green apple
Moony, hurry up!” James calls from behind them as they run through the corridors and take the steps down two at a time. Peter can feel Remus’ burning gaze on them as he shouts back. “You slow down ! You pricks know about my bad hip.”
This, predictably, wins Sirius over, and he stops to help his boyfriend with a dramatic sigh, though no one misses the worried look on his face as he checks Remus over to make sure he’s okay. Remus swats him away as James and Peter stop as well. They all fall in line and walk at a comfortable pace as they make their way to the dungeons.
“I wonder what Sluggy’s announcement will be.” Beside him, James is practically vibrating with excitement. For the hundredth time that morning, he runs a hand through his hair energetically, making it more unruly than usual.
“Something to do with slug club, I s'pose.” Remus points out the obvious. “And don’t call him that.”
“Aw. If I was Lily, you wouldn't have said anything.” James says, and bats his eyelashes at Remus.
Remus rolls his eyes and shrugs. “True. That’s because I like Lily more than you.” He grins wickedly and pushes away James’s face.
“Oh! You git!” James says with a laugh and makes a move towards Remus like he’s going to push him, but Sirius pulls him back by the back of his shirt.
Sirius and James bicker for a moment, and Peter stifles back a yawn. It’s too early for this. He did not appreciate being pulled from breakfast to head down to their first class of the day early.
The group had barely sat down at the Gryffindor table when James, Sirius, and Remus all received notes from Professor Slughorn. Apparently, he wanted the members of the slug club to meet so he could discuss something important with them. Lily and Remus got into the slug club because of their talent; James and Sirius had gotten in because of their last names.
Peter, who tried not to feel too left out, trailed along the loud group out of the Great Hall, and was now entering the potions room with them. He wrinkles his nose at the faint scent of mildew and checks his watch for the time. The boys chat with some other students already there: Frank Longbottom, Mary Macdonald, Gilderoy Lockhart, and some others. Slughorn is nowhere to be seen yet, so Peter sticks around.
Sirius waves at Regulus and Evan cheerfully. Regulus rolls his eyes while Evan blows a kiss back. James pretends to catch it lovingly and sends a pointed look at Regulus, who pretends not to care. Peter hides his snicker under his hand. Remus makes a quip under his breath and he can’t help but let the laugh escape.
Remus pokes Peter and nods to the door opening. Students go quiet as Professor Slughorn walks into the room, his ever-present smile on his face. Peter goes to hover by the door, listening in what he hopes in a not-too-noticeable manner.
“Good morning, students! I am very pleased to announce a special update to the slug club party next week. We will be having a competition of sorts. You, with a partner of your choice, have a week to brew a potion from the advanced section of the book and present it the night of the party. It has to ‘wow’ me,” He chuckles as he pulls something from his pocket. “It’ll be the showstopping final event of the night. I want the party to end with a bang.” He reveals the item in his hand. “And… the winner gets a vial of liquid luck.” He raises his eyebrows dramatically as he shows the potion off for all to see.
Excited murmurs break out across the room. Slughorn silences them with a hand. “One final thing; the same deal goes for the rest of the class. I’ll be on the lookout this week, and I'll add three more outstanding students to the club. Since you're all my favorites though…” He says with a knowing smile, which grants him a few giggles,” I thought I would let you know first. Pair up once I notify the rest of the class.”
Peter's eyes lock onto the liquid luck in Professor Slughorn’s hands. He watches as he tucks it safely away into a small locked chest, then puts the key into the pocket of his robes. Still processing the information, Peter joins the group again. There’s still a few minutes before class starts, and they talk about the party and the vial of liquid luck.
“Blimey! A whole vial of liquid luck.” James repeats, grinning. “Imagine what you could do with that. I would bet all my money on my favorite Quidditch players.”
“I would sneak into Honeydukes and clear the shop out. Maybe I'll share it with you lot.” Mary says, with a teasing grin. Beside her, Alice pushes her shoulder playfully.
