Hello once again. I have returned ("Damn!" you all think). This is part seven, and we are coming to the gripping climax of the story. Somebody recently asked me why I make Peter such a nice guy. 1) He was a Marauder; they must have liked him. 2) Remus said that Peter was one of his 'three great friends'. 3) Peter 'hero-worshipped' James and Sirius 4) Peter had only been passing info to Voldemort a year before James and Lily died (not ten years, or however many it would have to be) and 5) James trusted him enough to make him his and Lily's Secret Keeper. If you are still awake, please read part 7 and review it. Thankyou.
The Quidditch Final was coming. On Saturday, Gryffindor would play Ravenclaw in the final. If Ravenclaw won by one hundred and ten, they would win the Quidditch Cup; if Gryffindor won by ninety, they would win the Quidditch Cup. If neither of these scenarios occurred, Slytherin would win the Cup. Therefore, in the week preceding the match, the atmosphere was highly charged and tension between the three houses was at breaking point. More accurately, the tension between Slytherin and Ravenclaw and Gryffindor, as Gryffindors and Ravenclaws still got on relatively well. Snape was still stirring up trouble with his constant assurance of Slytherin's victory, something that earned him and Sirius a detention; Sirius' temper had got the better of him, and Snape had ended up not having the use of his mouth – Sirius had locked his jaws shut. This put all of the Gryffindors, and even some of the Slytherins (Snape was never the most popular person) into fits of resounding laughter.
In the House Championship, Gryffindor were now leading Ravenclaw by forty points. Slytherin, partly because of their shock defeat against Hufflepuff, had dropped in the table.
On the day of the match, James and Sirius woke early. They went down to breakfast, though not before rudely awaking Frank, Remus and Peter. There were loud cheers in the Great Hall when both the Gryffindor and Ravenclaw teams entered. There seemed to be no enmity between the two teams – indeed, Jake Smith even came over to wish the team good luck, and was returned the wish by the Gryffindor captain, Ben Coates. James was interrupted from his thoughts by a sudden outburst of giggles from where Peter, Remus and the girls were sitting. James, Sirius and Frank, who had been discussing the forthcoming match, all looked up simultaneously.
'What's so funny?' asked Sirius.
'Michelle's in love,' laughed Lily. Sirius and James raised their eyebrows.
'Girls,' said James wearily.
'What?' said Sarah defensively.
'Aww,' said Sirius slowly. 'You're only ickle kiddies at heart.'
'Very funny,' said Michelle.
'We won't tell you who she likes then, will we?' said Lily, in a mock sulking tone.
'Oh no!' said James, in a tone of mock horror. 'Whatever will we do, Sirius?'
'Well,' said Sirius thoughtfully. 'We could torture them, but suicide might be the only option.' Everyone burst out laughing except for James and Sirius.
'But that would be unfair to old Snapey,' said James, still sounding horrified. 'He'd miss us.'
'I sincerely doubt that that would be the case, Potter,' came Severus Snape's cold sneer.
'Ah,' said Sirius. 'Speak of the devil. Well, speak of the genetically modified rat-type creature, to be perfectly accurate.' Snape flushed, as everyone started laughing at him.
'What would you know, Black?' he said, trying to sneer, but fully aware that nearly all the people around him were laughing at him.
'Calm down Severus, he's only joking,' said James. 'In fact, we were just saying how much we thought that Slytherin would win the Quidditch Cup.'
'Were you?' asked Snape quietly.
'No!' said James and Sirius together. Snape went, if possible, even redder, and went back to his seat, the laughs from the Gryffindor and some of the Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw tables ringing in his ears.
'Poor old Snapey,' said Remus consolingly. 'D'you think we're a bit nasty to him?'
'No,' said James and Sirius in unison.
The weather that morning was glorious – perfect conditions for a Quidditch match. James and the rest made their way down to the Quidditch pitch, laughing and joking. They spotted Snape ahead, but he stole away before they could insult him. They arrived at the pitch quite early; the stadium was relatively empty. James seated himself between Lily and Sirius, and they sat talking and laughing in their seats whilst waiting for the rest of the school to arrive.
In due course, the stadium was full of around two hundred and fifty highly exuberant witches and wizards. The whole school was attending; as the match was such an important one – three houses had the chance of taking the Quidditch Cup. Presently, the players were ready to come out onto the pitch. From the end nearest to James and the others came the Gryffindor team, headed by the Chaser and Captain, Ben Coates. He was a handsome fourth-year, and regarded as the best Chaser in the school. His opposite number, Jake Smith, was leading the Ravenclaw team onto the pitch at the other end. Smith was receiving rapturous applause – he was also a very handsome and popular pupil, though he was a sixth-year. Smith was regarded as the best Quidditch player at Hogwarts in a long time; he was undoubtedly a fantastic Seeker.
