WOW this is the longest chapter I've ever written for a story but its well worth the time. I decided to conclude the Marauder's Prank all in one chapter even though this really could have been split into two. I didn't want to keep anyone in suspense haha. Thanks to all my reviews, and I promise some more interaction between the two. It's just taking a while because I want it to be somewhat realistic. Enjoy!
To Love a Marauder
Hermione made herself comfortable once again on the comfy library chair across from Sirius; a lot more awake then she was the last time they were here. She let her eyes linger on the concentrating figure of Sirius Black as he leafed through the book in front of him trying to find where he had left off. He stopped at a page and placed his finger down onto the yellowing parchment.
"Well, I found where I left off talking to you, but I have no idea where you stopped listening," he stated with a sly grin. Hermione smiled sheepishly, feeling embarrassed she had dozed on his story telling.
"The last thing I remember is you telling the others about the 'Master Plan' and giving them orders," she recollected thoughtfully, scrunching her nose. Sirius glanced back down at the book, realizing she hadn't missed anything dreadfully important.
"That's pretty much where I stopped, so I guess I'll continue from where I finished," he told her. Leaning back comfortably on the chair, Sirius let his silky voice wash over Hermione as he continued his tale….
The following day, Sirius was overcome with tingling excitement. The plan was going along smoothly without a hitch so far. Moony and Wormtail had successfully captured an abundance of Gryffindor banners from the storage closet under the protection of the Invisibility Cloak, and had stowed them away in the dormitory.
"Are these enough?" Remus had asked Sirius when he and Peter returned from their escapade. The sandy-haired boy emptied the contents in his arms onto the bed. A few dozen miniature Gryffindor flags bounced on the spring mattress at impact. Sirius picked up the tiny flag and scrutinized it, cocking an eyebrow.
"Um…Moony?" he asked, dangling the flag at eyelevel. "Aren't these a little small?"
The werewolf looked at his best friend with an incredulous stare. Was Sirius really that daft?
"Have you lost a few brain cells, Padfoot?" James ,catching part of the two's exchange asked as he emerged from the bathroom. He bounded over to Sirius with droplets of water dripping down his forehead.
"No, why?" Sirius questioned, furrowing his brow. James sighed loudly and grabbed his wand that was resting on the night stand.
"Engorio," he said, directing his wand at the flag that mingled at the end of Sirius' fingertips. Instantly, the tiny flag increased a hundred fold, draping over Padfoot, easily being three times his size.
"Bloody hell! These are huge!" Sirius exclaimed in awe, pulling the silk banner off of himself. Remus smiled smugly and pointed to the lot of them on the bed.
"And there's about 30 more of them," he commented, feeling proud of his ingenious way to shrink them to carry as many as possible back to the dorm. Peter, who had hung back by the door, finally had found his courage to join the circle of boys. When he approached, Sirius smiled broadly and clapped the pudgy boy on his back.
"Well done, well done mates, these will be perfect!" he congratulated them gleefully. He then turned to James, feeling slightly relaxed knowing Phase 1 of the mission was completed.
"Alright, Prongs. Now all we have to do is head down to Hogsmeade during break and we're home free," he reminded the jet black haired boy. James nodded and picked up the silvery Invisibility Cloak that was resting on the bed and shoved it into his school uniform hastily.
"Might as well bring it with us so we don't have to stop by at the dorm later to waste time," he figured, seeing the boys nod in agreement.
"Excellent thinking!" Sirius complimented his friend's foresight.
He was feeling downright giddy about now; knowing it was his turn to shine this time. Sirius always seemed to be second to the infallible James Potter, not that he minded, it was just that he was glad it was finally his turn for a moment of shining glory. He grinned at the thought.
"Oh Remus, don't forget to talk to Lily about helping us, and also stopping in the library for that book," Sirius addressed the light eyed boy. Remus nodded and pointed to the small pile of banners.
"I'll remember, don't you worry Padfoot. I just hope you remember to hide those," he warned his friend, smirking lightly. Sirius' mouth formed an 'O' and he quickly opened his trunk and tossed the items on the bed into it. After sealing it shut and placing a locking spell on it, he stood up ready to leave.
"Shall we?" James asked the others, extending his elbow out. Sirius linked his arm with James' and offered his free one to Remus. Moony took it and latched his other onto Peter and the four made there way out of the dormitory and to the Great Hall.
