hey there! I am back with chapter 8! :)
Thank you to my most amazing reviewers, Ilse (don't worry, Gryffindor will change- eventually XD), lilyflower101 (I agree lol) and luvinmylife247365 (Tom is not really afraid of the dark- just upset that he can't look outside anymore. Godric will find out eventually what Aurelius does to Sirius...)
Currently writing chapter 24, so the story is almost done! I know I will miss writing it so much, so I am already thinking about what to write next lol.
Thank you everyone who favorited this story and/ or me! :D
Hope you like this chapter! :)
The light had turned on again at exactly 8 am in the morning when the house elves had brought him his breakfast- a plastic bowl filled with soup, along with a plastic cup with water and a plastic spoon.
He was hungry, very hungry, starving actually- but he forced himself to only drink the water, and he ignored the soup.
You won't win this, Gryffindor.
He did not bother to take a shower or get dressed in clean clothes, he spent most of his day sitting on his mattress, staring at the wall where the windows used to be.
It hurt not to be able to look outside anymore, to see the trees, the lake, the orchards- and again, he missed Thunder, he missed riding, he missed being free…
The house elves came again at lunch, taking his untouched soup without a comment and putting a fresh bowl of soup down for him, and even though it smelled healthy, the smell made his stomach growl in hunger.
There were some bookshelves with books in his room, but he had never liked to read- and he was not specifically good at it, either.
With nothing better to do, he tore out the pages of one of the books, crumbling them to balls to throw them at the wall. Some others, he folded into paper airplanes and watched them fly through the room, and he had to laugh when one of them landed in the bowl with soup.
The house elves came again at teatime, and then again at dinner, but he ignored them both times, just like he ignored the soup.
At 8 pm, the lights in his room went off, and he was forced to sit in complete darkness now, being hungry, bored, and miserable.
The house elves came again to take his uneaten dinner, and then he really was alone.
He did not want to cry, he did not want to feel weak, and lonely, and sad, but he could not stop the tears rolling down his cheeks again, and he had never cried as much as he had cried here, another reason why he had to get the hell away from Gryffindor Manor.
He eventually fell into a restless sleep, and the next morning, he was too drained to even get up.
Everything hurt, and he had a headache, and his stomach felt like an enormous wound, so he just kept laying on his mattress, silently whimpering.
The house elves came and left, and he fell asleep again out of sheer exhaustion, and when he woke up again, darkness surrounded him one more time.
It must have been after 8 pm already because when he stumbled to the bathroom to pee, there was no tray with soup anywhere, and no smell…
There was some light in the bathroom, and when he looked in the mirror after he peed, he saw how pale, and thin, and miserable he looked- and he was hungry, he was so hungry…
Bile suddenly rose in his mouth, and the next thing he knew, he was vomiting into the sink, but since he had not eaten much in two days it was just bile, leaving his mouth with an acid taste.
He drank as much water as he could, and then he went back to his mattress.
The water in his stomach was making him feel uncomfortably full, and it took him a while to find a halfway decent position to sleep in.
For the next hours or so, he was tossing and turning on his mattress, and he was silently crying again.
How had he ended up like this? Everything had gotten wrong somehow, and now his life was a nightmare…
I am so hungry…I just want to eat…it hurts…everything hurts…
But still, he could not bring himself to ask for help, to bang on the door, or to even get up and drink more water to numb the hunger- he was just lying on the mattress, his face wet with tears, hoping this all would end soon.
I can't…let him win…I just…can't.
He was sobbing again, and suddenly-
Am I hallucinating now?
There was light, and there was a table with a chair, and his dinner- soup and water, and there was Gryffindor, looking at him with a strange expression on his face, one he could not decipher.
"Tommy…", he said, just that one word, and he did not know why, but it made him cry, "you need to eat something."
"I…am…not…hungry!", he forced himself to say, and now, Gryffindor smiled, "if you eat your soup, you'll get a reward."
