6: Arrogance

When people think of Sirius Black – people who don't know him exceptionally well, anyway – they think of cocky arrogance. Sirius likes it that way. He's rather proud of it, actually, this reputation he's cultivated. He's the playboy, the turgid jock who feels like he's better than the rest of them just because he can get the girls.

It's really only James and Peter and Remus and Reg who know differently. It's really only those four who knows that his face is painted on, plastic, because his real face is cracked from too many fake smiles from the point in time when he tried to please his parents, tried to be the perfect pureblood son.

He has to hide the cracks, the flaws.

Arrogance is as good a mask as any.