A/n: Next chapter, finally up. Super huge thank you to all my reviewers. In reference to the Quidditch match in chapter 2, where Gryffindor completely wiped out Slytherin: it most likely wouldn't actually happen b/c Slytherin is actaully really good at Quidditch. However, I took some artistic license and mostly just wanted to see them lose that badly, so I did (lol, fellow authors, you know how it is). I can't tell you who the hooded figure is, only that its NOT Peter - honest. I didn't get Vadamir from any movie, and if its familiar, or it does happen to be from some movie, then I apologize now, 'cuz I just made it up. Anyways, some strange things are brewing that you probly won't get a strong "clue" to 'till later, but stick with me and trust me! I got it all worked out... Anyways, enjoy:D
Chapter 4
Morning arrived, clear, bright and cloudless, showing no signs of the strange and frightening storm that had occurred during the night.
Sirius absent-mindedly got dressed, still mulling over what he'd seen. Had it been a dream? Had he somehow imagined it? It was possible... He definitely was going to talk to James, and most likely Remus about it, and he hoped they would believe him, or at least add something to his answerless questions.
As he headed out of the dorm with his shirt on backwards, he didn't notice that Peter's bed covers were not rumpled from last night's usage. At the bottom of the steps, he found James and Remus waiting for him as usual. Remus yawned.
"Not enough sleep, Moony?" Sirius asked.
Remus smirked. Apparently you didn't either there, Padfoot."
"Eh?"
Remus pointed to Sirius' chest. "You shirt is on backwards, smart guy."
"Oh." Sirius adjusted it as James laughed out loud.
"Was some thunderstorm last night though, eh boys?" Remus said.
"Ya." James said plainly and glanced around the Common Room.
"Ya..." Sirius rubbed his hands together, just itching to tell his friends about last night. He opened his mouth to speak when James cut in,
"Er, is Wormtail still up there?"
Sirius shook his head. "I don't think so... why? He didn't already come down?"
Remus looked between the two confusedly. "What? He's not upstairs? I thought he was."
"No... I'm quite sure he wasn't there..."
James darted past them and up the stairs to double check. He returned a moment later and shrugged. "Nope. Guess he must've gone down with Frank, or something."
The three Gryffindor boys headed down to breakfast, all of which were finding it quite hard to believe that Peter hadn't waited for them. The kid practically worshipped the ground they walked on, and definitely wouldn't miss the chance to do something even as menial as walk to breakfast with them. Still, from time to time it'd been known to happen.
They reached the Gryffindor table and were quite surprised to see no Peter anywhere.
"Oi, Frank?"
Frank Longbottom looked up from his Daily Prophet. "Yes?"
"You seen Peter yet this morning?" James asked.
Frank thought for a moment and them slowly shook his head. "No, I don't think so... not since last night."
"Hmm. Alright then, if you see him, let us know. Thanks anyways."
Frank nodded and sipped his orange juice. "Will do."
The three friends settled down to eat, each trying to ignore the rising concern they felt for the disappearance of their friend.
The rest of breakfast passed by rather uneventfully, with Sirius' brain still buzzing with the storm's disturbing images. He wanted to tell the other two about it now, but there were too many people around to hear, and Sirius felt as though it should be discussed in private. There had been no chance on the way down from breakfast, because as soon as they'd reached the sixth floor, a group of girls, some Gryffindor, some Hufflepuff, and a Ravenclaw, had all followed, giggling and blushing and mumbling things among themselves.
It wasn't until after breakfast when the three managed to be alone in the hall on the fourth floor that Sirius finally found an opportunity to tell James and Remus about what he'd seen. In a way, he was almost glad that Peter wasn't around, because that meant that Sirius didn't have to try and devise a way to get rid of him for a little while.
He stopped them and immediately plunged into his story, sparing no detail, until he'd reached the end. He added that he felt like he was sure it wasn't a dream, and he wanted to know what they thought about the whole thing.
When Sirius had finished, Remus and James were quiet for several seconds. Finally, James said,
"So what exactly does it all mean?"
Sirius turned to Remus. "I was hoping Moony could enlighten us." he half-smiled wryly. "You're the smart one, after all."
James copied Sirius' smile and also turned to Remus.
Remus bit his lip and his forehead crinkled in thought. A moment later he relaxed his features and shook his head. "I don't know... I don't think I've ever heard or read of anything like this before."
"But you guys do believe me?" Sirius glanced from one to the other. "Do you think I could've been dreaming?"
"Of course we believe you, Padfoot!" James said and patted Sirius on the shoulder. "What kind of friends would be otherwise?"
"Well, I would've been skeptical, except for the fact that I heard the noises also." Remus said matter-of-factly. "I thought it didn't sound quite like thunder, but, I was half-asleep. I just assumed it had to be thunder."
Sirius let out his breath a little. He was sure that James would say he believed him, even if he didn't, but he had been worried that Remus would be very doubtful and not bother to set out to prove it, just dismissing it as a crazy dream.
