Chapter 7

Hermione and Ron were still oblivious to the discovery in the forest and Harry and Charlie's new past time: reading Sirius' journal. They usually crept to the Room of Requirement at night to read it. They went whenever they could; however, that wasn't very much because the teachers found it necessary to assign strenuous long-term assignments so most of their free time was spent sleeping. However, when they could sneak away, they would configure the room to have a comfy couch and a roaring fire. Sometimes, the room would have some chocolate frogs and such if they had a sweet tooth.

The first night was the best for them. Harry got to understand a little more about Sirius, his father, Remus, and, though he didn't care for it, Pettigrew. Charlie got to understand a little more of what life was like for him with the help of Harry. The first entry went a little something like this:

Dear Journal (no, I REFUSE to call you a diary),

Well, guess what, I, Sirius Black, have succumbed to the geekyness of writing a journal. And no, it's not a diary; that's just too…feminine, shall we say. Yeah, I don't know how I got myself to do it, but here I am.

I guess I'll just do it so I can look back when I'm fifty or something and say, "yep, once a marauder, always a marauder." Moony finally found out how to make that map! We've got all the secret passages on it. We still have a few minor adjustments to do though, or should I say moony. Me and James don't really get how he did it, and I'm not even going to begin with Wormtail. We went into the forest last nigh; it was cool. We found this clearing that James thinks we could turn into something. Moony's not all that happy about it being in the forest though. He thinks we should just keep to the Shack. I countered with what if it caved in. I think he's still wary because he's prefect and all. But I know he'll give in eventually. He always does. Not that he's a pushover either, though.

James, well, he's still working on Lily. She refuses to talk to him anymore. I keep telling him he should give up but nope. He's stubborn like that. Besides that, he's still being a pompous flyer on the field. Of course, that too is because of Lily but you know, let him have his fun. I'm gonna laugh so hard when eventually falls off it. No hard feelings, though.

Wormtail is still his same old self. The other day, he was messin' around with his wand and he accidentally lit Bernie's hair on fire. She started screaming and Wormtail tried to put it out with a bucket of water. I think she was better off on fire. She was all wet and looked twice as mad as she was. Oh, well, its nothing new. She's always so uptight. But yeah…

Me. Hmm, what else is there? There is this girl in Ravenclaw; she's in fifth year, too. She's REAL pretty. And she's not uptight like the rest of them Ravenclaws. She's got spunk. I have class with her in Herbology. Sometimes, I get to sit with her. She's cool. I'm thinking about asking her out. Maybe I will, maybe I won't. I'm unpredictable raises eyes suggestively. Nah, just kidding.

The full moon is in two weeks. I suggested we go to the clearing we found to see if it is clear enough to make a fort or something. They all agreed. I can't wait. Plus, out there in the forest, who knows what kinda stuff we'll see.

Yeah, well, I might as well end this entry. I have nothing else to say and if someone catches me with this thing, I swear I will burn it into ashes and bury then at the center of the earth.

The very ashamed,

The two of you sat in silence for the next few minutes. They both had something on their mind. Harry, missing his godfather even more, was becoming more and more determined to go out to the shack in the forest. He knew there had to be something that could help him relate to his father and Sirius in there. He almost felt like going right then, but he knew that Charlie wouldn't let him, even though she was the reckless one. He did hope, though, that they could hurry up with the prepping for it. He was growing restless.

Charlie was thinking about how small the world really was. It was terribly coincidental that within months of getting the journal, she would meet half the people that could relate to the mentioned subjects. Harry was James' son, he knew Remus, and Tonks was around there somewhere. She felt more at home here than she had in the United States. It was amazing what having a newfound family felt like, she just wished Sirius were here.

"Do you want to read some more?" she attentively asked Harry. She didn't want to upset him but she felt the silence becoming more oppressing.

"Yeah, sure, that is, if you want to?" Harry replied, stumbling a bit.

"Yeah, let's read some more." She turned the page of little sketches Sirius had done. The next page was a bit longer.

Dear Journal,

How's it going? Ah, you wouldn't know, you're a journal. That's what's good about you, you can't talk so you won't nag me or rant on about the so-called "perfect' girl that I sometimes have to deal with. Yep, James is at it again. He doesn't even realize that I'm not listening to him. I just smile, smirk, and nod a bit and he's off again. I can understand to like a person and occasionally admire them to your friends, but when one can include in his schedule to "listen" to said person raving on and on, that's pretty bad. Oh well, I can write to you through the whole thing without him being any the wiser. The lovesick puppy shakes head disappointedly.

