Turning Saints Into the Sea
Chapter Three: Misinterpretations
Remus:
Remus Lupin looked up again. There she was, chewing on her quill as she concentrated on her homework, her black hair falling onto the parchment. She looked so involved, so . . . content.
Her skin was paler than snow, like porcelain. Remus's face turned hot as he remembered the look of surprise she had given him that morning when he had fixed her bowl, her eyes so dark they looked black.
What he would do to have her look at him like that again.
"Moony? You zoning?" Someone snapped their fingers in his face.
He looked over to see Sirius looking at him questioningly. Sirius's hair was dark and long, just like hers. He was outgoing, just like her. The two of them had so much more in common than he did with her.
And nothing he ever did would change that fact.
He was more like the blonde one, Sam. She was quiet and collective. She hung back while her friends acted irrationally. Sort of like himself.
Sam was pretty, in a wholesome kind of way. Her blonde hair was long and wavy, like gold, and her eyes were blue. True, she didn't have the natural confidence like her, but Sam was more refined.
Melanie Owen. Even her name sounded graceful.
Remus stole one last look at Melanie, before closing his book and starting to the Boys' Dorm.
Melanie:
Melanie Owen glanced up from her parchment to watch him leave, his whole body moving with an animal sort of grace she could never possess, being incredibly clumsy as she was. He just . . . flowed. Like satin. No, that wasn't right. Like milk.
Milk. How romantic.
She wished she could be like that. Wished she could be mysterious like him.
His hair was a sandy brown, his eyes the same color. She of all people would know what it was like having the same eye and hair color. Hers was black. Black like the night.
Unlike Sam or Lily.
Lily wasn't someone she had to worry about; she was too busy avoiding James Potter to be interested in him. But Sam . . .
Sam was everything she wasn't. Sam had wavy blonde hair, while her hair just sat there, straight as a pin. Sam had blue eyes that seemed perpetually happy, while Melanie's black eyes made her look like the devil.
Sam was short and pretty. Melanie was tall and average.
Average. How she hated that word.
Average was her grade in Potions. Average was her weight (unlike Sam, who was thin). Average was her appearance, according to Mitchell Bradslain.
Sometimes, she just wanted to be above average, like Lily or Sam. She wanted to be beautiful. Beautiful enough for him to notice her for once in her life, instead of the usual sleazebags that circled her.
Remus Lupin. Remus Lupin.
Sirius:
Sam had her back to him. Why wouldn't she turn around so he could at least see her face before he left for the night? The Gryffindor Common Room was becoming less crowded by the minute, she had the whole room.
Sirius Black huffed loudly. It was almost 10:30 and he hadn't even started his Transfiguration essay. It was his best class, and thanks to her he couldn't concentrate. He was too busy watching her try to learn while Lily Evans and Melanie Owen pestered her about something or another. They had said something that caused her to blush and snap at them, which they laughed at in delight.
Sam had caught his eye once, before hurriedly looking at Professor McGonagall, ignoring him.
He looked down at the parchment wearily. Third day back and he already had a mountain of homework that just kept piling up. Thank God for Quidditch, which started in a few weeks. He had been named Captain; something to gloat about to James.
Suddenly an idea hit him. He stood and walked over to their table, sitting down in the chair across from hers, next to Owen's.
Sam looked at him, her blue eyes cautious. "What do you want?" she asked.
"Do you understand anything about interspecies transfiguration? I missed everything McGonagall said during today's lesson," he said casually, holding his breath.
She hesitated before scooting her chair next to his and pulling out her text book. "It's all in mental concentration. If you can't picture what you're transfiguring, it won't work. Well, it may work, but it won't work well."
Sam flipped through the pages, landing on page 612, titled 'Interspecies Transfiguration.'
"It says here 'Interspecies transfiguration is one of the most difficult forms of transfiguration, because the properties of the two animals are that much more similar.' That means that since they're the same species, their qualities are alike."
Sirius watched her ramble on and on about the homework (which he had gotten after reading the first page). She seemed so into it, he didn't have the heart to tell her that she could stop.
" . . . So the spell's-" She suddenly halted, clapping a hand over her mouth. "Oh, my God! Did I just repeat the same thing over and over like three times?"
He laughed, nodding, enjoying her embarrassment.
She groaned, covering her face with her hands. "I'm sorry you had to put up with that. I just keep on talking when I get nervous or-" She looked up, horrified at her choice of words.
"I didn't mean you make me nervous! I mean that I was really shocked when you asked me to help you, since boys don't usually ask me for anything . . ."
At this point, Melanie had covered Sam's mouth with her hand. "Please excuse Miss Samantha for her incessant babbling; she has no experience in the field of men."
Sam ripped Owen's hand off her mouth. "I do so have experience!"
Owen rolled her eyes and smiled at him, as if to say What can you do?
"Well, I'd love to stay and chat, but I have to be getting to sleep. See you two in the morning," he said, standing up and stretching. He grabbed his books and started for the stairs leading to the Boys' Dorms, before turning around and awkwardly calling, "Thanks for the lesson, Bjorn."
"Any time," Sam called back, grabbing a book and flipping to a random page.
In the dorm, Sirius paced around in his pajama pants, thinking. Should I ask her out?
