The Marauder Chronicles

Sirius' Charm

"The quality of a man can be measured by the friends in his company."

Sirius awoke Saturday morning to a horrible nightmare: The Minister of Magic found out that Hagrid had not shot a buck, but James Potter and all four of them were sentenced to twenty years in Azkaban for the use of illegal and underage wizardry. Luckily it was only a nightmare. He turned over on his side to look at his watch on his bedside post; it was seven-thirteen in the morning. He could hear his roommates talking and getting out of bed, and some of them were already leaving the dorms. Rubbing his eyes, Sirius sat up in bed and yawned. Then he got up, dressed in a classy black button down shirt and nice slacks, and headed for the bathroom to look in the mirror at his handsome face.

After combing his hair and brushing his teeth, he went over to James's bed to make sure he was okay. He pushed aside the scarlet curtains and found James sound asleep. He must be having a nice dream, Sirius thought, for a goofy smile was spread across his face. He closed the curtains with a great relief passing over his body.

Peter was not in the dormitory. He must be downstairs or already at breakfast, he thought. So, still a little tired, Sirius moseyed on down to the common room, his feet hitting heavily on the stairs as he descended. Once he got to the bottom he decided that a glass of water would be good; he was very thirsty.

But something was going on in the room. Clicks of people were gathered in tight groups, talking excitedly. No one even noticed that Sirius had entered the room. Usually he had a large gathering welcoming him. And another thing, where were all of the girls? There wasn't a single one in the room. He shook his head then went passed a babbling group over to the water pitcher. He could still hear parts of what they were saying as he was pouring his water into his glass.

"Is what happened to James Potter true then?" he heard someone say.

Sirius dropped his water glass, and it shattered on the floor. He could hear his heart beating loudly and quickly in his eardrums like cannons in the middle of a war. Sweat spread across his face, his throat tightened, and a very cold chill went up his spine; they all knew. All four of them were going to go to Azkaban for the better part of their lives, and it was all of his fault. He tried to think very quickly of what to say and do, but nothing came to him. How do you explain it?

While he was thinking of how to rationalize this to the judge on the day of his sentencing, Dominic Fleming stopped talking with his friends because Sirius had shattered his glass.

"Sirius! My God, is it true what happened to James?" he asked with deep interest. All of Dominic's friends had stopped talking to hear what he had to say, as a matter of fact, the entire common room stopped talking to hear what he had to say.

Think quickly; come up with anything. But nothing could make it sound better, so he went with the usual; if you don't know the answer, ask your own question.

"What? I have no idea what you are talking about." He was shocked at his lack of self composure. He was falling apart. They could probably all see through him. He couldn't save James, and now he couldn't even save himself.

"We thought for sure you would know if the rumor was true. You're like his brother or something."

"What's the rumor, Dominic?" He had to hear it, to confirm the nightmare.

"Well, we don't know if it's true, but the story has been pretty consistent. Apparently McGonagall caught James and Lily making out in Moaning Myrtle's bathroom late last night. The entire school is talking about it."

Sirius dropped his jaw down to his feet. There was no way that this could possibly be true. James was having trouble standing straight, much less kissing the girl of his dreams. But if the entire school was discussing it? No, James would have woken him last night to tell him; they told each other everything.

"I don't know," he said slowly. "I just don't know."

"What, he didn't tell you?" Sean Bell asked from the far corner of the room.

"No!" Sirius yelled back. But wait, why were all of the girls gone? "Hey, where are all of the girls?"

"We think they're all talking to Lily about it," Dominic responded.

Well Sirius was not going to wait for James to rise at his leisure. He turned away from all of them, sprinted up the stairs, busted down the dormitory door, threw the curtains back of James's bed, and started yelling.

"James! James! Hey wake up!" He started shaking him, but James was sound asleep. "James, wake up man!" This time he picked him up and started shaking his shoulders about, but his head just drooped onto his chest. Then Sirius started slapping his face, which was having some success but not much. "James, get up already! I have to talk to you." By this time about twenty guys had filed into the dorm to hear what James had to say, but he was still drowsy. Sirius put his hands on James's head and tried to force him to open his eyes. Then he started to slap him again. "Get up, wake up! James. Come on already!"

He responded in a lethargic groan and tried to open his eyes. Then Sirius took some water out of a glass by the window and started splashing it on his face. He was starting to come around, but it looked as though it would take him a couple of hours.

"James, can you hear me? How many fingers am I holding up?" he asked with three fingers shoved in his face. He turned his eyes on Sirius's hand and squinted.

