More than anything, Remus dreaded writing the letter. Potions would
be fine in the morning as someone had left the nasty little Professor a
dose of the old Welping Welt Cream on his drink instead of Whipping Cream.
He had N.E.W.T. level Arithmancy after that, and then Defense Against the
Dark Arts after a quiet lunch in the Kitchens. The rest of the day would
follow in much the same fashion, as he'd found it had since the row with
the Marauders. If he didn't write it now, well, procrastinating only made
things harder.
DEAR SIRIUS,
I AM VERY SORRY ABOUT HOW THINGS HAVE BEEN BETWEEN US, AND YET I REALLY FEEL AS IF IT HAS BEEN THAT WAY BY NO FAULT OF MINE. THAT IS NOT TO SAY THAT I HAVE NOT SUFFERED THROUGH OUR AWKWARD SILENCES AND, IF I MAY BE SO BOLD, I FIGURE THAT I HAVE SUFFERED MORE THAN YOU HAVE ANYWAY. ATLEAST JAMES AND PETER REMAIN ON YOUR SIDE ON THE MATTER OF MAY MERRIWETHER, ALTHOUGH DAVID AND GIDEON, I AM SORRY TO HEAR, ARE NOT SPEAKING TO YOU BECAUSE OF IT. I AM DEEPLY REGRETFUL ABOUT THIS, TO DEPRIVE YOU OF YOUR FRIENDSHIPS (THAT AS I WRITE IT SOUNDS VERY SELF-PITEOUS, BUT IT IS AN ACCURATE INTROSPECTION)--
There was a knock on the door of the sixth-year boys dormitory.
"Remus!" gasped Lily, her eyes almost aquamarine in the dim desklamp- light.
"Yes, was there anything you wanted?" he turned back to his paper and fiddled with his quill. There was something about her eyes, something that he so longed to unearth but which plagued him with the very same realization that it was never in his fate to be the one to do it.
"Well," she said carefully, though lost on Remus anyway, "I can always cover for you, but I just wanted to remind you that the Prefects' meeting is in less than hour. I thought we could go grab some coffee because its bound to last all night, but obviously..."
Remus pictured her in his mind's eye, her graceful and shapely body, her deep and solemn eyes..."No, no, I'll be there," he could not help but sound churlish. He could not work out, though, whether it was because of Lily, her beauty and inimitable stateliness, or because (as he tried to convince himself) she thought him so weak, and so irresponsible.
"I just have to finish this letter. I'll be in the Common in fifteen, alright?" He shot her a forced smile, and she grinned innocently back.
THE FACT OF THE MATTER THOUGH PADFOOT, IS THAT I COULD NOT FACE YOU, COULD NOT AND CANNOT BLAME YOU FOR ANYTHING THAT YOU HAVE DONE. I UNDERSTAND YOUR NEED TO LASH OUT BECAUSE OF YOUR FAMILY AT OTHER PEOPLE, OR TAKE IT OUT ON ME OR JAMES, OR PETER, OR FOR US, IN ANY CASE, OUT ON PEOPLE WHO DO NOT DESERVE IT AS DO THOSE YOU ARE ACTUALLY ANGRY AT. THIS HAS BEEN A SENSITIVE TOPIC BETWEEN US, AND I DISCUSS IT EVEN NOW VERY RELUCTANTLY, BUT YOU MAY NOT BE AWARE THAT BELLA APPROACHED ME IN HOGSMEADE, OUR MOST RECENT TRIP, AND--
How could he put it? Looking out of the window he could see Sirius and James high up, almost above the turret, which itself was hundreds of feet above the ground. They were lunging and diving,only to pull up sharply to avoid the bludgers they had charmed to follow them around. There was one that grazed the back of Sirius' broom momentarily, making a screeching noise as it turned again to gain momentum, and sending some twig powder flying. Remus's heart jumped to his throat, and he almost stood up, as if he could help something.
Who was he kidding? If Sirius, his best friend didn't understand, no one would. So what had he to hide?
SHE SAID TO ME THAT RIDDLE HAS GAINED AN ENORMOUS AMOUNT OF SUPPORT WITH INSIDERS AT THE MINISTRY. THE DAILY PROPHET LIKES TO LET US BELIEVE, YOU KNOW, THAT HE'S SOME KIND OF CRAZY MANIAC, BUT THE DIPLOMACY, THE POLITICS SHE'S TALKING ABOUT TO GET THE KIND OF PEOPLE HE DID, BY BLACK- MAIL AND WHATNOT, WELL, HE'S BEEN WORKING AT THIS A LONG TIME OBVIOUSLY. SHE SAYS THAT REGULUS IS WAY UP IN THE PECKING ORDER, AND SHE SAID IT LIKE 'YOU KNOW, SIRIUS MUST'VE TOLD YOU,' ONLY YOU REALLY HADN'T.
