Disclaimer: I don't own anything. I know that my grammar is really bad. Please forgive me, I'm not native English.
Chapter 2: Detached
"Can I sit here? Everywhere else is full," Sirius asked, but didn't wait for an answer. He sat down on the seat opposite Snape's. He glanced at James and then at the boy with the greasy hair. Recognition dawned on his face.
"Snape," he said. Sirius didn't seem to be in a better mood than James.
"Hello, Black," Snape sneered. "Had an argument with your father about how to treat mudbloods?" Sirius glared at Snape.
"Yes, Snivellus. Don't bother to talk to them, except if you can make them as miserable as possible," Sirius imitated his father. "Bet your Dad told you loads of nice little curses to annoy muggle-borns, didn't he?" Sirius asked disgusted, but James didn't catch that. James got annoyed with those two kids arguing about cursing muggles. He felt the blood rise to his head, ringing in his ears.
Don't loose your temper, James. Don't loose your temper, he told himself. When the ringing in his ears subsided, he heard Sirius yell at Snape:
"I'm not like him, running around cursing muggles."
James snorted loudly, not troubling to keep it down.
"I'm serious," Sirius retorted, enraged, looking now at James instead of Snape.
"Yes, Sirius BLACK. I gathered as much," said James, spitting out the name Black as if it was something poisonous. Without another word he wheeled around and left the compartment, not feeling the slightest inclination to spend the ride in a compartment with Black.
Not paying attention to where he was going, James bumped into a girl that was just passing by.
"Oh, for heavens sake, have you all been plotting to knock me down today? Well bad luck, there might still be two or three people at the far end of the train who haven't done so yet," he yelled at her without even looking up.
"Hello to you, too, James. What's gotten into you?" the girl said.
James knew that voice and quickly looked up in shocked surprise.
"Alice?" he said, still gaping at her.
She was the last person he had been thinking about meeting today, but since his cousin was a year older than him, it was obvious that she should be at Hogwarts, too. Feeling very embarrassed by his rudeness, he noticed her books scattered around the floor. He picked them up hastily and shoved them back into her hands.
"Oh, I'm really sorry, Alice. I didn't mean to be rude."
Alice, who knew James' temper perfectly well, didn't mind and chose to let it pass, but asked for the cause of his outbreak. James, cursing himself for his habit of taking his temper out on innocent bystanders, told her about his encounter with Bellatrix and Sirius. James followed Alice down the train.
"Hopefully I won't have to deal with any of them anymore, for Sirius will probably be sorted into Slytherin, like the rest of his family. And Bellatrix is definitely in Slytherin, isn't she? I think she had a green prefects badge," he finished his report.
"It's not a prefects badge, it's the head girl's badge. I've seen her on the train," said Alice. "But not all Black's have been in Slytherin. I think one of her sisters is in Ravenclaw."
They finally reached a compartment full of other second year girls and Alice entered it. James hesitated a little bit before following her. After all, he didn't have anywhere else to go.
He sat, forgotten in a corner, while trees and small towns flew by the window. The girls chatted non-stop about their holidays, the upcoming school year and the boys they had a crush on. James rolled his eyes. His mood didn't improve very much during the hours on the train. Spending time with his cousin and a bunch of giggling girls wasn't exactly his idea of fun.
When the train stopped at Hogsmead station, James bid Alice good-bye and followed the huge man that was calling out for the first years. He led them to a fleet of little boats on the lake. James spotted Black and Snape walking a little ahead of him. They were glaring at each other with loathing expressions and it seemed like they had their hands clutched around their wands in the pockets of their robes. They clambered into different boats and James was careful not to go into one of them himself. He chose to follow two girls and a pale and skinny boy into another one.
James was about to sit down when he saw Snape drawing his wand. To his horror, James noticed that he had unwisely stationed himself in the boat that was between Snape and Black.
Snape bellowed something James couldn't understand. A flash of red light erupted from the tip of his wand, which was pointed at Sirius.
