The boys left the Great Hall before the girls had even stood from the table, running through the corridors to get to the common room. As they reached the top of the marble staircase they had already left Peter behind, but he didn't mind; he knew he'd get to the common room last. His legs were shorter so he wasn't as quick.
Up the top of the stairs he turned left and walked down the corridor. He felt a hand fly out and grab him. He made a squeak but nothing else. Standing in front of him was Lucius Malfoy looking less than perfect with his haircut.
"Pettigrew we need to talk about some things."
He gulped trying to hide the show of nerves that had taken over his body. He hated having to be near this boy even when he didn't look his best he was still terrifying and his presence was enough to make Peter scared.
"What is it?"
"First where's Dixon?"
"He's properly with Black you know what they're like."
"I meant Amanda you idiot!"
"Oh I don't know, she was late into the hall and then she just left, she didn't tell us."
"Lestrange."
Peter stared as the boy in front of him began to pace, he had a sly smile on his face as if he knew something but wanted to leave it. He truly looked the part of a Slytherin and it caused Peter's skin to tingle.
"Now as for you, you're going to be joining our side. Your father has expressed his wishes for you to learn the true ways of a Slytherin –"
"But I'm a Gryffindor!"
"Minor problem, and don't interrupt. You will do what I say when I say do you hear me."
"I won't!"
Peter didn't wait for anymore knowing that Lucius would happily hit him. He turned and ran out of the room into the emptying corridor. However as was his luck he ran straight into somebody.
He fell slightly backwards but didn't completely lose his balance. Looking down he saw Branwen in a complete heap.
"Branwen are you alright? I'm so sorry I didn't mean to…"
"It's alright Pete, I'm fine."
He reached his hand out to her and she stood with his help. He looked into her face and was completely surprised by the blush that had spread to her cheeks. He couldn't help but think that she looked cute, the red played across her cheeks.
Too suddenly he noted that her face was coming closer to his and then he felt her lips touch his. They were soft and warm and the sensation was something that surprised him. He liked the way her lips felt on his.
He was about to move his hands to rest around her when she pulled back. She looked embarrassed; maybe it had been the fact that he had gulped. Or the way his eyes had opened in disbelief at that very moment her lips touched his.
She turned quickly on her heel and had run away as fast as the other boys had ran from him. He heard a small laugh from behind, the meanness rung in his ears but he ignored it as he took off after the girl.
Reaching the common room he looked around, she wasn't there. Looking closer he saw that Lily too was missing and instantly he knew that she had run to her dorm taking her friend with her. However Alice was sitting pretty close to Frank over in the corner with Ginny and Joseph playfully wrestling over something.
Without hesitation he moved over to them.
"Alice, do me a favour and go up to your dorm and tell Branwen to come down."
She looked closely at him as Ginny too stopped fighting and looked at him. Ginny was the one to speak up.
"Why?"
"None of your business; I'd go but I can't get up the stairs please, Alice!"
"Okay."
She ran up the stairs and he took a stance at the bottom. Ginny moved over towards him followed by the two elder boys. Time seemed to take forever before Alice appeared back on the bottom; she looked amused as if trying to stop laughter.
"She's in the shower, she said she'd see you in the morning. Come on Gin, you have to see this."
Ginny and Alice ran up the stairs and Peter looked at Frank and Joseph both boys shrugged at him and headed back to their corner. Peter however saw James sitting over in one of the corners with a group of girls from the year below.
"James, I need help it's an emergency… where the other two?"
"Up in the dorm."
Peter nodded and the two headed up. In the room Remus was sitting on his bed with a book in his hand while Sirius was climbing into his bed. James sat on the end of Remus' bed and looked at Peter.
"What's the emergency then Pete?"
"Branwen just kissed me."
Peter sat down on the edge of his bed as he watched James fall from his sitting position, Remus drop his book and Sirius chock on nothing. If this had been about anybody else Peter would have laughed but this wasn't funny, it was Branwen.
James looked up from his little pile on the floor and spoke.
"Tell us what happened"
"Well you lot had run off, and Lucius had grabbed me and was telling me I was to start acting as a good little Slytherin would, and –"
Sirius cut him off.
"No tell us about Branwen!"
"I was getting to it. I left the room and bumped into Branwen. She fell on the floor, kind of like James did and I gave her my hand and then she sort of looked a bit funny at me, leaned in kissed me, pulled back and ran off and now she's hiding in the girls dorm."
The boys sat in silence for a while and Sirius laughingly spoke.
"Well Peter's the first of us to get a girlfriend, who'd have thought it."
Peter groaned at him as the bedroom door opened ajar. The other boys had their back to the door and so didn't notice the head poke around the door.
Peter met the brown eyes of the girl. They were wide and horrified as if they had just seen some unknown terror. Her face was white and it looked like Peeves had thrown flour on her face. She opened the door a bit wider and he noticed the rip in her shirt but tried to make it look like he hadn't.
A creak drew the attention of the other's to her and she waved trying to show that she was okay. She drew the attention of Sirius right off of Peter though.
"Amanda what happened?"
"Oh nothing fell over banged my head caught my shirt on a door or something."
"So what you doing coming up here?"
"I want a hug, and plus a clean pair of your boxers, the ones I wear to bed are being cleaned."
She didn't wait as she moved over and started to look through his trunk. Peter saw her throw a pair of plain black boxers onto the bed and then pulled out a strapy top that in no way could belong to Sirius.
Then to Peter's amusement she started to pull her tie off and unbuttoned her shirt before Sirius looked at her.
"What you doing Amanda?"
"Changing what does it look like?"
"You're taking your shirt off."
"You've seen everything before, you've all seen me in a bikini."
