LS&AB06
Title: Licorice Sticks and Aniseed Balls
Chapter Title: Not-So-Welcome
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: Not mine. Unfortunately.
SHIP(s): None so far.
Chapter Summary: Harry meets Sirius, James and Peter, but will they get along?
Comments: Not really anything to report here that isn't in the summary. Enjoy!
Previous Chapter
Chapter 6: No-So-Welcome
Harry sat alone at the end of the Gryffindor table while Dumbledore made his welcoming speech about Dark Times and the House unity that was unlikely to ever exist in full. The Gryffindor students, both new and returning, ignored him for the most part, either concentrating on the Headmaster’s speech, scrutinising the first-years, or their own grumbling bellies.
When Dumbledore seated himself, there was a loud sigh of relief from where he had spotted Remus sitting with the other Marauders, and looking at them, he saw that it was James who’d made the noise. The first-years looked up and down the table, searching for the food with expressions of confusion that turned to awe as the feast appeared on the golden dishes all the way up the table.
The Hogwarts Sorting Feast of 1977 was every bit as magnificent as any of the ones Harry had attended in his own time period. Hearing a familiar bark of laughter, he looked up and for the briefest second, hazel eyes lifted and connected with his own, frowning at the unfamiliar face, and then flickered back to Sirius, Peter and Remus, joining them in laughter at their own private joke.
Taking a chicken leg from the plate in front of him, and helping himself to roast potatoes, he began to eat slowly, feeling the alternating, confused eyes of the Marauders on him at irregular intervals. He stopped only once before he was finished, to answer a question that one of the new students asked him about how the food appeared, and when he was finished with his dinner, he gave the Headmaster an inquiring glance, and upon receiving a discreet nod in return, he stood and left the Great Hall, heading for the Gryffindor common room.
-------
The password to Gryffindor tower was gubraithian fire, as Professor McGonagall had told him before the students arrived. He gave the password to the Fat Lady when prompted, and then entered the common room, wondering for only a moment at how it would manage not to change at all in the next twenty years.
Wandering up to the dormitory indicated as Seventh Year Boys, he sat down on his new bed - located where Ron’s would be in the future - and took out one of his new course books; the Defence Against the Dark Arts one.
Flipping to the section on advanced shielding charms, he sat engrossed in the text and illustrations until the door opened and the sound of boisterous voices came through it.
‘Hello, Blackmoon,’ his former professor’s younger-self said, a cheerful smile on his face.
Harry looked up and nodded in acknowledgement. ‘Hi, Lupin,’ he answered. ‘Who’re your friends?’
Remus shot him a slightly devilish grin. ‘You’ve not heard of the infamous Marauders?’ he asked. ‘I’d have thought that Professor Fleming would’ve had you running for cover at the sight of us.’ He gestured to the three boys behind him. ‘This is Pete - Peter Pettigrew -, and these two are Sirius T. Black and James M. Potter.’ He then leaned closer and cupped one of his hands at the side of his mouth, as if to hide his lips’ movements, and stage-whispered, ‘Sirius and James are the ones you really need to look out for, especially if you find out that the M and the T stand for Mar-’
James marched up to Harry’s bed with a pillow that he’d grabbed off Sirius’ bed, and whacked Remus in the side with it, effectively silencing him. ‘Silence, knave!’ he cried, ‘Still your treacherous tongue!’
Remus, in retaliation, stole Harry’s pillow and thumped James back, and Sirius joined in not long afterwards. Soon, the three of them lay heaped in a pile of grinning and sniggering bodies, while Harry and Wormtail laughed.
After a moment, James propped himself up, elbowing Sirius in the stomach in the process. ‘Sorry, Pads,’ he said in reply to his best friend’s soft “oof”, and then he looked straight at Harry. ‘So, you know our names - now it’s only fair that you tell us yours.’
Harry’s mouth twisted in a half-smile, holding back laughter at the expression on his future-father’s face. ‘Hello, James Potter,’ he said formally, offering his hand, ‘I am Harry. Harry Blackmoon. Your Professor Fleming’s new charge.’
James leant forward to take the offered hand and shake it, but fell backwards onto Sirius and Remus. Trying again, he sat up properly and grasped onto Harry’s hand, causing a slight thrill to run through the younger boy’s body.
‘Where’d you come from, anyway?’ he asked, not letting go.
Harry grimaced and shrugged, wishing that Eir had been prepared to go over a cover story for him. ‘Can we talk about something else?’ he asked in a slightly strangled voice.
James, Sirius and Peter all frowned, and James’s smile became more fixed as he dropped Harry’s hand. ‘If you want,’ he said.
-------
‘I don’t trust him,’ Harry heard James say to Sirius, Remus and Peter later that night, when he was pretending to be asleep.
Sirius grunted in what he could only assume was agreement, and then he heard a quiet squeak of protest. ‘I think he’s okay, Prongs,’ Wormtail said, Harry’s eyebrows shot up, and he was suddenly glad that he had his back to them. He certainly hadn’t expected Wormtail’s approval, especially when James and Sirius seemed to be so determinedly against him.
‘Pete’s right, James,’ Remus said solemnly. ‘So he doesn’t want to talk about his home - there could be a thousand reasons for that, without turning him into some sort of twisted villain. Why expect the worst of him when you don’t even know him?’
An indecipherable grumble sounded in the dormitory, probably from James, and Harry winced at the resentment in his tone. Remus sighed, defeated.
Deciding that he definitely didn’t want to hear any more of this conversation, he closed his eyes and gave a sleepy mutter, turning over. A hush fell over his four dorm-mates, until Remus said, ‘You can stay up all night talking about this if you want, but my mind is made up. I’m going to bed.’
Harry heard two sighs, and the sound of closing curtains, and then the dormitory was silent.
