Disclaimer - Still the same. I do so love our boys, but I don't own them.
Chapter 72
"So how did you get into the girls dorm?" James asked for the umpteenth time. It was a week since Gryffindor successfully snatched the egg and Sirius, James, and even Peter had not let that little detail slip by.
Remus, who was still in bed, groaned and put his pillow over his head.
"Mooooonyyyyy," Sirius called in that voice that meant Remus was not going back to sleep.
He growled into his pillow before getting up and padding softly to the bathroom, pointedly ignoring his annoying dorm mates. He made sure to take his time in an attempt to annoy them in return. When he walked back out of the bathroom, he smirked internally at the sight that greeted him. The other three Marauders were staring at him with great anticipation. Somehow, they all knew today would be the day Remus would crack and tell them. He sighed and gave in. "Fine. I'm a prefect."
"Huh?" Sirius intoned.
"I'm a prefect. That means, in case of emergency, I have to be able to have access to the girls' dorms."
Sirius gasped dramatically and clutched at his chest as if mortally wounded. James donned a hurt expression as well, though not quite as dramatically. "You mean all this time you had access to the girls' dorms and you never told us? Think of the pranks we could have pulled. Think of the fun…"
Sirius nodded in agreement with James. "Think of the trouble," he grinned.
"E-MER-GEN-CY," Remus enunciated every syllable of the word to emphasize its importance.
"The egg qualified as an emergency, but our livelihood doesn't?" James asked.
"Mmm." Remus pretended to consider this question. "Yes."
"Shouldn't an emergency really be life or death or something?" Peter wondered.
"The egg is a major portion of our grade. Not to mention it could help us win the House Cup – and with all the points these two lose us throughout the year… Yes, the egg was an emergency," Remus defended.
Sirius and James snickered. "So you can go up there any time you want?" The mischievous glint was shining in Sirius' eyes again.
"I can, but I won't. And, I'm not going to tell you how to do it. You can't, anyway. You have to be a prefect."
James huffed in frustration, but Remus could see the wheels turning in his head. "So you need the badge?"
Remus knew what he meant. If they stole Remus' badge, would they be able to sneak up the stairs. "It takes more than the badge. And I am not going to tell you."
"Moony," Sirius said, throwing an arm around his friend's shoulders. "Sometimes, you really lack vision. And a sense of fun."
"Mmm," was all he said in reply.
There were some things that Remus would obviously budge on. That's how they all knew he would eventually tell them how he got into the dorm. There were other things he wouldn't. And by the look on his face, the others knew they were not going to find out how, exactly, to accomplish getting up the stairs.
James sighed in defeat and suggested they head to breakfast.
Remus sat through breakfast, quietly eating and watching Aden. Sirius noted, however, that it was not his usual look of adoring that he often wore during breakfast; it was, instead, a thoughtful gaze.
"What's up?" Sirius asked.
Remus glanced at Sirius. "I think she knows where the egg is."
James, who had been animatedly talking to members of the quidditch team, abruptly stopped talking and listened.
"Has she found a way to get to it?"
"I don't think so. Not sure if there even is a way."
James jumped in, "Well, we'll just have to keep an extra close watch on the map, then. Wormtail…"
"Yup. I'm on it." Peter got up and left. Less than a minute later, only someone who was closely paying attention would have seen the small rat dart into the Great Hall and scurry under the Ravenclaw table.
"He's a bit scary, isn't he?" Sirius muttered.
"How so?" Remus frowned.
"Well look at him. He's picking food up off the floor. You'd never know he wasn't a real rat. It's a perfect disguise."
"You all act a bit… funny, when you're in animal form," Remus observed.
"I do not… And besides, how would you know?"
"I pretty much remember our entire evenings now." Remus frowned and poked at his eggs.
"What is it?" James asked.
