-Author's Notes
-disclaimer: i go to a regular high school in america during the 21st century and i'm writing about a magcial boarding school i europe during the 70s. so i'm at a very drastic disadvantage so please if there's any mistakes with like slang or the vernacular or if i make hogwarts seem to american i apolozie. i will try my best
-this is a jegulus fic so if you're anti james get over it. there's also a bit of snape bashing (but only in the beginning) so if you're one of those people this is not for you. there is also going to be some wolfstar elements so you can always count on that if you don't like jegulus although it's most likely going to be 80% jegulus and 20% wolfstar (sorry)
-i hope you all enjoy
October 27, 1975
06:38:07
Quidditch Pitch
James Potter has it all. He's on the quidditch team, he's rich, he's good looking, he has a lot of friends and he at least passes school. He's amazing. Everyone wants what he has. He's one of the coolest kids in school. But there's more to it.
"James!" Frank yelled from the goal post. "Pay attention!"
James Potter was currently on the Quidditch pitch with the rest of the Gryffindor Quidditch team. They had been practicing since the crack of dawn. James had zoned out for one second and everyone was gone in one direction. That's how Quidditch works. It moves so fast that if you close your eyes for too long you're basically out of the game.
James quickly moved forward onto his broom so that he could catch up with his fellow chasers. Marlene and Mary weren't waiting for him. He always did wait for them though because he felt it was the gentlemen thing to do. When he caught up to the girls he yelled, "next time don't leave me!"
"Next time don't stop in the middle of the field," Marlene yelled back! She was currently holding the quaffle and flying toward Frank's goal so that she could get a score. Marlene threw the quaffle at the goal but Frank kicked it away.
James, thinking this was a perfect opportunity to showcase how good he's been getting, flew up and caught the quaffle before anyone else could. He flew away from Frank at first and everyone on the field looked confused.
"The hell are you doing Potter?" Alice yelled while whacking a bludger away from him. James kept flying until he was in the middle of the court. Marlene and Mary flew to him and then stopped right in front of him.
"Hey, I'm going to throw the ball as hard as I can," he said starting to instruct the two girls. Marlene when it gets close to Frank I want you to catch it and throw it at the goal but then Mary I want you to get it before it goes through the goal or before Frank hits it. Then I want you to make the shot."
James thought that he wasn't clear enough but the two girls understood him perfectly. James recoiled his arm and threw the quaffle as hard as he could. He saw it fly toward the goal for a couple of seconds before Marlene came out of nowhere, grabbed it, and threw it to the goal. Frank was ready to block it and James smiled. Mary quickly grabbed the quaffle before it was in Frank's sight and Frank, who didn't know where the quaffle went, looked confused. Mary then threw the quaffle into the goal, getting them a point.
They continued to practice for about an hour and when they were done they went to the locker room.
"Hey Potter," Frank said as he was walking over to the boy. "What the hell was that?"
"Um…" James said. He thought he was in trouble. Frank didn't like when people didn't follow his rules especially when it came to Quidditch.
"That was bloody brilliant mate!" Frank said, hugging James. "How did you come up with that?"
"I don't know, I just thought of it on the spot," James said truthfully.
"Well if you use that on the game against Slytherin this weekend they'll stand no chance," Frank said walking out of the locker room. James waited for Marlene and Mary to walk to the Great Hall. Breakfast was definitely being served right now and he knew that his best friends were already there.
"James!" Sirius said loud enough that the entire Great Hall could hear. Despite it being early Monday morning, Sirius was bursting with energy like always. "How was practice?"
"Amazing," James said as he sat down next to the three boys. Sirius, Remus and Peter were always at breakfast before him whenever the Quidditch team had practice. Remus was currently indulging himself in some hot cocoa. Sirius and Peter were both eating porridge, with sausage and toast. James grabbed a piece of toast.
Marlene, Mary and Dorcas walked over to the group of boys and sat down as well. "Are you guys going to the dance?" Marlene asked the boys as she grabbed a piece of sausage from Sirius' plate. Sirius smacked her finger and she dropped the sausage but she quickly picked it up and put it into her mouth laughing at Sirius.
"What dance?" Peter asked.
"Pete how do you not know about the dance?" Sirius asked. Peter shrugged and James rolled his eyes. Sometimes Peter could be so clueless and naive. "There's a dance this Saturday after the Quidditch match. There's always a dance after the first Quidditch match."
"Oh yeah," Peter said finally realizing what the others were talking about.
"So are you boys going?" Marlene asked the question again.
