Chapter 28
Two Plus Two
It was soon very clear that Christmas was on its way. On Saturday morning, a few lonely snowflakes fell slow and silent to the ground, coating it in dusty whiteness. It was far too little, in Myra's opinion, but the icy cold temperature that had been steadily dropping since the start of November now made everything frosty in the morning.
Along with the slowly whitening world, decorations were appearing here and there throughout the castle. A bauble here and a wreath there. The armours sang Christmas carols when someone passed them, and Filch had begun cleaning the castle for the holidays, muttering about slushy floors and boot prints as he went about.
Marie was bummed out knowing that their parents wanted them home for the holidays, as she still wanted to spend a Christmas at Hogwarts. Myra wanted that too, but her parents had promised that she could do that for her last year. Hestia, Anna and Ashley had also been promised this by their parents, and so the girls would spend Christmas at school for their final year. Marie had been promised the same thing, but her last year was a longer way off.
"That's ages," she complained during breakfast on Sunday morning. It was a Hufflepuff week, so Myra was situated among the Hufflepuffs.
"You'll survive," Myra said. "I've wanted to spend Christmas here since my first year too, and I've survived. People have always said it's amazing."
"I'm staying here this year," Julie Thistlewood piped up. She was Marie's best friend.
"See!" Marie exclaimed. "Why can't I too?"
"Marie, please! It's not like I'm the one who gets to decide! Stop asking me about it! Take it up with mum and dad."
"Maybe I'll just not go on the train. Maybe I'll just decide to stay anyway." The younger girl crossed her arms across her chest and pouted.
Myra mentally shook her head and changed the subject. "How's Muggle Art?" she asked, knowing it was one of Marie's favourite things about school. Marie forgot all about Christmas and launched into a lengthy explanation of their last lesson.
...
The Christmas spirit around the castle, reminded people that a Hogsmeade visit was coming up very soon. All around people were asking about wish lists and making plans for shopping. Myra too was making plans, as she had to do Marie's shopping as well. Next year her little sister could do it herself and Myra was certainly looking forward to that.
Prefect meetings were scheduled for Tuesday after dinner. Myra was looking forward to letting her mind relax for a short while, and decided she want to get there early. She and her friends had lingered in the Great Hall, not feeling up to getting up to the Tower yet.
"I guess I should get going," she said and downed the last of her pumpkin juice, before they all decided to leave the table.
"Yes, you should," Remus said suddenly, standing behind her.
Myra was startled, and glanced behind her, a bit out of breath. He kept surprising her recently. It couldn't be healthy. "Hello," she said. She looked around, Sirius and Peter was on the way out of the Great Hall, James must be in the office already. "See you guys later!" she said to her friends, and stood up to follow Remus.
They walked in silence for a while, not feeling the need to say much in each other's company. There weren't many students lingering in the halls after dinner, now that it was so chilly in the draughty halls.
"It's our second to last patrol together tonight," Remus said suddenly as they reached the second floor.
Myra looked at him, wondering if she was just imagining the sadness in his voice, but she couldn't tell from the way he looked if he was upset about it or not. "Yeah," she muttered. "I've had fun patrolling with you." She felt it was a stupid thing to say, but it was all she could think of that didn't reveal too much.
"Me too."
At least we still have our free periods, Myra thought, considering if she should say it out loud. She didn't.
Remus looked thoughtful, a furrow emerging between his eyes and his gaze fixed on his shoes as he walked.
"What is it?" she asked cautiously.
He cleared his face and looked up. "Oh, nothing. Hogsmeade again, this weekend." He changed the subject.
"Yeah. With the Christmas shopping. I'll be doing Marie's too. I can't wait for her to be allowed to go herself!"
Remus chuckled. "I'm so glad the lads and I have agreed not to give each other anything. I should probably not tell you this, but we've made a deal to all just pitch in on one great thing from Zonko's that we use after New Years."
Now Myra chuckled. "That explains a lot... But, it sounds scary. A big thing from Zonko's in the hands of four marauders... Maybe I shouldn't come back after Christmas."
"Oh, don't worry, I'll protect you," he said warmly and bumped his shoulder into hers.
There it was again, the shortness of breath and the racing heart. Myra was really starting to worry. "How nice of you," she managed to huff, jokingly.
When the two of them reach the prefects' office, everyone else was there already. Lily sent them a quick glare, but then declared the opening of the meeting. It was the same as every meeting, but with a warning that they would draw new partners before the end-of-term feast. It was a depressing thought for Myra, so she was glad when Lily finally ended the meeting and began gathering her parchments.
