The Wolf and the Raven

Ch 20 - Games

Despite the fact that she had achieved her lifelong goal, Branwen was inconsolable over her loss of the Mandrake leaf.

"No one expected you to get it on the first try," Remus smiled at her, but the frown he received told him that she had expected exactly that.

"The funny part is," Sirius was checking himself for pimples in a mirror, "I would have bet about a hundred galleons Peter would've been the first to lose it."

"Hey!" Peter exclaimed, then sighed. "No, you're right. I thought it would be me too."

"Well, it isn't the end of the world," James patted Peter on the back. "We'll just start again next month."

Branwen brightened a bit. "That's true. And if we're able to finish it this time, we'll be done before the first Quidditch match!"

"But not before the first Hogsmeade weekend," Sirius groaned, turning back to his friends.

"Do I still get to come with you if I stay under the cloak?"

James rolled his eyes. "Fine. Like you said, though, it won't be much fun if you can't talk or be seen or heard."

Branwen deflated a bit at this.

"Don't worry. I'll be sure to slip you something from Honeydukes," Remus laid a hand her shoulder.

"The real question," James began pacing, "is how to get the leaf to really stick this time."

"Well, we used a regular sticking charm last time," Peter said. "What about a permanent one?"

"And walk around with a leaf in your mouth for the rest of your life?" Sirius smacked him upside the head.

"Just a thought," he mumbled.

"I think we just need to try that charm again," Branwen said. "I'll try really hard to keep it in this time. Maybe....maybe we should reapply the charm everyday. Maybe it just wore off!"

"It's worth a shot. Good thinking, Bon-Bon."

"Where are we on the moths?" she asked.

Remus spoke up. "Kettleburn says he doesn't have any. Says they're too tame. We might have to catch them ourselves."

"Where can we find them?"

"Probably the Forbidden Forest."

"Of course," Peter groaned.

The night of the full moon followed the procedure of the previous. When Remus woke up the morning after, his friends grunted a short "G'morning," but were otherwise silent. Since it was still the early hours of the morning, the boys decided to drift back to their dorm in hopes of a nap before breakfast. Only Branwen remained. She had taken to sitting on the floor beside his bed, her head resting on the mattress. She was asleep with her mouth slightly open (the mandrake leaf just visible on her palate) and the autumn sun shone on her with a reflective light.

Remus lifted a trembling hand. Branwen's hair was like her brother's only in colour; while James' looked constantly windblown, she never had a single strand out of place. Remus wondered what it would be like to run his fingers through it. It had a shine like the coat of a sleek black mare. He smiled when his hand came to rest on her head and it was exactly as he had imagined. Soft and silky to the touch.

When she stirred, first sighing then smiling, he withdrew his hand. When he touched her again, it was to give her a soft poke in the shoulder. "Wake up, sleepyhead."

She yawned, her mouth opening wide before she snapped it shut. Sitting up, she groped for her slate and tapped it with her wand. "Good morning. Feel okay?"

He shrugged and tried to hold back a wince. "I'm all right. But you need to go get something to eat. Don't you have Quidditch practise tonight?"

She nodded, wide awake now.

"Shall I come watch?"

She shook her head vigorously. "You. Need. Rest."

He rolled his eyes, but didn't argue. His leg had only just finished repairing itself from a break in the femur. Despite his offer, he knew he wouldn't be moving from his bed for a few days. Branwen squeezed his hand, pressing a piece of chocolate into it, then scurried from the room.

Branwen's first official practise went much better than her try-out, so far as not swallowing the leaf again. Bailey Fairchild was in her final year, and she was determined to shape her team into a winning force. She had spent the summer holiday studying Quidditch techniques from past winning teams and devising her own unique set of exercises.

She charmed a series of Quaffles to shoot themselves randomly at Keeper Alex Jordan. Bailey, James, and fellow Chaser Edgar Bones were to throw another set of Quaffles at each other from nearly every position possible on a broom. For a twist, she released nearly a dozen Snitches onto the pitch. The first six were numbered and Branwen was tasked with catching and releasing them in order. The final six, painted red, were for Beaters Sirius and Kingsley Shacklebolt to hit at, the idea being that if they could hit something that small, they would have no problem with a Bludger.

Branwen went straight from practise back to the hospital wing, sweaty and smiling. Remus set his book down and grinned when he saw her. Her slate was around her neck again and her face was pink and chapped from the autumn winds. "How was practise?" he asked.

She tapped the slate. "Amazing! Bailey's such a great captain. I feel like I could win a game right now."

He chuckled and she took a seat beside his bed. She spent most of the weekend with him, doing homework and playing games. He taught her the Muggle game of "Hangman" and they played on her slate, coming up with increasingly bizarre words for the other to crack. Branwen eventually had to institute a "no-Welsh" rule after Remus kept trying to play words like "cwtch" and "cigfran."

A few weeks later, the boys were preparing for their first Hogsmeade trip. The Mandrakes, so far, hadn't budged, so it was a silent sort of excitement that filled the air of their dorm. Sirius kept pulling out dozens of his shirts and ties, trying on one and then another in front of the mirror on his wardrobe. Peter frowned at his own plain t-shirts and sweaters, while Remus read "Sites of Historical Sorcery", which featured notes on the village. Only James looked dejected as he laid on his back, his head hanging from his bed.

"What's wrong with him?" Branwen strolled in and tapped her slate, nodding toward her brother.

Remus looked up and chuckled. "He asked Lily to go to Hogsmeade with him tomorrow and she turned him down."

Branwen's slate said, "Poor baby," but her eyes were smiling.

Then she used her wand to tap James' bedpost, calling the boys' attention to her. James didn't move, only rolled his eyes in her direction. Sirius turned around, dressed only his silk boxers and a glaring houndstooth tie.

Branwen stood on a chair with her slate held up. "We're doing great with our leaves. But where are we on the moths?"

They all shrugged. "That's what I thought. We need to make it a priority!"

"Fine," James hauled himself upright. "We'll start on Monday."

Branwen nodded, then hopped down.