The Marauders: In the Beginning
Chapter Seven: A Sudden Interest in Studies
Disclaimer: Everything HP-related was created by J. K. Rowling, not me. This is purely fan work!
A/N: Hmm... things are changing yet again. For some reason, even though it's longer, this chapter seems to me kind of... short and lame -_-;; I'll try to make the next one better!
When Remus turned to see James and Sirius standing behind him, it was as if a kind of weight had been lifted from his shouders. He immediately felt so relieved at this familiar sight that he actually had to give himself a mental slap in the face. Don't get your hopes up, he told himself. Suddenly his face darkened with sudden painful realization.
"You probably want to sit here," he said quickly, gathering his things in a rush. "I'm terribly sorry, just let me move out of the way and--"
Sirius scratched his head. "Wait, where d'you think you're going?"
Remus stopped in his tracks. He turned slowly. "Well," he said, as though it couldn't have been more obvious, "I was just leaving... er, I thought I was in your way, so..." His voice trailed off as he stared at his classmates curiously.
James, who was for some reason carrying twice as many books as usual, pushed up his glasses comically. "You know what this means, Sirius?" he said, trying to sound intelligent. "Remus Lupin - ranked first in his year, quick as a wink, sharp as a tack, smart as... uh, well," he faltered, "pretty smart, obviously - and he actually thought wrong for once!"
Sirius shrugged. "First time for everything, you know." He turned to Remus. "Now," he continued in a mock-angry tone, "thanks to Miss Pomfrey getting all uptight, we haven't been able to come and see you in the hospital wing for the past two days. I don't know what you're thinking, but you aren't going anywhere. So, if you don't mind, kindly take a seat. 'Kay?"
His face broke into a funny sort of grin as he plopped down at the table. James followed suit, nearly dropping his large pile of books. He glanced at Remus, still struggling not to drop anything, and motioned for him to sit. "Come on," he said, as if nothing had happened just days before. "We haven't got all day!"
It was hard to believe that just minutes ago, Remus had been thoroughly convinced that his newfound friendship with James and Sirius was over. Now he was beginning to recover from the initial shock of having his friends back. They were laughing and joking with him like they normally had. Still, something was bothering him.
"This must be too good to be true," he thought uneasily.
"Er," he said, nervous. "About the other day..." He lowered his voice. James and Sirius were both beginning to look a little uncomfortable. "Yeah," said James after a moment, looking at Sirius apprehensively. "About that..."
Remus bit his lip. "I don't know how to say this," he said, still taking care to speak softly so he wouldn't be heard. "Most people... when they find out about... you know" - he winced - "the thing is, I guess most people... are scared. I was just wondering why you're still... why you're still talking to me." He looked down glumly at his hands, covered with faint scars, scratches, and bite-marks, nearly all of which were self-inflicted.
Both boys paused a moment before answering. It was Sirius who spoke first. He frowned. "I guess it's because we got to know you first," he said. "I'll admit, I was deathly scared of the idea - er, I mean, I was... I... I was pretty frightened, I suppose, but I've thought about it a lot--"
"We both have," James interrupted. "Miss Pomfrey's been so strict about you resting up that she wouldn't let us visit you, but we've both been doing a lot of thinking. Remus, just because you, er - change every so often..." He shuddered. "Yeah, that part's scary, but we know it doesn't change the person you are the rest of the time. And we'll never forget how you stood up to Snape like that in Potions." James had said this with such a tone of finality in his voice that clearly meant that was all he had to say, but he laughed a little at the last statement.
Remus realized he'd been holding his breath. He, too, allowed himself a laugh, his face going a little red as he remembered.
"So, James," he said. "What's with all the books?"
"Er... well," James replied cautiously. "We just came from the library."
"Best time of the day to go," Remus replied playfully, "no one would have caught you in a library so early in the morning."
James, however, was serious. "Actually, we really do need to tell you something... but we should probably talk about that later. Right, Sirius?"
Sirius had just begun to eat, and his mouth was full. He nodded. "Mm hmm."
Remus agreed, but James' words continued to plague him the entire day. He couldn't pay attention in Tranfiguration, much to the dismay of his teacher, Professor McGonagall. She was in her twenties, but was nevertheless very strict.
