Author's Note:

I made a mistake in the last chapter which I only realized when I figured out the Marauders' ages for each of the Hogwarts school years. The last chapter took place in the summer between their second and third years which would make the Marauders all thirteen, not twelve, like I said Severus was. Oops. So, they're thirteen now and will be fourteen in the second half of their third year as they all have their birthdays during the school year.

Chapter Twenty-Eight: The First Task and Overheard Conversations

As September passed into October, and the students settled into their school routine, the TriWizard champions familiarized themselves with the layout of the school and prepared as best they could for the first task ahead of them. For Orion and Abraxas, it wasn't so much a case of familiarizing themselves with the castle layout, but revisiting old places of interest, and talking to the portraits. Orion also spent a good deal of time dodging Dumbledore, as the old wizard seemed determined to try and corner him for a chat.

To counter Dumbledore's attempts, Orion retreated outdoors, where he often found the Marauders when the weather was fine. They seemed to seek him out, as James, Severus and Remus all enjoyed the chance to talk to him without having to do it through letters. Sirius also joined them on occasion, although if it was family matters they were discussing, he would leave and catch up on schoolwork. One afternoon, when they were all settled under the trees, Severus idly threw a rock into the lake and said, "Dad, what do you think the first task will be?"

Orion sighed. "I don't know," he admitted, "and that makes me nervous. The last time I competed in this tournament, the first task was getting past a dragon."

"A dragon! How old were you?" James spluttered, ignoring the glare that Severus directed at him for interrupting.

Orion smiled. "It was the school version of this tournament, and it was only supposed to be students seventeen or older that could compete. I was fourteen, and my DADA professor, who was an escaped Death Eater in disguise, managed to cast a powerful charm on the cup so that I would be entered as one of the champions."

"If that's what they call a child-friendly task," Remus said worriedly, "then what will they get for adults?"

"Like I just said, I don't know, but whatever it is, I'll beat it," Orion responded calmly, seeing that the speculation was going to get out of hand very soon. The next question caught him completely off guard as James said innocently,

"Who are you taking to the Yule Ball?"

"The what?" Orion asked weakly, once he'd recovered from his coughing fit.

"The Yule Ball. The champions have to open the dancing and students are allowed to come too," Severus explained.

"Oh, right. I've got someone in mind," Orion responded. He raised an eyebrow and then asked with a grin, "Who are you lot taking?"

The blushes on all of their faces told him the answer, they hadn't got round to asking anyone yet. Finally, James said, "Well, we,"

"Yes," Orion said, snickering internally at the situation.

"We don't know how to ask," Severus finished, looking embarrassed at having to admit it.

"Well, it's quite simple, you go up to a girl, and you ask if they want to go to the ball with you. Why don't you try your friends, they're not likely to laugh at you, or make you feel embarrassed," Orion suggested.

"Is that what you did?" Remus enquired, looking less embarrassed now that a solution for their problem had presented itself.

Orion nodded. "I was just as embarrassed as you are now, believe me," he said, smiling at the memory. "I didn't know who to take, as most of the girls either saw me as a Triwizard champion or as a celebrity, and I didn't feel like being with a giggly fan-girl all night. I ended up asking my best female friend to the ball, as she wasn't likely to go all giggly on me and we were friends to start with."

"Celebrity? Were you famous in the future?" James asked, jumping on the celebrity bit.

Orion shrugged. "Yes, for reasons which I won't go into now. I hated it, I didn't want to be famous, I wanted to be an ordinary wizard, but no one would let me be that. I was seventeen before I figured out that I would never be normal and I might as well embrace the fame, make it work for me rather than against me."

Severus, Remus and James looked at him, all thoroughly confused, but realizing that they weren't going to get anything else out of him regarding that. Orion noticed their sudden quiet and leaned back against the tree.

"Don't worry about that for now. I do have something that I've been wondering about though," he said, his deliberately casual tone instantly catching the Marauders' interest.

"What?" Severus enquired.

Orion smirked and then said, "Why haven't I seen any Marauder pranks recently?"

"Well," James said hesitantly, "we weren't sure how you'd take it, you know, us playing pranks when we should be working."

