HP: Fairborn Adventures

January 20th, 1978

Peter gradually edged along the wall, toddling over the large white tiles that stretched before him. He paused, raised himself on his rear legs, and took a couple of sniffs.

'It's rather difficult to trust my sense of smell here.'

The sharp scent of disinfection potions lay thick in the air. Everything else, even the scent of humans, was only vaguely recognizable.

The matron's office was only a few more feet ahead. He lingered at the door and peeked his head around the corner: 'Empty.'

'She must be down at dinner too.'

He crept further into the large aisle and let his small eyes roam over the dozen beds that stood in regular intervals along the clean, white wall. Only one of them had the curtains drawn shut. 'She must be there.'

The world shrank down as he transformed back into his human form right outside the curtains. He nervously glanced over his shoulder to check if the air was clear before whispering:

"E- Elana?

He jumped in fright when a small gasp of surprise sounded from behind the white curtain and a girl answered:

"Who's there?"

"It- It's me, Peter."

"Pete!" The voice sounded relieved, perhaps even happy to hear his name: "You can come in."

"Ok- okay, I'm coming in now." He tentatively raised his arms and shifted the curtain sideways, shielding his vision with his open palm.

Sweet laughter filled his ears: "I'm decent right now, so you can drop the fingers, Pete. I know you were going to peek anyway."

Elana Rosier lay underneath a thick white blanket, her back supported by a few pillows. Her eyes lit up when they found him: "Thank you for visiting me again, Pete. Come, sit." She gestured to the edge of her bed.

"Of course." He nervously took a seat, making sure not to come too close to her injured legs: "How- how are you? Is it any better?"

"Of course, much better already." The dirty blonde Slytherin giggled, provoking a turmoil of volatile emotion in his stomach: "Here look, Madam Pomfrey completely fixed my ribs already."

"What are you- " Peter stared in shock when she suddenly lifted the blanket with her healthy arm and moved her white hospital gown sideways to reveal smooth, porcelain skin, free of any bandages or scars.

'She's so pretty.' His eyes involuntarily lingered not on her ribcage, but on the slimmest edge of a pale mound of flesh that was not fully covered by the gown.

"And my shoulder is all but new as well." Elana caught his eye and pulled the gown down her left shoulder, revealing an amount of cleavage that had a hot blush creep up his cheeks.

"That's- That's good to hear," he squeaked, unable to tear his eyes away.

"Do you like what you see, Pete?" Her laughter sent butterflies through his stomach.

"Sorry." He whispered and quickly averted his eye, staring down at his feet while nervously fidgeting with his fingers.

"Don't worry about it. I trust you and it's okay, really... In fact, it's completely normal... you're a young wizard and I'm a young witch after all..." A playful gleam dwelled up in her eyes; still, she lowered her gown and brought the blanket back up to her neck: "How come you're visiting me again? It's only been a few days since you sneaked in here the last time. You still haven't told me how you do it by the way..."

'Should I tell her?' Peter contemplated for a few seconds.

"I- I just wanted to make you have everything you needed," Peter stuttered, "and I didn't have much else to do anyway."

"Did nothing interesting happen while I was gone?"

"No." Peter shook his head: "Well, you've probably heard about the Flints already."

"I read about it in the Daily Prophet." Her expression changed to one of grief: "I knew Elladora personally. Did you know she only just gave birth to a little boy, Marcus? What kind of monster would rob a small baby of its parents?!"

"It- it doesn't seem right," Peter admitted.

"You must be the only lion who thinks so." Elana snorted: "I bet your friends were very delighted?"

"Per- perhaps, they just didn't know the full story?"

"Somehow I doubt that." Elana shook her head, letting dirty blonde curls swing from side to side: "But then again, your friends do have quite a violent streak as well, don't they? They put me in here after..."

"I'm- I'm really sorry." Peter stammered, feeling a sudden spike of anger at Harry's girlfriend.

"I'm not mad at you, Pete, I could never be." Elana gave him another smile that flooded his body with relief: "You didn't attack me so ruthlessly. But that doesn't mean I understand how you can still be friends with them. If they're capable of all of this- ", she gestured to her shoulder, ribcage, and legs, " -then only Merlin knows what else they might do to those they suddenly dislike."

