Ok, I'm unbelievably sorry for taking this long to post!!!! I just have't had much time, what with geomtry and everything. But I mostly blame my evil science teacher, Miss. I Don't Know How To Teach A GIfted Class And I'm a Meanie And Belong On What Not To Wear Because I Always Look Really Frumpy And Have Stringy Hair And Talk To People Like They Are Babies And ToTop It All Off I'm Just Plain Stupid. Yes, That's SOOOTotally her name. Just ask Sirius'sweetheart, my bff, author of An Encounter With Fate, she's in that class too. :S It really sucks. ANYWAYS I've babbled enough. On with the story! Hope you like it!!!!!!!! :D
The corridors were silent as the eight tip-toed towards the statue of the humpbacked witch. Everyone must've be outside enjoying the nice crisp weather.
"Descendio" Peter muttered when he reached the statue. The hump opened up to reveal a dark passageway, that the Marauders knew led to Honeydukes cellar. Their laughter bouncing off the cold stone walls as they trekked through the long tunnel, they made in their in what seemed like seconds. Time just flies by when you're having fun. They emerged from the tunnel, into the cellar.
"You know, not all of us can fit under my invisibility cloak……" James said uncertainly. "How are we going to get out without being noticed?"
"We'll go incognito." Lily said with a grin.
With that she got to work, transfiguring everyone into looking like they were 21, and therefore not in school any longer. To Sirius's delight, Lily gave him a beard and curly mustache, though he was wary of the fact his hair had also been transfigured into curly bronze colored locks, because what if it wouldn't change back?! Melody, Amberly, Lily and Becca became stunning quadruplets, all with long, straight, honey blond hair. To tell them apart, they all got streaks in their hair, that matched their changed eye color. Melody got shimmery gold that matched the flakes of her hazel eyes, Becca, baby blue, Amberly, vivid purple, and Lily, green, because James wouldn't let her change her eyes, they were to pretty, he said. James was blond with brown eyes, Remus now had blue green eyes and black hair, and Peter stayed virtually the same, with added facial hair.
Ready to go, they stealthily entered Honeydukes. Peter tripped over his two left feet and crashed into a display of blood flavored lollipops. Everyone shushed him, and Lily helped him back to his feet. But the damage was done, they'd been heard. Hurrying to spread out so they would appear to not have just come up from behind the counter, Peter and Lily proceeded to clean up and everyone else tried to look engrossed in examining a multitude of sweets, Chocolate Frogs, Drooble's Best Blowing Gum, Bertie Bott's Every Flavored Beans, Sugar Quills, Fizzing Whizbee's, and even a section of muggle sweets added especially for Dumbledore, who did indeed have a strange liking for them, particularly lemon drops. The owner of the little delectable sweet shop, Ambrosius Flume, scurried over from where he was arranging Licorice Wands that had been piled helter-skelter on a shelf mixed in with a bunch of Cockroach Clusters and Toothflossing Stringmints. Not really interested in the candy store, as they had been there many times before, the eight left, but not before Sirius could stock up on all his favorites: Pepper Imps, Jelly Slugs, Acid Pops, Chocoballs, Exploding Bonbons, Ice Mice, Sherbet Balls, shimmering pink squares of coconut ice, and thick slabs of all kinds of yummy chocolate. Remus dragged him away from the stands of new bone-shaped flea-repelling chews that were made for dogs, and they left, Sirius complaining quietly that the fleas were really horrible but was quickly shushed by James. Melody, Becca and Amberly didn't know about their special abilities. They hurried down the lane, heading for the new club, that had it's Grand Opening that night. No wonder Sirius wanted to go tonight. The only thing he loved better than dog biscuits was a good Fire Whisky. The new club, The Acidic Cauldron, was supposed to be pretty cool, and where else would the Most Awesome Gryffindors Of All Time(as they liked to refer to themselves) hang out on a weekend?
Well, seeing as how it WAS only one o'clock in the afternoon, it wouldn't really be so much fun. Who goes to a club before eight o'clock at the earliest? So they decided to spread out, splitting up into groups, Lily and James, Melody and Remus, Becca and Amberly, and Sirius and Peter. The latter didn't care to do anything special, but they were going to start planning the Beginning Of Year Prank, as it had not yet been executed due to The Big Misunderstanding. The two newly together (or together again for Remus and Melody) couples were having something a little more romantic in mind, while Becca and Amberly really just wanted to do some MSI (Mindless Self Indulgence) for a change.
The day past swiftly, James and Lily ended up at Madam Puttifoot's, the romantic little café in Hogsmede, while Melody and Remus went for a stroll, Peter and Sirius were holed up in Zonko's Joke Shop (they were in pure heaven) and Becca and Amberly shopped till they dropped at a table in the Three Broomstick's with some tasty butterbeer. As the clock ticked away, closer and closer to eight, the time they had planned on meeting up in The Acidic Cauldron, they all casually made their way over there. Meeting at the door, lucky to remember what each other looked like, those who had been shopping minimized their purchases and merely slipped them into a pocket. Then they strolled through the door, intending to have a blast partying all night.
