MAGNOLIA ↠ S. BLACK

SEVEN

It was a frosty morning as Magnolia stood anxiously in the courtyard to meet Sirius for their first date. Just the day before, Gryffindor had destroyed Slytherin in quidditch. She had thrown on her thick, camel colored winter parka, a knit sweater from Molly, and her favorite pair of jeans. A matching knit beanie comfortably covered her ears that she knew would tinge pink in the cold. Magnolia felt silly that anxiety was bubbling in her chest, and she awkwardly fiddled with the dainty rings on her fingers. She had never actually fancied a guy enough to possibly feel nervous about a first date.

But oh, how she fancied Sirius. Her heart leapt in her chest as she spotted him striding towards her with a dimple-clad smile. He was the epitome of a bad boy and absolutely suave. His lean muscular frame was covered by a heavy leather jacket, layered over a grey jumper.

"Hi gorgeous," he greeted casually, shoving his hands in his front jean pockets. "Ready?"

Magnolia forgot how to speak for a moment, and opted for an eager nod. Her head was spinning from the fact he called her gorgeous. The two did not speak much on the trek to Hogsmeade due to the brutal wind, and strenuous walk through the snow. Snow had swept through the Scottish highlands just the night before.

Her face was flushed rosy red and was bordering numb as she made her way through the frostbitten wind. Although it was only October, the temperature had dropped drastically in the last few days.

As they approached the village, Sirius held out a hand to the pretty redhead beside him. 

"For warmth, of course,"  he insisted cheekily.

"Of course," Magnolia beamed in reply as their fingertips intertwined. His hand was indeed, surprisingly warm and the contact of his skin caused her cheeks to grow even rosier. The thick layer of snow crunched softly beneath her boots. The wind's ferocity grew less harsh, seeing as it was being blocked by the quaint thatched cottages and shops. The little town was bustling with people and excitement.

"So, I was thinking we could swing by Madam Puddifoot's—" Sirius began before he glanced over at Magnolia's face and stifled a laugh.

Magnolia had a look of both horror and disgust upon her face upon mentioning the wretched tea shop. "You can't be serious,"

"Oh, I am Sirius," he grinned at her. "But only joking about the tea. How about some shopping then, hm?"

Not to Magnolia's surprise, Sirius dragged her into the brightly colored Zonko's joke shop. He immediately gazed around in wonder, his grey eyes flickering about to take it all in. It was busy inside, and Magnolia had to do her best to steer through the crowd to stay with Sirius. She took the time to gaze at a few items, particularly some rather normal looking dainty teacups.

"I'd be careful with those, love," Sirius hummed in her ear. "They bite,"

"What?" Magnolia said incredulously, studying the rim of the cup suspiciously.

Sirius merely laughed, a cheerful sound, before steering her over to look at the Dung Bombs. Also standing by the display was none other than James, with a rather irritated looking Lily by his side.

"I know damn well you two aren't planning another little stunt with these things," Magnolia quipped, her eyebrow raised inquisitively.

"Ah, Prewett! Snuffles!—" James quickly diverted his eyes between the two before he gasped. "Wait just a minute, you two are on a date, aren't you?"