History: JKR, Scholastic, Bloomsbury, WB, and various others own rights to Harry Potter. I own OCs, the plot, and the account. That's it, guys.
Much-Loved Recap: Praedam gets sacked for mysterious reasons (gasp!); Sirius's girlfriend, Rachel, breaks up with him because she thinks he's cheating on her. Lily and James use the Marauders' Map and discover that Praedam is not what he pretends to be. Gryffindor wins the Quidditch Cup and consequently throws a huge party after which, Lily finds Eden in their dormitory, tear-stained and guilty.
Quick note: Now I know you all are dying for some L/J action. All I can say is that there will be some intermixed within all this silly "plot" stuff (if you look carefully you'll see Lily's random jabs at Redival and James's subtle and occasional spouts of jealousy), but trust me, I just sketched an upcoming chapter that positively teems with "L/J love connection™." (rights to Karen :-P)
Chapter 20- "Act of Contrition"
"It is the spirit and not the form of law that
keeps justice alive." –Earl Warren
Darkness.
He shut his eyes tight, and then opened them again.
Bright light.
He shut his eyes again, very quickly, swearing under his breath. His head ached—every part of his body ached. He had had much too much to drink last night. Damn it.
There was a particular spot in his back that ached worst of all.
Very slowly, an irritated and stiff James Potter sat up and (again, very slowly) opened his eyes for a third time. The world was a blur of light that did nothing good for his head, but he persevered. He felt around for his glasses and found not only the object of his search, but also that he was not in his dormitory.
James pushed his glasses on hastily, and the room around him came into slight focus. He was on a couch in the Common Room. The Quidditch Captain swung his legs around the edge of the couch and surveyed the scene about him. It was a mess, to put it lightly. He looked at the depression in the couch that imitated his sleeping figure, and saw a yellow plastic horn that some fourth years had been using earlier. That explained why his back hurt.
The grandfather clock near the stairwell struck seven times, and James moaned. Seven o'clock? It was seven o'clock? It then occurred to James that he was not sure if it was seven o'clock in the morning, or seven o'clock in the evening. He got to his feet with some difficulty and staggered to the window. Outside, the sky was grey—it was clearly 7 am. James was nothing short of bewildered. How had he woken up? Now that he thought of it, he'd only gone to sleep (at most) two hours earlier.
A squeak from somewhere behind him caused James to start and look around. A house elf had appeared near the couch he had just risen from. The creature, a seemingly younger elf with large blue eyes, began to pick up the debris from the party. A few more appeared moments later, and a few more just after that.
Distracted from his pain and exhaustion for the time being, James watched as they worked. They ignored him completely and did not stop until every sofa cushion was back on the sofa, every glass bottle was disposed of in a black sack, every stain on the floor was vanished, and the odor of alcohol and junk food was nonexistent.
It took all of fifteen minutes for this to transpire, and when the work was done, the house elves disappeared, as suddenly as they had appeared. The last remaining creature, which was, incidentally, the one that had first arrived, turned to James and, blinking his large blue eyes, bowed. James bowed slightly in return, which caused the elf's eyes to widen just before he apparated away. The Head Boy was too tired and in too much pain to think very hard about what had just occurred. He simply walked (sort of) back to the couch and lay down again.
He did not fall asleep, however. He could not. He even moved the horn. That was the mystery of it—the very cruel mystery. He was hung over and he could not go to sleep. Justice was quick and merciless this morning.
James got to his feet again (but only barely) and made his very wobbly way towards the stairway. About halfway up, he came across a large lump of robes and flesh, which James could only assume to be a corpse—a pitiable victim of last night's celebrations that had not possessed the spirit (or the liver) to survive till morning.
He kicked it. It groaned. It was alive!
The corpse rolled over and turned out to be Sirius.
"C'mon, Black," muttered James, kicking his friend again. Sirius only groaned louder, and hugged his stomach. James kicked him the shoulder, and with another moan of pain, Sirius opened on blue grey eye. "Lesgo," James slurred, nodding vaguely up the stairs.
Sirius shut his eye and muttered something which sounded suspiciously like: "Go-to-hell, Potter."
"I'm there a'ready," said James. "C'mon." With courage unsuspected of him, the Head Boy reached down and grabbed his friend's forearm, bringing him up a little.
"No..." protested Sirius, either barely alive, or barely dead.
"Get up. We're going to bed."
"Where're we?"
"On stairs."
Sirius very reluctantly and as if he was in a great deal of pain got to his feet (well, to his knees, anyway), and half-walked, half-crawled up the stairs. James followed in an ever so slightly more dignified—at least more upright—manner, until they came to their dormitory. Inside, they did not quite make it to their beds. Sirius collapsed about two yards from the door, but James made it all the way to the floor space right near his bed and decided it looked quite comfortable enough to sleep on. He fell to the floor and pulled his blanket from the bed next to him, before drifting back to a much-welcomed sleep.
