This chapter didn't take me long because I've had the kind of homework that
you don't HAVE to do...and I decided I'd rather do this. Next week,
however I have several tests and several papers to write, so it might be a
bit longer...but I doubt it will take that long. Thanks for reading!!!
Leila Rose: Thanks for reviewing. The black figures will be revealed...eventually :)
Jemma Blackwell: I have a tendency of taking criticism very literally, I try to please everyone, you know. And I find all of your comments completely valid. I'm glad you liked the last chapter though :) It made me smile, lol. Also Mr. Gap commercial man really isn't a typical Sirius, and I'm not surprised that you don't see Sirius in him...my deal is that I generally don't like long hair at all. Few in my opinion can carry it off, so I just conveniently picture Sirius as a more clean cut person...though obviously in POA he won't quite be like that *sigh* Anyway, hope this chapter is up to par for you! Thanks for continuing to review!
Sexy Black: I can't ever forget the angst! Gotta get my healthy doses of that. You know what I've noticed though? As in my old story, so far this story has had crying in every chapter, lol....I really get carried away. This chapter (I'll have to double check) doesn't have any crying, trust me though, it took a lot of restraint to have it that way, lol. Anyway I was reading a few random chapters of In Need of Sirius Help today and I think I really over did it. I'm thinking of redoing that fic after this one is over...does that sound like a good idea? I think I could really make that story good if I went back and fixed some things....anyway I'm glad you like my stuff :)
Katie: lol, as I wrote my last message to you, I thought just that "if she can't read the chapter how's she going to know to do that?" but it's for future reference ok?! Anyway, I will never take someone liking my stories for granted...I need continual reinforcement so don't stop! I would be sad if you did! Is James going overboard with the word Mate? I just like that, I'm going to do study broad in two years and I'm going to Australia or London and I will say that left and right...actually, do girls get to say it or is it a guy thing? Oh I hope I can lol. Anyway, I think I laid off the word a bit in this chapter...And I'm the same way with not wanting the characters to fall in love and move on. It makes me sad in stories when they stop hanging around each other so much cuz of girls...hence this story beginning with a break up :) And don't compliment me in French! I won't know what you're saying and that would suck...stick to English, I may have heard what you say before, but really...would you mind? And I'm going to say it again, update your fics! Hiatus's are bad...very bad! I don't even remember where yours left off...I'll have to go re-read....Bye :)
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Sleeping in an Armchair
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Remus sat on the window ledge, looking down by the lake. He watched as someone walked quickly along the shore, quickly pursued by another. After squinting hard he recognized them as James and Sirius.
"Sirius looks upset still," Remus thought to himself as he watched Sirius sit down in the grass. He watched James leave and wondered what was going on between the two. After a few minutes of watching Sirius play fidget and mess with his hair, Remus heard the dormitory door open. He swung his head around and saw James come strolling in.
"What's going on out there? Is Sirius okay?"
James sighed and shook his head. "He's just having a hard time dealing with this. He said he was embarrassed. We're going to go for a fly to take his mind off of it. I know you're probably not up for flying, but you've been sleeping all day. Do you want to come watch?"
Remus shook his head. "I think I'll watch you two from here," he said looking back out the window. "What the...?"
"What is it?" James asked, approaching the window with two brooms in his hands.
"There are people down there with Sirius. They're all in black—shit!"
"What?!"
"They just cursed him...I think—I think they're using the cruciatus or something! It looks like he's in pain!"
James looked out the window. "Get down Remus!" he commanded. Remus immediately did as told. James propped open the window as wide as it would go. He began to climb to the outer-ledge and called back to Remus, "Go get Dumbledore!"
Remus nodded and left as quickly as his weak legs would carry him.
James flew silently through the air, his wand pointed straight at one of Sirius's attackers. "Expelliarmus," he whispered. He immediately did the same to the other attacker, catching the wands with ease as they flew to him. The cloaked figures immediately ran away towards the dark forest. James didn't bother to follow them. He flew to the ground beside his friend.
"Are you alright Sirius? What happened?"
James helped Sirius sit up and put an arm around his shaking shoulders.
"I don't know who they were or why they did that," Sirius whispered. "I thought it was you coming back but—they just pointed their wands at me! And I couldn't get mine..."
"Were they using the cruciatus?"
Sirius shook his head. "No, but it was like it. I've been under the cruciatus...this wasn't nearly as bad. What they were doing it was just like...like little shocks of-of energy or something."
"I've never heard of anything like that," James said quietly, rubbing Sirius's tense back muscles. "Remus is getting Dumbledore...they'll be down any minute. He was watching from the window upstairs."
Sirius nodded and rested his tired head on James's shoulder, closing his eyes. He had nearly fallen asleep by the time Remus and Dumbledore arrived.
Remus immediately knelt down in front of Sirius and asked, "Are you okay Sirius?" Sirius's eyes opened and focused on Remus's face. He nodded slowly and closed his eyes again. This time letting his head fall forward. Remus grabbed his shoulders to keep him from falling face first into the grass. He let Sirius rest his forehead against his shoulder and gently rubbed his friend's back in small circles.
Remus then watched James and Professor Dumbledore speak.
"I flew out the window when we saw it, Sir. I disarmed them both before they even knew I was there. Then they just ran into the forest. They were fully cloaked in black, neither Sirius or I know who they were. Sirius says they didn't say a word to him."
"Do you have their wands James?" Dumbledore asked seriously.
James nodded and passed the two wands over. Dumbledore looked them over and then sighed. "These are not Ollivander's wands. Had they been I could have taken them to him and he'd know who he'd sold them to. Yet...this is very odd. As far as I know every student has received his or her wands from Mr. Ollivander." Dumbledore shook his head, realizing he'd been thinking aloud and didn't want to frighten the boys by stating his suspicions.
He cleared his throat and walked over to Sirius. He knelt down beside Remus, facing Sirius. "Mr. Black, I'd like to ask you about the curse that was used on you." Sirius didn't immediately react.
"Sirius," Remus said quietly, squeezing his friend's shoulder.
"I don't know what it was professor," Sirius mumbled without looking up. "It wasn't the cruciatus though."
"Did you hear the incantation?"
Sirius shook his head and leaned further into Remus.
"Can you describe to me how it felt?"
