Second Year, Midnight Feast
Tuesday March 6th 1973
Though it was leading up to spring, most days the sun and warmer temperatures were still being kept at bay by gloomy, miserable weather. Heavy rain poured down over the Hogwarts grounds, clattering loudly against the windowpanes. Mary thought this was rather unfair, thinking that after a bleak and grey winter, they were owed some sunnier days; at least weather that was suitable enough for them to sit outside. She had never been one for the winter days. While she did like the Christmas time, once that was over and done with, she felt like the cold kept her dangling above a deep and empty hole. Decorations were torn down and all they were left with was grey; endless and stretching. If it was up to her, they`d keep the fairy lights strung in the trees and around the castle until it got dark after eight.
February truly was the bleakest month of all; the only pinprick of light being Valentines in the middle of it. Ever since the end of the winter holidays, Mary had been counting down the days until spring, eagerly waiting to finally feel some sun on her skin again. And today, that day had finally come. During their last lesson of the day, the clouds had broken up and a glowing beam of sunlight had been able to penetrate through, casting in through the stained glass windows and dappling the classroom in a plethora of colours.
As soon as they had packed their bookbags, Lily taking ages to do so, Mary had guided the three of them outside to sit in the sun. It was still chilly, a crisp breeze blowing between the pillars. Marlene had donned her outer robes, yet Mary and Lily kept theirs on, ever so slightly shivering in the sun.
Purple and yellow crocuses were scattered around them on the grass, vibrant against the grey and brow walls of the castle. Carefully, Mary picked some of the crocuses, the stems snapping crisp between her fingers. Lily had already disappeared into a book, Mary didn`t recognise the cover, probably for Slug club, she supposed. Swiftly, Mary stuck a flower in Lily`s hair, the latter being unaware of this act. Next, she put one behind Marlene`s ear, who flinched hesitantly at first, but let her friend put the crocus behind her ear anyway, smiling shyly. Mary leaned back on her elbows and closed her eyes, letting the sun hit her face. The light shone through her eyelids, making patterns on the velvety maroon insides. She sighed satisfied and slowly her body started to warm, a heat radiating from her sternum all the way to her backbone.
`Oi, Evans!`
Mary opened her eyes disturbed and looked up to see James and Sirius approaching them, Peter scampering behind them, his heavy bookbag weighing him down a great deal.
`Oh great,` Lily groaned, slamming the book she had been reading shut. `It`s Bert and Ernie.`
`Who?` Marlene asked confused, fingering the flower behind her ear; Mary just wondered which one of them was Bert and which Ernie.
James and Sirius came to stand next to the three girls, towering over them, James casting his shadow over Mary as he intercepted the light.
`Do you mind move?` Mary sighed. `You`re in my sun.`
James rolled his eyes, but did step to the side. Heaving, Peter caught up with his friends and came to rest beside them, clutching the strap of his satchel firmly.
`Hi, Peter.` Lily smiled warmly.
`Hi.` Peter panted, wiping his brow.
`So, ladies…` Sirius said, wiping a strand of hair from his face.
`So, boys…` Mary replied mockingly, batting her eyelashes as she looked up at Sirius.
Peter had set his bookbag down on the grass and was wringing his hands nervously. None of the three boys was making any incline to say something; Mary felt almost sorry for them, the way they stood dawdling on the lawn. Sirius and James were gesturing violently at eachother with their eyes and raising their eyebrows urgently. Involuntarily Mary started to giggle and Marlene raised her eyebrows; Lily sighed deeply.
`No, you say it.` James hissed at Sirius.
`You had the idea.` Sirius hissed back, nudging him with his elbow.
`Are you going to say something?` Lily asked scornfully. `Or can I actually go and make use of my precious time?`
James turned a beetroot red and pushed his glasses back up his nose. Sirius cleared his throat and puffed out his chest, sweeping a strand of hair from his face again.
`Erm-` Sirius stammered, uncharacteristically unsure of himself. `James wanted me to ask you if you wanted to come to Remus` birthday party.` he spit out, it all coming out in a rush.
`Oi!` James huffed and kicked Sirius` shin. `Wanker.`
`Now, now Potter.` Sirius smirked. `There`re ladies around.`
`It`s Remus` birthday?` Mary asked, shielding her eyes from the sun and looking up at the boys.
