Perpetual Freak (5/?): To the Dungeons

Pairings:Sirius Black x reader, Sirius Black x Gryffindor!reader, marauders era! Sirius Black x reader, Marauders x reader

Warnings:language, hinted fighting

Word Count: 3,240

A/N:Holy shit I’m aliveeee. School kicked my ass this semester as always :) but it’s all over now. I’ll probably be uploading another chapter of this soon and I even opened up my Grimmauld Place doc for the first time in months. Idkkkk. Anyways Merry Christmas and enjoy! Because it’s a bit of a cliffhanger I’ll be posting the next chapter hopefully tomorrow!

Ambient noise filled the Receiving Chamber as you walked into the towering castle. Turning towards the Great Hall, the sound only increased. Each of the tables had a few dozen people already seated, chatting quietly. The girl from Hufflepuff with a horrid case of acne seemed to have found the right salve, and the redhead from Ravenclaw started wearing glasses. Turning towards the Slytherin tables, you took your time to scowl at a haughty-looking Narcissa Black. She turned to her deranged sister and whispered, and both of them turned towards you, giggling. Your face flushed with anger as you looked at the two of them; whatever had been said had now been told to the whole group, and they all turned towards you, snickering.

“What?” you snarled, unable to hold back. This, of course, only caused them to slightly lower their laughter but continue.

“Problem, mates?” Sirius said, stopping beside you and draping a playful yet protective arm around your shoulders.

“Not at all, cousin of mine,” Narcissa said, smiling wickedly. Even as hateful as she was, there was no denying her beauty; her pale skin and equally pale hair seemed to almost twinkle underneath the thousands of floating candles lighting the hall.

“Cousin?” Sirius snorted. “Haven’t you heard? I’ve been disowned, not your family anymore, Cissy,” he sneered, using Bellatrix’s nickname.

Disowned? You knew he came to James’ early this summer, but had no idea that was the reason. It took everything in you to quell your curiosity. Besides, to get any real answers out of Sirius, you knew you’d have to get him alone.

“You say that as if that’s a good thing,” Bellatrix hissed from next to Narcissa, her lip curling as she glared at Sirius.

“Honestly, it’s about bloody time,” Narcissa sniffed. “Never did behave as a Blackshould.”

But Sirius ignored her, instead choosing to respond to Bellatrix.

“A good thing?” Sirius snorted, “Bella, darling, let’s be reasonable here. I hate you, you hate me, now we’re not even family,” Sirius rolled his eyes, continuing walking once more towards the Gryffindor table. “Even you have to admit it’s better this way. Now you hateful, snobbish, deluded lot can have your way with each other without any interference from little old me.”

“Oh, it is; we’ve finally gotten rid of the blood traitor.” Bellatrix snarled, enraged he’d bad mouth their family. “Look at you, hanging round with that mudblood. It’s pathetic.”

The group of you simultaneously tensed at the word Bellatrix used.

“Indecent, really. I expected better of you,” Narcissa sighed, her lips turning up in a small smile. James stepped in at that point.

“Watch your mouth, Black,” he said, taking a step next to Sirius.

“Careful how you speak to a lady, Potter,” Lucius sneered from a couple spaces down. Narcissa’s eyes flicked down to his spot, and her grin grew.

“Uh oh, looks like I’ve made the Mudblood lover angry, watch out, everybody!” Bellatrix cackled, her wild mane of hair shaking with laughter.

“I would, or maybe you should ask Severus here what happened last time he pissed Jamesy here off,” you lilted, gesturing to the sallow boy hunched over in front of them. His head snapped up, and he blushed with anger. Smirking, you decided to push him farther; if it wasn’t to be a secret anymore, you might as well have fun with it.

Closing your eyes and hoping it worked–you’d never done it on so many people–you took a deep breath.

Communicating in your special way with one person was easy, pushing the same thought to several people was possible–but much more difficult. It’d taken till 4th year to push to more than two people at once. Conjuring the image of an upside-down Snape, with his sickly, pale legs on display, you pushed hard towards the seated Slytherins in front of you. Clenching your fists, you pushed harder, finally breaking into a smile as you heard each of their gasps.

