For Sirius, summer vacation was perhaps difficult to endure. To spend a whole summer in that house, unable to see James, and... unable to see Gloria.
Just thinking about it made him restless; he could only lock himself in his bedroom and quietly tinker with his Muggle gadgets. At that moment, someone knocked on the door. It was Kreacher, whom Sirius wanted nothing to do with.
But then he heard Kreacher say that Mr. Potter had come to see him. Sirius froze, and a wave of wild joy washed over him. Kreacher, standing outside the door, heard a commotion from within before the door flew open to reveal Sirius's face, lit up with an excited smile.
"Where is he?"
Hearing the commotion, Regulus also opened his door. Catching the smile on his older brother's face, he felt a momentary daze—how long had it been since he last saw his brother smile like that? But before he could say anything, he and Kreacher watched as Sirius bolted downstairs like a gust of wind.
James was standing at the entrance, greeting Sirius cheerfully. Opposite him stood a grim-looking Walburga.
By the time Sirius snapped out of it, he had already packed his things in his room and was walking down a London street with James. Sirius let out a cheer and threw an arm around James.
"James, you're a genius! How on earth did you convince her? You actually got her to give in and let me come to your house!"
Yes, for the rest of the summer vacation, Sirius would be able to spend the entire summer in Godric's Hollow.
James smiled smugly.
"Well, you'll have to ask my dad for that. Come on, Sirius, let's go put your things away at my house first."
It was Sirius's first time at James's house, and he politely greeted James's parents. They were both very easygoing; after exchanging pleasantries, they told him and James to go off and do whatever they liked.
"Come on, Sirius, let's go take a flight."
James produced two broomsticks, looking eager to try them out. Sirius took the broomstick, looking slightly doubtful.
"James, don't Muggles live in Godric's Hollow too? Is it really okay to ride broomsticks around here?"
To his surprise, James gave him a mysterious smile.
"It's fine. A few days ago, I found a much more open valley high up in Godric's Hollow. Hardly anyone ever goes there—we can go to that place."
Hearing this, Sirius's curiosity was piqued. The two of them grabbed their broomsticks and ran outside. Once they reached a spot with fewer people, they mounted their brooms and soared upward. Sirius let out a shout, releasing all the frustration and boredom of being cooped up at home these past few days.
Before long, they spotted the valley James had mentioned. At first glance, the valley appeared vast and open, with a dark, deeply mysterious forest at its far end. Sirius and James exchanged a glance, their eyes gleaming with the exact same light.
This really was a fantastic place for an adventure!
The two of them descended on their broomsticks and peered into the woods. Because the foliage was so dense, it was pitch black inside, and nothing could be seen. Although Sirius and James had their wands with them, using magic outside of school was not permitted.
Just as Sirius was hesitating, James clapped his hands together and rummaged through his pockets. A moment later, he pulled out a black object. James turned it over in his hands for a moment, and the black device emitted a beam of light that shone straight into the woods.
James smiled triumphantly.
"Ha! Our Muggle neighbors gave us this. It's called a flashlight—much brighter than the Lumos spell. I was curious and looked at it earlier, thought it was neat, and slipped it into my pocket. Turns out it's coming in handy."
Sirius's eyes lit up. "Ha! You're brilliant, James."
And with that, the two of them walked into the woods.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the forest, past a wide expanse of open grassland, stood a sprawling, magnificent manor. In the garden, a girl sat on a hanging chair, reading a book. Looking closely, one would notice that the title of the book was *Magical Drafts and Potions*.
At that moment, a small, long-eared house-elf came running in a panic toward the girl.
"Clu—Little Mistress Gloria."
Gloria didn't lift her eyes from her book; she had reached a particularly interesting part. But feeling the panic in the elf's tone, she finally looked up at him.
"What is it, Ralar?"
Ralar's large eyes were filled with helplessness.
"The protective magic outside the valley indicates that someone has broken into the forest."
This valley belonged to the Sisyphus family. The Head of House was Gloria's father, Stuart Sisyphus.
He had cast protective magic over the entire valley. There were no other families here—only Sisyphus Manor. In her father's words, he had no desire to let the Muggles of Godric's Hollow wander up and get in his way.
The primary purpose was to prevent certain things from getting out, and secondarily to guard against anyone trespassing without their knowledge. The Ministry of Magic had been notified about this valley ever since the Sisyphus family arrived in Britain. Now, the magic had sensed intruders. Gloria frowned. This protective magic still possessed a degree of unpredictability; even she didn't know how many dangers lurked here, and besides...
