Peter Pettigrew
Monday, 24th July 1972.
The Pettigrew Whales Residence
More than three weeks had passed since Peter last saw his friends. The Marauders communicated regularly via letters, but it just wasn't the same as being together in person. Granted, he did have William which helped a lot. They swam at the sea, played quidditch, took photos... he even managed to convince the boy to paint with him. It was really a wonderful three weeks, but Peter still missed his friends.
He also started joining his dad at work more regularly which was amazing. Peter loved every little thing portrait painters did, it was like watching someone built something magnificent from nothing. All in all, it was very inspiring.
Edwin started to give him some small exercises. For example, while at work, he would assign Peter to mix some specific color, then he would examine it and give positive and negative suggestions. It was quite interesting to get to know the art of painting in more professional setting. Up until this point, Peter only painted for fun so it wasn't a big deal if he messed something up, but now, everything had to be perfect.
No matter how amazing these experiences were, they were also very stressful. Edwin was a great dad, but ever since Peter agreed to continue the family portrait-making business, he became way stricter and demanding. It was like he had split personality. In one moment, he would be this great and amazing dad, but if the next moment had anything to do with portraits, he became the angry and frustrated mentor. It was all really confusing to Peter, but he tried to get the best out of it.
In just these three weeks, they have visited four families and finished two full portraits. Peter went to Longbottom's, Fortescue's, Podmore's and even to Patil's which resulted in him seeing Anthony, the Gryffindor house prefect and Quidditch captain. It was really fun for him to talk to all of those people seeing as they were also Hogwarts students.
He remembered Frank Longbottom from the Gryffindor Quidditch team, the boy played as a keeper. They had a lovely chat about the sport and Frank even asked Peter if he will be trying out for the team because they needed new Chasers and Beater. He politely declined since he didn't have time for homework let alone Quidditch practices. Frank warned him that Anthony will try to persuade him to give it a go seeing as the captain wanted to see as many students as possible at tryouts because then the chances of getting the best ones will be higher.
Then, when Edwin started the portrait of Alice, father and son started visiting Fortescue's Residence. They even got the tour of Florean Fortescue's ice-cream making station which was brilliant. Alice gave Peter some useful advices for the elective subjects he will have to choose in third year. He gathered that Divination, Care of Magical Creatures and Muggle Studies were the easy choice while Arithmancy and Study of Ancient Runes were mostly taken by more dedicated students. Guess I have three subjects to choose from instead of five, he thought to himself.
The Podmore Estate was their next destination. William joined them during every visit because Sturgis was his best friend. The two met after their Sorting Ceremony at the Ravenclaw table and they had been best friends ever since. For Mr. Pettigrew this was by far the hardest job because Sturgis couldn't keep still due to William's jokes, but Peter loved it. It gave him similar feeling he got every time the Marauders were together. The special feeling of friendship.
Lastly, they went to Patil Manor. The moment that Anthony saw Peter, big smile spread across his face. Frank was right, he did ask Peter to try for the Quidditch team which he, again, declined. There was a moment of panic when Anthony started to mention one of the pranks Peter took apart in, but thanks to the boy's observant personality, he saw Peter's wide eyes and changed the topic.
All in all, it had been amazing and stressful three weeks, but as soon as Peter got the invitation from James to join him at the Potter Manor, he hurried towards the living room to look for Mr. Pettigrew. He knew that Remus will be there for sure, but the question if Sirius will come was still up in the air.
"Dad!", he yelled happily as soon as he spotter Edwin having his first coffee of the day at the breakfast nook.
Mr. Pettigrew did startle a bit, it was still quite early in the morning, but then he gestured for Peter to take a seat, "Good morning to you too, Peter. Are you exited for today? We will probably finish Mr. Patil's son portrait."
"No— ", his dad gave him a surprised look, "I mean yes— ", now Mr. Pettigrew must have thought that he was lying, "I mean I am looking forward to that, but I am excited about something else.", Peter tried to clarify while fiddling with James' letter in his hands.
His dad didn't seem offended, just amused, "Okay then, what is it?", he gestured towards the letter.
"Well, James asked me to come and visit him at the beginning of August so I just wanted to ask for permission.", he gave Mr. Pettigrew pleading eyes. There was a miniature doubt that he wouldn't let Peter go because of all the work that had to be done.
Edwin smiled at his son, "Of course, Peter. After all, you had been working hard on improving your skills.", the boy jumped from the table in excitement, but his dad stopped him, "But you can go after the 10th of August."
Peter frowned, he didn't remember anyone telling him that 10th was reserved for some special occasion, "Why?", he questioned curiously.
"Because we got the invite for Ms. Black and Mr. Lestrange's wedding.", Edwin got up and went to the kitchen counter. When he came back, there was a fancy wedding invitation in his hands.
