A/N: Sorry about the delay between the chapters (though, to tell the truth, I'm not too sure it was a delay, but whatever). I actually re-wrote the entire thing. This version's much better. And longer.
Disclaimer: See previous twenty four disclaimers in fic. All apply here.
Chapter 25
Bella and Harry had slept together.
That phrase echoed through his mind as he stared at his cousin, who seemed had an extremely nervous expression on her features.
Bella and Harry had slept together.
He couldn't believe it. He never had thought such a thing would happen. Ever. He genuinely hadn't thought that either would sleep with the other.
Bella and Harry had slept together.
Sure, Bellatrix was - no, had been a Death Eater, tortured two people into insanity, gotten herself imprisoned in Azkaban twice and who knew what else, but he hadn't thought she would sleep with Harry. It just hadn't crossed his mind.
Sure, there had been a slight tension between Harry and Bella ever since he had gotten back, but he had supposed it due to Harry still not being over what she had done in the Department of Mysteries, or that, if Harry had been over that, something that had happened during the time they had been forced to spend in one another's company, both in Azkaban (though he wasn't sure why the ministry had placed the two of them together, he supposed it could have simply just been down to the stupidity of Fudge) and in the time after Bella had rescued Harry from Voldemort and then he had done the same in return, but neither had wanted to talk or think about it, so he hadn't mentioned it. It didn't seem important.
Harry and Bella had slept together.
It obviously had been important, and now he wished he had.
Harry and Bella had slept together.
'Oh shit,' Bella thought as she stared up at Sirius. 'Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit.'
His silence was probably the worst way he could have reacted. Actually, that was a lie. If he had accepted it it would have been worse. Sirius never accepted big news like this without a fuss, so it would have unsettled her more. This was almost as bad though.
With every passing moment she could see anger growing in his eyes, anger which she had only ever seen a few times before, long ago when they had just been kids, and in no way had that anger been directed at her as it was then, but she knew the full extent of what that anger could do. It was scary.
"S-Sirius?" she asked quietly, her voice betraying her fear even more than her face. She half didn't want to speak, to not snap him out of it so she wouldn't have to face his fury just yet. However, she also knew that if she hadn't of spoken she would have to face Sirius after his anger had reached his maximum and he acted even more irrationally and impulsively than she already knew he would. Yes, she was nervous. "Are you okay?"
He stared at her, his gaze turning slightly colder than it had been before. Now she wasn't scared as she had been before: she was terrified.
"How long?" Sirius asked her, and she grimaced as she heard the low, dangerous tone, the anger and, most of all, the fear in his voice. The anger she could understand, but fear? Fear of what?
"W-what?" she asked astounded at the question as much as the tone.
"How long?" he said simply again, this time adding more onto the end. "How long has this been going on? How long have you been doing -this- behind everybody backs? How long have you two been together?"
Sirius voice had risen more and more with each word, as had the anger in his eyes.
"How long," he spat out again, glaring furiously at her. "How long? Just... How long?"
"Si-Sirius, I - We-" She cut herself off, sighing. She was making excuses. Damn excuses that would do no good at that point. Damn excuses that, what with her cousins near manianical temper, could really end up putting her in some serious pain. "It just started last night. I swear it Sirius, we haven't been going behind a-"
"You haven't what?!" he practically screamed at her, and started to laugh humourlessly. "You haven't been going behind anyone's back? I can't believe that."
"Sirius - I swear!"
"You swear what? That nothing happened?! That your just friends, nothing more?! What Bellatrix?!"
Now he had gotten her mad. Not just mad either, but furious, furious to the same extent as he was.
"Is that what you think I was going to say?" yelled Bella, her voice rising. "Fine! I'll say it! We both know it's not true, but I'll say it anyway! Nothing happened! Me and Harry are just friends! Nothing more! Happy now?! Because I sure as hell am not!"
Sirius just stared at her then, all fury vanishing from his eyes and was replaced with shock, shock which quickly was replaced with amusement, and before he knew it he was literally rolling on the floor, laughing hysterically, clutching his sides.
"And just what is so funny?!" she demanded, still rabid with anger.
"This!" Sirius managed to gasp out, looking at her then laughing all over again. She just 'hmphed'.
Just outside the door of Bella's room Ehno chuckled lightly as he listened in. Again, it wasn't because he found it funny in the same sense as Sirius probably did. He chuckled because Sirius Black was unpredictable, further strengthening his belief that Sirius was The One, and his steadily increasing unpredictability indicated that the world would soon be ready, indicated that he would soon be gone for good. And he could hardly wait.
Harry twittered nervously outside a window, plainly hearing the yelling that was going on inside by Sirius, occasionally broken by pleading on Bella's part for him to see sense and then Sirius' yelling resumed, eventually punctured by Bella's yelling. Finally he heard Sirius' laughter, the last thing he had thought he would hear. Sirius laughing after he had undoubtedly heard everything.
