Chapter 3 - Fifth Year, September 1975
Sirius walked from detention in a vicious mood from the unfairness of having to hand-clean the trophy room, which meant he would have to get up early to get his wand from McGonagall before lessons tomorrow. He didn't notice his cousin Narcissa and Lucius Malfoy coming toward him until a confrontation was inevitable.
"Well then Narcissa, isn't this one yours? Of course you'll allow me the honour." Lucius dropped Narcissa's hand and smiled at her.
"Well Lucius, I know it's an honour that I consent to talk to you but there's no need to be humble. We are almost family after all."
"Talk, Sirius?" Lucius raised an eyebrow at Sirius. "Ah I see. He had a no-magic-allowed detention. Gryffindors can't be expected to keep to simple rules after all. Especially not Sirius, who hasn't got an ounce of the propriety befitting a Member of the House of Black."
"I don't think I need a wand to fight you," Sirius muttered, trying to grasp onto the last dribbles of his false confidence.
"Don't need a wand Sirius? Maybe you don't need magic either?" Lucius' voice dropped the society airs and he hissed at Sirius, "I see Mudblood really is catching."
"As a matter of fact, Voldemort was entirely correct in that assumption." Lucius raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, don't look so surprised. I know the Pure-blood influence is waning when I don't get the urge to commit incest for the sake of 'propriety'".
Sirius had underestimated how close the couple were. Narcissa slapped him, and his hand immediately went to touch it.
Sirius felt himself slam back against a wall. "You'd think of retaliating?" Lucius flicked his wand again, and cords turned Sirius face-first into the wall. He felt trickles of blood run down the side of his face and he couldn't quite hear what Lucius was saying. His back suddenly seared with pain.
Lucius had sliced him twice across his back and Sirius could feel his shirt grow wet with blood. Sirius yelled out at the third cut on his back.
"Darling," Lucius said, a little sharply, "Don't turn away. You wouldn't want him to think that this pains you to watch, would you?"
Narcissa shook her head, lips pressed tightly together. She wasn't upset exactly, just unsettled. Lucius had only just been admonishing her for picking her own potions ingredients because apparently, despite her knowing about them and having several of the plants growing at home and wearing dragon-hide gloves, she could have been scratched. This was her cousin, and a disgrace he might well be, but upholding her family's values didn't seem like a good enough reason for Lucius' changed personality.
"Good. We mustn't give him any kindness until he learns; I'm sure he can change into someone Lord Voldemort would have great use for. He's intelligent, I'll give him that, and, after all, there's no escaping his blood. Stop that," Lucius said irritably to Sirius, whose silent protests had grown frenzied at the mention of his blood status. Lucius flicked his wand at the cords so that they pulled tighter and increased the blood flow from the cuts.
Narcissa closed her eyes at the increased blood flow. She opened them to Lucius' cold glare. "It's just so messy," she whispered.
Lucius immediately neutralised his expression. "You should have said, sweetheart. I'm sorry; I forget sometimes that you are so delicate." Narcissa felt relieved. "Let me arrange him in a more tasteful manner. Will this do?" Lucius flicked his wands and most of the cords were gone. Instead, a single one suspended Sirius by his neck, high enough that his feet could only just reach the ground to keep himself from choking.
Narcissa faced Lucius and laid her hand on his arm, "Thank you. I'll return to the Common Room shortly." Lucius looked unsettled for a moment at the dismissal, but he took it gracefully and left.
The sound of his retreat got quieter and the sound of blood pumping in Sirius' ears got louder, making it impossible to know when he could talk. "Well," Sirius started. He tried to swallow, but failed against the pressure around his neck.
Narcissa looked at him, head cocked slightly. It was a Black trait and it looked so endearing on her pale face that it almost made her blue eyes look kind. Sirius tried with that thought in his mind, "Cissy, have you thought about Regulus?"
"Don't use that name in front of anyone. In fact don't use it at all." He'd forgotten; the last time they'd been alone together she'd been thirteen and not so obsessed with appearing with perfect demeanour, perfect etiquette and pretending to hold perfect Pure-blood values. That was the time she had told him all about the Slytherin common room, even though Sirius would see it for himself in September.
"Narcissa, what about Reg?" Sirius hated himself a little bit, for asking about his brother at all and for having his air cut off so he couldn't avoid the nickname he'd had for his little brother.
Narcissa's heart fell when she heard the nickname. Sirius was the same as he ever was really was really; looking out for his brother, getting in play-fights and never showing when he was hurt. He was a Black still.
"He's fine, he's doing well in school and no one's bothering him because of his associations with the Dark Lord."
Sirius tightened his fists until he could feel welts in his palm. "He'll kill him! Regulus won't be able to kill for him, he's a good boy, he won't be able to take it and then he'll kill Regulus!" Sirius was frantic with the noose around his throat and the threat to his brother, so he continued, "Please, please don't let him do this. Bring him to me, let me talk to him!"
"Obviously he can't talk to you. Aunt doesn't want him associating with blood traitors, in case he does decide to follow the cause. Which would be wonderful."
