Interviewer (I): Hey there, James, thanks for letting me do this.
James (J): Oh, er ... that’s all right.
I: Tell me, what do you like best about being a Marauder?
J: Well ... mostly it’s just the fun of it. Also, everyone really likes you. Well, everyone that actually counts as a person.
I: Do you ever feel pressure to be liked? Does it ever influence you in any way, to keep up that image?
J: Nah, people like me for who I am ... I can’t help it if that’s just naturally fantastic.
Lily Evans, who happens to be walking by (L): You’re such a dandelion, James Potter.
J: Dandelion? What does that even mean?
L: It means I hate you.
I: So ... everyone likes you, huh? I can see that. Tell me, what’s your most treasured memory as a Marauder?
J: Well, it has to be every minute I spend with that little firecracker, for sure.
I: Yes, but we all know your true feelings about her, don’t we?
J: Me? Feelings? I don’t have them, Marty. Only lots and lots of pride.
I: All right, then ... one last thing. If the naming of this book was up to you, what would you call it?
J: Good question ... but the only title even worth considering, is The Marauder Bonanza Extravaganza!
I (Laughing): Great, I like it!
J: I’m glad. Will you use it?
I: No.
Chapter Eleven: The Trust Test
[Remus]
We spend the next few days discussing various secrets to tell Marty for the Trust Test. It’s harder than you would think; if she tells, it can’t be something too incriminating. But it has to be something worth keeping too, otherwise she probably wouldn’t think there would be too much of a problem with telling it. But we’re mostly pretty open people anyway, apart from the werewolf and the Animagi thing. It’s hard enough to keep that one secret, so we’re mostly honest about everything else ... and apart from me, none of us are naturally secretive (and I only am because I have to be). So there isn’t anything much that people don’t already know ... especially people who take daily observations of us. After lots of hushed discussions the few times Marty isn’t around, we begin to get frustrated.
“For goodness sake,” Sirius groans at the back of one of our Transfiguration classes, just as the bell goes and we all scrape our chairs back and begin to leave. “This is getting stupid now. Don’t wait for me.”
Marty catches us up from the front of the room, where she had been partnering Lily.
“Hi, guys!” she chirps. “Whatcha talking about?”
“Oh the usual,” I say, glancing at Sirius for a second. “Death, destruction, dramatics. Nothing out of the ordinary.”
She laughs. “Nice alliteration. Can I write that down?”
“Uh ... sure. But during lunch, yeah? I’m starved.”
I guide her out of the classroom, James and Peter following behind. I turn at the last second and look at Sirius, who nods and holds up two fingers. Two minutes.
We sit down at the Gryffindor table and I pick up one of the sandwiches.
“Where’s Sirius?” asks Marty.
“Oh, he’s probably fine,” James says a tad too quickly. “Probably got his head stuck in a door or something. He’ll be along soon.”
Marty says nothing, but instead takes out her notebook and starts writing. It’s always a little uncomfortable when she does this, so James diverts the attention to his adopted first year.
You see, when he accidentally terrified that small first year girl at the sorting feast, he felt so guilty that he’s been trying to make it up to her ever since. I’m not sure if it’s working, because she always seems permanently afraid when he talks to her, like she’s worried he’s about to laugh at her or something ... I suppose she’s heard all about our reputation by now. But the more scared she gets, the more determined James is to stop her being afraid of him.
“How are you doing today?” he asks her. It’s not a coincidence that she’s always nearby at mealtimes ... James makes sure of that.
“Um ... fine.”
“Yeah? Great! You know, I don’t even know your name yet. Which is a shame, since you’re basically my daughter now.”
Her large eyes widen even further and are magnified by her glasses a little. “Luanne Yearnings,” she says. “Um ... why am I your daughter?”
“I’m not sure exactly,” James says, looking thoughtful. “It just feels like we have a connection, doesn’t it?”
She gulps and says, as if trying out what it’s like to be sassy, “Actually ... no.” Then goes bright red.
He laughs. “Did you hear that, Wormtail? This girl’s awesome! She’s got snap!”
“What exactly is snap?” I ask, smirking. Honestly, the harder he tries to be cool, the more he embarrasses himself. Maybe he really IS her father.
