A/N: Thank you so much to everyone who has added this story to their alert and/or favourite list, and an even bigger 'thanks' to everyone who has left a review!

I'm so sorry that updates have been so irregular, but I have to admit that I wasn't exactly into the story anymore and didn't even remember everything I had written in earlier chapters. That's the reason why I spent the last week going back through all the chapters, slightly editing some of them (the content is still the same, just the wording might be different). I hope updates will be a bit faster from now on, though I can't promise anything.

There was a reason why there were silencing charms placed on Grimmauld Place Number 13: Its occupants had always been gifted with a rather loud set of lungs, and more than one shouting match had taken place in its halls. Back in Sirius' childhood, it had been usually him against his mother, him against his father, him against his aunt; well him against anyone else from his family, really.

The charms once more proved to be quite useful, as a brown-haired witch was currently standing in his kitchen, furiously shouting at the man opposite of her, who was shouting back in equal volume.

"What were you thinking?", cried Hermione. "Were you so intent on making a fool out of me?"

"Would you f****** relax?", Sirius shouted back. "It was a f****** joke, for Christ's sake. But maybe Miss Uptight doesn't understand the concept of a simple joke."

"A joke?", Hermione cried out incredulously. "A joke is supposed to be something said or done to evoke laughter or amusement. Do you see me laughing?"

"Quoting the dictionary, are we? I didn't think the concept of a joke was so foreign to you that you couldn't even use your own words to describe it!"

"Oh I'm awfully sorry, Mr. Why-Would-I-ever-need-to-look-in-a-dictionary, for being more erudite than you. But that is not really my fault, seeing as you neglect to open a book even every once in a while."

"And you have yet to understand that there are more important things than knowledge."

There was a short pause, before Hermione fired back: "And we're getting off-topic, I still refuse to accept your imbecile behaviour as a joke."

"Oh, is someone eager to change the subject? Have we left your comfort zone, haven't we? And just for the record, call it a 'prank' then, if it doesn't fit in your oh-so-correct concept of a joke!"

"You still haven't answered my question as to why you ever felt to pull such a childish 'prank' on me?"

"Because I thought it would be funny. Merlin, because there was no bloody way I could have convinced you to take a holiday otherwise."

"I don't need a bloody holiday?"

"Yes you do. For Christ's sake, you didn't even admit that you were seriously ill, until I practically dragged you into the hospital! I've never seen anyone in my life who is much about work as you are. Work here, work there. When will you ever go out and just have fun?"

"Weren't you the one who just admitted two days ago that his life was boring without some work to do?"

"Well, there is still a difference between working and having your whole life revolving around your work! Work is not supposed to be one's core of life, you know!"

"Who said that it was mine?"

"Everyone who looks at you. I mean, look at yourself, your life is just dull, you never do anything fun."

"How dare you judge my life? Just because you don't have a life doesn't mean you can meddle with mine. Maybe I am happy that way."

"Then you surely wouldn't have inserted a 'maybe' there, but would have just outright told me. Go out, meet some people. I mean, come on, you can't seriously tell me that you want to stay on your own for the rest of your life, becoming one of those lonely spinsters, who have no one but their cats to comfort them. How many relationships were you ever in? Was there even any beside the one with Ron? And just for the record, books don't count."

"What makes you think you know anything about me, about what I want? Who says I haven't tried. But every man I meet thinks of me first and foremost of one third of the Golden Trio, not as Hermione. They don't even try to get to know the real me." There were treacherous tears in Hermione's eyes, and she desperately tried to blink them away.

They had moved closer to one another during their shouting match and their faces were now merely inches apart. None of them had noticed this before, but in the awkward pause that ensued, both tried to inconspicuously move away from one another.

"Would you care for a cup of tea?", Sirius asked, his voice now back to a normal level.

"What?"

"I asked whether you would care for a cup of tea?"

"Sure", Hermione replied meekly, settling down on the nearest chair.

"Does peppermint tea sound alright?", Sirius asked putting on the kettle.

"Quite."

They were silent for a while, the only noise in the room the ongoing fizzling of the kettle.

"Sugar or milk?"

"Neither, thanks."

Sirius placed the cup in front of Hermione and sat down opposite of her. He took a small sip of his cup, careful not to burn his tongue, and watched the witch across from him. The ever-present smirk on his face was for once gone, and he actually looked slightly concerned.

Hermione, meanwhile, just stared off into space, playing with the cup in her hand. She had successfully managed to suppress any further tears, but one treacherous tear had slipped out of her face and down her cheek.

Sirius leaned over and wiped the tear away with his thumb, before gently but resolutely turning her head so that she faced him.

Sirius swallowed hard. He hated emotional scenes, he had never been any good at comforting people.

"Would it help if I apologized?", he asked.

"Maybe."

"Right, so I sincerely apologize for acting like a git at the hospital, even though I can't say that I truly regret what I have done. The ends justify the means, right?"

"You're incorrigible." There was a small smile on Hermione's lips, before she turned serious once again. "What about the other things you just said?"

"I am sorry, but I'm not able to take all of those things back, partly because I don't even remember everything I shouted at you and partly because I believe some of those things to be true. And if I have to apologize, so do you. The things you said about me didn't exactly categorize as 'nice' either."

Hermione just sipped her cup thoughtfully, not bothering to answer. A few minutes ago, she would have taken his statement as another prompt to start another argument, but she felt to emotionally drained right then. The worst thing was that some of the things that Sirius said had hit pretty close to home.

"imtdt", Hermione mumbled into her tea.

"I'm sorry, I didn't quite catch that."

"I'm not uptight, you know", Hermione looked back up at Sirius, a defiant expression on her face. "Just because I don't go out partying all the time doesn't mean I can't enjoy myself."

"So prove it to me", Sirius said, his familiar smirk back in place. "Go out with me tomorrow night, to a place of my choosing."

"And why would I feel the urge to prove anything to you?", Hermione asked sarcastically.

"Take it as a dare. I dare you to chat with at least one good-looking fellow there. If you do, I'll refrain from calling you 'uptight' and 'dull'."

Hermione mustered the man opposite of her with a thoughtful expression. "Alright", she said.

Sirius had a hard time to conceal his surprise. He hadn't thought that the younger witch would actually agree to it.

"I've got to get going", Hermione said.

"Right", Sirius answered. "I'll escort you to the door."

Hermione stepped out of the door, shortly turning back. "Thank you for the tea, Sirius."

"You're welcome", he said, before she disappeared with a soft pop, disapparating back to her own flat.

That night, both of them had a lot on their mind, both considering what the other one had thrown at them.

"He's just busy meddling in other people's life, 'uptight' and 'dull', tzz."

"Ridiculous, really. How could she ever suggest that I don't have a life of my own?"

But deep down, both of them were wondering if there wasn't a tiny bit of truth to what the other one had said.