Chapter Text
1975 - August 29th, Friday
The station was bustling with most of the same students as the previous year, with the addition of the new first years. Parents were saying the same tearful goodbyes, well, all parents with the exception of Walburga Black. She had the same stern face plastered on as she did the previous four years they have done this. Of course she was ignoring Sirius, leaving the attention to be burdened on his younger brother, Regulus.
She fixed his tie, his collar, his hair and part of Sirius ached for that again. The last time she ever looked at him with even a glimmer of pride was his first year. When he wasn’t in Gryffindor, or when he wasn’t friends with one of the only bad purebloods, or when he wasn’t getting detentions every other day. But now he was, so he never got the attention he always held out hope for.
“I want you to write every fortnight to inform me of everything, Regulus.” What she meant to say was let me know if your defiant, idiot brother gets into any trouble again.
“Yes, mother.” The same monotone voice, the same boring phrase.
“And you.” Walburga sounded anything but pleased to have to be addressing her eldest son, “If so much as one finger is out of line, Durmstrang is where you’ll be. Your father has made sure his promises are not empty, they have a place for you with just one owl.” He nodded grimly in response. No matter how many times his parents threatened that ghastly school it still left him feeling sickly.
With that, the pair got on the train, Sirius carried Regulus’ luggage aboard as he still struggled to lift it. This got him a look of disapproval and even a hiss when he dared to lift it up onto the storage for his brother.
“I don’t need your help.” He complained.
“Oh please, we both know you can’t carry it.” Sirius rolled his eyes and made his way to the ‘Gryffindor’ section of the train. Usually he’d wait a little just in case his mother was there watching but this year he really couldn’t wait. He missed James and Peter, and he most definitely missed Moony. Though he’d never admit it out loud.
He got a few unpleasant stares as he walked down the carriage, especially from the Zabini twins and Yaxley. The three had this immense hatred for him which they also carried over to Reggie which was unusual for Slytherins.
He looked in the compartments searching for his fellow marauders he’d been dying to see. When he was reaching the end of the carriage, he heard a roar of laughter. He sped up as he rushed to the final compartment to see all of his friends smiling and having fun. It warmed his heart a little, seeing them all like that.
Opening the door, he was greeted with those same smiles, and suddenly everything that happened over that Summer vanished. All the shouting, glass smashing, spells cast, crying, all of that had dissipated the moment his friends grinned at him.
“Look who it is, the man of the hour!” James shouted, everyone began clapping, oh how he loved them.
“We’ve been waiting for you Pads, hurry up before you miss Mary’s story!” Peter shuffled over to make some room. Sirius hauled his trunk up, then squeezed in between Pete and Remus, who was staring out of the window. The full moon was soon.
They all fit in one compartment when they were in their second year, but they’ve all grown now so it was a much tighter fit since they were in their fifth year. Moony sat by the window, like always, Sirius was shoved up next to him, then it was Wormy, then Mary. Opposite was James, Marls, Lils, Emmeline and someone Sirius didn’t recognise.
“Sooo, I was at the table with the whole family, Auntie Shirley starts going on and on about how my cousins do so much at school but they hardly hear about anything I do. Of course Paps sticks up for me, and so does dad but that doesn’t stop her.” Mary made a dramatic pause, “Now, she believes in the supernatural, which is already helpful. But then she says something really awful about my mum.” Lily gasps when she hears this; Mary’s mum passed when she was 13.
“I know, you should’ve seen my dad’s face! Shirley tried saving herself saying ‘oh I just meant she’d want to see her daughter do something in life’, and that really ticked me off, so naturally I made all of her family portraits fall off the wall. She screams and dad has to take me home, but he did say he was proud of me for making mum scare Aunt Shirley, apparently she never liked her. And that’s how I ended up at the Ministry of Magic with Dumbledore as my lawyer, the end.” She gave a small bow and a mischievous grin.
Everyone’s mouth was agape, it was the last thing you’d expect to hear from your friend after asking about their Summer, though that was probably the least surprising part about it considering they were talking about Mary, the Queen of the unexpected.
“Damn Mary, at least the bitch got what she deserved.” Sirius stammered.
“Yeah, and at least you're not in Azkaban, that’s a plus.” Peter smiled awkwardly, making everyone go into a fit of laughter because as crazy as it was, it was true.
