Sirius
"Mr Burrell, Mr Black, I'm extremely disappointed in you. I had expected better from you two, heavens knows why." McGoogles' broad Scottish accent is steady as always, with a diamond-hard edge. Usually she's capable of holding even my short attention span, but today my mind keeps drifting off to him. Remus, not the other one. He looked so down about Clarke's problems, I find myself wondering if he still likes him. But I couldn't leave him like that. I'd do anything, kill or die, just to make my Remus smile. Threatening a sixth year…that's no problem. It could have been though, if I didn't have such awesome friends. I send up a silent prayer to the heavens, thanking God for the Marauders.
But I wonder. Would I still have defended Clarke, if not for Remus? Is that the only thing I'm fighting for? Is that what separates me from my brother? It can't be. I was Sorted before I even knew Remus. So what is it that makes me a Gryffindor? Why am I different?
"Mr Black, please pay attention."
"Sorry, what?" I see the look on McGoogles' face and decide not to push my luck. "Professor?"
"Mr Black, would you please come into my office. Mr Burrell, I will talk to you in a few minutes, so stay there."
I follow her into the small room leading off her classroom. Moving behind the desk, she sits down in the large tartan armchair opposite me.
"Take a seat, Mr Black."
I obey.
She offers me a tartan tin with a picture of Edinburgh Castle on the lid.
"Ginger newt, Mr Black?"
Reaching in, I take three, mentally writhing under her gaze. As I nibble on the warm-flavoured biscuits, she sits and watches me silently. Her eyes feel like they're boring a hole in me. McGoogles can be shit-scary when she wants to be.
"Mr Black, you know full well that this school does not sanction violence, and I did not expect it of you. Pranks and misbehaviour are all very well, but threatening other students is not something I'd expect from someone like you. I understand that you were defending another student, but I had hoped that someone as intelligent as you could have found a way around such problems without resorting to such measures. Another ginger newt?"
"I'm not intelligent." I clarify, spitting crumbs onto the scratched wood. "Remus is intelligent. I got a T on my last Potions exam."
"We've been through this before, Mr Black. You have the potential to achieve great things, if only you applied yourself. However, that is not what we are here to discuss. What have you got to say for yourself?"
"I was defending another student, like you said. I thought that was one of the core values of Gryffindor House?"
"True, Mr Black. But next time, could you please not make a scene in the breakfast hall?" She smiles thinly. "Ten minutes with me this lunchtime. Off you go now."
I know she's letting me off very lightly. "Thanks, Minnie. Bye now!" I hold the door open for Burrell, who scowls at me as the Professor beckons him in.
"Bastard" he mutters to me as he goes past.
"I know you are, but what am I?" I whisper back as I leave the tiny space. As the door swings shut, I can hear McGoogles laying into Burrell. No ginger newts for him, I fancy. Merlin, that professor is awesome!
---
About four hours later, I shove my quill and ink into my bag, crumpling the blotched parchment on top. "Bye bye, Minnie!"
I slam the door shut behind me and turn to Remus, who's been sat out here reading for the whole of my detention. He looks at his watch. "You're five minutes late."
"Blame McGoogles."
He rolls his eyes, then grabs my hand and drags me off down the corridor. "Come on, hurry up."
"Huh? Where're we going?"
"Library"
Noooooo, not the library! There could be anything in there! Books! The horror!
"Whyyyyy??? Can't we go somewhere nice?"
"No. We're meeting Michael."
Alarms bells start ringing in my head at that name.
"No we're not!" I turn and scuttle off down the corridor, but I only get about two inches before he grabs the back of my robes and hauls me back, my feet skidding on the pitted flagstones as I try to escape. I am NOT going near Clarke. Despite the fact I practically saved his life at breakfast.
"Yes we are. Michael said he wanted to talk to you." He looks at me with those big brown eyes. "Please?"
Gaaah, Remus, could you please stop looking so goddamn cute and unrefusable? I can't say no to you for long. "Fine, we shall go at once to the haven of reading material to meet your ex-boyfriend. Joy."
In response, he shoves a bread roll into my mouth and pulls me towards my doooom.
---
"Hey, Michael."
"Hi, Remus, Sirius."
"Clarke."
He grins as I acknowledge him with a nod.
"Thanks a lot for this morning, Sirius."
I scowl. I stole his boyfriend…after he stole him off me, but still…so he's not meant to be so damned NICE! It might make a guy feel pretty bad about hating him.
I only said MIGHT.
"I already said. I didn't…"
"…Do it for me. I know, but still…" He grins, waving the brown envelope that earned me detention. "It was still nice."
I scowl deeper. I'm going to give myself permanent wrinkles if I go on like this.
"That letter had better have had the best news you've ever heard in your life, or I'm going to wind back time and do something painful to you instead of helping you."
"You could say that." He smiles, sliding a fingernail (not broken. How is it not broken? Mine are chewed to the fingertip!) under the flap of the envelope and handing a folded piece of paper to Remus. I jump up behind his shoulder and try to keep up with his quick reading.
Hi Michael,
How are you getting on? I hope you settled back in ok and you're feeling a bit less ill now. How's school? I bet you're straight back in with your old friends, right?
I glance at Remus, whose face is completely impassive. Having said which, I'm not even sure I'm reading the same bit as him, since he reads faster than a speeding Comet…if you assume that a Comet can read, which it blatantly can't…shut up!
We're doing pretty well back here. Everyone keeps asking after you. And Ian gave us a letter to give to you, so I grabbed it sharpish before Mum could get hold of it. I knew you wouldn't want her to read it so I stuck it in the post to you. It should be in the envelope. Don't worry, I didn't open it.
So, well, you'd better be all sorted out by the next time I see you, and write back ASAP, ok?
Bye!
Beth
I look at Clarke, confused. "Who's Beth?"
His eyes go all sort of soppy. "She's my big sister. She's awesome. Actually, she's one of only two people back home that I've come out to, since she's the person I trust more than anything else. This is just like her, rescuing Ian's letter from the clutches of my mother."
Heh. Clarke, you know nothing of evil mothers. "And Ian is…?"
He gets even mushier-looking. "Ian is my friend. Actually, Ian was my first boyfriend, but we broke up when I came back to Hogwarts. It's just nice to know he's thinking about me, that's all."
Remus grins. "So, got the letter, then?"
The-boy-who-I'm-finding it-harder-and-harder-to-hate waves a piece of white paper, grinning. "Yup!"
"I'll not pry into that, but cool! Must be good for you to get that kind of support when you're having such a crappy time!"
Pry into it, Remus! Pry into it!
He looks at his watch. "Actually, we should probably meet the others now or sooner. See ya, Michael."
"Bye!"
"Later, Clarke!"
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FEAR MY CRAPPY ENDIIIINNNNGGGG!!!!!!
The next chapter will have a decent ending to it, I promise! And it won't take 1000000000000000000000000000000000000000 years to get done. I do have an actual valid true real excuse though…GCSE MATHS EXAM::panic:: (turned out to be easier than the yr 9 SATs lol)
And I'm kinda busy now…I'm being forced by the school to make the poster for the school production, which is taking up all my time and I didn't even volunteer to do it, I just happened to be in Graphics!
Meh, I'll survive.
Hope you enjoyed another short-but-inthiscasenotparticularlysweet chappie!
Next time!
Ruthie xxx
Remus, Sirius, McGoogles and Hogwarts © JK Rowling
Michael and Burrell © me XD