Written for The Quidditch League Fanfiction Competition.
[Season 7] - Round 2
Team: Chudley Cannons
Position: Chaser 3 - Leo (July 23-August 22). Vivacious, theatrical, and passionate, Leos love to bask in the spotlight and celebrate themselves. These lions are natural leaders, and they enjoy cultivating friendships and romances that are artistically and creatively inspired. Write about someone who's always been a leader (explicitly or otherwise) having to learn to follow someone else OR write about a character(s) who's always been fawned on finding themselves having to work for recognition and acceptance.
I chose the second one.
Prompts:
5. (song) November Rain - Guns N' Roses
6. (colour) crimson
13. (phrase) holding your head high
.:lll:.
A/N the song is about someone trying to give up unrequited love. Sirius is trying to give up the unrequited love from his parents and move on.
.:lll:.
"Gryffindor!"
Time stood still and all Sirius Black heard was his own breathing. If he didn't open his eyes, then maybe none of this would be real. If he kept them closed the nightmare would still be going on. It was better if it was a nightmare instead of reality.
He didn't hear as someone called his name, but he did feel the hands grabbing his arms and shaking him slightly. If he kept his eyes closed it wouldn't be real.
Wouldn't be real.
It wouldn't be real.
It can't be real, he was Sirius Orion Black the third, heir to the most noble and ancient house of Black. He couldn't be a Gryffindor, he should be a Slytherin just like all the other Blacks. This was just a cruel nightmare.
Finally the hands on his arms lost their patience and instead dragged him towards the wrong table. He should be at the Slytherin table with all his cousins and friends. With Mulciber, Avery, Pucey and Snape. Not at the Gryffindor table with all the mudbloods and blood traitors.
With still-closed eyes Sirius sat at the Gryffindor table and listened to the sorting. If just one of the friends he had made on the train would be sorted into Gryffindor (or another house that wasn't Slytherin) then he would at least have a friend, but none of them did.
He wanted nothing more than to run out of the Great Hall. There had to be a way for him to switch houses, or maybe he could go to Durmstrang instead.
That sounded like a plan, he had always been a good kid, surely his parents would help him through this.
.:lll:.
"I'm-"
"Sirius Black," the other boy finished eagerly. "I know. I'm Titan Mulciber and future Slytherin just like you."
Sirius relaxed visibly. The first compartment he was in contained the blood traitor Potter, a half-blood and a mudblood. He had gone searching for another compartment and was glad about the result. Mulciber was a pureblood like him.
The other boys were Avery and Pucey. Later Severus Snape joined them, and they generously allowed him because he was future Slytherin.
He could easily see a future with these three boys.
.:lll:.
Dear blood traitor,
You must understand that what you have done have caused great damage to the Black reputation. Therefore I have no other choice than to disown you. You are no longer a Black nor welcome in the noble and most ancient house of Black.
-Walburga Black
Sirius crumbled the letter and threw it against the wall. The howler had been bad enough, why did they have to do this too? Though deep-down Sirius knew he deserved it, he had broken a proud tradition. Blacks had always been Slytherins, even the blood traitors like his uncle Alphard and cousin Andromeda.
.:lll:.
"I'm gonna miss you when you're at Hogwarts," Regulus whispered with big eyes. He wasn't supposed to say anything of the kind out loud. Missing Sirius was ridiculous when there were so many other things he could do.
Sirius quickly shushed him and looked over his shoulder to see if his parents were there and overheard. Regulus held his breath when Sirius turned around again.
"I'm gonna miss you too," he whispered. "But I will be back soon, so don't worry. I'll make sure Hogwarts is ready for two Blacks like us."
Regulus nodded, his eyes were filled with awe.
"You'll write to me?"
"Everyday."
"You're the best," Regulus whispered and quickly wrapped his arms around Sirius for a short moment before letting go and adjusting his robes and hair.
Sirius smiled.
.:lll:.
All the excitement he had earlier been feeling about going to Hogwarts had vanished as if someone had used a vanishing charm. Sirius was left with a hole inside of him. His earlier friends -Snape, Mulciber, Avery and Pucey- had abandoned him, and along with all the other Slytherins they bullied him because they'd seen what happened at the Sorting, and everyone had heard the Howler.
It was humiliating to be treated that way. He was supposed to be the most popular guy in school because of his title and status. Sirius shouldn't have been a Gryffindor and get his life ruined.
But he didn't let it get him down. His entire life Sirius had learned he had to deserve things before he could get them, so if he wanted to get back into the family he simply had to prove himself worthy. Though that was easier said than done.
Sirius used most of his free time in the library (because he dreaded the Gryffindor common room) to do his homework so he could be best in class. His parents had always appreciated good skills. Though it was hard for him because his emotions were out of control, he tried his best, but everything seemed to fail, and each time it did, there was someone to laugh at him.
The time he didn't use in the library was spend hexing mudbloods and try to make good friends with the Slytherins. If he hexed the mudbloods his parents would know his views hadn't changed, and if he could at least be friends with Slytherins, then maybe they could let him into their common room.
