Back again with a mostly fixed computer and a heap of gratitude for my readers!
Seriously, I have bee getting so many updates for about the amount of follows I have gotten this week.
I can't tell you how awesome it makes me feel to know so many of you have such faith in me.
So not much to say before this chapter gets underway, let's get on with the show!
If Someone Cared Enough
Chapter Thirty-One: Could it be?
Severus sat under a tree by the lake, relishing the last bit of warm weather remaining until spring. Needing only a cloak at minimum for warmth, he sat with his legs sprawled out in front of him, a book in his lap as he leaned back against the tree's sturdy trunk.
It was his and Lily's favorite spot on the school grounds. Lily had picked it out their first year. She said it was due to the perfect amount of both sunlight and shade it provided, just enough to warm you, but also capable of keeping you from a sunburn. She also claimed the grass was the softest and plushest here, the view provided them a perfect seat to the lake and its entire splendor. That's what she said anyway. However, Severus wondered if her choice in hangouts was more tied to how much it reminded them both of their spot back in Cokeworth, the shelter under the willow tree just on the edge of the riverbed. Considering such a though brought back many memories of their time spent together, though now without the rose-colored glasses.
He now saw his former friendship with Lily for what it was, imbalanced. While he and Lily both clearly valued each other, their interactions often strained, their discussions combative and narrow minded. Regardless of who was wrong at any given time, they were never on even ground with one another, both manipulated by the words of others and a mutual desire to fit in, though for very different reasons.
Lily had wanted to prove she belonged to the world of magic and thus had rallied against any sign of pureblood bigotry to the point that she let Gryffindor bias sway her to associate any hint of Slytherin with a hidden agenda of discrimination and inequality. It was why she had begun to bicker with Severus so easily and ignored his reasoning; she was already convinced that he agreed with the likes of Malfoy and Avery.
Severus desired more than anything to show he was better than the likes of his drunken muggle father, stronger than that and more worthy of recognition than bullies like Potter and Black who had the world handed to them simply for what their last name was. He started much of his talks with Lily already border lining on hostility, because subconsciously, he worried she too wanted to deprive him of a place in the wizarding world, condemning him to the squalor his father found for himself as a powerless muggle.
As much as Severus put Lily on a pedestal, he was beginning to see there were flaws all around her, ones he himself shared. She was stubborn and easier swayed than she would admit, as was he, both eager to prove they belonged in some fashion that they fell for paltry reasoning and empty promises, become susceptible to rumors and gossip that they once thought themselves too mature to get caught up in or believe.
While Severus was more open minded to the many pathways magic could go, the dangerous and advantages of both light and dark, Lily clung to the typical righteous mindset that there was only good and evil, right and wrong. For her, the idea that morals or ethics could become somewhat murkier was unfathomable. It made her far more judgmental and self-righteous than Severus had ever been willing to admit, too clouded by his awe and admiration of her to see she was shaking her head and sticking it in the ground to avoid the truth just as her housemates were in regards to anything Slytherin.
For years, Severus blamed all disagreements they had on outside parties, typically Potter. In his mind, it was Potter's fault Lily thought dark magic all evil; he must have been poisoning her mind since day one. It was Potter's fault she couldn't see the toerag was just as bad as Avery was because he scampered off before Lily could see the extent of Potter's bullying. Now Severus realized that it was Lily herself—and he as well—to blame for their arguments. She was hotheaded and stubborn, he bitter and condescending. Lily was human, prone to mistakes like unfair generalization of Slytherin over the actions of a few, just as Severus had with Gryffindors thanks to his own experiences.
Now that he was older and the much more aware of the imperfections in his and Lily's past friendship, his memories of their spot by the river changed drastically. The river he used to envision as pristine and sparkling was in reality dirty and polluted by years of runoff from the mill, the unspoken reason they never swam in it. The grass they dozed on had been littered with burnt out end of fags people smoked and threw out of their cars as they drove past, left sizzling among half empty and broken beer bottles. The willow tree, though picturesque and lovely to look at, dripped sap that clung to their hands and clothes, always a hassle to wash off and Severus rarely had much success with his family's limited utilities for cleaning anyway.
