A/N: Sorry to disappoint anyone, but there is still no slash yet! I expect it to come soon, though. Anyway, I thought it might be nice to include more of James and Peter for a change. Hope you like this. Please review!

Chapter Five

"NO! Leave them alone!" A loud cry rent through the dark dormitory, pulling Peter awake. He looked over at the bed next to his, and saw James tossing and turning, obviously caught up in a nightmare. "Remus! SIRIUS!" Peter jumped up from his bed, hurrying over to his friend's side. He shook the other boy, trying to wake him up.

"James! James, wake up. Come on, wake up, man," Peter said frantically, shaking the messy-haired boy's shoulders. With a shuddering gasp, James opened his eyes and practically shot up from bed. He calmed slightly when he realized that he was at school, in his bed. James glanced around the room, eyes finally coming to rest on the other two beds in the dormitory. The two empty beds.

"They're really gone, aren't they, Pete?" James whispered, not caring that tears were falling down his cheeks. He felt Peter shift so that he was sitting on the bed in front of him. "The Death Eaters took them, didn't they?"

It had been three days since the attack on Hogsmeade. There had been several injuries, but none of the students had been killed, thanks in part to the actions taken by the four Marauders. Dumbledore had given them all awards for Special Services to the school, as well as one hundred points each for their bravery. Unfortunately, Remus and Sirius weren't there to receive their medals. Just as Dumbledore and the other professors had gotten to the village, the Death Eaters had run – taking Remus and Sirius with them.

"Yeah, they did, James," Peter said sadly. He was struggling to contain his own tears in an effort to be strong for his friend. "But I'm sure they're okay. I mean, if the Death Eaters had wanted to kill Remus and Sirius they would have done it then, right? There must be a reason they were taken. Besides, you know Dumbledore's got people out looking for them; he never lets anything happen to his students."

"I know," James said, looking down at his lap. "But they're our best friends, and they're in danger. I guess I just feel like we should be doing something to help. I can't stand just sitting around, waiting for someone else to save them – or find their bodies."

"Me neither," Peter sighed. "But there really isn't much we can do, is there? I mean, they've already got the Ministry looking. What could we do that they can't?"

James' mood had improved slightly by morning. He and Peter had decided to go to Dumbledore immediately after breakfast. They wanted to know if the Ministry was any closer to finding their friends, and if there was anything they could do to help. James carelessly threw on a pear of jeans and a sweater – school hadn't started back yet, so they were allowed to wear Muggle clothes instead of uniforms. He went down to the common room to wait for Peter to finish his shower. James was relieved to see that it was empty; he was feeling very resentful towards his fellow Gryffindors at the moment. He blamed Sirius' and Remus' kidnapping partially on his housemates – few of them had done anything to help him and his friends.

About ten minutes later, the shorter blonde-haired boy came down the stairs wearing a thick green sweatshirt and a pair of jeans. "Sorry I took so long. I couldn't find my soap, and I didn't want to use Remus' again. Took me forever to find mine."

James nodded as he stood up. Peter had a habit of loosing his things, and Remus often let the other boy borrow his stuff. "S'alright. Ready to go?"

"Yeah," Peter said as he stuffed his wand into his back pocket.

James smiled slightly for what felt like the first time in days. "I wouldn't do that if I were you, Pete," he said as they approached the portrait hole.

"Do what?" Peter asked in confusion.

"Put your wand in your back pocket," James said as he opened the portrait. "A friend of my dad's once told me that he'd seen someone lose part of their arse because they put their wand there."

"Part of their arse?" Peter gasped, eyes wide with shock and a little worry.

"Yeah," James said with a small grimace as they stepped out of the common room. "The guy who told me that was a real nutter, though, so I'm sure you'll be fine." He clapped Peter on the back reassuringly.

Whispers followed the two boys as they entered the Great Hall that morning. James and Peter ignored most of them, and took a seat at the very end of the Gryffindor table, as far away from the other students as they could get. Like James, Peter was still upset with their schoolmates. They ate their breakfast calmly, exchanging a few words, but neither really feeling up to much conversation. However, James heard something in the conversation of the five fourth year boys nearest him that caught his attention.

