A/N Yay I got 3 new reviewers this time! No one guessed my quote though
:'(. It's from homestarrunner.com. A great website. You should check it
out. Anyway, want a new quote? K, here's the Quote of the Day: "Guys, Chad
fell down." If you don't think it's funny, I guess you just have to see the
movie to get it. ANYWAY, onto the story!
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter characters.
* * *
Remus wanted to cry or faint or disappear, or all three at once. He could tell from their expressions that they knew. Now, he would never have the chance to learn magic. He would be leaving Hogwarts by nightfall. Vaguely, he became aware that Sirius was talking.
"We know that you're the one making the sounds in the Shrieking Shack," he was saying, "and we also know that you're a werewolf. What we don't know is – hello? Are you paying attention?"
Remus nodded numbly. He knew that he must look like he was asleep. His brain was completely dazed.
"Ok, what I was saying," Sirius continued, "is that we don't know why you didn't tell us."
Remus stared at him. Was he serious? They didn't know why he had kept it a secret? He wanted to yell at them, shake them, make them see how his life was as a werewolf, but he had no energy to fight back.
"Remus, we're friends, right?" James asked, standing directly in front of Remus. "Friends don't lie. Is it that you don't trust us?"
One thing struck the center of Remus' brain. We're friends. James hadn't said we were friends. He had said we're friends. Confusion overwhelmed the boy.
"You mean – you mean we're still friends?" Remus croaked, his throat parched.
"Of course!" Sirius waved that away as if being a werewolf was as common as being human.
"We don't go for all that junk about werewolves being evil," James told him. "Is that why you didn't want anyone to know?"
Remus nodded, still in shock. His brain moved slowly, sorting out what was happening. If they're still my friends, they won't tell anyone. If they don't tell anyone, I won't have to leave. If I don't have to leave, I can still learn magic! Suddenly, he leaned forward.
"You won't tell anyone, will you?" he asked. The other three boys nodded.
"We understand that other people don't exactly share our views about werewolves," James replied wryly. "We plan to help you, not punish you."
That staggered Remus even more. "Help me? Really?"
Sirius shook his head, smiling. "Yes, help you. What did you think we'd do?"
For a few minutes, Remus couldn't think of anything to say. All he could think about were memories of the pain he had gone through, of people shutting him out and avoiding him like a plague. Now, it was all going to change. "Thank you," he whispered.
James and Sirius grinned broadly. "No problem," they responded in unison. Peter gave Remus a timid smile, and Remus smiled back.
* * *
"Finally, vacation," Sirius sighed, leaning back in the chair by the fire as a group of girls passed. One girl with red hair and green eyes gave him a disdainful look, which he ignored. Remus remembered her glaring at his two friends in the first History of Magic class. The two boys didn't seem to be making much of a good impression on her. He watched her go, sinking back into memories of the last few months. Now, a week after James and Sirius had found out, he still couldn't believe his luck.
"She's cute, isn't she?" James cut into Remus' thoughts. Remus looked at him, taken by surprise.
"So you got you sights set already?" Sirius asked, glancing at the portrait door, which was closing behind the girls. "Thought that you might last a bit longer than that, mate."
"Hey, better to find out who's the best now," James replied. Remus shook his head. For all his brains, James could be really hard to understand sometimes. Once he was excited about something, he never made any sense.
"So d'you think she'll go for you?" Sirius wondered with his eyes half-shut.
"Of course!" James grinned at his friends. "Who wouldn't?"
Sirius raised his hand. "Me."
"But you're not a girl, friend." James was rolling his eyes. Peter laughed at the exchange. Sirius gave him a strange look, which he didn't see. A lot of the time, Sirius was annoyed by how Peter followed them and tried to copy them, but he held his tongue. His attention was drawn back to Remus, who was pulling books out of his bag.
"What're you doing?" he asked, picking up the book that Remus had set on the table. "The Art of Potions? You're gonna do the essay today?"
"Yeah," Remus replied, looking up from his bag, "why, you're going to leave it until the last day?"
