The Sandcastle

As Claudia strode towards Hogsmeade village, still full of anger, her mind swirled with unanswered questions. How did Sirius manage to escape? What was Dumbledore talking about when he said the time turner was integral to his plan? And, rather selfishly, how was she going to explain to the aurors what exactly she was doing at Hogwarts on the night that Sirius escaped certain death?

The questions tormented her during her journey home and throughout the night. Eventually, she gave up trying to sleep and left for the office. And, as it turned out, it was very lucky that she did because she bumped into Oscar, who was just heading home late and may have had some answers.

"Are you feeling alright?" he asked when he saw her in the cafeteria, emptying a pot of coffee into the largest mug they had. "Have the healers checked you over?"

"What are you talking about?" she said, wondering if she was mishearing things, or dozed off and this was all a dream.

"Dumbledore told the aurors at Hogwarts you fainted. They kept guard all night, just as your boyfriend escaped from right under their nose," he said with his eyes narrowing.

Claudia looked around to make sure no one else was listening. "I didn't faint. That old fucker put me into enchanted sleep to make sure I didn't meddle and help Sirius."

"Can't blame him… You do-"

"Don't you dare take his side," she hissed, interrupting.

Oscar twisted his mouth into an uneven smile. "I thought you'd be in a better mood, given he actually did get away."

"Well, he's still on the run, isn't he?"

"Better than the alternative," Oscar said and patted Claudia on the shoulder. "He should be able to catch a break. Between us-" he lowered his voice- "we will not be able to sustain the level of effort we dedicated to catching him. Not with the World Cup coming, and the-" he trailed off.

"The what?"

"Bones doesn't want us alarming the Board yet, not until we have something more solid."

"I can take my Board hat off if that helps…"

"Death Eaters have been raising their heads a little. Nothing huge, but a few incidents here and there with muggles being harassed."

"Are they real Death Eaters? Or just some bored rich kids-"

"Remains to be seen-" he stopped abruptly when a group of patrol officers walked in. "Got to dash."

"See you later."

Oscar flashed her a brief smile. "I am glad he's not dead."

"Really?"

"For your sake."

"Thanks," she said and smiled. He really was a good friend above all else.

Claudia stumbled through the rest of the week in a sleep-deprived state. Not even her own recipe for a sleeping draught helped her to sustain a full night's sleep in these circumstances. The only thing that would help her go to sleep would be knowing Sirius was alright. But he was not responding to messages in the notebook. That, in itself, was not concerning as he must have left it in the Hogwarts grounds somewhere. If only she still had the jewel. With it gone, her best bet was to blindly go to Guernsey and hope that she would find him. The chances were slim, of course, the house was untraceable and not even on the main island! But she had to give it a shot. And she was determined to, once she got through the week.

Claudia did not quite know how she managed it, but she did. Walking through the atrium on Friday night, almost free, her mood was better than it was all week. Until she caught sight of Dolores Umbridge at least...

"I just got your report on portkeys security," Umbridge said waving a piece of parchment. "They're too expensive-"

Claudia had to smile to herself. She got away with one here. By a stroke of luck, the Unspeakables managed to deliver the secure portkeys mere days after she lied to Umbridge that they have accomplished it already. "Won't get any cheaper," she replied chipperly. "We need to brew this rather rare concoction and then simmer the portkeys in it for a fortnight. There is no way around it-"

Umbridge's face was twitching as she forced herself to smile. "Very well…" she said sweetly and then cleared her throat. "But I would appreciate if you did not leave my meetings so abruptly again. Some might think you do not respect me, and by extension the Minister."

Claudia returned the fake smile. "We wouldn't want anyone to think I don't respect the Minister," she said and took half a step past Umbridge. "For what it's worth," she added over her shoulder. "I am still waiting on an apology from your cousin."

If Umbridge replied anything to that remark, it got drowned out by the sound of people disappearing into the green flames of the Floo network. If only she could just take that to Guernsey… But she had no idea if there were any wizard pubs there and, in any case, it would have been too obvious. She had to go the muggle way-

And so she did. And on Saturday afternoon, after seven long hours on a ferry, travelling over some very rough see, Claudia made it to Guernsey. She stood on the top deck, hidden under her invisibility cloak, watching the island edge closer and closer… It was further away from the English shore and more remote than she could possibly imagine. There was nothing else for miles.

When she got off the ferry, she pulled the cloak closer to her body. The whole place was windy, chilly and bright. Claudia was nauseous and her joints were hurting from the journey. If this trip was for nothing- she cursed in her head at the mere thought. But then, just like that, her mood improved significantly when she spotted a large black dog, lying in the shade of a tree just opposite the ferry terminal.

