**IMPORTANT** It was brought to my attention that my last chapter was a repost. I fixed it as soon as it was brought to my attention. I am so sorry for my mistake; I accidentally named to documents the same. If you haven't read the real chapter three, GO READ IT NOW. please?
This is the last chapter before Hogwarts so I hope you enjoy the longest chapter I have ever written. Enjoy!
It was the first sunny day in two weeks and James jumped at the chance to go out in the sunlight. It was a brilliant feeling, stepping out into the cool summer's breeze. The summer so far hadn't been exactly the best one of his life like he had hoped it would be. It had been rough the first couple of days when he realized that the 'cold' his father had was actually much more serious. When James woke up in the middle of the night to hear his father hacking up mucus and blood, he nearly had a heart attack. He rushed into his parents' room and saw his mother struggling to help his father sit up. Thinking on pure instinct, he ran forward and used the muscles that he had developed from two years of Quidditch and sat his father up. Once he was able to breathe a little bit better, his mother grabbed him and his dad and apparated them to St. Mungo's. They stayed there for three days.
It was that night that Ursula had shown up in his house, James learned later.
He had just stepped outside to get a bit of fresh air; he hated hospitals. It was sad and depressing but when you add wizards with strange ailments/problems, it became a muggle carnival (or at least, what Elyse described as a carnival). He was sipping on some of the tea he had poured in the waiting room breathing in the soothing smell that wafted up to his nose. Then out of nowhere, a familiar owl swooped down and landed on his shoulder.
Recognizing the bird as Thalia, Ursula and Sirius's birthday a few years ago from his parents, he immediately opened the envelope that had his name scrawled on it. The handwriting was slanted and some of the ink was smudged; it looked like it was frantically written.
James,
Ursula just left the house. Something about an arranged marriage and that contract you made and then there was a fight. She flooed out of the house shouting your address. She locked me in my room and you know how good her lock charms are— I swear even Dumbledore couldn't break them. I can't get out of here to find her. Did she make it safely?
The letter hadn't even been signed before Sirius shoved it in an envelope. At that moment, it was the last thing that he needed. He shouted in frustration, scaring some muggles across the street as he punch the window behind him. He didn't even care that shattered part of the entrance to St. Mungo's.
He pulled out his wand and thrust it out towards the street. He barely waited a second before the Night Bus appeared. After quickly paying a fee and taking a seat near the front of the bus, he was home in a few minutes.
Bursting into his house shouting Ursula's name, he panicked when no one responded. He searched up and down thinking of all the things that could have happened to her. She might be wandering around Godric's Hollow; she wasn't clear and she ended up at the wrong house; the most terrifying possibility involved her parents following after her. But there was no signs of a fight or struggle and James knew that Ursula would have fought to the death.
Remembering the tracing spell from a book he stumbled across earlier that month, he walked over to the fireplace and threw some floo powder into the flames. Once they were green, he pointed his wand and said the incantation to reveal the last person was sent. He knew that his mother had used it just the day before to visit one of her friends so when he heard Ursula's voice saying Ben's address come from the fireplace, James took steps backwards and fell against the sofa in relief. After writing a quick response to Sirius, he attached it to Thalia's leg (she had followed him from the hospital) and he went back outside and traveled back to the hospital by the Night Bus.
James remembered the conversation they had once his father was feeling better and they were all back home.
James was sitting with his parents at breakfast when he said, "Mom, Dad, Ursula flooed over here five days ago."
Both his parents stopped what they were doing, Mr. Potter reading the newspaper and his mother baking a cake. "What? Where is she?" His mom asked.
"We weren't at home. We were at Mungo's with Dad when Thalia showed up with a letter from Sirius. Mom, I don't know what happened or why it did; something about an arranged marriage. All I know is that she came here first."
Evangeline Potter seemed to stand up a little straighter when she heard that, "Of course she would. This is her home."
James opened his mouth to contradict her but before he could even get out a syllable, his mother cut him off with a ferocious glare she rarely used on his, "Don't you dare argue that with me James Charlus. That house they live in is not their home; this is. Now go clean up your room."
"But mom—"
"Now." She said forcefully.
He turned on his heels towards his room but instead took the stairs to the basement and went to the far right corner of the unused space to check on the potion that had been brewing there ever since he got home from Hogwarts. Covered in illusionment spells and other magical wards to stop sound and smell, the potion was nearly complete. All he had to do was add a little more of the valerian roots at the end and that part of the animagus transformation would be complete and they would be able to tell Moony about their plan.
