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Sirius tossed about in bed for the majority of his first night at Hogwarts. After a day full of excitement, a full meal, and spending time getting to know his bunkmates, he was certain sleep would come easily...yet, he laid awake and stared aimlessly at the ceiling as his mind shuffled through a hundred different thoughts.
First, the surreality of being a Gryffindor had not yet settled. He had seen green and silver all his life so it was strange to see a change of colors, especially ones of red and gold. His eyes peered through the darkness at the red banners, yellow accents, and several portraits and images relating to Godric Gryffindor. Sirius knew so little about this founder, he even felt obligated to go to the library to do some research until he remembered that he never went above and beyond like that and he had a reputation to uphold (after all).
Second, Sirius was still getting used to the fact that he had three friends, who were all as eager as he to start this new life. James, this rich boy who seemingly had not a single hardship in life, was not so much the spoiled child one would think. Peter was a loner, the one who got bullied and did nothing about it, but Sirius inwardly promised that he wouldn't let anyone bully him. Remus…well, Sirius did not know much about this boy, but that was what drew Sirius towards him.
It was the first time Sirius had friends.
"Can't sleep?"
Sirius lifted his head off the pillow and stared through the darkness, vaguely seeing the shape of someone sitting up on their elbows. Sirius blink a few times to wipe away the blurriness and finally recognize the speaker to be Frank Longbottom.
"Not really," Sirius answered truthfully, looking across the dormitory. "You either?"
"Oh, no," Frank said cheerfully and threw him a grin that was visible even in the darkness. "Your writhing woke me."
"Oh!" Sirius said, a bit taken aback. "Sorry—"
"I'm only joking," Frank cut in with a quiet chuckle and swung his legs off the side of his bed, gesturing wordlessly to the exit.
Sirius sighed with resignation but followed him out of the dormitory, padding down to the Common Room, where he could see Frank clearer in the dim glow.
"What're we doing?" he mumbled and rubbed the corners of his eyes, feeling satisfied when he rubbed away the crusts. "You know we'll have to be up in three hours?"
"You just looked like you needed to talk to someone."
Sirius bit the inside of his cheek so hard, it made him wince; but, Frank was not too far from the truth. He had been mulling over his internal conflicts for the majority of the night and had gotten no closer to feeling better about it. He even contemplated waking Remus up, but he decided against it lest he endure the wrath of a sleepy first year.
"I guess you aren't wrong," the artisocrat said but shrugged his shoulders. "It's not really important though and it's definitely not worth sacrificing sleep over."
"Isn't that what you were doing all night?" Frank snorted and folded his arms over his chest. "I won't keep asking but you should probably talk to someone. I dunno how much more of this tossing and turning I can take."
"Har har," Sirius said dryly, albeit he wore a small grin. He was glad the heaviness of his sullenness was slowly ebbing away. "G'night, mate."
"Hang on, mate," Frank said and waved a hand. "Up for a game of Exploding Snap?"
.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.
Muggle Couple Gone Missing
An article by:
Pandora Wroxton
Muggles Bethany Hall and Norman Oaks went missing at approximately 18:27 yesterday (Tuesday). The couple's families insist they never leave their doors unlocked and their belongings, a handheld purse and her house keys, lying on the counter.
"If they were to have gone somewhere, those would have been the first things they would have grabbed!" Mr. Oaks stated.
The Muggle news has broadcasted this strange event and sent out a silver alert to each broadcasting radio station and television station. Muggles go astray daily, but this particular case caught the attention of the Minister for Magic, herself, Millicent Bagnold. According to Muggle police, the Muggle couple left one clue that may link their disappearance to the culprit.
On a cabinet door in the kitchen, it appears as if someone carved a symbol with one's fingernails. The symbol resembles that of a pentagram, a universal symbol of witchcraft and evil magic. While Muggle police firmly believe their disappearance may have something to do with the "Church of Satan", a firm belief in Christian religion, Millicent Bagnold had, under public pressure, to appear at the scene of the crime.
"The disappearance of Bethany Hall and Normal Oaks has nothing to do with our world!" Bagnold declared loudly. "While the symbol is undeniably a pentagram, there has been no traces of magic detected by our highly trained and competent Aurors, not to mention Ministry officials from the Muggle-Worthy Excuse Committee, who have the police convinced this was the work of a cult."