“I would join the dueling club.” Peter chimes in, thinking about all the times he's stopped by to admire the players. Surely he could win at least a couple with luck on his side.
“Hah.” Sirius laughs, then looks around at the others confusedly. They’re all silent. Peter’s ears turn bright red and he stares at Sirius in shock. Had he thought he was joking?
“I, uh, just meant.” Sirius stumbles, “Since you’re not in the slug club, it probably won’t happen. And, Peter in the duelling club ? You would probably need a lot of luck.” Peter’s horrified feeling morphs into anger as Sirius tries to add a joking tone to his last sentences.
Remus squeezes his eyes shut as Sirius digs his way into an even deeper hole. Peter’s hands clench into fists at his side.
“I just mean-”
Peter interrupts Sirius. “I’ll get that vial. You’ll see.”
He turns around and Peter makes a promise to himself that he’ll get that liquid luck. He’ll be one of the chosen three this week. He’ll even steal it if he has to. James calls for him, but he pretends he doesn't hear.
Soon enough, the rest of the students file into the classroom. Slughorn repeats his speech for the rest of the class.
Still quietly fuming, he goes to his station and mindlessly reorganizes the ingredient bottles. He’s actually decent at potions. Good, even. It probably helps that he’s so familiar with many of the ingredients that also appear in his advanced Herbology course he takes with Lily.
Slughorn finishes his speech for the second time. Peter is bouncing on his toes, anticipation coursing through him, replacing his resentment from earlier. Surely James will pick him for this one, right? Everyone knows that besides Lily and Remus, he was the best in the class. Last term, Sirius had only managed to create a bubbling black monstrosity for his final. Somehow he passed it, though.
Coincidentally, the Blacks made a very large donation to the potions department and refilled all of Hogwarts’ very rare ingredients shortly after their reports came back.
His mind roams as he thinks about the competition. What would he do with that liquid luck? Join the dueling club like he said? Try out for Quidditch? Ask Emmeline to take him back? Down the whole thing and punch Sirius right in the jaw like he so often wants to do? Maybe everyone would be really quite relaxed about the whole thing and forget about it.
Peter shakes his head to clear up the ridiculous idea. Sirius could be a git sometimes, but he was still one of his closest friends. He’s almost appalled at himself for even having the violent thought.
Snapping back to reality, he watches as Remus and Lily pair up just as Peter knew they would. He walks over near James and Peter smiles as he comes his way, but his smile fades as James looks past him. Confused, Peter follows his gaze and turns around to see Sirius trading a playful handshake with James.
Peter isn't even sure James sees him standing two feet away until they make eye contact and his face drops. He must see Peter’s expression. He quickly tries to fix it as James looks at Sirius, then back to Peter.
James looks away, and guilty brings a hand to rub the back of his neck. “Sorry, Pete.” It’s just… you know.” Peter swallows. And yes, he does know . He’ll never be anyone’s first choice. What’s a lifetime of friendship worth when you have that deeper connection? James and Sirius were best friends. He didn't know why he thought, just for a second, it would be different. For a moment, Peter wishes they were children again, back when it was just him and James, visiting each other’s neighboring houses almost every day.
He feels as though he’s made of stone, unable to move or breathe. His feet are stuck to the floor. Luckily, the reflex to plaster on a smile is an easy instinct, and he does it, nodding his head a little.
“Oh, it’s fine,” Peter says to James. He tries to believe it himself. James is still looking at him like a sad puppy dog, Peter knows he genuinely feels bad, and Peter claps him on the back.
“Seriously.” He thaws out a little more, managing to take a step back.
“I’ll find someone else. Frank, maybe.” He says as he turns around, but collides into someone standing right behind him.
“Sorry! Sorry, my fault.”