"Yeah," Remus added, "it's different with you being here, and not at home, plus there's the tournament on."

Orion chuckled. "Boys, I'm not going to be annoyed if you play a few pranks here and there. As far as I'm concerned, the usual rules apply, if you get caught, the professors will deal with it. I'm not going to interfere unless you start bullying other students. As long as there are no problems of that nature then everything will be fine."

"How can pranking someone be bullying them?" James asked.

Orion opened one eye, having closed both of them when the sun shone directly into them, and said, "When you start going after someone purely because you don't like them, and when you play pranks on them based solely on that dislike. If I hear of anything like that then you will find that I'll be a lot less lenient on the subject of pranks in general."

"What would you do if you did hear of something like that?" Severus asked.

Orion opened the other eye and said, "You don't want to know."

The three boys looked at each other for a minute, before Remus asked cautiously, "Um, were you a target?"

No answer was forthcoming for a moment, and then Orion sighed and sat up. "Yes, but that wasn't why I said it. My potions professor went to school with my father and his friends, and he was their favorite target. They made his life at Hogwarts a living hell simply because they didn't like him. Twenty years later, I was being blamed for all the things that my father did to him, simply because I looked so much like my father."

"But that's not fair, blaming you for things your dad did," Severus said indignantly. Orion smiled faintly as his son continued, "Couldn't he let go of that rivalry, even after your father was dead?"

Orion shrugged. "Some wounds go too deep to heal completely, Severus, and when the bullying essentially began right at the start of their first year and continued for all seven years – well, that's a lot to get over. He had good reason to hate them, and eventually he did let it go, the relationship which developed between us in my sixth and seventh years couldn't have happened if he hadn't."

Orion fell silent and so did his audience, all thinking of the information which he'd revealed to them. Finally, Orion checked his watch and then he stood up abruptly. "Oh, Merlin, I'm late," he muttered. "Sorry guys, I have to go, there's a meeting in Hogsmeade that I was supposed to be at two minutes ago. See you later."

He dashed to the gates and disapparated as soon as he was past the anti-apparition wards. James, Severus and Remus were left staring at each other and then at where he'd disappeared.

"I guess we'd better be careful," James said eventually. Severus and Remus nodded somberly. The information that Orion had given them was sobering and they decided that their plan to prank Lucius Malfoy for a month without a break had to be abandoned. They didn't want to be accused of being bullies after all.

Two days after the conversation by the lake, the Marauders were out of bed on one of their night-time adventures. They were quietly setting up a prank by the library when they heard footsteps coming up behind them. Looking around in panic, they spotted an alcove and they all quickly hid in there. It was a tight fit but with the invisibility cloak that James had, they felt reasonably secure that they wouldn't be discovered.

As they peered out of the alcove, they saw Dumbledore come into view. They stiffened; being caught out of bed by a teacher was bad, for that teacher to be the headmaster made the situation even worse. They held their breath and prayed that he wasn't on patrol that night.

Apparently he wasn't. The old wizard seemed to be looking for someone and just as the boys were silently speculating on whom it might be, Orion came round the corner. James, Severus, and Remus went as rigid as statues; they didn't want him catching them out of bed either. Although he'd practically given them permission to pull pranks, they were sure that he wouldn't approve of them being out of bed when it was past midnight. He tended to be peculiar when it came to bedtimes. Sirius stayed very still as well, although he wasn't part of the Potter family, he did respect Orion and didn't want to annoy him.

Orion stopped as he saw Dumbledore and he sighed deeply. He was tired and wanted nothing more than to go to bed. Apparently, his wish was not to be granted, at least not yet.

"Mr Potter, I'd like to speak with you and you've been dodging all my attempts so far," Dumbledore began.

"I'm dodging your attempts because they inevitably lead to you trying to get me to be a toy soldier for you," Orion said, keeping his voice low and calm through sheer willpower.

Dumbledore narrowed his eyes. "I don't want you to be a toy soldier, I just want us to work together to defeat Voldemort, rather than you doing it alone."

"You want at least part of the glory, that's your only motivation," Orion snapped back, feeling exhausted all of a sudden. Dealing with Dumbledore gave him worse headaches than dealing with Voldemort, and he could feel a migraine approaching rapidly.