Remus looked around to make sure no one was listening, then he leaned in a little further. "I just… I used to think we were… separate. Then I started having memories – flashes – of what happened. Now I can remember the whole night…"
"You've mentioned that before. You shouldn't be so worried about it." Remus looked at Sirius incredulously. "Really. When you remember, you're very much… you. I don't know how… interconnected you and… it… are, but you're no more 'it' than Prongs is actually Bambi."
"Mmm. Maybe."
Later that evening, Peter informed the others that Ravenclaw did, indeed, suspect the egg was in the Room of Requirement, but they hadn't figured out how to get to it. They were planning on attempting to try for the egg the next day though.
Morgan turned to Remus. "Did you tell your girlfriend where the egg was?"
"No." If Remus was upset by the question, he didn't show it. His friends, on the other hand, did.
"Moony wouldn't say anything," James defended, crossing his arms across his chest.
"How did she find out then? I didn't even know about the room."
"She's a Ravenclaw, you git," Sirius answered hotly. "Moony took her to the Room at the beginning of the year, so she knew about it from then – and how it worked. She knows Moony pretty well. It wouldn't take a genius to put two and two together, and she is one."
"Guys," Remus said calmly. He had expected the question when it came, though lack of trust was still a bit of a tender spot for Remus. Werewolves were pretty unanimously not trusted due to their dual nature, and even though Morgan didn't know he was a werewolf, mistrust still tended to bother Remus. He was warmed by the immediate rise of his friends to his defense, though.
"They're right, Morgan," Lily chimed in. Remus hadn't even known she was listening. "Remus wouldn't say anything." Remus gave Lily a half-smile of thanks.
Morgan glanced around, and a few other students who had over-heard the conversation nodded in agreement. "Okay. So what are we going to do about it?"
"I'm not sure we have to do anything. I really don't think the Room will let them get the egg," James stated confidently.
"Depending on the number of students they use, we could just send a small group to make sure they don't get it – frustrate their efforts," Byron suggested. "We could come up with a way to signal everyone else in case they do manage to get it."
"I can go with the group," Sirius offered. "Prongs and I have a way to communicate with each other, so I can contact him if things heat up."
"Why do you get to go?" James asked sourly.
"Is there anything you guys haven't thought of?" Morgan asked in an impressed voice.
"Oi. Don't encourage them," Lily pleaded.
"Because I'm more smooth than you are," Sirius answered, causing Peter and Remus to snicker.
"Oh please. In your dreams. Besides, I'm the better dueler," James retorted.
"But we don't want to duel if we can avoid it."
"You didn't have a problem dueling with Slytherin," Lily pointed out.
"Yeah, well… that was Slytherin, wasn't it?" Sirius said, as if that was obvious.
"Yeah. And there was no way any amount of talking would help us with the Slytherin situation," James added.
Sirius chuckled. "Not that it would have mattered. Any excuse to hex a Slytherin…"
"See. That's exactly what I'm talking about," Lily began yet another tirade.
While she was talking, James rolled his eyes and said, "Oh please. It's Slytherin…"
Other hushed conversations had also broken out among several of the students present. Suddenly an ear-piercing whistle cut into the escalating argument. All eyes turned to Byron. "The egg," he reminded everyone of why they were having a meeting in the first place. He nodded to Morgan.
"So… It looks like we wait to see what kind of group they get together for the task. But after they make an attempt, the other houses are bound to find out where the egg is, too."
"Let them," Sirius said simply.
The next day, a small group of Ravenclaws gathered around the outside of the Room of Requirement. Sirius, Byron, Remus, Gillette and Stacey went to keep an eye on things. They also spent a good amount of time making jokes and teasing the Ravenclaws to prevent them from fully concentrating.
But for all their effort, the room would not allow Ravenclaw entrance to the egg.
Though there were several gatherings of students from various houses trying to get into the room, none were successful. But the egg needed to be returned to the professor the last Saturday of May, so that was the next thing the house geared up for. They weren't sure if anyone would try to steal the egg as they tried to turn it in, but they thought it would be best to be safe, rather than sorry. If Gryffindor succeeded in turning in the egg, they were pretty confident that they would receive the points for last ones to have the egg as well as the longest holding record.
