Chapter Sixteen

Up to Something

Fraud and falsehood only dread examination. Truth invites it.

~Samuel Johnson

Leading up to the mid-February Gryffindor versus Hufflepuff Quidditch match, James and Sirius kept their word. They didn't pull a single prank or do anything at all to Severus Snape. The Slytherin hadn't made it easy, either. After the lack of response to his Pepper Up potion sabotage, he seemed to grow in confidence. He'd shout out insults and taunts as the four Gryffindor's passed. Snape never went for another out and out attack, obviously too afraid to push his luck too far. Which, James had to admit, was smart of him. There was only so much James and Sirius could take before they forgot their word, went against their promise, and retaliated.

However, James and Sirius weren't completely idle. They'd found out they could still get a slight rise out of Snape based simply on their reputation. All they needed was to whisper to each other in his presence, or simply look suspicious and like they were up to something, and Snape would instantly start worrying. He would throw furtive glances at the pair and give them a wide berth.

"You know Sirius," James commented one chilly early February day as the first years once again made their way down to the Quidditch pitch for their flying lesson. They were walking right behind Snape, who was once again alone, taunting him with verbal threats.

"Know what, James?" Sirius responded. Both were talking rather loudly, ensuring that Snape could hear them. The greasy haired boy kept his head down and pretended to ignore the pair.

"It's been an awfully long time since we taught Snape anything. Maybe he's started to forget our lessons." As he walked, James kicked at the loose stones on the pathway. Several, much to James' delight, bounced off the back of Snape's legs, back, and butt.

"He has been getting rather uppity, lately. Shooting off his mouth. Doing some pretty stupid things in potions class. He could do for another lesson, I'd say." Sirius replied. He pulled his hands from his pockets and began rolling up his sleeves like he was preparing for something. Severus Snape picked up his pace, but the Gryffindor boys kept up with him.

"Of course," James continued, "we couldn't do something now. It would be too expected. No, we should wait a little. Lull Snivellus into a false sense of security and then strike when he's let his guard down." Sirius, James, and Peter then burst out into laughter and the foursome pushed passed Snape on their way down to the Quidditch pitch.

The temporary cessation of pranking also allowed James and Sirius more time to focus on other things like their schoolwork (which wasn't really a high priority), their continued exploration of the castle that they'd begun while looking for the Hogwarts kitchens, and their plans for future pranks. If nothing happened at the upcoming Quidditch game, James and Sirius wanted to plan for another large-scale joke. One that, unlike tampering with brooms and players, the school would find humorous and enjoyable.

"I knew this kid, a muggle from back home. He always talked about this thing called a film, like a whole bunch of photographs put together to tell a story. Anyway, this film was called Fantasia, and, in it, this like magical mouse animates brooms and makes them dance around," James suggested one afternoon, about two days before the match. He and Sirius sat at a small table in an alcove of the Gryffindor common room. Sirius was busy scratching out words on a piece of parchment, ideas for their next big prank. At James' word, Sirius stopped his writing and looked up at James.

"Sounds interesting but I think, for the time being, we should avoid anything that has to do with animating brooms, even if it is just to have them dance around. Too similar to what happened at the match. It might raise suspicions and only increase the heat on us," Sirius responded, keeping his voice as soft and quiet as possible. He didn't want anyone overhearing them talking about brooms, even if it was to deny their role in the whole debacle. Suspicious ears could turn even the most innocuous of conversations into something malicious.

James, taking in, and fully agreeing with, Sirius' words, turned to look out the window beside him. He was hoping maybe something he saw outside would act as a spark of inspiration and give him an idea for their next prank.

For the most part, the grounds outside were deserted. It was cold and dark out, a hamper to many students. At that point, they much more preferred the warmth of the castle. However, James was able to spot a few brave souls out enjoying the crisp February night. A small group of six were running around in the fresh snow, which had fallen the night before and throughout that day. They were playing in the snow and throwing snowballs at each other.

And with that, James had an idea.

The day of the Gryffindor versus Hufflepuff game was cold and crisp. Students donned multiple layers, thick cloaks, and warm scarves denoting their house they were cheering on. As well, some of the older students were selling small jars with bluebell flames to help people keep warm on the outdoor pitch.

