❝𝐀𝐋𝐋 𝐈 𝐖𝐀𝐍𝐓 𝐅𝐎𝐑 𝐂𝐇𝐑𝐈𝐒𝐓𝐌𝐀𝐒 𝐈𝐒 𝐘𝐎𝐔❞
the most wonderful time of the year had never really felt that way at all for sirius black, because after all, what was christmas without family? then again, family comes in all shapes and s...
NINETEEN-SEVENTY-FOUR the whole world seemed to spin around her in smooth jazz.
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WITH THE Christmas of nineteen-seventy-four approaching, the pair were — for the most part — friends. There still had their weak points, but what else was to be expected when Sirius possessed the maturity of an eight year old? Regardless, their friendship had blossomed, ultimately strengthen by their newest hobby, in which Callie tutored a rather clueless Sirius in History of Magic.
That late December evening, the duo were tucked away in the most hidden corner of the library, a precarious mountain of textbooks and scraps of parchments piled around them atop of the desk. Beside them, two lukewarm mugs of winter-defying coffee were perched atop of the table, staining the parchment they sat upon with smudged circular rings.
"So, Sirius — which family was Beedle the Bard's 'Tale of Three Brothers' written about?" Callie questioned, the palm of her hand pressed tightly over the page in fear he would glimpse the answer.
"Merlin, I don't know! Who even needs to know this rubbish? It could be the bloody Black family and I still wouldn't care," he huffed, the frustration of several consecutive wrong answers beginning to sink in.
Sirius was not an idiot —in fact, he was far from it. He could be incredibly intelligent when he set his mind to it, and often got top marks in the subjects he deemed 'worthwhile' and 'fun', like Defence Against the Dark Arts and Transfigurations. However, his one downfall was History of Magic, for Professor Binns bored him to death and he couldn't quite force himself to remember a single historical fact, not even if he had a wand held to his head.
"It's the Peverells, Sirius! C'mon. You know this stuff. You'll get it eventually, yeah?" Shooting him a sympathetic smile, she tried again. "Shall we try one more?"
"Do we have to? I'm bored, and too dumb to get it anyway," he whined, his jaw cradled in the palm of his hand as he leant dejectedly against the tabletop.
"Yes! I promise, one more right answer and we can have a break. I brought chocolate frogs, remember," she teased, sliding two of the ornately packaged frogs across the table in a wicked attempt at bribery.
The very sight of them seemed encouragement enough for Sirius, and he soon perked up, sitting straighter as he glanced determinedly at the textbook. After all, growing boys would never say no to the opportunity of devouring food, and he was no exception.
"Okay, how about this one. According to medieval folklore, unicorns can only be caught by..." Trailing off, Callie raised a hopeful eyebrow as she left the statement open for him to answer.
"Female virgins! Isn't it? Or is it children?" Sirius began to question himself, but she laughed, shaking her head enthusiastically.
"That's it! Trust you to remember the one with 'virgin' in the answer," she joked, and as promised, pushed the chocolate frog across the table and into his waiting hand.
Chuckling, he ripped open the packaging, careful not to let the candy escape as he examined the card that came with it. As he bit into the chocolate mercilessly, he turned to his female counterpart, speaking with a mouthful of frog.
"Who've you got, then?"
"Morgan le Fay. D'you know who that is, Sirius?" She raised an eyebrow — there was a reason she'd bought the frogs, of course, and yet she was certain Sirius hadn't caught onto it just yet, too distracted by the opportunity to eat.
"I think so, actually," he agreed as he gulped down his snack. "She's King Arthur's half brother. A dark witch, wasn't she? A great Healer, and an animagus too."
"That's impressive! Have you been swotting up?" Callie exclaimed, taking a bite into her own frog as she eyed him curiously.
"Nah. I own about six of that card. Guess it's helpful in some ways, eh?" Sirius joked, and as they laughed together in celebration of his success, Madam Pince wasted no time in reprimanding them for their noise.
"What about you? Who's on your card?" Callie asked, peering over his hand to get a better look.
"Merlin himself. Not sure I've had this one before, either. Thanks, Carter."
Sirius grinned brightly at the new addition to his collection, and as annoying boys do, he dove forwards and ruffled her hair unceremoniously. She protested, swotting him away with a groan, as she inched backwards in her seat to fix her hair into place.
"Take it as an early Christmas present," she said as she brushed a strand of hair behind her ear. The mention of Christmas alone was enough to make her smile, but the crestfallen look on Sirius' face was enough to ruin it. "What's wrong? You don't like Christmas?"
There was a momentary silence, the sort that would have left Madam Pince enamoured. Callie kept her eyes trained to Sirius, patiently awaiting a response. When a heavy sigh brushed past his lips, she reached forward and gave his hand a comforting squeeze, desperation growing as she wished to find out what exactly was wrong.
"Not really." With an answer so vague, she couldn't help but pester him further, even if she felt intrusive in doing so.
"Why not? It's the best! You get to give and get presents, and it's so festive and fun. You get to spend time with your family—"
"Exactly," Sirius interrupted suddenly, and Callie immediately knew she'd made a mistake in her wording. "Why would I like Christmas when my family despises me? I'm probably a couple years off of being disowned."
Callie immediately leapt forwards and flung her arms around him in a tender attempt at consoling him. He was shocked by her action — he'd never known her to be particularly affectionate — and although he embraced her back, it was half-hearted to say the least.
"Oh, Sirius. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have brought it up," she mumbled into the thick wool of his sweater, brushing comforting circles against the small of his back like a parent might to their child.
"It's alright, Callie. If I can survive Wormtail's obnoxious renditions of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, I can survive the rest of December. I might just stay in the castle," he reassured her, patting her back awkwardly in an attempt to let her know just how much he appreciated her.
"Sirius, I swear to you, one day, you'll love Christmas, and your old family won't even be a thought in your mind when you're surrounded by other people who love you. Family comes in all shapes and sizes, y'know?" Callie said, nodding with so much conviction it made him feel better instantly.
She pulled back from the warmth of the embrace, gazing deeply into his eyes, the colour of slate and cold like the Winter snow. The more she stared, the more she could tell — really tell — that it had upset him. They glistened with the telltale sign of premature tears, and she knew that if she dwelled on the subject any longer, it was likely the dam would break.
"You're my family, Sirius. Any friend like you is family," she insisted, reaching across the gap between their seats to squeeze his hand.
Blinking back the tears in his eyes, Sirius leapt forward and tugged Callie into another hug. She could hear the vague sound of his sniffles against her hair as he held her close, but she decided it was not the moment to mention it. Instead, she wrapped her arms around him and closed her eyes, enjoying the momentary bliss.