The egg had to be brought to the Great Hall and set before the Head Table. The Gryffindors chose some of their smallest members to carry the egg. Sirius joked that, because they were the size of munchkins, the egg was so close to the floor, no one would suspect they were actually carrying it. The smaller students were chosen mostly because they were the youngest, as well, and would only get in the way if it came to battle. Until there was any sign of trouble, a few of the older students helped carry the burden as well.
As they walked with the egg, James noticed that most of the students they saw from the other houses were young – young and fast. "Advance warning," James gestured with his head as yet another first-year dashed off in the direction of his house.
Sirius nodded and moved to warn Morgan and Byron.
Byron set off green sparks. It was the signal that a small advanced party was supposed to go forward and make sure the path ahead was clear. Morgan moved his group to bring up the rear.
James was part of the advanced party. He slipped into a classroom so he could don his invisibility cloak. He put a silencing spell on his shoes and ran quickly ahead. He scouted around, glanced at the map and ran back to Byron, removing his cloak along the way.
"Too many. They're coming from all directions. Our group isn't going to be able to hold them all off."
"How long to intercept?" Byron asked.
"We'll meet the first group around the next corner."
"All right. Take care of what you can." James nodded and took the group forward, while Byron headed back to the main group. "Remus." Remus stepped forward. "Cover."
Remus nodded and muttered an incantation. Mist began to form and rise from the floor. It continued to thicken until there was a good layer of fog in the corridor.
The previous Christmas, when the Marauders, Lily and Gillette had gone to the 3-D movie, James and Sirius had nicced about twenty extra pairs of glasses. They hadn't had good reason to use them until now. Remus found a charm to use on the glasses so they could see through fog – something like night-vision or infrared goggles. Twenty wasn't enough for the entire house, but it was enough for key people to keep the egg covered by fog, and still be defended.
Every few feet Remus muttered the fog spell so it would continue to stay in front of the moving group.
James used area-effect spells, such as an oil slick on the floor, to take down the smaller groups, while his other teammates cast stunning and binding spells. Lily was in his group, for which he was thankful. She was a dead shot with almost all of her spells and she had somehow managed to figure out how to shield more than one person, saving him from being hit while he concentrated on taking out the small groups. Eventually, however, the groups became larger and James' team was spending more and more time shielding and dodging than they were pushing back the encroaching enemies.
Sirius had his own team at the back. In some ways, they had it easier. They usually still had fog to cover them. But like James's team, they were quickly being overwhelmed by sheer numbers. He heard an explosion ahead, and knew the big guns had been pulled out, so he let his own loose.
They had rigged some fireworks to explode and release various materials. Some blasted dung bombs, some blasted grow-your-own-warts powder, which caused itching and swelling. Then, there were also dung bombs they chucked by hand, fanged Frisbees, and Ever-bashing boomerangs. The advantage of these items was that they caused quite a bit of chaos and the younger students didn't need to know any advanced spells to use them.
Slowly, the Gryffindor numbers thinned, but so did the numbers of those who were attacking them. The end was in sight as they crested the stairs leading to the Entrance Hall. James, who had sprouted antennae after being hit by an incomplete form of the insect jinx, hesitated half-way down the stairs. Something wasn't right. He glanced at the map and saw that all of the rooms surrounding the Entrance Hall held Slytherins. He quickly found Byron and warned him of the trap below. Morgan and Lily joined their conference.
"I have an idea," James whispered. "But I need the quidditch team." Word was spread quickly and the quidditch team came forward. He pulled his mirror out of his pocket while he waited, "Sirius Black."
"Kinda busy, Prongs." Sirius pulled the mirror from his pocket so he could respond, but he held it in his hand which was swinging wildly around as he dodged a hex. Sirius laughed, "You call that aim?"
"I need you up front."
"Right," Sirius ground out. "Impedimenta. Gillette?"
"Two more. Two o'clock."
