Summary: A sleek Scandinavian, detention romance, a summer fling, the one girl he never expected, and more. Read all about Sirius Black's twisted love-life and the girls who made it click.

Rated: M :D

Disclaimer: See Chapter One.

A/N: Long time, no see, everyone! I know I haven't updated since last year, but I was busy with school and the like, and then my computer got all messed up and I didn't have internet and couldn't access my files. It sucked. But now it's summer vacation and all my friends are gone, so I figure I might as well continue on the story! See, I told you I wouldn't abandon it!

Read on, my children, and grow…

Chapter Seven

Summer Abounds

Sirius awoke with a start. He had been having a good dream – something about chocolate and flying and… yes, Claire Delacour and her Veela sister-in-law had been in it, too – and felt exceedingly well-rested. His eyes opened onto the taut, airy blue canopy of his bed. Bits of sunlight were streaming around the edges of the heavy window drapes, and he could hear a cow lowing somewhere out in the fields.

Ah, yes, Sirius recalled cheerfully, it's summer.

He rolled out of bed and stood on the ornate carpet of his bedroom. Actually, this room had only become his as of recently; last summer had seen his escape to James's manor from his own house and maniacal family in London, and James's kindly parents had bestowed upon him one of their many guest suites.

Sirius pulled back the drapes and stepped through the French door onto his tiny stone balcony. Beyond the immediate garden, which was very pretty with winding slate paths, low hedges and ornate ceramic pots overflowing with primroses, lay a well-kempt and mown area of the field where the Potters regularly threw outdoor parties. Then there was a stone wall and beyond that the rolling Heathland. A forest of pine trees and silver birches lay beyond another stone wall on the far side of a broad, gentle hill covered thickly in heather, heath and gorse. Farther away still, beyond the forest, the steeples of the nearest town were visible.

Sirius leaned against the stone railing of his balcony. All along this face of the manor, (which had a name, Thestrel's Perch) other balconies like his advertised the long hallway of suites. Two balconies down was James's, easily distinguishable from the others because James kept a broomstick leaning against the railing and a rope ladder looped over the side for a convenient exit.

Away atop the next hill Sirius could see Tara Nevan's family's manor, Primroses, standing up majestically and unassumingly in the bright morning sunshine. At the property line, marked by a crumbling stone wall, the Heathland changed abruptly to fields of grass. Horses grazed in a low, shady paddock next to a small stream. Away behind the stables was a small, thatched cottage that Sirius and James often used for getting drunk, even though it belonged to the Nevans.

At first glance, the differences between Thestrel's Perch and Primroses were like the differences between night and day. Thestrel's Perch was stark and gloomy, with long, dark hallways and stern portraits on the walls. It was known far and wide for the glorious masquerades James's parents threw at Halloween, and the balls that took place regularly year-round.

Primroses, on the other hand, was a bright country estate, with flowers and horses and green hills dotted with sheep. Tara's parents covertly employed Muggles to hay the fields and manage the animals, though they also had two house elves to manage day-to-day cooking and cleaning.

And yet, despite their differences, both Thestrel's Perch and Primroses were owned by old wizard families that had been maintaining the land – and dearly befriending each other – for generations.

In the midst of contemplating all of this – Mr. Potter had given him a lesson on the history of the property when he had first arrived in Devon that July night one year ago – Sirius heard a knock at the door.

"Come in!" he called, turning around and stepping back into his bedroom.

James pushed the door open and strode in. "Gooood morning, mate!" he remarked cheerfully. "How long have you been up?"

Sirius shrugged. "Only a few minutes. Want to get something to eat soon?"

James nodded. "Yeah, I'll go take a shower and then we'll head down."

"Alright."

As James returned to his room, Sirius picked out some clothes for the day and climbed into his large marble shower. Somebody – probably one of the three house elves – had lain a fluffy white towel for him on a shelf in the bathroom.

Sirius sighed contently as he fiddled with the knobs controlling the hot water. He loved it here. There were no stresses and no responsibilities. Thestrel's Perch was truly Heaven on Earth.

-

"Would Sirius Black like porridge or sausage this morning?" Teaky, one of the house elves, squeaked.

"Er… could I have both?" Sirius asked slowly, intensely considering both options and not coming up with a distinctive preference.