As much as they time spent together had been cherished by Severus, he couldn't deny that he oftentimes let his happiness end up romanticizing reality into something cleaner, purer, and more habitable than the rocky friendship they truly had.
Severus smiled wistfully. In a way he was glad he and Lily opened their eyes to what their relationship was actually like, as it meant they now had opened the path for communication and understanding, something they had lacked before. Severus only wished these new realizations hadn't come at the cost of Lily's safety and wellbeing. As much as he tried not to think it, he sometimes wished they had never worked things out if it meant the attack on Lily and Mary never happened.
He knew Lily would scold him for thinking such as she was too self-sacrificing, too willing to give up part of herself if it meant she could reconcile with him. Lily truly did have flaws, but the fact remained she was above all a loving, giving person, a trait that drew him to her to begin with.
Severus sighed, shaking his head as if to somehow dispel his depressing thoughts. Marcus wanted him to work on his pessimism and negativity, especially now that Lily needed a friend to lean on who could focus on her instead of themselves. Severus had Marcus to be there for him when his PTSD triggered uneasiness or anxiety in him and Simone and Thea were surprising good friends to have when times were tough. He had also spent years compartmentalizing his thoughts and feelings for when he had a more ideal time to deal with them and had learn some coping skills years ago. On the other hand, a loving family and the security that came with it shielded Lily from many hardships so she lacked the coping skills needed for a true crisis. Frankly, it was a crime that any child, man, or woman should need coping skills for attempted rape.
Severus could understand that hardship was everywhere. There would be violence, there would be pain, but he still felt that out of all the bitter realities out there, it was still unimaginably foul that sexual assault existed. Hell from what Marcus told him; even harden criminals and murderers despised sexual offenders as nothing but animalistic and depraved cretins.
As long as such terrible atrocities existed, there would be people like Lily in need of support and compassion and Severus would be damn if Lily didn't get just that when she needed it most. He would be there for her. He would listen to her when she needed to vent, support her decisions to seek help from Professor Sprout, and he would respect her wish to be alone when she desired solitude. Respect above all was something he would give to her in spades, because she needed to know that as a person she had an inalienable right to it and that nothing she had said or done warranted Avery disrespecting her privacy or her bodily autonomy.
Severus smoothed his hand over the page he had been trying to read for the past ten minutes. His thoughts were wandering so much lately and it was cutting into one of his favorited past times; reading ahead to practice new material before professors assigned it. Currently he was reading next week's scheduled chapters in Transfiguation. It wasn't one of his stronger subjects so it helped to be thorough.
Now in their sixth year, they were ready to learn about animagus transformations in theory. It mostly consisted of the history of the ability such as when the first wizard did it, as well as the laws revolving around it and the steps taken legally to obtain ones license to become one. Their books gave a brief synopsis of some of the required steps to actually transform, but kept the descriptions sparse, most likely to prevent students from attempting it early (which would also mean illegally).
As it was, McGonagall would most likely be steering clear of any actual directions on that process due to her own houses penchant for rule breaking mischief; Severus knew she saw the gleam in Black's eyes when they mentioned the transformation at the start of term. Not that her discretion would do any good; if a student truly wanted to become an animagus, Severus knew for a fact that several biographies of famous animaguses were located in the library, detailing the witch or wizards own lengthy process in becoming one. Surely, someone dedicated and talented could accomplish the task without legal assistance.
Severus froze, a worrying thought entering his head. Could it have happened already? Just about any subject was available in the library so long as it fell under light magic, and he knew that the restricted section was no obstacle for Potter and his friends with that blasted cloak. Severus brushed off the hypocrisy of his anger over their rule breaking, ignoring the voice in his head reminding him he had sneaked into the restricted section many times himself. That was beside the point; he knew they could find access to the needed books and supplies to accomplish the feat of being an animagus if they so desired. The question was had they?