A pang of apprehension spiked through him: "You- you don't think they would ever hurt me, do you?"

"It is a possibility, Pete." A small, apologetic smile spread over her lips: "The Marauders have always done whatever they wanted and so do Peverell and McKinnon." A flicker of loathing spasmed over her face at the mention of the latter: "But since you are their closest friend and they involve you in everything they do, I doubt that they will turn on you."

"But they don't anymore," Peter whispered, swallowing a heavy lump of unease. 'They've all moved on to different things.'

"I'm sorry, Pete. I didn't quite understand you." Elana seemed perplexed.

"They- they don't involve me in everything anymore."

"But you're still their closest friend," Elana insisted: "Aren't you?"

"Not really any- anymore." Peter nervously started playing with his thumb again: "Not- not ever since Harry arrived."

"What do you mean, Pete?" Her voice was full of concern and she seized his hand, gently stroking her thumb over his palm: "What changed when Peverell arrived?"

'Everything. And not for the better...'

"Well, you see, he's very close with James and Sirius. He gets along with Remus as well, but I don't think he likes me very much."

"Nonsense!" Elana frowned: "What is there not to like about you?"

Peter sighed: "I'm not powerful nor good at everything like Peverell; I'm not funny or witty like James or Sirius; I'm not smart like Remus either." The unease tightened its fist around his lungs and squeezed mercilessly: "Sometimes I don't think they even need me. I just kind of tag along."

"Well, if they don't recognize your value then it's their loss." Elana shrugged: "Don't sell yourself short, Pete. From the moment we were paired together in herbology last year, I thought you were very funny. You always make me laugh and from what I've seen in our shared classes over seven years, you're certainly a smart wizard as well. How else could you have gotten six OWLs?"

"I- I'm not- " Peter blushed upon the compliment; his stomach squirmed: "I had a lot of help with everything. James and Sirius, they're both really good in classes and usually gave me tips. Remus is no slouch either, but Harry puts them all to shame. I still can't believe he managed to complete- " He cut himself off, realizing he was babbling.

Elana studied him curiously for a few seconds: "Peverell must spend a lot of his time in the library to be so good at magic, doesn't he?"

"I - I don't think so. At least I've never seen him there..." Peter admitted, slightly confused about the sudden change of subject: "He's not really around much anymore. It already became less when he started dating Marlene, but this term we've hardly seen him ever."

"That surprises me." Elana started trailing soft circles with her thumb over the back of his hand. Pleasant goosebumps raced down the length of his arm: "Do you think they're just doing 'couple stuff' or maybe something else?"

"Cou- Couple stuff?" he gasps.

"You know what I mean, Pete..." Elana held his gaze and shifted a bit closer: "Some kissing, perhaps snogging, or even fooling around in a broom cupboard... It's what couples usually do. Unless you're aware that they're up to something else?"

"I'm not sure..." Peter swallowed the heavy lump in his throat, his eyes briefly dipped to the Slytherin's pink lips: "They're not really like the other couples who giggle annoyingly anytime they sneak off, you know. They're mostly very serious before they vanish or when they come back again."

"I see what you mean..." Elana murmured before the playful gleam returned to her eyes: "We should try to find out where they sneak off to, don't you think?"

"Why- why would we do that?" Peter frowned.

"Because as far as I know, they've never been caught by a prefect anytime they 'vanish' to fool around together, so they must have found a very good broom cupboard or secret place to hide."

"I- I don't- "

"Relax, Pete." The Slytherin leaned forward, letting the blanket slide down her front until patches of that creamy white skin and the edge of her cleavage were exposed again. "If you find that place for me, for us... Then we could make use of it as well. I know you've thought about it, Pete. I can feel your looks on me. And I quite like them..."

"Per- perhaps I could try- " He stuttered, too distracted by her pouty pink lips which came incredibly close to his face all of the sudden. He could almost feel her hot breath on his cheek.

'Just a little closer...'

"Perfect." With a wicked grin Elana leaned back against her pillows and blew him a kiss: "If you don't mind, I'd like to rest a bit now. Besides, Madam Pomfrey will likely come back from dinner any moment now."

