The Wolf of Change
Chapter 13 - Potions and Pranks
It was the third week of November, and the dungeons were freezing. Lily poked the lumpy potion that she, Sephine, Charlie and Remus had concocted with a copper ladle. It was supposed to be a very thin, dull red forgetfulness potion, but it had turned out brown and sludgy. "Do you think it's 'cause of the cold down here?" Charlie mused whilst peering at it and jumping back as a huge, slimy bubble emerged on the surface near his nose. "Maybe it's going solid. freezing?" Sephine was sitting at the table nearby, her hand propped under her chin and her eyelids drooping. She yawned and glanced down at the instruction sheet in front of her. "Must be something like that. We did everything right, didn't we?" At that moment, Professor Trugin (who had thoroughly despised Sephine - even more - since the incident with the photos a couple of weeks ago) sneered over their cauldron. "I don't think that you can have done it right, Miss Winters, as your potion should definitely not look like this. Perhaps we should see what type of brew you have created by feeding your dear friend Mr. Cookson some of it?" "Go ahead." Sephine retorted without missing a beat. "I couldn't care less what you feed him." "Maybe. Mr. Lupin then?" Trugin turned his sneer on Remus, who stepped away from the Professor with a thinly veiled expression of disgust. Sephine glanced wildly at Remus for a moment, then lifted her chin. "No, I wanna see what it'll do to Charlie." Trugin smirked. "Five points from Ravenclaw and Gryffindor for this abysmal mess." He gestured to the now frequently bubbling goo. "Plus another ten from Ravenclaw, for Miss Winters'. unfeeling attitude." Sephine smiled angelically at him, but as soon as his back was turned, her face fell into a scowl and she muttered something to herself about 'unfeeling attitudes'. Charlie turned to her. "Sephine, I am so glad he didn't take you seriously," he shook his head. "Yeah, well, you'd better empty the cauldron before he changes his mind." She snorted. As Lily and Charlie hauled the bubbling mess away, Remus began to wipe the table, trying to get splashes of the substance off it. As he leaned closer though, to see why the splashes weren't coming off, he gave a shout of amazement. "Sephine! Quick tell them not to throw it out!" "Huh?" She asked, but it was apparently a rhetorical question, as she was already grabbing the back of Charlie's cloak. "Whassup, Rem'?" "Look!" He called excitedly, beckoning her, Charlie and Lily - who still had the cauldron - over. "Cool!" Charlie exclaimed. "How on earth could that have come from a forgetfulness potion?" Lily wondered aloud. Sephine grinned, delighted. "The table's forgotten what colour it should be!" Sure enough, where the potion had landed, the table was gradually gaining transparency, and within minutes they could see the damp stone floor right through the wood. They all jumped guiltily when Sirius flopped down heavily at the table behind them. "What's so interesting?" He asked mildly.
* * *
"I think, we should tip a load over Filch's door - see what he keeps in his office." Charlie was saying. They'd smuggled most of the potion out of the classroom in their glass specimen vials, and now James, Remus, Sirius, Peter (who'd walked in on them by accident), Lily, Sephine, Charlie and Martin all sat in a dark broom cupboard plotting ways of using the potion. "If you do anything with this, you're bound to see the inside of Filch's office anyway!" Lily scolded him. "And are you sure you all want to go around throwing this at people? We don't know if there are side effects! And you'll be permanently monitored by Filch for the rest of your time at Hogwarts!" Sirius waved a hand as if sweeping Lily's words away. "We've checked, haven't we? The table isn't deformed or anything-" "I'm talking about people, Sirius." "Honestly, Lily! If we use it on a plank like Severus Snape, it's not going to be much different from the table is it?" Lily glared at him, "what? What on earth would make you want to attack Snape?" "How about that git, Malfoy?" Martin suggested, carefully trying to steer the conversation in another direction. "You know, the second year?" "Great!" Charlie said in wonderment. "Absolutely brilliant!" "But how do we get them covered?" James asked. "If we just get it on their robes, then they'll still feel like their wearing the robes, but everyone else will know otherwise." "Quidditch." Sephine muttered. "What?" Sirius turned to her. "Quidditch," she repeated. "Malfoy's the Slytherin Seeker. We could get something gold and glinty. shine it about in a match so he thinks it's a Snitch. and someone on a seat above can-" "Drench him!" Charlie laughed joyfully. "Classic." Sirius grinned. "And Snape?" "Fill a goblet with it at breakfast," James said slowly. "And trip into him." Lily shot emerald darts at him from her eyes, but the others had all began to laugh madly, and people passing the cupboard walked as far away from it as possible, fearing that Peeves the poltergeist was within.
