A/N: Six, six, six. Does six mean anything? It's a cool number, divisible by one, two, three and six. How 'bout that? Anyway, enjoy! Adios!
-CatJetRat
Chapter 6
Exploring Home
Normal POV
2007
"What do you mean, she's your girlfriend?!" Ron shouted at a resolute Hermione. "I thought you and I were—"
"You never said we were!" Hermione snapped. "Besides, we've never even kissed. How does that count?"
"So you're gay?" Ron asked in disbelief. Hermione winced, but only slightly.
"Yes," she said flatly. "I am. Well, I'm going with bi now, but I'm gay for Pansy."
Ron mock-gagged, and Hermione glared at him. He grinned briefly. "Whatever. So long as she makes you happy. But just remember that I'll be happy to beat her up for you when she reverts back to her true Slytherin self." Hermione laughed, relieved that he was taking this as well as he was. Now there was only Ginny to tell….
Hermione steeled herself and went to find her redheaded friend. Hopefully she would be just as accepting as Ron. When she had located Ginny and told her, however, she wasn't just as accepting as Ron. She was much more accepting.
"This is great!" she cried. "Now you'll be interested in Quidditch too!"
"Um," Hermione stammered. "I don't think it quite works that way, Ginny."
Ginny laughed. "I know; I was just kidding. But seriously, if Pansy hurts you, I'll beat her with my broomstick for you."
Hermione laughed, amused that this was almost exactly what Ron had said to her. She wasn't surprised that Ginny didn't care, because she was Ron's sister, but she had no clue how Harry would react, if they ever found him. As she thought about him, her gut twisted in worry. Where was he? Why couldn't they find him, and why wasn't the Headmistress more concerned?
1980
Harry crept through the hallways underneath his invisibility cloak, heading towards the planned meeting point with the marauders. He'd left at about eleven, after finishing his homework. Malfoy hadn't returned to their room, and he hadn't seen his blond roommate at dinner either. Harry tried not to think about him, but that was proving a difficult task. Every two seconds it felt as if he was reliving that kiss, forbidden though it might have been. Harry shook his head, as if by doing so he could shake the thoughts away like an irksome fly, but it didn't work. Hopefully when he was exploring with the others he would forget all about it.
He carefully pushed the door open and snuck outside. Once he was a few feet away from the door he broke into a joyous run, stopping only when he reached the Whomping Willow. He grabbed a branch and pushed the knob on the tree, and its flailing branches froze. He carefully walked into the secret passageway in the tree, and straightened up. Pulling off his cloak, he stowed it in his bag and hid it in the little space James had told him about. Before he went any further, he transformed into his panther shape and shook himself out. As a panther, he had bright green eyes, jet-black fur, circles around his eyes for his glasses, and a white patch of fur on his forehead shaped like a lightening-bolt, for his scar.
Harry stretched out luxuriously, and yawned. He loved being in cat form. It was amazing how far his long legs would carry him, and all of his senses were heightened ten-fold. Everything seemed much brighter, and he could smell things his human nose could never, hear things he'd never heard before. Once, when he was lying still, he thought he heard an ant walking.
The moon wasn't out yet, so Remus should still be in human form. Sure enough, when Harry finally entered the Shrieking Shack, Remus was still in human form though he was crouched over and his face was screwed up in pain. Harry glanced out the window, able to discern with his cat eyes that moonrise was only a few minutes away. He looked around at the others, feeling his heart twist at the sight of them. Prongs was large and magnificent, brown in color, unlike Harry's silver Patronus, but nonetheless beautiful. Padfoot looked much like he had in dog form when Harry known him, except that his fur shone a bit brighter. Probably, Harry realized sadly, because he hadn't gone to Azkaban yet. He glanced at Wormtail, who looked so like Scabbers, and it was difficult to fight off the urge to capture him, when he was back in the Shrieking Shack, the place where he had discovered Sirius' innocence. Wormtail looked much the same, except that his finger wasn't missing. The finger he cut off to incriminate Sirius, Harry thought viciously, and then realized that his claws were flexed, and his teeth bare, a small growl emanating from his throat. He relaxed immediately. No reason to cause the others concern.
