Chapter 89
Nevermore
The relief Sirius felt every time he walked onto Platform 9 3/4 at the beginning of each year was almost enough to make up for the two months of frustration and boredom.
However, even that didn't mean that he wouldn't jump at the chance to never go back.
He stuffed his trunk in their usual compartment, marking it as their own in case any first years actually made it on the train before it started moving, an unlikely prospect but not impossible, and climbed back out.
Sirius didn't normally like to wait outside the compartment, trying to avoid watching all the families giving affectionate goodbyes. It wasn't really something he wanted to witness. However, he missed his friends and really wanted to find them. So he'd put up with the sappy crap if it meant seeing his friends maybe two minutes earlier. It was silly sure, but for some reason, he just needed to see them.
I bothered him a little that he was so dependent on them but more than that he was thankful he had someone he could truly depend on. He was still getting used to it even now, but he would never take it for granted.
As he stood there by the entrance, trying to ignore the first years saying overly long goodbyes to their tearful parents his mind wandered. He wondered where he'd be right now if Remus hadn't sat beside him that night after their sorting. He didn't like to remember that night, he preferred to remember the day after as the day he met his friends, remembering that night always reminded him of what he lost.
He didn't regret anything, but that didn't mean he couldn't miss his friendship with his brother, his relationship with Bellatrix, his mother's soft smile when he finally managed to perform a new spell correctly...
He shook his head, driving those thoughts from his mind, Remus had better hurry and get here, his mind went to painful places when he was alone for too long.
He'd drove James crazy many nights, waking the latter up at three in the morning only to ramble on about nothing. At first, James tried to listen and comment trying to make sense of his best friends personal brand of insanity, it was August of their first summer before he realized that Sirius wasn't really paying attention to what he had to say. It wasn't long after that James realized Sirius was frantically trying to distract himself from his own thoughts.
It was then he was able to actually get his best friend to calm down enough to have a normal conversation. Only after they were about to hang up would James ask if he was alright and if he wanted to talk about it.
Usually, Sirius would just hang up on him. He wasn't offended, he knew Sirius wasn't trying to be rude, and he always called the morning after to apologize.
But every once in a while Sirius would be feeling strong enough to answer, it was always a quiet "no" or an apologetic "no, thank you." James never tried to push it he would simply accept it and they would hang up.
Sirius knew James wanted him to talk about it, and he knew he should, he even knew he'd feel better if he did, but he couldn't. And he was extremely grateful that James didn't press him to talk.
Sirius loved Remus like a brother, and he did consider Peter a friend, no matter how much he acted like he felt the contrary. But they would never compare, though no fault of their own, of course.
"Sirius? Almost missed you there, you're usually waiting inside." Remus said closing in and stopping just in front of the distracted Marauder, his parents greeting Sirius happily.
"Oh, hey. I was just waiting for you lot to show up. Didn't feel like sitting on the train alone." Sirius shrugged before returning Mr. and Mrs. Lupin's greeting.
"You look different… did you grow your hair out?" Remus commented, his head tilting sideways a little as was Remus' unconscious norm.
"Huh? Maybe a little, I didn't cut it anyway." Sirius shrugged. "Puberty tends to do that to people."
Remus laughed, it was true… however, the werewolf couldn't help but feel a little jealous. Puberty had clearly been kind to Sirius, it had taken being away for two months to recognize it, but Sirius looked much different than Remus remembered, the height, naturally, but also in his face. Sirius had always been the best looking in their year, but now the good looks were less cute and more handsome. And, as awkward as Remus felt when noticing, he couldn't help but realize that Sirius' girl-problems were far from over. In fact, he was pretty sure they'd barely begun.
Sirius smirked. "James is going to hate me."
Remus snapped out of his thoughts, his gaze returning to his friend. "What? Why?" The look on Sirius' face didn't allow for any worry that it was seriously true, however, it did guarantee some amusement.
"Thus far my voice has only cracked once."
"Are you serious?" Remus said, surprised "Wait, that's probably because you don't talk to anyone over the summer."
"I talk to James." Sirius defended.
"Oh, that's right. I forgot about that. Wow, that's pretty impressive. Well darn, that removes a ton of potential for teasing."
"James' voice has done it a couple times if that makes you feel better." Sirius' smirk grew wider.
"Yes!" Remus cheered, causing Sirius to laugh.
"Hi, guys." They heard from behind them. Turning they saw Peter walking up, surprisingly alone.
"Hey, Peter." Remus greeted.
"Where's James?" Sirius asked, not even bothering to greet Peter.
To their surprise, Peter started to laugh at the question.
