The only problem with taking a risk was that it was, well, risky. With risks there were two outcomes. You either got exactly what you wanted, or exactly the opposite. If he heeded James’ words and risked it all then he’d either have Kirsty wrapped up tightly in his arms by the end of the day or he’d lose her trust and probably her friendship forever.
As Sirius mulled this over he became aware of a sudden movement all around him. The class as one had all delved inside their bags to retrieve their textbooks. Sirius had been so busy contemplating that MacIntosh’s words had gone straight over his head “ admittedly this was actually becoming a regular occurrence.
He looked to his right to try and glean from Kirsty any hint of what they had been instructed to do, and saw her sat poring over her textbook, her nose mere millimetres above its thumbed pages.
Sirius had actually been quite shocked when Kirsty had pulled up the seat beside him as she usually took the class as an opportunity to sit next to Emma and gabble about the vision of excellence that was their teacher. That didn’t mean that he wasn’t extremely pleased to be in her presence, however.
With what felt like a tremendous effort, he heaved his textbook out of his bag and banged it down hard on the top of the desk. This earned him a quick look of annoyance from Kirsty, who was now feverishly scribbling down some notes.
Sirius had barely flicked his book over to the right page when he became distracted yet again. MacIntosh was standing in front of his desk and acting in a most peculiar manner. He seemed to be calculating something. Sirius watched with intrigue as the professor waved his wand with a flourish, and to Sirius’ utter astonishment a Valentine’s card materialised out of nowhere to take pride of place at the edge of MacIntosh’s desk.
Horror stricken, Sirius watched as the cards appeared one after the other and formed a neat line along the top of his professor’s desk. As Sirius counted them he could feel his facial features distorting themselves more and more into a look of revulsion.
When the last card had taken up its position next to its brethren, Sirius’ mouth dropped open in astonishment and annoyance. No, no, that can’t be right, he argued. MacIntosh can not have gotten forty-three Valentine’s cards!
MacIntosh stepped back and gazed down at his cards with fondness before turning around to survey his class. However, it didn’t take long for the professor’s eyes to find Sirius’ own, and the mirth present in their blue depths only succeeded in infuriating Sirius further. Sirius closed his mouth and opened his textbook in an attempt at acting nonchalant, but the wool was not so easily pulled over MacIntosh’s eyes.
“Ah, admiring the tokens from my admirers are we, Mr Black?” boomed MacIntosh loudly enough to gain the attention of the whole class. Sirius’ head snapped up and he pinned a scowl on the Scotsman. “Not a bad haul at all this year, forty-three cards so far if I’m not very much mistaken. Very good indeed, wouldn’t you agree, Sirius?”
The professor was goading him on purpose but Sirius wasn’t going to rise to the bait. He didn’t stoop so low as to respond and instead he turned his attentions to flicking through his textbook and huffing and puffing to his heart’s content. MacIntosh two: Sirius one.
“So, come on then, how many cards have you gotten?” Kirsty shot at him, interpreting the origin of his huffiness correctly. She was watching him out of the corner of her eye as she made alterations to her already detailed notes. A smile was tugging at the corner of her mouth and Sirius narrowed his eyes slightly at her.
“I got forty-two if you must know,” Sirius informed her, crossing his arms huffily.
Kirsty cocked her head to one side as she studied him; she seemed to be contemplating something. Before he could ask her what was wrong she reached into her bag and pulled out another rather rumpled piece of parchment and started to feverishly scribble on it. Sirius watched her with a furrowed brow; work was now the last thing on his mind.
“There, done!” she exclaimed, handing the shabby piece of parchment over to him with a flourish.
With some hesitation he took it from her and felt it crinkle beneath his fingers. He looked at her, and she beamed back at him her face aglow. With a slight sense of unease, he cast his eyes down and began to read the writing before him. To his complete and utter surprise it read:
Roses are red, Violets are blue
Maccy is cute, but not as gorgeous as you!
Lots of love
Kirsty
Xxx
Sirius was actually lost for words. It was such a simple thing, and he doubted that Kirsty would ever realise how much it truly meant to him. If Sirius was being arrogant he would probably say that the card provided him with proof that Kirsty viewed him as much more than a friend, but the insecure part of him knew it to be nothing more than just a simple gesture of friendship.
“Now you’re drawing!” Kirsty exclaimed, startling him again.
“Huh?” he asked, utterly perplexed.
She gave him a strange look. “You and MacIntosh, you have forty-three cards each now “ it’s a draw.”
“Oh, you’re right. Thanks, Kirst,” he said, his gaze burning into hers, trying to convey how much both she and the card really meant to him.
“Anytime,” she offered, making to pick up her quill.
Out of nowhere James’ words began to circulate yet again inside his head: ‘Since when have Marauders been afraid of taking risks?’ Sirius gave Kirsty a sideways glance. Could this be the most opportune moment to take said risk? It was Valentine’s Day, the most romantic day on the calendar, and Kirsty had just given him a card. Could he perhaps urge her to take things that one step further? He was Sirius Black after all. If he couldn’t do it, who could?
