The House-Elves' Master Black

"SIRIUS BLACK!" April yelled at the man who was doubling up in laughter. "You cheated!"

"I didn't say I'll play fair!" he countered smugly.

"Pretty Missy!" Whiskey tugged at his mistress' robes to get her attention.

"Whiskey! I missed you!" She pulled the house-elf's face closer and kissed his forehead.

Brandy was pretending to sob and blow his nose.

"And you too, of course!" She planted a kiss on his forehead too.

"Am I next?" Sirius quipped.

April groaned in response. "Isn't someone going to help me up?"

Sirius lifted the two elves off April and effortlessly pulled her to her feet. "Do I get my kiss now?"

"Fat chance!" she winked. "You're not a good house-elf today."

"Missy is confused! Missy called Master Black a house-elf!" Brandy exclaimed.

April stared at her elf in shock and disbelief. "Master Black?" she asked.

Whiskey was jumping up and down on the spot, unable to contain his excitement. "Master Black fetched Whiskey and Brandy before dawn. Master Black gives pretty Missy surprise!"

"Brandy and Whiskey like Master Black!" the other house-elf cooed.

April rolled her eyes and frowned at Sirius. "What did you do to my house-elves? Put them under some kind of spell to brainwash them?"

Sirius put on an innocent look that he had practiced to perfection years ago. "I can't help it if they like me so much."

"Liking you is one thing. But calling you Master Black is another."

"I see nothing wrong with that," he smiled sweetly at her.

"Hungry!" Whiskey cried suddenly, rubbing his stomach.

"Your Master Black did not feed you?" April asked sarcastically and promptly earned a dirty look from Sirius. "Let's go to my room. I'll find you some food."

Clasping the hands of her elves, April merrily made her way to her quarters, with Sirius following close behind.

This was a curious sight.

*

"Remus Lupin!" Brandy cried as they met him along a moving staircase.

It did not take Remus long to get over his surprise. "Hi there. You're visiting your mistress?"

"Remus Lupin is correct!" Whiskey shrieked. "Master Black brought us to Hogwarts!"

Remus raised an eyebrow and looked at Sirius with amusement. "Master Black?"

"Yes! Master Black is very nice!" Brandy replied, with dancing eyes.

"Right," Remus nodded solemnly, hiding his smirk. "I have to get to class now. Enjoy yourselves."

"Goodbye, Remus Lupin!" The two house-elves cried in unison.

*

"Aren't those April's elves?" Ron asked excitedly.

Harry and Hermione followed his glance in time to see and hear Brandy and Whiskey bid Remus farewell. Hermione scowled and continued walking.

"Hermione! Wait up!" Harry and Ron quickened their pace to catch up with the girl.

"Should we say hi to them?" Harry asked his friends.

Ron caught the expression on Hermione's face and gave a devilish grin. "I think she'd rather not see them again. Those house-elves were a major setback to her S.P.E.W.!"

"Ron Weasley!" the girl glared at the redhead. "One more word and you'll have to do your homework all by yourself tonight."

Ron's mouth fell open. "But you promised to let me take a look at your Charms assignment!"

She shot him a victorious smile. "I've changed my mind."

Harry watched with amusement as Ron first tried to persuade and soon resorted to almost begging Hermione to help him in his Charms homework.

"Harry?"

Harry turned to his left, where the soft voice came from. He stayed rooted to the spot while his hands began to feel clammy.

Ron and Hermione abruptly stopped their quibble to stare at Harry and the sixth year Ravenclaw – Cho Chang.

"Hi, Cho," Harry managed through his dry throat.

Cho walked closer to Harry. He was glad to see that he was not the only one who was blushing. This was the second time she had spoken to him this school year. The first time took place just before they took off on their broomsticks at the Quidditch match a week ago. Then, she had uttered these three words: "Good luck, Harry."

"I just want to tell you that it was an awesome dive," Cho said, looking at his nose instead of his eyes.

Harry's mind was almost a complete blank.

She must have noticed as the colour of her cheeks deepened. "I was referring to the dive you performed when you caught the snitch."

Harry rubbed his damp palms against his robes as discreetly as he could. "Thanks. You were good too. If I were a second slower, you would have been the one catching the snitch."

"You've always so nice, Harry," Cho smiled at him.

This was the first time she flashed him such a smile ever since Cedric Diggory… Harry shook himself.  He did not want to think about what happened to Cedric now.

Cho noticed the darkening of Harry's mood and wondered if she had said anything wrong to cause it. Hurt was evident in her eyes as she hastily made her way into the direction of the Ravenclaw Tower.

*

Sirius and April watched the two house-elves devour their food in her quarters for several minutes.

"I'll move a move. I have to prepare for tomorrow's classes." Sirius stood up and stretched.

"I'll see you out," April also got to her feet.

Brandy and Whiskey continued eating, oblivious to everything else.

"This is the first time I'm hearing talk about preparing for your classes," she teased as she walked him to the door.

"My one-week break is over. Remus is a tough act to follow."

"Are you afraid that your students will prefer Professor Lupin to Professor Black?" she asked playfully.

"I just need to charm them back to my side."