Looking back on it now, the glimmer in Black's eye in their first class with McGonagall hadn't exactly looked like his usual brand of gleeful excitement. No, that usually gave him a wild, wide-eyed appearance, like a puppy that had spotted its favorite chew toy. It wasn't the look of excitement he had when tormenting Severus either; that brand of enthusiasm came with a hard, sinister level of malice and joy that made his eyes seem mad and bestial almost. No, what Severus had saw that day in class was more of a…smug satisfaction. A sense of accomplishment almost, one that he was dying to share with others but unable to. It was the self-serving, proud sort of look of a person wore thinking about a well-kept secret.
Severus thought back to his many encounters with the Marauders. A third of them were a driven bunch when they wanted to be—Peter usually just along for the ride as he failed in all things academic. While Potter and Black were show offs and slackers, they could earn a fair and decent grade when they put their minds to it; Potter's Transfiguration grades were proof enough. Therefore, if they truly wanted to be animaguses, it would hardly be a struggle with their brains and determination—as well as sheer bullheadedness—combined.
Potter and Black called Lupin 'Moony' from time to time, if Severus recalled. Now that he knew of Lupin's condition, it was clear the nicknamed referenced the creature he turned into each full moon. What did that mean for their other nicknames? Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs…was it possible those codes stood for something more than just comradery?
Wormtail…a tail like a worm. That meant a rat, right?
Realization hit Severus like a brick; the rat Potter brought to the trial!
"Hey Snape!" Simone plopped down suddenly besides Severus, nearly scaring him witless.
"Easy, Mr. Jumpy," Simone teased, "Lost in thought were you?"
"You could say that," Severus said, closing his book. He would keep his suspicions to himself for now, Simone's hatred of Potter and Black was almost as fierce as his own was. However, it was far less restrained and subtle. The confident and proud girl would most likely confront them in a heartbeat if she suspected them guilty of being unregistered animaguses. Best to stay quiet for now until he had real proof.
"What are you reading?" Simone asked, picking up the discarded book. Carefully thumbing through the pages, she managed to land exactly on the chapter Severus was reading without need for a bookmark, a skill Severus had come to notice about Simone during recent study sessions. It was almost as if she could sense where someone's eyes had last been in the worn out pages.
"Animagus, huh?" Simone observed, "We covered that last year. It was a breeze to go through, just essays on ethics and legality. Most of the class was disappointed we didn't actually learn how to become one, but frankly it would be a waste on most of those halfwits. Half of them behave like animals already; they don't need to turn into one to accomplish such levels of slovenly, uncouth behavior."
"You've never wanted to be one?" Severus asked distractedly. His mind was still stuck on the Marauders. Aside from the joy of breaking the rules, what could they possibly gain from turning into animals? There weren't many opportunities during the day for Potter and Black to sneak off to transform, being busy with Quidditch and classes and all. So why risk discovery to be something they couldn't do much with during their school years?
Simone shook her head, "Not really. I suppose I'm curious to see what form I would take, but chances are it would be a snake, which is a level of irony I would utterly loathe. Either that or a dog, and then people would think calling me a bitch far more accurate and gratifying."
"Sim says I would be a chipmunk," Thea said with a smile, "Apparently I'm 'squeaky' enough for it."
"Squeaky and adorable," Simone corrected, "Well not that it matters anyway. While I'm sure it must be fun to turn into an animal, with all the effort it takes to do so, most people don't even bother. In fact, the majority of registered animaguses became one for a purpose deemed useful or advantageous for them."
"Really?" Severus asked, head popping up.
Simone nodded, "Yeah it says it all right here in the book. People usually dedicate that time and effort to becoming one for a specific reason. With all that could go wrong it isn't a subject a person wanders into or takes lightly. You have want it enough to take the risks. Most use it for covert things like spying or for protection from muggle detection like in the Babbity Rabbity tale," she handed Severus back his book, pulling out a nail file and grooming her finger nails.