But things for once didn't turn out in James's favor. He walked up stairs to see that his mother had blocked off his entire hallway and he had no way of getting to his room.
"Mom, what the hell is this?" He demanded in shock.
She scolded him, "Watch the language young man. If you aren't going to clean your room, then I will for you. It's about time to get your room updated; we haven't changed it since you went to Hogwarts!"
With that, he was banished to the living room which he had turned into a miniature fortress of pillows. A banner hung from the entrance declaring the space MINISTRY OF EXCELLENCE.
Three weeks later and James still hadn't been allowed back in his room. He had spent enough time in his fort that he was about to go stir crazy and start switching the sugar and salt around (he had made a deal with his parents that as long as he never pranked them, they would turn a blind eye to whatever he did at Hogwarts) because he was so bored.
Now he was sitting out in his backyard, itching to grab his broom and practice a new Quidditch move he had been dying to try all summer. But the new muggle neighbors down the street effectively put an end to that. James might be able to get away with using magic over the summer at home but there was no chance in Merlin's name that he would be able to get out of a trouble if a muggle saw him flying on a broom.
He had just sat down on the lush green grass when two unfamiliar owls landed next to him. Between the two of them was a package that was wrapped in simple brown paper that had his mother's name written on it. The package was heavier than James expected. When he tried to open it, the two owls started pecking viciously at his fingers.
"Oi! I get it!" He yelled at the birds. He dug into his pocket and grabbed a couple of sickles in the pouch attached to one of their legs. Satisfied with the payment, they flew away and James was free to open the package.
Just as he was about to, a shadow appeared. He looked up, caught red handed by his mother, and smiled charmingly. "Hello, Mom. How're you?"
She put her hand on her hip and looked about as animated as McGonagall during dinner. "James. Is that for me?"
He nodded but he didn't hand it over, "What is it?"
His mom smiled mysteriously, "Carry it into the house and you'll find out."
James grabbed the package and carried it while following his mother back into the house. She walked into the kitchen, through the living room and around MINISTRY OF EXCELLENCE, up the stairs and down the hallway. James followed behind her, excitement growing with every step closer to his room. He bit his tongue but when she lowered the block at the end of his hallway, he couldn't help but ask, "Is this something for my room?"
"Not really."
She opened James door and motioned for him to walk in. At first, he didn't notice anything different about his room. The color was still the same, as a matter of fact; everything was the same as he remembered. He turned to complain to his mom when he saw the other half of the room. There was a second bed that had similar sheets on it. An extra dresser was next to the door and there were mainly pictures of Sirius, Ursula, James, and a few with the rest of their friends hanging on the wall.
"Wha—Is this some weird way to tell me you're pregnant or something?"
Mrs. Potter chuckled and shook her head. She motioned to the package still in James's hand. "Open it." She told him.
James did as he was told, grumbling the entire time, "I swear to Merlin, if there are baby booties in here…" He stopped when he saw the gold plate just like the one already adorning his door. But instead of saying James, it read Sirius. He picked it up and right underneath it was one that had Ursula engraved on it. Immediately, James understood what his mother had been doing.
A smile spread across his face and he laughed, "This is what you've been doing!? This is brilliant!"
"I thought you would think so. Would you like to do the honors?" She asked motioning to the door.
James smirked and pulled his wand out from his pocket. He unstuck his plaque and moved it over the left. Then he picked up Sirius's and placed it just to the right of his name. After a quick sticking charm, a warm feeling swept over him as he looked at Sirius's name with his on the door. There was something…familial…about it. James. Sirius. Like brothers sharing a room. Now all they needed was the sister…
He turned and saw his mom was standing in front of what used to be the girls' guest room but it now proudly proclaimed itself as Ursula's room. "What did you change in there?" James asked as he tried to peak into the room.
Mrs. Potter quickly closed the door before he could see anything. "A girl deserves her privacy and you'll be good to mind that."
"But Mom, I want to see—"
"James, I finally have the child I've always wanted coming to live with me. You are not going to mess this up by booby trapping her room." She said sternly.
He clutched at his heart dramatically, "But Mommy! I thought I was your favorite child!"
She rolled her eyes and put her wand away before addressing her son, "Unless you are suddenly of the opposite gender, Ursula is my favorite. Now go clean up my living room. I want it presentable when your friends show up tomorrow." Though her words were harsh, she smiled at her son and ruffled his already messy hair affectionately.
