Somewhere in the centre of London, lay a boy in his bed looking at his midnight black ceiling, which covered in light would prove to be dark green. He did know that he probably should be sleeping, seeing that today was considered to be one of the most important days in his entire life, if not the most important. His entire family had been in Slytherin, and being the heir of the entire family and its holdings, he was expected to be sorted in Slytherin too.
Despite knowing of the expectations practically the entire wizard world had of him, he was not actually rooting for the, in his family's opinion, best house. In contrary, he was hoping to be sorted in Gryffindor, Slytherin's entire opposite. In Slytherin, he would be surrounded by back-stabbing bastards that would only talk to him because of his family name and fortune backing him. No, he was hoping for the house of the brave and the loyal.
Maybe he would finally be able to fit in. All his life all his relatives, of which he could assure you that there were too many, had treated him like a prince. He would only have to mention something in the passing, and there was a high chance that he would get it the following day. His family, however, was something else. He could not think of any other reason than that his parents knew of his reluctance to be sorted in the house of snakes.
Until he was somewhere around the age of starting to talk, they had almost loved him. No one ever loved each other in the family, though. Then, Regulus had been born. Almost immediately his parents seemed to realize that Regulus would be ten times the Slytherin he would ever be. Not that he blamed Regulus, who had done everything expected of him while he personally had been disgruntled at the little tasks he was made to do. No, his family did not treat him as a prince. A bitter laugh escaped the boy's perfectly curved mouth. That was one way of saying it, he supposed.
While beating him had never been an option, seeing as it was something the animals did, neither parent had ever been reluctant in cursing him. As far as he knew, they had never shown remorse, even when the Cruciatus had been held too long, leaving him shivering for about a week. Regulus had never spoken up, too scared to anger anyone, let alone his parents. Self-preservation. It was a Slytherin trait his brother had, but he did not. And maybe that was it.
He had never been scared to say or do anything. Even after he had been put under the curse for calling his mother a hag, he continued badmouthing his parents. Every curse placed on him because of it seemed to only be motivation, knowing that it made his parents angry. Regulus had warned him, as had practically all his relatives. They all knew what his parents got up to, but never stopped them. He could practically feel the love.
"Sirius!" His mother's call pulled him out of his reveries. Instead of answering, Sirius just turned his body around, looking at the wall opposite the door instead of the ceiling. After two more calls, he could hear footsteps getting nearer. Of course he knew that if he was not out of bed by the time she had reached his door, he would face consequences. To hell with the consequences, though. The footsteps had stopped in front of his door, knuckles rapping on the door at a fast pace. "Wake up, you brat!" The not entirely sane grin that had entered his perfectly arranged features was the only sign that he had even heard the shrill voice.
He heard the door being slammed open and he heard the all too familiar swish of a wand. Bracing himself, he was already ready for the Cruciatus curse being sent his way. In a way he was actually thankful of the fact that his mother almost always turned to this particular Unforgivable. His father, instead, like to use the Imperius curse. While under it Sirius was unable to make his own decisions, and so he was made to torture Muggles. The face of the Muggle he had killed by swiftly casting a cutting curse at the neck never seemed to leave his thoughts for long. Despite that, the curse hurt as hell, maybe even more. All his muscles seemed to be on fire and contracted, while his entire nerve system was being messed with. His head was just about to explode due to the pain, when the pain stopped.
Still, he had not screamt. Since the first time he was put under the curse, he had promised himself that he would not give them that pleasure.
"Kreacher will have breakfast ready in twenty minutes. You will shower and sit at the dinner table by then, wearing the clothes Kreacher laid down for you." She then left his room. Only when she was far enough to not hear it, he let out a groan. Rolling himself out of bed, he left his room only to almost walk into his brother. "Regulus." He nodded, waiting for Regulus to stop blocking the way. "Siri-" Sirius rolled his eyes, "I know, I should do what is asked of me and all that. I'm doing now, you see? Had to go shower, so that's what I'm doing." Regulus shuffled his feet and looked up at his older brother. Even though Sirius was only two years older, he was a small 6 feet, while Regulus was almost a foot smaller. While Sirius' face seemed harsh in way, as if he had seen all the horrors in the world, Regulus' face was softer. Innocent even. While Sirius had always kept his hair short, which made curls unable to grow, Regulus' curls fell around his face. It was a good thing, in Sirius' opinion, that they looked different. Even though Regulus always seemed to love being compared to Sirius, it did not work that way the other way around.