"I'm not seeking glory, Mr Potter, I'm seeking an end to the biggest threat our world has seen since Grindelwald," Dumbledore replied, his tone taking on a definite edge.

Orion smirked, he'd hit a nerve somewhere. "Perhaps," he said mildly. "However, your behaviour so far has left me disinclined to cooperate."

Dumbledore scowled and then said, "Enjoy your time with your children, Mr Potter, in these troubled times one never knows when it might come to an end."

In the small alcove beside the library, the Marauders stood in stunned silence as Orion closed the gap between himself and Dumbledore in one stride. "Was that a threat?" he growled; his tone so menacing that Dumbledore involuntarily took a step backwards.

"No, merely an observation," Dumbledore replied, wondering if he'd bitten off more than he could chew when it came to the wizard in front of him.

Orion locked eyes with Dumbledore and then said softly, but no less menacingly, "If you even think about harming my children, my nephew, or their friends, then you will regret it. Do I need to remind you of the vow you made to me?"

Dumbledore scowled, he hadn't forgotten the vow at all, and the fact that he'd been forced into it ate at him every day. "No you don't," he said shortly. "I have no intention of harming anyone; my observation about the times we live in was merely that, an observation."

He shivered as Orion raked a piercing gaze over him, and strengthened his Occlumency shields until they were as strong as they could possibly be. The silence lasted for a short while before Orion broke it.

"Keep that vow, Dumbledore, and we won't have a problem. Break it, and you'll find that I can be an even worse enemy than Voldemort."

He turned and stalked off, his robes swirling around him agitatedly. Halfway down the corridor, he smoothly changed into Leo and padded down the stairs, his tail lashing around him in a clear indication of his anger.

Left in the alcove, the Marauders looked at each other in wide-eyed shock. As one, they packed up the prank equipment and headed for their dormitories, confused and more than a little scared at the confrontation that they'd witnessed. At the portrait of the Fat Lady, they separated, and Severus headed for the Slytherin common room in the dungeons, utilizing several secret passages that the Marauders had discovered on previous night-time wanders. Closing their eyes, they tried to put the whole episode out of their minds, finally falling into an uneasy sleep two hours later.

Several weeks after the midnight confrontation, it was the day of the first task. The students and guests all gathered in the stadium which had been erected for precisely this purpose. The champions gathered in a tent to the side, all nervous and all desperately trying not to show it.

"What do you think it is?" Alexsandar asked. Orion looked over at him and then replied, "I don't know. I do know, however, that I'm glad the waiting is almost over." His opponent looked at him briefly and then nodded, falling silent as the tournament organizer came in.

"Gather round, champions," the wizard said eagerly. "Now, the number you draw from this bag will be the order you face the task in. The task is this: You will enter the stadium one at a time. A course has been laid out within it, containing obstacles that you must overcome in order to retrieve two treasures. The treasures are located at the end of the obstacles, but once you've reached the treasures, the obstacles will change, and you must get back to the start of the course, with your treasures, going through the new obstacles on the return. The one with the fastest overall time wins. You may use anything you wish in order to get through the course, with the exceptions of Apparition, Portkeys, and flying. You must go through the obstacles; you are not allowed to fly above them. Do you understand what you need to do?"

When all the champions nodded silently, the official offered the bag to each of the champions, all of whom were thinking how easy the task seemed. Orion snapped out of that line of thought a second after it began – he knew better than to underestimate any of the tasks that would be put before them. He took his number and looked at it, swearing mentally. Abraxas Malfoy was first. He was last.

Up in the stands, James and Sirius were sitting with their parents and looking around anxiously for Severus and Remus. "Where are they?" James said for the twentieth time.

"They must be your uncle's treasures," Charles replied, disgust and anger evident in his tone and body language. "The task calls for the contestants to make their way through an obstacle course to rescue two "treasures" and then get back to the start of the course, going through new obstacles on the return journey. The contestant with the best time wins."

"Well, Sev and Remy are Uncle Orion's treasures so it makes sense," James said after a few minutes.

