Chapter 13 – full of bad luck, right?
"There you are, you slimy little git."
Sirius' outraged voice rang through the library – so much so that every head in the room turned to watch the fiasco. They were in no doubt as to who it was he was addressing.
Sirius; his wand protruding from his pocket looking ever so challenging to the seemingly oblivious boy, grasped Severus by the collar and hoisted him up.
Scrambling – the chocolate wrappings lay forgotten, Remus got himself on his feet too.
"Sirius, let him go!" Remus asked of him, in a reasonably civil manner. He had seen events like this once too often, and thought now was the first – and hopefully last – time he would act upon them.
"What are you playing at?" Severus spat, causing Sirius to release him roughly, uncaring of the damage caused to the books behind.
"What am I playing at? What are you playing at?" Sirius retorted.
"Remus, what's he going on about?" Severus feigned innocence.
But Remus remained quiet – putting two and two together he knew this was something to do with what Sirius and James had been discussing earlier.
"That's why you were with them earlier wasn't it?" Sirius went on.
"With who?" Severus asked him, frowning.
"My dearest cousin," Sirius answered him with a grimace.
"What's going on?" Remus asked in a quiet voice.
Just then, James burst in – he looked annoyed to have missed out on the start of the action, but had no qualms about joining in.
Remus looked from James' face; contorted with anger, to Sirius' face. He wasn't angry, as such, more just annoyed; not unlike someone who had gone with their head, instead of their gut, and deeply regretted it.
"Oh, I know what you think," Severus said with a short laugh.
"Do you really?" Sirius went on, humouring, though his statement was finished by James;
"Can we add Occlumency to the list of Dark Arts you've been learning, then?"
The library went silent.
Yards away, in distant corridors, Peeves' howls of laughter could be heard, as well as Argus Filch' shouts of annoyance.
"Sirius..." Remus asked hesitantly. Though he knew of his friends' hatred of Severus, he knew he wouldn't lie about it. But on the other hand, there was Severus; Severus whom he also trusted.
But Sirius was right in the fact that Severus was spending a lot of time, perhaps, with Bellatrix. And what was it Severus had said about befriending Ravenclaws? They didn't know the things he wanted to know.
James glanced over at Remus' torn face, and made a move towards him.
"Don't go near him!" Severus acted impulsively, withdrawing his wand and standing in front of Remus who, seemingly afraid, stepped back.
"But, I like learning Defence Against the Dark Arts too, Sirius, you know that," Remus said from behind Severus' figure – his attempt to reason out the situation.
"That's what we thought, too," James went on, "To begin with."
"Oh, let me guess," Severus jeered, "You found a book belonging to Tom Riddle-"
"He means Voldemort," Remus whispered to James and Sirius' puzzled looks.
"In my things? Or don't you have any more evidence?" Severus went on, acting as though he had not cringed at the name.
"Funny you should mention the things we may have found, Snape," James continued.
From the bag that no one had noticed he was carrying, James withdrew a small number of sheets of parchment.
Even from the short distance away, Remus could recognise Severus' tiny scrawl.
To see if the latter had any signs of recognition – that meant more than it was merely an essay – Remus looked over at Severus.
Paled and now afraid, Severus looked back at the parchment in Sirius' hand.
Remus grew worried; his reaction could only mean that everything Sirius and James had been saying was true.
"What is it?"
The obvious question came from; not Sirius, James or Severus – who knew exactly what it was - nor Remus – who could not bring himself to ask – but the librarian, who had been about to call up the students on making noise in the library.
Sirius' response to the question was mingled with relief that he was able to talk, fury at what he was going to say, and wariness as he cast his eyes upon Remus' unsure figure as he walked out from behind Severus.
"Severus," Sirius began to read;
"Severus Tobias,
I trust things are going well at your school. If they are not, you can at least let the thought that you need not stay there for long, carry you onward. Your acceptance of my offer delighted me to no end, and I wish that our relationship could go further, once we are together permanently.
I have spoken to a close teacher of mine about your enrolment, and he would be only too happy to take you in. I have heard from Lucius that you are deeply involved in the wondrous Arts that our school specialises in so greatly. I know from this that you have a great deal of potential to go further and become something incredible – no OWLs or NEWTs necessary.
So, I shall write again soon, just to inform you of any plan changes.
I hope the-"
Sirius paused, glaring daggers at the paper.
"I'm not even going to quote that part," he said, overlooking the insulting things before him, written about Remus.
"Yours," he continued;
"Igor Karkaroff.
PS. I also hear you have been 'branded' one of us, in recent times. Hurts, right? But definitely worth it. If the pain is so intense, don't hesitate to take it out on a couple of-"
Sirius frowned again, and glanced over at Lily – somehow spotting her fiery head of hair amidst the crowd, as he changed the word written on the paper.
"Muggle-borns.
It's what I do, anyway. And hey – we can do it together some time."
The letter was not finished with cheers or applauding, but a smothering silence, broken only by the wind crying through the gaps in the window.
Everyone seemed to be waiting for everyone else to do something.
"When was it written?" Remus asked; his last hope that this was all a rouse.
"Last week," Severus said at the same time as Sirius said, "Last Tuesday."
"So, you're going then?" Remus asked, rounding on Severus, though showing no signs of anger.
"I didn't s-"
"Spare him the lies, Sniv," James interjected, to which Severus shot him an accusing look.
"If it weren't for you two, none of this would have happened – Remus and I would be happily enjoying chocolate together in the shade beneath a tree outdoors, but instead..." Severus answered him, not hiding his fury.
"It isn't them writing to other wizards telling them they'd love to move to a new country with them, though, is it?" Remus asked him – still without a trace of malice, or anger.
"It isn't like that..." Severus tried, knowing he meant no word of it at all.
"When were you going to tell me you were dropping me for Voldemort?" Remus asked.
"I..."
But Severus was given no time to respond, for Remus had exhaled in bemused annoyance, and made his way out of the library.
"Remus, wait," Sirius called, dropping Severus' letter and following his friend.
"Luckily for you, Remus will move on soon – Sirius has a great distraction for him – but don't even think about going near him again," James threatened, rounding on Severus, "Do you hear me?"
"You can't stop me," Severus answered him instantly.
"Oh, going to get a few Death Eater pals to do me in, are you? Is your common room swarming with them?" James retorted.
Severus visably flinched.
"You've screwed it up this time, Snivellus, well and truly," James finished, making his way out of the door with a wink to Lily.
As James began to retreat, Severus bent down to collect the parchment of the letter - his escalating fear of being cursed blindly, left with James' vanishing figure.
Just before he rounded the corner and left the room, James turned slightly and called out, "Oh, and this trip you have planned – make it soon, and for the love of Merlin; make it permanent."
And then he too, retreated.
I'd say this is just a part of Sirius' plan - the bad part, naturally. He has his own ways of cheering up his fellow Marauder though...