The Bonds of Spirit are stronger than the Bonds of Blood

Chapter Twenty One

For months the Marauders used every free evening they had to map out all of Hogwarts. Despite their many days of work, they only managed to map out a tenth of the grounds and the ground floor of the castle. Hogwarts was incredibly large, especially when one wished to map out the entirety of both the castle and the grounds. It didn't help that James and Sirius kept getting detentions, which cut into their planning and mapping time. Then exams drew closer, and the quartet had to study, which cut even further into their time. It was clear this map would take quite a while to finish. Calling their plans to a pause, they agreed to continue on the first day of term next year. For now, they decided it would be best to focus on their studies before taking on exams in a few days. This year had flown by incredibly quickly. Sirius reflected on all that had happened as he sat, bored, in History of Magic class. The year started out like the two before, with Sirius gladly boarding the train and escaping his family. Then he and Lily ended up meeting properly, even exchanging their stories. He certainly hadn't expected her to talk to him, let alone tell him her story! And now he thought of her like a sister. Then he found out that one of his best friends was a werewolf! Looking back, he wondered how he could have possibly missed the signs. The monthly vanishing, the way he would triple check the phases of the moon while working on Astronomy homework, how skittish he was, especially when the full moon drew closer. It seems so obvious in hindsight, but even then Remus was surprisingly skilled at hiding the truth. There were really only a few hints, which seem blatantly obvious once you know the secret, but until that point they were rather undiscerning. It was difficult to imagine how Remus could've spent two years hiding such a great secret, suffering in silence, for fear of being rejected by those he cared for most. But Sirius, James, and Peter had managed to master animagus training, taking on an animagus form that proved useful when dealing with an agitated werewolf. And now they had a plan to create the greatest map ever imagined! This was going to take forever. The mapping alone was going to take at least the next year, and then they had to figure out how to enchant it for security. This year really began their pattern of delving into magic far beyond their years. Human Transfiguration was so difficult they were not supposed to even hear about it until NEWT year! And then there were the ideas they had for the map. The spell Remus cast on it was rather advanced, and a variant of advanced magic making it even more difficult, but the other spells they would need were bound to be excessively difficult! Sirius shook himself from his thoughts as the students around him began to pack up and leave the classroom. Now was the time to prepare for the year's exams, not to dwell on the events of the past.

Lily was buried in a pile of parchment and text books as she reviewed everything she had learned over the year. The end of term exams were always the worst. She always did well on them, but she hated all the prep work that had to go into them. She had to go back and review until she could cast every spell and answer every question in her sleep! Alice and Lydia were complaining as they tried to study. "There is just too much to be memorized! I feel like my brain is going to explode!" Lydia shouted, collapsing face first into her History of Magic notes. Alice laughed lightly and said "Oh Lydia, don't be so dramatic! It's not like you have to battle to earn any grade. All you have to do is memorize a few more facts than you had to for the last exams!" "If I have to memorize one more useless date I swear to Merlin I am going to go insane!" Lydia mumbled from the depths of her notes. Lily laughed at the banter between her two best friends and said "How about we make up some flash cards? We could turn this study session into a game! It'll at least make the information stick better, without making anyone insane!" She added a light teasing wink towards Lydia while Alice laughed. Pulling the pair over towards the couch in front of the fireplace, Lily pulled out some parchment, ink, and quills. Splitting the supplies into three equal piles, she said "Alright, here's what we'll do. I'll write down all the important dates and other information for History of Magic, Charms, and Potions. Lydia, you take Transfiguration, Defence Against the Dark Arts, and Astronomy. Alice, you take Herbology, Care of Magical Creatures, and Ancient Runes. Write down one fact per slip of parchment. Once we're done we can start quizzing each other. To make things interesting, winner gets treated to whatever they want from any shop in Hogsmeade during the first Hogsmeade weekend next year." Lydia and Alice's eyes sparkled at the mention of the challenge. "You're on!" They shouted in unison as the trio swiftly got to work on creating the flash cards. As they worked, Lily caught sight of Sirius out of the corner of her eye. For once he and James were actively studying with Peter and Remus. They usually left studying for the last minute, but this time they were beginning their study sessions much earlier. Sure exams were just around the corner, but usually the disruptive pair didn't start actively studying until the night before. At least, that was how it always seemed. Despite the lack of what most would consider proper studying, both Sirius and James ended the year with a mix of O's and E's. This never ceased to amaze Lily. Though, now that she had gotten to know Sirius properly, she understood there was a lot more to him than people gave him credit for. She started to think of him fondly, like one would a brother. She was still worried for him, and whatever secret he held so closely, but she knew there was nothing she could do. She had promised him she wouldn't press him for information, and she always kept her word. He seemed to be involved in something dangerous, but as long as he was willing to tell her the truth when he was ready, then she wouldn't interfere. She shared a smile with him when they caught each other's eyes, before returning to her flash card making session.

