Ad Infinitum

 

Chapter One: The Waning Moon

The Gryffindor common room was noisier than usual that evening, packed full of students celebrating the end of term and others saying their goodbyes. Over in a corner, James, Sirius, and Peter were seated, playing a casual game of Exploding Snap, as their bags were packed and the seventh year boys dormitories spotless. They had to be, as McGonagall was coming around in a few minutes to do a routine end-of-term check. James frowned at the cards he held in his hand, but before he could begin to formulate a strategy based on Peter's recent move, they blew up in his face. An amused chuckle came from behind him, and he turned to find Lily looking over his shoulder.

"What are you doing here?" he asked in surprise. "Ravenclaws aren't-"

"Oh, shut up," she replied airily. "What are they going to do, give me detention? You were the one who told me the password, remember. I just came to say goodbye. My parents and I are leaving in a few minutes."

"You're going?" James queried, disappointed. "Aren't you at least going to stay until breakfast tomorrow? Nearly everybody else is."

She grinned at his downcast expression. "We have to. My sister's getting married tomorrow afternoon, and we have to be there for the wedding." She hesitated. "She was rather upset about my parents coming here for the day. She wanted them at home."

"Well, you have something important going on, too," Sirius put in defensively, shuffling the cards carefully.

"I know, and she knows that, too. I just can't figure Petunia out. She seems to resent me, and there's nothing I can do about it."

"Who's she getting married to?" James asked.

Lily gave him a rather pained look. "His name is Vernon Dursley. I suppose she must see something in him, but I think he's rude, self-centered, and close-minded. I can't imagine them having children--he doesn't seem like the type to be a very involved father. He has no patience for children. It's horrible."

Peter took the deck from Sirius and began dealing out the cards into three piles. Lily looked down at them and then back at Peter, puzzled. "Where's Remus?"

"Shrieking shack," Peter said in a low voice.

Lily nodded. "Is that why you three are staying?"

"Partially," Sirius explained, picking up his cards. "But we can't go down there for a while. McGonagall's coming around in a bit to check that the dormitories are clean and send everyone to bed."

Peter looked up in surprise. "Is it really that late?"

"Half past eleven," James informed him. "She won't let everyone stay up much longer."

"I'd better be going," Lily said reluctantly. "I hope I'll be seeing you all soon. Well...you all heard what Dumbledore said."

"Why did that upset him so much? He looked worried when he walked away."

"Voldemort, Peter," Sirius said darkly. Peter flinched. "If we make it as Aurors, we'll be attending Dumbledore’s meetings, won't we? Like we overheard McGonagall and Gregoram talking about in the hall the other day."

"Well, anyway, I'll see you all later, Aurors or not," Lily broke in. “Say goodbye to Remus for me.” She hugged Peter and Sirius, then James. Before turning away, she leaned forward and kissed him on the cheek, grinning at the expression this provoked, and walked quickly toward the portrait hole.

* * * * *

Why tonight? Out of all nights of the month, why tonight? It was so perfect until this. Absolutely perfect. It’s beginning now. I can feel it coming. They didn’t understand why I didn’t want to come home with them...why I wanted to wait until tomorrow and take the train...but it’s better this way. They go through enough when it happens while I’m home. Besides, it’s the last chance we’ll get. The last chance I’ll ever get. After this, I’ll be locked up again. That’s the way it has to be. It’s too cold in here...so cold...it hurts....

* * * * *

Sirius smiled to himself. It was nights like this--with a light breeze and a cloudless sky--that made the whole Animagus thing worth it, even considering all the trouble it had taken them to figure it out; he never, ever wanted to spend that much time in the library again. But it had been worth it, and here they were, three not-quite-men hurrying across the Hogwarts grounds in the dead of night, the full moon casting a brilliant white light over them all. It was, after all, their last night at Hogwarts, and fitting that it should be so perfect. He brought the Marauder’s Map up closer to his nose, and whispered “Lumos,” holding his wand up before the paper. Hagrid was nowhere in sight--he must either be in the castle or at his hut. Sirius nodded to the others as they approached the misleadingly motionless Whomping Willow.

He fumbled in his robes to reach the inside pocket and slip the Map and his wand in. Like other magical objects, they would not remain with him during the transformation unless they were inside the enchanted pocket in these robes. He, James, and Peter had found this a bit of a problem until Remus came across the spell in a textbook and charmed their robes for them. It did make things much easier.

A second later, one of the figures on his right disappeared, and a gray rat was running through the grass, cautiously making its way to the base of the willow’s trunk and placing its tiny paws on a knot there. The tree, which had begun to lash viciously out at the intruders, froze in place, and an enormous gap in the roots was exposed. James, too, transformed, and the stag awkwardly clambered into the passage beneath the tree. Sirius changed easily into the great black dog. Padfoot slipped through the roots with much less difficulty, and was followed a second later by the rat.

There was just enough room for them inside the passageway. Padfoot trotted forward in front of the others, Prongs following with his head bent toward the ground to avoid bumping his antlers on the roof of the tunnel. After a few minutes, they came to its end, and one by one climbed up into the Shrieking Shack.

