The Change

I burst inside and saw Madam Pomfrey leaning over a bed and talking to a patient. She looked up at me sharply when I yelled out in pain and fell on the floor. The last thing I remember was her trying to guide me to a bed and a familiar voice calling my name.

My head was pounding when I woke up. I didn't even want to think about moving. Before I could come to my senses I was wishing I was asleep again. I kept my eyes closed and tried to remember where I was.

I was at school, I remembered. I had run here when my parents tried to keep me from it. I remembered seeing Madam Pomfrey and then I blacking out. I wondered a little how long I had been asleep but quickly found I didn't care when I tried to open my eyes. The light was so bright it made my headache worse. I whimpered quietly and pulled the blankets closer to my body.

I felt someone touch my arm and flinched slightly. They took their hand away and I felt them lean onto my bed to whisper something in my ear. "It's all right, Sirius. You're going to be okay. Go back to sleep," the person told me, concern clearly in their voice.

I opened my eyes, ignoring the pain, and saw Remus sitting next to me, looking sad. "Remus," I mumbled, "What are you doing here?" Looking at Remus I could tell he was sick, too. He had cuts on his face and he was paler then usual.

"I got sick and my mother decided to take me here since there was only a day left of the holiday. You should go back to sleep. Madam Pomfrey is getting some potions ready for you."

"How long have I been asleep?" I asked determined to not look weak in front of my friend.

"Only a few minutes," he said, leaning back in his chair, "Sirius, what happened to you?"

"Nothing. I'm just sick," I lied.

He looked at me, smiling. "What, do think I'm an idiot? Your wrist is clearly broken and you have some kind of a dark spell on you. Care to try again?"

I glared at him and said, "My parents got mad at me. I don't really want to talk about it."

He looked shocked now. "Seriously? Your parents did this? I figured you and Regulus got into a fight or something." He paused and then said quietly, "You should tell Madam Pomfrey."

I shook my head and then grabbed it, feeling like it was about to explode. "No," I mumbled, "They'll just get mad at me. I can't do anything about it and neither can Dumbledore. My parents have friends in very powerful positions in the ministry. I'm stuck where I am and need to just live with it."

Remus looked like he was going to argue but Madam Pomfrey came rushing over and shooed him away. She handed me a potion and I took it, looking at it quizzically. "It's a potion to put you to sleep for a little while so I can examine you. I have to know what spell is on you to fix it. I should call your parents to let them know you're all right, too."

"No," I said quickly. "No, Madam Pomfrey, my parents know I'm here. Don't bother."

She looked unsure but handed me the potion anyway and I drank it and happily sank back into my dreamless sleep.

"Oy, Sirius, wake up," someone said next to me. I opened my eyes and blinked. James was standing next to my bed, looking defiant, angry and concerned all at the same time.

"When'd you get here, James?" I asked.

He rolled his eyes and sat down, "Yesterday, when the term started."

I sat up straight and said, "What? I've been sleeping for three days?"

He smiled and said, "Seems so. I was scared you weren't going to wake up anytime soon. It's been so boring."

I smiled back. "Oh, little Jamesie was worried about me. How cute."

"Shut up," he said before looking seriously at me. "You had a lot of people afraid, Sirius. I thought Madam Pomfrey was going to have a heart attack herself when she found the spell they'd used on you."

"What'd they use?"

He shrugged, "Dunno. She didn't tell us. You scared Remus badly, too. He's been here since you arrived. He only left a few minutes ago. He finally ran out of things to tell Madam Pomfrey were wrong with him and she chased him out. Dumbledore has been down here a couple of times, too. He seemed very concerned about the spell as well."

I was silent for a minute before I said, "Have my parents been here?"

James sat down and leaned on my bed. "Yes. Remus said they came little while after you feel asleep again. They were furious and wanted to take you home but Madam Pomfrey refused and locked them out of the hospital wing. They were yelling about going to the Ministry but we haven't seen them since." He was quiet and he stared at me, making me squirm.

