Andromeda stared at her cousin as he shifted awkwardly in front of her. Finally, she let out a long, drawn out sigh and shook her head.

"Sirius, I know you hate Narcissa and Bella – Merlin knows I do – but really? Do you honestly think they'd be involved in muggle attacks? All this most noble and ancient crap, it's just that Sirius – crap. It means nothing."

"Please," he whispered. "You have to listen! Me and James, we..."

"James Potter?"

He nodded quickly.

"Your little partner in crime, right? What trouble have you two got into now?"

Sirius shook his head. "'Meda, please! Just...listen, yeah? We sneaked into the Slytherin Common Room..."

Andromeda groaned as she sat down, holding her head in her hands. "Merlin, Sirius, you are a handful."

"We got in there and..." He took a deep breath, before relating to her what he had heard. When he'd finished, Andromeda stared at him with wide, sceptical eyes, before she bit down on her lip and stood.

"From the sounds of it, even if Malfoy did have something to do with it, they didn't. And what do you expect me to do, Sirius? I can't ask them outright, can I? They'll ask where I heard it and if I mention you..."

Sirius sighed, hanging his head. "You're right but...I just thought you should know. Maybe you could help us? I mean..."

"You got really wound up about it?" She stepped towards him, crouching down as she put a hand on his shoulder. "Sirius, listen, you need to forget about this. You're just a first year – you don't need this on your shoulders."

He nodded, biting his lip. "Aunty will kill you, if she finds out about Theo Tonks."

Andromeda blinked, staring at him as he lifted his head and gave her a shaky smile. "How did you..."

"Arthur Weasley," he chuckled. "He said you spent a lot of time with him."

Andromeda blushed as she glanced over her shoulder. "He's on his way here. You won't tell mum, will you? Or your mum either?"

"'Course not!" Sirius cried, grinning wildly. "We're the black sheep – sheeps?"

"Just sheep, Sirius," she laughed.

"Yeah, black sheep of the family. Or white sheep...whatever, we need to stick together, Andromeda, don't we?"

"Yeah." She kissed the top of his head, squeezing his shoulders. "We do. We'll look out for each other, Sirius, I promise. Get back under that cloak and get back to the castle, you hear?"

"Yep!" He threw the cloak on, said his goodbyes and darted away, leaving Andromeda shaking her head, smiling at the antics of her little cousin.

* * *

All suspects linked with the muggle attacks were released within the week.

The news was all over the Daily Prophet as the end of March drew closer. James, in particular, seemed angry about it, and raved in the Common Room about how it was an absolute disgrace. "This isn't justice," he growled, eyes darting around. "These...these people, they should be locked up!"

"Calm down, James," Remus muttered, glancing up from the book he had been reading. "Look at this, instead."

A wicked grin was stretched across Remus' face as he pushed a piece of parchment to James.

"I finally worked some of it out."

James, with Peter and Sirius either side of him, opened up the parchment. He let out a gasp, staring down at the page. Across it was a detailed map of Hogwarts, showing each corridor and classroom. In a few places, small, black dots moved across, each with a name underneath.

"I haven't managed to get everyone in the castle on there," Remus sighed. "I don't think the spell is strong enough but..."

"Remus!" Sirius gasped. "You are a genius! I can't believe this."

Remus blushed as the three boys gazed at him. "This is...unreal," Peter muttered, as James' eyes darted back to the map. He frowned, seeing the black dots marked Lily Evans and Severus Snape moving from their respective Common Rooms, coming closer together.

He rubbed the back of his neck, watching carefully as first one, then the other disappeared up a set of stairs onto a floor Remus hadn't added yet. He dropped the map, biting his lip.

"You know what, I think I know a great way to blow off some steam."

"Yeah?" Sirius muttered, glancing towards him. "What is it, Jamie?"

"Don't call me that," James snapped, rolling his eyes. "But...I think we should pray a prank of Snape."

* * *

Remus, despite his reluctance to take part in the pranks themselves, still helped his friends. The following evening, before they went to dinner, Remus gestured for the boys to go up the dorm. They followed him up there and, once the door was shut, Remus picked up the book from his bedside table. He opened it up and withdrew a long sheet of parchment.

"Here," he muttered, pushing it into James' hands. "Some spells you might like."

