Soon All the Suns Will Rise

Chasing Down My Lane

Chapter title from "There She Goes" by Sixpence None the Richer
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It was Colleen's turn to sleep the day away, which had never happened in her and Sirius's relationship— probably not in her life, in fact. She'd always been an industrious early riser. But when the sun began to stream in their window the morning after their "dance party" encounter, Colleen chose to ignore it and forced herself back to sleep.

She wasn't ready to face any of the others. Sirius had immediately joined her in the kitchen to help with dishes the night before, after finishing up his conversation with Remus. Tonks had offered to put Ben to bed for them, the witch's motherly instincts already seeming to kick in as she spent more time with the little boy.

"What was wrong with Remus?" Colleen had asked Sirius, anxious to start on a topic wholly unrelated to the foursome. Sirius had answered her question and had begun filling their dishwasher, opting for the Muggle method that evening instead of his wand. He often drifted back and forth depending on whether he needed a mindless task to provide a distraction. Colleen had noticed his light grey eyes focus on her frequently though, in an effort to read her body language and gauge how she felt about their little escapade.

The truth was, Colleen didn't know. She knew kissing Rhiannon felt good. Intoxicating, actually. Colleen had always been drawn to her scent— the mix of wildflowers and tropical and citrus fruits, layered on a sexy sandalwood base with top notes of earthy green. Her taste proved to be delicious and fun, like sweet caramel dripped over salty popcorn. Colleen had given up any sense of jealousy over the witch long ago; Rhiannon and Sirius were in the past, and Colleen never questioned his devotion. She still didn't, but she did wonder how their marriage would fare under the intensity that would no doubt arise from reopening that chapter. And Severus. Colleen shivered a bit when considering that factor. He hadn't seemed opposed to the idea at all, shockingly. Was he turned on by it? Even though Colleen was a Muggle?

There were too many questions and not enough answers for Colleen to feel comfortable talking about it yet, so she hadn't. She'd promptly headed to a bath after the dishes were done, then popped one of her old Muggle allergy pills to aid her in falling asleep before Sirius came to bed. She vaguely remembered being pulled into his warm embrace, but he was long gone when she awakened for the second time around eleven that morning. She and Rhiannon were supposed to have a sex magic lesson in three hours. How in the world was that supposed to work?

Professional. Just act professional, she told herself. Like a student walking into a class. Colleen had experienced a massive crush on her philosophy professor her first two years at university, and yet she'd managed to go to class each day.

Yeah, that wasn't one-on-one, and it wasn't about sex, idiot. And you never kissed him. And you weren't freaking married. And he wasn't a woman.

Colleen was so confused.

When their agreed upon meeting time arrived, Colleen found their meditation room empty and dark, none of their candles lit or incense burning. Normally Rhiannon arrived early to prepare. Was she having second thoughts as well? Had the four of them gone and ruined a perfectly good thing? Had Snape scolded her? Or worse yet, Sirius? Was he jealous and forbade them to continue their sessions?

Colleen took a deep breath and began preparing the room. She knew she needed to reign in her thoughts and focus on what mattered. It was just a kiss. What was a kiss compared to the magnitude of everything else in their lives right now, and even compared to the overall breadth of a relationship? Colleen probably kissed Sirius twenty times a day, and she rarely dwelled on any of those above another.

But you do dwell on that first kiss, she reminded herself. Even now she was filled with a racing heat when she thought about it. How Sirius had pushed her against the kitchen counter in their old flat, lips soft and hopeful, tongue gentle and curious, mustache teasing and tickling. First kisses announced the depth of desire and searched to see if it was reciprocated. And when it was, fire was ignited for the first time. It created an energy— one of the fundamental tenets of their magical practice. And it was that act of creation that stuck in memory and served as an ever-present reminder of the pull between two people.