Okay, Rache...here's the response to your latest review (and Bob bless you
for it!):
I'm glad plot holes aren't necessarily the spawn of all evil, as writer's block is... Remus always struck me as introverted and such, too, which makes his relationship with Sirius and James all the more interesting (although I don't go into it much in this story). He's my favorite character by far, and although I originally wrote this with Liana as the main character, he seems to have taken the stage (which I honestly don't mind at all :D). As for Madame Pomfrey...I've always imagined her as this dumpy, strict, motherly sort of person, but in this fic she's taken on a totally different style. I see her almost as a McGonagall personality now, with a dislike towards Liana that came kinda out of nowhere. She seems to be writing herself, and I really wouldn't know how to change her if I felt like doing so. Trelawney's room also wrote itself. I don't really know why I did all that...originally, I was using the class as an excuse for Remus and Liana to be able to talk away from all the Marauders without looking suspicious, but they don't seem to have said much, have they? I dunno...I always figured Remus would be good at the whole divination thing because he's so quiet, and spends a lot of quality time with himself. Especially before he had friends, he must have gotten in touch with his "inner eye"-assuming everyone has one. I'm glad you liked that chapter, cuz it wasn't one of my faves. Hopefully this one will prove better...if I can ever get past this *#$^ writer's block...
And now, the chapter!
Chapter Nine
Liana groaned and rubbed her empty belly. Breakfast had been cleared up already, and it still hadn't been half an hour since she'd taken the Pepper- up. With a resigned sigh, she picked up her book bag and left the Gryffindor common room, to where she'd fled after the frigid shower. Class would start in a few minutes, and she didn't feel like drawing any extra attention from Professor Trelawney by arriving late. The lady gave her the creeps.
She wrinkled her nose as she entered the smelly room and pulled out a handkerchief. Putting it to her nose and breathing shallowly, Liana seated herself at the usual round table. Remus wasn't there yet; they always sat together, being the only Gryffindors in the class.
He arrived soon enough, and the bell rang. Professor Trelawney made her usual entrance and announced what they would be doing in class that day, but Liana wasn't really listening. The heat of the day and the scented smoke in the room was making her light-headed, and she looked longingly at the window on the far side of the room. It was shut tightly.
A quick charm could fix that... But no. The professor was already passing out the crystal balls, and her eyes were fixed on Liana as if she knew what the girl was planning. The fifth-year shuddered and grabbed a gazing ball.
It was slightly different from the ones they'd used in their third year: there was dark red smoke in it instead of white, and the occasional black streaks swirled amongst the red. Liana sighed and wished she'd listened to the professor's little speech before class. Was there something different they were supposed to do with these?
It didn't seem that way. Looking around the room, Liana saw the students staring at their crystals motionlessly, most of them in a trance of some sort. Remus had that far-away look in his eyes that Liana had come to recognize after so many years of sitting next to him in this class.
She shrugged and pulled her crystal ball closer. The mist was swirling beautifully, and the color was much more appealing to Liana than the white had been. She let her mind slip away, and stared at the globe with that half-focused look that Muggles use to see 3-D pictures in masses of random colors or pictures. Almost instantly, the smoke gathered to the center of the globe as if pulled there by a magnet. It clustered in a compact, quivering ball and stayed there for a few minutes. Then it began to shift and change, like a lump of clay formed by invisible hands. Liana brought her face closer to the ball, careful not to change the focus of her eyes.
The smoke split into two shifting blobs, one red and one black. The black one became a wolf (That's me! she thought excitedly) and the red one stretched to become a tall, thin figure with blazing slits for eyes. He was the scariest man Liana had ever seen, but the wolf didn't seem afraid. Liana took courage from the creature's calmness and didn't look away. She watched herself wag her tail at the tall man, looking at him until he nodded, very slowly. At his nod, the wolf sprang to her feet and bounded away. She ran, quickly and silently, straight for a man who was standing perfectly still towards the back of the scene. He looked around just as she leaped, and she landed on his half-twisted back. He screamed noiselessly and clawed at her, but she killed him promptly and disentangled herself from his limp form. The thin man was suddenly beside her, and she sat at his feet and looked up at him expectantly. He smiled evilly and patted her head before disappearing in a whirl of smoke.
Almost immediately, another man took his place. It was Dumbledore, Liana was sure of it. She smiled to know that he was in her future; she liked the crazy old coot. The wolf stood respectfully at Dumbledore's entrance, and wagged her tail more furiously. The old man patted her affectionately and walked past her towards the man she'd killed. He stooped to inspect him, then levitated him with a swish and flick of his wand. They both dissipated into the smoke, leaving the wolf alone.
But not for long. Soon, another wolf joined her, larger and rougher. It was Remus! He walked towards her, and when they were close enough they could almost touch, he stopped. A line of dementors had appeared between them, the tall, thin man from earlier among them. His eyes blazed evilly and a cold laugh filled Liana's head. The man held out his wand, pointing it straight at Remus, and the laugh intensified. A flash of green light washed out the whole scene for a moment, and when it faded away, Remus was crumpled at the thin man's feet. Liana cried out in surprise, fear, anger, and began to lose focus of the scene just as a large black dog and a graceful white stag bounded forward to attack the thin man. She struggled to see them more clearly, but the picture was fading. Before it disappeared completely, she saw the dementors envelope the two creatures, and another flash of green light...
Then it was gone. The crystal ball was back to normal, the red smoke swirling around randomly again. Liana lowered her hand, which had been pressed against her mouth in shock, and looked around the room, embarrassed. She must have yelled out loud; the whole class was staring at her in amusement.
"Are you okay?" came a soft voice from her left. She jumped and turned to look at the speaker with wide eyes. It was Remus, of course, sitting in his seat next to her and looking at her with concern.
"Oh! I'd forgotten you were there..." she said, pressing a hand to her pounding heart. The sight of him made her think guiltily of the vision. But why should she feel guilty? She couldn't control what she saw, and now maybe she could do something about it. She'd been there, after all...
"What did you see?" Remus asked, startling her again.
"Oh, y'know, the usual," she answered absently, waving the question off. Remus nodded and stood with a smile to return his crystal ball to the professor. Liana followed him to the front of the room slowly, not wanting to face the professor after seeing such terrible things. Trelawney usually seemed to know what her students were seeing; perhaps they were inexperienced in hiding their emotions, or she was good at reading them.