It was some hours before he woke again.
"C'mon, up, up, up, Prongs," said Remus Lupin's voice, at approximately one o'clock in the afternoon. James made a rude, but (he thought) thoroughly deserved hand gesture in his fellow Marauder's general direction.
Remus rolled his eyes, but James did not see this, because he had not dared open his eyes yet.
"C'mon! It's after one in the afternoon. We'll go get something for your hangover."
"Sod off, Moony."
"Merlin, you must've been smashed last night."
James opened his eyes a little. "You think I'm bad—try Sirius. Just you wait..."
"Get up, Prongs. We'll go see Slughorn... or the house elves."
"Stop talking, Moony."
"Hello, guys," said a loud voice, causing James to throw his blanket over his head and groan in pain. Whatever his hangover had been six hours ago, it was much worse now.
"Hey, Paul," Remus replied to the Inflictor of Pain.
"Shut up, both of you," moaned Sirius's voice from somewhere in the dormitory; he sounded muffled, as if he was talking into the floor. James had still not opened his eyes properly to see anything. "And Moony, go get something for my head!" added Padfoot.
"I won't unless you two come along also," said Remus resolutely.
"No chance," moaned James. "C'mon... just go. Please?"
"No. You have to get your own medicine." There was a pause, then Remus added: "That's cue for you two to jump up and say 'Let's go!'"
"Go read a book, Lupin," snapped Sirius. "Peter!"
"Wha?" Peter's also muffled voice came from what the others could only assume to be his bed.
"You drunk last night?" slurred Sirius.
"Don't think so. I feel human. And I was too busy "talking" with Tara Swanton, if you know what I mean."
"I don't need your life story, Worms. Just go get me something for this headache."
"And me!" added James, trying unsuccessfully to raise his hand. His arm just fell in a limp, useless heap next to him.
"Give me ten minutes," said Peter far too cheerfully, and he could be heard getting out of his bed.
"I'll give you five," Sirius snapped. "And don't step on me on the way out."
Breakfast was entirely forgotten—or at least ignored—and lunch was the first meal of the day for most on Sunday. Lily herself came to lunch around twelve-thirty, but she was one of the earlier ones. The Hall was mostly full by one o'clock, however, and Lily stayed to eat with her friends.
Lily was not "hung over" so to speak, though she did have a slight headache. To no one's shock, Alice was completely pain free, having opted for nothing stronger than butterbeer the night before, but Lexi (to everyone's shock) was suffering from a headache as well.
At least, she had been until Lily and she had visited the house elves in the kitchen, by recommendation of Remus Lupin. The Marauders always had hangover cures on the day after a Quidditch match, but, according to Remus, the two who were largely responsible for the distribution of these cures were currently lying on the floor of the boys' dormitory, half dead. The house elves' remedies would have to suffice. Actually, they seemed to be working rather well.
In any case, the girls sat at a late lunch in the Great Hall, headache free, eating a little, but mostly enjoying a game that Lily called "Who's Been Drinking?"
"Redival Shelley doesn't have a hangover," Alice observed, munching on a bread roll. "Not even she could have hair that perfect after a night of drinking."
"Priss," remarked Lily in an undertone.
Lexi snorted, then said: "Rachel Brossle definitely was drinking."
"Where is she?" asked Alice, looking about for the subject. "I don't see her."
"Exactly."
"Look at Gwen Avarius," said Lily, nodding in the direction of the usually cute blonde fifth year. "She's been drinking if anyone has."
"Didn't Frank ask her out last night?" asked Lexi tactlessly.
Alice looked prim. She looked as prim as Alice could ever look, anyway. It actually came off as merely slightly less sweet than usual. "That's what I heard," she said. "And it's just as well."
Lily glared at Lexi for bringing it up, and Lexi mouthed "Ooops."
"Anyway," said the Head Girl. "I hate Gwen's hair."
"Aye," agreed Lexi. "It's so... bushy."
"Like a rat's nest."
"A rat's nest?"
"Sure, why not? And her teeth..."
"Dreadful."
"Awful."
"I think she's cute," said Alice, a little gently.
"Very cute," threw in Lily.
"Adorable," conceded Lexi.
Alice smiled and shook her head. "You two are idiots some times... Frank doesn't look terribly hung over, does he?"
"No, he doesn't," Lexi concurred sincerely. "Strange, considering he supposedly asked her out."
"Terrence Bowly looks a wreck," said Lily, resting her chin on her fists. "So does Olivia Malfoy. Serves her right—the tramp."
"Did I tell you I got back together with Leander?" asked Alice suddenly, as if she had not heard Lily at all.
"No," chorused the other two, surprised. "When?"
