Beta: AriArlene [real life friend who loves fanfiction and not through the beta'ing service]
Original Release Date: 10/25/15
Disclaimer: I do not own anything in the canon Harry Potter universe or any other universe.
Chapter Thirty Five – The Trap is Sprung
"Despite the cold weather out, we are all warm and toasty, ready for an exciting Quidditch match between Ravenclaw and Slytherin! And I'd like to mention that this is the FIRST Quidditch match at Hogwarts to be viewable from anywhere other than here" announces Lee Jordan, voice amplified and booming around the revitalized stadium.
Cheers go up from the attending crowd of spectators, one of the largest, if not the largest, for a Quidditch match during the winter season. Joining Professor McGonagall and Lee Jordan in the control booth is Remus, looking at the multiple Omni Plays side by side, each showing different camera views available to those on the Marauders Emporium video streaming service watching the game from more than six different cameras. Reviewing the sole Omni Play with the network stats of how many people are tuned in currently, server capacity percentage, how many servers are handling requests, etc, Remus smiles as the overall allocated network usage is an optimal 23% of the allocated servers for the task.
"Taking the field with their new Nimbus 2001 brooms, is the Ravenclaw team" announces Lee, as he announces each member of the Ravenclaw team.
"You're useless now everyone has the same broom" mutters one of the Slytherin team members to Draco as they troop onto the field, Lee announcing their names and positions.
Madam Hooch enters the field and stands between the two captains saying, "No rough housing you two", having the captains shake hands before blowing the whistle causing the fourteen players to rise into the air.
Changing views on his Omni Play, Remus verifies that the cameras that cover each team's goals are in fact watching the goals, before switching between the other views, verifying that there is in fact a feed and players are actually visible. Satisfied with the quality and views, Remus resumes watching the match playing out in front of him.
Twenty some minutes later the game ends as Cho Chang, the Ravenclaw Seeker manages to catch the snitch. Within seconds the sound of explosions reverberate through the two tiered stands as blue and bronze fireworks rocket into the air, displaying an eagle, the crowd cheering, except for the students in Slytherin.
Locking the control booth after locking the three Omni Plays up in a small chest, Remus follows Professor McGonagall and Lee, already a short ways ahead of him, down the spiraling staircase to the ground below.
"So Remus, was it a successful, erm, broadcast?" inquiries Professor McGonagall curiously.
"I'd like to think so. Fifty two Omni Play devices were tuned in and watched the broadcast. Until more information is gathered, I can't say much other than our network performed optimally" answers Remus making his way back to the castle with Professor McGonagall beside him, the students already far ahead of them.
After a pause, Professor McGonagall asks, "Did you ever expect to be back at Hogwarts?"
"Honestly, no. As you obviously know, I'm a werewolf, so finding myself work in the first place was difficult as is. Then when Sirius owled me about wanting me to have a hand in raising Harry, I was conflicted but knew James and Lily would have done the same if I had a child. And…leaving Harry by himself with Sirius wouldn't have been the best either. While Sirius has grown and matured, he is still a prankster at heart. But I think that will help me in this position, despite it being only temporary. The issue of making lessons educational while not straight out boring is one that must be overcome to keep everyone's attention."
"What about Severus?" asks Professor McGonagall.
"While we aren't the best of friends, we are at least cordial to each other, respecting one another" answers Remus as they arrive in the warm Entrance Hall.
"Minerva, Lupin" snarls Snape quietly, holding a steaming goblet out.
Pulling out a small bag of clinking coins, Remus exchanges it for the goblet in Snape's hand, quickly downing the steaming concoction.
"Thank you Severus" thanks Remus.
"What will you do now?" inquiries Professor McGonagall.
"I shall sit in my office, lock the door, and have Harry or Neville keep an eye on my room remotely. Of course I've prepared for this and have a few assignments to be dispersed. While it isn't a perfect system, it is better than nothing. "
"I wish it didn't have to be this way, Remus" states Professor McGonagall walking slowly with Remus towards his office.
"As do I, but alas it is something I've lived with so much of my life. My family, or whom I consider family, Sirius, Amelia, Susan, Harry, and our three house elves, Dobby, Jack, and Kreacher, all accept me for who I am and part of that is being a werewolf. It has been quite a pleasure, Minerva, but I'm afraid it is time for me to retire for a few days" states Remus before entering his office, closing the door, and locking it.
