Ch. 9- A new year, a new beginning
A/N: okay, so I'm sorry for the wait, I just got really busy with school stuff...anyways, here is the new chapter and I have feeling you guys will hate me by the end of it, but you'll see why...this is where it starts to get kinda excting, so, yeah, enjoy:p
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We were strangers
Starting out on a journey
Never dreaming
What we'd have to go through
Now here we are
And I'm suddenly standing
At the beginning with you
At The Beginning- Richard Marx and Donna Lewis
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The rest of the summer went by quickly and soon enough it was time to go back to Hogwarts. Sirius had pretty much returned to normal after that night, but I still felt like he was holding something back. I didn't ask him, though, because I knew he would just side step me. If he didn't want to tell me then I wasn't going to pry.
"Alright, do you guys have everything?" Mrs. Potter asked, as we gathered in the front hall.
"Hope so, cause I'm not going back upstairs." James said, shrugging. Mrs. Potter just smiled and shook her head.
The ride to King's Cross was a relatively uneventful one, but that was okay. I kind of enjoyed the peace and quiet. It wasn't very often that we just sat there with our thoughts and I wouldn't want to do it all the time. But every once in a great while was always nice.
We got to the station and loaded up our trunks. Then we wen through the barrier to the other side. It was busy with parents talking to their children and students running around looking for compartments. Mrs. Potter pulled Sirius and I into a hug and said good bye. We both thanked her for everything she'd done for us and she insisted that it had been nothing. Then we backed off for a minute so that she and James could have a minute.
"Well, I see you're both still alive and well." Came a voice from behind us. We turned to see Remus standing there with a smile on his face.
"Moony! Man, all summer and not once did you drop an owl or come over to see us." Sirius said, in a mock hurt voice.
"Well, I would have, but we were gone most of the holiday. My parents decided to back pack across Europe and then take one those long road trips across the USA." He said, with a shrug. "It was fun for the most part, but I'm glad to have sometime to myself now."
"Yeah, well, that's good then." Sirius replied, nodding.
"And I heard all about whats-his-name dropping by. He took you to the Qudditch Cup, right?" Remus said, looking at me.
"Yep, and it was amazing!" I said, trying to bite back the smile that was creeping across my face.
"Oh, look, Padfoot, she's blushing!" He said, in a would be cutesy voice, grabbing Sirius by the sleeve and jumping up and down like a little girl. "Since when does Joie Emerson blush?"
"Since she fell in love with Jon, the Ravenclaw." Sirius said, before I could even open my mouth to answer. His voice sounded playful, but there was an edge to it that both Remus and I noticed. Thankfully, James chose that moment to come in.
"Hey, Moony, mate, how ya doin'?" He asked, clapping Remus on the back.
"Great." He replied, looking from Sirius to me, a confused look on his face. But he regained his composure and smiled at James. "Let's get a compartment, then."
We made our way along the train, dodging everything from animals to first years. Remus told us all about his family bonding time and I told him about my dad. We sat down in a compartment near the end of the train and I pulled out a pack of muggle playing cards.
"What in the bloody hell are those?" Sirius asked, looking at the cards as if they would suddenly come alive and attack.
"They're called cards and they're a form of muggle entertainment." I replied, laughing at him.
"Hey, they look kinda like exploding snap cards!" James said, taking the pack and turning them over in his hands.
"Eh, kinda. Except these don't explode." I said, shrugging.
"Okay, then what are they good for?" Sirius asked, skeptically.
"Well, there are endless games you can play with them." I replied, taking them back from James and opening them. I held the deck up to show them. "This is referred to as a deck of cards. You need fifty-two cards to make a deck. With me so far?"
"Yeah." Remus said, and the other two nodded.
"Okay, so you want the cards to be as mixed up as possible and to do that you have to shuffle them, like this." I said, shuffling the deck and bridging them back together. "Then you're ready to deal out whatever game you're playing. My personal favorites are Speed, Bull Shit, King's Corner, Trash, and Egyptian Rat Screw. There's a few more, but those are the ones I play the most. Or I used to play the most anyways."
"Okay, so can you teach us?" James asked, looking at the cards excitedly. I laughed at him.