Sirius sighed and said, "It was like these painful shocks going through my body. It gave me that nervous 'butterfly's in the stomach' feeling. It felt like there was something traveling, surging, through my veins...does that make sense?"
"Yes, it sounds like a curse used to control magical creatures. It's a mild form of the cruciatus which is actually legal...though not on fellow human beings. I'll try to find the culprits, Mr. Black, though I believe it will be difficult. If I find the people who did this, you'll be the first to know."
"It was probably Snape," James said firmly.
"I know for a fact it was not Mr. Snape, as he was in my office when Remus alerted me of this incident."
"Oh," James said, his cheeks flushing.
"Would you like to go to the hospital wing Mr. Black?"
Sirius shook his head, "I just want to go to sleep."
"Very well. You boys can help him up to bed?"
The both nodded.
"Alright, have a good evening, and if anything else like this happens in the future let me know immediately. Also, never again stay out on the grounds by yourself. There was a time when it was safe to do so, but apparently that no longer is the case."
They all nodded and watched Dumbledore walk towards the castle.
Sirius just sat where he was, head still resting against Remus's shoulder. Remus lowered his head and whispered, "Come on Sirius, let's get you upstairs."
Remus stood and grabbed hold of Sirius's hands. As he was pulled to his feet, Sirius emitted small groans of pain. Remus, still being weak himself almost fell over after getting Sirius into an upright position.
"Umm...I don't think Dumbledore should have left us here," James said. "Remus, you're still not strong enough so why don't you just walk ahead. I'll help Sirius."
"Alright," Remus replied.
"And here, use my broom as, like, a walking stick."
Remus grabbed hold of the broom and put some of his weight on it. It did help.
James put Sirius's arm around his shoulder and supported his back all the way to the castle until they were in the now deserted common room. James helped lower Sirius onto a couch. Sirius mumbled a thank you and quickly fell into a sound sleep, sitting upright. James lifted his legs onto the couch and pulled his torso down so that he was lying down.
Remus settled into a comfy armchair next to Sirius and watched James care for their friend.
"I'm going to get him his blanket and pillow and then go to bed myself...it's been a long day. You should get back to bed too Rem."
"I've slept enough today. Can you bring down my blanket too? And the book by my bed?"
"Of course," James said smiling at him. Remus watched him leave and waited patiently for him to return. He laughed as James returned carrying two very large bright red comforters down the stairs, careful not to trip on the ends. Remus's book was tucked securely under his chin, and Sirius's pillow clenched under his right arm. James stopped in front of Remus and let the blankets drop. He passed the book to Remus and then picked up one of the soft red comforters. Carefully he draped it over his friend, tucking the edges under his feet and under the cushion so no cold air could get in. "Thanks James," Remus said smiling.
"Anytime," he replied smiling.
James then turned to Sirius. Gently he raised his friends head and slipped the pillow underneath. He then draped the blanket over his friend and tucked it in as he had with Remus.
Yawning, he turned back to Remus and mumbled, "Goodnight Moony, don't stay up too late reading."
"I won't. Hey did Peter ever come back?"
James nodded. "He's already asleep upstairs. I wonder where he was all day?"
Remus shrugged. "Goodnight."
"Night," James said as he headed for the stairs again.
For a couple of hours Remus read. Every now and then Sirius would snore loudly or mumble something in his sleep, but for the most part Remus was completely uninterrupted and fell asleep curled up in the armchair.
Sirius awoke several hours later, completely tangled in his blanket. He struggled against it, but managed to get tangled more. He sighed and looked around at his settings. He was surprised to find himself in the common room and took a second to remember why. Then he saw Remus sleeping peacefully nearby and couldn't help but smile to himself. Remus had forgiven him and helped take care of him last night and that made Sirius very happy.
However, Sirius wasn't feeling well at all and could not free himself from the binds of the blanket, which made him quite unhappy. Sirius didn't like being bound, no matter what he was being bound by. A little gift his mother left him with.
"Remus," he said but Remus didn't move. "Remus!" he said louder but still Remus didn't wake. Sirius again began to struggle frantically against the bond of his comforter. If he hadn't been zapped for several minutes earlier that day he'd have freed himself of the blankets instantly. As he tried hard to kick off the blanket he used to much force and wound up on the floor.
"Owwww," he moaned. However, he was now able to easily free himself of the blanket. He rolled it up and pushed it aside.
"What are you doing?" Remus asked rubbing his eyes.
"Now you wake up," Sirius mumbled, rubbing his now sore behind.
"Are you okay?" Remus asked brushing aside his blanket and standing next to his friend.
"No," Sirius said like a child. "I was stuck in the blanket and I couldn't get out. So basically I fell trying to get out. I tried to wake you up so you could help me but apparently the only thing that wakes you up is my falling on my ass."
Remus laughed quietly.
"It's not funny Moony," Sirius muttered sadly.
"Come here," Remus said and pulled him to his feet. He helped him sit back down and then sat beside him.
"My whole body hurts...and now my ass hurts even more!"
Remus laughed lightly again.
"Not funny..." Sirius said through clenched teeth, but he was smiling as well.
Sirius yawned, "What time is it Moony?"
Remus looked at his watch. "4:30 AM."
"Are you kidding me?"
"I kid you not."
"I'm so tired," he said, laying his head back against the top of the couch.
Remus picked up the pillow and fluffed it before replacing it. He set it back in its place and stood. "Lay down, Sirius," he said gently.
Sirius did as he was told and stretched his form across the couch. Remus picked up the blanket and was about to spread it over Sirius.
"No!" Sirius said sitting back up quickly. Too quickly, he moaned and grabbed his head.
"What's up?"
"I just don't want the blanket on."
Remus looked at him questioningly.
"I don't want to get stuck in it like before...it scares me when I get stuck like that."
"You're going to get cold though..."
"I don't care."
"Fine...are you okay though? You're head and all?"
"It hurts pretty bad. I just feel really sore, like I just went for a 12-K run or something! And my head is throbbing."
"Maybe you should have seen Pomfrey."
"What could she have done?"
"She could have helped you with the pain," Remus said firmly.
"I can bear it," Sirius muttered.
Remus again laughed at him.
Sirius pouted. "Why are you picking on me?"
"Do you really need to ask?"