"Others have found in useful in research such as Magical Creature care, as an animal form soothes Unicorns and what not more than people," Thea added.
"Magical creatures?" Severus's eyes grew wide. That's it! That's why they did it. It all made perfect sense now. Lupin claimed he tended to back down to his friends because they accepted him, but that never truly added up. Dumbledore had accepted him first and what 's more, the headmaster had helped him attend school. Shouldn't Lupin have more loyalty to the one who risked it all for him, then?
There was also the case of the 'prank' Black played on Severus. As obviously dangerous and life threatening as it had been to Severus and even Lupin, Black himself seemed confident that all that would come of it was a simple scare. Black must have been sure he or Potter could pull Severus out in time, but why would they have such faith in themselves against the speed of a werewolf? Unless they could turn into animals and head off the beast! That must have been it. Black planned to distract Lupin while Potter raced in to save the day and his own ass from expulsion.
They became animaguses to soothe the beast inside Lupin during the fully moon. It was well proven that werewolves rarely attacked other animals, even for food, the twisted mechanism of their curse driving them to crave the flesh of the human race they once were a part of. Therefore, Potter and his friends spent time with Lupin as animals during the full moon.
Was that why Lupin was such a pushover? Because he felt indebted to them for going so far as to spend time with his cursed form? Did they really let the gratitude of their gesture hang over his head to the point where he compromised his own feelings to submit to them?
Severus wasn't sure why that bothered him so much. He cared little for Lupin and while his hatred for the boy had dwindled down to a quiet dislike, he certainly didn't want to befriend the boy. He…tolerated him at best.
However, there was something unpleasant about the implications of Lupin's complex friendship with Potter and the others. A give and take that favored one side far more than the other; a group of many benefiting off the back of one. It was too much like his repertoire with Malfoy and Avery for his liking. Sure, Potter and Black may not mean to take advantage of Lupin in such a manner, their effort to be animaguses spoke of how much he meant to them. But their arrogance and ignorance allowed them to completely overlook just how much Lupin caved to their demands rather than have a voice of his own. It was…unpleasant to think about.
Simone nudged him, "You okay? You have a rather scary expression on your face right now. It's freaking Thea out."
"It is not," Thea denied, though she did look distinctly concerned.
"It's nothing," Severus assured them, "Just thinking about something. Don't worry about it."
"It wasn't Potter and his friends, was it?" Thea asked, a frown settling over her face, "I told Lupin off so they better leave you alone."
"It's nothing," Severus insisted, "Trust me, you set him straight."
Simone snorted, "Yeah sure, this pipsqueak totally strikes fear in the hearts of many."
"Hey!" Thea pouted, "What's that supposed to mean?"
Simone held her hands up placatingly, "I'm just saying; you're not exactly the most intimidating person out there. You're like what, five feet just barely? You practically fit in my pocket."
"Size doesn't matter!" Thea argued, her face turning red in embarrassment.
Tuning them out, Severus looked towards the castle. He would need to have a talk with Lupin at some point. Not that he sympathized with the boy, but situation with his friends needed to stop. Clearly, Lupin didn't enjoy the state of things and letting his friends run wild put others in danger, especially if they were apparently playing with a fully grown werewolf at night.
While Lupin had kept his promise and his friends now left Severus alone in Lupin's presence (or Lily's), they still took cheap shots at him in the halls or when leaving the classroom, tripping jinxes and stinging hexes that would be hard to outright prove were them.
Severus would need to see Lily too. Respecting her request to privacy, Severus only spoke to Lily when she sought him out, taking note of her more apparent discomfort around boys. Ever since the incident at Hogsmede, she oftentimes kept to the company of girls, forming a sort of shield around her to avoid being too close to anyone. Even Simone and Thea had taken to standing guard by her in the hallways whenever they weren't watching over Severus to keep his housemates at a distance.
