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Chapter Text

2 years ago - Summer 1974 

Every summer holiday, your parents would take you on some elaborate vacation to a different place. This summer was no different from that, except that they’d contacted some of their old friends in England to plan a trip together. Your father was set on making you more fluent in English and had the brilliant idea to force you onto making some English friends. 

While you weren’t too excited about spending your summer with a pure-blood family, since your mom had not-wizarding grandparents, you decided you were not going to be a snob and actually try to make some friends. Your parents never told you that the Blacks didn’t know about your mom’s ancestry though, especially after your great-grandmother made a huge effort to hide that side of the family when the racist stuff started getting worse. It wasn’t a secret to you, only to the rest of the world. 

“Are you ready sweetheart?” Your mom asked, looking stunning in her white beach dress. 

You closed your suitcase and nodded, walking towards her and your dad in the centre of your living room. You stood in a circle and in the blink of an eye apparated in a completely different place. You were in the middle of a giant Lobby, looking straight toward the front desk. It was an open space, there were fountains in the centre and large logs of wood holding a stunning ceiling with floating balls of some wood-like fibre, you could hear the waves crashing onto the shore somewhere in the distance. It looked elegant yet rustic at the same time. On the side of the Lobby, a metal plate spelled 

Mayan Occultum Hotel 

The #1 Hotel for Witches and Wizards in the Caribbean: 

Costa Maya 

Followed by 5 shining golden stars that spun  around every couple of seconds. Your father had his head up and looked around to try and find his old friends. 

Sirius had been dragged to this. While to anyone a vacation in the Caribbean might sound like a dream, to him it was no other than an absolute nightmare, not because he disliked the beach, in fact, he quite fancied the idea of spending some time relaxing under the sun after the finals, the issue here was that he wasn’t going with his friends, no James, No Mooney, no Wormtail. No, he was on a FAMILY vacation, which meant he’d have to spend like 2 weeks locked up in a hotel in the middle of nowhere with a bunch of people that hated him. He threw in as many muggle-like clothing items he’d gotten from Andromeda into his suitcase, just to spite his parents and hopefully keep the other wizard family, the one that had the brilliant idea to invite his family to the hotel to come along with them, at bay. He was not interested in making new friends, he was not interested in talking to any that were of his parents at all. After all, they probably would be no other than a bunch of Slytherin snobs. 

By the time his mother called him down to the chimney to travel through the floo network, he’d even made sure to add in a pair of Doc Martens to his suitcase, the most punk thing he had gotten his hands on thus far, all thanks to Moony who’d showed him how to order things from a catalogue. He was wearing a leather jacket, ripped black jeans and a pair of Converse shoes, not a very beachy outfit, was it? 

When his mom saw him she almost ordered him to go back upstairs to change but Orion said they were late and basically pushed Sirius onto the chimney. He was the first to arrive, Regulus was next, with a very suitable wizard attire, his parents had come soon after. 

Once your dad spotted Orion among the crowds he went straight to greet him, your mom followed alongside him and you lagged behind just a bit. 

“It’s wonderful to see you again, Orion, you look as dashing as the last time we met,” your father said. 

Orion chuckled lightly “I could say the same about you Silas! This must be Avis,” he said as he turned into your mother “I remember as if it was yesterday when you wrote me that you’d found the love of your life.” 

Now it was your father who chucked “Walburga,” He nodded towards her, she set her hand out and he gave a courteous kiss. Had they forgotten to tell you were meeting royalty or something? Your parents were rarely this formal with his friends.

Regardless of the odd formalities, you stayed behind them as they caught up, “These are my children,” Orion said pushing forwards two boys, one dressed as a wizard and one with very muggle-like clothes, “This is Sirius,” He pointed at the taller boy, “and this is Regulus,” he said pointing at the smaller one. 

Up until then Sirius had maintained a disagreeable face but had been polite enough to your parents so as not to seem like an ass, at least they weren’t overly dressed, they looked like a normal family on vacation, not like they were going to the queen’s wedding at the beach. But his expression changed when your mom moved to the side and he saw you for the first time. 

“This is my daughter, (Y/N),” Your father said, placing a hand on your back and pushing you just slightly forward. 

“You’ve got yourself a beautiful young lady, Silas, why have you been hiding her behind you?” 

“Our (Y/N) is a bit shy,” Your mom excused. 

“Just like our son,” Walburga said as she placed a hand on Regulus’ shoulder, with a huge suspicious smile growing on her face. You would’ve taken a step back had it not been for your father’s hand still on your back, Sirius noticed. He’d straightened his back right after you appeared in his field of view, he almost felt self-conscious, of his outfit (probably because of how hot it was), of his hair, he hated feeling that way, but there was something about you, he couldn’t quite put his finger on. Curiosity , it had to be that. He was curious about you. 

You responded with an awkward smile, by then your father was already pulling Orion toward the front desk to check in. 

“So (Y/N), What year are you in?” Walburga asked, you couldn’t help but notice how beautiful she was, in a dangerous sort of way, sharp features, a smile that even if it looked kind, hid something behind it. Like a mermaid luring you in before she drowns you, you thought. 

“I’m starting my 4th,” You replied politely, trying to hide how intimidated you felt while talking to her. 

“Oh,” she said, sounding almost a little disappointed “Like Sirius.” Had she said her child’s name with disdain or was it just your imagination? Perhaps it had something to do with the way the boy dressed. 

“I’m sure they’ll become great friends,” your mom said looking at you, then at Sirius and then back at you. 

Walburga nodded but did not look very happy with the idea of you making friends with her older son. Regardless, you’d been interested in talking to the boy the moment you spotted him from the distance, he looked like the vocalist of a rock band. If it had not been for the fact that your parents introduced you to him, you might have lived on assuming he was some sort of celebrity. 

In the midst of the awkward silence your father and Orion came back. Your father smiled towards you, almost apologetically “Sweetheart there is an event for couples on the other side of the hotel, Orion and I thought it would be good to spend some time there to catch up, would you mind exploring the rest of the hotel with the boys?” 

Well, there goes your family vacation, makes sense after all, your father had been looking for an excuse to move back to England for a while, maybe he’d talk to Orion about the ministry jobs available, Orion did have the politician look going for him. You forced a smile “Not at all Dad, it’ll be fantastic to get to know them,” you hoped that did not come out as ironic as you meant it. Although Sirius' snicker from behind gave you the impression it was not like that. 

Your dad handed you and the boys a map each “We’ve enhanced them, that way we can always find you.” 

Your smile only tightened but you kept it until they were out of sight. Once you made sure they were far enough you pulled your wand out and murmured “ incendio, ” causing your map to slowly burn itself, you let it drop once the fire was too close to your hand. 

“Did you just use magic? Aren’t you 14?” Regulus asked with a frown. 

You turned to him with a smile “There are many qualified wizards around us,” you responded opening your arms to gesture at the amount of people surrounding you “Besides, this hotel is part of the Occultum line, anyone that has studied at least until year 2 is permitted to use magic–” After hearing this words Sirius used incendio to burn his map as well, you raised your eyebrows towards him and then continued “–that’s why my parents picked it, they wanted me to spend some time practising spells for the next year.” 

Regulus only settled his map on a nearby suitcase that was soon sent flying away, presumably towards its own room, proving how unnecessary the magic you’d both used had been “I heard there was an orchestra at noon, maybe we can go there?” He suggested. 

“Sure, I guess…” You said before grabbing a pamphlet that mentioned all the activities the hotel had going on that day, but one seemed a tad more interesting “What about his one tho?” You said pointing at something written on the paper. 

“A muggle movie screening?” Regulus asked with a grimace, Sirius, on the other hand, seemed a lot more interested in it. 

“Let’s do that! Sounds fun!” Sirius decided, took the pamphlet from your hands in an action that would’ve been rude had he not done it with such grace, and started walking towards the direction the pamphlet indicated. 

“Not sure Mom and Dad would like that,” Regulus argued as the two of you followed, lagging behind Sirius only slightly. 

“Of course, they wouldn’t,” You agreed with him, but caught up with Sirius soon after “Regardless, dear Reg, is not like they’re going to know, we all got rid of our maps.” 

His frown didn’t leave his face even after he caught up with you, walking by your side, instead of his brother’s. Weird , you thought. 

“And don’t even think about telling dear mommy and daddy about it Reggie!” Sirius warned. 

Regulus didn’t fancy how quick you’d gotten comfortable with giving him a nickname, regardless he decided to go with it, it was probably better to stick to Sirius to make sure he didn’t cause some mischief that would have the three of you grounded for the rest of the summer, or your lives , whichever came first. 

The three of you arrived at the “cinema” area quickly enough. “Well, even if the movie is bad, the experience will be authentic.” 

“You’ve been to a cinema?” Asked Sirius impressed. 

“Last summer while I was in New York,” you explained, “very similar to this one, ‘bit more run down.” 

“And your parents allowed you?” Asked Regulus, almost judging. 

“Perhaps they would’ve If they’d known ,” you replied with a mischievous smile. 

The three of you walked to the stall and asked the lady attending to give you 1 large bowl of popcorn and three butter beers. The lady grabbed a large bucket and threw some kernels inside it, followed by a block of butter and a sprinkle of salt, she then murmured “ calidium .” Hot air started coming from her wand, heating the kernels and having them pop in front of your eyes. 

You leaned in closer to Regulus and whispered “They didn’t have that in the cinema I went to.” 

The lady continued with her task and started serving the butter beers when Sirius decided to speak up. 

“What’s the sorting hat popcorn?” 

“You spin the thing, and a block of candy will come out, we add that to the corn before popping and when it does, it becomes sweetened popcorn with the colour of your house, it’s inspired by the Hogwarts sorting hat,” She explained. 

He nudged you, “You should try it, see which house you’d be in if you studied with us,” He said with a smile. 

“That’s ridiculous, random candy cannot be as wise as the sorting hat,” Regulus complained. 

You shrugged “Seems like a fun deal,” You said, walking towards the fun-looking machine and spinning the wheel. A dark block of candy came out and you handed it to the lady. After she performed the same spell as last time, minus the salt, the popcorn started to pop, turning into different shades of grey, gold, green and silver. You turned to the boys “Which house is that?” 

“Seems like you’re in between,” the lady replied. “The popcorn is not as accurate as the sorting hat I’m afraid.” 

“In between what?” 

“Slytherin–“ started Regulus. 

“–And Gryffindor.“ finished Sirius, the air seemed to tense up in that minute and you just had to do something, so you threw your fist inside the bucket and grabbed a couple of them, popping them in your mouth. 

“Who cares? I highly doubt I’ll ever be in Hogwarts anyway,” You said as you grabbed one of the buckets and your mug of butter beer. “Can I also have some of those?” You said pointing toward the every flavour beans, the lady nodded and handed you a box. 

“The movie starts in 15 minutes,” said Regulus after looking at the time in the giant magical clock. 

“Excuse me, what’s a magic projection?” You asked the clerk near the door. 

“It’s the movie, but with special magical effects, like things that come out of the screen and several other effects, it’s immersive,” he explained and you nodded, definitely not like the muggle cinema you’d been to before. 

“I didn’t know such a thing existed.” 

“It’s a program in development, a very talented new-maj called Drey started bewitching films just 2 years ago, they became very popular in the industry, and this is one of her newest projects.” 

Before Regulus could open his mouth Sirius spoke “That sounds fantastic! Can we walk in already?” He asked with the most charming smile you had ever seen and after the clerk nodded he dragged you both inside. 

“I’m still not fascinated by this idea,” Regulus complained. 

“Don’t be such a party popper Reg,” You said, throwing a popcorn at him. He brushed it off his coat and started looking at the ads on the screen. 

You then threw one in the air and caught it with your mouth, it’s something you’d seen muggles do in the theatre you had been to last year. 

“Shoot one,” Sirius said, you shot a popcorn and he’d easily caught it, he then winked and motioned for you to send another one. You did, but the third time you grabbed an every flavour bean instead, he also caught it and bit on it with ease, grimacing right after. 

“Treason!” He said after forcing it to go down his throat “I demand her head!” he added while exaggerating his expressions in a very Alice in WonderLand Queen of Hearts-like attitude, then he relaxed again “That was awful, and no warning either!” You just laughed in return, “no wonder the popcorn wanted you in Slytherin” he said, Regulus rolled his eyes. 

“What flavour was it anyway?” You asked, to drive the conversation away from the house topic, which clearly was a sensible one. 

“Your mom’s,” he replied. After understanding the implication of his answer you gasped and playfully hit him on the arm “Sorry, sorry, It was something like sewer water or something, one of the worst I’ve had in my life.” 

Regulus looked at the box and then at you “You want one too?” You asked politely, while there seemed to be some kind of tension between the two boys, neither of them seemed particularly evil, or mean, if anything Regulus was rather shy compared to his loud brother, almost like he did not want to get on the bad side of his parents, something Sirius didn’t really seem to care much about. He quietly nodded to respond to your question and you shot one towards his face, it unfortunately didn’t land on his mouth and fell to the side. He was about to call it off but you didn’t let him. “It’s ok if you don’t get it the first time, we can try again.” And so, you sent another bean flying towards him, this time he caught it with ease and munched on it with a rather pleasant expression “So?” You asked expectantly 

“Peaches,” he replied with a smile. 

“Unfair,” Sirus said as he crossed his arms and took the box from you “It’s your turn.” 

“I’m terrible at catching with my mouth,” you warned, but he threw one at your face anyway. It landed on your eye, thankfully you closed it first. 

“Shit, I’m sorry,” He said, grabbing your face with his two hands to check if you were ok. Did he not know about personal space? “You OK?” He was so close you could smell his breath, it was minty and fresh, despite having had popcorn already. 

“Yeah, I’m good,” you said, shaking him off and picking the jelly bean from your shirt, where it’d fallen after attacking you “Got fast reflexes,” you said before popping it in your mouth, you grimaced. 

“What was it?” Regulus asked. 

“Lime I think, it was very sour,” you said, turning towards him “Guess you’re the lucky one between the three of us.” Regulus smiled awkwardly as a reply and then the screen turned on. 

A lady showed up on the screen “Welcome, witches and wizards, this is the newest rendition of the magical cinema series. Welcome to this incredible adventure in which you will face a terrible creature, the dangers of the sea and the world as told from a muggle perspective. There will be a lot of water, hope you brought your bathing suits.” She disappeared shortly after and then the titles started rolling in. 

It was actually a beach movie, funny when you remembered that the beach was just a minute's walk away from where you stood. And it was definitely NOT like an ordinary muggle film, there were splashes of water in your face, things crawling on your seat, smoke, smell and even the shark would get out of the screen and swim all over the room. It was thrilling, to say the least. 

When the move was over the three of you were soaked, the boys had their fluffy hair clinging onto their faces as you walked out of the theatre. But they also looked happy, Sirius was thrilled, unsurprisingly, but even Reg seemed at ease, even if he had gone to a “muggle thing”. 

“We should go see the beach now,” Sirius said. 

“Just hope Larry Vaughn is not the mayor here,” you responded and cracked a laugh from the two brothers. 

The three of you then walked towards the beach area, there were lounge chairs with umbrellas on top, some beach beds and a stand where you could ask the house elves to bring you different special drinks. As you were sitting down in one of the chairs you overheard some wizards passing by. And you couldn’t help but to be enthralled by their conversation. Regulus was sitting by the end of the bed, looking wearily at the sea and Sirius was taking off his jacket and laying it on the back of the bed for it to dry with the wind, he was rocking a David Bowie shirt underneath. “Hey (Y/N) do you want anything from the–“ 

“–Shhhh,” you said as you gestured for him to listen to the conversation as well. 

“Yeah, the ziplines were amazing, it’s fantastic the hotel counts with muggle transportation all the way to the parks,” one of the wizards said. 

“Do you think we should go again,” asked the other one. 

“No, Mom said we’d go to the ruins tomorrow, something about magical vestiges or whatever.” 

That’s when you stood up “Hey!” You said with a smile “Sorry, we kinda overheard you talking about the… what did you call them? Zip lines? We were wondering what park you were referring to.” You really could be charming when you wanted to. 

“It’s Xplore,” one of the boys replied. 

The other grabbed his backpack and handed you a brochure “I took this one from the park, maybe it helps,” he said with a bright smile as well. 

“Thank you, you’re a darling,” you said before going back to your beach bed, sitting on the side, next to Sirius, Reg was still sitting on the end of the bed, but he clearly did not like where the conversation was going. 

“You even got them to give you a brochure?” Sirius mused. 

You shrugged and set it on the centre of the bed, opening it up just to realise it was in Spanish. 

“Reg speaks some Italian,” Sirius said motioning towards his brother. 

“I’m not translating any muggle propaganda.” 

“It’s NOT propaganda,” you argued, “regardless I came prepared,” you said as you took out your wand, waved it and whispered “ tradussere .” The letters of the page started changing and soon enough it was all in English. 

“I thought you needed to speak the language to be able to do that,” Reg said. 

“You do, and I can only manage to make it last a couple of minutes, so we better hurry,” you replied. 

XPLORE 

Jungle adventure park with zip lines, amphibious vehicles, whitewater rafting and underground rivers. 

Prices start at $1500 MXN 

Experience a true adventure on your trip to Mexico by flinging through ZIP lines, swimming on underground sacred rivers and riding amphibious vehicles in the Mayan rainforests. 

On the brochure, there were also photos with people wearing climbing gear and helmets. People swimming in dark but beautiful cabins, it really looked like an adventure-filled experience. 

You and Sirius gave each other a look after reading “WE HAVE TO GO!” you said to each other at the same time. 

“No, we don’t HAVE to do anything,” said Reg “In fact, we CAN’T.” 

“Come on Reggie, it sounds super fun,” you argued, trying to convince him. 

“Mom and Dad would kill us before letting us go,” he reasoned with Sirius “You don’t need to make things worse between you and them.” 

“I do, especially if they act like racist bastards,” Sirius bit back defensively. 

“Sirius,” Reg said with pain in his eyes, clearly he cared about his brother, but Sirius seemed to be too pissed off to even consider that. 

“I…” you thought about it for a second “They don’t have to find out…” 

“What?” Reg asked, turning his face to you. 

“We just have to pick a day that’ll be very busy for them and go then, one with many activities. Besides I’m sure my father and yours are just so eager to catch up that we won’t see them much this summer…” 

“I’m not gonna do it,” Regulus said with conviction “It’s a terrible idea, you shouldn’t do it either,” You were far too excited to notice the fear in Regulus' eyes, had you been more observant, maybe the mess you’d get into later could’ve been avoided. 

“Clam down Reggie, it’ll be in and out, they’ll never find out,” Sirius reasoned, “We need to be perfect in picking the day,” he said turning towards you. 

Regulus denied with his head and pulled a book out of his bag as you and Sirius continued planning your escapade. 

You’d be in charge of the money exchange process since you already had done it before and knew how the entire process worked, Sirius would make fake muggle passports for the two of you, so you could get rid of the parental signs and age requirements they ask for in the park, Regulus, as he’d said before, would stay, but he’d make sure to cover for you in case you parents started looking for the two,  he was still against it, but you had convinced to at least do that for you. 

After days of careful planning, the opportunity finally presented itself, your parents would have a very busy schedule with some magical presentations happening at the hotel and the three of you would have the day to yourselves. 

“So… tomorrow, we have everything?” You asked Sirius. 

He nodded “Fake passports, the money, the bus that’ll take us there.  We’ll depart at 7, the park opens at 11 because it’s a Tuesday, but we’ll be dropped off at the city and from there, we have to take a taxi or something to get to the park.” 

“Perfect.” 

“You know, you can still call it off,” said Regulus, peering from his book, “At least consider it tonight.” 

The two of you turned towards him, every time the subject came up, Regulus would say something similar “It’ll be ok Reg, just promise you’ll cover for us,” you pleaded. 

He took a deep breath but turned his face towards you and nodded unconvinced “Just be very careful, you don’t know how angry our parents can get.” 

You took that as an exaggeration, after all, Sirius had played it as such for the longest time. You couldn’t have been more mistaken. You should’ve listened . But the idea of a day full of adventure next to Sirius was just too intoxicating for you to pay attention to the alarm system activating in your head, after all, the minute you’d met Walburga you’d known something was wrong with her. 

“We’ll be fine, Reg, stop acting like a chicken,” Sirius said, diverting your attention again.

Chapter Text

Tuesday - Summer 1974 

You woke up at 6:00 AM and started packing all the necessary stuff in your backpack, Reg and you’d found a way to enchant it for endless space, and you’d added anything and everything that might be useful inside of it. 

And so the adventure started. You met Sirius in the Lobby. “Regulus stayed inside,” he told you “In case anything happens he’ll tell our parents we went on a morning race on the brooms.” 

“And who’ll be the winner?” You wondered. 

“Well me, obviously,” he said “I’m on the quidditch team.” 

“I’m one of the fastest riders in my school though ,” you boasted. 

“Guess we’ll have to make an actual race another time to find out.” He said and you nodded, accepting the challenge. “Come on, we have to get on the bus,” he stated, pulling you towards the stop. 

Once the two of you sat comfortably near the end of the bus you turned to him “You brought a change of clothes, right?” You asked. 

“Why? I look dashing,” he responded, motioning towards his outfit. 

You laughed “I’m not saying you don’t, Sirius… but, you look perfect for a night out in London, this is Mexico, you’ll literally melt in that jacket.”

“Why?”

“It’ll be like 32º degrees by 11 am,” you said motioning towards the news. 

“Is that even possible?” He asked worried, which only had you laughing further.

“We’ll buy something for you before we go to the park,” you said as the bus started moving.  

After around 25 minutes the bus dropped you off in the city, it looked like a tourist area since there were many shops on both sides of the street. 

“We still have some time before the park opens,” said Sirius after checking his watch. 

“Let’s get you something more appropriate then,” you replied, “that shop seems interesting.” 

The two of you walked towards a small boutique, there were rows of clothes on both sides, neatly hung, all of them were beach appropriate, even some swimsuits here and there. You grabbed a pair of white beach shorts and a flowered Hawaiian shirt and handed them over to Sirius “Try this on,” you said. He looked at you, questioning “You have to blend in, I mean the rockstar look works on you but we’re in Cancun, not in New York.”

“Rockstar look?” He asked as he grabbed the hangers from you and headed towards the changing rooms. 

“You know, the whole leather jacket ripped jeans, if I didn’t know you have the thickest eyelashes I’ve ever seen on a boy I’d swear you were wearing man-liner too.” 

“So you were looking at my eyelashes then?” He responded in a flirtatious tone, from inside the changing room. 

“Don’t flatter yourself, I first noticed them on your dad.”

“How dare you imply we’re related,” he joked, half offended. 

“My bad,” you said, “at least you don’t have the whole murder stare he’s got going on.”

“I don’t?” He quipped. 

“You’re literally all smiles, Sirius, you laugh every couple of minutes at some stupid joke you make yourself.” By then he opened the curtain and as soon as you saw him you burst into a laugh, he looked silly in those clothes. 

“Bad idea then?” He said raising his eyebrows

“No, no, you look… handsome,” you said with a diverted smile, “that shirt is, maybe a bit too much?” You said before going towards the hangers to look for something better, you grabbed a plain brown shirt and handed it over to him. He grabbed it and headed inside again. 

“I’m not all smiles,” he said as he fumbled with the clothes “I’ve never been described like that.” 

“Yeah sure, all smiles and a flirt as well, all girls fawn over the mighty Sirius Black with his dark luscious locks,” you mocked “All around the hotel, all the girls turn to look at you when you–“ 

That’s when he opened the curtain, with some of the top buttons still undone, he might have bloody well been a supermodel in the portrait of those beach photos all around the store. 

“You were saying?”  He said with a cocky smile as he agitated his head to make his hair flow. 

It took a second to compose yourself after being starstruck by him, but you managed “Yeah that works better,” you said, handing him a pair of sunglasses “to maintain the rockstar vibes.” 

The two of you walked towards the register and paid shortly, the man in the register seemed to be eyeing Sirius up and down as he counted the cash, he was almost as handsome as Sirius, although with a more Latin flare going on with him, with his tanned skin and brown eyes, contrasting with Sirius’ nearly regal beauty. You almost said “ I feel you bro ” out loud when you noticed his eyes darting towards Sirius’ lashes, even if you would never admit it to Sirius himself, because his ego would grow all the way to the moon, your friend looked dashingly handsome that day. What you didn’t notice is that the boy on the register wasn’t only checking him out, he was also checking you out, that did not pass Sirius’ gaze and he went ahead and placed his arm over your shoulders as casually as possible. 

“Let’s go get some breakfast then,” he said looking towards you “I’m famished.” 

You nodded and turned to the cashier with a smile “Any place you’d recommend?”

“If you wanna try something local, try breakfast tacos on La Adelita, three blocks to the left. If you prefer something more on the sweet side, you can go walk one more block, there’s a shop that has amazing Italian ice cream.” 

“Thank you very much,” You said, still smiling and walking out along with Sirius after he handed you the ticket. 

“And you say I’m all smiles,” he said, raising an eyebrow towards you.

“It’s called being polite , you don’t have to act like a snob all the time,” you retorted. 

“Sure, if you call flirting being polite…” 

“I wasn’t!”

“You sure?”

“Sirius, the cashier was gay!” You told him as he turned towards you. 

“NO way.” 

“He was all over you the moment you stepped outta that changer,” you reasoned.

“He…” Sirius frowned “…he couldn’t have been.” 

“Well I may not know WHAT he was, but he was into you,” you concluded. Sirius turned red but looked to the side to hide it. A boy? Into him? Surely impossible…  

The two of you continued walking towards the breakfast place, both oblivious to the looks you got from the people around, while Sirius may have gotten all the attention from the ladies back at home, here he was getting some of the fruity boy’s eyes as well. Maybe it was because of the way you dressed him? Regardless of the looks, the two of you arrived at the ice cream shop.

“Hola,” you said to the lady at the counter “nos podría dar dos conos?” You asked politely, the lady nodded and motioned for you to look at the glass fridge with all the flavours. 

“Orangegasm?” Asked Sirius looking at one of the flavour names. 

“Naranja combinado con otros cítricos y frutos locales,” the lady explained in Spanish. 

“It’s orange with other citrus and fruits,” you told him. 

“She totally does not see the world play, does she?” He asked, holding a laugh. 

“I guess the word for orgasm is different in Spanish,” you shrugged. 

“I want that one,” Sirius said, the lady seemed to understand and served him a cone, she handed it over and Sirius tried it, he straight up let out the most obscene moan you’d ever heard. 

“Oh, the name fits.” 

“Do you mind if I?” You said motioning to the cone and he shrugged handing it over, you tried it as well, and damn it was hard to hold back your own moan. The name did fit after all. 

“Uno para mi también,” you said as you took out the money to pay. She handed you your cone, you paid, left some tips and left the little shop. 

“This may just be the best ice cream I’ve ever had,” Sirius said as he continued to suck on his cone. And you swear it was hard not to stare at him, he looked so beautiful with his pink-ish lips and dark lashes. 

“Definitely,” you agreed with a cough, forcing yourself to look at your cone instead. 

As you continued walking you bumped into a dark-looking shop with a legend on top that said “EL MALEFICIO” which you roughly translated to “The course” and frowned, putting an arm in front of Sirius to stop him from walking. 

He turned to you and after noticing you were staring at something turned towards that place, he did not really understand why it was calling your attention so he decided to just ask. 

“It’s a… witchcraft shop?” You said almost questioning yourself.

“Out in the open? Do wizards not hide in Mexico?” 

“I thought we did,” you replied as you grabbed his arm and pulled him along with you to enter the shop. 

Soon enough you realised there weren’t many real things in there. “Siete machos?” You asked puzzled looking at some of the vials “Blanca flor? I think this is just a tourist trap Sirius, for those muggles who think they can do witchcraft.” 

A tall man approached from behind “Tourist trap, eh?” The man said almost threateningly “Perhaps you two would like to see the back of the shop, where the real witchcraft lays,” he said with a steady and creepy tone, the man reminded Sirius of Severus, with his dark and evil aura, maybe a bit more clean, but also a lot more threatening.

“We were about to go,” you motioned to the exit but he quickly moved to block it.

“I insist,” he said as he basically pushed you both deeper into the shop. 

As he promised, this section of the shop was a lot more realistic, with floating candles on the side, cauldrons boiling potions by a fire and a lot of other wizarding items. “Go ahead,” he said. “I assume you two little wizards did not enter my shop to make me lose my time and do intend on buying something.” 

You both nodded and busied yourself by browsing through the shop. You walked towards a shelf with several scrolls and started looking at the different spells on them. One said animagi and something made you take it. 

Sirius was on the other side looking at some other things, he found a small necklace that looked very interesting, the man approached him from behind “That’s an interesting item you have there, it’s charmed. It’ll allow you to find the person wearing the necklace when you need it the most,” he said. Sirius didn’t really believe him but took it anyway. It instantly burned his hand and he dropped it on the floor. 

“What the fuck!” he cursed. 

“Told you it was charmed,” the man replied with a simple shrug. “Now you must buy it, it’s linked to you by a blood charm. Give it to someone you don’t want to lose.” 

Sirius was sure the man was being passive-aggressive but he was not about to challenge him about it, he looked very dangerous , same creepy vibe as his parents. 

“Do you, uhm... take muggle money, or just Galleons?” You asked nervously as you approached him and Sirius on the other side of the shop. 

“Galleons.” He said. You nodded and pulled out some money from your purse, giving it to him. The man moved to the side finally leaving the path open for you to leave the shop. 

“Be careful children,” he said as he saw you leave “It’s not safe for two wizards to be roaming around by themselves, especially when you are not of age yet.” 

Sirius and you quickened your pace and went out as soon as physically possible. Once you were far enough the two of you collapsed down onto some chairs from a local coffee shop. The two of you were breathing heavily “For a minute I thought he’d never let us out,” you said. 

Sirius nodded “It was certainly an experience ,” he agreed, also catching his breath “What did you buy?” 

Your face quickly changed “Oh, you’re gonna love it, I remembered you mentioned something about trying to turn into an animagus,” you said, he nodded, “well…” you said as you took the scroll “it’s the recipe.” You smiled mischievously. 

“No way!” He said as he took it from your hands and started inspecting it. “This is crazy, you can only get this stuff with a bunch of special permissions.” 

“I know, that’s why I bought it,” you said “I’ll make you a copy once we’re back at the hotel.”

He smiled brightly “Thank you.” The two of you stared at each other for a moment until a lady came over to ask if you wanted to order anything. 

“Mm, no, lo siento. Tienes lo hora?” 

“Son las diez cuarenta,” she responded, annoyed and you jumped from your seat. 

“Our bus for the park is about to leave,” you told Sirius and quickly took out a bill and left it on the table “Lamentamos molestarte,” you told the lady before pulling Sirius back to the bus departure place. 

“What was the bill for?” He asked as the two of you picked up the pace.

“The inconvenience,”  you said as the two of you started jogging. 

After 5 minutes you’d finally made it, the bus was indeed at the stop and a couple of other tourists were still getting inside it. “We made it on time,” You said once you were inside. 

“Ready for the zip lines?” He asked with that particular smile of his.

You laughed, looking slightly to the side “I was born ready.” You replied. 

You continued the bus drive talking about nothing and everything, looking at the scroll with the animagus recipe, and discussing how tedious it seemed to be. 

“What would you like to be?” You asked him. 

“I don’t know, a big strong animal I guess, like a tiger, or a wolf.” 

“Imagine if you ended up as a cute little puppy instead,” you teased. 

“Hey!” he said as he nudged you in response. 

“What?” You replied with a smile “Got a problem with that, Puppy?” 

“Oh no, don’t make that a thing,” he complained, “what ‘bout you?”

“I don’t know, something fast, maybe small? I’d like to be able to move around without causing too much trouble,” you responded “Or a lion,” you said with a smirk “I’m sure I could take out your tiger any day.” 

“Tigers are stronger than lions,” he said confidently.

“What are you talking about? Lions are the KINGS of the jungle for a reason,” you argued back. He was about to answer when the bus came to a halt. You were finally there. 

“Ladies and gentlemen, we have arrived at Xplore,” the driver said, in English, to Sirius’ amusement, probably because the bus was pretty much full of tourists. 

Soon enough people started to get up and out of the bus, as you two approached the doors he leaned towards you and whispered in your ear “My tiger would still win.” 

“Sure thing Puppy,” you said with a smirk and jumped from the stairs to the asphalt, walking towards the entrance of the park “You coming or what?” 

Sirius jumped right after you and the two of you walked towards the entrance. You had to sign some papers, that said something about the risk involved and how you wouldn’t sue the park in case of an accident and they asked for your ID, to which you gave them the fake ones that said you were both 19 and 18 respectively, which is above legal adult age in Mexico but also still believable with your childlike faces.

Chapter Text

Tuesday - Summer 1974 

As you walked inside the park, everything looked like an adventure, even if you could see the zip lines above you, the area still looked like a jungle with narrow paths and wooden signs that told you which places to go to. 

“So, where too?” You asked with a smile plastered all over your face.

“Zip lines?” He asked as he pointed at the sign that decided the path.  You nodded and the two of you started walking in that direction. You then arrived at a little wooden house where you had to line up for a couple of minutes before a young man asked you and Sirius to move toward the preparation area. 

“Size?” He asked as he looked through the wall with some helmets and handed them over to the two of you. 

“I don’t know…” you replied.

 He gave you a quick look and handed one strap system to you and turned to the blue-eyed boy “You?”

He seemed to think about it for a moment and confidently said “Large.” 

The guy gave him a look of incredulity and denied with his head “No, you’re small.” 

“I’m not SMALL!” Sirius argued, but the guy just handed him his own strap system. 

“Nothing wrong with being small,” the guy said then, “better for the zip lines,” he winked at you “All right, you’re gonna pass them under your feet and then I’ll help you tighten them. You did as told and the guy helped you finish tightening everything. Making sure to explain how you were supposed to hook everything up once you were at the top. 

From then you walked up some wooden towers and queued behind a group of 4 friends as you admired the view. 

“It’s high.” You said pointing at the bottom. 

“You scared?” he teased. 

“Oh no, I’ve been higher on a broom, I’m surprised muggles aren’t tho.”

As if on cue, a small lady with brown hair who stood in front of you asked the park staff if she could go back down the stairs. But her friends tried to convince her to go on the zip lines instead. While they were at it a boy turned towards Sirius “Oye, creo que estaremos aquí un rato para convencerla, pueden pasar primero si quieren.” 

Sirius just stared at him in confusion “Gracias,” You said taking over for him “él no habla español.” The boy gave you an understanding look and moved out of the way. 

“Gracias!” Repeated Sirius after you as you walked to the front of the line “What happened?” He asked afterwards. 

“We’re going first, one of the girls chickened out,” you explained, he looked back at the lady and nodded. Once on the edge of the wooden platform, a tall muscular guy asked who’d go first. “I’ll do it,” you said as you walked towards him and handed him your hook. He swiftly joined you with the zip line. 

“You have to bend your legs a little if you want to go faster,” he explained, “the first one is really short to give people some confidence, but after they become longer”. You nodded at his words “Ready?” he asked.

You looked  down to the very long fall “I was born ready!” You said before gaining some impulse and letting yourself go on it. 

Once you were on the other side you turned towards Sirius on the other platform and screen towards him “Let’s go, you’re up!” But he seemed to be having second thoughts. “Sirius, don’t tell you’re scared!” You teased from the other side. 

“Of course not, that’s ridiculous!” He screamed back but continued to hesitate while you laughed. 

“Allez-y, c'est comme monter sur un balai.” 

“You can’t say that out loud!” He screamed scandalized. 

“Personne ne parle français ici! À part toi et ta famille snob.” 

“Tu es folle!” He responded before adjusting his stance, getting ready to jump, and he did jump, arriving next to you shortly after. 

“And I take pride in it,” you told him once he was next to you. 

“You can’t scream that we’re wizards like that!” 

“Ok, first of all, I never said we were wizards, I said it was like riding a broom, and secondly, even if someone spoke French, they’d just assume we’re crazy or something, muggles are really square-headed, they choose to ignore the things they don’t understand most of the times because the idea of magic is so foreign to them that they’d assume anything but that you’re a wizard.” 

“You’re even crazier than me,” he said with amazement in his eyes, “you remind me of my best friend, James Potter.” 

“I bet I’d like them,” You said before strapping yourself to the next zip line “See you on the other side.” 

You finished the entire zipline circuit after a while and we're back at the center of the park. Taking a detour to get something to eat at the park's buffet. 

“Wow, it’s the most tropical fruit I’ve ever seen in my life,” Sirius said as you walked inside the buffet. As you sat next to him with a plate full of food you overheard some people that were coming from an underground river, they seemed to have had an amazing time. 

“We have to go there next!” You said as he looked at you in the middle of a bite, he was eating some kind of taco, his blue irises looking up at you from his tick lashes almost made you look away.

“Mhm,” he responded with a nod, “You should try this,” he said after swallowing “I have no clue what it is, but it’s bloody delicious.” 

You raised your eyebrows and grabbed one of the tacos from his plate, he was right, whatever it is Sirius had picked up, was insanely good. 

“Shall we get to the water?” You asked after the two of you were done. 

“Shouldn’t we wait a bit? Since we just ate?” He asked as the two of you took your trays to the discarding area. 

“Never took you for a cautious person, Sirius. Who would’ve thought all your recklessness would disappear after placing you in a strange environment.” 

He looked at you almost offended. “I’m as reckless as always, I’m just trying to be considerate.”

“Awwww… you’re only being a gentleman then,” you teased again. 

“I thought that’s what girls liked,” He responded in a flirtatious tone, trying to gain back some ground, he walked closer to you “Maybe if I behave correctly I’ll get the girl.” 

You swallowed, damn Sirius and his beautiful face. Well, two people can play the same game then, you thought to yourself before walking even closer to him and pulling him down slightly to whisper something in his ear “Let’s go then.” Right after you took off running towards the path that led to the underground river. 

Sirius let out a small smile as he saw you run and after biting his lip subconsciously and shaking his head, he jumped right after you. 

After a while, the two of you were swimming on the underground river, wearing the lifejackets the park staff members had given you. 

“This is nice,” You said as you let the currents move you through the water.

Sirius agreed, as he too let the currents drive him, eventually the two of you bumped into each other.

“Sorry,” He said as he crashed into you. You just pushed him to the side and threw a splash of water towards his face. 

“Oi, what was that for?” 

You shrugged “For attempting to seduce me,” you replied. 

“It was an accident!” he argued and threw some water back at your face. 

“Yeah, and your parents are the nicest people I’ve ever met.” 

“Oh, that’s a low blow,” he joked. 

“You wish it were a low blow,” You said with a little smirk to help imply the double meaning of your sentence. He was speechless for a couple of seconds before you started laughing. “Someone should’ve told me earlier you could shut up the mighty Sirius Black with a little dirty joke.”

“Oh, I’ll render YOU speechless soon enough!” He replied before throwing some more water at your face.

“Sure you will,” you said with a smile before swimming towards one of the caverns. 

“This is stunning,” Sirius said as the two of you walked inside, looking at the wondrous views the underground caverns had to offer, with its stalagmites and a brief opening at the top that allowed some sun to reflect over the center of the natural vault. 

From there you could see a tall building that was somewhere inside the park. 

“What’s that?” You asked, pointing towards it. 

“I saw it on the maps earlier, it’s some kind of lookout building, something about the tallest spot in the park or whatever.” 

“The tallest point in the park?” You said as your face lit up while an idea formed in your head. “I’ve got a bet for you. Whoever makes it up there first, gets a wish from the other person.” 

“I’m faster, you’ll lose,” he said instantly.

“No you’re not,” you said, shrugging “I can swim better.” 

“I have longer legs.” 

“We’ll see,” You said with a daring look on your face “3…2…1… GO !”

With that the two of you took off swimming towards the closest exit of the river, you had gotten there first but once the two of you were on the ground he started catching up quickly. 

“Told you I was faster,” he said before passing you as you approached the building. He was on the stairs first but you were just behind him. Managing to catch up with his long legs somehow. Half your way up you had to stop to get some air, he stopped just a couple of steps above you. Also agitated from so much running “You wanna call off the bet?” He asked politely. 

You looked at him defiantly, “In your dreams Black!” You said before grabbing on the railing and running as fast as you could to get ahead of him. 

“That’s cheating!” He said following behind you seconds after.

“We never established rules,” You said with a smile on your face. As you were about to get there first he grabbed you from behind to try and stop you, but with the momentum from running the two of you ended up on the floor of the wooden platform. 

The two of you rolled almost all the way to the railing on the other side. And as you stopped, and you looked at the dangerous fall right next to you, you started laughing. Sirius, next to you on the floor, did the same. 

“Who won then?” He asked. 

“I did! You cheated and tried to grab me from behind,” you argued. 

“But (Y/N), we never established any rules ,” he said with a smile, throwing your words back at you. 

You looked towards him with a smile on your face, still breathing fast and lightheaded from so much running, and as you stared at his beautiful face it downed you, this boy was gonna be your ruin. 

“What? Do I have something on my face?” He asked, teasing. 

“Yeah, here,” you said before leaning towards him and landing a chaste kiss on his lips. “You had a kiss,” you said in between breaths. 

He blinked twice before gaining back composure and pulling you towards a kiss again. This time a real one, he tasted of mint and tropical fruit and his wet hair tickled your cheeks.

But then you heard steps coming up and separated from each other, bursting out into a laugh at the idea of someone finding you there while kissing. Your laughs died down the moment the people going up the stairs showed their faces. 

It was Orion, with Walburga dragging Regulus behind him, clutching his arm with her long claw-like nails.  Your parents walked behind them trying to reason with them. 

“Mom?” Sirius asked as he stood up completely confused, until his eyes landed on Reg, who was still being pulled around by Walburga, his gaze turned cold, as he stared at his brother, instantly assuming it had been his fault you’d been caught. He almost reminded you of Orion at that moment “I thought you wouldn’t care to join us.” He said sarcastically. 

You looked at him worriedly, this needn’t be worse than it already was, you’d say sorry, apologize profusely and that’d be it, but Sirius knew better . 

“I can’t believe you’d do this, escaping the VIP hotel we brought you on vacation for some muggle park.” 

“Walburga,” you called her “It– it wasn’t Sirius's fault… It was my idea… I said I’d come regardless and he followed me so I wouldn’t get hurt.” You tried to reason with her. 

When she turned to you she looked almost pitiful. It gave you chills. She walked towards you and set a hand on your shoulder. 

Sirius was quicker to react “You don’t have to lie for me (Y/N), We all know whose idea it was, don’t we Reggie?” He said turning towards his brother who was awkwardly looking at the floor. 

Walburga looked at Sirius and then back at you “I’m sorry my son dragged you here,” she said “I know muggle places like such are no place for a young wizard like you, I don’t know how he convinced you but, we’re not letting him influence you negatively ever again.” 

“But he–” You tried to defend him, Orion was already behind Sirius, clutching his son's shoulder viciously. 

“–will be punished severely for his actions.” He said, staring down at your friend.

As Walburga walked back towards her family your mom caught up with you. “Nooo!” You screamed “You can’t punish him! It was me! My idea, from the start, I convinced him to come, you have to listen!”

“She's lying.” Sirius said “Isn’t she Reggie? It was me, your rebellious Gryffindor brother. All my mad planning.” 

Regulus nodded, avoiding your gaze. 

At this point, you were pissed “You cannot punish him for something he didn’t do! LISTEN TO ME!” 

Walburga turned to your mother “I’m really sorry my son would do something like this to your daughter, we should’ve known better than to bring him along on the trip.” Sirius threw something towards you and then the four of them apparated.

You stared at the floor, Sirius had thrown a necklace towards you, the one he’d bought at the scary magical store in the city center. You grabbed for it, holding it tightly between your fingers, blinking back some tears before turning to your mom. 

“Why didn’t you say anything?! It was my idea! It’s the kind of thing I would do. You know it .” 

Your mom looked down “We could not let anything damage your father's important business with Orion, if they believed it had been you, the whole thing might’ve been ruined.” 

“Ah, so my friend will get punished because of Dad’s stupid wish to be part of the British ministry?” You asked in disbelief, looking at your dad “Walburga and Orion are horrible, who knows what they might do to him!” 

“You can try sending him a letter?” Your mom offered “And Regulus, I’m sure he didn’t mean to tell us everything.” 

That confirmed your suspicion, it had been Reg who snitched on you. Just when you were feeling bad about Sirius throwing all the blame on him. 

Your expression turned cold, “Yeah, I’m sure a letter apologizing to my friend for whatever his parents do to him after mine weren’t brave enough to say something will fix the absolute betrayal you committed.” 

“We’re doing this to make the world a better place, if your father gets the job, people like Orion, and other pure blood-obsessed men will be controlled.” 

“And whoever gets thrown under the bus until that happens will just be collateral damage, right?” You said calmly, you were outraged, but there was nothing you could do about it. “I want to go home.” 

You would think back to that day as the day your relationship with your parents broke down. You still talked to them, you still ate with them, but you never trusted them again.

Chapter Text

July 10th, 1974

Dear Sirius, 

My mom gave me your address. She feels really bad about the whole situation, but that does not justify her actions. She and Dad were awful by keeping their mouths shut, awful , and I’m terribly sorry about it. If only they’d said something, maybe then they would’ve changed the outcome of the situation. 

I tried asking her to write a letter to your parents, with the truth behind the trip, you know, that it was MY IDEA, but she refused to do it. I’m sorry I can’t do anything to help you avoid the wrath of your parents. Our families are a bunch of cowards. 

Thanks for the necklace, It’s beautiful. I put it on when I got home, it’s got a strange weight to it, but I like it, it reminds me of you. I’m writing a copy of the instructions of you know what on a letter and I’ll send it to you once we’re back in school. I’m really upset our trip was cut short. It would’ve been nice to stay in the moment a bit longer. Anyway, I really wish you’re well. Hope to hear from you soon. 

Love,

(Y/N)

July 15th, 1974

Dear Sirius, 

I hope my letter finds you alright. I’m writing again since perhaps my last letter got lost in flight, my owl Reese can be very clumsy sometimes.

 I just wanted to apologize for everything that happened. I’m sorry for having the idea to go to Xplore (not for what happened inside the park, but yes what happened after), I’m sorry your parents found out, and I’m sorry we trusted Regulus to have our backs. I’m sorry my parents were cowards and didn’t back me up when I said the truth. And I’m really sorry for whatever your parents do to you. 

It was really fun spending our break together. I get the chances of it ever happening again are zero, but it’s nice thinking we got to meet. 

Also, I wanted to thank you for the necklace. I've been wearing it every day since I returned home, I really enjoy having it around my neck, it reminds me of our adventure. 

Hope to hear back from you soon, 

(Y/N)

July 25th, 1974

Dear Sirius Black, 

I’d like to be able to assume my letter was lost in the mail again, but since the lack of response from the previous two, I can only imagine you have decided to ignore my letters. 

Which, to be honest, I don’t understand. YOU were the one that decided to take the blame for yourself. If you HAD backed me up, and told your parents it had been me, then you wouldn’t have gotten in so much trouble. 

Last night I received a letter from Regulus, I did not care to read it and threw it straight to the fire. I do not want to hear his apologies, mom told me it was him that spilled the soup. Traitor , like you’d call Slytherins in the past. I guess once a snake, always a snake.  

I don’t want to sound like I’m begging, but please talk to me , if anything just tell me you’re alright. I just want to know you’re ok. 

(Y/N)

August 3rd, 1974

Sirius, 

This is the last letter I write. I’m sorry for bothering you with my insistence, I will not write any more letters. I’m sorry we met, and I’m sorry I caused you so much pain that you decided to completely cut me out of your life, or whatever, I don’t even know what happened. 

I really thought we could stay friends, even after everything that happened. But I guess we can’t always get what we hope for. Either way, a promise is a promise, and I will send you the instructions for you know what once we’re back in school. I don’t want your parents to accidentally find them by opening your mail. 

I really hope you’re alright. 

Goodbye Sirius, 

(Y/N)

After writing that letter you cried like a baby and considered burning it instead of sending it several times. But you knew writing more letters was useless –and that it would be worse if you went on without any closure– still waiting for an answer from him that you would never receive. So you tied the letter to Reese and sent him off. Once the school year started, and after you made a copy for yourself, you bent the old piece of parchment and put it inside an envelope alongside a note. 

August 14th, 1974

Sirius Black Dear James Potter,

This is something I promised to give Sirius. He is currently very angry at me and will ignore all my attempts to contact him. But this contains something that will be very useful for him , I know he really wanted it. So I appeal to you instead, his best friend, to knock some sense into him. 

Please receive this letter and give him the parchment. He’ll recognize it. If you must, lie to him, tell him you found it in a restricted area of the school library or whatever (Hogwarts has one of those too, right?). 

Yours truly,

Someone who disappointed your best friend. -and was disappointed by him too.

You closed the envelope, waving your wand with a small spell to make sure it was properly sealed and wrote in thick black ink:

TO: James Potter

Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry

2 years later

September 1976

You walked to Kings Cross with your cart in between your hands. Your dad had left you just outside the station. The idea of moving to a new country had been fascinating in theory, but once you arrived there, alone and with no one to talk to, you’d felt incredibly lonely. 

Your mom told you about your dad getting the position in the British ministry on your last day of school, you didn’t even have enough time to say goodbye to all of your friends before going back home to find all your stuff had already been neatly packed in boxes. 

Just two days after that you were in London, lonely as ever. You spend your entire break exploring the muggle part of the city. The muggle museums were pretty interesting, but you felt alone non the less. You kept in touch with your friends through owl mail but it wasn’t the same as being able to actually hang out with someone. 

In the middle of the summer break, your mom took you to Diagon Alley, and nothing made you feel more isolated than Hogwarts students hugging their peers as they saw each other for the first time in a while. The only thing that somewhat cheered you up was the stunning Dark Nimbus your dad had bought as an apology for making the move so sudden. They did care about you, a lot, they just had different priorities than yours.

As you walked through the large corridors of the station you spotted a couple of younger kids walking beside their mother, while carrying trunks similar to your own, one of them had a huge cage with an owl in it, which was a dead giveaway that they were actually wizards, even in their attempts at a muggle outfits.  

You discreetly followed behind them and saw them walk in right through a wall in between platforms nine and ten. You imitated them shortly after and found yourself in a very wizarding-looking space. A huge scarlet train with the words “Hogwarts Express” painted gold on its side pumped smoke through its chimney. As you stared at it, someone bumped against you from behind and pushed you forward a bit. 

“I’m sorry,” He said, turning towards you apologetically “I didn’t see you there.” 

You looked at the boy, he was tall and lean and had a fair share of scars all over his body. Made you think of a pirate from those spicy romance novels your mom had on her bookshelves.

“No problem,” You answered honestly. 

He then gave you a strange look, he was wondering whether he’d seen you before and was about to ask you about it when a girl called for him from the far distance “Remus! We’ve got to go, we gotta care for the first years!”. 

“Coming!” He shouted back at her and turned to look at you one last time before giving you an apologetic smile and leaving. 

You stared at him for a minute, Remus , the girl said. The name was oddly familiar but you couldn’t pinpoint why. Perhaps it was the name of a book character you read a while ago or something. 

Then you continued to push your bags to the baggage administration system, keeping with you only a small trunk with your uniform. 

As you walked inside the train you realised most of the carts were full, and sighted when you realised how awkward it would be to invade some already-made friend group by showing up uninvited, even if the curiosity of meeting the new kid was in your favour. 

You decided to open one of the doors where you’d seen kids that looked about your age walk in earlier but regretted it the moment the door was fully opened. 

Most of them had given you scornful looks. Especially an unhinged-looking boy, but that wasn’t even the worst part. Right there, in the middle of all of them was Regulus Black. The traitor, Regulus Black. 

He stood up the moment he saw you, letting some candy fall from his lap as he stared at you in disbelief. “What are you…? How–“ 

You took a deep breath and decided the world had been a better place when you didn’t even remember his existence. So you simply closed the door and left to find a different place. 

As you continued walking through the train you saw many groups of people hanging out in the different sections of it. Laughing students that talked to their friends, a small little brunette girl, who must have been a first year since she was crying about missing his parents while another girl, that looked just like her but older, comforted her. There was no one else in their cart so you gently knocked on the door. 

The two girls turned towards you and the smallest quickly wiped the tears from her face. “I’m sorry to disturb you,” you said as you closed the door behind you “I’m trying to disappear before someone I really don’t want to see finds me.” You sat down in front of them “I cried too when my parents first put me on a carriage to school.”

“I wasn’t crying,” the little girl said defensively. 

“A carriage?” Asked the older girl, clearly curious now that she started paying attention to you “You weren’t at Hogwarts,” she said as she took your appearance in.

You denied with your head “I’m a transfer student, this will be my first year here,” you said and then turned to the smaller girl “like yours.”

“Does that mean she doesn’t have a house?” The smallest girl asked as she looked up at her sister “But she’s old .”

“Old?” You asked, diverted.

The little girl covered her mouth “I didn’t mean…”

“It’s all right, I was just teasing. But I’m not that old either. Only 16.”

“Oh, like Marlene,” she said pointing at her sister “maybe your guys will end up taking classes together.”

“Year 6?” Marlene asked you.

You nodded and held your hand towards her “ (Y/N)(Y/LN).”

“Marlene McKinnon,” she said while shaking your hands, she was strong and had slightly rough palms, which indicated she flew a lot “And this rude little girl is my baby sis, Margo.”

“Nice to meet you.” You said with a smile.

“I’m not rude,” mumbled Margo as she crossed her arms and started munching on some candy Marlene had handed over to her. 

“You fly a lot?” You asked, when she looked puzzled you showed her your palms “I felt the broom marks when we shook hands, I have them too.”

She smiled and nodded, “I’m on my house’s quidditch team, I’m the best beater they have,” she said with a smile and then whispered, “Just don’t let the other guy know.”

At that, the two of you laughed, at that moment you figured perhaps life at Hogwarts wouldn’t be so bad, as long as you got to meet more people like Marlene. You talked about quidditch for most of the trip back, she told you about the new broom her parents had bought her last year and you told her about your new Dark Nimbus, which she made you promise you’ll let her take a ride on. Margo seemed rather bored with your conversation and grabbed a book from her backpack, something about care for magical creatures. 

Once the train was close to the destination a tall brunette boy knocked on your doors “Are you (Y/N)(Y/LN)?” You nodded to answer and he smiled “Great! My name is Alexander Wood, Head Boy in Hufflepuff, I was asked by Professor McGonagall to escort you to Dumbledore’s office as soon as the train arrived.”

“Oh, all right,” you said as you stood up and grabbed your small trunk, “Hope to see you around,” you said to Marlene with a quick wave before following behind Alexander. 

“You can call me Alex,” he said as he continued walking towards the doors “Professor McGonagall said it was immensely important you arrived before everyone else, apparently they want to get you sorted before the feast,” he explained. 

“Sorted?” You asked confused.

“Into your Hogwarts house,” he explained “There’s four of them, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, Gryffindor-“

“-and Slytherin.” You concluded. 

“Yes! Exactly!” he said without noticing the bitter tone which you had used to say the latter “you’ve done your research.”

“More like I met someone once,” you said as you continued to follow him. “There’s a sorting cap, right?”

“Sorting hat,” he corrected. “Don’t dare call him a cap, or he’ll be offended.”

“The hat?! He’s sentient…”

“Very much so,” he said with a nod “and very touchy too.”

“How do you know in which house he’ll sort you?”

“You don’t,” he said as the two of you stood next to the doors “Sometimes you get sorted the same way as your parents, kind of like a family line sort of thing, other times, like in my case, your family gets sorted into all different kinds of houses, my mom’s a Gryffindor, dad’s a Ravenclaw and my sister was a Slytherin. But then again, your parents didn’t attend Hogwarts, did they?”

You responded by shaking your head “Mom studied in Ilvermorny, Dad in Beauxbatons.”

He nodded, and then the train came to a halt, you grabbed the railing to stop yourself from crashing against him and then the door opened swiftly right in front of you. He quickly got down and motioned for you to follow. On the train, everyone else was starting to grab their things to prepare to get off. You followed behind him towards a couple of carriages without any horses. 

You got in and then started to move towards the castle at a relatively fast pace. "Do you normally take new students to the director's office?" You asked Alex.

He shook his head "We don’t get many new students unless they’re first years, and their sorting is public."

"Why won’t mine be?" You asked, genuinely curious. 

"Haven’t a clue," he said honestly and pulled a transparent bag from his robe "You want some?" He asked as he offered the bag to you.

"Are those Fizzing Whizbees?" You asked as you grabbed one of them, he nodded "They’re my favourites!"

"Mine too!" He said with a smile before popping one into his mouth. 

Soon enough the two of you were already entering the huge castle. As you looked around he drove you towards the famous moving staircases. You had heard of them in some of your history classes, but you never expected you’d see them in person, they were as magnificent as the books described. 

"Come on, they won’t wait for you to stop admiring them before they change," he said motioning for you to follow, "you’ll have plenty of time to look at them later on." 

You nodded and followed right behind him. Soon enough you were just outside of an office, a giant golden eagle stood there. A very elegant-looking lady in a green gown walked from the hall towards you "Thank you very much, Alex, for bringing (Y/N) here, I’ll take it from here, you should go to the banquet, help the first years that get sorted into your house." Alex nodded and left, then the lady turned towards you "My name is Minerva McGonagall," you said, you were surprised, up until then you had thought the professor McGonagall they kept referring to was a man. "Follow me please."

You nodded and followed her, as she stood right in front of the eagle it started twirling and unveiling a set of stairs. The two of you walked up the staircase and you found yourselves in front of a large office, filled with magical gadgets, and astronomy tools. An old wizard with a very large white beard stood in the centre "This must be (Y/N)," he said. 

"Nice to meet you, sir," you said to the old man. 