He stopped crying, and stared at Gryffindor, "a…reward? Are you gonna let me go outside then?"
Gryffindor shook his head, "you have not earned that yet- but you'll get something else."
"Something I'll like?"
The Founder was still smiling, "I think so, yes."
I have never gotten a reward before.
Somehow, the prospect of a reward made him feel strangely excited, so he slowly walked over to Gryffindor and sat down at the table.
He grabbed the spoon and heard Gryffindor chuckle in amusement, "not like that- it's not a tool, Tommy. Here, hold it like this…", and he carefully moved his hand around the plastic spoon, "that's how you hold a spoon."
And then he showed him how to eat soup the proper way, how to bring up his spoon to his mouth instead of leaning over the bowl while eating, and how to avoid spilling by not filling all of the spoon with soup.
Surprisingly enough, the soup tasted amazing- even though it was only broth with vegetables.
He ate carefully and slowly to make sure he would not vomit again, and he managed to eat the whole bowl without spilling or staining, something that had never happened before.
"Good boy", Gryffindor said quietly when he was done, "I think I'll let you have pancakes for breakfast tomorrow."
I love pancakes!
Tom blinked, suddenly feeling uncomfortable, "where's my reward?", he asked, but it sounded less demanding that he had wanted it to be.
"Go back to bed, I'll show you", Gryffindor was smiling again, and even though he thought that made no sense, he obeyed and crawled back under his sheets.
Gryffindor took out his wand, and mumbled something, and then…
"Ohmygod", he was staring open mouthed at the ceiling or, to be exact, where the ceiling had been before.
Now, all he saw was the sky- the sky full of stars, and the moon, a full moon, glowing bright and powerful down on him.
"That's…is that…"
"A little spell I invented", Gryffindor answered, laying down right next to him, his arms pointing at the sky, "it is the real sky, just in case you were wondering. Look over there- that is Polaris."
Tom followed his finger, his eyes shining in wonder, "and what's the constellation over there?"
For some reason, Gryffindor let out a small laugh, "that is Sirius- the brightest star in the sky. And there you have…"
He kept explaining constellations to him, and told him about zodiac signs, and astrology, and somewhere in between, Tom fell asleep- feeling full, and warm, and strangest of all, happy.
For the next couple of days, life was not too bad- Aurelius left him alone, basically ignored him, and he had started to enjoy practicing for the Quidditch tryouts with Colin and Callum.
Both boys had become his friends, even more after he had generously shared his candy from Honeydukes with them.
And since he was studying with Ginny and Colin in the library every afternoon, his grades slowly got better, and it was a lot easier to concentrate and focus without Aurelius and the constant threat of the cane.
The weather was still warm and mild for middle of September, and often, he and his friends would walk by the lake, or sit in the grass and talk, or watch the others practice Quidditch, and it would have been easy to forget that all of this was temporary, and a lie.
Today, he went for a walk with Colin and Callum again, they were talking about the tryouts excitedly, which were planned to happen on the very next day.
The three boys were so engrossed in their conversation that they were barely noticing where they were going, they only looked up when they heard sudden laughter from nearby.
A huge group of students had centered around a tree, and Sirius did not have to guess who was in the center of their attention.
Aurelius.
"Must be your brother telling one of his funny stories again!", Colin exclaimed, "man, I wish I had a brother like him!"
No, you don't.
"Me too!", Callum immediately agreed, "I mean, I have a brother in sixth grade- Cormac. But he does not care about me that much, and when he went to Honeydukes last week, all I got from him was a lame Liquorice Wand!"
"That's really lame!", Colin shook his head, "you are so lucky, Scipius! Getting all that candy, and every time your brother sees you, he treats you like you are some kind of king- with all the hugs and smiles and stuff."
You should see how he treats me when we are alone.
