Prongs {Book One}

Chapter Twenty-Eight - Forgiveness

JAMES.

White was swimming before my eyes. It was blinding and painful. I blinked a few times, and the hospital wing swam into view. I vaguely registered that there were bandages constricting my torso, before remembering what had happened.

I sat up quickly, and yelled out as sharp pain blossomed from my back. My head swam.

Madame Pomfrey rushed into the room. "Lie down, lie down! You're not ready to- Potter, get back into bed this instant!"

"Where's Sirius? I need to punch him." I winced, trying to get out of bed, but Madame Pomfrey pushed me back down.

"You can do whatever you like to Mr Black after you've rested. You're staying here tonight whether you like it or not."

"But-"

"No buts."

I scowled and put my head back on the pillow just as Sirius walked in.

"Come here so I can punch you," I muttered to him, then added, "actually, just get me my wand."

"Mate, listen, I..." Sirius took a deep breath and looked at me. "I wasn't thinking. It was really stupid. McGonnogal says that my rule breaking got cancelled out by your heroism, so we didn't lose any points, but we've all got detention for being out of bed."

"You're a dumbass," I muttered, "next time I'll make sure it's you who gets the slashes across their back." Sirius gave a nervous laugh. "Speaking of which, where's Moony?"

Sirius shrugged awkwardly. "He's, uh, in McGonnogal's office. He de-wolfed about an hour ago."

"He's going to kill you," I said nonchalantly, scratching the back of my head.

"Do you think he'll forgive me?" Sirius said, and he avoided my eyes, looking down at the floor.

"'Course," I said confidently, "it'll take him a while, but he will."

"Yeah," he mumbled.

"Hey, mate. I don't blame you. Snape's an asshole - if it weren't for Lily, I probably would have done that ages ago."

Sirius nodded stiffly, and I knew he was close to breaking point.

The hospital wing door flew open, and Remus stormed in, followed closely by Peter, who looked shaken.

Remus ran straight up to Sirius and punched him straight on the nose. Sirius yelled out in pain and clutched his nose, but didn't say anything else. He looked guilty.

"Mister Lupin!" Madame Pomfrey exclaimed, rushing over. Remus ignored her.

"I could have killed him," he said in a voice that made even Madame Pomfrey stop. It was quiet, but furious. The blood on his knuckles from punching Sirius dripped to the floor, "I would have been a murderer. And what you have gotten out of it? A good laugh? Revenge?"

Sirius didn't reply. He seemed to be having trouble looking at Remus straight in the eyes.
Suddenly, Remus's voice was loud and harsh. "I TRUSTED YOU!" He yelled, and it resounded around the silent hospital wing. Furious tears formed in his eyes. "I trusted you with everything. All of it. My secret. My life. I thought you were my best friend."

"I thought I was too," Sirius said very quietly, and I saw that he was also crying, tears mingling with his blood.

"Severus Snape now knows my darkest secret." Remus gave a hollow, empty laugh. "By tomorrow, the whole school will know."

"Dumbledore forbade him to tell anyone," Peter added.

"Like that'll make a difference..." he seemed to be absorbed in thought for a second, and then said, "I'm leaving. Before someone else gets the same idea as you."

Before we'd even registered what had happened, Remus was out of the hospital wing door.
After a second of silence, I jumped out of bed and, ignoring the pain in my back, sprinted after him, Peter and Sirius behind me, ignoring Madame Pomfrey's protests.

We banged open the door to the dormitory, where Remus had his wand out, all his possessions flying into his trunk. For the second time since I'd known him, he was trying to leave for the safety of everyone else. 

"Remus, stop-"

He spun around. "Expelliarmus!" The spell was so powerful that the flash of red light made Peter, Sirius and my wands all fly into the air. He caught them deftly. "If you try to stop me, I'll hex you."

"Go ahead," I said, taking a step forwards. Red light suddenly flashed before my eyes, and I felt myself fall backwards onto the floor. The slashes on my back blossomed with new pain, but I couldn't move, and I knew that Remus had used stupefy on me.

"James!" Sirius's voice sounded faint, distant. 

"I'm sorry- I- I don't want to hurt any of you-"

"You idiot! Do you think we'd still hang around you if we cared about getting hurt? We're your best friends, or at least I thought we were - we're supposed to get hurt trying to help you. It's what we're here for. We don't care about it as long as we can make your life bet-"

I heard the creak of the dormitory dorm open. My vision was blurry and my ears ringing, but I heard Peter say, "Pr-Professor Dumbledore," and Dumbledore's warm, calm voice.

"Now, Mister Lupin, the holidays aren't for another two weeks - this seems a bit over enthusiastic, wouldn't you agree?"

"I-I'm leaving school," Remus said.

"Whatever for? I can assure you that Mister Snape is fully aware that he will be expelled if he tells a single soul about what he saw the previous night, and I am certain that Mister Black will not be doing anything close to the, er, prank he pulled. I'm sure the punishment of suspension until the holidays and detention for all of next term will quell his burning desire to injure Severus Snape."

"I..." Remus trailed off. I felt my vision slowly coming back into focus. He was holding his wand loosely at his side, the other three he had taken from us stuffed carelessly in his pocket. 

I tried to speak, but the words came out of my mouth as a groan.

"Ah, Potter. I assume that you were so tired and exhausted by your injuries that you decided to take a nap? It's safe to say that it has nothing to do with the wands Mister Lupin has?"

I mumbled indistinctly again.

"Indeed. So, Mister Lupin, if you could unpack your belongings, I will need some assistance getting the incapacitated Mister Potter back to the hospital wing. Mister Black, if you could retrieve your wand, there is a useful charm which conjures a stretcher..."

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hahaha pls don't kill me.