He smiled kindly "My name is Albus Dumbledore, you may call me Professor Dumbledore, I am the director of Hogwarts." You nodded in response "We brought you here to sort you, after talking about it we decided it would be a lot easier to sort you here instead of the banquet hall, we thought you could perhaps feel uncomfortable being the only 16-year-old student being sorted along the first years."

"Thank you, Professor Dumbledore," you responded. 

"And we also wanted you to have enough time to get your uniforms ready before walking to your classes tomorrow." Then he motioned for you to sit on a chair in the middle of the room. Professor McGonagall picked a hat from a pillow and placed it over your head.

"Interesting…" you heard the hat speak, in a rather low tone. Your breath hitched "You’re old to be sorted… it won’t be easy to decide where you’ll fit in best."

"It’s… speaking to me…" you said as you looked at McGonagall. 

"It does that often, just let him ramble."

You took a deep breath and continued to listen "ambitious, clever, brave." He said "Many qualities from many houses in one person…" 

"Ambitious no…" you whispered back " Not cunning, not a traitor ."

"You’ve got preferences," He responded to your words "You don’t want to be a Slytherin."

"I’m no snake." You responded. 

"Slytherin are not all traitors, besides, other houses can harbour them too."

"I… I don’t want to see him every day." You admitted, thinking of Regulus. 

"There might be things you don’t know about him… or the other boy."

"I just–" you started.

"– Gryffindor !" The hat roared before you even had time to elaborate. 

Professor McGonagall smiled as Dumbledore told her "She’s one of yours."

She walked towards you, took the hat off your head and set it on the pillow again "I had a good feeling about you," she said with a smile. 

"Nimbletwist," called the old man, soon enough a house elf appeared, "Please take (Y/N)’s robes to the laundry elves, that way they’ll have her house colours before her classes in the morning." The house elf nodded. 

"Please follow us," said McGonagall as they guided you out of the office and towards the great hall. In the middle of the way, the same boy you’d seen on the platform walked towards her. 

"I was told you were looking for me or Lily, she stayed with the first years, and sent me here."

She nodded "This is (Y/N), she’s new, the hat just sorted her in Gryffindor, and she’s in your year. I was hoping you could introduce her to your classmates and keep her out of trouble until the end of the day." The last remark seemed to be directed towards him specifically. 

Remus, as you remembered, just gave her a flashy smile and nodded "I’m always out of trouble." He responded before turning towards you and offering his hand "Remus Lupin, it’s a pleasure to finally meet you." You shook his hand and smiled back. McGonagall and Dumbledore were gone in an instant, and you were left alone with yet a new Hogwarts student. 

"I saw you at the station."

"You ran into me at the station," you corrected teasingly. 

"You’re right," he said with an apologetic smile "I wasn’t looking where I was going."

"It’s ok, I can tell you’ve got very many responsibilities around here."

"I’m a prefect, that’s why I’ve been so busy today," He explained and changed the subject "I didn’t see you on the train."

"I stayed in a cart most of the way there, met a girl called Marlene, she’s lovely."

"You met Marlene?" He asked, surprised. "She’s also in Gryffindor."

“Our year too, right?” He nodded in response. “Where are we going?” You asked as you walked alongside him. 

“Great hall, I just need to meet with some of my friends first.” You nodded and followed him all the way to a hallway, two boys waited there for him. 

“Moony!” Said the tallest of the two as soon as he saw Remus, he was wearing a pair of round spectacles and had relatively long messy hair “Took you long enough.”

“And you brought company,” said the blond boy, he’d been the first one of the two to notice you. 

“Yeah, guys this is (Y/N), she just transferred here, McGonagall asked me to take her to the great hall and introduce her to everyone.”

You waved awkwardly from behind Remus and the shorter boy walked towards you “Peter Pettigrew, nice to meet you.”

“(Y/N) (Y/LN),” you responded with a smile as he shook your hand. 

“Hold up,” said Remus turning towards you “Your last name’s (Y/LN)? Same (Y/N) (Y/LN) Pads couldn’t shut up about on 5th year?” 

Pads? You wondered in your head as the only boy who hadn’t introduced himself spoke “She fits the description,” he said as he looked at you with curiosity “Hair, eyes, complexion, has to be her.”

“Do you by chance speak Spanish and French too?” Peter asked. 

Still slightly confused, you nodded. “ It is her ! Pas will go crazy when we tell him,” said Remus with a smile. 

“Right, I was forgetting,” said the boy with messy hair “I’m James Potter, nice to meet you,” he said with a flashy smile as he offered his hand for you to shake. 

You took his hand, and that’s when it downed you. These boys, they were all Sirius’ friends. “It’s nice to finally meet you, James,” you told him with a smile.

“Finally?” He asked, confused. 

You quickly remembered the letter you sent him hadn’t been signed with your name and decided perhaps it would be better to leave things as they were “Ah… Sirius told me a lot about you.”

“He’ll be thrilled when he sees you,” said Peter excitedly, to that you wondered which kind of thrilled? “That may not be today tho, if he’s in position.”

You shrugged “In position?”

James smiled mischievously and handed you a small umbrella “Can you take care of this for me? Until we see each other again?”

You grabbed the umbrella and nodded. He winked at you and turned to Remus who spoke to them “So, everything’s ready right?”

“Yes, Pads’ll do the heavy magic, we just need to make sure the lasting jinxes are not countered too fast,” responded James. 

“Fantastic!”

“Off to your prefect duties then,” Said Peter almost shoo-ing Remus “You have to be in position, too.”

Remus nodded and turned around to walk to the other side, turning back to you shortly “Come on,” he motioned for you to follow “I gotta introduce you to some more people,” he said with a smile.

When you arrived at the great hall it was almost already full of people. You saw Regulus staring at you from a table with kids all wearing green, he looked like he wanted to approach you but when Remus guided you to the Gryffindor table he sat back down “Hey everyone!” He said with a smile “This is (Y/N), she’s new.”

Marlene smiled and waved towards you “Here, sit with us.” She said as she and the red hair girl that had called Remus at the station both opened some space for you. 

“Mind taking care of her while I focus on some other prefect duties?” He said looking at the redhead. 

“Of course,” she said with a smile and turned towards you “Lily Evans,” she then pointed at a girl, “You’ve met Marlene, yeah?” She asked to which you nodded, “this is Mary,” she said pointing at a girl with the most beautiful curls you’d seen in your life. “That over there is Tom”, she said pointing at a boy with brown hair “And that’s Beth,” she said pointing at another redhead. She continued naming other students and then she started talking to you about the teachers, who all sat on a table right in front of the four tables with students that wore different coloured robes. 

“Do we always sit colour coded?” You asked as you stared at the other tables.

“Oh… yeah, we sit at our house’s table at meal times.”

“So houses don’t really mix?” 

“On classes we do.”

“But never on meal times?” She shook her head “So you only make friends in your house.”

“Not at all, I used to have a Slytherin friend, but sometimes the values of the people in their houses can become stronger than their original self.”

“I’m sorry,” you said when you noticed that the falling out had clearly hurt her. 

“Don’t be,” she said with a smile, slightly forced. “But you can make friends with other houses, it’s just a bit harder to get close to them.” She explained and then her face lit up with an idea, “You know, Remus and I, we started a study group last year, you could join us if you wanted to, that way you could meet more people.”

“That’d be lovely, thank you Lily,” you told her with a smile. 

By then the sorting ceremony had ended and Dumbledore stood up from his seat in the centre of the teacher’s table. 

“Hogwarts has always been a place of wonder, where magic comes alive and friendships are forged. Whether you are starting your magical journey,” he said glancing towards the first years “or returning to continue your studies, this is a place where dreams are nurtured and knowledge is expanded. We know we’re living in dark ages, the magical community is filled with hate and discrimination at the moment, but the school will not tolerate any instances of said hate or discrimination to be brought inside these walls. We are all witches and wizards, our precedence does not change that fact. We must remember the core values that make Hogwarts shine. Respect, compassion, and loyalty shall be the guiding principles that shape our interactions. We are a community, a single organism, and we must understand that an organism at war with itself is doomed.”

“Embrace the thrill of discovering new spells, uncovering ancient mysteries, and weaving your own story in the tapestry of magic, but remember to be kind, and loving towards your fellow classmates.” He paused and clapped his hands with a smile “May your time at Hogwarts be filled with magical moments, lifelong friendships, and unforgettable experiences. I have no doubt that each and every one of you holds within you great potential, waiting to be unlocked. Welcome to Hogwarts!”

At that moment plates started appearing right in the middle of all the tables and students started to indulge in them. It was truly a feast. “Is Muggle-born prejudice as bad in the UK as the media claims?” You asked Lily who cringed slightly. 

“Worse,” responded Mary instead “Some pure-blood kids’ parents are death eaters,” she explained “They follow in their parents' steps and spread hate among the school. Last year a muggle-born boy was tortured so badly he ended up in St. Mungo’s, they never discovered who had done it.” She explained. 

“We always make sure to walk in groups,” Marlene explained “That way no one's ever completely alone, you don’t want to become a target of their hate.”

“But she’s a (Y/LN)? Your family’s pure blood right?” Asked Beth from the other side “I read about the history of Pure Blood wizards for a project last year,” she explained when everyone gave her a look.

“Uhh.. yeah.” You said with an awkward smile, remembering how your parents had made such an effort to hide your non-wizarding great-grandmother origins from all the records. 

“Still, she’s new, we’re better off if we stick to each other.”

You nodded “You girls know best,” you said with a smile and looked around, you wondered what would happen when you eventually saw Sirius. Would he even want to speak to you? He ignored your letters so I’d seem he wouldn’t, and you had gotten over him, or you hope you had, it’d been over two years. 

By then you looked around. Wondering where Remus and the boys he’d introduced you to had gone too, maybe they were going to skip dinner together or something. And then you felt it, a small drop of water falling on top of your right hand as you were taking a bite of mashed potatoes. 

You stared at it for a second before looking up and feeling another one fall right on your cheek. On the ceiling, the clouds were quickly turning grey, and more droplets of rain started to fall. Eventually, you heard the rumbling of some far-away thunder and saw some of the clouds shine with lighting. In the span of a minute, rain started pouring. Some students got under the tables, others walked in panic towards the doors of the hall. 

You took out the umbrella James had given you and opened it, covering yourself and Lily under it. 

“Why do you have an umbrella?” She asked you,  suspicion evident on her face.

“I… came from Wales, before taking the Hogwarts Express,” you lied “You know how it’s always pouring there.”

She nodded and huddled closer to you, and the two of you both stood in front of the table as you saw the rest of the chaos ensue. Some teachers were trying to use a spell to avoid getting wet but it did not seem to be working. McGonagall was desperately trying to stop the rain while Dumbledore stood there with somewhat of a diverted smile. He stood up and with a wave of his wand said “ Finite Incantatem. ” The rain stopped, you pulled the umbrella down and shook it to get rid of the small droplets still coating it, but only minutes later it started pouring again, even stronger this time. 

Dumbledore seemed puzzled, but that satisfied smile wasn’t gone, almost as if he was proud of the elaborate spell his students had created. 

Lily looked around suspiciously “I knew they were up to something. That’s why James didn’t even try to sit with me on the train!”

“James Potter?” You asked.

“You’ve met him?” She asked, puzzled.

“Remus introduced me to him and Peter before bringing me here,” you explained.

“Did they look suspicious?” She asked.

“I… wouldn’t know.” You responded. While you were pretty sure it had been them who caused the ruckus you were going through at the moment, you didn’t know how close Lily was to them, and you didn’t want to give her more reasons to think it had been them, which she already did. Who knows? She could’ve been the kinda person who would tell a teacher. And you certainly did not need to add any more reasons for Sirius to intensify his animosity towards you any further. 

“Witches and Wizards, this marks the end of our feast, please retire to your dorms,” Dumbledore’s voice boomed through the hall when he placed his wand on his throat to amplify it. 

Seraphina Nightshade, who Lily had identified as the head of Hufflepuff, walked towards her table "Alex, find the other prefects and take the first years to their dorms."

Alex nodded and went off to tell the rest. "I have to go find the first years,” Lily told you urgently. You nodded and walked alongside her. 

Out of nowhere, Remus caught up with the two of you "Hey again," he said with that dashing smile of his. Lily gave him a look and continued calling the first years. Once outside of the great hall, you closed the umbrella, bending it back to its small state while Lily and Remus made sure all the first years were ready. The Gryffindor head boy, Teddy Hawthorn, had given the prefects the new password to enter their house common room and sent them all but Remus and Lily, who would take the first years, to find the rest of the Gryffindors. Lily was at the front, guiding everyone while Remus and you stayed at the back, making sure none of the new kids were left behind. 

"I get it this isn’t what normal dinners look like?" You said, motioning to the chaos all around you. 

He laughed, "Let’s say it’s a bit of a special one."

As the entire group approached the grand staircases, you spotted Marlene and Mary, who walked along a couple of stairs above you. They were soaked, like most people around you, leaving the stairs very wet behind them. 

"Mind your step," Lily told everyone from the top of her stairs "The stairs are quite slippery, we don’t want anyone to trip."

Just as she said that a small girl that walked just in front of you tripped, her ring falling back a couple of steps. Remus quickly held her up, but the moment she realised her ring was gone she panicked. "It’s a family heirloom!” She said distressed. 

"It’s ok, I’ll get it," you told her as you walked back to find it. 

"(Y/N) wait!” You heard Remus warn but it was too late, the stairs were already moving. Remus jumped before the gap between the stairs was too big but by the time Lily saw what was happening it was too late. It would be impossible for you and Remus to catch up with them unless the stairs aligned themselves again. 

"It’s ok," Remus shouted at Lily, who stood a couple of metres away "We’ll catch up with you in the tower.”

She nodded and motioned for the children to follow her, but the little girl was still distressed looking towards you. You finally found the ring between a crevice and showed it to her. She seemed relieved, you then made a small spell and the ring started levitating, sooner than later it was swiftly landing on her palm. 

"Thank you," she said before running behind Lily and the rest of the first years. 

"That was really nice,” Remus said as he saw the little girl go "and reckless, you could’ve gotten lost"

You turned towards him "and here I thought recklessness was a particular Gryffindor trait."

He laughed lightly as he shook his head "Come on, we should arrive at the dorm room before curfew."

You nodded and followed behind him to another set of stairs, eventually, you found yourselves in front of a dead end. The stairs had also changed on Remus’ planned path “damn it,” he whispered under his breath.

"Plan B is not gonna work, aye?" You asked, leaning against a wall. 

He exhaled, "You don’t seem particularly preoccupied by being lost and not getting to the common room on time."

 "I’m new, I got lost, they’re not gonna punish me."You shrugged “Besides, it’s not as if I had planned the entire prank that got us here in the first place," you said that last bit with a knowing smile. 

"Are you trying to imply something?”

"Me? Whatever could I be implying?" You responded innocently “So… what’s plan C?”

“There’s a way to get there. But you mustn’t tell anyone about it.” You nodded and he guided you through a door a couple of steps behind, then he turned towards you again “Would you allow me to blindfold you?” 

You raised your eyebrows at that, with a little smile on your face “Buy me dinner first?” 

“Not like that!” He responded, surprised. “We’re gonna take a shortcut, it’s a secret passage.” 

“Mm… and if I know where it is, it won’t be so much of a secret…” 

“So…?” He asked, raising his eyebrows.

“Of course you’re not gonna blindfold me Remus!” You retorted “A girl’s gotta know how to sneak around the castle too.” He stared at you for a second, as if trying to decide whether to trust you with the location of his secret passage. “Hey, if it makes you feel better, I solemnly swear I’m telling no one about your passage. ” That line convinced him on the spot, but you didn’t know it yet, so you kept talking, presenting your hand in front of him, with your smallest finger raised and an innocent smile “Pinky promise?” 

He laughed at that. “This isn’t the Japanese Mafia,” he nodded towards your finger. 

“Why? You wouldn’t want to cut it off?” You said as you raised your finger to look at it up close, then swiftly brought it back down and turned to look at him “Anyway… Am I gonna have to excuse myself for getting lost, or are we going to take your secret passage?”  

He smiled at that, he kind of started to understand why Sirius was absolutely obsessed with you when he came back from that summer in 5th year. “All right, let’s go.” You smiled at that and followed behind him. He took you all the way to the end of the hallway where a giant painting stood. Besides it, a shield with two swords crossed in the middle, like a coat of arms. 

“Sneaking about again, Mr. Lupin?” Asked the old wizard staring at us from the painting “And you bring company,” he added suggestively.

“Not today Oliver,” Remus complained as he pressed a button on the hilt of one of the swords, causing the shield to separate from the wall, opening a relatively small hole. 

“That’s the secret passage?” You asked, looking at the dark passageway that seemed to extend from the other side of the window-like hole. 

Remus nodded “Is either that or we go wait until the stairs decide to change for us.” 

“Fine then,” You said as you climbed through the wall and pulled your wand from your pocket, whispering “ Lumos .” Remus was just behind you and once he was inside, the shield closed the hole in the wall. 

“So…” you said, scooting out of the way to let him take the lead “Which way to go?”

“It’s easy, we’ll have to go up some stairs tho,” he explained before he started walking, with his wand raised high to show you the way. He took a couple of lefts and then you went up a rather long spiral staircase. “We’re almost there,” he said. “We need to get out of this passage and take another one before we get there.” 

“Do I have to swear I won’t tell anyone again?” You teased, he gave you a look and then shook his head with a small smile forming on his lips. “Just wanted to make sure.” 

By then you had reached a dead end, he whispered something onto the wall and it moved, letting the two of you out. But just as you got out of the passage and onto the hall, you crashed into something. But there was nothing really there. Until there was. Somehow you had stepped on Jame’s cloak and it had slipped off of him and Peter. 

You were very surprised when you saw them appear out of nowhere until you noticed the cloak on the floor. Picking it up, giving it a look and handing it over to the two of them. James took it. “You’ve got an invisibility cloak?! Where did you get it? I’ve been trying to get my hands on one for ages, but the spells on them are rarely any good, I’ve never seen one as good as yours.” 

“Uh… it’s a family heirloom…” 

“Oh, you’re so lucky!” You said and then, you realised how the rain prank had lasted so long “It all makes sense now! That’s how you managed to counter Dumbledore’s spell. You were close to him! You used your cloak to hide from the people and did a close-range counter spell, Dumbledore’s magic didn’t even reach all the way to your spell caster.” 

“You told her it was US?!” Peter asked Remus, looking completely betrayed. 

“Remus? No! I assumed it was you when James’ umbrella became useful!” You told them, and then looked at Peter “You confirmed my theory now, tho.” 

James punched him lightly on the arm in reproach “Ouch.” Peter complained and rubbed his arm as Remus walked closer to you. 

“You cannot tell anyone about it,” he said seriously. 

“Why would I? It was a great prank! You could’ve added chaos by having toads raining too but I guess the spell would’ve been a bit more complicated.” 

“That would’ve actually been great!” Peter agreed, forgetting all together he had been the one to out them. 

Then you heard steps from the end of the hallway “Someone’s coming,” you warned.

“Quick, let’s get out of here.” Said James as he pulled a tapestry from the side and motioned for you to get in. 

Once deep in the small aisle, you decided to ask the question you’d been thinking about since Remus guided you through the first passage “So… How do you guys know so many ways to sneak about? Are you in some kind of secret club?” 

“We’re making a map, so we explore the castle a lot,” Peter said casually which earned him another punch, this time from Remus. 

“Might as well tell the new girl all of our secrets, right mate?” James complained.

“I guess I’m trustworthy like that.” You said with a smile, even if the dark passage wouldn’t really let any of them see “Besides, it was you who gave me the umbrella.” 

“Yeah James, you gave the girl the umbrella,” Peter retorted. 

“I was trying to be nice,” he explained, “she’s new.” 

“It’s ok, I won’t tell anyone, about your prank, or about the fact that I was sneaking about with the… What? Hogwarts gang of pranksters?” 

“That’s a terrible name for a gang,” Remus said. 

“Says the guy with MOONY as a nickname.” 

“I swear she’s been here for like 3 hours and she picked up on half the things we’ve done,” James said, pinching his nose. 

“Also Sirius mentioned his friends and he liked making pranks in the school at some point,” you said remembering how he’d told you about a particular prank a few days before you sneaked onto the zip line park “When we were on talking terms.” 

“On talking terms?” Asked Peter, but by then you had already arrived at the end of the hallway and Remus got ahead of him, shushing him before looking around and motioning for the three of you to follow behind. 

“Mystic whispers,” he said to the portrait of a fat lady who opened up to let the three of you into the Gryffindor common room. 

Regulus’ letter, 

Burned by (Y/N) without opening. 

July 23th, 1974

Dear (Y/N), 

I know you may not want to hear a word from me, but beseech of you to do so, for it is imperative that you lend me your ear.

First and foremost, it was never my intention for my progenitors to discover our clandestine affair. I had resolved to provide a cloak of secrecy to shield you and Sirius from their prying eyes. However, an owl arrived to my father, telling him his offspring had been seen in a witchcraft emporium within the city limits, it enraged him.

With righteous indignation, my father directed his scrutiny towards me, inquiring as to your whereabouts. I resorted to our story, how you’d gone to a broomstick race with Sirius, as we had plotted. Yet, to my great chagrin, he had already acquired knowledge of the falsehood, detecting the mendacity inherent in my words.

Compelled against my volition, I found myself partaking of a draught, undoubtedly Veritaserum, rendering me incapable of withholding the truth. At that moment, the weight of guilt settled upon my conscience, eclipsing any previous instances of remorse in my life. Providentially, I managed to refrain from implicating your involvement, particularly as the collective assumption posited the culpability of dear Sirius. 

Despite your impassioned plea, reverberating across the wooden deck, beseeching their cognizance of your agency, I, alas, found myself bereft of the fortitude to voice your pivotal role. The notion of subjecting you, dear (Y/N), to the punitive machinations my progenitors habitually employ proved an insurmountable ordeal. I could not bear the prospect of witnessing my parents inflict their customary retributions upon your personage. I know their punishments. I do not want you to know them too. 

Perchance I observed my mother consigning some of your letters to Sirius to the scorching fire, ensuring that he refrained from indulging in the forbidden act of writing you back. They harbour an unwavering resolve to preclude him from "exerting undue influence" upon your vulnerable disposition. "For as long as you dwell within this house, the act of inscribing correspondence to her shall be verboten," Mother uttered with resolute conviction. Devoid of alternative recourse, Sirius succumbed, he was forced, a spell was cast on him. Ah, Mother, she can be wicked if you do not abide by her volition.  

I beseech your clemency, dear (Y/N), for the manifold grievances that have befallen us. I fervently pray that you shall not harbour enmity towards Sirius and myself, for the prospect of such estrangement would be anathema to my very soul. I hope this letter finds you in good spirits and the finest of health.

With utmost sincerity,

Regulus Arcturus Black

Chapter Text

As you walked inside the Gryffindor common room for the first time Lily was sitting on the couch, but stood up the minute you showed up “There you are! I was worried sick!” She told Remus, gave James a look of disdain and turned back to the taller boy  “I thought you’d be faster to bring her here.” 

“The staircase wasn’t cooperating,” Remus explained. “We had to use a different path.” 

“At least you didn’t get caught.” She said taking a deep breath and sitting back down on the couch, now finally relaxing a bit. 

“I brought some food from the kitchens,” said Peter, pulling out a kerchief tied at the top and placing it on the table in front of the fire. “It’s just some scones with cream and jam, but I thought we might get hungry.” 

“Thanks, Pete,” Lily said as she untied the knot and the top and grabbed one of the little treats. 

Then the portrait opened again, letting someone else inside. 

You stood just behind Remus, turned towards Lily rather than the entrance but the moment you heard that voice, you froze. 

“Excellent job guys!” He said with a bright smile. Remus turned to him and shot a warning look, to point out they weren’t alone. Sirius saw Lily and nodded “With the evacuation of the great hall–“ he corrected “It was brilliant how you handled it, Lils, Moony, you’re both top tier prefects.” 

James rolled his eyes but then a smile appeared on his face, a very James-like smile in fact, filled with charm and mischievousness. “We’ve actually got something to show you.” He said and unexpectedly pulled you from behind Remus in a way that you’d end up facing Sirius instead. 

And damned merlin, Sirius was even more beautiful than you remembered. You’d like to think you’d made peace with the idea of being ghosted, with the idea of never seeing Sirius again, but standing right in front of him, now taller, with broader shoulders, longer hair, and the same stunning eyes, made you want to apparate to anywhere but there. So you just awkwardly smiled and waved, hoping he wouldn’t just storm out of the place without even saying a word.

“(Y/N)? What… what are you doing here?” He asked with a frown.

“Hey to you too, old pal,” you said, struggling to not sound as awkward as you felt. 

“She’s here Pads!” Said James excitedly, “She’s gonna study with us!” 

“Yeah,” Peter added, “She transferred this year like you wished she would back in the day.” 

To that you raised an eyebrow, you’d seen his friends get excited when you introduced yourself to them, but it seemed weird that after ghosting you, Sirius told his friends he wished you were a student in Hogwarts “And here I thought you’d never want to see me again,” you said with a bit of a teasing smile towards him, trying to hide the doubt that still lingered in your brain. Could it really be that it had all been some kind of misunderstanding? 

“What?” He asked, visibly confused.

“Since you never replied to any of my letters…” 

He seemed shocked for a moment and then exhaled in a defeated tone “Walburga.” 

“Your mom?” You asked frowning before it downed you “Your mom.” 

He nodded “I did always wonder why you never tried to reach out.” 

You thought about what he said for a moment and then smiled “Seems like we have a lot to catch up on then.” 

Then James placed an arm on top of Sirius's shoulder “And I’m sure you’ll have plenty of time to do that, but now we must go to bed. Tomorrow we’re flying first thing in the morning. We gotta practice before we open the tryouts.”

“Which positions are you missing?” You asked him before anyone had the chance to stop you. Once James started talking about quidditch, it was hard to get him to shut up again.

“We lost a keeper and 2 chasers,” James explained “They were from 7th and graduated last summer.”

“And you fly in the mornings, always?” You asked surprised. 

“Gotta stay in top shape, I’m the captain after all.” 

“Oh, that’s amazing. Mind if I join you tomorrow? I wanna test my luck on the tryouts.” 

He raised an eyebrow “Which position?” 

“Uh… I used to play seeker,” he winced at that, “but I’ll try for keeper I guess, I’ve got good eyes for catching things,” you replied with a smile. 

“Careful Potter, she may come take your place!” Sirius teased, “All though, for all I know she might be terrible at flying.” 

With Sirius teasing you like that, it was as if all those years hadn’t gone by, no resentments, no suffering. Just the two of you, continuing on where you left off. “Oh, isn’t that right? You promised me a race a couple of years ago, but that never played out.” 

“Is that a challenge?” He asked but when you were about to reply Lily stood up and placed her arm over your shoulder. 

“Might have been,” She said “But we must now go to our room,” she said pointing at you and herself “and you must go back to sleep if you really want to wake up at 5AM.” 

“5 AM?” Frowned Sirius. 

“Classes start at 7 tomorrow, if you want enough time for flying and breakfast, you’ll have to get up then.” She said before dragging you towards the stairs.

You turned your head, finding it hard to stop staring at Sirius, it was almost like a dream. “Good night boys,” You said, waving at them as you followed behind Lily, Sirius also had a hard time to stop staring at you as you walked next to the red headed girl. 

As you were halfway up the stairs she whispered “It’s a terrible idea to challenge Sirius like that, knowing him, he’ll make a spectacle of the race.” 

You stopped for a minute, looking at Lily with a cocky grin “ It’s only a bad idea if I lose .” 

She rolled her eyes with a smile “I barely know you, and so far I can tell you’re just as thick headed as that lot,” she said as she nodded towards them. “Let’s go, I’ll show you our room.” 

“We’re together?” You asked with a smile. 

She nodded, mirroring your expression “We were the only room with only 3 girls.” 

Inside the room were Mary and Marlene, Mary was sitting on her bed while reading a book and Marlene was drying her hair with a towel near a door, which you assumed would be the bathroom. “That’s your bed,” Marlene said, pointing at the bed closest to the door. “It was here when we got to the room, that’s how we figured you’d be with us.” 

“That and the trunk with your name on it,” said Mary looking up from her book “We thought you’d gotten lost in the ordeal, but Lily told us you were with Remus.” 

“We would’ve gone out to find you otherwise,” added Marlene. “Lily wanted to go even if you were with Remus but we told her you’d be alright.” 

“You wanted to go get me?” You asked, turning towards her.

“I felt responsible for leaving you on the stairs,” she explained “I didn’t want you to get in trouble because of me.” 

“Thank you,” You told her with a smile. Lily went for a shower and you started to unpack your stuff. Marlene approached you when you pulled your broom out and you talked about quidditch until Lily was out of the shower, at which point you let Marlene have the broom and went for a shower yourself. 

When you were back in the room Marlene had already placed your broom on a broom stand on the wall. “It deserved to be admired,” she’d said when you noticed and you nodded with a smile. After that, you’d all gotten comfortable in your beds and the lights were turned off.

“Good night girls,” You said with a smile, after months of feeling lonely, you finally started to feel like you belonged somewhere again. And you were so glad the hat had placed you in Gryffindor, with these girls, who had been all incredibly nice to you, and you were even happy you’d met Remus and his friends, who seemed like they would get you in so many adventures and mischief. 

In the morning you were awoken by a small little metal bird picking on your face lightly, it was your mom’s gift before you got to the school, a very elegant cuckoo clock, she’d bought at a furniture store in Diagon Alley. Even if it took you a minute to fully comprehend what was going on you silently stood up and changed, pulling a thick wool sweater over your head and a pair of training pants, thick and sturdy in case of falls. All though, because they were the same you had since you were in the team back at your older school, they were a little tighter than you remembered. Perhaps you really had a growth spurt over the summer. 

 You grabbed a pair of goggles, your broom, and sneaked out of the room without making any noise. James was already in the common room, tapping his foot as he looked up at the stairs, hair just as messy as the day you’d met him. He looked up at you and smiled. “How is it that you take less time to get ready than Sirius?” He said and then took a deep breath “I guess it   is because it’s Sirius who’s getting ready.” You raised your eyebrows in response “He’s brushing his hair,” James complained. You just laughed, longer hair’s harder to care for, but being told about Sirius’ vanity by his roommate was just hilarious. That was when Potter noticed your broom “Is th at a Dark Nimbus ?” He asked, staring at it from behind. 

You nodded “Brand new, mom got it for me to try and make me feel better about moving.” 

He stood up and got closer to take a look at it “It’s stunning!” He said with a smile as he accommodated his glasses to see better. “I have a Starmist ,” he said pointing towards his broom behind him. “I got it last year, I'd like to see how she fares against your Nimbus .” 

“Well, we’ll get to see it today,” You replied with a smile, that’s when you heard a door close and the two of you turned towards Sirius, who was walking down the stairs with a SweepFire he’d had for a couple of years, but that looked well cared for, it had been James’.

“Why are you wearing green?” He asked as soon as he saw you. 

You looked down at your sweater and saw it change to burgundy right in front of your eyes, frowning and turning towards him “Did you just… magic dyed my sweater into a different colour?” 

“Can’t be seen flying around with someone wearing Slytherin house colours,” he said as he continued walking towards the door “It’d ruin my reputation.” 

You raised your eyebrows and gave James a questioning look, he just shrugged in response and followed behind Sirius, you caught up with him shortly after. As you walked down towards the patio James told you all about being Team Captain and how he had to make sure everyone was in top shape. “After the tryouts, it’s not just gonna be flying in the mornings, we’ll have practice at least 4 times a week with the whole team.”

Once on the patio, the three of you got on your brooms. And per James’s instructions did 5 laps around the castle. It was a chilly morning, so you were glad you’d put on the thicker sweater. Once you were done James pulled a quaffle and you all passed it between each other. At some point, He shot it a little farther behind you and you had to fly back to get it, bumping into Sirius and causing him to lose balance.

You responded quickly, stabilising his broom with yours and pulling his arm to stop him from falling, he’d managed to catch the quaffle with his other hand. James had flown towards the two of you as quickly as he could but by the time he arrived you were already pulling Sirius back up and laughing about it. “Maybe we should get some of those muggle hooks so you don’t fall off your broom,” you told him with a small knock on his arm. 

“Hey, even without them, I’ve caught it more times than you!” He said with a proud smile. 

“Not true!” You said trying to take it from his hands “That was my catch!” You nodded towards the ball in his hand as you attempted to grab it, Sirius used one of his hands to keep you back while he stretched the other arm to maintain the quaffle out of your grip. 

“This one? But it’s in my hands.” 

“No! I caught you, you caught it, it’s mine by right of catching you first.” 

James raised his eyebrows at the exchange and smiled mischievously as he flew towards Sirius' other arm and grabbed the quaffle, flying as fast as possible in another direction. He loved flying, like he always had, but he loved the fact that his best friend was genuinely smiling even more. It wasn’t very often that Sirius smiled like that since he’d run away from his house over the summer.

“Oi!” Sirius complained as he saw James fly by and then turned towards you with a look, with a small smile and a raise of his eyebrows he communicated his plan. 

You nodded mirroring his expression and the two of you turned your brooms towards James, flying side by side to corner him. 

Once by his side, the two of you threw your hands toward James and tried to take the ball from him. Sirius managed to take it and from slightly above shouted, “Whoever gets to the courtyard with the quaffle in their hands wins!” He then threw the ball as far as he could. 

You smiled at that and plummeted towards the direction the quaffle was thrown. You caught it just before it reached the floor. 

James, who was still stunned by having the ball stolen from his hands so quickly, saw the entire thing from his broom “Wow!” he said genuinely surprised “She’s really good.” He then flew towards Sirius, who had already managed to take the ball from your hands. You managed to get your hands on the ball again and flew backwards towards James. 

“Hey, James!” You called the boy, flying upside down above him “Would you mind telling me where the courtyard is?” You asked politely. 

He gave you a pouty look and flew upwards, taking the quaffle back in an unexpected movement. And as he flew ahead turned back with a teasing smile “Sure thing (Y/N), I’ll take you there! ” He shouted before flying towards the courtyard with the quaffle itself in his hands. 

“You cheat!” You shouted with a grin and flew behind him, trying to catch up. Sirius was already hovering close to the courtyard and was planning to stop James by flying in front of him, but didn’t realise you were flying so close behind him that the moment the three of you were close enough you all crashed onto each other and started falling a few feet towards the grass. 

“ Arresto Momentum !” Someone screamed from the courtyard and the three of you froze for a moment, once you moved again the impulse forced the three of you towards the grass, pulling a couple of metres of it along with the you. The brooms had gone flying in all directions and then, you all ended up tangled against each other. 

“James?!” Asked Lily who had been the one to cast the spell. “What in the bloody– Are you wankers?!” 

The moment you saw her you started laughing, so much so that you didn’t remember the last time you’d laughed so openly, you were almost crying. Sirius and James laughed alongside you, as Lily stared with apprehension. You soon realised you had your head on top of Sirius' back and your feet under James’ torso. When the laughter died out the three of you helped each other stand up. You had scraped your knee and leg, James had scraped his arm and Sirius’ lip was parted. 

Lily started scolding you once you were up “Look at you three! You could’ve gotten seriously hurt!” She said and then gave Sirius a warning look before he made it a joke of his name “You can’t pull (Y/N) into your dangerous games like that!” 

“But she started it,” complained Sirius brattily “She almost threw me off my broom.” 

“That was an accident!” you argued back with your finger raised. “I was gonna catch the ball.” 

“You shouldn’t reverse without looking first,” he said with both of his hands raised in defence “basic flying principles.” 

“But I did look! You appeared out of nowhere.” 

Lily rolled her eyes and took a deep breath as he saw the two of you bicker. Then James started to look around “So who won?” He asked with a frown, to which Lily crossed her arms and stared at him. 

“Well, I had the ball right before we reached the floor,” You said.

“Yeah, but it fell off your hands as soon as you took it from James and bounced back straight to my face,” He said pointing at his parted lip. 

“ALL RIGHT! “ said Lily, shutting everyone up with a clap. “Nobody won, you’re all losers, now, I’m gonna take (Y/N) back to the room so she can put on her uniform before breakfast. I’m sure Marlene should have something to put on her scrape.” 

“What about mine?” Asked James pulling his arm up with a pout. 

“Well you can take care of it yourselves, after all you know full well where the nurses’ office is,” she responded and pulled you towards the castle. 

“Please tell me you will be more careful next time you fly with them?” She said stopping you before you reached the stairs and looking straight into your eyes “I know it can be tempting to play their game but, James and Sirius don’t have a straight sense of danger, I swear they’ve been to the nurse's office over 100 times each.” 

You nodded “I got caught up in the fun,” You said as you started to feel the pain in your leg once the adrenaline faded “Lily, I hadn’t flown like that in, years,” you admitted “I wasn’t thinking when I launched myself behind Potter and then Sirius came out of nowhere,” you told her “I couldn’t break on time.” 

“On quidditch games there’s supervision. Who knows how much worse you’d be if I hadn’t been there!” She said finally exhaling. You looked down and nodded. Then she leaned in closer “But I do believe you won,” she whispered with a small smile motioning for you to follow behind her. 

That left you stunned. Up until that moment, you’d thought Lily was all about following the rules and not having all that much fun, especially since she was a prefect. But that moment proved you wrong. Oh the adventures you’d have with her in the castle, they all awaited you. 

Lily took you back to your dorm where you took a really fast shower and changed into your uniform. Marlene didn’t really have anything for your scrape but Mary did, she wanted to become a Mediwitch so she’d been testing some simple potions back at home and gave you one. The pain had gone in an instant but the area still looked scraped when you pulled your socks over half of it. After that, the four of you walked towards the dining hall together to have breakfast. 

Once you arrived you saw the boys sitting all together on the farther side of the table, along with most people of your year. There was an empty spot next to Remus, who had his head buried in a book, so you sat next to him, Lily plopped down right next to you while Mary and Marlene sat in the front. 

“How are you?” asked Remus as Lily talked about the schedule with Beth and another girl from your year, you looked at him confused and he nodded towards your leg “Heard about the fall, how Lily saved your asses,” he explained. 

“Oh,” you replied “Well, It’s alright, looks a lot worse than it feels,” you said pointing at your leg, “Mary gave me some cream potion ting to put on wherever the pain comes back.” 

“Want some chocolate?” He said, pulling a small bar from his pocket “It always helps when I’m feeling beaten down.” 

You nodded, he broke a piece off and handed it over to you. It was rather soft from his body heat, but you preferred soft chocolate to the hard bars so you enjoyed it quite a lot “How are the boys?” You asked him. 

“Oh don’t worry about them,” he told you “They’re used to being scraped all over, they said they had lots of fun tho, it was nice seeing Sirius happy about morning flying, he usually complains about James forcing him to wake up early and ruining his beauty sleep.” 

“Beauty sleep?” You asked while holding back a laugh “With those words?” 

Remus nodded, smiling too “You’d be surprised by the kind of things he says sometimes, with his posh vocabulary. He’s like a princess.” 

“Well I mean he does look like one,” you agreed and tensed right after, but Remus only nodded while glancing at Sirius. 

Then Lily gently tapped on your forearm, “hurry and finish up,” she said, nodding at your plate, “our first class starts in 15, and we still have to walk there.” You nodded in response and started munching on your toast faster, gulping down your tea along the way to help the bread soften in your mouth. 

When everyone was standing up you grabbed your leftover bread, threw some hazelnut spread on it and bent it from corner to corner, to take it along with you. And then you followed everyone towards your first class.

 In the classroom, a very small teacher, standing on top of a podium, awaited for you to arrive. He introduced himself as Professor Flitwick, but you quickly realised that he had only done it for you since everyone else already knew him. He mentioned something about how in this class you’d learn wordless magic and started to explain the basic concepts of it. You, as the rest of them, took notes of the things the teacher was saying with your quill. 

After Charms, you had Transfiguration with Professor McGonagall, which had been, in all honesty, rather complicated for you. While you were certain McGonagall was a brilliant teacher, you had a hard time grasping the art of turning teapots into ferrets and ferrets into teapots, and that was without even thinking about the fact that down the line, you’d have to transform people into animals too.  

Your third class was divination, and while you were relatively good at it, you were never really attracted to the art of predicting the future, since you’d had bad experiences in the past. Divination is only fun if you’re guessing good things that will happen, like who will win the Quidditch Championship or small things like “ It’ll rain tomorrow .” But when you guess sad or tragic things, people stop liking it, and you along the process, that’s why you had dropped the course back in your old school. Unfortunately, you couldn’t do that here, since it wasn’t an optional class. 

A tall dark skinned professor walked inside the round classroom that stood in the farthest part of the North Tower. He was wearing a long green robe and had a very mysterious aura going around him. “My name is Aurelius Spellman,” he said in a very deep voice “I’ve met some of you before, some of you are in my class for the first time ever, but, be certain, I know each and every single one of you.” You were sitting next to Marlene in that class and you raised your eyebrows at her in a poking manner, she giggled.

“McKinnon, (Y/LN), Would you mind sharing the joke?” He said turning to face you. You instantly sat straighter and shook your head, “I’d like to see if what I’ve heard from Professor Ashbourne is true, she wrote to me all about your talents .” He said, giving you a stern look. 

“I have no talent sir,” you lied, Ashbourne had been your divination teacher back in your older school, she had continuously pressured you to pursue your abilities until you predicted something that made you quit it for good. You did not like Professor Ashbourne one bit. “My predictions are rarely any  accurate, I’m especially bad with classic fortune telling such as Xylomancy and Arithmancy.” 

“What about cards?” He said placing an old Spanish deck on your table. 

You took a deep breath and pushed them back “I thought we were going to follow the curriculum,” you said steadily, “Don’t we have to do runes first?” 

He raised an eyebrow at you “Miss (Y/LN) is -in fact- correct, 10 points for Gryffindor, this first unit we will be looking at the art of reading ancient runes. Please open your books on page 50. Potter, start reading, will you?” You exhaled the moment he started paying attention to James’ reading instead of you. 

At the end of the class, he divided some stacks of runes and handed them over to the students at random. You had to study their meanings and write what the runes would mean when combined with other things. It was really easy since you had already done runes in your old school, but you were thankful you weren’t actually reading someone’s future and had just a random set of runes instead. 

Once the class was over you rushed outside as fast as possible, escaping while some girls walked towards the teacher to ask him about the meaning of some runes, you really didn’t want him to call you regarding the whole Ashbourne thing. You had walked down the stairs so fast you didn’t even realise you’d left everyone behind, you leaned back onto a wall and allowed yourself to rest for a bit, heavy breaths becoming softer the more time passed. 

Remus spotted you from a couple of steps higher as he walked down, and after noticing your distress decided to approach you. “You all right?” He asked softly, as if not to startle you. 

You turned to him and blinked a couple of times before you managed to ground yourself. This was Hogwarts, that was Remus, and you only had to read random runes here, you didn’t need to predict anyone’s future. You nodded in response. “I got wrapped up in my thoughts for a moment,” you excused yourself “I’m not a big fan of divination.”

“I don’t know about your old professor, but Spellman will not pressure you into anything,” he reassured “Besides he already has a star student of his own,” he said nodding towards a small Ravenclaw girl with thick-rimmed glasses who was passing by. 

“Sybill?” You asked, raising one of your eyebrows.

Remus nodded, tilting his head towards you as he spoke “last name is Trelawney.” 

“Hold up, that Trelawney?” 

He nodded again and then smiled “Let’s go get some food, I wanna show you something,” he said and started walking downwards. 

You eyed him suspiciously and followed behind. Instead of taking you to the great hall, he took a deviation, walking down a long spiral staircase until you arrived to a long passageway. There seemed to be nothing but a couple of portraits there. Remus approached one of them, used his wand to make a little pear on the painting to move, and all of the sudden, the portrait opened itself like a door would, just like the entrance to the Gryffindor common room. 

There was a rather narrow and short passageway, and finally, you found the kitchens, an enormous room, about the same size as the Great Hall, with tables positioned in the exact same layout. “The elves use the tables to magically take the food from here to the great hall, it’s right above us,” he whispered as he noticed you observing. 

He then kindly asked some of the domestic elves there to pack some food for you. You saw Nimbletwist among them and waved at her. She smiled and waved back. Once the food was ready the elves handed them over to Remus and he thanked them. You followed behind him as he led you outside. When you approached the door of the castle he pulled a small paper plane from the inside pocket of his robe and swished his wand over it. The plane took off towards one of the halls. 

You frowned as you looked at the plane fly off “The boys?” You asked. 

He nodded, “So they bring dessert.” From then he walked out and guided you through the grounds all the way to the lake.

He pulled out a cloth and extended it over the floor “A picnic?” You asked, raising your eyebrows. 

“It’s a wonderful day,” he said with his arms wide open. 

You looked up with a bit of a frown. “It looks like it may rain soon.” 

“This is England love, it always looks like it might rain soon,” he said plopping down on top of the cloth and pulling out some of the food the domestic elves had prepared. 

Which reminded you of something you wanted to ask “Do they just… give food to whoever asks nicely?” You asked. 

“Most of the students don’t know where the kitchens are,” Remus explained. “Peter found them in second year when we were exploring the castle’s secret passages, he befriended the elves, they give us food whenever we ask them now.” He said as he patted the side for you to also sit on the cloth, you complied. Once you sat beside him he pointed at the lake “Whenever I’m feeling down, I like to come here,” he explained “The giant squid comes out every now and then, it’s relaxing to see him swimming around without any worries to perturb him.” 

Sitting next to Remus, with the light watery breeze, you thought back to the day you’d met him, and how he’d looked like a pirate from the cover of a spicy novel to you. He still looked as handsome as one, but he had much more depth than just a hot pirate. Layers , you thought, this boy has so many layers . You turned to look at the lake and saw the giant squid he’d been talking about. It floated aimlessly for a minute and then went back under the water, it really was as peaceful as Remus had described. 

As you stared at the water you grabbed one of the pork pies and started munching on it “Oh, these are incredible,” you said as you took another bite. 

He nodded “They’re Sirius’ favourites, thought you may like them,” he said as he grabbed his own. As the two of you talked about charms and transfiguration James, Sirius and Peter arrived. 

Peter, who was carrying a basket in his hands, sat down next to you, and turned to Remus as he grabbed a pork pie, “You brought her to your spot.”

“Yeah, she seemed like she needed it,” Remus replied with a shrug, “you guys brought the desserts?” 

Sirius and James were quick to sit in front of the three of you, closing the circle completely. “I got some of those meringue pies you really like,” said Sirius, looking at Remus attentively “and chocolate pudding too.” 

James nodded “he used all his charms on the kitchens,” and then he turned to you “By the way, the Gryffindor tryouts will be on Friday at four,” he said giving you a look “I’ll see you there, yeah?” You nodded in response, “But you won’t get any special treatment just because we’re friends,” he said in a warning tone, you laughed. 

“Yeah right, of course, the Gryffindor Team Captain can’t have a bias,” you replied with a smile as you gave him a small nudge and finished your pie. 

“Which class do we have next?” Asked Peter.

“How do you manage to keep your head in the clouds all the time Wormy?” Asked Sirius as he threw himself back, letting his hair sprawl on the grass, looking absolutely carefree as he took a piece of chocolate fudge to his mouth, looking absolutely prince-like, as always . 

“Wormy?” You asked, turning to Peter. 

“It’s a long story,” he exhaled, “short for Wormtail.”

“Wormtail? Now that’s even worse!” You said with a frown. “But you all gave weird names to each other right? Sirius is Pads, and…” you turned to Remus “You’re Moony.”

“Padfoot actually,” corrected Sirius as he took another bite of his fudge and then pointed at James “He’s Prongs.” 

“Wow, and that’s what you call your friends? I wouldn’t wanna be your enemy…” 

Remus chuckled lightly, looking amused and eventually turned to Peter “It’s Herbology?”

“Herbology?” you asked, turning to Remus with a frown. 

“Last class of the day too, why?” 

“I’m… exceptionally good at getting plants to die,” You explained “Theory and memory, that’s no problem, but keeping them alive… Let’s just say… it’s not among my talents.”

“Wormy’s really good,” said James “And Evans, I’m sure they’d give you a hand.” 

“Last year he kept my plant alive,” Sirius said in agreement “And Moony’s, when he was out of it.” 

Remus pulled his sleeve up a bit and checked his watch, which let you see he had some more scars up his arms as well, “All right boys, time to get going, we need to be at the greenhouses in 15.” 

Sirius took a deep breath and sat back down, joining the rest of you as you put everything back in the basket, Peter held it as the boys guided you to Herbology. 

Marlene was the first one to spot you as you were entering the castle, and she called in for Lily, “Hey Lils, she’s not lost, she was with the boys.” 

At that moment you left the boys behind and walked towards them, “you were looking for me?” You asked her when you stood in front of her. 

“Marlene mentioned how uncomfortable you were at divination, we were waiting for you at the great hall and when you didn’t arrive we started to worry, in my first year I got lost rather often, and some parts of the castle can be very dangerous ,” she said stressing the last bit. 

You were moved by how caring Lily was of you, you’d met the girl only a day ago and she’d been more worried about you when she’d thought you got lost than your damn parents when you were exploring muggle London for a week, touching your house only for a dash of sleep before disappearing pretty early in the morning, Lily would be a great mother , you thought. “The boys took me for a picnic,” you explained, “that’s why we didn’t go to the great hall.” 

 She nodded “I should’ve guessed, you’ve gotten chummy with them already.” 

“Well, they are fun to hang out with,” you shrugged, “and of course, I already knew Sirius.” 

“You did?” She frowned, to which you nodded. 

“Met him a couple of years ago on a family vacation,” you explained. 

“Hold up! A couple of years ago? Are you talking about Sirius’ vacation in Mexico?” 

You nodded, “yeah, why?”  Lily started laughing 

“Sirius was hung up on you almost the entire year,” Marlene said as she caught up with you “We knew he’d met a mystery girl when Peter accidentally let it out.” 

“Oh, Was he?” You said with a cheeky smile “You girls are just giving me more fuel to tease him.” 

“Please do! He literally had all the girls crying because he kept ignoring their love letters. Throwing them to the fire and eating the treats he was sent. I was tired of girls asking me to introduce them formally.” 

You laughed while shaking your head, “Ahhh.. this is gonna be a fun year.” 

Soon enough, you all arrived at your classroom. The teacher introduced himself as Mr. Folly and started explaining some of the curative benefits of Spellvine and how it was especially helpful for potions to treat pain. You noticed Mary was especially attentive in class, you guessed it had to do with her goal of becoming a Mediwitch. While you wrote down all the special needs and care specificities of Spellvine the teacher handed everyone their own seed. It was going to be the course’s objective to grow said plant from scratch. 

After class, you went back to the common room and Lily decided to show you the way to the library, so you could do research for homework. Inviting you again to her and Remus’ study group, she said the first session would be on Wednesday. Eventually you went back to the Great Hall and you had dinner with everyone and finally, went back to your shared room.  

Chapter Text

You rose, scanning your surroundings, the inky dark made it hard for you to see anything. It took a whole minute for your eyes to adjust. You saw trees all around you, as you took a single step forward, an unsettling crack echoed beneath your heel. You looked down only to realise it was the bone of a very small animal, a fox perhaps. You shivered at the thought. 

Another step and a haunting howl sliced through the air, piercing your ears. Its resonance was powerful, sharp, and it reverberated deep within you, whatever monster was making that sound, it was close. 

You tried to find a hiding spot but it was futile, whatever that monster was, it had already caught your scent, its primal instincts honed in on you, and you could hear it getting closer and closer. And then, it was there, right in front of you, its predatory gaze calculating which part of you it would feast on first.

“H-Hey, It’s ok, it’s me,” you stammered, a desperate attempt to reason with it, which, in all honesty, made no sense, still you clung to the idea that perhaps that would appease the beast. 

Bad idea , it didn’t. It just growled back and lunged at you. You crashed back on the ground, next to the rest of the bones you had unwittingly shattered moments ago. It had a choking hold on you, robbing your breath. You heard another growl, coming from a different place when your vision started to fog, you felt like you were going to die.

“Wake up!” You heard, and suddenly opened your eyes, trying to fight the creature still, but Lily was there instead of the monster. “It’s ok,” She told you, placing her hands over your forearms that sought desperately to defend you still, “it was only a dream luv.” 

You finally took a deep breath, grounding yourself. Of course, it was only a dream. Hogwarts didn’t have those kinds of monsters. You took a deep breath and looked at Lily “Did I wake you?” 

She shook her head “I woke up to go to the restroom. I noticed you were struggling in bed, that’s why I came to wake you.” 

You gently placed your hand over her forearm, using her to reassure yourself, she was indeed real. Eventually you smiled at her “Thank you,” you said in all honesty “I’m truly grateful I met someone like you here.” 

She smiled back at you “No problem, I’m here for you, for anything , all right?” You nodded in response. “Want me to stay with you for a little while?”

You shook your head “It’s all right, I’m a lot calmer now, thanks to you. You can go back to sleep, I wouldn’t want to be the reason dear Miss Evans is sleepy in the morning.” 

She laughed at that and nodded, reluctantly leaving you, as if she wasn’t sure if you were actually better or just telling her to go as if not to be a bother, which to her, you weren’t at all. 

Once you were alone again you continued to take deep breaths. Nightmares were not something you had all that often, you didn’t quite know how to deal with them, so you stared at the ceiling until you finally managed to fall back asleep. 

You woke up earlier than everyone again and went down to the common room with flying gear. James arrived sometime later, and Sirius minutes afterwards, complaining “It’s raining Prongs, can’t we just sleep in instead?” 

James gave Sirius a stern look in response “You’re coming today too!” He acknowledged with a smile once he noticed you were there. 

“Well I’m not getting any special treatment even if I know the Captain of the Quidditch team so I’ve got to be in top shape for the tryouts,” you replied with a smug smile. 

He smiled back, clearly amused by your answer “All right, let’s go then. We’re doing evasion today.” 

The three of you went out and did some laps around the castle. This time James had taken out a blodger and you were beating it back and forth. Once you were done you went back to the common room and changed into your uniform. Your hair was still wet when you arrived at your first class. 

“Good morning everyone, my name is Horace Slughorn, I’ll be your potions teacher, please grab a piece of paper from the hat,” he said as he passed a small wizard hat turned upside down for everyone to grab a paper. Once you opened yours you saw Lily’s name appeared on it.

James, who stood right behind you leaned over your shoulder and walked to face you, leaning over to whisper “Switch with me, will you?” 

You frowned and looked up at him, he had this hopeful puppy-eyed look going on, it made you gasp in surprise “You like Evans!” You teased, in a whisper too. 

He looked to the side but then nodded, looking back at you with the same golden retriever look “Pretty please?” 

You thought about it for a moment and leaned over to check on his paper “Who’d you get?” 

“Moony,” he responded. 

“He any good at potions?” 

“Brilliant!” James affirmed. 

You took a deep breath and handed the paper to James, “Go get her tiger!” You told him with a smile as he approached Lily. To be fair, you totally understood why someone would have a crush on Lily, in fact, it was more surprising that you hadn’t heard of anyone else being hung up on her. 

There was a knock on the door, Slughorn opened the door to find a slimy-haired boy, looking like a very pissed wet rat, and allowed him to walk inside the classroom “Ah, Severus, did you get stuck in the rain?” 

The boy -Severus , took a spiteful glance towards the boys and turned back to Slughorn, taking a deep breath “Something like that.” 

James gave Sirius a look and a complicitous smile. You noticed Remus rolled his eyes, while Lily looked stoic, as if she was trying to hide her feelings. They clearly had some history going on. 

Slughorn handed the hat to him and he picked a piece of paper, once he opened it he rolled his eyes. “Professor, can I switch…?” Slughorn shook his head. 

Sirius jumped from his seat once he realised what his paper said “I’m sure we can find someone willing to–” he argued. 

“–Your partners are set, and they won’t change, there was a spell on the papers,” the professor explained. James gave you a worried look but you shook your head lightly, using a changing spell to switch the names on Lily and Remus’ papers. 

The greasy-haired boy took a deep breath and went to sit down at the front, Sirius followed and sat next to him, turning his back to him and rolling his eyes; so that’s why he wanted to switch, he’d been paired with the boy , you thought.

“Excellent, please, the rest of you, take your seats.” 

Remus approached you then, asking if you wanted to sit in the front, you nodded in response. And the two of you walked towards a table.

“This month, we shall embark on the fascinating journey of brewing the illustrious Polyjuice Potion. Now, let me be clear—this concoction is no ordinary brew. It demands your unwavering attention, precision, and an ample dose of patience. I must confess, not everyone will master it effortlessly on their initial attempts. However, mark my words, the fundamentals are crucial for you to grasp, for who knows when fate may call upon you to employ this transformative elixir in the days to come. So, prepare yourselves, my aspiring potion-makers, for the intricate art of Polyjuice Potion awaits!” 

You nodded and pulled out your book, finding the list of ingredients you would need. “It’s a complicated one,” You said, reading through the steps. 

Remus nodded and winced when he started reading some of the requirements of the ingredients, “Profesor,” he said, racing his hand “Will you provide the fluxweed or…?” 

"Ah, Mr. Lupin, splendid question indeed!" Said Slughorn, whose voice carried an air of geniality and indulgence. "You have touched upon a key facet of the potion we are about to undertake—the vexing nature of ingredient collection. Specifically, the delicate task of harvesting fluxweed and capturing the elusive lacewing flies . Now, my dear students, I'm afraid I cannot simply hand you these crucial components on a silver platter. Oh no! You see, the true essence of potion-making lies in experiencing the genuine challenges it presents. Therefore, I implore each of you to venture forth and procure these ingredients yourselves, immersing yourselves in the intricacies and complications inherent in brewing a potion of such calibre. May the journey to acquire them serve as a valuable lesson in the art of potion-making!"

Remus nodded in response “Of course it wouldn’t be so easy,” he mumbled and turned towards you “Wanna split?” 

