Aria Black and the Triwizard Tournament

Does This Mean You'll Stop Calling Me a Sperm Donor?

I wake up to the smell of sizzling meat. Sitting up, I glance around. The kitchen is empty, except for a teapot on the stove. Oh, god I fell asleep. Where's Remus?

I sit up so quickly that I fall off the couch, along with the blanket that was on top of me.

"Oomph!"

A door swings open somewhere in the house. Remus! I sit up, peering over the couch. Sirius is exiting Remus's room, looking frustrated.

"Keep quiet, will you? He's just calmed down." He huffs, rushing over to the stove and lifting the tea kettle off the burner.

What's Sirius doing here, cooking in my kitchen? I stand up hurriedly, pulling my shirt down to cover my stomach.

"How's Remus?" I ask. I can be civil to Sirius, can't I? It's not going to help Remus to have the two of us fighting...

Sirius stirs the green beans on the stove, being careful not to look at me. "He's trying to rest. I told him that I was going to cook dinner, though."

"I can cook." I offer. "I usually do."

He shakes his head, eyes still on the green beans. I notice how he's not so skinny anymore. How long has he been staying with Remus? "It's fine."

I roll my eyes, moving over to the kitchen. The oven is on, so I open it and peer inside. There's a large chicken breast in the oven, one that you cut up for a few people. Remus won't eat, and I'm not feeling to hungry myself. Other than my loss of appetite, though, I don't feel much about the death of Lyall. Not anymore. Does that make me a terrible granddaughter because I don't care that my grandfather is dead? No... it's not that I don't care, but it doesn't bother me so much. I just feel bad for Remus.

I sit at the bar in front of Sirius, taking a deep breath. "How long have you been here?"

He turns around to inspect the chicken in the oven. I wonder why he's not using magic... Remus would let him use his wand. "Since the beginning of October."

October? I let my jaw drop so low I'm scared it might fall off. It's January! Remus has been at risk for three months. I resist the urge to lean forward and slap Sirius Black. And Remus? He lied to me. In his letter, he said that Sirius had left!

"He could get the dementor's kiss." I say softly. "I mean, you would obviously get it, but there isn't much soul to suck out. He deserves to live."

Sirius turns around, a sour, pouty sort of glare on his face. "I'm not a bad person, you know. And Remus is my best friend."

I raise my eyebrow. "Oh really? Because putting Remus in danger does not seem like a friendly thing to do." My eyes narrow. "Leave him, or I will make you leave."

He snorts, but holds back whatever snarky comment he was about to say. Sirius puts some biscuits on a cookie sheet and places them in the oven.

"Why don't you use magic?" I ask. "It'd be faster."

"You caught me." Sirius says dryly. "It's because I love spending so much time with you." The irritated look on his face suggests that he is not so thrilled to be spending time with me.

A chuckle escapes my mouth. Damn, I'm not supposed to be laughing at his jokes. Well... we are supposed to be getting along... for Remus.

I clear my throat. "Do you think that your could tell me about my mother? Remus never-"

"No." He says flatly.

"Why?"

Sirius raises his eyebrow. "The last time we talked, you were rude to me." He sounds like a four year old, whining about how I took his favorite toy.