tangled hearts

||3|| - The feast

||3|| - The feast

—————————————————————————

After a few hours of doing random stuff to pass the time, I felt the train start to slow down, the familiar hum of the wheels on the tracks fading into silence.

"Finally, that was the longest train ride of my life," Peter groaned, stretching dramatically in his seat as though the hours had taken years off his life.

"It wasn't that bad," Remus said, standing up to grab his bags from the overhead compartment. He moved with a quiet grace, always managing to look like he had his thoughts under control, though the shadows under his eyes suggested otherwise.

Peter huffed and followed Remus's actions, his movements more jerky. "Well, we didn't have Padfoot or Prongs to entertain us this time." He threw a glance at the two sleeping figures sprawled out on the opposite side of the compartment.

I turned, my eyes settling on Sirius and James. James had shifted slightly in his sleep, his head resting on Sirius's shoulder, his dark hair falling across his eyes. Sirius, too, was out cold, his face relaxed in the rare way it only seemed to be when he was unconscious.

I was glad Sirius was getting some peaceful sleep, the nightmares hadn't given him a break in days.

Peter snickered quietly. "Probably wearing each other out. They're like overgrown puppies when they're together."

I smiled at that, shaking my head. They were inseparable, Padfoot and Prongs. Always getting into some kind of trouble or dragging the rest of us along for the ride.

As the train finally slowed to a complete stop, the sudden stillness of the carriage seemed to jar everyone awake. James stirred first, blinking groggily and nudging Sirius with his elbow. "Oi, Pads, wake up. We're here."

Sirius grumbled something unintelligible and buried his face further into James's shoulder. His exhaustion was palpable, even through his usual bravado. James, on the other hand, stretched lazily, not in the least bothered by the fact that his best friend was half-asleep on him.

"Give him a minute," I said with a small laugh, getting up to grab my own bag.

By now, Sirius was slowly waking up, rubbing his eyes and blinking at the compartment like he wasn't quite sure where he was. He sat up, running a hand through his messy hair, and gave a tired smirk. "Guess I missed all the fun, huh?"

"Not much to miss," Peter said, slinging his bag over his shoulder. "Remus was boring as ever."

Remus rolled his eyes. "Thanks, Wormtail. Always appreciated."

We all gathered our things and made our way off the train, the cool air hitting our faces as we make our way to the carriages.

"Home sweet home," James said, stretching his arms above his head, a mischievous grin creeping onto his face as he looked around.

"Speak for yourself," Remus muttered, his gaze scanning the crowd. "I've got to meet with Professor McGonagall as soon as we get back. Something about Prefect duties."

Sirius chuckled, throwing his arm around Remus's shoulders. "You sound thrilled, Moony."

Remus shrugged him off with a smirk. "Not everyone can get away with skiving off responsibilities, Padfoot."

"Don't be jealous," Sirius shot back, grabbing his own bag. His usual energy was returning.

"Right, jealous," Peter added with a snort, already distracted by the food carts in the distance. "Anyone else starving?"