"Oh, certainly, sir!" Teaky squeaked back. She turned to James. "And you, Master James?"

"I'll have both, too, thanks," James instructed briskly.

Teaky nodded and scurried out of the solarium to do their bidding.

James tipped his chair back on two legs and sighed. "So!" he said lazily. "What are we going to do today?"

It was the third day of summer vacation, and they were eating in the solarium because it was a beautiful morning and the exotic plants hanging from the iron beams below the solarium's glass roof were in full bloom. James's mother had been eating at the circular glass table when the two boys had come downstairs, but she had since finished her after-breakfast cup of tea and had retreated into the house to plan for later in the evening, when several of James's relatives were set to visit.

"I don't know," Sirius replied, equally lazy. "Swimming?"

James nodded thoughtfully. "We should probably call Tara and see if she wants to come, too."

Sirius groaned. "If you must."

James rolled his eyes. "Heard from Annie yet?" he asked, changing the subject.

Sirius shook his head idly. "Nope, but I'm not worried."

James drummed his fingers on the glass tabletop. "Why don't you like Tara?" he inquired briskly.

Sirius frowned in thought. "It's not so much that I don't like her, it's that… well..."

Truth be told, he couldn't really remember right off the bat what he disliked about Tara Nevan. Something about how in love with him she was, and how she was always underfoot, and how great it felt to make out with Savannah right in front of her…

It wasn't so much that he significantly disliked Tara, Sirius realized, so much that she was fun to exclude. He didn't like her because she was too loud and too blunt and, though kind of cute, to be sure, was nowhere near as gorgeous as she thought she was. He didn't like the fact that she thought that she had a right to talk to him all the time just because… well, because they were neighbors, kind of… and he didn't like how James always hinted at what an adorable couple they would make.

But deep down, Sirius didn't significantly mind anything about Tara; he just enjoyed ignoring her because he knew that, however obnoxious he was, she would always come back wanting more. He turned to James.

"This may sound pretty awful, mate, but I think I just really like ignoring her because it makes her… well… want me more."

James laughed in surprise. He nodded for a few moments as if in thought, and then said, "I feel you, man."

Sirius raised an eyebrow in surprise. "Do you?"

James nodded. "It was the same when she was infatuated with me! It felt great to spite her, because she's so… well… insecure that all it does is make her want your approval even more!"

Sirius laughed despite himself, because it was so chauvinistic and yet so, so true.

"She's a nice girl, though," James added thoughtfully. "She doesn't really deserve to be treated like shit, even if she practically begs for it."

Sirius shrugged idly. "Yeah."

James frowned, and then laughed again. "You know who would give us such shit for talking like this?"

Sirius smiled fondly. "Moony?"

James nodded. "Yes. And maybe he has a point, too. I mean to say…" He trailed off.

Sirius pretended to be overly curious. "You mean to say what? What?"

James laughed easily. Then he looked serious. "I mean it would be so easy for you to just completely use Tara, you know what I mean? And I mean, I know that you wouldn't because that's… well, that's pretty shitty for a bloke to do, but can't you imagine Moony just ranting on and on about it?"

Sirius nodded in agreement. He had received plenty of lectures from Remus in the past regarding his indiscriminant "use" of girls.

"You should never actually be mean to Tara," James continued, looking Sirius in the eye now as if giving him instructions. "I mean, I feel you, but at the same, Tara's like my sister in a weird, twisted way, and I don't want you to do anything to hurt her." He smiled slightly. "More than you've already done, anyway."

"Of course not, mate," Sirius replied at once. He sighed and stretched, then shook his head. "But does that still mean we have to invite her to swim with us?"

James smiled. "Well, I guess not."

Teaky returned, bearing a large platter of porridge and crackling sausages, and carrying a pot of tea. Sirius and James picked up forks, knives and mugs and dug in.

-

They had been swimming in the swimming hole – a wide, deep part of the brook, sheltered on three sides by rocks, that cut across the Nevan property – for almost half an hour when Tara rode up over the hill on one of her horses. She was moving at a brisk trot and her hair hung loose, swishing around behind her and looking oddly reminiscent of her horse's mane and tail.

