Marauderie-
Summmary: Growing up is hard. Growing up in the midst of a war that will define the future of the Wizarding World is undoubtedly more difficult. As sixth year commences, they've made it clear that they're giving it their best shot.
A.N.: I've been wanting to write something Marauder Era for awhile now, and this is finally it. Hopefully it goes well, because I just can barely function without regular doses of Jily and such. Well, here goes! Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I don't claim any ownership, that's all thanks to J.K. Rowling
One: Where It Began
Most people would not include walking through a solid brick wall in their daily routine. However, Lily Evans was decidedly not most people. As her elder sister Petunia loved to point out. Lily shoved distasteful thoughts of Tuney from her mind and stepped farther out onto Platform 9 ¾. As usual, it was crowded with families sending their children off to another year at Hogwarts, but something in the atmosphere had changed. The goodbyes were hurried, more heartfelt, the hugs tighter and the kisses more desperate.
There was a war coming. And Lily knew that those parents and family saying those goodbyes were attempting to convey so much more than well-wishing into the embraces they offered. Because no one knew, come next summer, or even Christmas holidays, what families wouldn't be there to welcome their loved ones? She glanced around, her face solemn, at the faces she knew there was a chance she would never see again. War wasn't picky, and neither was He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. Casualties were mounting, wizards and witches and Muggles alike. There was no way to know. In a way, Lily was grateful that her family was entirely Muggle, and mostly unhindered by the fear that was being wrought with every edition of the Daily Prophet. They knew, in a far off way, that something was happening, but they were exempt from the details. The last thing she needed was Petunia ragging on her about how the world was going to pieces because of freaks like her.
Pull it together, she steeled herself. Rising up on tip-toe, she scanned the crowd for the faces of her friends. Several feet away, she spotted Alice Fortescue bidding her parents farewell. Hand clasped firmly around her trunk, Lily weaved through the crowd to reach her.
"Lily!" Alice cried when she caught sight of Lily approaching. The petite brunette threw her arms around the redhead, squeezing the life out of her. It was shocking, really, how much force lay in such a tiny body.
"Can't breathe, Alice," Lily gasped out, laughing slightly. They both grinned as they broke apart.
"How was your holiday?" Alice asked. Lily waited to answer as her friend hugged her mother one last time before they both lugged their school trunks onto the baggage car.
"The usual. Quiet," Lily shrugged, dusting off her hands on her jeans as she drew back from the car.
"With the exception of Petunia, I'm guessing," Alice snorted distastefully.
"Obviously," Lily agreed, sighing.
"She's such a cow. I know she's your sister, but honestly," Alice remarked, shaking her head. "Have you seen Marlene or Dorcas or Mary?" The five made up the sixth year Gryffindor girls, and had shared a dormitory since they were eleven. Essentially, there was no one Lily loved more in Hogwarts.
Of course, once upon a time, she had had another best friend. But the events of last year had promptly put an end to that.
Again, she shoved the unwanted memories away; a sick feeling of hurt and anger bubbling up in her stomach. Down, down, inside a lockbox that even Alohamora couldn't open.
"Not yet. I was hoping you had. They might already have a compartment," Lily answered, stepping onto the train. Glancing through the windows to each compartment as they made their way down the narrow hallways, hoping to catch sight of Marlene's mass of silken hair or hear Dorcas's loud laugh.
"Oi, Evans!" Lily turned, doing her best to suppress the sigh of exasperation that threatened to escape her. The train hadn't even left the station yet. It was far too early in the year to deal with this.
This was better known as the Marauders; the quartet of Gryffindor boys in the same year as Lily and Alice. Notorious pranksters, they had set records for detentions, and somehow maintained a status of utmost popularity throughout the past five years. Thankfully, it was only Sirius Black. Although Lily was in no way thrilled to see him, he was certainly not the one she most dreaded the sight of.
Black's assured, slightly manic grin was present as he caught her eye at the far end of the hall. Although she felt no attraction to him, it was undeniable that he was handsome. With unruly dark hair that fell in a mop of slight curls around his ears, steel gray eyes and a physique that could only be attributed to his position as Beater on the Gryffindor Quidditch team, the female population of Hogwarts lay at his feet. He was fully aware of this, and wasted no time in shagging whomever he liked. Lily pursed her lips.
