Marauders at War
"It's been two weeks, and nothing." Sirius said cheerfully as they were walking towards the Slytherin's apartments to celebrate Remus' eighteenth birthday. "I think the antidote might be working."
"Or Snape's decided that what he had was good enough and stopped because he doesn't want to get caught." Claudia replied. "We will never now."
"Cheer up." He playfully poked her with his elbow. "There is nothing wrong with having bit of hope."
"You just don't want to tell the others about the poison." She frowned.
"And you do?" Sirius uttered as they got to the passage. "We should avoid it if we can."
Claudia did not get a chance to respond as James, Lily and Remus were already there. She did not want to tell them either, but that was not a good enough reason to believe blindly that the antidote was working. She had been wrecking her brain for the last two weeks to see if there was another way to prove that the antidote was effective enough to convince Snape that his concoction did not work, but she came up with nothing. The poison was still the best bet.
Few minutes later, Peter finally turned up too, concealing a chocolate cake under his robes.
"I'm not sure how to say this." He mumbled as he unpacked it. "But I heard there was someone in the hospital wing again."
"It can't be." James frowned. "Are you sure you've heard right?"
"I'm sure." Peter nodded vigorously.
"But I've taken the antidote." Lily jumped in. "And I'm fine."
"You didn't get sick before the antidote either." Claudia paused. "Are you sure you're a muggleborn?"
"I'm sure." Lily scoffed. "And even if I wasn't, it would still work because I think I'm a muggleborn. And it works because of psychology and not biology, doesn't it?"
Claudia shrugged. Lily was right, and her tone made it clear that she was not really expecting an answer. Almost instantly, however, Lily's expression had changed. Her face had dropped and the fire in her eyes was gone.
"I wonder whether…" She added so quietly that Claudia could barely hear her.
"Whether he could somehow be protecting you?" James said and Lily gave a barely noticeable nod.
"Because you used to be friends?" Claudia asked.
"Because he's always had a crush on me." Lily uttered. "But how would he protect me from this? I'm as muggleborn as they get, and I have been eating and drinking the same as everyone else."
"Are you absolutely sure about that?" Remus asked. "Isn't there anything you do that's different? Any food you skip?"
"I'm sure. There is absolutely nothing -" Lily froze mid-sentence and paused. "I take vitamins every day." She added somewhat tentatively.
"Vitamins?" James asked. "What's that?"
"Kind of muggle medicine." Lily explained. "My mum stands by them. They're supposed to keep you healthy."
"He could have easily got a house-elf to switch those to slip you a real antidote." Sirius said.
"Does it mean our antidote isn't working?" Peter asked.
"Possibly." Remus mumbled. "We could try to analyse these vitamins to see if we can find traces of Snape's antidote. Maybe we could improve use them to improve ours but that's going to take time." He added with a sigh.
No one said a word. Claudia glanced at Sirius, who was looking at her, his eyebrows raised in anticipation. There was never going to be a better time to bring up the wild rosemary.
Claudia took a deep breath. They could avoid it no longer.
"We all know there is another way." She whispered.
"No." James shook his head resolutely. "We've been through this. It's wrong. And besides, we don't have the luxury to spend weeks finding the right poison."
"We don't have to." Claudia uttered and looked at Sirius, seeking encouragement. "It's ready."
"What?" James barked. "You worked on this behind our backs?"
"It's the better plan." Claudia replied, trying to sound patient.
"I should've known better than to trust someone like you." James scoffed. He was looking at her in the same way he used to look at her when she started dating Sirius. With mistrust and revulsion in his eyes.
"Someone like what?" She barked.
"Where do I even start?!" James rolled his eyes. "You're a Slytherin. And we all know what your family are like. Clearly, the apple doesn't fall far from the tree."
"That's enough, James." Sirius growled and took a step or two closer to Claudia, so they stood shoulder to shoulder. "Just listen to us."
"Us?" James hissed and his face tensed up. "You knew about this?" He was addressing Sirius directly now.
"Yes." Sirius replied defiantly. "And I agree with Claude. Something must be done, and this is the only way."
"Have you lost your mind?" James shouted.
"Last year, you would have been all for it." Sirius sneered. "Since Evans here and the Head Boy crap, you've gone all soft."
"Sure." James said through gritted teeth. His jaw was stiff, and fists clenched. Claudia had never seen him this angry. "Should have also found a girlfriend that brings out the absolute worst in me. Then we could all go and murder some purebloods together."
