* . DOG / DAYS !

Lily didn’t need to turn around to know it was Sirius who just stopped her, grabbing by the shoulders. She turned around to face the other Gryffindor, most of her face concealed but her bright smile still visible. “I think I will take my chances with dancing.” She chuckled, taking his hand and leading them towards more into the circle of dancing bodies instead of staying on the outside perimeter. 

If this was a few months ago, say, before the incident of last year, she would feel awkward dancing with Sirius Black at a ball. After all, he was a marauder, someone from that little troublemaking group that Severus hated oh so much. She would probably be dancing with him, if anything, not betraying by keeping one Sirius Black company. But that was before. Now she had new friends, a new circle. And despite the redhead being adamant she wouldn’t be any closer to them before, her walls resolved a little too quick. She blamed Remus, of course. Afterall, she was always closed to Remus and with Severus out of the picture, she had no reason not to get more familiar with the rest of her housemates.

She held his hands, dancing to the beat. “Do you want to tell me why you’re so desperate to dance or drink the night away? Or is it something I’d only get to find out after feeding you some liquid courage?” A light but understanding laugh fell from her lips. She’d understand. He probably just saw something that potentially broke his heart.

he grinned at her , following her out into the dancefloor , gratitude flooding his body. it felt weird , going to her when he needed help. just the thought of asking for help was a foreign one , but him and lily wouldn’t have dared to cross paths a year ago. still , it was a nice kind of weird. nice - knowing that he can have friends simply for the sake of having them , and he realised with a small start , that he’d be quite lost without her. it helped , really , that he knew how to play things cool , unlike james. it was incredible what being genuine with people could do. merlin , all this growth , he could do with a lie down.

he gave her a spin , holding their joined hands up in the air to twirl her before going back to dancing to the beat. “ i’m not DESPERATE lillian , how uncouth. isn’t this what this whole ball is for ? drinking and dancing ? broaden that little ginger mind of yours. ” he teased , tapping a finger against her forehead.

he carried on dancing for a while , letting his thoughts get themselves in order before taking a deep breath through his nose. “ remus has a date. which is like , TOTALLY FINE. but , you know , bit shit, innit. ”

“I’ve a talent for sneaking up on people, apparently. Don’t see how given I’m usually tripping over my own two feet.” She kicked her heels together, referring to her usual clumsiness. Wearing heels on top of that was a bloody mission. “The amount you two get away with, she’s got to secretly love you. I don’t know how I keep getting detention for falling asleep in class when James is the one gluing my hands to the desk and getting a free pass.” She rolled her eyes, but soon widened them at the implication of her dating Remus again.  “Oh, no - trust me, that’s so far in the history books it’s gathering dust.” That and he’s not into girls, she wanted to say. The two were often mistaken for an old married couple the way she was constantly sneaking into his dorm, but no one knew the true meaning behind it. “Why, you jealous, Siri?” She waggled her eyebrows while reaching to pour herself a glass of spiked pumpkin juice. 

“ we spend that much time in detention with her we’re practically family , yet i’m still not up to christmas present levels of love but i’m working on it. ” he laughed , shooting mary a wide grin at the mention of james. “ you just don’t have the patented sirius black charm , mackerel , that’s your problem. a wink and light flattery will get you anywhere in life , darling , trust me. ”

“ haha dust , yeah. ” he mumbled pulling his flash out and taking a swig , nearly choking on it as he heard her question. was he that fucking obvious ? actually , no , scratch that. he was a big boy now , he wasn’t jealous. just curious. yeah , curious. “ JEALOUS ? i’m flattered mac , but i’m a fully fledged trouser jockey now , haven’t you heard ? it’s not you , honestly , it’s me. ”

“don’t get me wrong, i love the whole mystery aspect of it, but the masks do make it hard to know if you are talking to friend or foe.” something about that made him feel a bit uneasy. “i will say, though, it does make flirting a little less awkward.”

“ nice lad like you , ted , i’m surprised you have any FOES at all. ” he teased with a grin. “ FLIRTING ? tonks you devil , whose caught your eye then ? anyone i know ? suppose it seems a bit daft asking if you fancied a spin on the dancefloor then , eh. ” 

something inside of her ached. narcissa had never felt this way before. she’d never felt this much before. a part of her long to reach out and squeeze his hand. she wanted to reassure him that despite the scorched hole in the family tree, he was still her family. but she was too scared that if she tried, he would pull away, again. it would kill her. perhaps even more than waking to the sound of walburga screaming and wailing in their living room. more than hearing the news that sirius had left without a goodbye. did he really hate their family so much?

“I do think you very capable, sirius.” narcissa said calmly. her mother had drilled into her for years that one does not show any emotion in such a public setting unless it is a polite smile. “I think that you’re very smart and your talents are eclectic. if you wanted to do something, anything. you could.” and he had. it wasn’t an easy feet to leave. it would be even harder to stay away. the black family reach was long. narcissa would not doubt that her father would rather see his children dead than a traitor.

