Marauders to the End: Year One, Chapter Fifteen
TITLE: Underneath the Willow Tree
FANDOM: Harry Potter
CHARACTERS: Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, James Potter, Peter Pettigrew, Professor Dumbledore, Lily Evans, Madame Pomfrey, other random people
RATING: PG-13
WARNINGS: None
SUMMARY: James has a new activity. Remus disapproves.
AUTHOR COMMENTARY: I remember Lupin telling Harry about an incident in the third book that pretty much turned into a noodle incident. So I decided to write it up.
And so life went on. James was still going strong on laughter, Sirius was still discovering love and life and all that crap, Remus was still trying not to get in any more trouble, and Peter was still worshipping James and Sirius. Severus Snape was a greasy git, Lily Evans had developed a strong dislike for James and Sirius (although they had no idea why), and her friends were still letting it go. Fenris and McGonagall were being difficult, Flitwick was still Flitwick, Binns was still boring, and all in all, the world was normal. And normal was boring.
James paced the dormitory, trying to find a way to break the routine and keep it broken. He hated routines. He hated doing the same thing all day, every day. He needed a bit more excitement. Something to do. And so he paced the dormitory.
The main problem, he realized, was that he was fresh out of ideas on everything. He couldn’t think of any ways to help Remus or Sirius with their various problems, he couldn’t think of ways to help Anny with the Quidditch team, and he couldn’t think of one idea for a prank. He had no plans. And he was bored out of his skull.
Everyone else was happy just being at school, where there were new things to learn every day and new things to discover every night. They were all slaves to this routine. They all liked having everything planned for them. Even Sirius, who had as much energy as James, didn’t mind the monotony of the days. According to him, monotony was better than his house, which was so unpredictable it was hard to live there.
So James paced the dormitory.
The Gryffindor-Ravenclaw match was next week, but James couldn’t muster any excitement. When he realized this, he decided he must have been ill not to be excited about Quidditch. He couldn’t possibly be that bored.
There was only one thing to do. He’d have to go get into trouble by himself.
The Whomping Willow stood at the edge of the lake, far away from where students usually went. They had been warned that it was dangerous, but no one had actually told them to stay away. James figured that it was as good of an object to make a game out of as any. He knew its purpose, of course, but as long as the moon wasn’t full, there was really no reason to be afraid of it.
“Peter,” he said on Friday afternoon as the four boys crossed the grounds. “I dare you to go touch the Whomping Willow.”
“Wha-what?” Peter stuttered. “Touch the Whomping Willow?”
“Don’t do it Peter,” Remus advised automatically. “You’ll get squashed.”
“Ah, don’t listen to him,” Sirius said, catching onto James’s new form of entertainment. “You’re fast enough.”
“Maybe he’s just chicken,” James suggested.
“No I’m not!” Peter squeaked. “I’ll show you!” And with that, he dropped his books and walked purposefully towards the Willow. Remus swore under his breath and made to chase after him, but James held out an arm to stop him. “He’ll be fine,” James assured Remus. “We’re here.”
Students turned to watch as Peter went towards the tree. A few feet away, he slowed, cautiously reached a hand out towards the trunk...
“PETER, DON’T!” Remus shouted. Too late. The branches swung out, catching Peter round the middle and throwing him back. They flailed towards him, trying to hit him. He managed to dodge away from them, and they kept reaching, swinging...
Remus shoved James aside and dashed towards the tree. His first thought was to freeze it, but then realized that by the time he reached the knot, it would have time to flatten Peter like a spider that strayed beneath someone’s foot. He’d have to get Peter away first.
He reached his friend and grabbed him by the arm. “Get up and run!” he shouted, hauling Peter to his feet. Peter didn’t need telling twice. He turned around and put as much distance between the murderous tree and himself as was possible without looking weak or cowardly. Remus followed. Presently, the tree stopped flailing and went back to looking perfectly innocent.
“Don’t you ever do that again,” Remus gasped. “Any of you.” He glared at James and Sirius.
“Oh, come on,” James said. “You two were three feet away from it. I bet I could get closer.”
“Not now,” Remus said. “I don’t want to have to rescue you next.”
“I didn’t need rescuing!” Peter piped up. “I was doing just fine on my own!”
“Sure you were,” Remus agreed sarcastically. “That’s why you almost got turned into first year mush.”
“Honestly, Remus, where’s your sense of adventure?” Sirius asked.
“Yeah, what’s life if you don’t risk it every ten minutes?” James agreed.
Remus rolled his eyes and said nothing.
“Speaking of which,” James began, but he didn’t finish. He dropped his own books and bag and darted towards the Willow just has Peter had. After all, he’d gotten out of it, why couldn’t James? And he’d do it without Remus’s help.
He met the same fate Peter had, but this didn’t hinder James. He was up again in seconds, dodging through the flying branches. People were shouting, but he didn’t care. He was going to get close enough. He was going to touch the trunk, and if he got hit a bit, well, what did that matter? What were a few bruises compared to a bit of excitement?
