CHAPTER FORTY ONE
hidden in plain sight
IT WAS A normal Friday night when a paper airplane flew into her dorm room and settled on her bed. Candles flickered around her, creating a soft glow on her books and parchment. It made the ink shimmer before it dried. Her hair was twisted up, held by her wand. In a fit, an hour before, she twisted and turned her hair and stuck her wand in, so she kept it—knowing that she wouldn't be able to recreate it. Ink stained her hands and the wet black ink threatened to stain her sweater as the fabric draped down from her arm—clearly having belonged to her father before her. The multicolor of her sweater all blended together to create a navy blue that kept her warm as the crisp air clawed at the edges of the shut windows and hissed at the fire that burned. Her eyes darted across her textbook as her bleary eyes started to blend the words together. She blinked, rubbed her eyes and tried to refocus when the airplane flew down and caught on her quilt.
She looked up, gingerly picked up the plane and unfolded it.
She looked over it and groaned. "Oh dear lord. I don't have time for this." She tossed it to the side and looked back at her book. The words were not nearly as clear and she could feel a headache starting to pulse in the base of her neck. She whimpered and flopped back on her bed, her head hitting the pillow behind her. Her sweater covered hands smothered her face as she groaned. "Fuck you, Sirius." Her voice was barely a whisper. She neatly rolled her parchment and placed her school supplies into her bag before swinging her legs over the edge of her bed, slipped her wool socked feet into her converse, tied them and stood up. Her legs wobbled and her back cracked as she did, letting out another groan. Stretching her back, she ran down the stairs, passing drunk girls coming home from a party and those who were staying up to study. She slipped out of the common room door and shivered as the crisp air that she'd kept at bay finally claimed its victim. Rubbing her shoulders, she trekked up to the seventh floor, passing by party goers and their sober friends alike, until she reached the source. She heard the Gryffindor common room before she saw it. Groaning, she nearly turned back around until the urgency in Sirius's letter called her back forward.
She couldn't tell if it was her headache or the music that made her brain pound, but either way, she didn't like it. The minute she entered the sweaty common room, she felt an arm pull her to the side. She didn't see a face, but the shoulder length pitch black locks of curly hair answered the question for her.
"Sirius, what the fuck is—" However, she stopped speaking once she realized he was leading her up to his dorm. The noise was left behind her as it became quieter with every step that she took. Sirius's hand was cold, but warmed up in her own and both of their bodies completely warmed once he opened the door and the heat from the furnace flooded out. The chatter died down as they turned to face him. The familiar faces were deliriously present—Peter laid on top of Aisling, who was reaching for the barely touched bottle of, Remus was on his back across from them and strumming a guitar softly to "Starman" by David Bowie and James was laying on his bed, tossing a golden snitch. It landed in his palm as she walked in behind Sirius.
"That's who your surprise guest was?" Peter groaned as he grabbed the bottle that Aisling handed him and took a swig before pointing at Betty. "No offense, mate, but I see you like . . . every other day. Thought it was going to be McGonagall or something."
Betty opened her mouth to speak, but Aisling turned, eyes wide towards Peter.
"Are you actually fucking joking?" She looked back at Betty, crazed. "This is like the most amazing thing I've ever seen! Betty Lupin out! On a night where she has work! Is this the second coming of Jesus . . . " her eyes widened and her voice quieted to a whisper " . . . are you Jesus?"
Betty held back a smile as she looked at her. "I'm not actually out, Sirius asked for help on a Charms essay." She then turned to face him with a puzzled look. "But why he asked me and not my brother is beyond me." The room fell silent. "So what's it on?"
Peter, Aisling and Remus made eye contact before looking back up at her.
"So about that . . . " Sirius mumbled.
"Sirius," she groaned as she turned, trying to break free. "I have work! I told you I wasn't coming to this party!"
