The Marauders

Year 1: Masters of Mischief

Chapter One: Hogwarts, School of Witchcraft and Wizardry

James Potter

James Potter stood on the threshold between the Hogwarts Express and Platform nine and three quarters. His mother and father waved proudly from the crowd behind him. They had gotten so excited when he received his letter that they all went off to Diagon Alley immediately, forgetting James at first. As he stepped onto the train and waved his final goodbyes, James wondered about what Hogwarts would be like. In his mind, there was an enormous, country-sized castle with people flying to and fro on broomsticks and people just floating in midair, talking to the people next to them.

It wasn't until he ran into somebody that he snapped out of the illusion. He collided rather harshly with a slim boy with greasy hair and a long nose. The other boy sneered at James and shoved him backward into yet another boy. The boy James was pushed into had deep, black hair that hung to his chin, and a relaxed face. He simply shoved James aside and punched the boy who'd pushed James first. He then helped James up and motioned for him to follow.

"I'm Sirius Black. Who're you?" Sirius only gave him an introduction as though nothing had happened. James rubbed his shoulder, as he'd hit it on a compartment wall in the push fight, and responded.

"James Potter," he said, and then he took a seat across from Sirius in the compartment he pulled open. One other boy was in there, but he didn't notice them over the book he was poring over.

"Ah, a Potter. My family's heard about your family. You haven't done much to make your name stand out, though, have you?" Sirius asked, looking curiously at the other passenger. "Who're you, eh?"

The boy looked up only for a moment, a little surprised by the sudden appearance of people, and then he pointed up into the luggage rack. There sat a brand new trunk with letters spelling out 'R. J. Lupin' inscribed on them. Sirius shrugged and looked in James' general direction.

"So, what d'you think it's gonna be like?" Sirius asked.

"Oh I dunno," James replied, "I'd guess something really brilliant from what I've heard, but I can't give many details. My parents didn't say much about it."

"Mine neither," Sirius said, looking over at Lupin, "and what about you?"

"My parents are… they haven't been available recently," Lupin looked up from his book with a blank stare towards Sirius.

"Dead? Sorry…" Sirius looked at his feet.

"Not exactly," Lupin answered, "just not available. They've been too busy."

"Mine too," James said, "except, they made some time for me. My dad works at the Ministry, and things have been getting a little out of hand recently. Some bloke named Voldemort's been making trouble… he hasn't told me anything important about it. 'Least I think it was Voldemort."

"I haven't heard of him," Lupin said, putting his book away to fully join the conversation.

"Me neither," Sirius said, "by the way, Lupin, what's R. J. stand for?"

"Remus J. I don't like people knowing my middle name," said Remus J. Lupin.

"Remus… mind if I call you Reems? Reemsy, perhaps?" Sirius asked playfully.

"Not if you want your face torn off," Remus replied simply.

"Alright then. Remus it is," Sirius raised his eyebrows and turned away from Remus. Just as he did, the compartment door slid open and a scrawny, brown-haired boy fell in. He was mousy and small with a thin face and beady little eyes. A tall, tan boy with short hair and a cold stare was revealed in the hallway with two large companions on either side.

"Have fun with your new friends, Pettigrew. Don't let me catch you trying to steal our sweets again, you poverty-ridden rat!" The boy sneered at little Pettigrew. James, Sirius, and Remus all stood up to defend him. Sirius shoved the blond boy into the opposite compartment, drawing his wand. The girls inside shrieked as James stepped in and lowered his wand to the boy's throat.

"Doesn't feel too good, does it?" James asked, "Now who are you to go around shoving people into compartments, eh?"

"I'm Jonathan Fierce! That's Dane, and over there's Mick, and that fat lard of a boy was stealing my sweets! I paid for them, and he doesn't deserve anything!" Jonathan spat in James' face, causing him to retaliate. The girls in the compartment had to pull James off of Jonathan, who was screaming in fear, which he soon hid. James was relatively untouched, but Jonathan had a black eye and a bloody nose.

