Serendipity (S. Black)

SEVENTEEN

"Aw, come on, Evans, he had to!" James protested. He pointed to Remus' empty bed, and understanding dawned in her evergreen eyes.

"I know that, but she doesn't. Have you been out? Have you talked to anyone yet?" The boys shook their heads. "She showed up to the party alone and started talking to Regulus."

"Regulus?" James interjected.

"Yes. Regulus. And they spent the night dancing and laughing. Marlene caught them snogging outside of the portrait hole."

What little color Sirius' face had from the lack of sleep drained. "What?"

Right before she left the room, Lily met his gaze, her eyes withering. "You screwed up, Black."

The three boys sat in shock, just processing everything they'd just learned.

"Blimey," James muttered to himself. He imagined Eva getting so intoxicated that she would kiss Sirius' brother by the portrait hole and wondered just how much she'd had to drink. There was absolutely no way she would do that with a clear head. Right? "This just got unexpectedly complicated."

"I can't believe she kissed him," Sirius said hollowly. "She's not like that."

"She was angry and drunk, mate," James pointed out. "Not a good combo."

Peter continued to throw Remus' things in his trunk as he spoke, knowing his friend wouldn't have time to do it himself. "So what do we do? Just tell her?"

"No, Wormtail, don't be an idiot," scoffed James. "We promised Remus we wouldn't tell anyone. It's not our fault Evans figured it out, but if we tell Eva, that's on us."

"So we're just going to let her hate me?" Sirius asked. "Is that how this is going to work?"

"Padfoot, let me be blunt for a minute. With everything she knows, she has a right to hate you."

"I know, I know," Sirius rambled, running his hands through his hair without even realizing he was doing it. "I need to talk to her."

Peter's bushy eyebrows shot up. "You sure that's a good idea?"

"You heard Lily. I need to talk to her and apologize. I won't tell her about Remus, though - I'll figure something else out. I'll talk to her on the train."

Sirius went back to packing his things, dreading both his conversation with Eva and the holiday ahead.

*

"We're going skiing," Lily told her friends in their usual compartment. "Hopefully Petunia doesn't let her snotty attitude ruin the trip, though."

Eva nodded absentmindedly as she stroked Ringo's head. The little owl hooted softly and fluttered around his cage. She knew he wanted to fly, but they let him out on the train once in their fourth year and were banned from doing so ever again.

"I can't wait to see my mum," Eva said, her voice quieter than usual. She pulled her knees up to her chest and propped her chin on her knees, imagining a relaxing holiday. It was exactly what she needed. Marlene and Lily didn't mention the night before and for that she was immensely grateful. While she felt embarrassed about being caught with Regulus, she didn't regret it. More than anything, her negative thoughts dwelled on Sirius, who she didn't want to see at all.

Marlene tossed her a Pumpkin Pasty and grinned. "Mitchell will probably want to train all break for the next match. I'll get roped into helping him."

"At least you have a good relationship with him," said Lily. "Tuney's always so critical of me. She's got this absolutely terrible boyfriend she met at the university, too. I can't stand him. If he's coming on the trip, I might have to fake an illness."