Sirius sat in his room thinking about how thing this year at Hogwarts was to be. Not having heard from any of his friends, except for Remus who had visited him a couple times and vice versa he could only take a wild stab as hoe exciting the up coming year was to be. /Just can't wait to get back to school it's gonna be a blast/ Sirius thought sarcastically while staring out the window. Well I better get going before the hag comes in and jumps down my throat about 'not being ready.'
Taking one last glance around his room, Sirius grabbed his trunk and dragged it down the flights of stairs which lead to the entry hall of the black mansion. "Mum! Regulus! Are we leaving yet!" He bellowed looking into the drawing room.
"Damn it boy! We're on our way down, just because this is the one time you're ready first doesn't give the right for you to be bellowing for us. Now let's go." Orion Black walked into the hall way followed by Regulus. "Grab your trunks and lets be off." The three men stood together in a circle as Orion pulled out a shiny black leather bound book. "Hands on, and now get ready."
Sirius felt a familiar tug behind his navel and closed his eyes, no matter how many times he had used a portkey he would never get used to it, he always got nauseous. Shaking his head as they appeared behind the usual building at King's Cross station, Orion watched as the two boys walked to the train without saying anything to their father. /Well here comes another year, let's just get this over with./ Sirius thought as he started towards the baggage car without a word to his brother.
FLASHBACK
The noises in the Great Hall died down only when Dumbledor ushered McGonagall to enter with the new first years.
/Every year it's the same bloody ceremony, nothing ever changes. Shuffle the first years in and sort 'em, then eat our dinner and then hear up to our dorms to do whatever and then off to bed at the given time. Why the hell can't it change at some point or time, we've got two more years after this and it's still gon be the bloody same./ Sirius thought as he sat only partially paying attention to the sorting. Most of his attention was centered on a girl who sat a few seats down to him on the opposite side of the table, his best mate's step-sister. Her name was Ariyana "Riya" Morgans-Potter. She was a fourth year who took fifth year classes with them when since she had moved up a grade. Her last school had a different system so even though she was further behind there, she was ahead a year at Hogwarts. He father married James' mum the Christmas break of their third year after knowing each other for about a year or so.
Sirius was brought out of his thoughts when he got hit on the back of the head. "Wha? What the hell was that for, huh?"
"That my friend was to get your attention. Sirius, have you been listening to anything that I've been saying since the feast began? Or have you just been totaly spaced out this entire time?"
"No, not really Prongsie, I was spacing the whole time."
James sighed, "If you'd pay attention to people you'd actually be able to know what's going on around you and sometimes that stuff can help you. Well, I'll ask again and you'd better ruddy listen to me this time! I asked you whether or not you were gonna stay on the Quidditch team or drop it? I got captain so I want to know whether or not you'll be there to be my co-captain. I want things to get started as soon as I can start 'em."
"Hmmmmm, yea I guess I could stay." James hit Sirius on the shoulder and Sirius just laughed, "Of course I'd stay on the team, I'm not gonna let someone take my place from me. The team wouldn't be the same if I were to quit. And we can't have that now can we?"
From down the table a few seats, Sirius and James were interrupted when they hear Lily burst out laughing at something Riya had obviously or had done.
"Lily! Shut your mouth! Come on, knock it off!"
"But how Riya! I don't understand." Lily said and then stopped laughing but one look down the table and back to Riya, she burst out laughing all over again.
"Padfoot, think we should go see what's going on down there with those two? It's gotta be something worth knowing."James said smirking and standing up fron his seat at the Gryffindor house table, "Let's head down there and see if we can be of any 'help' to then, what d'ya say?"
"Sounds like a right good plan there Jamie." Sirius stood with James and they made their way down the table to stand behind the girls.
"So, my flower dearest, what's going on that happens to be so funny?" James said as he leaned down and softly kissed Lily on the cheek.
"Oh, no, nothing at all is going on seriously, Riya was just telling me how she li-"
"Tell her how I think I'd like to try out for th open chaser position this year, right Lils?" Riya spoke while landing an elbow in Lily's side.
"Oh yea, just that, nothing else. Nothing more and nothing less, "Lily giggled a bit, "Seriously." and then burst out laughing again.
