The Infamous Marauders
Chapter Eight
Disclaimer: I do not own the characters featured in this story they belong to the amazing J. K. Rowling.
Mid October 1976
Remus awoke early on Sunday to meet Lily to do his ancient runes work, James and Peter were awake too and the two boys told Remus about the student's reactions to the fireworks the previous night as they made their way down to the great hall for breakfast. Sirius was of course still asleep, Remus was sure it would take a stampede through the room to awaken that boy sometimes.
"So, you have no clue who altered the windows?" Remus asked James.
"Nope, I wish I did though, honestly Moony how could we forget about the walls being in the way" James laughed.
Peter was too busy eating to contribute to the conversation, although that wasn't anything different than usual. Once they were finished Remus excused himself and walked over to Lily, her friends suddenly became silent as he approached watching him intently, he felt rather awkward under their stare, did he have something on his face? A stray bean from breakfast perhaps? He wiped his face with the sleeve of his robe feeling rather self-conscious, the girls however were still looking at him expectantly.
He cleared his throat "Hey Lily you ready to go study ancient runes?"
"Yes, shall we go to the library?"
"That's fine with me I'll just have to run up to the dormitory for my bag, shall I meet you there?
"Sure" she smiled standing up collecting her own things, and bid her friends goodbye.
"Have fun Lily" Marlene called out waggling her eyebrows suggestively.
Remus looked at Lily confused at the interaction and was met with an exasperated eye roll, she gently pushed him away from her friends towards the exit of the great hall, across at the Slytherin table a boy with long dark hair and sickly pale skin scowled at the retreating friends. Once they parted ways, Remus quickly arrived at the common room making use of his knowledge of secret passages, he entered the dormitory to collect his work much to his surprise he found Sirius was wide-awake, and looking rather flustered.
"Hey Pads, what are you doing up, are you all right?" Remus asked concerned about his friend.
"Erm I'm just doing potions work, I'm fine"
"You still haven't finished Professor Slughorns essay? I thought you and James had finished it the other night?"
"We did" Sirius spoke without thinking.
"So, what is it you are working on then?" Remus asked intrigued.
"I can't tell you it's private"
Remus' interested expression suddenly dropped to one of misunderstanding "Oh well that's okay, I'll just leave you to it, I was only collecting my ancient rune work" Remus rushed, leaving the room promptly after picking up his bag.
Sirius sat down on his bed and sighed feeling guilty, he had noticed the confused look on Moonys face, it was only a couple of weeks ago he had berated Remus for keeping secrets. He knew Remus wouldn't question him though he was much too reserved for that, he did want to tell him but he hadn't found anything useful yet and he didn't want to give Remus false hope, and now when he was only trying to do something nice for Remus it just seemed like he was keeping things from him. Damn it, why didn't he just say he wanted to add a bit to his essay for Slughorn, this is exactly why I shouldn't get up early he thought bitterly my brain just doesn't switch on quick enough.
Remus pondered what potions Sirius could be working on as he made his way down to the library, if it was for a prank he would have surely just said so even if he wanted to keep it a surprise it was obviously something else, something personal. Remus thought he and Sirius were best friends and after five years of telling each other practically everything he didn't see why he would keep something potions related secret, unless it was something dangerous? Now Remus was just worried, he also felt hurt that Sirius didn't trust him enough to tell him, I bet James knows. He pushed it away as he entered the library looking for Lily, her orange hair was like a beacon and he made his way to her table taking a seat.
"So, I heard something rather amazing happened to the windows in the common room last night you wouldn't know anything about that, would you?"
"I do recall that, there were some amazing fireworks outside the tower last night you know, you wouldn't know anything about that, would you?" She countered with a grin.
"Well I may remember something about firework incantations if a certain someone would like to share their trick of enlarging windows, which I may add should be impossible on an enchanted castle"
"Well it looks like I may have to tell you my secret then Remus, but first how did you know it was me?"
"Who else could it have been?" Remus answered causing a dazzling smile to break out on Lily's face.
Remus proceeded to explain to Lily about the incantations, which she made Remus promise to show her properly soon, Remus had no doubt she would pick it up much quicker than he as she was very skilled with charm work. "Right I've told you all I know, so spill about those windows"
"Before I tell you I must remind you I am not crazy" She paused, continuing only once Remus nodded at her. "Well the castle is alive? No that's not the right word, its sentient, and I can sometimes communicate with it, I found out one day when I was late for class and I was wishing for the stair case to appear and suddenly it was just there, I thought nothing of it at first but then I noticed other little things. So, last night I performed a transfiguration spell whilst also wishing and willing the wall to change, and I guess the castle listened"
"That doesn't sound crazy at all, that sounds beautiful" Remus recalled James telling him something similar when they created the Marauders map, Remus and Sirius had tried to complete the final stages of the map but it repeatedly failed and the map was just like a plain muggle map, it was James who had finished it, and he had told them he had wished for the castle to be mapped and it was as if the castle had given James permission allowing the spell to be completed. Lily and Remus spent much of the morning and afternoon in the library, discussing ancient runes, fireworks, and the mysteries of the castle.