You nodded “You could get the fluxweed and I could capture the lacewing flies ? We also need Knotgrass and shredded boomslang skin , perhaps we can get the latter with the Care of Magical Creatures teacher?” 

“Yeah,” he agreed, “All thought, how about you do the fluxweed and I do Lacewing flies ?” He asked, “I’m really good at catching stuff.” 

You agreed “I can go with Lily next full moon,” you said with a smile “We have Care of Magical Creatures later today, right? We could ask the teacher then?” 

A small Slytherin boy raised his hand from the back of the classroom “Professor, must we also dry and powder the leeches?” He asked with an air of disgust in his voice.

“Well, of course, Mr. Stradleter.” 

“Of course, because I definitely can’t order them from an ingredients store,” You mumbled rolling your eyes, Remus chuckled lightly. 

“In fact, you have stumbled upon the very essence of our lesson today. Step one, my dear students, involves a fascinating encounter with these lively leeches." He paused, his eyes twinkling with anticipation as he pulled a jar from his desk. The Slytherin boy held his breath at that point, staring at the leeches horrified. "Worry not, my young potion-makers, for we shall handle them with care and precision.” 

“Oh, this is definitely going to go bad somehow,” Said Remus, biting his lip to avoid smiling too wide as he looked around to the rest of the tables with students looking like they wanted to run away. 

“10 sickles someone ends up with at least 10 leeches stuck to their skin.” 

Remus turned to you with raised eyebrows and a little smile. “Deal.” He said and the two of you shook hands. 

Later on in the class, Peter who was sitting next to a Slytherin girl and was right behind Sirius and Severus, realised slimy-old Snape had pulled his hair up to focus on the leeches when drying them and had taken the opportunity to carefully levitate some of his own leeches towards Severus’ neck. Unwittingly causing you to win the bet against Remus. Once the class was over, poor Severus had over 20 leeches all over his neck and back. 

“Sirius bloody BLACK! What the hell have you done?” He roared when he realised he had leeches on his neck. 

Sirius raised his hands with an innocent look on his face “I’ve been working with you all class, not that I like it , but I’ve done nothing to you.” 

“Professor!” Severus whined. 

“I’ve been closely monitoring your progress,” Slughorn said “Mr. Black has been dutifully working on the drying process alongside you.” 

Severus rolled his eyes, clearly feeling victimised. “You’re meant to be on my side!” He argued and Slughorn gave him a stern look.

Peter held back a laugh from behind. James instantly knew who it had been.

“Come here, Severus,” Slughorn waved for the boy to follow. He pulled the collar from Severus' shirt and winced when he noticed the state of his back. Snape ended up having to go to Madam Pomffrey. 

 Once the class was over James caught up with Peter and Sirius as they walked towards their next class “That was brilliant Wormy!” He said with a smile. 

“I just saw the opportunity and took it,” he said with a small proud smile. 

Sirius spoke then “That twit couldn’t even place the blame on me,” he said as he placed a satisfied arm over Peter.

“Yeah, and you lost me 10 sickles,” complained Remus as he caught up to them. 

“Yeah, thank you, Peter,” You said with a smile as you walked past them toward Marlene. 

“You made a bet? With (Y/N)?” James asked Remus, raising his eyebrows, who just shrugged in response. 

Once you reached Marlene you went straight to the point “Why do they dislike Severus so much?” You asked her. 

“He used to be Lily’s friend. But then he called her a slur,” Marlene explained. 

Mary, who was walking beside you whispered “She called her a mud-blood.” 

You gave her an incredulous look “He called her that ?” Marlene nodded, you exhaled with indignation, “He deserves a lot more leechers then.” 

Your next class was Defense Against the Dark Arts. A tall, elegant-looking lady in her forties, who you recognized as the head of Hufflepuff, Seraphina Nightshade, was your teacher. She moved with the regalness of a ballerina around the room. In the class, she went through the basics of some strong defensive spells, left an investigation assignment and invited the students to join the Dueling club that would start next week, after classes. 

You toyed with the idea in your head. Duelling was fun in your older School, you didn’t exactly know how good the students would be at Hogwarts but you pride yourself on having sharp reflexes. When Defense Against the Dark Arts was over, you all walked towards the Great Hall, at that point Mary asked Marlene to go get something from the room with her and the two diverted from the group. 

“So… What are we going to do for Marlene’s birthday?” Beth asked standing in front of you, Lily and the boys.

“Oh, it’s her birthday soon?” You asked. 

“September 10th, that’s… next, next Friday” Peter replied “I’m planning to get her a cake, I’ve already talked to the kitchen elves about it and everything.”

“And we’re getting some firewisky,” said Sirius pointing at James and back at himself. 

“Last time you got firewisky–“ Lily started, but was interrupted by James, who placed an arm over her shoulder. 

“–That wasn’t our fault,” he said defensively “That Ackley boy got us some weird stuff he was brewing in his room.” 

“Yeah, and everyone was burping out purple bubbles for a week!” 

Beth laughed, “Yeah, that was epic.” 

Lily shot her a glance, and she shrugged in response “Ackley’s illegal brewery almost got discovered!” 

“Don’t be such a wuss, Evans!” Said Sirius “We got a different dealer this time. They’re buying it at the Three Broomsticks.” 

“Who? Is it someone from seventh?” 

“We can’t tell you, it’s top secret,” Said Remus, who was walking beside you, “Wanna help me with the decorations? We’re gonna do over the common room.” You nodded. 

“Gryffindor parties are THE parties of the school.” Said Peter, “Totally exclusive, you can only come if a Gryffindor invites you directly.” 

“Then it’s settled!” Said Beth “I can tag along Remus and (Y/N) for decorations, if that’s all right?” 

You both nodded, then Lily spoke “I’ll see over the snacks with Mary, then.”

“Ohh, hold up!” Said Beth “Someone needs to invite Holden Crawford.” 

“The Ravenclaw seeker? Whatever for?” Asked Sirius. 

“It’s Marlene’s crush,” admitted Lily.

“Oh,” Responded Sirius with an insinuating face “Want us to slip some amorentia in his drink that day too?”

“Of course not Sirius! You especially know how bad those kinds of potions can hit.” 

“Does he now?” You teased “Sounds like a story I wanna hear.” 

“You won’t,” responded Sirius sternly.

At the same time, James leaned down towards you and whispered over your ear “I’ll tell you all about it.” 

“So… Holden Crawford?” Beth insisted, bringing everyone back to the topic at hand.  

“I don’t know him,” shrugged James. 

“Me neither,” responded Sirius. 

“I know he’s chummy with Alexander Wood,” Said Peter “They got paired up in potions first year and became really good friends, even if they’re different houses.” 

“Alex, the Hufflepuff Head Boy, Alex?” You asked. Peter nodded. “Oh, I’ll invite them.” You said matter of factly. Everyone turned towards you. They were all thinking the same, how the hell had you met Alexander Wood? “He brought me here on my first day,” you explained,  “took me to Dumbledore’s office to get sorted.” 

“Aaaah,” said Peter as he nodded.

“Fantastic,” said Beth excitedly “Godric Heavens, (Y/N) the brave got sent to us!” 

“(Y/N) the brave?” Asked Sirius incredulous. 

“Oh, Puppy… You don’t want me to talk about the zip lines, do you?” You teased. He instantly tensed up, the boys did too, but you didn’t notice.

“P-puppy?” Peter stammered. 

“I gave him that nickname back on our trip, he insisted a tiger would win over a lion.” 

The boys weren’t sure how that related to Sirius being called Puppy but they relaxed when they realised it didn’t have anything to do with their secret. “Good thing we already had nicknames when you arrived,” said James as playfully nudged you with his shoulder. You laughed. 

“Don’t know about that,” said Beth “I’d rather be Puppy than Wormtail .”

“Oi!” Complained Peter “Wormtail’s a fine nickname, thank you very much.” By then you had already arrived at the Great Hall, Marlene and Mary joining you shortly after.  

For dinner, there was Roast Beef, Shepards Pie, Bangers and Mash and these absolutely killer Buttered New Potatoes. They were so good you’d served yourself twice. Once you were done you started feeling drowsy, it often happened to you when you overate, so you gently let your head fall over Sirius’ shoulder, who was sitting beside you. 

“You okay?” He asked, turning his head towards you lightly, trying not to move you as much. 

You nodded, still on his shoulder “I ate too much,” you complained, then took in a deep breath “and we still have another class…” 

“I can carry you there,” he offered. 

You turned to him with a frown “And risk me puking on you?” 

He shrugged, “If it’ll make you feel better.” You chuckled lightly, sometimes you really didn’t understand Sirius. Some days he was at your throat trying to win you on whatever game you made up on flying practice, and then he’d come out and say things like that . 

You stared at his pretty face for a minute before shaking your head and going back to lay on his shoulder, “It’s alright Puppy, I’m sure it’ll go away on the way there.” 

He didn’t even seem to mind you calling him puppy all that much either, in that particular moment. You might have fallen asleep on Sirius’ shoulder, since next thing you knew, Lily was shaking you lightly and telling you it was time for your next class.

The teacher of Care for Magical Creatures, Silvanus Kettleburn, was quite a character, to say the least, he had white hair, styled in a very rockstar kind of way, a metal claw for a hand and a white bandage covering one of his eyes. If Remus looked like a sexy novel Pirate, Kettleburn looked like the villain pirate the main character was forced to get married to before Remus came to rescue her. The funniest thing about the man was this extremely high-pitched voice with which he introduced himself, totally contrasting with his gruff pirate vibe and attitude. He said something about trying out a new draught that had made his voice squeaky, but it still took a whole lot of energy to keep your face straight when he spoke.  

He said this month you’d be taking care of fireworms , and explained that they should be taken care of with extreme precautions since they could easily explode if not being cared for properly, if they saw the moon, or simply if they felt threatened by whoever was caring for them. He mentioned they would start small but they could grow up to 10 feet tall, and that they were the cause of many monsters and horror stories the muggles told to their children. He handed every single one of you a small box, of about 3 inches, with a worm in it, explaining how you’d have to get the worm used to you before transferring it to a bigger box, once it was large enough. “You must be very careful, and you must not forget to feed them, or they might explode too.” 

You took in a sharp breath, looking down at the little box, how could such a small creature be so dangerous?, You wondered as you carefully set him to the side, as if not to disturb him much. During the  the class you learned that your fireworm wasn’t actually a he, but a she, and after getting some encouragement from Kettlebrun, you ended up naming her Pyro Princess . Neatly writing the name on a label that the professor had handed over. In the middle of the class, you heard a small explosion, it came from a tall Slytherin boy that stood beside Severus, who quickly performed agumenti to turn off the fire. 

“Excellent problem-solving skills Mr. Snape,” Kettleburn said with his squeaky voice “10 points for Slytherin.” 

“But it was Rosier who caused the explosion,”  Tom complained, “That should definitely take some points from them, right?” 

Beth gave him a thumbs up while Kettleburn gave it a thought “You are indeed right Mr, Harrow, Evan Rosier will get a 5 points penalty for his aggravation.” Snape rolled his eyes and placed his own label on top of his worm while the professor handed a new worm to Evan. 

“Whoever has the largest worm by the end of the course, will get an automatic A,” he said before he dismissed everyone and their worms. 

At that point Lily approached you, “Today’s the first reunion of the study club, we’ll be working on some homework together if you wanna join,” said Lily. 

You nodded in response, “I’ll just take this little girl to a safe place and see you there, yeah?” 

You parted ways with Lily once you were back inside the castle. From what Kettelebrun had explained, fireworms liked peaceful environments, and while your dorm was peaceful enough, you really did not want to burn the Gryffindor tower down because of a mishap, so you decided that the safest way to keep her was somewhere in the passageways Remus had taken you to on the first day. Once you were inside you saw another light further in the passage. Turning yours off and walking behind it quietly. 

“Anyone there?” You heard a very familiar voice. 

“Remus?” You asked him, turning the light of your wand back on. 

“(Y/N)? What on earth are you doing here? it’s a whole labyrinth inside these tunnels, you could’ve gotten lost without a guide.” 

“I’m rather good with mazes,” you said with a smile “but uh… I’m here because I wanted to find a good hiding spot for Pyro Princess .” 

“You mean, your fireworm ?” He asked with his eyebrows raised “You called it, Pyro Princess ?!”

“Well, It’s a fireworm ! What did you call yours?”

“I called him Number 1.” 

“Number one? And you’re making fun of Pyro Princess ?” 

He gave you a stern look “I didn’t wanna get attached to it, in case it blew up.” 

“Now, that’s just setting yourself up for failure. But fret not, I’m sure if we team up we can keep both Pyro and Nummie alive.” 

“ Nummie ? Now you gave it a cutesy name too.” 

“It’s just short for Number 1,” you exclaimed “So, Mr. Guide, please take us to a safe, non often used area.” 

“Fine, follow me,” he said and the two of you walked through the tunnels until you found a decent hole in the wall to place the two worms. You performed a small protection charm on top of them and Remus added a small light orb on top of them to give them some light. “They’ll be alright, yeah?” He asked, to which you nodded. 

“I’m thinking of brewing some calming draught, to add a few drops to their water, so that way they won’t get so anxious.” 

“Oh, I’ve got some,” he said, pulling a bottle from his pocket. You frowned but decided not to question it as he placed a couple of drops on their water source. Who knows maybe Remus was a naturally anxious guy and he needed it, or maybe he was just gonna use it for a prank. 

When the two of you were down with the little home area you’d created for your worms, you walked together towards the library. Lily was already sitting on a round table, Beth was by her right, and a smaller blonde girl by her left. As soon as she saw the two of you she smiled and waved “You made it.”

“Bumped into Remus on the way too.” You told her as you sat in front of her, next to Tom. Remus sat in between you and the blonde girl, who you later learned was Nina Blythe, a Ravenclaw a year younger who always joined the study group, to learn about more advanced stuff. On a table beside you were several kids from even lower years who would often stand up to ask Lily and Remus for advice or help with their classes. 

You pulled out some parchment and decided to start working on your runes essay for Divination since it was the thing that would require the least effort. You’d kept your runes on a little felt bag and took them out to start writing about it; you knew most things from the top of your head. Once you were done you started working on your DADA assignment. Standing up to pull some books from the library about defensive spells you’d need. Once you returned to your spot you noticed Beth was desperately looking through a book. 

“All good?” You asked her, trying to be nice. 

She shook her head “I just can’t find this fucking rune anywhere.” 

“ Language Beth! ” Lily complained, “There are children around.”

“I’m so gonna fail…” 

“May I?” You asked as you extended your hand, she placed the rune on it and you brought it back to give it a closer look. “Ah... It’s Hagalaz!” you explained “It’s hard to find it because in this set it looks a lot more like an N than an H, but it’s this one,” you pointed at one of the runes in a book she had discarded earlier “It means Hail… So basically it comes from a natural disaster, em… it means that… an unavoidable change that is out of your hands will be presented to you. How destructive it might be, depends on how capable you are of weathering its storm. Kinda like The Tower in Tarot,” you finally gave the little stone back to Beth. 

Everyone at the table now turned to look at you, with an air of surprise in their faces “Thought you said you weren’t good with divination,” said Tom. 

“I just…” you sighed,  “I don’t want to be another divination teacher’s pet.” You responded “And I’d already seen runes a couple of years ago.” 

Remus gave you a rather apprehensive look while Tom handed over another rune for you to check. Eventually, you helped everyone with the divination homework, since the set of runes Professor Spellman had handed over to revise had weird shapes on most of the little stones. 

The little Ravenclaw girl next to Remus seemed disinterested in the divination stuff and just stared at her spellbook, drawing little stars and hearts over the edges. When you sat back down in your chair, you realised that in fact, she hadn’t done any work at all so far, she had her spell book and a parchment out, but it was pretty empty, and she just scribbled some random notes every now and then. You wondered why she was in a study group if she didn’t have any homework to do when you noticed her giving Remus a quick glance, before going straight back to her book. You leaned back in your chair, lousily grabbing your charms book and started “reading” while you continued to analyse her behaviour. 

She would read her book, the same page she’d been on since the beginning of study group, an hour ago. Then she would scribble something illegible on her parchment, and then she’d give Remus, who was completely oblivious a quick glance. She’d play with her hair, and then go back to drawing on the edge of her book, ready to repeat the process all over again. You were almost completely certain she was madly involved with Remus, but you had to confirm your theory. 

So you cut out a small piece of parchment and wrote: “follow my lead” and passed the note over to Lily from under the table. She gave you a confused glance but nodded. 

“Hey Rem,” You called quietly so as not to disturb the rest, he turned to you, raising an eyebrow at the nickname “Would you mind helping me with this assignment on potions?” You asked politely, pointing at a specific one in your book “I’m not sure I know exactly how to explain this particular step, with different words.” 

“Ugh…. Maybe you could use crushing?” 

“Yeah, I thought about it too, but I’m not sure crushing works, since it’s more like really, really fine pieces.” 

Yeah, it was a tricky question, all right? But you had to make it sound believable. 

“Do you think Lily would know?” You asked. 

He thought about it for a second and nodded, he then leaned towards the Ravenclaw girl “Hey Nina,” he said politely, and she turned to him, almost shocked he was talking to her “Would you mind switching with Lily for a minute?” He asked with a smile. She seemed taken aback but nodded. Standing up to switch with your redheaded friend. 

You leaned closer to Remus then, almost crossing past him to talk to Lily, who seemed puzzled. You were never so much in other people’s personal space, not that Remus was bothered by it, in fact, he wasn’t uncomfortable in the slightest, he found the warmth your body emitted rather soothing. But Nina? Nina was absolutely pissed. She was shooting daggers at Lily and you as if you both had just kissed her fiancé. In retrospect, if a new girl showed up in a year and she was all over your crush, you might’ve been just as angry, but you wouldn’t make it so obvious . She was damn lucky everyone else was too busy looking at their books or they all would’ve known by now. 

“Oh, you can use something like make a fine dust with the dried fairyleaves ,” She said after thinking about it for a bit, she then gave you an expectant look, asking if what she’d done was fine, you nodded, with a little smile.

“Oh, that’s perfect, actually,” You said as you leaned back to your place. Feeling how much colder it was without Remus’ body heat irradiating all over you “Thanks,” you told Lily and then turned to Nina “To you too love, for switching so Lily could help.” Nina nodded, still looking a bit pissed nonetheless. You continued working on your homework assignments for a while.  

At some point, you heard Tom yawn, and a couple of minutes later he was excusing himself, saying he’d finish a different day. Beth decided to walk with him. The smaller children had also started going to their dorms. As the library emptied it grew chiller, so you pulled your backpack to your knees and started looking through it, you were certain you’d packed your sweater in there, but maybe you hadn’t. 

Nina checked her watch and rushed out of the library. 

“Everything alright?” Remus asked when he noticed. 

You turned to him and nodded “I was just looking for my sweater, I guess I left it at the dorms.” 

“I’ve got mine here,” he said, pulling it out of his bag and hanging it over. 

You looked at the sweater, he’d already taken it out, and you didn’t want him to feel bad, so you glanced over at Nina, you didn’t want to make her upset by taking Remus’ sweater either, but she had already left, so you took it from his hands with a smile and thanked him. Pulling it over your head in one swift movement. It was big and warm, and it smelled so nice, you were thankful you didn’t reject it. You stayed in the library until about 9 pm, when Lily yawned and checked the clock on the wall behind you, realising how late it was. 

“Oh, we must go, it’s time for dinner,” she said as she started to place her things in her bag. Remus and you followed suit, you placed your parchment in between one of your larger books so the ink wouldn’t run before putting it away. Once you had everything in your bags the three of you started walking towards the Great Hall. Lily switched over to walk by your side and you were left walking in between your two friends “What was the whole potions thing about?” She asked you. 

“Oh… I had to test a hypothesis,” you explained, she looked at you expectantly, as if waiting for further explanation “The little Ravenclaw girl, Nina? I thought it was odd she was in our study group but spent most of her time just drawing in her notebook.” 

Lily frowned, now that she thought about it, she hadn’t seen Nina do a lot of homework last year either “And?” She pressed. 

“Oh, she’s got a massive crush on Remus.” 

“Ahhhh” Remus said as he downed him, “so that’s why you were calling me Rem and being all chummy.” 

“I wanted to see her reaction,” you shrugged. “She was pretty pissed when she had to switch seats with Lily, I think she low-key hates us now. But…” you did a dramatic pause “She seems nice,” you teased Remus. 

“She looks 12, (Y/N)!” Remus said, shaking his head in disbelief. 

“But she’s got pretty eyes,” you argued back, and it was true, she had this very beautiful doe-eye look going on, and her eyes were a very intense blue. 

“Who’s got pretty eyes?” Asked Sirius, who’d spotted you from behind and approached right in the middle of a conversation. 

“A girl that likes Remus,” replied Lily. 

“I’d say she’s madly in love with him, but I guess likes works too,” you corrected. 

Sirius raised his eyebrows with a little smirk “Moony boy, were you planning on getting a girlfriend without asking for permission?” 

Remus shrugged and shoved Sirius “As if I needed your permission to date someone.” 

“But you do! I’m your best friend!” The shorter boy insisted “Doesn’t he Lily?” 

“Remus can make his own decisions,” she shrugged.  

Remus smiled, and Sirius approached you instead, clenching to your arm “You have to back me up in this one love,” he said playfully, “go ahead, tell Remus he definitely needs permission from his best friends before dating someone.” 

You raised your eyebrow at him, “Not sure about permission Puppy… maybe a 3-day notice?” you teased. 

“3 days? At least a week, so we get used to the idea!” 

“When have you ever given us so much as a notice?” Retorted Remus. 

Sirius threw his head back dramatically “Moony, you know me, I’ve never dated anyone…” Remus gave him an incredulous look “Not seriously at least.” 

“Ironic,” you said, Lily laughed. 

“Besides, if you dated someone, I feel like you would date them date them, not just hook up with them,” Sirius continued. 

Remus laughed at that “What makes you think I haven’t hooked up with anyone?”

Sirius seemed taken aback “Because you’ve never told me?” 

“Gentlemen don’t kiss and tell, Pads,” Remus responded, Lily nodded in agreement. 

“Hold up!” Sirius said in shock, finally letting your arm free “Are you implying you’ve been secretly hooking up with people?” Remus only laughed in return. “Remus?!” 

“Sorry Pads,” he said walking in front of him with a shit-eating grin “There are some things about me, you’ll never know.” 

Sirius exhaled, defeated and grabbed your arm again “You would tell me if you hooked up with someone, right?” 

You raised your eyebrows, giving Remus a quick glance, he shrugged in response, and you turned your head to Sirius “Sure Puppy, you’ll be the first one to know.” You said ironically. 

“Good.” You were pretty sure he hadn’t understood your sarcasm, but Remus had and he was holding back a laugh. 

By the time you arrived at the Great Hall, it was almost empty, dinner had been at 7pm, and they stopped serving at 10, so it made sense only a couple students were left. Peter and Marlene joined you for dinner later, Mary had eaten with Tom earlier and was already back at the dorms according to Mars, and James was in a quidditch team reunion with the 7th years.

Chapter Text

A week had flown by while at Hogwarts. You were becoming closer and closer to your Gryffindor classmates, and you couldn’t be happier. This morning James reminded you like four times that the quidditch trials would be later that day. He’d given you a list of the things you’d need and made sure you were aware of the fact that he wouldn’t be the only person to choose who made it to the team, so you had to fly as gracefully as you always did, and better . 

“You sure you’ve got everything ready?” He asked, yet another time as you walked towards the Great Hall after divination. 

“Yes James,” you replied exasperated “I’ve got my broom, and my goggles, and the cape you gave me, and Remus’ sweater from the other day –because he said it would be cold–, and Sirius’ goddamned lucky hair tie too.” 

“Excellent, At what time will I see you?” 

“4 pm,” he was about to say another thing “Seriously Potter, one more quidditch-related question and I won’t even show up,” you warned.  

He nodded “I was actually gonna ask you If I could copy your DADA homework?” He said with a guilty smile “I totally forgot with all the quidditch stuff and Moony is pissed at me because he reminded me of it every night but I forgot anyway.” 

You rolled your eyes but took out your parchment and handed it over. “You better change it a bit so Nightshade doesn’t find out, remember she’s really good at spotting stuff.” He nodded profusely. 

Your DADA teacher was very strict, absolutely charming, and elegant, but strict nonetheless. Last time she discovered someone had been copying someone else’s homework –Tom copying Beth’s– she took 10 points from each of them and gave them detention until they did the entire thing again. Thankfully Lily had been very participative in that class and the points she won almost balanced out the ones they’d lost. 

From your table, Remus was the first one to spot the two of you. He was sitting beside Sirius, and he waved as soon as he saw you, you smiled, and went to take a seat. 

“Where’s my hair tie?” Sirius asked as soon as he saw you. 

“Nice to see you too Sirius,” You said as you raised your arm and pulled the sleeve of Remus’ sweater back, waving your hand in the air to make its position obvious.

“No, no, no. You need to have it on your hair for it to work,” He said, you raised your eyebrows at him. “Here, I can do it for you.” He grabbed your hand, pulling his hair tie from your wrist and placing it on his, standing up behind you. He then started toying with your hair, brushing it back with his fingers. 

“What the hell is that wanker doing to your hair love?” Beth said, pointing at Sirius as she took a seat in front of you.

“Infusing luck into my hairstyle or something,” you shrugged and leaned in to grab a slice of pie from the table, but you were abruptly pulled back by Sirius' hand in your hair “Ouch!” you exclaimed, furrowing your brow in discomfort. You tried to turn your head towards Sirius to glare at him but he firmly grasped your head with both hands and guided it back to face forward “Sirius, stop pulling on my hair!”

“Why? Don’t you like it?” He teased in a flirty tone, fucking Sirius Black . 

“Oh course not, goddamnit !” 

“Well then! Stop moving until I’m done, Would ya?” 

You took a deep breath and attempted to nod, causing your hair to be pulled yet again, you winced. Deciding it was best to remain still, you shifted your gaze toward Beth, who offered you a sympathetic smile. When you finally stopped moving you used your wand to skillfully levitate the food towards your plate and gave a satisfying bite to a piece of fudge. Meanwhile, Sirius gently tugged at the left side of your head, and surprisingly, you found yourself relishing the sensation of his fingers playfully caressing your scalp. 

“Hey Potter,” You heard someone shout from the entrance, “See if you can catch this!” the person said before launching a quaffle towards your friend, who swiftly dodged the ball, leaving you in its way instead. You turned your head, feeling another pull from Sirius’ hands on your head but managed to kinda catch the ball as it hit you sharp on the stomach, pushing you back into Remus’ chest, who’d turned to hold you from falling further.  

It took you half a minute to get your breath back, and then you turned to the place the ball had come from, Sirius and James were angrily walking towards the person that threw the ball, it was the unhinged boy you saw sitting next to Regulus on the train. 

“What the hell Crouch?” Sirius seethed, “You could’ve hurt someone!” 

“Hey Volkov,” You heard James shout to a tall boy in Slytherin robes “Keep your dog on a leash, would you?” 

Barty just laughed in response “You cowards, you dodged the ball!” He said in between maniacal chuckles. 

Feeling a mix of frustration and exhaustion from the hit, You let your head fall on Remus’ shoulder -who was still holding you– and took a deep breath to compose yourself. Finally deciding to intervene, you stood up and strode towards the confrontation. As you glared at the Slytherin boy who had thrown the ball, his laughter started to cease, being replaced by an uncomfortable expression. In hindsight, it might have been a reckless move, you could’ve easily gotten caught for it, but there were no teachers around at that particular moment. 

“What the fuck?!” He said after the ball fell on the floor, blood dripping from his nose “ You bitch! ” He roared before he launched himself towards you, being stopped by the towering Volkov boy and Regulus, who’d just arrived at the scene. 

“Oops, I guess I threw it the wrong way,” you taunted sarcastically. “Maybe if you were as good at dogging as my boy Potter here,” you said pointing at James “you wouldn’t have ended up in that pathetic situation.” With a dismissive flick of your hair, you turned on your heel and walked back to your table, Sirius’ made ponytail swaying behind you. 

Volkov and Regulus practically dragged Crouch out of the Great Hall before James and Sirius finally returned to their seats beside you. You looked at your food with a frown, the hit of the quaffle right in your stomach had taken your appetite away, so you just grabbed your goblet and drank some of the apple juice you’d served yourself earlier. 

“You alright?” Remus asked, concerned. 

You nodded, Sirius walked back, looking guilty, and sat down beside you “Sorry,” he mumbled. 

“For what?” you frowned, confused.

“I could’ve tried to stop the ball, and all I did was yank your head for you to see it.” 

“Aww… Sirius is worried about me,” you teased, trying to lighten up the mood “I’m good tho, you do remember I’m a quidditch girl, right? I’m used to getting hit by balls.” Sirius shook his head with a little smile forming, “Besides, it was Potter who left me in the line of action,” you emphasised "Potter" so that he would hear you. He turned to you mortified. 

“I’m sorry,” he said as he turned to you frantically “I didn’t mean to, I didn’t calculate you were behind me, I’m a seeker , dodging is almost all I do.” 

You looked at him with a frown and then laughed, letting your head fall back. James looked completely distraught. “It’s fine James, I was only teasing you.” 

Lily gave James a look of disdain “But you should’ve caught it,” she said before pulling a list from her bag “Now, changing the subject, these are going to be the extra-curriculars for this year.” She placed the list in the centre of the table. 

You leaned in to take a look, “Apparition?” You asked, “On 6th?” 

Beth nodded “I’ve been waiting for this course since 1st, they say Dumbledore is the teacher sometimes.” 

“I’m up for that one,” you said, and Lily wrote your name next to apparition. 

“You can still choose something else since apparition is only a 12-week course.” 

“Uh… Magical Theory?” You asked, looking through the list. 

“It’s for creating spells,” said James. 

“We’ve been taking it since 3rd,” Remus chimed.

“You’d probably like it,” concluded Sirius. 

“I’ll take that one too, then.” You told Lily, who wrote your name on it, “Though Ghoul studies sounds good too.” 

“Oh, well, the times clash, but if you want you can come to the Tuesday class with me?” She offered with a smile. You nodded, and then she continued asking the rest of your classmates about their selection for the year. 

Once she was done, everyone stood up and you all walked together to your Defence Against the Dark Arts Class. The teacher had moved all the chairs and tables to the back of the room, leaving a large empty space in the middle of the room. 

Professor Nightshade was leaning on her desk, looking as graceful as ever, with a little smirk as everyone walked in. “Today, we will be learning how to deal with Bogarts.” The atmosphere in the room quickly became tense. “Mr. Pettigrew, please step forward.” 

Peter gulped and walked towards Seraphina, who whispered something in his ear. He nodded, still with a worried look and the professor walked towards a large chest she’d placed at the front, opening it. Some mist came out and it started to transform into a giant rat trap. 

You heard Sirius burst out into a laugh from behind you, James jabbed him with his elbow and gave him a warning look. Sirius nodded, giving James an apologetic look. 

“Riddikulus!” Said Peter from the front, and the cheese on the trap started growing and growing until it ripped through the cage and caused it to break down. Everyone laughed, causing the boggart to sink back into his chest.

“Excellent work Mr. Pettigrew!” She said and called Beth to the front. When the boggart came out it turned into a huge piece of magical chess, a knight with a giant sword, lunging at her.

She looked to the side, placing her hand over her hand in instinct, “Riddikulus!” She half screamed, the sword became an air balloon and the horse had turned into a cute Merry Go Round one instead. Everyone laughed at it. 

 Seraphina urged everyone to make a line, and soon enough everyone was facing their own boggart. Sirius dressed his mother in a childish way, with ponytails and everything, Remus made the moon blow up into hundreds of sparkly confetti. Lily turned a Death Eater into a clown. And then it was your turn.

Lily gave you a thumbs up as you walked closer to your teacher, “What do you expect to see?” She asked you calmly. 

“I… I don’t know, not sure how a boggart would represent loneliness,” you said, trying to add a bit of humour to the situation. She nodded and walked towards the chest, asking with a rise of her eyebrows if you were ready, you nodded. Soon the dark mist turned into the creature from your nightmares. You stared at it in shock, it looked as imposing and dangerous as it did in your dreams, and then it growled. 

From the back of the room, Remus gave a worried look to his friends. “How can she–“ started Sirius. 

“–be scared of Moony?” finished James with a frown. 

“We haven’t even had a full moon since she got to the castle. There’s no way she’s seen him.” Whispered Peter. 

You took a while to react, Seraphina was about to intervene but you raised your wand and whispered “Riddikulus!”. As you steadied your breaths the giant creature started becoming smaller, turning into a small little chihuahua dog, causing the entire class to burst into a laugh. 

Tom walked from the side and placed an arm over your shoulder, still laughing “That was brilliant (Y/L/N). Didn’t expect you to be scared of werewolves, tho.” 

You turned your head back to the place where the boggart had stood earlier “That- That was a werewolf? ” 

Tom nodded “We saw them last year on DADA, it's a short chapter, but that’s exactly what they look like.” 

You frowned, trying to acknowledge the information. You took a deep breath and went to take a seat, Lily walked towards you then, “You ok?” She asked. She already knew about Remus’ condition and wanted to ask if he was alright too, but he was already having a hushed talk with the boys. 

“That was it. ” You said, “It’s the creature from my nightmares!” 

Lily stayed next to you, rubbing circles on your back, taking quick glances at Remus every couple of minutes. So far, Remus and you had hit it off well, in fact, you’d gotten closer to the boys in a week than most people had in the 5 years they’d been together. 

Meanwhile, Remus’ head was in a whirlwind. While James, Peter and Sirius discussed how it was possible that your boggart had been Moony he couldn’t stop himself from going down a self-hatred hole. His new friend was scared of him because he was nothing more than the scary monster Witches told their children about at night. He was the boogie man of the wizarding world. 

When the class was over, Remus excused himself and went straight into the common room, you’d had enough time to relax along with Lily and decided to approach the boys, pulling out your quidditch gear from your backpack. You frowned when you noticed someone was missing “Where did Remus go? I thought he was going to come see the try-outs.” 

“He said he was feeling a bit shaken,” said Peter and started walking, being quick to change the topic “You feeling ready?” 

“I was born ready,” you answered cockily, tightening the ponytail Sirius had made for you earlier. As if cue he walked closer to you and grabbed a stray hair from the braid he’d done on the side of your head and set it back in its place. You were still getting used to Sirius’ touchiness, so you cleared your throat “James, you took my broom to the pitch earlier, right?” you asked, he nodded in response. 

As you arrived at the imposing field, you saw a long table placed close to the bleachers, Potter and Sirius walked towards the table taking a seat next to Marlene, and a tall curly-haired boy who you identified as the Gryffindor Head Boy. 

“Gather 'round everyone!” Shouted Marlene, all the kids that aspired made a line in front of the table. 

Both older and younger kids stood next to you, all looked eager to show off their flying skills to the Gryffindor team. 

James stood up, and everyone became quiet, he smiled “All right lads, first we’re testing speed.” He said with a smile “Grab your brooms, and do three laps around the castle.” 

You nodded, hovering over the air in a line, along with the rest of the students trying out. Marlene and Sirius went up in the air towards key spots before James gave you the sign to go. You took off and went straight towards the first mark line. James and Teddy had charmed golden light hoops in the air that you had to pass through if you wanted your laps to count. As you were flying you saw Sirius marking the speed of the players with a chronometer and Marlene making sure everyone was following the rules. You were the first one to get back to the pitch, followed by a brunette girl with an athletic build. 

“(Y/LN), Davis! Excellent job,” said Teddy when he saw the two of you arrive. 

The rest of the kids arrived one by one afterwards. James smiled, as Sirius and Teddy talked in the back, writing notes on the parchments. “Excellent job everyone, now it’s time for the next exercise. You will be playing a tag game.” He said as Teddy came forward and handed each of you a handkerchief. “The game is simple, you will place the handkerchief on your belt. And the rest of the players will try to take it from you. If you lose your handkerchief, you’re out. You will be evaluated on how much you last, and how many handkerchieves you get in the end. The court is the limit, like in a quidditch game. If you fly off limits, you’re out of the game. Any questions?” 

A smaller boy raised his hand “What if someone pushes us?” 

James nodded “Great question! Same rules as quidditch will apply for this game. Sirius and Marlene will make sure you’re not committing any fouls. Your game starts in 3…2…1… Go!” 

You were in the air in an instant. Far higher than everyone else, to get a good view of everyone. You spotted the boy who’d asked the question earlier and you dived straight towards him, passing by him, swiftly taking his handkerchief in your hands before he even noticed he was out, you took a break right before hitting the ground and continued speeding in the lower parts of the court, passing over the table where Teddy and James were sitting, causing some of his parchments to fly around, Sirius laughed when he noticed. 

“Show Off!” James shouted at you as he adjusted his glasses and rearranged the parchments with a wave of his wand. 

As you flew off, you turned back to give him a small wink and located your next target, a red-haired boy that looked about your age, you assumed he was a seventh year since you hadn’t seen him in your classes. You propelled yourself forward and shot up like an arrow in his direction, dodging the Davis girl as she attempted to claim your handkerchief. You took the redhead’s handkerchief in the blink of an eye and continued flying in circles like a hawk, placing yourself in the highest spot. 

You saw Davis turn to you, a smirk on her face as she shot upwards, thinking you hadn’t noticed. But you dived down straight towards her, like a game of chicken. Neither of you broke off the path until you were almost touching each other. Everyone was staring in awe and worry at the two when you turned your whole broom upside down, passing right beneath her and taking her handkerchief. She landed shortly after, still stunned by your manoeuvre, sitting along the Redheaded boy and establishing a chat. 

By now, most players had been taken out by the few that were left on the field. A younger-looking boy, who flew gracefully to avoid being taken out. A heavier girl with blonde hair that was looking around trying to find someone to catch and Tim, a boy from your class whom you weren’t particularly close with. You dove for him as the younger boy flew towards the blonde girl. You got Tim’s handkerchief, but the smaller younger boy had been faster to take the girl’s cloth and went straight for you, too fast for you to notice. Taking it seconds after you’d outed Tim. You saw him swiftly pass in front of you and waved with a smile and your handkerchief in his hand, before he flew towards James and the rest of the team, you followed behind him, shaking your head as you admired the boy’s skill. 

By the time you got down, everyone was taking their handkerchiefs out. You had taken a total of 4, and tied with Davis, who also had gotten four. The smaller boy, who’d taken yours, had 6 handkerchiefs, counting his own. 

“Gale! That was brilliant!” Marlene praised him. He smiled at that, meanwhile Teddy and James were busy talking to each other. 

After a couple of minutes James stepped forward “Now we’re testing for keepers’ abilities,” he said motioning towards the hoops, One by one you’ll take turns, Teddy, someone chosen randomly and I will be trying to score, while Mckinnon and Black will be doing their job and trying to throw you off your brooms with the bludgers. It’ll be like a quidditch game, except, you will only have yourself to defend the goals, and maybe a little help from beaters, who will also attempt to throw the bludgers at us… Questions?” No one said anything “Fantastic! (Y/LN), you’ll be scoring with me and Teddy in the first couple of rounds, Davis, you’re defending.” 

As you flew into the air you saw James throw the ball towards the left hoop, Davis saw it coming and he blocked it with his broom, you dived for the ball and once you had it you saw a bludger coming in your direction, you flew downwards and threw the ball to Teddy, who scored. You turned towards Sirius, who had batted the bludger towards you with a reproaching expression. “Sorry love,” he mouthed before flying towards the other bludger, shooting it at Davis, who managed to dodge it but left an opening for James, who had the quaffle, to score. By the end of his time, the girl had successfully blocked around 70% of the shots. 

Next up, was the redhead boy you’d taken the handkerchief from. You were still playing as a chaser, but Teddy was switched by Davis, so now the two of you were working as a team, and damn did you make a mean team. Davis passed the ball when she saw an opening and you scored several times, so did she. James was impressed by your coordination, especially after the chicken game you’d played in your brooms in the tag exercise. The redhead stopped around 50% of your shorts. 

With the next person they kept the same player set, and Tim managed to stop around 70% of your shots. The more you and Davis played together, the better the two became at guessing each other's shots. You already knew James well enough, so the three of you as chasers made an amazing team. Eventually, James switched with Teddy, and the three of you were almost unstoppable, leaving everyone with a 50% or less block rate. Gale, the boy who’d taken the handkerchief from you, was up, and he was good , he stopped almost 90% of the shots. When it was your turn, James made you switch places with Gale. 

He was a great chaser too, probably as good as he was as a keeper. Coordinating fantastically well with Teddy and Davis. As you stood your guard, you saw a bludger coming straight towards you, propelled by Marlene’s skillful shot, you instantly knew Gale would attempt to seize the opportunity and score, just like James had done earlier. So locked your gaze on him and as the bludger closed in on you, you swiftly manoeuvred your broom backwards, gaining the necessary traction to execute a handstand atop the handle, allowing the bludger to whizz through the narrow space between your head and the broom while your suspended legs propelled the quaffle aside, successfully blocking Gale's shot.  

The strain on your arms intensified, and gravity tugged at your legs, urging you downward. Acting swiftly, you yanked your broom, executing a seamless 180 until it was once again nestled between your legs. You heard some of the spectators from the bleachers gasp and cheer when they saw your manoeuvre. Shifting your focus back to the chasers, their impressed expressions fueled your determination. Gale, in particular, was so stunned he momentarily froze, until Teddy hurled the quaffle towards him jolting him back into action.

He grabbed the quaffle and attempted to score again, you blocked the shot with the back end of your broom. By the end of your time, you started getting a bit more tired, the sky was getting dark and the cold was kicking in. You started feeling sluggish, your hands were so cold you cursed yourself for not bringing gloves, and they hurt from gripping your broom so tightly. 

With all of the factors combined, you became slower, you had been flying for at least 4 hours at this point and you hadn’t flown that much since the past June or something. Eventually, the chasers managed to score like 3 times. One after you got a cramp on your left hand, and tried to shake it off, the other one when Teddy did a sick feint, making you think he would score and shoot the ball to Gale, who scored from the other side. In a real game, that goal would’ve been disqualified since the two of them were in the zone, but today, it counted because it was practice. The last one was because Sirius shot a bludger to your face and you ducked, flying towards the left hoop where Davis had shot the quaffle, but even as you stretched your arm, it didn’t reach on time. You blocked a few more shots made by the three of them and James called the end of your turn, letting everyone come down towards the grass. In the end, you had managed to block about 95% of the shots, according to the redhead boy, who was animatedly talking with Tim. 

You were so tired that you decided to lean onto your broom, using it as support as James spoke “All right, if you hear your name, please step forward,” he said before adjusting his glasses and grabbing onto a list “Tim Klum, Lucas Platanis, Anne Davis, Gale Thomas and (Y/N)(Y/LN).” You all took a step forward. “Tim, Lucas, you’re gonna be on reserve, mainly as chasers, but McKinnon and Black will train you as beaters in case any of them can’t make it to the match.” 

“Davis,” he said looking at the blonde girl “You’ll be a chaser.” She nodded and jumped excitedly. “And finally, Gale and (Y/N), you’re as good as each other, you were both excellent chasers and keepers, Gale you proved to have more resistance, especially towards the end when (Y/N) looked a lot more tired, but she had a better block to shot ratio than you did on the keeper test, which is why, she’ll get to decide which position she’d like to play.” 

You looked at him with your eyes opened wide, and he nodded in reassurance, a soft, ecourging smile accompanying his nod “I- um…” you stammered. “I think I’ll be a keeper?” 

James nodded “It’s settled then. You may go rest.” 

“Hey (Y/LN),” called Teddy “You’d make a really mean seeker, you know that right?” 

You smiled “I was a seeker in my older school,” you told him politely “And I can totally cover for James should he need it, but I’m pretty thrilled with the idea of being the keeper for the team. I like a good challenge.” 

“All the keepers from the other teams are boys,” he informed “You will need to perfect your resistance and be extremely careful when we play Slytherin, they won’t hold their shots just because you’re a girl.” 

You were taken aback “I sure hope they don’t!” You responded, “It’d be too boring.” 

He smiled at that and gave you a pat on the shoulder “I’m excited to have you on our team.” 

Once Teddy left you to go talk to Gale, Marlene approached you, with a huge grin on her face “You made it!” She said as she grabbed your shoulders, “And you’re so fast too!” She praised. 

“Thanks,” you said with a blush creeping up your cheeks, yeah, you may be able to be cocky on the playing field, but when someone you admire praises you like that, you will get shy, it’s how the world works. 

“Oh,” she grabbed onto your arm and linked it with hers “I’ll be so refreshing to have you on the team, although you’ll see Potter can sometimes get a bit in the control maniac mood, especially when we’re close to a game.” 

“Don’t talk shit about others behind their back, Marlene!” You hear James shout from the table, as he was packing up the stuff. 

“He heard that?” You asked with a frown. 

 She shook her head “He just knows me well.” 

As you continued walking Peter, Lily and Mary joined you, “It was brilliant, that backflip? I’d never seen someone do it in school!” Peter mused as he walked beside you. 

“I– thanks!” you mustered.

You frowned as you looked through the field “Remus didn’t make it?” You asked, Peter and Lily exchanged an awkward glance between the two of them “Is he still feeling off?”

Lily was quick to nod “he said it might have been the food.” 

You frowned, neither you, nor Remus had eaten that much, and you were pretty sure you’d both had only a couple of bites of the same Shepard pie, so whatever he had, wasn’t because of the food. But you decided to push the thought to the back of your mind. You arrived at the great hall shortly after, with Peter going over the highlights of the tryouts, praising you over and over, and mentioning how excited he was for the first game with the new line-up. 

When you arrived he started telling Beth about it, who hadn’t been able to go because she was still in detention with Professor Nightshade. “And then she did this freaking amazing handstand-backflip, dodging the bludger Marlene had shot at her, AND–“ he paused dramatically “blocking the god damned quaffle Gale had shot. It was brilliant Beth, you should’ve seen it. ” 

“Oi, wormy, stop talking about her like she’s a freaking superhero, it’s gonna get on her head,” said Sirius as he placed his arm over your shoulders “She’s already pretty haughty as it is.” 

You turned to him with a fake offended expression “Haughty? But look who’s talking?” 

“I’m not haughty!” 

“Sirius, you might be the cockiest person I know.” 

“Well, then, we’ll make quite a pair,” he said with an air of disdain. 

Once sitting at the dinner table you grabbed a couple of desserts and placed them on your plate. James raised his eyebrows as he motioned towards it “Only sweet stuff?” 

“I’m knackered,” you complained “I need this, urgently .” 

He raised his hands in surrender. “Just curious.” 

You nodded and gave a bite to your scone. Moaning from how freaking good it was. “The elves outdid themselves today.” 

“Or you’re just hungry,” said Sirius, you pulled another scone and shoved it in front of his face, and he gave it a small bite. He moaned too, taking the scone from your hands and eating it by himself. 

“You were saying?” He rolled his eyes with a little smile in response, nudging you with his shoulder. 

While that exchange was happening Mary leaned down to whisper something at Lily “They’re even feeding each other now!” She said in a half excited tone. 

Lily turned to her “Stop it! They’re gonna hear you.” 

Once you were done eating, and realised Remus hadn’t made it down for dinner,  you grabbed a couple of scones and toast. Since you didn’t know what Remus liked on his toast with, you grabbed all the spreads and put them on different sections of the toast, making a very funny-looking and colourful piece of bread. You placed a piece of bread on top and then put everything on a cloth napkin. 

James had gone to talk to Teddy and everyone was still eating, so you excused yourself, “Imma head back now,” you said to Lily, “kinda tired.” She nodded in acknowledgment and waved you goodbye. It took you a couple of minutes to get to the fat lady’s portrait but once there you whispered the passwords and walked into the common room. You spotted Remus sitting in front of the fireplace with a blanket over him, his legs bent and his arms wrapped around them, staring at the fire as if it were the most interesting thing.

“Hey!” You said with a smile “Lily told us you were feeling off.” 

He looked up at you, and nodded “How did you do?” 

You walked over, sitting almost beside him “I made it to the team,” you smiled “Peter can’t stop talking about it. I think I surprised him with a little trick I did.” 

“Congrats!” 

“I brought you this,” you said raising your hand with the napkin on top, “they said it might have been your stomach, some sweets could make you feel better.” 

He smiled “Thank you,” he said “I was a bit shaken by the boggart, I guess.” 

You nodded “I can relate.” He winced but you didn’t notice as you were looking at the fire. “The scones are out of this world,” you said as you handed the napkin over to him. He unwrapped the knot at the top and grabbed one of them, giving it a bite and smiling. 

“Mhmmm…” 

You smiled “Told ya,” you took a deep breath and let yourself fall on top of the rug. Placing your hands under your head for support. “Sometimes when I’m feeling bad, I like looking at the sky.” 

He chuckled, “I’m not such a big fan.” 

“You don’t like stargazing?” You asked, frowning and turning your head back to look at him. 

“No, I- do like stars,” he corrected “but I sometimes find all the other stuff, a little anxiety-inducing.”

“Only stars then,” you said, smiling as an idea popped in your head. You pulled your wand and started launching bright balls of light to the ceiling, recreating the night sky as best as you remembered. 

Eventually, he let himself fall on the rug beside you, “What are you doing?” He asked. 

You smiled mischievously and pointed at the candles that surrounded the room “ Nox ,” you whispered, suddenly the lights at the top of the ceiling were the only visible thing, making it look like a clear night sky “There you go, only stars .” 

Remus laughed, “You know, they’ve got a similar thing on the Ravenclaw tower.” 

“Do they? Is it as pretty as mine?” 

He laughed, “Theirs was cast by Rowena Ravenclaw.” 

You chuckled “Well, theirs might be prettier, but this one?” you pointed at the ceiling “ this one is ours .” You had replicated the night sky as best as you remembered, but you’d also added several stars that didn’t really exist, one for each one of your friends, and they were the brightest.

“That’s yours,” you said pointing at one of them “That one is Peter’s, next to James’, obviusly. Sirius is on Canis Major,” you said, drawing the lines in between the stars with your wand. “But he’s brighter than the rest,” you said, since you hadn’t added an extra star for him, just made his brighter. 

Remus chuckled “He is indeed.” There was a comfortable silence and Remus spoke again “And you?” 

“Me? I guess I didn’t make myself one.” 

He then grabbed his wand and threw a small but bright light towards the ceiling. 

“A comet?” You asked as you realised the trail of light trailing behind the star he’d created.  

“I’ve always found them intriguing. They appear suddenly, blazing across the sky,” He said, “kind of like the way you showed up, out of nowhere.” 

You laughed “Well, at least they’re pretty, even if fleeting.”

“But you won’t be,” he said pointing at the comet he’s created, “It’ll circle through the rest of the stars you made, forever.” 

You took a deep breath, realising how fast you’d been accepted by Hogwarts and your new friends. They had all been so kind, guiding and welcoming. Never leaving you out, even inviting you to clubs and other reunions they had created long ago. You knew the fact that you’d met Sirius before was of great help, but in this moment, you realised, that even without meeting him, Remus, and James and Lily and Marlene and everyone would’ve been just as welcoming. You remembered a line from a book you’d read long ago “ Profound connections can be formed in the briefest of encounters .” 

It happened with Sirius during your vacation, and now it was happening here in Hogwarts too. And you smiled, looking at the sky you’d created. Moving to England might have been one of the best things to ever happen to you. 

Chapter Text

Thanks to Peter’s retellings of the Gryffindor try-outs, you’d gone from the new girl in sixth year, to a little bit of a quidditch celebrity. Some smaller kids would go see the Quidditch Practice, and according to James, he’d even seen some of the players from other groups trying to get a glimpse at you when you were in the Great Hall. Trying to measure if the stories had actually been real or if it was all just school gossip. 

A smaller Gryffindor girl even approached you once, to ask if it was possible that you taught her how to do the triple backflip you’d done last Friday. You had to awkwardly explain to her that you hadn’t done a triple backflip, but that you would be happy to help her get more confident on her flight technique someday. She’d gone back to her friends with a huge smile, her friends squealing when she told them the news. 

“Peter made me into some kind of celebrity,” you complained to Mary as the two of you walked to the courtyard together. You had teamed up with her for your Herbology project, and you were on your way to the garden to find some dried leaves to turn into fertiliser. 

“No-uh,” she said, shaking her head “You did it yourself, love.”

“I didn’t go around telling everyone about the tryouts,” you responded as a pair of young boys passed the two of you, looking at you with wonder.

“But you slayed those tryouts by yourself! You did that backflip trick, not Peter. And he’s not the only one who’s been retelling the story all over the school. I heard Teddy tell his friends about you a couple of days ago in the common room.” 

“Well, either way, it’s hard to get used to all of this attention. In my older school, I wasn’t so popular.” 

“And you thought coming here and making friends with James Potter and Sirius Black of all people would let you blend into the background?!” 

“I kinda brought it onto myself, didn’t I?” 

“You’re gonna have to take that new-fund popularity and embrace it.” She said “Or you can just do whatever Remus does, he can somehow be a hot shot and still blend in the back when he wants to.” 

You raised your eyebrows, it was true , even when he was with the boys all the time, he tended to stay in his own little friend group rather than talking to everyone the same way Sirius and James did. 

“I’ll ask him sometime…” you said as you crossed the gates with Mary. Then leaned onto her, “Isn’t that Holden Crawford? Next to Alexander Wood?” 

She nodded, “you should invite them now that they’re together.” 

“Yup,” you said, giving her a small pat on the back and walking towards the Hufflepuff head boy. 

“Hey Alex,” you said with a smile. 

He turned to you, and smiled when he identified you “Gryffindor, aye?” He pointed at your tie. 

You nodded “I guess so,” you replied “I wanted to thank you for being so nice to me on my first day.” 

Holden, who stood next to him, raised one of his eyebrows “Ahh.. so you must be the infamous (Y/N) everyone’s been talking about.” 

“Infamous? Hope not!” You teased with a smile and handed him your hand to shake “(Y/N)(Y/LN), nice to meet you.” 

“Holden Crawford,” he replied, shaking your hand. 

“The Ravenclaw… seeker ?” You asked with a bit of a smile. He raised his eyebrows in response “James told me all about the other teams. Gotta know who you’re going up against.” 

“And… you’ve done your homework.” You nodded. 

“Anyway, I gotta go…” you said pointing at Mary, and after a couple of steps, you turned back to them “Actually boys–“ you said walking back towards them “–this Friday the Gryffindor Tower is having a party. I’m helping plan it. It’s for Marlene’s birthday.” 

“Your beater…” acknowledged Holden. 

You nodded eagerly, Holden knew Marlene , that was perfect. “Yeah exactly! Anyway, I’m in the planning committee along with Mary over there,” you pointed at your friend “and I think it would be great to have you guys there. You know the more the merrier,” you said that last bit with a smile.

“I’ll come if you come,” Holden said to Alex. Who seemed to be thinking about it. 

“Come on,” you animated him. “It’ll be super fun, I promise! I’ll help pick the music out.” 

Alex finally nodded “Ok, we’ll see you there.” 

“Brilliant! 8 PM, Gryffindor Tower. Don’t miss it!” You chimed “Anyway, I am in the middle of picking up some dried leaves for herbology so I’ll leave you boys to your things,” You said before walking back to Mary. 

“So...?”

“They’re coming,” you said with a proud smile. “And Holden knows Marlene. As in, he instantly identified her as Gryffindor’s beater.”  

“Oh, she’s so gonna shit herself when she sees him at her party.” 

You nodded and the two of you walked inside the small green area to pick out some dried leaves, levitating them from their place on the floor and placing them on the satchel Mary had brought. You then walked together to the greenhouses and started the spell that would turn the leaves into a very potent fertiliser, even if it took some time. Professor Folly would evaluate you based on how efficient the fertiliser was in the end. And you’d found the recipe on an old book in the library, that promised to both potentiate the growth of plants and maintain them. 

September 10th, 1976

When the day of the party arrived, the air buzzed with anticipation. You were in the Gryffindor tower, along with Remus and Beth, attempting to decorate the area. Beth had asked her mom to send some streamers and she was magically sticking them all over the ceiling. You sat on one of the coaches and used your wand to blow some balloons that she’d also gotten from her mom. You had the idea to fill some of the balloons with glitter, and you’d blow them up when she arrived, leaving a trail of sparkly glitter all over her, and everyone else. 

“We’ll be finding glitter in our dreams after today,” said Remus as he sat down next to you with a box of tapes. You finished timing one of the balloons and leaned over the box to take a look at the stuff he had. Led Zeppelin, Bowie, The Clash, Queen, Abba, they had it all. 

“What will you choose?” You asked him, he pulled out a cassette with Sirius’s elegant handwriting and handed it over to you. “Marauder’s mix tape?” You asked. 

“It’s what we call ourselves,” he said “Sirius invented it back in the third year, it’s still a thing now.” 

“Fitting,” you said with a smile. And turned the tape to take a look at the songs. Smiling when you saw Rebel Rebel in the list. “

“He made this one over the summer,” he said pointing at the cassette, “and he brought a music player too,” he stood up “I’m going to go get it now, wanna help?” 

You nodded and stood up, walking behind him towards the boys’ dorm. “Excuse the mess,” said Remus as he let you into their room. He was being silly, there wasn’t much of a mess. Maybe some candy packaging on the floor and one of the beds wasn’t done. You saw a Queen poster on top of said bed. 

“Lemme guess,” you said pointing at the bed “That’s Sirius’.” 

Remus nodded “It was an easy guess.” 

You took that as a challenge and started scanning the rest of the beds, the one to the left of Sirius’ was well done, and it had a hard case for glasses on the nightstand, you pointed at it “James’” Remus nodded, with his eyebrows raised. You kept looking. Now there was a bed lousily made and one that was neatly done. The lousy bed had some parchments on top, along with a bag of chips. The other bed had a nightstand with some books, and a sweater folded over near the pillow, very neatly placed as well. You pointed at the one with chips “Peter’s, and the neatest one is yours, obviously.”

“Almost perfect, I’m next to Pads.” 

