Genetics • Sirius Black

Chapter Thirty Seven: The Map.

"Bloody hell." A singe burned into the humid air of the lab, and Freya Grey recoiled her hand back from her work. The ancient vile burst, and with it all her hard work. Light blue liquid singed her fingers, and had she not worn goggles, she would have been blinded.

With an angry huff, she held up her arm, now noting a very sharp pain that seemed to have come from a piece of glass that had sliced through the air. She lifted up her goggles and turned off the fire, nostrils flared.

At the entrance of the lab, Sirius Black stood with an uncertain expression. For a moment, he thought she would scream, but instead, her eyes flicked up to his. She looked tired and a bit insane. "What?"

He dropped his book bag on an empty counter and took a seat next to her. "May I?" Gingerly, he took her wrist and turned her arm towards him. Silently, Sirius assessed the red mark along her inner arm. Then he moved two stools next to each other, and begrudgingly, she sat down next to him. Wetting a rag, he cleaned the wound. "The glass burst on you?"

"I heated it too fast." Pain radiated up her arm.

"I've made a fair share of potions in my life, and I'm very impatient. I've never seen that happen."

"Equipment is old. It's to be expected."

His thumb caressed the side of her palm, and he seemed strangely in his element as he gave a quick tap of his wand to close the wound. "That's a little dangerous."

"Get the interrogation over with." She said, after a moment and his eyes moved down to her palm. Indifferent, she glanced around the lab. "I like you less when you're walking on eggshells."

"I don't have anything to ask."

"Because you've decided I'm guilty."

"Actually, I haven't." He grabbed some herbs from nearby and placed them over the burn. "You're cold and mean, but you're not ignorant." Wrapping it up, Sirius looked up at her dark eyes. "Take a break from the potion for a bit."

Slowly, she took her hand back, not expecting that response. Nearly everyone outside of her house looked at her with disgust or fear, and while she didn't mind the latter too much, it still bothered her. But, as she stared into Sirius's eyes, she noticed he didn't seem scared or disgusted at all. She also noticed, his eyes were half a shade darker than Regulus's.

She then noticed she was staring and turned her gaze over the spilled light blue liquid. "If I want this done anytime soon, I have to work on every chance I get."

"I'll do it." Sirius offered with a shrug.

"No," Freya answered quite quickly, and Sirius leaned back in his stool, hand over his chest.

"What? You don't trust me?"

"Yes."

"Ouch." He winced and stood up, walking over to her station. With the wave of his wand, he cleaned up the glass and rolled up his sleeves. "You potions fanatics want to make everything seem so complicated."

"It's not complicated. It just requires someone who can follow instructions." Freya leaned on the counter next to him.

He turned to her. "Are you saying I can't follow instructions?" She raised a brow, and he smiled. "Just tell me what to do."

After a few insults and an almost fire, Sirius stood proudly working with most of his hair tied back as Freya monitored him from her place on the stool.

"Look at me: I'm a natural." Sirius smiled brightly as he danced his hips slightly to his own beat.

"You're mincing," Freya stated.