"That's what I was planning on." Sirius placed the book back on the table. "It's the first day of vacation! Lay off the books and have some fun!"
"What were you planning to do?" Remus wondered, pulling the book back toward him and opening it.
"Dunno, something outside," Sirius replied. He regretted saying that almost instantly as Remus paused for a moment, his face tightening a little.
"How about sledding?" James suggested quickly, hoping to make the subject of outdoors sound a little better.
"Sledding? What's that?" Sirius asked, sitting up.
"You've never heard of sledding?" James replied, and Sirius shook his head. "Well, it's sort of a Muggle thing. You take a board or something like that, put it on runners, and go down a hill. Actually, its more fun if you just take one of those cheap plastic ones."
"Alright, let's try it." Sirius stood and stretched. Remus abandoned his book and quill and followed the other two boys out of the common room. Peter trailed along behind. When they walked past the caretaker's office, James ducked inside and emerged a moment later with four purple discs.
"You should see everything he's got in there!" James whispered, handing them each a disc. "Now we know where to get our supplies!"
They headed outside and climbed up a hill. "Muggles do this for fun?" Sirius grunted when they reached the top. James ignored him.
"Who's gonna go first?" he asked, looking around at his friends.
"You're the expert on Muggle fun," Sirius replied, "so you can have the honors."
Shrugging, James sat on his disc and pushed himself off. As they watched him go down, bouncing high as he hit bumps, Remus saw something move out of the corner of his eye. There was a boy standing about halfway down the hill! As James passed, the boy pointed his wand and a jet of green light hit James, who tumbled out of his disc and continued rolling down the hill.
"It's that Snape kid!" Sirius shouted. He and Remus began running after him, slipping and sliding down the hill. The boy had a head start, but the two boys reached him before he was even halfway to the castle. Sirius took a running jump and brought Snape down, pulling out his wand and pointing it at the other boy's head. Soon, James and Peter joined them, James wincing slightly as he walked.
"You deserved it," Snape spat. "You deserve worse. I know who you are – Mudbloods, blood traitors, a bunch of uncivilized kids running around with wands."
Sirius' fingers closed around the wand. He drew his fist back and punched Snape as hard as he could. He continued to rain down punches until someone yelled at him.
"Cut it out!"
Remus looked away from Sirius, surprised to see the red-haired girl from earlier that morning. "Leave him alone!" she shouted. "What's he done to you?"
"You want a list?" Sirius snarled, glaring at her.
"Let him go," James muttered. Sirius whipped his head around, and James nodded. Furious, Sirius dragged Snape up from the ground and shoved him away.
"Never talk about my friends that way," he growled, "and never – EVER – say anything about my family in front of me."
Snape began running again, now nursing a bloody nose and a blackening eye. The girl left with her friends, shooting another dark look at Sirius. When they had walked out of earshot, Sirius whirled around to face James.
"You're crazy!" he exclaimed. "You'd let Snape go just for a girl?"
"Lily Evans is a very attractive girl," James replied, shrugging. "Besides, there'll be other chances to make Snape pay."
Shaking his head, Sirius began walking back toward the castle, and the others followed. When they reached Gryffindor, Remus stopped James outside.
"Why's Sirius so touchy about his family?" Remus whispered.
Frowning, James replied, "He hates all of them. They're a bunch of pureblood maniacs, always warning him to stay away from the Mudbloods and half-bloods. He's sick of it, and sick of hearing about it. He'd probably stay at Hogwarts all year round if he had the chance."
They walked into the common room, Remus now thinking about how hard Sirius must have it. He thought of his mother and father, and his uncles, aunts, and cousins. The rest of the day, he was lost in thought about people outside of Hogwarts.
* * *
A/N So was it good? Review and tell me what you think!
TheDudeLordOfFantasy – Thanks again for reviewing! I hope you like this chapter!
fthgj() – ok. Thanks for the review
Hermione781 – Glad you like it! I hope you keep reviewing!
