Ah, here we go again.
There are some heroic deeds performed in this part, by Jamesy, and, er, Remus
is afraid of crystal balls. Reviewing is a good idea…
James woke bright and early on Monday morning. Deciding for once to let Sirius and the others wake up without the use of pillows, he dressed in silence and made his solitary way down to the common room. When he entered, he noticed two other early risers – Remus and Lily. Remus had left the curtains around his bed drawn, so James had assumed that he was still asleep. They were playing chess, though it looked as though they could both use a few more hours sleep.
'Morning,' said James brightly, as he approached.
'Hi, James,' said Lily. Remus mumbled incoherently by way of greeting.
'Fancy some breakfast?' said James, and after being answered in the affirmative, he, Remus and Lily made their way out of the portrait hole and down to the Great Hall.
When they reached the Great Hall, they found it relatively empty – most people were still asleep. There were a few bleary-eyed pupils scattered around, but it would be at least half an hour before the Hall was really awake.
James sat down and helped himself to some bacon and eggs. He began talking to Lily and Remus about facing the Boggart in just under an hour's time. However, this merely sufficed to make the both look even more ill, so James went back to eating in silence.
Before too long, the Hall was bustling with the chatter and noise of nearly the whole school. Sirius and the rest joined them, looking much more awake after nearly half an hour's more sleep. Whilst talking to Sirius about the Boggart, he was interrupted by a large, snowy owl, flying towards them with a letter in his beak. He dropped it in front of Sirius. It was a small, brownish envelope, with 'Sirius' written simply on the front. Sirius identified the owl as Snowy, his own owl.
'I see you must have done some in-depth research to find a name that clever,' James remarked. Sirius laughed, and placed his letter down, continuing with his breakfast.
When they finished breakfast, Sirius turned to pick his letter up, but…
'It's gone!' he shouted.
'What?' said James, though he knew exactly what Sirius was talking about.
'My letter; it's gone.'
'That letter was the same as the one I got last week. Last Monday; remember? I was telling you about it.'
'Yeah, but who could've taken it?'
'Look around.' Sirius did, and James copied him. Frank and Lily were having a discussion about the Quidditch trials, which were in the afternoon. Peter was talking to Heather and Michelle about something…Remus was, Remus was talking to Professor Loughran at the High Table – it couldn't have been him, he was too far away. Katie and Sarah were comparing Transfiguration notes. No, once again, it seemed as though an invisible thief had stolen the letter.
As James and Sirius left the Great Hall and started off for the Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom, both of them were talking quietly, utterly perplexed about what could have happened to the mysterious letters. They had almost forgotten that they were both about to face the Boggart.
When they reached the classroom, they noticed that Professor Loughran had moved all of the tables and chairs to the edge of the classroom, so that there was a big space in the middle of the room. At the far end, a small cupboard wobbled. James felt Remus recoil slightly next to him.
'Everyone in, that's it, around here. Now, as promised, here is our Boggart,' the cupboard wobbled again. 'Now, as you should all now know what you have to do, who would like to go first?' Frank raised his hand determinedly. 'Right, Frank can start us off, and then I'll call each of you in turn to face it. Ready? Right, off you go!' He thrust open the door and a huge, clicking spider emerged, heading straight at Frank. It approached, but Frank was ready. Throwing back his arms, he cried 'Riddikulus!' The spider stopped moving. It stood still for a minute, and then began doing what was undoubtedly and Irish dance. The class exploded with laughter as they watched this huge, murderous looking spider tap-dancing across the floor.
'Excellent!' cried Professor Loughran. 'Peter, you next.' Peter stepped forward resolutely. The tap-dancing spider disappeared, and was immediately replaced by a large, hulking creature – a werewolf. Quite a few people screamed, but Peter stood his ground. He cried 'Riddikulus!' The wolf stopped. It began shrinking; it kept shrinking and shrinking until it was size of a baby kitten. It walked over to Peter and licked his hand. Everyone laughed, and a few people cooed.
'Well done, Peter. Lily, forward!' Lily approached the Boggart. The tiny wolf cub disappeared, and was replaced by a large, humanlike figure, but with sharp fangs – a vampire. The vampire approached Lily, fangs bared, but Lily was ready. She bellowed 'Riddikulus!' and the Vampire's teeth dropped out. Another shout of laughter rang around the classroom.
This continued for quite a while. Each time somebody stepped forward, the Boggart would change its form with a loud 'crack!' Finally, there were only three people left – James, Sirius and Remus.