"How am I supposed to know? I need my glasses to see," he said groggily. Peter, who was now in the dorm, pushed his way through the crowd, picked up his glasses, and put them upside down on James's face. James corrected them immediately. He stared at all of them dumbfounded . "What's going on?"

"James, there is a rumor going around the school. It's pretty extreme; the entire school is talking about it at this very moment. We need you to confirm. Do you understand me?" he asked clearly.

"Yes. Now what is it?"

"Well, rumor has it that Professor McGonagall walked into you and Lily making out in Myrtle's bathroom early this morning. Now, is that true?" he asked slowly.

Everyone leaned in closer to hear his answer. James just looked up at all of them for a while with a pensive face.

"Hmm. Well, everyone is wrong," he said nodding his head. "They're all wrong."

Sirius's heart fell. All the guys looked disappointed at James. He was their hero. For a while it was like he had rescued the princess from the fire breathing dragon.

"What do you mean it's not true? All the students- everyone is saying that you kissed her," Sirius said sadly.

"I'm sorry to disappoint all of you, but the facts are wrong." This was fun stringing them along like this. "People should really stop gossiping about things they can't get straight." He yawned as if this meant nothing to him and watched all of them go from excited to frustrated.

"The truth is," he just couldn't keep it going, he had achieved a major feat, "McGonagall didn't see anything. Filch was the one who caught us." And then he smiled.

Sirius cheered, screamed, and hugged him; perhaps a little too hard for James's liking. Then the twenty other guys in the room followed suit and began dog piling on James who was yelling for them to relax and get off of him, but they were shouting so loud that no one could hear him.

Across the hall in the girls' dormitory things were just a little bit different. Gryffindor girls from years three to seven were all crowded into the sixth year dormitory. They were not yelling nor screaming. They certainly were not congratulating themselves for their masculinity; instead they were all dreamily talking to Lily about last night. Some of the girls were crying; others were listening to her story in hopes that they too could find love.

"He's just so kind and gentle," Lily said to her large audience. "I really love him."

At this all of them cooed and "Ahh" and then began giggling. Many of them wanted to hear the entire story all over again; many of them just sat and giggled amongst themselves.

* * * * *

Back across the hall, they had finally let James breathe for a short while, but they were still yelling very loudly, hitting him on the back and shoulders; he tried not to wince. The guys were not very interested in how or why it happened, just that it finally happened. Christian Gleason, a seventh year, asked how they kissed and how long. Richard Newton, a fourth year, asked James for advice about the girl he liked. But mostly they all congratulated him on his long awaited and deserving victory, which he appreciated.

Slowly they started to leave, probably wanting to let the rest of the school know that it was true; they had spoken to the real source. After about twenty minutes only Peter and Sirius remained in the dorm with him, wanting to know everything that had happened. With a dreamy expression, James told them everything he could remember. But he didn't tell them the details of the conversation, only that he learned more about her in that one night than in the last six years.

Back in the girls' dorms, they were also starting to head down to breakfast, but only after discussing the color of the bridesmaids' dresses (which Lily had decided to be baby blue) and the location of their honeymoon (which was down to either Paris or Rome). After about twenty minutes only Liz and Jade remained to hear the story again, which Lily was only too happy to tell.

After James had told them the tale, Peter smiled and congratulated him again then headed down to breakfast. But Sirius stayed. He knew James had more to say.

"What did it feel like?" Sirius asked breathlessly.

James looked at him for a while, elation passing over him. "It was like I had been lost for years traveling far and wide searching for some mystical and magical place of being. And when I kissed her, it was as if that man had finally found that place and called it home.

Gosh, Sirius, it just felt so right, so perfect! I wanted to live in that moment forever. She is so amazing, so breathtaking. I feel as though someone like me is not deserving of a girl like her, but now I have her. I would give anything to her, everything if I could." He looked at Sirius who gave a weak but genuine smile. "I love her. I want to spend everyday with her, for the rest of my life." He looked down at the floor and just laughed a hearty and happy laugh.

"You need to get dressed, go into the bathroom, and brush your teeth, because your breath is terrible. Then go and see her; she's probably waiting for you, her prince." James smiled at him, nodded, got up, and left for the bathroom.

Sirius just sat on the edge of the bed staring at the wall, with mixed emotions. He was happy that James had finally achieved true happiness with a girl he had loved for so long. But he also felt jealous of him. He had many girlfriends, many admirers, but nothing had been real. He had never felt like James described. And as he was describing it to him, he couldn't help but feel empty inside. He kept asking himself if he would ever be as happy as James would be. If he would ever find the right girl like James had found Lily.