Any ways, in two days we're going to the clearing. Moony still pretending he won't let us, but we know better. James has this crazy Idea that we could burrow a whole from beneath it into the Hogwarts grounds. He just doesn't get it sometimes, I'm afraid to say. And where will he get his time? Moony will refuse point-blank because it involves something illegal within the school policy, or something. Peter, well, he won't be of much help. And I, in my free time, do not plan on becoming all dirty and muddy for the sake of convenience. I mean, isn't it part of the thrill for it to be harder to avoid capture. What are we becoming! Ahh, we're becoming adults! I blame James, with all his "do goody-ness" to catch Lily. Of course, Moony always was half adult, for good reason. And Peter, well, he's having a bit of trouble. God, James said something to me the other day that totally blew off guard. He said, "I think, when we are older, that we should make our children honorary Marauders." Ahhh, he's condemning us to a life after Hogwarts. This whole thing is messed up.

It kinda worries me though. I don't really have anything planned for after school. I was kinda winging it here, so what am I gonna do when they kick me out! I was thinking; I don't want to be in the ministry, cause they are all a bunch of stiffs, and I was thinking they same way for being a teacher. I can't play quidditch all that well. But I think I've come up with something. I know you're gonna do a double take, but I think I might do well as a bartender or pub owner. Yeah, yeah, I know I have no experience for business, but I have great people skills don't you think? I 'd be likeable, enough. Well, I still have some time to think.

You'll never guess what our password for the map is: I solemnly swear I am up to no good. It just works, doesn't it? Perfect for us Marauders. Oh, and to wipe it, we say: Mischief Managed. Nobody would ever guess. Moony says he's gonna charm it so if someone tries to break the charm, the map will start giving insults out. The best part is, we get to say what we want, per say. See, if someone, say Snivellus, tried to read it, I could, under the alias of Monsieur Padfoot, could call him, say, a snot-nosed git who has really really greasy hair, and he wouldn't know! Never, ever, have I said that Moony wasn't brilliant.

Yeah, well, I foresee the end of James' ranting so I don't want to be caught with this so I've got to hide it quick. Adios!

Yours truly,

Again, they sat in silence. They mulled over what they had read in their heads. Charlie closed the book and set it down next to Harry on the sofa. She got up and went over to the table where she asked the room to provide a box of Bertie Botts Every Flavor Beans. She picked out a pink one and bit down, chewing slowly while thinking. Harry still sat there looking over the pages. He looked up abruptly at Charlie.

"I'm gonna go okay, I gotta work on an essay." He jumped up and opened the door. He walked out after taking a last look at Charlie and the journal.

She knew what was making him upset. That part about making him an honorary Marauder. She wouldn't lie to herself; she wanted to be a Marauder, though probably not as much as Harry.

She traced the cover with the tip of her finger, wondering if Sirius had done the same thing once. The letters were etched and outlined by the many marking of a quill into the leather:

Property of Sirius Black

Year 6

Read it and die

She flipped through the pages, stopping to look at the occasional sketch. She looked for a half an hour, but then replaced it in her book bag for later reading with Harry. She was looking forward to the next part; they were guaranteed a description of the clearing in the forest. She also was nervous to see if anything should happen on Moony's transformation. She didn't care if it had already happened, it would ease her to know.

Charlie didn't dare to read without Harry though. He would probably be very angry to think she had neglected him, and she didn't want that. On the subject of Harry though, she was still flabbergasted by what was going on. Surely he was not doing…well…what he was simply for the kicks, he was not like that. Perhaps it was a dare from one of the dorm guys. Who knew what they did up there in their free time, not that she cared to think about it.

She didn't know how much longer she could simply dismiss what he was doing, though. She had her limits on her curiosity.

Harry strode out of the room at a fairly fast pace. He felt like he was cornered in there, feeling that if she asked him any kind of question, he was obliged to answer, which was not what he wanted to do. So he fled. Yes, it was cowardly, but sometimes solitude helped him. He tried to remain calm as he walked out towards the lake, even though he was freezing. Mid-December did not work well without a coat, which, in his haste, he had forgotten to retrieve from the common room. Yet he plowed on, desperate to get away. Taking his spot near the lake, under the beech tree, he sat and stared out at the lake.

That was where Charlie saw him from her window, as she was getting ready for bed. She knew he had not brought a coat out with him so she got out her wand. She summoned his coat through the open door and carried it to the window. She cast the levitating charm on it and sent it out to him. He was a teensy bit surprised when a hovering coat came and lay down beside him, but he looked up at the castle and discovered its source.

Charlie gave him a small wave from the window, knowing he had seen her. He replaced the window back in its position so as to not allow the room to become too cold. She climbed into the bed right next to the window, which happened to be hers, and turned out the light. She sat still for a moment, thinking about what had happened that day, and finally dove beneath the covers to get some sleep.

Outside, Harry smiled at Charlie's kindness. Only she would think to send a coat out to him, and he appreciated it immensely. He smiled out upon the lake and thought long and hard about a more benevolent topic: Charlie.

He was glad to have found a friend in her. She could make him laugh, and seemed to make it her life-long mission to do so. Not that he was sour though. Distractions by her were his favorite.

He stayed out for another hour before stuffing his wand back in his pocket and standing up. He took a long look up at Charlie's window and gave it a small wave and smile. Then, he set out, back to the castle doors, and to the tower.