Seeming to recall something, she frowned further.
If it happened to be a couple of clueless Muggles...
Tch, how troublesome.
Thinking this, Gloria nevertheless closed her book, picked up her wand, and headed toward the forest.
"Little Mistress, should I report this to Madam?" Ralar asked from behind.
"No need. I'll just go take a look; it's probably just some small animal that wandered in."
After entering the woods, Sirius and James immediately sensed a trace of magical aura. Their footsteps faltered, and they grew more vigilant. However, they failed to notice the bushes rustling slightly behind them.
As they walked, Sirius sensed something amiss behind him. He turned his head to see a snake coiled in a tree, jaws agape as it lunged straight at him. Sirius grabbed the broomstick in his hand and batted the snake aside.
"James, watch out!"
Sirius called out a warning to James. After batting away a few snakes, the two of them instinctively mounted their brooms and flew up a little higher.
"Merlin, where did all these snakes come from?"
James's messy hair looked even scruffier in the wind.
In their haste, they had overlooked the fact that riding broomsticks through a forest would present numerous obstacles. Fortunately, they spotted a light ahead. After emerging from the forest, the two looked back and saw that the snakes hadn't followed them. Drawing a long breath, Sirius was just about to speak when he heard a familiar voice ring out behind them.
"Black? Potter?" Sirius froze. Turning toward the source of the sound, he saw Gloria, dressed in a light blue dress, looking right at them.
"Eh? Sisyphus? What are you doing here?" James looked equally astonished when he saw her.
Gloria crossed her arms and stared at the two of them.
"I should be asking you two that. What on earth are you doing wandering around near my house? Weren't school adventure games enough for you?"
" Your house? You live here? Really? How come I've never seen you before?"
James was stunned. Merlin, to think he had a Slytherin neighbor right here all along, and he'd never once noticed!
Gloria raised an eyebrow.
"There's magic cast by my father around here that partially conceals the Lindart Valley. It's normal that you didn't notice—he's hardly keen on letting the local Muggles disturb him."
As she said this, Gloria's tone was laced with sarcasm. She felt her father's actions were entirely redundant.
"Those snakes..."
"He keeps them to scare off the Muggles."
Gloria left out the fact that Stuart's actual intention was that if the snakes managed to bite them to death, all the better.
James was at a loss for words. He cast a strange look at Sirius. How come Sirius had gone completely quiet ever since they got here?
Meanwhile, Sirius was staring straight at Gloria. The girl he liked had just appeared right before his eyes; for a moment, he didn't know what to say. Gloria glanced at Sirius, thought for a moment, and said to the two of them, "Want to come in for a bit?"
"No need..." / "Sure." / "?"
The two of them answered in unison. James looked at Sirius hesitantly, completely baffled—didn't he say he wanted to go on an adventure?
Seeming equally surprised that Sirius had actually agreed, Gloria looked at him, hesitated for a few seconds, and then turned around.
Eventually, once James regained his wits, they found themselves sitting inside Sisyphus Manor. Ralar poured them tea, and James could still vividly recall the sight of Madam Chessie trimming the flowers in the garden, looking at the two of them with a puzzled expression.
Sirius quietly took in his surroundings. It was traditional European style; although there were plenty of silver and green decorations, the garden presented a warm picture, its plants and flowers meticulously tended—clearly cared for with great devotion by their owner. At any rate, it was infinitely better than that oppressive, suffocating place at Grimmauld Place.
"So, Black is staying at your house now?" Gloria took a sip of tea. She considered this scene quite a rarity: in a house where everyone was a Slytherin, two Gryffindors were sitting across from her. She wondered how her father would react if he saw this—would he fly into a rage? Gloria was quite curious.
"If I were you, I wouldn't argue with Mrs. Black. There's simply no point to it."
Gloria looked at Sirius as she spoke. No matter how much they argued, neither of them would change their beliefs.
Sirius frowned.
"It's not like I can just go along with her. I could never do that."
"You can just ignore her."
That was what she did. In any case, Stuart couldn't really do anything to her; he cared far too much about his pride. Walburga and her father Stuart were cut from the same cloth—paranoid, crazy, and utterly disgusted by Muggles. Gloria was an expert at ignoring them and letting them play out their one-man shows alone.
