Yes, I understand that I take way too long to update and yes, I also understand that you've all been sharpening your pitchforks and dipping your torches in gasoline. I'm just a procrastinator and was running out of likely ideas for this chapter. But as I typed, new things popped up and surprised me. I had a couple things I knew I wanted to put in to get a couple balls rolling, and they're in here, somehow successfully, and then I was left with another five-thousand or more words I wanted to put in and didn't know where to start.
But hey, inspiration comes at the oddest times.
I suggest you skim the previous chapter, as even I hadn't remembered half the time what happened.
I'm happy this out, as I hope you are as well, and thank you for putting up with me and my slow and tiresome habits.
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The bows of the Whomping Willow hung low, bogged down by the last minute onslaught of sleet in mid-March. The branches creaked with the humid-heavy breeze, touching upon the muddy grass and dirt around its large roots. It didn't even have the energy to swipe at the innocent rabbit that hopped over a couple roots that stuck high above the ground.
The entire forest seemed worn out: branches drooped, pine needles covered the forest floor, and the forest scent, mixed with the always present moisture, in the air was enough to gag a passer-by.
Students had just barely been able to drag themselves from class to class, dreading hours spent inside the Herbology gardens and greenhouses. Care of Magical Creatures (and its medical equivalent) was a long lesson to go through whenever spent near the forest. Even Phoenical seemed reluctant to keep them and herself out too long.
As of this moment the seventh years were standing, feet slowly sinking into the muddy ground. Sucking sounds were no longer distracting, just background noise, when a student would lift their foot to keep it from getting covered in mud.
Jen was the latest one to pull her foot out of the ground, sacrificing one shoe to submerge a bit lower in order to tug the other out. She switched feet; a prolonged sucking, and then popping, sound accompanied it.
"This is absolutely disgusting," Mel commented quietly. If she adjusted her body weight to another foot, she felt it slide a bit and dig just a bit lower into the mud. It was, as she described it, disgusting.
"Can anyone else tell me something about the Augurey that has not yet been mentioned?" Professor Phoenical asked, sounding drained and dead tired of the weather. The Augurey, on its twisted wooden perch, moaned dreadfully, the greenish black feathers on the back of its neck rising as its call did.
"Other than the fact that it's depressing the lot of us?" Sirius asked rhetorically, long resigned to the fact that his boots were now brown instead of black. Well, brown and muddy was better than the time in second year when James found it "funny" to charm all his shoes and socks pink and yellow.
Yes. Brown was much better than that.
Though, truth be told, Sirius had found it rather funny when he retaliated by having James' broom release flowers from the bristles whenever he rode it. It had been a fairly tricky charm, but well worth it when he watched the Quidditch tryouts. Flower Potter, he was nicknamed, until James hexed anyone who so much smirked at him. Now that Sirius thought about it, he hadn't thought of that nickname in couple years… Perhaps there would be a time to bring it back.
On its perch, the Augurey lifted its featherless head and reached its long beak to the sky. The decrepit vulture-looking bird let out another low, throbbing cry and hunched over again when it was finished.
"He's done that a couple times within the past few minutes," Laura Hennessey spoke up, lifting her hand in the air as she spoke. A couple students groaned. "Does that mean it's going to rain really soon?" she asked.
Peter glanced to his girlfriend and sighed. He hoped she wasn't right.
"If he warbles once more, within five minutes of the first cry, then most likely it will rain, snow or sleet within the half hour," Phoenical said, and looked to the grey sky.
The light grey stratus clouds were merging with darker, more menacing slate grey clouds. No one needed to look up to see the clouds; they lowly spanned across the sky. There was no sky, really; just low cloud coverage that eliminated any chance of blue sky or sun shine. It was hard to tell that it was mid-afternoon and not very early morning.
The Augurey emitted one more deep pulsing cry. It shifted its weight on the perch and fluffed its feathers before settling back and hunching its long neck. It blinked its large grey eyes.
The whole class groaned. More rain, snow or sleet was not well looked forward to.
"Professor, can we just head in now?" Halle Manning asked, her thin blonde hair lightly frizzed, like everyone else's, in the damp weather.
Lily, running her hands through her red hair to smooth it down, had to pull her fingers free from the tangles in it. She whimpered pitifully when she imagined what it looked like. Then again, it was a better fate than well… her mind didn't want to drift back to December. That month of her life would gladly be forgotten once she was out of school.
"You look lovely, my sweet," Sirius murmured beside her and attempted to wrap an arm around her waist.
James, whose arm was already there, slapped Sirius' away.
Remus and Jen chuckled from the other side of the rain-predicting bird.
Phoenical let them leave, if only to get in and out of the rain herself; though the medical equivalent afterwards was to be continued inside, in classroom eleven, on the first floor.
"Rain sucks," Arabella commented, blinking her eyes and feeling dew drops collect over her eyelashes. The fog they were walking through was thick and seemed to have descended quickly over Hogwarts and its grounds. She got a few accompanying grunts from the guys. "Though I'm sure there are worse things," she added. Lily had sent her a specific look.
"I'll see you later, guys," Peter said quietly. His cheeks were pink, from both the cold and possibly a blush. He nodded to Laura, who was quietly walking beside him.
Sirius grinned and gave a sly thumbs-up. Peter's blush deepened.
A couple months back Sirius had asked Laura, one Charms class, if it was true she would ever tell him to bugger himself. She hadn't been able to look him in the eye without blushing since, even though he had apologized (prompted from Remus and Lily) for embarrassing her. All that Sirius cared for was that her answer was no.
Peter and Laura headed off through a separate entrance to the castle so he could walk Laura to her next class. He had a spare along with the other three guys.
James checked his watch: thirty minutes until the girls had to head to classroom eleven. He glanced at Lily, who was fussing with her hair again, and guessed she'd rather spend the time changing and drying off before her final class of the day. Perhaps they'd spend some time together that evening, if she didn't opt to study for NEWTS all night, like she'd been doing since early February. Remus and Jen had their own secret spot to "study" (so they said), and that at least gave them some privacy and time to be together. James had guessed that it was a spot that Remus hadn't ever told them about, since he and Sirius looked on the Map to see where they disappeared to one night and couldn't find them. James had never broached the topic, as he wished there was a place like that he and Lily could go off to.
If she decided to study and review that night instead of take it off, he might as well make the most of the time he had with her that day: that moment and when dinner arrived within a few hours. He took her cold, clammy hand in his and tried to warm it up; though his own hand was rather chilly as well. At least it stopped her from fussing too much with her hair. James did admit to himself that it looked… well, not her best. Part of him wanted to chuckle, but the smart side of him knew it would be a bad idea. Besides, he was one to talk – his hair looked worse than anyone's on a regular basis, especially within the past few weeks.
The group began their final ascent to the seventh floor, legs worn out from walking up all seven flights, and was happy to reach the Fat Lady.
