A/N to Bottlebrush: Thanks for your comments on my fics. And, yes, this one is not HBP compatible, either. Remus will never be Tonks fodder in my world! As far as "Free" is concerned, I wanted to leave the idea of whether or not the pups would go ahead and seek to have children open. (Although I am working on a Christmas challenge that answers that in my particular AU world). And, in "Purity", Remus is a bit over the top with Molly, but I think he's under such extreme emotion having just returned from witnessing his lover's death that his anger felt right to me.

Chapter 8 - Consequences

All too soon the boys found themselves at King's Cross Station, splitting up to head home for Christmas. Remus glanced over his shoulder as he walked through the station with his Mum and took one final, lingering look at Sirius. "I'll see you next week," he called.

Sirius smiled forlornly. "Yeah. See you in five days." Five days that would seem like an eternity, he felt as he headed for the Underground for the final leg in his journey home to the Blacks' elegant London townhouse.

Sirius was met at his door by one of the contingent of house elves.

"Hello, Geddy!" Sirius grinned at the little creature. Geddy bobbed his head, grabbed Sirius' trunk and scuttled down the hall, all in one nervous motion. Sirius was somewhat taken aback as Geddy was usually very effusive when welcoming the Young Master back from school. Well, he was probably up to his saucer-sized eyeballs in preparations for the usual series of lavish holiday parties. Sirius went in search of his parents.

He didn't find them in the drawing room, as he expected. Instead, they were up in his father's wood-paneled office. The room didn't feel right, Sirius noticed as soon as he entered. The very air seemed curdled.

"Hello?" Sirius said uncertainly. His heart sank at the level of parental disapproval he felt hovering around him. He closed the door behind him. 'Uh oh,' he thought. 'Here comes the threatened punishment.'

His mother turned away from him, which had the effect of making him face his father directly. Hadar Black smiled with little warmth. "Well, Sirius. I believe we need to talk about your behavior, do we not?"

"I guess." Sirius couldn't help a nervous twinge in his stomach. He had expected to be taken to task for climbing the castle, but that had been months ago. Surely his parents hadn't maintained a steady level of rage for all this time. He moved towards a chair.

"You don't have permission to sit!" Hadar snapped.

Sirius froze, his eyes flicking from his father's angry face to his mother's stiff shoulders and back again. Hadar, as always, noticed every small movement his son made.

"Your mother and I have spent many, many hours discussing you, Sirius." His tone indicated how distasteful they had found that task. "And we are in complete agreement of what we must do to end your discipline problems. Obviously, Hogwarts is not providing the right atmosphere for you. It's too lax, too ineffectual in bringing you to heel. You seem to think you can do as you please and pay for your transgressions with a detention or two. Well, my lad, there are always consequences for our actions. You haven't learned that at school, so you will learn it here."

"Dad, if this is about me climbing-"

"I wish it was only that!" Hadar spat. His voice dropped to a dangerous growl. "We toyed with the thought. We should have acted on it and not waited until now. But, no! I let your mother sway my decision to remove you from that school!"

"Remove me! Why do-"

Hadar's features twisted with anger. 'Why, indeed! It hardly matters now! Now that you've shamed us with your public display of perversion!"

Sirius' struggled to keep his face impassive. Remus. They were talking about him and Remus as if the feelings between them were dirty and disgusting. He bit back an insolent retort as his father swooped over to his desk and grabbed a handful of parchments.

"Look at these, Sirius! Letters! Letters from friends and patrons whose children told them about your revolting display at the Yule Ball. You disgusting piece of filth! Public snogging! And with that pasty-faced Lupin brat!

Sirius' hands clenched. His temper rose, hotter and faster and higher than he'd ever felt it before, as if a volcano of rage was about to spew forth. Grimly, he reined it in. But, Hadar was just warming up.

"Did he even have dress robes to wear? A poor little church-mouse like that! They were probably frayed at the hem and threadbare at the elbows." He was very near the mark and his keen, cold eye saw the truth of it in his son's face. He laughed.

"I'm right, aren't I? You've thrown yourself at a pauper who's probably desperate to clutch onto you for the money he thinks you'll inherit. You're both pathetic, little poufs-"

Sirius snapped. "Shut up! You don't know! You don't know anything! He's worth a thousand of you!"

"Sirius!" Anthea Black suddenly turned from the window. "Don't speak to your father in that tone!"

"Show some respect, boy!"

"Respect!" Sirius' choked voice rose higher. "You stand there attacking Remus, and what? I'm supposed to thank you for it?"

Shaking with anger, Sirius spun on his heel and headed for the door.

"I didn't give you permission to leave, you spoiled, ungrateful, little puke!"

Sirius kept walking.

"Enough!" Hadar's voice cracked like a whip. He suddenly raised his wand. "Expelliarmus!"

Catching Sirius' wand as the surprised teen whirled to face him, Hadar yelled, "Stupefy!"

And Sirius' world went black.

Cool damp air. Musty smell. Cellar. Cellar? Sirius' eyes opened.