* * *
At the end of a very productive plot-planning day, Remus, Sirius, James, Peter and Martin flopped into the dormitories and flung themselves into bed. Just as Remus felt himself slipping into that wonderful land between sleep and wakefulness, Sirius' voice asked from across the room, "So did anyone see that picture today?" When Remus had told them about what Dumbledore had said, Sirius' curiosity had been roused by the headmaster's vague descriptions of what would become of Colonel Collins. He'd told everyone that they should keep an eye out for the painting and try to find out what had happened. Remus - who hadn't thought it was a brilliant idea at all - agreed with Sirius to shut him up, but hadn't even thought about looking for Collins since. "No, couldn't find him." He muttered. The others each told Sirius sleepily that they hadn't seen it either, and Peter added blearily that Sirius should just forget about it and go to sleep. Sirius made a sort of 'humph' noise and no one carried the conversation further for a few minutes. Then James asked, "Remus, when are you going to give Trugin his cloak back?" "Uhh.I don't know." "Shall we get it over and done with tomorrow? We've got potions last thing." Sirius sighed. "Potions last thing. After having it today, too. Isn't it the big one on Fridays? The crossover with the Slytherins? Someone out there must really hate us." "I'll leave it under my table or something." Remus mumbled into his pillow. "Throw it in his cauldron." Martin sounded as fed up as Remus about being kept awake. "Good idea! Why don't you-" "Sirius." "What?" "Please just go to sleep."
* * *
Severus Snape was walking across the Entrance Hall alone when Sirius Black raced out of the Great Hall, a goblet of orange juice held out in front of him. He hurtled into Snape and the juice miraculously didn't cover them both. However, Snape was left wiping his robes in annoyance as Sirius ran off apologising profusely. Snape didn't know why everyone had turned to look at him when he entered the hall for breakfast, but he thought it was good at first; it was nice to get some attention for a change. Then they started laughing. It began with the Gryffindors. Then the Ravenclaws caught on. Then the Hufflepuffs. Even his own house was laughing at him. "Get those robes for your birthday, Snape?" Charlie Cookson chortled as Snape passed the Ravenclaw table. "Coz they look remarkably like a birthday suit!" Snape looked down. His robes.weren't there. Every strand of material that had got Sirius' pumpkin juice on it was now invisible. His pale cheeks turned an odd shade of pink and he automatically grabbed for the robes that he could feel on him. But they were still invisible. Snape gave a cry of horror and ran from the hall. Sephine Winters then stood up on her seat and held her camera in the air. "Photos available from the first of December! Five sickles a copy!" She and Charlie hurried to catch up with the Gryffindors as they left the hall. "Perfect!" Sephine laughed, throwing one arm around Lily's tense and angry shoulders and one around Charlie's, which were heaving with laughter. "Hope it goes as well at the Quidditch match tomorrow." "Yeah, just make sure you don't attract the Gryffindor Seeker's attention too," Lily warned sulkily. "Can't wait for double potions later, though." Peter grimaced.
