Chapter Nineteen: Revealed by a Tree
James watched intently as Sirius ran as fast as he could towards the Whomping Willow. When Sirius had just entered the shade the tree provided the willow began to thrash violently. The messy haired boy looked away briefly, just before his daredevil of a friend dodged an on-coming branch, back over to his side where Peter was watching the current events through his hands. These hands were trembling terribly as the small boy peeked through his fingers, which were not suitably doing their appointed job; covering his eyes from Sirius' impending doom. James just shook his head before returning his own gaze back to Sirius' daring feat of deliberate rule braking.
Sirius' figure quickly made his way to the base of the tree, dodging the vicious moves of the willow as he went. He made it to the appointed destination, which had been made by the goal of the game he was participating in, and touched the angry tree's trunk as its branches flailed around him. Once he had done this, he turned around and ran, full force, back to his friends, once again, dodging the trees attempts to impale him upon one of it's powerful branches and, therefore, knock him out of the game permanently.
James smiled widely at Sirius when the boy started to slow his running pace down as he approached his friends. "Did you see that?" the boy offered as he tried to catch his breath.
"Couldn't miss it." James stated as he clapped Sirius on the back, "You're only the second one daft enough and talented enough to touch the tree's trunk."
Sirius smiled widely and bowed theatrically to James in thanking. James laughed at him and turned away, intending on making his way back up to the castle for some dinner.
Not before the boys had taken no more than three steps, they heard a scream echo through the grounds. The three boys turned back around to see Lily with her hands clasped over his mouth in a composition of shock and fear. He followed her stare to where she was gazing in horror and saw, in the distance, the form of Davey Gudgeon lying unconscious under the thrashing willow, which was bending backward in a final attempt to do the boy in.
Before James could even fully register what he was doing he found himself running towards the boy. He dodged the willows attempts to kill him and soon heard Sirius' footsteps behind him as the boy ran after him. It didn't take long for the two boys to reach the limp student. "Help me carry him!" James ordered once Sirius had reached his side.
Sirius nodded and grabbed one of the boy's shoulders and hoisted his arm around his own shoulder. James followed Sirius' lead and put Davey's free arm around his own shoulder and the two of them, together, carried the boy away from the willow. Once in the clear Peter ran towards them. "Is he okay?" he asked with concern.
"I don't know." James muttered honestly.
They walked up to the castle in silence. Once they had reached the third floor landing the weight of the second year had begun to take its toll on the two first years. They reached the infirmary in good time, all things considered, and entered the empty room. James and Sirius walked over to the nearest bed and laid the boy down gently on top of the white-sheets.
"Madam Pomfrey!" Sirius yelled out.
James jumped slightly by the sudden sound echoing through out the empty room. The woman in question, then shortly after, came bustling into the room. She looked at the three boys and her face turned slightly stern. "What have you done now?"
"Nothing." James said. Madam Pomfrey just stared at them suspiciously, "Honestly. It's just that-" he gestured over at Davey's limp form lying on the hospital bed. The older woman's eyes grew wide as she looked at the boy.
"What happened?" She asked as she moved swiftly over to the boy's side, and immediately began casting spells on him to see what exactly was wrong.
While she worked, the boys filled her in as to what had happened conveniently leaving out that Sirius had also been playing that little game too. Once they had finished their tale the older woman turned to them and smiled weakly and, just as swiftly, turned back to mending the boy.
She muttered as she worked, "I told Dumbledore that tree was too dangerous. Did he listen? Of course not, he seems to trust you children more than he should."
They stood by and watched as she went along with her work, and when she had appeared to be finished with her charms they all finally received the courage to ask her of the young lad's condition. "Is he alright?" Peter asked.
"Lucky for him, he'll live. He about lost his eye," she stated as she got up to get a potion for that particular injury, "but as for his limpness, he simply fainted."
She came back with the two potions and issued them to the boy, "Now, will you please leave, the boy has had enough to deal with for one day." with that she ushered them out of the hospital wing.
The four boys obeyed and slowly made their way back up to their common room to put their cloaks away before they went down to dinner. When they left the infirmary James noticed that Peter had looked back over his shoulder into the room they had just left with a furrow in his brow as if he were contemplating something. James simply sighed, trying to ignore this fact, and looked ahead, leading them away from the hospital wing.
~*~*~*~
At dinner the boys sat away from the rest of the Gryffindors as they ate. James and Sirius entertained themselves by discussing the possible ways the Chudley Cannons could yet again become a winning team. One of their favorite topics because it lead to one of James' other passions, bashing his mates favorite team. They laughed over their chicken dinner, trying to coax Peter into joining all along. The boy had been more reserved than usual ever since they had left the hospital wing, which worried James a bit.