"Yeah, let's see…how about Bull Shit cause we have enough people to play that." I replied, dealing the cards out. "Now, you can look at your cards, but you don't want anybody else to see what you have. The object of this game is to be the first to get rid of your cards. Now, the way you do that is by either telling the truth or bull shitting it. We go around in a circle, starting with the ace of spades, and you have to go in numerical order, putting them face down. If we're on, say eight's, and you don't have any, then you put down another card and say it's an eight. If somebody says bull shit, then you have to take all the cards in the pile. If were to put down an eight and somebody said bull shit, then they would have to take all the cards. The important thing to remember in this game is to keep a poker face the whole time."
"Sounds simple enough." Remus said, shrugging.
"Yes, well, this game can get pretty heated." I said, smirking at him. "Alright whoever has the ace of spades can start if everybody's ready."
"Wait, can we put more than one card down?" Sirius asked, frowning as he looked at his cards.
"Yes, the most you can put down is four." I replied, and he nodded, still looking at his cards.
"Okay, two aces." He said, laying two cards down.
"Three twos." James said, laying his cards down.
"Bull shit." I said, not looking at him.
"How do you know?" He asked, surprised.
"Because I do, now pick 'em up." I said, looking up. He grumbled and picked the cards up.
"One three." Remus said.
"Two fours." I said, putting two cards down.
"Bull shit!" James all but yelled. I looked at him, and cocked an eyebrow.
"Take 'em, Prongsie." I said, grinning evilly at him. "You have to learn how to read you're opponents, you can't just randomly yell it out."
"Okay, two five's." Sirius said, continuing.
"Bull shit." This time it came from Remus. We all looked at him. "You heard me." He added, looking at Sirius. Sirius picked the cards up.
"One six." Remus said and his play went unchallenged.
"Two sevens." I said.
"Bull shit." Sirius said, looking at me.
"You sure bout that?" I asked, in an even tone.
"Sure am." He replied and I picked the cards up.
And that's how it went for a while. James eventually started getting the hang of it and it was turning into a vicious game. I was winning, but I was running out cards to play. Remus wasn't far behind me and James currently had the most cards. There was a huge pile in the middle and we were all casting sideways glances at everyone. And then, in a turn of events, James bull shitted me and I had to pick up the huge pile of cards. Remus ended up winning.
"That was a fun, but long, game." Sirius said, looking at his watch, We'd been playing for an hour and a half.
"Well, it all depends on how good the players are. Sometimes a game will only last like fifteen minutes." I said, shrugging.
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When we pulled into Hogsmeade, I was more than ready to get up to the castle. There was a feast with my name on it. Sirius and James seemed to have been thinking along the same lines as me, because they were all but running to the carriages. Remus just followed us, shaking his head. When we were all in, something seemed off to me. I couldn't figure out what at first, but then it hit me.
"Hey, has anybody seen Peter?" I asked, frowning.
"Nope, I didn't see him on the train." James said, with a shrug.
"Wait, did anybody hear from him over the summer?" Remus asked, looking from James to Sirius to me.
"We didn't hear from him." Sirius said, shaking his head.
"Which is weird, because we usually at least hear from him." Remus said, frowning too. "I wonder where he is."
"I dunno, but we'll probably see him in just a bit at the feast." James said, shrugging again.
"Yeah, you're probably right." I said, with a slight nod.
We walked inside to the Great Hall and sat down. Peter did indeed show up and when we asked where he'd been, he's just replied with, "Around." He was acting very strange, stranger than usual. He was more fidgety than he normally was and he would never make eye contact with any of us. Sirius and I raised our eyebrows at each other, but neither of us said anything.
The food was supremely delicious, as usual, and Dumbledore gave his usual speech with all the things that the students were forbidden to do. Nothing had really changed and that was a comforting thought. It was the same old Hogwarts with the same old teachers. When we were dismissed for bed, I saw Jon heading over to me and I told the guys that I would catch up with them.
"Hey there." He said, as he reached me.
"Hey yourself." I replied, smiling at him.
"So, I think we should find a nice empty class room." He said, a sly edge in voice.
"Oh and what would we do in this empty class room?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Talk and be perfect angels, of course." He said, seriously.
"Try again." I said, skeptically.
"Alright," He sighed, "we would snog until we got caught."
"That was exactly what I was thinking." I said, and he smiled.