* * *
Remus fidgeted. This time it wasn't because of Trugin's glare, but because of the very uncomfortable wolf-skin cloak he was sitting on. They'd doused it in the invisibility potion, and he was going to casually leave it somewhere for Trugin to find it when the effects wore off. First, though, he had to remember where it was throughout the practical that they were doing. "Lupin, why aren't you helping Mr. Potter with his antiseptic potion?" Remus tried not to look too guilty. "I'm writing notes whilst James watches the cauldron. We're going to swap over soon." Trugin scowled. "Very well. But see to it that you do swap over. Or you will find yourself re-writing those notes several more times in detention." True to his word, Remus got up - slowly - he kept one hand on the cloak on his bench. He could feel the fur between his fingers as his picked it up. Because it was invisible - not an invisibility cloak - Remus could throw it over his shoulders and have no one notice. He could feel its reassuring weight as he leant over the cauldron and for once thought that this plan might work. He picked up a ladle full of the yellow liquid and looked at James querulously. James shrugged and pushed his glasses up his nose. He didn't know what it was supposed to look like either. "You call that a potion, Lupin?" Trurn Mahbism - all five foot seven of him - was towering over Remus and his cauldron. "That looks more like the cause of an illness than the cure." Trurn brought a hand out of his pocket and uncorked a vial of blue liquid. "Let me help," and before Remus or James could do anything, he poured the blue liquid into their cauldron and disappeared very quickly. The potion was now a sickly green, and was bubbling and frothing angrily. Remus and James dived behind their desk. "What did he put in?" James asked, panic clear in his voice. "I don't know! But knowing Trurn it can't be good!" Then with an almighty bang, the cauldron imploded before spectacularly reversing and exploding. James and Remus found themselves sprawled on the floor a couple of meters from the table they'd been hiding behind. A blob of pewter was all that remained of the cauldron. Then a hand on each shoulder drew them to their feet. "WHAT do you think you are playing at?" "Er.oops?" James suggested, trying to flick his hair out of his eyes. Trugin looked to Remus. "Uhh. it went wrong." He knew that no story incriminating a Slytherin would be believed in this classroom. "I saw that, Lupin. Why did it 'go wrong'?" Trugin's grip on his shoulder actually hurt now, it was so strong. "Cause I'm no good at potions? Ouch!" Trugin's fingernails were now biting his collarbone. "That was perhaps one reason. But the only way an explosion like that could occur is if certain ingredients are used. Certain ingredients which are only found in MY PRIVATE STORES! So tell me. What were you doing in them?" "What!" James exclaimed. "We don't even know where your private stores are, sir! Maybe someone slipped something in the potion when we weren't looking!" Trugin ground his teeth. "But why weren't you looking? The development of a potion must always be monitored! Fifty points from Gryffindor. Each. Clean this mess up." He let go of them with a hard shove and stalked away, leaving the Slytherins to snigger indiscreetly. James straightened his robes with a shrug. "Jeez. Anyone'd think it was his boxer shorts we'd exploded." Remus snorted as he scraped up the lump of pewter formerly known as a cauldron. Then he stopped. Something was missing. "James!" He hissed. "What?" "The cloak! I've lost it!" "You what?" James spun round and fell to his knees, searching the floor where they'd landed. A Slytherin walking past tripped on something and looked down. Avery couldn't see anything - neither could James or Remus - but he could feel the fur of the cloak as he ran his fingers along the floor. "Hey, Trurn! Luke! Come take a look at this!" James and Remus exchanged panicked glances. Remus whispered, "Don't get involved! Leave it to me." "Well this just feels so much like a wolf-skin cloak." Rosier cast a snide look Remus' way. Quietly, Trurn asked, "Didn't the picture vandal wear one like this? I believe he did." "And Lupin was the vandal." Avery smirked. All three boys were now looking at Remus, who was still kneeling by the cauldron stand. "Hiding the Professor's cloak from him now, Lupin?" Trurn asked. "Dear, dear. First Gudgeon's knife now Trugin's cloak. You're becoming a bit of a hoarder, Lupin," Trurn's mouth twisted a little. Remus thought it must have been his version of a smile. "Are you building a collection?" Rosier and Avery sniggered trollishly. James looked ready to step in, so Remus said, "I don't know what you're talking about. I don't see any cloak." "Nice try. We-" "What's going on? You aren't causing more trouble are you, Lupin?" Trugin looked like a huge vulture peering over Trurn's shoulder. The Slytherin boy didn't miss his chance. "Sir, we've managed to rescue your cloak from Lupin. He was going to keep it for himself." For a moment Trugin stared at Mahbism as though he was mad when he held up thin air for the teacher to take. But then when he felt the cloak, his eyes bulged in their sockets and he went very pale. "Lupin," he whispered. "Stay here after lesson. I'm taking you to the Headmaster for this."