On Monday as students enter the DADA classroom, they notice the chalkboard where parchment hangs for each level of student, detailing the assignments that would need to be done within the upcoming week. With most of the students leaving the classroom after writing down their assignments, Harry and Neville decide to sit in the room and work on the paper assigned to them. Stressing as well, Hermione asks, "Aren't you two worried getting enough information into this assignment? Especially we no longer have any books to do the research with?"
Patting her hand comfortingly, Neville answers, "Hermione, don't worry so much about it. This doesn't have anything with the escape at Azkaban, does it?"
"...partially..."
Giving Hermione a hug, Neville rubs her back soothingly and reassures her in a calm tone, "Don't worry about running into him. All entrances and exits into the grounds have been reinforced and are monitored. If he does manage to make it in, it won't take anyone very long to realize he is here."
"O-ok. If you say so. But please, don't keep putting yourself in harm's way. It tears my heart in two when you do" sniffles Hermione.
"You know that I can't guarantee that" reminds Neville.
Later that evening Harry initiates a video call to Sirius, quickly getting him to answer.
"Glad to see you got my message" says Sirius.
"Of course. Why did you say you wanted to talk to me though?" asks Harry.
"Because Amelia and I were thinking of taking you, Susan, and if Remus wants to, on a vacation this summer. No one has expressed any interest in our warding program so far, so we don't have to worry about any students to teach. Do you have any ideas or any place you'd like to go?" asks Sirius.
"Not really."
"Would a beach vacation be better or worse than say going to museums and learning?" teases Sirius.
"Either one is fine. Especially as I know you'll make it fun some how" answers Harry.
"Well then. You're not any good talking to. Maybe Susan will have better ideas" pouts Sirius before laughing as he ends the connection.
Days begin to fly by as actually having a competent professor teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts, alongside not having to worry about any maniacs attempting to kill him. As it gets closer and closer to April first, Harry and Neville begin looking out for anything out of the ordinary.
One day after the bell rings indicating the ending of class, Remus calls out, "Messrs Potter and Longbottom, please remain with me."
The classroom quickly empties and Remus asks warily, "You two aren't planning something for April first, are you?"
"If you're asking if we've placed any pranks out ourselves, no" answers Harry.
"Mr. Longbottom?"
"No sir, I haven't either. The twins might have though" answers Neville.
"That's what has me worried. I haven't a clue to what they are up to, and that concerns me. While their Valentines Day gag wasn't too bad, we don't need to push things too far" states Remus.
"If we find something out, we'll let you know" states Neville.
Finally reaching April first, Harry and Neville make their way to the Great Hall for an unusually late breakfast. Appearing out of some side corridor, Fred and George stop them.
"I wouldn't get breakfast this morning chaps, unless you'd like to discover firsthand our genius prank" states Fred.
"What about food?" inquiries Harry.
"Here's a RedBull or something. Sirius sent it to us when he heard about our prank" answers George.
"What is it?" asks Neville, opening a can and sniffing it.
"Dunno. Taste decent though. And definitely gives us some serious energy boosts" states Fred.
Checking his watch, George grins before saying, "It looks like the fun is about to begin. We'd better hide if we want even a sliver of a chance to not be found."
Sitting in the Great Hall, Remus looks down at the Gryffindor, eyes narrowing when he doesn't see Harry, Neville, George, or Fred. Suddenly the sound of thunder interrupts his and most everyone else's thoughts, prompting him to look out the giant stained glass window behind him, spotting blue skies and nary a cloud.
Sighing, Remus quickly gets under the staff table as a loud cracking sound reverberates throughout the room before a sudden deluge of water spills from the tops of the Great Hall, soaking everyone, except for Remus. Without warning a catchy beat echoes throughout the room, with a vocal line booming, "...Never gonna give you up, never gonna let you down...", making Remus think to himself, 'The twins figured out how to play only certain sections of songs, very smart.'
The music stops, creating relief for a few brief seconds before fireworks go off, causing a hodge-podge of shapes, symbols, etc, in the air, temporarily deafening everyone in the Great Hall. All over, Remus looks at his Omni Play scanning the map for the location of the four troublesome Gryffindors. Tapping the broadcast function, Remus announces and is heard all over the castle, "Messrs Potter, Longbottom, Weasley, and Weasley, I will find you for this devious prank."