Remus turned back to his desk, and Liana saw the professor staring after him. She shivered-Trelawney's gaze was a disconcerting one-and placed her crystal ball carefully in the crate. To her relief, the professor didn't speak to her, or even look at her. She continued to stare at Remus as if the rest of the class did not exist. Liana glanced at the clock. Class would be over in a minute or two, something for which she was intensely glad. She hurried back to her desk to grab her book bag and sneaked towards the trap door, glancing impatiently at the clock every so often. At long last, the bell rang, and Liana slid down the ladder and breathed the fresh air deeply. She closed her eyes and leaned against the wall for a minute, letting the smell clear from her senses. When she looked up again, Remus was standing there.
He smiled at her and gestured ahead of him.
"After you, my lady," he said with a bow, indicating the staircase that led out of the North tower. Liana couldn't stifle a giggle as she passed him and began skipping down the stairs. He caught up with her, and they talked about various nonsense all the way to Defense Against the Dark Arts. When they got there, the whole class was milling about the corridor. The door to the classroom was closed and locked.
Liana and Remus exchanged glances and joined the Marauders and Lily near the door. Lily smiled at Liana and James glanced sideways at her. Sirius and Peter took no notice; they were too busy enlarging two flies on the wall. There was a level of intense concentration on Peter's face, and Liana figured they were racing. She was right; when Sirius' was the size of his palm, it exploded. Peter, looking disappointed, left his the size of a chocolate frog and turned to greet Remus. Sirius gloated behind him, stroking his wand lovingly.
Five minutes after the final bell had rung, Professor Peregrine came puffing towards them, his face very red and sweaty.
"Business...to take care of...no class...free time...enjoy yourselves..." he wheezed as he ran past. The Marauders exchanged startled glanced and stared after him. Sirius at the lead, they slipped past their excited classmates and followed the professor down the corridor. Remus held back to talk to Liana.
"I guess we'll go see what's up; do you want to come along?" he asked. Liana was surprised; although she'd accompanied them secretly on many of their romps through the castle, she'd never been invited to join the Marauders before. Sirius was glaring at them over his shoulder, looking impatient. She hesitated a moment, then shook her head.
"I'd better not," she replied quietly, although she would have loved to go. "Your friend doesn't look to happy right now." She nodded towards Sirius, who was bouncing on his toes and looking from Remus to the end of the corridor, where the professor had long since turned a corner and gone out of sight. Remus shot his friend a dark look and turned back to Liana.
"Don't mind him, he can be an ass sometimes." Liana grinned. She knew how close Remus and Sirius were, and was honored that Remus was sticking up for her in this way. But Sirius looked ready to explode.
"No, no, I'm fine. You'd better go before he hexes you," she said firmly, still grinning like an idiot. Remus nodded and turned to join his friends. As they started off in the direction the professor had taken, he looked back at Liana, but she'd disappeared into the crowd of dispersing students.
"Took you long enough," Sirius grumbled as they started to run, turning the corner sharply. Remus shrugged, saving his breath for whatever may come.
* * *
Liana leaned against the wall behind a suit of armor and breathed as quietly as she could, but it was hard to do. She was entirely out of breath after running behind the Marauders and Lily for what seemed like twenty minutes straight. The clock on the wall in the nearest classroom told her it had only been about half that, but she was wiped out nonetheless. Glancing ahead, she saw the Marauders pressed against the wall, Lily peering into a classroom as unobtrusively as possible. Peter looked even more tired than Liana felt. While his four friends pressed closer to the classroom door, which was barely ajar, he sank to the floor and tried to catch his breath.
Suddenly, the door burst open in the Marauders' faces. A man in bright blue robes came striding out, flanked by two dementors. The torches in the hall flickered and a familiar wave of cold washed over Liana. It was much less disturbing than it had been the previous night, but she shivered nonetheless.
"-can't believe you'd even suggest such a thing," the man in blue was saying. A voice from inside the classroom started to respond, but the man had spotted the Marauders and Lily, and he shushed whoever it was with a curt word. The person in the classroom came out. He was a bit shorter than the man in blue, and was wearing robes much too long for him. A cowl hid his face in shadow. When he saw the teenagers pressed against the wall, he hissed.
"What are you kids doing here?" he asked in a low, husky voice. Liana wasn't sure, but she thought it was fake. The Marauders and Lily didn't reply. Remus was crouched next to Peter, his hands clapped over his ears and his eyes shut tight. The dementors had turned their heads towards him and were breathing their rattling breaths.
"Who are they, Pete?" the man in blue asked tersely. Peter looked up from his spot on the floor and narrowed his eyes. Pete took a step back from him, towards the dementors.
"Just some students at the school," he said in a slightly higher voice. He cleared his throat, and his voice went down again. "They're no danger to us, really." The man in blue snorted.
"All witnesses are a danger, fool. Bring them inside," he snapped angrily, gesturing from the group against the wall to the classroom. Pete nodded and shot ropes from the end of his wand. They wound around the five teenagers and returned to his hand. He gripped the ends tightly and dragged his prisoners into the classroom. The man in blue glared at the dementors and nodded towards the classroom. They, too, disappeared inside. With one more look around the hall, he followed, pulling the door shut behind him. A click announced that he'd locked it.
Liana let out her breath and leaned back against the wall, careful not to make any more noise than necessary. She stood slowly, avoiding the suit of armor she was hiding behind, and turned to run for a teacher. Dumbledore would know what to do, if only she could find him. Even McGonagall would handle things well. But when she was halfway down the hall, she heard a muffled scream come from the classroom. She skidded to a stop and stared at the closed door, undecided. Suppose it was too late to help the Marauders by the time she got a teacher? She'd have to find someone, and convince them to come with her... No, there simply wasn't time. She stared around the hall wildly, but could see nothing that would help her into that classroom. She couldn't simply waltz in and grab her friends, then walk away again. She needed a plan...
"Accio invisibility cloak!" she whispered, pointing her wand in the general direction of the Gryffindor common room and focusing all her thoughts on the silvery cloak. For a moment, she thought it hadn't worked. Then, suddenly, something hit her in the back of the head and fell to the floor. It was the cloak. Without wondering why it had come from the opposite direction she'd expected, Liana donned it and pulled open the door to the classroom next to the one where the Marauders were being held.
This classroom, too, was empty, and seemed unused. She pulled a desk away from the wall and placed it under a window. Taking a deep breath and doing a quick charm that fastened the cloak around her and left her hands free, she opened the window and stepped outside.
The ledge under the window was very narrow, and cut into three levels. Liana put one foot on the top level and one on the bottom and began to edge along the wall, ignoring the sheer drop of three stories and the light wind that seemed so terribly strong to her in her fear. The windows were only about five feet apart, but the distance seemed impossibly far. When, years later, she reached the window into the next classroom, Liana breathed almost normally again. Now that the deed was done, it didn't seem nearly as bad as when it was still before her.
