Chapter 7: The Whomping Willow

"I don't think I've seen anyone worse at this than Peter." James laughed watching Peter fail miserably at skating. The snow had settled decorating the Hogwarts ground like powdered sugar. The trees were bare their branches looking eerie against the white Great Lake had completely frozen over- safe enough for the entire population of Hogwarts to skate upon.

"Poor chap can't stay up for a minute." Sirius grinned watching Peter fumble on the ice. "How long do you think until he realizes Remus charmed his skates to dance?"

"Let's give it a few hours give or take." James laughed pulling Sirius onto the frozen lake, enough of watching it from afar. "Race you to the end of the lake?"

"You're on!" Sirius gave him a wicked grin suddenly pushing him back into the snow and sliding onto the ice. Much to James's surprise Sirius too fell before he was too far.

James burst out laughing watching Sirius struggle to stand up, much like Peter.

"REMUS!" Sirius roared as he tried to stand up but ended up slipping again. "WHAT DID YOU DO TO MY SKATES?"

"What?" Remus called from the bench where he was sitting and reading, dressed up in nothing but a light coat. "I did nothing. I can't help it if you just can't skate."

"Watch how the pro does it." James said stepping out onto the ice slowly. It wasn't anything like how he expected it. The ground underneath him was solid, but slippery in a way that he would have fell had he not levitated himself up.

"REMUS YOU SURE YOU DIDN'T DO SOMETHING TO OUR SKATES?" James asked now. Why couldn't he skate?

Remus shook his head and shrugged chuckling as he read his book.

James looked around him where everyone was skating just fine. Peter was still struggling but a small chubby blonde was helping him, and he was getting better at it. Frank had given up and was laughing away with Louis from Hufflepuff-they were both stuffing themselves with chocolate frogs and racing for the cards. Mary Macdonald too was twirling around in her skates with Lily Evans while a crowd of onlookers admired from afar. Everyone was having fun- except him.

"Oye Potter!"

He turned to see a curly haired blonde skate effortlessly up to him. She folded her hands on her hips and pushed him back onto the snow forcefully for no immediately apparent reason. Marlene McKinnon- his childhood friend and unfortunately lifetime neighbor.

"What was that for?" He asked annoyed as he stood up and brushed away the snow from his coat.

"For not listening to me yesterday. I told you to save a danish for me in the morning."

"I'm sorry. I got hungry." James said. "It was past 8 and you didn't show up."

"You at my danish?" She asked fuming.

"Peter ate the other half." He told her solemnly.

"James Potter," she threatened. "Next time you will save me a danish and you will give me your danish. Understood?"

James nodded and watched the blonde skate away. In a way Marlene McKinnon was scary- and his first best friend. The blonde had caused his first skinned knee at the age of 3, knocked him off his broom at the age of 5, gave him his first scolding at the age of 6 (that too for not saving her any easter eggs, even though they were all meant very clearly for him), she had indirectly been the cause of his first black eye, his first prank partner (setting the McKinnon's lawn on fire wasn't the plan but it worked rather well as it got her out of the boring party she didn't want to attend in the first place.) She had 5 older brothers who never made him feel like he wasn't a McKinnon and even though she was always welcome at the Potters she still preferred to scale the Victorian lattice and climb through his window like a low life criminal.

So, when she turned back to him and spoke. "James you're a terrible skater and should stay right where you are." He did just that, because he had learned very early on that not listening to Marlene McKinnon was equal to asking for a death wish.

"What did blondie want?" Sirius asked sliding to James from the ice. "I'm convinced Remus is lying about charming these skates. He's done something to them. I'm sure of it."

"Definitely," James said pulling of his skates and heading out of the lake now. "There's no way that we're the only two blokes that can't skate."

"Even Peter's doing better than us." Sirius pointed. Peter was skating just fine now-the blonde who had helped him was laughing gleefully as he skated up to her and then back.

"At least I'm not alone." James said looking at Sirius who grinned. James sighed and tore his eyes away from the lake, into the distance where a tree was- moving!

"Sirius look over there-no you idiot over there!" James grabbed Sirius's head and pointed to the tree. "You saw it move didn't you! What tree moves like that?"

"Huh." Sirius nodded. "That must be the Whomping Willow Professor Dumbledore was talking about. He said something about it at the beginning of the term feast."

"About what?" Remus asked joining them apparently tired of his book.

"The Whomping Willow." James said pointing it out to Remus. "Do you remember Dumbledore telling us about it?" He would have thought he would have remembered a moving tree if someone had mentioned it.

Remus shook his head quickly. "No. Who cares about a tree anyway?"

"Remus it's a moving tree!" James enunciated for Remus wasn't getting the point. "A moving tree."

