One Step Ahead part I | Sirius Black

Chapter 45

Sirius grins up at the Veela, fighting back more laughter.

"Well," He says. "It's not broken. Just bruised."

He's knelt in front of her favorite red chair, her bruised hand held gently in his as she sighs, "I can't believe I did that."

Sirius shrugs, replying cheekily, "I thought it was hot."

Gwen flushes slightly, looking away from him and into the warm fire. She winces slightly when he brushes his fingers over her knuckles. She feels badly. Johnathan was clearly caught up in the magic and notoriety side of being with her. But Gwen can't help but be the tiniest bit grateful, because it made her realize that Sirius didn't seem the slightest bit concerned with her status as a Veela.

"Does it hurt?"

She glances back at him, brows furrowed as she wonders, "My hand?"

"No," He smirks. "Does you're head hurt when you think that hard?"

Gwen narrows her eyes, saying flatly, "Ha Ha. You're hilarious."

Sirius laughs, gently stroking the part of her hand that wasn't bruised with his thumb. He finds his eyes tracing the edges of her face and her nose, her intimidating eyes and her pink lips. Her face is passive again. He frowns slightly and asks,

"Are you upset?

"No," She smiles faintly. "Just tired."

He nods, not completely believing her. But he doesn't want to push her, to break whatever it is they have going here. He stands and lifts her up out of the chair, taking her spot and settling her back down in his lap.

"You're not as comfy as the chair," She grumbles, but the way she curls into his chest tells him otherwise. He feels like his heart may explode, wondering why it had taken him this long to get this close to her. He slowly runs his fingers through her hair, watching happily as her eyes flutter shut. His other hand gently cups her cheek, his thumb tracing the faint dark circles below her eyes. She hadn't been sleeping, even if she'd told him she had. Again, he nearly asks. But she's just starting to relax, to grow less tense in his arms. So he leaves it for another day.

"Alors, devine ce que j'ai fait ce matin?"
[so, guess what I did this morning?]

"Est-ce que je veux savoir?"
[do I want to know?]

Her voice is sleepy, but still has her trademark edge that makes him chuckle. He continues to brush back her hair, continuing on,

"Well, first I ran away from Tess—"

"Tara. Her name is Tara."

Sirius sighs, tugging gently on the strands of her hair, "Shush. First I ran from Tessa and then the lads and I pulled a little prank on Filch. We've been trying to get back—"

He stops short, unsure if he should divulge Marauders secrets. He can't help but raise his eyebrows in surprise when Gwen mumbles blearily,

"I know all about the sodding map."

"How's that?" He asks curiously, smiling slightly when she responds sarcastically,

"Intuition."

Sirius pinches his side earning one of her bony elbows in his gut. He grunts and pulls harder on her hair muttering, "Don't do that."

"Don't tell me what to do," She replies, her tiny smile fading as her breathing slows. Sirius grins, giddy at the opportunity to study her without judgement. This way he can see the small lines around her mouth from her smile, the gentle slope of her Cupid's bow, the tiny line that runs down the tip of her nose.

It's raining again, the heavy drops hitting the window in a gentle rhythm that reminds him of kissing her in the quidditch tents...and more. He runs his thumb over her relaxed brow.

He feels like a pathetic first year having his first crush. He's desperate to know what they are, if she likes him the way he likes her. And while he's still terrified, uncomfortable with the idea of commitment, it doesn't seem so bad when he thinks about getting to kiss her and hold her hand. In public. It's exciting, not scary, when he thinks about people asking him if he and Gwen are dating. Because he does like her, he can admit it. And while she was always one step ahead of him, he felt like he was finally catching up.

Sirius looks up from her serene face when he hears giggling coming down from the staircase. He watches silently as Dorcas Meadows and Marlene McKinnon appear from the girls dorm, his curiosity peaking when he notes their joined hands.

Marlene sees him first, her eyes widening and he hand quickly retracting from Dorcas. The Ravenclaw spins around, and while at first she's surprised to see him, she's even more shocked at what he has in his lap.

"Is that—"

He holds up a hand to silence her, whispering as they tiptoe over,

"She's sleeping so keep you're bloody voices down."

Dorcas smiles wryly at their position, noting his possessive arm wrapped around her waist while she rests peacefully. Sirius smiles slightly when the girls sit on the sofa adjacent to the chair, saying quietly,

"I think she likes me."

Marlene let's out a snort while Dorcas rolls her eyes, asking sarcastically, "What gave that away?"

Sirius smirks, shrugging. Dorcas' eyes narrow, and he's speaking again before she can say anything more.

"I like her too. Quite a bit."

Dorcas smiles slightly, appraising him warily before murmuring, "She's had enough hurt for one lifetime, Black."

Sirius looks down at the Veela in his arms, his heart clenching. Dorcas was right, she had. He could still remember the horror on her face when he'd dragged her up from the black lake. And he can see it in her eyes that she both longs for the tide and hates it.

"I know," He replies, glancing up at where Dorcas and Marlene are sitting awkwardly far apart. He smirks slightly, but decides to leave it, instead asking,

"Has she not been getting rest?"

Dorcas and Marlene share a look before Marlene sighs and says, "Spring is always hard. Her mum's birthday is coming up. Her nightmares are always worse then."

Dorcas nods, adding with a tiny smile, "I haven't seen her sleep peacefully for a while. Until now."

Sirius bites back a smile, replying to them with a grateful tone, "Thanks for telling me. She's rather hard to figure out."

Dorcas laughs quietly, leaning back on the sofa as she muses, "Gwen is...she's both the easiest person and the hardest person the get to know."

Sirius frowns a little, turning his eyes down to the sleeping girl. He chuckles when Marlene says suggestively,

"Seems like Black is doing better than alright getting to know her."

"She jumped me," he mutters playfully