"Ready to go down?" James asked as he came back into the room. He was wearing a button down blue shirt, which made his eyes stand out, and khaki pants. Sirius looked up and smiled weakly again. Then he got up, and trying to forget about how he felt, focused on his friend.

"I am really happy for you, James. I'm glad that you got a backbone and acted like a real man!" They both laughed at this. Sirius put his arm around his shoulders like a brother would do and they left the dorm. Jade was standing in front of the girls' dorm door, apparently waiting for James to come out. She immediately smiled and ran towards him, throwing her arms around him.

"I'm just so happy that you found each other at last!" she said, then she let go of him. "Lily wants me to tell you she will be down in the great hall in a few minutes. She's still getting ready."

"But I want to wait for her," he said.

"No, she wants you to go down to breakfast and wait for her there. I have my orders," she said with a grin.

"Alright, we're on our way down," and he and Sirius went down the stairs and out of the common room.

A really funny thing happened when they entered the Great Hall. Almost the entire tables of Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Gryffindor stood up and began cheering and clapping for James. Only a few guys at the Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw tables looked upset, everyone else yelled their congratulations and well wishes to James. Sirius found this very amusing and decided to play along. He took James's right arm and lifted it high in the air, like an Olympian. The crowd loved it. James smiled broadly and thanked people as he went to his own table. Students of all years shook his hand before he sat down.

"Well, that news traveled fast. How did everyone find out?" James asked Sirius.

"Well, I personally heard it from Bertha Jorkins," replied a curly haired second year girl. "And she heard it from Alice, in Hufflepuff, who heard it from the Fat Friar, who heard it from Nearly Headless Nick, who actually talked to Moaning Myrtle." She said all of this very fast.

"Thanks for the run down," Sirius said with a nod.

"No problem whatsoever."

"So," Sirius said to James, "you're saying goodbye to the single life, huh?"

"I guess I am. I like it better this way. I don't feel like I'm giving anything up though. Remember, I never had a million girls like you," he said with a smirk. Sirius looked back at him guiltily.

Just then another round of applause burst forth from the great hall as Lily entered. She looked a little shocked by the student body's reaction, but pleased nevertheless. She blushed, smiled, then started scanning the Gryffindor table no doubt for James.

He stood up and started walking towards her. She saw him and beamed a brilliant, beautiful smile at him and took his hands.

"Kiss her, James!" the guys yelled from Ravenclaw, then Gryffindor started demanding it. It was quite embarrassing, but Lily turned to face him, still smiling, and said to him, "I think you'd better kiss me, don't you?"

He put his arms around her and kissed her long and good with students cheering as though the Dark Lord had been conquered. When they pulled away from each other, James saw that Dumbledore was even clapping. McGonagall was fighting a smile, but it eventually came through. Hagrid was cheering loudly with redness around his eyes; it looked as though he had spent the night in tears. But Hagrid was the one who had done it. James smiled at him and winked.

He took her hand and led her down to the far end of the table where no one was sitting. They sat down, not facing the table, but each other, and began talking about anything.

From where Sirius sat, only Lily could be seen, and she looked happier than ever. He couldn't see James's face; his back was facing him. But he could imagine that he was smiling as well; this is what he has wanted more than anything for years.

Peter came and sat down across from Sirius. First he looked at him then down at James and Lily.

"They look very happy, don't they Sirius?" Peter asked.

"Yes they do," he answered. "Yes they do," he said again. He kept watching them for a while, not knowing what they were saying.

"So how are you really handling this?" Peter asked almost sympathetically. Sirius was confused at his question.

"What do you mean?"

"Come on. Don't you feel a little threatened by her?"

"What? Peter what are you talking about?" But he knew. He just started thinking about it.

"I'm talking about James. Now that she's in the picture, you're a little worried that you will eventually loose him, right?" he asked with a grin.

"That's crazy. We've been best friends our entire life, that will never change. We tell each other everything." But he was getting a bit worried, though he dared not show it.

"So what if he starts to tell her everything? What if she eventually takes your place? Oh sure, you'll still be friends, but he will march to her drum. He probably won't go out on full moons or wander around the school preying on Slytherins with you anymore. Nope, he'll want to spend every minute with her, now that she is finally there with him."