He was almost there...
Then a branch came out of nowhere and hit him hard on the shoulder. He gasped with pain and fell, knowing that he was going to be smashed to bits by the tree. He closed his eyes, waiting for the blows to fall, to crush him...
They never came. The tree had stopped moving. James opened his eyes to see Remus standing over him. “Come on,” Remus said, pulling him up.
James walked back up to the school with his friends, clutching his shoulder. They got up to the Hospital Wing, where Madame Pomfrey announced that it wasn’t broken, but he’d better stop doing stupid things. James ignored this last comment. He much preferred doing stupid things than doing nothing at all.
Surprisingly, James’s moronic attempt to touch the Whomping Willow became inspirational as a form of entertainment. People were now trying to do it every time they were out on the grounds. It became a sort of game, where someone would run up to the tree to see how close they could get, usually with a decent crowd standing a good distance away. Most people came out with just a few scrapes and bruises, although some got broken bones, which were instantly mended by Madame Pomfrey, who was growing increasingly annoyed with students coming in with these injuries.
Remus did his best to discourage this game, but no one listened to him. Lily Evans also told people off for playing, but they paid her no more attention. After all, what did a couple of nerdy first years know?
“Haven’t you gotten sick of this yet?” Remus asked Wednesday afternoon during break, while Sirius was getting ready to have his turn at the game.
“No,” Sirius promptly replied. “This is actually good for me.” He took a deep breath and started off. He was six inches away before a blow to the chest brought him down.
“Not bad,” James commented as Sirius limped back. “You beat my last record by a good foot.”
“Thanks,” Sirius gasped. “Who’s going next?”
“That second year, Davey Gudgeon,” Peter answered. “He reckons he can make it.”
“Hasn’t the last twelve times he’s tried,” Sirius muttered.
Davey was already halfway to the tree. Everyone watched apprehensively. The excitement was higher than it had been at any Quidditch game to date.
He didn’t even get three feet from the tree. A branch fell, whacking him in the face. “SON OF A-!” Davey shouted, clutching at his left eye.
“I warned you!” Lily shouted from the crowd. Remus agreed wholeheartedly with her.
That night, at dinner, Dumbledore stood up. “It has been brought to our attention that students are playing a game near the Whomping Willow. This is extremely dangerous, as demonstrated this afternoon when one of you nearly lost an eye. From now on, students are not to be within a six foot radius of the Whomping Willow. Anyone who attempts to go near it without good cause will be given a detention. And be warned that the staff knows what good cause is.” He sat down.
James sighed. It was back to monotony and pacing the dormitory.
FANDOM: Harry Potter
CHARACTERS: Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, James Potter, Peter Pettigrew, Professor Dumbledore, Lily Evans, Madame Pomfrey, other random people
RATING: PG-13
WARNINGS: None
SUMMARY: James has a new activity. Remus disapproves.
AUTHOR COMMENTARY: I remember Lupin telling Harry about an incident in the third book that pretty much turned into a noodle incident. So I decided to write it up.
And so life went on. James was still going strong on laughter, Sirius was still discovering love and life and all that crap, Remus was still trying not to get in any more trouble, and Peter was still worshipping James and Sirius. Severus Snape was a greasy git, Lily Evans had developed a strong dislike for James and Sirius (although they had no idea why), and her friends were still letting it go. Fenris and McGonagall were being difficult, Flitwick was still Flitwick, Binns was still boring, and all in all, the world was normal. And normal was boring.
James paced the dormitory, trying to find a way to break the routine and keep it broken. He hated routines. He hated doing the same thing all day, every day. He needed a bit more excitement. Something to do. And so he paced the dormitory.
The main problem, he realized, was that he was fresh out of ideas on everything. He couldn’t think of any ways to help Remus or Sirius with their various problems, he couldn’t think of ways to help Anny with the Quidditch team, and he couldn’t think of one idea for a prank. He had no plans. And he was bored out of his skull.
Everyone else was happy just being at school, where there were new things to learn every day and new things to discover every night. They were all slaves to this routine. They all liked having everything planned for them. Even Sirius, who had as much energy as James, didn’t mind the monotony of the days. According to him, monotony was better than his house, which was so unpredictable it was hard to live there.
So James paced the dormitory.
The Gryffindor-Ravenclaw match was next week, but James couldn’t muster any excitement. When he realized this, he decided he must have been ill not to be excited about Quidditch. He couldn’t possibly be that bored.
There was only one thing to do. He’d have to go get into trouble by himself.
The Whomping Willow stood at the edge of the lake, far away from where students usually went. They had been warned that it was dangerous, but no one had actually told them to stay away. James figured that it was as good of an object to make a game out of as any. He knew its purpose, of course, but as long as the moon wasn’t full, there was really no reason to be afraid of it.
“Peter,” he said on Friday afternoon as the four boys crossed the grounds. “I dare you to go touch the Whomping Willow.”
“Wha-what?” Peter stuttered. “Touch the Whomping Willow?”
“Don’t do it Peter,” Remus advised automatically. “You’ll get squashed.”