But at that moment the boats started to move, which took James right into the line of fire. He tried to dodge the curse, but lost his balance in the small and unsteady boat. Before James fell into the lake however, he felt the curse hit him in the side that was still sore from when Bellatrix's trunk had hit him. For a second, James didn't feel anything and wondered whether the curse had been successful or not, when the force of gravity lost its hold. His feet left the unsteady bottom of the boat and he started to rise inch after inch into the air.
All people turned to look at James, some of them looking just slightly surprised, others were nearly laughing. Nobody seemed to be able to help James until the sandy haired boy in his boat showed the presence of mind to grab James' leg to stop him from rising higher and out of reach.
"Yeh all right over there?" the booming voice of the huge man shouted.
"No, I don't know how to get him down," the boy answered.
"Can't do nuthing about that," the man answered. "Yeh get him down 'ere," he added to Snape.
"Sorry, but I can't," Snape said loftily. "I seem to have forgotten the counter-curse."
Everybody could tell that he was lying. James dived at him to get a hold of Snape's throat. Or at least he tried. He had no control over the directions his body went when he moved. The others laughed at the funny sight of him and the sandy haired boy almost lost his grip on James because of the sudden movement. Hagrid looked slightly worried, but he could do no more than shrug his shoulders.
"Yeh're just have to hold on to him, 'til we're across the lake," he told the boy who was gripping James' leg more tightly than before.
"And yeh're in trouble boy," he added to Snape.
The boats continued to row over the lake, James floating above them like an oversized balloon. People couldn't help laughing anymore. At least they think it's funny, James thought.
"How's the air up there?" somebody asked jokingly.
James was too furious to answer.
"The sight up there must be beautiful."
"We should tie him to a rope and see how high he can get," Sirius suggested.
"Oh, shut up," James snapped at him.
He would get back at Snape and Black for that humiliation. Snape getting detention wasn't enough. He would find a way to humiliate Snape as much as Snape had humiliated him today. But not only Snape, Black as well.
After a few more minutes, the fleet reached an underground harbour under the castle. People clambered out of the boats and the sandy haired boy pulled James down with the help of two others. He still wouldn't stay on the ground so they grabbed his arms, tried to hold him steady and marched him up the stairs. The first years were shown into a small room and told that a teacher would soon take care of them and show them into the great hall, where the sorting would take place. At the mentioning of the sorting, the attention of most students was drawn away from James. Amused faces turned into anxious ones and the happy chatter that had filled the air died away a bit. Even James could spare a thought from his present, very uncomfortable situation to worry about the house he would be sorted into.
Minutes passed and nothing happened. People started to talk again and kept glancing at the door through which they had entered the room. Nobody noticed another door at the side swing open and shut again. The chatter became louder and louder again until a sharp whistle took everybody by surprise and stopped all conversations. People looked around for the source of the whistle and the ones nearest to the side door spotted it first.
It was a tall, slim girl with a beautiful face and her blonde hair in a ponytail. She wasn't wearing robes, but common blue jeans and a black T-shirt, which made her look oddly out of place among the first years that were all dressed in their black Hogwarts robes.
"Welcome to Hogwarts. I'm supposed to take you to the great hall. So if you'd follow me," she said in a clear voice, smiling down at them.
"Hagrid told us a teacher would take us there," a girl with red pigtails chimed in the first row.
The smile on the tall girl's face widened.
"Yes, of course. I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Professor Palmer, young lady and I'm teaching Defence Against The Dark Arts."
Some students gaped at the Professor. She seemed to be not much older than some of the seventh year students. The red headed girl blushed so deeply that her face became even darker than her hair and she looked like a pepperoni.
"I… I… I'm so sor... sorry Professor," she stuttered. " I didn't know. You look so young and I thought…" her voice died away.
"Don't worry. That happens a lot," the Professor replied, beaming down at her.
She turned and was about to open the door, when James shouted.
"Sorry Professor, but I need your help before we go into the great hall," he said panicking.
He didn't want the whole school to see him floating if he could avoid it somehow. Professor Palmer smiled at him.
"You're a bit tall for a first year student aren't you?" she asked happily. "Did you run in the way of an engorgement charm? Anyway, how can I help you Mr…what's your name?"
