Rain was beating down hard and without mercy outside,
by the time Lily had searched the second floor.She began to
ascend the hanging ladder to the attic, the only place left
where Petunia could be hiding.There was a wooden trapdoor
left open on the ceiling, which the ladder was attatched to.
Lily stuck her head through and saw her sister lying on the
dusty floor with a flashlight and open book.
"Hello,Petunia,"Lily greeted her,"Could you do me a
favor and come downstairs for a minute?"
Petunia sat up and said,"Only if I have to."
Lily grinned.
"Yeah, you have to.I have some of my friends over and
they want to meet you.Please?"
Petunia sighed in an overly dramatic way and shut off
the flashlight. Suddenly, it was too dark to see anything but
shadows, as rain was obscuring the only window. Lily descended
as the narrow frame of her sister began to appear at the trapdoor.
Her thin fingers gripped the rope tightly; she wanted to show
how much of a burden this would be. 30 seconds of watching them
out a window had really been enough.
When they reached the kitchen, Lily shrieked in absolute
horror. Sirius did the same when he saw her rage.
One of his hands was frozen in midair, about to hurl
fruit salad at James. Peter kneeled in dusting of flour, covered
in the white powder, and James sat slumped against a wall with an
open bottle of syrup aimed at Sirius. The sink was running. A
glass jar of wheat germ lay smashed near the stove. Some kind of
red juice ran down the wall in streams.
"Excuse us, Petunia," she said tensely. As Petunia hurried
into the living room, she heard a voice plead,"No, Lily! I swear I
was only trying to stop Sirius! The syrup is for self-defense!"
She listened at the door.
A new voice cut in,"Ooh, James is in trouble with his
girlfriend!" There was a bit of laughter.
"Sirius Black!" screeched Lily,"I'd stop laughing if I were
you!"
"Yeah,"James added,"After all, YOU started it with the frosting
on the oven door!"
Lily yelled,"WHAT?!"
There came the sound of an oven door opening , a gasp of shock,
and a loud smack.
"Ow!" This time it was Sirius. James and the third boy, Petunia
guessed, were laughing. That was enough. She turned around and jumped in
shock to see somebody else on their sofa. He had been reading a book,
but closed it quickly when she noticed him. They stared at each other
for a good minute.
This one hadn't been with the group; she would have noticed. He had
thin, pointy features and looked tired, or frail. Light brown hair fell
limply over his pale forehead as he stood up.
"Well, what's happening in the kitchen?"
"My sister is angry," she admitted, suddenly ashamed that she had
been caught eavesdropping. "By the way, I'm Petunia."
"I'm one of Lily's friends from Hog- well, you know. My name is
Remus Lupin." He fell back down on the sofa, appearing to be drained of
energy from the effort of standing. Petunia looked to where he had shoved
the book behind a pillow, and managed to see the words "Coping with Ly-"
He shoved it farther out of sight.
"Are you not feeling well?" Petunia asked , more out of prying
curiosity than concern.
"Food poisoning," he lied,"I got it from eating raw oysters." The
truth was that there had been a full moon only two nights before.
Petunia sat down as well, keeping a respectable distance from him.
The door opened quicklyenough to slam against a wall and in waltzed Sirius,
dusting flour from his clothes. He leaped onto the sofa in between Remus
and Petunia, draping an arm over each. Petunia stiffened but didn't move.
""Well Pet, Moony," he said, earning a kick to the ankle from Remus,
"it's really coming down out there. In fact, it's going to flood. Lily
wants us all to stay overnight. In guest rooms, of course. It just would
be stupid to fly in this weather."
"Fly?" Petunia choked out.
"How else would you expect us to travel?" sirius asked, as if it were
common knowledge, then adding,"Oh, I forgot, you're a muggle!"
She frowned at the word.
"It's called 'tact' " Remus whispered.
Sirius mumbled a quick apology and jumped back up, standing on a chair.
"Watch this!" he announced while pulling out a thin stick and holding
it up."I can make the ceiling look like the night sky!"
"NO!" Remus ordered leaning forward.His warning came too late, and Petunia
was nearly blinded by a brilliant white light. It faded and she screamed.
A flock of wild birds flew in circles near the ceiling, swoopind down at them.
One knocked a picture frame off a chest and it smashed.
"I can fix,ugh, OW!"
Sirius had collapsed on the floorwith the chair flipped over, pinning him
down. His wand rolled away. Remus stood up and said a few words with his own
wand out. The birds disappeared.
"I have a headache," he told Petunia,"Could you please show me to your
medicine cabinet?"
She nodded, still shaken, andwalked around the fallen chair.
"Remus!" Sirius half-yelled,"You aren't going to get this chair off me?!
Come on! Please! It's going to crush my lungs!"
