He filled the saucepan with milk and put it on the stove but I spoke up, "hey, it's not that big a deal. I just came for Ginny."

A smirk was visible on his face, "I was making it anyway. Allow me to treat you with the best hot cocoa I can manage."

I was surprised that Sirius knew how to cook things since I had always thought of him as a person who would set fire to the kitchen even if he stepped one foot in.

He chuckled as if he had read the look on my face, "James's mother taught me how to brew coffee and cocoa alike. And since then, it has been my specialty."

I couldn't help but sigh in relief at his laughter. He had been deprived of it for so long and he didn't even deserve to be treated as such.

I shuddered at the thought of him in Azkaban. I couldn't ever get rid of those images from my mind.

"Feeling cold?"

His voice made me snap back to reality and I shook my head in a no.

"Moony loved hot cocoa," he resumed and I could notice a ghost of a smile playing upon his lips as he recalled those happy days, "whenever he got offended with me (which happened very often), I used to cheer him up by making him some hot chocolate." He stirred the mixture and poured in the chocolate. "I doubt it though that he deliberately got cross with me so he could get his treat."

Yeah, I could totally imagine. Moony could do anything for chocolate.

He poured the frothy chocolate in the mugs and placed it on the counter. I took it and mumbled a low thank you.

It felt a bit awkward meeting after so long in entirely different conditions...

"So... You're a Weasley?" Sirius asked but it seemed more like a statement.

"Yeah, sort of," I replied.

He raised an eyebrow quizzically, "sort of?"

Yup, that needed a bit of explaining. "Technically I'm adopted. It's been two years since I started living with them."

He seemed curious, "interesting."

We kept silent for a little while as I didn't know what to say and maybe he was contemplating the next statement in his mind.

"The hot chocolate was delicious though." In no time I had finished it up, "you sure know how to brew cocoa."

He smiled, "my pleasure."

It felt quite awkward talking to him like that; so formal and straightforward. It was twice better in the past when we talked like friends but now there seemed to be a wall of formality and awkwardness suspended between us.

"You haven't changed a lot, you know," he remarked all of a sudden.

Of course, it had been more than fifteen years for him while just two years had passed for me.

I replied, "meddling with time is usually very confusing."

He was still observing me, "and is this the first time you're seeing me after your time travel?"

I shook my head, "no, not exactly. I had seen your picture in the Daily Prophet and then that night when you nearly caught that rat and he escaped."

His eyes widened in disbelief, "you... You were there?"

I nodded, "yes, I was. I didn't go inside the Whomping Willow because I had given Moony my word. He feared things would get dangerous so he made me promise to stay out of it."

He spoke up, "wait, Moony knew about you?"

Stupid question to ask, frankly.

"Of course. I study at Hogwarts, Sirius. Moony used to be our Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher."

However, his face depicted unfathomable expression when I mentioned his name.

"Say it again," his voice was low and barely audible.

"Sirius," I repeated.

He briefly closed his eyes, "more than fifteen years... Almost two decades."

Seeing him like that sent a lingering ache in my heart; an irresistible feeling to reach out to him.

But he asked, "where were you if you didn't come to the Whomping Willow?"

"In the Forbidden Forest, I had hidden among the trees, watching the scenario," I explained, "I saw you and Moony come out with Peter chained up. I saw Moony transform and your attempt to keep him at bay. I saw how Peter escaped and I... I followed him. I challenged him to a duel since I couldn't let him off that easy. We battled and he..."

I paused at that, eyes flickering in uncertainty and I was slightly vibrating with the anger I felt towards Pettigrew.

"What did he do?"

"I got injured," I replied, taking in a deep breath to calm myself down, "my back got severely ripped apart due to a Dark curse he used on me."

I noticed his jaw clench in suppressed rage, "and then?"

And then, the worst had happened. "He escaped. I tried all I could but he escaped. I just hope that firework I created burnt up his tail just as severely."

His eyes shifted as if he had just struck upon a point, "so you mean to say that the redhead Moony had been about to attack that night was you. That night I had saved you..."

I nodded, "precisely. But it wasn't Moony's fault. He'd never..."

"I know." A while of silence passed between us. Finally, he spoke, "why, Katerina? Why did you risk your life? Even when Moony had given you an idea of how dangerous it could get. Why?"