"Ok- okay." He moved from the bed, unable to keep the disappointment out of his voice.

"Thank you for visiting me again, you're a true friend. We can talk about your progress in class on Thursday if you want." Elana shot him one last wink: "I can't wait for you to show me that special place, Pete..."

"I - I will try my best." He barely managed to conceal the squeaking noise that escaped his lips by coughing and clearing his throat: "Bye, Elana."

"Bye- bye, Pete." Tearing his gaze away from her last smile, he pulled the curtains shut again and sneaked over to Madam Pomfrey's office where he transformed.

His heart was still pounding furiously but now it was not out of fear of getting caught, as it was usually the case whenever he roamed the castle in his Animagus form.

'She's still my friend, even after Marlene attacked her so brutally.'

Thinking about the blonde had his insides in a sharp twist and a small bubble of anger flared up: 'But if I find the secret place they sneak off to, I will not only be fully forgiven, but Elana will also want to spend some time there with me.'

Luckily, the distance between the Hospital wing and the Gryffindor common room wasn't too far. After a quick glance over his shoulder to ensure that the seventh-floor corridor was empty, Peter transformed once more and climbed through the portrait hole of the Fat Lady.

"Hey, Wormy." Sirius sat in one of the armchairs next to the fireplace. Peter stiffened a pang of jealousy at seeing a pretty brunette sixth-year on his lap: "Where've you been? We've missed you at dinner."

'Another one of his conquests. He will boast about it for weeks.'

"I- I just wasn't feeling too hungry." He pictured himself sitting on a squishy armchair with Elana in his lap. Heat crept to his face.

"I know you better than that, mate, you wouldn't pass up on some pudding unless it was very important." Sirius barked with laughter: "Spit it out already, where've you been?"

"Nowhere... I was just roaming the Castle a bit." Peter avoided the question.

Sirius eyed him critically. 'Shit, did I raise his suspicion?'

"Give me a second, will you, luv." Sirius gave the brunette a light slap on her butt, making her squeal in delight.

He lifted her off of him to intercept Peter before he could attempt to head back up to their dormitory. "Listen, Pete, did you take the Map with you? Courtney and I would like to take a spontaneous stroll if you catch what I mean."

A second flare of jealousy twisted through his insides. "Uhm, ye- yes sure." He took out the yellowed, folded piece of parchment from underneath his robes and handed it to the other boy: "Here you go."

"Thanks, Wormy." Sirius winked, turning to walk back to the fireplace when he suddenly paused: "Why did you take it with you by the way?"

"What? I- well - I was trying to find some new secret passageways so we can still help Remus," Peter fibbed.

"Huh." Sirius hummed, storing the Map in his pockets: "And?"

"Hm?" He squeaked nervously.

"Well, did you find any?" Sirius rolled his eyes.

"Oh, no- no I didn't."

"Didn't expect so; we would've likely discovered them already if they existed." Sirius shrugged: "Where are you heading now?"

"Maybe to the kitchens." Peter fiddled with his fingers: "I'm feeling quite hungry."

"Didn't you just skip dinner because you weren't hungry?" Sirius frowned at him: "What going with you, Wormy? You always look like you're close to wetting your knickers but now it's even worse."

"Nothing- It's nothing really!" he whimpered: "You know what they say; going on adventures makes you hungry and all that."

"No, I actually haven't heard that one yet. Must be a muggle thing..." Sirius eyes him warily: "You know you can talk to us about anything, right Wormy? The Marauders stopped having secrets in second-year already."

"Sirius!" The brunette he left next to the fireplace thrilled and batted her eyelashes at him in a very inviting manner: "Are we still going or not?"

"I'm coming, luv!" He yelled and blew her a kiss that had the girl giggling madly: "Anyways, I'm off! Gotta show her a good time, heh?" Sirius clapped Peter smartly on the shoulder and turned with a last grin: "Enjoy your night, Wormy!"

'One day I will too.'

Peter darted up the stairs to the seventh-year dorm. Only then did he allow himself to take a deep breath.

'But there was little time for rest.'

