Rivals [A Sirius Story]

« 2: Disappointed »

« Marlene's POV »

Sprawled outside on the grass, I smile knowingly at Lily's tale as she completes it. The sun shimmers down on us both.

"...and that's how I discovered that four girls asked him to the dance!"

"Are you sure you don't like James?" I teasingly ask her.

"Obviously not! Why would you think that, Mar? I'm merely...noting an...interesting event! An event which proves that he doesn't really, truly care about me; he flirts with other girls!"

"Oh, and the most important part of the story: did he accept any of them?" I quiz.

"Well, no, but – "

I silence her with a look. She bites her lip and responds, "You're the same with Sirius; the man's practically in love with you and you think he's a player." A group of girls and boys sitting nearby us glance worriedly at us, clearly wondering if we're fighting. We aren't, we just speak very boldly to each other, having realized long ago that we can communicate better without the barrier of formalities.

I press my lips together. "There's a bit of a difference. For one, Black hasn't spent years following me around Hogwarts, asking to go on dates with me!"

Lily opens her mouth to argue, but then shuts it. "Okay, yeah, I'll give you that."

"Besides," I continue, "he isn't downright adoring of me. James is certainly that way towards you." Lily accepts this, again, fairly easily. "You're right, Sirius is a bit more of a...well, flirt," she says. The last bit is said rather gently, as if her saying it too loudly would break me.

Her statement can't be argued with, but for some reason, I don't like the thought of Black flirting with other girls. Sitting up, I reply, "Let's discuss something else...there's only so much to be said about those two." Giggling in agreement, Lily nods.

"So about the upcoming war – " I begin.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa – you can't just switch topics on me like that!" Lily complains over my talking.

"We agreed to switch topics!"

"But the war, that's such a different discussion to be had – "

"Unfortunate. Nevertheless, we're discussing it," I cut her off, effectively ending the argument. She rolls her eyes, but gives me a fond smile.

"The war is certain to come up soon...Voldemort is bound to start some fight, he won't stall much longer," I continue. My back stiffens and I straighten up slightly.

"At least we'll face Voldemort's army all together – at least he doesn't specifically want to target any of us!" Lily says, managing to find the positive aspect in any situation, as she frequently does.

I quirk a brow, deep in thought. "Doubtful. He'll want to split us up."

Lily frowns. "What do you mean?"

"Well, it's easier to pick us off that way."

"Then I guess we won't allow ourselves to be split up!"

I collapse back onto the soft grass. "That's genius, Voldemort is now defeated due to that amazing idea. Great job, 'Loss."

Offended, Lily looks at me. "Just trying to be positive," she defends.

"Positivity can only help so much – " I break off, realizing that I sound rude. "Sorry, you're right. We need to stay optimistic. And we shouldn't let ourselves be split up."

My friend offers a wink. "I know, I'm a genius." She flips her fiery hair in my face.

"I know you are, 'Loss, I know you are."