Disclaimer: I don't own a lot of things: Rowling's characters, Tolkien's character, Love Potion Number Nine, the Monkee's, and Remus's chocolate. However, I do own this chapter idea, so enjoy!
Just for all that forgot how the last chapter ended, it went like this. James said "Lily… she's my wife, isn't she?"
Chapter 24: A Trip to Hogsmeade
Lily, Hermione, Sirius, Remus, Harry, and James were slowly ambling their way down to Hogsmeade. The weather was clearing up from the rainstorm from the previous day, although it still quite chilly. The sun was weakly shining cheerfully on the dewy grass as the six Gryffindors stood at the gates of Hogsmeade.
James was silent from the moment he spoke her name to Harry, and especially from the time where Harry bit his lip, then nodded his head. All sixth year Gryffindors were walking in a straight line, and James was at the end, the farthest away from Lily. With the news of his… future wife… still fresh in his mind, he was still in shock. It all seemed unreal.
"Hey, mate," Sirius spoke loudly, waving a hand in front of James's zoned-out face. "Something wrong?" He left Hermione's side and butted in between Harry and James. "I'm not sure if you noticed, little Prongsie, but there's this pretty redhead walking with us, and I'm pretty sure she's available at the moment…"
James looked up to find Sirius truly smiling. If only James could tell Sirius… "Yeah, yeah, I'm fine." James hitched up his usual crazy grin. But he found that it was natural as his mind began to wander again. So, according to Harry, Lily Evans was going to voluntarily marry James in the near future. So it was inevitable that she would fancy him. "So, lovely ladies, where to?" James asked smoothly, his tone a notch deeper than usual.
Lily sighed. So much for a mature James. "I have nothing to really buy except a few books or gizmos for my parents."
"What about your sister?" James asked immediately, trying to show off his knowledge about her, but also trying to show some form of benevolence. "What are you going to give her for Christmas?"
Lily, to James's surprise, snorted heartlessly. "Like she'd accept anything I gave her. I was thinking of getting her a bag of soot. She'd like that…"
"What, you don't get along with your sister?" Remus asked.
"That is a complete understatement. Let's put it this way: I hate her so much that it makes my relationship with James as loving as a marriage."
James choked on air. Giving himself a beat on the chest to clear up his sudden choke, he whipped his head around at Harry, who was pink from holding in his laughter. His father's face was priceless.
"Wow, you must really loathe her then," commented Sirius with an airy flavor. He silenced from one of James's deathly glares.
"Back on topic then," Remus said hurriedly. "I think we should visit Honeydukes first. That's always a good place to start, isn't it?" He steered Hermione, who steered Lily, into the direction of the crowded shop.
Sirius just barked out a laugh. "That's Moony for you: his mind always on chocolate." But he followed his friend also with a light bounce in his step. Sirius received a light whack on the back of his head for that comment. Sirius just barked some more as he stepped through the Honeydukes store.
Lined along the walls were a mixture of shelves of assorted candy, barrels of sweets, and students shifting through each, searching for the best choice. There was a mediocre-sized line at the counter, which contained hungry and frenzied customers. The rich scent of chocolate and fruit and other mouth-watering flavors hung in the air, intoxicating those who had not yet bought any sweets.
Sirius smiled at Remus, whose eyes were as round as Galleons. Sirius lightly nudged his friend forward. "Have at it, mate."
Remus turned around and glared, but he could practically hear the chocoballs and sugar quills and chocolate frogs calling his name. He sprinted forward towards the shelves and then walked down each aisle, scratching his chin at which sweets to buy and eat.
The rest of the gang just grinned and laughed, but soon joined Remus in perusing through the candies.
Ten minutes later, Remus ran up to Sirius, bouncing on the balls of his feet, much like a five-year-old boy. "Look, Padfoot! Look!" Remus shoved what seemed to be a chocolate Christmas tree in his face. Sirius raised his eyebrows in confusion. "It's the holiday special! It's an all chocolate Christmas tree… and see!" Remus tapped it with his wand. Little gumdrop lights that were "stringed" around the chocolate tree started to magically glow all shades of colours. "Isn't that brilliant?" Remus was jumping up and down on the balls of his feet.
Hermione came up behind the two. "Is he always like this around sweets?" she playfully asked Sirius.
Sirius chuckled. "You should see him around Valentine's Day… He goes crazy with all the chocolate for sale. He's mad, really."
Twenty minutes later, all six left the store, and each in their bags was a considerable amount of sweets. (James had tried to buy Lily something nice and sweet, and finally she gave in. So in her bag were some sweets for her friends, and a glowing red chocolate heart from James.)
"You know, we're going to get fat off of this," Lily commented lightly as she peeked inside of her bag.
"Hey, Thewler and I play Quidditch, so we're going to burn it off later on during practice. What're all your excuses?" James smirked at the rest of his friends, who all suddenly found either the sky or the roadway to be quite interesting. "Mm hmm, that's what I thought."
"Do you know how many staircases there are in Hogwarts?" Hermione asked James promptly.
"Er—"
"One hundred and forty-two, to be exact. And do you know how much exercise that is, to walk around all day?"
"Er—a lot?"
"Exactly."
"Oooo, can we go to the Shrieking Shack?" Lily said excitingly. "I haven't seen that place for ages." All eyes except Lily's flew over to Remus, whose eyes shadowed only the slightest. Lily didn't notice though; she was trying to recall her last journey to the haunted house.
"Why would you want to go there?" Remus asked moodily, stuffing his hands in his pockets.
"It's supposed to be a great historical place, isn't it?"
"And it's not like we won't visit, though," James said. Behind Lily's back, James silently begged Remus to approve. He linked his hands together, in perfect begging form, and even tried for the puppy-dog eyes (though nothing compared to Sirius's). Remus took one look at Lily, another at James, and nodded (though not completely satisfied).
