I'll Follow You Anywhere

"What do I do? I mean, I want to make a move on Lora but what if she doesn't like me? I don't want to ruin our friendship," I said to him, pleading for an idea.

"Baby steps, my friend, baby steps. Don't worry, I have a plan," he replied, getting the kind of smile on his face that he got whenever we planned a prank. I knew that this was going to be a good idea.

-15-

"Oi! Get up already!" I hissed at the girl's dormitory window. It was freezing cold outside and I was in nothing but my pajamas and a cloak. Not to mention I had the wind soaring past me as a sat balanced on my broom.

I leaned forward and glanced into the dark, silent dormitory again and squinted to get a look at where Lora would be. My eyes swept across the room when I saw someone with flaming red hair turn and look in my direction. I tried to move swiftly out of her view without falling off of my broom but it was too late. Lily's head popped out of the window and she looked at be, flabbergasted.

"What do you think you're doing, Black!?" she whispered at me. Her expression showed that I was probably the last thing she expected to see flying outside of her window.

"Uh, just hanging out. Did you forget my name because last time we talked you called me-"

"Sirius!"

"Yeah, that's what you called me-"

"No, I mean what are you really doing? I sincerely doubt that you just decided to wake up at three in the morning and just sit around next to the girls dormitory window," she said, her voice biting and shaking as she cold air swept past her too.

"Well it's a lovely sunrise-"

"Sirius!"

"Fine, fine. I was trying to wake up Lora. I need to talk to her," I said, begging Lily with my eyes.

"No way! You already hurt her enough yesterday," the groggy red-head replied.

"Please, Lily? I want to apologize! She caught me out of context. Please just wake her up," I pleaded, hoping Lily would follow through with my request.

"Uh, too late," I heard a voice reply. Lora's bed squeaked as she got up and shuffled over to the window.

"Hey," I replied, sadness seeping into my voice.

"Hey," she replied, eying me carefully.

"Wanna go for a ride?" I asked, motioning to my broom.

"Hold on," she said and removed herself from my sight. A moment later she returned with a cloak and hat. After a few minutes of Lily gasping and Lora trying to get onto my broom without falling to her death, we bid Lily goodbye and rode away into the sky.

After a few silent minutes of flying, I landed us on the top of a hill. I offered to help her off but she ignored it, climbing off of the broom herself. After noticing that the ground was blanketed by blank snow, we sat on the edge of the broom, trying hard not to brush hands.

"What do you want, Sirius?" Lora asked me as she stared out at the Hogwarts grounds. They were quiet and bare, the snow on the ground undisturbed. The tree branches were engulfed in the icy substance and icicles shook in the wind. A few owls hooted as they passed over top of us, towards their destination.

"I just…I just wanted to tell you how sorry I am, Lora. You heard me out of context-"

"How did I hear you out of context? The exact words that I heard you say were 'why would I want to date Lora when I could have any girl in this school!' I think that's pretty clear Sirius. And don't you dare try to tell me that I heard you wrong because I know what I've heard and I've heard it a hundred times over since you said that. So don't tell me that I heard you out of context because I heard you perfectly clear," she interrupted, her words biting my heart like a troll on a wizards scull. The effect was crushing.

"Lora," I whispered, half-heartedly wishing that I had never come to see her. "I really am sorry. But you have to understand the… situation."

"Then tell me the situation! I want to hear all about it," she growled, her eyes fiery and sending their hatred-filled flames toward me.

"I-I…I can't. One day though, I'll tell you everything," I answered, looking at her and trying to convey the message through my eyes. Hopefully she will understand I thought to myself.

"I thought best friends were supposed to tell each other everything," she answered, her voice now breaking and tears filling her eyes. "Or was I wrong about that? I mean out of every girl in this school why would you want to be mates with me?"

"Lora! Please don't say-"

"I can find my way back to the common room," she cut me off, climbing off of the broom and heading down the mountains slope, back towards the icy, grey castle.

"Come back!" I yelled at her, jumping off of my broom.