By midday, Sirius felt like he was floating on Cloud Nine; he simply could not believe his luck. Moony had just finished telling him that he had convinced Lily, after much pleading and brown nosing, to help them out. She was still hesitant about it but Remus assured her it was all in good fun and that no one would be hurt during the prank. She seemed to be more accepting at this thought. Lily even helped Remus search the library for the perfect book on Illusions, which to Sirius' content, they found fairly quickly. The last things that needed to be retrieved now were the fireworks from Zonko's. Sirius and James were going to embark on this conquest as soon as Trewlaney was done ranting about how James was destined to become a famous Wizard Rock singer.
"Eight of your songs will go to number 1, dear boy!" the bug-eyed Divination teacher predicted to James, wringing his hands furiously. James, sitting very stiff-like next to Sirius at one of the small tables fought hard to keep from rolling his eyes as the middle aged teacher persisted on the subject,
"I see you making more galleons than the Minister of Magic himself! You will be ravished with the most expensive items, the most beautiful women, and everything your heart desires!" she burst out, ignoring the small giggles that chorused around her. Trewlaney, noticing James wasn't too interested in her prediction, sauntered off to predict someone elses' admirable future. Sirius on the other hand, completely lost control of himself as he began to snicker loudly. James kicked him from under the table, and saw Sirius wince. However, the blow wasn't enough to stop his friend's chortling as he grasped the table to catch his breath.
"And what do you think is so funny? I'm the one that's going to be rich and famous you idiot!" James said angrily, feeling an embarrassed blush rise to his cheeks. Sirius shook his head, smiling madly.
"Oh nothing, Jamesy. I think it's great that you're going to have a bunch of hit songs, "My Wand is Bigger than Yours" being one of them," Sirius remarked, slapping his hand on his knee in response to his own joke. James scowled and crossed his arms over his chest feeling insulted.
"You're lucky I don't refuse to let you use the Cloak to go to Hogsmeade," James threatened, smiling to himself. Sirius' glee disappeared in a flash as his face bore a look of concern and fear.
"You wouldn't dare! We're in on this prank together!" he searched his friends' eyes, hoping to see a faint spark of joking. James was kidding of course, he wanted this prank to happen as well, it just amused him to see Sirius buttons pressed.
"Calm down, mate. I'm just playing with you," James told his friend, seeing Sirius' face loose with a wave of relieve.
"Thank the gods," Sirius mumbled, looking briefly at his watch to see that class would be over in about thirty seconds.
"No, just thank my adventurous and antsy side of me that wants this as much as you do," James said, hearing Sirius low voiced comment.
"Class is dismissed, children. Remember to analyze your tea leaves tonight! The moon is in the ideal location to receive an accurate reading!" the Professor said over the rush of students that gathered their belongings and darted out of the door. Sirius and James quickly picked up their things and headed out of the Tower, practically running to the Statue where the secret passage was, knowing they were short on time.
"Anyone coming from your direction?" James panted as he put his hands on his knees to catch his breath, while staring down his end of the empty hallway. Sirius, who had his back to his friend, scanned the opposite direction, seeing the last student turn the corner, leaving the hall to the two boys.
"Coast is clear, hurry up and toss the cloak on us!" Sirius directed. James yanked the silver object from under his robes and threw in unceremoniously over himself and his friend. The two approached the statue of the ugly witch and Sirius brandished his wand, tapping it on the head whispering 'Dissendium.' The passage way revealed itself and the boys slipped wordlessly into the darkness, checking over their shoulders once last time to make sure they were undetected.
"We've got to go fast," James said, once they were safely inside. He pulled the cloak off themselves and put it away.
"If we're going to jog this, I need a moment to stretch," Sirius said cockily, as he began performing some sort of calisthenics. James shook his head, looking annoyed at his friend who had begun doing a weak attempt of a lunge.
"If your done limbering yourself up, I think we should get a move on," James sneered half heartedly. Sirius sighed dejectedly and rose up from his bent position.
"Let's hit it."
The males raced down the passage way, first at a fairly steady jogging pace but soon full out sprinting. It had turned into an unsaid contest between the two, noting that James was clearly winning. The boy was not only superb at flying, but quite skilled in running as well, showing a stamina and physical fitness that Sirius had never seen before. The longer haired boy was struggling to keep up, wheezing loudly as they began to approach the Honeydukes cellar.
"Give...me…a sec," Sirius spurt out, stopping in his tracks doubled over in exhaustion. James smiled at the stealthy surrender, jumping up and down to look as if he could do this for hours.
"Oh come on, Padfoot. We're practically there," James whined mockingly, hoping to get a rise out of the gasping boy. Sirius took a deep breath and glared at the little fitness robot bouncing around in front of him.
"Bugger off, will you? I'm sorry I'm not a natural athlete like yourself. Instead of running like yourself, I choose to indulge myself in more….worthwhile activities that involve a partner," Sirius said with a waggle of his eyebrows, knowing damn well that James was very aware of what he was talking about.