Sirius looked like he was about to launch himself at James, but Claudia put her arm across his body to stop him.
"I'm not proposing to murder anyone." She said. "We picked it carefully. It would just imitate the symptoms."
"What is it?" Remus pitched in.
"Extract of wild rosemary." Claudia replied. "In the dose we are talking about, I'm pretty sure the effects wouldn't be permanent."
"No." James yelled. "I'm not talking about this. This is not what we do."
"You're being pathetic." Sirius shouted back. He was now livid too. "It's going to cost lives."
"I'm sorry if I don't want to contemplate murder." James scoffed. Then he paused and took a good look at Sirius. He was breathing heavily, his nostrils were wide and brow furrowed. "But why should I be surprised? We all know you have it in you."
Before anyone could react, Sirius had his wand out and threw a hex that propelled James against the wall. Someone shrieked. Claudia was not entirely sure whether it was Lily or Peter. Probably the latter.
"Thank you for proving my point." James smirked as he collected himself from the floor. And without another word, he disappeared through the door. Lily followed him. The look on her face could kill.
"James crossed a line." Claudia whispered and reached out for Sirius' arm.
"Don't." Sirius hissed and pulled away. And just like that, he was out of the apartments too.
"Should someone go after him?" Peter asked in Remus' direction.
"If you want your head bitten off." Claudia sighed. "He just needs time. He'll be back. After all, those two bickered before."
"Not like this, they haven't." Remus mumbled. He was even paler than usual. Either the full moon was approaching or James referring to Sirius' 'prank' on Snape hit him hard. "Happy birthday to me." He added sarcastically and dropped to the floor.
"Anyone for cake?" Claudia asked. She walked over to pick up the box, but it was on the floor now, probably thrown there by the strengths of Sirius' jinx. It was surely reduced to chocolate mush. She drooped the box into Remus' lap and gave him a fork.
"Do you think James is going to come around?" She asked, as she picked up her own fork and took a bite. "We really can't waste the time."
"How can you still talk like this?" Peter shrieked, interrupting her. "Haven't you done enough damage?" He added, tears falling down his cheeks. Without another word, he was out of the room too.
"Great." Remus sighed and stuck his fork into the cake again. "You have no idea what the dormitory is going to be like tonight. Can't believe it's up to me to sort it all out again."
"What do you think about the plan?" Claudia asked.
"I think it's incredibly dangerous and stupid, but also quite brilliant. I see why Sirius likes it." Remus looked at her a sighed. "I see why Sirius likes you."
"You like him, don't you?" Claudia whispered. She was not quite sure what possessed her to ask that. But it was too late. The genie was out of the bottle.
"He's one of my best friends." Remus shrugged. "Of course, I like him."
"Not what I meant." Claudia uttered. She was staring right at Remus, who clearly understood. She could see he swallowed and began fidgeting with his sleeves.
"How long have you known?" He mumbled.
"Since you told me about your lycanthropy." She replied. "Does he know?"
"We made out once. We were very drunk." He whispered. "I doubt he even remembers it." When Claudia said nothing or reacted in any way, he continued. "I realised pretty quickly afterwards that I was not the one he wanted to be with." Remus added and smiled at her.
"Why don't you hate me?" She asked.
"Because I've made my peace with it a long time ago." Remus said. "My love for him is entirely platonic now. And I'm genuinely glad he's got you."
"Thank you." Claudia smiled back, not entirely sure whether she was thanking him for telling her, or for not hating her guts. She knew that if the tables were turned, she would not have been quite so dignified about it. "I better go look for him, then." She added and grabbed another mouthful of cake, before setting off to search for her boyfriend.
She found him on the top of the Astronomy Tower. He was crumbled in the corner, smoking and clutching onto his legs.
"James really did cross a line." Claudia whispered.
"I don't want to talk about it." Sirius mumbled, without even raising his eyes to look at her.
"Do you want a hug?" She asked.
Sirius looked at her from beneath his eyelashes and briefly raised the corners of his mouth. That was good enough for Claudia. She sat down next to him, wrapped her arms around his torso and dropped her head onto his shoulder. With a sigh, Sirius let go of his legs and hugged her back, resting his head on hers.
They sat there in silence.
"Do you think I have it in me?" He whispered after what felt like an age.
"I think we all have it in us." Claudia replied. "It's what you do with that side of yourself that counts."
Sirius sighed and lit another cigarette.
"James will come around." She whispered. "I'm sure of it."