"Maybe. It all depends on the game," Sirius said. "If you guys win I'm definitely going, but if you guys lose against the Slytherins I'm going to riot and lock myself in our room."
"We aren't losing to the Slytherins," Alice said walking over to the group with Frank and Daniel Sharpe (the other beater) following right behind them. All three sat down and now the group which had started with just three had expanded to the entire Quidditch team and friends. "So don't even say that."
"Yea, we're crushing those god damned Slytherins," Danny said.
"I don't know why they always have the first match between the Gryffindors and Slytherins. It's like they want you guys to break each other's neck in the first few months of school," Remus said.
"Moony, you don't get it," Sirius said. "It's just friendly competition."
"Yea that's what everyone says and then they end up fighting on the field," Remus said. "I don't even understand this big rivalry between these two houses. You guys don't see Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws throwing fists and insults every time they see each other."
"That's because they're the Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws," Marlene said. "They aren't that important."
"Exactly," Danny said standing over Mary to high five Marlene. The two high fived and then laughed. James noticed that a couple of other people were looking at the clump of students and he laughed. Leave it to the Gryffindors to catch the attention of the entire hall while it's 7 in the morning.
"You guys know that they only have a capacity for 300 students," Dorcas said.
"Wait what?" James asked. "Only 300 students can go?"
"Yeah," Dorcas said. "Only fourth years and up can go to the dance but that's still not enough tickets for everyone who wants to go."
"Wait, are they having it in the Great Hall?" Alice asked.
"No, they're having it at some type of arena right outside of Hogsmeade," Lily said as she walked over to the group and sat down next to James. "Hey," she directed to him.
"Hi," James said looking at Remus who was now smiling.
"How do you know?" Frank asked.
"Because I'm on the event committee. Remus and I are both on it," Lily said.
"Wait you're on an event committee?" Sirius asked Remus.
"Yes, when we became prefects we were asked if we wanted to be a part of the committee," Remus said.
"Wow, how come I didn't know about this?" Danny asked. He jumped up pretending to be outraged. Of course he did at 7 in the morning. "I know everything."
"Obviously you don't so sit down and shut up," Mary said grabbing him and pulling him down.
"Wait but how did you know Dorcas?" Peter asked. Dorcas looked confused. "That only 300 students could go."
"Oh, because I'm on the committee too," she said. Everyone looked at her including Marlene.
"I understand them, but how did I not know this?" Marlene asked.
"I mean it never really came up," Dorcas said.
"Dorky I'm your best friend," Marlene said grabbing her hands from across the table and shaking them.
"If you don't let my hands go and you keep calling me that you aren't going to be anything to me," Dorcas said pulling her hands out of Marlene's grasp.
"If you guys are going, you need to go to McGonagall and get your tickets now because once they run out they ran out for good," Lily said. "I know that some of the Slytherins already got their ticket."
"Did Snivellus tell you that?" Sirius asked.
"Really Sirius," Lily asked. She sighed.
"It's a valid question," Sirius said with a giant grin on his face.
"No, it was your brother that you tried to forget you have," Lily said. She stood up and walked away. James didn't laugh but everyone's mouth was agape. Danny laughed and then Frank laughed too.
"It's not fucking funny," Sirius said, throwing a piece of his toast at Danny.
"Do you girls have a date?" Alice asked.
"No," Mary, Marlene and Dorcas said at the same time. James would've taken one of them but he really wanted to go with Lily.
"Marlene!" Sirius yelled even though they were so close to each other. "Will you go to the dance with me?"
"Moi?" Marlene asked. "Of course!" she said. Everyone started to applaud the two and they hugged.
"What do you guys have first?" Alice asked the fifth year Gryffindors.
"Muggle Studies," James said.
"I have Divination with Lily though," Remus said.
Just then James's other two roommates who weren't a part of the Marauder walked into the Great Hall. Skyler Hansen and Teddy Maxwell. They became friends in first year and they are still friends.
"Hey Skyler, hey Teddy," Mary said.
"Hey Mary," Skyler said hugging the girl from behind. Teddy's blonde hair and rich status makes him seem like a Slytherin but he's in Gryffindor with the boys.
"Are you guys ready for Muggle Studies?" Teddy asked.
"No, um did you guys do the assignment?" Peter said.
"The essay?" Teddy asked.
"Wait, it was an essay? I thought it was a quiz," Peter said.
