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Chapter Two: The Snake Princess

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It didn't take long for Sirius' birthday party to get out of hand. Luckily, the Slytherins did not make an appearance which ultimately led the boys to drinking much more than they should have. Atleast that was the case for Sirius and James.

Remus, on the other hand, acted like the 'mother hen' of the group. He was always the one with the most common sense, and he knew that getting plastered off firewhiskey was not the right move for him. There was an essay due for potions class on Monday, and although Remus was always the first one to have his work complete, he wanted to get to the library early tomorrow morning to work out a few kinks.

Peter was a one drink man. The poor guy took three sips and was already dancing in circles with Marlene in front of the fireplace.

"Mate, mate...listen to me." James' words were slightly slurred as he clutched the glass of whiskey and held it close to his chest. He leaned over as he spoke and the tip of his nose brushing against Sirius' cheek.

"James, can you sit back?" Sirius laughed, leaning further away so James was no longer invading his personal space.

"Yes, yes, so sorry about that." James cleared his throat and glanced back over to Lily, who was standing in between the Prewett twins, Gideon and Fabian. A small flash of jealousy crashed over his features before Sirius broke his concentration.

"What did you want to tell me?"

"I just want you to know that you're better than those mangy Slytherin mutts... Romina and Regulus included." James was brutally honest when it mattered the most. He knew Sirius still loved his brother. He also knew he had grown up with Romina but they had never truly interacted with one another while at school.

"Thanks mate." Sirius shook his head, wrapping an arm playfully around James' shoulders and giving him a tight squeeze. He drank the rest of his drink, closing his eyes as the alcohol slipped down his throat. The last thing he wanted to be doing was having a serious heart to heart with James when there were a few girls he had wanted to talk to at his party.

"I'll be back later." Sirius told him, patting his back roughly, causing James to spill his whiskey with an obnoxious gasp.

Sirius stood up and headed through the sea of people, grinning widely as everyone wished him a happy birthday. Sirius was known for making eyes with anyone who had a pulse, really, and nobody ever thought twice about it. Tonight, of course, was certainly no different.

The two older girls who he had spotted at breakfast earlier that day had been hanging out closer to the portrait hole, and Sirius found himself walking over and engaging them in his well thought out proposal.

He had no idea that they would agree to it. And so, when they both enthusiastically nodded their heads and smiled up at him, Sirius had slipped his arms around their waists and headed out of the common room and into the empty, dark corridor.

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Since the altercation in the hallway, Romina kept her distance from Avery and Mulciber. Luckily, none of the girls she had shared her dorm with were up there yet, so she was able to sneak Regulus in to spend some time with him.

"You have to stop getting in the middle of things, Mina. Sirius is exactly what Mulciber called him." Regulus stated firmly, twirling his wand around in between his thin, long fingers. "It doesn't look good that you were trying to stand up for him."

"Reggie, knock it off. I wasn't standing up for him." Romina rolled her eyes, sitting straight at her vanity as she played with her hair, braiding it off into sections before untying them and starting back up again. It was a habit she had picked up when she was younger, purely out of boredom.

"I just didn't want to bring any unwanted attention our way. Mulciber is far too thick skulled to know when to back down, you know that. If he got detention because of that little testosterone war with your brother, we would have to listen to him complain the entire weekend. Do you really want that?" Romina glanced over her shoulder at Regulus. The boy was stretched out on her bed, his head resting back against the headboard.

"No, of course not. But you still need to watch your back. I don't want you getting into any trouble with your parents." Regulus sighed out an excuse. In reality, he felt some sort of way when he spotted the glances being shared between his best friend and brother.

"Anyway...enough about that." Romina got up and collapsed onto the bed besides Regulus. "Do you think I could get out of marrying Avery?"

Regulus laughed. "Where is this coming from?"

"Because I don't want to marry him. Sure, he's a bit easy on the eyes... but he's a git. And his laugh is annoying."

Rolling his eyes playfully, Regulus slipped his arm around Romina's shoulders, pulling her into his side. "I don't know, Mina." His disposition was suddenly serious. "We really shouldn't do anything to upset the Dark Lord. If it's his will for you to marry Avery, then that's what you need to do."