'James, forward!' James approached, dreading the inevitable. Ever since he had visited Azkaban, the Wizarding Prison, with his father, he had always been afraid of one thing. The Boggart cracked, and changed into a nine-foot tall Dementor. The whole room went cold, and many people backed against the wall. Dementors were soulless, life-sucking beasts that lived off the emotions of others. James had once had to go to Azkaban with his father, who worked for the Ministry of Magic. The Dementors were the prison guards there. However, as the Dementor approached James, he stood up. He bellowed 'Expecto Patron –', but then he suddenly realised that he was saying the wrong spell. The Patronus Charm was easily the hardest spell that James knew. It was beyond Ordinary Wizarding Level. After he had been to Azkaban, he had begged his father to teach it to him, in case he ever ran across a Dementor unprepared. His father, in the end, had reluctantly given in, and after many months, James had managed to master it. However, James was, at present, facing a Boggart. The Patronus Charm only worked on real Dementors. He shouted 'Riddikulus!' and the Dementor's cloak fell away, revealing empty space. The class laughed weakly, and James sat back down, breathing hard.
'How did you get
rid of that thing?' asked Sirius, shivering slightly. 'They're hor – horrible.'
'Er – Sirius, you next,' said Professor Loughran, hesitating slightly. Sirius approached the Boggart. James laughed as he remembered what Sirius had said the Boggart would turn into. The Boggart cracked, and turned into Sirius. Sirius was looking at himself. He then realised that the Boggart-Sirius had no mouth – it couldn't speak. Sirius let out a soft scream, whilst the class exploded with laughter. The thing Sirius feared most was not being able to speak. James thought that that would be most people's dream. Sirius looked determined, though. He cried 'Riddikulus!' and suddenly, the Boggart-Sirius opened its invisible mouth and began to sing. Sirius cheered, whilst everyone else was still laughing uncontrollably.
'Forward, Remus, and finish it off!' cried Professor Loughran. Remus stepped forward, and with a 'crack!' the Boggart-Sirius transformed into a silvery-white orb.
'What the heck's that?' asked Sirius slowly.
'Dunno,' said James. 'Might be a crystal ball.'
It hung in front of Remus, who looked petrified, though he managed to stammer 'Rid – riddikulus!' The orb started slowly moving around, until it was finally flying around the room at tremendous speed. It crashed into the wall with a great thud and smashed. The class all laughed, and the Boggart exploded, bursting into a hundred wisps of smoke. It was gone.
'Excellent, excellent!' said Professor Loughran, trying to calm the class down. 'Yes, well done. Five points to Gryffindor for each of you. Now, as we still have some time left,' he checked his watch. 'I think we can all have a little rest.' Most of the class were more than willing, and everyone flopped down into chairs, talking about how they had tackled their Boggarts.
'Remus?' James asked.
'Yeah?'
'What was your Boggart?'
'Er, a crystal ball. I hate Divination.'
'Oh, right.'
'Imagine,' said Sirius, sitting down next to them. 'Never being able to talk. I'd rather be in Azkaban.'
'I wouldn't,' said James fervently.
'James?' said Professor Loughran suddenly.
'Sir?'
'Could I talk to you for a moment?' Bemused, James got up and approached Loughran's desk. 'So,' he said. 'How did you learn the Patronus Charm?'
'What? Oh, that. My, er, dad taught it to me, a while ago.'
'Being able to perform the Patronus Charm is remarkably difficult, even for some fully trained wizards. For a second year wizard, it is nothing short of incredible.'
'Oh, well, er, I wanted to learn it, because I visited Azkaban, and I saw how horrible those Dementors are.'
'Quite. Well, I'm impressed, James. I expect that that shall come in useful someday.'
'Thank you, sir.'
By now, the lesson was over, and the Gryffindors left for Transfiguration. Sirius was still moaning about his missing letter, but most of the class were now talking enthusiastically about the flying lessons that afternoon.
Compared to their action-packed first lesson of the day, Transfiguration that morning was something of a disappointment. They had to make extensive notes on Animagi; wizards who could change into animals at will. James was fascinated, though he could see Sirius and Remus practically falling asleep next to him.
'Black! Lupin! Are you paying attention?' Professor McGonagall suddenly asked.
'What?' said Sirius dazedly. 'Oh, yes sir.' Professor McGonagall was not pleased. She gave Sirius extra homework, which he wasn't too happy about.
'Honestly!' he said, as they walked down to lunch. 'How does she expect us to stay awake in such boring lessons?'
'I agree,' said Remus, yawning.
'Maybe some food will cheer you up,' said James, as they entered the Great Hall.
At two-thirty that afternoon, the Gryffindor second years made their way down to the Quidditch pitch for their flying lessons. The Slytherins were already there, waiting for them. James could also see Ben Coates, to whom he gave thumbs up – Ben returned it – Graham Roberts, the Slytherin Quidditch captain, talking to Snape and laughing, and Madam Hooch, who was overseeing the lesson. As she had done the previous year, Madam Hooch instructed the pupils to stand next to a broom each and kick off, hard. Just as she was about call everybody down, there was a shout behind her.