"Well I may not be maintaining my physical fitness with midnight romps, but at least I can run for a few minutes without damn near dying," James pointed out. Sirius grasped the cramp in his side as he stood up and walked over to his friend.
"Oh, and at least I'm not fat like you either," James added with a devilish twinkle in his eyes. It was a sure fact that Sirius would probably kill him for making a joke about his weight, even though anyone else could see Sirius was very slim and muscular.
"Fat! Me, fat? Why I've got the body of a---"Padfoot started, but stopped when he witnessed James creep up to the trap door above.
"Shhh, someone's in the cellar," he said quietly, pressing his eye to the wood. After a few moments of silence, he waved his hand over for Sirius to join him, and he pushed the door up. The boys climbed up into the empty cellar, proceeding cautiously.
"There aren't many people in the store this time of the year, so it's going to be hard to come up unnoticed," James explained, pulling out the ever so faithful Invisibility Cloak. Sirius simply nodded, knowing his voice always seemed to be unnaturally loud even when he whispered, hence why he kept quiet.
They creaked open the small bit of floorboard that belonged to Honeydukes, peering around the ground, looking for a sign of feet. With nothing to be seen, they lifted the latch up more so that they could climb out. Once above, the boys stood in the midst of racks and racks of assorted sweets, their wrappers glistening in the bright lighting of the store. Sirius was tempted to grab a bunch of them to save for later but James dragged him away, keeping an eye out for the store manager.
"Hey, I'm hungry!" Sirius complained in a whisper as James pulled him out of the entrance to the store into the sunny sky outside.
"Aren't we here to get something?" James reminded his friend; satisfied when he saw Sirius purse his lips and shake his head.
"Yes, yes, you're right. Let's hurry up and get to Zonko's already," Black said reluctantly. They rushed up the dirt paths to a small, however, jam packed store. In front of Zonko's, the boys removed the cloak seeing no one they knew around. Stepping inside, they were quickly greeted by the loud, excited voice of the store's owner, Mr. Zonko.
"Hello Mr. Potter and Mr. Black! Back again I see?" the short, baldy man clad in purple robes greeted then. Of course he knew their names, how couldn't he? The boys and their other two friends had bought practically every item in the shop at one point or another, making them his most valued customers.
"I'm sorry to seem curt, but we've got to get back up to school soon, and we need to get something specific," Sirius politely told the rambunctious man. Mr. Zonko nodded in understanding, respecting their risk in coming here.
"Of course, gentlemen. What is it you seek?" he asked them as he walked toward the register, the boys tailing behind him.
"We need a large supply of fireworks," James addressed the man. Mr. Zonko nodded at the boys.
"Any specific colors or style?"
"Scarlet and gold would be wonderful, if you have them," Sirius told Mr. Zonko, his eyes roaming over the boxes and boxes of fireworks that took up the wall behind the register. Mr. Zonko spun around and scanned this very wall, finding the row he was looking for.
"It's your lucky day, we happen to have a whole shipment of them. Any particular kind you'd like?" he inquired. Sirius inwardly cheered, ecstatic at the fact that they wouldn't have to Charm the fireworks to be the proper colors, saving them precious time.
"The louder and bigger the better," James took the words right out of Sirius' mouth. Mr. Zonko reached out and grabbed a stack of boxes from the shelf, piling them up high.
"Each box contains a fifteen minute fireworks show in the colors you wanted. These are deafening, gigantic, and exactly what you are looking for," Mr. Zonko's eyes sparkled mischievously. Sirius stared at the dozen boxes of fireworks and did a quick calculation in his head. The fireworks would go on for about three hours if they purchased them all, which seemed like a good time span.
"We'll take them," the boys said in unison, reaching into the pockets to retrieve their sacks of golden galleons.
Mr.Zonko hummed merrily as he rung up the boys purchases, and put their many galleons into the register.
"How are we going to get all this back to school?" Sirius wondered with a worried expression. James groaned and pulled out his wand.
"Honestly, weren't you paying attention to a thing this morning?" he rhetorically asked, casting a spell on the boxes, shrinking them in size. Now, all twelve boxes fit easily into the pockets of their robes.
"Oh right, that bloody shrinking trick," Sirius grumbled.
"We'll see you soon Mr. Zonko. It's time for us to get back now," James told the man as the boys bid farewell to him.
"Goodbye, gentleman! I hope you visit me again on your next visit," the joke shop owner called out as the door closed behind them.