– – – – – – –
The train ride was nice, and Sirius’ stomach hurt a little from how much he laughed. It had been so long since he’d been able to that he wasn’t used to it anymore. The nine of them had to squeeze in the carriage, again, that was being pulled by the same mysterious creatures as the last couple years.
“You think they keep them in those stablers that muggles use?” He asked.
“What are you talking about?” Remus looked at him, it had been the first time he had spoken on their journey, and the best part was that he had spoken to him first. He chose to speak to Sirius, out of everyone else, and that made him feel a little…giddy inside.
“You mean stables, right?” Mary arched her brow, “And no, they keep them in the forest.”
“Keep what, what are you talking about?” Remus repeated himself.
“Those things, pulling the carriages.” Sirius pointed to the winged creatures carting the carriage, he also had to stop himself from smiling knowing that he was now, also, the first person Moony was having a conversation with. What was even better was Lily was right next to him, his best friend, Lily, she was right there and yet he chose to talk with Sirius.
“There’s nothing pulling the carts, Sirius.” Lily gave him a look of concern and confusion, in which he returned.
“Yeah there are, they are black, they have wings, and they are like skeletons, don’t you see?” Mary questioned, “I know it’s dark out but if Sirius can see them, anyone can.”
“Hey what’s that supposed to me–”
“Thestrals?” Lily choked out, “Only people who have seen–” She stopped there, coughing a little, and stopped talking. She looked between Mary and Sirius with a twinkle of sadness in her eyes, wait no nevermind those were just tears.
“Hey Lils, you okay?” Sirius was utterly confused, he kinda wished Lily had finished her sentence.
“Oh look, we are here at the castle.” Emmeline chirped, obviously trying to cut the tension, which everyone appreciated nonetheless.
The castle loomed over them, still as exquisite as the first time they saw it. It was like it had gotten more fascinating every year. The torches lit up its stony frame, and the turrets swivelled upwards towards the sky.
They exited the cart, Lily was still looking down, he wanted to stay and ask her if she was alright but Remus was ushering him forward. Right, he was Lily’s best friend so he was the better person to talk to her.
He joined Mary on the walk up to the castle, the others flocked ahead, eager to be the first to get seats for the feast.
“Hey, I didn’t catch the girl’s name.” He pointed to the brunette tailing Emmy.
“Oh, that’s Em’s friend, Bertha Jorkins, she’s a Ravenclaw, in our year. She was accepted onto the quidditch team over the Summer automatically. Apparently she’s meant to be a prodigy but no professional team is willing to take her on, they say it’s because of her age but I know that’s bull, they take on 12 year olds. They just don’t want to admit they are a bunch of sexist jerks.” She scowled.
Sirius huffed out a laugh because Mary was funny, even when she didn’t mean to be. But she was also the most loyal person he knew, it was a mystery how she never got into Hufflepuff.
They joined the others in the Great Hall, Lily sat in between him and Mary, she even gave him a smile. Something she never does. Weird. He smiled back, and then looked to James who sat opposite him. He shrugged, and so did Peter. Remus refused to look at him.
“Hey where’s Lots?” Mary asked.
Peter opened his mouth to answer but before he could say anything, the Headmaster was already standing, inviting a round of applause from their peers.
“A welcome to Hogwarts for those who are new as well as those who are not. This year is a strange one, especially for our first years. Hogwarts has been home to many traditions over time, however not one of such virtue. As some of you may know, our school has the privilege to engage in a healthy rivalry with our comrades overseas. This year, we have been awarded in being the host school for the Triwizard Tournament, a friendly competition we engage in with Durmstrang and the Beauxbatons schools. I hope we can all give our friends as warm of a welcome as they’ve given us in previous years.” The moment that Dumbledore clapped his hands together, the doors to the Great Hall swung open. In charged the students of Durmstrang. They wore massive brown coats trimmed with fur, they had a matching trapper hat and fur boots. The girls had floor-length brown skirts whilst the boys wore brown trousers.
They were all brawn and burly, which made Mary and Lottie swoon…Lottie?
“Oh my Merlin, aren’t they to die for?” She drooled.
“Lottie, when did you get here?” Mary chuffed, “Oh, now that’s what you call men, why can’t we have that here?” She pouted, Lottie joined her as they watched on. Sirius couldn’t help but agree, which was entirely normal, he was sure James thought the exact same too. They were just…attractive? No, no, that’s not the word. Well, maybe it was but that didn’t mean anything. That was until Nikola Krum winked their way, and a small, very, very small part of him hoped he was winking at him. But that’s just wrong because he certainly wasn’t, not when Mary was right there.