She giggles. I think it’s the first time she’s shown anything other than fright in front of us. James looks proud.
We are so distracted by this milestone in their father-daughter relationship, that it comes as a surprise when Sirius plonks himself down with us, looking shifty.
“Hi, guys. Hey kid,” he nods at Luanne.
“Her name ...” James says over-protectively, “is Louise.”
“No it’s not.” She looks offended that her, um, ‘father’ already forgot her name. “It’s Luanne.”
James coughs. “Her name ...” he begins again, just as threateningly, “is Luanne.”
“Uh ... yeah. Anyway. Do any of you guys know who has McGonagall next?”
I shake my head. “Beats me. Uh ... Hufflepuff, maybe?”
“What year?”
“I don’t know, could be any of them. Why do you want to know?”
“Oh, no reason ... I need an accomplice, that’s all.”
Luanne coughs. We turn and look at her. She really is getting braver. “I don’t have her next lesson ... but I do have her after that. I mean, if that would work ...”
Sirius nods. “Excellent idea. Thanks, uh ... Lu ... Lu ... Lu-Lu. Do you mind if I call you Lu-Lu?”
She shrugs.
“Well, Lu-Lu, you will be our eyes and our ears in that lesson ... but not our noses, because I don’t think that will make much difference to the overall outcome. Still, if you notice anything substantially different ... anyway. Watch McGonagall like a hawk. Agreed? Yes? Excellent.”
We all want to know what exactly Sirius has done and why he has enlisted the help of little Luanne, whose name we only learnt mere minutes ago. But it must be something to do with the Trust Test, so we say nothing and carry on the day normally. Two lessons later, we retire to the Common Room to get in a bit of extra studying before dinner. Or in my case it’s studying. James and Sirius are playing chess, while Peter commentates in his most irritating voice and Marty plots her next action plan for her current Cause.
She has moved on from Pixies and is now trying to preserve our wizarding heritage, in the form of some old building the Ministry wants to pull down, where apparently some elderly important person once lived. Occasionally she stops to take some notes on the chess game and how the strategies they use give away aspects of their personalities or something crazy like that. Mostly, I am concentrating on this Arithmancy problem that’s making my brain claustrophobic.
After fifteen minutes of this excitement, I am considering casting myself off the Astronomy Tower, so am eternally thankful that Luanne provides a distraction.
“Uh ... hi,” she says nervously.
“Hi, sweetie,” James says in a worryingly parent-like manner. “How was your lesson?”
She looks thoroughly weirded-out at being called ‘sweetie’ by a mentally disturbed sixth year, so just shrugs. “It was okay. I did what you asked,” she says to Sirius.
Sirius looks down at the chess board on the table and sees that he is losing. In one swift movement, the board and it’s pieces are shoved onto the floor and he indicates for her to sit on the little table.
“Tell all,” he says complacently.
Unsurely, she perches on the edge of the table. “Well, mostly she seemed normal, though maybe a bit more stressed than usual.”
James takes the pet Snitch that he nicked from the store cupboards last year and begins playing with it subconsciously. He often does this when trying to concentrate on what someone is saying. Marty notices this and scribbles it down.
“And the lesson was a bit different to normal. Usually, she talks for a bit and we take notes and then she does a demonstration, which is often quite impressive and then next we “”
“Lu-Lu, we’re sixth years, we know her basic lesson structure. What was different?”
“I dunno, she just handed out these books and made us takes notes from them. It wasn’t even really relevant to the topic we’re supposed to be doing. And when we asked why we weren’t doing practical, she sort of snapped at us but didn’t really answer the question.” She pulls a face. “It was dead boring, actually.”
Sirius grins. “Lu-Lu, you are a gem among children.”
She frowns. “I kind of changed my mind ... please don’t call me Lu-Lu. And I’m not a child.”
James chuckles. “Ah, they grow up so fast ...”
[Marty]
After talking to James’s newest addition to his family, in the form of a first year he ‘adopted’, we go down to dinner.
“See you later!” James calls to her. “Wrap up warm!”