"But—"
"No buts James. Just do what I said. Your friends are going to be staying here for a while and I don't want this house to look like a pig sty. Now, I know that Ursula and Sirius are showing up tomorrow and Ben, Elyse, and Peter are showing up the day after. Did you ever hear back from Remus for when he is coming?"
Coolly, James responded immediately with a lie, "He's not feeling well right now so he won't be coming. If he feels better, he might drop by."
She sighed sadly, "Poor Remus. He always seems to be getting ill." With a final shake of her head she turned back down the hallway.
James waited until she was far enough away before reaching out to open Ursula's door. His hand had just touched the doorknob when his mother shouted from the first floor, "DON'T EVEN THINK ABOUT IT!"
He jumped a foot in the air, "How the bloody hell does she do that?" He muttered to himself.
"WATCH THE LANGUAGE!"
Deciding that the hallway was unsafe, James quickly scampered off to the safety of his room to rig Sirius's pillows to turn into giant cockroaches when he goes to the bed tomorrow night.
It was bright and early the next morning when the Ursula and Sirius Black tumbled through the fireplace into the Potter's living room. The pair only carried on bag each; the bags that Ben got them for their birthday a few years back.
They looked around the seemingly empty living room, unsettled that the house was silent.
"James did say he would be here right?" Sirius asked Ursula.
Ursula nodded. There was a soft squeak from somewhere in the house and both twins instantly reached into their pockets for their wands.
"Did you hear that?" Ursula asked him.
"I did." James said in a deep voice before spinning around in one of the armchairs. Sitting on his lap was a white cat that he was stroking as he regarded the twins with glaring eyes. "I also heard about you running away to my house without a single explanation. I also happened to hear something about a marriage arrangement that I saved you from but once again, not a single explanation." He accused.
Ursula rolled her eyes at his antics, "Stop with the dramatics. It's kind of complicated to explain all of that in a letter."
"But my dear Ursula, I was under the impression that since I was opening my home to you out of the goodness of my heart, I would be privy to more of the goings on in both of your lives. But alas, I was mistaken! Now I truly know what my friendship means to you!" He practically shouted the end.
Just then, the sound of the backdoor opened and Mrs. Potter walked in covered in dirt. She smiled when she was the twins, "Hello Dears. I heard James shouting from the garden and I figured I should come save you two." She looked at her son and when she did, it became quite obvious where James got his questioning face from. "Honey, we don't have a cat," she said slowly.
James groaned, "You always ruin my fun." He pulled out his wand and with a tap of the wand, the cat was now the vase that Mrs. Potter insisted on keeping, no matter how many times James and Mr. Potter 'accidentally' broke it.
Mrs. Potter sighed exasperated, "You know you're underage. You can't pick and choose which laws you are going to follow!"
"I don't choose any; I disregard all of 'em," James said nonchalantly.
The Blacks laughed thinking of what they were going to be doing to following day, knowing full well that Mrs. Potter would definitely not approve.
She just shook her head, "Sometimes I wonder where I went wrong with you. Then I remember that I dropped you on the head as a baby and it all makes sense. Now why don't you get up and greet your friends properly?"
James sighed in mock exasperation and hugged Ursula. With one arm still wrapped around Ursula, he turned towards Sirius and said, "Sorry, Padfoot. You don't get a hug."
Sirius feigned sadness, "I thought we had something special!" He cried.
That sent the two boys into a dramatic argument. Ursula remained under James's arm not so much by choice as by force. But being trapped did give her a good chance to see how her friend had changed in the almost three months since she had seen him. For the first time, Ursula noticed how attractive he was. Dark messy hair with handsome looks and striking eyes; he was one attractive bloke. Add to that he had gained some muscle and was no longer boney. Well, his shoulders had filled out. But when his leg moved and hit against her knee, she looked down to see the knobbiest knees ever seen to Hogwarts. That was something that she had a feeling would never change. The last change that Ursula noted was his voice. She had noticed her brother's voice had dropped a lot recently but she hadn't really thought about the same thing happening to her other male friends. But she did know this for sure; Lily was going to have a hard time resisting James now.
"Here, let me show you two lazy bums to where you'll be staying," James said with a smirk while tightening his grip on Ursula, snapping her out of her musings. "Checking me out, love?" He teased her when he saw her lingering gaze.
Ursula rolled her eyes and ducked out from his arm, "Nah, I've got my eyes on another bloke. I was just thinking that Lily might not be able to resist your advances much longer if you keep this up."
James puffed his chest out slightly at that praise, "You think?" He asked as he led them towards the stairs.