`Yeah,` Sirius replied, sounding a little more certain. `Saturday. The 10th. We figured you wanted to come since…well, since you lot are his friends now or something.`
Mary had known that Remus birthday was coming up somewhere this month - since she`d pried his astrological sign out of him to read him his horoscope from the Witch Weekly- but he hadn`t want to let loose on what day his birthday actually was.
Glancing at Lily, Mary noticed that she now had truly put her book down, genuinely paying attention. Marlene was gnawing nervously at her nails, her eyes resting on James.
`So you lot will come?` James asked, his gaze was directed at Lily, staring as she gently touched the crocus in her hair.
`Of course we`ll come!` Mary beamed widely, looking at Sirius, batting her eyelashes.
`Brilliant.` Sirius grinned. `Peter will come and get you when the time is ready.`
`Why me?` Peter asked, but was ignored by his friends.
`You`ll come too, Evans?` James asked eagerly, still staring at Lily.
Lily returned his gaze, her face deadpan, `Sure, for Remus.`
James nodded enthusiastically, shifting his weight from one foot to the other. Secretly, Mary suspected James to fancy Lily, she had a knack for that kind of thing. Although, she would never voice her suspicions out loud, seeing as Marlene already fancied James.
Ready to continue her lounging, Mary leaned back on her elbows, waiting for the boys to go away so she could close her eyes and revel in the sun. They walked away, but after only a couple of seconds Sirius came running back to them, his robes billowing behind him in the wind
`What now?` Lily asked, sounding annoyed.
`Erm,` Sirius mumbled. `We need one of you to test if girls can come up to our dorm room. I told James it`ll be fine, but he won`t believe me.` he sighed. `Any volunteers?`
Lily rolled her eyes, but Mary sprang up eagerly, saying, `I`ll do it.` Which earned her a reproachful look from Marlene.
`Cheers.` Sirius grinned, wiping his face hair-free again.
Mary`s whole stomach felt full of fluttery butterflies as she strode alongside Sirius through the hallways towards the tower. Incredibly aware of the way she held her body, she kept her back straight and kept swallowing, her throat feeling dry. As they passed students, she wondered what they thought when they saw the two of them walk by.
The whole affair of trying to see if she could get up into the boys dorms wasn`t that big of a deal in reality. All she had to do was mount the steps and open the door. Still, she felt like she had been given the task of a lifetime. Her cheeks glowed hot as she slowly climbed up the stairs, aware of Sirius looking at her from behind. Nothing happened. She opened the door to their dorm room, bracing herself for some sort of mechanism to go off, but it kept quiet.
Before shutting the door again, she took a curious look around the room, wondering which one was Sirius` bed. The room was the polar opposite of her dorm. Whereas theirs was clean, though not always tidy, the boys room smelled sour. It smelled like her brother`s room. It smelled like teenage boys. With a stench like that, Mary thought, it was no wonder the school didn`t need a mechanism to keep girls out.
***
Saturday March 10th 1973
It was a little before midnight, the clock on her nightstand ticking loudly. Lily sat on the edge of her bed, fully dressed. For the occasion she had put on a dress and exchanged her earrings for the ones she had gotten from Mary and Marlene.
Mary was still in the bathroom, a strip of light casting into the room from underneath the door. All day long Mary had been blabbering excitedly about tonight, Lily had been scared she might accidentally spoil the surprise for Remus. On the rug, against the bed, sat Marlene, legs drawn up and head resting on her knees as she stared at the closed bathroom door.
In her hands, Lily firmly clasped her present for Remus, as well as his birthday card, she had put a great deal of effort into it. The present was a book on Potions; originally she had had other plans for a gift for Remus. Ever since the boy had told her about his reading problem, Lily had wrecked her brains about a way to help him out. He really deserved it. So, when the boys had invited them for his birthday, she thought it would be the perfect opportunity to give him a solution. Though, the problem was harder than she had anticipated it to be and quickly she realised she would need more time. She was planning on fixing the spell to a clear piece of acetate, like reading glasses in a sense. She had asked her mother to send her some, but the acetate hadn`t arrived yet and she still didn`t know how to get the spell to stick.
Fortunately, she still had a spare copy of Advanced Potions lying about. Severus had gifted her one for her birthday and she hadn`t had the heart to tell him that she already had a copy of her own. Lily hoped Remus wouldn`t be too upset by his rather disappointing present.
