Chapter 20

"I can't believe you're all leaving me next week," Adria sighs, leaning against the archway in the living room and looking over at the teenagers sprawled out on the couches. Jesse and Ramona were visiting until New Years and Adria was more than happy to have them. Much to Sirius' dismay who was terribly protective of "his girls" Adria was still and always would be a hopeless romantic and loved having them, it was always so cute to see them being coupley.

Adria never saw Lia as romantic, even though she knew very well of her crush on Alina she never acted on it but seeing her with Ramona was just so adorable that she had to stop herself from gushing. Currently, Lia was lying with her head on Ramona's chest whilst the girl ran her hands through her blue hair, Lia looked as though she was almost falling asleep and it was just all around cute.

Alina had her legs sprawled over Jesse's on the other couch with her hand in his on her leg and a smile on her lips whenever she caught him staring at her. It was always nice that Alina had someone she loved as much as she loved Jesse, for the longest time Adria thought that Alina wouldn't even care to date anyone and as much as that was perfectly alright, it was clear that Alina was happy with Jesse.

The girl was happy that both Alina and Lia had found people who loved them as much as they loved them, it was always so sad that Lia had to cope with Alina not being able to reciprocate the love she had for her, and now that she had Ramona it was clear that all previous feelings of that nature towards Alina had definitely vanished.

"I don't want to leave," Alina frowned, "I feel like school is just pointless now. The Professors are all clearly worried about the war and half of the students are gone now that their parents think they'll be safer with them."

"Hogwarts is supposed to be the safest place," Adria said, wrapping her cardigan around herself at the breeze floating in through the window, "it's the safest place for all of you. If I had the chance to be protected by the castle again I'd take it in a heartbeat because it's terrifying sometimes. Kids I went to school with have gone missing and Dorcas' parents have taken her and left and it's all so crazy that sometimes the only place you are safe is the place you can't be.

So, if you guys have the opportunity to stay there then stay for as long as you can!"

"I've only got months to go," Lia whispered. She was very evidently scared and not just for the war she had to fight but everything else. Her N.E.W.Ts were coming up and she was terribly afraid of that too because no matter the war she was intending to survive it and she needed to know her future would be secured for her, "and I have nowhere to go when I leave."

"I think not," Adria exclaimed, "Lia this is your home whether you like it or not, you are my best friend and you have lived with us for years and that's not stopping anytime soon."

"But-"

"No buts," Adria said, wagging her finger at the girl, "I don't care if you're only a year younger than me and I don't care if you wish to fight in the order, but you are my honorary child and you will live in this house!"

"Adria!" her head turned at the sound of Sirius' voice and with a frown on her lips at the tone, she held her finger to indicate one minute and hurried into the kitchen, "mails here."

"You don't sound very happy about that," Adria said, walking over to him and wrapping her arms around his waist. Her head rested on his shoulder, pressing kisses to the skin the t-shirt that previously belonged to Benji failed to cover.

"More like...confused," he muttered quietly, "It's a letter from Gringotts."

"Oh," she said, "that's odd. We've been using muggle banking."

"Exactly," his voice was quiet, and he soon ripped the envelope open, unfolding it whilst Adria pushed herself onto her tiptoes in order to read better, "Dear Mr Black we thought it wise to inform you that you have been placed in ownership of a wealthy sum of gold."

"Gold?!" Adria repeated, wide-eyed.

Sirius read the rest of the letter whilst Adria leaned on the counter, more so in disbelief as to why and how Sirius was placed in charge of a sum of gold. It must have something to do with the wizarding world with the letter being sent with their owl as well as it being from Gringotts and she wondered if James and Lily felt quite sorry for them and decided to help them out a bit.

They better not have, she couldn't help but think.

"My Uncle Alphard," Sirius said after many moments of reading over the letter more than once, "has left me a large sum of gold, it seems. It also seems like the wizarding world knows what we're bloody doing because they offered to cash it in for muggle money and that in a weeks' time both of us have a meeting."

"Both of us?" she asked, head tilted.

"You are part of my family now, as much as I am yours. We're getting married so what's mine is yours, the gold is both of ours." He shrugged his shoulders and Adria knew he was completely shocked that he seemed so calm, but he was anything but.

"Sirius do you need to sit down?" she laughed softly, reaching for his hand and guiding him to sit on the bar stool. She was shocked, but she had been shocked way too many times that she knew how to deal with it and her hand stayed in Sirius' as he sat there.

"You don't seem too shocked," Sirius commented, looking at the letter once more.

"I am," she said, squeezing his hand, "but I'm confused. Your...uncle, why would he give you money? And why would he after you left your family behind."

"I think because he's been banished like I have," he whispered, "that if there's anyone to gain an inheritance from him then it would be me...or us, even. Adria this money could help us more than anything."

"Sirius," she sighed, leaning into him and kissing him, "we are going to be drowning in money soon. Alfie keeps pestering me about our old house and we're going to get money from that too I think the bank is going to be suspicious."