Sirius glanced at his watch again, his heart dropping as he realized they barely had twenty minutes to get back. He merely pointed a finger at his watch and James understood. Tossing the cloak on them both, they dashed to Honeydukes and burst through the door, ignoring any disturbance they may have made. Sirius wrenched the floorboard open and they dropped down in to the cellar. Once in the passageway, they began their full on run back to the castle, Sirius cursing the entire way there.
"Finally!" James exclaimed as they burst through the witch's hump. He waited patiently for Sirius, glancing around to make sure they were accompanied. No one seemed to be wandering for the time being, but it was inevitable that someone was bound to show up.
"Hurry Sirius!" James called into the darkness. A minute later, Sirius emerged from the tunnel, red faced with a lack of oxygen. James helped pull him out as he let Sirius have a second to steady his breathing.
"I know you're tired but we've got to get to the dorms to drop this stuff off before classes start. We've got ten minutes," James regretfully informed his friend. Sirius, lacking the breath to speak, nodded and followed James down the halls.
Their time was dwindling as they entered the dormitories in relief. Even James was now short on breath. He motioned to Sirius to open his trunk that held the banners. After unlocking it, Sirius flung the top open and the two dumped their purchases into it.
"We're homefree," Sirius announced with a grin as he locked his trunk and flopped onto his bed in bliss. They had retrieved everything flawlessly, making him feel as if their job was pretty much done.
"Ugh…Padfoot, we've got potions in a minute," James moaned, heading for the door. Sirius sighed and got up from his overly comfortable bed, giving it a longing glances as he rushed to exit the room. It didn't matter if they were a few minutes late anyway. It's not like that hasn't happened before.
"Wow, I can't believe everything is going so…well," Remus mused. The other boys nodded in agreement. Their pranks always seemed to go wrong somehow, one way or another. Usually they worked, but not without a few obstacles in their way. It was almost as if it was almost necessary to perform this prank, like it was needed.
"I know, it's truly a first for us," Sirius commented, pausing to throw a seductive smirk at a gang of eye batting Ravenclaw girls that passed them, staring dreamily at Sirius.
"Keep it in your pants, will you?" James said, disgusted. In his mind, he thought guys should only have eyes for one girl, and James knew perfectly well whose his was. And to his surprise, she happened to be coming in their direction from the opposite end of the hall.
"Hello Remus, Sirius, Peter, and James," the smooth voice of Lily Potter bade her greeting to them as she approached. Her red hair glistened in the light, and her green eyes sparkled with intensity. It didn't take Trewlaney to figure out why James was attracted so deeply to the beautiful girl. Yet, it was her brilliance and hard to get attitude that really struck a cord with him.
"Good afternoon my sweet," James purred, picking up her soft hand and kissing it lightly. Lily tried to scowl, but failed miserably as she blushed lightly.
"You never give up do you Potter?" she asked, knowing his answer would be the same every time.
"Like hell I won't," he said with a grin, receiving one in return from the girl who plagued his dreams.
"Sorry to break up this lovely reunion here, but we've got work to do," Sirius interrupted. Immediately, Lily and James turned their attention to the grey eyed boy, pushing their small flirtations aside for the moment.
"Do you have everything you need?" Lily asked, shifting her books to her other arm. Chivalrously, James took the books from her arms, earning a smile as a reward for his actions.
"Yup, it's all in the dormitory," Sirius divulged. Lily, surprisingly, appeared to be pleased with this news and turned as she started down the hallway.
"You boys coming?" she called over her shoulder, a few yards away. James scampered after her. Sirius looked at Peter and Remus next to him as a smirk flaunted on his face.
"To the dormitories!" he yelled, and the three took off down the hallway after the other two.
"I think I've finally got it!" an excited squeal from Lily came from one end of the boy's dormitory. Sirius head snapped up from the fireworks he was sorting, while Peter and James paused in muttering spells to the banners that lay before them. Remus, standing next to Lily, was beaming with pride at the girl next to him, the Illusion book under his arm.
"Fantastic, let's see it!" Sirius exclaimed as the three boys dashed over to sit on the bed nearest Remus and Lily. She cleared her throat nervously, and waved her wand in a complicated pattern.
"Illusio Lionessa," she said loudly with a boast of confidence in her voice as she met James' caring eyes. Out of the tip of her wand, a golden mist erupted and before their eyes, a life sized lion crouched on the floor in front them.
"Merlin's beard!" James bellowed as he flung himself toward the headboard of the bed in fear. It took all of Sirius' Gryffindor courage to simply gulp loudly and stay put. Peter bounded off the bed and stood behind Remus, cowering for protection. The lion prowled up and down the dormitory.
