Twelve
It was brilliant. Bloody brilliant. The screams and shouts and disgusted noises of his fellow slytherin students was a lovely sound to wake up to.
Alexander's deal with Sirius might've been his best move yet, because the sight of Snape being blasted by twenty egg-splotions was going to be etched into his memory forever. Probably good enough to produce a Patronus charm. Alexander laid like a starfish on the warm embrace of the sun in the beach, even though it was the dead of winter. He waited for the ruckus to calm down a little before fetching his clothes and heading out to the prefect's bathroom in the fifth floor, the Slytherin bathroom were currently occupied. And true, Alexander was a first year, and he was not a prefect by any means, but Garrett Herron the fifth-year Gryffindor prefect had given him the password. Well, he'd thought the password when Alexander was close enough. It wasn't his fault he couldn't control his legilimency yet, so some good might come from it at least. That's why he kept to the deep ends of the library. If you went deep enough not even the stressed NEWT thoughts reached you.
Then again, some people thought louder than others. And they reached you clearer the more time you spent close to them. So Alexander hadn't really slept well on behalf of loud anxious thoughts coming from his common room the night before. Damned Pettigrew.
But back on track, Alexander's mind was finally at peace, it would be the last moment of peace he had all day, because after today, Halloween, October 31st, he had two days before Sirius Black's birthday on November 3rd. And that meant, that every single slytherin would be talking about that. Narcissa and Bellatrix Black were already thinking about it for a few days. And he'd been avoiding them for more than a week, making them louder each day. It wasn't that Alexander spent a lot of time in the common room either, it was unbearable at the best of times, but the only place to be after curfew.
He decided to take a long drawn bath in the prefect bathroom, it was a beautiful place, empty and rarely used, there weren't that many prefects and head students, so no one was likely to interrupt him, especially when all that commotion was taking place in the Slytherin common room. Bloody brilliant the lot of those Gryffindor boys.
Enough time passed for Alexander to get all wrinkly, raisin-like fingers, so he got up, dried and left for the Great Hall, breakfast time would be shortly over. The thoughts started to reach him, and get to him, crowds were the last thing he wished to be near, but until he got that book from the restricted section, he'd have to keep squirming around. Maybe he could get Slughorn to get it for him, maybe he had access.
He reached the Slytherin table, sitting at the far edge, closest to the teachers, you got to hear some of the more interesting thoughts there from the ones that didn't know occlumency. But to no avail, you could hear both Narcissa and Bellatrix think from everywhere, they had the loudest minds in the Great Hall, they were very powerful witches after all.
Bellatrix's train of thought went towards the "little-shit blood traitor" tracks, not looking forward to having to be chasing down Sirius. Narcissa was in a sense hopeful, perhaps, she thought, Sirius would hear reason--long shot in itself--and leave his Gryffindor friends behind to align again to the family's values, he was meant to be head of the Black family, so he would have to face the music eventually.
...
After classes, of course, Alexander spent his time in the library, his usual spot.
"Why are they hunting for me?" Sirius was by himself, rare. And quick enough for Alexander to hear his angry steps before his angry thoughts.
"You know your family has a portrait in the Slytherin common room? Of your mother. You do. It's quicker than owls."
"She has something to do with it?"
"When you're mad you think in french and I can't listen to your thoughts Black, but you knew your mother was involved anyways."
"Tell them to leave me alone."
"And let them kill the messenger? Sorry mate, I like you and all, but I value my life."
"Fine. What do they want?"
"Pestering me was easier than talking to them?"
"Anything's easier than talking to them." He seemed to calm down, a known evil. The thoughts in his head still enough.
"Then you're in for a hard time, they're planning your birthday party. Of sorts. Tea party. And if you don't mind, I'm trying to keep the Legilimency thing a secret, so if you and your friends--Marauders, could keep it to yourselves, I'd greatly appreciate it. Also if you're planning to get something else from the restricted section, I'd adore you eternally if you'd do me a favour."
"Don't you eternally adore me already?" Sirius had accepted his fate already, seems, his cheeky attitude back and all.
"I'm only fond yet, you have a talent for pissing off my enemies." Enough now. Where was him? Ilyus, the story of a hero. Little Womenis still better.
...
The Black family was beautiful, alluring, entrancing, and dangerous. They had sharp features and dark hair, they were all powerful witches and wizards, and they all had a little darkness inside. Probably hereditary. And they were always the centre of attention for the Slytherin house, as they were the purest out of the Sacred Twenty-Eight, they were basically celebrities. The closest to a Royal Family for the magical community who cared about blood purity. So all of the Slytherin students kept an ear to the wall as Sirius Black made his way to the common room, escorted by Narcissa.
The room was cleared by Bellatrix, who'd been trailing over everyone like a bulldozer since she got proposed to by Rodolphus Lestrange, another pure-blood Sacread Twenty-Eight wizard. Insufferable.
The portrait of Walburga oversaw the whole affair. Dreadful. Horrid. Every one of the three was counting down the seconds for it to be over, Narcissa conjured up a teapot and three saucers. And they chatted. Kind of. It wasn't much of an exchange. More of a lecture, Bellatrix, the more radical of the Black cousins, was keen on Sirius disregarding blood purity and how important it was, his responsibility to the House of Black and how he had to start playing his role soon enough so he better start. Narcissa simply nodded along. Sirius trying to catch a glimpse of the squid behind them, trying to not pay attention to them as much as possible, though the sting of his cousin's words still framed his search for the squid.
I know you're eavesdropping.
I've told him I can't control it yet. And I can't answer, it's a one way street.
I'll get you your book if you get me out of this.
Now that's something to get excited about.
This was now a matter of how. I can't just go and blast some magic, I'm sure Bellatrix will literally kill me.
Mulciber slept in the room next to Alexanders, Snape as well. There was bound to be something there that could help. The two most annoying Slytherin boys were out on class, or on a mission to bully someone, either way, this gave Alexander enough time to craft something up.
Between Snape, Snivellus, what's his nose, potions books and private ingredient inventory--Alexander made a note to raid that one often. And Mulciber's gnarly pet toad. Alexander set off the Sirius Savior Strategy.
He wrapped a nasty puke smelling potion to the toad and leviosa'd it close enough to Narcissa for her to--"GET THAT AWAY FROM ME!"
Bellatrix, always the lady grabbed her wand casting "Depulso!", shooting the toad to a wall. The stinking potion splash was enough for the three Black cousins to start gagging.
Narcissa ran to the bathroom. The potion was meant to cause those who smelled it to want to, well, puke. Bellatrix ran behind her.
THAT'S NASTY, THANKYOU. And so the young heir to the House of Black left the room.