Chapter Twenty-Eight: The Fangs of Death
A few days passed with James being all moody. Nothing anyone did would cheer him up. One morning though, Sirius got out of bed with hope. Walking over to James' bed he pulled back the curtains to his four poster and saw him flailing, his face contorted in pain, sweat dripping down it.
"James! James!" Sirius yelled shaking him awake. James jolted up, looking around in panic. His hands wiped the sweat off his face and rubbed his eyes.
"James, are you alright?" Sirius asked concerned. James jumped, not fully aware that Sirius was leaning over him.
"Yeah," he said sounding short of breath. "I'm fine, just a little nightmare."
"A little? Didn't seem that way to me."
"Just drop it."
"Are you sure you don't want to talk-"
"Drop it, okay?" James said looking sternly at him. Sirius backed off the subject but he didn't forget about it. Smiling he said,
"Hey Jamesie-cake. Guess what day it is."
"What day is it, Sirius?" James replied sounding exhausted.
"It's April first, le premier de avril, el primero de abril, the day we long for each and every year. The day we can prank as much as we desire without getting into huge trouble. The day-"
"I get it Sirius." James said brightening up. "What's the plan?
Sirius put up a hand. "Don't worry my friend, part one is already being taken care of."
It was then that James realized that Peter was missing.
'I can't believe I'm doing this,' Peter thought as he scurried around the school in his rat form. 'I swore, I swore I would drop this scurrying around. Well, for them anyway.' He squeezed through a hole in the dungeon wall and came out in the Slytherin common room. Staying close to the wall, he scurried up the stairs and, gladly seeing the boys' dorm door open, went right on in. Making sure everyone was still asleep Peter transformed and made his way towards Snape's bed. Slowly and quietly opening his nightstand drawer, he rummaged until he found his deodorant. As quietly as possibly, he broke off the top and, taking slightly smashed cream cheese out of his pocket, placed some on the top. Then Peter placed it back as best as possible, making sure that it looked exactly the way it did before he removed it. Crawling over to Snape's trunk he unlocked it with a hair pin, a trick taught to him by Sirius. Pulling out his wand he performed a tricky spell, with a counter curse few knew, that shrunk all his clothes so they were five times too small.
'One last stop,' Peter thought, 'then I can get out of here.' Walking into the bathroom he looked for Snape's shampoo, which he was to turn into glue. 'If he has any,' he remembered Sirius saying and he couldn't help stifling a laugh. Peter wasn't working for the Slytherin's but on the word of Voldemort, he didn't need to be nice to them, but he didn't need to be nice to the others either. 'My "friends",' he thought bitterly. Suddenly he heard stirring, and panicking, he just did a quick spell over all the bottles of shampoo, conditioner and hair gel, transformed and got out of there.
Returning to the Gryffindor boys' dorm as quickly as possible, Peter transformed and had to sit down he was so out of breath.
"Did you do it?" Sirius asked excited. Peter nodded his head.
"I couldn't tell which bottle of shampoo was his so I just did them all. They have so many bottles you'd think a bunch of girls lived there."
Sirius roared with laughter, "Serves 'em right, bloody gits." Peter stayed silent.
Arriving in the Great Hall, Sirius sat in a seat facing the door, "So I can have a good view," he said. James and Peter sat on either side of him and Remus sat with his back to the door, not really caring of the out come. Remus found it all quite pointless and sort of childish, even if he took part in it, and enjoyed it. The hall erupted in laughter when the seventh year Slytherin boys entered, mostly for Snape. It was very comical seeing five seventeen year old boys walk in, their hair sticking up everywhere from an excess use of glue and one of the five in clothes five times too small for him, smelling of cream cheese. Apparently no one would let Snape borrow a uniform.
"Who else has a strong urge for bagels?" Sirius asked.
Throughout the whole day the Marauders mocked Snape.
"You guys are so childish," Lily scolded them. "Whose idea was it to do that stuff to him anyway?"
"All of ours actually," James said.
"That's what you get with teamwork," Remus put in.
Lily scowled, then turned and watched sadly as Snape walked down the hall, ignoring the snickering of the students he passed. She sighed.
"I don't understand why no one would let him borrow a school uniform until he figured the counter curse. Or at least bought some new ones."
"It's because he's a greasy git," Sirius retorted with a scowl. Brightening up he said, "Speaking of which, hey Prongs?"
"Yes Padfoot," James replied.
