The rest of the afternoon was uneventful save for Severus trying to get Cat's attention at supper, only to be thwarted by Remus and Albus. They were discussing the next lecture, and even Minerva was joining in on the conversation, although she was constantly glancing at Severus to see his reaction to the talk of vampyres in the school, she could see it wasn't making him particularly happy.

Remus on the other hand was in fine spirits; he and Harry had indeed had a detailed conversation about Snape. They decided that for Cat's own good, she needed to know the truth, so to that end, Harry was going to be the perfect, well behaved and obedient student. It would surely drive Snape mad, after all he couldn't very well punish Harry for no good reason, at least not without Cat finding out about it. "Don't give him any reason to give detention or take points" Remus had told Harry "and we'll see how long he can last against his own nature". In the meanwhile, Harry was going to get to Cat right as supper ended, he was going to need some extra help with divination, at least for the next few days, or longer if they could pull it off.

While Harry was keeping Cat occupied, Remus decided to find Sirius, it was time that they *discussed* a few things themselves. Remus was whistling as he made his way to Dumbledore's office, things had gone quite well today, the only failure of the day as far as Remus was concerned was the fact that he had never actually been able to discuss Sirius with Cat. He had to let her know he wasn't married, but how to do that without explaining the whole Azkaban ordeal, that was the problem. As Remus whistle absent-mindedly, playing scene after scene in his mind as to how he should explain everything to Cat, a shadow stalked him down the deserted hallway, keeping just out of Professor Lupin's sight......

Remus felt the hair on his neck standing up suddenly, as if a cold hand had just passed across the back of his neck. Turning around cautiously Remus caught the form of a man pointing a wand at him out of the corner of his eye. Quickly pulling out his own wand Remus began to cast a spell, only to be stopped by another man jumping on top of him and wrenching his wand from his hand, as Remus was pulled to the floor and pinned, he heard laughter from the shadow man standing above him. In fact, he heard laughter coming from the man who had him pinned, very familiar laughter.

"Sirius Black?! Exactly what do you think your doing?" Remus said bemusedly, as he looked at Sirius and Cash hovering over him.

"Just getting you back for that *dance* you did with Cat." Sirius explained as he grinned happily at his friend, "Prepared to be tortured" he finished as he began tickling Remus in the ribs.

"Hey, ...stop... NO FAIR" Remus shouted at he tried to fight Sirius off between bouts of laughter, after a few minutes of wrestling and tickling; Remus had finally managed to get away from Sirius.

Cash was laughing at them; they reminded him of his family, happiest when playing. "Break it up you two, before that idiotic ghost shows up again" Cash had quickly developed a great distaste for Peeves, the poltergeist had become a nuisance very quickly, in fact Raul had decided to ask Tris to *handle* the problem for them. Cash smiled as he thought about his sweet, sad Tristessa, the Gangrel witch, she would probably outlive them all. Cash reached his hand out to Remus, who clasped it firmly and pulled himself off the floor.

"Thank you Cash" Remus said cheerfully as he brushed himself off "nice to know at least one person isn't trying to get me."

"Oh, really" Sirius teased, "and who else has been *getting* you, Harry again?" he chuckled as he thought of what a prankster his godson had become, a regular marauder.

"Believe it or not.... it was Cat this time" Remus said as he rolled his eyes "Only to be outdone by Albus Dumbledore, who got us both." he shook his head, he still couldn't believe Albus had done that.

"Dumbledore??!" an astonished Cash said, "He doesn't exactly seem the type to be playing games"

"So you would think" Remus laughed "but when he saw Cat and I carrying on again, I guess he just felt the need to remind us who's playground it was" Remus winked and nudged Cash playfully, Remus turned to see a wistful smile on Sirius's face. "Sirius.... are you alright?"

Sirius smiled sadly at Remus and Cash "Yeah, just remembering" he replied softly as his eyes misted over. "Its kind of funny actually, I thought the dementors had stolen all of the happy memories I had" he paused as he sighed, "guess they missed a few" he said as he looked up and smiled at Cash and Remus.

Remus smiled back at Sirius, he knew what he meant, they had all been extremely happy back then. They never had to worry about Voldemort, or deatheaters, it had been the last year of peace any of them had ever known.

Remus felt Cash nudge him "What does he mean, dementors stole his memories.... what’s going on?" Cash whispered.

"I'll explain it later" Remus whispered quickly "it's a long and involved story."

