Hello again :D it's me with chapter 4! Thank you thank you thank you to the most amazing lilyflower101 and luvinmylife247365 for their reviews! I appreciate you guys! :)

I am currently writing chapter 18 of this story, and it's starting to look like that I really need 25 chaps hahahaha, it's such a mess! :D I looooove writing this story though, it's pure stress relief and so much fun!

Hope you all like it! :)

Sirius stared at the things in front of him with mixed feelings.

When he had started in Hogwarts, his parents had made sure he had the most expensive robes, the newest books, and the fastest broom- but after the Hat had sorted him into Gryffindor, his parents had taken most of these things away from him as a punishment. The following years, he had to ask James or Remus to share a book with him or to lend him some paper- and one time, he had been forced to ask Remus to borrow him some socks, because his parents had not bothered to buy him any. He had hated how small he had felt about not having the same things as everyone else- and how resentful it had made him.

Now this felt like a déjà vu, the brand new books, the shining uniforms, the expensive broom- and all he could think of was if Gryffindor or Aurelius planned to take those things away, too in case he did not do what they wanted him to do.

"Are you ready, Scipius?"

He flinched at the name, knowing he would never get used to being called Scipius, "yes, Aurelius, I am ready."

His pretend brother came closer, eyeing him critically, "you look decent for once", he finally said, and from Aurelius, that was the closest to a compliment he would get, "is your suitcase packed?"

"Yes, Aurelius."

"And that animal of yours…"

"Croakster?"

Aurelius rolled his eyes, "I still cannot believe Dad let you pick out a frog", he murmured, "an owl would have been the obvious choice."

Sirius shrugged, "I like frogs", he replied, "and Croakster is really smart, last night, he…"

"Spare me the details", Aurelius interrupted him, sounding annoyed, which was what he usually sounded when he talked to him, "go get your suitcase and your…animal, and let's go."

"Can…I ask you a question, Aurelius?"

"As long it has nothing to do with that frog…"

Sirius grinned, "no, I just want to know how we get to Hogwarts, I mean, the school year has already started, so…"

"We will take the Hogwarts Express- you might not know this, but everyone is required to arrive by train when you come to Hogwarts for the first time."

Sirius swallowed, dreading to spend hours and hours at the train with Aurelius- the ride with the Hogwarts Express had always been one of the highlights of going back to school- James, Remus, Pettigrew and he had shared a cabin, and James, who was the richest of them, had gotten them so much candy that they had always felt like throwing up when they got to the boats…

"Scipius, you are daydreaming again."

He blinked, "I…what?"

Aurelius sighed loudly, "let's go."

Salazar ended up taking them to King's Cross, after they had another stern talk with Gryffindor, who had reminded both of them of the importance of their plan, of being careful, and most of all, of not attracting any attention.

Sirius still had no idea what he was supposed to do in Hogwarts, and he did not dare to ask.

Finally, they were sitting in a cabin inside the Hogwarts Express, Aurelius had taken out a book to read- and had told Sirius to be quiet.

Sirius was looking out the window, but it had started to rain, badly, so all he could see now was raindrops.

This is boring…

"Aurelius?"

"I told you to be quiet, didn't I, Scipius?", his voice was low and threatening, and he did not even bother to look up from his book, "don't make me punish you already."

"I am bored. Can I play with Croakster?"

Aurelius closed his book with a bang, "absolutely not- that slimy animal is staying in his cage."

"Croakster is not slimy!"

Aurelius was looking at him now, he did not say anything, but the look was enough to make Sirius swallow, "I…am sorry…", he mumbled, "I…am just so bored…and it's raining outside, so…"

"I can give you some work to do- since we were not able to finish the last Latin assignment."

"I…rather be bored, thanks."

"You won't get very far in life with being so lazy."

"No one ever studies on the way to Hogwarts, usually, everyone plays games, or talks, or eats candy…"

"I am not everyone, Scipius."

"Yeah…I know", Sirius looked down, "are you…at least gonna tell me what the plan is? What am I supposed to do with Harry?"

"With Harry? Nothing. All you need to do is take something from him."

