows and grinned at him. "At least lay with me for a little while? Please?" she pouted prettily.
"How can I resist that face?" he joked and curled up next to her.
Sunlight touched her face. She opened her eyes slowly, having the feeling that she didn't know where she was. She didn't recognize the room at all. She felt someone stirring next to her. She turned slowly, knowing who it was. Sirius was sleeping peacefully beside her, his arms tightly around her body. His face, usually so animated, was relaxed. She had to smile at him; he looked so boyish as he slept. She hated to wake him up, but she knew she had to.
She shook him gently and he groaned. He tightened his arms around her and buried his face in the pillow.
"Sirius!" she hissed in his ear.
"Whaa?" he said blearily, opening his eyes.
"I need to find Lily! And we need to go home!"
She fumbled for the clock on the bedside table. She let out a relieved sigh when she saw it was only 6:00. Her parents never rose before 8:00 when they were on holiday. Quickly, she jumped out of bed. She fumbled for her clothes to put on over her bathing suit, and then remembered they were in the main house. She groaned. Sirius was finally awake. He rubbed the sleep out of his eyes, and yawned hugely. He stood unsteadily and stumbled around the room.
"Here." He said, handing her a set of robes.
She pulled them over her head and rolled the sleeves up.
They both thundered down the stairs. Lily was anxiously pacing the living room.
"Noelle! I've been looking for you all night!"
Indeed, the redhead looked as if she hadn't gotten much sleep.
"I am fine, but we need to hurry!"
Noelle quickly kissed Sirius goodbye and pulled Lily out the door. They flew down the street, making it back to Noelle's house in record time.
They crept up to her room by way of the balcony stairs. The whole house was silent. She pushed open her bedroom door and slipped inside, Lily behind her. She pulled off the borrowed robes and sank onto her bed. Lily stood there gaping at her.
"What?" Noelle finally asked, not meeting Lily's eyes.
"What happened to you last night? You and Sirius just disappeared."
Noelle looked at the floor. "Nothing happened!" she said, quickly meeting her stare, then averting her eyes quickly.
Lily still looked skeptical. Noelle sighed.
"All right. We went to his room, and we kissed. I fell asleep. Nothing else happened, Lily, I swear."
Noelle's eyes pleaded with Lily. Finally, Lily accepted it.
"I was just curious, you know. You had been talking about him earlier, and when we couldn't find you, I got a little worried."
Noelle looked surprised. "Lily, I can take care of myself."
Lily nodded. "Oh I know you can. But I wanted to make sure you weren't making any quick decisions."
Noelle was slightly taken aback. "Wrong decisions? I though that you liked the idea of Sirius and I together."
Lily quickly agreed. "I do. Just make sure you are choosing him for the right reasons."
Noelle nodded. "I am choosing him for the right reasons."
"Good." Lily hugged her friend. "I'm going to put a leash on you though!" she teased.
Noelle laughed and walked to her closet to get her robe so they could go down to breakfast.
The rest of the week sailed by. Every day the girls managed to meet the boys and Nicolette somewhere in Cannes. On the day of the ball, Nicolette pulled Noelle aside.
"I overheard Bridgette talking to someone the other day, on the beach. She was mentioning something about 'staying out all night'. I'm not sure if she was talking about us, but she could have been." Nicolette placed a hand on Noelle's arm. "Do your parents know about it?"
Noelle shook her head warily. She had gone sickeningly pale. "My mother knows that Bridgette and I do not get along. She won't believe her." She said assuredly.
Lily leaned over and Noelle quickly translated what Nicolette had said. The redhead also blanched. Nicolette smiled and said reassuringly,
"I'm sure everything will be fine."
Noelle now had butterflies in her stomach.
She turned her attention to the beach where the boys were tossing around a Muggle football. Sirius caught her eye and waved. He looked amazing with his bronze skin shining with tanning potion. She waved back at him and he ran to her side. Dropping onto the sand beside her, he looked up at her and smiled charmingly. She affectionately ruffled his dark hair. Lily glanced at her watch.