"Mr. Lupin?" she asked sharply as Remus was gazing out the window, leaning an elbow on the desk, trying to figure out what was going on with James and Sirius. They still insisted on not telling him anything. After a few more tries, McGonagall finally succeeded in bringing him back to reality. "Mr. Lupin!" she exclaimed. Remus started and his elbow slid off the desk. "Hmm?" he said absent-mindedly.
Classes continued this way for the rest of the day, until finally the five of them - Remus, James, and Sirius, now joined by Peter and Lily - headed back to the Gryffindor common room. "And Professor Toadstool says I'm doing really well in Herbology," chattered Peter excitedly as they reached the portrait hole. "He said if I keep doing so well, I might not have to write that essay for next week... inglenook."
The portrait swung open on its hinges as Peter said the password, but he didn't enter. "Peter, aren't you coming?" asked Sirius, but Peter shook his head. He was still smiling. "Professor Toadstool wanted to discuss it with me, so I should probably be heading back, just wanted to tell you all the good news," he said hurriedly. Lily smiled as Peter scampered off. "That's a good thing for him, you know?" she said to the boys as they made their way into the common room. "Boost his self-esteem a little. I'm happy for him."
Remus nodded in agreement, but he was still thinking about his friends' strange behavior. His curiosity getting the best of him, he asked quite suddenly, "James, can I borrow one of your books?"
"Sure, which one?"
"No," Remus said pointedly. "I mean one of those books." He guestured toward the pile of books James had been carrying around earlier that morning. James looked at Remus questioningly.
"Remember?" Remus added hopefully. "You were going to, er... show me the books you checked out this morning?"
"Oh!" exclaimed James and Sirius together. "Erm... right. Come on, then."
The boys were now completely ignoring Lily, who looked a little hurt as she sat down at a small wooden table at the far end of the room. After all, she could take a hint. She began removing from her bag a number of textbooks, quills, ink and parchment and was just starting on her homework when the sound of James' voice made her look up.
"We'll be right back," he said. He hesitated, noticing a tiny glimmer in Lily's bright green eyes. Then he ran up the spiral staircase and into the boys' dorm. It was completely deserted except for Sirius and Remus, who were smirking at him.
"Oh, stop that already," James snapped. "It's just Lily - it isn't what you think. Now, can we please focus?"
He turned to Remus. "As I was telling you earlier this morning, the two of us stopped at the library before breakfast. We picked up a few books we thought might be useful. We got them - er, they came from the restricted section," he admitted, giving them a sheepish grin. Remus was confused. "The restricted section?" he repeated. "How on earth did you..." But Sirius' eyes immediately fell upon the school trunk where James kept the cloak.
"L-Long story," James stuttered, but Sirius interrupted him. "Invisibility cloak," he finished simply.
Their friend stared back at them, his gray eyes showing his confusion. "A - A what!?"
"We'll explain everything," said James, growing impatient. "The thing is, we think we've figured out a way we'll be able to help you." He paused, at a loss. "With..."
"With what?"
"Well, y'know, with your being a - a werewolf."
There. He had said it. Any second now, his friend's eyes would go wide as he'd exclaim, "Wow, James! That's amazing! I can't believe it!" And then everything would be just fine. He waited. Yes, any second now...
"You're off your onion."
Er... not quite the response he'd been looking for. "What?" replied James.
"There's no cure for it," Remus said bitterly.
"What d'you mean there's no cure?" said Sirius quietly. He didn't want to hear the answer.
"Just what I said," sighed Remus heavily. "There isn't any cure. At least, not yet." He slumped over tiredly and sat cross-legged on the floor, hanging his head. "It could be years. But... but I apologize for snapping at you like that. I guess I'm a bit edgy. I appreciate it, really, no one's ever tried to do anything like that before..."
James hesitated, but decided it would be best to continue before Remus got too far into his apologetic speech. "Remus, let me finish. We're not looking for a cure."
"...You... you're not... what?" By now, he was thoroughly confused.
Sirius was flipping through the yellowing pages of a very thick book. "It's all right here... Advanced Transfiguration and Shapeshifting, Volume One..." He snapped the volume shut and grinned at his friends over the top of it. "So, think you're up for it?"
