Written for Quidditch League Round 3

Prompt: Cannon

Position: Keeper

Team: Chudley Cannons

Word Count: 1201-1500

"In the American Civil War, Muggles used cannons in order to battle each other." Professor Derrel tapped his cane against a chalked diagram of a cannon on the blackboard.

Sirius's head snapped up mid-yawn, his mop of black hair flopping back.

"They are long barrels into which gunpowder is placed before being lit, causing a large explosion"

Sirius turned around and made a face at his best friend, James Potter. James gave him a thumbs up.

"Cannons were also used on ships up until the late 19th century when more efficient weapons were invented."

"How did they do that without magic?" Sirius rocked back on his chair.

"Please don't call out." Professor Derrel crossed his arms. "Muggles were very inventive when it came to warfare. They applied science and mechanics in order to create weapons of destruction. Where we use wands, they use guns and cannons."

"How do you make gunpowder?"

"Please don't call out, Mr Black. When you have copied down the diagram on the board, I will answer your questions."

Sirius rolled his eyes before quickly sketching out the drawing of a cannon, his scruffy handwriting spidering across the page. Although he had originally chosen Muggle Studies for its alleged easiness—and, of course, because James was taking it—he had come to enjoy learning about the different inventions Muggles had made to counter not having magic. Cannons, for instance. Fascinating! Sirius would love to try one out; see how far he could fire it and how it worked. Anything but these boring diagrams on the board!

"When you have finished copying from the board, please come and gather round my desk." Professor Derrel reached down and pulled out a large piece of metal.

After a brief tussle with James, Sirius gathered behind the crowd of other students.

"This is a part of a small cannon as used in the American Civil War." Professor Derrel lifted up the heavy, rusted metal.

"As you can see, they are very cumbersome, and not very practical for adaptation or a quick battle situation. Although effective, especially at sea, there are many disadvantages to using them. Could someone give me a disadvantage?"

Sirius's hand shot up. "The gunpowder was dangerous to have loose on wooden ships."

"Excellent," Professor Derrel said. "And if the gunpowder was wet, it was impossible to fire."

Sirius smiled to himself. If only his parents knew that Muggle Studies was his best subject. They'd be appalled!

James was grinning at him mischievously the moment they stepped out of the classroom.

"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?"

Sirius winked. "I think I am."

They sprinted down the stairs, their satchels banging against their hips, ink smashing against books and essays and homework, and for the first time in their lives, into the library. Unsurprisingly, Remus was already there, his nose buried in some books, his glasses slipping down his nose as he scribbled on a bit of crumpled parchment.

"Oi, Moony!"

He spun around, knocking over a large stack of books. Sirius picked them up and shoved them back on the desk.

"We're going to build a cannon! Like the Muggles—without magic! But we need your help."

This wasn't the craziest plan his friends had come up with, so Remus just smiled weakly and went back to his homework.

"I'd love to help you, but I've got a ton of work."

James snatched the quill out of Remus' hands.

"But we need your help," he whined. "You're good at stuff like this."

"And we'll finish your homework for you. It'll be done by lunch."

Remus sighed. James and Sirius never did any work, yet they easily topped their classes. Remus, however, had to work hard for every good grade he got.

"I'm not sure…"

Madame Pince swooped out from behind the bookshelves.

"Out! All three of you! You're disturbing the library."

Sirius didn't even try to charm her, just rolled his eyes and followed his two friends out of the room.

"I needed to get some books out," Remus said irritably.

"You can do that later." Sirius grabbed Remus' arm and pulled him into a jog.

"We can skip Divination," James said happily. "She won't notice."

"No. I'm not skipping Arithmancy," Remus said firmly. "I'll help you, but I'm not missing lessons."

"Fine," Sirius said, pouting and batting his long eyelashes. "You can go to your precious lesson, but I'm skipping Divination."

Remus rolled his eyes and hurried off, soon lost in the crowd of people.

James and Sirius got a large pile of books out of the library and carried them down to the lakeside, where a particularly large rock had soaked up the warmth of the sun. They spread themselves out and cracked open some Butterbeer.

When they finally got Remus alone for a moment, they dragged him back to the Room of Requirement.

"We've made a sketch of what we need and how we're going to build it," James said. "But we need your help, you know…actually making it."

Remus tried not to sigh as he pulled the parchment closer to him. It was a very rough sketch—so rough that he could barely make out what it was meant to be.

"I don't think we're going to be able to build a cannon from this," he said wearily. "You're going to have to do better."

"Are you calling us stupid?" Sirius asked angrily.

"No," Remus replied, standing up and grabbing his bag. "I just have other stuff to finish."

"Hey, come back!" James screamed as Remus slipped out of the room.

"What's the matter with him?" Sirius asked, kicking a wall in frustration and then swearing at the pain.

"Probably got an E on some Potions paper. You know how obsessed with grades he is."

There was a pause as both boys thought about the betrayal.

"Let's build it without him," Sirius said eventually. "Better than anything he could do."

"Yeah!" James agreed.

They deliberately ignored Remus for the next few days, although he hardly noticed. Remus had his head in a book during breakfast, skipping lunch for the library. Their cannon was coming on surprisingly well, considering both boys' large egos and clumsiness. They had sourced some old metal from the Shrieking Shack, and had managed to drag it up to the Room of Requirement under the invisibility cloak. They bought colour-changing gunpowder from Zonko's Joke Shop and got some wooden struts from Hagrid's. The only thing they were struggling with was how to actually put it all together.

"We could just use magic," James said after another wasted evening of trying to shift the metal onto the struts.

"No," Sirius grimaced. "We need to prove Remus wrong."

James soon lost interest in the project, instead spending the long summer evenings by the lake, flirting with girls, or training for Quidditch. Sirius didn't. Sirius spent every spare moment in the Room of Requirement, trying to build the cannon. He wasn't sure what transfixed him so much. Was it feeling like a Muggle he loved? Or the practical skills that were needed? Or just the simplicity that came with not using magic?

Once he had worked out how to mount the metalwork and build the frame, it didn't take Sirius long. His homework was suffering, but one late Tuesday evening, when the rest of his house was in the common room celebrating the victory of a Quidditch match against Ravenclaw, he finished.

He stood back, bursting with pride. He had polished the metal until it shone, and it stood majestic in the old room. It was longer than he was, and several times heavier. He shoved some gunpowder into the cannon and lit it with a quick spell. It exploded with pinks and purples, fireworks bursting in the sky. Admittedly, not mass destruction like the muggles had made, but far prettier.

He couldn't wait to show Remus and James. They'd be so jealous! They scoffed whenever they saw him leave to work on it. They never thought he'd manage to do it! He could show Professor Derrel too.

Or…

He could wait until the exams finish, fill it up with loads of gunpowder. Surprise everyone—including James and Remus. Yes. That's what he'd do. He shivered at the thought. It was going to be awesome. When did school become this fun?