He’d already decided early that morning to take one risk with regards to Kirsty, and it hadn’t exactly panned out well, but it hadn’t resulted in him being skinned alive either. The whole purpose behind him getting dressed with Kirsty in the room had been to see what her reaction would be, and he knew that that made him a pig but he didn’t care. However, the plan had backfired seeing as Kirsty had reacted no different to how he would have expected many other girls to react “ embarrassed and enraged.
But did the fact that Kirsty hadn’t reacted to his previous ploy mean that the ground was safe for him to try his luck a second time? Was the most romantic day of the year going to act as his safety net?
Two weeks ago Kirsty had proved yet again that she did not find him completely repulsive. The night that the two of them had spent curled up on the sofa together had been better than he could have possibly imagined. If he took the risk now could Kirsty some day learn to love him like he was beginning to love her?
Sirius had made up his mind. “Actually,” he began, taking the plunge before his courage failed him. “There is something else you could do for me.”
“Name it,” she said, absorbed once again in her note making.
“Well, would a Valentine’s Day kiss be totally out of the question?” he asked, trying his luck, and most probably pushing it too.
Kirsty scoffed and dropped her quill with a clatter. She turned to face him with a broad grin on her face; clearly she thought he was joking. Her laughter died on her lips, however, when she saw the look of sincerity on his face. “What?” she asked instead, her voice sounding rather husky.
“Well, we’re both single…” he attempted.
“So?” pressed Kirsty with a look of pure puzzlement.
“And doesn’t everyone deserve to have at least a little bit of loving on Valentine’s Day?” he finished, blurting his words out in a rush. He couldn’t believe it, he was actually nervous “ nervous!
“As if you don’t get enough loving already,” Kirsty chuckled.
“Oh, shut up!” insisted Sirius, finding himself giving a small laugh in response. Then, turning serious once more, he challenged Kirsty again. “So, what do you say?”
Kirsty tilted her head to the side as she surveyed him. Then, with a shrug of her shoulders, she finally succumbed. “Okay, fine, I suppose I can force myself to put up with such a hardship!”
Sirius flashed her a devilish grin, and as she leaned towards him he could feel his heart beating out a dynamic rhythm against his chest.
She was so close to him now that her breath tickled the nape of his neck. She looked up at him from underneath her long eyelashes and seemed to waver slightly before giving him the briefest of smiles.
The peck on his cheek happened so quickly that Sirius barely had chance to register what had happened. He could have almost laughed out loud with the irony of it all. Trust sweet, innocent Kirsty not to realise what he had meant by ‘kiss’.
As she removed her lips from his cheek Sirius acted on instinct, inching forward and touching his lips against hers. It was only the briefest of kisses “ if it could even be called that “ but it provided Sirius with everything he needed to know. Kirsty’s lips were as soft as velvet and they lingered against his for a lot longer than he’d anticipated.
Eventually, she pulled away with a look that very much resembled that of a rabbit caught in the headlights. She and Sirius stared at each other for what felt like an age before a look of pure horror flitted across her face and she turned away from him, licking her lips.
She coughed but to no avail as her voice was still husky when she spoke, “We should really get back to work.”
“Yeah,” agreed Sirius, his voice cracking. “I suppose you’re right.” He flipped open his book to the right page and started to read, but he didn’t take in a single word “ he couldn’t. So much for taking a risk, he thought bitterly. He hadn’t been skinned alive, that’s for sure, but he hadn’t exactly got what he wanted either.
It was lunch time and Kirsty was just tucking into her chicken sandwich (no Valentine’s Day interference there) when a girl, who Kirsty knew to be a seventh year Hufflepuff, approached the small group at the table.
Kirsty watched her with interest. She had a small frame and was very lithe and slender. Her mousy brown hair tumbled elegantly down to her shoulders and helped to frame her round face. Freckles dotted her nose and her skin was pale like that of a porcelain doll. A confident smile played across her face and her ivy green eyes seemed to sparkle with life.
For the life of her Kirsty couldn’t think what the girl was doing there, but one thing that Kirsty did know for sure was that she was immensely pretty. However, it wasn’t until Remus bowed his head to take a sip of his soup that Kirsty noticed the pale pink envelope that the girl had clutched in her hand. Alarm bells started ringing in Kirsty’s ears but they rang too late as the girl had just made a beeline for Sirius Black himself.
With no inhibitions about her the girl strode forward and tapped Sirius lightly on the shoulder, and Sirius, who had just picked up his spoon to have a sip of soup, gave his dinner a mournful look before turning around to see who was seeking his attention.
The look of shock on his face was only momentary, and it was in regaining his composure that he found his manners. “Can I help you?” he enquired, clearly scrutinising the girl to see whether or not he should already know her.
“I just wanted to give you this,” she announced, not a tremble in her voice as she thrust the envelope before him. She waited for Sirius to take it before continuing, “I thought I’d come over and deliver it in person, it’s just so impersonal sending it by owl. Don’t you think?” She stared at Sirius inquisitively out of big round doe eyes and eagerly awaited his response.
“Oh, yes,” answered Sirius gruffly. He lowered his gaze from the brazen girl before him to stare down at the pastel pink envelope. A puzzled frown pulled at his face.