"I think the more important question Prongsie is who this other bloke is," Sirius butted in.
James stopped halfway up the stairs and blocked Ursula's way. He crossed his arms and smirked down at her arrogantly, "Yeah, Ursula. Who is this bloke?"
She rolled her eyes and pushed past him. "Like you don't know."
"I don't know if I know. While I do have a superior level of intelligence to most people, my Lily-love will attest that I am lacking the romance department. For all we know it could be that Ravenclaw that you had to work on that paper with second year. Or maybe it's Gabe Abbott; I don't know how anyone can resist his girly hair and squeaky voice. What about that fourth year Gryffindor, Richard, I think his name is? I saw you giving him the eyes when he showed you where the potions section of the library was." James taunted.
Ursula never responded to his taunts. She froze when she walked up to her usual guest room and saw the door. Her name was on it. "James?" She asked softly.
The said boy was smiling but it wasn't his usual smirk. No, he looked genuinely pleased with himself from doing something good. "Go ahead and open it," he said as he gestured towards the door.
As he led Sirius into his room to show him where to put his stuff, Ursula still stood outside her room. She reached up and gently traced her name writing in Mrs. Potter's elegant cursive. Slowly she opened her door and when she saw the room that Mrs. Potter made for her, and her breath was stolen straight out of her lungs.
It was perfect.
Later that night, the trio walked in through the kitchen all muddy and covered in grass stains. They all had brooms swung over their shoulders and James was holding onto a Quaffle.
"You know, you might be onto something with that twist path. Depending on who the new chaser is, we might be able to pull that off." Ursula commented.
James nodded, "And if the kid's complete rubbish, we always fall back on our pair work. If we can get Cormac and Liam on board with the bludger feign, then we have a good chance of surprising the Slytherins in the first match of the year."
"I don't care about all that Quidditch stuff," Sirius said as he stole an apple from the counter.
James looked at him as if he had just said he was in love with Snape, "What are you on about?! Quidditch is the best—"
"Thing that has ever happened to all of wizard kind and it should be treated as such. If you don't care about Quidditch then you can go blah blah, blah blah." Sirius said, knowing the speech James was about to give him. "I love Quidditch, just not as much as you two; that's why I'm not on the team. I'm more interested in that pond we flew over today. We should go there tomorrow. Before we do," He was cut off when Mr. and Mrs. Potter walked into the kitchen.
"Do what Sirius?" Mr. Potter asked in a raspy voice.
"Nothing Dad."
Mrs. Potter gave them a disbelieving look and was about to dig into Sirius to find out what they were going to do, when Ursula jumped in, "James didn't do part of his homework so we were going to force him to do it tomorrow, even if we needed to use magic and force." It sickened Ursula to lie to Mrs. Potter but they were so close to really starting the animagus process. Besides, if she did find out after tomorrow, the chances of her turning them into the Ministry were zero.
She bought the lie and gave Ursula a small half-hug when she gave her son a look, "Thank you Dear. James, you are going to finish your homework tomorrow before your friends get here. Is that clear?"
James glowered at Ursula but his eyes thanked her, "Yes mom," he mumbled.
"Now off you three! I want you all clean for dinner!" She shooed them out of the kitchen. Mr. Potter just laughed as he opened the Prophet while he waiting for dinner to be served.
Twenty minutes later the family of five was sitting around the table, enjoying the plentiful meal that Mrs. Potter prepared. Mr. Potter placed his fork on his plate and turned towards Ursula, "I've heard that this technically isn't your first visit to our home this summer," he prompted.
Ursula shook her head, "No. It's not." She said softly.
"Would you care to elaborate on that?" Mr. Potter pushed. "We already heard the vague details from James but I am curious as to what happened."
She swallowed loudly and took a sip of water before beginning her answer, "My Mother tried to set an arranged marriage for me to Nott. When they tried to sign the paper, it would burst into flames. They soon realized that I had something to do with it. They assumed that it was because I wasn't a virgin anymore." She didn't need to elaborate more on that idea. Both being purebloods themselves, the adults understood why that would cause the paper to burst into flames.
"You are still a…" Mr. Potter trailed off awkwardly.
Ursula blushed bright red as did her brother and friend. "Yeah, I'm a virgin." She said softly, trying to control the blood rushing to her face.
"So where does James come into this?" Mrs. Potter asked.
Ursula smiled at the memory, "As you know, James wrote out that marriage agreement; the one where if we don't marry someone by the time we are thirty-five? That was considered a legitimate marriage contract and since it was signed by James, Sirius, and me, it overrode what they were trying to do."