Since she was wearing the cloak, he seemed oblivious to her presence. At least until she walked right up to him and crouched down. Padfoot rose to all four and started to wag his tail.

"Don't you dare lick me," she whispered and patted his head.

Padfoot let out a joyful bark and set off. Claudia, grinning to herself, followed him along the main coastal road. When they reached the edge of town (which did not take long at all), Padfoot turned off the main road onto a gravel road, which slowly dissolved into a grassy path and then into nothing at all. She was bursting with questions, dying to talk to him, but there was no point- She did not speak dog.

Eventually, Padfoot climbed down a small cliff onto a sheltered sandy beach.

"Where the hell is this place?" she uttered as she climbed the cliff herself, much less steady on her two legs than Padfoot had been on all fours. Her cloak had slipped off and landed on the sand.

Padfoot turned his head to the left, then to the right. And when he seemingly detected no danger, he transformed and picked up Claudia's cloak. "Just a short boat ride," Sirius replied, he was smiling broadly and pointing at a little wooden rowboat. "It's not-"

The rest of the sentence got knocked out of him as Claudia flew into his arms. "I was so scared," she whispered. "The star was gone. I thought you were dead."

"I'm pretty sure I was for a second…" Sirius squeezed her and exhaled. "And since I'm not planning on repeating that experience any time soon, let's get out of here." He reluctantly let go off Claudia, pushed the boat further into the see.

As the tiny waves crashed against his legs, he extended his arm. Claudia grabbed his hand and jumped into the boat, which rocked under her feet, making her shriek and grab onto Sirius' arm even tighter. "I hate boats! The ferry alone," her stomach turned at the thought.

"It's the only way to get there, I'm afraid" he replied, and jumped into the boat himself. He sat down and guided Claudia to sitting too. Then, he took out a wand and cast a spell unknown to Claudia towards the back of the boat. It began to move.

"What is the place?" she asked as she folded herself smaller, trying to protect herself from the wind. "Some kind of wizard fortress?"

Sirius chuckled. "We used to take the Floo to this wizard house over on the big island, then walk to this very boat."

"Well, Floo is easier than that ferry."

"It is. But I went to get the wand I stashed there when I was eleven, and it's derelict. The fireplace could still work, if we find it in the ruins."

"Apparition?"

"Only to the beach where the boat is kept, but it's a bit of a stretch from England. My father got badly splinched once when he tried to do it in a hurry. And despite all his many flaws, he was excellent at apparition-"

"Portkey?"

"No. My uncle tried it once and ended up in the sea. Almost drowned…"

"So, my only option to get here is Floo and then this boat?"

"And an hour and a half hike in between. But you can apparate that. The ten-year-old me had to walk…"

"Why is it so difficult to get to?"

Sirius stretched out in the boat, rocking it a little and making Claudia grab onto the edge. "That's a funny story. My great-great-grandfather built it in case the Ministry was after him. I was never really sure what it was that he was up to, but he built this to be impenetrable. And right now, I'm not complaining."

"I am…" she mumbled, as her joints began to ache again from the cold and lack of movement.

"You're always complaining-" he said with a grin.

Claudia chuckled, sank deeper into the boat and watched Sirius' face – he looked much like he did when she saw him in Hogsmeade. He had chopped off some of his hair though and was wearing what looked like a very flamboyant white shirt and a black pair of slacks. Claudia was still pondering why exactly he looked like a nineteen-century romantic hero, when-

"We've arrived," Sirius said.

She turned and her eyes landed on a small sandy beach at the foot of a tall, steep cliff. All Claudia could see at the top were rosebushes and various other flora, with a maybe just a glimpse of a red-brown roof.

But Sirius steered away from the beach and towards the high cliff. Just as she was about to protest and question his maritime skills, she noticed that he was steering the boat towards a narrow gap in the cliff.

"Are you sure you can fit in there?" she asked, attempting to sound jovial, but sounding anything but. The uncertainly in her voice was palpable.

"Relax, the boat sails itself…"

That was no relief to Claudia. Putting her life in the hands of some old Black family magic was even more terrifying than relying on Sirius' ability to sail. But soon enough, she could breathe again as they entered the cave and the water had calmed down. The boat came to a gradual stop by a stone jetty carved into the cliff. A few torches lit up revealing a tunnel leading from the shore, deep into the rock.

Hand-in-hand, they got out of the boat and began walking through the tunnel up a wet and slippery set of stairs.

"This is very homely-" she uttered, staring at the walls covered in moss.

