Chapter Three: Getting To Know You

Note: Hey hey! So we were infected with the writing bug today and the product of said affliction is this little chapter. Hehe. Enjoy! :-D

Hermione intently watched the three set of footsteps make their way towards the Headmaster's office. She bit her lip, wondering if there was a way to fool it, as the names they had claimed were all clearly labeled on the map accordingly. She fought a twinge of guilt in her stomach for treating the four wizards in such a distrustful manner before steeling herself. No, I am only trying to protect Harry. Better safe than sorry.

"So, you two are Harry's friends?" Lily asked, interrupting the bushy-haired girl's thoughts, as she peered at the two wizards sitting on the bed across from her and Remus. James and Sirius had left only a few minutes earlier with Harry to meet with Dumbledore.

Hermione looked up, embarrassment flushing her cheeks, at the oversight. "Oh, yes. I'm sorry," she apologized, turning away from the map to face the other girl. "I'm Hermione and this is Ron."

Lily nodded. "Pleased to meet you," she smiled warmly, not introducing herself and Remus formally, as their identities were yet to be confirmed. Lily looked over to Remus, who was reading the articles in the paper he had found earlier, oblivious to his surroundings. The red-head cleared her throat again and pushed on. "What is that you are looking at?" she asked curiously, eyeing the large piece of parchment spread out on the bed in front of the other girl. It looked oddly familiar to something she had seen each of the Marauders at one point carrying on their person.

Hermione looked down, quirking her lips to the side in thought, and then back up at Lily. She sat silent for a moment, searching the other girl for something before speaking up reluctantly, "It's. Its a map of Hogwarts," she hedged.

"A map!" Remus looked up, pushing himself off the bed instantly.

"Stop right there!" Hermione held up her wand, standing slowly.

Remus looked around her, his eyes alighting on the old piece of enchanted parchment. "Merlin! How did you get that? I can't believe it made it into Harry's possession," he said excitedly. Lily stayed seated but tried to a get a better look for herself as well.

Hermione scooted back, blocking the view of the map from the wizards. "You know about it?" she asked skeptically. Ron watched the interaction silently.

"Of course I do. I enchanted it ... or at least I am in the process of doing so right now," Remus spoke quickly, his features growing more animated as he continued, "I've been working on it for over two years now to find all the necessary spells, while the others have been going around and sketching out all the rooms, corridors and secret passages," he tried to look around the girl again, but she moved again blocking his view. "It works then?" he asked, his eyes settling on the apprehensive witch.

"Yeah, it's fantastic!" Ron finally piped in, getting caught up in the other boy's excitement.

"Ron!" Hermione admonished, shooting him an angry glare. Ron gave her an apologetic smile, shrugging his shoulders, before looking back down to the map to avoid her anger.

Hermione looked back up to see the sandy-haired boy with a huge smile on his face. "Well, what do you know? Excellent!" He smiled openly at Hermione, who looked back at him speculatively before sitting back down on the bed.

Remus sat back down by Lily and continued to smile easily, his mood bolstered by the unexpected news. His friend offered a tight smile in return, reminding Remus of how much she had been dealing with since they had arrived. He scooted closer and spoke in a hushed tone, "Are you okay, Lily?"

Lily nodded jerkily before abruptly dropping her face into her hands. "No. No, I'm not," she groaned into her hands.

Remus reached a comforting arm around the girl and pulled her closer. "It'll be okay, Lily. Really. If anyone can help us get back it will be Dumbledore," he said, offering the only comfort he was certain of at that moment. He tried not to focus on his friends' bleak futures.

Lily lowered her hands, her expression unreadable, and looked up at the boy, "No. Not that. I meant about Potter," she hissed, attracting the wizards' attention from the other bed. She continued more quietly, in a harsh voice, "Why would I ever marry him? He is the hugest arse I have ever met, and I am going to marry him and have a child with him?" Lily stared at him, her chest rising and falling quickly, as she waited for some reassurance.

Remus ran his free hand through his neat hair, his gaze shifting to his feet. He pulled the girl tighter into a sideways hug. "Maybe he changed... I know you Lily. You wouldn't do something unless you truly wanted to and believed it was the right thing to do," he whispered, not knowing what else to say. Dead. She and James are going to be dead in just a few years. And Sirius, Sirius is going to be sentenced to Azkaban. He swallowed back a whimper, focusing on keeping his breath slow and steady.

Lily leaned her head on Remus's shoulder and closed her eyes. "I wonder if they've spoken to Dumbledore yet," she whispered softly as she felt sleep tug at her exhausted mind. The werewolf leaned his cheek on Lily's head, running a soothing hand over her long red hair. He would save his friends somehow. He had to.

Hermione watched the two strangers quietly, turning away to give them privacy when the boy had pulled the girl into a protective hug. She looked back down to the map, growing more and more certain the four newcomers hadn't been lying to them. She watched the three footsteps nearing their destination, only one corridor away, when another set of prints entered her field of vision.

"Oh no!" Hermione whispered urgently to Ron, who's eyes widened in response. They both watched in morbid fascination, cringing as the two trails moved closer and closer to each other, their paths crossing becoming an inevitable conclusion.

"After we meet with The Dumbles we should make a quick trip to Hogsmeade, Prongs. We could even bring Prongslet here with us," Sirius said excitedly as he sped up, kicked off a wall and spun around before landing squarely on both feet. He let out a triumphant laugh and then wrapped an arm around James, roughly pulling him over sideways in a headlock.

"You stupid prat!" James protested loudly, elbowing his best friend in the stomach, forcing out a groan from the other boy and his freedom.

Harry walked along quietly, smiling, as he closely watched his father and godfather interact. Sirius had told Harry back in third year that he and James had been best friends, 'like brothers' he had said with a faraway glint in his eyes. He hadn't fully understood what Sirius meant until now though. He laughed quietly when James tripped the other boy in revenge, causing him to fall face first into a suit of armor.

"Sorry. Sorry about that!" Sirius yelped, jumping out of the way of the angry armor's swinging sword. He turned and flipped off his best friend with both hands before spinning around and continuing his freestyle walking.

"You'd like that, you mangy mutt," James retorted.

"Not as much as you would. I've seen you checking me out in the showers," Sirius shot back automatically, giving Harry the feeling they had this conversation often.

"Thanks for trusting us, Harry," James said quietly, falling in step with the younger boy, as he watched on in amusement as Sirius taunted a painting he had always hated. It appeared to remember him.

"Oh, yeah, of course," Harry said nervously. "Is he always like this?" he asked, motioning to Sirius, who was swinging from a candelabra and whistling. The Sirius he knew was very kind and affectionate to his godson, but his eyes were haunted with a deep sadness whenever he thought no one was watching.

James smiled easily, "Yeah, pretty much. Sometimes he gets excited though," he joked as the boy swung off and flipped in the air before landing and letting out a whoop of joy.

Harry laughed along with the other boy, before an awkward silence fell on them. Sirius turned and jogged back towards them. "So, how did you all end up here? You mentioned a time turner?" Harry asked.

"Padfoot, Sirius here," he clarified for Harry, pointing at his best mate. "He swiped Remus's 'for educational purposes only' time turner for our own use-"

"-Too right!" Sirius shouted, laughing ecstatically and walking backwards in front of the very similar-looking boys, as they reached the final corridor. "We used it for this bloody brilliant prank on stupid Snivellus!" he continued excitedly, not noticing the boys' eyes shifting off of him and onto something behind him. "It ended with his greasy nose being shoved into a bowl of soup!"

"-Split pea soup, if I remember correctly," supplied an icy cold drawl from behind Sirius.

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