The parents regarded her solemnly, "We're so sorry for what you had to go through. If we had been home at the time, we would have flooed right back to your house and given Orion and Walburga a piece of our minds," Mr. Potter said as he clenched his fist tightly.
It disgusted him. The girl he viewed as the daughter he could never have, having to suffer like that. No child should have to live in a house like they did. Maybe, they could make this end of the summer visit to be the entire summer. Their names on their rooms already made this their home; they shouldn't be forced to go back to that hell hole. He caught the eyes of his wife and he could see she was thinking the exact same thing.
It was time to make turn the Blacks into Potters. And soon.
After dinner was over, Ursula was putting her clothes away in the bureau when she heard a soft knock on her door. "Come in!"
The door silently opened. James walked in and whistled when he saw the room. "Mom did good in here, didn't she?" He asked as he stood in the doorway. She nodded absentmindedly while putting away her stuff.
"The potion is ready." He said after a moment of silence. "It just finished simmering this morning, just before you and your brother showed up in fact. I have it fixed so we have extra time. Dad has an appointment at St. Mungo's tomorrow at five so I was figuring if we 'work' on homework tomorrow morning before everyone shows up and then spend some time at the pond, that should waste enough time so we don't get caught."
She just kept on nodding.
James smirked, "I found out that Lysie snogged Padfoot."
Ursula didn't make any reaction to his words.
"Lily confessed her undying love for me."
"I blew up my neighbor's house."
"McGonagall and I are running away together."
"Dumbledore shaved his beard."
"Snivellus washed his hair."
Once again, nothing.
Smirking, James said what he knew would get a reaction out of her, "Ben owled me. He's got a girlfriend."
Ursula jumped, "What!? Who? What house is she—you bastard." She growled at him when he doubled over in laughter.
"Come on, Ursula, take a joke. It got you to react, didn't it?" James jumped on her bed and kicked his feet up. He put his hands behind his head and looked down at her triumphantly.
She huffed and folded her arms across her chest. "You know, I am quite close to a certain red head. It would do well for you to remember that."
James looked offended, "How dare you try to hold that over my head! Here I was trying to be a good friend and leave the comfort of my own room to make sure that you like your room and then you go threaten me like that!"
Ursula rolled her eyes, "What did you do to Sirius?" She asked deadpanned.
He dropped the act and smirked, "Transfigured his pillow to turn into a cockroach when he lies down."
"I guess you'll be even then." Ursula said.
James sat up straight up. "What do you mean?"
She just shrugged, "Did you happen to take a shower already?"
He nodded slowly with his eyes wide with fear. She smirked slightly, "Then you'll find out in ten to twelve hours."
Before James could freak out any further, a loud scream came from across the hall, "JAMES!"
Ursula stood and pulled James to his feet and shoved him out of her room. "Have fun dealing with him. And don't forget, you might not want to look at a mirror for a while. It seems it is already beginning to happen."
James's eyes widened, utterly horrified, before she slammed the door in her face. He saw his door fly open and heard a soft click as his only sanctuary – Ursula's room – was locked. "Bloody—"That was all he got out before Sirius tackled him to the ground.
The next morning the two boys were sitting in the front room, wearing just shorts with beach towels slung over their shoulders. Ursula was being logical and taking a shower before going swimming.
"When is everyone else showing up Prongs?" Sirius questioned.
James quickly checked the clock, "Ben should be getting here any minute, then Peter, and finally Elyse. My Mom already went to pick her up but considering how much my mom loves her parents, she's going to spend a day and a half talking."
Sirius nodded but then froze. A smirk slowly formed on his lips and he grabbed James's arm and pulled him closer to hear his plan, "So Ben fancies Sissy, no? And she fancies him back, hm?"
The other boy nodded, not understanding what Sirius was trying to say; this was common knowledge for all of Hogwarts.
"While I approve of Ben dating Sissy, I'm not about to make this easy for him."
James caught onto Sirius drift and shared the same smile, "I'm in." He was still slightly miffed about Ursula lying to him about the 'prank' Sirius had pulled on him. He had been paranoid all day expecting his hair to fall off or his skin to turn blue. It was only when his mother started questioning his sanity that Ursula admitted what she had done. While James had to admit that it was a good prank, if was against him which was unacceptable so now he was out for revenge.
"Perfect. Here's what we're going to do…"
When Ben flooed into the Potter's house, the first thing he saw was James and Sirius sitting close together half naked. They looked like they knew something no one else did and it unnerved him a bit, to be honest. He raised an eyebrow at them, "What's going on with you two?"
