Afraid || Sirius Black [1]

73

Madison returned to the common room in a huff. Much to the Fat Lady's annoyance she slammed the portrait shut and stormed into the room, dropping her books onto the table. She turned to Lily and held up the note, "You want to read it? Thought not. I'll chuck it into the fire-" The girl stomped towards the burning wood and was about to let the paper drop from her hands when Lily stopped her.

"Wait- Is that from Sev- I mean Snape?" The redhead asked and Madison nodded her head. "Proceed." Lily watched the paper fall into the flames, shrivelling up and slowly turning into ash.

Madison stood there until it was fully disintegrated and burned, the feeling of relief washing from her, subsiding her anger. Picking up one of the books she had taken from the library that she had dumped on the coffee table, she backed up opening it and set herself on Sirius' lap. Sirius chuckled in amusement, shaking his head, "Make yourself comfortable, Leo." He grinned, earning only a hum in response signifying that the girl didn't actually hear what he had said instead, she was too engrossed in her book to listen. Sirius adjusted his legs beneath her and wrapped his arms around her waist, resting his head on her head. "Do you not wonder what was in that note, Evans?" He asked the girl.

She shook her head, "At first I did, but now, no. He made his choice, of course, I wish it was a different one, but he chose the other. I can't change him, he's changed from when we were younger. He's changed so much." Her voice changed to one with slight sadness but it was quickly washed away when she and Remus had to do their prefect rounds. "Let's go, Remus."

The boy nodded, adjusting his tie and placing his book by Madison's pile, exiting the common room after Lily. "Isn't she just perfect." Sighed James, looking in the direction that Lily had left in.

Sirius nodded, except he was looking at Madison who was perched on his lap. "Molly and Arthur Weasley had a new baby, another boy, in August." Stated Alice to Evangeline, "I wonder how many kids they're going to have."

"How'd you know that?" Asked Peter who had not long woken up.

"My mum works with Arthur's mother, she can't stop gushing over her grandchildren, William, Charles and Percy, though they nicknamed the first two Bill and Charlie." The girl replied, "My mum thinks they'll have at least four."

"I bet five." Says Mary, "Two boys, they haven't had a girl born into the Weasley family in decades."

Sirius turned to James, "Doesn't that make, their eldest the same age as Harley?" He asked him, rubbing circles with his thumb on Madison's covered stomach.

The boy with glasses thought for a moment, pulling a strange concentration face, "I believe so. We'll have to double check with Moony, she's four isn't she?" Sirius nodded, "Then yes, the same age as their eldest."

Marlene glanced up from her toenails that she was painting, "Who's Harley?"

"Moony's cousin." Murmured Madison not tearing her eyes from the words on the pages. "I mean, Remus'."

Sirius blinked repeatedly in shock, did she seriously hear Marlene and not him? "Excuse me Miss Parker, were you simply ignoring me earlier?" He asked her leaning around a bit so that she could see his face if she was to look up.

"Yes." The girl stated simply with no emotion in her voice. Sirius scoffed and poked her sides causing her to jump slightly and stand up and head towards the stairs still reading.

"Where're you going?" He asked her.

"To get changed." She replied and slowly climbed the stairs, tripping every so often as she continued to read. Once changed she sat down on her bed to pull her hair out of her face when she realised she hadn't done her astronomy homework which was due the next day. "Shit." She hissed and climbed under her bed looking for her textbook and some parchment to write on. It was another project that she and Sirius had to complete as they were partners yet again this year. They had forgotten to do it in the summer holidays.

The girl scrambled up and hurried back down to the common room and slipped into a seat at one of the tables. She opened her book to the right page and began to scribble down what she needed to write about, not caring if Sirius was helping or not. The boy noticed her new frantic demeanour and excused himself without saying anything and hopped over the back of the sofa, swaggering over to his girlfriend. "What are you doing, Maddie?" He questioned and took a quick look at the work on the table, "Our astronomy project! Merlin's beard I forgot about that!"

"It's...okay...just...go...relax.."She muttered between peering at her book and at her writing.

Sirius shook his head and pulled out the chair beside her, "No, I am helping and doing my homework, for once. What do you want me to write?"

"Write about how the planets can be linked to myths and can you do some drawings too, please?" She asked him, Sirius nodded kissing her cheek and summoning his textbook using the 'accio' charm. His book was sat beside hers open on a different page and the pair of them were hurriedly getting as much work down as possible. Sirius knew that he had to do this for Madison, she had never not handed in her work, plus, it was one of the only lessons he was above excelling in and his favourite of course. It was also Maddie's favourite and he did not want her grade nor his being tarnished because they forgot to do a project. He also wasn't having a repeat of the previous year when she had completed the whole project by herself.

After an hour or so, Remus and Lily returned and noted how the couple were working like they were going to die. Remus slumped on the sofa beside James and chuckled, "Is Padfoot actually doing homework?"

James nodded, "We all know it's only because he is partnered with Leo and it's their astronomy project that they hadn't even started or remembered to do in the holidays."

"But its' due tomorrow." Stated Lily.

"Exactly, he's doing it for her and only for her. Anyone else he wouldn't give a care in the world if it was done or not."

"That's sweet of him." Grinned the redhead.

James disagreed with him, "That's gross of him."