"I know, I know!" He kept his grip on her, but put his other hand out in defense. "And it was getting boring, you know? Doing the same thing every week or so, so we thought—"
"Not all of us, mate," James interrupted, only an arm raised in the air visible.
"Oh shut it, you haven't shagged anyone from a party in a long time. Not since you shagged that Ravenclaw girl." Betty's face flashed red and suddenly she was thankful for the low lighting from only a few candles. James fell silent as the room turned back to Sirius. "So we thought we'd do something small—just with cool people—"
"Betty Lupin is by no means 'cool'," James interrupted once more.
"And you are?" she scoffed as she raised an eyebrow with a half smirk.
"As a matter of fact—"
"Told you it wouldn't work," Remus groaned as he set the guitar to the side. "I feel like getting pissed would only make them want to tear each other apart more."
"Don't know until you try it!" Sirius sang as he grinned, his grip remaining firm around Betty. "So just with some cool people, some fire whiskey that I stole from downstairs and a dorm to ourselves."
"You can spill your darkest secrets here." Peter pointed a finger at her with a sloppy grin.
"Like you'd want to know them," she teased softly.
"I would!" Aisling exclaimed as she raised a hand.
Peter smiled, leaned up and pressed a kiss to her cheek, making her blush, smile and lean down—pressing a kiss to his lips. Betty wrinkled her nose a little, but smiled happily for the pair.
"Still weird."
"Not sorry."
Betty bit back a laugh before turning back towards Sirius as her face settled. "I have work to do."
"No you don't." He grinned as he looked at her, only an inch taller than her.
"Yes! I do! Why would I lie about that?"
"Nothing that's so important." She opened her mouth to speak. "And yes, I know, you're second to my brother, but it doesn't really matter anyway. He's a Death Eater and a fucking traitor, so it doesn't really count anyways."
She stayed silent as her eyes darted towards the ground. The room held its breath.
"Sounds like you need a drink, mate," Peter said awkwardly, cutting the thick silence.
"Yes please, but only if Betty takes one."
Sirius grinned at her, she only glared at him. "Fine. Just one. Because your brother's a dick."
"Woah there," Remus snorted as he sat up with an incredulous look. "Who are you and what have you done with my sister?"
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"You would've pushed out of the room already, that's what I mean."
"You're drunk."
Remus squinted his eyes and held up his hand, leaving a small gap between his thumb and forefinger. "Just a little."
Sirius grinned down at him, his eyes sparkling, before Remus burst out into laughter and continued to strum on the guitar. Peter had a sloppy smile on his face as he held the fire whiskey up to Sirius, who grabbed it with gusto and took a large swig. Coughing, he handed the bottle to Betty.
"Dear lord, how much did you drink?"
"Enough," he replied in between coughs.
"Lord." She looked at the bottle with disgust, but brought it to her lips. As she did, James sat up to see her for the first time. He felt the heat crawl up his neck as she wiped her mouth with the sleeve of her sweater after taking a sizable swig and shaking her head a little, making her carefully tied up hair shake loose a little—making small hairs fall out and frame her neck and face. He gulped and looked back down briefly before regaining his composure, a smile forcing its way onto his face.
Sirius made his way over to Remus, looming over him for the first time. Betty's eyes flicked up to James. She tried to fight her smile. She lost. She didn't mind.
Her eyes left him just as quickly when she heard a muffled moan. Her eyes immediately went to Aisling, who was half asleep and snuggling into Peter's side, who was happy to hold her. She murmured a little—Betty hearing her own name—but was mostly incoherent.
"Boo!" was heard from the other side. "No falling asleep Aisling Khan! The night is young! It's a Friday! We're young!"
"Fine, fine, fine," she groaned, turning over a little. "I'm just going to rest my eyes a little." Her voice went quiet as she shifted a little and settled back onto Peter.
Sirius rolled his eyes. "This is not more fun than a party."
"Not with that attitude," Betty said with a grin.
