Sirius moaned theatrically as he collapsed on his bed in the dormitory, the frame creaking as he did so.
"What's up Pads?" his sandy haired best friend asked kindly.
"Naomi." He sighed.
"Oh God what have you done now?" Remus enquired. Sirius looked back at him with mock disgust.
"I have done nothing, my ignorant little pally, she on the other hand is driving me insane! I thought that once I slept with her she might back off a bit. But of course nobody can get enough of the Sirius lovin'" the other boy retorted.
"Maybe if you told her how you felt..."
Remus was cut off abruptly. "Moony, we can't all be like you and Joanna, you know, all talking and feelings and stuff." He spoke these words as if a toddler just learning to talk, not entirely sure of what these foreign words meant. "Have you even shagged her yet?"
"What's that got to with anything?" the taller boy spat out with a sudden maliciousness Sirius had only seen a couple of times before.
"I'm just saying..."
"Well don't just say! Why not try thinking before you blurt these things out for once? And for your information, yes. Yes we have shagged in your words. Feel better now?" The volume of Remus's voice was slowly raising and Sirius felt like he had just received a bludger to the stomach. He had never meant to offend his best friend, their friendship was one of the most important things in the world to him; he couldn't lose it now.
Remus had turned, and before Sirius could take everything in, he could hear the faint footsteps of his best friend on the dorm stairs and the door into the common room slammed, leaving Sirus standing alone, mouth wide open, confused and upset.
James sighed, frustrated. He didn't know why the two boys sitting either side of him weren't talking. He wasn't sure he wanted to know, but he knew that this argument was making his day miserable, so he decided to do his best to dissolve the tension as quickly as possible.
"Hey guys did you see that new girl? My God she's hot! Do you know her name?" he looked either side to his friends, desperate for a response.
"Why don't you ask Sirius? He's probably slept with her already" Remus glared past James straight to Sirius who stared back, his black eyes full of hurt. Remus felt a bit bad for making his best friend look like this, but he also felt a sense of triumph that he could hurt the usually infallible Sirius Black. Even as he thought this, he mentally scalded himself. This was Sirius, the one person he would never want to hurt, ever, but as he looked back to Sirius, he saw only an empty chair.
James's words were lost as Remus bolted out of the great hall after his friend, leaving a number of murmurs and whispers in his midst.
Sirius curled up in his bed, cursing himself for starting this stupid argument. He always knew just how to put his foot in it, but this time, his most valuable friendship was at stake, how could he be so stupid? He moaned as he pulled his bedspread right over his head, not hearing the door opening and closing gently.
"Pads?" The familiar voice made Sirius feel warm with hope. He poked his head out from under his duvet. "Sirius, I'm so sorry. I don't know what's got into me." Sirius felt Remus's light frame perch on the end of his bed and glimpsed at his friend, meeting his amber eyes, etched with concern. "I would never want to hurt you, Pads. I can only apologise." Remus was greeted with silence. "Shit Pads say something!"
"It was my fault Moony. Me and my big mouth as usual. I'm really, really sorry!" Sirius blurted out all at once. Remus chuckled fondly and flopped down to rest his head on Sirius's duvet-clad legs. Both sighed contentedly. For others, this situation might have been weird, but the two boys felt totally at ease. They always did. Not like Peter; the smallest boy of the group squirmed at any contact with another boy because it was "gay" or "wrong". Peter just didn't really get the kind of friendships the other three cherished and depended on.