The Marauders - Order of the Phoenix Part Three

The Keys

"I can't stay long, but I wanted to give this to you and see if you can make him talk." Peter Pettigrew stood at the counter of the curry shop below the flat in East London, checking the watch wrapped about his wrist nervously. He hesitated slightly as he pushed the drawing across the counter. "He won't talk to me."

Oni Lamm picked up the rolled up parchment that was the drawing, her heart beating terribly fast. "Won't Sirius notice it's gone?" she asked.

"He hasn't yet," Peter replied. "But still just the same, I'll come back in the morning for it so I can put it back before he does notice. He'll be busy tonight so he won't have a chance to miss it before morning. Just be careful of it, alright?"

Oni nodded, "Of course I will." She paused, holding the roll as though it were made of gold. "Thank you for bringing it to me."

"Yeah, of course." Peter's cheeks were flushed. "He asked to be brought to you."

"Did he?" Oni thrilled.

"He said he didn't want to talk to anybody else."

Oni flushed and held the roll to her heart.

"Anyways, I have to go," Peter said quickly. He didn't like the way it made him feel when Oni Lamm thrilled over the idea of Regulus Black having asked for her, didn't like the way her cheeks pinkened at the thought of Regulus Black. Peter sourly reminded himself that it didn't matter how Oni reacted to his name or the thought of him - he was truly and sincerely gone. Not that it made it any easier for him, Peter, to distract her away from swooning over a memory. He couldn't even compete with dead blokes.

Scrambling out the door and up the stairs to the flat, Peter hurriedly got changed and rushed for the floo powder. He was running late, supposed to have been to the Potters five minutes before. He wasn't part of the wedding party, though, so he reckoned it didn't truly matter if he was a bit late. When he stepped through the floo into the Potter's living room, it was to find Dora Potter on the couch knitting as usual. 

"Hiya Mrs. P," Peter said as he dusted off and got to his feet.

"Hello Peter! They're all outback, you'll want to run on out there," Dora replied, smiling. "I think they've got the bonfire already lit."

"Thanks Mrs. P," Peter said, and he ran for the back door.

Sure enough, the back yard was alight, a huge bonfire set in the middle of the field behind the Potter house where they usually played quidditch, and 'round it were big logs for sitting. Peter thought of the celebration they'd had for Moony's birthday back in March, except this was much more attended and they were all lads here tonight - the girls were off doing their hen party with Meg. But it seemed nearly every lad they knew from Hogwarts was there - half the Hufflepuff quidditch team and Meg's brother and Oliver Kent and Bilius and the Prewitts, Sean Buckner and Jasper's own brothers, despite being muggles... The bonfire blazed bright and filled the whole field with a warm, encompassing glow.

"Hey Pete's here!" James shouted, seeing Peter coming running across the grass. "Grab yourself a bottle of butterbeer and come join us!"

Peter nodded enthusiastically and grabbed a bottle from a large tub filled of ice and butterbeers and pumpkin juice and gilly waters. He sank onto a log next to Remus and Sirius, and fought to unscrew the cap. "Did I miss anything?" he asked eagerly.

"No, you've just made it in time," Remus murmured.

Jasper sat on a wood chair in the center of attention and James stood before him, a bottle of butterbeer in his fist, which he raised now and he said, "Jasper, I'm honored you chose me to be your best man, though you had a hundred options - men far better than me, by far - and yet I was selected and I hope not to let you down."