Of all people, it’s Gilderoy Lockhart. Even having been in the same year for their entire time at Hogwarts, Peter hardly knew him. He knew Gilderoy was a Ravenclaw, in the astronomy club, and was usually top of his class. They’ve had a handful of conversations, but none of them meaningful.
“Don’t be sorry. I could have been standing farther away, I suppose.” It sounds… similar to an apology?
“Uh, no worries,” Peter says back, mildly confused. A moment of silence washes over the group. Gilderoy’s sharp eyes find his, and Peter isn't sure whether to be nervous or not.
“Pettigrew, be my partner for the project.” He says it more like a command, not a question.
Peter blinks, and looks back at his friends. They share his expression.
“Well? Are you deaf?” Gilderoy asks, already walking back to his cauldron.
“I- uh. Are you aware I’m not even in the slug club?”Peter scrambles to catch up with him, throwing a confused look over his shoulder to James and the rest.
“You’re not in it yet .” He responds, almost bored. They get to Gilderoy’s station. “Now, hand me that textbook.”
Peter gets his head out of the clouds. I guess this is happening? “Uh, right.”
“So, I was thinking we could do the one on page 107. It is pretty advanced, but I know we can do it. We can’t afford to mess it up because it’ll take almost the whole week to brew…”
Peter watches, transfixed, as Gilderoy starts to get out their ingredients and puts Peter to work, chopping and measuring. Peter is more than happy to do what he’s told, and enthusiastically does his work, listening as Gilderoy goes on.
Peter envies Gilderoy in more ways than one. He can’t help but notice he’s got that perfect hair; gold and shiny that sits atop his head perfectly. His blue eyes and navy robes look amazing on him, and his smile is so white that Peter wonders how many times a day he brushes his teeth. Also, Gilderoy always has an admirer or two. Last Valentine's day, he got dozens of cards and sweets sent to him.
He’s got this glow about him. Not like James, or Sirius. Whereas James is loud and so bright you almost have to look away, Gilderoy is calm. He always knows what to say, when to stay out of a situation. When to strike. Peter is reminded somewhere in the back of his head about a rumor that Gilderoy was almost sorted into Slytherin their first year.
Forty minutes go by quickly and they work and chat amicably. Peter feels almost comfortable by the time Professor Slughorn announces class is almost over, and it’s time to clean up their work spaces.
Peter looks at his half of the table, and then to Gilderoy’s. Gilderoy’s is as neat as a pin, not a bottle out of place or any spilled ingredients. Peter’s on the other hand… looks like a potion-ingredient bomb had just gone off.
“Merlin’s beard, Lockhart. Looks like you’ve got a lot of cleaning up to do.” Peter jokes, laughing at the stark difference of their workstations.
Gilderoy snorts a breath from his nose in a quiet laugh and smiles. “I do suppose it will take me a while to clean up this single speck of dust.” He says back.
His smile makes Peter feel.. bubbly, all over. It’s that amazing feeling he gets when he makes everyone laugh, or when he wins a match in chess club, or when he gets his grades back and they’re the same as James, or Sirius, or Remus.
Gilderoy helps Peter with his section of the table, using a cloth to wipe the area clean of any exotic fruit juice or crushed bone powder. As Gilderoy washes his hands, Peter slips a small sweet from Honeydukes into his bag for the Ravenclaw boy to find later, a small token of gratitude. Who knew he would get along so well with Gilderoy Lockhart? That he was so easy to talk to?
Everything is going well until James and Sirius prance over to watch Peter clean up the rest of his area, talking and joking with him.
“This is a wicked potion you two are trying to whip up.” Sirius says, lazily reading Peter’s open textbook, “Make sure not to have a repeat of the incident in third year, Stinky.” He says, grinning cheekily.
James laughs and elbows Sirius, and Peter’s face flushes at the reference. Their third year, Peter had misread an ingredient on the list and ruined his potion. His caudron had smelled something awful and seeped into his clothes, and everyone called him ‘Stinky Peter’ for a month. He remembered the humiliation he felt, and the letter he had written to his mum, begging to let him come home for the holidays early.
