Hearing Sirius Black say that, Xenophilius began fussing with his hair again.
Only when several strands of hair had been scratched loose onto his fingers did he shake his head helplessly. "Of course not!"
He even held up the hairs he had pulled 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. "Your hair is still plenty thick. Losing this little bit shouldn't matter."
"Your hair is even thicker!" 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, though his worry was written all over his face. "I don't know either."
"Maybe we'll just have to play it by ear! Once Fred and the others get here, looking into their eyes, I can probably..."
Knock, knock, knock!
The knocking interrupted Sirius Black. Neville and Hannah walked in.
When they saw Xenophilius, Lupin, and Sirius Black in the room, the two of them became awkward in a way they had not felt for a long time.
They pulled out chairs and sat down, then lowered their heads to stare at the tabletop in silence.
Lupin asked thoughtfully, "Neville, Hannah, I haven't congratulated you yet... Your O.W.L. exams are over. They went well, didn't they?"
"Thank you, Professor Lupin!" Neville and Hannah replied in unison.
"I think they went alright... but we'll still have to wait for the results..." Neville added, his voice growing quieter and quieter.
Hannah agreed. "Me too."
The two fell silent again. Lupin looked somewhat helpless as well and did not try to find another topic.
"Ahem!" Xenophilius coughed at Sirius Black, pursing his lips in a pointed gesture.
Sirius Black pressed his