"We're meeting at twelve to supervise, is that correct?" Severus asked Remus and Sirius, taking the seat across from them.
"Definitely, we'll be there," Sirius answered, his eyes focused on the other table. Peter sat near Narcissa, but wasn't gawking at her. In fact, he appeared to be genuinely conversing with her. If it were anyone else, it could be mistaken for friendship.
"You can't expect her to be distant from him if she doesn't know what he did," Remus whispered.
"I can't control it; it makes my blood boil," Sirius explained, lowering his voice as well.
"What are you two being so secretive about?" Severus questioned, glancing at the pair.
"Nothing of importance, just how McGonagall has been helping me recently," Sirius lied, plastering a half-smile on his face.
"I understand," Severus nodded, and went back to his breakfast. Sirius allowed a faint sigh of relief escape, and proceeded to glare at the other table.
"Where are you taking me?" Remus jumped as Sirius yanked his arm and began sprinting. The students had, for the most part, filed out of the Great Hall.
"We have class soon!" Remus explained, and Sirius led him up the staircase. Sirius mumbled the password between pants, and entered the common room, Remus hesitantly following.
"HEY!" James shouted, Sirius swiftly turning on the lights and tearing the covers off of the bed.
"I need to know what Peter did. I'm not comfortable with him seeing my cousin, platonically or romantically. You can change that, so you're going to tell me what happened," Sirius said sternly, standing over James and maintaining direct eye contact.
"I already told you it's not a big deal," James replied, standing his ground.
"He's hurting us too, James," Remus spoke softly, glancing upwards to face James.
"How is he hurting you?" James asked sincerely.
"We asked you first," Sirius reminded.
"Do you two know Thomas Maxwell?" James questioned, his legs swinging over the bed, meeting the floor.
"The name sounds familiar," Remus assured, standing taller now.
"He's on the Ravenclaw Quidditch team. Well, he's the second-string Beater, but he gets some playing time, and he's quite good," James explains.
"What does any of this have to do with Peter?" Sirius asked impatiently.
"I'm getting there. Would you let me finish?" James responded, Sirius letting out a small grunt. "I was bored one day, so I went to the Quidditch Pitch to practice. Thomas was there too, preparing for the next game in case he had to go in," he continued. "We started talking, and it was nice to have someone to talk to that wasn't you guys. One day, Peter came to the field to bring me my bag and asked about Thomas later. I told him that we were getting along just fine," James paused.
"That's not enough; what else is there?" Remus asked calmly.
"I told Peter that I saw Thomas as a little more than a friend. He was supportive at first, but once he developed his agenda, he started to use it against me," James twiddled his thumbs and bit his lip in anticipation.
"What about Lily?" Sirius asked, softening his tone.
"I love Lily, truly. Thomas was just a crush, but that's why I've been a prick to you all lately. I'm wrapped around Peter's slimy fingers," James answered.
"We have to tell Narcissa, James. She'll understand, I swear," Sirius promised, reaching for his friend's hand.
"When? Isn't her outing with Peter soon? What was your plan with that before me?" James questioned.
"We were going to hide with Snape in the Forbidden Forest to watch over them," Sirius described.
"I think we should be more upfront. Tell Peter off in front of her," James requested.
"It may come off as a bit rash. There's a possibility our emotions will take over in the moment. We won't be in the right headspace," Remus spoke.
"I don't care; I have nothing to hide anymore. Whatever is going on between you two, that's your decision, but I want to do this," James persisted.
Sirius turned to face Remus, who gave a slight head nod. He took his hand away from James, and used it to dust off his robes.
"We'll do it. We have nothing else to lose," Sirius grinned, helping James stand up.
"How much longer do we have before we have to be there?" James asked while throwing on his uniform and robe.
"About fifteen minutes, we can make it just fine," Remus answered.
The three jogged through the castle until they reached the outside. After avoiding some rather nosey teachers, they went out into the field, just outside the forest.
"I don't think we should draw wands yet," Remus said, glancing at James, who was reaching into his robes. "Remember what I said about emotions taking control?"
James didn't respond, but hesitantly placed his wand back in his robes. He let out a slight huff, and continued walking down the field.
"Hey, look over there," Sirius pointed, spotting two people strolling on the top of the field.
"But where is Snape? Wasn't he supposed to be here?" James asked.
"Perhaps he'll show up in a few minutes," Remus responded.
"Should we wait for him?" Sirius questioned.
"If he shows up, that's fine, but if I have the opportunity, I'm going to confront him," James spoke sternly, and Remus did not silence him this time.
Narcissa had her blonde hair half pinned up, and was wearing a long, satin, light green skirt with a white sweater vest. Her aesthetic clashed with Peter's brown trousers and white t-shirt.
James was the first to approach the pair, as Sirius followed. Remus hesitantly went after his friends, mentally preparing a harshly-worded lecture for them if all went wrong.
"Greeting, Peter," James spat sassily, flashing a half-smile that juxtaposed with his tone.
"Good afternoon to you too, James," Peter smiled back. "Now, if you don't mind, I'm busy with a friend."
"She's not your friend, anything but actually," Sirius interrupted.
"Why are you ruining this for me?" Narcissa asked her cousin.
"I'm not ruining anything; Peter is not your friend. He's a horrible person who doesn't deserve your attention," Sirius argued.
"How is he horrible? You can't tell me to stay away from him without reason blindly," Narcissa defended.
"There's a handful of reasons, and anyone with common sense would distance themselves as far as possible from this rodent," Sirius continued.
"Like what exactly?" Narcissa asked. Peter began to sweat, and Sirius was prepared to reply.