"But I'd much rather marry you, Reg. We love each other, you know, and I think we'd both be happy not being forced to spend the rest of our lives with someone we don't love." Romina began chewing on her bottom lip. She looked up at Regulus and sighed, "Don't you agree?"

"I love you like a sister, Mina, like you love me as a brother." Regulus told her, knowing she couldn't fight him much more on the topic. "Plus, I don't think I'd be able to...well, you know."

Romina tried to hold in her laughter. "I don't think I know what you're referring to?" She questioned teasingly, shifting up a bit to get a better look at his face.

"Please don't make me say it."

Romina thought for a moment before they both made eye contact and broke out into grins. "What? Say what?" She finally got out between fits of giggles, reaching up to tug him down closer so she could playfully muss up his hair, giggles still escaping her lips.

"It would be like having sex with my sister. Mina, you are a beautiful girl, but I never...ever want to see you naked." Regulus was so serious as he spoke, a look of sheer disgust on his face. He playfully nudged her away from him, trying to fix his hair back to how he had it before she mussed it up.

Romina was still laughing, letting Regulus push her away before she leaned up on her elbow. "Could you imagine? I mean, no, don't answer that. I don't really want to see you naked either." She teased back, kicking his leg teasingly, pushing him closer and closer to the edge of her bed.

He playfully pinched her cheek before letting her tiny feet move his legs enough until he moved to get up from her bed. "I should head back to the boy's dorm. It's late and we've got quidditch practice in the morning. Will you come watch?"

"Aren't I always at all of your practices and games?" She laid her head down on her pillow and looked up at him with a smile.

"I was just double checking." He sounded unsure of himself, and that pained Romina. She hated seeing her best friend struggle with his confidence. "Goodnight, Mina." Regulus shot her a wink before he slipped out through her door, heading back to his own dormitory for the night.

Glancing at the clock gently nestled up high on the wall across from her bed, Romina let out a soft sigh. It was just after midnight, but she was not tired at all. She closed her eyes for a moment, working her brain to figure out how she could sneak up to the astronomy tower. The air coming through the window of the dorm wasn't enough for her, and she knew she'd be able to sneak a cigarette while she was up there.

She quickly jumped from her bed and stuffed her wand into her hair after throwing it up onto her head. She grabbed her favorite green cloak, slipping it around her shoulders and tying the strings into a knot around her neck. She was then able to slip along the hallway, down the staircase and quickly out of the portrait hole without being spotted. She tugged the hood up over her head and tried her best to not make much noise as she bustled through the dark corridors.

The last thing she wanted was to get caught and get a detention. She was always one to stay out of trouble, and she knew her parents would not be pleased to hear she had been, in any way, insubordinate. Though they didn't really care for the Hogwarts headmaster, she knew they would still be enraged if she was in trouble. And let's not get started on her brothers.

Rabastan was always her favorite. He had always been the most caring and loving when it came to his younger sister. Rodolphus, on the other hand, was always strict. He was obsessive when it came to the dark lord, and Romina would not be surprised if he had been the mastermind behind the plan to betroth her to Avery.

Ever since she was a young girl, she had been groomed to join her brothers in the Dark Lords army. She had been present when they received their Dark Marks when they turned sixteen. It looked quite painful and although Romina was not involved in receiving one of her own, she felt pain in her left arm as though she had. She had perfected her poker face, so to speak, and sometimes wondered how far that talent could take her in life.

As she began turning a corner, Romina had not been paying attention to where she was walking. Her eyes remained glued to the floor and not more than five seconds after she started down the new corridor, she ended up encountering a hard body which caused her to jolt back and fall right on her bottom.

"Fuck." She hissed at the pain that radiated up her lower back. The hood had fell back, exposing her face now as she looked up at what, or who, she had run into.

"You've got quite the mouth on you, Mina."

"Sirius." Romina narrowed her brown eyes at the boy who stood there before her, hands tucked into the pockets of his robes with a shit-eating grin spread wide on his lips.

"Here," The Gryffindor reached down, holding his hand out for her to take.

