𝐓𝐈𝐌𝐄 𝐓𝐔𝐑𝐍𝐄𝐑 ❧ sirius black

XVII - Three's a Crowd

With a smile painted upon her face, Hermione danced across the beat-up grassy ground alongside the determined James and the obvious Lily. From afar, those stranger to Harper Slughorn would easily taken note of the new girl's ability to have a good time at this present moment, something that her friends back in her original time most definitely wouldn't describe her as. This experience has allowed for Hermione to actually take a step back and savor the moment, without a dark wizard or dangerous beast within inches of taking her life.

And this was a moment to savor for certain. Though Hermione had an underground agenda and clear reasons for being here, moments like these would only bring her closer to the group of Gryffindors, something vital to her mission.

So, that's exact what she did. Next to Lily, who was inching closer to James as the night trailed on, Hermione danced. The small black tassels on her dress caught both the dim light of the jack-o'-lanterns and the eyes of many, one black-haired boy in particular. And as that one black-haired boy watched his best friends dance with the girls that they had grown to care for, he felt left behind and longed for that feeling more than he knew. Sirius knew that there was no competition or race to show his affection for Harper, but a part of him knew he was trailing behind from where James, Remus, and ever Peter were.

He knew it was the nerves, the anxiousness, the butterflies, all of the above, that was causing this unfamiliar hesitation. While he worked up a sweat, Harper was free on the dance floor, hiding thoughts similar to Sirius' with a more secure mask.

Sirius thought to himself: Will it really be that bad if she says no? He desperately did not want to know the answer to that question.

But it's my last year here, what have I got to lose?  And his sweat continued to built regardless, especially as he started to approach the dancing girl.

"Hey, Sirius," smiled a girl that wasn't Harper.

"Oh, Mary," he stumbled, staring face to face with the blonde Gryffindor girl, "how are you?"

"I'm great," she smiled, tucking a lose strand of hair behind her ear. Failing to notice this, Sirius was what one might call 'preoccupied.'

Mary MacDonald took a step closer to the uninterested boy and softly spoke, "I was actually wondering if you'd like to dance with me?"

He hesitated, watching at Harper dance perfectly fine on her own, without him, out of the corner of his eye. Oh, if Harper could be Mary right now.

Before even giving him a chance to speak, the impatient blonde looking longingly at Sirius and whispered, "just one song?"

"Sure. Why not," he shrugged back aimlessly, taking Mary's hand without caution.

Meanwhile Harper, who had also caught sight of Sirius out of the corner of her eye, watched as he took the Gryffindor girl, whom she had only spoken to once, by the hand and out to the opposite side of the dance floor.

Something about Mary dancing with Sirius didn't sit well with Hermione. She hadn't even taken into account that Remus and Dorcas were dancing up a storm in another corner of the Quidditch Pitch, but this she took note of? Why couldn't she stop looking at them, and paying attention to them? The way she was looking into his eyes, the way she thought he looked back, his hand on her waist...

What if his eight girls was about to turn into nine?

But wait, why do I care?

"You okay Harper?" James asked as he pulled the dazed girl to the side. Lily handed her a glass of water as Harper started to work up a sweat.