EDIT: After a reviewer pointed out a spelling error, I went back to this chapter to at least correct some of the more glaring errors, though in the form of content nothing in this chapter has changed if you have previously read it.

Disclaimer: I do not own the Harry Potter world, any of its characters, places, ideas, etc.

A/N: I'm so sorry that it's been so long since I've updated. I've tried to update my profile (I don't know if any of you have been visiting) about where I was with the chapter. I had problems with my laptop and on top of the writer's block and it all this combined with real life made it all very hard for me to write this chapter. I am relieved I was finally able to write it. Sorry if there are any errors, I didn't spend as much time editing it as usual because I really needed to update and my next week is packed with things to do. Well here it is…let me know what you think!

Lily was sitting in the middle of the lake on a rowboat and somebody was calling her name, which was ridiculous because there was no one around. The voice was insistent and sounded suspiciously like Adrianna. The lake around her began to disappear and her eyes snapped opened.

By the light streaming through the dorm window Lily could tell it was much too early on a Saturday morning for there to be so much commotion.

"Good, you're up," Mattie Carter said with a grin, placing a hat and scarf on her head that matched her blue eyes perfectly.

"What's going on?" Lily asked sleepily.

"There's going to be a snowball fight!" Grace Landon exclaimed as she clasped a heavy cloak over her shoulders.

"Hurry on up or they'll start without us," Ellie Aston instructed carefully finishing braiding her hair. Lily rolled her eyes, as if Ellie had a right to complain about being somewhere on time. Countless times they all had to wait for her to get ready. Still Lily was interested in seeing a magical snowball fight especially after knowing how the magical world had changed the rather dull game of chess.

She jumped out of bed and dressed quickly. She stepped into her warmest pair of pants, threw on a sweater, and buttoned closed the new long winter coat she had received for Christmas. She wrapped her Gryffindor scarf around her and borrowed Mattie's pink hat, since she had misplaced hers, even though it clashed horribly with her hair.

The girls clamored down to the common room, which was buzzing with students all dressed in their warmest gear. Lily's attention was quickly brought to a fourth year girl with incredibly curly hair who was shouting at another fourth year, Gideon Prewett.

"You can't decide that girls aren't allowed to join," she bellowed, hands on her hips.

"Why not?" demanded Gideon, "Darien and I were the ones to plan this, so we make the rules."

"Hey, keep me out of this," Darien protested good naturally from across the room.

"Look you'll either get hurt or be in the way…"

"It's only a snowball fight. I think we can handle it," retorted the girl.

Wisely Gideon relented, though he didn't have much of a choice when all the girls backed his opposition, and none of the guys were willing to back him up. Trying to establish some authority, Gideon did make it clear that any girl who whined or complained for any reason would be banished back to the castle.

There was a sudden loud commotion by the entrance of the boy's dorm. Lily was not surprised to see James and his gang. They always made a noticeable entrance wherever they went, but Lily hadn't figured out if they did that on purpose or if it was a by-product of their boisterous personalities. An unexpected addition to the usual crew was Cory, who was engaged in a conversation with Remus. Perhaps there was still a chance Cory could become friends with his dorm mates, but the fact that Cory extracted himself the moment he saw Lily without saying a word did not help the matter.

Cory's only two friends were Lily and Adrianna. The other three Gryffindor second year girls only tolerated his presence because they enjoyed Lily's and Adrianne's company. The toleration only lasted so long and often times Grace, Mattie and Ellie grew tired of Cory's presence and Cory never felt comfortable when they engaged in 'girl stuff'.

What annoyed Lily's three roommates the most was that Cory wasn't a good source of gossip about his own roommates. They didn't understand, as Lily did, that the boy's weren't going to trust Cory if he was never around.

Lily had been trying to recently get Cory to realize that problems were going to arise if he isolated himself from people who he'd be rooming with for the next five years. But Cory was stubborn and he didn't see an immediate reason to bridge their differences.

Cory, like Lily, felt that the rules were there for a reason. This philosophy directly clashed with how James and Sirius treated the rules. They picked and chose which rules suited their needs.