"This morning. I ran into him in the corridor and asked him if he wanted to get together again."
Lily was hesitant to voice the question burning in her, but she was saved the trouble by Lexi: "Why?"
"I don't know," admitted Alice with Eden-like casualness. "Seemed like the thing to do, I suppose. Pass the butter, please, Lily."
The redhead did so. "Leander cheated on you, Alice," she reminded her as gently as was at all possible.
"Several times," added Lexi, much less gently.
"I know," said Alice, "but I was willing to forgive him, and he seemed more than willing to take me back. Where's Eden?"
The conversation grew, if possible, even more uncomfortable for Lily. "Don't know," said Lexi thoughtfully. "She must be still in bed... but she's never one to sleep in. The girl must have truly been inebriated last night... but come to think of it, we didn't see much of her. Did you?"
Alice replied that she had not, and Lily shook her head also. "No," she said honestly. "I only saw her just before she went to bed."
"Before we came in, or after?"
"Before."
"We should go up and see her," Alice said, concern evident in her voice. "Maybe bring her something from the house elves." She took a sip of pumpkin juice.
"I think we should just let her rest it out, guys," Lily advised in a would-be casual tone.
"She'll never sleep tonight," Lexi pointed out. "C'mon. It's nearly half-past one. She really should get up."
Alice and Lexi were already getting up from the table, so Lily had no choice but to follow. All the somewhat hurried walk to Gryffindor Tower, she debated in her head what to do when they got there. She had not reached a conclusion as they gave the Fat Lady the password ("Hollycarp"), or as they climbed the stair to the dormitories.
They entered the Girls' dorm and found the curtains around Eden's bed still drawn. Lexi walked over and pulled them aside.
"Odd," she remarked.
"She's not here," said Alice, stating the obvious, for Eden's unmade bed was, in fact, empty.
"Maybe she's in the bathroom," Lexi speculated, and she and Alice went to see if this was the case. Lily stayed put, observing the room around her. She noticed Rachel's bed was empty as well. When Lexi and Alice returned with the news that Eden was still missing, the girls retreated to the Common Room. Two of the three assumed that their friend had gone to Slughorn or the House Elves for a tonic and would turn up soon enough. And anyway, they had homework to do.
In less than a month, the seventh years would be taking their NEWT examinations. Even Lily, who would procrastinate as much as the next girl, had begun studying by now. The teachers had been telling them for months, of course, that they should begin preparing for the tests, but most of the seventh years had not believed them until now.
The minutes slipped by, and still Eden did not appear. Lily was growing worried, but, unwilling to tell the others of their friend's confession the night before, could not confess her own worries to them. Still, they did notice that Lily was having a difficult time concentrating on her schoolwork. Both pointed out her distraction several times, but Lily dismissed their concerns with rather pathetic excuses.
After a little over an hour, the girls were diverted by the entrance of Redival Shelley. The blonde walked up to their spot by the cold fireplace, and asked in an irritated voice: "Have any of you seen James?"
"No," chorused the girls, then Alice added: "Not since he passed through about an hour ago. I think he was going to lunch, since he didn't seem like he still had a hangover."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes."
Redival sighed. "It's really annoying," she said. "He went with Lupin and Black to the Kitchens for lunch, and then they said something about Lupin being sick and having to go to the Hospital Wing. I haven't seen him or Black since! Merlin..."
"What's James done?" asked Lexi, unable to fully suppress a note of amusement.
"Oh, nothing, I suppose," said Redival, looking about distractedly. "Only, I need to find him... talk to him about something."
"If we see him, we'll tell him you're looking for him," Alice volunteered generously.
"Thanks," said Redival, looking dismal. She turned and exited the Common Room.
"Wonder what Potter's done," Lily murmured, more entertained than she cared to admit. "No girlfriend talks like that when she just wants to have a word with the bloke."
"She's probably fuming about Rachel," said Lexi dismissively. "Rachel's her best friend, after all, and Sirius is his."
"Mmmm... she told him off the other day," Alice recollected.
"You know," continued Lexi after a short silence; "It's very dull of James and Redival to go out. She's such a stereotype Potter girlfriend. 'Suppose they must see something in each other, though... they've been together for a good bit. Oi, 'ello, Paul."
Paul Montreal had come down from the Portrait Hole, looking tired but mostly alive.
"Hey, Lex." He took a seat on the arm of Lexi's chair. "Are you lot doing homework?" He looked scandalized.
"Sort of," said Alice. "We were also talking about James and Redival."
Paul yawned.
"I agree," Lexi stated, looking cheerful.
Lily shut her Potions book with a sigh. "I'm going for a walk," she said decidedly. "I'm so sick of homework right now."
"We really should finish..." Alice said wisely.
