"I think the Nimbus is better than the Cleansweep," James said authoritatively. "Cleansweeps are sometimes better at first, but they don't hold up as well. After a few months, they'll start to veer to one side or the other, and sometimes the breaking charms-"
"No one cares, James," Sirius interrupted, pouring sugar into his coffee. James's jaw dropped. He had done nothing but talk about broomsticks since he found out that they were having their first flying lesson that day. "Sorry," Sirius said quickly. "No one cares but you."
Remus choked a bit on a piece of toast as he snickered, but tried to cover it up. James gave him a dirty look.
"I'm excited too," Remus said truthfully. "I just don't really have any idea what you're talking about. I've never ridden a broomstick before."
James's mouth dropped open again, allowing a bite of toast to fall out of it. "What? You've never been on a broom!" He looked appalled.
"Well, no," Remus said. He'd entertained himself with books, and other quiet, indoor activities. He and his parents had tried to keep his life as simple, and as safe, as they possibly could. That meant no broomsticks. The thought of riding a broom had never even occurred to him until he found out they would have flying lessons.
"Oh, just wait!" James cried. "You're going to love it! It's the greatest thing in the world! I mean, you're flying through the air-"
"I think he knows that," Peter muttered, and Sirius laughed. James glared at all of them.
"Just you wait," he said grumpily. "I'll be the star of the Quidditch team next year. You'll see."
His predictions were cut short by the delivery of the mail. A bright red envelope landed in front of Sirius, and James, Remus and Peter all stared at it in horror. A look of fear and embarrassment crossed Sirius's face so quickly that Remus thought he might have imagined it. Then it was replaced by a proud, haughty look, and Sirius laughed.
"Well, it was only just a matter of time," he said. "Frankly, I'm stunned that I made it – what, five weeks? – into school before she found out. I'm amazing." He sighed and shook his head. "Well, here goes." He leaned back, slit open the Howler, and tossed it onto the table.
"SIRIUS BLACK!" the letter screamed. "I HAVE NEVER BEEN SO ASHAMED!" Sirius rolled his eyes. "DID YOU REALLY THINK I WOULDN'T FIND OUT? HOW STUPID DO YOU THINK I AM?" Sirius laughed out loud at that part. "SIX GENERATIONS OF BLACKS HAVE BEEN IN SLYTHERIN! SIX GENERATIONS! YOU HAVE BROKEN A PROUD TRADITION! YOUR FATHER IS HEARTBROKEN AT THE THOUGHT OF HIS NOBLE, PUREBLOOD SON LIVING AMONGST THOSE MUDBLOODS AND MUGGLE-LOVERS!" The entire Great Hall seemed to gasp at the same time. The Slytherins were snickering to each other, and everyone else looked appalled. "YOU WATCH YOUR STEP, BOY, OR YOU'LL END UP NO BETTER THAN A MUDBLOOD YOURSELF!"
The Great Hall was silent as the letter burst into a pile of ash. Sirius stared at it for only a moment before seizing its remains, and leaping onto the table. "Did you hear that?" He yelled. "I broke six generations of proud tradition!" He pumped his fist in the air triumphantly. The tension broke in the hall as the Gryffindor table erupted into cheers and laughter, accompanied by several Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws. Remus clapped and yelled with the others, grinning and shaking his head in disbelief.
"Get down from the table please, Mr. Black," said a dry voice from behind Remus. He turned to see Professor McGonagall, looking very much like she was trying not to smile. Sirius turned and flashed her his most charming grin. "As pleased as I am to have you in my house, on top of the breakfast table is not the appropriate place to celebrate."
"Of course, Professor," Sirius said, climbing down and sliding back into his seat, looking very pleased with himself.
As they walked to Transfiguration, Remus thought about what Sirius had just done with a touch of awe. Had it been him, he would have run from the Great Hall in humiliation, and even if he had had the nerve to do what Sirius had done, he was pretty sure McGonagall would have given him detention.
Remus thought about it for most of the day, in fact. He thought about how Sirius could handle anything, and how everyone liked Sirius. It wasn't fair, he thought, that one person could be so lucky. Everywhere Sirius went, he was the center of attention.
