2 years ago from present time

Sirius walked along the stone pathways, looking up at the bright sun in the sky. Murmurs of people who were relaxing in the gardens mixed amongst the chirping of birds, the sounds moving along with the wind. He moved slowly along the shaded walkway with multiple pure white pillars towering beside him, leading to a stairway which gave way to a balcony overviewing the whole city. He reached the top, examining the vast array or colours on the bushes that lined the area. The tower spiralled upwards behind him as the drop over the edge gave way to the islands in the distance and the buildings down below. A pat on his back sent a shock up his spine as he whipped around, hearing a small laugh that came from his right.

“Let your guard down.” Maria stated as she leaned on the railing, breathing in the air. “What took you so long?”

He sighed and sat down on a bench beside her. “I got caught up in the garden.”

“By?”

“The flowers, the weather, and a girl.”

She paused for a moment and then twirled around, sitting beside him. “A girl?”

He chuckled and shook his head. “Not like that.”

“I was going to say, you would break that scholar’s heart.”

“Excuse me?”

“You know, the one that you were talking with yesterday.”

He let out a short sigh and raised his eyebrow at her. “It was that obvious?”

“Yes, very much so.” She put her foot up onto the bench and smirked. “So, how long has that been going?”

“Just a few months or so, nothing serious.”

The birds chirped in the distance as she nodded and looked upwards. “Keep it that way, it’s hard to stay connected.” Sirius glanced over at her as she looked upwards to the floors above. She shook her head and looked back at him. “Sorry, off topic, who was this girl you met?”

“Her name’s Felicia, she was… troubled.”

“How so?”

Sirius leaned back, crossing his arms. “She lost her mother recently.”

“Oh, I see.”

“There’s a lot she’s dragging along with her.”

“Mm.” Maria looked down and sighed. “You’re helping her?”

“Yeah.”

“Does she want to be helped?” The islands behind him glimmered as the waterfalls shone brightly in the distance.

“I don’t know, but she needs it.”

“I figured.” Maria stood up, stretching her arms outwards. “Well, I wish I could offer advice.”

“That’s alright, you have other lessons to give.”

She smirked and turned around. “Speaking of which, you’ve been slacking off.”

“Oh come on, not this again.”

“Oh yes this again! How many times? You can’t skip these things.”

“I can every once in a while.”

“If you do it once you’ll do it again.”

Sirius sighed and waved his hand. “I’ll do it later.”

“Mmhm, sure.”

“Hey, I will eventually.”

She smiled and chuckled. “Idiot.”

“Excuse me?”

“Nevermind, let's go get something to eat.”

He nodded and got up, walking beside her. She stretched her arms behind her head, letting out a quiet exhale. “Take off your standards, we’re going to the lower levels.”

Sirius nodded and took the sercoat off of his shoulder, folding it under his arm. They were allowed to wear their military gear in the lower levels, but Maria never wanted to be noticed. She stopped by the door to the barracks, opening it and letting Sirius throw his coat inside. “Come on, hurry up.”

She quickened her pace moving up a set of stairs to the bridge leading downwards. Her movements were akin to a skip as she reached the top and she sighed with a smile as she looked back at him. “Were you listening? We don’t have all day.”

Sirius shook his head with a grin and hopped up the stairs as she moved towards the bridge. That was a lie, she could have all day if she wanted to. The water moved calmly below the raft, cyclically swirling in a teal blue as he stepped onto it. “What’s the rush?”

“Hm?”

“You seem giddy.”

“Excuse me? Do you want me to hit you?”

Sirius laughed as the raft started to move. “No thanks, I’m still sore from this morning.”

“Did I break anything?”

“No, but-”

“Then you’re fine, stop complaining.” She took a look at the distant walls as a breeze flew by, rustling her hair off her shoulders. Turning her head away, she placed her hands on the railing in front of her. “You know, I went out yesterday.”

“To where?”

“Outside the city, to a small mining town up the mountains.”

Sirius perked up. “What did you do there?”