Next Chapter
Chapter Title: Not-So-Welcome
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: Not mine. Unfortunately.
SHIP(s): None so far.
Chapter Summary: Harry meets Sirius, James and Peter, but will they get along?
Comments: Not really anything to report here that isn't in the summary. Enjoy!
Previous Chapter
Chapter 6: No-So-Welcome
Harry sat alone at the end of the Gryffindor table while Dumbledore made his welcoming speech about Dark Times and the House unity that was unlikely to ever exist in full. The Gryffindor students, both new and returning, ignored him for the most part, either concentrating on the Headmaster’s speech, scrutinising the first-years, or their own grumbling bellies.
When Dumbledore seated himself, there was a loud sigh of relief from where he had spotted Remus sitting with the other Marauders, and looking at them, he saw that it was James who’d made the noise. The first-years looked up and down the table, searching for the food with expressions of confusion that turned to awe as the feast appeared on the golden dishes all the way up the table.
The Hogwarts Sorting Feast of 1977 was every bit as magnificent as any of the ones Harry had attended in his own time period. Hearing a familiar bark of laughter, he looked up and for the briefest second, hazel eyes lifted and connected with his own, frowning at the unfamiliar face, and then flickered back to Sirius, Peter and Remus, joining them in laughter at their own private joke.
Taking a chicken leg from the plate in front of him, and helping himself to roast potatoes, he began to eat slowly, feeling the alternating, confused eyes of the Marauders on him at irregular intervals. He stopped only once before he was finished, to answer a question that one of the new students asked him about how the food appeared, and when he was finished with his dinner, he gave the Headmaster an inquiring glance, and upon receiving a discreet nod in return, he stood and left the Great Hall, heading for the Gryffindor common room.
-------
The password to Gryffindor tower was gubraithian fire, as Professor McGonagall had told him before the students arrived. He gave the password to the Fat Lady when prompted, and then entered the common room, wondering for only a moment at how it would manage not to change at all in the next twenty years.
Wandering up to the dormitory indicated as Seventh Year Boys, he sat down on his new bed - located where Ron’s would be in the future - and took out one of his new course books; the Defence Against the Dark Arts one.
Flipping to the section on advanced shielding charms, he sat engrossed in the text and illustrations until the door opened and the sound of boisterous voices came through it.
‘Hello, Blackmoon,’ his former professor’s younger-self said, a cheerful smile on his face.
Harry looked up and nodded in acknowledgement. ‘Hi, Lupin,’ he answered. ‘Who’re your friends?’
Remus shot him a slightly devilish grin. ‘You’ve not heard of the infamous Marauders?’ he asked. ‘I’d have thought that Professor Fleming would’ve had you running for cover at the sight of us.’ He gestured to the three boys behind him. ‘This is Pete - Peter Pettigrew -, and these two are Sirius T. Black and James M. Potter.’ He then leaned closer and cupped one of his hands at the side of his mouth, as if to hide his lips’ movements, and stage-whispered, ‘Sirius and James are the ones you really need to look out for, especially if you find out that the M and the T stand for Mar-’
James marched up to Harry’s bed with a pillow that he’d grabbed off Sirius’ bed, and whacked Remus in the side with it, effectively silencing him. ‘Silence, knave!’ he cried, ‘Still your treacherous tongue!’
Remus, in retaliation, stole Harry’s pillow and thumped James back, and Sirius joined in not long afterwards. Soon, the three of them lay heaped in a pile of grinning and sniggering bodies, while Harry and Wormtail laughed.
After a moment, James propped himself up, elbowing Sirius in the stomach in the process. ‘Sorry, Pads,’ he said in reply to his best friend’s soft “oof”, and then he looked straight at Harry. ‘So, you know our names - now it’s only fair that you tell us yours.’
Harry’s mouth twisted in a half-smile, holding back laughter at the expression on his future-father’s face. ‘Hello, James Potter,’ he said formally, offering his hand, ‘I am Harry. Harry Blackmoon. Your Professor Fleming’s new charge.’
James leant forward to take the offered hand and shake it, but fell backwards onto Sirius and Remus. Trying again, he sat up properly and grasped onto Harry’s hand, causing a slight thrill to run through the younger boy’s body.
‘Where’d you come from, anyway?’ he asked, not letting go.
Harry grimaced and shrugged, wishing that Eir had been prepared to go over a cover story for him. ‘Can we talk about something else?’ he asked in a slightly strangled voice.
James, Sirius and Peter all frowned, and James’s smile became more fixed as he dropped Harry’s hand. ‘If you want,’ he said.
-------
‘I don’t trust him,’ Harry heard James say to Sirius, Remus and Peter later that night, when he was pretending to be asleep.
Sirius grunted in what he could only assume was agreement, and then he heard a quiet squeak of protest. ‘I think he’s okay, Prongs,’ Wormtail said, Harry’s eyebrows shot up, and he was suddenly glad that he had his back to them. He certainly hadn’t expected Wormtail’s approval, especially when James and Sirius seemed to be so determinedly against him.
‘Pete’s right, James,’ Remus said solemnly. ‘So he doesn’t want to talk about his home - there could be a thousand reasons for that, without turning him into some sort of twisted villain. Why expect the worst of him when you don’t even know him?’
An indecipherable grumble sounded in the dormitory, probably from James, and Harry winced at the resentment in his tone. Remus sighed, defeated.
Deciding that he definitely didn’t want to hear any more of this conversation, he closed his eyes and gave a sleepy mutter, turning over. A hush fell over his four dorm-mates, until Remus said, ‘You can stay up all night talking about this if you want, but my mind is made up. I’m going to bed.’
Harry heard two sighs, and the sound of closing curtains, and then the dormitory was silent.
Next Chapter