It was revolting; nauseating even. The way she was cuddled up to him, her head only reaching to his chest. His left arm was draped across her shoulder, the other on her waist. What's worse was that people were trying to eat, trying to physically force food down their refusing throats. No one had ever pictured Remus Lupin as one for public snogging sessions, yet there he was, tongue down the throat of one Marlene McKinnon. The couple didn't seem to notice the way the others were glancing at them, then at each other, and then back at the two. Or the look of disgust on Emmeline's face and the rolling eyes of Lily. Nor did they notice that everyone within a close distance had stopped eating, leaving forks and knives resting on the edges of their plates. That is, until Dorcas Meadowes cleared her throat rather loudly.

Marlene pulled back for a moment, turning to face the source of the noise.

"What? I had something stuck in my throat." Replied Dorcas, turning her back to Marlene and moving closer to Alice, who had witnessed the whole thing in silence. Emmeline and Lily exchanged a glance, wordlessly voicing their opinions on the couple. Lily sighed and stabbed her fork into a piece of turkey, placing it in her mouth and flipping the page of a book. Left with nothing else to do, Emmeline let her eyes drift down the Gryffindor table, gliding past the giggling first years, down to the opposite end where three people sat. Under normal circumstances, she could not care less what they were doing. However, now that one of them had begun to interrupt her lunch on a daily basis, she had to wonder.

It had started out innocently enough. Remus would visit Marlene towards the end of lunch (when all food had been consumed) and they would talk, laugh, and occasionally acknowledge the rest of the group. It had been semi-awkward then, seeing as Remus didn't know any of them personally. But he seemed nice enough, despite the association with Black and Potter. There was a definite difference between him and the two dark haired boys on the other side of the table. Also notable was the difference between him and Pettigrew; but no one actually cared about that.

Then one day, the talking turned to cuddling, and in turn snogging.

Dorcas had been the first to make a comment to the other girls. One particularly rainy afternoon in the dormitory, she settled herself on Lily's bed and innocently brought up the subject of Remus. Never one to hide her emotions, she joked about the amount of snogging going on during lunch. Alice looked worried at what would be said – but Marlene just shrugged it off.

And now Emmeline had to wonder – what did Potter and Black think about Remus sitting with the girls? Surely he'd be teased about it. She could only imagine the cracks the two would make about their friend's new seat. As long as the rest of them stayed in their area, things would remain alright. The last thing she wanted was the rest of the group bombarding her midday meal. Although, she didn't know how much longer it would stay this way. Everyone in the school knew of James's obsession over Lily. In fact, Emmeline would be surprised if the infamous Marauders stayed away any longer.

"Pass the pepper, please." She said to Alice, her eyes remaining on the boys and the end of the table. She held her hand out, expecting the pepper grinder to be placed in her hand. What she did not expect, however, was Sirius Black's eyes on her own.

He was staring.

It was obvious.

She had to stop-

"Here, Em." Replied Alice, looking at her funny. "You okay?"

Emmeline broke her gaze with Sirius, shaking her head. Had she enjoyed that?

"Yes, just, well, you know." She nodded towards Remus and Marlene.

"Oh, yeah." Replied Alice quietly, returning to her homework.

What the bloody hell had just happened? Had Sirius Black just captured her in look that screamed something more than a quick glance – no, it couldn't have been. He must have been looking towards Remus and Marlene. Yes, that had to be it. What other explanation could there be? He wasn't purposely staring her down; a deep chill went down her spine at the thought.

"Does anyone else think that our teachers have gone mad?" asked Lily, trying to brighten the mood.

"Lily, I knew they were mad the first time we were assigned homework." Muttered Dorcas, her back still turned to Remus and Marlene.

"It's not them – it's us." Emmeline added, sitting up a bit straighter. "We chose the wrong classes."

"Half of them are mandatory." Said Alice, looking up from her work.

"But it's Halloween, of all nights, and I'm going to be stuck in the common room all night, writing about the fifteen ways to cure Keplar's disease." Sighed Lily, slamming her book shut.

"Not if Potter has his way." Chuckled Dorcas, motioning to where he was sitting, waving happily at Lily.

"Uh oh Lily, he looks determined today." Giggled Emmeline. "Maybe you should go say hello."

"Oh please, name one good reason why I would ever do that." Snapped Lily. "It would only encourage his antics."

"Well, from what I heard," whispered Dorcas. "He's extremely popular, an excellent Quidditch player, and fancies red-heads."

"So?" asked Lily.

"AND, you're both prefects." Added Dorcas.

Lily snorted.

"Yes, because we are the same person, is that what you're saying?" Said Lily sarcastically.

"Precisely!"

"Plus, it could mean extreme popularity…." Trailed Emmeline.

"If for some strange reason I wanted to attain 'extreme popularity', I think I would have come up with something before sixth year, don't you?" asked Lily, raising her eyebrows.

"True."

"Anyhow, saying me and Potter go together because we're Prefects is like assuming that Emmeline and Black would make a good couple because they're both pretty." Lily added, nodding her head.

Emmeline didn't know whether to agree or to disagree.