The Marauders Year Five Part 2 #Wattys2017

Dumbledore Confetti

Dumbledore Confetti

James and Sirius were quite winded by the time they reached the stone gargoyles on the fifth floor. Sirius doubled over, clutching his knees, laughing uproariously as James wheezed, sliding down the wall to the carpet, tears in his eyes as he clutched his stomach. "Bloody hell, bloody hell," he laughed, "Oh Sirius, I swear to Merlin, you get us in more blasted trouble --"

Sirius grinned at the floor, literally dizzy from the romp across the school grounds. He'd never felt so alive - aside from perhaps that time two summers before when he'd jumped from the train tracks and scared the bejeezus out of Remus and Peter. Sirius let out a low whoop of excitement and stood upright quickly, tossing his shaggy hair as he did and running a hand over his forehead, clutching the camera to his chest. He chuckled as he gained his breath back and looked over at poor James, who was flopping sideways on the carpet, still laughing, his glasses off and on the carpet beside him, rubbing his eyes with mirth.

"You - you want the honors or - or shall I?" he asked, holding up the camera.

"Like I know how to work that ruddy thing," James wheezed.

"Alright, I'll do it then. Wish me luck." He winked and looked to the gargoyles.

"Luck," James choked the word out as he wiped his glasses on his sweater-vest.

Sirius cleared his throat and said to the gargoyles, "Cockroach Clusters, though I dunno why anybody would want'em!" Remus, who'd known the password from visiting the headmaster just the other day, had given him the password and Sirius grinned as the gargoyles jumped aside and Sirius waved his hands at them as he walked by and dashed up the stone stairway beyond. He clutched the camera in his hands, his feet echoing off the stone walls as he made his way up - up - up to the headmaster's office door and he smirked to himself, imagining the chaos that they were about to cause.

He crept up to the door of the office and tucked the camera behind his back. He took a deep breath, composing himself, preparing his fingers on the button of the Polaroid machine, and raised his hand to knock, rapping his knuckles against the wood.

It took a moment - longer than it normally did - and Sirius started to think perhaps Dumbledore wasn't even in the office - but finally the wood door swung open and Albus Dumbledore stood in a narrow space he made in the doorway, his eyes flickering over Sirius standing there. "Mr. Black," he said calmly, "However can I assist you?"

Sirius said smoothly, "Sir... I had a question."

"Yes?"

"Well, sir, could you tell me, what sort of food is a cheddar?"

"What?" Dumbledore looked baffled for a moment, "You mean the cheese?"

And the moment that Dumbledore's mouth formed the word cheese, Sirius lifted up the camera, aimed as best he could without really knowing how, and clicked the button. The flash went off, and the headmaster let out a yelp of surprise and the camera whirred and clicked and Sirius clicked the button again, just for good measure and turned, hightailing it down the stairwell, catching the photos as they came out of the slot at the front, laughing and shouting, "I GOT IT JAMES, I GOT IT!" as he went.

Dumbledore blinked, rubbing his eyes behind his glasses and leaned to look over the rail at the shadow of Sirius Black disappearing down the stone steps, holding aloft the two photos. He shook his head, "But of course Mr. Potter is waiting for him," Dumbledore murmured, "Probably flying a getaway broom, knowing the pair of them!"