"Would you like to do the honors?"
"What honors?" Lily asked confused and scared at the same time.
"Why certainly," James replied, ignoring Lily.
Just as Snape was about to pass by James said, "Hey Sevy, Slughorn wants to see you about some paper you did." James knew this would work because Lily was in the same class as him and he knew there was no paper for Slughorn. "He said to meet him in the dungeons as soon as I gave you the message."
"Sure, Potter. Like I'm going to fall for that one," Snape replied stopping to glare at him.
"Alright, whatever you want to think Sevy."
"And it's not Sevy. It's Severus." Instead of going straight, which would lead him to the dungeons, Snape turned the corner, into a deserted hallway not only to escape the snickers', but also because he didn't believe or trust James. 'Probably some prank if I keep going straight' he thought. Suddenly he slipped, fell and slid a few feet down the hallway.
"Wow, I don't believe it. He's even greasier then we thought," Sirius said loudly.
"So greasy he can't even walk," James added. Snape tried to get up but kept falling continuously. The Marauders laughed with the other students who stopped to watch, but Lily was the only one who thought for a counter curse. When she finally remembered she pronounced it carefully and Snape stopped slipping immediately.
Slowly standing up Snape shouted angrily, "You're going to pay for this Potter!"
The smile was wiped off James' face and the laughter disappeared from his eyes as soon as those words reached his ears.
"Shut-up," he said quietly but defiantly and the people closest stopped laughing.
"Hit a nerve, did I?" Snape asked menacingly. Glaring at James with a malicious smile he continued, "Well I'd watch my back if I were you. Never know what could be…slithering around the corner."
James advanced on Snape so fast that the spectators, except for Lily, Sirius, Remus and Peter, left terrified for their own safety. James took out his wand ready to strike if need be.
"I said shut-up," James repeated even angrier then before.
"James, stop it!" Lily said sternly.
Turning to look at her James shouted, "You stay out of this!"
"No James, I think you should listen to your precious mudblood. She might just save your life."
James dropped his wand and lunged at him. Knocking him to the ground, James punched him any where he could get to for Snape was trying to block the punches but was failing miserably.
"I'm sick…and tired… of it always… being….me! I'm sick… and tired…of you stupid gits…and… your….stupid… threats!" James said between punches.
"James stop!" Lily shouted. Turning to Sirius, who was stunned, she shouted, "Do something, Sirius!"
Coming out of his shock, Sirius shook his head and said, "Oh yeah!" Going over to them he tried to pull James off. "James come on! Get off him James!" Sirius pulled on James' shoulder and James got off him but went after Sirius. Now free, Snape got up and left as fast as he could without being noticed.
Sirius pushed James against the wall and held him there. James' eyes looked fierce, the fiercest he had ever seen them.
"Get the hell off me!" James shouted and pushed Sirius off him.
"What the hell is your problem, mate? Ever since the other day-"
"I am not your bloody mate!" James interrupted.
Not paying attention Sirius continued, "You're keeping secrets from me, James! From all of us! I'm supposed to be your best friend and you're keeping secrets-"
"I'm keeping secrets? I'm keeping secrets? What about you, huh!"
"What about me, James? I have never-"
"Stop lying to me Sirius! I know you've been messing around with Remus! I know you and Remus have a secret relationship, one that you didn't even consider telling me! Your so called best friend!"
Everyone was silent. The bell rang for class but the five of them just stood there.
"What?" Sirius asked confused.
"Oh, don't you dare play dumb with me Sirius!" James hissed. "All that time you spent with him when he was in the hospital. You can't tell me there was nothing-"
"That's because I was concerned for my friend, James." But James still looked skeptical and was being stubborn about it. Sirius looked back at Remus, Lily and Peter. Lily looked dazed; Peter half amused and half shocked. Remus didn't even look like he was alive; he was pale and wide eyed. Sirius returned his attention on James who said, "Then why haven't you gotten with Sarah yet?"
"Because she hates me still."
"But you groaned when she hugged you!"
"Because I was in pain! You should know, out of all people James, what muscle pain feels like."
"And you- you kissed Snape-" James thought he was triumphant but Sirius laughed.
"Correction, he kissed me because of that potion that back fired on me."
Now that James was calmed down he felt pretty stupid. "Oh," he said, "right."