"He's not so bad," Lily cooed lovingly at the feline. It seemed the lion had heard her and it jumped onto the nearest bed, throwing its mane back and roaring loudly. By now, all of the Marauders and Lily were huddled in a corner, watching the lion snarl and hiss.
"That's….," Sirius whispered, eyes wide glaring at the beast, "INCREDIBLE!"
He pushed himself out of their close knit circle and danced a little jig.
"Brilliant! Amazing! Oh gods this is going to have everyone absolutely crazy!" Sirius babbled on incessantly. Remus' mouth gaped open with shock.
"You can't be serious, can you Sirius?" he asked, not bothering to joke about his name.
"You bet your fangs I am!" Padfoot yelled, staring s at the lion, simply smitten.
"People will be scared out of their wits if they see it. They might think it's real," Remus argued with a worried frown. Sirius waved his hand, dismissing his words.
"Nonsense, they'll know they are fake when the see a bunch of them running around. Plus, their kind of transparent, so that's a big giveaway," he stated, blatantly correct. The lion before them appeared authentic, but in the light, it was easy to see through the creature.
"I have to conjour more than one?" Lily spoke up, casting an anxious glance at the prank leader.
"You can do it Lily. Just think how much our house will bond together," Sirius told her, knowing she couldn't resist the idea of house unity.
"I mean…I guess I could…," she agreed slowly. Sirius clapped his hands together, getting a loud growl from the lion in response.
"It's settled then. We're set!" he exclaimed. The others gradually began to grin, realizing their plan was near completion. James squeezed Lily's shoulder next to him and leaned it to whisper in her ear, smelling her jasmine scented perfume.
"You might want to get rid of that lion," he purred lightly in her ear, making her cheeks red. With a wave of her wand, the illusion disappeared and she turned to James.
"What, is the James Potter scared of a little lion? I didn't know you were such a pussy," she replied smugly. The others, having heard this, howled with laughter as they made their way back to the scattered banners and firework boxes.
"I-I-I'm not a pussy!" Potter stammered, beat by his own lover.
"No, you're a dick. Now get over here and help us finish these up," Sirius shouted from the other end of the room. James sighed and he pulled Lily along with him to help the others complete the charming of the banners.
That evening...
The lights in the Gryffindor common room were all extinguished except for the flickering flame of the fireplace that shed a dim glow on the room. Surrounding a small circular table, five figures clad in black sat, talking in low whispers.
"Me and Peter are going to take the firework boxes and plant them in these corridors," Sirius spoke in a quiet whisper, pointing at an outlined area on the Marauder's Map that lay unfolded on the table.
"We're going to Charm them so they go off at exactly 3 P.M tomorrow. Now, Remus and James, you can set the banners up here," Sirius directed, his shaggy black hair shined in the light as he pointed to certain areas in the same corridors the fireworks were being placed in.
"You guys can Charm them so that they stay rolled up and invisible all day until 3 P.M. We want everything to go off at once with a big bang," he explained, seeing the boys nod their face. He turned his attention next to the red head sitting beside James.
"You will hold onto the Map, since we know the halls like the back of our hands, we don't need it. All you have to do is keep watch for anyone patrolling to corridors, and if you see someone moving on the map, go find them and distract them. Since you're a Prefect, you have an excuse to be in the halls, but as you know we do not, so we need your lookout while we plant the stuff," he said quietly to her as she nodded.
"What about tomorrow thought? How am I supposed to get out of class to cast the Illusions?" she asked him, her green eyes confused.
"I'm going to send a fake letter to your Muggle Studies teacher via owl saying that she is to let you out of class to go visit Madame Pomfrey at around 2:45. This will give you enough time to cast the five lions before the chaos of the shrieking banners and fireworks go off," Sirius tactically told her.
"We should get going, it's already pretty late," James announced in a hushed voice. Sirius nodded and got up, motioning for everyone to head to the room's exit.
As they stepped outside the painting, James threw the Invisibility Cloak over the four of them, even though it wouldn't cover their feet. It didn't really matter because it was very dark, so he figured as long as the majority of their bodies were covered it was okay. Lily looked right at them, not able to see them, but aware of where they stood. She clutched the Map to her chest and gave them one final fleeting glance as she took off down one of the hallways.
"Here goes nothing," Remus muttered as the foursome, their pockets loaded with shrunken fireworks and banners, took off down one of the halls.
Their 'decorating' was about to begin.
Lily walked hesitantly down one of the corridors that branched from Gryffindor tower, staring at the Map carefully at wand light. She was a nervous wreck, especially since she was new to this whole prank thing. She normally watched the boys perform their work disdainfully, never daring to participate, but now, she was a partner in their crazy scheme.
