Chapter 27
"Thank Merlin, it's finally nice out." James Potter's voice carried over the students all crowding into the streets of Hogsmeade, and Charlotte grinned as she watched Lily roll her eyes to the gray sky.
"Nice out? Potter, it looks like it's going to downpour on us all any second."
"No... No, I don't think so." James glanced up again before spinning to face the redhead behind him. "And it's not freezing, at least! Take a win when you can get one, Evans!"
She shook her head, though she didn't step away as James slid up beside her, their shoulders bumping as the group neared the Three Broomsticks.
"I'll get drinks." James offered, though Marlene pushed him easily towards the booth near the edge of the pub.
"No chance, Potter. You buy every time." She pointed towards their friends and James reluctantly retreated, taking a seat beside Lily in the back of the booth.
"I'll go with you." Charlotte said, following the tall girl towards the bar and leaning against the sticky wood as they waited.
"God, you two make me sick." Marlene muttered, a smile pulling at the corners of her lips.
"What?" Charlotte's eyebrows flew up, scanning the room before Marlene could explain.
"Black hasn't taken his eyes off you since they sat down, it's like he thinks you're going to get lost in here." She answered, Charlotte's eyes linking with Sirius's gray ones, cocking her head to the side which only elicited her a familiar smirk from the marauder. "We need... eight butterbeers please."
The girls piled the bottles into their arms and started towards the booth near the back.
"Alright, what about Lily letting James fawn all over her all day?" Charlotte asked, softer now as they neared their friends.
"Oh, don't get me started." Marlene grinned.
"Sirius, none of us can keep up, love, just say aunt or uncle..." Mary begged as Sirius's mouth dropped dramatically.
"No, no, I'm with you! Your uncle, your mom's brother-"
"No!" Sirius whined, reaching for the butterbeer Charlotte held out and popping off the top easily.
"Pads, none of us can keep track if your family tree is more of a wreath..." Remus muttered, the edges of his lips curling into a grin as James burst into laughter, dropping his head to the tabletop.
"Fuck all of you." Sirius blurted, though his eyes were lit up and Charlotte slid into the empty spot beside him.
"We don't have much longer..." Lily looked worriedly towards the sky through the window. "It's definitely going to rain."
"Lils, are you going to melt?" Marlene teased and Lily shot her a glare.
"It's a long walk back when your boots are filled with water." She pointed out and Charlotte giggled as Marlene eyed her feet.
"Fair point... Remus can teach us that spell though for the rain?" They all spun to the tall boy who took another drink from his butterbeer, shaking his head.
"It's my day off. No teaching." He joked.
"Oh, how I wish that were true." Sirius teased. "Feel like you're lecturing me every day of my damn life."
"Well, I'm trying to catch up on the years you've neglected." Lupin answered without a second thought.
"Oh, please! I out-manner you any day."
"Out manner?" Mary chuckled.
"Neither of you have any room to talk about manners." Peter shook his head.
"Stay out of it Pettigrew." Sirius ordered, "Unless you're on my side. Like James."
"I'm definitely not on either of your sides... especially yours." James grinned as everyone finished the last of their drinks. "Alright... quick visit to Honeydukes then head back?" He glanced out the window once more where throngs of students were already marching back towards the school, eyes flashing to the sky every few minutes. The light spilling through the clouds in the village had already dwindled away significantly since their arrival.
"Potter... We get Honeydukes every time, it's going to pour-"
"What's a Hogsmeade trip without Honeydukes?" James pleaded, jutting out his lower lip and waiting patiently for Lily to give in. "I promise I'll get you back to school safe and dry, Evans."
"Oh, alright... we'll go quickly." She slid from the booth and James wasted no time jumping out after her as the rest of the group climbed to their feet.
"We'll catch up..." Sirius waved lazily at the group, catching Charlotte's wrist as she had gone to move.
"I don't think they'll change the curfew if we're stranded here for the storm." She teased, sliding back into the booth beside him.
"Oh, stranded... Don't be dramatic." He rolled his eyes, stealing a sip from her drink.
"Wonder where I learned it. Why aren't we going with them?"
"Maybe I'd like you to myself for a bit longer, blondie." He shrugged, his arm warm against hers as they watched their friends disappear into the crowds down the street.
"Is that so?" She smiled, watching as he slid one hand over her knee, rubbing small circles, gray eyes glued to hers.
"And I figured you'd want to stop at the bookstore before we head back?"
"Well not if it's going to rain..." She pointed out and Sirius shrugged.
"You can get a book. We'll fit it in your bag. It'll stay dry."
"And what about me?"
"You've got clothes back at the school." He grinned and Charlotte rolled her eyes, pushing her drink into his hand for him to finish before sliding out from the booth at last.