"Go ahead," shrugged the Head Girl, getting up. "I'll be back in a bit." She left the Common Room quickly, with no clear idea of where she was going. She wasn't really even sure why, except that she couldn't stand to be inside talking about Potter and his girlfriend.
"Well I don't know what you want me to do about it!" said a very nearly shouting James for what felt like the millionth time.
"He's your friend!" restated Redival angrily, for what probably was the millionth time.
"So why don't you go and talk to him about it?" James snapped, "seeing as he's apparently responsible for your friend's misery, your headache, the bad weather, the goblin revolt of 1682, and all of Voldemort's murders!"
Redival flinched at the sound of the name, cowering slightly at her boyfriend's wrath. "Don't shout at me!" she said, offended.
"Who's shouting?" James shouted.
"James Potter, you're being completely unfair! All I'm saying is that you should talk to him!"
James rolled his eyes and shifted his weight. It had finally stopped raining, and he had been trying to enjoy the quiet of the lake, when Redival had accosted him. It was about three in the afternoon, and he had managed to avoid her rather well, up until now. "Please, Redival," he said, in a failed attempt at composure. "First of all, I have no reason or right to butt into Sirius's business—especially his romantic business. Second of all, I have no desire to do what you want, because what you want is for me to go up to my best mate and tell him he's a complete cad, which I don't believe... at least not in regards to Rachel. And third of all, Sirius seems to have gone missing, in case you haven't noticed, so unless you can come up with three very good reasons why I should go looking for him, I WON'T!"
Redival looked shocked. A number of times, she opened her mouth as if she was about to say something, then shut it very quickly before finally regaining herself enough to say in a very cold manner: "Do it for me."
James glared. "That's one reason."
The blonde did not look like she was going to recover from that blow very soon, and there may have been tears in her eyes. She did finally compose herself a very little, or at least enough to glare coldly at him and storm back to the castle. James found, surprisingly, that he did not care half as much as he felt he ought to have. He began to walk once more, but a sarcastic, disembodied voice startled him.
"Bravo, Potter."
James looked around, and eventually spotted the voice's embodiment. Lily Evans was leaning against the thick trunk of a nearby tree, looking smug.
"How long have you been there?" snapped the Head Boy, a little embarrassed.
"About half an hour, but the last five minutes have been by far the most interesting part."
"Damn."
"Mmmm. Quite."
"How come I didn't see you?"
"I was behind the tree, of course. I didn't want to intrude on Romeo and Juliet, after all."
"Sod off."
"Someone's cheery."
"I hate women."
"Evidently." Lily straightened up and, putting her hands in the pockets of her zip-up jacket, walked over to him. "So, are you two done with then?"
James glanced over towards where Redival had made her exit. "I don't think so... we'll make up as soon as my headache goes away."
Lily rolled her eyes. "That's a healthy relationship."
"I really don't think you have the right to reprimand me on healthy relationships."
"Who's reprimanding?"
"Well, you were being sarcastic, anyway."
"How do you know Redival's not permanently mad?"
"She's not. She'll be perfectly fine once Rachel gets over Sirius, and that won't take long. She and Redival are both just being dramatic for the hell of it." He appeared perfectly nonchalant about the whole thing.
"Did Sirius cheat on her?" Lily asked curiously. "Rumor has it, he did." The two began walking, despite the grey storm clouds that threatened rain overhead.
"He didn't," said James simply, and she believed him.
"Yeah, I guess his reputation must be worse than he actually is. Anyway, I like Sirius."
"As in... fancy him?"
"Merlin, no."
"Good."
"Good?"
"Mmmm... if you two went out, you'd be hanging around all the time, wouldn't you?"
"You're only saying that. Admit it, Potter. It's actually because you're secretly madly in love with me."
"Oh, damn, you caught me."
"Well think about it—you're always following me about, you have an unhealthy fascination with my love life, and I bet you go searching though every broom closet now, hoping I'll be in of one of them."
"Every night."
"Just say it, James. You love me."
"I'd rather go out with the giant squid."
"I had that coming," laughed Lily.
"And much worse," agreed James.
Lily tossed her hair in a very superior manner, not unlike Redival. "I thought your catch yesterday was just perfect, Jay!" she said, imitating James's girlfriend once more.
"Well it was."
"Oh, I know. The Slytherin Seeker could not even compare to the most miniscule fraction of your perfection."
"You know, I get that a lot."
"Well of course you do, Jay! Being the god that you are of all things."
"Mmmm... that's why they call me 'James the god of all things.'"
"Not me," sighed Lily. "To me, you'll always be, 'Jay, god of perfectly perfect perfection in all things Quidditch, sex, and school.'"
James could not resist laughing now. "I'm fairly certain Redival has never said that, Red."
Lily raised her eyebrows. "But she has called you the god of all things?"
"Only implicitly."
"Oh, I see."
"What did darling Trent call you?"
