The Untold Story

Chapter 4: A Not-So-Wonderful Morning

September 2, 1971

Sunlight streamed through the windows, but it wasn't the blinding light that woke Sirius. "Get up, you sleepyhead!" James yelled, throwing a pillow at his head. Sirius groaned from the lower bunk, which he had won yesterday after a fierce battle of rock-paper-scissors.

"Haven't I sustained enough head injuries already?" he moaned as he blinked blearily.

"Well, I mean, your head's thick. You should be fine." James jokingly pointed out.

"True, but not as thick as yours, Potter."

"Hey, the name's James. We're not Slytherins. No more last names, what'd you say?"

"Sure. James." Sirius muttered, before turning away and snuggling into his blankets.

"No sleepy head, let's go down for breakfast." James said as he grabbed his friend's arm and began to pull him off the bed. "I'm starving, and I've heard great things about the Hogwarts Kitchens." After hearing those words, Sirius perked up and jumped out of bed.

"Where are Remus and Peter?" Sirius yelled from the bathroom as he got ready.

"They're waiting for us in the common room."

The boys met their friends in the common room and proceeded to the Great Hall for breakfast. They filled up their plates with eggs, bacon, and toast, and sat down next to Alice and Lily. Sirius was barely half way through his toast before a dark Owl he recognized dropped a red blur in front of his face. Alice gasped and asked incredulously, "You told THEM?!"

"Of course not!" Sirius said before looking at the Slytherin Table accusingly. "They did."

He tried to bring up the famed Gryffindor courage that the hat somehow saw in him. With trembling fingers, he opened the envelope.

"SIRIUS ORION BLACK! HOW DARE YOU DISGRACE OUR FAMILY! YOU TRAITOROUS BLOOD TRAITOR! YOUR ACTIONS HAVE ASHAMED US! HOW DARE YOU DISGRACE OUR NOBLE HOUSE AND HERITAGE! HOW DARE YOU DRAG OUR PURE NAME THROUGH THE MUD! A TRUE BLACK WOULD HAVE BROUGHT US HONOR AND WOULD HAVE BEEN SORTED INTO SLYTHERIN! IF I FIND OUT THAT YOU HAVE BEEN FRATERNIZING WITH MUDBLOODS AND BLOOD TRAITORS AGAIN I WILL BRING YOU STRAIGHT HOME! YOU UNGRATEFUL LITTLE WHELP!" Sirius's Mother's voice echoed throughout the Great Hall, which was dead silent: all of its occupants looking at a now pale Sirius.

"Siri…" James never got to finish his sentence, as Sirius stood abruptly and power walked out of the hall. James got up and ran after his friend, following him up to the Gryffindor common room. Sirius was curled in a corner, his head resting on his knees. James sat down gingerly beside him and said quietly, "I didn't know… brother." Sirius never replied, and James never pursued.

Severus was not exactly having a great morning either. After the tense exchange with his roommates last night, he was isolated. In fact, the only person who seemed interested in talking to him was Lucius Malfoy. They were both sitting down eating breakfast when Black's Howler had dropped like a bomb in the Great Hall.

"Is he really going to be disowned?" Severus asked, feeling pity for the boy.

"Probably not. That was Sirius's mother, Lady Walburga, who is rumored to be on the opposite end of human sanity. The true Lord Black is Sirius's grandfather Arcturus, and Sirius is second in line after his father Orion. The Black magic will always recognize Sirius as heir unless he dies or the reigning Lord Black disowns him. This is one of the rules adhered by the Ancient and Noble families." Lucius explained.

"Black is just a weakling" Rosier interjected into their conversation.

An older blonde-haired girl who had been sitting across from Lucius glared at Rosier and stated smoothly, "Cousin, I would not let dear Andy hear those words. We Blacks are vengeful, and Andy has always been determined and ruthless in getting what she desires."

"And there goes Narcissa Black" Lucius said in a dazed voice as she turned on her heels and went to get her schedule. "You should probably collect your schedule too." Lucius advised as he finished drinking his orange juice.

Severus's schedule wasn't too bad. Today, he had Defense Against the Dark Arts with the Gryffindors followed by Herbology with the Hufflepuffs, Flying with the Gryffindors and then Transfiguration with the Ravenclaws. Lily would be in the same class and Defense was a truly engaging subject he thought excitedly. He wondered if Black would show up after that debacle but quickly squashed such pitiful thoughts as he went back to the Common Room to get his book bag.

"McGonagall's passing out schedules!" a red-headed boy yelled as he rushed past Remus.

"Fabian the fabulous! Get me mine!" Remus whipped his head around to spot an identical boy chewing on his toast as he watched his twin run to get the schedules.

"Gideon the great, how many times have I told you to get your own!" The other boy retorted. Remus couldn't help but hide a smile as he stood up to get his own schedule.

"C'mon." he said to Peter who was quietly nibbling on a piece of bacon. Peter looked up, wide eyed before standing up. The two grabbed four copies of the first-year schedules and headed back to the Common Room.