I WISH, FIRSTLY, THAT YOU WOULDN'T KEEP THINGS FROM US. JAMES DOESN'T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT YOUR FAMILY'S INVOLVEMENT...WELL, THEIR EXTENSIVE INVOLVEMENT IN THIS MATTER, AND HE'S GOTTEN (HIS FATHER HAS) MORE THAN A FEW DEATH THREATS. SIRIUS, YOU LIVE WITH THEM, AND HOWEVER YOU TRY TO ESCAPE YOUR PAST, YOU CAN'T CHOOSE YOUR FAMILY. YOU ARE A BLACK, AND I'M NOT SAYING YOU'RE COMPLETE BASTARDS LIKE THEY ARE, BUT YOU OWE IT TO YOUR FAMILY, THE ONE YOU CHOSE, I MEAN, THE POTTERS, TO ATLEAST ACT THE PART. YOU HAVE ENORMOUS POWER HERE, AND POTENTIAL. THERE ARE SO MANY THINGS YOU CAN DO TO HELP, ESPECIALLY AS A MEMBER OF THE FAMILY YOURSELF, BUT YOU MUST, ONCE AND FOR ALL, SEVER YOUR TIES. MAKE YOUR DECISION, SIRIUS, ONE WAY OR THE OTHER, AND COMPLETELY.
YOU CAN'T KEEP TAKING THINGS OUT ON SNAPE, AS MUCH AS HE ANNOYS PEOPLE, HE IS STILL ON YOUR SIDE. I AM MAKING MY BEST EFFORTS TO BE MATURE ABOUT THIS, AND I DO NOT BELIEVE YOU CAN EVER IMAGINE THE INTENSITY OF THE FEELINGS I WENT THROUGH THOSE FEW MOMENTS WHEN I WAS HUMAN AGAIN, AND I HAD FEARED I'D HURT HIM. SNAPE, SIRIUS, EVEN HE DOESN'T DESERVE YOUR SILLY ATTEMPTS AT REVENGE UPON THE DARK ARTS, OR WHATEVER IT IS YOU'RE TRYING TO PULL.
His scrawl was beginning to become illegible, and for someone as neat as Remus was, as composed, it signalled the beginnings of his fraying temper. There were five minutes left until he had promised to come down to go to the Kitchens with Lily. He remembered that he had vowed to be as little lecturing as possible, and somehow the letter had turned out to be a roll full of it.
I CANNOT WISH FOR BETTER FRIENDS THAN I HAVE NOW, AND EVEN THE FACT THAT MAY IS NO LONGER SPEAKING TO ME, WELL, I AM NOT SO WORRIED AS I GAVE YOU THE IMPRESSION. OVER THE YEARS, YOU AND JAMES ARE WELL AWARE, I'D BECOME SLOWLY OBSSESSED WITH YOU-KNOW-WHO, AND MAY WAS THE ONLY GIRL WHO HAD SOMEHOW MANAGED TO MOMENTARILY DISTRACT ME. I UNDERSTAND, THOUGHT, THAT HER PAST EXPERIENCE, LIKE YOURS, BLIND HER TO ANYTHING WE COULD EVER MEAN TO ONE ANOTHER. PADFOOT, I SINCERELY APOLOGIZE FOR EVERYTHING, AND I FORGIVE YOU, AS I FEEL YOU SHOULD SEEK FORGIVENESS, FOR YOUR IRRATIONAL BEHAVIOUR. I CAN'T STAND THE RIFT BETWEEN US, AND TO HEAR JAMES' WEAK ATTEMPTS AT GETTING US TO TALK TO ONE ANOTHER, OR PETER'S UNEASY NONCHALANCE, AND I HOPE THAT WE CAN PUT EVERYTHING BEHIND US.
UP TO NO GOOD,
Remus Lupin.
He sealed the letter, and rushed down to the Gryffindor Common to meet Lily.
"You're late," she said amicably, slipping her right hand through his empty arm, "Four minutes."
James had scheduled a practice for that afternoon for the team. Coming out for breakfast, he could see his lovely girlfriend chatting amicably with Lily. Wendy sat looking extremely sullen, her fork and spoon resting on her eggs and her arms crossed on her chest. Sirius was folding paper airplanes and Remus was enchanting them to fly in circles around the Great Hall. Peter was nowhere to be seen, and James remembered that he had told him to go with a house elf shopping at Hogsmeade to set up for the Halloween Feast in a month.
He was nearly at the Gryffindor Table when Wendy caught his eye and stood up, knocking down her chair in the process. He had definitely done something, by her expression, but before he could remember what, she had started yelling at him.