They slowly strolled down the main road until they reached the site of the Shrieking Shack. It was an awful mess. Dead trees lined the edge of the house as if warding off all good-spirited folks. Even though there was no wind blowing, two of the window shutters slowly swung open and closed on its creaky hinges. Other than the deafening squeaks coming from the shutters, not a single sound emitted from the building.
"It's amazing that this house has been standing for so long, according to the rumors anyway," Lily commented, her eyes glued to the building.
"So you think it's haunted?" James asked her.
"Not really, no. But I do believe that someone or something lives in there, and just doesn't want to be disturbed."
"Like what?" James asked.
Remus, however, did not find this conversation as interesting as James, Harry, or Lily did. He just walked away from the Shrieking Shack and went over by a bare, deadened tree. Leaning on the trunk of the tree, he gazed sorrowful at the old house, his brown eyes big and round. Sighing, he pulled out a large slab of chocolate and started to gnaw away at it.
"Are you all right?" Hermione asked, joining Remus under the tree.
Remus looked suddenly at Hermione, but realized he didn't have to hide his feelings about … his other identity… around her. It was nice to have someone else to talk to. "I just hate this place. Hate looking at it. Hate the smell. Hate the feel… Hate the memories." He nibbled another piece of chocolate and violently began to chew.
Hermione could not think of what to say. She couldn't say anything comforting about the future, because even though there was the Wolfsbane potion, Remus would still be shunned by the wizarding world. So instead, she laid a comforting arm around his shoulders, letting her head fall onto his nearest shoulder. She felt him stiffened for a second, before relaxing under her feather-light, yet warming pressure. His head fell on top of hers, though he wasn't completely rid of his deep anxiety.
Sirius looked away from Harry, who was asking Lily about the Shrieking Shack, to see where Hermione had gotten to. He spotted her over by a tree a short distance away… with Remus. Sirius was about to head over there, to break up that horribly cute scene, when someone grabbed his arm and held him back. It was James.
"Let him have this one," he said quietly, as to not distract Harry. James was sure Harry wouldn't approve of Hermione's current situation. But James felt that Remus deserved at least one hug from Hermione, especially with the memories of his transformations fresh in his mind, thanks to the sight of the Shrieking Shack.
Sirius's eyes almost turned into the perfected puppy-dog eyes, but he thought better. He'd let Remus have Hermione… this time.
Back at the tree, Remus whispered to Hermione, "Thanks. I needed this."
Hermione smiled. "There's one small price, though." She leaned in and bit off a tiny piece of his chocolate. "Thanks," she mumbled through her chewing.
"Just don't think that you'll get away with that again, missy," Remus said with a chuckle.
"Really?" Hermione asked, lifting up her head off of his shoulder. Big mistake. Now she was only two inches away from Remus's face. She looked into his brown and amber eyes and saw desire. A desire for something he knew he couldn't have. She watched him turn his face away and take a step back.
Remus, already feeling depressed at the sight of his werewolf home (and the fact that he was so close to his dream girl, whom he couldn't really connect with), didn't want any awkwardness between him and Hermione at the moment. It would just be too much. So instead, he waved his chocolate bar in front of Hermione's face, which cracked into a smile. "All the rest of this is mine now, all right?" A grin spread upon his face, too, as he spoke lightheartedly to her.
Hermione's innocent smile transformed into a sly sort of grin.
Harry and James were having a discussion about the origin of the Shrieking Shack, with Sirius and Lily adding in comments here or there. Right before Harry was about to suggest that the house was originally the home of a pack of Nifflers, all four heard a shriek from a short ways away. Their heads automatically snapped over to the direction of where Remus and Hermione were. They were all astounded at the sight before them.
One could only guess how, but Hermione, for some reason, was lying on her back on the wet grass. Remus was kneeling beside her, his face pink from the slight chill in the air, but also from laughing. He had been dangling a piece of chocolate over Hermione's face when she reached out and snagged it away from him. To force Hermione to give it back, Remus started to tickle her, hence the shriek that James, Harry, Sirius, and Lily heard.
"Remus Lupin! You stop it this instant!" Hermione cried out, along with a shrill giggle.
Remus obliged with a victorious grin. In his hand was his chocolate. With his other hand, he helped Hermione off of the ground.
Hermione huffed. She turned her head to look at the damage done to the back of her clothes. Her brick-red, flimsy sweater was stained with brown mud and a bit of green grass stains. Fortunately, she was wearing brown pants, so it didn't show as much on the seat of her pants. She smacked Remus on the arm. "Great. Now I'm all wet and muddy."
Remus spun her around to take a look at the damage, eyes quickly surveying the damage (and nothing else, being the gentleman he was). Spinning her around again so he could see her scrunched-up face, he smiled, a short laugh bursting out from his upturned mouth. "Here," Remus said. He took off his tatty old jacket and draped it around Hermione. "That'll do, won't it?"
Hermione seemed hesitant, but the entire back of her thin sweater was soaking wet, and a cool wind was picking up. She hugged his warm jacket tighter around her form. "Thanks."
Remus's eyes sparkled. "You're welcome."
Sirius and Harry watched wide-eyed, mouth agape at Hermione and Remus. Harry knew that she was doing this just to spite him. Maybe he, Harry, shouldn't have ordered her what to do the night before. He should have known better, since he knew all too well that Hermione was a stubborn one.
Sirius, on the other hand, looked over and stared angrily at James. Sirius found it easier to blame this on James. It was he who had stopped Sirius from intervening, and now Sirius saw their act to be quite unacceptable.
James cringed away from Sirius's glare. He decided to fix this the best way he could: with sarcasm. "Oy! You two lovebirds over there! Ready to leave?" James called out. Lily nudged him painfully in the ribs. "Ouch! What was that for?"
"Can't you see they were fine by themselves?" she hissed. "And now you had to ruin the moment… talk about dense, emotionally-challenged boys…" She turned and walked off, leading everyone else back up the main street.
Sirius glared after her before turning back to Hermione and Remus. But something was different about her that he didn't notice before… She was wearing Remus's jacket! Why that little…!
"Shall we carry on, then?" Hermione asked. Her face was bright pink.
