Chapter 7

Sirifoy here! Thank you very much for reading, reviewing, and following my story! I'm glad that so many people enjoy reading my work. Here's a new chapter!

I

A week has passed since Ewan first flirted with Cassandra and they decided to take things slow. Ewan was a true gentleman and didn't cross any lines. As Sirius promised, he didn't interfere. Cassandra noticed that Padfoot stopped sending letters. She was taken aback by first since only a few people knew she was dating Ewan, so she thought maybe Padfoot would write to her anyway. However, he didn't so he must have known.

One late night, Lily gave Cassandra permission to use the prefects' bathtub. She gathered two towels and clean clothes, and went to bathe in the large bathtub. As she arrived, she closed the door behind her and gazed in awe at the colorful glass windows and large white tub. The tub had several faucets which produced colorful soap and water. She peeled off her clothes and entered the lukewarm water. She enjoyed her relaxing bath and took no notice of someone entering the bathroom.

She had her eyes closed when someone placed their hands on her eyes and whispered haughtily "Guess who?"

She screamed and slapped the hands away. She opened her eyes and swiftly turned around to see Sirius grinning at her. His bare chest was exposed and his lower half covered with a dark blue towel.

"What the hell?!" She yelled, trying to cover any trace of her breasts with soap.

"It's not like I haven't seen boobs before." He smirked at her. Her eyes scanned his body and detected a slight bulge down there.

"Like what you see? Bet Ewan doesn't look like this." His smirk deepened. Cassandra's face turned red and not from the heat of the water.

"For your information, Ewan and I haven't been intimate yet." Cassandra harrumphed.

"I thought sweet Cassandra Young doesn't talk about those things."

"You brought it up." She replied curtly.

"James said I could use the bathtub today." Sirius changed the subject.

"Lily said I could today. I have no plans on getting out soon."

"And I'm not stepping down. So, move, we'll share the tub."

"Don't you dare." She growled lowly. Sirius was about to open his towel and get in, and she groaned.

"Alright, damn it, I'll leave! So damn pushy." Cassandra muttered as Sirius kindly turned around so she could step out of the tub and cover herself.

"Now you have the bloody decency, after nearly exposing yourself!" She shouted disbelievingly.

"I made you swear three times. I should get a medal for this." Sirius gloated. Cassandra muttered something about him being a selfish prince, which made Sirius laugh.

"I offered to share the tub, so I'm hardly selfish. So tell me something interesting, and not about Daugherty." Sirius commented as he was about to take off his towel.

"Oh, Gods." Cassandra groaned as she turned around, her back facing to him. She heard a splash and Sirius sighing. She was talking to one of the most sought boys in school, in a tub.

"The water's great. So, you were saying?"

Cassandra turned back, facing him. "Would you believe that I saw a werewolf about two weeks ago?" She asked him out of the blue. She gazed at his dark wet curls and his developed chest which a few hairs sprouted on it.

Sirius was silent; he had no idea that she remembered that night.

"Really? I never imagined that there were werewolves around here." Sirius faked a shocked response, but Cassandra didn't take notice of this.

"Yes and I came across a huge dog. Its eyes were so very familiar." She added. Sirius hoped she wouldn't continue talking about that night; she mustn't know what really happened.

"Anyway, I should get going. We have Flitwick's paper to write." Cassandra left the bathroom. At first she felt embarrassed and uncomfortable seeing Sirius in the bathtub but when they spoke, he made her feel comfortable in an instant. On the other hand, Ewan was fun, sensitive and kind. However, they've underwent awkward moments. 'Who am I kidding? Why am I comparing the two?', she wondered. She quickly reached a conclusion: she was thinking about Sirius because she just saw him and that's it.

II

"You let Sirius use the bathtub today?" Lily asked, shocked.

"Yes, why?" James didn't understand why she was surprised. They were sitting together in the common room.

"I told Cassandra she could use it tonight." She replied.

"I guess they're both in for an interesting night." James grinned at her. Lily thought about this and laughed.

"Listen, Lily, about the Halloween dance. I know it's in about a month from now, but I have to ask."

"What is it, James?"

He felt a chill inside when he heard her say his name. "I know there might be a chance you'd slap me, or hex me, but –"

"Spit it out!"

"Will you be my date?" He blurted out. James Potter, nervous? This was a first for him.

It took some time for Lily to answer, but she nodded. "Yes, James. I'll be your date for the dance." She said.

James couldn't be more thrilled. "You won't regret this. I promise." He grinned at her.

