What the Heart Wants (Sirius Black Love Story)

Chapter 27

Sadie awoke to a familiar, comforting scent and the feeling of fingers threading themselves in and out of her hair. Her mouth felt dry, and there was a dull ache in her head, but she still found herself sighing contentedly and nuzzling closer to the chest that she was laying on. The fingers in her hair paused, and she heard someone rustling to the side of the bed.

"Sadie Mae?" Sirius murmured. A low whine escaped Sadie's throat as he shifted slightly, disturbing her comfort. He breathed out a soft chuckle, wrapping his arms around her in a tight embrace. She hummed happily. "How are you feeling?"

It took a moment for Sadie to remember why he would be asking her that. She frowned and sat up reluctantly, inhaling sharply as she did so. Her side and thigh stung with the movement, and her vision swam unpleasantly. In an instant, Sirius had pulled her gently back down, and James was pressing a goblet of water to her lips. She took it from him and drank greedily. When she had downed the entirety of it, James took it back and both boys peered at her anxiously.

"How are you feeling?" James repeated Sirius's question. Sadie paused, taking a moment to get a feel of her condition before shrugging.

"Not great," she answered truthfully. "But better than I did last night. I could be a lot worse."

Sirius gazed at her, brow furrowed, and Sadie frowned at the dark circles under his eyes. He looked worse than she felt. "What else can we get for you? Peter went to get you some food. He should be back any time."

Sadie smiled softly at him. "That's great. Thank you."

James cleared his throat, and Sadie quickly looked away from Sirius, cheeks warming. "Will you please tell us what happened? Who did this to you?"

"Oh..." Sadie hesitated. "I...I don't actually know exactly. They were just some Slytherin boys that I don't know."

James narrowed his eyes suspiciously. "You didn't know any of them? Why did they attack you?"

"I, um, sort of overheard a conversation that I probably shouldn't have." She rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly. "It sounds like they're working on something in the forest, and that's why people have been getting sick."

Sirius's eyebrows shot up. "What?! What is it?!"

"I don't know, they didn't say. Sn-one of them just mentioned that it's got this defense mechanism while it's in this sort of vulnerable stage." She quickly recounted the rest of what she had overheard and everything that had happened afterward. "I promised Regulus that I wouldn't go to a teacher about it. It's the least I can do after what he did for me."

James opened and closed his mouth furiously while Sirius's face was unreadable. After a moment, he spoke. "You know he probably just doesn't want word getting back to Voldemort that he intervened. He's itching to join as soon as he's able."

"You don't know that," she answered stubbornly. "And either way, I did promise, and I do owe him."

Both boys gave her frustrated looks, but before they could try to persuade her differently, the door burst open, and Gideon rushed into the room. He halted in his tracks, eyes narrowing slightly at the sight of Sadie cozied up to Sirius's bare chest. He didn't say anything about it, however, and simply hurried to her side, looking her over worriedly.

"Evans said you were attacked last night! What happened? Are you alright? Why aren't you in the hospital wing?" He glared angrily at James and Sirius. "Why didn't anyone come and find me?"

James opened his mouth to retort, looking livid, but Sirius simply held his hands up and spoke placatingly. "Sorry, mate. We just didn't think about it. We were mostly just worried about getting her taken care of."

"And yet you didn't think to take her to the hospital wing?" Gideon snapped. Sadie rested a hand on his arm.

"They thought of it, but I told them I didn't want or need it," she told him soothingly. "They've taken care of me just fine. Really."

Gideon looked her in the eyes, and his shoulders visibly relaxed. He placed a hand over hers and sighed. "Alright. Can I take over from here then?"

Sadie hesitated, not really wanting to go, but ultimately nodded and allowed him to help her out of the bed. He wrapped an arm around her waist and allowed her to lean on him as he led her out of the room and up the stairs to his own dormitory. He pulled back the covers on his bed and gently lowered her onto it before tucking her in and sitting on the edge, watching her with his brow creased in worry.

"You're sure you're alright?" He asked, and Sadie's heart fluttered at the intensity in his gaze.

"I will be," she told him softly. "I'm a little tender still, but it will heal." She grinned weakly. "Scars are sexy, right?"

Gideon let out a breath of laughter and leaned down to press his forehead against hers. "Absolutely."

Sadie gave him a small smile and lifted up the blanket, silently inviting him to join her. He immediately kicked off his shoes and crawled in next to her, slipping one arm underneath her head and bringing his other hand up to stroke her cheek gently. She sighed and closed her eyes in contentment.

"Are you going to tell me what happened?" He murmured. She frowned but reluctantly gave him a brief summary, brushing off his attempts to get her to tell him who had done it. He gave up eventually, but she could tell that he was extremely unsatisfied with her responses. They laid in silence for several minutes before Gideon sighed and kissed her forehead, wrapping his arms tightly around her.

"I'm so glad you're safe," he whispered into her hair. Sadie's heart skipped a beat, and she found herself feeling things she hadn't felt around Gideon for weeks. "When Evans said...I was so worried... and I know I haven't exactly been the best boyfriend lately." He took a shuddering breath. "What if you'd..." he paused and shook his head, seemingly unable to finish that thought. "And you didn't know how much you mean to me? I'm so sorry that I haven't made that clearer. I promise I'm going to try to do better."

Sadie felt a lump rise in her throat. She sniffed quietly and buried her face in his chest, unable to stop a couple of tears from squeezing through her eyelids. This was the Gideon that she'd fallen for. This was the Gideon whose happiness his mother had sacrificed her life to preserve.

"I don't think I've ever seen Gideon quite this happy. You're so good for him. Thank you."

"I love you," Sadie said quietly once she'd gotten ahold of her emotions. She fought furiously against the thoughts of Sirius that kept trying to reach the front of her mind. She had a boy right here who loved her back.

Gideon tightened his hold on her. "I love you too. So much." And for the first time in a couple of months, it was Sadie who initiated a soft, slow, tender kiss.

A knock sounded at the door, and they broke apart just as it opened. Fabian stood there, a couple of plates in his hands.

"Pettigrew asked me to bring this up to you, Sadie. Doing alright?"

Sadie smiled at him and nodded, sitting up to take the food from him. He grinned and left, and Gideon sat up as well, wrapping his arm around Sadie's shoulders as she dug into her food with enthusiasm. She closed her eyes and sighed happily. This was how things were supposed to be.

Right?