“Where do you think this natural parenting instinct has materialised from?” I ask him, taking out my notebook. It’s a good thing that writing and walking is a skill I’ve developed over the years.
“I dunno, I just feel this strange need to keep her safe ... she’s kind of innocent and timid. She needs a father figure I think.”
“So do lots of first years.”
“Yeah, but I didn’t personally terrify them, the way I did her. So I don’t really owe them anything.”
Marauder James Potter has apparently got an overwhelmingly strong moral and fatherly instinct, I write. It will be interesting to see how this relationship develops.
The others chat for a while and I am left with my thoughts until we reach the Great Hall and start putting the food onto our plates. Halfway through the meal, Professor McGonagall comes storming in through the doors and stands at the front of the room.
“May I have your attention,” she calls. The lines on her brow seem a little deeper than usual and her mouth is a little thinner.
Okay, a lot thinner.
“Today, sometime in between your lunch hour and the lesson afterwards, something was stolen from my desk drawers. I am not going to tell you what, because the culprit already knows. However, it is an item that is essential to the education of many of the students in this school and not something that the offender could perceivably find useful, indicating that this is nothing put a petty joke. Can I just ask now that the culprit return the item, anonymously or otherwise. If they come forwards before the end of the day, they will not be punished. Act now or it will be worse for you later.”
There is an interested murmur as she walks around the table and takes her seat, before leaning in closer to Professor Dumbledore and talking hurriedly with him.
I look over at Sirius. “Okay,” I say, putting down my fork and folding my arms. “What did you take?”
“What did I ... take?” he asks innocently, as if ‘take’ isn’t even in his vocabulary and he had never heard such a strange arrangement of letters before.
“You heard,” I say sharply. “I’m not stupid. No one does petty jokes like you four and you were acting extremely shifty after our lesson with her. I don’t observe things for nothing, you know. Now what is it?”
“It was nothing, really ... only one or two things ... only her lesson plans for the next month ...”
“Sirius! What use could you possibly have for that?”
“More than you think?” he suggests hopefully. James smirks and, as often happens, I feel as if there is something I’m missing.
“Don’t tell anyone,” James says hurriedly, as Lily comes over our way. I sigh and nod.
“Can you believe that?” Lily asks, sitting next to us. “What do you think was taken?”
“Maybe ... her wand?” suggests Peter. Sometimes it scares me how well all four of them can act.
Lily looks amazed. “Do you think that might be it? Sweet Merlin, that would be awful! And so unbelievably ... well, like she said. Petty. Marty, do you know what it is?”
All the dorm girls have been being nicer to me lately. Lily was always okay anyway, but she tries to include me even more. It must be my Mum ... they probably feel sorry for me. I don’t want them to, but it’s better than them hating me, I suppose.
Now ... is it me or did all of the Marauders lean in a little closer when Lily asked me that? Because it’s not often just me.
“I haven’t a clue,” I say, throwing them a defiant look. Who do they think I am, anyway? Someone who can’t keep a secret? They should know by now that they can trust me ... I only spent pretty much the whole summer with them, after all.
Even so, they still look a lot happier when I say that, so maybe they didn’t quite trust me as much as I thought. Well, I’ll show them. Just as soon as I get Sirius to return the lesson plans. Honestly, how stupid can you get? I thought he had a little more tact than that, at least, but obviously not.
[Remus]
When we have eaten our dinner and left without Lily, Marty stops pretending and turns to Sirius angrily.
“Right, mister, are you listening? I want you to return those lesson plans with a note apologising for being so foolish. You heard Luanne, it was boring doing a cover lesson. Do you really want to bore the students to death? Would you like that, if you were in first year and you had to suffer for some idiot’s actions?”
James laughs loudly. “That told you, Padfoot! You got told off! It’s the naughty corner for you, my friend! Now go along and do what Mummy-Marty says, why don’t you? You should know by now that stealing is wrong ...”
Sirius glares at him. Marty looks as if she is trying not to smile to herself as she looks over at James.
“That reminds me,” she says. “You can take back that Snitch you stole too. You’re no better than he is.”
His face falls and Peter and I begin snorting with laughter. “Not fair!” he protests.