"Er—yeah, sure," Sirius mumbled. He stepped beside Hermione, who was looking at the person on her other side: Remus.
Lily lead them into a book store only a little ways away. There she bought for her parents a special book that was filled with wise adages and quirky quotes, and would magically change quotes every time it was opened. James, Sirius, and Harry were battling with magic quills made for correcting errors in a script, text, or essay. Remus ended it with cleaning off ("Scourgify!") the circles and all sorts of correction marks that had been scribbled across their faces. The storeowner shooed them out of the store before the Marauders could do any more damage.
"Don't you need to buy something for your parents, Hermione?" Lily asked as they walked out the store.
"Er—" Hermione stuttered. "I've already got them. I ordered them over owling."
"Well that's clever," Lily agreed.
"Yeah…"
James and Harry rushed past the two girls. "Last to Dervish and Bangs has to buy me lunch!" James called over his shoulder. Their cackles died out as they burst into the store. Sirius and Remus tore after them.
"Oh no you don't!" Lily cried out. "Come on!" She grabbed Hermione's arm and ran towards Dervish and Bangs.
Lily lost.
"That's all right, love," James said, laying a head on her shoulder inside the shop. "I'll buy you lunch instead."
"Erg, get off me, James," Lily teased. She twitched her shoulder so that James's head bounced off. "Make yourself useful. Help me find something for my parents, will you?"
James, eager to please his beloved Lily, sprang from her side in search of a gift. Lily watched him push aside an old witch to get a clearer view of a shelf. Lily watched in glee when the witch started to beat James over the head with a walking stick.
Hermione was standing a ways away by the glass fountains. She was admiring a particular fountain that shot out sparklers that resembled shining stars and glowing moons.
Sirius silently crept up behind her. Looking over her shoulder, he spotted the fountain. "Blimey, that's almost as beautiful as you are," he whispered into her ear.
Hermione jumped around, fairly startled at his sudden appearance. She sighed when she saw his face, but hit him on the arm anyway. "Don't sneak up on people like that," she scolded. But her scowl was replaced by a smile. "It is gorgeous, though, isn't it?" she asked, turning back to the fountain.
Sirius smiled too. He noticed all of the stars shooting out of the funnel. "Did you know that my name is the name of the brightest star in the sky?"
"Second brightest," corrected Hermione. "The brightest is the Sun."
Sirius's smile just broadened. "I stand corrected."
"It uses a simple enough spell to make this," Hermione said. "I'm sure it's just a mix between a showering charm and a lunar recreator. But this is perfected, really." Hermione turned around to find Sirius standing right behind her. She stepped back. Uncomfortable with being that close to that devilishly cute smirk, she searched around in her head for an excuse to leave his side. "I wonder if James has found Lily's parents' present yet." And she left. Sirius sighed, his smile faltering.
James ended up picking out a beautiful crystal figurine that magically reflected a lustrous lily. He handed it to Lily, saying that it reminded him of her beauty. Lily smiled, about to say thank you, but caught herself. She paid for it, and then she followed Harry and Hermione out of the shop.
"Okay, now it's Marauder's choice," Sirius said. The other five stopped, looking at him. "I happened to know that my Marauder's stock has run out, so a quick trip to Zonko's is in need." Everyone muttered in agreement. Zonko's was just a few buildings down anyway.
"Jamesie! Siri! And, my my, little Remy! My favourite customers!" cried out a rather plump witch from inside the joke shop. The owner was, at the moment, fixing up the transfiguring rubber chickens section. She left her station immediately and waddled over to the three Marauders, enveloping them in a giant bear-hug. "Ah, but where's little Petey?" she asking, counting the three Marauders.
"At his mum's, Madam Gelbwaks," James said politely with a colossal grin across his face.
"How many times, little Jamesie, must I ask you to call me Pandora?" Madam Pandora Gelbwaks asked. She pinched his cheeks, and then called to someone in the back, "Hector? We have some very special visitors!"
From behind the counter came a loud thud, a pronounced "ouch!", and finally a full grown man, scraping the age of thirty. He had the most bazaar, reddened face: like a little kid's but with a mustache and bug-eyed eyeglasses. Wrapped around his neck like a scarf was a string of fake spiders and flies (though they looked quite real). Just like his wife, he jumped for joy when he saw the Marauders. "Ah, Marauders! Great to have you!" Hector Gelbwaks roared.
"Great to be here, Hector," Sirius said heartily. "So, what have you got for us today?"
Hector's grin widened. "Great stuff, mates, great stuff." He wrapped an arm around James's and Sirius's shoulders, leading them to the back of the store. "It's this great little gizmo that bursts into magical flames whenever someone says a certain word… and here's another one that causes the user to…" And they were soon out of sight of the rest of the Gryffindors.
Pandora turned to the remaining students. "If there's anything I can help you with, just give me a ring," she said kindly. She winked at Remus before shuffling off to fix the rest of the rubber chickens.
Lily, Hermione, and Harry stood rooted to the spot from the moment Pandora screeched out the three Marauder's names. They, synchronically, looked at Remus for an explanation.
Remus laughed at their looks. "We've been shopping regularly at this shop ever since third year. The shop owners love us because we usually buy them out of business it seems. They even have a certain rack just for us. Pandora and Hector actually gave us the name, 'Marauders', if you cared to know."
Lily, Hermione, and Harry nodded numbly.
"We usually get discounts, too," added Remus thoughtfully. He shrugged and made his way to find some Dungbombs and Mr. Filibuster's Fabulous Wet-Start, No-Heat Fireworks and some Fanged Frisbees.
James and Sirius had returned from their trip to the back area forty-two minutes later, each carrying a bag stuffed full of all different types of joke and trick items. Remus and Harry had bought a small bag worth of Zonko products. Lily and Hermione refrained from buying anything without any sort of strain.
"Don't you boys be strangers now, you hear?" Hector called out to them as they were all leaving.
James and Sirius turned around and waved good-bye. "Don't worry. We won't!"
Outside, it had started to lightly sprinkle.