"I'm sooo sorry I ruined your stupid, 'exclusive' party, and that I'm a "Bertha Jorkins" or whatever, but just in case you didn't know, without me you stupid Marauders would be nothing, you hear me?"
"Wendy!" said Lily.
James looked at Lily, resisting the urge to laugh. Who did she think she was anyway? A recording agent? She made them?
"I'm sorry, James," she said, "Wendy-you silly idiot, I didn't..." he didn't bother to listen to the rest, but walked to where the Marauders sat now with their attentions full on him.
"I still don't want to put Antonio in, what do you think, Black? I mean, am I losing too much?" he said, as if nothing had happened. Sirius surreptitiously glanced at Remus.
"Ummm, well, James, I think you should put Antonio in, but if no one on the team likes him, then well I think its worth cutting him. Quidditch is a team sport, right?"
"Yeah, I guess. That'd mean that I'd have to work Mulls a little overtime, and that Beater, Rebecca King, she's been a little spotty, right?" He chewed thoughtfully on a piece of bacon as Remus seemed to consider his remark.
"She broke up with me last week, and I think she's dating Matthews, Mark's brother Brian, I don't think we can count on her for Quidditch anymore," he said. James cursed, looking up at the blue between the clouds. Suddenly, there was a chin in his direct line of vision, and he bumped his head trying hastily to sit up straight.
"Fuck, Potter, what the hell?" said Brunhilde Albrecht, a fourth year. Her hair was a beautiful burgundy, and her arms were the most muscled of her well-toned body.
"Genius! You are officially a godsend. Brunhilde would you play Beater this year? I really don't want to hold tryouts, the first years are looking awfully scrawny..."
"...and hopeless," she agreed, "Yes, 'course I will, for a price," she grinned warmly.
"Huh?" said James.
"Take me to Hogsmeade this weekend."
"Okay, but we have practice this afternoon, can you make it?" She looked over at where Lily was sitting with the other 'popular' Gryffindor girls. "May was supposed to help me with my Potions. Its not even the first week and Professor Caspian's assigned us all the hard ones to research," she said. James frowned. He was not one to have patience with anyone about anything.
"But...umm...I guess I'll try to come and..."
"No, its alright, I guess," said James. Brunhilde thanked him and ran off saying that she'd definitely be at their next one.
"What's the matter, Prongs?" Sirius asked, rhetorically. He didn't look very interested.
"Nothing, just thinking about that Transfiguration essay that's due on...er...when's it due again?"
"For Merlin's sake you can quit it with the act, alright?" said Remus. He glared at his plate, but before he could say anything, the bell rang to signal the beginning of the day. They had Potions first.
Lily was in a very happy mood. For her happy was sometimes bad because she ended up doing extremely stupid things and hating herself for it. She had very brainless friends, meaning they made no effort to stop her, only egged her on and laughed about it later. There had been a Quidditch match, which Gryffindor had won, apparently. She drank an awful lot of the punch the Marauders had brought in with them, and she felt very cold.
"Woo! Isn't it a bit drafty in here, or is that just me?" She grabbed a hold of the nearest had, which actually turned out to be the shoulder of an extremely short first year, to steady herself. "Should you be in here?" she asked, her sober side peaking out. "Ahh well, who cares, right?" she giggled, "Try the punch, its spiked," she giggled again. The girl looked at her nervously then at Remus standing next to her with a scary expression on her face. Lily followed her gaze back to him.
"Haha-" she paused for a hiccup, "you - spiked - the - p--" she tripped on her feet missing him by a few inches. He reached out an arm to catch her and dragged her over to the plush sofas where a few were knocked out cold. He had a feeling she'd be doing the same thing in a bit.
"He-ey--Re-mus!" Lily laughed, "you are very warm you know that?" Remus tried to disregard the stares they were giving. Or rather, they were giving Lily stares for the huge burp she had just let out. She began laughing rather enthusiastically once more, and Remus resisted the urge himself. As repulsed as he should have been at her breath, which reeked of alcohol, or her flushed cheeks, he was encaptivated by her sparkling eyes and small, red mouth. Her freckles--
His thought were interrupted by a call from across the room.
"Hey, Moony, pal, you mind getting off your girl to help your friends out a bit, you've been neglecting them quite I'll be sworn," mocked James. He grinned at the four litre bottle of pineapple punch he held down with one hand as he poured the firewhiskey in with his other.
Remus looked back at Lily, and signalled at Peter, looking close to tears from a seventh year's rejection.
"Oh...ugh...you're a mess, aren't you?" he said, struggling under the weight of her as she fell right on him with a sickening thud. He lost his balance over the arms of the sofa and managed to grab the edges of Lily's Hogwarts robes so she didn't hit the wooden coffee table.
