metanoia

Chapter Seventy-six

"That exam was bloody brutal," Peter groaned, loosening his tie as the Marauders trudged from the Herbology Greenhouse towards their final N.E.W.T exam: Potions.

Remus nodded sheepishly, tying his charcoal grey jumper around his waist, "Well at least we're not Dorcas, who can't keep a plant alive to save her life. And look at it this way: six down, one to go. Unfortunately for those of us who aren't related to the famous potioneer Fleamont Potter, it's Potions."

"Ughhhh, I bloody hate Potions. Why does it have to be Potions? And why does having seven classes automatically mean we have to take seven classes worth of exams? I feel like that's child abuse," Sirius whines, following the other Marauder's through the Great Hall toward their final exam.

Alex looks over her shoulder at the boy she considered her best friend, the one that made her wrestle with her feelings until they figured them out, and couldn't help but smile at his complaints of adolescence. Rolling her eyes at his seventh complaint regarding them having seven exams as she twisted her hair into a knot that she held together with her wand, "For one: not child abuse. And secondly, for the seventh time, Pads, this is school we're talking about. Of course there's exams. Asking why we have exams would be like me asking how long it's going to take before Jamie asks for Evans' hand in marriage."

James stopped dead in his tracks which made Sirius, who wasn't paying attention as he walked behind him, to crash into his back, eyes wide and reaching his hand to his left hand pocket. Remus sees James reaching for his pocket at the same time as Alex did and together they realized what their best friend had planned. Alex quickly grabbed James by the ear, Sirius by his wrist and motioned for the other two to follow her as she dragged them away from anyone who was close enough to hear their conversation.

"And why wasn't I informed?!" Alex and Remus demand together, shocking the other three of the Marauder's with their synchronicity. Both Sirius and Peter's eyes grow wider than saucers, both avoiding their friends' angry eyes.

Alex gasped, hurt at the realization that Peter Pettigrew, the soon to be traitor, knew that her cousin had a plan in motion to propose to his girlfriend before she did. She glowered at James, crossing her arms firmly over her chest, "You told them before you told me? Sirius I get, but Peter? I'm your cousin."

"I'm sorry. It- it kinda just happened."

Alex stared at James, baffled that he thought that explanation was sufficient enough for her regarding the situation. Now nervous James heard his heart pounding in his ears, struggling to tell his cousin the story of how Sirius accidentally opened his mail from his mother which contained the engagement ring that has been passed down through his family since Linfred of Stinchcombe. And how Peter accidentally walked into their dormitory and heard their conversation about said ring.

After James managed to tell the entire story to satisfy his friend's curiosity, with the occasional interjection from Sirius for supplementary details, Alex and Remus were left speechless. The bespectacled Head Boy cleared his throat, breaking the awkward silence that hung between the five of them after he finished recounting the story, "Say something. Please, say something. I know you two must have something to say about this."

Remus stammered, words failing him. Alex blinked comically as she herself struggled to regain her own ability to speak, however her eyes caught a glimpse of the clock and she started sprinting down the corridor, "Oh shit, let's go. We're going to be late. We can talk about this later."

The five Gryffindors burst into the cold Potions classroom, barely making it on time for their exam, and cued everyone who was already in the damp room to turn their attention from the ingredients in front of them for the final exam towards the back of the room where they stood. Professor Slughorn looked up from his own cauldron that was emitting a faint blue smoke, his smile broadened when he saw the quintet breathlessly stumble to their empty seats, "Oh, Miss Worth, Misters Potter, Lupin, Black, Pettigrew, I'm so glad you guys could finally join us. I was beginning to wonder if we'd see you at all this afternoon."