"What?" I said finally.

He looked at me and waited until he caught my eye before saying, "I know your parents did this to you. Remus didn't tell me either. Madam Pomfrey figured it out as soon as she knew the spell. She said a child could never have cast it."

"Oh," I said.

"Why didn't you want anyone to know? Why did you lie to Remus when he asked?"

"I don't know. I guess because it won't due any good anyway. It's not like you can do anything about it."

James looked angry again, "You don't get it, do you? The Ministry can't ignore this. They could have killed you. The spell was tearing you apart. If you hadn't come to the hospital wing Merlin only knows what would have happened."

I sat up and glared at James. "No, you don't get it. My parents have friends in every branch of the Ministry. They will never get in trouble for it. By telling Dumbledore it was them, I would only make them mad. Then they'd do worse next time."

"You're being ridiculous. The Ministry can't ignore abuse. Your father broke your wrist and your mother cursed you so bad you didn't wake up for three days. Dumbledore won't let them ignore it."

"I can take care of myself, James. I don't need Dumbledore's help or yours!"

He rolled his eyes at me, "Oh yeah. I can see you take care of yourself real well."

"What's that supposed to mean?" I asked, starting to sit up.

"It means you obviously didn't do a very good job of it this time."

"This wasn't my fault. I'll be ready for them next time!"

"Stop it," someone.

James and I turned around to see Remus standing in the doorway, looking as angry as I had ever seen him. "Remus," I whined. "Tell James I can take care of myself."

Remus walked over to the two of us and said, "Sirius, lay back down. You only woke up a few minutes ago. You'll pass out again if you don't relax." I reluctantly obeyed and glared at James again. Remus looked back and forth between the two of us and said, "I agree with James here, Sirius. Now be quiet for a minute and listen. Even if the Ministry doesn't hear what you have to say you should tell them because it might scare your parents into being a little kinder. At least Dumbledore will keep a closer eye on you. James and I know now, so we can take you over to our houses during the holidays if you want. Hiding this from people isn't a good idea. Then no one can help you."

I looked down and nodded. "All right. There is nothing I can do about it anyway. Everybody already knows. I just don't want them to get mad at me for telling."

Remus smiled and said, "They can't. You never told. It's their own fault for using a spell Madam Pomfrey would be able to tell an adult cast."

I shrugged. "Guess so."

James was about to say something but Madam Pomfrey came in, looking relieved, and said, "You're awake. Good, it'll be easier for me to look you over then. You two get out of here. Mr. Black and I have some things to discuss."

"Fine," James said. " We'll be back after dinner and we'll bring Peter this time."

I stayed in the hospital wing for the next two days. James, Remus and Peter would come by everyday after classes and stay for a while. They'd bring my homework and we'd joke and laugh, planning our next pranks or telling stories of our old ones. Madam Pomfrey would let them stay late since they made me feel better. I could see her standing in her office listening to us most of the time. I could even hear her laughing at some of the thing James or I would say.

Finally, after two days and a lot of begging, she let me leave. I was barely out the door of the hospital wing when Dumbledore caught me, though, and pulled me into an empty classroom. He looked concerned when he spoke. "Sirius, how are you feeling?"

"Much better, sir. Thanks for asking."

"Yes, well, I have some things to discuss with you. It is my understanding that you didn't want your parents reported for this?"

"Yes, sir," I said, shifting uncomfortably. "I don't want to cause any more trouble."

"Understandable, and I will listen to your wishes, but only this once. If anything like this happens again I will be reporting them to the Ministry. For now I am just going to keep a very close eye on your house. I've had a talk with your parents and they are aware that I know the real story. I assure you they aren't happy but they aren't about to try and take you out of school any more. You will continue to attend Hogwarts and they will be allowing you to visit your friends over the holidays and write to them."

"Thank you, Professor."

"You are quite welcome, Mr. Black. Just promise me one thing," he said.

