Moody was surprisingly easy to get on with, despite his initially intimidating impression. He would crack dry jokes (and sometimes dirty ones when Dumbledore's back was turned), and he had remarkably interesting stories to tell—particularly about how he got some of his deeper scars. His demeanor provided some much-needed relaxation and confidence to the proceedings, and by the end of the lesson Peter had produced an indistinct rodent that wound around his ankles. James had been the most successful—he was already showing his bright, robust stag off to the room.

"Not terribly exciting is it?" Sirius sidled up next to Peter, his own large dog flickering in and out like a faulty bulb. "After all, we knew what ours would look like."

Peter nodded. "Yeah—doesn't stop James from enjoying it, I see."

"Bah, he's just pleased that his makes a tidy pair with darling Lily's," Sirius waved a hand dismissively. "Honestly, you'd never think they'd hated each other only a year ago."

"Well, James never really hated Lily," Remus pointed out, walking up to stand on Peter's other side. "He just believed that absolutely idiotic old myth that you have to pick on a girl if you fancy her."

"Turned out all right for him though, didn't it?" Sirius frowned. He was watching Dorcas, who was smiling at her own Patronus. It was a meadowlark, perched happily on her slender finger. "I wonder if I had anything to do with that."

"With Lily and James?" Remus said incredulously, still watching James' stag gallop around the parlor.

"No! Gods, no—I mean with Lark's, well, lark. Her Patronus." He looked as though he'd swallowed something unpleasant.

Remus smiled. "I dunno—she does like you a lot, and you did give her that nickname…"

"Only because the name 'Dorcas' is a tragedy," Sirius reminded him, without taking his eyes off of her. "And should never have been inflicted upon so fine a witch."

"Aw, Sirius, you sound almost noble."

"Gryffindors are always noble, Moony. That's kind of the point."

Remus caught Peter's glance and rolled his eyes.

After a few laps around the room, James allowed his stag to dissolve. He grinned at his friends and made his way over. "All right? How have you lot been faring?"

Sirius and Peter shared a quick glance.

"Nearly there. It's definitely a rat…" Peter shrugged. He wasn't exactly disappointed, but there had been a tiny spark of anticipation that his Patronus would reveal itself to be more strapping. After all, who had ever heard of a protective rat? His eyes flicked enviously over the massive white-tailed eagle that Emmeline Vance had produced. Beside her, Marlene McKinnon and Benjy Fenwick struggled to create form from the puffs of silvery smoke that eked from their wand tips. Peter felt a little better for seeing that.

"Yeah," Sirius agreed, crossing his arms. "Padfoot Junior is looking as strong and tough as his forebear."

"His fore-dog?" Remus wondered aloud, twirling his wand in his fingers.

Dorcas's face appeared suddenly over James' shoulder. "Did you say 'dog'? Don't tell me you're thinking of adopting one, Sirius. I think I can only handle one canine at this point." She winked at Peter, who felt his cheeks grow warm. "Besides, your landlord would do his nut." Dorcas walked around Sirius and slid her arms around his waist, resting her head on his shoulder.

"That geezer," Sirius gently shrugged her off. Dorcas looked slightly taken aback, but recomposed her features quickly. Sirius went on, "He's just a mean old stickler who is interested in making his tenants just as miserable as he is."

Peter was always amazed by how resolute Sirius was in his judgment of others; his certainty was impressive

"Well, I said you could come stay with me, didn't I?" Dorcas smiled, but Sirius didn't seem to hear her. She tried again, less cheerfully this time: "You know I have no problem with you staying with me. It's only natural to consider moving in after eight months."

Sirius walked a few paces away from Dorcas to Remus' other side, smiling broadly all the way. "Oh, I know, darling. You're always so thoughtful, you know?" His voice was solicitous and charming, but Peter could see that Dorcas was only partially comforted.

"All right everyone," Moody called out. "I've seen some good work today. Remember that this is a very difficult charm, so there's no shame in taking a few tries to make something happen. Well done, and we'll contact you when we decide on our next meeting time."

Sirius stretched his arms. "Well that was good, wasn't it? Anyone up for a curry? I'm positively famished." He offered Dorcas his arm and looked back at Remus, Peter, and James. Sirius raised his eyebrows and flicked his eyes discreetly to Dorcas, who was looking slightly put out.

"I'll be along," James grinned. "Lily and I just need to see everyone out."

All the way to the restaurant, Sirius chatted loudly about matters completely unrelated to living arrangements, pets, or commitment of any kind. Behind him, the other three boys murmured unhelpful asides when Sirius paused for breath ("You know, I think Snuffles would be a fantastic name for a new dog." "But Snuffles would need a lot more space than Sirius has got. You have a garden, don't you Dorcas?"), and offering discreet handshakes to each other if they got Sirius to glare at them.


Dorcas excused herself abruptly after dinner without kissing Sirius goodbye. Lily's lips were compressed into a firm line—she glared briefly at James as if it were all her fiancé's fault that Sirius didn't want to move in with Dorcas. James shrugged and looked at Remus for some assistance. "I guess we should call it a night. You coming along, Remus?"

"I'll be along in a bit," Remus nodded to James. "Go on. You won't even hear me come in."

Sirius, Remus, and Peter left together and started down the twilit pavement. Sirius' shoulders were tense under the creased leather of his waistcoat.

