"Padfoot! Hey PADFOOT!"
"Hey, James."
James skidded to a halt and collapsed next to his best friend, who was sitting quietly by the lake, eyes troubled, looking deep in thought. No one had seen him since breakfast, where had received quite a vile exploding letter from his mother.
Sirius sighed and looked at James wearily.
The two friends sat in silence for a few minutes.
"I hate her so much," Sirius said finally, sounding and looking so sad it would probably have tugged at Voldemort's heartstrings. "But she's not s'posed to hate me back."
James sighed. "I know," he said softly, clapping Sirius on the back. "I know."
For today, that was enough.