Oh hey, look, a double update! What a wonderful way to spend Halloween :). No, seriously though, Happy Halloween y'all! After this chapter, I'm going back to the 2-week idea. So, if I haven't updated by November 16th, feel free to send all the nasty PMs you want! And let me know how I did.
Later that afternoon, Sage found herself on a couch in the common room, staring at her copy of Advanced Potion Making and not taking in a word. She had tried to work on Slughorn's essay earlier in the day but was overwhelmed by a lethargy so strong that she had barely managed to stumble up to her bed. Kylie, while understanding, adamantly refused to let Sage copy her essay and so Sage was left trying desperately to finish it.
A sudden shift on the other side of the couch startled Sage out of her stupor and she looked up to see Sirius with his messenger bag in hand. He glanced at her before pulling his Transfiguration book out of his bag.
"You look positively riveted," he observed, shooting her a sideways smile.
"Ah yes, Borage is a riot a minute," she said dryly, returning his smile. "How's your homework coming?"
"Well, I'm about two minutes in, so pretty well. How about yours?"
"I've been staring at this page for about an hour and I'm pretty sure half this essay is complete shit, so not great." Sirius looked at her for a moment and then held out his hand.
"Let me see it." Sage grinned and handed him her essay.
"You're a bloody lifesaver, you know that?" He hummed in response as he looked over her work. Sage took the break to full advantage, swinging her body sideways on the couch and stretching over the arm, sighing when her spine cracked. She straightened and laid her cheek on the back of the couch, watching Sirius read, taking in his creased brow and slightly pursed lips. Occasionally, he'd tap his wand on the page, rearranging the letters into different words.
"Finish up with bezoars and add a conclusion, and you're done. It should scrape an Acceptable, at least," he said, handing her essay back to her.
"Good enough for me," she murmured, picking up her quill to scribble something about bezoars.
"So I heard some interesting rumors. Something about me and you, in the Shrieking Shack?" Sage glanced up to see an amused smile on his lips.
"The Shrieking Shack? Really? I'd hope you take me somewhere nicer." Sirius let out his barklike laugh and pulled his Transfiguration book into his lap.
"The whole thing is pretty ridiculous," he continued, flipping through the pages. Sage felt her stomach plummet.
"Gee, thanks for the vote of confidence," she said lightly, not wanting to betray her disappointment. Sirius looked at her sharply.
"You know what I mean."
"Yeah, I know," she murmured, looking back at her essay. They worked quietly for a few minutes before she spoke again. "Sirius? Can I ask you a personal question?"
"Shoot," he replied, not looking up from the stack of notes he had pulled from his bag.
"Why don't you like Marlene?"
"I don't dislike her, I just don't want to date her," he said simply, still looking over the notes.
"Why not?" He sighed and finally looked up at Sage.
"Why does it matter?" He asked.
"Because she's my friend and you're my friend and I just want to know," Sage stammered. Sirius gave her a considering look.
"You really want to get into feelings right now?" He asked and she shrugged. He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "I know she's only persistent because I haven't shown any interest in her."
"But why didn't you show any interest in her?" Sage pressed.
"Because it would have been a quick tumble and that's a little shallow, don't you think?"
"That's never stopped you before." Sage made sure to keep her tone light, non-judgemental, though her fiddling hands and darting eyes betrayed her anxiety. Sirius continued studying her before speaking again.
"Maybe I'm growing up. Maybe James' warbling about Evans and romance finally got to me." Sage's eyes shot up and landed on his half smile.
"Well, better late than never, I guess," she replied, giving him a half smile of her own.
"Great. If we're done braiding our hair and gossiping, I've got work to do."
"Oh, you'd look great with a French braid!"
"Touch my hair and die, Sagey."
It was well into the evening, after the common room was very nearly empty, when Sage finally called a quits on homework. She had finished her essay for Slughorn and had moved on to reading her Transfiguration book in hopes of understanding more about human transfiguration before the more difficult lessons started. It was keen, yes, but what better person to answer her questions than a bloke who had become an animagus as a teenager? At least, that's what Sage told herself. It had absolutely nothing to do with the fact that she just liked being around Sirius.
Finally, her eyes started itching incessantly, despite the nap she had earlier in the day. She said goodnight to Sirius (who was still elbow-deep in coursework), gathered her things, and headed up to the dormitory. However, her thoughts of a good night's sleep were instantly shattered as she walked into a row between Marlene and Kylie. Sage threw a look at Alice, who was watching the two argue with a bemused expression. Alice shrugged at Sage's silent question.
"Of course you would take her side!" Marlene was screaming from her bed, gesturing violently towards Sage as she closed the door.
"C'mon Marlene! You're being ridiculous and accusing one of your friends of doing something you know she would never do," Kylie said as she stood in the middle of the room with her arms folded over her chest.
"What the hell is going on?" Sage asked, stepping further into the room.
"Are you shagging Sirius?" Marlene asked, rounding on Sage.
"Of course not," Sage said incredulously.
"Are you snogging him?" Marlene tried again.
"Mar," Sage sighed, "I'm not having any sort of sexual relationship with Sirius." Marlene stared at her for a few tense moments before speaking.
"I don't believe you," Marlene said defiantly. Sage felt her stomach twist uncomfortably and knew that the wetness starting in her eyes were tears.