While the Minister for Magic stands firm in her beliefs, others are still doubtful as disappearances of Muggles and crimes in the Muggle world have increased significantly with little traces left to explain the circumstances. Not even three months ago, a Muggle family suffered a break-in and lost their valuables, which were stolen from them right in front of their eyes! The only thing they could manage was a few mumbled words here and there. It appeared to be the result of a modified memory...suspiciously done by the works of wizards and witches...
However, there can be no telling what this disappearance means nor can we predict the future of Muggle-Wizard Relations. The Minister for Magic and Britain's Prime Minister are still on speaking terms though there seems to be tension between the two parties. More than once, our own Minister for Magic has seen scowling just at the mere mention of the Prime Minister. Are there secrets still left to be discovered? What is the Ministry of Magic not telling us? Why are they more opaque and vague than the Department of Mysteries, themselves?
More to come,
Pandora Wroxton
Sirius knew he did not have the best of luck, but when his eyes caught the headlines of the Daily Prophet this morning, he could not believe just how unfortunate timing really was. It was not uncommon for the paper to publish small articles on muggle crimes, but it seemed to have everyone fired up, especially a certain Potter…
"Rubbish," the bespectacled boy said and scowled at the article as if it had personally offended him. "I reckon you anything the Ministry's probably trying to keep it quiet! I wonder what they had to do to get this article in the Daily Prophet...probably had to pay for it!"
"Strange," Sirius said in agreement though he tried not to sound too interested.
"I don't understand," Remus said softly and pushed the paper away from his plate to keep the food from smearing it. "We've seen this stuff before…"
"Maybe not, but it is strange, mate," he said softly, gesturing to the Slytherin table with his head. "Muggle disappearances, Muggle-home invasions, stealing valuables...the rise of crimes against Muggles...it's a bit much, don't you think? James probably isn't too far off with the whole pay-per-space, which explains why there isn't much on it."
"I'd pay to publish articles like this," James mumbled and pushed his eggs around with his toast, more invested in the conversation than the food under his nose. "We might just finally be forced to pay attention to one or two if they show up enough."
"I suppose," the paler boy said slowly, though he was frowning. "But what's so 'strange' about—"
"Mate, stop and think about it for a moment, all right?" Sirius said impatiently, fingers tapping the table in agitation. "There are loads of witches and wizard families, ancient ones at that, who have more valuable things than Muggles. Why aren't they stealing from those families?"
"I dunno," Remus said earnestly as he mulled the question over in his head. "Maybe because the ones stealing are...close to the families? No—maybe because they aren't powerful enough to steal from ancient families?"
Sirius shook his head and turned to Peter, prompting him for a response.
"Because..." Peter said, trailing off. It was unlikely he had any idea but to the surprise of his friends, he suggested something too sensible. "The ones stealing are the ancient families. Ancient families are pure-bloods mostly, aren't they? Well, if they're already at the top of the food chain, then why would they bother risking a sentence on families that are equally as powerful when there are families that are weaker?"
Sirius clapped his hands at Peter, pleased with his answer, and turned to Remus once more.
"The ones who are committing these crimes against Muggles are pure-bloods, who still carry on the tradition that Muggles are beneath them! They're not worth licking the mud off their boots," Sirius replied in exasperation although glad to have gotten to the point. "Listen, these crimes aren't just...for fun. It's like they're trying to send a message."
"But they're less powerful," Remus said as he rubbed his forehead. Sirius could only speculate why this was such a foreign concept for the wizard when he had been living in this world his entire life. It was as if these thoughts never reached him once. "Why would they go after Muggles if they're trying to convey a message? A message of power, I'm assuming—"
"Because that's their idea of fun," James said simply with a shrug of his shoulders. "There's nothing more to it."
"If it was just their idea of fun, don't you think they'd do a better job hushing it up?" Sirius snorted, pushing his goblet aside to grab the paper and scan the article; while it was nothing out of the ordinary, he was sure there was more to it than what was written here. "They'd make sure not a single detail about the crimes would be published."
"How do you know all this?" James asked curiously, eyebrows knit. "You're pretty good at speculating, mate, but a message? What message are these lunatics trying to send? It makes more sense if they're just..."
The eldest Black heir swallowed thickly but it was only a matter of time before his family's name would show up in one of the Wizarding's Most Wanted section of the Daily Prophet and he would rather be honest and upfront about it now then have his best mate discover the truth through the grapevine.
