» Be Nice To Me - The Front Bottoms «

1:49 ────〇── 2:47 ⇄

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𝐌𝐀𝐃𝐃𝐈𝐒𝐎𝐍

‧₊˚⋅✎📃⋅˚₊‧

A day ago I was asleep in my terrifying home with constant negative memories everywhere I looked. Now I'm dragging myself out of the Ravenclaw common room to potions class. Potions exist. Magic exists. After 4 entire years — and now a day in fifth year — you'd think I would no longer be shocked waking up to floating candles above my breakfast, and bouncing frogs made out of chocolate.

I slot into the seat beside Severus with a generous smile, him returning it awkwardly. 

"Morning." I sigh as I get my books out. The whispers have no doubt spread to my only friend here by now, everyone knows.

"Did you have a good summer?" He asks me plainly.

"Alright.. Boring mostly. You?" I answer. "Yes, same." He nods.

Conversation between Severus Snape and I is always fleeting, but that's not why we're friends. Neither of us have other friends, we only have each other. He's been my best friend for 4 whole years, since the very first day in Hogwarts but if you were to ask me his middle name I couldn't tell you. I don't even think I know enough about him to say if I actually like him after all this time. His home life is a mystery to me, our short-lived conversations may not be enough for others however for us the simple silence is sufficient.

"Good afternoon class, today we will be brewing Draught of Peace. Can anyone tell us what that is?" Slughorn tells us with that same small smile on his face.

My hand shoots up in the air, he nods for me to go on, already sighing when he realises I will in fact be doing this all year again.

"The Draught of Peace is a potion which relieves anxiety and agitation. If made incorrectly, consumption brings the risks of immediate deep slummer or even death. It is known to be a very difficult potion which cannot be achieved by many." I recite from memory.

"Walking encyclopaedia I tell you." I hear Sirius scoff a laugh behind me, nudging the person beside him and making most people laugh.

"That is correct Miss White. Miss Monroe, can we hear from you what ingredients are involved in the brewery of this draught?" Slughorn ignores Black's words and moves on.

"Powdered moonstone.." She answer shyly, unsure of the rest.

"Can anyone help her out?" Slughorn asks the class, my hand being the only one to rise. "Anyone?"  He sighs. Then when nobody else answers, he nods for me to go on.

"Its ingredients are powdered moonstone, syrup of hellebore, powdered porcupine quills and powdered unicorn horn. It makes a turquoise blue colour when finished, and simmers before being consumed—" I ramble.

"Do you know how to shut up?" Sirius yells out louder this time, making sure everyone hears it.

"Oh, i'm sorry. Did you know the answer?" I fire, turning around to behind me and noting that James is beside him, Peter and Remus behind them.

This makes him blush and look down, most importantly making him shut the fuck up.

"Thank you folks!" Slughorn intervenes. "You may now begin attempting to brew the draught. Fair warning, you most likely will not succeed. If you think you're done, I'll review and ensure the contents are safe to consume.

I start out the second he finishes his sentence, following the instructions perfectly. Reading the fine prints just to be sure.

Explosions can be heard across the room, most specifically from Muriel Finnigan, an Irish Gryffindor who always seems to be blowing things up.

"I'm done professor!" I announce the second I've finished. 

"I can see that. Just as you said it has made a turquoise blue colour, and is simmering. Great job!" He says proudly.

"Thank you professor." I grin brightly as I transfer the potion into a vial.

I watch as Severus scribbles notes down between his potions book. He completely disobeys the instructions and still manages to get Slughorn's approval once it is complete.

"Professor, i'm done." Sirius calls out. 

"One moment, i'll be right over to make sure it's consumable." Slughorn replies.

I turn around just in time to watch Black recklessly dip his tongue into the spoon to try his potion. Immediately his eyes fall shut and he passes out to the floor. James catches his unconscious friend in fits of laughter then leans over to cauldron to smell it, the sheer smell of his friends horrific potion making him drop now too, the two of them piled on the floor. 

Peter and Remus look to each other with disbelief at how stupid their friends are.

I will admit, it was funny watching Slughorn panic and run out of the class to seek Madam Pomfrey.

Soon enough the pair wake up disoriented, only to be surrounded by the whole class.

"Huh?" James asks, looking high.

Everyone seems to be enjoying watching them squirm around on the ground with pure confusion about everything and nothing at the same time.

"He misjudged the quantity of the ingredients." I inform everyone, Remus is the only one actually paying attention. "He does that a lot." Remus winces with remembrance.

