Well I'm back! Sorry it took me so long to update. Like I said in the previous AN, which you should read, I was waiting to update until I got a few more chapters finished. I would still be waiting a little longer to post another chapter, but I love you guys so much that I decided to be nice. Once I get a few more chapters written, I will be able to update more constantly. Besides, if I take my time writing this…it will be a whole lot more interesting and fewer mistakes (which I apologize for). Well I edited the last few chapters, so you may want to go back and read them. I hope you like this new chapter…make sure to let me know what you think! I wouldn't go on without my reviews. Also, I know I haven't been posting single responses to my reviewers at the end of my chapters, but I will do that next chapter.
Disclaimer: I do not own anyone or anything that you recognize from Harry Potter. They belong to the wonderful writer J.K. Rowling. However, everyone else is my own.
Chapter Five
And Back Again…
Sirius looked down at Elissia and for the first time since she arrived…he actually saw her, as she sat there with her head in her hands, crying tears that she had plainly held in for a very long time. It was a rather uncomfortable situation for Sirius and he didn't know what to do to make her calm down. However, he didn't know how much longer he could take watching her in such a state of despair.
Nevertheless, somehow Sirius found that all of his built up anger towards her was slowly slipping away. He had never; in all the years he had known Elissia, saw her look so helpless and alone. Even though everyonehad known for years thatElissia Riddle was different in many ways, she had always held her head high. It was never high enough to look down on others, but just enough to let everyone know that she was in control of her own life. Well at least that was what they had perceived, having never gotten close enough to find out from a first hand experience. What they didn't know was that it was really just a mask that Elissia wore to cover up all of the pain that she was going through.
Now she was falling apart at the seams and Sirius was incapable to stop it. Not knowing what else to do, he reached out an arm and placed it around her shoulders. To his surprise, Elissia did not flinch or turn away, but she leaned over and cried onto his shoulder. Sirius patted the top of her head and rubbed her back, as her silent tears began to dampen his robes.
Soon, it was long past dinnertime and Elissia had fallen asleep on his arm. Sirius, who had slightly fallen asleep himself, lifted her up and carried her over to the green velvet couch. Once he had covered her up with a light cotton blanket that he had gotten out of his dresser, he left the room and went back downstairs.
Sirius did not know what to expect when he walked back into the kitchen. He did not even know who would still be there, considering about four hours had passed by since he had ran out of the kitchen in pursuit of Elissia. However, when the door swung open he was greeted by the curious faces of the rest of the members of The Order of the Phoenix. Tonks, whose hair was a flaming yellow, turned to Sirius and smiled mischievously.
"What exactly, Mr. Black, have you been up to all that time," She said and Sirius smirked.
"Talking…" Sirius said casually and without another word on the subject, took his seat beside Minerva, who leaned over and whispered quietly into his ear.
"If she alright?" Sirius was thankful for her concern.
"I don't rightly know…" he said sadly. "I let her talk about what was bothering her. She just started crying and ended up falling asleep on my arm." Sirius looked over at McGonagall. "What exactly am I suppose to do?" he asked desperately.
"I'm afraid there isn't much you can do." She said and sighed. "Elissia was always such a free spirited child. She was never scared to learn something new. It is such a waste that someone with such extraordinary power could be beat into something so helpless. We all knew that Elissia had the potential to be great…it was just what she decided to do with her power that was important." Sirius nodded. Professor McGonagall was always stern and hard set. However, she cared about her students, even the ones who had long been out of school.
The meeting persisted and Dumbledore caught Sirius up on most of what he had missed. Soon the kitchen was clearing out and only four remained: Sirius, Molly, Lupin and Dumbledore.
Dumbledore, who was sitting quietly at the end of the table, looked deep in thought. Finally, he gazed up and smiled briefly at Sirius, his mouth twitching under his long gray beard. "Do you think Elissia will be joining us in the future?" He asked.
"I don't know…we actually didn't do much talking." Molly huffed in disapproval, taking his comment the wrong way. "Come now Molly, it was nothing like that. It's just that," Sirius turned to Dumbledore once more. " Professor, I was rather concerned, you see…on her arm…there were these deep cuts." Dumbledore looked greatly distressed by this news.