Sirius rubbed his face roughly, sighing. "Can I have a hug?" he asked quietly
"Of course," Remus said and wrapped his arms around Sirius, who hugged back tightly.
"Could this last week have been any worse Remus?!" he mumbled into Remus's shoulder.
"I doubt it, Sirius. It certainly has not been fun."
Sirius nodded. "I bet if I stop doing stupid things it'll get better."
"Sirius you know it hasn't all been your fault."
"Feels like it."
"I think the hellishness started with me."
"Yes but..."
"No buts Sirius. Lay back down."
Sirius released Remus and did as he was told.
Remus sat back in his chair, pulled the blanket over himself and began to read his book again.
"Why do you think they attacked me Rem?"
Looking up, surprised, Remus thought for a moment and then shook his head.
"Because...like Snape I see why he would want to do that...but if it wasn't him...I don't understand!"
"I was wondering that too...I mean were they out to get you? Or out to get anyone?"
Sirius shrugged. "It's scary really."
"Yeah," Remus said nodding.
"I mean someone just attacks you without you even having a clue that it's coming...What if it happens again?"
"It won't if we stick together like Dumbledore told us to."
Sirius nodded and sighed.
"Just go back to sleep, Sirius. We're going to be okay."
"Okay," Sirius said in a small voice. He rolled over onto his stomach and buried his face in the pillow.
After about ten minutes of silence Sirius lifted his head and said, "Remus?"
"Yeah?"
"I'm sorry."
Remus gave him a small smile and a nod.
Sirius lay back down and attempted to go back to sleep. Once Remus heard his quite snores he put down the book he had been pretending to read and stared at his sleeping friend.
The truth was that Remus was far more worried about Sirius's attack then he let on. He did not think that it was a one time, random occurrence. Someone was after Sirius and no one knew who it was or why they were after him.
Remus sighed and curled up tight under the blankets, eventually falling into an uneasy sleep.
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"WAKE UP!!!!"
Remus sat straight up in his chair and Sirius again fell right off the couch.
James stood beside him, bent over laughing.
"Bloody arse hole," Sirius muttered.
"Thanks James..." Remus mumbled sarcastically, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.
"You should be thankful boys!" James said in an-all-too cheerful voice. "If I hadn't just woken you up you'd have missed breakfast...and you both need to eat! The rest of the tower has already left!"
Remus looked at him curiously; James was never that exuberant in the morning.
"What is your issue this morning James?" Sirius asked, noticing the same thing about his friend.
"What do you mean?" James asked, his mood slightly returning to normal.
"You're acting like you have a cheering charm on or something. You're never like this when you just wake up," Remus stated. "Are you feeling okay?"
"I'm fine guys!"
"James..." Sirius started, looking up at his friend.
"Sirius, I'm fine...lets just drop it and go downstairs. Pete's already down there."
"I don't want to drop it James. What's wrong?"
"Why does me being in a good mood mean there's something wrong?!"
"Because it's fake," Remus mumbled, Sirius nodding along with him.
"You guy's are both nutters," James said and turned to leave.
"Wait," Sirius said. He got up off the couch tenderly and made his way over to his friend. Grabbing his friend by the sleeve, Sirius began to pull James towards the couch. He really couldn't have done anything and James could have gotten away easily if he really wanted to. However, he let Sirius lead him to the couch and sit down.
"Talk," Sirius commanded.
James sighed and rested his head on the back of the couch, staring at the ceiling. "I guess I'm just...kind of scared. And I feel really guilty."
Remus raised his eyebrows at him.
"Why do you feel guilty?"
"Because I left Sirius out there alone last night."
"James!" Sirius exclaimed. "It's not your fault!"
"I know...but if I hadn't left that wouldn't have happened to you."
"That's stupid James...there's nothing you could have done about it. If someone wants to hurt Sirius, they'll find a time and a place to do it," Remus replied.
"Thanks Rem," Sirius said seriously. Remus looked apologetic for a moment but then saw a smirk cross Sirius's face.
"That's what scares me. See...my mum and dad have been talking about this dark lord guy who's starting to gain a lot of support here in England."
"You think that's who attacked me?"
James shook his head. "It was probably his followers. Dad says that they're generally against muggles and muggle borns. All about pure-blood you know...like your family Sirius."
"I don't think my parents are a part of..."
"I know Sirius...but they might be some day. And it's common knowledge that your family isn't that happy with you..."
"What are you trying to say James?" Remus asked, looking at the sad look on his and Sirius's faces.
"He's saying that they might try to get rid of me in order to recruit my family."
James squeezed Sirius's shoulder.
"Do you really think that would work?" Remus asked, shocked.
Sirius shook his head and said in a tight voice, "No...it wouldn't make them support this guy...but it certainly wouldn't hurt."
"Oh man..." Remus mumbled.
"I don't think I'm up for classes today," Sirius muttered sadly.
James nodded.
"I'll stay here with you, Sirius," Remus said. "I probably wouldn't have gone today either actually...I'm not ready to see Snape."
Sirius sighed deeply at that and looked ready to cry.
James squeezed Sirius's shoulder and said, "Well I'll go so Peter's not all alone again. I guess he had a rough day yesterday all by himself."
"Is that why we didn't see him at all?" Remus asked.
James nodded. "I guess he screwed something up badly in potions and had to stay after for like an hour and a half to clean it up. And then he got a detention from McGonagall. He said they were turning a piece of cotton string into wool...he ended up missing the string and turning Mabel Adler's hair into wool. She's that girl with the really long hair, you know? McGonagall and she were royally pissed."
They both couldn't help but laugh.
"Yeah, so he had to clean the trophy room by himself...and we all know how long that takes. But I'll go with him today so he doesn't screw everything up. Want me to grab your assignments as well?"
"Yes, please," Remus said and Sirius nodded.
"Do you guys need anything before I go?"
"No thanks, Prongs," Sirius mumbled resting his head back down on his pillow.
"Rem?"
Remus shook his head.
"Aren't you uncomfortable in that little chair?"
"Not at all," Remus muttered, snuggling in deeper. James laughed at him.
"Okay...I'll ask Dumbledore to send an elf up with some food for you two, sound good?"
"Sounds excellent James...what would we do without you?" Remus said, half sarcastically and half sincerely.
