'Definitely Alexis. She's quick enough. She is the main opponent here.' Sirius said.

'I could easily take her down.' James said.

'No you couldn't.'

'You are the one to talk.' James said.
'I have taken her down. Literally.' Sirius said.

'What about Kat?' James asked. 'She's the one to look out for, right?'

'Yeah, had a nice time with her too. Did I say with? I meant on top of' Sirius said, stretching his arms.

'Can you please live up to your name and for once start taking the game seriously?' James asked him.

'I am taking it seriously.'
'Honestly, if you don't start playing like a pro, then Dave will have a better chance at the team.'

'I know you won't take Dave over me.'
'You know me too well, that's the problem.' James sighed.

'Where's Remus?' Sirius asked looking at the empty seat.

At the other side- Lily, Dorcas and Mary were having an intense discussion about something.

Sirius at once noticed Marlene was missing too.

'Must have gone back to the dorm.' James yawned.
'Without us? With McKinnon?' Sirius asked.

Sirius got up and started to dissapear in the hustle bustle of the crowd.

James decided to the same.

'You coming?' He asked Peter.

'A little later.' Peter said making it clear he wasn't going to sacrifice bacon over this.
***
↩↩ Flash Forward ↩↩

'So?' She asked a second later.
'Do you remember?'

'I am thinking. Something just isn't adding up.' Remus said.

'Well we need to go back to our respective dorms. Can't let the others know we are gone.'
***
↩↩ FlashBack ↩↩
Meanwhile

'Wouldn't the others worry? Did you tell the guys you were sneaking out?' Marlene asked.

'And I was supposed to be the worrisome one. Just stay silent.'
But a few minutes later when he reached his destination, he couldn't find what he had hoped for.

'What did you want to show me?'
'Wait a moment. Why isn't it showing..'

'Showing what?'
'Darkness.'

'Darkness?'
'There's supposed to be this door that shows and then when you walk in you float in darkness.'

'Remus, are you hallucinating?' She asked concerned.
'No. Most definitely not. I saw it.'

'Were you in a proper state of mind when you viewed it?'
'No I wasn't drunk. Not depressed. Or maybe I was. A bit.'

Remus leaned against the wall and slid down till he was sitting.
Marlene did the same.

'What you did to Dorcas was mean.' Marlene said.
'You did the same thing to Sirius.' Remus retorted.

There was a long pause.
'Dorcas really felt sorry about that and you have been ignoring her like crazy lately.'

'I know she felt sorry but it hurts.'
'I know how that feels.'

'No I don't think you do. You have no idea how heartbroken a person feels after breakup. A real one.' Remus muttered.

'You don't know anything about me, then.' Marlene replied.

'Why did you kick Sirius out of your life? Is it really because of him interfering in your life?'

Marlene didn't reply.
After a while she did.

'I liked him, you know. More than anyone else. And he liked me too. I could feel a connection. But his fear of commitment has never allowed him to make a real move. I had to let him go. But it wasn't easy.'

She took a deep breath.
Then continued.
'I dated lots of guys. But still couldn't get him out of my mind. I mean he has absolutely no likeable qualities. It doesn't make sense. So I took my chances and vented out my frustration on him and told him to never be in my life. But the truth is I still want Sirius to be a part of my life. More than that.'

Meanwhile

They were at the staircase when they heard voices, echoing through the vast expanse of the corridor.

'-truth is I still want sirius to be a part of my life. More than that.'

Then duo stopped.
Sirius's whole universe shifted at that moment.

His fundamental lie which he told to reassure himself that she would be better off without him collapsed and shattered into pieces.
Somewhere from far away some wounds were starting to heal.

'The corridor is too echoey. I wish we got a peaceful place now.'

And suddenly within the darkness, they stopped hearing voices.
***
↪️↪️ FlashForward ↪️↪️
Remus remembered them entering the room which was then a forest.
The two of them had had a peaceful moment.

He didn't exactly recall what they talked about but it seemed to have been about Dorcas.
His brain then did a time skip that somehow they had ended up in Hogsmeade at the Three broomsticks.

Drinking shots. Having fun.

His alcohol blurry- brain transported him to the end where James, Lily and Mary ended up tracking them down.

He came back to the present where he was walking a considerable distance away from her, though at the same pace to reach the dorm.

'Remus, this should only be between us. Promise this.'She said.
Remus gulped then made the promise.

'I promise.' Remus said half-heartedly. He knew that Dorcas could turn murderous when she wanted to.
On the plus side, he hadn't slept with Marlene. That would surely have ended his friendship with Sirius.

With one last glance at her, they snuck into their respective dorms.

Remus in the left.
Mary in the right.