Growing Up

Part 88.

Sirius stared back at his classroom as they all jotted down notes from the chalkboard behind him, each child in their bubble of existence, not yet burdened by others' thoughts that distracted them from education. His eyes followed Harry's quill as it scribbled in sloppy cursive, his focused face chiseled with complete concentration. By this point in the year, Sirius had gotten good with the names of his younger students. The older ones, years above three and four; didn't care much for the personal connection to him. Some, to his extreme disappointment, were very cautious and fearful of him, and others simply didn't respect him. He could handle the fear or anger, and wasn't concerned with their personal opinions conjured up from small remarks he had made. Remus often took the lead with these classes, he had an odd talent of bringing out the utmost regard from the angsty teenagers that riddled themselves with their multifaceted personalities. The younger ones, the preteens, Sirius adored the most. He loved the clean slate and the bright humility, the untouched moral compasses that rose above all other desires. He loved the ingenuous righteousness they kept close to their tiny hearts.

A small grin painted itself across Sirius' mouth as he scanned his classroom, his eyes catching on each student. Pleasantly surprised at the amount of children concentrated on their work, he looked over to Remus with bright eyes and raised eyebrows as a coy way of saying, "Look, I've done it."

But Remus wasn't looking. His eyes were on Draco Malfoy.

The bright blond boy with a smooth face was staring out of the giant window to the left of the class. His quill in hand sat indolent in his lazy palm like a keychain charm. Draco's chest felt like hot coals, each thought like a passing wind that ignited the living embers. His eyes were dark and full of an emotion Sirius recognized immediately.

Remus began to stand, not sensing the paralysis Sirius had started to quietly sort through and tried to walk over to the boy to urge him to start working. He intended to be kind, but Sirius knew it wouldn't come off as such given their tainted history. His hand extended, it hit Remus' chest to stop him from continuing. Sirius shook his head slightly and started at a slow pace towards Malfoy. Passing Harry who hardly looked up from his paper, he walked three desks back to stand above Draco. Sirius could feel the heat radiating off of his back from above him, his robe falling like a bedsheet against his shoes as he sat. Draco started to write when Sirius stepped off the podium, but from looking down, he had only doodled something that resembled a crow on a post. Normally, this would be a matter that Remus would handle with ease and undivided integrity. He would speak kind but firm words in a simple manner that they not only understood but followed directly. This situation was disparate to ordinary circumstances.

Sirius, in a sort of desolate nostalgia, could only see Regulus in his face. The sad eyes were burdened by years of abuse, weighing down the sea blue with a grey tinge that seemed fifty pounds heavier than any kid should bear. He saw the engraved darkness embellish the part of the soul you could see through his boarded-up eyes.

"Malfoy," Sirius spoke in a soft, comforting tone.
"Care to follow me outside?"

Draco flinched under his cool voice, letting his hands on the desk push him up. As they walked, he stared at Sirius' muggle shoes as they took each step.

Sirius closed the door and looked inside at Remus who was flipping through textbook pages. Draco stood tense, watching for his next move. Momentary silence occurred, each thinking the other would speak first. Instead, they caught the perfect second to talk at the same time.

"I don't know what my mother told you-"

"Are you okay? Do you need anything?"

The two stared at each other in disbelief, struck with confusion. Sirius wondered if Draco had ever been asked that question in his life. He could tell by his eyes, for that was the only way you could see what he was thinking, that the sound of those words together was remote to him. Draco didn't truly think Sirius would pass this off as something unrelated, did he?