Jacob Avery was lying on the ground, practically screaming, and evidently in a great deal of pain. She instructed Ben Coates to keep watching over the lesson, and she took Avery off to the Hospital Wing. James hovered next to Frank in the air, with Lily just behind them.
'What happened?' he asked Frank.
'Dunno. He probably fell off his broom.'
'Oh, that's alright then,' said Lily. Frank and James grinned. Suddenly, Sirius shouted to them.
'James!! Frank!! Lily!! Behind you!!' James turned and saw a ripple of light flying straight at the three of them. He knew immediately where it was from. He dived, and so did Frank. Lily was too slow. The light, whatever it was, hit her full on, and she was thrown from the broom.
'Lily!!' cried James and Frank together. She fell, at least twenty feet, and hit the ground, hard. She was unconscious.
'Frank, you and Sirius deal with Snape and the others. I'll take Lily up to the Hospital Wing.' Frank looked more than willing. James watched him swoop down to where Sirius was; he had one fleeting glance of Sirius, Remus, Frank and Ben Coates approaching the Slytherins, wands bared, before he sped down to help Lily.
Most of the Gryffindors were crowded around her, but James took charge. It was lucky he was so strong. He lifted Lily onto his broomstick and took off towards the castle. He was not very experienced in sharing a broomstick, but he managed to get up to the castle. He dismounted, and kicked open the door into the Entrance Hall. It was empty. He just about managed to carry Lily up to the Hospital Wing, where Madam Pomfrey was talking seriously to Madam Hooch.
'He wasn't hurt at all, I don't know – Potter! What are you doing?' she said, spotting James.
'Lily,' he gasped, placing her down on one of the beds. 'Fell off her broom.'
'And you carried her all the way up here?' asked Madam Hooch, eyeing him beadily.
'Flew – to the castle – carried her here,' James replied, still short of breath. 'She's unconscious.'
'Potter, stay with her. You! Come with me.' Her last remark was directed towards Jacob Avery, who was looking highly pleased with himself, and certainly not injured. He grinned when he saw Lily. James would have hit him, but under the watchful eyes of Madam Hooch and Madam Pomfrey he merely glared at Avery. This was nothing compared to Madam Hooch. She looked livid, and she pulled Avery out after her roughly.
'You can stay here with her, Potter,' said Madam Pomfrey. 'She should come round in a few minutes. That was very noble of you, carrying her up here like that.' James shrugged.
'Couldn't leave her lying there, could I?' he said, grinning
'No,' replied Madam Pomfrey, smiling. 'No, of course not, dear.' She strolled off to her office.
Presently, Lily woke up. She looked a little dazed, especially when she turned to see James' face above her.
'Alright?' he asked her, smiling.
'James?' she said dazedly. 'Where am I? What happened?
'Hospital Wing,' he told her. 'You fell off your broom.'
'How?'
'Snape, I think. They used Avery to get Madam Hooch out of the way.'
'Why?'
'Oh, I don't think they were aiming at you. No, they were trying to knock Frank and me off, you know, because of the curses we put on Snape. The body-bind and the leg-locker, remember?'
'Yeah,' said Lily laughing. 'Ow,' she added, clutching her leg.
'You all right?' James asked concernedly. 'You fell nearly twenty feet.'
'Yeah, I'll live. Just my leg that hurts.'
''Spect Madam Pomfrey can fix that. Yeah, here she comes.' Madam Pomfrey was approaching Lily's bed with a goblet of something in her hand.
'Here you are, dear,' she said kindly. 'Drink this, and the pain should stop in a few minutes. It'll make you drowsy in about half an hour, though.'
'Lily took the goblet, and drained it in one swallow. She them pulled a face that James though made her look like a Slytherin. Well, it probably wasn't that bad.
'Nice?' he asked her innocently.
'Hardly.'
They chatted for a few more minutes, before the rest of the Gryffindor second years and Ben Coates joined them.
'Are you alright, Lily?' asked Sirius seriously.
'Fine,' said Lily, whose leg was now healed.
'Did you get Snape?' asked James. Sirius, Remus, Frank and Ben all grinned guiltily.
''Course we did,' said Sirius. 'I don't think he'll be trying to knock people off their broomsticks for a while.'
'It was probably a good thing that you brought Lily up to the castle, James,' said Frank. 'You looked ready to put the Cruciatus curse on Snape.' James smiled wryly.
'You brought me up to the castle?' said Lily, stunned. 'I thought it was Madam Pomfrey.'
Nah,' replied James, smiling again. 'I wasn't going to leave you lying there. Had to get you up here quickly.'
'How did you?'