Elana wanted the first result during their next herbology lesson on Thursday. The playful sparkle in her light green eyes danced through his thoughts. He had to find the place Harry and Marlene sneaked off to if only to see that sparkle again.

'And the quicker I find it, the better my chances to spend some alone time there with her.'

January 22nd, 1978

"Alright, everybody, settle down! Please, settle down!" Meadowes entered the classroom from her office and stepped in front of them. She waited until she had their undivided attention and for everyone to take a seat: "Today will be the first of a series of lessons many of you have been looking forward to. It's the beginning of the Patronus project."

'This will be interesting.' Harry glanced around over his shoulder.

The professor's announcement was met with small cheers of excitement and enthusiastic nods from the majority of students. Next to him, Marlene let out a small groan and took a deep breath. "Fucking great..."

"Have I ever told you about my secret 'schoolboy - professor' fantasy, love?" He whispered seductively into her ear, earning himself a quick stomp on his toes underneath the bench. 'Ouch'

"Calm down now, please!" Meadowes' amplified voice boomed through the classroom: "As the Patronus is one of the most complex charms known to wizarding kind, one would usually start this topic by providing a theoretical background to you. However, I believe in a different approach!"

'Well, let's hear it.'

She eyed her class challengingly: "Just so you can get an elementary feeling of the charms, I'd like each of you to attempt casting it. For that, you will have the support of Assistant Professor McKinnon- '', Meadowes gestured to Marlene, ignoring the wary looks she received from her classmates, especially the Slytherins, " -who you can reach out to for help should you need it. The two of us will be going- "

"No." Marlene suddenly spoke up beside him.

'I guess that's the end of my fantasy.' Harry bit back a snort when everyone's neck snapped in her direction: 'Too bad, I bet she'd make a sexy teacher.'

Meadowes frowned and regarded her as if she'd seen her for the very first time: "Pardon me, Ms. McKinnon?"

"I said: No," Marlene repeated calmly, meeting her Professor's gaze: "I will not be playing your Assistant Professor today, ma'am. You're the one getting paid to teach us, not me."

"That is rather selfish, don't you think?" Meadowes grimaced: "You've come close to perfecting the charm and now you refuse to help others to do the same?"

"I've perfected the charm a long time ago, Professor, but yes, that's exactly what I'm doing." Marlene tossed her hair over her shoulder and leaned back into her chair as if it were a throne. "If I do ever decide to teach it to anyone else, it will be to students of my choice."

"That is rather disappointing to hear," Meadowes expressed.

"Yes, I've been disappointing a lot of people recently," Marlene murmured under her breath.

'Not me, you haven't.' Harry raised his hand, not even waiting to be picked on.

"According to the infamous Hogwarts rumor mill, Marlene is a Dark Lady now, haven't you heard, Professor?" He forced his wide smile back so as not to betray him: "Everyone knows Dark Lords and Ladies can't conjure a light charm like the Patronus anyways... Their souls are just too tainted for it..."

Marlene failed to hide her snort, stiffening a fit of giggles. The rest of the class didn't seem to know whether he was serious or not.

"Five points from Gryffindor for your cheek, Mr. Peverell!" Meadowes glared at him unimpressed: "But luckily your ridiculous analogy makes for a decent transition."

She walked back to the blackboard: "It is indeed a very common misconception that people who have been dabbling in the Dark Arts find themselves unable to conjure a Patronus as a result of it. That is not true! All it takes to conjure a Patronus is the efficient guidance of your own magic. Your intent must personify itself. For that, you have to let that one happy memory flood your body until it becomes something physical. Give it a try among the people you share a bench with. I will come around and provide assistanceshould you need it."

Benches were moved aside and students from each of the houses began forming small groups. Harry and Marlene turned sideways to James and Lily and were soon joined by the remaining three Marauders.

"Go ahead and give it a try." Harry encouraged his friends, twirling the Elder Wand between his fingers: "Relax and take some time to pick a memory. Unlike what you've just been told, it doesn't necessarily have to be a happy one."

"But isn't the Patronus supposed to act like a Guardian, allowing you to keep your wits while the Dementors feed off of it instead of you?" Sirius challenged.