Sirius chuckled, unable to hold it in. "You'll see."
"SIRIUS! JAMES! WHAT THE HELL?" An angry, distinctively familiar voice shouted from upstairs. There was a thundering of footsteps and the person took the stairs three at a time. When she stepped around the corner, Ben's jaw dropped and his mouth went dry. Ursula came storming down the stairs, her cheeks flushed with anger, her hair a wild curly mess, only wearing a black bikini. "WHERE THE HELL ARE MY CLOTHES!?"
The only thing he could think about was how he didn't notice her change. For some reason, he always saw her as the first year. He never, ever in his wildest dreams, could have imaged that she was hiding that underneath her Hogwarts uniform.
"Bloody hell," he muttered.
Ursula seemed to snap out of it when she saw the other boy in the room. Her cheeks flushed even brighter and she wrapped her arms around her torso, "Hello Ben. Um, how are you?" She asked. She shuffled her feet and tried to discreetly move behind the sofa.
Thinking on instinct, Ben took off his already unbuttoned button down, leaving him in a grey t-shirt. He held it out for her to take, "Here."
She grabbed the red flannel and glared at her brother and James. She quickly put it on and buttoned it up, leaving only the top few undone. The shirt was so long on her that it went down to her thighs. She rolled up the sleeves while she glared at her brother. "Bastards," Ursula hissed at them. Ben didn't notice her hostile look; he could only think of how good she looked in his clothing. His stomach tightened and his breathing was shallow as he watched her.
The boys just smirked. At that moment, Mrs. Potter appeared with Elyse. Ursula quickly grabbed their muggleborn friend and ran up the stairs. Ben turned towards the two black haired boys. "What was that about?" Ben demanded, the red blush still burning on his cheeks from seeing Ursula dressed like that.
Sirius slung his arm over Ben's shoulders, "While I can't think of anyone else I would want my sister to date, did you honestly think that I would make this easy for you, King?"
Ben gulped audibly at the look on both Sirius's and James's face. No, they weren't going to make this easy for him at all.
The pond they went to was completely covered by trees. There would have been no way for them to find it if Sirius hadn't been looking down while flying over the forest. Peter and Ben were currently putting up a valiant fight against James and Sirius in a water fight. But it was no use; they were losing and badly at that. On the shore of the pond, Ursula and Elyse were laying out in the sun. Elyse had put on enough sunscreen to cover all four boys and Ursula but she still sat under an umbrella. Ursula was laying next to her out in the sun, letting her pale skin soak up the summer sun.
"Pat wants te meet yeh." Elyse said after a moment of silence.
Ursula raised her eyebrow and turned her head so she was facing Elyse, "Really? Why?"
"We's kind o' datin now."
Ursula jumped up and practically tackled Elyse, "WHAT! Why didn't you tell me?! That's brilliant!"
Elyse laughed and shoved Ursula off of her, "Calm down, Ursula. I'll tell yeh!"
She then went to explain the full story and was careful not to leave any detail out. Ursula just smiled wider and wider as the story progressed. Once Elyse was done, she asked, "Does he treat you right?"
Elyse nodded, "He's a gentleman."
Ursula nodded once, "He better be. If he isn't I swear to Merlin I would kick his ass muggle style. So have you told any of the guys yet?"
Elyse gave her a look and Ursula laughed, realizing how stupid that question was, "Of course you wouldn't. But those boys are nosey as Snivellus; they're going to find out soon."
Both girls laughed at the comparison. Their laughter was cut short when hands grabbed their feet and shoulders. Ursula screamed and saw Ben and James carrying towards the pond.
"You wouldn't dare!" She shouted at them over Elyse's similar shrieks at Peter and Sirius.
Ben looked mock contemplative, "I don't know, Prongs, would we dare?"
"Good question, King. I think we would." James affirmed.
Ursula's eyes widened as they started swinging her back and forth, "I swear I'll bloody MURDER—" The rest of her sentence was cut off as she was thrown into the pond. She got a good breath in before she went under as the water burned her eyes and filled her ears. If the boys wanted a prank, they would get a prank.
Preserving her breath for as long as she could, she stayed under the water and tried not to move that much. She heard frantic shouting from above the water followed by a splash. A little bit away from her, Ursula saw the bubbles and indent of water as someone jumped in. Swimming towards her, there was a floating, ethereal halo of red came towards her. A strong arm wrapped around her torso and she was violently yanked up.