"You'd starve! I'll see you boys later."
"Bye James," they said in unison.
Remus watched Sirius for a few moments, noticing sadness slowly growing on his face.
"Are you okay, Padfoot?"
Sirius shrugged. "I just think James might have been right."
Remus got up and sat on the couch beside Sirius.
"What if he's right? And what if my family does join this dark lord guy?"
"We'll be careful...and you won't go anywhere without one of us...with the exception of the lou. They didn't get you yesterday and now that we know they're out there...they'll never get you."
Sirius smiled tightly at that.
"We'll watch out for you Sir."
"What about when I go home?"
"I thought you were going to stay with James now."
"I am...but I have to go home first."
"Why?"
Sirius sighed and rubbed his forehead. "I need to get my things...and then tell them."
"Do you think they'll just let you go?"
"I hope so."
"Sirius," Remus said seriously. "What if they don't let you? What if they try to stop you?"
"Then I'll run," Sirius said firmly.
"I don't think that's a good idea Sirius. I think you should just go to James's house and ask them to send you your things. What do you need that you don't have here anyway?"
"Remus, I'm going home first."
"I don't understand, Sirius."
"You don't need to understand Remus," Sirius snapped.
Remus looked slightly hurt but he tried to hide it.
"Fine," he mumbled and stood up. "I'm going up to my bed."
"Remus..." Sirius began.
"What?" Remus asked quietly.
Sirius didn't respond so Remus picked up his blanket and began slowly walking up the stairs.
Sighing, Sirius reached down and lifted his own blanket from the floor. He draped it over himself, from head to toe. Seeing only a red glow of light Sirius closed his eyes and willed himself to think about anything but his family. This proved to be quite a task and Sirius decided he needed to talk to Remus again.
He threw the blanket off and slowly got off the couch and made his way to the staircase. After about two minutes of slow climbing he reached the sixth year boys dorm, breathing quite heavily.
Looking over at Remus's bed Sirius was surprised to see it empty, the comforter thrown in a pile on top of it. He heard water running in the bathroom. Panic rose in Sirius momentarily, but he knew Remus would not be attempting to kill himself like that again.
He walked to the bathroom and went inside. He was glad to see the bathtub empty and steam coming from one shower stall.
"Remus?" he called tentatively.
"Yeah," Remus called poking his soapy head out from behind the curtain.
Sirius sat on the old stool the boys had once used to stand on when they were too short to see the mirror.
"I'm sorry."
"You don't need to be sorry that I don't understand."
"I know...but I didn't have to be so rude. You're only trying to help....carry on with your shower...I can talk loud."
Remus nodded and pulled his head back behind the curtain.
"Anyway," Sirius continued loudly. "I can't explain why...but I just have to go back. Just once more, you know. For closure or something. To make sure it's really what I want."
"Is there any doubt in your mind?" Remus called.
Sirius shook his head. Then, realizing Remus wasn't watching him yelled, "I don't think so...but I just—I just have to be sure."
"You sound scared, Padfoot," Remus called, a hint of worry in his voice.
"I-I am...but I have to," Sirius mumbled the last part to himself.
He heard the squeak of the faucet as Remus turned the water off. The towel hanging over the shower rod slid away and Remus appeared moments later in a pair of boxers, drying his hair with the towel.
"As long as you know what you're doing Sirius. Just be careful, okay mate?"
Sirius nodded and followed Remus out of the bathroom. "I think I'll be okay, Remus...and if not...."
"And if not...?" Remus questioned, pulling on a pair of sweat pants.
"I don't know," Sirius muttered sitting down on Remus's bed.
"You do realize if you spend more than two days there James will bust down your door right?"
"He better fucking not!" Sirius exclaimed.
"Then you better make sure you get out of there quickly. And, do you realize that summer holiday's start in less than three weeks?"
Sirius nodded.
"Do you have a plan at all?"
Sirius bit his lip and shook his head.
"Okay, Sirius, I know you're not going home to see if you really want to leave. You KNOW you want to leave. Please tell me why you're being like this?"
"What am I supposed to do? Write a letter home saying, 'Hey I'm not coming home, because you're vicious horrible people and I hate you all?' I don't think that will go over well. And I can't very well just go straight home with James...my parents will be at the station."
"I see your predicament," Remus said, pulling on an old t-shirt.
Sirius sighed and let his body fall over, his head landing on Remus's pillow. Remus sat beside him and rubbed his back gently.
"So you're just going to run away in the middle of the night?"
Sirius nodded. He rolled his head to the side and muttered, "That's all I really can do."
"I'm going to be worried sick about you, you know that right?"
"Yeah," Sirius mumbled. "I'm going to be worried about me too."
"As will James...I wish I could say everything's going to be alright...but I don't know if it will...and that scares me."
Sirius rolled over. "Can we do something? I want my mind off of this subject!"
Remus nodded. "Chess or exploding snap?"
"Chess," Sirius said firmly.
"Okay, let's go back downstairs," he said as cheerfully as he could.
"Alright," Sirius muttered. He tenderly got off the bed and walked down the stairs, holding tightly to the rail as he went.
Remus who was walking behind him couldn't help but remark at the slow speed with which Sirius was traveling. "Are you going to make it Sirius?"
"Yes," he said through gritted teeth. "You'd be walking like this too if you're muscles had been fried last night."
"I know, Sirius, I was just making sure you were alright. Calm down." "I'm sorry," Sirius mumbled like a little boy.
They finally made it downstairs where they were met with a house elf carrying a very large tray of breakfast foods. They set it at a table near the fire where they ate and played chess for quite a while.
Around noon their game was ended by a visit from Professor Dumbledore.
"Good afternoon boys," he said as he entered the common room.
"Hello, professor," they both said hesitantly. They could tell by the look on his face that they didn't have good news.
He took a haggard breath and said, "I have found the culprits behind the attack upon you, Mr. Black."
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The end of chapter 8 :) I'm happy with how this chapter came out...even though nothing really happened, lol....Anyway, next chapter will be along as soon as it can be, I promise you that....
Also, I'm sorry if this chapter is a little confusing at parts. I realized I contradicted the story a bit and went back to fix it. I've read it over several times to get the kinks out, but I don' t know if everything is going the way it is in my head. So if it makes no sense at points let me know so I can fix it! Thanks!