Peter’s laugh falls short, but Sirius and James don’t seem to notice. Peter opens his mouth to joke along with them at his own expense, but he’s interrupted.
“Bold words for someone who mixed up cat hair with a horse’s, which mucked up a basic potion just last term , Black. And, if I remember correctly, Slughorn was so appalled by the mistake not even a first year student would make that he took twenty points from Gryfindor.” Gilderoy sneers, eyes narrowed. “At least Pettigrew stopped making silly mistakes at thirteen, something you still haven't managed to quite get the hang of, I suppose.”
The trio stare in shock at Lockhart’s superb hearing. James rushes to apologize on his best mate’s behalf.
“Sorry, sorry. You’re right. We’re just having a bit of fun. Peter knows.” James says, putting his hands up as if in surrender. Gilderoy shoots Sirius a glare, and Peter is glad he’s not on the receiving end of it. The Ravenclaw is cunning, his mind is sharp. Peter wouldn't be surprised if he had information about everyone in this room that the others had forgotten.
Sirius claps James on the back, and they turn to leave the classroom along with Remus and Lily. They motion for Peter to hurry up as they walk out the door.
He stands in the middle of the potions classroom, halfway to where his friends have run out the door, and halfway where Gilderoy is sitting, packing up the last of his things. Peter takes a final look back at Gilderoy and leaves the class.
Maybe he’s got his ticket to that liquid luck already.
—
Peter looks in determination at his thunderstorm in a bottle as it spits little bolts of lightning and rain. He looks to James, sitting to his right, and he nods.
Okay, just like he practiced.
He takes a deep breath, and points his wand at the lit candle in front of him. As always, warmth pools into his hand and his fingertips tingle with the pressure of magic as he says the spell.
“Impervious!” He says, just as James makes the glass disappear, freeing the raincloud to spill water wherever it pleases.
Peter watches in delight as the drops of water heading straight for the candle deflect harmlessly off. It’s as if there’s an invisible bubble protecting it. They watch as the candle repels water for a moment more, then Peter captures the stormy cloud back into its bottle.
“That was brilliant!” James compliments Peter, as he smiles to himself.
“Thanks!” Peter looks around the Charms classroom, even more pleased to see that only Lily had completed the spell before him. He had been the second person in the whole class to successfully do it!
They switch jobs, and Peter is the one to dissipate the glass and for James to do the spell. They successfully complete it only after their second try, and Professor Flitwick comes over to congratulate them both. Now that they’re done, James is slumped over a Transfiguration essay he had forgotten to complete, due next period. Remus and Sirius are still attempting the spell a few desks down.
It’s a little after lunch, and Peter feels sleepy in the warm classroom. Sunlight drifts in through the windows and his robes are heavy and comfortable. He folds up his arms and lays his head down to rest his eyes, but his attention is caught on the desk to his left.
Gilderoy sits only one desk away, clearly struggling with the spell. His brow is furrowed and he keeps making irritated noises as he gets more and more frustrated. Peter scrunches his nose when he sees, oddly enough, that Gilderoy is sitting by himself without a partner to help.
Peter thinks back to just that morning, where Gilderoy had stood up for him when he hadn’t needed to.
“I’ll be right back, James,” Peter says, though he’s not even sure James registers what he’s just said as he’s still buried in the frantic scrabbling of his quill.
Gilderoy looks up with a start when Peter approaches. Peter slides into the empty seat next to him. “Where’s your partner?”
Gilderoy gives up and sets his wand down with a huff.
“Teddy’s still in the hospital wing from that mysterious potion snuck into his food. You know, I knew things would end up badly if he was disloyal. He didn’t listen to me, though, and of course Millie found out.”
Peter doesn't usually get caught up in this relationship drama nonsense, and he’s not really sure how to react. “Blimey. Who do you think told her?”