"Maybe we should pull a James and Lily and live out our days lying about the house," Sirius laughed, and she knew he was only laughing because he was too shocked to do anything else. The letter was still tightly gripped in his hand and she wondered how their visit to Gringotts would go, what they would do there.

She wondered if this meant they would be opening up a vault that was in their name, and that the gold from Sirius' uncle would be waiting for them as they pleased. It seemed like the logical answer to it all.

"Sooner or later the money will run out," she whispered, a smile on her lips when his hand slid around her waist, "but it means you don't have to work more than your regular shifts and I think I'd be less guilty with maternity leave."

"Thank Merlin," Sirius whispered into her forehead, "I don't know if I should be happy or wary. How much do you think a wealthy sum is?"

"I have absolutely no idea," she sighed, "but you do know that what's mine is yours works both ways, right? Whatever money I get from my half of my parent's home then it's straight into our bank, Sirius, it helps us and no one can deny that my parents were rich...merlin they were loaded so I have no clue what we'll be getting."

"I think we have two angels looking over us, Addy," he said, cupping her cheek and slowly kissing her, "two angels that used to look after us on earth that now aren't as close but are still there and they're doing all they can to make sure we aren't completely helpless."

"Well I think that's the only explanation," she said, lacing their fingers together as she stood beside him so close. His arm around her had tightened and she was pressed into him, basking in the warmth he engulfed her with, "we have so much to do if you think of it. Do you know Jude is already asking for birthday presents?"

"As much as it is rather hilarious it's not at all surprising," Sirius couldn't help but chuckle, "he grew up with everything."

"He's barely three!" she quietly exclaimed, "he's obsessed with nail polish."

"He's obsessed with the three of us wearing it because he likes us all to be matching," Sirius laughed, but his laugh turned to a scowl, "I'm rather surprised you weren't kicked out of his nursery earlier."

"Don't get me started," Adria huffed, "that man had no right! Just because Jude is a boy doesn't mean he shouldn't love what he does...it's a colour on his nails who gives a shit!"

"I know," Sirius grumbled, "don't think he was very happy when I flipped him off though," he looked down at the black on his nails that Adria had painted that morning.

"His face was priceless," Adria let out a laugh, "I like painting your nails because you tickle my leg with your free hand."

His hand slid down from her lower back and to her thigh at her words and pulled her closer whilst she shook her head, "you don't need to paint my nails for me to tickle your leg Addy, any excuse to touch you is good enough for me."

"Please never let me forget that money puts you in an excellent mood," she teased, lifting up his chin and connecting their lips, "we could pay for wedding stuff with it."

"Speaking of wedding stuff," he mumbled into her lips, reluctantly pulling away and unable to hold back his smile when she followed his lips for a few seconds, "I really think it should be soon...the wedding I mean."

"I think so too, I want that actually," she nodded, squeezing his hand, "and if you want it to be a big deal with every single friend we remotely knew at Hogwarts then we can take a few months, but I don't care about that. I don't care if it's big and fancy I just care about you and how I want our large family to be there."

"Yes," he said, nodding, "but I also want your siblings there. I want Alina there and Lia and even Jesse and Ramona. I want them there and I don't want to wait until summer, Adria."

Her lips parted, and her heart swelled and sped up at the same time, "when do you want it, then, Sirius?"

"Next week," he whispered, "New Year's Day."

"That's really early," she said, wide-eyed, "what about a...a priest and a venue and all of that?! can we really do all of that in a week?!"

"Adria, we could get married in a field and I wouldn't care, but the park...the one in the heart of the city - I phoned the council office for the information and you can rent it out. We could spend the money on that, get married on your favourite bridge...there's space for seating for our friends and I'm sure we can find a priest somewhere!" he exclaimed.

"You called to find that out?" she asked, watching him nod, "how can you possibly be any more wonderful?"

She took his face in her hand, lurching forward and connecting their lips much more forcefully. His hand slid up from her legs, gripping her tighter than before and even going as far as to pull her into his lap. She had been gone from the living room for well over a minute, but she didn't mind, she was too busy basking in her love for the boy she was sitting on that she didn't care about anything else other than him and that she wished to marry him on New Year's Day.

"We can find you a dress," he said between kisses, "you could show up in my hoodie and you'd still be the most beautiful bride," she was trying her best to connect their lips regardless of what he said, her hand tangled in his hair and his hands roaming her body and all she wanted was him.

She stopped after her breath had run out, panting in his arms with a smile on her face and her eyes crinkling with happiness, "I don't care what I wear, I don't care what you wear or who shows up if it's all of our friends or none of them. but I want you and I want to marry you next week and I want to become Mrs Hopkins-Black, and I'm so in love with you, Sirius, I'm so fucking in love with you and I will be forever."

"You really love me?"

"Of course, I do," she nodded her head and he pulled her back in for a kiss.

"To the moon and back?" he whispered with her forehead on his and her lips tugged with happiness.

"And a stop within the stars."