"I vote for some lunch," Sirius said at once.
"I agree," chimed in Hermione. "Three Broomsticks?"
"Why don't we go to Madam Puddifoot's?" James asked, his eyes shining as he stared at Lily. The two girls, however, rolled their eyes. "What? I've heard it's a good place. Nice… warm… cozy… nice place to cuddle up…"
"No," Lily said abruptly. "We are going to the Three Broomsticks."
"But I wanna go to Madam Puddifoot's," James said, equally stubbornly.
"Me, too," Sirius agreed, his eyes never wavering from Hermione.
"Does anyone find this amusing?" Remus asked to no one in particular. "I mean, the guys want to go to the cutesy shop, while the girls want to go to a pub. I'm just finding this hilarious." Harry nodded in agreement.
"Please?" James and Sirius begged. James went on his knees and linked his hands together, begging like a true beggar. Sirius, on the other hand, went for the big puppy-dog eyes (he even dared to emit a soft dog whine with a pouting lip). And they both begged and pleaded until—
"I can't believe we are actually eating at Madam Puddifoot's," groaned Lily as she stepped into the warm, steamy shop. They waited for the waitress, a stout witch with black hair tied into a bun. Madam Puddifoot came up and counted heads.
"So is this three different tables?" she asked.
All six looked at each other. Remus was standing next to Hermione. James was very close to Lily. That only left Harry and Sirius standing next to each other. Once they realized this, they jumped five feet apart with a disgusted "AH!" and a loud "Hell no!"
James just chuckled. He turned to Madam Puddifoot. "No thank you. If you have a six-person table, that would be great."
Madam Puddifoot nodded. She waved her wand over her shoulder, and three empty tables joined together with a snap to form one large, rectangular one. She lead all six over there (Harry and Sirius still keeping their distance) and handed them each a menu as they sat down.
"I'll be back when you're ready," Madam Puddifoot said before fleeing to another table.
James pulled out a chair for Lily to sit in, which she reluctantly sat in. Hermione sat between Harry and Remus, across from Sirius (who sat next to James). (A/N: if that confuses you, think of it as Lily and Harry sitting at heads of the table, and Sirius and James sitting on one side, and Hermione and Remus sitting across from them.)
"Isn't this place adorable?" James squealed.
"And look! It's decorated for Christmas," Sirius joined in, pointing at the red bows and green garlands.
"You two are weird," Remus said flatly.
"Aw, you're just so sweet, Moony," James giggled.
"Seriously, stop it," Harry said with a laugh. "You two are scaring me."
They all joined in laughing.
Madam Puddifoot returned "What can I get you dears?" she asked, pulling out a pad of paper.
Once they all placed their orders, they continued to chat. Hermione stayed a little quiet, taking in the surroundings. She had heard of this place when Harry had been explaining his date with Cho Chang, but she didn't picture it this… frilly. He also failed to mention that it was strictly a couple's place. One table held a boy (who Hermione recognized as Kyle McFly) heartily snogging a Hufflepuff seventh year over their forgotten cups of coffee. Another couple, who Hermione recognized as Lily's friend, Katie Rawson, and Zach Wood, were holding hands, with Zach whispering words of sweet endearment in Katie's ear. Hermione squirmed in her seat at the sight of all the couples.
Remus noticed her discomfort. "I don't like this place much, either," he said softly.
"Oy," Sirius said, entering the conversation, "it's not that bad."
"And how many times have you been in here, Sirius, with your dates?" Lily asked.
Sirius's grin became more pronounced and his eyebrows more raised. "Why so interested, Evans?"
In return, Lily scoffed. "Like I'm interested in anything you do, Black."
"Well, just so you don't get the idea that I visit here often, I have actually only been in here twice before, thank you very much." Lily rolled her eyes.
James looked back and forth between Lily and Sirius before clearing his throat. "So," (his voice cracked; he coughed it away), "did anyone catch the sight of that tea cup flying down the street on the way over here?"
The conversations remained lighter from then until the food appeared and started to disappear. Sirius had spotted a bit of newspaper lying on the floor with a title Voldemort Strikes Again. Then, to Harry's dismay, the discussion turned heavier as they talked about the Dark Arts that were rising.
"I just hope that Dumbledore conquers this Voldemort before anything too serious happens," Lily commented. "They say that Dumbledore is the only wizard that Voldemort ever feared, you know."
"Can you believe that people are seriously calling him 'You-Know-Who'?" Sirius said. "I mean, he is getting bloody powerful and everything, but still… that'll give him a big head, won't it?"
"And we definitely don't want people with big heads, do we?" Lily said sharply, but with a smile nonetheless.
"Even so, he is growing more powerful by the day," Remus said. "There's even a rumor that he has joined forces with the giants. And his Death Eaters are growing uncontrollable."
"Yeah, and I'll bet you half of them are my cousins," spat Sirius.
"As long as you don't turn Dark, Sirius," James said, thumping his friend on the back.
"Yeah, the day you see me joining Voldemort is the day a mermaid will walk on her feet… I'll bet you anything Snivellus joins the Dark side," Sirius growled.
"He sure likes hexing enough to," James agreed.
"You two hex him in equal amounts, though," Lily said.
"But we do it in self-defense," James said automatically.
"What about that time last year by the lake?" Lily pointed out. "That was certainly not in self-defense. You two started it!"
"I meant this year, it's all been in self-defense," James said with a sort of plead in his voice.
Lily looked at him skeptically, but said no more on the subject.
All six exited Madam Puddifoot's a good while later. They had finished their lunches after the first twenty minutes, but spent a lot of time talking (and flirting in Sirius and James's cases). The sextet often received odd glances from Madam Puddifoot and some one the customers, too, since it seemed as if not one of the six-person group was dating. James, sticking to his word, paid for Lily's lunch. Inconspicuously, Sirius snagged a pink, heart-shaped potion with the roman numerals IX that had been sitting on the counter of Madam Puddifoot's and stuffed it hastily in his pocket. He wasn't a Marauder for nothing!
