The Marauders: Year Two | #Wattys2016

Just Know It

Just Know It

"You know that feeling when you just sort of know something's about to happen?" Sirius said, "That's how you've got to make yourself feel about the spell. Just know whatever spell you think is going to be cast and then you think it while you're knowing that and the next thing you know..." Sirius waved his wand and sure enough, what was left of the bicorn horn rose up from the counter in the Secret Room and floated about in the air as he guided it along with his wand tip. He looked at James, "It's simple. So simple it's hard, really. Funny how things get that way, isn't it?"

"Yeah, super funny," muttered James.

It had been three days since Sirius and Peter had finally figured out how to cast spells silently and they were getting incredibly good at it - but James had yet to do it even once still and it was frustrating him. Every time Peter had managed to do it grated on his nerves like an insult to his smarts. If Peter could do it, then there was no reason why James couldn't, and yet he was still struggling with it. A struggling and frustrated James made for a cranky James and he'd been snapping left and right at everybody and Sirius had decided the only way to cure the incredibly grumpy attitude was to get him to finally be able to cast the spell. And so he'd dragged James out of bed and up to the Secret Room to practice during the night.

The Draught of Change had turned a brilliant green shade. This, the book said, was the sign that it had passed the stage of being mere Polyjuice Potion and was on it's way to maturing and becoming the Draught. This was an important stage because soon they would be able to split the potion into three separate cauldrons to prepare for the mandrake leaves, which they would need to carry in their mouths for one month before putting it into the potion overnight... and then they would bottle it up and they would be able to become animagi as soon as the conditions were ready to drink the potion.

Sirius stared into the bubbling pot. "We need to knick some mandrake leaves tomorrow in Herbology," he said. James's face was screwed up tight and red from concentration on the feather before him. Sirius laughed. "Mate, I'm telling you, you don't have to work that hard at it. You look as though you're constipated!"

"I feel as though I'm constipated!" James complained, "Magically constipated. It just won't come out!"

Sirius laughed and climbed down from the stool he was kneeling on. "Seriously, though, you're trying too hard. It's never going to happen if you're doing all that. That's what's been messing us up all along. You've got to just know it'll happen and --"

"I know you've said that about a hundred times already," James snapped.

Sirius laughed. "Alright, I'm sorry, okay? I'm just trying to help."

James sighed, "I'm sorry," he said, and he sank down to the floor, lying on the tile. His wand rolled out of his fist and a couple feet away. "I feel like such a failure."

Sirius went over and laid down, too, so that their heads were side-by-side but their bodies were going opposite directions - a yin-yang on the floor of the Secret Room. He turned his head so he was looking over at James. "You aren't a failure."

"I am," James said, voice barely a mumble, his eyes closed. "I'm the worst wizard in all of history."

Sirius rolled his eyes at his friend's dramatic exclamation. "You're right; you're practically a squib! You might as well give up and just go home and become an accountant or something. Clearly you aren't cut out for the wizarding world."

James opened his eyes and looked over at Sirius. Sirius smirked back at him.

"You're not helping," James laughed.