Zeus || S. Black

Chapter 11

Sirius found Mara hiding at the opposite end of the castle, sniffling behind velvet curtains as she sat on the cushioned ledge, staring out the window. Once he pulled the blue cloth away and saw the crying Ravenclaw, the first thing he uttered was, "I'm sorry." To Sirius, it sounded lame but there was nothing else he could think of to say. To Mara, she saw it as his way of trying to comfort her. The concern she could see on his face was real and when seeing that, it made her cry harder. 

"Oh no," Sirius yelped as his eyes widened, not thinking he would make it worse. "I didn't mean to make you cry more," the boy freaked out. Mara was not a pretty crier as her snot was dripping down her face, eyes red and blurry. 

"No it's not that," Mara sniffled as she continued to cry. Words couldn't seem to form in her throat. 

"Do you want me to get somebody? Your sisters? Angelo? Elise?" Sirius asked, genuinely wanting to help the girl. The only thing Mara could do was shake her head 'no' as her throat seemed to strain. 

Sirius didn't know what else to do. So the first thing that popped into his mind was what the boy decided upon. He sat down on the cushion next to Mara and hugged her, taking her body into his embrace. her chin found a place on his shoulder as he began to pet her hair with one hand and holding on tight with the other. Sirius didn't know how long the two stayed like that but he held the girl until she stopped crying and then some, making sure she was fully okay before pulling away. 

"That was utterly pathetic," Mara croaked once the pair pulled away, wiping at her nose, trying to get rid of any evidence that she was crying. Sirius could still see tears just below her lash line, stubborn enough not to fall. The boy picked up one hand and gently removed the tears with his thumb, leaving his hand on her cheek afterward. 

"I wouldn't call you pathetic," Sirius tried to comfort the girl, but his words only caused her to let out a lame chuckle. 

"I'm sorry you had to deal with me," Mara apologized with a hint of pink crossing her cheeks. The girl had only cried once in front of people after her parents and brother died. It was right after they moved into their aunt and uncle's house and she was beaten bloody. She cried that night while being comforted by her sisters. 

"I'm sorry I made you relive those memories," he replied. 

"Nobody else knows," Mara confessed as she looked down at her hands. Her thumbs began to twiddle, trying to force herself not to look into Sirius' gray eyes. 

"Really? Not even Elise or Angelo?" Sirius asked, shocked that the girl in front of him could keep it secret for so long. 

"Well it's not like we wanted to be known as the abused orphans," the Ravenclaw muttered with a hint of anger registering on Sirius' ears. 

"I promise I won't tell anyone," the Gryffindor vowed. 

"Really?" Mara looked up from her moving hands to stare directly into his eyes, wanting to make sure he was telling the truth. 

"Really," Sirius confirmed. "I wouldn't want anyone to know my skeletons." 

"Thank you." 

"And I'll erase the memory," The curly haired boy told her. 

After a few moments, Mara spoke up, "nah, leave it." 

Sirius raised an eyebrow at the girl, questioning whether he heard her correctly. 

"I just mean that I know it's fake but what she said was the truth," Mara explained herself. 

"Oh really?" Sirius began, his crooked smile forming once more. "So you're telling me you think I'm sweet and kind?" After Mara's cheeks began to erupt with the color red he continued, "even caring?" The Ravenclaw glared at him but said nothing. "Wow I think you're falling for me Mara Dean," Sirius teased. 

"I'll have you know I'm doing nothing of the sort, Sirius Black," Mara teased back. 

The two sat in silence, just enjoying each other's company. They sat there for a while before Mara spoke up once more. "I know about Lupin's secret." 

Sirius all but jumped from his seat at her confession, anxiety running through his body. "I stumbled across his secret one day when I accidentally fell asleep by the black lake last year," Mara explained. "But don't worry, I won't say anything. Like you said, I wouldn't want anyone to know my skeletons." 

After that, Sirius let out a heavy sigh of relief, hoping Mara would keep to her declaration of secrecy. "You know," Sirius began. "You saying that only makes you one thousand times more attractive," he joked as Mara jokingly swatted at his arm causing the boy to laugh. 

"Are you flirting with me?" The Ravenclaw teased as a smile was brought to her lips, forgetting the time she spent crying earlier. 

"Is it working?" The curly haired boy asked. 

"Possibly," the girl teased once more. 

"Well then, yes I am flirting with you." The boy then batted his lashes. 

"Alright. Well thank you for sitting with me while you find out all of my deep dark secrets," Mara joked awkwardly as she stood up from the seat. 

"No problem. And just so you know, if you ever want to talk about it, I may not have dead parents but I can relate," Sirius told the Ravenclaw, trying to subtly hint at his past experiences with abuse. 

Mara's eyes widened slightly, picking up what he was trying to say between the lines. "Does your parents. . ." Mara asked, not knowing how to say it. 

"They used to," he admitted. "I moved into James' house over the summer so I'm fine now." 

"Well," the Ravenclaw began. "If you want to talk about that then I'm her for you too."