(no subject)
Prompt: Which is more true for you: Blood is thicker than water or My friends are the family I choose? (from justprompts)
Word count: 1,036
Title: Blood Is Not Thicker
Rating: G
“Moony! Over here!” Sirius spotted the thin, brown-haired boy entering the platform with his parents. Remus grinned as he spotted his two best friends and headed in their direction, with his parents following. Sirius thought he noticed a look of relief on the Lupins’ faces. For nine months, they wouldn’t need to worry about their son’s condition.
Remus turned to his parents. “You two don’t have to worry about me. I know you’ve got things to do in London, so you can go and do them. I’ll be fine.” His mother fussed over him for a moment. As much as she liked not having to worry about his condition, she worried about him in general. Finally she finished fussing and gave him a hug. Remus shook hands with his father (he was an adult now, too old for outward signs of affection from his father) and the two of them left, leaving Remus behind with his friends.
“At least you won’t have to see your parents,” James said to Sirius. The last few months of Sirius’ life had been the best ever, after he’d left his parents’ house and moved in with the Potters. James knew well that there was no love between the Blacks and their oldest son. They didn’t even consider him their son anymore, from what Sirius had said.
Sirius grimaced and shook his head. “They’ll be here with Regulus. At least I can ignore them.” In fact, he could see them now, over with a gaggle of Slytherins. Proper purebloods.
His mother had her usual unhealthy, pinched look on her face, with her gaunt cheeks just as noticeable as ever. The black cap she always wore was perched on top of her graying hair. His father lurked nearby, his weak nerves and paranoia giving him a constant twitch and causing him to dart his eyes around the platform as if looking for enemies. Sirius supposed that was what happened when one was unhappy with the idea that Muggles might be about, sending their children with magical abilities off to school. Whether he noticed his oldest son during all of his eye-darting, Sirius didn’t know, nor did he particularly care. He was glad to be well rid of them. The happiest day of his life to that point had been when he told them he was moving out.
James had just confirmed it by owl: his parents were perfectly willing to have Sirius move in with them. All Sirius needed to do was come to their house.
His mother “caught” him while he was in the middle of packing up his trunk with all of his school things and the things from his room that he wanted to keep. His Muggle posters were all permanently stuck to the wall; anyway, he’d mainly put them there to annoy his parents more than because he wanted them. He’d just tossed the last of his books in the trunk when he noticed his mother standing in his doorway.
“What do you think you’re doing?” She was apparently confused about why he’d be packing months before it was time to return to school.
He refrained from making a smartass answer. “Leaving,” he said, turning back to the pile of clothes on his bed. He grabbed a handful and shoved them into his trunk; he’d sort them out later.
“You can’t leave,” she snarled at him. “You haven’t got anywhere to go.” She was just arguing for the sake of arguing now. He knew that she didn’t care whether he had a place to live or starved on the streets.
“Actually I do, but thanks for the concern.” He shoved the last of his clothing into the trunk. One last look around the room convinced him that he’d packed everything he wanted. He closed the lid on the trunk and locked it, then picked up his wand and the trunk.
His mother was standing direct in the doorway of his room, blocking him from leaving. “Get out of my way,” he said, looking her straight in the eye. “You know as well as I do that you don’t want me here. You’re getting your wish. Why try and stop me?”
Perhaps she realized that she wasn’t going to break his will, or perhaps it was the fact that at that moment, Regulus opened his door and peeked out into the hallway to see what was happening, or perhaps she just didn’t want a scene. She stepped aside and let him leave. He never looked back as he went down the stairs and out the door, leaving the gloomy house behind forever. He didn’t know where his father was as he left; he wouldn’t have said goodbye anyway.
When he knocked on the Potters’ door, Mrs. Potter opened the door and greeted him warmly with a hug.
“Thank you for letting me come here,” he said as he maneuvered his trunk inside.
“You’re welcome,” she said as she patted his cheek. “I’m just surprised you didn’t come here sooner.”
He never spoke to any member of his family, save for his cousin Andromeda, again.
By this point, Peter had joined them. Students were starting to get on the train to get good seats for the trip. Sirius saw his mother fussing over Regulus. The only time she ever fussed over anything was when its name was Regulus.
“Well, Marauders,” Sirius said, “I think we’d best go find ourselves a place to sit. The train will be leaving soon.” He hooked one arm through James’ and the other arm through Remus’. The three of them walked to the nearest car of the train with Peter trailing behind. They managed to get a compartment to themselves. The view directly through the window was one of the family he’d left behind. He’d left a family of bigots filled with hatred for anyone who wasn’t one of the elite, a family within which he’d never felt like he fit in, a family with whom he’d never agreed, and instead he’d become part of a family that prided itself on tolerance and acceptance. He’d left behind a legacy and an inheritance and traded it for friends and happiness.
