Whew. Okay I'm back with a vengeance apparently.

I'm not gonna lie to you guys, this chapter is...it's rough. There are some great moments but this the second biggest chapter in this fic so far. Because this is set up for the prank, and as set-up for the prank, one particular event needs to happen. Snape's Worst Memory. So this is that chapter.

Warnings: body horror, bullying, humiliation


NINE OF SWORDS

upright: deception, disappointment, nightmares, cruelty

reversed: inner turmoil, misery, distrust, malice

The night before her Defense Against the Dark Arts OWL, the nightmares returned. She'd foolishly taken off her necklace for a shower after her rounds and forgot to put it back on when she'd crawled under her covers.

And as a result, she'd had probably the most terrifying experience in her entire life.

It was the same dream. Same monster. Same shadow. Same full moon.

But there was something else.

The crack of bone. A boy's scream. A howl that sent shivers running down her spine.

But that wasn't what scared her.

Because she saw Remus Lupin's limp body against a wooden wall, James and Peter unconscious beside him, with Sirius nowhere to be found.

She crawled through the decrepit house, pushing through cobwebs and broken boards to find a figure dressed in black in a pool of blood.

Leaning down, she rolled him over and scrambled back when his face entered her sights.

It was mangled beyond recognition, eyeballs hanging out of their sockets while their lips had been ripped off.

Thick gashes made from claws decorated the boy's chest and face, and perhaps the most horrifying thing of all, the crown of the head was missing, teeth marks the only indication of what possibly could've happened.

Cressida's dinner came pouring out of her onto the floor, metal and bile coating her mouth as she heaved, trying to shove the image out of her mind.

Who would do this?

Who could do such a thing?

No…what could do such a thing?

She wiped her mouth and sat back against the wall, stomach in her throat as she continued to gag even though her stomach was empty.

Tears sprang to her eyes and she dry heaved once again, using her sleeve to cover her nose so she didn't have to smell the mixture of blood and bile.

Sniffle. Sniffle. Sniffle.

She paused, tilting her head to try and find the source of the sound. Gagging once more as she stepped past the mangled corpse, Cressida moved into a separate room, a four poster bed against the wall with sparse furniture. But that wasn't what caught her eye.

Cause she'd finally found Sirius Black.

The long haired boy was curled up against the wall, leather jacket stained with something dark and wet. She swallowed bile when she realized that it was probably the blood of the boy in the hall.

"Sirius?"

The boy showed no sign of hearing her, but continued to stare at the floor in front of him, eyes glassy and sniffles echoing off the walls. "I didn't mean to do it." He spoke, voice hoarse, "It was just supposed to be a prank, a harmless prank."

Cress creased her brow, "What are you talking about? What did you do?"

Grey eyes met brown and Cress was taken aback by just how much fear swirled through them. "I think I killed him, Cress."

She snapped awake, sweat dripping down her back and a scream lodged in her throat. She could still taste the bile on the tip of her tongue.

Hanging her head in her hands, Cressida glanced at her watch, noticing that she was–once again–up earlier before anyone else in her dormitory. Probably up before anyone else in Hogwarts for that matter.

Tossing her robes on and clasping the kyanite necklace and moon necklace around her neck, Cressida grabbed her books and her bag and made her way down to the Great Hall for some extra studying.

She made a quick stop in the washroom to curl her hair and gently tip-toed down the stairs to the Common Room, surveying the hunched bodies of her housemates, each surrounded by piles of books, notecards, essays, and everything inbetween.

Yep. OWLs season had been hell.

When she made her way to the Great Hall, the house-elves were still setting out breakfast, Cressida smiling at each of them before sitting down in her usual spot, pulling out her books, and studying the last few chapters of DADA before McGonagall and Slughorn removed the house tables and put desks in their places.

A few minutes later another pair of footsteps scurried across the hall, and Cressida spied a head of red hair with her nose shoved in a book.

Lily Evans was muttering to herself, shutting her eyes periodically to test her memory. Cressida smiled. She knew exactly what Lily was going through. Grabbing her toast and sausage and slinging her bag over her shoulder, Cress surprised herself when she settled down next to the muggle born girl with a smile.

"You want some help?"

The girl's face erupted into relief, "Would you? I'm going out of my mind."

Cressida grabbed her notecards from the side pocket of her bag and began to read.

Lily knew every single one, and when Cress quizzed her on the theory of the patronus charm, she practically recited the book word for word.

