First Fence (![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-community.gif)
scarvesnhatsDay 04)
Oct. 4th, 2005 11:37 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
rosie_ruesTitle: First Fence
Rating: PG for strong language (James really hated this lesson)
Disclaimer: So not mine.
Wordcount: 1032
Prompt: This un
Notes: Sixth year. Pre-slash. Interesting creatures.
“Gather round,” Professor Kettleburn called. “Nobody enter the paddock until I say so, though.”
Sirius sighed heavily and slouched after the others. They crowded against the fence, waiting, with some trepidation, to see what the lesson would entail. Sirius sighed again, more heavily, and Remus elbowed him.
“Now you’re at NEWTs level, we’re going to be looking at more, heh, challenging creatures, class. We can’t spend all our lives petting unicorns, can we?”
“Bet he could,” Sirius muttered and James snickered.
“Are you listening at the back, Mr Black?”
“Unicorns, professor,” Sirius said demurely and Remus elbowed him again.
Kettleburn twitched. “Actually, Mr Black, we’re going to be looking at a rather more, heh, interesting creature today. Hagrid has been kind enough to allow us a chance before the ministry, ahem, heh, that is- Class! Please pay attention.”
The group had swayed back from the fence. In the shuffle, Remus was shoved against his side. Sirius caught his arm to steady him and then had to remind himself to let go. Remus was warm and it was bloody freezing out here in the paddock.
Remus’ cheeks were pink and Sirius looked down at him, suddenly worried. He didn’t want Remus to be ill. He hated it when people were ill and knowing that he should be sympathetic and wasn’t made him feel small and mean inside.
“Nothing to be alarmed about!” Kettleburn called. “Now just stay right where you are while I herd it into the paddock. Don’t make any sudden moves.”
“Why are we doing this?” James moaned. “Why? Why? Why? We could be in Advanced Potions. Inside. In the warm.”
“Except you’re crap at Potions,” Sirius said. “You only just scraped onto the NEWT course – Slugbum’s hardly going to want you doing in the Advanced module.”
James stared at him piteously. “If I get eaten, tell Lily…”
“…Good riddance?” Sirius said.
“That you’re sorry about the exploding valentine in second year?” Remus suggested.
“Shut up,” James said urgently. “She’s forgotten that.”
Sirius looked at Remus. Remus looked at Sirius. Both laughed.
“I hate you both,” James said glumly.
Remus had his hands on Sirius’ chest. Sirius froze.
“Moony?”
“My scarf is caught on your buttons.”
“Okay,” Sirius said, holding himself so stiff he could hardly breathe.
“I wonder if that would work with Lily?” James said.
“Definitely,” Remus replied, pulling the last strands away. “Absolutely guaranteed.”
“You reckon?”
“To get you hexed into next week. Remember the master-plan, Potter.”
There were little bits of red and yellow wool all over the front of Sirius’ coat. He began to pluck them off one by one, releasing them into the wind.
“Here it comes!” Professor Kettleburn carolled and appeared round the side of the paddock at a run, his over-long robes swishing around his ankles.
There was the skitter of spindly feet and a blot of red-brown fur staggered into the paddock, legs whirling. Sirius frowned at it, trying to focus on those legs. There seemed to be a few too many of them.
“It’s a quintaped,” Remus said, his voice very steadily. “One of the most dangerous carnivores known to wizardkind.”
A Ravenclaw girl whimpered and tried to sidle behind Sirius.
“Five points for Gryffindor for educated guesswork, Mr Lupin. Don’t worry, class, it’s safe in the paddock.”
“But they’re not allowed onto the mainland,” James hissed. “It’s completely illegal.”
Sirius could feel that Remus was shaking but he said, quite coolly, “Yes, well, that wouldn’t stop Hagrid.”
“Fuck,” James muttered, eyeing the paddock.
“So who wants to come and meet Tibbles?” Kettleburn trilled.
The class shrunk back. Chins dipped below scarves. Eyes were averted. Shoulders lifted.
“Oh,” Kettleburn said.
“I will,” Sirius said.
“Sirius!” Remus protested and now he didn’t sound calm.
