Impetuous Behaviour

Addie stared at the sheet in front of her. There, written in James's scruffy scrawl was her name with the word 'seeker' next to it in bold. And as if to give her even more proof of her accomplishment, beside the position there was a moving picture of her smiling quietly, her dark hair falling around her shoulders.

James had told her confidently the day before that she was by far the best player there to try out for seeker, but it still hadn't really hit home until now, when her name was written clearly in front of her. She was the Gryffindor seeker. Her stomach turned to liquid as she thought of that- all the days spent as a chaser, practicing outside come rain or shine for the past two years- were wasted. Now, she had a whole new goal- one that didn't revolve around teamwork and passing and scoring, but catching the snitch. Alone. The thought of flying up there all by herself was enough to make her feel sick, but she also felt exhilarated too. Part of her wanted to run and hide, but the other half couldn't wait to jump on her broom and start training.

"Congrats, Ads." came a voice. She looked up to see Sirius grinning down at her. "I told you that you could do it."

Addie raised her eyebrows. "Are you telling me that you weren't surprised when you saw that snitch?"

He laughed. "Well… may be a little, but I had every hope you'd pull through." He winked at her and she laughed, turning back to the board to see who else had made the team. It was a relief to see Frank, Sirius and Darlene's names there, even though she knew they were bound to make it, good as they were.

"It'll be strange up there on my own- without James and Darlene." she commented.

"Yeah, I reckon it will. You're a born flyer though… in fact, I don't know why James didn't try you out for seeker sooner."

"Maybe I was too good as a chaser." she suggested, grinning.

Sirius rubbed his chin thoughtfully, his eyes filled with laughter. "Hmm, could be… Or maybe you're just too short."

Addie's eyes narrowed dangerously. "Hey. I'll get you for that, Black."

He let out a bark of laughter, fleeing through the portrait hole with Addie close on his heels. The Fat Lady let out a startled scream as they flew past, before continuing to reel off a torrent of curse words, most of which were not meant for the first-year's ears.

Addie chased him through the corridors, laughing hysterically as they manoeuvred past startled students, who jumped out the way. By the time they turned the corner, she had almost caught up to him, her fingers just brushing his shirt…

"Sirius Black, Adelaide Reid." came a sharp voice. They both stopped dead in their tracks and turned to face Professor Edwards- the new Defence Against the Dark Art's teacher. He was a strange looking fellow in his mid-forties with greying black hair, a dark fuzzy moustache and a beard to match. Darlene had been sorely disappointed when he'd entered the class, his long black robe billowing around him in a fairly elegant fashion.

"Do you care to explain just exactly what you were doing?" he asked, raising his arched eyebrows.

Sirius looked completely unintimidated by the professor, his hands tucked casually in his pockets and that signature smirk playing on his lips, so much so that Addie had to envy him- Professor Edwards was a pretty scary looking guy. She rolled her eyes at the laid back boy, turning back to the teacher. "Sorry sir. We were just messing around." she explained.

"I see." He pursed his lips. "I hope you understand that whilst it may seem to be just that to you, I'm afraid that your 'messing around' has disrupted my lesson, Miss Reid. And I have no other option than to put you both in detention on Saturday. For two weeks."

"What?" Addie exclaimed. "But Sir, that's hardly fair…"

His lips quirked up. "What is fair in life, Miss Reid?"

The sarcasm dripping in his voice irritated her; he was so patronising. "Professor McGonagall is fair." Addie blurted out, angrily. "Other teachers are fair. And this certainly isn't. You're just going to give us detention for… for having a laugh?"

"I certainly am, Miss Reid. And it'll be three weeks if you're not careful."

"Well, make it three weeks then. See if I-"

"Addie." Sirius interrupted, chuckling. "Please shut up."

"I believe Mr Black is right." Professor Edwards said, tapping a pale finger to his lips. "… for once, that is. You need to learn when to shut your mouth, little girl."

Sirius cocked his eyebrow. "I'm pretty sure she knows herself when to be quiet and when not to, thanks."

Edwards glared at him. "How dare you use that tone with me, young man." he spat. "Thirty points from Gryffindor."

