Melancholy || Harry Potter's twin brother

2: Chapter fifteen

Breakfast started off as a quiet affair, that was until an angry red envelope was seen heading straight towards Ron Weasley.

"Weasleys got a howler!" Cedric announced to them, drawing their attention from the tower of toast they were building.

"A what?" Sirius asked, but no one had time to answer, because the letter had begun to shout.

"Ronald Weasley!" The voice of an angry Mrs Weasley made the whole hall go silent.

"His name is Ronald?" Sirius asked with a frown.

"What did you think Ron was short for?" Hannah asked looking appalled.

"Ron." Sirius answered, she rolled her eyes at him and shook her head.

"You're such an idiot." She whispered as everyone tuned in to listen to the rest of the howler.

"How dare you steal that car! Your father is facing an enquiry at work and it's entirely your fault. If you dare set another toe out of line we'll bring you straight home!" Mrs Weasley finished her lecture and the howler tore itself in two.

"That was kinda scary." Sirius muttered. Hannah laughed.

"I love his mum, public embarrassment is the best punishment." She grinned, Justin and Ernie looked appalled.

"Thank God that wasn't me." Ernie sighed, looking at the timetable professor sprout had just given him. "Herbology with the Gryffindors." He mused.

"Oh that'll be interesting." Justin laughed, as he scanned his own timetable. "As long as the lessons are more interesting, I don't care."

"It's herbology there's only so much that's actually interesting." Sirius pointed out dryly.

"Hey, I happen to like herbology." Hannah defended, they all pulled a face at her.

"Yeah but you're weird." Ernie shot at her, she stuck her tongue out at him.

"Excuse you!" She responded, hitting at him with her timetable and grabbing Sirius and Justin by the wrist. "Come on morons." Ernie sneered at her and followed her as she pulled them back to the common room.

"Hannah we have herbology soon." Justin pointed out. She nodded.

"I know, I just thought we should get out of the crowd for a moment." She replied. "We need to talk."

"About what?" Sirius asked, slouching into one of the squishy sofas.

"If what Draco said was true, then we need to buck up, protect each other. Sirius we will not let you do anything he wants you to do alone, and as for anyone trying to come in between us, we only need each other. We can't get hurt. I can't see you hurt. Do you morons understand?" She lectured them, standing on an old wooden coffee table and making herself as authoritative as she could.

"We understand." Sirius nodded looking confused, but not questioning her judgement.

"Absolutely." Ernie grinned as he slung an arm around her shoulder. "Whatever you say." She pulled a face at him.

"Yeah, it sounds safer." Justin agreed. "Come on, let's go."

"But I hate plants!" Sirius complained as they left the common room.

"Stop complaining and suck it up buttercup!" Hannah told him, he pouted at her and she ruffled his hair with a smirk. He pulled a face at her.

Their walk to herbology was silent, Hannah's words following them as they reached greenhouse three, one they hadn't set foot in before. They were early, by some miracle, and ended up eating outside for the rest of their class. Jane joined them soon after.

"Hello puffs." She pulled a face at them jokingly.

"So you've decided not to leave us this time." Hannah said saltily.

"No." Jane shrugged. Sirius rolled his eyes.

"Can you two not." He sighed at them, tired of their antics already.

"Alright grumpy guts." Hannah smirked at him, he just sighed again.

When everyone was gathered, professor Sprout bustled everyone into the greenhouse. Around twenty pink and fluffy eat muffs were laying on the bench and Sirius had the sudden realisation that this was not going to be herbology as it used to be. "We'll be repotting mandrakes today." The stout woman told the class. "Now who can tell me the properties of the mandrake?"

Hermione's hand shot up and Sirius inwardly groaned, as much as he liked the girl, her routine of being teachers pet was becoming increasingly more tedious. "Mandrake, or Mandragora, is a powerful restorative." She began, sounding like she'd already swallowed the textbook and probably the others too. "It is used to return people who have been petrified to their original state."

"Excellent! Ten points to Gryffindor!" Beamed professor Sprout. Everyone had the Gryiffindors groaned, this always happened. No one ever got a chance with Hermione around. "The Mandrake forms an essential part of most antidotes, it is however dangerous, can anyone tell me why?"

No one bothered to move as Hermione's hand shot up again. "The cry of the mandrake is fatal to anyone who heard it."

"Precisely, take another ten points." Professor Sprout turned her attention to some strange-looking shrubs. "Now the mandrakes we have are still very young."

Feeling the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end, Sirius seemed to sense someone watching him. He turned around, seeing movements in the shadows of greenhouse four. Glancing at Professor Sprout, he slipped outside. "Ollie I can't believe you're doing this."

Ollie did not look good, his hair stood on end, he had huge dark circles under his eyes and he was pale. He reached out and gripped Sirius' shoulder hard, pulling him into the shadows. "Has Aro set you a task?" He asked, his hands digging into Sirius' shoulders painfully. "I need to know."

"No." Sirius lied. "He hasn't. Ollie what's wrong with you?"

"I met a seer in Rome, before we left." He said in a half whisper, pulling Sirius closer to him as though afraid someone would over hear. "She said someone would try to split our group up, someone would sent one of us on a quest, without the others."

"And you thought it would be me?" Sirius frowned, he hated all this, why couldn't anything be simple.

"You're his favourite, he likes you for some reason and I worried-" Ollie cut himself off. "I should go."

"Ollie you need to go to your dormitory." Sirius sighed. "Wait here okay."

He went back inside and told professor Sprout he felt sick, she agreed to let him go and he dragged Ollie up to the castle.

Whilst trying to navigate his way to the Ravenclaw common room, he met the fat friar, who grinned at him and passed on, looking overjoyed that he was helping someone. "Ollie I need you to say the password."

" box without hinges, key, or lid, yet golden treasure inside is hid" The portrait said. Ollie frowned in thought for a second.

"Egg." He mumbled and they were allowed entry.

The Ravenclaw common room was cosy, filled with books and the most amazing tapestries. But Sirius was more concerned about Ollie, he wasn't sure what was going on with him, and whatever it was he knew it wasn't good.

Upon finally reaching Ollie's dormitory, Sirius quickly worked out which bed was his. It was beautifully made, so neat and ordered. It screamed Ollie at him. He made the boy get into bed and then sighed.

"Get some rest Ollie, I have to go now." Sirius just turned, and was about to leave, when Ollie grabbed his wrist.

"Sirius no." He half yelled. "Don't go."

"Ollie what's wrong with you?" Sirius sat down on the bed. "You're acting weird."

"Don't leave me." Ollie whispered. "Please. Please don't leave me."

"Ollie you need to talk to me." Sirius told him, Ollie shook his head.

"I don't know."

"You should sleep." Sirius told him. "I won't go, I promise."

"I trust you."