He was no Slytherin, no perfect Black. That was Regulus, not him, and that is how it should stay. "Write me, please?" Sirius looked down at his brother with a raised eyebrow. "Blacks don't ask, they expect." He softly pushed his brother aside before continuing on his way. He knew he would not write, or at least not much, and Regulus knew that too. Sirius wondered why he would even ask. He and Regulus had never been close, they were brothers and just that. Humming to the tune of Californication, a song he had picked up while taking a walk through the neighborhood, he undressed and stepped into the shower. All the while wondering what he would be made to wear, he quickly showered and dried himself off. With merely a towel around his waist he walked back to his room, ignoring all the portraits' angry mutterings. He had had too many arguments with them to even think they could be reasoned with.
Looking at the black button up and the black skinny, he could not help but feel relieved. He had imagined wearing a three-piece suit, and did not even want to know how that would come over. He himself always wore semi-formal when having the choice, and maybe his mother had wanted to placate him. Letting out a bark-like laugh out at that thought, he shrugged the clothes on together with some formal sneakers. Gelling his hair back quickly, he peaked at the mirror one more time before hurrying downstairs towards his mother whom was looking at him appraisingly. "At last."
As they walked through King's Cross everyone seemed to step away. The Muggles probably did so either because everyone did or because the Blacks simply looked intimidating, staring everyone down that dared to meet their gazes. The few stray wizards themselves knew better than to even walk in front of the family, and thus there was a clear path while they walked towards Platform 9 3/4. Sirius hesitated for less than half a second before he casually walked through the wall as his mother had educated him to do. She had mentioned that lower standing wizards often took the run, but that he, as heir of the Black line, should not even think of it. Looking back at his mother, she nodded at him in approval. At least that was something he had done right for once.
He looked on in horror as a lanky kid lost his balance as someone pushed him from behind and fell against father. Although the kid apologized, both did not seem to know whom they were talking to. His father was about to say something no doubt scathing and do some damage, when two sets of parents hurried towards the group that held the attention of the entire platform. About one quarter was looking at with amusement, the old purebloods, eager to see what would happen to the boy. Another quarter or so stared in horror, realizing what had happened, while the rest was sort of looking around with awe but without an idea of what actually was happening. Mudbloods, he realized. He shook his head slightly. Muggleborns, not Mudbloods. How he wished he had been born into another family.
"Potter." His father acknowledged in disgust. Sirius had, of course, heard all about the Potters. With a bloodline that could be traced back even further than the Blacks', they were still Blood Traitors. Well, that is how the Black's called them, but it basically meant that they associated with all kind of wizards, and even with muggles. Potter Senior nodded back, neutral features. "Black." Potter Junior finally realized who they were talking to as he pulled the lanky one back, out of his father's reach. And just like that the Blacks left the group behind, turning around and walking towards people they knew. Purebloods, the lot of them.
Sirius looked back longingly and caught Potter's mother's eyes. She winked at him before turning around and talking with the unknown mother of the unknown boy. He shook his head in disbelief, not believing his eyes. He quickly looked back in front of him, replaying the wink in his head. Blacks were the pure opposite of the Potters! Dislike for the other family had been stamped in his head since being a toddler, so that was unexpected. Dozens of purebloods came to introduce their children. A lot of other girls were attempting to flirt with him but he did not notice, his mind still wrapping around the fact that maybe the Potters weren't that bad.
And sure, he was willing to challenge his family's beliefs on the topic of houses and blood purity, but liking a Potter would mean giving up on the hopes of ever being the heir of the Black family everyone expected him to be. But then, he realized, rooting for Gryffindor had already done exactly that. He knew that no Black would ever accept him as a Gryffindor. He was not even entirely sure about what Andromeda's reaction would be like and if she would still accept him.
Andy had always been his favorite cousin, which may also be due to lack of any other likable cousins. Bellatrix had always had the crazy streak of the family, even though she was unbearably cunning and sneaky, she always had that small flicker in her eyes that showed anyone looking in them that she was someone to watch out for. The entire family was very fond of her though, thinking her the perfect Black daughter. The youngest sister of the three was Narcissa.
She had been nice enough, Sirius supposed, until Cissa's father had started using the punishment his did to ensure obedience. He was not even sure she would answer to his nickname for her anymore because to be brutally honest, she had turned into an emotionless monster. Sirius was sure that the event that changed Narcissa so much still haunted Andromeda, despite the fact that Andy had never told him about it.
