Chapter 12
There was a gentle rap on his Sirius's door on Saturday morning. He put down the edition of the Daily Phophet he was reading, a curious expression on his face as he wondered who it could be.
Bella wasn't due back until the next day… and anyway she would just barge in. And it couldn't be Alice as she had been avoiding him for days.
He got up and opened the door. A look of pleasure and surprise spread over his face to see Lily, standing there, looking beautiful in a strappy green dress the same shade as her eyes.
"Lily" he said warmly. "To what do I owe this pleasure?" he asked, leaning against the doorframe and flashing her that charming smile that always swept women of their feet.
"Your Aunt just told me they need some volunteers down at St Mungo's. They and terribly understaffed. I asked your cousin but she looked at me like I'd let off a giant dungbomb" she said amusedly.
Sirius chuckled. "What would I have to do?" he said warily, raising one eyebrow. She gave him a warm smile that made him want to agree to anything she asked.
"Distribute food and gifts… visit with patients… nothing too difficult… " she said. And either thought his reaction would usually be similar to Bella's he found himself saying "I could do that"
….
He tuned out the bubbly blonde young witch's babbling as she told them how good it was of them to volunteer and how badly they were needed.
She was pretty in a rosy cheeked, curvy way. Normally he would have hit on her as soon as Lily was out of earshot but he just wasn't interested. And not just because he didn't want to listen to her babbling much longer.
Lily was smiling, smirking slightly as she got a good look at his face. He tried to school his face into something less mutinous but she simply looked amused.
"… Lily you can distribute some of the gifts we have waiting at the desk… and Sirius we have got patients for you to visit in the long term resident wing…" chirped the witch, cutting into his thoughts.
"Can't I distribute gifts too?" he asked hopefully. The only reason he'd agreed to this was to spend time with Lily.
"We need someone to visit with the patients. Most of them don't have any family nearby" the blonder nurse said brightly.
Lily looked like she was going to laugh as the blonde steered him down the hall towards the long-term residents ward.
…...
He lounged in a chair by an elderly witch's bed as she warbled on about what was wrong with the 'youth of today.'
Every so often she would lose the thread of what she was saying and look around in a distracted way. Then she would inevitably start up again.
Half way through the 3rd repetition he cut in, asking if she would like some tea. She looked at him as if she'd only just noticed he was there.
"Who are you?" she asked confusedly. "Sirius Black ma'am" she said pleasantly. "Oooooh I see. And … uh… what are you doing here?" she asked dazedly.
"I came to visit you" he said, eyes flicking to the chess board on her table. "We played wizard chess. You beat me twice. Remember?" he said charmingly.
"I did?" she said in a happy but confused voice. "Yes. You're very good" he said sweetly. "I am?" she said in that same dazed but happy voice.
There was a knock of the door and the nurse came in followed by Lily who was carrying a basket on gifts.
"How's it going?" the nurse chirruped brightly. "Great" he said with a smile. "We played chess" said the patient happily. "I won twice!" she warbled proudly.
"Great" said the blonde witch. "Well done" she effused. Lily looked like she was once again hiding laughter.
He met Lily's eyes and they shared a conspiratorial glance.
…
"That wasn't so bad was it?" she said as they emerged from the fireplace in the drawing room of the manor, emerald flames flickering behind them.
"No. It was quite fun actually" he said silkily.
"Really?" she replied incredulously, eyebrows raised. "You actually enjoyed hanging out at the hospital all day?" she said in a tone that suggested she didn't believe it for a second.
"All right' he admitted. "It was awful. I was bored out of my mind" he said honestly. She chuckled. "That's OK. Not liking volunteer work doesn't make you a bad person" she pointed out.
He gave her a warm smile. The real version of his most charming smile. For just a moment she felt something in her melt. Then the smile wavered. Something wistful and sad came over his face and he looked away. "Then what does?" he asked.
"You not a bad person…" she said in a soft comforting voice. "I was never good enough for you though was I? he said, real bitterness creeping into his voice.
"That's not fair! You two are the ones who made me choose between you" she said accusingly, starting to walk past him towards the door.
"Because I didn't expect you to choose him!" he snapped, pain clear on his face. Her lips trembled slightly as she stopped at the door and turned to face him, her green eyes flashing angrily.
"Do you want to know why I didn't choose you?" she said in almost a yell.
"Yes! Why! Why did you choose my best friend… and not me?" he said harshly.
"Because I don't trust myself with you…" she said in a soft anguished voice. Before he could respond she had turned and almost ran through the door, long red hair streaming behind her.