A/N: Hey y'all! This was written for the Hogwarts Eastern Funfair, Hook a Ship. The prompt: (object) map. Also, thinking of making this an MC, so if you liked it enough to read more, please say so!

Word Count: 2075

Thanks to my sister for beta-ing. :)

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. Those rights go to JK Rowling.

Enjoy!

Captain James Potter gazed stoically at the horizon, or more specifically, the shadow blemishing it. Twelve months. It had been twelve months since his first mate and best friend, Sirius Black, has been taken captive by the notorious Captain Riddle. James had finally managed to track him down, with the help of his new crew.

When Sirius has been taken, James' world fell apart. Not just because the man who had been like a brother to him was gone, but because he had lost everything he had ever worked for. One of his most trusted crew members, Peter Pettigrew, had sold out the location of James' precious ship, the Marauder, to Riddle for a profit. Once Riddle's ship, Nagini, had opened fire, James had already been dealing with mutiny. Unable to deal with both situations at once, James had been forced to watch as the loyal members of his crew were cut down, and Sirius was forced onto the enemy ship. The treasure and supplies that James had spent so many years gathering and selling was boarded onto Nagini, and James was shoved off the deck of his beloved ship and left to drown and watch his life's work sink beneath the waves.

But James Potter was nothing if not resourceful. Clutching nothing but a broken piece of the Marauder's mast, James drifted to land. There he used his reputation to bully a sailor into giving him a ship. For once, his arrogance paid off; no one in the little town had yet heard of his defeat.

James knew that the small boat wasn't enough to take down Riddle; he needed a crew. His recent experience with mutiny made him hesitant, but he pushed his unease to the side. The sooner he could get to Sirius, the better.

James sailed from town to town, searching for men and women he felt he could trust to join his crew. Many nights passed by with no luck, and though James could occasionally rob a small ship for some quick gold, but it wasn't enough.

Eventually, his luck changed. James managed to wander into a small town that was home to a legend— the only man to have escaped Captain Greyback's clutches.

Greyback was a ruthless, bloodthirsty pirate who raided villages to take treasure and children. He either sold the children as slaves later, or forced them to join his crew. One such boy had been taken at the age of four, and kept on the ship for fourteen years, during which he was forced to work for Greyback. One night, the boy slipped off of the ship and was able to row himself to safety. He navigated without the use of a map, eating only what he'd stolen from his captors.

His name was Remus Lupin.

James had heard that he worked in the town as a private tutor, the scars left over from the ordeal scaring off most employers. James, however, would not be deterred.

At first, Remus refused, insisting that he had had enough of piracy. A few drinks and a sad story later, and James left disheartened. To his surprise, the next morning he found Lupin standing next to his boat, ready to set sail.

James and Remus plundered their way to more seaworthy ships, and their success bought them an eager and trustworthy crew— James had an eye for talent; Remus for intent. Together, they built back up the Marauder's legacy. James named the new vessel the Marauder's Hollow, in honor of his old ship.

James and his crew had spent many months chasing after Nagini, following leads given by all sorts of shifty people. At long last, they had Sirius in their sights.

The wind whipped violently through James' untidy dark hair. The Marauder's Hollow was following Nagini at a distance, as to maintain the element of surprise. James was all for rushing in to retrieve Sirius, but Remus pointed out that the last at-sea battle hadn't ended well for James. So they would wait until Riddle docked, then sneak aboard their ship.

James heard Remus approach before he saw him. James' hazel eyes flickered over to Remus' amber ones. "Everything ready, then?"

Remus stopped at James' left side. Always his left. Remus knew that Sirius belonged at James' right, and respected that, for which James was grateful.

"Yes Captain," Remus replied. He hesitated before adding softly, "This is it, James. This could be the end."

James smiled wryly. "You say that now. This time tomorrow, Sirius will be beside us, and we'll sail away rich as kings— and Riddle will be no more."

Remus put a hand on his friend's shoulder. Gentle but firm, the ship's navigator spoke again. "You have to understand, James, that he might not still be there, and that if he is, he won't be unchanged."

James could hear the truth in those words. Remus was speaking from experience, after all. James didn't want to believe it, but he knew that it would be foolish not to.

"I know," he murmured. "but it's easier to pretend otherwise."

Remus squeezed his shoulder reassuringly. "I'm with you, James," he said firmly. "We do this together, whatever may come."

James nodded at Remus, a smile on his face. "Whatever may come."

Several hours later, and James was in the middle of a battle. He fought his way out of the brig on Riddle's ship, a weak but alive Sirius at his heels.

It hadn't been easy, rescuing his first mate. It had required a stealth James hadn't known he possessed, but with the help of Remus, they pulled it off. When Remus went to disable Nagini's cannons, James had rushed to find Sirius. Two duels and a stolen key later, and Sirius was finally free of his prison. The former aristocrat was bruised and hungry, but eager for retribution.

James ran across the deck, pushing his way through numerous duels between his men and Riddle's. He knew that they needed to strike now, while Riddle was distracted by the attack. James looked around, formulating a plan on the spot. A short distance away, James spotted the Marauder's Hollow, it's cannons gleaming in the fading moonlight. Perfect. James quickly made his way to one of his crew. "Get aboard the Hollow," he instructed. "then give the order to open fire."

The young boy's eyes widened. "With all of you still on board?"