None of the guys felt like saying the bloody password, unable to understand why Lily chose it and found it so funny, though she had tried to explain it to them many times.
With one of her first grins of the day, Lily said the password to a melody, just for the hell of it, "Sunshine, lollipops and rainbows…"
The Fat Lady bowed to them, offered a humoured look, and let the portrait swing open.
"I think," Sirius said, stepping through the hole after Mel, "that should, officially, be the last time Lily's allowed to have a go at the password on her own before consulting anyone."
Mel sent him a look. "And 'C is for cookie' was so much better?" she asked sceptically.
Sirius raised his eyebrows. "That was funny, though," he said.
Remus smiled at the memory. "Mostly just for Sirius, James, Peter and I," he said.
"But I'm sure everyone had a laugh," James added.
Lily shook her head after Arabella rolled her eyes. "I'm going to shower before last class," she said, to the agreeing murmurs and nodding heads of her friends. She kissed James on the cheek and tugged his hand once before heading up the Girl's staircase.
"Your hair looks fine, Lily of my Heart," Sirius called after none of the girls could be seen.
James didn't seem to hear him, but Remus shook his head sadly and said, "You need to get your own girlfriend, mate."
- - - - - - -
James frowned and checked another large tome on the floor by his feet. He tried to not show any strain as he picked it up. 'Blasted heavy books,' he thought when it landed heavily, shaking the desk momentarily. The legs creaked under the added weight.
Madam Pince hushed him, using her "angry shh", from her desk where she was signing out piles of books for OWL and NEWT study. When she went back to the line of students, he sent her an immature face of disgust.
From across the table, Jen and Ara snorted into their similar large tomes. James sent them a repeated immature look.
"Mental," Sirius mouthed to him. He was still surprised (as were they) that they had been able to rope him into studying in the library and the fact that he actually stayed.
James was about to mouth a much worse word back to his best friend, just for the fun of it, when Lily stumbled back to their table, arms laden with books, charts and loose parchment. Instead, he stood and helped relieve her of the books.
"Did you find anything, Lily?" Sirius asked lightly. A humoured eyebrow rose in the direction of the messy pile she was making.
"No, Sirius," Ara said quiet and sarcastically, "I think she'll have to go out for another round." She bent her head to the open Eastern European Advanced Charms book to avoid the crumpled parchment that was sent her way. It hit the back of her chair and bounced to the floor.
Lily was obviously holding back some sort of comment about boisterous activity in the library. "And to answer your question, Sirius," she said, "I've found loads; though it's best to cross-reference to cover any loose ends that any one book leaves."
"Did you grab one of the books Peter asked us to pick out for him?" James asked absentmindedly, still leafing through the large tome he had picked up from the pile beside his feet.
"I only found one," Lily responded. She winced when a menacing shh hissed from Madam Pince's station. "The others," she whispered, "I think were already signed out. I'll check the sheet when we leave and add his name to the request sign-up form."
James nodded, not paying too much attention as he was in the middle of cross-referencing something that made little-to-no sense to him. Sirius, however, smiled and shook his head. "Still scared of Pince, honestly," he muttered.
"You would too," James said, "if, on your first visit to the library, she had books chase you out of it when you laughed too hard."
Sirius shrugged and twirled his quill between his fingers. "He shouldn't have been laughing so loud, then," he said nonchalantly. "Not my fau-"
Remus interrupted him, "You shouldn't have been altering the diagrams in the Ban of Experimental Breeding text to all have Severus Snape's face."
Ara had to clamp a hand over her mouth when she barked out a choked laugh, and Jen nearly had to do the same thing. Lily and Mel merely shook their heads, the former about to finally take a seat (after politely refusing to sit on Sirius' lap).
Angry clicking of high-heeled, sharp-toed boots echoed across the library as Madam Pince made her way to the large table.
Jen stopped smiling immediately, as she was facing the way the librarian was coming from, and beside her Ara had to duck her head once again to calm herself.
"Out," Madam Pince hissed. Sirius still found it funny how much she resembled an underfed vulture… but now that he thought about it, she reminded him more of the Augurey they had in Care of Magical Creatures a couple weeks back. "Out now. You cannot control your noise level enough for the library and don't respect the work ethic of the other students who have come here for refuge in the name of learning."
"We're sorry, Madam Pince," Lily said, still standing by her books. "We didn't mean to disturb anyone's work ethic at any point." She kept a note to keep her voice quiet. "If it's ok with you, we'd prefer to stay here until we've gained enough references and information for our upcoming NEWTS in a couple months."
Madam Pince seemed to literally be chewing over what Lily said in her tight-lipped mouth. She gazed critically over each of them, settling once again on the Head Girl. The only benefit the students had at that moment was James and Lily: the Head students. Any others, they were sure, and the librarian wouldn't have stopped to hear what they had to say.
Seeming as though she were regretting letting Lily speak, Madam Pince said through tight lips, "One more warning from me and you're all out of here, understand?"
"Thank you Madam Pince," James said from his seat, sparing her a quick look and well practiced fake, honourable smile.
She didn't respond because she was already walking back to her station to continue scaring the students who were signing out her precious books.
Ara looked up from her book, mirth still very much evident in her shining eyes. She nudged Sirius. "Could you do the Snape thing again?" she whispered as quietly as she could.
Grinning like he was back in first year and was up to no good, Sirius replied, "Find me the text and I'll sign it out."
- - - - - - -
Pettigrew,
I do not think you understand.
You're in. You were in when you came to the first meeting. You're in while you sleep, shower or fail another test.
Discontinue the bothersome owls.
There was no signature, Peter noticed. No other form of identification, either. The letter could have been intercepted by anyone and they'd have no idea of what it was talking about. He crumpled it up and left the dormitory to toss it in the Common Room fireplace.
He had told his friends that he was spending the day studying with Laura nearer the Hufflepuff Dungeons. He was really taking some time to himself to relish in his complete idiocy a year and a half ago…
The orb he was looking in seemed so surreal… yet attainable. Magic could help thin him out, make him taller… Magic could make girls flock to him and it could rid him of his Grandfather, though some scars could never be taken forever…
His heart had hammered and his palms had sweat and by Merlin if this Lord of hers could do that for him…
The tall, beautifully frightening woman had shown him great things, and he had made sure she knew his name and then it happened…
"Remember what you could have had. Remember those you could have owned…"
Peter ran a hand over his face as the parchment burned in the fire. Its edges burned bright orange and the fire glided and danced over it, the ink burning blue and green, until it was nothing but a pile of soft grey ash, barely reminiscent of the evil it once held.
"They own me," the young man said to the sparsely empty Common Room. He shut his eyes and whispered, "And I own nothing."
Peter heard a shuffle of feet and saw a female stand next to him. "I'd say you own a few things," said the voice he recognized as Genie Yale's. "Or else you borrow quite a bit."