Sirius ordered a round of butterbeer to start them off, and they sat at the counter and watched as people-witches, wizards, hags, and ghosts alike-meandered through the door in clusters.
The club started to get full, and now the party could really start.
"Care to dance?" Sirius asked Becca cockily with a wiggle of his eyebrows. Becca giggled, and nodded, and was swept off his feet by Sirius, who was actually a fabulous dancer, thanks to the dance lessons his mother had put him and Regulus in to avoid looking stupid and ridiculous at get-togethers.
Remus and Melody were gone next, and Amberly wandered away into the crowd. Peter sat in the corner and hunched in on himself. He hated parties.
"We don't have to stay TOO long, do we?"
"Aw, c'mon, Pete! Get up! Go dance. Might as well make the most of being someone else for a night. You can be whoever you want to be."
Peter looked reluctant, but after some more encouragement from James and Lily, he was up and about, disappearing into the crowd. James turned his attention to his girlfriend in disguise. With a flourish, James stood and bowed deeply at the waist.
"Would my dear lady do me the honor of bestowing upon me a dance?" He drawled in what was meant to be an attractive voice.
Lily couldn't help it, she burst out laughing. Her eyes streaming with tears of laughter and gasping for air, she tried desperately to control herself. Playing along with James, who hadn't faltered from his prim and proper act, she said "Why yes I will, my kind sir." And with that the two were off, spazzing out to some crazy music along with Sirius, Remus, Becca, Amberly, and Melody.
It wasn't until hours later that they left the dance floor, panting for breath. The girls long ago discarded heals lay on the seat of a booth, along with their purses and such. They seven collapsed into the booth, laughing hysterically.
They had just ordered some firewhisky and were waiting for it when the door to the Acidic Cauldron exploded, melting away into a smoldering heap on the threshold. Everyone froze, and the atmosphere was tense. No one dared to breathe. A cloaked figure stepped through the door. That's when the screaming began. Death Eaters swarmed in. James took action, shoving the girls under the table. He, Remus, and Sirius formed a barrier on the side of the booth not connected to the wall or another booth.
"You guy's apparate out of here! NOW! We've gotta help."
"But, James-" Lily objected, her eyes filling with tears.
Becca, Amberly, and Melody accepted it better. Becca and Melody whispered a passionate "I love you, be safe" to each of their boy friends, and left with a pop, Melody grabbing Lily at the last moment so Lily came by side-along apparation. It's not like Lily would have WILLINGLY left her boy friend in there with nine Death Eaters.
The girls appeared again in the dark, damp tunnel under Honeydukes. An angry Lily was restrained with an anti-apparation charm and a silencing one as well. The other girls settled in to wait for the boys to come, worry etched on their pained faces. It's not like they wanted to leave their boyfriends and friends either, they just knew if they hadn't, the boys would've been to worried about them being in the middle of a fight like that that they would have paid the Death Eaters no mind and it would've been worse on everyone.
Meanwhile, the boys were battling a Death Eater each, along with some other brave partiers who had not apparated away at the first sign of danger. These others were made up of only four others, some bloke in a deep blue cloak, a witch and wizard couple, and a man that the three actually recognized…..Rubeus Hagrid, the young gamekeeper at Hogwarts. He had whipped out a flowery pink umbrella from which spells were now shooting, the spells of two Death Eaters deflecting right off of him.
The Death Eater whom James now faced was short….stout, and not a very good dueler. He was soon on the ground, and James turned to take one of the two Death Eaters on that had been cornering the young witch. This one knew what they were doing.
Lily fought against the bonds around her that prevented her from apparating back to help James. But charm's were definitely NOT Becca's strong-point, and this one she had learned on her own, it was not the type of charm taught in Flitwick's class. She hadn't executed it perfectly and it was already starting to wear off. Lily could sense this, as she was the best Charm's student to pass through Hogwarts in…well, forever. She struggled against the tiring Charm, and with a bright burst of wandless magic, magic that could only be unleashed in a time of dire need, and through great emotion. Lily's love for James fueled this magic, and the Charm was removed, as well as the silencing one. Before any of her friends realized this, she was gone with an almost inaudible *pop*. The girls looked around at the whisper of a sound, and realized what had happened….