"Phew." Someone squirmed under him. "Oh, sorry about that," the boy smiled, though whoever it was had gone right back to sleep, and settled on the floor next to Lily. Remus gave him a thumbs up sign, and Peter remembered he was supposed to be mourning.
Remus went to help James mix the drinks.
"Where's Sirius?" James pointed nervously at a shady loveseat by the girls' staircase where he and Cerulina were getting a bit...Remus looked away, vaguely repulsed.
"I guess all you need is to make it official, I'm sure after tonight the fanclub won't buy that you guys are going out anyway."
"Yeah," gave him a moody glare as he refilled the punch bowl, "Look at that ugly old witch, Melanie Griffort over there, she hasn't stopped staring since I came in from the game today." Remus let his gaze flit over the common room. She wasn't ugly at all, only her glasses masked her face and her pale skin made her orange hair all the brighter.
"Well, she has potential," he said. James pulled a face.
"Uggh, Lily looks better than her," he said strategically. He was met with a shocked look.
"I thought you liked her!"
James studied his friend for a moment.
"Look, Remus, I know you like her probably way more than I ever could," he seriously doubted it, but went on, "and she'll probably love you in a way that she could never love me, so I'll be the noble guy this time--"
"Wow," interrupted Remus sarcastically.
"No, no, seriously, you and Sirius have made up, but I don't want things like that to come between us again."
"I know."
"I mean, girls, even enemies, come and go, right?"
"But the Marauders are forever."
"And Lily...wow...she is wayy out of my league. Not even my type, we'd never last," James concluded. It was Remus' turn to give him the once over.
"I dunno," he said, "you scared me a little there making--what was it?-- FRIENDS with her?" James laughed. "I was just...tired of her hating my guts," he said. A couple of girls came to get punch and gave them flirtatious looks.
"But I'll tell you who to watch out for," said James watching their hips sway as they walked away, "Is Antonio--"
"James, come on, you know that's a Quidditch thing!"
"It is not!--not a Quidditch thing, I swear, you should hear the things he says in the changing rooms, he's really got her whipped." They exchanged a meaningful look.
"I guess," said Remus, inconclusive. James pressed his shoulder briefly and went over to talk to Jenna and Stephanie, the girls who'd come over a few minutes before.
He was stopped in his tracks however, as alarms began to blare loudly, accompanied by flashing lights and screams.
"Calm down everybody," said James, "It's probably just McGonagall!" There was a partially muffled curse from Sirius who'd stood up, dropping Cerulina to the ground.
"You stupid bastard," she cried, dusting herself off and smoothing her hair.
"Hurry! get up to your rooms, quick!" James and Remus rushed. They hastily accio'd the sloshing punch bowl, table and cloth up the stairs as the boys rubbernecked behind it.
"Walk around it, damn it!" he shouted when the Portrait Hole creaked behind them. His heart jumped to his throat. "Uh-oh."
"That's perfectly correct, Mr. Potter," said the angry voice of McGonagall, "How many times must I do this before you learn your lesson? No more warnings, Potter, I didn't think you'd go so far as spiking the punch!" He looked down, silently willing her not to think of giving him a detention. He saw Remus and Sirius on either side of him and felt slightly better.
"Detentions, all three," she said.
"BUT-!"
"Why didn't Peter?!--"
"THAT'S NOT FAIR!"
McGonagall glared at James, who'd made the last remark.
"And for your information Sirius, Peter is just a responsible for this as everyone else who's participated in this downright debauchery. FIVE POINTS from EACH of you!" she said.
"Wow," said Peter, "that's a lot of points." The others glared at him.
"Clean this up immediately, you three, and if I hear word you did anything to Mr. Pettigrew here, it'll be a ban from Quidditch altogether."
"Yes ma'am," they said in unison. The bystanders began to grumble and help them clean up even though McGonagall hadn't asked. The ones who weren't quite sober were escorted up by Brunhilde and Antonio, who, James was very unhappy to see, was all but carrying a groggy Lily up the boys staircase.
McGonagall ruined everything, he decided, and the rest of them cleaning up downstairs agreed entirely.
A/N: I have numerous syntax errors, I understand, and all the facts...well, I've kind of adjusted them to fit. I don't understand why all of you are so quick to correct me...not that I don't appreciate it, it gets annoying after a while hearing how Tonks was Tonks by her mother's side and not her fathers...blah-blah, well how do you know they're not already married? Maybe he's her brother, huh? Never mind, I'm complaining now, but watch I'll ask you guys to correct me later.
Another thing, I kind of get the feeling (as I write this fic) that I'm repeating myself...like the words and things, but I just have to get done, and maybe I'll revise it (if I ever get done, all these plot bunnies are totally distracting).