"Oh hello, you two!" Tara exclaimed, slowing the horse – it was brown with white markings – to a walk and directing it toward the stream, where it drank dutifully.

"Hi," James replied pleasantly, climbing out of the water to sit on a rock.

"Hey, Tara," Sirius added, smiling at her in what he hoped was a friendly – if indifferent – manner. His gray eyes met Tara's green ones, and she smiled, too, though he had been attempting to look haughty.

"Your mum said I might find you two here," Tara remarked, leading the horse splashing across a shallow part of the stream before sliding off of its back gracefully and tying its reins to a low branch.

She was wearing cutoff shorts and a T-shirt, but she soon stripped both off, revealing a dark blue bathing suit. "I figured I might as well join in."

James smiled at her, gave Sirius a disconcerting wink, and dove off of his rock into the deep water. Tara deftly wove her hair into a braid, secured it with a rubber band, and took a running leap off of the rock after him.

Sirius laughed despite himself – after all, it was summer, and he was happy. He paddled out of the deep water and pulled himself up into an overhanging tree, grabbing the rope that had long ago been secured there and pushing himself back out so that his legs skimmed the water until he let go and plunged once again into the deep end.

When he came up, he saw Tara, looking remarkably slender and fit in her modest one-piece suit, take a running leap and do a cannonball right on top of him.

They both came up laughing.

Damn it, I want to have a relaxing summer, and being indifferent to Tara is waaaay to much effort, Sirius rationalized as James grinned and did a canon ball on top of him as well.

Tara laughed harder, and pulled herself onto the rocks. "Your turn, Sirius," she instructed.

Sirius yanked himself onto the rock next to her and leapt off, sending a blast of water all over Tara and into the low trees overhead. As Tara laughed again and dove elegantly after him, Sirius smiled at the sky visible through the gaps in the leaves overhead. Summer was wonderful.

-

It was suppertime and the days were passing pleasantly. Sirius sat along one side of the long dining room table, Mr. Potter at the end to his right, Mrs. Potter at the end to his left, James across from him. Two uncles of James's were also seated, one beside Sirius and one beside James. The uncles were talking about their work at the ministry.

"Don't know what we're going to do, all these new reports of pure-blood fanaticism… It's been strong for ages, but this new group is really starting to advocate for…"

Sirius tuned out. He was thinking about sex.

You're such a teenage boy, he thought, shaking his head internally in bemusement.

But he couldn't help it. Summer had been progressing for over two weeks, and the closest he'd come to a good snog had been when an older cousin of James's – she had been, perhaps, twenty-five – had stopped by for dinner the week before and had gotten a tad tipsy. But then, of course, James had shaken his head in aggravation and dragged Sirius up to his room, where they had split a bottle of vodka tonic swiped from the liquor cupboard and then gone on a thrilling, drunken nighttime adventure over the Heathland until they'd made it to the cottage in the back corner of the Nevans' fields, where they had ended up passing out on a dusty, moldy-smelling bed.

Sirius had received one letter from Savannah. It had begun:

Hey, Sirius! I'm in Italy and it's pretty awesome. We're staying in a villa and Annette and I have been having quite a thrill hitting on the local boys…

Though she had avoided details, Sirius had frowned in frustration. He was not angry that Savannah was snogging other males – indeed, he couldn't have cared less – but he could not help but be a teensy bit bitter that she was surrounded by attractive potential hookups while all he had were some house elves and the irritating Tara Nevan.

Actually, Tara had been growing marginally less irritating. The Nevans had thrown a semi-formal dinner for several families the week before, and the Potters and Sirius had been invited to attend. Most of the other children were younger; after eating, while the adults sat down to drink wine, Tara, James and Sirius had snuck down the back staircase and found their way out to the stables, where they climbed up into the hayloft and told each other creepy stories while drinking spiked butterbeer. It was surprisingly entertaining. And in the fit of drunken bonding that ensued, Sirius had decided that Tara Nevan wasn't actually all that bad.

The next day he was over it, of course, but still, the experience had lowered his lack of receptiveness to Tara's charm.

For she did have a certain charm. She was very blunt, though sometimes awkwardly so, as she was comfortable with James but got carried away when talking to Sirius. She had a strange sense of humor, frequently delivering pseudo-insults – "Sirius, that shirt is hideous!" – that weren't worthy of laughter.

