Disclaimer: this chapter has child abuse and could be uncomfortable for some readers so read with precaution.
The train jolted as the teens clumsily made their way into a compartment. Sirius glanced behind him, extending his hand out to Ariah with a smile. She interlocked her hand with his as they entered a compartment.
"— so now I can't go to Jules' for Christmas," Peter said. "But we're still going to come to the New Year's Eve party at your house, James."
"Cool, it's going to be awesome," James said. "My parents will be gone and they're stupid enough to let me stay home by myself."
"Man, I wish I was going," Sirius mumbled. "It'll be my first holiday break where I'm spending the whole time at home...."
Ariah glanced at her boyfriend, examining his emotions. He was afraid, and Ariah hated how stubborn he was. Knowing he would come back from the break with bruises made her heart break and blood boil. She squeezed his hand lightly.
"You will be dearly missed," James said. "I'm sure we won't hear the end of it from Ariah."
Ariah rolled her eyes, smiling softly. "Definitely. I'll be like a wife waiting for her husband to return from war," she said, slightly sarcastically.
Everyone chuckled as Sirius leaned closer to Ariah. "I'll keep a picture of you on me to hold me over through the terrors of the war," he said, with a similar tone as Ariah.
James groaned as Sirius kissed Ariah's cheek. "You guys have been together for two days and you're already giving me cavities."
"You're just jealous because you're the only one in the group without a significant other," Remus said. "Even Peter has a girlfriend."
"Why's that so hard to believe?" Peter asked with a sigh.
"I don't have anyone," Dylan said. "I am also single... or am I not in this group.... that's awkward..."
"Of course you are Dyl," Ariah said. "We're just.... not use to having another person in our group."
"But since you and I are both single...." James said, leaning closer. Dylan put her hand on James' forehead.
"You're not my type, Potter," Dylan said.
"I'm everyone's type." James smirked.
"Clearly," Meeka said, sarcastically.
The train screeched to a halt. Ariah felt Sirius squeeze her hand tighter as his anxiety peaked. She glanced his way, putting a hand on his knee as the others stood up. "We'll be right there," she said.
"What should I tell dad?" Remus asked.
"That I will be right there," she said, in a duh tone.
The group walked off, leaving the new couple alone. Ariah turned her body to face him. "You okay?"
Sirius shrugged. "I think you know the answer to that..."
"Why are your parents making you stay all break?" Ariah asked.
"Because they hate me," he said, his grin feigning humor. But Ariah knew he felt there was some truth to that statement and that broke Ariah's heart. "No, but, Regulus' girlfriend is coming for Christmas and then New Years Eve my parents want me around for the annual pure-blooded cult gathering to try and indoctrinate me into said cult."
"The death eaters," Ariah whispered. "They want you to be a death eater...."
"Which is never going to happen," Sirius said, almost sternly. He held both of Ariah's hands. "I'd sooner die than become one of them."
"Please don't say that," Ariah said, completely stern.
Sirius winced. "Sorry.... obviously that's not going to happen. Neither options will happen and I'm sorry I mentioned that."
"You promised me, back when I found out just how bad things at home were for you, that if things ever got too bad, you would leave. For good," Ariah said. "Can you solemnly swear to me that you will leave if things get too bad?"
"Nothing is going —"
"Please, Sirius," she pleaded. "If anything were to happen to you... I would literally loose my mind."
Sirius cupped her face in his hands, her hands holding onto his arms while he pressed their foreheads together. "I solemnly swear that if it gets too bad, I will leave. For good."
"I love you, Sirius," Ariah whispered.
Sirius pressed a kiss against Ariah's forehead. "I love you too."
"Please just, don't make a fuss tonight," Regulus begged his older brother as he messed with his perfectly quaffed hair in the mirror.
"Yeah, because I'm the problem with this family," Sirius shot back, rolling his eyes.
His brother stared him down from the mirror. "This is important. I want mum and dad to like her and I want her to not...."
"To not realize how fucked up our family is?" Sirius finished. "I'm sure Ivy knows. I'm sure everyone knows. They just choose to ignore it because culty pure-bloods are all this fucked up."
"Our Family is not a cult," Regulus argued. "And don't refer to us as a cult when Ivy gets here or I swear, I will murder you."
There was a knock on the door causing Regulus' eyes to widen like a dear caught in the headlights. "That's her..."
"Calm down, brother," Sirius said, standing up and putting a hand on his little brother's shoulder. "She must have low standards if she's dating you."
Regulus smacked his brother, who chuckled and watched him flee out of the room. Sirius grabbed a piece of parchment off of his dresser, running a hand over the neatly written words that told him he was missed, wanted, cared for and thought of.
"Son." Sirius flinched at the sound of his father's voice. He shoved the letter in his drawer, turning to face the man.
"Sir," he said.
"Just making sure you're dressed appropriately," his father said, examining his son. "Fix your tie. And do something with your hair. You're not a hooligan."
"Yes, sir," Sirius said, turning to look at his tie in the mirror.