They were quiet for a moment, each trying desperately to rack their brain for some sort of clue or hint to help them with the mystery of the electric storm cloud.
Remus finally sighed and flopped his hands to his side. "I don't know. I'll check the library as soon as I get the chance."
The other two nodded and they started walking back towards the Gryffindor Tower.
"By the way," James said. "This has nothing to do with anything, but maybe we should see if Peter is back yet."
"Right."
The three Gryffindor boys were quiet for a few moments, walking leisurely down the hall, and it wasn't long after they'd exited the hall on the fourth floor that James broke the silence again.
"So, Padfoot, if he's the smart one," he pointed his thumb briefly at Remus. "Then what does that make you and me?" he sounded like he was trying to be serious, but was failing at it.
"Well," Sirius also attempted to keep a straight face, but for some reason was finding it increasingly difficult. "You're the... brawns, and I'm the good-looking one." he grinned widely.
"Oh really?"
"Really!"
"I'm the brawn?"
"You're the brawn."
"And you're the good-looking one?"
"I'm the good-looking one."
The two smirked at each other, on the verge of bursting into fits of laughter.
"So then what is Peter?" Remus piped up, a smile creeping across his features.
Sirius thought for a moment. "Lucky?"
They all burst out laughing, severely startling a man in a painting they were passing. When he regained his breath, Remus tried to protest and defend Peter by saying he really wasn't that annoying most of the time, but James and Sirius popped in a comment here and there and it just made it all the more funny. They all secretly agreed that Peter was a good kid, he was their friend, it was just that he was the easiest to tease, and teasing him in general was just too much fun.
Sirius, Remus and James reached Gryffindor Tower not long after and entered the Common Room, hoping to find some sign of their friend. They were not disappointed. No sooner had James suggested they first check the dorm, then young Peter came bounding down the steps.
"Here you are!" Remus said. "Where have you been?"
"Oh, you're back! I was just going to come get you from breakfast." his face was flushed and sweaty, as though he had just run a mile, and he was grinning from ear to ear. He held his stubby hands clasped in front of his chest. "Come upstairs! I got a surprise for you! Come!"
The other three exchanged glances before reluctantly following an over-excited Peter. James in particular had received a few too many of Peter's post-Quidditch victory surprises to get too happy or excited.
"What is it, Peter?" James half-sighed, ignoring the smirk from Sirius. In his mind's eye, he briefly imagined a pile of four leaf clovers on his bed... or a garland around the top of his bed... he smiled and almost laughed aloud at the next crazy image to flit through his mind: maybe Peter had knit him clothes out of millions of four-leaf clovers...
They reached the dorm, and in one swift motion, Peter pulled back the hangings on his bed, which was revealed to be piled high with a wild assortment of objects - or food items, rather.
James spotted several boxes and bags of all kinds of candy, such as Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans, Fizzing Whizzbees, Pepper Imps and Ice Mice. There were numerous packages of blood flavoured lollipops, floating sherbert balls, exploding bon-bons, Cockroach Clusters, Droobles Best Blowing Gum - in fact, it looked as though a good portion of Honeydukes had exploded and landed itself on Peter's bed.
"Pete..." James really didn't know what to say. He liked the idea of all the goodies, but something was wrong with this picture...
"Where'd you get all this?" Remus said sharply.
"Honeydukes of course!" Peter said brightly, clasping his hands in front of his chest once again. "Where else?"
Sirius' eyes were stuck on the 6-pack of take-home Butterbeer. Already his mouth was watering, just thinking of how it tasted...
"And... you paid for it, of course?" Remus asked.
Peter's smile shrunk a little, and the wind in his sails seemed to deflate some. "Of - of c-course..." he said unconvincingly.
Sirius' eyes shot from the Butterbeer to Peter. "You stole it?"
Peter began twisting his hands around uncomfortably. "I... I-I... n-no, well, I-I..."
Remus shook his head, clearly not impressed or okay with Peter's surprise.
Sirius, however, was trying to hold in his laughter (why did he always half to laugh at times like these? In fact, why did he have to laugh so often?). So far he was managing to keep his grin mostly suppressed, although he was quite sure any little comment could easily set him off. He definitely realized the magnitude of what Peter had done, and how truly wrong it was that he had done it. But, the fact that it was Peter who had done it - timid, 'lucky', immature little Peter Pettigrew - rather than himself or James, somehow made the situation very amusing.
He glanced over at James, who was avoiding Sirius' eyes by staring at the ceiling and was running his tongue over his teeth beneath his lips - a very sure sign that James was thinking along the same lines as Sirius, and that he too was trying desperately not to smile or laugh at the situation.
"I can't believe you stole this." Remus said, his voice etched with disappointment.
Peter's face was now flushed not with effort, but with embarrassment.
James finally met Sirius' eyes, and pursed his lips to hide the smile pushing to be on his face.
"I can't either." Sirius said seriously. His eye ever so briefly darted to James, who was still fighting a grin, and Sirius practically lost it. "But good on ya!" he said, but the others only half-understood it, as he and James burst out laughing.