He led me into a classroom on the second floor. It was one of the back up rooms that was never used. He closed the door and turned to face me. I smirked at him as if to say 'Kiss me if you dare' and he smirked back. And then we spent a lovely hour snogging. I have to say, Jon is an exceptional kisser.
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The next day classes started and as usual I was running late. I'd woken up late and nobody in my dorm had felt like getting me up. Lovely bunch of wenches, they are. So, not only did I miss breakfast, I was also late to Transfiguration. And of course, Susan sat there and snickered the entire time McGonagall lectured me about the importance of punctuality. It was a bad beginning to a crap day.
"You seem to be having a wonderful day." Jon said, sitting down next to me in the library later that night.
"Oh, yes, It's been bloody peachy." I replied, bitterly.
"Well, would it be better if I did something to improve it?" He asked, lacing his fingers through mine.
"Something being along the lines of last night?" I asked, looking at him.
"Yeah, along the lines of that." He replied, smiling.
"Well, then, I would say that would make it tremendously better." I said, smiling back. He pulled me up and led me out of the library.
We ended up in a broom closet. We'd probably been there for a good half an hour when all of sudden the door swung open. Jon and I broke apart to look at whoever opened it. It was Sirius.
"Oh, god." We said at the same time.
"What are you doing here?" He asked, stupidly.
"What does it look like, smart one?" I asked, wiping at my mouth.
"You really should consider going somewhere more private you know." He said, raising an eyebrow at me. Susan was with him and looked shocked that I happened to be snogging a very hot guy.
"Like you have any room to talk." I said, angrily. "You do it out in the open!"
"Yes, well, that's me. And I'm experienced." He shot back. I stood there for a second in shock that he would say that; what was his problem lately? Then I got my senses back and I stepped up to him and smacked him hard across the face.
"You're a prick is what you are." I snapped, before walking off.
"Hey, Joie, are you okay?" Jon asked, coming up behind me.
"Yeah, I just got a little worked up." I said, nodding.
"Hey, don't worry about him, he doesn't know what he's talking about." He said, stroking my cheek with hand. I didn't bother to point out that Sirius was my best friend, and therefore, knew what he was talking about. I just let myself get lost in Jon again.
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Over the next month, my relationship with Jon got more and more serious. He always ate with me- usually at the Ravenclaw table- and we studied together every night in the library. Or went to his dorm and snogged. I didn't realize it, but he was taking up more of my time and I rarely ever saw the guys anymore. I mean, there were always the moonlight excursions, but those only came around once a month. What I failed to realize was how possessive Jon was becoming. Every time I talked to a guy that he didn't know very well, he would get very jealous and always accuse me of trying to cheat. But I always just brushed it off as him being concerned. I was blinded by how much I liked being with him. But that changed one night.
"Hey, Joie, I don't want you to hang around with the Marauders anymore." He said, one night.
"What?" I asked, laughing. But when I looked at him, I saw he was dead serious.
"Yeah, well, I just don't think that they're a good influence on you." He replied, shrugging. "So, I don't want you talking to them, doing things with them, or even associating yourself with them anymore."
"You have got to be kidding me!" I said, in disbelief. "You can't tell me who to hang with!"
"Well, I think it's fair, since you are my girlfriend." He said.
"Yes, well, they are my friends." I said.
"Okay, listen, if you want to keep this relationship going, then you'll dump Black and his posse." Jon said, his voice starting to get an angry edge to it. "And I suggest that you do dump them."
"Or what?" I said, challenging him. Which apparently was not a good idea. Before I knew what happened, he had backhanded me across the face. It stung, but I didn't think it was going to leave a mark.
"Now, I suggest that you heed my words. Or the next time it'll be a whole hell of a lot more than just a smack across the face." He said, in a dangerous voice. All I could do was nod. "I'm only doing this because I care about you."
And with that he left. I stood there for a few minutes processing what had just happened. I had two choices. I could just ignore Jon and keep on being friends with the guys and test the waters. Or I could take this as a lesson and detach myself from them. I decided to go with the latter.
"Hey, Joie, what's up?" Remus asked, as I sat down in the Common Room.
"Not much." I said, not looking at him. It was going to kill me, to give the guys up, but I didn't think that Jon was bluffing when he said it would get worse.
