Okay guys, I finally managed to get this story going! Yay me! Huzzah! I gave an extra long chapter for you guys, and I hope all of you leave a review. By the way, did everyone see the new Sherlock episode? o.O

Nervousness is Underestimated

Because face wash is completely and essentially a world of its own, June woke up hours before school was supposed to start and began to get dressed. She feverishly entered the room, bent upon making this proper.

"June, what on earth are you doing?" asked Mary drowsily.

"I'm dating Sirius Black," she said with a manic expression, peeping out of the bathroom with toothpaste all over her face and her bed head in a terrible state. "I'm dating Sirius Black." She sounded almost hysterical.

"So?" asked Mary, rubbing her eyes.

"It's Sirius Black," she said by way of explanation. She peeped out again, now face wash plastered all over her face. "He snogs girls senseless, he's a known womanizer, and he hasn't had a date which hasn't ended in sex. I am not going to be the girl with the roughest cheeks he's ever had the misfortune of touching, or with the worst lips ever to be under his scrutiny."

Mary gave an exasperated groan and fell face down into her pillow. "Jesus, June, it's six in the morning. He likes you, it won't be a problem."

"Mary he's Sirius. I can't compete with the kind of girls he's dated! What if it's a hoax and he doesn't actually want to date me?" June looked ready to sob.

She slumped down the wall and cuddled into herself.

"June…" muttered Mary, getting out of bed. "He likes you. He doesn't care about the girls he dated. He's likes you. It doesn't matter. Come now, be a good girl."

"Do you know how to shave?" asked June earnestly.

"God, Leto," said Mary – she pinched the bridge of her nose. "Alright, let's get you dressed."

"What's going on?" asked Marlene blearily.

"Leto's being weird," said Mary picking the tiny girl up and taking her to the washrooms.

"Oh," said Marlene, falling back asleep.

"There's no need to be nervous now," said Mary.

"Nervousness is underestimated," twitched June.

"Wait – I don't remember you coming in to the dormitory last night," said Mary.

June shifted uncomfortably. "I was in the common room."

"Doing what, may I ask?" asked Mary, crossing her hands.

"I don't know!" June burst, "One minute I was dancing, next minute I was kissing him, next minute I was lying on the sofa with him, all cuddled up and warm and nowhere to go and I don't know what to do!"

"Calm, Leto!" said Mary. "Now, did you leave him on the sofa?"

"Well, yeah!" said June, distressed. "Isn't that what I was supposed to do? He looked peaceful, and he looked so handsome and I couldn't help it."

"You couldn't help abandoning a handsome boy who clearly wanted to snuggle with you?" asked Mary skeptically.

"He makes me nervous!" she cried. "He's a genius, and he's gifted, and handsome, and has had a parade of girlfriends, and I don't know what I am doing, and when he kisses me he can feel the rocky mountains, I just know it."

"Leto, calm down!" said Mary. "He likes you! Don't worry about it. As for the 'being girlfriend' crap, don't worry about it. You'll figure it out."

"And what if I don't?" wailed June, "What if it transpires that I can never be a good girlfriend, that I always end up blurting rubbish and acting like a three year old, and he gets sick of me, and he ends up abandoning me or leaving me, and then I fall into a downward spiral where my grades fall and my friends abandon me and I go into a pit of despair?! And then, after I fail my NEWTS, I set fire to the castle, in a state of nervous abandon and the ministry comes after me and I end up in Azkaban?!"

"Good god, Leto," said Mary. "If all that does happen, we'll deal with it accordingly. Now go inside so that I can help you get dressed."

Unfortunately for June, the whole school was buzzing with the fact that she was dating Sirius. She was in absolutely no mood to go ahead and say something about it, her own mounting nervousness was just taking over her whole mind.

While going down, her walk was filled with utter and complete dread mixed with certain parts excitement. There was something very terrifying about the grand staircase which she hadn't noticed before, really.

"June!" said a red head from the Slytherin table. The rest of the Slytherin hissed at June and glared at Annie with slits.

June smiled weakly at Annie and went to sit with her. She was hoping she would avoid Sirius this way.

"Oh – um, okay?" said Annie, shifting her stuff. "No one from Gryffindor has ever come to sit over, so this is sort of new. Ignore the whispering. All of us are always plotting behind each other's backs."

"Um… sure?" said June. She gulped as she noticed her boyfriend come for breakfast.

"Oh yeah," nudged Annie slyly. "Care to share?" she asked with a bright grin.

"Um," blanched June as Sirius spotted her and smiled at her. "Nothing to share."

"Sure there isn't," said Annie sarcastically. "I heard you were quite cozied up during the party. And that you're dating. Ohh, look at that. She's blushing!"

