Disclaimer: I do not own anything in this story. All characters, places, and creatures belong to J.K. Rowling.
Chapter 1: Mood Lightening Spectacle
The common room was filled with a light chatter as the sun sank below the horizon. James Potter and Sirius Black sat together on a large couch right in front of the fire, heads bent low over a piece of paper. They were talking in a low whisper and occasionally there would be a loud outburst of laughter from the two. All of the Gryffindors ignored them as they had become too accustomed to this behavior, all of them except for Lily Evans. Every time one of the pair would laugh she would tense and grit her teeth. She simply could not stand the duo of trouble makers.
James and Sirius were currently discussing their latest prank for the evening, waiting for their other friends, Remus and Peter, to join them. The last few weeks had been a hard time on all of the students with the recent attacks Voldemort had made on some of the most prominent wizarding villages. Many of the students had lost family members of friends, and everyone's nerves were on end. The marauders, as the four boys called themselves, fancied it their job to lighten everyone's spirits. Usually their pranks were aimed toward deserving Slytherins, namely Severus Snape, but tonight was more to lessen the current tension that always filler the air.
"You notice," Sirius commented, "that every time we go to plan a new 'mood lightening spectacle' it gets harder and harder?" 'Mood lightening spectacle' was what their headmaster, Albus Dumbledore, chose to call their pranks. Ever since he used that phrase Sirius had refused to call it anything else.
"Yes, well considering we've used every piece of pranking equipment Zonko's, or any other store of the sort for that matter for that matter, has made it's not quite hard to imagine why." James stated staring into the fire thinking hard about the upcoming prank. "We only have until Remus and Peter get back to figure this out Sirius. I mean come on- we're kings at this sort of stuff. We can figure something out…" he trailed off and the two set for ten minutes in silence.
"I have an idea!" Sirius exclaimed jumping to his feet and running to the boys staircase. James waited patiently for his eccentric friend to return. Not two minutes later Sirius came bounding down the stairs, broomstick in hand. He walked right past James and out the portrait hole, without a word. James quickly scrambled to his feet and followed his friend. Running to catch up, James finally did two floors down.
"My God mate, slow down," James panted closing in on his best mate. "What the bloody hell are you planning."
Instead of answering Sirius just cackled and continued descending finally reaching the front doors. He didn't stop there however, he pushed the doors open with great effort and stepped out onto the grounds. James followed him with a amused expression on his face, but did not say a word. When finally reaching the edge of the Great Lake he stopped.
"It's about damn time," James said, "What on the face of God's green earth brought us down here?"
"That, mate, is an excellent question," Sirius said but didn't bother to tell James what the answer was. He crouched down and ran his hand through the water. "Hmmm… not too cold," he observed. "Alright James, I have an assignment for you," Sirius finally said straightening and dusting off his pants.
"Aye, Aye captain, what can I do for you?" He said standing tall and saluting Sirius.
"Right, I want you to swim to the bottom of the lake and gather at least twenty grindy-lows for me, okay buddy?" Sirius stated nonchalantly.
"You're mad… mad," James said before walking up the slope back towards the castle.
"Wait, wait you're right that won't work…" Sirius said and started to pace. James reluctantly turned and came back to the spot he was standing in before. Sirius continued to pace before finally holding up a finger in the air, "Alright now I think I've got it. Do you think we'd be able to summon up some grindy-lows?"
"I suppose so, but you seem to be forgetting that grindy-lows don't much like the company of us wizarding folk. And once you get the up here what makes the you think they won't attack us like crazy?" James said eying his obvious demented friend.
"Yes, well that's where one of us summons them and the other stupefies them when they breech the surface of the lake!" Sirius explained as it was the most obvious thing in the world.
"I suppose that would work. But tell me what you're doing with them, before we have gallons of grindy-lows at our feet." James asked.
"That my friend will come later… but it will require the use of a cheering charm and a duplicating charm. Okay before we start we need… a bucket and your invisibility cloak… and Remus." Sirius said, his grin becoming wider and the gleam in his eyes more apparent.
"Right well you stay out here and I'll go find those things. Try not to kill yourself until I get back, okay mate?" James said, smirking at his friend.
"Sure, sure whatever you say," Sirius commented distractedly gazing off into the open air.
James shook his head and started to walk back up to the castle. He was almost to the front steps when he encountered his first obstacle. Severus Snape, of Snivellus as the boys fondly (or not so much) called him, was standing in almost the same spot at him, seeming to come out of the Forbidden Forest.