Potter had taken notice of Lily distancing herself from others. The fool had gone around like a wounded puppy whenever he failed to get her attention these days, making the situation about himself when Lily was the one suffering.
Therefore, Severus kept a respectable distance whenever necessary. He still walked to classes with Lily, but only linked arms like old times if she wished it. He only sat next to her if she requested it. Of course, she always requested it.
Despite her increased discomfort towards the male persuasion, Lily actually hadn't backed away too much from her closeness to Severus. While he now waited for her to make the first move, Lily still clung to him, hugged him, and chatted with him like always. He couldn't exactly figure out why he was an exception to her rule; if anything he thought he might serve to remind her of that terrible day on the train as he was there. But if Lily wanted his company, he would take it and relish it.
"See," Simone's voice pulled Severus from his thoughts. Looking over, he found Simone standing straight up, her arms outstretched to the sides in demonstration. Beneath her cloak, a lump had risen up on her back, her hood over the top of it instead of her own head. A pair of feet barely hung out the bottom of the cloak.
"You're so tiny I can wear you and it's hardly noticeable," Simone declared to Thea.
"This doesn't change my point," came Thea's muffled reply, "It's not the size of the dog in the fight, it's the size of the fight in the dog."
"Wise words, Twain," Simone teased, "But I don't think that fight is much of a challenge when it's a Doberman against a Pomeranian."
"You take that back!" Thea said furiously, kicking her feet under the cloak.
"Ow, ow! Quit it," Simone cried, getting nailed with a well-aimed kick to the back of her knee, "Fine, I take it back. I take it back!"
"Can't say I find this behavior very refined," Severus drawled, picking up his book.
He began his trek up the hill back towards the castle, "You two coming?"
Simone scampered up the hill after him, Thea still tucked away under her cloak.
As they reached the front steps, Hagrid came lumbering by, probably planning on talking with Dumbledore about something.
"Well 'ello, Sev'rus," the half-giant greeted kindly, "headin' inside?"
Severus nodded cordially, "Yes, it was beginning to feel chilled."
Hagrid nodded, "It is getting' a bit nippy out, isn't now? Well you best get on inside, wouldn't want to catch a cold, now would you?"
With a wave of his large arms, he waved Severus passed him, standing to wait for the other students who had gone outside to pass him by.
Several students greeting him with 'how do you do's and 'hello's, all of them quite accustom to the massive, jovial man.
"How's it going," Simone greeted casually, tipping an imaginary hat.
"Goin' well, thank you," Hagrid said with a nod, completely oblivious to the pair of legs sticking out the bottom of Simone's lumpy cloak.
{page break}
James and Sirius sat on the sill of a window overlooking the courtyard, staring down at the people milling about below. In the next window over, Peter hung gracelessly over the sill on his stomach, arms hanging down out the opening in a lazily fashion.
"I don't like it, Padfoot," James muttered, looking down into the courtyard, "They're too close to one another now."
He was talking of course about Snape and Lily practically attached at the hip since they returned from break and currently wandering about in the courtyard at that very moment.
James frowned as he watched Lily grab Snape by the hand, pulling him over to a bench to sit. The lovely redhead pulled out a notebook James recognized from Potions class and began flipping excitedly through it, talking rather animated to the sullen boy.
"It just doesn't add up," Sirius agreed, "I thought she was through with his sorry ass after what he said to her last year."
"Well he did save her on the train," Peter pointed out timidly.
"That doesn't change what a slime ball he is, Wormtail," Sirius admonished, "I mean what, he saves her life and she think she has to forgive him in order to show gratitude for it? Couldn't she have just said a simple 'thanks' and washed her hands clean of that creep."
Mary walked past them, her arms laden with books.
"Need any help there, MacDonald," Sirius offered charmingly.
Mary's eyes swept over Sirius coldly, "No thank you," she said with a sniff, hurrying on her way.