"That is not my fault," Sage growled. "I have never lied to you, Marlene McKinnon. Not once. I wouldn't start now." Marlene had the grace to look sheepish but it was too little, too late in Sage's opinion.
Feeling overwhelmed and claustrophobic, Sage turned on her heel and stomped back down to the common room. To her dismay, Sirius had left and after a few heaving breaths, Sage decided to go up to the boys' dormitory. Sage wanted to be around friendly faces who wouldn't demand to talk about anything too heavy. And while Remus had decided to check into the Hospital Wing tonight (the poor bloke seemed to have an awful immune system and he did look a bit peaky), the other three Marauders would surely be up for a late-night game of Exploding Snap or something.
But when she arrived at the door and knocked, nobody answered. After a few more knocks, Sage bit her lip and opened the door. She let out a small gasp when she found their room to be completely empty. It wasn't unusual for the boys to be caught out-of-bounds after curfew but Sage didn't think that was the case tonight. They would have held off on any pranking until Remus felt better, surely.
"James? Are you in here?" Sage called hesitantly in case he was hiding under the Invisibility Cloak their father had passed down to his firstborn (as was tradition). But why all three of them would be hiding under the cloak in their own dorm, Sage didn't know. Sure enough, there was no answer.
Sage sighed and shut the door, roaming to James' bed and flopping down on it, throwing her bag on the floor. She would wait for the boys to get back to the dorm; whatever they were doing couldn't take too long and it's not like she had anywhere better to be. She grabbed the stack of comics on James' bedside cabinet and settled down to read.
After an hour of silence, however, Sage started getting anxious. Where were they? Were they putting some massive prank into motion? No, that couldn't be it. They'd definitely wait for Remus to feel better if it was anything large or impressive. Were they on dates? Sage snorted at the thought; this was highly likely for Sirius, but Sage knew that Lily wouldn't be up to a late-night tryst if it could cost her Head Girlship. Plus, when was the last time Peter ever went on a date? The poor boy got even less action than Sage. So what were they doing? If only she had a way to search the entire castle quickly…
Then it hit her; the map Sirius had the night of the attack! It showed where everyone in the castle was at all times, right? Sage stood from the bed and looked around, wondering where they would have hidden it. Most likely, they would have brought it with them but she had to check. It gave her something to do, at least.
She turned to James' bedside cabinet and opened the drawers, rifling through the spare bits of paper and sweet wrappers gently. She felt something slick under her fingers and pulled out a photograph from the very bottom of the stack. It was of James and Lily on their first Hogsmeade date, laughing and clutching at each other in front of a fountain that Sage knew was right in front Madam Puddifoot's. The edges were a little too worn considering their date wasn't that long ago and Sage guessed that James often looked at the photo, despite its position at the bottom the drawer.
"Merlin Jamie, you're just this side of pathetic," Sage murmured, albeit with a small smile on her face, and carefully placed the photo back where she found it.
Sage gave up on the cabinet and shut the drawer softly, chewing on her lip. She didn't really want to go through their things but dammit if she didn't want to know what the boys were up to. It was different rifling through James' belongings; he was her brother and Godric knows he only respected her privacy when it benefited him. And Sirius, well, he was a little better but it wasn't unusual for her to find him in her bathroom searching for toothpaste, toilet paper, even shampoo and conditioner once when he ran out (James took the mickey out of him for a week after Sirius showed up to breakfast smelling like lavender). So it really wouldn't be that bad if she went through his things, right?
Sage decided that if she didn't find the map in Sirius' cabinet, she'd give up and wait until the boys returned. Crossing to his bed, Sage started the process again. Sirius was no less messy and under a full box of Honeyduke's Firewhiskey Chocolates and an empty container of Bertie Bott's laid a couple of Muggle magazines. On top was a magazine full of motorbikes that resembled the brand new one he had at Potter Manor. Sage tossed it aside and let out a noise of disgust when she saw the next issue; one entitled Playboy with a blonde woman wearing barely anything, smiling seductively. Sage picked it up gingerly and stared at the cover in disbelief.
"Really, Sirius?" She groaned and tossed it on the bed next to the motorbike magazine. But when she looked into the drawer again, her heart leapt into her throat. There, hidden under the magazines, was a thick bit of folded parchment, seemingly blank. She snatched it from its place and held her wand to the edge. "I solemnly promise, no, shit, what was it?" Sage mumbled, thinking hard. "Ah, yeah, I solemnly swear that I am up to no good." From the tip of her wand, lines spread, crisscrossing to show the labyrinth of passages that formed the castle.
Sage sat on the edge of the bed and scanned the map, trying to locate James, Sirius, or Peter. After at least five minutes, she spotted the three dots on the grounds, heading towards the Forbidden Forest. What in the bloody hell are they doing in the Forest, she wondered. Then, she noticed the fourth, labelled Remus Lupin.
"What?" She exclaimed, her brow furrowed in confusion. Remus was in the Hospital Wing; he said he was heading there right after dinner. What is he doing with them? Sage's eyes strayed to the window, staring at the full moon for a moment before it hit her. She gasped, mouth gaping open, eyes wide. His strange illnesses, the scars supposedly perpetrated by a clumsiness that didn't seem to exist, James and Sirius becoming animagi illegally for no apparent reason, Moony.
Remus Lupin is a werewolf.