Chapter 2
By the time he awoke again, it was nearly noon and he could hear lively voices coming from downstairs, accompanied by a heavenly smell wafting through the halls. His mother, Euphemia, had probably begun setting the table for lunch, or rather, breakfast for him. As he rose, he felt his hair cling to his face and sweat drip from his forehead. After his excursion earlier that morning, he had been so exhausted he’d crashed into bed wearing all his winter gear and the heating charm he’d so carefully cast before venturing out into the yard. He kicked off his boots and gradually peeled his clothes off with a sigh of discontentment lingering on his lips.
He dressed quickly, throwing on whatever clothes he could find strewn around the room and quietly snuck out into the hall. As he approached the expansive staircase leading down to the 1st floor, his parents' voices drifted up.
“I have no idea what could have gotten in there but it was a complete and utter mess!” his father proclaimed.
“Oh dear, you worry so much. It was probably some wild animals looking for something to eat or some shelter from the snow,” Euphemia remarked, murmuring to herself, “The poor thing must have frightened itself half to death…”
James nearly laughed hearing that, but he, wisely, clamped a hand over his mouth just in time. His heart had nearly leaped out of his chest when everything had come crashing down that morning in the shed. As his father ventured out for a smoke, he decided he’d listened in long enough and so made his way downstairs, into the dining room.
“Morning Mum!” he exclaimed, plastering on his trademark bright smile, planting a quick peck on her cheek and strolling over to his usual seat at the table.
As he surveyed the spread, he felt his mouth water. There were all types of steamed and roasted vegetables as well as meats and even a pot of lentil soup, which he admitted he was much less enthused about. He reached out to grab the serving spoon and heap a generous serving of potatoes onto his plate but laughed, pulling his hand back as he felt his mother wack at him with her oven mit.
“Don’t eat until your father gets here, young man! We eat as a family in this household,” she said looking at him with a feigned sternness, her lips quivering as she concealed a smile.
As if on cue, his father returned, a satisfied expression on his face as he slid a pack of cigarettes back in his coat pocket before hanging it up by the back door. He took his place at the table and, once they had all settled in, they all began to serve themselves. James grabbed at the serving spoon again and loaded up his plate with peas, carrots, potatoes and pork, making sure to drizzle gravy atop it all and steering clear of the soup, despite the nagging looks of his mother. As he ate, his mind wandered. He wondered what could have inspired his odd mood that morning. But mostly he thought of how he could make his early morning flying a regular occurrence. It felt like an itch he needed to scratch, something he had to do or else he’d go mad. It felt like when he was in the air he was finally at peace but if anyone knew what he was doing then it would be lost. He needed something just for him, not because his parents didn’t understand or would try to stop him because he was sure they were fine with it…
“James!” Euphemia called emphatically.His head snapped up and he anxiously looked over at them both, a look of confusion in his eyes.
“Yes..?” he responded.
Euphemia arched a brow, informing him “Your father was asking whether Sirius will be joining us for Easter this year?”
“I think so… But we’ll have to see how it pans out. We still have lots of time before then,” he said with a weak smile.
In reality, Sirius’ parents had only been getting increasingly vehement that he would return to Grimmauld Place any chance he had. Sirius, of course, was less than happy with this developpement.
“You best tell me if his mother is giving him trouble about it. We will speak to that piece of work of a woman if we must,” his mother declared spiritedly, a resolute gleam in her eyes.
“I will Mum, don't worry,” he said, rolling his eyes a little at her antics, but he was thankful to know someone would intervene if Sirius was ever in any genuine danger.
He continued to daydream and his parents talked about who knows what. He spent the afternoon mostly bored, lounging around and re-reading letters he’d long since responded to but had yet to receive responses for. He draped himself over the arm of the sofa in the drawing room, his head upside down as he read his last letter from Remus. Nothing particularly exciting; fortunately the last full moon had passed before they had left on holiday, so Remus was free to do whatever he wanted without worries. Not that there was much to do at Hogwarts during the holidays.
Suddenly, he bolted upright with a gasp as he remembered the shrunken broom from that morning. He sprang off the couch and rushed through the halls, up the stairs and finally into his room. Looking down the hall and carefully shutting his bedroom door, he picked up the jeans he had worn out to the shed, swiftly fishing the shrunken broom out of the pocket. He held it up like a prize, a broad grin adorning his face and he couldn’t resist dancing around the room in sheer delight. This morning may have been a disaster but at least he’d gotten something out of it.
He knew there were only a few days left of holiday but he was sure it would prove just as useful back at school since, as a member of the Gryffindor Quidditch team, he kept his broom in the locker room with the rest.
The days following what he had begun to call the broom incident, he snuck out early every morning, swinging by the kitchen for some snacks and then going out for a fly. He’d gotten very good at the shrinking charm too, keeping the tiny broom in his pocket nearly all day.
This morning, however, was unlike the others. He awoke in a cold sweat, the night sky still visible but the birds chirping. He hadn't heard from Sirius for nearly a week and there is no denying he was getting increasingly worried that something had gone wrong. Sirius had warned he may not be able to write what with all the wards around Grimmauld Place but James couldn’t help but entertain worst case scenarios. He knew what he wanted to do, but as much as he longed to somehow fly himself all the way down to London undetected, he knew all he could do was wait three more days until they returned to school. He had pulled on his clothes, cast all his charms and grabbed his broom before dashing down the stairs. As he slinked around the kitchen to the backdoor, he saw a glimmer from his dad’s jacket that drew his attention. James would usually never take his parent’s belongings without express permission but this was just too tempting. He often watched as his father smoked in the back garden, a serene expression on his face and couldn’t help but feel that perhaps it would calm the endless panic that filled him, day and night.
He nicked both his fathers lighter and a few cigarettes from the nearly full carton. There was no way he would notice them being gone.What was a few cigarettes, after all. With this, James stepped out into the open yard, looking up at the sky filled with glittering stars, even as the sun began its rise, rays peeking out from beyond the horizon. He unshrunk his broom and began his ascent. He flew as high as he possibly could, endeavouring to reach the stars themselves. He scanned the heavens for Sirius, like he’s taught James but it seemed to elude him. Yet, there was one figure that emerged almost immediately as he began to search the sky – Leo, and with it, Regulus.