I know the run-on sentences are hard to follow, and that's just how I write. Maybe when I have some clarity in my mind (when I've gotten rid of these silly ideas) I'll reconfigure everything to make a little more sense.
Thanks, and please R/R.
-Me.
Top of Form
Bottom of Form
DEAR SIRIUS,
I AM VERY SORRY ABOUT HOW THINGS HAVE BEEN BETWEEN US, AND YET I REALLY FEEL AS IF IT HAS BEEN THAT WAY BY NO FAULT OF MINE. THAT IS NOT TO SAY THAT I HAVE NOT SUFFERED THROUGH OUR AWKWARD SILENCES AND, IF I MAY BE SO BOLD, I FIGURE THAT I HAVE SUFFERED MORE THAN YOU HAVE ANYWAY. ATLEAST JAMES AND PETER REMAIN ON YOUR SIDE ON THE MATTER OF MAY MERRIWETHER, ALTHOUGH DAVID AND GIDEON, I AM SORRY TO HEAR, ARE NOT SPEAKING TO YOU BECAUSE OF IT. I AM DEEPLY REGRETFUL ABOUT THIS, TO DEPRIVE YOU OF YOUR FRIENDSHIPS (THAT AS I WRITE IT SOUNDS VERY SELF-PITEOUS, BUT IT IS AN ACCURATE INTROSPECTION)--
There was a knock on the door of the sixth-year boys dormitory.
"Remus!" gasped Lily, her eyes almost aquamarine in the dim desklamp- light.
"Yes, was there anything you wanted?" he turned back to his paper and fiddled with his quill. There was something about her eyes, something that he so longed to unearth but which plagued him with the very same realization that it was never in his fate to be the one to do it.
"Well," she said carefully, though lost on Remus anyway, "I can always cover for you, but I just wanted to remind you that the Prefects' meeting is in less than hour. I thought we could go grab some coffee because its bound to last all night, but obviously..."
Remus pictured her in his mind's eye, her graceful and shapely body, her deep and solemn eyes..."No, no, I'll be there," he could not help but sound churlish. He could not work out, though, whether it was because of Lily, her beauty and inimitable stateliness, or because (as he tried to convince himself) she thought him so weak, and so irresponsible.
"I just have to finish this letter. I'll be in the Common in fifteen, alright?" He shot her a forced smile, and she grinned innocently back.
THE FACT OF THE MATTER THOUGH PADFOOT, IS THAT I COULD NOT FACE YOU, COULD NOT AND CANNOT BLAME YOU FOR ANYTHING THAT YOU HAVE DONE. I UNDERSTAND YOUR NEED TO LASH OUT BECAUSE OF YOUR FAMILY AT OTHER PEOPLE, OR TAKE IT OUT ON ME OR JAMES, OR PETER, OR FOR US, IN ANY CASE, OUT ON PEOPLE WHO DO NOT DESERVE IT AS DO THOSE YOU ARE ACTUALLY ANGRY AT. THIS HAS BEEN A SENSITIVE TOPIC BETWEEN US, AND I DISCUSS IT EVEN NOW VERY RELUCTANTLY, BUT YOU MAY NOT BE AWARE THAT BELLA APPROACHED ME IN HOGSMEADE, OUR MOST RECENT TRIP, AND--
How could he put it? Looking out of the window he could see Sirius and James high up, almost above the turret, which itself was hundreds of feet above the ground. They were lunging and diving,only to pull up sharply to avoid the bludgers they had charmed to follow them around. There was one that grazed the back of Sirius' broom momentarily, making a screeching noise as it turned again to gain momentum, and sending some twig powder flying. Remus's heart jumped to his throat, and he almost stood up, as if he could help something.
Who was he kidding? If Sirius, his best friend didn't understand, no one would. So what had he to hide?
SHE SAID TO ME THAT RIDDLE HAS GAINED AN ENORMOUS AMOUNT OF SUPPORT WITH INSIDERS AT THE MINISTRY. THE DAILY PROPHET LIKES TO LET US BELIEVE, YOU KNOW, THAT HE'S SOME KIND OF CRAZY MANIAC, BUT THE DIPLOMACY, THE POLITICS SHE'S TALKING ABOUT TO GET THE KIND OF PEOPLE HE DID, BY BLACK- MAIL AND WHATNOT, WELL, HE'S BEEN WORKING AT THIS A LONG TIME OBVIOUSLY. SHE SAYS THAT REGULUS IS WAY UP IN THE PECKING ORDER, AND SHE SAID IT LIKE 'YOU KNOW, SIRIUS MUST'VE TOLD YOU,' ONLY YOU REALLY HADN'T.