"It's a bit over-simplified, but in essence you're correct. However, for the charm to be your guardian, it doesn't have to materialize out of a happy memory, merely a very powerful one." Harry explained: "As the name 'Patronus' suggests, it should be fueled by your desire to protect."

"Desire?" James echoed with a frown: "I thought it was like Transfiguration and intent is what matters the most?"

"Wha- What's the difference between desire and intent anyway?" Peter asked.

"Intent is the key to many forms of magic, especially Transfiguration, where you have to truly visualize any changes and the final results you want." Marlene chimed in: "However, emotion-based spells, like the Patronus work much better if they're fueled by pure desire instead. For example, the desire to protect someone you love and avert harm from them."

'Well put.' Harry squeezed her fingers underneath the table.

"Letting your sentiments run wild sounds like a rather dangerous technique to me." Remus frowned: "I've read that if your attitude is not based on any reasoning, it's classified as desire, whereas if it is, there's usually some intent behind it. Intent-based magic sounds like a much safer option to me."

"It might be safer but it's significantly less powerful." Harry shook his head. "Let's put it like this: We all know that young magical children often perform accidental magic that is significantly more potent than what any first year student could hope to achieve with a wand."

"When I was a child, I used to go higher and higher on the swing before jumping off. Instead of falling I just floated through the air like dandelion seeds on a gentle breeze," Lily shared with a small smile: "When I once told Flitwick about it, he suggested that it was a combination of the featherweight and self-levitation charm."

"I know of a similar occurrence. I once had a friend- ", a flicker of pity spiked through Harry as he thought about the chubby, blonde boy, " -whose family was so worried that he was a squib, they held him out of the window and threatened to let go, hoping he'd perform some accidental magic."

"That's horrible!" Lily cried in shock: "How could they do that to a child?

"What happened to him?" Sirius asked curiously.

"Well, he fell from the third floor but merely bounced off the ground like a giant rubber ball." Harry chuckled: "Keep in mind that this is a form of self-transfiguration most OWL students would fail to perform. Do you think my ten-year-old friend visualized himself as a giant, bouncy ball and spoke some incantation while falling? No, of course, not! His stunt of accidental magic was purely based on his inherent desire to survive. How it manifests itself was not of importance, his desire merely had to be strong enough."

"Desire then." Lily took a deep breath and held out her wand. She closed her eyes and simply sat there for a few seconds until a small, almost sad smile spread from the corner of her lips.

"Expecto Patronum!"

Silver mist burst from her wand, swirling and twisting in mid-air. The entire class stopped their attempts to watch the redhead, as she opened her eyes, lips tightened in concentration.

"Hold it, Lily," Harry nodded, leaning over the bench to whisper in support: "Seize the feeling and hold it tight."

Two pairs of shanks broke from the silver mist, ending on a set of hooves. The four-legged animal attempted to break free from whatever constrained it in a desperate dance. Ever so slowly, a fur-covered torso formed. Even a long neck stretched upwards when suddenly Lily's wand trembled, and the silver mist wavered into thin air.

"I was so close!" Lily groaned in disappointment.

"Don't be too hard on yourself." Harry was slightly surprised that it was Marlene who reassured Lily first: "Your first attempt was much better than mine. But then again, you've always been the first to master a new charm."

"Can- can I see yours again?" Lily asked the blonde tentatively: "You don't have to if you'd rather not..."

"I'll make the exemption for you." Marlene laughed, tossed her hair over one shoulder, and flicked her wand after briefly closing her eyes:

"Expecto Patronum."

Her ethereal Granian erupted a burst of elegance and spread its magnificent wings, catching the attention of every student.

"Let's give him a playmate." Harry grinned and flicked the Elder Wand, murmuring under his breath.

The Thestral joined its counterpart as they fell into a graceful gallop around the classroom, playfully chasing each other.

"Does it, you know, happen often that they match?" James asked, watching the two Patroni in awe.

"I've heard of a few occasions." Harry admitted with a small smile: "If you have a very personal connection to someone- "

"Someone you love deeply for example- " Marlene grinned, pecking his cheek before winking at a blushing Lily.

" -then your Patronus might take or even change into a shape associated with said person." Harry said: "However it doesn't always have to be the case."

