A/N: This was written for the Quidditch League Fanfiction Competition.
Team: Caerphilly Catapults
Position: Keeper (Reserve)
Prompt: Write something in the genre of Crime.
Beta: EvilDime - thanks!
Word Count: 1601
"Come on, hurry up!"
"I don't know if this is a good idea."
"Oh, don't be such a spoil-sport."
"Can you tell me the plan again?"
James Potter flashed his wand's light into Peter's face and made a sound of exasperation. "Are you serious, Peter? We went over it about fifty times in the shack!" His hands waved animatedly over his head as he spoke, and Remus grabbed one of his wrists.
"Calm down, James. You're going to get us caught!"
"Oh, lighten up, Remus," Sirius jumped in with a laugh, "It's late, and it's not like we're stealing from Snivellus. If we were, then I would be worried. But we're not."
"I just don't want you all in trouble on account of me," Remus replied honestly. He'd been against the animagus idea as soon as it had been brought up, but the others had ignored him. Secretly, in some selfish and daring part of him, he was thankful - maybe even happy – about it. But he wouldn't tell them that.
"That's what friends are for," James stated with a grin, shoving back his long hair and pushing his glasses further up on his nose. Then he turned back to Peter, "You have to watch the door. That's all. Got it?"
Peter nodded slowly, looking entirely worried about the whole situation. "And if – "
"If you hear anything out of the ordinary, put out your wand's light. We'll see it – or rather, we won't see it – and take cover," Sirius broke in, sounding even more exasperated than James. His long hair was a mess, covered in leaves and dirt from the "walk" through the long tunnel to the shack. James chuckled at this, and Sirius shot him a questioning look, which only made the whole situation funnier.
"C'mon guys, can we just get this over with?" Remus stated, trying to sound sensible. He knew it hadn't worked when Sirius piped up from his right:
"C'mon guys, can we just get this over with?" he repeated, making his voice sound high and squeaky. Remus rolled his eyes but didn't respond. He'd gotten used to Sirius' teasing a long time ago, and knew that it was best not to respond.
"Remus is right," James responded, noticing the look of surprise that crossed his friend's face. As a school prefect, it was his job to be sensible, but he never expected the same from his friends. James knew he would probably get some gesture of thankfulness later, which annoyed him slightly. After all, it wasn't like he was only the arrogant prat that many people saw him as. That just made life more interesting.
"Let's go," Remus stated, voice sounding much stronger this time. James almost laughed at the slightly stunned expression that settled on Sirius's face. He hadn't expected such a statement from their generally gentle, levelheaded, and rational friend. But James thought that he understood. Remus knew that they were going through with this no matter what he said, so he thought he might as well take charge and get it over with. Honestly, James was pretty sure that there was more to Remus than he let on. But he was a tough nut to crack, that one.
The four continued creeping along the side of the castle, heading slowly downhill to where the greenhouses were. They didn't need much, but it wasn't going to be an easy task to collect them. After a few minutes of walking they reached the greenhouses. Passed the first one, sidestepped around the second one, and then caught their breaths in front of the third.
"This is the one?" Peter asked. No one bothered to respond. He had an annoying habit of asking questions that he already knew – or should already have known – the answers to.
"Stand outside, Peter," James ordered, taking control again, "Remus – "
"I don't know, James. Maybe it would be better if I stood outside. If anyone gets caught, it should be me," Remus stated. Then he leaned forward and whispered in James' ear: "And I might actually be able to alert you if a Professor shows up."
Sirius, who had been listening in, laughed at this and looked at Remus with a newfound respect. Sort of like: You just insulted Peter? Welcome to the club!
Elbowing his friend, James glared at him. "Quiet down, will you?"
Peter broke into their conversation, obviously annoyed at being left out. "I think it's a good idea for Remus to guard. I can help you get the – "
Shoving a hand over Peter's mouth, Sirius rolled his eyes exaggeratedly. "Did you remember anything that we talked about?" He questioned, eyes burning as though someone had lit a fire behind them. "Because right now I'm ready to shove you in there. With no earmuffs."
Terror crossed over Peter's face, before Remus stepped in between them. "This isn't the time for that. Come on, let's go."