Meanwhile James and Peter were walking along a seventh-floor corridor looking fixedly at a map.
" I'm sure something is wrong with the map" James huffed.
"I don't see anything?"
"Peter its obvious there's a huge gap here the map is missing a bloody room"
The boys made their way down the corridor near the tapestry of Barnabas the Barmy, James scrutinized the map and then the wall repeatedly before sighing excessively loudly "I just don't understand there's no door, no statue as an entrance, it's as if there's just a solid block of wall, but that doesn't make any sense"
James began to pace up and down the corridor looking at the bricks on the wall for any indication of a secret entrance, Peter hurriedly followed him, after some time a door suddenly appeared and James jumped back in shock "Wormtail! A door! Merlin a door! Let's check it out" James yanked open the door to be faced with a bathroom "Hidden toilets?!"
Peter rushed passed James "Sorry Prongs I got to go" A door was promptly slammed shut in James' face as Peter hurried inside.
James sat down and leaned his back against the wall thinking about the sudden appearance of the hidden toilet, it still didn't make sense the area missing on the map was significantly bigger than the room the toilet would take up.
It wasn't until later that night that all the Marauders were together, Sirius, Peter and James sat and discussed their Halloween prank plans as they waited for Remus to return from his seemingly never-ending studying. Once he entered the room James excitedly informed Sirius and Remus about the mystery toilet which had appeared earlier that day.
Sirius scoffed "You are excited about a toilet?"
"I must admit it's curious, but it is only a toilet, I am surprised none of us noticed the anomaly on the map before now though" Remus responded.
"Guys please you have to come see it, it just doesn't make any sense" James pleaded.
"Seriously Prongs I don't want to walk all the way there"
"Well as your quidditch captain Sirius I think you need the exercise"
"Oi!" Sirius jumped on James dragging him to the ground "I do not need any extra exercise I look great I'll have you know"
Remus and Peter laughed as they watched the boys rolling around the floor "Come on let's just go visit this toilet so we can go to bed" Remus managed to get out between his laughter.
Soon the boys were stood staring at the solid wall of the seventh-floor corridor "Well there's no door, nice one Prongs" Sirius moaned.
"Thank you for pointing out the obvious, I already told you the door appeared out of nowhere last time" James quickly responded,
"Right so what were you doing last time it appeared?" Remus decided since they were here, to be logical about the situation, they had to determine the factor which causes the room to appear.
"Well we were just walking back and forth looking at the bricks"
"I wasn't" Peter spoke up "I was actually praying for a toilet to appear, I drank way too much pumpkin juice at lunch"
"Too much information Wormtail" Sirius shuddered.
"Sorry" He squeaked.
"Hmm so the room appeared as you wished for it, I wonder" Remus paused thinking before he began to stride back and forth in front of the wall, suddenly a door appeared.
"A door!" James exclaimed.
"Brilliant Moony you're a genius" Sirius beamed at him.
Remus stepped forward and opened the door, the boys stepped through, inside the room was squishy chairs a roaring fire, the walls were a rich burgundy colour and the seating had beautiful golden accents"
"It's not a toilet?" Peter asked in confusion.
"No, the room became what I required" Remus answered, "I realised that you had been asking for a toilet and the castle provided you with it, I instead asked for a comfortable place to sit down and relax, the castle listened to our requests and granted them for us"
"That's a perfect name for it" Spoke Sirius. Remus raised his eyebrows in question "The room of requirement" Sirius responded to the look, without fail he could always read Remus' facial expressions.
"That does sound good" James agreed, Peter also nodded along to this.
"I wonder what else it could change into" Remus pondered "Maybe a study room"
"Why when we have a room with possibly endless opportunities to you still think about studies" Sirius laughed nudging Remus playfully.
For many hours, the boys took turns to request rooms, by the time Remus had herded them back to Gryffindor tower for sleep before tomorrow's lessons, they had discovered the room could turn into pretty much anything you requested, although if you weren't specific it could vary slightly from your intended request, also food couldn't be created by the room, besides that the room was seemingly magically powerful enough to complete any requirement.
Remus had pondered the room of requirement some more as he laid in bed trying to sleep, a smile suddenly began to grow across his face, this is it he thought to himself the ultimate Halloween prank, he couldn't wait until the morning to tell his fellow Marauders.