Instead of going to a direct shop, Hermione suggested they just start ambling down the roads. Sure, it was a little windy, but the sprinkling rain had died out. And off they set down the High Street.
"So, tell me, Hermione, what is your favourite animal?" Sirius asked seriously.
Hermione looked away from one of the windows she was gazing in.
"Dogs, perhaps?" Sirius asked with a smile.
"Dogs are nice," Hermione agreed, grinning. "Although, I have this pet cat. So I guess I like cats too." Sirius made a disgruntled face. "Actually, Sirius, you'd like my cat. Yes… indeed."
Harry overheard their conversation and walked over towards them. "I agree. You would really like him. Her cat helps out people when they need it the most."
Sirius just stared at them strangely. "A… cat? I grow up to like cats?" Sirius said in a whisper. "That's just odd."
Harry and Hermione laughed.
James was asking Lily a similar question. "Hey, Lily… what's your favourite forest animal?"
"Other than little chipmunks?" Lily asked, smiling.
"Oh, those don't count," James said.
"Then I would have to say… a stag, I guess."
James stopped abruptly. "Why?"
"Well, they're just amazing creatures. They usually symbolize boldness, strength, and bravery, don't they? And they're such beautiful animals." Lily's eyes sparkled for a moment. "I've actually seen one in the distance here at Hogwarts."
James held back a chuckle. "Really?"
"Yeah… it was on a full moon night, and it was running along the edge of the Forbidden Forest. It was just so powerful and stunning…" Lily shook her head to clear the memory and looked at James. "Why do you ask?"
James shrugged. "No reason."
"What about you?" Lily asked.
"Er—would you believe me if I said stag too?" James asked.
Lily gazed at him for a instant. "No, not really."
"Oy! Padfoot!" Sirius looked up from his discussion with Hermione. "What's my favourite animal?"
Sirius smiled. "A stag, of course! But dogs come in second." Sirius smirked before returning to his conversation with Hermione.
James turned back to Lily, eyebrows raised and grin spread wide across his face. "Told you so."
Lily scoffed and busied herself with admiring a crystal ball in the window of a shop.
While strolling down the Hogsmeade road, they met quite a few people, including some of the Gryffindor Quidditch players, Professor Aylward arguing with Professor Smirch, and Rubeus Hagrid carrying something that looked quite illegal underneath his cloak.
They were going to continue down another street when it started to rain.
"Potter!" Lily screeched as it started to pour on her, along with everyone else. "I blame you! You suggested walking around. And now I'm soaked."
James didn't even bother pointing out that it was Hermione that proposed a walk down the streets. "Why don't we go into the Three Broomsticks for a warm butterbeer?" he said loudly over the torrential rain.
"Good idea," Harry shouted.
They all ran towards the Three Broomsticks, which, luckily, wasn't too far away. James crashed through the pub's doors to find the Three Broomsticks almost packed. Lily ran right into him, almost knocking him over. At the last second, she gripped him around the waist to steady James and herself. James turned his neck around to find her blushing.
James, wiping his glasses dry, led the way to a table. He spotted one towards the back. He careened through the crowded pub, passing by several familiar faces: Kyle McFly, Severus Snape (sitting with Regulus Black with Callie Snyde attached to his hip, and John Wilkes), and Professor Flitwick. Sirius was last in the line of his friends. He accidentally tripped over Snape's foot (which was sticking out too far), knocking over Snape's butterbeer. Thanks to a spell Madam Rosmerta had concocted, the contents did not spill. Sirius set the tankard back on the table before hurrying off after Hermione.
Sirius giggled as he sat down at the sextet's table.
"What?" Hermione asked.
Sirius just laughed some more. "Oh, nothing." He slipped the pink, empty bottle of potion IX into his jacket pocket. He noticed Lily unenthusiastically wearing James's coat, and smiled even more.
Madam Rosmerta jostled up to them. "Hello boys!" she said, eyeing the Marauders and Harry (since she met him once before). "It's nice to see a friendly face around here."
"It's nice to be a friendly face around here," Sirius said.
Madam Rosmerta just laughed. "I missed you four. You haven't visited me in such a long time, you know."
James sighed. "Sorry. Busy with school work… tests… Quidditch… girls…"
Madam Rosmerta's attention shifted to Lily and Hermione. "Well! You boys finally brought some new faces. You girls are lucky. These boys usually don't bring along others. I think you two are the first girls they've brought since fourth year. You seem familiar, though," she said, looking at Lily.
"Oh, I'm Lily Evans," Lily said, holding out her hand, scrunching up the enlarged sleeve of James's jacket.
"The Lily Evans?" Madam Rosmerta asked, shaking the redhead's hand.
"You've heard of me?" Lily asked, confused. Then she understood. James. She whipped her head around to glare at James, who was sitting next to her, pulling off a brilliantly innocent face.
"Knowing these boys, naturally," Madam Rosmerta laughed. Her ears perked up as she heard someone call out her name. "I'm sorry, loves, but it's a real busy time. I can't stay to chat. What'll it be?"
"Ah, I think six butterbeers will do it, won't it?" James asked, looking around at the rest of his friends. They all nodded. "Thanks, Madam Rosmerta."
"No problem, love," she said. She winked at James and Sirius before hurrying away to satisfy another customer.
"I'm beginning to think that you know almost every shopkeeper personally," Lily commented lightly, gazing intently at James, Sirius, and Remus.
"We're just so lovable," Sirius said. James added by ruffling his hair. Lily groaned. "But honestly, some don't approve of the Marauders."
"Like that witch at that old antique shop," James grinned mischievously. "Peter and I accidentally broke twelve objects in the store in one go, and then we were never allowed in there again. We once forgot we weren't supposed to go in there, and that mad old witch chased us out, hitting us repeatedly with an old broom."
Everyone, including Lily, burst into gales of laughter.
Madam Rosmerta came by minutes later to drop off the drinks, but was immediately called for service again. She wished the boys a Happy Christmas before bustling off to the next customer.
