Chapter 1
At seventeen, there was little that Sirius enjoyed more than Astronomy class. Escaping into the world, blanketed by darkness, where his thoughts were shown only to the gentle kiss of the stars. In its shadows he was never taken to task for his brooding countenance, nor was he harassed as to where the depths of his mind were straying. In the night, he was free to think; in the night, he was free to be.
Turning to his left, he glanced at his best friend, James Potter. James had his telescope fixed to the heavens, but his eyes obviously trained to the earth. Lily Evans stood far enough away that James was conspicuous in his attention to her, but as she had trained her eyes on him, as well, the fault seemed to be overlooked by the professor. For some inexplicable reason, they had been granted an indulgence by the professors of Hogwarts for their behavior. The professors tended to be harsh when chastising students for this same mooning. However, a gentle clearing of the throat from their Astronomy Professor sent Lily and James back to their studies.
Looking on his right-hand side, Sirius saw that Remus Lupin was missing, and that Remus' telescope remained covered and unused. Glancing at the moon left little doubt in his mind as to the reason why his friend was not there this evening. Slightly chuckling at the thought, Sirius mused that the ghosts inhabiting the Shrieking Shack would be heard tonight. Tomorrow would bring a fresh round of gossip from the local Hogsmeade's villagers as to the varied, ghastly haunting that occurred that night.
"Escape," Sirius sighed. Ignoring the questioning look of his third companion and friend, Peter Pettigrew, Sirius turned his body, and his attention, to the task at hand. Tonight he would be free; tonight he would set his own rules; tonight the Marauders would roam.
As the Professor signaled the end of the class, James placed a hand on Sirius' shoulder. "I see that Moony is missing tonight, Padfoot, my pal. Shall we keep him company?"
"Take care of your girl and grab the cloak," Sirius chuckled. Amused at how easily his mind and James' seemed to mesh, he threw an arm around James' neck, pulled him in to his chest, and rustled his hair. "It is nearly midnight. Moony deserves some companionship, wouldn't you say? I will meet you by the fire at say two o'clock"
"Hey…hey guys! What's going on? Where are we going? Did you see Remus was gone? Are we doing it to…?" Peter was interrupted by James grapping his collar and pulling him in closer.
"Are you out of your mind? Keep yourself calm. Of course the Marauders are roaming tonight," James hissed. "But unless you plan on letting the entire class know, I suggest you calm yourself down." James and Sirius exchanged amused glances. "Hey, Wormtail, why don't you work on procuring food for the hungry? We'll study at say two?"
As Peter scampered off to do as James had asked, the remaining two young men doubled over in laughter at his back. "You know," Sirius chuckled, "he is an amusing person. Do you think he realizes how funny he is or is it accidental?"
"Are you joking?" Sirius gasped. "Wormtail would rather die than humiliate himself! I often wonder why he was placed in Gryffindor. He should have been a snake."
At that moment, Lily strutted over to the laughing young men. Placing a casually graceful hand on her hip, she cocked her body to the side and watched James and Sirius with amusement sparkling in her eyes. Taking James' arm with her right hand and Sirius' arm with her left, she steered them toward the exit. "Are you picking on Pettigrew?" Lily's voice though serious, held a dry, amused laugh. "As his friends, you should be looking out for him. Instead, you two laugh behind his back…"
James stopped her with a kiss. "Aaww, come off, Lil. We're only having a little fun. Besides, Pettigrew knows he can count on us. He just makes us laugh is all."
"Yeah," chimed in Sirius. "He's like our funny bone. One little nudge, and we're doubled over for days." James and Sirius started rolling with laughter again. Lily clucked her tongue in distaste, but wisely held her thoughts on the matter. At that moment, a rather well-endowed Huffelpuff walked past, winking at Sirius. "Hey, Lucy," Sirius called after her, "Wanna help me study on Saturday?"
Licking her lips and looking him over, Lucy flipped her hair back, "Sure, but this time we are going to study." Lucy sauntered away causing both boys to follow her with their eyes.
"Ouch, that hurts, Lily," James yelped. As Lily now held an ear from each of the boys between two fingers it was plain to anyone who watched what was causing their discomfort.
"It serves you right, James. Last time I looked those eyes belonged to me. Keep them in your head," She planted a light kiss on James' lips and then rounded on Sirius. "As for you, always moaning and whining over why no one understands you. Stop looking for a quick roll, and maybe some woman will actually pay attention. Them perhaps you'll stop telling us how tragic your life is."
At the entrance of Gryffindor Tower, James pulled Lily into a long lingering kiss. "And that's why I love you, Babe. You keep our morals in line. Without you we'd still be hopeless pieces of scum, picking on the weak, stealing candy from … Hey that hurts." Lily's elbow had dug into James' stomach. Sirius doubled over in laughter had now actually fallen onto the floor to roll around laughing.
The lady in the portrait clucked and glared down her nose disapprovingly at the boys. "Are you going to give me the password? Or am I going to be subjected to more of this foolishness?"