"Noelle, it's almost 2! We need to get home and get ready!"
Noelle gasped and jumped to her feet, covering Sirius with sand. He spit it out and looked at her warningly. She dropped to her knees and kissed him gently.
"Désole, Mon petit chou."
She chucked him under the chin as he laughed. She brushed sand off of her hands and hefted her bag to her shoulder.
"I will owl you later tonight, non?"
He nodded. She leaned down for one more kiss and started up the beach. She realized that Lily was lingering behind, saying good bye to James.
"Lily!" she called impatiently, waving her arms over her head.
Lily reluctantly got to her feet and joined Noelle.
"I was coming." She said grumpily.
Noelle laughed and tugged her friend's hair. "Sure. And I am to believe that you would not spend the day with James Potter if you had the chance?" she teased.
Lily sputtered indignantly. "Ok, I'm sorry! Now let's go!"
Noelle took a long hot shower. When she emerged the steam was so thick she could barely see. She carefully dried her hair and began to work it into an intricate up do. It kept falling. She growled, grabbed her brush and hurried to her mother's room.
"Maman! My hair will do nothing!" she whined.
Catherine smiled at her daughter and pulled out her wand.
"Turn around, cherie."
She wound Noelle's long blonde hair around her wand, tucking the strands behind each other while Noelle tapped her foot impatiently. Finally Madame Lemieux put down her wand.
"How is that?"
Noelle gazed into the mirror. Her long hair was piled on top of her head, held by thin braids. There were a few tendrils around her face. The hair was in big loopy curls, and displayed the sun streaks she had gotten from al of her days on the beach. She smiled with satisfaction and hugged her mother. There was a small knock at the door.
"Me too?" Lily asked sheepishly, her red hair hung in tangles down her back.
Madame Lemieux laughed and picked up her wand again. Within minutes, Lily's long ruby hair was wrapped in a sleek French twist. She quickly hugged Noelle's mother too, and the girls rushed back to Noelle's room.
Noelle pulled the ivory robes off of their hanger. She slipped the cool material over her head and tugged at it to make it hang correctly. They fit her just as well as they had in the shop. She rummaged through her jewelry box, sorting through the assortment of jewels she had received for her birthday. She put dangling pearl teardrops in her ears, and draped a platinum chain with a solitaire dark sapphire surrounded by diamonds around her neck. The ring Olivier had given her was perfect with her necklace. She held an emerald necklace to Lily, along with the matching ring and earrings. The girls stepped back to admire themselves in the full length mirror.
"We look ravishing!" Lily struck a pose and imitated a southern American accent. Noelle laughed and headed for the door.
Downstairs, Monsieur Lemieux checked his watch for the fifth time. His attention was suddenly diverted to the stairs, where his wife was descending with his daughter and her friend. His breath caught in his throat. His wife always looked stunning, but Noelle took his breath away. He had never seen his daughter look so enchanting. He slowly walked to the base of the stairs, and kissed his wife's cheek. He leaned to kiss Noelle, but she quickly drew back. He looked slightly hurt, but she covered it well.
"My makeup...I do not want to smudge it."
He nodded. "You look wonderful, cherie."
She smiled in thanks, and bit back a caustic comment. Her father turned to Lily.
"And you too, Lily. You look beautiful."
Lily blushed and giggled. "Thank you, Mr. Lemieux."
He checked his watch again. "Alors, it is about that time. Shall we go?" Madame Lemieux nodded and swept off toward the front door, with the girls behind her.
In the car, Madame Lemieux fussed with Noelle's hair.
"It is fine, Maman. Leave it alone!" Noelle said irritably, pushing her mother's hand away.
