Hiya again, guys, I hope you're all safe and well in this strange and scary time. My school closed last Wednesday, so I'm hoping to get more uploaded now - though they are still setting us tons of work, so please try and be patient if I don't manage much.
I know I don't have many readers, but I don't really care, cos I'm doing this for my enjoyment, no one else's. Anyway, The Prank:
"Here are the instructions," said Remus, handing Sirius the piece of parchment where he'd copied up the page from the book. "It's OWL level, though, so it won't be easy."
"You're a star, Rem! Thanks."
"Err - no problem..."
That Friday night, the four Gryffindor boys began brewing the potion they needed for the prank. Sirius and James did the majority of the work as they were the only two who could be trusted not to accidentally blow it up and set fire to their dorm. Peter was by far the worst out of them all, though, so the others didn't let him anywhere near. His job was Chief Motivator - providing snacks for the others, while Remus measured and organised the things they needed.
The potion needed a night to brew properly, meaning it would easily be ready for the Halloween feast on Tuesday. They had everything planned out, but unfortunately for Remus, the full moon fell two days before Halloween, meaning he probably wouldn't be well enough to attend the feast.
That Sunday, at about five o'clock, he took his outdoor cloak ready to go to the hospital wing, where Madam Pomfrey would then take him to the Whomping Willow.
"Where are you going?" asked Sirius, frowning. "We've got lessons tomorrow."
"My - err - my Grandpa died last week... I'm just going to his funeral..." said Remus.
"We have lessons tomorrow," said James. "Why didn't you just have it over the weekend?"
"Erm - I don't know... I didn't book it, it was my dad," mumbled Remus, his anxiety increasing as they interrogated him. "I - I have to go."
With that, he left the room, leaving the other three boys staring after him in bewilderment.
"Well, that was a lie," said Sirius.
James nodded his agreement and Peter didn't say anything. Sirius just crossed his arms across his chest, still frowning thoughtfully. He could hear the other two talking, but was too busy, his brain buzzing with thoughts, to be paying any attention or reply.
After over two minutes of silence, he sighed and said quietly, "There's something odd about that Lupin kid, alright."
Nothing else was said about the matter that evening. James managed to distract Sirius with more detailed planning for the prank, but that didn't stop him thinking through half the night, sitting on the dorm windowsill and staring at the silvery full moon that dominated the endless, black sky.
Remus returned on Halloween, two hours before the feast. Sirius saw him first. The other three boys were in a corner of the common room, Peter and James going head-to-head in a game of chess. Peter was winning, but only just and the other two kept teasing him about how it was a fluke, and they'd finally found something he wasn't completely dreadful at.
When Sirius spotted him, Remus was just gingerly stepping through the portrait hole and seemed to almost be limping when he was through. Sirius frowned thoughtfully as he took in the other boy. He looked pale and the bags under his eyes were darker and more pronounced.
"Hey, Remus!" he called, beckoning to him. "Come watch Pete beat James at chess. I dunno if Jamsie's ego can handle this. Look at his face."
Remus smiled and joined the other boy on the sofa, resting his chin on his arm as he watched them play.
While the others were distracted by the game, Sirius took his opportunity. He nudged Remus with his elbow and said quietly when he looked over at him, "Are you okay, mate? You don't look great."
"Yeah, I'm fine."
"Really? Rem, you can tell me the truth, you know."
Remus' eyes darted nervously sideways for a second before he replied, "Yeah, I'm fine. Honest."
There was no way Sirius was going to believe that, but he didn't question him further, noticing the other boy's discomfort. Deciding to go along with whatever Remus was trying to convince him, he said, "Upset about your granddad?"
Seeming grateful of the excuse, Remus nodded.
"The prank'll cheer you up," he said with a grin. "Everything'll be okay, you know."
"Yeah, I know. Have you finished the planning?"
Sirius nodded. "We're all ready to go." He literally clapped his hands together, beaming and almost falling off the sofa with his eager excitement.