The blinds were drawn on the window, but Liana could see through them to some degree. She crouched on the ledge in front of the window, watching through the largest gap she could find as the man in blue paced back and forth. Every time he turned around, his eyes fell on the window, and Liana swore he could see her. But he did nothing, and she remembered with a start that she was wearing the invisibility cloak.
The short man in dark robes, Pete, was following the other man and making wild gestures. Liana couldn't hear his words through the window, but she thought she heard him whining. One of the dementors was standing by the door, not moving, and the other one-
Liana nearly toppled off the ledge when she saw the other dementor. It was facing the wall perpendicular to the one the window was in, and had its scabby hand curled around the neck of Lily's robes. She was still tied up, and was hanging from a torch bracket against the wall. The dementor had her pushed up against the wall until her face was level with its, and its hood was pulled back and draped across its back. When Liana saw its face, she realized suddenly who had screamed, and why. The dementor had a face more hideous and scary than Liana would have ever imagined. Its papery skin was stretched tight across two empty eye sockets, and its mouth was a gaping hole in the middle of its face. The skin around the mouth was puckered and dry, and Liana swore she could hear the dementor's rattling breath even through the window. She tore her eyes away from the hideous sight. Lily was limp against the wall, her eyes shut tight and tears running down her cheeks. James, hanging from a torch bracket across the room, was struggling angrily against his bonds. Sirius, nearest him, was quite still, but his eyes blazed with anger and hate. Liana couldn't see Peter, but she assumed he was on the wall that held the window. Remus was hanging across the room from her, nearest the door. He had his eyes closed, and two shining streaks ran down his cheeks. As she watched, another tear rolled out of the corner of his eye. To see Remus crying was almost enough to send Liana crashing through the window, but she restrained herself. That wouldn't help at all.
But she had to do something. From what she could gather by just watching, the man in blue wanted to let the dementors do as they wished to the teenagers, but Pete didn't want him to. Anger showed more and more plainly on the taller man's face, and Liana feared that he would give the dementors free reign any second. Pete didn't seem to notice that his pleas were only angering the other man more and more. Still watching the two men pace, Liana tried desperately to come up with a plan.
Just as Liana felt that she had the beginnings of a plan, the man in blue stopped his pacing and, quite suddenly, gripped Pete around the neck. He growled something at him and dropped him to the floor like so much filth, then turned to the dementor holding Lily. He said something, and James, who had calmed down somewhat by this time, renewed his struggles. His yell was easily audible through the window. Even Sirius had begun to yell at the man in blue, who ignored them both. Remus looked up in shock. His eyes were red and bright, and he paled considerably and turned to look at the dementor holding Lily. The dementor nodded and gripped the girl's chin with its free hand. She was sobbing now, but she opened her eyes to look at it as it pulled her face closer to its own.
Liana didn't know what the dementor was going to do, or what it could mean, but she knew it couldn't be good. Throwing caution to the wind, she muttered a charm that shattered the window and stepped into the room. It wasn't until she saw the looks of bewilderment on every face in the room that she remembered about the invisibility cloak. She realized she had a great advantage, and disarmed both Pete and the man in blue before they could move. The dementor by the door was moving towards her very quickly, and the other one was staring straight at her, still gripping Lily by the jaw. Liana automatically Changed into wolf form. The invisibility cloak fell off and settled around her feet. The dementor who'd been approaching her stopped and looked around, confused. The other one looked back to Lily and took a deep, rattling breath.
Apparently, dementors took no notice of animals. Liana took advantage of this to leap onto the nearest one's back, tearing at its scabby neck. It uttered a kind of shriek and dropped Lily, reaching back to pull her off instead. It was incredibly strong and threw her off easily. She landed deftly on her feet and lunged at it again, taking its narrow head in her jaws. It shrieked again, but she was prepared for its strength and held on determinedly when it tore at her. Suddenly she was being pulled in two directions: the dementor was grabbing at her front legs and her neck, and someone else was pulling her from behind. She'd forgotten about Pete and the other man. Pete was running for the wands, which Liana had stupidly left in the corner of the room. But Peter kicked him as he went past, causing him to clutch his side with a pained yell. He struck out at the boy and missed, then ran for the wands again. Out of reach of the tied-up teenagers, he picked up his own and tossed the other one to the man pulling at Liana, who caught it deftly without letting go of her legs. Liana was steadily losing her grip on the dementor's slippery head, but she knew that if she let go, it would go for Lily again, and the man in blue would probably kill her or tie her up with the others. There were ways of forcing Animagi to show their true forms, and once he knew who and what she was... Liana didn't know what would happen, but she did know that she couldn't let them get her under their control.
Pete pointed his wand at her, his hand shaking slightly.
"Avada kedavra!" he hissed. With a yelp, Liana let go of the dementor and fell to the ground, narrowly missing the burst of light from Pete's wand. She was still being held by the man in blue, but he was on the ground next to her. She twisted out of his grip and saw that the spell had hit him instead.
Then the dementor was gripping Lily again. It seemed determined to do away with her, but she had taken heart from the battle and was kicking and writhing, trying to shove him away. Liana jumped for the dementor's outstretched arm, trying to break the bone, but it didn't seem to have a bone. When she realized she wasn't hurting it at all, she let go and tore at Lily's bonds. Pete was shaking in the corner, staring at the body of the man in blue and not moving at all. Liana ignored him and freed Lily's hands. The red-headed girl did the rest, tearing the dementor's hand away from her chin and pulling her wand out of the inner pocket of her robe.
"Expecto patronum!" she bellowed, pointing the wand at the dementor. It shrieked again and took a few steps backward, trying to avoid the roaring bear that was circling it. The other dementor turned and exited the room hastily. It was soon followed by its companion and the bear.
The room was quiet for a moment. Lily reached up and untied the knot that tied her to the torch bracket. She fell to the floor with a thump and quickly kicked off her remaining bonds. The silvery ropes lay in coils on the floor for a few seconds before disappearing.
Without wasting a second, Lily untied her friends, letting them all down from their places on the walls. They stood around staring at each other and rubbing their sore wrists for a few minutes, no one knowing quite what to say. Remus rubbed his face and looked away from Sirius, who was staring at him as if he didn't know what to think. After a long silence, James took his girlfriend in his arms and held her tightly. His eyes were suspiciously bright.
"I was so scared..." he whispered. Lily began to sob into his shoulder, and the sound broke the tense silence. Suddenly, everyone was talking, complaining, yelling, or wondering. Peter held up a hand, stopping the chaotic meddle of voices.
"Quiet!" he yelled. Then, more quietly, "Where's Peregrine?" The five teenagers looked at each other, then around the room. There was a blanketed lump in one corner, and James pointed to it.