"What? Thirty points!?" Addie repeated. "Sir, I don't know which school you used to teach at…"

"Durmstrang, girl. A place where rules were well enforced and punishments were taken with dignity."

"Durmstrang? You taught at Durmstrang?" Sirius repeated, showing a bit of interest for the first time.

"Yes. And I can assure you we didn't have to put up with this kind of attitude from blood traitors like you." he murmured. Sirius's jerked as if he'd just been electrocuted.

"What the fuck did you just say?" he growled, his laid-back demeanour long forgotten.

Edwards smirked, his eyes glinting dangerously as he took a step forward. "Don't act dumb boy. I know your family- how do you think they feel seeing you hanging about with mudblood scum like this?" He gestured to Addie. "Well, I suppose they don't care now they've thrown you out into the-"

Sirius's fist connected with his face before he could finish.

The professor stumbled back, drawing his wand, but before he had the chance Sirius was diving on him as though he'd forgotten he even owned a wand- pummelling his fists into his face until blood was pouring from his nose and his face was a swollen lump.

"Sirius!" cried Addie, trying to drag the raging boy off of him. "Sirius, stop!"

But he didn't. The scene was a blur of fists until, eventually, Edwards slumped backwards, his head hitting the floor with a thump, and Addie managed to drag Sirius off of him. The boy's hair, usually so perfectly groomed, was stuck to his face with sweat, and he was breathing heavily as Addie held him back. She looked him over and was relieved to see that, apart from a split lip, he seemed fine.

He smirked at her, as though unaffected by the blood smeared across his face, but his eyes were missing their familiar twinkle. "So, when are you going to start proclaiming your thanks?" he asked.

Addie glared. "Never. I don't need you to fight my battles for me, Black." she replied, cleaning up the splatter of blood on the floor with a wave of her wand.

He frowned at her. "But you heard what he said-"

"Yes I did. And I can look after myself perfectly well, thank you very much." She wasn't sure why, but she was irritated. Irritated that he'd just jump to her rescue like that, and irritated that now she felt partly to blame.

Addie suddenly noticed that a crowd of spectators, (mainly a group of shocked first years), had circled around the scene. Some stared with horror at Edwards's limp body, but most were looking at Sirius in awe. Just as she was about to tell them to bog off, however, McGonagall appeared, with a spluttering Slughorn in tow.

"What happened?" The witch gaped, her eyes whipping back between Sirius and Edwards. "Sirius… did you do this?"

The boy didn't respond, and simply stared at the floor. McGonagall looked at him for a long moment before turning to Slughorn briskly. "Horace, tend to Altair until Poppy gets here."

She pointed at Addie and Sirius. "You two, come with me."

The trek to Dumbledore's office felt longer than usual, and the tension in the air was so thick it threatened to consume Addie. Sirius no longer looked at the floor, but walked stiffly, his chin raised and his expression unreadable. Occasionally, Addie threw furtive glances at him, but he continued to look ahead, his eyes hard as steel. She grimaced inwardly, knowing she'd pissed him off.

Eventually, they reached a stone gargoyle, which leapt aside to bid them entry into a rounded staircase once McGonagall had uttered the password, ("sugared violet"). It was Addie's first time in the headmaster's office, so her mouth fell open in awe as the stairs began to move, but neither Sirius nor McGonagall seem surprised.

They arrived at the wooden oak door, and McGonagall knocked firmly before ushering them inside. Addie followed Sirius timidly, unsure what to expect.

Once they entered the huge, circular office, her eyes were immediately drawn to the numerous instruments that twinkled around the room- an assortment of shapes and sizes. A number of silver plates seemed to be dancing on the shelves next to strange metal objects that ticked and whirred, bringing the office to life. Beside Dumbledore's desk, a bright red baby bird was sleeping on a perch, the tiny movement of his chest being the only proof that he was still breathing.

The old man himself was sat at his desk, but he looked up as they entered as though he were expecting them. "Please take a seat." he said quietly. Addie and Sirius did so silently, and Dumbledore turned his questioning gaze to McGonagall. "Minerva, would you please care to explain this?" he inquired, his blue eyes twinkling.

McGonagall sighed. "I found these two with Professor Edwards… an unconscious Professor Edward's, I should add. It seemed Mr Black had… assaulted him."