"Now, James, you know perfectly well I'm not the type of girl who would go about spilling those type of things... even about my ex-boyfriends."
"That bad, huh?"
"No comment."
"Was it one of those kind-of good, but mostly just underhanded insult type of nicknames?"
"No comment!"
"It was, wasn't it?"
"James," explained the redhead in the tone of a mother explaining something to a four year old, "the only type of girls who go about sharing those intimate details are tarts, and I am..."
"A tart," he interrupted.
Lily's teasing smile flashed across her face. "You can try and hurt my feeling as much as you like, James Potter, but I won't cry. I'm no Redival." Then, she turned and took Redival's path back to the castle.
That, James thought, was the difference between girls like Redival and girls like Lily.
Yelling at Redival made her cry. Yelling at Lily made her yell back.
That evening, Lily sat in the Common Room once again. It was growing dark now, and not just because of the rain clouds. Most of the other Gryffindors had also retired to the Common Room. Alice was reading in a corner, looking miserable, as Frank Longbottom and Gwen Avarius "cuddled" nearby. Lexi and Paul were talking animatedly by the fire about politics (of all things). Sirius and Rachel were still missing, as was Eden.
James had came into the Common Room with Peter shortly after Lily had. The Head Girl had not seen Remus all day, but she supposed that he was ill in the Hospital Wing, for that was what Redival had told her earlier. He had been looking a little sick for the last week or so, Lily remembered. She was about to go inquire about him to James, who looked irritated and kept checking his watch, when two rather unexpected arrivals made their grand entrance.
Sirius and Rachel walked through the portrait hole. Together. Arm and arm.
James got to his feet quickly and walked over to his friend. Lily watched the scene unfold with interest. The Head Boy was beckoning Sirius away from Rachel, but Sirius looked reluctant. James came over and muttered something to his best friend that made the latter excuse himself to Rachel and follow James to his fireside seat where Peter was waiting. They talked in hushed voices, so Lily did not know what exactly was being said, though Sirius did shake his head several times, apparently in disagreement with James and Peter. Eventually, Sirius got up and rejoined Rachel. The two walked out of the Common Room. Together. Arm and arm.
Lily was very confused.
James, on the other hand, was infuriated, and went up towards his dormitory. Lily sat in the Common Room for some time, but she did not see him come down.
Presently, the portrait hole opened again, but this time it was Eden that came in. She was alone, but she could not have been further from the state Lily had seen her in last night. She was well groomed, neatly clothed, and looked surprisingly positive. At least, she did not look miserable.
The blonde immediately walked over to her surprised friend, sitting in the chair opposite her.
"Where the hell have you been all day?" asked Lily at once. "Everyone's been worried about you... are you okay?"
Eden smiled wryly, appearing to be thoroughly okay. "I'm fine, Red," she said simply. "I want to apologize, though. I was a little worse for the drink last night—I shouldn't have worried you like that. I'm sorry..."
"It's... it's fine," Lily stammered, confused. "But... is everything okay?"
Eden nodded. "Yeah," she said, as if she could not entirely understand it herself. "It is."
"But... but..." Lily struggled for words; "have you seen Rian today?"
"No," Eden answered slowly. "No, I've avoided him mostly. Actually, I've spent most of the day—well, most of the day that I've been awake—with Rachel Brossle."
Lily raised her eyebrows. Things were beginning to make sense. "Do you mean... you talked to her about Sirius?"
Eden nodded. "I just told her Sirius never cheated on her. And then I told her how much she meant to him... y'know. Whatever it took."
"But... why did she believe you? Did she think Sirius cheated with you?"
"I don't know what she thought," shrugged the other. "But I must've corrected something, because they're back together."
"Yeah, I know. They came in here a little while ago all couple-y again. So... that was you?"
"I guess."
"But... why? Why did you do all that?"
Eden paused thoughtfully. "I had to," she explained at length. "It was just... something I had to do. I just seemed right, I suppose..." She broke off, then continued much more cheerfully: "anyway, I'm going up to bed... I'm still so tired. See you in the morning, alright?"
"Yeah, okay." With that, Eden went up to the dormitory. Lily watched her go, still unsure of what happened. She sat there for a while, growing steadily more irritated with the noisy Common Room.
Although Lily did not see the Head Boy come down after he had stormed up to his dormitory some minutes earlier, it did not follow that James did not actually come down. As a matter of fact, he did come down almost immediately following his retreat. He was, however, wearing his invisibility cloak again, and Lily had not thought of that. James carried with him the Marauders' Map once more, but his expedition tonight was of a completely different nature than the last one had been. Tonight, he was going to Hogsmeade.
He was in a very bad mood, and he knew it, as he walked down the corridor in the vague direction of one of the passages out of the castle. This was the evening of the full moon and because Sirius decided that he didn't want to go out, none of them could. James had pride enough, sure, but even he knew that his animagus form alone could not keep the werewolf Remus in check.