Sirius tilted his head in confusion, "Weird, I could have sworn she fancied me last year."
"Forget about that, what about Snape?" James snapped, "It isn't like him helping her proves he's change or anything. He was just at the right place at the right time. He's still a smarmy, slimy, nosey, sniveling, rotten prick."
"He probably just got mad because Avery touched Evans before him," Sirius said wisely.
James threw his hands up, "I know! He thinks he owns her; he makes me sick. Do you see how he tries to get in the way of me talking to her? He's probably the reason she keeps turning me down, because he's making her do it. He's preventing her from having any sort of love life."
"Yeah, that must be it," Sirius muttered sarcastically, but the tone was lost on James.
Peter leaned forward to join in their conversation, clumsily almost falling out the window, "You know, I heard that Snivellous arranged the attack on Evans just so he could swoop in and play hero." His eyes lit up, desperate to say anything that would win their approval.
Sirius rolled his eyes, "Mate, you heard that from us."
"Oh right," Peter said, deflating.
"But that doesn't make it any less of a possibility," James announced, "I mean think about it: Snivellous says something absolutely un-for-givable and Evans refuses to put up with him anymore. She swears him off for good because he proved what sort of person he is. Then conveniently there's an attack on Evans on the train—by none other than Snivellous's Death Eater pals might I add—and he just happens to show up and stop them?!"
"Certainly is a rather heroic way to get back in her good graces," Sirius mused.
Peter pursed his lips, thinking, "But wait, didn't Avery almost kill him? That doesn't seem like a very logical plan."
"Well of course they botched their plan up; they're stupid Slytherins," James explained, "They were probably just supposed to fire off a few hexes, let Snape get in some good shots and then run away letting him look the hero."
"Either way, it's the perfect recipe for forgiveness in Evans' eyes," Sirius surmised.
They observed the pair seated on the benches below. Snape was explaining something as he scribbled notes in Lily's notebook, Lily leaning into his side. James scowled heavily as Lily's radiant smile got bigger and she rested her chin on his shoulder, peering over it down at his writing.
The closeness infuriated James. He wasn't so thickheaded as to not have noticed Lily withdrawing somewhat from other's presence lately, especially boys. It wasn't like she jumped away when guys approached or ran off scared, but there was a wariness in her gaze now when boys spoke to her, a look in her eyes like she was trying to assess their intentions. She politely refused to go anywhere with a boy even for studying unless a few of her closest friends came too.
Snape was often a part of this escort system. When the head boy came to pull Lily out of class to assist him with corralling some unruly second years who got into a water fight with Peeves, she adamantly insisted Mary and Snape come with her. What 's more, the professor allowed it
"We need to keep an eye on him," James declared, "See what he's up to. There's no way he's changed his ways."
Lily reached over and took one end of the notebook, her hand covering Snape's. The small smile that came over Snape's face rankled James further.
"He needs to be taken down a notch too," he added.
Sirius grinned, "I'm all for that."
Peter fidgeted nervously, "But guys, what about Moony? He made us promise."
Sirius stroked his chin in thought, "If I recall his exact words were that he doesn't want to see us going after Snivellous."
Peter frowned, "That's not what he said—"
"Right!" James jumped in, cutting Peter off, "So we just need to not get caught. I mean, it's work out for us so far. As is, Remus is probably more worried about upsetting Lily than harming Snivellous. Can't say I blame him; I would never want to upset such a lovely girl."
Sirius cocked an eyebrow.
'Don't you piss her off every time you see her?' Sirius wondered.
"But if Moony finds out, won't he be upset with us?" Peter pointed out.
James threw an arm over Peter's shoulder, "Look, I promise we won't get caught. If anything, we're doing this for Remus."
Peter blinked, "How so?"
James smirked, "Think about it; suddenly he's through with messing with Snivellous. I bet you anything that he's doing this because he's scared Snape will reveal his secret. The creep's practically a celebrity since his stunt on the train; I doubt Dumbledore's threat to expel him if he blabs holds much weight anymore. The board of governors won't let him kick out a hero." He sneered at the last word.