He wasn't in the mood for some snooping, astrology obsessed ex-girlfriend of Sirius.
The older Gryffindor glanced at her – her hair now blotched black and purple – and shook his head. "Sorry," said Peter, "I was talking to myself."
Genie smiled humorously. "I'd hope so, seeing as I don't see anyone here for you to talk to." Peter blinked in confusion. "If you thought there was someone here that wasn't, I think that'd be a bigger problem," the blue-eyed witch clarified.
"Oh," Peter said, his cheeks blushing a bit. He turned to leave, but Genie painfully caught him by the arm. "Excuse me-"
But the words died out as soon as they fled his lips. The look on her face was frightening. She was staring directly at him with a certain sneer that was not becoming on her features, and her stiff posture told him that she wasn't playing around.
"You know what you're doing, whether you decide to play the victim or not," she said, her eyes foggy and the grip on her arm tightening.
"I'm – what?"
In low tones Genie's voice croaked out, "You got yourself into this mess and only you can get yourself out. There is a way, but are you brave enough to find and fight for it?" Her chipped black painted nails dug into his forearm and Peter gasped painfully as he felt his veins throbbing.
"Let go!" he exclaimed, fear momentarily overriding his senses. A couple heads turned towards them, but Peter wasn't paying attention. Her gaze had him transfixed.
"The world turns as it always has… but what you are doing affects more than you think. There is no sitting on the fence where your decision lays and you will lose them to torture if you choose wrong." Now gripping his arm for support, Genie began to cough, her body bent over, her free hand over her throat. She fell to the couch and Peter pried his arm from her clenched hand.
He stood still, having no idea what he was to do and what on Earth just happened.
Genie sat in the middle of the scarlet couch, one hand massaging her throat, and glanced up at Peter. "What happened there?" she asked hoarsely.
"What do you remember?" he asked quickly, eyes narrowing.
"I…" she paused and looked up at him suspiciously. Her eyes traveled from him to the fireplace and around the area in which they were residing. "I was joking around with you," she said finally.
Peter's eyes glanced around the Common Room nervously and finally landed on the fireplace. The fire was out, which was odd, but the only thing still burning was the ashes where his parchment was thrown. He watched it burn out once again. What in the name of Merlin just happened-?
"You must have inhaled some of the smoke from the dying fire," Peter said, turning his head to look at her. "I… you held onto me and coughed… Unless you're coming down-"
"That must be it," Genie said and shook her head. "And I usually make a note not to stand too close to it because of that. Smoke always makes me go weird."
"Well, now that that's figured out, I have to be going and er, thanks for the advice," he added quickly. Peter headed towards the Portrait Hole and realized his bluff.
"What advice?" she called to him.
'Think quickly, Peter, think quickly…' He knew it wasn't something he was horribly good at, but desperate times called for desperate measures. "About seeing things that aren't there!" he yelled back, wincing as he realized that the other people in the Common Room would now think he was mad.
- - - - - - -
"Pop quiz!"
The entire seventh year Defence Against the Dark Arts class groaned.
"Yes, Fawcett?" Professor Lupin said in answer to Hunter's raised hand.
"You couldn't have warned us, sir?" he asked. Piotrek chuckled beside him, whereas Janna and Hunter's twin, Tegan, rolled their eyes.
Professor Lupin picked up the stack of parchment and straightened it out. "That was your warning, Fawcett," he said with an eyebrow raised. "Books away, quills out and games of footsies over." He sent a look to his brother who had the decency to look down.
Jen, however, let her mouth drop. "How did he see?" she mouthed to Lily who was on the other side of her. She slipped her foot back in her shoe.
Lily held in her laughter, but let a few sniffs of amusement escape. James, behind her, snorted. Apparently he was able to read the words from Jen's mouth as well.
A paper was dropped in front of Remus and he nodded once, not looking at his brother for the time being, and dipped his quill in some ink. With a sigh, he wrote out his name and looked at the first question.
A frown lined his forehead.
When are you available to talk? There is something I need to tell you.
Remus stared at the question long enough to have a droplet of ink fall onto the page from his still quill.
After our double class here, I'm free. He wrote. He wanted to ask what was wrong, but knew that there would be no point. Third and fourth period were both Defence, so he'd be there for the remainder of the school day. Remus felt like he needed to add something more. We can get dinner sent to your office, if it's required.
Remus continued to frown, nibbled the end of his quill and sent a quick look to where his brother was standing. Romulus was currently helping another student on the other side of the classroom. Remus shook his head. Onto the next question:
1. A couple weeks ago we discussed diversionary tactics. When confronted with…
Remus stayed behind in class like he said he would. After answering a multitude of questions and responding with the same, "I don't know what it is about or I would have told you," he was finally left to sit on his own after a peck on the cheek from his girlfriend.
The werewolf sat for a minute, his fingers entwined, without much activity going on. He looked a bit sceptically around the room. Was this some sort of joke? Was it about the footsies?
"Sorry about the hold up, Remus," Romulus said and shuffled the papers in his hands. "I just wanted to get the last of them done."
"It's alright."
Romulus took a minute longer to grab all the parchments that accumulated during the day and stuff them not-too-neatly into his brief case that read, in golden letters, "Professor R J Lupin". It was a gift from Remus and the other Marauders for Christmas. The others still found it highly amusing that Remus had the same initials as his brother.
"Ready to go?" Romulus asked him, handing Remus back his quiz.
Remus put it in his book bag without looking at it and followed his brother out of the classroom.
"I think you study too much, littlest brother," Romulus pointed out. Remus raised his eyebrows critically. "I mean, you ace nearly every test and assignment I give you. The other teachers will think I'm giving you special treatment or something."
"Sorry if I feel that education is important," Remus said and shook his head. "And it happens to be a class that comes naturally to me, thank you." Remembering something he wanted to bring up, Remus added conversationally, "And thank you for embarrassing Jen and myself at the beginning class."
Romulus laughed. "I'd forgotten about that," he said reminiscently. "You can't blame a bloke for taking the opportunity that presented itself to me."
They ascended the stairs to the second floor and Romulus nodded to a couple students who greeted him. After they turned a corner and made their way to the Defence office, Romulus continued, "I'm an older brother, Remus, it's my job to ridicule those younger than me, birthed by the same parents." He pointed his wand at the doorknob and it opened with a click. "Besides, I hadn't run into you two doing anything indecent and I was in the need of a spot of fun."
Remus followed the Defence teacher into his office and said, with a hint of sarcasm, "Oh yes, your reasons are just overflowing with grace and logic."
Romulus placed his briefcase on his desk and said, "Then how about I'm your professor and acts such as that are not permitted in my classroom?"
Remus gestured to him and said, "See that makes much more sense."
"Surprised you though, didn't I?" Romulus asked. He took out a couple of cups, saucers and tea.