Finally, the day of exams had arrived. Students wandered the halls trying to remember everything they had been taught up until that moment. Some were muttering incantations under their breath, while others constantly reopened text books to double check their answers. A few students were attempting to create cheat sheets that would be hidden anywhere possible while taking exams. One of those students was trying, unsuccessfully, to charm his cheat sheet so that the answers were clear to him but looked like scratch paper for essay portions of any given exam. Sirius shook his head at the foolish students trying to cheat. It was better to earn the grades yourself, rather than be handed them for successfully cheating. Sure he broke rules, often, and loved a good prank, but cheating on exams was where he drew the line. Some rules were made to be broken, and bending the rules could be acceptable, but flat out cheating was completely wrong! Sirius silently lit a small firework and sent it flying towards the students making cheat sheets. The firework went unnoticed until it quickly burst into flame with a sound akin to the crash of a pair of cymbals, igniting the cheat sheets. As the ashes fell to the floor, and the cheating students began to panic, Sirius smirked and continued along the corridor towards his first exam of the day. By the end of the day, all of the students meandered through the corridors towards the Great Hall like the living dead. They shuffled along their way, exhausted, and spoke very briefly. Some students, particularly exhausted after the long day of exams, spoke exclusively in grunts. One student joked that his friend, currently speaking in a series of grunts, was actually practicing speaking Troll. This lightened the mood a bit, as students laughed lightly before turning their attention to food. The next day they would leave Hogwarts for the summer, and most were excited. Sirius returned to his plots to avoid his family this summer. About halfway through the meal, Sirius' owl, a lovely great horned owl, flew in and dropped a letter on his lap. The owl quickly flew down, landing on his shoulder, and nipped Sirius' ear affectionately before flying off to the owlry. The letter was sealed with black wax, bearing the seal of the House of Black. Noticing his irritation, Remus placed a comforting hand on Sirius' shoulder. Peter gave him a look of sympathy while James said "Well, you might as well get it over with. Who knows! It could be good news!" Sirius shook his head, laughing lightly at James' words, before breaking the seal. Unfolding the letter he read the words written in the flowing script out loud. He mocked his mother's high pitched voice as he read. "Sirius, the family is leaving this summer for a grand reunion with our illustrious cousins. It is of upmost important that we do not show any sign of weakness. As such, Regulus will be transported to our location via the floo network. You are not required to join us. Stay with a friend or return to our home alone. Either way you will not be able to embarrass us this summer. Mother." Sirius reread the message, his grin growing with every line. "This is perfect!" He said. "I'll get to stay with you all summer, Prongs!" James grinned and said "Best summer ever! I'll let my folks know!" With that he rushed out of the Great Hall to send off a letter to his parents, to let them know to expect Sirius to join them at the train station the next day. That evening, after packing up their remaining belongings, the Marauders settled down into their beds for the last time that year and slept with sweet dreams of the days to come.