"I know I won't." Lily giggled and kissed his cheek. James's eyes widened at the sudden gesture and stared at her.

"Good god." He said softly.

III

"And then, she kissed my cheek!" James excitedly told his friends. They were in their room, getting ready for bed.

"That's incredible, Prongsie pal!" Sirius cheered.

"That's progress all right." Remus mused after he exited the bathroom. Peter rushed in and closed the door behind him.

"You reckon he's alright?" Sirius spoke about Peter. Recently, Peter slightly drifted away from them. James shrugged.

"He doesn't talk much anymore." Sirius went on.

"He's not usually loquacious." Remus pointed out.

"Oh you know what I mean." Sirius remarked.

"How was your bath, mate?" James asked Sirius. Remus was confused, so Sirius filled him in.

"Cassandra was in the bathtub and I caught a rare and teensy weensy glimpse of her figure. I offered to share the bathtub." Sirius guffawed.

"I bet that scared her off." Remus teased and Sirius tackled him on the floor. They hit each other playfully and James stopped them.

"When are you lads going to get dates?" James reminded them.

Sirius and Remus got up from the floor.

"I thought I'd take Cassandra, but she's going with Daugherty." Sirius muttered the last bit.

"Hey, that happened a long time ago. Put it to rest." Remus soothed him. That's just the thing: Sirius couldn't and wouldn't put the past behind him. He loathed Ewan because of what happened in their fifth year. He tried his best not to show it.

"I'll ask Patricia tomorrow. If not her, then Robin or Linda. I'm not worried about that, mate." Sirius grinned at James.

Remus shook his head and chuckled; Sirius had most of the female population at his feet and didn't worry about a date. Remus, on the other hand, had less experience with the opposite sex. He thought of asking Georgina Whitfeld from Ravenclaw.

"She's one hot bird! I know her. Do you want me to talk to her for you?" Sirius offered.

"Just ask her if she has a date. If she doesn't, I'll ask her myself." Remus said.

"Oooo, you're bold, Moony! I like it!" James said as he clapped Remus on the back.

"That's settles it. Well, I'm off to bed. Night, lads." Sirius got into his bed and pulled the covers over him. Remus and James did the same. Peter opened the bathroom door and saw that the room was dark. He got into his bed as well.

IV

During the following weeks Sirius and Cassandra grew closer as friends, much to Ewan's dismay. Ewan asked Cassandra to be his date for the dance and she said yes. Remus plucked up the courage to ask Georgina and to everyone's surprise, she agreed to go with him. Sirius asked Patricia, a gorgeous ravened hair Gryffindor, and she nodded enthusiastically. A week before the dance, they had a trip to Hogsmeade. It was the perfect opportunity to clear their minds and buy costumes. The girls went to a shop which sold few very muggle costumes. Cassandra found a sexy pirate costume, Lily grabbed a nurse costume and Alice decided to go as an elf. They tried them on and were pleased with their choices. They paid the clerk and went to the Three Broomsticks. They sat with the Marauders around a round table.

"Lily, I bought a skeleton costume. Is that alright?" James asked her.

"Yes. It fits with mine." Lily smiled. Frank and Alice wanted to go to the dance as a pair of elves. Cassandra couldn't care less if her costume matches with Ewan's or not; she was thrilled that she was his date. She knew that Sirius asked Patricia and she didn't care about that either, at least that's what she told herself. She knew Patricia had a reputation in Gryffindor.

"I got a wicked costume, but I'm telling you lot what it is." Sirius said.

"What's Patricia going as?" Alice asked him. Sirius shrugged and drank his Butterbeer.

Georgina joined Remus at the table. He was glowing with joy and pride. She grew to like him after he asked her to be his date. They were officially an item, much to many people's surprise. Cassandra finished her drink and left to meet up with Ewan. Sirius's bubbly personality quickly switched into a quiet, introverted one. He would never approve their relationship; he wanted her for himself.

After a wonderful date, Cassandra and Ewan returned to the castle. His room was vacant and they were kissing on his bed. Suddenly she felt his hands wander to her chest. She pulled away his hands, which caused him to stop kissing her.

Ewan groaned. "What's wrong now?" he asked impatiently.

"I'm not ready, Ewan."

"You've been saying that for two weeks. I've been very patient, you know that."

"I know."

"Look I know this is very new to you, but I really like you. I want us to take it up a notch. What do you say?"

"Not now, Ewan, sorry."

He was frustrated and upset. Cassandra had an idea.

"How about after the dance?" Cassandra smiled. Ewan's face softened and he hugged her.

He parted from her and said "Sure, after the dance."

