One Step Ahead part I | Sirius Black

Chapter 101

{{I hope you guys like this one. It made me smile (:}}

Gwen hums quietly, smiling when she feels purposeful patters being traced on her back.

Sirius hadn't bothered to leave the dorm yet. Gwen wouldn't let him. Instead they had drawn the midnight blue curtains around Gwen's bed shut, casting a few spells to keep them closed.

Sirius smiles, though his eyes are peering through the silver telescope that Gwen bought him for his birthday the year prior. He freezes at the thought, asking quietly, "When is your birthday?"

He pulls his eyes away from the stars he can see in the telescope at the sound of her laugh. Gwen grins up at his bemused face and replies simply, "That's a secret."

Sirius quirks a brow and points out, "I can just ask Dorcas." Though the tiny smirk on her face has him second guessing. He cranes his neck to fully look at her, the length of her body pressed into his left side. He tickles her side before asking, "Dorcas doesn't know?"

"I told you," Gwen says simply, "Its a secret."

When Sirius frowns concernedly, Gwen feels a beautiful warmth bloom in her chest. Her face softens and she hesitates before explaining, "Having a birthday after my mum died seemed rather pointless. I haven't had one in a long time, love."

Sirius traces the curve of her nose with his forefinger, mumbling, "Fine. But if I find out, we're celebrating. Just you and me."

Gwen shrugs and nods, feeling rather sure that she would go to her grave without anyone knowing her birthday. It was easier that way. Her best kept secret.

She smiles when he quirks his finger at her and mutters, "C'mere."

She contemplates ignoring him to irritate him, but his eyes are soft, lips crooked in a boyish smile that makes her heart face faster. She turns on her side to face him, scooting closer and pulling the silk sheet up to cover their waists.

Sirius chuckles and moves his arm to make room for her, snaking it around her shoulders and pulling her even closer to his side. He hides his smile in her crazy hair when she asks, "What are we looking at now?"

Sirius holds the telescope up to her eye, watching her quietly appraise the constellations while he draws them on her skin with his finger. Gwen smiles a little and says,

"I only recognize Vela."

Sirius presses a lingering kiss to her forehead and mumbles, "We haven't learned about this family yet."

He savors the way her nose crinkles as she continues looking, his heart melting when she says, "No, but we've done the Orion family. And what's the other one?"

He brushes her hair back, answering briefly, "Yes, the Orion family, your favorite." She laughs and nods, prompting him to continue with a grin, "We did the Zodiac family and the Hercules family."

Gwen nods, her voice curious as she wonders, "Then what's this one?"

He can't love anything this much. It's insanity, that this girl makes him feel like he's drowning and flying at the same time, that she can simplify the most complex things. That she loves him. It's crazy that she loves him. And that he loves her so much that he can feel it in his bones, in the way his heart beats against his chest. It makes sense that when he looks at this group of constellations, his throat grows tight with emotion. Heavenly waters. That's what she was to him.

"This one is my favorite," Sirius replies quietly. He traces more constellations on her soft skin, murmuring, "Heavenly Waters."

Gwen looks away from the telescope, her eyebrows raising in surprise. Heavenly waters. Her lips twitch and her heart sings at the way he's looking at her. She melts even further into his side, whispering, "I like that."

"Reminds me of you," Sirius says warmly, grabbing her hand in his as he explains, "A long time ago people thought that the expanse of sky between Sagittarius and Orion belonged to Ea, the Sumerian god of water."

He's surprised to see her listening so attentively, knowing how easily she can be overwhelmed by information. He'd sat with her in enough classes to know when it becomes to much and she has to just doodle on parchment or sneakily read her magazine. But she was listening, eager to hear this lecture. He pulls her closer.

"So most of the constellations here are associated with water. There's Delphinus, Equuleus, Eridanus, Piscis Austrinus, Columba, Pyxis, Carina, Puppis, and Vela."

Gwen nods, looking up at him as he talks softly, his eyes twinkling with knowledge. She'd never confess it, that this was her favorite thing to hear, her favorite thing to learn now. Not from Professor Sinastra, but from Sirius. She wanted to learn all that he had to offer. Sirius smiles slightly and explains, "I quite like Columba."

"And what is Columba?" Gwen asks, quirking a brow at him when he glances down at her. He chuckles and says, "The dove."

He turns to fully face her, smiling to himself as he untangled some of her hair. Gwen grins when he asks, "You remember how Vela is the sails of the ship?"

"Argo Navis, right?" Gwen asks, trying to remember the name of the ship he'd told her last term. She feels a flare of pride when Sirius nods, looking quite pleased with her response.

"There's differing myths, but I like the one where the dove carries an olive branch to signal a safe passage for the Argonauts and the ship between the Clashing Rocks."

Gwen smiles, closing her eyes and picturing a dove skimming over the water to relay messages. She feels blankets being pulled up higher, her body relaxing into the mattress and into Sirius' grip. They snuggle up together beneath the heavier blankets and sleep begins to beckon at Gwen's mind.

"Why do you like Columba?" She mumbles, snaking her arm around his waist. Sirius watches her grow more comfortable and he slowly set the telescope on the side table. His fingers successfully untangle some of the knots in her hair, his smile permeant as he soaks in the floral scent of her, the softness of her skin.

They can't get any closer, but he wishes they could. He wonders if it will always be this good, when they're old and gray, and there's a pretty ring on her finger. He knows what she would say. Toujours Pur. That they'll always be like they are, no matter what.

Sirius gently runs his thumb over her brow, answering her softly,

"I like Columba because it has a star that's called the olive branch, and that star sits right next to Canis Major."

Gwen smiles, sleepy and soft. Her eye's blink open and she murmurs, "Columba and Canis Major. An interesting pair, Black."

Sirius chuckles at her cheekiness, pecking her lips one last time before mumbling, "Sleep, mon ange. We'll learn more later."

Gwen let's out a content hum, and Sirius soon finds that he too is beckoned forward by sleep, dreams of Gwen and the beach making his heart rate rise and fall like the tide.

{{so sappy. I love it.}}