A single lit candle didn't do much to banish the gloom. Cautiously, he sat up, realizing that he rested on a cot. And that he was, indeed, in the cellar. Vaguely wondering how long he'd been out cold, Sirius noticed an envelope with his name on it next to the candle. He picked it up and opened it. Out slid a long note written in his father's hand. Well, this should give him some indication of just what sort of strange turn his life had taken.

'Sirius,

Your childish outburst precluded any discussion of your future.'

Sirius snorted contemptuously. "Discussion! Like you'd listen to anything I have to say!" He was tempted to set the note on fire without reading any further, but figured it was best to know what his father had planned for him.

'You will return to Hogwarts at the end of the holidays.' Sirius' relief was palpable, but vanished at the next sentence.

'In March you will return home to finish your education under the direction of a tutor. Unfortunately, he is unable to start before then. However, his great knowledge of charms is essential to prepare you for the work you will do at Les Etoiles. I am pleased that I can finally tailor your education to those fields necessary for you to be successful in our business and that we won't need to waste time on useless subjects like Transfiguration or DADA. In addition, there will be no need for you to take O.W.L.s.'

Sirius couldn't believe his eyes. His father's plan would seriously hinder, if not actually destroy, his hopes to work as an Auror. He wouldn't have the background, the training, and the test scores to prove his abilities. He imagined the smile on Hadar's face as he wrote the words designed to ruin his son's dreams.

'For now, since the sight of you serves as a constant reminder of your recent vile behavior, we've decided to keep you where your presence won't cause offense, either to us or to any of our guests. I will send notes to the boys in your dormitory telling them you have been taken ill and will not be able to leave the house.'

'The house elves will deliver food and clothing to you as well as water with which to bathe. I've placed silencing charms around the cellar and locking charms on the door. You can't get out until I release you.'

'Do not try to wheedle any favors from the elves! They have been warned not to disobey me!'

'Your wand will be returned to you when you leave for Hogwarts.'

'In the meantime I strongly suggest you spend your time in deep reflection and think about how to turn your life around.'

Sirius read through the note again. Then he stood up, feeling a little residual dizziness from the Stupefying Charm. Carefully he walked to the top of the cellar stairs. The door was locked. He felt the strong magical wards pushing against him. He slowly descended and his glance fell on the two small, ground-level windows above him. Standing on the cot, he hammered at one with his fist. It was like pounding a brick wall.

Sirius sat down and read the note a third time. It finally began to sink in that his father really had imprisoned him in the cellar. He started to chuckle. The entire situation was so twisted it was funny. Who would believe this? They were going to jail him for the entire holiday break in the cellar? Maybe he'd be fed bread and water. He laughed. And the elves would bring him water with which to bathe? Did that mean no trips to the bathroom? Or would he be allowed out to use a toilet? Somehow, he couldn't imagine his parents wanted him to soil any part of their precious house with his bodily wastes. He laughed harder, hearing the slight edge of hysteria in his voice.

Or maybe his father had gone completely insane.

Sirius stopped laughing and a swirl of emotions and memories flashed past his mind's eye. How had they ever come to this? He sat silently for a long time, thinking and remembering so many instances of disapproval and rejection. What it all boiled down to was that they felt they were entitled to control him – his destiny, his decisions, and his choice of life partner. His entire being must be placed like a burnt offering on the altar of Les Etoiles.

A sudden epiphany took Sirius' breath away. James' parents, Harold and Angela Potter, were better parents to him than those people upstairs. How had they come to this? It was so screwed up.

Sirius jumped to his feet, feeling trapped at having nowhere to go. His mind flew back to the scene with his parents in his father's office. He started pacing tensely back and forth across the cellar floor. Anger again boiled up in him as remembered the look of utter loathing on Hadar's face when he spoke so disparagingly of Remus. Sirius pounded the walls in impotent fury. Hadar Black was seen as a successful, upstanding member of the community. Remus Lupin would be considered a monster. The unfairness of it all sent flames of unbridled fury through him.

"Fuck you!" He screamed into the darkness. "I fucking hate you! You're the fucking monster, not him!"

Sirius imagined hexing his parents into immobility, and then rampaging through the house, breaking and crushing and destroying everything he could get his hands on. He whipped back and forth through his prison, mentally entering each room in the dwelling above him and destroying everything in his path. Smash the chairs and throw the bits into mirrors. Fling the expensive crystal onto the floor. Rip the paintings from the walls and hurl them through the windows. Burn the expensive gowns and tasteful robes in his parents' closets and toss every bit of jewelry he could find into the flames.

Sirius stopped short, and leaned heavily against the wall. He took several deep breaths and forced himself back under control. This was no help. He was playing right into his father's hands by letting his anger run away with him. What he had to do was come up with a plan to thwart his father's stated intentions. A vague idea started to take form. It was like suddenly finding a barely discernable path in the depths of the Forbidden Forest, a way out of the wilderness. And the first step would be to accept the terms of his imprisonment. He wouldn't try to break out. He wouldn't attempt to suborn the elves into doing him favors. He'd act docile and compliant. He'd avoid giving his father any further ammunition to use against him or, God forbid, to prevent him from ever returning to Hogwarts.

