Trouble in Paradise

By the time the Slytherins made it up to Professor McGonagall's class, it was time for the class to start. Just before Professor McGonagall closed the door Terry dove through the door and into the closest seat next to the door. Professor McGonagall arched an eyebrow at seeing the wheezing figure of Terry try to breathe.

"That was cutting it a little close, Mr. Greengrass," Professor McGonagall gently chided.

"I know," Terry panted as his still-damp hair pressed droplets of water against his neck. "Sorry, Professor."

"See to it that it does not happen again," Professor McGonagall said, before heading to the front of the classroom. "Now then, all of you shall be turning a beetle into a button. Please make sure to properly wave your wand and pronounce the proper spell." Professor McGonagall raised her hand as a beetle was quickly deposited in front of them for practice.

Quickly everyone began to chant the already-learned incantation and proceeded to do their best. It took Severus only two tries to properly transform the beetle into a button as he proudly showed Professor McGonagall. "The both of you certainly do not a disappointment, Mr. and Miss Prince, twenty points to Slytherin!" Professor McGonagall said with pride at having noticed the transformed button on Rowan's desk as well.

Severus's head whirls around to spot the perfectly transformed button on Rowan's desk. Severus raised an eyebrow and accusingly said, "You were done before me, weren't you?"

Rowan frowns and says, "Does it matter? We both got points."

In reply, Severus grabs another beetle, and a single try properly transforms the beetle. Severus proudly puffs out his chest as Rowan tries thrice more while Severus transforms a dozen more.

With class almost over, Rowan loudly says, "Make sure, Regulus gets to charms on time after lunch." Terry in his corner flinches and instantly begins to pack as the minute class is over, he bolts out the door. Professor McGonagall was a bit surprised but does not comment as she finishes checking their buttons.

Leisurely heading down for lunch, the five of them take a seat and wait for Terry to arrive with Regulus in tow. It was quite the rare and funny sight to see Terry not only bringing Regulus along with him but the rest of the Slytherin 1st years tagging along with him.

Most of the older Slytherins chuckled as Terry snapped, "Alright, shoo all of you! Go sit with your friends or stay here at their house table. I'm no mama duck to be holding your hands!"

Most of the 1st years disperse to the Slytherin house table for lunch, but a few brave souls head over to friends sitting at other house tables. "Brats," Terry huffed in embarrassment as the 1st years still at the Slytherin table turned to gaze at Terry with gratitude.

"Terry will be taking Regulus to his next class," Bethanie kindly said. "If all of you keep an eye on Regulus, you can accompany him and Terry to your next classroom period, Charms." The 1st years beam at Bethanie as though she was a goddess as they happily begin to eat.

Seeing Regulus remain standing Rowan says, "You can go over and sit with your friends, Regulus."

Regulus nervously nods his head as Rowan sighs and gets to her feet. "C'mon Severus," Rowan grumbled."

"Wait, where?" Severus protested.

"To the Gryffindor table," Rowan huffed as Severus instantly leaped to his feet.

"Blood traitors, aren't you? Sitting with the Gryffindors," a nasal voice said. They all turned to stare at the speaker, Quyen Crowley, who sneers at them.

"If I recall correctly Godric Gryffindor was a pureblood, but I wouldn't expect you to know that now would I, Crowley considering your atrocious marks?" Rowan coldly retorted causing snickers to burst across the table.

"You, you!" Quyen hissed in rage as her face turned splotchy red.

"Come now, Prince, no need to be so nasty," a charming golden-haired, second-year boy said. Rowan glances over at Damien Mulciber, who smiles at her, but his smile does not quite reach his eyes.

"Keep out of it, Mulciber," Terry growled as he leaped to his feet.

Rowan eyes Terry's reaction with interest as far as she was aware the two hadn't interacted much. But then again, who knows, what happens during the summer break? Perhaps, there was an interesting tale there to tell.

"Enough!" The female Prefect said in warning as the table quieted down.

"C'mon," Rowan repeated herself as Regulus and the rest followed after. Seeing Lily, Severus skips forward and rushes to take a seat at her side as Rowan glances at the girls.

"We'll catch up with Willa and Mary," Bethanie said as Silvia, Tiffany, and she headed over to where Lily and her friends were sitting with Severus.

