Arcturus Black
By: Katerinaki
Published: 10/7/2014
Beta'ed: No
Notes: Yoohoo! Anybody out there? I'd like to hear some thoughts on this story, if anyone is willing to leave a comment behind. Do you like Arcturus? Don't like him? Is he too much like another character? Does he not fit into the story? Is a canon character OC? If you are willing to let me know, that would be amazing. Thanks!
Chapter 7: Like Dear, Old Dad
Between his detentions with Snape and being Sorted into Gryffindor House, Arcturus knew it was only a matter of days until an owl dropped a letter in his morning eggs. Sure enough, it came as Fred, George, Arcturus, and Lee had their heads together and were discussing their plans for that evening. Tomorrow morning was the Gryffindor-Hufflepuff Quidditch match, and also the day they would implement their scheme.
The only good thing about living with Squibs is that they couldn't send a Howler if they wanted to. But Fred and George seemed to know what the letter was before Arcturus even opened it.
"Tough luck, Archie ole' boy," Fred told him as he and George leaned back, like the letter in Arcturus's hands would explode at any second.
"You don't even know what it is," Arcturus retorted. "Maybe it's money."
"Oh, we've received enough of those letters in our time," George assured him, sagely. He and Fred were just a year older than Arcturus, but at times they acted as if they had been at Hogwarts for decades. "Funny it's not a Howler, though."
"Perks of living with Squibs," Arcturus grumbled. He used his knife to cut the Black Family seal open, ensuring he got sausage grease all over it before taking of the neatly folded parchment full of his Uncle's flowing and precise handwriting.
"Arcturus,
Since your mother died and you came to live with your aunt and I, we have done our best to ensure you became a fine, Pureblood young man in which our family could take pride in. I am, therefore, very disappointed to hear that you have not only been Sorted into Gryffindor house, the same house which so failed your convicted father, but that you have also earned numerous detentions. This is unacceptable behaviour for an heir to the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black. Furthermore, you have taken up companionship with the middle sons of the Weasley family, troublemakers in their own right. As you may not be aware, having not been part of the High Society of Wizarding Britain for long, the Weasley family is known for its poverty. Any wealth they had was gambled away long ago. They are also blood traitors, siding against Purebloods, their own kind, and supporting the mingling of Wizarding blood with Muggles and Muggle-borns. These are not the sort of people you want to be affiliated with. I urge you to strongly rethink your choices. Your time at Hogwarts will affect your future beyond school. Now is the time to cultivate relationships that will be beneficial, not only to yourself, but to the family at large. Make the proper choices; do not follow in your father's footsteps. They are a one-way path to Azkaban and ruin.
Sincerely yours,
Uncle Marius."
As he read the letter, Arcturus felt the burning grow in his stomach and he glared at the parchment until he didn't even see the words. The last parting jab repeated itself in his head, mocking him. "Do not follow in your father's footsteps." Ever since Arcturus had found out who his father was, he'd made a point to ensure he wasn't like him. Uncle Marius knew this, and he used it masterfully. If Marius had ever attended Hogwarts, he would have been a true Slytherin, through and through.
Arcturus crumbled the parchment up and threw it on the plate. With one harsh stab of his wand it burst into flame, drawing the attention of half the hall.
"Whoa!" the Weasleys exclaimed and somebody had the presence of mind to throw water on the fire, leaving a puddle of swampy ashes on his plate.
"Mr. Black! The breakfast table is not the place to practice dangerous spells!" Professor McGonagall scolded.
"Sorry, Professor," Arcturus murmured, looking appropriately contrite. "It was an accident. I was just trying to levitate my spoon."
McGonagall was not convinced. "Hm, well less 'flick' and more 'swish' next time, Mr. Black."
"Thank you, Professor." As McGonagall retreated, Fred, George, and Lee leaned in again.
"That bad?" Fred asked.
Arcturus's eyes burned, but it wasn't from McGonagall's scolding, or even hurt at his uncle's letter. He was angry. Marius thought he was making the wrong choices by befriending the Weasleys and having a little bit of fun, but he hadn't seen anything yet.
"We need something big," Arcturus said suddenly. "Something everyone will notice. It can't just be for Snape anymore."
Fred and George smirked with mischievous gleams in their eyes. But Lee seemed hesitant.
"We already have detention for a month," Lee complained.
Arcturus waved his hand dismissively. "We've done kid things. My uncle thinks I'm creating the wrong image. He's an ass and I want to show him and everybody else exactly what 'image' I want."
"Is this about you or us?" Lee demanded.
"Us. Now our chance to establish ourselves."
Fred turned to George and slung an arm over his shoulder with a heavy sigh. "Georgie-boy, we've created a monster."
The twins grinned at each other. "We're in," they said.
Lee still looked hesitant, but Arcturus and the twins looked at him expectantly and he groaned. "I'm never going to get out of detention, am I?"
"Free time is for goodies like Percy," George scoffed, nodding towards his older brother who was sitting and diligently studying even though there was a pretty girl right next to him, obviously trying to strike up a conversation. Just the image was enough of a deterrent.
Arcturus grinned. "C'mon, Lee, it'll be fun."
"C'mon, Lee, it'll be fun," Lee muttered as he slogged down yet another staircase behind Arcturus, Fred, and George. Each had a sack of supplies over his shoulder that swayed and bounced strangely as he walked.
"This is fun," Arcturus hissed back. "And it will be even better tomorrow morning." He led the way down the last flight of stairs and, checking to see that the way was clear, slipped across the entrance hall to the large wooden doors that closed off the Great Hall.
"This weighs a ton!" Lee complained, shucking his sack from his shoulder.
"Didn't you use a feather-light charm?"