A howl interrupted his musings. His gaze shot towards Remus, who was reverting to wolf form. His jaw lengthened, and his teeth grew sharp and large. Fur began to grow along his body, and a tail sprouted from his behind. Two seconds later, he was a full wolf. He looked almost exactly like a wolf, except there were minute differences in his snout and tail and teeth that showed him for what he was. Harry couldn't remember those differences, unfortunately. Had Hermione been there, Harry felt certain that she could have pointed them out to him. But that was not to be worried about at the present. The others tensed, and Padfoot and Prongs walked carefully around him. Moony gazed at them suspiciously, but they communicated with him through their body movements, and the looks in their eyes. Soon, Moony calmed down, and Harry could see Remus in there, overtaking his wolf side. Together, Wormtail riding Prongs' back, they crept out from the Shrieking Shack, and emerged onto the grounds.
It was a clear, beautiful night. The moon shone through the trees and cast its reflection upon the still water of the lake, broken only by the movement of Grindylows. They moved stealthily across the grounds, going far away from the castle and into the forest. Once they were far enough away, Padfoot let out a joyous bark and bounded among the trees, play fighting with Moony. Wormtail leapt off of Prong's back and scurried away to do his own thing, but Harry could not see what it was. He joined Prongs, who looked him over, impressed. Glancing up to make sure that Padfoot and Moony were far enough away, he reverted back to his human form.
Running his fingers along Harry's fur, James walked around him a few times before squatting in front of him, staring into Harry's green panther eyes.
"I know the perfect name for you," James said quietly, and Harry felt a thrill of excitement. It was one thing to run with them at night, but quite another to have a name like them. In giving him a name, James was essentially making him part of the group. "Your name should be…Stealth."
Harry's heart slammed into his ribs. It was the perfect name. Merlin, it was the perfect name. They were interrupted by a howl, and James quickly turned back into Prongs. He and Stealth crept towards Padfoot and Moony, who were still play-wrestling. Prongs relaxed, and joined in the fight. Stealth hung back uncertainly, but Padfoot motioned for him to join in, and, with a small hiss, he did so.
That night was one Harry thought he would never forget. After they were finished playing around, the five of them walked around the castle, exploring old passageways. They went to Hogsmeade, and Wormtail broke into the shop and stole some fudge for them all to share. Stealth and Padfoot held their winnings in their mouths and they bounded away before the shop owner could come to investigate. Storing the fudge in the Shrieking Shack, they went back to the castle grounds and went swimming in the lake. Well, Padfoot, Prongs, and Moony did. Wormtail chose to take a nap at the lakeside, and Stealth, being essentially a giant cat, chose to abstain from this and climbed up a big tree overhanging the lake, and stretched out on it, watching the others swim.
It seemed that moonset approached too quickly. Stealth was the first to detect the dying rays, and motioned to the others, who nodded and followed him. Prongs woke Wormtail, who leapt onto his back, and they trotted off together, back towards the Whomping Willow.
Just as they reached the Shrieking Shack, the moon set, and, with a whine, Moony went back to his human form. Once he was done, he hurriedly dressed, and the others reverted to their human forms too.
"That was brilliant!" Sirius cried gleefully, grabbing for the chocolate fudge.
"That was pretty neat," Peter admitted, reaching for his own fudge.
"See, Harry, usually we don't detect moonset in time, so often Remus becomes human outside of the Whomping Willow," James explained.
"Yeah," Sirius said through a mouthful of fudge. "How did you do that, anyway?"
Harry grinned. "I have a panther's vision, and so I can detect minute changes in the light. I could basically see when the moon was starting to fade."
"That's awesome!" Wormtail exclaimed.
"Yeah," James said, grinning. "What are we going to do when you go home?"
Harry's smile faded; he had been trying to not think about going home. "I don't know," he said softly. The others seemed oblivious to his preoccupation, however.
"What are we going to call you?" Remus wondered, finally speaking. It seemed as if he had finally started to recover from being a wolf.
"Oh, I've thought of a name," James said.
"Well?" Sirius said impatiently. "Out with it already!"
James grinned. "Stealth."
Sirius grinned. "Perfect." He glanced at the others. "What do you three think? Moony? Wormtail?"
"I like it," Peter said shyly.
"Me too," Remus said softly.
"I think it's perfect," Harry said, trying to stop a ridiculously big smile from crossing his face.
"Great!" James exclaimed. "Then we're settled. "Now we're Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, Prongs, and Stealth. I wish we had the Map. We could change the name."
"Actually," Harry said, pulling a sheet of blank parchment out of his pocket, "I have the map from my time."