Pausing to glance over at Regulus, Rowan says, "It looks like your friends are heading over to sit further down the table."

"Yes!" Regulus said, before hurrying down to sit where Letitia had dragged Barty and Dirk over. The first years instantly sit down and begin to chatter as they grab a bite to eat.

Terry sighs from behind Rowan and says, "I don't suppose there is any chance, we won't have to sit next to Sirius is there?"

"Not really, he's waving at us," Rowan drily remarked. "We could pretend that we didn't see him and sit elsewhere, but I get a distinct feeling that he would still come right over."

"Fine then, but if my hair gets turned pink again, I'll hold you personally responsible," Terry threatened as he walked over to take a seat across from Black and the rest of the Marauders.

Taking a seat next to Terry, Rowan nods at them in greeting as she hungrily stuffs a roll into her mouth. "So, how have classes been going?" Lupin kindly asked.

Terry shivers and says, "One word: Mandrakes."

"Really?" Lupin said with some interest as the rest of the marauders listened in with interest.

"It's dirty and yucky and tiring," Terry huffed. "Trust me, it's not as fun as it sounds. Even Rowan came out of that dirty and tired."

Lupin blinks and stares at Rowan, who nods her head confirming the story as she continues to stuff food into her mouth. "Well, I guess it must be that bad," Lupin finally concluded.

"What about you guys?" Terry politely asked as Pettigrew, James, and Sirius quickly lost interest and went back to eating their meal.

"Charms and History of Magic," Lupin replied.

Terry winces at the last class as Lupin nods his head in agreement. Quickly changing the subject, Terry asks, "So, did you sign up for the Gobbledegook class?"

"Well, it seems quite interesting to be frank," Lupin regretfully said. "But I don't think I simply could keep up with the coursework. And you?"

Terry shivers with apparent horror. "Most certainly not! But Rowan and Severus did!"

"I thought so," Lupin answered with a smile.

"What about those three?" Terry mumbled with a mouthful of food.

"Nope, none of them did," Lupin confessed before taking a spoonful of his food. Terry and Lupin fall silent as they fill their rumbling bellies.

Almost finished with her meal, Rowan happens to glance up to find Sirius staring rather baffled at his younger brother further down the table. "What's so surprising?" Rowan asked as she tore off a piece of the perfectly soft roll.

Sirius tears his eyes away and says, "He's made friends all on his own."

"Did you expect him not to?" Rowan said with a frown.

"Well, he's in Slytherin and he's a Black!" Sirius exclaimed.

Rowan narrows her eyes and frostily says, "If I recall correctly there happens to be a Black who made friends in Gryffindor. And as for Slytherin, what exactly is that supposed to mean?"

Seeing Rowan's cold gaze, James instantly nudges Sirius with his elbow. "I'm sure Sirius, doesn't mean anything by that, do you, Sirius?"

Sirius winces in pain at the sharp elbow nudge into his ribcage. Rubbing his side, Sirius says, "I just meant I didn't think he'd make friends with a muggleborn. I know for a fact that a gangly boy isn't a pureblood. The rest of them sure is, but he's not."

"For someone who supposedly does not care about blood purity, you seem to care an awful lot, Sirius Black," Rowan pointedly retorted. Sirius flushes red as Terry, Lupin, James and Pettigrew share uneasy glances sensing that things were about to go very wrong.

"Well, isn't that what Slytherins only care about, blood purity? Because that's what Salazar certainly did!" Sirius snapped back.

"And?" Rowan arched her eyebrow.

"He was a bloody purist!" Sirius sputtered.

"In an era, where witches and wizards were being burned at the stake! I do not believe his views were wrong, but rather his actions were."

"Are you saying that you're fine with muggleborn wizards not being allowed into Hogwarts?!"

"No, that is not what I said. I said, I understood his desire for blood purity at a time when the entire muggle world was violently turning against wizardkind."

"Stop it, Sirius!" James finally said as pulled Sirius back by the shoulder into his seat. "You know Rowan isn't like that, she's a half-blood for Merlin's sake!"

"Okay, that's enough!" Lupin said as he motioned for Pettigrew to clamp his hand over Sirius's mouth to stop him from saying something foolish in his anger.

Sirius seems unable to stop as his mouth runs off on its own. "But James, she's in Slytherin!"

