A/N: This fic is going to start off cheery, and gradually get darker. There are 7 chapters to this, and I'll be publishing weekly. I've tried to stay true to canon-Sirius. If you read it, please drop me a review! Enjoy ^_^
January 1978
"Buzz off, Snuffles," James muttered ominously, doing his best to appear irritated.
"It's no good, mate," Sirius teased gleefully. "Your ears are a particularly incriminating shade of pink."
Professor McGonagall chose that moment to sharply draw her pupils' attention back to their assigned task of conjuring quills, and James was spared from immediately answering. But Sirius was relentless. When class ended, he resumed his conspiratorial whispering, "No need to be embarrassed. Lily's the one who should be afraid of associating with you; she's way out of your league. Honestly, I don't know why you're not parading through the halls boasting. It's only taken you seven years to convince her."
"In the name of Merlin, Sirius! One date! She agreed to one date." Realizing belatedly that he'd raised his voice more than was ideal - as evidenced by the curious stares - he added more softly, "Quit acting like we're getting married or something."
Sirius's eyebrows shot up. "Or something?"
"Oh shove it, Padfoot," James bristled, picking up pace and leaving Sirius and his barking laughter behind, his own lips twitching upward as he thought of Lily.
"C'mon, mate. Everything's got to be perfect. We need you!" Sirius implored Remus.
Remus sat by the Great Lake, with his back to a tree, and until a moment ago, had been engrossed in astronomy homework. "Who's we?"
"We is me speaking on behalf of James and Lily, of course," said Sirius, almost matter-of-factly. "And Peter," he added.
Remus rolled his eyes. "Lily does not need me to help you guys get in trouble."
"Precisely!" said Sirius, with an air of triumph. "You know I'm self sufficient when it comes to trouble. We need you to help us stay out of it."
Remus laughed. "I suppose that's always been my calling. I ought to stop denying that now."
"That's the spirit, Moony!" With a wink, Sirius scooped up Remus's sheets of parchment and stuffed them into the bag by Remus's feet. "C'mon, then."
"Now?" Remus was running after Sirius, who had begun to sprint back to the castle. "I thought you said there's an hour before they need to sneak out."
"We'll need the better part of that hour just to explain the plan to Wormtail."
"Bloody hell, Sirius."
Grinning, Sirius kept running until he reached the common room. A quick look around revealed Peter heading upstairs toward the dormitories. Sirius chased after him, dragging Remus along. Once safely inside, Sirius shut the door and perched on the four-poster.
"Sirius!" Peter exclaimed cheerfully. "Are we planning something?"
In response, Sirius pulled the Marauder's Map out from its hiding place in the ceiling of his bed's canopy. Peter plopped himself across from Sirius, visibly excited.
"Where's the man of the hour?" Remus asked.
"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good," Sirius stated, tapping the map with his wand. "James will probably join us in a bit. I think he's confirming some things with Lily." The previously blank parchment populated itself with labeled points moving about the castle. Peter's eyes flitted across the page.
"Lily… has actually said yes… right?"
"Ugh. Details." He let out a bark of laughter at Remus's exasperated face. "Oh, I'm only messing with you, Moony. Of course she has." He twirled his wand between his thumb and finger. "It's our mission to make sure she doesn't regret that decision.
"Alright, so the plan is that they'll skip dinner for a romantic evening in Hogsmeade, and sneak back right after curfew."
"And we're helping them sneak out and back in without getting caught," offered Peter.
Sirius nodded approvingly.
Half an hour later, the plan was ready. Remus and Peter would head to the fourth floor bathrooms, distracting any professors. James and Lily would follow, sneaking out through the secret passageway behind the mirror; and Sirius would bring up the rear, stalling anyone approaching from behind. Then, exactly two hours later, they would sneak back in the same way, with the other three standing guard to allow the couple to pass through the fourth floor corridor to Gryffindor tower undetected.
Feeling rather smug, Sirius allowed Peter to erase the map with a pleased 'mischief managed.' He blasted a current of cold air in James's face as the latter finally entered the dormitory. "That's for leaving your friends alone to do all your dirty work for you," he accused; but he was grinning.
Peter and Remus made their way down the fourth floor corridor, doing their best to appear casual but confident. Lily followed a dozen paces behind them, and not far on her heels, James. Sirius let them walk for a bit before following, leaving the cover of a pillar just as the others reached the end of the corridor.
"Sirius, my boy!" a voice boomed in his left ear. Oh.
"Hello, Professor Slughorn." Sirius offered him his most charming smile. Then, thinking better of it, he dialed it down to a less suspicious degree. "Heading down for dinner, sir?"
Slughorn chuckled, patting his large belly. "Yes, m'boy! A man must eat, eh? Come along." He proceeded toward the stairs; if he went any further, he would see the others heading to the bathroom.
"Sir!" he called, rushing ahead and blocking Slughorn's path. "I often come here to gaze upon the grounds from this balcony," he led Slughorn to the window. "Do you think, sir, that those mountains beyond the lake are aware of the significance of what they guard?" Out of the corner of his eye, Sirius saw Remus and Peter making their way back. James and Lily must have made it out, he thought happily.
"Whatever do you mean, m'boy? Mountains are not sentient!"
He gestured urgently to his friends to clear the corridor. They broke into a quiet run, just as Slughorn looked up at Sirius. He promptly rerouted his hand into his hair. "Well, sir, I just wonder. I've heard the statues of Hogwarts have an inherent sense of duty to guard the castle, and that they're just waiting to be awakened. It would make sense, wouldn't it? The statues are made of stone, the mountains are made of stone. Surely…?" He trailed off as Remus and Peter went out of sight. Slughorn was just beginning to reply, when Sirius cut in:
"Just some food for thought, sir! I'm sure you're right, though. The mountains are nothing like our guardian statues. They're probably more like the giants - nonallied and neutral - if anything. Well I'm ravenous! See you around, Professor." With that he sauntered off toward the staircase, leaving an utterly bemused Slughorn in his wake.