Orion Black snorted beside him. "You're forgetting one thing, Mr Potter," he said coolly. "The tournament was designed for adults; the organizer should never have agreed to use children in any part of it, even this part. People have died in this tournament, a fact which I'm sure your uncle is well aware of."

James fell silent, and turned a worried gaze to the course. He couldn't see the section which held the treasures for each competitor, that part was enclosed by large hedges, but the rest of the course was in plain view. There was a cannon blast as the first champion entered the arena.

After the other five competitors had completed the task, it was Orion's turn. The Potters, Sirius and Lily all cheered as he entered the arena, but Orion didn't acknowledge them. He was focused on getting past the first obstacle which wasn't one obstacle but a crowd of them. Kneazles, enlarged with an enlarging charm, attacked him viciously, taking exception to the smell of his inner animagus forms.

"Bloody hell why do I always have to be right," Orion growled as he dodged the furry menaces. Freezing them all in place he was just about to go on to the next obstacle when he heard a familiar voice.

"Orion James Potter, watch your language."

Orion spun round to see Emma glaring at him. Blushing bright red, he yelled back, "Sorry, Mum." Emma sat down, blushing faintly herself as other members of the crowd laughed.

Charles put an arm round her and murmured, "Did you hear what he called you?"

Emma nodded mutely, and whispered, "I hope he's OK."

Further into the course, Orion had dealt with several magical traps, killed a couple of Acromantula, correctly solved a riddle set by a Sphinx and had entered the enclosed area where the crowd couldn't see what was happening. Only one obstacle remained between him and the two treasures – a dragon.

"Oh joy," he muttered as the dragon shot a jet of fire at him. Thinking quickly, he grinned. "Accio Bludgers," he muttered.

"Where are those Bludgers going?" Madam Hooch yelled as the two iron balls streaked across the pitch and into the course. Her answer came as a dragon rose from the enclosed area, roaring and trying to defend itself against the bludgers which were attacking it without mercy. As the crowd watched in open-mouthed disbelief, the two bludgers struck the side of the dragon's head, cracking its skull.

"Dad!" Severus and Remus yelled as Orion ran towards them. He stopped abruptly when he registered the presence of two other people in the area with them.

"Who are you?" he growled.

The unknown men smiled unpleasantly at him, and then the taller one said, "We'll give you back your treasures if you agree to follow our Lord. He needs new recruits you see, the Unspeakables keep killing them."

Orion sized up the situation. The part of his mind which sensed dark magic was ringing loud alarm bells, and he could sense the Dark Mark on the two wizards easily. What concerned him more were the knives they were holding to Severus and Remus' throats.

"What if I say no?" he enquired.

"Then we kill your precious treasures," the second Death Eater sneered.

Orion saw red. Casting an invisibility spell on himself, he ran to the side of the enclosure and cast a spell which he'd not cast since he was in school.

"Sectumsempra!" he hissed, cancelling the invisibility spell just after casting the curse.

Severus and Remus felt a rush of energy as a spell went past them, but as soon as they felt their captors let them go, they rushed to their father, who caught them in a tight hug. "Don't look back," he said firmly as he flicked his wand in the direction of the Death Eaters.

"What did you do?" Severus asked.

Orion looked down at him and then said grimly, "I killed them." Not giving them time to be shocked or upset, he said, "We need to go, now."

The boys allowed themselves to be steered out of the enclosure and through the course, wondering at the fact that they didn't feel scared of their father. He'd just admitted to killing two men, so why didn't they feel afraid? A loud noise assaulted their ears and they realized that they were out of the course and it was over.

Orion turned round from looking at his time – it was the second fastest, when he heard two soft thumps. Seeing Severus and Remus unconscious on the ground, he quickly knelt and checked their vital signs. Finding them alive, he conjured stretchers and floated them back to his room, knowing that they would want answers as to why he'd acted the way he had in the enclosure.

It took several hours for them to wake up, the unconsciousness having passed from a shock-induced faint to a natural sleep after the first half an hour. Orion had subtly reinforced the sleeping part with a mild spell, wanting time to sort things out in his mind before attempting to explain it. Charles and Emma had come to visit him during this time, along with James, wanting to know if Severus and Remus were alright. Once they were assured that the boys were fine, just sleeping, Charles had sent James away so that he and Emma could talk with Orion. James had protested only a little, seeing that his uncle looked tired and not really in the mood to talk at all. After once more being told that yes, he could see his cousins when they woke up, he left to find Sirius and discuss the first task.

"What happened?" Charles asked bluntly.

Orion looked at him and then looked at the bedroom where both his children were asleep on his bed. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Putting up a silencing charm, Charles growled, "Don't play games with me, Harry James Potter, you've got that look in your eyes, the one which says that something happened which hurt you, and you're not going to talk about it unless we force you. I don't want to play that game today, and you're going to have to explain it to Severus and Remus anyway, so you can explain it to us first."

Orion stared at his grandfather with an indecipherable look in his eyes. Finally he looked up at the ceiling and said, "Dad. Any advice here?"

He seemed to listen to something and then shook his head, turning his gaze back to Charles. "Dad says that when you're like this you won't give up so it's best to just tell you. He said that you'll keep at me until I do, that you'll just get angry if I keep trying to evade your questions, and that you being angry is not something I want to see."

Charles looked worried. "Um, Harry, we just sent your father away to find your godfather, you do know that, don't you? And if by seeing me angry you're referring to the incident two years ago when you landed yourself in St. Mungo's, I wasn't angry, I was relived and irritated."

Orion looked at him in stunned silence before shaking his head. "I'm not going mad, I promise you," he said. "That incident with Voldemort made me aware of some things which I hadn't known before, that being that when my parents died, they attached themselves to me, and mentally constructed a replica of our home in Godric's Hollow within my mind. They've been with me since they died. When Sirius and Remus died, they too somehow managed to connect with me in the same way, and Severus' older self did the same, although he wasn't dead when I came back to here. So, I've been living with the spirits of my parents, Remus, Severus, and Sirius in my head for a while, only I wasn't aware of them until two years ago. I can converse with them mentally, usually in dreams, but I can also do it when I'm awake. I don't normally talk to the ceiling like I did just now, but my situation gives a whole new meaning to the phrase, 'the ones we love never truly leave us,' "

"So, what did he say?" Emma asked.

Orion looked irritated. "I told you what he said. I think it's good advice too, I just don't know if I can follow it."

Charles caught his grandson's gaze with his own firm one, and said, "Tell us."

Orion struggled with the command for a few moments, but gave in. "It was Lily all over again," he whispered, his eyes glazing over as he remembered the task. Charles and Emma waited patiently while he fought to regain control of his emotions. Once he'd recovered, he said, "I got through the course, there were Death Eaters holding Sev and Remy hostage. The Death Eaters had knives at their throats, just like Ron did with Lily. They said that I could have them back if I joined Voldemort."

"What did you do?" Charles asked, keeping his tone calm and soothing.

Orion took a deep breath, centered himself, and continued. "I cast an invisibility spell on myself, and then I ran to the side of the enclosure. I killed the Death Eaters and finished the task."

"What did you mean when you said it was Lily all over again?" Emma questioned.

Orion choked on a sob as he whispered, "Ron offered me Lily in exchange for marrying his sister. When I agreed, he still killed her. The Death Eaters offered me Sev and Remy in exchange for joining Voldemort. They would have killed them even if I had agreed. I couldn't lose Sev and Remy the same way I lost Lily, I just couldn't."

With that, he broke completely, the stress of the task, the shock of the Death Eaters' unwelcome intrusion, and the similarity to the past situation all taking their toll. Charles immediately enfolded him in a hug, grunting slightly as Orion clung to him like a drowning man would cling to a piece of driftwood.

In Godric's Hollow, the residents were shocked as Orion's emotions surged around them like a tidal wave. There were several identifiable emotions in the onslaught, renewed grief with respect to his future children, and guilt over killing the Death Eaters in front of Severus and Remus. There was also a sense of guilt stemming from a sense that he'd somehow failed to protect them. The spirits all remained quiet, wanting to see how Charles handled the situation.