"I really don't want to talk about it." Sirius mumbled and continued to stare across the Hogwarts grounds. They sat up there until the cold air forced them to leave. The only words that Sirius managed to get out of him was half-hearted 'good night' when they parted their ways to go to bed.
About a week had passed without improvement to anyone's mood. James did not even look at Claudia, he was still fuming. Lily looked like she wanted to talk to her, but seemingly changed her mind every time they got near each other. For that, Claudia was somewhat grateful. Conspiring with Lily to fix the situation was the last thing she wanted to do. It would only annoy Sirius even more.
Peter looked paler and thinner by the day and kept dropping things. He clearly hated that Sirius and James were not speaking.
But that was nothing compared to the mood Sirius was in. He got through a pack of cigarettes a day, got more detentions than he did the whole time he had been dating Claudia, and barely spoke to anyone. Claudia tried getting through to him, but there was little point. He ran off every time she tried.
The only person who would actually engage with Claudia these days was Remus. He forever complained how he had been trying to talk some sense into his friends, but without any success. That reinforced Claudia's belief that only James and Sirius could work this out between the two of them.
Claudia was grateful that she had her NEWTs and the all-important interview for her job in the Auror Office to prepare for. It left her little time to worry about anyone or anything else.
One evening, Claudia was in the library doing some last-minute preparations when she got a note from Remus via some terrified-looking second-year.
"Madame Pomfrey has someone new in the hospital wing. Peace talks in the usual place. Now."
Claudia sighed and got up. The preparations would have to wait.
When she got to the dungeons, she found Peter sitting in the corridor outside of the entrance.
"Forgotten the spell to get inside?" She asked him.
"This is all your fault." He shrieked without even acknowledging her original question.
"What now?" Claudia frowned. She was used to people blaming her for all sorts of things, but Peter had never stood up to her, or anyone else for that matter, before.
"We were all fine before you turned up." He added, slurring his words.
"Had too much butterbeer, hadn't you?" Claudia smirked and walked towards the passage.
"I'm not going to let you in." Peter jumped in front of her, somewhat unsteady on his feet. "Go away and never come back."
"Get out of my way." Claudia hissed and pushed him to the side.
Peter stumbled against the wall, but that did not deter him in the slightest. If anything, it made him even angrier.
"Sirius deserves someone nice and kind and pretty." He mumbled. "Not an ugly toxic bitch like you."
Claudia gripped her wand and slowly turned to face him, determined to show him what a toxic bitch could do when someone annoyed her. Peter shrieked and tried to get back on his feet and to find his own wand.
"Pathetic creature." Claudia uttered and instead of jinxing him, pointed her wand at the secret passage and opened it.
"One of you might want to fetch Peter." She said when she walked into the apartments, pointing over her shoulder. "He seems slightly worse for wear."
Without a word, James went to get him.
"OK. I've had enough. We are sorting this out now." Remus began when they were all assembled. "Who wants to start?"
"I'm sorry to both of you. I didn't mean the things I've said. I just…" James paused, with a subtle side-glance at Lily. "Pads, we promised each other we would never let anything or anyone come between us, and you not telling me about something like this. It hurts."
"I'm sorry for hexing you." Sirius uttered.
"Right." Remus said resolutely. "Now, I want to have an adult conversation about what we do next. Do we fix the antidote? Do we try the poison? No name-calling, no arguments, no acting on impulse." Remus added with an aura of a teacher at the end of his tether.
"Look, I'm sorry I hid this from you." Claudia began and took out the large vial of the wild rosemary extract from her bag and placed it on the table. "But I genuinely feel like this is the only way to stop them."
"If we were to do this." James began with an unduly emphasis on the word 'if'. "How are we any different from them?"
"Because we aren't trying to harm anyone." Claudia replied. "The effects are just temporary. And we have a very good reason. A noble one, even."
"How do you know it's safe?" James asked.
"Oh, for fuck's sake." Sirius growled, grabbed the vial from the table and before anyone could stop him, took a sip. "There. We are about to find out just how safe it is. Happy?"
"What did I just say?!" Remus yelled. "No acting on impulse!"
"Too late." Sirius smirked. "We don't have time to resolve it your way, Moony."
"How are you feeling?" Claudia whispered to Sirius urgently. Now that Sirius had himself drunk the poison, she was suddenly feeling a lot less sure about how harmless it really was.
"I'm fine." Sirius mumbled.