"He's a child, Cis- a child. And personally I would have thought you would have been clever enough not to join his little troupe, clever enough to stay neutral and not start shagging one of them, at least until-"
Narcissa slapped him so hard his feet left the ground and his only tether was the cord around his neck. Sirius reeled backwards, gasping for air.
"I'm not Bella! You can't just say what you like and make it up to me by letting me beat you." She hesitated, and dropped the spell that was levitating him by his neck. Sirius fell to the floor coughing. "I'm not Lucius either," Narcissa muttered, and walked away before Sirius could regain the use of his voice.
-()-
Next morning at breakfast, James was cutting up sausages lengthways. He then slathered butter onto two pieces of bread, put the sausages in, and took a bite of sandwich.
Butter melted down his chin.
"Ah, so good," James moaned around his food.
Remus wasn't quite feeling up to the sight so he looked around the Great Hall. He saw Lucius Malfoy mutter something to a fellow Slytherin. When he saw the flash of anger in their eyes directed at the boy next to him, Remus felt uneasy.
"Sirius, you didn't say something to Lucius Malfoy, did you? He looks pretty mad."
"What were you expecting, a smile and a flutter of the eyelashes?" Sirius snorted and fluttered his own dizzyingly fast.
"Sirius-"
"Or perhaps a bouquet of fresh red roses?" James cut Remus off and waved his wand to turn a toast pile on the Slytherin table into roses.
"I mean more to my love than mere flowers!" Sirius held his hands to his heart and continued loudly. "Why, he would fight a thousand Hungarian Horntails for me! He would caress my gorgeous arse and whisper sweet nothings in my ear all night! We would-"
"Your love's been caressing your cousin's arse, didn't anyone tell you?" James and Remus sniggered at Peter's remark.
"NO!" Sirius, "HOW DARE HE!"
Lucius shot a furious look at Sirius. Macnair asked him something, but Lucius shook his head and stood to leave. As soon as the two of them left the Great Hall, Sirius roared, "Five points to me!"
"No way, I think you'll find I initiated contact, meaning I get the five points." James gestured at himself, sandwich still in hand, and got more flecks of melted butter on his face.
"I thought it was 10 points, if it was a Slytherin you annoyed out of a room?" Peter asked.
"10 points from Gryffindor. No transfiguration at breakfast." McGonagall barely glanced at them as she walked up to the staff table. "And clean your face Potter."
"SIRIUS!"
"What? I'm trying to get over my heartbreak James, in any way I can."
"Mate, not by licking me you're not! You're not a dog." Remus' saw James and Sirius look at each other and light up internally. He was used to this and continued eating his cereal to get the faint hurt out of his system. The four of them were best friends, but those two seemed to have a psychic bond. Remus looked up from his internal monologue to see Sirius' grey eyes fixed on him.
"Full moon tomorrow is it?" Sirius asked softly.
"Yeah it is."
-()-
Remus was chatting with Lily about Prefect duties when he saw Sirius come into the Common Room. He tried to listen to Lily and watch Sirius' movements at the same time, until Lily's waving hand won his attention.
"Go on Remus, I'm sure we can find some time tomorrow to talk about third years possibly bewitching toothbrushes."
Remus smiled with all his attention. "Thanks Lily. I'm ever so sorry." Lily rolled her eyes, but smiled at him so Remus went up the stairs to the dorm.
Sirius was lying on top of his bed, shoes still on. "Up to much?" Remus asked lightly.
He watched Sirius slowly smile and smooth his hand over the space in his bed next to him. "No." Sirius bit his lip lavishly, "Join me?" He used his other hand to slowly un-tuck his school shirt and lift it, dragging his nails lightly up his stomach.
Remus, who had been waiting for Sirius to finish his routine, allowed his eyes to follow the path of Sirius' hand on his stomach. Then he gasped.
"What happened?" Remus could see the edges of the gashes on Sirius' back.
"Well Remus, I decided the girls' dorms are too far away seeing as I wanted something to stick my dick in, and then look who comes wandering in!" Sirius grinned brightly, trying to distract from pulling his shirt back down.
Remus kneeled on the bed and lifted it back up. "Remus I was joking!"
"What happened to you?"
Sirius sat up and snapped, "Nothing!" Remus filched.
"I think I'd like you to tell me what happened between you and Lucius Malfoy now."
"Well I told him and Narcissa exactly what I thought of their Lord Voldemort and blood purity rubbish. He didn't half go off on one, look what he did to my back!"
Remus grabbed Sirius' hand where it was trying to pull down his shirt. "That was a really bad idea, you know even Dumbledore's worried about Voldemort. There are all the rumours that he's doing more than just the usual Pure-blood bribery and snobbery."
"So what, I was meant to listen to their filth? Remus I'm not like that, I'll say what I think."
"I know you're not like that. But it was really stupid." Remus yawned, feeling what he thought was mainly a psychological pre-moon reaction of feeling tired and headachy.
Sirius smiled and reached under his bed quickly. "Honeydukes. Caramel centres." There was a smug note in his voice that came from knowing Remus would be distracted and sleepy for at least the next two days.
"We'll finish this tomorrow," Remus warned.
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