"What?"

He smiled at me and leaned forward, "Don't get sick again, please. The school is very quiet without you and Mr. Potter running around causing trouble. I am very excited to see what you will cook up for the rest of the year."

I smiled and it was the first real smile in days. "We'll try not to disappoint you Professor."

"I'm sure you won't, Mr. Black," he said and with that he walked out of the room.

I followed him out and we went separate ways. I met up with James in the dormitory and told him about my talk with Dumbledore. "Wicked," he said.

I lay down on my bed and stared at the ceiling. I was enjoying the quiet but James didn't give me long before he said, "Sirius, I wanted to ask you something."

"Yeah?" I said, rolling over to look at him.

"Do you know why Remus was in the hospital wing that day you showed up there?"

I looked at him, confused, and sat up, "He said he was sick. Why?"

James shook his head and said, "Yeah, that's what he told me but... I just think he's sick an awful lot."

"Well, I remember he was pale that day. He looked sick."

"Yes, but didn't you notice the scratches on his face. He has scars on his face all the time, and on his arms and stuff."

"No, I haven't noticed that. What's the big deal?"

"Do you get scratches when you're just sick?"

"Maybe he fell."

"Every time he gets sick he has the scratches. Or every time his mum gets sick. I just think it's a little weird."

I shrugged, "I guess it is. Maybe he just isn't a very healthy kid."

James looked unsure before he said, "He gets sick once a month. Or his mum gets sick."

"Really? I didn't notice," I said.

"You didn't? Well, I guess it isn't a big deal. Forget I mentioned it. I'm probably just exaggerating anyway."

"You worry too much, James," I said standing up and stretching. "So tell me. Any plans that I've missed?"

James got that wicked smile on his face and said, "Yes, just give me a minute." He began digging under his bed and pulled a box out. "We would have told you about this in the hospital wing but Pomfrey was listening and she wouldn't have liked it." He paused for a minute and then walked to the door. "I'll be back in a second," he said, walking out of our dorm.

I waited impatiently for him to come back. When he returned he had Peter and Remus with him, both looking excited. "So what's the big secret?" I said, starting to feel the rush of adrenaline that came with every great prank.

Remus walked over to the box and pulled out a piece of paper. I looked at it and saw it was blank. He was smiling at me proudly but I shook my head. "Yes, I see it's a blank piece of parchment."

They all laughed and Remus said, "This, my friend, isn't just any blank piece of parchment. It is the first Marauders production. May I introduce... the Marauder's Map."

"Nope, sorry, you've lost me," I said.

James took the piece of paper from Remus and handed it to me. "Ask it something."

I looked at all three of them like they were insane but went along with it anyway, "Who's the ugliest git in the school?"

I gasped as words began to spread across the paper. I started laughing as soon as I saw what it said. In curving letters, clearly written across the paper, it said, "Severus Snape is the ugliest git on the school."

"That's brilliant, guys. But I still don't see a map."

"Yes, well we haven't gotten there yet," Remus said.

James looked proudly at their creation and said, "Remus had this idea to create a map of Hogwarts. He said there are spells to make enchanted maps and we would be able to see everyone in the castle. I thought it was brilliant and we've spent a lot of time in the library looking up spells for it. The problem is, it is very advanced magic and even with Remus's help we won't be able to finish the map for years probably."

"It really isn't a problem, though," Remus put in. "If we want to do this map right we're going to need a lot of time. We should find all the secret passageways, all the hidden doors and all the hidden rooms in the castle. It could take years to sweep the castle so that the map is perfect. By the time we're done and know every part of Hogwarts like the back of our hands, we'll be able to do the spells."

"So, what do you think?" Peter asked.

"I think it's bloody brilliant," I said.

A.N: (OK guys you have to review and tell me what you want me to do. My beta reader is going away until Mid June and if you want me to update before then but without the edits, you have to tell me. Thanks for reading.)