The Marauders: Year Four

Spying Eyes

Spying Eyes

Sirius grabbed hold of the Marauder's Map. "I'm going to go find out who Remus's boyfriend is," he announced, standing at the door, tucking the map into his belt. "Who's coming with me?"

Peter looked up from his bed, "The feast starts in an hour."

"Of course, nothing's going to become Peter Pettigrew and his dinner," said Sirius rudely. He rolled his eyes. "James? Mate?"

James sighed, "There's no boyfriend, Sirius, bloody hell, give it a rest, will you? You're starting to sound like one of the crazy muggle women on the telly programs my mum watches... they call them soap operas, though I don't know why, nobody ever sings on them... and they haven't a thing to do with soap."

Sirius took up his leather jacket, shrugging the shoulders on. "We'll see," he replied, popping the collar up on the jacket. "Go to the feast then, both of you. I'll solve the mystery by myself." He rolled his eyes and took up his wand, tucking it over his ear so that it was held up by the Gryffindor scarf that was tied about his head.

James sighed as Sirius walked out the door, slamming it shut.

Peter looked 'round at James, "What's he on about Remus having a boyfriend?" he looked confused.

James rolled his eyes, "Sirius is being ridiculous. He's been obsessed with this idea that Remus has a boyfriend... I keep trying to tell him he can't have done... but he doesn't listen. You know how he is -- Sirius Black is the most overdramatic idiot I've ever met."

"Where'd he get the idea Rey's got a boyfriend? That's just absurd. He doesn't go anywhere that we don't go --"

"I know," James said, "But Regulus Black told him that he'd seen him going off with another boy and that Remus was snogging with him behind the greenhouses after the quidditch try-outs and --"

Peter's eyes went wide his cheeks went pink. "Oh no."

James's voice was wary, "Peter...?"

"Well, see, Remus and I were at the try outs and watching you lot and I got bored and I whined until he agreed to go back to the castle with me... I bribed him, really, with the promise of fudge bars... and so we came back and on the way, the Slytherins were just coming out of the castle. Remus didn't want to deal with them, so we ducked off the path, we were going to go in the north gate, but they started shouting things to Remus and I and he got really upset, of course. But Regulus Black was among them, and he... he was teasing Remus... calling me his boyfriend." Peter's face was dark red.

James gasped. "IT WAS YOU?"

Peter nodded.

"YOU -- YOU -- are Remus's boyfriend???" James stared at Peter, aghast.

"No, not really, we were trying to go in the gate -- I'm not gay -- I just -- Wait... Where are you going?"

James had leaped off the bed. "To tell Sirius!" he exclaimed, "C'mon! We gotta catch him up before he makes an arse of himself!"

"But the feast --"

James hesitated, already in the doorway, and Sirius's words came to his mind -- "Fuck the feast!" he repeated and he ran out the door.

Peter blinked at the profanity, shocked, and then he realized James had gone and he scrambled to catch up. "WAIT FOR ME, PRONGS! WAIT FOR ME!" and he ran after him, headed for the tunnel beneath the Whomping Willow.

Sirius, however, hadn't gone for the tunnel by the Whomping Willow. Sirius had a different idea entirely. He was on the fifth floor by Gunhilda of Gorsemore, the humpbacked witch. He stared at the Map, aimed rather innocently toward one of the more interesting paintings along the wall so that he could claim he was taking in the art should anybody approach him. He looked the Map over to be sure nobody was coming this way, and when he was satisfied that the closest being on the Map was Peeves the Poltergeist, who was doing something that kept him zooming about in a chaotic fashion in a classroom down the corridor, Sirius turned to the witch and pulled his wand from his ear. "Dissendium," he announced and tapped her hump. Sirius tucked the map back into his belt and pulled himself up, sliding through the hole that had opened up with ease.