PART 2: THE FIRST WAR

December 23rd, 1978

Lily, Marlene, Alice and I had been drinking for hours. They had come to get me for an impromptu Bachelorette Party the Saturday before my wedding, and even though I resisted kicking and screaming, they had gotten me downstairs to The Mystic with minimal bruising.

The last six months had been rocky, to say the least. After starting training, I went away with the team for the entire season, which had just ended at the end of November. I had been able to come home once a week for about a day throughout the season, but with his own training and the Order of the Phoenix, I had barely been able to spend any time with Sirius. I would come home to an empty apartment, see my dad and Lewis, and sometimes see either Lily or Marlene; even Alice and Frank had been recruited for the Order of the Phoenix, and their schedules were just as crazy as James and Sirius's. Sirius would come home at night and crawl in to bed next to me for a couple of hours, before I had to get up and floo back to the team to leave for another match.

I'd known it was going to be difficult, but I hadn't expected the distance that I felt growing between Sirius and I. When I'd gotten home three weeks ago for the offseason, it had been so awkward, almost like I was a guest staying in my own home. Sirius had fallen in to a routine, the routine of a single wizard, living alone. I'd found it difficult to get him to change his habits – not leaving his laundry on the ground, not leaving dishes in the sink for days – because I felt like he was just waiting for me to leave again. I know he wasn't doing it on purpose – we both had fallen in to our own routines without the other, as was to be expected after spending so much time apart.

To make matters worse, the boys were always being sent away on missions. Now that they were fully trained Aurors, Moody had more leniency in allowing Auror missions and Order missions to overlap. Sirius was being sent away once a week now, and not coming home for days at a time. I spent the entire time he was gone worrying that he wouldn't return – but he always did. And true to his word, he always came home to say goodbye before being deployed, and we got to have a moment alone with each other. It seemed like those were the only moments alone that we did get, but I was just happy that he always came home at the end in one piece. Remus had been sent to a werewolf group in the North, and none of us had heard from him in three months. Sirius spent the time he was home worrying about Remus, and I spent all of my time worrying about everyone. I was the only one from our friend group who wasn't involved in the war at all, keeping true to my promise to Sirius, but it was lonely knowing I should be out there protecting the people that I love.

"Addie, come on! We're going to make our way to the Leaky now. I think Oliver is done with us hogging his prime seats," Marlene winked at Oliver, the bartender. Oliver rolled his eyes, continuing to clean the pint glass he had been cleaning for over an hour.

"Mar', it's still daytime. Nobody is even in the pub, you giant lush," Oliver joked, his blue eyes sparkling attractively against his tan skin. I'd gotten to know Oliver quite well, given he worked in the pub below my apartment; I had plenty of time to spend day drinking now that I was alone, not working, and constantly anxious. Marlene came to meet me sometimes after work; she wasn't being sent away by the Order nearly as much as Sirius, James, Frank or Lily. Her and Robert had decided to put a pin in their relationship when she graduated, and she'd been hiding how hurt she was by the breakup by reverting to her old flirtatious way. Oliver was a prime victim, and I'm pretty sure the two of them were shagging most nights when I went upstairs. At least one of us was getting some action…

"Well, this girl is getting married in two days! We had to celebrate all day – especially since we never get to see each other anymore," Lily slurred, using the bar to hold her tiny body up. Lily had been drinking all day like it was going out of style – starting with mimosas this morning when they had dragged me out of bed, and continuing with firewhiskey shots downstairs. She'd been so stressed with her work at St. Mungo's, and with the Order, and with worrying about James…and with planning her own wedding, that she hadn't had a chance to blow off any steam for six months. I highly expected to be the one taking care of her at the end of the night, especially since her own fiancé was likely to be too drunk himself to be of any help.

We'd seen James, Frank and Peter drag Sirius out of the loft about an hour ago, off to his own Bachelor Party. Sirius had violently pulled himself out of their grasps when he saw that we had only made it downstairs, and had run in to the pub.

