Need to Keep Going
He was covered in sweat as he stood opposite her, his hands clenched into fists. His breathing was heavy as he focused on her, but his mind was so drained that he could barely keep his eyes open. He could feel her watching him, her strength only diminishing his. He tried to think of something to keep him going - anything to push him forward - but he couldn't.
"I need a break," he said, falling against the cupboard behind him. He had his hand held out in front of him, scared he would be faced with another attack before he was ready. He felt a tear well up in his eye, but pushed it away, knowing that she would never help him again if he showed that much weakness. He was exhausted, but he knew that giving up completely would mean the end of it forever.
"You asked for this, Mr Black. You cannot give up now because you are tired." He shook his head, looking back at her.
"Can't we take a break? Try again tomorrow?" Sirius rubbed his head, the splitting headache he was forming was doing nothing to help him. He looked back at McGonagall and knew that she was not ready to finish.
"By tomorrow you will have lost half the progress you made today, we need to keep going," she said. "We need to perfect this."
They were standing in a dark classroom, the only light source were the few candles surrounding them. Sirius got to his feet, planting them firmly against the stone flooring. He tried to ignore the pain in his head, he ignored the aching of his body, he needed to focus - and so he did. He knew he had to get this right, and McGonagall was one of the only teachers who knew how to teach him.
As she loomed over him, her face set, hard, he remembered back to the moment he decided to learn occlumancy. He was sitting at home, writing a letter to Remus when his little brother burst into his room. Regulus demanded he tell him what was in the letter - but Sirius refused. Regulus sprinted from the room spouting nonsense about the things that Sirius was hiding. Of course his parents believed their angel child and refused to let the argument go. Sirius had already ripped and burnt the letter, making sure no one would see it. This infuriated his mother, who screamed to know what he was hiding. Sirius remember the flaring of her nostrils, the bulging of her veins. It all happened so quickly; one second she was screaming at him, the next his father was standing over him, his hand outstretched.
It was the strangest feeling, his father roaming around in his brain. He did not like it, not one bit. His father had learnt everything Sirius was hiding, and he had been severely punished for it.
"Okay," he said, pulling himself back to the present, "I'm ready."
A/N: Words - 501
Divination - Write about a character mastering Occlumancy
Extra Prompts - Sirius Black (Character), Exhausted (Word), Determination (Emotion)