Sirius always felt rather ill in the dilapidated old house, with the claustrophobic, shut-in sensation it seemed to carry along with it. Furniture was strewn across the floor, most of it in pieces. Old bloodstains could be found in some of the rooms, and dust lay thick on the parts of the house that hadn’t been ravaged. He heard noises from upstairs and began to move up the rickety staircase, emitting a bark of greeting as he did so. When he came to the hallway and looked past one of the doors hanging ajar, he wagged his tail and trotted in to meet the werewolf that was there.

Moony had been waiting, and leapt forward playfully to catch him off-guard. Sirius shook him off good-naturedly and led the way back downstairs, where Prongs and Wormtail had remained. The four of them set back off down the passage once again, and in a few minutes, they emerged into the bright light of the full moon.

He decided to set the pace tonight. They hadn’t made any plans, and this time, their last time, they could just relax for awhile. Padfoot set off at a lope away from the castle, enjoying the feel of the cool breeze ruffling his fur. Behind him, he could see the werewolf running alongside the stag, whose long legs could easily keep up with the two of them. Wormtail was scuttling rapidly along in the grass, barely visible because of his size. Nevertheless, they were traveling along quickly enough to reach the entrance to the Hogwarts grounds within a few minutes. Padfoot waited a moment with the others for Wormtail to catch up, and then they all ran out.

The dark road stretching before them looked inviting, but it led to Hogsmeade, and it wasn’t safe there. Even if the wolf didn’t attack anyone, they would be seen. Sirius turned to the right and led the others into the thick foliage at the side of the road. Before they had gone too far, Moony stopped suddenly and looked back at the castle, ears pricked, and he growled softly at whatever he had heard. He cocked his head, listening, and then a gleaming light appeared in his yellowish eyes, and he started forward intently. Padfoot barked sharply at him, but the wolf ignored him. Prongs interposed himself between the werewolf and the road, lowering his antlers threateningly. The wolf hesitated, then sank onto his haunches briefly in submission, then reluctantly continued their earlier course. Padfoot looked a question at the stag, who snorted in reply, and then the dog broke off from the others to return to the Hogwarts grounds.

Sirius didn’t like this. Nobody should be out here at this time of the night, particularly on the full moon. Everyone knew there were werewolves in the forest, as well as other Dark creatures. Of course, he technically shouldn’t have been there either, but that wasn’t the point. He transformed quickly back into a human--making sure the wolf had gotten far enough away--and pulled out the Marauder’s Map and his wand. Quickly scanning the Map, he saw his own name next to a dot just outside the grounds, and also saw two more dots inside the entrance. They were labeled Lucius Malfoy and Severus Snape.

He moved forward quietly, and the two of them came into view. They seemed to be struggling to carry a large trunk between them. He carefully stayed out of sight, but managed to get close enough to overhear their conversation.

“What took you so long?” Malfoy was asking. “I’d been waiting for over an hour.”

“I never asked you to come,” Snape snarled in reply. “I could have left just as well on my own. At least that way, I wouldn’t have attracted so much attention.”

“What, lugging this thing behind you? What’s in it? That can’t all be your bags.”

“I suggest you keep your nose out of my business.”

“And I suggest that you begin to show some respect to your superiors, Snape. You’re going to need to.”

“You’re not my superior.”

There was a muffled exclamation, and one side of the trunk dropped with a thud onto the road. “Why now?” said Lucius Malfoy’s voice angrily. “Of all the times.... Come on. We’ve got to get somewhere we can apparate from.”

“Where to?”

“We can apparate as soon as we’re past the entrance. I’ll take my trunk.”

“What made you think I was going to offer?”

“I didn’t, but I don’t want anything in there broken. Although it’s probably too late for that, now that you’ve dropped it.” There wasn’t any reply. Both of the figures had made it to the road, and the first disapparated immediately. The other heaved the trunk up onto one end and disappeared as silently as the other had.

* * * * *

It was just after lunch the next afternoon, and Peter Pettigrew was standing in Hogsmeade station with all the other students, waiting for the Hogwarts Express. He was sitting next to James on one of their upturned trunks, talking with Remus and Sirius.

“We’re supposed to hear back from the Ministry today,” Sirius was saying excitedly. “I really hope we all got in. I’ve got nothing else to do if I’m not accepted.”
“You could start fixing motorbikes and cars for Muggles,” James interrupted wickedly. Sirius grinned.

“There’s a good idea. Now, why didn’t I think of it?”

“You have a point, though,” Remus said thoughtfully. “What if we don’t get in?”

“You don’t have anything to worry about,” Peter said dismissively, unable to keep a touch of envy out of his voice. “Why wouldn’t they accept you?”

“I’ll give you one guess, Peter.”

He frowned at Remus. “They wouldn’t dismiss you because of that.“

“Wouldn’t they?”

“Not with your grades, and how you did in Advanced Defense Against the Dark Arts. I don’t think anybody else has mastered the Patronus charm at sixteen.”

Remus grinned at him. “I doubt anybody’s mastered the Animagus transformation at fifteen before.”

