Mischief Managed Y2 Part 2: The Truth of the Tournament

Chapter Forty-Two: Kiss and Tell

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To Sirius' delight, the mirth at Adriana's expense lasted long past dinner time, in the privacy of their dorm. The darkness that seemed to be infecting Sirius' chest since talking to Regulus had been lifted thanks to Peter and James. There was no way Sirius was ever going to forget such an amazing evening which even during the small talk, had been far from boring. Black had been on the edge of his seat, unsure what Potter had planned but willing to literally bet his life that it would be spectacular. James Potter did not disappoint. The three of them dug into their stash of sweets, thanks to Peter keeping a constant mound underneath his bed. Elvis even got to play with a twirling twizzler, which the cat did not seem to appreciate, as the spinning licorice dragged him across the floor before he realized he could let go. Sirius danced with Elvis - something he hadn't done in a while -and realized his kitten was all grown up. Sirius pushed thoughts of Regulus away and after a few hours began to wonder where Remus was.

Sirius knew that he needed to talk to Remus and now that the horrid dinner date was off his chest, he felt like he actually could. But it wasn't until almost 8 pm that Remus returned, a calm and stillness about him that quickly faded upon hearing the afternoon antics of the rest of the Marauders.

"You...mean to tell me that after Transfiguration class the three of you felt like tormenting a poor girl," Remus sighed, the peacefulness that had seemed to be around him transformed into his usual state of weariness.

"First off, Adriana is a troll, not a girl. Secondly, I'm pretty sure she tortures muggles for sport so I wouldn't be calling her poor," Sirius pointed out. Remus still seemed exasperated but if he had further disapproval about their actions, he kept it to himself. Sirius felt jittery with Remus in the room...although he wasn't sure why. He wanted to talk to Remus, though at the same time he didn't. There was a hard-to-place...something...that seemed to flutter in Sirius' gut when Remus first entered the room. If he had to name it, he would say it was anxiety - though Sirius couldn't imagine anything that would cause him to feel the momentary panic but not panic feeling he sometimes felt at the arrival of Remus Lupin.

"Well, now that you're feeling better, Sirius, you ought to talk to Remus. Peter and I will be in the common room. Bye," James decided after an awkward silence had fallen on the room, partly Sirius' fault for getting caught up in thoughts about Remus. Well not about the werewolf, more like the unavoidable conversation. Maybe after talking to Remus though, the weird feeling would go away, which would be nice since it could be quite distracting. James didn't even give Remus or Sirius time to protest, not that he would have, leaving abruptly with Peter.

"Blimey, I guess that's one way to do it," Sirius muttered once the door shut, feeling as if it was quite warm in the dorm room.

"I'm glad you're feeling better, Sirius," Remus stated simply, still hovering by the door as if unsure what to do with himself. The older boy was unsure what to do either and he hated it.

"Why do we get like this so often?" Sirius questioned out loud, "All awkward and whatnot, we are bloody mates we should be comfortable with each other. I mean you should be comfortable with me because you're not and that makes sense. Only it doesn't because you're wrong it's not because of your lycanthropy that I didn't say anything," Sirius continued, unsure if he was making any sense. About halfway through he had gotten off of his bed and joined Remus in standing awkwardly. They were both on opposite sides of the room and Sirius watched as Remus' eyebrows rose high on his forehead in surprise then furrowed as he chose his next words with a skilled careful consideration that the heir simply did not possess.

"I've tried thinking of another reason. James told me I was wrong and that I needed to talk to you. Only...you were so angry after Regulus and with the dinner date. I didn't realize it wouldn't be Wanda. I'm sorry it wasn't her."