Jennyangel – Tja! What kind of Marauders story would this be without Lily? I've just had some trouble finding places to put her in. Anyway Remus is one of my favorites too! And yeah, I was thinking of doing a DADA part in the last chapter, but I forgot to. I'll try to remember to do that in the next few chapters. Ok please keep sending reviews!
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter characters.
* * *
Remus wanted to cry or faint or disappear, or all three at once. He could tell from their expressions that they knew. Now, he would never have the chance to learn magic. He would be leaving Hogwarts by nightfall. Vaguely, he became aware that Sirius was talking.
"We know that you're the one making the sounds in the Shrieking Shack," he was saying, "and we also know that you're a werewolf. What we don't know is – hello? Are you paying attention?"
Remus nodded numbly. He knew that he must look like he was asleep. His brain was completely dazed.
"Ok, what I was saying," Sirius continued, "is that we don't know why you didn't tell us."
Remus stared at him. Was he serious? They didn't know why he had kept it a secret? He wanted to yell at them, shake them, make them see how his life was as a werewolf, but he had no energy to fight back.
"Remus, we're friends, right?" James asked, standing directly in front of Remus. "Friends don't lie. Is it that you don't trust us?"
One thing struck the center of Remus' brain. We're friends. James hadn't said we were friends. He had said we're friends. Confusion overwhelmed the boy.
"You mean – you mean we're still friends?" Remus croaked, his throat parched.
"Of course!" Sirius waved that away as if being a werewolf was as common as being human.
"We don't go for all that junk about werewolves being evil," James told him. "Is that why you didn't want anyone to know?"
Remus nodded, still in shock. His brain moved slowly, sorting out what was happening. If they're still my friends, they won't tell anyone. If they don't tell anyone, I won't have to leave. If I don't have to leave, I can still learn magic! Suddenly, he leaned forward.
"You won't tell anyone, will you?" he asked. The other three boys nodded.
"We understand that other people don't exactly share our views about werewolves," James replied wryly. "We plan to help you, not punish you."
That staggered Remus even more. "Help me? Really?"
Sirius shook his head, smiling. "Yes, help you. What did you think we'd do?"
For a few minutes, Remus couldn't think of anything to say. All he could think about were memories of the pain he had gone through, of people shutting him out and avoiding him like a plague. Now, it was all going to change. "Thank you," he whispered.
James and Sirius grinned broadly. "No problem," they responded in unison. Peter gave Remus a timid smile, and Remus smiled back.
* * *
"Finally, vacation," Sirius sighed, leaning back in the chair by the fire as a group of girls passed. One girl with red hair and green eyes gave him a disdainful look, which he ignored. Remus remembered her glaring at his two friends in the first History of Magic class. The two boys didn't seem to be making much of a good impression on her. He watched her go, sinking back into memories of the last few months. Now, a week after James and Sirius had found out, he still couldn't believe his luck.
"She's cute, isn't she?" James cut into Remus' thoughts. Remus looked at him, taken by surprise.
"So you got you sights set already?" Sirius asked, glancing at the portrait door, which was closing behind the girls. "Thought that you might last a bit longer than that, mate."
"Hey, better to find out who's the best now," James replied. Remus shook his head. For all his brains, James could be really hard to understand sometimes. Once he was excited about something, he never made any sense.
"So d'you think she'll go for you?" Sirius wondered with his eyes half-shut.
"Of course!" James grinned at his friends. "Who wouldn't?"
Sirius raised his hand. "Me."
"But you're not a girl, friend." James was rolling his eyes. Peter laughed at the exchange. Sirius gave him a strange look, which he didn't see. A lot of the time, Sirius was annoyed by how Peter followed them and tried to copy them, but he held his tongue. His attention was drawn back to Remus, who was pulling books out of his bag.
"What're you doing?" he asked, picking up the book that Remus had set on the table. "The Art of Potions? You're gonna do the essay today?"
"Yeah," Remus replied, looking up from his bag, "why, you're going to leave it until the last day?"
"That's what I was planning on." Sirius placed the book back on the table. "It's the first day of vacation! Lay off the books and have some fun!"
"What were you planning to do?" Remus wondered, pulling the book back toward him and opening it.