The arms on the clock struck twelve and Lily stood up, quietly gesturing Marlene to come along as she rapped softly on the bathroom door to let Mary know they were leaving. Mary appeared, a big grin spreading across her face.
They tip-toed down the stairs into the common room, scared someone might hear them sneak out. Peter stood waiting for them at the bottom of the stairs and gave them a nervous wave. They filed up and mounted the stairs to the boys dorm, all clutching their presents and cards tightly; Peter up front, leading the way.
Lily could feel her heart beating in her chest as they stopped in front of one of the doors and Peter gave a sharp knock on the wood. It sounded loud and hollow in the stairwell. For a long time there didn`t come an answer.
`Are they even on there?` Mary whispered.
`Shh.` Lily hissed back.
Peter explained to them that they had put a Muffliato charm over the room, so they needn`t be afraid of making noise.
Just at that moment, there were some muffled sounds and the door clicked open. Remus` face came into view, his hair was standing on end and his eyes were rimmed red with sleep; his mouth fell open as he noticed the girls and Peter standing on the doorstep. Lily beamed widely, joy radiating in her stomach.
`I didn`t think girls were allowed in here?` Remus said unbelieving.
`The lovely Mary tested it for us last week – nothing bad seems to happen.` James shrugged and Mary giggled.
`One day you`ll all read Hogwarts: A History, and I can finally rest.` Sirius sighed exasperated. Lily had to agree with him on that one.
In the meantime, James had started producing truly an impressive amount of food from underneath his bed. Lily desperately didn`t want to know what else was stashed underneath James` bed and decided not to fixate on it. Mountains of sweets were being emptied out on the bed, as well as more substantial food, no doubt raided from the kitchens. Though Lily hadn`t really been hungry before, her stomach did start to rumble.
Sirius was seemingly making his best efforts to make the dorm room cosy, laying out blankets and pillows on the floor, while Mary, Marlene and Lily stood dawdling in the doorway, unsure as where to situate themselves.
`Lupin,` Sirius beamed. `Welcome to your midnight feast.`
`Happy birthday Remus!` the girls chanted in chorus.
All of them settled down on the pillows and blankets, gathering around Remus, eager for him to open all their presents. Lily was starting to get nervous, afraid Remus might think she didn`t put any real effort into her gift. Sirius was busy tinkering with the record player, putting on David Bowies’ Hunky Dory.
`Sit next to me Sirius.` Mary said quickly as Sirius was trying to find a seat in the circle. Lily noticed Marlene shooting her a disapproving glance.
Sirius just shrugged and obeyed, sitting down next to Mary, who looked rather pleased with herself. The boy extended a pale and veiny hand to hand Remus an elongated package. `Open this first!` he said.
`You didn`t have to get me anything.` Remus muttered, staring at his hands as he carefully unwrapped the gift.
A rolled up piece of paper emerged. `A poster?` Lily frowned.
Apparently Sirius had tried to put a charm on a David Bowie poster to make the image move. The singer gave a jerky high-kick as it grinned out at them from the paper. Marlene was looking curiously at the poster and Lily didn`t have a doubt in her mind that she would try and do that to some of the posters on their walls.
`I got Andromeda to send it to me at Christmas.` Sirius grinned. `But I enchanted it myself.`
`Wow! Thanks! It`s amazing!` Remus was positively beaming. It stuck Lily that she rarely had seen the boy this happy.
Next, it was time for the girls to hand Remus their gifts. Both Mary and Marlene had gotten him packets of sweets and cakes; partially a product from a raiding of the kitchens. Reluctantly Lily gave Remus her gift, he tore the paper off the Potions book and looked sceptically at her and grinned; Lily`s stomach made a lurch as he looked her in the eyes.
`Can`t keep giving Severus a reason to lord it over you.` she replied impishly, cocking an eyebrow as she kept his gaze.
`Please don`t mention Snivellus` name on this most sacred occasion.` James said, his eyes wide in mock horror as he looked at Lily. Though Lily despised it when the boys would use that name for her friend, she couldn`t help but feel the corner of her mouth twitch. Quickly, she rolled her eyes and bit purposefully into her jam tart, ignoring Potter.
`My present is coming later…once we`ve all stuffed ourselves to bursting.` James said conspicuously.
`Oh Merlin, Potter,` Marlene giggled. `What have you got planned.`
The bespectacled boy just raised his eyebrows and wouldn`t tell what he was planning on doing. Peter was grinning widely, evidentially almost bursting with excitement and nerves.
