The Heartbreak Prince || Sirius Black

9. For The Hope Of It All

"Stupefy!"

A flash of red light shot across the room, barely giving Andrew time to dodge the attack. He took a step back in surprise as the spell nearly grazed his shoulder. He flipped through the series of spells he memorized before landing on Impedimenta. Without uttering a word, he raised his wand and fired sparks of green light in response.

Mei managed to block the shot by levitating a nearby chair and sending it into the spell's path—splintering the wood at the impact. She laughed before dropping it to the side and recovered with her own assault of hexes.

The Veela struck them down with ease, adrenaline coursing through his veins. "Is that the best you got, Li?"

"You wish!" she shouted back with a smirk. "Flipendo!"

A sudden force jolted him back into the wall behind him, knocking the air out of his lungs. He gasped as he hit the floor and tried to regain his breath—his focus was skewed. He looked up and saw the smug look on her face as she prepared her next move.

Knowing that he wouldn't be as resilient for the next spell, the Ravenclaw swiftly casted a weak shielding charm—feeling the last of his strength leave him as consequence. He felt the impact of the incantation as it shattered the protective barrier into a million pieces, causing an ache to spread through his bones.

The Gryffindor girl saw his delay.

"Reducto!"

Andrew tried to stand and produce another shield, but the velocity of the curse left little time for him to do so. He spun around to jump behind a nearby desk when he heard a desperate voice pierce the intense atmosphere.

The spell exploded only a mere distance from the Veela, hitting an invisible wall placed by their intruder. The two teens lowered their wands and turned to see James walking into the destroyed classroom with a discontent look on his face.

"Bloody hell, Li!" the other boy shouted, making his way to the Ravenclaw. "Were you trying to kill him?"

Mei seemed unbothered, putting her wand away. "Don't get your knickers in a twist, Potter. He would've gotten out of the way in time."

The Chaser shook his head, clearly not satisfied with her response. "What are you two even doing here? It's late."

"I needed some practice," Andrew spoke, leaning on the other boy in exhaustion. "We have to do a demonstration on nonverbal spells tomorrow for Defense, remember?"

"That doesn't mean you have to push yourself so hard!" James scolded, examining the small cuts on his face. "How'd you even get these, Drew? I thought I was the reckless one."

"An exploding table," the Veela uttered, pushing the boy's hands away. "Relax. It's nothing."

The Gryffindor scoffed. "Nothing my arse, you prat. Episkey."

Andrew felt a tingle spread across his face as his injuries began to seal themselves shut. He rolled his eyes at James' unnecessary worry. He waited until his friend was satisfied with the results before turning back to his ex.

"Thanks for the help, Mei."

"No problem," she said, picking up her school bag from the corner. "You did great! Sorry for being so intense, but I wanted to make sure you were ready for anything. Before I head out, have you thought about my proposal?"

Ah, yes, the proposal.

James raised an eyebrow in confusion, looking between the two teens.

He never liked being left in the dark, especially after such a chaotic scene. The Veela knew that the moment the girl went back to her dorm the Gryffindor boy would begin his own investigation, and he wouldn't stop until he got his answers.