A Late Night Discovery
A Late Night Discovery
Gwen had spent most of the break trying to understand why her parents were slightly aggravated with her placement in Gryffindor house. They realized that the Sorting Hat didn't make errors in judgement and they certainly couldn't blame their one and only daughter for what Gwen was starting to feel was a family slight. But instead resorted to reminding her that bravery and gallantry wouldn't get her as far as wit and cleverness in her strive to commit flawless magic.
Gwen had really gotten sick of the whole discussion and was looking forward to going back to school and even the classes with the homework. She arrived back the Sunday before spring term. She met up with Lily in the Great Hall eating breakfast and asked her if she wanted to go on a little late night stroll around the castle.
Lily looked a little hesitant but agreed that it might be fun to break a few rules for once.
Sunday past quickly, Gwen and Lily planned their little midnight excursion quietly in the darkest most corner of the Gryffindor common room. Sirius and his buddies watched the two girls whispering quietly amongst themselves,
"I wonder what they're planning over there, probably the best way to complete their homework." Sirius said sourly sneering at the two girls, "We're stuck here because Dumbledore says we're supposed to stay in our dorms after- " He dropped off looking around "Hey James, have you seen Remus since dinner?"
"Can't say that I have, It's really an odd occurrence once a month he disappears and if I'm not mistaken it's during the-" James dropped off he looked from Sirius to Peter and back to Sirius whom finally had caught on
And in unison they all whispered to one another "full moon"
James stood quickly and hissed quietly at Sirius and Peter "Our fourth 'marauder' has a super secret…and it's quite the 'furry little problem' we'll have to find away to get out of the castle with him but how…"
Sirius and Peter looked quizzically at James, and finally Peter asked quietly "how do you expect we do that? If Remus does have this "furry problem" then shouldn't we stay clear at those points?"
"I'm not sure how, yet but I'll figure out away." James said grinning as he looked over at Lily and Gwen still whispering in the corner.
It was then that Gwen shifted her gaze to see James watching them; she winked at Lily and said with a large yawn and a stretch,
"Right Lily, I'm off to bed, see you in the morning… Transfigurations tomorrow gotta be refreshed McGonagall doesn't appreciate yawning or tardiness and I'll be both if I don't get to bed now."
"I'm with you Gwen, off to bed." Lily said smirking and they both walked across the room to the girls dorms and waved at James, Peter, and Sirius until Gwen noticed the missing link,
"Hey, Potter, Black, where's the missing mini-me? Did he smarten up a bit and start working on all your homework?"
"For your information Peterson, we don't need Remus to complete our homework,"
"Oh so we'll be getting the points for a full house of completed homework then?" Gwen asked snidely "Or are you three going to hold us back from easy house points again"
Sirius looked from Peter to James and frowned.
"Ye-ah that's what I thought." Gwen said looking at Lily and sighing and stomped away up the stairs.
"Ok Lily we'll get the cloaks and then it's up to the trophy room I want to see my dad's trophy."
The girls slipped on the invisibility cloaks and looked around Gwen put her hand out in front of her and quietly squealed in glee "This is AWESOME!"
"Hush!" Lily hissed "Come on let's go poke around a little so we can get back and get to bed."
The girls walked back down stairs quietly they saw that Sirius and most of his clan were still sitting in the common room but barely paying attention to them she heard the words animals and transform and that was the end as the two girls draped in cloaks cracked the portrait hole and scurried up the hall to the third floor trophy room.
Once in the light of the room Gwen slipped the hood of the cloak off her head and slid it off around her body and through it over her arm and walked up to the lighted case and looked at the golden glittering trophies looking all around for the one with her dad's name on it until she gasped,
"Lily, Look here it is, my dad was taught by Slughorn too! He's still in touch with Avery and Turgeons but he's never mentioned Tom Riddle before. Look at all the awards this kid got, Order of Merlin, Head boy, phew must have been great! Ohh he was cute too! I'll ask my dad about him when I get home for the summer."
Lily looked quickly around she heard footsteps around the outside of the room, "Gwen- quickly cloak! Someone's coming" And just as Gwen covered herself the castle care taker walked into the room looked around sniffled walked over to the trophy case light and switched it off the room very dark with out the light cast around the room by the case. And with that Filch walked from the room.
"Lily?"
"Yeah?"
"Let's go to bed! I think that's enough exploring for one night."
"Agreed!"
And the two girls sprinted back up to the Gryffindor tower just as they rounded the corner Gwen caught sight of a long gurney from the hospital wing coming through the front doors of the castle. The blankets were pulled up almost over the face but Gwen caught sight of Remus's eyes and gasped in an audible manner but Lily grabbed her hand before the Professor McGonagall or Madam Pomfrey the witch in the hospital wing could grab her wrist and they continued to sprint around the corner and up the stairs to the Gryffindor Common room once safely inside they slipped the cloaks off and slumped down in the closest chair.
"Lily" "Gwen" the girls said in unison
"Was that?" Lily asked
"Remus" Gwen whispered shocked "I wonder what happened"
Lily rose from the chair and walked to the window looking over the grounds and gasped she spun around to face Gwen again "I got it! Its so obvious, he's a-a-a" she couldn't say it but instead pointed to the bright round yellowing moon waning in the night sky Gwen gaped at her and she said in a barely audible whisper "You think, he's a werewolf?" Lily nodded solemnly
"Do you think anyone else knows?" Gwen asked quietly as they made their way up to the girls' dorm never noticing Sirius sitting in the shadows in the dark of the boys' dorm stairs
"Probably his friends, they'll probably have figured it out by now but this is a secret we'll take to our grave right?" Lily said when she and Gwen stopped suddenly on the stairs and they nodded in agreement "A secret till death and knowing doesn't change a thing but still it's nice to know. Besides it's Remus's secret to keep or tell to whom he wants." Gwen said quietly and they turned and went to bed