"No Pete it was an essay," Remus said. "Come on, let's go talk to Professor Soleil to see if you can get an extension." The two boys stood up and walked away. One by one everyone started to leave to get ready for class until it was just James and Sirius. Once it was just the two of them the bell rang and they stood up with their things and walked out of the Great Hall. On their way out of the Great Hall they ran into Regulus, Evan and Barty.
"Look at the blood traitor and his arrogant friend," Barty said which made Evan laugh.
"Shut the hell up Barty," James said. "Don't make me call your daddy." The two boys continued to walk out of the Great Hall. Everyone knew that Barty was scared of his dad.
"At least my daddy can answer a call," Barty said. James stopped for a moment and tried to think that he didn't mean what he thought he meant. James turned around and walked up to Barty. Sirius walked behind him and there was a slight grin on his face.
"The fuck did you just say?" James asked.
"You heard me. How is your dad anyway? You know… with the family curse that practically has him sitting up in his house doing absolutely nothing. Like a slug. Hey! Potter's dad a sl-"
James didn't exactly know what happened but he knows that he was punching the hell out of Barty who was on the ground whimpering. Evan was trying to get James off of Barty but Sirius pushed him away from the two boys and made sure he didn't do anything. James knew he would get in trouble but he didn't care because he wanted to hurt him. And then he felt himself getting picked up and he blacked out.
October 27, 1975
08:22:26
Headmaster's Office
James was sitting in Dumbledore's office with Sirius, Barty, Evan, Regulus, Professor McGonagall, Professor Slughorn, Hagrid and Dumbledore himself. James didn't know exactly how he got there but he knows that he was there. He looked around the room and saw that Fawkes was sitting on its perch. The brightly colored bird stood out in the office compared to the black robes everyone except for Dumbledore was sporting. The room was silent.
"Would any of you care for some tea or a biscuit?" Dumbledore asked. No one answered at first.
"I wouldn't mind some tea," Sirius said.
"This isn't a time for tea, Mr. Black!" Professor McGonagall scolded. "Albus,get on with it!"
"Ah yes," Dumbledore said. "Alright, Hagrid, tell me what you saw when you walked into the Great Hall."
"Well, I was walking inter the great hall an' I heard this commotion. I didn' know wha' it was but I saw these group o' boys surrounding each other. James here was on top o' tha' one," he said pointing his giant finger to Barty."
"He attacked me for no reason!" Barty blurted.
"Shut your mouth!" Sirius said. "You shouldn't have said anything to him."
"Quiet," Dumbledore said and both Sirius and Barty said nothing. "Barty explain what happened."
"Well the three of us-" he said pointing to him, Regulus and Evan, "-were all getting ready to go to our next class and then those two came over to us. We had made a lighthearted joke and then James made a comment about my father. I don't know why he brought it up."
Barty had a smile on his face. It was hideous, especially since he was sporting a black eye that James gave him.
"So I said something back, which I understand wasn't the right thing to do," Barty said. "And then he attacked me."
"Evan is that a true statement?" Dumbledore asked the boy. Evan nodded his head.
"Sirius, tell me what happened," Dumbledore said.
"We were walking away and then Barty called us blood traitors and then James told him to shut his mouth and then Barty said something about James' family, and then-"
"James what did Barty say?" Dumbledore asked.
James had a choice right now. He could either tell everyone about his dad or he could pretend as if what Barty said didn't really mean anything. But it meant something. It meant everything. It meant that people knew about his father after months of trying to keep it a secret. It meant that anyone could know about his father because Barty and Evan didn't know how to shut their mouth.
James looked to the other side of the room and his eyes met with Regulus'. He didn't know what it was but for some reason his grey eyes spoke to him. It was guilt. Remorse.
I'm sorry…
James realized that he was staring into his eyes and looked at Dumbledore. "He just said something about my Quidditch skills and that my parents couldn't teach me how to play Quidditch."
Sirius, Regulus, Evan and Barty all looked at James with confusion because that is definitely not what happened.
"Wait no-" Sirius said trying to help James out not realizing that by doing so he was hurting them more than helping them. "He said-"
"I asked Mr. Potter, Sirius," Dumbledore said. His voice was low but it projected so much power that Sirius shut his mouth and didn't say a thing.
"So you attacked him for making fun of your Quidditch skills?" Dumbledore asked.
Dumbledore looked into James' eyes as if he knew. As if he knew what really happened. Sometimes James thought Dumbledore knew everything.
"Sirius continue please," Dumbledore said.