Sirius thought that sounded alright, but given his personality, he probably wouldn't be able to just ignore it so peacefully; there was still a fifty-percent chance the two of them would end up shouting at each other anyway.
Gloria glanced outside. "It's getting late. You two should be heading back."
"Oh right, Sirius, let's go."
James looked at the sky, stood up, and said to Sirius. Sirius grunted in response and stood up as well.
"Leaving already?" Chessie walked over carrying a tray of pastries, smiling warmly at the three children.
"Well then, take these pastries with you, I just baked them. James, give my regards to your parents. Leah, walk them out, won't you?"
As they passed through the forest, Sirius and James cast wary glances around them, wondering if those snakes would appear again. As it turned out, their worries were well-founded.
Sirius grabbed Gloria's hand and pulled her behind him. Gloria startled, looking down at their interlocked hands.
James and Sirius watched the snake warily, searching their surroundings for anything they could use.
"Reducto!"
Sirius and James froze. They turned to look at Gloria. Holding her wand in her right hand, she had blasted the snake to smithereens.
"Relax, magic can be used in Lindart Valley. There is magical energy everywhere here."
Seeing their bewildered expressions, Gloria explained, casting a glance at Sirius. Seeing that he remained silent, she sighed softly.
Pulling her hand back from Sirius's grip, she turned and walked away first.
Only then did Sirius snap back to reality, rubbing his nose to cover up his embarrassment.
"Weren't those snakes supposed to be raised by your father? You just dealt with them like that?"
James asked her. Well, although he thought it was brilliantly done, he would have at most just stunned them or something.
"It's fine, I've had it with those snakes anyway," Gloria said indifferently. Besides, she had already dealt with several of them before; one more didn't make a difference.
Back outside the forest, James finally noticed a stone tablet standing outside the valley.
"Lindart." Come to think of it, that seemed to be the name of this valley.
"Yes, my mother came up with the name. It's French—*L'éternité*, which means eternity."
...
When James got home, he collapsed onto the sofa. It was truly a miracle; in all his life, he had never gotten along so harmoniously with a Slytherin.
"I'm telling you, Sirius, she's a Slytherin—well, though she doesn't seem quite like the other Slytherins."
Logically speaking, Sirius hated their type the most—every single one of them acting like they owned the world, with thoroughly obnoxious personalities.
"Right? She really is different." Hearing Sirius say this, James looked at him in surprise. Something was wrong; his brother wasn't acting right. Could this be the privilege of a pretty girl? Speaking of pretty girls, a red-haired image flashed through James's mind.
Well, fine—he had to admit he was convinced by that reasoning.
The summer vacation drew to a close amidst the two boys' occasional day trips into the Muggle world. As they boarded the return train to school, James caught sight of Lily up ahead and waved to her with a smile, completely ignoring Snape standing right beside her.
"Hi, Evans!"
This gesture shocked Sirius, shocked Lily, and prompted Snape—upon hearing James's voice—to shoot him a look of profound annoyance. Naturally, this look was thoroughly ignored by James as well. Lily didn't acknowledge him either, grabbing Snape and pulling him into a compartment.
Sirius watched their retreating figures, then turned back to James with a knowing look, hesitating before he spoke.
"Oh, you... so this is..."
"I've decided, Sirius! I'm going to win Evans over!"
Though he had already guessed it, hearing his brother actually say it still surprised him for a moment. But then he burst out laughing, clapping James on the back to signal his encouragement.
James elbowed him in the ribs.
"Hey, Sirius, don't you have any girl you like?"
Sirius looked at him without a word, his gaze fixed steadily in a particular direction. James followed his line of sight, and Gloria's retreating figure fell into their view. Understanding dawned on James.
"Ohh~ So that's how it is. No wonder you agreed to go in for tea that time! Turns out... hey!"
Before James could finish, Sirius grabbed him by the arm and hauled him onto the train.
Even after they were seated inside the compartment, James was still smiling broadly, leaving Remus and Peter, who were already seated inside, completely bewildered.
Gloria hadn't been able to find Beverly in the crowd and was planning to look for any empty compartment when she heard someone calling her name. Following the voice, she saw Elodie sitting inside a compartment, waving at her.
"Leah, come over here!"
Seeing her, Gloria smiled and walked over.
A short while later, the train started up, slowly chugging forward to begin the start of their second year.