"My family's been doing it for generations now," Sirius admitted heavily, looking at his now-shaking hands. His jaw was set, his eyes were cast down on the table, and there was a definite edge to his voice now. "Just little things here and there like property damage or some slight terrorizing, nothing bad enough to raise attention to themselves, but enough to fill their satisfaction."
Peter gasped, Remus bit his lip, but James merely kept his expression impossible to read.
"That one over there—" Sirius pointed to a very blonde and very unpleasant-looking sixth year, whose chin was tilted up in a very sanctimonious way. "That's Narcissa and that brown-haired girl next to her is her sister, Andromeda."
"I didn't know…" Remus muttered quietly, picking at his nail to avoid eye contact. "I didn't know that they were your family…"
"I didn't either," Peter said truthfully, speaking up for the first time in a while. He pointed to the kinder-looking seventh year beside the blonde. "But I think I recognize her…she helped me figure out where to put my trolley at the station…so…so maybe…"
Sirius believed Andromeda was different from the others, but high hopes only hurt him in the end.
"What about that other blonde boy?" Peter asked and pointed to a recognizable face.
"Lucius Malfoy?" the ravenette growled, lip curling back. "Is that seventh year, who has already been in trouble for bullying a Muggle boy when he was eight! I heard he swelled the boy's head up so much, the Department of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes had to intervene. Apparently, the Accidental Accidental Magic Reversal Squad and the Oblivators Headquarters had to fix it! Loads of villagers say Malfoy didn't show a shred of remorse...in fact, he seemed kind of happy about it."
"That's sick," Peter said in horror.
"No kidding, Pete, but that's who Narcissa is marrying," Sirius said in agreement before waving his hand again. "And that's just who my family is…Bellatrix has always been a big supporter of my mother, and my mother has always been a supporter of Gellert Grindelwald—"
"Who?" Peter and Remus asked together.
"Honestly, open a History of Magic book," Sirius snorted, although there was the faintest hint of mirth directly aimed towards Remus. "He was this really powerful wizard, who believed magic should only be contained and practiced by those who were worthy of it. Muggle-borns or those who had Muggle traces in their family history didn't have the right to practice or use magic...or that's what Grindelwald believed."
"That's mad," Remus said.
Sirius stared at him for a moment, wondering just how long this kid was living under a rock.
"His philosophy wasn't all that far-fetched," James piped up, taking the others by surprise. It was almost forgotten that James came from a very respectable, pure-blood family, not just Sirius; so, of course he would know about it. "He had a load of supporters for the longest time before Professor Dumbledore overpowered him."
"Dumbledore?" Remus began but was, once again, cut off.
"Ace," Sirius said with yet another wave of his hand. "Anyway, my family has been supporters of the idea that Muggles were beneath wizards but that's common with pure-bloods, so there's nothing really new...about that..."
"There's a load I don't know, I guess," Remus said after a short pause, giving them a bit of a helpless shake of his head and shrug of his shoulders. "There's a load I need to learn."
Breakfast was finished in a rather quiet manner although they were not the only somber ones. Other students with the Daily Prophet seemed to have read the same article and be mulling over the same thoughts. The Slytherin table, however, seemed the liveliest, carried on their conversations as if unbothered by the recent news of the Muggle couple.
Sirius had lost his appetite from a simple conversation but the nausea of confessing the truth made it hard to want to eat anything this morning. He found his eyes wandering over to the Slytherin table more than once and Sirius soon came to realize just how close he was to becoming another mindless member of the Noble House of Black. When he began to protest the ideology of his family, he did it more out of spite than genuinity, but it changed when he started to understand the severity of these crimes against Muggles.
Was he like them?
Sirius stared at the blonde witch, cupping his chin in his hand with a solemn gaze. It was such a stark contrast to his own ebony-colored hair, but past the superficial appearance, he considered the resemblance…the same piercing eyes, aristocratic posture, and cold look…what was there to deny?
"Ready?" James asked, breaking Sirius from his thoughts.
Though the true answer deviated from the simple nod, Sirius kept his mouth shut.
The four boys departed from the Great Hall and followed the slow-moving crowd to the corridors, where the horde did not seem to get any thinner. Sirius's eyes were on his toes when James suddenly nudged him in the ribs and hard.
"What?" the silver-eyed student grumbled and switched his book bag to his other arm to protect his side. His eyes strayed to where James was watching and suddenly grinned. "Oh!"