"Just you wait."

They climbed and climbed until they emerged into the bright sun.

Once the light stopped blinding her, Claudia began to notice trees. Soon, the fruit came into focus also, for they were fruit trees, full of ripening apricots and peaches. And behind them, on top of a steep grassy hill stood a sizeable villa. The shutters were falling off the large windows, there were tiles missing from the roof, and ivy had covered much of its light yellow facade. But despite its nearly derelict state, it was obvious that, in its day, it must have been beautiful.

Before either of them said anything, Claudia spotted a sign on the sandstone gate that separated the orchard from the grounds of the house – 'Château de Sable'. The Sandcastle. Except the 'Sable' was not part of the original brass plaque; it was written across it in paint. Claudia walked closer to it squinted at the sign – the original read 'Château de la Mer'.

"What happened here?" she asked.

"When I was about six," Sirius placed his arms around her shoulders and began to explain, "my parents decided they wanted to name this place. I wanted to call it The Sandcastle. Reg agreed with me. But my mother thought it was juvenile and called it Château de la Mer." Sirius nudged Claudia through the gate. "So, at every opportunity, I changed that plaque. And Reg and I never called it anything other than the Sandcastle."

"And she eventually lived with it?"

"No. It drove her crazy," he said with a laugh. "She got the elf to scrub my writing off every time. I had to rename it again once I got here-" he laughed to himself. "I'd like to see her trying to change it now."

Claudia could not help but laugh with him. "You are still six years old in some ways, aren't you?"

"You knew what you were getting yourself into." He grinned and then stopped. They were in the middle of a yard. "That's the main house-" he pointed at the villa- " but I'm staying in the small house over there. The servant's quarters as my mother called it."

Claudia spun around to look at the second, smaller house. "Your house elf had his own house?" And a sizeable one by anyone else's standards.

"No. It's a French thing… Back in the day, my family had human servants too."

She chuckled. "Of course, they did."

"What are you laughing about?"

"I forgot how much better I feel about my family when you're around."

"I missed you too," Sirius said with a laugh and nudged her into the house. "This is the kitchen, and upstairs are the bedrooms. One for us and one for-"

Sirius' words got interrupted by an awfully loud squawk. They both turned towards the noise. Claudia's heart jumped into her throat. At least Remus told her about the Hippogriff. Otherwise, her soul would have left her body at the sight of the creature.

"Do you know how to deal with a Hipogriff?" Sirius whispered into Claudia's ear.

"Ignore it and hope it goes away?" she whispered back.

"You bow and then wait for it to reciprocate."

"I'm not bowing-"

"Claude!" Sirius hissed, with a hint of frustration in his voice. "Do you want him to claw your eyes out?"

"Fine," she said and grudgingly gave a short, sharp bow.

The Hippogriff looked at her and then, with his head held high, walked away.

"Buckbeak does not like you," Sirius said flatly.

"I think I'll live-" Claudia smirked.

Sirius laughed and, still shaking his head, went towards a door that looked like it led to a pantry. "Nothing new in the fact that my friends hate you. But I know you'll grow on him eventually."

"Didn't grow on Peter, did I?" she sighed and watched Sirius continue to rummage through the pantry like she had made a remark about the weather. "I do wonder whether he agreed to set you up like he did to get back at me, get back at us, you know-"

Sirius turned slowly, his hands full of pots, and nodded at Claudia to follow him. They walked the length of the kitchen in silence, and then through a dark corridor. Sirius only spoke again once they entered a grand but very shabby sitting room. "Wormtail was a coward, Claude. And he needed someone to pin his betrayal on. I was just there. There's nothing more to it-"

But Claudia was not convinced. Neither of them was especially nice to Peter during their school years. And it was quite possible that, when the time came, Peter cherished getting his revenge. It was staggering Sirius did not, or perhaps refused, to see that. By the time Claudia formed a response that would not lead to an immediate argument, however, they were at the veranda. "The view…" she whispered, forgetting everything she wanted to say, and having her breath almost knocked out of her lungs by how beautiful it was. The veranda was overlooking the ocean, which was framed by flowering bushes of dusty pink. And in the distance, one could just about make out the silhouettes of the small boats in the Guernsey harbour. Buckbeak was flying over the water.

"Told you it was a good place for dinner," Sirius said and put the pots down on a wobbly table that had, just like the rest of the house, seen better days. "Well, not dinner, really. Just few bits and bobs I managed to nick from the muggle market. And the fruit from the orchard."

"I took loads of muggle money, remind me to leave you some when-" she trailed off. She did not want to say it, for she only just got here. But Sirius was not stupid.

