" Beyond Repair "
CHAPTER ONE **************************************
James Potter casually walked through the crowd of rushing muggles- or, tried to walk as casually as he could, considering the large, tawny owl perched on his shoulder. He was receiving quite a few stares as he stepped in between platforms nine and ten, soon disappearing from the muggles' view.
As James boarded the Hogwart's Express, he looked around and sighed contentedly. It was good to be back. He had missed his friends over the holidays, and he couldn't wait to see them again.
He entered the Marauders' usual compartment. He was the first one there, so he picked the most comfortable seat and sat down.
" James! " he heard a loud voice call out his name from the far end of the train. James counted silently in his head and thought, I know my friends too well... " Three... two... one..."
Sure enough, Sirius Black burst into the compartment and grinned widely at James.
" Hello, Sirius, " James said lazily, without looking up.
Sirius kicked James' leg. " Is that how you greet your best friend? " he asked, pretending to be hurt.
James stood up and smiled at Sirius. " You're right. What must I have been thinking? Oh, Sirius , how can I ever make it up to you? "
" Well, since you asked so nicely, you can start by giving me a window seat! "
They laughed and leisurely flopped into their seats. " It's good to see you again, Prongs, " Sirius said.
" You too, Padfoot, " James grinned. " This year will be the best year ever! Our sixth year! "
Yeah, " said a voice behing them. " Who knows what mischief we'll find in store for us?" James and Sirius looked up and saw Remus Lupin smiling at them.
" Moony! You made it! " Sirius exclaimed, hugging Remus. James smiled at their friendship. There was a time when Remus and Sirius hated each other, but due to an interesting circumstance, they had become good friends. Yes, it was going to be better this year...
James returned to their conversation.
" Remus, " Sirius was saying, " are you sure about this? Last night, as you know, was a full moon... and I wasn't sure if you were arriving by train this time... you still look kind of rough. "
" Well, I wasn't really sure myself, but I decided that I was feeling well enough for the ride. Even though I am dreadfully tired... "
Sirius and James couldn't agree more, judging by his looks. His extremely pale face had dark circles under his eyes, his voice was hoarse, and his hair was very untidy, as if his wolfish state had not entirely left him.
" Here, " James said, shoving his stuff off of the comfortable seat. " You can have my spot, if you want to sleep. "
Remus took him up on that offer and fell asleep almost immediately.
A few minutes later, Peter Pettigrew ran into the compartment, panting.
Sirius laughed and said, " Hey, Wormtail, what took you so long? "
Peter, still panting, gasped, " Well, I accidentally -gasp- took a wrong turn on the way to the station -gasp- those muggle roads can be so confusing- and I wound up one hundred miles fron the station -gasp- and then I realized that I hadn't turned off my -gasp- magic speed modifications in my vehicle, so I had to turn around and go back the way I came- I don't know how I managed to end up here before the train left! " He gasped one last time and collapsed into his seat.
James and Sirius were laughing so hard during Peter's explanation that they were running out of breath, too.
Peter looked quite insulted. " It was a simple mistake, " he said huffily, then glanced at Remus. " Wow, Moony must have had a rough transformation last night. "
Sirius, remembering that Remus was asleep, laughed a little softer. When he finally calmed down, he said, " Yeah, I was surprised that he even came today. He usually comes a few days late. "
During their journey, the four marauders- well three of them, actually - laughed and talked about their holidays. They bought loads of candy when the cart came around, and saved some for Remus.
As they continued to talk, they heard a familiar voice ring through the corridor, and it was headed in their direction.
James' heart skipped a beat. " It's Lily, " he whispered loudly.
Peter and Sirius looked at each other and burst out laughing.
" Oh, Lily! " Sirius said dramatically, mocking James. " You are my angel, my sun, my breath of life! Oh, Lily, how I love you! "
James' face turned very red and he playfully shoved Sirius off of his seat. " Oh, shut up, will you? "
At that moment, Lily stepped into their compartment, her long red hair shining in the patches of sunlight that were streaming through the windows.
" Hullo, boys! " she said cheerfully. " What have you all been up to? "
" Oh, we've just been... talking, " Sirius said, grinning at James in a way that he knew irritated him. " And we've been having loads of fun! "
James gave Sirius a warning glance, then turned to Lily. " Don't mind him, " he glared at Sirius. " He's just being the stupid git that he is. " Sirius laughed at this remark.