Smith and Coates shook hands in an amiable manner, and then they were off. Fifteen brooms shot up high above the stadium. David Woods was again taking his role in providing the commentary.
'And they're off. This match is a real cruncher – the winner will undoubtedly take home the Quidditch Cup. The good news for Ravenclaw is that Jake Smith, playing Seeker, has returned from injury and is one hundred per cent fit to play. This is bad news for Gryffindor.' James laughed. No matter how hard Woods tried, James just knew he would be biased towards Ravenclaw.
'There's also bad luck in store for Slytherin, in that they just won't be winning the Cup under any circumstances.' This remark was followed by a series of cheers and laughs from three-quarters of the crowd and boos from the Slytherin quarter.
'Vaughn, then, in possession for Gryffindor. Plays a nice one-two with Linda Carter, still Vaughn, heading towards the goals, and – Gryffindor score, ten-zero to Gryffindor.' There was sheer disappointment in his voice as he said this.
'Play resumes then, and Johnson has the Quaffle for Ravenclaw, play it to Mak, Mak is heading towards the Gryffindor goals, and, HE SCORES!! A fantastic goal by Ravenclaw Chaser Jason Mak. That makes the score ten-all.' Before very long, it became apparent that this game was going to be, in the words of David Woods, a cruncher. The Chasers were playing to their utmost ability, the Beaters weren't missing a thing, and even the Keepers were limiting the number of goals. Neither team was, at any point, more than twenty point ahead. It was also quite evident that this was not pleasing the Slytherins – they had resorted to booing every time a goal was scored.
'That's some good defensive work by the Gryffindor Beater, Preston – he dispossesses Mak – the Quaffle is picked up by Coa – Hold on! Was that the Snitch? Yes, yes, and Smith and Beaufort are neck and neck, closing in on the Snitch, and, OUCH! That had to hurt!' A large Bludger had just connected with Nancy Beaufort's head.
'And, in the confusion, the Snitch disappears.' Madam Pomfrey had come onto the pitch to attend to Nancy Beaufort. Whilst the game had stopped, James looked around the ground. He could see all the Hufflepuffs, looking like they were having a real treat. The Slytherins were looking sour, though some of them seemed pleased with Beaufort's misfortune. The Ravenclaws were all hanging to their seats, looking infuriated because of the Snitch's disappearance. It was at this point that James noticed something odd. In the front row of the Ravenclaw supporters was Professor Jackson, but Jackson was getting up to leave. James noticed him sidle away, evidently trying to get out of the grounds unobserved. Why, though, should he leave, when the match was so good, and the odds were on his house to win? James' curiosity got the better of him.
'Sirius,' he whispered to his left, without taking his eyes off Jackson.
'He's gone off somewhere,' came Remus' reply.
'Come with me,' said James, grabbing his arm. Together they worked their way to the exit, James explaining to Remus what he'd seen at the same time.
'Have you got the Cloak?' Remus asked. James shook his head.
'Hey, there's Sirius.' Sirius was running towards them, his pockets bulging.
'Where've you been?' asked James.
'Very direct, Mr Potter,' said Sirius, grinning. 'I have been to yonder kitchens.'
'Surpris – wait a minute, did you take the Cloak?'
'Naturally,' said Sirius, pulling it out of his pocket.
'Sirius, you're a genius, even if you are a thief. C'mon, Remus.' And he threw the Cloak over the three of them and continued following Jackson.
'Would somebody mind telling me what is going on?' asked Sirius, looking puzzled.
'Tell him, Remus, but quietly.' After Sirius had been briefed, the three of them carried on after Jackson. They could hear cheering behind them from the stadium, so the game had obviously resumed. Jackson was leading them away from the stadium, but also away from the school. He was heading for the edge of the Forbidden Forest, just beyond Hagrid's hut. It was then that James saw whom he was meeting with – Professor Thornheart materialised out of nowhere.
'How useful,' said Jackson, running his fingers through Thornheart's Invisibility Cloak.
'Merely a precaution,' said Thornheart, shrugging. 'What's the problem?'
'There is none,' said Jackson, his eyes shining. 'The potion will be ready by next Saturday.'
'Lee, that is wonderful. I will be forever in your debt.'
'Do not start celebrating yet; the potion might not work. How long has it been?'
'Almost ten months. We have managed, or you, rather, have managed it within the time.'
'Yes. All that remains is for you to come to my office on Saturday and we can perform the procedure.'