"Sirius" Remus spoke up "Feel like taking a walk with your old friend? We really need to talk about a few things." he was smiling, things were looking up, Harry was squarely on their side, and although Cat and Severus were getting closer day by day, she also seemed to be getting used to the idea of Sirius being around.

"Depends, your not angry about Cash and I jumping you, right?" Sirius said with a lop sided grin.

"What do you think Padfoot..??" Remus grinned back "By the way, what are you to doing lurking around the school?"

"Just patrolling" Cash responded "Been some strange things going on, caught a few deatheaters in the forest" he explained, much to Remus's surprise "just wanted to make sure nothing had gotten past us."

Remus stared at him for a moment "Have you found anything inside the school?" he said with great concern.

Cash shook his head no, "As far as we have seen, the schools clean, checked the towers and dungeon first, worked our way to the middle from there"

"Good" Remus said with a sigh of relief "What happened to the deatheaters?" he paused as he saw the grin creeping wickedly across Cash's face "Or shouldn't I ask"

"Don't ask" Cash replied as he licked his lips and mouthed the word *yum* to Remus "Hey Sirius, I can finish this alone. Why don't you and Remus go on ahead and talk, I'll meet up with Tris and catch up with you two later,” Cash said as he walked away.

"So what’s on your mind Moony?" Sirius asked as they walked towards Dumbledore's office, " you look like your bursting to tell me something."

"Is it that obvious" Remus asked, as he felt himself grinning again. He hoped that Sirius would consider it good news as well, "Harry and I had an interesting conversation with Cat today, that is after she turned me into a walking neon sign, and a rainbow one at that" Remus sighed dramatically.

"She did what??!" Sirius asked laughing, "leave it to my Cat to do something strange. What's wrong with a good old fortis mortis curse?"

Remus smiled broadly *my Cat* seemed just like old times "Actually she used that on me last time, right before you came back, turned the entire DADA classroom into a winter wonderland as I recall" Remus responded as Sirius laughed hysterically "and let me tell you, can she throw a snowball, I was sore for days." he finished rubbing his arm as he remembered their last *battle*.

Remus and Sirius laughed for quiet a while, reminiscing over their past pranks, especially those involving Lily and Cat. Remus watched as Sirius's eyes grew soft with emotion as he spoke about Cat. "Where is she now?" Sirius asked softly, he wanted so badly to see her again. Watching her sleep last night had brought back a flood of memories. "Please tell me she's not with Snape."

"Well that was probably his plan" Remus said winking "but I think Harry managed to distract her."

"Harry" Sirius paused, "how is he involved with this, I don't want to give Snape any excuses to be even more horrible to him than he is now." he said protectively "Its bad enough that grease ball takes his hatred of James and I out on Harry, he doesn't need this as well"

"We discussed that already. Harry is well on his way to being the perfect student" Remus answered slyly "and if he keeps playing these games with Harry, how long do you think it will take Cat to notice?" Remus looked up at the ceiling innocently as Sirius grinned like a madman.

"Moony, you're a genius" he said genuinely. "I just wish Cat would have been awake when I went to her room last night. Maybe then all of this would be unnecessary."

Remus stopped dead in his tracks as he grabbed Sirius's arm "You went to her room last night? When? And how did you get in if she was sleeping?"

"After the dance ended" Sirius answered as he stared at the floor "I went to her room, I wanted to make sure she was alright,.... at first I went as a dog... but..." Sirius hesitated, he didn't even know why he was embarrassed, its not as if he and Cat had never shared a bed or anything, but the way Remus was staring at him.....

"But what Sirius..." Remus asked impatiently, if they didn't handle this just right, if Cat became angry or frightened she would leave, just grab Harry and take off, she had done it before.

"I miss her, okay Remus, I wanted to hold her again. I transformed and opened her door, ..... I just wanted to talk to her, to apologize for my stupid mistakes. I thought maybe..... But she had already fallen asleep, so I sat there and watched her for a while" Sirius looked crestfallen as he explained his actions "She's still just as beautiful, and soft, I was so tempted to wake her up and talk to her..."

"I'm very glad you didn't" Remus told him softly "Do you know she had a dream about us last night... you and me?" he placed his hand on Sirius's arm, trying to get him to look at him again. It wasn't like Sirius to be so depressed; even after everything he had survived he always kept his sense of humour.