"What's so funny?" Remus asked this was clearly one dramatic start to the school year. It seemed to be surprise after surprise.
"You'll see." Peter chuckled, and headed in the train presumably to their compartment, leaving two confused Marauders behind.
"That was… odd." Remus said still watching the door Peter went through.
"Well, at least we won't have to wait long to see what's up." Mr. Lupin replied looking off into the distance, everyone followed his gaze.
Mrs. Potter waved at them happily, however…
"Is James hiding?" Sirius asked, barely able to see his friend from behind his mother.
"It seems so, but that's not like James at all," Remus answered as the Potter family approached them.
Mrs. Potter turned to her son and somehow ended up in an argument with her son. All Remus managed to pick up was that James was supposed to be wearing and he was refusing, as well as the completely ludicrous bribe they offered him (which he refused.)
Then, suddenly out of nowhere, Sirius started laughing, hard and loud. James seemed to pick up exactly why he was laughing at and turned red (something Remus was pretty sure he'd never seen him do before.)
Sirius ran past James, very clearly pulling something out of the latter's pocket and ran off laughing holding it in the air in a come and get me fashion.
Was that…?
Eyeglasses?
James ran after him yelling angrily at his friend, who was still laughing and playing keep-away with what seemed to be James' glasses, teasing him all the while.
"James needs glasses?" Remus asked Mrs. Potter curiously.
Euphemia Potter sighed. "Yes, but he's being very stubborn about not wearing them. And there goes any chance we had of getting him to wear them." She said referring to Sirius, who was now reminding James that being blind isn't a very good excuse for running into people… very loudly mind you.
"I don't know, Sirius is good at getting James to do what he wants, it'll be okay. We'll make sure he wears them, somehow." Remus reassured, smiling at her relieved look.
"Oh, would you. The healer said that if he doesn't wear them his eyes'll get worse, and we really don't want that."
"Of course," Remus answered as James passed by him, glasses on, muttering irritably about horrid little brothers and what wonderful friends he had. Remus looked around, knowing that Sirius couldn't be far and found him walking back to them rubbing a red spot around his eye, still chuckling, despite his new wound.
"Really Sirius, was that necessary?" Remus asked, as his friend approached them.
"What? He was wearing them wasn't he?"
"That is true." Remus agreed with a small smile on his face. "I don't know how you do it, Sirius."
"I'm just good. That's all." Sirius smirked and climbed into the train after everyone, waving to the parents as he went.
Remus sighed and shook his head, a grin plastered on his face. "Bye mum and dad, " he said giving them a quick hug before following.
He climbed into the compartment just as the train started moving. Peter and Sirius were still chuckling while James was pretending to be mad at the both of them.
"So, new glasses, huh," Remus said casually, "I think they look good on you."
Peter snorted.
"Well, it's not like anything anyone says is going to be worse than those two," James replied, pointing his thumb in the direction of the two hyenas by the window.
"Very true" Remus answered unable to hide his smile. "Well, at least they convinced you to wear it anyway."
"Let me guess, my mum tried to get you to make me wear them." He rolled his eyes irritably; Remus had to admit that James seemed to be one of the few that could really pull off having glasses without looking like a nerd.
"Well, I promised her before she asked."
"I don't know what her problem is, really, what's the big deal." James pouted a little, causing Remus to hold in a sigh.
"She said the healer warned you that your eyes will get worse if you don't use them."
James rolled his eyes again. "Yeah, like that'll ever happen. They just wanted our money that's all."
"Sure it can happen," Sirius added reminding them both that he was there. "You just don't want to wear them because they make you look silly."
"That's not true. I think he looks good in them." Remus defended, causing another chuckle from Sirius.
"Please, no one looks good in them. Ever."
"I look better than you would. So ha!" James countered with a smirk.
"Perhaps, but I'm not the one who's half-blind."
"I'd rather be half-blind than a half-wit!"
"Four-eyes."
"Camp."
"Excuse me! I am not camp!"
"Oh, you so are."
And it began again. Remus was impressed, though, James seemed to be expanding his vocabulary specifically for these arguments, first with stag and now camp. Sirius' vocabulary had always been impressive, but James was steadily improving.
However, that didn't matter much when Sirius tackled the bespectacled boy.
Remus quickly moved out of the line of fire and back toward Peter.
"So, how long has he had glasses?" Remus asked.
"How long has he had them? Or how long has he been wearing them." Peter said with a chuckle.
"I assume the former is much longer than the latter."
"Well… was he wearing them at Diagon Ally?"
"He had them then? Why didn't you say anything?"
Peter sighed, "he told me he'd never let me copy his homework again if I said anything."
