Up To No Good

Chapter Eighteen

Sirius swore as he flicked a lever. James could only assume that was what made the bike invisible, but he and James could still see it.

"Almost forgot," he muttered. "Last thing I want is my face all over the Prophet..." 

Riding a flying motorbike felt a bit like a broomstick, but not only was the seat shaped much different, but the bike had an engine that rumbled with life like a growling animal. James was no stranger to heights, but he felt he had to hold onto Sirius's shoulders now and then. He didn't know how far his house was from Sirius to begin with. Either way, the flight was exhilarating, in a different way than Quidditch was. He found himself glancing at the ground far below a lot of the time, while Sirius kept his eyes trained ahead of them.

"Are you sure they can't see us?"

"Nope. I enchanted it," Sirius explained. "The Muggles haven't a clue. I found some of my parents' old schoolbooks and found a Disillusionment Charm, remember?"

James gaped, still feeling vaguely unsettled.

They tore through the sky for maybe twenty minutes until Sirius started gazing downward, searching for James's neighborhood. When he was satisfied he'd found it, he gripped the handlebars.

"Hold on, we're going to head down now," he told him.

James only grinned, excited. He felt the rush of adrenaline as he held on, still rather awkwardly; once they were making a steady decline, it felt more like a broomstick once more.

The Potters' house began to look less like a tiny model and more like the place he knew up close.

Though he doubted he would ever admit it to him personally, James felt guilty for Sirius's brother, Regulus. Not only did he have to stay with his parents, but now Sirius was gone for good. It made him feel a bit better to know that at least they were kinder to him.

They touched down in the Potters' backyard, and not in the most graceful way, either: the front wheel left a muddy trail behind it, where Sirius winced.

When James dismounted the bike, he felt rather dizzy and disoriented. Sirius only chuckled as he began to unload his trunk from the sidecar.

"Don't worry, you'll be fine," Sirius insisted. "I don't suppose your parents will mind?"

James glanced at the mud-trail, laughing in response. "No, they like you too much. They'll just fix it with magic."

"Even with the Muggles around?"

"They don't notice anything. You'd be surprised what kind of excuses they'll make up for magic. It's always a trick of the mind, or a coincidence, or something else." He was mildly amused, considering Sirius never really encountered Muggles. Though his house was quite near to them, his house was only visible to wizards. That and the fact that his parents, mainly his mother, considered Muggles to be dirty half-breeds.

Sirius left the bike invisible and they headed into the door. Fleamont and Euphemia looked shocked as they entered, clothes dirty and hair windswept (in James's case, more than usual). Sirius looked sheepish, as if he still believed that they would be angry with him.

"We took his bike back here," James explained as they headed to the stairs.

"A bike? Like Muggles?" Mr. Potter raised an eyebrow. He only turned to his wife, who looked just as confused.

The best part about Sirius moving in was designing his part of James's room. They had an older mattress from before James had gotten a new one, and they dressed it with new sheets and pillows before Sirius unpacked all his things. He could hardly believe it, and it was easy to tell with the mood he was in. James rarely saw him so pleased.