The other three nodded, and without another word stepped into the now-silent greenhouse.
"Here!" James whispered, handing a pair of earmuffs each to Sirius and Peter, Remus having stayed outside after all. "Put these on."
"Really? I thought we were just supposed to hold them in our hands," Sirius muttered sarcastically, slipping the earmuffs on. James glared at him, but the darkness of the greenhouse covered the look.
"I found them!" said a shrill voice from partway down the greenhouse. James and Sirius rolled their eyes at the same time, and hurried towards the voice. James had "borrowed" the earmuffs from Professor Sprout, who had charmed them so that one could still hear, and yet also be protected from the Mandrakes.
"Don't tou – "
"AHHHHHHHHHHHH!" The scream cut through the small greenhouse, causing James to shove his hands against the earmuffs. Not that it actually helped, but it made him feel better. He didn't stop moving though, heading towards Peter the whole time.
"Why the hell did he pull it out?" Sirius asked, exasperated. James shrugged. "Now Remus' light is out. Someone's coming," Sirius continued. At this, James nodded, only then catching up to Peter. Whispering lumos he watched as his wand lit up, illuminating the plants spread out in front of him.
"Grab one!" James stated quickly. The three grabbed at the plants, looking for the best options, and ended up with one mandrake leaf each, "Now let's – "
The room exploded in light, and it was a moment before any of them could see again. When they could, a very stern-looking Professor McGonagall stood before them. Remus stood beside her, face a mixture of annoyance, worry, and embarrassment.
"What are you all doing here, boys?" She questioned, eyebrows raised, as though she already knew but was simply hoping that they wouldn't lie to her.
"We were looking for dried nettles!" Peter piped up, his voice sounding slightly off. James and Sirius exchanged confused glances.
"Really? And what exactly would you be doing with – dried nettles?" McGonagall sounded as confused as the two boys were.
"We wanted to make a Swelling Potion to get back at the Slytherins for…stuff," Peter ended. James wanted to roll his eyes. For about two seconds he had thought that Peter might actually have been doing something useful. Then "stuff" happened. Sirius sighed audibly from beside him.
McGonagall considered them, glancing at Remus. Suddenly, a knowing expression passed over her eyes, which simply confused James more.
"Let me see your hands, boys," she stated. All three glanced at each other and then held out their entirely empty hands. McGonagall furrowed her brow, as though attempting to look bewildered for whatever reason and failing entirely. "Well," she continued, "as you don't seem to have stolen anything, I will overlook your other crimes. But you are out at night, past curfew. Detention on Friday, in my office." She then turned to Remus, "And I hope, as a school prefect, I will not see this behavior from you again."
All four of them nodded, too enthusiastically, and were quickly escorted back to the Gryffindor dormitories by McGonagall. Once they had stepped through the portrait hole, James turned to Peter.
"What were you trying to do, get us in more trouble?" he questioned, his voice sounding both annoyed and disbelieving. "But then again, how did you think to – how did we all think to – shove the leaves in our mouths?"
"Well, I thought that part was obvious, really," Sirius stated arrogantly, winking at James. "The real question is, why did McGonagall let us get away with it?"
"What do you mean? She had no idea!" James responded.
"James. This is McGonagall. I think she knew not only what we took – but also what we took it for. And she let us get away with it."
James furrowed his brows, thinking back on the situation. "You could be right," he finally admitted. "But that doesn't make any sense. Why would she do that?"
"I don't know. I guess it will remain a mystery," Sirius responded with a cocky grin.
A few months later, when all preparations had been made and their final steps taken, the four boys gained the rewards for their late-night criminal behavior. You see, some say that crime never pays. They saw it differently. Of course, this…transformation…had been years in the making, but now their work was finally paying off.
Peter became a rat. That one was a little hard for the others to figure out at first, before they realized that he did have a bit of a second sense when it came to sneaking around.
Sirius was a dog, the reason for this being entirely obvious to the other three. Fun loving, likes to be groomed, playful. Sirius in a nutshell.
James could transform into a stag. Tall, handsome, and self-confident. But there was also something deeper. Protective instincts, loyalty.
And, of course, Remus stayed a werewolf. But he was more now. He was also a Marauder.
Which meant that this was only the first of many new adventures.