"Well after they said that James punched Barty and then Evan tried to punch James and it was going to be two to one and that definitely isn't fair so I pushed Evan away from James and then he punched me. And then Hagrid came to pick up James and Regg- I mean Regulus shot a spell at James. I can't remember what spell it was though."
"Is that true James?" Dumbledore asked. James nodded even though he didn't know about Regulus shooting a spell at him. That's probably why he blacked out as soon as Hagrid picked him up.
"Regulus what spell did you shoot at Mr. Potter?" Professor Slughorn asked.
"I don't remember," Regulus said. Sirius let out a chuckle.
"Okay, son," Professor Slughorn said. There was a short silence and then Dumbledore spoke again.
"Well I'll have to give you all detention," Dumbledore said. "I'll leave it to Professor McGonagall and Professor Slughorn to give you all your detentions and any further punishments they see fit. I suggest you boys get to your class. You two as well Professors."
Everyone stood up and started to walk out of the office. James had one final look at Fawkes and walked out. Slughorn and the three Slytherin boys immediately went to their class but McGonagall stopped both James and Sirius before they could even step into the corridor.
"What were you two thinking!" she asked.
"Sorry Professor McGonagall," they said insync.
"Sorry isn't going to cut it," she said. "You two will be having detention for the rest of the week. And you won't be able to go to the dance this Saturday."
"Wait but that dance is what we've been waiting for all year," Sirius said.
"Well you should've thought about that before you attacked another student. I would've taken you off the Quidditch team Potter but I see no reason as to punishing the other Gryffindors for your mistake," Professor McGonagall said walking away and getting back to her class. The two boys walked down the hallways until they made it to Muggle Studies.
October 27, 1975
10:03:42
Greenhouse 3
"What the hell were you two thinking?" Remus asked the two boys. They had just told Remus and Peter that they had detention for the rest of the week and they wouldn't be able to go to the dance.
"Well if you two aren't going to the dance then I'm not going," Peter said.
"Yes you are Pete!" Sirius said. "You already have the suit and everything. You're going Peter!"
The boys were currently in Herbology and they weren't paying attention at all. They were surrounded by dozens of plants and a thick fog that made it so James could barely see the castle anymore. James knew that Remus was going to scold them.
"Yeah but I was going because you three were going," Peter said.
"You're going," Sirius said, not taking anything else for an answer.
"Maybe we can sneak in," James said.
"You're right. We could use the invisibility cloak," Sirius said in a whisper.
"Or we could get there using Padfoot and Prongs," James said.
"You two are mental. You aren't sneaking into the dance. I won't let you," Remus said.
"You most certainly are," Sirius said. The four boys have a very distinct dynamic. James is the front runner. The face of the Marauders. Whenever anyone thinks of mischief the first person they think of is James. And he's proud of that honestly. He solidified himself as a force to be reckoned with early on in his Hogwarts career. Sirius is the one who truly has the gumption that causes the Marauders to actually do what they need to do. He's the one who does most of the actual work (although James is often given the credit for that). He doesn't mind getting his hands dirty and he isn't afraid of authority like the other two Marauders. Then there's Peter. Peter is the person who practically plans everything. Yeah you would think Remus would be that but Peter usually comes in clutch whenever they're planning. He's the best strategist out of the four and James loves him for that. And finally you have Remus. Remus is their inside man. Although Remus will deny it if you ever ask him, he does help them so much. And sometimes he is even the one who suggests a certain "mission." He's the voice of reason too. He makes sure that they don't go chasing waterfalls when it comes to their adventures.
"I think we should help them," Peter said. "I already have the suit and I already got my ticket from McGonagall."
"Really Peter," Remus said. He obviously wanted Peter to agree with him but Peter wouldn't.
Peter yawned and all of the boys looked at him. "I'm so tired."
"How are you so tired?" Remus asked. "It's 10 in the morning."
"Meaning?" Peter asked.
"How are you tired?"
"I was up all night finishing Sprout's assignment." Peter then slid down onto the ground and laid back on one of the plant beds. "I'm going to take a little nap."
The other three completely understood and were used to it.
"You're helping us Moony," James said.
"Mr. Potter, since you seem to be enjoying your conversation, how about you tell us the cardinal rules of preservation," Professor Sprout said out of nowhere.
"Keep the plant cool or cold, keep the plant in the dark, keep the plant dry, don't expose the plant to air and make sure the plant is clean," James answered quickly. Professors constantly tried to embarrass James and so they'd ask him a question out of the blue or when he wasn't paying attention. It always bit them back in the ass because he was always able to answer the question. The only time he couldn't was during his first year in McGonagall's class.