Reviews are both welcomed and appreciated...please remember that!
Leila Rose: Thanks for reviewing. The black figures will be revealed...eventually :)
Jemma Blackwell: I have a tendency of taking criticism very literally, I try to please everyone, you know. And I find all of your comments completely valid. I'm glad you liked the last chapter though :) It made me smile, lol. Also Mr. Gap commercial man really isn't a typical Sirius, and I'm not surprised that you don't see Sirius in him...my deal is that I generally don't like long hair at all. Few in my opinion can carry it off, so I just conveniently picture Sirius as a more clean cut person...though obviously in POA he won't quite be like that *sigh* Anyway, hope this chapter is up to par for you! Thanks for continuing to review!
Sexy Black: I can't ever forget the angst! Gotta get my healthy doses of that. You know what I've noticed though? As in my old story, so far this story has had crying in every chapter, lol....I really get carried away. This chapter (I'll have to double check) doesn't have any crying, trust me though, it took a lot of restraint to have it that way, lol. Anyway I was reading a few random chapters of In Need of Sirius Help today and I think I really over did it. I'm thinking of redoing that fic after this one is over...does that sound like a good idea? I think I could really make that story good if I went back and fixed some things....anyway I'm glad you like my stuff :)
Katie: lol, as I wrote my last message to you, I thought just that "if she can't read the chapter how's she going to know to do that?" but it's for future reference ok?! Anyway, I will never take someone liking my stories for granted...I need continual reinforcement so don't stop! I would be sad if you did! Is James going overboard with the word Mate? I just like that, I'm going to do study broad in two years and I'm going to Australia or London and I will say that left and right...actually, do girls get to say it or is it a guy thing? Oh I hope I can lol. Anyway, I think I laid off the word a bit in this chapter...And I'm the same way with not wanting the characters to fall in love and move on. It makes me sad in stories when they stop hanging around each other so much cuz of girls...hence this story beginning with a break up :) And don't compliment me in French! I won't know what you're saying and that would suck...stick to English, I may have heard what you say before, but really...would you mind? And I'm going to say it again, update your fics! Hiatus's are bad...very bad! I don't even remember where yours left off...I'll have to go re-read....Bye :)
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Sleeping in an Armchair
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Remus sat on the window ledge, looking down by the lake. He watched as someone walked quickly along the shore, quickly pursued by another. After squinting hard he recognized them as James and Sirius.
"Sirius looks upset still," Remus thought to himself as he watched Sirius sit down in the grass. He watched James leave and wondered what was going on between the two. After a few minutes of watching Sirius play fidget and mess with his hair, Remus heard the dormitory door open. He swung his head around and saw James come strolling in.
"What's going on out there? Is Sirius okay?"
James sighed and shook his head. "He's just having a hard time dealing with this. He said he was embarrassed. We're going to go for a fly to take his mind off of it. I know you're probably not up for flying, but you've been sleeping all day. Do you want to come watch?"
Remus shook his head. "I think I'll watch you two from here," he said looking back out the window. "What the...?"
"What is it?" James asked, approaching the window with two brooms in his hands.
"There are people down there with Sirius. They're all in black—shit!"
"What?!"
"They just cursed him...I think—I think they're using the cruciatus or something! It looks like he's in pain!"
James looked out the window. "Get down Remus!" he commanded. Remus immediately did as told. James propped open the window as wide as it would go. He began to climb to the outer-ledge and called back to Remus, "Go get Dumbledore!"
Remus nodded and left as quickly as his weak legs would carry him.
James flew silently through the air, his wand pointed straight at one of Sirius's attackers. "Expelliarmus," he whispered. He immediately did the same to the other attacker, catching the wands with ease as they flew to him. The cloaked figures immediately ran away towards the dark forest. James didn't bother to follow them. He flew to the ground beside his friend.
"Are you alright Sirius? What happened?"
James helped Sirius sit up and put an arm around his shaking shoulders.
"I don't know who they were or why they did that," Sirius whispered. "I thought it was you coming back but—they just pointed their wands at me! And I couldn't get mine..."
"Were they using the cruciatus?"
Sirius shook his head. "No, but it was like it. I've been under the cruciatus...this wasn't nearly as bad. What they were doing it was just like...like little shocks of-of energy or something."
"I've never heard of anything like that," James said quietly, rubbing Sirius's tense back muscles. "Remus is getting Dumbledore...they'll be down any minute. He was watching from the window upstairs."
Sirius nodded and rested his tired head on James's shoulder, closing his eyes. He had nearly fallen asleep by the time Remus and Dumbledore arrived.
Remus immediately knelt down in front of Sirius and asked, "Are you okay Sirius?" Sirius's eyes opened and focused on Remus's face. He nodded slowly and closed his eyes again. This time letting his head fall forward. Remus grabbed his shoulders to keep him from falling face first into the grass. He let Sirius rest his forehead against his shoulder and gently rubbed his friend's back in small circles.
Remus then watched James and Professor Dumbledore speak.
"I flew out the window when we saw it, Sir. I disarmed them both before they even knew I was there. Then they just ran into the forest. They were fully cloaked in black, neither Sirius or I know who they were. Sirius says they didn't say a word to him."
"Do you have their wands James?" Dumbledore asked seriously.
James nodded and passed the two wands over. Dumbledore looked them over and then sighed. "These are not Ollivander's wands. Had they been I could have taken them to him and he'd know who he'd sold them to. Yet...this is very odd. As far as I know every student has received his or her wands from Mr. Ollivander." Dumbledore shook his head, realizing he'd been thinking aloud and didn't want to frighten the boys by stating his suspicions.
He cleared his throat and walked over to Sirius. He knelt down beside Remus, facing Sirius. "Mr. Black, I'd like to ask you about the curse that was used on you." Sirius didn't immediately react.
"Sirius," Remus said quietly, squeezing his friend's shoulder.
"I don't know what it was professor," Sirius mumbled without looking up. "It wasn't the cruciatus though."
"Did you hear the incantation?"
Sirius shook his head and leaned further into Remus.
"Can you describe to me how it felt?"
Sirius sighed and said, "It was like these painful shocks going through my body. It gave me that nervous 'butterfly's in the stomach' feeling. It felt like there was something traveling, surging, through my veins...does that make sense?"