From family gossip though, he knew that Bellatrix had helped implement the punishment, which made him think that her sister's betrayal hurt Narcissa more than the hexes themselves. Besides how Narcissa had been when they were younger, Sirius could not do else but admit that she was as bad, maybe worse than Bellatrix now. Bellatrix had always been very open about her intentions, which may be plenty scary, but personally he found that Narcissa's blank mask was scarier, her Occlumency defenses hiding all emotions to the real world as if they were not even there.
Even back when Narcissa had been pleasant, Andy was his favorite cousin. She seemed to get him in a way the others did not. He remembered her letting him play a muggle game called tag which he had seen others do on the playground he had a view of when he looked out of the window, but in which he was never allowed to play. Andromeda had frowned, but not in anger, when he had suggested it, seemingly trying to evaluate him. After that, she had always played other muggle games with him too, even though she let him vow that he would not tell his parents.
Only now he got the importance of the games she let him play, and the vow he was made to make.
Glancing at the station's clock he realized that there were only five minutes until the train would leave, and so politely took his leave, returning to his parents and Regulus whom were all three simultaneously looking at a red-haired muggleborn, from the sound of her squealing , with a sneer on their faces. "Mother, Father." He muttered, not sure whether his leave to Hogwarts made the occasion formal or informal. Not that it would change much of his addressing of them both, even though during a formal occasion he might be made to call them Lord and Lady Black.
He pulled his hand through his hair out of nervousness, but his mother slapped his hand away. "As a heir you shall not show emotions that are looked down on. It is unbecoming." He stared at her, not sure whether he should just turn around now and leave them, or say anything more. His father made the decision for him, addressing him for what would be the last time till at least Christmas time. "Toujours Pur. Do send us an owl when you are sorted in Slytherin." With that, he spun around and apparated away from the Platform. Without a second thought, his mother followed with a hand on Regulus' shoulder to take him with her. And just like that, he was alone.
Pushing his disappointment behind his Occlumency walls, he took on his carefully practiced mask which unbeknownst to him was almost a carbon copy of Narcissa's. Repeating the last part of his father's farewell, he sincerely hoped he would not have to send an owl, which would mean he would not be sorted in Slytherin. "Mate!" Sirius almost jumped before realizing which family exactly he was presenting, before turning around and sending a speculative look at Potter Junior who had yelled in his ear. "Maybe you should consider getting on the train, you know, since it will leave in less than half a minute." Taking a quick look at the clock, he could not do much more than agree.
Almost all students were on the train already, it seemed, only a few still trying to escape from their parent's clutches. Sirius had to push the jealousy down at the thought of parents that actually wanted to keep their children home. His would rather he leave for forever as soon as possible, if they just make a name for the family. Their care for him did not extended past his status as heir.
"Ten seconds!" Potter said, as if he were simply commenting on the weather. Cursing under his breath as he tried to heave his trunk on his own, knowing he would not reach the train otherwise, he was not at all succeeding. Cursing another time he was about to give up when out of nowhere Potters' hands took the other side of his trunk, starting to run towards the train. Sirius could not do anything else than running too, knowing that rumors would start flying as soon as the proper families got time to converse about the fact that a Black had been running.
Not sure whether that had ever happened before, he wondered if it would reach the Daily Prophet. Knowing how corrupt the paper was, he still could not help but grin at the thought of him running being front-page news. Even though the train had already started to drive slowly, they both managed to jump on with the trunk carried between them. Carrying the trunk through the hallways, Sirius at once dropped his side of the trunk, leaving the other side which Potter was carrying to fall on Potters feet. Potter jumped back, cursing, while Sirius slapped his forehead. Before Potter could say anything, Sirius groaned. "I could just as fucking hell have levitated the bloody thing."
He and Potter looked each other in the eyes, before Potter started laughing. "Well, I haven't had this much fun in ages." Sirius only blinked, secretly agreeing with the boy but not voicing his opinions. It was silent for a second, before Potter told him to 'not be so awkward' and to levitate the 'bloody trunk' to Potter's compartment already. Sirius could not help but chuckle at the way Potter hesitated at the curse word, as if he said it for the first time, which he probably did.