The student body was excited, buzzing with predictions of what would happen. Quidditch was a major event at Hogwarts and never failed to excite the population. However, this time, there was also an edge to the excitement. This would be the first match for Gryffindor since the disastrous one against Slytherin. The buzz of predictions was slightly tempered by whispers about the possibilities of the Hufflepuff brooms being tampered with, or that something else similar could happen.

James and the others chose to ignore the less pleasant whisperings and mumblings and forged ahead to their spots. Slowly, the rest of the students trickled in, filling the stands. Then the players for both teams walked out onto the grass below.

"Good morning, Hogwarts! Today looks like an excellent, if chilly, day for Quidditch. Today, Hufflepuff, a fairly sturdy team with quite the chance at winning the cup, in my slightly biased opinion. They've won against Ravenclaw, and they can most certainly beat Gryffindor. Speaking of, the team going up against Hufflepuff is the winner of the cup last year. However, in their first match against Slytherin, which I'm sure you all remember, they were absolutely decimated. In order to have any chance for the cup this year, Gryffindor must win this game." Karlson's, the announcer's, voice boomed out over the crowd. Cheers and jeers erupted from the students depending on what was being said.

"Mr. Broadmoor has arrived, and the game begins! Now, no funny business out there, ladies and gents! We want a nice, fair game!" Karlson spoke with a joking tone, but James didn't appreciate it. The broom tampering had probably been someone's idea of a joke, similar to the Halloween prank, but it had backfired, royally. No one would try the same thing again.

"Gryffindor starts with possession of the Quaffle after chaser Frank Longbottom beats his Hufflepuff opponent Andrew Rudolph! Longbottom takes the Quaffle down the pitch, dodging bludgers sent by Finch and Beauregard! The Hufflepuff chaser, Meyers, is pressing him. Meyers is closing in on Longbottom. What will the Gryffindor chaser do? Oh, look, that's some pretty fancy flying from the fifth-year! But Meyers is still on Longbottom's tail. Longbottom must be feeling the pressure, he winds up and … passes to fellow chaser Cornish, who is able to get passed the Hufflepuff defence. Gryffindor quickly closes the gap to the keeper and Cornish takes a shot! And it's good! Ten points to Gryffindor!"

When he watched Quidditch with his father, James followed the action by watching the chasers and the Quaffle. After all, that was the main part of the game. However, his father watched differently. Quidditch games were always announced so if you missed where the Quaffle was, you could still follow the game. Because his father could hear the game, he didn't watch the Quaffle and the chasers, but searched out the seekers. This, Fleamont insisted, was the true mastery of Quidditch. Games were not often won by the chasers, but by the seeker and 150 point Snitch.

The first few minutes of the game passed in much the same way. Gryffindor had possession of the Quaffle most, about 20 of the first 30 minutes. And the score represented that fact. Gryffindor was leading Hufflepuff with a score of 60 to 10. Nothing untoward or malicious had occurred. None of the players on either team seemed to be having any problem with their brooms. In short, besides the dominance of one team over another, the first 30 minutes of the game was entirely routine.

But then, at 30 minutes, everything went wrong. Just like in the first match against Slytherin, several of the Hufflepuff players seemed to lose control of their brooms. All the players, on both teams, must have been on edge since walking onto the pitch that day, because as soon as things went wrong, they all froze. Well, all those who had control over their brooms froze.

The three Hufflepuff chasers were the victims this time, and whomever had jinxed their brooms had done so in such a way that it made the three chasers appear to be performing a choreographed dance. They dove and spun around in quite an eye catching and appealing fashion. Despite the visually appealing nature of it all, the assembled crowd still reacted with jeers and shouted complaints. Even Gryffindors joined in, upset that someone was messing with their team, their house, their reputation, and making them look bad.

Mr. Broadmoor was quickly able to freeze the offending brooms and get the Hufflepuff chasers, Rudolph, Meyers, and Smith onto the grass below. Professor Strinkley quickly made his way to the players and took their brooms. Rudolph, Meyers, and Smith were then presented with school brooms, which they gladly accepted.