Seconds later laughter is broadcast across the castle followed by George's voice, "Good luck with that."
"Headmaster, I'm going to go get them" declares Remus to Dumbledore before walking carefully out of the wet Great Hall.
Sitting in the Room of Requirement, Harry asks, "Do you think we should have taunted him like that?"
"Probably not, but still, if we're going to get in trouble for the pranks, might as well have some fun with it" chuckles Fred.
"Valid point" points out Harry.
Scanning over the map once more, Remus sighs as no sign of the devious four appear on the screen.
"Where would they have gotten to that isn't on the map?" muses Remus out loud, finally realizing the only spot where he, James, and Sirius were unable to place on the map; the Room of Requirement.
Changing his direction mid step, Remus heads towards the seventh floor, eager to catch the quartet.
"Looks like he found us" remarks Harry looking at the Omni Play version of the map showing Remus as the only one moving in the castle, and definitely heading towards the 7th floor.
Minutes later the four see a dot labeled 'Remus Lupin' pacing in front of the door to the room, finally coming to a rest across the hall from the room.
"Should we give ourselves up?" inquiries Neville.
"We could just let him in and see what he has to say" suggests Harry.
"Might as well" states George, getting up and opening the door in which Remus gets up from his sitting position and quickly enters the room.
"Well done in pranking the entire student body, minus yourselves of course" begins Remus.
The four high five each other before Remus continues, "On the other hand, I'm afraid that I must take some points away for dumping who knows how much water on the students, creating one really large mess for Filch and the professors to clean up. Therefore I take a total of fifty points from Gryffindor."
In the Great Hall where everyone had been dried off as had the floors, the sudden movement in the hourglass of fifty points being lost shock the Gryffindors, causing Slytherins to snicker and point in their direction.
"However, you four did manage to discover how to play only select portions of songs, so I award Gryffindor ten points. In addition in my known history of Hogwarts has a prank been played on such a large scale, I award Gryffindor another ten points. Effective use of the castle-wide audio broadcast system also grants another ten points. But with that said, I must give you four a detention on a day of my choosing. When are days of Quidditch practice?"
"Today, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday" answers Fred.
"Then you four will serve my detention on Tuesday evening after dinner, and it will last until I release you, or until midnight, whichever comes first" states Remus, smirking.
"Understood" choruses the four.
"One last punishment, you don't get to have much of a breakfast this morning. But seeing as you've got a few cans of RedBull, I'll consider it and what I am about to give you, enough to sustain you all for classes, until lunch. Better hurry if you don't want to be late and get more detentions or points lost" calls out Remus handing out an apple and a banana to each as they exit the room as the bell rings.
Grabbing their bags, the four make their way to their respective classes, finishing their drinks before any student sees them. As Harry and Neville near their first class, DADA, Remus stops them, no students around and whispers, "I'd like you two to play along with me", before grabbing their shoulders roughly as the bell rings, pushing them into the DADA classroom and declares loudly, "And get in your seats you two hooligans! I expected better from you two, especially from you Harry!"
Sitting down in his seat, Harry waits until Remus opens his mouth to speak before announcing, "Professor, I declare a prank war effective immediately on you!"
Continuing on and on during the class, Remus holds them back as the bell rings, not having another class directly afterwards.
"Thanks for playing along. Here, take these small bags and suck on the hard candy inside of them. They should help kill any desire for food until you two can eat. Just claim they are to ease your sore throats or something. Now, run along to class" states Remus smiling.
Watching them hurry along to class, Remus muses out loud, "I think Sirius should be the one to blame for influence over my actions. But I can't help but admit that it is most fun this way."
/*the following day, or Tuesday*/
"I'm glad you four could make it" states Remus as he opens the door into the DADA classroom, closing and locking it behind him.
"Tonight is...your detention but as you might have guessed, I won't be giving you all anything you can't handle. Now, Fred, George, are you two still up to work during your summer break at the store?" asks Remus sitting on his desk.
Exchanging looks, Fred and George smile and answer, "Certainly!"
"Good. We appreciate it. Now for some magical practice, we will be warding a structure. Not just any structure mind you, but one that should test your abilities and critical thinking skills."
"What will we be warding?" inquiries Neville curiously.