"For a peace potion shouldn't they be a bit more.. peaceful?" Peter perks up with puzzle.

"The ratio of ingredients was off. The powdered moonstone is sort of a medium for energy, meaning if there's too much of it their energy is through the roof. Then syrup of hellebore, is a type of poison which in small quantities can push out negative emotions but with too much can make emotions go crazy. Powdered porcupine quills is the real cure for all anxieties, again overuse makes you anything but calm. Powdered unicorn horn is a source of power and positivity, I reckon he never added enough of that so they're feeling quite negative." I list.

Peter looks at me with furrowed brows, as if nothing I just said makes sense to him.

"The counter act is biting down on a water oak leaf if you want, but I am enjoying this." I smirk as James grabs his hair and looks to Sirius with worry.

"Gross i'm not feeding them a leaf." Peter grimaces.

I roll my eyes and walk towards the front of the room, searching through plants on Slughorn's shelf, the water oak leaves catching my attention as I pluck two and head back over.

I kneel down in front of Sirius and try to give him the leaf, he pushes me away and makes an unhappy face, causing the large audience to laugh further.

I pass the leaf to Remus and watch as he whispers something calming to the boy and helps him eat the leaf.

"Eat this." Is all I say to James, passing it to him. 

He looks to me with wonder in his magnificent eyes. He takes my hand with the leaf between his two and brings it close to his face, caressing my wrist with his thumb.

"Eat it." I raise my voice with rage until he takes a bite out of it and immediately blinks back to reality, looking around with confusion.

I don't give him a chance to respond as I drop the bitten leaf in his lap and walk back to my desk, ignoring the other words said.

𝐉𝐀𝐌𝐄𝐒

𓃢𖠐𓄃☾

I would be lying if I said I hadn't been thinking of her. Every moment since the night in my room. I constantly wondered where she was, what she was doing. And the question haunted my brain, gnawing at me, knowing I would never rest until I found out the answer, who on earth had give her that nasty bruise? Sure enough she had told me it was a needle, I'm still not sure I believe that. 

Even if she hadn't been lying and it was a jag that had caused such a reaction on her porcelain skin, then why would she leave. Why was it the moment I asked what caused it she tensed up, went quiet and subsequently jumped to her feet claiming she had to leave. 

And why was her semi-naked body tucked beneath me the only image ripe in my mind whenever I blinked my eyes shut. The way her tiny breasts hid beneath that bra, giving extra padding to what was yet to develop. The curves on her figure that slid in at her teeny waist, making the perfect hourglass shape. The way her underwear showed off her thighs in such a tempting view. The way her soft shiny brown hair fell over her shoulders. Her plump lips. Her curious large brown eyes. Her cute buttony nose. The freckles that trailed across her cheeks. 

Something about seeing a person from such a vulnerable perspective erases any once negative opinions on the person. 

I used to think Maddison White was a show off for constantly raising her hand in class, but now I realise it is simply because she is so smart. Sure, I always knew she was a genius, but seeing her in that light just showed me she wasn't smart in a bragging way, she was just passionate.

When she had helped Sirius and I in potions class the other day I was glad to finally be back staring into those eyes i'd spent all week infatuating over. But the scowl and snarl she sent me  the cold look that hazed over her eyes was more than enough to show she had clearly not thought twice about our interaction. 

But when I put my mind to something, I will stop nowhere to get what I want. So as creepy as it may sound, every room I entered, my eyes found her, and remained on her until she left.

I was picking up on a lot of things. 

Maddison only ever ate a bowl of porridge for breakfast. Every day without fail. A bowl of porridge. It made me truly sick to watch, as I stuffed my face, she settled for porridge, occasionally seasoning it with fruit.   

She drank an ungodly amount of tea. No milk. One spoon of sugar. I don't know how she managed, I've hated tea for the longest time.

She was constantly studying for god knows what. How can a person be studying so much on the first week back? What did she have to study for? At first I assumed it was homework she was completing, but no person has that many classes to complete homework for.

But most importantly of all, I noticed every moment she spent outside of class, was spent alone. She never sat with friends, she simply distracted herself with books and homework during meals and could never be spotted with friends. I knew she was a friend of Snivellus, however surprising that may be to me now, but I never saw them together. 

I knew if I wanted to get it out of her who or what gave her that bruise then I would have to befriend her. Maybe it was for my benefit, or for hers, but I pledged to myself I would be friends with the girl.

"Oi, James! Come on, mate." Sirius breaks my thoughts. I had lay here on my bed, eyes squeezed shut as I envisioned Maddison for nearly 20 minutes.

"I've got the guy from Hogsmeade to hook us up with drink, but we need your help bringing them back. So get off your lazy arse and help us." Sirius scolds with a smile as he ushers me out the door.

Tonight is the 'first night back party', though I still remain unsure how it can be classed as a first night back party when it was Friday and we had returned on Sunday.

I get to my feet and trail out of our dorm in the direction of the secret tunnel leading to Hogsmeade. 

𝐌𝐀𝐃𝐃𝐈𝐒𝐎𝐍

‧₊˚⋅✎📃⋅˚₊‧

I was spending yet another late night reading session in the library. The new squib caretaker Filch was shooing me out telling me to spend my Friday night like a normal pupil.

Now i'm sauntering through the corridors, at around 9pm I found myself dropping my books at the account of three Gryffindor girls.

"I'm so sorry. Let me help you." Dorcas Meadows smiles sincerely as she picks up my books before I can even bend down.

"Thanks." I smile briefly, attempting to walk between Lily Evans and Marlene McKinnon in fear of another conversation like the last time. 

Before I can leave, Lily's glossy red nails encapsulate around my wrist and stop me.

When I turn around her red hair brushes smoothly over her shoulder. "I just wanted to say I'm really sorry for how we treated you the other day." Lily tells me with a smile.

I squint, waiting for a punchline but when I realise she is sincere I smile happily. "Thanks. It's all good." I nod confidently.

"Hey, would you be interested in joining us, Maddison? We're going to a party." Lily suggests. 

I immediately feel butterflies nipping my stomach. The prospect of a party is out of question for someone like me.

"Uhh... I'm sorry I don't know. I've got some homework to catch up on." I lie, I've completed all my homework the moment I got it.

"Nonsense. We've got a study group tomorrow that you can join us for, no need to stress. You can just drop your books in your room and pop up to the Gryffindor common room." Dorcas interjects, smiling too.

A party. Sure. I can do that. Just like in the books.

"Okay." I nod with a smile. The girls squeal and smile, saying they'll meet me there.

I hurry to drop my books off and fix my hair. I scurry to put on some makeup, subtle but still more than i've ever worn around this castle before.

I practically run for the Gryffindor common rooms with the mere excitement that i've been invited to my first party.

Thankfully some other pupils are leaving the party as I enter so I don't need to fumble with the portrait to let me inside. I slip through the portrait hole and feel all eyes on me immediately. 

Lily jogs towards me and practically pulls me inside because of how anxious I am. The music is loud and almost everyone is dressed in casual clothes, red clothes to be specific. In fact now that I think about it, these are all Gryffindors. I'm the only person here who isn't.

"You want to get changed? I'll get you some clothes." Lily offers generously. 

I would decline, but right now I will take any chance I can get to not be centre of attention right now. I let her lead me upstairs, sending me inside a bathroom and saying she'll bring me clothes and slide them inside.

I start to take my clothes off and place them in a small pile by the door, pacing and inspecting the bathroom as I wait. When footsteps approach the door I unlock the door upon hearing her voice.

She snaps the door open and I realise all too late she is not holding any clothes for me to change into, instead she lunges for my pile of clothes, tossing them to her friends McKinnon and Meadows, all three laughing as they run away downstairs with all my clothes.

Being left alone in my underwear in the Gryffindor common room bathroom upstairs beside all the dorms is probably not how I had anticipated I would spend my Friday night.

I slam the door shut and lock it as I search for something to wear that will save me from walking through a party of my peers in only underwear.

I can't help but let out loud sobs, hand over my mouth to muffle my cries in case they come back.

𝐉𝐀𝐌𝐄𝐒

𓃢𖠐𓄃☾

When we return to the party with the booze, every single Gryffindor in the common room already partying roars a loud cheer.

I catch Lily Evans slinking her way towards me, instinctively I run the fuck away. In the direction of the upstairs dorms I make the sensible decision to skip this party and hide out in my bed. Purposely avoiding Lily Evans and getting the chance to think of the girl consuming my brain capacity at all times.

That was the plan, until I heard soft sniffles in the communal bathrooms right when I was about to brush my teeth before bed. Two male dorms share a bathroom, 8 guys, and since our dorm is the first one up the stairs, this is everyone's go to bathroom at parties for convenience. 

I sigh in frustration, this always seems to happen. Someone breaks up with their girlfriend and she runs upstairs crying into the bathroom. Though it's surprising the tradition is back so soon this year.

I gently knock one knuckle on the door, "Excuse me? Could you cry somewhere else, please? This is my bathroom." I say calmly, despite the clear harsh undertone to my voice.

The cries cease and are replaced with a loud sniff. "Any time today." I groan, leaning against the doorframe.

"Potter?" A raw voice whimpers. A voice that despite the tears, I can identify in only one word. It's the voice that has been haunting my mind all week. 

"White?" I reply in a much more calm tone, no longer caring that she is in my bathroom, only caring about who the fuck made her cry.

"Yeah.. could you help me? I know you're angry but I really need your help." Maddison begs nervously.

"I'm not angry. What'd-you need?" I ask carefully.

"Could you get me something to wear?" She whispers embarrassedly.

"Something to wear? Uhh.. Yeah, come with me." I reply.

She makes no move to unlock the door. "I can't." Her voice breaks and a part of my heart fractures for her.

"Why not?" I say cautiously. I had assumed she spilt something on her or something, why could she not come out?

She sighs and produces the last words I could have possibly expected to come out of her mouth. "I'm naked." Maddison informs me.

I'm certain she heard the gulp I produced from the other side of the door. Imagining her naked in my bathroom. Holy shit. 

"Umm.. Why?" I try, after a desperate attempt to swallow the lump in my throat and the image.

"I'll explain in a minute- I just need clothes.. Please James." Her voice comes out desperate and begging, something I know this girl is never.

"Right.. Just- Wait there." I say with a shaky voice. "Where am I gonna go?" She jokes, and I can practically see the bitter look on her face when she said it.

I ran to my dorm and produced my trunk from beneath my bed as quickly as I could.

I dig through every item of clothing on a rampage to find something she could wear that is small enough for her to fit into. I settle for a white shirt that i've had since 2nd year and has pretty much been worn so much that it's now effectively see through. But it's small so I know it'll fit her comparatively smaller build. I also may or may not have stole the hideous red shorts Sirius bought this summer that are clearly too small for him. He only kept them because I said they were horrible. Maybe I gave her that for my own sake, knowing if she took them i'd never have to see them again.

I get back to the bathroom and place the two items of clothing on the floor straight outside the door.

"It's pretty old but I didn't have anything else that would fit you. I'm gonna put it down outside the door and turn around." I tell her.

I hear the door scream as it's cracked open. It takes everything in me to not turn around, but I know better. And soon enough the door is shut again and I turn around, waiting for her to come outside.

Moments later she slides out the door, switching the light off and staring at me vulnerably.

"Holy shit." I mutter under my breath when I catch sight of her. 

Her bright blue bra can be spotted under the shirt, you can't see anything but the outline, which is perfectly fine because if I saw more I would want it.

The shorts that look horrifically skin tight on Sirius are perfectly fitted to her, wedging amazingly up her arse and showing off some of her. The bruise on her skin is made more prominent with the high sleeves.

Her face is stained red with tears, her plump lips pursed and quivering. Her brown hair is messily thrown over each of her shoulders. 

"What? Is it the bruise? I don't want people to see it." She panics, trying to fold her arms in a way that covers the now greenish bruise.

"No.. it's not the bruise- But here." I gape before remembering priorities and pulling my dark red zipper off my shoulders and slinking it over her shoulders, it looks huge on her.

I step forward and wipe the tears off her blushed cheeks, ignoring the way she flinched when I touched her.

"I'm an ugly crier." She forces a small laugh through her sadness. "Ugly is the last word I would use to describe you." I tell her softly.

She goes quiet and her forced smile drops to a slightly shocked look.

"Can you tell me why you were naked in my bathroom?" I ask now with a small smirk. She flushes with embarrassment and I mentally kick myself for making her feel embarrassed. 

"Just some girls.. brought me here as a joke then told me they were getting me a change of clothes and just stole my stuff instead." She speaks so quietly that I wouldn't have heard her if I hadn't been listening to her every word so intently.

I feel a small part of me shatter. "Who would do that?" My voice comes out unfamiliar to me, sounding genuinely hurt.

"Lily Evans and her friends. It's fine though, just a harmless joke." She smiles through her pain.

"Jokes like that aren't funny. They're dangerous and mean. Especially when it's you." I defend, suddenly feeling bad for every single prank and mean joke i've played on this fragile girl in front of me.

"I've had worse." Maddison shrugs carelessly. 

I want to hug her. I want to apologise for ever going near her in ill nature. I want to, but I don't.

"What about your friends? Do they not protect you?" I ask, my way of subtly asking who she's friends with. 

"Severus? We're friends but we're not really close." She replies sheepishly. "Do you not have other friends?" I blurt, not meaning to sound so shocked but coming out that way.

"I do.." She says defensively. I know that was a lie, and she knows that I know.

"You want to be my friend?" I ask her. 

Her eyes trail up and down my body before she snorts. "Yeah. Right." She laughs, thinking i'm teasing her.

"I'm being serious." I tell her with a stern expression. "What's in it for me?" She grits her teeth sceptically as if we're making some kind of alliance.

"A lifelong buddy? A heroic stud? All of my friends who come with the package?" I tease with a smirk.

"And what's in it for you?" Maddison fires back. "A beautiful and genius friend who'll advise me against being a tosser all the time?" I shrug, noting the way she blushes at the word beautiful.

"You actually want to be my friend? Like you're not joking? You're not pranking me? This isn't you making fun of me?" Her face turns from sceptical to completely vulnerable and worried.

This time I do hug her. I pull her small body into my chest and squeeze her tight. It takes her a moment to warm up to my touch and hug me back. 

"Does this make us friends then?" She laughs against my chest.

"Of course." I smile. "But I must warn you. There are some risks." I tell her with a mock sympathetic frown. "Such as?" She smirks.

"I will corrupt you, and ruin your good girl reputation." I wink, she laughs a little and I allow myself to finally let go of this bear hug grip.

"You want to go down to the party? Or do you want to wait it out and then i can walk you back?" I offer her.

"Now that we're 'friends', can I tell you something?" Maddison asks me carefully, I nod for her to go on.

"This is the first party i've ever been at. I kind of want to see what it's all about." She tells me. 

"Well then Maddison White, I'm afraid your good girl conversion is starting tonight, you're gonna drink and play games like the rest of us eejits." I tell her.

Her smile drops a little, "Do I need to drink?" She asks me. "You don't need to do anything." I immediately assure her.

She nods satisfied with that answer and allows me to lead her back down. The second we get down we face an unsurmountable amount of stares, whispers and worst of all, silence.

My biggest hatred is when people don't say stuff to my face. If you can say it behind my back then you should be able to say it to my face. It really pisses be off when people just avoid conflict.

I lead her towards the coffee table where my mates are. She stays rigid and uncomfortable.

"James! Hey." Lily approaches us and smiles. I glare to Sirius uncomfortably, he only rolls his eyes, having already expressed his disliking for the girl in the beginning.

"Lily." I nod in greeting, getting myself a drink and getting Maddison a lemonade. A complete guess as to what she drinks, because it all honesty I have no clue. Regardless of what I give her, she smiles gratefully and takes it from me, our fingers brushing.

"Quidditch season starts soon. How excited are you?" Lily continues trying to make conversation. 

"Thrilled." I deadpan, making her erupt with laughter and getting me a slap on the arm because of how incredibly hilarious I apparently am.

"You're just so funny James." She grins up at me. "Tell that to Remus. I never amuse him." I joke. I immediately regret even replying when she lets out a huge cackle.

"Sirius. What were you saying earlier, about us getting that old vinyl? Care to help me?" I excuse, practically dragging myself away.

The second I get upstairs with Sirius trailing behind I sigh and choke back the entirety of my drink.

"What's that all about?" He gestures to my now empty cup. "She's insane." I agree. "No I mean why is the Mad Hatter crashing our Gryffindor exclusive party?" Sirius mocks.

"Don't call her that." I sigh. "Why? She's mad, isn't she. Unless Jamesy has got himself a crushy." 

I glare at him through two slits covering my eyes. "She's not mad. We just don't talk to her enough to know." I bark. "Don't tell me shagging her has made you fall in love." Sirius mocks.

"I didn't shag her!" I admit. He laughs teasingly then realises I'm not joking, abruptly halting his laughter and staring at me doe eyed.

"You didn't shag her?" He repeats. "No, I didn't shag her!" I hiss.

"Well why not? Why'd you tell everyone you did?" He demands.

"It's a long story. And I didn't tell anyone we did." I fire back. 

"Exactly. You said nothing. You let everyone assume you did." Sirius scowls. "Yeah. And?" I shrug carelessly. "Well now everyone in this building thinks you shagged." Sirius continues, bulging eyes as if he's waiting for me to realise his point.

"She didn't deny it either though. It's not like it's a bad thing people thinking we did." I disperse. "That's because it's harder for girls. And it might not be a bad thing for you, but for her it is." He tells me. "What do you mean?" I demand.

"I mean that for the past week since it happened you've been getting pats on the back, whistles where you walk, all that crap. Everyone thinks you're the shit cause you fucked some lass." He explains. "Meanwhile, she's being stalked by whispers, getting called a slag, not to mention the lads on the quidditch team all think since the captain had her that they're entitled to her." Sirius raises his voice angrily.

"Well why do you care so much? I thought you hated her." I fire back defensively.

"I don't hate her. I think she's fucking weird. I don't think she deserves people calling her a whore cause of a bet we made." He corrects.

"If it was really as bad as you say, she would have just told people. It's not all on me." I say. "You're unbelievable lad. She's probably scared people won't believe her, and even more scared that you won't defend her. You clearly like her mate, so fix it." He playfully punches my shoulder. 

"I don't like her." I growl. "Right." He agrees. "Shut up! We've just agreed to be pals, don't fuck this up for me." I point my finger at him.

"Pals? Like pals as in shagging in secret, or pals as in friendship bracelets and glitter and all that shit." He teases.

"I felt bad okay? She's only got one friend and it's Snivellus. I found a huge bruise on her arm when we almost shagged so I wanted to make sure her parents weren't fucking beating her. It's nothing more. Just sympathy okay?" I bark furiously.

"You didn't shag but you saw a bruise on her arm? Tell me exactly what you two got up to." He raises a brow.

"What we got up to? Nothing. We literally did nothing." I inform. 

"Okay well tell me everything then." He shrugs. I sigh and start recounting our whole interaction last Sunday.

"So you didn't kiss or touch once? You just got into your underwear, got on top of her and did nothing. Then you commented on a bruise on her arm and she left. She just left?" Sirius ponders curiously.

"Yeah." I sigh. "You saw her underwear?" He smirks. I nod. "Well?" He gestures for me to go on. "Well what?" I yelp. "What's she like?" Sirius asks me.

"What's she like?"I tease in disbelief. "Tit size? Ass size? Is she hot?" He clarifies.

"You're seriously disgusting." I scold. "We established that 4 years ago when we met. What we've yet to establish is whether Maddison White is fuckable." He shrugs as if it's nothing.

"Just tell me?" He pleads. "Fine. No tits, like literally nothing but padded bra. Tiny ass, the skirt she wears does it justice. A waist other girls would kill for but she doesn't even know it. She's hot but not your type.. or really most guys.. or any guy even?" I spill without hesitation. 

"Damn it. That was expected, but disappointing. Facially though she's always been sort of hot. Wouldn't bang her though unless you had said she had a nice arse." He confesses.

"Well if she spurts some out of nowhere then I call first bets." I joke. He laughs and slaps my back playfully, both of us starting to walk back down.

When we return to the party, I search all over for her, walking back to the fireplace. On the couch I find Remus and her talking quite intently, both laughing and smiling.

"What's this git bothering you about?" I joke as I lean down from behind the couch, my face resting between the two of them.

"He's not bothering me. We were just talking about Moby dick." She informs me.

My eyes widen, along with Sirius' as he slots his head right beside mine between the two as they look at us.

"Who's Moby?" I ask. "And why are we talking about his dick?" Sirius adds.

Maddison laughs as if we just said a joke, Remus shakes his head. "No they aren't joking." He tells her disappointedly.

"Oh." She frowns at us with disbelief.

"A book. You twats." Remus scowls, slamming our heads together. We both round the couch and flop down on either side of the pair.

"Welcome to the group Miss White. I hear James has invited you to be our friends." Sirius teases. I can tell there's mocking in his tone as he says this, but she doesn't seem to.

"Hey your names White and his is Black. You're like opposites." Peter chimes in, joining us and sitting on the coffee table.

"Yeah lad, and your nose is huge. Two things we all know but don't say aloud because they're obvious." Sirius teases.

"My nose is not big!" Peter protests. "Whatever you say rat boy." Sirius fires back.

"It's not that big." Maddison chimes in with sympathy. "He still looks like a rat though." Sirius objects. "Rats are cute." Maddison shrugs sweetly.

"I like her. We're keeping her." Peter points with a wide grin as he sips his drink.

"Damn right we are." I wink at her, ruffling her hair until she lets out a little giggle.

...

I feel like this story is flopping so hard, but I really enjoy writing it so i'm trying to not let that deter me. If you were one of the few still reading this then thank you so much, your support is so incredibly appreciated. Thanks so much!

word count: 5484