"She dreamed about me... errhh us?" Sirius said hopefully as he finally looked at Remus.

"Yeah, unfortunately she was crying a little because we were both dead. But still" Remus continued "it was the second time she mentioned you today."

"Second?!" Sirius was beginning to wear a familiar smile once again "when else did she mention me... and please tell me I was alive" he said as he rolled his eyes.

"Oh yes, alive and well" Remus replied, "she was telling Harry all about what a monster you were in school, what with all of those pranks and your stubborn streak. He seemed rather amused" Remus waited as Sirius's smile became a huge grin.

"Really? She remembered everything?" Sirius asked, he thought it was to good to be true "That means I still have a chance, doesn't it?"

"I would say more than a chance my friend. But you've got to handle this gently. I know she cares about you, and Snape.." Remus rolled his eyes "but she loves Harry, he is her son, and he loves you like a father. Not to mention you apparently have Cash on your side, don't underestimate that."

Sirius laughed softly "Cash told me the same thing about you." he paused and looked at Remus for a moment before hugging him quickly, "Thank you Moony. You don't know how much it means to me to know that you're my friend"

Remus was surprised by Sirius's sudden flash of emotion, he hadn't seen him do that since they graduated, he returned the hug as he patted Sirius on the back "your welcome Sirius, ......

"Ahhhh aren't you two just the sweetest things....." said a voice from behind them.

Remus and Sirius jumped as they heard it, they had thought they were all alone. Sirius was looking over Remus's shoulder with a stunned look on his face, pausing for only a moment Remus turned around.... and smiled.

"What are you doing here?" Remus said jovially "I thought Harry needed help with divination?"

"I was helping him, but Minerva found me." Cat explained, "She and Albus needed to talk to me, then they ask that I find you and Sirius..... its about Malfoy" she added as rolled her eyes. "That's one apple that didn't fall far from the tree."

"You've got that right. That boys been trouble since the day he started" Remus said shaking his head, "especially to Harry and Ron" Remus paused as he looked over at Sirius who still had a mildly stunned look in his eyes "feel free to join in anytime Sirius."

"What.... oh sorry" Sirius said apologetically, "just thinking about something else." He turned to look back at Cat, she was smiling at him, and it made him feel wonderful. "How is Harry? I haven't seen him since you and Remus did your little dance" Sirius said wryly.

Cat laughed as she looked at Remus and Sirius, she couldn't help it, all of the memories of their youth came flooding back as Sirius smirked at her and Remus... how many times had she seen that before. "Your not still going on about that are you?" she asked him sweetly, regardless of what passed between them, she would always have a soft spot in her heart for him. "Quick Lupy, run before he finds something to throw you into... or at you."

Sirius was taken aback for a moment at her comments, he hadn't really been *that* bad about it had he, but taking one look at Remus and Cat, and listening to them giggling, he knew what the answer had to be.

"Alright, alright" Sirius sighed "I'll behave.... a little" he added as he winked at them, it felt so good to be able to talk to her like this again, to be able to smile and laugh out loud.

"And as for dancing with me, I wouldn't worry about it" Remus added "last night she told me that she would prefer to dance with Harry's dog that either Raul or I" he elbowed Sirius as he spoke "can you believe that, a dog over a wolf... what could she have been thinking?"

"Probably thinking how tired I would be today" Cat said as she walked up between the two of them, taking each of their hands she began to walk toward Albus's office "Come on you two, I got my *talking to* now its your turn, and then I have to find Cash."

Sirius paused for a moment as she took his hand, he let her guide him down the hall as he smiled at her. Even if it was only to get them to go to Dumbledore's office, it didn't matter to him, he was enjoying it immensely, his mind wandered back to their youth again as he vividly remembered walking to classes like this, holding her hand, or slipping his arm around her waist as they strolled through the halls.

"Harry's fine by the way" Cat said as she noticed the goofy look on Sirius's face, she could only imagine what was going through that head of his.

"Huh?" Sirius said as he was snapped out of his thoughts by Remus's well-placed kick to his ankle.

"You asked how Harry was... remember" Cat said as she turned to face him. "What is with you anyway, you seem very distracted" she looked at him critically for a moment then asked softly "You weren't the one who hurt Draco Malfoy so badly.... were you?" her eyes suddenly seemed so soft, he could see the concern in them.