"Really?" James exclaimed, taking it from him. "Wicked!" He pulled out his wand and waved it over the parchment several times. After a few moments, the others joined in, and then beckoned for Harry to come forth. Harry pulled out his wand uncertainly, and then felt something being pulled from it. After a moment, it stopped, and the others put their wands away. Harry took the map from James, and tapped it with his wand.
"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good," Harry muttered. The map appeared, and at the top, where it had previously said, "Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs," now it said, "Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, Prongs, and Stealth."
Harry felt his heart constrict, and tears sting his eyes. He waved his wand, mumbling, "Mischief Managed," and held back his tears. He looked up at them. "This…this means a lot to me," he said.
James smiled and hugged him. Sirius joined in, and then Remus. Harry actually found that he didn't even mind it when Peter did too. Then Sirius grinned. "I've got an idea," he said, and bounded over to the far wall. Standing on his tiptoes, he pulled a knife out of his pocket, and carved his nickname into the wall. "Now the rest of you sign! This way, when Harry goes back, there'll be evidence of our adventures!"
James grinned. "Brilliant, Sirius," he said, and wrote his nickname next to Sirius'. One by one, they all did, and Harry signed his next. He smiled at them, and Sirius put his knife away.
Harry and the others went up quietly to the school, parting ways when they reached Harry's room. Harry nodded at them, and crept into his room. Malfoy was asleep on an armchair, but at the sound of the door opening and closing, woke with a start.
"What?" he muttered confusedly. Then he caught sight of Harry. "Potter!" he snarled furiously. "Where have you been?"
"Out," Harry said simply, giving him a strange look.
"Where?" Malfoy exclaimed.
"What does it matter?" Harry asked him.
"You've been out all night!" Malfoy shouted.
"Merlin!" Harry said, taken aback. "I was with my father and his friends, if you must know. We were exploring the grounds."
Malfoy paused, frowning. "Wait—," he said. "You're an Animagus?"
"How'd you know?" Harry asked, astonished.
"In our third year, when Severus told us about Lupin being a werewolf, he told me that your father, Peter Pettigrew, and Sirius Black became Animagi so they could make Lupin's experience as a werewolf a little less painless, and that they went exploring on the full moon with Lupin. Last night was a full moon, and if you were with them, you must have been in Animagus form," he concluded.
"Wow," Harry said, impressed. "Your powers of deduction are almost as good as Hermione's."
Malfoy scowled, and then shook his head. "What's your form?" he asked.
Harry debated telling him, and then decided that it couldn't hurt. He then transformed into a panther. Malfoy's eyes shot up, and then he did something entirely unexpected. He too reverted to panther form. But there were differences in the two. Malfoy's fur was a very rare, pale white. His eyes were silver, and his nose was pink, instead of black, like Harry's. He walked around Harry in a predatory way, finally sitting down in front of him. They stared at each other for a long moment, and then they both transformed back into humans.
"Wow," Harry said softly, unsure of what else he might say.
Malfoy nodded fervently. "That's really weird." He stood up, and held out a hand to Harry, who took it, allowing himself to be pulled up. Once they were standing, however, Malfoy didn't let go of his hand.
"Malfoy?" Harry said uncertainly.
"You should call me Draco," Malfoy muttered, looking away.
"Draco," Harry whispered, his heart hammering into his ribs, though he wasn't sure why. Draco looked back up at him, and they stared into each other's eyes.
"Do you think it's odd," Draco said softly, "That when you combine our eye colors, you get the Slytherin House colors?"
"I don't know," Harry murmured. "Do you think it's strange that our first and last names are the same length?"
Draco gazed at him for a few seconds longer, and then pulled away. "Come on," he muttered. "We'll be late for class."
Harry nodded, feeling an odd sense of mingled relief and disappointment. He changed clothes, rather wishing he'd had time to take a shower, and went down to breakfast with Draco. He joined his father and friends at the table, where they discussed the night's events. They planned to go out again that same night. Harry glanced at Draco, who was talking in a low voice with his father, determinedly not looking at Harry. Harry glanced away, and looked back towards Sirius, James, Peter, and Remus.
That night Harry went exploring with the four others again, using a sleep spell which Remus taught him, which made him able to put off sleep for a couple of days, if he needed too. Harry told Draco where he was going, and he nodded, continuing to work on his homework.
It was a time to remember. Harry cherished every moment he was with his father and Sirius, knowing, with a pang, that he would never be able to do this again.