"When do you have to go?" he asked.

"Not tonight. Probably tomorrow."

"We could try to see if the Floo still works," he said. "That will save you some time. I found some Floo powder in the pantry…"

"Sure."

"Let's eat, then."

It was near impossible to take one's eyes off the view. They finished the food, the sun began to set, the ocean was bathed in the orange sunset, and Buckbeak was now diving for fish just at the foot of the cliff.

"What happens if he gets past the protective charms?" Claudia asked.

"We'll need to get the boat out to get him back. But he's a clever thing… Got me here without a hitch."

Claudia tore her eyes away from the Hippogriff and remembered all the questions she had for Sirius. "What happened at Hogwarts?" she whispered as she lay her head on Sirius' shoulder.

"How much did Remus tell you?"

"Nothing."

"What?" Frustration was palpable in Sirius' voice. "I asked him to-" His chest tightened and he sat up straighter.

"I didn't want to hear it from him."

Sirius' body relaxed again, and he began running his fingers through Claudia's hair. "Claude, what really happened between you and Remus? I know he thought I did it, but-" he trailed off.

"You think I'm being unreasonable…"

"I've forgiven him. I don't blame him for it… Maybe you-"

"Well, I do blame him! And so would you if you knew-" she stopped abruptly. Maybe now was not the time. Sirius needed all the friends he could get.

"I just don't want to fight with him-" Sirius continued his original train of thought for a second but then, he stopped. The meaning of Claudia's words must have sunk in. "If I knew what?"

"It doesn't matter. It's nothing."

His hands travelled to her shoulders, and he squeezed them. "We talked about this. I don't want you to hold things in. Whatever it is, it's better than I know."

Claudia continued to stare at the sea and took a deep breath. He was right. "Dumbledore, Remus and many others, I imagine, knew about your meeting with my father. And they thought you gave up James and Lily in exchange for my life. Remus thought that telling me that delightful theory might make me stop defending you- or stop me from caring about what happened to you. And maybe for a few drunken days it did..." She paused. Sirius said nothing, just rubbed her shoulders. "No one believed me, Sirius, no one. They all told me I was crazy for not seeing who you were. It was hard to keep my head straight. Especially because I was blind drunk most of the time."

"That was cruel of Remus, to tell you that…" Sirius sighed and wrap his arms around Claudia's torso. "Beyond cruel…" He paused and planted a kiss on the side of her head. "But do you really blame him for thinking that? I was desperate to protect you. I would have done pretty much anything to save you. You know that, and Remus knew it too."

"But you wouldn't have betrayed James like that. I know you wouldn't have."

"No, but I should've kidnapped you and hid you until the war was over."

Claudia could not help but raise a smile. "I would've hated you for that."

Sirius took a long pause before finally responding. "Did you ever hate me for what I did? For leaving? For getting arrested?"

Claudia sat up and turned to look at him. There was so much hurt in his eyes, it was difficult to comprehend. "Was I angry at you?" she asked, rhetorically. "Very much so… But did I hate you?" She shook her head. "Never."

Sirius gave her a shy smile…

Claudia touched the side of his face and looked into his eyes. "You hated me when you were in Azkaban though, didn't you?" she whispered.

"Not because I blamed you for anything. It's just-" His expression changed. He looked instantly greyer, much like he did in Edinburgh.

"It's alright. I know what twisting someone's mind can do to them," she whispered. "In some ways, it's a compliment – if you didn't really love me, the Dementors wouldn't have used it against you."

Sirius did not say a word but held her tighter. The sun has now set. Sirius acquired a blanket from somewhere and wrapped them both in it. Lying against his chest, she could hear his heart. His lips were so close to her head that she could feel his breath among her hair. If she could just imprint this moment into her brain, Dementors would be no match for any patronus she would cast.

"And what did Dumbledore do to deserve your anger?" Sirius asked after a moment of silence.

Claudia's eyes were closing. There was so much Dumbledore had done, her sleep-deprived brain did not know where to begin. "He stopped me from trying to save you."

"Harry did a good job there…"

"It was supposed to be me. I don't think you know, but I have a cousin teaching Divination at Hogwarts. She's some kind of a seer apparently. When I was with her last year, she made a prophecy – about you dying and me saving you."

"You believe in prophecies?" Sirius said, barely disguising a scoff.

She pulled the blanket towards her chest and closed her eyes. The waves were crashing against the cliffs. The crickets were singing in the trees. The world seemed completely at peace. "Let's see if you're still laughing when you see someone prophesising my death," she whispered using her last bit of energy.