"Is-is that him, do you think?" he asked shakily. Sirius approached the lump, but Peter stopped him.
"No, that's not him!" he said sharply. "I mean Pete, the short guy in the dark robes. The one who killed him," he added, nodding towards the dead body of the man in blue. Lily shivered and looked away. The other three Marauders looked at Peter in bewilderment. Realization dawned on Remus first, then James.
"You mean-Pete is Professor Peregrine?" James said in disbelief. Peter nodded. Remus looked around wildly, then ran to shut the classroom door. Liana, realizing what was going on, sprang towards the window and sniffed around. She bumped against something in the corner and growled. The sound attracted the attention of the other occupants of the room, who seemed to have forgotten she was there. She ignored them and gripped the invisible lump in front of her. As she pulled the invisibility cloak off Pete Peregrine, he uttered a squeal and ran for the door. But Remus blocked his way, holding out his wand and pointing it steadily at the cowering man. The professor turned and ran for the window, but he met a snarling black wolf, hackles raised and muscles tensed. He looked back and forth, standing between the only two ways out of the room. He suddenly seemed to remember that he was holding his wand, and he pointed it uncertainly at Liana, who was closest.
"D-don't hurt me, or I'll kill the wolf!" Remus snorted, and Sirius drew his own wand with a sneer. Soon, five wands were pointed at the professor, who was looking very frightened and was pressed against the wall. Lily lowered her wand.
"I'll go get Dumbledore and anyone else I come across. You guys watch this creep," she announced before striding quickly out of the room. Remus closed the door tightly when she'd gone. Professor Peregrine trembled more violently and his face, which was no longer hidden by the cowl, took on a sickly green shade. The minutes stretched on, but Liana and Remus didn't relax their guards. Sirius, James, and Peter sat cross-legged on the floor, their wands pointed casually at Peregrine. James kept shooting glances at Liana, and Remus was staring past Peregrine at her. Both gazes were very unnerving, and she felt sure they knew who she was.
When Lily knocked on the door and entered, flanked by Dumbledore and McGonagall, it was quite a relief to Liana. She was about to relax when she realized that they would probably wonder who she was, and she could get caught easily. If they were to realize she was an Animagus, and performed the charm... Ignoring her duty to keep Peregrine in line, she bolted for the door. As soon as he saw the free window, Peregrine ran for it. Liana paused just outside the door to see what would happen, and was shocked to see him Change into a peregrine falcon and take to the sky. But he didn't get far: Dumbledore uttered a spell that brought the bird back through the window and to his hand. Peregrine attacked him with his talons and beak, but McGonagall was there to subdue the vicious bird. Before long, they had it tied up at their feet. Reassured, Liana took off down the hall at a run.
When she deemed it safe, Liana stopped to catch her breath. It wasn't until then that she heard running footsteps behind her. Turning sharply, she saw Remus running flat-out, trying to catch up with her. He skidded to a stop in front of her, and she didn't have the heart to run off and make him chase her again. He bent double, leaning one hand on his knees and clutching a stitch in his side with the other.
"Who...are you?" he wheezed, finally collapsing to the floor and sitting against the wall, breathing heavily. Liana pretended not to hear and looked away up the hall. Remus had come alone, it seemed, but she knew the others could be there in the invisibility cloak. Remus' breathing slowed to normal, and he sat up straighter, staring at Liana and waiting for some kind of answer. She glared at him with her bright blue eyes, so different from those of a normal wolf. He stared at her in sudden surprise. "Liana?" he whispered. She looked away again, trying not to make any nervous movement that would give away her shock at being discovered. Remus reached out a hand and almost touched her, but changed his mind and pulled away. "Why didn't you tell me? You never said a word..." He trailed off and just stared at her for a while. After standing motionless for a minute or two, Liana turned and trotted away. She heard Remus get up and follow her, but she didn't bother trying to shake him. She led him outside and looked around. The only absolutely safe place was the forest, so she headed for it. When they were deep among the trees, she turned and Changed back to her natural form.
* * *
Sirius watched in surprise as the wolf bolted for the door, then turned sharply to stop Peregrine as the professor ran for the window. Before he could do anything, the man had jumped out and was flying away in the form of a peregrine falcon. Dumbledore said something nearly incomprehensible, and the bird came hurtling backwards and into his hands. After a moment's struggle, Dumbledore and McGonagall had subdued and tethered the desperate bird. It lay neatly tied at Dumbledore's feet, in ropes that would expand if Peregrine decided to try to Change. Sirius looked up to see that the wolf was gone, Remus with her.
"I suppose you can explain yourselves?" McGonagall said sharply, bringing Sirius' attention back to the situation at hand. Dumbledore's eyes had lost their twinkle, and he was walking around the room, peering out the window and into every corner. When he saw the blanketed lump in the corner, he pointed to it.
"What is this?" he asked, staring at the three remaining Marauders and Lily. They all shrugged.
"We thought it was Professor Peregrine until we realized that's who 'Pete' was," James explained, staring at the pile of blankets with curiosity. Dumbledore bent over and peered under the blankets. His face got quite pale.
"Minerva," he said tersely, levitating the lump, "go to Poppy immediately." The professor nodded and left without a word, taking the floating pile of blankets with her. The four teens exchanged alarmed glances, but knew better than to ask what was underneath the blankets. "As for the rest of you, you'll have to come with me to my office," Dumbledore continued, turning to the remaining occupants of the room. They didn't respond, just followed him out into the hall. He levitated Peregrine and took him along. As they left, he looked around the room. "Where are your two friends?" he asked suddenly. James, Peter, and Lily looked around, too, noticing for the first time that Remus and the wolf had left. Sirius said nothing.
"I don't know. . ." Peter said quietly.
"They were there before." James was looking worried. Sirius hid a smile. Doubtless, Remus was following the wolf and trying to figure out who she was. Or, he already knew and was trying to get her to talk to him. But he didn't feel like telling Dumbledore that they knew who the wolf was, or that they knew she was an Animagus, or that Remus was probably with her, wherever she was. That would require explaining a few things that didn't need to be explained-or couldn't be just yet.
When they couldn't offer an answer as to where Remus and the wolf were, Dumbledore beckoned for them to follow him. He led them to his office and told them to wait there while he took Professor Peregrine somewhere where he'd be safe.
"Safe?" Sirius muttered angrily under his breath. "Who'd want to keep that creep safe?" He hadn't meant for anyone to hear, but Dumbledore had. He smiled at the black-haired boy, the twinkle back in his eyes.
"I suppose I worded that incorrectly. I want him somewhere he can't escape from, and my office is not a good place for that." With that, he turned and left the office, closing the door behind him.
