Siriusly Deluded

Chapter 25: Valentine's Day

"Sirius, where are we going?" she asked as she hesitantly mounted the broom.

"You'll see when we get there," he replied cryptically.

"Okay." She shrugged and settled against him, resting her cheek on his back and twining her arms around his waist.

She closed her eyes, loving the contrasting sensations of the cold wind rushing through her hair and the warmth of Sirius' body in front of hers.

After what felt like much too little time, Sirius stopped the broom and hopped off, extending his arms to help her down. She couldn't see anything beyond him...not that she was complaining about that.

"Where are we?" she questioned his chest.

"I'll show you," he replied, taking her hand and leading her up the sloping ground. He stopped in front of a large cave on the side of the hill.

Her eyebrows knitted, she followed him, gasping when they were inside the cave.

"Everyone always goes to the tower," he explained, shrugging his shoulders.

"Sirius, this is better than the tower," she replied breathily, looking around.

The floor of the cave was lined with what seemed like hundreds of white candles, giving the room a warm, golden glow. Even more were suspended in the air, like the ceiling in the Hall.

In the center was a large, fluffy blanket with a white wicker basket sitting on it. Sirius led her over to the blanket and sat, pulling her down with him. She fell into his lap quite ungracefully and accidentally elbowed him in the stomach.

"Oof," he grunted, rubbing the spot where she hit him.

"I'm so sorry," she apologized softly, running her hand across his abdomen gently.

"It's my fault," he replied quickly, lifting his hand to her face. "I know what a klutz you are."

"Hey," she pouted, slightly hurt, removing her hand from his body and turning away from him slightly. He tilted her face back to his and kissed her fully on the lips.

"Did I mention that I think klutziness is very, very sexy?" he asked when he pulled away.

She smiled, her eyes still half-closed. "No, you didn't."

"Well, I do." He kissed her again, hungrily. He wound his arms around her tightly, drawing her body close to his as he lowered both of them to the ground.

She pulled away ten minutes later when she heard his stomach rumble loudly. "Maybe we should eat?" she suggested, raising herself up slightly.

"Okay...just lie back down while I set everything up," he replied, sitting up and making sure she obeyed his request before opening the basket. He set two plates in front of it and began to pull out assorted food items.

"What is that?" she asked softly. "It smells really good."

"Pizza," he replied, still setting out the food.

She frowned. "What's that?"

"James and I discovered it in Muggle London over the summer. You'll love it."

"Okay," she replied, a smile spreading over her face.

"It's ready," he finally said.

She sat up and turned around slowly, grinning as she took in the picnic he prepared.

"Wow," she said softly.

He handed her a plate with a slice of pizza on it. She accepted it and placed the plate in her lap. Then she gingerly picked it up, inhaling deeply before she took a bite.

"What do you think?" he asked, his mouth full of his own slice of pizza. Probably the entire slice.

"Ew, Sirius," she replied before taking another bite.

"You don't like it?" he questioned after swallowing.

"No, I like it, I just don't like seeing it after you've chewed it up," she said, scrunching up her nose.

He shrugged his shoulders and grabbed another slice, devouring it just as quickly as the previous one.

After she finished her slice, she looked over at him. He was smiling at her, a strange look in his eyes.

"What?" she asked, setting down the plate beside her.

He crawled over to her slowly. "You have some sauce on your chin."

"Oh," she replied, reaching for a napkin.

"No, no, I've got it," he said, his face already just centimeters from hers.

She closed her eyes and felt them nearly roll back into her head as he licked the sauce off of her chin. 'Oh, God, is that my brain?' she thought dizzily.

"You shouldn't waste something as good as pizza..." he murmured against her mouth before kissing her. His tongue almost immediately probed her lips, begging for entrance into her mouth. She sighed and obliged, drowning in the kiss. He tasted like pizza, her new favorite food.

"...or an excuse to snog you," he finished when he pulled away.

She fell forward a little when he moved but caught herself with her hand and nodded. Her eyes locked with his once more.

He tore his eyes away from hers and looked down at the food.

"So, next we have some ice cream," he said distantly, picking up a container and handing it to her, along with a spoon. She opened it carefully and her eyes lit up when she saw that it was cookies and cream.

"You remembered," she murmured, more to herself than to him. "Aren't you going to have any?" she asked.

"Nah, I don't really like it that much," he replied.

She raised her eyebrow before dipping her spoon into the container. When they were younger he'd always want cookies and cream, if only to prevent her from having it.

He watched as she raised the spoon to her lips, her eyes closing as soon as it was in her mouth.

"Mmm," she moaned softly. She'd forgotten how good it was.

"Er, maybe I do want some," he said, moving so he was beside her again.

She opened her eyes slowly. "I thought you said you didn't like it," she replied doubtfully, pulling the container protectively into her body.

"I changed my mind," he retorted.

"You can't just--"

He kissed her hard, his tongue darting into her open mouth instantly. When he pulled away from her, she stared at him, wide-eyed, before slowly raising another spoonful to her lips. This time, she leaned towards him, her eyelids fluttering closed. When their lips met, she opened her mouth hesitantly. Yeah, he'd definitely changed his mind about cookies and cream ice cream.

"You want your present now?" he asked when she pulled away.

She sat up slowly, and he regretted saying anything. Even with the warming charm and the heat from the candles, he still felt cold without her in his arms. She nodded and he sat up as well, reaching into the basket and pulling out a small rectangular box.

He handed it to her and she gazed up at him before opening it carefully. Her eyes lit up when she saw the contents and she glanced up at him again to see his wide grin.

She gently pulled out a delicate silver bracelet from the box, inspecting the tiny charms dangling off of it.

"Come here," she ordered softly, patting the blanket next to her.

He obeyed and sat beside her. She leaned into his shoulder, the top of her head resting against his jaw, and his arms snaked around her waist.

The charm on the end was a lightning bolt. "That night before we came to Hogwarts," he whispered into her ear. The next one was a fish. She smiled at the memory of him frantically trying to catch the fish and could feel his face form the same expression. Then came a boat. She turned her head and kissed him softly. A broom was next. After that, a star.

"I still wish we could've gone there," he murmured.

"I told you this was better," she reminded him.

Then a book, an ornament, a snowflake, a skate, a tiny stack of pancakes, a slice of pizza...

"How did you know I would like it?" she asked with a smile.

"How could you not like it?" he replied.

The final charm was a paw print.

Light glinted off the charm, and she leaned down to inspect it more closely. In impossibly small letters, it said, "I love you."

"Sirius," she breathed, turning to him. "This is the best present ever."

"So...you like it?"

She rolled her eyes and kissed him.

"Yes or no?" he asked, his eyes still half-closed.

She kissed him again.

"Because I could--"

"Shut up."