"I love you, kitten. Don't do anything I wouldn't do!" He had called, kissing me passionately before turning and running back to the boys. We'd both been reluctant to give today up – a whole day that we could spend together with no work or Order missions to distract us. But our friends had tag-teamed us, convincing us that proper bachelor and bachelorette parties were essential for a happy marriage. The whole lot had floo'd together in to our apartment this morning, so it was pretty hard to say no as they stood over our bed. After seeing Sirius run in to kiss me, James and Frank had come inside as well. James had pulled Lily to him in a grand display of affection, while Frank had kissed his wife chastely on the cheek, promising that he would behave himself.

"Ah yes, good old Sirius Black," Oliver said suddenly, snapping me back to the present. "I haven't seen him around much. I usually just get Addie during the day and Marlene at night…"

"Sirius is very busy with work," I defended him. "He's an Auror. Along with Lily's fiancé and Alice's husband."

"You all must be very patient with them. My brother is an Auror, and my sister-in-law is always complaining that he's never home," Oliver chuckled. He poured us another round without asking, given that although Marlene was trying to rally us to move drinking spots, none of the rest of us appeared inclined to drunkenly stumble through Diagon Alley.

"Who's your brother?" Alice asked, taking a sip of her drink and hiccupping.

"Rufus Scrimgeour," Oliver said leaning his elbows onto the bar so he could hear us better over the jazz music that was playing loudly in the background.

"Scrimgeour is your brother?" Lily asked in disbelief. "James is always going on about what an arsehole… he is." She trailed off when she realized she had just insulted Oliver's brother, but he just shook his head and laughed.

"That's alright, I grew up with him… I know what he's like," he said, smiling his beautiful smile. I picked up my own drink; not willing to admit that I hadn't even known Sirius worked with someone named Scrimgeour. It seemed like I didn't know anything about his work, while James told Lily everything. Maybe it was because they were in the Order together, but I hated being so out of the loop with Sirius, with Lily…with everyone.

I decided that instead of worrying about anything today, I would just enjoy having this day – all of my friends together, Sirius having a normal night out with his mates. I interrupted Oliver, who was exchanging stories with Lily about his brother, "Olly, we're switching back to shots. Let's get this party started!"

Three hours later we stumbled into the Leaky Cauldron for some food to soak up the copious amounts of alcohol we had consumed. It seemed that Sirius and the boys had the same idea, as they were sitting in the back corner with platters of food and empty butterbeer bottles littering the table. The girls tried to restrain me, citing that "the bride and groom shouldn't see each other on their stag night," but once I saw Sirius there was nothing they could do to stop me from running to him.

"Baby!" I cried upon reaching his table. He looked up at me in shock, clearly not having seen us walk in to the pub.

"See, James! I told you that making a wish at the end of a bottle of firewhiskey worked! We finished that bottle, I wished I could see my fiancé, and here she is!" He drunkenly exclaimed, grabbing my waist and pulling me on to his lap. He kissed up my neck and all over my cheeks; the PDA, which I usually enjoyed, right now made me feel butterflies in my stomach. They were partly good butterflies, but I could tell it was partly nerves as well. The rest of the girls gave up trying to pull me away once they got close to their own wizards; Marlene and Peter left to give the couples a chance to catch up. They went up to the bar to order another round; although it was obvious none of us needed anything more to drink.

"Hi," I giggled, wrapping my arms around his neck. He smelled like leather and tobacco – the pack of cigarettes sitting in front of him giving him away on the latter. I nuzzled my head in to his shoulder, letting him hold me like a child.

"Hi, kitten. Everything okay?" He asked, rubbing his hand up and down my spine.

"Drunk," I said simply, sighing at how tired I was all of a sudden.

"Drunk kitty?" He asked, chuckling. He reached around me to the bottle that was sitting in front of him, taking a sip of it. He put the bottle down and reached for the plate of chips, picking up a handful and feeding me. The food definitely helped settle my stomach, but did nothing to clear my fuzzy thoughts.