"Hello my good friend Severus, I was just on my way to enjoy a lovely feast with Barnaby the Barmy and Minerva, would you like the join us?" James inquired tipping an imaginary top hat to Severus.
"You and you're little friend, Black, are up to something aren't you?" Severus said pointing to where Sirius was standing by the lake, now cackling madly.
"Why ever would you think that? Just because in our past Sirius and I have gone on a few… dangerous endeavors does not mean that is all we think about. We are above such practical jokes. Now if you'll excuse my I must be going. Nice seeing you dear." James marched away leaving Severus dumbfounded, but his mood was quite improved. He just loved to confuse that Snape. He happily continued up to the common room where he found Remus and Peter sitting on the couch he and Sirius had previously occupied.
"Hey, where were you?" Peter asked looking up at James from his position.
"Interesting question really. Sirius has an idea for the 'mood lightening spectacle' and we were out at the lake figuring it out. I actually came up here to get a few things. Remus we need you to look up duplicating charms and figure out how to perform it within the next hour and a half or so before dinner. Meet us down at the lake when you find it."
"I'm right on it," Remus said standing up and heading to out the portrait hole and presumably towards the library.
"Good, now Pete I need you to find me a bucket big enough to hold twenty or more grindy-lows, preferably we'd like it to have a handle. I'm pretty sure Filch has some in the cupboard on the sixth floor the right of the painting of Merlin. Come by the lake when you have it."
Peter nodded and followed Remus out of the common room. James grin broadened, he always loved planning for pranks. When he was with his friends he felt like nothing could ever hold us down. He practically skipped up to his dormitory and grabbed his invisibility cloak, his and Sirius's wand, and a large fisherman's hat he had been given as a gag gift and shoved it on his head. On his wan out of the common room he ran into Lily Evans.
"Oh! Hello Lily how are you this fine evening?" James asked again tipping the hat on his, except this time there was an actual hat.
"Don't give me that Potter, what are you up to?" Lily glared as James as usual. It seemed that in the world of Lily he would never redeem himself for past actions.
"Actually Sirius and I are planning to graffiti all of the walls with pictures of nude women and possibly a few rude words. After that we are going to run around the halls screaming like mad men and knock innocent students down. Then we're going to cause some general mayhem and mischief." James said, annoyed with the third degree Lily always seemed to give him.
"Well as long as you don't get caught by all means go ahead." For a moment James thought those words had come out of Lily's mouth, but then he realized her lips hadn't moved at all. He spun around and came face to face with Amelia Bones.
"Oh Amelia, for a moment, just a moment mind you, I thought it had been Lily that said that. I can see I was clearly mistaken. How are you my dear? Any news of the traveling act?" James asked with genuine curiosity.
"If you're referring to Edgar, then no we haven't heard from him in weeks. Mum's having a cow, as I'm sure you can imagine. But Edgar did warn us that what he was doing is dangerous and it would be hard to write. Knowing him, he's probably gotten himself a girl and is off traveling Paris with her." Amelia said dryly, but James knew better. Edgar and Amelia Bones, along with their parents, had always been good friends with the Potters. Therefore James knew that the eldest Bones child was currently on a top secret mission against Voldemort.
"Well if you get to write him, be sure to mention I say hello. Oh and tonight- tell him about tonight. He'll love it." Edgar had only been two years ahead of the boys and Lily, three ahead of Amelia who was a sixth year. He had always appreciated the marauders sense of adventure and pranks, even when he was Head Boy.
"Yeah, I'll do that. Anyway I needed to talk to Lily," both of them turned to where Lily had been standing to notice she was no longer there.
"Well that's helpful. She's needed by Emmyline, she's tried to charm her hair to be curly. A few things, including my bed, her bed, and our door, caught fire. Not a pretty sight, and not to mention she's no longer in the possession of any hair. Poor, poor girl." With that Amelia left James to wonder how wrong one spell could go.
Remembering the task at hand James jogged lightly the rest of the way out of the castle to find that Peter and Remus had not yet arrived.
"I send you for a bucket and Remus, and you come back with this silly thing-what the hell is wrong with you?" Sirius asked plucking the hat off James' head.
"For you information," James said grabbing his hat out of Sirius hand's, "I like this hat ("Of course you do," Sirius said), and Remus is in the library looking up duplicating spells, and Peter is getting the bucket. Do not underestimate me little bro." That was a common nickname James had given Sirius when Sirius had moved in with the Potter the previous summer.
"Oh right then. Good guess with the Remus research thing." Sirius said again taking the hat of James' head.
"I'm brilliant there's no need to tell me. By the way Amelia's writing to Edgar soon, I told her to tell him about our prank."