Sirius didn't really know why she did it.

"She's actually pretty funny sometimes," James had remarked mildly, after Sirius had complained to him about Tara's discomfited behavior. "She's just insecure around you. Maybe you should… I dunno… start laughing at her jokes or something, and she'll loosen up."

Having nothing better to do, Sirius had started going along with Tara's off sense of humor, and, much to his – and James's – astonishment, results were positive. Indeed, once he had tricked her into feeling comfortable around him, Tara had suddenly become acutely more interesting.

Now, thinking about sex, Sirius considered what would happen if he got with Tara. It was purely hypothetical, of course – he still was not remotely attracted to Tara sexually – but really, she was the only girl around for miles, and he was getting mighty sick of celibacy.

Fuck it, he realized, I'd break her heart.

But did it really matter?

-

"If I were an Animagus, I think I would be a horse," Tara said one evening, as she, James and Sirius – they had lately begun to spend more and more time together, as Sirius was no longer inherently opposed to it – sat on the railing of her family's paddock, watching the herd of horses grazing in the sunset.

Sirius smiled slightly. He remembered the thrill he had felt upon discovering his own Animagus form, the dog. Turning into an animal was a wonderful experience, and he and James had been running across the Heathland as Prongs and Padfoot most nights since the beginning of summer.

"You really like horses, don't you?" he observed.

Tara nodded. "I've ridden them all my life."

James laughed quietly. "You sound like such a horse snob, Tara."

Sirius nodded. "Yeah, gosh, Tara. I hate you lot."

Tara grinned and leaned toward him. "And why is that?"

Sirius shrugged. "I dunno, you're just all horse-obsessed and… think you're oh-so-free and wild and graceful when you ride across the meadows of Devon with your hair blowing in the wind. You know, that kind of shit."

Tara giggled. "Damn straight we're free and graceful! But hey, I don't force it on you."

Sirius rolled his eyes. "Oh sure, Tara. You're always riding over to Thestrel's Perch on Blinky or whatever–"

Tara was laughing. "Blazer," she interrupted. "Blazer's my horse." She scanned the herd and pointed out the horse's dark form.

"I bet that's a different one," James said abruptly. "They all look the same in the dark."

Tara rolled her eyes and shoved him. "Maybe to you, Jamie."

Sirius grinned. "See, Tara? This is what I mean!"

Tara pulled her long hair over one shoulder and turned to look at him. "What is?"

"This elitism!" Sirius explained, moving his hands around as he sought the proper words. "You're all like, 'You could never understand horses the way I do!' Gosh, Tara! I dunno if I ever told you, but I was raised by wild horses–"

Tara stiffened. "Oh, shut it," she interrupted. "That's not true at all. My family happens to own a bunch of horses so I ride around on them because I don't have a bloody motorcycle. What else am I supposed to do?"

Sirius grinned again. "This is true."

Tara braced her arms against the fence and leaned backward slightly.

"You should take me for a ride some time, Sirius."

He nodded in thought. "I could," he observed. He smiled again in amusement. "You should probably take me for a ride on Blinky, too, though… y'know, so we can compare modes of transportation."

Tara giggled. "It's a deal."

James laughed quietly again, but did not explain why. Sirius chose to ignore him.

"Hell, let's go right now!" he suggested to Tara, swinging his legs and pushing himself off of the fence onto the short grass. "We can fly over the forest."

Tara grinned, and Sirius couldn't help but catch her eye. "Let's go, then."

James smiled and asked nonchalantly, "Do you two want to get drunk tonight?"

Sirius shrugged. "Maybe."

Tara shrugged as well. "I don't drink."

James laughed. "Bull shit."

Tara laughed too. "Just kidding. Um… if you guys want, we can all camp out in the cottage and get drunk out there."

James nodded thoughtfully. "Sounds like a plan. Well, I'm going to go swipe some alcohol, but you two can go for your little moonlit motorcycle ride…" He jumped off of the fence as well, and headed back down the hill to the stone wall separating the two properties.

"Shall we?" Tara suggested.

Sirius nodded. "We shall."

Together, they walked along the wall and then across the Heathland until they reached one of the many small, thatched-roofed barns spattered liberally across the Potters' property. Sirius's motorcycle was parked inside of this one.