"Nervous kitty?" I replied hesitantly, judging his reaction by picking my head up to look at his face. He burrowed his eyebrows as he thought about what I said.

"Nervous about getting married?" He asked, the hurt evident in his voice. I saw that he was trying to hide it, but my drunken brain decided that I needed to tell him how I felt.

"A little. Aren't you?" I asked, playing with the collar of the leather jacket I had bought him a year ago.

"Not at all, kitten. I've never doubted that I wanted to marry you," He said gently, trying to catch my eyes. I kept averting mine from his, not wanting to see the confusion in them.

"It's not that I don't want to marry you. I just feel like we live completely different lives right now – we're both always working, and when you're not working you're with the Order, and when you're not doing either of those things you're worrying about Remus. I spend every day at home alone, worrying about all of you, not able to do anything about it."

"You knew this was what you were signing up for when I asked you to marry me," Sirius snapped, the gentleness gone from his tone. I slid off his lap onto the seat next to him, noticing that everyone else had gotten up and were standing at the front of the bar. They must have left at some point, when they realized that Sirius and I were having a serious conversation. "You knew that I was going to fight, that I was going to do whatever I could to end this war without anyone I love getting hurt. And you chose to take a job that takes you away for months at a time, but you don't see me complaining."

"Sirius, that's not fair…" I trailed off, knowing deep down that it was fair. Everything he was saying was true – we both had dreams and we were both following them. Both of those dreams happened to take us away from home, but we knew that going in to this.

"No, what's not fair is you telling me two days before our wedding that you aren't sure if you want to marry me or not. That's what I call unfair," Sirius snapped, banging his hands on the table. He got up and stalked away; I watched as he went up to the group, snagged a drink, chugged it, and then walked straight out the door.

I stared at the table, my stupidity catching up with me. I had handled that situation all-wrong; all I had wanted to tell him was that I missed him, and that I worried about him. Instead I had basically told him that I didn't think I wanted to marry him anymore – which was the complete opposite of the truth.

Lily came over to me a couple of seconds after Sirius left. She sat down next to me and took my hand in hers. She didn't say anything, just sat with me. After a couple of minutes I said, "I really fucked that up."

"I know," Lily said simply, her lips pursed.

"You know that I want to marry him – more than anything. But I'm so worried about him all the time, and we never see each other. I miss him, that's all," I said, starting to feel like my chest was constricting with the effort of not crying.

"I know that," Lily repeated. "I also know that you're both drunk, emotional and exhausted. You need to go home, and wait for him. He'll come home – he always does."

I nodded, knowing that she was right. I could explain myself better in the morning, after we had both calmed down. I got up, and said goodbye to everyone. James offered to walk me home, which I accepted. I hadn't spent any time with James at all since he started training, and even having ten minutes with him would be better than nothing.

We walked in silence for a while, taking in the scenery. Diagon Alley was completely decorated for Christmas with garland, lights, and enchanted singing statues. The scenery was gorgeous, but once again I found myself unable to truly enjoy the magic of it all. Just like last year.

"James, I…" I started at the same time James said, "Addie, I…"

I laughed and motioned that he should continue, "I don't know what happened back there with Sirius, but I'm here if you want to talk about it."

"I accidentally told Sirius that I was having doubts," I admitted, knowing that Lily would tell him anyway. James nodded at me, sitting down on my front porch, patting the spot next to him. I sat, and he put his arm around me.

"Which is completely normal. You and him have been apart for six months. He must understand that," James sighed, rubbing my arm consolingly.

"Not for him – he's apparently had no doubts at all," I cried, the sobs taking over at James's touch.

"Shhh, shhhh, Addie," James comforted me. "Sirius has never loved anyone like he loves you. He'll come around and will hear you out. He would never leave you because of one drunken conversation, trust me."