* * *
Remus followed Trugin dejectedly along the now familiar corridor. All his protests and explanations had been ignored by the furious Professor and now Remus was going to look like a fool in front of Dumbledore for not returning the cloak immediately. Trugin flung open the big door at the top of the revolving staircase and stopped dead. Remus only just managed not to hurtle into him as he stepped off the stairs. "Headmaster! I need a private word with you immediately!" Remus peered around Trugin's bulk. Sephine Winters was standing in front of Professor Dumbledore and she looked quite ruffled. Dumbledore seemed amused. "Really, Professor? Is that why you brought Master Lupin?" Trugin just ground his teeth and glared pointedly at Sephine. She shrugged and said, "Sir I'd leave the office if you'd just move a bit to the right." The irate professor took a step to his right, and Sephine brushed past between him and Remus. She gave him a reassuring grin as she slipped down the stairs, and Remus felt a little better for it. As Trugin closed the door with a suspicious glance, Dumbledore asked, "So what is it that you need to see me about, Lucifer?" Remus restrained a snigger at Trugin's first name. "This, Headmaster!" He thrust the invisible cloak at Dumbledore, who raised his eyebrows. "Excuse me?" "My cloak! He's turned it invisible, and was going to keep it!" "I don't see what use it would be to him if it was invisible." Dumbledore's gaze twinkled over Remus for a moment. "And I do know about the cloak, Lucifer, although I am intrigued about the invisibility part. If you'd kindly take your cloak - one good washing should return it to normal - and Mr. Lupin and go and enjoy your weekend. "Oh and ask Miss Winters to come in when you leave, please, Remus."
Chapter 13 - Potions and Pranks
It was the third week of November, and the dungeons were freezing. Lily poked the lumpy potion that she, Sephine, Charlie and Remus had concocted with a copper ladle. It was supposed to be a very thin, dull red forgetfulness potion, but it had turned out brown and sludgy. "Do you think it's 'cause of the cold down here?" Charlie mused whilst peering at it and jumping back as a huge, slimy bubble emerged on the surface near his nose. "Maybe it's going solid. freezing?" Sephine was sitting at the table nearby, her hand propped under her chin and her eyelids drooping. She yawned and glanced down at the instruction sheet in front of her. "Must be something like that. We did everything right, didn't we?" At that moment, Professor Trugin (who had thoroughly despised Sephine - even more - since the incident with the photos a couple of weeks ago) sneered over their cauldron. "I don't think that you can have done it right, Miss Winters, as your potion should definitely not look like this. Perhaps we should see what type of brew you have created by feeding your dear friend Mr. Cookson some of it?" "Go ahead." Sephine retorted without missing a beat. "I couldn't care less what you feed him." "Maybe. Mr. Lupin then?" Trugin turned his sneer on Remus, who stepped away from the Professor with a thinly veiled expression of disgust. Sephine glanced wildly at Remus for a moment, then lifted her chin. "No, I wanna see what it'll do to Charlie." Trugin smirked. "Five points from Ravenclaw and Gryffindor for this abysmal mess." He gestured to the now frequently bubbling goo. "Plus another ten from Ravenclaw, for Miss Winters'. unfeeling attitude." Sephine smiled angelically at him, but as soon as his back was turned, her face fell into a scowl and she muttered something to herself about 'unfeeling attitudes'. Charlie turned to her. "Sephine, I am so glad he didn't take you seriously," he shook his head. "Yeah, well, you'd better empty the cauldron before he changes his mind." She snorted. As Lily and Charlie hauled the bubbling mess away, Remus began to wipe the table, trying to get splashes of the substance off it. As he leaned closer though, to see why the splashes weren't coming off, he gave a shout of amazement. "Sephine! Quick tell them not to throw it out!" "Huh?" She asked, but it was apparently a rhetorical question, as she was already grabbing the back of Charlie's cloak. "Whassup, Rem'?" "Look!" He called excitedly, beckoning her, Charlie and Lily - who still had the cauldron - over. "Cool!" Charlie exclaimed. "How on earth could that have come from a forgetfulness potion?" Lily wondered aloud. Sephine grinned, delighted. "The table's forgotten what colour it should be!" Sure enough, where the potion had landed, the table was gradually gaining transparency, and within minutes they could see the damp stone floor right through the wood. They all jumped guiltily when Sirius flopped down heavily at the table behind them. "What's so interesting?" He asked mildly.