"It's dangerous." Remus said. "It's put there to protect the school against...anything that might harm it."

James rolled his eyes. "I thought there was no place safer than Hogwarts. A fighting tree. That's bloody cool Remus."

Remus shook his head. "There is nothing cool about a fighting tree, James. Just leave it alone."

"Do you think " Sirius started thoughtfully. "that maybe the reason it fights is because no one ever fought it back?"

James and Remus just stared at Sirius like he had gone mad. "I mean imagine if someone actually fights the tree, then maybe it'd stop fighting back. You know?"

"Sirius Black you are an idiot." Was all Remus said. He turned to James. "So, did you two finally figure that it's not nearly as easy it looks to skate?"

"No." Sirius said quickly. "We-"

"Decided to build a fort instead." James finished standing up triumphantly. "That's right Sirius and I believe our skill like far beyond the scope of skating and that fort building is our forte."

"Atta boy." Sirius agreed kicking his own skates off with a flourish and jumping into the snow. "I claim the snow right here."

"Fine." James took a stick and ran a line between his area and Sirius's. "Let's build the forts first and then we battle."

Remus shook his head and joined Sirius's team while James called over Frank and Peter to join him.

"That's not fair!" Sirius protested patting down the top of his fort with a fresh layer of snow. "We're one person short. We need one more soldier."

"You're on your own, Sirius!" James shouted hurling a snowball towards them. Remus and Sirius ducked behind their fort looking at each other wondering what to do.

"LOUIS!" Sirius shouted noticing the blond Hufflepuff in the distance. He looked up down and side to side before pointing to himself, confused.

"YES YOU- COME HERE!"

"What?" Louis panted once he had reached them. "If this is about the card I already told Frank I won't trade it-" he ducked suddenly as James aimed a snowball towards them and it flew past nearly hitting him in the face.

"We're one soldier short against James Frank and-" Remus explained as quickly as he could.

"I'll join!" Louis grinned jumping at the opportunity. "I need to get back at Frank for cheating me out of my Helga Hufflepuff card this morning anyways."

"He did?" Remus smiled. "I didn't think he had it in him- I mean oh sorry."

"DUCK!" Sirius pulled Louis down again behind the fort as Frank, this time, aimed a snowball at them.

After 14 snowballs in the face and one magically levitated snowball into his trousers Remus had decided that the fort battle was not for him and walked out.

"NO! WE NEED YOU!" Sirius suddenly latched himself onto Remus's leg. "DON'T LEAVE US! REMUS, I BEG OF YOU PLEASE DON'T LEAVE ME. I CAN'T LIVE WITHOUT YOU!"

James looked at Frank and Peter and whispered. "I don't know him. Weird bloke."

Nonetheless he threw a snowball at Sirius whose jaw dropped open. He let go of a thoroughly embarrassed Remus and turned onto James, a snowball in his hand. "If that's how you want to play James."

James ducked behind his fort and turned to Frank. "On my count you get him from the left and Peter you go to his right. While you two distract him, I'll get him from behind."

They nodded and, on his count,, ran towards Sirius throwing snowballs per his instruction. James grinned and got his snowball ready to aim- when he noticed Lily skating on the Great Lake with Severus.

She was laughing and twirling around, her red hair blazing around her. She stuck out like a sore thumb with her hair, and James watched it mesmerized.

SPLAT.

Something wet and cold dripped down his cheek. Frank and Peter groaned as Sirius grinned jumping up and down shouting. "TEAM SIRIUS FOR THE WIN!"

"James what were you waiting for?" Frank asked. "We were waiting for you to get him! He'll never let us live this down."

"Sirius got me and Louis got Frank." Peter added glumly brushing snow off his hat where Sirius had gotten him with a well-aimed snowball.

"Sorry." James said quickly. "I was distracted."

"Oh no Louis is coming." Frank suddenly running past them- Louis making a straight beeline for him.

"How's it feels to lose against the magnificent Sirius?" Sirius slapped him on the back, grin a mile wide.

"You know," James said. "We never got Snivelly back for tripping us."

"He tripped you." Peter pointed out to James who ignored him.

"We would have if someone hadn't moved my arm." Sirius added glaring at Peter. "Instead, the spell hit the stupid cauldron."

"I told you-I thought the stupid cat was coming!" Peter said "That stupid cat can smell me wherever I go. Stupid cat."

"And Snivelly didn't even get hurt." James nodded, remembering. Peter had freaked out and started pulling on Sirius's robes-which caused him to miss Severus and hit Mary's cauldron instead.

Peter got a mound of snow and turned to them wordlessly.

"Good idea Peter." Sirius licked his lips. "Why don't we have some fun with Snivelly today?"

James grabbed his own snow, mounding it to a ball. "Shall we?"