Roads Not Taken

As always, characters and places in the Potter universe are owned by JKR the great. I'm grateful to get to play with them a little, and do it for fun, not profit.


I decided to move the story along a few years.

Ch 7 The more things change, the more they stay the same

"Look who it is, all by his lonesome." James motioned toward Severus who was sitting under a tree looking over some notes.
"Let it alone, James."
"Why, Remus? Why should I?" James had never liked Severus, right from the start. It didn't help any that Severus did better in class than James. Nor that a certain redhead seemed to like Severus while she held James in some disdain.
"Come on, Remus. Where's the harm?" asked Sirius with a nasty gleam in his eye. Remus eyed the two uneasily. James was bad enough, but Sirius got downright reckless, sometimes. Poor Remus was caught in between. He liked James and Sirius, even when they got him in trouble, but he liked Severus, too. This could get out of hand.

James gestured with his wand and murmured a spell, and suddenly Severus was hanging upside down, papers scattered, fighting his robes out of his face.
"Look at the bat! Hanging upside down, like all his kind." James chortled, Sirius laughed, as did Peter and a few others, watching.
James looked around at the onlookers, while Severus did his best to just look bored. That wasn't easy, hanging upside down with his underwear showing. At least they were clean. A couple of girls began to look interested.
"Good thing you came from behind, Potter. If I had seen you coming you wouldn't have had a chance."
"Oh, the bat snivels." This from Sirius. "What shall we do with him, James?"

Suddenly James found himself strung up next to Severus.
"What...who? Put me down! What are you doing?" A furious James sputtered, as Lily walked up, wand out and laughing.
"Evans- we were just having some fun...put me down."
"Now who's sniveling? End your spell on Severus. And the rest of you, don't try anything." She looked over the group including Sirius and Peter. "Remus- you should have stopped him."
"You're right, Lily. I should have. This feud has gone on way too long. James, put Severus down."
Severus dropped to the ground as James ended the spell, and he moved over next to Lily. "Thanks," he murmured.
"Anytime. Now, what shall WE do with HIM?"
"Hey, you said if I let Severus go you'd put me down..." James was indignant.
"When did I promise that?" asked Lily.
There was a scuffle as Sirius started forward and Remus stopped him. Peter watched everyone avidly, but made no move to help James.

"Just drop it, Lily. He's not worth the trouble," said Severus, as more of a crowd began to gather.
"Are you sure? He wouldn't have let you off so easily."
Severus shook his head. "Just drop it. And drop HIM."
"OK," She pointed her wand over her shoulder as she walked off with Severus, and James fell to the ground. He sat up and watched as Lily and Severus walked off.
"What does she see in him that she doesn't see in me?" he asked plaintively.
"Oh, I don't know," said Remus. "Maybe NICENESS, he isn't a show-off, doesn't play tricks on people..."
"Yeah, but aside from that...she actually hexed me- that's SOMETHING."
"She's just a mudblood, James, and he's a halfblood. We could have taken them both..."
James turned on Sirius, angrily, "Don't you ever call her names!"


******************************************
Later that year-

"What do you mean, Sirius? What did you DO?
"I just hinted, a little, to Snape, that there might be something of interest if he went through the tunnel to the shrieking shack...and I might have told him how to immobilize he whomping willow..." Sirius trailed off as James' face grew more and more angry.
"You KNOW it's a full moon tonight! Remus will be there in his werewolf form. Snape could get bit!"
"I figured we could get there in time to stop it. He'll just get a good scare..."
"So you expose Remus as a werewolf AND us as unregistered animagi. WHAT were you thinking? Peter, did you see Snape? Did he try the tunnel?"
Peter looked from one to the other, excitement plain in his face. "He went down the tunnel awhile back, he and the Evans girl."
"WHAT! Why didn't you stop them! I'll never forgive either one of you if she gets hurt!"

James ran for the whomping willow. "C'mon, Peter, fix the tree so it doesn't hit me. Hurry up!" In place of Peter a rat now dodged in around the tree roots to find the right place to push. A big, black dog pushed its way into the tunnel, followed by the rat and James.

They heard the confrontation well before they could see it. The howling was awful. Remus, as werewolf, stalked Severus, who had pushed a white-faced Lily behind him. He has his wand out, but the wolf struck it aside as they watched.

The dog which was Sirius leaped in front of Remus, barking furiously and snapping at his legs. He danced aside as the werewolf swatted at him.
"Get her back down the tunnel, Snape," James yelled.

As Remus swiped Sirius, knocking him into a wall, James transformed into a stag. Snape and Lily, who had started for the tunnel, stood staring as the stag backed down the werewolf with the dog scrambling back to help. Together they drove the wolf further away, and Severus came to his senses.
"C'mon, hurry," he shoved Lily ahead of him down the tunnel. They scrambled out the other end, finding the place to push to quiet the tree. They stood, panting and staring at each other.

Lily finally got enough breath back to choke out "That was a werewolf! What was it doing in the shrieking shack? Where was Remus? Black said he might need our help."
Severus said, still panting, "I think maybe that WAS Remus." Lily stared at him, dumb struck.
"Think about it, Lily. How many times has Remus been sick or missing over the years..."
"And the dog? AND THE STAG?" Her voice rose with each word until it was a squeak.
"The stag was James. We saw him transform. The dog must be Sirius."
"They're animagi? How?"

James, Sirius, and Peter scrambled out of the tunnel. "Oh, God, James, that was awesome..." Sirius sounded more excited than scared. James knocked him down with a fist to his jaw.
"Sirius, I love you like a brother, but if you EVER do anything that stupid again so help me I'll..."
Severus knocked James down next to Sirius. "If either of you risk Lily again..."
"OK, enough!" Lily yelled. "Now explain!"

Later-
"So Remus is a werewolf, and the three of you learned to transform so you could keep him company. Well, that part makes some sense. That's not EASY! What is Peter, I didn't see another animal?" Lily looked at Peter, who mumbled, "a rat".
Severus smirked, "That must be useful."
Peter said, defensively, "I can immobilize the tree. There are things I can do that a larger animal couldn't."
"At least not without being seen." Severus turned to Sirius, "Black, that was still completely stupid. You could have got us both bitten."
Sirius had the good grace to look shamefaced, "You're right. It WAS stupid. I'm sorry, Snape, Evans. I guess I just didn't think. Can you forgive me? Can we bury the hatchet?"
Severus looked like he'd like to bury it in Sirius.
James said, "Snape, you were protecting Evans. That was brave."
Severus eyed James, and said "you saved us all, as the stag." He put out a hand, and James shook it.

Lily laughed. "Alright, enough male bonding! I'LL forgive you both IF you teach me to be an animagus!"