"Not as much as your little message on my quiz," Remus said, tired of the questions that were meant to skirt around the real reason he was most likely going to be eating dinner in his brother's office. "Subtle, by the way."
Romulus drummed his fingers on his desk. "Yes," he said, "I thought so." He brought the teacups to a couple of high-backed chairs by the fireplace and placed them on the small table that was situated between them. He cleared his throat. "Have a seat."
Remus sat and picked up his tea. He blew on the top of it. "So what is it?"
"You've never been one for avoiding a topic for idle chit chat-"
"Romulus."
"Right," Romulus said, his face going serious. "There's been a bit of trouble back home with Troy."
Remus' eyes grew wide. "Is he in trouble?"
"Not entirely-"
"Is he sick?"
"Not entirely-"
"Is he kidnapped?"
"Not-"
"Entirely – yes I know!" snapped Remus. His tea slopped onto the carpet. Romulus sat stock still in surprise of Remus' outburst. "I mean, honestly! You tell me my brother is in trouble and as I ask what it is all you can do is joke around! You don't have to be the bloody popular funny guy all the time, you know?" Remus' breathing had gotten heavy and he slouched back into his seat. He took a sip of tea.
Romulus slowly put his tea back in its saucer on the table and leaned back as well, his fingers stapled below his chin.
A house-elf trotted into the room, her arms laden with baskets. She placed them on the table carefully and shuffled backwards, bowing. She stayed bowed, her ears touching the floor, until she was out of sight and darted from the room.
"So," Remus said tentatively, "what's wrong with Troy?" He leaned forward and quietly opened a basket and took out a seeded roll.
"He was on assignment in Northern Ireland a few days ago," Romulus began softly, not moving. "To cut a long story shot and avoid any off-topic discussions, he and his coworkers were ambushed at their camp. Most got away with their lives, but a couple were killed before they knew what was happening. Troy is in hospital with some minor injuries. Well, I say minor because he got some of the least compared to others. He will make a full recovery in a few days' time."
Remus blinked and put down his once bitten roll. "He-" Remus couldn't speak at the moment. "But they say he'll be fine?"
"Oh yes," Romulus said, no note in his voice any more buoyant than during his speech. "The Death Eaters who attacked them seemed to be in training of sorts. They weren't the best."
"But they killed people-"
"They killed when the Aurors weren't looking. Troy said they were quite sloppy about it, hence the reason most got away."
"But not unscathed," Remus said in rebuttal. "Do you think it could have been a test of sorts? I mean, if they used the Killing Curse immediately without any type of torture, they must have been doing it just to prove themselves or something."
Romulus was regarding him oddly. "That's not up to us to decide, Remus. You're a student, I'm currently a professor. Neither of us has much influence on the Ministry, so thinking about those sorts of things isn't worth it."
Remus had to keep from making his jaw drop. "Look, I know you're a bit upset with what I said earlier and I'm sorry I snapped-"
"I'm not upset, Remus, over something that stupid-"
"Then why don't you seem like yourself? Usually you'd wait for an opportunity to throw yourself into the action or at least talk about it-"
"I'm perfectly alright, thank you. Maybe you should wonder why you're on edge lately-"
"I'm not on edge, here-"
"Yes you are."
"No I'm not."
"Remus, you're on edge."
"No-"
Remus took a breath. He wasn't going to play childish games if his brother was going to keep throwing them his way. "I already apologized for what I said earlier."
"There was no need to," Romulus said, finally sitting up and opening another basket. He took out a wrapped plate of chicken breasts in a delectable smelling sauce. He put one on a plate and grabbed some cutlery, a roll and a spoonful of corn. "I mean, all I was trying to do was put some humour in a drab situation for someone I care about who needs some cheering up once and a while."
"It's not like I don't appreciate your humour, Romulus, but when there's something serious going on, it's a bit misplaced," Remus clarified and helped himself to some of the large selection of food. "It's great you came back for Troy and myself and agreed to work at Hogwarts for Dumbledore…"
Romulus swallowed his food and continued to cut up his chicken. "But-?"
Remus shrugged. "There was no but."
"It's been hard to adjust to this place again, you know?" Romulus said. "I worked somewhere that I had to go into hiding, incognito and risk my life on nearly a daily basis, discovered that my parents died back home, shipped myself back here as soon as I could and then began to teach at a school and become a simpleton again – not meaning any offence to anyone – and take it all like it was how I wanted my life to go?"
Remus put his plate down. "None of us wanted mum and dad to die," he said.
"I know that, Remus," said his oldest brother.
"I didn't want to have to move in with Troy in London and I definitely didn't want you to lose your dream job to come and look after me," Remus continued.
"That's not the only reason I returned," Romulus said. When Remus waited for him to continue, he cleared his throat. "Mum and dad had a way of looking after you during full moons and I knew that with Troy's fluctuating schedule that he may not be there when he's needed and I knew that I'd have to be there for you, not just to look after you."
Somehow Remus had known it was because of his lycanthropy.
"I didn't know if your friends knew of it, though I hoped they did, and I decided to stay after the funeral for longer than I expected to and I'll probably head back to Australia come your graduation and when you're of age." Remus still didn't say anything. "You'll be of age in August, correct?" Remus nodded. "Say something, littlest brother. Please," added Romulus.
"There's not much to say that already hasn't," Remus supplied, "except that I appreciate your worries and concern, but I'm doing pretty well right now."
"What about after Hogwarts?" Romulus asked.
"After Hogwarts?"
"You won't be here for much longer. What did you tell McGonagall you wanted to do back in fifth year?" Romulus said, filling his empty plate and grabbing his warm tea.
"I told her of some ideas and what I'd like to do, but her advice was pretty much to take a wide variety of courses to cover all bases in case things fall through," Remus said. "My position is slightly off from everyone else's."
"And I promise you one day that will change," Romulus said quietly.
Remus ran a hand through his hair. "You can't promise something that will never happen." When Romulus opened his mouth, Remus continued, "So did Troy write you or did St. Mungo's?"
Romulus changed topics to stop any further arguing. "He's still in Northern Ireland, so he's at the nearest hospital there…"
- - - - - - -
Remus entered the Gryffindor Common Room well after dinner was finished feeling a little anxious and more drained than he was during the wet spell that hit the school a few weeks ago. He sought the comfort of a soft couch and the lap of his girlfriend to rest his head on. Maybe some more tea, but this time with a hint of Ogden's Old Firewhiskey. Someone in this blasted tower must have some…
The sight he was greeted with was a bit surprising.
James and Sirius were studying together by a corner window, heads bent and looking quite bored.
Remus frowned and made his way to them. They were neither a soft couch nor Jen's lap, but until he found what he sought, he would make do with these two. He pulled out a seat and plopped down in it; he leaned forwards and crossed his arms on the table. James and Sirius regarded him with short nods and mumbled greetings before dropping their heads back to the open books and parchment spread on the table. Remus blinked twice. "I'm both surprised and floored that you're both studying twice in one day, and of your own accord."