"No, Peter, you're wrong," he said sternly. "You're wrong." But then he looked down at the end of the table at James. If he were to get up and leave at this very moment, not only would James not notice, but he would not care. What if Peter was right? What if she did take him away? He liked Remus and Peter a lot but not like James. They were a pair; everyone said they were like brothers, always the double act. He looked over again, and saw that James was brushing Lily's hair out of her face, and then he kissed her on the cheek.

Over at the Slytherin table, Severus Snape was also watching James kiss Lily, only his reaction was not of losing a friend but of total anger, disgust, and loss.

"What does she see in him?" he asked angrily as the glass in his hand shattered.

"Severus, that is the second glass you have broken this morning. Just stop looking at them. There's nothing you can do about it now," said Douglas, Snape's best friend. But he kept watching. She was smiling and laughing. She's so beautiful, he thought, so kind and caring, and Potter had her. Of all the people in Hogwarts, she had to fancy him, his archenemy. It wouldn't be nearly as bad if Sirius Black even was seeing her. Then he would still have a chance.

"Severus," Douglas said again, "I told you that staring at her is not going to- "

"Shut-up you idiot!" he said back to him. Over on his right Patrick Smeltzer, a seventh year who Snape thought didn't belong in Slytherin, started to laugh.

"Give it up, Snape. You haven't got a chance. It's not like it's only going one way. Everyone knows that she fancies him as much as he fancies her."

"If I want your opinion I will ask for it, Smeltzer," Snape said repugnantly.

"Fine. But I will tell you what she sees in him. He is the most well-liked and popular guy in the entire school, despite the fact that everyone in Slytherin hates his guts. He is a prefect in Gryffindor and the Quidditch team captain. Ever since he has been on the team, Gryffindor has won the Quidditch cup," he told an increasingly irritated Snape. "You're not even good at Quidditch, are you Severus?"

Snape glared at him for a while then looked back at her.

"You're not even good enough to wipe the mud of her shoes. She's gorgeous, incredibly talented, school prefect, and way beyond your reach." Then he got up, slapped Snape on the back, and left.

"Bloody bastard," Snape said lividly. He kept looking at her from afar. At the moment she was locking lips with Potter. He had to look away.

"He's right you know," Douglas said. "You're none of those things. She belongs to him now," Douglas said solemnly.

"Do you think I might still have a chance with her?" he asked forlornly.

Douglas looked over at her and saw that James had made her laugh, then she kissed him again.

"As much of a chance as you had before," he said realistically.

Snape looked at him with an evil grin passing on his face. He had an idea, something that would require help and a lot of rule breaking.

"Severus, what are you thinking?" Douglas asked cruelly.

"I have an idea, but I'm going to need your help." He leaned over and whispered into his ear just as the mail arrived.

The entire hall filled with owls of different breeds and various colors, swooping down and delivering packages to their owners. Two school owls came in with official looking letters and dropped them down on Lily and James.

"Oh no. These are the detention forms aren't they?" she asked with a horrified expression.

"Yep, I'm afraid so," he said casually. They both opened the letters and read silently. Lily was horrified. It was a reality now. But still, she couldn't help but feel as though the whole thing was worth it. She was in love, madly in love, and that didn't happen to everyone.

"Damn!" James said as he casually threw his letter on the table.

"What's the matter?" she asked surprised.

"Last night McGonagall forgot to say that we were not allowed to use magic. I was kind of hoping that she would forget it when she wrote up the detentions, but apparently she didn't."

"Did you finish reading the letter?"

"Not really, why what else does it say?"

"The bathrooms are going to be inspected after we finish them."

"Oh that's just great," James said sarcastically.

"And there's more. I'm to clean the girls', and you will clean the boys'; we can't do it together like we thought we would."

"Just because I would rather hear it from you than a piece of paper, who is going to inspect?"

"I think I got a little lucky. McGonagall is inspecting mine, maybe she's doing yours too. You need to check it."

James pick up his letter and read it all to the end. Then he put his hand on his forehead and exasperated.

"What is it?"

"Filch. I'll be cleaning all night long, he hates me." He looked at her and smiled again. It didn't matter how long he cleaned the toilets, he had Lily now, it was all worth it.

"Well, there goes my chance at being head girl next year," she said as she tossed the letter on the table.

"Don't be ridiculous. You're a shoe in. It's one detention, and you weren't even out of the school. You'll still have it, I promise you."

"Do you control the teachers or something?"

"No, there's just no one else that would be better at it than you," he said. "I was the one who blew it. They will never make me head boy."

"That's because you got a detention on your second day of school in your first year, James." She grinned at him, and put her hand to his face. "McGonagall's right, you do find a lot of trouble." And, you guessed it, she kissed him.