She didn't wait for anything else as she pulled her shirt off and pulled the strappy top on, covering up her almost all of her flat stomach. Peter ducked as she kicked her shoes in his direction and pulled her tights off slipping the boxers on before taking her skirt off.
As she sat on Sirius' bed curling herself under his arms almost onto his lap Peter noticed the colour returning to her face as if she now felt safer than before.
They looked comfortable together as if they belonged and he couldn't help but wonder if he'd ever look like that with Branwen. Remus speaking up pulled him from his thoughts.
"Amanda, you're a girl!"
Peter spluttered a laugh, as did James while Amanda looked hard at Remus.
"Who told you?"
Peter laughed harder as Remus stuck his tongue out at her.
"What I meant is that you can help Peter with his problem."
"Ohh, what problem?"
Peter watched as Sirius kissed the top of her head gently before answering.
"Branwen kissed Peter."
Amanda seemed to perk up at this piece of news and smiled widely.
"Really, she kissed you? Maybe I should go up to my dorm room; there'll be some great gossip tonight."
"Amanda help me please what should I do?"
"Okay Pete, well first do you fancy Branwen?"
Peter felt his cheeks go slightly red at this line of questioning.
"Yes."
"Okay then well you just tell her that you like her, keep it simple. Look I'll show you."
Whatever had caused her weird reaction earlier was totally forgotten. As she climbed from Sirius' lap pulling him up with her just to the left of the bed.
"Okay so I'm Peter, and Sirius you're Branwen."
"Mand can't you be Branwen and Sirius be me, otherwise I won't be able to look at her."
"Don't be silly. Now all you have to do is this."
Peter watched as Amanda took hold of Sirius' hand and forced him to look her in the eyes.
"I like you, I mean really like you."
Sirius made a little girly laugh and batted his eyelids sort of pulling away a bit. Then in a voice that sound a lot like Professor Malfoy's said.
"But why did you look so horrified when I kissed you?"
"You caught me off guard that's all. Listen I'm sorry if that hurt you, but I was wondering if you'll come to Hogsmeade with me."
Sirius again laughed and leaned down and kissed Amanda's lips.
"I'd love to Mand."
"Shut up Sirius!"
She pushed him away and back on the bed. Turning she met Peter.
"See it's that easy, just be yourself and remember that she likes you. I know I read it in her diary, by accident I thought it was her Defence notebook, but it'll work. Now you try."
Gulping, Peter moved to stand next to her, she turned away and he tapped her on the shoulder. She turned and as she went to turn back he grabbed her hand.
"Branwen, there's something I want to tell you. I really like you. And I'm sorry about the kiss thing you took me by surprise. I was just wondering if maybe you'd like to come to Hogsmeade with me?"
"I'd love to Peter. See that wasn't that hard."
"But what if she says no?"
"She won't, trust me."
She yawned and Peter realised that it was passed midnight. Remus had long crawled into bed and was sleeping and James looked half asleep laying on his own.
"Thanks, Mand."
He climbed into his own bed and curled up and was instantly asleep.
However on the other side of the room Sirius had climbed into his bed soon to be followed by Amanda.
"That was nice what you did for Peter."
"Umm…"
That's all he got as she curled up next to him sharing body heat. Her head rested gently on his bare chest just like it had over the summer. He carefully wrapped his arm around her body holding her close.
"Mandy, what's wrong with you?"
Through a yawn he made out what she said.
"I was scared tonight by someone, I just wanted to hug you, to know that you're here and that I'm safe."
He got no more from her on that night as she fell into a deep sleep, which he soon followed her to.
Okay so the reason Amanda wasn't with the girls I needed somebody who could give Peter advice because he's clueless when it comes to girls. Well I thought about it and it couldn't be Lily because she doesn't like the boys and Branwen was out. Alice could possibly have done it but I wanted to use her in the whole Branwen situation.
Well that left Ginny and Amanda and either one would have done for both of them and then thinking about it Amanda was the best one because she is so close with Sirius that you can just make her appear in the boys dorms and nobody would question it but if it was Ginny well it wouldn't work as well.
I just wanted to explain why Amanda turned up. There are some hints in this chapter as to what is to come in more than one way and I bet you'll all pick them up because they are so easy to tell. In fact I think Annie has already guessed.
Taylin Thanks for the review sorry I haven't emailed you but I've been busy writing an essay. However I will answer your questions right here.
ThaTs jusT weird I dunno iTs jusT doesnT make sence why shes would like him anyway
Okay well that's easy to explain. Branwen is different and she sees in him something that nobody else sees. I must admit I never meant for her to go out with him, I never meant for her to fancy him. But you know sometimes when you write something just takes over and this one of those plots that sort of appeared from nowhere but it'll be important for later years.
I ThoughT Amanda was ok now didnT she say she was fine so why isnT she wiTh The girls now.
Okay so Amanda is almost better now, there is one more relapse to come and I wonder if anybody can pick something important about her out. But I hope my explanation above explains why he isn't with the girls, she's the advice dispenser of this chapter
When is Lily and James goTTen sTarT To go ouT or aTleasT do anyThing To ThaT Lily kinda likes James
Okay well this one is a secret, I can tell you it isn't any time soon, I'm having too much fun with writing them I hate it when people just put them together early and that's it, they hate each other at the moment but they are learning to put up with each other. But it will be a while before any mention of them together. Hope this answers your questions.
Annie I like the look of your pairings but you've forgotten all about Joseph and who said that there is going to be an end couple I'm killing people off left right and centre, and I can tell you some of them are right but not all of them, because you've forgotten Joseph.
LNP yes I hate it when people forget Peter he's important to the story line and even though most of us hate him he's there for a good reason, and I'm enjoying writing him. He will be evil though he will get his friends killed but there will be a major turning point and you'll know it when it happens.
Okay well that's all I have to say oh and thanks to firewalker32 and I'll post again soon
Kris