'On the back of his broomstick,' said Peter. Lily was still looking amazed.
'Er, thanks, James,' she said.
'Anything for a lady,' he said courteously.
'So you wouldn't carry me up here, if I got injured?' said Sirius challengingly.
''Course I would. You're close enough to a lady.' Everyone laughed.
Some time later, Madam Pomfrey bustled over.
'Come on you lot, out! Lily needs some rest. I think you should probably stay in overnight, dear. You can have two people to stay with you for a while longer, but no more.' Lily nodded, and pointed to Katie and James, who sat down in two chairs next to her. Sirius and the rest left for Gryffindor Tower.
As Madam Pomfrey went back into her office, Lily yawned loudly.
'You wanna go to sleep for a bit, Lily?' James asked. 'That potion's drowsiness effects seem to be kicking in.'
'Yeah, I'll see – you la –' She fell asleep before she could finish her sentence.
'C'mon,' James whispered to Katie. 'Let's go back to the Tower.' Katie nodded mutely, and after James had thanked Madam Pomfrey, the two of them left the Hospital Wing and headed for Gryffindor Tower.
'That was really nice, you know, James, what you did for Lily,' said Katie.
'Thanks,' replied James. 'Still, I would have helped anyone in that situation, even Sirius.' Katie laughed.
'How did you manage to carry her all that way?'
'She's very light.'
'Or you're very strong.'
'Bit of both, I reckon,' said James, grinning
'Sirius's right. You're too modest.'
'Maybe you're right. But what would you prefer, modest James or bighead James?'
'Point taken.' Laughing, they reached the portrait hole, and said 'Merlin's beard.' to the Fat Lady. When they entered the common room, they noticed that Sirius must have been "borrowing", as he called it, food from the kitchens again. James had a feeling that his Cloak would not be lying in his trunk. Sirius noticed Katie and James.
'Here he is!' he shouted. 'The hero!' James laughed.
'Same old Sirius,' he muttered into Katie's ear.' She laughed again.
'Ah! What is this?' said Sirius, in a mock serious tone. 'Saving one fair damsel from ugly rats and then whispering sweet nothings into another fair damsel's ear? Thou disgusteth me, sir James of Potter.' James dissolved into uncontrollable laughter. Sirius could be very funny at times.
'And now thou laughest at my quibbles,' Sirius continued, in the same tone. 'I challengeth thee to a duel!' He had said the magic words. James whipped out his wand and cried 'Rictusempra!' again, through his laughter, before Sirius could move out of the way. James continued laughing, but he wasn't the only one now.
It would have undoubtedly been a funny sight, entering the Gryffindor common room at that point. Sirius was lying on the floor, hardly able to breath from laughing, and everyone around him was laughing as well. James finally managed to contain himself long enough to mutter the counter-curse, but then he burst out laughing again when he saw Sirius' face.
'They ought to get rid of that damn laughing curse,' he said. 'Bane of my existence.'
'So – so – sorry, Sirius,' James gasped, just managing to contain his laughter. 'But you did challengeth me to a duel.'
'Note to self,' said Sirius. 'Never challenge James Potter to a duel again.'
'Note to self,' said Katie, joining in. 'When falling off a broom, make sure James Potter is around.'
'Note to self,' said Remus. 'Your friends are mostly insane.'
'Note to Remus,' James laughed. 'Your friends are completely insane.' They continued in this vein for quite a long time, but Frank eventually persuaded everyone to shut up.
For the rest of the day, they played Exploding Snap with James Junior and Rachel Coates, who came over to join them. They did, at one point, go back up to the Hospital Wing, but Lily was still sleeping, and they decided to wait until tomorrow to see her. When they got back, James decided to do his Transfiguration homework on Animagi. The others had been set a different, much more easy homework – Professor McGonagall knew that James could manage more difficult topics.
That night, James stayed up talking to Remus for quite a while after Sirius, Peter and Frank had all fallen asleep. He was still a little unsure about Remus' Boggart, but as it was the thing that scared him the most, he decided not to mention it. Presently, both boys decided to go to sleep. James fell asleep before his head had even hit the pillow.
However, if he had been awake for a further five minutes, he would again have undoubtedly heard the small rustling of a brownish letter, with the word 'Sirius' on the front, being opened by somebody around him.
End. And so, this is the
end of the last part of mystery. In part 5, all will be revealed (about Remus).
Don't be asking me whether Lily is going to be falling in love with James
because of his heroic deeds. No! Romance comes later. I just think James is a
nice person, and helps out damsels in distress (or in a state of
unconsciousness). And no! Sirius and Heather will not be getting married (yet).
Oh, and no comments about Dementors (they say Harry and James were alike). And
yes, I will make Sirius lose his voice at some point *cackles*.
Ciao