I WISH, FIRSTLY, THAT YOU WOULDN'T KEEP THINGS FROM US. JAMES DOESN'T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT YOUR FAMILY'S INVOLVEMENT...WELL, THEIR EXTENSIVE INVOLVEMENT IN THIS MATTER, AND HE'S GOTTEN (HIS FATHER HAS) MORE THAN A FEW DEATH THREATS. SIRIUS, YOU LIVE WITH THEM, AND HOWEVER YOU TRY TO ESCAPE YOUR PAST, YOU CAN'T CHOOSE YOUR FAMILY. YOU ARE A BLACK, AND I'M NOT SAYING YOU'RE COMPLETE BASTARDS LIKE THEY ARE, BUT YOU OWE IT TO YOUR FAMILY, THE ONE YOU CHOSE, I MEAN, THE POTTERS, TO ATLEAST ACT THE PART. YOU HAVE ENORMOUS POWER HERE, AND POTENTIAL. THERE ARE SO MANY THINGS YOU CAN DO TO HELP, ESPECIALLY AS A MEMBER OF THE FAMILY YOURSELF, BUT YOU MUST, ONCE AND FOR ALL, SEVER YOUR TIES. MAKE YOUR DECISION, SIRIUS, ONE WAY OR THE OTHER, AND COMPLETELY.
YOU CAN'T KEEP TAKING THINGS OUT ON SNAPE, AS MUCH AS HE ANNOYS PEOPLE, HE IS STILL ON YOUR SIDE. I AM MAKING MY BEST EFFORTS TO BE MATURE ABOUT THIS, AND I DO NOT BELIEVE YOU CAN EVER IMAGINE THE INTENSITY OF THE FEELINGS I WENT THROUGH THOSE FEW MOMENTS WHEN I WAS HUMAN AGAIN, AND I HAD FEARED I'D HURT HIM. SNAPE, SIRIUS, EVEN HE DOESN'T DESERVE YOUR SILLY ATTEMPTS AT REVENGE UPON THE DARK ARTS, OR WHATEVER IT IS YOU'RE TRYING TO PULL.
His scrawl was beginning to become illegible, and for someone as neat as Remus was, as composed, it signalled the beginnings of his fraying temper. There were five minutes left until he had promised to come down to go to the Kitchens with Lily. He remembered that he had vowed to be as little lecturing as possible, and somehow the letter had turned out to be a roll full of it.
I CANNOT WISH FOR BETTER FRIENDS THAN I HAVE NOW, AND EVEN THE FACT THAT MAY IS NO LONGER SPEAKING TO ME, WELL, I AM NOT SO WORRIED AS I GAVE YOU THE IMPRESSION. OVER THE YEARS, YOU AND JAMES ARE WELL AWARE, I'D BECOME SLOWLY OBSSESSED WITH YOU-KNOW-WHO, AND MAY WAS THE ONLY GIRL WHO HAD SOMEHOW MANAGED TO MOMENTARILY DISTRACT ME. I UNDERSTAND, THOUGHT, THAT HER PAST EXPERIENCE, LIKE YOURS, BLIND HER TO ANYTHING WE COULD EVER MEAN TO ONE ANOTHER. PADFOOT, I SINCERELY APOLOGIZE FOR EVERYTHING, AND I FORGIVE YOU, AS I FEEL YOU SHOULD SEEK FORGIVENESS, FOR YOUR IRRATIONAL BEHAVIOUR. I CAN'T STAND THE RIFT BETWEEN US, AND TO HEAR JAMES' WEAK ATTEMPTS AT GETTING US TO TALK TO ONE ANOTHER, OR PETER'S UNEASY NONCHALANCE, AND I HOPE THAT WE CAN PUT EVERYTHING BEHIND US.
UP TO NO GOOD,
Remus Lupin.
He sealed the letter, and rushed down to the Gryffindor Common to meet Lily.
"You're late," she said amicably, slipping her right hand through his empty arm, "Four minutes."
James had scheduled a practice for that afternoon for the team. Coming out for breakfast, he could see his lovely girlfriend chatting amicably with Lily. Wendy sat looking extremely sullen, her fork and spoon resting on her eggs and her arms crossed on her chest. Sirius was folding paper airplanes and Remus was enchanting them to fly in circles around the Great Hall. Peter was nowhere to be seen, and James remembered that he had told him to go with a house elf shopping at Hogsmeade to set up for the Halloween Feast in a month.
He was nearly at the Gryffindor Table when Wendy caught his eye and stood up, knocking down her chair in the process. He had definitely done something, by her expression, but before he could remember what, she had started yelling at him.
"I'm sooo sorry I ruined your stupid, 'exclusive' party, and that I'm a "Bertha Jorkins" or whatever, but just in case you didn't know, without me you stupid Marauders would be nothing, you hear me?"
"Wendy!" said Lily.