"You want me to steal one of his things?", Sirius was glaring at him, "he is my godson, I cannot…"

"He was your godson- right now, you are a thirteen year old boy who better remembers his place", Aurelius replied, his face darkening, "you are Scipius Lemarc now, understand?"

"Yes, Aurelius, I understand", Sirius mumbled, "what…do you want me to steal?"

"His Cloak of Invisibility."

Sirius coughed, "wait…what? Are you…serious?"

"Quite so, Scipius."

"That's…but…why?"

"Why? That is none of your concern- your concern is to get the cloak as fast as you can, and obviously, without being caught."

"Harry won't even know me though, and being in third grade, how the hell…"

"That is your problem, not mine- Father could not put you in fourth grade with Harry, you would have given yourself away within hours. Besides, Ginny Weasley is in third grade."

"And how is that going to help me?"

"She is his friend- and has a crush on him if I am informed correctly. You can use her to get the cloak somehow."

"I can't manipulate Ginny like that!"

Aurelius raised an eyebrow, "would you rather tell my father that you have failed?"

Sirius bit his lips, but did not respond, and Aurelius smiled knowingly, "I thought so."

There was a silence, and eventually, Sirius started to talk again, "so…once I get the cloak, the whole scam is off, right? Gryffindor transforms me back and I can have my old life back?"

"Yes, that's the deal- the cloak for your old life- so you can go back to hiding in Hogwarts drinking alcohol", he sounded scornful, and Sirius balled his hands into fists, "you don't know anything about my life!"

"And I hope it stays like that."

Another silence, it was still raining outside, and the weather was just as depressing as Sirius felt. He did not want to do this- he did not want to go back to being a student, he did not want to be a child again, and most of all, he did not want to betray Harry…

"Let's go over the story again", Aurelius finally said and Sirius groaned, "again? I don't…", he stopped when Aurelius gave him another look, "sorry…"

"Your attitude is starting to really get on my nerves, Scipius", Aurelius hissed, "and in case you forgot, there is no one else on this train, so no one will hear you scream."

Sirius winced, "I…am really sorry, please…"

"Let's get over the story", Aurelius interrupted him, his voice hard, "begin."

"I…my name is Scipius Lemarc, I am thirteen years old. I was born in London, but when I was nine years old, I moved to France with my parents and my older brother Aurelius. My mom and dad were working for the French Ministry of Magic, and we just moved back to England because my mom got transferred. My brother is two years older than me and…we are really close. I…like to study, and my favorite subject is Transformation", he blushed when Aurelius grinned, "I…I also like Quidditch, my favorite team are the Quiberon Quafflepunchers", he rolled his eyes, "that name is so stupid- Quafflepunchers, really?"

Aurelius kept a straight face, "go on, Scipius."

He sighed, "I am excited to be in Hogwarts, and I hope I end up in Gryffindor like…like my dad", he looked down, "and I am looking forward making some friends."

"Good boy."

Sirius did not respond, he kept staring down at his feet.

This is all…a lie…I am a liar…

He did not realize that he was silently crying until he saw the tears falling on his shoes, and then he heard Aurelius sigh, "silly boy…", and then someone carefully picked him up and pulled him into a hug, and he was shocked to realize that it was Aurelius who was hugging him, "you are overthinking this, Sirius."

He called me Sirius. He really called me Sirius.

Sirius did not know what to do, how to react, so he pressed his face into Aurelius' neat and tidy uniform, "not…silly…", he finally mumbled, because he did not know what else to say, and Aurelius chuckled, "fine. You are not silly, little brother", and then, he slowly started raking through his hair, and Sirius stopped breathing for a moment because it felt so…good, so amazingly good, and he was afraid to move, to talk, to do anything because he was sure Aurelius would stop then…and he could hear Aurelius' heart beating, so he does have a heart after all…

And the rain kept pouring down, and the train kept whistling, and moments later, Sirius was fast asleep, sitting on Aurelius' lap, snuggled closely into him.

"Name?"

"Lord Voldemort."