When Claudia peeled her eyes open, she was no longer on the veranda. Instead, she was in a small room with thick stone walls, and Sirius was watching her, his face illuminated by the morning sun.

"How did I get here?" she said with a yawn and reached for his face. "And why are you all wet?"

"Went for a dip in the sea."

That would explain why he was shirtless, she thought to herself. "What time is it?" she mumbled.

"Half seven."

Claudia yawned again and rolled over. "Why are you awake?"

"Because it's a beautiful day," he replied and kissed her on the forehead.

She rubbed her eyes and sat up. The bags below his eyes were darker than yesterday. She knew full well he was awake because he could not sleep again. "Do you have a bathroom somewhere?"

"There are proper bathrooms in the main house, but seagulls have moved in. I have a bath-" he paused – "of sorts, through there."

Grudgingly Claudia got up and let him show her through a tiny door in the corner of the bedroom. Once over the threshold, she narrowed her eyes. "That's not a bathtub. That's a barrel."

"Don't go all pureblood on me," he said with a chuckle and planted a quick kiss on her lips. "I'll make coffee."

Claudia washed up in the cold water, wrapped herself in Sirius' slightly damp towel and went back into the bedroom to look for him, but he was not back yet… She surveyed the room. It was small and barely furnished. Out of the small attic window, all you could see was the sea. Bright blue, calm sea. It was not quite the palace that Sirius had painted to Claudia earlier, but the only thing that mattered was that he seemed happy here. And that he was safe-

Sirius appeared within the minute. "You got a nice view," she whispered, nodding towards the sea.

"Much improved by you standing right here," he replied and pressed a warm cup of coffee into Claudia's hand.

Claudia smiled, downed her coffee and then put the cup on the windowsill.

"Everything is improved by you being around," he added.

Claudia chuckled. "You're the only person in the world to ever think that."

She was expecting a clever comeback, but instead Sirius scooped her up and practically threw her into the bed. There were not that many clothes to get rid of this time, and soon enough their bodies were entangled in a knot of highly-strung, sweaty flesh.

Sirius took his time, slowing down every time he got anywhere near close. The waves of pleasurable anticipation forced Claudia's eyes shut. Her breathing got faster. Her heart was threatening to jump out of her chest- But then Sirius groaned and pressed his forehead against her. He lost the fight against his impatience… But before either of them could catch a breath and appreciate that what they did finally felt like real sex-

"SQUAWK!"

Claudia shot up to sitting, her forehead colliding with Sirius'. He screamed out in pain. Before she could react, a rustle of feather filled the room and Buckbeak was towering over the bed, his wing spread.

"No, Buckbeak, she's a friend," Sirius was now on his knees, one of his arms in the air, the other over a duvet protecting at least some of his dignity. "The screaming was an accident. No one's hurt."

Claudia would laugh if she was not scared for her life, hiding under several of Sirius' pillows, cursing the day this overgrown chicken came into her life.

The Hippogriff stood still for a second, then squawked again and trotted out of the room.

Sirius collapsed into the bed next to his girlfriend. "You couldn't have just bowed to him?" he sighed without a hint of humour.

"You're blaming me for this? Your pet tried to kill me!"

"I can't just kick him out. He saved my life."

"So did I! More than once!"

A small smile has appeared on Sirius' face. "Well, there is plenty for you two to find common ground over, then," he smirked and hugged her. "But in all seriousness, the first thing you're doing when we get up, is that you're going to say sorry to Buckbeak and you're going to bow to him."

"Fine-"

"Really? I expected more of a fight."

"I'll do it as soon as I get up," she said with a yawn and wrapped her arms around Sirius' torso, "which will be never."

"You're impossible," he whispered and playfully bit her earlobe.

"You knew what you were getting yourself into," she used his own words against him.

But they did eventually make it out of bed and Sirius forced Claudia to make amends with Buckbeak. The bow from the Hippogriff was barely noticeable, but Sirius assured Claudia that Buckbeak only had Sirius' best interests at heart and was no real danger to anyone.

As the Sandcastles' pantry was empty and Sirius was starving, they both made their way across the sea to the island to shop for some groceries in the local shop. A few alterations to their appearance and some newly purchased sunglasses were enough to ensure their real identity was protected from the muggles.

Once they got back, Claudia explored the house while Sirius, apparently not in the need of her commentary on his cooking, finished up their lunch. When Claudia got to the second floor, she did realise that Sirius was not lying about the fact the seagulls had moved into the bathrooms. And it was the same story in every room Claudia had visited – the bedrooms had no windows, the sitting room had a thin layer of sand on the carpet, and the library – beautiful as it was – had plans growing out of the stonework around the doors leading onto the veranda. But despite all that, Claudia could see them here. She could see them turning this place into a home-

Just as she contemplated where the best place for her desk would be, she saw Sirius carrying a pot across the veranda. She climbed through one of the library windows. "This house is going to take more than a few spells to fix."

