Chapter 3
Sirius’ 18th birthday was only a month away.
He had yet to figure out an escape plan and his deadline was getting close.
He knew he wouldn’t get very far on his own, he needed someplace to lay low and survive until Regulus turned 18.
He had snuck out of the Black estate and into the town of Schlange multiple times in the past few months in an attempt to find a place to go to.
He went in disguise of course, if dressing the way he wanted to could be considered a disguise.
The last time he went out, he overheard a group of men in the pub talking about an infamous pirate captain, Captain Potter.
According to one of the men, Captain Potter was always looking for people to join his crew and sail on his ship.
Sirius also learned that Captain Potter’s ship, The Fat Lady, always docked into Schlange the first Thursday of the month.
Apparently Captain Potter and his crew frequented The Leaky Cauldron, a local pub, the one Sirius was walking into right now.
He immediately spotted the group of pirates sitting at a large table, laughing and cheering loudly.
Sirius straightened his back, and held his head high, moving forward with confidence to the table of pirates.
“I’m looking for Captain Potter,”Sirius said, continuing to stand tall.
“That would be me,”The man approaching the table from the bar said, sitting down in the middle of the group of people.
He had light brown skin, and unruly black curls on his head, and large wire framed glasses.
“I want on your ship,”Sirius said, before dropping a bag of galleons on the table.
“You don’t look like the type for sea life,”Captain Potter responded.
“I’m not now, but I can be,”Sirius said, “I’m adequate at sword fighting, good with numbers, and just as attractive as the rest of your crew.
The crew surrounding him laughs at this, a red haired woman to Potter’s side placing a hand on his arm.
“I like you,”She said, looking at Sirius, “What’s your name?”
“Sirius,”He answered, “So, do we have a deal or not?”
“I can’t let you on my ship unless I know what you can do,”Potter said, “And, from the looks of it you come from money, which usually means your trouble.”
“I can assure you I am,”Sirius said, “But that just makes me more fun.”
“Double the money and before anything you tell me your story,”Potter said.
“I will, once I’m on your ship and far away from here,”Sirius said, “I’ll meet you at the docks at 10 sharp the evening of the 2nd, that’s when you’ll be back in port, correct?”
“I don’t think you understand how this works,”Potter said, “I’m Captain, I decide when we leave.”
“Yeah, but I have the money,”Sirius said, “And, I come with knowledge of the wealthy families your kind so often likes to steal from. I’ll see you in a month then.”
Sirius had a month before he would be gone. He would be leaving the day before his 18th birthday, a week before his wedding to Remus.
He had told Regulus right away, his brother happy for him but also saddened now that he knew exactly when Sirius would leave.
“It’ll only be for a year or so Reg, then I’ll be back,”Sirius said, “I promise.”
“You can’t write to me Sirius, and you can’t leave a note for Remus,”Regulus said, “It’ll just make everything worse.”
Sirius hated leaving Remus in the dark.
He had fallen in love with him over the past year, but that didn’t mean he was willing to give up the chance to live as himself.
Regulus was right, he couldn’t leave a note, no matter how much he wanted to.
Sirius was currently visiting Gryffindor for the last time until the scheduled wedding.
Remus had asked to spend the full day with him before he departed for home.
So far they had a picnic in the gardens, followed by horse riding; one of Sirius’ favorite activities because it meant an escape from the dresses he was normally forced to wear.
Now the two were sitting in the library, which had become their spot in the evenings.
“Cassie,”Remus said, causing Sirius to look up from the book he was currently reading.
Remus was clearly nervous, pacing before taking a seat next to him.
“This will be the last time we see each other before your birthday,”Remus said, “And after that…”
He drifts off, as the topic of their wedding has been something they’ve both avoided talking about explicitly.
“I want to give you your present early, without anyone else around,”Remus said, pulling a velvet box from inside his jacket pocket.
“You’ve already given me a ring,”Sirius said, referring to the ruby that had been sitting on his finger since their second meeting.
Remus laughs, handing Sirius the box.
“Just open it,”He said.
Sirius opens the box and gasps.
“It’s beautiful,”He said, staring at the silver necklace, the constellation for Cassiopeia.
“I know you love the stars, so I wanted to give them to you to wear,”Remus said, “They shine almost as bright as you do.”
Sirius could feel the tears building up in his eyes, so he quickly turned away.
“Put it on me,”He asked, handing the necklace back to Remus.
He lifted his hair, far too long for his liking, and felt Remus’ fingers brush against his neck as he clasped the necklace.
He wipes his eyes before turning around again.
“Thank you,”He said, meaning it for far more than the necklace.
Remus was looking at him with his bright green eyes, his hand gently brushing against Sirius’ cheek.
“Remus,”Sirius said softly, unable to keep himself from leaning in.
“Cassie,”Remus responded, also learning forward.
Sirius snapped his head away quickly, standing up.
“I should get to bed,”Sirius said, “Have to get up early in the morning.”
“Right of course,”Remus said, clearing his throat, “Goodnight, then.”
“Goodnight, Remus,”Sirius said, hurrying off before he started crying.
He left the next morning, watching Remus fade into the distance, knowing that would be the last time he saw him.