-1Aristocratic Tendencies

SSJP Fan Fiction

Alternate Universe Story

ObsessiveDevil23

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter, I am not making any money from this. I don't own Golden Virginia either, by the way.

Chapter 3 - James Wellbeing

Sirius Black was sat around outside Hogwarts castle, next to the lake, even while the September air was beginning to get chilly. He had his knees brought up to his chest while he fiddled with tobacco, rolling papers and filter tips. Nothing like a good bit of Golden Virginia to calm his nerves. He rarely smoked, though he kept the supplies on him at all times (for comfort purposes), and it was only when things went really wrong would he actually roll one up. He hated the idea of bad breath afterwards, and his parents definitely didn't agree with such bad habits… but fuck it, his best friend was in hospital and had nearly fucking died.

He put the poorly rolled cigarette to his lips and was about to light it up when the school's Governor himself stalked passed. Sirius spat out the fag and crushed it in his hands so that Charles Potter and his wife, should they look his way, wouldn't see it. As an afterthought he realised he'd just wasted a good cigarette… but his reputation with Hogwarts' Governor (and his best friends parents) was a little more important. The two parents, however, didn't seem at all interested in Sirius and his habits - and too right too, their son was hospitalised. Sirius stood and followed them into the castle. It wasn't as if Charles and Dorea would need to be shown the way, but Sirius wanted as excuse to go back up there and see James without Madam Pomfrey shooing him away. That, and Dorea would probably need comforting. He wished he could tell her how it happened, but as far as he knew, one minute James was in a lot of pain, but breathing and responding, and the next minute he was collapsed on the floor with so much blood gushing out of him it was positively horrifying. Not that Sirius would actually admit to being scared.

He followed Dorea and Charles all the way up three flights of stairs without the parents noticing they were being shadowed. They were almost at the Hospital Wing when they were joined by a third party. Snivellus.

Sirius shot the boy a disgusted look. Surely it was unsanitary for such a greasy git to be near a hospital? However, his look was rivalled by the lanky haired stone-skinned boy. Really, he was pathetic to look at, though Sirius had to admit he'd obviously been building some muscles over the summer. Even so, it didn't make up for the hooked nose and eerie, dead looking eyes.

Sirius didn't even notice when Charles and Dorea had disappeared into the Hospital Wing doors, but followed through them and realised he was hot on their tail. It was a relief and a half to see James sitting up in bed (despite the bandages round his leg and look of excruciating pain on his face). He offered the boy a smile, and was faintly (okay, really) annoyed to see it rejected in favour of James looking just past his shoulder, to Snape. Sirius couldn't place to look, it was sort of a mix between surprise and utter horror (which, at least, was normal.)

"James!" Dorea cried, flinging herself at her son. James caught her gingerly, too much of a gentleman to cry out or shove her away. However, Charles, luckily, saw the painful look cross over his son's eyes and pulled his wife away.

"James." Charles repeated what Dorea had said, though this time in a much more dignified way. "How are you feeling?"

James, Sirius noted, sent Snape a look. He couldn't tell what it was, after all, he wasn't a girl; he didn't know how to read emotions and other flowery crap like that. However, what he could tell from the look, was that Snape most definitely had something to do with why James was in hospital, and Sirius was not going to let the grease-ball get away with it. Charles may have missed the insinuation, but Sirius got it loud and clear. That's what best friends were for after all.

James nodded, as if the answer to the question was yes or no, and Sirius got the impression he might be having a hard time speaking. Maybe he was feeling sick? Or faint? He had lost a lot of blood. Without thinking about it, Sirius sat down on the bed near James' feet. One leg, the bad one, was elevated, so the bandages didn't bleed through as often or as much, and the other, the one Sirius had sat next to, was limp. He prodded it and James curled his toes on that foot. He hadn't lost feeling in his lower body then - that was good. Sirius would hate it if his best friend got paralyzed.

"Sirius." Said Charles is recognition, finally realising the boy who had followed them the whole way there. Sirius nodded his greetings.

"Hey James." He said, looking at his friend. James' glasses were on the bedside table, though he didn't seem to need them to know who was talking and where everyone was. He wasn't even squinting that much. His hair was messed up even more then usual, and Dorea absent-mindedly tried to flatten it down, despite her sons protests - a jerk to the side with his upper body and fairly impressive glare. Sirius grinned good-naturedly. "Glad you're awake man."