"You better look even cleaner tomorrow," Orion said, judgmentally.
Sirius stopped fussing with his tie, looking at his father in the mirror. "W-whats tomorrow?"
"You're initiation, of course," he stated. "To prove yourself a real member of this family."
Sirius turned, looking at his father once again. "You mean...." He looked at his father's left arm, then to his own. "To become.... a death eater... I -I'm only fifteen I —"
"I was fourteen when I committed myself to this esteemed organization," Orion interrupted. "You're lucky your mum and I still care enough to do this for you after all you've done to embarrass us. Now, fix your hair and join us for dinner."
Orion left the room before Sirius could say anything more. He glanced at the drawer with the letter from Ariah, his palms sweaty and heart pounding.
He took one last look in the mirror, examining his shoulder length, curly hair, before leaving his room in a huff.
Dinner was eerily quiet as Sirius pushed his potatoes around his plate, his father glaring at him and his unruly hair while his mother asked Ivy blunt and uncomfortable questions.
"Sirius, quit playing with your food, you're not a child," his mother spat. "Eat."
"Oh, I'm sorry," Sirius said, snarkily. "I was waiting for you to tell me how to live my life."
"Sirius Orion Black," his father sneered. "Mind your manners."
"What? You say I'm not a child but you still make big life decisions for me!" Sirius shouted.
"Sirius..." Regulus muttered.
"No, what if I don't want to be... —" he glanced at Ivy, who stared at her plate of food with intense interest. "What if I don't want to go into the family business?! What if I don't want to have any part of this family?!"
"You're going through with the initiation tomorrow and that's final," his father said sternly. "Quit embarrassing us in front of our guest."
Sirius scoffed, clanking his fork down on the China plate. "I'm the embarrassment?! You guys have embarrassed me my whole life — making me feel lesser and weak and undeserving of any kind of love, maybe I'm sick of it!"
Sirius flinched as his mother slammed her own silverware onto the China plate. "That is enough! If you want to be apart of this family you will go through with tomorrow's events!"
"That's just it!" Sirius stood to his feet. "I don't want to be apart of this family!"
He let out a huff, turning and running up the stairs to his room. He grabbed a bag and a suitcase from under his bed and began throwing things inside by the handful.
"You have embarrassed this family for the last time," his mother hissed from the doorway.
"Trust me, mother," he spat. "You don't have to worry about me embarrassing the family."
"You are going through with the initiation," she stated. "We have promised the Dark Lord —"
"Well that's your issue," Sirius said. "Because I'm done here."
Sirius stumbled on his feet as his mother pulled her wand on him. "You will become one of us."
He puffed out his chest, ignoring the tears that dropped from his eyes. "Go head. There's nothing you can do to me that you haven't already done."
She glowered, flicking her wand in his direction. He felt a hit, as if he had been punched in the face, and fell against his dresser, his head hitting the corner. Walburga continuously threw the spell towards her son, Sirius feeling punch after punch and a fire spreading through his blood.
Finally, it stopped. "Clean yourself up," Walburga said. "And join us for the rest of Christmas dinner. Unless you want it to get worse."
He listened to the sound of her heels hitting the ground. Once it faded down the stairs, Sirius stood up, weakly. He finished throwing things in bags and rushed down the stairs, his suitcase thumbing on each step. Sirius reached the door, his hand on the doorknob.
"Sirius..." Regulus said. "You're not — you're not leaving, are you?"
Sirius put a hand on his bleeding lip before facing his little brother. "I am. And if you had any sense of preservation, you would get the hell out of here as well."
"You leave this house," his mothers voice bellowed behind Regulus. "And you will never be welcomed back."
Sirius hesitated, looking to his younger brother. Both boys looked at the other with begging eyes. One begging for the other to stay and the second begging the other to leave with him. Neither were willing to cooperate with the other.
When Sirius realized this, he put his hand back on the doorknob. "I've never been welcomed here. This isn't my home."
He opened the door, leaving and shutting it behind him just as his mother shot another spell. It hit the door with a thud. Sirius let out a shaky break, leaving 12 Grimmauld Place for the last time, promising to never return again.
The Lupin household was relatively quiet Christmas night. After dinner, presents and a few movies, Lyall retired to bed while Meeka, Ariah, Remus and Dylan continued watching movies. Meeka had long since fallen asleep, her head in Remus' lap as the other three continued watching Miracle on 34th Street.
Suddenly, there was a knock on the door.
"Who the bloody hell is knocking on your door this late?" Dylan asked, rolling over to face the back of the couch.
"Nose goes," Remus said, quickly touching his nose.
"Bloody hell!" Ariah shouted. "It's like two in the morning the only people to knock at this hour is a murderer!"
"Murderers don't knock, you git," Dylan mumbled as the knocking continued. "Just shut the knocking up!"
Ariah groaned, pulling herself up from the couch. She went to the door, hugging the blanket tighter around her shoulders. She opened the door, ready to rip whoever was on the other side a new one. She stopped herself from speaking as she took in Sirius and his frazzled and bruised appearance. She grew sick just seeing him all bruised up.
