Never Cursed

𝔏𝔢𝔤𝔞𝔠𝔶

James Potter

Nevermore, June 16th, 1977

Pete, are you coming or what?" James asked before putting on his sneakers and grabbing his denim jacket.

"What?" Peter grumbled, still half-asleep, rubbing his eyes heavy with exhaustion. Sirius turned on the lamp on his bedside table. "Oi, don't! What time is it?"

"3:30am," Remus answered, crouched on the floor rummaging through a pile of papers. "Here it is."

"We're waiting for you," James repeated, now fully dressed, pulling away Peter's blanket.

Once they were all lining up behind Remus, tiptoeing in the dark corridor of the dormitories, Peter dared to ask, "Where are we even going?"

"To the Nightshades," Sirius whispered. "Remus wants to leave the Never Map there for someone to find."

"What!" Pete muffle-shouted with wide eyes. "Why?"

James shushed them, "Guys, we're not supposed to be wandering at night." Their eerie shadows danced against the castle's walls, elongating and contorting with each step. The new moon's faint light filtered in through the large windows, casting a soft glow that illuminated their path without needing the silver light of a Lumos from their wands.

"As if it was the first time we're doing this," Sirius mumbled under his breath. "Anyway, I had the same reaction as you, Pete. I still can't understand why Remus wants to leave the map behind. Ugh, Moony, I don't see why we're leaving our map behind," he repeated, turning to Remus, while they accelerated their steps.

"We're not leaving it behind, Sirius, we're leaving it for someone else to find with the great help of destiny."

"Bullshit!"

"I agree with the boys here, Remus," James interjected in a low voice. "I mean, we could keep it as a souvenir."

"Voilà!" Sirius agreed. "That's a great idea."

"Yes, but—" Peter murmured, keeping close to the walls' shadows. "We're leaving a legacy behind by leaving it here."

"That's what I said," Remus replied as they approached Edgar Allan Poe's statue, hiding the entrance of the Nightshades.

The boys stopped and waited for Remus. "Are we really doing this?" Sirius asked again, visibly upset.

"Yes, we are."

"Guys," Peter broke off, "I've never been to the Nightshades." The three boys turned to him.

"What?" asked James, surprised. "Not even at the beginning of the school year?"

"No."

"Well," Remus said apologetically, "we should have brought you sooner. Sorry mate. You'll see, it's beautiful. Don't touch anything of value and be careful on the stairs; they're quite tricky." Remus snapped twice, and the grand statue moved.

§

"Okay, so where are we hiding it?" James asked once they were inside, while Sirius traced his fingers over the shelves.

"Someone needs to take care of the dust," he declared, whipping his hands in the air.

"Well, that gives you something to do tomorrow morning," Remus retorted. The heavy smell of dusty books was overpowering.

"Very funny, Moony."

A loud bang resonated in the room, and crystal pieces bounced back against the tiles.