"I had hoped that she would not resort to such actions," he said.
"So you knew!" Sirius asked.
"I had guessed…yes." Dumbledore said "But there are so many troubling things in her life that it's rather hard to keep track of them all."
Sirius looked even more distressed than he had when he returned to the kitchen.
"I just let her talk and then she ended up crying herself to sleep. I just…I don't rightly know what to do." Sirius said gravely as he ran a hand through his hair. He did not want to sound weak. Nevertheless, it was a troubling situation and Sirius found himself still caring quite deeply about the young witch who now lay sleeping in his room.
"It's like what Professor McGonagall said, Sirius. There is not much we can do. For Elissia is mainly troubled by situations that have already occurred in her past. This is a battle she must fight on her own."
Sirius nodded his head and took a seat in one of the chairs next to Lupin, who patted him on the back. Soon everyone had gone and the two remaining marauders were left behind.
"Oh cheer up padfoot, Elissia will be alright, she always is." Remus said, recognizing his friends despair. Sirius laughed at being called by his old nickname. It had been a very long time since he had last had the comfort of old friends to keep him out of trouble. Especially Remus who had always possessed the unique gift of sorting out even the most complicated situations.
"Isn't it strange?" Sirius huffed, as he conjured up a glass of wine.
"Isn't what strange?" Lupin asked, slightly confused.
"That even after so many years apart, she still has the same spell over me as she had when we first met."
"Not at all…" Lupin said smirking. Sirius turned and looked at his old friend; half annoyed and half confused.
"Why exactly is it not?"
"Because I have known both of you for a rather long period of time. You, more so than her. Yet ever since the first time you spoke, Elissia had you wrapped around her thin little finger." Lupin laughed at the distraught look on Sirius's face. However, he continued. "Your relationship was rather hard to understand really. As a couple, you two spent most hours of the day just sitting there contradicting each other. Nobody in there right mind could comprehend why you, Sirius Black, of all people would be attracted to Elissia. However, James and I understood perfectly."
"And why was that?" Sirius asked, smiling briskly. He was looking forward to hearing what explanation his best friend would have for his mysterious and sometimes dangerous attraction to Elissia Riddle.
"Because you knew in the back of your mind that she was a challenge. Every other girl would fall at your feet… but not her. She didn't need you in her life and she made sure to let you know that. The reason you liked her so much was because Elissia Riddle was the only witch you knew that you could never truly have under your control."
"Well…I can't exactly say that you are wrong Moony. However, you have failed to retrieve the full explanation as to why I am attracted to her." Lupin just grinned and leaned back in his chair.
"Then enlighten me," he replied.
Sirius took a sip of his wine, and then placed it down on the table. "Well, I don't know how to explain it really. It's like a feeling I get when she's around. Sometimes I feel as if she betrayed me and I wish that she had never even entered my life. However, the other part of me understands that she didn't have a choice and wants to trust her like I once did." Sirius said as he took another sip of his wine. Lupin nodded his head in understanding.
"Don't trouble yourself Sirius. I am sure everything will work itself out sooner or later."
"Hopefully sooner," Sirius said and with another swish of his wand the goblet of wine had disappeared. "I guess I should be getting back upstairs. I want to make sure Elissia doesn't run away the moment she wakes up. We didn't exactly get anything settled before she fell asleep." Sirius waved goodbye to Lupin before he apporated into thin air.
When Sirius entered his bedroom, nothing had changed. Except the fire had died down and it was slowly getting darker. Elissia was still sound asleep, curled up on the couch. Sirius walked over and replaced the cover that she had mistakenly kicked onto the floor. He knelt down on one knee and looked longingly at her as she slept, pushing a strand of hair out of her face. Elissia stirred but didn't wake.
Sirius waltzed over and flopped down onto his bed, closing his eyes and wondering why everything in life had to be so complicated. However, he soon realized that if life did not keep him on his toes, he would most likely die from boredom. Sirius thrived on challenges and the more complicated, the better. Yet what he felt for Elissia was the biggest challenge of all to overcome, fear.