Everyone looked at him in silence. Remus kept sighing as if he was about to say something. Every time, however, he thought better of it. He clearly wanted to yell at Sirius but, at the same time, did not want to put any further strain on his friend's mind and body.
"What now?" Peter squealed. "Do we take you to the hospital wing?"
"Too early." James mumbled. "We need to wait until he's actually ill." Despite her anxiety, Claudia had to smile a little. James was finally on board with the mad plan.
"Let's go to dinner then." Sirius said and gave his best friend a fleeting smile. When no one moved, he continued. "Come on people, you've got to act normal."
What followed was the most awkward dinner that Claudia had ever experienced. That was saying something, given the number of torturous hours she spent in her parents' dining room. James and Sirius were exchanging lame jokes. Remus kept glaring at everyone, Peter kept dropping his cutlery and Lily was staring at them all in complete disbelief. Claudia was increasingly conscious that Lily had not said a word all evening. It was very disconcerting.
"Are you still feeling ok?" Claudia whispered in Sirius' ear as they were about the part ways and go into their respective common rooms. Her hand was gripping his arm anxiously just about his elbow.
"Stop fussing!" Sirius laughed.
"I'll stop fussing when I know I haven't killed you!" Claudia hissed. "Write to me the moment you feel anything."
"I'll be fine." He said and gave her a kiss. "You said it yourself. It's safe."
Claudia went back to her dormitory and hid behind the curtains of her bed. She took out her interview notes, tried to concentrate, but could not. She wanted nothing more than to walk over to the Gryffindor Tower and keep an eye on Sirius, make sure he was alright. But they had to act normal. It would have been extremely foolish to take that sort of risk.
So instead, she took out a little box from her trunk where she kept her personal things and began to take them out. One by one. There was the 'Blood-traitor and proud' badge that Sirius gave her just before they got together, which always brought a smile to her face. She still had the scarf from the night they first kissed. And then, there was the photo album he gave her after their trip to Edinburgh. Claudia went through it, touching his face on every picture. She had absolutely no idea what she would do if something was to happen to him, and could not contain her unease any longer.
"How are you feeling?" She wrote in her two-way notebook.
"Never better." Sirius replied almost instantly. Claudia frowned. Did everything have to be a joke to him?
"Promise to write if anything happens?" She added.
It took a while before two lines appeared on the page in Sirius' handwriting.
"I promise only if you promise to go to bed."
"I'd rather you were on top form tomorrow. You are my best chance of making it if something goes wrong."
Claudia had no idea what to say. She hovered over the page with her quill for a long time. Her anxiety was crippling her ability to both think and write.
"I love you." That was all she managed to scribble before shutting the notebook and tugging it under her pillow.
She wrapped Sirius' old scarf around her neck and laid down. She kept checking the notebook every five minutes until she finally fell asleep. It was well past two o'clock when that happened.
Claudia was relieved to see Sirius at breakfast the following morning. At first, he appeared fine but was starting to look rather pale and his forehead was gleaming with sweat. When he tried to get on his feet and make his way to class, he stumbled. Claudia and James caught him from either side.
"Uh oh." Sirius winced. "Here we go."
"Let's get you to the hospital wing." James whispered and put Sirius' arm over his shoulder. Remus did the same from the other side and they were on their way.
By the time they got there, Sirius was barely conscious.
"What happened to him?" Madame Pomfrey demanded to know as they walked through the door.
"Just collapsed at breakfast." Remus replied. "Looks to me like the symptoms that the other students had."
"Put him over there." Madame Pomfrey said and pointed towards one of the empty beds.
Once they got Sirius into the bed, Claudia leaned in and gently kissed his forehead.
"You can start fussing now." Sirius managed to utter with difficulty. He was clutching his stomach and his face was twisted with agony.
"You're going to be alright." She replied. "I promise."
But Claudia did not get a response. Sirius was out.
Madame Pomfrey let her stay in the hospital wing for the day. No one could expect her to attend classes like nothing had happened. So, she stayed at Sirius' bedside to make sure he was breathing and helped Madame Pomfrey administer the necessary antidotes and potions.
"Sit down, dear." Madame Pomfrey said when Claudia tried to measure out the evening antidote but spilled it on the floor. Her hands were shaking.
"Is it the same thing that the others had?" Claudia asked. Focusing on the plan was helping her to keep sane.
"Looks like it." The matron replied. "He should be ok."
"I know." Claudia sighed.
"You should go get some sleep." Madame Pomfrey added with a smile. "I don't want you to end up here with exhaustion. I really don't need another patient."