"So, Lily, are you having a good day so far?" James asked, inching closer to Lily with a mischievous grin plastered on his shining face.
Lily looked thoughtful. "I guess it hasn't been that bad. I mean, I've gotten most of my Christmas shopping done, I got a free lunch, and lots of chocolate… so yes, I'd have to say it's been productive."
James's bright face faltered. "What about the company? You didn't enjoy the company?"
"Eh, it was all right. Not the best. Not the worst." She dared a glance over at James's face, which looked completely devastated. "I'm kidding, James. Gosh, you fall for the easy ones." She turned to Remus. "Is he always this gullible?"
"Only around certain people," Remus said with a wink.
A while later, the rain outside ended. They paid for their drinks, thanked Madam Rosmerta, and stepped outside. One look around the streets brought all six Gryffindors to peels of laughter.
Severus Snape was running around like a madman… kissing everything in sight. First he kissed his hand. Then he kissed a doorknob. Then he kissed a basket sitting outside of a shop. Then an owl in the Owl Post Office. Then some random Ravenclaw third year. Then a Hufflepuff fifth year. Then Professor Smirch.
"SEVERUS SNAPE! WHAT THE BLOODY HELL DO YOU THINK YOU ARE DOING?" roared Professor Smirch. She wretched Snape off of her and held him by the shoulders. She took one look into his glazed eyes and knew he was under a spell or potion of some sort. "Finite Incantatem!"
The first words out of the non-influenced Snape were, "POTTER! BLAAAACK!"
By that time, James and Sirius were already sprinting down the pathway of Hogsmeade, James silently dragging Lily along. Remus and Harry started after them. Hermione didn't notice until it was too late. Professor Smirch and Snape hounded down on the lonely Gryffindor.
"Miss Snicket, did you see where Potter and Black went?" Professor Smirch snapped, towering over Hermione, her nostrils flaring. The young professor seemed almost as upset as Snape.
Hermione didn't really have the heart to tell on Sirius and James, so she pulled on her most innocent face. "I haven't seen them since they ditched me at the Three Broomsticks," she responded sincerely.
"That's not true," Snape cut in. "Please, Professor, I just saw her with them at the Three Broomsticks talking. She," he said, pointing at Hermione, "is covering up for her little boyfriend, Black."
Smirch's nostrils turned white from flaring so much. "We shall see about this. All right, on your way Miss Snicket."
Hermione scampered away instantly. "I wonder where they got off to," Hermione thought loudly to herself. Right then, though, as she turned the corner, someone ran into her and pulled her aside into an adjacent alley. Looking at her intruder, she spotted those deep grey orbs. "What did I tell you about sneaking up on people, Black?"
Sirius just smiled. "Thanks for saving my arse back there."
"You're welcome," Hermione said. She eyed the small distance between her and Sirius, and then took a step back.
Sirius sighed. "Hermione, let me ask you a question. How come you will be close around Remus, yet when we are two feet apart, you feel the need to be farther away?" He folded his arms across his chest, waiting for an answer.
Hermione fixed her eyes on him for a moment, skeptically thinking. "Remus doesn't try to get closer to me. He shies away, too. You know why?" Sirius shook his head. "Because he knows none of this," she waved her hand between herself and Sirius, "is possible. He understands that nothing can happen between us."
"But why not?"
"It's against time-traveling rules."
"There's another reason, I know it."
"It's just not possible."
"Come on, give me the reason your heart is screaming, not your brain."
She paused for a long moment. "I don't want you to get hurt," Hermione said, speaking to the pavement. "I don't want to hurt anybody."
"But, love, you're hurting me already," Sirius said, taking a step closer to Hermione. Gently, he touched a finger to her chin and lifted her head up. "You see, there's this girl I fancy. But, unfortunately, she keeps on turning me down, even though I might even love her. So this leaves me broken-hearted, you see…"
Hermione stared right back into his saddened eyes. "Oh, Sirius." She leaned forward… and wrapped her arms around him, cloaking him in a hug. He stood surprised, but hugged her in return. "I'm sorry," she said into his chest. "But this is all I have to give right now." With one last squeeze, she let go of him.
"Will there be more in the future?" Sirius asked quietly.
"Maybe," Hermione answered, her eyes full of sorrow.
"Near future?"
"We'll see."
"There you two are!" James called out. He was standing at the head of the alley. He shouted over his shoulder, "I found them!"
Hermione smiled weakly at Sirius before heading for James.
Regrettably, their reunion was ended with a howling Professor Smirch.
Sirius and James bolted, Hermione running after them. They twisted and turned at ever chance they got. Finally, when they thought to have lost the Potions teacher, they reached an old pub with an old, creaking sign with a hog's head above the door. Sirius and James headed inside without a glance at it.
"Oh no," Hermione said, observing the sign. With a dreaded feeling in her stomach, she stepped inside.
Remus, Harry, and Lily were already there, sitting at the bar of The Hog's Head. Remus was waving good-bye to a ginger-haired boy.
"Bye Mundungus!" he called out to the boy brushing past Hermione to exit the pub. "Oh! You found them!" Remus said to James, spotting Hermione. The three new arrivers walked over towards the rest of their group. "I suggested that we lay low for awhile, 'cuz of those two bloody blighters." Remus jerked his thumb over at Sirius and James, who had just taken a seat at the bar. He turned to his fellow Marauders. "What did you two do, anyway?"
Sirius broke out into a full grin. "Well, I acquired a certain bottled potion earlier on today. It was kept in this hideous pink bottle with white hearts drawn all over it. And engraved on the container were the roman numerals IX."
Hermione and Lily snorted. They recognized this potion from a Muggle song.
Sirius smiled and then continued. "So when Snape purposefully tripped me on my way to our table at the Three Broomsticks, I picked up his drink that I had knocked over. And I guess this potion just accidentally got slipped in."
"And what exactly does this potion do?" Harry asked.