"You know, Padfoot," Remus said thoughtfully. "If you don't fancy Dorcas anymore, you should really call it quits."

Sirius' eyebrows dipped over his nose. "It's not that I don't fancy her, all right? She's brilliant when she's not talking about what she wants to name our babies."

"I think you mean 'she's brilliant when she's not talking,'" Peter quirked a saucy eyebrow and elbowed Sirius gently.

"Shut it."

Peter and Remus glanced at each other from either side of Sirius. "I think you might be exaggerating about all the baby stuff," Remus said reasonably.

"Fine," Sirius shoved his hands into his pockets. "She hasn't actually brought babies up. But it's only a matter of time! She's always trying to get me to move in, or talk about James's wedding with her. I can take a hint—I know what she's getting at, and I'm just not with it."

"Have you thought about, I don't know, telling her that?" Remus slung an arm around Sirius' hunched shoulders.

Peter rolled his eyes. Sirius, for all his bravado, was terrible at confrontation unless it involved a punch in the nose or a well-placed Leg-Locker Curse. He was evasive in relationships, often to the point of being outright dishonest. Peter couldn't blame Sirius entirely: all too often his dates were certain that they would be the the one to finally tame Sirius Black for good. They found out pretty quickly that Sirius was two steps ahead of them—typically heading right into a broom closet with someone else.

"Lark was a bloody Ravenclaw. You'd think she would've gotten a clue when I told her I didn't even want to keep a toothbrush at hers."

"Glad we talked you out of that, though," Peter mused. "Dental hygiene is terribly important."

"Ha-ha," Sirius deadpanned. "I just don't understand what's gotten into her. Two months ago we were totally fine. Then James slaps a ring on Evans's finger and all of a sudden I can't get her to talk about anything apart from lace and roses and hairstyles. It's a bloody nightmare."

"Well," Remus measured his response carefully. "I imagine there's a certain amount of envy—women love weddings. After all, it's a day where the world stops to pay all its attention to her. They get to wear a nice dress and stuff. I bet Dorcas just wants what Lily has right now. Besides, I'm sure Dorcas does want to have kids eventually, and she probably figures you want your kids to be friends with James's kids and all that. Girls plan ahead for that sort of thing." Remus shrugged, looking slightly uncomfortable—Remus had never dated much.

"Good lord!" Peter laughed. "Can you imagine James and Sirius Junior running around? Causing as much mischief as their old dads?"

"Can you imagine James and Sirius Senior being fathers?" Sirius reminded Peter incredulously. "We're hardly the type."

"Oh, I don't know, Sirius," Remus shrugged. "James'll be a natural once Lily has their first—after all, he was spoiled bloody rotten, so he'll be sure to give the kid whatever he or she could want."

"And don't underestimate yourself," Peter slapped Sirius' shoulder. "You'll be a great dad, if being a spoiled ponce is the measure of one. Or at least a wonderful uncle."

"Yeah, yeah," Sirius waved Peter's hand away and turned to Remus. "So, Remus, I saw that Dumbledore took you aside again earlier. What's he on about now? Is he trying to pull you now that you're no longer a student?"

"That's disgusting," Remus said primly, lifting his nose in the air. The rumors about the unmarried headmaster had only gotten more aggressive as the years went on. "He's about a hundred years old."

"Oh, c'mon, Moony—it would work out great for you. You'd still get off, and you wouldn't have to worry about passing on your furry little problem. And you'd have loads of connections for jobs."

Remus was silent. Peter noticed his hands curl ever-so-briefly into fists.

"Er, Sirius—" Peter began.

Sirius ignored Peter and went on. "So go on, what did Dumbledore really want?"

Remus tried to shrug offhandedly, but it came off more like a twitch. "Nothing really. Just checking up."

"C'mon, Remus, you know I can tell when you're lying."

"It's really none of your bloody business, actually."

Sirius laughed out of sheer surprise and looked to Peter to share the moment. Peter forced his mouth into a line and shook his head. Sirius smiled and inclined his head, pushing his ear out dramatically. "I'm not sure I heard you right, mate."

"I'm sure you did." Remus's voice was soft, but firm. His arms were crossed, and he was staring pointedly at the ground. Peter could see Remus's face starting to redden. Was it anger? Or was Remus starting to tear up?

Sirius stopped walking. Peter paused after a few steps and waited to Remus to stop. But Remus didn't stop until Sirius called out after him. "Look, mate, if you're going to be all pissed off and cryptic, you might as well head back to James's place."

Remus Apparated on the spot.

"Well then," Sirius crossed his arms and leaned against a nearby fence. "That was a bit of an overreaction." He immediately pulled a packet of cigarettes from his pocket. He lit one with the tip of his wand and inhaled deeply.

Peter stayed silent—it was usually the best option in these situations. He wasn't about to get in the middle of an argument. Instead, he examined his trainers in the light of the street lamp.

"I mean, what does he expect us to think? He's obviously struggling—he's letting James support and house him, for Merlin's sake!"

Peter chose not to mention the two years that Sirius did the exact same thing.

"I dunno. It just feels like he's keeping something bigger from us." Sirius stared intently into the pavement for a few long seconds, the orange glow of the cigarette reflecting in his eyes. "Whatever. Moony can barely keep a secret. It'll come out sooner or later."

Sirius looked as sure of himself as he ever did, but it didn't take quite so much force to stub out a cigarette end.