I'm glad plot holes aren't necessarily the spawn of all evil, as writer's block is... Remus always struck me as introverted and such, too, which makes his relationship with Sirius and James all the more interesting (although I don't go into it much in this story). He's my favorite character by far, and although I originally wrote this with Liana as the main character, he seems to have taken the stage (which I honestly don't mind at all :D). As for Madame Pomfrey...I've always imagined her as this dumpy, strict, motherly sort of person, but in this fic she's taken on a totally different style. I see her almost as a McGonagall personality now, with a dislike towards Liana that came kinda out of nowhere. She seems to be writing herself, and I really wouldn't know how to change her if I felt like doing so. Trelawney's room also wrote itself. I don't really know why I did all that...originally, I was using the class as an excuse for Remus and Liana to be able to talk away from all the Marauders without looking suspicious, but they don't seem to have said much, have they? I dunno...I always figured Remus would be good at the whole divination thing because he's so quiet, and spends a lot of quality time with himself. Especially before he had friends, he must have gotten in touch with his "inner eye"-assuming everyone has one. I'm glad you liked that chapter, cuz it wasn't one of my faves. Hopefully this one will prove better...if I can ever get past this *#$^ writer's block...
And now, the chapter!
Chapter Nine
Liana groaned and rubbed her empty belly. Breakfast had been cleared up already, and it still hadn't been half an hour since she'd taken the Pepper- up. With a resigned sigh, she picked up her book bag and left the Gryffindor common room, to where she'd fled after the frigid shower. Class would start in a few minutes, and she didn't feel like drawing any extra attention from Professor Trelawney by arriving late. The lady gave her the creeps.
She wrinkled her nose as she entered the smelly room and pulled out a handkerchief. Putting it to her nose and breathing shallowly, Liana seated herself at the usual round table. Remus wasn't there yet; they always sat together, being the only Gryffindors in the class.
He arrived soon enough, and the bell rang. Professor Trelawney made her usual entrance and announced what they would be doing in class that day, but Liana wasn't really listening. The heat of the day and the scented smoke in the room was making her light-headed, and she looked longingly at the window on the far side of the room. It was shut tightly.
A quick charm could fix that... But no. The professor was already passing out the crystal balls, and her eyes were fixed on Liana as if she knew what the girl was planning. The fifth-year shuddered and grabbed a gazing ball.
It was slightly different from the ones they'd used in their third year: there was dark red smoke in it instead of white, and the occasional black streaks swirled amongst the red. Liana sighed and wished she'd listened to the professor's little speech before class. Was there something different they were supposed to do with these?
It didn't seem that way. Looking around the room, Liana saw the students staring at their crystals motionlessly, most of them in a trance of some sort. Remus had that far-away look in his eyes that Liana had come to recognize after so many years of sitting next to him in this class.
She shrugged and pulled her crystal ball closer. The mist was swirling beautifully, and the color was much more appealing to Liana than the white had been. She let her mind slip away, and stared at the globe with that half-focused look that Muggles use to see 3-D pictures in masses of random colors or pictures. Almost instantly, the smoke gathered to the center of the globe as if pulled there by a magnet. It clustered in a compact, quivering ball and stayed there for a few minutes. Then it began to shift and change, like a lump of clay formed by invisible hands. Liana brought her face closer to the ball, careful not to change the focus of her eyes.
The smoke split into two shifting blobs, one red and one black. The black one became a wolf (That's me! she thought excitedly) and the red one stretched to become a tall, thin figure with blazing slits for eyes. He was the scariest man Liana had ever seen, but the wolf didn't seem afraid. Liana took courage from the creature's calmness and didn't look away. She watched herself wag her tail at the tall man, looking at him until he nodded, very slowly. At his nod, the wolf sprang to her feet and bounded away. She ran, quickly and silently, straight for a man who was standing perfectly still towards the back of the scene. He looked around just as she leaped, and she landed on his half-twisted back. He screamed noiselessly and clawed at her, but she killed him promptly and disentangled herself from his limp form. The thin man was suddenly beside her, and she sat at his feet and looked up at him expectantly. He smiled evilly and patted her head before disappearing in a whirl of smoke.
Almost immediately, another man took his place. It was Dumbledore, Liana was sure of it. She smiled to know that he was in her future; she liked the crazy old coot. The wolf stood respectfully at Dumbledore's entrance, and wagged her tail more furiously. The old man patted her affectionately and walked past her towards the man she'd killed. He stooped to inspect him, then levitated him with a swish and flick of his wand. They both dissipated into the smoke, leaving the wolf alone.
But not for long. Soon, another wolf joined her, larger and rougher. It was Remus! He walked towards her, and when they were close enough they could almost touch, he stopped. A line of dementors had appeared between them, the tall, thin man from earlier among them. His eyes blazed evilly and a cold laugh filled Liana's head. The man held out his wand, pointing it straight at Remus, and the laugh intensified. A flash of green light washed out the whole scene for a moment, and when it faded away, Remus was crumpled at the thin man's feet. Liana cried out in surprise, fear, anger, and began to lose focus of the scene just as a large black dog and a graceful white stag bounded forward to attack the thin man. She struggled to see them more clearly, but the picture was fading. Before it disappeared completely, she saw the dementors envelope the two creatures, and another flash of green light...
Then it was gone. The crystal ball was back to normal, the red smoke swirling around randomly again. Liana lowered her hand, which had been pressed against her mouth in shock, and looked around the room, embarrassed. She must have yelled out loud; the whole class was staring at her in amusement.
"Are you okay?" came a soft voice from her left. She jumped and turned to look at the speaker with wide eyes. It was Remus, of course, sitting in his seat next to her and looking at her with concern.
"Oh! I'd forgotten you were there..." she said, pressing a hand to her pounding heart. The sight of him made her think guiltily of the vision. But why should she feel guilty? She couldn't control what she saw, and now maybe she could do something about it. She'd been there, after all...
"What did you see?" Remus asked, startling her again.
"Oh, y'know, the usual," she answered absently, waving the question off. Remus nodded and stood with a smile to return his crystal ball to the professor. Liana followed him to the front of the room slowly, not wanting to face the professor after seeing such terrible things. Trelawney usually seemed to know what her students were seeing; perhaps they were inexperienced in hiding their emotions, or she was good at reading them.