James nodded again, but didn't speak. He took a deep breath, shot another look at Snape, and smiled back at his friend (although his smile was much smaller and dimmer then Sirius' bright grin).

"James, what happened?" asked Dorea, and again, James could not help but glance in Snape's direction. Sirius glared at the shallow-skinned boy. James seemed to open his mouth, like he was about to say something, but at that moment Madam Pomfrey chose it an opportune moment to intervene.

"There are way too many visitors here, Mr. Potter needs his rest, and I will not have - oh, Governor… I'm sorry, I didn't see you there."

It was an odd sight to see Madam Pomfrey go from stern and strict, to coy and blushing, in the space of less then two seconds. Sure, Charles was an attractive man (most Potter men were), but Pomfrey never allowed her judgements of people affect how she treated her patients. Sirius had even seen her turn away Dumbledore, on more then one occasion. Though, of course, Sirius had thought it was odd that Dumbledore had been visiting anyone in the Hospital Wing to begin with. On those occasions Sirius himself had been in the Wing, for minor injuries or a few times back in third year when he'd been in for panic attacks (long story), and the only other people who had been there was that Lupin kid from their dorm and some first years who were missing home.

But anyway, he was digressing.

"That's quite alright Poppy." Charles said, and Sirius didn't even notice the annoyed look Dorea shot her husband, though James did. It upset him that his father would be so callous in front of his mum, and it pissed him off as well, that his father and the school nurse were on first name basis. Sure, as governor of the school, Charles talked with a lot of the staff, but he always called them by their surname. But again, Sirius didn't notice any of this; he was too busy standing up and making himself look like he was just leaving.

"Sorry Madam Pomfrey!" he chirped. "Sniv - Severus and I were just leaving." He didn't dare call Snape the cruel nickname the school population had thought up for him in front of the Potters, but it was weird to actually call the boy by his first name. It felt foreign on his tongue. It was even weirder when he actually had to touch the greasy git to get him to move. He dragged the boy along by the cuff of the sleeve to his long, black… what the fuck was it anyway? A cloak? Probably a trench coat, which, by the way, weren't strictly allowed by school rules - but then again, Sirius couldn't really lecture on school rules.

Once they were outside the Hospital Wing doors, he instantly let go and rubbed his hand on his trouser leg to try and dislodge some of the dirt he was sure he would have picked up. He looked around to make sure no one had seen him touching the git. Snape hadn't moved from where Sirius had deposited him, and for that, Sirius was glad, because he had to have a little talk with Mr. Snape, anyway.

"What the fuck did you do to James?" He asked, blunt as always, glaring the best Black Family Death Glare he could muster. Snape, on the other hand, seemed cool and collected.

"What makes you think I've done something to him?" The Slytherin asked, but Sirius let out a sarcastic bark of laughter.

"Please, it's almost like you've returned to the scene of the crime! Why the hell would you care about his wellbeing? You're just observing the damage you've done, aren't you? Probably really proud of yourself, you god-damn git."

Sirius, in one swift moment, found himself pinned to the nearest wall, with a face full of Severus Snape in his vision. He could see the boy snarling at him, his temper obviously having been lost, and while he could have no clue that James had been in a similar position the day before, he would now have every empathy of how he must have felt.

"For someone who thinks me capable of hospitalising someone, you must have a real death-wish to start insulting me."

Sirius struggled slightly against the hold, and unlike James the night before, was making some progress with detaching himself from Snape's grasp, though not yet enough to free him completely.

"You did it then?"

"Who cares what I do?"

"I care!" For one moment, someone passing by may have thought Sirius cared about Severus' wellbeing. Luckily for Sirius, no one passed by. "I care when you put my friend in hospital!"

Snape growled under his breath - an almost non human sound that put Sirius on edge somewhat. The Gryffindor continued to struggle against his holds.

"I should put you in a hospital too." The Slytherin spat, but at that moment Sirius was able to break free, and used his now available hands to form a fist and punch Snape. Right in his overgrown nose.