"Mate," he quickly looked up to see if talking to the other boy like that would be acceptable but since the other did not react in any other way but by grinning at him, he continued, "we have to work on that." Potter just chuckled, before motioning to follow him. "I'm sharing with Remus, I'm sure you'll like him although he turned out to like books." The way Potter pulled up his nose at the last word resulted in one of Sirius' bark-like laughs.
The next hour was spent laughing, although the compartment turned a little awkward when Remus Lupin, as he had introduced himself, softly voiced his opinion that the greasy haired boy James (who had also introduced himself fully, after hitting himself up the head for not doing it earlier) had been talking about could not be as bad as James made him out to be. James had reveled in the attention he was getting from both boys and had started making up ridiculous unbelievable stories about the greasy lad, continuously making Sirius laugh, but Remus seemed to feel a tad awkward about it.
James shrugged and not wanting to ruffle any feathers of potential friends, changed the subject to parents. Neither boy in the compartment noticed Sirius' carefully crafted mask taking over the features that had carried his mischievous grin only moments before. He looked out of the window as James was proudly telling about his parents which was followed by story after story of both James' and Remus' childhoods. It took about half an hour before James asked Sirius about his parents. Sirius frowned and glared at the wall above James' head. "You have met them haven't you?" James seemed taken aback by his chilly tone. "I was just wondering, you know-"
Remus pinched James in his sides, silencing him. Sirius closed his eyes, trying to escape the bitter memories that been on the forefront of his mind the last half an hour. "They are not as nice as yours, I expect." To be honest, if I step even a toe out of line they'll curse me to the fucking inch of oblivion. "They're not too bad though. Just have to get used to-" hurting all the time "it."
Both boys seemed to sense his unwillingness of talking about it, and again changed the subject.
The trolley lady arrived to the compartment a while later, interrupting an argument about Quidditch teams. James and Sirius both bought loads of everything, sharing with Remus without asking any difficult questions. Of course, Sirius could see by the way Remus' stocky legs stuck out under the other boy's robe that it was not brand new. He pushed the imagination of his family's reaction away quickly before it would darken his mood again.
After a few hesitated bites Remus fully joined the conversation again, although clearly the more silent of the three. Sirius took notice, but didn't say anything. It was clear that the boy had enjoyed the company of books more so than the company of people and was unsure how to interact properly. Sirius briefly wondered why, even if the boy in front of him was a half-blood, he supposed that even Muggles enjoyed a conversation here and there. Shrugging slightly he put his mind to other matters, meaning Quidditch.
When a prefect came around to notify the three boys that the train would arrive in approximately ten minutes, James immediately shrugged off his t-shirt, replacing it by the mandatory white shirt and pullover. Sirius, glad he had been thoughtful enough to wear a undershirt to cover his curse marks gladly followed his example. He noticed that Remus hadn't thought of wearing something underneath his worn sweater, quickly shrugging out of it and pulling the buttoned shirt over his head, but James and Sirius shared a worried look when they both saw the scars that marred the boy's skin.
Both, however, refrained from saying anything, instead acting as if neither had seen anything and Remus, who must have realized they had seen his scars, seemed glad. After a second of awkwardness the conversation returned to comfortable topic, Hogwarts. They hadn't really discussed houses yet, but happily indulged in the topic. James confessed to being sure he'd be sorted into Gryffindor, and Sirius, after having shared the last few hours with him, couldn't help but agree. Remus didn't seem sure, but Sirius personally thought the boy was a Gryffindor shoe-in.
James disagreed, voicing his opinion that Remus would likely to be sorted into Ravenclaw. Sirius grinned and suggested a bet and James agreed, both putting in 5 galleons. Remus' eyes seemed to bulge at the casual spending of the, according to him, large amount of money. It was silent for a second, until Remus asked how exactly they would be sorted. James and Sirius shared a look, both not having realized that he hadn't known. It lasted a second, and then James hastily explained.
Little did either boy know that that shared look was the founding of one of the strongest friendships that Hogwarts had ever seen and would ever see.
Only a seconds after James had put Remus' nerves of fighting trolls to rest the train started to slow. Sirius felt nervousness bubbling in his chest, despite having seen the magnitude of Hogwarts a few times before when visiting together with his father, this would be the first time he would visit it as a student. Not that Sirius would ever admit it, but he was also nervous about where he'd be sorted. James and Remus seemed resolute that he'd be sorted into Gryffindor, but he started to have doubts.