"Sirius Black choosing books over sweets? I never thought I'd see the day."
"Sirius Black's choosing his girlfriend over sweets." He pointed out, slipping one arm around the blonde's waist as they stepped out onto the dark street, the clouds looking dark and heavy now. It was much easier to move through the village now, the crowds clearing out for the inevitable storm and they made their way towards the bookstore at the end of the street. The bell rang as they pushed inside, the wind outside vanishing from earshot as the heavy door swung shut behind them.
"Do they even get new books here? Or do you just re-read them all?" Sirius mumbled, glancing around for the shopkeep as Charlotte began to glance over the first shelf on the wall.
"They get new books all the time, Sirius, how else would they stay open?" She bit back a laugh, flipping to the back of each book as the dark haired boy's eyes scanned over her face, a smile resting easily on his lips as he waited.
"This sounds good." She looked up, blinking in surprise when his eyes were already on her and held the book out for him to look at just as a loud clap of thunder shook the shop windows.
"Oh, Sirius, you've doomed us." She whined, stepping closer to the doorway and glancing up at the sky.
"It's not raining yet! Is that your pick?" He reached for the book from her hands but she snatched it back just in time.
"Yes, hands off." She ordered, leading the way towards the back of the store to pay and shoving the book into her crammed bag.
Sirius followed closely as they stepped back onto the street, the wind rushing through their hair and up the street as goosebumps erupted on Charlotte's skin through her sweater. Sirius looped his fingers easily around her arm, pulling her closer and pointing his wand at the bag resting on her hip.
"Impervius." He muttered, a slight glow outlining her bag for only a second.
"So you admit we're going to get stuck in the rain."
"We're not going to get stuck in the rain." He grinned, leading the way up the now empty path towards the school.
"What are you doing with the rest of your day then?" She asked, hurrying to keep up with him through the wind.
"Oh, you're not getting rid of me anytime soon, Charlotte." He grinned and she shook her head, her eyes rolling up to meet his.
"I wasn't trying to get-" She trailed off as another roll of thunder boomed above them, the floodgates of the promised storm following immediately. "Sirius!"
"Dammit..." He chuckled, grabbing her hand and pulling her along the path. "I blame you! You weren't walking fast enough, it threw off my calculations!"
"Right!" She called through the wind, her clothes already soaked through and clinging to her skin. Sirius's hand was slippery against hers, yet he continued to adjust his fingers around hers as they ran.
At last, they slipped through the gates guarding the school and Sirius pulled her quickly beneath the first tree they spotted, yanking her arm easily until she fell against his chest, her breath fogging up in the chilly March air.
"I'm sorry..." He muttered, though he could no longer hold back his laughter, his eyes scanning over her sopping hair, the way her clothes clung to every curve of her body heavily.
"What am I going to do with you, Black?" She giggled, locking her arms over her chest and glancing to the sky once again as the water sloshed through the muddy grass beyond the tree's cover.
"I can think of a few things..." He mumbled, stepping to her side, his fingers resting on her cheek, wiping away the stream of water running from her hair onto her neck. "I'm sorry I let you get rained on."
"It's alright." She whispered, watching as the gray eyes before her lit up brighter in the darkness of the storm. There was hardly a seconds thought before he had tilted her jaw up towards him, his lips pressing roughly to hers and his mouth parting easily, teeth sliding over her bottom lip and grinning at the slight gasp it earned him.
"You're so bloody perfect." He muttered, dropping his hand from her face and letting his fingers trail along her waist, leaning forward slightly and hoisting her from the ground, pulling her thighs around his waist before he slammed her back against the tree trunk to another clap of thunder.
His lips trailed from hers, along her jaw, down her neck until they could sneak beneath the soaked collar of her sweater, her breathing ragged, the goosebumps painting her skin no longer from the cold.
"Sirius..." She muttered and he hummed back an answer. "Someone will see."
"No one but you is crazy enough to be out in this storm-" He teased, trailing off as she used one leg to kick his hip, earning herself half a groan and half a laugh. "Alright, alright... I'm sorry... not my fault you're so beautiful."
"Oh, I'm sure... I look a mess right now." She stammered, her thoughts still on where his lips had been sucking against her skin only seconds before. Sirius let her down to the ground carefully and she ran her fingers through her tangled hair, bunching it behind her head in a makeshift ponytail.
"Alright... Let's get back to the school... Then I promise, no more storms."
"I'm not sure you can make that promise." She smiled, taking his hand once again as they sprinted back into the rain and towards the blurry doorway of the castle. Their shoes squelched against the tile flooring as Sirius squeezed her fingers into his, pulling her up the staircase.
"We're making a big bloody mess..." She whispered, as if that would keep them out of Filch's earshot.