"Good question, Harry. The potion makes the drinker fall in love with everything in sight. They can't tell if it is day or night. They just start kissing everything in sight. But when he kissed that Smirch down on 34th and Vine, she broke his little bottle of love potion number nine."
"What is he talking about?" Harry asked Hermione quietly as Sirius went into musical instrument piece.
"There's an old Muggle song about this potion called Love Potion Number Nine," she whispered back to him. "And I guess this potion was a model of it."
"Oh…" Harry nodded. He pulled out a box of sugar quills from his Honeydukes bag and started to suck on the tip. Hermione looked at the others and noticed they had taken out their Honeydukes candy. After giving a shrug, she, too, took out some candy, only to find most of it gone.
"Did one of you take any of my candy?" she asked to her friends. She revealed her almost-empty bag.
Everyone shook their head.
"It was just full at the Three Broomsticks, wasn't it?" asked Sirius.
Hermione thought I moment. "I thought it was."
"Mundungus!" Sirius blurted out all of a sudden. "I bet he snagged some. He's been known to do that."
Hermione glowered. She knew Mrs. Weasley was right. Mundungus was a scoundrel, but Hermione never guessed at such a young age. "I guess we'll have to stop by Honeydukes on the way back."
"I'm sure that's fine with Moony," Sirius said, thumping his lycanthrope friend. Remus looked up innocently from his chocolate frog.
"Oy, James," he said, ignoring Sirius for the moment. Remus threw the Chocolate Frog Card towards James, without looking at him. James caught it skillfully in the air without a flinch.
"Do they do that often?" Lily whispered to Harry.
Harry nodded. "All the time."
After finding refuge at the Hog's Head for twenty minutes, they thought it was safe to leave without Smirch handing out detentions. Though, the Hog's Head's patrons were growing more interesting by the minute. At one point in time, the door banged open and in ran a pale visitor with his skin smoking underneath his black trench coat. Sirius was convinced it was a vampire, hence the burning skin (from the sun) and his pointy teeth. What was amusing, though, was when he, the vampire, started to stare hungrily at Hermione's neck, Sirius started to growl threateningly at the newcomer. Some other customers of the Hog's Head that the sextet found entertaining was quite a large and random bunch: a very tall old wizard with a grey pointed hat, thirteen dwarves, and a very short young man, almost half of the height of the wizard. The dwarves were singing about chipping some glasses and cracking some plates.
It was growing dark outside as they walked out of the pub. Lily and Hermione hugged James's and Remus's jackets tight around them as the breeze kicked up a bit. They all collectively started to head towards Honeydukes without saying a word. All walked in silence as they watched all the students and townspeople rush around to finish their shopping before stores closed. Sirius delicately elbowed Hermione in her side and pointed off to a side alley. There were two dogs, one's coat was a smooth black, the other puffy brown, hosting a playful battle, growling and tumbling around in the roadway. Sirius smiled at them. Hermione smiled too.
"And here is Moony's favourite store," James announced. He held out his hands to preview Honeydukes shop.
"Okay, I get it," Remus let out exasperatedly. "I'm a chocoholic! We don't need to rub it in, now, do we?" He shot daggers at Sirius, who was walking beside him.
"Of course we do, Moony!" Sirius said loudly, letting loose a bark-type laugh. "Where's the fun if we don't?"
Remus glared, sticking his nose up in the air, and quickly walked ahead of them.
"Whoa-ho! Look at the snobbish Moony, all high and mighty!" Sirius called out after him.
The lycanthrope just stuck his tongue out at Sirius before entering the sweet shop.
James and Harry, who had been talking in whispers to each other, stopped abruptly. "Oy! We're going to go… somewhere," James said mysteriously. "Need to buy a few more things. We'll meet you outside Honeydukes, all right?" Snickering, James and Harry scampered off down the road again.
Sirius, Hermione, and Lily just shrugged and followed Remus inside the store.
"I thought I'd see you again, Remus," the Honeydukes worker said with a sweet smile. She was a young blonde, not much older than Remus himself. Remus raised his eyebrows in question. "You didn't buy as nearly much chocolate as you usually do when you came in earlier today."
Sirius, who was standing behind his friend, let out a whoop of barking laughter. Remus flushed, paid the young woman some silver sickles, and waited at the front of the shop for Hermione. Once she came back with her replenished stock of sweets, they all left the shop. As promised, James and Harry were huddled around a bulky bag that had not been theirs before their mysterious trip. Even worse, they were tittering manically.
"What do you boys have there?" Lily asked, the shadow of worry tickling her voice. She tried to take a peek in their bag, but James snapped it shut.
"Nothing, m'dear," he purred. James shoved the bag into Harry's hands, who slipped it behind his back, concealing it from everyone's view. At Lily's look of disbelief, James continued, "You'll find out soon."
"You're so incorrigible, you know that, Potter?" said Lily.
James's grin widened at his inner thoughts. "But you know you can't resist me."
For some reason unknown to the other four, Harry nudged James painfully in the ribs. "Calm down there, Potter," Harry whispered into James's ear so no one but the selective party could hear. "You're not supposed to know."
James just smirked.
"Whatever you say, boys," Lily sighed. "…As crazy as this sounds, I'm tired of shopping. How about we go back to school?" They all communally agreed.
Once they reached the gates, they were in a straight line, all standing next to each other. This line-up was different, however, from their beginning form. This time it was Harry on the end, with James next to him, then Lily, Remus, Hermione, and finally Sirius. At one point, each had an arm draped over their neighbors' shoulders or around their waists. Sirius tried to convince them to walk "the Monkee's walk", but Lily and Remus refused.
No more trouble came to the sextet (which was surprising seeing as two of them had a problematic run-in with Professor Smrich) on their way back to Hogwarts. Surprisingly, Lily and Hermione did not scamper off at the first sight of the Hogwart's towers, but they remained by the Marauders and Harry's sides. All too soon in the boys' eyes, they had reached the Fat Lady. ("Password?")
