Prompt: (word) fireplace
A Good Book
Sirius threw his pillow across the room at a loudly snoring James, but it didn't seem to disturb him. Remus and Peter didn't seem to be bothered by the sound, but Sirius had been unable to sleep for hours because of it.
Finally giving up, he got out of bed and left the room, sighing contentedly when silence greeted him. When he was halfway down the stairs, he noticed a glow coming from the common room. It could only be from the fireplace, but it only stayed lit at night as long as there was someone in the room.
Who would be up at this hour? he thought. It must be nearly three in the morning by now. He had his answer when he reached the bottom of the stairs. Laying on her stomach in front of the fireplace was Marlene, a book open in front of her, chin resting on the heels of her palms. She didn't seem to have heard him come in.
"Good book?" he asked, leaning casually against the wall.
"Quite." Her gaze never left the pages.
Sirius raised an eyebrow. He'd expected her to jump, maybe gasp, yell at him for startling her, but to be almost entirely ignored had never entered his mind. He crossed the room and lay on his stomach next to her, reading the first sentence that caught his eye.
"Why does this sound like a sappy love story?" he asked, wrinkling his nose.
"Because it's Jane Austen," she replied, her eyes still moving over the page. "It's not sappy. It's wonderful writing."
"If you say so," he muttered.
She finally looked up from the page. "I'm sure you didn't come down here just to distract me from reading. I'm in the last thirty pages, this is a very dangerous time to be interrupting me."
"Wow," he said, raising an eyebrow again. "Didn't know it was that important. And no, I came down here because James is snoring loudly enough to make a banshee seem quiet. Why are you still down here reading this late? It's way after midnight, you know."
She shrugged. "It's not like we have classes tomorrow. If I'm reading something good, I just keep reading for as long as I can. This is one of my favorites, I could read this from beginning to end in one sitting."
"What's it about?" he asked, genuinely interested. Something about Marlene had always intrigued him, although he couldn't say exactly what it was. He couldn't help wanting to know more about her interests, even if he was sleep deprived. It was rare that they ever spoke to each other.
"If you really want to know," she said, looking at him suspiciously, "I could just read it to you. It's not like I'd have a problem starting over, I already know how it ends and it is a favorite of mine."
"That sounds great." He smiled.
She smiled back. "Well then, I'm always willing to share a good book with anyone who's interested."
The two were still laying there when the sun rose, Marlene reading aloud while Sirius listened intently. It was a moment they always remembered fondly as the beginning of their friendship.