It was true though, Aurelius was very affectionate towards him whenever he saw him in public- he hugged him, smiled at him, ruffled his hair, asked him how he was doing- and one time, he had picked him up and carried him on his arms, and then he had thrown him in the air and caught him- that had been the best thing ever.
Aurelius was tall and strong for his age, and Sirius was not- so it had not been a problem for the older boy to do that, and Sirius remembered how he had shrieked with laughter when Aurelius had thrown him in the air for the first time, and how jealous the other third graders had been who had been watching.
He only did that because my friends were watching anyways.
Sirius dismissed the thought, and forced himself to smile, "yeah, I am really lucky", he finally said, "do you wanna go and see what Aurelius is talking about?"
He already knew the answer to that question, everyone in Gryffindor always wanted to know what Aurelius was talking about or doing, so it was no surprise that the group around the tree had become even bigger now.
As always, Aurelius immediately stopped talking when he saw him and waved him over, "come here, my favorite little brother", and when he walked closer, Aurelius ruffled his hair and smiled at him, "I am almost finished with my story- can you wait a little?"
Like you actually care.
"Of course I can wait", Sirius replied, "besides, I want to know how the story ends, too!"
I could care less about your stupid stories.
"Good boy", Aurelius mumbled and gave him a quick kiss on the head, "so, where was I…"
He went on telling another of his hilarious tales, and even though Sirius wanted to hate it, he soon found himself laughing with the rest of the group.
He really is funny- and smart, and strong, and good looking…no wonder everyone freaking loves him…
He did not know why there was suddenly such a sadness inside of him, but he knew he could not be sad right now, not with everyone watching.
So, he plastered a smile on his face, and laughed with the others, and he was relieved when Aurelius finished his story, and led him away from the group.
There were walking in silence for some time, until Sirius finally cleared his throat, "the…the Quidditch tryouts are tomorrow", he said quietly.
"I've heard", Aurelius responded, sounding bored, "Quidditch is a waste of time if you ask me."
"Well, I am gonna try out tomorrow- as a Seeker, in case you want to wat…"
Aurelius stopped abruptly, "you are doing what, Scipius?"
Sirius flinched, he knew that tone of voice, and it almost always meant pain, "I…was going to try out to be a Seeker, no one in third grade is…"
Aurelius snorted, "you? A Seeker? Don't be ridiculous, Scipius- besides, I am trying out to be a Seeker as well."
"But…you just said Quidditch is a waste of time, why…"
"Why? It looks even better on my application to Dumbledore's circle of scholars if I am part of the team", Aurelius answered arrogantly, "and I will be part of the team- Harry Potter better watches himself tomorrow."
Sirius swallowed, "it's…gonna look weird if we both try out for the same position", he noted, his voice low.
Aurelius smiled his usual cruel smile that he seemed to have reserved for him only, "and that is why you won't try out- you'll get to watch me though, which should be reward enough for you."
"But…I have been practicing! Everyone in third grade promised to come and see me tomorrow and cheer me on, and Callum even made a poster and…"
Aurelius grabbed him by the shoulder, "enough, Scipius!", he hissed, his voice dark and threatening, "I told you what I am expecting from you- and you know better than to disobey me. You are not going to try out, understand?"
Sirius stayed silent, too busy forcing back the tears.
Aurelius tightened his grip, "I said do you understand me?", and now his voice was dangerous.
"Yes, Aurelius, I understand", he whispered and the older boy let go off his grip, "good. You know we only have ten days left to get through with the plan- and once I am on the team, I know Dumbledore will let me in his circle- which will make it very easy for me to get what I want from him. You on the other hand still don't have a plan, do you?"
"I…I am working…I have been thinking that maybe…"
"You're pathetic, Scipius."
Sirius swallowed again and hung his head, the sadness and shame and anger burning a hole inside him, and preventing him from speaking.
Aurelius sighed, "well, I have to go- work on the plan, pay attention in class- and be good. I'll see you at the tryouts tomorrow."
