A/N: Here we are again with another chappie. Thanks, as usual, to my wonderful beta MissBubbles, without whom this story would be riddled with silly, silly mistakes. Don't forget to review!
Summary: Lost and sick in the middle of nowhere, Sirius falls into the hands of a woman whose secrets will tie inextricably into the fate of his godson. What will happen when he finds himself attracted to this strange witch?
The Complexities of the Heart
By katemary77
Chapter Six
Not knowing when the dawn will come, I open every door.
- Emily Dickinson
Sirius came down in to the basement kitchen the next morning to find Remus comfortably chewing on crumpets and sipping tea behind his Daily Prophet and Anna, still in her woollen dressing gown, slumped at the table, dead asleep.
"Why did she even get up?" Sirius stage-whispered to Remus.
The werewolf shrugged; "I don't know. She said something about not being able to sleep in her bed and then promptly nodded off on the table."
"How bizarre," Sirius commented, an eyebrow raised.
"Yes, I rather thought so."
Sirius checked the clock on the wall.
"Does she realise that the Weasleys will be here soon?" Sirius asked.
Remus chuckled in response; "Probably not. I suppose we should wake her, then."
Sirius nodded.
"I'll do it, Moony." Sighing, he made his way over to the kitchen counter and conjured up a piping hot cup of coffee which he proceeded to wave about Anna's hunched form. "Annie, wake up. Coffee!"
Slowly she stirred, as the scent of coffee invaded her senses.
"Mmm, Sirius," she murmured, as her disoriented eyes found him in the kitchen. Sirius suddenly felt himself become very aroused as Anna gazed at him with glazed, bedroom eyes, dark hair mussed, her voice husky with sleep and the shoulder of her gown slipping to reveal the lacy black strap of her nightie against the soft cream of her skin. He jumped, startled, as she took the coffee from his hand and their fingers brushed momentarily.
"Thanks, Sirius," she murmured, taking a gulp of the bitter liquid and sighing. "I suppose I should go and put some clothes on," Anna commented, surveying her current attire.
Remus nodded; "The Weasleys should arrive soon."
"Okay. See you guys later."
She slowly left the room, still sipping at the coffee Sirius had made for her, as the Animagus intently watched her leave. Sirius turned back to the table to find Remus smirking at him over his teacup.
"Oh, shut it, Moony."
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Some hours later, Sirius was ushering the Weasley clan into Grimmauld Place when Anna came racing down the steps, a pretty green summer dress trailing behind her, her brown eyes locked on Bill Weasley. Sirius found himself wondering if Anna had dressed with Bill in mind, and then wondered why he had noticed what she was wearing at all. His musings stopped, however, when Anna literally threw herself into Bill's waiting arms, laughing as he twirled her around in the air.
"Bill!" she squealed, dropping kisses on both cheeks. "It's so wonderful to see you!"
"You too, Ann," Bill laughed, running his fingers down the side of her face and giving her an extra squeeze. "When did you get so beautiful? Ah, it's been too long!"
As the old friends reunited, Sirius felt faint stirrings of jealousy blossom in his gut and turned to Molly Weasley in an attempt to distract himself, missing the startled glance Anna threw his way.
"Mrs. Weasley!" he called cheerily, as she shepherded the rest of her clan into the foyer.
"Please, Sirius, call me Molly," she insisted with a warm smile.
"Molly!" he said with a grin. "Glad you could come to stay!"
She smiled briskly up at him and said, "Yes, well, you needed some help around the house and it will make it much easier when Harry comes, I'm sure he'll enjoy being with Ron and the others."
Sirius' expression turned grave for a moment before he pasted on a warm smile as a tall, gangly looking boy walked over to him.
"Hey, Sirius!" Ron said, shaking the older man's hand.
"Hey, Ron, good to see you. Geez, you've grown a metre since I last saw you."
It was true; if Ron kept growing at the rate he was, he would soon be taller than all of his brothers. Ron smiled self-consciously.
"I guess. Listen, mate, you don't know when Harry will be coming, d'you?"
Sirius frowned and shook his head, bitterness creeping into his voice as he answered the young teen; "Sorry, Ron. Dumbledore's keeping us all in the dark about that."
Ron shrugged noncommittally; "I was just wondering, is all."
Sirius turned to see Molly waiting to introduce him to the three redheads standing beside her.