At all costs, Sirius felt he had to get back to school. He would talk to Headmaster Dumbledore and explain the situation. He knew that he was considered a minor until his seventeenth birthday, which was only a few months away. But, after that? 'Can he legally force me to stay at home? What if he can't? What if I'm legally free to leave, but he refuses to pay for school or give me any support? What if he disowns me? Could I owe the school and pay them back once I'm working? Could I go to school part time and work part time? Maybe the Potters would let me stay with them.'

Sirius mind raced through the possibilities, and suddenly things didn't seem quite so bleak. There had to be a way out of the prison his parents wished to force him into. He'd figure it out. All he had to do now was be a good boy, and put up with his father's little games. Maybe he'd at least be able to talk the elves into bringing him some additional candles and something to read. In the meantime, he'd ignore the sick feeling he got in the pit of his stomach when he thought about what his parents were doing to him. He was tough enough to handle this.

The holidays passed slowly. The elves brought food twice a day. Fresh clothes and a pail of water for bathing arrived once a day. At the same time the elves would check to see if the bucket in the corner needed emptying. Sirius discovered early on that this was all the plumbing he was permitted. He gritted his teeth and used it. He felt bad for the elves as they were obviously disturbed at his entire situation. In fact, they seemed more embarrassed about this than he was. Sirius turned it to his advantage, playing up to their distress for him. He had been able to prevail upon Geddy to slip him copies of the Daily Prophet and any other reading material his parents were throwing out. But, he didn't push too hard, as he didn't want to run the risk of getting any of them in trouble.

Sirius tried to set a routine to give his days some structure. He exercised to keep himself limber. He played word games, trying to think of anagrams for the names of spells and potions. He alphabetized every single potion ingredient he'd ever heard of and then made up stories about them. At least the Daily Prophet kept him up to date. He did the crossword puzzles in his head, as he had no writing implements. And he tried to keep his emotions in check, smothering his anger and drowning his hurt, as he had so many times before. But, it was so much harder now.

He made small marks on the wall, counting off the days until he'd be freed to return to school. The miniature calendar filled him with hope and trepidation. Hope that he'd soon be released and trepidation that his parents would change their minds at the last moment and not let him go back to Hogwarts.

It was late afternoon on Saturday, the day before he'd discover his immediate fate. The cellar door opened. Sirius snapped to alertness, as this was not feeding time.

"Sirius, come upstairs," Hadar's voice commanded.

For several seconds Sirius considered refusing. But, the thought of getting out of the cellar, even if only for a moment, was too appealing. Warily, Sirius climbed the stairs. He saw his father's lip curl with distaste.

"You're in desperate need of a shower and a shave."

'No shit, Sherlock,' Sirius thought mutinously. But he said mildly, "Are you simply making an observation or are you permitting me to use a bathroom?"

Hadar's eyes narrowed. "Don't be smart with me, lad. Go clean yourself up and put on the clothes laid out for you on your bed. I'm taking you with me to dinner with Anders Groot. He's our best source for diamonds and he's also the hardest bargainer I've ever dealt with. He specifically asked that you join us for dinner. He finds you amusing."

Sirius remembered meeting Groot at several of his parents' parties, a tall, but rotund man with thin, lank, receding hair and piercing, hawkish eyes that had always made Sirius feel uncomfortable. He couldn't remember spending more than a few seconds talking with the man, so it was a mystery why Anders seemed to like him. Dinner promised to be a tedious affair. But, at least he was out. He'd be clean and he'd have a decent meal.

An hour later, Sirius joined his parents in the drawing room. He was thoroughly scrubbed and squeaky clean. It felt great. Plus, tomorrow, he'd be with Remus. The silent repetition of that name and all the feelings it evoked in his heart buoyed his spirits. His father handed him a glass of wine.

"As it's your last night home before you go back to that school, let us try to keep things on an even keel, shall we?"

"Sure, Dad."

The wine was strangely sweet, but that was easy to overlook, especially since his parents appeared almost pleased to spend some time with him. Evidently, they wanted to pretend that his sojourn in the cellar had never happened. However, Anthea seemed somewhat nervous. Her gaze flitted around the room, never resting for more than a second on his face. A voice at the back of his mind called out a warning. He ignored it.

After a second glass of wine, Hadar Black stood up. "Well, Sirius, it's time we were off."

"Good night," Anthea said.

Sirius stood and felt a little unbalanced. The wine had evidently gone right to his head. Well, that's what happens when you drink on an empty stomach. "You're not coming?" He asked his mother.

"No, it's 'Boys' Night Out' tonight," she said quickly as she headed out of the room. She didn't look at them as she left.

"Ready, son?" Hadar's smile held a dark glee that made the voice in Sirius' head sound an even more strident alarm. But a warning about what? Sirius' somewhat fuzzy thought processes couldn't figure it out.

Within a few hours, it would all be very clear. And, by then, it would be too late.