"Maybe a little" he said just as softly "I thought he killed you. I may have lost my temper.." he turned his face away from hers but he held her hand tightly, he never wanted to let go of it again if the truth be told. He began to walk towards Dumbledore's office again, but stopped dead when he felt Cat squeezing his hand, it was his turn to turn around and face her.

Cat had the most gentle and concerned look on her face either of them had ever seen, she almost looked as if she were going to cry "Sirius, there is no way you could have inflicted that amount of damage on him" she pulled him a little closer to herself "I as much as told Albus that. Someone else was with you..... it was Cash, wasn't it?"

Sirius was still avoiding her eyes, he could never lie to her try as he might, she just always knew, but there was no way he was going to let Cash take the blame for everything. He was there, he could have stopped it sooner, besides he and Cash were quickly becoming close friends, and Sirius really didn't want to lose what few friends he had.

"Sirius?" Cat asked gently "Was Cash with you?" She needed to hear him say it, she was pretty sure she knew what had happened, after all Cash had said he was going to help Sirius with Draco, and she knew Cash's handy work when she saw it, she just couldn't figure out why Sirius was protecting him. She wished he would stop avoiding her eyes, she knew just by that he was hiding something from her.

"I was there, it falls on me, no one else." Sirius said softly as he finally met her eyes. His eyes were brimming with emotion, she was so close to him, less than an arms length away, all he wanted to do was hold her again, just like he did Saturday. It had only been four days ago, but it seemed like years to him.

Cat knew she should just walk away, but she couldn't help herself, it broke her heart to see him so sad. Letting go of Remus's hand she gingerly reached out to Sirius and touched his face. Sirius squeezed her other hand softly as she left her fingers linger on his cheek, she had forgotten how gentle he could be and how very, very sweet. "Sirius...???" Cat was practically whispering now, "I don't want you to take the blame for this, I know you could never do that to someone, especially a child."

Sirius smiled slightly, she still believed in him, but it was obvious that she no longer had any idea what he was capable of; he had killed, or at least tried to. He wasn't the boy she remembered him being, but it filled him with a bittersweet joy to know that at least one person still had faith in him, he only hoped she would be able to hold onto that belief when she finally found out about the last 14 years of his life.

"Well why don't you two just kiss and get it over with?" Remus said impatiently as he stood behind them smiling brightly, "You two look like you just stepped out of Morano's potion class, trying to keep each others spirits up after dealing with her." He didn't want to disturb them, but he could see it was going to be a toss-up as to which one of them started crying first, and that was no way to begin this. He had to grin as he saw them both blush at his comment, they were just too cute for words, they hadn't changed at all since school, now if only they would take him up on it....

Sirius practically jumped out of his skin when Remus had spoken, not that he hadn't been thinking the same thing, but to just come out and say it like that, he could ring Moony's neck right now. He watched Cat as she looked away from him, but he could see her blushing. Sirius began to rub the back of her hand, it had always been a little joke between them, he had always done it absent-mindedly, and she had always smiled at him when he did......

Cat for her part had to turn her head away from Sirius and Remus, she knew she was blushing, she could feel the heat radiating from her cheeks. She wasn't sure what was more embarrassing, having Remus standing there with that stupid grin on his face, or the thought that he might actually have known that she was thinking the exact same thing. Right now the one thing that she did know was that Sirius was not letting go of her hand, in fact he had begun to rub the back of her hand with his thumb, just like he used to. She wasn't sure if she should pull away or not, it didn't seem right to allow this to go on, after all they each had someone else now, he had his wife and she had Sev, as least she was pretty sure she did. But even as she told herself this, she still couldn't bring herself to pull her hand away, there had always been something about Sirius, he touched something in her heart no one else ever had. Cat began walking towards Albus's office again, she was surprised when Sirius followed along, still refusing to let go of her hand, it was as if they never left school, as if nothing had ever happened.....

Remus watched Cat and Sirius as they walked silently in front of him, he had to get them to start talking again, but not about Malfoy or Cash, they had to talk about them. Suddenly and idea hit him....

Remus smiled mischievously as he remembered something Cat had said earlier "Hey Cat...Why don't you tell him about Harry's dream....the one where you have a husband.." Remus felt the joy of satisfaction as he saw the look Sirius gave him, *that should bring his spirits back up* thought Remus.

"You have a husband?!" Sirius asked with equal parts of shock and fear. He felt as if his world was about to crumble out from under him.

"According to Harry's dream I do" Cat said as she rolled her eyes and smacked Remus's arm for being such a trouble maker "Well, you started it, you tell him."