There was silence for some time. Then, sounding hurt, Sirius said, "Maybe you should think before you speak next time." He walked away, angry at James and his accusations. Remus and Peter followed him, Peter secretly laughing so no one could hear him and Remus red in the face. James just stood there feeling like a complete jerk. He just wanted to be alone but Lily was still standing behind him.
"James," Lily said.
"Go," James said quietly.
"James, are you-?"
"No Lily, I am not alright. Now leave me alone."
"But James-"
"GO!" James yelled turning to her in anger. Lily gasped, tears flooding to her eyes.
"Fine," she said quietly and walked away to class leaving James utterly alone.
For the rest of the day James felt like an ass. None of his friends would talk to him, let alone look at him. Whenever he caught a glimpse of one of their eyes, the glimpse turned into a glare on their behalf. Lily didn't glare though, just looked sullen.
Later that night in the common room Lily approached James cautiously.
"Are you alright?" she asked still concerned. James took one good long look at her. "If your not I can g-"
"No," James said. Pushing a small smile he said, "I'm fine."
Lily sighed and sat with him.
"That's good," she said happily.
"Look Lils, I'm really sorry about what happened earlier today."
Lily put up a hand to stop him, "It's quite alright James. We all have our days."
James smiled and gave her a hug, thanking the heavens that Lily was so understanding, unlike the rest of his friends.
Going up to bed after finishing his homework, with the help of Lily, James entered the dorm and the talking and laughter that was in the room died out. The three boys immediately got their pajamas out and got ready for bed. James did likewise not even trying to strike up a conversation.
'I don't want to start anything,' James thought. 'I'll just let them talk to me when they're ready. They have to forgive me sometime. I hope.' James got into bed, closing the curtains around his four poster, and laid down. He listened to the silence in the room and then the light breathing of the others until he finally fell to sleep.
James was walking down a hall. His dream self felt anxious and he was gripping his wand very tightly, but then there was another part of him that was totally confused. He sped up knowing what lie ahead was getting closer. Turning the corner he stopped dead. Right in front of him stood Lord Voldemort.
"Why, hello James, fancy meeting you here," he said smiling maliciously. James' voice got caught in his throat. "Tsk, tsk. This will never do, James. Where are your manners?"
James found his voice, "Stay away from my family!"
Voldemort laughed a cold and merciless laugh, "Too late for that James. Crucio!" James felt ultimate pain as the curse hit him. When it was raised, he tried to shoot a curse back at him but it was counter attacked easily, along with every spell after it. Once again Voldemort yelled, "Crucio!" and James found himself in complete pain again. When the pain subsided, James found Voldemort looking down at him with a malicious smile on his face, as he lay helpless on the floor.
"Hmmmm, what to do, what to do? I could easily control you and make you kill your precious wife and child yourself, but no. No, I'd rather do that myself. There seems to be only one more solution to this. I just have to kill you, James Potter." James groaned. "Oh yes, you know it would come sooner or later. I killed your entire family and now I'm going to kill you."
Then, to both Voldemort's and James' surprise, James stood up.
"I will not let you kill me or my family that easily."
"Oh, so brave, and yet so very foolish," Voldemort gave one last cruel laugh before shouting, "Avada Kedavera!"
James felt a white hot searing pain in his arm. He screamed so loud that he woke with a jolt to find himself drenched in sweat and a huge snake clasped onto his arm, its fangs deep in his skin. He ripped the snake off him just as Sirius ripped back his curtains. The snake fell to the floor and Sirius jumped out of the way. James flopped back on his bed, clutching his arm with his eyes tightly shut. Behind his closed eyes he saw a bright flash of light.
"James!" Sirius shouted horrified. James clasped his hand over the wound but Sirius had already seen it.
"What was that light?" James asked confused as everything started to get fuzzy through the slits in his eyes he was looking through.
"Remus killed the snake that bit- James? Are you alright? James!" Sirius yelled as James' complexion went paler than ever.
"Sirius! That snake was poisonous! We've got to get him to the hospital wing! Now!" Remus said in panic. Sirius looked at him, not seeming to comprehend. "C'mon Sirius! Snap out of it!" Remus shook him till he seemed alright. "Let's go!" And within minutes they got James down to the hospital wing hoping they were just in time and that James would make it through.
A/N: Sorry about the whole dream part. To tell you the truth I had promised myself that I wouldn't write a dream where one of them (either Lily or James) saw them dieing but I couldn't help it. This will tie in later though so don't think it was pointless. Cheers!