Author's Notes: This story is the effort of a group of dedicated Gryffindors, written for the house fan fiction contest at Third Floor Corridor. In this chapter, Gryffindors Pennilyn Novus and Falconswing were the authors.

While we wish Harry Potter belonged to us, we do not own him, nor the books, nor the movies. They are owned by J.K. Rowling, Bloomsbury Books, Warner Brothers, and possibly a few others. No harm is intended, and no profit is being made.

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Chapter One

Somewhere in Scotland, at a place called Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, on a bright sunny day in June, a group of students gathered down by the lake, watching with rapt attention as James Potter, with his best friend Sirius Black, lifted Severus Snape upside down and left him dangling in the air with his underpants showing.

Lily Evans, a kind-hearted girl who was in the same house and year as James and Sirius, tried to defend Snape, but was rebuked by the embarrassed boy. She told off James, who had been trying unsuccessfully for years to get her to agree to go out on a date with him, then turned and marched away.

"Evans!" James shouted after her. "Hey, EVANS!"

But she didn't look back.

"What is it with her?" said James, trying and failing to look as though this was a throwaway question of no real importance to him.

"Reading between the lines, I'd say she thinks you're a bit conceited, mate," said Sirius.

"Right," said James, who looked furious now, "right –"

There was another flash of light, and Snape was once again hanging upside down in the air.

"Who wants to see me take off Snivelly's pants?"

Sirius smirked fiendishly. "I do," he said, twirling his wand in his fingers.

Snape began to curse violently, struggling with his robes in an attempt to cover himself.

"JAMES POTTER!"

"Damn," James muttered, dropping Snape once more on his head.

Professor McGonagall marched across the grounds, her dark eyes flashing. "I have never…so ashamed…member of my own house!" she hissed brokenly, helping Snape to his feet and handing him his wand. "I have half a mind to have you expelled now!"

Snape pointed at Sirius. "Black was involved, as well," he seethed, brushing his greasy hair out of his eyes.

"I might have known," McGonagall ground out between clenched teeth. "All three of you, come with me. Now! The Headmaster shall hear of this!"

Snape began to protest, but the furious witch silenced him with a glare. "Do not think I don't know where that gash came from on Mr. Potter's cheek, Mr. Snape."

James reached up and touched his cheek, feeling the sting as he touched the fresh wound. He dabbed at it with the sleeve of his robes and glared at Snape. Sectumsempra was a serious curse, a potentially deadly curse. He supposed he should be glad Snape had such poor aim.

"But they started it!" Snape told McGonagall earnestly.

"And they finished it, as well, it appears."

James would have smirked at Snape as he snapped his mouth shut and glared at the Gryffindor head, if it weren't for the fact that she was marching all three of them straight up to Dumbledore's office.

He glanced over his shoulder at Remus and Peter, who was looked like he was about to burst into tears. Remus still sat under the tree, but he'd given up any pretense of reading. He was watching them go, a slightly guilty look on his worn face. James attempted to smile cheerfully, as if this was no big deal, but he knew Dumbledore was growing increasingly intolerant of the Marauder's high-spirited pranks, and their lack of civility with Snape.

Sirius nudged him in the ribs, rolling his eyes in McGonagall's direction as she marched them into the castle and across the Entrance Hall to the stairs leading up. James shook his head slightly, not sure what Sirius had in mind but wisely choosing not to find out.

The closer they grew to the gargoyle that hid the entrance to the headmaster's office, however, the more tense Sirius looked, and James was willing to bet the entire contents of his vault that his friend was thinking about how his mother would react when yet another disciplinary notice was sent home.

And indeed, that what was Sirius was thinking. He certainly was not looking forward to the Howler he was sure to receive, but for the chance to show Snape's grimy gray underpants, it was well worth it.

Together they ascended the spinning spiral staircase, and Sirius swallowed heavily when McGonagall pushed open the door, revealing Dumbledore sitting behind his desk, his blue eyes stern and not twinkling at all.

"Detentions, for the rest of the term," Sirius laughed, relieved, as he and James made their way back to Gryffindor Tower. "That's not so bad."

James said nothing until they were nearly at the portrait of the Fat Lady, behind which laid their common room. "She hates me," he said at last.

Sirius, not needing to ask who 'she' was, responded, "She doesn't hate you, mate. She almost smiled today when you had Snivellus arse over elbows."

"She did?" James asked incredulously, his face lighting up. "Well, that's not so bad, then, is it?"

"Nope," Sirius answered, clapping his hand on James's shoulder. "Makes those detentions even more worth it, yeah?"

James grinned. "It was priceless to see Snivellus flailing around up there in his dirty pants!"

"Yeah it was."