"I can't" Remus said, "Harry and I never got the chance to actually discuss it.

"Oh that’s it, start up trouble, get us all ready to go at it then back off and run like a school girl, shame on you Lupy,.." Cat chided him playfully, as he stuck his tongue out at her. All the while Sirius stood there grinning, at the two of them, this just felt so right. Sirius leaned against the wall and laughed at them, every thing seemed so natural that he almost didn't notice the way Cat moved with him, he had never let go of her hand, and she had moved with him when he moved to the wall, it was almost second nature to them both. Sirius felt his heart soar; there was a chance, a good chance.

Sirius paused for a moment as he watched her, she and Moony were going at it, like always, they loved to tease each other, James had said time after time they were more like brother and sister then friends, they just had a way with each other, and right now that was obvious. Remus was doing his best to get Cat wound up enough to talk about Harry's dream, while Cat was refusing and telling Remus what a brat he was for even bringing it up. They both stopped when Sirius began to laugh loudly at them.

Sirius put his free hand over his face as he tried to stop himself from laughing so hard, but it wasn't helping. It was as if the past fourteen years never happened, everything was the same, he was with Cat, she and Remus were antagonizing each other, he almost expected James and Lily to come walking around the corner at any moment. It was all to funny and to horrible at the same time.

Cat and Remus stopped mid-sentence as they turned to look at Sirius, he was laughing like a madman. Remus looked at Cat "I think he's finally cracked, .... Does he have a fever?" he asked as he nodded towards Sirius.

Cat turned a concerned eye towards Sirius, he was still laughing, gently she pried his hand off his face as she placed her hand across his forehead. "No ... no fever" she said after a few moments, she moved her hand to his cheeks and then his neck. "He's not feverish Remus, are you sure you didn't hex him or something......." Cat paused as she felt Sirius's hand on her cheek, she hadn't noticed how close they were standing, she was practically leaning against him....

Sirius was surprised when he felt Cat moving his hand away from his face, she seemed very concerned, she was touching his face, checking for a fever apparently. He shot a questioning look to Remus, only to see him winking back at him. Sirius stopped laughing as he felt Cat's hands on his neck, if he didn't have a fever now, he was about to start, she was so close to him, he could smell her perfume, feel her robes brushing against his skin. He couldn't resist the temptation any longer; gently he took her face in his hands. He looked deeply into her eyes, and smiled sweetly at her "Still worrying about me?" he asked her softly as he stroked her cheek tenderly. He already knew the answer, it was written all over her face. Hesitantly he moved closer to her, bringing his lips towards hers.

"Sirius..No" Cat said as she turned her face away from him, "I can't ....I ....." she was stammering, she couldn't even look at him without having all of the old feelings come rushing back to her. She closed her eyes and paused for a brief moment to enjoy the sensation of his touch before she pulled herself away from his grasp.......

Sirius sighed he had been so close, he stared at her, she was blushing, her eyes were still closed and she kept her face turned towards the floor, but he had felt it. She still cared; he saw the affection in her eyes, and more importantly he felt her kiss the palm of his hand as she turned away from him, and she still hadn't pulled her hand out of his. Sirius looked down just to make sure he wasn't dreaming, sure enough there was her hand. It may not seem like much, but right now it was enough. Smiling softly Sirius looked fondly at Cat, as he thought it was only a matter of time.

Trying to break the tension Sirius put on his goofiest grin and asked "So.... what exactly did you do to cause Professor Morano's office to turn into a bog anyway?" he waited expectantly for Cat's reaction. He was not disappointed.

Remus quickly joined in, trying to smooth over the situation "Morano's office. I had almost forgotten about that.... how long did you have detention for that..... weeks as I recall." he said as he laughed deeply as the memory came flooding back to him. Even Snape never got as angry as Morano had, of course Morano hated Cat as much as Snape hated Harry, maybe even more. Morano and Trelawney had never wanted Cat's "kind" at Hogwarts and they made no attempt to hide their contempt. Morano was especially cruel to Cat, anything she could do to make her life miserable.... Remus shook his head as he remembered the last incident, Morano had actually insisted that one of the potions the class was working on be tested on a student, so of course she chose Cat as the sacrificial lamb, even the Slytherins were aghast, it was a potentially dangerous potion. Luckily Severus had managed to get his potion done first and used that on Cat, despite his faults the man was an extraordinarily talented potion maker, even as a student.