Stupid Sirius and his stupid girlfriend.
Why did she have to forgive him, anyway?
On the sixth floor, James checked the map again. No one was around. He hurried about halfway through the corridor and then stopped when he came to a wooden door on the left wall. This was a broom closet, and James stepped inside. There were no redheads inside. He took off the Invisibility Cloak and tossed it, with the Marauders' Map, onto a high shelf, where he would retrieve them later.
Pushing his way through broomsticks, crates, and various other objects that cluttered the closet, James reached the back wall. He moved everything out of the way so that he had clear access to the wall and drew his wand. He tapped it once, then muttered with alacrity: "Ostenda!"
The wooden planks of the wall quivered for a moment, and then seemed to melt away. James stepped through the hole this allowed. He was now standing in a long, dark tunnel; the wall behind him returned to its original state, but James did not pay any attention to this, for he was too busy feeling the ground in front of him with one trainer-clad foot.
He took a few steps forward and felt about again, until finding that he was standing in the right place, for his foot felt nothing under it. James slid down so that he was in a sitting position, before pushing himself forward. All he had to do was lean back and enjoy the ride, for he was sliding down a long tunnel. This lasted for about a minute, before the ground grew suddenly level.
James did some sort of somersault to avoid hurting his legs on the landing. When he was on his feet again, he continued down the tunnel. At first it was very level, and then it sloped downward once more. Finally, it began to slope upward, before transitioning into steps. James climbed the steps, till they really became more of a slightly inclined ladder. He knew he had reached the top of the ladder, for he hit his head on something hard just above him.
"Shit," he muttered, rubbing the sore spot irritably. Then, he let go of the step in front of him with one hand and pushed hard on the surface his head had just hit. Slowly, the hard, bumpy object began to give way, until a circular hole about three feet in diameter was revealed, through which James hastily climbed. He was out in the open air now.
Some distance away, the Shrieking Shack, where James knew Remus must be at this moment, was visible. It was growing darker by the minute, but this did not bother James in the slightest. He had been to Hogsmeade at every time of day and night, and as long as he was careful, he could avoid meeting anyone from the school with relative ease. The hardest part was avoiding any Aurors—Moody or Bright, for instance—who might recognize him.
James turned and looked down at the rock he had just pushed away and moved it gently over to the hole he had climbed out of. He was on the distant outskirts of Hogsmeade, so no one was likely to notice a teenage wizard climbing out of the ground. Glad to be out of the stuffy castle once more, James pushed his hands in his pockets, wishing he'd brought a jacket, and began walking towards the village.
It took about ten minutes to get to the high street, and then James had to decide where he wanted to go first. Most of the shops were closed or closing, but the Head Boy was mostly interested in visiting either The Hogs Head or The Three Broomsticks. Eventually, James elected the latter, for the secluded atmosphere of the former could be a little intimidating when one was not supposed to be in the village at all.
The Three Broomsticks was crowded and noisy tonight, but James did not mind this so much as he had minded it in the Common Room. He nodded to Rosmerta as he entered, and she pointed him to a table in the corner. There was a large potted plant nearby that he could easily duck behind if necessary, but he also had clear vision of the door. Sitting at the table in front of him, there was a heap of a wizard whose face was resting in his arms, apparently drunk, at the table next to him, a handful of goblins, but there was no one to bother the Head Boy.
With the reminder of his hangover this morning, James ordered butterbeer, and when it was brought to him, he drank it in silence. For a while, he watched a few goblins arguing at the table next to him, until someone else entered the pub that caught his eye. Professor Silth walked in. James immediately pointed his already drawn wand at the potted plant and moved it over a few inches, completely obscuring the drunken wizard in front of him, and providing protection from Silth's line of sight.
Through the branches, James could see his Professor's movements. It was much to his surprise that he began to walk directly towards James himself. The Head Boy held his breath, but Silth did not come and sit at his table, nor did he seem to see the student at all. Instead, he walked over and sat down at the drunken wizard's table.
James breathed freely. Slowly he got up and moved to the other side of his table so that he was closer to Silth and the other man, but his back was to them. He hid his face in his arms as the wizard behind him had done earlier, and listened to the conversation behind him. It was hard to hear in the noisy pub, but he could catch most of it if he listened hard.
"Well done, well done," snapped Silth's voice sarcastically.
"Shut up!" slurred the other man's voice, and James recognized it immediately as a very drunk sounding Praedam. A thrill ran down his spine, and he consciously tried to block out every other sound besides their conversation.