They climbed through the portrait hole, grinning at the hero's welcome they received when they came into view. Sirius looked around, and spotted Remus standing at the back of the cheering crowd with Peter, and not far from them, Lily stood, her mouth bent in disapproval. Sirius glanced at James who was laughing gleefully as their housemates congratulated them on an excellent victory.

Eventually, Remus made his way over to them. "Not expelled, then?" he asked lowly.

"Detentions the rest of the term," James answered, looking almost cheerful at the prospect of it. "Starting tomorrow night."

Their classmates eventually returned to their studies, and the four boys retreated to their dorm room to do the same. Though Sirius and James were still on the high from their excellent prank on Snape, they had one more OWL to take, first thing the next day after breakfast. They couldn't help but rehash the expression on Snape's face as he kicked helplessly, trying to cover his lower half uselessly. By the end of the night, James was almost glad that he would end up with a small scar on his cheek from Snape's spell, referring to it as his battle scar, or his wound of honor.

Peter approved heartily, but Remus just rolled his eyes.

The next morning, at breakfast, low hisses could be heard from the Slytherin table as the Marauders headed for their table. While Snape was not particularly popular among the Slytherins either, there was still the matter of house pride. Snape, for his part, glowered darkly at James and Sirius, and could be heard muttering about the injustice of having to serve detention along side them.

James looked wryly at Sirius, seeing the wheels spinning deviously in his friend's head. He could just bet Sirius would make Snape's detentions as miserable as possible. He supposed he would find out that night.

Full of butterbeer, giddy that their OWLS were at last finished, and full of plans for their detention with Snape, James and Sirius made their way down to the Entrance Hall shortly before midnight. Filch and McGonagall were already present, and she sent them a disapproving glare. James swallowed his smile hastily.

Snape slunk out of the shadows at one minute until midnight, his appearance interrupting Filch, who was muttering that Dumbledore was far too lenient on misbehaving students, and that he longed for the days when disobedient pupils were flogged in the lower dungeons.

"Mr. Potter, Mr. Black, Mr. Snape," McGonagall said with a sniff, "you will serve your first detention with Mr. Filch, who has informed me that the girls' bathroom on the second floor has flooded and needs a thorough cleaning."

James felt his polite smile freeze on his face. He heard Sirius groan beside him, and even Snape looked put out. The girls' bathroom on the second floor was home to Moaning Myrtle, the most annoying ghost in Hogwarts, quite possibly the most annoying ghost in the entire wizarding world.

Filch's face twisted into a semblance of a smile, and he ushered the boys up the stairs for what James now realized was going to be a very long, miserable detention.

Four hours…four hours later, two very tired and rather exhausted fifth years blearily stumbled their way into the Gryffindor Common room. They almost blindly felt their way up well worn steps into the fifth-year boy's dorm and stumbled into their respective beds.

The only reason they'd been allowed to even get out at four in the morning was that Mrs. Norris had (somehow) informed Filch that someone was making trouble on the fourth floor, so, with no one awake to supervise the drowsy miscreants, he was forced to send them to bed.

A pair of amber eyes blinked awake at the sound of their feet. Remus was awake. He stared at the two for a moment in confusion before realization made his eyes widen. He sat up, suddenly more awake, with a grin on his face.

"Four o'clock? Must be a new record," he quietly said. James and Sirius jumped in surprise at the sound of his voice and turned to stare at him uncomprehendingly.

Remus simply raised an eyebrow. "Four in the morning? After detention...with Snape? You honestly can't expect me to believe that you didn't pull a single prank for all of this time, can you?"

There was a pregnant pause.

"Oh."

"Quite so, Moony," James mumbled. "Now, if you don't mind, Padfoot and I have been scrubbing Moaning Myrtle's loo for four hours with that slimy snake for company, so we're just going to sleep. Alright with you?" he asked grumpily.

"Indeed," Remus replied. "Well...goodnight then."

And with that, the three Mauraders went to sleep.

The next day was much of the same: Wake up late, rush and almost miss breakfast, laze about all day pulling the occasional prank, mostly on Snivellus, and detentions at midnight.

The detentions were growing steadily more tedious. First Myrtle's bathroom, then there was scrubbing every cauldron Slughorn had used for the entire day (without magic), then there was helping McGonagall grade essays. They dared not mess up with those for if they did, she promised to take away all the points Gryffindor had. Dangerous. They didn't know how much longer they could deal with her growing strictness.

"She needs something to laugh about," James decided on the fourth day after their detention string began. "Something...big."

The Marauders glanced at each other, grinned, and put their heads together to plan...

Author's Notes: The italicized section of this story is taken from Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, by J.K. Rowling.