There was a pause.

"I see." Dumbledore said, his eyes boring into Sirius's. "And is this correct, Sirius?"

The dark-haired boy met his gaze evenly. "Yes, Sir. But it wasn't without cause. Professor Edwards, he… provoked me."

"Provoked you?" scowled McGonagall. "How, exactly?"

Addie sighed, knowing Sirius needed someone to back him up. "Professor, please," she said, turning to Dumbledore. "He called Sirius a blood traitor. And me… he called me a mudblood."

There was a heavy silence in the room as the two professor's took in her words. Addie met Dumbledore's gaze, and she could feel his eyes probing her own, searching them. She blinked, breaking the contact, and he frowned as if something troubled him deeply. He turned to McGonagall, his eyes unreadable. "I understand that Professor Edwards may not be the victim here, Minerva. It seems Mr Black was only standing up for himself and his friends. There will be no punishment."

Addie and Sirius shared a disbelieving look; McGonagall's mouth was set in a firm line, but she kept her thoughts on the matter to herself.

"However," Dumbledore continued, his grave eyes boring into Sirius's, "I would have thought by now that you would have learnt your lesson, Mr Black- that is about acting without thinking." Sirius looked away, ashamed, and Addie glanced at him curiously. It seemed something must have happened in the past that she didn't know about- but the boy was always getting in trouble, and it was hard to keep up. "I expected better Sirius," the headmaster said, "but I believe you have learnt your lesson. Now, could you take Mr Black to the hospital wing, please Minerva, and once Poppy has patched up Professor Edwards- which I'm sure she has done so by now- be sure to send him to me. It seems we have a few staff arrangements to make. I will make sure to ask for his resignation right away."

McGonagall nodded firmly. "Right away, Professor."

"You know," Will said to Marlene, as he scribbled down the potions ingredients for wolfsbane. "It's really off-putting when you watch me like that."

They'd been sat in the library for half an hour now, and Marlene had been staring at him thoughtfully for a good five minutes, taking in every laughter line indented in his chocolate coloured skin and admiring the way his hand brushed quickly over the page. She jumped slightly at his words, her cheeks turning red with embarrassment.

A grin flashed across Will's cheeks. "I'm only kidding." he laughed, closing the book he'd been copying from. "You don't need to worry so much."

"You're right." she sighed, running a frustrated hand through her long blonde hair. "I'm sorry Will. I know I've been jumpy and uptight recently… I guess I'm just stressed with everything going on."

"Oh, right. You mean everything with your dad." He watched her closely. Recently, he'd had the feeling that it wasn't just her dad and his job being in jeopardy that was on her mind. There was something else too, but he didn't want to push it; she'd tell him when she wanted to.

"I just…" She glanced at him. "I just worry that he will be fired. And then we'd really be broke, and I wouldn't have a clue what to do. It's stupid really."

"It's not stupid, Mar. It's normal to worry about the ones you care about… Like I worry about you." He squeezed her hand and she smiled at him, thankfully, before gently pulling away. It didn't go unnoticed and he frowned slightly, but busied himself with putting away his books so she didn't see.

Marlene watched with guilt pricking at her chest as he turned to the shelves and began putting away his books. She knew that she shouldn't be leading Will on like this when she was trying to figure out her feelings for herself. But she couldn't bear to break up with him when they still liked each other so much. Anyway, she thought, maybe this thing with Remus is just a crush. How will I feel then if my feelings disappear, and I'm left with no one? Will had always been there for her too, and she couldn't just throw him away and hurt him because she thought she felt something for someone else. That just wasn't right.

And in that moment, Marlene found herself decided in what she'd do.

She'd ignore her feelings for Remus until they left, and continue to be with Will. A relationship with him was safe and secure, and she could say with certainty that the boy liked her back. Anyway, the main thing was that she was happy, right? And with him, she was.

"Checking out your boyfriends butt, are we Marlene?"

She jumped as James appeared, plopping onto the seat next to her. His eyes were laughing and he wore a lazy grin that seem to slip so easily onto his handsome face.