'Thank you, Lee,' said Thornheart, wringing Jackson's hand. 'Thank you for all you have done for me.'
'My pleasure, Frederic. Now, I must return to the stadium, for I have a sneaking suspicion I may have something to celebrate.'
'I wouldn't bet against it,' said Thornheart, laughing, and together they started off for the stadium, Thorheart muttering about the complacency of his Quidditch team. James looked at them both hard before they disappeared from view. Thornheart looked very cheerful, obviously because of the news he had received in the last few minutes. Jackson also looked happy, but there was a slightly strained look on his face and in his eyes. James guessed that it must have been from fatigue, as Jackson must have spent large periods of time researching and procuring the potion ingredients.
Jackson's theory about his house winning the Quidditch Cup had, it transpired, been accurate. When they had returned to the stadium, they found it empty. They had made their way up to the common room (via, of course, the kitchens) and found a very subdued and unpleasant atmosphere that told them only too clearly, knowing what party-animals the Gryffindors were, that Ravenclaw had won. Peter, who they found in the dormitory, playing chess with Frank, filled them in on the details.
'Smith got the Snitch, not long after Nancy got hit. Where were you lot?'
'We'll tell you later,' whispered Sirius, obviously not wanting Frank to overhear him.' Peter nodded perceptively.
Though the feeling in the Gryffindor common room was grim, James and Sirius managed to entertain themselves that afternoon, talking about different ways of embarrassing Snape. Sirius said that he wished he knew where the Slytherin common room was. They had already found the Ravenclaw common room – they had been exploring the castle once when a section of the wall had opened up, and a Ravenclaw prefect had stepped out. He seemed furious with himself for unwittingly showing two Gryffindor first-years the secret entrance to his common room. Unfortunately for James and Sirius, however, this was no good, as they got on very well with all the Ravenclaws they knew, and had no reason to want to "sabotage" (as Sirius so delicately put it), their common room.
Later on in the evening, when the common room was a lot emptier, James, Remus and Sirius decided it was safe to tell Peter what had happened earlier on.
'So,' said Peter breathlessly, 'Thornheart's taking his potion next Saturday.'
'Precisely,' said James. 'And I reckon, since we've been so, er, involved in this little escapade, we should be there to witness the consequences.'
'Breaking into a teacher's office to witness a private and confidential appointment?' said Sirius. 'I like the sound of that.'
'You'd make a great thief, you know' said Remus. Sirius bowed.
'Damn right,' whispered James. 'Now, the only thing we need to know is when Thornheart will be visiting Jackson.'
Therefore, when lessons started that Monday, James, Sirius, Peter and Remus began to make plans for their excursion on Saturday night. The exams were now only a few weeks away, and the teachers were working the students extra hard in the (sometimes vain) hope that they might learn something. James was still, however, increasingly laid-back about the exams. He was doing no more or no less work than was required, and felt confident about them. Sirius, also, was taking this stance. It was a shame the same couldn't be said for all of their friends. Peter, for one, was working extra hard, as he didn't have the natural ability that James and Sirius possessed. Remus too, was working hard, though perhaps not as hard as Peter – Remus was, in reality, very clever, but he had none of Sirius or James' confidence; he, like many others, such as Lily and Katie, was becoming uptight and irritable about the exams, and often seemed quite exasperated with the opinions of James and Sirius, who complained loudly, though sarcastically, about how instead of exams they should take in intense course in the art of mischief. Some people could see their point and take the joke, but some others got increasingly frustrated – much to the delight of James and Sirius.
On Tuesday, in a particularly gripping Potions lesson with the Slytherins, they were learning how to make a simple potion to corrode metal. Well, they were, at least, watching a demonstration by Professor Jackson – it was not wise to show people like James and Sirius the ingredients of a metal corrosive. About halfway through the lesson, whilst they were making notes on the properties of corrosives, Jackson called James to his desk.
'Yes, sir?' said James, smiling.
'Er, James, could you take this letter to Professor Thornheart for me?' James almost started, but held in his surprise.
'Certainly, sir,' he said, saluting Jackson, and he started off for Thornheart's room. There was no way, James thought, as he walked along the corridor, that Thornheart would be the first to read this letter. When he had made sure that there was nobody around him, he carefully slid the letter open. Deciding that it was a bit risky to read it, he simply transfigured his spare quill into a blank piece of parchment. Then, he said the copying charm to put the writing from the note onto the parchment.
'Duplicato,' he whispered, whilst tapping his wand onto first the letter and then the parchment. Instantly, the words from the letter were transferred onto the parchment. James thrust the parchment into his pocket and replaced the envelope, before resealing it. He arrived, a few minutes later, and handed on the note to Thornheart, and after receiving Thornheart's thanks – for he was a lot kinder of late – he returned to his lesson.