Professor Sprout looked skeptically at James and said, "Very well. No more talking during class."
James nodded and continued to talk with his friends.
Herbology flew by and the four were now walking to lunch. James walked past a group of Ravenclaws who were walking to the Quidditch Pitch for Lunch Practice. The Great Hall was filled with a bunch of students who were eating, talking, doing homework and everything in between. The four walked to the far side of the hall so that they could sit at the Gryffindor table.
Marlene and Mary were already at the table. James didn't know how, they were both in Herbology with them.
"Where's Dorcas and Lily?" Sirius asked.
"They went to an event committee meeting," Mary said.
"Oh shit," Remus said. He had just sat down but stood right up once again and ran out of the hall.
"I guess he has to go to the meeting too," Peter said.
Sirius and James sat down next to each other. James grabbed some mashed potatoes and he ate it just like that, by itself.
"So you guys, this year is our turn to plan the epic Gryffindor Halloween Party," Marlene said. Every year Gryffindors have an amazing party for the older students on Halloween. The party is always planned by the fifth years of that year and some students (like Marlene) spend their entire four years prior at Hogwarts, dreaming about that day. James' first time going was his third year even though anyone below fourth year isn't allowed to go. Frank and Alice were throwing the party at the time and since they were all on the Quidditch team they were able to get him in. And because they got him in, he got Peter, Sirius and Remus in. That was the first time James really understood how important this party was for the future of the Gryffindor house.
"Yeah I think I'll leave this to you guys," James said. He wasn't a planner. He just did. Sirius and Marlene knew how to throw a party.
"Do we want stuff from Hogsmeade at the party?" Marlene asked. "Like food and drinks and those things."
"Of course we do," Sirius said. "We can't have a party without food and drinks."
"Well I can get the food and we can get the drinks," James said to Sirius. Only a few people knew about the kitchens and Marlene wasn't one of those people.
"So when's the party again?" Peter asked.
"Pete the party is on halloween," Sirius said. Peter still looked confused. "Halloween is on Friday. So the party is therefore on Friday."
"Oh," Peter said. Sirius sighed and James laughed at him. "But wait, isn't the match on Saturday. And the dance?"
James looked at Peter and then looked at Sirius. He forgot that the dance and the match were on the same day. He had so much to do this upcoming weekend and he didn't even realize it. He rolled his eyes and he found grey ones among the entire hall. Regulus was staring at him. He couldn't tell whether the look was of malice or benevolence. He just assumed it was malice because it's Regulus. A Slytherin that hates James and his best friends.
James looked away and then saw that Sirius and Marlene were continuing to talk about the party.
When lunch was over James, Sirius, Peter, and Marlene made their way to Care of Magical Creatures. James took it only because of Professor Kettleburn. The man was very fucking cool. He had scars all over his body and he was missing an arm. He had a silver one in place and sometimes it made him look like a superhero.
Sadly though, the fifth years had a test in class today. On a Monday. James thought that that should be illegal. Today they were going to be in the Care of Magical Creatures classroom instead of outside which meant that they wouldn't have to be in the chilly cold. James, Sirius and Peter sat in the front of the classroom. Remus took six electives instead of three (like the other three). They all took Muggle Studies, Care of Magical Creatures and Mythology. But Remus decided to add Alchemy, Ancient Runes and Divination to his list of classes, meaning he had thirteen classes instead of ten.
Professor Kettleburn walked into the classroom with a large box and he closed the door. "Chúc các bạn buổi tối vui vẻ," Professor Kettleburn said in another language. Kettleburn always said greetings in another language. In the first class in their third year, he spoke in Russian and no one knew what the hell he was talking about. Now it's a thing where everyone tries to guess what language he's trying to speak.
"You all have a test today. There is a quiz and an essay, but I won't need the essay until your next class which will be Wednesday," he said walking to his desk. "I know you guys don't want to hear this and you don't want to take a test but look on the brightside, we're half way through the first half of the term. So I don't want to hear any complaining. Plus I brought you guys something to snack on. It's just fruit though. Apples, bananas, blueberries and all that jazz."
James was ready for the test. It's not like it was incredibly hard. Care of Magical Creatures was quite easy. "If none of you have anymore questions I will hand out the tests. No cheating, no talking and please at least try one question. If you know nothing then just guess."
Professor Kettleburn grabbed the tests and put them on the tables. The test wasn't that hard. The quiz part at least wasn't that hard.
