Rated PG-13 for Abuse and Language
DISCLAIMER: Harry Potter does not in any way, shape, or form belong to me. I merely steal J.K. Rowling's world and twist it to suit my needs (heh heh).
Summary: Kalila Rajaram falls in love with Sirius. What sort of mayhem will ensue?
Chapter One: A Chance Encounter
I can still remember the first time I fell in love with Sirius' magical, smoldering eyes. I was walking around the corner coming back from the library with my arms stacked high with books when a force struck me like a meteorite. We both tumbled to the floor with books flying everywhere. I could practically see Madam Camp, the librarian, swooping down on us for manhandling her precious tomes. I looked up to see a very handsome disheveled Gryffindor. He was blushing slightly and he scrambled to help me pick up my belongings. I vaguely recognized him as a pure blood who several Ravenclaw girls had been swooning over in the bathroom.
"Here, let me carry these for you," he quickly offered. I reluctantly accepted his help and he took half the books out of my arms. Just as I was wondering why he would bother helping a dork like me, he asked me if I could help him. I merely raised an eyebrow.
"I played a prank on Bellatrix and I need a place to hide from her posse. Can I hide in your common room?"
"Yes!" I blurted before I could even contemplate the question. I was so surprised that a popular, pure-blooded boy would even deign to speak to me, I completely forgot myself.
Immediately before I said 'Jane Austen' to the statue of Rosalind Franklin, I angrily realized what exactly a well known prankster pure-blood would want with a Mudblood like myself.
"What is this, some sort of trick? Well, if you think that I am just going to stand here and allow you entrance to Ravenclaw dormitories and common room, you can just go to-"
I was interrupted by a gang of angry Slytherins rounding the corner with a truly awful girl I knew only by sight and reputation.
The wench pointed at Sirius and shouted, "There's the blood traitor!"
All the Slytherins pulled their wands out and collectively drew a breath to begin cursing us.
"Jane Austen," I whispered to Rosalind and ushered him through the narrow door and into the common rooms. I yanked the "blood traitor" towards a an enormous window and said, "I should think that you owe me an explanation!"
He smiled as though he didn't know how to feel, how to react to this crazy Ravenclaw Mudblood.
"Are you sure you want an explanation?" he asked slowly. I nodded firmly and pointed at an enormous blue armchair perfect for reading a book on a rainy day.
"Sit," I said quietly and settled into a matching blue sofa beside him. He sank slowly into the welcoming arm chair. He sighed deeply, closed his eyes, and massaged his forehead.
"Where to begin?" he paused slightly. "Did you see that girl in the front of the pack of Slytherins attempting to kill us both?"
"How could I miss her?" I asked shortly. Get to the point!
Ravenclaws are not noted for their patience.
"Do you know her at all?" he asked.
"No."
He looked up and smiled wearily. "That girl is my cousin."
My suspicions about pure-bloods came back tenfold. If that girl was a relative of his and if even half the stories about that girl were true… What had I done? He's probably a Slytherin who just stole a Gryffindor's robes. I invited him into the Ravenclaw common rooms! I began backing away from him without even realizing what I was doing. I froze when I saw the look on his face change from surprised at my reaction to pained.
"No, no! You've got it all wrong! That… that thing is exactly what my whole bloody family is like! That is what I have had to live with for the past fifteen years! I swear, I am nothing like my family!"
"And who exactly is your family?" I timidly asked. I had researched all the pure-blood families when I came to Hogwarts; if he named any branch of the extensive Britain pure-blood lines, I would know about it.
He smirked. "I feel like I should give you a disclaimer first. You know, like even though I am most regrettably related to these people, I neither condone nor participate in any of their activities. Something like that.
"My name is Sirius Black. I can trace my ancestry back to the Nigellus, Weasley, and, most regrettably, the Lestrange line. My cousins are Narcissa and Andromeda. Andromeda is surprisingly decent. She's a lot older than me, though, so I don't know her too well. She's already married… to a Muggle! Whenever we met at family reunions, she would say, 'How's the other white sheep of the Black family?' However, Narcissa… How do I put this? Well, she's betrothed to Lucius Malfoy."
I gasped in horror. I had never actually met Lucius Malfoy (he had graduated seven years previously), but stories of his atrocities lingered like a bad taste. The boy smiled at my obvious horror.
"So I know your whole family but I don't even know your name?" I asked teasingly.
"I apologize. I am Sirius Black. And you are…?"
"Kalila Rajaram."
"I'm sorry, Kalila, but I have to get back to the Tower before curfew. I'm sure you've heard of my vigilant obedience to rules." I grinned, thinking of Sirius' legendary pranks. "But I would love to meet you again, preferably with different circumstances."
"That would be lovely. Isn't there a Hogsmeade weekend coming up?" I asked as I escorted him to the door.
"I believe so. Shall I meet you?"
"That would be nice," I smiled.
"Thank you so much. For everything."
"Don't worry about it. It really is no problem. I'll see you at Hogsmeade."
As I watched him walk down the long, empty corridor alone, I was surprised to find a smile on my lips and a spring in my step as I returned to my solitary studies.
Annabel Lee
It was many and many a year ago,
In a kingdom by the sea,
That a maiden there lived whom you may know
By the name of ANNABEL LEE;
And this maiden she lived with no other thought
Than to love and be loved by me.
I was a child and she was a child,
In this kingdom by the sea;
But we loved with a love that was more than love-
I and my Annabel Lee;
With a love that the winged seraphs of heaven
Coveted her and me.