Sirius grinned and shook his hair back. He’d had another letter that morning and at least if he got eaten he wouldn’t have to decide whether to read it. He strutted over to the fence as the class parted around him, wide-eyed with horror.
“Super. Just climb onto the fence, Mr Black, and Tibbles will come and say hello.”
Sirius swung up onto the fence. He was already feeling better.
There was a soft pad of footsteps behind him and Remus climbed up next to him. Sirius stared at him in horror, wondering if he could pick him up and hurl him away. Remus set his shoulders, not meeting Sirius’ gaze, and said politely, “What shall we do now, professor?”
“That’s just right, boys. Just don’t startle her. She’s of a very nervous disposition.”
Fuck, fuck, fuck.
Sirius stared out across the paddock. Tibbles was crouching in the centre, eyes gleaming redly. He met her gaze, trying to ensure she’d go for him when she moved.
“Now just step down into the paddock and approach her carefully,” Kettleburn said.
“I’ve got you covered,” James murmured from close behind them. “If you want to stun Kettleburn and run, you’re safe.”
“Cheers, Prongs,” Sirius muttered back. “How would I ever stay out of detention without your help?”
“Never mind detention. Try to stay alive.”
Tibbles yawned, displaying a row of polished teeth. One of the Hufflepuffs whimpered.
The beast surged to its feet, roaring. Several girls screamed.
Tibbles howled, leapt several feet into the air and dived backwards. Wailing, she raced out of the paddock, fur on end.
“Eh?” James said.
“Oh, dear,” Kettleburn said. “You scared her. They’re such shy things. Typical herbivore behaviour. Can anyone tell me why?”
Sirius felt his jaw drop open. James said slowly, “Professor, aren’t Quintapeds man-eaters?”
“Of course they are, Mr Potter. Their cousin the Common Pentapod, however – Oh. Oh, dear. You didn’t think…? Goodness me. Five points all round for bravery and ten points off each of your houses for not exercising appropriate caution and lacking any common sense whatsoever.”
Beside him, Remus put his foot down to steady himself and began to laugh helplessly. Sirius looked at him and then at the empty field and doubled up.
“You two are insane,” James said but he sounded less tense. “Bonkers. Nuts. Loony.”
Remus shook his head. “That’s Sirius. I’m-”
“Don’t say it,” James said. “I hate this fucking class.”
“Mr Potter! Five points from Gryffindor!”
Rating: PG for strong language (James really hated this lesson)
Disclaimer: So not mine.
Wordcount: 1032
Prompt: This un
Notes: Sixth year. Pre-slash. Interesting creatures.
“Gather round,” Professor Kettleburn called. “Nobody enter the paddock until I say so, though.”
Sirius sighed heavily and slouched after the others. They crowded against the fence, waiting, with some trepidation, to see what the lesson would entail. Sirius sighed again, more heavily, and Remus elbowed him.
“Now you’re at NEWTs level, we’re going to be looking at more, heh, challenging creatures, class. We can’t spend all our lives petting unicorns, can we?”
“Bet he could,” Sirius muttered and James snickered.
“Are you listening at the back, Mr Black?”
“Unicorns, professor,” Sirius said demurely and Remus elbowed him again.
Kettleburn twitched. “Actually, Mr Black, we’re going to be looking at a rather more, heh, interesting creature today. Hagrid has been kind enough to allow us a chance before the ministry, ahem, heh, that is- Class! Please pay attention.”
The group had swayed back from the fence. In the shuffle, Remus was shoved against his side. Sirius caught his arm to steady him and then had to remind himself to let go. Remus was warm and it was bloody freezing out here in the paddock.
Remus’ cheeks were pink and Sirius looked down at him, suddenly worried. He didn’t want Remus to be ill. He hated it when people were ill and knowing that he should be sympathetic and wasn’t made him feel small and mean inside.
“Nothing to be alarmed about!” Kettleburn called. “Now just stay right where you are while I herd it into the paddock. Don’t make any sudden moves.”
“Why are we doing this?” James moaned. “Why? Why? Why? We could be in Advanced Potions. Inside. In the warm.”
“Except you’re crap at Potions,” Sirius said. “You only just scraped onto the NEWT course – Slugbum’s hardly going to want you doing in the Advanced module.”