People started leaving, but Remus made no move to leave, so Myra didn't either. They sat for a few minutes, trying to find out what Myra should give her friends for Christmas. After a couple of minutes, Myra noticed that something was happening at the head of the table. James and Lily were talking, or, it looked like James was talking and Lily was listening.
"What's going on up there?" Myra asked quietly, interrupting Remus, who had been helping her brainstorm ideas about what Quidditch supplies to get for Hestia.
He looked up towards his friend and Lily, and smirked knowingly. "If I'm not mistaken, he's asking her to Hogsmeade," he whispered, so as to not disturb the couple.
"Really?" Myra raised her eyebrows and gaped in surprise. "This quietly?" There were no magic shows, no jinxing of other students, no grand proclamations of love. He was just talking to her. "Maybe we should leave," she suddenly said.
"I promised the others I would stay and see how it really went, but I think you're right."
The two of them slid carefully out of their seats, stood up slowly, and tiptoed out of the room. Myra closed the door as quietly as she could.
"He said he might ask her again this week," Remus explained as they walked leisurely down the hallway. "He hasn't asked her in a long while."
"Then what was that show with his head in mashed potatoes?"
"That was just him spewing out his feelings."
Myra chuckled at his choice of words. "Maybe she'll finally say yes."
"I sincerely hope so, for his sake. Peter suggested yesterday he do it at the meeting as a reminder that he is doing well as a Head Boy. If nothing else has impressed her, that'd have to."
"I'm curious." Myra suddenly stopped and pulled on Remus' robes. "Let's wait for them."
Remus smiled and shook his head. "You're awfully curious, aren't you?"
She nodded, a guilty smile spreading across her face.
"Fine." He gave in and sat down on the floor, leaning on the wall. They were deep in the middle of the castle, so it was a bit warmer there. No need to worry about the consequences of sitting on cold stone. Myra leant against the wall and slid down to sit next to Remus, draping her robes around her knees. They continued discussing Myra's Christmas present options, until they heard the door open sometime later.
Lily came out. James was not following her. She closed the door and hesitated before she turned around and strode down the hall like she owned it.
"James coming soon?" Remus asked casually, like he was wondering what could have taken his friend so long.
She seemed surprised at their presence and stopped short. A furious blush spread across her face. "I don't know!" she answered brusquely. "How am I supposed to know if Potter is coming or not?" And then she walked off.
"She said no," Myra stated, looking at where the red head had disappeared down a staircase.
"Did she?" Remus sounded optimistic about the opposite.
"Wouldn't she be happier if she had accepted an invitation to a date?"
"I don't know. Why don't we bet on it?" His entire face had taken on a playful look, eyes glinting and a boyish grin on his lips.
"With what stakes?"
"How about... Your future in Defence Against the Dark Arts?"
Myra gasped. "You wouldn't dare!"
"Oh, I dare!" He tried hard not to smile, but the mirth danced in his eyes.
"You choose to live a very dangerous life, Mr Lupin." She tried to sound threatening and waved her index finger at him.
He leaned over and whispered. "I am dangerous, Miss Kinney."
Myra didn't know how to breathe. He was not wrong.
Knocking the air back into her was the sudden reopening of the prefects' office door. It slammed into the stone wall, the sound reverberating in the nearly empty hallway. Both Myra and Remus were startled and snapped their heads towards to the commotion. On the threshold stood a beaming James Potter.
"Lady and gentleman, mark your calendars!" he crowed. "December 6th 1977, is the day the lovely, beautiful, much esteemed Lily Evans," even though he spoke loudly, her name sounded like a gentle summers breeze coming from his lips, "agreed to go on a date with the humble, lowly, so-not-worthy James Prongsatious Padleyfeet Wormustailus Moonaloona Potter! 'tis the season to be jolly!"
Remus began laughing, but Myra turned to him and asked quietly: "He's not really called James Prong-what's-his-face Potter, is he?" This only made Remus laugh even harder.
"What are you laughing about?" James said, closing the door and coming over. He looked insulted.
Remus fell over on the floor, laughing even harder. Myra couldn't help but smile at his behaviour. His laughter was a beautiful sound, and it was infectious. Soon she was laughing too, James looking even more insulted.
"What are you laughing about?" he asked, directed at Myra this time.
"I-don't-know," she breathed out.
"Moony! Cut that out!" He towered over Remus, glaring daggers at him and reaching for his wand. "It's a day of celebration and you're laughing at me?"
Remus heaved after his breath and clamped down his jaws to calm himself. He managed to put himself back into sitting position and held his arms across his stomach. "I'm sorry," he stammered out. "You should have... seen your face!"
James looked confused now. "It was a happy one, I'm sure."