Suddenly, you felt a hand on the small of your back, steering you away. Opening your eyes, you found it was Sirius leading you.

“Come on, Twitch,” he said, pulling you towards an already seated Remus and Peter.

“It’s all right, I’m done,” you shrugged, smiling nastily at a glowering Bellatrix over your shoulder. Suddenly, she was on her feet.

“How did you do that?” she screeched madly, her wand in hand.

And then all hell broke loose.

Suddenly Remus, Lily, James, Peter, and Sirius all had their wands drawn, pointed at the equally tense group in front of you. Narcissa, Lucius, Severus, and Avery had joined Bellatrix. Your temper was running wild, heart hammering in your chest, the sound drowning out much of the chatter in the Great Hall–or perhaps everyone had stopped to watch.

“Like this,” you sneered, this time pushing an image of a wailing Bellatrix, sobbing as her hands were covered in boils. Just as she opened her mouth to hex you, Slughorn’s massive figure teetered into view.

“Malfoy? Black? Potter? Black? What in Merlin’s beard is going on here?” he said, looking confused.

“Bellatrix here pulled her wand on Y/N. We’re just backing her up, Professor,” Lily simpered, batting her eyes at Slughorn.

“As are we,” Severus said severely, lowering his eyes at James, the both of them still holding their wands to one another.

“Alright, alright. Enough! You boys–the testosterone between Slytherin and Gryffindor will be the death of this school–everybody put down your wands!” he bellowed, causing everyone who wasn’t already watching the scene to look at you now.

“Now then, you five, get to your table,” he said, pushing the group of you forward. James and Severus glared at each other until James sank into his seat and was distracted by Lily whispering in his ear. Your eyes, however, had yet to leave Bellatrix’s–who glared at you still from her seat at the Slytherin table.

“Let it alone, she’s insane,” Sirius whispered into your ear as the two of you sat opposite James and Lily. Pulling up an image of you viciously hexing Bellatrix, you pushed to her again and were pleased to watch her fist hit against the table, causing everyone nearby to jump.

“Maybe I’m just as bad,” you shrugged, watching her squirm in her seat.

“Hey, look at me,” Sirius said. Unable to tear your eyes away, you continued to fuck with her, pulling up various hexes for her to watch.

“Hey,” Sirius said once more, this time grabbing your jaw with his hand and pulling your face to look at him, “I said look at me. Stop.”

Something in the tone in his voice kept you from smartly retorting–besides, how were you supposed to focus with his storm-grey eyes boring intensely into yours. A tingly feeling erupted in the depths of your stomach, and you complied. After a moment, you came to your senses and pulled yourself out of his grip.

“Fine,” you grumbled, cheeks beginning to heat as Sirius’ fingers left your face tingling.

“She’s gonna end up killing that cousin of yours one of these days,” Lily said, looking at the two of you from her seat with James across the table.

“You say that as if it’s a bad thing. She’d just as soon curse you dead right in this bloody hall,” you grumbled, crossing your arms.

“They’ll get theirs,” Remus reasoned, closing his book as Dumbledore scraped his chair, rising to begin his speech.

“Yeah, I’ll be the one giving it to them,” you replied, growling slightly.

“That’s my girl. Give ‘em hell, Twitch,” James smiled, popping a bite into his mouth. “I’ll be right behind you,”

“Alright, you two,” Lily said, quelling the two of your aggression. Though you remained silent, you seethed in your seat and caught Bellatrix’s eyes frequently. The surrounding chatter quickly quieted as Dumbledore reached the podium.

“Another year passed, another year started,” he began, smiling warmly at the students around him. “How lucky I am to stand before your smiling faces. How fortunate we are to fill you with knowledge.”

Though he continued speaking, James’ commentary drowned him out.

“That’s not all they’ll be filled with, eh, Pads?” he grinned, nudging Sirius’ arm from across the table. Sirius didn’t have time to respond before James yelped.

He pulled his leg up from under the table where you’d kicked his shin and used his other hand to rub his bicep where Lily had pinched him.

“It was a joke,” he pouted.

The two of you shared a small grin and turned back to Dumbledore.