"Well," he sighed and plated up the stew. "I got a fair bit of time on my hands and not a lot of places to go."

Claudia tried to give him an encouraging smile but could not quite find the words. "It looks delicious," she uttered and pointed at the stew instead. "I wouldn't even dream of cooking something this good."

"Did you really not learn how to cook? Who feeds you?"

"I have an assistant now," she shrugged. "He usually brings me some lunch when I'm in the office."

"Unbelievable."

Claudia gulped down the stew, dreading what she had to do. "I really need to get going. In case the Floo doesn't work, I'll need to take that bloody boat and it will take me forever to get back." She watched Sirius sigh, but before he could say anything, she added hastily. "And yes, I do have to go back. If I disappear a few days after you escaped, I might as well just hide out here with you. And it would only encourage the aurors to look for us."

"I know."

"As long as you also know I don't really want to-"

Back in the boat for the second time that day, Claudia was becoming more comfortable with the whole ordeal. She was stretched across the length of the boat herself, lying in Sirius' embrace and stroking his hand.

"Do you have a plan?" she asked eventually. "How to get out of this predicament?"

"Probably best to lie low for a bit…" Sirius replied. "Harry will be safe at Hogwarts next year. Peter's not going to come back. For now, that is enough- It has to be."

"Maybe when the time is right, you could try clearing your name-"

"When the time is right…"

Once at the shore, Sirius briefly explained to her how to call over and operate the boat, and then extended his arm and intertwined his fingers with Claudia's. "Ready?"

She nodded and they apparated.

The moment they landed by the house, Claudia feared the worst as the image of a shoddy ferry flashed in front of her eyes. Sirius was right, this was not a house, it was a ruin. But by some kind of a miracle, they managed to locate the fireplace and light the fire. Claudia looked at it and swallowed. "This better work," she mumbled, doubting whether the connection to the Floo network has been preserved.

"Should I test it?" Sirius asked, sensing her hesitation.

"No," she shook her head. "There's a risk that it will just spit you up in the Ministry if it's not connected properly. And unlike you, I won't get arrested if that happens."

"Alright-" He put his hands on her shoulders and squeezed them.

"If the Floo works, I can come during the week too- definitely at the weekend."

"I'll be alright until the weekend," he said and kissed her cheek.

Claudia closed her eyes and placed her palms on Sirius' chest. "I still don't want to go."

Sinking his fingers in her hair, he leaned even closer towards Claudia's ear. "We will have this, Claude, I promise you. We will find a way to be together properly again."

"You don't even have your notebook."

"It's hidden on the outskirts of Hogsmeade," he replied. "Hang on-" he reached into Claudia's bag to get a piece of parchment and one of those portable self-filling quills. He drew a quick sketch. "It's here, buried by this corner of the garden shed."

"You want me to go dig it out?" she asked, sceptically.

"Please?"

"Fine."

They kissed one last time and Claudia took Floo, mercifully finding herself at the wizarding pub in Manchester as she intended. She bought a light supper to make sure she was seen, then travelled back to London. It was late when she got home. Too late to even try to fall asleep on her own, so she drunk some sleeping draught and went to bed.

Between her trip to Hogsmeade to retrieve Sirius' notebook, planning for the World Cup, and increased chatter about Death Eater activities meant that Claudia's week went fast. She barely blinked and it was Friday night, and she was sailing across the narrow sea towards the Sandcastle once again.

By the time she met Sirius inside the jetty cave, she could barely keep her eyes open.

"You look like you're ready for bed," he mumbled as he wrapped her in his arms.

"I brought you some sleeping draught," she whispered. "So you can hopefully get some sleep too."

And surely enough, within ten minutes, Claudia's head was on a pillow and her eyes were shut.

"What's this sleeping draught?" She only just about heard Sirius ask. "It smells different."

"It's a good one, trust me," she uttered.

"And how much should I drink?"

She yawned and turned her face into the pillow. "I stopped measuring it. Usually take like four or five sips…" And with those words, she was asleep.

When Claudia woke up in the morning, the sun was already high above the ocean. Sirius was fast asleep. So fast in fact that it took her a few second to confirm his heart was still beating. She lied next to him for a while, stroking his arm gently with her fingers. But there was no waking him, so Claudia got up.