"Yes, it sounds like a curse used to control magical creatures. It's a mild form of the cruciatus which is actually legal...though not on fellow human beings. I'll try to find the culprits, Mr. Black, though I believe it will be difficult. If I find the people who did this, you'll be the first to know."
"It was probably Snape," James said firmly.
"I know for a fact it was not Mr. Snape, as he was in my office when Remus alerted me of this incident."
"Oh," James said, his cheeks flushing.
"Would you like to go to the hospital wing Mr. Black?"
Sirius shook his head, "I just want to go to sleep."
"Very well. You boys can help him up to bed?"
The both nodded.
"Alright, have a good evening, and if anything else like this happens in the future let me know immediately. Also, never again stay out on the grounds by yourself. There was a time when it was safe to do so, but apparently that no longer is the case."
They all nodded and watched Dumbledore walk towards the castle.
Sirius just sat where he was, head still resting against Remus's shoulder. Remus lowered his head and whispered, "Come on Sirius, let's get you upstairs."
Remus stood and grabbed hold of Sirius's hands. As he was pulled to his feet, Sirius emitted small groans of pain. Remus, still being weak himself almost fell over after getting Sirius into an upright position.
"Umm...I don't think Dumbledore should have left us here," James said. "Remus, you're still not strong enough so why don't you just walk ahead. I'll help Sirius."
"Alright," Remus replied.
"And here, use my broom as, like, a walking stick."
Remus grabbed hold of the broom and put some of his weight on it. It did help.
James put Sirius's arm around his shoulder and supported his back all the way to the castle until they were in the now deserted common room. James helped lower Sirius onto a couch. Sirius mumbled a thank you and quickly fell into a sound sleep, sitting upright. James lifted his legs onto the couch and pulled his torso down so that he was lying down.
Remus settled into a comfy armchair next to Sirius and watched James care for their friend.
"I'm going to get him his blanket and pillow and then go to bed myself...it's been a long day. You should get back to bed too Rem."
"I've slept enough today. Can you bring down my blanket too? And the book by my bed?"
"Of course," James said smiling at him. Remus watched him leave and waited patiently for him to return. He laughed as James returned carrying two very large bright red comforters down the stairs, careful not to trip on the ends. Remus's book was tucked securely under his chin, and Sirius's pillow clenched under his right arm. James stopped in front of Remus and let the blankets drop. He passed the book to Remus and then picked up one of the soft red comforters. Carefully he draped it over his friend, tucking the edges under his feet and under the cushion so no cold air could get in. "Thanks James," Remus said smiling.
"Anytime," he replied smiling.
James then turned to Sirius. Gently he raised his friends head and slipped the pillow underneath. He then draped the blanket over his friend and tucked it in as he had with Remus.
Yawning, he turned back to Remus and mumbled, "Goodnight Moony, don't stay up too late reading."
"I won't. Hey did Peter ever come back?"
James nodded. "He's already asleep upstairs. I wonder where he was all day?"
Remus shrugged. "Goodnight."
"Night," James said as he headed for the stairs again.
For a couple of hours Remus read. Every now and then Sirius would snore loudly or mumble something in his sleep, but for the most part Remus was completely uninterrupted and fell asleep curled up in the armchair.
Sirius awoke several hours later, completely tangled in his blanket. He struggled against it, but managed to get tangled more. He sighed and looked around at his settings. He was surprised to find himself in the common room and took a second to remember why. Then he saw Remus sleeping peacefully nearby and couldn't help but smile to himself. Remus had forgiven him and helped take care of him last night and that made Sirius very happy.
However, Sirius wasn't feeling well at all and could not free himself from the binds of the blanket, which made him quite unhappy. Sirius didn't like being bound, no matter what he was being bound by. A little gift his mother left him with.
"Remus," he said but Remus didn't move. "Remus!" he said louder but still Remus didn't wake. Sirius again began to struggle frantically against the bond of his comforter. If he hadn't been zapped for several minutes earlier that day he'd have freed himself of the blankets instantly. As he tried hard to kick off the blanket he used to much force and wound up on the floor.
"Owwww," he moaned. However, he was now able to easily free himself of the blanket. He rolled it up and pushed it aside.
"What are you doing?" Remus asked rubbing his eyes.
"Now you wake up," Sirius mumbled, rubbing his now sore behind.
"Are you okay?" Remus asked brushing aside his blanket and standing next to his friend.
"No," Sirius said like a child. "I was stuck in the blanket and I couldn't get out. So basically I fell trying to get out. I tried to wake you up so you could help me but apparently the only thing that wakes you up is my falling on my ass."
Remus laughed quietly.
"It's not funny Moony," Sirius muttered sadly.
"Come here," Remus said and pulled him to his feet. He helped him sit back down and then sat beside him.
"My whole body hurts...and now my ass hurts even more!"
Remus laughed lightly again.
"Not funny..." Sirius said through clenched teeth, but he was smiling as well.
Sirius yawned, "What time is it Moony?"
Remus looked at his watch. "4:30 AM."
"Are you kidding me?"
"I kid you not."
"I'm so tired," he said, laying his head back against the top of the couch.
Remus picked up the pillow and fluffed it before replacing it. He set it back in its place and stood. "Lay down, Sirius," he said gently.
Sirius did as he was told and stretched his form across the couch. Remus picked up the blanket and was about to spread it over Sirius.
"No!" Sirius said sitting back up quickly. Too quickly, he moaned and grabbed his head.
"What's up?"
"I just don't want the blanket on."
Remus looked at him questioningly.
"I don't want to get stuck in it like before...it scares me when I get stuck like that."
"You're going to get cold though..."
"I don't care."
"Fine...are you okay though? You're head and all?"
"It hurts pretty bad. I just feel really sore, like I just went for a 12-K run or something! And my head is throbbing."
"Maybe you should have seen Pomfrey."
"What could she have done?"
"She could have helped you with the pain," Remus said firmly.
"I can bear it," Sirius muttered.
Remus again laughed at him.
Sirius pouted. "Why are you picking on me?"
"Do you really need to ask?"
Sirius rubbed his face roughly, sighing. "Can I have a hug?" he asked quietly
"Of course," Remus said and wrapped his arms around Sirius, who hugged back tightly.