“Did you see that Lots!” She cried, “He just winked at us!”
“How could I not see such a thing?” Lottie looked on at the passing students with a level of yearning that was quite worrisome. “I’ll have to send Dumbledore a thank you letter immediately.”
At the end was Igor Karkaroff, the ugliest beast Sirius has ever seen, and their even uglier Headmaster, Harfang Munter. The Karkaroff family were known for their immense cruelty and their part in the inhumane treatment of half-bloods and muggle-borns in the Bulgarian ministry. Igor noticed Sirius and gave a manic grin as he walked on.
Next were the Beauxbatons, their uniform was much nicer. It was a baby blue, with bows and ribbons tattered all over. The girls wore a dress with sleeves that just covered the elbows with a skirt that reached their ankles. The boys wore a button up shirt, and trousers which were otherwise completely identical to their fellow female peers. They danced elegantly up the hall, but they weren’t nearly as spectacular as the Durmstrang students. They had fire and deafening music, whereas the Beauxbatons just had butterflies and dancing.
Bored, he looked to Marlene but her focus was occupied on the flurry of girls skipping past them. Her face was akin to the other male students surrounding them–except for James and Remus. She caught him staring and immediately her gaze fractured, her eyes darted around and her face went a shade of pink. How strange.
When the Beauxbatons and Durmstrang students finished showing off Dumbledore rose from his seat and came forward to meet the other headmasters. Munter refused to shake hands and just grunted with recognition. Beauxbaton's headmaster was Monsieur Delacour, the head of a famous pureblood family in France, his son was also there. Probably much to his father’s dismay as he was known for his disobedience and flirtatious charm. Though there were rumours he had finally settled for a half-veela, which didn't surprise Sirius at all considering she'd most likely be the only one who could put up with him.
Delacour was more than happy to shake hands with Dumbledore and Munter, he had even brought Dumbledore a gift which he humbly accepted. Beauxbaton was known for their rectitude and integrity.
“Hey, guys, what’s that?” James nodded towards a tall object that was covered by a grey sheet.
“Thank you all for such a fabulous and respectable welcoming, your enthusiasm is much appreciated by all of Beauxbaton.” Monsieur announced.
“Thank you, Monsieur Delacour, I am most grateful to be able to share this moment with our noble and esteemed guests. Now–”
“Durmstrang noble and esteemed,” Sirius scoffed, “Don’t make me laugh.” This awarded a chuckle out of Mary, but when he turned his attention back onto his headmaster he was met with the most remarkable look of anger that could rival his father’s which was saying a lot. Dumbledore continued to speak, but Harfang Munter glared right into his soul.
Uncomfortable would be downplaying whatever Sirius was feeling. Scared, no. Terrified, possibly. The word that fit most of all was excruciatingly distressed. The eyes that were glued onto him were not that of a headmaster of a school, no, they were the ones that tortured half-blood children to get the names of their parents.
He could feel the colour that was left on his already pale face drain away the longer the eyes trapped him. He could no longer hear anything Dumbledore was saying. That was until he felt a sharp kick in his shin.
“Mate, are you alright?” James leant over the table.
“Yeah, yeah, I’m fine.” He lied.
When he looked back for a second time, he watched as Harfang scoffed and shook his head. This only angered Sirius more. How could the bastard have the audacity to scoff at him? He wasn’t the evil one who killed people.
“There are some rules I would like to personally enforce. Though this is separate from the Tournament I have discussed this with Headmaster Munter and Monsieur Delacour, anyone under the roof of Hogwarts whilst I am headmaster will not be participating in the tournament if aged 15 and under.” An uproar began with the Prewett twins, who expressed their dislike for the rule rather…loudly. This was only met with a calm but terrifying response from Dumbledore, “If any student wishes to go against my ruling, there will be consequences. The first is that you cannot back out of the tournament, I have no power in this decision, the second will be your place at Hogwarts, or the wizarding school you attend.” Although the eruption of disappointment had quietened down, there was still a mass of visual disapproval travelling throughout the hall.
“I thank everyone for understanding these rules, and for abiding by them. Let the feast begin!” A swish of the man’s hand brought rows and rows of freshly cooked food lining the tables.
The first years dug in greedily as if they’d never eaten before, and the Durmstrang students seemed to only eat from anything with a source of protein. The Beauxbatons were more delicate with their portioning but still revelled in the appreciation of being given such a vast amount.
