Can't help it if I wanna kiss you in the rain.
So come feel this magic I've been feeling since I met you.
Can't help it if there's no one else.
Mmm, I can't help myself.

- Taylor Swift, Hey Stephen

You Bloody Prat, Black

"Get out of my house!"

"No, Marlene I-" he protested.

"NOW BLACK!"

Sirius could argue with anyone, and always win, he was that kind of person, but he could never argue with Marlene; there was something about her that was always so sure, so confident you couldn't find a reason to answer back. That's one of the many things he knew about Marlene after knowing her for so long. So Sirius just sent her one last pleading glance before he trudged out of the living room and unlocked the front door.

Her resolution was wavering: Sirius was always cheerful and though he wasn't always an optimist, she had never seen him so down over something she had done. Marlene had only seen him cry twice in almost nine years of knowing him. The first had been in fifth year, after he had pulled that horrible trick on Snape, almost killing him, and James, Remus and Peter had sworn never to talk to him again and had accused him of being just like his family. The second time had been during the summer after sixth year. It was straight after he'd finally walked out of Grimmauld Place, the Stinging Hex still fresh on his cheeks and Marlene had opened her front door to a broken down Sirius carrying a trunk and she hadn't even needed to ask him anything to know what had happened.

And now she had made him almost as low as he was then by telling him to go. They had been living together for a few months, and she had been waiting for one of them to mess it up, it had seemed to good to be true. But she hadn't been expecting that telling him to leave would break her heart. She loved Sirius, and Marlene knew she was overreacting - in fact, she didn't even remember why they were fighting, but knew it was something so ridiculous, she had just needed someone to shout at and blame when she couldn't find the people responsible for her real problems. She leaped up to follow him, guilt overpowering her.

"Sirius, wait-"

The door had slammed shut, and Marlene tugged at the handle desperately knowing that if he reached the protective boundaries the Order had placed around her house, he could apparate away and she wouldn't be able to follow him. The storm had picked up outside, as if it knew they were about to walk out and was determined to make them as miserable and lonely as possible. The wind howled, and the tree at the end of the path swayed ominously, rain lashing down onto the dark green leaves, ripping them off.

"Sirius! Sirius, please!" she cried.

He didn't turn, just kept walking down her garden path, hands in pockets, not even flicking his rain soaked hair out of his eyes.

She caught his arm and pulled him around, her long blonde curls corkscrewing out of control as the rain continued to pour.

"Sirius - listen to me," she said, voice stronger.

Her eyelashes were covered in tiny raindrops as his stormy grey eyes met her aqua ones. Marlene never ran after him if they fought, she held out her apology until the last possible second. What was she doing?!

"Sirius, I-I'm sorry," she blurted out, meeting his gaze.

He stared at her incredulously, "Marlene McKinnon, sorry? Are you feeling okay?"

There it was, that little spark he always had.

"Shut it, I'm here, don't make me leave again," she snapped, pursing her lips in annoyance.

A small, very very small, smile played round the corner of his mouth, and he quirked an eyebrow up.

"I'm sorry," she repeated, licking her lips nervously. She knew he didn't need to forgive her, she had been in the wrong, and he had forgiven her so many times when he shouldn't have. It would be her own fault if he left for good.

"I can't even remember why I'm mad at you," she admitted.

Sirius rolled his eyes, "Well Mary told Emmeline who told Alice who told you that I had been flirting with someone else at James' party last night, and-"

"Okay, okay, I get it…"

"And then you told James, who told Remus, who 'confirmed' it, who told you again," he continued.

"BLACK SHUT IT."

He shut up, realising he had probably pushed it too far again, and sighed.

"All I'm saying is, it didn't happen."

"I-I know, Sirius, I believe you," she said nervously, pushing her fringe out of her eyes.

He looked around at the sky, seeing the lightening in the distance and shivering. "I'd best be off," he said sadly.

"What do you mean?" Marlene said, confused.

"You told me to leave…"

Marlene stared at him in surprise, "Yeah, and then I said sorry, you're forgiven, you can stay!"

"No, I can go to James' if you-"

"You bloody prat, Black, come here," she smirked, grabbing his collar and pulling him down for a quick kiss.

Sirius responded eagerly, cupping her cheeks with his hands and picking her up, her legs wrapping around his waist. They forgot they were still outside, they forgot it was raining, they forgot it was about four in the morning, they only remembered each other.

Marlene was in bed the next morning, wrapped up with a jumper and another blanket, mug on hot chocolate in one hand, head leaning on Sirius' chest.

"Black, you are bad for my health," she sighed, shaking her head.

Sirius laughed, "I didn't make us kiss out there for half an hour before realising it was still raining…"

"It so was," she scoffed, "You ran off!"

"Oh please, Marls, let's not get into this again," he chuckled.

"Oh yeah, probably a bad idea."

"Probably.

"You're still a bloody prat."