"Sirius..."
He stepped into the doorway, wrapping his arms tightly around Ariah's waist. Ariah wrapped her arms around his shaking body as he sobbed. She put her hand in his hair but removed it once she felt something wet, yet warm. Upon removing her hand, she saw blood spotted on her hand.
"You're bleeding," she muttered. "Come here."
Ariah pulled him inside, shutting the door behind her.
"Who is it?" Remus called from the living room.
"Sirius," Ariah called back leading her boyfriend to the kitchen.
"Sirius? It's three a.m?" Remus asked, still from the living room.
Sirius was quick to respond. "I-I couldn't sleep," He croaked out, eyeing Ariah, begging her not to say anything.
She stared at the bag on his back and the suitcase he left by the front door and had to fight the urge to be grateful. Hopefully he was done going back.
"... erm... okay," Remus said. "Sounds shady but I won't say anything."
Ariah shut the kitchen door, setting Sirius on a chair. She began looking around the kitchen for herbs and other solutions her father had brought back from his job over the years. He was a healer and Ariah had watched him make solutions for the family enough over the years to come up with something for Sirius' head.
After crushing some dittany with rosemary and chamomile solution, she scooped it in her hand, rubbing the ointment gently where his head wound was.
"T-they wanted m-me to..."
"Hey, hey." She knelt to meet his eyes, her left hand resting on his shoulder while her right cupped his cheek. "It's okay. Just relax. You're okay."
Ariah went back to the cupboard, grabbing the fresh echinacea and sticking a pot of water on the stove.
"I should probably get my dad..." Ariah said.
"No," Sirius said. "Please, I—I'm embarrassed..."
"You have no reason to be embarrassed, Sirius," she said. "My dad is a healer he can make sure —"
"I'm fine Ariah," Sirius said. "Please I-I'll go to James' in the morning and no one even needs to know, please I'm fine, really."
"No, you're not fine, Sirius," Ariah said. "It goes beyond the bruises, okay? I'm worried about you and I think an adult needs to know of the circumstances —"
"I'm not going back," Sirius said, holding her arm. "I won't — not ever... I-I'll tell the Potters everything tomorrow — just... please, Ariah. I just want you right now."
Ariah sighed as the kettle screeched on the stove. She went over, pouring the hot Iwater over the echinacea. She threw in some drained dittany and approached Sirius' side. "We'll go to my room and you can rest. But you're telling the Potter's in the morning."
Sirius nodded, picking up his backpack and grabbing Ariah's outstretched hand. Once they entered her room, he threw his bag on ground, pulling out the blanket Ariah had made him for Christmas many years ago. It had been a major comfort for him all these years. He held it close, taking in the fresh scent of dittany as well as lavender and... apples and cinnamon. He wasn't sure how it still managed to smell so good after so long.
"You still have that?" Ariah asked, setting the mug of tea on the night stand by her bed.
"Of course," he said, sitting on her bed. "It makes me.... feel safe..."
Ariah smiled, sitting beside him. "What's it smell like?"
"The blanket?" Sirius asked. Ariah nodded. ".... Er — like dittany, slightly minty and... kind of like the Potters house — Cinnamon and apples. I'm assuming because I spend so much time at the Potter's."
"Hm... what does dittany and mint mean to you?" Ariah asked.
"What?" Sirius asked with a chuckle.
"I mean... does it mean something to you? What else smells like dittany and mint to you?"
"Oh... uh.... you do," Sirius said, scratching the back of his neck.
Ariah smiled. "How long has it smelled like that?"
"You're asking very weird questions, love," Sirius said with a chuckle, laying back on her bed, his head throbbing and his eyes heavy. "But it's always smelled like that. Figured you spilled your perfume on it or something."
"The yarn in the blanket is laced with amortentia," Ariah said, softly. "I did it to make you feel more comfortable, so that you'd smell what you love the most."
Sirius peaked his eyes open, watching Ariah smirk down at him.
"You loooovee me most," she teased. "How embarrassing."
He rolled his eyes, shoving his girlfriend slightly as she chuckled. "You trapped me, is what you did."
She smiled largely, nuzzling herself against his chest. "What do you smell?" Sirius asked, running his hand up and down her shoulder.
Ariah took in a deep breath, smelling the blanket that cocooned the couple. "I smell.... pine trees, vanilla, lavender.... and.... fresh baked cookies."
"I smell fresh baked cookies too," Sirius said, his eyes closing and his voice falling deeper due to sleep. "It's your house. What about the rest."
"My mum... she had a lavender garden she would continuously work in. She always smelled like lavender. The rest is all you."
"How embarrassing," Sirius quipped, a small smirk on his face.
Ariah chuckled tiredly. "Shuddup.... hey Sirius?"
"Hmm?"
"I love you," she said, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath. "I love you the most."
"I love you the most, Ariah," he said, feeling himself drift off.