"Screaming yo-yos," Lily breathed through her laugh, giving the portrait the password. Harry, Remus, Sirius, and James were acting out their version of the historic battles mentioned in Professor Binns's class. Harry was Victor the Valiant, who sliced and diced Totalitarian Trevor (Sirius) with his sword Ack the Ticklish (James). And Remus was the humble narrator.
The Fat Lady's eyes were bulging at the sight of the sextet, or more importantly, who was in the sextet. It was famous throughout the castle at how much Lily Evans loathed James Potter, and now the young girl was giggling like mad over James's performance. The Fat Lady let them all in without another word.
All six meandered over to the back stairs that leaded to the dormitories. James held Lily's arm back while Sirius took Hermione's arm. Both boys started acting all shy and… girly. There was no other way to describe it, really.
"I had a really great time today," James said to Lily, biting his nail and looking bashfully at the ground.
"Yeah, it was a lot of fun," Sirius said to Hermione, acting in the same manner. "I hope we can do this again some time." Sirius let out a soft, feminine giggle.
"Well…" James and Sirius said at the same time. And both, simultaneously, leaned in and gave their girl a peck on the cheek. They let out a bashful giggle and raced up the stairs without giving Lily or Hermione any reaction time. Midway up the stairs, James and Sirius both looked down at Lily and Hermione, twittered shrilly, and continued their dash up the stairs. Moments later a door slam could be heard from down the stairs.
Remus chuckled, still standing at the bottom of the stairs, along with Harry and two stunned girls. "Well, that's James and Sirius for you." He turned to Lily and Hermione. "We'll see you at dinner, then?"
Lily and Hermione nodded dumbly, bewildered at what had just happened. Harry laughed, clapping them on the back, before joining Remus in trekking up the stairs.
After a few shocked moments, the girls started to come back to life. Lily turned to Hermione before walking up to the dormitory and said, "Boys are weird." Hermione nodded solemnly as she followed Lily up the stairs.
A/N: Longest chapter ever, folks! Let's let out a whoop of happiness, shall we? And how about that quick update? To tell you the truth, I wrote this chapter in three days (in one day, I wrote 20 pages worth!) Also, don't ya just love random crazy moments (aka, the ending to this chapter)? I actually burst out laughing when I thought of it! But alas, with all good news comes bad news. I'm afraid that unless my teachers are the kindest creatures, I will be busy studying for final exams for the next two weeks. Maybe if there's enough hopeful thinking from my awesome reviewers, I can post earlier… J
Here's last chapter Thank-You's!
Thanks so much!!!: dawn1, dracos-sexy-bitches, Larna Mandrea, annonymous (jcgirl4ever), Rane2920072, Mangoes2oo5, BiggerstaffStalker, Tania25, sapphire66, silver gaze, magiclover53, vache, Niphredel Black, cookiedoughicecream, runaway mental patient, Doodler Girl, acdecnerd, Draco's Slytherin Vampiress, Laney Wood, Violets-in-Spring, LoVinSoMe1SpeCial, blondekat3, Abriana Amati, PadfootsMine, IchooseTheScorpion, MidnightStormsArise, Escritor, Goldfish682, Patricia Luksich, You don't know me. Really (nice email ::wink::), Mystified Providence, Mini-Moonstar, Senko, hye em yes, mint, TheLadyValura, jessa1234, Panting Slightly, and SeverusSnape'sLove You all rock!
Misao, Demon Master: I'm so sorry that I keep forgetting you!! And that excerpt you put in your last review was funny, even though I don't know the full content of it!! Thanks!
DarkKestralSilkeQueen Wanted Sirius dead?! Drama is good, I agree, but I can't stand Sirius dead in the books. How could I leave him dead? But you're right. If I wanted to right drama… but to write drama, I have to be in a dramatic mood, which I'm not in right now because I've have a chocolate frog (really!) Thanks!
PieceocakeGood prank in this chapter, no? You approve? ::smile::
SiriuslyPadfoot'sGalI would email you all my thoughts (since I have too many on this awesome subject), but unfortunately, my email is down. So, I'll email ya once it's up, okay? And thanks a lot!
ChrissyWell, I actually believe in the time-travelling rules that are explained in the movie, Back to the Future. (It's a great trilogy. If you haven't seen it, I strongly recommend it.) But the other one, the one you mentioned, makes sense too. But unfortunately, I didn't notice that until I was already nine chapters in my story, so I stuck with my old version of time-travelling. Oh well. But thanks!
BlackAngell-1391: Good idea about the letter! Unfortunately, the only problem is, how would it get to Hermione and Harry? I could make up something, but I try to stick to the rules laid down by J.K. Rowling… But thanks anyway! (There will be a visit from someone from the future…. Whether it's physically, mentally, or spiritually, I cannot tell.)
Nathalie: I would give you my real name, for your openings on your review, but I just love seeing my fanficiton name, "Accio Flaming Stake"… Just thought you'd like to know ::smile:: I was dying to email you after I received your review, but alas, my email is down, so I couldn't. Maybe when it's ready, I'll give a ring. So much to talk about!!! Oh yeah, and….. THANKS!!
Now, here are just a few more notes to all my readers!
First: Hermione's attitude during the end of chapter 23 and chapter 24 when she's around Sirius and Remus. More specifically, when she's "flirting" with them. I'm sorry if it looks out of character a little, but there's no other way to write it! I've tried, but this was as close as I can get. (Doesn't mean there won't be more, though!)
Second: Some of you keep asking me when Harry and Hermione will head back to their present/future time. Now, what if I really told you all? That would take all the fun out of it! So, I'm afraid I will be remaining silent until that time. This also goes with present/future chapters that take a look at how things are going in the present without Harry and Hermione. I shan't tell you. It'll just take all the fun out of it!!!
Third: None of you commented on this in your reviews, but I felt the need to explain something. There is a reason at why Sirius knows some Muggle information (i.e. Beatles, Love Potion Number Nine, Monkee's, etc.). Since he strongly opposes his family, he will do anything to upset them, including researching on this they despise (Muggle stuff). So there. That's my reasoning. Also, it's just fun to include in my story. J