"Oh, it was." The more he spoke, the calmer he became. "I've just never seen that kind of face on you before. It was a bit funny."
"A bit?" Myra asked sarcastically. "You nearly died, you laughed so hard!"
"No, he's not really called James Prongsatious Padleyfeet Wormustailus Moonaloona Potter," Remus finally answered her question. "Don't you recognise the names?"
"You really think I'm called that?"
"I don't know!" She shrugged and threw her hands in the air. "You're a pure-blood! I'm sorry, but most pure-bloods have crazy names!"
"Come on, Myra." Remus changed his seating so he faced her. "Moonaloona? Prongsatious? Haven't you heard something like that before? Padleyfeet? Wormustailus?"
She blinked a few times, trying to say the names out loud in her head. She cocked her head and furrowed her brows. The boys looked on with amusement. Then suddenly it struck her. "Moony!" Remus nodded. "Wormtail!" He nodded again. "Pr... P... No, I don't know the other two. There's something familiar about them though."
"Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs," James said and bowed graciously. "Pleased to meet you, madam."
"Padfoot's Sirius, then?"
"He is," Remus confirmed.
"I don' think I've heard his nickname before. I've heard yours, and I've heard someone call you Prongs," she looked at James, "and I've heard you say Wormtail before." She turned to Remus again. "When you told me what they are, I guessed Peter was Wormtail. That only leaves Sirius, the dog. Pun intended."
"I believe she's got it, my dear Moony."
"I believe she does, dear Prongs."
Myra shook her head. "Wizards." But she smiled.
"Congratulations, Prongs," Remus said, all play aside. "I'm glad she finally said yes."
"Thanks, Moony," James replied, but for the first time his happy expression faltered. "Now all I have to do is not muck it up."
"I'm sure it will alright, James," Myra reassured him. "If she's said yes after all this time and all the crazy things you've done, I'm sure it's going to work out."
The three of them eventually made it back to the Gryffindor Tower. Hestia wondered where on earth they'd been, since the other Gryffindor prefects had come back ages ago.
"We stopped to talk," Myra explained.
"But you have homework!" Hestia complained. "First that meeting, and then you have patrol to waste away the rest of the evening. You need to get your homework done. We got that Potions essay that you have to get started on. She can't get the night off, can she, Potter?"
"There's still lots of time," Myra said, before James had the time to reply. He looked confused. "It's not due until the last Potions class of the term." She was a bit confused about why her best friend was suddenly so on edge about essay, and looked questioningly at her.
"I'm sorry," Hestia said when she noticed Myra's look. "It's just harder than I thought."
"Clearly."
"What kind of essay is it?" Remus asked. He and James had sat down near Myra, Hestia, Ashley and Anna. There had been some curious and confused looks from the girls and certainly from Sirius and Peter, who sat at the other end of the room. They did not come over.
"Everlasting Elixirs," Ashley said with a great sigh. "It's torture."
Both boys looked sympathetic.
"You wouldn't happen to have any advice for it, do you?" Myra wanted to know. They had been through that subject the year previous.
"James is fairly good at Potions," Remus said. "But he can't teach to save his life."
"Hey!" The other boy looked affronted.
"It's true."
James shrugged. But then his face lit up. "Lily's excellent at Potions! You could ask her!"
"How did it go tonight, James?"
Peter and Sirius had come over, and Sirius was looking pointedly at his friends, ignoring the girls.
"Excellent!" James replied.
"Give us all the details," Peter demanded and nodded his head in direction of the where they had just been sitting.
Myra wanted to roll her eyes, they were not discreet in the slightest.
James and Remus stood up to leave. "Ladies." James bowed slightly.
"I'll see you at patrol," Remus told Myra, and the four boys went to the other side of the room.
"How did what go tonight?" Anna asked, while Myra frowned at the boys' behaviour.
"He asked Lily out again, and she said yes," she answered distractedly. Whenever she thought she made some kind of progress with Remus' friends, she managed to do something to go right back to where she started. At least James was coming around, but Sirius could be rude and snappy enough for all four them.
In an effort to get her mind off stupid wizards, she started on the Everlasting Elixirs essay. Her bag had been kept safe by Hestia, and now she pulled her Potions book out of it and flipped through it to find anything she could use. What makes Everlasting Elixirs everlasting? That might be a good chapter to start with.
As the evening went on and it got late, people began retiring to their dorms. Myra glanced at the clock, and saw that it was time to head down to the ground floor. This time she decided to beat Remus to it, so she walked over to the Marauders before he had time to surprise and take her breath away.
"Ready to go, Remus?" she asked, standing behind their couch.