"Sirius, this is Fred and George," she said, gesturing to two identical twins.
"Hi," he said, shaking their hands.
"Hi," Fred and George said, somewhat nonchalantly considering they were being introduced to a man they had thought a mass murderer for fifteen years.
"And this is Ginny, my youngest."
The small girl stepped forward bravely, offering her hand to Sirius.
"Nice to meet you Sirius. I dare say you look a lot better than you did in those Ministry photos a few years back."
"Ginny!" Molly cried indignantly.
But Sirius let out a bark-like laugh as he shook the girl's hand, saying, "I would hope so. Nice to meet you, Ginny. Harry's mentioned you before."
Sirius didn't miss the faint blush that coloured Ginny's freckled cheeks.
"And this is Bill – Bill?"
The eldest Weasley child was drawn away from his conversation with Anna and made his way over to his mother, extending his hand for Sirius.
"It's nice to finally meet you, Sirius. I would have last night but I only Flooed in from Egypt this morning." Sirius nodded and shook the young man's hand, allowing himself to squeeze it only a little harder than necessary. "This is Anna," Bill said to his family, moving back toward the young woman who offered him a bright smile. "We were good friends back at Hogwarts, you might remember."
Anna was greeted with a chorus of hellos from the Weasley clan.
"So it was you last night!" Molly exclaimed. "I thought I recognised you from Bill's graduation ceremony but I couldn't be sure."
"It's nice to finally meet you, Mrs. Weasley," Anna smiled.
"I always wondered why Bill never took you home to us," the matron commented, sending a sly look to her son, who shook his head ruefully.
Anna blushed fiercely as Fred and George sniggered.
"Well, how about I show you all up to your rooms, give you the grand tour?" Sirius interjected in an attempt to draw the attention away from Anna.
"That would be lovely, Sirius," said Ginny, who seemed to have some kind of sensitivity and perception about her.
Sirius quickly magicked their trunks into the air, manoeuvring them to follow him up the stairs.
"Don't worry about me," Bill declared. "Ann can show me to my room later. We have some catching up to do!"
Sirius growled, all of a sudden wishing that he hadn't offered to show the Weasleys around Grimmauld Place and that he had instead elected to follow Anna and Bill into the sitting room.
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"I've missed you, Ann," Bill told her, hours after the Weasley clan had come to Grimmauld Place.
"I'm sorry I had to leave like that – "
"I know," he interrupted. "When Ron told me about the end of his first year during his holidays – about You-Know-Who and the Philosopher's Stone – I understood why you'd disappeared so abruptly. I tried to contact you but Dumbledore told me that I shouldn't, that people could be watching me. I wasn't happy with it but I guess I didn't have much choice…"
"I'm sorry – don't tell me I don't have to be, it doesn't change that I am," Anna said, cutting him off before he'd even had a chance to speak. "I'm sorry that I missed so much of your life." Anna smirked slyly. Bill had already filled her in to much of what had happened in the past four years, but there had been a glaring absence. "Any romance on the horizon at the moment, Bill?"
Her friend groaned.
"Anna!"
She grinned; "I see right through you, you never could hide anything from me!"
Bill gave her a sardonic grin and said, "Nobody can ever hide anything from you, Ann, least of all me. I don't even try anymore."
Anna laughed.
"Then stop trying! Who is she?"
Bill groaned again and covered his face with one of the cushions that adorned the couch.
"You know how much I hate girl talk."
"I would've though you'd be used to it by now, after thirteen years! Well?" she prompted.
Bill uncovered his face and admitted grudgingly, "Her name is Fleur."
"Oohh," Anna squealed. "She's French?"
Bill nodde; "She was the Triwizard champion for Beauxbatons last year. She works at Gringotts with me."
"Last year!" Anna exclaimed. "How old is this girl?"
"She's eighteen!" Bill defended. "I only just turned twenty-five, it's not a huge difference."
Anna raised a brow.
"Oh, don't give me that look, I saw how you were staring at Sirius Black over dinner."
"What!" Anna exploded. "I was not staring! I was just… making sure he was okay!"
It was Bill's turn to raise his eyebrows.
"I may not have your… skills, Ann," he said, waving his hands vaguely in the air, "But I'm not blind."
"Oh shut up," she grumbled. "So when do I get to meet Fleur, Bill?"
Bill glared.
"You don't."
She threw a pillow at him.
"Don't be mean!"
"I'm not being mean!" he laughed, catching the pillow before it hit his face. "I'll tell you what, Annie. I'll let you meet Fleur when you admit that you like Sirius."
"I will do no such thing!" Anna declared, crossing her arms over her chest, "Because to say that I liked Sirius would be completely untrue." Bill simply watched her expectantly, counting away the seconds in his mind. Finally, she slumped, defeated, and relented, "Fine, maybe I like him just a little. But it's only a crush! I know it won't eventuate into anything else."
"If you say so," Bill answered with a wry grin. "And I guess you can meet Fleur, as long as you promise not to embarrass me!"
Anna frowned and said, "I can't anyway. Not unless you plan on her joining the Order anytime soon."
Bill sent her a questioning glance.
"I can't leave here," she said, answering his silent question. "I'm stuck here until…" she shrugged, "Well, until Voldemort's gone. However long that might take."
Bill reached across and ruffled her hair.
"Don't worry, Ann. It'll be over in no time. These things always are." Bill stifled a yawn and stood. "I might go up to bed. You want me to walk you to your room?"
Anna smiled up at her old friend.
"Not tonight, Bill. I might stay up a little longer."
Bill nodded and lent down to drop a kiss on Anna's brow.
"G'night, Anna. It's great to see you again."
Anna sat for a while after Bill had left, simply staring into the silence of the night, wondering where life might take her next. The last weeks had been so startling. After being alone for so long, out in the wilderness, it had been hard to adjust to this new dynamism. With a wry smile, Anna wondered where she would be now, what she would be thinking now, if a wet, shaggy dog hadn't stumbled onto her doorstep that rainy summer night, if she hadn't asked Sirius to stay, if she hadn't taken him in and cared for him as she had. Anna had been craving companionship, she realised now. She had been so lonely for so long that she had only been yielding to a desire for friendship, for somebody else to talk to, to share thoughts with, when she had invited Sirius to stay, begged even, with her soup and her clean clothes and her easy smile. He had brought her back to life, Anna reflected.
"A sickle for your thoughts?"
Anna turned and gave the intruder an unguarded smile.
"Sirius."
"Anna," he returned, sitting in the soft armchair across from her. "What are you doing down here all by yourself? It's late."
"I was thinking about…" she paused and smiled at him. "Everything."
"Touché," he grinned.
After a moment, Anna heaved a sigh; "I'm tired."
"You want me to walk you to your room?" Sirius asked, half rising from his chair.
She shook her head and leant it against the back of the lounge, her eyes slipping closed.
"Not that kind of tired."
Sirius' brow furrowed in concern; "Moony said something about you not being able to sleep?"
She opened one eye and gazed at Sirius.
"Moony snores. He's in the room beside me."
Sirius let out a bark of laughter; "I could've told you that, I lived with him for years."
Anna smiled tiredly.
"Listen, do you want to move rooms? There's a free one next to me and I don't snore, I promise."
Anna thought for a moment if sleeping next to a lycanthrope was any worse than sleeping next to an Azkaban escapee but eventually said, "Okay."
Sirius nodded and stood, pulling Anna to her feet.
"Come on, let's move your stuff."
She nodded and they made their way up the stairs of Grimmauld Place together and into Anna's current bedroom. Drawing her wand, Anna swiftly levitated all of her belongings into her trunk before magicking it into the air to follow behind Sirius, who led Anna down the hallway and into her new room. She set her bag down near the bed and turned to her host.
"Thank you, Sirius. I really appreciate this."
"No worries," he answered, moving toward the door. Anna followed and lent against the wooden frame.
"Goodnight, Anna," Sirius mumbled, suddenly realising how close they were. There was a strained moment as he simply stared at her as she fidgeted nervously from foot to foot. He leant down and brushed hair away from her face, his lips inches from hers as she instinctively tilted her face toward him. He exhaled heavily and Anna shuddered when his hot breath pushed against her mouth. He touched her bottom lip with callused fingertips and she leant into his skin.
"Sirius," she murmured, and the spell was broken.
Sirius stepped back.
"I should – I should go," he stuttered, and was gone.
A/N: Please review! Hope you enjoyed the chapter.