Rowing: (dialogue) "Give me that fucking thing before you break it!": Peter Pettigrew
Charms #5: Write about someone who's scared of fire, and how they became scared.
Additional Notes: Peter is ooc to what we know him to be like because I think that Remus and Sirius probably didn't display him in as much of a good light as he could have been due to bitter feelings. There had to be a reason why Peter was in the Marauders. That being said, he is a bit of a coward (like they said). Enjoy! (if you want to. I ain't forcing you to do anything you don't want to). Also the brief interraction at the end is also ooc but whatever
This is probably an AU. I doubt that the Shrieking Shack burned down in their sixth(?) year, but you never know…
Word Count: 1055
Fire
Summer, 1979
Orange flames flickered in front of him, as bright as the sun. He couldn't breathe. His heart was racing, but he couldn't look away, no matter how much he wanted to. The flames had trapped him inside his own brain, and he couldn't get out, no matter how much he tried.
He wasn't always like this. There was a time when he was a brave Gryffindor, able to face anything, and now he was afraid.
It wasn't his fault…
Autumn, 1977
"Are you sure this is safe?" Remus asked again, following Sirius into the Shack. "We shouldn't be here. You guys aren't even allowed on a Full Moon…"
"Lighten up, Moony," James said from behind Peter. "It'll be fun."
They made it into the Shack. "I never said it wouldn't be fun, I just asked if this was safe," Remus said, sitting down on a chair.
"Have you met those two?" Peter laughed. "Nothing they do is safe."
Remus sighed. "Wish I hadn't met them. If I die tonight, tell my mother I love her."
"Only if you tell mine."
"Stop being such babies," Sirius said, speaking for the first time since they got here. Peter had thought it was because he was too busy smoking, but the cigarette was still in his mouth.
"All we're going to do is drink," James continued. "It's completely safe."
"Why couldn't we drink in the Common Room like everyone else?" Remus asked.
"That gets repetitive," James said. "Besides, I was bored of that room. We should use the Shack more often."
"We're not supposed to be out."
"It's a good thing we have the Map and the cloak to help us then, isn't it?"
"Cheer up, Moony," Sirius said, dropping his cigarette and stamping on it. "Here, take a swig."
Remus took the bottle of Firewhiskey and threw his head back, pulling a face as the hot liquid touched the back of his throat. He handed the bottle to James. "Let the party start."
They had a blast, smoking and drinking the night away. They couldn't do this often; they weren't allowed to smoke in the Common Room after Lily found them, she said it was bad for the lungs. Peter didn't really like the taste of cigarettes, but he wanted to seem cool in front of his friends.
Being cool was not as important as staying safe.
Towards the end of the night, Remus and Sirius had another one of their arguments (they were drunk, like they usually were when the fight started, and the pent-up sexual frustration was probably too much for them to handle). It started off innocent enough, just them arguing over who got to have the bottle next. Peter wasn't even aware of what was happening until James nudged him. "Look, Wormtail," he whispered, pointing to the two brawling teens.
They had started to shout at each other, acting like five-year-olds that wanted the same toy. Peter knew that Remus was very drunk, he was never like this. "It's my bottle, I want it," he said, dropping his cigarette in an attempt to grab the bottle with his other hand.
"No!" Sirius said, attempting to pull it closer to himself.
Peter heard James groan. He hadn't been drinking much, not like the others (excluding Peter himself, who didn't drink that much because his grandfather died due to drinking too much), so he was more level-headed. "Give me that fucking thing before you break it," he demanded, glaring at Sirius as if he were to blame for the fight.
"No," Sirius replied, ripping the bottle from Remus' grasp and hugging it close to himself. "I don't wanna. It's mine, not old Wolfie's. Or yours."
"Old Wolfies?" Remus snarled. "Is that the best you could do, Mutt?"
"Whoa, watch it, Monster."
Peter gasped, but Remus seemed unbothered. "Careful, Inbred."
They glared at each other for a short while. Peter sniffed the air, instantly smelling smoke. "Um, guys?"
"Quiet, Wormtail. I'm trying to outstare Moonbrain."
"Shut up, Dogbreath."
"Guys, this is serious," Peter tried again.
"I'm Sirius," Sirius said automatically. "But nothing is as serious as beating Beastie in a staring competition."
He glanced nervously at the growing blazes. "Not even a fire?"
James immediately stood up. "What?" He declared loudly.
"Don't worry," Sirius slurred. "I can put it out."
He poured the bottle of Firewhiskey over it, which only made it worse. "You fool!" Remus said. "Alcohol only makes it worse."
"Shit shit shit." Peter was panicking. "What are we going to do. What's the water spell again?"
The fire was quickly raging. Remus and Sirius had both managed to stagger to their feet, their wands out.
"No idea!" Sirius said.
Peter let out a cry of rage, burying his head in his hands. Remus backed away slowly.
"Get out," James said, racing for the door.
Peter made to go with them, but remembered that he had left his wand near where the fire had started when getting another cigarette. 'Fuck fuck fuck,' he thought. 'I can't lose my wand!'
He made his way over to where his wand lay, the fire getting bigger as he approached it. He grabbed his wand, and was about to make his way out of the room when he tripped over. 'Typical,' he thought, attempting to pull himself back up again.
He felt a flame lick his left leg, however, before he could. The pain was horrible. "Help!" he screamed, but no one came.
He dragged himself away, pulling himself up on a chair. He hobbled out of the room, tears rolling down his cheeks. The pain hurt so much, and his friends didn't come to help him.
That betrayal hurt more than anything else.
He collapsed outside of the tree. The last thing he heard before he passed out in pain was, "Petey? Petey, please don't pass out."
Summer, 1979
Peter took a deep breath in. He could do this. The fire was absolutely terrifying, but he could do this. After all, if he could face months of punishment for being involved in the destruction of the Shack.
"Aguamenti."
Water spewed out of his wand, destroying the fire. He would do anything for his Master.
"Well done, my dear," Voldemort whispered in his ear. "I knew there was more to you than the eyes can see."
So this… didn't turn out as I had expected. Ah, well, I tried.
The last scene is kinda creepy but I love it. Voldemort/Peter is a curious ship, especially if Voldemort is showing romance back.
Also, the inspiration for the whole Remus and Sirius insulting each other thing comes from what happened with me and my friend the other day.
I might get a Poor, I suppose...
(after the fire, the boys have to take Peter to the infirmary, where they are obviously in trouble for being out after curfew. Then Dumbledore gets the whole story, and even though he does save them from being expelled, he is disappointed af. He fixes the Shack, and the Marauders get detentions until the end of their school life.)
~Buttercat