“But the glasses case?” You asked confused. 

“They’re for reading, my eyes get tired at night.” He then walked towards a dresser “Mind giving me a hand?” He asked, you nodded and walked toward it. It looked slightly heavy, but you placed your hands on the other side, ready to help him pull “Just make sure nothing from the top falls, m’kay?” He then pushed the dresser, with an ease that had you stunned. Maybe it just looked heavy. Behind the dresser, there was a small hole in the wall, filled with all sorts of things. From hand-rolled cigarettes, to prank supplies, and scary-looking vials with labels on them. 

“You’ve got a secret stash?!” You said surprised, kneeling down to look at it better “How? Does my room have one too?” 

“James blew up the wall while practising bombarda in 4th,” Remus explained “We didn’t want anyone to find out so we rearranged the furniture to hide it. Sirius figured it’d be a good place to hide stuff.” 

“Do you mind?” You asked, nodding towards the little hole, he shook his head and you grabbed one of the bottles “Shrinking solution?”

“We brewed it last year, Prongs and I stole it from Slughorn’s office.”

You grabbed another one “And…” you looked at the label “Vanishing Solution.” 

“Sometimes you gotta get rid of the evidence.” You laughed, Moving some things around, you found some dungbombs, neatly stacked. And behind them found a box of Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder. “Oh, and you’ve got some good stuff in there too,” you said as you grabbed a Magazine with a very dotted young woman –with nothing to cover her chest–, she had a seductive stare and blew kisses at you. 

Remus snatched it from your hands “Sirius must’ve put it there,” He said all too quickly, throwing the magazine under a bed.  

“Hey! I don’t judge,” you said, raising your eyebrows “It’s a boys’ secret stash after all.” 

“But I don’t–“ 

“–you don’t need to excuse yourself, Remus.” You said and pointed at the back “That’s it, isn’t it? the cassette player?” 

Remus nodded and pulled it out, dusting it off “We left it here all summer.” You helped him put all the things back in their place. Except for the dirty magazine that was still under the bed somewhere, and stood up, going back to the side of the dresser to push it back to its place. 

You tried to push it before he grabbed onto the side. But it was impossible, the dresser was heavy. At least for you, for Remus, who pulled it with ease back onto its place, it seemed like lifting a feather. You stared at him as he turned to grab the cassette player, he was tall, the tallest of the group, and he did have nice broad shoulders. Again, the sexy pirate analogy came to mind, but he didn’t seem particularly strong. He didn’t have thick muscles like James or Teddy. Which completely clashed with what you’d just seen him do. You shoved all those inconsistencies to the back of your mind and followed him towards the door. 

The two of you walked downstairs again, finding Beth still working on the streamers, as Remus went to set the cassette player on the farthest section of the recorder you went back to your balloons, levitating those that were ready all over the common room. As you were doing, you saw Lily and Mary arrive, they both carried snacks and other food things in their hands. Mary had a huge bowl and she placed it on the table Lily was arranging it, and she set herself to prepare a punch. “It’s Mary’s signature punch,” explained Lily “She makes it for every party, everyone loves it.” 

“I’m looking forward to trying it,” you said with a smile. When you were done with the balloons you rushed towards Lily and helped her finish the refreshments area.  

Sirius and James arrived later. Carrying several bottles in their hands. “Are you sure those are safe?” Lily asked, frowning at the bottles.

“Yes Lils,” said Sirius rather exasperated and turned one of the bottles around for her to see the label was still on “They were purchased in Hogsmeade.” 

“By who did you say?” 

Sirius smiled, “Nice try Evans, it’s still top secret.” 

“When is Marlene getting here?” You asked as you helped James with some of the bottles. 

“Tom is distracting her,” said Beth from somewhere. “She’ll be here at around 8:30.” 

“Well then, everything looks ready,” Sirius said with a clap of his hands “Imma go put on some nicer garments.” 

James, who was still wearing some Quidditch gear from practice, also left the room. You’d been allowed to skip after saying you felt bad, that way James entertained Marlene and you could focus on decorating the common room. 

Remus was already wearing casual clothes, while Lily, Mary and yourself went up to change. 

Once in party clothes, with glitter all over your eyes –that Mary had insisted you had to put on–, you went back down, finding some people were already making it to the party. You identified a couple of kids from your classes that were from other houses. Holden and Alexander were both already in the party too, which made you smile, nudging Beth so she was aware too. Then she smiled wickedly and leaned into you “I’ll go make some arrangements for later,” she said before disappearing in the swarm of people.  

“What’s she up to?” Asked Sirius, who somehow had ended up beside you. 

You shrugged in response “I wish I knew,” you said and saw him drinking from a black mug. “What you drinkin’?”

He licked his lips “Mhm.. this?” He asked, raising his cup “Wanna try?” 

You raised an eyebrow and grabbed for the mug, feeling his cold rings as your fingers brushed over him to take a hold of the mug, and pulled the mug up to your lips. You winced once you’d taken a sip, you were not expecting for the liquid to be straight-up iced vodka.

“You didn’t even try to water it down,” you complained, handing the mug back to him. 

He just shrugged “I like it, cools your throat down.” 

You rolled your eyes and pushed him gently “At least put some juice on it or something.” 

“It’s the expensive stuff, you’re not meant to water it down.” 

You rolled your eyes at his remark when Mary came out of nowhere and pulled your arm "Sorry Sirius, I’m taking her with me,"

You raised your eyebrows at that but followed alongside Mary, "What’s wrong?" You asked her preoccupied. She looked like she’d been running and had a blush on her cheeks, well perhaps running wasn’t it , you thought as you noticed her slightly dishevelled stance. 

"Nothin’," she responded casually, "I brought you here because I wanted to introduce you to someone," she pulled you into a corner "he was at the bleachers when you were on tryouts. I got good word he’s been wanting to meet you ever since."

Your eyebrow rose, yes the try-outs had been the talk of the castle for the past week, but someone wanting to befriend you after it… perhaps it wasn’t so incredible "Who is it?" you asked.

You felt a looming presence from behind and the two of you turned around, a very tall boy, probably as tall as Remus, was there, with a huge smile on his lips "(Y/N), this is Minho Yun, Minho this is (Y/N)."

You smiled and held your hand out to shake his, "Nice to meet you.”

He shook your hand “Nice to meet you too.” 

He started to talk again but Tom came rushing through the door like a madman “Everyone HIDE!” He roared as he jumped behind one of the coaches. No one moved, he stood up again “Marlene’s coming you whackheads, find a freaking hiding spot!”

“Shit,” you said before running towards a small closet-like spot hidden behind one of the wall rugs you’d found a couple of nights before after your quill sharpener fell out of your hands. But once inside you found yourself sharing the spot with someone else. “Puppy?” You asked when you smelt the same cologne you’d felt before. 

“(Y/N)?” He asked “What are you doing here? This is my spot!” He whispered-yelled. 

“Well then, move over so the two of us can fit comfortably,” you retorted, he adjusted himself a little, and you managed to fully enter the small space “Shouldn’t be long.” 

You could feel his hot minty breath near your forehead “So… how’s your potions essay going? Remus a good partner?” 

You nodded, realising later he probably couldn’t see you. “Great, he’s brilliant, I don’t regret switching with James.”

“You switched with James?” He asked shrugging “But Slughorn said–” 

“–We switched before,” you explained. “didn’t make a fuss about it like you. Sorry, you got paired with Slime-head tho. How’s it going?” 

“We split the tasks,” he sighed. “That way we don’t have to see each other more than necessary.”

“And quidditch practice today?” You asked. 

“Oh good, we missed you though.” 

You nodded again, perking your ears to see if Marlene had already arrived. Nothing . “Do you mind if I ask you why they call you Pads?” 

“Short for Padfoot.” 

You raised your eyebrows, looking up at him with “Yeah, I remember that was your nickname, but why?” 

“Sort of an inside joke, can’t really tell you without the boys all agreeing on it.” 

“Oh,” you said with a nod, turning your head back to the door, “must have to do with everyone’s nicknames then.” He nodded. You took a deep breath. You did not expect Marlene to take so long to arrive. “Do you still have the–?” 

“–here,” he said, handing over his mug, "you took a sip, and then another. 

You gave him back his mug and exhaled “Sorry to take your spot.” 

He shrugged, you did not see it, but you felt him, that’s how close you were standing “No problem,” he said honestly “I don’t mind you being all over me,” he teased. 

“Sirius!” You reprimanded, he chuckled. 

“But, in all honesty, love, I’m really happy that you came to Hogwarts.” 

You looked up at him again “I’m really happy I came too. You weren’t joking when you told me how amazing your friends were.” 

He bit his lips as he smiled, god he was stunning, even in the dark “They are, aren’t they?” 

And then you heard the portrait door open, giving Sirius a complicit look as the two of you jumped out of the hideout, alongside everyone else, Marlene was taken aback by seeing so many people “One… Two… Three!” You counted. 

“Happy Birthday Marlene,” everyone screamed, you waved your wand and half of the balloons blew up, sprinkling glitter over every single person in the room. You smiled when you realised the stunning shower of glitter. Some of it fell over Sirius's hair, he shook it off, like a dog would, causing more to drop over you. You closed your eyes tightly and nudged him “Sirius! It’s gonna get on someone’s eyes.” 

He gave you a look “Remind me, love. Whose brilliant idea was to have glitter shower over every single one of us?” 

You averted your gaze, annoyed, and nodded “Just be careful!” You said before running towards Marlene, holding her gift in your hands. You’d gotten her a Holyhead Harpies jersey, you remembered she’d mentioned it being her favourite before. 

When she looked at you, all filled with glitter she pointed an accusing finger “You weren’t sick!” You shook your head with a smile. 

Remus, who had walked closer to the two of you, smiled and placed a hand over your shoulder “She helped with the decorations.” 

“And Potter just… let it happen?” She asked. 

“He didn’t have much of a choice,” you said with a half smile “Happy Birthday Mars! I hope you have lots of fun!” 

Both you and Remus hugged Marlene and then retired to allow the people who were crowding her to give her their own hugs and gifts. You walked towards a less crowded area alongside the boy, and when you turned to him, you realised he had a piece of glitter over his lash, so you placed a hand over his shoulder, “something wrong love?”

You shook your head, “Lean down a little, yeah? You’ve got some glitter over your lash…” he complied and bend his knees until he was about your height, you carefully grabbed his head with one hand, to steady him, and used your other hand to take a piece of glitter away from it, looking at Remus so close, you realised how pretty he really was, he had beautiful chocolate eyes, with golden sparkles, that looked absolutely surreal, inhuman almost. He wasn’t pretty like Sirius who had a very ethereal, fae-like look to him, he had a more haunting and enigmatic look. But after a second, he gave you a questioning look, as if to ask if you were done, you nodded and pried your hands off him with an awkward smile “It’s done!” 

“Thanks.” 

After that some girl took Remus away from you and you went to sit alongside Lily, who was talking to Peter. 

“I think we succeeded,” you said sitting next to Lily, who scooted over to give you some space. 

“Totally!” She smiled, “Peter said he’ll bring the cake at 10:00 pm,” 

You leaned over to look at your friend “Need any help with that Pete?” 

He shook his head, “This… This 5th-year girl will help me, actually.” Both you and Lily rose your eyebrows. 

“Oh… Our Pete’s got a date…” you teased. 

He instantly went red “It’s not a date…” 

Now you shared a look with the redhead “Want some advice?” She asked, placing a hand over his forearm. 

“No… don’t worry about it,” he said, almost thinking if he should ask “We’ve been talking a bit, that’s all.” 

“That’s how it starts,” you said. 

Lily leaned back on the couch “Ah… young love, how beautiful it is.”

You laughed “What are you, 80?” You teased, “What about your young love?” 

“I don’t have any young love,” she said, standing up straight and turning towards you. 

“Yeah sure,” you scoffed. “There isn’t a messy hair, hazel-eyed boy pining for you at all.” 

Lily went red now “(Y/N),” she said, dragging out your name “We don’t talk about that!”

“But we should,” you told her, “don’t you like him back? He’s handsome! Not my type of handsome but handsome nonetheless.” 

“Oh yeah,” she teased “I know your type of handsome all right,” she said, eyeing Sirius, who was talking to Remus.

“Evans! Don’t you dare change the subject!”

She laughed at that “He’s just so… sometimes he can be exasperating!” 

You laughed, in the short time you’d known James Potter, sometimes might have been an understatement. He had his mind pretty much set most of the time, he was thick-headed and maybe a little unhinged, but he was kind, and so full of love for his friends it was hard not to imagine him making a lovely couple with Lily. 

“Hm… maybe he can make up for his bad traits in another way, ” you suggested, the other way implicit in the tone you used, and she right up hit you with one of the pillows. 

“All right guys!” You heard Beth shout as she came down with a box in her hands “It’s playtime!” 

“ Oh no ,” you heard Lily whisper.

Beth finally reached the bottom of the stairs and placed the heavy box on a long table that you set out with some drinks “It’s time to play potion pong.” 

“Potion Pong?” You asked Lily, who looked distressed. 

“All right, gather up, we’re making two teams of four people “Marlene Love, you’re the birthday girl, so you’re playing yes or yes.” She then turned to you “(Y/N), this is your first time in a Gryffindor Party, so you’re also in. I’m playing duh, and Evans,” she said to Lily “You playing today, yeah?” 

“Last time I got a vomiting potion!” She complained. 

“No vomiting potions this time, don’t worry about it.” Beth said dismissively “Potter, you’re in, cause you let lovely (Y/N) out of practice to help with decorations, you, Ravenclaw boy ,” she said as if she wasn’t well aware that Ravenclaw boy was Holden Crawford, Marlene’s crush “You’re playing too!” She looked around then, “Minho? Where you at? You said you wanted to play last time in the first round, yeah?” She asked out to everyone “He actually holds the resistance of potion pong title,” she explained, “and… Sirius? Wanna play?” She asked last. Sirius nodded, and you all gathered around the table. Beth divided everyone into two teams, She, Marlene, Holden and James, against Minho, Sirius, Lily and you. 

“All right, the rules!” She said as she started setting the table, bringing lots of vials with different colour liquids out of the box, opening and placing them in a triangle position in front of each side of the table “Simple game, each turn a player gets a ping pong ball, and you have to try and make it enter one of the vials with potions by bouncing it on the table at least once. If it goes in, someone from the other team has to drink the potion it fell on.” 

“What kind of potions–˝ you started to ask.

“–Well if I tell you then where’s the fun?” She said placing her hands over her hips in a reproaching manner “The team that drinks all the potions first loses. If a player is disabled, for whatever reason it might be, he still has to take a shoot in his or her turn. There’s no skipping players, and no cheating, so hand over your wands.” Everyone complied with her demand and she placed them all in a jar on the mantel. “Excellent, if we don’t have any questions, let’s get started.” She pulled out something from her pocket and opened her hand in front of everyone “These are magic beans, each of you gets one of them, you can take it if you can’t stand the effects of the potion, but only after you’ve spent three turns with the effect on you. And… you only get one,” she said with a wicked smile “so if you use it up with a potion that’s not that bad, then you’re gonna have to suck it up and deal with the next potions by yourself, sorry.” 

“And how did she come up with the game?” You whisper-asked to Lily. 

“Beth is pretty well known for her party games,” she responded, leaning into you “and she has the resources to make them all happen too.” 

Everyone walked closer to the table and picked a bean from her hand. Since you didn’t have where to put it, you handed it over to Sirius “Mind keeping this for me?” 

He nodded and placed it in his pocket. Beth spoke then “All right! Witches, wizards, It’s time to start. Mars, it’s your birthday, which means you shoot first.” 

Marlene nodded and grabbed the pig pong ball, shooting it towards the table and having it bounce very close to one of the vials, but failing her shot in the end. 

“It’s ok Mars, not everyone gets it in the first round,” Beth reassured her.

Minho took the ball next, bouncing it and shooting straight into a cup with light blue liquid. He smiled cockily while everyone who was watching cheered. “It’s gonna be you, love,” he said pointing at Beth “It’s only fair since you brought the game.” 

Beth shook her head with a bit of a smile and gulped the mixture down in one go. “Hic–“ she started, “I think it’s –Hic.” 

“Hiccup haze,” you concluded. 

James raised an eyebrow at you and mouthed “How do you know that?” 

“I used it on a teacher I disliked once,” you said with a shrug. 

Lily looked at you with her eyes open wide and her hands covering her mouth “Please remind me not to make you my enemy!” She said and you laughed. 

It was now James’ turn. He grabbed the ball and had it bounce against the table twice before it landed right on a cup, he made a small victory dance and looked straight at you, “Bottoms up, darling.” 

You rolled your eyes but picked up the pink-coloured cup from the table and took the potion in one go. Soon enough all the content in your mouth was turned into jelly, along with the liquid of the potion, “Uggh, I hathe thees slimy feelin’. ”  

Everyone laughed, it was your turn now, so you bounced the ball on the table and somehow scored. “It's payback mopherfugher!” You said pointing at James, who took in the yellow potion in one gulp.

Out of literally nowhere, James Potter turned into a cow. You laughed historically as you heard him Mo, almost choking with your jelly mouth. “Thers a coow pothion?” You asked in between laughter.  

Everyone in the room was laughing along, except for Lily next to you who looked mortified and James –the cow– who just mooed pathetically. And he would have to stay like that for a while. 

Beth was next, she didn’t score. Sirius followed, and he didn’t score either. Marlene’s turn came again and he finally scored, having Minho take the potion this time. He got a potion that made his voice come out in a series of high-pitched squeaks and chirps, like a bird. You giggled along with everyone. 

Sirius shot next and scored, having Holden take the potion, he drank the greenish liquid and shrugged, shaing his head as if nothing had happened. But when he opened his mouth a bubble floated from it, popping after it was just above everyone's head “I don’t think It had any effect,” the bubble said, finally letting Holden’s voice out. Everyone laughed. Then it was James’ turn. Beth moved a little to let the cow close to the table and placed the ball in its mouth. He let it go and it rolled pathetically on the table.

You pulled a face to him and grabbed the ball “Zorthy djaaames!” You said with a shrug and shot. You didn’t score. Beth took the ball and shot herself this time, scoring.

“You’ve-hic– been safe so far Lils –hic,” he said “Go –hic– ahead love!” 

Lily looked at the yellow potion with a frown and reluctantly drank it. Then she started staggering, as if drunk “Everything’s spinning,” she complained, so you walked towards her to hold her. Maintaining her steady. She grabbed the ping pong ball and somehow scored, this time Marlene drank the potion and she started glowing, literally glowing, shining like a lightbulb. 

A bubble came out of Holden’s mouth and popped “Wow Marlene! You really are the star of the party!” You laughed, your mouth was finally getting back to normal, and James turned human again, ending up sitting on the floor and mooing as he turned human. 

He quickly stood up, stretching slightly before he grabbed the ball and shot, having it go straight into one of the cups, he then looked at Sirius “You haven’t taken anything, have you Pads?” You exhaled, thinking he would target you after you made him turn into a cow. 

Sirius looked to the side but grabbed the vial with the black draught, drinking It in one sip. His hair suddenly turned red. He looked at James with an extremely distressed face “What have you done to me Prongs? You ruined my hair!” 

Everyone stared quietly and you handed the ping pong ball to Minho, who probably tried to say thanks but chirped instead. He shot and missed. Beth took the ball next, and shot, right into a purple draught. He gave you a look. “How’s the jelly mouth love?” 

“Almoth gone.” 

“All right, go ahead then.” 

You grabbed the mysterious looking potion and downed it in one go. Your face instantly lit up. giggle brew, you thought as a giggle escaped your mouth, you’d felt this before . A ticklish sensation spread all over your body, which caused another giggle to come out. Lily, who was still dizzy, turned to you with concern. 

But her concerned face looked so hilariously amusing, that it caused you to burst into fits of giggles, too difficult to contain. Then, then you saw Sirius, the beautiful Sirius Black with his hair bright red, oh he’d hate it if someone took a picture. Someone should take a picture, you thought and looked around trying to find someone who would. And there you saw it, Alex, your Hufflepuff friend, had a Polaroid in his hands. So you turned to him with a smile and shouted “A picture–“ you said, bursting into a breathy laugh in the end “Take a picture Alex,” you said, turning to him, holding Lily and having Sirius and Minho turn to the camera. By the time Alex clicked on the camera button to snap the shot, you had managed to place Sirius’ arms over yours and Minho’s shoulders, your cheeks flushed with joy, and eyes sparkling with mirth. 

When Alex handed you the picture you laughed again, you felt so much joy. The picture was absolutely hilarious and you laughed again as you looked at it. “Who’s turn is it now?” Asked James. Sirius grabbed the ball from your cup and took a shot, it landed right on a cup, splashing the two other cups left on his table, and you giggled again, finding it amusing. 

“Who’s drinking it?” Asked Minho, he’d finally gotten his voice back, you giggled remembering the squeaks and chirps. 

Beth did, and suddenly she was in slow motion, every movement seemed like it’d been slowed down, which only made you laugh even further. She took a shot and failed. Minho took the next shot and it landed on one of their cups. Marlene drank it and her tongue suddenly transformed into that of a snake. Hissing as she tried to speak. You tried not to laugh, you really did, it was her birthday after all, but you couldn’t suppress the wave of amusement that’d hit you and bursted into laughter again. 

Lily shot and missed. Beth shot, in slow motion, and it hit right on the cup. You laughed again. Minho downed it since he was the only one not affected by a potion at the moment. Well, Sirius only had colourful hair, but he was making a drama about it. Minho started tap dancing the moment he took the drink and you giggled yet again. 

Eventually, it was your turn again, and you landed the shot, effectively finishing the game. Beth walked towards you and placed a potion-shaped pin on your shirt. It said “Potion Master,” you giggled as you imagined yourself in Slughorn’s clothes, you couldn’t help it, all you felt was a state of sheer merriment and delight. 

Everyone started to take the beans Beth had given them at the beginning. Lily went straight to sit down to try and get a sense of stability and Sirius’ hair turned back to normal. You got close to him and grabbed a strand. “It was cute in red too.” 

He rose an eyebrow cockily, of course he would “Was it?” 

“Yeah,” you said in between breathy laughs. 

He grabbed your jaw in between his hands, you giggled when you felt his cold rings against your skin. “Open your mouth,” he ordered. 

“Kinky!” you responded with a smile, but complied “AAAhhh.” 

He instantly put the bean inside. You munched on it. Finally coming down from the high the potion had you in. 

Then Sirius leaned closer, still with his hand on your cheeks “Now love, do you still want me to be kinky?” 

You playfully pushed him back and used your finger to warn him “Don’t play games with me Black,” you said before walking towards Lily on the couch. 

When you were finally sitting down you saw Peter coming in through the portrait with a huge cake in his hands. A girl making sure he didn’t trip accompanied him. 

You smiled and started singing loudly “Happy birthday to you…” 

Everyone started to sing along “Happy Birthday to you… Happy Birthday dear Marlene, Happy birthday to you…” Marlene hadn’t taken her bean, so she was still glowing like a fairy as she blew on the candles with everyone around her, you noticed a flash from the camera and once everyone was back in their seats as Peter and Remus helped cut the cake, you took the photo they’d taken during potion pong again. 

You stared at it for a while, you looked so bloody happy it was insane “Did you like it?” Alex asked, approaching you. 

“I absolutely love it!” You told him with a smile “ You can really tell I’m drinking giggle brew tho.” 

He frowned, “I don’t think so,” he said, pulling out another picture from his pocket and handing it over. In this picture, you weren’t holding Lily yet, James was a cow and Sirius’ hair was black. Definitely, before you took the potion, but your smile , it was just as bright as in the other picture. You blinked a couple of times, looking at the picture and back at Alex “I regretted not being chosen to play,” he told you “You guys were having so much fun.” 

“I’ll make sure Beth picks you next time. Can I keep this one too?” 

“Hold up,” he said, grabbing it from your hands “ Gemino, ” he whispered, the picture split in two, creating identical copies. “I need to keep them for the yearbook.” He explained. 

But you looked at him surprised. “You just… you just used a Gemino Curse.” 

He smiled proudly, “You’ll see it in charms on 7th, It’s sooo useful.” 

“I bet! Is it too hard? Could you teach me now?” 

He seemed to think about it for a minute and nodded. Eventually, Mary came looking for you and dragged you to the table to get some more pictures taken along with the rest of the Gryffindor gang. 

Once the party was over, most people were gone except a few of the older kids. That’s when Beth came down with another small box in her hands. “It’s time for the last game of the night,” she said with a smirk and pulled out a potion from the box. 

“Is that… Veritaserum?” Asked Lily. 

Beth nodded “Welcome to truth or dare, where absolutely no one can lie.” 

Your draw dropped in shock “For real?” You asked, and Beth nodded. 

“Come on, we’ll sit in a circle.” she said with a smile “Those brave enough, of course.” 

“HOLD UP! What kind of dares?” You asked. 

Lily turned to you. “Any kind of dare. Last time I had to levitate every single one of the objects in the room.” 

“Yeah, this time might be a bit different. See everyone will write 3 dares and 3 questions on a piece of paper. And we’ll place them in these bowls,” she lifted a blue and a red bowl. “Then each turn you’ll choose truth or dare and pick one.” 

“Aha,” you said and walked towards her “What’s your plan?” You mouthed. 

“I’m playing matchmaker today,” she replied mischievously and nodded towards Marlene and Holden who were talking in the corner. 

“I see,” you said with a smile, you decided you’d become her accomplice, making sure all the dares and questions you wrote were relatively romantic. Little did you know your matchmaking would bite you in the back. “Who else is playing?” You asked.

“I’m in,” said Lily walking to fill up some papers “Mary, Marlene?” 

“We’re coming,” said Mary. Holden stayed by Marlene’s side and took some paper to fill out as well. 

“I wouldn’t miss a good truth or dare,” said Sirius, pulling Remus along with him. 

James and Peter joined you next, and eventually around 12 people had gathered along, all sitting in a circle. You sat right in between Lily and Sirius. Beth grabbed a glass and poured all the veritaserum inside, taking a sip and handing it over to the person next to her so they could do the same. Once everyone had taken a sip, the game started.

“Marlene, you’re the birthday girl, which means you go first,” she said looking straight at your friend, “truth or dare?” 

Marlene, who was sitting in between James and Holden responded “Truth,” and then went to grab a paper from the red bowl “It says, Which Deathly Hallow would you choose if given the chance: the Elder Wand, the Resurrection Stone, or the Invisibility Cloak?” She seemed to think about it for a minute. “Easy, all the other brothers died, I’ll take the invisibility cloak.” She turned to her right “Holden, truth or dare?” 

“Dare,” he said and grabbed a paper “Take a sip from the mystery potion left over from Potion Pong… How do I find that?” 

“Oh,” said Beth pulling something out of her pockets “Here it is,” she handed it over with a smile. 

Holden grabbed it and did what the potion told him “I think it did nothing,” he said, but then Marlene accidentally brushed her arm on his and he started laughing “Oh, stop, please! No tickles!” 

Everyone looked at him confused and once he finally stopped laughing Beth spoke “Oh, Maybe it was Ticklemania. ” She then turned to Tom, who sat next to Holden “Truth or dare?” 

“Dare,” he responded and grabbed a piece of paper “Make a floating sculpture with items around the room, All right then, not that hard,” he said and started lifting random objects until he made a floating dolphin. “Your turn Beth.” 

She went ahead and grabbed a dare “Take off a piece of clothing and switch it with the player next to you.” She nodded and took off her scarf, switching it with Lily’s headband.

Lily grabbed a dare “Kiss the player to your right –on the mouth– for 3 seconds.” She then turned to you “To kiss… to kiss her?” She asked, shocked. 

Karma , you thought, you’d written that one. But if you called this one kiss off then all dares could be called off and your matchmaking would fail. So in order to succeed in this ordeal, you would have to kiss Lily. Not that you minded too much, Lily was very pretty, and she always smelled really nice too. 

“It’s what the dare says.” 

She exhaled but nodded “Ok,” she turned to you “Are you sure you’re ok with it?” 

You nodded and you both leaned in, locking lips together. It was over quite fast and all you could think of after, to lighten the mood, was to joke about it “Great kisser Evans.” 

She scoffed and lightly hit you in the arm “And you expected me to be bad? I’m offended!” You both laughed along after that. But it was your turn now. 

Everyone seemed to be avoiding truth so far, and to be honest you also wanted to avoid it, especially since you’d written some of these questions and you definitely did not want to respond them. So you went for a dare. “Perform a spell or charm that can entertain the other players in the room.” You nodded and used a spell to puncture the balloons, causing them all to make a funny sound as they blew all over the room, you leaned down when one of them passed over your head. You smiled when it was done and made a bit of a bow before sitting back down. 

“Sirius, Truth or dare?” 

“Truth?” He said before grabbing one of the papers “Have you ever used magic for personal gain or to break the rules at Hogwarts? If so, explain the situation.” He laughed right after reading “Which one do I even say?” 

“Oh, tell them about the clock,” said Peter. 

“No, tell them about the time you got Peeves to help on a prank.” 

“Yeah guys, go ahead please, continue telling everyone about ALL the pranks we DIDN’T get caught doing. What could go wrong?” Remus said exasperated. 

“I know,” said Sirius “One time, we created a rainy cloud and enchanted it to follow around some disagreeable Slytherin students.” 

Minho, the only Slytherin in the room, laughed first “Oh! That explains so much. Severus was so pissed that day, but he had no way of proving it was you.” 

Sirius nodded, surprisingly, even if Minho was a Slytherin they seemed to be pretty good friends. Maybe it was because they were both beaters. What you didn’t know is that Minho had been the one to help them get the alcoholic beverages, since he was in 7th and had already turned of legal age, all the Marauders had become his friends like that. 

“All right, Moons, your turn,” Said Sirius. 

“Dare,” he responded without beating an eyelash and grabbed a piece of paper “Give a 10-minute foot massage to the person on your left?” 

You laughed when Sirius threw him a teasing look. 

“A FOOT MASSAGE FOR PADFOOT?! WHO EVEN WROTE THIS DARES?”

“Who cares? I get a free massage,” said Sirius as he was unlacing his boots. Remus sighed. Finally, Sirius took his boot off, showing a pair of colourful Gryffindor-themed socks. That’s what you call commitment to a brand , you thought. Sirius then turned his feet towards Remus and let his head fall on your leg “Do you mind?” He asked looking up at you, you could see his dark lashes framing his stunning icy blue eyes, but also noticed how he asked after he had already gotten himself all comfortable.

“No really,” you replied, and he nodded in response, closing his eyes as Remus started rubbing his feet. And damn were you a little jealous as you saw Remus pressing his strong hands on Sirius’s feet, he was clearly, really good at massaging. Sirius’ face told you everything. 

Then it was Imogen’s turn, a Hufflepuff girl you’d shared classes with before. She was very smart, you remembered. She picked truth and grabbed a paper “Fuck, Mary, Kill: Slughorn, Kettleburn and Nightshade.” She said, “Ummm… I’d murder Slugorn, fuck Kettleburn and Mary Nightshade.” 

“You’d fuck Kettlebrun?!” Asked Beth shocked. 

“Between him and Slughorn? Every single time!” Imogen responded. 

“And you’d marry Nightshade?” Asked Peter. 

“Who wouldn’t marry Nightshade?” 

You nodded to what Imogen was saying “No, no, Imogen has a point,” you said pointing a finger at her “Seraphina is stunning.” Sirius looked at you with a raised eyebrow, he still lied his head on your right leg “She has this grace to her, she’s like a ballerina.”

“She was a ballerina,” Said James as he munched on something.

“Really? How do you know?” 

“She’s friends with our parents,” explained Peter, and grabbed a paper himself. He also chose truth “Do you like anyone? If so, say who it is.” Peter was instantly red and looked around as if checking if a particular person was still in the room, he took a deep breath once he was sure, and let himself speak “Yes there is, it’s this very pretty Ravenclaw girl from Fifth called Annabeth.” 

“Annie Doxon?” Beth jumped from her seat “You have a crush on my cousin?!” Peter nodded, still shy. “Ok then, you break her heart, I break your nose.” Peter nodded, he knew Beth wouldn’t be too excited about it anyway “But I’m happy, at least you’re a good guy, I’m sure you’ll treat her well,” she cheered “Potter, you’re up.” 

James grabbed a dare and after reading it out loud he tied his shirt over his belly and started belly dancing as best of his ability allowed him. And surprisingly, he was actually pretty good at it, which had everyone laughing. You leaned over to Lily, careful not to disturb Sirius, whose hair you’d started playing with at some point and whispered “Bet he’s got some sick moves in the bedroom too,” she gasped and hit you lightly, turning red as a tomato. Which just caused you to laugh even more, Lily was definitely going to end up with James Potter. And they’d probably have the cutest children. 

Eventually, it was Marlene’s turn again, she chose dare and ended up giving Holden a massage, and Holden had to hold hands with her for the rest of the game when he got his dare. By the time Mary was taking her paper, the sand clock you’d set to measure the 10 minutes Remus would rub Sirius’ feet was over and he shoved Sirius’ feet off his lap.

“Oi, a bit more careful there Moony!” He complained as he finally sat up straight again. 

“Yeah?, well I’ve had enough of your stinky feet,” Remus retorted. 

“Take that back, My feet are NOT stinky!” He then turned to you “Are they Love?” 

“Sirius, no matter how much I appreciate you, I will not be smelling your feet.” 

He pouted and was about to speak again but got interrupted by Mary “Fuck James, marry Remus, Kill Sirius,” she said carelessly. 

“Who put our names in the–“ Remus started. 

“–You’d kill me? But I’m beautiful!” Sirius gasped. 

“I wouldn’t wanna deal with the drama,” she responded simply. 

“And I’m certain I’d be a better lay than Prongs too.” 

“You wish,” James snapped and threw a pillow he had at Sirius’ face. 

“LOOKS LIKE IT’S MY TURN!” Said Tom with his hands extended to the sides to get everyone's attention. He took a truth as well. “Name a teacher you’d hate to see naked and a teacher you’d like to see naked. WHO WROTE THIS?! You guys are sick. I’d hate to see Slughorn naked. I’d like to…” he shuddered “I don’t want to see any teacher naked.” 

“You have to name someone,” argued Imogen. 

“But–“ 

“Name it, Name it, Name it,” everyone started to choir. 

“Professor Spellman?” 

“Profesor Spellman!?” Asked Peter confused. 

Tom shrugged, “I bet he’s ripped under those robes.” 

Everyone laughed. On Beth’s turn, she had to do a cartwheel and then it was Lily’s turn, she went straight for a dare “Kiss for 30 seconds, whoever is in front of you,” she said looking up from her seat and discovering it was none-other than James Potter. 

You tried to hold a laugh. And patted her on the back, she turned to Beth distressed “Can’t I just Kiss (Y/N) again?”

“Can’t stop thinking of me, huh?” You teased with your eyebrows raised, Sirius’ personality was rubbing on you. She gave you a reproachful look, as if asking for help. 

“Rules are rules love,” said Beth and motioned for Lily and James to get closer together. She awkwardly did, James just stood in his place, frozen in shock. 

“I– I’m gonna start, m’kay?” She asked James.

He nodded awkwardly, and in an instant, they were locking lips. Their kiss was nothing like yours and Lily’s, just a peck and then done, no, they were kissing. James had even grabbed Lily by the waist and pulled her closer at some point. Those thirty seconds were up, and you were sure they were still kissing. But eventually, Lilly broke this kiss off, clearing her throat and crawled back to her seat next to you. 

You turned to her “You good?” You asked with concern. She nodded a slight blush creeping onto her cheeks. You smiled and grabbed your paper. 

“Sit on the lap of the player to your right for the rest of the game.” You read, with a bit of a frown “Seat on the lap of–?” 

“–Sirius Black.” Finished Lily. 

“Don’t you…?” You were about to ask, but Sirius had already accommodated himself and waited for you with open arms and a welcoming smile. Of course Sirius wouldn’t mind , he was Mr. Flirt after all. “Kay then,” you said and moved to his lap. He held you by the waist and set his head on your neck. 

“Mind passing over a dare paper?” He asked. 

You leaned in and grabbed one and opened it for him “Let a player draw something on your arm,” you read. 

He shrugged and handed you his arm. “There you go love, draw me a Picasso.” 

“I could just draw a dick,” you teased. 

He nudged you with his head “Draw something nice, would ya? I’ll leave it on all week if you do.” 

You raised an eyebrow and nodded as you used your wand to bring your quill and ink closer, dipping your quill in the dark ink and drawing on Sirius’ arm. 

“We’re almost out of papers,” said Beth as she leaned over the two bowls. 

“We should probably end soon anyway,” Lily said, stretching her arms, “It’s getting kinda late.” 

“What’s it gonna be Rem? Truth or dare?” Asked Beth. 

“Dare,” he chose again, not even thinking about it, he leaned over and grabbed a paper, looking visibly pale as he read. Not that you noticed, you were very focused on Sirius’ arm. 

“Well then? What does it say?” Asked Beth. 

Remus didn’t say a word. Imogen grabbed the paper from his hand and read it “Kiss the person to your left for one minute straight.” The second those words left her mouth your pen went completely sideways, leaving a straight line in the middle of your drawing, you looked up, alarmed. 

“But… there’s two people on Remus’ left,” Imogen continued. 

“Three people kiss?” said Beth as an option. 

“Three people kiss? What on earth is that?!” Asked Remus alarmed. 

“It’d be too awkward for a minute straight,” said Imogen as she shook her head with a soft tsk, she wasn’t convinced. 

“Pick one then,” Beth said with a shrug.

“Well, it’s obvious, (Y/N), she’s the girl.” Said Peter. 

“But I had to kiss her too, that doesn’t matter in this game,” argued Lily.

“And Sirius was to his left originally,” chimed Holden.

Remus’ eyes darted from one person to the other, looking further mortified at the second. “Let’s just wand, potion, spell it,” you intervened “Destiny chooses instead, how does that sound?” Remus looked at you and nodded. 

“Well then,” you shifted on Sirius’ lap so you could see him directly, “Ready?” 

“Do we do it in the first result or two out of three?” He asked.

“I– I don’t know… Rem?”

“Two out of three.” 

“Well then, it’s settled.” 

The two of you positioned your right hand on top of your left “Wand, Potion, Spell.” You said together. Sirius’ hand turned into a fist with his thumbs up, Potion , beating your extended palm, spell .

“Ok, again,” he said. 

“Wand, Potion, Spell.” You repeated this time you chose spell , beating his wand . 

You gave him a look, Remus was still holding his breath right next to the two of you.

“Again.” 

“Wand, Potion, Spell.” You both choose spell. “Wand, Potion, Spell.” You both picked wand . 

“Sirius!” You complained. 

“Not doing it on purpose luv!” He argued back. 

“Ok, this is the one, ready?” He nodded. 

“Wand, Potion, Spell.” Sirius chose spell, you chose potion . 

“(Y/N) Won,” said Beth, “It’s settled then, go ahead.”

You threw her a look “I’m gonna end up kissing the entire circle with this game,” you complained as you tried to move off Sirius, but he tightened his hold on your waist. 

“Gotta stay here till the end of the game, remember?” He asked, not allowing you to budge. You turned to him with a frown. 

“He’s right, if you get off you’ll get a penalty,” agreed Imogen. 

You gave him a confused look and he just shrugged, “Rules are rules.” 

Remus moved closer instead “You sure you’re ok with it?” He asked, sincerity in his voice as he stared at you, faces inches away from each other. You nodded and closed the gap between the two of you. 

As your lips met Remus', you instinctively placed your right hand on his shoulder to steady yourself, Sirius' hands remained securely wrapped around your waist, you could feel his subtle shifts beneath you as you continued to kiss his friend. The nature of the situation made you wonder if you had ever found yourself in such an uncomfortable scenario before. No, not that –it was weird– but it wasn’t particularly uncomfortable , in fact, Remus’ kiss was quite nice .

It was delicate and it was sweet. Remus tasted of chocolate and rum, and you let yourself enjoy the moment, you were sure Sirius was intently staring at the both of you, you wondered what he was thinking as you felt the muscles of his tights tense, and relax. As you explored the gentle rhythm of Remus’ kiss, any apprehension dissipated, replaced by a growing sense of ease, even with Sirius staring at the two, it was strangely enjoyable. The gentleness of Remus' lips against yours seemed to resonate both affection and curiosity, you wondered if he was being gentle because that was in his nature, if he was being gentle because it was you he was kissing, or perhaps because you were in the middle of a dare, and that’s what would be expected of him. 

Eventually, the last drop of sand from the hourglass reached the bottom, and it emitted a soft sound. You and Remus finally separated, looking at each other with breaths slightly heavy, both attempting to regain your composure. Once you caught your breath you decided you had to do something to ease the situation, or something. So you channelled your inner Sirius Black and reacted as he would, you smirked; “Well then Remus, thank you for that delightful kiss, love that you put in an effort even if it was just a dare, anyway, who’s next? I really can’t be the only one who keeps kissing everyone around me, can I?” People laughed at your reaction, Remus was shaking his head with a small smile slipping from his lips, maybe he had kissed Sirius in the end. 

Sirius leaned into your ear, whispering “Smooth way to divert the tension luv,” he whispered as Imogen grabbed a paper, and you gulped as Sirius' breath brushed your neck. 

“It’s me,” said Imogen, still processing how you’d been so brave to kiss a boy while sitting on another’s lap. She wanted to be like you when she grew older “It says: If you could be anyone in this room, who would it be?” She seemed to think about it for a second “I mean… right at this moment? (Y/N), she’s gotten the most action tonight.” 

You laughed, reclining against Sirius unconsciously, “Well, then, switch with me,” you told her as a joke, but you felt Sirius’ hold tighten, as if reproachful. 

Peter leaned in for a paper “Give your best friend a lap dance.” He read. “What?! Who wrote this?” You laughed, at least you hadn’t gotten that one.  

“Get up Jaaaames,” you heard Sirius say in a sing-song voice from behind. He pulled a chair with magic to the centre of the circle and set the record player to “Love to Love You Baby” by Donna Summer. 

James sat on the chair with a smile as Peter stood up, walking in front of James and started to dance. Peter was not vibing with the song or the dare for that matter. But he pulled through, even with Sirius’ constant teasing “Come on Pete, you’re not getting tips tonight if you don’t put in an effort!” 

You eventually joined the teasing too, whistling as Sirius continued talking. Once the song was over Peter went instantly back to his place, hiding his entire face between his hands and questioning all the life decisions that had led him to that moment. 

There was only one paper left, and it was James' turn. He leaned in and grabbed the truth paper “Have you ever had a crush on anyone in this circle?” He read, and then he nodded “Of course I have. But you all know who it is already.” 

Lily coughed several times “Well, game’s over,” she said as she stood up and pulled Marlene towards the fire with her “We should sleep soon, so go ahead, time to open the gifts.”

Marlene raised an eyebrow at her, she just shrugged. You, like the good friend you were, decided to tease her further, finally leaving Sirius’ lap and walking behind her “Wow, Lils, never seen you run from a situation faster than that.” 

“Shut it, luv.” She Told you and pulled you to sit on the sofa, the rest followed you seconds after, all walking towards the comfortable living room-like setup in front of the sofa. Once everyone was comfortable, Beth urged Marlene to sit on the rug in front of everyone to open her gifts. She’d gotten a quill set from her parents, a magical chess set, an enchanted journal, some fun jewellery, the Jersey you’d gotten her and many other things. 

You all sat comfortably in front of the fire as she continued opening her gifts.   

You leaned down next to her when she opened a box with bright red wrapping “Is that quidditch polish set?” You asked with a smile “That’s brilliant!” 

“Thanks,” said James, of course, he would have been the one to give her that “now you can be the fastest beater.” 

Sirius looked at him with a shrug and hit him on the arm with the back of his hand in a reproachful manner “Way to drag your friend down, mate!”

“Hmmm… there’s only one way to find out,” Marlene said with a shrug “A race…” she smirked at the last bit. 

You looked at her and then back at Sirius, eyebrows raised slightly and nodding along with Marlene “AND you know, Sirius Black does owe me race…” 

He looked at you with an amused look on his face, his eyes shining at the dare “You’re on.”  

Chapter Text

September 24, 1976 - Friday

Your race with Sirius, Marlene and a couple of other students who decided to tag along and prove their worth would be next week. The broom race was basically the talk of town. James had talked to the other Quidditch Team Captains, Lyonel Aldridge, Delilah Moss and of course Dmitri Volkov, and they all reached to the conclusion that it would be a great way to boost their team’s morale before the first match.

You woke up early like you had been doing the past couple of weeks, but you and Sirius had gotten a lot more competitive, so competitive you’d already gotten on James’ nerves. Which was something pretty hard to do when you were talking about quidditch. Every day you’d go on mini races, inventing new challenges to fulfill and you always pestered James regarding who’d gotten there first.

“My hand reached the line first,” Sirius said.

“Yeah, but it’s not about hands, it’s about brooms, my SweepFire reached the halo first.” You argued back. 

“It’s not about brooms, we said whoever gets there first, and clearly I did.” 

“Sirius you can’t bend the rules so you win all the time! Besides, if I had stretched my hand I would’ve reached first so it doesn’t count.” 

“It does because you didn’t!” 

“James tell him !” You said. 

“No James, tell her !”

James sighed exasperated and hit his head against the handle of his broom “ Just fuck each other already ,” he mumbled, not that either of you heard it. 

“What?” You asked with a frown. 

“You know what?" He snapped, sitting straight "Neither of you won! And your mini air races when practicing? They’re OVER! No more broom races until official race day and then you’ll admit the other is a faster flier and this bickering will be forgotten.” 

“But James!” Both you and Sirius argued. 

He gave you both a stern look, and you shot your mouth. “Fine then, till the race we’ll know.” 

Sirius nodded “Truce?” He said offering you his hand. You took a deep breath and shook it. 

Once you were back in the ground Sirius called you with a smirk “Hey (Y/N)! Bet I can get to the common room before you do.” He then started running. 

“You wish,” you said running behind him.

James sighed again “We said no races!” 

“You said no flying,” Sirius shouted back. 

You then turned to James with a smile as you ran “He’s right, this is running.” 

James rolled his eyes but took off running behind the two of you anyway. The only thing that sometimes shut the two of you up, was when someone else won, and he had the longest legs. In the end, he was indeed the first one to arrive, letting himself fall on the couch as you and Sirius fought your way inside. 

“Prongs, you’re here?” You said out of breath when you saw him laying on the couch, regaining his own breath. 

He frowned “Since when do you call me Prongs?” He asked amused. 

“Oh… um… sorry, it must have slipped,” You said as you sat down “I blame Sirius for it.” 

James laughed “No, it’s fine. You can call me Prongs.” He took a long breath, “But stop blaming Pads for everything.” 

“In my defence. It really is ALWAYS Sirius’ fault.” 

He made the face of a man that agreed with your statement. “James!” Sirius complained he noticed. 

James grimaced in return “For fucks sake, take me away from these two,” he said grabbing a pillow and placing it over his head dramatically. 

You and Sirius exchanged a glance, yeah, you may be bickering all the time now, but it was all friendly banter, James was overreacting. 

“Morning,” you heard Remus say as he came down the stairs “Just got here from practice?” 

You nodded “And they’re getting on my nerves Moony,” James grumbled. 

Remus raised an eyebrow at the two of you “We just asked him to decide who’d been the winner of our mini race,” you said innocently.

 He nodded, understanding. “Leave poor James alone, he’s been doing so much to prepare your race that… he might actually be sick of quidditch by the end of it.” 

James instantly reacted to Remus’ words, removing the pillow from his head “I would never!” 

You were sweaty from so much running so you excused yourself and went for a short shower, Lily was preparing her backpack when you walked out of the bathroom, using your wand to dry your hair. “Today we’re picking the fluxweed together, right?” You asked her. 

She nodded “Just wait for me, will you? We’ll walk to the greenhouse together, don’t think of going by yourself.” 

“Of course, I’ll wait for you Lils, don’t worry about it,” you told her with a smile and finished both closing the buttons of your shirt, and shoving your stuff quickly in your bag "Ready for breakfast?"

Lily nodded and the two of you walked down to the common room together. The boys were secretly talking to each other on the corner close to the fire, looking all conspiratorial as they did. "You coming for breakfast?" Lily asked them. Remus turned to look at her, his brown eyes seemed more golden than usual, you wondered if it was because of the lighting in the room.

"Yes, we’ll be down in a minute tho, we’re helping Peter finish his Divination essay.” 

You raised an eyebrow at that statement. Since when did they help Peter with essays? Well, Remus definitely would help Peter, he’d probably help anyone that asked nicely. But the rest? Sirius? That was a bit sus, to say the least. But Lily was already walking out of the common room, so after giving them one more look, you followed her. Maybe they were planning another prank like the rain on the main hall. 

Once you were downstairs, the two of you walked towards the great hall. Mary, Marlene, Beth and some others were already there, having breakfast. You greeted them all with a smile “Good morning!” You said as you sat down. 

“Morning,” responded Mary as she looked up from her copy of The Daily Prophet. 

“Anything new?” You asked her, nodding towards the paper. 

She shook her head “Just the war,” she replied somberly “Apparently some Death Eaters went on a killing spree. They’re trying to get the muggle-borns.” 

“An older lady was killed,” Marlene continued “Marsha Allenty, she was a muggle-born auror.” 

You shuddered at the thought. Muggle-borns first, half-borns next, it wouldn’t take them too long to destroy half the wizarding population if they kept going . Someone had to stop them. You were about to say something when the owls started coming in.  

Your family owl, Barnaby, flew down, dropping a package in front of you. You looked at it. The (Y/LN) family seal was stamped over the elegant wrapping. It had to be from your mother. You opened the package, it contained several things. Some galleons, sweets from your favourite bakery back at home, which instantly told you they’d been travelling. A box filled with different potions, and some ingredients to brew shampoo and other beauty-related things. A special potions booklet and a small velvet box. 

You opened it and there was a ring inside, a thin metal piece with some engravings on it and a gem at the top, held by 4 small pieces of metal, two shaped like a star and two shaped like a moon. 

“What is it?” asked Beth, leaning into you from the side. 

“A gift from my parents,” you responded, taking the reins out of the box to show it to her. 

“It’s stunning,” she told you. “Do you know what that is?” She said pointing at the stone. 

“Moonstone, isn’t it?” You asked, Beth nodded. “Mom cares a lot about the magical properties of stones,” you explained. 

“And the metal is silver,” she said turning the ring around, taking a look at the little seal on the inside. 

“Silver?” You frowned, taking a closer look “You’re right, that’s different. She’s never given me a silver piece before.” 

“Maybe she thinks you’re old enough?” She asked with a shrug. 

You nodded, but it wasn’t that. Your mom always gave you gold things. She said the protective value of it was a lot higher than any other metal. Even the necklace Sirius had given you in the vacation, made of brass, was turned into gold with a special spell she had, a spell that would leave all the magical properties of the item intact. 

“Well, whatever the reason, she did pick a beautiful ring,” you said, finally sliding it through one of your fingers. 

“Do you know what magic it’s got?” 

You shook your head, looking through the box to see if your mom had written any kind of letter. You didn’t find any and shrugged it off “Maybe she just thought it was pretty…” 

“What was pretty?” Asked Peter, who appeared almost out of nowhere along with the boys. 

“(Y/N) was gifted a new ring,” said Mary before taking a bite from her eggs. 

You raised your hand so Peter could see it “Got it on a package from my mom.”

“Moon and stars, eh?” He asked with a raised eyebrow “Interesting choice of symbolism, isn’t it?” 

You looked at Peter and shrugged. He was right, it was an interesting choice of symbolism. Your mom, like you, had an affinity to divination. Maybe she knew something you didn’t “My mom loves that stuff,” you told him, and lowered your hand back to the table, taking your fork to dig into a sausage. 

The boys sat further down on the table. Just close enough to still be able to talk to everyone already sitting there. You left early to go check on the fireworms. Remus and you had decided to split the days in which you had to feed them, and today was your turn. When you arrived at the tunnel entrance you looked around to make sure no one had followed you and entered as quickly as possible. 

“Lumus,” You whispered, and your wand lit up, making the dark tunnel navigable. You looked through the pockets of your robe and found the scrap of parchment Remus had made for you. “Revelio,” you said as you moved your wand over it, revealing a tiny map of the tunnels. You were sure you’d learn the way soon enough, but for now, the little map was indispensable. You used the map to navigate the tunnel until you arrived at the little nook in which you’d hidden your fireworms. You grabbed some of the food in your backpack and gently placed it on the food trays you’d created with a couple of pumpkin juice caps. You looked at the little fireworms satisfied when you noticed one of them was shining, like a firefly. But the light travelled from the end of the tail, all the way through his body and towards his head, then with a small little sound, almost like a fairy burp, the fireworm caused a small ball of fire to come from his mouth. You looked at it amazed, and quickly put the small fire out with your wand. 

You grabbed your backpack and took out your charms book, trying to find a flames stopper or fire preventive spell as soon as possible. Soon enough you found something that could work and cast it all over the little fireworm habitat you and Remus had been building. After the spell was ready, you stayed for a couple of minutes to make sure they wouldn’t cause a fire that’d burn the entire castle down and once you were certain you let out a long sigh, not even realizing you’d been holding your breath. 

You were thrilled, your fireworms were doing excellent, the way you and Remus had taken care of them allowed them to develop in less time than the standard, which would guarantee the two of you really good grades. You had to tell Remus about it. Maybe you could tell him in divination. Shit, divination! You were supposed to be in divination. You ran out of the little nook and used the map to find a shortcut towards the divination tower. Once outside you knocked on the door a couple of times and waited. Professor Spellman opened the door, letting you inside with a displeased glance. 

“I’m sorry for being late,” you mumbled as fast as possible. You walked inside and started walking towards Remus, who luckily, hadn’t been paired with anyone yet. 

“Miss (Y/LN),” Professor Spellman called, you turned to him “You will be working with Sybil today,” he said, pointing towards the small Ravenclaw girl. You swallowed but nodded and walked towards her table. You knew who she was, Remus had told you about her, and her story, and you’d probably exchanged a couple of words with her in the past, but you’d never really talked to her. 

“Hey,” you waved as you sat next to her, she waved back, with a small smile, and absentmindedly nudged her glasses back to their place. You looked at her for a minute, her hair might be messy, and you heard she wasn’t very popular, but she was very pretty non the less. 

Professor Spellman started talking and with a flick of his wand opened some cabinets, floating a teapot in front of each table, Leaf reading . You and Sybil brew the tea together, using some of the herbs suggested by the book for more accurate readings. And started chatting to each other after you served your respective teas. 

“Do you like divination?” She asked you. 

“I… uh… not that much, I’ve had some experiences ,” you stuttered. 

“Sad readings?” She asked, with a sympathetic expression. 

You nodded, taking a sip of your tea “It’s always negative stuff with me,” you explained “Accurate, but negative.” You shuddered, “What about you? With your legacy and all?” 

“I don’t dislike it,” she told you with a smile, “I don’t like getting sad readings either but it’s fun to know bits of the future, for example, the other day I had these feeling that it was going to rain, so I put on some rain boots before going to Care for Magical Creatures, some Hufflepuffs and even other kids from my year were throwing looks at me, but when it started raining and everyone’s shoes got ruined, but mine didn’t, it was completely worth it .”

You smiled at her story “I don’t get those kinds of feelings,” you said “But it’s nice to meet someone that enjoys it, maybe you could help me enjoy it too.” 

Eventually, you both finished your teas and exchanged teacups. You took a deep breath and eventually leaned over to look at her cup, hoping there would be something good in there. You exhaled when you saw a small little butterfly on the cup. Butterflies were good, they meant change, they meant personal growth, they meant… Images flashed through your eyes, and you breathed heavily a couple of times, trying to regain composure. 

Sybil knew exactly what was going on, she’d been through it several times before too. So she looked at you with concern. “What did you see?” She asked in a steady tone. 

“Nothing bad,” was the first thing you managed to muster, “just… you’ll give a prophecy soon. A very important one, I saw Professor Dumbledore, he seemed really interested in what you had to say.” She nodded at your words, writing everything you said down on a piece of paper, then you looked at her, placing a hand on her arm “Sybil, this prophecy… it looked like it was going to be dark,” you said “but it’s one of those that will change the world.” 

She nodded, taking in all the information you’d given her. She did not doubt a single word you said. And you were glad she did, sometimes visions as such were hard to comprehend, and that’s if the person even cared for it. 

“Are you ok?” She asked then. 

You nodded “I– uh…” you looked at her tea “You will have a period of transformation and positive change, like the metamorphosis of a butterfly,” you told her, making an effort to read the rest of her tea leaves “You should, uh… embrace the opportunities that’ll come your way and also let yourself spread your wings.” 

She laughed in response “That’s my fortune?” She asked motioning towards her tea cup. 

 “Yeah,” you nodded, sounding very certain about it “You must accept your uniqueness,” you added for good measure, after all, humor is one of the best ways to cope with such things “And me? What’s my destiny?” 

She adjusted her glasses and took a peak at your cup “I see… stars, the moon, they’re surrounding something,” she said “A small animal, maybe a hare, or… a wildcat?” 

You looked at her with a frown “Did you say the moon and stars?” 

She nodded, tilting the cup towards you. And she was right, the moon was there, the stars too, and… the small animal? That was a fox . You took a deep breath and showed her the ring your mom had given you “My mom sent me this,” you told her “also moon and stars symbolism.” 

Sybil raised an eyebrow “Does she have an affinity with divination?” She asked. You nodded in response “Then it must mean something…” she said, picking up her book and flipping through it “But I can’t find anything about the moon and stars in the book.” 

“Interpret it,” Said Professor Spellman as he walked by, looking at Sybil with a stern face. 

She nodded, sliding towards the back of the chair, Professor Spellman was imposing, to say the least. “I uh… I see the moon and the stars, they’re close, to a… it’s a–“ 

“ It’s a fox ,” you told her “The animal, it’s not a wild cat, it’s a fox.” 