"What?" she asked, preparing herself for the worst. Something the Marauders were constantly changing her definition of. Whenever she thought the havoc they created had reached its limit, she was unpleasantly surprised as they surpassed it.
"Have you seen James?" he inquired.
The taste inside her mouth went sour. "No, I haven't." Not waiting to see his reaction, she turned away and slipped inside the compartment in which Alice and her other roommates were waiting. She collapsed onto the seat, propping up her head with her hand.
"What did Black want?" Dorcas asked. She was seated across from Lily, her brows raised. Dorcas was a bit of a tomboy, very athletic and a proud member of the Gryffindor Quidditch team. She played Chaser, and she was all power and lean muscle, like a gymnast. The summer holidays had left her skin browned, and her sandy blond hair was cropped just above her shoulder, falling in playful waves around her face.
"Nice to see you too, Dorcas," Lily rolled her eyes, a smile returning to her face. Just being in the presence of her best friends lightened her mood considerably. "And to answer your question, the berk just wanted me to know if I'd seen Potter yet."
Dorcas laughed. "Should've known."
Potter, or James Potter, was Lily's least favorite of the Marauders. This was mainly to do with the fact that he was the bane of her existence. Having pranked her since first year, and simultaneously shamelessly asked her out since third, he was forever under her skin. She hated the sight of his messy jet black hair, his mischievous hazel eyes, the way his glasses made him look somewhat smart, which only endeared him more to girls. Something he was most definitely aware of, judging by the number of girls he always seemed to have shagged. He was unbearably arrogant, something that his prowess on the Quidditch pitch and unrelenting popularity did nothing to suppress. He was the best friend of Sirius Black, and together they were a dynamic, (or destructive, in Lily's opinion) duo of pranksters that headed the Marauders. And nothing Lily ever did or said could make him leave her alone.
"Dunno why you hate him so much, Lil," Marlene remarked, filing her nails. "He's fit as hell, you can't deny that." Marlene was laying down on the leather seat, her legs propped up vertically against the window. Her lips were red with her favorite lipstick, and they twisted into a smile as she gave Lily a knowing look.
"I don't care that he's fit," Lily scoffed bitterly. "I don't care. He's an arrogant arse, and he can stay far away from me."
"I don't think that's something you should count on happening," Alice interjected dryly.
"If he asks me out…" Lily trained off darkly.
"Yes, yes, we know, you'll hex him," Dorcas finished for her, waving her hand dismissively.
"I don't think he's as awful as you think, you know." It was the first time Mary had spoken. She was the quietest one of the five, and very Irish. Like Lily, she was also a muggleborn. "I think what Snape did was way worse than anything Potter's ever done."
A very pregnant pause followed her words, and the girls all seemed reluctant to end it. The lockbox in Lily's brain burst open and she wanted to evaporate and punch something all at once.
"She has a point, Lils," Alice spoke softly, her words cautious as she broke the silence.
Lily clenched her jaw and let out a breath she didn't realize she'd been holding. "What Snape did was unforgiveable. Believe me, I'm fully aware of that. We're not friends anymore, and you all know that. But that doesn't make Potter better."
Alice pursed her lips worriedly, and Marlene studied her carefully. Dorcas, obviously sensing that a new topic of conversation was needed, pushed onwards.
"Do you have to meet up with the prefects?" she asked Lily. Letting out a curse under her breath, Lily checked her watch.
"Oh, right. In two minutes. I'll be back." She stood up, pocketing her wand, and stepped out into the hall, sliding the compartment door shut behind her. The prefects always reserved the front most carriage for a start of the year meeting. Regrettably, Lily realized that she had yet to change into her robes, or wear her badge. But she was reluctant to shed her comfortable jeans and sweater just yet, so she kept walking.
The new Head Boy, a Ravenclaw by the name of Amos Diggory, and Girl, Elena Hopkins from Hufflepuff, greeted her with smiles. She noted with gratitude that Remus Lupin, her fellow sixth year prefect, had saved a spot for her to sit next to him. She took it, whispering a quick thank you. He nodded, giving her a small smile, before turning his attention back to the Heads.
