Author's Note: Here's the chapter you've all been waiting for! It's the famed Whomping Willow incident! This is a little confusing, but if you pay attention to who is who, then you'll understand this. I did James and Lily, while sillykitty201 did Snape, Sirius, and Remus. Enjoy this amazing chapter!
FULL DISCLAIMER (again): This chapter is super confusing! You should really pay attention to who is who! As in, what 'fonts' everyone is in! Trust me, this chapter was really fun to do, but it's going to be super confusing if you keep forgetting.
Okay, okay sorry! You get it… I know.
So, ladies and gentlemen, I bring you, the chapter you've all been waiting for, the famed Whomping Willow incident!
Severus Snape
Sirius Black
Remus Moony Lupin
Lily Evans
James Potter
Blegh. Those Marauders can be such idiots!
Lily told me that the Marauders planned my birthday party. Immediately, I was revolted. Suddenly, the party had lost all its charm, and I felt like I needed to throw up. However, Lily insisted I thank them, so I had grudgingly done so.
BLEGH.
Then, Lily told me that she owed them eight favors, and I wanted to take back my (fake) gratitude immediately.
"Eight favors?!" I had asked incredulously, and she had nodded as if it was nothing big.
Luckily, I managed to convince her that it was a bad thing, and I can tell Lily is considering taking back the favors.
Ahh… I love it when Lily acts like a Slytherin…
She never should have been sorted into Gryffindor in the first place.
The Marauders finally came around, and the party was a success. Sev was so happy, and a few Slytherins even made it. And for the first time in forever, Sev actually thanked the Marauders.
Nevertheless, they are still filthy and stupid. Being friendly to them was a one time thing.
Sev confirmed this at the party, when he told me "You do realize that after this party, we'll all go back to hating each other?"
I nodded. "Obviously. But I owe the Marauders eight favors."
"Eight favors?!" Sev's eyes nearly popped out of his head. I wondered why he was so alarmed.
"Yeah.. but it's okay, Severus. I can handle this," I told him confidently.
"You do realize that James might use one to ask you out, or make you help them with a prank… right?"
WHAT?! I definitely did not realize this. I didn't show my sudden realization, though. I needed to prove that I can handle things on my own. Sometimes, Sev is a little overprotective and it gets unbearably annoying. So, I simply nodded, and Sev and I didn't speak of this anymore.
I thought of the many things that could go wrong with eight favors…
Uh - oh.
There's still time to back out…
Right?
Lily is more gullible than she lets on.
She made Snivellus thank us for throwing his birthday party, but anyone in their right mind would see that he was just mocking us. Honestly, I just think that Lily likes to convince herself that Snivellus is a good person.
And honestly, HE ISN'T!
Never has been, never will be.
I hung around during the party, only to admire what we did. I think we did a pretty good job. Especially considering the party was for our nemesis.
Plus, I was in the mood for cake.
Don't get me wrong, I did not hang around for Snivellus.
"We really did do a great job, didn't we?" Remus says as he appears beside me. I turn my head towards him and smile.
"Yup, we sure did."
Lily sat at the Slytherin table again today. I love when she does that! It proves that I have a chance at transferring her into Slytherin…
I don't know how, but I'm going to make her fall in love with me.
Anyway, we were talking about Lupin's full moon disappearances.
Of course, I have figured out by now that Lupin is a werewolf. He is a filthy half-breed, he's a werewolf. He's dangerous. HAnd he should not be allowed in Hogwarts! It's wrong!
Lily didn't realize what I was implying, and I didn't fill her in. She'll know soon enough.
I'll prove it to her, because I know I'm right.
I always am.
A few days after his birthday, I talked to Sev in the Great Hall. Sometimes I sit with him, and even though all of my friends disagree, I go and sit at the Slytherin table. Nobody stops me, so I guess it's alright. These prejudices really should stop. Obviously, Sev is happy when I sit at the Slytherin table.
"Hey, Lily!" he said cheerfully. He was being a bit.. Well… too cheery. I ignored this, assuming that he might just be in a cheerful mood.
"Hey!" I say with equal cheer, He smiles and nods, and then he says "So, do you ever notice that Remus is always… disappearing randomly?"