"I hope Sirius is okay." Peter began. Remus couldn't help but agree.

"I wonder if he'll feel up to going to class. It's the first day, and it wouldn't exactly give the teachers the best impression if he missed class today." Peter nodded at Remus's explanation.

"Hopefully James has cheered him up." Peter crossed his fingers and smiled at Remus.

"If anyone can do it, it would be James." Remus admitted. The two had seemed close from the beginning, perhaps they knew each other from before. Either way, Remus was glad that Sirius had someone he could trust. He didn't exactly seem like the open type.

The two hurried down the corridors, to find two older girls in front of the Gryffindor Common Room. One of them was arguing with the portrait of the Fat Lady. "You have to let me in, my cousin's in there!" she said angrily. Remus took note of her green and silver tie. Must be one of Sirius's relatives he thought before approaching them cautiously. Peter stood behind him, practically hiding himself from view.

"Excuse me." he said politely. "Can we get through, please?" The angry brunette turned around and paused when she saw the first years. She sighed.

"I'm sorry." she apologized. "Please tell Sirius that Andy is waiting outside." Remus eyed the blond girl cautiously and then looked back at 'Andy'. "Please." she asked again.

"Sure, but if you hurt him…." Remus trailed off as he contained to stare at the older students.

"Matters concerning the Black Family stay within the Black Family." the blonde stated coldly.

"We aren't here to hurt him though." The brunette interjected, giving the other girl a light glare. "We just want to make sure he's okay." Remus could tell that she was worried, and her words seemed genuine enough.

"We'll tell him to come down, but please wait a few feet away. Our password is a Gryffindor secret." He finally said. As the girls moved back, he whispered "Bravehearts" and the Fat Lady swung open. He and Peter walked into the Common Room to find James's hand hanging over Sirius shoulders who was hugging his knees.

"Sirius, James." Remus said gently. James looked up questioningly.

"We got your schedules." Peter quietly said as he lifted the papers.

"Is he okay?" Remus mouthed as he gestured to Sirius.

"Don't know." James mouthed back as he glanced at Sirius with concern.

"When do classes start?" Sirius asked numbly from his spot on the ground.

"Nine." James replied as Sirius lifted his head and looked up. He gestured for the schedule, grabbed it, and groaned.

"Unbelievable." he muttered. "Our first class is with the Slytherins."

"It is?" Peter asked as he scanned the paper and gasped. "Why?" he moaned as he looked up at the ceiling.

"There might be a more pressing matter on our hands." Remus cut in. The three turned their attention to him. "Someone called 'Andy' is waiting for you outside the Common Room, along with a blonde girl. They're in Slytherin."

"Andy's out there?" Sirius asked hopefully. Remus nodded. "I'll be back." Sirius said, before rushing out the door. The three exchanged confused glances before deciding to let their friend deal with his own problems. They'd interfere if he looked like he was in trouble. They headed out to see the brunette embrace Sirius as the blonde looked on with a strained smile on her face.

"Sirius, are you okay?" Andromeda said as she pulled back and looked at Sirius worriedly. "Don't listen to Aunt Walburga, you didn't shame the family." He gave her a weak smile.

"She sounded really mad. This is probably the worst thing I've ever done. She'll kill me when I get home." Sirius closed his eyes and frowned.

"It's a wonder she didn't kill you already." Narcissa thought out loud. "Kidding." she said as her older sister glared at her.

"Don't worry, she'll forget by Christmas break. Just watch." Andromeda reassured her cousin. Sirius nodded with uncertainty. "Plus, you still have me." Sirius smiled at her sadly.

"Careful Andy, or they might disown you along with me." He said wryly.

"Don't be ridiculous." Narcissa said. "As if they'd disown you and make a huge fuss about a sorting. Blacks have been disowned for less than that."

"Cissa…Sirius, just ignore her. You know how she is. There is no way Lord Black is disowning you over such a trivial matter. Aunt Walburga is crazy and we all know it."

"That's my mother alright" Sirius said cheekily.

"Sirius Orion Black!' Andromeda chided. "Respect your elders!" she joked before turning serious. "You better get to class, don't want to dishonor our name any further do you?"

"But I have Defense Against the Dark Arts with Slytherins!"

"All the better. The Black lessons we have learned are the lessons of Slytherin too. Don't ever show weakness." Narcissa advised.

"Go out there and show whoever wrote home about your sorting that you may not be a Slytherin but you are still a Black. A true Black." Andy added.

Sirius nodded. "Thanks cousins." he added while doing a formal pureblood bow and kissing each of their knuckles. He gave them a big grin as they playfully swatted him. He ducked and ran back to his friends, "Let's get going to Defense Against the Dark Arts. Merlin knows I will be needing that."

AN:

1. Thank you to AshleeF for following our story and marking it as a favorite (You are the first person to favorite it!).

2. Don't be silent readers! Review and share your thoughts.