His plan didn't go very well though, seeing as the Slytherins hexed him for being a blood traitor and his dorm-mates hexed him for hexing mudbloods. But Sirius kept his head high. He had a whole year to convince his parents he was a good enough son for them.
His plan also meant that Sirius didn't have any friends. Not even any from Hufflepuff or Ravenclaw, because they didn't want to get involved in the rivalry between Gryffindor and Slytherin.
Slowly Sirius began withdrawing from everyone. Wherever he went someone had something bad to say to him, he tried to keep his head high, but it became a struggle. If only he had his parents to support him or at least a couple of friends, but everyone seemed to hate him.
With just one single word from the sorting hat, his whole life had been turned upside down.
.:lll:.
He laid restlessly on his bed in the Sly-Gryffindor dorm with closed eyes. The crimson colour that apparently had to be everywhere in both the common room and dorms made him feel sick.
"Black?" someone suddenly asked carefully. Sirius hadn't heard anyone come in, but he didn't want to open his eyes and face the ugly colours of the room to see who had approached him.
"What?!" he snapped as it was probably one of his dorm-mates.
"Are you okay?" the other guy asked even more careful than before.
"I'm perfect," he replied bitterly.
The voice belonged to Remus Lupin. Sirius had spent months listening to him and the other two in the dorm planning pranks when they thought he was asleep. They sounded like such good friends and Sirius wished he had been sorted into Slytherin so he could have the same.
"It's just that I found this letter, and-"
Sirius sat up suddenly and stared angrily at the other boy. "And what?!" he exclaimed. "Now you're gonna make fun of me?!"
Lupin looked utterly shocked. "No, I... I thought you might like to talk with someone."
"And that someone could be you?" he exclaimed in disbelief. He could do better than Lupin, and his parents definitely wouldn't approve of the tawny-haired boy. He was a half blood and not even a Slytherin.
"Uhh-"
"Go to hell Lupin, I don't need you or anyone else in this horrible house." Sirius stormed out of the room and slammed the door shut behind him. When he neared the common room everybody stared at him, most of it hateful, but he ignored them and ran outside towards the Black Lake.
It was the only place in the whole school where nobody sent him dirty looks; the only problem was that the cold November rain ruined the experience. Though at least this way nobody would be able to tell the rain from his tears.
A few moments later someone sat down next to him. Sirius didn't have the energy to push Lupin away again, so he let the other boy stay. Soon enough Lupin whispered a spell and suddenly he wasn't so cold anymore.
A few more moments later he spoke up.
"I do think I can be that someone."
Sirius didn't answer. Just because Lupin was offering didn't mean he was a good person, he might have only said it because he pitied him. Or because he and his friends planned a prank Sirius hadn't overheard.
"So why won't you let me?" Lupin asked, when it became clear Sirius wasn't going to say anything.
"My parents won't approve of you," he mumbled.
"Why does that matter?"
"Because if I do anything they won't approve they will never take me back." Sirius managed to keep all emotion out of his voice as he was taught at home.
Silence fell over the two boys. The only sound was the raindrops joining the lake and giving life to the trees. If it had been earlier this year the leaves would have protected them, but right now they weren't.
"When you realize that they won't have you, you're more than welcome to hang out with us if you change your shitty attitude." Without another word Lupin raised from the ground and walked back towards the castle. Sirius looked after him and noticed a little fire in a jar next to him - the thing keeping him warm.
.:lll:.
When it was almost December Sirius realized that he should have done something sooner.
His parents hadn't written to him once since their first letter; they hadn't answered his many letters, and neither had Regulus. Each and every one of his cousins bullied him to tears every day.
It was scary, and Sirius didn't know what he was going to do. He had nowhere to go, but he knew that he needed someone, and Lupin had promised he could be with his friends if only he changed his attitude.
So that was what he was going to do first. A new home could come after. All Sirius knew was that even if Walburga and Orion Black wanted to take him back, he didn't want to after the way he had been treated by them.
.:lll:.
He decided that only changing his attitude wouldn't be enough, Sirius also had to show them he wanted to be their friend. He got the chance only a few days after his decision.
He and Peter Pettigrew had been paired in Potions. Pettigrew was the least confident of his dorm-mates, so he was perfect for this. He would never hex or say anything to Sirius if Potter and Lupin weren't with him, so the only thing Sirius had to do was help him.
Pettigrew wasn't... very lucky when it came to Potions, which meant there were lots of things to help with.
"Now... add the two blobs of flobberworm mucus," Sirius read from the book. He looked at Pettigrew who took some of the flobberworm mucus and prepared to only drop two blobs in the cauldron. Pettigrew had been wary at first but quickly learned that Sirius wasn't going to explode the caldron's content in his face. Again.
They were added carefully, and Sirius smiled when it changed colour.
"Now stir it four times clockwise."
Pettigrew did as he was told, and managed to stir it the right way this time. Sirius waved his wand over the potion and then it was finished.
They had all been handed little plants at the start of class, and now Pettigrew used a pipette to add some of their potion on the plant. A wide smile spread across his face when the plant slowly died. He quickly went over to celebrate with his friends that he had finally managed to complete a potion without exploding anything at all.
