Sirius Black was not a bad person- he was strong, brave, confident, and just a little bit conceited. In other words, the perfect Gryffindor. But he didn't see himself the same way that others around him did. He saw himself as a pure-blooded, arrogant prat. In other words, the perfect Slytherin. Pure-blooded, arrogant prat. The words echoed in his ears over and over as he stood, waiting for his name to be called. Sirius knew that being put in Slytherin would please his parents, and he certainly didn't want to anger them further, but every other instinct in his body told him that Slytherin was not a friendly place. Many of the older students sat, arms crossed, with identical sneers on their faces, snickering each time someone was put into Hufflepuff.
"Abbott, Martin!"
"RAVENCLAW!"
"Adelson, Rosalie!"
"RAVENCLAW!"
"Banter, Danny!"
"HUFFLEPUFF!" (This was met with loud jeers from the Slytherin table.)
"Bellon, Ursula!"
"SLYTHERIN!"
"Black, Sirius!"
Sirius wiped his palms on the back of his robes. He could not afford to look like a nervous wreck in front of all of these people; what if he was landed in Hufflepuff, with all the other dunces? Scowling to himself, Sirius walked forward. There was the true Black coming out in him- Hufflepuffs seemed to be perfectly nice people. When he had misplaced his extra set of robes on the train, a fourth-year Hufflepuff had been one to find them hidden in the shadows between two luggage racks.
"Hufflepuffs are particularly good finders," the boy had answered with a grin when Sirius asked how he had found them.
As he walked toward the Sorting Hat, he kept his head held high and stared straight ahead, intent on hiding his nerves. NotSlytherinnotSlytherinnotS lytherin. Put me somewhere decent, anywhere but Slytherin... At last, Sirius reached the raggedy old hat. With shaking hands, he hopped onto the stool and slipped it onto his head, trying to ignore the hundreds of eyes all resting on him.
"Hmm, interesting. How very interesting," a small voice murmured in his ear. Sirius jumped in surprise, but quickly tried to pass the movement off as a violent sneeze.
"A Black, you say? Much unlike your mother and father- oh, yes boy, I met your parents, interesting ones they were- anyway, you seem quite... different."
"So, I'm not a Slytherin?" Sirius thought hopefully.
"Oh, I never said that," the hat replied, and Sirius felt his face fall. "You certainly have the ambition of a Slytherin, very sly as well, a mischievous streak is quite evident... Oho! But, as I said, most unlike your parents you are. You're much braver, and ready to sacrifice yourself for your friends if it comes to that."
"Is that, um, likely?" Sirius asked nervously.
"Oh, no, not in that regard... Hmm, you could do with thinking a bit more about your actions, boy. You're quite instinctive... A bit too instinctive, if you ask me... Anyway, with a heart that brave and loyal, and a mind that rash, better be... GRYFFINDOR!"
Sirius felt like collapsing as the announcement was met with tumultuous applause from one of the tables. He stumbled over and quickly sat down in a seat to see where the rest of the first years would be Sorted. After a few minutes when "Evans, Lily" was proclaimed a Gryffindor, Sirius automatically moved down a bit on the bench, offering her space to sit, but she gave him a spiteful look and ignored him. He shrugged it off, too happy with being put in Gryffindor to stay upset about anything for long. When "Lupin, Remus", a small, frail boy with light brown hair, sat down next to him, staring at the table in embarrassment, Sirius grinned at him, receiving a shy smile in return. James Potter, the boy who he had met on the train, was put into Gryffindor nearly the moment the hat touched his head, and immediately plopped down on the other side of Sirius.
"I'm starving," James moaned, looking around as if food were about to appear out of thin air. Nodding vaguely, Sirius looked around the table, sizing up the other first years. A pudgy, pink-cheeked boy with mousy brown hair stared longingly at a few older boys tossing a quill back and forth, a positively servile look on his face. Rolling his eyes, Sirius nudged James and jerked his head toward the boy. Something about the him irritated Sirius, though he couldn't put a finger on what exactly it was. Before he could investigate further, a loud, clear voice rang through the room.
"Welcome to yet another year at Hogwarts! I look forward to another sensational year, beginning with another sensational feast. Tuck in!" As magnificent platters appeared all along the tables, Sirius and James happily piled food onto their plates.
"I can't wait to owl Mum and Dad," James said excitedly. "They're gonna be so pleased that I'm in Gryffindor... How about your mum and dad? Are they going to mind that you broke the Slytherin trend? I sure wouldn't." At these words, Sirius felt his chest tighten.
"I dunno," he muttered. "I'm don't think they'll care much." He stuffed a large piece of sausage into his mouth so he wouldn't need to respond. Sirius was sure that his parents wouldn't care; not that they wouldn't mind, as in they would be fine with his placement in Gryffindor, but that they wouldn't care, as in they wouldn't bother to owl him, naturally assuming that he had been put in Slytherin. Pushing all thoughts of his parents out of his mind, Sirius continued eating, talking eagerly to James about the coming year. They were both pure-bloods, so their parents had gone to Hogwarts, but neither had older siblings, so they didn't have anyone close to their own age to tell them about it.