The man behind the desk blinked, and then his face turned into an angry grimace, "very funny- what's your real name, boy?"

"I just told you."

The man stared at the boy in front of him, examining him, his ripped, bloody jeans, his stained shirt, and his messy hair, "trying to be tough, eh? I was already told you would be trouble. Now, give me your real name, or I will…"

"His name is Thomas. Thomas Marvolo Riddle", he did not even have to turn around to know that Gryffindor had come into the office, "and that's the only name he will respond to."

The man grumbled something and wrote the name down, "age?"

"He is fourteen."

"That's an illusion, I am not…"

"Behave, Thomas", Gryffindor's voice was hard, and he decided not to care what he had said- he was not Thomas, so nothing he had said mattered.

"Parents?"

"They're dead", he refused to meet Gryffindor's eyes.

"Any…relatives? Other family?"

"No."

The man sighed, "a guardian, maybe?"

"Since I am not a child, why would I need a guardian? I have always done very well on my own."

The man snorted, "sure sure, and see where that got you- into juvie", he chuckled spitefully, "and looking at your file, you'll be here for quite some time."

He did not bother to respond to that.

"You will stay here until your trial", Gryffindor informed him matter-of-fact, "and after that, you might be transferred to a less…secure detention center, depending on your behavior here."

"I want to talk to my lawyer."

The man frowned, "you really are full of yourself, eh? Your lawyer? You are a kid, you don't get a lawyer, not that you could afford one anyways, you will get a case worker", he folded some documents and stored them in a file, "now- drugs and alcohol are prohibited, you will attend school in the morning and work in the afternoon, and you can have visitors every Wednesday from 2 pm to 5 pm, unless you don't want anyone visiting you, then…"

"I don't want anyone visiting me" his voice was calm, almost stoic, and he still refused to look at anyone but the wall behind the desk, "can I go now?"

"Demanding little brat", the man hissed, clearly not used of being spoken to that way, "the wardens will take you to your cell now- so say goodbye to Mr. Gryffindor", he smirked.

He stayed silent.

Gryffindor slowly walked over to him, "remember what I told you- no one will believe you", he said quietly, quietly enough that the man behind the desk could not hear him, "and if I can give you some advice- do not mention anything about those documents."

"Are you…threatening me?"

"I am warning you, Thomas- just a fair warning."

He snorted, "yeah cause you are known for being fair- just go. I can handle myself; I don't need warnings."

Gryffindor sighed, "it's more complicated than you think- and bigger than you think", he took a step back, "I have to go- goodbye, Thomas."

No answer, the boy just stared at him with open hatred, and Gryffindor turned around. He had to move on with the plan, that was all that mattered- even though he had the feeling of making a big mistake by leaving Thomas here.

"Wake up, Scipius. We're here."

Sirius blinked, and slowly opened his eyes, "we're…where?"

"In Hogwarts, little brother", Aurelius' voice sounded distant again, and forced somehow, "get your suitcase and your frog…"

"Croakster", Sirius supplied, getting up, "his name's Croakster."

"Get Croakster then- Hagrid is waiting by the boats. Come on, hurry."

They departed the train, and soon, they were sitting in a boat with Hagrid, who kept going on and on about all the teachers at Hogwarts, not knowing that they both were very familiar with the school.

Eventually, they made it into the Great Hall, it was dinnertime, and Dumbledore introduced them jovially, and then under the eyes of the whole school, he took out the Sorting Hat.

Sirius swallowed, getting nervous. The Hat was smart, he knew that- what if he recognized him?

He watched Aurelius casually walking to the chair, and the Hat had barely touched his head when he screamed: "GRYFFINDOR!" throughout the Hall, and there was a huge cheer from the Gryffindor table, and Aurelius smirked, and he walked over to the table like he had been at the school for ages and sat down with the fifth graders.

Sirius envied him for his confidence, he was a nervous wreck when he finally made it to the chair, and the Hat was laughing into his ear, "scared, little guy?"

"Eh…uhm…", he stammered, "not…not really…", he was dark red in his face, and everyone was staring at him now, whispering and giggling, and he remembered what Gryffindor had said- do not attract any attention- and he sure hoped that this did not fall under that category.

