Chapter 71
The Truth

"Voldemort." Sirius said quietly sitting on his bed. James and Remus sat on either side of him and Peter sat on James' bed facing them. Sirius wouldn't look at anything but the floor, and he still had a dazed look in his eyes.

"What?" Remus asked before James could. He'd heard that name before, but he couldn't remember where.

"He's called Voldemort. The guy in the alley." Sirius added trying to look at James, but only making it as far as James' knees.

James' eyes widened. "Who is he? He and his people have been all over the news, but it never says anything but their pureblood extremists and murderers."

"I don't know, James, I don't think anyone really does. That's probably all they know also." Sirius rested his hands on his knees and shook his head.

"What did he want? What were you doing in the alley to begin with?" James asked, when he'd wanted Sirius to tell him so bad he hadn't considered that maybe he didn't really want to know the answer.

Sirius didn't respond for a while, considering what the best, and most truthful answer he could give was. He decided it was better to tell them nothing then it was to lie to them.

"I'd really rather not say... but I promise it had nothing to do with him." Sirius replied, quickly adding the last bit so they wouldn't be suspicious. He knew they trusted him, but no matter how much you trusted someone there could always be moments of doubt.

"We know, Sirius, we know." James said softly, rubbing his friend's back in a soothing way that his mother had done for him many times.

"He... He wanted me." Sirius placed his head in his hands and closed his eyes, not even wanting to know their reaction.

James, Remus, and Peter looked at each other, trying their hardest to process the situation and comfort their friend.

"You're thirteen." James managed first. Unable to understand why a criminal organization would want a thirteen year old as a member. "You're not even allowed to do magic outside of school."

"He said I had more important skills at the moment. Something about me being manipulative." Sirius whispered so low that James had to repeat it for Peter.

"I suppose I can see how that would be useful to him." Remus replied not denying the truth as most would. "But that doesn't mean anything really. It's not like you'd ever even consider it, I mean they're murderers, and like Lilly said yesterday, you're a bully, not a murderer."

Sirius considered this, normally he would be surprised that Remus was blunt enough to call him a bully, but now he really didn't care. "Ya, that's why I murdered Lily Evans in my dream the very night she stood up for me and woke up feeling happy."

"Sirius, that doesn't make you a murderer. You can't control what you dream about or what mood you wake up in. What matters is that this freaks you out. The very fact that you are so disturbed by this proves that you are no murderer. Besides, it's not like you've even considered it." James leaned back on one hand as though to emphasize his calm attitude.

Sirius closed his eyes and put his arms around himself. He replied quickly, as though the words were edged in broken glass.

"He promised to protect you, all of you, from his Death Eaters." He paused squeezing his eyes as though he never wanted to see again and bowing his head. "He, kinda, emphasized Remus."

Remus' face reddened. "Why? Because I'm different? What makes you think I need his protection?" He sounded almost angry.

Sirius finally managed to look someone in the eyes. Remus didn't turn away and didn't hide his frustration. "Why couldn't you go home for Christmas last year?" Sirius said calmly with almost no emotion behind it. Remus inhaled sharply and opened his mouth as though to speak but nothing seemed to be able to come out. After a time he gave up on replying and turned away.

"Because we didn't know where he lives so we couldn't go and beat the crap out of his neighbors for being gits." James replied in Remus' stead. Sirius turned to look at him instead.

"And you seriously think we can stop them? Bella is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the Death Eaters."

"Sure we can, because Remus is our friend, our brother." James added, knowing exactly what being brothers meant to Sirius, Sirius would do almost anything for his brother.

"What if we can't?" Sirius' eyes begged James to give him an answer that he could hold onto.

"Sirius, are you doubting the Marauders' abillity to protect their own?" James answered with a smirk.

"James is right, Si." Remus agreed using Sirius' nickname for the first time. "We fooled the teachers into believing we were serial killers within two months of schooling, we've protected ourselves from numbers of Slytherins, from first year all the way to graduating seventh years, and that isn't even all we've done." Remus smiled and messed with Sirius' hair causing the other to jerk away with a small smile on his face.

"and besides what idiot would mess with someone who was friends with the heirs to the two most respected families in the whole wizarding world?" Peter added smiling in such a way that made his sincerity obvious.

Sirius looked away from them again before smiling. "I guess you're right."

"Of course we're right. And I'd better not find out about you considering anything like that ever again, because we'll always be there for each other. No matter what."