"Okay, I'm gonna be honest," The brunette smiled, leaning her elbow on the table, "You don't need any help. You're gonna kick this final's ass."

A skeptical look crawled across the gryffindor's face, "Really? You mean that?"

Cress nodded, suddenly grateful she didn't have to share a class with the Gryffindors. Cause Lily would give her a run for her money.

The redhead blew out a sigh of relief, "Thank god, I was so worried because Marlene kept freaking me out with stuff Davies was telling her and–"

"Davies likes to freak out all the fifth years," Cressida chuckled, "Believe me, he's just as freaked out about NEWTS as you are about OWLs."
Lily laughed and shook her head, tucking a stray piece of auburn hair behind her ear. "How are you doing? Everything okay?"

Cress creased her brows and Lily let out a sigh, "Alice and Marlene like to talk"

"Of course they do." Cress scoffed. "I'm doing okay, thanks for asking. Just waiting for this year to be over."

Lily chuckled mirthlessly, "You and me both. I'll be relieved to finally go home to my parents…" The girl paused and bit down on her lip, "And my sister, despite her irritating need to stick her nose in places it doesn't belong."

The two of them shared a laugh and continued to chat the rest of the morning away.


Walking out of the redecorated Great Hall, Cress was confident she'd nailed the exam with flying colors. One of the only exams she was actually sure about.

The sun had come out and there wasn't a single cloud in the sky, so Cress was ready to finally relax and enjoy the first few days of the summer holiday by lounging out by the Black Lake before her Transfiguration OWL.

Most of the school had the same idea, and before long, Emmeline and Dorcas had found themselves beside her.

"Well, I botched that one," Dorcas huffed, taking a drag of a cigarette before Emmeline snatched it out of her mouth, "Hey!"

Emmeline sent her a look. "I don't like making out with smoke breath,"

Dorcas rolled her eyes, "Oh come on, it's not that bad."

Cressida laughed and shook her head, eyes closed as she soaked up the sun's rays. Emmeline and Dorcas argued beside her, and suddenly it was as if the events of March had never happened.

"No doubt Cress absolutely nailed the exam," Dorcas continued to complain, "I'd be surprised if she wasn't top of our class with her marks."

She popped one eye open and stared at her dorm mate, who–along with Emmeline–had shrugged off her robes and cardigan. Dorcas had tied the bottom of her shirt into a knot just above the waistband of her skirt, and Emmeline had fully unbuttoned it, revealing the black cami she wore underneath.

Cressida, on the other hand, had completely removed her white shirt, her white tank tucked in neatly to her waistband, tie hanging out of the pockets of her bag. "I don't know, perhaps Evans will overtake me. She practically recited the book word for word when I was studying with her earlier."

Emmeline and Dorcas's mouths fell open, "Were you cheating on us?"

The laugh that left her mouth was unfamiliar but not unwelcome. "Yes," Cress admitted, rolling her eyes as she snuggled deeper into the grass, "I cheated on you with Lily Evans, and we're very happy together."

"Oh Potter isn't going to be happy about that," Emmeline snickered, popping a grape in her mouth from her snack baggie.

"What exactly, am I not going to be happy about Vance?" James Potter stole Dorcas's fresh cigarette from her hand and lit it himself, taking a quick drag before handing it back to her. The rest of his group wasn't far behind, Remus and Sirius sharing wry smiles while Peter laughed between them. He was much shorter than the two boys, but his presence was felt all the same.

Emmeline smirked as she grabbed Dorcas's cigarette again and took a drag herself. The two other girls lifted an eyebrow at their friend's action. Emmeline shrugged, "If I have to kiss someone with cig breath, they do too."

Cressida coughed as she also took a drag, handing it back to Dorcas, "God I don't know how you can go through all those packs."

"It's called stress smoking babe," Dorcas winked, drawing a chuckle from all four of them. Remus collapsed at the bottom of the tree, looking paler than usual, but still a large smile on his face.

"You didn't answer my question Vance," James lifted a brow, "What will I be upset about?"

Emmeline tilted her head, smirk growing wider, "That Cress got some action with Evans before you did."

James's mouth dropped open wide, placing a hand to his chest and pretending to be wounded, "I'm hurt you would keep such awful secrets from me Tonks," With all the flair he could muster, James pretended to wipe a tear from his face, "How could you do this to me and Remus?"