Sirius grunted and James spoke up, "We were bored, actually. For some reason neither of us could come up with something to cause chaos and truthfully, neither of us were in the mood."
Remus frowned again and rested his chin upon his crossed arms. "And may I ask why not?" he asked, beginning to think there might be some sort of fever going around… They hadn't prodded him with a million questions as to why Romulus asked him to stay after class.
This time the both of them looked at him as if really realising he arrived. "Oh you weren't here!" Sirius exclaimed suddenly.
"I'm so glad my presence was greatly missed," Remus said dryly.
"The ladies are actually upstairs," James said. Remus frowned now in confusion. Had he asked where they were-?
"What James is trying to say is that Melissa received an owl post shortly after dinner to inform her that her grandfather has nearly gone completely deaf," Sirius said. "They're both Muggles, right?" Remus nodded slowly. "So he can't get any help from the magical community, like at St. Mungo's or something, and this isn't something Dumbledore would send her home for, especially since she wouldn't be able to do magic at home yet."
Remus sat up and leaned back into his chair.
"So she's feeling guilty right now, she said, and she and the girls went upstairs for some Honeydukes chocolate," James finished. He picked his quill back up.
"Oh," Remus said and blinked a couple times more when they both resumed studying. What happened to Mel's grandfather was terrible, but right then Remus wasn't in a horribly pitying mood. His own brother was currently in some Northern Ireland hospital and his two closest friends hadn't asked him a damn thing…
Remus decided to get the ball rolling himself. He licked his lips and said, "So Troy's been attacked by, supposedly, Death Eaters in training and is residing in an Irish hospital."
The two gentlemen opposite him paused in their writing or reading and glanced at each other before looking at Remus.
"Shit," Sirius said, unable to come up with anything else at the moment.
"Is he going to be alright?" James asked with concern.
"He'll make a full recovery, Romulus said, and he got some of the less harmful injuries than others," Remus told them.
"When did this happen?" James asked.
"A little less than a week ago."
"Was the attack really bad?" Sirius asked, rejoining the conversation.
"A few died immediately, but it was sloppy and they were caught in the act of killing them behind their backs," Remus paused. He thought about what Romulus had said earlier.
"You're a student, I'm currently a professor. Neither of us has much influence on the Ministry, so thinking about those sorts of things isn't worth it."
James and Sirius seemed to be waiting for him to continue. Throwing his brother's words to the wind, Remus obliged his friends; "I theorize that it was a test of sorts for the newer Death Eaters, to prove their loyalty or something to Voldemort-" Remus stopped and looked around. "Wait, where's Peter?" he asked. He was used to a small jump at the sound of Voldemort's name.
Sirius waved it off. "Somewhere with Laura or something," he said.
Remus nodded and continued, "Anyways, I think that his followers are growing and are getting more courageous with their acts and aren't holding back the Killing Curse for any reasons."
"It's like they seem to think that since the Aurors are against them, they might as well die quickly or something," James said.
"My mum said that the Aurors told her of a couple instances where the earlier Death Eaters had rounded up some of the Ministry's newest Aurors and just took their time with them, and because of that many had gotten away," Sirius said. "But then the more recent attacks had been a lot gorier before the Killing Curse was administered."
"They told your mum that?" James asked as surprised as Remus looked. The sound of the Portrait hole swinging open and slamming shut echoed from across the room.
"My mum is a very adamant woman, James, you should know that," Sirius said with a bit of defence and pride. "Though I'm sure it was your father who told her."
James and Remus nodded. "Probably," James said.
The three stopped their conversation when Peter huffed across the room looking angry and confused. They glanced at each other.
"Oi, Peter!" James called over the back of his seat.
Peter stopped dead in his tracks but still seemed to be mumbling to himself.
The look on Peter's face killed the words from James' mouth, so Remus jumped in. "Alright, Peter?"
Peter threw his hands in the air so suddenly, a few people around him jumped. "Insane!" he exclaimed. "Woman are insane!"
"We could have told you that, Pete," Sirius said.
"I mean, honestly, I was just… it was an excuse-" Peter seemed to think better of what he was about to say, shook his head and continued towards the stairs.
When he was out of sight, James turned back to the table and regarded his friends. "Think one of us should find out what's wrong?" he asked.
No one said anything.
Rolling his eyes, Remus stood. "I'll do it then," he said resignedly.
"Good lad," Sirius said. "Let us know, eh?"
"I can feel the love pouring from you, Sirius," Remus commented. He picked up his book bag and headed towards the stairs.
When he made it up to their dormitory he found Peter with his face smothered into his pillow.
"I don't want to talk about it, Remus," Peter's muffled voice said.
"How on Earth-"
"You're a lot quieter than the others," Peter said and turned his head. When Remus sat on the edge of his own bed and rested his elbows on his knees, Peter continued, "I've spent a lot of time observing people."
Remus put his book bag on the small table between their beds. "So what happened with Laura?" he asked.
"We just… had a bit of a spat," Peter said evasively.
Remus was surprised. "I can't picture her yelling," he said.
Peter smiled a bit humourlessly. "Well, it wasn't so much her that I was yelling at, but that Manning girl. The one Sirius went to the ball with."
"Halle? Why were you yelling at her?" Remus asked.
"I…" the words failed him. He began slowly, "About a week ago when you were all studying in the library and I said that I was with Laura, I… I wasn't."
Remus blinked. He had done that often that day. "You weren't cheating on her, were you?" he asked.
Peter pushed himself up into a sitting position. "No, no! Not at all," he remedied quickly. Remus sighed deeply. "I just didn't want to study right then and wanted to spend some time on my own to, I don't know, go through my thoughts."
"You could have just said something, you know," Remus said. He picked up his book bag, took out a few rolls of parchment to leave on the table and moved the bag to the floor beside his bed.
"I didn't think Sirius would have let me, seeing as you guys were dragging him there, he wouldn't have let me get away from it either."
"Good point."
"But somehow the knowledge that I used Laura as an escape from something – to which they also thought I was cheating on her – made it to them and when I went to talk with Laura after dinner, I was cornered by half the seventh year Hufflepuff females." Peter shook his head and said, "Mainly Emily Hyatt and Halle Manning."
"Was Laura there?" Remus asked.
"Yes."
"Did she have much to say on the matter or was it mostly the other two?"
"Mostly the other two," Peter said. He scratched his head. "They sort of did us the liberty of breaking us up."
When Remus' eyes widened, Peter continued, "Which Laura had said she "sort of" wanted to do because we're both going in "different directions" and that "it would be best", especially with graduation a couple months away."
"Whoa," Remus said quietly. "So you're no longer with Laura, then?"
"Basically."
"Would you like us not to mention her name and inform the girls about it?"
"That would be nice."
"Would you like me to stop James and Sirius from pranking her and her bodyguards?"