"Could this last week have been any worse Remus?!" he mumbled into Remus's shoulder.
"I doubt it, Sirius. It certainly has not been fun."
Sirius nodded. "I bet if I stop doing stupid things it'll get better."
"Sirius you know it hasn't all been your fault."
"Feels like it."
"I think the hellishness started with me."
"Yes but..."
"No buts Sirius. Lay back down."
Sirius released Remus and did as he was told.
Remus sat back in his chair, pulled the blanket over himself and began to read his book again.
"Why do you think they attacked me Rem?"
Looking up, surprised, Remus thought for a moment and then shook his head.
"Because...like Snape I see why he would want to do that...but if it wasn't him...I don't understand!"
"I was wondering that too...I mean were they out to get you? Or out to get anyone?"
Sirius shrugged. "It's scary really."
"Yeah," Remus said nodding.
"I mean someone just attacks you without you even having a clue that it's coming...What if it happens again?"
"It won't if we stick together like Dumbledore told us to."
Sirius nodded and sighed.
"Just go back to sleep, Sirius. We're going to be okay."
"Okay," Sirius said in a small voice. He rolled over onto his stomach and buried his face in the pillow.
After about ten minutes of silence Sirius lifted his head and said, "Remus?"
"Yeah?"
"I'm sorry."
Remus gave him a small smile and a nod.
Sirius lay back down and attempted to go back to sleep. Once Remus heard his quite snores he put down the book he had been pretending to read and stared at his sleeping friend.
The truth was that Remus was far more worried about Sirius's attack then he let on. He did not think that it was a one time, random occurrence. Someone was after Sirius and no one knew who it was or why they were after him.
Remus sighed and curled up tight under the blankets, eventually falling into an uneasy sleep.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"WAKE UP!!!!"
Remus sat straight up in his chair and Sirius again fell right off the couch.
James stood beside him, bent over laughing.
"Bloody arse hole," Sirius muttered.
"Thanks James..." Remus mumbled sarcastically, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.
"You should be thankful boys!" James said in an-all-too cheerful voice. "If I hadn't just woken you up you'd have missed breakfast...and you both need to eat! The rest of the tower has already left!"
Remus looked at him curiously; James was never that exuberant in the morning.
"What is your issue this morning James?" Sirius asked, noticing the same thing about his friend.
"What do you mean?" James asked, his mood slightly returning to normal.
"You're acting like you have a cheering charm on or something. You're never like this when you just wake up," Remus stated. "Are you feeling okay?"
"I'm fine guys!"
"James..." Sirius started, looking up at his friend.
"Sirius, I'm fine...lets just drop it and go downstairs. Pete's already down there."
"I don't want to drop it James. What's wrong?"
"Why does me being in a good mood mean there's something wrong?!"
"Because it's fake," Remus mumbled, Sirius nodding along with him.
"You guy's are both nutters," James said and turned to leave.
"Wait," Sirius said. He got up off the couch tenderly and made his way over to his friend. Grabbing his friend by the sleeve, Sirius began to pull James towards the couch. He really couldn't have done anything and James could have gotten away easily if he really wanted to. However, he let Sirius lead him to the couch and sit down.
"Talk," Sirius commanded.
James sighed and rested his head on the back of the couch, staring at the ceiling. "I guess I'm just...kind of scared. And I feel really guilty."
Remus raised his eyebrows at him.
"Why do you feel guilty?"
"Because I left Sirius out there alone last night."
"James!" Sirius exclaimed. "It's not your fault!"
"I know...but if I hadn't left that wouldn't have happened to you."
"That's stupid James...there's nothing you could have done about it. If someone wants to hurt Sirius, they'll find a time and a place to do it," Remus replied.
"Thanks Rem," Sirius said seriously. Remus looked apologetic for a moment but then saw a smirk cross Sirius's face.
"That's what scares me. See...my mum and dad have been talking about this dark lord guy who's starting to gain a lot of support here in England."
"You think that's who attacked me?"
James shook his head. "It was probably his followers. Dad says that they're generally against muggles and muggle borns. All about pure-blood you know...like your family Sirius."
"I don't think my parents are a part of..."
"I know Sirius...but they might be some day. And it's common knowledge that your family isn't that happy with you..."
"What are you trying to say James?" Remus asked, looking at the sad look on his and Sirius's faces.
"He's saying that they might try to get rid of me in order to recruit my family."
James squeezed Sirius's shoulder.
"Do you really think that would work?" Remus asked, shocked.
Sirius shook his head and said in a tight voice, "No...it wouldn't make them support this guy...but it certainly wouldn't hurt."
"Oh man..." Remus mumbled.
"I don't think I'm up for classes today," Sirius muttered sadly.
James nodded.
"I'll stay here with you, Sirius," Remus said. "I probably wouldn't have gone today either actually...I'm not ready to see Snape."
Sirius sighed deeply at that and looked ready to cry.
James squeezed Sirius's shoulder and said, "Well I'll go so Peter's not all alone again. I guess he had a rough day yesterday all by himself."
"Is that why we didn't see him at all?" Remus asked.
James nodded. "I guess he screwed something up badly in potions and had to stay after for like an hour and a half to clean it up. And then he got a detention from McGonagall. He said they were turning a piece of cotton string into wool...he ended up missing the string and turning Mabel Adler's hair into wool. She's that girl with the really long hair, you know? McGonagall and she were royally pissed."
They both couldn't help but laugh.
"Yeah, so he had to clean the trophy room by himself...and we all know how long that takes. But I'll go with him today so he doesn't screw everything up. Want me to grab your assignments as well?"
"Yes, please," Remus said and Sirius nodded.
"Do you guys need anything before I go?"
"No thanks, Prongs," Sirius mumbled resting his head back down on his pillow.
"Rem?"
Remus shook his head.
"Aren't you uncomfortable in that little chair?"
"Not at all," Remus muttered, snuggling in deeper. James laughed at him.
"Okay...I'll ask Dumbledore to send an elf up with some food for you two, sound good?"
"Sounds excellent James...what would we do without you?" Remus said, half sarcastically and half sincerely.
"You'd starve! I'll see you boys later."
"Bye James," they said in unison.
Remus watched Sirius for a few moments, noticing sadness slowly growing on his face.
