The Wriggler

After that day, Lily and I visited Snape in the Hospital Wing together. He smiled when he saw Lily, but his face fell when he saw me.

As we were getting ready to leave, he said in a voice only the two of us could hear, "Don't think I'm going to thank you."

"I was just afraid Lily would be sad if you died." I shrugged. "I didn't hold back when I beat you up last time."

[Snape affection -1]

At times like this, I couldn't help remarking that Snape was much more normal than Sirius. At least whenever I lost affection with Snape, I knew why.

After the holidays, there wasn't much time left before final exams. Lily started dragging Snape and me to the library every day. With the pressure of exams, the atmosphere throughout Hogwarts grew heavy. Only James and his friends still wandered around every day like a bunch of street loafers.

"Remus took time off."

In the common room, James pulled Sirius and me close by the head, his expression serious. "He's taken time off again, right before the full moon. Even if something's going on with his family, it can't possibly happen on every full moon for a whole year, can it? And every time he comes back, he has injuries. I strongly suspect he..."

"Has a side job at an underground boxing ring?" I finished for him.

Sirius struggled to keep a straight face, and James burst out laughing. He patted my shoulder. "Seriously, it's not impossible."

"If you're going to say that, you might as well say he's a hero who only goes out to save the world on the night of a full moon." Sirius shook his head. "Don't joke at a time like this."

"I never expected Young Master Black to read Batman." I was amazed.

"...What's that?" Sirius looked utterly bewildered.

"Back to the point!" James pushed both our necks down again. I honestly thought that if he used a little more force, the three of us would tumble into a heap on the floor. "The last few times, Remus seemed to go to the Hospital Wing first. We could follow him and see where he actually goes on the night of a full moon."

"I agree." Sirius raised his hand.

"This is a lot more interesting than trying to break into the Headmaster's Office in the middle of the night." I was gratified. "You've grown up, James. You've finally learned to care about your friends."

"I've always cared about my friends." James put an arm around Sirius. "My good brother can definitely vouch for that!"

"I don't know him," Sirius replied.

Remus wasn't in the common room. Based on the last few times, we went to the Hospital Wing under the Invisibility Cloak before curfew.

He didn't come in for a long time, and the three of us had nothing to do. We nearly fell asleep.

"Hey! He's here!"

Just as I was getting drowsy and starting to topple toward the floor, James patted my shoulder. I looked up and saw Remus walk in.

"Here you are, dear."

Madam Pomfrey handed Remus a bottle of potion. Remus nodded and thanked her with a smile. "Thank you, Madam Pomfrey."

"May Merlin bless you." After saying that, Madam Pomfrey smiled gently. "Whenever I say that, I think of that Gryffindor student. Come to think of it, she's hardly been to the Hospital Wing at all this past month. That's really unusual."

Sirius gave me a look that said, "Just look at yourself."

The hand holding Remus's potion bottle paused for a moment. When he spoke again, his voice sounded a little helpless.

"She's actually a very good friend. The last time she came in, it was because of a friend too."

I hadn't expected Remus to think so highly of me. At that thought, I gave Sirius a "Just look at yourself" look, and he responded with a snort.

"She's actually one of the better ones." Madam Pomfrey sighed. "It's mainly those two Gryffindor boys. I really wish they'd behave themselves. Nearly half the students in the Hospital Wing are here because of those two."

Now the three of us all started giving one another "Just look at yourself" looks.

Remus didn't know what to say either. To keep the conversation from dying, he asked, "What about the other half?"

"The other half were sent here by Slytherin students." Madam Pomfrey slammed a cupboard shut. "It's unbearable."

"Now we should all go point fingers at Slytherin together," James summed up quietly.

After getting his potion, Remus headed out. We hurried after him and left the Hospital Wing together.

We watched Remus leave Hogwarts Castle, and when he passed the greenhouse without stopping, James began muttering.

"Is he going to the Quidditch pitch? I never knew he loved Quidditch so much."

"You're the only one who loves Quidditch that much, aren't you?" I couldn't believe it. "Who goes to play Quidditch in the middle of the night? With ghosts?"

