Sweet Misery

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The next few days passed uneventfully till September twenty-ninth, which happened to be Sirius' and Gwynn's thirteenth birthday. Lily, Gwynn, and Lauren accompanied the guys down to the Quidditch pitch to watch them and the rest of the team practice. Remus, James, and Sirius had all made the team when the year began. James and Sirius both became chasers, while Remus took over the position of seeker. Gwynn had also tried out, but had lost to the seventh year, Tristan Henson.

When they reached the pitch, the rest of the team hadn't arrived yet. James, Remus, and Sirius went to go get changed into their uniforms, while the others walked up to the bleachers to take a seat.

Remus was the first out and flew across the field, landing in the bleachers next to Gwynn. He gave her a peck on the cheek.

"Happy birthday," he said.

"Thank you," replied Gwynn.

"I got you something, I hope you like it." He reached into his pocket.

She was going to say, "You didn't have to," but stopped halfway through the sentence when she saw the necklace he pulled out. It was a glass dragon-shaped pendant, filled with what seemed like scarlet flames, on a gold chain.

"I take it you like it," he said, grinning.

"It's beautiful," she said.

Remus moved behind her and slipped it around her neck. Gwynn lifted up her hair as he fastened it.

"It's warm..." she said lifting the pendant to get a better look at it.

"Well," Remus started, returning to his seat next to her, "that's because inside that pendant are the flames of an Antipodean Opaleye. It's said to be the most beautiful dragon, but I don't think that its beauty can ever compare to yours."

"You are so sweet. I love you." She leaned over and kissed him.

"Lupin, stop snogging your girlfriend and get your arse out here!" shouted the team captain and star beater, Cath Cayncsclis.

Gwynn and Remus parted. He grabbed his broom and flew out to where the rest of the team was.

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"You're dating Remus?" Lily asked once he was out of earshot.

"Yup," Gwynn sighed. "Isn't he the sweetest?"

"Wow," stated Lauren. "I didn't see this coming. You know, for a seer, I really suck."

"Oh no you don't," replied Lily and Gwynn.

"I just kept the links out of your reach," said Gwynn.

"Oh you suck!" pouted Lauren.

"I don't care if you want to practice your abilities, when I have something private, I'll keep it private."

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Remus landed down on the field next to James and Sirius, grinning widely. Cath began to talk to the team about her strategy for their next game against Ravenclaw.

"You've got guts man," whispered James out of the corner of his mouth.

"Hmm?" Remus asked, looking forward as if he was listening to Cath.

"Sir is going to kill you when he finds out."

"So let him find out."

"Let who find out what?" Sirius asked, joining the conversation.

"No one, nothing," replied James, before Remus could say anything.

"Are you guys up for it?" Cath said to her less than invigorated team.

"Yeah," most replied with the exception of the other beater who shouted, "Fo' shizzle and a half!"

"Right, Riley." Cath said, rolling her eyes. "Now I want everyone up in the air practicing the moves I just discussed."

"I guess we should have been paying attention," said Remus, before kicking off. When everyone was in the air and taking their normal warm up lap around the stadium, Sirius caught up with Remus.

"So who is it, Lily or Lauren?" Sirius asked.

"What?" Remus said.

"Your girlfriend."

"Ah. She's the best… With her great personality, her wonderful laugh, that stunning smile, her incredible silver eyes…"

Something triggered in Sirius' mind, neither Lauren nor Lily had silver eyes, but Gwynn did. He split up from Remus when Cath told them to take their places. Cath landed next to the box that held the Quidditch balls and released the bludgers and snitch, and tossed the quaffle to James. While practicing the reverse pass, James tossed the quaffle over his shoulder to Sirius. Sirius caught it, but instead of passing it to Tristan, he whipped it at a passing Remus. The quaffle hit the tail of Remus's broom sending him off course for a moment. Sirius quickly retrieved the quaffle and took another shot at Remus, this time aiming for the head. Remus just barely dodged it.