"But that's on Thursday.", Peter glanced towards the calendar hanging on the wall, "Who is having a wedding on Thursday?", it wasn't really a question, more of a confused statement, but Edwin just nodded towards the invitation. Peter took it and read it carefully.
You are hereby invited to join the wedding of
Bellatrix Black and Rudolphus Lestrange
Let us celebrate together the love and pureblood future of the Lestrange family
We hope to see you at the Lestrange Manor on the 10th of August at one o'clock Past Meridiem, on the day when Grand Teton Meteor will graze the Earth
Peter gave his dad a questioning look after he finished reading, which Edwin immediately understood, "The Blacks are somewhat obsessed with astronomical objects and events.", Peter nodded in understanding, he already knew this from Sirius, so his dad continued, "The Department of Astronomical Happenings announced that one meteor will pass the Earth on the 10th so that's why they chose that date."
"That's quite stupid.", Peter stated, but then excitement rose in him once more, "Will Sirius be there?", he asked hopefully.
"I suppose he will. It is his cousin after all."
Maybe the wedding will not be so boring then, "Great. So I can go to James' on 11th?"
His dad nodded with a smile confirming this and Peter happily hopped back to his room to write James a letter to inform him about everything.
* * *
Thursday, 10th August 1972.
The Lestrange Mannor
It was quite a fancy event, so it was good that in the end Peter and William obliged to wear the suits their mother bought. The Pettigrews arrived just like asked, at 01:00pm, and were greeted with great respect. Sometimes it was easy to forget how admired Edwin Pettigrew really was when he was your father who you saw every day. They literally had to stop every five seconds because someone would say hi and exchange a couple of pleasantries with his dad.
Peter's first impression of Rodolphus wasn't great, he seemed very composed and polite, but cold at the same time, like he just acted. Peter supposed that it was just the pureblood family way of upbringing that resulted in the groom being like that.
He tried looking for Sirius in the big crowd, there must have been at least two hundred people there, but his search ended when it was announced that the ceremony will be starting.
There were left and right rows of eight seats in front of the altar where a Wizarding Officiant waited. The Pettigrews were seated in the fifth row on the right, but Peter was still able to see and recognize the dark, curly hair in the front. Only problem was, there were two heads of the familiar hair which confused him a great deal, but then he remembered that Sirius had a brother. His name was something starting with R, something like... Reptilius? No, no, it wasn't that, maybe...Realius? That didn't sound correct either... Regulus? Yes, that was it.
The ceremony started with Bellatrix soon-to-be Lestrange walking down the aisle. She was in a black wedding dress, probably some Black family's tradition, Peter thought to himself as she passed their row. Truth be told, Sirius did describe her perfectly. There was just something crazy radiating off of her and her sharp movements didn't really help the case. Her face was quite beautiful, similar to Sirius' but more feminine, but she somehow seemed ruthless compared to Sirius' joking manner. Bellatrix was somewhat crazy even when we were children, his friend's words echoed in Peter's head.
Soon enough, the ceremony was over and, in Peter's opinion, it was the coldest and most loveless ceremony he had ever seen. Both, groom and bride, didn't even say their vows. Okay, they did, but they weren't vows, they were an old pureblood oath with which they swore to uphold the purity of their noble blood and ensure that the same will be done with their children in the future, which was pretty creepy.
Peter set on his mission to find Sirius once more, but this time, luck was on his side.
"Sirius!", he yelled couple of meters from the boy.
Sirius quickly turned, like he recognized Peter's voice. After all, he expected to see him there since Peter wrote to him as soon as he found out about the wedding invitations.
There was a huge grin on Sirius' face as he and Peter hugged dramatically, "My friend!", the curly haired boy pretended to sob, "You have found me at last!"
Peter, of course, join in on his theatrics, "Of course, my lost companion. Who would I be if I just left you alone!"
When the dramatic greeting was over and the two stepped back from each other, Peter noticed the other head of curly, black hair he saw at the ceremony, "Hello.", he smiled at the little boy, "My name is Peter. Sirius told me a lot about you Reptilius."
As soon as he said it, Peter covered his mouth while Sirius bursted into laughter, although his brother didn't seem to share his sense of humor because he frowned at Peter, "Sure, I can see that since you know my name."
There was a lot of irritation in his tone which made Peter try to justify himself immediately, "In my defense, he refers to you as his dear brother whom he loves the most.", he tried to play it out with dramatics which seemed to work. At those words, the boy's face instantly relaxed and small smile became visible on his lips.
He then politely extended his hand to Peter, "Regulus Acturus Black. Nice you meet you, Peter?"
"Pettigrew", Sirius added as the two shook their hands.
Regulus still seemed pretty cold after that, but Peter again attributed that to his upbringing. This was the first time that he actually saw and talked to the Black family members other that Sirius and all Peter could think was how. How did Sirius keep his positive energy and happiness while constantly being surrounded by cold and dark people. It was truly amazing to him how someone was so unapologetically himself even in these conditions.