* * *
"I think, we should tip a load over Filch's door - see what he keeps in his office." Charlie was saying. They'd smuggled most of the potion out of the classroom in their glass specimen vials, and now James, Remus, Sirius, Peter (who'd walked in on them by accident), Lily, Sephine, Charlie and Martin all sat in a dark broom cupboard plotting ways of using the potion. "If you do anything with this, you're bound to see the inside of Filch's office anyway!" Lily scolded him. "And are you sure you all want to go around throwing this at people? We don't know if there are side effects! And you'll be permanently monitored by Filch for the rest of your time at Hogwarts!" Sirius waved a hand as if sweeping Lily's words away. "We've checked, haven't we? The table isn't deformed or anything-" "I'm talking about people, Sirius." "Honestly, Lily! If we use it on a plank like Severus Snape, it's not going to be much different from the table is it?" Lily glared at him, "what? What on earth would make you want to attack Snape?" "How about that git, Malfoy?" Martin suggested, carefully trying to steer the conversation in another direction. "You know, the second year?" "Great!" Charlie said in wonderment. "Absolutely brilliant!" "But how do we get them covered?" James asked. "If we just get it on their robes, then they'll still feel like their wearing the robes, but everyone else will know otherwise." "Quidditch." Sephine muttered. "What?" Sirius turned to her. "Quidditch," she repeated. "Malfoy's the Slytherin Seeker. We could get something gold and glinty. shine it about in a match so he thinks it's a Snitch. and someone on a seat above can-" "Drench him!" Charlie laughed joyfully. "Classic." Sirius grinned. "And Snape?" "Fill a goblet with it at breakfast," James said slowly. "And trip into him." Lily shot emerald darts at him from her eyes, but the others had all began to laugh madly, and people passing the cupboard walked as far away from it as possible, fearing that Peeves the poltergeist was within.
* * *
At the end of a very productive plot-planning day, Remus, Sirius, James, Peter and Martin flopped into the dormitories and flung themselves into bed. Just as Remus felt himself slipping into that wonderful land between sleep and wakefulness, Sirius' voice asked from across the room, "So did anyone see that picture today?" When Remus had told them about what Dumbledore had said, Sirius' curiosity had been roused by the headmaster's vague descriptions of what would become of Colonel Collins. He'd told everyone that they should keep an eye out for the painting and try to find out what had happened. Remus - who hadn't thought it was a brilliant idea at all - agreed with Sirius to shut him up, but hadn't even thought about looking for Collins since. "No, couldn't find him." He muttered. The others each told Sirius sleepily that they hadn't seen it either, and Peter added blearily that Sirius should just forget about it and go to sleep. Sirius made a sort of 'humph' noise and no one carried the conversation further for a few minutes. Then James asked, "Remus, when are you going to give Trugin his cloak back?" "Uhh.I don't know." "Shall we get it over and done with tomorrow? We've got potions last thing." Sirius sighed. "Potions last thing. After having it today, too. Isn't it the big one on Fridays? The crossover with the Slytherins? Someone out there must really hate us." "I'll leave it under my table or something." Remus mumbled into his pillow. "Throw it in his cauldron." Martin sounded as fed up as Remus about being kept awake. "Good idea! Why don't you-" "Sirius." "What?" "Please just go to sleep."