"Black, what are you doing?" Cath shouted, knocking a bludger away from her.

"Target practice!" he yelled back, hitting Remus's shoulder.

"Quick screwing around and get back to practicing!" Sirius didn't listen and continued his pursuit of Remus, who was speeding down the Quidditch pitch varying his path to give Sirius a harder target.

"Sirius, stop!" Gwynn shouted, jumping up from her seat in the stands. Sirius didn't seem to hear her. Gwynn ran down from the stands and out on to the field. "Sirius! Leave him alone!" She looked around for a broom to go up and stop him and saw that some of the team members had landed to avoid being hit by Sirius. She ran over and took a broom from one of them telling them she'd return it. She flew directly towards Remus. He had just been hit again. As Sirius geared up for another shot; Gwynn stopped directly in his intended path.

"Sirius, stop," she said.

"Move Gwynn," he growled. "Let me knock him off his broom."

"You'll have to knock me off my broom first! You dare hurt him, and I swear you will regret the day you ever, EVER thought you could control my dating life."

Sirius lowered the quaffle and dropped it. Cath caught it and declared that practice was over. Gwynn landed and handed the broom over to the guy she had borrowed it from.

After Remus had changed out of his uniform and left the locker room, Gwynn hugged him and said, "I'm sorry about him…" She felt Remus flinch. She pulled back, "What is it?"

"I think it's a bruise," Remus replied.

"Sirius is so dead…"

"Oh they're not that bad."

"Let me see." Gwynn reached for Remus, but he jumped away, but Gwynn managed to get his robes.

"I'm fine!" Remus shouted dodging Gwynn.

"Take off your sweater!" Gwynn jumped on to his back as he tried to run away and started to pull up his sweater. Remus reached back and started to tickle Gwynn. She shrieked and dropped down to the ground. She burst into laughter as Remus continued to tickle her.

"Stop!" she cried through her laughter.

"Will you let me be on the bruise thing?" Remus asked.

"Yes! Just st-o-op!"

Remus stopped and stood up letting her catch her breath. She sat up and Remus grabbed his robes.

"You are cruel," she said.

"And you're so cute when you laugh," replied Remus, tapping her nose. She smiled and got off the ground, dusting herself off.

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The next day, on their way to class, Lily's bag ripped, spilling her books, parchment, quills, and ink over the corridor. Lily told everyone to get to class and started to clean up everything. Peter, who had fallen behind the rest of the group, stopped to help. Once everything was cleaned up and placed back into Lily's newly repaired bag, the bell rang.

"Come on Peter!" Lily said, grabbing Peter's hand and practically dragging him to class.

"L-lily, sl-slow d-down!" Peter said.

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At the end of that week, Voldemort called all his animagus back to report what they had found. Most replied that they had come up with nothing, not knowing who could possibly be this 'red flower'. One, who had been on the original deciphering team, proudly announced he knew who it was and had a perfect person to have be a spy.

"Really, who?" Voldemort asked.

"A girl with red hair named Lily Evans, My Lord," he replied. "She fits nicely."

"Are you positive?"

"Yes, My Lord. It has to be her."

"What about the 'stag'?"

"Nothing My Lord, but if we can get rid of this Lily girl, you won't have to worry about the stag at all."

"And this 'spy'?"

"He'll be so frightened of dying, he'll have no choice but to join us."

There was a long pause from Voldemort. The Deatheater gulped fearing the dark lord wouldn't agree with his idea and torture him.

"Bring him to me," Voldemort said. The Deatheater nodded and left.

He returned a day later with a boy who had been knocked out. He set the limp boy down on the ground and revived him when Voldemort arrived. The boy grabbed his head and groaned in pain, but gasped when he saw his surroundings. He shook with terror as he looked around at the cloaked figures.

"What is your name boy?" Voldemort hissed, the flames of the fire behind him casting a red glare into his eyes. Peter sat frozen, unable to find his voice. "WELL?!"