She wondered around the house. Sirius had done some repairs to the sitting room and the veranda – the floors were now intact and windows back on their hinges.

But the library was untouched, and so were the other rooms. Very soon, Claudia got bored just walking around, so she found a book of household spells. She fixed up the library, placing some very unique artefacts on the decorative tables (a brain of a creature she did not recognise stuffed into a large jar was especially interesting). It took her most of the day. After she was done, she moved onto the largest bedroom – she was getting rather good at it, managing to transfigure the wallpaper into something intact and more visually appealing. Periodically, she came to check on Sirius who was still fast asleep.

Just as the sun began to set, she went to finish up the wallpaper in the library. Her concertation broke when she heard footsteps behind her. Very much hoping it was not Buckbeak, she turned-

"Why is everything black and green?" Sirius said with a laugh. The long sleep seemed to have done him good. There was more colour in his face.

"Because it's pretty!"

"If I wanted to live in a dungeon, I would've stayed at my parents."

"What do you want?" she smirked. "A Gryffindor flag? Fluffy pillows?"

There is a big gap between fluffy pillows and that-" he pointed at the jar that Claudia put on display earlier. "Whatever that even is," he added and picked it up.

"It's some kind of a brain," Claudia said and watched with bated breath as Sirius nearly dropped the jar before steadying himself and shoving the whole thing into Claudia's arms.

"Put it somewhere else."

"But it's really cool-" she protested. "I can't tell you what creature it is from. But these markings," she opened the lid to point.

"If you touch that," he said with his eyes widened. "I'm never holding your hand again."

"Fine," she said, struggling to supress an eye roll. "I'll put it somewhere else-"

"Not the kitchen, and definitely not my bedroom!" he said, finding it harder and harder to supress laughter. "Speaking of bedrooms- what was in that sleeping draught? I had some very weird dreams…"

"And you slept for nearly twenty-four hours…"

"Quite."

"It's my own recipe – I took elements of the Draught of the Living Death and put them into a sleeping draught."

"Living Death? Are you trying to kill me?" he chuckled.

"You were never any good at potions," she smirked. "Draught of the Living Death does not actually kill you. It's basically a sleeping draught."

"In the same way that wine is basically just grape juice-" Sirius mumbled.

Claudia chortled and finally kissed him. "I've fixed the master bedroom... But you slagging off my decorating and potion-making efforts is making me regret I made it all bright and airy," she said.

Sirius wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her back. "Please let me see the bedroom."

She reached for his hand and led him through the library and then up the grand staircase.

"You call this bright?" he said with a laugh when they entered through the engraved oak door.

"It's blue!" Claudia protested.

"It's navy, at best."

"And there is a bit of copper here and there."

Sirius was now outright laughing.

"What?" Claudia hissed. Household things did not come naturally to her, but she was proud of what she did here.

"I love you," Sirius said and, with a mischievous smile, nudged Claudia over into the bed. The sex knocked them both out – Claudia was still sleep deprived and Sirius must have still been full of the sleeping draught.

They slept in on Sunday, had a late breakfast, swam in the sea and lay on the beach. They talked about nothing and did even less. But the day was perfection. Until Claudia got into that little wooden boat again to make her way back to London.

When Claudia walked through the Ministry corridors on Monday morning, it felt as if she was under a spell. Everyone seemed to be moving at twice the speed she was, muttering things about some pamphlets promoting pureblood ideas, or muggle attacks. But Claudia struggled to pay attention to any of it- All her brain wanted to think about was the beach, the ceiling of her new bedroom, and Sirius whispering that he loved her into her ear.

But somehow, she managed to make it to the Department of Mysteries. "Morning," she said to Auberon and smiled. "How was your weekend? Did you get a good break?"

He looked up at her with an uncertain expression. "Yes- yours?"

She smiled. "Very restful, thank you."

"Is-" Auberon cleared his throat- "Is everything ok?"

"Why wouldn't it be?"

"No reason," Auberon quipped and returned to his paperwork, very much hiding something. "Oh," he lifted his head again- "Fudge wants to see you this morning, I think he wants you to do something for him- As soon as you can."

"Do I have time now?"

"Yes, you do. And so does Fudge apparently…"

"Alrighty then," she said and made her way to Fudge's office.

"Claudia!" Fudge exclaimed the moment he saw her. "I need a favour.!"

"Yes, Minister?" she said, hiding the hesitation in her voice.

"You know the Triwizard Tournament that Barty is organising. I think we need to get a Sphinx for that."

"We need to get a what?"

"A Sphinx. You know, for one of the tasks."

"To do what?"