Sirius gasped and turned towards her. "Dorm party?" He rushed back over to her and took her hands into his.
Betty pressed her lips together and dropped her shoulders. "Dorm party."
"Dorm party!" Sirius screamed before tumbling onto the ground next to Remus. "Maestro! Music please!"
"Aye aye," Remus replied as he started to strum the tune to "I'm a Believer" by The Monkees. Sirius hit his own stomach to the tune as Betty settled on the floor with them, her back against the bedpost of James's bed, the closest bed to the door on the left—completing the half circle. Peter started to sing along, hitting every note, while Aisling hummed for him. Betty grinned as their small band started to form. She looked up as she heard the mattress creaking at the weight of James's body shifting. He was now on his stomach, his chin resting on his right arm and his left hanging over the side of the bed. Carefully, he started to hit the wood panel of the bed to the tune of the music. He nodded his head to the beat as he lost himself in the melody. And soon, the music just down the stairs was drowned out and irrelevant. Their own band, producers and audience were present as their world warmed and the windows closed out the cold air.
"What next?" Remus shouted once he'd finished.
"The Beatles, man!" James shouted from his bed, making Betty cringe at the volume. He caught it from the corner of his eye and they flicked down to her. His brow furrowed as he looked at her. Quickly, he looked up and made sure that all of the attention was on Remus as he polled the room for favorite Beatles songs. He placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, making her turn and look up at him. His furrowed eyebrows asked her every question that he could have and she only smiled and gave him two thumbs up in response. He fought hard against his grin, but he lost and didn't care.
They surveyed the room and separated. Betty's hands clasped together and sat between her legs that were pulled up to her chest, James placed his arms under his head. Carefully, she scooted a little closer to him.
The polling soon turned into an argument about who the best Beatle was. Sirius was firmly on Paul McCartney's side while Remus argued in favor of John Lennon. James and Betty looked at each other and smiled before looking back at Remus and Sirius.
"Paul McCartney's better," Betty interjected with a hesitant smile. A loud gasp was heard as Remus shot up.
"How dare you? Have I taught you nothing? Your own flesh and blood?"
"No need for the drama, lord."
Remus sniffed, his actions swaying as the alcohol ran through his veins. "I thought that you were always on my side."
"Fine, fine!" Betty put her hands up in surrender. "Team Lennon!"
"Thank you!" Remus shouted as he flopped back down.
"But McCartney is better, mate."
Remus shot up to see who said it only to be met with the grin of James Potter. "You . . . you . . . you have no taste." James pressed his lips together to hold back his laughter. "And . . ." Remus's eyes searched the floor, trying to come up with an argument " . . . and you're agreeing with my sister. HA! In order to be Team McCartney, you have to agree with Betty!"
"But she switched to Team Lennon!"
Remus glared at her. "We all know her heart's not in it," he growled.
Betty could no longer contain her laughter as she fell to her side, hair sprawling out on the ground and face going red. Her freshly manicured red nails landed over her eyes as she tried to stop herself from laughing, but ultimately failed. James stared down at her, face blank. A small smile creeped up onto his face. A ghost of a smile. The sort of small smile that reflected first morning sun.
"My love for Sirius is more than my hatred for Betty." As her laughter subsided, she scoffed and sat back up.
"HA!" Sirius yelled as he pointed at James, but looked at Remus with a crazed look in his eyes. "We're even."
"Fine, fine. We're even," Remus conceded, waving his hand dismissively. "Let's play . . . 'Blackbird'."
"No!" Peter protested lethargically. "Too sad."
"Too sad!" Aisling echoed as she pouted in Remus's direction.
"Fine! Fine! Lady's choice, but I can't fucking please everyone! What should I play?"
"I don't know!" Aisling groaned as she fell over, cheeks red with unheard laughter.
"'In My Life'," Betty suggested calmly.
"That's James's favorite Beatles song," Sirius replied as he lazily pointed a finger at her.