As they all stood up James patted his shoulder, seemingly understanding his troubles, and Sirius couldn't be more grateful. As they made their way out of the compartment and the train Sirius met the gazes of the other students head on. He knew that if he wanted respect he would have to gain it. And gaining it wouldn't be done through the use of being a sniveling brat. Besides, he was a Black, and that should already be enough.
A half-giant, as far as he could judge, was calling for the first years so he and his newfound friends made their ways to the boats where the half-giant was positioned. Sirius had heard stories about the creature standing before him but he wasn't sure how to treat it. James, however, seemed to know it and waved. "Hey Hagrid!" James quickly whispered that he knew 'Hagrid' because James' parents knew it. "But it's a half-giant!" He whispered back, just as quickly.
James shot him an unhappy look. "Hagrid's a man just like you and me mate. 'S not like he chose his parentage." Sirius backtracked quickly, unwilling to upset the boy. "Sure thing Jimmy-boy." James looked surprised and took a second to recover, and that was all it took to ease the tension as Sirius let out his bark-like laugh. Remus smiled at their antics and James just shook his head. "I'm getting you back for that, asshole." As James and Sirius shook to it, the other first years seemed to have gathered around them.
The half-giant, correction, Hagrid told them to get into the boats, with no more than four. He, James and Remus naturally went into a boat together and another boy joined them. Sirius curiously took him in and silently appreciated the courage the boy would have needed to just step into their boat while there were empty boats still. "Peter." Sirius grinned and hit James against his shoulder. "This scrawny bastard is James, but he prefers Jimbo."
Peter surprised them by letting out a laugh and winking at James. "Nice to meet you, Jimbo." James spluttered as they all laughed at his misfortune. Remus however seemed to take pity on the boy and took over. "I'm Remus, nice to meet you too." It was silent for a second as they all turned to Sirius, who took a bow and dramatically declared his name to be Sirius Black.
The boats set off but Sirius didn't notice as he and James were interrogating Peter about his favorite team (Puddlemere United). Remus just shook his head and rolled his eyes as he looked across the lake. Somewhere during the debate James gave Sirius a shove, and Sirius being unprepared fell headfirst into the lake. He emerged to the surface only seconds later, laughing loudly. This attracted the attention of the other boats, even more so when Sirius took James' offered hand and pulled him in too.
As James landed in the water they looked at each other with mischief in their eyes. Remus seemed to smell the danger just before Peter, shrieking something about books as James and Sirius together put their weight onto one side of the boat propelling Peter and Remus into the water. As they were about to climb back into the boat all four felt tentacles wrap around their ankles and lifting them into the boats. Remus let out another shriek, but as they all lay on top of each other in the boat Peter started to giggle thus setting them all off.
The other boats were all buzzing with conversation about what just happened before their eyes, but the main characters of their stories seemed to have already forgotten what happened as they had already changed to another topic. "You won't want to cross Minerva McGonagall. Me mom and her are friends, but she's straight scary. She teaches Transfiguration." Sirius grinned at James. "What'd you say she was called? Minnie?" James took in the glint in Sirius' eyes and grinned. Remus seemed to hesitate about whether to step in but finally seemed resigned.
When they reached the shore, all four dripping wet, the other first years seemed to clear a path for them. Sirius liked to think that it was because they were so impressed, but a voice in the back of his head which sounded suspiciously like Remus offered that it was probably because they were so wet. Peter whispered something in James' ear and James started to laugh before beckoning Sirius closer. "Looks like the sniveling brat hasn't decided to forego the train."
Sirius looked in the direction of James' nod and had to admit that the description was pretty head on. "Oi, Snivellus, looking dreadful!" As the boy's head swiveled around, Sirius felt a pang of regret hit him when he saw the defeated look in the other boy's eyes. He'd seen the look before so many times looking in the mirror. But it was too late to take back as James grinned and slapped him on his back. The impact really hit him when he saw the pain in Remus' eyes and he closed his eyes for a second, feeling nothing but self-hate. Something twisted inside of him.
This showed exactly why he needed to be extracted from his crazy family. This was their influence, not his. But when he looked up at the greasy lad in front of him he couldn't feel anything other than dislike. If his family's influence came to play, that must mean that the boy in front of Sirius was dark himself. So he sent Snivellus a smirk, winking at the red girl standing just in front of the lad defensively. "Can't fight your own fights?"