Remus turned back to his desk, and Liana saw the professor staring after him. She shivered-Trelawney's gaze was a disconcerting one-and placed her crystal ball carefully in the crate. To her relief, the professor didn't speak to her, or even look at her. She continued to stare at Remus as if the rest of the class did not exist. Liana glanced at the clock. Class would be over in a minute or two, something for which she was intensely glad. She hurried back to her desk to grab her book bag and sneaked towards the trap door, glancing impatiently at the clock every so often. At long last, the bell rang, and Liana slid down the ladder and breathed the fresh air deeply. She closed her eyes and leaned against the wall for a minute, letting the smell clear from her senses. When she looked up again, Remus was standing there.
He smiled at her and gestured ahead of him.
"After you, my lady," he said with a bow, indicating the staircase that led out of the North tower. Liana couldn't stifle a giggle as she passed him and began skipping down the stairs. He caught up with her, and they talked about various nonsense all the way to Defense Against the Dark Arts. When they got there, the whole class was milling about the corridor. The door to the classroom was closed and locked.
Liana and Remus exchanged glances and joined the Marauders and Lily near the door. Lily smiled at Liana and James glanced sideways at her. Sirius and Peter took no notice; they were too busy enlarging two flies on the wall. There was a level of intense concentration on Peter's face, and Liana figured they were racing. She was right; when Sirius' was the size of his palm, it exploded. Peter, looking disappointed, left his the size of a chocolate frog and turned to greet Remus. Sirius gloated behind him, stroking his wand lovingly.
Five minutes after the final bell had rung, Professor Peregrine came puffing towards them, his face very red and sweaty.
"Business...to take care of...no class...free time...enjoy yourselves..." he wheezed as he ran past. The Marauders exchanged startled glanced and stared after him. Sirius at the lead, they slipped past their excited classmates and followed the professor down the corridor. Remus held back to talk to Liana.
"I guess we'll go see what's up; do you want to come along?" he asked. Liana was surprised; although she'd accompanied them secretly on many of their romps through the castle, she'd never been invited to join the Marauders before. Sirius was glaring at them over his shoulder, looking impatient. She hesitated a moment, then shook her head.
"I'd better not," she replied quietly, although she would have loved to go. "Your friend doesn't look to happy right now." She nodded towards Sirius, who was bouncing on his toes and looking from Remus to the end of the corridor, where the professor had long since turned a corner and gone out of sight. Remus shot his friend a dark look and turned back to Liana.
"Don't mind him, he can be an ass sometimes." Liana grinned. She knew how close Remus and Sirius were, and was honored that Remus was sticking up for her in this way. But Sirius looked ready to explode.
"No, no, I'm fine. You'd better go before he hexes you," she said firmly, still grinning like an idiot. Remus nodded and turned to join his friends. As they started off in the direction the professor had taken, he looked back at Liana, but she'd disappeared into the crowd of dispersing students.
"Took you long enough," Sirius grumbled as they started to run, turning the corner sharply. Remus shrugged, saving his breath for whatever may come.
* * *
Liana leaned against the wall behind a suit of armor and breathed as quietly as she could, but it was hard to do. She was entirely out of breath after running behind the Marauders and Lily for what seemed like twenty minutes straight. The clock on the wall in the nearest classroom told her it had only been about half that, but she was wiped out nonetheless. Glancing ahead, she saw the Marauders pressed against the wall, Lily peering into a classroom as unobtrusively as possible. Peter looked even more tired than Liana felt. While his four friends pressed closer to the classroom door, which was barely ajar, he sank to the floor and tried to catch his breath.
Suddenly, the door burst open in the Marauders' faces. A man in bright blue robes came striding out, flanked by two dementors. The torches in the hall flickered and a familiar wave of cold washed over Liana. It was much less disturbing than it had been the previous night, but she shivered nonetheless.
"-can't believe you'd even suggest such a thing," the man in blue was saying. A voice from inside the classroom started to respond, but the man had spotted the Marauders and Lily, and he shushed whoever it was with a curt word. The person in the classroom came out. He was a bit shorter than the man in blue, and was wearing robes much too long for him. A cowl hid his face in shadow. When he saw the teenagers pressed against the wall, he hissed.
"What are you kids doing here?" he asked in a low, husky voice. Liana wasn't sure, but she thought it was fake. The Marauders and Lily didn't reply. Remus was crouched next to Peter, his hands clapped over his ears and his eyes shut tight. The dementors had turned their heads towards him and were breathing their rattling breaths.
"Who are they, Pete?" the man in blue asked tersely. Peter looked up from his spot on the floor and narrowed his eyes. Pete took a step back from him, towards the dementors.
"Just some students at the school," he said in a slightly higher voice. He cleared his throat, and his voice went down again. "They're no danger to us, really." The man in blue snorted.
"All witnesses are a danger, fool. Bring them inside," he snapped angrily, gesturing from the group against the wall to the classroom. Pete nodded and shot ropes from the end of his wand. They wound around the five teenagers and returned to his hand. He gripped the ends tightly and dragged his prisoners into the classroom. The man in blue glared at the dementors and nodded towards the classroom. They, too, disappeared inside. With one more look around the hall, he followed, pulling the door shut behind him. A click announced that he'd locked it.
Liana let out her breath and leaned back against the wall, careful not to make any more noise than necessary. She stood slowly, avoiding the suit of armor she was hiding behind, and turned to run for a teacher. Dumbledore would know what to do, if only she could find him. Even McGonagall would handle things well. But when she was halfway down the hall, she heard a muffled scream come from the classroom. She skidded to a stop and stared at the closed door, undecided. Suppose it was too late to help the Marauders by the time she got a teacher? She'd have to find someone, and convince them to come with her... No, there simply wasn't time. She stared around the hall wildly, but could see nothing that would help her into that classroom. She couldn't simply waltz in and grab her friends, then walk away again. She needed a plan...
"Accio invisibility cloak!" she whispered, pointing her wand in the general direction of the Gryffindor common room and focusing all her thoughts on the silvery cloak. For a moment, she thought it hadn't worked. Then, suddenly, something hit her in the back of the head and fell to the floor. It was the cloak. Without wondering why it had come from the opposite direction she'd expected, Liana donned it and pulled open the door to the classroom next to the one where the Marauders were being held.
This classroom, too, was empty, and seemed unused. She pulled a desk away from the wall and placed it under a window. Taking a deep breath and doing a quick charm that fastened the cloak around her and left her hands free, she opened the window and stepped outside.
The ledge under the window was very narrow, and cut into three levels. Liana put one foot on the top level and one on the bottom and began to edge along the wall, ignoring the sheer drop of three stories and the light wind that seemed so terribly strong to her in her fear. The windows were only about five feet apart, but the distance seemed impossibly far. When, years later, she reached the window into the next classroom, Liana breathed almost normally again. Now that the deed was done, it didn't seem nearly as bad as when it was still before her.