I tilt my head to the side, and then I remember the day when all the Marauders were in the hospital wing, all with a hollow look in their eyes. I quickly fill him in on that event, and Sev nods happily.
"It must be connected!" he says, and I nod.
We quietly sit in silence for a while, and Sev says something else.
"Lily.. that was the day after the full moon, right?"
I think for a minute, and nod. Then, I look at him curiously.
"Sev.. what are you implying?"
Sev doesn't say anything, he just focuses on his food, deep in thought. Sev obviously knows what Remus is doing, and I need to find out. I patiently wait for him to finish thinking, but it doesn't happen. Instead, he starts finishing his food, and he walks out of the Great Hall.
I start to run after him, but someone stops me. I turn around to find Mallory behind me.
"Stop!" she says. "Look, you really shouldn't go with him. He's trouble."
I am about to resist her, when I realize that there's something she's not telling me.
"What happened? What do you know?" I turn around to stare at her accusingly.
She throws her hands up, as if I have a sword and I am about to use it.
"Come with me, and I'll tell you," she says gently, and takes my hand. I don't resist her.
It's time to get some answers.
Laughter is the best medicine.
Did you know that? It's a saying that some muggles made up. I wish it was true. If it were, I might have been cured of my lycanthropy by now.
Well, I suppose it is what it is.
Currently, us four Marauders are laughing at some joke Sirius made. For a boy with a name like 'Sirius', Sirius is definitely not serious.
Ha.
Okay, okay, sorry! Corny joke, I know.
Sirius is still saying something. He's talking animatedly, using his hands to describe everything, but I don't really think I'm paying attention anymore.
Oww… I suddenly feel very queasy and I need to throw up…
OWWWW…
"Hey! Remus, Remus! Are you okay? Remus!" Sirius's voice.
"'M fine…" I mumble, but I'm really not. I think I'm going to faint, or maybe I'll just go to sleep….
"Remus! No, stay up, you idiot!" James hisses, as he smacks me over the head.
"Ow!"
"Remus, the full moon is in an hour, you need to rest."
Ew, rest. I don't want to rest!
"I don't wanna!" I whine and Peter sighs, knowing that this is not going to end well. I should know better, James is a real mother hen, and he is not going to let me out of his sight now….
"Up, now," James commands, glaring at Sirius and Peter. All three of them help me up to our dorm.
"But I don't wanna resttttt," I hiss and whine again, and I can tell that James really won't let me out of his sight now.
"Jamesie, see, he doesn't want to rest! Let him go, he'll be fiiiiine."
SMACK!
James smacks Sirius over the head, and drags all three of them out of the room.
"You daft… bloody… needs to… sleep… full moon…. So immature, Sirius!"
I smile, and drift off into sleep.
Ahhh… I absolutely love hearing Sirius get told off...
*snore*
"Moony?"
I wake up from my peaceful slumber slowly. Oww… why do I have such a headache?
"Moony?"
Oh, right. The full moon.
UGH.
"Moony!"
"I'm up," I mumble slowly, and I see Peter nod. "Peter? Where are the others?"
"Right here," a voice whispers to my left, and I turn to see Sirius and James looking at me with guilty looks on their faces.
"Moony, do you mind if I skip out today? I have to study for a History of Magic test, and cover for your rounds today."
I nod, recalling that James had offered to do my prefect rounds for me because of the full moon.
"Yeah, sure. And what about you Sirius?"
Sirius flinches at his name, "Well, um, I kind of have to talk to Regulus. You know…"
I do know. Regulus somehow found out about my secret, and Sirius has to make sure he doesn't tell anybody. I don't know how they do it, but those two brothers are masters at blackmailing. And not only blackmailing others, but also at blackmailing each other.
"Got it. Peter, you coming?"
"Yeah. Let's go," Peter says, and he slowly leads me to the Whomping Willow.
"I'll tell. I'll tell your family that you hang around half-breeds and blood traitors."
"As if they don't know already."
"Ah, but that's not my point. I have power over you. I can make your life so, so, much worse."
I don't think about the consequences for what I'm about to do. All I can think about is how mad Snape makes me, and how much I just want him to fucking die. Oh my god.
Why can't he just leave me alone!?
"You want to know what Remus is doing? What he is? Go. Go to the Whomping Willow and press the knot on the tree with a stick," I leaned closer, "I DARE YOU."
