The stench of beer and dim lighting of the bar were starting to mess with Sirius' head. He slid off his stool at the bar, and pushed his way through the dense crowd of drunkenly dancing couples. Once he pushed the door open and gulped in the cold London air. Sirius lit a cigarette and watched the people making their way home from work. It was only 6:30, but he had already been at the pub for an hour and a half, and it was time for him to go back to his flat. He had a mission for the Order tomorrow, and Marlene was probably waiting for him. Sirius dropped the cigarette and ground it out against the sidewalk. He walked into the side street next to the bar, and apparated back to another alley closer to his apartment.
He ducked his head and walked towards their apartment building. On the outside, the building was a crumbling and rapidly deteriorating mess of brick and glass. Sirius pushed open the door to the hallway and made his way to the staircase on the far side of the lobby. He pushed open the heavier, metal door and ran to the third floor. He opened the door and made his way to flat 3-3, and slid his key into the lock above the doorknob. As he pushed open the door, he was met with the smell of burnt bread and pork. "Marly?" He called into the kitchen. "Yes?" Marlene answered in a slightly agitated tone. Sirius hung his coat on the back of the door and made his way into the flickering light of the small kitchen. Marlene turned around from the stove and shook her head sheepishly. "I just wanted to make something nice for you, since you're going tomorrow," she sighed. "Marly, I thought we had agreed that you wouldn't cook, after the time you almost burnt down the building, " Sirius responded teasingly. Marlene let a small smile slip onto her face. "Should I just order Chinese?" Marlene asked him.
Sirius walked over to their coffee table, and picked up the menu. They never cooked for themselves, and only ate home cooked food when Lily or Remus brought something over. Marlene walked down the short hallway to their bedroom, and he could hear her casting cleaning spells. She came back down the hallway, and pointed her wand at the carpet in their living room. "Scourgify," she muttered. Sirius barked out a laugh as the carpet lightened a few shades. Marlene frowned. "Why is our apartment so dirty?" She whined as she cast tidying spells around the rest of the room. Clothes flew back into the closet in their bedroom, and magazines made a stack on their coffee table. The couch that Sirius was sitting on straightened, and chairs turned to face the couch. As the curtains on their window shut, Marlene picked up their landline. "What do you want?" She mouthed to Sirius. He placed his order, and a few minutes later, the delivery man knocked at their door. Sirius went into the hallway to get the food, because the protection charms around their flat wouldn't let anyone in.
As they dug into their dinner, Sirius groaned. "What?" Marlene asked, concerned. "I'm just tired, and I'll probably have to wake up early tomorrow." Marlene smirked, "Then maybe you shouldn't go to the bar. If you didn't go, you could have been home earlier, and be in bed by now." He rolled his eyes and she grinned. "I win." Sirius rubbed his eyes and stumbled down the hallway to their small, tiled bathroom. He brushed his teeth and washed his face. He walked back into their bedroom, where Marlene was reading Protecting Your Home From the Dark Arts. Sirius changed into an old shirt and sweatpants and rolled onto his side of the bed. Marlene was already curled under the covers, and he pulled the blanket up to his chin and looked over at her. "I'm going to stay up for a little longer. I need to finish reading this," she said softly. Promptly, he rolled back over and fell asleep.
In the middle of the night, Sirius woke up to sirens blaring in the street in front of their building. Marlene was already in the living room, staring blankly at the scene unfolding outside. Her hair was in a messy bun, and she was only wearing a sweatshirt and a pair of old shorts. He walked behind her, and wrapped his arms loosely around her torso. "What happened? It's too early in the morning to be awake," he asked. She turned around with a small smile. "Well, first, I got an owl from Dumbledore that the mission for tomorrow is cancelled, because the Order caught the Lestranges and Rowle late last night. Second, some jerk decided to run around with a gun this morning so our section of the city is on lockdown." Sirius nodded peered out the window. He closed the curtains and sat down in one of the chairs. Marlene smiled wistfully. "Well, that's one more day I don't have to worry about you."