* * *
Severus Snape was walking across the Entrance Hall alone when Sirius Black raced out of the Great Hall, a goblet of orange juice held out in front of him. He hurtled into Snape and the juice miraculously didn't cover them both. However, Snape was left wiping his robes in annoyance as Sirius ran off apologising profusely. Snape didn't know why everyone had turned to look at him when he entered the hall for breakfast, but he thought it was good at first; it was nice to get some attention for a change. Then they started laughing. It began with the Gryffindors. Then the Ravenclaws caught on. Then the Hufflepuffs. Even his own house was laughing at him. "Get those robes for your birthday, Snape?" Charlie Cookson chortled as Snape passed the Ravenclaw table. "Coz they look remarkably like a birthday suit!" Snape looked down. His robes.weren't there. Every strand of material that had got Sirius' pumpkin juice on it was now invisible. His pale cheeks turned an odd shade of pink and he automatically grabbed for the robes that he could feel on him. But they were still invisible. Snape gave a cry of horror and ran from the hall. Sephine Winters then stood up on her seat and held her camera in the air. "Photos available from the first of December! Five sickles a copy!" She and Charlie hurried to catch up with the Gryffindors as they left the hall. "Perfect!" Sephine laughed, throwing one arm around Lily's tense and angry shoulders and one around Charlie's, which were heaving with laughter. "Hope it goes as well at the Quidditch match tomorrow." "Yeah, just make sure you don't attract the Gryffindor Seeker's attention too," Lily warned sulkily. "Can't wait for double potions later, though." Peter grimaced.
* * *
Remus fidgeted. This time it wasn't because of Trugin's glare, but because of the very uncomfortable wolf-skin cloak he was sitting on. They'd doused it in the invisibility potion, and he was going to casually leave it somewhere for Trugin to find it when the effects wore off. First, though, he had to remember where it was throughout the practical that they were doing. "Lupin, why aren't you helping Mr. Potter with his antiseptic potion?" Remus tried not to look too guilty. "I'm writing notes whilst James watches the cauldron. We're going to swap over soon." Trugin scowled. "Very well. But see to it that you do swap over. Or you will find yourself re-writing those notes several more times in detention." True to his word, Remus got up - slowly - he kept one hand on the cloak on his bench. He could feel the fur between his fingers as his picked it up. Because it was invisible - not an invisibility cloak - Remus could throw it over his shoulders and have no one notice. He could feel its reassuring weight as he leant over the cauldron and for once thought that this plan might work. He picked up a ladle full of the yellow liquid and looked at James querulously. James shrugged and pushed his glasses up his nose. He didn't know what it was supposed to look like either. "You call that a potion, Lupin?" Trurn Mahbism - all five foot seven of him - was towering over Remus and his cauldron. "That looks more like the cause of an illness than the cure." Trurn brought a hand out of his pocket and uncorked a vial of blue liquid. "Let me help," and before Remus or James could do anything, he poured the blue liquid into their cauldron and disappeared very quickly. The potion was now a sickly green, and was bubbling and frothing angrily. Remus and James dived behind their desk. "What did he put in?" James asked, panic clear in his voice. "I don't know! But knowing Trurn it can't be good!" Then with an almighty bang, the cauldron imploded before spectacularly reversing and exploding. James and Remus found themselves sprawled on the floor a couple of meters from the table they'd been hiding behind. A blob of pewter was all that remained of the cauldron. Then a hand on each shoulder drew them to their feet. "WHAT do you think you are playing at?" "Er.oops?" James suggested, trying to flick his hair out of his eyes. Trugin looked to Remus. "Uhh. it went wrong." He knew that no story incriminating a Slytherin would be believed in this classroom. "I saw that, Lupin. Why did it 'go wrong'?" Trugin's grip on his shoulder actually hurt now, it was so strong. "Cause I'm no good at potions? Ouch!" Trugin's fingernails were now biting his collarbone. "That was perhaps one reason. But