Lee blinked and Arcturus fought to look innocent but he couldn't help a smirk.
"You're cleaning all my cauldrons in detention," Lee retorted. "Are we doing this or not?"
Arcturus and Fred pushed open one of the doors of the Great Hall and held it as George and Lee slipped inside with the supplies. They closed it carefully behind them so that there was only a very gentle thump. The castle was asleep, but there might still be some professors out patrolling the corridors. Arcturus wouldn't put it by Snape to be out this late. The Great Hall stretched out before them; the four House tables were completely empty of even plates and utensils. Overhead the enchanted ceiling twinkled softly with stars and moonlight, providing light for them to work. It was like Hogwarts wanted them to succeed. As Arcturus looked out over this peaceful, blank canvas he could picture his masterpiece like a famous artist.
"Let's get to work, boys."
It was nearly time to get up for classes again by the time Arcturus and the others slipped back into Gryffindor tower, much to the Fat Lady's disapproval. Lee, Fred, and George headed for the stairs to the boys' dormitories right away, but Arcturus lingered behind.
"Aren't you coming?" George asked.
"I'm not tired," Arcturus replied. "I'll see you in a little bit."
George shrugged and warned him not to have any wild parties without them before climbing the stairs after his brother. The common room was dim; the fire had been banked long ago. In the corner a third year boy had fallen asleep on his Ancient Runes book and it seemed his friends had left him there rather than bringing him up to bed. The boy was drooling on his essay, smudging the words. Arcturus, for his part, was near to bursting with energy. Sneaking around the castle at night got his blood pumping as any moment they could run into a ghost, a professor, or Filch and his cat Mrs. Norris. Sometimes even the portraits would try to rat on them, but Fred and George knew how to handle them. A blind-fold on those particularly prone to finking was enough in most cases. That night they'd gotten in and out without being seen, with only one close call on the fourth floor by Mrs. Norris. As Arcturus paced around the common room, trying to burn off his energy, he remembered that he hadn't spoken to Remus in a while. They had gotten together once more in the park before Arcturus had left for school and Arcturus promised he would write and Remus promised the same. Arcturus hadn't sent Striga even once yet. But he would fix that.
With the hands of a pickpocket, Arcturus slipped a piece of parchment out from under the boys nose and swiped the quill and pot of ink before settling down at a table in front of the low fire. He carefully dipped the quill in ink as he tried to think of what to say.
"Dear Remus,
Hogwarts is everything you said it would be. I was Sorted into Gryffindor House, just like you were. I've also made friends with Lee Jordan who is in my year, and Fred and George Weasley who are second years. You would like the Weasleys. They have a great sense of humour. I've already been in detention a few times. Snape, our Potions Professor, is a prick. He is Head of Slytherin House and hates Gryffindors, but I think he especially hates me. It doesn't matter. We've got something big planned. My uncle thinks I'm not making the right choices and that I'll end up like my father. He's wrong. I'm not like my father and I won't ever be. I'm not a murderer."
Arcturus paused, frowning at the drying ink on the parchment. He hadn't meant to say all that. Quickly he crumbled the letter up and tossed it into the fire. He swiped another piece of parchment and this time scribbled just a brief note.
"Dear Remus,
I was Sorted into Gryffindor House. Hogwarts is great. I can't write too much but I've got something big planned. Tell you more later.
Yours,
Arcturus."
The sun was beginning to rise as he folded the letter and addressed it.
"I'm sorry sir, I—"the third year, who suddenly startled awake, blinked owlishly and looked around in confusion. He muttered unintelligibly before he spotted Arcturus with quill in hand and realized his was missing.
"Hey, that's mine!"
"Just borrowing it, mate," Arcturus replied, before tossing the quill and pot back on the table and disappearing out the Gryffindor portrait hole, leaving the confused third year behind. Now that the sun was out, the castle was stirring awake. Arcturus purposefully skirted around the Great Hall on his way down to the Owlery. A few students were up as well and were making their way to breakfast, excitedly chattering about the game that day. As Arcturus climbed up to the Owlery, he tried to avoid stepping in owl poop but in the end had to Scourgify his shoes. Still, Striga was fast becoming a small brown dot in the distance as she carried Remus' letter away. By the time Arcturus showered and went down to breakfast, dressed in Gryffindor colours like his house-mates, the school was alive and abuzz. Fred and George, wearing their Gryffindor team robes and carrying their brooms, intercepted him in the entrance hall.
"Snape just went inside," George said quietly.
"We'll give it a few moments, and then I'll give the trigger," Arcturus whispered back. "Wood would skin us alive if he lost his two Beaters just an hour before the first game."
Fred and George agreed. The three of them entered the hall and Fred and George went to sit with the rest of the team while Arcturus sat with Lee who was looking decidedly pale as he went through the motions of eating breakfast without actually swallowing a bite.
"Are you sure about this?"
Arcturus nodded confidently. "This will be one for the record books." He made eye contact with Fred and George down the way, and winked before muttering under his breath.
"Go, go Gryffindor."
Suddenly the enchanted ceiling, which had been displaying a fair, sunny day, seemed to coalesce into thousands of bludger-size orbs in red and gold. They swarmed around the ceiling forming words. "Time to Show Your School PRIDE." Then a lion burst through the words, scattering the orbs in all directions. Gryffindors cheered as the orbs raced through the hall, more than a few of them swarming around Professor Snape who tried to vanish them, and as the magic lion gave a great roar, every orb in the hall burst, spraying anyone nearby in red and gold paint.
The result was mayhem and Arcturus sat in the middle of it all, splattered in gold paint and laughing great, barking laughs. Across from him, Lee blinked through a face of red paint, and as he saw Arcturus, he smiled and laughed too.