Chapter Text
Slipping through the back door, Sirius inhaled deeply and sighed happily. It was good to be back at Canis Major. He hadn’t been gone long, but the last few days had been beyond stressful. Everything could come to a head tonight and he wanted a bit of time for himself. To gather his thoughts and just relax.
He could hear voices coming from the rest of the nursery and he ducked into the back office. His family and some of the staff would be working. There would be enough of them that he could just water the plants without being disturbed. He shrugged out of his jacket and tucked it and his helmet away.
Snagging an apron, he slid it on and went toward the shrubs. He’d start at the back and work his way forward. People were less likely to be looking for trees when the flowers were beginning to bloom out front.
His thoughts wandered as he began to water and he slowly felt the tension drain from him. He needed to be at his best tonight. They all did. Which was why everyone had been given the afternoon off to do as they would. They were all expected back at headquarters by five and would be going into Central as a group.
The party at the Civic Center was nothing but a cover for the meeting being held in the Garden. Everyone that was anyone would be at the party, but the army officers would be upstairs at seven on the dot. This could very well be the last chance they had before conflict broke out in the city. Rather, major conflict.
Minor altercations had occurred over the last few weeks, ever since the body had been found on the Black Bridge. They’d managed to keep it contained, but he knew the entire city was on edge because of the murder. How could they not be when it had been such a prominent figure? There’d been little progress in the case and even less evidence to find the real culprit. No one in Black Territory would have committed the crime, but there was nothing to show beyond their words that they weren’t involved. Which meant exactly nothing to the Reds, but he knew there was more to it. It was too obvious. Like someone was setting-
“What are you doing here?”
He didn’t turn to the speaker, but he felt his shoulders tense at the intrusion. “Watering the plants.”
“Why?”
“I’m taking a break,” he said honestly.
“So your idea of a break is to do more work? Biggest brother, you need a hobby.”
“I have hobbies,” he muttered.
“Uh huh. Paperwork?”
Sirius finally slanted a look at the speaker. His youngest sister stood beside him, giving him a look that said she wasn’t buying any of it. Their mother said they were the most alike but he couldn’t recall ever being this stubborn. Or annoying. “Aludra,” he sighed. “I just want to think and this let’s me do that.”
“Was it really that hard to admit?”
“Go away,” he muttered, turning back to the plants.
She laughed and did the opposite, hooking her arm through his. “Maybe it’s not a hobby you need,” she mused.
He didn’t answer. She could have this conversation on her own.
“Hobbies are just distractions after all,” Aludra continued. “And with your job, you’d need a serious distraction.”
“Uh huh,” he said absently, only half listening. When was the last time anyone had watered back here? The planters seemed to be absorbing more water than they should.
“It has to be something you can commit to. Nothing frivolous. You’re the Queen of Spades and this needs to be worthy of that title.”
Sirius moved to the next row and she followed, both of her arms wrapped around his now. “And what would that be?” he asked dryly.
“You, Sirius Oswald, my biggest brother, need a girlfriend.”
He snorted. “I do not.”
“Think about it though! It would be so perfect! You could spend time with her to relax instead of hiding in the back here! She could help you out when you’re stressed. Cuddles! Think about the cuddles, Sirius!”
Rolling his eyes, he untangled himself from her and moved further down. “I’m fine without cuddles, Aludra.” Although…sometimes it would be nice. No. No, he wasn’t going to think about this or give her the satisfaction of knowing she’d gotten to him.
“Fine,” she said shortly. “Think about the sex.”
“Aludra!” he choked.
“When was the last time you even got laid?” she demanded.
“That’s none of your business!”
“Meaning it’s been too long because you can’t remember!”
“Meaning it’s none of your business!”
She threw her hands up. “Don’t be a baby! It’s just sex.”
“My sex life isn’t up for discussion right now.”
“What sex life? If you’re not working, you’re here. When do you even have time for sex?”
He didn’t but he wasn’t going to admit that to her. Instead, he turned the hose and sprayed her.
“Sirius!” she shrieked, jumping away from him.
Eyeing her for a moment, he turned back to the plants. “I don’t need a girlfriend,” he said quietly, putting an end to the discussion.
Aludra sighed and he heard her walk away after a moment.