Sirius rolled it out into the moonlight, where it gleamed slightly. He had first acquired the motorcycle at the beginning of last summer, and had used as a mode of transportation when escaping to James's house. He and James occasionally flew down to the village on it, zooming wildly down to drive on the dirt road before rounding the last bend so as to prevent Muggles from spotting them.

Tara giggled. "I like it."

Sirius nodded. "And you see, young Tara," he observed thoughtfully, "if I were an Animagus…"

Tara giggled again.

Sirius chose not to complete his sentence. Instead, he revved up the motorcycle and instructed Tara to climb onto the back.

"You get the bitch seat," he informed her.

Tara laughed. "I'm honored."

Then, with a roar, Sirius kicked off the ground and they flew.

It was in the midst of sitting on a vibrating motorcycle, Tara's arms wrapped tightly around his waist, the cool night air swooshing past on all sides, that Sirius decided he really, really needed to get laid.

He turned his head so as to look back at Tara; she was grinning exuberantly, looking around on all sides at the Heathland below them. Her long hair was tied back in a ponytail, which was whipping every which way in the wind. She was wearing a light-blue T-shirt and cutoff denim shorts, as usual. She was shivering almost unconsciously.

Indeed, it was getting a bit chilly zooming through the air on a motorcycle. Sirius hadn't bothered to put on his leather jacket, and he wasn't sure if Tara even owned one.

"Let's go back!" he shouted over the roar of the engine.

"What?" Tara yelled.

Sirius shook his head; he careened around in a broad arc and zoomed across the Heathland feet above the ground, suddenly speeding upward as a new idea struck him; Tara shrieked happily, oblivious to the cold, as the heather and grouse fell away.

Sirius slowed the motorcycle's speed as they approached the roof of Thestrel's Perch; spotting the flat rooftop patio he was aiming for, Sirius decreased the speed still more. He touched down gently among the bare clotheslines and helped Tara to dismount.

"Why are we here?" she hissed, giggling slightly.

Sirius smiled mischievously and didn't answer; he grabbed her by the hand (he felt Tara stiffen slightly in mingled surprise and delight) and pulled her across the slate patio to the low door leading to what would traditionally be known as the servant's quarters – the low rooms at the very top of the house.

"Sirius, what–" Tara began again, but stopped as Sirius put a finger to his lips and led her through the rooms and down the hall to the staircase; they did not say another word until the reached the door to Sirius's bedroom two floors below.

"Shhh," Sirius murmured, opening the door a bit, holding a finger to his lips again, and jerking his head purposefully toward his room.

Tara looked at him wide-eyed. "What–"

"C'mere," Sirius whispered, pulling her into his bedroom and shutting the door behind them.

"What are we doing?" Tara whispered. Then she smiled. "And why are we whispering?" she demanded in a normal voice.

Sirius grinned, and shrugged. "I don't know, I just like being all secretive." He, too, now spoke in a normal voice.

Tara laughed. "Well…" She went to the window and looked out at the moon now rising over the Heathland. She turned back to look at him, the moonlight shining through the glass and illuminating her face. It was remarkably flattering lighting; instead of looking pleasantly cute as she usually did, Tara looked straight-up beautiful.

Sirius walked slowly toward her, wondering how wrong it was for a guy to get with a girl under these circumstances – the circumstances being that he knew that she was incredibly down. And also that he was incredibly horny. Would she take this the wrong way? Sirius wasn't sure, and did not particularly care; he was an insensitive teenage boy, after all. And it wasn't like Tara was Claire Delacour.

He slid one hand around to the small of Tara's back – he could hear her swallow in delighted anticipation as he did so – and tilted her chin up with the other. Then he kissed her fully.

Tara responded at once; her mouth yielded to Sirius's tongue, and when, still kissing her passionately, he led her to his bed and pushed her gently back onto it, she did not protest. Sirius climbed on top of her and kissed her more and more persistently, feeling himself getting more and more aroused as he did so. Now this was the way to live the summer to its fullest!

Pulling back slightly, Sirius looked deep into Tara's golden-green eyes. She was breathing a little hard; no doubt she was feeling almost as aroused as he was.

Excellent.