The blinds were drawn on the window, but Liana could see through them to some degree. She crouched on the ledge in front of the window, watching through the largest gap she could find as the man in blue paced back and forth. Every time he turned around, his eyes fell on the window, and Liana swore he could see her. But he did nothing, and she remembered with a start that she was wearing the invisibility cloak.
The short man in dark robes, Pete, was following the other man and making wild gestures. Liana couldn't hear his words through the window, but she thought she heard him whining. One of the dementors was standing by the door, not moving, and the other one-
Liana nearly toppled off the ledge when she saw the other dementor. It was facing the wall perpendicular to the one the window was in, and had its scabby hand curled around the neck of Lily's robes. She was still tied up, and was hanging from a torch bracket against the wall. The dementor had her pushed up against the wall until her face was level with its, and its hood was pulled back and draped across its back. When Liana saw its face, she realized suddenly who had screamed, and why. The dementor had a face more hideous and scary than Liana would have ever imagined. Its papery skin was stretched tight across two empty eye sockets, and its mouth was a gaping hole in the middle of its face. The skin around the mouth was puckered and dry, and Liana swore she could hear the dementor's rattling breath even through the window. She tore her eyes away from the hideous sight. Lily was limp against the wall, her eyes shut tight and tears running down her cheeks. James, hanging from a torch bracket across the room, was struggling angrily against his bonds. Sirius, nearest him, was quite still, but his eyes blazed with anger and hate. Liana couldn't see Peter, but she assumed he was on the wall that held the window. Remus was hanging across the room from her, nearest the door. He had his eyes closed, and two shining streaks ran down his cheeks. As she watched, another tear rolled out of the corner of his eye. To see Remus crying was almost enough to send Liana crashing through the window, but she restrained herself. That wouldn't help at all.
But she had to do something. From what she could gather by just watching, the man in blue wanted to let the dementors do as they wished to the teenagers, but Pete didn't want him to. Anger showed more and more plainly on the taller man's face, and Liana feared that he would give the dementors free reign any second. Pete didn't seem to notice that his pleas were only angering the other man more and more. Still watching the two men pace, Liana tried desperately to come up with a plan.
Just as Liana felt that she had the beginnings of a plan, the man in blue stopped his pacing and, quite suddenly, gripped Pete around the neck. He growled something at him and dropped him to the floor like so much filth, then turned to the dementor holding Lily. He said something, and James, who had calmed down somewhat by this time, renewed his struggles. His yell was easily audible through the window. Even Sirius had begun to yell at the man in blue, who ignored them both. Remus looked up in shock. His eyes were red and bright, and he paled considerably and turned to look at the dementor holding Lily. The dementor nodded and gripped the girl's chin with its free hand. She was sobbing now, but she opened her eyes to look at it as it pulled her face closer to its own.
Liana didn't know what the dementor was going to do, or what it could mean, but she knew it couldn't be good. Throwing caution to the wind, she muttered a charm that shattered the window and stepped into the room. It wasn't until she saw the looks of bewilderment on every face in the room that she remembered about the invisibility cloak. She realized she had a great advantage, and disarmed both Pete and the man in blue before they could move. The dementor by the door was moving towards her very quickly, and the other one was staring straight at her, still gripping Lily by the jaw. Liana automatically Changed into wolf form. The invisibility cloak fell off and settled around her feet. The dementor who'd been approaching her stopped and looked around, confused. The other one looked back to Lily and took a deep, rattling breath.
Apparently, dementors took no notice of animals. Liana took advantage of this to leap onto the nearest one's back, tearing at its scabby neck. It uttered a kind of shriek and dropped Lily, reaching back to pull her off instead. It was incredibly strong and threw her off easily. She landed deftly on her feet and lunged at it again, taking its narrow head in her jaws. It shrieked again, but she was prepared for its strength and held on determinedly when it tore at her. Suddenly she was being pulled in two directions: the dementor was grabbing at her front legs and her neck, and someone else was pulling her from behind. She'd forgotten about Pete and the other man. Pete was running for the wands, which Liana had stupidly left in the corner of the room. But Peter kicked him as he went past, causing him to clutch his side with a pained yell. He struck out at the boy and missed, then ran for the wands again. Out of reach of the tied-up teenagers, he picked up his own and tossed the other one to the man pulling at Liana, who caught it deftly without letting go of her legs. Liana was steadily losing her grip on the dementor's slippery head, but she knew that if she let go, it would go for Lily again, and the man in blue would probably kill her or tie her up with the others. There were ways of forcing Animagi to show their true forms, and once he knew who and what she was... Liana didn't know what would happen, but she did know that she couldn't let them get her under their control.
Pete pointed his wand at her, his hand shaking slightly.
"Avada kedavra!" he hissed. With a yelp, Liana let go of the dementor and fell to the ground, narrowly missing the burst of light from Pete's wand. She was still being held by the man in blue, but he was on the ground next to her. She twisted out of his grip and saw that the spell had hit him instead.
Then the dementor was gripping Lily again. It seemed determined to do away with her, but she had taken heart from the battle and was kicking and writhing, trying to shove him away. Liana jumped for the dementor's outstretched arm, trying to break the bone, but it didn't seem to have a bone. When she realized she wasn't hurting it at all, she let go and tore at Lily's bonds. Pete was shaking in the corner, staring at the body of the man in blue and not moving at all. Liana ignored him and freed Lily's hands. The red-headed girl did the rest, tearing the dementor's hand away from her chin and pulling her wand out of the inner pocket of her robe.
"Expecto patronum!" she bellowed, pointing the wand at the dementor. It shrieked again and took a few steps backward, trying to avoid the roaring bear that was circling it. The other dementor turned and exited the room hastily. It was soon followed by its companion and the bear.
The room was quiet for a moment. Lily reached up and untied the knot that tied her to the torch bracket. She fell to the floor with a thump and quickly kicked off her remaining bonds. The silvery ropes lay in coils on the floor for a few seconds before disappearing.
Without wasting a second, Lily untied her friends, letting them all down from their places on the walls. They stood around staring at each other and rubbing their sore wrists for a few minutes, no one knowing quite what to say. Remus rubbed his face and looked away from Sirius, who was staring at him as if he didn't know what to think. After a long silence, James took his girlfriend in his arms and held her tightly. His eyes were suspiciously bright.
"I was so scared..." he whispered. Lily began to sob into his shoulder, and the sound broke the tense silence. Suddenly, everyone was talking, complaining, yelling, or wondering. Peter held up a hand, stopping the chaotic meddle of voices.
"Quiet!" he yelled. Then, more quietly, "Where's Peregrine?" The five teenagers looked at each other, then around the room. There was a blanketed lump in one corner, and James pointed to it.
