"Almost full moon," James noted, "Tonight, right, Moony?"
"Yeah. You guys are coming, aren't you?" He suddenly had this very large panic-stricken face upon him.
"Of course we are, we're not completely awful friends, are we Wormtail?" Padfoot nodded to Wormtail who was just then joining their breakfast group in the Great Hall a couple of weeks back from summer break.
"I'm going to go down there a little early tonight. I just don't feel up to risking anything. You all come later though. I hate it when you see the transformation."
"Aww, come on Moony! That's the coolest part!" Peter begged. Remus shot him a look of surprise, considering that's the most painful part for him. After all of these years, he still hadn't gotten over the pain.
Peter instantly said, "Oh, right. Sorry Moony," and continued his breakfast. Meanwhile…
Wake up Skye! We're going to be late! Breakfast is over in 15 minutes! Skye? Hello, Skye?"
Lily looked down at Skye in her bed. She was beat red, fever hot, and sweating a great deal.
"Oh, Merlin! Ariel! Emily! GET OVER HERE!" Ariel and Emily ran into the room from the common room, where they had been waiting.
"Lord, Lily, you are loud! What's going on-" Ariel and Emily looked at Skye, who was breathing hard and deep.
"Oh, no! We have to get her to the hospital wing! Hurry!" Ariel, Emily, and Lily lifted Skye up, carrying her throughout the castle. They moved as quickly as they could, many looks of confusion and terror as they made way through the castle. The Marauders showed up while they were running, and came instantly to help.
"What happened to her?" Remus cried, "Is she okay?"
"We don't know," Lily panted, almost in tears, "She's not breathing well."
They arrived at the hospital wing, and the nurse took her immediately. She told them to go on to class, but Lily couldn't leave. Ariel took Lily's hand, but Lily started to cry. She ran out before any of the boys could tell, and hid in the Astronomy tower. Ariel and Emily came to her side. They understood completely. They all cried for a while, until they heard a door open, with a professor asking if everything was alright. They were okay by then, and hurried along to class.
Sirius, James, Peter, and Remus walked to class. Sirius stayed behind for a minute, to look after Skye. For some reason, he was particularly worried about her. She looked so peaceful, but in so much pain, lying there in that bed. The curtains drew themselves around her, and he left. He ran into Severus on the way to class.
"Aw, sometink wong wif wittle Bwack's guwlfwend? Poor baby," he muttered.
Sirius was so angry, that he shot out, "You know what, Snivellus? Why don't you take that attitude to the Shrieking Shack tonight at midnight, where we can have a real dual, but now, I'm late for class."
Sirius knew very well that it was a full moon, and intended on Moony to kill Snape for him.
After dinner, the other Divines went to visit Skye. Lily had been there all day, between classes, during lunch, etc. Skye was sleeping soundly now, and looked a whole lot better.
"It was poison," the nurse had said that day during lunch when Lily visited. "Someone tried to poison her. A simple engorging charm and some rest and she should be just fine. Who do you know has a grudge against this girl?"
She asked timidly. Lily was still teary-eyed, and didn't answer. She shook her head eventually, as to say that no one hated her. She was easily likeable. The Marauders, without Remus, went to visit her too. During this time, Sirius let it slip that he played a great prank on Severus. James burst out of the hospital wing, and rushed to help Snape. When James arrived at the Whomping Willow, the tree that Remus snuck under when he transformed, Snape had already gone in. He and Remus were arguing. Just as James got to Snape, Remus transformed. James and Sirius (in dog form) helped get Snape out. Dumbledore was informed, and Snape was told never to reveal Lupin's secret. If so, he would be expelled. For days, weeks even, the Marauder's didn't talk. No one could believe Sirius had been so stupid.
When Skye finally came back to the dormitory, everything changed. The Marauders talked everything out, and were back together. Lily was happy to have Skye back, and Sirius seemed downright chipper.
Finally, exam time came. Every 5th year was in the Great Hall, taking their Defense Against the Dark Arts Exam. All that could be heard was the sound of quills scratching along.
"Five more minutes!"