Sirius smiled at her and kissed her on the forehead; Tara grinned despite herself, wondering vaguely if this was perhaps some extremely graphic, marvelous dream. Sirius Black, her crush of the last twelve months, was kissing her at last.

Considering she was moderately attractive and not especially shy, Tara Nevan had markedly little experience with boys. Back in the fall, she had been kissed by a boy in her year, and she had made out with that same boy at a later date, but aside from that, Tara Nevan was an utter virgin. And so, when she felt Sirius Black's hands sliding slowly and oh-so-enticingly up under her shirt, she hesitated.

"Wait," she protested in a whisper. "Sirius…"

He pulled away slightly so as to look at her fully; he did not remove his hands from her stomach, but he did not move them any higher. "Tara…"

Then he sighed, removed his hands, and went back to kissing her passionately on the lips.

After a while, though, Tara was getting hot and wishing he would do something more. She pulled back slightly, and Sirius stopped kissing her to look into her eyes again. Tara didn't say anything; her gaze simply shifted, almost subconsciously, from his face to his chest and back up again. But Sirius, with knowledge gained from years of hooking up with girls, knew what she meant.

He kissed her fully again, and for a moment Tara thought that he had not understood her message, but then she felt one of his hands glide up over her stomach until he grabbed her breast and held it firmly.

Tara inhaled sharply. Sirius almost laughed to himself; she had stolen his air. What a beginner.

Soon she felt both hands trailing upward, and then he was inching her shirt off, and finally she was sitting up for a brief moment, pulling it over her head, and tossing it onto the ground. She sank back into the cool sheets while Sirius kissed her again.

It proceeded from there. Before she knew it, he had taken off his shirt, and then his hand had somehow slipped around to her back and, with a near-silent snapping noise, had unhitched her bra. Tara noticed it was hanging loosely from her shoulders and shrugged it off, letting it slide onto the floor beside her discarded shirt.

Then he had stopped kissing her mouth and his lips were working their way down her neck, to her collar bone and her breasts, and she could feel his tongue trailing places she had never considered allowing another person's tongue to trail. Then again, she reminded herself as she inhaled sharply with pleasure, Sirius was not just any person; he was the man she loved.

If Sirius could have heard her thoughts, he probably would have had one response:

Ohhhhh, shit.

-

"Way to come drink last night," James observed sardonically the next morning, as Sirius emerged from his bedroom after a leisurely shower. He had been up quite late; after several hours of snogging Tara, he had snuck her back up to the roof and flown her home, praying all the while that nobody would hear his motorcycle.

"Well, we were both tired," Sirius replied, feigning indifference. Then he grinned.

James burst out laughing. "I can't believe you got with Tara!"

Sirius smiled slightly. "And what makes you think I did that?"

James grinned. "Oh, don't play that card." He laughed and shook his head. "Honestly, mate, it was about time!"

Sirius rolled his eyes but then smiled again. "It's going to be a fun summer, I'll give you that."

James nodded thoughtfully. "Been feeling sexually repressed?"

Sirius grinned. "A bit."

James nodded again. "I feel you, man… as always." He sighed. "Man, sometimes I wish…" He trailed off.

Sirius rolled his eyes. "You and Lily will end up together in the end, Prongs. Don't stress over it."

James nodded a third time. "Yes… well…" He was suddenly businesslike. "Padfoot, you're my best mate, but I need you to promise me that you won't break Tara's heart."

Sirius shrugged. "I won't; it's summer. Come now, Prongs, who else would I be getting with?"

James frowned, trying to look stern. "You know what I mean. Hook up with her if you must, but you know that Tara doesn't have a lot of experience with guys. Make sure you don't lead her on."

Sirius rolled his eyes. "I promise I shall do nothing cruel to dear Tara."

James smiled grudgingly. "But anyway, mate, that's cute. I can't wait to owl Moony and Peter about it."

Sirius grinned roguishly. "Yes, I'm sure they'll be absolutely thrilled."

-

Sirius soon realized that he was highly un-flirtatious around Tara. While he had constantly assaulted every other girl he had ever hooked up with or dated with flattering comments, subtle glances and blatant winks, Sirius continued to treat Tara as he always had: as the somewhat-pesky neighbor girl who at times got annoying and needed to be argued with.