"Is-is that him, do you think?" he asked shakily. Sirius approached the lump, but Peter stopped him.
"No, that's not him!" he said sharply. "I mean Pete, the short guy in the dark robes. The one who killed him," he added, nodding towards the dead body of the man in blue. Lily shivered and looked away. The other three Marauders looked at Peter in bewilderment. Realization dawned on Remus first, then James.
"You mean-Pete is Professor Peregrine?" James said in disbelief. Peter nodded. Remus looked around wildly, then ran to shut the classroom door. Liana, realizing what was going on, sprang towards the window and sniffed around. She bumped against something in the corner and growled. The sound attracted the attention of the other occupants of the room, who seemed to have forgotten she was there. She ignored them and gripped the invisible lump in front of her. As she pulled the invisibility cloak off Pete Peregrine, he uttered a squeal and ran for the door. But Remus blocked his way, holding out his wand and pointing it steadily at the cowering man. The professor turned and ran for the window, but he met a snarling black wolf, hackles raised and muscles tensed. He looked back and forth, standing between the only two ways out of the room. He suddenly seemed to remember that he was holding his wand, and he pointed it uncertainly at Liana, who was closest.
"D-don't hurt me, or I'll kill the wolf!" Remus snorted, and Sirius drew his own wand with a sneer. Soon, five wands were pointed at the professor, who was looking very frightened and was pressed against the wall. Lily lowered her wand.
"I'll go get Dumbledore and anyone else I come across. You guys watch this creep," she announced before striding quickly out of the room. Remus closed the door tightly when she'd gone. Professor Peregrine trembled more violently and his face, which was no longer hidden by the cowl, took on a sickly green shade. The minutes stretched on, but Liana and Remus didn't relax their guards. Sirius, James, and Peter sat cross-legged on the floor, their wands pointed casually at Peregrine. James kept shooting glances at Liana, and Remus was staring past Peregrine at her. Both gazes were very unnerving, and she felt sure they knew who she was.
When Lily knocked on the door and entered, flanked by Dumbledore and McGonagall, it was quite a relief to Liana. She was about to relax when she realized that they would probably wonder who she was, and she could get caught easily. If they were to realize she was an Animagus, and performed the charm... Ignoring her duty to keep Peregrine in line, she bolted for the door. As soon as he saw the free window, Peregrine ran for it. Liana paused just outside the door to see what would happen, and was shocked to see him Change into a peregrine falcon and take to the sky. But he didn't get far: Dumbledore uttered a spell that brought the bird back through the window and to his hand. Peregrine attacked him with his talons and beak, but McGonagall was there to subdue the vicious bird. Before long, they had it tied up at their feet. Reassured, Liana took off down the hall at a run.
When she deemed it safe, Liana stopped to catch her breath. It wasn't until then that she heard running footsteps behind her. Turning sharply, she saw Remus running flat-out, trying to catch up with her. He skidded to a stop in front of her, and she didn't have the heart to run off and make him chase her again. He bent double, leaning one hand on his knees and clutching a stitch in his side with the other.
"Who...are you?" he wheezed, finally collapsing to the floor and sitting against the wall, breathing heavily. Liana pretended not to hear and looked away up the hall. Remus had come alone, it seemed, but she knew the others could be there in the invisibility cloak. Remus' breathing slowed to normal, and he sat up straighter, staring at Liana and waiting for some kind of answer. She glared at him with her bright blue eyes, so different from those of a normal wolf. He stared at her in sudden surprise. "Liana?" he whispered. She looked away again, trying not to make any nervous movement that would give away her shock at being discovered. Remus reached out a hand and almost touched her, but changed his mind and pulled away. "Why didn't you tell me? You never said a word..." He trailed off and just stared at her for a while. After standing motionless for a minute or two, Liana turned and trotted away. She heard Remus get up and follow her, but she didn't bother trying to shake him. She led him outside and looked around. The only absolutely safe place was the forest, so she headed for it. When they were deep among the trees, she turned and Changed back to her natural form.
* * *
Sirius watched in surprise as the wolf bolted for the door, then turned sharply to stop Peregrine as the professor ran for the window. Before he could do anything, the man had jumped out and was flying away in the form of a peregrine falcon. Dumbledore said something nearly incomprehensible, and the bird came hurtling backwards and into his hands. After a moment's struggle, Dumbledore and McGonagall had subdued and tethered the desperate bird. It lay neatly tied at Dumbledore's feet, in ropes that would expand if Peregrine decided to try to Change. Sirius looked up to see that the wolf was gone, Remus with her.
"I suppose you can explain yourselves?" McGonagall said sharply, bringing Sirius' attention back to the situation at hand. Dumbledore's eyes had lost their twinkle, and he was walking around the room, peering out the window and into every corner. When he saw the blanketed lump in the corner, he pointed to it.
"What is this?" he asked, staring at the three remaining Marauders and Lily. They all shrugged.
"We thought it was Professor Peregrine until we realized that's who 'Pete' was," James explained, staring at the pile of blankets with curiosity. Dumbledore bent over and peered under the blankets. His face got quite pale.
"Minerva," he said tersely, levitating the lump, "go to Poppy immediately." The professor nodded and left without a word, taking the floating pile of blankets with her. The four teens exchanged alarmed glances, but knew better than to ask what was underneath the blankets. "As for the rest of you, you'll have to come with me to my office," Dumbledore continued, turning to the remaining occupants of the room. They didn't respond, just followed him out into the hall. He levitated Peregrine and took him along. As they left, he looked around the room. "Where are your two friends?" he asked suddenly. James, Peter, and Lily looked around, too, noticing for the first time that Remus and the wolf had left. Sirius said nothing.
"I don't know. . ." Peter said quietly.
"They were there before." James was looking worried. Sirius hid a smile. Doubtless, Remus was following the wolf and trying to figure out who she was. Or, he already knew and was trying to get her to talk to him. But he didn't feel like telling Dumbledore that they knew who the wolf was, or that they knew she was an Animagus, or that Remus was probably with her, wherever she was. That would require explaining a few things that didn't need to be explained-or couldn't be just yet.
When they couldn't offer an answer as to where Remus and the wolf were, Dumbledore beckoned for them to follow him. He led them to his office and told them to wait there while he took Professor Peregrine somewhere where he'd be safe.
"Safe?" Sirius muttered angrily under his breath. "Who'd want to keep that creep safe?" He hadn't meant for anyone to hear, but Dumbledore had. He smiled at the black-haired boy, the twinkle back in his eyes.
"I suppose I worded that incorrectly. I want him somewhere he can't escape from, and my office is not a good place for that." With that, he turned and left the office, closing the door behind him.