The long black limousine pulled up in front of the mansion of the French Minister of Magic. The chauffeur held out a hand, and Noelle slid hers into it. When she emerged from the limousine, there were flashbulbs going off around her. She smiled brightly and stopped to wait for Lily. Colin was just inside the door. When he spotted her, he hurried out to meet her. He kissed her demurely on the cheek and embraced her lightly. She turned to introduce him to her parents. Her father shook Colin's hand and gave him an approving glance. As they were chatting, Antoine hurried to them.
"I'm so sorry I was late. The portkeys were all messed up."
He quickly kissed Lily on the cheek. Noelle introduced Antoine and Colin, but they already knew each other from other functions.
The four teenagers walked together into the ballroom. It was decorated in shades of burgundy and gold. There were many well dressed witches and wizards milling around the room, talking to people they hadn't seen in years. Quickly, they found their seats. Thankfully, they were all seated at the same table. Colin pulled out Noelle's seat then sat next to her. He reached into the depths of his forest green robes and handed her a corsage made of lily-of-the-valleys. She brought it to her nose and inhaled deeply. Leaning over to kiss his cheek in thanks, her eyes locked on the last person she wanted to see.
Olivier had just entered the ballroom, but he was not alone as he told her he would be. On his arm, dressed in robes of bright crimson, was Bridgette Lapointe. Noelle gasped. Despite the events of the past few days, she still wasn't ready to see Olivier with anyone else, especially her worst enemy. There was anger and pain flashing in her navy eyes. Antoine saw this, leaned forward and said,
"Noelle, he was supposed to come by himself, but Bridgette's father asked our father if Olivier would take her."
Noelle pasted a smile on her face. "I do not know what you mean, Antoine. Why would I care who your brother attends with?"
The look in her eyes told him to remain silent. He quickly glanced at Colin, who was trying not to be obvious as he listened to their conversation. Thankfully, Colin didn't speak French. Olivier and Bridgette passed by their table and paused. Olivier looked nervous.
"Noelle, you look lovely. And Lily, it is good to see you again."
Lily silently nodded, casting a worried look at her friend. Noelle outwardly appeared calm, but inside she was raging. How dare he have the audacity to show up with Bridgette? She fumed. Bridgette had the smuggest smile on her face, and Lily wanted to slap it off.
There was tense small talk until Bridgette's annoying sighs finally caught Olivier's attention. He turned to her.
"Why don't you go sit at our table?" he said pointedly.
"I think you should come with me, Oliver." She said petulantly.
He sighed. "Fine, we will go sit. And my name is Olivier, not Oliver."
She made a face, "Whatever...it's not a big deal."
Olivier looked at her incredulously. "Of course it is...it is my name! How would you like it if I called you Bird-jet?"
The whole table exploded in laughter. Angrily, Bridgette flounced away. Olivier shrugged and followed her. After they had left, Colin looked at Noelle. Her lips were white with anger.
"Are you okay?" he asked her.
"Oui. I am fine." She spoke between clenched teeth.
The French Minister of Magic tapped his glass, and they all turned their attention to the podium. Noelle's father stood beside him.
"Welcome all, to the 100th annual Ambassador's Ball. It is lovely to see so many familiar faces. A special welcome to the family of François Lemieux, the French Ambassador to the International Confederation of Wizards. His lovely wife, Catherine."
There was polite applause as her mother stood and bowed slightly to the tables.
"And his enchanting daughter, Noelle."
Stunned, Noelle slowly rose. As she made her own small bow, she saw Lily making a face at her, and Olivier looking at her with pride, while Bridgette pointedly did not clap.
"The Lemieux' are responsible for the gala tonight, as well as myself, and we all hope you enjoy yourselves immensely."
Noelle quickly took her seat as the tables began to fill with food. She selected her meal and began to catch up with Colin.
He spoke about his internship at Gringotts and told her that he had secretly tried out for the Chudley Cannons, a professional Quidditch team in Britain.
"That is wonderful!" Noelle exclaimed.
He smiled modestly. "My father doesn't know yet." He said under his breath.
She gave him a wary look. "Are you going to tell him?"
Colin sighed, "Eventually, I will have to."