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“Not much, didn’t find anybody.”

“Nobody was in town?”

“Hasn’t been for years.”

He looked over to her, the smile gone from her face as she leaned on the railing. “I… don’t know what’s going on out there. I don’t think I ever paid enough attention, and it’s too late now.”

“You can still help, nobody would object to you joining them.”

She paused and let her head fall downwards. “That’s not what I mean.”

“Then what do you mean?” The waterfalls below them fell in white mist as the raft continued downwards, the white marble of the buildings gleaming under the sunlight. She sighed and stood up straight. “I don’t know, nevermind, I’m just rambling.”

Sirius nodded and let the topic drop. Her hand traced the silver chain around her neck, her fingers falling lightly onto the locket. Maria quickly shook her head and smiled as they neared the bottom. “So, any requests for food?”

“Up to you, preferably something light.”

She nodded and stepped off the raft and onto the lightly shaded marbled floor. Pillars circled around on the rounded base, the stone towering upwards as the arched ceiling above bounced light downwards, and the trees lining the edges of the giant dias brimmed a vibrant green. Maria quickly stepped off, brushing past the small groups of people leisurely walking through the area. Sirius followed her through the thinly packed crowd, glancing over as a gust of wind flew by, pulling a piece of paper to a man’s hand. He stopped for a second to watch them pull more papers towards themself, keeping his eye on the streams of manipulated wind. A hand tugged on his shoulder, pulling him away. Maria patted him on the back, continuing her march forwards. “Come on, don’t get jealous, we have places to be.”

“I’m not jealous-”

“Sirius, it’s okay to want that, just don’t deny you do.”

He grimaced and followed her. She pushed his shoulder again, continuing with a sigh. “Look, don’t beat yourself up over something you don’t have.”

“It’s hard not to.”

“You have no control over it, you’ve been hung up on this for too long.”

“I’m surrounded by people who-”

“Yes, yes, I’m aware, but you also have things they don’t.”

“Like what?”

She turned to him and raised her eyebrow. “Your position in the army? Your combat proficiency? Your training?”

“Anybody could work for that.”

“Just take the compliment, I don’t give those out for nothing.”

The marbled floor gave way to a large neatly carved stone pathway lined by delicately crafted wooden and brick buildings. Storefronts bustled as they mixed in with the crowd. Maria kept moving forwards, her pace still faster than everybody else around. Sirius murmured an apology as he pushed past a couple in order to catch up to her, trying to keep sight of her burgundy hair which shone a deep ruby red under the sunlight. She looked back at him, motioning for him to keep up. He followed, watching her slink through the crowd. She always had a way of blending in despite how much she should’ve stood out.

The amount of people lessened as Maria broke off from the mainstreet and down a set of storefronts. It was amazing how many stores there were in the commercial district, with new ones popping up every time Sirius came down. Maria knew her way around, and he would’ve loved to become as accustomed as her, but was too busy with assignments and training. She stopped in front of a store, letting out a small sigh. “Here we are.”

Sirius looked up to see the front of a bakery with loaves of bread and pastries lining the storefront. He looked over to Maria, who stared upwards at it for a second. She shook her head and pushed the thin wooden door open. Maria walked up to the counter at the end of the room, waving at the woman behind the counter. “Hello Beatrice.”

The woman looked up, her aged hands pushing up a pair of glasses on her nose, exclaiming quietly. “Oh, Maria! It’s been a while.”

“Yes, it has.”

The woman’s gaze darted to Sirius and back to Maria as she pointed to the shelves behind. “Two of the regular please.”

“Just that? I could get you some more on the house if you want.”

“We’re alright, but thank you for the offer.”

The woman smiled and pulled two braided pieces of bread out from a basket, handing them to Maria who placed the money on the counter. Beatrice looked her in the eye with a soft smile. “Take care Maria, don’t feel afraid to swing by again.”

“Thank you, I will.”