“A fox, right!” she agreed, “and I– are those flowers?” She asked looking deeper into the cup. By then your little interaction had piqued the attention of some other students from the class, they were watching the two of you intently. “I– I may be getting things twisted but… according to your cup, the moon and the star will find a blossoming love with…” she hesitated “ with the fox .” 

Everyone around the classroom laughed, but the professor raised a hand to quiet them, looking into the cup himself “Sybil’s reading is accurate.” He said, “Maybe (Y/N) has an idea what those symbols might mean?”

You sat straighter, looking at the professor “I seem to be surrounded by symbolism today,” you told him “But I’m sorry sir, I’ve got no idea what it may mean. Perhaps I’ll adopt a fox or something? Shower it with love and stuff,” You lied. While you may have not been able to understand the whole symbolism, there was one thing you knew for certain: you were the fox. 

The Professor nodded, even if he didn’t look convinced, and moved towards someone else’s table. You exhaled, only then realizing you’d been holding your breath. “He can be very intimidating, right?” Sybil asked you. 

You nodded “Definitely.” She looked like she wanted to tell you something else “What is it?” You asked her. 

“Just.. be careful, yeah? The moon, it– it looks a little menacing on your cup. Like… like it could be dangerous.” 

You frowned “As in, maybe I shouldn’t go out tonight dangerous or…?” 

“No, no,” she shook her head “I don’t know how to explain it, just… keep that in mind, will ya?” 

You nodded, placing a hand on her arm to reassure her “And you’ll be a famous fortune teller soon,” you told her with a smile “How does that feel?” 

She shrugged “I always expected to end up as one, I guess it’s nice to get a prediction of what you’ll be, makes it a little more certain.” 

“And you trust my predictions?” You asked her with a shrug.

She nodded furiously “Of course I do! It’s not every day a fairy tells you your fortune.” 

“I’m sorry?!” You asked her, shocked. 

“I saw it in your cup,” she explained “I didn’t mean to pry, but it made sense… your divination affinity, your charm and magnetism, your talent while flying… You’re part fairy, aren’t you?”  

You looked at her mortified, your parents had done so many things to keep that hidden and now Sybil just guessed it , “You can’t tell anyone,” you told her in a very serious tone. 

She smiled at you “I wasn’t planning to, your secrets are safe with me.” You smiled at her after that, you trusted her. 

Once the class was over you stood up, but she stayed in her seat “You don’t have another class?” You asked her politely. 

She shook her head “I’ve got arithmancy next, I took it as an optative.” 

You hummed in response “Have fun then,” You told her with a smile “I’ve got Magical Theory.”

“Good luck, I heard Professor Pendragon, can be very strict.” 

“No worse than Spellman,” you whispered, so that the Professor in question, who was talking to some other students wouldn’t hear you. Sybil laughed and you finally pulled your backpack from your seat and started walking outside but you were stopped by Professor Spellman. 

“Miss (Y/LN),” he said, and you walked closer to him “Be very careful tonight,” he warned, “there was something odd on your cup, and as you may know, today is Full Moon.” 

You nodded “Thanks, Professor.” Clearly, he saw the same thing Sybil had seen, which was mildly disturbing, but alas, your day had to continue.

Once you were outside of the classroom you spotted the boys a few stairs down. Peter was walking with the girls, you assumed towards their Ancient Studies class, while James, Sirius and Remus walked together, they were walking towards the east wing, to Magical Theory, the class you shared. You had the intention to catch up with them, but they were looking as suspicious as they had looked earlier in the common room, talking in whispers to each other, heads so close they could easily bump together. You decided it was best to let them be, you’d been hanging out with them so much lately, they probably needed some space. So you slowed down your pace, just far enough so they could get their much-needed privacy. 

Eventually, you reached the Magical Theory classroom, and when you arrived you found James waiting at the door, he quickly pulled you towards him and said “She’s gonna be my team.”  

You looked at him with a shrug “Your team? for what?” 

Remus, who was close by responded “The teacher said we’ll be working on a team project, Sirius and I are working together, so James was waiting to claim you as his team.” 

“Besides, I really need your help,” James added. 

You frowned, and asked, a little confused “With the project?” 

“No, with Evans!” He whispered.

Realization down on you and you looked at Remus “He didn’t even ask you to be on his team, did he?” 

He shook his head in response, mouthing a “nope.” 

You laughed, “All right then, we’re a team,” you told James “You can ask me all you need when we–“ You cut yourself off “Wait, Remus! I’ve got to tell you something…” 

“All right, if you gave your teams, please take a seat, class will start.” You heard the teacher say. 

“Nevermind,” you  told him as you turned back since James was pulling you into a table near the back “You’re not planning to pay much attention then?” 

“Don’t deride me like that,” he complained “We’ll pay attention, I just– really need your advice.” 

"In this project, you will embark on a captivating journey to craft your very own magical artifact. Channel your imagination, drawing inspiration from the likes of invisibility cloaks and rememberalls , as you fashion an extraordinary creation of your own making," the teacher commenced, igniting a spark of curiosity among the class, even James, who had been mortified about Lily just minutes earlier was paying attention.

"Each artifact should possess a distinct purpose, serving its intended function with finesse. You will delve into the depths of your creativity, meticulously designing a blueprint that brings your vision to life. Fear not, for guidance shall be provided, I will walk with you every step of the way“ the teacher reassured, yet a chorus of playful groans filled the air in response to the mention of project design papers.

"Ah, I understand your sentiment," the teacher chuckled, acknowledging the students' apprehension. "But worry not! The journey shall be as enchanting as the destination itself. These project design papers will serve as a canvas to weave together the threads of your imagination, showcasing the brilliance of your creation. Embrace the opportunity to bring your ideas to fruition, weaving magic into the tangible realm. Who knows, you may be the next creators to hold the rights to an incredibly useful device that will sell millions.“ With these words, a wave of anticipation and excitement rippled through the classroom, as students began envisioning the magical artifacts they would soon breathe life into.

“Well, that’s an interesting project,” you said as you started writing down some ideas in your notebook. 

“It’s brilliant, we could ask him to help us with the map!” 

“What map?” You asked while raising an eyebrow. 

“Oh… sorry,” he said “I thought for a minute that you– nevermind. You need to help me with Lily.” James had gotten so used to hanging around you and the boys at the same time for a moment he thought you already knew about the Marauders Map. 

You sighed “Of course James. Tell me what happened,” you said, turning to him “but please write some ideas down as you do.” 

He nodded, and started scribbling on his piece of paper “You see, since we kissed back at Marlene’s party–“

“–James that was a game, you can’t be hung up on that.” You interrupted. 

“No, you don’t understand, there was a connection .” 

You rolled your eyes, while you did think Lily maybe had a little bit of a crush on James, you also knew she wasn’t anywhere ready to admit it. Especially with James’ incessant flirting since like 4th year. Marlene had told you about it. “James, it sounds ridiculous . I kissed Remus then too, and I’m not hung up on it.” 

He narrowed his eyes at that “but you seemed to enjoy it.” 

You shrugged “Can’t say he’s a bad kisser.” And Remus is handsome, you thought “But that’s not the point anyway. What happened?” 

“Lily seems more willing to talk to me lately,” he explained.

“Well, that’s lovely, just give her enough space so you don’t make her feel pressured. Be kind and nice… and stuff .” 

“I was thinking of making this very grand gesture on the quidditch–“ 

You shook your head “James Potter,” you warned “If you so much as try something like that you will scare her away. She’s barely realizing she might like you, don’t do THAT!” 

“What did you just say?” 

“Don’t do it!” You insisted.

“No,” he shook his head, “before that.” 

“I said that she’s barely realizing she might have a c… fuck .” 

“You think… You think she likes me?” He asked, in a very small high pitched tone.

“I– wouldn’t go as far as to say that…” he looked so sad, “… yet .” 

“Yet?” He asked, perking up as a surge of excitement ran through his body.

You nodded “I… think she’s warming up to you,” you told him sincerely “Just don’t do anything that could scare her away, please. ” 

“Like what?” 

“Like a scary grand gesture for example.” 

The professor walked toward you “Any ideas so far?” He said looking at James’ messy writing. 

James nodded “A confetti cannon that, after using it, leaves confetti wherever you go,” he said, and read another idea “a pair of shoes that make the wearer constantly trip, a teapot that won’t stop whistling, even without any tea on it, and a buble liquid that makes ticklish bubbles.” He said proudly. 

You stared dagger at him and covered his notes with your some parchment “It’s still a work in progress,” you told the teacher with the most charming smile you could muster, “James and I are still looking for better ideas.” 

The professor nodded and kept walking around the classroom. 

“Tripping shoes?” You asked in desbeilif “an ever whistling teapot? Are you for real–“

“–In my defence, I’m not great at multitasking.”

“ No shit Sherlock ,” you told him.

“The tripping shoes could be funny tho.”

“Yeah, and the tickling bubbles are useful, for pranks , but Professor Pendragon wants us to invent the next invisibility cloak, I don’t think he’d be too satisfied with any of those options.” 

“What about a ring that’s also an invisibility cloak?” 

You rose your eyebrow at him “You mean like in the Lord of the Rings?” 

“What’s the Lord of the Rings?” 

You gasped, offended, you too had grown on a pure-blood wizard family but at least you knew the Lord of the Rings, “The hobbit?! Does not ring any bells?” He shook his head “It’s a very popular muggle book, you should really brush up on your muggle literature. Perhaps you should have taken muggle studies instead.”

“Hey!” He complained, “Don’t bash me for not being a literature genius like you and Remus.”

“I bet even Sirius would know about The Lord of the Rings.” 

“How much?” 

“10 sickles?” You asked. 

“Oh, I’m really, really sure Sirius won’t know either,” James said “Make it 20.” 

You rose your eyebrow at his challenge and nodded “Deal,” you said raising your hand to shake his, successfully closing the deal. 

“So… the magical ring’s off the table?” 

“No, I… I don’t think it’s a bad idea, maybe we can make a magical ring, just, with different powers instead.” 

“Like…?”

You shrugged in response “We could make two rings that always find each other.” 

“Ohhh, and I could give one to Lily!” James said excitedly, you threw him a look “Like… not now... When we start dating… obviously .” 

“Love the confidence of that statement,” you said with a smile, thinking of how James had used when instead of if. 

He winked “What about a bracelet that lets you communicate with someone else, like a… muggle telephone.” 

“Or a walkie talkie…” you agreed.

“A what?” He asked. 

“You’re joking, right?” 

“I- uh… yeah,” he replied, not confidently at all. 

“Damn it, James, you urgently need some muggle classes.” You said and started drawing a pair of walkie-talkies on the notebook, trying to explain their use, and how they worked, even if you weren’t entirely certain of how they did. “Can’t believe none of you thought it’d be useful to have some of them around. Especially for your pranks.” 

“Yeah, me neither,” he agreed “You know smoke signals aren’t really the most effective.” 

“Surely you didn’t try that ,” You said confidently, his expression gave him away “You did?!?” 

He shook his head, letting out a long sigh “We were in detention for days.” 

You chuckled  at that “At least you have the little paper planes now,” you said, remembering the day Remus had sent one to the boys, same day he took you to the lake because you were feeling upset. 

“They’re useful, but they can be intercepted.” He explained, “Not very good for top secret plans.” 

You laughed, of course, James would consider his prank plans worthy of the Top Secret title. “What about a bracelet?” You asked then.

“A magical bracelet? Sounds good, also with walkie-talkie abilities?” 

“Could be more convenient than a ring…” you responded, “Not really sure about it tho."

“What about a pair of glasses that can help you see better in the dark?” He asked, “For those times where you can’t use lumos, maybe you lost your wand, or you wanna be inconspicuous.” 

“Night vision googles, I dig it.” 

“Exactly, but smaller, more practical to carry around.” 

“Well, I guess we’ve got a few solid ideas then,” you said as you started picking up your things, you and James had stayed brainstorming together for a little longer than you realized “Class is over?”

James nodded “Moony and Pads left already,” he said as he looked towards the table your friends had been sitting on, “probably to the great hall, we said we’d eat together.” 

“Peter too?” You asked him, he nodded.

“Wanna join us?” 

You shrugged in response, “though you were planning a prank or something,” you said as you walked towards the door with him by your side. 

He frowned “Why?” 

“All the secretive talks? You’ve been awfully suspicious today.” 

“What? No- that’s… it’s not. We’re not suspicious.” 

You gave him an incredulous look but nodded “ No, not at all ,” you added sarcastically. 

Once you were in the hall you spotted Remus and Sirius walking ahead of you and remembered you had to tell him about your fireworms so you picked up the pace. You walked behind him, for a minute, but he was so entertained in his conversation with Sirius you decided it’d be funny to tease him, so you extended your arms, and standing in your toes –because Remus was actually pretty tall– you decided to cover his eyes with your palms “Guess who–“ you started, but didn’t even get enough time to finish since Remus practically jumped out of your grasp in seconds, hissing as the silver of your new ring came into contact with his skin. It didn’t leave a mark but it did hurt him like hell. 

Sirius, being quick to figure the new ring you wore had silver on it, looked at you with panic, but you didn’t notice, you were too concerned over Remus’ reaction. “I– I’m sorry Rem, didn’t mean to scare you…” you stammered “I… I was just trying to tease.” James and Sirius finally relaxed when they noticed you’d thought Remus was just scared. 

“It’s ok…” he said with a forced smile as he extended his hand, a safe distance between your ring and himself “I wasn’t expecting you to come up from behind like that.” 

You didn’t seem convinced but nodded, concern still evident on your face. “I uhh… I was trying to catch up to actually,” You finally changed the subject. James had gotten in between you and Remus as you walked, so you leaned a little towards the front to see your friend better “It’s about our fireworms, they’re already breathing fire.” 

“What? I thought they wouldn’t do it until they were like a month old,” said Sirius. 

“Exactly!” You nodded excitedly “They weren’t, our caring must have been phenomenal. Our babies are overachievers.” 

“You’re keeping them together?” James asked. 

You nodded “Co-parenting,” you paused “We split tasks and that way we make sure we don’t burn down the school by accident.” 

Remus nodded in agreement “It’s easy to remember to feed them when it’s only a couple times a week instead of every single day.” 

“And we found an excellent spot to keep them too, away from stress and anything that could make them nervous.” 

“Well, the overachievers are not the worms ,” Sirius said giving you and Remus a look. 

James agreed “We just gave ours to Peter, in exchange for some other homework.” 

“By the way (Y/N), mind taking care of them tomorrow too?” Remus asked politely.

“Sure thing,” you said, not thinking much of it. 

You had your lunch with the boys, the girls and Peter joined you a bit later and you all walked to Defense Against the Dark Arts together. Professor Nightshade was elegantly leaning on her desk when you arrived at her classroom. She looked a little tense. Like she wasn’t too excited about the class to come. 

Once most students were inside she shut the door with a wave of her wand “Today we will be going through the unforgivable curses.” She said, looking rather dejected “and while is not of my favourite classes to teach, we must delve into the subject, especially in dark times like these in which you might need to defend yourselves from one of them.” 

The entire class was silent, everyone was paying attention to every single one of her words. It wasn’t uncommon to hear about the war, it was on the paper every single day, but most students chose to avoid and ignore the subject, so even if the war was going on, it was outside, Hogwarts was safe . But being confronted with it, so upfront, felt, well, it felt eerie and scary. 

“Can someone name the unforgivable curses?” She asked. 

Lily raised her hand “The killing course, Imperius curse and…” 

“The cruciatus curse,” Finished Sirius with a heavy breath. 

“Correct!” Seraphina said, “10 points for Gryffindor… Indeed those are the three unforgivable curses, and they are unforgivable because…”

“Because they violate the rights of whoever is being cursed by them,” you responded. 

“Can any of them be avoided?” 

You shook your head “Only very experienced wizards can resist Imperio.” 

“And countered?” 

“Physical barriers might block some of the curses, but there is no known spell that can do such a thing.” Said Remus. 

“No one has ever survived a Killing course either,” Imogen Potts added.  

“Seems like you’ve been doing all the readings accordingly,” the teacher said satisfied “Now, you know the theory, but today we will have a small demonstration.” The students gasped, but Seraphina nodded heavily “You must know what you’re up against,” she pulled out a box and opened it, a butterfly flew out of it, about the size of your palm. Seraphina let the small insect fly freely for a minute before pointing her wand straight at her and whispering “Imperio.”  

The butterfly started flying around, making circles around the class before landing on Marlene’s nose. She was sitting beside you, so you looked at her in awe as the butterfly batted its wings softly near her face. But then Seraphina changed the course, whispering “Cruicio.” The butterfly fell from Marlene’s nose and onto your table, right next to your book as it batted its wings helplessly. You looked at it with concern, Seraphina herself looked mortified as she inflicted pain on the small creature. You gave her an imploring look, and that was all it took for her to stop. The small butterfly was released from the pain and started flying all around the classroom, desperately looking to get away from the place. Once the butterfly was close enough to her, she whispered the last curse and after a green flash came from her wand, the butterfly stopped flying, slowly falling to the ground, like a leaf from a tree. 

The whole classroom was quiet. You stood up and carefully picked up the small butterfly from the floor. Looking at it pitifully as you handed it over to Seraphina, who held the box out for you to place it inside. “As you’ve seen, these curses are not only lethal but terrifying as well. There is a reason why, whoever dares to infringe them, will never be forgiven.” 

“They will go to Azkaban,” whispered Peter. 

“What a pitiful destiny,” agreed Sirius. 

Professor Nightshade sighed heavily “I think this is enough for today, you may go.”

Students nodded and started placing their things into their backpacks. When you stood up, you walked towards her “I want to be in the duelling club.” You told her “I… I don’t want to end up like the butterfly .” 

Seraphina looked at you, a sorrowful look in her eyes, she understood the implications of what you’d said. She knew how heavy your statement was. And she nodded “Of course darling, you’ll be a brilliant addition to the club.” 

You nodded, satisfied and finally caught up with your friends. You went straight to Lily “At what time must we go get the fluxweed?” You asked. 

“It’s supposed to be when the moon it’s at its highest point,” she told you “I checked the astronomy section of the paper in the morning, apparently at around 11:30 pm.” 

“All right, we can totally hang out together till then, right? Do you have any plans?” 

She shook her head “We had study club, but we cancelled it today, I was thinking of maybe going to the library to get some stuff and then studying or just chilling back at the common room.” 

“It’s settled then,” you told her with a smile, walking alongside her towards the library. Since you had already finished most of your assignments you decided to walk through the long bookshelf to see if you found anything that caught your eye, while Lily looked for some more specific books. And as you walked over the edge of one of the bookshelves you bumped into Nina, the small Ravenclaw girl from the study grup that had a crush on Remus. “Hey love,” you said politely. 

“Hi,” she replied quietly. To be fair, Nina really wanted to dislike you when she first encountered you. She was jealous of how close you and Remus had gotten in such a short period of time, but you had always treated her with kindness, genuinely willing to help her, if she had any questions, or needed help with a particular spell; that, in the end, she couldn’t help but like you instead. In fact, she’d go as far as to say she admired you. She’d seen you practicing spells and she even went to one of the quidditch trainings, with the intention to ogle at Remus who had gone too, but she was far too entranced by you when you were flying that she almost completely forgot about her original reason for going. 

“You looking for Rem?” You asked her politely. 

She shook her head “He cancels study sessions at least once every couple of weeks,” she told you “Originally, only Lily held the sessions by herself but she got very stressed without him to help her with the younger students, so they decided it was best to cancel them altogether.” Remus cancelled them? You thought, that’s odd . “What about you? Are you looking for a book in particular?” 

You shook your head “Just something to entertain me while I hang out with Lily.” 

“Oh, I think I can help you with that,” she said with a smile, bringing her backpack in front of her and opening the zipper “I actually got my hands on this book out last week, I read it in days, it’s about a werewolf who falls in love with a wizard.” she explained “It’s not very accurate with the actual nature of werewolves, but the key points are there. It’s a very fun romantic novel If you’re into that kind of stuff.” She said taking a book out of her bag and placing it on the table. “Oh and this one,” she grabbed a smaller book “It’s filled with simple yet practical spells that we don’t have in the curriculum, such as ways to fix glasses and open locks. It’s fantastic if you want something a bit more educational.” 

You looked at her with a smile “These are fantastic Nina, thank you!” You said with genuine excitement.

She smiled at you, blushing just a little at your reaction “It’s nothing. I’m– I really like books,” she told you with a smile “If you ever need new recommendations, I’m down.” 

You smiled at her “You’re the best!” You told her picking the books up from where she left them “It was lovely seeing you.” 

She nodded, and was about to say something when Lily showed up, looking for you “I’ve got the books, ready to go?” She asked, and then noticed you weren’t alone “Oh, hey Nina! What’s up?” 

“She lent me a couple of books,” you said, raising the books you held in between your arms so Lily would notice.

Lily nodded “Oh, Nina is really good at picking out books, trust me.” Lily said, “Mind if I take (Y/N) with me now?” 

Nina shook her head “We were just doing some small talk.” She said, with a bit of a blush as both you and Lily waved your goodbyes. 

As you walked outside the library Lily gave you a look “So… you’re friends with Nina now?” 

You shrugged “She’s pretty nice actually. I don’t know when it happened, but she stopped hating me over Remus, and now she’s really kind, she even recommended books!” 

“You probably just charmed her with your personality and looks, like you did with pretty much everyone,” Lily teased with a smile. 

“Oi, shut up Evans, you’re probably more charming than I am,” you said nudging her in a friendly manner. She nudged you back and the two of you walked together towards the common room, chatting about your due assignments, and your favourite books. Since Lily was a muggle-born, she knew even more about muggle books than you, and it was fun hearing about all of them, from her favourites to those she didn’t like all that much.

Once you arrived at the common room you both found a comfortable place, she sat on the small round table by the stairs and you went straight for one of the couches, letting yourself comfortably lay on it while opening your backpack to pick one of the books Nina had recommended, you grabbed each on one hand, staring at the covers, trying to decide which one to go for first. After weighing both of them in your head, you decided to read the spell book and leave the romance novel on the side table. 

Nina hadn’t been lying, the book was indeed practical, and you tried casting some of the most complicated or useful spells as you read, practicing the wand movements and incantations as Lily focused on her homework.

At some point Mary and Marlene went in, they were giggling about something that happened so you decided to leave your book next to the others and join their conversation. 

“Oh my god, (Y/N)! You won’t believe what happened.” Mary said. 

You smiled “Oh, do tell” 

“We were talking to Moaning Myrtle, she said she overheard Holden talk about Marlene with some other boys, that she was an incredible beater and stuff.” 

“Really?” You said smiling wider “I mean, no doubt, she’s amazing!  But he said that?”

Mary nodded “According to Myrtle, that is… She also said some boys have been saying you’re part Veela because of your charm, be careful they may try and throw you into the water to see if you’re a good swimmer.” 

You laughed at that, you were a good swimmer, but they couldn’t have been more off with their guesses. “So… what are you waiting for Mars? You have to make your move!” 

“Make my move?” She gasped. 

You nodded “Well, at the party you seemed pretty close, admit you like him or–”

“–Kiss him unexpectedly,” completed Mary. 

“Yeah, that too.” You nodded.

“Well…” Marlene said taking a deep breath “I’m thinking I could– I wanted to invite him to Hogsmeade over the weekend, actually.” 

“That’s brilliant!” You told her “Isn’t that tomorrow?”

She nodded in response “You coming too? I heard Sirius and James mention they wanted to show you around.” 

“They haven’t told me anything about it, but I guess I’ll tag along with ya’ll anyway.”

At that point Lily stood up from her place and stretched, yawning softly “What time is it?”  

“10:30,” answered Marlene after looking at her wrist watch “You done?”

She nodded “But we have to stay up for at least an hour,” Lily complained.

“Why?” Mary asked. 

“We’re going to harvest some fluxweed,” you responded instead. 

“Oh… because it’s full moon,” Marlene acknowledged. 

You nodded “When are you getting yours?” 

“Marlene ordered them from a fancy potion supply store.” 

“That was allowed?” you asked, surprised.

Marlene shrugged “Not sure, but I highly doubt Slughorn will find out, if anything, we can say we picked them out with you.”

“Sure,” Lily said, sitting down on the sofa next to you, placing your feet on top offer lap to make some space. You made a move to bring your feet down but she shook her head “It’s alright, rest up, you’ve been awake since like 5 am, haven’t you?” You nodded, letting your feet on to lay over her lap “You should just tell James to screw off and sleep in, I can tell you’re not a morning person.” 

You laughed “I wish, but I want to be in top shape for the game and… to be honest, I’m still getting used to my new broom, that’s why I’ve been flying every morning.” Out of nowhere, a pillow was thrown towards your face “Oi, what was that for?” You asked looking at Marlene, who’d been responsible for it. 

“Show off,” she said “ I need time to practice with my new broom ,” she teased “and then she goes and flies like a professional every single damn time.” You opened your mouth to try to speak but closed it soon after, Marlene continued talking “James has been making the training even tougher so we keep up with her .” 

“Sorry,” you said then “I guess I just really like flying.” After all, it’s in my blood , you thought. You wondered if you’d ever trust them enough to tell them about it, the answer was pretty simple, you already did , and you wanted to, but you knew how dangerous it was.

You stayed talking with the girls for a while, Marlene told you about the time she got on the quidditch team, Lily talked about being exceptionally good at potions and being invited to an exclusive party with Slughorn and Mary told you about the private classes she had been taking with Madam Pomfrey, about all the new potions and spells she had learned. 

“It’s finally 11,” said Lily when Mars finished the story about the worst date she had gone on, she’d been invited to a magical restaurant, that had been jinxed by an angry customer the previous day, it had been absolute mayhem. 

You stood up, stretching yourself “We should probably get going,” you said with a smile. She nodded and picked her backpack up, taking out a piece of paper and handing it over. You looked at her puzzled.

“It’s a nigh pass, I asked McGonagall for it,” she told you “We can go out and Filnch won’t say a thing.” 

“Oh nice,” you said looking at the paper, boy, how easy would it be to make duplicates of it, with different dates . “Shall we?” You asked tilting your head towards the door. She nodded and the two of you walked towards the portrait of the fat lady. 

“Good luck girls!” You heard Marlene shout from behind.

“Yeah, we’ll be back in the bedroom.”

Chapter Text

Chapter 10: Black Dog

September 24, 1976 - Friday 11:00 pm

As you walked outside of the portrait and onto the halls you realised how much lonelier the school looked like at night. Of course, you’d been out at night on your first night, back then you’d been hanging out with Remus and James and Peter, but right now, being just you and Lily, it all felt bigger, darker . So you decided to fill the emptiness with a conversation.

“So…. You and James?” You said with a raised eyebrow. 

“There is no me and James,” Lily replied. 

“Aw, come on.” You nudged her again “You can trust me.” 

She drew in a deep breath “It’s just that… James Potter is– he’s infuriating !” She told you. “With all his pranks and charm and his constant flirting and–“

“–and you liked it when you kissed him, didn’t you?” You asked, she instantly turned red, you smiled “and there’s nothing wrong with that. Who knows? You may discover other things about James, things that make you forgive those you dislike.” 

She frowned, genuinely thinking about it “Well, I guess objectively … I mean… He’s pretty good-looking.” 

You agreed “and he’s funny as well. And… best part–” you made a dramatic pause “–he’s madly in love with you.” 

She shook her head in disbelief, with a smile plastered on her face anyway. But then she decided to turn things around “What about you and Sirius?” 

You snapped your head towards her “What’s with me and Sirius?” 

“Well, after that summer he met you he was all mopy for months. He told me a lot of things about you, you couldn’t even get him to shut up. And then he started going out with girls and dumping them shortly after. I think he was trying to get his mind off you,” she said “and… I don’t know, he said you were the one to kiss him first, which is why assumed you liked him.” 

“I did.” 

“ Did? ” 

You sighed “It’s hard not to fall for Sirius Black,” you said, “he’s exceptionally charming, not to mention beautiful.” 

Lily shrugged “If you like the prince-y type.” 

“Well,” you said with a frown “I am weak like that, can’t help but like beautiful people,” you said dramatically “And he’s so playful, and when he gets riled up, he looks adorable too, it’s fun to tease him.” 

“So you still like him,” Lily replied, matter of factly. 

“Well even if I did, last time I acted upon my feelings things didn’t end well. I was heartbroken, and I thought he had completely forgotten about me. All that’s in the past obviously, and I know he didn’t mean to ghost me, but I… It’s just that… It took time to get over him.” 

Lily nodded, she knew just how complicated Sirius could be “Personally, I think if he likes you, and you like him, you should just start dating.” 

You laughed at that “Look who’s talking.” 

“I mean… You and Sirius would make a fantastic couple.” 

“Yeah, you and Potter would make beautiful babies,” you retorted.

She lightly hit you with the back of her hand, “Enough boy talk.” 

You laughed, it was so easy to see Lily’s newfound feeling for James, you just loved to tease her, she’d get red and flustered and she was adorable. And objectively speaking, as she had said herself, you really did think she and James would make a wonderful pair. 

Fifteen minutes later you were already on the doors that lead outside. You looked up, the moon was already in the sky, looking majestic as ever, stars shining brightly. The wind was blowing your hair and robes, so you took a deep breath of the crisp night air and smiled

Hogwarts at night carried an even more magical air to it than it did in the mornings. You were walking behind Lily when you heard a distant howl that made you shiver, your hair flowing still, strong wind blowing towards the distant trees. “Did you hear that?”  You asked her, walking closer, it was the same type of howl that haunted your dreams.

“Heard what?” Lily asked, playing dumb. She knew what it was, she had figured Remus was a werewolf a couple of years back, and she asked him about it when he seemed ready to tell her, they had a really nice conversation that day, it was probably around the time they became really close.  

“The creepy howl?” You said with a frown, was it possible it was all in your head, maybe something about the book Nina gave you had permeated your head enough to cause mild hallucinations, maybe it was sleep deprivation. All though, you didn’t really feel like you were much sleep-deprived. 

She shook her head, and you continued walking beside her. Once you were in the greenhouses you both grabbed some gardening tools and walked towards the fluxweed. You grabbed a small shovel and started to carefully dig around the roots, to avoid hurting them, while Lily gently pulled the plant from the top, and lit up the area with her wand. Eventually, you put on a pair of gloves and started digging with your own hands. You heard another howl, this one was sharper and not as deep as the first, it also sounded a lot closer. 

“You surely heard that one, didn’t you?” You asked, a chill running through your spine, the hairs from your arm standing on end. 

Lily couldn’t deny it, it had been very obvious, and if she did, you may start thinking you were crazy yourself. So she did the most logical thing she could, and lied. “Must be Fang, Hagrid’s dog.” 

“A dog? So loud?” You asked. 

“You should see him,” she replied, not wanting to get deeper into the lie. 

You nodded and continued to pull the fluxweed together. “Who’s Hagrid, by the way?” 

“Oh that’s right, we should probably introduce you to him. I guess you didn’t come on the boats like the first years. He’s the gamekeeper, you’d like him.” 

You finally managed to dig out all the roots, Lily grabbed the plant and carefully placed it on a satchel she’d brought. You then went for the second plant. A couple of minutes later you were done. And the two of you smiled satisfied, walking towards the closet and leaving all the tools carefully in their place. 

You heard another howl, the deeper one this time. The two howls could not possibly be from the same animal. But you realised you sounded paranoid, so you decided to drop the subject and avoid mentioning them anymore.  

Once you were done the two of you started walking back to the common room, as you crossed the long stone hall that led you back to the castle you saw something move, it was back in the forbidden forest. You turned, trying to see what was happening better, but the wind was making your hair get in the way, you only managed to see 3 dark figures, running very, very fast through the edges of the forest. Those night vision glasses that you considered designing for your magical theory class, seemed like they would be awfully useful now, maybe you could make more than one of the things you’d thought of originally. 

Lily looked at you nervously, she could tell the boys were trying to keep Moony in check by the way some of the shadows pushed onto the others. Something was happening , and she knew it was best to get back to the common room as soon as possible. So she grabbed your arm lightly and pulled you from the window’s arch, “Come on, I’m kind of getting cold.” 

“But Lily, didn’t you see those figures?” You asked her as you let her guide you towards the castle. 

“It must be the centaurs from the forbidden forest,” she said, as casually as she could, picking up the peace regardless “Sometimes they come out of their hiding spots to talk to Hagrid.” 

“Really?” You asked, not sounding too convinced. 

“Yeah, totally,” Lily said, basically dragging you through the big doors. 

Once inside the castle, the two of you walked back to the dorms. And after setting your fluxweed on a little string to dry, the two of you went to your respective beds. 

That night the nightmares came again, you running from the wolf, the howls, the dark tunnel. It was even worse than before, it felt so real that when you woke up you were drenched in sweat. Your light cotton shirt felt soggy and gross. You took a deep breath and looked at the bright green clock on the wall, it was 4am but you sure as hell did not want to go back to sleep. So you went into your shared bathroom and cast a silencing spell, as not to wake the girls up. 

You started running a hot bath for yourself. Perhaps that would help you relax from the nightmare. And you remembered you had a bath potion somewhere in your bags. Something that was meant to be relaxing, so you cast a footstep-silencing charm too and went out to get it. As you were rummaging through your bag Mary woke up, and saw you there, which made her frown “You ok love?” She whispered. 

You nodded “Just having a hard time sleeping,” you whispered back. She didn’t seem convinced but decided to give you some space, she knew you’d ask for help should you need it. 

Once you had your potion, you gave her a small smile and entered the bathroom again. The water was already halfway filling the tub and you lightly poured half of the potion on it, turning the bath water a light blue colour, it shimmered and smelled like the sea. You closed your eyes and delighted in the already calming smell. You played with the water and after a couple of minutes peeled off your sweat-drenched clothes and submerged in the tub.  As you continued to toy with the water you felt your ring slip off. You fished for it lazily and set it near the sink. As you relaxed in the bath, you dozed off, waking up as some soft dawn rays hit your face directly from the small window. You woke up with a gasp, you had fallen asleep, but… there had been no nightmares . You wondered what time it was, you had to be ready for flying, so you got out as quickly as possible, unplugging the bath with a wave of your wand, not even bothering to check the time. Once outside you started putting on some thick clothes for the cold morning ahead. 

Marlene had gone into the bathroom shortly after, and just as you grabbed your broom, she called for you “Hey, (Y/N)!” She said, “You forgot this.” She handed over your ring. 

“Oh, thanks!” You said to her and smiled. Before waving goodbye and running out. By the time you were down at the common room, it was already 6:00. You always flew at 5:30 on Saturdays, so when you saw neither Sirius nor James, you assumed they had gone off without you so you walked outside. 

“Good morning (Y/N)! Going alone today?” Asked the lady from the portrait. 

You turned to her with a frown “Haven’t the boys left already?”

“Hmm…” she said “I’m not sure, I don’t think I’ve seen them since yesterday actually.” 

“Yesterday?” 

She nodded “Have you seen them, Charles?” She asked to another painting. 

“Not at all,” said the tall wizard in the painting as he poured a bit of potion into a vase. 

“Perhaps they’re out doing their pranks,” said the lady as you looked at her, still frowning. 

“Yeah, probably,” you agreed, still frowning. You'd guess James would have told you he wasn’t going to fly this morning, maybe they forgot, or maybe their prank was so top secret he couldn’t. You waved the portraits goodbye and walked towards the courtyard with your broom in hand. 

From there you took off and started flying around the castle until you saw a big black dog, lying near the entrance of the forbidden forest. You looked at it with concern, and flew towards it, hovering a few metres above. The dog looked dazed like it was fighting between consciousness and sleep. It had a light cut over his shoulder, and there was a lot of blood surrounding him, but it didn’t look like his own. You took a deep breath, you had to help him. This dog may be Fang, Hagrid’s dog, the one Lily told you about yesterday, and you wouldn’t want anyone’s dog to be lying there unconscious, but you also knew you had to be cautious, The dog was so big it could easily bite your hand off. 

So, after some quick thinking, you decided to slowly, and steadily land, a little far from the dog, you let your broom fall on the ground, as you carefully walked towards the creature. The dog itself was stunning, it had dark thick fur, and  stunning light blue eyes. “Hey buddy,” you said, trying not to sound as nervous as you were. “I’m here to help all right, please don’t bite me.” 

The dog seemed to look at you lazily for a second, fixing his gaze on your face, before letting his face fall to the ground again, tired. Well, he wasn’t going to bite you, that was good. You finally leaned in close enough to touch it, and you carefully placed your hand over his head. He was cold, very cold, he might have been lying there for a while. You quickly took off your sweater and placed it over him. It was the same thick sweater Sirius’ had altered the colour off weeks ago. 

“You must have had a pretty rough night, eh?” You told him softly, digging on the ground lightly in front of his snout, doing it slowly, so as not to scare him “ aguamenti, ” you said, filling the little hole you dug with water for the dog to drink “Where you the one howling so desperately?” You said, as you grabbed a handkerchief from your pocket and dipped it in some water to clean his wound. The dog flinched as you placed the cloth on his open gush, but it didn’t become aggressive. 

You didn’t know much about caring for hurt animals, but you remembered reading somewhere that calendula was good for open wounds and decided to test your luck “ Accio Calendula?” a small plant with orange flowers came flying towards your face, you managed to catch it with your hands and quickly started pulling the petals from the small flowers. You then used some nearby rocks to grind the petals, adding a bit of water to turn the mixture into a paste. There wasn’t much of it, but you figured it would be enough. “All right Fang ,” you said “This may or may not hurt like hell. Please don’t bite my face off if it does, m’kay?”

After taking a deep breath you grabbed the paste with your finger and placed it right over the dog’s wound. The dog growled, protesting, but did not attempt to move away from you. Once you were done, you wiped the stickiness of your fingers on the grass. And the dog nudged your hand, softly moving his head beneath it. Did he want you to pet him?

You complied, running your fingers through his head, scratching near his ear carefully, he seemed at ease. At some point the dog placed his entire head over your lap, enjoying the way your hands ran up and down his fur. When he looked better, you nudged him slightly “Don’t you think we should go to your owner? I’m sure Hagrid’s worried about his dog missing.” Instead of standing excitedly at the mention of his owner, the dog sank deeper into your lap, nudging you with his head, so you didn’t stop petting him. “All right, big boy,” you said, “I suppose we can stay here a bit longer.” 

As you lay in the grass with the dog, you started feeling your stomach rumble. It must already be breakfast time , you thought, and then wondered if the dog was feeling the same way “Aren’t you hungry?” You asked him, as if he could understand. And the dog, the bloody dog , nodded! You were shocked, it must have been a coincidence, or maybe Hagrid’s dog was magical somehow. “Well then buddy, I’ll go get the two of us something to eat all right. I’ll be quick, I promise.” You said, carefully standing up and running towards your broom. 

Once you landed back at the courtyard you ran towards the kitchen and you bumped into James, who looked dishevelled and tired “Sorry!” You said as you saw him “You ok?” You asked with a frown “I… kind of expected to see you in the morning.” 

James nodded “Sorry about that, we had a long night.” He told you, and shook his nose a little “Were you with Sirius?” 

You shrugged at the question, “No, I… haven't seen him since yesterday,” you answered honestly, but James could smell Sirius on you . “I guessed you’d be with him.” 

“Yeah,” he said with a nod “We were together, but… uh– we lost him at some point, I was hoping he’d gotten back to the common room.” 

“Was the prank successful at least?” You asked kindly. 

James looked at you with a frown and raised his eyebrows when he realised what was going on, you thought they’d been out planning a prank, so he nodded “We… had some mishaps.” 

“I’m really sorry to hear that,” you said, placing an understanding hand on his shoulders “Anyway…” the sense of urgency was strong, and you had to go back to check on the dog “I’ve got to run, I’m trying to bring some food for Fang, he was badly hurt, I found him while flying.” 

“Fang?” James asked with a frown. 

You nodded, already a few metres away from him “Hagrid’s dog!” You clarified, running towards the kitchens. 

“Hagrid’s dog?!” 

“Big black dog, stunning specimen, a little threatening from afar?” You said last. 

“Oh… Fang … right.” James said. So , you had been with Sirius after all, you just didn’t know it . 

Once you got to the kitchens you spotted Nimbletwist and you politely asked her for something with meat on it. She nodded and quickly wrapped some food up for you. 

“Thank you,” you said kindly “You’ve always been willing to help me.” 

“It’s ma’ pleasure to help ye’ Master (Y/N),” she said with a smile, as she handed it over. 

Once you held it secure, you ran towards the courtyard again, grabbing onto your broom, which you’d left lying on a corner there, you took off and quickly flew towards the place you’d found Fang, but he was gone. You walked around the place in which you’d found him, even walking a few steps inside the forest, but the dog was nowhere to be seen. Assuming he’d been feeling better, you took a deep breath and flew back to the castle. 

You walked towards your room and changed into your uniform quickly. Sliding on Remus’ thick sweater to keep you warm, since you were almost shivering from flying so fast, and Fang had kept your sweater. 

Once you were downstairs you found almost everyone already having breakfast. Sirius was sitting next to James, hair messy and looking as worn out as his friend. They really must have had a wild night , you thought. Peter was there too, he didn’t look as tired as the boys, but he did look mortified, and a little exhausted, like he’d been running all night, it made you wonder what kind of prank they had been planning to all look so depleted. 

You finished eating as fast as you could, since you knew you had Apparition in like 15 minutes and Professor Dumbledore did not like it when people were late. Especially since it was the only class he taught. It was barely your second class, so it was all theory, inside the castle. Everyone in your friend group had taken the class, knowing full well how useful it could be, so you all walked together to the classroom that you unfortunately shared with Slytherins. 

As you walked in, and class started you leaned towards Peter, “Where’s Remus?” You asked him.

“He’s not feeling good, he was hurt last night,” he whispered back, “he decided to skip the class, he’s at the infirmary.” 

You looked at Peter surprised, he said it with such ease, like it was something that happened all the time, which was actually true, even if last night had been harder on the boys. But you, having met Remus for only a couple of weeks, did not expect him to just get randomly hurt and skip classes, especially since you’d seen how much he cared about them. Even you had skipped a class or two, and he’d been the one to pass you the notes. So you decided you’d return the favour, copying the majority of what Dumbledore was explaining in class, as neatly and orderly as you could. 

After Apparition, you had four hours of care for magical creatures. You spent the first half of the class learning all about the nifflers before being taken into a room full of them. Professor Kettleburn had asked the MCZ (Magical Creatures Zoo) to borrow them for a month, and the students would be in charge of their care; naturally, everyone was fascinated with them. As you played with one of them, you started drawing him, letting another one play with your left hand. The scoundrel was carefully working his way to remove your ring when you noticed. 

“Hey little guy!” You reprimanded “Not that, here…” You took out a golden coin from your purse, “take this one instead.” The little niffler seemed pretty satisfied. Once you were done you went to the kitchens for the second time in the day and asked Nimbletwist if she could get you some chocolate. She nodded, and a few minutes later showed up with 10 bars. You laughed at the excess but thanked her before placing them in the pockets of your robe. They might be useful later on, anyway. 

As you ran through the halls you spotted Alexander Wood, and stopped, you had been hoping to find him. “Hey Alex!” You told him with a smile. “Mind helping me duplicate my notes real quick?” You asked him kindly. 

He nodded “I can teach you the spell if you want to, I’ve got the book right now in fact…” 

You smiled “I’d love that… but- I’m sort of on my way to see my friend, he didn’t go to classes because he was feeling bad and… I wanted to help him with my notes since he always lends me his.” 

Alex nodded and walked with you “Then I won’t take much more of your time,” he said as you handed over your papers and he duplicated them with ease “By the way, will you come to Hogsmeade tonight? I heard Marlene and Holden are coming.” 

“I… probably,” you told him with a smile “I’ll see you then, maybe?” 

He nodded in response, and you waved goodbye to him “Thank you for the papers!” 

“My pleasure,” he said before continuing his path.

That’s when you walked towards the infirmary, knocking on the door quietly in case anyone was sleeping. Madam Pomfrey was there “Is there something wrong darling?” She asked you with concern. 

You shook your head “Can I uh… I’m actually here to see a friend.” 

“Remus?” You nodded, and she let you in. “Poor boy, I gave him a drought for pain, he won’t stay awake for much longer, so you better hurry.” 

“Thank you,” you said with a smile and walked towards the area she had pointed out. When you opened the curtain you were shocked. Remus was shirtless, his entire chest bandaged as if he had a massive gash underneath it, “Rem?” You asked worried “What the hell happened last night? The boys already look like shit, but you look like you’ve been run over by a truck.” 

“(Y/N)? Is… is that you?” He asked, distraught. 

You nodded and sat down beside him “Of course silly! I Brought you some chocolate.” You said pulling out a bar, and opening it up for him “Have you eaten anything? Do you want me to get you something to eat?” 

He shook his head, he was more sleep than awake, but he grabbed the chocolate bar and munched on it “Why are you here?” He asked. 

You were taken aback by that, “because I’m your friend? Peter said you were feeling bad, I’m actually surprised the boys aren’t here too.” 

“Last night was… they must be feeling pretty bad too.” 

“They looked rough,” you agreed, and leaned in closer to him, trying to identify how bad his wound was. He looked paler than normal, like he had lost a lot of blood. “Rem… are you sure you’re ok?” 

“I heal fast,” he said as he gave another bite of his chocolate “and Madam Pomfrey knows how to take care of me too.” 

You leaned in on the bed, letting your arms fall next to his and resting your head on top of them. He flinched when your silver ring brushed over his skin, but you had quickly accommodated it closer to your face than his arm. Remus was already close to falling asleep “I brought you my notes, so you don’t miss any of what we did today,” you said “Apparition was just theory but, we also got to meet some nifflers.”

“Did you?” 

“Yeah, baby nifflers,” you said with a smile “They’re adorable.” 

“Bet.” 

“You know…” you said, tracing circles around your own arm with your fingers, “I had a rough night last night too.” Remus hummed in response, “Not like you, not at all… but… I had the worst nightmare I’ve had in my life, it was so vivid I didn’t want to go back to bed.” 

“‘m sorry,” he mumbled. You made a gesture to move away from the bed and back into your chair but he placed a hand over your arm “Don’t… you smell nice.” 

You chuckled at that “I must smell of sweat and wet dog,” you said “I found Hagrid’s dog outside, and helped him, he looked like he too had had a pretty bad night. He had a gash on his shoulder and I was running around between the kitchens and the dog, freezing since I gave it my sweater,” Remus looked at you with worry, what if Moony had hurt Fang? “He’s very pretty, isn't he?” 

“ Fang? ” He asked with a frown, incredulity dripping from his tone. He certainly wouldn’t use pretty to describe the dog. 

“Yeah, so big and those bright blue eyes,” you said “I’ve never seen a prettier dog in my life.” 

Sirius. You hadn’t helped Fang, you’d helped Sirius. Remus wondered what on earth had made you assume Sirius was Fang . He wondered too if Sirius had heard you call him Fang when you helped him, he would definitely tease him about it when he was feeling better. 

“You smell nice anyway,” he said. You smelled like Sirius, and you smelled like you at the same time. Remus might not know why he felt that way, but he knew one thing for certain: he didn’t want you to pull away , he could smell that mixture of scents for the rest of his life and he’d be at peace. Maybe it was a wolf thing, he didn’t care , he was also so drunk on painkillers that he wasn’t at all thinking properly. 

At some point he placed his fingers over your head and started playing with your hair, you delighted in the feeling of his fingers running over your scalp. You were glad you’d found such an amazing friend in him, so caring and compassionate. He was hurt so bad, and yet, he’d decided to comfort you as much as you comforted him. With Remus’ fingers running through your scalp, you dozed off again. When you woke up, it was already dark outside, and your stomach was rumbling, you hadn’t properly eaten at all that day. Madam Pomfrey was looking at you from the curtains with a smile. 

“You make him feel at ease,” She told you, “He rarely stays long with me nowadays,” she said with a bit of longing in her voice. You frowned, was it common for him to go to the infirmary? “All right love,” Madam Pomfrey said with a soft smile “I’ll take care of him, off you go.” 

You looked at her and nodded, finally standing up and walking towards the exit “Actually…” you said turning towards her “Is– Is there anything I can take to prevent nightmares?” 

She bit her lip and nodded “It depends on the type of nightmares you’ve got, but I can give you an anxiety-reducing potion… do you think that could help?” 

You shrugged, you didn’t think the nightmares were anxiety-induced but you nodded “I’d like that.” 

“If it doesn’t get better, just come back to me love, I’m sure we can figure something out together.”

You nodded at her with a smile, thanking her as she handed you the small vial. It was the same droplet vial that Remus and you used on your fireworms. Shit, the fireworms! Remus had asked you to feed the fireworms , you thought as you ran out towards the passages, speeding through the dark as fast as you could. If you were too late, they could literally explode, you had to be there on time . When you reached the little nook where you’d left them you finally relaxed. They were both fine, so you took out some food from your pockets and left it on their makeshift feeding plate. 

Thankfully Remus had asked you to feed them since yesterday. You might have forgotten about it all together with the hectic day you had. 

Hold up , Remus had asked you to feed them yesterday . Almost as if he’d known he’d be feeling bad the next morning, but how was that possible? Was he expecting something to go wrong while he was planning the prank? Then why would he go ahead with it anyway? Or maybe he was just thinking ahead, taking into consideration how complicated the prank was, and decided to make sure the fireworms would be all right. Yeah, that made a lot more sense . 

Remus was clever, he knew the prank was dangerous and decided to have a contingency plan. That was the most plausible explanation. And as the Occam’s Razor principle would say, the explanation that requires the least assumptions is usually correct . Remus was not some kind of divination master, he was just really good at thinking ahead. There was a reason he was a Prefect after all. The teachers probably knew how forehanded he was, and that’s how he’d gotten the little badge. 

Once you’d settled your thoughts, you walked back to the common room. Passing by the kitchens for the third time that day to get yourself a decent snack. Nimbletwist was more than thrilled to see you and asked you about your day as you asked her about hers. You told her all about the crazy day you’d had and she made sure to prepare you the biggest sandwich you’d seen in your entire life. 

“Ye must nourish yourself properly if ye be wishin’ to carry on with yer castle adventures master (Y/N).” 

“I wouldn’t call them adventures, maybe mishaps,” you said with a smile but Nibletwist shook her head.

"Me's been keepin' me eyes on ya," she squeaked, her voice full of concern. "Since the day ya arrived 'ere, ya was wearin' sadness on yer face, lookin' all tired and such. But now, oh me goodness, there's a gleam of mischief in yer peepers! Ya's all brimmin' with excitement, even if ya be wearin' the exhaustion on ya. No doubts 'bout it, ya's livin' through a grand adventure, ya is!" She said finally, handing you over your massive sandwich. 

You smiled at her “Thank you, Nimbletwist,” you told her with a smile. And she waved goodbye to you before disappearing. You stood there, maybe she was right , you were genuinely happy about being in Hogwarts, it was fun, and you’d made so many amazing friends already. So you smiled to yourself as you walked towards the common room. Greeting the lady of the portrait as you went inside. 

James was sitting on the single couch, “Hey (Y/N)!” He greeted “Didn’t you go to Hogsmeade?” 

You gasped, suddenly remembering Alex had told you a lot of your friends were actually going earlier that day. You looked at the clock, It was already 7:00 pm, they were all probably on their way back. Since they had to be at the castle before 9. 

“I… totally forgot about it,” You said plopping out in the double coach next to Sirius. 

“She was with Remus,” Sirius said simply. 

“Yeah I…” you agreed, but then snapped your head towards your friend “How do you know?” 

You smelled like medicinal herbs, chocolate and werewolf. A little of himself too, ever so faintly at this point. But Sirius couldn’t give you that as an answer, so he made something up quickly “Peter said he told you Remus was feeling bad.” 

You nodded “I guess yesterday’s prank didn’t go as planned.” 

“Certainly not,” James replied, rolling his shoulders back, as if he was trying to ease some tension on them.

“Pitty,” you said, finally leaning towards the table to grab a slice of your sandwich. “I was excited to see what kind of prank you made. I’ve heard a lot about your pranks, and the rain on the first day was fun.” 

“Thanks!” Said James proudly “It was actually my idea.” 

“But I perfected the spell,” added Sirius. 

“Moony helped you a lot…” 

“Naturally, he’s brilliant!”

“Do you boys want some of my sandwich?” You offered “I wanted something to eat, but after telling Nimbletwist I had skipped almost all of my meals she gave me this monstrosity.” 

Sirius shook his head, but James nodded, leaning in to grab the half you’d left on the cloth. “Why didn’t you go to the great hall instead?” 

“It was dark outside, I thought it was already like 9 or something, I accidentally took a nap when I was with Rem, lost track of time,” you said before giving a bite of your sandwich. 

“You went to visit him, and napped? ” Sirius teased with a raised eyebrow.

You finished munching on it quickly. “Well, technically we both fell asleep, he was pretty dumbed out with painkiller draughts.” 

“Do you mind?” Sirius asked, after letting his head fall over your lap and placing his boots over the armrest. You gave him a look, eyebrows raised. 

“You always ask after you’ve done it.” 

He shrugged “It’s just to be polite, I’m sure you don’t,” he said,  giving you that utterly charming grin of his. I really am weak to beauty , you thought as you stared at Sirius’ sprawled hair over your lap, lashes thick as he looked at you with his smug little expression. 

You shook your head lightly and rolled your eyes. James, from his side, was too focused on the sandwich to notice the way Sirius and you were staring at each other. “Dude,” he said as he finished his first bite. “That elf loves you, this sandwich is killer!” 

You nodded in agreement, “It’s really good, right? I think she’s really nice. Our house elf isn’t nearly as nice.” 

“And you never met Kreacher,” Sirius said “He hates me with all his guts.”

James nodded, he’d visited Sirius in his house once, after the second year break, and Kreacher was definitely something . “He’s awful! Thankfully Sirius won’t have to live with him again.” 

“Is he leaving?” You asked casually. 

“No. I did.” Sirius responded. Your eyes widened, jaw dropping at the same time.

“You left home?” 

“He moved in with me,” said James with a smug smile. 

You smiled brightly “That’s amazing!” You said “I mean… I’m glad you’re finally free of your parents.” 

Sirius chuckled lightly at your excitement. Only people that’d met his parents had a similar one, “I’m happy I got rid of them too, unfortunately now, I have to deal with this bloke,” he joked, pointing at James. 

“Shut up Pads, you love me!” Replied James while he shot a small cushion towards Sirius’ legs since his face was still on your lap, and he didn’t want to throw your sandwich. 

They both laughed, and you were delighted by the soft sounds. James, Sirius, Remus and Peter, really had the kind of friendship you could only dream of. 

You took another bite of your sandwich and remembered you still had chocolate in your pockets, so you took it out and hovered it over Sirius’ face “Want some?” You asked.  

He nodded and motioned to grab for it, but you pulled it up slightly, out of his grasp, just to tease him “Hey!” He complained. 

“What?” You asked, playing dumb.

He narrowed his eyes at you and went to grab for it again. You pulled it just the same “What are you playing?” 

“Me? Nothing, you’ve got slippery fingers.” 

“Slippery fingers my ass,” he said. He went to grab for it again and you pulled it upwards one last time “Come on (Y/N)! I’m not a dog!” He said. 

James straight up laughed at that, and you looked at him with a smile “See? Even your best friends think you’re like a Puppy!” You laughed for a bit, and then opened the chocolate, holding a small block to his mouth, he took a bite from it, looking rather displeased “ Good boy !” You praised, causing James to burst into a fit of laughter, Sirius almost choked on the piece he was eating. 

“Hold up!” You said in a completely serious tone, and looked at James preoccupied, who somehow managed to stop his laughs to pay attention “Aren’t dogs supposed to be… allergic to chocolate ?” 

James looked at you with surprise, breaking quickly into a smile and even more laughs, you were absolutely hilarious, it was as if  you had a hidden talent to tease Sirius. And you didn’t even actually know he was a dog, you just teased him about it because of the nickname you’d given him years ago. Sirius on the other hand, took the chance to pull the chocolate bar off your hands and started munching on it while looking at you with apprehension, half expecting you to take it from him again, but you didn’t. 

“Want some?” You asked as you pulled out another bar and waved it in the air for James to see, he nodded, and you threw it at him. 

“Ah, so James can have the chocolate without any teasing then?” Sirius asked, a little miffed. 

You shrugged “James doesn’t lay on my lap without asking for permission like others .” 

“Yeah well, James’s stuck up!” 

You laughed “Look who’s talking!” 

Sirius took that as a personal challenge, running his tongue through his cheeks before asking “Are you by any chance… ticklish?”

Your smile was gone in an instant, you looked at him with worry “No.” You said in a warning tone. 

Sirius’ smile grew bigger “Sure? I just thought I’d show you how stuck up I am .” 

“Not funny Sirius,” you said “James?!” You added looking at your friend pleadingly, you were aware once something was set on Sirius’ mind, there was no way of stopping him.

James just raised his hands up in surrender. The motherfucker wouldn’t intervene . “James,” you pleaded again, as Sirius’ grin grew. 

“You’ve been teasing him all night,” James said with a shrug “I’m afraid I cannot intercede for you.” 

You looked at him with despair before you felt Sirius tickling hands on the tender side of your stomach, a burst of laughter erupted from your lips. You were extremely ticklish. “Sirius,” you pleaded in between laughter “please!” His smile widened in response to your begging, his eyes cherishing the sight of your laughter. You looked lovely like that. Another peal of laughter escaped, your breath quickening as the tickling persisted. Sirius shifted sitting up from your lap to gain better access, he was standing even closer to you than before “Sirius!” You exclaimed once more, laughing still, you were sure tears were running down your cheeks already. 