June blushed again violently, and peeped from beneath her eyelashes at Sirius, who was coming closer to them.

"Which reminds me, I need to collect my winnings!" said Annie at once, "Come on, June. Let's go. You can give me details later, yes?"

"Annie – no, wait!" said June, trying to stop the impulsive third grader.

But Annie jumped to her feet and rushed up to James.

"Kid!" said James ecstatically.

"Oh noble tall one," said Annie, bowing reverently. "May I please claim my winnings?"

"Why certainly, my dear titch! In fact, we'll split everything I won. Which is quite a bit."

"Hello, June," said Sirius – he looked a bit nervous and cheeky at the same time.

June nodded stiffly, trying her hardest to look more ecstatic.

However, James and Annie ignored that. "Whatever for?" asked Annie, surprised.

"Kid," said James, getting up and clapping her shoulder. "You're the one who made it all possible. Therefore, splitting the shares seems the logical thing to do. No arguments."

"Hey, who am I to argue with a man giving me money?" asked Annie. "Right June?"

"June?" she questioned.

But June had disappeared, and Sirius was still there.

"What did you do to her?" asked Annie.

"What?" asked Sirius, "I didn't do anything! She was hear a minute, gone the next!"

"She must have class," frowned Annie. "Anyway, see you fellows later."

Annie skipped away into oblivion, and Sirius faced James. "Where on earth did she disappear?"

James shrugged. "Dunno, mate. She's your girlfriend."

For June, the next few weeks were either spent dodging Sirius and running away, or being extremely jealous of all the girls who could speak to him. She was caught in a rather painful battle of wanting to desperately open herself up to him, and wanting to avoid any talk at all, for then he may realize that she's an idiot and want to break up with her.

Therefore, she got ready early, went for breakfast early, refused to speak to him when they went for classes together, avoided eye contact and feared his touch entirely. She was absolutely petrified that he may find her skin rough, her lips too thin, her eyes to small. Self conscious about all her flaws, June had taken to going for walks to avoid not only Sirius, but also to exercise.

Her friends were largely unimpressed by her behavior. Marlene had said one night, "Darling, you really need to get a move on. He isn't going to wait for you to slip out of your comfort zone forever, I hope you know."

Lily had done the tactical thing, trying to reason with her about the whole ordeal. "Come on, June. It can't be that bad to let him hold your hand, now can it? I know full well he's a git, but he's a git you love, yes?"

Mary on the other hand, had said nothing. She had watched with increasing worry as June mulled over and over again about the whole thing, did her homework, tried to sleep and didn't manage it. One night, nearly a week later, she spoke to June in a low voice. "June, I really think you should speak to Sirius about your nervousness."

June looked up at Marlene, flabbergasted.

"I'm serious," she said. "Pun not intended. You need to speak to him and tell him about your insecurities – it's only fair on him. After that, he himself can decide if he can handle such a crackpot of a girl. If he doesn't want you, his loss. But at least give him the benefit of the doubt."

June bit her lip and slumped back in bed. This was certainly not going as planned.

On the other end of the yardstick, it wasn't going as planned either. Sirius had never thought that a girl could be so conflicting, her character so utterly unrecognizable. Just when he thought he understood June Leto completely, she took a hundred and eighty degree turn and disappeared into a whole other avenue.

Sirius was dolefully contemplating the possibilities of her avoiding him. He had a feeling she was going to break up with him, as she rarely ever spoke to him anyway. She can't possibly like dating someone like him – there was no way Sirius Black could be considered 'boyfriend' material. He had a grand total of more birds around him, and yet he knew he wasn't one any girl would settle down with.

But he liked this girl! She was pretty and witty, and shy and silent, childish and old, lovely and sad. He liked her and he enjoyed her company. When they spoke, he could talk about everything. She was simple and sarcastic, all of it hidden behind a pair of yellow eyes.

"Give it up, mate," said James sympathetically.

"What?" asked Sirius.

"Quit thinking about her. When the time is right, she'll come to you."

"But what will she have to say then?" asked Sirius. "She barely liked me before, she certainly doesn't seem to like me now."

"She might just be nervous."

"About what?" asked Sirius. "This is a case of break up, I've seen the symptoms before."

"And what do you know about women?" asked James scornfully.

"Excuse you," said Sirius dully, "But I have had more women than you."

"I'm sure you have."

"I have!" declared Sirius.

"And just how many of those were real to you?" asked James.

Sirius didn't say anything.

"Give your bird some time," said James soothingly. "It'll be fine."

"Hey there, caterpillar," said James, as he saw the dark form of June sitting in a corner of the library.