"As you four may or may not know, the Shrieking Shack has been purchased by the Black family. With both of their jobs they have not found the time to put more than the basic ward of support up. I have placed an Omni Connect in the structure, allowing us to use the PRT system to arrive there directly, and then back to this room. That alongside potentially cleaning some of the inside if time allows" states Remus, holding out four thin and rectangular badges.
Taking the badges, all five disappear and reappear inside the Shrieking Shack.
"A professor who not only plays along with our pranking, but allows us to leave the grounds during a detention, this is awesome!" declares George.
"Now George, it is this once, and remember that no one can know of this" reminds Remus in a warning tone.
Exiting the structure, Remus teaches them the wand movements and incantations of the spells they would be using at the marked stakes around the building to erect the wards. Remus answers the lone question of when to begin before walking around the shack, inspecting the work as the quartet quietly cast the spells fortifying the existing ward structure. After half an hour, Remus stops them, satisfied with the quality of the work.
"Great work you four. Now we will proceed inside and clean what we can for the next hour and a half" announces Remus.
Cleaning the floors, dusting the mantle, removing cobwebs, vanishing trash and other junk declared by Remus, the four are soon stopped as Remus announces, "I say we stop for the evening. We've done enough I think, to make this a much more habitable location. Back to the classroom."
Arriving at the classroom, Remus dismisses them before being asked, "What about our badges?"
"You all might as well keep them. Consider it a safe house if you all need to use it as such."
Cheering, the four troop out of the classroom, heading back to the Gryffindor Common Room.
/*elsewhere in magical Britain and some hours later*/
A ladybug flits across the hallway and zooming under the door, arriving in the darkened suite. Landing on the floor, the ladybug transforms into a human. Lighting her wand, the intruder slowly walks through the office, quietly opening and closing the now unused filing cabinets. After opening and closing ten different filing cabinets and not finding a single file, the lady mutters under her breath, turning to the WorkFlow devices adorning each desk.
Tapping on one of the glass fronts, the sudden light blinds the intruder, forcing her to cover her eyes as they adjust to the brightness.
"What are these?" whispers the intruder out loud.
A message appears on the screen, "Authorization Required", showing only a blank sky blue screen with the simple line of 'Property of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement' visible.
Sleeping soundly in her bed, Amelia quickly awakens as her WorkFlow lights up and announces, "Intruder detected in DMLE offices" in ten second intervals.
Grabbing her robes, WorkFlow, and her badge, Amelia transports to her office using the PRT system. Quickly unlocking and opening her door, Amelia points her wand at the visible figure still illuminated by the screen.
"Hold it right there! Hands where I can see them!" announces Amelia, walking slowly towards the intruder.
Arriving at the intruder, Amelia asks quietly but no less dangerously, "Who are you, and why are you here?"
Turning around, the blonde haired individual opens her mouth to answer when Amelia growls, "Rita Skeeter, I should have known. How you got in, I haven't a clue, but you're in a department after hours, without a proper escort. Now, please inform me as to your reason to visit the DMLE offices after hours."
"Oh Director Black, how nice it is to see you" replies Rita nervously.
"Please stop trying to dodge the question. Flattery will not get you anywhere, especially after you have awoken me from my sleep. Why are you here?"
"I was, uh, looking to find the paperwork to file if I decide to join the Aurors" answers Rita nervously.
Wordlessly Amelia enters her office and arrives shortly thereafter with a pile of papers, handing it to Rita, who nervously laughs and responds, "Why thank you, Director Black. I shall be, uh, going now", before quickly exiting the office as fast as she can without bumping into things.
Shaking her head, Amelia consults her WorkFlow, scrolling through the access log, looking for any potential files that Skeeter might have accessed somehow, barely grimacing at the fact that nothing had been disturbed. Ending the recording mode, Amelia watches as her second display in her office lights up, before shortly resuming its darkened state.
Author note: All rights reserved to each other respective companies that own their products, songs, etc, such as RedBull, Rick Astley, etc.
Thanks for reading, reviewing, following, and favoriting this fanfic. More updates to come every two weeks hopefully. :)
And if this is not released until later in the day on Sunday, the 25th, it's probably because I'm feeling terrible. Think I might have a cold or something. And thank you all for helping the story reach 100k words. Back to bed for me.
Edit: I have been recovering and a shout out to teachergirl for pointing out that not giving the quartet food would be cruel. I remember making it through college a few times on just a can of Monster, but the age differences was about a decade. Fixed. :)