Vivicendium ➝ Sirius Black/OC

Cane peius et angue

Chapter Twenty Nine | Cane peius et angue

[Worse than a dog or a snake]

Clarke,

I'm not surprised that this Fagin character is your favorite. His propensity for pickpocketing is impressive, as is the way he manipulates an entire group of useless children to do his bidding. If he was a wizard, he'd most definitely be a Slytherin. I'm glad to see that you're becoming more amenable to the attributes of my house. For a nerdy do-gooder Ravenclaw, you still have much to learn, but you're getting there.

I haven't had much time for reading since returning home for break. Unfortunately, my father has involved himself in more work than usual and it has become difficult to find time for myself. I hope you're having a more enjoyable holiday. I also hope that you've taken my advice to heart and that you're actually reading Sense and Sensibility. True, there aren't any characters like Dodger or Fagin (a shame, really – the literary world could use more of those types), but Colonel Brandon is morally upstanding enough to appeal to the altruistic parts of you that we are trying to work on.

Anyway, I really hope you're making an effort to keep your nerdy tendencies in check. All prefect related activities are off-limits.

Vivian

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Dear Vivian,

First of all, I never said that Fagin was my favorite character, only that he's smart about how he operates (though by the end of the story, his character goes through a bit of a transformation – I'll let you read that for yourself). Second of all, being a do-gooder, as you've put it, is much better than earning a living off of pickpocketing and theft. You're probably right about Fagin being a Slytherin however, so I'll let you have that one. Anyway, third of all, I'm astonished that you think I won't be doing any prefect related planning over the holidays. This is the perfect time to sit down and iron out the upcoming prefect schedules. It's nice and quiet at my place because my older brother has moved out now, and I have to make sure that I've got some back-up plans figured out when James inevitably falls through.

I'm sorry that you don't have much time for reading. If you do end up finishing Oliver Twist over the holidays, send me an owl and I'll pick out another book for you. As for my own reading, I'm about halfway through Sense and Sensibility, so stop your fussing. Us Ravenclaws aren't so easily intimidated! I do have to admit that I like Colonel Brandon's character, especially when comparing him to Willoughby's. The two are about as different as can be, though I could naturally do without Austen's matchmaking. That's why I like Dickens. He doesn't bother himself with flights of fancy.

I'm sure you'll have words about that and I'm prepared to defend myself against them.

Sincerely,

Gavin

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Clarke,

Seriously? 'Flights of fancy'? As if men don't have flights of fancy themselves! Tell me that you've never daydreamed about a girl before and maybe I'll believe it. Or maybe I won't, seeing as I'm fairly certain that the only daydreams you've ever had focus on doing homework.

Alright, you may defend yourself now.

You're probably right about Potter falling through. I can't imagine him ever being responsible. I still don't understand why Dumbledore appointed him Head Boy to begin with. If he did any of the work you gave him, I'll be shocked. (By the way, that list you wrote was pretty impressive – did I mention that?)