Harry had come back from about five or so miles away, where he had been simply thinking about things, when he had remembered where he had left his note. In Bella's room. He didn't know how he could have been so stupid, but he had been, and, as he had later found out when he had arrived back, Sirius had found out, and had been undoubtedly furious.
Fortunately he had missed the main brunt of his godfather's anger (as selfish as it seemed to have left Bella to face it alone), but there was still a risk for him to receiving a small amount of it.
Sucking in a deep breath through his bill, Harry tapped on the window, attracting their attention.
Wormtail leaned up against a tree, silently cursing himself for everything that had happened over the past fifteen years. If he hadn't of been such a damned coward then none of this would have happened. Okay, so he would probably have died for refusing the join Voldemort, but then so many others would be alive. Lily... James... that Diggory kid... the muggles the Dark Lord had killed to regain his power... Sirius... (A/N: Before anyone asks, no, Wormtail does not know Sirius is still alive) and countless others wouldn't be dead. And all because of his own selfish, cowardly actions. He hadn't deserved to be in Gryffindor, he felt, he didn't even deserve to go to Hogwarts for being such a coward.
He looked around, putting his previous thoughts to the back of his mind as he knew there was no real point in guilt. There was nothing to gain from it, as was there nothing he could do. It would simply make more sense to accept it and try to move on.
Move on. Yeah, right, like he'd be able to do that. He was dead. There was very little more moving on he could do anymore. But there was still some. He did have, as some muggles said, 'unfinished business' at the time of his death, and that was part of the reason why he hadn't at all gone to the afterlife. He had been told he had to finish his business on Earth, then part of him would go onto the afterlife, whilst the rest (due to his fear of it) would remain for the rest of time. Now all he needed to do was find out what his unfinished business was, and complete it. Nothing too complicated. Hopefully.
He carried on surveying the surrounding area as these thoughts went into his mind one by one, but they were quickly stopped as he spotted something that was quite unusual for the time of year, or, at least, it would have been several years ago, for the time of year. Just recently it had been becoming more and more commonplace for it to be so.
There was a serious lack of snow. There wasn't any on the trees, ground, plants or anywhere. Muggles blamed this phenomenon on their own Global Warming theory (where the 'greenhouse gases' that they created by using certain things in excess prevented the sun's rays from leaving the atmosphere like they should) and they shouldered the blame. Wizards, however, also blamed it on Global Warming, though they had what could be considered a slightly stranger, but definitely a more inventive explanation. The wizards explanation was that over the last few millennia there had been an extreme number of warming and heating charms used during cold times, each having a little excess heat left over which then went into the atmosphere, and, though each heating charm only added the tiniest amount of heat, it was enough to, eventually, result in the entire planet warming up and there to be less snow at Christmas. Personally he thought the muggle's explanation was more believable.
A/N: Yay! I like this more than I liked the first version I wrote! Plus it's like five hundred words longer! Woooooohoooooo! I can't tell you how much happier I am! Something about this one just seemed click, and it stayed clicking! Well, except for a brief part which I immediately got rid of and replaced with something I like so much better!
NateP: I know it was mean, but it was well worth it! But you have yet to find out what Sirius will do to Harry.
Amscray: I know it's predictable, but there are some things people have to be predictable with, and that's one of them as it's too hard to do anything else. And who was Edward the Martyr? The name sounds familiar, but I just can't place who he was.
Roxoan: Thanks! I like being original! And what do you mean by finally?! It only took me twenty-four chapters to get the interactions! That's not long! I skipped Halloween though. I never like the holiday.
Be0t: This chapter's longer!
Spinal Sun: Oh, it's quite simple; I just skipped a few months.
Shadowface: Here ya go!
Uten: You can't work it out? Oh dear me, it looks like you'll have to wait to find out or until I give some more clues.
Heaven's Reaper: The Italian kid is one of my greater mysteries.
jeangab057: No wonder you didn't review! Teeheehee! Wonderful line, wasn't it?
possom2009: Yes! Another person converted to Harry-Bellaism!
Lek Nufrac: No, I'm a hypocrite too. Everyone's a hypocrite, they just don't admit it.
D: okay
fireprincess804: I got you addicted to the pairing? Just let me add you to the list ::takes out scroll of parchment which unrolls to a length of several miles and scrawls 'fireprincess804' on end of list:: There you go!
The Vampire Story Hunter: Why did I expect a review like that from you?
A. Person: Lol! Thanks! Okay, let me just say that when I chose Ehno's name I chose it for a specific reason. I'm not saying more than that at this point. As to what's obvious... Think about Sirius' actually personality (which I hope I captured in the diary entry). Something about it is what Ehno found so obvious. I hate Ron so much because... I don't know. He never seemed like a trustworthy sort of person, and there's some other stuff too, like his impulsiveness and temper, but that's basically it.
Topsta: Well, that's certainly one way of putting it.
griffin14: Thanks!
Blackhand The Destroyer: Okay! I will!
Kellalor: You'd better!
Krissy Riddle: But cliffies are fast becoming my speciality!