James looked at Lily, resisting the urge to laugh. Who did she think she was anyway? A recording agent? She made them?
"I'm sorry, James," she said, "Wendy-you silly idiot, I didn't..." he didn't bother to listen to the rest, but walked to where the Marauders sat now with their attentions full on him.
"I still don't want to put Antonio in, what do you think, Black? I mean, am I losing too much?" he said, as if nothing had happened. Sirius surreptitiously glanced at Remus.
"Ummm, well, James, I think you should put Antonio in, but if no one on the team likes him, then well I think its worth cutting him. Quidditch is a team sport, right?"
"Yeah, I guess. That'd mean that I'd have to work Mulls a little overtime, and that Beater, Rebecca King, she's been a little spotty, right?" He chewed thoughtfully on a piece of bacon as Remus seemed to consider his remark.
"She broke up with me last week, and I think she's dating Matthews, Mark's brother Brian, I don't think we can count on her for Quidditch anymore," he said. James cursed, looking up at the blue between the clouds. Suddenly, there was a chin in his direct line of vision, and he bumped his head trying hastily to sit up straight.
"Fuck, Potter, what the hell?" said Brunhilde Albrecht, a fourth year. Her hair was a beautiful burgundy, and her arms were the most muscled of her well-toned body.
"Genius! You are officially a godsend. Brunhilde would you play Beater this year? I really don't want to hold tryouts, the first years are looking awfully scrawny..."
"...and hopeless," she agreed, "Yes, 'course I will, for a price," she grinned warmly.
"Huh?" said James.
"Take me to Hogsmeade this weekend."
"Okay, but we have practice this afternoon, can you make it?" She looked over at where Lily was sitting with the other 'popular' Gryffindor girls. "May was supposed to help me with my Potions. Its not even the first week and Professor Caspian's assigned us all the hard ones to research," she said. James frowned. He was not one to have patience with anyone about anything.
"But...umm...I guess I'll try to come and..."
"No, its alright, I guess," said James. Brunhilde thanked him and ran off saying that she'd definitely be at their next one.
"What's the matter, Prongs?" Sirius asked, rhetorically. He didn't look very interested.
"Nothing, just thinking about that Transfiguration essay that's due on...er...when's it due again?"
"For Merlin's sake you can quit it with the act, alright?" said Remus. He glared at his plate, but before he could say anything, the bell rang to signal the beginning of the day. They had Potions first.
Lily was in a very happy mood. For her happy was sometimes bad because she ended up doing extremely stupid things and hating herself for it. She had very brainless friends, meaning they made no effort to stop her, only egged her on and laughed about it later. There had been a Quidditch match, which Gryffindor had won, apparently. She drank an awful lot of the punch the Marauders had brought in with them, and she felt very cold.
"Woo! Isn't it a bit drafty in here, or is that just me?" She grabbed a hold of the nearest had, which actually turned out to be the shoulder of an extremely short first year, to steady herself. "Should you be in here?" she asked, her sober side peaking out. "Ahh well, who cares, right?" she giggled, "Try the punch, its spiked," she giggled again. The girl looked at her nervously then at Remus standing next to her with a scary expression on her face. Lily followed her gaze back to him.
"Haha-" she paused for a hiccup, "you - spiked - the - p--" she tripped on her feet missing him by a few inches. He reached out an arm to catch her and dragged her over to the plush sofas where a few were knocked out cold. He had a feeling she'd be doing the same thing in a bit.
"He-ey--Re-mus!" Lily laughed, "you are very warm you know that?" Remus tried to disregard the stares they were giving. Or rather, they were giving Lily stares for the huge burp she had just let out. She began laughing rather enthusiastically once more, and Remus resisted the urge himself. As repulsed as he should have been at her breath, which reeked of alcohol, or her flushed cheeks, he was encaptivated by her sparkling eyes and small, red mouth. Her freckles--
His thought were interrupted by a call from across the room.
"Hey, Moony, pal, you mind getting off your girl to help your friends out a bit, you've been neglecting them quite I'll be sworn," mocked James. He grinned at the four litre bottle of pineapple punch he held down with one hand as he poured the firewhiskey in with his other.
Remus looked back at Lily, and signalled at Peter, looking close to tears from a seventh year's rejection.
"Oh...ugh...you're a mess, aren't you?" he said, struggling under the weight of her as she fell right on him with a sickening thud. He lost his balance over the arms of the sofa and managed to grab the edges of Lily's Hogwarts robes so she didn't hit the wooden coffee table.
"Phew." Someone squirmed under him. "Oh, sorry about that," the boy smiled, though whoever it was had gone right back to sleep, and settled on the floor next to Lily. Remus gave him a thumbs up sign, and Peter remembered he was supposed to be mourning.