When Dumbledore had found out what Morano had done, well he wasn't happy and he had let Morano know it, she sulked around all week, just waiting to get back at Cat, and she did with a vengeance. From the moment Cat had walked into potion class it was pure torture, she and only she was given a pop quiz, orally in front of the entire class, every time she got a correct answer Morano got angrier and the questions became harder, by the time Cat finally missed one, Morano looked like she was going to curse her right there, as it was she took off 20 points for her one missed question, then they all had to work on different potions. Slytherins got all the easy ones of course, but the Gryffindors had amazingly complex potions to try and complete correctly before the end of class, they were impossible, she took another 10 points for each potion not completed. Morano had even turned on Snape when he went to help Cat, they usually partnered in potions, Cat had entered the school year late, there wasn't any Gryffindors left to pair with so she got stuck with him, but as soon as Snape had gotten to her side, Morano started screaming at him. By the end of the lesson Cat was in tears, and Morano wasn't done with her yet, as Lily and Sirius went to get her out of the classroom and calm her down, she was told to go to Morano's office, they could hear the Professor screaming at Cat all the way down the hall, Lily and James had to hold Sirius back, he wanted to pull her out of there and curse Morano. Even Snape had hung around, Remus had watched him wince every time Morano screamed, he looked as if he were going to be physically ill several times during the episode.

Just as Sirius had broken past James and Lily they all heard a horrible scream coming out of Morano's office, she burst out of the door, completely panicked, a large snake was draped over her shoulders and she was covered with ooze. As they ran past her to make sure Cat was alright, they almost dropped over, Cat was standing in the middle of what used to be Morano's office, they could tell she had been crying again, her eyes were rimmed in red, but what really caught their attention was the green glow, that and the condition of the office, it now looked like a swamp. Apparently Cat had finally had enough of Morano's nastiness, and just let loose. And for whatever reason, she had thought of this swamp as a fitting place for the potion teacher, it was covered as far as the eye could see with slime and muck, and Remus was positive he had seen something moving underneath the stagnant water. Even Sirius seemed taken aback, though not for long, as the rest of them had hung at the doorway gawking, he had walked in and taken Cat by the hand and lead her out of the room. She didn't say a word, even when he had her back out in the hall, she was too angry to even speak. The room had staid like that for several days, no one was able to revert it back to its original form...

"Very funny you two.." Cat said as she rolled her eyes at them, turning to Sirius she asked, "What on earth made you bring that up?" She meant to be upset with them, but one look at Sirius's grin and she couldn't help but grin back at him. "Your hopeless.... both of you." She said as they both began to laugh.

"I'm sorry Cat, really" Sirius said between laughs, "It just came into my head... I don't know why, honest.” the look on her face told him she didn't entirely believe him, although she had finally begun to laugh along with them. "Well Miss MacLeod, I am still waiting for an answer" Sirius said as sternly as he could.

Cat shot him a look and stuck out her tongue "Your both brats, ... I can't believe you would even bring that up" she gave Sirius a playful punch in his arm "and that woman.... ugh what a beast!"

"So.... tell us, why a bog? Although I think it was more of a swamp than a bog Sirius" Remus said as he nudged his friend.

"Guys... Albus is waiting" Cat said seriously as she turned to go.

"Oh No" Sirius told her as he playfully grabbed her wrists, "Professor Lupin has asked you a question.... now be a good student and answer him." he told her as her as he tried to look as serious as she had a moment before, with little luck.

Cat looked at them and sighed, if they were working together it was hopeless, and judging by the grins they were wearing, they were both in this knee deep. "If I tell you, will you PLEASE go with me to Albus's office? He is still waiting for both of you." she watched as Remus and Sirius nodded at each other, she especially noticed the smile on Sirius's face, it was the first thing that had attracted her to him when they were young.

"We solemnly swear" Remus said as he placed his hand over his heart.

Cat looked at Sirius, who still had a hold of her wrists, "and you?..." she asked as she playfully pushed against him, trying to free herself from his grasp.

"No you don't" Sirius said as he held fast to her wrists "I'll let you go when you tell us" he teased "not before." he winked at her as he saw the smile spreading across her face.

"Fine, but it won't help" Cat told them as they gave her a sure-it-won't look. "Listen guys, I really hate to burst your bubble, but I just lost my temper, that’s all. No huge complicated spells, no arcane knowledge, just a temper tantrum." she explained.

