Look at the Stars

After a few minutes, the pair broke apart and silently walked back to the castle, their eyes just meeting as they departed on a staircase. Hermione turned left to Gryffindor Tower, where her room was, and Sirius made an odd semi-circular, inside-out, spiralling downward turn toward his own room.

Collapsing on his bed in exhaustion, he woke up several hours later to the sound of a resounding, almost roar-like meow in the corridor.

He opened his door and found an intelligent-looking cat with fluffy brown fur. It immediately invited itself into his room, and sat on the floor looking at Sirius.

Just when it looked as if it might pounce on Sirius, he picked it up and cuddled it under his chin. He had always liked cats; having a nice one around right now might be a pleasant diversion. Must be Filch's new cat, he thought, suppressing a chuckle over the recent, completely tragic, much rejoiced-over death of Mrs. Norris.

Sitting down, he placed the amazingly cooperative brown cat in his lap and stroked its thick, smooth fur. The cat rubbed its head against Sirius's chest affectionately, looked directly at his face, and purred. Sirius ran his fingers down the side of its bushy face and down the cat's back, and the cat placed one paw on each of his firm shoulders and playfully licked his cheek. Sirius laughed genuinely. "Won't you stay with me always, Kitty?"

The cat looked at Sirius once more, and then jumped out of his lap and dashed through the still-open door. What a smart cat, he thought, rubbing his weary eyes.

Around the cold corner of the castle, in the wee hours of the night at Hogwarts school, the small shadow of a fluffy cat morphed into the figure of a petite witch with bushy hair.