the only way an explosion like that could occur is if certain ingredients are used. Certain ingredients which are only found in MY PRIVATE STORES! So tell me. What were you doing in them?" "What!" James exclaimed. "We don't even know where your private stores are, sir! Maybe someone slipped something in the potion when we weren't looking!" Trugin ground his teeth. "But why weren't you looking? The development of a potion must always be monitored! Fifty points from Gryffindor. Each. Clean this mess up." He let go of them with a hard shove and stalked away, leaving the Slytherins to snigger indiscreetly. James straightened his robes with a shrug. "Jeez. Anyone'd think it was his boxer shorts we'd exploded." Remus snorted as he scraped up the lump of pewter formerly known as a cauldron. Then he stopped. Something was missing. "James!" He hissed. "What?" "The cloak! I've lost it!" "You what?" James spun round and fell to his knees, searching the floor where they'd landed. A Slytherin walking past tripped on something and looked down. Avery couldn't see anything - neither could James or Remus - but he could feel the fur of the cloak as he ran his fingers along the floor. "Hey, Trurn! Luke! Come take a look at this!" James and Remus exchanged panicked glances. Remus whispered, "Don't get involved! Leave it to me." "Well this just feels so much like a wolf-skin cloak." Rosier cast a snide look Remus' way. Quietly, Trurn asked, "Didn't the picture vandal wear one like this? I believe he did." "And Lupin was the vandal." Avery smirked. All three boys were now looking at Remus, who was still kneeling by the cauldron stand. "Hiding the Professor's cloak from him now, Lupin?" Trurn asked. "Dear, dear. First Gudgeon's knife now Trugin's cloak. You're becoming a bit of a hoarder, Lupin," Trurn's mouth twisted a little. Remus thought it must have been his version of a smile. "Are you building a collection?" Rosier and Avery sniggered trollishly. James looked ready to step in, so Remus said, "I don't know what you're talking about. I don't see any cloak." "Nice try. We-" "What's going on? You aren't causing more trouble are you, Lupin?" Trugin looked like a huge vulture peering over Trurn's shoulder. The Slytherin boy didn't miss his chance. "Sir, we've managed to rescue your cloak from Lupin. He was going to keep it for himself." For a moment Trugin stared at Mahbism as though he was mad when he held up thin air for the teacher to take. But then when he felt the cloak, his eyes bulged in their sockets and he went very pale. "Lupin," he whispered. "Stay here after lesson. I'm taking you to the Headmaster for this."
* * *
Remus followed Trugin dejectedly along the now familiar corridor. All his protests and explanations had been ignored by the furious Professor and now Remus was going to look like a fool in front of Dumbledore for not returning the cloak immediately. Trugin flung open the big door at the top of the revolving staircase and stopped dead. Remus only just managed not to hurtle into him as he stepped off the stairs. "Headmaster! I need a private word with you immediately!" Remus peered around Trugin's bulk. Sephine Winters was standing in front of Professor Dumbledore and she looked quite ruffled. Dumbledore seemed amused. "Really, Professor? Is that why you brought Master Lupin?" Trugin just ground his teeth and glared pointedly at Sephine. She shrugged and said, "Sir I'd leave the office if you'd just move a bit to the right." The irate professor took a step to his right, and Sephine brushed past between him and Remus. She gave him a reassuring grin as she slipped down the stairs, and Remus felt a little better for it. As Trugin closed the door with a suspicious glance, Dumbledore asked, "So what is it that you need to see me about, Lucifer?" Remus restrained a snigger at Trugin's first name. "This, Headmaster!" He thrust the invisible cloak at Dumbledore, who raised his eyebrows. "Excuse me?" "My cloak! He's turned it invisible, and was going to keep it!" "I don't see what use it would be to him if it was invisible." Dumbledore's gaze twinkled over Remus for a moment. "And I do know about the cloak, Lucifer, although I am intrigued about the invisibility part. If you'd kindly take your cloak - one good washing should return it to normal - and Mr. Lupin and go and enjoy your weekend. "Oh and ask Miss Winters to come in when you leave, please, Remus."