"Got it!" Sirius called out two more spells. James heard Gillette yell her own spells and between the two of them, they must have hit their mark, because Sirius was laughing again and Gillette cheered. The next thing James saw in the mirror was black.
"Pads! Stop playing kissy-face and get your arse up here!"
Sirius sighed. "Duty calls, love. Keep your guard up." James was pretty sure Sirius mumbled a curse or two under his breath, but then the mirror went black and he knew Sirius was on his way.
The quidditch team stood before James expectantly. "Summon your brooms - quietly," James whispered the command. Seven brooms were summoned to their owners within seconds. "We're going to fly the egg into the Great Hall. Each of you, conjure a rope to attach to the egg." The quidditch team walked to the center of the group and conjured a rope each with which to haul the egg. Once the ropes were secure and each member was on his or her broom, James nodded to Byron.
Byron yelled, "We're home clear, run for the Hall." They hoped this would make the Slytherins believe that the egg was still being carried on foot.
James waited until the majority of the house was in the Entrance Hall and the Slytherins had emerged from their hiding places before he signaled the quidditch team to take to the air. As the unit he'd created throughout the year, they flew as one over the banister, through the Entrance Hall and into the Great Hall. The contest was officially over before the Slytherins knew what happened, but the battle still raged below.
A few of the Gryffindors cheered as the egg passed the threshold of the Great Hall. Unfortunately, many of them, in their distraction, were hit by spells. Once a few Slytherins realized what happened, the battle actually intensified instead of subsided. A battle that should have ended peacefully became brutal. A handful of Gryffindors were left to defend themselves, surrounded by older Slytherins.
"It's over," Morgan yelled, trying to end the battle. "We already w-"
He was hit by the langlock spell and couldn't argue anymore.
"No!" Lily yelled. She hit the Slytherin who had cast the spell with the full-body bind. "Stop!"
"Sectumsempra," Avery hit Gillette's arm. Gillette instinctually put her hand over her arm. When she pulled it away it was covered in blood. The Gryffindors stared in shock. The school project was, indeed, finished. Now the dueling was personal. Remus glanced at Sirius and Lily, each agreeing this wasn't over. A new wave of spells flew from both sides of the battle.
When James and the rest of the quidditch team landed in the Great Hall, they had expected the rest of Gryffindor to follow shortly thereafter. They turned to watch the group of students through the doorway, saw the pause in battle, and figured the Slytherins had realized they lost. But then there was an explosion of light and James realized the professors were suddenly running toward the Entrance Hall.
He too started running and just before he reached the door, he heard Dumbledore's sonorous voice, "That is enough!"
Everything stopped. Some students even stopped breathing. Dumbledore's voice returned to its normal volume but lost none of its power. "Heads-of-House, please make sure your students are well. Those that need to see Madam Pomfrey are to do so immediately. Prefects, please ensure that each student does his part in restoring the castle to order. There will be a meeting in each of your common rooms this evening." With a final authoritative nod, he turned and reentered the Great Hall.
James watched as the Headmaster paused before the egg, then continued on his way. James and the rest of the quidditch team went to their fellow Gryffindors.
It took a good portion of the rest of that day to get everything sorted out. Most of the students only had minor bruises and scrapes. Several needed spells reversed, but were otherwise unharmed. James lost his antennae, and Morgan was able to speak again. Gillette, by far, received the worst injury, but Madam Pomfrey was skilled and knew how to take care of an injury from that spell now. She would, however, be left with a relatively faint scar, something that was unusual with magical healing.