"You got me, James." she said, laughing along with him. But then her curiosity got the better of her, and she frowned. "Wait a second… what are you doing in the library?" The marauders, excluding Remus, were rarely seen in the place that was the opposite of everything they stood for- the library was quiet and studious, where they were always the loudest in the room, the ones who always managed to do well without studying.

The question caught James off guard, since he had been plotting a prank, but since it was meant to be a secret he had to make something up. He scratched his head awkwardly. "Oh, er, I was just reading up on some stuff for…"

But before he could come up with what was sure to be a very bad lie, Will spotted him.

"Oi, Potter, hands off my girl!" he joked, sitting down in the seat next to Marlene and snaking an arm round his chair. Despite his relaxed demeanour, Marlene couldn't help but feel that the gesture was territorial.

"Hi there Will." James greeted. "How did Hufflepuff's quidditch trials go?"

Will's brow furrowed. "I'm don't play quidditch."

"Oh, I know." James amended. "But, er, didn't you go and watch?"

There was a pause. "…I don't appreciate being your tactical spy, Potter." Will commented finally, casting a long glance at the Gryffindor captain.

Marlene's brow creased, and she gave him a gentle shove. "Will, that's rude." she chastised him, casting a worried glance at James.

"Just being honest." her boyfriend grumbled.

"But James didn't mean it like that…"

"Don't worry about it." James said, shrugging off the jibe. He winked at her, just to irritate the touchy boy sat next to her, and felt some satisfaction as he got the reaction he'd wanted- Will's hands curled into fists. "We all know who will win the cup this year." he added, just for good measure, flashing them both a grin.

"Anyway, I was just wondering if you've seen O'Connell?"

"Um," Marlene thought for a moment. "I think she headed outside for a while, but she should be back by now. She's probably in the common room."

"Okay thanks." He glanced at Will. "I better get going then. See you around, Mar."

Marlene frowned. "James wait! You don't have to…" But the boy was already gone, lolloping out of the library.

She turned to Will, scowling. "Why did you have to do that?"

"Do what?" he asked, still glaring after the marauder.

"You know what." she muttered, but decided to leave it. Arguing over something so trivial wouldn't do any good.

James sauntered down the corridor, mulling over the conversation with Marlene's Hufflepuff bloke. Will had come across a bit of a git, he had to admit, but James wasn't really in the mood for a fight. He had other stuff on his mind- first, talking tactics with Darlene, and then the marauders latest prank, and he wasn't going to let a stupid Hufflepuff kid ruin his good mood…

"Potter!" Before he could think it over too much, a familiar voice rang through the corridor, breaking his train of thought. He turned around quickly to see a breathless Lily running up to him, her red-hair flying around like a burning halo. She paused to catch her breath, clutching at her side.

"What's the matter?" James asked, frowning.

"It's Sirius." Lily explained, and the words filled James with dread. "Him and Addie, they got into some sort of fight with Professor Edwards." Seeing his expression, she quickly amended herself. "They're both okay, I think. But they're in the hospital wing now. I thought I'd come find you before I went."

James raised her eyebrows, watching her closely. "Thanks for telling me, Evans." he finally said.

Lily gave him a curt nod. "You would have done it for me." she said, simply. "Now, let's go."

They entered the hospital wing and immediately laid eyes on their friends. Sirius was sitting on one of the beds, holding an icepack to his bloody lip, and Addie stood next to him. She was fiddling with her robes like she always did when she anxious, but as soon as she spotted James and Lily, her eyes lit up with relief.

"You're here!" she breathed.

The pair ran over to greet her, and Lily threw a worried look at Sirius. "What happened?" she asked, glancing between the two of them. Her brow was creased with a deep frown. "And how the hell did you get into a fight with a teacher, Black?"

Sirius cracked a grin, then winced at the pain it obviously gave him to do so. "You know I can provoke anybody with my charming wit and devilish ways, Evans."

Addie and Lily groaned at the same time, but James just looked at his best friend with incredulity. "Even I don't know how you had the guts to punch the bloke, Pads, and I've been in my fair share of fights…"

Sirius's gaze darkened. "Trust me, you would have done the same."

James's brow furrowed as he tried to read the emotion in the other boy's eye, but it seemed Sirius got bored after a minute of this, for he sighed deeply.