"Filch has probably been getting bored anyways." Sirius grinned, though he cast a drying spell on the trail of water following their path up the steps.
"Where are we going?" She asked as Sirius yanked them from the staircase at the fifth floor, turning at the first corridor and tucking her beneath his arm.
"Are you cold?" He asked instead and she looked to him, confused. "Just trust me."
They walked for another minute through the silent hallways before Sirius paused beside an old iron doorway and muttered a spell, the door propping open as the Marauder peeked his head in, glancing around before pulling Charlotte inside.
"What... Is this a prefect bathroom?" She understood at once, shooting Sirius a stern look.
"Maybe." He grinned, shutting the door behind them and locking it with another incantation.
"We're not supposed to be in here!" She reminded him, although she was more than sure that Sirius knew this.
"Remus won't care."
"Remus is not the only prefect-" She trailed off as Sirius pulled her deeper into the large bathroom, stepping towards the deep, empty, pool-sized bathtub and turning a few silver knobs until water began to flood the empty basin.
"Come on... It'll be nice, and we'll be warm and I'll dry your clothes while we're waiting." He grinned, ripping his shirt over his head and tossing it neatly over a bench near a row of lockers.
Charlotte hesitated, her eyes trailing along the pale skin of his chest and back as he cast the first drying spell on his shirt before turning to her.
"We don't have to... I can just walk you back upstairs. I just thought it'd be nice and you'd get to warm up after I got you stuck in the storm-" His words trailed off as Charlotte's fingers reached for the bottom of her sweater, pulling it over her head and stepping over to her boyfriend, dropping the sweater beside his already dried shirt.
The icy gray eyes wandered over her figure for only a second before he turned to dry her sweater like his own and quickly undid his belt, letting his trousers drop over the edge of the bench as well as Charlotte pulled off her jeans, forcing her eyes back to Sirius's face, her arms crossed over her light pink bra as he finished drying their clothes and turned back to her.
"You're so gorgeous." He muttered quietly, crossing to her in a few steps and pressing a gentle kiss to her lips, his fingers trailing along the soft skin at her hip. "Come on." He pulled her hand, leading them towards the bath which had now filled with steaming water and wasted no time jumping in, warm water splattering along the floor around them as Charlotte laughed, sliding in at the edge and waiting for him to surface.
"Worth it, right?" He sighed as he reached her, leaning against the tile beside her.
"Worth it." She agreed, sinking her shoulders into the hot water. "Sirius..."
"Hmm?" He answered, his eyes flicking to hers.
"Are those scars on your back from Christmas?" She asked, her voice nearly a whisper even in the oversized room. She watched as the corners of his mouth turned into a frown and silence overtook them for a few moments.
"No." He replied at last, dragging his fingers easily through the water in front of him and watching as the ripples vanished. "Those are old, Charlotte."
"Old?"
"Few years."
Neither of them spoke again, and Charlotte felt as though her stomach had iced over, thinking of what could have caused the long, thin slices along Sirius's shoulders.
"Do the boys know?"
Sirius nodded at once, and Charlotte waited to see if he would speak. "Course. James has been begging me to run away since first year, I swear." He tried to joke, yet Charlotte saw right through it.
She nodded, closing the inches between them and leaning her head against his shoulder, looking up and watching his frown fade away slightly.
"You didn't deserve that."
"You don't even know what happened." He pointed out, though she was already shaking her head.
"It doesn't matter. I know you didn't deserve it."
"I know I don't deserve you." He forced a grin back to his face, reaching for her legs again from beneath the water and chuckling as she screamed, her bare skin breaking free from the warm water she'd been enjoying.
"Stop! It's cold!" She laughed, still allowing him to press her back against the edge of the pool, his lips pressing lazily to her cheeks, not wanting to drown out her giggles.
"Is it?" He teased, wrapping her legs easily around his waist once again and trailing his kisses from her cheek over her jaw, her laughter fading into shaky breaths. "You want me to put you down?"
She didn't answer, pressing her lips together and shaking her head and Sirius felt the smirk rise to his face as he brought his lips down her neck and over her collarbones, noting the marks that were already forming from their time beneath the tree outside.
"Do you know how perfect you are?" He mumbled against her skin, earning himself another laugh as color rushed to her cheeks. "Answer me."
"Stop it." She whined, ducking her face into his shoulder, his chest vibrating beneath her as he laughed.
"But I can't..." He breathed, letting his lips trail lazily farther down her chest, sliding the wet strap of her bra down her arm and pulling her tighter against his hips as he pressed a gentle kiss to her shoulder. "I'm so." Another kiss. "bloody." His lips returned to her neck. "In love with you." And finally, his lips met hers once again as he lowered her back into the warmth of the bath water.