James held me for a while as I sat and cried, sure that I had fucked everything up. After a while, James left to find Lily so he could take her home, and I went upstairs to my empty loft. I put on one of Sirius's t-shirts – my go-to loungewear whenever I was upset – and curled up on the couch. I lit a fire with my wand in the fireplace, and spent the next several hours staring in to it. I must have cried myself out of tears, because when the door finally opened, I went to wipe them away before realizing that my face was dry.

The door banged open, and I heard a crash; he must have knocked over the pouted plant that I kept right next to the door. "Fuck," I heard Sirius mutter, before he hastily turned the lights on. I realized I had been sitting in the dark this entire time, just the light from the fireplace brightening the room. He stumbled in to the living room and staggered backwards when he saw me sitting straight up on the couch.

"Addison?" He whispered, as if that would hide the fact that he was absolutely smashed. "What are you doing awake? You should be in bed." As if he had a right to admonish me, when he was stumbling in at 4AM smelling like the inside of a distillery.

"I waited up for you," I said quietly, getting up to take a look at him. He was obviously drunk, his eyes hooded and slightly red as if he had been crying. His hair was mused, and his leather jacket was hanging off his shoulders.

"Why?" He asked in genuine confusion. He stumbled over to me, and wrapped his arms around my waist. He leaned down to kiss me, but I pulled away at the smell of his breath. He pouted, but flopped down onto the couch instead.

"Aren't you mad at me?" I asked, sitting down next to him.

"Nope. Not mad anymore. I was downstairs at The Mystic, and that bartender…Oscar? Otto?" He mumbled, trapping my hand in his and swinging it between us, trying to remember who he had been talking to.

"Oliver," I supplied tentatively, cocking an eyebrow at him.

"Right! Him! He told me that you come in almost every day, and talk about me the entire time," Sirius grinned at me giddily.

"I do not talk about you the…entire time," I said defensively, but Sirius just laughed and crawled on top of me.

"It's okay, kitten. He told me that you always talk about missing me once you've had a couple," he growled, his lips now right next to my ear.

"I do miss you, and I'm sorry that what I was trying to say came out all wrong before," I said breathlessly. Sirius being this close to me, for the first time in a while, was definitely having an effect on me.

"It's okay, Addie. I know that you're nervous – everything is so uncertain right now that it makes complete sense that you would be second-guessing if this was the right thing for us. I know that you want to marry me just as much as I want to marry you."

"I do!" I promised, reaching my hand up to tangle in his hair. "I just have been really lonely without you. It just kind of came out tonight because I was drunk and with all of the girls, I don't know."

"I get it, kitten. I've been lonely without you too. Before…I guess you just triggered my abandonment issues. It made me panic that because you were nervous, you were going to leave me like everyone else," Sirius said. I pursed my lips at this; this was much too deep of a conclusion for him to have come to in his drunken state. "At least, that's what Owen seems to think it was – smart bloke, that Owen, he should be a therapist, not a bartender." That made much more sense. Oliver actually knew quite a bit about Sirius, from the drunken rants I was prone to go off on when I drank downstairs.

"I promise you, Sirius. I'm not going anywhere." Looking in to his eyes, I knew that nothing he could do would make me go anywhere. I was in it for the long haul, and there was no going back now; we would make it through this war, because we loved each other. "Nothing could make me leave you, ever."

"Promise?" He asked, his insecurities coming out, and his entire body weight falling on top of me.

"Promise." I said, closing the distance between us and kissing him. He dug at my clothes like a dying man desperately in need of water; he had my skirt off in no time at all, and he was sucking on my neck like it would quench his thirst.

"Merlin, I have missed you," Sirius moaned, as he entered me for the first time in months. I gasped at the sudden feeling of fullness, having already forgotten what it felt like to be with Sirius like this.

"Don't you ever make me wait this long again, Sirius Black," I growled at him, my nails scratching down his back. He hissed in pain, but my words seemed to spark a fire in him; he started moving at a much more determined pace, hitting just the right spot inside of me. As I finished around him, I moaned, "And if you left a hickey on my neck TWO DAYS before my wedding, I will fucking kill you."