Severus stumbled backwards, clutching at his face and cursing loudly. He wouldn't be surprised if it was broken. Sirius stumbled away from the wall, and scrunched up his nose in a way that suggested his was disgusted with the sight before him, or that there was a bad smell in the air.

"Serves you right." He all but spat. "Ever go near James again and something drastic is going to happen." He warned, glaring heatedly, before stalking off up the stairs towards Gryffindor tower, and wishing he'd smoked his cigarette when he'd had the chance.

- X -

Severus had clicked his nose back in to place by the time he arrived back to the Slytherin Dungeon Dorms, and stumbled into the nearest bathroom to assess the damage in a mirror. His nose, of course, was bleeding, and probably more disfigured then it was before. He pinched it at the ends and best down over the sink so he didn't swallow (and choke on) any of his own blood. At least one of the lessons they taught here at Hogwarts had come in handy - basic first aid.

He really shouldn't have lost his temper, he thought as he watched blood drip into the sink. The murky red against the stark white was quite the contrast. He'd lost his temper twice now though, just in the course of four days being back at Hogwarts. Two days over the weekend and he'd been okay, just talking with Lily and keeping out of trouble, but come Monday, faced with that daddy's boy brat, he'd lost it completely.

It was something about the whole castle, the entire school, the atmosphere of all those aristocratic bastards that had never known anything but money and expensive toys, that put him on edge. It was enough to make him angry, make him lose control, make him use brute force against people who were obviously weaker then him.

Before now he'd thought physically attacking was a cheap trick; he'd ridiculed Potter and his little bodyguard Black for it. But now he couldn't control himself… whenever people made comments or spoke to him rudely, he wanted to hurt them - show them he was more then just some anti-social bat. It was Potter, though, that mainly got to him. Every time Potter was even in the room, and he didn't have to be talking, just breathing, Severus wanted to show him exactly how it felt, all those times he'd been beaten up by Potter and Black - he now wanted revenge.

The thing was, it wasn't like him. He'd never thought of himself as a violent person, and it was scaring him that now he was quite happy to inflict pain. Fuck, he'd even hospitalised someone! It was worrying him how much he'd grown to look like his father, and now what? He intended to act like the man too?

"Severus?"

Severus looked up from the sink, where his nose had stopped dripping into now, and took his hands away from pinching said nose. It had stopped bleeding altogether. The voice was familiar, but he was surprised when he found himself face to face with Lily Evans, the fiery red-head who he had known from his younger years, when he used to sneak into the town across from his - usually because he was escaping from his father.

These were the Slytherin Dorms though, what was Lily doing here? How did she even get it? Each house had a door man who asked you for a password, though admittedly, most of the time they just let you in because they recognised you.

"Why are you here?" he asked, his facial features softening from their usual scowl, to something that was impassive, but certainly not unfriendly. Lily smiled.

"I snuck in. I saw Black punch you. He's such a dick."

Severus loved it when Lily swore. When in classes and around the corridor, Lily had adopted the show of a prim and proper lady, so she could fit in with the pure-bloods and not get the usual prejudice that scholarship students usually received. Most of the stupid population of Hogwarts' upper tier seemed to think she was a pure-blood who had a soft-spot for rejected individuals (like himself). Severus knew that James Potter knew the truth, being the Governors son and all; that boy probably new everyone in the school, their blood status, and their family pets - but Severus was also pretty certain Potter had kept it quiet. It somewhat sickened him to think that Potter might have a crush on his Lily. His best friend. His Lily who really wasn't a pure-blood, and whose common roots showed through in times like these, when she swore and cussed off the people she didn't like. It made him proud to know that Lily hated Potter with every fibre of her being - oh the choice words she used for him.

"It's fine." Severus told her. "You really need to get back to Gryffindor - they'll skin you alive if they catch you here."

"They can try." Said Lily, but she reluctantly turned to leave. "You shouldn't let them hurt you like this - stand up for yourself!"

Severus looked back in the mirror, it was cracked down one side and had marks on it where it hadn't been cleaned in a very long time. Don't worry Lily, he thought, I am.

And there ya have it folks. XD Look out for chapter four for more goodies… XD

I'd appreciate your reviews, please, go ahead and tell me what type of things you'd like to see developed in this story, and perhaps some characters you'd liked to see introduced - I'll see if I can worm them in!

Much Lovin'!