Sirius almost didn't mind Pettigrew running away and celebrating with his friends instead of with him.
Lupin sent him a knowing glance as Sirius cleaned the cauldron and cleared the table.
.:lll:.
Sirius took a very deep breath and walked straight towards where Lily Evans and Mary Macdonald walked with Marlene McKinnon, Dorcas Meadowes and Alice Prin.
When they spotted him all five of the girls pulled out their wands and pointed them at him. They were used to him hexing both Macdonald and Evans and calling them mudbloods.
He forced himself to look into their eyes.
"I'm sorry I called you... that slur... and I'm sorry I hexed you all those times. If you wanna hex me, then I totally understand, but I can assure you that I'll never do such thing again."
All the girls stared at each other in confusion before shrugging.
"You'll never do it again?" McKinnon checked.
"Never ever," he assured them, and was relieved they didn't hex him.
"Okay then," Evans stated.
The girls continued walking, but McKinnon stopped right next to him and pointed her wand at his throat.
"If you ever do it again, you're a dead man, Black!"
Sirius cringed at the name but nodded anyway.
.:lll:.
James had been devastated when his invisibility cloak had disappeared (the invisible part really didn't help), he hadn't even gotten to use it properly yet, and now it was gone.
He was surprised and relieved when it mysteriously appeared on his bed a few days later, both neatly folded and in perfect condition.
.:lll:.
It wasn't Sirius' fault that he overheard what his other dorm-mates were talking about in the library when he was hiding behind a bookshelf. It wasn't his fault that he heard Lupin needed the exact book that was staring Sirius right in the face.
Lupin had already been looking through a lot of books to find the right one, and when he rose from his seat to begin searching again, Sirius grabbed the book off the shelf and walked towards Lupin.
The other boy was looking through the shelves, and Sirius peeked at him before coming out of hiding. It took a few seconds before Lupin realized someone stood next to him, and only then did Sirius hold the book out and silently stare at his feet.
After a few moments of hesitation, Lupin reached for the book, and Sirius turned around and stalked out of the library.
Why did he have to do that? Why couldn't he have given the book to Lupin like a normal person? Lupin certainly wouldn't begin to like him now. Sirius was supposed to change his attitude, he was supposed to talk with Lupin, not just hand him over stupid books without a word-
His train of thought was broken off when somebody pushed him and he collided with the floor. Before Sirius could even begin to register what was happening a foot kicked into his side and he whimpered in pain.
"What do you think you're doing, Black?" a furious voice asked him. Sirius recognised it as Mulciber's. "Helping blood traitors and being friendly towards mudbloods? Oh, how your parents will be disappointed." A smug smile played on Mulciber's lips.
"They're not my parents!" Sirius snapped and rose from the floor. None of the four boys surrounding him appeared intimidated.
"Oh?" he continued. "Well, if they weren't before then they certainly aren't now."
"I heard they wanted to give him another chance..." Avery stated.
Sirius paused for a moment.
"Liar!" he accused.
Mulciber laughed. "Yeah? Do you really want to take the chance?"
"Perhaps we should teach him what happens when going against your blood," Pucey suggested and suddenly they all walked a little bit closer.
Sirius tried to run, but they had him surrounded. Snape and Pucey pushed him, only didn't fall because Mulciber pushed him back. The four boys around him kept pushing, hitting him and telling how much of a disgrace he was until it came to a point where Sirius didn't even know where he was.
It wasn't until what felt like forever it finally stopped.
"You stop that RIGHT now!" McGonagall exclaimed and they immediately took a step away from Sirius so he hit the ground. "My office now."
They stalked off without even the slightest sign of regret.
McGonagall's features softened and her voice was a lot more caring when she turned to Sirius.
"Mr Black-"
Without hearing another word Sirius rose from the ground and ran outside towards his little place by the lake.
.:lll:.
When Sirius returned to the Gryffindor tower much later, he was soaked and freezing. Not only did it rain in outside, but the wind was also blowing from every possible direction. He walked slowly and wiped his face from rain and tears as he headed for his dorm.
Sirius had expected his dorm-mates to be asleep when he returned and was shocked to find them all sitting in the middle of the room with snacks and blankets. He wanted to move away from the door but found himself unable to.
"You don't look too good," Potter stated with a wry smile.
"Change into your pyjamas, grab your blankets, and join us," Lupin offered and smiled.
Sirius half expected them to begin laughing, yet he walked towards his bed and redressed while sending them a glance every five seconds. He grabbed his blankets and joined them in the circle.
"You got to try these!" Pettigrew stated with a smile and offered him some cake. "Don't worry, neither Remus nor I made them, it was the house elves."
He hesitantly took the piece.
"Do you want to join planning our next prank?" Potter asked eagerly. "But be warned, once you do this, you will become a marauder and then you're stuck with us forever."
Sirius smiled shyly. "I can definitely live with that."
After that night, the whole Gryffindor thing turned to be the best thing that ever happened to him.
.:lll:.
Word count: 2998