The bell rang. "Come up here to get your essay prompts and next class, we will be going over a new creature. I think it'll interest all of you," Professor Kettleburn. James who was in the front was the first person to get his essay and he walked out immediately afterwards. His next class was Defense Against the Dark Arts and that was easily his favorite class.
That has to do with the fact that the teacher is a fucking badass just like Professor Kettleburn except ten times cooler. He goes by his first name so all of his students call him Jericho. James had only known him for like two months but he was absolutely cool. He had long black hair and he had many leather jackets. The man walked into the room and sat on top of his desk in front of the class.
"Take out your notes from last class," he said in a deep gruff voice. James grabbed his bag and took out the five pages of notes he took in his last class. "Today we're going to be expanding those ideas and continuing to flesh out Combination Spellcasting."
"Before we get too involved in Offensive Combination Spellcasting, there are a few terms that we need to cover, simply because they will help enhance future discussions about the types of spells and how they work together in the combination. Does anyone know them?"
James, Sirius, Remus, and Peter were the first to shoot their hand up.
"Mr. Potter give me the first," Jericho said. "What do you start off with?"
"The base which is the first spell cast in the combination," James said.
"Good job, Lupin," he said signaling to Remus. "What's next?"
"The modifier, which is the spell or spells used to modify the base," Remus said. Jericho smiled and pointed to Sirius to go next.
"Lure, which is a spell used to distract your opponent," Sirius answered. Jericho looked at Peter who answered immediately.
"Stingers which are offensive spells used in a combination and barriers, which are defensive spells used in a combination."
"Good job boys! 48 points to Gryffindor," Jericho said and he continued on with the lesson. "There is one final one which is Ultimo which is the final spell cast in a combination but for you guys to give me the first five off the top of your head is amazing.
"Now I'll go into further explanation about what all that means, okay. Starting off with base-" he wrote base in big white letters on the chalkboard with his wand "-The base of a combination is the initial spell that is cast. This is the spell upon which the entire combination is built. In my opinion, this spell is the most important spell of the combination because it sets the tone for the type of combination that you will be casting. If you start a combination with the Stunning Spell (a spell we will be learning later this year), it is safe to say that you are casting an offensive combination; if you start the combination with the Shielding Charm or the Smokescreen Spell, you are likely casting a defensive combination. While offensive and defensive combinations do go hand in hand, the way combinations are talked about, and the way they are viewed, is typically set by the first spell cast in the combination. If you think about nothing else, always consider how you want to start a combination - it might just be the spell that saves your life."
James smiled at the thought of a single spell determining whether you survive or not. He didn't know why but it brought absolute joy to the fifteen year old boy.
October 27, 1975
17:40:46
Professor McGonagall's Office
James was sitting in Professor McGonagall's office with Sirius, Regulus, Barty and Evan. Professor McGonagall and Slughorn were going to give them their detention together. James had hoped for something simple that wouldn't take that much time.
"I'm still so very disappointed in you boys," Mcgonagall said. "You all have put a shame to the Gryffindor and Slytherin houses respectively. Physical Violence! In a public setting! Using spells to harm other students! Vulgar language! You boys best be glad I didn't give you detention until the end of term!"
Everyone let McGonagall go on her rant not wanting to confront her.
"Mr. Crouch, you will be helping Professor McGonagall grade papers," Slughorn said while McGonagall was still obviously upset. James thought that that was an easy detention and he started to get scared about what he had to do.
"Mr. Black- Sirius and Mr. Rosier, you two will be cleaning the Hippogriff Stables with Professor Kettleburn," McGonagall said. Kettleburn nodded toward the two boys and Sirius groaned. The Hippogriff stables were absolutely disgusting. Everyone hated them and no one wanted to go near them. James was happy that he wasn't going to be forced to do that.
"James and Regulus, you two are going to be cleaning the trophy room and once you're done you can start the armor room," Professor Slughorn said.
Everyone was standing there not sure what to do until McGonagall blurted, "well get going! Barty grab a chair and sit down!"
Everyone walked out of the room except for Barty. Evan and Sirius made their way to the grounds with Kettleburn while James and Regulus made their way to the trophy room with Filch. Filch walked with a limp as the two boys followed. They made their way to the ground floor. They walked through the Great Hall and saw everyone having fun, or doing homework with friends. They made their way to the Professor's table and they walked through a door on the side which took them to a trophy room.
James had only been in said room once during his second year. He couldn't even remember what it was but it was probably detention.