"Merlin, Ursula! Are you okay? Can you breathe?" Ben asked, panting as he tried to catch his breath. His brown eyes were wide with panic and he kept his grip on one of her arms. Ursula saw her brother and James swimming as fast as possible towards her with Peter following behind at a slower pace.
"SISSY!" Sirius shouted when he saw her. "What the hell happened; you know how to swim!" His face was extremely pale, as was all the boys'.
Unable to hold it back any longer, Ursula burst out laughing, sputtering as she tried to regain control. "You- you should have seen your faces!" She chortled.
The look on their faces was priceless. They seemed to realize that she had pranked them in their prank on her. James opened his mouth to say something (no doubt about to say something rude) when Mrs. Potter apparated to the edge of the pond.
"JAMES! I'M TAKING YOUR FATHER TO HIS APPOINTMENT! I WANT YOU IN THE HOUSE NOW!"
James held up a thumbs up, "GOT IT!"
The six teens swam towards the shore and climbed out. They wrapped towels around themselves and started trudging back towards the Potter's house. All the way they grumbled about not being able to dry themselves off because they weren't under a wizard's roof. As they walked through the forest, Ursula tripped on a tree root and would have fallen if Ben hadn't reached out and caught her.
"Thanks," she said as she gave him a small smile.
His heart fluttered a bit but he made no show of that. Instead, he reached down and grabbed her hand and helped her balance over the twisted, exposed tree roots. When they were out of the dense part of the forest and back in Godric's Hollow, he still didn't let go of her hand and she made no motion to suggest she wanted him to let go.
They only separated when they went to the different rooms for the boys and girls to chance. Elyse raised her eyebrows at Ursula but didn't say anything. Ursula ignored the look. Deciding that it was cool enough, Ursula decided to let her hair down, saving her time before she walked down the stairs to meet the boys minus James.
Everyone looked calm except Peter. He was nervously picking at his nails and he kept on moving around. Finally, Sirius couldn't take it any longer and snapped, "What is wrong with you Wormtail?"
"I forgot what the potion does," he admitted in a soft voice.
Ben snorted while Sirius looked at Peter in pure disbelief. "Really Wormy? After we've explained this a million times? Are you that much of a dunce or are you purposely trying to be stupid?"
Peter flinched at Sirius's harsh words. Ursula shot a glare at her twin before putting her hand on Peter's shoulder in a comforting way. Kindly, she explained, "The potion is designed to make sure we can stay as animals. The requirement to take it is that you've changed at least half you body at some point into your animal. Because our bodies are not chemically designed to undergo the stress of changing into another species naturally, this potion takes care of that for us. All we have to do is take the potion and work on transfiguring out entire body nonverbally, wandless, and simultaneously before the time limit runs out. James altered the potion so we have until about Christmas Holiday fifth year."
"That's about it," James said as he carried a serving dish with six smoking vials into the kitchen. He carefully placed it on the table. "This is it."
Ursula took a breath and looked at all them, thinking of all things that could go wrong for the people she cared about if this didn't work right. "Are you all sure you've finished the first steps? Because once you drink this there's no going back."
"Ursula, chill. We've already had partial transformations. Nothing could go wrong." Sirius said lazily.
"We can't take this lightly," Ben spoke up. "If we are caught, that's ten years in Azkaban for us. My dad can't get us out of this; he would probably lose his job if I'm caught along with the rest of you."
"Yeh's exaggeratin'," Elyse said.
"No, he's not," Ursula spoke up. "This is a serious offense in the eyes of the ministry. That's why if anyone wants to get out of this, then we won't think any less of you."
No one around the table moved.
James was the first one to reach for a vial. He held it up and with a serious look on his oddly mature face said, "To Moony."
The rest of them grabbed a vial and held it up in a toast, "To Moony," they chorused. Simultaneously, they gulped down the potion. At once, they all smiled triumphantly. They had done it; they were going to be animagi.
Remus Lupin was angry. No furious, livid, irate, enraged, and every other word that could possibly express his anger directed towards his friends. It all began around late afternoon. Remus was working on his summer homework when the phone rang. He heard his mother answer it and thought nothing of it until she walked into the room with the phone cradled against her chest.
"Remus, its Mrs. O'Brian. She wants to know if remembered to bring desert to the Potter's for James's Summer Bash? Apparently she forgot to give Elyse the lemon pie and she said she would make it up to us if we sent something extra. Do you have any idea what she is talking about?"
