There was quite a stir in the Great Hall the next morning when Sirius Black entered with two of the most popular girls at Hogwarts, one on each side. He casually swung himself onto the bench at the Gryffindor table and the two girls sat down beside him, Jocelyn Black on his left, Lily Evans on his right. All three began helping themselves to porridge and toast, laughing and talking, seemingly unaware they were the cause of the unusual amount of whispers being exchanged at the four long tables. It was noted, however, that the trio had chosen seats a discreet distance away from the other three Marauders, all of whom were determinedly not looking at them. Peter Pettigrew was staring at his plate and James Potter was having a very forced conversation with Remus Lupin. Twenty minutes later Sirius rose and the girls followed suit. James’s feelings momentarily overcame his resolve. He looked up at the trio and for a moment his eyes locked with Sirius’s. Then Lily tapped Sirius’s shoulder, he turned away to engage her in conversation once more, and James returned to his breakfast, though his appetite did not.
Sirius had, of course, not told James about the previous afternoon’s events. He somehow didn’t think James would be too pleased when he told him that he’d spent the entire afternoon walking down a deserted road with Lily Evans. Not that anything had happened. Well, he admitted to himself, something had happened. He had cried, that’s what had happened. He had cried in front of Lily Evans, his best mate’s long-time crush. First she had thrown her arms around him and started crying hysterically and rambling on about how her sister thought she was a freak, and her parents didn’t understand, and everyone at Hogwarts looked down on her because she was raised Muggle, and why couldn’t people look past their prejudices, and it just wasn’t fair! And he’d just held her and after she’d finished in a renewed fit of weeping he’d said softly, “I know.” And then his own vision had blurred, and the two of them had stood there, in the middle of the road, holding each other and crying.
And I’m sorry, thought Sirius angrily, but James can be as angry as he wants, because you just don’t have an experience like that with someone and then act like nothing happened! I am going to hang around Lily Evans now, and if James has a problem with it that’s his problem!
He was so angry he lost all concentration and the desk he was supposed to be levitating crashed to the floor. Several students jumped and looked around in alarm. Sirius swore. Out of the corner of his eye he could see James smirking, his desk still floating easily above his head, while he chatted lazily with Remus and Peter.
“Sirius, you have to focus,” said Lily gently.
“Oh, I’m focusing,” Sirius growled, his wand poised, ready for action.
“Yes, but you have to “ Sirius, what are you doing?” she questioned in alarm.
Sirius had pointed his wand at James’s desk, which was now tipping dangerously over James’s head.
“Sirius!” squealed Lily apprehensively.
“Sirius!” said Jocelyn warningly. “Sirius, no!”
“Just a little further,” he muttered, heedless of both girls’ pleas. The desk was continuing it’s slow angling, James sitting below it completely oblivious.
“Sirius “!”
CRASH! The desk’s contents fell three meters to the floor. Several girls screamed. Bottles exploded around the Marauders, spraying them with ink. With a sickening crack! a bottle of scarlet ink broke on James’s head, painting his face and hair bright red.
“Nice look, Prongs. Go well with your Quidditch robes, that will,” said Sirius casually. He turned and strode quickly from the room, the rest of class staring after him in shocked silence.
Sirius sat in the empty Gryffindor common room, staring at the fire. He didn’t know what had made him do it. He had had fights with James before, but never like this. That look he had given him at breakfast….
“Nothing happened!” Sirius growled angrily.
“Knock, knock,” said a voice from the portrait hole.
Sirius turned to see Jocelyn walking toward him. She smiled at him and sat down beside him.
“Look, Sirius,” she began slowly, “I’m sorry about what happened yesterday “”
“Don’t be,” he mumbled quickly.
“No, listen,” she insisted. “I don’t know what happened between you and Lily “”
“Nothing happened!” he shouted, leaping to his feet. “Why do you think something had to have happened?”
“I didn’t mean something inappropriate, Sirius,” said Jocelyn gently.
“Good, because nothing like that happened!” Sirius insisted, pacing up and down the common room. “Nothing at all! It was all very platonic, there was nothing going on “”
“I said I know, Sirius!” she said loudly.
He stopped pacing and looked at her.
“But something important did happen,” she continued softly. “I can see it between you two. Can you tell me about it?”
He sank down beside her, nodding slowly. Then he told her, carefully leaving out the part where his own cheeks had become wet.
“I understand,” she said when he was finished. “And I understand why you would want to hang around with her now. But Sirius “”
“I know, I know!” he angrily interrupted her. “James is important!”
“James is your best friend,” she said quietly. “And you can’t just stop hanging around with him. He doesn’t understand. You have to make things right with him. You have to “”
But just what he had to do, Sirius never found out. At that moment the portrait hole opened and James entered. Scarlet ink was still plastered in his hair. It looked horribly like dried blood. He stopped dead when he spotted Sirius.
“Not with your girlfriend, Padfoot?” he questioned angrily. “What happened, did she decide the Giant Squid was a better choice than a giant git?”
Before Sirius could reply James strode up the boys’ staircase and out of sight. Sirius turned back to Jocelyn, who was desperately shaking her head.
“Sirius, don’t!” she said desperately. “Go talk to him, make things right!”
“You know what?” said Sirius, looking her straight in the eye. “I just may not want to.”
And with that he climbed out of the portrait hole and out of sight.