“Go on, both of you! Hop to it! Sirius, Transfiguration classroom. James, Quidditch store cupboard. Go on, what are you waiting for? Chop, chop!”
They both slouch off in different directions. She looks pleased with herself.
“I can’t believe they actually listened to you,” I tell her. She shakes her head.
“Neither can I ... still, we wouldn’t want James to be a bad influence on Luanne, would we?”
“Not if it’s so funny watching him get yelled at,” Peter says, laughing. She grins.
The next three weeks pass by all too quickly for my liking; especially because I know what’s at the end of it. Unfortunately, however, the full moon soon rolls around. I am ill all day, as usual (something that hasn’t escaped Marty’s notice).
“I, uh, think I’m going to go and see Madam Pomfrey,” I announce. I know she won’t question this, as she’s been pestering me about it all day anyway.
“Right ... yeah, good idea,” Sirius says, nodding. I have to admit, it does feel weird lying to Marty. We’ve tested her trust a couple more times over the last few weeks and she’s always come up trumps. So why do I feel so uncomfortable about telling her? Now that it’s come to the next transformation and I think about what I’ll be going through soon, the idea of anyone knowing, anyone at all, makes me feel sick and ashamed. What was I thinking? Why did I even consider inflicting this on someone else? Sirius, James and Peter are different. They found out for themselves. Well, I’m not going to be the one to tell her. She doesn’t need that hanging over her all the time, making her worry. No, sir.
I make my way out into the Grounds and over to the Whomping Willow. I use a stick to keep it still and crawl through. I could have sworn this passage used to be wider ...
Half an hour later, my friends arrive.
“Hey, Moony,” James says kindly. He looks outside at the sun as it sets. “Let’s get this show on the road.”
[Marty]
The Marauders have left. Remus was ill and went to see Madam Pomfrey and the other three soon followed. They claimed that they hadn’t been exploring in a while and wanted to do that for a bit. I asked if they were going to wait for Remus to get back, but they said he probably wouldn’t. It seems a bit mean to go without him, but who knows how their minds work? I’m just a lowly people-watcher.
I put down my quill and sigh. I used to spend hours and hours alone. It’s funny how quickly you get used to company ... and how horrible it feels to be on your own when that company leaves again.
It’s one of those really dead evenings. No one is doing anything interesting. Everyone is either studying, or having lazy conversations, or just sitting in a chair looking bored. Normally around now, the Marauders would liven things up a bit, but ... well. Who knows where they are?
I should write to Aunt Tabby. She’s not heard from me in ages, even though I got a letter telling me that she’s reopened Taffy’s “ finally “ and things are going well and she sends her love. I feel sort of guilty that I haven’t bothered to reply to that letter and yet I have written to Mrs Lupin twice now.
When I have drafted something passably cheery, I copy it out again in neat and decide to take the walk up to the Owlery. If I go now, I should be back before Curfew easily ...
As I walk along the corridors, I am not even thinking about anything to do with where the Marauders might be during their exploring. I pass by one of the windows and movement outside catches my eye. I stop and look out.
A wolf comes streaking out of the forest, followed closely by a large black dog. They begin to wrestle ... it looks quite violent. A large male deer then comes charging at them, head down. It hits them both with its strong looking antlers and they separate and go flying. The stag herds the wolf back inside the forest, as the dog pulls itself up and follows not far behind.
My eyes slowly look upwards. A large full moon fills the sky. Did I just see a real werewolf?
I turn around and run back to the Common Room, my heart racing. How did a werewolf get into the forest? And what did those other animals have to do with it? What poor soul has been cursed and forced to live in the forest? And why did my friends choose tonight to go wandering ... of all nights! How stupid are they? Didn’t they realise?
I wait in an armchair for them all night. Tomorrow is Thursday and we will have lessons, but I am not worried about going to sleep. This is more important ... I’ll just have to do shoddy work tomorrow. So be it.
Curfew comes and goes. Midnight comes and goes. Not one of them returns. I am positively sick with terror, yet somehow fall into a fitful sleep, to be woken much later by someone shaking my arm. I open my eyes.
It is Sirius. He a small scar on his cheek and looks tired around his eyes, but he seems cheerful enough.