"Fine. I'll tell you..." he said, glancing at Addie. "The scum bag called Addie a mudblood, and me a blood traitor. That's why I punched him."

"He did what?" James replied, his jaw clenching with anger.

Lily's eyes were wide. "How could they employ someone like that at Hogwarts?" she asked, perplexed. "Surely Dumbledore would have checked…"

"Well obviously he didn't." Sirius's voice was gruff, as he glared around at them. "He could have been a death eater for all we know."

"But he wasn't." Addie replied, rolling her eyes. Three heads swivelled towards her and she sighed, sitting on the bed next to Sirius. "Look, I know the guy was a judgemental pig, but he's gone now." Her gaze rested sternly on the boy next to her. "And I appreciate you looking out for me, but don't you think you're being a bit melodramatic? It was one guy, one time."

James frowned. "Yeah, but Addie-"

"No, I mean it." she interrupted, her eyes burning. "I don't want to sit here wasting my breath on that bastard. I don't know about you, but I'm going to get on with my life. I'm going to get over it and just hope to merlin the next DADA teacher isn't as much of a train wreck as this one was." She stood up, determinedly. "Well? Lily, are you coming?" She raised her eyebrow at the red-head who met her gaze and nodded firmly.

"Of course I am."

The two girls left together, but just as they reached the doors, Addie swung back around.

"Oh, and next time, Black," she said, her lips pursed. "Let me punch the guy."

The doors swung closed behind them before the marauders could utter a word.

'Well, that was eventful." Lily commented dryly, as they walked down the corridor.

Addie flashed her a smirk. "And I meant every word. Sirius needs to wake up and realise that I won't be his damsel in distress."

Lily frowned. "Addie-"

"Please don't give me a lecture on being unreasonable, Evans, or I will have hex your hair off." she interrupted matter-of-factly.

"But-"

Addie inched towards her wand threateningly, and Lily sighed, her face cracking into a grin as she shoved her best friend. "Come on, you psychopathic witch. Let's go find Darlene."

And together they headed back to the common room.

As they approached the portrait hole, however, the girls spotted a familiar blonde Ravenclaw who seemed to be in the middle of some sort of argument with the Fat Lady.

"Listen, it'd really do no harm at all if you would just let me in for a second…" Colin was saying, his voice filled with frustration.

"I will do no such thing!" she squawked, gazing at him as if he had just deeply insulted her. "There is a password for a reason, young man."

"I know that. I'm just saying would it be possible-"

"No! No matter how handsome you might be, no one is allowed in without the password…" she trailed off as Addie and Lily approached, their eyebrows raised. "Ah, there you are girls. This gentleman has been quite impatient with me- rather rude actually. Would you please care to explain to him why I can't give him the password? I have more important business to attend to."

She flounced off and appeared in the portrait on the left, where she immediately began gossiping with a bunch of ladies who were all sat around a dinner table. Colin gave her a filthy look before turning around to face them- his eyes lighting up as he saw Lily. "There you are!'' he grinned, "Looking as beautiful as always.''

Lily blushed crimson, but Addie rolled her eyes, gagging internally. She'd figured that he hadn't been complementing her.

"Hi Colin." the red-head greeted. "What are you doing here?"

"I was coming to find you." He took a step towards her, completely ignoring Addie, who stood at the side, her arms folded crossly as she waited for Lily to swipe him down.

But, surprisingly, she didn't.

Instead, Addie's eyes widened in surprise as Lily giggled- yes giggled- smiling at Colin as though she was ready to be shagged there and then.

"Why were you coming to find me?" Lily asked sweetly. Addie's mouth fell open. What had happened to Lily Evans- the first to complain about the teenage male population and their no-good smells, actions and vocabulary? It was like her best friend had had a brain transplant.

"Well…" Colin glanced at Addie. "I was wondering if we could talk somewhere more private."

For the first time, Lily seemed to notice her best friend standing there too. Her cheeks turned a deeper shade of red. "Oh. Well… if that's alright with you Ads." She looked expectantly at her best friend, who raised her eyebrows but declined to comment on Lily's attitude change.

"Sure." she said simply.