I smirk, and leave calmly.
And then it hits me. Oh Merlin, what have I done!?
"You want to know what Remus is doing? What he is? Go. Go to the Whomping Willow and press the knot on the tree with a stick," he leaned closer, "I DARE YOU."
Black proceeded to whirl around and march off, leaving me to go and find out what that werewolf really was.
Oh yes, I'm going to prove it! But first, I need to tell Lily.
I rush into the Great Hall excitedly. I'm going to prove to Lily that filthy half-breed doesn't deserve to be here!
"And.. they spelled her, Lily, Snape and his gang of no - good friends," Mallory finishes. Alice and a few other girls nod. I stare at them in horror.
"But - but.. I'm sure he has a reason. He would never spell me! Maybe those people were just doing something bad," I say, desperately trying to defend Sev.
They all shake their heads, but they don't say anything else. Sev wouldn't have done this. He's nice, and he wouldn't even hurt me. I know he wouldn't. These were all just lies. I bet Alice and Mallory just said that because they don't like Sev. They're just jealous.
"You're liars," I tell them, staring hard at each of them. I fix my eyes on Alice, and say "You guys are just jealous." I turn to look at Mallory. "You're just jealous because I have a friend who's a Slytherin, and you don't. Because I have a friend who cares. Because I spend more time with him than you. You're jealous, and you're liars."
I promptly go back to the Slytherin table to finish my food, when Sev suddenly reappears again. He looks excited, almost like a pirate who found the mother lode of gold.
"I got it! I know how to do it! I know!" he exclaims suddenly.
I stare at him curiously, but he doesn't respond.
"All you need to know is that I need to get past the Whomping Willow-"
"The WHAT?!" I exclaim. "Sev, that's dangerous! What the hell are you thinking?!"
"No, it's fine. I know how to defeat it. I just need to take a stick and poke the knot in the tree. The tree will immobilize, and-"
I scoff. "Seriously! That's so stupid! That will never work! What are you even trying to prove?"
He stares at me, and I can see something I've never seen before in his eyes.
Hatred.
"I will go," he says, and he turns to leave.
"Who even told you this?!" I say furiously.
He turns around for a second, as if almost considering not going. He doesn't respond, and then he reaches the door of the Great Hall.
"Who told you?!" I repeat, louder this time.
We are a few feet apart, but I'm sure he can hear me perfectly. He stops, turns around, and says "Black."
I close my eyes and shake my head.
What. An. Idiot.
"I got it! I know how to do it! I know!" I exclaim, and Lily tilts her head at me curiously. I don't respond, I'm too busy thinking of ways to get Lupin expelled.
"All you need to know is that I need to get past the Whomping Willow-" I start, but Lily jumps in.
"The WHAT?! Sev, that's dangerous! What the hell are you thinking?!"
I am a little taken aback by her use of words. Lily doesn't usually curse, and it is unlike her to do so now. I don't show this, because I am still too excited about getting that half-breed expelled.
"No, it's fine. I know how to defeat it. I just need to take a stick and poke the knot in the tree. The tree will immobilize and-" I try to reassure her, but Lily cuts me off again.
"Seriously! That's so stupid! That will never work! What are you even trying to prove?" she scoffs disbelievingly, and suddenly, I am filled with hate. I want to get Lupin and his stupid friends expelled. I want to prove to Lily that I am right, and that I always have been. I want Lily to fall in love with me.
There are so many things I'm trying to prove, but Lily won't understand.
Not yet.
"I will go," I state icily, but as I turn to go, Lily stops me.
"Who even told you this?!"
I stop. I should tell her, shouldn't I? No… I can tell her after I come back.
"Who told you?!" Lily repeats, but she says it louder, and more demanding.
I stop and turn around.
"Black."
Then, in one fluid motion, I whirl around and walk out of the Great Hall.
"James! James, I made a big mistake! I'm sorry, I didn't mean to… I just…" James is sitting by the fire, sipping a hot cocoa that one of the elves must have made. He looks up at me, amusement in his eyes.
"Sirius! Spit it out already!"
"ItoldSnapehowtogetpasttheWhompingWillow," I spit out my words quickly. Any other person wouldn't understand what I said, but James is James so he immediately spits out his cocoa, throws a textbook at me, and rushes out the dorm.