James launched forward, Sirius following close behind, and plowed down two students not too far ahead of them. In the fray of flailing limbs, falling books, and tangling of robes, Sirius spotted red hair. The young girl sputtered as her greaseball friend scrambled around to pick up her books, ignoring his own. Evans stared at James for a passing moment, lips pursed and face turning redder.
What an odd thing, Sirius thought to himself as James eyed her back. Was it out of anger or something else?
However, Lily gave Snivellus a grateful smile before taking him by the wrist and leading him away from the scene; dejected by the lack of a reaction, Sirius nudged James back with a hearty laugh.
"What was that all about?"
"You practically stampeded my future wife," the bespectacled boy replied, grinning toothily.
"What?" Sirius balked and felt his jaw drop; not only could he not picture James and Evans ever being anything other than enemies, but he could not picture a less compatible pair. "Her? Evans?"
"Seriously, Sirius! Try to have some tact next time; you're supposed to be my wingman."
"I am!" Sirius said indignantly but his tone was full of amusement. "Besides, it was Snivellus's fault his greasy head got in the way. He side-stepped and pushed me into her!"
James pretended to scowl as he readjusted his bag, setting off once again with Remus and Peter in tow. The four of them gathered outside the Transfiguration classroom where the shining letters spelled out: MCGONAGALL, indicating they were in the right room. Other first years looked around in excitement and anticipation, eager to begin their first Transfiguration lesson. Sirius spotted Evans coming down from the opposite end of the corridor (having taken a different route to avoid James) and watched her frown at the sight of them.
"Evans," James said in delight, not quite catching the hint…or perhaps taking the hint but ignoring it regardless. He waved her over with a hand. "Are you taking Transfiguration, too? Fancy that…maybe you can transfigure your friend a better face—"
The crowd roared with laughter, but Professor McGonagall was quick to silence the room. The Potter boy's expression was anything but contrite…however, he did fall quiet the moment the lesson began.
"In Transfiguration, we will study and practice the art of very difficult and hard-to-master magic," Professor McGonagall began and gestured to the various objects laid on her desk. "Its vitality is undeniable but consequential should you get it wrong. Therefore, this magic will be practiced in a safe environment, but this does not mean slacking is acceptable."
Now the students looked less excited and more apprehensive...everyone except James, whose attention was unwavering as he stared avidly at his professor.
"Despite the risks, Transfiguration will always prove its worth. For example…"
Professor McGonagall circled around to the front of the room and behind her desk; once certain all could see her, she began to morph before their eyes. Sirius felt a nearly audible gasp escape his lips as a silver tabby stood in the place of his professor. The feline curled its tail over its paws and eyed the students with amber orbs and the boisterous student could swear those markings on the face resembled the Headmistress's glasses too well to be a coincidence.
The cat leaped off the desk and transformed back into a human; Professor McGonagall looked around the classroom, lips twitching into a small smile before she silenced her class with a raise of a hand.
"The study of animagi will not take place until your third year," she apprised, ignoring the soft groans of the disappointed students. "However, I always encourage students to exceed expectations."
Sirius cupped his chin in his hand and stared out the window, lamenting over missing out on such a beautiful day. The blue skies only looked too promising and the cool breeze coming through the open window smelled fresh.
"We will begin our lesson with transfiguring a pebble into a marble…"
It did not take him long to slowly tune her out; but, when the class officially began, Sirius struggled more than he imagined he would and it appeared no student was going to be successful today. In fact, everyone was saying the incantation, but nothing more than a feeble spark would shoot out of the occasional wand. It was disheartening to Sirius that his magic was not working or doing what he wanted it to do (to say the least), but he realized he was being foolish for thinking magic would come so easily to him.
Peter, on the other hand, had gone white with concentration; although, on more than one occasion, he had turned a hint of blue for holding his breath for so long. Annoyed and having lost the momentum of motivation, Sirius started to curse under his breath; he jabbed the pebble with more and more vigor, which only managed to change the rock's color to resemble a marble.
The only student who seemed to be progressing farther than anyone else was James, who had already transfigured his perfectly and was practicing reversing the spell. Meanwhile, Remus had only managed to make his tiny stone into a circle whereas Sirius made his stone more colorful and translucent…as if made from glass—that should definitely count for something.
Professor McGonagall, taken aback by James's quick success, awarded Gryffindor 15 points, but not a single point for Sirius's multicolored rock.