Sirius grabbed whatever food was in sight, this was not unusual on the first day back. He received sympathetic looks from James, but no one bothered him thankfully. He would have been lucky to receive soup at home, which was always disgusting anyways. Reggie would sometimes sneak some of his food into Sirius’ room, which he did appreciate, really, he just never had the stomach to eat during those times.
“Quit it barbarian, it’s not gonna disappear on you.” Mary jested, as she helped him pile food onto his plate. That made him feel a little better, oh but Remus, he made him feel like he wasn’t alone as he too piled mounds of food onto his plate. Sirius watched on as Moony tucked in.
“You gonna keep staring,” He muttered around a mouthful of food, “Or are you gonna eat yours, because if not I’ll have it.” This made Sirius smile earnestly, which Remus responded to with a smirk of his own. That only widened his grin. And caused something much more embarrassing that he was hoping on Merlin no one would notice. Fortunately, today's hope was enough.
– – – – – – –
After stuffing themselves with the feast, the seven of them took over the common room, much to the dismay of the buzzing first years. Frank was rushing around helping the newcomers as some cried, many lost things, and others held up letters already written to send home. It was almost comedic if the mood wasn’t so low.
“Can someone tell me why we are all so suddenly down in the dumps?” He queried. Was Lily still upset about these thestral things? Why she would be in the first place was beyond him.
“Can someone staple your mouth shut?” Remus retorted.
“Can someone–” Sirius began, before being interrupted.
“How about we all just shut up?” Marlene snapped. Everyone promptly avoided making any noise.
Frank wandered behind the sofa, clearing his throat he said, “I want you guys to know that if I even see any of you considering putting your name in that cup, I will not hesitate reporting you to Dumbledore. You're all still 15 and will be by October 31st, so you'd be breaking the rules if you enter your name. And you will have something more to fear if I catch you.”
A shock surged amongst the group.
“I am not going to let you stupidly risk your lives for a thrill, alright? I want each and every one of you to promise me, especially you boys, I know what you’re like.” He gave them a stern and meaningful look before gesturing his hand at them, and one by one they each promised that they wouldn't put their name in the cup, nor would they ask anyone else to. Satisfied, he gave a sharp nod and wandered off. He had seemingly been giving a similar lecture to each first year who dared to speak of the tournament near him.
“Hey, I want you guys to know that I intend to make good on my promise to Frank,” James blurted out, “And I want you guys to do the same because I get where he is coming from. People have died in this tournament before you know. A kid in my dad’s year did it and never came up out of the water in one of the games.” As solemn as the conversation became, everyone gave a nod of approval assuring their friend that they wouldn’t dare do something so stupid.
Just then Alice staggered in the common room with a bottle of something that didn’t look very pleasant.
“Oi, Black, your brother’s outside.” She muttered before heading over to Frank who had about six letters in hand. He was the biggest softie Sirius ever met so naturally he couldn’t say no to a bunch of homesick kids who didn’t know how to use an owl.
His friends looked to him expectantly which was when he realised that he should be going outside. He got up from the armchair and Mary slipped into it from behind and gave a little smirk. Sirius reciprocated and sluggishly walked out of the portrait expecting to see Reggie.
“Zabini, what are you doing here?” He frowned, “And where’s Reg?”
“Calm down, I’m trying to help you.” Miles Zabini, the youngest of the Zabini twins, stood in front of him, hands buried in his pockets.
“Help me.” He scoffed, “Sorry if I can hardly believe that.” Though, very strangely, he could. Zabini was there alone without any of his cronies to back him up.
“Listen, I heard Igor, y’know the Durmstrang guy, and Munter talking about putting your name in the cup.” Any possibility of doubt began to seep away the moment he heard Munter’s name.
“Wow, thanks for the warning though it is probably a little late, if it is true at all, considering the Goblet has already been opened for admissions.” He barked a harsh laugh.
“I’m just trying to be kind, Black.” His face was tired, as if he hadn’t slept in ages, something he could relate to.
“I know, I’m just shocked. I didn’t think you snakes had it in you.” Sirius snarked.
“Is kindness such an inept concept to you?” Miles retorted.
“Why should I believe you?” He murmured, becoming slightly less skeptical.
“Do or don’t, I just thought you should know.” He muttered before turning on his heel to head back to the dungeons. Sirius felt something strange in the pit of his stomach.
“Wait!” He jogged to catch up with the Slytherin boy, “Just wait.”