He shook his head, his heart breaking in pieces. They had said that it didn't matter to them that he was a werewolf and now they didn't include him? What else had he missed because they were just stringing him along? They didn't care. None of them did. It was all lies. Everything Ben said was just a cover story. They weren't trying to 'help' him or 'make it better'; no! They were plotting on getting rid of him.
Red hot rage like nothing before shot through his veins and he shot up from his seat, sending his books flying across the room. His mother rushed forward, "Remus, stop!" But her plea fell on deaf ears. He grabbed some floo powder and threw it into the fireplace with much more force than necessary. He jumped in and shouted James's address.
After the spinning stopped, he stumbled out into the Potter's silent home. Remus's anger doubled when he saw James's Gryffindor jumper. Not seeing any sight of them in the living room, he went to the kitchen next. He froze when he saw the vials that still had a bit of smoke floating out from the top. Some of his anger dissipating, he cautiously reached out and grabbed one of them. Creating a small breeze with his hand, the smell filled his nostrils. His brows furrowed when he didn't recognize it.
"See you've figured out something was up," a drawling voice said from behind him. James was leaning heavily against the door frame but he was trying his best to show that he was fine. His face was slightly green and he started to sway on his feet.
Concern overpowered Remus's anger as he rushed forward to grab James's arm to keep him from falling, "What is wrong with you?" Remus demanded.
James smirked weakly, "Just a reaction to a potion we weren't expecting." Just then his eyes kind of glazed over and he stumbled towards the table, "I need to sit," he mumbled.
"What did you do to yourself?" Remus asked, scared that something was seriously wrong with James.
"Not just himself; all of us," Ben said as he and Ursula trudged into the kitchen. Both were leaning heavily on the other as they slowly worked their way to the table. Ursula was barely able to stand up straight and Ben was barely walking straight. Elyse joined them a moment later, "Wormy's still pukin'," She incoherently said. The last to join their group was Sirius who looked like he would hex you if you even looked at him wrong.
Remus looked around the five friends all in the same state disorientation and illness. Something had happened, something that had to do with him; he knew it had to be. Ben seemed to be able to still read him even in his current state, "You're right; it does have to do with your lycanthropy."
Remus's eyes widened and he jumped from the table, "I knew it! You've been trying to get rid of me for months now!"
"SHUT UP!" Sirius shouted, covering his ears with his hands. He dropped his head to the table as the headache pounded away in his head.
The werewolf continued at a much more reasonably volume, yet no less hurt voice, "I've noticed you all sneaking out at odd hours of the night, some of you have been disappearing at different times of the day, then the secretive looks. You've been trying to get rid of me haven't you? Can't stand the stigma of being associated with a werewolf? That's fine, just don't be cowards; say it to my face." He growled the last part.
Ursula looked like she was torn between hexing him and jumping across the table and slugging him across the face, "If I didn't feel like death," she muttered under her breath.
It was James that met Remus face on, his eyes serious and selfless, "That potion is known as animalis humana or more commonly known as animagus potion." He explained.
Remus's jaw dropped to the ground as James continued, "We took the potion so we could become animagi so we can accompany you during the full moons to keep you company and to stop you from hurting yourself. This is the last step we needed to complete before we told you."
"What animals?" Remus asked in shock.
"I'm a stag, Elyse is a hare, Peter is a rat, Ben is a lion, and Ursula and Sirius are dogs. We figure that we'll be ready to go out with you by fifth year. That way even though we are animals and we should be safe, we should know enough magic by then if something goes wrong, we'll be able to handle it."
Remus wanted to be angry. He wanted to scream at James and the rest of them for going against his expressed wishes and doing this. He wanted to curse them all for being such bloody fools! They were being impulsive; they were risking too much. He wasn't worth ten years in Azkaban. Remus couldn't image any of them rotting away, losing their minds and phenomenal talents and skills in Azkaban. But looking at all their earnest eyes, he couldn't get angry at them because in those eyes were compassion, understanding, and love.
It was all too much for him. He broke down in sobs. Remus covered his face with his hands as he rested his elbows against his thighs. He felt a soft, small hand against his back, "Remus, are you really that upset that we did this?" Ursula asked softly.
He shook his head and was barely able to gather himself together to say, "I'm trying to figure out what the hell I had to do to deserve friends like you."
Ursula smiled brightly and wrapped her arms around his shoulders. She pecked him on the cheek and said, "I ask myself the same exact thing every day."
So there you have it; they are officially almost Animagi! Thanks for reading and please leave a review. I love hearing feedback from the readers because it helps me improve my writing.