One of the boys, a skinny brunette with dark green eyes leaned forward to tell his friends, "Well, my dad said that the Death Eaters don't take prisoners. They torture and kill people."

"But they took Black and Lupin," the boy across from him pointed out as he buttered a slice of toast.

"That doesn't mean they're prisoners though, does it?" The first boy responded. "How do we know the attack wasn't just a distraction, a way for You-Know-Who to bring some of his supporters to him without making anyone suspicious of them? I mean we all know Black's in league with Him, so maybe he got Lupin to join up as well. They've probably been spying on us for Him for months – maybe even years," the brunette said with conviction.

The three boys who hadn't spoken yet, one of whom played Quidditch with James and Sirius, nodded in agreement. The blonde looked unsure but said nothing. James glanced at Peter, and saw that the other boy was doing his best to contain his anger. James didn't bother. Before the brown haired boy down the table could say one more word against his friends, James stood up and marched over to the group. Peter quickly followed his friend, intending to offer any support he could.

As they approached the younger boys, James was made even angrier when he realized that Remus had actually saved two of them. Most of the other Gryffindors had noticed James and Peter stalking towards the fourth years, and had turned to see what was going on. Only the boys James intended to 'speak' with had failed to notice them. They did, however, notice when James grabbed the boy who'd been doing most of the talking by the back of his shirt and pulled him out of his seat, turning the smaller boy around to face him. He didn't care that they were in the middle of the very crowded Great Hall. Nor did James care that practically everyone was watching them, and that he was sure to get a detention for this. It didn't matter.

The brunette spluttered indignantly for a moment, before James spoke in a deadly calm voice. "How dare insult my friends like that. They saved your fucking worthless lives," he said, glaring scathingly at the other four boys who were still sitting at the table, shocked that he'd overheard their conversation. "They saved your lives, and yet you still have the nerve to call them Death Eaters?" James released the smaller boy, and turned to the Hall at large. "Sirius and Remus have never done anything to you! They never gave any of you reason to doubt them, and yet you do! You- you bloody stupid COWARDS! They fought the Death Eaters! Unlike the rest of you, my friends stood up to the Death Eaters, and you call them the traitors? How dare you!"

James paused in his tirade as his eyes filled with tears – both out of anger and out of grief for his friends. The entire Hall was silent, as everyone stared at him in shock. James glanced up at the head table, and noticed both Professors Dumbledore and McGonagall looking at him proudly. Peter was standing beside him silently, staring in defiance at the rest of the students. James took a deep breath before continuing.

"You know nothing about them – nothing about any of us, if you think us capable of supporting that monster," he stated, his voice returning to that deadly calm he'd used earlier. "Sirius hates anything to do with the Dark Arts – something the Gryffindors should know," he added, glaring at his housemates. "He disowned his family because he hates the things they believe in! And Remus – what the hell has he ever done to any of you, besides show his kindness? He's never said a thing against any of you, he bends over backwards to help students he doesn't even know – and you still say he's a traitor! You people are – I hate you! ALL of you!" James shouted. Without saying another word to anyone, he turned and stormed out of the Hall.

Much to everyone else's surprise, Peter didn't follow him. He too had something he wanted to say. Taking a tentative step forward, Peter spoke in a nervous but nevertheless determined voice. "You people make me sick. Death Eaters captured Sirius and Remus because not because they're spies, but because they were brave enough to stand up to them. And all any of you can do is accuse them of things they'd never dream of doing. If they die," he said tears coming to his own eyes as well, "if they die, I will hold all of you responsible, because you turned your backs on them when they never did anything to deserve your hatred." With that, Peter turned and followed his friend out of the Hall that was for once, completely silent.

Unnoticed by any of the students, Professor McGonagall turned to Professor Dumbledore. She said in a whisper, "Well. If I didn't agree with you before, Albus, I certainly do now."

A/N: Well! That was certainly hard to write! Just a little heads up - not sure when I'll be able to update any of my stories after this. Exams start this week, and then I'll be busy with summer school, and hopefully a job. I'll still try topost somethingas often as I can, and don't forget - the more reviews I get, the more likely I am to update!