"Are you going to tell me?" she yelled back, turning to face me. I saw the tears streaming down her rosy cheeks.

"I can't, Lor" I replied, turning my gaze in shame.

"Then go find yourself a new mate," she replied. I listened to the crunching of her feet on the snow until I could hear them no more. I looked up and saw that she wasn't to be seen on the vast campus. I was all alone in the middle of what felt like my own sea. Oh, if only Lora would sail back into it and take me back.

Find yourself a new mate echoed throughout my mind, bouncing off the walls of my scull. I sighed and grabbed hold of my broom and followed her footprints back towards the castle. If only something would come to crush these thoughts, these echoes of her hurtful messages.

"Like a troll," I whispered to myself as I treaded back on flat ground.

-

I entered the Great Hall about an hour and a half later. After trekking back up to the castle, I wandered my way into the common room where Lora was no where to be seen. I then headed up to my dormitory to take a hot shower. Maybe it would scald me enough that I couldn't feel the pain that Lora had left.

It didn't though. At least I was warmer. I dried off, got dressed and drudged along to the Great Hall. I found James, Remus and Peter waiting for me. James looked distraught as I sat down and grabbed some toast.

"What's wrong with you?" I asked James, only listening a little bit. Thoughts of the horrific conversation with Lora were still drifting through my mind.

"Lily won't sit with me. Something about Lora. What'd you say to her?" he asked me, pity in his eyes.

"Just told her I was sorry. Things didn't turn out so good though," I answered between bites of toast. I grabbed some pumpkin juice to wash it down.

"What happened?" Remus asked me with concern.

"Eh, don't really feel like talking about it right now," I replied after taking a long gulp of juice.

"Well the plan will make everything better between the two of you! I just know it!" James answered, his spirits growing merrier now. I laughed as I grabbed for bacon and he shot his fist in the air, as if I had already gained triumph. As if the plan had already succeeded.

"We need to work out the flaws in the plan," Remus whispered to us as Lily and Lora passed by, sitting at the other end of the Gryffindor table. I glanced down at Lora but Lily was blocking my view. I caught a quick glimpse as Lora sat down though and saw that she was deliberately avoiding me. My heart let out a shot of pain and I felt Remus pat me on the back. I shook him off, nodded to show that I was okay and turned back to my faithful comrades.

"Is Lora not friends with you anymore?" Peter asked, startling us all. I looked over at him and saw the he was looking at me curiously, dying for an answer. I had never seen this greedy look from Peter before but I decided that I didn't have a reason to his the truth from my friends.

"She doesn't want to be my friend anymore," answered truthfully, pain in my voice and tears threatening my eyes once again. Losing Lora hurt more than I could ever imagine.

"Not of any importance," James blurted out stupidly as he chewed on a huge helping of pancakes.

I laughed as Remus scolded him.

"What? It's not! In no way will that interfere with the plan!" James replied, making a snooty face at Remus when he looked away. I laughed again and was thankful that at least I still had the other Marauders.

"It is interfering, however, with my frolics of love and snogging with Lily-kins," James continued.

"Doesn't she hate it when you call her that?" Remus asked, sparing at chuckle at James.

James shook his head and answered, "Nah, she just pretends like it does. I know that it gets her all hot and bothered deep down." He winked at me when he was finished and I couldn't help but laugh out loud.

"I know she would hate it if she heard you say that," Remus replied, shaking his head and smiling.

"Nope. She'd love it," James said, biting on the last few words.

"Oh really? Well then you wouldn't mind me doing this then: Oh Lily! Do you love it when James gets you all-" Remus was cut off by James shoving a few pancakes in his mouth and pushing him off the bench though.

"Oh, don't listen to Remus, Lilypad! He's just being silly!" James yelled down to her. She rolled her eyes and shook her head before turning back to Lora though. I saw her laugh a little as she turned her head though.

I looked down there to see if she was still laughing but instead my eyes were locked with a pair of bright blue ones. They were slightly red from crying and they turned immediately away after looking at me. Lora blushed as she turned back to Lily.

Maybe it wasn't the end of things between us after all.