"P-P-P-Peter P-P-Pet-t-t-tigrew." He stuttered.

"Well, Pettigrew, I have a job for you." Voldemort began to pace around Peter. "No objecting now… It's either helping me, or suffering till I feel like killing you." Peter's eyes widened as they followed Voldemort. "I'm assuming you are going to help us, am I correct?" Voldemort stopped and turned to Peter, who nodded feverishly. "Good. Your job is to be our eye in Hogwarts. I can't keep my animagus there forever. But there is only one person I need you to keep a close eye on. Lily Evans. You know her, don't you?"

"Y-yes, sir," stammered Peter, finding his voice.

"You will refer to me as Lord Voldemort or My Lord! Nothing else you insolent brat!"

"Y-yes M-my L-lord."

"Now, at the end of every month, you will return here with information about her, her friends, any thing relating to her. It is vital that you come every month. If you do well, I may just let you join my following. Now, Clarkson will take you back to Hogwarts. Oh, and Pettigrew, next time you speak with me, do not use that ridiculous stutter!" Peter nodded again. Clarkson grabbed Peter's arm and apparated to just outside of Hogwarts.

"Don't fail Lord Voldemort," Clarkson growled shoving Peter into the gate of Hogwarts.

"I won't sir," replied Peter. Clarkson disapparated and Peter ran up to the castle.

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Later that night, Sirius, James, and Peter were sitting around the fire working on homework, while Lily and Lauren were down in the library doing research for an Arithmancy paper. Sirius broke his quill, causing James and Peter to look up from their books.

"UGH!" Sirius shouted, throwing the broken quill into the fire.

"Still not okay about Gwynn and Remus, I take it?" James said.

"Sirius, you need to let it go," Peter said, shocking James and Sirius.

"Did you just get through a sentence with out stuttering?" asked Sirius.

"Wh-what? D-did I?"

"Spoke too soon…"replied James. "But Peter's right, Sir, you need to let it go."

"I just wish there was a way for me to keep an eye on them…" said Sirius. "I don't trust them on these nights."

"Why don't you do something about it then?" suggested James.

"Yes! That's a great idea! To the library!"

James and Peter blinked. Sirius never wanted to go to the library. By the time they realized that he was serious (absolutely no pun intended, that pun is way overdone), he was half way out of the common room. They shut their books and ran after him. When they reached the library, they found Sirius searching through the Transfiguration section.

"Do you have any idea what you're looking for?" James asked following Sirius down the stacks.

"Yes, a book," replied Sirius.

"O-on wh-what-t?" stammered Peter.

"Ani… ani-something," said Sirius. "It's what Professor McGonagall is."

"Animagi?" suggested James.

"Yeah, that's it."

"And you want to try to become one just to keep an eye on Gwynn?"

"That's right."

"D-do y-you know h-how h-hard it is t-to b-become on-ne?"

"Oh it can't be that hard."

James and Peter shook their heads as Sirius found a book and began to read up on animagi. After completing his research, he left for the common room with Peter and James close behind him.

"What we need now is a way to get into the Restricted Section," Sirius said. "We can't go during the day, the librarian will catch us, and at night, Filch will."

"Well, I have an invisibility cloak," said James.

"Since when?" asked Sirius.

"Since the summer," replied James, in an off-handed way.

"Let's use it then!"

"On-ne p-problem," said Peter.

"What?" James and Sirius said grabbing James's cloak.

"C-can't t-take th-the b-book out-t of th-the lib-brary," he replied.

"That's what duplication charms are for, Peter," Sirius said, throwing the cloak over himself. The door to the dormitory opened then closed.

"He knows the duplication charm? He ditched that day…" stated James.

"Y-you kn-know th-this m-makes him th-the s-smartest," said Peter.

"I want to cry, but there are no where near enough tears…"

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A/n: I saw STOMP yesterday. 'Tis cool.

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