“Ah, don’t listen to him,” Sirius said, catching onto James’s new form of entertainment. “You’re fast enough.”
“Maybe he’s just chicken,” James suggested.
“No I’m not!” Peter squeaked. “I’ll show you!” And with that, he dropped his books and walked purposefully towards the Willow. Remus swore under his breath and made to chase after him, but James held out an arm to stop him. “He’ll be fine,” James assured Remus. “We’re here.”
Students turned to watch as Peter went towards the tree. A few feet away, he slowed, cautiously reached a hand out towards the trunk...
“PETER, DON’T!” Remus shouted. Too late. The branches swung out, catching Peter round the middle and throwing him back. They flailed towards him, trying to hit him. He managed to dodge away from them, and they kept reaching, swinging...
Remus shoved James aside and dashed towards the tree. His first thought was to freeze it, but then realized that by the time he reached the knot, it would have time to flatten Peter like a spider that strayed beneath someone’s foot. He’d have to get Peter away first.
He reached his friend and grabbed him by the arm. “Get up and run!” he shouted, hauling Peter to his feet. Peter didn’t need telling twice. He turned around and put as much distance between the murderous tree and himself as was possible without looking weak or cowardly. Remus followed. Presently, the tree stopped flailing and went back to looking perfectly innocent.
“Don’t you ever do that again,” Remus gasped. “Any of you.” He glared at James and Sirius.
“Oh, come on,” James said. “You two were three feet away from it. I bet I could get closer.”
“Not now,” Remus said. “I don’t want to have to rescue you next.”
“I didn’t need rescuing!” Peter piped up. “I was doing just fine on my own!”
“Sure you were,” Remus agreed sarcastically. “That’s why you almost got turned into first year mush.”
“Honestly, Remus, where’s your sense of adventure?” Sirius asked.
“Yeah, what’s life if you don’t risk it every ten minutes?” James agreed.
Remus rolled his eyes and said nothing.
“Speaking of which,” James began, but he didn’t finish. He dropped his own books and bag and darted towards the Willow just has Peter had. After all, he’d gotten out of it, why couldn’t James? And he’d do it without Remus’s help.
He met the same fate Peter had, but this didn’t hinder James. He was up again in seconds, dodging through the flying branches. People were shouting, but he didn’t care. He was going to get close enough. He was going to touch the trunk, and if he got hit a bit, well, what did that matter? What were a few bruises compared to a bit of excitement?
He was almost there...
Then a branch came out of nowhere and hit him hard on the shoulder. He gasped with pain and fell, knowing that he was going to be smashed to bits by the tree. He closed his eyes, waiting for the blows to fall, to crush him...
They never came. The tree had stopped moving. James opened his eyes to see Remus standing over him. “Come on,” Remus said, pulling him up.
James walked back up to the school with his friends, clutching his shoulder. They got up to the Hospital Wing, where Madame Pomfrey announced that it wasn’t broken, but he’d better stop doing stupid things. James ignored this last comment. He much preferred doing stupid things than doing nothing at all.
Surprisingly, James’s moronic attempt to touch the Whomping Willow became inspirational as a form of entertainment. People were now trying to do it every time they were out on the grounds. It became a sort of game, where someone would run up to the tree to see how close they could get, usually with a decent crowd standing a good distance away. Most people came out with just a few scrapes and bruises, although some got broken bones, which were instantly mended by Madame Pomfrey, who was growing increasingly annoyed with students coming in with these injuries.
Remus did his best to discourage this game, but no one listened to him. Lily Evans also told people off for playing, but they paid her no more attention. After all, what did a couple of nerdy first years know?
“Haven’t you gotten sick of this yet?” Remus asked Wednesday afternoon during break, while Sirius was getting ready to have his turn at the game.
“No,” Sirius promptly replied. “This is actually good for me.” He took a deep breath and started off. He was six inches away before a blow to the chest brought him down.
“Not bad,” James commented as Sirius limped back. “You beat my last record by a good foot.”
“Thanks,” Sirius gasped. “Who’s going next?”
“That second year, Davey Gudgeon,” Peter answered. “He reckons he can make it.”
“Hasn’t the last twelve times he’s tried,” Sirius muttered.
Davey was already halfway to the tree. Everyone watched apprehensively. The excitement was higher than it had been at any Quidditch game to date.
He didn’t even get three feet from the tree. A branch fell, whacking him in the face. “SON OF A-!” Davey shouted, clutching at his left eye.
“I warned you!” Lily shouted from the crowd. Remus agreed wholeheartedly with her.
That night, at dinner, Dumbledore stood up. “It has been brought to our attention that students are playing a game near the Whomping Willow. This is extremely dangerous, as demonstrated this afternoon when one of you nearly lost an eye. From now on, students are not to be within a six foot radius of the Whomping Willow. Anyone who attempts to go near it without good cause will be given a detention. And be warned that the staff knows what good cause is.” He sat down.
James sighed. It was back to monotony and pacing the dormitory.