For the QLFC S8 R11, playing as a reserve Beater 2 for the Cannons

Prompts: [object] Invitation, [dialogue] "This isn't a game"

On the morning of Lily Evans' last year at Hogwarts, her peaceful breakfast is broken by the sound of the doors of the Great Hall slamming open. She looks up to see Sirius Black fly in on a broom, scattering what seems to be scraps of paper onto the tables and floors as he cackles maniacally. The bits of paper land in pudding, eggs, jam, juice—everywhere. Lily ducks to avoid being nailed in the head with one.

The first years take the brunt of the cascade, yelping as they're pelted in the face with paper. Some of the professors stand up, red-faced, bellowing, "Black! Get back here!"

Sirius is long gone, though, taking advantage of the confusion to make a quick escape. Most of the seventh years ignore the yelling and continue eating. They're far too used to the commotion that comes with living with the Marauders. From across the hall, Lily sees Dumbledore continue eating a bowl of porridge with not one, not two, but three pieces of paper swimming in it.

"Can't say we didn't expect this, can we?" Alice says on her left. She looks mournfully at her goblet of pumpkin juice before pushing it aside.

"Unfortunately," Lily sighs. "Although I'd hoped James being promoted to Head Boy might tamp down the urges a little."

The two of them squint suspiciously at Remus, who has miraculously escaped the barrage unharmed. Remus winks at them.

"Aha!" Alice says, triumphantly extricating a piece of paper from her robes. Lily leans over her shoulder.

"Flip it over. What does it say?" Lily asks.

Together, they peer at it, but there's only one line of text. It reads: The Marauders invite all the students and staff at Hogwarts to partake in a year of festivities.

"Oh no," Alice moans in dismay. "A full year? Studying for our N.E.W.T.s is going to be hell."

They're momentarily distracted by a disheveled figure rushing into the hall. Peter slides in across Remus, out of breath, and after a moment, James appears as well. His eyes light up at the sight of Lily, and he drops a kiss on her temple before reaching for a plate.

Alice stops him, waving the invitation in his face in warning. "If my grades drop because of you, you'd better watch out, Potter."

James simply laughs and brushes her aside. "If it's you, Alice, I'm sure you're fine."

Sirius doesn't appear by the end of breakfast, which is probably for the best because Lily has never seen their professors so furious. She does see Remus packing away some food in a tin for later, however.

The rest of the day is suspiciously calm, but the word spreads quickly. If the Marauders are planning a year full of pranks, this can only be the calm before the storm.

…

They're proven right when, a week later, the entire hallway leading to the Slytherin dorms is covered with a sort of slimy substance that cements anyone who steps into it to the ground. There's already a few unfortunate Slytherins who have gotten themselves caught, and they glower furiously at James when he passes by snickering.

Severus, who is helping cart people from one end to the other, furiously grabs James' arm. "This isn't a game," he snarls, white-faced.

"What isn't a game?" James says, blinking innocently.

"We all know you and your groupies did this," Severus says coldly. "I wonder what happens if a Head Boy is caught pulling pranks like this and inconveniencing the rest of the student body. Suspended, maybe? Expelled?"

"I'm sure if a Head Boy was ever caught pulling such awful pranks, then he should be suitably punished," James snarks back.

Lily steps out from behind James, and Severus falters at the sight of her. James grimaces. They both look like immature boys who have been caught doing something they shouldn't.

"Let's go, James," is all she says. "We're going to be late for Charms."

But it doesn't stop there. Two months later, all the soap in the washrooms are replaced with frogspawn soap, leading to a day filled with outraged yelling and frogs upon frogs upon frogs escaping out the windows and hallways.

Divination classes are brought to an abrupt halt when all the regular teacups disappear, replaced instead with nose-biting teacups.

During a Ravenclaw quidditch practice set to take place in the evening, the stadium seats are all empty. The reason for that is because just prior to the practice, somebody had spilled what must've been a fortune's worth of stink pellets onto the field. The players are forced to wear masks to try and stave off the smell.

The professors are the target of the Marauder's pranks one night when some of them swallow the hiccough sweets placed unassumingly on their dinner table.

However, although the nightly patrols increase and a hawk's eye is kept on James, Sirius, Remus, and Peter, no concrete evidence arises to incriminate the four. Lily is impressed, despite herself.

"How are you guys doing this?" she asks one day when they're studying in the library.

James simply smiles at her and shakes his head. "I love you, Lily, but a man's gotta keep his secrets, you know?" He puffs out his chest in pride.

Lily huffs at that and kicks him under the table, but she drops the subject anyways.

All the tension comes to a head on their last day of school. Students from all houses wonder what the big event is going to be, but there's radio silence up until the house scores are announced and Dumbledore's speech comes to a close. They all applaud politely, and the food appears on the four long tables for, Lily realizes, the last time for the seventh years.

"Is that really it?" Frank asks dubiously. He examines his mashed potatoes closely before deeming them safe to eat.

"No way," Alice hisses. "I don't know what they're up to, but there's no way they'd pass up the chance to do something huge after all those minor pranks this year."

But the night ends with nothing more than ordinary chatter and gossip and the relieved sighs of students who are finished with exams.

In the morning though, when the students step outside, they're greeted with a Hogwarts Express that's completely decked out in the colours of all four houses at Hogwarts. And it isn't just the outside. The inside benches and curtain and tables have all been decorated within an inch of its life.

It looks cheesy and completely over the top—but wonderful all the same. If this is Lily's last memory of Hogwarts, she's glad it's a good one.

"When did they have time to do all this?" Lily wonders.

Alice looks around in wry amazement as they dump their bags into an empty carriage, shaking her head.

"Love 'em or hate 'em, but they sure do know how to go out with a bang."