“thank you.” narcissa was glad for the masks. she couldn’t see how uncomfortable her cousin was just for her mere presence, and bella couldn’t see them talking. certainly, she would not approve. “you know me, I prefer less grand occasions, but the mystery is nice. there’s no need to ask if you’re having fun, I suppose.” she nodded to the flask he was still poorly hiding.

he smiled , at that. CAPABLE. it was such a narcissa thing to say , polite and neutral yet unerringly genuine that for the first time in regards to his family , it gave him hope. he managed a smile at her then , a real one - not one of his cocky smirks or trademark grins , but a soft pull of his mouth , one reserved for the three people in his family he trusted and his marauders. “ YOU’VE ALWAYS HAD TOO MUCH FAITH IN ME CISSA , I’M AFRAID. ”

it wasn’t an apology , but it was as close as he could get tonight. why , all of a sudden , he decided to be a coward , he didn’t know , but he hoped she didn’t think too badly of him , although that was most likely the case. it would be dangerous , for her , if anyone even saw them talking. anyone overhearing anything sounding like friendliness or , merlin forbid , forgiveness would be a liability to say the least. her mother may be more poised that his own , but they were blacks all the same. he pushed the thought from his mind and reverted back to neutral ground. at least the masks gave him a semblance of obscurity.

“ grand or not , at least the music’s better , it actually has WORDS. ” he mused , giving his shoulders a shake in time to the latest pop song playing in the background. he followed her gaze and pulled the flask from his pocket and smiled. “ fun indeed. ” he tilted the flask towards you. “ don’t suppose i can tempt you ? ” the for old time’s sake at the tip of his tongue was resolutely not said.

it was ridiculous , how the word alone sent an acidic spike of jealousy right through his chest and into his gut. remus was there with mary for merlin’s sake. he loves mary ! - he knows her and remus were friends , good friends , but he also knows they dated. the rational part of his brain insisted that it lasted about a minute and they were both fourteen , but he was nearly ten drinks under and feeling just a bit melancholy so he allowed it.

speak of the devil , he thought as he saw a certain marauder make his way over to him , and his heart gave an involuntary lurch at the smile he was giving sirius. merlin , he needs another drink. “ TOP OF THE EVENING MOONS , having fun ? gotta say you look particularly dashing as an owl , you should consider a new animal form. ”

his eyes scanned the room and landed on remus and mary , dancing and laughing and he decided right then that he needed to do something , anything , because if he didn’t he wouldn’t be able to stop looking and then he’d risk looking like a grade a creep or doing something he’d regret. a flash of red hair and the glimpse of a mask , and sirius abandoned his glass and started to stride across the hall.

“ EVANS ! ” he hollered , catching up to lily and clutching her by her shoulders. “ i need you to either dance with me , or get me really really drunk. now , preferably. ”

“subtle.” cissy retorted, her brow raising curiously under her mask. the wonder of the night included most people remaining a mystery, but she would know this particular romeo were she blindfolded and half-conscious. a small flame of anger ignited in her stomach, but she kept a lid on it. there was always the chance that he hadn’t recognized her, and maybe he’d actually stop and talk to her for once. there was a chance that she could get some more clear answers.

cissy stepped around her cousin to the table and picked up a glass. she lifted to her nose and inhaled. the scent of pumpkin, cinnamon, and booze hit her. she chuckled. “is it just coincidence that you smell shockingly similar to whatever the secret ingredient in this juice is?” it did not stop her from taking a sip of the glass. alcohol had been strictly prohibited from her. druella thought it was a vile drink which only served to make you act belligerent and make you gain weight. both of which would be the end of the world were they to happen to her daughter. “you’d have a better chance convincing mcgonagall if you just said you did something, but less severe. let them believe you did get in trouble. misdirect.”

ANY TIME NOW MINNIE , the thought as he heard narcissa speak. if she had stayed silent , he might have missed her standing there , probably would have gone the whole night without noticing her , but now he was aware of her , he couldn’t help the tug of his heart at the sight of the familiar blonde hair and the pin straight posture. she had always been more disciplined than him in those things , the traditions and etiquette they tried to make him learn. then again , she was more disciplined than him in just about everything ; after all , he was the one that ran away.

the thought almost made him wince , but he had long since stopped blaming himself. they had every right to be angry , and just the notion of losing reg and andromeda and narcissa had almost made him turn around half way through his trek to the potter’s. but , after the remainder of the summer , baring his soul to james and just talking about what it was like to live in that house , to be a great and noble black , he’d reasoned that if they still wanted him , they’d have him , but he did what he had to do. he has no regrets. well , almost.