A pin drop can be heard as Pettigrew claps his hands onto Sirius's mouth too late. Even Pettigrew looks appalled as Terry narrows his eyes darkly at Sirius. The entire Great Hall is silent as everyone turns their heads in the direction of the commotion.

"So, it that you truly think of us, Slytherins, Sirius Black?" Rowan icily said. "It would seem that my brother is no longer in need of your so-called friendship."

Rising to her feet, Sirius opens his mouth to speak, but Rowan cuts him off. "I would like to remind you of one very critical fact. Yes, it is true that Salazar Slytherin left because of his pureblood ideals. But he also taught the greatest wizard that the wizarding world has ever produced, Merlin Ambrosius. Many seem to conveniently forget that not only was he a Slytherin, but he was the fiercest muggle protector of them all. We Slytherins may be many many things, but weaklings, we are not."

Rowan pauses for a breath as Sirius tries to speak for her to only coldly continue, "Allow me to remind you of two more important facts. Though Slytherin has indeed produced dark wizards, we have no more than the three other houses. For Azkaban is not solely comprised of Slytherins, but rather of house members belonging to the rest of the three houses.

And, though our house is many things it most certainly did not produce the darkest wizard of all time, Gilbert Grindelwald. But rather Durmstrang did. And yet, I do not hear nor see others accusing Durmstrang of solely producing dark wizards, but rather we Slytherins. So, tell me, Sirius Black, who is the hypocrite now?" Turning on her heels, Rowan rapidly strides away as Terry gets to his feet.

"You know Black, I am a Slytherin, but I would never treat a friend like that," Terry coldly said. "Good day everyone," before returning to the Slytherin table. Whispers suddenly fill the hall as some of the Slytherins wear triumphant expressions on their face, while others are filled with mixed feelings of pride and fascination.

"Just what is wrong with you, Sirius Black?" The loud booming voice of Lily can be heard as she marches right over to give Sirius a piece of her mind.

"But I-," Sirius tries to speak and explain himself to only meet the eyes of Severus. Severus' onyx-colored eyes seem entirely cold as he turns his back on Sirius and walks over to sit with Terry at the Slytherin table.

Sirius flinches at the plain hurt seen in Bethanie's eyes as Tiffany and Silvia drag her back to their house table. But the worst is the disappointed gaze of his younger brother, who quietly says goodbye to his friends, before walking back to Slytherin with his head down with shame and mortification.

"You fix this now, Sirius Black. Or else you won't be welcome here anymore," Lily growled, before stomping back to the stunned figures of Willa and Mary. Seeing Sirius's gaze, Willa gives Sirius the two-fingered salute and turns her back on him. Even Mary curls her lips in disdain and offered him her cold stark turned back.

"I didn't mean to," Sirius lamely said as even Pettigrew shakes his head at Sirius's gigantic blunder.

"You really messed up, Siri," James finally muttered at seeing Sirius's fraught expression.

"Aren't you going to apologize, Sirius?" Lupin unhappily asked.

"I-. I-," Sirius is unable to finish his sentence as Lupin narrows his wolfish eyes. "You don't even know? Don't you know how cruel of that was of you, Sirius?! You always complain about by ostracized for being a Gryffindor in your family, but aren't you always doing the same?!"

Seeing Sirius looking all miserable, Lupin leaps to his feet. "Until you apologize, Sirius, we are not on speaking terms," Lupin plainly stated.

Sirius hurriedly protests, "But Remus!"

"No, buts! Are you coming, Pete?" Lupin asked as he stared at the mousy boy with chocolate-colored eyes.

Pettigrew glances at Sirius and James for a moment, before saying, "Rowan and I don't like each other very much, but she's never treated me like that, Sirius. And besides, she's a girl, you're supposed to treat them nicely. My mother taught me that." Pettigrew climbed to his feet and quickly trotted alongside Lupin as they both left the Great Hall.

"And you, James?" Sirius desperately asked as he gazed up at his best friend.

"You really cocked it up this time, Siri," James sighed again. "But I'll stick by your side even if I think you're a real cockup."

"Thanks, James," Sirius slightly sniffed as he glanced at his half-eaten plate of food. Just when he thought things couldn't get any worse, a tiny 1st-year girl by the name of Letitia Bones began to rant at him and call him all manner of names for being a prejudiced Gryffindor.