How to be a Pureblood

Chapter 7

The two friends flew through the crisp London air on their way to the Lupin household. Sirius felt Lyra clutching him tightly to ensure she wouldn't fall from the broom. At that moment, Sirius felt at peace, he felt serene. The feeling of the small witch against his back, the warm summer air against his cheeks and the absence of all that could hurt him made him feel blissful.

All of his friends knew that Sirius was not in a good place at home. His parent did not approve of his lifestyle choices and they made sure he knew that. Curses and hexes had engraved themselves into the walls of Grimmauld Place 12 after being constantly exposed to them. Sirius could have left, he should have left, but he swore to protect his younger brother Regulus. He feared that their parents' wrath would shift to the younger Black sibling if he left the house. Being the oldest of the two, Sirius was expected to be the next master of the Black family. He had a heavy load to carry. 

This was one of the many reasons he got along so well with Lyra. Both were heirs of their family, expected to marry another pureblood and continue the bloodline. They shared this burden and it had created a strong bond between them. 

Sirius had often joked with Lyra that they should just marry each other. It would appease both of their families. Lyra always retorted that she couldn't because her parents did not want ugly grand-children. They found comfort in each other.

The duo quickly found themselves above Remus' house. Sirius descended and landed them on the grass. Hidden in the trees surrounding the house, they saw two pairs of eyes glimmering. 

"Prongs, Wormy, we're here!" Sirius shouted as they walked towards the tree-line.

The two boys appeared from behind a tree. James seemed to miss a part of his eyebrow.

"Have you guys been playing Exploding Snap?" Lyra managed to utter in between her laughs.

"Yes, we have," James answered cluelessly. "Why are you laughing?"

"Well, Prongsy, you seem to be missing a part of your left eyebrow." Lyra tried to compose herself.

However, when she saw James' face again, she burst out laughing. Sirius quickly joined in, but Peter seemed too nervous to laugh about James like that.

"You're such Boggarts!" James said while not managing to keep a straight face.

The four of them laughed a while longer but managed to settle down.

"So, what's the plan here?" Lyra questioned James. "Do we just knock on their front door and tell them we're here to shift with Remus? They'll think we're mad!"

"Remus' parents cannot know that we are animagi." Sirius butted in. "They might report us to the Ministry." 

"Fair point Pads." James started pacing.

"Maybe Wormy can sneak in when his parents have gone to bed," Lyra said. " He'll fit through the mail slot in the door."

"Why me?" Peter spoke up. "I don't wanna go alone."

"Suck it up, dude!" James patted the stout boy on the back.

Once inside, Peter would have to shift back and find the door to the basement. They had all been inside before, but it had been quite a while ago. Peter had to open the basement door and lead Remus outside, where the others would be waiting. They did have to hurry because it would not be long until the moon would reach its highest point.

Lyra sneaked up to the window on the front of the house. She looked inside and saw that all the lights were out and that Remus' parents had gone upstairs already. She motioned for the boys to come over.