The voice made Lily jump. She quickly tried to get down the rest of her essay before time was up. Across two aisles and up a third from her, James was straightening up now, putting down his quill, pulling his roll of parchment towards him so as to reread what he had written. He yawned hugely and rumpled up his hair, making it even messier than it had been. Then, with a glance towards Professor Flitwick, he turned in his seat and grinned at a Sirius sitting four seats behind him. Sirius give James the thumbs-up. Sirius was lounging in his chair at his ease, tilting it back on two legs. His dark hair fell into his eyes with a sort of casual elegance that James's could ever have achieved. Two seats along from Sirius was Remus. He looked rather pale and peaky and was absorbed in the exam: as he reread his answers, he scratched his chin with the end of his quill, frowning slightly. Peter looked anxious; he was chewing his fingernails, staring down at his paper, scuffing the ground with his toes. Every now and then he glanced hopefully at his neighbor's paper. James was now doodling on a bit of scrap parchment. He had drawn a Snitch and was now tracing the letters 'L.E.'
"Quills down please!" squeaked Professor Flitwick. "That means you too, Stebbins! Please remain seated while I collect your parchment! Accio!" Over a hundred rolls of parchment zoomed into the air and into Professor Flitwick's outstretched arms, knocking him backwards off his feet. Several people laughed. A couple of students at the front desks got up, took hold of Professor Flitwick beneath the elbows and lifted him back onto his feet.
"Thank you… thank you," panted Professor Flitwick. "Very well, everybody, you're free to go!"
James hastily crossed out the 'L.E.' he had been embellishing, jumped to his feet, stuffed his quill and the exam paper into his bag, which he slung over his back, and stood waiting for Sirius to join him. A gang of chattering girls joined James, Sirius and Lupin,
"Did you like question ten, Moony?" asked Sirius, as they emerged into the Entrance Hall.
"Loved it," said Lupin briskly. "Give five signs that identify the werewolf. Excellent question."
"D'you think you managed to get all the signs?" said James in tones of mock concern.
"Think I did," said Lupin seriously, as they joined the crowd thronging around the front doors eager to get out into the sunlit grounds. "One: he's sitting on my chair. Two: he's wearing my clothes. Three: his name's Remus Lupin."
Peter was the only one who didn't laugh.
"I got the snout shape, the pupils of the eyes and the tufted tail," he said anxiously, "but I couldn't think what else –"
"How thick are you, Wormtail?" said James impatiently. "You run around with a werewolf once a month–"
"Keep your voice down," implored Remus.
James and his three friends strode off down the lawn towards the lake, "Well, I thought that paper was a piece of cake," Sirius said. "I'll be surprised if I don't get 'Outstanding' on it at least."
"Me too," said James. He put his hand in his pocket and took out a struggling Golden Snitch.
"Where'd you get that?"
"Nicked it," James said casually. He started playing with the Snitch, allowing it to fly as much as a foot away before seizing it again; his reflexes were excellent. Peter watched him in awe.
They stopped in the shade of a beech tree on the edge of the lake and threw themselves down on the grass. The sunlight was dazzling on the smooth surface of the lake, on the bank of which the group of laughing girls who had just left the Great Hall were sitting, with their shoes and socks off, cooling their feet in the water.
Remus had pulled out a book and was reading. Sirius stared around at the students milling over the grass, looking rather haughty and bored, but very handsomely so. James was still playing with the Snitch, letting it zoom further and further away, almost escaping but always grabbed it at the last second. Peter was watching him with his mouth open. Every time James made a particularly difficult catch, Peter gasped and applauded. After James seemed to be enjoying the attention. James' habit of rumpling up his hair as though to keep it from getting too tidy was taking over him as he kept looking over at the girls by the water's edge.
"Put that away, will you," said Sirius finally, as James made a fine catch and Peter let out a cheer, "before Peter wets himself with excitement." Peter turned slightly pink, but James grinned.
"If it bothers you," he said, stuffing the Snitch back in his pocket.
Sirius was the only one for whom James would have stopped showing off.
"I'm bored" said Sirius. "Wish it was full moon."
"You might," said Lupin darkly from behind his book. "We've still got Transfiguration, if you're bored you could test me. Here…" and he held out his book.
But Sirius snorted. "I don't need to look at that rubbish, I know it all."
"This'll liven you up, Padfoot," said James quietly. "Look who it is…" Sirius's head turned. He became very still, like a dog that has scented a rabbit.
"Excellent," he said softly. "Snivellus."
Snape was on his feet, stowing an OWL paper in his bag. As he left the shadows of the bushes and set off across the grass, Sirius and James stood up. Lupin and Peter remained sitting: Lupin was still staring down at his book, though his eyes were not moving and a faint frown line had appeared between his eyebrows; Peter was looking from Sirius and James to Snape with a look of avid anticipation on his face.