"Those silly gits are going to get me expelled," she muttered to herself, brining her eyes closer to the map. The halls she knew the boys were in (she saw their quick moving dots) were clear of any teachers so she dragged her eyes to stare at the other corridors nearby. She felt her heart skip a beat as a small dot moved hurriedly along the hall that connected directly with the one James frantically bounded around in. Lily squinted her green eyes and brought her wand closer to the parchment to read the labeled dot.
Lucius Malfoy
"Oh shit!" Lily cursed, realizing the Head Boy would love nothing more than to catch James Potter in the act of breaking rules. Lily spun on the spot and headed back down the hall, sprinting to reach James. As she took a sharp right turn, she decided to stop to check the map. Glancing at it, she saw that sure enough, Lucius was headed right toward James. They'd meet face to face in less than a minute is Lily couldn't get there first. She focused all her energy and speed into barreling down the halls, not bothering to keep her steps quiet.
She was so absorbed in running, she didn't see the black attired male in front of her and she crashed into the person's chest forcefully, falling backward, only to be caught by strong arms.
"Lily, what's wrong?" a confused James Potter asked the girl he held. She sighed in relief and planted her feet onto the ground, speaking in a rushed whisper.
"Lucius is coming down the hall, he should be here any second, you have to leave now!"
"Well, well, well. If it isn't bookworm Evans and Pea Brain Potter. What gives me the pleasure of finding you two out here…so late after curfew? the bleach blonde couldn't keep the delight out of his voice in finding the two Gryffindor. He had approached them from behind, smirking all over the place.
"For your information, Malfoy, I am a Prefect and I am allowed to be out of bed," Lily hissed, recognizing the voice and turning around to meet eyes with the hateful pureblood. James reached for her hand to comfort her, gripping it tightly as she squeezed back.
"Unfortunately you're right about that Mudblood," he spat, smiling as he watched James plunge his hand into his robes to retrieve his wand.
"No, don't James! He's not worth it," Lily stopped him, taking his arm out of his robes. The Malfoy sneered and twirled his wand in one hand.
"You should listen to her, Potter. I guess her brains may be catching up to her radiant beauty," Lucius snarled, licking his lips at the girl. James had it with the older boy, he didn't care if he got expelled. No one but him ever dared hit on Lily Evans, most definitely not Malfoy.
"Stupefy!" a loud voice boomed and a jet of red light fired in the air. Lucius' eyes glazed over as he dropped to the ground in front of James and Lily. A satisfied Sirius Black emerged from the darkness, pocketing his wand. Lupin and Pettigrew were at his side, examining the damage.
"Doesn't that stupid arse know when to shut up?" Sirius growled, purposely stepping on the Malfoy's blonde locks.
"Thanks for that one, Black. I thought I was going to give him the old Avada-Kedavra," James said with a grim smile. Lily gasped and slapped his chest meekly in horror.
"James Potter, if you became a murderer, I'd never date you," she scolded him. To her dismay, the boy beside her smiled widely and grabbed her waist, hoisting her from the floor.
"So, does that mean you'll date me?" he asked her happily. Lily groaned, discovering at last, she could no longer hide her true feelings from the boy.
"If you promise not to hex anyone to death, then yes," she agreed. James let out a whoop and embraced the girl tightly, receiving cat calls and whistles from the on looking Marauders.
"That was lovely, really it was, but we should head back now. Everything's in place and we've got a long day tomorrow," Remus yawned. The group grudgingly began their walk back to Gryffindor tower, Lily and James hand in hand, marking the beginning of a tragic story.
"I hope this is convincing, I don't know what we're going to do if her teacher doesn't buy it," Sirius whispered to James, regarding the letter he had forged to Lily's Muggle Studies Teacher.
"Let me see it," James said. Sirius handed the letter over, fidgeting dreadfully in his chair. He looked up to make sure Flitwick was still busy showing gloating over Snivellus' wonderful Protection Charm. Just as he'd hoped, the small teacher was garbling on gleefully to the sullen, dark haired boy, slapping his back in congratulations.
"It'll work, Padfoot. Teachers don't usually question old Pomfrey on anything," James assured his friend, handing the letter back to him. Sirius nodded and shot his hand into the air.
"Professor?" he inquired. Flitwick turned around startled, remembering he was teaching a class of students and not just Snape.
"May I help you Mr.Black? Do you have a problem with the spell?" The balding wizard asked. Sirius shook his head while discretely pocketing the letter.
"May I go to the bathroom?" Sirius requested. Flitwick nodded curtly, and turned back to his prized student. The shaggy haired boy rose from his seat and spoke quietly to his friend before departing.