James stared at him piteously. “If I get eaten, tell Lily…”
“…Good riddance?” Sirius said.
“That you’re sorry about the exploding valentine in second year?” Remus suggested.
“Shut up,” James said urgently. “She’s forgotten that.”
Sirius looked at Remus. Remus looked at Sirius. Both laughed.
“I hate you both,” James said glumly.
Remus had his hands on Sirius’ chest. Sirius froze.
“Moony?”
“My scarf is caught on your buttons.”
“Okay,” Sirius said, holding himself so stiff he could hardly breathe.
“I wonder if that would work with Lily?” James said.
“Definitely,” Remus replied, pulling the last strands away. “Absolutely guaranteed.”
“You reckon?”
“To get you hexed into next week. Remember the master-plan, Potter.”
There were little bits of red and yellow wool all over the front of Sirius’ coat. He began to pluck them off one by one, releasing them into the wind.
“Here it comes!” Professor Kettleburn carolled and appeared round the side of the paddock at a run, his over-long robes swishing around his ankles.
There was the skitter of spindly feet and a blot of red-brown fur staggered into the paddock, legs whirling. Sirius frowned at it, trying to focus on those legs. There seemed to be a few too many of them.
“It’s a quintaped,” Remus said, his voice very steadily. “One of the most dangerous carnivores known to wizardkind.”
A Ravenclaw girl whimpered and tried to sidle behind Sirius.
“Five points for Gryffindor for educated guesswork, Mr Lupin. Don’t worry, class, it’s safe in the paddock.”
“But they’re not allowed onto the mainland,” James hissed. “It’s completely illegal.”
Sirius could feel that Remus was shaking but he said, quite coolly, “Yes, well, that wouldn’t stop Hagrid.”
“Fuck,” James muttered, eyeing the paddock.
“So who wants to come and meet Tibbles?” Kettleburn trilled.
The class shrunk back. Chins dipped below scarves. Eyes were averted. Shoulders lifted.
“Oh,” Kettleburn said.
“I will,” Sirius said.
“Sirius!” Remus protested and now he didn’t sound calm.
Sirius grinned and shook his hair back. He’d had another letter that morning and at least if he got eaten he wouldn’t have to decide whether to read it. He strutted over to the fence as the class parted around him, wide-eyed with horror.
“Super. Just climb onto the fence, Mr Black, and Tibbles will come and say hello.”
Sirius swung up onto the fence. He was already feeling better.
There was a soft pad of footsteps behind him and Remus climbed up next to him. Sirius stared at him in horror, wondering if he could pick him up and hurl him away. Remus set his shoulders, not meeting Sirius’ gaze, and said politely, “What shall we do now, professor?”
“That’s just right, boys. Just don’t startle her. She’s of a very nervous disposition.”
Fuck, fuck, fuck.
Sirius stared out across the paddock. Tibbles was crouching in the centre, eyes gleaming redly. He met her gaze, trying to ensure she’d go for him when she moved.
“Now just step down into the paddock and approach her carefully,” Kettleburn said.
“I’ve got you covered,” James murmured from close behind them. “If you want to stun Kettleburn and run, you’re safe.”
“Cheers, Prongs,” Sirius muttered back. “How would I ever stay out of detention without your help?”
“Never mind detention. Try to stay alive.”
Tibbles yawned, displaying a row of polished teeth. One of the Hufflepuffs whimpered.
The beast surged to its feet, roaring. Several girls screamed.
Tibbles howled, leapt several feet into the air and dived backwards. Wailing, she raced out of the paddock, fur on end.
“Eh?” James said.
“Oh, dear,” Kettleburn said. “You scared her. They’re such shy things. Typical herbivore behaviour. Can anyone tell me why?”
Sirius felt his jaw drop open. James said slowly, “Professor, aren’t Quintapeds man-eaters?”
“Of course they are, Mr Potter. Their cousin the Common Pentapod, however – Oh. Oh, dear. You didn’t think…? Goodness me. Five points all round for bravery and ten points off each of your houses for not exercising appropriate caution and lacking any common sense whatsoever.”
