Authors Note:

Round 11

Seeker Prompt: Write about a character who uses trickery/tricks to reach their goals for a specific reason.

Beta's: CupCakeyyy, S.L.Blake, VanillaAshes

Summary: Peter just wanted to belong. Making friends, going through with his own decisions… But that wasn't always easy. When, one day, Mulciber offered him the chance to do something that might help with his wish of a bit more independence and confidence, he barely hesitated.

Title: Branching Out

A young teenager with short blond hair sighed heavily as he watched his group of friends from afar. He was in his fifth year at Hogwarts, and it felt like every other year. It would just go by, and he would just watch. Like he always did. Always at the sidelines, watching. He sighed again. Peter was part of the Marauders, but he wasn't at the same time. This feeling wasn't new, and it was starting to get to him more and more. His classmates could see that he didn't quite fit in.

And one day, the Slytherins put this to the test. To prove that he didn't belong.

"I'm going to get some fresh air," Peter muttered in a small voice, and only James looked up, as he and Sirius were getting ready for a game of chess one afternoon. Remus was sitting by them reading a book, only mildly interested in the outcome of the match. James nodded to him, and Peter gave his friend a put-on smile and quickly hurried out of the common room.

He didn't know how to feel about his life at Hogwarts so far, and honestly, he really couldn't wait until it was over. Until he graduated, and he didn't have to worry about what his friends thought of him; what anyone thought, for that matter. He was sure that after Hogwarts he would be forgotten. Blended into the background. Perhaps that would be for the best, James wouldn't have to put up with him. Just because they were childhood friends, James always thought he had to include him in everything. Peter appreciated it because if it weren't for James, he would have no group, no friends. Although, maybe that was how it was meant to be.

As he walked through the corridors, heading to the courtyard, he let his thoughts take him through a number of possibilities. If he'd been a Hufflepuff or a Slytherin, what would have happened to him, then?

He heard cold laughter reverberate off the walls as he walked around the corner, and all he could hear was his heart beating heavily as he saw the green robes of the Slytherins. He bit his bottom lip nervously as his eyes focused on the stone floor, determined not to make eye contact with the Slytherins in question.

Unfortunately, he didn't get very far.

"Oh look, it's Pettigrew."

Mulciber, Peter thought. He would recognise that voice anywhere. He held his breath as he looked up, knowing he wouldn't get any further without some type of interaction. He was by himself, though, and that was Peter's mistake. He didn't have anyone to back him up, he didn't have James, who'd just talk them straight to hell. Or Sirius, who didn't give a damn about what anyone thought of him. And he just knew that the Slytherins would take full advantage of that fact.

"What are you doing all by yourself? Where are the rest of the blood traitors?" Mulciber asked tauntingly, while a few other Slytherins laughed. He recognised one to be Sirius's brother, Regulus Black. He didn't know why he was surprised to see him there, with the older group.

"In the common room," Peter murmured, and he heard that same cold laughter.

"Aw, are you feeling left out, Chubby?" His voice was patronising, causing anger to rile up in Peter, but he didn't want to do anything about the situation. He couldn't. He was too much of a coward to defend himself, and he didn't know how to fix that. Peter relied too much on James that he had no idea how to defend himself in the long run.

"You know, a Pureblood like you shouldn't have to be with blood traitors." Mulciber hummed, a foreboding smirk on his face. Peter's stomach churned. "If you want to prove yourself…" he trailed off, throwing a glance towards his peers before saying, "You could do something for us, prove us all wrong. That you're not just some bootlicker." Mulciber's smirk widened. It had a dangerous edge to it, and, thinking back, Peter didn't know whether it was the confidence or the promise of risk that, for the first time, actually made Peter think his suggestion through.

He didn't want people to think he was just a… a coward. He wasn't. And maybe, what Mulciber had in mind wasn't going to be so bad… and if it would help him be more confident, be someone without needing the Marauders, well... Where was the harm in that? He glanced at the fellow fifth year and nodded, making his first decision without James being by his side.

"What do you want me to do?" he asked, faking his confidence.

The impressed flicker that Mulciber couldn't hide in his eyes gave Peter the satisfaction he needed.

"Just get Potter to the grounds, by the lake, tomorrow in our free period. You'll know what you've achieved, when you see it," he said, and Peter nodded. He could do that. The Marauders were in the courtyard most days, so that was nothing new.

Peter walked away with a new found confidence, and instead of worrying about what the Slytherins had planned, he was busy thinking about how his sister was, being in Paris with his mother for the week. What would she say if he told her that he'd made his own decision for once? Would she notice a spike in his confidence? How he held himself up straighter now? He couldn't help but smile at that thought.

The next day, when he was with James, he couldn't help but be slightly surprised how easily he could act like nothing had happened. And luckily, it was beautiful out, so it was no trouble suggesting that they should go to the lake in their free period. He trailed behind, and when he saw Snivellus reading, back against a tree, he just knew that Mulciber had planned that. It couldn't have been a coincidence. Both James and Sirius were in a good mood, which put Snivellus in danger. Peter looked around the grounds to see if the rest of the Slytherins were there, but he couldn't see them.

"Snivellus, lovely day, isn't it?" Peter heard Sirius say, and who knew how much one simple sentence could change everything?

It all happened very quickly, and all Peter could really do was stand by and watch in fascination as one event chased the next.

"Potter, stop it!"

"I don't need your help, Mudblood."

They had attracted a crowd, which made the silence that followed Snape's words just the more deafening. Standing in the midst of his classmates was Mulciber, who Peter made eye contact with. The Slytherin nodded at him, and Peter's breath hitched. He watched as James ran after Lily, like the lovesick puppy that he was, and both Sirius and Remus followed, seemingly having forgotten all about him. Peter stood in the same place as the crowd dispersed. Only the Slytherins, the same group as yesterday, stayed behind with him.

"And that is how it is done," Mulciber spoke, patting Peter on the back like an old friend, and Peter couldn't help but feel happy, and relieved at the same time. A mischievous sparkle that he had never seen in the other's eyes made Peter's heart jump. He had impressed the Slytherins. He had done something without James, and that was an accomplishment in itself. He didn't need the Marauders anymore.

He could make it on his own. He had just proven it to himself! He wasn't useless! He wasn't just a pathetic tag-along that no one really ever noticed. He was Peter Pettigrew, the Gryffindor who had managed to impress Slytherins, and that was something, he decided, that he could be proud of.

"You can be an honorary Slytherin," Mulciber said good-heartedly before clapping Peter on the back. "Welcome to the gang, Pettigrew."

Peter grinned, and only had one thought on his mind.

Mischief managed.