"Jonathan, you're a bloody wimp!" James shoved him out of the car, "Get out of here." James noticed the three girls staring at him, "Hey, I'm James Potter!"

"You're full of yourself!" A redheaded girl with bright green eyes glared at him spitefully.

"Oh look, not even at Hogwarts and James has a fan!" Sirius clapped when James reentered the compartment. Remus had a large bruise on his arm, while Sirius was untouched like James.

"Thanks for sticking up for me," Pettigrew said meekly. He shrank into the seat beside Sirius.

"No problem, midget. That hopeless git had no right shoving you into our compartment without permission. Even if you did steal his sweets." Sirius patted Pettigrew on the back proudly.

"I'm Peter, by the way… Peter Pettigrew," Peter smiled weakly and stared at his shoes. James just noticed that he was wearing hand-me-down clothes.

"We should probably get dressed in our robes. We'll be there soon," Remus pointed out the window to the ever-approaching station. Peter winced and gazed around nervously. Sirius grinned and looked at him.

"Don't worry Petey, we won't make fun of your tighty-whities. Promise." The compartment roared with laughter, including a nervous chuckle from Peter.

"It's not that, it's just…" Pettigrew frowned.

"Oh, don't worry. We won't make fun of you for that, either. We aren't cruel." James winked and stood up, pulling on a silky robe.

The Hogwarts Express pulled up to the Hogsmeade station in complete darkness, broken only by a single lamp raised high above James' head. The four new friends stared around in wonder and tried their best to stay together. The bustling crowd of taller students broke them up for a moment, but as soon as it thinned they found each other again, making their way towards the call of "Firs' years, this way." An enormous man of extraordinary girth stood ahead, holding a large lantern in his hands. James gasped in awe, along with several other students.

"Don't wet yourself now, Petey, it's just a giant. A half-giant, I think. They're much bigger," Sirius said, patting Pettigrew on the head. Peter pulled Sirius' hand off of his head and frowned, still staring at the half-giant.

"Firs' years, this way! Now, I am Rubeus Hagrid, Keeper of Keys and Grounds at Hogwarts. You lot can jus' call me Hagrid. Now, we'll be takin' boats up ter the castle, so get in groups and shove off!" Hagrid smiled wide and led them down to a shore where, sure enough, several small boats were beached. Sirius, James, Remus, and Peter all got into the same boat and pushed off from the shore. The boats all seemed to guide themselves across the lake, which helped to ease their anxiety.

Across the way, they saw an enormous castle rise from the lake, or at least it appeared to, it was too dark to be sure. Hundreds of windows glowed a bright orange against the night, rivaling the stars in brightness. Peter leaned over the edge of the boat to catch a glimpse of the lake and fell over, prompting Sirius to leap in after him heroically. The two of them returned to the surface soon after, shivering with piercing cold. Sirius shot Peter a dark glare and then looked to Remus and James.

"W-w-when you r-r-retell this… c-c-could I b-b-be s-s-shirtless? M-m-muscular t-too…" Sirius glared at Peter again, then smiled. "C-c-cheer up you s-s-scrawny bastard…" The four chuckled quietly and listened to Sirius tell them exaggerations of what was under the water. Moments later they arrived on the other shore and followed a tall, sharp-looking woman up a path to the castle. She led them inside the main doors to the huge entrance hall, where she told them to wait.

"Here is where you will be sorted into your respective houses, where you will join students of similar characteristics. They will be your friends for the next seven years. Of course, inter-house relations are encouraged as well ("With that Jonathan git? Fat chance," James muttered to Sirius). Now, wait a moment while I go and prepare things." The woman disappeared into the hall, and James caught a glimpse of four tables filled with students who were chattering excitedly amongst themselves.

"So, this is where we go our separate ways," Sirius said sadly, "it was nice knowing you James, Peter, Reem-I mean, Remus."

"What are you talking about?" James asked.

"Well, the Black family is notorious for producing little spawns of Satan that get put in Slytherin. Remus here is probably a shoe-in for Ravenclaw, and Petey is most likely bound for Hufflepuff. Jimmy, you're Gryffindor material." Sirius shook hands with his friends and sighed, turning back around to face the music.