Remus and Cress decidedly rolled their eyes at James's theatrics, Sirius looking slightly amused and Peter cackling in the background.

"Ever the drama queen, Prongs," Remus shook his head, opening up his book and flipping through the pages.

James turned around to wink at his friend, "Well, you know me, Moony, have to put on a show for these lovely ladies," He ruffled his hair to make it look even messier and Cress gasped in an overdramatic manner.

"Careful James," She teased with a smile, "What will Lily think if she heard you say such profane things?"

He joined Cress at the hip, hazel eyes staring into brown as he placed his elbow on one of his knees, "I won't tell if you won't." His eyebrows wiggled above his square frames and Cressida pushed his shoulder, nearly sending him rolling into the Black Lake.

Her laughter rang across the clearing alongside James, Emmeline, Dorcas, and Peter, while Sirius and Remus stayed decidedly silent, the latter fixated on the brunette before flickering toward his friend, who was now playing with the golden snitch he'd nicked earlier.

"You know Hooch will have you head for that," Cressida arched a brow at the ball.

James shrugged, "Season's over, doesn't really matter now does it?"

Cress sat up from her lounged position and crossed her legs, flipping her hair over her shoulder, "You know if I hadn't been benched we would've demolished you in the final."

"Oh come on Tonks," James smirked, ruffling his hair again, "Just admit that we're the better team."

"Over our dead bodies," Emmeline piped up, a sense of pride filling up Cress's chest at her friend's newfound confidence in flying, "You and Black were playing dirty that whole time,"

James shared an offended look with Sirius, "What? Us, play dirty? Why, I resent that accusation, Miss Vance."

"Oh look, someone grew a vocabulary," Emmeline shot back, drawing more laughter from the group, Cress thought she saw even Remus crack a smile. Standing up from her position, Cress moved over toward the sandy-haired boy, nestling up next to him, eyes wide with curiosity, "Whatcha' reading?"

Those beautiful muted green hues that she'd missed so much turned her way and Remus flipped to the cover page, "Professor Ross gave it to me. It's a book on the properties of chocolate in the wizarding world, apparently there are quite a bit."

Cress couldn't help the wide smile that broke out across her face, silently asking for the book and Remus handing it over to her, "He caught on to your addiction then?"

"I'd hardly call it an addiction," Remus protested, "More like an unrequited love."

The laugh that left her shook her shoulders and rumbled in her stomach, drawing a soft one from the shy boy beside her.

"Perfect's right Moony," Sirius Black spoke from his position against the tree, still the only one standing, "You might need a twelve step program for chocolate–put that away would you?!"

Cress opened her mouth to protest, but Sirius continued on, "Before Wormtail wets himself with excitement."

Wormtail, she knew, was Peter, who had now turned bright red after Sirius's comment. The Black heir was more put out than usual, and Cress couldn't even fathom why.

Not that she understood Sirius when he was in a good mood either.

James merely shrugged and pocketed the snitch, "If it bothers you."

The air around them had changed slightly at the altercation. Sirius had gone back to sulking against the tree and Remus had grabbed his book back and returned to the page he'd been on. Cress, Emmeline, and Dorcas just looked at one another.

She shoved her button up back on just as Sirius let out a sigh, his breath blowing a dark curled lock away from his eyes. "I'm bored," he whinged, "Wish it was full moon."

"You might," Remus muttered under his breath before launching his gaze directly into James's, whose eyes were wider than they had been.

"Padfoot likes to stargaze, needs to see the one he's named after or his head grows three sizes too small." The grinch reference was almost enough to distract from the brief moment of terror all four boys had shared. When did James have time to watch the grinch? When had he watched it? Why had he watched it?

Not important, she told herself, and tuned back into the conversation, "There's one tomorrow, maybe we can all go together," Her gaze landed on Remus as she said that, but his eyes were fixated on the page in front of him, even though Cress was certain he'd read it more than a few times.

Something was off.

"I think we should probably study for Transfiguration instead," Remus offered, pulling out his Transfiguration book, "Here," He offered it to Sirius, "If you're bored you could test me."

Sirius scoffed, "I don't need to look at that rubbish, I know it all."

Cress highly doubted that given that he'd spent most of the semester chatting up Marlene McKinnon in that class, only to dump her just in time for holiday.

James, however, suddenly perked up as he caught sight of something in the distance, or rather, someone.