"If all goes well I'll see you outside in the hallway at 3," he said with a mischievous grin. James returned the grin, wishing Sirius luck as he strut out of the room.
Exiting the classroom, Sirius made a beeline to the Owlry that was a corridor away. He checked occasionally for a stray teacher wandering the halls in case they questioned him for straying the path to the bathroom.
Safely, he reached the doors to the Owlry and opened them slowly, preventing a loud creak. Sweeping the hair out of his glistening grey eyes, he bounded the stairs to the large, spacious room. Hundreds of owls' hooted merrily around him, greeting the boy. Sirius rushed over to the tawny owls on the closest wall; those were meant for local deliveries within the castle. He grabbed an owl that seemed to be dying for a delivery. Attaching the letter swiftly to the bird leg, he spoke to it softly.
"Please deliver this to Mrs. Smith, the Muggle Studies teacher," Sirius told the owl. It cocked it's head, listening to the tall male's direction. With a happy nip, the owl took off outside the expansive window, fluttering its wings in grace.
Sirius breathed a sigh of relief; they had reached the end. All that was left now was to pray that everything went accordingly, which was ironically the most important part of the prank. Taking once last glance around, Sirius turned to leave, sporting an extra pep in his step.
For the first time this school year, or perhaps in all of their years at Hogwarts, the four Marauders sat in utter silence. Even Professor McGonagall noticed the oddity amongst the boys and quirked an eyebrow their way. None of them seemed to notice the gesture; the only movement made was Sirius Black's constant glancing at the large wooden clock in front of the classroom.
"2:59 on the dot," Sirius announced in a mutter. The boys shared a nervous glance with each other as they held their breaths. James began to tap his fingers nervously on their table as Remus toyed with his quill furiously. Peter chewed his lip, while Sirius strained his ears for any possible inclination of a lion's roar that would signal the success of Lily's task.
"Is something wrong here, boys? I know a disturbance in the students of my house when I see one, and you four look like you've seen a pack of dementors," the Gryffindor head of house asked the boys as she approached their table undetected. The heads of the boys shot up, suddenly noticing they had company.
"Nope, everything's fine. We're just really excited about the Quidditch match tomorrow," James said brightly, knowing he was half lying. As the Transfiguration Professor opened her mouth to persist the issue, a loud blast of noise overpowered her. To anyone's ears, it sounded like a large bomb had exploded. The deafening sound, however, did not stop, and continued on as nervous students glanced at each other. Professor McGonagall's face paled with fright as she whipped out her wand and sprinted to leave the room, her age not doing her justice.
The four Marauders at the table felt their hearts thump as they looked at each other, smiling uncontrollably. Sirius was the first to rise; undoubtedly showing he was the mastermind of the plan from the get go and that he would follow it through.
"It's Showtime boys!" he yelled to his friends and they all raced after their professor, closely followed by the rest of the class stampeding after them, talking in excited voices.
The Marauders burst out of the classroom door, and gaped in shock and disbelief as they witnessed first hand the chaos and beauty of their prank.
The long corridor they stood in currently resembled a larger scale version of the American holiday "Mardi Gras," except in this case, an explosion of scarlet and gold substituted the traditional colors of purple and green. Draping from the ceiling were the countless Gryffindor banners, waving vigorously while flashing beams and sparks of different color lights all about, bouncing off the hallway walls in an impressive light show. Sayings such as "Lions til Death!" and "Gryffindor for the Cup!" shrieked from each hanging in a high pitched voice, even though it was damn near impossible for the words to be clearly heard over the racket the fireworks were producing.
Ah, the fireworks. Sirius was impressed by them more than anything else. The ceiling as well as everywhere else in hall was filled with booming and whistling as the scarlet and gold fireworks exploded left and right, showering sparks down towards the ground. The noise sounded like a million and one cannons going off at the same time accompanied by the screaming crowd of the Quidditch World Cup. Even the boys didn't expect the show the joke shop purchases put on.
"Lion's in the corridor! Lion's in the corridor, Minerva!" a screaming Argus Filch exclaimed as he hobbled toward the panicked elder woman. The boys took their eyes off the decorations and looked on the ground level at the students rushing every which way, yelling and squealing with delight, especially the Gryffindors. Through the crowd, they could spot the hulking illusions of a pair of lions pouncing through the hall, growling and roaring at groups of students.
"Who in Merlin's name did this?" Minerva whispered, frankly in awe of the rigorous and drenching sense of House Pride that reeked in the school at the very moment. She glanced sideways at the four boys beside her who were smirking with delight, obviously at their own work.