"So, Regulus, are you coming to Hogwarts with us in September? Sirius did mention that you will be?", Peter tried for the third time to strike a conversation with the younger Black.
It was like the cold demeanor of the boy melted every time at the mention of his brother's name. Peter would have found this pretty sweet if Regulus wasn't looking at him so judgingly up until that point.
"Yes.", he simply answered and Peter swore he was done trying to talk with Regulus about anything. Thankfully, his decision didn't become known since his father and another man joined the trio.
Instantly, Peter saw Sirius' whole appearance change. He became more tensed, jaw clenched and shoulders squared. There was even somehow more straightness to his already perfect posture. His face became more cold, emotionless even.
"Hello, Peter.", the man acknowledged him, "Pleasure to meet you. Orion Black.", the two shook their hands and after that everything made sense. He was Sirius' father.
"Peter Pettigrew. Nice to meet you, sir.", he answered politely. Thankfully, his dislike wasn't able to be heard in his voice.
Mr. Pettigrew positioned himself next to Peter and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder, "I was just telling Mr. Black how you and his son are really good friends.", he gestured towards Sirius with a nod, "Nice to meet you, Sirius. I'm Edwin Pettigrew."
"Sirius Black. Pleasure to meet you as well, sir.", they shook hands and then Edwin turned his attention towards the younger Black, "And you must be Sirius' brother. Regulus, right?", he smiled at the boy, but Regulus kept his face sharp just like he did with Peter, "Yes, sir. Nice to meet you."
At least he used more than one word to answer, Peter thought to himself as they all exchanged a couple of pleasantries.
"So, Peter?", Orion turned to face him, he was in fact quite a scary looking man, "Mr. Pettigrew tells me you want to be a portrait painter as well?"
Peter nodded not as enthusiastically as he would have whenever this topic was brought up since it felt like he would have been judged for showing excitement, "Yes, sir. From what I have seen, I really like the job."
"He really is doing great. Shows so much dedication and the desire for learning.", Edwin stated and, now, everybody's attention was on this conversation.
Orion nodded approvingly, "That's great, I like passionate people. It's good to hear Sirius has someone like that for a friend.", but there was just something fake in his tone that Peter caught up on and, seeing as Sirius was still tensed up, he knew that something was up as well.
Then Mr. Black continued, "Me and Mr. Pettigrew were just talking about Sirius visiting your house for a few weeks. It will be quite good for him to see what actual dedication looks like.", he gave his older son a sweet smile, but Peter immediately recognized the dig at Sirius, probably in regards to his disloyalty towards the Blacks since he got sorted into Gryffindor.
Nonetheless, that statement sounded amazing to Peter. Not because he will have company, but because it will benefit Sirius. He knew that the boy hated being home, so this was probably the best news he could ever hear.
Peter's thoughts were confirmed when Sirius' cold demeanor broke with slight smile. He saw the curly haired boy try his best to control his facial expression, but the smile just grew and grew with every second. Although, not the same could be said for the younger Black. Regulus' eyes widened and his lips parted slightly, indicating that he wasn't really expecting to hear this.
Thankfully, silence was broken by Edwin, "Yes. We will be delighted to have you, Sirius. If you like, you could come as soon as tomorrow?"
There was no hiding his excitement now. Peter was practically beaming with happiness. All he could think about was how the Marauders will be reunited and from the look on Sirius' face, the curly haired boy was thinking the same thing, "I would love that, Mr. Pettigrew. If that is okay with you, father?", he turned to Orion who gave him that same overly sweet smile and a small nod.
"Great!", Mr. Pettigrew exclaimed, "Then all is settled. We'll see you tomorrow, Sirius.", and with that the two adults left the kids alone.
"Did you hear that!?", Peter whisper-yelled, "You are staying with me!", he hugged Sirius and the two started jumping up and down in excitement, "I know, right! I can't believe this!"
As the two separated, Peter noticed the devastated look on Regulus' face, "Hey, Regulus. Would you like to come as well?", he turned to him with a bright smile, "The Pettigrew Estate is big enough for all of us and we can all play Quidditch together. I also have a big brother, we can all—"
But the boy just cut him off, "No, thank you.", he simply answered and walked away.
This confused Peter quite a bit, so he turned back to Sirius, "Have I said something wrong?", he didn't want to be rude or unwelcoming, but Sirius just waved a dismissing hand at him, "No, not your fault. He has always been short on words with new people."
This brought some easiness to Peter, but he still felt a bit guilty. Maybe he should have invited Regulus immediately, but then again, he wasn't always invited to hang out with William's friends either. He would only join them if they were at the Pettigrew Estate.
Nonetheless, he put those thoughts aside and he and Sirius started planning their mission on how to convince Mr. Pettigrew to let both of them stay at the Potter Manor with Remus and James.