Oh Merlin, what have I done!?
I rush past everyone in the hallway, ignoring everything that's around me - like when Slughorn yells at me, or when Minnie gives me suspicious glares.
I reach the gargoyle statue, and immediately begin spitting out random candy names.
"Bertie Botts Every Flavor Beans!
Chocolate Frogs!
Acid Pops!
Cauldron Cakes!
Fizzing Whizbees!"
Godric... why won't the statue spin! Open! Oh Merlin, oh Merlin… what am I going to do?!
"For the love of Godric, for the love of bloody fucking Albus Dumbledore, just please open up! PLEASE! For the sake of your lemon drops and Liquorice Wands and whatnot-"
I hate to admit this, but I'm near tears now. But then the gargoyle spins around, and I stared at the empty space, shell-shocked.
"Licorice Wands? REALLY!?"
I shake it off, and run inside. I really have to tell Dumbledore what happened!
"Hello, Mr. Black. What do you need?"
"Sir… I made a mistake. A big mistake."
"What kind of mistake?" he asked thoughtfully. There was no hint of distress or anger in his voice.
I hold up my hand, and shake my head. If I have to talk, then I have to talk fast so I can get through my explanation.
"Please, Professor Dumbledore, you have to let me speak. Without any interruptions. Please."
I look up at him and he nods slowly, granting me permission to go on.
"I told Snape how to get past the Whomping Willow. I know Moo- Remus is there right now, but he was taunting me, and I just couldn't resist! I know, that's not an excuse, and I'm so, so sorry! Right now, James went to go save Snape, and he's there right now. With Lily I believe. ANYWAY, that's not the point. The point is, well, the point is that I've been an idiot, and I'm really sorry."
I looked up gradually, and I could see no emotion on his face. After a minute, he had still said nothing. I was starting to get worried.
When he finally opened his mouth, I braced myself for a lecture or at least a trace of anger. But Dumbledore didn't yell. Calmly, quietly, he nodded, opened his mouth and said:
"Alright, Mr. Black."
Uh-oh. I'm in big trouble aren't I?"
Oh Godric, I am in big trouble.
Just a few steps closer… almost there…
All I have to do is press the knot in the tree. The knot in the tree. Okay, closer… OW!
Blasted branch.
Okay. Now avoid the branches and move forward… slowly… quickly…
YES!
Now slowly put your hand forward…
OWWWWW… stupid branch.
Okay, again…
And again…
And again….
And again…
And again…
And again…
And again…
"SNAPE, WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!"
AUGH! Damn you bloody Potter!
"Aoooooooooooo!"
I look around for my friends. Where are they?
"Prongs? Padfoot? Wormtail?" I look around. There's no sign of them.
I sniff the ground, and suddenly, I feel a sudden thirst for blood. I begin clawing at myself, biting, nipping. Whatever I can find.
"STOP!" squeaks a voice, and I look up. What is that? It sounds like Wormtail, but where is he?
"Wormtail?"
"Right here, Moony." I follow the sound, and I look down. Wormtail is looking up at me.
"Oh, hi."
"We're not going into the woods today," he says, and I look at him curiously.
"Where're Padfoot and Prongs?"
The rat seems to shrug, and I slowly sit down, tail between my legs.
"AOOOOOOOOO!" I howl at the moon. And then….
"Wormtail," I say, giddy and excited. I can finally taste blood! "Do you smell that? FRESH MEAT!"
"Fresh meat? What are you-"
Then, it hits him. I am talking about a human. I smell the fresh meat, and I want it.
I sit quietly at the Gryffindor table, finishing up my food. I am thinking of going after Sev, but my anger and fury tells me to hold back. After finishing my dinner, I head back to the Gryffindor common room with my friends. I sit down on the couch peacefully, when James bursts into the common room.
"Lily! I need your help! Snape is going to get himself killed!" he says, alarmed.
That's when it all clicks.
Disappearances?
Full moon?
Hollow look in their eyes?
Remus Lupin is a werewolf.
"He's a werewolf, isn't he?" Lily says.
