The Marauders: Year One | #Wattys2016

The Walls Have Ears

The Walls Have Ears

The weather was wet and cold as November passed on and December came. Winds howled out the narrow windows of Gryffindor tower and the house elves were warming the student's beds before it was time to sleep at night, but even with their efforts Remus still shivered half the night, curled in a ball and rubbing his arms, desperately trying to ignite some sort of warmth in his skin. Sirius noticed this one evening and brought his own blanket across the dormitory to put it over Remus and double his covers while he slept. He felt bad for Remus, and worried about how his friend would do in that drafty old shack during the full moon. Sirius spent the night stuffed into James's bed, sharing his blankets, uninvited.

"There's got to be something we can do to make turning to a wolf easier on him," grumbled Sirius one morning, when the sleet and wind had died down a bit. He and James were bundled up and out on the grounds, practicing flying in the cold. James's father had sent him a little gadget that attached to the handle of the broom which kept it from freezing up on him, and James had wanted to test it out. "I feel awful for him, being all alone in that crumby old shack."

"It's not so bad out there," James argued, though he only said it half-heartedly.

"It's rubbish out there," Sirius said, shaking his head.

"Yeah, but, I mean, he's a wolf," James said, shrugging, "Wolves don't give a damn what their rooms are like, they're too busy biting up on themselves and all."

Sirius frowned, "All the more reason I wish we could help him out. I don't want him biting himself all over like that anymore. Did you see the marks he got from last month? They're awful. He's going to be polka dotted from teeth bites before long."

James sighed, "I don't like it anymore than you do, mate, but what do you reckon we could do about it?"

"Dunno," Sirius said, frustrated. He let go of his broom to blow hot breath into his fingers. "Blimey, it's cold out here. How's that thing working? I reckon my fingers won't ever bend properly again after being this numb."

James grinned, "It's working swell, actually. I'm rather impressed with it."

"Good. You know it works, now let's go inside before I lose a digit!" Sirius said, and he directed the school broom down to the ground. James beat him down there and had already dismounted before Sirius made it to the ground. He tucked the little gadget into his pocket and shouldered the broom. "You're better at keeping up with moon cycles than I am," James said, "When's the next one?"

"The night before we leave for holiday," Sirius replied, frowning. "We won't even get to wish him Happy Christmas unless it's before he leaves for the shack."

James frowned, too, and followed Sirius into the equipment shed and watched as he hung up the broom and the borrowed gloves where he'd gotten them from. Madam Hooch watched with a beady eye from the desk where she sat, pouring over some paperwork, making sure he put things back where they belonged.

They were walking up to the castle across the grounds, their feet crunching through the snow. "Maybe we could go down to the laundry and knick some extra blankets for him to bring along?" James suggested, "We could use that chute in the trophy room tunnel."

Sirius nodded, "Yeah. Do you reckon a werewolf would use some blankets?"

"Dunno," James replied.

That night, well after midnight, Sirius awoke to the sound of Remus's teeth chattering across the room again. Sirius got up and dragged his quilt over again, tossing it on over Remus's bedding and tucking it 'round him, careful not to wake him up. He stared at Remus for a long moment, and noticed for the first time that there was a scar on his temple and he remembered the night that Remus had finally come clean with them all about his condition, once and for all, and how sad he'd looked when Peter had called him a class XXXXX magical beast.