Lily arrived right under the booth she had been previously shoved under. The sound of her arrival was masked by the dueling that surrounded her. Stepping over an unmoving cloaked body, Lily threw herself into the fight, joining up next to Hagrid and taking out one of his opponents wit ha simple Full-body Bind. Once the Death Eater was on the floor, she stunned him and turned to the other Hagrid was attempting to fight off with his meager knowledge of spells. He soon was on the floor next to his fellow, covered in unseen pus filled boils, because they were of course covered by the long black cloak that obscured every inch of the person from view. Glancing quickly around her, Lily counted nine Death Eaters. One on the ground by the booth, the two stunned on the floor, and another three also on the floor, unconscious. Three were still fighting…….one with the still disguised James, one with a skilled dueler in a deep blue cloak, and another facing a witch and wizard. Lily and Hagrid both jumped back into the fight enthusiastically, and soon two more were down. As all eight fighters cornered the Death Eater, he apparated away. Remus turned around calmly, as if Death Eaters appeared out of no where every day and he fought them with ease. He summoned them all into a circle and tied them up tightly with magical purple ropes. But one was missing………there were only seven tied up Death Eaters, the one of course had fled, but where was the short one who had been down first? The one by the booth? It appeared he had snuck away.
The Ministry Of Magic were alerted, and they quickly arrived and swept away with the Death Eaters in tow to lock them up in Azkaban.
James rushed over to Lily, hugged her fiercely, and she hugged him back, never wanting to let go.
"Lily what are you-"
"James I was so worried-"
They both started at once, and then stopped abruptly.
Lily gazed with tear filled eyes, looking into James's, surprised to find them angry…….at her? Surely not. He was never cross with Lily.
"James?" Her voice reflected the hurt she felt inside. His eyes softened when he heard her.
"Oh Lily!" He crushed her to his chest. "Why did you come? I told you to leave! You could've been hurt! You could've been-"
He stopped there, letting his sentence trail off, the fury sneaking back into his eyes.
"Are you mad?" She whispered worriedly.
James shook his head. "No, not mad at you, I suppose." He planted a sweet kiss on her forehead. "More of myself. I don't want you hurt. And you could've been, and I would've been powerless. If something like this comes up again, I want you to listen to me, ok? I can't live without you."
Lily immediately agreed when she heard the tone of his voice. It was urgent, scared stiff. James was not easily scared.
"Ok, ok. But keep in mind I can't live without you, either."
James picked her up with ease, carrying her out, not looking back.
It was in that fashion that they met up with Remus and Sirius in the alley beside the club.
"Is she hurt?" Remus gasped, when he saw Lily in James's arms.
"No, I'm fine," Lily sighed, the fear catching up with her.
"Oh" Remus sighed in relief.
"C'mon let's go find the girls." Sirius urged. Clearly Becca was on his mind.
They reached the tunnel in record time, and were relieved to see that there friends were fine. Well, the girls anyways.
"Where's Pete?"
"We thought he was with you guys," Amberly replied, puzzled.
"No……"
"Probably went back to Hogwarts"
They agreed that this was probable, and headed back to their school, shaken by their encounter with Voldemort's followers.
They reached Hogwarts in record time, hoping to find Peter waiting for them, back to his mousy self as their transfigurations had worn off. But he wasn't there……..
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He WAS in a fire lit room, kneeling in front of a sterling silver throne that was encrusted with emeralds. In that chair sat a man in extravagant robes, with an uncanny resemblance to a snake. He was chalk white, with eyes as red as the blood he spilled so often. His nose was no more, just two slits in his face. His voice was a menacing hiss, very fitting.
"I'm disappointed in you, Wormtail," Peter winced at the sound of his masters voice, and the use of the pet nickname given to him by his friends…..it wasn't meant for non-marauders to use.
"You have failed me……..I wanted the Potter boy, alive. The information you have been providing me has been quite useful, but how am I supposed to hold information hostage, hmmm?"
"Y-you can't, my lord. I'm sorry. I will try harder."
"Yes, yes you will. But perhaps a little encouragement is called for in this case, yes? CRUCIO!"
Peter shuddered and cringed, an earsplitting scream escaping his lips.
It wasn't until five minutes of endless torture when Voldemort pulled back his wand, still laughing mercilessly.
"Go from me, now, Wormtail, you worthless slime ball. And send in Malfoy"
"Ye-yes, my l-lord." Peter bowed low, and scurried out of the room, not leaving the building before the sound of Malfoy's (the Death Eater who fled)screams reached his ears.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Peter snuck into Gryffindor Tower, hurt by the fact that Remus and Sirius were both sound asleep, both apparently had not been concerned about him. This was exactly why he had joined the Death Eaters in the first place when Malfoy, who had been a year ahead of him in Hogwarts, had asked him to join. They cared about him. Malfoy, Crabbe, Goyle, Lestrange, Bella and Cissa Black, THEY were his true friends. They listened, they understood, they included him, and didn't make fun of him. The Marauders was his past. He had found a clique in which he felt he belonged now, and that was where his loyalty would lay.