“Come on, Sleepyhead,” he tells me. “We have to go to Charms.”
“What are you doing? Where were you last night? Why didn’t you come back from your “ your “ your investigations, or whatever they were?”
“Of course we did,” he says. “I’m here, aren’t I? You must have gone to sleep. I thought we told you not to wait for us?”
I would laugh, but I’m too sleepy. “Yeah, ’cause I was going to listen to that. Where are the others?”
“James and Peter are stealing as much breakfast as they can, we’ll have to have it at the back in Charms. We all overslept a bit.”
I am waking up now. The story just isn’t convincing. “What about Remus? And Sirius, were you aware that last night was the full “”
“Come on,” he grabs my arm and drags me out of the armchair. “No time for chat. I’m afraid you won’t be able to shower or anything until break, we’re really late. Honestly, Marty, I thought you were more responsible than this ...”
I don’t appreciate being dragged around the school like this and I keep trying to interrogate him about the werewolf, but I can’t get a word in edgeways. Either they’re rambling on about nothing in particular, or they’re having their own loud conversations and ignoring me if I try and steer the talk to something a little more useful. Somehow they manage to keep it up all through the first two lessons and when it gets to break, they shove me in the direction of the Common Room (and showers) and leave without me.
Well. That’s not what I would call very polite, if you ask me. Normally I would go and visit Remus (who is apparently still in the Hospital Wing, but for some reason I’m just not buying it. They’re trying way too hard to avoid the subject and way too hard to be casual). But the truth is, I would like to make myself more presentable ... I’ve not had a chance to look in a mirror, but I can see that yesterday’s uniform is all wrinkled and to be honest, I probably smell pretty bad. I don’t even want to think about my hair.
So I storm back to the Common Room and then up to the dormitory. It’s eerily quiet in there during the day ... no one is yelling at each other or anything. It just doesn’t seem right.
After a quick shower, I take my wand and flick my hair dry, then put on a fresh pair of robes “ ah, bliss! “ and am satisfied that I no longer look like a banshee. Not that I’m really a vain person, but still, a girl has to have pride. I go downstairs, just as someone climbs through the portrait hole and into the Common Room.
It is Remus. Like Sirius, there is a scar down his cheek and a couple of other nicks and cuts, although they are mostly healed. What’s most shocking is that he looks absolutely shattered “ even more than usual, I mean. After worrying about him all day, I go from complete and utter relief, to a fierce and terrifying anger.
“Where the hell do you think you’ve been?” I screech, striding up to him and staring him right in the face. Unlike the others, he doesn’t try to stop me or make up some excuse and change the subject. Thank Merlin. I might just have had to murder him myself. “Do you not know how dangerous it is? There was a werewolf in the forest! A real live werewolf, Remus! And how did you get those injuries? Sweet Merlin, did you meet it? Are you okay? I swear I’m going to murder you, do you even know how scared I was? Hospital Wing my arse. Anything could have happened to you!”
“Marty,” he says tiredly. “Marty, calm down.”
“I will NOT bloody calm down, Remus, and don’t expect me to after something like this! Where the hell did you go? And don’t lie to me, because I’m not an idiot. And did you not hear the part about the WEREWOLF in the forest? Who do you think it was? Someone from the village? How stupid are you to go out wandering on full moon? In this day and age!” I don’t care that I’m overreacting. I can’t believe how scared it made me, not knowing where he was after what I’d seen last night. The other three are capable of looking after themselves but Remus is so vulnerable sometimes that I can’t help but worry over him.
“Marty,” he says again. “Marty, the thing is ...”
“WHAT?” I screech, practically pulling my hair out in fury “ but at least I manage not to pull his. It’s pretty difficult.
“It’s just ...” he looks so sad, so tired, so pathetic. My anger dissolves. I just want to grab hold and hug him until he gets some life back, but I don’t think I could risk snapping him in half.
“What?” I ask, much more softly.
“The thing is ...” he seems to be gathering all his strength. “The werewolf was me.”
Wait a second ... what did he just say?
AN: =O That’s right, guys ... the chapter ends there! Because I am evil. So, what do you think? How will Marty react to THAT little bombshell? Only I know the truth ...