Before anything else could happen Hagrid opened the doors and behind it stood a formidable lady, whose eyes immediately closed in on the dripping boys. He flinched as her wand slipped into her hand and was pointed at them but was surprised when with a wave of her hand they were all dried off and while the three boys around him smiled at the lady he couldn't help but feel astounded. Anyone that had ever pointed their wand at him had wanted to hurt him, not help him.
McGonagall met his eyes for a second before looking around at the rest of the first-years. Remus elbowed him and when he turned around to look at him Remus shot him a confused look. Sirius shrugged, not wanting to explain. Lost in thought he almost missed the welcoming speech, even though he realized in time to actually pay attention.
McGonagall turned around and left the room. As Sirius looked around he couldn't help but wonder if this was supposed to be some kind of bonding experience. With another swish of her wand McGonagall could have notified the Great Hall that they were coming but as she didn't it was probably some kind of annual ritual that was supposed to make them befriend year mates. As he looked at the boy next to him and two behind him he supposed that he had already done that.
Or, he thought, as Avery was making towards the four of them, it was supposed to create rivalries before they even had their first meal. "A Black going 'round with blood traitors and half-bloods, who would have thought." James stiffened beside him but Sirius intervened before James could say anything. "It says a lot when these so called 'blood traitors and half-bloods' that you look down on are better company than you, to be honest."
Avery's face went the kind of red that's first of all not the least flattering, but it also worried Sirius a lot because if Avery's head was about to explode because of the amount of blood that was rushing into it he would rather be a tad further away to avoid brain splatter on his robes, thank you very much. A mere moment before Avery was going to retort the ghosts floated in through the wall, surprising those that never seen one and when that ruckus flew over McGonagall came in and announced that they were about to be sorted. There simply wasn't any time for Avery to reply.
1-0 for Sirius. Not that he was taking score, psh.
As they entered the Hall most other first years were somewhere between looking around in awe and trying to keep their heads down as the entire school was looking at them. Sirius did neither and instinctively knew that James followed his example, instead striding with a head held high towards McGonagall who was standing next to a stool with the sorting hat.
He saw her exchanging a look with Dumbledore. He saw her doing it. That was probably the moment he realized that the general Gryffindor had about as much subtlety as Dumbledore's rumored Animagus form. He heard more so than saw that the rest of the first years had followed his and James' lead and he couldn't help but roll his eyes.
It was completely silent- and then the Sorting Hat began to sing. Sirius laughed his loud, bark like laugh and whispered in James' ear about whether the hat would actually refuse to be set on Snivellus' head and James grinned too. Returning the favor the lad whispered in Sirius' ear about how he felt sorry for the person who had to put it on afterwards. Sirius laughed again before realizing that the entire hall was looking at them, teachers and students included.
As Sirius saw McGonagall's face he couldn't stifle his laughter in time and she looked even more aghast. He sent her a wink and the effect was immediate as almost the entire hall's jaw fell, including the receiver's. Returning to her wits her voice rung through the hall, though it was hard not to notice the higher pitch. "If there are no more interruptions, let us start the sorting."
Sirius realized he had found another reason to dislike his surname when he was called forward second, after Avery who had been, big surprise, sorted into Slytherin. With a last remark ("At least I'm sure not to catch Snivellia"), which earned him a chuckle from James, he strode up to the stool, gracefully accepted the hat and put it on his head, silencing the crowd's rumble.
"Aha! Another Black!" Sirius rolled his eyes. "But what do we have here? Not the stereotypical Black then?" Not sure whether that actually required an answer he answered anyway. "We Blacks, being stereotyped? We don't ever do anything noteworthy. Join a few Dark Lords here and there, kill the people we dislike, that sort of thing. Though maybe they've begun to stereotype Blacks when I was born, because the House of Black will be renowned for it in the future, of course."
At the snort he received from somewhere next to him he realized that what he said wasn't actually silenced. Oops. Feeling the urge to run his hand through his hair he stopped himself from actually doing it when he realized that at the moment this hat was residing on his head and he wasn't sure whether he was allowed to lift it before it had made its decision.
"A lot of ambition and cunning, I see. A lot of bravery, too, and very rash. What to do, what to do?" "Gryffindor, if you please. Slytherin colors were simply not made for me." He grinned as he heard another snort. "Now now, Mr. Black. It's best to not make rash decisions. Ah, I see. Well, this changes everything. GRYFFINDOR!" Releasing a breath he had not realized he held, he lifted the hat and smoothed his hair back. He grinned at his new house, still holding the hat.
