Boredom was the real killer, thought James miserably.
It must have been days since they had been kidnapped, if the random times they were fed meagre meals of stale bread and water had anything to do with it. They had not been brought out of the small cell since the very first day, though James doubted that it could be much longer until their next 'meeting'.
No one had managed to draw any further information from their mysterious Defence teacher, though James felt as though he knew much more than he was letting on. He could see it in the teen's eyes.
Hunger was also a major factor in their time down in the dungeons. It was getting harder and harder to live off of their small rations they were being fed. It was something that Sirius found himself complaining frequently about too- that in itself was frustrating. Sirius could talk for Britain.
James rolled over drowsily from his position on the cold stone floor. It seemed to be growing more and more cramped in there, he thought as he bumped into the sleeping form of Remus. The aforementioned wizard groaned as his eyes fluttered open, focusing on his surroundings.
"Sorry," James murmured apologetically.
"S'fine," Remus said drowsily. The full moon was approaching, and James found himself waiting anxiously as the days ticked past. Would they manage to escape before it arrived?
"How're you doing?" James said in a hushed voice. Professor Potter looked up from his position in the corner, before returning his gaze to the bleak stone walls. He didn't seem to sleep much.
"I'm coping," Remus muttered. He hated sympathy, but he hated lying to his friends even more.
"I guess that's all we can ask for," James looked down guiltily.
Sirius had awoken, it seemed. He was speaking in hushed tones with their Professor, which was quite surprising. The man had become even more withdrawn as the days passed.
Remus stiffened as he heard footsteps approaching with his supernatural hearing. This did not go unnoticed by the other occupants of the cell, who all turned warily to face the steel barred door.
Within seconds a Death Eater approached, who James vaguely recognised as Yaxley, who had accompanied them on their last visit to Voldemort.
He grinned a feral smile, and James was immediately aware that something was different happening. There was an air about the man that just about screamed with anticipation.
"It seems that the Dark Lord requires your presence again." He sneered, "Oh, not you Potter, you're staying here." The Defence Professor glared back defiantly, but he was not match against his armed opponent. Yaxley quickly bound the three Marauders, and was now dragging them forcefully out of the cell.
James stumbled along fearfully as they approached the familiar stone doors. He had heard plenty about Voldemort from his Auror parents, but he had never faced him alone before. Even their meeting a few days before he had had Professor Potter there, but now, unarmed and with only his two best mates, he was not so confident.
The doors were thrown open, and James, Sirius and Remus were thrown to the floor before the crimson eyes of Voldemort.
XxXxXxXxXx
Dumbledore was growing extremely frustrated. Three students and a teacher had gone missing within the time gap of one day, and had not been seen for three weeks.
He had received many howlers form various parents, complaining about his supposed incompetence. He had already attended a meeting with the parents of said missing students, and all of them were frantic with worry. There was no sign of them, and Dumbledore had no idea where they could be.
He had received no further word from the anonymous source who had informed him of the meeting on the day they had been kidnapped. Dumbledore was beginning to fear the worst.
The entire school had grown quieter. It was a widely known fact of the Marauders disappearance, and the students all seemed to notice the painful absence of their daily pranks. The only people that seemed unbothered were the Slytherins - they seemed to appreciate the fact that they were no longer the frequent victims.
Dumbledore surveyed the school before him from where he sat at the head table. The Gryffindors had grown even further withdrawn from the extended absence of their prankster figureheads. It seemed that the seriousness of the war had only just hit them - they had believed it to be a far off thing that would not affect them here, and were only now realising just how vulnerable they were.
Even the loss of Professor Potter was taken with a pang in Dumbledore's heart. He was almost always silent, and never spoke up in their staff meetings. Dumbledore could admit that he had been suspicious of the man at first, but now knew the true side of him. He seemed like a good person.
It was hard to find a replacement teacher for Defence, and in the end Auror Potter (James's father) had been required to step in to fulfil the position.
Dumbledore stood up, and the entire student population fell silent. He surveyed the four tables solemnly, noting many of their downcast expressions.
"As I'm sure that the majority of you are aware, some of our students have gone missing three weeks ago. I assure you that we are doing all in our power to find them, and also that you are all assuredly safe here."
Most students were not comforted in the least by his speech as he rattled on about lowered curfews and minimising Hogsmead visits. They had been told once before how safe they were, inly to discover that it had been a lie. They would not make the same mistake again, and assume themselves to be immune.
One person who was especially unaffected by the Headmaster's speech was a seventh year sat at the Gryffindor table, gazing sadly at her plate through her locks of dark red hair. Lily Evans had only recently started dating James, but she had already grown unreasonable attached to him. It broke her heart in how useless she was in saving him, though she loathed to admit how much it was affecting her.
Her friends Alice and Frank, who were seated opposite her, exchanged knowing glances. They were aware of Lily's slight withdrawal, though they both knew that there was nothing that they could do about it. Only one person could do that.
