Chapter 153: Bubbling Cauldrons (1)

Remus Lupin collapsed onto his bed in the boys' dormitory, exhaling a deep sigh of relief. He was immensely grateful the holidays were finally over. Waking up in a cold, snowy forest on Christmas Day was far from his idea of a pleasant time, but even that was better than dealing with his mother's drug-induced mood swings. He'd only seen his father three times over the break, and while the familiar ache of neglect still lingered, it was becoming easier to bear—because now, he had something to return to: Hogwarts.

The train ride back had been oddly quiet. Catherine, looking utterly exhausted, was quite grumpy and far less talkative than usual. Sirius barely said a word and seemed to avoid meeting Remus' eyes, leaving him with a strange sense of unease. James had done his best to keep things light-hearted, but there was only so much he could do with Peter's limited conversation skills and Remus' naturally quiet demeanour.

The door flew open as the rest of the boys piled into the bedroom. Peter darted over to his bed, flung open the trunk at its foot, and, after a quick rummage, emerged clutching Intermediate Transfiguration, looking utterly defeated.

"I knew I'd forgotten it here! Now I've got no homework done for tomorrow!" – he groaned in despair.

"We have Transfiguration tomorrow?" – Remus asked, sitting up in the bed.

"Yeah, McGonagall stopped by the Common Room after you left and handed out next term's schedules." – James replied, tossing Remus a folded piece of parchment – "Here's yours."

"Thanks." – Remus said, glancing over the schedule – "Astronomy on Tuesday night. Brilliant—let's hope we don't freeze to death."

"You could always ask Catherine to warm you up." – Sirius muttered, a sharp edge in his voice, still avoiding eye contact with his classmate.

"Mate!" – James exclaimed, his tone thick with exasperation.

Remus frowned, suspicion creeping into his thoughts. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Sirius finally turned, his stare cold and unwavering. "Take a guess."

"Is this about the kiss?" – Remus asked, tired of dancing around the obvious.

"What kiss?" – Peter chimed in, wide-eyed with curiosity.

"Well, our friend here turned out to be quite the wolf in sheep's clothing." – Sirius said, voice dripping with sarcasm – "Not only did he apparently have his fun with Flame, but he didn't even have the balls to properly date her! So, what did you do, Moony? Dragged her off to some dark corner of the school grounds, snogged her, and then told her it didn't mean anything? And to top it off, you hid it like a little wuss!"

"Sirius…" – James tried to cut in, but Remus waved him off, his amber eyes flashing with rare anger.

"Say what you want about me, but don't you dare insinuate that I took advantage of Catherine! I would never do that! You clearly have no idea what really happened between us—or maybe you do, and you've chosen to believe the jealous story you've cooked up. I'm not going to explain myself to you. This is between Flame and me. But for the record, yes, we remain just friends. I did think about your feelings, even if you refuse to believe it. Honestly, though, I think what really pisses you off is that you're the one who doesn't have the balls to date her!"

Sirius, enraged, drew his wand, but before anything could happen, James leapt between them, trying to diffuse the situation. Peter stood frozen, his mouth agape, eyes wide with fear.

"Forget it!" – Sirius snarled, storming out of the dormitory and slamming the door behind him.

"What a fucking mess!" – James muttered, running a hand through his hair – "I really thought he'd have calmed down by now. I'm sorry, Moony! It's my fault. I acted like a complete idiot and got drunk during the holidays, letting something slip. He figured it out from there, and I tried to cover it, but he didn't buy it."

"It's not your fault." – Remus sighed – "I wasn't sure hiding it from him was a good idea in the first place. Secrets have a way of coming out when you least expect them. I'm just... disappointed. I've always had his back, and even now, I think he should tell Catherine how he feels."

"I know, but he's so stubborn and emotional about certain topics." – James said, shaking his head, clearly drained – "I think he'll apologise eventually—this was out of line, and I'll make sure he knows it."

"Don't get more involved, James." – Remus replied quietly, sadness creeping into his voice – "I don't want additional tension between us. And don't tell Catherine either. She'll flip, and they'll end up in a huge fight."

"It would be a miracle if she didn't hex his head off." – James remarked with a smirk – "Maybe that's what he needs after all."

"But it's not what she needs." – Remus sighed again – "You saw how pale she was. And she's lost even more weight. It looks like she's barely getting any sleep as it is. I don't completely understand what's happening to her, but I don't want to add more stress when she's already on the edge."

"Yeah, you're right." – James agreed, glancing at Peter – "Keep your mouth shut, alright?"

"Of course." – the short boy nodded seriously – "But... what about the potion?"

"What do you mean?" – James snapped, his frustration resurfacing – "We keep going, as planned. No matter how pissed Sirius is, he's not going to throw away all the work we've put in."

"I've begged you to stop this madness more times than I can count." – Remus groaned, rubbing his face with his hands.

"There's no chance in hell we're giving up now!" – James insisted, his voice firm, though a hint of worry flickered in his eyes. He couldn't help but wonder if Sirius was still as committed to their plan on becoming Animagi.