the secret of Erised {s.b.}

chapter 27: basium

~song recommendation for this chapter: A Thousand Times Good Night by Abel Korzeniowski~

Esmeralda couldn't keep it in any longer, she had to tell Sirius that she loved him back.

Ever since that shocking revelation made by Dumbledore, Esmeralda had been thinking nonstop about her relationship with Sirius. From the moment he first saw her until they finally got to hold each other. Their relationship, or whatever they had, did not start as romantic right away, which was what she liked about it. Perla always said that the best relationships are always between best friends because they have a strong friendship to support them through romantic feelings. Esmeralda knew that she would never find another person like Sirius, she'd never click with someone they way she did with him.

Sirius tried to spend as much time as he could with Esmeralda. He did not want to pressure her into doing or saying anything she didn't want to, but he enjoyed having her on his side at all times. The only time that they weren't seen together was at night when they went to their respective dormitories. It was odd to not see one without the other, and even more since the attack in the Forbidden Forest. She didn't mind it, though. Esmeralda also enjoyed having him close to her.

One night, while studying for a Transfiguration quiz, Esmeralda and Sirius were by themselves in the cozy Gryffindor Common Room.

"Why do we have to do this again ?" Sirius groaned, "We've been trying for hours and I can't do it properly."

"It's not that difficult," Esmeralda laughed, "Just choose the Pawn you want to transfigure into the Queen and say the incantation."

Sirius rolled his eyes sarcastically.

"Thank you, Mer," he said, "I hadn't thought about that before."

Esmeralda breathed out in a playful way to signify that she was offended. She stood up and began to walk to the stairs up to the dormitories.

"Well, I guess you have it all figured out and don't need my help," she said, "Goodbye, Black."

Smirking, Sirius ran up to her and wrapped his arms around her waist while pulling her closer to his body. Esmeralda lost her balance and placed her hands on Sirius' chest. She removed her hands from his chest and looked away because she could feel her cheeks flushing with colour. Sirius let out a small chuckle and lifted her chin up so their eyes met.

"You're just gonna leave like that ?" he asked in a low voice, "That doesn't make you a good teacher, Dragonstone."

Esmeralda's heart was beating so fast she thought that it was going to leap out of her chest. Sirius' bright, beautiful grey eyes looked deep into her sweet honey ones and made her melt on the inside. She gulped before she spoke again.

"W-what makes you think that I wanted to be good ?" she said.

Sirius raised an eyebrow in surprise. He began to walk closer to Esmeralda, which made her stumble back until she hit a wall. He placed a hand on the wall and leaned closer to her face. Their noses were brushing against each other and Sirius could feel Esmeralda's agitated breath against his lips. The urge he felt to close the small gap between them got bigger and bigger as the seconds passed. He was not going to do anything she wasn't ready for, but it did not mean that he couldn't enjoy the teasing.

"So, now you're bad ?" he whispered, sending a shiver down Esmeralda's spine.

She knew exactly what he was doing, so she decided to play along. She straightened her back and slid a hand to the back of Sirius' neck. She pulled him closer to her body and looked down at his pink lips.