Peter looked hopefully from Sirius to James, purposefully avoiding Remus' penetrating gaze.
Remus was not smiling in the slightest. "You guys think this is funny?"
James managed to gain control of himself first, and said, "Well, yes, actually!"
"How is Peter stealing a hundred Galleons worth of candy from Honeydukes supposed to be funny?" Remus had his arms crossed over his chest, and was giving the others his most disapproving look.
Peter gulped and looked at the floor. He nudged at the floor with his toe.
"Tell you what, Remmie, if Pete promises never to do it again, will you join us in enjoying the feast brought to us?" Sirius said after gasping a few breaths and gaining back control of himself.
Remus shook his head. "This is not okay! He stole it! Doesn't that mean anything to you two?"
Sirius shrugged and said nothing. He knew that Peter was in the wrong - knew it and understood it - but his prankster side couldn't help him from thinking along the lines of 'ah well, who cares?'. Of course, his stomach couldn't help thinking along the lines of 'yum'.
"No?" Remus glanced at James, who looked guiltily away. "No, I guess it wouldn't matter to two notorious prats, such as yourselves, Potter and Black." he turned on his heel and exited the dorm, his robe billowing out behind him.
"Aw, c'mon, Remus!" Sirius said, feeling quite guilty already. Remus only used their last names when he was really angry. He was right. "He'll take half of it back!" he called after Remus.
"More than half!" James added.
Sirius mumbled to Peter, "Won't you, Peter?" he shot him a 'you're-going-to-whether-you-like-it-or-not' looks, and gave him a nudge.
"Er, ya! More than half!" Peter yelled down the stairs after Remus (who was most likely not in Gryffindor Tower anymore).
James sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. "Just take it all back, Pete."
Peter looked crestfallen. "But... James..."
Sirius turned around quickly to face James. "Prongs! You off your rocker! Free candy and lots of it! Nearly all you can eat! I mean, he's taking more than half back already, but all!"
Peter nodded and echoed stupidly, "Ya! Nearly all you can eat!"
James shook his head. "Moony's right. Its stolen." he sighed. "Unless we pay for it, its all going back. As much as I want to, my conscience is getting to me."
Sirius put a hand on James' shoulder. "You and that conscience." he sighed also, and stared longingly at the pile of treats spread across Peter's bed. "Take it back, Wormtail."
Again, Peter looked forlornly at his two friends. "But - b-but I... you..."
"Just take it back." Sirius said more firmly.
"It was a nice thought, Pete. I appreciate it. But next time, pay for them, alright?" James said more softly, trying to ease the situation a little. He didn't want Peter to be totally crushed. He offered a half-smile, which Peter acceptingly returned.
Peter sort-of nodded and grabbed an old, beat up-looking sack from under his bed and began stuffing the eatable items into it.
"Can I ask how'd you get 'em here?" Sirius asked, his arms crossed, trying hard not to think about the food he was being forced to miss out on. 'Darn conscience.' he thought.
Peter brightened slightly and quickly explained. "Well, I went down to the Shack, like we always do before the full moon, you know - with the passage under the Willow and stuff. Then, as a rat, I went to Honeydukes, drug anything I wanted down into the passage in the basement of Honeydukes - that took awhile, since I had to do it all as a rat, especially the Buterbeer." He glanced at Sirius and snickered, while Sirius and James felt like they had missed the 'joke'.
Peter continued, "Then I went back to being me, and hauled it all in this here sack, down the passage and came out the one-eyed witch on the third floor. After that, I hauled it up here - luckily everyone was at breakfast, so I didn't run into anyone." he sighed slightly as if very proud of himself. "Took me pretty much all night. Didn't get back up here 'till you guys did, pretty much. The lot is pretty heavy. Wicked thunderstorm last night, though, eh?" he rubbed his hands together.
The two others exchanged glances so quick, they even barely noticed they'd done it. James cleared his throat and changed the subject. "Er, ya, so, we were wondering where you were. Anyways, I s'pose I oughta go find Remus."
Peter began refilling his sack as Sirius nodded to James' comment.
James took a step or two towards the door, and Sirius snatched up the six-pack of Butterbeer. "But I'm keepin' this."
James couldn't help but smile. "As long as you give me one."
A/n: As usual, please leave me a review and tell me what you think. I love getting feeback, and up 'till now have not requested there be no flames. I got some a short time ago on one of my other stories and they were really upsetting and unpleasant, so now I ask, no flames please. But if I suck, then tell what I can do better! Above all, no swearing please and thank you (I really do appreciate it).
Also, there is going to be some stuff in later chapters (which I already have written, they're just not into my puter yet) which mayappear to be taken from a TV show and/or movie, and I swear to you all here and now, that it is purely coincidence. I had it all done, and then I saw a commercial for Charmed (I think it was...?) and it had like exactly what I wrote appearing in this commercial, so ya. I don't watch the show, and I swear I didn't know (don't sue me, I have nothing, lol).