Remus ignored him and shut the door on his pleads for help, following
Petunia upstairs.
by the time Lily had searched the second floor.She began to
ascend the hanging ladder to the attic, the only place left
where Petunia could be hiding.There was a wooden trapdoor
left open on the ceiling, which the ladder was attatched to.
Lily stuck her head through and saw her sister lying on the
dusty floor with a flashlight and open book.
"Hello,Petunia,"Lily greeted her,"Could you do me a
favor and come downstairs for a minute?"
Petunia sat up and said,"Only if I have to."
Lily grinned.
"Yeah, you have to.I have some of my friends over and
they want to meet you.Please?"
Petunia sighed in an overly dramatic way and shut off
the flashlight. Suddenly, it was too dark to see anything but
shadows, as rain was obscuring the only window. Lily descended
as the narrow frame of her sister began to appear at the trapdoor.
Her thin fingers gripped the rope tightly; she wanted to show
how much of a burden this would be. 30 seconds of watching them
out a window had really been enough.
When they reached the kitchen, Lily shrieked in absolute
horror. Sirius did the same when he saw her rage.
One of his hands was frozen in midair, about to hurl
fruit salad at James. Peter kneeled in dusting of flour, covered
in the white powder, and James sat slumped against a wall with an
open bottle of syrup aimed at Sirius. The sink was running. A
glass jar of wheat germ lay smashed near the stove. Some kind of
red juice ran down the wall in streams.
"Excuse us, Petunia," she said tensely. As Petunia hurried
into the living room, she heard a voice plead,"No, Lily! I swear I
was only trying to stop Sirius! The syrup is for self-defense!"
She listened at the door.
A new voice cut in,"Ooh, James is in trouble with his
girlfriend!" There was a bit of laughter.
"Sirius Black!" screeched Lily,"I'd stop laughing if I were
you!"
"Yeah,"James added,"After all, YOU started it with the frosting
on the oven door!"
Lily yelled,"WHAT?!"
There came the sound of an oven door opening , a gasp of shock,
and a loud smack.
"Ow!" This time it was Sirius. James and the third boy, Petunia
guessed, were laughing. That was enough. She turned around and jumped in
shock to see somebody else on their sofa. He had been reading a book,
but closed it quickly when she noticed him. They stared at each other
for a good minute.
This one hadn't been with the group; she would have noticed. He had
thin, pointy features and looked tired, or frail. Light brown hair fell
limply over his pale forehead as he stood up.
"Well, what's happening in the kitchen?"
"My sister is angry," she admitted, suddenly ashamed that she had
been caught eavesdropping. "By the way, I'm Petunia."
"I'm one of Lily's friends from Hog- well, you know. My name is
Remus Lupin." He fell back down on the sofa, appearing to be drained of
energy from the effort of standing. Petunia looked to where he had shoved
the book behind a pillow, and managed to see the words "Coping with Ly-"
He shoved it farther out of sight.
"Are you not feeling well?" Petunia asked , more out of prying
curiosity than concern.
"Food poisoning," he lied,"I got it from eating raw oysters." The
truth was that there had been a full moon only two nights before.
Petunia sat down as well, keeping a respectable distance from him.
The door opened quicklyenough to slam against a wall and in waltzed Sirius,
dusting flour from his clothes. He leaped onto the sofa in between Remus
and Petunia, draping an arm over each. Petunia stiffened but didn't move.
""Well Pet, Moony," he said, earning a kick to the ankle from Remus,
"it's really coming down out there. In fact, it's going to flood. Lily
wants us all to stay overnight. In guest rooms, of course. It just would
be stupid to fly in this weather."
"Fly?" Petunia choked out.
"How else would you expect us to travel?" sirius asked, as if it were
common knowledge, then adding,"Oh, I forgot, you're a muggle!"
She frowned at the word.
"It's called 'tact' " Remus whispered.
Sirius mumbled a quick apology and jumped back up, standing on a chair.
"Watch this!" he announced while pulling out a thin stick and holding
it up."I can make the ceiling look like the night sky!"
"NO!" Remus ordered leaning forward.His warning came too late, and Petunia
was nearly blinded by a brilliant white light. It faded and she screamed.
A flock of wild birds flew in circles near the ceiling, swoopind down at them.
One knocked a picture frame off a chest and it smashed.
"I can fix,ugh, OW!"
Sirius had collapsed on the floorwith the chair flipped over, pinning him
down. His wand rolled away. Remus stood up and said a few words with his own
wand out. The birds disappeared.
"I have a headache," he told Petunia,"Could you please show me to your
medicine cabinet?"
She nodded, still shaken, andwalked around the fallen chair.
"Remus!" Sirius half-yelled,"You aren't going to get this chair off me?!
Come on! Please! It's going to crush my lungs!"
Remus ignored him and shut the door on his pleads for help, following
Petunia upstairs.
