5/11/15: Just a heads up, this story is really freaking old, and definitely not my best work.
It was the Marauders' sixth year, and it was a dreary, boring Sunday evening. Remus defeated Sirius for the umpteenth time at a game of chess, Peter was reading a book, and James was trying to think of something to do.
"Hey!" James said, "Why don't we have a singing contest?" And before any of his friends could reply, James had stood up on a table and announced to the completely bewildered house that they had half an hour to get into groups, decide which song they would sing, and get it prepared for the entire house to listen to. He then conjured up a stage, complete with instruments, and told the Gryffindors to get started. The entire house was terrified, but followed James' wishes. None of them wanted to be on the receiving end of the Marauders' next prank…
Thirty minutes came and went, and James started calling random groups of people up to perform their song. He insisted that the Marauders go last.
After listening to twenty-odd different songs—some horrendous, some halfway decent—all of the Gryffindors forced the Marauders onto the stage. Remus solemnly walked back to the trap set, Peter to the keyboard, and James and Sirius to the electric guitars. Nobody knew where they had learned to play the instruments, and nobody dared to ask. All four of them had microphones.
"Now," James said, "We, the Marauders, are going to sing a song entitled 'Because of You' by Kelly Clarkson."
"Who the bloody hell is Kelly Clarkson?" Frank, the Head Boy, asked confusedly.
James' brow furrowed. "Good question. But hey, the author said we have to sing this song, and I really don't want to get on her bad side. Do you?"
Nobody answered, and the author randomly walked in brandishing a rubber chicken threateningly. Everybody hastily nodded, and she left, satisfied.
"Good. Now, technically Clarkson hasn't been born yet, but that's all right, correct?" Sirius said, glaring at the Gryffindors. They nodded hastily. "Good. Now, let's get started."
"Let's hear it for Moony!" James began. Remus waved, and the crowd cheered, "Wormtail!" Peter smiled shyly as they cheered some more, "Padfoot!" Sirius grinned widely and winked at the Gryffindors, "and Prongs!" he himself took a bow, and everyone but Lily Evans cheered.
And without further ado the four started playing, and all of the Marauders began "oooooh"ing. This confused the Gryffindors greatly, but soon Sirius began singing—
"I will not make the same mistakes that you did."
"I will not let myself cause my heart so much misery," James picked up where Sirius had left off, staring straight at a certain Lily Evans.
"I will not break the way you did; you fell so hard,"Peter sang, rather off-key compared to the others.
"I've learned the hard way to never let it get that far," Remus sang with a far-away look in his eyes.
"Because of you I never stray too far from the sidewalk,
"Because of you I've learned to play on the safe side so I don't get hurt,
"Because of you I find it hard to trust not only me but everyone around me," Remus continued to sing, still with a strange glint in his eyes.
"Because of you I am afraid," all four Marauders sang together.
"I lose my way, and it's not too long before you point it out," Peter sang sadly.
"I cannot cry because I know that's weakness in your eyes," Sirius sang, his eyes burning in what only could be described as hatred.
"I'm forced to fake a smile, a laugh, every day of my life," Remus smiled sadly.
"My heart can't possibly break when it wasn't even whole to start with," James sang, his eyes never leaving Lily.
"Because of you I never stray too far from the sidewalk,
"Because of you I've learned to play on the safe side so I don't get hurt,
"Because of you I find it hard to trust not only me but everyone around me," Remus sang again.
"Because of you I am afraid," the Marauders all sang, none of them entirely there.
At this point, McGonagall walked in to complain about the noise that the Gryffindors were making, but stopped cold when she saw the Marauders on stage, singing their hearts out. She stood, immobile, throughout the rest of the song.
"I watched you die; I heard you cry every night in your sleep," James sang solemnly, pulling his eyes away from Lily to glance at Remus.
"I was so young you should have known better than to lean on me," Remus sang, shaking his head.
"You never thought of anyone else; you just saw your pain," Sirius practically yelled, a murderous glint in his eyes that frightened many.
"And now I cry in the middle of the night for the same damn thing," Peter sang, sounding a bit unsure of himself.
"Because of you I never stray too far from the sidewalk,
"Because of you I've learned to play on the safe side so I don't get hurt," Remus belted out, gaining momentum.
"Because of you I try my hardest just to forget everything," James sang, again staring Lily down.
"Because of you I don't know how to let anyone else in," Sirius sang loudly, the flame in his gray eyes growing steadily larger.
"Because of you I'm ashamed of my life because it's empty," Remus sang, also looking a bit angry.
"Because of you I am afraid," the four Marauders sang together.
"Because of you," James and Sirius sang together, a bit quieter than the previous line.
"Because of you," Remus and Peter harmonized, eventually fading into nothingness.
As soon as the Marauders had finished singing, the Gryffindors burst into applause; even McGonagall cheered for four of her most loathed students. The Marauders were asked to repeat their performance multiple times, and only stopped when the stage finally collapsed, missing Frank Longbottom's head by inches. Afterward, there was a sort of party for the Marauders in which the Gryffindors repeatedly congratulated them on a beautiful performance. Remus, however, seemed to pose an enigma for many of the upper years.
"What did you mean, 'I'm ashamed of my life because it's empty'?" Alice Monroe asked, very confused, "What do you expect to do when you graduate—shovel manure?"
Remus just shrugged off her question and did not answer.
Frank Longbottom, recovered from his traumatic experience, also spoke to the Marauders. "That was awesome, guys!"
"Thanks," Sirius said, grinning.
"How did you pick who sang what lyrics, though?" Frank continued.
"Just randomly picked them," Remus said smoothly, but shared a glance with his fellow Marauders.
"Hm…" Frank said thoughtfully, "It seemed like you all had a theme going there, though. Like, James' lines were all about Lily, and Sirius' seemed to be about his family, but Remus, you made it sound like you've got some huge, dark secret or something!"
Remus snorted, but his face lost a bit of color. Frank did not notice. "C'mon, would I be able to keep a secret for this long?"
Frank did not have time to answer, as McGonagall then stood on a table, similar to what James had done, and announced that everyone had to go to sleep. Grumbling about "ruddy classes" and "ruddy teachers", the Gryffindors slowly made their way up to their dormitories.
McGonagall walked out of the common room, and could be heard humming the tune of "Because of You" for many days to come.