[It nearly ends with Sirius out of school. But it doesn't. He's sent back, after the weekend. They don't ship him on the train, but send him back to Hogsmeade with his father.
After the Ministry, he had gone back to Grimmauld Place, with his father, and they'd gotten the good news of Bellatrix and Malfoy. His mother had been crying. That in of itself was a rare event. The tears were hardly over worry for Sirius. She cried when she got the good news, too, in the parlor with the family tree on the walls. That was where they gathered, as if there was some strength to get from the branches. Sirius felt only a weight, sitting in there. Like everyone was watching.
Before the news of Bellatrix, they were all asking him questions. And his father had been watching him, was watching him all weekend long, as if he knew. Maybe he did know. It wasn't outside the realm of possibility. On Sunday they all went to St Mungo's to see Bellatrix. Sirius stayed outside of the room. No one asked why. And then, afterwards, his father took him by the arm and they Apparated to Hogsmeade-- and then they ride up to Hogwarts in a carriage together. Sirius supposes that this is a show of power and opulence. Even without Voldemort, the Black family remains important, a cornerstone of pureblood society.
It all feels so hollow, though.
On Monday, he does not go to any of his classes. On Tuesday, he skips them as well. He does not sleep in the dormitory. He finds a tower and sleeps there, and Filch doesn't come across him, so he sleeps there again on Monday night. Regulus is looking for him, but he avoids everyone.
On Tuesday afternoon, there's a class in the next tower over, so Sirius beats a retreat, lest he be discovered. He slinks through the empty corridors. Behind the doors, classes go on--he can hear the murmur of voices, lessons being taught, lectures and practicals--but all of it feels removed from him, as if he's a ghost, haunting the halls.
Somehow, he ends up in the library. It isn't deliberate, but it's as good a place to hide out as any, and as he's ducking between the stacks, he sees him. Miles Edgeworth. Something in his chest twists, suddenly, as violent a movement as if there were something in his chest, and he stops, and stares, and does not approach him. Not yet. Maybe he won't at all.]
[Miles knows that eventually, he's going to be getting attention for this. He despises attention. It's not out of any particular shyness, nothing so idiotic as that; he just doesn't like having people scrutinize him, bother him with a great lot of nonsense. And they'll be calling him a hero, he supposes - the Gryffindors, at least - and the Slytherins will hate him all the more, and that's nonsense of the highest order, the lot of it; and he knows that the Ministry will call him back soon, as well, and that there'll be more talk of what he's done.
He wishes so much that Sirius were still on his side. He wishes so much that the other boy could take the blame, or the praise, and that Miles himself could just quietly go on in the background and maybe leverage all this to become an Auror after all. He'd like to, still, especially with his knowledge that there are still so many Dark wizards out there; Voldemort wasn't the first, won't be the last -
He happens to look up and catch a glimpse of someone, concealed by the books, watching him. He thinks to himself that he ought to put a stop to this from the very start - head it off at the pass, as it were - and so he stands at once, and says, every bit the Prefect once more (if he even is one, he didn't ask Dumbledore whether he even has the right to that title any longer) - ]
You should be at lessons; it's midday, and -
[But by then he's moved forward enough to get a good glimpse of just who it is. He stops.]
[Fucking hell. He'd had just a few seconds there where he could have slipped away, unnoticed--but he'd lingered too long, because he's an idiot, and maybe because he's sentimental, or at least still thinking too slowly. And now Edgeworth's seen him, and he can't just walk away now, can he?
No, he could. And he nearly does. He doesn't owe him anything, right? They're not anything to one another. Except that's a lie.
And what's he going to do, anyways? Run away from him? He's not some bloody coward, and Edgeworth isn't some threat. He's not anything.
So Sirius stays where he is, his chin raised a little, stubbornly.]
They let you come back.
[The same could be said of him, of course. But he levels the observation at Edgeworth before Edgeworth can say it to him.]
[He can't help but feel a little defensive at that. He can't help but feel like he has to justify his presence.]
Dumbledore insisted.
[But it comes out weirdly shameful, weirdly embarrassed; he looks down at his feet. He ought to be questioning Sirius' presence; he ought to be pointing out that it's odd for him to be here, too. But questioning that will inevitably go back to Orion Black, and that cold command that the two of them weren't to have anything to do with one another, so he stays silent instead.]
Your cousin is alive.
[He says that like Sirius doesn't already know, which is patently absurd. His embarrassment simply increases. The comment hangs out there, strange, before he mumbles:]
[He nods, once, at Edgeworth's explanation, because: yeah, it would be Dumbledore that would have intervened with that. Sirius has never been particularly impressed by the headmaster, but nor has he disdained him like so many others are so quick to do. Not actually. He might have gone along with what was being said, but he never really felt the same.
At mention of Bellatrix, though, Sirius' face does a weird sort of half-smirk, and he turns away.]