Lily felt afraid at what was going to happen, scared they might get caught, and still at the back of her mind she was also incredibly curious and giddy with excitement; impatient to see what Potter had planned. If she was certain of one thing, it was that neither James nor Sirius would hold back when it came to accommodating Remus.
***
When the evening started, Marlene wouldn`t have though she would end up standing on one of the boys` trunks, doing an impersonation of Professor Flitwick, their tiny Charms professor. Still there she was; a blanket around her shoulders like a giant set of robes and waving her wand frantically, all the while muttering incoherently in a high pitched voice. The others were rolling around on the red pillows and blankets that were donned around on the floor.
Marlene shot a quick glance at James and saw that his glasses were askew on his face, mop of jet-black hair ruffled and unruly. It wasn`t often that she spent time with James off the quidditch pitch and she had been incredibly nervous. Mary had kept blabbering on about how this birthday party was the perfect opportunity to impress both Sirius and James; to show them a side of themselves that only existed outside of school related endeavours.
Mary was easy to talk. Mary had that blunt and cheeky personality that made everybody fall for her immediately. She had this indefinite charm that seemed to radiate out of her. A self-assuredness that never came of as self-absorbed or egotistic, but as warming and comforting. Mary was a girl that could step into a room and immediately light it up with her presence.
From the get-go, Mary had been able to joke around with Sirius, playfully touch his shoulder or ask him to sit next to her. Marlene hadn`t even dared to look in James` direction. They had already been in the boys` room for an hour and Marlene had barely uttered a word, not sure when to break into the conversation, her eyes darting from the one to the other as they jabbered on in quick wit.
Marlene had been starting to get anxious, afraid that she was coming off as boring or uninteresting and it didn`t escape her that James was staring at Lily, not at her. She wasn`t all that surprised. Mary and Lily were easy to fancy, she just wasn`t she supposed. When the topic of conversation had steered towards Professors and Transfiguration, something in her had snapped and, desperately wanting to stand out, she had whipped out her McGonagall impersonation.
It had worked like a charm and within minutes the boys were practically dangling from her lips, begging for her to do all their Professors. Marlene`s hands were clammy from nerves, but she did like to finally have the attention directed towards her.
`Oh, oh,` Peter wheezed, clutching his stomach. `Can you please do McGonagall again.`
Marlene grinned and eased her accent into her natural Scottish lilt, sharpening it to emulate McGonagall`s severe demeanour, `I expect you all to hand in your essay tomorrow, I won`t accept any excuses. I will have your essay on my desk tomorrow, unless you are dead.`
Peter started cackling loudly again, rolling around on the floor, `Oh, I can`t believe she actually said that.`
`Starting to see why Remus`s been abandoning us for you lot.` James heaved, wiping tears from the corners of his eyes.
Marlene grinned satisfied and hopped of the trunk onto the floor, donning the blanket from her shoulders.
`Yeah, you`re not bad, for girls.` Sirius winked at Mary, who giggled and gave him a playful shove. Marlene swallowed, her throat suddenly feeling very dry.
`Yeah, it`s got nothing to do with me wanting to get my homework done.` Remus responded dryly, cocking an eyebrow.
`Oh, how the times have changed.` Sirius sighed, screwing up his nose snobbishly.
Marlene settled herself next to Lily, who retorted, `You`ll all be laughing on the other sides of your faces when Remus beats you all in our exams.`
`Pah!` James jumped up and stretched his long limbs as if he was getting ready for a sparring match. Marlene looked up at him, staring as he shook out his arms and legs. `Exams! We marauders have higher concerns. My dear Mr Black, Mr Pettigrew.` The boy made a sweeping motion with his arms, gesturing at the dorm window. `Shall we?`
Marlene wondered if they also should come up with a nickname for their group, although she didn`t reason they would be able to settle on one, since Mary`s cat was still named Cat after months; the three of them being way too indecisive to pick a name. She could start calling Lily: Miss Evans, and Mary: Miss Macdonald. It would definitely work together well with her Professors act.
Sirius sprang up abruptly, `By George!` he inquired James pompously. `Is it time?`
Gravely, James shut his eyes and nodded slowly.
`Indeed it is.`
`Then make haste!` Peter cried, also standing up.
The three boys seemed to be imagining themselves in some sort of extremely ostentatious play; they reminded Marlene of some of her elder relatives.