"Smashing. I miss that old buggar. Has she heard from him lately?" Sirius asked, adopting a solemn attitude.
"No she hasn't. I hope he's ok. He's a good bloke." James said staring at his hands. "What if- what if something happens to him? How do you think Amelia would take it?"
"Total brake down I'd say. They were always close. You know how she was when she got the news he had to go away. I'm worried about him, and all the other's James. I just… I don't know. I hate this. Why do the good people always have to go out there and fight? I feel so helpless locked up in here while good friends of mine are out there risking their lives." Sirius kicked a rock into the lake and hung his head. "And it kills me to know that my family," he spat out the word like it was vile, "is probably out there causing all the destruction."
"They're not you're family Sirius, you know that. For all it's worth you're a Potter just like me. I mean hell you've spent almost every holiday at my house, even when you weren't living with us, since you were eleven. You call my parents Mum and Pops, you're my brother Sirius. You're a good person, you're not anything like them. And I don't want to hear you say you are ok?" James put his hand on Sirius shoulder and patted it a couple of times.
"I know… thank-you." He pulled James into a tight brotherly hug but quickly broke away when he saw Peter coming.
"Hey Pete! Did ya get the bucket? Did ya, did ya, did ya?" Sirius asked, returning to his normal jolly self.
"Yeah, 'twas not a problem. I set off a couple of dungbombs in the third floor corridor so he wouldn't be anywhere near the closet." As he talked he pulled a tiny bucket from his pocket and said, "engorgio!" [A/N 1]. The bucket immediately enlarged to the size of a… well large bucket.
"Spiffing, now James would you rather summon or stun?" Sirius asked after James handed him his wand.
"I suppose I'd rather summon. Alright on the count of five I'm going to summon the griny-low, Sirius you stun it, Peter you gather it and throw it in the bucket. Everyone ok with that?" James asked pointing his wand to the lake.
Both voice their agreement and James started to count, "one… two... three…" there he was cut off my Sirius.
"Why don't we just go on three?" He inquired.
"Why would we do that?" James asked looking over at Sirius.
"Because I'm impatient and I want this done quickly. And counting to five takes longer than counting to three," said Sirius.
"You realize I could have summoned two grindy-lows by now don't you?" Said James. When Sirius didn't reply he started the count down again, "Okay. One… two…"
"So are we going on three?" Sirius asked actually looking confused.
James just ignored him and continued counting "…three… four… five. Accio!"James shouted and a few seconds later a grindy-low came zooming out of the water. As it passed overland Sirius shouted "Stupefy!" The grindy-low fell to the ground with a thud and Peter picked it up, throwing it into the bucket.
They continued this about twenty-five times until the bucket was filled to the top. "Right that should be enough." Sirius said stopping James from summoning another one.
The three boys sat down on the grass with the bucket between them, making sure none of the grindy-lows woke up. They chatted lightly until Remus showed up sometime later.
"Hullo fellows. I've got the charm down… I think. As long as it's not anything we need to stay alive we should be golden." Remus said smiling at his mates.
"Thank-you Remus. Was it difficult?" James asked.
"No, it wasn't too hard. I'm surprised was haven't learned it actually. It's pretty simple, once you get the wand movement down. You blokes should be able to get it in no time." Remus said.
"Actually there won't be any need for that. I just need you to make duplicate a few things. A few times. James, how many grindy-lows did we end up having?" Sirius asked.
"I believe twenty-six." Peter said for him.
"Right, well then we'll need twenty-six cheering charms and twenty-six duplicating charms then." Sirius said, clapping his hands together. "Okay then. Remus you can perform the duplicating charms and James you do the cheering charms. Pete and I need to go up and learn one more thing. Oh and thanks by the way Remus for being so quick… we would have been able to do this part without it." With that Sirius dragged Peter to his feet and the two started towards the castle.
"Wait Sirius!" James shouted, "are you going to tell us what the entire plan is?"
"That, my friend, you will find out at dinner!" Sirius yelled back before continuing back into the castle.
[A/N 1]: I'm not entirely sure if that's the right spell of enlarging things. Feel free to correct me if I'm wrong.
Ok I know this one did not have hardly any Lily in it, but she should be in the next chapter. And there will be a blooming romance between L/J. I'm haven't decided if I should make Amelia a love interest for anyone. Y'all tell me what you think. I would love some feedback!
Next Chapter: You find out what the prank is, the prank is planned, and the marauders are given their punishment (if indeed the get any)
Till next time-
Salt&Pepper531