"You two will be cleaning this entire trophy room. By hand," Filch said with a sick smile on his face. He held his wand out. "Hand over your wands."
James pulled his wand out of his pocket and Regulus did the same. Filch snatched the two wands out of their hands and put them in his pocket. Filch grabbed a bucket of soapy water and placed it in front of the two boys.
"Have fun," he said with a crooked smile and walked out of the room. James bent down to pick up the bucket and his hands collided with Regulus'. They had done the same thing. Regulus stood up and let James pick the bucket up.
"Why didn't he give us two?" James questioned. They weren't going to be able to clean the entire trophy room with just this one bucket.
"Let's just get it done," Regulus said. James sat the bucket in the middle of the room. The two decided that they would each dip their sponge or towel into the water and then clean the trophies. The first trophy James cleaned was given to a group of sixth years that had formed a band in the 60s. They were given the trophy after performing in a worldwide wizarding competition and winning grand prize.
There were so many trophies to clean and it felt so laborious and James was tired. When he walked back to the center of the room to get more water he had cleaned twelve already. He saw that Regulus was on the ground, not cleaning.
"What are you doing? We're supposed to be cleaning this place?" James asked. Regulus was sitting on the ground writing with a quill on a piece of parchment.
"My Ancient Studies homework," Regulus said.
"Those don't look like runes," James said, peaking over the boy's shoulder. Remus took Ancient Runes and he knew what a few of them looked like.
"That's because this isn't for Ancient Runes. It's Ancient Studies," Regulus said, continuing to work on his homework.
"What the hell is Ancient Studies?" James asked.
"It's a class… about ancient… studies," Regulus said. He was talking to James as if he was a child and James didn't like that because he was far from it. A lot of people treated him like a dumb jock even though he was far from it. Sure he was a jock and was obsessed with Quidditch but he is also really good in class. He had the highest score on his fourth year exam on Charms.
"Oh really," James said. "I don't care what it is. We're supposed to be cleaning this place up."
Regulus sighed, stood up, took out a wand and he said, "Aguamenti!" Water shot out of the wand and splashed James in the face. James fell back and slipped. "See I'll get it done in no time. Let me finish my homework.
"Hey, that's not fair you have a wand," James said.
"Life isn't fair Potter," Regulus said and he continued to do his homework. And just with that Regulus went back to pretending James didn't exist. James sighed. The audacity of this little kid. James jumped up, ran over to Regulus and pulled his back toward him, which made him fall onto the ground.
"You little bitch," James said, as he got on top of the boy. James grabbed Regulus' wand and threw it somewhere else. He grabbed the boy's hands and held them into place above his head. "Where'd you get your wand from."
"Let me go Potter!" Regulus screamed.
"Where'd you get the wand from?"
"I'm not telling you!"
"Then I'm not letting you go," James said. Regulus seemed to have given up after only trying for a couple of seconds. "How'd you get two wands?"
"It's not mine, dumbass," Regulus said. "It's Barty's. I figured since he was grading papers with McGonagall he wouldn't need it. So he gave it to me."
"Or you took it from him," James said.
"Same thing!"
James didn't say anything after that. The two just sat there in silence. James looking at the boy's piercing grey eyes. Like smoke filling the dark air. Regulus had a good head of thick hair with a bit of natural movement and waves in it. It was black, curly and sat perfectly on his face, complimenting his jawline, which was incredibly sharp. His skin was soft and smooth almost as if it was made of silk.
James felt something urge in his stomach. It wasn't butterflies. It was like a monster. Urging him to do something. But he couldn't. Their eyes were connected. It felt as if James was staring into Regulus' soul and Regulus was doing the same thing. It was nice but James couldn't figure that out. He didn't know that he liked it because he wasn't supposed to.
James noticed what he was doing and he quickly stood up. He helped the boy up and then dusted himself off. He walked away and he saw something that caught his eye.
"Holy fuck," James said. Regulus started to tremble.
"What?" Regulus asked in a shaky voice. James walked over to the trophy and he stared at it. "What is that?"
'The Honor OWL," James said. The Honor OWL was the highest level of a trophy you could get at Hogwarts. "It's the Honor OWL."
"That's the Honor OWL?" Regulus asked. There was still tension but the two tried to pretend like nothing had just happened.
"Yeah," James said. The Honor OWL was given to anyone who got thirteen O's on their OWL. "It's cool isn't it?"
"I guess you could say that," Regulus said as he continued to do his homework.
"The last time someone got it was seven years ago," James told the boy. Regulus nodded and hummed. "I could get it but I take three electives instead of six."
