Sirius, who'd been rocking his chair back on the back two legs while teasing Vera, let the front legs of his chair thump to the floor. "Don't ruin Andromeda's day," he said without thinking. Immediately, however, he felt a rush of regret that he'd been so flippant. "I didn't mean that. It's bound to be difficult for him, Moony, being that this is his first Christmas away from his parents. Actually, when I asked him if he was coming down, he did seem to think about it before he said no. And when I told him he could open his gifts later, he nodded instead of saying 'Bugger off, Dogbreath'. I figure that's an improvement."