After a particularly invigorating and exhausting lesson, History of Magic was nothing. Remus, the only one who was excited for this class, looked as exhausted there as he did in Transfiguration—and Sirius could not blame him. The professor happened to be a ghost, which was fitting, but the Black heir swore he would end up dying of boredom, too. Professor Binns floated right through the wall, which was impressive for about five seconds before the novelty wore off.
He hardly wasted any time with introductions and jumped straight into their first lesson. Unfortunately, it was not nearly as enticing or entertaining as they hoped for. In fact, it was the opposite. All Professor Binns did was talk in a monotone for the entire hour and a half. He hardly took breaks to wait for students to jot down everything (if there was even a single student doing so). Sirius tried to keep up at first, but his mind kept wandering farther and farther away. His eyes began to droop and his right arm, which was holding the quill, began to slip on the parchment…
He dreamt of his family's manor, standing in the foyer as they all stood by the door waiting for him. Each one wore an unnaturally wide and sinister smile, heads tilted eerily to one side; his mother held out her hand, beckoning him closer, but Sirius kept his feet planted firmly in place. The uniform of his family was not the only thing off about this scene. Despite his best efforts, Sirius could not run away and when he tried shouting, his mother lunged with a clawed hand, mouth opening wide as she let out a shriek. Sirius clapped his hands over his ears and squeezed his eyes shut, unable to escape his family's grip.
"Professor?"
Sirius jumped and looked around frantically for a moment, heart beating unhealthily quick. However, it was only James.
Professor Binns looked shocked, too, for he stopped his lesson and raised both of his ghostly eyebrows. Evidently, Sirius was not the only one startled awake. Other students, including Remus, began stirring once more—the most movement there had been since the class started.
"The bell rang ten minutes ago," James deadpanned and rubbed a hand down his face.
"How silly of me," Professor Binns said and shook his head, putting a translucent hand to his translucent forehead. "I lost track of time. Time…hm…time is so relative and so feeble. Well, students, off you go…"
The four boys packed their things and headed out, still drowsy after that lesson as they made their way to Charms. Professor Flitwick was not particularly pleased at the amount of students who were coming in late to his class, but after they explained their reasoning, he let it go with a sigh. Instead, he climbed up on the stack of books he situated at the front of the classroom and pulled out his wand.
"I am Professor Flitwick," the little goblin said and waved his wand, which dimmed the lights. "Welcome to Charms for first years!"
Sirius had heard of Professor Flitwick before but only from other students. It was fascinating to see him in person and though he may have only been part wizard and part goblin, he was a model student and the head of Ravenclaw.
"There's quite a bit to learn for your first year so it's important we start right away," Professor Flitwick continued, lighting the end of his wand and tapping the projector. "We will begin with the first chapter..."
Charms went normally and without any out of the ordinary events. However, Peter did manage to set Remus's robes on fire when he was practicing the lumos spell. It was quickly extinguished and class resumed on as normal. James did not seem at all as enthusiastic as he was in Transfiguration, but where his enthusiasm lacked, someone else was excelling already.
"Miss Evans, you are doing a wonderful job!" Professor Flitwick said squeakily, clapping in excitement. "I'd say a well-earned twenty points to Gryffindor!"
On their way out of Charms, Sirius could not help but notice Remus all but hobbling down the corridor like a hunchback. With flying lessons next, he was not sure the sickly boy could make it to the stairs let alone a broomstick.
"Oi," James said worriedly, putting a hand on the brunette's shoulder to help him balance. "Are you all right?"
"Fine—I'm fine," Remus insisted stubbornly, pushing James away. However, none of them were oblivious to the boy's ailment.
"I reckon you're lying," Sirius said in a singsong voice, ready to sling an arm around the other's neck.
However, before he could even mosey on over to his friend's side, the reticent boy grunted in displeasure and pushed past them all, chin tilted upward as he adopted a rather genuine scowl.
"I said I'm fine."
None could decipher where the sudden aggression came from, but there was no denying it. As strange and arbitrary as the outburst was, no one dared to say a thing until the testy boy was out of earshot. But, the moment Remus rounded the corner, Sirius looked to his friends for some sort of explanation, hoping one of them had it.
When neither presented a plausible reason, Sirius felt a heaviness to his chest. Finally, James spoke first.
"I dunno about you…but it almost felt like we did something wrong…"