“Well, we can’t tell them about that,” said James practically. “Even if it is incredibly useful. Aside from the whole werewolf thing, I mean. Think about it. Dark wizards wouldn’t think twice about a stray dog, or a rat, unless they knew it was actually a person. I wonder if Dumbledore’s thought of that? Maybe McGonagall’s spying for them.”

“As Voldemort’s pet cat, you mean?” Sirius laughed.

Remus stood up, staring at something above the village. “I don’t think we’ll have to wait much longer, not if all those owls coming are from the Ministry.”

Peter wheeled around to see about seven owls, each carrying a small bundle of letters, swooping down out of the sky. All the other students noticed them, too, and began to chatter excitedly. They cleared a space on the platform for the owls to deposit their burdens, which they did, just before taking off again. Sirius pushed his way through the crowd, along with many other seventh years, and returned a moment later, carrying four letters.

“They’re here!” he said, unable to keep the nervousness out of his voice. He handed them out to the others. Peter stared at the name written in dark blue ink on the parchment--Peter Pettigrew--and swallowed.

Before any of them could open the letters, the Hogwarts Express steamed into the station, coming to a halt with a shriek of its whistle. James leapt off the trunk and grabbed his own, and the four of them hurried towards the train, lugging their trunks behind them.

They managed to find an empty compartment and sat down, each holding a letter out in front of them. Peter looked at the others. “Who’s going first?”

“I will,” James announced decisively. He inserted a finger into the small gap at the envelope’s corner and tore it open, then unfolded the parchment inside, cleared his throat, and began to read.

“Dear Mr. Potter,” he began, “we are pleased to inform you--” At this point, he was forced to stop, as Sirius had jumped from his seat and pounded James on the back nearly hard enough to knock him on the floor. James tried to scowl at him, but didn’t succeed, as he was already grinning from ear to ear. “Will you let me finish, you blockhead?”

“Sorry,” Sirius said, and sat down again.

“Dear Mr. Potter.... We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted for training as an Auror. Training sessions will begin on the 20th of this month. Please be at the Ministry headquarters in Diagon Alley, Room 421, at nine o’clock AM on this date. Bring only your wand. Thank you for submitting your application. Sincerely, Bartemius Crouch, head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement.”

“The 20th of July,” Sirius repeated. He looked over at James, who was still grinning down at the letter. James turned back to Sirius. “You next,” he said.

Sirius swallowed hard and ripped the envelope open. He quickly skimmed the first few lines. “I’m accepted!” Remus clapped him on the shoulder in congratulations.

“Well,” James told him with an air of mock surprise, “good job--you must have done really well in Herbology to make up for that Divination mark of yours.”

“Not necessarily,” Peter put in. “It’s not all based on grades. If he did well enough in the Ministry’s aptitude evaluations, he could still get in. Considering that they didn’t test us on Divination.”

Sirius chose to ignore this and spoke to Remus. “Go ahead, it’s your turn.”

Remus looked composedly down at the parchment and carefully opened the envelope, unfolding the letter inside slowly. He read through the entire letter with a neutral expression until he reached the end. A small smile crossed his face. Sirius let out a whoop. “About time all that studying paid off, eh?”

“It didn’t, at least not in Potions.”

James laughed. “Only because the main ingredient in the potion we had to make for our NEWT’s was aconite.”

“That might have had something to do with it,” Remus admitted wryly. “Well, Peter, are you going to open yours?”

Peter looked down at the envelope again, then held it out to James. “You read it. I--I don’t think I can.”

James took the letter, opened it, and began to read aloud. “Dear Mr. Pettigrew.... Thank you for submitting your application. However-” he broke off, blinked, and continued, reading it slowly and carefully avoiding meeting Peter’s eyes. “However, we regret to inform you that our training programs have been filled. Please consider resubmitting your name to us in the coming years. Again, thank you for your interest. Sincerely, Bartemius Crouch, head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement.”

Peter stared blankly down at the ground. He had wanted this. He had needed this. What was his mother going to say? She had always wanted him to go into the Ministry. She’d been overjoyed when he had submitted his application to the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, and had insisted on telling everyone she knew that her son was going to become an Auror.

“Peter?” Remus asked gently. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay,” he heard himself saying, and forced his face into what he hoped was a careless expression. “I knew I wouldn’t get in. I did horribly in Defense Against the Dark Arts, you all know that, and I failed the aptitude tests.”

Sirius took the letter from James and read through it again. “You know, you could still submit your name again next year,” he suggested.

“Maybe. It doesn’t matter that much. I can probably get a temporary job in some other department. I don’t actually have to go into the Ministry at all, you know, I can find a job somewhere else if I need to.”

James was staring at him with an expression of deepest sympathy. “Are you all right?”

No, Peter thought. I’m not. You got in, all of you, just like you got on the Quidditch team, James and Sirius, and like you were top of the class seven years running, Remus, and like you were Head Boy, James. And it’s not your fault, so I don’t know why I’m blaming you. No, I’m not all right. “Yeah, I’m fine. Anyone up for a game of Gobstones?”