It was therefore weird, that night, that Sirius was not in the common room. Remus, Peter and James were all sitting around their usual table, Remus studying, and Peter and James playing Wizard's Chess. James was restless and distracted, which meant that Peter was beating him, and getting beaten just made him grumpy.
"What're you reading?" James asked Remus, after losing to Peter for the third time.
"I'm reading about the Goblin Rebellion of 1726-" Remus began, but James cut him off.
"How boring," he said with a snort.
"Where's Sirius?" Remus asked, starting to get irritated with James's behavior. He needed Sirius to play off of, otherwise he got cranky and annoying.
"Dunno," James said, trying to get a black knight to attack a white pawn. Seeing as how no actual chess game was taking place, the pieces were reluctant to fight. "Said he was going to the bathroom ages ago."
Remus went back to his reading while Peter tried to talk James into another game, but James wasn't interested. Everything Remus and Peter did seemed to annoy him, and Remus finally got fed up and announced he was going to bed.
The curtains around Sirius's bed were drawn, but Remus didn't hear the usual snores coming out of it. Besides, Sirius never went to bed this early. He and James had a nightly torment-and-insult-each-other ritual.
"Hey, Sirius?" Remus called as he put his books away. "Sirius, you in here?"
"Yeah, I'm here." His voice sounded tired, more despondent than Remus had ever heard him sound. He went over and pulled the curtains open.
"Hey, what's up?" Sirius was sitting cross-legged on the bed, staring blankly into space. "Sirius? You all right?"
"I'm fine," Sirius said.
"Yeah, you look fine." Remus sat down on the side of bed.
"I'm proud, you know," Sirius said defiantly. Remus cocked his head to the side questioningly. "To be in Gryffindor."
"Yes, I caught that on the first night when you screamed it to everyone in Gryffindor Tower," Remus said, trying to lighten the mood.
"I thought I would go in Slytherin. All the Blacks have been in Slytherin."
"And I caught that when your mum screamed it to the entire Great Hall this morning." And then something clicked in Remus's mind.
"Is she always like that?"
"Yeah," Sirius said. "They all are."
The door to the dormitory opened, and James and Peter both walked in. They caught sight of the serious looks on Remus and Sirius's faces, and James instantly looked worried.
"All right, Sirius?" he said, his irritable mood from downstairs gone.
"Yeah, I'm fine," he muttered, looking embarrassed and not looking at any of them.
"We were just talking," Remus explained, "about how his family, and his mum in particular, is-"
"A prejudiced, narrow-minded bitch?" James supplied helpfully.
"James!" Remus cried, horrified at James's lack of sensitivity, but Sirius laughed.
"Yeah," he said, "I guess that about covers it." He ran his hand over his face, looking exhausted and frustrated and amused all at the same time. "Ah, well, at least she still has little Reg. Regulus," he added, seeing their blank expressions. "My little brother. So far, he's a perfect little Black."
Remus wasn't sure what to say. Sirius wasn't ever supposed to look sad, or hurt, or weak at all. He looked to James for help. James was frowning, apparently thinking hard.
Then he jumped onto the bed and tackled Sirius. Remus quickly jumped up as Sirius kicked James off of him, then jumped on him and put him in a headlock. Remus and Peter watched as the two boys punched and wrestled each other into exhaustion. When they both fell back onto the floor a few minutes later, James was clutching his side and Sirius had a black eye, and between gasps, both were laughing.
"I think you broke a rib," James moaned.
"Crybaby," Sirius gasped back, grinning.
Remus was completely baffled.
Whatever had happened, it seemed to make Sirius feel better. He was cheerful again as the boys all changed into pajamas and said goodnight. As Remus laid in bed and stared at his curtains, he thought about his mum, who had worked so hard to make the arrangements with Professor Dumbledore so that her only son could go to Hogwarts, who made him steaks three times a week, and whose eyes, which were always tinted with fear when she looked at him, were also always full of love. He thought it was weird that a few hours before, he had been so fervently envying Sirius Black.