Sirius feared that Elissia was on the verge of destroying herself. He could see the light in her eyes fading and the little strand of hope she once had, blowing away in the wind. It pained Sirius to think that he was one of the main reasons why Elissia had hurt herself, both physically and mentally. When she had come to him for help, Sirius had turned his back on her as if she was nothing but an insignificant outcast to society. Nevertheless, he had changed; he was not the arrogant fool that he had been so long ago. Yet Sirius knew that it was too late, he could not save her now…she had to save herself. He rolled over onto his side and fell into a deep sleep full of dreams from his past.
The day was hot and humid, every child in Hogwarts lay sprawled out on the large green lawn amidst the castle. Not a single gust of wind had blown the leaves on the trees, nor was there a cloud in the sky to be seen for miles.
The students were buzzing around tiny Professor Flitwick, trying to persuade him to teach them a charm that would keep them cool for another few hours. However, he refused, saying that it possessed power beyond there skill level and it was too dangerous to try out on each other. Some kids who were more confident than others, decided to attempt it on there own and ended up transforming themselves into large ice-sickles. Those unfortunate students were sent to the hospital wing to be defrosted by Madam Pomfrey.
Underneath the shade of a large oak tree, down by the lake sat a sixteen-year-old girl with long, curly, black hair and skin so pale that it reflected the sun. She was writing in a small black book with a gold symbol of a serpent on the front. Biting on the end of her quill as she concentrated on what she was writing, the girl did not hear the soft patter of footsteps approach her from behind.
"Do you ever stop writing, Elissia?" Said a deep voice. She jumped and as if by instinct slammed the book shut before her. Turning around quickly, she saw Sirius Black casually leaning up against the tree.
"Of course I stop writing. Besides, I only write when there is something important to write about." Elissia said slyly, trying to coax him into asking.
"So…what's worth writing about today?" he asked falling into her trap.
"Oh, nothing important." She said and then laughed at the deprived look on his face.
A young Sirius Black sat down on the lawn next to her and stretched out his legs. Elissia watched as he placed his head onto his folded arms; his black hair falling away from his face and his eyes were starring up at the sky. Elissia sat the book down on the ground beside her and decided to join him.
Soon they where arguing over the shapes of the clouds…
"It looks like a swan…no a hippogriff…it definitely doesn't look like a hippogriff Sirius…yes…no…ye…" There argument was interrupted by a water bubble that mysteriously dropped out of the sky onto there heads.
Elissia sat up with a scream and Sirius jumped up off the ground as if there was a flame beneath him. He pulled out his wand and turned around quickly. There was a bright flash and then the sound of two boys groaning.
Both Sirius and Elissia walked around the tree. Lying curled up on the ground, cringing but laughing, was James Potter and Peter Pettigrew. Remus Lupin stood a little bit away but was smirking in amusement.
They waited for a few minute's for James to stop laughing, however it was no use. The moment he saw Sirius and Elissia, soggy and dripping wet, he just broke out into another fit of laughter.
"You…you guys look like wet rats." James croaked out between each ragged breath, pointing at the two in front of him. Once he gained his composure back, he got to his feet.
"Haven't you boys got anything better to do than to go around dropping water bubbles on our heads?" Elissia spoke sternly, but could not help smiling.
James, who looked hesitantly at Elissia, did not answer her directly but turned to Sirius instead. "Hey, we learn from the best." Sirius smirked. "Plus we had nothing better to do."
Soon the four boys had grown deep into conversation, so Elissia picked it as a good time to take her leave. She told Sirius she would be up in the common room working on a Transfigurations essay and he waved goodbye. However, halfway up the lawn she realized that she had forgotten her book. Turning around quickly, she walked once more back to the tree where the boys had taken a seat with there backs to her. As she got closer, Elissia began to hear bits and piece's of there conversation. Yet, she stopped at the mention of her name.