"I know mine had four legs and smooth fur..." Lily's eyes shifted from Harry and Marlene's intertwined fingers over to James. A playful gleam sparkled in her eyes. Her lips tightened into a thin line in determination: "I'd like to find out what it is."

"Expecto Patronum!"

January 25th, 1978

"I've missed you."

Peter watched as he took the breathtaking blonde into his arm and brushed his lips against hers until they curled into a small smile and she leaned into the kiss, fingers fisting in his ebony hair.

Sizzling jealousy scorched him from the inside as he witnessed the intimate scene. 'But soon I will have it too.'

"Oh, I can tell you did." McKinnon laughed and seized his hand: "Where are we heading tonight?"

'Shit.'

He zipped back into a small alcove when Harry suddenly glanced over his shoulder, scanning the seemingly empty corridor leading to the Ravenclaw common room.

"To the Room," the raven-haired wizard said: "It's high time we test your progress once more."

'What room does he mean?'

"Didn't I do well last time?" The blonde tossed a long golden braid over her shoulder and led the way.

"She was no match for you, that's certain," Harry admitted with a low chuckle: "But then again, the number of people who are able to challenge you is rapidly shrinking every day."

'What are they talking about?' Peter hurried to catch up with them as the distance grew and they turned into a corridor leading to the main staircase: 'Some sort of competition?'

"But not quick enough." McKinnon sighed in frustration.

"Which is why we continue practicing. Until they don't impose a challenge anymore…" Her boyfriend replied, suddenly letting his wand slide into his palm: "Wait a second- "

Peter almost squeaked in panic and darted behind the closed suit of armor, when Harry suddenly turned on the spot right before they hit a crossway.

Marlene glanced down at his wand: "Good idea, there's still a lot of students out." The blonde flicked a slim piece of wood from her waist and twirled it over her crown of golden hair: "First to get there..."

"You little minx." Harry laughed and mirrored her wand motion, suddenly fading from view completely without leaving even the tiniest ripples of air.

'Fuck, disillusionment charms.'

'And they're perfect at casting them.'

Peter acted quickly and sprinted as fast as his four little legs took him towards the spot where they had just disappeared from.

'Where did they go?'

He raised himself on his rear legs and took a couple of deep sniffs, catching a strong whiff of sweet, fruity shampoo and the familiar muggle cologne Harry applied each morning before leaving the dorm.

'This way!'

He followed his well-developed, most trusted sense, encountering more and more students the closer he drew to the main staircase, just as the couple he was following had predicted.

'I can't lose them!' He was forced to dodge a group of giggling second-year Ravenclaws. He soon edged along the cold wall when the hallway became packed, hiding in the shadows of suits of armor anytime a large group passed him. The whiff of shampoo he had caught was long overdrawn by the smell of dozens of other teen witches, many of which still hadn't figured out how to apply cologne in modesty.

'Fuck!' Peter cursed, realizing that all his efforts of tracking Harry unnoticed for days would be in vain if he failed now.

The rat's perceptive nose couldn't help him anymore. He needed his human eyes instead.

He headed straight for the next broom cupboard he saw and squeezed himself through the tight gap between the stone tiles and the locked wooden door above it.

As soon as he had transformed back into his human form, he unfolded the trusty Map from within his pockets, tracking the hundreds of tiny ink footprints with the lit end of his wand in an attempt to find his two targets.

'They said they were heading to 'The Room.' Peter whimpered in frustration when over a minute had passed without success: 'It must be the place Elana had mentioned. The one where they've never been caught.'

'There!' Finally he caught Harry's name floating over a pair of ink footprints that hurried up the staircase leading from the sixth to the seventh floor.

'What in Merlin's name are they doing up there?' Peter frowned, catching McKinnon's name tag right behind him: 'There's nothing up there beside our common room and Dumbledore's office.'

He was about to fold the Map and pocket it to step back out and follow them when something strange caught his eye. Harry's name tag floated up and down a seemingly random piece of wall while his girlfriend remained standing a few feet away.

'What is he doing?'

Peter held his breath, small eyes burning into the parchment in his hand. After a third turn, Harry paused while McKinnon walked up to him.

Then, the couple vanished into the wall, their names swallowed into nothingness.