Peter went along with everything, and agreed to become an animagus with them. He felt really bad about leaving them behind, but they told him not to worry about it.

They visited Remus in the hospital wing the next day, and told him what happened. He was mortified at first when he found out that they knew, and even more so when he realized he almost bit Stella and Sirius. He felt horrible about it, and was shocked that they still wanted to be friends with him. Remus appreciated Stella's idea about them becoming animagi, but he told them not to put themselves on the line like that for him, and that he would be fine. But they insisted, and once the Marauders made up their minds about something, there was no changing it.

The next weekend was their Hogsmeade trip, which the students were all very excited about. It was the Marauders first trip there, since students weren't permitted to go their until third year. Most of the students were using the trip as an excuse to ask their crushes out on a date.

"Lily said no." James frowned, taking his seat at the dinner table.

"Shocker there." Stella laughed.

"Stella?" someone said from behind her. She spun around to face Joshua Reynolds, a blonde haired, blue eyed, fourth year from Ravenclaw.

"Oh, hi Josh. What's up?" she asked.

"Nothing much, how about you?"

"Well just having dinner, as you see." She told him, motioning toward her plate.

"Oh, right. So I was wondering if you'd like to go on a date with me to Hogsmeade this weekend?" Josh asked.

"Here we go again." Sirius mumbled.

"I'd love to, but I've actually already made plans to go with my friends. Sorry." She told him sympathetically, smiling sweetly.

"That's okay, I should have asked sooner. Perhaps some other time then." Said Josh.

"Definitely." Stella nodded.

"Well, see you around." Josh waved, making his way back to the Ravenclaw table.

"See ya." Stella said, turning back to her friends.

"Stella, Stella, Stella…" Sirius sighed, shaking his head.

"What?" she asked.

"That's the fourth boy to ask you out." Said James.

"So? I'm still going with you guys." She told them.

"That's not the point." Remus chimed in.

"Then what is?" Stella asked, confused.

"Our little girl is growing up." Sirius said over dramatically, faking a sob.

"Oh, sod off." Stella laughed.

"You can't date until you're 38." James laid down the law.

Stella snorted. "Yes, Dad."

"Guess what!" Nicky said, as he approached the Gryffindor table.

"You know what mom got me for Christmas?" Stella guessed.

"No. Well, yes, but that's not what I came here to tell you." He said.

"Is it a miniature zebra in a pink and purple polka dot tutu?" Stella asked, her face alit.

"What? No!" Nicky shook his head. "Lola agreed to go out with me this weekend!"

"Congratulations! Where to?" Stella asked, as Sirius and James gave Nicky high-fives.

"Well Hogsmeade of course! That's where everyone's going this weekend." Nicky informed them.

Stella bit her lip. "Um, Nick…first years can't go to Hogsmeade."

"What? Why not?" he asked.

"It's only for third years and up, you need a signed permission slip." James told him.

"Oh no! Now what do I do? I finally get to take Lola on a date with me, and now I don't even have a place!" Nicky cried.

"Try the astronomy tower, it has a beautiful view, I'm sure she'll love it." Stella suggested.

"Alright, thanks. Bye everyone!" he waved goodbye, hurrying back to his table, resuming his seat next to Lola.

James frowned. "How come he gets a date and I don't?"

"Don't be sad Jamesie, half the girls in this school would be thrilled to go out with you. Take it from Sirius." Said Stella.

Sirius, who had been conversing with Remus, looked up as he heard his name. "What?"

"Would you go on a date with James?" Stella asked, fighting back a grin,

Sirius mocked a thrilled expression. "Awh! Jamie-poo I had no idea you felt that way! Of course, I'd go out with you in a heart beat."

"Gee, thanks." James rolled his eyes.

Stella, Remus, and Peter burst into a fit of laughter.

"Honestly though, James! I mean you and Sirius have girls here that worship you. You have your own fan clubs! Look, they're everywhere!" Stella told them, pointing at a few clusters of girls who just stared at them in awe.

"But I don't want any of those girls. I love Lily." James sighed.

"Lily will come around eventually, mate." Sirius encouraged.

"Really?" James asked, hope shining in his eyes.

"HELL NO! She hates you." Sirius said, watching James face fall, then cracking up. Stella smacked him on the back of his head. "Ow!"

"Don't say that to him!" she scolded and then turned to James, trying to be sympathetic. "Don't listen to him; Lily will come around when she's ready."

"Maybe Sirius is right." James sighed. "What did I ever do to make her hate me so much?"

"Well... you are, in the wise words of Evans, 'an arrogant toe rag'." Said Sirius.

"And you're a bit of a show off…no offense." Peter chimed in.

Remus added, "Not to mention you hex her best friend on a daily basis."

"Thanks for the support, guys." James snapped.

"Thanks a lot guys, I finally get him to open up, so I can help him, and you make him even more depressed than he already was!" Stella yelled.

"I wasn't depressed." James interrupted.

Stella ignored him. "It's no wonder that we don't have nice little heart-to-hearts more often. It's because you insensitive gits break each other down every chance you get!"

"You're the one who's always saying we need to be 'knocked down a peg'. Maybe if he wasn't so conceited Evans wouldn't hate him in the first place!" Sirius retorted, raising his voice. He drew a lot more attention then he had planned to, including Lily, who went beat red.

"Sirius, that was really loud…" James whispered, sinking back in his seat.

"I said that joking around, Sirius! It was completely different! This is a touchy subject for James. It's been bothering him for weeks, and he finally opens up to talk about it, and you just go shooting him down like that! You're a real jerk, ya know that?" Stella asked.

All eyes were on them, including the teachers. But nobody made a move to break it up. It was the marauder's first fight, and everybody was curious to see where it was going.

"Can we please take this somewhere a little more private, guys?" James begged, mortified.

"Oh, I'm the jerk now?" Sirius hollered.

"Obviously!" Stella shouted back.

"You're the one who says one thing and does another!"

"What the bloody hell is that supposed to mean?" she demanded.

"It means every damn boy in the school is asking you to Hogsmeade!"

As Sirius said this, all the boys who had asked her, buried their faces in their hands or sunk down into their seats, clearly embarrassed.

"So?" Stella yelled.

"So you already said you'd go with us! So rather then just shooting everybody down why don't you stop flirting with everything with legs in the first place and there would be no problem." Sirius snapped.

Stella's mouth dropped, and her eyes narrowed. "I do not flirt."

"Oh, the hell you don't! I see you giggling and acting all ditzy, batting your eyes whenever those boys come around. It's pathetic!"

"Oh, I'm the pathetic one? At least I'm social enough to talk to people!"

"And what's that supposed to mean?"

"It's supposed to mean exactly what I said! You don't talk to anyone outside of our little group, Sirius! At least I have the means to make friends!"

"By the means, you mean a nice rack and-"

Sirius was cut off as Stella slapped him across his face.

"How dare you." She hissed.

Sirius suddenly felt horrible as he caught a glimpse of her watery eyes before she took off and ran out of the Great Hall. Lily ran after her as Sirius sank back into his seat. He suddenly regretted everything that he had just said. Stella had never cried in front of him before, so it must have really hurt her.

Sirius stood back up to go after her, but James held up a hand to stop him.

"That was low, Sirius. Even for you." James said, and then he left to find Stella and see if she was alright.

Sirius sunk back into his seat. "Well, I guess it's just the 3 of us then."

"No it's not. James is right, Sirius. That was out of line." Remus told him, gathering his books and leaving the Great Hall.

"I'm with you, mate." Pete smiled, in attempt at making Sirius feel better.

"Thanks, Pete." Sirius sighed.