A cough turned him around, raising his eyebrow at his new Head of House. It took a second before he realized he was still holding the hat, thus stalling the sorting, and he laughed. Sweeping a bow he took hold of her right hand and with an "Allow me." pressed a kiss to the back of it. He handed the hat back and let out a barking laugh at the stunned look on McGonagall's face.
"I fear we will get very well acquainted over the next few years, Professor." With that, and a wink towards the gob smacked James, he turned back around and made his way towards the Gryffindor table. His table. Two red haired twins were clapping enthusiastically, while the rest of the house seem to be divided into confusion and awe. As he sat down next to one of the twins he couldn't help but zone the sorting out. That is, until some seventh year started to angrily whisper at him about rules and manners and you can't just do that and how dare you and first impressions.
A "You've got balls Black, I respect that." from the boy next to the girl shut her up, as she started to blush immensely. Ah, Sirius realized, she fancied him. "I'm Oliver Wood, seventh year and Quidditch Captain." Sirius shook the chap's hand and nodded to the girl. "Got her proper stunned mate." Oliver shook his head slightly, smiling, as the girl unsuccessfully tried to hide behind her glass. "You're trouble if I've ever seen it. 'S long as you don't endanger Quidditch, you're fine."
That's where one of the twins cut in. "Olli here will kill you. Remember when that Slytherin Robinson put Gate into the hospital wing? Wasn't even captain then, but made sure Robinson couldn't dip his stick into any sauce for at least a month, get what I'm saying." The boy in question just rolled his eyes and gestured to McGonagall who was glaring at their part of the table.
It seemed that he focused on the sorting precisely at the right time as only seconds later Remus was called up. "I bet 5 galleons that he'd be sorted into Gryffindor." He whispered conspiringly and the twins simultaneously shook their heads disbelievingly. "That's a claw if I've ever seen one." Said the one, and the other nodded. "Your loss, mate." Sirius shook his head, they'd see.
Only mere seconds "GRYFFINDOR!" echoed through the hall. Sirius barked a laugh at the faces of the people around him. "Remus, my boy, join me and those fine chaps here!" In a daze the boy came walking towards him, as if he didn't believe what had just taken place. He slid closer to one of the twins, still not sure which of the two was who, to make place for the lad.
As soon as Remus sat down Sirius clapped him on the shoulder, but the boy didn't seem to notice it. "D'you know what this means?" Sirius asked the boy and Remus looked up in wonder. "I really got into Hogwarts!" Shaking his head disappointedly, Sirius sighed. "No that's not that important. Think about the greater scheme of things!" Remus was obviously confused and Sirius sighed. "I won the bet, old chap!" Oliver interfered, as the rest of the table was looking at the first years that were creating so much ruckus. "How is that, pray tell, important in the greater scheme of things?"
Sirius raised his eyebrow. "But that's obvious." After some silence, Sirius sighed and swore under his breath. "I'm surrounded by idiots!" Remus finally showed some life, shrugging. "Well, you knew that when you rooted for Gryffindor. Now, if you will, kindly explain." "Now that Potty lost the bet, I'll be able to pester him about it for the rest of our lives! Just imagine all the opportunities that this has given me, not the least of them being that when he marries some hot bird in ten years I'll be able to tell her that I'd have been a better choice, since I won our first bet."
Hearing heels click and stop right behind him and seeing everyone's faces he could easily bet who was behind him at the moment. "I'd win my second bet in five minutes if I'd bet Minnie was standing behind me, wouldn't I?" Sirius sighed exasperatedly. Oliver nodded, eyes twinkling.
2-0.
Now, to handle the matter at hand. Turning around in the bench he smiled at the enraged woman behind him. "Missed my presence already?" Minnie bristled and her lips thinned, which didn't seem as a positive reaction. "Without the wiggling of the eyebrows, then." Her lips thinned even more and Sirius grinned. "Black!" She snapped. "They say opposites attract, and seeing your pale complexion-" he stopped mid-sentence, his grin widening as he felt the stares of the entire hall.
"Never in all my years have I ever-" She cut herself off. "To my office, now!" Sirius shrugged and stood up. "See your there, yeah?" He answered wiggling his eyebrows. She scowled and turned away from him, back to the sorting stool. He strode to the entrance of the hall, but paused. "The only thing is, you see, I don't actually know where your office is. And it wouldn't be very fair to deny anyone the feast by sending them with me, if I say so myself."