"Come on!" James screamed over the racket and started maneuvering through the crowds. The boys followed behind him trying to avoid running into all of the people. It appeared that every class in the castle was currently spilled out into the hall, and they guessed the other halls they had decorated were the same.
"James!" a high pitched shriek came from ahead of them. Through a patch of excited Ravenclaws, the red hair of Lily Evans emerged as she dashed to the boys.
"Isn't it…amazing!" the green eyed girl squealed once they had reunited. Her eyes sparkled in amazement as she looked over the scene.
"You are amazing love! The lions are spectauclar," James told his now-girlfriend, hugging her tightly.
"Bloody hell, I didn't even dream of it turning out half this good," Sirius mused, still awe struck at his accomplishments. He felt a few slaps on his back as he turned his head to see the Marauders grinning at him, pride etched onto their faces.
"You did a fantastic job, mate. This is one for the history books," Remus told his friend as he watched a few members of the Gryffindor quidditch team zoom past on broom sticks.
"Too bad the teachers are going to ruin it soon," Peter said sadly. Sirius reverted his gaze to glance around the hall for a sign of resistance.
"I don't think…they want it to stop," James said in almost a whisper; his arm wrapped firmly around Lily's waist. Sirius finally saw the group James had been referring to. A small knot of teachers and Hogwart's staff stood in the middle of the chaos with faces lit up in wonder, almost as jubilant as those youthful ones around them. In the very middle of it all stood Albus Dumbledore, the twinkle in his eyes visible from where the boys stood.
"Take a look at Slytherins faces!" James remarked, pointing to the left side on the corridor, where a pack of scowling green clad serpents stood. Sirius roared with laughter as one of the Illusion lion's pounced on Lucius Malfoy. The blonde scrambled out from under the beast and tore down the hallway past the Marauders screaming.
"Serves you right you bloody git!" Sirius yelled loudly, hoping the Malfoy caught his words. The group fell into hysterics as they simply watched the scene before them: Students pointing and beaming at the fireworks, Gryffindor's chanting along with the banner's shrieks, and everyone either petrified or astounded by the golden lions.
It was perfection in the grey eyes of Sirius Black. His orbs danced with happiness and excitement; witnessing his imagination unfold before him.
"Hey, we never got supplies for the Common Room party!" James remembered suddenly. Sirius smirked and placed a hand on his friends shoulder.
"It's taken care of, Prongs."
"How?" James asked his friend, with narrowed eyebrows.
"I went to the kitchens this morning and told the elves to have food and drinks set out in the Common Room at 6 P.M tonight. I figured even if we get busted, we should still leave behind a treat for our fellow Gryffindors," Sirius told them smugly. The other Marauder's and Lily shook their heads at the same time. Lily sighed loudly, tossing back her red mane.
"Sirius Black, you've truly outdone yourself this time," she told him with a quick survey of the continued pandemonium. Sirius smiled widely and turned to James.
"If you lose this match, I will kill you," he threatened, trying his hardest not to laugh. His attempt was feeble as the entire posse started to crack up amidst the scene of sheer brilliance and creative instinct, courtesy of Sirius Black.
"And there you have it; the conclusion of our greatest work," Sirius slammed the book closed with a reminiscing smile. Hermione sat up in her chair and brought her hands together, clapping in applause.
"That was absolutely wonderful! I can't believe you guys were so…." Her voice wandered, trying to find the right word.
"Clever, cunning, imaginative?" Sirius guessed. Hermione shook her head, finding her answer.
"Reckless!" she exclaimed with a smirk.
"You're right about that. We were damn near crazy to pull a stunt like that, but I don't regret it one bit. That was probably the greatest day of my life. Not only did we give everyone a lovely mid-day surprise and early finish to classes, but we also threw an amazing party as well. Not to mention we won the next day's match by about 500 points," Sirius told the brown eyed girl.
"I wish I could be more like you," she said with a hint of disappoint in his voices. Sirius laughed and the girl looked up, confused.
"I didn't mean it to be funny," Hermione frowned. Sirius stopped laughing and leaned forward, shaking his index finger sternly.
"If I ever find out that your doing anything idiotic as that, I will personally come to Hogwarts and knock some sense into you," he said, meaning each word of his threat. All Hermione could do in response was smirk back and raise and eyebrow.
"I'd like to see you, Sirius Black, most wanted person in the wizarding world; stroll up to the gates and walk right up to Gryffindor tower to come collect me,."
Sirius scowled, realizing he had been beaten. Glaring at the girl, he got up from his seat and walked behind her chair, leaning down to whisper in her ear, taking in a waft of her vanilla scented hair as his warm breath trickled on her.
"Let them try and stop me."