"Listen to me, Harry," Charles said quietly once Orion had recovered enough to sit back and listen properly. "You are not responsible for the Death Eaters being there. You did what you had to do in order to protect your children; no one would fault you for that, least of all me. You are not at fault in this, and as for your past situation, you weren't at fault there either. Ron was once your friend, it was natural for you to try to get your daughter back by appealing to him as your friend. It didn't work, but you should not feel guilty about that. You did everything you could."

Orion nodded, breathing deeply to get himself back under full control. Once he felt more like himself, he cast a freshening spell on his face and clothes to remove all evidence of the emotional breakdown. He did feel lighter, as though a heavy burden which he hadn't even been aware of at the time, had been removed.

A movement in the bedroom alerted him to the fact that at least one of his sons was awake. More movement suggested that both of them were, a suggestion which proved to be true as both boys appeared in the doorway, looking uncertainly into the living room. Orion held out his arms and was promptly treated like a climbing frame as Severus and Remus both tried to climb on top of him like they'd done when they were younger and needed reassurance. Discreetly widening the chair with a spell so that all of them could sit on it, he said, "How much did you hear?"

"Why do you think we heard anything? You had a silencing charm up," Remus replied, wincing as Severus elbowed him in the ribs.

"You prat! You just admitted that we tried to listen in," Severus said.

Orion chuckled. "I guess I need to explain then." Two nods was his answer and he sighed. "Very well," he said. Seeing that he had their full attention, he said, "The situation you were in today, with the Death Eaters, reminded me very much of how my daughter died. My ex-friend held a knife to her throat, the same way the Death Eaters held knives to yours, and said that he wouldn't kill her if I agreed to marry his sister. You heard what the Death Eaters asked in exchange for letting you live. My ex-friend didn't honor the deal, after I'd agreed to marry his sister, he killed my daughter anyway."

Closing his eyes, Orion said, "I knew that the Death Eaters would kill you, no matter what I agreed to do. So, I killed them. I did what I had to do because I absolutely refuse to lose you the way I lost my other children. I don't want to scare you, or make you feel uneasy around me, but I won't apologise for doing what I must in order to keep you safe."

There was silence for a long moment and then Orion found himself almost gasping for air. "We're not afraid of you, Dad," Severus said firmly.

"Yeah," Remus added, "now we'll be safer than ever."

"What do you mean?" Orion asked.

"Well," Remus said, after a quick non-verbal talk with Severus where they only seemed to use their eyes to convey messages, "if anyone harasses us here, we can just tell them that they'd better stop or our Dad will kill them, literally."

Orion gaped at them for a second or two before he began to laugh. "Trust you two to cheer me up," he murmured. "I don't kill anyone seventeen or younger, so that threat's not going to hold water. Any adult who harms you, however, is fair game."

"Deal," the two boys said, and slid off the chair, landing in an ungraceful heap on the floor. As their father peered down at them, looking both amused and concerned that they might have hurt themselves, they picked themselves up and patted his arms.

"We like the fact that you want to protect us that much," Severus said. "It was a bit scary, but we know you wouldn't hurt us, so we're not afraid of you."

"Hmm. Just wait till the next time you're in trouble," Orion teased, reaching out to ruffle Severus' hair. His son ducked away from him and then came back to the chair, hugging him again.

"We won't be afraid even then," he whispered in Orion's ear.

"Why not?" Orion asked.

"Because we know that no matter how angry you might get, all you're going to do is maybe yell a bit, or ground us, and that's all you'd do. You'd never physically hurt us, and we know that. That's why we're never going to be afraid of you," Remus said in his other ear.

Orion was so shocked at his sons' unconscious paraphrasing of something which he'd said to Severus' older self in his seventh year that he could only hug them tightly while he processed the words. He let go when two pairs of hands began to tickle him, and mock-growled before sending a couple of tickling spells back.

"Hmph. Go away," he said, but the grin on his face belied his words and the boys grinned back before racing out the door. Orion shook his head, suddenly feeling very exhausted. Checking the time, he called for a house-elf, ordering himself a light snack. When it arrived, he ate it, and then settled into bed, instructing the portrait guarding his door to not disturb him for anything short of an emergency. Despite it being only mid-afternoon, he was asleep within minutes, and wouldn't wake until the next morning, when he would discover that his sons needed his protection once more.