Kirsty watched Sirius with interest. She had always gotten the feeling that Sirius didn’t truly realise the effect he had on women. He never seemed to acknowledge just how good-looking and charming he was to the opposite sex. Admittedly, he always acted arrogant, but Kirsty didn’t believe for one second that he truly appreciated his own sex appeal.
“Well, open it then,” hissed Peter, elbowing Sirius in the side to goad him into action.
Sirius did as he was told, albeit with a dazed look in his eyes. He opened the pink envelope with precision (it was his forty-fourth try after all) and quickly scanned the contents within. “Thank you,” he announced upon finishing his perusal. He glanced up at the girl with sincerity in his eyes. “This was really … er … nice of you.”
“Don’t mention it!” replied the Hufflepuff, beaming back at him. “Listen, I’ve got to go, my friends are waiting for me, but it was nice talking to you. Maybe I’ll see you around some time?”
“Yeah, maybe,” agreed Sirius, bestowing on her his most charming smile.
And with that she flounced off. Sirius, at this point had seemed to regain some of his usual swagger and made no bones about blatantly checking out the girl as she walked away. His eyes scanned her form from top to toe, lingering for a fraction of a second longer on her bottom. As Kirsty watched Sirius’ obvious inspection of the girl, a burning sensation erupted inside her chest. It was as if a fire was roaring inside of her, unable to escape. The girl sat back down at her own table and Kirsty’s features involuntarily formed themselves into a scowl as she watched her progress.
Kirsty turned her attentions back to her lunch, but found upon taking a bite of her sandwich that her throat had become somewhat restricted and swallowing became an impossible task.
As she poured out a glass of pumpkin juice to help her in her predicament, Peter turned the topic of conversation to the brazen Hufflepuff fan girl. “Who the hell was that?” he asked, intrigued and obviously impressed by the actions of the girl in question.
“That, my friend, was Debbie Swain,” supplied James, around the chewing of his bread roll “ Lily gave him a sideways glare in order to reprimand him for speaking with his mouth full. “She’s just become Hufflepuff’s new Seeker, actually.”
“She any good?” asked Kirsty rather begrudgingly, as she returned her glass of pumpkin juice back to the table with more force than was necessary.
James shrugged. “No idea, she seems like a nice enough girl, though.” At this, James received darting looks of horror from all members of their party apart from Sirius (who was still looking a little dazed) and Kirsty herself. However, Kirsty wasn’t adept enough to figure out the significance that these looks held.
“Yeah, and she’s very pretty too, don’t you think, Padfoot?” added Peter. The looks of horror that James had received for his comment were nothing to the ones that Peter was receiving now. However, even though Kirsty was dimly aware of the furious looks being shot Peter’s way, her sole attention was on Sirius and his inevitable response.
Sirius shrugged. “I suppose.”
Kirsty found herself choking on her own saliva and proceeded to have a major coughing fit. All eyes were now on her and many eyebrows were raised. When Kirsty recovered she looked up and accidentally met Sirius’ eyes. He was looking at her with undisguised intrigue, and a small smile tugged at the corners of his mouth.
To refrain from glancing at Sirius’ mouth for longer than was necessary (as Kirsty could still remember the feel of his lips against hers) she looked over at Debbie conversing happily with her friends and started to closely scrutinise her appearance.
If Kirsty had to guess she would say that Debbie was a good eight inches shorter than herself (with Kirsty standing at a towering 5’11 in height) making her the perfect height for her Seeker position, unlike Kirsty. Debbie was very slim, bordering on skinny, and her hair, striking eyes and brazen attitude made her the sort of girl that would definitely attract the likes of Sirius Black, much more so than a girl like Kirsty ever could.
Kirsty was without a doubt the most curvaceous of all the girls in the group and was the definition of the term ‘hourglass figure’. She had no qualms about her weight, and she was very content with every aspect of her appearance, but she wasn’t so deluded as to think that Sirius found her remotely attractive. Debbie was definitely more his type - as much as it burned Kirsty up inside to admit it.
“I reckon you’re definitely in there, mate,” Sam’s boisterous exclamation startled Kirsty out of her reverie, and she ripped her eyes away from Debbie to watch the proceedings at her own table.
Sam too was staring fixatedly at the now infamous Debbie Swain. “Do you want me to call her back over here, Sirius? Because I can if you want me to.”
There it was again, every member of the group (minus Kirsty and Sirius) shot Sam a ferocious glance, and Emma in particular looked very much like she wanted to hit her boyfriend repeatedly around the head with a broomstick.
Sam was now making an effort to stand up and his hands were cupped around his mouth in preparation for shouting across the hall to Debbie. Sirius stood up too and yanked Sam back down with a look of pure annoyance on his face.
Kirsty had had more than enough of this. She wasn’t prepared to sit around and listen to them praise Debbie till they were blue in the face, and there was no way in hell that she was going to sit there and watch them trying to set Sirius up with some random girl.
“I’m going to make a start on my Ancient Runes essay, I’ll catch you all in Charms,” she announced, standing up and making her hasty retreat out of the hall without so much as a backwards glance.