Noelle patted his hand reassuringly. From the front of the ballroom, she could hear the music beginning. Her father motioned to her.
"I think we must open the dancing, Colin." She whispered to him.
He nodded. "Fine."
He stood and offered her his arm. Regally, they strode to the front of the room. Noelle set her chin high as she passed Olivier's table. She and Colin took their places on the dance floor, and the music began.
It was a lovely ball, Lily thought as Antoine spun her around the floor, dipping her low. She giggled as she righted herself. The song ended and she applauded. She fanned herself lightly.
"I'm going to get some air. I'll be back in a few minutes."
He nodded and she hurried to the side door.
She breathed the sea air deeply.
"Psst...Lily!" she heard a voice from the bushes.
She placed her hand over her throat as the source of the voice emerged, covered in twigs.
"James?? What are you doing here?" she whispered furiously.
He stood goggling at her. "Wow, Lily, you look amazing."
Despite herself, Lily smiled. James swiped at his black hair to get the sticks out.
"We wanted to see you guys."
Lily gave a start. "We?"
James nodded. "Sirius! You can come out!"
The tall boy stood and shoved his hands in his pockets. He smiled winningly at Lily. "Where's Noelle?"
Lily shook her head in exasperation, and said, "Hold on, I'll go get her....and for God's sake, stay hidden!"
She hurried inside, searching for Noelle. She found her deep in conversation with Olivier. Noelle looked as if she could use a rescue. Lily went to her side and whispered in her ear,
"Can you come outside? I want to talk to you."
Noelle gave her an odd look, but nodded and followed her. Once outside, she asked,
"What is it?"
Lily nodded toward the bushes. "See for yourself."
Noelle gasped in astonishment when Sirius rose from the bushes. He crashed his way through the underbrush to her side. Bending slightly, he kissed her cheek and smiled charmingly at her. She swallowed nervously.
"Sirius, I am glad to see you, but you really should not be here!"
She glanced over her shoulder into the ballroom.
"Come for a walk with me." He pleaded.
She shook her head, but not convincingly. He tugged at her hand, and finally she caved in. Carefully making her way down the path, they slowly strolled through the shadows of the garden.
After they were about 25 feet away from the ballroom, Sirius pulled her deeper into the shadows and into a tight embrace. She turned her face up to his and kissed him softly.
"Noelle..." he whispered.
"Oui?" she murmured back.
"I have never seen anything quite as beautiful as you are right now. You are exquisite. You take my breath away."
Tears sprung to her eyes as she kissed him again. She gazed adoringly into his velvety grey eyes. As she leaned in for another kiss, she heard twigs cracking near them, they quickly broke apart, but it was too late. Bridgette emerged from the path, grinning smugly.
"Well, well. What do we have here?"
Bridgette advanced on the couple. Noelle stepped forward to confront her, but Sirius held his arm out.
"Bridgette, how nice to see you again."
She smirked. "Nice try. Neither of you can get out of this one."
She spun rapidly on her heel and stormed back to the ballroom. Noelle's heart was pounding.
"I am in so much trouble." She whispered to herself.
Sirius glanced at her oddly. "Noelle, we weren't doing anything wrong."
She looked at him in disbelief and pushed her way back to the garden path.
He followed her. "What were we doing that was so wrong?" he asked.
She waved her hand at him to keep him quiet, then peered at the door to the ballroom. There was no one there. Heaving a sigh of relief, she turned back to him.
"We were doing nothing wrong. You were right."
She lifted her right hand and smoothed his hair away from his eyes. She leaned down from the step and pressed her lips to his.
"Noelle!"
Her heart froze again. It was her father.
François Lemieux grabbed Sirius by the collar and physically tried to push him down the stairs while Noelle begged him to stop. Sirius was too strong, and wrenched himself out of her father's grip. Her father stood straight and adjusted his robes.
"Young man, I suggest you remove yourself from these grounds, immediately."