Remus hadn't missed his friend's growing suspicions. He'd noticed the worried look on Sirius' face and he'd felt the boys' stares on the back of his head before he left too. He'd started getting sick with the waxing moon and the boys had seemed to stare at him more the more ill he got.
This made him nervous. Incredibly nervous. He was usually a natural liar - he'd had to grow used to it after everything. He knew he'd told the others a shit cover story the other day and with just a few more blatant lies like that, he wouldn't be surprised if they discovered his secret by the end of the school year.
He tried to put this overwhelming anxiety behind him as he helped prepare the potion and charms for the prank that night. As he grew more tired, though, Sirius seemed to be paying closer and closer attention to him. He could feel his eyes on him as he limped and stumbled slightly as they moved around the dorm. He couldn't help whimpering with the sudden pain, but soon shut himself up.
"Are you okay, Rem?" Sirius asked him. "You seem... different. Is everything alright?"
Remus just nodded. "Yeah, yeah, I'm fine."
"Right, there's a red spider in the potion, and it's put just in the rafters up there, so it'll look like it caused the pumpkins to move. It's all set up perfectly," said Sirius as him and Remus arrived back from the Great Hall.
The hall was completely empty, but the four boys were using James' Invisibility Cloak anyway. James and Peter had been hiding in a large alcove so they wouldn't be seen while Sirius and Remus positioned the potion above the hall - the same place the pumpkins and other Halloween decorations hung from.
"Excellent!" said James. It seemed like his and Sirius' excitement were having a competition and the most animated and enthusiastic of the two would win.
It was just after six o'clock when students started arriving at the hall for the Halloween feast. The four Gryffindor boys arrived about halfway through the arrivals of everyone, hoping not to raise suspicion. It worked. The four of them sat themselves at the Gryffindor table - Remus and James next to each other (as they were the ones who'd learnt the charms and could perform them the best and most accurately) opposite the other two.
They'd decided it would start just after pudding, before everyone left but after they'd eaten. That way, no one (aka Sirius and Peter) would be mad because they missed the food.
Fourteen minutes after the puddings and desserts appeared on the plates, James looked at the others, a mischievous glint sparkling in his hazel eyes. His gaze lingered on Sirius for a second and the other boy nodded before nudging Remus lightly with his elbow as he reached for the eclairs. Remus also nodded discreetly before winking at Peter who was the last to nod.
Sirius apparently couldn't help smirking as watched James get out his wand and adjust his aim under the table. Remus was watching too, out of the corner of his eyes. He was setting off the potion, James was doing the pumpkins, but both boys needed to be ready to do either in case one didn't work or James didn't manage to do all the pumpkins at the same time. The two of them glanced at each other and smiled - they were ready.
Remus reached out for his drink, sipping at it before he muttered the charm under his breath. The four boys waited in anticipation and just a second later there was an almighty banging noise and the students were sprayed in an orange-coloured, glitter-filled goo. This was the perfect distraction for James to then say his charm to make the pumpkins spring to life.
It happened a little slower than they expected - probably because they'd only tried it on one or two pumpkins at once and now they had at least ten at once - but it worked. And, in the end, they decided it looked better this way. It was like the round orange things were waking up from a nap or something. A couple started jumping down from their positions, then more followed. And, soon, the hall was in chaos as pumpkins ran around the place stealing food and pulling hair, just causing general mayhem.
The four of them couldn't help laughing and grinning at their success, but it didn't look suspicious as over half the school was giggling at the sight. Even Dumbledore and half the other professors were laughing, Sirius noticed and pointed out to the others. Obviously, none of them had ever seen anything like it before: huge, bright orange pumpkins running about the hall, with tiny, stumpy legs and arms.
When the shock settled down a bit and the professors seemed to realise the entirety of the situation, McGonagall stormed over to the Gryffindor table. She marched right past the four first-years, though, and stopped in front of Gideon and Fabian Prewett - two seventh-year twins.
"What do you two have to say for yourselves?" she said.