"I'm ready," he said and jumped up from his seat. She couldn't help but notice that he looked unacceptably unaffected by her sudden presence.
The two of them left their friends and walked in silence down to the Entrance Hall. Myra tried to start several conversations, but Remus didn't seem up to talking. They met up with Mary MacDonald and Michael Baddock, and then the pair trudged up to the fifth floor again to being patrolling.
"I don't understand why we have to meet all the way down on the ground floor, when we have to go up again to start our rounds," Myra said when they finally reached the top of the last staircase.
"Yeah, doesn't make sense," Remus answered absentmindedly. It didn't even look like he saw where he was going, his eyes seeing something that wasn't there. The turnaround from earlier that day couldn't have been bigger, when he had been joking and laughing so hard.
Myra hoped it was just one of those days, and didn't try to make him tell her if something was wrong or not. They continued on, scouring the entire fifth floor, but finding nothing out of the ordinary. Up on the sixth floor, he was still taciturn and thoughtful. She could no longer stand it.
"How did Sirius and Peter take the news about James' success with Lily today?" Myra tired halfway through the floor.
"They were thrilled. I think they're celebrating right now," he replied simply.
She couldn't help a sigh of frustration slip out, but he didn't seem to notice.
As far as Myra felt, the evening went by at glacial speed. Even the two Ravenclaws they found moaning loudly and making out in a broom cupboard near the Ravenclaw Tower failed to make things interesting. The couple quietly surrendered and disappeared to their tower. The Slytherin caught setting up a trap with a Confundus Charm near the Owlery in the West Tower didn't go as quietly, but failed to shake Remus out of whatever-it-was. When they came down to the fifth floor again, there was nothing else to do then go back up once again, and call it a night.
When they reached Gryffindor common room, however, Myra had just about had enough. She grabbed his arm and made him turn around, before he reached the stairs to the boys' dormitory. "Is there something wrong, Remus?" she asked, shocked to hear her voice so hurt. "Have I done something wrong?"
"What? No!" he replied quickly. "Why do you think that?"
"You've been so quiet all evening. I don't think you've heard anything of what I've said to you tonight." She looked worriedly at him.
Remus' face turned into one of complete regret. "I'm so sorry, Myra." He stepped closer. "I've had a lot on my mind. I just –" He stepped back again.
Myra stepped closer instead, not wanting him to create a distance between them. "What?"
He looked down on his shoes, growing paler by the second.
"Are you ill?" Myra asked.
He shook his head. "No, I'm fine." It was barely audible. He took a few deep breaths.
He's ill, Myra thought. It was nearly a fortnight since the full moon, so it couldn't be that. She took one more step towards him, worried sick. But then he looked up, and it was clear from his eyes that he was not sick. They were wide and staring.
"I've just been going over and over in my head how to ask you to Hogsmeade this weekend." Colour rushed back into his face, but Myra didn't notice. Stars flashed in front of her eyes and her heart jumped wildly in her chest. Heat flooded her body and her knees felt week.
She couldn't believe it. He didn't just say what she thought he said, did he?
No, he just wants her and her friends to accompany him and his Marauders. It's not possible for him to actually ask her out on a date. He could not be interested in her.
"Will you go out with me to Hogsmeade on Saturday?" he asked properly, as if reading her mind. "Just you and me, on a date."
He did say what she thought he said, right?" It was real. He asked her out. He –
She had to answer. She opened her mouth to speak, but found her voice was missing. Instead, with her eyes fixed on him, she nodded vigorously.
A smile broke out on Remus' face. Myra smiled too. "Okay then," he said, his voice trembling slightly. "Good night, then." He turned slowly around and walked across the floor. When he reached the stairs to the boys' side of the tower, he looked back, still smiling. "Good night, Myra," he repeated.
"Good night, Remus." She finally found her voice, though it was much squeakier than it usually was.
Author Notes
Finally, chapter 28 is here! I've had the betaed chapter in my possession for a while now, but I'm struggling with some kind of insomnia or other sleep disorder. I don't know. Something's not right, and I'm constantly tired, having trouble falling asleep no matter how tired I am. Top that with summer SAD... (Yes, summer SAD is a real thing, though given where I live I should have winter SAD, summer SAD is usually found in people near equator). I haven't really been in a good place to work on the story the last few weeks.
I think I'm working out the sleep disorder thing, so hopefully I'll get some of energy back!
Anyway, expect next chapter in 3-4 weeks! Please review if you have any thoughts on the chapter!
Coming: Chapter 29 – Lost Track of Time
"There you are!" an irate voice came suddenly from behind them. They turned around and saw Sirius and Peter, the latter with a piece of parchment in his hand. "What took you so bloody long?"