Another difference was Cory sided with the girls whenever a conflict arose between the boys and girls. It was a silly thing, but still important at their age and it would have been a good way for Cory to prove his loyalty to his roommates.

It was only going to get harder for Cory and even though it wasn't Lily's problem, she couldn't help worrying. James, Sirius, Remus and Peter had all grown tighter this last week. Why? Lily didn't know. She would have expected the opposite since last she knew Remus was not only, not on speaking terms with them, but was also thinking of leaving Hogwarts. Now he was back to being close friends with Potter, Black and Pettigrew. Lily would have loved to know what had happened, yet not enough to ask them personally and Cory had snapped at her when she asked him if he knew anything at all.

"Morning Cory," Lily greeted enthusiastically. It didn't matter to her if he didn't get on with his roommates. She had a lot in common with him. They both loved chocolate, had a pet dog and mothers with the same first name.

"I wish the snowball fight would start," Adrianna announced excitedly, practically bouncing on her feet.

"I'd rather be asleep," Cory said, "But if that lots up, the whole world has to be up too."

Their eyes fell upon 'the lot' Cory was referring to. James had charmed Peter's gloves to float just above his reach. The plump boy was jumping up and down laughing at his inability to reach the items.

"Bloody idiots," Cory muttered darkly.

"Oh come off it, Cory," Grace stated, "You can be so boring. Why would you want to miss the snowball fight? It'll be fun and you could use some."

Lily had to agree with both of them. Cory did need to loosen up and not be so serious. At the same time she understood Cory's feelings. The boys' antics were occasionally entertaining, but for the most part they grated on her nerves as well.

"We all know Cory is just jealous that everyone likes them," Ellie said now directing the conversation into murky waters. This may have been a truth Cory needed to hear, but now was not the appropriate time. While no one outside of the second year knew who Cory was, James' and Sirius' popularity was growing each week.

As much as Gryffindors touted about blood not mattering, Lily couldn't help but wonder if James and Sirius weren't wealthy purebloods, if other students (especially the older ones) wouldn't be as patient with their antics.

"I'm not jealous," Cory replied hotly, only proving the exact opposite of his words. "I just don't see why everyone thinks they are so brilliant."

"Well I wouldn't make enemies with Potter and Black," Ellie said.

"I'm not enemies with them."

"You certainly aren't friends either," Mattie voiced.

"So! There's no law I ought to be."

Cory was fighting a losing battle. It didn't matter what Cory said and it only made Cory less likable to harp on two well-liked boys. Though at times the girls still found the second year boys lacked maturity, they were able to overlook it enough to still hold them in admiration. Grace, Ellie and Mattie all thought Black was the handsomest boy in their year and they admired Potter's quidditch skills.

Even Adrianna, after James proved his skill on the quidditch pitch, didn't like to speak ill of him and wouldn't join in on chats about how annoying he could be, as if disliking Potter would somehow effect his quidditch skills. It wasn't just Adrianna, all quidditch players were held a little above the rest, especially around game time. This week happened to be around game time. Gryffindor would be playing Slytherin in a week and emotions were running high on both sides; fights breaking out in the hallways constantly. Lily found the level of competitiveness ridiculous, but she kept that opinion to herself. Quidditch was not a topic to joke lightly about. Everyone took the sport too seriously to even attempt that.

Even though Cory was not as good looking or athletic or intelligent as his more popular roommates, he did have an innate kindness and an ability to listen. Sadly few saw this side of him because of his reserved personality and with the jealousy inside of him slowly clouding who he really was and it made him less approachable and less friend-able.

Lily hoped he would realize this soon, but in the meantime she was more than willing to change the subject for the benefit of everyone.

"How about we all go down to the courtyard?" Lily suggested. "It's bound to start soon."

Everyone agreed to that and they were joined outside by about twenty-five other Gryffindors. They wanted to begin as soon as possible because though technically no rules were being broken, if a teacher or prefect got word of it, they would surely put a stop to the fun.

Once everyone participating was present, they were split into two teams. Lily, Cory, Mattie, Grace, Potter, and Black ended up on one team, while the other second years were in the other group.