Remus gave a jokingly surprised look, complete with a nearly-sarcastic, dramatic intake of breath. "How horrible!"
"Well… It is the only reason I passed D.A.D.A. last year."
"Nah, you could have done it if you tried. That's why you get bad grades, you don't do any of the work yourself, and so you don't know the material."
"Easy for you to say. You're smart."
Remus blushed at the compliment and was going to reply, however, James chose at that time to interrupt.
"Sirius! I've had these on for one bloody hour and you've already broken them!" He exclaimed, pulling his now snapped glasses off his face.
"Oops," Sirius replied, despite the smile he was wearing.
"What are we ever going to do with you." Remus shook his head, nearly laughing.
"I say we tie him up outside for the night. See how he likes that!" James answered pointing his wand at his glasses and fixing them easily.
"I don't want to sleep outside." Sirius whimpered, to Remus' surprise. When had he started playing along with the dog jokes? "It's cold, and dark. And it would be horrible for my hair."
"And you think you're not camp."
"James!"
And they were at it again.
It was a good thing that the repairing charm was such an easy spell because James had to use it three more times before they even stepped into the great hall.
"Um, guys. You have realized we didn't plan a beginning of the year prank…. right" Remus said nervously.
"Yeah, we know," James said with a shrug.
"That was the point. We were thinking of not doing one." Sirius smirked at Remus.
"Not at all?" Remus raised an eyebrow, knowing there was more to this than they were letting on.
"They'll be expecting one right?" James replied with a matching smirk.
"And we'll tell them that we did something and they won't know what…"
"They'll be searching the entire castle looking for what we did…"
"And they won't find a thing." Sirius finished.
"I see, it does seem like a good idea… but when exactly were you planning on informing us about this?"
"James was supposed to tell you in one of his letters, but naturally he forgot."
"Dude, you gave me like fifty things to tell him in that letter! You're lucky I remembered half of them."
"Oh,"
"Sorry, Moony. Completely unintentional I swear."
"I know, however, it is my turn to write so I would have liked some forewarning."
"I can do it if you want." James offered since it was his fault Remus was clueless. Remus just nodded.
"Okay, just wait until everyone is about to leave, that way they're more anxious."
"Got it," James agreed.
"Did you know about this?" Remus asked Peter who nodded apologetically.
"I thought James told you too."
"Lovely," Remus said sarcastically.
Sirius plan clearly was working, people seemed fidgety. The teachers had their eyes peeled for anything suspicious, many of the students were hesitant to touch their food, which frankly made Remus laugh like they'd do the same prank twice, really.
But it wasn't until Dumbledore's speech that people really started to get nervous, as that was the most common time for the Marauders to strike. However, there was nothing, Dumbledore gave his remarks and looking surprised he dismissed the students.
That's when someone called out and pointed at the wall, which was no longer blank.
Ooh, let's have a riddle Shall we?
Something was there, now it's not.
We've taken that which you'll never spot.
He who had it will never tell,
No matter by bribe, threat or spell.
It's gone you see, forevermore,
Quoth the raven, "Nevermore"
"What was that?" Remus asked humor dripping from his voice. "What does that even mean?"
James smirked, standing from the table.
"Absolutely nothing."
A/N) Please let me explain! I know most of you have been imagining him with glasses this entire time. I have been planning this for a long time but I couldn't think of a good way to put it in the story that he didn't have them, without it sounding silly anyway. My reasoning is in the movies during Snape's memory in the last book the actor playing James did not have glasses but we know he had them by their fifth year. I looked in the book and it did not say whether or not James had glasses his first year, but again we know he had them by fifth... I don't have much material for their fourth year so I'm jumping at the chance for more stuff.
I'm sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo sorry. _
lol, camp...
Top ten Marauders pet peeves,
10. Sirius using serious puns, or copious amounts of said puns
9. Marauder's falling in love with Lily's imaginary friends,
8. Any of the Marauders dating Lily
7. James dating anyone! but Lily.
6. Sirius' dad drunk/lazy/out of the job/ cliche abusive
5. James or Sirius being complete idiots
4. Peter being magically transformed into someone else
3. Remus turning into Hermione
2. Homosexual Marauders
Personal preference... if someone is not gay in the cannon and they obviously like women (Lily&James, Remus&Tonks, Sirius has pictures of women covering his bedroom walls!) then please do not force them to be gay. Sirius gets this the worst as he is paired with both James and Remus... and everyone else! Literally. Peter is the only one who is not shown with a preference for women and I never see him paired with anyone? I get it that everyone hates him but really?
PS: I love Edgar Allen Poe! Can you tell?