* * * * *

The whole day was completely blissful for the two. No one in Gryffindor seemed to mind that fifty points were lost over their romantic moment; everyone was just glad that they were together. It was clear to all of them that James and Lily were destined for each other. All anyone had to do was just look at the two of them, and they would know that they fit; it was right.

Peter and Sirius spent all day wandering around the school, completely bored. Sirius couldn't help but wonder if Peter was right. What if James did tell her everything? What if he was just placed on a shelf, only taken down when he needed to talk about Lily? But no, it was their first day together, things would calm down. Right?

The two decided that they would work on their chess skills, or lack thereof, now that they had some spare time. They would not transform and roam the school with Moony because they had to have James with them, and he was injured and cleaning toilets. They were both terrible at chess. Peter was the worst of the two, so he lost many times. After losing for the fourth time in a row, he went to bed. It was only nine; most of the Gryffindors were still awake, and Sirius didn't want to go to bed early. He went upstairs into the dorm, opened his trunk, and pulled out some homework. He couldn't remember a time in his life when he did his homework on a Saturday night. He and James would always do something, but never homework. So he made up his mind that he would wait for James to come back and talk about what happened.

It wasn't 'til 11 o'clock that the portrait door opened; it wasn't James, though; it was Lily. She looked both tired and relieved that she had finally finished. She made her way for the couch in front of the fireplace and fell into it.

He closed his books and went and sat next to her. She looked up at him and smiled.

"Hi, Sirius," she said lazily.

"Hello, Lily. Finished early did you?"

"Well, I guess. McGonagall inspected all of them and let me go. We weren't allowed to use our wands. She actually took them from us," she said.

"Yes, she does that with detentions. Is she inspecting James, as well?"

"No, unfortunately. Filch is," she said.

"Ewww. He'll be there all night," he said with a little chuckle. He looked at her for a while. He knew why James loved her. Even after cleaning bathrooms she still glowed with beauty and kindness.

"There are some things I need to tell you," he said hesitantly, "about James."

"What kind of things?" she asked curiously.

"Just some things I think you need to know about him."

"I'm listening," she said, sitting up and giving him her full attention.

"First, James is very competitive. My mother said that she would give a cookie to the one of us that could tie our shoes first, when we were four. So, naturally, we worked very hard at it. But I gave up about five minutes later and went and played with my toy broomstick. I asked him if he wanted to play, but he said no and kept on trying to tie his shoes. It took him two hours straight, 'til he ultimately got it right. And then he got his cookie. My mother was very impressed," he said.

"Two hours? No four year old does anything that long," she said amazed.

"Oh, there's more. He is also really stubborn, likes to think he's right all of the time. Once we were playing a game of Quidditch and- "

"Sorry to interrupt, but how old were you?"

"Nine. Well, we were playing Quidditch and he said he scored a goal, but our parents all agreed that I fairly blocked it. Yet he insisted that he made a fair score. He still argues about it to this day," he said chuckling. Lily laughed too.

"And he doesn't like to be helped. There were times when I would know the answer to something, and I would try to tell him, but he would plug his ears and do it himself."

"Now that I knew," she said cheerfully.

"If he doesn't want to take the help, which he won't, just pretend that you don't know it either and work together to find the answer, then gradually lead him to it.

"Oh, and always call him James. He hates any other variation. No Jim, Jimmy, Jimmy boy, Jay, Jay Jay, nothing, always James."

Lily looked at Sirius for a while; she had listened to every word that he said. She knew about him, what he was up to. She put her hand on his head and said, "Don't worry Sirius. I know how close you two are. I'm not going to interfere. I won't take him from you."

"I wasn't worried about that," he insisted.

"Whatever you say, Sirius. You will never lose him, I promise," she said kindly.

Sirius was relieved inside. He would never let anyone know that he secretly was afraid, but you couldn't help trusting Lily.

"You know, I probably shouldn't tell you this, but I want you to know. On the first day of Hogwarts, after we had been sorted, he looked at you and said to me, 'Sirius, she looks like an angel' and ever since then he has been completely enamored with you."

Lily looked at him with a twinkle in her eye, blushed, and smiled.

"I think he joined the Quidditch team to impress you."

"But he was only twelve!" she said shocked.

"Do you think that matters? He denies it, but after his very fist game that he played, when he scored all of those points and everyone was cheering for him and congratulating him, he pushed them all away and came to me and asked, 'Did she see me, Sirius? Did Lily see me score?'"