"This ought to liven you up Padfoot," He smirked, ruffling his hair once more and nodding toward the brush, "Look who it is."

The entire group turned at James's request, but only Sirius straightened up from his position, a smile licking his lips, "Excellent," He spoke with the air of an animal hunting its prey, "Snivellus."

Cressida could swear she saw his grey eyes gleam as the Slytherin walked past them, hair greasier than usual and beady eyes darting from the lake to his bag and then back to the lake again.

Beside her, Remus grew still, and Peter was watching James and Sirius eagerly.

James and Sirius moved closer to Snape, the former cocking an eyebrow at his self-appointed rival, "All right there, Snivellus?"

The nickname rang across the courtyard, drawing more than just their group's attention, and a sinking feeling began to curl in Cressida's stomach.

Snape reached into his robes and Cress saw the faint glimmer of a wand before James yelled, "Expelliarmus!" sending the wood flying.

Sirius's laughter punctured the air. She almost thought it sounded cruel.

More people had gathered around at the sound of the spell, and even Frank Longbottom and Grant Thomas had paused their game of soccer to see what was going on.

Emmeline and Dorcas were sharing wary looks, and Cress was following their lead. Something didn't feel right here.

Snape leapt for his wand and James released another jinx, "Impedimenta!"

The boy couldn't move and a knot began to slowly form at the base of Cress's throat. James and Sirius advanced on Snape, wands in hand.

Cress scrambled up from her position, trying to send a silent message to Remus to stop this before it gets out of hand, but Remus wasn't looking at her anymore.

"We gotta do something," Cress approached her friends, whispering while James and Sirius continued to taunt him.

Emmeline nodded and slung her bag around her shoulder, "I'll go get Professor McGongagall, she'll know what to do–"

"Why?" Dorcas's tone was cold, and her breathing heavy as she stared at Snape's immobile body. The Slytherin said something they couldn't make out and James clicked his tongue.

"Wash your mouth. Scourgify!"

Cress winced as soap bubbles foamed out of Snape's mouth, making him look like a rabid dog as he choked on his own spit.

Emmeline waited with bated breath and Dorcas continued to stare, "Why should we help him? He's done nothing but torment us all year, doesn't he deserve some back?!" Her eyes were cold and hard, and Cress stepped back in shock.

Dorcas was right. She owed Snape nothing.

He'd taunted her about her potions grade, called her a Mudblood any chance he got, and spread rumors around about her sleeping with Amos Diggory just for the hell of it. Not to mention all the shit he'd done to her friends.

Calling Dorcas a half-breed, Emmeline a stuck up chav, and purposefully messing up their potions.

Severus Snape was a bully through and through. By all means he deserved to be punished the way he'd punished them.

But not like this.

Cressida didn't want to see her friends turn into monsters.

"Leave him ALONE!" A new voice cut through the clearing, and a mane of bright red hair entered Cressida's vision.

Upon seeing Lily Evans, James immediately set to work improving himself, ruffling his hair and cracking a smile. "All right, Evans?"

Lily's mouth hardened into a thin line, emerald eyes staring daggers at the Potter boy. "Leave. Him. Alone. What's he done to you?"

James drew a breath between his teeth as if deliberating over the question, "Well, It's more the fact that he exists, if you know what I mean…"

Laughs scattered themselves across the crowd, but Cressida stayed silent. So did Remus. So did Lily.

"You think you're funny," Lily spoke coldly, lips curled into a frown, "But you're just an arrogant, bullying, toerag, Potter! Now leave him alone."

James's brows stretched upward underneath his mop of curls, crossing his arms as he pressed forward, "I will if you go out with me, Evans" A ripple of shock fell over the crowd, "Go on, go out with me and I'll never lay a wand on old Snivelly again."

The crowd grew silent, and the knot in Cress's throat grew tighter.

Lily's shoulders moved up and down with each breath she took, and with one more exhale…

"I wouldn't go out with you if it was a choice between you and the giant squid!"

Sirius inhaled sharply and patted James's shoulder, "Oof, bad luck Prongs."

The smirk disappeared from James's face and for a brief moment, Cress wondered if it was all over.

"OI!" Sirius called out, but everything happened too fast for anyone to stop.

A flash of light impeded her vision for a brief moment and when she could see again, a large gash had split across James's cheek, blood splattered over his robes.

Another flash of light and Cressida felt her stomach drop.

