"Malia!" James blurted out as soon as the bell rang. He had passed the entire class trying to think up excuses for why she was here. But when he saw her chatting with a blonde girl, Narcissa something, and then listening intently to a murmured comment by Severus Snape, James could no longer deny it. She was a Slytherin. Yet now he was going to talk to her.
"Yes?" Malia continued to put her things in her bag, but she was looking at James with those beautiful hazel eyes. James felt like they were the only two people in the world.
"I, you know, just wanted to welcome you to Hogwarts. I'm James Potter."
"Nice to meet you, James." Malia smiled, showing straight, white teeth. James ruffled his hair. "What class do you have now?"
"None. This was my last for the day. How about you?" He was sounding like an idiot. What was wrong with him? Usually he was so glib and smooth. Now he felt like he was no better with girls than Peter, who, incidentally, was with Sirius and Remus, waiting at the door.
"I don't have any more." She smiled again. James noticed that her voice was lilting and pleasant.
"That's good. Say, would you like to go to Hogsmeade with me? Our usual Christmas visit is tomorrow."
"I'd love to. I'll meet you in the entrance hall. See you then, James." Malia secured her bag, flipping aside the long brown hair that was flowing free today. A moment later she was gone, and James slowly became aware of talking.
"James!" Sirius patted his back. "That one's a looker. What were you guys talking about?"
James hesitated. For some reason this felt very private, very personal. Besides, Malia was a Slytherin, and the marauders detested everything Slytherin. For now he would keep quiet about anything to do with Malia Lessknot.
"Oh, she dropped her quill. She wanted to talk, but I didn't. Too bad it took so long, I mighta been able to catch up with Evans," James answered, hoping this sounded truthful. His friends were apparently convinced, for the topic of conversation moved on to something else.
The four marauders played Exploding Snap and wizard chess until it was fully dark out. Then Remus stood up, stretching and yawning. Sirius, James, and Peter all got to their feet, knowing what was coming next. Without saying anything, James ducked upstairs to get the Invisibility Cloak while Remus left to see Madame Pomfrey. Only a half an hour later, they were all in animal form at the edge of the Forbidden Forest. They had decided to go in deep tonight, deeper than they had before.
They pushed through the forest, farther in until it was blackly dark. Sirius sniffed the ground and shook his head. He didn't like this place. The others felt the same unease, but they continued onward. The forest began to lighten, some moonlight glinting off the snow covered branches and webs. Webs? The three larger animals all stopped, but Wormtail continued on, small enough to go under the webs. He did not escape the attention, however, of the gigantic spiders perched on the webs.
Lupin snarled and backed away, and Sirius barked three times, the signal for retreat. Abandoning all dignity, they fled back through the forest until they arrived at more familiar territory. Here they passed the night, wrestling with each other and playing strange animal games. Finally, the night was waning and the three illegal Animagi transformed and headed back to Gryffindor tower under the Invisibility Cloak. Lupin went back to the Shrieking Shack to wait for his transformation.
"Those spiders!" Peter moaned. "Huge!"
"Don't think about it," James said sharply. "Now I'm going to bed. I want to get some decent sleep. I don't think I'll be going to Hogsmeade."
"You okay?" Sirius asked and James nodded.
"Just tired. G'night."
James shut the curtains on his four poster bed and lay on his back, still fully clothed. In only a few hours' time he was going to be at Hogsmeade with the most beautiful girl he had ever seen. That was one way of looking at. Another view niggled at the back of his brain, squirming in his stomach uncomfortably. In only a few hours' time he was going to be at Hogsmeade with the enemy. What would his friends say if they knew? With these restless thoughts, James dropped off into an uneasy sleep.