Sirius scowled. "All right, sir, I will leave."
He turned to Noelle and smiled at her. "I will owl you later."
François turned an angry red. "You will never have contact with my daughter again!"
Sirius yelled right back, "You can't keep her from me! I love her!"
Noelle stared at him in amazement while her father laughed condescendingly.
"You are both too young. Neither of you know what love is yet."
He physically turned Sirius around. "Now GO."
Sirius gazed at Noelle. "Come with me."
She looked at him as if he had two heads.
"What? Sirius, I cannot go with you." She shook her head in panic.
"Please, Noelle...I'm begging with me." He pleaded.
She took a small step towards him and felt her father's hand heavy on her shoulder. She looked up at him in fear, and then stepped back.
"I cannot." She whispered through her tears.
She covered her face with her hands and fled towards the ballroom.
At the door, she removed her hands from her face. Colin stood there, frozen in shock, with Olivier and Bridgette next to him.
"See?" Bridgette said shrilly. "I told you that you had to see what was happening outside."
Colin looked at Noelle. "You were with Black?" he managed to ask.
"Who is Black?" Olivier inquired.
Colin answered him without taking his eyes from Noelle. "He is someone who insulted her and degraded her every day for months at school. He never missed an opportunity to make Noelle cry." Colin studied her intently. "Why were you with him?"
Noelle couldn't answer him. She just burst into fresh tears and pushed by him into the ballroom.
She quickly made her way around the perimeter of the room until she got to the coat room. She took her coat from the witch at the coat room and flung it over her shoulders. She hurried outside and saw her father waiting at the limousine with her mother and Lily. She stopped and glanced around for an escape. Her father opened the door of the limousine and inclined his head. She had no choice. Bowing her head in shame, she climbed into the car.
The ride back to her house was funeral silent. She gazed out one window while Lily gazed out the other. Her father sat in stony silence while her mother stared at her hands. At the house, they all climbed out of the car and walked into the house. In the foyer, her father raised his arm and pointed into the front salon.
"Both of you."
Lily looked up in surprise, but followed Noelle inside.
They sat side by side on a small sofa while he paced in front of them. Finally, he spoke.
"How long has this been going on, Noelle?"
She looked bewildered. "What do you mean?"
"How long has he been here!" her father thundered.
Noelle drew back instinctively. "I don't know, Papa. We saw him in Cannes one day, and he was staying with a friend. It was not planned!"
Noelle eyes begged him to believe her. François spun to face Lily.
"This is your doing! Noelle would never have even thought of betraying our trust, until she went to Hogwarts!"
Lily blanched and then turned red with anger.
Noelle burst out, "Do not speak to my friend like that! Lily had nothing to do with this!"
Her father pointed to the door. "I want you out of my house."
Lily stood and glared at him. "Gladly." She spit at him. She stalked out of the room.
"No, Lily, wait!"
Noelle rose to stop her friend, but her father grabbed her arm painfully. "You are going nowhere. At the end of the summer, you will accompany your mother and I to America, where you will a Muggle high school."
Noelle gasped. "You cannot be serious!"
Her father's eyes narrowed to slits. "Oh, I am very serious about this."
As Noelle stood, astonished, she heard Lily coming back down the stairs. Noelle broke free of her father's grip and hurried to her friend. She embraced her tightly and cried into her shoulder. Lily whispered into her friend's ear.
"I am going to Remus'. Find me there."
With a scathing look at Monsieur Lemieux, Lily spun and left the house.
Noelle collapsed on the floor sobbing.
"Get up." Her father snarled at her. "Compose yourself."
Noelle's sobs continued, becoming more and more hysterical. Her breath caught in her throat and she began to cough. The coughs turned to hacks. Her body was racked with the fit and it was shaking uncontrollably. Catherine Lemieux screamed and rushed to her daughter's side. Noelle's mind was racing.
Breathe...I must breathe...but every breath was harder to take. She turned her eyes toward the high ceiling and mercifully blacked out.