Smiling couples, giggling groups, amused adults, Hogwarts was filled with laughter and happiness. The thought made Marylyn sigh.

Everything about Marylyn should have left her smiling, giggling, and being just as happy as everyone else in the school. But for no reason at all she wasn’t. She never smiled. She never laughed. Even the thought of giggling made her flinch.

She was a Ravenclaw, living up to the reputation with her grades and with her cleverness. Ravenclaws were known for their jokes. After all, cleverness makes it easier to write jokes. Marylyn lived up to this as well, when she could. But it never made her laugh.

Marylyn was really quite pretty. Maybe, at one point in her life, someone dared to call her beautiful. Her shimmering blonde hair and her skimming blue eyes, left her with any boy in school she wanted and she was constantly being asked on dates. Other girls would giggle and reply with a squealed yes. But her reply was always the same. The same cold yet filled with regret ‘No.’ She knew none of the boys would ever make her giggle the way other girls did.

Marylyn loved Quiditch. She liked writing and reading too, along with many other assorted hobbies. So some people shared common interests with her, but she had no friends. She didn’t want to make others suffer with her. In her world with no laughter.

The difference between her and every other beautiful, popular, smiling girl at Hogwarts was she was just not happy. She didn’t share their sparkling eyes nor their song like laughter.


“No,” Marylyn said, trying to be as cool as possible. She didn’t want people to think there was even a shimmer of hope of her ever saying the dreaded ‘Yes.’ And she never wanted to see the happiness and hope the boys always brought her fade again. So she tried to be cold so maybe they would stop asking, realizing her was hopeless.

The boy gave a curt nod. Clearly he had not expected a yes anyway. He turned and ran to his friends, talking animatedly to them, pointing at Marylyn a few times.

This was the third boy she had turned down that week. With Hogsmead so close, boys were once again filled with hope, only to have Marylyn ripe it from them.

She hated it. Everytime she said no it ripped through her, like a thousand knives. Every glimmer of hope painfully reminded her of her little brother, and the same hopeful looks he gave every time he attempted to make her smile. She could only hope that every one would give up on her just like her brother.

She ignored the boys, continuing to talk, obviously about her. She got rapped up in her book again.

Then she felt a familiar tap on her shoulder. She turned to find Sirius Black, not a hopeful look of asking her out, but a look instead of annoyance.

She raised her eyebrows.

“You just rejected my friend,” He hissed. She looked around him. There was the sandy haired boy who had expected nothing of her, who she had in fact just rejected.

“Yes,” Marylyn hissed back. Sirius began to grind his teeth in annoyance.

“You weren’t supposed too,” Marylyn glanced back at the sandy haired boy. He wasn’t hopefully looking at her, awaiting Sirius to convince her to accept his request. He was instead looking highly annoyed glaring at Sirius, beginning to walk over. If Marylyn could, she would have smiled.


“I don’t understand.” Remus said for the fifth time. Sirius didn’t look annoyed, but instead patient.

“Marylyn will say yes,” Sirius said simply. Remus raised his eyebrows. Sirius had been trying to get his friend on a date for a long time, which is where James happened to be with Lily.

“Sirius first of all, why would she? She never says yes. To anyone,” Remus emphasized the last word. She had turned Sirius down. Twice. “Second of all, I don’t want to go out with anyone, for multiple reasons.”

Truthfully, Remus wouldn’t have any problem getting a date. He just didn’t want one. So why Sirius would suggest Remus ask out a girl he didn’t want to go out with only to be rejected made no sense, except for the fact that it was Sirius.

“She will say yes, I guarantee it.” Sirius thought for a moment, “I dare you to ask her out,” Remus heaved a sigh. If he had dared Remus to ask any other girl out Remus would have simply refused and faced the wrath of Sirius’s patronizing. But seeing as she was going to say no anyway…..

“If she does say yes, then you have to,” Sirius pondered this for a second, “Then you have to take her to Hogsmead.”

“And when she says no,” Remus countered confidently, “You have to ask her out.” Remus gave Sirius a smug look. He knew Sirius hated rejection, to the amusement of Remus. Sirius mirrored the look. It was hard to tell who was surer of themselves.


Remus firmly grabbed Sirius shoulder and turned it away from Marylyn.

“You may not speak with her, its cheating.” Remus said, through gritted teeth. “I’ve won.” Remus may not have liked Marylyn, but he didn’t want Sirius harassing her.

“There were no rules previously set in place, therefore I may do as I please,” Sirius said coolly turning back to Marylyn, her eyebrows never lowering.

“As I was saying you must say yes,” Remus wanted to stop Sirius greatly, but knew it was pointless. In his own way, Sirius was right. “Because Remus doesn’t want to go on a date with you,” Sirius concluding simply. Marylyn looked taken aback, a look she never gave. Remus just laughed. Sirius was stupidly determined to win.

“Look mate it that is your argument,” Remus said smiling, “You might as well concede.” Sirius never took his determined eyes off Marylyn. She continued to look confused.

“Its still-“ She began but Sirius cut her off.

“Just think about it,” He said, turning to walk away. Remus looked aghast, frozen for a second, then stomped after his friend.

Marylyn stared curiously at her feet, as if she had never noticed them before. It seemed Sirius had said something that changed everything. And for the second time, Marylyn did something she had never down before. She took his offer into consideration.