James did not get a chance to show Sirius, Peter and Remus the note during lessons, so he waited until the evening, when they were all resting or revising in the common room.
'Here it is,' said James, pulling out the slip of parchment, after he had explained how he had gotten hold of it. 'Listen.'
Come to office at half past six Saturday evening. Don't bother rushing. Be, if unavoidable, late.
L. Jackson
'So,' said Peter. 'We need to go to Jackson's office at half six on Saturday. Shouldn't be too difficult.' Sirius and Remus nodded.
'I don't get it. This message doesn't seem right. "Be, if unavoidable, late"? Why not "If unavoidable, be late"? It's not good grammar.'
'Oh, he was probably writing it in a hurry, and didn't pay much attention,' said Remus.
'Yeah, probably,' said James, but there was still something bothering him about the note.
The week passed fairly quickly, and without much occurrence, just a few detentions for James and Sirius. The four of them were looking forward to their rule-breaking escapade on Saturday.
On Friday night, the four of them sat up playing chess and quietly discussing their plans for the next day. They decided to take their wands with them, as there was an element of danger.
Saturday came, and when James woke up he could see Sirius hitting Remus with a pillow in a vain attempt to wake him. He got out of bed, chuckling, and after a short time, all five boys were awake. They went down to breakfast together, Remus and Peter discussing what they thought would happen that night, Sirius and James discussing escape routes.
They spent the afternoon in the common room, doing some revision. They returned from dinner at ten to six. By this time, the four of them were too excited to revise. James could see Sirius and Peter positively shivering with excitement and anticipation. James himself pulled out Jackson's note, and began studying it, hard. He couldn't put his finger on it, but he felt that there was more to this note than met the eye. He studied it, again and again, but he couldn't see any secret message, or hidden meaning, unless…
'You three!' he shouted, his eyes glittering. 'Quick, we've gotta go! We've gotta go! Hurry!' These remarks stimulated a few questions as to James' sanity, but Sirius, nonetheless, fetched the Cloak.
'What's wrong?' asked Remus. 'We don't need to go for twenty minutes.'
'No, you don't understand! We're late; we have to go now!'
'Alright,' said Remus sceptically, and the three of them exited the common room and James threw the Cloak over them.
'Why, James, are we going so early?' asked Sirius.
'It's Jackson's note. I was right; it does have a secret message. Look,' he said, pulling it out of his pocket, 'read it.'
'Alright,' said Sirius, bemused. 'Come to office at half past six Saturday evening. Don't bother rushing. Be, if unavoidable, late. L. Jackson.'
'Very good, but now read it from the start using every third word.'
'Er, Come – at – six – don't – be – late. Sh - sugar, he's right, we need to get there.' James nodded grimly.
'And we're already ten minutes late. Who knows what could have happened?'
They were now walking rather much faster than they had been, and James was concentrating so much on getting to Jackson's office that he turned a corner and walked headlong into someone. The Cloak slid off them.
'That is a useful item,' came the voice of Albus Dumbledore. 'But where were you heading, may I ask, in such a hurry?'
'Sir,' said James, in a strangled voice. 'You have to come with us, something's happening in Professor Jackson's office, something he and Professor Thornheart don't want people to know about – something about one of the blue unicorn potions.' As soon as the last three words were out of James' mouth, Dumbledore's expression changed from apprehensive to believing in a second.
'Lead the way,' he said resolutely. 'I hope for your sake that you are right James, for if not I can think of at least three teachers that would be most displeased otherwise.' James gulped, but still led the way determinedly. They reached Jackson's office at quarter past six. James tried the door, but it was locked. He then tried the Alohomora Charm, but it wouldn't work. Just as it looked like they wouldn't be able to get in, Sirius fished out of his pocket the present that he had got from James at Christmas.
'Here,' he said, handing James the key. 'Try this.' James tried it, and eventually the door clicked. Counting to three, he flung open the door, and heard four loud gasps behind him, when he looked at the grotesque scene before his eyes.
Ooh. I think I stop now. Maybe this is a cliffhanger? Damn right it is. I now know how part eight (which will probably be the last part of Blue Unicorn) will happen *cackles* and you don't (although you can guess). All of the important characters except Jackson, Thornheart and possibly Katie belong to J. K. Rowling (bless her). As Christmas is two days away, anyone who reads this story before then, a Very Merry Christmas to you. If not, well happy whatever time of the year it may be. Oh, yeah, don't forget to review. Ciao.