The Wolf and the Raven

Ch 9 - Minus One

They almost hadn't noticed Remus run ahead of them all and load his plate with bacon and eggs. Branwen's brows shot up when she saw him tearing into a hunk of sausage. "Hungry there, Rem?"

He nodded, his mouth too full to reply.

The others filled in around him. "Save some for the rest of us," Sirius laughed.

Remus glared at him, then swallowed hard. "Don't forget, tonight we meet to practice the spell one more time. Everything has to be ready by Friday."

"We know, Remus," Peter rolled his eyes and reached for a slice of bacon, earning himself a smack across the hand from the boy he was addressing, "You've told us a hundred times since yesterday."

Branwen ran up the tower to meet the boys after classes ended on Friday. Three of them were sprawled on one of the plush red velvet sofas in the common room. She let her bag drop from her shoulder and rolled over onto James' lap, swinging her legs onto Sirius'.

"All right, Bran?" Sirius plucked at her shoelace.

"Just tired. Slughorn has us brewing Wiggenweld. It's super useful and interesting, but awfully hard to make," she sighed, then did a quick head count. "Um, aren't we missing someone? Where's Remus?"

James shrugged. "Said something about detention with Binns. He'll meet up with us later."

But as the four gathered in the boys' dorm to wait out their time playing Exploding Snaps, Remus did not show. Midnight came, the appointed hour for the plan's execution, and they were still one member short.

"But James, shouldn't we wait – "

"He knows what we're doing, Bran. He'll catch up if he's able."

"That's just it," she protested, "what if he's not able? What if he's hurt or something?"

"Rem can take care of himself," Peter laid a gentle hand on her arm.

"All right, now here's how it'll go," James spoke. "Bran and Peter, you two cover Ravenclaw tower and the upper floors. Sirius and I will take the cloak and get Slytherin, Hufflepuff, and the lower levels. Now, make sure you get all the class – "

"Wait a minute! Why don't Branwen and I get the cloak?"

"What's more dangerous, Pete," Sirius asked, "climbing some stairs or lurking around the dungeons?"

"The dungeons, I guess."

"Good, then it's settled."

All four of them used the cloak to sneak past the portrait of the Fat Lady that guarded the Gryffindor common room. She was usually asleep at this time of night, but if she did happen to wake, she wouldn't be able to say which of the students had made their way out. Once they were out of her sight, they split up.

Somehow this night was a great deal more frightening than the night of Branwen's solo prank. Maybe it was the fact that she was without the cloak this time. Or that Peter jumped every five feet when they came to a suit of armour that glinted in the moonlight. Or that one of her best friends was still missing, somewhere in the dark castle. She gulped and tried to summon some Gryffindor courage.

The night seemed to drag on. Without the cloak, they had to move mere feet at a time, avoiding snoring portraits and patrolling Prefects. They were impeded even further by the full moon whose spotlight seemed to drive away the shadows, leaving them no where to hide.

When their wand arms were sore from waving at door after door, Branwen and Peter finally descended to the Great Hall.

"What took you so long?" Sirius threw off the cloak and Branwen had to bit her own hand to keep from yelping in surprise.

"Knock it off, mate," James appeared as well, now holding the cloak. "How did it go?" he asked his sister.

"Fine. And it took us so long because we didn't have the advantage of being invisible." She stared pointedly at Sirius. "All we had was our wits."

"How very Ravenclaw of you."

"Guys, we should really hurry up," Peter tugged on James' sleeve and pointed at the ceiling-sky, which was lightening ever so slightly.

"All right. Wands up. Protego!" A shimmer was cast from all four wands, forming a transparent barrier over the two large oak doors. "Good job. Now let's head back."

The route back to the common room was much easier for Peter and Branwen with the cover of the cloak. They entered, then stood back as James performed the spell on the common room door. Remus had suggested this final measure during their last planning session in order to avoid suspicion being cast on someone from their House. Though she was excited to see the results of their mischief the next morning, the thought of Remus' absence sent Branwen to bed with a heavy heart.

A/N: I know that Sirius is never mentioned playing Quidditch in canon, but I just loved the idea of him flying around protecting his bro James from the Bludgers and other players :)