"We're kind of busy right now," he informed her bluntly when her head appeared in the fireplace of James's kitchen one morning, a few days after they had hooked up.

"Oh," Tara replied, taken aback. "So you don't want to head down to the village with me?"

Sirius shrugged. "Not really."

Tara frowned, obviously hurt. "Well… okay."

Sirius smiled at her consolingly. "Sorry, Tara; we'll see you this evening, though."

She nodded and disappeared from the fireplace. They had hooked up the night before, as well, but nowhere near as passionately as that first night; indeed, they had simply been sitting in the cottage and waiting for James – who was taking a remarkably long time – to show up with the food he had promised to retrieve from the manor. Even afterward, when the three of them were pleasantly drunk, Sirius did not bother attempting to kiss Tara. He just hadn't been in the mood.

-

Tara was proving remarkably content to hook up with Sirius at his beck and call. Too his mind, it was pretty awesome, though if he had thought about it harder he might have wondered if Tara felt at all degraded.

One afternoon, after a week of abstention – he had been too lazy to make anything happen since that one chaste night in the cottage – Sirius sat in his room, chunks of sunshine occasionally making their way across the carpet from gaps in the racing clouds overhead, and decided that he was feeling horny.

James was in a meeting with his parents downstairs; they wanted to talk to him about the ball they were throwing at the end of the month. Sirius had excused himself and had said that he was probably going to go take a nap.

Well, a nap with Tara was better than a nap all by his lonesome.

Sirius brushed his teeth leisurely – no point kissing anybody with bad breath – and strolled down the hallway to James's bedroom. Stepping onto the balcony, which was identical to his own, he picked up James's broomstick. Then, just incase James grew curious later, he stepped back into the bedroom, grabbed a piece of parchment and a quill from James's desk, and scrawled

Took the broom out for a spin. Sirius.

He left this note on the balcony floor, one end held down beneath a heavy bottle of broomstick handle polish. Then he clambered up onto the thick stone railing around the balcony and jumped off.

He flew across the Heathland and then crossed the stone wall onto the Nevan property. He careened in a broad curve across the meadow and skidded to a halt on one of the many slate patios adjacent to Primroses.

Sirius rapped on the nearest door, and waited. A few moments later, one of the house elves appeared. "Greetings, Mr. Black!" it squeaked. "How does you want Malcker to help you, sir?"

Sirius smiled deftly. "Could you go find Tara?"

The elf nodded. "Oh, of course, sir!" it squeaked, vanishing with a crack.

A few minutes later, Tara Nevan came hurrying down the narrow hallway, her long light brown hair hanging loose over her shoulders and down her back. She was wearing a pretty yellow and white sundress that fell to her knees and tied in a bow at her waist; if Sirius recalled correctly, she had just attended an afternoon tea with her mother and aunt, and was clearly dressed for the occasion.

"You look cute," he observed wryly, and Tara giggled.

"Why, thank you."

Actually, now that she was in direct light, Sirius realized that she didn't look cute; she looked downright hot. He had always been a sucker for girls in flattering dresses, and Tara Nevan was no exception.

Feeling turned on, Sirius quirked a roguish grin at her. "Just what have you been up to?"

Tara smiled at him broadly. "Well, my aunt and my mum made me join them for tea on the terrace, but now I've been excused."

Sirius nodded thoughtfully, smiled at her, and shook his hair out of his eyes sultrily.

Despite her attempts to control herself, Tara grinned. "Um… do you want to come in?"

Sirius nodded again. "I would like that very much indeed."

As Tara led him quickly down the hallway, through the kitchen, and up the back staircase, she ran a hand through her silky hair nervously. "Where's James?" she asked.

Sirius shrugged languidly. "Consorting with the parents. They need to talk to him about the latest ball they're putting on… probably want him to dedicate something or make a speech."

Tara nodded, and again could not resist the overwhelming urge to grin broadly. She was utterly infatuated with her current predicament. The very sight of Sirius Black caused her to get overly hot and antsy these days, and she could recognize him by smell now – that aroma of loam and spices and that ineffable third component that so many other girls had also come to recognize, that smell that made her want nothing more than to sink down into a soft, cool bed and sigh dramatically.

