It All Fell Down | A Marauder's Story

Four

     "Softness is not weakness. It takes courage to stay delicate in a world this cruel." - Beau Taplin

     Sirius Black was awoken by a persistent tapping against his cheek. He swatted at it in his daze of half-asleep, half-awake. When his brain became less fuzzy, adrenaline shot through his veins, and he lunged for his wand. His bedside table clattered to the ground, awaking the rest of his bunkmates.

     "Woah," a familiar voice said. "Easy there tiger."

     "Marlene, what the hell?" He demanded, rubbing sleep from his eyes.

     She laughed, as she stood before him still in his sweater from the previous night. "Did I startle you, Black?"

     "What can I say," he said with a bitter smile as he sat up. "Old habits die hard."

     Marlene's stomach lurched. "Sorry," she casted her eyes downward.

      "All good, Marls."

     Lily stepped forward with a roll of her eyes. Marlene seemed to have forgotten the reason they had up come here as soon as she saw a shirtless Sirius. "Have any of you seen, Charlie?"

     "I'm still trying to sleep," Peter stated from his bed. "So, the only thing I see is the inside of my eyelids."

      Sirius threw a pillow at his face. "Hey!" Peter protested.

     "If I'm up," Sirius said pulling on a shirt. "Everybody's up."

     "Is she in the common room?" James asked getting to his feet, a guilt ridden twist eating away at his insides. That may also be the hangover, James reminded himself as his head pounded at a steady rhythm.

     Lily shook her head feeling equally as guilty. "She wasn't in our room when we went to bed last night, and she wasn't there when we woke up."

     "Where could she have gone?" Remus chimed in. "It's not like she could have roamed the castle all night."

     "Not everyone is a goody two shoes like you, Moons," Sirius mocked.

      Sirius got a pillow to the face in retaliation. "I meant, there's no way she could do that without getting caught by a teacher."

     "We need to make it up to her," Lily said, her stomach becoming tighter in its guilt, bringing back the memories of herself emptying the contents of her stomach the minute she had arrived to her room last night.

     Marlene snorted. "What do you mean we? James is the one who wanted her to join our friend group. You, Sirius, and Peter are the ones who pestered her about her family. As far as I can tell, Remus and I are completely innocent in this."

     "She doesn't trust people, Marls," James shot back. "And this, if we don't apologize, she will never trust us."

     "Why are you so hell-bent on having her in our little group?"

     "Why are you so against it?"

     Marlene stood a little straighter and raised her chin a little higher. "I'm not."

     "Bullshit," James said with a roll of his eyes. "Ever since that day on the train, you've been nothing but cold to her."

     "I have not," Marlene's cheeks flushed.

     "Yes, you have!" He retorted hotly. "Stop being so stubborn and just admit it!"

     Sirius rubbed his temples, and Remus looked as if he may vomit. "Can we, I don't, maybe, not yell this morning?" Sirius asked, scrunching up his cheeks.