Snape hung upside down in the air, flailing as his wand fell out of his hands and back on the ground. His robes fell to his hip, exposing a pair of pale skinny legs and greying underpants.

A brief moment of shock before the world exploded into laughter, jeers coming from all houses. Hufflepuffs were sharing blushing cackles while Gryffindors erupted into laughter beside Sirius, James, and Peter.

Ravenclaws were jeering, with Dorcas joining in on the action.

Cressida couldn't stop the victorious 'hah!' that escaped her lips, and even Emmeline and Lily seemed to be stifling a giggle.

"Let him down!" The red-head demanded, and James tilted his head with a smirk.

"Certainly."

Snape fell in a disgruntled heap on the field, and reached for his wand once again.

"Oh no, you don't," Sirius lazily flicked his wand with a vicious smile, "Petrificus Totalus!"

The Slytherin went rigid, and keeled over at the sound of the first-year spell.

"LEAVE HIM ALONE!" Lily stepped directly into James's line of sight, wand out and ready to be used if necessary.

James let out a groan, like a child having his favorite toy taken away, "Aw come on Evans, don't make me hex you."

Grabbing her own wand, Cressida muttered the countercurse and Snape began to move. "No one's hexing anyone," She announced, planting herself directly between Lily and James, "Unless it's me, hexing all of you to shut up and leave each other alone."

James bit down on his lip, slinking back toward the tree, anger flooding his gaze as Lily moved over to check up on Snape.

"What the hell, Tonks?" Sirius whirled on her, "It was just a bit of harmless fun."

"Harmless?" Cress scoffed.

James scratched underneath his nose with his wand hand before pointing the magical object at Snape once again, "You're lucky Evans and Tonks were here Snivellus," He snarled, rage nearly bubbling over, "You'd be dead otherwise."

Snape spat out some grass that had found home in his mouth and glowered at James with a murderous rage, "I don't need help from filthy little mudbloods like them!"

The clearing grew silent.

Cressida may have gotten used to hearing the slur from Snape, but it was obvious from the crestfallen expression and budding tears on Lily Evans' face that she was not.

"What did you just call me?" Her voice was soft and thick, and it seemed to dawn on Snape that he'd screwed up.

But he still said nothing.

Steeling herself, Lily screwed her lips into a frown, "Fine, I won't bother in the future," She snapped, "And I'd wash your pants if I were you, Snivellus."

If possible, James grew even more incensed, and in a roar of rage, pointed his wand at Snape once more, "Apologize to them! Both of them!"

"I don't need your help!" Lily shouted at the Gryffindor, nearly blowing him back, "For god's sake, you're just as bad as he is."

"Me? I would never call you–"

"Messing up your hair because you think it looks cool to look like you've just got off your broomstick, showing off with that stupid Snitch, walking down corridors and hexing anyone who annoys you just because you can–" Lily let out a huff of indigance, "I'm surprised your broomstick can get off the ground with that fat head on it. You make me sick!"

Another round of silence fell over the crowd, James's mouth flapping up and down as he tried to find the words to explain himself but failed.

Lily turned to face Cress and her expression softened, "I'm sorry he called you that," and without another word, the red-head girl spun on her heels toward Hogwarts.

James called after her, but he received no reply, and Cress turned around to face the crowd. "Show's over folks, get back to your dorms."

No one moved.

"Now!"

The crowd scattered, and with no one left to play audience to his theatrics, James sighed and turned away from Snape, lazily flicking his wand to cause the Slytherin's stuff to go blowing in the wind, far away from their little lounging spot.

Even now, the two of them were acting like this wasn't a big deal. Like it had been some small jinx on a first year rather than active torment of their own classmate.

Cressida didn't like Snape either. Hated him, if she was being honest, but in no world would she ever torment him like James and Sirius had done.

The contents of her stomach churned, and even Dorcas–who'd originally endorsed the behavior–looked like she was gonna be sick.

"I can't believe you two," Cress scolded, the two boys sitting down at the base of the tree with Remus, James leaning his head against the bark with a sour expression on his face and Sirius staring murderously at the area where Snape had been, like he'd lost his dinner, "What the hell were you thinking?"

"Like I said, Tonks," Sirius spoke callously, "It was just some harmless fun."

Cressida scoffed at his words, "That was far from harmless. I've seen you guys do pranks before but that…" She couldn't even find the words to scold them with properly. "That wasn't harmless. That was actively torturing a student because he looked at you the wrong way. I–god I'm so ashamed to be associated with you right now–I can't, I can't even look at you!"