June jumped a few feet high and squeaked something incoherent. "Why'd you call me that?" she asked.

"Because you and the caterpillar share many characteristics, don't you think?"

"No…" she said.

"Is it?" asked James, sitting down beside her. "You both tend to keep yourselves to yourselves, are both rather nice looking if one gets past all those spots and sliminess, or in your case, hair. You're currently in a cocoon, but you seem to refuse metamorphosis, like some caterpillars do."

June looked at her book. "What do you want?" asked June.

"Must we jump to conclusions?" asked James. "I want nothing, sweetheart. I wanted you to explain this thing that I found in the science book you leant me."

"Oh," she said. "What is it?"

"What exactly is this e = mc squared?"

"Oh – that," said June. "That's a little complex, I doubt I'd be able to explain."

"What is it?"

"It's a formula proposed by Einstein, a famous muggle scientist. He disproved Newton's laws of motions. Einstein proves that mass is also a relative term, and it depends upon speed and energy."

"But Newton's laws seem to work."

June got herself comfortable and turned to face James. "In the shorter run, yes. Newton's laws are very helpful when searching for smaller quantities, which is why we use them. However, try using them in outer space and values become messed up."

"What theory did Einstein propose?"

"Theory of relativity," she said. "Rather complex, I don't think I could explain."

"What's it about?"

"It's about the relativity of time and space."

"Why don't you speak to Sirius?"

"I feel nervous around him," she said thoughtlessly.

"Aha!" said James immediately, "I knew it!"

June blushed. Madam Pince looked up and glared at them. "Shhh!" she hissed.

"Why do you feel nervous around him?" asked James in a whisper.

"Because he's dated the human versions of Aphrodite and I barely qualify as a sea cow."

"Is that it?" asked James with a laugh. Madam Pince looked up and hissed. "Silence!"

"Yes," groaned June quietly, her head dropping in her arms. "I feel nervous that he might find my skin rough, my lips all weird and my body too fat. I feel nervous about talking around him, because I may say something stupid. I feel nervous that he doesn't like me, he's actually just trying me out, and that he might break it off very soon."

"June," said James with a barely kept laugh, "He loves you, I hope you know that?"

"What? No!"

"Yes, very much so," he said solemnly.

"Did he say that to you?"

"No."

"Then your opinion is irrelevant," June said dismissively.

"I happen to be his best friend, and I looked up the definition of love," James grinned. He pulled out a thick dictionary from his bag and slammed it on the table. "I marked it for you," he said ominously.

June opened the book, looking at him through narrowed eyelids.

"Number one," recited James. "A strong feeling of affection. Number two, Feel deep affection or sexual love for someone."

"Doesn't prove anything, he could have loved any of his other girlfriends –"

"Number three," continued James forcefully. "An anomaly in regular behavior, causing a rush of emotion."

"So?" asked June.

"'An anomaly in behavior,'" repeated James. "I don't know what you think of yourself, Leto, but you're definitely an anomaly in his behavior."

June said nothing.

"And, you have to talk to him, you know," said James sagely. "He's getting increasingly worried about you. And he's beginning to think it's his fault or something. He starting to believe he hurt you somehow."

June blanched visibly.

"Well, I have homework to do," said James. "Pass me the herbology book, would you?"

June, however, was staring at the table.

James whistled. "June?" he asked in a sing song voice.

"I have to go," she whispered.

"That's my girl," James whispered back.

He watched June disappear down the book cases and grinned to himself. Mission accomplished, he thought to himself.

Dawn had painted across the summer sky, with her usual reds and oranges. The sun glowed like a ripe mango. The trees whistled darkly and the wind whispered away into another world.

Sirius was glaring at the fire. The evening had been going rather badly, and he still hadn't met his so-called girlfriend.

"Ahem?" came a tiny voice.

Sirius looked up from the fire. June stood in front of him, looking like she had been out in the cold.

"Why're you shivering?" asked Sirius, unable to keep out a hint of worry.

"It's cold," she whispered. The sun glowed as a blatant contradiction. Sirius raised his eyebrows.

"I… um. I was, er won-wondering. If – we-well. Erm. I was wond-wondering if we could ta-talk," she muttered.

Sirius immediately noticed her fall back into her stammer.

"Alright," he said with dread. She was breaking up with him, wasn't she?

They walked upstairs to her terrace. How poetic, he thought bitterly. She's breaking up with me where we first kissed.

"Yes?" he asked her as she turned around to face him. She opened her mouth like a goldfish once or twice.