Straightening, Sirius flashed his smile and tilted his head at the portrait, his jet black hair indolently covering one eye. "Please forgive us, my lady. We would never seek to inconvenience you. The password is bulbotuber pus." With a flourish he bowed low to the ground, causing a ripple of laughter from the portrait. As the picture slowly swung open, shaking with mirth, the three teenagers climbed inside.
The common room seemed bright and cheerful after the chill of the autumn night. School had been in session for only a week, but the temperature left no doubt in anyone's mind that the winter was fast approaching. Students still lounged about working on projects to be completed before the morning classes, but Sirius drifted instead to the window to gaze into the night. Homework was a priority for all the seventh years as they would be taking their NEWTS this year, but Sirius rarely worried about his school work. He had a keen and cunning mind that absorbed most of the lectures while the teachers spoke. He was also a very powerful wizard for his age; in fact the only one who could hold a candle to Sirius' talent was his best friend James.
After a quick glance showed James mussing his hair at Lily's side, Sirius climbed the stairs to his room. Lily was fast becoming the sister that he had never had, but her words had struck a blow. She was muggle born, and couldn't understand the loathing he felt at being a pureblood. No one understood him. James was a pureblood as well, but he only had four or five untainted generations in his family. Sirius could stretch his family tree back for hundreds of generations, all evil. Dark magic tied to the Black's blood line had insured that there would always be power in their offspring. It was a great power that was never dimmed by a muggle taint. He was the heir of the family, whether he had cast off his family and left their home or not. His parents preferred his younger brother, but power and ability said more than a charred name on a tapestry. He was the heir. The heir of darkness and evil. No one could understand that burden on his soul.
He flinched at the ungrateful thought towards James. His best friend tried to understand, but James was proud of his lineage. After the Potters had taken him under their wing, Sirius could understand why. Mr. and Mrs. Potter were strict, but loving parents. James was their little boy, and they had no qualms about showing the world how much they cared. After learning that Sirius had run away from home, the Potters insisted that he come to live with them. They accepted Sirius in a way his parents never had, as a son. The Potters were a pureblooded family, but they did not care one way or the other about a person's familial background. Lucky for Sirius, they judged a person by that person's actions, and nothing else. They were as accepting of Sirius' dark magic family as they were of Lily's muggle heritage.
As the door to the dorm opened, Sirius straightened and became nonchalant once more. James sauntered through, smirking at his best friend. Sirius tossed his pillow straight at James' head. "You know, one of these days she will come to her senses and realize that I am the one she's really interested in. Then you, my friend, will be left to watch me smirk and strut all over the dorm." Sirius ducked as the pillow came flying back at him.
"In your dreams, Padfoot." James quipped. "I fear that she is too far under my spell to ever give you a glance," with a heavy sigh, James plopped on the bed. "Seriously though, I think I'm in love with her. What am I going to do?"
Sirius chuckled and sat across the room on his own bed. "Seriously, though," mocked Sirius, "I think you've always been in love with her. Don't think about it. It'll give you a headache. Just enjoy what you have and let life happen. She loves you too, in case you haven't asked her."
The clock began to chime two o'clock. James reached in his trunk and drew out the invisibility cloak. Throwing it over themselves, the two boys slipped out of the room. As they quietly crossed the common room, small rustles were heard as the remaining students slumped farther into their studies. The fat lady's portrait slowly swung inside showing a heavily burdened Peter. James and Sirius placed the food procured from the kitchens into a bag on James' back, as Peter slipped under the cloak. The three boys began their descent out of the castle from the Gryffindor tower.
The doors to the castle swung wide as the three approached, allowing a glimmer of moonlight to streak the hall behind them. Slowly the doors closed. Looking at one another's faces, the three melted into their new forms. Years of clandestine studying had allowed the three young men to perform a feat that few fully developed wizards were able to do, they were Animagi, shape shifters who could turn into animals at will. James and Sirius had always been extremely proficient in magic, but Peter had learned to make this change only by channeling the energy of his two friends. For months James or Sirius had to cast a spell to force Peter's body into that of the small rat he became. Now they were as one in their movements. Sirius, a very large and aggressive looking dog, took the cloak gently with his teeth and placed it behind the bushes guarding the entrance to the castle.
With a snuffle in his direction, the rat jumped onto the large, black body of the dog. Looking to the left, they saw the silver stag rear onto his hind feet and paw at the air. Together the dog and the stag ran through the grounds surrounding the castle. Their destination was a deceptively simple willow that lay near the edge of the grounds. Upon arriving, Peter slipped off of Sirius' back and scuttled toward the base of the tree. The closer he approached, the more the wind seemed to rustle through the branches of the willow. The willow began to sway as if in hurricane force winds, and the braches began punching the animals' directions. The rat slipped under the base and appeared to rise on its hind legs. A long sliding motion was heard, and the tree rustled to a stop. The other animals slipped under the branches and disappeared from view.