Zenith《Marauders Era》

Chapter I: Cigarettes and Flower Petals

"James and Peter already went to change," Aletheia said, standing up. "We should follow suit."
She turned and left the room. With a heavy sigh, Remus stood and looked down at Sirius and Atalanta. He had her unlit cigarette in his mouth. She was laying her head on his lap, a book in her hands. Remus felt his throat tighten.
"You guys coming?"
Atalanta looked up from her book and smiled.
"We'll just change in here."
Remus dipped his head and left the room. He mindlessly walked towards the bathrooms. He tried to think of something other than Atalanta and Sirius changed in the same room together. He wondered why he couldn't be so comfortable, so confident. How long did you have to know someone before you could do something like that? It baffled him how close the two were. For how much Sirius detested Slytherins, it was amazing how close he'd become with one of the greatest Slytherin masterminds of their time.
Maybe that was it. Maybe it was because Atalanta always seemed to know what everyone was thinking and what to do about it. She never seemed to do her homework, but she aced all her exams. She could tell you the exact moment Filch would come around the corner or when McGongall would be checking which classroom at which time. It was an amazing talent Remus couldn't figure out.
Remus was torn from his thoughts when he ran into Hufflepuff Prefect Ophelia Orwell.
"Oh, Lupin! I'm so sorry, I didn't see you there." The small, blue eyed 5th year was sitting on the floor, having fallen over.
"Ophelia! The fault is mine. I wasn't paying attention." He held out his hand to help her up. She took his hand and was soon standing. Laughing awkwardly, she brushed the wrinkles out of her yellow-trimmed robes. Her smile glowed, her tan skin radiating immensely. She had a small body, and a small face. She looked much younger than 15, and it didn't help that she always wore her strawberry blonde hair in double braids.
"No problem, Lupin."
"Please, Ophelia, its Remus."
Her freckles cheeks turned a shade of pink.
"Of course. Well, I'll see you later, yeah?"
"Definitely."
Remus smiled as he walked past her and continued on his way to the bathroom.
When he got back to the compartment, the others had returned. Sirius and Atalanta had changed and had taken back to their original position. Aletheia sat next to the window, rapidly scribbling something in her notebook. James and Peter were talking quickly about Quidditch beside her.
Without looking up, Atalanta lifted her legs, revealing room on the bench for Remus to sit. He sit down and she placed her legs over him.
He tipped his head back and before he knew it, he was asleep.

Atalanta had her wand in her mouth, the lumos charm shining brightly. Across from her, Aletheia had her wand in her hair, the same charm glowing at the tip. She was still writing whatever it was she had been writing before. Peter was asleep on James' shoulder. Sirius' had was now in her lap, her Slytherin tones covering him like a blanket. Holding her book with one hand, she mindlessly ran her fingers through his hair. Beside her, Remus jolted awake, his eyes wide, chest rising and falling quickly. He looked around as if he was unsure where he was. She took her wand from her mouth and whispered 'nox'.
"Hey, hey, you okay?" She asked, setting her wand and book down. Remus turned to her, his brown eye frantic with fear. She tried a smile and touched his arm, but he pulled away.
"Hey, Remus, it's just me. It's Ata."
Slowly, as if he was still waking from the dream, Remus started to calm. His breathing slowed and his eyes returned to their normal state of not being scared to death. Atalanta plucked her water bottle from the floor.
"Water?" He took it and she noticed how his hands shook.
"You wanna talk about it?" She asked after he'd finished drinking and handed the bottle back. He shook his head.
It would be so easy. An inner voice said to her. So easy. You don't even have to ask him. He doesn't have to tell you. You can just-
Atalanta shook her head slightly and looked back at Remus, another, reassuring smile on her face. She touched his hand and instantly saw how much calmer he became.
"I'm here, if you need."
He nodded.
"You can sleep on me, if you want."
She saw his eyes move down to Sirius and the hand that was resting on his head. She let out a small snort and smiled at the mess of hair in her lap.
"Sometimes, I swear he's like a dog," she said. Remus scoffed.
"Wouldn't that be a novel concept."
She looked up at him, her mouth agape.
"Are you making fun of me?" She asked. He rolled his eyes.
"No," but there was evident sarcasm in his voice. She punched his arm with purses lips.
"Hey," he chortled. The two laughed for a moment.
"Shuddup. Sleeping." James mumbled.
"Sorry," they whispered in unison. The two looked at each other and held their gaze.
"C'mere," she said, her voice quiet. She tugged on his arm. "I'll keep away the nightmares."
Remus complied and leaned against her shoulder.
"You promise?"
"I'm not a miracle maker, Remus." He didn't say anything. "Yes, I promise. We'll be at Hogwarts soon anyway. Take a small nap. I've got you."
He didn't respond, but a few seconds later, small sounds of sleep came from his mouth. She leaned her head back and smiled.
Atalanta glanced over at Aletheia. Her sister was no longer writing, but had her journal open and her pen twirling in circles in her hand. Her eyes were glazed over, telling Atalanta that she was thinking. Her eyes were trained on Sirius, but Atalanta thought nothing of it.
"Al, you okay?" Atalanta whispered. Aletheia's head snapped up and she hummed in response.
"You okay?" Atalanta repeated. Aletheia smiled and nodded.
"Just thinking."
There was a moment of silence.
"I never said this before, but I really like the lavender."
Aletheia smiled at touched her hair.
"You do? It was a big change from the blue I had before. Pappa was mad enough when I dyed it green in third year," she replied, a sheepish smile on her face.
"It looks good on you. It goes really well with both your eyes."
"You think so?"
"I know so."
"I was thinking about doing red next. Like Lily Evans' hair."
At the mention of Lily Evans, James mumbled and breathed a sigh.
"That'll look good! I haven't seen very many blue-eyes red heads, so I don't know how your right eye will look, but the green of your left would look great."
Aletheia's smile grew.
"Thank you, Atalanta."
"For what?"
"For being the best older twin sister a girl could ask for."
Atalanta smiled.

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Thats really all for today folks. Thank you for reading this very first chapter of Zenith. Tell me what you think! I love your opinions and I would love to know how to make my writing better. Constructive criticism is welcome.

Thank you for your support. Every one of you means something to me. Don't let anyone think you're not important. Because you are.

Thank you again. Love you all.

nox