"Just couldn't leave it be could ya?" Riya scowled at Lily and the boys and then pushed her plate from her and stood up storming out of the Great hall. James went to follow her but Remus put a hand on his arm to stop him. Looking next to him, he gave Remus a odd look and just received a somewhat sympathetic one in return.
"I'll go after her. I'm a prefect so I can lead her to the dorm and I know the password, so I'll send her to bed to cool off after I talk to her. He then turned and exited the hall the same exact way Riya did, but in a much calmer manner.
James watched Remus leave the hall and then snapped, "Dammit! She's bloody doing it again! Why won't she freaking talk to me about anything, she'll talk to Remus but not me. What the bloody hell is wrong with this picture!"
Lily pulled him to sit down at the bench where he and Riya were previously sitting. "James, she'll talk to you when she sees it as the right time. I think that she talks to Remus first because she feels more comfortable around him because he's more I guess, 'down to earth' than you are really."
"I'm down to earth! What are you talking about?"
"She's right Prongsie, just give those two some time to talk and then maybe you can get her to open up and talk to you. Just give her a bit of time." Sirius said consolingly, while patting him on the shoulder.
Remus walked the usual rout up to the Gryffindor common room. Watching around corners to watch out if Ariyana hadn't made it to the common room yet. As he got closed to the stair cases he noticed that he could slightly hear someone crying softly from an empty classroom. Turning back and walking back to the last classroom that he had passes, Remus pushed open the door and saw Riya sitting on the window with her legs pulled up to her chest, with her head resting on her knees seat crying softly. Walking over to stand behind her, he placed a hand softly on her shoulder startling her.
"What in the bloody! Oh, it's just you Remus." Riya said, and then sighed and turned back to look out the window. "Just go back to the others and tell them that I'm fine and that I don't need them worrying about me at all, I'm perfectly capable of taking care of my self thanks."
"Riya, you should me better than that by now. I would not come after you just because they wanted me too, I came because I was worried and wanted to make sure you were okay all on my own. You're my friend, and my sister in an aspect too, you know that. I know that James can be incon-"
"No! It's not even all him this time, it's not that at all. I hate it that I go to tell Lily something now and she freaks out about it! She never acted this way before she and James began dating, I don't want to lose my best girl friend I really don't! I told her that I fancy Sirius and she started laughing at me and making jokes about it." Riya shook her head and then stood up and began pacing about the room, "I thought she wouldn't bother me about it, but I was wrong. I feel like I can't tell and girl I know things anymore, I don't feel that I have any other girls that I close enough with other than Lily, but she's changed and so has James. I hate this, I'm losing her to James and OWLS and I'm losing him to her. I'm not jealous, there's nothing to be jealous about - really there isn't, but I miss what me and Lily had." She then turned and looked at Remus with a small smile on her face. "You should get back down there with them, you don't want them to worry anymore than they probably already are, can I just get the password so I can head up to bed or just sit in the common room to think?"
Remus went up to her and pulled her towards him to hug her. He felt her shoulders begin to shake and just held her tighter as if to tell her to just let it all out. Remus then put her at arms length and wiped the tears from her cheeks, "Riya, love. What else happened other than what you've told me? That isn't enough for you to break down like this, I know you to well for that."
"No, nothing really. It just hit me closer than stuff like this has before because it was Lily and not some random girl that I'd ran into once or twice. She broke down into giggles whenever she saw Sirius when we were at the feast, and it really hit me harder than usual." Sighing Riya looked at Remus then wrapped her arms around Remus' shoulders and buried her face in his neck as she continued to let everything out.
Remus ran one hand down her back and then rubbed little circles, and then other stayed tightly around her waist holding her close to him. "I don't want to but in, but personally I think that you need to talk to Lily one-on-one and tell her exactly how you feel, and how it hurt you when she laughed about you fancying Padfoot. I think, maybe that with the stress of OWLS and finally excepting Prongs' advances she may be in a bit over her head and not comprehending what others are feeling from her actions. Or something close to that."
Nodding, Riya replied after standing up straight and wiping her eyes, "I guess you're right...as usual. But I think I'm going to give it a night to settle or something. I'm feeling really tired all of a sudden, I think I should just head to the dorm and get some sleep. It'll also give me a bit of time to myself, and that might do me some good too."