"I rather stay." Claudia mumbled.
"I can give you a potion to help you sleep." The matron was not giving up without a fight. She was clearly taking the well-being of her students seriously. Too seriously for Claudia's liking at that particular moment.
"I'm fine." Claudia whispered.
"Alright then." Madame Pomfrey finally relented. "At least let me bring you a blanket.
As Claudia was falling asleep in the armchair, she realised that she was in the exact same spot that Sirius slept in when she was in the hospital wing. That brought a tear or two to her eyes. She was scared. And she knew why he was here. She knew he was going to be ok. He must have been terrified.
When James, Remus and Peter came in the morning, Sirius was still unconscious.
"I think it may have worked." Remus whispered. "You should've seen Snape at breakfast."
"What do you mean?" Claudia asked. Her brain was still asleep, and she needed more context.
"Under normal circumstances, I'd expect him to be dancing on tables if Sirius was this ill." James explained. "There. We brought you something to eat and coffee." He added and shoved a mug and a plate in her hands.
"Thanks." Claudia mumbled. "I have to go, though. I've got my Ministry interview."
"We'll look after him." James whispered and squeezed Claudia's shoulder. "You go get them."
Remus gave her a long hug, and she was on her way, her breakfast in hand. She took a shower, ate her food while getting dressed and taking one last glance at her notes. She was not in the state she hoped for, going into the most important meeting of her life. But she had no choice. It would have to do.
Claudia made her way towards the office that Professor Flitwick gave over to the Ministry examiners for the day. She knocked nervously and entered.
The examiner was a grey, humourlessly looking man with large spectacles and a face seemingly made of stone. Without a hint of irony, he introduced himself as Mr Smiley. Claudia had to try very hard not to chuckle.
"We will start with a written test." Mr Smiley said without ceremony. "There is a bundle of documents on the desk. You have one and a half hours to read them all and write a summary report."
When Claudia sat down to complete the task, she was immensely grateful that Ignatius made her write all the awful reports last summer. As a result, this one was a piece of cake.
The next task was a bunch of tests in Dark Arts and History of Magic, and something that Mr Smiley called an aptitude test but what turned out to be a series of rather interesting puzzles.
"Time is up." Mr Smiley said just after twelve. "Someone will bring you lunch, and we will resume in thirty minutes with the practical part. I will use the break to review what you've done so far."
Claudia gulped down the cold sandwiches and before she even managed to finish her tea, Mr Smiley was back wearing a duelling uniform.
"Come with me." He mumbled and led her towards an empty classroom that had been transformed into a duelling space. There were dummies to practice as well as a piste.
Mr Smiley made her show him all the usual defensive spells and seemed particularly pleased with her fox-shaped patronus. At last, they were to duel.
"I know I might look old." Mr Smiley said. "But it is not in your interest to take it easy on me."
"Noted." Claudia chuckled.
They faced each other from the opposite ends of the piste and bowed.
In a fraction of a second, Claudia found herself blocking Mr Smiley's spell. He was using non-verbal magic, but she was sure he was trying to disarm her.
She flicked her wand and tried to do the same. He blocked it with ease.
She tried everything she had on him. Petrificus Totalus. Stupefy. Impedimenta. Another expelliarmus. Nothing worked. Despite his general demeanour, Smiley was dodging her attacks with ease.
Claudia needed to think creatively if she wanted to win this duel. She slowed down the barrage of spells to buy herself time and used it to look around the classroom. The desks were too far to catch Smiley by surprise. The vases under the window were too small to do any real damage.
Then Claudia noticed the chandelier. It was just above him. She pointed her wand at the chain that it was hanging from and blasted it.
Mr Smiley took few steps back to get out of the way, but the momentary lapse of concentration cost him.
"Expelliarmus." Claudia yelled, momentarily forgetting that she knew how to use non-verbal magic. Mr Smiley's wand flew out of his hand. Claudia caught it, grinning in triumph.
Before she could even look at Smiley to see how he was taking the loss, she found herself thrown against the wall. A thick rope was tightening around her body.
"Backup wand." Smiley smirked. "Never let that fool you again, Miss Avery."
"Is that fair?" Claudia frowned, sitting helplessly on the floor, bound tightly by the rope.
"Is dropping chandeliers on your opponent's head fair?" Smiley chuckled.
"I suppose not." Claudia winced. "I'm sorry."
"No need to apologise. I told you not to take it easy." Smiley replied. "Now, the last thing for the day is the interview."