" Well, " Lily laughed, " I guess it would be pointless for me to ask if you're having fun so far, for obvious reasons! "
Lily winked at James. Her green eyes sparkled like emeralds. James thought that he could gaze at her for hours. She was so beautiful. He could get lost in those eyes... forever...
Suddenly, Sirius leaned over and whispered to James, " Oh, no! Here come the slimeballs! "
James looked up, disgusted. Why did they always have to ruin everything?
Severus Snape and Lucius Malfoy strode into the compartment, smirking.
" Well, well, " Malfoy sneered. " It's the four morons. "
Remus stirred and awoke groggily. " What's going on? " he asked drowsily.
" Awwww, how sweet, " Malfoy said sarcastically. " Did we wake widdle Remus?" He and Snape laughed softly.
James leapt up defensively. " Oh, go jump on a toad! " he shouted angrily.
Snape took a step towards James. " What, and get our boots dirty, Potter? " He smirked.
Lily stepped out of the corner and stood next to James. Snape's expression instantly changed.
" Oh, hi, Lily, I, uh, didn't see you there, " he said softly, his face growing a little paler than usual.
" There are a lot of things that you don't see, Severus, " she said as she crossed her arms, her eyes angrily flashing. " Why do both of you always give people such a hard time? If you think that you're both going to stay in here, you are gravely mistaken, " she said dangerously.
Lily thought that she saw something in Snape's eyes; something that almost looked like respect. Malfoy however, scoffed at her comments.
" Oh, no, Severus, I think we're being threatened! Hurry, run away..." he jeered, but he never had time to finish. Four wands had attacked him at the same time, Lily didn't even have time to lift her own. Six heads peered out into the corridor and looked at Malfoy. It was not a pretty sight. Lily, afraid that she might lose her lunch, quickly ran out of the corridor and went back to her own copartment on the other end of the train. Snape, not wanting to touch Malfoy's distorted form, levetated him into the air and let him float down the hall back to their compartment so that he could try to straighten Malfoy out.
As James thought of Lily's disgusted face and her weakened legs running as fast as they could down the hall, he grimly thought, So much for romance.
CHAPTER ONE **************************************
James Potter casually walked through the crowd of rushing muggles- or, tried to walk as casually as he could, considering the large, tawny owl perched on his shoulder. He was receiving quite a few stares as he stepped in between platforms nine and ten, soon disappearing from the muggles' view.
As James boarded the Hogwart's Express, he looked around and sighed contentedly. It was good to be back. He had missed his friends over the holidays, and he couldn't wait to see them again.
He entered the Marauders' usual compartment. He was the first one there, so he picked the most comfortable seat and sat down.
" James! " he heard a loud voice call out his name from the far end of the train. James counted silently in his head and thought, I know my friends too well... " Three... two... one..."
Sure enough, Sirius Black burst into the compartment and grinned widely at James.
" Hello, Sirius, " James said lazily, without looking up.
Sirius kicked James' leg. " Is that how you greet your best friend? " he asked, pretending to be hurt.
James stood up and smiled at Sirius. " You're right. What must I have been thinking? Oh, Sirius , how can I ever make it up to you? "
" Well, since you asked so nicely, you can start by giving me a window seat! "
They laughed and leisurely flopped into their seats. " It's good to see you again, Prongs, " Sirius said.
" You too, Padfoot, " James grinned. " This year will be the best year ever! Our sixth year! "
Yeah, " said a voice behing them. " Who knows what mischief we'll find in store for us?" James and Sirius looked up and saw Remus Lupin smiling at them.
" Moony! You made it! " Sirius exclaimed, hugging Remus. James smiled at their friendship. There was a time when Remus and Sirius hated each other, but due to an interesting circumstance, they had become good friends. Yes, it was going to be better this year...
James returned to their conversation.
" Remus, " Sirius was saying, " are you sure about this? Last night, as you know, was a full moon... and I wasn't sure if you were arriving by train this time... you still look kind of rough. "
" Well, I wasn't really sure myself, but I decided that I was feeling well enough for the ride. Even though I am dreadfully tired... "
Sirius and James couldn't agree more, judging by his looks. His extremely pale face had dark circles under his eyes, his voice was hoarse, and his hair was very untidy, as if his wolfish state had not entirely left him.