"I don't care Potter," Regulus said. James rolled his eyes and continued to clean the room.
There was a knock at the door and both boys turned their head immediately to look at it. Sirius opened the door and James smiled. "Sirius what are you doing in here?"
"I came to tell you something," Sirius said. "Reggie," he said barely acknowledging his brother. "When you're done with your detention meet me at Hagrid's Hut. And bring something special."
"Why?"
"Don't worry about it, just do what I say," Sirius said. He walked away and the two finished their job. After about two hours they finally finished and Filch let them out. They walked into the Great Hall to see that no one was in the room. Dinner was obviously over. James walked through the Great Halluntil he was in the Entrance Hall. That's when he and Regulus parted ways. Regulus going down to the dungeons, him going up to the Gryffindor Common Room.
October 27, 1975
20:57:10
Edge of the Forbidden Forest
James was standing with Remus and Peter at the Edge of the Forbidden Forest. They were a few minutes away from Hagrid's Hut and they were standing in front of a giant hole in the ground. Sirius came walking over to them and he was carrying a box and something else in his hand.
"Sirius what the hell are we doing out here?" Remus asked. "It's cold!"
"Moony, don't yell at me!" Sirius yelled. Peter looked around to make sure that no one was looking. "It's okay Pete, we're far from the castle. Plus the only person that can hear us is Hagrid and he's the one who dug this hole."
"Speaking of which," James quickly added before Sirius could continue. "What the hell is this for?"
"Well how about you boys guess," Sirius said with a smile on his face.
"Time capsule," all three boys said at the same time. Sirius' smile vanished and he looked upset. James knew that Sirius wanted them to take a while to guess but they weren't dummies.
"I hate all of you," Sirius said before opening the box and putting it in the hole. "But you guys are right. This is a time capsule. I felt that we needed something to cement our friendship."
"Oh, so I guess becoming Animagi for our furry friend wasn't enough," James said. Remus then started to glare at him. He hated whenever the other three called his lycanthropy something furry.
"Or creating an entire map together," Peter added. James looked at him and pointed towards the boy to emphasize what he said.
"Okay I get it," Sirius said quickly. "Our friendship has already been cemented but I think that this will cement it even further."
The three were listening now. "We all know what's going on in the world and as much as we want to we can't pretend it isn't happening and that it doesn't affect us. So I figured that we needed a little more joy in our world so if we survive what happens, whatever it is, we should open this. And that's why I asked all of you to bring something special. So that we can put it in here. Now if you guys don't mind I'll go first."
Sirius took out a book. James had recognized it. Sirius is not a fan of reading but he's read that book about a million times. He held it close to him and said, "this is my uncle's diary. He's the coolest person I know and I miss him dearly. He has stories about my family that are pretty cool and he also has some stories about being on the run. He really is fucking cool. So I'm putting this in here."
He dropped the diary into the box and looked at one of the others to go next.
"Um well I grabbed the snitch that I stole from my first Quidditch match," James said. Although I'm not a seeker or anything these things just fascinate me. Especially this one. I don't know why but it feels different. It reminds me of the first Quidditch match, when we won. That was the day I actually felt at home at Hogwarts and with you guys and the Quidditch team."
James dropped the snitch into the box. Remus walked closer to the box. He took off his grey sweater that he was wearing. "Okay, well I guess I'll put my fav- actually no, my second favorite sweater in here. I don't know. It offers me safety and comfort whenever I'm not around you guys. It's really special to me. But you guys weren't going to be getting my favorite sweater. Sorry Sirius."
"Hey that's perfectly fine. I wouldn't want it anyway," Sirius said. After Remus dropped it into the box they all looked at Peter who was trembling a bit. He was obviously cold. James took off his jacket and put it around the boy. Peter has very thin skin I guess you could say. He can't handle the cold. Peter thanked him silently and then walked closer to the box. He took something out of his pocket and James saw that it was a picture.
"This was the first picture that we took together," Peter started to tell. "It was around February during our first year. I don't know if you guys kept it but I did. Because… you guys were my first friends. I had no one before you and then you guys came into my life and I had a lot more than no one. And I'm forever thankful and will always love you guys for that so yeah, that's what I brought."
He threw the picture into the box and then he closed it. James looked at Remus who looked at Sirius who looked at James and they all knew what to do. They all walked closer to Peter and embraced him in a hug. They didn't speak but they didn't need to. They understood each other. They felt each other. They loved each other.