"All right Snivellus?" said James loudly. Snape reacted so fast it was as though he had been expecting an attack: dropping his bag, he plunged his hand inside his robes and his wand was halfway into the air when James shouted, "Expelliarmus!"
Snape's wand flew twelve feet into the air and fell with a little thud in the grass behind him. Sirius let out a bark of laughter.
"Impedimenta!" he said, pointing his wand at Snape, who was knocked off his feet halfway through a dive towards his own fallen wand. Students all around had turned to watch. Some of them had got to their feet and were edging nearer. Some looked apprehensive, others entertained. Snape lay panting on the ground. James and Sirius advanced on him, wands raised, James glancing over his shoulder at the girls at the water's edge as he went. Peter was on his feet now, watching hungrily, edging around Lupin to get a clearer view.
"How'd the exam go, Snivelly?" said James.
"I was watching him, his nose was touching the parchment," said Sirius viciously. "There'll be great grease marks all over it, they won't be able to read a word."
Several people watching laughed and Peter sniggered shrilly. Snape was trying to get up, but the jinx was still operating on him; he was struggling, as though bound by invisible ropes.
"You - wait," he panted, staring up at James with an expression of purest loathing, "you - wait!"
"Wait for what?" said Sirius coolly. "What're you going to do, Snivelly, wipe your nose on us?" Snape let out a scream of mixed swear words and hexes, but with his wand ten feet away nothing happened.
"Wash out your mouth," said James coldly. "Scourgify!"
Pink soap bubbles streamed from Snape's mouth at once; the froth was covering his lips, making him gag, and choking him –
Lily and her friends were sitting by the Lake's edge after the exam. They had all done remarkably well. While talking and laughing near the water, they noticed a group of people rushing over the other side of the lake. Then they heard a high-pitched scream that filled the air. Lily turned her head to see what was going on. "What is it?" asked Ariel. "It's Potter," replied Lily, "He's pestering Snape again." She got up to defend him.
Leave him ALONE!" Lily shouted angrily. James and Sirius wheeled around to face her.
"All right, Evans?" asked James, the tone of his voice sickeningly sweet.
"Leave him alone," Lily repeated, looking at James with every sign of great dislike. "What's he done to you?"
"Well," said James, appearing to deliberate the point, "it's more the fact that he exists, if you know what I mean…"
"You think you're so funny," she said coldly, "But you're just an arrogant, bullying toerag, Potter. Leave him alone."
"I will if you go out with me, Evans," said James quickly. "Go on… go out with me and I'll never lay a wand on old Snivelly again."
"I wouldn't go out with you if it was a choice between you and the giant squid," said Lily.
By the time she had finished saying this, Potter and Snape had engaged in a not-so-friendly fight which had stopped temporarily with Snape hanging upside-down in midair.
"Let him down!" she said impatiently.
James did as he was told, but as Snape landed in a crumpled heap on the ground, Sirius had said, "Locomotor mortis!" which caused Snape to keel over as rigid as a board.
She took out her wand, shouting, "LEAVE HIM ALONE!"
"Ah, Evans, don't make me hex you," said James earnestly.
"Take the curse off him, then!"
He muttered the countercurse, saying, "You're lucky Evans was here, Snivellus-"
"I don't need help from filthy little Mudbloods like her!"
"Apologize to Evans!" roared James threateningly.
"Don't do that- you're just as bad as he is!"
"What!" yelped James, hardly believing her words. "I'd NEVER call you a- you-know-what!"
"Messing up your hair because you think it looks cool to look like you've just gotten off your broomstick, showing off with that stupid Snitch, walking down corridors and hexing anyone who annoys you just because you can- I'm surprised your broomstick can get off the ground with that fat head on it. You make me SICK."
She turned on her heel and stormed off. Some of the girls from the lake were getting up now, glancing at Lily.
"Evans!" James shouted after her, "Hey! EVANS!" She didn't look back.
"What is it with her?" said James, trying to look as if it was a throw-away question of no importance, and knowing he was failing.
"Reading between the lines, I'd say she thinks you're a bit conceited mate." said Sirius.
"Right." said James, furious now, "Right…"
There was a flash of light and Snape was hanging upside down in the air.
"Who wants to see me take Snivellus's pants off?"
James, however, was deep in thought. He'd really screwed it up this time. Lily HATED him now… And there was nothing he could do to change that…
Voldemort's attacks in the fifth year became more and more prevalent. Every few weeks, black owls would be sent to children whose family or friends or known person had died. During these awful times, the students would have to stick together, or risk losing everything.