During the whole affair, which had only lasted about five minutes, Karlson had been silent. He hadn't even spoken when the brooms first started acting up. He had been commenting on the game and then he'd gone silent. As James looked away from the action on the field and towards the small commentators booth that was located in front of the staff stands, he saw why Karlson had gone silent.

It would appear that, as soon as things had started to go wrong, Professor Greensleigh, the Deputy Headmaster and the Head of Hufflepuff house, had jumped in and silenced the announcer's megaphone thing. Karlson was obviously not happy about having his voice taken away and was in quite a row with Professor Greensleigh.

"Ladies and gentlemen!" Suddenly the voice of Professor Dumbledore echoed throughout the stands. The power and force behind the words got everyone's attention and they ceased their previous actions. "Unfortunately, someone has decided to disrupt the goings-on of this game. I'm not sure if they think it is a joke, or if their intent is malicious. I can assure you that, because of the repeated nature of these events, a full and thorough investigation will be conducted. The perpetrators will be found out and adequately dealt with. Tampering with players' brooms in any instance, but especially in an official match is absolutely reprehensible.

"After a brief discussion with all of the players, their desire to continue the game has made clear. As you saw, the affected players have been given replacement brooms. From here on out, I want a clean game with no more funny business. I would hate to have to call the rest of the matches because of the actions of a few misguided souls." Professor Dumbledore let the threat hang in the air, hoping it would be enough to stop the broom tampering. If this was a joke, the threat of the cessation of further Quidditch matches should be enough to make it clear that the joke was not funny. If the persons responsible were jinxing brooms in an attempt to fix the matches, and presumably assure the cup for a particular team, the potential of that goal being removed should also stop the jinxing.

"And, we're back!" Karlson said after Dumbledore returned to his seat. All the players remounted their brooms and returned to the air. "Hufflepuff has the quaffle! Smith takes it down the field! Oh! Hit by a bludger. Smith has released the quaffle and Gryffindor chaser Cornish retrieves it! Gryffindor is moving down the pitch. The quaffle is passed between Cornish and Longbottom! The two expertly evade Hufflepuff defences and shoot! Saved by McLaughlin! Score still stands at 60 to 10 for Gryffindor!"

Play resumed, back to the normality that it had been at the start. All players seemed to be in control of their brooms. As well, a new passion seemed to be ignited in the Hufflepuff players and their play became much more ferocious and focused. Where they'd previously been slow and not much competition, now they were lightning fast and fierce.

As well as the Hufflepuff players, James noticed that Gryffindor's seeker seemed to be more intense and focused. He flew around the pitch with more vigour, his head on a constant swivel. It looked as if Gryffindor wanted to end this game as soon as possible, to not drag it out and have the possibility of something else happening.

"Hufflepuff scores! We now stand at 90 to 40 after an hour of a play! Oh, what's this! Gryffindor seeker Wilde has shot to the left of the pitch! Has she spotted something? Hufflepuff's seeker is far behind her, trying to catch up! Will he make it in time? No! Wilde has caught the snitch! Gryffindor wins!" A cheer went up from the Gryffindor section and a smattering of the Ravenclaws joined in as well.

As the students either celebrated or hung their heads in disappointment, James scanned the crowd. He wanted to see if he could see anyone acting suspicious. Maybe if he found the actual culprits, any suspicion on him and Sirius would be shifted to the correct individuals. In the Slytherin section, James spotted Warrington, the Slytherin team's captain and the Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor Strinkley. They were talking to each other but trying to look like they weren't. Instantly, James' instincts were peaked. Though James was sure it hadn't been Warrington he had seen with Strinkley after Halloween, the sight before him was so eerily similar that James felt they had to be connected. Something was definitely up with them. And James was going to find out what, especially if it cleared his name.

James followed his friends out of the stadium. He hung back a little, trying to find a way to discretely inform them about what he saw. Not wanting to share his suspicions in front of others in case he was wrong, he was looking for a place that was secluded. However, in the crowd of students he wasn't finding a good spot.