Remus Lupin, shockingly enough, was a Marauder, despite his prefect status. He was quieter, and although he had participated in his share of rule breaking, he seemed to enjoy it slightly less than Potter, Black, and the fourth member of their group, Peter Pettigrew. Lily suspected Dumbledore had hoped that making Remus a prefect would perhaps persuade the Marauders against their antics, but to no avail. If anything, it seemed that the four friends had taken it as a challenge.
Lily had not found the irony funny in any way.
"For those of you who are newly appointed prefects, congratulations," Amos Diggory began. "My name is Amos Diggory, and I'm Head Boy."
"I'm Elena Hopkins, Head Girl," Elena introduced, exchanging a look with Diggory before continuing. "Being a prefect is a responsibility. It is our job to try to encourage good behavior amongst our peers. This includes confiscating banned items, reporting to teachers of any rule-breaking, helping younger students, and patrolling the halls during the evenings according to schedule. Although we do hold positions of authority, we do not have the power to dock points, under any circumstances. We can hand out detentions, but if you're caught dealing out punishments with no valid reason, there will be consequences. Professor Dumbledore has selected all of you because he believes you will make contribution to Hogwarts. Amos and I ask that you do your best to fulfill your responsibilities and prove the Headmaster right to have picked you."
The whole compartment nodded in acknowledgement of Elena's speech. Having been a prefect the year before, none of this was new to Lily. It was just protocol, in order to properly induct the newly appointed fifth year prefects into their positions.
"Now, if the fifth year prefects could each introduce themselves by stating their name and House," Diggory prompted.
Lily noted that the two new Gryffindor prefects were Alexander Wood and Emmeline Vance. Besides that, she wasn't paying close attention until the Slytherin boy spoke.
"Regulus Black, Slytherin."
She'd known, of course, that Black had a younger brother. Not that he spoke about his family all that much, having been the only Black to ever be sorted into a House other than Slytherin, he gave off the strong impression that he in no way cared about his family.
Looking at Regulus Black, she could see the likeness. He was younger looking, his eyes a soft brown as opposed to his brother's fierce gray; and he seemed sort of like a puppy, eager to impress. She wondered briefly if Sirius knew or cared that his little brother was a prefect. She doubted it.
"Alright, fifth years, patrol the corridors of the train until we arrive, in shifts, please. Four and four. I'm giving you the freedom to decide amongst yourselves who takes the earlier shift. Everyone else, the password to the prefect bathroom is 'bowtruckle' and the patrol schedules will be located there as well. Dismissed," Diggory said. Everyone stood, slowly trickling out of the compartment to make their way back to their friends.
Lily brushed in front of a Slytherin sixth year, Rosier, and heard him mutter: "Careful, Catherine, don't touch the mudblood." It was low enough so that the Heads, still inside the compartment, couldn't hear, but Lily knew with utmost certainty Rosier had intended for her to hear the comment. Her throat went dry, a flower of anger blooming in her chest. Every ounce of her wanted to turn around and curse him, but she fought it. The last thing she needed was to get into more trouble with the Slytherins. Her pride didn't want to let her be affected by something as stupid as a word. But still, at the back of her mind, it ate away at her.
"Ignore them," Remus whispered in her ear, his tone grave as he gently grabbed her arm, speeding up the pace at which they walked in order to put more distance in between her and Rosier. "They're not worth it."
"I know," she managed. "Thanks."
"No problem. Don't let it get to your head, alright?"
"I'll try my best," she assured him, surging with gratitude. Marauder or not, Remus Lupin was truly a nice person, she had to grant him that.
Later on, as she laughed over Marlene's romantic exploits of the summer and shared Pumpkin Pasties with Mary, she did her best to ensure that the lockbox in her brain and all the painful memories that lay inside it stayed shut. Otherwise, she couldn't count on herself to simply ignore the Slytherins anymore.
First chapter down. So, let me know what you think. This story will be told in many different perspectives, just to let you know. I hope I did some of these characters justice, because I absolutely adore Marauder Era fanfiction. Thank you so very much for reading, and please do review! Love you all!
-xoxo NotsoSugarQueen