"I wanted – um. To… er… say that –" she began. She took a deep breath and for some reason, her voice choked up. "Sirius, I'm sorry!" she said. "I know I'm an absolutely terrible girlfriend, that I deserve to be alone and unhappy, and that might still be the case. Maybe I will buy myself some million cats, and a few dogs, and become and old spinster with nothing to live for. I'm digressing, sorry. I just feel so terribly nervous around you!" she said.

Well, that was unexpected, thought Sirius.

"I feel so scared that you might find my lips too thin, and my skin like the alps redefined, or that you might think my boobs are small, or that my hair is messy or that my legs are like a chicken's. And you've dated such beautiful girls, I can't even compete with them, and I don't know what you're supposed to do in a relationship anyway! Plus, I've liked you since third bloody year."

This was certainly not what he was expecting.

"And I suck at talking, I never manage to string a sentence together without freaking out and overanalyzing, so I avoid speaking to you altogether. Lily says you'll go away, and so does Marlene. Mary doesn't, but I know she's thinking it, and I'm scared. I don't want you going away, anybody I ever cared about has gone away and –"

Sirius had enveloped her in a hug. "Sirius, I'm so-" she began, her voice muffled.

"Shut up, Leto," he said.

She pressed her cheek to his chest. "I'm sorry," she whispered.

"June, you're most definitely the strangest person I have met," he said bemusedly.

"What do you mean?" she asked childishly.

"You can't possibly think you're bad at kissing, right?"

"Aren't I?" she asked desperately.

"Moron," he said, shaking his head. He touched her cheek. "See? All soft. No mountain ranges."

"That's… erm," she began. "That's because I've been using face wash out of sheer paranoia."

"Idiot," he shook his head.

"Didn't mean it," she muttered. Her hands hung loosely by her sides, for she didn't know what to do with them.

"June, when people hug, they generally put arms around each other," said Sirius, amused.

"Oh," said June. "Right."

She wriggled her arms on his shoulders.

"That's better. Now tell me about your crush on me in third year."

June blushed. "It was nothing," she muttered.

"Seems like it was a lot," said Sirius.

"Nothing at all," she said resolutely.

"Go on, tell me."

She sighed. "I had a crush on you in third year. Story over."

"And why on earth didn't you say something?"

"Because practically everyone has a crush on you," she said, rolling her eyes. "Vincent Brocks has a crush on you. And who am I to compete with him?"

"Wait, what?" said Sirius. "Guys have crushes on me?"

"You didn't know?" asked June incredulously. "I think even Rodger Marsinko likes you."

"That's… okay, sure," said Sirius. "Gives a boost to my ego."

"Shouldn't have told you, in that case."

"None of your cheek, Leto," said Sirius, his arms still on her waist.

"Plus, you've gone very far with your girlfriends. And I definitely cannot compete with that."

"How do you know that?"

"Erm… I know stuff," she said.

"And just how far have you gone with a guy?" he asked her.

"You're the only guy I've been with," she said.

"Fourth base," he said.

"Hmm?"

"I've gone fourth base."

"I figured," she said uncomfortably.

"I want you to know that you're not obligated to do that," he said quickly. "You can go as far as you're comfortable with. If you don't like kissing, we can even not do that." He didn't look too happy with the thought.

"No… erm. It's not that," she said. "I'm just… I'm very bad at physical contact. I get scared that I may be doing it all wrong, and that I may trip, fall and die."

"Alright," said Sirius fairly. "Let's teach you some basic physical contact."

"What?" she asked.

He left her waist and stood in front of her. "This," he said, raising his hand to her cheek, "Is simple contact which is for pleasure. I like your face, hence I like touching it, see?"

June blushed red, and flinched a little, while her stomach did a somersault.

"This," he said, holding her hand, "is physical contact to declare possessiveness. I like claiming it to everyone that you are exclusively mine so I hold your hand."

June smiled at him.

"This," he said, stepping closer and caressing her face, "is physical contact for affection and admiration. Right now, I'm admiring how lovely you look and showing my affection for you, yes?"

"Um," she said, gulping.

"Would you like a kiss?" he asked.

She nodded slowly, swallowing.

"Then this," he whispered to her lips. "Is physical contact which is the equivalent of bliss."

And he pressed his lips to her, slowly, softly. She tried to get some control, to kiss him properly, but her mind was numb. Her lips moved as she cataloged every single thing about the situation. His thumb brushed across her cheek. She felt him bite at her lower lip, and she loved it.

Finally, when he stopped, she was breathing heavily against his neck.

"Well, we need to work on your breathing," he said cheekily.

Okay guys, be happy! I'm currently writing this thingy which has been taking a lot of my time, but I finally got on track with this one! WOOHOO. Thanks goes to Miss Cinammon and OmenProphecy :D