When he didn’t stop you tried grabbing onto his hand and tickling him, but you barely managed to graze him before he quickly grabbed onto your arm with one of his hands to hold you still. You tried to use your other arm, but it was useless, Sirius was stronger. You wouldn’t get out of it with strength. So as you continued laughing you started trying to find another way and quickly realised he had one leg bent on the sofa and the other he was using for support, so you extended your leg and used the back of your shin to bend his knee over, pushing him back at the same time. But Sirius was still grabbing onto you so he ended up pulling you along, the two of you ended up on the floor. James looked up from the book he’d grabbed and when he figured everyone was fine he went back to it. Not bothering to give a second glance, Sirius could have his fun .

You used your arm to pull yourself up, grazing over Sirius’ shoulder, causing him to wince, but you assumed that had been from the fall. You stared at him catching your breath for a second, Sirius looked so pretty with his hair sprawled out over the floor that it took all your will not to kiss him right there and then, but you managed and rolled to the side, pushing the centre table slightly as you did. 

“Truce!” You exhaled. “Please Sirius I need to– I need to breathe.” 

Sirius turned to you for a second, a smug smile on his face, how was it possible that you were even prettier than when he met you? Shaking his thoughts, he looked up again, noticing for the first time the starry night on the ceiling and seeing the shooting star close to his constellation. He wondered when those stars had appeared. He was also breathing heavily when he said “Take back what you said about me being stuck up!”

You laughed incredulously “You’re right Sirius, you’re not stuck up,” you said as you stood up “You’re just a little pretentious,” you smiled, before running off to your room. 

Sirius had tried to stand up to catch you, but the roughness of last night had taken a toll on him, his arm still hurt when he finally laid back on the couch. 

“When are you planning to admit to yourself that you like her?” James asked, still looking at the book.

Sirius sighed, closing his eyes “I know I do. But I doubt she likes me still.” 

“That’s a lot of crap.” 

Sirius shook his head with a smile, deciding to change the subject “How’re you feeling? I’m pretty sure Moons was hard to push around when I was knocked out.” 

“A little sore,” James replied, allowing Sirius to change the subject, for today. “I had to gore him, there was a lot of blood and he woke up with a huge gush. Peter and I had to drag him back before Madam Pomfrey arrived. You?”

“Just a small cut, he clawed at me accidentally. Any idea why he was so aggressive?” 

James shook his head “We asked him, he had no clue, just a vague idea of having the urge to run to the greenhouses.” 

“The greenhouses? Is that where he was trying to go?” James nodded, even if Sirius wasn’t looking. “It was rough, hopefully next full moon won’t be as harsh.” 

“Yeah, we wouldn’t want (Y/N) to find Fang hurt again.” 

“Ughhh…” Sirius complained, “You know about that?” 

“At first I thought you’d snogged her,” James replied “She stank off you.” 

“I don’t stink!” 

“Off-topic. We have a more important question: Why the hell did she assume you were Fang?” 

Sirius shrugged, “She just called me that when she found me.” 

“We must be more careful, she may end up connecting the dots, especially since she gave us the animagus recipe.” 

Sirius incorporated quickly, snapping his head to James “You said you’d found them in the restricted section!” 

“Oh right…. In September that year I received a letter, it wasn’t signed but I connected the dots when she was back here and mentioned you’d never replied to any of her letters. Anyway, it was from her, she sent the parchment.” 

“So you’re saying I could’ve contacted her through you, all these years?” 

James seemed to think about it “I suppose it would’ve been possible… but to be honest, I just assumed it had been Regulus.” 

“Reg?” Sirius asked with a frown. 

James nodded “You didn’t talk to him at all that summer, he wrote me several times, asking me to put him in contact with you, to give you notes or something, you always rejected anything that came from him, so I assumed he just didn’t want it to be evident he’d be the one to get it, so you’d actually take it.”

Sirius sighed loudly, Reg and him had taken very different paths, and Reg had stopped trying to contact him “What a miserable family.” 

James gave his friend a pitying look, thankfully Sirius would not have to go back to them. He was free now. Free to do whatever he wanted for the rest of his life, “You’re with us now, we’re your family.” 

Sirius smiled, James was right , you, The Marauders, Lily, and the rest of his friends, they were his family .  

Chapter Text

October 3rd, 1976 - Sunday

The day of the race finally came, the school was buzzing with excitement. The quidditch captains had gotten some of the teachers to help after asking for the right permissions, and even Professor McGonagall was going to be among the judges since she had been an amazing player before her injury in her last year. Everyone in the school knew how good she’d been, a legend , in fact. So it only made the race even more exciting. 

Only quidditch players from the different teams had been allowed to participate in the end, which meant only the fastest flyers of the school were going to be in the race. James had even gotten around to buying a small trophy that he’d be handing over to the winner. Sirius had already boastfully told him where he’d be placing it once he got it. 

You woke up earlier than usual, the anticipation eating you up. James had borrowed an old quidditch uniform for you to wear, and Beth had helped you alter it, switching James’ last name for your own, and adding some patches she had you order on the magazine. “Good look charms,” she’d told you. Marlene was also getting ready beside you, she chose to wear only a very thick wool sweater, with a round pin Mary had given her. 

From the Gryffindors, only 4 people had signed up, Marlene, Sirius, Gale Thomas and you, all of them incredibly good flyers. You’d asked Davis why she hadn’t entered the race, she mentioned something about preparing for the O.W.L.s early. And since you’d just been through that last year, you completely understood where she was coming from. 

From the other teams, you’d heard some 7th years had also decided to join, Holden, Minho and Alexander Wood were among them. Once you were outside of the castle you saw crowds of students walking outside, they’d even made merchandise of you and the other competitors. The small girl that’d asked you to teach her how to do a backflip was wearing a pin with your face on it that said something along the lines of “(Y/N) is the fastest flyer of the school,” and she waved at you, giving you a thumbs up while you walked towards the finish line, the little girl you’d helped in your first day, the one who’s ring you had rescued, stood beside her, with a small flag that said “GO (Y/N)!”.

Some kids had made posters, you saw one from some 3rd years that had Marlene’s and your name on it, along with two little stick figures flying around the castle really fast. But Gryffindors weren’t the only supporters you had, Sybil and Nina, from Ravenclaw, both had a pin similar to the one the small Gryffindor girl was wearing and they were sitting together with their own little poster. And even Imogen, who had also opted out of the race, had one pin with Alexander’s face and another with Sirius, Marlene and you. 

As for Sirius, being the heartthrob that he was, had tons of posters, and pins, and you swore you saw a girl with a sweater with his face on it. It is definitely going to get to his head, you thought as you walked towards the competitors’ tent, broom in hand. Sirius hadn’t come out yet, and Marlene was walking next to you. Minho and Holden were already in there, both waved to you and Marlene when they spotted you. They also had their fair quantity of posters and memorabilia scattered all over the crowd. Minho maybe had as many as Sirius, and it wasn’t strange, he was just as much of a heartthrob as your friend. Alex arrived later, and you waved to him with a smile, he walked straight towards you. 

“You’re quite popular,” he said with raised eyebrows “Rumours travel really fast, don’t they? Should’ve asked for your autograph the day I brought you back to the school.” 

You chuckled, “Don’t stress too much about it, I’ll always have discounted autographs for you.” You joked back. The two of you were laughing together when Sirius finally arrived. He had put his hair up in a ponytail, some of the shorter strands of his hair were framing his face, the girl with his sweater alongside her friends fawned over him as he walked beside them, same, you thought as you stared at him. Gale was behind him, not causing as much of a commotion as Sirius, but still holding his fair share of cheers. When Sirius walked into the tent, he had a smirk plastered on his face. 

“Being pretty is not going to make you any faster,” Alex joked. 

“Maybe,” Sirius said cockily “but it sure feels good to be cheered for the loudest ,” his smirk growing with his answer, that got a laugh from everyone. 

You leaned in towards Marlene and whispered “Attention whore.” 

Marlene giggled, nodding in agreement “The biggest of us.” Sirius talked to Minho and some older boys from Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff you hadn’t yet met. 

Imogen had popped inside the tent at some point, even if she wasn’t going to participate in the race, she still had that Quidditch Team member privilege “Feeling ready?” She asked you and Marlene. 

“Born ready,” you replied confidently. You were happily talking to her when you saw someone walk in the tent. His hair long, framing his face, wearing green from head to toe, and with a brand new-looking broom, Regulus . 

The minute he saw you he walked towards you, with the intention of saying hello, he hoped that now you and Sirius were better off, you wouldn’t be so hostile towards him. He hoped wrong . 

“(Y/N),” he said, politely approaching you. You looked at him, not saying a word, “How– How’ve you been? I.. ‘ve been meaning to–“ 

“–Regulus,” he shut up the moment you spoke. “We’re not friends. Stop trying to talk to me,” you said before awkwardly nodding and walking towards Sirius and the boys. Regulus looked at you, hurt evident in his eyes, Marlene gave him a pitiful look and went back to her conversation with Imogen. She was telling her how this boy from the Gryffindor Tower had made a bunch of the pins and posters people had worn to support them.

Once you arrived you stood between Sirius and Minho, a boy who you hadn’t met spoke “So… this is your famous keeper?” He had silver hair and wore blue robes. You smiled at him politely. 

 “This is Lionel Aldrige,” said Minho, “Ravenclaw’s Captain, and keeper .” 

“Nice to meet you,” you said, extending your hand.

He took it in his, he had a firm grip “Nice to meet you too, (Y/N), I’ve heard plenty of you.” 

You smiled, “Hope all good.” 

He nodded “I’d go as far as to say you’ve got your own little fan club in the Ravenclaw tower, I’m excited to finally see you fly.” 

“I won’t disappoint,” you said with a wink. 

Sirius cleared his throat and placed an arm over your shoulders, You raised an eyebrow at his reaction, but he ignored it, making himself comfortable, “‘Course she won’t. She’s ours ,” he said pointing to his red and yellow sweater. 

That’s when James walked in, alongside Dimitry and Delilah Moss, the Hufflepuff captain “Lionel!” Shouted Dimitry “We need to talk.” 

After talking between themselves for a second, they came back, Delilah and Lionel pushed a table with a cloth on top covering something towards you and the rest of the competitors “Gather ‘round!” She said.

James smiled and grabbed a piece of parchment, “Simple rules: No intentional hexes or courses, no grabbing a competitor’s broom, no unauthorised shortcuts, stay on the designated course and for the love of god, wear your safety gear and avoid collisions with each other. This is not quidditch . I know some of you are used to playing rough, but this is about flying ability and speed, so save those moves for the games.” 

“Sorry, James,” said Gale “But… I believe we don’t know what the designated course is.” 

James smiled “I was really hoping you’d ask that,” he said before pulling the cloth and revealing a small 3D version of the castle. 4 small balls of red, green, yellow and blue, going through different sections of Hogwarts, all following the same path.

“We have placed several light halos all over the course we designed,” started Delilah  “You will have to pass through each and every one of them whenever you spot it. Unless you’ve passed through them all, you will not count as a winner, even if you get to the finish line first. It won’t be an easy task, we’ve made sure of it. We’re not only testing your km/h, we’ll be also testing how quick you can react to things happening around you, so expect setbacks.” 

“Some halos will be easier than others,” added Dimitry “Keep an eye out for the harder ones. The race will have a total of 3 laps around the castle. It means you’ll have to follow this path,” he said pointing at the bright lights on the 3D model “at least 3 times before you finish. If you miss a halo, that means you’ll have to do another lap to get it.” 

“Any questions?” Asked Lionel with a bright smile.

“Are there any specific penalties for breaking the rules?" Asked a Slytherin boy, who you quickly identified as Barty Crouch Jr. the kid that hated your guts after you broke his nose with a quaffle.

“You break them, you’re out of the race,” Delilah said sternly. 

“But, how would you know if we did,” asked a taller boy next to Barty, with ashy blonde hair, handsome, but dangerous looking. 

“Rosier,” Dimitry warned, “we do not cheat in my team.” 

The boy raised his hands in defeat, an amused look on his face, he was looking forward to Dimitry leaving the next year. 

"Do we have to pass through the halos in a specific order?" Asked a Hufflepuff girl you didn’t recognize. 

“Yes, you miss one, you have to do another lap to get it,” Alex responded “Any other questions?” 

You shook your head, but then smirked and raised your hand “Yeah,” you said confidently “ When do we start? ”

James looked at you, looking slightly impressed by your boldness, he wanted that kind of confidence in the next Quidditch match. 

“We start now,” Delilah said with a smile and motioned for you to walk out. More people had piled around the starting line, and they cheered as you and all the competitors walked out. Looking around, you realised there was even more merchandise going around now. Most students just had something themed after their house, but a good deal of them had some of those same pins and flags and posters with your faces on them. 

You turned to Marlene with a shrug “How did that happen?” 

“Johnny Ackley,” she told you. 

You shrugged, remembering the name “Same kid with an illegal brewery hidden in his room?” 

“Imogen told me he says he’s an entrepreneur ,” she explained “She said she thinks we should all charge him a fee for using our faces without permission.” She then pointed at the crowd “he’s clearly making a good buck from it.” 

You shrugged “I’m just really curious… How did he get pictures of us? I mean, you all make sense but, I’ve been here for like, a month?”

Marlene smiled, “It seems you’re gonna have to accept the fact that you’re popular now.”

You laughed “I guess I’ll be when I win.” 

“Second place, you mean?” She asked with a smile. And the two of you chuckled. 

Suddenly Dimitry’s voice boomed, amplified by his wand, “Contestants, on your marks!” 

You winked at Marlene and walked towards the line that had your name on it. You could easily see the first bright light halo in front of you. Sirius was next to you on the line-up, and Minho stood on the other side. Both already mounting their brooms. 

“Positions!” He said. Everyone kicked the floor and started hovering about half a metre above the ground, “The race starts when you see the sparks.”

The four team captains arranged themselves in a line, parallel to you and the rest of the competitors. They all raised their wands, and in an instant, sparks from the colour of their houses left their wands at once. You sped up straight towards the first halo, that’d you stopped earlier on and flew right by it. Suddenly it went from white to red, you’d been the first one to reach it. 

“(Y/N) takes the lead of the race with an unprecedented acceleration towards the first halo!” You heard someone’s voice, starting to narrate what was happening. You were not aware you’d have a narrator. 

But you paid no mind to it, to anything really, you were focused on darting as fast as you could towards the next halo, that you saw just a couple of metres above the courtyard. It was still white, which meant, you were still at the head, you smiled at the thought. 

Out of nowhere, you saw a bright flash of red pass by you, Marlene had surpassed you, and she was first to cross the next halo. You smirked and picked up some more speed, swiftly going round the astronomy tower, beating her to the next one. You saw a flash of green to your side, the handsome but dangerous Slytherin boy surpassed you. He’s fast, you thought, but not as fast as me . 

You leaned in closer to the broom, to reduce the friction, and darted past him like an arrow. Claiming the first spot yet again. Sirius caught up with you quickly “On your left,” he said before he dived straight toward the floor, getting the next halo first. You smiled, shaking your head before catching up to him.

“Was it fun while it lasted?” you asked him with a smirk as you passed him and took the next halo. 

The race was tight, you could hear the way the brooms from your peers whistled as they coursed through the air at such high speeds. Regulus passed you a couple of times, but you regained your spot every single one of them.  By the end of the first lap, you were still at the head of the race. 

When you passed the finish line, all the halos were reset to white, ready for the contestants to pass through them as fast as possible, but things were slightly different now, thick stormy clouds had piled on one side of the castle.

 “Competitors look more than ready to take up the second part of the race!” the commentator said excitedly “Be careful, things may not be as easy as they were previously.”  

Those whims of the weather were not natural , which meant the captains had probably created them as part of their setbacks. The minute you crossed the first hoop you felt strong wind throwing you back. And not only that, but the atmosphere was becoming foggy too. You turned your head to James, who was casually looking up at you from where he was, he didn’t even have to see your face to tell you were giving him a reproachful look about it, so he shrugged in response, a playful smile appearing on his face. 

You exhaled, shaking your head before looking up ahead again, the wind was very strong, barely letting you move at all, even as you tried flying full speed. Sirius and Holden, who were much taller and heavier than you, used that to their advantage and overtook you. Marlene was fighting the wind a couple metres to your side and the Hufflepuff girl that you’d met earlier was behind the two of you. 

Pushing through was not going to be enough, you had to find another way to get out of the air current. When Minho passed by, you moved straight behind him, using his weight and height to your favour, you flew as close as possible to him, so you could actually move ahead. Marlene and the Hufflepuff girl took your example and did the exact same thing with two other boys that were passing by them. 

“You having fun there?” Minho asked. 

You laughed “Got a good view of that back all the girls fawn over,” you replied. 

“Do they?” He asked with a smirk, that you couldn’t really see. 

“As if you didn’t know,” you replied. Once the wind started to die down you accelerated again, flying next to Minho for a second. “Thanks for that love!” you said before passing by and launching yourself behind Holden and Sirius, who were fighting for the first spot. 

Minho just laughed and accelerated behind you too, not quite enough to surpass you, but still trailing behind you just a little. The weather was now turning foggy, and you could hear the thunder approaching, or rather, you were the one rapidly approaching it . In between the fog, you spotted one of the white halos and dived straight towards it. Sirius and Holden, who were just a couple of metres ahead of you, saw it. The halo a lot clearer now than it was earlier since it had turned red. 

You smiled “You can still go back and not fall behind that much,” you shouted at the two. 

“Yeah, we’d only be falling behind you, wouldn’t we?” Asked Holden as he took a sharp turn back and flew past you in the other direction. 

“Not my fault you boys are blind,” you said waving at Sirius with a smile as he passed by you, straight towards Holden. You took your chance and accelerated as much as possible, hoping to leave the boys behind.

 When you entered the rain you gasped, the droplets were so cold it might as well have been snow, your googles started fogging up, so you passed your sleeve over them to clean them, spotting another one of the Halos a couple of metres in front of you, next to one of the windows of the astronomy tower. But then you heard the thick rumbling of thunder and saw a lighting bolt shoot straight next to your right. You flew sidewards as it almost fell on your face, and then another bolt shot through your left, giving you little to time to react “Fucking hell Potter!” You shouted, even if no one could hear you, with the thick rain and the rumbling of thunder “What the fuck were you thinking when you planned this race?!”

You finally managed to pass through the halo and sped to the next one near the top. At some point you heard someone scream, the Hufflepuff girl had been hit by a lightning bolt a couple of metres behind and she was falling. You looked at her preoccupied and took your wand out “ arresto momentum,” you shouted, same spell Lily had used on you a couple of weeks back. The girl stopped falling for a second and then went back, only a couple of feet down. You heard a cry of pain as she fell on her wrist, and you were about to fly towards her when you spotted some people were already running towards her. You gulped and went back to the race. That could’ve been you.  

As you continued flying, you finally out flew the lighting, apparently it was only near the spot of that particular halo. But the rain was still heavy and the wind was still blowing, cold against your skin. You narrowed your eyes when you saw another halo, just above the forbidden forest, near the spot where you’d found and helped Fang. You dived towards it and did a sharp turn ahead right before hitting one of the trees. As you out flew the rain, the cold wind made you shiver, but you pushed through, you were determined to win this race. If there was something you just couldn’t shake off, it was how competitive you were. 

Another halo shone brightly over one of the towers, and you launched yourself upwards as fast as possible, being beaten by none other than Barty. When he crossed the halo it turned green but then turned maroon.  You passed right behind, catching up to him. “You missed that one,” you said pointing to the one above the trees “You’re gonna have to do another lap.” 

He looked at you with loathing, and flew towards you really fast, if he wasn’t going to win, you weren’t either. Thankfully you were faster, and instead of playing along, you decided to launch forward towards the finish line, leaving Barty behind. Once you crossed it, some sparks flew by, you’d been the first one to reach it, one more time. “And (Y/N)’s speed knows no bounds! Even after falling behind due to the strong wind, she’s still at the head of the race.” 

One more lap, you thought, Just one more . The rain and the thunder were gone, and you easily flew through a couple of halos before you realised where they were taking you. All the halos that you could see were all darting into one direction, and one direction only: The Forbidden Forest . 

You were still going through the halos as fast as possible, but hesitated when one of them led you straight through a dark circle of trees in the forest. Holden was the one to pass you this time, followed by Sirius who smiled at your hesitance “You scared?” He teased as he buzzed by. 

You smiled, that was all the convincing you needed “Just giving you some advantage!” You shouted at him as you followed closely behind. You were flying just by Sirius' side, the two of you moving like clockwork when you had to take a sharp turn or move up and down when thicker branches approached. You saw shadows in the threes as you buzzed by, eyes staring from the distance. James had warned some of the creatures he knew there’d be people flying by, and they were all watching the race just as gleefully as the wizards were. 

“Why are you still tailing me? Scared of going deeper into the forest by yourself?” Sirius teased further. 

You smiled, “Was just keepin’ ya company,” you said before flying over a thick branch and overtaking him, “but I guess I’ll comply to your wish and take over.” 

Sirius smiled at your trick and rounding over a tree he took the lead again “You were saying?”

You chuckled lightly, and continued flying closely, the two of you constantly overtaking each other to take the lead. The coordination the two of you had together in the air, made you look like you had practised and planned it before, reality was, the two of you had flown together so many times by then, that you could pretty much predict his movements, and he could do the same to yours. Even in the middle of the race, in the middle of the Forbidden Forest, that was absolutely terrifying to you since those nightmares started happening, you were having fun. In fact, you were absolutely thrilled . 

So focused on each other you didn’t even notice the moment you left the thick woods, and went back to the school grounds, allowing the two of you to pick up the pace once more. You saw Holden, who’d passed the two of you earlier and turned to Sirius “Pleasure flying alongside you, as always,” you said, giving him the classic navy salute before flying as fast as possible towards Holden. Towards the whomping willow.

Sirius looked at the Halo in between the branches and his diverted expressions suddenly turned awry “ She doesn’t know what the tree is ,” he whispered to himself and tried to catch up with you. When he finally managed, you were already entering the range of the tree. “(Y/N),” he screamed “Whomping Willow!” 

You turned to him with a diverted smile, was he trying to trick you to slow down? There was no way there was a whopping willow on Hogwarts grounds. It was too dangerous. “Sure thing Sirius, and watch out for the troll behind you!” You replied with a smile. 

Sirius looked at you worried as a thick branch shot straight towards you, the tree wasn’t holding itself back. And you were not looking ahead, you were looking at him. So he did the only thing he could think of, he flew as close as possible to you and threw himself at you, pushing the two of you off your brooms. 

The moment you fell off your broom, you were shocked since you saw the thick branch hit your Dark Nimbus and Sirius’ Sweepfire, splitting the first one in two and sending the latter, along with the pieces of yours flying, further away, deeper inside the forest. When you fell to the floor the two of you rolled down the hill for a couple of metres before finally stopping. Sirius was still holding you tightly, even as you lay out of the Whomping Willow’s reach. 

You could hear his heart drumming in his chest as you tried to regain your breath “ Pourquoi es-tu tellement foutrement têtu? ” He asked in between thick breaths, why are you so fucking stubborn? , thank god you spoke french. 

You were still on top of him when you used your arms to push yourself upwards, to see him better, removing your goggles in a swift motion and frowning as you spoke “You– you saved me… You could’ve used the advantage, Sirius, you could’ve won the race!” 

“For what? You would’ve been unfairly eliminated, it wouldn’t have meant anything.” 

“You would’ve won against everyone else!” You spat back, matter of factly “Or… did you only care about beating me ?” You asked frown deepening, did he still harbour animosity after what’d happened years ago?

Sirius’ hair was sprawled on the floor, he was looking at you with worry still, it looked beautiful on him. “Well duh, I’m only in this race because it was your idea in the first place!” 

You looked taken aback by that, pulling your head just a little. What did he just say? “Sirius you… Are you still angry about what happened back then?” 

“What? NO!” He scowled, squeezing his eyes shut for a second. 

“I don’t understand–“ 

“–I bloody well fancy you, alright!?” He confessed, voice  loud, dripping with emotion “I fucking liked you when we met and I still like you now, and it’s eating me alive, I can’t get you out of my bloody head and it’s consuming me whole!” 

You stared at him for a second, he was already regretting what he said, thinking maybe he could play it out as a joke, even if it were a bad-taste one. But you weren’t about to reject him, you were trying to process what had happened. And so, instead of replying, you did the only natural thing you could, and leaned in to kiss him. He was surprised for a mere second before following the kiss, desperately. You were both desperate for each other, two years of pent-up emotions were finally being let out. 

The second kiss you gave Sirius Black was nothing and everything like the first one. His lips were as soft as you remembered, his hair, since he’d been on the rainy parts of the race, was just as wet, and he still tasted of mint, but that was about where the similarities ended. You’d both grown, you’d both only seen each other in dreams for years, and even if you’d kissed him several times in those, none of those kisses had felt like this one. 

Sirius was bigger and stronger now, his muscles tensed beneath you, his jaw sharper, the idea of a five o’clock shadow barely perceptible, brushing through your soft skin. And you were soft, so bloody soft . As you lay atop of him, Sirius couldn’t quite believe how tender you were, even more than he remembered, softer than you had been in his dreams . He didn’t let go of you as you continued to kiss, only placing his hands over your waist, tightening his grip when your tongues finally crossed paths. You moved your hands towards his hair, toying with it as your lips danced together. 

The two of you split apart due to the imminent need of oxygen, staring at each other between heavy breaths for a second, Sirius’ pupils were blown out, lips pink and slightly swollen, you could feel the gentle rise and fall of his chest as he breathed beneath you, and you smiled, looking at him with a mischievous air before leaning in to kiss him again. Succumbing to an euphoria he had long yearned for, he tightened his grip around you and turned the two of you around, letting your hair fall gently over the grass as he used one of his forearms to keep the entirety of his weight from crushing you. You smiled, almost laughing at how desperate he seemed, he was as thirsty for your lips as you had been for his. So long , you thought, why on earth hadn’t you done this before?  

Sirius was a better kisser than you remembered, you moved your hands –that had ended up on his chest when he turned you around– further up, letting his soft hair entangle between your fingers, his ponytail gone at some point, perhaps during the race, perhaps as you kissed him over and over again . The moment you pushed him closer to you, a chill ran through Sirius’ body and he deepened the kiss, wishing to drown in you. He wasn’t sure there were enough kisses in this world to quench his long-contained thirst.

You heard a faint blow of a cannon and cheers erupted from a far away crowd. You separated from him, lips parted and heavy breaths as you looked into his bright bluish-grey eyes “I think we lost,” you breathed out.

He stared at you for a second  and shook his head as he said “I don’t think we lost anything.” He then planted a short kiss on your lips. You smiled and then laughed as he let himself fall on the ground beside you. 

“We’re literally the reason the race was even made in the first place,” you told him as you stared at the sky, now icy blue, just like his eyes . Some of the shadow from the Whomping Willow’s branches tracing patterns along your skin.  

“They can suck it,” he said with a smile, the two of you laughed again. Sirius’s hand reached for yours, you could feel his rings brushing over your skin as your fingers intertwined. 

“We really should do races more often,” you told him with a smile, “neither of us wins in the end, but–” 

Sirius laughed “–We always end up making out.” 

“Does this mean we’re a thing  now?” You asked casually. 

He smiled cockily at your question “You think I’d let you go now that I can kiss you when I please?”

You chuckled “Good!” The air between the two of you felt heavy, but reassuring, the silence was somehow comforting, but you broke it nonetheless “Can I still call you Puppy?” 

Sirius frowned “Of course not!” 

“And what if I  give you a kiss for every time I call you that?” You asked with a smirk. 

Sirius turned to you impressed. “If you kiss me like today, you can call me whatever the hell you please starshine .”  

 You laughed at his answer but nodded “Excellent.” 

You stayed like that for a while, hands intertwined, listening to each other's breaths. You raised your hand along with his, admiring how the two of them looked together before you took a deep breath and spoke “We should probably go back. They’ll start looking for us.” 

“What about your broom?” 

You frowned and pointed towards the forest “The pieces flew off in that direction. Yours seemed to be whole. They can’t be too far.” 

“ Accio Sweepfire!” Sirius said, using his free hand to wave his wand towards the forest, nothing happened. 

“ Accio Dark Nimbus!” you said then, the top part of your broom came flying by, the sweeping part did not, “They must be stuck somewhere.” 

“I’ll get them,” he said standing up “Wait for me here, yeah?” You nodded, and reluctantly let go of his hand. Watching him as he went deep into the forest. You smiled and let yourself fall to the ground with a long sigh. 

Sirius had turned into a dog the moment he stepped into the forest, using his great sense of smell to find his broom and the rest of yours faster. He found his first, and went back into human form to grab the other side of yours, while flying. He did it all in a matter of minutes and flew back to where he’d left you. He smiled when he saw you lying on the grass, with your eyes closed, just enjoying the moment, he hovered over you, using his hand to cast a shadow over your eyes, so that the sun wouldn’t disturb you. You opened your eyes and smiled when you realised what he was doing “Found it?” 

He nodded, and showed you the bottom side of your broom, so much for the fastest broom in the world . “I don’t think it’s got any repairing.” 

“No shit Sherlock,” you responded as you stood up, the other side of the broken handle held tightly in your hand. He motioned for you to join him as he hovered very close to the floor. 

You passed your hand over the handle of his broom, it was worn, but didn’t seem like it’d gotten too damaged with the blow, your broom had probably absorbed most of the punch, you sighed and mounted it behind him. You casually placed a hand over his shoulder, as you accommodated the pieces of your nimbus in between the two of you.

“You should grab on tighter, we wouldn’t want you to fall again,” Sirius said with a smirk. 

You rolled your eyes but complied, closing the gap between the two of you and practically hugging him from behind, you then leaned your head over his shoulder and whispered “ Don’t test your luck, Black .”  

Sirius smiled at your answer and glided forward in his broom, very fast, straight towards the end of the finish line. When you two arrived people looked relieved. Rumour was going around that you’d actually gotten hit by the Whomping Willow, and that you both laid unconscious somewhere in the forest.

“They’re all right!” Someone shouted when they spotted you, pointing straight at you in the air, some of the other competitors were already preparing to go in your search.

When the two of you landed close to the finish line, James approached, a guilty-looking expression filled his face “You alright?”

“No thanks to you,” Sirius spat “The Whomping Willow? Really!?” 

James looked to the side, distressed “It was Dimity’s idea,” James tried to explain “I didn’t think there was anything wrong with it, it would’ve been a great trial for flying reflexes. And everyone in the school knew about it…” 

“Yeah, except for me.” You told him, raising both parts of your broken broom in the air for him to see. 

He cringed when he realised how broken they were. “I’m sorry,” he said guiltily. “Did it… did it hit you?” 

You shook your head “Sirius was fast enough to catch up with me and throw me off my broom before it hit it.” You explained “We were both at the lead, well, Holden was ahead of us… Sirius would’ve probably won if–“ 

“–You would’ve won,” Sirius corrected. “Had it not been for the tree, you would have overtook Holden in seconds.” 

James looked at the two of you puzzled, you’d been fighting over who was the best and the fastest for weeks, and now you just… gave each other the win? “I should’ve warned you.” 

“I should’ve been looking ahead,” you said, trying to ease James’ from the guilt that was clearly eating him up “I was so busy boasting that I wasn’t looking at my path… It’s true I didn’t expect a Whomping Willow but , it wasn’t entirely your fault.” You said in a serious tone, but changed to a more animated one “But the race was insane, the lighting and the weather changes, how did you even get permission for it? It was brilliant!” 

“We didn’t,” he admitted “All the captains have bathroom cleaning duty for 2 weeks because of what happened to Matilda.” 

“The Hufflepuff girl?” You asked concerned “Is she alright? I saw her fall, heard her scream.”

James nodded “She told us about your spell. Her broom was struck, but she wasn’t.”

“We made sure no contestant would get struck by them,” Delilah intervened. While it was true that the lightning had been following you around on that spot of the race, it never seemed to hit you in particular. 

“They were charmed,” you concluded. 

James nodded and continued “Thanks to you taking the time to save her, she only broke her wrist. She should be back in shape soon.” 

“But the quidditch lineup was altered,” proceeded Lionel, who had also walked towards you “Hufflepuff won’t be playing on the first match. Which means-“ he looked at Sirius and then at you “we’ll be playing each other.”

By then Lily, Marlene and Mary had rushed towards you too, pushing people around to get to where you both stood. You saw Remus jogging behind them too. Lily was the first one to jump on you, placing both of her hands over your arms "Are you all right?" She asked, voice laced with concern, carefully scanning your face and then all of your body. 

"Yeah," you nodded. "Sirius pushed me off the broom before the tree got to it,” you explained again, "he also broke most of the fall,” you added when she looked at you with apprehension. 

"What about this?" She asked, pulling your hair back and running her finger over a small cut you’d gotten in your cheek, you winced. 

"Must have gotten it when we rolled down the hill," you shrugged “I hadn’t noticed I had it.” 

She nodded, finally letting go of you and turning to the longed-haired boy "And you Sirius?"

He smiled at her concern "I’m all right, thanks Evans… A little scratched up and beaten down, but… I saved the girl, and it was definitely worth it.” 

You snorted lightly at that, most people didn’t notice, but one person did, Remus . He hadn’t taken his eyes off the two of you since he spotted you. And he noticed something was definitely different between the two. The tension , it was gone , replaced by something else, but he couldn’t put his finger on it. 

The announcer mentioned something about you and Sirius being alright, and how it was finally time for the lineup, which reminded you “That’s right? Who won?” The air seemed to turn a little uncomfortable, like no one wanted to mention it. 

Finally, Mary answered “It was Regulus,” she said somberly, but then pointed at one of your friends with a smile “Marlene got second and Minho was third.” 

You looked around, spotting Regulus in the distance, being congratulated by all of his friends, and even some other people. He seemed almost popular. If they knew the kind of snake he was , you thought, before turning to Marlene with a huge smile, “Congratulations!” 

She smiled at that “If you hadn’t–“

“–NO! Marlene, you're brilliant! I saw you…” you said and placed a hand on her shoulder, pushing her slightly towards you so you could whisper something in her ear “You’re the best beater of the team, remember?” 

She smiled brightly at that, and winked before following James towards the makeshift podium where he’d hand in the trophy he bought and some medals the other captains had gotten. 

Regulus seemed genuinely happy when James handed the trophy to him, and he was , Walburga would be so proud he beat his brother in the race, she might actually stop pestering him about the Death Eater ritual. When it was Marlene’s turn, and Lionel placed a medal over her shoulders, you couldn’t stop clapping, you saw some camera flashes taking pictures, and realised Alex was taking some of them. You smiled and wondered what place he’d gotten, and felt a little sad you wouldn’t be playing against him in the next game. 

Once the whole ceremonial thing was over, everyone started walking back to the castle. Regulus looked like he wanted to approach you, but when your eyes locked on each other you turned your head and smiled at Lily, and Mary, since you’d been talking to them. Regulus nodded, turning his head and walking back to the common room along with Barty, and Evan, who were still cheering on him.

“When we just couldn’t get past those strong winds and you straight up used Minho as a windbreaker, that was brilliant!” Marlene said with a smile. “How did you even think of it?” 

You shrugged “We weren’t gonna beat them unless we did something, could’ve used our wands for a propelling spell, but I wasn’t sure it was allowed, then Minho passed by me, and you know how he’s got these really big strong shoulders? So I thought, hey! I could use that. ”

“Big strong shoulders, huh?”  Remus teased. 

You looked at him with a little smile “Objectively speaking, yeah,” you responded. 

Mary nodded in agreement “I heard some girls fawning over them in the bathrooms, and paid a closer look next time he was around. (Y/N) is right. He’s got big strong shoulders.” 

“He does,” added Marlene, eyeing him from behind, “Like a Dorito.” 

Everyone laughed at her comment. Sirius, who had gone off earlier came back “Who’s like a Dorito?” 

“Minho, with his sexy back,” Remus responded casually, and added, “according to the girls.”  

Sirius raised his eyebrows and looked at you “Does he?” 

You looked at him with a smile and decided to tease him “Oh yeah, definitely.” 

“And you like big strong backs, don’t you?” he pressed. 

You laughed at that, Sirius was definitely smaller than Minho, but he was way prettier, at least in your eyes “I wouldn’t know, I don’t really focus on those things. I’m more of a pretty face kind of person.” 

Lily laughed at that “I can attest to it,” she agreed. 

Eventually, your group also went back to the castle, everyone smiling and merrily talking about the race, e veryone was fine , everyone was happy .

Chapter Text

October 4th, 1976 - Monday

On Monday you woke up early but you were sore. The fall from the broom had finally taken its toll on your body, and you pretty much dragged yourself to the bathroom to get changed for flying, or maybe to go to the infirmary first, you weren’t sure which one was going to be more relevant by the time you managed to walk down the stairs. 

You somehow changed your clothes and quietly walked downstairs. James and Sirius hadn’t come down yet, so you let yourself fall on the couch awkwardly. Looking at the faint stars you had placed on the ceiling a couple of weeks ago. 

“Morning (Y/N),” Said James from the stairs when he spotted you “Didn’t expect you to be here today.” 

You frowned at his words “What? Why wouldn’t I be?” 

He looked at you with raised eyebrows “Your broom?” 

You gasped at that. He was right, you didn’t have a broom. “It… It went completely past me, shit .” 

He smiled and sat on the sofa next to yours “Sirius said he’s gonna skip today, I thought I’d be flying alone.”  

“Is he feeling sore?” 

“He was complaining so much this morning I didn’t expect you to even come to class.” 

You laughed “I mean, I do feel like I’ve been hit by a truck but, flying always makes me feel better.”

“Why don’t you borrow his broom? I’m sure he’ll say yes.” James said, it was an excellent idea. 

“Do you think the rest’ll mind if I…” you stated, motioning upstairs with your finger. 

James shook his head “Nah, go ahead. Peter sleeps like a log, you won’t wake him even if you bang on the door, and Sirius and Remus are already awake.” 

You nodded, and walked upstairs, towards the boys’ room. Once in front of the thick wooden door you knocked on it softly “Come in,” you heard Sirius’ muffled voice, probably by a pillow. And so you carefully opened the door. 

“Morning,” you said when you saw Sirius laying on his bed, head still buried on his pillow. 

He turned his head around casually “Oh, morning love.” He said once he noticed it was you “What are you doing here? you should be in bed. Aren’t you in pain too?” 

Sirius Black was really chatty in the mornings. You nodded in response, “I wanted to fly still.” 

He arched an eyebrow “Can’t miss one day of practice?” 

You shook your head “The wind always makes me feel good.” 

He nodded “Why are you here then? Couldn’t bear to go without me?” He teased.

“You wish,” you replied with a smile “I came to borrow your–“ 

You started, but then their bathroom door opened wide and Remus stepped out. With his pants loosely hanging over his waist, and both of his arms holding the towel he was using to dry his hair, shirtless . And holy mother of Jesus, Remus Lupin was hiding real muscles under all those sweaters. You could see the gush he’d gotten the day you’d found him on the hospital, and he hadn’t been lying, he really did heal fast. He turned his back, you stared for a second as his muscles flexed. Minho wished he had that back, the girls have no clue or they’d be lusting over the sexy pirate here instead , you thought. But after the initial shock you realised he had many more scars there than over his face, you wondered how the hell he’d gotten so many cuts and made a mental note to ask him one day, when you were closer.  

When he turned again and saw you’d been there he looked like a deer trapped in the headlights. “Ugh– sorry.” You said and turned around quickly, facing the door “didn’t mean to– I was just here to borrow Sirius’ broom.” 

“It’s ok,” you heard Remus’ calm voice from behind you. He was in fact not ok , but he figured I’d be weird if a boy panicked over someone seeing his chest, so he played it cool. “I’m not naked or anything.” 

“Right!” You said turning back around, he was already buttoning his own shirt, “I’m ugh– happy you’re better,” you said, passing your hand over your chest so he knew what you were talking about, “I thought I’d take longer to heal.” 

“Moony heals fast,” said Sirius, finding a quick excuse for his friend. 

“And madam Pomfrey’s an amazing mediwitch,” Remus added. 

You nodded, “I’m actually going to see her before flying,” you told them “Hope she can get me some pain killer potion or something.” 

“You’re sore too?” Remus asked with concern. 

You nodded “Like I was thrown off my broom at incredibly high speeds and rolled on the ground several times, yeah…” You said ironically. 

“I think you meant: saved by an incredibly handsome wizard from being hit by a tree. ” Sirius corrected, you chuckled “Moony’s got some though, right?” 

“Do you?” You asked, looking at the taller boy, who was now fumbling with his tie. He nodded absentmindedly as he struggled to get the knot right, he was still nervous about his scars. You smiled and pulled your wand out, pointing at his neck “ Ligatura Cravatia ,” you mumbled, his tie suddenly escaped from his fingers and tied itself neatly.

He looked at you surprised, “Thanks!” 

You nodded “I could not tie a tie for the life of me,” you mentioned casually “had to learn an easier way.”  

Remus nodded and leaned in to open a drawer from his side table, it was filled with potions and infusions, and he took out a small vial, of which there seemed to be many, and handed it over to you. “Take half of that now and half of it when you feel sore again,” he explained. 

You nodded, thanking him as you took it from his hands, Sirius spoke “You made me take the whole thing. It tastes awful!” 

“Yeah Sirius, you’re almost as big as me, (Y/N) is tiny. I’d be too much for her.” You frowned at that.

  Tiny?, you thought , It wasn’t your fault Remus was so freakishly tall. Average, at least.

“Hm…” Sirius responded unconvinced and then looked at you “It’s under the bed.” 

“What is?” You asked confused.

“My broom?” He said with a frown “maybe you really just came to see me,” he said with a charming smile. 

You laughed at his teasing “Wouldn’t you like that?” You told him before leaning down to grab his broom from under the bed. You spotted some cassette tapes on a small box there too and smiled. Of course Sirius would keep his music like that. When you finally stood up you smiled at him “Thanks Puppy, you’re the best!” You said as you stepped out of their room. 

“You owe me one!” He shouted as you closed the door, to anyone it may seem he meant for the favour, but you knew what he actually meant with that, which only made you smile to yourself. Once you were back downstairs you were already in a better mood than that of which you had woken up with. 

James had fallen asleep on the couch, so you nudged him awake and the two of you walked towards the courtyard. As you walked through the halls you pulled out the little vial and drank half of the liquid, as Remus had advised. You winced, Sirius wasn’t being overly dramatic, it truly tasted awful, bitter and it lingered, almost like earwax. 

“Oh, is that Moony’s get-better-soon potion?” James asked casually, taking it from your hands.

You nodded “He gave it to me, to help with the soreness.” 

James nodded and gave it back “Be careful where you put it, one time it broke over his clothes and he had to throw them away, no spell would remove the foul smell from it.” You nodded, placing it where you thought it’d be better off “What are you going to do about your broom?”

“I actually sent a letter home last night, I asked them to send me my old Viper, and I sent the Dark Nimbus bits to the factory, asking them if there was a way to fix it.” 

“That was actually a great solution, I was gonna offer you my Phoenix Blaze but your Viper probably has more stability, and you’ll need it, especially since you’re our star keeper .” 

You laughed “We haven’t even played an actual match and yet you call me that.” 

“I know talent when I see it.” 

You nudged him lightly with your elbow and the two of you laughed. James was just so likeable, even if he was a little arrogant, he was noble and kind, and you were so happy you’d made him your friend. The two of you reached the courtyard soon after and then you were in the air. James didn’t want to push you too much so instead of having you do standard exercises he decided to let you pretty much do whatever you wanted. 

And you just flew, doing some twirls and circles in the air, but nothing too crazy. You loved the feeling of the air hitting your face, and the wind blowing all around you. Today was particularly windy, so you decided to fly even higher than you had before and allowed yourself to bask on the sun above the clouds. Once James realised how far up you were, he quickly caught up with you. “You alright?” He asked. 

You opened your eyes and turned to him, nodding “Just enjoying the day.” You told him “It’s a beautiful day…” 

You looked so at peace, almost too at peace. And then he remembered the effect the potion had once had on Remus, the time he took it on an empty stomach, it dumbed him out until he fell asleep in the middle of his favourite class, you didn’t look far from that, so he urged you to come down “I think we should probably go back down,” he said. 

You shook your head “But it’s so nice here, James.” 

“We’re definitely coming back down,” he said then, and flew closer to you, grabbing your arm and dragging you behind him towards the floor. Once close to the courtyard he let you land by yourself, and you checked your wrist watch.

“It’s still early.” 

“Yeah, we need to get you some food,” he told you, and the two of you walked towards the Great Hall. Only a couple of people were there so early. You sat down on the spot closest to the door and placed both of your elbows on the table, leaning your chin against your hands, and stared absentmindedly to the food. James grabbed some oatmeal and served it on a plate, dropping strawberries and other blueberries on them. Then he placed the plate in front of you. “Eat up,” he said. 

You looked at the food he’d placed and nodded, grabbing a spoonful and slowly bringing it all the way to your mouth “Thanks James,” you mumbled once you swallowed “you even added the fruit I like.” 

James nodded, as he served himself some eggs “Remus was telling me the other day that you almost always exclusively grab strawberries and blueberries.” 

“Mhm,” you agreed. “Remus is very observant, and strong .” 

James frowned “He’s what?” 

“Like really strong, under all those layers he wears, I didn’t know, but today I found out…” you said casually, only later realizing what you’d said “What the fuck did I just say?” 

James just laughed and decided to tease you for it “ Merlin (Y/N)! Don’t thirst over my friends when I’m around.”

“I… I wasn’t– I didn’t… What the flipping hell did he make me drink?” You asked, placing your hands over your dizzy head and leaning in on the table. 

“It’s because you haven’t eaten.” He told you “You’d be surprised what he said that one time,” James said, recalling how a couple of years ago Remus had gone on and on about the colour of Sirius’ eyes. 

You looked at him, took a deep breath and started to gobble up your food, which just caused your friend to laugh even further as he casually plopped some bacon into his mouth. 

Remus and Peter arrived a couple of minutes later, and you buried your head in your second serving of oatmeal when you spotted the taller boy. Remus sat in front of you and Peter by his side. 

“You didn’t warn her to eat it before taking it,” James told Remus reproachfully. 

“ Fuck ,” he whispered in response. 

“You’re fucking lucky she was flying with me and not by herself.” He said again, James was surprisingly stern about it, and it wasn’t because you were his star keeper or his cyrano , but he’d genuinely grown fond of you, and he already considered you a friend, as much as he considered Mary or Marlene friends, maybe more, since you were a lot closer, and if James Potter was something, it was fiercely protective of his friends.  

Remus swallowed, James was right, he’d put you in danger. And all because he was so nervous about being shirtless and the fact that you’d seen all his scars “I’m sorry,” he said and placed a hand over your arm “You feeling alright?” 

You looked at him for a second, gaze lingering on his hands before  nodding and going back to your meal as if it were the most interesting thing in the world. James couldn’t help the diverted smile that slowly appeared on his face. 

Remus noticed, of course he noticed , “Oh… she started talking…” He acknowledged, finally taking his hand from your arm. 

James just laughed, remembering the confidence that you’d used to call his friend strong and took another bite of his bacon  “at least she didn’t talk about Sirius.” 

Remus looked at him mortified, but you didn’t notice, you were too busy looking at Lily and Beth who had just walked in “They have such stunning hair,” you said casually as you saw the different shades of red the girls had, but straightened up after, and sighing with a little frown, gobbling your food again “How much longer?” You complained. 

“I mean you’re not wrong,” James agreed, looking at Lily with heart-eyes “Remus was like that for a couple of hours…” 

“Hours?!” 

“I can take her to the common room,” Peter offered “We’ll tell Flitwick she’s still feeling bad about the fall, like Sirius, and he absolutely loves her anyway, pretty sure it won’t affect her grades.” 

“But class!” You said looking up from your food. 

“Sirius can take care of her,” Remus added, “it was his idea to give her the draught anyway.” 

“Sirius? No way! The things I’d say to Sirius in this state!” You complained, already thinking of how his hair was so bouncy and soft when it brushed over your face. “He’d have material to tease me for the rest of my life, and my afterlife.” 

James snorted at your words, coughing it out and cleaning his face with a handkerchief he had on his robe’s pockets. Perhaps it would actually be good to take you to the common room with Sirius, maybe you’d finally be able to admit your feelings for each other, he thought. Little did he know you’d done it the previous day “It’s a good idea.”

You shook your head distressed, but he was already helping you stand up. Peter had already run to the other side of the table. 

“Can you deal with her?” Remus asked him, “I can take her if not.” 

You looked at Remus and remembered all the things you could’ve said and stood straighter “I can deal with myself,” you said and motioned for Peter to come beside you.

Minutes later, you were walking through the halls alongside Peter “What did you say before we arrived?” He asked you casually. 

You sighed “Something along the lines of Remus is fucking ripped under all those sweaters .”

He laughed at your answer, you didn’t even mention Remus’ scars, which made him smile, since he knew how self-conscious his friend was about them. 

“Do we have to go to the common room?” You asked him “Or maybe you can leave me there but not tell Sirius about it.” 

Peter shook his head as an answer “What bothers you so much about being left with Sirius? Thought you guys were friendlier after he saved you.” 

“I’ve got nothing against Sirius. On the contrary, I actually really like him. That’s the problem, who knows what I might say when he’s in front of my face.” 

Peter laughed again “I’m sure he won’t put it against you, after all, you already talked about Remus’ abs and Lily’s hair, It’s just the medicine.” 

“Peter, you know Sirius.” 

He sighed at that and then shrugged “We’ll obliviate him if he gets too annoying.”

You looked at Peter with shock and laughed when you saw the little smile playing on his face. He was joking , who knew he had such a dark humour hidden in all his soft boy persona? To be fair, Peter had always been extremely nice to you and everyone you knew, he also had many friends from all around the school, perhaps more than James and Sirius, since they really liked hanging out with one another. “You’re still planning a prank?” You asked. 

“We’ve got something on the back burner,” he told you “but we’re not gonna do it yet, since James got detention after the race.” 

You nodded at that, by then you were just outside of the common room, he whispered the password to the portrait and the two of you walked inside. You let yourself fall on the couch as he went to get Sirius.You buried your head under a pillow, maybe if you were asleep, you wouldn’t be able to run your mouth and say embarrassing things about Sirius’ soft lips or his strong jawline.

A couple of minutes later they both came walking down the stairs, Sirius was the first one to speak “Peter says no one told you to eat before drinking the draught.” He said as he approached you. You made a muffled sound from underneath the pillow in response.

“Well then, take care of her, yeah?” Peter said before waving goodbye to his friend, “See you later (Y/N)!”

“Bye Peter, thanks for bringing me here!” You said, voice still muffled by the pillow you refused to remove from your face. If you did not see Sirius maybe you wouldn’t remember how pretty he was. 

As Peter left, Sirius walked closer to you, raising an eyebrow when he spotted you still hiding under the pillow still “The light bothering you love?” He asked politely, “We could go up to my room, it’s darker when we close the blinds.” 

“Mm-mm,” you denied, refusing to even open your mouth in case you let something slip. 

Sirius, being oblivious to why you were being so hell bent in hiding your pretty face under a pillow, sat down on the floor to level his head to yours as much as possible, a soft groan left his lips as he hit the floor. You winced when you figured how close he was. He leaned his arm on the couch, next to where yours was and started to absentmindedly play with the hem of your sweater, “Are you upset about something? Did something bad happen?” He asked gently. 

You finally removed the pillow from your face with a frown and shook your head fervently. 

He raised his eyebrows at your reaction. You opened your mouth to speak and closed it again shortly after, frowning at your lack of conviction. That made him narrow his gaze, and a teasing smile drew from his face, “Oh you were saying stuff, weren’t you?”

Your eyes widened in surprise, he was quick to catch on. 

“Did you talk about my pretty eyes like Moony did?” You shook your head in response, “Oh, then… Did you talk about someone else instead? Should I be jealous about it?” You gave him a reproachful look and he laughed, such a melodious laugh , you thought, almost slapping yourself when you were about to open your big mouth and go running all your thoughts to Sirius. 

“So what? You won’t open your mouth in case you say something silly?” You nodded. He laughed again, had his laugh always been so pretty? “But I’ll get bored if you say nothing!” He pouted “How was your morning flight? Made you feel better?” You nodded with a smile, finally sitting back on the couch, grabbing his arm and pulling him up to sit beside you, he complied, and the two of you sat on the couch together, shoulders brushing against the other. Sirius let his head fall, and slid down a little “You’re really not gonna talk?” He asked, turning his head towards you. 

You took a deep breath “Whatever I say may be used against me, so no.” you replied. 

“What if I promise I won’t use it against you? Even if you start talking about something silly like how pretty you think Moony’s left hand is.” 

You laughed at that, Sirius wasn’t wrong there either, Moony’s hands were very strong and dextrous, you recalled a particular day, in potions, when he’d gotten bored as you carefully measured some of the ingredients on the only balance that the table had, and he’d started twirling his wand around with remarkable ease. 

“Oh no, you’re thinking about Moony’s hands now, aren’t you?”He asked when he saw your thoughtful expression. 

“I wasn’t!” You said, a little too fast.

Sirius shook his head, diverted and placed his left hand over yours, “Think of mine instead,” he said casually, as if he didn’t realise he was making your heart beat faster.

Now you smiled “Jealous, are we?” You asked as you started to play with his hand, brushing your fingers over the soft skin of his palm. Sirius’ hands felt much softer than you imagined Remus’ would. He had long, slender fingers, and he didn’t even have the callouses that you get for quidditch, he probably used expensive potions when he lived back at the Blacks. His rings were cold in comparison to his warm skin, it was nice, awfully nice .

“Of Moony?! He isn’t your type.” He responded confidently. 

“How would you even know my type?” 

Sirius smiled at the question as If he was just waiting for you to ask it, he leaned in, so close his beautiful hair brushed against your shoulders, and then he whispered “ That’s easy love, it’s because I AM your type. ” Then, he placed a soft kiss on the side of your cheek.

You pushed him back playfully and smiled when you saw his shit-eating grin “You keep believing that, all right Puppy?” You said as you pinched one of his cheeks, not that there was much to pinch, the boy had the facial structure of a woodland elf. 

“Hm…” he said as he pushed your hand off his face and intertwined his fingers on yours “That makes it two.” 

You laughed “You’ll keep count?”

“Obviously, gotta make sure my girl pays her debts.” 

My girl , you thought, you were indeed Sirius’ girl now . 

“We’ve got time now, perhaps we can reset the debt?” You asked with a suggestive smile, but Sirius simply shook his head.

“You’re high on painkillers.” 

You pouted, “I’d want to kiss you even if I wasn’t?” you said reproachfully.

Sirius, saw that as an opening, and leaned closer to you “Would you? Tell me about it.” 

“I wanted to kiss you when we didn’t see each other for years, and then when I was back and saw you, all grown up, I wanted to kiss you again, and then yesterday when we actually kissed, I wished we could’ve continued on forever.” Sirius smiled brightly, at least it wasn’t only he who felt that way. But when you saw his reaction you clasped your hand over your mouth “ What the fuck did I just say?! ” 

Sirius shrugged “The truth.” 

You shook your head “No-no! That was the potion,” you argued.  

Sirius shook his head with a smile “I don’t think so.” 

“Sirius!” 

“You’re madly in love with me, just accept it,” he said cockily.

You grabbed the pillow from earlier and groaned into it in frustration as you leaned over your lap. All you had to do was keep your big mouth shut, but you didn’t, and now Sirius would be able to tease you for the rest of your life. 

Sirius smiled and placed a hand over your shoulder, leaning in a little before he spoke “If it makes you feel better, I feel the exact same way.” 

You stood straight in an instant, disbelief all over your face as you searched for Sirius’ eyes, trying to find an ounce of doubt, of a joke, but… there wasn’t an y “But the potion didn’t–“

“No, I had an apple before Moony threw it down my throat,” he said, and shrugged “I just wanted you to know, you’re not the only one who feels that way.” 

You smiled and leaned in towards him, hiding your blush over his shoulder, so many emotions piled up inside you didn’t even know what to do with them. All you knew was that you liked Sirius so much it bothered you. Why was he so damn adorable? How could he be so pretty and manly at the same time? Fucking Sirius Black, he had you, and he had you bad .  

As you leaned into Sirius, savouring his scent, which you could only describe as a mix of leather, firewood and musk, you suddenly started feeling very sleepy. A yawn escaped from your lips, and Sirius looked at you knowingly “Are we already at the point in which you fall asleep? But we were having such a pleasant conversation.” 

“Shut up Puppy!” you said softly.

Sirius smiled, leaning back so you could both get more comfortable “That’s three.” 

Mary, who had gotten out of charms earlier after Tom accidentally burned the sleeve of her robe, was the first person to enter the common room, finding you and Sirius cuddling into each other, both asleep. She smiled, and after casting a silencing charm around the two, so you wouldn’t be awoken, ran upstairs to grab Marlene’s Polaroid. Once she was back down she took a couple of pictures of the two, and a selfie, with her in the middle. After she stood back, snickering at the pictures as she went back upstairs to finally change her burned robes.  Priorities, she thought as she left the camera over Marlene’s bed and went to change. She then wrote a note, kindly asking the laundry elves to repair her robe for her, and placed it over her now neatly bent robe. 

She walked downstairs a little later, and after considering whether to wake you or not for a minute, she decided against it. After all, you both looked quite comfortable, and the nasty fall the two of you had the previous day wasn’t something you could just shrug off easily. Sometimes sleep really was the best medicine. 

A few hours later, when it was finally meal time, and you and Sirius had still not shown up in any class, Remus decided he’d go get you some food at the kitchens. The elves were as kind as ever with him, and once he had enough food for the three wrapped up, he walked up towards the common room. On the way there he bumped into Nina, who smiled at him brightly and waved before approaching him “You’re not going to the Great Hall?” She asked. 

Remus shook his head in response “I’m taking some food up for Sirius and (Y/N), they were feeling a little tattered after the fall.” 

Nina’s expression turned into one of concern “Is she all right?” 