"I remember the Whomping Willow is up ahead." Sirius frowned. "That tree has a nasty temper. Even a leaf landing on it can make it thrash around for ages."

"Remus isn't really going to an underground boxing ring on the night of a full moon, is he?" James was shocked. "Fighting the Whomping Willow and then becoming the brightest star in the underground boxing ring?"

I hadn't expected James to remember something I'd made up on the spot for so long, much less turn it into a serial. I couldn't help feeling deeply guilty toward Remus...

As we spoke, the Whomping Willow came into view. Remus walked over to it. Because of the distance, all we could see was him raising his hand, while the Whomping Willow remained still and unresponsive. Just like that, he disappeared into a hollow in the tree.

"There's a passage under the Whomping Willow!?" James was shocked. He rolled up his sleeves and charged toward the Whomping Willow before Sirius and I could react. "But why didn't the Whomping Willow move? Does it not move at this time on the night of a full moon? I thought I just saw Remus touch something on the trunk, but I don't know... Aaargh!"

Before he could finish, the Whomping Willow flung him away before our astonished eyes, leaving him hanging from a branch on the other side.

Me: "..."

Sirius: "..."

"I know you like secret passages and adventures, but did you have to run so fast?"

Sirius and I carried James to the Hospital Wing together. Madam Pomfrey had initially been very worried about her patient, but when she saw it was a familiar face again, I could almost see her heave a long sigh.

"Mr Potter, the moment I saw you, I knew you'd done something dangerous again." She examined James's arm. "Bruising and a fracture."

James grimaced. "I think my arm is about to break."

"Heh, good. If it breaks, you'll know not to touch things you shouldn't next time." I pressed down on his arm. Without exaggeration, if Hogwarts had sound-activated lights, his scream would have lit up the entire castle.

"Miss Merlin, Potter is a patient right now." Madam Pomfrey pushed Sirius and me aside. "Let Potter get some proper rest tonight."

Getting Sirius to leave James behind and go back to bed was practically impossible. After Madam Pomfrey left, Sirius and I sneaked back to James's bedside under the Invisibility Cloak.

"Brother, how are you feeling?" Sirius asked quietly.

"Much better." After receiving treatment, James looked very peaceful. "So how exactly did Remus make the Whomping Willow settle down?"

"I think we can get closer and watch next time." I pinched the place where James's arm had been broken again. Noticing what I was doing, he sat up a little and blinked at me.

"It doesn't hurt anymore," he said with a grin. "Even if you use more force... Oww!"

He sucked in a sharp breath and quickly covered his mouth, looking toward the door. Luckily, Madam Pomfrey hadn't heard him.

"You told me to do it." I raised both hands.

[Sirius affection -1]

"Keep your hands to yourself." Sirius edged me back, then looked at James with concern. "I saw Remus seem to touch something on the trunk before the Whomping Willow settled down. That tree must have other secrets we don't know about."

"Secrets!" At that word, James started wriggling around in bed. "That's simply the greatest, most wonderful word in the world!"

"Yesterday you said the greatest, most wonderful word in the world was 'adventure,'" I said.

"Last week you said the greatest, most wonderful word in the world was 'mystery,'" Sirius added.

"See? You two are already in sync now." James thumped his chest. "I did this to improve your relationship!"

Now Sirius also wore an indescribable expression. He raised a hand as though shielding himself from something, which puzzled James. "What are you doing?"

"The light of your confidence is too dazzling," Sirius said. "I can't stand it. I'm blocking it."

James never felt embarrassed. Instead, he burst out laughing.

Then Madam Pomfrey came over after hearing us and chased both of us out of the Hospital Wing.

─────

[Author's note]

★Tip★

Different ways of interacting will also lead to noticeably different progress in affection storylines. For example, even though you're already good friends with James, his affection may still be lower than Sirius's, despite your less-than-great relationship with Sirius;

Of course, this is a comparison and doesn't mean James's affection is low.

★Side quest reminder★

*Congratulations on unlocking Remus's main romance storyline-[Night of the Full Moon · 2]