"You okay?" Sirius asked, drawing James' attention from his quest. Sirius, Remus, and Peter were standing around James, looking concerned. His search had kept him preoccupied to the point where he was nearly completely unaware of his surroundings. Had he done something to worry his friends?

"Yeah, why?" James asked, drawing out the words to emphasize the question. He was a little worried that he'd actually done something. The looks his friends were giving him really had him on edge.

"You look a little suspicious, glancing into corners and whatnot. Plus, you're walking really slowly. What are you up to because this sort of behaviour isn't really a good idea right now. People already think we're guilty and this isn't helping." Sirius responded.

"I saw something during the Quidditch match, something that could help us clear our names and reputations. I wanted to talk to you guys about it but, somewhere more private than in a crowd of other students. Just trying to find a place," James responded.

"I might have a place," Remus spoke, looking a little nervous and embarrassed about it. He led the group out of the stands but, instead of turning towards the castle, he turned towards the Forbidden Forest. James, Sirius, and Peter followed him. A few students shot them looks, obviously believing their breakaway from the larger group meant they were up to something. James tried his best to ignore them for once, feeling more confident now that he had a viable suspect for the broom tampering.

As the boys walked closer and closer to the edge of the forest, a sense of thrill filled James. Despite their present circumstances, he quite enjoyed their little sojourn to the forest. It was off limits, out of bounds. Students weren't supposed to be going there. Yet here they were, walking right towards it.

"Alright," Sirius spoke, turning on James. They had reached a small clearing just on the outside of the forest, well away from any other students. "What did you see? What's this thing that will clear us of all suspicion?" Sirius looked like a kid in a candy store, excited to clear his name and return to the joy of pranking without the large sword of misplaced guilt hanging over his head.

"At the end of the game, I thought I might be able to spot something that I could use as a clue. I was looking for someone out of place or acting strangely. Maybe someone looking around obviously, or extraordinarily upset at Hufflepuff's loss. What I saw can definitely be used as a clue.

"Professor Strinkley wasn't in the staff stands, but in amongst the Slytherin students. This is what caught my eye because he shouldn't have been there. It was strange behaviour. Anyway, Strinkley was talking to Warrington, the Slytherin Quidditch captain. Both looked too pleased with themselves. I mean, a Hufflepuff loss is good for Slytherin's chances at the Cup, but they seemed too pleased. Like they were pleased about more than just the uptick in their chances. They were trying really hard to make it look like they weren't talking to each other –looking in the opposite direction and talking behind hands and sleeves. Plus, it was really similar to the last time I saw Strinkley suspiciously talking to another Slytherin.

"I think Strinkley and Slytherin have something to do with the broom tampering." James finally came out and said it. He held his breath for a few seconds, worried about his friends' reaction.

"And if Strinkley is in on the broom hexing, he can influence the investigation. He can hide or destroy any evidence that points to Slytherin and fabricate or plant evidence that points to us or the Gryffindor team!" Sirius' exclaimed, jumping in on James' story. James nodded in agreement at his friend's words. He was relieved that Sirius was so willing to believe him.

"But why would Slytherin hex their own brooms? They could have easily lost the game with their antics. It seems like too high a cost, even if they're trying to make Gryffindor look bad." Remus chimed in, looking a little sceptical at what his friends were saying.

"They were in control the whole time. If they'd gotten into a deficit that they didn't think they could get out of, they could have cast counter-jinxes and played on. Also, if they had lost, they could have made Gryffindor look obviously guilty and gotten the team disqualified. It's not that risky of an idea, if you think about it." James responded. Remus was silent, conceding that James' explanation in defence was plausible.

"So," Sirius spoke after the quartet had lapsed into silence for several seconds, "what's our next step? What do we do with this information?" He was looking directly at James, waiting for the messy haired boy to divulge his plan. Sirius obviously believed that James had a full-fledged plan about what to do with the information to clear their names.

"Well, this isn't really proof of something." James responded a little sheepishly, "it's just a gut feeling of mine and no one will believe us based solely on a gut feeling. What we need now that we've got a possible suspect is some real, solid proof. We need to see if there is anything that connects the Slytherin's to the jinxings."

"Looks like it's time for a stakeout," Sirius said, his voice low and conspiratorial.