April put a hand on Sirius' as he reached out for the doorknob. "Thanks, Sirius. I really appreciate your getting Brandy and Whiskey here."

His face darkened abruptly. "You don't belong there. The place is too -" He paused as he searched for a suitable word.

"Cold and unfeeling?" she offered, keeping her gaze low.

"Frosty," he concurred. "I saw your brother too."

"Aaron?" Pain flickered in April's eyes. "You met him?"

"I only caught a glimpse of him." He licked his lips uncomfortably.

"How was he? What was he doing?"

"He was staring into space."

"With a blank expression on his face?" April suddenly looked very tired. "You're lucky. Half the time, he gets violent and hurl abuses at everyone he sees."

"Hey, are you alright?" Sirius placed both hands on her shoulders and asked with concern.

April nodded numbly. "I just wish you didn't see the fortress. Or my brother. Not this way. Not now," she replied in a small voice.

"Does it matter?"

"Guess not," she replied unconvincingly.

Sirius looked at her for several long moments before breaking the silence. "I've just found a way to grant your special request. I'll show you a place this weekend."

Before April could raise any question, Sirius had departed.

Sighing heavily, she returned to her house-elves.

"Missy has a letter," Whiskey told her matter-of-factly as he scooped the remaining food into his mouth.

April paled at the sight of the deep-red envelope lying on the table.

"Missy does not want to read letter?"

April grabbed the envelope and practically ran into her bedroom. She slammed the door shut. The two house-elves exchanged curious looks before creeping to the bedroom door and pressed their large ears to it.

There was no sound.

It was almost a quarter of an hour later, when April swung the door open suddenly, causing the two elves to almost lose their balance and fall into her bedroom.

Brandy and Whiskey sniffed heavily into the air. There was a distinct burning smell.

Brandy wrinkled his nose. "Missy set something on fire?"

April feigned a bright smile. "Did you two leave any food for me?" she changed the subject.

Brandy and Whiskey gasped, and looked terribly guilty.

"That's alright. I just need a drink anyway," April told them as she poured herself a glass of pumpkin juice.

Brandy and Whiskey cheered up immediately and gathered around her.

"Missy likes Master Black," Brandy said, eyeing his mistress slyly.

"The two of you are acting strange today."

"Whiskey and Brandy are not strange today!" Whiskey cried.

April eyed her elves. "Since when did Sirius become your master?"

"He'll be one soon," Brandy replied smugly.

"Whiskey and Brandy are just practicing. We will not address Master Black wrongly when the time comes," Whiskey added mysteriously.

"When what time comes?"

"When Master Black marries pretty Missy, of course!"

April looked horrified. "Since when are we getting married?"

"Master Black told Brandy and Whiskey!"

Whiskey chipped in quickly, "Master Black will propose to pretty Missy soon!"

"Sirius told you that?"

The house-elves nodded their heads so vigorously that April feared for a moment that they were going to fall off. "You're making this up," she decided.

"Brandy and Whiskey are telling the truth!"

"Master Black told Whiskey and Brandy! Master Black wants to marry pretty Missy!"

Blood drained away from April's face once again. "No, it can't be."

"It's true!"

"Does Missy not want to marry Master Black?"

Her voice was barely audible when she finally replied.

"No."

***

I miss having cliff-hangers!  ;)

Senshichan14:  I'm slowly incorporating your suggestion intro this fic! :)

Ms. Padfoot: My schedule is better these days. I'm going on a short trip tomorrow! Yippee!

Sallymander: Yes, Sirius won the deal. He's smart, isn't he? ;)

peachgirl1608: How did Sirius do it? He cheated, that's how! LOL. Brandy and Whiskey were already at Hogwarts when the deal was made. More on Harry's love life? You have that in this chapter!

ANNE( v )79: I've something up my sleeve, but it's not a kidnap.

OutofAzkaban: To answer your review, "I Can See You" will not end so soon. It may just be as long as this fic! Update your story soon, ok? I want to read about Sirius and Caitlin!

padfoot1979: You're back! You're back! I've not heard from you for ages! Yay!!! :)

nunnya buiznes & Blueberrie: This story is nearing its end – that's probably why I dread updating! Read my other fic "I Can See You" sometime, ok?

SjabRox: I have to send Brandy and Whiskey back to the Flamel Fortress sometime, you know ;)

black-cat-on-the-wall: Yes, I agree fully with you that Sirius is one boyfriend EVERY girl wish to have! :)

Fire'N'Ice: Remus is just a close friend and confidant as far as April is concerned. Don't worry!

Diosa Alexia: The house-elves are back!!!

moe: I don't have enough water and soap to wash all that glime off Snape!

Katani Petitedra: Eat up all my pillows? That's tough, you know? I have four pillows on my bed! LOL

lildarkkitty:  Two of my dorm mates have disappeared. We'll be asking Selv for permission to kick them out and get two new ones. PM if you want to know more ;)

Madison Black: I want Sirius to be my warden too! *swoon*

phoebe666: Thanks a million for adding me to your favourite authors' list! *hugs phoebe666*

Summerkins: Glad to know that you have a new account now. Yes, you need to check your account more often! LOL

Lil Lupin: I can't promise that the spotlight will shift back to Harry often. But once-in-a-while is not problem!