honey | sirius black

twenty nine

Sirius turned over in his sleep, subconsciously revelling in not having to be alert and ready in the middle of the night. In his family home he had to be careful, never too deep in sleep in case he got caught doing something. At the Potter's he could sleep peacefully, James' parents rarely scolded him for anything, a welcome change. Of course, he still got nightmares from time to time, but they were significantly less terrifying, and Sirius knew he could sleep with James if they became too much, which he did frequently in his first few weeks at the manor.

This night, however, Sirius wasn't suffering at the hands of a nightmare. The opposite, really, his chest glowed warm as he basked in the dream he would barely remember the next morning.

He was suddenly back in Hogwarts, leaning over the cauldron of Amortentia with his friends. He was laughing at Lily and James' obliviousness, grinning at Elodie's faux-frustrated eye roll. Then it was Elodie's turn, and Sirius didn't catch what she smelt, too caught up in admiring her as she pulled her hair back to lean down above the cauldron. She pulled a face of absolute pleasure as she inhaled, a smile emerging on her lips. He stared at her lips, almost dazed before she turned to him, speaking.

He snapped out of it, realising his friends expected him to smell next. He inhaled deeply, smiling subconsciously as he tried to identify the smells. "Merlin, it's sweet. There's definitely honey in there, something sugary? Like a sweet, maybe. And something floral," He said, wanting to bathe in the scent. It was comforting, which he supposed it would be, given he was supposed to be in love with the person behind it.

Honey.

Elodie giggled, sticking her head out to meet her toast, trying desperately to avoid dripping the sticky substance on her collared shirt. It didn't work and a small string of golden droplets spilled onto the lapel, Elodie blushing as her friends laughed at her. Marlene dabbed softly at the shirt with a napkin, Elodie pulling her hair out of harm's way.

"You know, it's actually not that bad," Elodie said, pouring the flour into the mixing bowl, laughing at the mess Sirius had already made.

"Won't they be dry though? And disgustingly sweet?" Sirius asked, watching as she fiddled with the dials of the oven.

"Not if you follow the recipe, I know that's a foreign concept for you," She teased, "And as for how sweet it is, well, that's just personal preference." Sirius imagined she would taste sweet like honey and decided he wouldn't mind the honey cakes they were making.

Something sugary, a sweet.

The red sugar quill dipped in and out of her lips as Elodie focused, scratching notes down onto the parchment. Sirius watched from across the library where he was messing around with James. He was fully invested in watching her talk with Remus, eyes sparkling as she laughed. A scrunched-up ball of paper hit him in the side of the head and Sirius snapped back to reality, charming his own ball of paper to knock James' glasses off his face. One last look in her direction showed Elodie chewing on her lip, deep in concentration, the sugar quill leaving its mark and staining her lips a bright red.

Sirius and Elodie found themselves alone in Honeydukes together, discussing which sweets were better.

"Well, Fudge Flies remind me of my brother, so I eat them when I miss him. I do the same with Peppermint Frogs and my mother," Elodie explained, picking up a package of both.

"And so you have sugar quills because..?"

"They taste good," Elodie shrugged, a cheeky grin on her face.

"Then let me buy some," He said, chuckling at her indignant expression.

"No! I'm perfectly capable of paying for myself!"

"Come on, I'm getting some chocolates for Moony, just let me, please?" He put on his best puppy dog eyes, cheering as Elodie conceded with a grumpy "Fine."

The bickering was worth it when Elodie beamed outside of Honeydukes, unwrapping the sugar quill and sucking down on it, moaning in delight.

Something floral. Lavender.

When Sirius awoke, shivering violently and crying up a lung, Elodie was there, her intuition never failing. He clawed at his skin, half expecting to see the bloody scars still there, reminders of his parent's ugly connection to him. She was there, running her fingers through his grown-out hair, whispering calming affirmations into his ear. She held him tightly, an embrace different to that of his other friends. The boys all hugged him loosely, a solid pat on the back comforting him. The girls, when they properly hugged him, mostly wore expressions laced with pity, which although he knew were well-intentioned, didn't provide him with the comfort intended. Elodie's hugs, however, were warm and made him feel loved. He could cry into her shoulder without fear of judgment. She would pet his hair, pressing his face into her honey-blonde hair and he smelled lavender. He bathed in her lavender, associating the scent with safety. Whenever she cuddled up to him in the Gryffindor common room or in the Potter manor, he relaxed into her, more than he ever intended to.

Sirius stood by himself, a rather unusual occasion, humming the tune of a David Bowie song as he leant against the wall. A cigarette hung loosely out of his mouth. He was revelling in his solitude, not missing the looks a group of Fifth Year Gryffindor girls shot him as they passed, all flirty smiles and false batted eyelashes. He didn't care. Just as he was beginning to wonder why he didn't feel so inclined to flirt back with them anymore, he heard distinct giggling from around a corner. His head snapped up suddenly, alert and watching for the girl he knew would follow. She rounded the corner soon after, May sunlight highlighting her shining eyes as she laughed at something Remus had said. She hit his chest softly and looked around, no doubt telling him off for a wisecrack. Elodie spotted him almost immediately, beaming and tugging Remus across the courtyard to go talk to him.

"Hey! I was just wondering about you!" She practically skipped the last few steps over to him, "Rem and I are headed to the library, wanna come?" Sirius waved his hand lazily, a thin line of smoke trailing behind.

"I'm good, don't feel like dealing with Pince today," Sirius laughed and Elodie shrugged in agreement.

"That's fair. Well, see you later, cutie," She winked before erupting in a fit of giggles, following Remus as he held up a hand so as to say 'bye', leaving only the remnants of lavender shampoo hanging in the air. He smiled.

Shit. Sirius awoke with a start, bolt upright in his bed. Fuck. He was in love with Elodie. Elodie fucking Wood. Baby. Shit. He knew she was attractive, sure, and kind too, a model Hufflepuff. His crush on her he knew, but love? Love was out of the picture. Sirius Black didn't fall in love. He had flings and looked hot, he didn't chase after a girl like a lost puppy, no matter how pretty or optimistic or interesting she happened to be. He groaned, this was some shit he wasn't prepared to deal with right now. And seriously? The day before she left for her father's house? Sirius mentally cursed out his subconscious, then turned over and tried to go back to sleep, forcefully pushing thoughts of his best girl friend, the girl he apparently loved, out of his mind.

treating y'all today bc ur always so sweet to me :p thank u for 68k reads!!!!! 

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