"Dunno, something outside," Sirius replied. He regretted saying that almost instantly as Remus paused for a moment, his face tightening a little.
"How about sledding?" James suggested quickly, hoping to make the subject of outdoors sound a little better.
"Sledding? What's that?" Sirius asked, sitting up.
"You've never heard of sledding?" James replied, and Sirius shook his head. "Well, it's sort of a Muggle thing. You take a board or something like that, put it on runners, and go down a hill. Actually, its more fun if you just take one of those cheap plastic ones."
"Alright, let's try it." Sirius stood and stretched. Remus abandoned his book and quill and followed the other two boys out of the common room. Peter trailed along behind. When they walked past the caretaker's office, James ducked inside and emerged a moment later with four purple discs.
"You should see everything he's got in there!" James whispered, handing them each a disc. "Now we know where to get our supplies!"
They headed outside and climbed up a hill. "Muggles do this for fun?" Sirius grunted when they reached the top. James ignored him.
"Who's gonna go first?" he asked, looking around at his friends.
"You're the expert on Muggle fun," Sirius replied, "so you can have the honors."
Shrugging, James sat on his disc and pushed himself off. As they watched him go down, bouncing high as he hit bumps, Remus saw something move out of the corner of his eye. There was a boy standing about halfway down the hill! As James passed, the boy pointed his wand and a jet of green light hit James, who tumbled out of his disc and continued rolling down the hill.
"It's that Snape kid!" Sirius shouted. He and Remus began running after him, slipping and sliding down the hill. The boy had a head start, but the two boys reached him before he was even halfway to the castle. Sirius took a running jump and brought Snape down, pulling out his wand and pointing it at the other boy's head. Soon, James and Peter joined them, James wincing slightly as he walked.
"You deserved it," Snape spat. "You deserve worse. I know who you are – Mudbloods, blood traitors, a bunch of uncivilized kids running around with wands."
Sirius' fingers closed around the wand. He drew his fist back and punched Snape as hard as he could. He continued to rain down punches until someone yelled at him.
"Cut it out!"
Remus looked away from Sirius, surprised to see the red-haired girl from earlier that morning. "Leave him alone!" she shouted. "What's he done to you?"
"You want a list?" Sirius snarled, glaring at her.
"Let him go," James muttered. Sirius whipped his head around, and James nodded. Furious, Sirius dragged Snape up from the ground and shoved him away.
"Never talk about my friends that way," he growled, "and never – EVER – say anything about my family in front of me."
Snape began running again, now nursing a bloody nose and a blackening eye. The girl left with her friends, shooting another dark look at Sirius. When they had walked out of earshot, Sirius whirled around to face James.
"You're crazy!" he exclaimed. "You'd let Snape go just for a girl?"
"Lily Evans is a very attractive girl," James replied, shrugging. "Besides, there'll be other chances to make Snape pay."
Shaking his head, Sirius began walking back toward the castle, and the others followed. When they reached Gryffindor, Remus stopped James outside.
"Why's Sirius so touchy about his family?" Remus whispered.
Frowning, James replied, "He hates all of them. They're a bunch of pureblood maniacs, always warning him to stay away from the Mudbloods and half-bloods. He's sick of it, and sick of hearing about it. He'd probably stay at Hogwarts all year round if he had the chance."
They walked into the common room, Remus now thinking about how hard Sirius must have it. He thought of his mother and father, and his uncles, aunts, and cousins. The rest of the day, he was lost in thought about people outside of Hogwarts.
* * *
A/N So was it good? Review and tell me what you think!
TheDudeLordOfFantasy – Thanks again for reviewing! I hope you like this chapter!
fthgj() – ok. Thanks for the review
Hermione781 – Glad you like it! I hope you keep reviewing!
Jennyangel – Tja! What kind of Marauders story would this be without Lily? I've just had some trouble finding places to put her in. Anyway Remus is one of my favorites too! And yeah, I was thinking of doing a DADA part in the last chapter, but I forgot to. I'll try to remember to do that in the next few chapters. Ok please keep sending reviews!