“ if you think i’m capable of SUBTLETY AND MISDIRECTION , then you really don’t know me at all. ” he huffed a laugh that sounded far to forced even to himself. “ you look lovely as always , cissa. enjoying your night ? ”

“You’re a fucking moron, Black.” Rodolphus shook his head, lip curling ever so slightly. He reached towards Sirius, fingers passing him by inches as he pulled the bowl of juice closer to the edge of the table. “That better be charmed with infinite vodka, small flask like that ain’t gonna go far is it?”

Rodolphus motioned for Sirius to hand over the flask impatiently. “Heard your mother blasted you off the tapestry. How does it feel to be useless to the world? Always wondered that myself.”

“ CHARMING AS EVER , I SEE. ” sirius deadpans, straightening his jacket with a roll of his eyes. “ you just worry about pouring , pal. don’t want you making a mess now , do we ? ” 

he tugged the flask from his inside his jacket and took a long swig - he’d need all the help he could get if this conversation was going to carry on - and made a show of slowly removing his mouth before handing it over. “ news travels fast , eh ? i didn’t take you as the type to be bothered , lestrange. and it’s wonderful , thanks for asking. i never was one for group tattoos. or snakes for that matter. ”

Ted took the flasks, his eyes going wide with surprise as Sirius kept pulling more from his pockets. “Are you an alcohol genie?” He joked, sticking one flask in his own pocket and opening up the other to take a swig. “Thank you, mate. These things always seem a bit better with some liquid courage.”

“ SOMETHING LIKE THAT. ” he grinned , opening a flask of his own and following suit in a drink. “ know exactly what you mean. not your thing then , i take it ? masquerades ? ”

‘oooh, for sure. are you sure? because the sight of you by the bowl gives me nothing but hope.’ marlene excitedly spoke as she saw the way he jumped and the way he tried to hide his actions–but, she knew him better than this and after all the two of them always got drunk together, so she would be dissappointed if he didn’t do anything to the punch.

she leans closer slightly and sends him a wink.’so, should i take a drink of the punch or should i even bother?’ she asks as she walks past him and reaching to get a glass for herself.

“ absolutely NO CLUE mckinnon , sorry , i must have slipped. ” he winked. the relief at seeing it was marlene taken over by the promise of a damn good night if their usual habits won out. 

“ suppose you’ll have to try it and find out , it might be your lucky day. ” he took a glass and poured himself a glass , holding it up in a toast. “ chin chin dear. ”

“Do you promise?” Despite it being hidden behind her mask, Andromeda raised an eyebrow at her cousin, looking back and forth between him and the punch bowl he stood suspiciously close to. His reputation did precede him, after all. “We only got back like three days ago, Sirius, you’re not already trying to get in trouble.” Still, she poured herself a small cup – Why not have some fun, if it was free for the taking now? It wasn’t like she would be the one getting in trouble for it.

“ HAVE I EVER LET YOU DOWN ANDY POOS ? ” he grinned at his cousin and wriggled his eyebrows. sucking the last of the spilt drink off the pad of his finger ( something about being around made him want to abandon all the etiquette and decorum his family instilled in him ) he grabbed a glass and poured some of the spiked punch into it. “ it’s only a matter of time before they catch me for something , might as well go down for something that benefits everyone. having a good night so far cousin dearest ? ”

Mary had spotted Sirius as she approached the drinks table, but didn’t notice what he was up to until he spun around and she caught a flash of silver before his hand shoved something in his jacket pocket. She knew him well enough to know whatever he was up to, it was something mischievous and given he was hovering around the drinks table, it wasn’t hard to put two and two together.  She laughed at the sheer look of panic in his eyes and gestured to the now clearly spiked pumpkin juice. “Don’t worry, I come in peace.” She put her gloved hands up with a smile, “I was going to get some pumpkin juice for Remus and I, but now I’m not sure that’s the best idea.”

he relaxed as he saw mary approaching and shot her an easy grin , grabbing a napkin to clean himself up. “ GAVE ME A BLOODY HEART ATTACK THEN , MAC. ” he teased , “ minnie’s threatened me with a fate worse then hell but i’m sure she’s a devil for the sauce. ”

his smile faltered at the mention of remus , but he quickly caught himself , flashing her an even bigger even faker grin , whilst gesturing at the bowl in a help yourself motion , telling himself pull yourself together man you’re better than this. “ oh moons ? what , you two kids on a date or something ? ”

just the sight of a marauder within a two meter vicinity of a bowl of pumpkin juice was warning to leave well enough alone for complete plausible deniability, so when sirius heard footsteps approaching , he jumped , hastily stashing the flask back in his jacket and spilling even more on him in the process. he braced himself , expecting the worst ( mcgonagall ) but praying for the best ( anyone but mcgonagall )

“ I WAS DOING ABSOLUTELY NOTHING WRONG. ”