And There Were Always Two... - oc x r. lupin & oc x s. black

- 41 -

"Coffee and gossip," Mavis announced.

"Those... are your two favourite things?" Sirius asked, walking with Mavis down the streets of Hogsmeade.

"Au contraire!" she exclaimed, turning around to face Sirius while walking backwards. "These 'two things', as you said, are actually one thing. You gossip while sipping coffee, drink coffee while exchanging gossip. An inseparable pair."

Sirius raised a brow.

"Do explain," he prompted.

"I love these two things separately, but together they cannot be beaten. Coffee, is something I learned to love while I was on my own," both of them knew what she meant on her own, "while gossip is something I missed while I was on my own."

"How poetic," he smirked at her.

"Your point?"

"I'm still getting used to how... everything has changed over the last few years."

"You mean how I have changed over the last few years."

He winced.

"From loud and bold to... poetic? Is that what you said? From hating books to basically living in the library."

Sirius nodded.

"You're... milder," he told her.

"Well..." she furrowed her brows in thought. "You're... you're different, too."

He frowned.

"Did you ever go back home after Christmas that year?" she asked him.

When he didn't reply, she knew that he didn't.

"So that's what happened to you."

"So how about talking to Ashley, huh?"

"He says, not so smoothly changing the topic."

Sirius nudged her with his elbow.

She nudged him back.

"Okay, okay," he said. "How about this, there's a little get together happening today in the common room. Just another round of spin the bottle, nothing drastic. I'll be there, Remus, too. James and Ashley will be there-"

"-no-" Mavis started to interrupt him, panicking a bit.

"-hold on a second," he said, holding his hand up as a sign for her to wait before answering. "So will Evans, McKinnon, Meadowes, and MacDonald. It's not private, not one-on-one, and absolutely not a reason to freak out."

Mavis glared at him.

"Please."

She continued glaring.

"Please."

More glaring.

"Please, please, please, please, please?"

Fucking "Fine."

"You also swear less," he told her, sending her a wink.

"Bastard."

They walked along for a few minutes, in silence. They had reached the path leading back to Hogwarts and started walking down it. It was the same path they had walked all those years ago when Mavis confessed her secret about James.

Suddenly Sirius looked at his wristwatch and swore under his breath.

"Did I mention the little gathering started five minutes ago?" he said, with an innocent smile.

"Oh no..."

Sirius grabbed her hand and pulled her along, doubling, if not tripling, their speed. They came hurtling into Hogwarts within five minutes and ran up the stairs to the tower. Mavis was panting as she stood before the painting of the fat lady. Sirius spoke the password and they walked through.