"I understand whole-heartedly. The password is 'Fortuna Major,' just take care of yourself, I don't know what I'd do if you made you got sick the first night here and so close to the full moon and all, and I need you there." Remus smiled at her and gave her a soft kiss on the forehead and then ran his fingers through her hair, "Go get some sleep, and I'll see you in the morning when you come down to the common room for breakfast, alright?"
"Alright. And Remus? Thanks for being here for me, it really does mean so much to mean that I know I have at least one person that I can always count on just a few minutes away if I ever need help. But please, I really don't want the others to know anything that was said here alright? Promise to keep it a secret for me?" Remus smiled and nodded accepting the task with no problem. "You know I'd do anything for you Luna, never doubt that, love you.
"Good night, and love you too." With that said, Ariyana headed towards the Gryffindor common room. Remus waited till she was out of sight and then started his walk back to meet his other friends.
Walking back to the great hall he made it about 50 feet to the doors when the three him and Ariyana had been talking about walked out. James was the first to notice him, and of course the first to start asking questions.
"Hey Moony, so what's going on with Ariyana? Is she ok, or has something really got her knickers in a twist?"
Remus sighed and shoved his hand into his pockets before looking at James and answering, "Prongs, this time I'm not going to tell you what the two of us talked about. She made me promise, and I won't break the trust I have with her. I think this time around you need to ask her to tell you because it really is up to her for you or any of you to know what we talked about. If you want to talk to her though, at least wait till tomorrow - give her some time to her self to think things over and to calm down before you go playing 20 plus questions, ok?" Then Remus turned around and started walking back the way he had come from near Gryffindor tower.
James stood still for a minute just letting what Remus had told him sink in, and for him to get the full meaning of it. "What was up with him? Do you think that it has anythign to do with the upcoming full moon?" Sirius asked the two as they all began walking down the hall a little ways behind Remus.
"I don't know, but it's starting to grate on my nerves, ya know? She's my step sister and she won't even talk to me and tell me what's going on with her. All I want to do is help. She should know that she's able to tell me anything that's on her mind, but NO! She goes and talks to wolf boy about it all!"
The three stopped suddenly when they heard someone clear their throat ahead of them. They looked toward the common room portrait entrance and saw Ariyana And Remus standing there. Ariyana had a look on her face that told the three that she was less than happy with what had been said, and beside her Remus stood with his hands on her shoulders and just looked at the ground. "So that's how you really feel James? I'm not all that surprised that you'd blame everything thing on Remus, your not to secure are you?" Ariyana walked away from Remus and came to a stand still in front of James, "You're jealous that I don't talk to you about everything instead of Remus? Well why should you even care what's going on? You've got Lily, what more do you need? We're not even family really, it's only because our parents are married that you call me your sister -step or other wise. "
"Come on Ariyana, I want us to be closer but you keep pushing me away and I don't understand it. What the hell does Remus do that I'm not capable of?"
"You are jealous! Admit it! You can't be the "hero" in this situation and that really gets your pants in a twist doesn't it! You're always busy when I try to talk to you either with Lily or quidditch those two things are more important to you than me, admit it!"
"Damn it! I'm jealous of him, what's there to be jealous of? You could always talk to someone else about it, hell you could talk to Sirius about things, unless you fancy him or something, is that it?"
"James, know it off! Just lis-"
"No! You can listen to me for once! Are you two shagging behind our backs or something! Is that it? I don't know what to think anymore Ariyana!"
"No, don't you dare say that about us! I could never see Remus like that!"
"Why not? Is it because it's true and you're to bloody afraid to admit it? Huh, well is it? Come on we all wa-"
James' accusations were cut off not by Ariyana or the other two behind him, but by Remus who walked up to James and punched him straight in the jaw. Remus' patients had worn thin a lot faster than usual due to the closeness of his transformation.
"MOONY?" Sirius yelled as he watched Lily fall to the ground on her knees next to James and then looked back up to Remus who had Ariyana looking at his hand. "What in bloody hell were you thinking, or were you thinking? Are you off your rocker or something!"