When he went back to his room the next morning, Draco was asleep in bed. Harry spared him a long look, before getting undressed. He had just gotten a towel around his waist, about to take a shower, when Professor McGonagall walked in.
"Oh, good, you're awake," she said, ignoring his state of undress. "Take your shower, and then wake Mr. Malfoy, and come up to Professor Dumbledore's office. We're ready to send you home."
"Now?" Harry said, startled, as his brain went into overdrive. He hadn't had time to say goodbye to the others, and he would never see them again!
"Yes," said Professor McGonagall gently. "But you may have time to say goodbye, if you wish."
"Thank you, Professor," Harry said, relieved. Draco had woken up sometime during this conversation, and was now staring at Harry intently. She nodded curtly to the both of them, and left. There was a ringing silence in her wake.
"Are you okay?" Draco asked softly. Harry nodded, and went into their bathroom to take a shower.
After he was done, he dressed, and went down to breakfast, where the others were there sitting. He sat down heavily, avoiding looking at food, worried he might puke if he did.
"Are you okay, mate?" Sirius asked worriedly. "You look like you're about to heave."
Harry shook his head and smiled weakly. "I'm fine," he said. "But I have to leave." There was no mistaking the meaning in his words.
"But…" James trailed off, looking shocked. "But we're going out again, tonight! What will we do if you aren't there to tell us when the moon is going down?"
Harry shook his head, and shrugged, swallowing the growing lump in his throat. "I don't know," he laughed weakly.
"Here," Sirius said. "I've got an idea." He pulled out his knife again, and pulled up the sleeve on his right arm. Into it he carved five lines, all intersecting each other to form a sort of star.
"Sirius!" James exclaimed. "What—?"
"Don't worry," Sirius said, shaking his head, and he waved his wand, and the cuts healed, but left a visible scar. "Now we all do it!"
The others were reluctant, Peter most of all, but after ten minutes they all had star-shaped scars on their right forearms.
"There!" Sirius said triumphantly. "Now we'll always be connected."
James rolled his eyes, and Harry laughed. Remus grinned, and Peter smiled tentatively.
"I have to go," Harry said reluctantly, standing up. The others stood too. Peter hugged Harry first, and Harry found himself hugging him back, in spite of it all. Remus hugged him next, and Harry smiled, knowing that of all the Marauders, at least he would see Remus again.
Sirius came after Remus, and Harry had a hard time choking back tears. Sirius has been like a father figure to Harry, and now, with the thought that he might never see him again—
Harry pushed back the thought and hugged him tightly. Then Sirius pulled away, and there was James, standing there, sad, but resolute. They hugged each other hard. "I'm glad you're my son," James whispered in Harry's ear, and Harry felt, against his will, a solitary tear roll down his cheek. He nodded, and they broke apart. Harry stood back, looking at the Marauders standing there, and then turned around, leaving the hall. He was afraid that he might very well break down if he didn't.
He walked up to Dumbledore's office, his bag over his shoulder. He muttered the password to the gargoyle, and went up the winding staircase. He knocked on the door, feeling a thrill at hearing Dumbledore's voice say, "Enter."
He walked in, and saw Dumbledore, McGonagall, Professor Argyle, and Draco Malfoy all standing there. Dumbledore smiled sadly at him, eyes twinkling. Harry's heart jerked in his chest at the sight of the wise old eyes looking back at him. Too much, it was too much. Too many dead people that he cared about, that he was being faced with again. He felt as if his heart might explode.
"Hello, Mr. Potter," Dumbledore said. "It seems as if you and Mr. Malfoy have gotten yourselves lost." Harry nodded, not trusting his voice with words. "Well, if the two of you will just step into that circle there, we can send you back home."
Harry nodded, feeling his heart constricting again, horrified at this entire situation. He stepped into the circle with Malfoy. Dumbledore opened the book he was holding to recite the verse which would send them home. He and the other two professors began to speak the spell, and Harry's heart grew anxious. Right as they were about the go, Harry cried, "The locket was already gone, Professor Dumbledore! And Pettigrew was the traitor, not Sirius!" Harry had just enough time to register the look of bewilderment on Dumbledore's face, before he and Malfoy were swept up into oblivion.
A/N: Ooh. Will this change everything? Or will it change anything at all? Review, and you get to find out! Lol. Adios!
-CatJetRat