"Are you okay, Padfoot?"
Sirius shrugged. "I just think James might have been right."
Remus got up and sat on the couch beside Sirius.
"What if he's right? And what if my family does join this dark lord guy?"
"We'll be careful...and you won't go anywhere without one of us...with the exception of the lou. They didn't get you yesterday and now that we know they're out there...they'll never get you."
Sirius smiled tightly at that.
"We'll watch out for you Sir."
"What about when I go home?"
"I thought you were going to stay with James now."
"I am...but I have to go home first."
"Why?"
Sirius sighed and rubbed his forehead. "I need to get my things...and then tell them."
"Do you think they'll just let you go?"
"I hope so."
"Sirius," Remus said seriously. "What if they don't let you? What if they try to stop you?"
"Then I'll run," Sirius said firmly.
"I don't think that's a good idea Sirius. I think you should just go to James's house and ask them to send you your things. What do you need that you don't have here anyway?"
"Remus, I'm going home first."
"I don't understand, Sirius."
"You don't need to understand Remus," Sirius snapped.
Remus looked slightly hurt but he tried to hide it.
"Fine," he mumbled and stood up. "I'm going up to my bed."
"Remus..." Sirius began.
"What?" Remus asked quietly.
Sirius didn't respond so Remus picked up his blanket and began slowly walking up the stairs.
Sighing, Sirius reached down and lifted his own blanket from the floor. He draped it over himself, from head to toe. Seeing only a red glow of light Sirius closed his eyes and willed himself to think about anything but his family. This proved to be quite a task and Sirius decided he needed to talk to Remus again.
He threw the blanket off and slowly got off the couch and made his way to the staircase. After about two minutes of slow climbing he reached the sixth year boys dorm, breathing quite heavily.
Looking over at Remus's bed Sirius was surprised to see it empty, the comforter thrown in a pile on top of it. He heard water running in the bathroom. Panic rose in Sirius momentarily, but he knew Remus would not be attempting to kill himself like that again.
He walked to the bathroom and went inside. He was glad to see the bathtub empty and steam coming from one shower stall.
"Remus?" he called tentatively.
"Yeah," Remus called poking his soapy head out from behind the curtain.
Sirius sat on the old stool the boys had once used to stand on when they were too short to see the mirror.
"I'm sorry."
"You don't need to be sorry that I don't understand."
"I know...but I didn't have to be so rude. You're only trying to help....carry on with your shower...I can talk loud."
Remus nodded and pulled his head back behind the curtain.
"Anyway," Sirius continued loudly. "I can't explain why...but I just have to go back. Just once more, you know. For closure or something. To make sure it's really what I want."
"Is there any doubt in your mind?" Remus called.
Sirius shook his head. Then, realizing Remus wasn't watching him yelled, "I don't think so...but I just—I just have to be sure."
"You sound scared, Padfoot," Remus called, a hint of worry in his voice.
"I-I am...but I have to," Sirius mumbled the last part to himself.
He heard the squeak of the faucet as Remus turned the water off. The towel hanging over the shower rod slid away and Remus appeared moments later in a pair of boxers, drying his hair with the towel.
"As long as you know what you're doing Sirius. Just be careful, okay mate?"
Sirius nodded and followed Remus out of the bathroom. "I think I'll be okay, Remus...and if not...."
"And if not...?" Remus questioned, pulling on a pair of sweat pants.
"I don't know," Sirius muttered sitting down on Remus's bed.
"You do realize if you spend more than two days there James will bust down your door right?"
"He better fucking not!" Sirius exclaimed.
"Then you better make sure you get out of there quickly. And, do you realize that summer holiday's start in less than three weeks?"
Sirius nodded.
"Do you have a plan at all?"
Sirius bit his lip and shook his head.
"Okay, Sirius, I know you're not going home to see if you really want to leave. You KNOW you want to leave. Please tell me why you're being like this?"
"What am I supposed to do? Write a letter home saying, 'Hey I'm not coming home, because you're vicious horrible people and I hate you all?' I don't think that will go over well. And I can't very well just go straight home with James...my parents will be at the station."
"I see your predicament," Remus said, pulling on an old t-shirt.
Sirius sighed and let his body fall over, his head landing on Remus's pillow. Remus sat beside him and rubbed his back gently.
"So you're just going to run away in the middle of the night?"
Sirius nodded. He rolled his head to the side and muttered, "That's all I really can do."
"I'm going to be worried sick about you, you know that right?"
"Yeah," Sirius mumbled. "I'm going to be worried about me too."
"As will James...I wish I could say everything's going to be alright...but I don't know if it will...and that scares me."
Sirius rolled over. "Can we do something? I want my mind off of this subject!"
Remus nodded. "Chess or exploding snap?"
"Chess," Sirius said firmly.
"Okay, let's go back downstairs," he said as cheerfully as he could.
"Alright," Sirius muttered. He tenderly got off the bed and walked down the stairs, holding tightly to the rail as he went.
Remus who was walking behind him couldn't help but remark at the slow speed with which Sirius was traveling. "Are you going to make it Sirius?"
"Yes," he said through gritted teeth. "You'd be walking like this too if you're muscles had been fried last night."
"I know, Sirius, I was just making sure you were alright. Calm down." "I'm sorry," Sirius mumbled like a little boy.
They finally made it downstairs where they were met with a house elf carrying a very large tray of breakfast foods. They set it at a table near the fire where they ate and played chess for quite a while.
Around noon their game was ended by a visit from Professor Dumbledore.
"Good afternoon boys," he said as he entered the common room.
"Hello, professor," they both said hesitantly. They could tell by the look on his face that they didn't have good news.
He took a haggard breath and said, "I have found the culprits behind the attack upon you, Mr. Black."
~~~~~~~~~~~~
The end of chapter 8 :) I'm happy with how this chapter came out...even though nothing really happened, lol....Anyway, next chapter will be along as soon as it can be, I promise you that....
Also, I'm sorry if this chapter is a little confusing at parts. I realized I contradicted the story a bit and went back to fix it. I've read it over several times to get the kinks out, but I don' t know if everything is going the way it is in my head. So if it makes no sense at points let me know so I can fix it! Thanks!
Reviews are both welcomed and appreciated...please remember that!