"Sirius…" Peter said, "She did say that inter-house relations are encouraged…"

"Be real Pete. We'll only see each other in passing or during double periods. That's not much. I'll see you," Sirius snapped back angrily at Peter, who hit him on the back of the head.

"Then stop being so negative! Who knows, maybe we'll all be in the same house! You can't know for sure!" Peter's face was drawn in anger.

"Wow, I didn't know you had it in you… people are staring Pete." Sirius looked around at the crowd, which had turned their heads in their direction and stopped talking. It was silent.

"What are you looking at? Can't you see they're having a row? Back to your pathetic lives," Remus said, waving them all away nonchalantly.

"You're right, Peter, I shouldn't be so negative. Maybe we'll get lucky…" Sirius sighed again and watched as the woman came back through the doors, beckoning them into the Great Hall.

The first years were all amazed at the beautiful room that they had just entered. Most were staring up at the enchanted ceiling in wonder, watching as clouds passed and stars glimmered above their heads. The woman they had followed told them all to line up and began to call names to sit on a stool.

Sirius Black

Sirius sighed for the fiftieth time in ten minutes. He had just met these people and he was going to be separated from them just as fast, all because his last name was 'Black'… a fit of anger rushed through Sirius' veins, as well as frustration, which he attempted to control.

"Maybe Pete's right," Sirius thought, "maybe we will get lucky."

"Black, Sirius!" The woman looked into the crowd, looking for a movement. Sirius obliged, stepping forward and plopping down on the small stool. The woman placed a tall, dusty old hat that was patched in several places onto his head.

"Sirius, m'boy!" came a voice in Sirius' head. "Such interesting qualities you have. Yes you're destined for greatness, I can see it now! I know just where to put you…"

"If you say Slytherin I'll pull you apart, stitch by stitch."

"I wasn't going to say that. Temper, temper. I'm well aware of your situation… so, I'll have to say… Gryffindor!!!" Applause erupted from the crowd and the woman moved towards him to take the hat. Sirius held up a hand to keep her back and pulled off the hat, turning it around so he could look it in the eyes.

"What'd you say?" he asked.

"Gryffindor!" He could've sworn he saw the hat wink before it went limp again. Sirius stood up, gave the woman the hat, and raised both arms in triumph.

"GRYFFINDOR!!!!" he shouted, gaining another round of cheering applause from the Gryffindor table. He went and found a relatively empty bench to sit at and waited for the ceremony to finish.

Remus Lupin

Remus began to breathe deeply as the names drew closer to 'L'. Sirius got lucky and broke the Black Family Curse, landing in Gryffindor rather than Slytherin, but he wasn't so sure he could escape Ravenclaw. He was far too intelligent for the house of courage and bravery. Lily Evans… Gryffindor… Heather Lockland… Hufflepuff…

"Lupin, Remus!" Remus flinched. It was his turn to try and change his fate. He shot the Gryffindor table a glance; Sirius was giving him a grin and a thumbs up. Remus managed a smile and a thumbs up in return, then he stalked up to the stool. On went the hat and Lupin began to hear a voice in the corner of his mind.

"Ah, a werewolf… sure you aren't endangering everyone?" it said, almost mockingly.

"I'm damn sure! I won't hurt anyone!" Lupin thought determinedly.

"Nice strength… good purpose… I'll have to say… Gryffindor!!!"

Remus stood up excitedly, staring at the line to where James and Peter were. They were clapping excitedly and motioning for him to go to the table with Sirius. He did just that. Sirius welcomed him warmly with a pat on the back and a friendly grin.

"Hello Reems! Oh, sorry, that one slipped… I'm excited, you know. Sorry," Sirius dropped his happy face and looked mistaken. Remus laughed and patted him on the back.

"I'll let that one slide!" They both grinned and wished good luck for James and Peter.

Peter Pettigrew

Peter smiled at his good fortune. He was almost sure that he would be in Gryffindor now, and if he was in Gryffindor they all would be, because there was no doubt that James would be a Gryffindor.

"Pettigrew, Peter!" Peter walked up to the stool and sat down. The hat fell over his eyes and began to speak.

"You stick up for yourself, Petey, that's admirable. You owe that Black your life… hm… I suppose I should say… Gryffindor!!!"

Peter stood up proudly and strode over to the Gryffindor table, sitting across from Sirius and Remus, where he received the best welcoming he'd ever gotten.

James Potter

James wasn't thinking anything… except for "Wow, that girl is pretty." He was staring at Lily Evans at the Gryffindor table, who was sitting four seats down from Peter. He definitely had to get into Gryffindor now, and if he wasn't sorted there he'd sneak in.

"Potter, James!" James walked up to the stool, shooting Lily a quick blink before he sat down. She rolled her eyes in disgust.

"James Potter, eh? I see strange things about you… yes… you're definitely brave. A cut above the rest, I'd say. You'd definitely make a good Quidditch player… hmm… mm… ah, I've reached a decision… Gryffindor!!!" Applause erupted throughout the room as James stood up, leapt onto the stool, and began to dance.

"TAKE IT OFF!" Sirius yelled from the Gryffindor table. The room echoed with laughter, but it died quickly as the headmaster gave a sweeping glance around the room.

The woman who had called them yelled at James angrily and he jumped off of the stool, turning to see a strange look on the headmaster's face. It wasn't angry, but a little "disappointed", as well as amused. James smiled and danced his way to the Gryffindor table, sitting down between Sirius and Remus. The four of them all began to laugh about the stunt, and James shot a glance at Lily, who had been looking at him, but she turned away quickly as soon as he looked, nostrils flaring with anger.

"She'll come around…" Sirius said, nudging James in the stomach.

"Yeah, don't worry about it James! We're Gryffindors!" Peter shouted enthusiastically.

"Yeah, be proud!" Remus said, digging into a plate of chicken that had just appeared. Apparently, there was a speech, but they had been so busy having fun that they missed it. What important things could the headmaster have said?

After the feast, the first years all reported to their prefects and were led up to the seventh floor, where they were given the password and were let into the Gryffindor common room by means of the Fat Lady's portrait. It seemed warm and comfortable, with a nice fire and worn-out armchairs. It was all blazing scarlet or shimmering gold in color, aside from some rugs and paintings, and it shone onto the stone floors, casting a crimson glow all around their feet. Sirius dropped himself into one of the chairs by the fire and Remus sat down in a beanbag chair, opening a book that was left on the floor beside him. Peter began to look around and James started to search for Lily. He didn't see her, so she must have gone to bed already.

"So, James… what kind of trouble should we get into?" Sirius asked, staring up at his new best friend.

"Oh, all sorts," James said, looking around at the three boys who were watching him carefully, "we'll turn this place on its head."

"Hurrah!" Peter said, raising a fist in salute.

"C'mon guys, let's go to bed. I'm tired." James started towards the dormitories and was startled when his friends all stood up and followed him. "Wow, you're actually listening to me!"

"Why wouldn't we?" Peter asked, "I mean, after all, you are our leader."

"Yeah?" James asked, watching as the three boys nodded proudly. "Alright. Well first order of business… if we're going to be a group, we need a cool name… like the Troublemakers, or the Barbarians!"

"Ooh! I vote for Barbarians!" Sirius said excitedly.

"No, that's stupid…" Remus said, and James shrugged in agreement. Lupin thought for a few minutes and then snapped his fingers, "I've got it. I read it somewhere… the Marauders!"

"All right," James said, "what's it mean?"

"Well, to plunder and raid, but I figure it means to cause trouble in general. Since that's what we're going to be doing, I figure why not?" Remus smiled.

"Okay. When we wake up tomorrow morning, we are no longer Remus, James, Sirius, and Peter. When we wake up, we are the Marauders!" And thus began the beginning of the most important chapter in the history of magic.