Peter smiled tiredly. "I'll think about it."
Remus nodded.
When he made it back downstairs to his awaiting friends, Remus said simply, "Peter's single, it was thought that he was cheating on Laura, don't mention her name around him and he'll get back to you on whether or not he wants her and her bodyguards to be pranked."
"Bodyguards?" James asked.
"Emily Hyatt and Halle Manning." The other two nodded understandingly.
"How dramatic," Sirius said. "Somehow I can fill in all the lovely blanks you left and can picture the entire scene in my mind."
"And somehow I don't think it's exactly how it was really played out," Remus said flatly.
"And somehow I also believe that they were all wearing their clothes while this happened," James said with a hint of humour in his voice.
"Do you really believe so?" Sirius challenged and pointed his quill at his friend.
"Oh I don't know now, Sirius," James said, faking a pensive look and failing miserably. "Maybe the way we all see the world is just fantasy and your twisted view is how it really happens every day."
"That's all I'm trying to say," Sirius said, playing James' little game. "My point exactly."
"And back to Peter," Remus added, "He-"
"Really does like pumpkins, doesn't he?" Sirius interrupted.
Though Sirius' train of thought was hard to follow at times, it only took a few seconds to catch on to the idiocy.
"Had a girlfriend, too," James added, smiling gleefully. "Couldn't really keep her."
"At least he didn't put her in a pumpkin shell and keep her," Sirius finished. The best friends looked at each other for only a moment before laughing their idiot heads off.
When they quieted down a bit, Remus sighed. "I still lament the day we learned nursery rhymes in fourth year Muggle Studies," he said. "And somehow, I think Peter enjoys it less."
"That one was so much fun," James said, wiping at his eyes from beneath his glasses. He mumbled the words 'pumpkin eater' with a reminiscent smile.
Sirius' eyes lit up in a way that frightened Remus and he only hoped that the boy didn't remember something embarrassing from his past. "You know what I remembered not too long ago?" Sirius asked James.
"What?" James asked, not able to not share in Sirius' sudden mischievous aura.
Sirius chuckled evilly and it only made James' interest grow. Remus tried to hold back a groan. "Flower Potter."
James' smile vanished immediately and the twinkle in his eye died to a dull glare.
Sirius began to laugh hilariously again. He had to support his head with his hand, his elbow on the table. Remus watched warily, after releasing the hard-to-hold-in groan, how Sirius was defenceless with one hand slowly messing his hair as his head slipped into his arm.
"May I bring your attention to the sock puppet over your shoulder?" James said with cold humour.
Sirius didn't react at first, as his laughter died, but then his eyes widened and his head swung over his shoulder. Remus' face cracked a smile. When Sirius turned his head back around, his eyes were also set in a glare and James' face had a pleased look to it. He was also chuckling.
"That wasn't funny," said Sirius.
"Yes it was," James disagreed with a bit of a laughing sigh.
Simultaneously, both their heads turned towards Remus. The smiled slipped from his face. Remus waited for the painful reminder that he had done some embarrassing things in the past or had them done to him, but he was made to wait…
"I can't think of any," James said robotically, his eyes set on Remus' face as he recalled the past seven years.
Sirius shushed him and too concentrated on Remus' face. Finally his face lit up. "What about, oh, in third year, was it?" he said. "The thing with the, er, what was it?"
"I'm not following," James said. Still they stared at Remus.
"The thing!" exclaimed Sirius. "In transfiguration class!"
James laughed. "That was you, Sirius."
Sirius' face turned back to concentration and not a just a hint of embarrassment. They were both silent some more and Remus prayed to anything up on high.
"Well," Remus said, putting on a playful face and voice, "there is one thing I can think of." He paused and the other two waited. "There's the small fact that I'm going out with your twin Sirius," he continued, "but oh wait, that's more of a slap of a face to you, isn't it?"
He knew it was a bad move, but he couldn't resist the triumph he felt. He was to get it back in spades, he knew that also.
Sirius' face turned stony and James had to remove his glasses and rest his forehead on his fingertips. There was a smile on his face though, and he said, "You put yourself in the hole that is slowly digging deeper, mate, and I can't wait to see what happens."
"You're going to regret saying that," Sirius said. He pointed his quill at Remus' face and then, just as fast as his moods changed, he went back to studying.
"Any reason you put yourself in the line of fire?" James asked.
"Damn martyr," Sirius muttered.
Ignoring him, Remus said, "I've been feeling a distinct lack of pranks and if gets something started, then I'll step in front."
"How noble," James said, though there was a touch of pride and reminiscence to his voice.
"Stupid nobility," Sirius mumbled. His quill was scratching across his parchment.
"Romulus was right," Remus continued. "Nothing very exciting is going on."
"Romulus said that?" James asked.
"Bloody Lupins," Sirius growled.
Smiling along with Remus, James continued, "Though he was in an exciting profession before all of this. No doubt he's feeling it."
"Hence the reason he, er, embarrassed Jennifer and myself earlier," Remus said. "He was bored."
"Boredom, it seems, has started something interesting," James concluded. He grabbed his quill as well and began to reread his essay from earlier in the year.
Remus decided to study as well and darted upstairs to retrieve his book bag. When he got back to the table, after wearily looking at his seat, James assured him that nothing was done to it and that Sirius had remained seated, writing and muttering.
- - - - - - -
It was a bit more comfortable this time around. After all, last time, she had slept with her arm as a pillow and had her legs entangled with Mel's. It was over a year ago that Mel's parents had died and it was a bad situation, a very bad situation, but this time around, she was reminded of it and had more thrown on top of that hurt.
Dear Melissa, her grandmother's script had wrote,
I'm afraid to send you this bad news so close to your exams and graduation.
They had all expected the worse when Mel's controlled voice read the letter.
Your grandfather isn't doing too well. He is not sick, exactly, but his hearing has gone from bad to worse. The doctors say that he is completely deaf in his left ear. The other hears loud sounds, but he cannot decipher long words or sentences without reading lips. He has gotten a lot slower around the house and it is of the opinion of a few doctors that he be placed in a nursing home, or failing that, a retirement home. I know I would not be able to live on my own, due to age and loneliness, so we plan on selling the townhouse and getting a small place together in a local retirement home.
While Mel was reading, her voice had gotten softer.
We both love you dearly, but you're nearly a grown woman out of Hogwarts and we're sure the magical world can offer you so much more than we ever could at our age.
Lily remembered Melissa telling them that her grandparents were older than average when they had children, and so were her parents. For a nearly eighteen-year-old, her grandparents were older than what would be considered normal. What they didn't understand of the magical community was that it wasn't too accommodating to the students directly out of school and there weren't large areas within it she could afford when just starting a job. The money she inherited from her family was placed in a Gringotts account and she couldn't access all of it until she turned twenty.