“Well, me of course,” Gilderoy says with a sly smile. “But that stays between us.”
A loud chuckle sneaks out of Peter, and he claps his hands to his mouth in the mostly quiet classroom.
“Wow. I mean- you’re- wow.” Is all he can say, through his hands. Gilderoy sends him a smirk that seems a little too proud.
Peter becomes a bit more serious. “Anyways, I thought you could use a little help? I can free the storm so you don't have to worry about it.”
Gilderoy sends him a look that Peter can’t decipher. It’s almost like he’s waiting for the punchline, for Peter to backtrack and say it was all a joke. But Peter keeps his intent gaze fixed on Gilderoy.
“Well, alright.” He says. Peter sends him a warm smile.
Peter counts down so Gilderoy can perform the spell at just the right moment, but time and time again, the water rains down and extinguishes the candle.
“I’m sorry. Charms isn't my best class.” Gilderoy admits, sounding defeated. He blinks and straightens his posture. “Uh, I mean, of course, I’m sure I could do it if you weren’t here breathing over my shoulder. It would be best for you to go back to your seat, I believe.”
Peter blinks at the sudden shift in his behavior, but stays undeterred.
“I have some tricks to help me focus. Here, make sure your feet are firmly on the ground. Can you feel the solid floor against your shoes? Focus on that, let it ground you.”
Peter moves closer to Gilderoy. He’s so close, he can smell Gilderoy’s shampoo. It’s a faint scent of green apple; though he can’t decide if the smell is tart or sweet.
“And feel the energy as it travels through your body and as you channel it.” He presses his hand in a light touch on Gilderoy’s chest, near his heart, and to his shoulder and down his arm to where his fingers grip his wand. “This is a spell that protects. You need to feel strong and secure for it to work.” He explains.
Peter looks at Gilderoy to see if he’s more focused, but he seems to have accidentally created the opposite reaction. Gilderoy’s eyes are wide and unfocused, and he looks down nervously as a blush colors his cheeks.
Fuck, was he being patronizing? Making Gilderoy feel babied and embarrassed while he had just been trying to help?
“Sorry, I-” Peter starts.
“It’s fine. Let me try again.” Gilderoy sets his gaze back on the flaming candle.
Peter blinks, then nods. “Okay, on three. One, two…three.”
“Impervious.” He says it quietly with his eyes shut tight, like a prayer.
Peter’s face cracks into a huge smile as the rain bounces harmlessly off the spell, protecting the flame inside. Gilderoy gently opens his eyes and his mouth drops open.
“See! You did it.” Peter says, and claps a hand on his shoulder.
“It worked. I did it.” Gilderoy says, a stunned expression on his face.
Peter sends a mildly confused glance to Gilderoy. “Of course it did; you’re a great wizard.”
“Right. Ah, yes, I shouldn't be surprised. Silly me.” Gilderoy says, and clears his throat. He raises his hand to notify Professor Flitwick that he’s ready to inspect the spell.
Peter turns to return to his seat, but Gilderoy catches his sleeve in a loose hold.
“I, uh,” Gilderoy can’t look him in the eye. “Thank you, Peter.” He says, looking up as he says his first name.
For some reason, the sound of his name on Gilderoy’s lips makes him feel weird. Like he's about to cast another spell; feeling all warm and tingly inside.
“Not a problem. It’s what friends do.”
“Oh! Yes, friends, I suppose- yes.” Gilderoy says, almost nervously. Though Peter can’t observe his bizarre behavior for long, as Professor Flitwick appears to look over Gilderoy’s charm.
The rest of the class, Peter tries to get that quick nap in. But he doesn't feel tired anymore. And for some strange reason, his brain keeps playing back to that recent memory, where Gilderoy looks up at him through long eyelashes and pretty, bright eyes as he says his name.
Peter, Peter, Peter.
He wants to hear him say it again.
Merlin, what the fuck was wrong with him?