"No, thank you. I can stand up on my own." Romina swatted his hand away before pushing herself up off the floor, grimacing at the soreness she was certain she would feel for the next few days. Once she stood up, she brushed herself off a bit, keeping her eyes on the floor before finally lifting her gaze up, ignoring the fact that the boy standing in front of her had been watching her by the time she looked up at him.

"What?" she asked him as her arms crossed over her chest.

"Nothing. Just wondering what the snake princess is doing out here this late at night." Sirius stated, knowing the nickname would get a rise out of her.

"Pfft. Snake princess." Romina snorted, quickly covering her mouth although it had been too late. Sirius had heard her and was grinning even more. "But, if you must know, I needed to get some fresh air. I couldn't sleep." She shrugged. Slipping her hand into the pocket of her cloak, she pulled out the green and silver metal cigarette tin she had stolen from her brother.

"Since when have you smoked?"

"Since the summer. If you spent any time with us, you would have already known that. Now, if you'll excuse me." Romina glared at him before stepping around him to continue her path to the hidden alcove that had an accessible window. She didn't feel like having him follow her up to the astronomy tower. She didn't want anyone to know that was her special place to hide out at. Opening the cigarette tin as she leaned by the window, Romina let out a soft sigh. She was only fourteen, she knew it was a nasty habit, but she had watched her brothers and Bellatrix partake that she had wanted to be included. Somewhere in her teenage mind she also thought she looked badass while she smoked.

Sirius watched her go and adjusted his trousers a bit as he started rushing after her. He had been lucky that the girls he had spent time with had left the classroom a few minutes prior, so Romina did not run into them. He ran his fingers through his hair before sidling up next to the Slytherin as she lit the delicately, hand-rolled cigarette with the tip of her wand.

Choosing to ignore Sirius' unwanted presence, Romina leaned herself against the stone wall, blowing out the cloud of smoke she had just inhaled moments prior.

"I'm the black sheep of my family, Romina. You know that. Why would I spend time with them?" Sirius finally spoke up after clearing his throat. He held his hand out, gesturing for her to share the cigarette with him.

Glancing between his face, his hand, and then her own, Romina rolled her eyes. She took a large drag of the cigarette before handing it off to him. "Regulus is still your brother. And he loves you." She spoke lowly, keeping her gaze on his face as the smoke exited her mouth and nose. She felt a slight burning sensation but kept her composure even though she had so badly wanted to start coughing.

"He thinks I'm a disappoint as well, Mina, don't try to fool me." Sirius scoffed. Taking a few drags of the cigarette before pressing it against the wall beside him. He pulled his wand out and banished the remnants of the stick of nicotine before looking back at Romina. "I know you do, too."

Romina rolled her eyes. "If you're looking to start a fight with me because you're the one with the fucked-up beliefs, Sirius, keep walking. I'm not in the mood."

"You're just as brainwashed as my brother, Mina. It makes me sick." Sirius reached forward and grabbed onto her shoulders, turning her around so they were eye to eye. "Do you think I'm a blood traitor? Do you really think that anyone who doesn't have the same pure blood as you deserves to die?"

Romina gulped loudly. She maintained eye contact with him and chose to not respond for another moment or two before she finally spoke up. "You smell awful, Black. Like you drank an entire bottle of firewhiskey... and you also smell like perfume. Women's perfume to be exact. Ugh, disgusting. Get your hands off me, I don't know where they've been." She reached up and grabbed his elbows, pushing outwards to bend his arms and force him to release his grip on her.

"You didn't answer my question!" Sirius snapped, reaching over as she started walking off again. He slipped his hand into hers, squeezing tightly so she would stop walking.

"Yes!" She cried, ripping her hand from his. "Yes, I think that. Because it's the truth!"

"If it's the truth, then why does it look like you're about to cry?"

"Because you're an arsehole, Sirius Black. That's why. Goodnight." Romina turned quickly, trying to ignore the nausea washing over her. She didn't even realize there had been another set of eyes watching them from a dark corner she rushed past, pulling her cloak tighter around her shoulders as if the tightness of the clothing would, at all, make her feel better.

"You didn't even wish me a happy birthday!"