James and Sirius had neglected to tell Peter of their discovery a month ago because they feared the boy would overreact like he had the first time James had suggested the idea of Remus being a lycanthrope. And as the boy picked at his food, James worried that he had managed to rub two and two together and had wound up with a small spark.
He sighed and looked over at the boy across from him as he pushed his peas around his bowl. Then he moved his gaze over at the empty seat next to Peter, that Remus usually filled. But due to the full moon being tonight, the boy had vanished after Transfiguration saying he had a migraine and that he couldn't concentrate no matter how hard he had tried. James and Sirius had merely pretended to buy the story for both Remus' and Peter's sake. Yet, now that they had been in the infirmary, and Peter had seen for himself that Remus was not in there, he would have certainly figured it out now, no matter how daft he could be at times.
James was bumped out of his thoughts by Sirius, who had jabbed him in the side with his elbow so that he could gain his attention and pointed to the front of the room. The whole school had its attention directed to the head table. Dumbledore had stood up to make one of his famous speeches, and James knew exactly what it was going to be about. He looked away for a split second up at the full moon on the enchanted ceiling. He sighed deeply as the old man spoke.
"It has come to my attention that some students have been breaking one of the rules set down for your safety during your first day here." his blue eyes surveyed all of the students and finally seemed to rest on Sirius, who, in return, looked down at the floor in shame.
"You may have heard that a student was injured this afternoon by the Whomping Willow." he sighed deeply, "This tree is not to be touched. If anyone goes near that tree he or she may suffer a terrible death, and therefore, you are forbidden to go near it. You have been warned. Tuck in."
The older man then sat back down on his seat. After he had settled the students began to recap the stories they had heard about the incident over their meals.
James, Sirius, and Peter, rather than staying any longer, stood up from the table and walked slowly down the corridors making their way up to their common room. Once inside James and Sirius sat down on the comfy chairs in front of the fire fully intending on enjoying it until someone from a higher year than them came in and kicked them out.
Peter had gone upstairs to collect a book or something, leaving the two of them to talk about what they were going to do with the Peter/Remus decision. They talked to one another in hushed voices until they heard someone coming down the boys' staircase. They instantly became quiet, worried that someone had heard what they were discussing. When they turned around to see who it was they found that it was only Peter.
"Hey, Pete." Sirius said with a worried smile, realizing he could have heard something.
Peter's face went cold. "Don't “Hey, Pete”, me. You two always do that. You're always talking about things in secret. Then when I or Remus-" he stopped at the name and became quiet suddenly before he muttered the rest of his comment as if he was scared, "come around you shut up."
He looked at the two of them and sighed deeply as his face became pale. "I know."
"Know what?" Sirius asked trying his best to play dumb. James simply jabbed him in the ribs with his elbow but Peter continued to explain his findings anyway.
"Remus is a werewolf. He has to be. I've noticed that he gets sick every month and I know when you two whisper you're talking about him. So does he." James looked at the boy somewhat alarmed, "We're not stupid. So, what do you guys want to do, because I know I don't want to stay around him."
"Honestly, Peter, how can you say that?"
"Sirius, you were just as concerned as I am now when James offered that idea the first time."
"I know that." Sirius stated lamely. Then he offered the only thing that ever made sense to him about the whole ordeal, "But he is our friend."
Peter looked from James to Sirius. Sure Remus was indeed their friend but if he was going to kill them one night because he forgot to get sick or something Peter wanted nothing to do with it. He would much rather keep his life than lose it. But then again, if he didn't go along with them surely Sirius and James would not want anything more to do with him.
Peter sighed deeply, as this second side to the argument in his head began to win out, little by little. He looked back at James and then returned his gaze to Sirius, letting his mind reel over each of the possible outcomes of considering keeping this “friendship” as Sirius had so kindly put it. Yet, as much as he wanted to run away from Remus, he couldn't. He couldn't lose James and Sirius, they were the only people who had ever bothered to spend the time and befriend him.
So, he'd let them think that they were right, as usual. They were the only people he had around for him, and nothing should change that. And there was always that small possibility that James and Sirius’ beliefs about Remus were true, and this Peter was willing to bank on because they so often tended to prove that they were smarter than him anyway.
So, as he looked back to James he caved in order to save himself from being alone, and the idea of being unprotected from things like Snape, and muttered softly, "You're right."
Then he sat down in between both of them on the couch, showing that he no longer wanted to talk of Remus. Accepting this, the other two boys, then, began to help him with his homework until Arthur Weasley, head boy, kicked them out of their seat so that he could play wizard's chess with his girlie mate.