A/N: This chapter isn't that long, but I hope you like it, because I enjoyed writing it. Please leave a review, I'd love to hear what you like about my story, and what you'd like to see in upcoming chapters! 3
Chapter 23
Or,
Of Deceit, Destruction and Death.
History of Magic, unsurprisingly, was the worst lesson that Hogwarts had to offer. However, it was very popular, but simply because you could stroll in, do nothing (except sleep and daydream) and you'd still be able to scrap a decent result at the end of the year. And as students, who had mastered in the subject of procrastination by the age of twelve, this was the perfect class for them.
Lily was probably the only person paying attention to the old teacher, and as he drawled on in his monotone voice, she scribbled notes down furiously with her brow furrowed in concentration. James, who had fallen asleep as soon as he arrived in the classroom, snored softly, making Lily smile as she made her notes. Sirius and Remus were currently having an arm wrestle, while Marlene made origami cranes with her parchment, grinning as she made one fly to Lily.
Meanwhile, Isabelle tapped her perfectly manicured nails against the desk, playing out several different scenarios in her head; she had managed to corner Sirius earlier that morning and he'd agreed to go with her to Hogsmeade. She was very happy about the prospect of their upcoming date. It meant that Isabelle could finally act on her plan, which she'd been perfecting ever since the night of 20 questions.
Finally, Binns ended their lesson, and Isabelle could get round to finding something to wear, while the others headed to the Great Hall for lunch before Hogsmeade. After practically running up to the common room, she flung open her wardrobe and concentrated really hard on what to wear. Isabelle wanted Sirius to engage in her plan willingly, yet unaware, and she couldn't think of anything better than stunning him into silence with her looks; she was a gorgeous girl who caught the eyes of many boys (And girls) and she was fully aware of the effect her beauty could have on some people. Especially boys like Sirius Black.
Noticing the time, Isabelle quickly decided on her outfit and set to work on making herself look perfect. Once she was ready, she double checked her bag for everything she needed, and headed into the common room and down to the Great Hall where she would be meeting Sirius.
Sirius' laughter bounced off the walls as he sent a jelly-hex curse off a furious looking Severus Snape. He'd arrived at the Great Hall a bit too early for his outing with Isabelle and had nothing better to do than torment his favourite Slytherin.
After making the already pissed off Severus Snape even more pissed off (which was always possible if you were Sirius Black or James Potter) Sirius happened to glance around the empty entrance hall, his gaze landing on the girl who he was going into Hogsmeade with.
Many suspicious and curious feelings might have occurred inside of Sirius over some time toward a certain girl, but that did not stop Sirius' jaw dropping open at the sight in front of him.
Isabelle sauntered toward him, confidence radiating from her, her pale blue eyes bright with excitement and anticipation. That was what Sirius noticed first. Not her legs, which looked so good in the patterned tights which curved around her thighs, not her hips or tiny waist which were currently being hugged by a tight black dress. Not even the low V of her dress, revealing her prominent cleavage. She was wearing the same expression Marlene wore on their late night adventures and Sirius wondered idly if Marlene had given her some tips- but why would Marlene be giving another girl tips on reining in Sirius?
Sirius shrugged his feelings off as Isabelle stopped in front of him, "Sorry I'm late." She smiled, looking up at him through thick, black lashes.
"Don't worry about it, gorgeous." Sirius smirked, placing a hand on the lower half of her back to guide her from the school. She giggled and allowed herself to be pushed, enjoying the feeling of his strong hands on her back. She quickly allowed herself to wonder what those hands could do touching the rest of her body, and then she dismissed it when Sirius' hand slipped casually around her waist.
"Where to then, Izzy?" He asked lazily, his eyes raking over her face, "Three Broomsticks?"
"Yeah, I'm parched."
"Looking sexy makes you thirsty, eh?" He teased in a low voice, holding the door open for her. She smiled as she walked in and located a table for them; he's such a gentleman she thought, sliding into the booth with grace.
Sirius strolled over, setting down two butterbeers on the table, before sliding next to her. Isabelle took this as her opportunity to strike. Sliding closer to him, she pressed her lips to his and took full advantage of his gasp of surprise, to slide her tongue into his mouth and initiate a soft, but passionate kiss. Sirius wasn't one to pass up an opportunity for a snogging session, so his hand silkily slide up and down her leg, making her shiver, and the other arm snaked its way around her small waist.
After kissing for what seemed like forever, Sirius was the one to break away. Thirsty and trying to regain breath, he downed his butterbeer and smirked cheekily at Isabelle, who looked flushed but smug. In return, she sipped her butterbeer, enjoying the sweet flavour. Isabelle could still taste him on her tongue, she could still feel his hands sliding their way up and down her thigh, so she grabbed him again and kissed him once more.
Pressing her against the window of their booth, Sirius was practically on top of her as they kissed. His hands were raking her slender frame, her hands were remembering his sculptured body through cotton, their kisses were devouring, lingering, and passionate. Suddenly, Sirius felt overwhelmed with a feeling of love- or what his brain was telling him was love- and desperation. He felt drawn to Isabelle, not like he did with Marlene, something entirely different. It was hysteria. Happy and lustful hysteria. All he could think about was Isabelle, he needed her, he needed her so badly, he didn't even care that they were currently in a booth in the local bar; Isabelle was his drug, and he was in need of his next fix.
When an explosion rippled through the Three Broomsticks, tearing down the pillars which held the popular bar up, Sirius felt Isabelle push him. He groaned, gazing at her lustfully. She panicked, waving her arms frantically at him, telling him to back up, but Sirius couldn't. He was anchored in place by the ever-growing feelings in his stomach and chest.
Isabelle realised that her plan was crumbling around her like the bar in which they were situated, so she gave Sirius a harsh shove as he pressed himself against her once more, "Sirius! We have to get out of here." She fretted; fear rising in her throat, "They're here."
"Nobody's here, baby. Just you and me…" He whispered huskily in her ear, completely oblivious to the chaos around them. People were screaming, rubble was falling, and fire was catching, but Sirius couldn't see it. All he could see was Isabelle, and that's all he wanted to see.
"Sirius!" She screamed, kneeing him in the gut, "The Death Eaters are attacking Hogsmeade. We need to get out of here before we die." Isabelle had been in a scene like this before. In France, her home, her community, burned to the ground by cold hearted murders, and it was the last thing she wanted to happen again.
When Sirius winced from the connection of her knee to his gut, Isabelle pushed him off the bench and hauled herself up. She froze on the spot noticing the scene for the first time. The Three Broomsticks was hauling toward desolation; the ceiling was about to collapse, a fire had broken out over the left wing of the bar, tables, chairs, glasses and bottles lined the floor, making the route to the door a dangerous one.
She drew her wand and bolted for the door, crying out as glasses sliced away at her tights and into her flesh.
"Isabelle?!" A voice screamed from the left wing- the wing that was on fire, "Isabelle is that you?"
It was Marlene. You could only just make her out; the flames obstructed her view. Beside her, Remus was firing out spells, desperately trying to tackle to blaze.
Sirius snaked his arms around Isabelle, his lips grazing her neck. With a frustrated whimper, Isabelle shoved him away, causing him to land on his back. His strangled cries filled the room.
"SIRIUS?!" Remus bellowed hoarsely, "Sirius, are you okay?"
"Isabelle." Sirius muttered, "I need Isabelle. Izzy! IZZY!"
Overwhelmed by guilt, fear and anger, Isabelle ran through the rubble and out into the street. She sent any hexes and curses she could, in every single direction possible, limping down the street with sliced legs.
Marlene wailed as the fire roared higher. She and Remus were trapped behind a wall of orange. Together, they both chanted Aguamenti repeatedly, and finally the fire subdued. Taking each other's hand, Marlene and Remus jumped through the little blaze which was still alight. When Marlene saw Sirius lying in red glass, she gasped, diving over to him with a frantic scream.
"Sirius!" She coughed, her lungs still desperately trying for oxygen, "Sirius, you still awake?"
"Isabelle!" He whined, "I want Isabelle. No, get off me McKinnon!" He snapped as Marlene fussed over him, she immediately stepped back and started battling with a Death Eater who had silently crept in, obviously searching for victims.
"FUCK OFF, REMUS! I ONLY WANT ISABELLE!" Sirius screamed, scrambling off the floor with an ear piercing cry. Glass was sticking of his back, his neck and his legs, but he still found the strength to run for the door, repeatedly yelling Isabelle's name.
Between the two of them, Remus and Marlene managed to battle the Death Eaters that arrived in the bar, and once they were certain that the coast was clear, they left, tightly grabbing onto each other for support.
"Marlene! Remus!" A familiar hysteric voice called. Marlene didn't need to see the face to recognise her; it was Lily, "Oh thank God you two aren't dead!"
"Of course they're not dead; you can't get rid of them that easily." James attempted to joke, although he was relieved to see the pair looking only injured.
"Where's Sirius?" Lily fretted, "And Isabelle?"
"No idea. They ran off. Sirius is in bad shape though." Remus said, his eyes flicking quickly around the streets of Hogsmeade in search of his second brother.
"Fuck." James cursed, kicking a rock, "Where is he?!"
His question was answered by a spine chilling plea for help. It was obvious Sirius, there was no doubt about it, and soon, the question of his location didn't need answering. His body was sent soaring through the air, landing directly at James' feet. Marlene screamed, falling to her knees, her hands trying to patch his clothing- and flesh- back onto his body.
Sirius didn't look like Sirius. His face was sliced, bloody and bruised; it was obvious by the limp way his body hung that most of his bones were broken. He was clinging to his life with whatever strength he had left.
"Filthy bloody traitor!" Hissed a cold, cruel voice, "The son of Orion, sorted into Gryffindor, befriended muggleborns and other blood traitors.." His gaze landed on Marlene and James when he said this, then his cold look landed on Lily, who visibly shuddered under his glare.
"Pining, he was. After a girl. A pretty one, she was, but not pure. She was definitely not something worth pining after. Especially not in the middle of battle, running around wandless calling her name." He grinned, bearing yellowing teeth.
"Oh Isabelle…" The man mimicked, "Izzy, Izzy please! Come back, I love you! What a BASTARD!"He screamed, flicking his wand lazily at Marlene who was sobbing over the body.
"You'd be better for him, darling. Pureblood, pretty…"
"KEEP YOUR WAND AWAY FROM MY FRIENDS!" James bellowed, his wand raised in defence, "You are sick, Voldemort, sick. Sirius and my friends have done nothing at all to you, we're just teenagers for Merlin's sake! And you're killing them! Why do you, of all people, think you're so fucking superior? You are not! And you will not get away with it!"
"James…" Lily whispered weakly, "No." She made him lower his wand from attacking, to just defence.
"Oh, thank you dear." Voldemort cackled, "You saved me."
"I did no such thing." Lily spat, "You're a vile man, if you can even be classified as a man. In fact, I don't think you can. No man would ever torture children, no man would ever kill innocent people who he has never spoken a single godforsaken word to in his life! No man would ever push the bounds of magic so far that's barely even human! No man would order the death of an innocent man and woman, who lived in a tiny village and planted flowers on a Sunday! You are not a man." Lily said coldly.
And bravely, like a true Gryffindor, she fired all the hexes she'd ever learnt at this creature standing before her. He didn't have time to block them, but his followers had time to fire some back. They weren't as quick as James, who had immediately set up a protection charm around Lily as soon as she finished speaking. Remus and Marlene joined in, joining their magic together, as they were bombarded with dark spells and hexes.
Finally, the Death Eaters and their leader Voldemort, apparated away. This fight was a good one, they'd killed many, they'd achieved something, at least. And Voldemort was not a man to stand in danger, he'd flee, but Voldemort was a man to hold grudges, and the boy called James, and the girl called Lily, were scrawled on his list of people who'd crossed the wrong side of him. And they were marked to die.
"Miss McKinnon, will you sit down, now." The impatient nurse snapped at the stubborn girl, who despite her bodies warnings, was still standing up and demanding information.
Before Marlene could reply, her body swayed and her legs crumbled beneath her, gravity dragging her to the floor. She coughed weakly, the smoke still circulating in her lungs, then forced herself up and onto the bed Madam Pomfrey had made for her.
Madam Pomfrey finished tending to Lily's wounds, and then she moved onto Marlene, who had lapsed into a coughing fit that hacked at her lungs. Beside her, Remus winced and turned over to try and block out of the sound.
"Sirius…." She said in between her gasps for air, "Is he okay?"
The nurse knew by 'okay' Marlene meant alive, so she nodded and gave her a potion to send her to sleep. Then she took a slow walk over to Sirius' bed, bracing herself for the sight she had to face. As a nurse, she saw horrific things, but having to see a young boy ruined on a bed, was something Poppy hadn't seen before.
He lay, as limp as before, on the bed. He wasn't awake, but he was alive. His breathing was ragged and raspy, as if the life were being slowly sucked out of him. His handsome face was anything but handsome; it was bruised and swollen, and he was barely recognisable. As for the broken bones, they were healing. Slowly and carefully, as Sirius' lung had been punctured by his rib.
Professor Dumbledore entered the wing solemnly and nodded to Poppy, "St Mungo's are ready for him." He said softly, indicating to Sirius' bed.
The nurse nodded, "I've fixed the other students for now, Albus. I just have Miss Babineaux to attend to lastly, and then they'll be all on their way to recovery."
Albus bowed gratefully to Madam Pomfrey and helped with the removal of Sirius' bed. His injuries were far too life threatening to be left in the school hospital. It wasn't like Madam Pomfrey was a bad healer, it was the fact that Sirius was still hovering in between life and death, and she couldn't bear to stand responsible for his death should he pass away. So, she allowed one of the most irritatingly charming students to be removed from her care.
Isabelle arrived last at the Hospital Wing. She lay on her back in the uncomfortable bed, staring up at the ceiling blankly as Madam Pomfrey tended to her wounds. She couldn't believe how her perfect plan had fallen apart so quickly. She had him. Isabelle had captured Sirius and he wasn't even aware, but she'd also risked his life, for love was a thing not to be meddled with.
Isabelle meddled too much.