Beside him, Remus put his foot down to steady himself and began to laugh helplessly. Sirius looked at him and then at the empty field and doubled up.
“You two are insane,” James said but he sounded less tense. “Bonkers. Nuts. Loony.”
Remus shook his head. “That’s Sirius. I’m-”
“Don’t say it,” James said. “I hate this fucking class.”
“Mr Potter! Five points from Gryffindor!”
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no subject
Date: 2005-10-04 11:06 pm (UTC)I LOVED this.
no subject
Date: 2005-10-04 11:15 pm (UTC)I love James. Fandom needs more James ^_^
no subject
Date: 2005-10-05 12:05 am (UTC)haha, so much love :D
no subject
Date: 2005-10-05 08:14 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-10-05 12:06 am (UTC)“I’ve got you covered,” James murmured from close behind them. “If you want to stun Kettleburn and run, you’re safe.”
“Cheers, Prongs,” Sirius muttered back. “How would I ever stay out of detention without your help?”
What a fantastic story!
no subject
Date: 2005-10-05 08:19 am (UTC)(For quoting I just use italics. Using pointy brackets (<>) instead of square put [i]before your text and then end it with[/i] when you want the italics to stop.
no subject
Date: 2005-10-05 12:34 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-10-05 08:20 am (UTC)Glad you liked it. ^_^
no subject
Date: 2005-10-05 02:40 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-10-05 08:20 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-10-05 03:56 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-10-05 08:21 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-10-05 05:16 am (UTC)“Bet he could,” Sirius muttered and James snickered.
This was the first of many lines that made me laugh out loud! :)
I love your Professor Kettleburn. This entire fic is so clever and witty and I utterly adore it.
no subject
Date: 2005-10-05 08:22 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-10-05 09:57 am (UTC)A bit of concrit for you if you're interested: your feel for dialogue is great - it read completely naturally to me - but you might want to try varying the ways in which you attribute it. There's one section where you have "...James said urgently" and "James said piteously" very close together, and as far as I can tell it's always "x said" rather than "said x", which can sound a little monotonous in a piece with so much dialogue. If you mix things up a bit (sometimes x said, sometimes said x, occasionally (and only occasionally!) using an adverb) you might find the rhythm picks up a little. Er, I'm not sure if I've explained that very well! But please believe me when I say that I'm only saying this because I like the piece and the way its written very much :).
no subject
Date: 2005-10-05 04:34 pm (UTC)It's the details that make writing fun. I'm glad you liked James - I'm currently tackling his point of view for the next prompt. Thanks for the comment.
no subject
Date: 2005-10-06 11:29 pm (UTC)Oh, I love my boys. XD
“I’ve got you covered,” James murmured from close behind them. “If you want to stun Kettleburn and run, you’re safe.”
Hehe! So perfect. *hugs James* I adore your James. And I love the professor. Fabulous job. XD
no subject
Date: 2005-10-07 08:04 am (UTC)I adore James. He's so much fun to write.
Thanks for the comment. Glad you liked it.
no subject
Date: 2005-10-10 02:45 am (UTC)I'm very curious -- is the more to the "master-plan?"
;-)
no subject
Date: 2005-10-10 08:54 am (UTC)I think the master-plan is just 'act like a civilised human being and she might come round.' ^_^
quintaped
Date: 2005-10-26 04:16 pm (UTC)I liked the sense of Sirius acting out a mad idea and then have it get steadily worse. I loved the feel of the boys; Remus joining Sirius, just to Be There, and James backing them up. All without discussion, but because That is What Marauders Do.
Then, the twist at the end, and Kettleburn's comments were truly funny.
Re: quintaped
Date: 2005-10-26 04:19 pm (UTC)I'm glad you liked it :)
no subject
Date: 2005-10-27 01:40 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-10-27 08:35 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-06-20 11:36 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-06-26 09:15 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-08-12 02:47 pm (UTC)"Remus protested and now he didn’t sound calm."
"There was a soft pad of footsteps behind him and Remus climbed up next to him. Sirius stared at him in horror, wondering if he could pick him up and hurl him away. Remus set his shoulders, not meeting Sirius’ gaze, and said politely, “What shall we do now, professor?”"
This was awesome.