Before Sirius, Remus, and the twins could enact any sort of plan, Ginny came running down the stairs from the girls' dormitory.

"Fred! George! Have either of you seen my potions book?" she asked breathlessly as she reached the bottom of the steps. "I have to write an essay that's at least two scrolls long, and it's due tomorrow."

"Procrastinating again, are you?" said George.

"I'm soproud," Fred added.

Remus raised his eyebrows. "Relative of yours?" he asked.

"Unfortunately," sighed Fred. "It's the hair, isn't it?"

"That always gives us away," added George.

"Who are they?" Ginny wondered.

"I'm sorry, how terribly rude of us," apologized Remus. "I'm Remus Lupin," he introduced himself, shaking her hand.

"I'm Ginny," she replied.

"Sirius Black, at your service," Sirius added. "It's a pleasure to meet you." He took her hand, but instead of shaking it like Remus had, he kissed it.

Ginny blushed slightly, and Fred and George became suddenly defensive.

"Watch it, mate," warned Fred.

"She's our sister, you know," George added.

"Of course," said Sirius, winking at Ginny. Fred and George chose to ignore him.

"What were we discussing before?" George wondered. "Oh yes, getting you two back to your proper time."

"Already?" Sirius asked in disappointment. "Isn't there time for just a little bit of mischief?"

"No," George said firmly.

"Why not?" wondered Fred. "Come on, George. Mischief is our middle name."

George hesitated. "Well-"

"Are you sure none of you have seen my potions book?" Ginny interrupted. "Snape will kill me if I don't turn in this essay on time."

The name caught the attention of Sirius and Remus. "Snape?" repeated Sirius. "Greasy-haired, creepy little Snivellus?"

"The one and only," Fred and George chorused.

"Git," Ginny muttered.

"He's a professor now?" said Remus. "Huh."

Sirius was deep in thought. "Okay," he said finally, "I think I have an idea..."

"So, how long have you two been, er, dating?" Harry asked uncomfortably.

Lily and James had stopped what they were doing as soon as they were aware of Harry's presence, and moved embarrassedly to opposite ends of the sofa.

"A while," Lily replied. "I was going out with Sirius, but-"

"Then she realized that I was far better-looking," James joked.

Lily smiled. "Actually, I think it was your modesty that first attracted me," she replied, making James grin.

Harry felt his heart glow at their obvious affection for each other. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad to be stuck in the past for a little while longer- at least he would finally have some real memories of his parents. Harry's thoughts were interrupted as a familiar red-haired figure burst into the common room.

"Harry!" Ron exclaimed.

"Back from the hospital wing already?" said Harry.

"Yeah, the nurse just called me a pansy and told me to grow a spine," Ron admitted. "Then she made me leave."

"Do you think you need to lie down?" Lily asked in concern.

"I'll be fine," Ron said gruffly. "It's no big deal, really."

"You should at least sit," Lily suggested.

"If you insist." Ron slowly made his way to the armchair next to the fire, apparently still unsteady from his recent bout with unconsciousness. "When do you think we'll be able to get back?" he asked, addressing no one in particular.

"Well, Hermione's in the library right now doing research," Harry explained, "and I'm sure Dumbledore's got something up his sleeve."

"Sirius and Remus are probably working on it too," James suggested.

"Where are they?" wondered Ron.

"In the future," said James.

"With Fred and George," Harry added.

Ron laughed. "Oh yeah, I'm sure they're getting loads done," he said sarcastically. "What are you supposed to be doing, Harry?"

Harry shrugged. "I'm supposed to stay here and not leave no matter what."

"We're his baby-sitters," Lily joked.

Harry frowned. "I just want to do something," he admitted.

James looked thoughtful for a moment, then removed a small golden ball from his pocket. "Do you like Quidditch, Harry?"

Ginny's eyes lit up as Sirius explained his plan. "That's brilliant!" she exclaimed.

"I don't like it," said George.

"We could get expelled," added Fred.

Ginny gave them both a withering look. "When have you ever worried about being expelled?"

"It's alright, Ginny," said Sirius. "They don't have to come. In fact, it might be more fun without them..."

"What?" said George.

"We're nothing if not fun," Fred added.

"Really?" Sirius wondered. "Then this will be an excellent chance to prove it."

"That sounds like a challenge, George."

"I do believe it is, Fred."

"Well?"

"I'm in if you are."

Fred and George grinned and turned back to Sirius. "What are we waiting for?"

All five of them rushed out of Gryffindor Tower.

Updated Author's Note (3/25/05): Yes, it is I, the prodigal writer! So I'm fixing some of the weird formatting stuff (like the random zeroes in the middle of the story), and then I'll start the next chapter as soon as possible. Hey, better late (make that really, really, really late) than never! -Luna