V

On the next day, Lily and Cassandra studied in the common room. Sirius and Remus were playing Exploding Snap, a card game. James came down after taking a shower.

"Hey, Padfoot, who's leading?" He asked his friends.

Cassandra's ears perked up and turned around to face the boys. Padfoot? Who in Earth is he?

She saw that Sirius muttered "shut up" to James, so she got her answer.

"You're Padfoot?" Cassandra asked Sirius. This made Lily turn around as well.

"Yes. I was the one who wrote you letters." He answered.

"And tell me, what was the purpose of the letters? To prove something to your friends?" Cassandra angrily asked him.

"What letters?" James asked Sirius.

"No, Cassandra, it wasn't like that. I meant every word I wrote in those letters. You've changed me and my view on things. I'm drawn to you. You made me appreciate the smaller things in life and respect girls. What I'm trying to say is that I fancy you." Sirius shared. Remus, James and Lily were very quiet, watching Sirius and Cassandra intently.

"What? You fancy me? That's not possible!" Cassandra denied.

"It is possible! You don't control my feelings."

"You date drop dead gorgeous girls, and I'm not like that."

"You're a lot prettier than any girl I've dated and\or shagged. I was just too shallow to notice until recently." Sirius said sincerely.

"Sirius, I'm happy with Ewan. He listens to me and he doesn't have a reputation in school."

"Oh, so that's what's bothering you. Well, I haven't pulled a single girl since we came back to school."

Cassandra saw that Remus nodded in agreement.

"Why do you hate Ewan?" Cassandra wondered.

"He's a foul git. He's not who he says he is." Sirius muttered and ran upstairs to his room. James followed him, leaving Remus with Lily and Cassandra.

"I can't believe it." Lily said, shocked.

"What's wrong with him?" Cassandra asked Remus.

"He'll kill me if he found out that I told you, but this has gone far enough." Remus said.

"Go on." She urged.

"During fifth year, Sirius fell for a sixth year. Her name was Celeste. They went out for a few months until he found her and Ewan in one of the broom cupboards. It destroyed him. What's why he told you to stay away from Ewan. He might hurt you, Cassandra. I know in my heart that Sirius is fiercely loyal and would never hurt you." Remus told her.

"How in Merlin's name was she supposed to know all of this?" Lily asked incredulously. Cassandra was still letting the new information sink in.

"Cassandra? Are you alright?" Remus asked her.

"Why do people keep asking me that? I'm fine!" Cassandra exclaimed. Lily shot a curious look at her, which made Cassandra reflect on what she has said.

"I'm sorry, Remus, for shouting at you."

"No worries, Cassandra."

"I never knew he even had a girlfriend. I thought he wasn't the type."

"After that, he refused to commit to one girl. He thinks and knows that you won't hurt him like Celeste did."

"Why did he write those letters then?"

"I had no idea that he wrote to you. You'd have to talk to him about that. I'm sorry, but I really must go." Remus said and with that, he went upstairs to check up on Sirius.

"Why me, Lily? Everything's finally working out the way I wanted. Why did he have to write those letters?" Cassandra was upset. Lily hugged Cassandra tightly as she cried.

"Lily, I need to talk to Cassandra alone please." She heard someone address her. Lily released Cassandra and saw it was Sirius. Lily nodded and glanced at Cassandra, who nodded at her. Lily went upstairs to her room.

Cassandra wiped her tears as he invited her to sit down.

"I shouldn't have left abruptly like that, but I'm going to murder Remus for telling you the whole story. I sent you letters because that's the only way I felt free to talk to you. You make me feel like a shy boy again. Besides, I thought it was more romantic that way." Sirius shared.

"Why couldn't you tell me about Celeste?"

"She broke my heart, smashed it into a thousand pieces. If everyone knew about that, they'd think I'm a sap."

"I disagree. I wouldn't think you're a sap."

"I vowed myself never to do that again, until I got to know you better. You have a sweet and true nature. Please, just dump Daugherty's arse and go out on a date with me. I'll be so good for you." Sirius's soft gray eyes pleaded.

He was attempting to woo her and pleading; she never thought she'd see that day. He could have almost any girl at school and he wanted her. She was torn: she wanted to discover a new path with Sirius and yet she adored Ewan.

"Sirius, for two years I saw you break so many girls' hearts that I lost count. I comforted literally half a dozen girls and even that's a lot. Why am I different? Why the sudden affection?"

"I just feel it in my heart. Every time I see you, my heart soars. Please, just think about what I've said."

"I have. Sirius, I'm staying with Ewan."