"Yeah, but don't tell anyone. Especially Snape. And.. uh.. don't judge him, okay? He's been through a lot, and the last thing he'll want is you judging him because he's a werewolf. It's not his fault, really, he-" I start defending Remus, but Lily cuts me off.
"No, I don't judge him," she says kindly, and the corners of my lips turn up a little. Then, I realize the task at hand.
"Uh.. we need to rescue your friend," I tell her.
"My.. friend?" she says questioningly, but I can tell she knows who I'm talking about.
"Snape," I say. "Padfoot.. he - he made a mistake, and now we need to save him."
"Okay, but what happened? If I need to help you, I need to know what's going on."
"Uh.. let's walk and talk," I start walking out of the common room, and Lily follows me.
Once we are in the hallways, I take a deep breath and begin speaking. "Umm.. so Remus does his transformation in the Whomping Willow, and Sirius told him to go there so he can figure out what Remus is. Problem is, Sirius was joking and told Snape the wrong instructions to get past the Whomping Willow, and the Whomping Willow can severely damage you if you don't know how to get past it. And if you do, well then, Moony as a werewolf will be inside, waiting to eat fresh meat," I say breathlessly.
"AOOOOOOOOO!" I howl again in glee, and pounce toward the entrance. Wormtail squeaks, and jumps up to stop me.
He leaps onto my back, but I shove him off.
I move closer and closer towards the entrance. Almost there… wait I smell more! I smell three!
I hear voices suddenly, and then I pounce. They come into view. I recognize one's voice distinctly, but the others are new. I growl and get ready to pounce, but the familiar one grabs the other ones and shoves them aside.
"RUN!" he screams and they turn around and sprint away. I get ready to go after them, and suddenly I see…
"PRONGS?"
The stag grunts and pushes me back with his antlers.
I try to move against him, but he doesn't let go. Wormtail perches on his back, squeaking away. I can't hear anything, I just smell meat… fresh meat…
Slowly, Prongs backs away, and runs out of the shack. The door closes, and I can distinctly smell meat before it disappears again.
Aw, man.
Lily doesn't say a word, and she seems to be taking this without any gasps of surprise.
"So.. we have to save Sev, right?" she says.
I nod, and we start rushing down to the Whomping Willow. I don't know why we've been walking this whole time, seeing as we really don't have much time.
I see Snape, and he tries to poke at a knot in the tree. The Whomping Willow waves its branches wildly, daring to hit Snape, but he continues trying to duck the branches and reach the center
I roll my eyes a dozen times in my head, and rush over to Snape.
"Snape, what are you doing?!" I yell over the sound of the tree branches waving. Snape stares back at us with a fiery, maddening look in his eyes.
"Lily, I will prove to you that I'm right!" he yells back, and that's when a tree branch hits him over the head.
Lily looks like she is also prepared to also smack Snape over the head, because she looks furious. We both rush over to help Snape, and we help him stand up.
"Sev, you idiot! What are you doing?! How stupid are you?! That will not work! You will get killed!" Lily hollers, and Snape and I are both taken aback by Lily's words.
"It will work!" he hollers back, and starts making his way back to the tree. Lily and I stare at each other and nod. We duck under the branches and head over to Snape. Lily takes a hold of his legs, while I take his upper body. Snape tries to break free, but we're too strong.
"Let-go-of-me!" he says, struggling to break free from our grip as we pull him back.
We manage to drag him a few inches, until he uses his wand to break free. I grab my own wand, and Lily just stares at us like we're crazy.
"You're going to duel when we're about to get killed?!" she says incredulously.
"I'm guessing..." I say doubtfully, and that's when Snape fires a jinx at me. I jump aside just in time.
Lily sighs and shakes her head.
"Immobulus!" Snape says, and points to the Whomping Willow. It freezes, and he stares back at me.
"Time for a real wizard fight," he says.
I sigh and nod.
"Expelliarmus!" we both say, and our wands are thrust out of our hands. Lily grabs a hold of them, and we both rush to get it back.
"Lily, come on, give it back," I plead, and Snape does the same. Lily doesn't budge, but rather, she puts both wands in her pockets and uses her wand to freeze us.
"Petrificus Totalus!" she says, doing it in turn to each of us.
We both freeze, and that's when the Whomping Willow starts again. Lily ducks to avoid, and then she turns to me and unfreezes me.