"Uh huh, sure,... that makes sense" Remus said sarcastically "I know every time I get upset, I go changing potatoes into soap"

Sirius looked at Remus "potatoes into soap" he hung his head as he shook it sadly "what sort of response was that? Moony, your slipping.... may have to strip you of your marauder title." Sirius said dramatically as Cat giggled. Turning to look at Cat, Sirius felt his heart soaring, he loved to hear her giggle, it was almost musical, and when she started, he started.

Remus watched Sirius and Cat looking at each other and laughing hysterically, in fact Cat looked like she was about to fall over from all of her giggling. And it had been so long since Sirius looked truly happy, Remus felt overjoyed, there was still so much unspoken love between them, even a blind man could see that. "Thank you for your support Mr. Black" Remus said as he walked up to them and placed his arms around their shoulders "but temper tantrum just doesn't cover it in my book. I know I would never accept that excuse from one of my students." Remus began pushing Cat and Sirius closer together as he spoke to them; neither of them seemed to notice at first......

"Well neither did any of our teachers" Cat told him "why do you think I was in detention for so long, they seemed to think I should have been able to revert it immediately." she sighed as she rolled her eyes,

"Oh the golden days of my youth, huh?" Cat leaned her head against Sirius as they all laughed, Sirius's arms instinctively wrapped around her, he barely even realized what he was doing until he saw the gleam in Remus's eyes. Sirius flashed him a grateful smile as he gently rested his head on Cat's, enjoying the sensation of soft her hair against his skin. As much as he wanted to pull her tightly against him, he knew not to rush anything; she had flinched once tonight already when he moved to kiss her. They had time, no point in scaring her away by being impatient. Besides, he was enjoying the feelings just being this close to her brought back to him, he hadn't so much as shaken hands with a woman since he escaped Azkaban, so to be able to share even a simple affection like this felt like a miracle to him.

Cat was in the middle of laughing herself silly when she realized what had just happened. Remus set her up! He had walked over here and oh so very gently moved her and Sirius closer and closer together. And now here they were, the worst part of it was, she didn't want it to stop. She missed talking to Sirius, they had had such a deep understanding of each other, she used to know him as well as she knew herself. It felt good to relax against him and feel the strength of his body, painfully thin though it was. She found herself becoming suddenly furious at his wife, how could she let Sirius come to such a state, she didn't deserve him, not if she couldn't even be bothered to keep him fed. Cat had to bite her tongue to stop from questioning Sirius about her, after all Sirius had always been notoriously protective of those he loved, surely it would upset him if she attacked the woman he married. Trying to let the anger pass over her, Cat sighed softly as she gently nuzzled against Sirius, she probably shouldn't, but it was just a hug, their lips weren't even close to each other, so what harm could there be.

Remus was grinning from ear to ear as he watched them. They were all that was left of the marauders now, only half had survived, but as he gazed at Cat and Sirius he had the distinct feeling there were going to be little marauders running around in short order.

"Golden days..... never really thought about it like that" said Sirius as he finally lifted his head, only to gaze at Cat longingly. As she moved away, she turned to look at Sirius and smiled softly at him. Impulsively Sirius took her hand again, and was thrilled as Cat accepted his, Sirius was sure he saw her eyes soften even more as she squeezed his hand gently.

"You know I'm still waiting for a good answer" Remus joked as they once again wound their way to Dumbledore's office.

"And you can keep waiting, you troublemaker" Cat replied as she swatted him.

"Knock it off or I'll tell Sirius where your hiding that wand of yours.." Remus said as he raised his eyebrows, daring her to call his bluff.

"Why would he care? Its not like it's a secret to him about my lack of wandage or anything." she laughed as she turned to Sirius "Do you believe him, you should have seen what he did to me today...." she said as she pretended to pout.

"I heard" Sirius said as he finally gave her a truly heart-felt smile "I also heard what Dumbledore did to the two of you ..... Amateurs." he added as he winked at Cat while he squeezed her hand again. "So what *did* you do with your wand *this* time...?" he asked her laughingly as he remembered some of the strange places he had found her wand when they were dating.

