'Hey.' Sherlock smiled bracingly as John slid next to him at breakfast. 'I've got detention Friday night too.'

John had been later to breakfast than Sherlock, who wasn't eating again. He'd stayed out too late flying the night before.

'What did you do?' John asked. This was one of those few times that John was reminded that despite his marks, Sherlock was not always the model student.

'Got caught wandering out late,' Sherlock sighed. 'The Gryffindor team's locker room was vandalised. Obviously Slytherins, but Rybek wanted me to look into it.'

'And you couldn't do that during the day?' John asked.

'No. I was in the library most of yesterday. Besides, Rybek only came after dinner, and I wanted to get it done quickly.' He sat back and looked at John. 'It was a few fifth years who did the locker room. Used a burning spell that the Slytherin fifth years learned two days ago. There's two fifth years on the Slytherin team. Most likely it was them.' He shrugged. 'So, how's Quidditch training going for you?'

John gaped at him and Sherlock smiled.

'Oh, c'mon. You've been out nearly every night since we've gotten back, and you're broom's been gone with you. Muddy shoes and wet clothes on the nights it's been raining…' Sherlock grinned at john. 'You're not being too secretive, John.'

John hung his head. 'I thought you'd make fun of me…'

Sherlock frowned.

'I guess not.' John shook his head. Then he looked at Sherlock. 'Since…you know now, can you help me train?'

Sherlock looked at him. 'John, you know I don't like-'

'Please, Sherlock, it's a lot harder by myself. You'd just have to fly around.'

'…Fine.' Sherlock sighed. 'What position?'

'Beater.' John looked at him.

Sherlock smirked 'Yes, you can hit me with dangerous flying objects.'



Later that week, in Potions, a few of the Ravenclaws came into class looking dazed and disoriented, a few of them blinking madly or tripping over. Snape yelled at them viciously for almost knocking things over or dropping them, but they kept their glazed look.

'Strange…' Sherlock muttered, watching a few of them. Sally was trying to hold a conversation with her friend, who wasn't answering, merely looking off, distant and blinking.

'What?' John asked. He looked at the Ravenclaws. 'Maybe they just didn't sleep enough or something…'

'Maybe…' Sherlock watched as Sally huffed angrily at her friend, who still was staring off.

'HOLMES!' Snape snapped, grabbing Sherlock's arm swiftly and tugging it away from the boy's cauldron. Sherlock flinched violently and pulled away quickly.  'Watch what you are doing! Are you trying to poison us?' Snape hissed.

Sherlock looked at the flask in his hand and put it down swiftly. He was still tensed and leaning away from Snape. Snape met his eye and then swept away.

'What…what was that?' John asked slowly.

Sherlock relaxed slightly at John's voice. 'Had I poured that…it would've released a poisonous gas…' He grinned a little. 'Oops.'

John snorted. 'Well, lucky at least Snape was paying attention.'

Sherlock bent over his work again, still thinking. His flinch had disturbed John a little.

But by the end of the class, Sherlock had righted his potion and the Ravenclaw students were acting normally again.

'So it could be nothing,' John commented, as he and Sherlock left the dungeons.

Sherlock snorted. 'Oh come on, John. It's never nothing here.'