The Lestrange Loner (Part 1)
By Thursday, the ugly, black boils had not gone down. Madam Pomfrey, try as she might, could not reduce the swelling, and even Professor Fraton could not cure his hands (though James suspected he wasn't exactly trying, as he had been the one to cause them and thought it suitable punishment). On top of the boils, Albus was still avoiding him, and the pair of them were receiving post from the family every other day (even Rose had more post than the normal student). Although James had told Jacob about Albus's strange behaviour, he had little time to dwell on the matter anymore as Quidditch tryouts approached, not to mention the pile of homework he'd put off doing, which was a surprising amount for just four days of school. James sighed as he hoisted his school bag onto his shoulder and walked down to breakfast.
As he entered the Great Hall, a small boy with flaming red hair charged past with out a glance. Had he not been used to Al's behaviour, he would have looked around to see if he could see the three-headed dragon that was chasing him. James swung his school bag under the table and sat between Rose and Jacob. As he pulled a plate of eggs towards him, Rose tapped him on the back. He turned around as she wiped her brown hair out of her bright blue eyes. She showed him the letter she had been reading that was in her mother's writing. "It's been in three letters I've had!" she said, nearly hitting him in the face, "They keep saying they might be going away on some mission, but I can't think what. If I'm right, your parents are in on it too, aren't they?" James thought about it. True, they had said they might be going away for a few days, and if they wanted to talk to anyone, they should contact The Burrow, as most of the family would be there; but unless his aunt had been less discreet, he couldn't see why she thought they were going on a mission. She continued to stare at him as if his opinion would change the world and life itself. He shook his head, "Rose, you're just being stupid, why would our parents be going on a mission?" She scowled then turned to Jacob, tapping her foot. Jacob sank low into his seat. Sighing, Rose left her seat, taking care to hit James round the head as she swung her bag onto her shoulder. Honestly, James thought, as he tucked into his sausages, no one should tell her anything.
James and Jacob sprinted along a deserted corridor at top speed. Both of them had had little sleep and had fallen asleep at breakfast; they were now very late for Transfiguration and probably going to end up in a week's detention. They passed door after door, in none of which was their class. Too tired to keep running, they leant against the banister of a staircase, grateful to have not met Peeves or Gertrude, the Caretaker. "It's… got…to be here…somewhere." panted Jacob, stepping onto the next step.
A second later, James wished he hadn't moved. He grabbed Jacob's wrists to stop him falling right through the trick stair to the floor below. James hauled on Jacob but the combination of sweaty hands and being extremely tired meant that Jacob was quickly slipping through the stairs. Finally, after several minutes of pulling, Jacob was free; however, the sound the two of them heard as they gathered up their bags made their hearts drop; a combination of clanking objects and the swishing of cloaks. "Fraton and Gertrude!" whispered Jacob, his face contorted. James silenced him with a gesture and began to rummage in his bag. After what seemed a lifetime, he found it; a cloak that had once been his grandfather's, a cloak that truly rendered the wearer invisible. He tossed it over them as the pair rounded the corner. James and Jacob tried to make themselves as small as possible as Professor Fraton and the Caretaker rounded the corner and up the stairs, passing barely an inch from their feet. After they passed, James and Jacob sat in silence for a few moments until the echoing foot steps died. The pair of them stumbled to their feet and (still under the invisibility cloak) shuffled along a deserted corridor.
For a few minutes they walked, taking care not to collide with any suits of armour; just as they were about to give up, the saw it; the class room. They broke into a run, but a metre from the door, the pair of them had to dive as a figure backed into their path.
The two boys rolled into a suit of armour, causing a tremendous crash that seemed to hang in the air. They scrambled to their feet and turned to face the figure.
Albus was talking to a person who remained in the shadows. "Look, it's not safe to talk… look," Albus said kindly as the person began to sob, "I'll meet you later, I promise. It's just…" and out of the corner of his eye, James saw his brother show the person a piece of extremely old parchment. Feeling that he shouldn't eavesdrop anymore (and partly because he knew Albus knew he and Jacob were there) he tapped Jacob on the shoulder and they slipped silently into the classroom.