Intended

[thirty seven]

'Black, I will not have you and Potter disrupting my class again! From now on, you will sit here, where I can see you!'

Sirius rolls his eyes and makes a rude gesture with his hand under the desk. He is used to Professor Oth's threats by now and thinks nothing of them. However, he cannot ignore the Potions Master when he is pulled roughly from his desk and thrown unceremoniously to the floor.

'When I say something, Black, I expect you to obey! To the front! Now!'

Gritting his teeth, Sirius drags his cauldron to the front of the classroom. All the desks are full except one, and the Professor taps his foot impatiently as he waits for Sirius to sit down... right next to Severus Snape.

'Sir, I can't sit there!'

'And why not?'

'Sir, because...'

Because Snape's a git and I wouldn't sit next to him if you tied me there and threatened to feed me to a venomous tentacula!

'Sir, because we just wouldn't be able to work together, it wouldn't be of any use, he wouldn't be able to keep his greasy nose out of anything I'm doing...'

'Quiet! You will sit right here, Black, and you will sit down now!'

Sirius is left staring at the Professor's back, the rest of the Slytherins laughing at him as he slides into the seat, trying to ignore Snape's vicious smile. He turns his back on the boy, busying himself with his potion so that he doesn't have to hear the laugher that comes from all around him or pay attention to the rattling voice of the boy he hates the most.

'What's the matter? Has your ego gotten too big for you to handle?'

Sirius steadily pretends that he has not heard a thing, instead weighing out ingredients, casually going about making the potion as if nothing had happened. In the back of his mind he goes over different ways he could pay Snape- and even the professor- back for this, but he makes sure not to let his anger show.

'Or are you having domestic problems?'

Sirius starts when he hears this, but he refuses to turn. He can feel Snape's eyes locked on him, the hint of amusement in his voice indicating how much the other boy is enjoying this.

'I was rather sorry to hear about it, you know. I would have expected better from her.'

'Don't listen to him, don't listen to him...' Sirius thinks, even if the comments sting. He knows very well that Snape is simply trying to rile him up, to play on his already stretched nerves.

'But of course, you wouldn't know about it. Don't worry; you will soon. Everybody's talking about Andromeda and that ghastly Mudblood...'

Sirius snaps his head up to stare at Snape. He narrows his eyes as he takes in the boy's sneer, the cocky position. The words lie heavily between them, and for a second, Sirius forgets that he is in class, that he is being watched, he forgets anything but Snape and the words he has just said as he reaches out to grab the boy's robes.

'What the hell did you just say?'

Snape looks unperturbed, only looking at him with disdain and a faint glimmer of malice lighting up his black eyes. 'I said, your little love bird's got herself a boyfriend. A Mudblood boyfriend.'

'You take that back!'

Snape smirks and wrenches his robes from Sirius's grasp. 'Oh, but I won't. You see, it's the truth. Is the truth too much for you to handle? Is it?'

'Why you little...'

The sentence remains unfinished. Caught up in anger, Sirius once again reaches for Snape. This time, however, he does not bother with threats; his hand is already curled up into a fist, so tight that his fingernails dig into the skin of his palm, but he does not care. He does not care for the shouts for him to stop, he does not care that Professor Oth is even now rushing towards him, prepared to pull him away from Snape. He lashes out, sending Snape stumbling backwards with one blow, the Slytherin's head snapping to the side from the force.

'Black, what is the meaning of this?' Professor Oth roars, grabbing Sirius by the arm and shaking him hard. Sirius says nothing, his lips pressed tightly together and white with fury. He rips his arm from the Professor's grasp and turns around, already preparing for another round with Snape, but the Slytherin has already moved away, just out of reach behind the next bench.

'Black...'

'Oh, it's nothing Professor,' Snape says, a nasty gleam in his eye. 'Black just got very worked up here. He's rather disturbed by some issues in his personal life, I believe.'

'It's really none of your business, Snivellus...' Sirius begins, but he is cut off by a visibly angered and irate professor.

'But it is my business, Black! Fifty points from Gryffindor, and two weeks of detention for fighting in class!'

'But, Professor...'

'I don't want to hear another word out of you. You will stay behind to discuss the detention. Class dismissed!'

*