Remus nodded, “She took some painkillers in the morning, she should be feeling a lot better by now. She may even make it to her next class,” he said, “Although, she may not actually want to, since we have Herbology…”

Nina laughed, after spending so much time with you on the rest of the study club, she was more than aware of your quarrel with Herbology, not because you didn’t like plants, but in your own words, because they didn’t like you. “Here, give her this for me, will you?” She asked, pulling a chocolate frog from her pocket and handing it over to Remus. “I told her about them a couple of weeks ago, and she said they seemed interesting, I was going to give it to her after the race.” 

Remus raised one of his eyebrows, he wasn’t sure when you and Nina had gotten so chummy with each other “Sure thing,” he replied and took the Chocolate Frog from her hand and placed it in his robe pocket. 

Nina waved goodbye to him but stopped him by grabbing his arm just before he managed to get too far. “I was forgetting, tell her we will have a book club reunion in the Ravenclaw tower by the end of the month. We’re talking about the romance novel I lent to her recently.” 

“Which romance novel?” Remus asked. 

Nina raised her eyebrows as she heard the question, and then seemed to think about it for a second before responding “It’s not apt for boy’s eyes,” she said with a little smile before waving goodbye to Remus rapidly “Anyway, thanks Remus, see you around.” 

Remus looked at Nina leave with a puzzled expression, he shrugged and continued on his way to meet you and Sirius. Once he was in front of the portrait, he whispered the password and she let him inside.  When he walked in he spotted both you and Sirius, still asleep, basically cuddling each other. He stared at the two for a minute, he found the scene endearing, but he couldn’t help but feel a pang of jealousy float over his heart. He wasn’t sure if he wanted what the two of you had, if he wanted one of you, or if he’d rather be part of it, but he decided to push those thoughts to the back of his head, after all, it was probably Moony the one that was causing all those weird mood swings. 

“Morning sleepy heads,” he said as he got close enough for the two of you to hear him. Sirius was the first one to wake up, lazily opening one of his eyes and smiling when he saw his friend. 

“Hey Moony, lovely to see your ugly face first thing,” he said, sarcasm dripping from his voice. 

“Haha,” Remus said as he sat on the armchair on the left side. “Good thing I don’t measure my worth on your opinion Pads.”

“What are you talking about? Moony’s got a pretty face,” you mumbled still half asleep. 

Sirius’s eyes widened at your words and Remus laughed in return, “Maybe you just need to improve your taste,” Remus said as he leaned forward and placed the food on the table in front of you, “Brought you two some food.” 

That finally woke you up, your stomach already rumbling at the lack of sustenance. You stood up, feeling a lot better than earlier, head clearer, you no longer felt the urge to tell Sirius how pretty he was, which was fantastic. When you saw the food you smiled “Gosh, thank you Rem, you’re such a sweetheart!” 

“See? That’s how you should greet your friends,” Remus said motioning towards you “You should ask her to teach you some manners.” 

Sirius sighed, and then smiled “Thank you, oh beautiful lord Moony for bringing food over to us!”

Both you and Remus laughed at his silliness. You slid off the sofa and onto the rug and pulled out some of the food Remus had brought, he’d somehow gotten the elves to make him roast beef sandwiches. “Roast beef? That’s brilliant!” You said as you gave your first bite, moaning as the flavour sipped in through your tastebuds. 

Remus also slid from the armchair and grabbed for one of the sandwiches. Sirius was the last one to follow suit. Once he gave a bite, he leaned back, “Didn’t even realise how hungry I was,” he said. “Thanks Moony.” 

Remus hummed in response and then remembered the errand Nina had asked for him, so he pulled out the chocolate frog and handed it over to you. 

“What? No chocolate frog for me?” Sirius complained playfully. 

“No because you’re a twat,” Remus said calmly, Sirius looked at him taken aback. “Besides the chocolate frog’s not from me, it’s from Nina.”

“Who’s Nina?” Sirius asked as he took another bite from his sandwich.

“Member of (Y/N)’s fan club.”

“Nina isn’t a member of my fan club!” You said after you swallowed the bite you were chewing “I mean… I don’t have a fan club!” 

Sirius was the one to laugh now “Yeah sure, tell that to all the people wearing pins with your head on it and holding banners yesterday.” 

Remus nodded “At some point, I even considered the fact that you somehow became more popular than James.” 

You shook your head “You boys, it’s all in your head. I’m not popular, just the shiny new thing everyone’s talking about because I transferred recently.” 

Sirius took a bite from some dried jerky before pointing at you with it “It’s like you don’t want to admit you’re popular.”

“‘Cause I’m not.” 

“But you tick all the boxes,” Sirius retorted “Attentive, nice, talented at something most people are passionate about at school.” 

“Not to mention you’re helping younger students at the study club. And you’re pretty, ” Remus said casually. Sirius nodded, in agreement. 

“Well… I–“ you started. 

“Just accept it, darling,” Sirius said, placing an arm over your shoulder. “We’ll be the school’s celebrity couple once word gets out.” 

“Word?” Remus asked with a frown. 

“We’re dating.” Sirius stated “Right love?” 

“I mean… we snogged yesterday, I didn’t know you were so eager to make it official.” 

Remus laughed at that, Merlin , was it fun to see Sirius put in his place by you. “Congratulations?” 

“Well thank you Moony!” Sirius said with a smile. The three of you continued to hang out until you finished your meal. When you were done you decided you were not going to skip more classes and walked alongside the two boys to the Herbology greenhouses.  

On your way, you stopped to take a look at the forest, “The night I came with Lily, to harvest the stuff for potions, I swear I heard howls coming from the forbidden forest.” Sirius and Remus gave a look at each other as if only now realising what Moony was so hell-bent on achieving that night. You didn’t notice, since you were leaning on one of the nearby arches, your back facing them. You breathed in the fresh air “Sometimes I miss being able to walk through the forest, I wish it wasn’t forbidden.” 

Sirius walked in closer to you and grabbed you by the arm, pulling you back on the way, “It’s forbidden for a reason, monsters roam there.” He said. 

You laughed “As if you ever cared about dangerous.” 

“Pads is right,” Remus continued “The forest… It’s not something you should mess with.” 

“So you’re telling me, you’ve NEVER EVER gone into the forest?” You asked in disbelief. 

“We have,” Remus acknowledged, “That’s why we know it’s no place for you.” 

“Because I’m a girl?!” You asked, clenching your jaw as you did. 

“Because you’re a human.” Sirius punctuated. 

You frowned at that, you were so used to being looked down on by boys that you assumed Sirius and Remus were doing the same thing. But they were not, in fact, they had never even tried to. They both thought you were as capable as any man, heck , maybe even more capable than most men . They would never look down on you like some boys back in your old school, the same boys that hadn’t let you in the quidditch team for years because you were a girl, it had taken a teacher’s intervention for you to finally be allowed to join in. James, on the other hand, hadn’t even thought twice before asking you to the tryouts. Hogwarts was different . Your friends were different. 

You sighed “If only I was something else,” you said, a knowing smile growing on your face as you did. Neither of the boys quite understood what you meant, but that was fine. They did not need to know every single detail about you, at least not yet. Especially Sirius, he did not need more material to tease you.

Chapter Text

October, 22nd (Friday)

A week after the incident, your mom had already sent your old Viper, but the Nimbus company had yet to respond to your letter. You’d gotten used to your older broom pretty fast. Muscle memory must really be a thing, since the moment you mounted it, it was like you’d been doing it forever. 

James was right, the Viper was a lot more stable than other brooms. More than Sirius’ SweepFire , and probably more than the Dark Nimbus itself. But it was slower, you’d already gotten used to the fast accelerations your Dark Nimbus had, and now you had to be extra attentive of the ball so you could make a move before it had enough time to get past you and onto one of the goals. Regardless of the slowness, the Viper was sturdier and heavier, which made it easier to do tricks like the backflip people still wouldn’t stop talking about. Last Tuesday you’d even attempted to surf on it, and you managed to do perfectly fine for a couple of meters until James spotted you and gave you the longest talk about being responsible and not doing stupid things, the hypocrite . But he was on captain mode and when he got on that mood it was absolutely useless to talk him out of it, so you nodded and promised you wouldn’t do it again, even if you probably would at some point. 

You told Lily about dating Sirius as soon as you were feeling better, she asked you so many questions, from how it’d happen to how good were Sirius’ kisses. She had been told he was really good by a girl back in 5th year, and she wanted to know if it was true or if the girl was just obsessed with Sirius like most girls in school. You omitted the fact that you probably were just as obsessed with him as they were and confirmed that Sirius was indeed a good kisser, not that you’d kissed all that many people before, but still. The rest of your friends had slowly found out about your new relationship, be it for the way Sirius sat next to you a lot more often now, because his teasing and flirting had gotten a lot stronger. Or, in the case of Tom, because he’d accidentally found you snogging on an empty classroom, at least he just gave you a thumbs up, a cheeky smile, and whispered something like “ Keep it going guys ! You’re doing great ”.  Both you and Sirius had separated to laugh about it when Tom closed the door. 

“You ready?” Sirius asked with a smile, pulling you from your thoughts.  You looked at him with a daring face. 

You know that thing you were told not to do a couple of days ago and you promised you wouldn’t? Well, that promise lasted exactly 4 days, 3 hours and a couple of minutes. James was busy with an essay he’d forgotten about, and you and Sirius had gone flying together, and unfortunately, neither of you had a clear enough sense of self-preservation when you were around each other. Especially not after someone said, “I dare you to…” 

You were slowly standing over your broom, hands extended to try and keep your balance. Neither of you was flying too high, that way if you fell you wouldn’t get too hurt. Once you had managed to maintain your balance you nodded “Ready,” you said with a wink, and the two of you started broom surfing , picking up speed as you glided through the open fields of the school. As you were about to reach the finish line, you realized the grass was moving in a funny way right in front of you, and you frowned.  

“Hey Sirius I think–“ you started, but it was too late, something had yanked both of your brooms down and caused you to tumble down to the grass. You’d fallen over and rolled a couple of meters while he’d fallen over something, or rather someone . As you looked up you realized he was right on top of Remus, who had popped out of nowhere (probably the invisibility cloak). As the two of them sorted themselves out you stood up quickly and looked around, spitting some of the grass that had gotten inside your mouth. And then you spotted them, Barty Crouch and Evan Rosier, hiding behind a stone wall. You took your wand out and pointed it at them. Evan seemed to pull back but Barty just smiled wickedly “The fuck is wrong with you?” You roared, already walking towards where they stood. 

Barty walked head high towards you too “You saw them fall, Evan? It was hilarious!” 

“Fall? You must be bloody delusional if you think you’re going to trick me with that! I felt the way my broom was yanked down.” 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he said with a smile “Do you Evan?” 

Evan shook his head, as if Barty needed a sidekick to be vile . 

“You’re begging for me to break your stupid nose again,” you replied as you looked at him impassively. 

“I’d like to see you try,” he said smugly. 

You pointed your wand at his face, but Remus stood in front of you, calmly placing his hand over the one you used to hold your wand and pushing it down a little, to prompt you to do it yourself. 

Sirius stood still next to Remus, looking at Barty with hate, but keeping a strong grip on his wand. 

“Remus what the–“

“–He’s provoking you,” he told you calmly “he wants you to react.” 

“Yeah, well maybe I want to react,” you retorted, now slightly irritated at your friend’s actions. He just looked at you, shook his head calmly and softly ran his thumb over your forearm, still pushing it lightly down. If anyone knew about anger management it was Remus Lupin.

“Hey,” he said softly, looking at you straight in the eye, trying to get you to focus on him, rather than on Barty looking at you cockily from behind “Look at me luv,” he cooed, you looked at him for a second but turned your eyes back to Barty “I’m fine, Pads’s fine, you’re fine. There is no need to fight.” 

“You could’ve gotten hurt, we could’ve–“ 

“–Listen to me. Don’t give him the satisfaction of rilling you up. You don’t want him to be the cause of Gryffindor losing points, do you? That’s probably why he’s–“ 

“–yeah, go ahead (Y/N), listen to your boyfriends , they know what’s best,” Evan taunted from behind, you clenched your jaw. But took a deep breath, finally lowering your wand. Maybe you should’ve put him in his place then and then, how different would things have ended up if you actually had? 

“You know what Barty? Remus is right, you aren’t even worth my time.” You said standing straighter “At least be more creative with your petty jokes next time, all right? Maybe then you’d at least keep me entertained.” Then you turned around and used your wand to pull both yours and Sirius’ broom to your hands and walked back to the castle, lagging just a second so Sirius and Remus would walk by your side. 

“I want to strangle him,” you told them once you thought the two Slytherins were out of earshot.

“You and me both,” Sirius agreed, taking his broom from your hands, but lingering as his fingers brushed over yours “I probably would have, had Remus not stopped me first.” You looked at him for a moment and then recalled, Sirius was still on top of Remus because of the fall when you speed-walked towards the two Slytherin boys.  “And he’s right, the last thing we want is to start an open war in between us and his stupid gang.” 

“But they already started it, we’re just not doing anything about it.” You reproached, still a little riled up, the urge to punch Barty was wearing you thin, “Anyway, I do not want to have detention while everyone’s enjoying themselves at the Halloween party next week.” 

Remus smiled “How do you know about that?” 

“Tom and Beth told me all about the party you guys always plan together, I’m already preparing my costume.” 

“Is it gonna be a sexy Halloween costume, luv?” Sirius chimed in, leaning towards you with a little smirk on his face. 

 You pushed him back playfully “Ugh… don’t be such a dog!” 

Remus laughed at that, “I’m sure you’d look pretty even in a sack of potatoes.” 

“Yeah, in a very short one,” Sirius teased even further. 

“If only my boyfriend was as much of a gentleman as his friend here,” you said with a playful sight.

“You clearly don’t know Moony’s dark side,” Sirius chimed. 

You arched your eyebrows at that “And you do?” 

Sirius was about to respond when Beth showed up, looking a bit agitated as If she had been running “There you are!” She said as she stood in front of the three “Professor Spellman wants to see us earlier today, something about a special announcement.”

You frowned “Right now?” You asked. She nodded. 

“But we haven’t eaten!” Sirius complained. 

“I don’t think it’ll take too much,” Beth said with a shrug, “But it did seem rather urgent.” 

You nodded and the four of you started walking towards the North Tower. When you arrived, you realized they hadn’t exclusively called your class, in fact, the entire school year had somehow crammed inside the classroom. There were barely any sits left, when Tom saw Beth, he quickly waved to her and she went to sit besides him. You scanned the room and found only one table free, you rolled your eyes when you realized Evan and a Slytherin girl from his year whose name slipped your mind were sitting behind it. You looked at Sirius and pointed at the only free spot with a nudge of your head. 

He rolled his eyes but the three of you walked towards the table, the boys pushed the two chairs together and you squeezed in between the two. Leaning ahead a little so they could accommodate their larger backs onto the chair. Sirius had placed his hand on your tight under the table, and you gave him a look, “I’m gonna fall if I don’t grab onto something,” he said with an innocent smile.

“Yeah, sure enough, Puppy,” you replied playfully. 

“Hm… that’s the fifth from this week,” he said as he squeezed your tight.

Then you felt something pull your hair from behind. You turned around pissed and Evan was smiling “What? Did I ruin your cuddle time with your two boyfriends?”

You looked at him, but smirked “Why, you jelly?” You asked but didn’t give him enough time to reply, “You should know by now that my cuddle time knows no bounds. It's an exclusive club with a very long waiting list. But don't worry, I can squeeze you in somewhere between Tuesdays and never." 

Evan’s face turned sour while Sirius looked at you with a proud smirk and Remus laughed, chest rumbling behind you. He was about to retaliate when Professor Spellman walked in. So you decided to piss him off even further “Shh honey…” you said as condescendingly as possible “Teacher’s about to speak,” finally you turned around with a smirk. 

Remus gave you a side eye and placed his hand, palm facing up, just above your lap, raising his eyebrows, you understood what he meant in a second and high-fived him instantly, giving him a wink before leaning over the desk a little, to give the two boys some space. 

When Spellman finally reached his desk, he gave you a stern look “Miss (Y/LN), why are you sitting between Mr. Black and Mr. Lupin?” 

“There was nowhere else to sit,” you replied, motioning to the crammed classroom “I can sit on the floor if you want though.” 

The Professor sighed but nodded, “That won’t be necessary, this won’t take too long,” he said, before waving his wand and letting a long banner unroll from the ceiling over the chalkboard.

It read: The Moon and the Stars

“As some of you who keep up with the astral cycle may know, next Sunday is full moon,” Spellman said, you felt Remus tense behind you, which made you frown, but the professor kept talking, and you ended up shrugging it off “And not only that, but a very interesting phenomenon will also occur, it will be a bIood moon, which makes it the perfect moment for an astrology class,” He said with a proud smile “You will all be excused from today’s class in exchange for 2 hours of your Sunday night.” There was a mix of groans and cheers in the classroom, from those who were happy about not having class, and those who were upset about having class on a Sunday “Class will start at 10 pm,” Spellman continued, not giving the children time to protest “bring your notebooks and telescopes, those who have their own. We will meet in the Astronomy tower. Any questions?” 

A Ravenclaw boy raised his hand “What happens if we can’t make it?” 

“I highly doubt you’ll have anything better to do on Sunday night Mr. Finchley,” the professor responded sassily. Remus, who looked like he wanted to say something, decided to let it go, and sank back on the chair. The professor waited a couple more seconds, to see if anyone else had a question, but upon no one’s answer he clapped his hands together “Excellent, you’re excused now. See you on Sunday.” 

Sirius was the first one to stand up, letting you out through his side, while Remus seemed to be a little troubled. Your boyfriend placed a hand over his shoulder “It’s ok mate, we’ll figure it out,” he told him. You looked at the exchange with curiosity but it dissipated the moment Lily appeared out of nowhere and hooked her arm around yours.

“The girls and I are going to go prepare some droughts at the potions classroom now, hair and grooming stuff, you said you wanted to brew a special something for your Halloween costume, yeah?” 

You nodded, Sirius raised an eyebrow “Special something?” 

You smiled in response “If you guess it, I’ll give you a prize,” you said confidently, he would not guess your Halloween costume, even if he tried a thousand times. 

“Anything I want?” He asked suggestively. 

You laughed in response “Sure Puppy, anything you want,” you told him before walking out with Lily, the girls were waiting just outside the door.

“That was the 6th!” You heard Sirius say from behind. 

Lily raised an eyebrow “What’s that all about,” she asked. You giggled in response “Let’s just say dear Sirius and I have a bit of an arrangement, I can call him Puppy whenever I want, but he gets some kisses in return.” 

She laughed at your answer “Why aren’t I surprised?” 

You shrugged with a smile, finally catching up with the girls “You wanted to make a glow potion, right?” Mary asked, “Like the one Marlene drank on her birthday?” 

“Yup, I think I’ve got all the ingredients ready too,” you told her, checking the little rattan bag inside your backpack where you’d been placing all the necessary stuff. 

Lily gave a small peak to the bag and frowned “I don’t think you’ve got glow-weed yet.” 

Tom, who seemed to have shown up out of nowhere started to walk by Lily’s side “Why do you need weed?” 

You laughed “ Glow-weed ,” Beth corrected “not weed, weed.” 

“Hmmm… that’s not as fun.” He said, scrunching his nose a little “What for?” 

“(Y/N’s) Halloween Costume,” Marlene answered casually.

“Oh, you’re gonna be a fairy or something?” He asked excitedly.

You paled at that and turned to him wide-eyed “If you tell Sirius Black about it, I’ll strangle you.” 

“Cheeky,” he replied, leaning closer to you, which made you roll your eyes and push him back. 

“Please don’t tell Sirius?” 

“Why?” 

“She promised Sirius a prize if he guessed. She specifically said anything he wanted,” Lily chimed in. 

Tom looked at Lily and then turned his gaze back to you, impressed “So really cheeky then.” 

“Toooom!” You whined. 

“My lips are sealed,” he said, passing a hand over them as if he was zipping them and then placing his hand over his chest. How dramatic , you thought, but then again, you were the one dating Sirius Black, so who were you to judge? 

“Why didn’t you just tell him about your costume?” Asked Beth. 

You sighed “He was going on and on about sexy Halloween costumes, he would not stop bothering me if I did.” You responded simply, by then you were already outside the potions classroom. Professor Slughorn was in his office, and Lily had been the one inside and asked for permission to enter. He was more than happy to let you guys in to practice potions that he even gave Lily the key to the ingredients room, giving you free rein to use whatever you might need. 

When Lily came out, shaking the key in her hand with a smile Marlene rolled her eyes “Teacher’s pet,” she teased. 

“Maybe,” she said with a shrug “but, I just got our hands on the Ingredients Supply, and Slughorn said we could take whatever we wanted.”

“Sweet!” Said Tom as he took the keys from Lily’s hands and led all the way to the ingredients room. He took out a little paper from his pocket and started looking for some stuff, all the while you tried to find some of that glow-weed .  

When you finally found it you looked at the combination of stuff he’d placed in his basket and narrowed your eyes at him in suspicion “That’s not for beauty products is it?” 

He shook his head with a little smirk “I’m working on a little something,” he said, “also for the Halloween party.” 

You raised your eyebrow, looking at the stuff he’d gathered so far “Essence of Laughing Lily, Blissberry Extract, Frolic Fizzweed Leaves, Lavender Essence, are you by any chance making–“ 

He shook his head and placed a finger over your mouth “–Shhhhh! If Lily busts us, we won’t be having any fun.”

You smiled complicity “Well then, keep working on your little magical project,” you said, and then leaned in closer to whisper “If you add Moonstone Shimmer, you can make the potion a bit more potent overall.” You raised your eyebrows and winked before walking back to the table on which you’d be working. Marlene was next to you, and she’d set herself to prepare a s pecial hand cream since the weather was getting colder. 

Beth was working on an enchanting hair serum that she’d run out of. And Lily said she was working on a “perfect curls potion,” also for the Halloween party. 

“Would you mind borrowing me some of that on the Halloween party?” You asked her when she told you what she was working on. 

She nodded “In fact, I’m making a lot extra,” she replied with a smile “To keep a stash on our bathroom.” 

“You’re brilliant!” You told her with a smile. 

“I’m working on some radiant complexion elixir, also for our bathroom,” Mary said. “We’re giving some of our stuff to Beth and she’s gonna borrow some of her hair stuff. We’ll all be stocked up in beauty products?” 

“And you do this all the time?” You asked with a smile. 

“A couple times a year, yeah,” said Marlene from her table.

“Genious, can I help with anything?” 

“I was actually thinking of using some of your glow potion and add it to the one I’m making, for glowier hair,” Beth told you, you smiled and nodded. 

“Oh, that would look amazing!” You agreed, “A bit on the radiant complexion would probably work wonders too.” 

“Yes, it would!” Lily said with a nod. “And what are you working on Tom?” She asked, turning to the boy. 

He turned to her like a deer trapped in headlights, and then crossed his eyes over at you, pleading for help “After shave lotion, right?” You said casually “So that the shave lasts longer, you mentioned?” 

He nodded “Ye– yeah… I heard Remus complain about his freshly shaved face lasting nothing, and I thought, same mate. Decided to do something about it.” 

You kept a tight smile as you gave him a look. Tom was a shitty liar . “Right! I’m sure that recipe James got you from Fleamont will be brilliant.” Tom nodded and went back to his preparations. 

“Why would you need Frolic Fizzweed Leaves for an aftershave lotion?” Lily asked, more to herself than to the rest. 

You shrugged “Must be one of those secret Potter family tricks,” you said with a shrug, and then smiled when you concluded it would be the perfect time to tease your friend “I’m sure if you married Potter your in-laws would be more than happy to tell you all about them.” 

Lily gave you a reproachful look, but Marlene added to the conversation “It’d be great, that way they could get back the potion-making talent they lost on with James.” 

“James isn’t bad at potions!” She said with a shrug, not quite thinking before she spoke.

Your smile grew “Really? Tell us all about your boy’s talents.” 

“He’s not my boy.” 

“Pretty sure he is, at least in his point of view,” added Tom as he mixed some things in his cauldron. 

“Why don’t you guys tease (Y/N) with Sirius instead?” Lily said as she chopped some of her ingredients with a bit of a frown. 

“They’re dating already, what is there to tease them about?” Mary said with a shrug, “If you want us to stop teasing you, you should just date Potter .” 

You all laughed at that, but no one continued to tease poor Lily any further. As you went back to your table next to Marlene, you realized she was already mixing stuff in her cauldron. You figured most of your friends would be done with their potions before your next meal, so you decided to concentrate on your brew. 

Getting the extract from the glow weed , was the most complicated part since it required an intricate spell and some special distillation skills, but you managed to do it after just a couple of tries. Once that was done, the rest of the potion was actually pretty simple, all you had to do was add the ingredients at the right time and mix according to the instructions. When you finished, you had a cauldron filled with glow potion, it had a golden colour, slightly bright, almost as if there was some light source hidden in the inside of it. You took out the crystal bottles you’d gotten for today and used a ladle to slowly pour the liquid onto them, placing some of the potion in a small bottle with a dropper, and handed it over to your friends so they could add their drops on the potions they’d made.

When you were done, everyone was pleased with their own potions, especially Tom, who had somehow managed to finish his mystery potion without anyone else figuring out what he was making, he placed it on a small crystal bottle with a golden cap and a transparent liquid. You all walked back to the dorms together and divided the little vials amongst Beth and your room. She wasn’t all that close with her roommates, so she took smaller, personal-sized potions while your room got the bigger vials and flasks. Once you placed your small bottle on your trunk, next to some of the other stuff you’d already prepared for your costume, you walked downstairs to wait for the girls in the common room, you grabbed the book Nina had lent you and sat on the couch. Tom came down and plopped down beside you minutes later. 

“What are you reading?” He asked taking the book from your hands and reading the back cover “A spicy werewolf novel?” 

“It was recommended. ” 

“Yeah, I bet,” he said with a bit of a cheeky smile and started flipping through the pages, stopping in on a page with a drawing of a shirtless man and eyeing it “Damn, he could rile me.” You raised an eyebrow, “Just look at him!” 

You laughed at that “Didn’t know you liked boys.” 

He shook his head “It’s not that I like them,” he said “I just don’t care if they’re boys, or girls, or anything …” 

You nodded, thinking about it for a second “I think I don’t either.” 

He gave you his signature bright smile and placed his arm over your shoulder, bringing you slightly closer to him “Welcome to the club!”

“Are there many others like us in the school?” 

“You’d be surprised, most of them hide it quite well though, you wouldn’t expect it, you know a few, but it’s not for me to tell. We Brits are pretty open-minded you see.” 

You nodded, “Definitely better than in my old school.” 

When the girls finally came downstairs you all walked out of the common room together, and you stayed with them until you had to split ways since they’d taken a different extracurricular. You walked half of the way to your classroom when you spotted Remus walking by himself, who also walked towards the classroom, so you picked up your pace and caught up with him “Nice to see you again, Rem!” You told him with a smile. 

“How did potion making go?” He asked politely. 

“Excellent, my costume is almost ready!” 

“You’re really going big with it, aren’t you?” He asked, raising one of his eyebrows.

You nodded “It’s my first Halloween at Hogwarts, you guys have set the bar pretty high according to Marlene, I’ve gotta match those high standards.” 

“She said that?” 

You nodded “She told me all about your costumes from previous years, how last Halloween you dressed up as the teachers, McGonagall was mortified when she saw Prongs with an exact replica of her green robes.” 

Remus laughed, remembering that moment “Yeah, she did.” 

“What about you? What are you dressing as this year?” 

He sighed, “Frankly, I don’t have a plan yet, last year was Pads’ idea, and we all followed through, but this year he had a pretty rough summer break and didn’t plan any group costumes, we’re all making our own.” 

“I think you should be a pirate!” You told him simply. 

“A pirate?” 

“You’ve got the sexy pirate vibe going on already, why not?” You asked with a shrug. 

“ Sexy pirate vibe?” He asked in disbelief. 

You nodded “Ask anyone, they’ll confirm it.” 

“Confirm what?” James asked as he caught up with the two of you 

“That Remus looks like a sexy pirate.” 

James raised his eyebrows at your words, looking a little impressed, and then turned to his friend “Hmmm…. Yeah, I see it.” 

“See? Told you! It was literally the first impression I got from you.” 

“When I went to pick you up at Dumbledore’s office?” He asked, rather confused.

You shook your head “No! When we you bumped into me at the station. I saw you, and instantly came flashbacks of those spicy novels with shirtless men on the cover.” 

When James heard it, he laughed like a madman, you were right , Moony definitely had the type. “Yours would have you, holding onto the ship’s mast with a barely buttoned white shirt, and the title would be something like The Beast Within ,” James said in between laughs. 

Remus gave James a warning look, but you were too occupied gasping at James’ boldness “Are you implying Remus is a beast in bed , Merlin! James, I did not expect you to be cheating on Lily with your best friend!” 

Now it was Remus’ turn to laugh, James’ dumb joke had turned on him “Yeah James, please explain how you’d know anything about my nightly activities… I could be a gentle lover for all you know.” 

“I don’t know about that,” you teased “You do give off the beast in bed vibe.” 

Remus gasped “I’m the chillest of the group.” 

You nodded “It’s always the quiet ones,” you said with an air of mystery. 

When you arrived at the classroom, the three of you struggled to gain back composure and to calm down after the fit of laughter you’d caused each other. Remus went to sit beside Sirius, the first thing he did, was ask him what they were all laughing about, and after being told the story he ended up agreeing with you on two of the things said, First: Remus had to dress as a pirate now, there was no other option. Second: Moony would definitely be a beast in bed . 

Saturday came and went, this time you actually got to go to Hogsmeade for the first time, even if it was more of a business run than a pleasure one, the boys were so focused on getting all the stuff for the party ready that you barely even saw Sirius while you were in town. You spend most of the day with the girls, jumping from shop to shop to get some of the last bits you needed for everyone’s costume. Mary was going to go the easy route, she decided she’d dress as a kitten, her plan was to grab some cat ears and a tail, and enchant them to move like those of a real cat would. 

Marlene was going to do a matching costume with Holden, they’d both go as Sonny and Cher from the video “I Got You Babe”. Marlene had even gotten her hands on a long black wig and a small fur coat. And Holden had actually bought a hair-lengthening potion to match the look. You were certain the two of them would look incredible in their outfits. Beth was going to dress as an astronaut since she was very passionate about space exploration and some of the newer muggle technology advancements. Tom was going to dress up as a vampire and had convinced you to help him charm his canines to look like fangs.

James tried to persuade Lily to do a couple’s costume with him, but she refused every single time he asked, in the end, she decided she’d go as Ophelia, from Hamlet. When James found out he asked Remus to give him a short summary of the story and decided he’d be dressing up as Hamlet, to match with Lily even if she wasn’t expecting it. You honestly considered warning him against it, but he seemed so hopeful and they would look absolutely adorable in the photos so you decided against it. Peter said he’d dress as Edmund Pevensie, from  "The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe” a book he had read when he took the muggle literature with Remus in 4th year, he’d convinced Teddy Hawthorn to dress as Peter, Annabeth Doxon to be Susan and a girl who you hadn’t met yet to be Lucy.  

Since you didn’t tell Sirius what you were dressing as, he decided he wouldn’t tell you either, so both of your costumes would be a surprise to each other. 

Unfortunately, your visit to Hogsmeade was so hectic, like everyone else’s, that you didn’t even have time to visit any of the restaurants your friends always talked about, you did see the Three Broomsticks from afar, it seemed like a nice and cozy little pub, very English in its type. Tom mentioned they made mean Beef Pasties and even if you weren’t quite sure they were, the way he described them them made them seem utterly delicious. He promised to treat you to some next time you went to Hogsmeade. 

By Sunday, you were all spent, dedicating a good deal of the day to work on your costumes, Hagrid had gifted some pumpkins to Peter and you were carving along with him and Remus in the common room, Beth was gluing some patches to her astronaut costume and Lily worked on adding some details to her dress. James and Sirius were up in their dorm, since James had to work on his secret Hamlet costume, and Sirius on his own secret costume. 

“How does it look,” you said as you turned around your pumpkin for Peter to see it.

He winced when he saw it, but was too nice to say anything negative about it “It’s… a little wonky, it… uh… works with the Halloween theme?” 

You laughed in response and pulled out the book of practical spells Nina had lent you, being sure there had to be something useful there. 

“Want some help?” Remus asked politely, taking your pumpkin and using a small blade to straighten some of your cuts. 

You placed a hand over his shoulders and thanked him before going back to the book, still trying to find a useful spell, but there wasn’t exactly a Halloween section on the index. When you turned back to look at your pumpkin, Remus had already finished up refining it and it looked incredible.

“That’s… Remus, you’re incredible with your hands!” 

“That’s what she said,” Peter said, almost automatically. 

You gasped “Peter!” you said as a little smile drew from your lips. He looked up from his pumpkin mortified, you giggled “Didn’t know you had it in you to make dirty jokes.” 

“You do remember I literally sleep in the same room that Sirius, right? The ability just rubs into me,” he told you with a little smile. You laughed along with Remus. 

You heard some steps from behind and finally saw both Sirius and James walk down the stairs, Sirius casually leaned closer to you and placed a fast kiss on your lips before turning to Moony. You realized he had some glitter on his hair and passed your hand over it to shake it off as he spoke “Ready to go Moons? Pete?” 

Remus checked his watch, and nodded “Yeah, I should probably get going, I’ll see you guys there?”

Peter nodded, “I’ll stay here for a couple minutes more, I want to finish this pumpkin, but I’ll be there.” 

“Excellent, it’s settled then.” 

Sirius finally turned to you, since you were still fluffing his hair “You done love?” 

You shook your head “haven’t seen you much this weekend,” you said with a pout, not quite wanting to take your hands off his head. 

He smiled and tilted his head just a little “Don’t tempt me, I’ll end up staying.” 

You laughed at that, but you knew how important the marauder’s jokes were, so you shook your head “Go ahead trouble , I’ll see you at divinations, yeah?” 

He gave you a look and shrugged with a smile on his face, before giving you a wink and running out behind Peter and James, who had already walked out of the portrait. 

“You’re not planning to skip divinations, are you?” You asked Peter, who gave you an awkward smile in reply. 

“And Remus just said yes ?” 

Peter seemed a little nervous at your question, but you didn’t quite understand why he would be “We…. Um— It’s very important business.” 

You frowned, a little unconvinced but nodded, deciding not to question him further, “Ok then, I’ll cover for you lot. I’ll tell Spellman you ate something at Hogsmeade yesterday and that you’re feeling dreadful or something.” 

Peter finally met your gaze “You’d do that for us?” 

“Of course I would!” You said, as if it was obvious “You’re my friends, I’d cover for you any day.” 

Peter smiled “You’re the best!” 

You and Peter cleaned the table and placed the pumpkins near the window before he left. Once he was gone you moved closer to the girls, both Beth and Lily were still working on their costumes, “Need any help?” You asked politely. 

Lily shook her head, but Beth responded “Yeah, can you pass me some of those patches please.” She said as she pointed at the table filled with patches, you carefully picked them up and handed them over. Letting yourself fall on the couch once you were done. You picked up the book Nina had lent you, the spicy novel this time, and finally started to read through it. You’d actually enchanted the cover since clearly it called everyone’s attention with the original one. Now it looked like a copy of a regular old spell book.

“Uh… I’m gonna feel bad if you keep studying while I’m working on a costume.” Lily Pouted from her place on the floor. 

You chuckled “I’m not actually studying though, It’s a spicy romance book Nina lent me, the cover was a bit extra, so I charmed it.” 

Lily gasped, with a smile drawing on her lips as she did. “You sly fox!” 

You smiled at that, laughing as you said “Oh… trust me, you’ve got no idea .” 

“And.. Is it actually spicy?” Beth asked, not looking up from her costume.

You shrugged, “Not sure, haven’t even met the main love interest so far, I’m barely starting the book. But I’ll tell you if it’s good.” You told her before going back to read. Every now and then they would ask you for small favors like holding the fabric for a second or passing something that was closer to you than it was to them. It was nice to just chill with the two redheads for a while. 

After some time Mary and Marlene came from the stairs, you pulled your head from the book and turned to the girls “Is it already time for class?” You asked, surprised.

Mary nodded “9:30, you see?”

“We should probably start walking there, in case the stairs decide to be funny today,” you said as you stood up. 

Both Lily and Beth grabbed their costumes and carefully sat them over a table, you wrote a small note and placed it over them, so that other Gryffindors wouldn’t grab them by accident, or after trying to admire them. Once it was done, you started walking towards the class, Tom caught up with you halfway there, and you all arrived at the astronomy tower with a couple of minutes left. Professor Spellman was already there, and a couple of students were pulling out their own telescopes as well, Tom included among them. The moon was already starting to. fade. According to Tom, who wouldn’t shut up about the way the BIood Moon worked “The moon will almost disappear completely before we can see it again, and when we do, it will turn red.” 

He seemed so fascinated by the event you decided not to tell him you’d read all about it on the pages of the divination book Professor Spellman had you read for today’s class. At some point a Hufflepuff boy walked closer to Tom, smiling brightly as he greeted him “How’s it going Tom?” 

Tom smiled back at him “Brilliant, I was just telling (Y/N) here about the mechanisms of the BIood Moon.” 

“Really? I’d love to hear all about it!” The boy said with a smile. 

You gave Tom a look, raising an eyebrow, he just smiled and winked in return, “Right! I’m sure Tom will know lots about it, I think Marlene’s calling me. See you boys around!” You said, giving Tom a knowing look, and letting the two boys flirt by themselves. 

You were about to walk towards Marlene, when you heard the same howls from the time when you’d gone to the greenhouses with Lily, a lot further away this time, but the same nonetheless. So instead, you turned around and walked to the window closest to the sound. When you reached, you leaned over the edge just a little, to try and see better, but there was nothing but an endless sea of trees, wherever the things making the sound were, they must have been very deep inside the dark forest. Then you felt someone push you over the balcony violently, just to pull you back again with a vicious grip on your shirt “Careful, you may fall,” you heard Evan’s stupid voice as he pretty much pulled you towards his chest, you could feel his hot breath on your neck, disgusting, you wonder how it was possible that you’d considered him attractive at some point. 

You turned around quickly, forcing him to loosen his grip on your shirt “What the hell Rosier?” You hissed. He was not alone either. Severus was on his side and another boy, who you quickly identified as Mulciber. He was taller  with a tank-like complexion, that contrasted with Rosier’s softer looks as water did with oil. You stood your ground, even if you wanted to step back “Awww… did you have to bring your bodyguards along? Too scared to face lil’ old me by yourself?” You mocked, “Don’t worry, I can take Frankestine and Slimmy on any day of the week.”

“What the fuck did you just call me?” Mulciber said, taking a step forward. 

“Offf, sorry! Guess I should have used a reference a little more keen to your level of knowledge.” 

Evan scoffed, “Do you think it’s a good idea to make fun of him?” He said as he tilted his head, pulling back a little and giving the room a once over “especially without your boyfriends here to protect you.” 

“Please, as if I needed anyone to protect me from you lot. Barty’s fan #1, Lily’s simp and Mr. Big guy” you laughed “ you’re joke. ” Ok, in hindsight, maybe you were pushing it a bit too hard. But you were not going to let them intimidate you.

Evan grabbed you by the collar and pushed you towards the railing again, you grabbed onto the handle, knuckles white with the force you were using, but you eyed him with a bravery you didn’t know where the hell you’d gotten from. You looked around and smiled, people were crowding up around you “You sure you wanna do that, luv? We’ve got a bit of a crowd here, too many witnesses, right? All though, I’m sure you’d fit in perfectly fine in Azkaban.”  He seemed tempted to drop you, but eventually, he let go and pulled back. You smiled and straightened your uniform “Yeah, I thought so.” 

“This is not over,” he threatened. 

“Bring more henchmen next time,” you mocked with a smile. When he was gone, you turned around to the forest again, taking deep breaths to calm yourself down, and looking at the possible fall you could’ve gotten. It would most certainly be mortal. 

Lily pushed through the crowd to reach you, looking at you filled with worry once she caught up “What the hell were you thinking (Y/N)? All that bravado was gonna be worth for nothing had he actually pushed you.” 

“He wasn’t going to push me.” 

“He’s insane, he could have,” she argued.

“Not in front of so many people.”  You insisted, “Not without stupid Barty Crouch around, he’s the only reason Evan’s got anything against me.”

“That was the only reason,” Lily corrected “You insulted them out in the open for the entire class to hear.” 

“They came pushing me into the railing first. I was not going to cry for help.” 

“Ughhh….” She said exasperated, and then pulled you into a bone-crushing hug, “Just promise me you won’t go facing those assholes by yourself. Please don’t be as stupid as the boys. ” 

You sighed and returned the hug “I will not  go chasing after them Lily, I promise .” You said, and you really did not intend to do it. 

Chapter Text

Monday October 25th, 1976

You and Remus had a presentation today, but he wasn’t anywhere to be found. You waited near the door of the classroom, with your notes in your hands, looking over them while tapping your feet on the ground, toying with your ring, and turning to look at the hall every couple of seconds, hoping to see him miraculously arrive. But he didn’t, in fact, it was the second time that day people you expected to see were nowhere to be found. 

You were also supposed to go flying with James and Sirius in the morning like you did every single day, but neither of the boys made it. You went up to knock on their room’s door, but nobody answered, and after waiting for a few minutes, you decided to go for the morning flight by yourself. 

Professor Flitwick saw you at the door, looking nervous and smiled at you empathetically from his desk. When your class was just about to start you sighed and walked closer to him. 

“Professor, I don’t understand what’s happening, I’m not sure if Remus will make it. He didn’t tell me anything, I haven’t seen him since yesterday and I–“ 

“It’s ok,” he said calmly “Mr. Lupin is sick, I was informed.” 

“ Sick? ” You asked with a frown. 

Flitwick nodded, “I believe he and some of his friends all ate something that upset their stomachs at Hogsmeade on Saturday, they’re at the nurses’ office.” 

You opened your eyes wide, that was your lie . But if the boys really were at the infirmary, then it meant something had happened to them on their stupid prank last night. 

You frowned, almost wanting to run off to see them, but resisted the urge to do so “What’s gonna happen to our presentation then? He’s worked so hard on it, I wouldn’t want him to lose his grade.” 

“You can present with him next class,” he told you comprehensively “It’s ok Miss (Y/LN), take your seat, don’t stress too much about it. I know you’ll give a brilliant presentation once your partner’s feeling better.” 

You nodded “Thank you, Professor,” you told him with a smile and went to take one of the seats. 

The class started, Lily and Marlene had worked on their project together and they went first, talking about the properties of wordless magic and then making a very small presentation, teaching some volunteers to make sparks with their wands without saying a word. Tom and Marlene were next, and they gave a talk about the dangers of dark magic and so on. A couple other students asked for volunteers, and while in normal situations you’d have been among the first to raise your hand, today was an exception, you were a little too busy, tapping your feet under the desk and looking at the clock every couple of minutes. 

At some point you decided you had to do something, so you took some parchment out and wrote a small note: 

Hey Puppy! You all right? I missed you and Prongs on our morning flight today… Remus missed our presentation too, tell him Flitwick said we could present next class. Are you all really at the infirmary? Because I know for a fact it wasn’t something you ate… Unless you actually ate something last night, I wouldn’t put that past you lot, but I’m sure that’s not it. I’ll keep an eye out for your answer plane. 

You read it over a couple of times and then started to bend it into a very small paper plane that you left over your desk. When class was over you used the same spell Remus had used at the beginning of the course so that your little plane landed close to Sirius. 

It wasn’t until you were in the middle of transfigurations that a different paper plane landed over your desk, you carefully unfolded it and started reading:

Hey beautiful! Thanks for that strong vote of confidence! We didn’t actually eat anything bad. Remus says he’s sorry for missing the class, and that he’ll do your homework for a week to make it up to you, I’m jealous! 

We really are at the infirmary though, last night’s prank went awry and we accidentally got attacked by Grindylows. We’re all right, Remus got the worst of it anyway… But we came to check on him first thing in the morning, that’s why we didn’t make it to the morning flight. Your rumour somehow got all the way to Poppy, and when we went to check on Remus she gave us some medicine and had us stay in the infirmary to check on us… so it’s basically your fault. 

Anyway, you should still come see your poor boyfriend in the infirmary, pamper him with kisses and offer him some tasty treats… at least.

1. Since I haven’t retrieved the ones from last week, that would mean you owe me six so far…

You smiled when you finished reading, Sirius was a total flirt, and you loved that about him. When you read over it though, you frowned, that was the second time Remus got hurt after a prank, and if they were attacked by Grindylows, there was no way they were just fine, those little creatures could be absolute savages, you’d know, since one time a friend at your older school had fallen on the lake and been attacked by those nasty little water beings, she had to be taken to the hospital wing, and stayed there for a week. Of course, Remus was bigger, stronger, and a more advanced wizard, since that had happened to her in 3rd year, but regardless, Remus must be pretty battered up, again .  

Finally, you sighed and went back to trying to turn the quill you had in front of you into a bird. Not that you were doing too good at that either.  You let out an exasperated groan after your 3rd try of only getting a beak and little legs to appear on the quill. 

Professor McGonagall approached you  “Everything ok Miss (Y/LN)?”

You nodded, the air of exasperation remaining regardless, “I’m really struggling to get this right,” you told her “This is the first time I ever done transfiguration, and no magic had been this challenging for me before, it’s just…” 

McGonagall smiled understandingly “Would you mind if I got you a tutor? I know a couple students from your year that would be more than willing to help.” 

“I… uh… I’m not really that close to everyone in my year…” 

McGonagall raised an eyebrow, you were pretty much already a member of one of the Gryffindor friend groups, and the rumour that you and Sirius were dating was already spreading too “I was thinking Mr. Lupin could help, and from what I gather you’re already friends…”  

“Oh… Remus? Yeah, we’re close!” 

“Excellent, I’ll tell him once he’s back on his feet. Poor boy, he must be feeling pretty tattered up today.” 

You nodded “Yeah, he shouldn’t have eaten that.” 

“Eaten what?” She asked, confused. 

You arched your eyebrows “The thing at Hogsmeade that made them all end up in the infirmary…” 

“They all?” Minerva quipped “Who else is in the infirmary?” 

“Sirius, James and Peter.” 

“They are there?!” She asked, seemingly surprised. You frowned , how did McGonagall know Remus was in the hospital if she didn’t know the boys were there too?

“Isn’t that the reason Remus was in the infirmary?” You asked, rather confused. 

“The reason he–? Oh right, yeah right, must have slipped my mind.” She said and stepped away. 

You frowned, there were many things that did not make sense with Remus Lupin, you’d already accepted that, and moved on from it, since he was one of the best people you’d ever met, but this , this was just off. McGonagall was not the type of teacher to whom things just “slipped her mind”, and that was a fact. Unless she knew Remus had been in the infirmary for another reason, and if that reason was that he’d been attacked by Grindylows, then that would imply she knew about the boys’ prank and was covering for them, which made even less sense. 

And today was not the first time things were weird, it was like some teachers knew something that you didn’t. And it was all somehow related to Remus. And you really did not want to pry, but your mind, being naturally curious, could not stop thinking about it. And it all seemed so familiar; like you only needed to find the one little string that would solve the entire mystery, and it was just there for you to reach out and pull, but somehow, you were trying to find the tail end with your eyes closed. Maybe Remus really did blindfold you the first time you met, but instead of using the physical blindfold, he’d used an intricate web of half-facts and untold tales. Of course, he didn’t owe you any kind of explanation, and it was not like you were going to ask but a part of you really, really wanted to discover the mystery. 

You spend the entire class pondering all the little things that didn’t make sense about Remus Lupin, thinking of trillions of ways in which they could be connected to each other, but nothing seemed to make sense. No matter how much you racked your brain, you could not find the string to tie it all out. You were so focused in uncovering the mystery that you didn’t even realise when the class was over. 

“Hey (Y/N)! You ok?” Tom said as he shook your shoulder, snapping you out of your thoughts. 

You nodded “Yeah, yeah, I’m fine.” You said, but your head was pounding from so much thinking, and to be honest, you did not want to deal with divination class, so you corrected yourself “Actually, would you mind telling Spellman I’m feeling a little dizzy, and that I’m going to the infirmary?” 

Tom gave you a look and nodded, the two of you stood together and started walking towards the door “And where are you actually going to?” He asked, curiosity getting the best of him. 

“Hm? Oh, to the infirmary actually, I’ll just pass by the kitchens first.” 

“The kitchens?” He asked confused as you both continued walking towards the stairs. 

“I’m taking some food for the boys,” you explained, Tom nodded, but still looked confused “They got caught up in the excuse from yesterday and Poppy got them to stay in the infirmary to check on them.” 

“So you’re just feeling bad as an excuse to go see your sweet boyfriend,” he teased. 

You nodded “Yeah, and my friend who got attacked by Grindyllows.” 

Tom frowned “Grindylows? At this time of the year?” 

“Yeah, why?” 

“It’s weird, when the lake starts to cool down they disappear .” 

You frowned at that, yet another puzzle piece to solve, but by then Tom was already walking towards a different set of stairs “See you around, hope you feel better, I’ll tell Spellman where you went,” he said loudly. Tom really was the worst liar you’d ever met. 

“Thanks Tom,” you managed to say before scurrying through one of the hall entrances, so people wouldn’t notice the weird exchange you’d had. 

Once you got to the kitchens you knocked on the frame and asked the elves if you could have some food, they nodded and started preparing you some snacks to go, you asked around, hoping to find Nimbbletwist, but the elves told you that she’d been commission to something by Dumbledore that particular day. When they were done you thanked them profusely and waved goodbye. You grabbed the package of food and after placing the entire thing inside your backpack you started walking towards the infirmary. 

Once you were next to the huge, half-opened doors, you slowly slipped inside, hoping not to cause too much of a stir inside, but the place was pretty much empty, other than the hushed whispers you heard at the end of the room. A curtain was covering the boys from your sight, and muffling their voices. 

“We need to find a better way to deal with your furry little problem,” You heard Peter say “Moony’s been going pretty wild the past few times.” 

“Ehm…” You cleared your throat, whatever the boys were talking about, the fact that they were whispering about in an empty room, meant that the conversation was secret enough for them, and you were not planning to eavesdrop on some of the nicest people you’d met. “Morning boys,” you said with an awkward wave. 

Sirius smiled the second he spotted you, Peter looked like he’d seen a ghost, and Remus looked too tired to care much about you having shown up almost out of nowhere. But James was the first one to speak “Hey (Y/N)! Sorry we missed the morning flight.” 

You nodded “Sirius told me all about your mishaps,” you said as you walked closer to them, you looked around trying to find a sitting spot, and when you didn’t you resolved to stay standing “Brought you guys some snacks.” 

“You actually did ?” Sirius asked with a dashing smile, eyes shining in content. His girl had brought him snacks, and she looked as lovely as ever while doing so. By then, you were already turning your backpack in front of you and pulling the little pack the elves had built for you. So he helped you hold it as you pulled the food pack and placed it on the bed besides Remus. They’d packed sausage rolls, pork pies, scotch pancakes, Jaffa cakes and tiny Bakewell tarts, Peter dug right into the sausage rolls, like he was starving. 

“Poppy didn’t give you boys any food?” 

“She gave us soup,” Peter said in between bites “It was so bland and tasteless, she said it’d make our stomachs feel better.” 

“I thought it was good,” Remus said with a shrug. 

“Yeah, you got the one with spices,” Peter complained “You should’ve said we had a headache or something instead.” 

You raised an eyebrow, “Since when are headaches something 4 people can have at the same time?” You retorted. 

Peter shrugged in response “A magical headache or whatever.” 

“At least, thanks to you, we didn’t get in trouble for skipping class,” James said with a shrug. 

“Exactly, that’s my girl!” Sirius said with a wink, then he grabbed your arm and pulled you onto his lap, you arched your eyebrow at him once you were comfortably sitting on him “You looked like you were tired.” 

You laughed, shaking your head “Yeah, sure Puppy, if you say so .” 

“Don’t think I’ve stopped counting,” he said as he wrapped his arms around you a little tighter, setting the two of you in a more comfortable position. 

Finally, you turned to Remus, he wasn’t eating any of the things you’d brought, James was munching on a pork pie and even Sirius was enjoying a Bakewell tart, but Remus looked genuinely beaten up. He had a sharp gush on his face, and another one down his arm, probably many more underneath his clothes and bandages. Just when you started to pay attention to the open wounds, and realising how different they were from the ones your friend had gotten when she was attacked by Grindyllows, Sirius spoke again “You’re wearing your ring today,” he said pointing at it as he grabbed your hand to look at it. 

“Found it in a drawer as I was getting ready in the morning,” you told him “seemed to match the mood of yesterday.” 

“Because of the moon and the stars,” Sirius agreed, paying a closer look at your ring, you nodded, “It’s very beautiful,” he said, slipping it out of your finger and testing if it would fit in his pinky, it stood out among his thicker rings, but he didn’t seem to mind. 

“Won’t you eat anything?” Peter asked Remus as he munched on his fourth sausage roll. 

“I’m not really feeling it,” Remus responded. 

“Mmm… Actually–“ you said as you placed a cookie in your mouth to bring your backpack to your lap again. Sirius took the cookie from your lips and held it for you, you turned to him and whispered a small “thanks,” before you continued to rummage through your bags, “It’s here!” You said as you pulled out a chocolate bar. It was the same brand Remus always carried around, and you’d bought a few at Honeydukes over the weekend. You’d decided to always carry one in your bag, to offer to Remus when he was feeling off, just like he’d done for you several times. You handed it over to him. 

The boy smiled as he grabbed onto it “Thanks love! Don’t deserve it after I failed you for today’s presentation.” 

“Don’t be silly Rem, you had an accident,” you told him motioning to him on the bed. 

“And where’s my chocolate bar?” Asked Sirius as he leaned his head over your shoulder to give Remus a better look. 

“You don’t get one today Puppy, I only packed one in the morning, sorry.” 

“And you gave it to Remus instead of me?” He teased, playing offended. “You do remember I am your boyfriend right?”  

“Well, clearly Remus was the one to save all of your asses last night,” you said pointing at the bandaged boy, and then at the rest, who barely had a scratch on them “However the hell did you get into a fight with Grindylows?” 

“We were trying to get some gillyweed,” Remus responded while he pulled on the paper of the chocolate bar to open it “for a special prank we wanted to do on the Slytherins.” 

“With gillyweed ?” You asked with a frown. 

“For a potion,” James added “took the recipe from one of Grandpa’s old journals.” 

You narrowed your eyes at James, but nodded, Who knows? the Potters are pretty much experts on potions, they’d know . “Did you get it?” 

Remus shook his head “We were too busy with the Grindylows .”

“I could maybe help you–˝

“–No!” Remus, James, Sirius and Peter said at the same time. You closed your mouth at that, taken aback by their answer. 

“Love, you did see Moony, right? Do you wanna end up like that?” Sirius reasoned. 

“Well… I’m a good swimmer, I could scare the Grindylows away with bombarda or something–”

“–don’t worry about it,” said James “We decided we would buy it in a magazine and get it delivered, we don’t wanna have to go through that again,” he motioned to Remus. 

“But thanks for offering,” Remus added “It’s very brave of you.” 

You shook your head, “those stupid Slytherin boys have been getting on my nerves lately, whatever prank you do to them, I’d love to help.” 

“They’ve bothered you again since the broom incident?” Sirius asked. A shiver ran down your spine as you remembered the way Evan had pulled you over the railing last night. 

“Nothing I can’t deal with, they’re just a bunch of cowards.” 

James looked at you with apprehension, he thought it was his fault that Barty had started to pick on you, after all the ball you threw at his face had originally been directed at him, not at you. You wondered if the boys had heard of yesterday’s commotion in the astronomy tower, they probably hadn’t, they wouldn’t be relaxed at all. 

Sirius yawned from behind, closing his eyes as he leaned closer to you, resting his head over your neck. “You boys should go get some sleep,” you told them when you noticed that it wasn’t only Sirius who was sleepy, James’ shoulders were slumped, and he normally stood straight, while Peter was sluggishly munching onto his fourth sausage roll. “I’ll stay with Rem, I need to wait for Poppy to come anyway, I want something for my headache.”

“You’ve got a headache?” Remus asked with a frown, “Why didn’t you tell us earlier?”  

You tried to shrug but stopped when you remembered Sirius still had his head over your shoulder “You looked a lot worse,” you said with a teasing smile. 

He shook his head with a breathy laugh, “Don’t put yourself second luv, I’m fine, I’m strong! See?” He said as he raised his arm and as if to show off his muscles. 

You laughed, he wasn’t lying, but it was still funny. “You sure you can stay luv? What about your classes?” Sirius asked. 

“I’ll catch up later, it’s easy. It’s not like we have transfiguration.” 

“Still having trouble with that?” Peter asked politely. 

You nodded “That’s literally the cause of my headache, couldn’t get a feather to turn into a bird. McGonagall said she’d give me a tutor.” 

“How delightful,” Sirius said ironically. 

“My thoughts exactly,” you agreed, “but then she said it’d be Remus, so it’s fine, we’re already working together in so many other classes, he must be getting sick of my face.” 

“Oh shut up, I would never,” he said as he broke off another square of his chocolate.

Sirius extended his hands towards him “Gimme soooome Moooony!”

Remus rolled his eyes, but extended his hand with a piece towards your boyfriend anyway, when their hands brushed against each other Remus hissed “What the hell Pads?” He said with a frown, looking betrayed. 

Sirius looked at his hand, his eyes widened as he saw he was still wearing your ring, your silver ring . “Sorry, I didn’t mean to shock you.” 

“Shock him?” You asked confused, that wasn’t the reaction you’d expect from someone who’d gotten an electricity shock. Let alone Remus’.

Remus nodded, “I’ve got a small cut in my hand,” he lied “It was rather unexpected.” 

You looked at him with a bit of a frown, you hadn’t seen any cuts on his hand. James suddenly stood up and clapped, gathering everyone’s attention “Well, if I don’t move now, I’m falling asleep on this chair. Pete, Pads, you coming along?” 

