This story is written for The House Competition by Moonlight Forgotten (Year 2).
Round 9
House: Gryffindor
Year: 4
Short Story
Prompt: "It seemed like a good idea yesterday"
Words: 843
Teddy Lupin and James Sirius Potter looked at their accomplishment in front of them with satisfaction and high fived each other. This satisfaction was short lived, however, as they heard Filch and Mrs. Norris coming their way. They ran as fast their feet could carry them. They entered a corridor and hid there, their hearts pounding fast. They put on the Invisibility Cloak.
Filch had approached their crime scene and was examining the words they had sprayed on the wall outside the Slytherin Common Room.
"Go Gryffindor!" was sprayed in scarlet paint on the wall.
Filch picked up the scarlet red paint bottles and Teddy's Head Boy badge that they had dropped on the floor while running.
"James Potter," Filch read the name on the scarlet red bottles.
"Shit," James muttered.
Teddy glared at James.
"It seemed like a good idea yesterday," James reasoned in a whisper.
"You had to write your name on the bottles," Teddy hissed.
"And this Head Boy badge must be Lupin's, Mrs. Norris. They wouldn't be the first Potter and Lupin to pull a stunt like this together."
Teddy glared at James again. The prank was James' idea and he had practically coaxed Teddy into agreeing to it. They had put the Marauder's Map down while spraying and made the mistake of not constantly looking at it. Luckily, James had managed to grab the map with them while running way.
"I'm probably going to get fired from being Head Boy," Teddy hissed in a whisper.
"I swear, it really seemed like good idea yesterday. I had no idea we'd get caught like this," said James uncomfortably.
Filch continued looking but failed to spot James and Teddy who were safely hidden under the Invisibility Cloak. They breathed sighs of relief when Filch finally left,. but they knew they were in for trouble since Filch had found James' scarlet red paint bottles and Teddy's Head Boy badge.
The next day, James and Teddy were seated in front of a glaring Minerva McGonagall in her office.
"Mr. Lupin, you're Head Boy. I expected better from you," said McGonagall, disappointed.
"It was all my fault, Professor. I made Teddy pull that prank with me," said James.
"Well, you wouldn't be the first James Potter to convince a well-behaved Lupin boy to misbehave," said McGonagall. "In fact, your grandfather and his friends, including Mr. Lupin's father, pulled this exact same stunt during their 4th year."
"Really?" asked James excitedly, but he fell silent at McGonagall's glare.
McGonagall did her best not to crack a smile. She was simultaneously fond and exasperated by the Marauders and their descendants who all had a penchant for rule-breaking.
"Mr. Potter, I ought to make you skip the next Quidditch game," said McGonagall.
"Professor, please. Punish me some other way. Not just for me, but for Gryffindor. I'm the Seeker and we'd lose if I didn't play," said an alarmed James.
"Fortunately, Mr. Potter, your crime was not that severe for me to be that drastic. But I'm taking 50 points each from the both of you. You can explain to your fellow Gryffindors as to why you lost 100 points," said McGonagall.
"100 points?" James and Teddy said together in shock.
"But professor, it wasn't just minor prank," Teddy tried to appeal.
"That was just for you both being out of bed after hours, Mr Lupin. For your prank, you will both receive detentions," said Professor McGonagall.
"Professor, you should just punish me. Teddy only did it because of me," said James.
"Mr. Potter, as admirable as your gesture is, I believe Mr. Lupin was in a conscious mind to refuse. He has to bear responsibility for his actions," said McGonagall.
"Am I still Head Boy, Professor?" asked Teddy.
"Unfortunately for this school, you still are. But be mindful of letting Mr. Potter influence you. As Head Boy and the older friend, you should be the good influence on him," said McGonagall.
"Yes, Professor," said Teddy.
Later that day in the Gryffindor Common Room, Teddy and James were met with hostility by their fellow Gryffindors. Word was out that they had lost 100 points for Gryffindor.
"I just committed social suicide," said James dramatically.
"Well, I'm in the same boat as you," said Teddy.
"I'm sorry, Teddy. I really thought we could get away with it. It really seemed like a good when I thought it up two days ago. In any case, I should have done it alone. I shouldn't have dragged you with me and gotten you in trouble. I'm sorry," said James.
"It's alright. It wasn't all your fault. Like Professor McGonagall said, I as the older one should have known better. And I really appreciate you trying to take the whole blame for yourself back in McGonagall's office," said Teddy appreciatively.
"No problem. That's what brothers are for," said James.
"We'll be outcasts together for the time-being," said Tedd.
"As Head Boy, they can't really ostracise you though," said James.
"Well, that's true. But we'll stick together, anyways," said Teddy as they embraced.
A/N: I know Teddy's supposed to be a Hufflepuff, but the only evidence is a Tweet by Rowling. And I wanted James and Teddy in the same house. This is fanfiction, so I think it's ok for me to change Teddy's house in an AU.