Reluctantly Cat pulled her hand free of Sirius's as she reached up and pulled the wand out of her hair, causing the loose bun to unravel which sent her hair cascading over her shoulders and down her back. *She can still take my breath away* thought Sirius as he looked at her longingly, she always looked so soft when her hair was down, and he loved the way it would curl at the ends, he remembered fondly the way he used to wrap it around his fingers, relishing the softness and comfort it gave him to be so near to her. P>Cat handed the wand to Sirius, who was shaking his head at her "At least you can't lose it there"

As soon as Sirius touched it, he knew it was no accident Cat was given this wand, he gasped as he felt the familiar quickening of his pulse as the energy flooded his body, causing it to tingle and shiver. He closed his eyes as the whirling sensation began; it always made him feel as though he was soaring above the ocean, the light, the wind, the feeling of being outside of his own body. He loved it, he finally opened his eyes and looked at Cat, she had seen what he had felt. It was his own wand; someone must have taken it before the guards at Azkaban could destroy it.

"Maybe you should keep it Sirius" Cat suggested "It seems to like you better and its not like I actually use those silly things anyway." she said sincerely.

As tempted as he was he knew he had to refuse, if he was ever caught with a wand things would only get worse, they would probably kill him immediately. As it was he picked up one from a deatheater he and Cash had run into late last night, not as though that fellow would ever be using one again. Since it wasn't actually his wand, Sirius had no problem throwing it away if the MOM began closing in on him, something he would never be able to do with his own wand. Besides, he had trusted Cat with things for more valuable to him than a wand, it would be safe with her until he could claim it, he was sure of it.

Right now there was only one thing he needed to know about the wand. "Where did you get it?" Sirius asked her as he handed it back to her.

"Albus gave it to me, he and Remus insist I keep it with me at all times... I really am trying to remember to do that" Cat said earnestly "but I honestly don't see why." They all knew she didn't need to use it, and she was fairly certain that MOM knew it as well, after all her exploits in school had been common knowledge.

Sirius just nodded his head and walked silently towards Albus's office as Remus and Cat followed him. Although it was less than two minutes until they reached the gargoyle statue that stood guard outside of Albus's office, Sirius found himself missing the comfort of Cat's hand, he wished he would have reached for it again before they started walking. As it was Cat had hung back, whispering with Remus, Sirius had hoped she would have continued to walk with him. Sirius fought of the pangs of jealousy and depression that were licking at his heart, why didn't she walk with him, why did she choose to walk with Remus instead? He was tempted to turn around and ask her, but was stopped by her sudden appearance at his side.

Placing her hand on the statue, she closed her eyes as the statue moved aside. "I know the password" Sirius said, "you really don't need to show off just for me" he gave her a lop-sided grin as she rolled her eyes at him.

"Sirius Black your impossible" Cat told him as she walked through the doorway and up the stairs towards Albus's office.

"Ppsssttt, Remus.." Sirius whispered, "What were you two talking about?" he couldn't stand not knowing; Sirius was hoping it was about him, or more precisely about them.

Remus gave him a look that told him they would discuss it later.

Sirius just sighed, he knew that look, it was pointless to argue with him right now, they would have to talk later. Sirius followed Cat and Remus up the stair to the landing outside of Albus's office. He turned to say good night to Cat, who was busy pinning her hair up again with his wand. He stood there smiling at her as she wove the wand in and out of her hair, it never failed to amaze him, the way women could do things like that, he could hardly tie a necktie and they would be twisting and braiding and doing who knows what else.

As Cat finished with her hair she looked up to see Sirius smiling at her, he had that dreamy look in his eyes again. It was a look she remembered well, he used to look at her like that when they had dated. Cat felt herself twinge as she remembered both her joys and heartbreak were he was concerned. Still she found herself wishing things had turned out differently, they could have been very happy together. She walked up to Sirius; she did need to tell him one thing before Albus spoke with him. "Sirius, I heard you tried to carry me to the hospital last night.." Cat paused as he nodded. Placing her hands on his shoulders Cat whispered "thank you" as she kissed him softly on the cheek.

Sirius felt himself flush as Cat pressed herself against him as she kissed his cheek, he missed this so much, he missed her, the physical contact, the emotional bond they had. He wasn't sure if his heart was going to soar or break right now. He looked down at her as she finished her kiss, he couldn't help but smile at her.....

"Well I'm off to find Cash, good luck" Cat said as she began walking away, thinking for a moment, she turned to them "and if you see Harry's grim, let me know.. I don't want any Slytherins getting their hands on him." Cat waited to see both Remus and Sirius nod that they would before she left through the downstairs doorway.....