Sirius chuckled at my empty threat, before with one last thrust he finished as well. He collapsed on top of me, our sweaty bodies sticking together. "You know, if I wanted to proclaim my love for you in a public way, what better way than a love bite?" Sirius asked, pressing a kiss to my cheek. "I guess I could marry you," he teased with a wink.


December 25th, 1978

I took one last look at myself in the mirror. My dark brown hair was curled long, winding down past my shoulders to the small of my back. I was wearing a diamond and pearl headband, along with my lace veil. My wedding dress was simple, satin with a deep v that went all the way down to a diamond belt, cinching my waist before the A-line skirt exploded out. The only jewelry I wore was my engagement ring and the crystal necklace Sirius had given me for my birthday. Lily, Marlene, and Alice stood behind me in simple emerald green velvet dresses. We all held bouquets of poinsettias to tie in the Christmas theme even more.

"Sweetheart, the procession is starting," Dad came hurrying in to the tent that we were using as our changing room. I peaked my head to look outside, and did hear the music playing. What I noticed most of all was the sun setting, giving the entire scene a magical glow.

"Okay," I nodded, swallowing thickly. We all walked outside and lined up just around the corner from the aisle, behind an apple tree. Alice went first, followed by Marlene. Lily, my Maid of Honor, turned to give me one last smile before following after our two friends. The emerald green against her auburn ringlets looked sensational; I knew James was going to lose his mind when he saw her. I turned to look at my dad when it was my turn, and I saw that he was already looking at me with tears in his eyes.

"You look so beautiful, honey," He said through his tears. He brought a hand up to wipe them away before speaking again, "Your mother would have been so proud of you. I wish she were here for you."

I touched my necklace, the memories swirling inside and exuded a slightly golden glow, and said, "She is Dad. She's always with me." Dad smiled thinly at me, pressing a kiss to my forehead.

I heard the music change to the traditional wedding march, and I knew it was time. I took one last deep breath, linked my arm with my dad's and rounded the corner. The aisle was lined with a white runner and garland on the edges of the seats. The seats were covered in white fabric, with holly and berries tied to the back of each one. There were lanterns lining the runner, and the apple trees were covered in lights, ornaments, and live fairies. The entire setup was glowing, the magic palpable in the air. The heated bubble kept the entire outdoor area at a comfortable temperature; in fact, most everyone was sitting in short sleeves, their jackets and wraps surrendered to our coat check.

I looked up and saw my bridesmaids had already taken their spots to the left of the pastor. I glanced to the right and saw James, Peter and my brother Lewis – who had taken the spot of Remus, who was still on his Order mission. I then turned my attention to Sirius, who was standing at the top of the steps leading to the alter, the widest grin I had ever seen already cemented on his face. He was wearing a perfectly tailored black suit with a white dress shirt and a maroon and gold bowtie. His hair was long and tied back with a leather tie, reminiscent to the way Regulus used to wear his hair at Hogwarts.

As soon as my eyes connected with his, it was as if a magnet was drawing me to him. I completely forgot the slow cadence I was supposed to be following, and started rushing down the aisle. Dad's gentle tug backwards reminded me that I couldn't run or I'd end up pulling him behind me. I slowed slightly, my eyes never leaving his. As we got closer, I realized that Sirius was crying, his eyes still locked with mine. As we got to the bottom of the steps, Sirius walked down to meet us.

My dad placed my hand in Sirius's, pulling Sirius in to a hug. "You take care of my girl," He cried, the tears flowing once again.

Sirius nodded solemnly and said, "Always." Sirius tucked my hand in his arm now, and helped me up the steps. Before the Pastor could speak, he leaned over to me and said, "You look absolutely beautiful, Addie."

I smiled shyly at him and thanked him in a whisper just as the pastor started speaking. I handed my flowers to Lily, who stood one step below me, and took both of Sirius's hands in my own. The pastor said all of the usual wedding proclamations, before getting to our vows.

"Sirius, please make your vows to you bride," He said, tipping his head towards Sirius.