"Oh, I'm not sure… But Barty will figure it out-" he showed her towards the armchairs. "Ever since I was a boy, I wanted to meet a Sphinx. I love riddles, you see… I know I'm the Minister of Magic and all-" he chortled awkwardly- "but this is still the one thing I really want to do. I need you to get me one."

"Why me?" Claudia asked, resisting all kinds of urges to shake him until he came to his senses. "We're working on the World Cup-"

"The World Cup is fine. I can hardly send in the creatures division. Sphinx are proud creatures. They have to be treated with respect."

Claudia winced. Shame she could not tell him how well she did with Buckbeak. It would definitely convince Fudge to send someone else. "I don't feel like I'm being given much of a choice."

"Of course, you can say no," he began. "But I think it would really lift the Tournament to another level, getting such a rare creature to participate. The prestige this would bring to the Ministry, to the country!"

"Can I take some time to think about this?" she uttered, in a defeated tone.

"Tell me tomorrow."

Claudia pulled herself up to her feet. "I will."

She shuffled back to the Department of Mysteries. The moment she set her eyes on Auberon- "Did you know what shitshow I was walking into?" she hissed.

"I didn't," he replied sheepishly.

"Just fucking fantastic," she mumbled. "Get me Griffin as soon as you can. And tell him to bring anything he has on Sphinxes. Now!"

Auberon was struggling to keep a straight face.

"Spill it," Claudia said, her face softening somewhat. "What is it?"

Auberon gave her a shy smile. "I was beginning to worry earlier that you were under Imperio, but I'm glad you aren't. You seem back to your normal self-"

Claudia narrowed her eyes. "Remind me to fire you later," she said and took one of his biscuits. "Just send Griffin to my office as soon as. Cancel whatever you need to cancel."

"You're supposed to be meeting Crouch."

"Just cancel that in any case…"

The meeting with Griffin, predictably, took ages. But by the end of it, Claudia knew everything there was to know about Sphinxes, including that she was most likely to find one in the dunes around Luxor in Egypt. It was a great mission. Directly from the Minister, interesting, allowing her to visit a place where she had never been. And yet, just the thought of not being able to go to the Sandcastle every few days was making her heart ache.

Still unsure of what she wanted to do, she hopped around the Floo network to disguise her journey to Guernsey, and before she knew it, she found herself on now a familiar wooden boat.

Sirius nearly jumped out of his skin when Claudia entered the kitchen, hastily concealing a bottle of wine behind his back.

"I don't mind if you drink," she said with a tired smile.

"Is everything alright?"

Claudia dropped to a chair. "Fudge wants me to go to Egypt to find him a Sphinx. I have no idea how long it'd going to take and-"

"I'll come with you."

"What?"

"You'd go alone, right? Wherever you go, I'll book a muggle hotel. It's not like anyone in Egypt is going to care who I am."

Claudia was smiling at him uncertainly. "How are you going to get there? I'd take a secure Ministry portkey, I can hardly ask them to let my convict boyfriend come with me."

"I'll fly."

"To Egypt?"

"Hippogriffs are fast." He sat down next to her and kissed her on the cheek. The smell of wine turned Claudia's stomach.

"You're crazy," she whispered.

"You want to go, I can see it written all over your face," he replied. "And I don't want us to be apart. And neither do you. What other option is there?"

Claudia finally found her voice. "Staying here? Not getting arrested weeks after you escaped from the clutches of the Dementors?"

"I've got a wand now. And you're by all accounts an exceptional obliviator, you know, in case I get seen. There is no reason to torture ourselves by staying apart, Claude." Sirius reached for her hand. "Some things are worth taking a risk for. Besides-" he laughed nervously. "You can't leave me here with all this wine. The cellar is packed with it." He may have laughed, but there was enough sincerity in his voice to frighten her.

"Let's sleep on it."

He nodded and led her to bed. Claudia tossed and turned in bed long enough for Sirius to fall asleep. She watched his face go from peaceful to tortured and back, as he dreamt about who knows what. "No, no, no…" he began to mumble in his sleep. "Let me be…"

Claudia lifted her hand and placed it across his heart. "You're safe," she whispered. "I'm here…"

Sirius' nightmare eventually passed, his breathing calmed down and hushed Claudia to sleep.

When she woke up, Sirius was up and packed. "Are you really going?"

"Just tell me where to."

She thought about it for a second. He seemed well, too well in fact. And she needed to be with him when the novelty of freedom worn off. "Luxor."

"Alright. You'll find me in the most expensive muggle hotel in Luxor under the name of Mr-" he hummed. "Mr Beak."