"Is that so?" She looked up mischievously at him, he only shrugged and smiled a little before tearing his gaze away from her—acutely aware of both Remus and Sirius's eyes on them.
"It might be." She loved the way his lips formed the syllables.
"The friendship of Betty and James lives on! It's been months! Hallelujah, ladies and gentlemen!" Sirius exclaimed.
Betty rolled her eyes, but smiled as she started to hum along to Remus's strumming. The heat started to get to them as the level of the multiple bottles of fire whiskey lowered until they were nearly depleted. Their boozy brains sang along to stumbled strumming and talked and talked and talked until their voices went hoarse. Quidditch, muggle bands, fit boys, eyeliner. The booze turned to fuzz as one by one, they dozed off into the land of slumbering daydreams. The windows creaked under the force of the wind, but never gave way. Under James Potter's watch, they would never give way.
The next morning, the leaves had settled down and the sunlight caressed their slumbering bodies—waking them once more. Sending them off into another day; delighted and doomed. Aisling woke up first to find Sirius curled into Remus's side, Peter curled into hers and Betty Lupin by herself on the floor, curled in James Potter's blanket tossed over her. Her eyes flicked up to see him sprawled out, only his top sheet over him, with two sweaters on. As she awoke, so did Peter—his groans filling the room and making Betty stir.
She was unbearably warm—the sort that felt like an eternal hug. The warmth of the blanket on top of her cradled her back into reality. She pulled it closer—smelling like James's cologne, shampoo and traces of toffee. She let out a soft groan as she could feel the room starting to stir. Sirius started coughing as he sat up and complained about an upset stomach before stumbling over to his bedside table and slipping a vial of purple liquid down his throat—making him shudder, but return to only slightly subnormal spirits. Remus yelped as his head slammed into his guitar, making her pop her head out of her blanket. Her hair flew and her mascara from the day before had fallen in her sleep—making it smudge slightly around her eyes.
"Are you okay?" The first words cut through the room.
"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine. Just banged up my head a bit." Remus studied her. "Is that James's blanket?"
A great yawn was heard above her. "Must've fallen off in the middle of the night."
Remus shrugged. "That's what you get for getting as pissed as you did."
"Excuse me, it wasn't me who was doing a lovely rendition of 'River' to the tune of 'I Saw Her Standing There'. I literally don't know how you did it, but it was a far cry from jolly."
"Oh shut it, you twat."
"I say we go get breakfast," Betty interrupted as she wiped away the excess of her fallen mascara from under her eyes as she fully sat up.
"Here here," Sirius agreed, his voice slightly muffled as he struggled to fit his head through a jumper. In seconds, his long black hair sprouted through and tumbled back down through, his half smile once more visible.
James's head popped into her eye line as he briefly smiled down at her, drowning in his favorite blanket and attempting to put her hair up and out of her face with her wand once more. After a couple of tries, she eventually got it to hold as she stood up, picked up James's blanket and handed it back to him.
Quietly, she followed him out, Aisling after her, then Sirius, Peter and Remus. They stepped over the sprawled bodies on the floor of the common room and snickered at the groans from the coaches and chairs. Their feet hit stray bottles and tried to avoid fingers as they eventually made their way out.
Sirius cracked a joke as they all made their way towards the Great Hall, they all laughed, the wind chuckling along with them as it swept up their hair and pricked their skin. Pulling her to the back, away from prying eyes, James swept a scarf out of his cloak and placed it around Betty's shoulders. She looked up at him, her cheeks red from the sting of the wind and a small smile on her face. Carefully, their pinkies curled around each other momentarily and her shoulders dropped and her breathing slowed and the world seemed quiet, manageable, joyful. But not the joy that came in the crashes and bangs from his fireworks—the joy that came from a window kept shut on a cold night.
Their fingers unfurled just as quickly as they resumed their positions and continued their walk towards the bustling Great Hall.