“–but that’s of no matter. Now, let us welcome a new batch!” With that, he spread open his arms in greeting, and the doors of the Great Hall swung in. Led by a tight-lipped McGonagall, the first years shuffled quickly behind her, their faces a mix of intense anxiety and awe of the room before them.

“Oh! Just look at the ickle firsties!” Lily simpered, smiling widely at the group–a small boy with curly black hair tripped over his robe.

They reached the top of the room, and all stiffened as McGonagall grabbed the ancient hat and placed it on the rickety stool.

“This is the Sorting Hat, its job is to place you in your House. The House which the hat places you in shall be your family here. You shall dine together, study together, and sleep in the same rooms. Once I call your name, take a seat on this stool and place the hat on your head. That hat shall then place you, and you will take your seats at your table.” McGonagall explained, eyes dancing over the students. One of the students towards the back seemed to actually be shaking.

Unrolling the piece of parchment, she cleared her throat.

“Abernathy, Owen,” she called, and a boy with curly back hair shuffled his way to the stage.

“Do not fancy trading places with any of those lot,” Peter muttered, looking anxious for them.

“Wasn’t that bad, Wormtail,” Remus responded, casting a quick look back at him.

“Easy for you to say! The hat didn’t take nearly 10 minutes with you, did it? Thought I’d broken the bloody thing,” Peter quivered, remembering the day. James and Sirius laughed under their breath.

Hufflepuff clapped loudly as the first of the new batch came to join their table.

“Crawden, Caleb,” she rang out. A round of applause from Ravenclaw.

“DePonte, Leila,” a small girl with long brown hair seemed to tip-toe to the front and sat down on the chair. The hat had no sooner come to rest before it shouted, “Slytherin!” She grinned and danced towards the table on the far end of the room.

“Definitely a Slytherin,” you and Lily said at the same time.

“Flintwood, Jacob,” another round of applause from Ravenclaw.

“Bloody hell,” Sirius sighed.

“No new Gryffindors this year, then?” James finished.

“We’re only at F,” Lily said.

“Yes, but this must not have been a good batch. There are only about a dozen left,” Remus pointed out.

“Gold, Penelope,” another Hufflepuff. You exchanged a glance with Sirius.

“Gore, Ben,” a small boy with black hair similar to James’ detached from what must’ve been his twin and walked up to the stool. After shooting a nervous glance back down at his brother. He placed the hat on his head.

“Gryffindor!” the hat ripped. Happy to have at least one, your table erupted into thunderous applause. Finally, a new Gryffindor.

“10 sickles says his twin gets in,” Sirius grinned, sticking his hand towards James.

“10 sickles says he doesn’t,” James grinned back, reaching a hand across the table.

“Gore, Wren,” a girl who looked just like her brother traipsed up to the stool and shot a hopeful glance towards your table.

James and Sirius shared an excited grin as she placed the hat on her head.

“Gryffindor!” The boy let out a visible sigh of relief as his twin punched her fist in the air in an excited sort of way.

“Whenever you’re ready, mate,” Sirius teased.

“Oh, shut it, pretty boy,” James grumbled, laying a couple of silver coins in Sirius’ outstretched hand.

“Have you ever noticed, even when I’m being insulted, they can’t help but notice my looks,” Sirius said, lifting a spoon to study his reflection. You all collectively rolled your eyes and sighed.

As your eyes settled, they happened to land on Bellatrix, who still sat glaring at you from her table. And just as though the last few minutes hadn’t happened, the anger settled back into you tenfold.

Dinner passed quickly, though you didn’t eat much, instead spent your time stabbing at your food.

After the annual speech from Dumbledore, it was off to the common rooms for the night.

“Are you still upset?” Sirius asked as the group of you began trodding up the never-ending staircases to Gryffindor Towers.

“No,” you lied. He gave you a knowing look, and you looked away. There was just something about Bellatrix that grated you beyond belief. Perhaps it was Sirius’ connection to her, or your years of quarreling, all starting after she’d laughed as you gave a wrong answer in first-year Transfiguration. The thought alone sent your blood boiling, and it was lucky Peter and Remus happened to be trailing behind, or you’d have slinked back and searched her out in the halls.