"That's right," Sirius agreed, glowering at the thought of sneaky Snivellous having anything over his friend. He'd nearly lost Remus's friendship last year, he wasn't about to lose it now because of Snape, "That bastard must be holding his secret over his head. We need to keep an eye on him to ensure he keeps his mouth shut."
"And if he starts to get cocky, we'll show him you can't mess with our friends and get away with it," James added fiercely.
"And he's definitely getting too cocky," Sirius commented, "He thinks having clean hair and white teeth somehow makes him less scum than he is?" In truth, it bothered Sirius that some of the girls around school had begun to take notice of Snape's improved looks. Adding to that his status as a 'hero' and some girls were making goo-goo eyes at him when he walked past, caught up in some hero worship of a person Sirius felt entirely undeserving of it.
Peter looked between his friends, weighing their words, "Well…if it's for Remus, I suppose it's okay." The sandy haired boy was the nicest to him out of his friends and he hated seeing Remus upset.
"That's the spirit," Sirius said, slapping Peter on the back, "The Marauders watch out for their own!"
They continued to watch Snape and Lily interact. Eventually, Simone and Thea joined them along with that chubby Hufflepuff girl they often enjoyed for company. Sirius couldn't recall her name, and frankly he didn't care.
The newly arrived group took up a conversation with the mismatched pair the Marauders were spying on and soon, Snape and Lily rose from their seats and followed the trio out of the courtyard.
Seeing Lily link arms with Snape as they left had James seeing red.
"There's a Slug Club party on All Hallows Eve," James began, "Slughorn wants it to combine wizard traditions with muggle Halloween ones."
Sirius raised a brow, "Feeling festive suddenly, Prongs?"
"Don't you see?" James questioned, turning to face his friends, "Muggles wear costumes on Halloween. Slughorn wants people to feel free to dress up."
"Old Sluggy better not invite any vampires then," Sirius said with a chuckle, "I doubt they'd appreciate seeing students dressed like them."
Peter snickered into his hands.
"You're not getting it!" James growled, "Snivellous and Lily are sure to attend. If we're in costume, who's going to know it was us who pranked him?"
Peter's eyes lit up in realization, "Brilliant, James!"
"One problem, Prongs," Sirius pointed out, "We're not invited; only Remus is. Dumbledore may have overlooked the shack incident, but Sluggy took it a tad more personal."
"Whatever happened to Snivellous never seemed to bother him before," James grumbled, "But it doesn't matter. People will be arriving to the party in costume, right? Once they enter the party and announce who they are, people will just associated them with the costume they wore, mask and all. So we hide under my cloak and when some poor saps come out for a bit of fresh air, we stun them and steal their costumes!"
Sirius considered this, "That could work; we'd just have to make sure the ones we grab have really concealing costumes."
"Trust me, the plan can't fail," James said confidently, "We sneak in under the pilfered disguises, prank Snivelly, and bugger off. We'll be back to our dorm before Remus returns from the party. No one will ever know it was us."
Sirius's mouth spread into a wicked smirk, "I'm in. Come Friday, Snivellous is going down."
How's that for a chapter?
Severus is starting to put some things together about the secrets of the Marauders. The question is, will he confront them?
I felt like giving Peter some thoughts of his own, a lot of stories tend to portray him as just a tag along and hardly mention him at all as having his own thoughts and opinions until he begins to betray the Potters. I felt that even as a tag alone, Peter must have some things he at least privately disagrees with. I also wanted to high light his friendship with Lupin as something he holds dear. Keep in mind Peter is not brave and bold like his friends or typical Gryffindors. For him to willing spend time with Moony during the full moon must surely be because of more than a wish to follow James and Sirius. He must care deeply about Remus, probably seeing some kindred spirit in him due to them both being outcasts that have a hard time making friends.
Read and review friends!