Before any kind of other conflict could occur an old man interrupted. Dumbledore. "He does make a very strong point, Minerva. I myself wouldn't want to miss even the slightest parts of the delicious feast the elves have prepared." Ignoring the 'elves?' exclamations from some probably muggle-born students, Sirius nodded emphatically. He didn't actually know if it was possible for McGonagall to look even angrier but she finally managed to say something. "Sit down, and if I hear another word from you, Mr. Black, you will be out of the hall faster than you can say Quidditch!"
Hesitating whether that was a challenge he finally decided to shrug it off and go back to the empty space between Remus and the red-haired twin. Literally everyone was looking at him with wide eyes. "Quidditch." He whispered to Oliver, who couldn't help the startled laughter that escaped his mouth. After that the sorting went quite fast, with James and Peter both being sorted into Gryffindor, making the four of them the only Gryffindor boys in their year. When the sorting was finally finished, the hall started to buzz with whispers and silent laughter.
"I can't believe you said that to McGonagall!" Whispered the girl in front of him. "I would say that I was sorry but I'm not, so there that goes." There was one more important thing he needed to do, and he intended to it now, holding his open hand out to James. "I think that after all the effort I had to put in for this bet, I deserve the payment." James grinned and dumped the five galleons into his hand. "Let me introduce you chaps to each other. Ginger 1, Ginger 2, Liver, Prefect, Jamie, Muse, Pete." They all looked at each other and Sirius saw the exact moment they all decided that it would be useless to not give in. Ignoring the twins who were arguing who was Ginger 1 and who Ginger 2, he whispered to Remus. "You got to eat mate, you're too thin."
Hoping no one else had heard the short conversation he smiled slightly at the big smile he received from the boy, before dumping a proper lot of food on Remus' plate. The much too mushy moment was over the moment James, who was sitting next to Oliver, accidently pushed his glass full of pumpkin juice over, and trying to catch it somehow managed to propel the beans on his plate at Sirius. Sirius, with some reflexes, managed to hit the plate away and as it fell to the floor immediately started to fire everything in sight at James. But then a roll hit Oliver, who threw some sausages back of which some hit Ginger 1, and the entire thing spread entirely too fast.
That is, until all the food that was flying around suddenly fell down, and as Sirius turned around and saw an enraged McGonagall walking towards the table he rolled his eyes. Before anyone could say anything, he stood up from the bench. "'T was all my fault, Minnie." What he didn't expect was for James to stand up too, correcting Sirius. "It was all our fault." Sirius grinned at the boy and James returned his smile. Remus stood up too and also tried to step over the bench but had clearly underestimated its height as he fell facedown. Sirius barked a laugh, grabbing the boy under his shoulders and pulling him up to standing position. "Careful there, lightweight."
Remus was blushing and grinned back. "Then what are you, fathead." Sirius laughed and slapped the boy on his shoulder, laughing even more as the boy's knees buckled. "You're such a bird." A sharp intake of breath made them realize that they were standing in front of an angry, angry Deputy. During all the commotion Peter had taken his place next to James. Minnie didn't even say anything as she turned around and walked out of the hall. James took a jump over the table, miraculously landing next to Sirius without any difficulties. As all three looked at Peter, the boy shrugged and stepped onto the bench and walked over the table.
"You think we should follow?" James asked. Peter shrugged, but Sirius had a better idea, leaning forward and whispering into James ear. James nodded, and took one look at the rest of the hall and came to a halt. Literally every eye was on them. "Sirius, mate, you've got mayonnaise in your hair." Sirius ran a hand through his hair worriedly, but nothing was out of place.
James snorted and Sirius shook his head. "Fuck off, Jimbo." James choked, as Remus sighed exasperatedly. "No matter what you two idiots decide, you better decide it before McGonagall comes back." Peter nodded. "I think I hear her coming." Sirius and James shared a look, before Sirius threw Remus over his shoulder, while James did the same for Peter. "Save yourself!" James cried out, before running towards the entrance. "Wait for me, you bloody bastard!"
With that Sirius gave chase. And that's how the four Gryffindor boys left the hall, leaving a completely silent school behind, until Dumbledore chuckled. "Boys will be boys." It would take some time after that for normal conversations to start, and that was until McGonagall's furious scream could be heard followed by a lot of laughter, which caused many theories to be made up.
None of them really came near the truth.
A/N - so what did you think? (: