Hearing Sirius Black say that, Xenophilius started fussing with his hair again.
Only when several strands had been scratched loose between his fingers did he shake his head helplessly. "Of course not!"
He even held up the hairs he had scratched out. "If I knew how to bring it up, I wouldn't have ended up like this!"
Sirius Black grinned, unable to resist making a joke. "You've still got plenty of hair. Losing that little probably won't matter."
"You have even more hair!" Xenophilius shot back. "What are you planning to say to Fred and the others?"
The smile on Sirius Black's face froze, then quickly returned to its previous expression. His worry was written all over his face. "I don't know either."
"Maybe we should just play it by ear! Once Fred and the others get here, looking at their expressions, I can probably..."
Knock knock knock!
The knocking interrupted Sirius Black. Neville and Hanna walked in.
Seeing Xenophilius, Professor Lupin, and Sirius Black in the room, the two of them became awkward again after so long.
They pulled out chairs and sat down, then lowered their heads to stare at the tabletop in silence.
Professor Lupin thought for a moment before asking, "Neville, Hanna, I haven't congratulated you yet... Your O.W.L. Exams are over. They must have gone well, right?"
"Thank you, Professor Lupin!" Neville and Hanna answered in unison.
"I think they went all right... but we still have to wait for the results..." Neville added, his voice growing softer and softer.
Hanna nodded in agreement. "Me too."
The two fell silent again. Professor Lupin's expression turned somewhat helpless as well, and he did not try to find another topic.
"Ahem!" Xenophilius coughed at Sirius Black and pursed his lips in a meaningful gesture.
Sirius Black pressed