good things fall apart • sirius black

Stormy weather

When the full moon rolled around, everything was prepared for the four Marauders to complete phase two, and James had tiny glass phials ready for all of them. No one knew where the messy haired boy seemed to be acquiring things from, but it didn't seem the right time to question it as they stood in a circle right on the edge of the Forbidden Forest. They need to be within the moon's rays, but also out of sight as to not get caught, and getting outside had proved a difficult feat.

However now, they all stood there waiting for James to go first, after he'd un-charmed the mandrake leaves from the insides of their cheeks.

As to show them what needed to be done, tugging out a strand of his hair painfully, James crouched on the floor where the box of ingredients they'd brought out lay. Spitting the leaf out of his mouth and into the bottle, he quickly followed it with his hair, dew, and the chrysalis of a Death's-head Hawk Moth. It was rather odd and none of the group liked the look of it, yet James put a stopper on the top of his bottle and placed it gently into the box. The other's followed suit, Sirius having reservations about pulling out his hair, but apart from that it was relatively simple. Peter had nearly missed his bottle when spitting out his leaf but managed to save it, and they all sighed in relief as he did so.

It would be a long process if one of them had to spend another month with a mandrake leaf in their mouth again.

"Right, now that's done..." James collected their bottles back together, placing them gently in the box they were to remain in until the next electrical storm. The potions had to remain undisturbed, and the messy haired boy had made space for the box safely under his bed, "What's next is the most important thing. Without fail we'll have to chant the incantation every sunrise and sundown."

"That means we've got to get up super early." Sirius whined, jutting out his bottom lip, and Ellie just flicked him on the forehead. As dramatic as ever.

"Yes Padfoot, and I'll remind you we're doing this for our friend, who is currently probably clawing himself to near death right now." Going mother hen, James snapped, but Sirius understood that maybe he'd been a little selfish for a moment. What they already ready had endured and what was to come, was nothing compared to what Remus had to go through every month, and their sacrifice of a little less sleep, wouldn't cause them any long lasting harm, "We all know the incantation, yes?"

Everyone nodded, and the messy haired boy smiled.

As instigator of the whole operation, James was the only one trusted to carry the box of bottles back up the castle, all of which were labelled so none of them ended up with the wrong one. Surprisingly the messy haired boy was also the only sensible choice in this scenario though. Sirius and Ellie were chasing each other around the grounds in the dark like lunatics, no regard for the fact they could be caught any second, both of them having a newfound liberation from finally being able to get the mandrake leaves out of their mouths. Peter was far too clumsy to be trusted with the box, so that left James by default.

He was more than happy to take on the duty however, him and the smallest Marauder cramped under the Invisibility Cloak, whilst Sirius and Ellie risked running into Prefects on night patrol. They were truly two of a kind.

No one had any way of knowing when the next electrical storm would be, and so, the next stage was a matter of patience. Something none of the group were really any good at, expect Remus, but he wasn't someone that needed the storm.

Instead, they all continued how they had done for the last month, revising for their O.W.Ls and completing homework. James kept a close eye on the weather forecasts, and whenever there was rain due, they'd all sit staring out the windows eagerly for any sign of lighting. The messy haired boy had taken up reading Remus' Daily Prophet once he was finished with it at breakfast, to monitor any distinct changes in the weather forecasts, and the newspaper often got passed on to Ellie after that too.