They had reached Tara's bedroom; Sirius locked the door behind them as Tara sat down on her lacy comforter and fidgeted with the ribbon on her sundress.

"I went down to the village the other day," she murmured breathlessly, as Sirius, clad in an ever-so-attractive and masculine pair of dark khakis and a black T-shirt, strode across the room and sat down beside her on the bed.

He nodded idly. "Sounds fun."

Then he tossed his hair out of his eyes and looked at her sideways. "Tara," he murmured. "Tara, Tara, Tara…"

Tara swallowed slightly and blushed. She would have done anything for him at that moment – anything he asked. "Sirius, Sirius, Sirius…" she murmured back, and he grinned at her.

Then he leaned over and kissed her, placing one hand at the small of her back so as to pull her toward him more firmly. After a moment, Tara leaned back until she was lying down, and he followed her, kissing her more and more persistently.

Tara gasped slightly, and trailed her hands down over his T-shirt until her fingers were hitched in his belt loops.

Sirius pulled back and frowned, fumbling with the narrow ribbon affixed to the waist of her sundress. Tara smiled as he pulled the proper string and undid the loose, floppy bow; however, almost to Tara's disappointment, he did not attempt to pull the dress over her head.

A few minutes later, she felt one of his hands trailing down over her chest and across her stomach, and then caressing her thigh through the thin fabric of her sundress. Tara squirmed slightly; nobody had ever done this to her before.

Then his hand looped around and his fingers were caressing the smooth skin of her inner thigh. Tara inhaled sharply. He fingers danced up her leg, higher and higher, and then reached her panties. He trailed them over the white cotton, brought them up to her stomach, and then slid them down between her legs.

Tara inhaled sharply again. A part of her felt that this was moving too fast – fingered on a third hookup? Well, maybe, but she had only recently turned sixteen, and had only kissed one other boy before this one – but she wasn't about to make Sirius stop. He was doing incredible things with his fingers, things he had learned from years of practice, but Tara did not trouble herself to consider this.

"Sirius!" she moaned slightly, saying it because it seemed an appropriate, romantic thing to moan; she could have just as easily remained silent.

Sirius kissed her gently and withdrew his fingers; Tara realized she was breathing heavily.

"Was that the first time somebody's done that to you?" Sirius murmured, resting his chin on her chest and looking up at her.

Tara nodded, her green-and-gold flecked eyes wide.

Sirius quirked one side of his mouth into a grin.

"Like it?"

Tara nodded again, and smiled.

Sirius smiled back at her, sighed, and stretched. "Oh Tara, Tara, Tara…" he murmured, shifting his body so that he was lying down next to her and pressing a hand to her flat stomach.

Tara grinned. "Ohhh Sirius."

Sirius barked out a laugh. He buried his nose in Tara's hair and licked her ear just enough to make her shiver slightly and giggle. She smelled clean, like floral shampoo. He ran his fingers through her long light-brown hair and pulled her close to him. They lay there on the lacy comforter, not speaking, Tara basking in the affection she had sought for an entire year and Sirius musing to himself how much he loved having a girl in his arms.

He liked Tara, he decided. He liked her quite a bit.

---

Reviews :D

beckers123 – Thanks, pal!

Leirfivelen – Meh, the English version of Søren is spelled "Soren." I know there's an "ø" in the real Scandinavian spelling but let's assume they Anglicized it at Hogwarts and started writing it with an "o."

SpAzZzZzAtTaCk – Haha, thanks!

FireQueen618 – They're in sixth year going into seventh. As yet, I've come up with several potential plot twists that involve Remus finding love, but nothing is definitive yet. I dunno, chances are it'll happen to some extent or another. Linnet might turn up later, too, but Sirius most likely won't be getting with her again. I'm glad you like the story!

elle – Haha, happy to help!

tulips car – thank you!

indie-jellybean – Haha, thanks!

The Cotton Candy Kisses – Thank you :)

SeaNymph – Thank you! My brother's name is Pierre-Michel and my sister's name is Jeanne D'Arc. But our last name is boring and bland and American. Ma mère est folle.

lavizsla – Thank you!

Ginny-and-Draco-fan – Thank you!

Potpoury – Thank you! Haha, sorry it took so long!

Review, please :)