Maria smiled and waved as she headed for the door, handing Sirius a warm loaf. They exited onto the street as Maria ripped a piece off hers and ate it. Sirius looked at the bread and started to eat as well. “You’ve been here before?”

“A while ago, yes.” She looked over at him as they slowly walked along the storefronts, keeping at a leisurely pace as she glanced over to him. “How is it?”

“Good.”

“Did you need more? I wasn’t sure how hungry you were.”

“No, this is enough, thanks.” He glanced over to her, watching her body sway side to side as she walked. Her tone was lighter than before, more distant. He cautiously spoke up, unsure of her attitude. “Are you alright?”

“Hm? Yes, why do you ask?”

“No reason, just checking.” He took another piece off, looking at the weaved dough. “Why braided?”

“Why not?”

She laughed and shook her head. “I asked the same thing before.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.”

He took another look at her, listening to her voice trail off as she took another bite. Her steps were delicate and her arms were tucked in tightly. Sirius moved ahead of her, motioning for her to follow. “Let’s sit down somewhere.”

“Alright, after you.”

They sauntered through the ornate white marble arches which were adorned with bouquets of flowers, the greenery welcoming Sirius through and into a beautiful garden. He looked back at Maria, who wistfully gazed into the scenery. She glanced at him and flashed a smile, taking another piece to eat as she stepped onto the grass. Sirius walked to a small bench and sat down, looking up at the trees above, their leaves softly swaying in the wind. Maria brushed her hand over a flower and sat on the opposite side of the bench, letting out a sigh. Sirius looked over at her again, trying to discern her expression. He gave up trying to figure out on his own and asked her. “Are you sure you’re alright?”

“Hm?” Her eyes flicked to him and then to the bushes around, looking through them. “I’m fine, don’t worry.”

She leaned back and brushed her hair out of her eyes, finishing the last piece of bread before crossing her legs over one another, getting comfortable on the white iron. “Sirius?”

“Yes?”

She paused for a moment, her eyes flickering between him and the distance. “What would you do once you stop? Being a soldier I mean.”

“Sorry?”

She sighed and tilted her head upwards, her eyes dimming. “You have planned to stop at some point, right?”

“I…”

She shot a glance at him, leaning forwards as her tone got lower. “You’ve been doing this for a while, it has to be tiring for you, especially with all the nobles.”

“Yeah, it can be, but I’m far from done.”

“Done from what?”

Sirius, paused, glimpsing at her as she continued, her voice quiet. “It won’t end, you know that. We haven’t fixed anything, we never have.”

“Maybe, but it’s not about fixing things. You’ve done so much already, I still have a ways to go.”

She sunk her head lower, looking over at him with deafened eyes and running her hand through her hair. “... I haven’t..”

“Maria, what’s going on?”

“I don’t know. I’m sorry, forget I said anything.” She stood up, shaking her head. “I’m just a bit tired, I’ll go back to my room.”

“Okay, I’ll walk with you.”

“Sorry, I think I need a minute alone.”

Sirius held his words back as she walked away, her hand slowly brushing on the bark of the tree as she walked. He let out a sigh as he watched her go, her steps remaining silent as she moved. She drifted out of the garden, the sun lighting her path forwards as she passed by a rounded fountain which spilled shimmering and glinting water in a circular waterfall. Sirius clasped his hands tightly, regret slowly wandering into his mind. Should he have pressed her for an explanation? Found out what was on her mind?

He looked back at where she was, only to see the empty pathway. Getting up, the wind blew through the garden as he walked along the road. It was about time for him to get back to the upper floors and train some more. Normally, Maria would spar with him, but she would most likely be in her room for the rest of the day. She spent most of her time there, even though she seemed to love being outdoors. Even so, there was always something which pushed her back, back to somewhere she could be alone.

He often saw glimpses of a cheery and joyful demeanor which slipped through during conversations, but it never showed for long. Even so, those brief moments were the most fun he had through his time in the city. It was ironic, for all the renown and all the praise, she hid from everything else. Sirius cursed himself as he made his way back to the upper floors. She deserved to have more than she did.