Too Honest ~ James Potter

Chapter 29

*7th Year*

Mariya was surprised by how free she felt once the Marauders knew; she was able to call them by their nicknames without them thinking she didn't get the joke, she could make jokes about Remus's condition and offer really bad puns on their Animagus forms.

Sirius and Mariya were sitting at breakfast one morning when Sirius offered the absolute classic, "Where-wolf?"

Glancing up to see Remus walking into the hall, Mariya joined in, pointing to the unfortunate boy and answering, "There-wolf."

Remus sat down in the seat opposite the two and glared at them whilst they leaned on each other for support, laughing so hard their faces were bright red. A few moments later, James entered the room and looked at the three in confusion.

"Why in the wide world are those two losing it?" He asked, sitting down next to Sirius and poking him in the shoulder.

"Th-th-there-wolf." Sirius spluttered out in-between bouts of laughing. The repetition of the word just sent Mariya and him into a new round of laughter, which they were quickly joined in by James as he realised the joke. Remus sighed at his friends' antics and pulled a piece of toast onto his plate.

"I hate you all." He said sulkily, glaring at them once more.

Mariya recovered from her laughter enough to say, "You love us really, Moony."

James grinned at the boy, "Yeah Remus, don't be a glare-wolf."

This statement threw the three back into hysterics as they collapsed onto each other, tears glistening in their eyes, and Mariya hitting the table. Remus glanced around the hall to see all the other students watching them in confusion as to what could have caused them to be like this, before resting his head in the table in despair; as nice as it was to see the three of them getting along, he dearly wished that their jokes weren't so bad.

Another week passed and Mariya was faced with a dilemma regarding what she was supposed to do over the holidays. Originally, she had planned to go home for the break but her father had sent her a letter only a few days previous, informing her that both her mother and he would be working at the Ministry for a lot of the time and they she might as well stay in school or find someone else to go with. Mariya hadn't added her name to the list of students staying at Hogwarts get, but she wasn't sure why. After all, where else was she supposed to go? She didn't have any friends in Slytherin other than Regulus and she could hardly go home with him, the Marauders almost certainly had plans of their own. The Marauders were also vetoed somewhat because - though they had become closer recently - Mariya didn't feel that they were good enough friends as for her to ask to stay with any one of them bar Remus, who she knew lived in a small house where there would not really be space for an extra person, as generous as he and his parents would be about extending the offer.

In the end, she decided just to put her name down to stay at the castle over the holidays. Having done this, she felt a sense of relief in knowing she had a plan, even if it wasn't the plan she had originally wanted.

Therefore, when the Marauders walked into the Great Hall on the morning of their departure, they were surprised to see Mariya sitting at the Slytherin table by herself wearing what appeared to be her pyjamas. Her long black hair was curling lightly around her ears and her chin was resting on her hand as she picked sleepily at a bowl of cereal. The four boys dropped into the seats around her - ignoring the glares they received from adjourning Slytherins - and filled themselves plates of croissants and pain-au-chocolats, which were offered at the Slytherin table far more often than the Gryffindor one.

"Why aren't you dressed yet, Seratova? You'll never make it to the train on time." James asked, through a mouthful of pastry.

Mariya grimaced at the sight of his half-chewed food before replying, "I don't need to catch the train, Potter. By extension, I don't have to be dressed."

James frowned, "Why wouldn't you catch the train? How else are you meant to get home?"

Sirius snickered, "Sometimes you can be a real idiot, Prongs. She isn't going home, obviously."

"But why not?" James asked, having shouldered Sirius in retaliation for the insult.

"My parents are too busy working, so I'm stuck here." Mariya explained, shrugging in resignation.

"Nonsense." James exclaimed, his voice gaining a new determination, "You can come with me."

Mariya frowned at him, "That isn't really how it works, James. You can't really just ask me on the day the train leaves, what in the wide world would your parents think?"

Sirius snorted with laughter, "Believe me, Seratova, if his parents could adopt all of James's friends, they would do so quite happily. I mean, I showed up at their house one day and have practically been family ever since, they aren't going to worry about having another person around for the holidays. In fact, Euphemia might throw a party in your honour."

James nodded in agreement, "Believe me, she would love to have you, and my dad would be thrilled to have another person to test his hair potions on." At her confused look he added, "He created Sleekeazy's hair potion and is always trying out new combinations on Sirius's hair, he says mine is too short."

"Well..." Mariya started but was quickly cut off as Remus and Sirius grabbed hold of her elbows and began to direct her out of the hall and towards the Slytherin common room.

Sweeping her hair up into a messy bun, Mariya pulled on smart black trousers and a pale blue blouse which somehow made her eyes look even icy than usual. She waved her wand to pack her bags and began to levitate them down the stairs and into the common room. Leaving through the door, she was surprised to see the Marauders still standing there, leaning against the wall as though they weren't outside the room that usually held some of their 'sworn enemies'.

Leaving the castle, the five of them entered a carriage - the Marauders having picked up their own luggage from the Entrance Hall - and began to talk as they drew steadily closer to the train. Once they reached it, they piled into the Marauder's normal compartment and were quickly joined by Jasper, who explained that he had spent the morning with a few Ravenclaws. Surprisingly, Mariya - for almost the first time in her life - did not pull out a book and begin to read, instead leaning back against Remus and swinging her legs over James, who gave her a less than impressed look but didn't bother to complain verbally. After all, he had brought this upon himself by inviting her.

The ride passed in a combination of talking, laughing, and hex casting - most of which was done by Mariya on Sirius and James - all of which contributed to what Mariya could confidently say was the best train journey of her life. She could only hope that the holidays would be as pleasant and that James's parents were as lovely as Sirius had said.