Christmas 1979.
"O holy night, the stars are brightly shining…"
The lights in the Christmas tree were reflected in the two yellow eyes with round pupils. He extended his neck, and his nose touched the green needles of the fir-tree. He sniffed the wonderful scent of the tree. Delicious. Where did they get this thing?
Holding his head low, he walked under the tree, his grey ears brushing the bottom branches of the tree, making the scent even deeper. In the end, he almost drowned in it.
A soft glimmering at his left caught his attention. He turned his head. A small silver coloured ball was attached to one of the lower branches. He got closer to it. To his shock, he saw another one, just like him, inside the ball. He got even closer, his nose almost to the ball, looking into the other one's eyes, wondering what could've happened.
Lily picked up the silvery cat, and carried it away from the Christmas tree, away from the balls and decoration that had fascinated the animal. The cat gave one longing look to the tree, and then shifted his attention to something else.
Lily walked into the kitchen, the cat still in her arms, to James, who was stirring the Christmas soup. Lily put the cat down, who immediately started walking around the kitchen.
"The Christmas tree again?" James asked.
"Yeah, this time it was one of the silver coloured ones," said Lily, taking the spoon from James, and stirring the soup herself, to check if it was ready. "This seems good."
"The table is set?" James asked, while he rolled his sleeves down.
"Yep, set for five," replied Lily. "The only thing we need now are the guests."
The doorbell rang.
"Speak of the devil," said James, who went to open the door.
~*~
Sirius watched his breath come out of his mouth in little clouds. Like smoking without a cigarette, he thought, or like the Hogwarts Express. He shivered, and rang the bell again.
"Are we impatient today?" said James, opening the door. Sirius quickly got inside, to the warmth.
"No, just freezing," he said. He peeled his gloves, cloak and scarf off, and hung them on a peg on the wall.
"Black again?" said James, seeing Sirius' ink-black clothes. Sirius raised an eyebrow.
"Like I said to Remus, black looks good on me."
"Like I remember everything you say to Remus," answered James.
"Maybe now´s the time to start doing so. What if, over twenty years, my children ask you what I said when you saw I had black clothes, and you go like "er…". Pretty stupid action, if you ask me," said Sirius seriously, while following James to the sitting room.
"Yeah, right, whatever," replied James absentmindedly.
"'Yeah, right, whatever'? Is that the vocabulary of young people nowadays?" said Sirius with played indignation. "My, young James, I say, people don't pay attention to how they express themselves anymore. When I was your age…"
"Has anyone ever told you you talk like your own grandmother?" James interrupted.
"No, cause my granny talks like this," said Sirius, and continued in a creaky voice: "Sirius, when do you get yourself a good wife, and a decent job, and get rid of that horrible motorbike, and…"
"Okay, we get the idea!" said Lily laughing. "Hi Sirius."
"Hi Lil," Sirius greeted her. "Oh, food!"
"Wait until Peter and Remus are here," warned James. "That won't be long."
~*~
"So typical, he greeted me, and the next thing he said was food," Lily told Remus.
"That's the only thing he can think of," Remus whispered loudly. "Women and food."
"Remus, would you mind not talking about me? At least when I'm not present," said Sirius, who sat next to Remus, and heard every word.
"Can't we even talk about your giant intellect, and your good nature, and how stunning you look in black?" inquired Lily.
"Those, of course, are subjects which can't be discussed often enough," answered Sirius.
"Warning," muttered James. "Taking over Sirius' ego can cause serious problems to your head. It might be too small for it, and then explode." Everybody grinned, even Sirius.
"Anyone want some more mashed potatoes?" asked Lily, holding the dish up.
"No thanks, not me," said Remus. "I'm stuffed."
"Me too," said Sirius.
"Beuh." That was Peter.
"No one then," said James, removing the dish from the table. "I hope you still have some space left for desert."
"Depends on the desert," said Sirius. Remus agreed.
"Ice with chocolate and whipped cream?" said Lily.
"Perfect," agreed both Remus and Sirius. James and Lily went to the kitchen and came back with five cups with ice, and a lot of chocolate sauce and cream. A few minutes passed in silence, as everybody enjoyed the desserts. Finally they'd eaten it all, and sat back to relax. The grey cat saw his chance and jumped on the table. He started to lick the cups clean, and neither of them bothered to get him off the table again. Peter yawned.
"Tired?" asked Sirius, sounding a bit dull. Peter shook his head.
"You still got some wine, Sirius," pointed James.
"No pointing in company, James," said Sirius, as he picked up his glass.
"It's no whispering in company," corrected Remus. "And no pointing in general. What's the use of pointing anyway if you're all alone?"
"True," agreed James.
"And what's the point in whispering when you're all alone?" said Sirius.
"Hm, hm," answered James vaguely.
"Did anyone notice we're talking about nothing?" asked Remus.
"Oh, are we?" answered Sirius. "Anyone got an interesting topic then?"
"Yes, I got an announcement," said James, sitting right up again.
"James! You're getting married!" said Sirius.
"Sirius! You're getting killed by James!" added Remus.
"He doesn't have to announce that. That was already a given," said Sirius.
"It's neither of those," said James. "I just wanted to announce that, next year, there will be six of us."
Silence.
"Meaning exactly what?" inquired Remus finally.
"Meaning that I'm pregnant," said Lily cheerfully.
Sirius disappeared coughing under the table.
~*~
"I have been suspecting it for a long time," said James, "but now I know for certain, that Sirius Black can't do anything in a normal way."
"Like you can," said Sirius, sitting in a chair. "'Hohoho, merry Christmas, and by the way, my wife is pregnant'."
"But it's great news," said Remus, his arm around Lily. "When can I welcome this new Potter?"
"Next summer," said Lily. "End of July."