He turned around without another word and walked away, and Sirius was left to stare after him yet again.
He did not move for several minutes, until eventually Colin and Callum came running his way, their eyes sparkling.
"We've been looking for you!"
"That was a funny story your brother told, wasn't it?"
"What did he say? Is he gonna watch you tomorrow?"
Sirius' heart clenched and he had to force himself to not start crying, "he…he is actually going to try out as a Seeker, too", he finally managed to say.
"That's cool! I can totally see him being a Seeker on the team!", Callum exclaimed and then added hastily, "but I still hope you are gonna make it, Scipius! I already made you a banner!"
"Everyone is so excited to see you play tomorrow!", Colin now said, smiling at him, "you'll do great, Scipius, you practiced so hard."
"Yes, I did practice a lot", Sirius agreed, thinking of all the hours he had spent flying and practicing, "I…I am excited, too."
And suddenly, he had made his decision.
Screw Aurelius and his constant interfering in his life, and his constant desire to make him miserable, he would try out for the team, and he would kick everyone's ass, too!
The other third graders had been so supportive, he could not disappoint them, and they were all so excited, and he had been excited to try out, too- but the next day, when he was getting ready and put on his Quidditch uniform, he felt no excitement, he felt nothing but fear.
Aurelius is going to kill me for this.
His hands were trembling when he shouldered his broom and walked onto the Quidditch field.
He distantly heard the cheers and yells from the other third graders, and he even saw the sign Callum made.
GO SCIPIUS!
Madame Hooch was already there, she always supervised the tryouts for each house, "now, let's get everyone organized", she started briskly, "the Chasers go over to the left, the Beaters to the right, the Keepers stay here, and the Seekers go over there."
Sirius slowly walked over to the other Seekers. There were five of them in total- no one from first or second grade, he was the only third grader, and then there was Harry from fourth grade, and…
He swallowed hard when he saw Aurelius, his brother was smart enough to keep the façade and even managed to smile at him, but Sirius clearly saw the threat in his eyes.
The other two trying out for the Seeker position were both from sixth grade, and Sirius did not know either of them.
Madame Hooch started with the Keepers, so Sirius was forced to stand quietly next to his pretend brother and watch the Keepers try out or, if they had been on the team before, defend their position.
One of the try outs was Cormac, Callum's older brother, and for some reason, he had to blink back tears when he heard Callum scream in excitement when Cormac managed to shoot back a dangerous ball from the hoops.
"Is this your first time trying out?", someone next to him said and when he turned his head, he saw Harry smiling at him, "you seem a little nervous."
"I…yeah…first time", Sirius stuttered, "I am…Scipius by the way."
"I am Harry", he held out his hand, "you might have heard about me", he laughed a little, "by the way, how is Ginny doing? I barely see her anymore."
"Uhm…Ginny's fine. She…eh…we study a lot…lots of homework right now", Sirius stammered, annoyed with himself for not being able to form a complete sentence.
Harry must think I am an idiot.
But Harry, his godson, just kept smiling at him and nodded, "I remember the homework last year- Potions was brutal!"
Sirius smiled, he had forgotten how easy it was to talk to Harry, and how…nice and familiar it felt…before they had had that fight that had turned his life into a nightmare.
"Well, looks like it is our turn now", Harry remarked when Madame Hooch yelled at them to come over, "good luck, Scipius!"
"Good luck, Harry", he answered quietly, and shouldered his broom.
"Well, good luck to you as well, little brother", Aurelius was next to him now, his voice low, "you will need all the luck of the world after I am done with you for this stunt."
Sirius bit his lips, "good luck, Aurelius", he mumbled, not even looking at the older boy, "and now excuse me- I am the first one to go."
He knew Aurelius was furious when he walked right into the center of the field where Madame Hooch was waiting for him, and for some reason, that motivated him even more.
I'll show you that I am not pathetic.
