The Marauders: In the Beginning
Chapter Ten: Mustardseed and the Midnight Marauding
Disclaimer: As always, everything from HP belongs to its almighty creator J. K. Rowling, not me. Cheers to her. *raises butterbeer*
One week later, the four of them - James, Sirius, and Remus, now joined by Peter - were huddled together under James' invisibility cloak. Secret after-hours trips to the library had quickly become a habit. It was difficult work navigating the dark hallways, not to mention trying to conceal four young boys under a cloak just large enough for a grown man.
But they had a large stack of books that needed to be returned before their absence from the restriced section was noticed, so they continued to struggle through the unnerving still of night. The eerie silence was occasionally broken by muffled cries of "Ouch, James!" or "Oi, geroff - that's my foot!" It was one of their more challenging voyages, but eventually, they reached their destination.
As soon as they got to the restricted section, they immediately threw off the invisibility cloak. As Peter crossed under the velvet ropes, he stumbled and nearly fell, but Remus caught his elbow and pulled him back up. Then Remus scrambled under the ropes as well, and took the books from James so he could do the same. Sirius followed. Peter took the lantern from Sirius and held it as steadily as he could while James replaced the books upon the shelf.
James picked up a thick volume and glanced down at the spine. "Mustardseed, Mathilda," he read. "This one's written by Mustardseed, Mathilda... so it'd be about... here." He shoved the book back onto the shelf and grabbed another from the pile.
"Hurry up!" whispered Peter impatiently. "My arm's getting tired!" He shifted the lantern so he was holding it in his left hand instead of his right.
"I am hurrying!" retorted James. "I have to put them in their proper places, you know, I can't just--"
"Quiet!" Sirius hissed. He and Remus, having distinctly heard the distant sound of approaching footsteps, were looking fearfully towards the entrace of the library. "Someone's coming!"
James' jaw dropped. "But we haven't even been here five minutes!" he gasped. "I still have to put away the rest of the--"
He didn't get to finish. In one seeminingly connected movement, Remus crouched low to the ground to put the books down, Peter fell backwards over him, and Sirius grabbed James by the arm to pull him down to the floor. He hurriedly grabbed the cloak and tossed it over himself and his friends. Then, they waited there, the sound of footsteps drawing ever-nearer. After a few minutes, a man of about thirty poked his head into the room.
"Filch!?" exclaimed Peter a little too loudly. Sirius clamped a hand over Peter's mouth to keep him quiet. Too late! Filch jerked his head around, staring in their direction. His eyes narrowed as if he could see right through the cloak. He slowly approached the spot where the boys hid. One more step and he'd knock right into them.
Remus prepared himself. It's been a nice year so far, he thought. What was next? The penalty would be far worse than detention. Remus squeezed his eyes shut, biting his lower lip. Oh, please don't let him find us, he begged silently. Please... just go away... please...
He opened his eyes when he realized Filch had stopped. The man stood directly in front of them, glancing around suspiciously, nostrils flared as he sniffed the air. "Could've sworn they came in here," he muttered. A good ten seconds later, he seemed no more or less satisfied, but he hadn't found any signs of students hiding in the library. He turned and left, pausing at the doorway. Then he shook his head and stalked off.
From their place in front of the restricted shelf, the boys spotted a small animal hurrying towards Filch. "Come along, my sweet," he said, scooping up a tiny kitten with tangled fur. "They're trying to hide from us, but we won't let them, will we?" It let out a raspy yet affectionate "meow," purring and nuzzling Filch's face. The boys stifled their laughter as Filch headed down the corridor with the kitten in his arms.
"Filch has a cat?" James laughed. Peter was unable to contain his amusement at this, and let out a loud chuckle under Sirius' hand. Even Remus was smirking.
Sirius couldn't help grinning, but he quickly said, "Alright, now, come on. Quiet down. Let's not forget why we came here in the first place!"
"Seriously," said James. He started to laugh at his own pun, but was silenced when he received Sirius' elbow right between the ribs.
Later that night, Remus was having trouble sleeping. Through the curtains drawn around his bed, he could hear the faint snores of the other boys. They were all fast asleep.
But for some reason, he couldn't. He felt so stupid - how could anything possibly be troubling him? He had three great friends. They'd included him in numerous adventures, and no matter how close they came, never once got caught. For the first time in years, he was truly happy. Yet every night, he still lay awake, guilt-stricken and unable to sleep.
Each moment spent with his friends was like a dream, and Remus was horrified at the idea of waking up to discover that's all it had been. He was unable to fully enjoy the fun while it lasted, and he always felt weighted down by an overwhelming sense of apprehension that he just couldn't seem to shake off.
The one thing he was constantly dreading was that one incident that would throw off the delicate balance of his life. For instance, what if they were caught? Even the smallest part of their plan, if revealed, could mean the end of their Hogwarts days. It was an anchor that pulled at him night and day, an alarm bell just waiting to go off. And when it did, he'd have to face reality. He'd have to wake up.