I knew the answer was right on the tip of my tongue, "because I wanted to help you. I couldn't bear the thought of you suffering despite being innocent. I waned to do all I could to get the real betrayer caught, to free you from the torture of Azkaban. Ever since I saw your picture in the Daily Prophet, ever since I heard about you convicted for a crime you hadn't even committed... I believed you would never even think of betraying your friends."

He looked relieved to hear that, "you're the only one who believed without evidences then. People often decide to think logically. You did quite the opposite."

I mumbled, "because I knew you. Because I loved you."

He heard the last words even though I hadn't meant to say it out loud. I had always been afraid of confessing but right then I just did it.

A slight smile graced his face, "I reckon I'm much too old for you now."

I looked down at the mug in my hands, feeling the blush rise to my cheeks.

However, he took out the necklace I had given him which he was wearing still, "I always kept this with me. It really is a charm since it had helped me stay alive and sane even after twelve dreadful years in Azkaban. This has been my sole companion, my ray of hope. Whenever it got too much for me, I'd take it out and look at it. I kept staring at it for hours. It reminded me of the girl I used to call Kitten, the girl who had stolen Sirius Black's heart, the girl who had driven me insane for her... The girl who is miraculously sitting right in front of me."

The blush on my cheeks deepened at his words. Even after so long, his voice had that flirtatious edge which gave me butterflies. 

No, not just butterflies...

Firecrackers, to be honest.

"I never expected we'd meet, y'know," he resumed, "it seemed so far fetched whenever I thought of you. I had never expected to see you again but I wished. And yet here we are."

I nodded, "yes, here we are."

He shook his head as if considering something, "no one would believe about us now but trust me, all the time I spent with you is the greatest reality of my life. And nothing can change it. You were right when you said that we weren't meant for each other but what we had, it can't be denied."

I knew very well. Tears threatened to trickle down my eyes as the memories had started to hit me with full force.

"Ii must have been so... So hard for you," I managed to speak but my voice came out choked as it was taking a lot of effort, stopping my watery eyes from pouring out.

"That was nothing. I would have gladly even died for James and Lily," he replied in a low voice.

He didn't deserve any of it. All that torture for twelve long years... It was too much to take in, too much to bear and too much to stop the tears welling up in my eyes.

 A tear or two slipped and soon enough, Sirius's hand went up to my cheek to wipe it away. And the second his fingers touched my cheek, I felt the same weird sensation I had felt back when I had been with them due to my time traveling episode.

It still gave me butterflies.

Gradually, I lifted my hand and held onto his wrist in order to tell him that I didn't want him to retrieve his hand. But the spell of the moment broke shortly afterwards.

"I hope I'm not interrupting anything..."

We straightened immediately and turned to see Fred standing in the doorway.

"Morning, Kat," George came up behind him.

Uh oh... 

Disaster.

I really hoped they were not listening in on us or else I would have to face millions of rather uncomfortable questions.

"How mean, you both were having hot chocolate without offering us some," they remarked and made identical pouty faces.

Unfortunately, I knew them too well and was quite aware that they would bother me about it afterwards.

"Well, we didn't know that you guys were up so early," Sirius remarked, "it's okay, I'll make some more for you two."

But I told him to sit, "you've been making a lot of hot cocoa since I don't exactly know when but it's probably a long time."

He chuckled, "well then. Your turn."

The twins suggested, "hey Sirius, care for a game of wizarding chess?"

He agreed and they sat down to play. I was about to go and light up the stove when Fred spoke up, "hey Kat, we were just kidding. Come join us. Mum will give us some cocoa later."

I know what's going on in your heads, Fred and George, and I am not joining you, thank you very much.

"I have to go to my room," I tried to excuse myself.

"Your room's not going anywhere. You can go after one game so come and play chess with us," George demanded.

Fine...

But if they dared to do something to embarrass me, I would rip their heads clean off.

"You know what, to this day we never figured how Kat knew the tact and tricks of laying chess," the twins told Sirius as we began to play, "like we were not the ones who taught her. She happens to be a surprising natural."

I could easily notice the smirk tugging up on Sirius's features. Of course, the twins didn't know but he was the one who actually taught me.

The game continued and in the end I managed to beat the twins but lost to Sirius.

"Bloody brilliant," they clapped in excitement, "and still she's better than us though we would love to know why."

Sirius's smirk had widened into a smile as he remarked, "credit goes to the teacher then."

Yeah sure.

Credit definitely goes to him.

***