"You better stay with your big brother…he can help you", the Hat remarked, and Sirius forced himself to nod enthusiastically, even though the last thing he wanted was Aurelius' help.

"GRYFFINDOR!", the Hat finally roared, and there were cheers again, and he went over to the table, sitting down next to Ginny Weasley and let out a deep breath.

I made it.

"Hi, I am Ginny", the girl said, smiling at him, "welcome to Gryffindor!"

"Hi…Ginny…I am…Scipius", he stuttered, taking her hand and shaking it, "nice…to meet you."

"You were really nervous, hmm?", Ginny asked, a kind look on her face, "were you scared to get into another house than your brother? They usually keep the siblings together, all my brothers are in Gryffindor with me", she pointed at someone at the end of the table, "that's my brother Ron right there- and the twins are over there, talking to your brother."

Sirius looked over and realized that she was right- Aurelius seemed to be in a deep conversation with Fred and George Weasley, and some others were listening, too- and there were some girls giggling to each other, staring at Aurelius in awe, and he did not know why, but it made him feel uneasy.

Some other Gryffindor's introduced themselves to him now, and he was not able to think about the weird feeling in his stomach any longer.

After dinner, Ginny and another friendly third grader named Colin Creevey took him to the Common Room and showed him around, and he started to relax more and more, and by the time he was in bed, he had the feeling that maybe, just maybe this wouldn't be so bad after all.

"You're Voldemort, right?"

"What if I am?"

The other boy grinned, "then I've got a message for you", and with that, he swung his fist and punched him right on the nose, "we don't like snoops here", he hissed, giving him another punch, this time on the shoulder, "so you better keep your filthy mouth shut."

"What the hell are you…"

"Just keep your damn mouth shut", the boy spit on the ground right next to him, turned around and was gone.

Tom carefully felt for his nose, it was not broken, but it was bleeding like crazy.

He took off his shirt, tore off one sleeve and used it to stop the bleeding- he knew no one would bother providing him a towel.

Bitterness was rising inside him; this was the second time he had been attacked by some strange boy- and he started to think that it was not a coincidence.

He would understand it if they would attack him because of the crimes he and the Death Eaters had committed- but no one ever mentioned them, they just told him to keep his mouth shut.

So, the only logic explanation was that Gryffindor was so scared of being exposed as a liar that he had bribed these boys to threaten him- but if he thought it was working, he was wrong.

Tom went back to his work, he was digging out small holes in the yard where something was supposed to get planted- and he was always working by himself, so no one was ever there to see him get attacked.

Hours later, when they had free time after dinner, the same thing happened- some random boy walked up to him, beat him, and told him to keep his mouth shut.

Lying in bed that night, everything hurt- and he was tired of being used as Gryffindor's punching bag.

Who knows what they are going to do next- I have to act quickly.

The problem was, he had no allies here- the boys either ignored him or beat him, and the wardens were strangely absent when something was happening.

Tom sighed, staring into the darkness of his small cell. The detention center was definitely better than Azkaban, but it still restricted him from what he needed most- freedom.

He missed Thunder and the other horses so much it hurt- and he missed getting up at four in the morning, when the sun was not up yet, and riding into the sunrise…feeling completely and utterly free.

"I have to get out of here", he mumbled to himself, "it's only been a day and I am gonna go crazy…"

Eventually, he did fall asleep- and during the next days, he spent all his free time looking for an escape, for something- but the detention center was not maximum security for no reason, and as bitter as it was, he found no way out.

Defeated, he was sitting in his cell at night again, too frustrated and upset to even have the energy to undress and go to bed, when there was a sudden noise.

And then suddenly, all hell broke loose.

It was five or six of them, and they came from all directions- hitting him, punching him, beating him, choking him- and he screamed, and they did not say a word, they just kept hitting and hitting and hitting, until everything finally went black.

yeah...poor tom :( next chap has another confro between tom and godric, and sirius is suffering from aurelius' abuse.

if you liked it, please leave a comment :)

xoxo, Antonie :)