Oh yeah, Samantha Bjorn is so your type.
What exactly is my type?
Not Sam Bjorn.
"Padfoot, calm down. You're wearing holes in the carpet," Remus said, glancing up from his Charms book.
Remus is more Sam's type. Remus is smart.
I'm smart too!
Yeah, but you don't show it.
But I'm still smart.
But you get in trouble so much!
. . . So?
So, she probably goes for guys who're top notch model citizens.
Like her.
Exactly.
Sirius grabbed his hair in frustration, sitting down on his bed. He needed to talk to James, badly.
James:
James Potter stared at his quill in a dazed fascination, doing anything to stall from the thirteen inch essay that was sitting in front of him.
"Prongs!" Someone was whispering his name harshly. "James Potter! Where are you?"
He looked up from his bed; the stairwell leading to the Head Boy's Dorm opened to form a passageway, in which Sirius Black was entering from.
"Sirius, it's past midnight. What are you doing here?" James whispered, standing to greet his friend.
"I have a problem," Sirius said.
James was taken aback; Sirius almost never had problems, and when he did, he certainly never turned to him.
"Um, what about?" James said, trying to seem open and caring.
"It's about . . . this girl I know," he said hesitantly, vulnerably.
James stepped back from shock. Sirius Black? Girl problems? It wasn't natural . . . It couldn't be true . . .
"Um . . . Who is she?" James asked, fearing the answer.
"It doesn't matter," was his reply. "She's a Gryffindor and in our year, and I think she likes me."
James stared. "So ask her out."
"I can't ask her out!" Sirius cried. "She would never go out with someone like me!"
"What's wrong with you? Why wouldn't she date you?"
"I'm not her type."
This information didn't comprehend in James's brain. "I thought all girls were your type."
Sirius growled in frustration, running his hands through his hair. "So did I! Until her."
"Who is she?"
Sirius hesitated, before turning to James.
"Samantha Bjorn."
Sam:
"Samantha Bjorn! Where are you?" Lily had snuck into the Girls' Dorm.
Sam turned her head to face her friend. She was sitting on her bed, thinking about him.
"Lily? What're you doing here?"
"I came over. Sirius Black came into James Potter's Dorm, why can't I do the same thing?" Lily halted, realizing what she just said, and Sam's face reluctantly spilt to reveal a grin.
"No! I meant 'Why can't I sneak into my friends' Dorms late at night! Not 'Why can't I sneak into Potter's Dorm. I mean, 'Why . . . ' Oh, never mind.' Lily flopped onto Sam's bed. "Where's Mel?"
Sam rolled her eyes, playing with Lily's red hair. "Mel? She's thinking about someone or another downstairs. I think she likes him."
"Who?"
"Him."
Lily sat up. "Sirius?" Sam nodded.
"Well, I don't really think he's her type," Lily said slowly, sounding false even to her own ears.
Sam gave her a look that said Suuuuuure. "Of course she's his type! There couldn't be a more perfect couple! They're both attractive, clever, popular." Sam spat out the last word as if it were a curse. "Lily, I cannot compare to her!"
Lily sighed, pulling Sam into a hug. "Of course you can! You're every bit at pretty and smart as Melanie. Smarter, even."
Sam snorted. "Book smart."
"Smart. That's all that matters. Black-"
"Sirius"
"-would be an idiot to look over what a wonderful person you are. And besides," Lily said, standing up, "you're not even sure she likes him. It could be a false alarm."
"She might not like him, but he certainly likes her."
Lily seriously doubted that. "What makes you say that?"
"He came over for help with his Transfiguration homework and sat down right next to her!"
"So? Maybe he wanted help."
"It's his best subject," Sam explained exasperatedly, as if Lily had nothing better to do than to learn all about Sirius Black's school life. "Why would he ask for help for his best subject?"
Lily sat down yet again. "Maybe your good looks kept him distracted all during class, and he was so smitten with you he just had to ask you for help with his homework, to spend more time with you!"
Sam laughed bitterly. "Probably true, only with one difference. Mel's good looks kept him distracted. So he wanted to ask her for help, and I just happened to help him instead. Oh my God, I helped him! He probably hates me now 'cause I ruined his chance with my best friend." She groaned, burying her face in her pillow.
"I don't think he likes Mel, Sam," Lily said, but suddenly a lot of things made sense. She had caught him staring in their direction a lot. Melanie had been with them. He suddenly wanted to include the three of them in conversation (okay, he didn't really want to, but he didn't seem extremely annoyed when they did). If he liked Melanie, his actions were certainly explained. But that didn't help in Sam's case.
"What about the jealousy thing we had been discussing?" Lily said, trying to change the subject.
Sam sat up. "What?"
"The jealousy plan! To make Black jealous!"
"First of all, his name is Sirius. Second, how am I supposed to make him jealous if he doesn't like me in the first place? If my suspicions are correct, he's in love with Melanie."
"But if he sees you with another guy, his true feelings for you will surface and he'll totally forget about Mel and love you!" Lily was trying as hard as she could to convince Sam.
"Who could I date that would make him jealous?" Sam asked incredulously.
Lily stopped for a second, considering the possibilities. She suddenly sat up.
"I have it."