"But you can look at him?" James' voice was dangerously low, "Even after he called you that, even after all the atrocities he and his bloody supremacist group committed? Do you know what he did to you? What he's been saying about you? You're gonna defend a coward like that?"

"I'm not defending him!" She protested, filing away the need to know more away in her brain, even though her curiosity was getting the better of her, "But we're not soldiers. We're kids. We're students. Shit like that may be acceptable in this war that the Prophet keeps talking about but we're fifteen fucking years old!"

The clearing went silent again and Cressida scoffed, "And the worst part is that I expected better from you, Remus."

The sandy-haired boy finally looked up from his book, eyes wide at the sound of his name, "James and Sirius, Lily's right about them, they've always been bullies but you…"

Remus shifted his gaze to the grass beneath him, not even willing to look at her.

Gulping down the words stuck in her throat, Cressida gathered up her supplies and headed toward the castle, Emmeline and Dorcas following close behind.


If possible, somehow things got worse the next night. Cressida didn't have any more OWLs left, so Trelawney had no qualms about assigning her the final shift of rounds from 9pm to 3am.

And it was during that time that Cress overheard a very crucial conversation between Sirius Black, and Severus Snape.

"What are you doing out of bed, Black?" Snape's drawl was cold and calculated, and Cress knew he would never forgive Sirius and James of their treatment of him that day by the lake.

She could almost hear the smirk on Sirius's face, "Have you been promoted to the rank of prefect Snivellus? Or just sticking your greasy nose where it doesn't belong again?"

Cress peeked over the corner of the wall, watching Snape's hands curl into fists at Sirius's words.

"Perhaps I should inform Filch about your late night activities, I'm sure he'd be happy to give you a detention to finish out the year."

Sirius sighed and rolled his eyes, crossing his arms with a cock of his brow, "And how are you going to explain your presence out of bed? Last I checked, you weren't a prefect."

"No, but I was busy serving out a detention for Professor Slughorn," Snape's smile was wicked, the glint of his eyes sending a shiver down Cress's spine, "And considering Filch hates you and your little group, it's your word against mine Black."

Sirius scoffed, "You go to Filch, I go to Dumbledore, who do you think he's going to believe?"

"Dumbledore's an old fool," Snape snarled, "He's the entire reason this school is going to the dogs. Letting in scum like Loony Lupin and that Mudblood he's always hanging out with."

The sound of bone against brick clattered through the hall, a suit of armor jangling as Sirius pressed Snape against the wall, hands digging into the skinnier boy's shoulders, "Say that one more time Snivellus. Perhaps Evans will finally come to her senses when she hears what a fucking asshole you are."

"Careful Black," Snape spoke through strangled breaths, his smile growing wider, "Can't have you injured on a full moon, can we? What will poor, lonely, loony, Remus Lupin think when his best friend doesn't show up to support him?"

"You little shit–"

Skin smacked into skin, and the crunching of bone filled Cressida's ears. CRACK!

Sirius's fist collided into Snape's jaw, tackling the slytherin to the ground with all the strength of a beater, and thankfully Cressida had the good sense to intervene before things got too far.

"Hey! Enough! Both of you!"

They didn't listen. Snape had started throwing punches now, and Cress tried to avoid the flailing fifth years as she grabbed onto Sirius's arm, pulling him back and pushing Snape away, "I SAID ENOUGH!"

The two boys backed up, Snape wiping the blood from his mouth and nose, Sirius seething with rage.

"You'll pay for that Black," Snape snarled.

Sirius's mouth turned into a sly smirk, "Oh yeah? How about you come see for yourself what the full moon can do?" Silence hung over the trio but Sirius didn't back down, breathing heavily with each word, "You wanna prove your theory correct? Go down to the whomping willow and touch the damn tree with a stick. You'll see exactly what I'm capable of."

"That's enough!" Cressida jumped in, blocking Sirius's line of sight, "Both of you back to your dorms now, or I'll write you both up and you can talk this out in detention."

The boys shared one more murderous look with one another before Snape disappeared around the corner, and Sirius waltzed back toward the Gryffindor dormitory.

But something in Cress's brain tugged at her curiosity, and–after checking her watch–she headed back to the Ravenclaw common room to get changed and figure out just what exactly Sirius Black was up to.


Next Up: The Prank