"How do we make it stop?!" she says, and I get to work.
I avoid all it's branches and push the knot with surprising agility. The branches stop, and a passage underground opens up. Lily lets out a sigh of relief, and then unfreezes Snape.
Snape looks around him, and I guess this is the part where he realizes he was being stupid. He doesn't say anything, he just stays silent. We all start heading back, and that's when I hear a faint growl.
Remus.
"RUN!" I scream, grabbing Lily and Snape and pushing them towards the school.
I rush to close to the passage, and Lily and Snape run towards the castle. As soon as they turn around, I transform into Prongs and hold back Remus..
As I rush into the castle, I grab Snape and I push him into Dumbledore's office. Lily is right behind us. We reach his office, and it seems Dumbledore is waiting for us with Sirius beside him. I let go of Snape slowly.
I throw my head back and close my eyes.
This is going to be a long night.
Professor Dumbledore called me inside his office, and I quietly crept in. I'll admit, I was a little terrified and nervous. After all, I've never done something bad (or good, in that matter) to land me in here. Dumbledore watched me with his half - moon spectacles as I stopped to stare at all his trinkets and the portraits on the wall. Soon enough, I managed to stumble onto the chair.
"Ah, Ms. Evans. How are you doing today?" Professor Dumbledore asked.
"Good," I mumbled. For a few seconds, Professor Dumbledore surveyed me through his spectacles, his piercing blue eyes boring into mine, and then he continued.
"There's no need to be afraid, Ms. Evans. I have brought you to here to thank you for helping Mr. Snape."
"It was no problem," I said sheepishly, and he smiled.
"Modest, are we? No need to be. Consider this as a vote of thanks coming from me. I am very pleased with you, Ms. Evans. You will turn out to be a great witch someday."
My cheeks flushed, especially because I was hearing this from the great wizard Dumbledore.
"Th - thank you, Professor," I managed, adding in a smile.
"Not at all, Ms. Evans. I would like you to give Gryffindor house fifty points for your bravery and kindness today."
"Fifty points?!" I exclaimed, and then I lowered my voice a little. "Wow, that's just, thank you so much, Professor!"
Professor Dumbledore smiled again, and I found myself wondering how he could be so upbeat about one of his students nearly dying that night.
I left his office still holding onto that thought.
"Come in, James," Dumbledore says.
I enter the room, taking my normal place for when I am usually there. Dumbledore starts talking immediately.
"You obviously know why I called you here. I called you here to congratulate on your bravery when facing the Whomping Willow. You have shown a great deal of strength and honor. Firstly, you faced the Whomping Willow, which is a tree that has the ability to kill you. And you went through the tree to save Mr. Snape. I can tell this meant a great deal to you because I can see that.." Dumbledore chose his words carefully.
"...that you are not very good friends with Mr. Snape," he finished.
I nodded throughout his whole "speech of honor". Normally, I would be zoning out, and not even listening to anything he says. But, when the speech is about me.. Well, you have to admit, those are very different circumstances. I nod as he continues to talk.
"Thank you, Professor," I tell him proudly, and he smiles.
"And for that bravery, Mr. Potter, I would like to award you fifty points."
My mouth drops.
My eyes nearly bulge out of their sockets.
Dumbledore lets out a light chuckle, and I quickly muster something.
"Th - thank you," I tell him. I'm so used to losing points for my house, that receiving fifty points meant a great deal to me. I guess a little heroism here and there doesn't hurt too much, now does it?
As I leave the room, all I can think about is how my parents will be extremely proud of me, and how I have all the bragging rights in the world.
And then..
Then, I remember what Sirius has done. That daft idiot..
Dumbledore will spare him, won't he?
"Mister Snape, please come in."
"Hello, Professor," I reply. Then, I walk into the room gracefully and take a seat as though this had all been planned out.
Dumbledore simply stares at me over those half-moon spectacles.
What, he wants me to confess? Confess that I was being stupid? Well, I wasn't going to! I was right, and Remus Lupin should be expelled!
Finally, Dumbledore sighs, and shakes his head.
"I assume you want me to expel Mr. Lupin for being a werewolf," he takes off his glasses, rubs at them with a cloth, and then puts them back on. "Am I correct?"
I nod slowly, and Dumbledore sighs again.
