When with Rome {Sirius Black}

40. Eve of Sixth Year

Sixth Year was beginning to be seen on the horizon, with little leeway of Barbara Potter getting out of it. She had managed last year's work load with a lot of help from Lily and Marlene grading papers for her. However, Dumbledore could obviously tell that she was having a rough time keeping up with the work; so he devised a new plan for her. Barbara was to begin a new class specifically for tutoring. The only people who could qualify for it were younger years who didn't have an Acceptable.

She was also able to pick her students, and strayed away from those who were affiliated with the Dark Lord. Now that the Wizarding War was officially on, she didn't want to give any sort of knowledge to the pureblood maniacs.

Her father was busy with making potions for the newly formed group called The Order of the Phoenix. Barbara, James, and Sirius were sworn to secrecy about the group, which was made up of mainly Aurors and Muggle-borns. The first meeting was held at their house, where the Potter twins and Sirius recognized Hogwarts alumni such as Alice Prewett, Frank Longbottom, the Prewett brothers Fabian and Gideon, and the whole McKinnon family.

They weren't allowed to sit in on the meeting at first, but with some stubborn arguing the Gryffindors knew all about, the trio had a first glance into their future. They agreed to join as soon as they were of age, not caring that their parents weren't as supportive as they were to Angel joining. But James told Barbara they would be supportive in due time, knowing that they couldn't stay mad for too long.

That's when Sirius had pulled Barbara off to the side, asking her to be his girlfriend officially. At first, Barbara was extremely shocked with the forward approach, not knowing how to respond. But when Sirius began to back out, nerves clearing getting the better of him, Barbara pulled him into a quick kiss.

They had told James the next day, not wanting the overprotective brother to cause a scene at Hogwarts once he found out. But to their surprise, he simply yelled down to Euphemia that he was owed three galleons by both parents.

Apparently, they had a bet going on since Fourth Year.

It was the eve of their Sixth Year, even thinking about it led Barbara to a headache. Though her schedule for teaching was easy, she learned that she needed NEWTS from the core classes in order to become a certified Mediwizard. That meant that she had six classes a day, one tutoring class, and had only two weekends a month to herself.

Barbara discovered that, with the Marauders helping Moony, she wasn't necessarily needed anymore. That meant that she used those nights to tutor Alex, a bright boy who just struggled in Potions. She didn't blame him, Slughorn was very good at digressing. Someone who wasn't good at digressing or changing the subject, however, was still James Potter.

The boys had been over for the last week of summer, which meant Peter and Remus discovered that Barbara and Sirius were actually a couple now. Moony and Prongs had to pay up to Peter, who earned a hefty ten galleons. He and James may have betted around the same time; but unlike the broad gap between his parents' bets, Peter had guessed the exact week it happened.

They weren't the only ones to discover something, however, because Barbara also discovered another gimmick the Marauders had been working on since their Fourth Year.

The Marauders Map, complete with a sassy passcode, was shown to the Royal for the first time. Her eyes widened with how smart the boys were for creating a map as extensive and accurate as any other. "Wow, guys, this is.... wow..."

"It's brilliant, isn't it?" Sirius said proudly, his arm across her shoulders.

She turned to him, her eyebrow raised. "And you four had the brains to figure it out? There are only two brains in your group: Remus's and the lot of yours! I'm quite impressed."

"Hey! Now hold on just a second, I'm just as smart as you!" James said indignantly.

"James, who has more OWLs?" Barbara retorted without missing a beat. His hazel eyes narrowed as he mumbled some chosen words under his breath.

"She has you there, Prongs-"

"Oh shut up lover boy. You're lucky I haven't cut your arm off yet." James snapped at Sirius, who had a big smirk on his face. Barbara had a smirk matching Sirius's; and she moved seats to sit on her boyfriend's lap.

"Is this better, James?" Barbara taunted. She took Sirius's arms and wrapped them around her waist, clearly enjoying the seat and her brother's reaction.

"If this year is anything like it is now, don't count on either of you making it." James threatened.

"You can't kill me before my workload does!"