Sirius Black. Ava didn’t know him at all, and yet she had never quite been able to find him nice. He was handsome in the extreme, far more so than James, and she knew that. Sirius, with his longish black hair falling elegantly into his fathomless grey eyes, his tall body, very muscular for a sixteen-year-old, high cheekbones, and casual-arrogant vibe, was the fantasy of every girl in the school. But he knew it – he knew it all too well. And while James was confident and easy-going, Sirius was haughty and arrogant, knowing what he wanted and very used to getting it...

Keeping that thought in mind, she stepped towards the group, took the broom James gave her, and waited for her instructions.
Upon seeing that she hadn’t backed down, the others turned their attention away from her again – all except Sirius.

Ava’s eyes widened.
The dog was forbiddingly large, had a lot of shaggy, black fur, and was lounging on the chair comfortably. It seemed like none of the boys seemed to find it strange that there was a dog in Sirius’ chair, instead they were chatting to the dog quite amiably. 
Ava couldn’t help gasping at the sight, and three human and one dog head whirled around to look at her.

She cleared her throat. Under normal circumstances, just talking to a girl who was popular and beautiful, and to whom she had barely ever talked before, would have frightened her, but not now. She was the girl who was going to Hogsmeade with James Potter – what could possibly scare her?
“Lily?”
The red-head looked up. She smiled, surprised but warmly, when she saw Ava. “Hey Ava. What’s up?”

She tumbled to the ground, her vision blocked by a mass of filthy grey hair. The werewolf’s growling was loud in her ears, its foul breath fogging her brain. She could see its bared teeth, big, yellow, and deadly …
And then the werewolf was suddenly gone. Its weight was whisked of her so suddenly she took a moment longer to register she was free. Panting, her body trembling, she rolled over.
There was a big black dog crouching in front of the werewolf, growling. Its fur was shaggy and long, its eyes intensely grey.
Sirius.

She shouldered her bag and left the Great Hall. Outside, she stopped for a moment, and leaned against a wall, closing her eyes. She couldn’t believe how easy it had felt, talking to them … to James after their awkward phase, and to Sirius, after never having talked before …
“Ava?”
She flinched and took a quick step away from the wall. Sirius was standing in front of her.

"...Things were … a lot different between us then. And then there was that day when you suddenly started talking about starting over, and don’t take this the wrong way because I’m so happy you did, but I still can’t help wondering … why the sudden change?”

The next morning in Charms, the now vacant seat beside her that had always been occupied by Sirius, was taken by Regulus, who seemed to find nothing wrong with this. Settling into the chair comfortably, he smiled at her.

“Well, last night … the kiss …” Regulus made an understanding noise as if he had been waiting for her to bring it up. She sighed nervously. “What did you mean by it?”
Regulus shrugged. “I thought that was obvious.”
Ava waited.
“Look,” said Regulus. “I like you. I think you’re smart and funny and sexy, and I like you. And if you don’t know what I meant by that kiss – well then how about this one?”

It hadn’t snowed this year – just like last year, which had seen Christmas come and go without the tiniest bit of snow – and the house stood dark and forbidding in cold, grey surroundings.
The inside was no different. Large and certainly incredibly expensively furnished and everything, but cold and emotionless. Ava tried hard not to think about what she had once heard about a home’s aura being defined by the people who live in it.

Her eyebrows knitted together, she put her hands on her hips and glared at him. “What are you trying to say, Regulus? That you won’t allow me to break up with you?”
Regulus’ hand slid down her arm and she shivered. He smirked smugly. “Precisely.”

Ava felt her heart stand still. Surely she had seen wrong. She must have. Sirius didn’t have a girlfriend. He had never had one. Although girls were standing in line trying to get his attention, he had always let them down.
She tried to breathe calmly and collect herself. Of course she’d seen wrong. There was no other explanation for it.

She felt hot tears rolling down her cheeks and swallowed, closing her eyes.
And then a low sound reached her ears. A familiar, comforting sound. The soft pounding of paws on the grass …
Ava’s eyes flew open, and she raised her head.

“Absolutely. Look, Ava, you can’t go on like this forever. You have to talk to him. Just tell him that you’ve been experiencing strange feelings lately, and find out where he stands.”
Ava took a deep breath. “Alright,” she said slowly, “that sounds easy enough; I can do that.”

They smiled at each other. And then they both turned, and walked in opposite directions out of the train station.

A very serious mistake, since propped back on his elbows, black and slightly wet hair messily surrounding his unbelievably handsome face, he made her thoughts swirl, her brain cloud, and she felt herself almost bursting with the need to do something, something that would undoubtedly ruin their friendship forever …

“I love you.”