Although two boys, James knew them to be Remus Lupin and Blake Conley by now, had a hold on his arms, he was still floating about a foot from the ground. But Professor Palmer didn't notice, because too many students were in the way.
"Err, I'm James Potter and my size would not be the problem," James replied.
Sirius smirked. James glared.
With both feet back on the ground James followed Remus, Blake and the other first years into the great hall. All heads turned around to watch them. Just like the first years themselves, some of them clearly wanted the sorting to be over as quick as possible. They kept looking at their empty plates longingly. Professor Palmer placed a stool in front of the staff-table for the whole school to see and put an old hat on top of it. An older, very strict looking witch took a roll of parchment and started to read out names.
"Ackerley, Armand", was sorted into Ravenclaw. The second table from the left cheered.
"Black, Sirius."
James watched Sirius walking to the three-legged stool nervously. James enjoyed the shaky expression on that boy's face. Served him right. Before Sirius sat down he looked to one of the tables. Bellatrix and her little sister were sitting there, watching Sirius expectantly. James noticed that Sirius looked away quickly, his eyes scanning the other tables, finally resting on another dark haired girl, which looked remarkably like the other two girls. They must be sisters James guessed. Maybe that was the cousin in Ravenclaw Alice had mentioned. She smiled at Sirius encouragingly as he settled himself on the stool and Sirius fixed his stare on her like on an anchor. People around the Great Hall started to mutter to their neighbours because he took so much time. But finally Sirius seemed to summon all his courage. Still looking at the girl on the Ravenclaw table, he took a deep breath, then shut his eyes and slammed the hat onto his head decidedly.
James felt himself hold his breath as the sorting hat took some time to consider. Why would it need such a long time, he asked himself. It was obvious that Black belonged in Slytherin, wasn't it? So James almost toppled over in disbelief, when it finally shouted GRYFFINDOR. No way. James stared at Sirius, shocked, who took the hat off, his face wearing a blank expression. But slowly, as if reality needed a little time to sink in, a small, relieved smile appeared on Sirius's face, which was soon replaced by a huge grin. He jumped from the stool, almost knocking it over, and ran toward the cheering Gryffindor table ecstatically.
James couldn't believe it. And apparently he wasn't the only one in the great hall. People started to whisper. Sirius' blonde cousin at the Slytherin table stared at Sirius, her mouth hanging open. Bellatrix looked furious. Only the girl at the Ravenclaw table beamed at Sirius, who gave her a thumbs-up.
James didn't pay much attention to the rest of the sorting. He just stared at Sirius with a loathing expression until his own name was called.
He walked to the stool and took the hat skeptically. Maybe it was damaged? But it looked so old and battered that a hole more or less couldn't make a difference. So James pulled it over his head, where it fell down to his nose. It had hardly touched James's head when it shouted Gryffindor.
James walked over to the table and spotted Remus sitting there next to a pearly white ghost. He hadn't even noticed when remus was sorted, but was very relieved that he knew someone else in Gryffindor apart from Sirius Black. James settled himself on the chair next to Remus and spent the rest of the evening looking at Sirius, who finally had understood that he couldn't end James's hostility with a joke.
Thank you for reviewing the first chapter. I'll try to update as soon as possible
Chants: I worked out the plot. So I know, where this is going. But you don't. But you don't.
Has to stop singing quickly because she has a cold.
Lelegurl9: Special thanks to you. You've been my first reviewer and I hope, that I won't disappoint you. I'll give my best to continue as soon as possible.
Zoe: I had the idea of a different platform when I wrote my other story 'A Hogwarts Story', which I'm not going to continue. There I used it for a part of the plot that would have come up in fourth year. I'm not sure whether or not I'm going to use the idea in this story.
Aquiel: I'm glad you liked the advertisement. I had that scene fromHP1, where Ron is trying to make the soccer players on Deans poster move, in mind.
LyLogoc: I'm so happy that you really, really liked it. ;-)
A really, really big thank you to Maranwe for betaing this chapter.