Just Friends?
Disclaimer: I don't own HP or any of these characters. That belongs to JKR, Scholastic Books, Warner Brothers, etc.

Chapter Six

If only looks could kill. Oh, if only looks could kill, thought Sirius Black, Snape would have been dead the very moment he entered the room.

The only drawback to that theory was that he and Snape would have most likely killed each other when they first met. Sirius considered himself generally to be an affable fellow, but there was something about Snape that set his teeth on edge. He just could not stand the sight of that slimy greaseball. One look at Snape was enough to set off plans in his head for new pranks.

He never regretted any of those pranks until three years ago. Then he was faced with Snape's grudge preventing him from getting his revenge. What made it even worse was that the grudge led to Wormtail getting away, thus endangering Harry. Sirius regretted that he had let things go too far in the past. If he had been more restrained, if he had not put Snape's life at risk, perhaps Snape would have been able to put their differences aside for a moment. That moment may have been long enough to convince Snape that he was telling the truth and that Wormtail was the real enemy. If that had happened, perhaps Wormtail would have never been able to escape.

It was then that Sirius resolved not to let his hatred get the best of him. He still could not stand the sight of Snape. Yet, he could put his disgust aside and work together if need be.

However, what little Sirius could make out from Snape's incoherent rant did not make him a happy dog. Snape did not enunciate as clearly when he was mad and muttering under his breath, but Sirius could still hear the words "explosion" and "Potter's fault" quite clearly. He rather suspected that Snape was mumbling those word to aggravate him on purpose—Snape's words told him enough to worry about Harry but didn't tell him any specific details about the accident in Potions. It was enough to make Sirius want to start gnawing on Snape's ankles. Except he didn't know when Snape last took a bath. An attempt to bite Snape might wind up poisoning him in the process.

Sirius found himself growing more anxious with each passing minute. He had to know whether Harry was hurt in the explosion Snape kept mumbling about. He looked up at McGonagall and willed her to question Snape.

He had no luck. She merely smiled down at him and said, "Don't worry about Snape, Snuffles. I'm sure he means you no harm."

Sirius almost died of embarrassment when he heard his nickname being used by the stern Transfiguration professor. How did Dumbledore find out about that name? He was eternally grateful for Dumbledore allowing him to hide out at Hogwarts for a couple weeks. He had been getting very tired from being constantly on the run. However, he wished that Dumbledore had used a different name when introducing him to the faculty. It was one thing for Harry and his friends to call him Snuffles. It was quite another for him to hear McGonagall, Hagrid, and the rest of the faculty call him by that name. He firmly resolved that none of them would ever find out about his animagus form if he could help it.

Such a resolution did nothing for his current dilemma. He had to know if Harry was safe. He would always regret his actions in that fateful year. If he had not come up with his so-called brilliant plan, James and Lily would still be alive. If he had been able to show a touch more restraint, perhaps Wormtail would not have been able to fool everyone into believing that he was a mass murderer. Simply put, if he had only thought before he acted in that year, Harry's life would not be the misery it was now.

As merely Harry's godfather, Sirius would have felt responsible to watch out for Harry's happiness. The result of all his past mistakes, though, made Sirius absolutely determined to make sure that Harry would be happy, or as happy as possible for anyone who had Voldemort chasing after them. And he rather doubted that it would make Harry happy to be constantly winding up in the infirmary.

It did not improve Sirius's self-esteem to realize that there was little he could do to keep Harry safe at school. This was especially true as long as Snape held the position of Potions Master.

Sirius was more than willing to help his godson out in other matters as well. He somewhat suspected that Harry would make a good match with his best friend, Hermione Granger.

"Somewhat suspected" was putting it mildly. It would be more accurate to say that if he became any more certain about the possibility of a relationship between the two, he would start saving funds for their wedding.

He had first begun to match them up after they had saved his life three years ago. They had worked so well together and really, it had been so cute when they had shouted at him in unison, no less, to leave.

Later on, he reconsidered his position. Sirius pondered how much of his feeling that those two belonged together was due to the fact that he saw James and Lily in the two children. Harry most definitely bore an uncanny resemblance to his father. Hermione bore at least a superficial resemblance to Lily, as they were both very clever muggleborn witches. Yet, it would be wrong to attempt to pair up two people merely because they reminded you of another couple. No matter how much a son resembled his father, they were not the same person. Following this reasoning through led Sirius to abandon his thoughts of the two being a perfect match.

Upon meeting them again, Sirius returned to his original opinion. As far as he was concerned, Harry and Hermione were as good as a couple, no matter how loudly they proclaimed otherwise. If he thought it would help, he would have pointed it out to them that they protested too much. As he knew that would only earn him identical death glares, he kept his mouth shut. He knew what he saw. Those two cared so much about one another—you could see it in the way Hermione fretted during Harry's Quidditch matches and the way Harry would always leap to Hermione's defense. They often knew what was on each other's mind. The number of times he saw them communicate without words had to mean something. Finally, when they were together, they were happier. You could tell by their scent that they were in better spirits when they were by one another.

All of this would have led Sirius to play matchmaker. However, although he trusted his gut feelings on the matter, he did not trust himself enough to make the right decisions in any matchmaking attempt. If Harry ever asked him for any advice, he would most certainly give it. If asked for help, he would do his best. But until then, he would sit out. Somehow, it would work itself out, with or without his aid.

Well, it would work out so long as Harry was able to stay alive. Sirius glared at Snape one last time before heading out the door. If he wanted to know if Harry was hurt from the explosion in Potions, he would have to check out the infirmary himself.

As he walked out of the room, he heard Snape say, "Finally, the mangy mutt has left the room."

That's it, thought Sirius. The next time Snape takes a bath, his ankles would become doggie treats.

Author's note: That's it for now, but I'm working on the next chapter. I would really like to hear about what you think about this chapter. Please review!

And thanks to Seiryuu, Noodlejelly, rokjai, hecuba, Jme H, and Max for reviewing! I really appreciate it!