"I hardly ever see you anymore." He said, a tired, somewhat hurt tone in his voice.
"Yeah, it's too bad." I said, trying to keep my voice flat. "Well, I'm off to bed, I'm beat." I added, and I stood and went up to the girl's dorm before he had a chance to answer.
The next day I got up and I felt like crap. I showered, got dressed, and went down to breakfast. I sat by myself at Gryffindor table and ate as quickly as I could. I got up and left as soon I saw the guys heading my way. I knew it wouldn't be that easy, but I hoped that at least in the corridors it would less likely that Jon would see us.
"Hey! Sunshine, wait up!" I could hear Sirius calling after me. I kept walking, knowing that they would catch up with me eventually. James was the first to reach me.
"Hey, what's up with you?" James asked, spinning me around.
"Nothing. I'm fine." I said, avoiding their eyes. "Why would something be up?"
"Um, maybe because you're hardly around anymore, you barely said ten words to me last night, and the fact that you didn't sit by us at breakfast and practically ran at the sight of us." Remus said, frowning. I glanced around making sure that neither Jon nor any of his friends were around.
"Look, I've just been busy, okay? I mean, you're over reacting." I replied, shrugging and trying to sound nonchalant.
"Does this change have anything to do with Jon?" Sirius asked, looking at me. I looked at him and tried to muster a smile.
"Of course not! Why would it have anything to do with Jon?" I asked, with a laugh. Except the laugh didn't sound like me at all and the guys noticed too.
"Look, if he's hurting you in any way, I'm going to hunt him down and kill him!" Sirius said, threateningly. I felt my heartbeat quicken and a wave of panic washed over me. If any of them confronted Jon, then it would just get worse. I couldn't let that happen.
"No, really, it's got nothing to do with Jon. I promise." I said, as evenly as I could. The three of them exchanged a glance, before they all nodded.
"Fine, but let's just keep it that way, eh?" Sirius said. "I don't like him."
"And why not?" I asked, wondering what Sirius had against Jon. Not that he wasn't justified; it was just that he'd been like this since the beginning.
"Well, mainly because I don't think he's good enough for you and besides, he's a slime." He replied, with a shrug. Oh sure, he tells me this now, after I have to find out about it myself.
"How is he a slime?" I scoffed, keeping up my front.
"It's just things I've heard about the guy. But hey, if he's treating you okay, then there's nothing to worry about, right?" Sirius said, giving me a meaningful look. I nodded. "C'mon let's get to class."
The rest of the day I spent trying to avoid Jon and the guys. It was hard and I was miserable, but it was necessary. I didn't want to piss Jon off again.
"Hey, meet me by the lake tonight at eight." He said, as we left Ancient Runes. "We need to talk."
The first thought that ran through my head was 'I hope he breaks up with me'. The second was 'Oh, shit, he knows that I was talking to the guys!' I couldn't be sure, but I thought that it was the only explanation.
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That night I headed down to the lake at about a quarter to eight. Jon was already down there by the time I got down there. He was looking out across the water and I had half a mind to go running back up to the Common Room and not face him. But this was my mess and I had to take care of it myself.
"Hey." I said, coming with in a few feet of him. He turned and looked at me. I knew this wasn't going to be good.
"I thought I was very clear when I told you to stay away from the Marauders." He said, in an icy tone.
"Look, they came up to me. It wasn't like I could ignore them." I replied, wondering why he was being like this.
"Yeah, well, you should've. Cause I warned you of what would happen if I caught you." He said, taking a step towards me. And then it hit me- why was I afraid him? I could take him. I mean, who was he to order me around like this? And just like that, anger flared up inside of me.
"Excuse me, but I don't think you're going to do anything to me." I said, matter-of-factly. "Look, if you don't like who I'm friends with, then get over it. I'm sick of this jealous boyfriend bit. It's over." I added, and with that I turned and started to walk away.
"You're not going anywhere!" I heard him snarl and then I felt him grab me around the waist and we both fell to the ground. My head hit a rock and then everything went black.
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muwhahahahaha...cliff hanger! What will happen next? Will Sirius come toher rescue? Will Jon hurt her? (well, duh, he already has, hasn't he?) Stay tuned for Chapter 10!
oh, and please review! It just may make me post that much faster! (wink wink, nudge nudge...)