"I heard that Professor Kettleburn once ate five bubotubers on a bet once," James said excitedly. "You think he'd do it again?" Shrugging, Sirius leaned in toward his friend.
"A few bubotubers are nothing compared to what I've heard about Professor Rugbarth. Apparently before he taught Defense, he was on the run for three years, and fought off a herd of angry werewolves single-handed! Werewolves! Those things are freaking monsters." The small boy sitting on the other side of Sirius shrank down a bit at these words, but Sirius hardly noticed. "Wonder if he'll be teaching us that?" They continued talking straight through when puddings were finished.
"I hope everyone enjoyed the feast," Dumbledore said, rising to his feet. "This year, a few staffing changes have been made: I would like you all to give a warm welcome to Professors Sinistra and Bones, who will be teaching Astronomy and Arithmancy this year. It should also be made known that the Forbidden Forest is, as hinted by the name, forbidden to all students who would like to remain in possession of all of their limbs by the end of the year. In addition, I would like to note that Mr. Filch has recently acquired a new assistant: students, please be made aware that Mr. Filch's new cat, Mrs. Norris, will be patrolling the hallways nightly, so it would not do to be caught out of bed." He winked. "Now, your beds await you. First years, please follow your prefects up to the dormitories. Good night." The corridors were mobbed with people, and the tiny first years were getting jostled everywhere by much bigger and older students.
"Gryffindor first years, come on now," a prefect named Malcolm said loudly, plowing his way through the crowds. For several minutes, the first years stumbled through the hallways, struggling to keep up with Malcolm's long legs. At last, they came to a halt. "Boys, stay here with me. Girls, follow Sandra," he announced, pointing to a pretty, brown-haired girl standing beside him. Smiling, she showed the first year girls to their sleeping quarters. Malcolm smiled at the boys, seeming much kinder now that he had a smaller group to speak to, in a much less crowded area.
"All right," he said. "This is your home for the next seven years of your life... So try to stay on each others' good sides, will you?" The boys exchanged nervous looks, as if one of them would bite. "Sheesh, I was just kidding," he assured them, laughing. "Why don't you introduce yourselves?" No one spoke for a moment, and then James stepped forward.
"James Potter," he said, grabbing his friend's arm and yanking him forward.
"Ow, James! I'm Sirius. Er, Sirius Black," he muttered, glaring at James.
"Frank Longbottom," one boy replied, grinning broadly. Again, the boys fell into an uncomfortable silence.
"How about you two?" Malcolm asked, nudging the two boys who were still staring intently at their feet.
"Remus Lupin," said the small boy who had been sitting next to James.
"I-I'm Peter. Pettigrew. Peter Pettigrew, that is," he stammered nervously.
"So, Peter, Frank, James, Sirius and Remus?" Malcolm asked. "Cool. I'll see you guys tomorrow- sleep well." With a final pat on the shoulder, he turned and walked away, leaving the boys to themselves.
"Well, night, everyone," Remus mumbled, walking over to his bed and pulling the curtains closed. A few minutes later, soft snores began emitting from behind the draperies. Yawning, Sirius turned to his roommates.
"Night, guys." He walked over to his own bed and, pulling the curtains closed, began to undress. Once he had changed into nightclothes, Sirius snuggled under his many blankets, thinking back to something that Malcolm had said.
"This is your home for the next seven years of your life."
"Home." The word had an unfamiliar feel to Sirius, almost foreign to his mouth. He had grown up in a house, but never had it felt like a home. Home was a warm, comfortable place where you could be yourself, and speak your deepest thoughts aloud without being judged. But the Black's house had never been such a place. Sirius had learned from a young age that speaking his mind would only get him berated and ridiculed, and he had never been able to be himself.
"What if I'm in Gryffindor?" he had once asked his mother. "It doesn't sound so bad."
"GRYFFINDOR? Gryffindor doesn't sound SO BAD?" she had screeched. "Sirius Orion Black, you are... you are warped enough already. You will not be a Gryffindor if I have to walk to Hogwarts and Sort you myself! No son of mine would even CONSIDER Gryffindor as anything less than the repulsive, madhouse that it is!"
Salty tears stung his eyes as he remembered this episode, as he liked to call them. It had been one of her worst; he had narrowly escaped physical injury, which was extensive for even Walburga. Within the next few minutes, the other boys went to bed one by one; Sirius could feel the mixture of fear and excitement radiating off of all of them, but didn't feel the same way himself. Snuggling deeper under his covers, Sirius felt a smile spread across his face. For the first time in his life, Sirius had a home. Not just a home, he realized. At last, Sirius had a family.
A./N.- Did anyone catch the AVPM reference? Please review- criticism and suggestions are always welcome!