We will have more time to talk when you come home in a few months' time. We are both upset that we won't be able to attend your graduation, but with what you've told us of your school's spells and such, we wouldn't see much more than an old boarded shack.
Your grandfather and I are very unhappy about upsetting you during this time, but it is better you're forewarned than coming home to boxes all over the house.
We love you so very much, Melissa, and look forward to seeing you again.
Grandma Roe
None of them had known what to say. It was like a shock of cold water to a flushed face. Mel wouldn't have a home once she graduated? Lily was staying at home until she could afford her own place, most likely living with someone from school. She hadn't decided whom to live with: her friends or boyfriend; though James had mentioned living with Sirius at some point.
It all depended now on how soon Mel could find a reasonable job. They had all offered a place to stay at their own homes until she found her own.
It was all up in the air, their lives after school, and Lily was both worried and excited about it.
Hopefully the bad wouldn't return full force, but like a bad cold, it overstays its welcome and returns at the worst of times.
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It feels good to have a chapter finished, doesn't it? Well, it's time to go back through the reviews and thank each and every one of you. You really all do keep me motivated. It's amazing what a few compliments and well placed threats can do to someone's dawdling habits.
Marauders Magelet: This chapter wasn't as long, but I wanted to leave it there and adding much more would have dragged the whole thing on… Though I do like the long chapters as well! Thank you for reviewing.
Star19: Thank you for your compliments, and I will keep in mind that you never remember what you said in the previous review. It was a nice one, to let you know! And thank you.
LuluIsALobster: I love the name. Thank you.
Jenna/Black's Gurl: Thank you for the review and standing ovation. I'd like to thank my mum, who's always been behind me, my dad, whose humour is unlike any I know and my…
Twilight66: lol – I don't like many stories that have a ball be the feature of nearly the entire plot and focus on what the characters wore, who they went with and the songs that were played (usually songs that have recently come out: Christina, J-Lo, Nelly etc). Thank you for reviewing!
Tinkerbellhp7: As if you said, and I quote, "holy banana bread nut muffins". It will forever be branded in my mind. Lol – and thank you for the proclamation of love. It was well received :)
The great and masterful Yoda: Thank you so much for saying mine is one of the best… It helps when I look at my early chapters and cringe and writher to the floor. Comments such as yours pick me back up! Thank you.
butterflyer: I hope you are enjoying grade nine, as you were still in the eighth when I last posted… my God. Thank you for reviewing!
Seriously Sirius: Your fake e-mails get more colourful every time. And I know you usually say not to give you and thanks, but we don't get online together that much anymore, so here you go. One question: if you used to tell me not to do one of these for you – why'd you still look for them? Aha! Stick that in your pipe and smoke it! Lol – thanks for reviewing and being a kick ass online friend!
Mythology: Sure, this wasn't 'as soon as' I could, but you know… Better late than never, I say. Thank you for reviewing.
Princess Pixie Ice: You, my friend, have been with me through this for a very long time. I thank you for that apart from your review thank you. It's always good to see names that I recognise, and have for two years. And thank you for reviewing as well!
lissy: Well, I hope that you could wait this long for this chapter… Thanks for reviewing.
Anarane: I hope you didn't forget about me again! Though, I wouldn't blame you, or many others, if they did. (There're some I would blame, however) If you get this – I hope you liked the chapter and thank you!
Lily Smith: I hope you hit your boyfriend hard for laughing (and I hope you are still with him or I will feel bad for bringing something up that you know… you know.). Thank you for being such a loyal reader – it makes me smile to see familiar names.
Whippy Bird: Something tells me you had to go back and reread the previous chapter again to know what the hell was going on, eh? I wouldn't say any of my chapters are perfect, and that's not just being humble, but I appreciate the compliment and log it away to take out when I feel like this thing is really headed nowhere. Those are few and far between, though. Thank you for always reading and reviewing!
harrypfanatic111: Will I have Mel get love in her life…? Hm. That is for me to know, yatta yatta, but of course, I'm not wholly sure. If some odd character pops up outside of Hogwarts, then maybe… but how do we know that Mel/Arabella/Jen/Lily will all stay connected outside Hogwarts? It's like high school – friends are harder to keep around when you don't see them everyday… There's a bit of foreshadowing for you and you only! Thanks for reviewing ;)
Witch of the West: Hm, not really any S/A in this, eh? I'm still undecided as to whether I will make them a couple, though I do have a plan brewing in my head that people may or may not like. Muahaha. Thank you for reviewing!
vamperfly: You're one of the people who don't like movies from books? I'm opposed if the people butcher the movie, but PoA was well done. Not as much background on MWPP as any of us fans would like, but the movie was amazingly done – unlike the first two. Anyways, thank you for reviewing!
running out of ink: Thank you very much. You very possibly quoted my favourite scene from the last chapter, and very possibly some of my favourite quote.
Grimm Sister: I always give you and everyone a response to reviews… if not, maybe you forgot to post… or maybe (just maybe) I skimmed past yours while typing them up? Well – here's a lovely thank you for reviewing and being a cheerful reviewer. Though, Halle didn't have Sirius dance with everyone except her. They had dance a lot, hence the reason both wanted to sit down for a bit, and then Sirius danced with his girls ;)
Green-Star89: Maybe they'll end up together, maybe they won't… Thank you for reviewing.
angel-pie64: Yea, a lot of people say it's worth the wait, but I still love hearing it! Another S/A question… Jeez, you guys seem to be dead set on those two! Maybe, though. You never know what the circumstances might be when Sirius realises his own feelings, and hey, I don't know as of this moment either. Half the time things come up that I never planned. Thank you for reviewing!
LovinLupin: Lol – if I never finished this, well… that'd make me quite the procrastinator and loser, wouldn't it? Though, yes, when it is all finished and done with, I'll greatly miss it. I'll probably cry (and not just because of the final chapter that will grip your heart, I promise you) when I'm done. I've already put more than two years into this, you know? Thank you for reviewing!
LadyArwen14: First off, I've missed you guys, too! Secondly, thank you! I loved your review, you know that? It made me smile and laugh. I've actually never seen a Shirley Temple movie, to my knowledge and memory… I hope you haven't caught bronchitis since we last chatted on here. And thank you again for reading and staying with me!
Winter Cowan: Alright, I doubt you remember asking this, but I'll answer it! Lily got a bit upset when James said it wasn't their "bloody wedding" because it would sort of sting, you know? If you're in a giggly mood and want your boyfriend to have a surprise when you waltz down from the stairs all dolled up and gorgeous, and he doesn't seem to care about it, it would sort of make you feel childish, wouldn't it? And also the fact that I'm sure Lily's fantasized about marrying James (and has also mentioned it to her friends) and having him say that would be a bit hurtful, but it's not it would stick with her. Anyways – there's your answer! Thank you for reviewing and questions are always welcome.
oobergoober: Six months is too long? I'm trying not to laugh because it's been nearly exactly six months again! Would you have honestly cleaned me out of your favourites list if I hadn't updated? Oh dear… don't do that! It's not like I'll never finish this… I'm just a lot slower than in the beginning, but I make up for it with quality. I was crap back then (though I've revised numerous times), but now this, I think, is much more worth it! Thank you for sticking with me, though, and reviewing so loyally!