He didn’t need a girlfriend…but now he was wondering about it. With how tense things had been lately, how different would it have been if he’d had someone to go to at the end of the day? He still wouldn’t have been able to talk about the murder case, but to know there was someone who would listen if he could? Or to talk to him about what they’d done in the day so he could lose himself in something else? An ache formed in his gut at the mere thought.
“Damn it, Aludra,” he muttered, shutting off the water. So much for gathering his thoughts and destressing. With one conversation, she’d completely derailed him and made him want something he couldn’t have. If he didn’t have time for sex, how was he supposed to have time for a girlfriend?
This wasn’t going to work anymore. He may as well go back to headquarters and get ready for tonight. It was hours away, but he didn’t think he could stay here anymore. Or maybe he’d go for a ride on the outskirts of the city. It wasn’t as relaxing as watering but it was something and he’d take anything over the growing ache inside him.
Pulling the apron off, he started toward the office. He’d text Aludra later, but for now-
“Sirius!”
He sighed, shoulders slumping. So much for a clean get away. “Aludra, I’m not in the mood to-”
“I have a customer for you.”
Sirius blinked. A customer? He hadn’t worked at the nursery as proper staff since he was a teenager. He helped out where he could, but customers weren’t brought to him. “Aludra, you know that I don’t-”
“Sirius.”
He twisted to look at his sister. What was with that tone of voice? He paused as he saw that there was a young woman standing beside his sister. Who he didn’t recognize. “Ah….”
Aludra grinned at him. “This is Celeste,” she said, waving at the woman a little. “She moved to Cradle recently and wants help building a garden.”
“Okay.”
The woman-Celeste-smiled shyly and tugged at the strap of the bag across her chest. “Blanc told me Canis Major was the best nursery in the city,” she offered. “That you’d be the best for what I want to do.”
“Yeah.” What was wrong with him?
“We are,” Aludra said quickly, shooting him a look. “We Oswalds have run the shop for seven generations and Sirius is the best of us.”
Her shy smile wavered as he didn’t say anything. “Uhm, it doesn’t have to be the best,” she said. “Just someone who can help me build the garden I want.”
Aludra was back to staring hard at him, but what was he supposed to do? He saw Celeste shift a little, her hands tightening on the strap, and asked, “What kind of garden?”
She blinked at him. “Oh. Vegetables mostly, some fruit and flowers.”
The answer was automatic and the flush that spread across her cheeks told him she understood that wasn’t what he meant. “That’s easy enough,” he said, fighting a smile. “Where’s it going?”
He must not have done a good job covering his amusement because her flush got darker. “Uhm, on the roof of my building,” she admitted.
A roof garden? She must already have the permit for it if she was shopping for plants but that would mean-“You live in Central then?” Apparently it was his turn to say silly things. Of course she lived in Central. If she was new in town, Central was the only place she’d be allowed to live to begin with. And he would have surely seen her before if she’d lived in Black Territory.
She nodded. “On Mulberry. I…I’m opening a bakery there.”
Oh. He’d heard about that. There weren’t many in town that hadn’t heard the gossip about it, even though no one really knew anything about the new store or the woman opening it. He should have made the connection quicker though. It wasn’t like many people moved to Cradle or stuck around for long if they did. “It’ll do well there. It’s a good street for traffic and there aren’t any other bakeries nearby.”
The smile that lit up her face was anything but shy this time. “I hope so.”
He found himself smiling back at her. She seemed…sweet. A little lost but that was to be expected. By all accounts, Cradle was strange and took some getting used to. Then there were…the other parts that most newcomers never even found out about.
Sirius blinked, suddenly realising they were alone. Aludra had slipped away at some point and he hadn’t noticed. Either she was getting better at sneaking or he had been that focused on Celeste. He wasn’t sure what to think about either of those so he quickly pushed them both away. “How about we walk the nursery and you tell me what you want?” he offered.
She nodded and easily fell into step beside him. Or she tried. He didn’t miss how she had to take a couple steps to match one of his. He adjusted his stride to try to accommodate, but there was only so much he could do without being completely obvious. She was small, barely reaching his shoulders even with the heels she had on. But she seemed unfazed by it and chatted happily about what she was looking for.
“If the planters are already built,” he said slowly as she paused to admire a colourful spray of flowers, “you don’t really need the garden to be built.”