"Me?" scoffed Silth in a loud whisper. "I should shut up, should I? Ha! You called me the rookie... remember? Back in July, when we first took the jobs. 'Watch yourself, Rookie,'that's what's you said, you fool. But it's you—all along, it's been you who's made all the mistakes! You couldn't just be patient, could you? You had to act a month early... I told you, we should wait till the end of the year... it'd be easier to bow out gracefully then... but no, you were too impatient, you senile idiot! And then—oh, and then you had to get caught!"
"Shut up!" repeated Praedam, a little loudly, which caused Silth to shush him. "What about you?" continued the older man, sounding a bit more sober. "You haven't done so well, have you? Adelaide Grossman recognized you! You knew she was here and you still allowed yourself to be recognized! And anyway, we agreed... we agreed that we would take what we could get at Christmas, didn't we? But no, you wanted to wait. I'm not a simpleton, Damien—you've been working for someone else for months. This whole job was your idea... your job... your plan. But it wasn't your style. You were hired to bring us here. I know when a man has ulterior motives..."
"Keep your voice down, Idiot! I don't know what you're talking about!"
"Yes, yes, you do! That trophy in the Trophy Room, the painting in the fourth floor... Delilah would have paid thousands of galleons for those... you were looking for something specific, weren't you, Damien—or is it Michael?"
"It's Damien," snapped Silth venomously.
Praedam went on as if he had not heard. "But we weren't conning for Delilah anymore, were we? No, no... you're working for someone else. "
There was a very pregnant pause, and then Silth chuckled. "Elliot, you impress me," he said, sounding merry, in sharp contrast to his angrier tone moments before. "You haven't completely lost your capacity to think, then. Good, good..."
"It's my right to kill you, Damien," said Praedam coldly; "You've broken a promise. Never mind that, for the time being, though. For whom are you working?"
"Names are unimportant," said Silth dismissively. "Let us call him 'The Foreigner,' shall we? That's how he introduced himself, and he has a sort of accent. I'm meeting him tonight, you know. There's a particular spot in the Forbidden Forest where... well, I won't bore you with details."
"Why are you telling me this? You must have some purpose. I've known you since you were a teenager, Damien..."
Silth chuckled again. "And after fifteen years of work together, Elliot, you still surprise me. I'm impressed."
"It would surprise you then," said Praedam, "to hear that my name isn't Elliot?"
"Of course your name's Elliot... it's on your trunk, and even Delilah calls you that."
"Delilah doesn't know everything. Allow me to introduce myself. Donavon Gracechurch, at your service."
"Well then, Mr. Gracechurch," said Silth, his voice cold once more. "Let us find a new place to talk. I think we have much to discuss, and this pub does not have proper privacy."
There was the sound of two chairs being pushed back, and James could only assume that the two men were getting up. If he could have, he would have screamed at Praedam... or Elliot... or Gracechurch... or whoever he was, not to go with Silth. He didn't like the note in the younger man's voice. But he could do nothing.
The steps of the two wizards leaving the pub could be heard, and James hastily got to his feet. He threw some money on the table, tapped his wand once on his head, and muttered a disillusionment charm.
He barely had time to register the feeling of cold dampness that temporarily spread over him from the spot where the wand made contact with his head. A witch standing at the goblin table noticed a seventeen-year-old boy disappearing into thin air, but, being rather intoxicated, found it extraordinarily funny. As she burst into cackles over the sight, James, now invisible, hurried out of the pub as well. He managed to slip out just behind Praedam (or whatever his name was) and Silth.
Much to James's relief, they did not apparate away. Instead, Silth, looking about cautiously, led the way down the darkened street. James followed at a short distance, because, after all, the disillusionment charm did not make him wholly invisible unless he was standing perfectly still.
They walked for a few minutes, until they came to the edge of the town proper. There were still a few shops up ahead, but they were off the high street, and everything was quite dark. The shops that were there were all closed up by now, and the street around them was otherwise deserted.
"Come along," said Silth, leading towards a small alleyway. Praedam followed reluctantly. James stayed out on the street but peered around the corner to watch what unfolded. "You should leave," Silth continued, his back to James; he was facing Praedam, who was leaning against the back wall. "You can apparate to... wherever it is you're staying. First though, there's one thing I want to ask you." He put his hands in his pockets and paced once or twice, before continuing: "How did you know I was working for someone else?"
"I already told you," snapped Praedam.
"Besides that. There must have been something else... it's for my own curiosity's sake. Humor me, old friend."
Praedam sighed. "You knew magic I'd never taught you, and I taught you everything. You knew how to modify Adelaide Grossman's memory... and anyway, with your sneaking about at three in the morning, I'd have to be a complete dunce not to cotton on eventually."
Silth smirked. "I can't take credit for Adelaide... I'm afraid the Foreigner did that as well. But there we are. Well, Elliot... that is, Donavan," he said cheerily; "I suppose this is goodbye. Goodbye!" But before James knew what had happened, Silth had drawn his wand from his pocket, aimed at Praedam, and said in a cold, clear voice: "Avada Kedavra!"