SilverForestPrincess: Thank you. I do not really agree with Voldemort ever catching Lily/James and company. I'm sure he wouldn't have hesitated to killing or torturing, and until JK says otherwise, that's how my mindset will stay. Some people can write it well, but to me it's very hard to believe. We're dealing with enough out-of-the-world ideas, that I don't think I should push it too much. Thank you for your input, though!
Pineapple Queen1: It's not that Sirius was flat out refusing to dance with Halle; he was just in a sour mood, and for good reason, really. He did dance with her, quite a lot, but I just didn't mention it too obviously. But thank you for the comments! I love all that come my way, it makes me feel like people are actually interacting with the characters, you know? Thanks for the review.
songbreeze: Why thank you. I also believe that my writing has greatly improved from earlier days…
Manny2003: lol – Imagine if I had done some sort of crazy twist where Sirius did kill Remus? It'd be an outcry in a form of reviews and nasty e-mails. Though, I think everyone would be horribly confused… Thanks for reviewing!
fireflowerflame: Sirius is acting like a father figure because he always had. If you think about it, he was sort of the man of the house because his father never stepped up to the plate. And as to Sirius forgiving Remus, well, if he didn't forgive him, that'd be awfully pigheaded and hypocritical. He knows deep down that he's only upset because it's his twin sister. Sirius would bother anyone who'd date her, but more especially one of his best friends. Thank you for reviewing and asking questions.
zxudle: 1) You must learn that I take horrendous, embarrassing long time to update these days. 2) I do offer an award to you for discovering, like so many others (lol), the title of the next fic. 3) I still have got my limbs, so I guess you haven't resorted to that violence yet… And thank you for reviewing. It was fun.
ReaderReporter: Thank you! I love any scene with Sirius chatting up Lily.
Feyla: I would die if there were actual glasses that did not permit you to drink alcohol if you were underage, but then again, I never did drink alcohol until I was legal… Thanks for reviewing!
jamesta: lol – thank you for taking two days out of your life to read this contraption. I'm oddly proud of you and I hope you've stuck with me. Thank you very much for the compliments. I find that my readers have had many odd looks from their family members while reading. That's one of my favourite comments I get.
Beaver Buddy: I believe it's a common knowledge of older folks (25 and up) that you should not get alcoholic drinks at Chinese restaurants. I didn't know this until my manager and I spilt one and we both nearly gagged on the alcoholic flavour. She didn't have too many more sips after that… Thank you for reviewing and double checking to make sure you got one in!
Camillekiss: Well, let's see if describer is a word…Yes it is! Word didn't underline it in squiggly red things. Remus the first to propose? Hm. What makes you think of that…? Thanks for reviewing!
OceanGoddess: Yes Sirius has some issues he needs to work out, doesn't he? Thanks for reviewing!
bloodyhell555: Thank you! Yes I plan on finishing this and the next sequel, when that gets started!
mystikalolo: And I updated again, see! I'm chuckling; I love the Animal Cracker song. Lol – the first one to understand that I never know when to expect the next chapter! I grovel at your feet. Thanks for the review!
Cynthia: I love all the compliments, really. There are days I want to scrap the whole thing, but I know that people actually will search me out and kill me, so I stick with it ;) I won't lie, though. I'd never be able to leave this undone. And don't worry, I appreciate long reviews. Thank you again for reviewing!
Luna-Elentari: I highly enjoyed Jen's revelation that Remus and her had gone a bit further than Sirius would like to think. It can make me laugh at the oddest times. Oh my God – the penname that someone left! I remember that. I just laughed my ass off. If you don't remember, then go back to the previous chapter and check the name under the people who reviewed other chapters… Oh my God… So funny. Thank you for reviewing, as always!
anissawitch: Thank you for reviewing and I believe I e-mailed you some help for posting a story on
Goldilocks31890: Thank you for reviewing. I'm happy you decided to check the story and not just delete my e-mail ;)
Mary-Jane Black: Ok, so that was a threat, but I will not call the authorities this time. Uh, thanks for reading.
Titanic-HarryPotter-lvr-2: Thank you very much and I hope you've stuck around to read this as well!
Erica the flying tree: Excellent name. I'm glad it took you a while to read because otherwise, well, you know. If you went through it in an hour, my mouth would have first dropped and then proclaimed you a liar. Lol. Anyways, I hope you didn't cry too long, because it sure did take me a long time to update… And thank you for reviewing!
rainbow fish: Thank you for the very long, very crazy review. It made me smile to read it. And yes: always remember that flattery and bribery can get you anywhere.
Amber24: Thank you for the final review a few days ago. You must have sensed that I was very nearly ready to post. Thank you for the little update about being a slow idiot and I will start writing the next chapter soon, though no promises what so ever on when I will post it.
And this giant Thank You is for everyone who reviewed previous chapters and TGTYEL: angel-pie64, Luna-Elentari, LunaJ, Hazen, Rebecca, FizzingWizbee, Taylor423, the 100 original BLAH, Lttlered, JamesGurl19, Cynthia, anissawitch, Away with the Fairies4, mysticrystal faerie, Monica, Maggie, silmaren754 and JamesGurl19.
Thank you everyone for sticking with me through my prolonged procrastinating existence. This chapter isn't near the length of the other one, but you know what? It's already longer than three quarters of the rest of my writing, so I decided to end it here. If you'd like to know exactly when I update, put me in your Author Alerts (if you have an account on here) or leave me your e-mail in the form of a review (or e-mail me) and tell me that you'd like to be e-mailed in my little mailing list to be alerted as to when I update. I may even give you guys a heads up like I did this time, on my mailing list. You know what? I'll make that a common thing. A few days before every post, I'll send out an e-mail to the people on the list with a teeny quote of the chapter. Now if only JK could do the same thing…
And I'll warn anyone new to the story: yes, I take a long time to update, so don't worry about that.
And so people stop asking (though it does make me laugh): yes I will finish this story and continue onto a third instalment and will finish that one as well. Have no fear; it too bothers me when people just stop without saying anything. These characters and their lives (both pre- and post- what I've written) are embedded in my head and it won't do to leave them there unfinished.
And, to pump my stuff a bit, I've got an account on Fiction Alley and have been posting there for a year or so. Just some ideas that come to me and I can't fit them into this story because of the differences before and after OotP and we learned how James and Lily really were, and because I'm too impatient to wait until I could put them into this story. The links will go into my bio because links don't work on here, I believe, so head there if you want some more reading.
Thank you all again so much and don't hesitate to ask any questions that you want answered or to challenge me on something I've written!