It was James who spoke. "…she may be strangely attractive but I don't understand why you still talk to her Sirius. There is something about her that rubs me the wrong way. Like how she always wears black clothing. I bet she studies the dark arts in her dormitory every night while she's alone. I still think the sorting hat made a mistake. Besides look how well she gets along with the students from Slytherin. Everyone knows that Griffindor and Slytherin don't get along. It's like an unspoken rule or something." Wormtail nodded his head obediently at the remark James made.
"Just because she gets along with some of the students from Slytherin doesn't mean she's some evil witch who study's the dark arts. If you actually talk to her Prongs, she really isn't that bad." Elissia was thankful that at the least Sirius was sticking up for her.
James shuddered. "I wouldn't talk to her even if someone tried to bribe me with a new broom for Quiddich." James shuddered. "But it's no surprise that you're sticking up for her padfoot. Ever since you first had that conversation with Elissia in the common room, you've been like a love sick puppy." Elissia was upset but blushed inwardly.
At that moment, a large group of giggling 5th year girls walked by and smiled at Sirius, who looked highly outraged and almost humiliated that James could even suggest such a thing. He fixed his hair and smiled back at the girls. Once they had gone, Sirius turned back to James. "I do not like Elissia! I mean, why would I be going after someone like her, when I could have any witch in this entire school? All I have to do is just snap my fingers." James found this as a satisfactory answer and both of them began laughing at how stupid it was for him to even think that Sirius would like Elissia.
Wormtail was still sitting beside James and even though he wasn't in the conversation, joined in with there laughter anyway. However, Lupin, who sat off to the side, looked rather ill at ease and disapproving of the whole conversation. He was working hard on a project for Potions that was due the next day and he did not find the topic amusing in the slightest sense. Suddenly a jolt of terror ran through Elissia's body as Lupin spoke. "What this?" he said, lifting up her notebook. The gold serpent emblem on the front shimmering in the sunlight.
"It's Elissia's, she was writing in it before I got down here. She must have forgotten it when she left." Sirius said, trying to not look slightly interested.
"I wonder what's inside…" James responded reaching for the black bound book.
However, before he could grab it, Elissia walked out from behind the tree and startled Lupin as she snatched it quickly from his grasp. "It's none of your business what I write in my notebook, James Potter and I suggest you remember that!"
Sirius looked sick and his voice was panicky. "How long have you been standing there?" Elissia burned a hole into him with her piercing gray eyes.
"Long enough." She replied and Sirius gulped.
"I um…we," He stammered incredulously trying to come up with an explanation. However, he stopped when he realized that there really was no excuse for his actions.
"You what!" Elissia yelled and everyone in the group flinched slightly at the anger in her voice. In any other circumstance, Sirius would have easily produced a very clever retort to any verbal attack. However, when Elissia was angry she was highly frightening and Sirius found himself unable to speak. "Let me ask you a question Sirius? Why do you feel the need to only be my friend when no one's watching?" The dark haired boy felt of pang of guilt in his stomach as he saw the flash of hurt in her eyes. However, it was gone as quickly as it had come.
Elissia rounded on James next. "Look Potter! I don't know what your problem is but you need to get a few things straight. The reasons I'm best mates with Slytherin house is because there the only one's that don't flinch when they come in contact with me. Maybe the sorting hat did make a mistake, but at least Slytherin isn't a bunch of stuck up, arrogant jerks, who only judge people by there appearance. Also, for your lack of information; I am probably more against the dark arts that you could possible understand and I wouldn't practice anything related to it, even if I was in a life or death situation! So stop making incorrect accusations, when the truth is right in front of your face. You may be very intelligent with the information we learn in school, Potter. However, you know nothing about my life."
"We weren't trying to upset you." Sirius said, However Elissia was so outraged that she could no longer listen to the sound of his voice.
"Stop Sirius!…do me a favor and the next time you decide to speak to me, think twice before you lie to my face!" Elissia turned around and ran all the way back up to the castle. She could hear Sirius yelling after her, but it was no use. She would not turn around; betrayal was something she did not take lightly.
