Trouble (The Marauders Era» Sirius Black Fanfiction) *Editing*

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Chapter Thirteen

Photograph

<Absence makes the heart grow fonder>

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     January passed by uneventfully, and it was now the first weekend of February. Thanks to James and Sirius, Bertram stayed quiet and Thea's past remained a secret, at least for now.

     With the start of the new term came lots of homework. At times, even Thea found herself becoming overwhelmed, which was strange for her. Usually school was easy and she enjoyed it, but she gradually became more and more stressed out. Then Lily, Remus and Thea made a little study group together, with James, Sirius and Peter copying their work and pretending to contribute. They developed a system; each person would be assigned classes that they would do the homework for, then they would all get together, review the work, and write their own assignments. This method helped Thea get caught up with her homework and become less stressed.

     The Marauders, Lily and Thea were all good friends by February; though the Marauders were still always running off causing mischief, which Thea was beginning to grow suspicious about. There were their usual pranks, which they heartily accepted responsibility of as if they were trophies, and then there was the weird stuff: seeming to disappear from sight when something "urgent" came up, the strange code-words they used whenever someone was around ("The wolf howls at midnight", "The owl sleeps at dawn", "The snake is slithering", etc...) but what made her most suspicious was Remus's constant illnesses. It baffled her, yet at the same time, she felt like the answer was right in front of her. Like it was on the tip of her tongue, but she couldn't find the right words.

     "Oi!"

     A jellybean bounced off her forehead, disturbing her from her thoughts. With a frown, she rubbed the spot where the small bean had painfully connected with her skin. She glared at James over the top of her book.

     "Oh, sorry about that," James said innocently. "I just meant to get your attention."

     "You've got it. What do you want?" she grumbled.

     "What're you thinking about?" he asked. She blinked.

     "That's what you wanted to ask me? That's why you threw-" She leaned down and picked up the bean. "-a Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Bean at me? How do you even have this, the last Hogsmeade trip was nearly two months ago!"

     "They aren't from two months ago. How I get my supplies is none of your business. Now what's bothering you?"

     "Nothing is bothering me," she said, returning to her book.

     "He's right," Lily said. "You have seemed rather distant lately."

     "Is it Bertram?" asked Sirius with his eyes narrowed. He closed his book and rose from his seat. "Is he giving you a hard time again?"

     "Sirius, sit down," Remus barked. Sirius frowned before turning to Thea.

     "Bertram hasn't done anything," she said. With a slight nod, Sirius slowly sat back down, his eyes avoiding Thea's gaze and cheeks slightly red.