“I only have wooden boxes. I don’t know what grows well in this area or what would work well on a roof. Or what should be planted where to make sure it grows properly,” she corrected.
“Alright, alright,” he chuckled, shaking his head. “I stand corrected.”
She gave him a happy little smile and turned back to look at the flowers.
“Plenty of things will grow on the roof though,” he said quietly, “and depending on which building you’re in you should be able to get more than enough light for a variety of plants.”
“See?” she said, her smile still there. “I do need a garden built.”
That smile was unfair. Wholly and completely unfair. “I’ll need to see it to make proper suggestions,” he warned.
Sirius blinked when she began digging in her bag. “I have pictures,” she said, pulling out a tablet and tapping on the screen.
She had certainly come prepared and it made him wonder how long she’d been planning to build this. Word of the new business had spread over the last few weeks but how long had she been in Cradle? He flicked through the pictures, studying them quietly. “You remodeled the entire place?”
She nodded. “It wasn’t really suitable for what I needed and if I was spending that much money on the bottom, there was no point in not changing the top as well.”
Chewing on his cheek, he lingered on a picture that showed nearly the entire roof. He recognized the buildings around it, could see the Civic Center in the distance so he knew which building this was. It wasn’t an overly large one, but this was a project and a half to take on. Everything looked ready to go, but it would take planning to ensure everything was planted optimally, not to mention the time it would take to simply plant something in all the boxes. Then picking the plants on top of that. It would take more time than he had to give.
He should pass the job to one of his siblings. Zeta and Mirzam enjoyed custom projects, working on several of the parks and flower displays in both Central and Black Territory. They knew plants as well as he did. There was no reason he needed to be the one doing it. “Celeste, I-” He paused as bright blue eyes looked up at him. “I’ve got commitments I need to take care of,” he continued, pushing past the lump in his throat, “but I’ll give you my number. Send me the pictures and I’ll see what I can do for you.”
“You mean you’ll do it?”
The squeak in her voice made him smile. “Yeah. I will.”
A pretty flush dusted her cheeks and she bit her lip. “Thank you,” she said simply.
Had he really thought her smile unfair? He was wrong. Everything about her was unfair. He gave her back the tablet and quickly punched in his number when she passed him her phone. “No rush to send them,” he told her. “It might be a little while before I can work on anything.”
She played with the end of her crimson braid and he found the nervous habit…endearing. “Alright. Thank you, Sirius.”
“Don’t mention it, little lady.” The words slipped from him without thought and he saw her eyes widen. Shit, what was that? “It was nice to meet you.”
“Mmhmm,” she hummed, blushing more. “You too, Sirius.”
He exhaled slowly once she walked away and planted his hands on his hips. He knew he should have escorted her out, that his grandmother would have smacked him for not being a proper gentleman, but…. What was he doing? He had an ongoing murder investigation, an army to run, and the threat of a possible war looming. He’d meant to tell her he would talk to one of his siblings about it. Instead, he’d caved because of a pair of big eyes.
He’d always been a sucker for blue eyes, though, and hers were the bluest he’d ever seen.
“Damn it,” he muttered, frowning at the ground. This was not what he needed to think about right now.
“Biggest brother!”
He grunted as a weight slammed into his back, but he barely swayed because of it. “What, Aludra?”
“She was cute,” she said smugly.
“Uh huh.”
“Please tell me you got her phone number!”
“Nope.”
Aludra jerked and gaped at him. “What?! Sirius, really?!”
He shrugged, it was the truth, before his phone buzzed in his pocket.
“I can’t believe you! She was so cute and I made it so easy for you and you didn’t ask for her number? What is wrong with you?!”
Sirius smiled faintly as he saw the message on his phone, followed quickly by a second, and unlocked it.
“Hey. What are you doing?”
He flicked a look at her and grinned. “Saving Celeste’s number,” he said lazily as he changed her contact name.
“Wait, what?!”
Ignoring the squawk, he finished what he was doing, texting her back and tucked his phone away. “Give me some credit, Aludra,” he said, turning toward the back office. “I have done this before.”
“Sirius!”
Hi, it’s Celeste. I just wanted to text you.
So you had my number I mean! Before I sent the pictures!
I’m looking forward to working with you, little lady.
~