Year 1: Part 14

Sunday, October 3rd 1971

Without any hard evidence, Snape was unable to inform any teachers of the Marauders' involvement with the hair dyeing incident, but he certainly kept a close eye on the four of them after that. Lily, on the other hand, was more vociferous.

"Why do you pick on him?" she asked them, after cornering them in the Charms corridor after class. "What's he done to you?"
"He tried to curse us!" Sirius accused. "Plus, he's a Slytherin."
Remus suspected that, had Sirius omitted this last comment, the red-headed girl might have been more inclined to forgive them. Instead she shot him a glare that, if looks could kill, would have been the end of him, and stalked off down the corridor.

"What is it with her?" Sirius said, exasperated.

"Probably aiming for Head Girl," James said, shrugging. "It'll be best to avoid her."
And so the boys had done their best. However, when the next full moon came round, Remus realised that he would have to talk to her in order to get some decent notes from the lessons he would miss. His relationship with Professor Childe had not improved and he desperately needed to show her he was capable of keeping up with his studies.

So, whilst the other Marauders lounged in the dorm, he found himself in the Common Room, peering around the older students and trying to catch sight of her auburn hair. He found her in the far corner of the room, head in a book. Her friend, Mary, had a bored expression on her face and was staring into the fire. She looked up when Remus approached and smiled at him.

"Oh, hi Remus," she said brightly, causing Lily to glance up.

"Hi," Remus responded.

Mary's face fell. "You're here for nerds' talk, aren't you?" she asked him dully.

He gave her an apologetic look and she rose to her feet.

"Well, I'm going to bed. Here, have my chair," Mary said, emphasising her point with a dainty yawn and waving her hand towards the seat she had just vacated. When she had left, Remus sat down and glanced at Lily. She was scribbling a note in the corner of her book and he waited until she had finished. After all, he knew there was nothing worse than a half-finished thought.

"Why do you hang around with Potter and the other two, Remus?" she asked as she finished. "You're too good for them."

"They're good friends," Remus said. "Look, Lily, I've got to go away tomorrow night and I'm not sure how long I'll be gone. Could you take notes for me if I miss class?"

"Sure, if you try and stop the others from pranking Sev."

Remus grimaced. "I make no promises, but I'll try."

"Well, that's a start. Where are you going, by the way?"

"Er, great-aunt's funeral."
"Oh, I'm sorry."

Lily' apology seemed genuine and Remus felt a twist of guilt about lying to her. She might be the bane of the Marauders but she was a nice girl. He smiled at her as he left and she smiled back before burying her head once more in her book.

"Your great-aunt?" Sirius asked. "Not the same great-aunt who turned one hundred last month?"
Remus nodded.

"Blimey," James said, ruffling his hair. "Doesn't give you much of a break, does she?"

"Probably the excitement of having a party," Peter said thoughtfully.

"Anyway," said James, changing the subject. "I've been thinking…" (Sirius raised his eyebrows and muttered a quiet, "Uh-oh" which James ignored). "…We ought to create a code of conduct before we pull any more pranks."
"A Marauder's Code?" Peter asked. "I like that. It makes it sound more official."

"Yes," Sirius agreed. "Because we're not just some pranksters, we're the best pranksters. We have class."

He wiggled his dark eyebrows enthusiastically causing the other three boys to break down into laughter.

James clapped his hands, bringing them all to order. "OK, then," he said, wiping tears of laughter from his eyes. "Remus, we'll need parchment..."
A few hours later the once empty parchment was now overflowing with black ink. Several items had been crossed out and re-written and, once the others had gone to bed, Remus produced a clean parchment and re-wrote the list:

The Marauder's Code

If one Marauder is in trouble, then all Marauders are in trouble. (A Marauder never has to go through anything alone).

Remus smiled sadly at this first point. If only, he thought to himself.

What belongs to one Marauder, belongs to all. (This includes clothes, food, broomsticks, books and ink. Exceptions: girls and, on occasion, the invisibility cloak).

There are no secrets amongst Marauders.

Remus had made no comment against this one. If his three new friends found out about his secret, he would be thrown out of the Marauders anyway.

Never betray a fellow Marauder by telling their secrets to an outsider.

Never tease or prank a fellow Marauder.

Tidy your side of the dorm. Don't expect another Marauder to do it for you and don't invade another Marauder's space.

Remus was particularly fond of this one. He had only that morning, woken up to find a selection of Sirius' dirty underpants forming a mattress around his bed.

Don't complete homework in public. Don't visit the library unless after curfew and under the invisibility cloak. (Exception: Remus).

Don't eat too much chocolate (Especially: Remus).

Attempt to make an ally of Peeves at EVERY opportunity.

James and Sirius had had another run in with the poltergeist the week before. Their attempts had been unsuccessful. The sickly stench of dungbombs rising from their persons had been enough to inform Remus of that. The two boys, however, had stiffly refused to comment.

Aim pranks at: Slytherins, Filch, prefects (Exception: Gryffindor Prefects) and teachers only. (Exception: school-wide pranks).

According to the original parchment, the words 'especially Snivellus' were mean to come after 'Slytherins', but Remus, conscious of his recent promise to Lily, conscientiously left them the name out.

Never prank Dumbledore (because he might expel us and it probably wouldn't work anyway). Play nice pranks on McGonagall (she is our head of house, after all). Respect Madame Pomfrey (because she's the one who'll stitch us back up again if a prank goes wrong).

Never let a girl interfere with Marauder business.

Sirius' addition. Remus wondered why.

And lastly,

ALWAYS BE UP TO NO GOOD!

If a Marauder breaks the code he must accept punishment or leave the Marauders. The punishment for breaking the code is to complete three dares as laid out by the each of the three remaining Marauders.

Remus finished writing with a sigh. He had agreed nervously with the others when they had decided what form the punishment should take. He really hoped he would never have to carry such a punishment out. He was that any dares set by James and Sirius would put him on the path that led directly to Trouble. Still, Peter was right when he said that the code made their friendship seem more official. Remus could almost kid himself into believing that they would still be his friends even if they knew his secret. Almost.

XXX