The third graders were cheering and yelling, and he flew through the air, forgetting about everything and everyone, and they all applauded when he finally managed to catch the Snitch.
"That was twelve minutes and thirty-four seconds", Madame Hooch announced, "you can wait over there, Lemarc. Potter, you are next!"
Sirius went to the side, red in his face. He knew he had done a good job- twelve minutes was great, and he smiled sweetly at Aurelius when he walked by him, knowing that he made his fake brother even more mad now.
I don't care anymore. I did great, and I am proud of myself.
They were standing next to each other now, watching Harry go after the Snitch.
"Good job, Scipius", Aurelius eventually said, his voice thick with phoniness, "did you have a good time up there? Everything seems so…small from above, don't you agree?"
Sirius paled, not liking where this was going, "yes, I…I like flying", he finally answered hesitantly, "it's…fun."
Aurelius smiled at him now, "glad to know that- that will make my special surprise for you tonight even better."
"Your…special surprise?"
I hate surprises- especially from you.
"Of course- I have to reward my little brother for being so brave and trying out- and for doing such a good job today", he was still smiling, but there was no friendliness in his smile, and his smile grew even bigger when Madame Hooch announced Harry Potter's time now.
"Ten minutes and fifty-one seconds!"
Harry beat my time- I did not make it…I failed.
"Looks like you are out, Scipius- I am so sorry", Aurelius shouldered his broom, looking anything but sorry, "now, watch and learn how this game is really played."
Sirius was forced to stare after him helplessly, feeling anxious, disappointed, and angry all at once.
Everyone was cheering loudly when Aurelius elegantly got on his broom and flew through the air, and the cheering got louder and louder and then-
That's…impossible!
After what felt like no time, Aurelius had caught the Snitch and landed, a satisfied grin on his face.
"Two minutes and eleven seconds!", Madame Hooch screeched, sounding like she could not believe it herself, "that…is a new record!"
The cheers turned into frantic screams, and Sirius watched in despair how everyone crowded around Aurelius, talking all at once.
"That was amazing!"
"How did you do that?!"
"You are so talented; you have to be on the team!"
"If they don't vote you in, I'll strike!"
"Wow, is there anything you can't do?"
The last one was Colin, and he sounded so full of admiration that Sirius wanted to throw up.
Anything he can't do? Yeah- not treating me like I am the dirt under his shoes.
It was the sixth grader's turn now, but no one really cared about them anymore, even though the first one only needed eleven minutes, but the second one took almost fifteen.
They voted, and they voted unanimously- and shortly after, Aurelius was the new Seeker for the Gryffindor's.
Sirius watched, stone faced, how Harry walked over to him and shook his hand, congratulating him, and he knew he should too, but…he couldn't. He just…couldn't.
Finally, Madame Hooch moved on to the Chasers, and he was still standing on the side, completely frozen, he wanted to move, to leave, to run far away, but he knew Aurelius would find him anyways, so there really was no point.
Minutes later, Aurelius walked over to him, "time to go, little brother", he said calmly, "you have a special surprise waiting for you, remember?"
"I am…sorry, Aurelius. I really am. I…"
Aurelius just laughed at the desperation in his voice, "oh, you will be, Scipius. You'll be a very sorry little boy soon- for trying to sabotage me, for disobeying me, and for being openly disrespectful to me today."
He whimpered, "please…I…I did not mean to, I just…I just…"
I just wanted to show you that I am not pathetic.
"Let's go, Scipius."
He forced back the tears- again- as he walked across the Quidditch field behind Aurelius, and he saw Callum and Cormac standing by the entrance, and Cormac had put his arm around Callum, and they were both smiling…and he suddenly knew what the weird feeling in his stomach was.
Envy.
Seeing something he would never, ever have.
poor sirius...things will get better for him soon though, and for tom as well, promise! ;)
please leave me some feedback! thx in advance!
xoxo, Antonie :)