James scanned the page and began to laugh. "Remus, this is perfect! Which one do you think we should try on Snivellus?"

Remus stared down at the page, before pointing to one in the middle. "That one. It should last for a few days, if you put enough power behind it. And with a few people..."

James nodded, before showing the parchment to Sirius. "What do you think, Sirius?"

Sirius' face lit up as he grinned down at the parchment. "Remus, you are a genius. And I don't think we say that enough. With the map, and this..."

"We can get Snape!" James cried, punching the air. "Oh, this is going to be brilliant. You will come with us, Remus, won't you?"

Remus frowned, glancing at the parchment before letting out a sigh. "Sure, why not. When do you want to do it?"

"After dinner," James announced eagerly. "Can't pull a prank on an empty stomach!"

* * *

Remus was sure that McGonagall knew they were up to something.

As they ate, her eyes remained fixed on them, focused on them. Sirius shovelled food into his mouth like it was his last meal, and James seemed lost in thought between each bite. When the Transfiguration teacher looked away, Remus turned to look at James. He followed his gaze, only to see that he was staring at Lily.

Peter reached forward, swiping a Yorkshire pudding off James' plate.

"Peter!" Remus groaned.

"What? He doesn't mind! Do you, James?"

James' eyes darted to Peter. He glanced at the Yorkshire before shrugging. "Nah, go for it. I'm not that hungry anyway."

"Are you okay, mate?" Sirius asked, staring at James. "You look...worried."

James shrugged, turning back to them. "I'm fine. Just keep an eye out for Snape leaving. We need this to be perfect."

The other three nodded as they carried on eating, James still only picking off his plate. At least, Remus thought, he was actually looking at his food now.

Eventually, Sirius nudged James and nodded towards the Slytherin table. James grinned. "Let's go, guys." Remus stood up first, Peter following. They faked a quick goodbye to the other two boys before following Snape out of the Great Hall. He barely paid them any attention as he turned towards the main doors of the school. Remus and Peter hung back, Remus explaining, patiently, the latest spell they had learnt in Charms to Peter. Snape disappeared out the door, and Remus darted to the nearest broom cupboard.

He wrenched the door open and pulled James' cloak out, throwing over himself and Peter before they followed Snape's footsteps.

They caught up with him not far from the steps. He was walking towards the lake, and once at its edge, Snape sat down.

Remus glanced at Peter, shrugged and then gestured to the floor.

Peter nodded, and the pair slid to the floor, crossing the legs as they checked to make sure the cloak still covered them. Snape lifted himself up until he was kneeling, and in the mud at the water's edge, started to draw something.

"What you doing?"

Remus and Peter both jumped slightly at the voice, Remus' hand snapping out and covering Peter's mouth, realising the smaller boy was about to squeak. They glanced towards Lily, just at their right, as she took a step towards Snape. He hadn't moved, hadn't reacted to her approach.

"It's a rune," he muttered, still focusing on the drawing. "For protection. My mother taught it to me."

Lily tilted her head to one side, watching him carefully. Finally, she moved forward and sat beside him. "How is she?" she whispered, wrapping her arms around her knees and drawing them to her chest.

"She's fine," he almost growled. "Why do you ask?"

"I always liked your mother," Lily replied, with a soft sigh. "She was lovely, Snape. And she did an excellent job of explaining things to Mum and Dad..."

"Yeah," Snape scoffed. "And she paid for it, too. Father hates anything magical."

"Paid for it?" Lily whispered. "What do you mean?"

Snape lifted his head, and Remus found his breath catching in his throat. He was seeing something he never thought he'd see; Snape had tears in his eyes. It would have been wrong to say he was crying, but Remus could see he was on the verge of doing so as Lily stared at him.

"Father can be...very strict, sometimes. It would have been better if I had never been born. At least then, Mother would...she could have hidden it. For longer."

"Oh, Sev," Lily sighed, reaching towards him and squeezing his shoulder.

Remus bit down on his lip as he glanced towards Peter. The smaller boy looked deep in thought as he stared at the pair, until eventually he turned to Remus.

"We can't do this," Remus whispered, keeping his voice too low for either Snape or Lily to hear. "This is wrong."

"We should get back," Peter muttered. "Tell James and...and Sirius, not to do it."

Remus have him a curt nod before yanking him to his feet and dragging him back to the school.