Sirius cleared his throat, before locking in on my eyes again and beginning to speak, "I thought long and hard about what I wanted to say to you up here that I haven't told you before. I've told you how beautiful you are, how funny you are, how kind you are, and how incredibly strong you are – anyone with eyes could see those things. Anyone with eyes could see that you see the good in everyone – even when there is very little good to find; evidenced by the fact that you somehow fell in love with me, someone who has had to fight through the darkness to maintain the innate good that I was born with." I was entranced by him, speaking so eloquently; but he wasn't done.

"As I was thinking about what more I could say to fully express the depths of my love, I realized that I had already said it all…to your brother," Sirius paused here to glance at Lewis, who was chuckling softly. "And no, I'm not going to announce suddenly that I chose the wrong Jones sibling." Our guests all chuckled at this, especially when I hit him on the arm in mock outrage.

"In all…seriousness," He continued, quirking an eyebrow at me at his bad joke. "The day I met your brother, he made me realize something – he made me realize that you were the girl I was going to marry. I said this to him then, but now I want to tell you. Addison Marie, you are everything. You are the comfort of a well-worn leather jacket, the slow burn of good firewhiskey, the joy of flying on a brisk fall day, and the warmth of a loving family – all wrapped up in one beautiful, complicated woman. You remind me that I am a good man when I forget, and you make me want to be a better man every day. I love you more than I ever thought possible, and I can't wait to spend every day with you for the rest of our lives." With the end of his vows, he looked towards the pastor for him to continue the ceremony.

The pastor gestured to me to give my own vows, and I looked up at Sirius and smiled. The weight of his beautiful words had definitely left me emotional, but I knew I had to get through what I had to say with equal strength. "I don't know if I can top that, but I will try my best. Sirius Black, I knew from our first kiss that I was never going to let you go. You have shown me over and over again that you are my safe place – the one person who can instantly make me feel at peace, no matter the situation. With everything going on in the world right now, we all need to find our peace, our solitude, our happiness – you are all of that and more. You made me feel whole when all I felt like doing was breaking down. You stood by me during the worst period in my life, and helped me come out the other side a stronger woman. You are fiercely loyal and protective, but kind and gentle at the same time. You broke free of your family and proved that you are a good man. You have shown me that despite your reputation, once you commit to something, you are all in – you have never once made me doubt your intentions or your motives. You are the love of my life, Sirius Black, and I am honored to become your wife."

As I finished, the Pastor continued, "Do you, Sirius Orion Black, take this woman as your lawful wife, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death do you part?"

"I do," Sirius nodded, as he slipped my diamond wedding band onto my finger, nestling against my engagement ring. I looked down at the sparkling bands for a moment, willing the tears that I felt forming to stay put until I made it through my own part.

"Do you, Addison Marie Jones, take this man as your lawful husband, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death do you part?"

"I do," I said firmly, slipping his goblin-made black band onto his finger with shaking hands.

"You two have been bonded in marriage and in magic," the pastor tapped our combined hands with his wand and a golden light encircled them – eerily similar to the light that encircled Sirius and Regulus's hands during the Head of House ceremony. "This union has been accepted by the Black family magic; by the power vested in me by the Ministry of Magic, I now pronounced you husband and wife!" Sirius wasted no time in pulling me towards him, as hungrily as he had two nights ago. He kissed me as if his life depended on it, all while I felt our magic sealing themselves together – the bond that we had provoked the night we got engaged was sealed, and the feeling of complete wholeness was indescribable.

The orchard erupted in cheers, and everyone raised their wands to let off golden sparks. But Sirius and I ignored all of that in favor of each other. He pulled back from our kiss, still cradling my head in his hands.

"I love you, Sirius Black, my husband," I said sweetly, leaning in to kiss him again.

"And I love you, Addison Black, my beautiful Wife." In that moment, despite a war waging around us, two careers that took us far away from each other and a missing best friend… everything was perfect – because we had each other.