"You are not to tell anyone about this. Do you understand? No one finds out about this except for the four Marauders, you, and Miss Evans. Understood?"
WHAT!?
"B- but- Professor… what?"
"Mr. Snape, do you think that I let a werewolf into my school unknowingly?"
Hold up. WHAT!?
"Yes, I have known all along. It has been a secret for all these years, and it will remain a secret. Understood?"
No. Not understood at all.
"B- but what if I do tell?"
"Then you leave me no choice but to expel you. A teacher's trust, much less a student's trust, should never be broken."
I shudder at the thought of being expelled. I shudder at the thought of living with a werewolf in the school. I shudder.
"And those Marauders? You think they won't tell?"
Dumbledore lets out another exasperated sigh. Man, what's with the sighing?!
"Severus, they are his friends. They have known since second year, and have not cared. They have kept it a secret, as will you."
"Fine… but what makes you think those Marauders didn't set me up? THEY MUST HAVE WANTED ME TO GET KILLED!"
Okay, I know I may be overreacting, but honestly. I NEARLY DIED!
"No. You were pestering Mr. Black. You knew the consequences, I am sure. You were simply so intent on finding out Mr. Lupin's secret, you didn't think. This is not on the Marauders. It's on you."
I open my mouth to protest, but Dumbledore beats me to it.
"Dismissed Mister Snape."
"Mister Black."
Okay… my turn. My turn to speak with Albus Dumbledore.
It wouldn't be that bad, except for the fact that I nearly caused the death of one of his students, and I didn't even go to save him myself.
See what I mean?
"Hello Professor."
Dumbledore nodded, recognizing my presence.
"You have done a very dishonorable thing today."
It was more than dishonorable! It was stupid! It was foolish, ludicrous, senseless… it was deceitful, despicable… it was… it was… worthy of a Black.
Damn.
"Professor… I know what I did was stupid…"
"It was."
"But please, please don't expel me. Please! I'm sorry, I'll do anything, really-"
"I won't expel you."
Say what?
"Sir?"
"I'd expect your friends will be very frosty with you for a while. And because I know how much you hold them in high regard, I have decided that that is punishment enough."
...I think he's gone insane.
"Other than a month of detentions of course."
There it is.
"Okay… okay, thank you so much Professor!"
"Whatever for?" he asked, his eyes twinkling.
"For not expelling me."
He nodded sagely, and then said, "I think you should save your gratitude for when your friends forgive you."
I open my mouth to say more, and then close it. There is nothing left to be said.
My consequences are mine, and mine alone, and I must deal with them.
Owww… my head hurts.
Again.
My scars… wait, why do I have scars? Oh right, Prongs and Padfoot weren't here last night.
Wait a sec.
"WHAT THE BLOODY HELL!?"
I get up, and storm out of the shack, ignoring all the cries of pain from my scars. I find my friends in the dormitory. Sirius has his curtains closed, and James is glaring at the wall furiously, tossing a ball up and down. Peter is supposedly reading a book, but it is clear to everyone that he's not actually reading it. I bet he hasn't flipped a page in an hour.
"What the bloody hell happened?!" I demand furiously, and James looks up, mildly interested.
"A lot of stuff," he whispers softly, and then he storms out of the room.
Peter tilts his head to the side and sighs, "Look, Remus… I can't explain anything." When I reach towards Sirius's curtains, Peter continues, "Neither can he, Remus! You… you should really ask James. I'm pretty sure he'd explain it the best."
I look at Peter warily, and then run out to follow James.
James is in the common room talking to Lily.
"What happened, James?" I hiss, grabbing his shoulder.
"Sirius told Snape. Snape went ahead to the shack to test it out and Lily and I managed to stop him in time. Everything else is handled."
James's voice was soft, but there was a certainferocity behind his words that I didn't quite like. James gave Lily a look, and then left the common room.
"Lily…"
"I don't care, Remus. You are a wonderful friend! Sure, you turn into a werewolf once a month, but I don't care about that!" she says kindly.
"Thank you, Lily," I reply, smiling fondly. She smiles back.
"Remus…."
I whir around to face my ex - best friend. The one who sold me out.
Sirius Black is standing there, shifting from foot to foot, looking at me with pain in his eyes and a grimace on his face.