"It wasn't us, Professor," said Gideon with a shrug and relaxed smile.
"We would, however," said Fabian, as cheerful as his brother, "like to congratulate whoever it was. It was excellent."
Gideon nodded in agreement. "Yeah, that potion at the beginning was brilliant. Fantastic work."
At this, Sirius glanced at James, who grinned back at him and the two boys stood up on their benches. Remus just sighed quietly and rolled his eyes. Neither him or Peter moved.
"Why, thank you!" said Sirius taking a mock bow. James did the same.
"I should've known," sighed McGonagall as she walked over to them after a quick apology to the Prewett twins. "And, did you two have anything to do with it?" she added, addressing the two boys who remained seated.
Remus was just about to confess apologetically when James said, "Of course not. Why would we drag the innocent ones into it? The cleaner their records, the more useful they are."
"James, stop giving away our secret plans!" said Sirius, nudging him, but it was clear they were both joking.
Their smiles faded and James turned to the Transfiguration teacher and said, a serious look on his face, "Honestly though, Professor, these two had nothing to do with it. Gryffindor honour."
"Right, okay, then," said McGonagall. She didn't seem one hundred percent convinced, but didn't take the matter any further. "Well... a detention for both of you, this Friday." Just before she walked away, though, she added, quieter, "Mr Prewett is right. Those were some impressive and complicated spells. Well done. Ten points to Gryffindor."
It appeared to take Sirius and James a while to process what she'd just said as it took nearly twenty seconds for their mouths to fall open in shock as they sat back down. They both looked at the other two boys, asking if they'd heard right.
"Did she - did she seriously just do that?" said Sirius, now grinning all over again, his eyebrows raised in surprise.
James nodded, also beaming. "She just rewarded us for causing mischief! We were rewarded for breaking the rules."
"Merlin, I think she's gonna regret that," said Remus quietly.
Sirius was still grinning as he nodded in agreement and said, "I think you're right, mate." He paused before adding, smiling even broader, "That's not our problem, though."
The four Gryffindors were sat in their dorm, attempting a relaxing evening after the havoc caused by their prank earlier in the evening - Remus' idea. James and Sirius, though, were already discussing plans for a huge prank at Christmas, which just made Remus roll his eyes, even though Sirius had previously made him admit how much fun he'd had that night.
It was true, he'd had a fantastic time pulling the prank with his friends. He'd felt like he belonged. For the first time in his life, he'd felt valued and loved by his friends, like he truly belonged and was an equal to them. He knew it couldn't last forever, but wanted to hold onto it while he could.
Remus was pulled out of his thoughts when he felt Sirius' eyes boring into him. He tensed and looked up from his book, catching the other boy in the act. Sirius didn't seem even remotely embarrassed or ashamed to have been staring. He just smiled and said, "You alright, Rem?"
"Yeah, of course," said Remus, though he was still tense. "Are you alright?"
"Yeah," said Sirius, his face spreading into a grin. "It worked a treat!"
"Why did you tell McGonagall that Peter and I didn't do anything?"
Sirius just shrugged, "It's like James said. You still have a clean record - that'll make you useful later."
"Yeah," agreed James. "The longer you look innocent, the more we can get away with. It's tactics, Rem, tactics."
"Plus," continued Sirius, "You're our friends and McGonagall likes you, Remmy, so we don't want her opinions to change."
"Oh yeah," said James, speaking like an expert. "Having someone close to the teachers like that can be useful. We just need to maintain your good reputation, which should be easy as you seem petrified of getting told off anyway."
"No offence, mate, but he's right," said Sirius.
"So, I'm meant to be the 'sensible one'?"
"Exactly! At least, in the eyes of the professors, anyway."
"Yeah, we need your research skills, Rem, please don't go all goody-goody on us!" said James, mock panicked, making Remus and Peter laugh. Sirius grinned too.
I didn't really know how to end this one, sorry. But it's relatively long, compared to my others. And, I've already started writing the next one.