Lily was shooting Marlene anxious glances and Mary giggled nervously, Marlene started biting at her nails; Remus seemed to have as little knowledge at what was about to transpire as the three of them. At the window, the boys had their backs turned to them, chuckling and shivering from excitement. More than ever, they looked just like a bunch of disobedient boys, very much in contrast with the way they had addressed eachother earlier.
Peter turned around and beckoned them to come over towards the window. `Come on!` he cried. `You`ll want to see this.`
Both Sirius and James` arms were filled with small bright red coloured objects; Marlene`s eyes widened as she recognised what they were.
`Are those…` she screwed up her nose. `Not Dr Filibuster`s!?` She stared at the tiny sticks of fireworks. Her brother, Danny, had lit those off once, much to the displeasure of their mother. It had earned him a week of weeding the weeds in the garden.
James gave her a wicked smile, baring his rows of neat white teeth; Marlene grinned back shyly.
`Oh no!` Lily yelped, looking anxious. `We`re not supposed to! You`ll wake up the whole castle!`
`Get lost if you don`t like it, Evans.` Sirius snapped at her, as he handed some of his fireworks over to Peter, who was grinning manically. `You promised not to spoil anything.`
Marlene thought this was rather harsh and her face turned to stone as she stared at Sirius. Though, secretly she too was curious to see the fireworks.
`Remus!` Lily cried exasperated. `Tell them, they`ll listen to you!`
`No they won`t.` Remus replied. `Anyway, I want to see. I`ve never seen wizard fireworks.`
`You`re in for a treat.` Sirius gave a wicked wink at Remus.
Mary was edged very close to Sirius, peering over his shoulder. `How many do you need!?` she asked, sounding enthralled.
`Thirteen, obviously.`
`You`re all going to get in so much trouble…` Lily whimpered, her shoulders slumped.
`Oh, stop being such a goody goody, Lil!` Marlene put an amicable arm around Lily and squeezed her shoulder.
`We won`t let any of you girl get into trouble.` James replied, sounding earnest. His glasses were slipping down his nose and he shifted back and forth as to not let any of his load slip. `Don`t worry.`
`I`m not worried.` Lily spat back boldly as she crossed her arms in front of her chest. `I think you`re all being-`
`Ooops!`
A loud bang went off and Marlene startled, clasping her hands over her ears, hunching down towards the floor.
`Peter!`
The whole lot of them hung out of the window, seeing one of Peter`s rockets soar down towards the ground in a flurry of sparks.
`Sorry…` Peter looked at his feet, his plump cheeks pink; Sirius cackled and Lily looked positively shocked.
`No, great work – now we`ve started we might as well continue, eh?` Sirius started to hurl his own rockets out of the window, the other two boys followed suit. In a matter of seconds the air was filled with a colourful array of sparks; soaring against the background of the star littered sky.
Even Lily had stopped whimpering and stared awestruck at the fireworks. Marlene had her hands clasped over her ears, protecting them against the bangs that went off. Wizard fireworks went on for quite a while, usually exploding multiple times before sizzling out. `HAPPY BIRTDAY REMU.` The fireworks spelled out.
`Knew it was too many letters.` Sirius sighed, irritated.
Marlene spun around with a jolt as someone began hammering on the door, her heart dropped to her shoes and as a reflex she took a strand of hair into her mouth and started chewing on it.
`Potter! Black!` Don`t think I don`t know you`re behind this. OPEN THIS DOOR!`
Lily shot Marlene an anxious look; Mary giggled.
`Oh, shit!` James frowned. `Better get under the beds ladies…`
Swiftly, Marlene scooted under the nearest bed, followed in quick succession by the other two girls. Mary`s hair tickled her chin as they lay, motionless and unbreathing, underneath the wooden slats. They heard how Professor McGonagall scolded the boys and served them two months of detention and letters to all their parents. Marlene desperately didn`t want to get caught, her mum would kill her if she found out what she had been up to. Professor McGonagall’s feet were visible from their hideout place, pacing up and down in her maroon nightie. Firmly, Mary grasped Marlene, the soft tips of her fingers and her sharp nails boring into Marlene`s wrist. Marlene`s throat turned dry and she could practically hear her heartbeat drumming in her ears, she hoped their head of house wouldn`t pick up on it.
It was almost two o`clock in the morning when the three of them returned back to their dorm room, reluctant, and with the whizzing of fireworks still reverberating in their ears.
///