Remus went to help James mix the drinks.
"Where's Sirius?" James pointed nervously at a shady loveseat by the girls' staircase where he and Cerulina were getting a bit...Remus looked away, vaguely repulsed.
"I guess all you need is to make it official, I'm sure after tonight the fanclub won't buy that you guys are going out anyway."
"Yeah," gave him a moody glare as he refilled the punch bowl, "Look at that ugly old witch, Melanie Griffort over there, she hasn't stopped staring since I came in from the game today." Remus let his gaze flit over the common room. She wasn't ugly at all, only her glasses masked her face and her pale skin made her orange hair all the brighter.
"Well, she has potential," he said. James pulled a face.
"Uggh, Lily looks better than her," he said strategically. He was met with a shocked look.
"I thought you liked her!"
James studied his friend for a moment.
"Look, Remus, I know you like her probably way more than I ever could," he seriously doubted it, but went on, "and she'll probably love you in a way that she could never love me, so I'll be the noble guy this time--"
"Wow," interrupted Remus sarcastically.
"No, no, seriously, you and Sirius have made up, but I don't want things like that to come between us again."
"I know."
"I mean, girls, even enemies, come and go, right?"
"But the Marauders are forever."
"And Lily...wow...she is wayy out of my league. Not even my type, we'd never last," James concluded. It was Remus' turn to give him the once over.
"I dunno," he said, "you scared me a little there making--what was it?-- FRIENDS with her?" James laughed. "I was just...tired of her hating my guts," he said. A couple of girls came to get punch and gave them flirtatious looks.
"But I'll tell you who to watch out for," said James watching their hips sway as they walked away, "Is Antonio--"
"James, come on, you know that's a Quidditch thing!"
"It is not!--not a Quidditch thing, I swear, you should hear the things he says in the changing rooms, he's really got her whipped." They exchanged a meaningful look.
"I guess," said Remus, inconclusive. James pressed his shoulder briefly and went over to talk to Jenna and Stephanie, the girls who'd come over a few minutes before.
He was stopped in his tracks however, as alarms began to blare loudly, accompanied by flashing lights and screams.
"Calm down everybody," said James, "It's probably just McGonagall!" There was a partially muffled curse from Sirius who'd stood up, dropping Cerulina to the ground.
"You stupid bastard," she cried, dusting herself off and smoothing her hair.
"Hurry! get up to your rooms, quick!" James and Remus rushed. They hastily accio'd the sloshing punch bowl, table and cloth up the stairs as the boys rubbernecked behind it.
"Walk around it, damn it!" he shouted when the Portrait Hole creaked behind them. His heart jumped to his throat. "Uh-oh."
"That's perfectly correct, Mr. Potter," said the angry voice of McGonagall, "How many times must I do this before you learn your lesson? No more warnings, Potter, I didn't think you'd go so far as spiking the punch!" He looked down, silently willing her not to think of giving him a detention. He saw Remus and Sirius on either side of him and felt slightly better.
"Detentions, all three," she said.
"BUT-!"
"Why didn't Peter?!--"
"THAT'S NOT FAIR!"
McGonagall glared at James, who'd made the last remark.
"And for your information Sirius, Peter is just a responsible for this as everyone else who's participated in this downright debauchery. FIVE POINTS from EACH of you!" she said.
"Wow," said Peter, "that's a lot of points." The others glared at him.
"Clean this up immediately, you three, and if I hear word you did anything to Mr. Pettigrew here, it'll be a ban from Quidditch altogether."
"Yes ma'am," they said in unison. The bystanders began to grumble and help them clean up even though McGonagall hadn't asked. The ones who weren't quite sober were escorted up by Brunhilde and Antonio, who, James was very unhappy to see, was all but carrying a groggy Lily up the boys staircase.
McGonagall ruined everything, he decided, and the rest of them cleaning up downstairs agreed entirely.
A/N: I have numerous syntax errors, I understand, and all the facts...well, I've kind of adjusted them to fit. I don't understand why all of you are so quick to correct me...not that I don't appreciate it, it gets annoying after a while hearing how Tonks was Tonks by her mother's side and not her fathers...blah-blah, well how do you know they're not already married? Maybe he's her brother, huh? Never mind, I'm complaining now, but watch I'll ask you guys to correct me later.
Another thing, I kind of get the feeling (as I write this fic) that I'm repeating myself...like the words and things, but I just have to get done, and maybe I'll revise it (if I ever get done, all these plot bunnies are totally distracting).
I know the run-on sentences are hard to follow, and that's just how I write. Maybe when I have some clarity in my mind (when I've gotten rid of these silly ideas) I'll reconfigure everything to make a little more sense.
Thanks, and please R/R.
-Me.
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