"Elise!" Sirius called after me as we exited the Potions classroom early, as usual. His cauldron had exploded once again, and to say I was ticked off was an understatement. Avery had shot me a sympathetic look as I'd exited the classroom, and I had sent him a smile of gratitude, much to my distaste. I hated every second of my facade, of the acting I put on, but I needed to do it. If I could get information for the Resistance, it would've all been worth it.

"What do you want, Black?" I exploded on the boy, my brows furrowed together. "You've already gotten your ruined potions on me twice this past week, you just had to set the record, didn't you?"

"Easy, girl." Sirius held his hands up in defense. "I just wanted to make sure you were okay. Sometimes I reckon you oughta have been in Gryffindor, fiery temper you have. You're also brave, seeing as you're 'dating' Avery, piece of dirt."

"You two describe each other in the same way, you know." I chuckled. "My entire family was in Gryffindor, Black. I just represented Slytherin more."

"Really? Bloody hell, we're like opposites. My entire family has been in Slytherin, and I'm in Gryffindor. Maybe we have more in common than we thought." Sirius exclaimed, and I shook my head.

"That's where the similarities end, Black. For one, you're a boy, I'm a girl. Then, we have different opinions on most things. And we're also in different houses, mind you." I reminded the boy. He shook his head.

"We aren't that different. I reckon we hate each other since we remind each other of ourselves."

"I'm nothing like you!" I said angrily. "I'm no playboy-well-playgirl, I hardly ever prank anyone besides you, and-" I stopped, realizing my mistake as I clapped my hand over my mouth, eyes wide. Understanding dawned on Sirius's face, and he rounded on me with an astonished gasp.

"It was you!" He accused, or questioned, I wasn't sure. "You're the one who turned our heads into animals! You're the one who transfigured all of our clothing into lingerie. You're the one who made all of our books only open to page 47 for an entire week! It was you!"

I rubbed my arm sheepishly, stopping in the halls. Sirius caught up to me, and looked me in the eye.

"Yeah, it was me." I admitted. "But Lily and Severus were a part of it too, how else did you think we got inside your dorms?"

"You've been inside our dorm!" Sirius blushed, and I laughed. "Wait, Lily helped you? That traitor! I thought she was on our side! And Snivellus has been in my dorm! That's a horrid thought, I'm going to have to de-grease everything in there!" I couldn't contain the smile, even though I felt a pang of guilt at making fun of Severus. I simply reminded myself that I really wasn't friends with him, it was all an act.

Bloody hell, I was a cruel person. I'd led so many people on, acted differently around other people, gossiped behind backs, made fun of others, cursed people. Biting my lip, a small frown formed on my face. Sirius's expression changed from a grin to a worried look.

"Everything okay, soap dope?" He asked, his voice laced with concern. It took me by surprise, the amount of care in his voice.

"I-I'm fine...just contemplating my actions, that's all." I managed, staring down at my shoes.

"You should be." Sirius stuck out his tongue, still thinking that we were on the topic of me pranking him. "Your last prank was not very nice. It really deflated my ego and hurt my feelings."

"Well that isn't necessarily a bad thing..."

"Watch it, Elise. I'm warning you..."

"And I'm cowering in fear." I retorted, snorting in a very unladylike manner.

"You dare mock me, my ickle Oompa Loompa?"

"Did you just call me 'your ickle Oompa Loompa,' Black? I'll have you know, I belong to no one." I said angrily. Sirius blushed.

"Whoops? Slip of the tongue? Sorry?" He said hastily. I shook my head and tutted.

"Tsk, tsk, Black. Never apologize to the enemy. Rule Number One, don't you ever read the books?" I joked, and Sirius rolled his eyes as we reached the Hospital Wing. I'd forgotten all about the burns up my arms, and as I saw the aging school nurse bustling around, the stinging pain returned.

"Again? This way, Miss Elise." Madame Alexandra sighed. "Mr. Black, might I suggest that you sit somewhere else next time?"

"Madame Alexandra, might I remind you that no, I cannot sit somewhere else next time because old Sluggy-sorry-Professor Slughorn has made it a requirement that I sit next to Cascade." Sirius retorted, mocking her tone. The woman's lips were set in a thin line of disapproval, but everyone knew that she had a soft spot for Sirius. He could get away with anything in the Hospital Wing, even directly insulting her as he'd practically done just now.

"So you've said. Miss Elise, just take the entire bottle of cream, you'll be needing it. Apply it after every burn, it should heal it within twenty minutes. Off you two go, unless Mr. Black has any injuries." Madame Alexandra shooed is out of the Hospital Wing, returning her attention to a violently coughing student in the bed nearby.

"I am sorry that I keep on getting you hurt, you know." Sirius apologized sincerely as we walked back to the Potions classroom. There were still about thirty minutes left of class, and Professor Slughorn did prefer for us to return if we weren't seriously injured or pressed for time.

"Ok." I said, unsure of how to respond. The boy absolutely confused me. One second I wanted to knock the living daylights out of him, or shoot him with a strong hex. The next second I felt guilty for being mean to him, and all I wanted to do was be kind and joke around.

Sirius cracked a smile, his troublesome face lighting up. Slinging his bag across his shoulders, he reached over and grabbed my hand, lacing his fingers through mine, before taking off, pulling me behind him as he ran. I laughed at first, barely noticing that he'd intertwined our fingers, as it felt natural and comfortable for some reason. Abandoning our route to the potions classroom, Sirius led me outside, and I didn't have a care in the world. I didn't care that we were breaking the rules, skipping class and running in the halls. All I cared about was the feeling of happiness and joy that spread throughout me as I took in gulps of air.

"What are you doing, egocentric buffoon?" I questioned, catching my breath. I wasn't going to admit that I had enjoyed running, and I still hadn't noticed that our hands were still together, swinging as we walked towards the lake.

"Oh, skipping class with my friend, Cascade. You might know her, she's in your house." Sirius smiled. "She's smart and sarcastic and overall really mean to me, but I'd like to consider her a friend even though she's recently become really distant."

"Is this part of your elaborate plan to find out what I'm up to?" I laughed. "I'm not up to anything, Black."

"Then why are you still here?" The boy challenged, his grey eyes locking with mine. "If you really weren't up to something you wouldn't be laughing with me, you wouldn't want to be hanging out with a blood traitor."

"I-" I faltered. "I-"

"See?" Sirius said victoriously. "I win. Now, let's go have fun."

"No! We hate each other, Black! What are you doing?" I cried out, gathering my wits. Sirius's grin slowly faded from his face, something that I'd been causing a lot recently.

"I don't hate you, Elise." He said softly. "At least, not anymore. If it upsets you I'm sorry for breaking our agreement. I do consider you a friend, that is, when you're actually being nice and not pretending to be some stuck up Slytherin prick."

"O-oh." I stuttered. "Okay? I guess I don't hate you as much...?"

"Wow, thanks, I feel a lot better now." Sirius shook his head. "You're a real comfort, soap dope." I smiled, and he smiled back at me.

"I guess it wouldn't hurt to just be friends for one day..." I gave in. "What did you have in mind?"

"Oh you'll see..." Sirius said with an expression that almost made me regret everything I'd said. "You'll see."