While you turned your head to look at James, Remus threw a look at Sirius, who frowned apologetically and mouthed “I’m sorry, I forgot.” 

“I’m coming,” Peter said, standing up after James. “Need anything from the dorm?” He asked Remus. 

He shook his head “I’ll catch up with my homework later.” He responded. 

“I’ve got a couple of books here in my bag, we can read something while they go sleep.” You offered your friend with a smile. 

“Sounds great!” Remus responded with a smile. 

“Nerds!” Sirius teased. 

“Pads?” Peter asked, “You coming too?” 

Sirius nodded, burying his head on your back as he hugged you tighter. 

“You don’t have to go,” you told him since he didn’t look like he wanted to let go of you just yet. 

“Why don’t you come nap with me instead?” He mumbled, voice a little muffled since he still had his head pressed to your back. “You smell really nice today.” Truth be told, Sirius thought you smelled nice every day , but with some of the dog qualities still lingering on him after the previous hours of being a dog, he was both extra sensitive to smell,  and extra clingy of his human too, not that you knew any of it. 

“Let the poor girl breathe mate!” Peter teased. Sirius just groaned in response. 

“I’m gonna stand up luv,” he told you, you were about to stand, but he just stood up while still holding onto you, and once he was up, he slid to the side, and dropped you right back on the chair. Well then, I guess that works too, you thought. 

“Bye Puppy,” you told him as he walked towards his friends. He raised his hands, showing 9 fingers up and raising his eyebrows. You rolled your eyes, but also realised he was still wearing your ring on his pinky finger “Oi my ring!” 

“I’m keeping it as collateral,” he told you, “‘least until you pay up what you owe.” You gave him an amused smile and shook your head as he left. 

“What do you owe him?” Remus asked once the boys were gone. 

“He hasn’t told you about that yet?” You asked casually “says he doesn’t like being called Puppy–“ 

“–that’s a lotta crap.” 

You laughed “Yeah, well he charges a kiss for every time I call him that.” 

Remus raised his eyebrows, now he was amused “he’s just taking advantage of you love…” 

“Is he though?” You said back with a little smirk “The way I see it is a win-win situation. He gets to be all flirty and I get to kiss his pretty lips.” 

“ Touché,” the boy agreed, he too thought Sirius had pretty lips “Can I tease him with the nickname too?” 

“All you want,” you replied with a smile “if he tries to kiss you, though, don’t blame me for it.” You both laughed, and a comfortable silence followed, then you remembered you still had books inside your bag and pulled them out, setting them on the bed beside him. He grabbed the one at the top when you noticed which book it was, you pulled it from his hands. “You can’t read that one.” 

“I can’t read… A Wizard's Handy Handbook of Spells ?” He asked as he read the cover name from your hands. 

“It’s not that,” you added, holding it tightly between your arms. “It’s… not actually A Wizard's Handy Handbook of Spells , I charmed the cover.” He arched an eyebrow and tried to take it from your grasp, you pulled back but it was too late, he had it in his hands again.  Remus had an awful lot of energy for someone who had been badly hurt just a couple of hours ago. “Remus, give me that!” 

“I wanna know why you charmed the cover first,” he said while dangling the book in the air. 

You looked at him with a frown and jumped forward to try and grasp the book from his hands, but he pulled it back, to the side of the bed. “Remus!” 

“Am I gonna have to read it?” 

You stood up, and extended your hands over him, to try and get the book that was on the other side of the bed, but your feet got trapped with your backpack strap and you ended up falling over Remus. He groaned as your body crashed over a particularly nasty bruise. Your scent filled his nostrils from the closeness, Sirius was right, you smelled awfully nice, a little like him too .

“Shit Rem, I’m sorry,” you said standing up as soon as possible “I didn’t mean to–“ The brusque movements had caused his shirt to rise up slightly and you actually saw the nasty bruise your body had crashed against, you looked at it with a concerned frown and then back at your friend “Remus…” 

He averted your gaze, he did not like being pitted “I’m fine.” He said once he turned back to you, using his free hand to pull down his shirt again “I’m strong, remember?” 

“Yeah, someone falling over a bruise hurts, no matter how strong…” 

He shrugged, he’d definitely had worse than you falling over him “You’re light, didn’t hurt much.” You looked at him, sighing “and you smell nice, no wonder Sirius wants to have you on his lap all the time.” Finally, you laughed, shaking your head as you stared at your friend. Remus realised you had a really nice laugh as you did, he shook his head from the trance of staring, he wasn’t sure he’d ever found a girl as pretty as you. “Will you tell me what kind of book you were trying to hide from me, or will I have to figure it out myself?” He asked, raising an eyebrow. 

“It’s a spicy romance novel,” you said avoiding his gaze, he smiled diverted. The more you know , he thought. “It was recommended!” You added. 

“Yeah, sure.” 

“It was!” You insisted “By your little Ravenclaw girlfriend, actually” 

“Nina Blythe?!” he asked in disbelief.

You nodded “Are you sure you don’t want to date her? She’s clearly into the good stuff.” He gave you a look and you laughed, Nina was beautiful, but she definitely still had a baby face, like Remus had said when you told him she had a crush on him.

“She’s not really my type.” 

“Which is…?”

“None of your business, of course.” He replied sassily, and then changed the subject “How spicy?” He asked, curiosity taking the best of him. 

You shrugged “I’ll tell you when I get to the spicy part,” you told him with a shrug, taking the book from his hands, he let you do it without any fuzz this time “But um…” you pointed at one of the other books on the bed “this one’s good, you’d like it.”

“Is it also spicy?” He teased. 

“Remus!” You complained, “Not every single book I read is spicy!” 

He shrugged “Wouldn’t shame you if you did.” 

You rolled your eyes and let out a breathy laugh. “It’s not spicy, but it is really good.”

“I’ll take your word for it,” he said, taking the book and opening on the first page. Soon enough the two of you were comfortably reading. You were so engrossed in your book that you’d totally forgotten the initial reason you’d gone there. But as you continued flipping pages, it was like the string you had been trying to reach earlier was finally there, shining brightly for you to take it, and tie all the mysterious facts into one sole explanation. As your eyes moved through the words in the book, the description of the male lead started to resonate with you…

Remus was strong . Remus had a lot of scars and bruises all over his body, and they were definitely not caused by Grindyllows, he always carried around a calming draught and had other rather strong painkiller potions in his room as well, he tended to stay away from you when you wore your silver ring, literally jumping from your grasp when you touched him with it on one time, and was also visibly mad at Sirius when he brushed over his fingers with it on, as if they both knew something you didn’t – electric shock, my ass . 

McGonagall knew he was in the infirmary, no, she expected him to be in the infirmary today, yesterday was full moon . 

When you told him that he could get the Fluxweed he said he was good at catching so he switched with you, he would’ve had to harvest it on the full moon . All the boys got really suspicious during the full moon , and the two times you’d seen the full moon happen in the castle, Remus and all the boys had disappeared. Peter was talking about “ a furry little problem ” just before you cleared your throat earlier. James had joked about his romance novel being called “The Beast Within.”

In the boggart class, when you got a werewolf, all the boys had tensed up, even the way Lily had approached you, constantly looking back and forth between him and you. 

You looked up at him, Remus looked tired, Remus had a great sense of smell, Remus got a lot more irritable around this time of the month, Remus was ripped even if he didn’t look like the type to do much exercise, in fact, you’d never seen him do exercise. Remus Bogart had been the moon. Remus was right in front of you, looking like he’d been up all night and yesterday was full moon . 

Remus’ nickname… Remus’ nickname was fucking Moony! 

YESTERDAY WAS FULL MOON. 

Finally seeing clearly every single thing that didn’t make sense in your head, all the half-told tales and the lies and the inconsistencies, “You’re a werewolf…” you mumbled, almost in a whisper. 

He had been too distraught with the book to notice, so he looked up at you “Sorry, what was that, luv?” 

Your head started swirling with fast thoughts, Remus hadn’t told you himself. Remus probably wanted his lycanthropy to be a secret. Remus had gone to great lengths to hide it. You’d barely met him a couple of months ago and you were sure most people didn’t know about his condition, other than a few teachers, the boys and, maybe Lily. She probably knows, in the bogart class, she seemed alarmed. But Marlene, Mary, Beth? They probably have no clue. What right did you have to know before the people who’d met him years ago? Whoever the hell were you to butt in on this boy’s life? Even if he’d become one of your closest friends. I do not want to make Remus uncomfortable. I do not want Remus to hate me for prying. “I.. uh.. Do you like golf?” You improvised, almost cringing at yourself for how stupid your question had been. 

“Golf?” He asked with a frown.

“Aha…” you continued “the muggle sport, Golf. With uhm.. sticks and small balls,” you then made a little golf swing with your hands. 

“Yeah, I know Golf,” he responded, still confused “Never played it tho.” 

“Me neither,” you responded honestly “This character though,” you pointed to the book “Seems like- very obsessed with it.” 

Remus frowned and leaned forward on the bed, to try and get a glimpse of the book, you remembered that you were literally on the page about the scars on the werewolf’s body and you instantly dropped the book. It closed shut on the floor. You leaned down “Oh no, I lost my page.” Maybe you were a worse liar than Tom in the end.  

Remus arched an eyebrow as he saw you leaning on the floor, you looked rather desperate. 

“You okay?” You nodded and sat back on the chair. “So… how was it? spicy?” 

“Not much so far,” you responded honestly “just very in-depth descriptions of the male lead’s toned abdomen from the time they went to swim on a lake together.” 

Remus nodded, maybe he’d have to borrow the book from you at some point . “And you’re liking it?” 

“Plot’s good, yeah. Very enlightening.” 

“Enlightening?” He asked, not quite understanding how abs would be enlightening, but who knows, maybe they are . 

“Mhm…” you said when you realised the slip-up “What about your book?” you decided to drag the subject away from the spicy werewolf book and onto the one Remus had instead. 

“I’m loving it, actually. I didn’t know you had such great taste in books.” 

You smiled at the compliment “The portrait of Dorian Gray is an absolute classic, it has some of the most killer quotes I’ve read in my life.” 

“Nowadays people know the price of everything–“ he started.

“–and value nothing…” you finished the quote for him, “And there are so many others, you won’t be able to stop.” You told him with a smile, “Like… the only way to get rid of temptation, is–“ 

“–to yield to it.” He said at the same time as you did, a certain glimmer in his eyes when he did. 

Out if nowhere the images of the kiss you’d had at Marlene’s party came back to Remus, he remembered how soft and gentle you’d been, he remembered how your hand over his shoulder had felt, how kind your lips had been to his, how you’d tasted of fresh berries and potions, how after the kiss was over you looked genuinely pleased but cracked a joke to ease the tension, how contagious your laugh had been… how sweet you smelled that day, always with a hint of Sirius’ scent from how close you were to each other. What the hell is wrong with me? She’s dating Sirius! She’s dating Sirius –my crush best friend– Black, he thought. He snapped himself out of it as soon as he could, coughing up a couple of times to clear his throat. 

You looked at him, with a bit of concern and stood up, quickly walking towards the nightstand to pour some water on a glass and hand it over to him, he took it, fingers brushing against your small hands. He cursed himself for feeling something when they did, he’d rather feel nothing at all. Why must you be so kind?, he thought as you waited for him to finish drinking, to put the glass back in his place.  “Thank you,” he mumbled. 

You just smiled kindly “That’s what friends are for.” No, he thought, the boys were rarely as attentive as you were, and Lily, well Lily rarely visited after the full moon, even if she always took a moment to ask if he was feeling alright. Maybe that was why he was feeling so weird all of a sudden, he just wasn’t used to being cared for the way you cared for him. He then started to wonder if you were that nice to everyone, or only to your closest friends, he wanted to know if you also carried around Peter’s or Prong’s favourite treats in your bag, or if you had ever given chocolate to Tom, Alex or Teddy, if you borrowed books to Lily, or if you laughed along Nina the same way you did with him, he felt a tiny pang of jealousy when he imagined those things happening. Remus, stop it! he told himself, by then you’d already sat back in your seat, and found yourself engrossed in your book. Or at least you were pretending to be, in really you were still cursing yourself for asking if he liked golf. 

When you noticed he was staring you turned to him with a diverted smile “Do I have something in my face?” 

He seemed to be snapped out of his own thoughts “What?” 

“You were staring,” you told him, pretending to be uninterested as you still looked at the book, in reality, you were wondering if maybe he’d heard you ask if he was a werewolf and if he was considering how to kick you out of his life for butting in on his private business. 

“Ah…” he acknowledged “I wasn’t…. I was thinking of last night’s accident,” he lied. 

“Of course,” you responded, “Grindylows must’ve  been horrifying.” 

He nodded, absentmindedly and the two returned to your respective books. 

Chapter Text

The week went by a lot faster than you expected it to, Remus, just like the last time, had gotten a lot better by dinner, Madame Pomfrey told him he could go once he took a painkiller potion, and gave you some anti-headache drops. You both thanked her and walked together towards the Great Hall. You were in awe of how fast he healed, really, just the thought of how bad he had been in the morning, and how much better he was now, was outstanding, and it made you wonder what other benefits his condition brought along, even if it was clearly a nuisance for him. 

Later on the week you’d gone to the book club Nina had invited you to, you wondered if she had also guessed Remus’s condition by reading the book she’d lend you, even if she hadn’t spent so much time with Remus; and to be honest, one of the reason you realised was because you were made pretty aware of the moon phases by your classes and professor on the past few months, you had gotten that silver ring as a gift, and you spend a great deal of time with the boys, down to the point that you easily noticed when they were all acting weird. All of them things Nina had not been a witness to, at least not up close like you had, but she had been around a lot longer than you, you really had no way to tell, unless you straight up asked, and that was obviously not happening.

“So… did you like it?” She asked you with a bright smile when she spotted you outside of the Ravenclaw common room. 

You nodded “It was really nice, helped me learn a lot too.” 

She frowned “Learn a lot… about werewolves you mean?” 

You nodded “I hadn’t studied them before,” you added later “I mean I know it’s not all accurate…” I certainly hope some of those Alpha and knotting things aren’t accurate, you thought “but it got me investigating more about them, it’s pretty interesting.” 

Nina nodded “It is, right?” She told you with a smile “I was taking an extra class on magical creatures and they’re all super interesting. They say Newt Scamander may come give a talk at some point next year, it would be absolutely brilliant!” 

“Yeah, totally!” You agreed she guided you inside her common room, and you marvelled at the ceiling. You remembered Remus had told you about it, how it was enchanted to look like the sky above instead of a  normal roof. It was definitely prettier than what you and Rem had created together, but you rather liked the Gryffindor one best.

Nina smiled when she saw you, “beautiful, right? I’m sure you would’ve fitted in perfectly in Ravenclaw.” 

You smiled at her “I’m not sure I’m as studious as most of you,” you told her with a smile “Just the other day I skipped some classes because I had a headache.” 

“Yeah, but you still have incredible grades,” she told you, matter of factly “Everyone thinks we’re nerds that study all the time,” she whispered, leaning in closer to you “but just because we’re reading it doesn’t mean we’re studying,” she smiled mischievously “as you saw with the book.”  

“Yeah, those spicy scenes were certainly something …” you replied. 

Nina guided you towards a small little gathering in front of the fire, it was different to the Gryffindor one, it somehow looked a lot more regal and elegant, reminded you of Professor Nightshade, and then made you wonder how the Hufflepuff common room would look, perhaps Alex could sneak you in one day, after all, he was the head boy. 

“Hey everyone, this is (Y/N),” She said as she pointed at you, you waved awkwardly. 

“Not that she needs much of an introduction,” a boy said, standing up and offering his hand for a shake, you took it with a smile “Neil Perry, it’s nice to meet the new Gryffindor legend.” You laughed, Neil had a very dashing smile, he almost reminded you of Prongs, he was just as bright “That’s Alice,” he said pointing to a girl with silver hair. 

“We share a class, don’t we?” You asked with a smile, she nodded, and the two of you shook hands. 

“That over there is Nox,” he said pointing at a boy with Slytherin robes. 

You both shook hands as well, “Nice to meet you,” he said “This is Comet, by the way” he said, pointing at a girl who was sitting right next to him. 

 “I’m really sorry about the Slytherins that have been picking on you,” she told you with a smile “We’re not all entitled pricks.”  

“Some of us are even nice,” Nox added.

“I don’t hold grudges against houses,” you told them with a smile “I kind of skipped the whole indoctrination moment by getting here so late,” you joked, and it cracked a chorus of laughs from the entire circle. 

Comet extended her hand for you to shake, “I already like you,” the girl said with a grin, which you returned with a wink, you already liked her as well. 

“I’m Jennifer, everyone calls me Jane,” a girl with curly black hair and freckles said as she extended her hands, you shook it. 

“She picked the book,” You heard another girl say from behind, she was wearing Ravenclaw robes too “I’m Clara,” she told you with a smile. You’d seen her around Nina often. 

“Marina,” said another girl with a wave, she was wearing a Hufflepuff beanie. 

“I believe that’s all of us?” Neil said with a smile. 

Then another boy barged into the room, he had light brown hair and looked a little distressed for being late, “I’m sorry, got caught up on the stairs when coming from the library,” he said.  Neil smiled fondly when he saw the boy “That’s Todd,” he told you, “he doesn’t talk much, but he enjoys listening to us a lot.”

You also smiled at the boy “Nice to meet you,” you said looking at him “I’m (Y/N)!” 

He looked at you puzzled “Same (Y/N) Nina won’t shut up about?” He asked, still fondling with the amount of things was carrying in his arms.  

You raised your eyebrow, smiling at the same time “All good things, I hope.” You said as you shook his hand, and helped him hold some of the books he was carrying. 

Todd nodded “It’s like she completely forgot about her old Gryffindor crush and replaced him with you.” 

“Will you shut it, Todd?” Nina said, with a tight smile on her face.

He just shrugged and took a seat next to Neil. Nina looked a little debased, so you placed a hand on her shoulder “Don’t think too much about it,” you told her with a smile, you could feel her ease under your hand “Where should we sit?”

“Come here!” Jane said as she slid to the side of the rug where she was so you could both fit in as part of the circle. Once you did, she took out the book and levitated it towards the centre of the circle, letting it float in between you all. “All right, session starts now.” 

“Favourite parts?” Asked Clara. 

“The chase scene at the end,” Said Neil “No offence Jane, but the book was a bit slow.” 

“Excessive with the descriptions of abs,” added Nox.

“Nah, I rather enjoyed those,” countered the first boy. 

You raised your eyebrows at that but nodded in agreement. 

“I like the way they depicted the werewolf.” Said Nina, who was next to you. 

“Yeah, especially on the sexy scenes,” added Comet with a cheeky smile. Alice hit her on the arm playfully “What? It’s true!” She retorted. 

“I don’t know about the knotting though,” you added in. 

Nox cringed from the other side “Please don’t remind me of that,” he said “I’ve been trying to erase those lines from my mind.” 

“I found it rather interesting,” said Jane “That’s why I chose the book.” 

“But it’s not like that in real life, is it?” You asked, trying to sound playful. 

“Well I’ve never done it with a werewolf, but I highly doubt it,” Responded Comet casually. 

“It’s not,” Todd said, everyone stared at him, and he turned red “I looked it up on a BOOK! Merlin guys!” that got a chorus of laughter from everyone. 

The reading circle continued on, with its playful banter, jokes and a rather in-depth discussion of the relationship mechanics within the story. You actually had lots of fun, Nina was right, just because they had their head buried in a book, it didn’t mean they were nerds . Even if some people would see you from afar, talking about a book so gleefully and entertainedly, that they would consider you as such. Once the reunion was over, they decided on the next book that would be reviewed, Nox picked a wizarding world book titled “Point of Know Return” and he promised it would be delightful, with Pirates, mermaids and fairies and underwater cities deep in the pacific. He also promised there would be no knotting . 

As the night started to fall, you realised the stars on the Ravenclaw ceiling became a lot brighter, you wondered if there was a  spell that you could implement to make the same thing happen to the one you’d created in the Gryffindor common room. “All right guys,” said Jane, “I think we should all head to bed, especially our guests from other houses since you don’t want to leave after curfew.” 

Everyone nodded and started to stand, as you grabbed the book they’d borrowed, you remembered “Hey Guys! Sunday’s the Halloween Party at Gryffindor, you should all come! Costumes are obligatory tho…” 

“You’re inviting us? To a party?” Nox asked in disbelief. 

“Yeah, why wouldn’t I?” 

“We aren’t exactly the type of people that get invitations to parties often,” added Todd.

“Speak for yourselves,” added Neil “I’m down!” He smiled, yeah, he definitely reminds you of Prongs “I’m sure I can conjure something to dress up as before Sunday.” 

“I’m coming too!” Said Jane with a smile. 

“If she’s going I’ll be there,” Clara said as she gave you a thumbs up.

“Yeah, I’m definitely coming,” smiled Comet. “Minho will be there, won’t he?” You nodded in response. “Good, I’ll tag along with him.” 

“I’d be lovely to see you all there!” You assured, and waved at them as you walked towards the door, Nina walked close behind you. 

“Did you enjoy yourself?” She asked you with a smile. 

You nodded “Yeah!” You responded excitedly “It was excellent! I’m pretty sure Remus and Lily would also love to join in, have you asked them?” 

She seemed surprised but shook her head “They uh… they’re not like you. Remus is always very polite, but too closed off and Lily is always busy.” 

“I think you should ask Remus,” you told her “I could ask him for you if you wanted,” you offered, but she shook her head again. 

“I’d rather it was just a you and me thing,” she said shyly. 

You raised an eyebrow at her statement but shrugged “Just us then,” you said, placing your arm over her shoulder, Nina tensed up with the unexpected contact and then relaxed back again, once she remembered it was you. 

“I really like hanging out with you,” she said, almost in a whisper. You reassured her by rubbing the side of her arm with your hand, Sirius’ touchiness was rubbing off on you.

“I like hanging out with you too, luv.” You smiled “You’re coming to the Halloween Party, yeah?” 

She shook her head “I’ve got a thing that day,” She told you. 

“A thing? What kind of thing?” 

“A date,” she mustered. 

You stopped the two of you dead in your tracks “Shut up! With who? I thought you liked Remus. Wait… Is it Remus? He didn’t tell me a thing, I’ll punch him!” 

“It’s not Remus.” She said and then frowned “How did you know I liked Remus?” 

You arched an eyebrow “You should be more surprised no one else knew, I figured it out on the first day of study group.” 

She laughed, “Well, I was pretty hung up on him then, that’s not a lie. But…” she cleared her throat “Someone else came around, made me realise Remus wasn’t really my type.” 

“What?!” You narrowed your eyes at her, “Come on, tell me who!” 

She shook her head, a diverted smile playing on her lips “No-uh.” 

“Awww… Nina!” You complained. She just shrugged in response.

“You figured out who the first one was by yourself, figure it out a second time,” she replied. You smiled and shook your head at her response. 

“Fine them, what prize do I get if I get it right?” 

“Knowledge.” 

You raised your eyebrows at her, “Not a Ravenclaw, remember?” 

“Fine then, a kiss.” You gave her a look. “What? You wouldn’t kiss a girl?” 

You laughed “I would, I have . Kissed Evans a couple of weeks ago actually.” You explained “But… I’m kind of dating Sirius now.” 

She frowned as if the news were a shock to her “Sirius Black? You’re dating him ?” You nodded “And is he aware you are dating?” 

You opened your mouth, drawing a bit of air in before speaking “Well… uhm– he seemed pretty aware last time I checked.” 

“What I mean is…” she started, shaking her head as if she wasn’t sure which words to use “Does he know you are exclusive?” 

“I’m sorry?!” 

“Sirius has a bit of a reputation …” 

Finally, you understood what Nina was going on about and you smiled at her softly, she was worried about you, so sweet . “He knows,” you reassured her “We uhm-“ you cleared your throat “We’ve got a bit of history.” 

“And what about Remus?” She asked then, curiosity getting the best of her. 

“What about him?” 

“I thought you’d end up dating him .” 

Now you frowned “Remus? Why would I–“ 

“-you always seemed to be really close to him, from the day you arrived, really.” 

“I…” you started, but you weren’t exactly sure what to respond. Remus really was great, very different to Sirius, but he had his own charm to him, and he was just as beautiful as your boyfriend, just a different kind of beauty. The more you thought about it, Nina wasn’t wrong, if you weren’t so enamoured by Sirius, you might have fallen for Remus instead. 

“Nevermind,” she said as she discovered you weren’t saying anything, “Want me to walk you back to your dorm?” 

You smiled “That’s so gentleman-y of you Nina,” you told her with a smile “But I’m gonna stop by the library on the way, it’s better for you to stay here, or you might be returning after curfew.” 

“The library?” She asked, puzzled “What for?” 

“I’ve been looking for a book,” you told her with a smile “for a little investigation I want to do on Magical Creatures.” Nina nodded, and pulled you into a hug before the two separated, she stayed in her common room as you walked towards the library. 

When you arrived, the doors were closed and you carefully sneaked inside, not wanting to disturb anybody. You were pretty sure no-one had spotted you, cause even when it was past curfew, and you were still roaming the halls of the library quietly, attempting to find a book, you realized no-one had asked you to leave, the librarian seemed to have left too. 

“You’ll have trouble for sneaking about at this time,” you heard a portrait say disdainfully. 

“I’m not sneaking about,” you responded “It’s not my fault no one was looking when I entered.” The portrait raised an eyebrow at you, as if he thought what you were saying was bull. You stared at the old wizard for a second, narrowing your eyes and turned your back on him, still trying to find the book. As you scanned through the old bookshelves, you finally spotted a book that could be useful, “Dark creatures and the things that make them tick'' you were just about to grab it, when you heard a very low whisper from a couple of bookshelves behind. 

“ Merde…fuck-fuck. ” You recognized that voice. You would recognize it anywhere. It’s Sirius . 

You looked around, trying to find him, but no matter where you looked, there seemed to be no-one there. Since you had to move further into the library, to try to spot the boy, you decided to put a disillusionment charm on yourself, so you could walk more freely, and perhaps sneak up on him. 

You walked through the lines of shelfs, quietly so you didn’t make much noise, but no matter how hard you looked, Sirius was nowhere to be found. Just when you started to think you had imagined it, and started walking back to get the Dark Creature’s book you’d found, you heard the creaking of a door. You turned around and saw how the door of the restricted section was being opened, by itself. 

Finally it downed you, James’ invisibility cloak, Sirius must have it , you thought before walking up behind him. Or, at least behind where you assumed he was. Eventually you saw his wand come out of the cloak, along with his delicate but strong looking hand. You smiled, almost wanting to applaud yourself for recognizing your boyfriend with a simple “ merde.” 

You sneaked up on him, sharply placing your hands over his shoulders, He turned sharply, the cloak falling on the floor before he pushed you against one of the bookshelves. He narrowed his eyes, and then he drew in a breath “ Mon Coeur? ” he asked, visibly confused. Truth be told, he had smelled you earlier, but he assumed it was just that your scent had stuck to his own clothes from when you were sitting together in the common room earlier that day. 

Finally you vanished the disillusionment charm and smiled “Surprise,” you whispered, he still had you pinned against the wall, hand bunching up your uniform threateningly, you bit your lip “I had no idea you liked it rough, Puppy,” you joked, a playful smile on your lips, as you eyed the way he was holding you. 

“ Shit, sorry. ” He whispered, finally letting you uniform free, you quickly straightened it, and then turned your head back to him, “What are you doing here?” he asked. 

“Came to find a book after the reading club with Nina.” 

Then you heard noise  and he quickly picked the cloak up, placing it over the two of you as he drew you a bit closer to him. “Shh, it’s Peeves!” He whispered, he probably didn’t need the two of you to stand so close together, nor did he need to place his hand over your mouth, since the two knew you were sneaking about, but he was certainly enjoying it.

And you were enjoying yourself too, especially when you slipped your tongue out of your mouth and licked the hand that was covering it. He made a disgusted expression when you did, pulling back and cleaning it off on his pants as he stared at you in disbelief. “What the hell?” He mouthed, the shadow of a diverted smile playing on his lips. 

You shrugged, with a smile placed on your own, you found his reaction really amusing. You then looked to the side, the sound was further away, far enough for you to whisper “What are you doing here?” 

“Looking for a book,” he said as he placed his hand on your shoulder, thumb brushing on your neck as he pushed your forwards lightly, motioning you to move. 

“And here I assumed you’d come for a barbecue.” 

He rolled his eyes as he chuckled “It’s for a prank, the one for the Slytherins that we talked about the other day, remember?” 

“And you got commissioned to pick the book by the boys?” 

“I was meant to come with Remus, he was feeling off, and I told them I’d come alone. I wasn’t really eager to spend a long time snuggled up against Wormy under the cloak.” 

“But you were eager to snuggle up against Remus, I see,” you teased. He chuckled again. 

He used his free hand to pull his wand out and illuminate the titles of the books as he read through them, he now stood a lot closer to you, his chest basically pressed against your back, you could feel it going up and down as he breathed. Somehow it felt different to when you sat on his lap, almost more intimate. Maybe it was the rush of sneaking about together, or maybe you were just being silly, “What are we looking for?” You asked him, turning your head to see him better, reflecting on how lucky you were a boy like that was your boyfriend. His stunning grey eyes, framed by his dark eyelashes, were scanning the bookshelves as he did. 

“It’s a book called The Compendium of Pernickety Enchantment s.” He told you as he continued scanning the shelves. You nodded and did the same. But then in-between some books, further down on the shelves, you found a small tome about werewolves. You had to take it. But you obviously couldn’t do it while Sirius was still there, or at least not while he was paying attention. 

You had to think of something, a distraction , but one that wouldn’t get the two of you caught. And then you remembered Sirius was a boy, and there was one thing that could easily distract any boy “Hey Puppy…” He hummed in response, his face awfully close to yours, his long hair brushing against your cheeks “You haven’t cashed out on those kisses that I owe you.” 

He frowned, giving you a look before turning back to the bookshelves “You’ve been too busy, haven’t you?” he responded, “with the whole trying to finish the book before the session and then the session today, on like our only bit of free time of the week” 

You arched an eyebrow at that “You jealous?”, you teased.

“Well, you should spare some more time for your boyfriend.” 

“How about I spare it now?” You said, finally turning to face him. 

“Right now!?” He questioned, eyebrows furrowed as he looked at you, confusion evident in his face, we’re in the restricted section of the library! , he thought. 

“Of course, if you don’t want to…” you said, with feign innocence and a little shrug of your shoulders. You were tempting him , and Sirius wasn’t one to resist temptation, let alone if it came from you. So he placed his hand behind your neck and pulled you towards him. You gently let your backpack fall on the floor. 

“ C'est une idée terrible, ” he said as he finally closed the gap between the two of you. 

“When have we ever been known for doing the most prudent thing?” you responded in between a kiss. And it was true, when you and Sirius were together it seemed like you threw caution to the wind, responsibilities be damned, fun? Pleasure? They always seemed to come first.

 Sirius now had both of his hands on your face, expertly leading the kiss, as you pulled your wand from your pocket and started using it to levitate the werewolf book towards your bag. You felt terrible as you did, distracting Sirius with a kiss to take a book from the shelves without him noticing, even if it was harmless, made you feel dirty , and not in a good way. Sirius trusted you, and here you were, hiding your knowledge from him, even if it was because you feared you’d lose a friend over it. 

When the book was safely inside the bag, you decided you’d make it up to him, and placed both hands around his neck, drawing him just a little closer to you and focusing absolutely all of your attention into the kiss. And that had you almost completely forget about the werewolf book in your bag. Sirius was kissing you hungrily, thirstily, like you were water and he’d been in the desert for days.

 You weren’t too far behind either, his lips might have been the most incredible thing to ever be created. So incredible you almost wanted to bite them. And you didn’t hold back from that either, you gently bit his lower lip as the two of you separated slightly, panting for air. 

“Did you just?” He whispered, but you ignored it, and went to place soft, wet kisses over his sharp jawline before using one of your hands to pull his hair out of the way and trail kisses all the way to his neck. 

Sirius Black smelled incredible, of pine trees, musk and a tinge of leather, probably from the leather jacket he often wore, he smelled like an adventure, and you couldn’t help to be hauled by it. Sirius had lowered his hands over to your hips, and held you close as you kissed his neck, eventually you found a particularly sweet spot, and kissed away, stopping to smile as he stifled a moan. 

“Shhh…” you whispered as you continued kissing the spot. Eventually his hand found his way to your waist, tucking your shirt out of your uniform skirt before placing his hand in the warmth of your back, his cold rings causing a shiver to rush down your spine. But his touch, oh, his touch made  your skin feel like you were on fire . You placed your hands over his hair and pulled him back a little, bringing his lips back to yours. Both you and Sirius had kissed plenty since you started dating, but never like this, in fact you were certain he’d never reached for your skin the way he had today, but it felt good , and you didn’t want him to stop.  

Eventually he stopped the kiss, letting his forehead rest on yours, his hand still in the small of your back “We should stop,” he said, panting. 

“…don’t want to,” you answered, a little bratty in the way you’d said it. 

“Don’t make it harder for me Starshine ,” he groaned, as he softly bumped his forehead on yours. 

You reached for a quick kiss on his lips “‘m not…” you replied, and kissed him again, now in the corner of his lip “I just–“ you kissed his cheek now “don’t want to stop kissing my beautiful boyfriend.” 

“ …merde… ” he said, it was taking him all the restraint in the world to stop himself from pinning you against the bookshelves again, this time with your legs around him instead, but with you being so willing, it was harder, so much harder . 

You looked at him expectantly “ je m’en fous, ” He whispered, and dragged the two of you onto a nearby table, easily hauling you to sit on it, you helped accommodate the invisibility cloak around the two of you, managing to set it around the table by the time he was kissing you again. You weren’t sure you’d ever felt like this before, especially when he reached his hand higher and unclasped your bra. He broke off the kiss to look at you, to make sure you were ok with it, you only brought him back to the kiss in response. 

You moved yourself to reach him better, his left hand already in your abdomen, dangerously close to your breast, when, all of the sudden a vase, that was at the end of the table, tumbled and fell to the ground, making a very loud noise in the otherwise quiet library. You broke off the kiss, pulling apart just a little and staring at each other, both alert of what may happen, over his shoulder, you managed to see a shadow, it was peeves in the distance. 

“ Shit, we’ll get caught.” You whispered, turning back to look at him. 

He looked at you impassively, as if he was itching to tell you the “I told you so”. You deserved it, but he very well knew it had also been his fault. He seemed to be thinking about the possible escape plans now, but he hadn’t found the book he was looking for by the time you started snogging. 

“The book,” you whispered. 

“You find it, I’ll distract Peeves.” 

“What? No way! You’ll get caught.” 

“Aw… put a little faith in me, will you?” He told you with a smile, “Find the book, I’ll see you just outside the library.” 

You weren’t entirely convinced by his plan, but nodded, turning around to look for the book, while he got out of the cloak and used the same disillusionment charm you had used earlier. You took a deep breath, still trying to gain back composure from the kiss, and moved towards the bookshelves, scanning through the names of the tomes, trying to find The Compendium of Pernickety Enchantments . After looking through three shelves, you finally found the book, and right next to it, there was one called, The Refined Art of Mild Hexes: A Sophisticated Spellbook , so you grabbed it as well, since it looked like it could be useful. 

You scurried all the way to your backpack, which was still laying on the floor from earlier, and threw both books inside of it. Once the backpack was securely hanged over your shoulder, you scurried outside of the restricted section. 

You were already close to the door when you spotted Sirius, hiding behind a huge shelf, he was almost imperceptible, but close behind him was Peeves. Sirius didn’t see him, since he wasn’t looking towards him, but you could. 

So even if Sirius had told you he’d deal with it by himself, you weren’t about to let him get caught, you had to improvise. You kneeled behind another bookshelf, cloak still covering your frame, and pulled out a piece of parchment, scribbled a small dialogue on it, and charmed it. You used your wand to levitate it to the other side of the library and then, you popped the seal. Now there were whispers coming from the other side of the library, Peeves smiled wickedly as he heard, and started flying towards them. 

You ran towards Sirius, and covered him with the cloak quickly, he was a little startled at first, but then smiled. “That was you?” You nodded “Brilliant! It’s like you’re made for this.” He told you, and it was no lie, he was genuinely impressed with your cleverness, one more reason to the pile of why he was so smitten by you.

“Thanks,” you said, a small blush creeping up your cheeks. You looked to the side so he wouldn’t notice, he’d probably tease you mercilessly about it if he had. After a couple of seconds you took his hand in yours and did a small head gesture to indicate him it was time to move, Peeves was far away enough that you could sneak out of the library unnoticed. 

A couple of minutes later, you were out of the library and speeding through the halls under the cloak.  Sirius was the one leading the way now, he took sharp turns, taking you through stairs, doors, halls and even small passageways. He clearly knew the way by memory, and it made you wonder how many times he had sneaked about the castle like this, how many he’d do it with you from now on . 

Another sharp turn, and he pulled you into a broom’s closet. Letting the door shut quietly behind you. “What is it? Did you hear someone?” You whispered in his ear. He almost felt guilty from the shiver that your innocent whisper had sent down his spine. 

He shook his head and raised one of his eyebrows with a smirk “You said something about… wanting to continue kissing your beautiful boyfriend , didn’t you?” You looked at him with amusement, your eyes shining at his words. “Turns out he also wants to continue kissing his beautiful girlfriend…” 

You were about to ask “here?”, but then again, why would a broom closet be any less proper than the restricted section of the library . You bit your lip and let him close the gap between the two. The common room would have to wait.  

Chapter Text

This whole thing looks a lot better on Tumblr because I can't get the images to do what I want here, if you want, you may read on Tumblr instead: 

Hey Lovelies, welcome to “The Interlude” of Gilded Constellations. We’ve basically already gotten to 100 k words in this story and that’s absolutely insane!!! Which is why I thought of doing a little thing where I could interact with my readers. As a thank you for being there and supporting me so much through this journey. 

And so… this little Q&A was born. Those who didn't get to ask their questions, don’t worry my darlings, my ask will be open all week for you to ask whatever you want. It’s a mini-event that will last from today ‘till next Wednesday. 

But yes, it does mean this week we won’t get a new chapter D: 

Don’t worry, it will definitely be worth it since the next couple of episodes are two that I’ve put absolute extra care on crafting, and I will put just as much care on revising. I’ve been quite literally posting non-stop for 15 weeks consecutively. That’s almost 4 months, what?!?! 

I needed my tiny lil break, besides I wanted to dedicate this bit of time to work on my Maraudween Special smutty series that will include some interesting mini AUs, so those that read my other stuff and not just Gilded Constellations will be quite literally treated this Halloween. There will be a lot of posts these next few weeks. Although, I might be releasing some of the Maraudween stories at the beginning of November. Unfortunately, I’m not a machine and I can’t write in seconds like Chat GPT. 

Without further ado, let’s get on with those questions!

Where did you get the inspo for the fic?

Oh my god if I tell you guys about this… It all started when I was in class, sometimes when I’m bored, my little mind starts to wander. I’m a total daydreamer, I can’t deny that, but at that moment in particular I was quite literally thinking of nothing and everything at the same time. And then, out of nowhere, this phrase came to me: 

“You look at them the same way you looked at me when we met…” 

And I was like, “omg that’s so freaking angsty” and “That’s a great freaking line for a poly story” And I quite literally wrote it down with a little tag that said, “- the start of a poly relationship story because I’ve never read enough of those.” 

And then I closed the notebook and went back to class. But I guess the idea had already set in my brain because next thing I know, I’m writing down more things down. And let me tell you, before Gilded Constellations I only wrote Oneshots because a story seemed like too much commitment. So I kid you not, I wrote down: 

“Not a short story, but maybe a 3-5 chapter long fic”. 

Jokes on me though, we’re 15 chapters in, like 20-something written and we’re probably going to end up with longer than 200k words and I’m not even sorry about it. Besides, I'm really pumped to finish it because I want to get it printed in Lulu and have my own little copy as a “Damn you wrote that.” kind of evidence thing. So worry not about being left with an unfinished fic, I’m going to complete this story even if it’s the last thing I do. 

Besides, if I’m being honest, when I’m not writing, I miss my boys, so I’ll definitely miss passing the time with them when I’m done with GC. (Luckily I’ve already got another series planned and spoiler alert: This one will be Poly!Marauders x reader, a lot spicier aaaand, PIRATES.) 

That’s how the fic started, well that and a dream that was basically most of Chapter 3 and I thought it was so cute that I wrote it down and then I was like, “hold up, this could be the start of the Poly story I was talking about…” 

Are there any real-life experiences that influenced your writing?

Well I mean, I’d say that art imitates life and life imitates art, but in regards to real-life romance I don’t really know that much. But there are definitely some things here and there that have been sprinkled from my real life into the fic. Not sure if I could think of a particular one but I can say sometimes Remus gives me the same vibe that a boy I “used to” have a crush on. “Used to” in quotation marks because I kinda still do even if we haven’t seen each other in years. 

So I guess a lot of Remus comes from my crush, but also Remus is his own little boy as well and I love him more for it. Even If I’m torturing him so much with his heartache, I promise it will be worth it Remus, reader and Sirius will take care of you, eventually . 

Other than that, I guess I like to pay attention to things around me, you’ll see me looking at nature, the sky, the way leaves move, the way people interact with each other. Especially at that actually, I like to pay attention to people, how they move, how they interact, and their reactions . Sometimes I do it irl, and sometimes I just watch movies or series, and since my writing process is like seeing a movie in my head and then putting it into words, it’s always useful to pay attention to the world around me. Even if I sometimes struggle to put into words exactly what I’m seeing in my head.  

Did you already have everything planned, or did you just go with the flow? If you have already, how far? all of it? Or just some chapters ahead? 

Well, yes and no. I do have various key points of the story planned, a lot of plot points that are going to happen and that’s kinda what I’m sustaining myself on.

I know the big points and then I just have to write what happens in between them. And I’ve got it planned all the way ‘till my babes all start dating. After that, if I’m honest I’m not sure how I’m going to end it. Some parts of me want to go for the saddest ending possible because it would go along with cannon and the other side of me, the one that can’t bear to see my boys being sad, wants to just deviate completely and/or leave an open ending. 

But so far, I really cannot tell what exactly I’m going to do, I just know that time will tell. Because sometimes the characters just do what they want and I love to see where they take me. Which is why the ending is not set in stone just yet. 

Without giving too many spoilers, can you tease upcoming plot twists or surprises we can expect in future chapters?

My sly little foxes have already guessed some of the major plot twists that are upcoming in the story. And there definitely will come some surprises along the way, some you will love, some you won’t so much. But I promise you it will all be worth it! 

Remember in Gilded Constellations, everything happens for a reason. 

THE FANCAST

What's your fancast for the fic? Did you pick the reader too or just leave it be? //  I wanted to know if you have a fancast for everyone…

I did mention that I basically see stuff as a movie in my head right? So yes, I do have a fancast! Although I most definitely see James as Aaron, Sirius as Ben, Remus as Andrew and Peter as Dane, I have also twisted them in my brain. Like it’s them, right? But my version of them. Like my Sirius is so fucking ethereal in my head that sometimes I myself blush with his beauty. And Remus, well, he is probably most similar to Talita Asami’s from instagram. Especially this one.

There’s something about the way she contrasts his soft features with the scars that’s just perfect. It’s that sexy pirate vibe I cannot get out of my head, if that makes sense.  But also I’ve been toying with AI lately and ended up with these two versions of Remus and Sirius and they have absolutely taken over.

High Quality of this two here and here. 

The reader: Uhm… well, I kind of just see her as me, hehe. Which is kind of the point, you should all just see the reader as yourselves, if you’re comfortable with that of course. 

The rest of our babies though, Lily Evans, Marlene and Mary, are kind of like the boys as in I see them as their fancast but also not entirely. And Lily especially, she’s just so freaking pretty in my head, there’s no one I know to match her, all thought Sophie Skelton and Kennedy Walsh (@/c4tluvr666 on Tiktok) are super close. 

Now, outside of canon characters, aka all of these OC’s I’ve been creating with time, some of them do have a fancast and some of them don’t. Let’s focus on the ones that do, because some of them I literally had in my head since the very, very beginning of the fic. 

Tom Harrow- This boy actually started as a younger version of Tom Hiddleston in my head, but the more I wrote him, the more he said, “Luv, that’s not what I look like!” And, almost out of nowhere, baby Tom Hiddleston became Rober Sheehan, and let me tell you, it stuck. And it stuck so bad there is no way I could see Tom as anything other than Rob. Especially with his role as Klaus in Umbrella Academy having a rather similar personality in the entire open-minded spectrum that he’s got going on. And, talking about teasers , this boy is actually going to be a key point on the romance between our golden throuple to develop, so keep an eye out for him. I love him so much tbh.  

Then we’ve got Beth Doxon, this girl is my wifey, I freaking love Beth so much and if you’ve been paying attention you may already know who I based her off, at least in looks. It’s Anya Taylor Joy as Beth Harmon in Queen’s Gambit, redhead queen (can you tell I really, really like redheads?) . Also that’s why she has such a strong character, even if my Beth is a lot more of a Party Animal than the original character. 

Alexander Wood in my head is just a carbon copy of his son Oliver, but in Hufflepuff, and the rest of the Quidditch teams, I’ve got a good idea of what they look like in my head, but not really a fan cast for them. Suggestions accepted. 

Well, except for Minho Yun, since his role in the story is going to be as a pretty strong supporting character, in fact, he was meant to be somewhat of an alt love interest that was going to help build Sirius’ jealousy, but in the end, I decided to completely scrap that to further develop him as a character. Some interesting things that you’ll actually learn on the GC Halloween special. Oh, and Minho is actually based on Sang Heon Lee (on looks) and Ki Hong Lee (on character, specifically on his role in Maze Runner). Had I based Minho on the character of Sang Heon Lee who inspired him, we would have way too many slutty boys in the same room, with Tom and Sirius and him, It’d be chaos, which is why he ended up being a little shier. 

Nox, Neil and Todd, literally are just Nox, Neil and Tod from Dead Poets Society. I was rewatching the movie to nail that boy friend group interactions and to get in the Dark Academia Vibes and I wanted to give my boys a happy ending. 

And lastly, there’s Nina Blythe. Nina to me is a totally angelic girl, I’ve got a very vivid picture of what she looks like in my head but I don’t really have a fancast for her. Maybe a little bit like Aurora (the singer), in regards to her soft features, but Nina has longer hair and it’s a little wavy. I kind of think of her as a girl from a Renaissance painting, emphasis on girl , since she is supposed to look younger than she is. Any ideas for a fancast? For her and for anyone I missed, I’m completely open to your suggestions. 

THE TEACHERS

Professor Nightshade is definitely Eva Green from Miss Peregrine or Jessica Chastain from Crimson Peak. She’s got that tall,  regal and dark but elegant vibe to her that is just so freaking gorgeous and awe-inspiring. I totally have a crush on Seraphina, can you tell? 

Professor Aurelius Spellman is kind of inspired by Kingsley Shackelbolt. However, if I had to cast someone for the role it would be Djimon Hounsou, he has that attractive and rough vibe to him. Like scary, demanding but also alluring things going on, he’s just got the magician type I suppose. 

This one’s going to be silly, but I can’t imagine Kettleburn as anyone other than Gobber the Belch from HTTYD, like, take away the horned helmet and give him a pointy hat, and boom, Kettleburn ladies and gentlemen. Down to the messy personality, honestly. 

And Donovan Pendragon (the teacher for Magical Theory) I feel like he isn’t mentioned enough, because I literally had no idea what his name was even going to be and I just left a line for it until I was editing the chapter before posting. So he doesn’t really have a cast. He’s caucasian in my head, but that’s about all I’ve got from him. Any ideas? 

Do you have any headcanons for any of the characters and their relationship that you haven’t talked about in the story? 

REMUS: Well I feel like this one has been talked about several times in the story but Remus being a beast in bed? I feel like everyone loves to tease him about it in the castle but to me, he’s also a total soft boy? Like especially the first time, I feel like he’s going to be so overwhelmed by both Sirius and Reader that he will basically just melt in the hands of his lovers. 

SIRIUS: Smitten little puppy of my life. 

SIRIUS AND REMUS: They’ve totally kissed in the past. At least once, and Remus still dreams about it. Sirius, well… maybe he’ll get some memories of it every now and then.

READER: My girl thinks she’s so freaking smart and yet is the most oblivious to her own feelings; she could be considered an idiot. She’s also so selfless it hurts, but like literall y. Also, she loves flirting with Sirius way too much. Still, they definitely will need Rem in their relationship because there is no self-preservation sense when her personality is just as chaotic as our Puppy. Side note: Remus will 100% blush when she starts flirting with him in the same way he does with Sirius. And let’s not talk about what a tomato he will be when Sirius does it as well. 

PETER: He kinda disliked the reader at first, especially since he felt like she was taking away his friends, but eventually he warmed up to her, and loves their friendship. 

LILY: She enjoyed the kiss with Reader, and it made her realize she’s totally bi, because she also enjoyed the kiss with James. 

TOM: My boy is clever as hell and he knows a lot more than he lets on. Also, he secretly ships the golden throuple. 

BETH: She’s Tom’s bestie and she knows a lot of things too. She will also ignite chaos with the ultimate goal of being Gryffindor Tower’s own cupid. Do you think what happened at Marlene’s Party was a coincidence? 

REGG: My beautiful Reggie is still sad about the incident. He’s still trying to find a way to reconnect with you and it pains him that you think he’d rat you out. Even then, he values the fact that you are with Sirius and that you’re helping him through everything that’s been going on, especially since he saw how red Sirius’s eyes were when he left the Black’s house with a trunk in hand sobs stuck in his throat. Reg cried like a baby that night, just wishing for time to go by as fast as possible so he could go back to school and see his big brother again. (I’m so sorry for that guys) .

MINHO: Has a secret crush and you would not believe me if I told you who it was. 

NINA: Has a secret crush and some of you have probably already guessed who it is. 

DAMOCLES: You don’t know him yet but omg he’s just so clever, thank you Kles for existing .

And let's be honest, I totally have a bunch more of this but I think this is way more than enough, for now…

Out of all the chapters so far, what’s been your favorite?

This is too fucking hard to decide. But If I had to choose my top three, and in no order in particular, I’d say, for the released ones:  

Fooled around and Fell in Love

Because, can we talk about the kiss scene? I feel like this one will come back bite my kiddos in the back so they finally realize what they actually fucking need. 

Do Ya 

I’m a total sucker for Sirius, what can I tell ya? But also the flying scenes were so much fun to write, totally an adventure to go through, still among my favs. 

Maybe I’m amazed 

“Do you like Golf?” 

From the unreleased episodes: 

Tonight’s What It Means To Be Young

The calm before the storm. Or is it the storm before the storm? 

Bad Moon Rising 

The FUCKING storm. But also one of my favorite things I’ve ever written. I think I like action scenes a little too much, 

*** On The Run

The storm continues. But also, the calm after the storm.

Do you have a playlist that you always listen to when you're writing? 

Not a specific playlist, but I have been listening to a lot of ‘70s rock. Things like Queen, Bowie, Boston, Foreigner,  Kansas, Fleetwood Mac, Nazareth, The Police and some others. All of them help me get in the mood for writing. At least in the mood of the era, if that makes sense.

Aside from the ’70s classics, I’ve also been listening to a lot of Lord Huron, Hozier, and Aurora (I sort of discovered her recently and I’m obsessed with some of her songs). Also some of The Killers, Dotan and Vian Izak sprinkled here and there. Bastille and Imagine Dragons are always and forever so of course they wouldn’t be missing from my list. 

But when I’m struggling, like really struggling with writing, then I go to my Best Instrumental ( https://music.apple.com/mx/playlist/best-instrumental/pl.u-4JomXEGsM77Ea9?l=en ) playlist, where I have everything from the Narnia and Peter Pan 2003 soundtracks to Vivaldi and Ghibli.  It really does help with the concentration. 

How long for the guys to understand that they fancy each other? 

Well, when you say the guys do you mean Sirius and Remus? ‘Cause then it’s not thaaaaaat far away from now. Now from then to them all dating, well…

I know Remus kind of struggles with feelings, and probably even more now that Sirius and the reader are together. But when he's gonna say "hey, can I come in?" 😏 lol I just want them together so baaaad!

Ahahahahahaha, Well that’s not exactly how it’s gonna go, but it’ll happen sometime after Christmas.

After wolfstar and the reader get together, the fic will end? or we're gonna have a lot of them together to compensate for the agony? 🥺

I’m not sure about the ending yet, but I’m definitely going to add so much fluff of the three of them together that you’re all gonna get cavities. Also, I’ve been writing The 5 Senses and the Halloween special (that might be finished until after Halloween) to practice for the spice, so I’m def compensating for the agony. 

Also, I kind of want to explore the social implications of being in a throuple, of making that public in the `70s. Seems like a whole lotta issue bringer that kinda interests me… Sorry, you’re not completely getting rid of the angst even when they’re all together. 

I don’t remember if I already asked you about this, but as a Regulus’ wife, I need to know. He'll come back, right? She will talk with him and he will be able to explain everything to her? I need this, I really need this! I can leave without this closing. THEY NEED TO BE FRIENDS AGAIN!

Your husband is safe with me. I promise. I’m not gonna say it’s gonna be very soon, but he will be safe because I love baby Reggie and I too can’t stand him being mistreated either. 

Not a question. I just want to say that I really love this story. It's one of my favorites, and I just put it on my masterlist for how much I love it.

Aww shut up, I love you so much <3

Will we have some Sirius jealousy? ‘Cause I'm really interested in that. Oooh... will he notice that Reader and Remus are... more than friends before they even know it? I dunno, he's just oblivious about everything around him. 

Funny that you ask, yes we will have a lot of Jealous!Sirius, in fact, it’s a huge part of how the throuple will develop. And you will have it so soon, even if it’s not exactly what you expect it to be. I can’t wait for next week!

And in regards to noticing, well… Sirius is not going to be the most oblivious about his own feelings in this story. I mean… not always .

Are there any particular scenes or moments in your story that were especially fun or challenging to write?

Well, I’m actually finding it a lot harder to write stuff atm, so I’d say the limbo between the Bad Moon Rising Arch and the next big thing that’s going to happen has been the hardest. Especially since I’m already going to get to a key point in which some shit is going to go down and I’m still not sure how bad and angsty I want to make it. Don’t worry, our golden throuple will be alright but…

In regards to fun, I must say the parties are some of my favorites, Potion Pong was incredibly fun to write ‘cause I literally transported myself to it and it was like actually living it, even if it was in my head. Also the flying scenes, they’re always fun to write, the race was incredible tbh. 

I love to write the fun banter and the teasing too, it brings me joy. But I bet you could tell I’m one for the teasing from the very first chapters of Gilded Constellations. 

Nina fancies Reader, right? She does. I just need a yes. I already know that 😌 

( ≖‿  ≖ )

Can you share any behind-the-scenes trivia or Easter eggs that readers might not have noticed in your story?

I feel like there’s a lot of behind-scenes I shared so far but I guess I could share a few pics of my organization systems. Things like…

Your schedule: 

The cover: 

This funny shot from my plot notebook: 

And also, have you noticed the special little thing in the names of the chapters? 

How do you stay motivated and inspired to keep writing, especially in moments when you might experience writer's block?

It may or may not be healthy, but I just force myself to type? I never really have writer’s block, rather I’d call it writer’s overload. It’s when I’m running through so many possibilities in my head and I can’t pick which is the one I want to go through with. So I keep thinking about it and I don’t type. Which is why I just force myself to type, more often than not I’ll end up writing something I really like. 

And as for the motivation, honestly just getting to see my boys again. To be able to submerge back into Hogwarts, that’s enough motivation. I seriously get an urge to go back because I miss them. It's kinda crazy. Like I might be chilling at home and suddenly the thought “I wish I was at Hogwarts” crosses my mind, not even joking. 

The other motivation is finishing my book so I can get a printed version to place in my bookshelf and show it off. Not that anyone would know what it is, but I’d know, which is enough, hehe. And also to be a better writer, they say you should write every single day, which is kind of what I’m attempting to do with GC. By writing a chapter every week, I literally force myself to write every single day, even if just a couple of words. 

Can we have cute moments with Remus? uuuh, Will he be cute when she notices that she really likes him?

Yes! We can have all the cute moments with Remus. Even before they all notice they’re into each other, we’re gonna have so many cute moments because even if Reader is dating Sirius I can’t leave my beautiful boy on the sidelines. Besides, how can I torture him if he doesn’t get a taste of how good it would be to be with them? 

What can readers look forward to in the next chapters, and do you have any long-term plans or goals for GCs development?

Angst. Don’t hate me for this. But also comfort, and some fun little adventures and then a bit more angst, hehe…

Well, that’s the end of the questions I got sent ahead. Hope you enjoyed this rollercoaster of a Q&A. If you have any more, or if my answers have provoked further questions, then by all means, share them with me, I’d love to be able to interact with you a bit more. 

Love ya, Lily xx

Chapter Text

The next day, you charmed your restricted section book cover, just like you had done with the spicy one, making it look like another casual spell book. You then spend most of your classes devouring its content, it was way more than the two pages you’d found on the 5th-year DADA book, although a good deal of them focused solely on how to defeat a werewolf. 

Tips on how to kill werewolves, spells against werewolves, weapons against werewolves, a particular line irked you so much – if you see a werewolf hex to kill, don’t bother incapacitating– that you were about to throw the book on the ground and cast incendio on it. But it wasn’t until about the second half of the book that it finally started to talk about its qualities. Especially with the section titled “How to spot werewolves in your daily life”. Of course, while most of the things in the book were about spotting and hurting them, you were more focused on learning which things you should never do. 

On a small piece of parchment, you started documenting everything that you had learned so far. You’d even use a codeword to refer to Remus, in case your note was misplaced or lost. 

My Knowledge on WW: