Alright. I'd just like to say that this is possibly the worst fanfiction I have ever written. I just really wanted to write a Christmas one...and had no ideas. And I wrote this is like, 45 minutes. It's so choppy it's sad.
This is what happens when you force inspiration, kids.
"Remus! You'll never guess what I just discovered!" Sirius Black grinned, sliding into the seat next to him. The library was nearly empty, but the few people that were left turned and glared at his loud entrance.
"What did you discover?"
"I can't tell you! Come with me!" Sirius stood up, waiting for his friend to follow.
"Sirius, it's Christmas Eve. Can I at least spend today without a detention?"
"Never! A day without a detention is a body without a soul! You without abook! Er...I don't have any more metaphors. But you should come with me."
"What exactly are we doing?" Remus raised an eyebrow.
"We're going on a Christmas adventure! Come on! James and Peter are waiting!"
"Can't I just - "
"We found a new passage way!"
"A new passage way? You could have just said that!" Remus suddenly smiled, picking up his bag. If there was one thing that Remus Lupin couldn't resist, it was discovering a new passage and seeing where it led.
They met James Potter and Peter Pettigrew outside. James had claimed since his first year that he was allergic to books, and Peter had a fear of Madam Pince that he wasn't quite ready to face, so they'd sent Sirius in.
They walked as quietly as they could, though it wasn't yet past curfew. In their three years at Hogwarts, the Marauders had learned that professors became suspicious whenever the four of them were together, especially when found in deserted corridors.
Finally, the group stopped.
"Okay, where's the passage?" Remus asked excitedly.
"Here!" James exclaimed, pointing to a painting of a witch on the wall.
"I was really bored earlier, and I figured this painting was too ugly to not have a purpose," The witch glared at him. "So I asked some seventh years about it."
"They said it was a secret passage!" Peter grinned. "You're supposed to use Dissendium to open it."
"Want to do the honors, Remus?" James offered, stepping aside.
"Wait...do we know where it leads?"
"Nope!" said Sirius.
"Haven't the foggiest," James said, sounding pleased.
"Well I don't know if we should go in then - You know what? Even as I say this, I know we're going in anyway. Let's just go."
"We've taught you well."
It was quite a long walk in the tunnel, and cold as well. No one had thought to bring a cloak, and they shivered as they talked.
"Hey, James, did you hear what Evans was singing all day?" Sirius asked suddenly, a wide smile on his face.
"No...why?"
Peter, Remus, and Sirius looked at each other, grinned, and burst into song.
"Jingle Bells, Potter smells, he should move away! Canada or Mexico, so I don't see him everyday!"
"It was beautiful," Sirius said after a moment, wiping an imaginary tear from his eye.
James just rolled his eyes and kept going. He'd never live that down, he was sure.
"Hey! Is that the end?" Peter asked, pointing ahead.
Squinting to where he was pointing, Remus agreed, and the four boys broke into a run.
As it turned out, the passage led to a storage space above Honeydukes. They clambered over boxes and crates of merchandise, and finally, after throwing James' invisibility cloak over themselves, tiptoed down the stairs to the store.
They found that the candy store was actually rather crowded, which was probably due to last minute Christmas shopping. Surprisingly enough, the cashier seemed so busy that he didn't even wonder why four thirteen year olds were out buying candy when Hogwarts didn't have another Hogsmeade trip until February.
Back in the passage, there wasn't much conversation, as they were much too interested in eating everything they had bought by the time they reached the castle again, feeling much warmer than they had on their way down.
"You know," James said as they neared Hogwarts, "I bet it's like this every year."
The others nodded.
They walked on for a while in silence, until Sirius spoke up excitedly. "I just had an amazing idea. We should go to Honeydukes every year."
And that was exactly what happened. Every year, for the next four years, the Marauders went to Honeydukes on December twenty-fourth, and every year, no one stopped to question how they got there.