Heavenly Waters||Sirius Black

Chapter 27

Gwen did not celebrate the start of the new year. 

Time seemed to drag on to a point of mocking minutes that felt like days. She hadn't celebrated a new year in a long time, and this one was especially painful. Because she knew that somewhere out there was her reason for living. She just wasn't sure where he was, and she wasn't sure what would happen next. That was the only comforting notion of the passage of time, that it revealed the things she'd been patiently waiting for. She was certain that Hermione Granger was coming to understand that as well. Time. Something she had both too much of, and not enough. 

She was beginning to recognize the toll her potion dependence was having on her body. Remus was too, but she could also take comfort in his fear of disrupting the peace between them. If he asked her or confronted her, she would be forced to tell him the truth. That she took that sodding potion whenever she got the chance in the hopes that she would finally see Sirius. 

She hadn't even seen James the last night she took it. Just an endless sea of grass that felt far more lonely without her friend laying his head next to her. Lonely. January had been unbelievably lonely. She had been unbelievably lonely, and any ground she'd made with Harry had been washed away by his mistrust. She didn't blame him. She wasn't an easy person to have faith in. At least not at the start. 

"Witty? Why the long face?"

Gwen glances over at one of her favorite companions, her lips lifting tiredly, "My face is actually not very long. I've measured it before."

Peeves grins so wide it looks like his face may split in half from the force of it. She wasn't sure why he'd accompanied her to the owlery, but she didn't mind it. He was lonely in the same was she was, she just wasn't sure he knew it. Gwen reaches for her pelican, an envelope clutched weakly between her shaking fingers. Her treasured bird takes off without a word said. She hadn't wanted to write to Little, but loneliness was a feeling with a drive akin to hunger and thirst. Jealousy too. She shouldn't be jealous that Harry had spent multiple evenings learning with Remus and yet he wouldn't even look at her during class. She shouldn't be jealous that Remus had Little and she had no one. It wasn't the first time she'd had no one, but the castle walls were a painful reminder of when life was full. 

"Stupid sodding...I ought to strangle him..."

Peeves and Gwen share a curious look, both of them turning expectantly towards the entrance to the owlery. The mumbles reaching their ears are full of colorful, Shakespearean insults that don't make sense until the Veela realizes who is saying them. A moment later, Hermione Granger rounds the corner wrapped up in a gold and maroon scarf with a pair of matching mittens. She stops short at the sight of the Poltergeist floating besides the Veela professor, her mouth gaping in surprise. 

Hermione's cheeks turn a dark shade of pink, and Gwen finds that her chest suddenly doesn't feel as heavy. Hermione had lily-fair skin and a smattering of freckles, but the unruly curls on her head reminded her of Dorcas. As did the ink stains on her fingertips and her unyielding curiosity. Gwen's throat grows tight, but she manages to sound as breezy as ever, "Don't mind us, Hermione."

The young witch just stares, seemingly frozen in the doorway. Peeves lets out a giggle that usually indicates a crass joke, but Gwen shoots him a warning look, saying, "Toilets this weekend, Peevsie? I'll have a new riddle for you."

His eyes round to the size of dinner plates, his smile impish but coy. He bobs his head up and down, departing with a rather loud raspberry blown in Hermione's direction. She stares after the poltergeist before turning to the Veela professor. Gwen blinks and Hermione, unable to take the silent stare, hurriedly blurts out, "I was looking for a rat."