That evening, Professor McGonagall stepped into the common room for the house meeting and silence fell. She stood silently a moment, looking around the room at each of her students. After all her years of living in and around London, she had not shed her Scottish accent which, at times, became more pronounced. "I hardly know where to begin," she started. "The 'Project' ended with a poor display of sportsmanship and student behavior. I was shocked and appalled." Many of the students hung their heads in guilt. The emotional and physical drain of the day left some of the younger, more emotional students near tears. "But not with you." Most heads snapped back up to look at her in surprise. "I have rarely seen a house pull together as well as you all have this year. I have watched as you have helped each other – the older teaching the younger. Learning to use your gifts and talents to work as a team. You defended each other. You used ingenuity and creativity to overcome obstacles. You went back for your fallen – and not only yours but your competition's. Take these things with you. You will need them in the future. You will need each other in the future." McGonagall fell silent again and looked around the room once more. "I expect you to continue in good sportsmanship. That means minimal gloating," she glanced at Sirius and James, though the corner of her mouth twitched slightly in a suppressed smile. "And, I believe we have one more challenge to overcome." This time she looked pointedly at James. "Mr. Potter, I expect the best possible performance out of our team next weekend."
James grinned broadly and glanced at his teammates. He stood. "Yes ma'am, Professor."
"Very good. Good evening."
Once McGonagall left the common room, a cheer went up that nearly shook the lanterns. Everyone congratulated each other with hugs and pats on the back. They exchanged battle stories, telling of the spells they had used and what had finally taken them down, if they were taken down. For once, James let others tell the stories. This night belonged to Morgan and Byron. The evening wound down rather quickly, as the day had been exhausting for everyone.
The Marauders took up their usual place on the couch and chairs by the fire. They were joined by the fifth-year girls and a few members of the quidditch team at first, but even that crowd whittled down quickly.
Gillette sat comfortably nestled at Sirius' side on the couch. He was absently running his fingers up and down her arm where she now bore a scar. Lily stayed with the group as well, her excuse being that she was too tired to get off the couch. Patty stood behind the center of the couch offering neck and shoulder messages; her current "customer" being Stacey. She had already worked on Sirius and Lily who were the bookends of the couch. Peter sat on the floor, his back to the fire. He was listening to the stories the others told. He had never been that good at dueling, so he had gone down early in the fight, taken out by a jelly-legs jinx. Remus sat on one armchair, his eyes closed, his hands folded neatly on his lap, while James sat on the other armchair. He had been listening to the stories, with special interest in the last battle.
Suddenly, he broke the contemplative silence that had settled on the group of friends. "Is this what our future holds?"
Remus opened his eyes, but didn't reply. In fact, no one replied. They had each wondered that same thing at one point or another in the evening, and none of them really wanted an answer.
Unable to let the question go, James pressed, "Are we really at war?"
"No." Sirius stood up agitatedly and walked to stand before the fire, one hand resting on the mantle. "We're kids - students at Hogwarts - and this was a stupid class assignment." Turning back to the group, he smiled his cocky smile, "And we won." Becoming serious again, he continued, "But this was not a war – not part of that war." He gestured toward the window, indicating the "real world." "It can't be," he whispered and turned back to the fire. Gillette got up and walked over to him. She put her hand on his shoulder and felt the renewed tension thrumming through him. She slid her hand down his arm and grasped his hand. He took hold of it, a tight grip that matched the barely concealed plea in his voice with his last comment.
It was James who broke the silence again. "Well it feels like it," he said quietly.
There was more silence, which was broken when Lily sniffed and got up from the couch. "'Night everyone."
"Night, Lils," Patty and Stacey answered back.
Slowly, the rest drifted away from the fire and headed to bed as well, each lost in his own thoughts.
- - - - -
A/N Thank you all very much. I've been really encouraged by the response to the egg assignment. Thank you. Thank you to all who have reviewed. And thank you to my wonderful betas - Mom, mei mei, and J.A. Carlton. Love you.
Nonair - I'm glad you like the implications behind Peter's character. I think he was weak and lazy, but not necessarily as dumb as he seems - at least at times. It's amazing how cunning one can be when it's all about self-preservation, but I digress. I'm glad you liked that the whole house was involved. I really wanted to show that, as the Marauders got older, their world expanded. I don't think you can fight a war the way they did and not care about others. Hee hee... Remus in the girls dorms. Makes you wonder what else he knows. Thanks again for another wonderful review.
