A/N: Thanks to my two reviewers! It means a lot and helps me know if I am going in the right direction. Enjoy!

The next morning Sirius was nervous. The other boys picked up on his tension. James tried to lighten the mood by turning Sirius's hair pink, but it didn't have the desired effect. 20 minutes later, Sirius stormed out of the bathroom with darker hair that was still tinged pink. The other boys trailed meekly in his wake, and they all went down the Great Hall.

"Sirius, can you pass me the butter?" Peter asked timidly. Sirius pushed it across the table to Pete without looking at him. He was looking at the ceiling. He was waiting for the rush of feathers to come pouring into the Great Hall. The post had to be arriving soon, but Sirius had caught no sign of it yet. Finally, the cacophony of breakfast noises was interrupted by soft hooting and wing beats as the owls streamed in with letters and parcels.

Sirius strained his eyes for the prestigious bird carrying the maroon envelope of a howler, but he never saw it. The only owl that approached the four boys was the ruffled barn owl that belonged to James' parents. It dropped off a small package, affectionally nipped Peter's finger, and left with a gentle hoot. James opened the letter with a grin. It contained a scolding from Euphemia Potter and a plea for James to behave himself.

Or at least don't get caught! was scrawled at the bottom of the letter followed by Fleamont Potter's signature. Peter grinned at the leniency in the note. He didn't think his parents would care enough about the detention to send him a letter. He had only gotten one from his family since the start of term anyway. He helped himself to a cookie from the package that James' parents had sent. The oatmeal raisin melted in his mouth.

"Mum knows chocolate chip is my favorite." James sighed.

"It must be a tough life, you disobey and get sent your second favorite cookies. How ever shall you go on?" Remus smirked and grabbed a cookie from the box. Remus probably would hear from his parents, but they both worked lots of hours and probably hadn't had time yet.

Sirius surprised them all by reaching into the box and grabbing a handful of the small oatmeal cookies with a grin.

"Oy! Leave some for the rest of us!" James scolded, but he said it with a laugh.

"I don't know why I would. Euphemia obviously sent these for me. Oatmeal raisin is my favorite." Sirius retorted. He kept the smug look on his face for most of the morning's charm class. They were learning Lumos, a charm he had been taught early on and knew by heart. It was one of his favorites, essential for sneaking around after lights out.

The next few days followed the same pattern. He nervously awaited the post and the arrival of his parents' scolding. He knew that they would say that he was a disgrace to the Black family name. They always said that. Sirius was just trying to avoid the scene that it would cause if his mother sent a howler. After breakfast, he was able to relax with his friends until the next day. If they realized what was causing his anxiety, no one mentioned it.

When the owls came and went on the fifth day, Sirius had to admit that they weren't going to write him. Even Remus had heard from his parents a few days ago, with a letter that reminded him what a privilege Hogwarts was. Peter hadn't gotten any post either, but he hadn't expected to. Sirius could never remember a time where he was caught misbehaving and didn't get punished. He finally decided that maybe his family had given up on him. He was still in Gryffindor, maybe they didn't want anything to do with him anymore. It surprised him how much that bothered him.

A week after his detention, he was leaving Potion when he doubled back to pick up some parchment that he had left behind. A thin hand grabbed him by the shoulder and forced him into a broom closet. Sirius turned and found himself inches away from the tip of wand held by Narcissa, his cousin. He began to sweat. The girl was a fourth year now and was knee-deep into the family's black arts.

"Auntie Walburga would like me to remind you that anything you do wrong reflects poorly on the House of Black. It reflects poorly on my family." The girl said with a sneer. Her pale eyes stared deep into her cousins, and she raised her wand further.

"Please remember that you are not free from your family at Hogwarts, just as we are not free from you and the disgusting way you besmirch our name by hanging out with blood-traitors and half-bloods." The hate flowed freely from the girl's mouth, and Sirius wondered if she had ever doubted her allegiance to the family. He didn't think she had. They had never gotten on very well.

"Flagrate!" She yelled. Sirius had a moment to be taken by surprise by how serious the curse she used was, before he began to fight the fire that burst towards him. He tore off his sweater as she danced out with a flip of her blonde hair. The fire died almost instantly, but he had a large burn mark across one arm.

He left the still smoking sweater on the ground and exited the broom closet. His heart was still pounding from the encounter, and he started back towards Gryffindor tower with his parchment forgotten. Sirius ran into James who was heading off towards the direction of the nearest loo.

"Sirius, mate, where did you go?" James questioned as soon as the saw the boy. He quickly got quiet though at the state of Sirius's arm.

"Wha-what happened to you? Did someone do this?" James pressed. He grabbed Sirius' other arm and pulled him in the opposite direction towards the Hospital Wing.

Sirius panicked. He didn't want James to find out how messed up his family was. It wouldn't do the boy any good to get mixed up in the stupid drama of the Blacks, and as today proved, it could be dangerous.

"Just tell me who it was, and we will take care of them!" James insisted. The first-year looked so much older than he had just a few moments ago. His eyes were full of fierce determination.

Sirius knew he had to give James a name. James would never drop this.

"Snape, it was Severus Snape."