Wednesday, October 6, 1976
"You know, I think we forgot to put the tie on the door," Mary observed, taking one last drag on her cigarette before dropping it into an empty butterbeer bottle on the floor by the window.
Sirius shrugged, dropping his cigarette on top of Mary's. "It's fine, they all know what to expect on Wednesdays by now." He got a running start, then launched himself onto his bed, landing with a thump and knocking his pillow onto the floor.
"You're going to break the bed one of these days," Mary observed, rolling her eyes as she slipped off her shoes and sat down on the bed next to him. "Then everyone is going to think I had something to do with it, when really it's because you insist on throwing yourself onto the bed like a six-year-old every time."
Sirius rolled onto his side and looked at Mary, grinning. "I mean, the other day we did almost break the bed, so even if me throwing myself on it ended up breaking it, it would only be the last straw after our vigorous shagging caused it repeated damage."
She laughed. "I don't think I like the phrase 'vigorous shagging.'" She pulled the curtain shut around the four poster bed.
"Hmmm," Sirius mused. "How about strenuous sex? Enthusiastic love making? Frantic fucking?"
She whacked him lightly with a pillow. "You really love the sound of your own voice, don't you?"
Sirius opened his mouth to reply, but stopped when he heard the sound of the dormitory door opening and shutting. He and Mary looked at each other quizzically as they listened to someone pad across the floor and then drop onto the bed with a sigh.
"Moony?" Sirius asked, peering through the gap in the hangings around his bed.
"Oh, hi," Remus replied, lifting his head from the pillow a few inches, then letting it drop back down heavily. "What are you - oh, right, you have a free period. Shit, sorry, is Mary in here with you?"
Mary pulled open the hangings and waved. "Hello, Remus," she said brightly.
Remus rubbed his eyes, then stifled a yawn. "Sorry," he repeated. "I forgot you'd be up here. I'm so bloody tired I must have missed the tie on the door."
"No, you didn't, we were just too lazy to bother with it," Mary assured him.
"We figured we'd be done before anyone got back," Sirius added. "Why are you back so early?"
"I couldn't keep my eyes open in class," he explained. "But I was still listening. Why don't professors ever understand that?" He sighed in frustration. "I was instructed to go to the hospital wing, but I didn't see the point, so I just came here instead."
"Maybe you should have gone to the hospital wing," Mary said, looking at him with concern. "You look half dead."
Sirius stood and strode across the room to stand next to Remus's bed. He eyed Remus critically for a moment, then shook his head. "Nah, you're not quite to half dead yet," he decided. "I consider myself an expert at assessing Moony's level of deadness."
"You consider yourself an expert at most things," Remus pointed out.
"That's true," Sirius conceded, then frowned as Remus attempted to sit up. "What are you doing?" he demanded, crossing his arms in disapproval.
"I'm going to leave you two alone and go down to the common room," Remus said, hoisting himself into a seated position.
"Don't be thick, of course you're not," Sirius retorted, returning to his bed and extending a hand to help Mary up. "Come on, Macdonald, we're relocating."
"No, really, I can go," Remus insisted. "I don't want to intrude."
"Shut up, Moony," Sirius said firmly. "If you move from that bed, I will personally steal and consume your entire chocolate stash."
"You already do that on a regular basis," Remus argued, but he slumped back down again, seeming to admit defeat.
Sirius ignored the comment. "Good. Now, do you need anything before we go?"
"No, I'm fine," Remus said, his eyes already half closed.
Sirius ignored this as well, opening Remus's trunk and selecting a chocolate bar which he placed on the bedside table. He then poured a glass of water and set it down next to the chocolate bar before hesitating for a moment as if trying to remember something.
"Which silly Muggle book are you reading these days?" Sirius asked.
"It's not silly," Remus protested.
"Yes it is," Sirius insisted. "Wait, this must be it." He pulled a battered copy of The Great Gatsby from Remus's bag and placed it with the chocolate bar and glass of water. "In case you get bored later but don't want to get up," he explained.
"Thanks, Padfoot," Remus said, his eyes now fully closed.
"Don't mention it. We'll bring you back something from dinner, and don't bother saying you're not hungry because that's rubbish and I won't stand for it." Sirius turned to Macdonald. "Ready?" He headed for the door, then stopped and quickly backtracked to Remus's trunk. "I almost forgot," he said, rummaging around and pulling out an old cardigan.
"What's that for?" Mary asked curiously.
"Oh, it's like the tie on the door, except not for shagging," Sirius replied, grinning. "When we see this jumper on the door, it means Remus is in the dormitory sleeping. Now, what do you think - empty classroom on the second floor, or the good broom cupboard?"
She looked at him quizzically. "There's a good broom cupboard? What makes it better than the others?"
"Absolutely nothing," Remus replied drowsily. "They are all exactly the same. Sirius is just mad."
"Don't listen to him, he's delirious from exhaustion," Sirius said, leading the way out of the room. "Come on, Macdonald. You're going to see for yourself why this broom cupboard is superior to the others."
"Bye, Lupin. I hope you feel better," Mary said, following Sirius.
Remus acknowledged her well-wishes with a slight wave, then said softly, his tone more resigned than accusatory, "I know you were smoking in here again, Padfoot."
Sirius pretended not to hear, simply waving over his shoulder and calling, "Sleep well, Moony!" right before he stepped through the door.
As they walked, Mary glanced sideways at him, smiling slightly.
"Why are you looking at me like that, Macdonald?" Sirius asked suspiciously.
She shrugged. "No reason."
Sirius shrugged. "If you say so, weirdo." Having reached their destination, he pulled open the door to the broom cupboard and gestured for her to go inside. "After you."
Still smiling, she stepped through the door and pulled him in after her.