A Popular Man
The footsteps of the three men echoed through the corridors of Hogwarts.
Snape walked ahead, his black robes billowing behind him while his expression showed even more annoyance than usual. Sirius and Mark followed a few steps behind.
Sirius looked around with a nostalgic smile, as if every corridor brought back some old memory.
Mark, on the other hand, gave him a disdainful look before observing the castle with some interest.
The paintings seemed genuinely alive. Some followed the group with their eyes while others whispered among themselves, thinking no one could hear them. Even the suits of armor occasionally moved on their own, turning their metal heads as they passed.
Mark raised an eyebrow slightly.
For any child arriving at Hogwarts for the first time, all of this probably seemed incredible.
To him...
It just looked like fairly basic enchantments used to impress a bunch of brats.
Though he had to admit there were far too many of them.
The entire castle seemed to be covered in magic, from its foundations to its highest tower.
Maybe investigating this place would be even more interesting than he'd expected.
The newly formed group had left Dumbledore's office only a few minutes ago and were heading straight toward the place where the first attack had happened.
"Snape, right? Could you give us some information about the attacks?" Mark asked without a hint of courtesy toward the Hogwarts professor.
Something that, of course, Hogwarts' renowned Potions Master didn't seem to take very well, but he only grimaced before explaining as Dumbledore had ordered.
"The first incident occurred on the second floor," Snape explained without bothering to look back. "A cat and a message written on the wall," he said simply, though that wasn't exactly much information.
Mark frowned slightly at the professor's obvious lack of cooperation.
"Any witnesses?" he asked, keeping things professional.
"No," Snape answered directly.
Mark waited a few seconds.
Snape didn't add anything else.
"Is that all?"
"You asked if there were any witnesses."
"And I expected something more than a yes or no."
"Then you should learn to phrase your questions better."
Mark stared at him.
Snape kept walking as though he hadn't said anything strange.
For a moment, Mark seriously considered pulling out one of the small vials hidden beneath his clothes and finding out just how fast that professor could react.
Then he looked at Sirius.
The other man was still looking around Hogwarts like a tourist.
Mark closed his eyes for a second and let out a long sigh while rubbing his forehead. He had to remind himself that he still couldn't throw anything at either of them.
Sirius, completely ignoring Snape's incredibly detailed explanation and Mark's irritation, continued walking through the corridors as old memories of the Marauders returned to his mind.
It had been years since he'd been able to walk peacefully through Hogwarts.
A lot of things were still exactly as he remembered them.
"Ah... how I've missed this place," Sirius said with a small smile.
Those words only made a vein appear on Mark's forehead, looking ready to burst.
Snape continued walking in silence for a few seconds.
Then he glanced sideways at Sirius, who was still admiring the castle with that stupid nostalgic smile.
He seemed to come to a conclusion.
The sooner they finished this investigation...
The sooner he could get rid of Black.
"The first attack wasn't the only one..." Snape finally continued.
Mark looked up.
"...they all ended the same way. Petrification. None of the victims managed to see whoever was responsible directly. Only two students were found at the scene of two of the attacks."
"Two students?" Sirius asked with interest, pulled out of his memories.
Snape glanced at him.
"Gryffindors. I'm sure you'll either be surprised or obnoxiously proud when you hear their names," Snape said.
"Ah, so your hatred and obsession with lions is still there, huh, Snivellus? You couldn't handle them back when you were a student, so now you pick on a bunch of kids. I'm sure you must be quite popular with your students," Sirius said sarcastically. "What a lonely life you have," he added.
Snape looked quite irritated, almost to the point where it seemed like he might pull out his wand at any moment, and Sirius looked ready to do the same, while Mark simply watched them without caring much if they killed each other right in front of him.
But before either of them could do anything, hurried footsteps began echoing from the other end of the corridor.
The three turned their heads and saw two boys who had just rounded the corner.
Both seemed to be looking for something as their conversation reached them.
"Mom said he should be at Hogwarts. Maybe he's near the Headmaster's office. Hurry up."
"I know. Remember, I don't have the same physique you do," the second complained, following behind with slightly heavier breathing.
Then both of them spotted the three adults standing there, and their eyes immediately lit up.
"Great, there he is!" they both said at the same time.
The three adults recognized them immediately. They were Percy and Harry, both approaching with huge smiles on their faces.
Sirius blinked when he saw them, and a proud smile slowly appeared on his face.
He looked at Harry and Percy.
And finally, out of the corner of his eye, at Snape.
The Potions professor watched the two Gryffindors approaching with his usual sour expression.
Sirius's smile widened.
"Watch and learn, Snivellus. This is what it looks like to be appreciated," he said arrogantly.
Snape raised an eyebrow.
Sirius opened his arms.
"Well, pups, I wasn't expecting you to hear about my arriv—"
But before Sirius could finish, Harry and Percy walked straight past him.
Neither of them even turned their head.
"Mark! It's great that you're at Hogwarts. We're really happy to see you," Percy said immediately as he approached and grabbed one of Mark's arms, leaving the man confused by just how happy these two boys were to see him.
Harry grabbed his other arm with the same smile.
"Come with us," they both said before pulling him away.
"What...?"
Mark barely had time to react before the two of them started dragging him off.
Mark looked back while he was practically being kidnapped in the middle of the corridor.
The three rounded the corner.
And disappeared.
Sirius remained exactly where he was.
His arms were still open.
That proud smile was still on his face.
For several seconds, absolutely no one said a word.
Sirius slowly looked toward the corridor where the three of them had disappeared.
Then he lowered his gaze toward his still-outstretched arms.
And finally...
He looked at Snape.
The Potions professor was staring at him.
"Touching," he said as he raised both hands and slowly clapped with a completely neutral expression.
Sirius slowly lowered his arms.
"...They didn't even see me," he said, still in shock.
"Ten points from Gryffindor."
Sirius slowly turned his head.
"What?" he asked, confused.
"Running in the corridors," Snape replied calmly.
"And why the hell are you telling me?"
"You seemed rather proud of them just a few seconds ago," Snape said before continuing down the corridor with a small mocking smile on his lips. "For someone so popular..." he added disdainfully.
Sirius watched him walk away.
His right eye twitched slightly.
"...You're still just as despicable as you were back then," he muttered irritably.
"The feeling is mutual, Black."
Sirius gritted his teeth before following him.
Suddenly, he wasn't quite as happy to be back at Hogwarts.