"He deserved it, so I'm not sorry at all. He says he wants to get closer to 'Riya but yet he goes and makes these accusations of the two of us. I've known you two since first year, do I seem like the person to shag his sister behind his back? DO I? He'll never have anything close to a relationship with her if he keeps this up." Remus then looked to the ground and took a couple deep breaths to calm done, and then looked at Ariyana who was watching him and Sirius closely. "Can I tell them why we're so close? I'll only bring any of it out in the open if you give me permission Luna, I won't say anything without it. I'm sorry, but I think this all needs to be said."
Ariyana nodded and walked over to stand next to Remus. He waited to start talking till he saw that James was standing - with the help of Lily - but still standing none the less. "None of you know what Ariyana goes through in her life, she's dealing with so much right now and has been for a while and she's basically done it on her own minus the little help I'm able to provide. None of you have taken anytime to ask her if she needs help or how things are going. She holds the exact same secret that two of you do - she, like Padfoot and Prongs is an unregistered animagus, just like you she did it out of care for a friend, well in her case family member. The white wolf you always ask about that shows up on the full moon is Riya, she's always been there for me. She's the only thing that got me this far." He then preceded to wrap his arms around her shoulders from behind as she continued with the explanation.
"Dumbledore knew what I was long before I cam to school here. When my mum and da' were here they had a similar situation on there hands - my mum was a werewolf - not bitten, but born that way, it runs in her side of the family - and my da' became an animagus so he could stay with her through everything so she wouldn't feel alone. So, when they thought I was old enough they taught me how to become one so we could all be together and they wouldn't worry 'bout me and vice-versa. Then, the same month that I had mastered my changes was when Remmy was bitten, it was horrible at first - all the blood and yelling that night was horrible, I can still see it all as if it was just yesterday. Then I began to think, he wouldn't have to be alone since I was an animagus, so I could stay with him - my cousin because I loved him and he'd do the same for me if it came right down to it. So you see James, me and Remus aren't shagging and we wouldn't ever do anything like that, we're to close to ever do anything like that." with that said she turned on her heels and made her way back through the portrait and up to the 6th year girls dormitories.
"Well Prongs me boy, I think you did nothing but manage to make the problem between you two even worse than it started out to be." Sirius chuckled and sat down in an arm chair after they entered the common room.
"Sod off Padfoot, you flea-ridden mut!"
"Well jeez Prongs, just cuz she's mad at you, that doesn't mean you have to snap at me when I was just stating a fact...even though I do find that fact particularly amusing."
James sighed and sat down on the couch and Lily joined him, sitting next to him. "James, hun don't dwell on it. I know you're just trying to be a good brother to her, but she doesn't want that form you right now obviously so just let her be. Give her time to sort things out and figure out what she wants from this whole situation. Then go back and talk to her about it later."
Remus then after pacing in front of the fire sat down in the chair closest to the fire place and just stared into the flames which were licking up at the hearth. Sirius who was sitting opposite Remus stared out at the night sky. So many different things were running through his mind. / I wonder what's going on with her. I just hope that in the end after all this cools down she'll be alright./
"Well," Sirius stood up and stretched and began to walk towards the stairs to the dorm, "I'm knackered, I think I'm gonna head to bed early so I'll see you all in the morn."
"I think I'm gonna head up with you Padfoot. Night Prong, Lily I'll see you two in the morning."
"Good night Remus, you too Sirius."
"Night Moony, Padfoot."
As the two marauders walked up the stairs, the thoughts of what Ariyana had said were still running rampant through his mind. /I wonder what's going to change after all of this now? What it's going to be like between all of us now when it wasn't all that great between the whole lot of us before. I just hope that nothing TO drastic happens./
What Sirius didn't know, was that things were about to change more than he ever though was possible.
End Flashback
END
A/N: well that's the first chapter! I didn't think I've get it out by the time I left but I did and I'm truly proud...well somewhat, haha. Tell me what you think! And if I get enough reviews I'll try hard to get the next two chapters back up when I get back. Oh, and later on in the story I'll need two new characters so if anyone has ideas for one let me know! Thanks bunches and hope you liked the first installment of "What Are You To Do"