The group of you had finally reached the portrait of the Fat Lady at the entrance, her smiling graciously as her students disappeared behind her.

“Twitch,” Sirius whispered as James and Lily stepped through. Remus gave the two of you a curious glance, but followed in after a hurrying Peter.

“What?” you grouched.

“Come on,” he jerked his head back down the stairs. Before you could ask him what he was on about, he grabbed your hand and pulled you down the stairs.

“If we hurry, we might be able to catch them,” he said, looking back at you as he ran. His dark hair whipped around his face, and a mischievous smile pulled at his pale pink lips as he grinned back at you.

Sirius would be the death of you.

The two of you sprinted through the winding halls and down the towering staircases. You’d been so distracted by the sight of the sun setting through one of the glass panes, you didn’t even see Nick. Feeling as though you’d just stepped out of an icy shower, you yelled out an apology to him as Sirius raced on, his tight grip on your hand forcing you to keep up.

“Be more careful!” Nicolas yelled back, sounding grumpy.

Finally, out of breath, the two of you skidded into the stairwell leading down to the dungeons. Grinning, you realized what he had in mind.

The corridor was filled with the robes of the Slytherin students heading back down into their own common rooms for the night. Your eyes flitted over everyone’s head, looking for the wild bunch of curls. Finally, you saw them just about to disappear into the same hole dozens of other Slytherins had, in a wild act of desperation, you called out.

“Trixie!” you shouted. It worked. She dove back out of the hole, shoving two Slytherins to get past. “Fancy a little duel?”

“C’mon Lucy, you know it’ll be fun,” Sirius taunted, prompting the white-blonde boy to whip his own head in search. Each of you had a favorite to fuck with; For James, it was Severus–though Sirius never said no to joining in–for you, Bellatrix, for Sirius, it was Lucius. Remus thought himself to be, and truly was above all it; he only got involved when it was about to go too far.

Just as the two had locked eyes with you, you turned to Sirius and smiled. Nodding, the two of you took off at a sprint once again.

“Coming to get me, Trixie?” you yelled out, taunting her. You heard her let out an annoyed shriek, but she didn’t dare pull her wand with the looming threat of Professors so nearby.

“Where are we going?” you hissed to Sirius as he expertly sprinted through the maze of hallways–you really had to start studying that damn map.

“On the grounds, by the greenhouses. Nobody should be out there this time of night,” he panted, turning quickly and bounding up the set of stairs in front of him.

“Scared, Y/N? Is that why you and lover boy are running?” Bellatrix yelled, likely needing to hear your voice to know where to follow; she and Lucius had fallen far behind in their confusion of the entangled corridors of their own dungeon.

“You wish, you twit,” you laughed. At the end of your sentence, you heard the thunderings of running footsteps and knew they were on your trail again.

“Come on, Lucy. Keep up, won’t you? My mother runs faster than you,” Sirius laughed.

After another few quick turns, you were running up a sloping tunnel. Seconds later, the two of you came out just a few yards from the greenhouses, panting wildly.

“Now what?” you said, putting your hands on your knees and forcing deep lungfuls of the cool night air into your body.

“Now, you duel,” Sirius said, putting his hands on his head and catching his breath.

“What?” you said. Dueling was always the way he and James handled their disagreements, but they didn’t understand the more refined art to girl arguments.

“If you aren’t angry enough to duel, you aren’t angry,” Sirius shrugged, grinning at your surprised face.

“You best hope I don’t turn my wand on youafterwards, Sirius,” you hissed at his dark face.

“Here they come–I’d start thinking of spells if I were you,” he grinned, pointing his wand at the opening that now was leaking the sounds of arriving footsteps. You took his advice and conjured all the hexes and jinxes you’d watched them perform over the years.

“Merlin, did you have to run through the entirety of the castle?” Bellatrix hissed as she saw your faces in the moonlight. “Couldn’t you have found an empty classroom like a normal person?”

“Come on now, cousin; where’s the fun in that?” Sirius grinned, looking utterly relaxed as he leaned against the greenhouse, twirling his wand in his hand.