[The bitterness, the unhappiness - those are...expected, Edgeworth supposes. The fact that Black is talking to him at all is more than what's expected. Even though Edgeworth could easily chide the other boy for his unkindness, he doesn't; he doesn't want to drive him away, to anger him, to even just give him an excuse to retreat.
Or - in theory, he doesn't. Yet the first question out of his mouth is:]
Are your parents being all right to you?
[Which - if there's anything that will make Sirius storm off in a rage, it's...something like that.]
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carisma_sensei
no subject
Date: 2013-11-27 09:05 am (UTC)After the Ministry, he had gone back to Grimmauld Place, with his father, and they'd gotten the good news of Bellatrix and Malfoy. His mother had been crying. That in of itself was a rare event. The tears were hardly over worry for Sirius. She cried when she got the good news, too, in the parlor with the family tree on the walls. That was where they gathered, as if there was some strength to get from the branches. Sirius felt only a weight, sitting in there. Like everyone was watching.
Before the news of Bellatrix, they were all asking him questions. And his father had been watching him, was watching him all weekend long, as if he knew. Maybe he did know. It wasn't outside the realm of possibility. On Sunday they all went to St Mungo's to see Bellatrix. Sirius stayed outside of the room. No one asked why. And then, afterwards, his father took him by the arm and they Apparated to Hogsmeade-- and then they ride up to Hogwarts in a carriage together. Sirius supposes that this is a show of power and opulence. Even without Voldemort, the Black family remains important, a cornerstone of pureblood society.
It all feels so hollow, though.
On Monday, he does not go to any of his classes. On Tuesday, he skips them as well. He does not sleep in the dormitory. He finds a tower and sleeps there, and Filch doesn't come across him, so he sleeps there again on Monday night. Regulus is looking for him, but he avoids everyone.
On Tuesday afternoon, there's a class in the next tower over, so Sirius beats a retreat, lest he be discovered. He slinks through the empty corridors. Behind the doors, classes go on--he can hear the murmur of voices, lessons being taught, lectures and practicals--but all of it feels removed from him, as if he's a ghost, haunting the halls.
Somehow, he ends up in the library. It isn't deliberate, but it's as good a place to hide out as any, and as he's ducking between the stacks, he sees him. Miles Edgeworth. Something in his chest twists, suddenly, as violent a movement as if there were something in his chest, and he stops, and stares, and does not approach him. Not yet. Maybe he won't at all.]
no subject
Date: 2013-11-27 12:06 pm (UTC)He wishes so much that Sirius were still on his side. He wishes so much that the other boy could take the blame, or the praise, and that Miles himself could just quietly go on in the background and maybe leverage all this to become an Auror after all. He'd like to, still, especially with his knowledge that there are still so many Dark wizards out there; Voldemort wasn't the first, won't be the last -
He happens to look up and catch a glimpse of someone, concealed by the books, watching him. He thinks to himself that he ought to put a stop to this from the very start - head it off at the pass, as it were - and so he stands at once, and says, every bit the Prefect once more (if he even is one, he didn't ask Dumbledore whether he even has the right to that title any longer) - ]
You should be at lessons; it's midday, and -
[But by then he's moved forward enough to get a good glimpse of just who it is. He stops.]
Black?
no subject
Date: 2013-11-27 02:34 pm (UTC)No, he could. And he nearly does. He doesn't owe him anything, right? They're not anything to one another. Except that's a lie.
And what's he going to do, anyways? Run away from him? He's not some bloody coward, and Edgeworth isn't some threat. He's not anything.
So Sirius stays where he is, his chin raised a little, stubbornly.]
They let you come back.
[The same could be said of him, of course. But he levels the observation at Edgeworth before Edgeworth can say it to him.]
no subject
Date: 2013-11-27 05:44 pm (UTC)Dumbledore insisted.
[But it comes out weirdly shameful, weirdly embarrassed; he looks down at his feet. He ought to be questioning Sirius' presence; he ought to be pointing out that it's odd for him to be here, too. But questioning that will inevitably go back to Orion Black, and that cold command that the two of them weren't to have anything to do with one another, so he stays silent instead.]
Your cousin is alive.
[He says that like Sirius doesn't already know, which is patently absurd. His embarrassment simply increases. The comment hangs out there, strange, before he mumbles:]
I'm glad of it.
no subject
Date: 2013-11-27 07:28 pm (UTC)At mention of Bellatrix, though, Sirius' face does a weird sort of half-smirk, and he turns away.]
Yeah. Well. That makes one of us.
no subject
Date: 2013-11-28 08:50 pm (UTC)Or - in theory, he doesn't. Yet the first question out of his mouth is:]
Are your parents being all right to you?
[Which - if there's anything that will make Sirius storm off in a rage, it's...something like that.]