Mr Smiley unbound her and asked her to follow him back to Flitwick's office. They went through her application and the exercises she did in the morning. Everything was under scrutiny – her exam results, extracurricular activities, her placement at the Ministry. He also asked her about her strengths, weaknesses. Finally, it was time to ask about her aspirations.
"I've been speaking to your teachers, looking at your results. It strikes me you are particularly excellent at potions." Mr Smiley began. "Why the interest in law enforcement?"
"I want my job to be challenging. I want to learn more." Claudia replied. "That's why I'm especially interested in the Auror Office."
Claudia paused briefly, unsure whether to go there or not.
"And also. I believe in what the Ministry is trying to do. Keeping order, protecting the law and the rights of everyone, including the muggleborns. I want to be a part of it."
"This is not some charity venture, Miss Avery." Mr Smiley said from behind his large spectacles. "There is a war on."
"I am aware. I know what's at stake." Claudia replied resolutely.
The interviewer gave her an inquisitive look. If only she could tell him how much fighting against dark forces she got under her belt already.
"I did the placement in the Minister's office in the summer." Claudia continued. "I keep up with the news. I have read enough about muggle history to know where this could be heading."
"Tell me more." Mr Smiley uttered. For the first time during the interview, he looked interested.
"The Second World War." Claudia continued. "I believe it is called a genocide, an intention to destroy a group of people for who they are. Hitler did it to the Jews. You-Know-Who wants to do it to the muggleborns. I feel a duty to help stop that."
"Very well, now onto your recommendations. Your Head of House and Potions Master. He says you are talented, intelligent, determined…" Smiley said and skimmed the page. "Miss Avery will no doubt be effective in whatever she does, but she would do well to remember that she needs other people on her side to be truly successful." He read out loud.
Mr Smiley just left that sentence hanging there. Claudia knew that Slughorn was talking about the Quidditch team, but her mind unwittingly drifted to her argument with James and the others.
"I think Professor Slughorn is talking about my recent departure from the Slytherin Quidditch team." Claudia said. "I mean no disrespect, but I do not think he entirely appreciates what it is like to be in the Slytherin house right now." Mr Smiley seemed somewhat satisfied with that answer.
"Next one is from the Headmaster. He says you have aptitude for alchemy." Smiley said. "You need to be careful. Otherwise, we might send you to the Department of Mysteries. You would not want that. It's like a graveyard." He chuckled.
Claudia never heard of the Department of Mysteries and had no idea how to respond to this attempt at a joke.
"And the last one is from the Minister of Magic." Mr Smiley continued when he finally stopped chuckling. If anything, a slight frown crossed his forehead. "We do not often see these from Hogwarts students, but I suppose I should not be surprised."
"Excuse me?" Claudia asked, perhaps a little more sharply than she intended to.
"You are just the last in the long line of Averys, who build their careers as Ministry officials." He said.
"My father had nothing to do with my summer placement." Claudia felt the need to correct him. She was tired and her composure was beginning to crumble. "He did not even know I got it until I started there. And I do not think he would be particularly happy if he found out I was interviewing to go into law enforcement."
"Very well." The interviewer said and closed Claudia's file. He looked at her for a long time, seemingly weighing things up in his head.
Claudia could hear her heart beat in her ears. Her palms were beginning to sweat. She could not swallow for the huge lump in her throat.
This was it.
"I'm happy to say that we will be offering you a position at the Ministry. But -" He added significantly when Claudia grinned. "That offer is conditional on you passing your NEWTs. Once we have your exam results, we will be able to tell you which exact role you will be offered. It might be the Auror Office if you get top marks, it might be something else in the Department of Magical Law Enforcement."
Claudia thanked Mr Smiley for his time, shook his hand and backed out of the room. She was exhausted.
But she did not stop to take a break and ran straight to the hospital wing again.
"How did it go?" Remus asked when she emerged through the curtains surrounding Sirius' bed.
"As well as it could have, given the circumstances." Claudia replied. "Need to get the NEWTs results, but if I do, I have a job."
"How's Sirius?" She asked after a round of congratulations.
"Pomfrey says he'll be fine. Will probably be awake in few hours." James said. All the anger and resentment was gone from his face. "If you wanted to get some sleep, we can stay here." He added softly.
Claudia shook her head and dropped into the armchair. She tried very hard to stay awake and talk to the rest of them, but it was impossible. Within ten minutes, she was asleep.