There was a flash of green light, and Praedam fell to the ground, dead.
James gasped, but quietly enough so that Silth did not seem to have heard. The Professor walked quickly to the body, pulling it behind a dustbin. He straightened it up so that he was leaning against the side wall of the alley, and began searching through his own pockets for something. Locating it, Silth withdrew a small vial, which he uncorked and, bending over, poured into Praedam's mouth. Then, he placed the vial in the dead man's hand placing the fingers around it just so.
James did not stay to watch the rest.
He turned on his heel and at first walked quickly back up the street. When he was a short distance away, he began to sprint. He had to get to the castle, and he had to get there quickly. He was running so fast, and looking over his shoulder so constantly, however, that it took James about two seconds after the fact to realize that he had something. Rather, someone.
Staggering back, James looked up and saw Gilbert Korcesh of the Ministry of Magic. It was another two seconds before he remembered that he was still disillusionized. Korcesh had drawn his wand and was looking carefully about for whatever had just hit him. James saved him the trouble; he tapped his head with his own wand and as he returned to sight, Korcesh jumped back.
"Oh my!"
"Listen, sir..." began James, but the other cut him off.
"What are you doing here in the village? You should be up in the castle!"
"I don't have time to explain, Sir..."
"Well you had better make time..."
"Listen to me, Mr. Korcesh," said James urgently; "Praedam—the dark arts teacher who was sacked—has been killed..."
Korcesh looked shocked. "Killed? As in... murdered?"
"Yes. By Professor Silth… there's no time... are there any Aurors near? He's just down there... in the alley. I think he was trying to make it look like suicide..."
"Come with me," said Korcesh coldly, trying to steer James back towards the alley.
"Someone should go warn Dumbledore..."
"Dumbledore is away from the school at the moment."
"Well then McGonagall... Slughorn... Flitwick... someone!"
"No, come with me. Show me where he is."
James nodded. "Alright, c'mon... we've got to hurry though."
But Korcesh did not seem to be a very fast runner, and James was constantly several steps ahead of him. The Head Boy nodded in the direction of the alley as they drew closer, and Korcesh nodded in understanding. He held out a hand and hurried ahead of James, his wand raised and ready. He edged closer to the corner, then peered around into the alleyway.
Korcesh's shoulders relaxed and he stepped into the open.
"No one's here."
James stepped out into the open as well and looked about. "He was here, I swear it."
Korcesh took a step into the alley and waved his wand, muttering: "Lumos" as he did so. He approached the dustbins and said: "I believe you. Here's your Professor Praedam."
James walked over and saw the slumped body of the former teacher. He was about to say that that was not his real name, when there was the sound of voices from the street outside. The Head Boy rushed out, ignoring Korcesh's call of "wait!" and saw that several witches and wizards from the village were coming out to see what had happened.
"How did they find out?" he asked more to himself than to anyone else. He looked about and saw a window in the building that formed one of the alleyway's walls. The light was on, and several people were peering out of it, more cramming about to see every minute.
"We heard voices!" shrieked one witch from the window. "There's a body! Murder! Murder!"
Korcesh tried to calm them down, but once the cry went out, chaos reigned.
"I'm going to get someone from the castle!" James shouted to Korcesh. The Ministry Wizard tried to protest, but James was already pushing through the gathering crowd. He managed to get past them and ran up the high street towards the school.
As the voices of the crowd behind him grew fainter, one voice deterred him. "Wait!" shouted someone, and James automatically stopped and looked around. Then, he felt something hard, jabbing against the back of his neck. A wand. Something registered in James's head as he realized whose voice had called for him to stop.
"Don't move," said the voice.
James did not need to move or turn around to know who was currently holding him at wand point. It was Silth.
Note: Gah! Stupid chapter! Anyway, I hope you did not loathe it as much as I did, and I hope you'll leave me a review, either way. I've written the next two chapters and they're almost completely done, so if I get some reviews to inspire me to proofread and edit them, than I will surely update soon. Feel free to nag me in the mean time. It's quite helpful.
Thank you all reviewers—signed-in people have their responses. To the lovely anonymous people: sky4444 (glad you enjoyed! Help yourself to cookies and an update), tasz (thank you for the review! Lily was a little typical in the last chapter, because she's always so set apart from the other girls in the story, and I like to write that she is still a semi-normal girl. Hope she wasn't too annoying. Love and cookies), and Karen (this stupid site keeps deleting my reviews too! Before I get struck down with lightening by the god for saying that, thank you for your review, sorry you didn't like the match—though if you think it was boring to read, try writing it: yawn—, thank you for the inspiration, sorry L and J haven't come to their senses, though they're beginning to, and help yourself to cookies).
Cheers,
Jewels