Lily looked at Sirius starry-eyed and happy. She loved James, but she had no idea that he cared so much for her.

"You got a really good guy, Lily, a really good guy. Treat him well. He loves you. I have never seen him as happy as he is with you, just talking to you. You are very lucky to have him," he finished and grinned at her.

"I know," she said weakly, a tear of happiness forming in her emerald eye.

Just then James came bursting into the room.

"I hate Filch! He made me clean the Slytherin bathroom three times before he let me go, the ugly git!" he walked into the room, and stood in front of the two of them. "What are you guys up to?" he asked curiously.

"I'm stealing your girlfriend," Sirius said.

James just laughed, "Alright, at least it's you, man." Then he bent down and kissed Lily on the lips. She smiled at him and gazed into his eyes.

"No, really, what were you doing?" he asked again before he kissed her cheek.

"Talking about you," she answered.

"Really? What did you say about me, Sirius?" Lily moved closer to Sirius so that James could sit next to her. He put his arm around her shoulder, and she laid her head on his.

"Nothing but good things, my friend. Nothing but good things," he said nodding his head.

"You're a liar. I can see right through you. I've known you too long," James said. And the three of them laughed through the night.

* * * * *

By Monday morning Remus had overcome his monthly illness and was back at Hogwarts. He arrived just in time for breakfast in the Great Hall with his friends.

"It's always so good to be back," he said to Sirius and Peter.

"I really missed you, Remus," Sirius said sincerely.

"That's nice. I missed you too, Sirius. And this place, you never know how nice it is until you're gone for a short while," he said. "So," he continued in a more serious manner, "how did everything work out? Is James okay? I was afraid to come back sooner, to tell you the truth."

"Oh, he's just fine," Peter answered with a grin.

Remus looked at the two of them puzzled. Sirius looked at Peter, chuckled, and rolled his eyes.

"What happened after I went through the passage?" he asked with great curiosity. Sirius and Peter filled him in as best they could. When they got to the part about Sirius yanking the arrow out, Remus flinched a little. They left out the part about James going to Myrtles' bathroom.

"It's all my fault," Remus said.

"No, it's my fault," replied Sirius, "you can't really be accountable for your actions, but I can. Don't worry about it. Everything worked out for the best."

"So, what happened while I was gone?"

Peter and Sirius just looked at each other and laughed. He was so out of the loop it wasn't even funny, or maybe it was. Remus just continued to watch the two of them and waited until they could speak. He was wondering where James was but that was answered shortly. He walked into the Great Hall smiling at his classmates jovially while talking to the girl who was holding his hand, Lily Evans.

Remus blinked and looked again, then looked back at Sirius. "How...when did this happen?" he asked excitedly.

"While you were gone," Peter answered. "Actually it happened almost right after Hagrid shot him. He went into the girls' bathroom, Myrtle's, and Lily met him there. And one thing led to another. The entire school was talking about it all weekend. And the two of them have not left each other's side ever since."

"That's not fair. That's not fair; why does everything happen while I'm gone?"

"The story of your life," Sirius said. Just then James and Lily came up to the table. James turned to see that Remus had returned.

"Well, back again I see? How are you feeling?" he asked as if nothing strange was happening. Lily looked at Remus and gave a friendly smile.

"Fine, and I see that I'm way out of the news reel. Congratulations to the both of you."

"Thanks," she said. She looked at James, who looked back at her, and the two of them moved along down towards the end of the table to be by themselves. Sirius watched to two of them go and sit down at the end of the table as they had for the last two days.

"So, Sirius, how are you handling this?" Remus asked.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, now that he is spending all of his time with her, how are you handling this?"

"Why is everyone so concerned with how I am handling this? I'm fine. She's not going to take him away from me; he is still my best friend; he always will be," he said defensively. "Leave me alone."

"It finally happened. You know, secretly I thought that it never would. I never thought he would have the courage to tell her he loves her."

"He hasn't," Peter said.

"No, but it's only a matter of time," Sirius added. "You know how sick they made us just by looking over across the table?"

"Yeah," Remus answered.

"It's ten times worse now," Sirius said.

"A hundred times worse," Peter added.

"What do they do now?"

"Well, you know what I'm like when I date girls," he said, Remus nodded, "Well, it's like that but more of it. More kissing, and talking, and he makes her laugh a lot, just really disgusting stuff."

"I see," Remus nodded.

"Hopefully he will settle down a bit once Quidditch season starts. I only hope he can take his mind off of her while he's captain. Otherwise Slytherin is going to kill us."