He didn’t regret it at all.
Word count: 1,036
Title: Blood Is Not Thicker
Rating: G
“Moony! Over here!” Sirius spotted the thin, brown-haired boy entering the platform with his parents. Remus grinned as he spotted his two best friends and headed in their direction, with his parents following. Sirius thought he noticed a look of relief on the Lupins’ faces. For nine months, they wouldn’t need to worry about their son’s condition.
Remus turned to his parents. “You two don’t have to worry about me. I know you’ve got things to do in London, so you can go and do them. I’ll be fine.” His mother fussed over him for a moment. As much as she liked not having to worry about his condition, she worried about him in general. Finally she finished fussing and gave him a hug. Remus shook hands with his father (he was an adult now, too old for outward signs of affection from his father) and the two of them left, leaving Remus behind with his friends.
“At least you won’t have to see your parents,” James said to Sirius. The last few months of Sirius’ life had been the best ever, after he’d left his parents’ house and moved in with the Potters. James knew well that there was no love between the Blacks and their oldest son. They didn’t even consider him their son anymore, from what Sirius had said.
Sirius grimaced and shook his head. “They’ll be here with Regulus. At least I can ignore them.” In fact, he could see them now, over with a gaggle of Slytherins. Proper purebloods.
His mother had her usual unhealthy, pinched look on her face, with her gaunt cheeks just as noticeable as ever. The black cap she always wore was perched on top of her graying hair. His father lurked nearby, his weak nerves and paranoia giving him a constant twitch and causing him to dart his eyes around the platform as if looking for enemies. Sirius supposed that was what happened when one was unhappy with the idea that Muggles might be about, sending their children with magical abilities off to school. Whether he noticed his oldest son during all of his eye-darting, Sirius didn’t know, nor did he particularly care. He was glad to be well rid of them. The happiest day of his life to that point had been when he told them he was moving out.
James had just confirmed it by owl: his parents were perfectly willing to have Sirius move in with them. All Sirius needed to do was come to their house.
His mother “caught” him while he was in the middle of packing up his trunk with all of his school things and the things from his room that he wanted to keep. His Muggle posters were all permanently stuck to the wall; anyway, he’d mainly put them there to annoy his parents more than because he wanted them. He’d just tossed the last of his books in the trunk when he noticed his mother standing in his doorway.
“What do you think you’re doing?” She was apparently confused about why he’d be packing months before it was time to return to school.
He refrained from making a smartass answer. “Leaving,” he said, turning back to the pile of clothes on his bed. He grabbed a handful and shoved them into his trunk; he’d sort them out later.
“You can’t leave,” she snarled at him. “You haven’t got anywhere to go.” She was just arguing for the sake of arguing now. He knew that she didn’t care whether he had a place to live or starved on the streets.
“Actually I do, but thanks for the concern.” He shoved the last of his clothing into the trunk. One last look around the room convinced him that he’d packed everything he wanted. He closed the lid on the trunk and locked it, then picked up his wand and the trunk.
His mother was standing direct in the doorway of his room, blocking him from leaving. “Get out of my way,” he said, looking her straight in the eye. “You know as well as I do that you don’t want me here. You’re getting your wish. Why try and stop me?”
Perhaps she realized that she wasn’t going to break his will, or perhaps it was the fact that at that moment, Regulus opened his door and peeked out into the hallway to see what was happening, or perhaps she just didn’t want a scene. She stepped aside and let him leave. He never looked back as he went down the stairs and out the door, leaving the gloomy house behind forever. He didn’t know where his father was as he left; he wouldn’t have said goodbye anyway.
When he knocked on the Potters’ door, Mrs. Potter opened the door and greeted him warmly with a hug.
“Thank you for letting me come here,” he said as he maneuvered his trunk inside.
“You’re welcome,” she said as she patted his cheek. “I’m just surprised you didn’t come here sooner.”
He never spoke to any member of his family, save for his cousin Andromeda, again.
By this point, Peter had joined them. Students were starting to get on the train to get good seats for the trip. Sirius saw his mother fussing over Regulus. The only time she ever fussed over anything was when its name was Regulus.
“Well, Marauders,” Sirius said, “I think we’d best go find ourselves a place to sit. The train will be leaving soon.” He hooked one arm through James’ and the other arm through Remus’. The three of them walked to the nearest car of the train with Peter trailing behind. They managed to get a compartment to themselves. The view directly through the window was one of the family he’d left behind. He’d left a family of bigots filled with hatred for anyone who wasn’t one of the elite, a family within which he’d never felt like he fit in, a family with whom he’d never agreed, and instead he’d become part of a family that prided itself on tolerance and acceptance. He’d left behind a legacy and an inheritance and traded it for friends and happiness.
He didn’t regret it at all.