" Here, " James said, shoving his stuff off of the comfortable seat. " You can have my spot, if you want to sleep. "
Remus took him up on that offer and fell asleep almost immediately.
A few minutes later, Peter Pettigrew ran into the compartment, panting.
Sirius laughed and said, " Hey, Wormtail, what took you so long? "
Peter, still panting, gasped, " Well, I accidentally -gasp- took a wrong turn on the way to the station -gasp- those muggle roads can be so confusing- and I wound up one hundred miles fron the station -gasp- and then I realized that I hadn't turned off my -gasp- magic speed modifications in my vehicle, so I had to turn around and go back the way I came- I don't know how I managed to end up here before the train left! " He gasped one last time and collapsed into his seat.
James and Sirius were laughing so hard during Peter's explanation that they were running out of breath, too.
Peter looked quite insulted. " It was a simple mistake, " he said huffily, then glanced at Remus. " Wow, Moony must have had a rough transformation last night. "
Sirius, remembering that Remus was asleep, laughed a little softer. When he finally calmed down, he said, " Yeah, I was surprised that he even came today. He usually comes a few days late. "
During their journey, the four marauders- well three of them, actually - laughed and talked about their holidays. They bought loads of candy when the cart came around, and saved some for Remus.
As they continued to talk, they heard a familiar voice ring through the corridor, and it was headed in their direction.
James' heart skipped a beat. " It's Lily, " he whispered loudly.
Peter and Sirius looked at each other and burst out laughing.
" Oh, Lily! " Sirius said dramatically, mocking James. " You are my angel, my sun, my breath of life! Oh, Lily, how I love you! "
James' face turned very red and he playfully shoved Sirius off of his seat. " Oh, shut up, will you? "
At that moment, Lily stepped into their compartment, her long red hair shining in the patches of sunlight that were streaming through the windows.
" Hullo, boys! " she said cheerfully. " What have you all been up to? "
" Oh, we've just been... talking, " Sirius said, grinning at James in a way that he knew irritated him. " And we've been having loads of fun! "
James gave Sirius a warning glance, then turned to Lily. " Don't mind him, " he glared at Sirius. " He's just being the stupid git that he is. " Sirius laughed at this remark.
" Well, " Lily laughed, " I guess it would be pointless for me to ask if you're having fun so far, for obvious reasons! "
Lily winked at James. Her green eyes sparkled like emeralds. James thought that he could gaze at her for hours. She was so beautiful. He could get lost in those eyes... forever...
Suddenly, Sirius leaned over and whispered to James, " Oh, no! Here come the slimeballs! "
James looked up, disgusted. Why did they always have to ruin everything?
Severus Snape and Lucius Malfoy strode into the compartment, smirking.
" Well, well, " Malfoy sneered. " It's the four morons. "
Remus stirred and awoke groggily. " What's going on? " he asked drowsily.
" Awwww, how sweet, " Malfoy said sarcastically. " Did we wake widdle Remus?" He and Snape laughed softly.
James leapt up defensively. " Oh, go jump on a toad! " he shouted angrily.
Snape took a step towards James. " What, and get our boots dirty, Potter? " He smirked.
Lily stepped out of the corner and stood next to James. Snape's expression instantly changed.
" Oh, hi, Lily, I, uh, didn't see you there, " he said softly, his face growing a little paler than usual.
" There are a lot of things that you don't see, Severus, " she said as she crossed her arms, her eyes angrily flashing. " Why do both of you always give people such a hard time? If you think that you're both going to stay in here, you are gravely mistaken, " she said dangerously.
Lily thought that she saw something in Snape's eyes; something that almost looked like respect. Malfoy however, scoffed at her comments.
" Oh, no, Severus, I think we're being threatened! Hurry, run away..." he jeered, but he never had time to finish. Four wands had attacked him at the same time, Lily didn't even have time to lift her own. Six heads peered out into the corridor and looked at Malfoy. It was not a pretty sight. Lily, afraid that she might lose her lunch, quickly ran out of the corridor and went back to her own copartment on the other end of the train. Snape, not wanting to touch Malfoy's distorted form, levetated him into the air and let him float down the hall back to their compartment so that he could try to straighten Malfoy out.
As James thought of Lily's disgusted face and her weakened legs running as fast as they could down the hall, he grimly thought, So much for romance.