Lily flashed her a thankful smile before taking Colin's offered hand, and Addie watched her disappear down the corridor, practically skipping as she went.

Huffing, she returned to the common room and collapsed onto one of the puffy chairs. It seemed that she and Lily would be having words later.

Darlene slammed down her book- not caring if it got covered in mud and grass stains. She was fed up of this- it was midday and she couldn't finish the stupid charms essay she'd been working on all fucking morning. She'd gone outside when it had been too cramped inside, but nothing seemed to help. Now it was just the tweeting of the bids irritating her, rather than he scratching of quills.

"You alright, Darlene?" Came a friendly voice.

She swivelled around angrily, ready to tell whoever it was to mind their own, but hesitated when she spotted the boy in front of her.

Andrew Baker stood there, smiling down at her. He had fairly short and stocky, but his hair was fell in warm curls, and his skin was a clear, tan colour- only a few shades lighter than hers. He seemed to be hesitating.

"Can I sit down?" he asked, finally.

She only paused for a few seconds before replying. "Sure." She moved over to make room for him.

There was a long pause.

"So," he finally said, still cheerfully, "What's is it that's pissed you off?"

Usually, she would have made a sarcastic comment, or ignored him completely, but she found that she didn't want to. She liked how he was straight to the point, and the fact that he actually seemed to care.

"A lot of things- but mainly this stupid essay." she admitted, gesturing to the parchment in front of her. "I suck at Charms."

He raised his eyebrow and picked it up. "Well… I would offer you some advice, but it just so happens I suck too." He grinned boyishly, and she found herself smiling. "But I can help you take your mind off it, if you want?"

She sighed reluctantly. "Yeah, maybe a distraction is what I need."

"Cool." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a pack of cigarettes, placing one between his teeth. "Want one?" he offered, an eyebrow raised.

Darlene hesitated. She didn't smoke- in fact, she despised the habit- but maybe a change of attitude was what she needed. She took one and placed it between her teeth, like Andrew, and he lit it for her before taking a deep drag of his own and looking out over the Hogwarts grounds.

"Nice spot here. Do you come out a lot to work?"

Darlene took a drag, and coughed slightly, eliciting a smile from Andrew. She laughed, slightly embarrassed.

"Yeah. Well, I came here a lot last year in the summer. Mainly when my friends were annoying me."

Andrew chuckled. "Yeah, my mates get on my nerves a lot too."

She couldn't imagine that; Andrew was constantly smiling- she could never picture him anything but happy.

"So what brings you out here?" she asked.

He chucked her another grin, and her heart fluttered in her chest. Why did he have this kind of effect on her? "This and that." he replied, vaguely. "But let's not talk about me. I want to know all about you, Darlene."

The way he said her name- low and huskily- sent shivers down her spine. "You do?" she asked, her voice sounding squeaky to her own ears.

"Sure." He shuffled closer to her, and her breathing quickened. "I haven't been able to stop thinking of you since that potions lesson we had together."

"You haven't?" In this proximity it was hard to thing straight. What was wrong with her? She was always the stubborn one- the one who struck boys down with the sting of her tongue and never got caught up on their looks, or their smell…

Andrew was leaning in, and every part of her body was telling her to lean in too- she was aching to know what those lips would feel like on hers- but something held her back.

"What about Jo?" she blurted out, just as his lips were centimetres from hers.

He halted, frowning for the first time as his dark brows dipped low on his forehead. 'What about her?" he asked, carefully.

"Well she made out that you two, you know… had a thing." I thought you were fuckbuddies, she muttered internally, but kept her mouth shut.

He sighed and leant back, waving his hand dismissively and taking another drag of his cigarette. "Oh, that's nothing- she's nothing."

"Then why-"

"Look, Darlene, I'm here with you okay?" He gestured to the place where they sat together. "Why would I be about to kiss you if I didn't care about you?"

She frowned- he was, after all, right, but still the nagging voice in the back of her head held her back. She picked up her quill and parchment, and stood up.

"What are you doing?" Andrew asked, frowning.

I don't have a clue, she thought.

"Look. I like you a lot Andrew, really I do…. but I'm sorry; I don't kiss boys who are taken."

And with that, Darlene walked away.