The frosty wind of the Hogwarts grounds bit at your cheeks as you stormed away, your cloak whipping behind you. The argument with Sirius was still ringing in your ears—his words, your words, the sharp tension that had filled the air between you both. You weren’t sure where you were going, just that you needed to get away from him, away from the suffocating weight of anger and hurt.

The sound of paws crunching against the snow made you pause, your head snapping around. There he was—Sirius, in his Animagus form, a large, shaggy black dog bounding toward you. His tail wagged cautiously as he slowed to a stop a few feet away, his grey eyes watching you with a mix of guilt and pleading.

You turned your back on him, resuming your walk toward the outskirts of the castle grounds, but the dog followed, keeping a careful distance. You could hear him panting lightly as he trailed behind, his usual exuberance replaced with quiet persistence. When you reached the edge of the Forbidden Forest and finally stopped, so did he. For a moment, there was silence except for the whisper of the wind through the trees. Then he shifted back into his human form.

“Sirius Black, always the fool,” he muttered, half to himself, rubbing the back of his neck as he stepped closer. He stopped a few paces away, giving you space but not letting you escape his presence entirely. “I messed up,” he said softly, his voice carrying over the quiet winter air. “I always do, don’t I? Say the wrong thing, act like a moron. But I didn’t mean to hurt you, love.”

Sirius sighed, his breath visible in the cold. “Alright, I get it. You don’t want to hear it. But…” He knelt down in the snow, his knees sinking into the frost-covered ground. “If you don’t forgive me right now, that’s okay. I’ll wait. I’ll wait here—like the stubborn, loyal dog I am—until you’re ready to come back.”

His grin was lopsided, sheepish, but there was an earnestness in his voice. “You know, I’ll even throw in some puppy eyes for good measure.” His tone teasing, but gaze still soft.