CHAPTER NINE
At first, the map was to be a birthday present for Jane, but James was somewhat of a perfectionist when it came to projects. He wanted it precise, and Sirius, whose mind was the most creative, kept coming up with ideas that made the map unique. The more unique the map became, the more the boys wanted it for themselves, and, why shouldn't they? They were working very hard on it.
Besides, by the time March the 18th rolled around, with Jane's birthday only five days away, they were nowhere near done with even the ground floor of the castle.
Since they weren't allowed into Hogsmeade until their third year, they were left without gifts, which did not suit James and Sirius very well. They were used to being able to buy presents for anybody they wanted, never mind the fact that Jane had already told everybody that she did not want presents seeing as how she had not been able to get anybody else anything other than handmade cards and around five Sickles and a few Knuts.
"Just make her a card," Remus said, having already made her one. "It's all she's excepting anyway."
They pretended as though they hadn't heard him. They were still upset at the fact that earlier on March 10th, they had been forced to give Remus cards instead of actual gifts, which he didn't mind in the least.
James saw, and treated, Jane as though she were his little sister, despite the fact that a) he was an only child, and b) Jane was older than him by exactly four days. But regardless, it was how he saw her, and he just didn't think that c) older brothers got their sisters cards, forgetting that d) Jane was an only child as well and wouldn't know if they did or not.
On the other hand, Sirius just thought that cards were boring. So, the four boys poured over ideas, though Remus and Peter had already made their cards, and came up with nothing.
So, they took to walking around aimlessly, having tired of trying to find gifts and working on the map for now. They were up on the fourth floor, revisiting the topic of why first years weren't allowed into Hogsmeade.
Having overheard their conversation as they passed, a portrait of a wizard in a very funny-looking purple hat followed them down the corridor, passing through different frames, upsetting the inhabitants.
"Pardon me, but I couldn't help but overhearing that you want to get into Hogsmeade? Is that correct?"
The boys stared at him.
"Well, I happen to know a few ways in," he said, sounding very impressed with himself.
This sparked their attention.
"Well, where are they?" Sirius demanded.
"Well, there's one passage on the third floor in the One-Eyed Witch statue; the Prewett twins use it all the time, but there's one on this floor as well."
So, the boys followed the wizard with the funny hat down the corridors of the fourth floor as he glided through different paintings, coming to a stop at a mirror.
The following Thursday, on Jane's twelfth birthday, after their Double Charms class, Remus told Jane to hurry and put away her things. When she walked back down from her dorm, she saw the boys waiting on her with stupid grins on their faces.
"Oh, do we have a surprise for you!" Sirius said.
She looked at them warily.
"What kind of surprise?" she asked.
"Oh, you know, the surprising kind," James said draping his arm over her shoulders.
Jane looked at Remus, hoping that he would give her some inclination as to what this "surprising surprise" could be. But he just smiled at her.
"Sirius," James said, "the blindfold, if you will."
Sirius pulled out a dark piece of cloth. Jane ducked out from under James' arm and stepped away.
"Whoa, there! What d'ya need a blindfold for?"
"Oh, just put it on, will ya," Sirius said, rolling his eyes at her.
"Come on, Jane, don't ruin the surprise," James said.
Jane huffed, but allowed Sirius to tie the fabric around her eyes, rendering her sightless.
Jane didn't know where they were going, but she knew that they were taking her down flights of stairs, which she didn't find very comfortable. She kept pushing up the fabric so as to see where her feet were landing. This was instantly followed by one of the boys pushing the fabric back down over her eyes and promising that they would not let her trip (which was not so reassuring in Jane's mind).
Suddenly, they came to a stop, and though no one had instructed her to take off the blindfold, Jane lifted it up.
"What's so great about a big mirror?" she asked confused.
Sirius looked at her. He quickly shoved the blindfold back down over her eyes.
"Quit that!" he demanded. "We aren't there yet!"
She sighed in an exasperated manner and let the boys lead her into a considerably cooler corridor. Then, there were more downward stairs. Jane almost tripped three times, each time held up by James, before they reached the bottom of the stairs.
The ground felt different; it felt earth like. And it was still cold and now damp, as though they were underground. She didn't like that thought.
"Where are we at?" she demanded to know.
"We're almost there, Janie; would you please be quiet?" Sirius asked; he was growing tired of her constant complaining and protesting.
So, she remained quiet, even when she almost broke her ankle as she stepped into a hole and fell. Remus helped her up, and she blindly brushed herself off.
After a while, they reached more steps, but this time Jane was being dragged upwards instead of downwards. They stopped. There was a loud creak, as though they were opening a door, and they helped Jane climb up through a trap door, which proved difficult, seeing as how she still had the blindfold on.
Finally, after they had all climbed out (Jane heard the trapdoor being closed), James pulled off Jane's blindfold. They were in a dark, narrow alleyway, all crammed together.
"Happy birthday," they all said simultaneously.
She didn't get it.
"Where are we?"
They walked her out of the alleyway.
"We present to you, Hogsmeade Village," James said, smiling in triumph.
Jane looked in amazement at the little thatched cottages and shops. Alice had told her about the village, she had been there once with her parents, but Jane had never seen it and didn't think that she would until her third year. And she fell in love with it.
"How did you—"
"Secret passage," Sirius said, cutting her off. "There's another one, too. Leads to Honeydukes cellar. This one was easier to navigate with you blindfolded."
"Now, go on," James said. "Personally, Zonko's is my favourite."
Jane looked around at all the shops. Upon spotting Zonko's Joke Shop and peering into its windows, she instantly knew why it was James' favourite. They went in there first. James bought her a bag full of wizard gags and Filibuster Fireworks.
Next, Jane found her way into a shop called Spintwitches. It was a Quidditch shop.
"That's the broom I've got," James said, pointing to the latest broomstick which was in the display window. Beside it was a sign that read: New Cleansweep Four Broomsticks.
"They're saying they're even better than the Nimbus 1001s," James said.
"Reckon Nimbus will put out a new one soon if people are saying that," Sirius said.
Jane left them to discuss broomsticks as she walked around the shop. Quaffles were lined on shelves along with Quidditch gloves. Golden Snitches zoomed around in a large glass box. Shin and knee guards were hanging beside the Quidditch robes, and Beater's bats were on display beside a large, wriggling box that Jane guessed held the Bludgers.
Sirius walked over and picked up one of the bats.
"Gonna need one of these for next year," he told Jane, examining the bat. "I make a pretty fair Beater."
Jane smiled at him and picked up a book off of a shelf. She flipped through the pages.
"Quidditch Through the Ages," Sirius said, reading the cover of the thick, green book she was holding. "Do you want that?" he asked.
"Of course she does," Remus said, leaning against the bookcase. "She loves reading."
So, Sirius bought her the book. They explored a bit more, having Butterbeers at the Three Broomsticks, looking at the books in Tomes and Scrolls. They even visited a Herbology shop called Dogweed and Deathcap, which the boys found rather boring, but said nothing due to the look of fascination on Jane's face when she had walked into the shop.
After a while, they headed back to the alleyway between Scrivenshaft's and Dervish and Banges and through the trap door. The boys were very content having given Jane what they knew to be her best birthday present thus far.