Pragma // s.b.

19

****

The cold water dripping from the brass tap soaked into the washcloth in my hand and I gripped the cool marble sink. In the reflection, I caught a look at the bloodied and bruised figure behind me. I was still shaking slightly from what had just transpired. I turned around. Sirius sat up on the counter, blood dripping from a gash above his eyebrow and a black eye was beginning to form under his right eye. The events of the night flashed through my head.

After Sirius punched Quinton, all hell broke loose. One of the brutish boys next to Quinton leaped forward and tackled Sirius to the ground, fists flying. James appeared out of nowhere, attempting to pull the guy off Sirius and knocking over another in the process. Soon, a full on brawl had broken out. Quinton's crew kicked and punched Gryffindors left and right, Sirius was still rolling around on the dry leaves and dirt, limbs flailing every direction. I was in a state of pure shock. Usually people's fight or flight reflex kicks in, but  for me, it was a "stand there like an idiot" reflex. Bodies flew around me, people were screaming or laughing or trying to get the hell out of there. 

And then the professors showed up. I had known in the back of my mind that it most definitely was against the rules to have parties on the Hogwarts grounds, but I didn't realize what it would mean if we were caught and was certainly not prepared for the insanity that ensued. About 15 Professors burst into the clearing on the edge of the forbidden forest where we had been mindlessly dancing just minutes before, yanking students by the collar back up towards the castle left and right. Students ran every direction, grabbing their friends and trying to not have their faces seen.

I was still frozen, unsure of who to look for, where to go. "Briony, stop standing there, let's go!", Sirius had called suddenly appearing in front of me, grabbing my hand and pulling me toward the castle. We sprinted past the dying bonfire and his face was thrown into the light. A gasp burst from my mouth. Blood covered his face, matting his hair and mixing with shining sweat, but his eyes shone with a reckless glee.

I had to double my pace to keep up with his long strides, voices of professors and students rang through the air, and I couldn't help but let out a shaky laugh as we darted up the grounds toward the castle, where I was sure everyone had woken up by that point. Sirius threw open a side door and I pushed my way in, a large stitch forming in my side. "This way", he said under his breath, lifting a finger to his lips.

We weren't in the clear yet, I was sure many professors were lurking in the corridors and outside of common rooms to catch students who had managed to escape this far. Sirius moved swiftly up a flight of stairs and then turned sharply into a hallway I had never seen before. A large tapestry of dancing trolls spread across the stone wall. "Where are we?", I whispered, my breaths short from basically sprinting half a mile back up to the castle. He didn't respond, instead he began pacing back and forth, his eyes squeezed shut.

My head snapped to the side as the sound of voices came from one corridor over. When I looked back, Sirius was gone. My heart sank and started beating a million miles a minute. Had he seriously left me? Panic began to set it, I had never done anything to get me in trouble in the past 5 years of being here. I didn't know how to deal with it. Did I lie? Maybe if I cried they would take pity on me.

My eyes scanned the dark hallway and I was getting ready to run as the voices grew louder when Sirius flung open a door that I swore had not been there two minutes ago. "Are you gonna come in or keep standing there until you get caught?".

****

I moved toward Sirius and tentatively reached up with the washcloth. I had never seen the room we were in before, and I was dumbfounded at the fact that it had everything I seemed to need. It was almost like a mini hospital wing, lined with washcloths, a sink, and plenty of bandages. Slowly, I lifted my hand to Sirius' cheek and turned his head so the cut was facing me. I slowly wiped the blood away and he let out a low hiss.