James just grinned. "You'll see. Now go!"

The boy ran off, and James and Sirius threw themselves back into the fray. Minutes later, when the Hollow began firing at them, James' crew panicked, assuming mutiny. Most of Riddle's men gave up fighting in favor of retaliation with their own cannons— luckily, James had planned for that. Now only a few of the rogue pirates were still fighting James' men, the rest trying desperately to repair the ship and stop the attack. Some, to James' delight, were even fleeing— not all were entirely loyal to Riddle, it seemed.

James rushed around, shoving his crew into the rowboats hanging off the side of the ship. Most of his men guessed that this was one of his crazy plans and jumped aboard a boat, unless they were distracted by Riddle's crew. Once in the water, all were smart enough to row towards the Marauder's Hollow, where the rest of the crew was waiting to pull them to safety.

Then it was Sirius and James' turn to go. Just as James was about to jump, Sirius grabbed his arm.

"I know I don't know your new crew," he shouted hoarsely over the din. "but he looks like he's fighting for us."

James looked to where his friend was pointing, and saw a thin, brown-haired man engaged in a fight with a grizzled, sinister-looking man. James' heart stopped.

Remus and Greyback.

James ran to help his friend. As Greyback fought them both, the grey-eyed escapee snuck up behind him and hit him in the head with the hilt of his borrowed sword. Greyback crumpled. Remus grinned in thanks, wounded but still standing.

The ship shook, and James knew that the ship couldn't take many more hits. They had to get off, fast.

"Did you take out the cannons?" he asked Remus.

Remus nodded, confused. "Why are they firing while we're—"

"Double distraction," James explained. "Can't solve two problems at once. An external and internal attack— I bet not even Riddle could handle that."

Remus looked alarmed as the ship groaned again. "That is madness!"

Sirius' eyes were bright. "No, mate, it's brilliance!"

They raced away to the rowboats, and hurriedly lowered themselves into the water. Remus, having done this once before, took over the oars. He towed them to safety, cutting through the water like a knife. The three men were helped aboard, and James watched in satisfaction as Nagini sank below the turquoise waves just as the sun began to rise. At long last, Riddle had sunk.

Beside him, Sirius let out a sigh of relief as they sailed away. He ran his long finger through his matted hair. "Thanks mate," he said quietly. "I owe you one."

James shook his head. "You'd have done the same for me."

Sirius gave him an exhausted smile. "Yeah. I would have." He turned to Remus, who was dressing a shallow wound on his arm. "Nice fighting back there. Who're you, exactly?"

Remus stuck out a scarred hand. "Remus Lupin, navigator. You must be first mate Sirius Black."

Sirius shook his hand, excited. "Aren't you the bloke who escaped Greyback? Brilliant! James, how'd you manage to pick this one up?"

James shrugged, breathing heavily. "I was definitely lucky."

Remus looked like he was about to argue, but Sirius began speaking again.

"You know, back in my lovely little prison I may have nicked something off of Riddle."

James and Remus turned to him. "What?" demanded James.

Sirius shrugged, taking a rolled-up piece of paper out of his pocket. "A map of some sorts. Can't read it, though."

Remus took it, eagerly taking it in. "I can," he said triumphantly. "and— it's Riddle's treasure map!"

Sirius looked dumbfounded. "What?"

Remus was beaming. "They say Riddle had seven treasures that he hid away in secret locations. This is his map— the only record of the treasures'."

Sirius rubbed his hands together. "I guess we have some treasure to find then, lads!"

James sheathed his sword without cleaning it. "It'll be dangerous," he warned. "Riddle won't have made it easy."

Sirius threw his arms around Remus and James' shoulders. "What's life without a little danger?"

"Safe," Remus said immediately. "Healthy. Long."

Sirius wrinkled his nose. "And boring. Death threats, battles, life-threatening risks— that's fun."

James winked at Remus. "Looks like you're outnumbered."

Remus looked disapproving. "You can't possibly think this is a good idea." He turned to Sirius. "You just escaped from a year of imprisonment, and you want to embark on a perilous quest right off the bat?"

Sirius frowned. "You have a point. Maybe next week?"

Remus spluttered as James considered the situation. Eventually, he came up with a compromise.

"How about we wait until you can match me in a fight, Sirius?" When Sirius opened his mouth to protest, James added, "Or we could go now and you could stay on board while we hunt for treasure."

Sirius snapped his mouth shut.

Remus smirked. "Better rest up."

Sirius shot him a murderous look.

James laughed. Things were finally getting back to normal. After a year of hell, all was finally well.

Three weeks after the sinking of Nagini, news reached the Marauder's Hollow that Riddle had not been on the ship when they had struck. Riddle was alive, and livid that they had sent his fortune to the bottom of the sea. Riddle was on the rise once more.

James shared a grave look with Remus and Sirius. "He'll be after his map."

Remus lifted his chin, his scars illuminated in the candlelight of the captain's chambers. "I hope you're feeling up to a treasure hunt, Black."

Sirius, mostly recovered from his incarceration (or so he said), grinned at Remus. "Oh, you know I am."

James failed to smother a smile. "So, we're beating Riddle to his own treasure, are we?"

Sirius leaned back in his chair cockily, hands behind his head and a smirk upon his face. "I love races."

James grinned wickedly. "Set course for the first stop, Remus. We have treasure to find."