Chapter 15

After sending his letter, Sirius thought about it again and smiled 'I hope she says yes'.

"Are you mad, Padfoot?!" James shouted after he fixed his tie. The boys were in their room. Sirius told the boys about his intention to marry Bo.

"Shh! You'll wake up the others!" Frank silenced James. They heard groans from others who were sleeping.

"I think it's the right thing to do. I love her and she's carrying my child. Her father has an apartment for us in Hogsmeade." Sirius explained to them.

"At least you're sure, mate." James grinned.

Remus broke into a smile. "At last, Sirius is a responsible man. If this would have happened to you two years ago, you would've acted differently, but you've changed."

Sirius smiled back and shrugged his shoulders "I owe it all to her."

James nodded comprehensively clapped his shoulder. "Let's go and wait for the girls in the common room."

The girls joined the boys in the common room and went down to the Great Hall to eat breakfast. "What did my father say?" Bo asked Sirius.

"Your mother didn't tell him. He wants to help us. He has an apartment for us in Hogsmeade." Bo was surprised. 'I never thought my dad would actually help us. I think I should write to him.' "That's great! This is better than anything that I expected." Bo kissed him. He smiled 'And it's going to get better.', he thought to himself.

Alice noticed that Genevieve disappeared when they came down to the Great Hall. "Where is Gen?" She asked. It wasn't long before Genevieve came to their table, running.

"Amos asked me to go steady with him!" Genevieve panted. Sarah raised her eyebrows in surprise. Natalie grinned.

"That's wonderful!" Lily cheered. Genevieve sat down.

"Yeah, it's about time." She said, mocking arrogance. They laughed at her.

"Have you told him about your 'alter ego'?" Sirius asked jokingly. Genevieve laughed loudly and shook her head.

"No, I haven't. I'll tell him when I'm ready."

"Just don't surprise him and turn in front of him, like you did to us." Natalie said. The gang laughed.

"I promise." Genevieve chuckled.

They were suffering with the Slytherins in Transfiguration. McGonagall was pushing them to the extreme, with trying out new ways to transfigure animals to objects. James was exceptionally well in this subject, and Lily, being the perfectionist she was, sulked when James successfully transformed his snake into a button. He looked at her and laughed. "Here, I'll help you." He guided his girlfriend through and grinned when she succeeded. Suddenly James felt something hitting him. He noticed it was a black button. He looked behind him to see Natalie pointing and sniggering at Genevieve's snake- tailed button. He chuckled back. 'I'm definitely going to miss Hogwarts.'

Bo was getting bigger. She had to use an Engorgement charm to enlarge her uniform. Others must have thought she gained weight, but her closest friends knew that in six months the baby was due. She still wasn't on speaking terms with her mother, and she wasn't planning to reconcile. She owled her father every now and then. Sirius sat by her side at McGonagall's lesson. He was trying to concentrate on a spell when he looked at her. They shared a smile. 'I see myself with him. I never thought I would be his girlfriend. Life's full of surprises', she thought to herself.

Alice had an appointment with Professor McGonagall about her marks in Herbology; Professor Sprout gave her poor marks. McGonagall told her that she might not be able to become a Healer as she always wanted. It was lunchtime when she met up with her friends at the Great Hall. She rested her head on the table and supported her forehead with the back of her hands. Her friends were worried about her. Genevieve kept asking Alice what happened, but received a nudge from Sarah to stop. She was sobbing slightly when Bo rubbed her back in comfort. Alice lifted her head up, revealing a tear-stricken face.

"Aren't you going to eat?" Lily asked worriedly. Alice shook her head. Frank walked over to the table and sat next to Alice.

He asked her "Are you alright? What happened with McGonagall?"

Alice looked at him and sniffed "She told me that my marks in Herbology are poor! Now I'll never be a Healer!" Frank cocked his head and smiled at her.

"It's not the end of the world, honey. You know, I can talk to Sprout and arrange with her that I'll be your tutor. The exam is in two weeks or so, until then I can help you."

She cried out "Oh Frank!" and hugged him. Her friends smiled at him appreciatively.

He mouthed "You're welcome." Alice was back to her usual self: she chirped happily with her friends by her side while fixing herself a plate.

Natalie piped "I wouldn't know what Alice would do without you, Frank."

She smiled at him when he put his arm around Alice. "I wouldn't know what I'd do without her." He said while looking at Alice. Alice looked up from her plate and saw her boyfriend looking at her. She heard what he said and kissed him.

It was the end of the day when Sirius walked back to the common room with Bo. He led out a little gasp "I almost forgot! I have detention with Flitwick. I'll see you later." He kissed her and left her before she could ask anything. Bo shook her head. 'He doesn't have detention! Why did he leave?' She was determined to find out.