ᴅɪsᴘᴇʟ ᴍʏ ʙᴏʀᴇᴅᴏᴍ | ᴍᴀʀᴀᴅᴇᴜʀs' ᴇʀᴀ

Chapter 30: Shapeshifters

Gryffindor common room, two hours before the full moon

"Prongs," Black strolled before James in his carefully ironed suit. "I think you can do this without me tonight."

"Black, you look like a douchebag. Relax your face," Potter waved him off and leaned back on the couch, getting closer to Lily. The girl was embroidering some intricate pattern on the fabric, which meant that Lily was very, very worried. Embroidery always helped her to come to her senses and think over disturbing things.

"Prongs, I'm serious," Black replied, and his voice sounded suspiciously calm. No mockery, sarcasm and 'aristocratic' jokes.

"What are you up to?"

"Are you my mommy or something?"

James sighed, realizing that he wouldn't achieve anything, and shrugged. This is Black, he'll be fine even in the jaws of hell.

"Remus is locked up in some kind of basement, students are locked in Hogwarts on the occasion of the coming full moon, I'm locked... next to Lily," Potter's tone was extremely pleased on the last sentence. The guy squinted sideways at Evans, but she furiously pulled tangled thread and didn't seem to hear anything at all. "So, Pads, I couldn't care less."

Black nodded, thinking hard about the situation. He was going to drop in the colony of Greyback. If Sprinkles thought that she would get rid of him so easily, then she miscalculated everything.

Padfoot was almost at the exit when he was called by Lily's quiet cracked voice.

"Sirius," she lifted her bloodshot eyes and said quietly, "Good luck."

Black nodded briefly and left.

"James," Lily put the embroidery aside and put her hands on her lap. "We need to look after Emily."

"What?"

"Emily, James. She's muggle-born. Malfoy hates her, Slytherins don't like her."

"Beata will look after her, Evans. Why are you so worried?"

"James!" Lily said sharply and stared at Potter with annoyance. "Beata won't be at school tonight! If she was, would Black go somewhere in the night? He went away for a reason! And if it concerned anything but a girl, he would've told you what his plan is. But he was silent, which means─"

"Bloody hell," Potter swore, ignoring Lily's displeased sigh. "This idiot, what?"

"Leave it to him," Lily said firmly and placed her hand on top of James's palm. He shuddered and stared at her small hand with sharp pearly nails.

"He's my friend, Lil. I can't leave him on a night like this. It's cowardice."

"It's his own business," Evans said. "His and Beata's. And it's better not to interfere, otherwise there will be more harm than good. We have our own business. I'm absolutely sure that tonight something will happen in school. Malfoy couldn't just disappear. He left to come back. He left so that no one could control him or watch him. I mean, we all are locked up in school, they told us not to leave common rooms. Surely, something is starting next to Hogwarts. And if so, the main defensive forces will be concentrated outside the castle, and if someone wants to attack students, then─"

"Blow from the inside?"

"Sort of," Lily nodded. She didn't remove her hand, occasionally touching James's palm almost weightlessly, causing shivers run all over his body. "And Emily will be under attack. Besides, this is a good chance to track down Malfoy and his company, it's unlikely that he'll act alone. And even if so... doesn't matter."