fatal love

chapter 115

Sirius didn't hear from Remus over the next few days. That only served to piss him off even more, even though he hadn't reached out either. Whatever. He didn't need Remus Lupin.

The issue was, it was now Friday, and the four Marauders plus Evans were supposed to go and see the Harpies play Puddlemere United. Sirius half-thought Remus wouldn't even show up, half-hoped.

But when he and James apparated to just outside the entrance to the stands, Remus was already there, along with Pete.

"Alright, lads?" James grinned.

Sirius made eye-contact with Remus for barely a second, and then they both looked away quickly.

"When's Evans getting here, Prongs?" Sirius asked.

"Right now," a voice said from behind him, and Sirius spun around to see Lily standing there.

"Evans," he smirked, "ready for your first Quidditch match? This is basically like losing your virginity, you know."

Evans rolled her eyes, going past him to give James a kiss. "It's been talked up a lot," she said dryly, "hopefully I won't be left disappointed."

"You won't be," James said confidently, "the Harpies are going to dominate, just wait and see."

"Do you support a team, Lily?" Pete asked.

"Sure I do," Lily said, "Leicester City F.C., the Ice Kings."

Sirius, James and Peter all frowned in confusion.

"That's a football team, by the way," Remus said quietly, looking at the ground.

"Right, right," James nodded, "well, we should go to a football game one day. But today is about Quidditch."

Lily snorted, leaning into James' side as he put an arm around her. Seeing them all happy and coupley was rubbing Sirius the wrong way, and he had to look away.

"Come on," he said bluntly, pushing forward, "let's find our seats."

They were seated in a row of five, many metres high into the sky. They weren't in a box or anything, because James insisted that the only way to experience a Quidditch game was amongst all the throngs and chants of the fans. Sirius sat down at the end of the row, then James, Lily, Peter, and finally Remus, all the way at the other end. It still wasn't far enough away.

They were sat down in plenty of time, thanks to Sirius' route marching. And James was preoccupied with Evans, showing her the binoculars and explaining to her the strengths and weaknesses of both teams, barely pausing to take a breath through all his talking. Overexcited as usual, Sirius thought, but he looked ecstatic.

Sirius stared at the empty pitch in front of him blankly. He was intensely aware of Remus, and kept unwillingly shooting him glances, but he was talking to Pete, steadfastly refusing to look Sirius' way for even a moment. Bastard, Sirius thought.

Eventually, the two teams came onto the pitch. Sirius cheered with everyone else, but really, he was just going through the motions. The Snitch was released, then the Bludgers, and finally the Quaffle.

"This is pretty cool, right?" James asked him.

"Yeah," Sirius agreed, but it felt hollow.

The game dragged on. Even though it was a clear day, two hours later, neither Seeker had spotted the Snitch, and the players were starting to get tired, their reflexes slowing.

"This is the problem with Quidditch," Lily said, "why isn't there just a time limit like muggle games?"

James glared at her. "Watch your mouth," he said, "I loved Quidditch before I ever loved you."