Mattie and Grace were both gazing at Potter and Black, who were talking softly to each other. When the boys noticed they were being watched, they sauntered over.

"That's a really pink hat," James commented while Sirius snickered beside him.

"You've learned your colors Potter? Bravo," Lily quipped back.

James frowned slightly. "Well I could change the color for you," he offered casually.

Lily narrowed her eyes suspiciously. "No, that's ok."

"Maybe you should," Grace said, "It does clash horribly with your hair." Lily shot Grace an annoyed look. Well obviously she knew that. She just didn't trust Potter near her head with his wand.

"It's an easy spell," James added, "I could do it in my sleep."

"Change it green so it matches with her eyes," Mattie said with a giggle.

"Green?" James asked horrified.

"What's wrong with that?" Cory demanded. Lily looked at James expectantly.

It was Sirius who replied. "Slytherin's color is green."

Lily found herself unable to speak. Were they joking? Her question was answered by the serious looks on their faces. She knew anti-Slytherin sentiment was at an all time high, but it was still an utterly stupid reason.

"Just change it black then," Lily said with annoyance, "And nothing better sprout of my head."

"Right," James replied brandishing his wand and he muttered the spell so that Lily couldn't quite make out the words. She touched her hat gingerly, taking it off and was surprised to see it had indeed turned black just like it was supposed to.

Just as she was about to grudgingly thank James, she noticed Black was trying to hold in his laughter and Grace was smiling widely in the direction of Cory. Lily turned warily to her friend to see Cory's black hat had turned the same pink color that her hat had been only moments before. Other students around them were beginning to look over at them and Lily felt her temper rise.

"You did a switching spell!" she scolded, eyes flashing at James.

"Well spotted," James replied with a grin that caused Mattie and Grace to giggle. Cory caught on that they were speaking about him and ripped off his hat. He pointed at James in what he probably thought was a menacing manner. "You did this!"

James shrugged. "What are you going to do about it?"

"It was only a joke. Nothing to be upset about," Sirius remarked.

As expected Cory did nothing and Lily muttered under her breath exchanged hats with Cory, so now she was still stuck with the pink hat. She was debating about asking James to properly change it when Darien called for silence to explain the rules.

"If everyone could please put their wands away. This will be a muggle-style snowball fight!"

There was a chorus of groans and Lily was disappointed that she wouldn't see what witches and wizards could change in a snowball fight; she would just have ask someone about it later.

"Oh!" pouted Mattie. "I had a cool spell to try out…It was supposed to give an extra twirl to your throw."

"Never fear," Potter interrupted with a chivalrous air. "With Sirius and I on your team there's no way we'll loose."

"Is that so?" Lily asked, wishing she hadn't risen to the bait.

"There's no doubt," Sirius clarified as he threw one of the snowballs he'd made already up in the air and caught in with ease.

"Because I bet you've both been in loads of Muggle snowball fights before?" Lily pondered.

Her sarcasm was missed by James who answered, " 'Course not, but I can throw a quaffle, so a snowball will be just as simple. And so can Sirius."

With that answered, the two teams were given a few minutes to plan, stockpile snowballs, and build shield walls of snow.

The snowball fight started and Lily ducked behind one of the walls. It was a wet and cold, and fun. As much as Lily didn't want to admit it, Potter and Black were great assets to the team. Their snowballs hit the mark more often than not. Grace and Mattie stayed near Potter and Black, cheering them on and only once-an-awhile attempting to join in the game. Out of nowhere someone from behind James hit him square in the head and complete mayhem broke out. The teams scattered, snowballs were coming from all directions and in the midst of the shouting and laughter – an angry voice broke through. "Potter! Roberston! Prewett!"

Everyone immediately froze, some still half in motion. McCoy, the team captain began angrily shouting, "Merlin's beard, we have the biggest game of the year in a week and I find you three frolicking in the snow!"

Potter, Robertson and Prewett were trying their best to look properly sorry, but their amusement was breaking through. "What if you became injured or sick or caught and thrown in detention on game day? What then? I'd be minus two chasers and a beater that's what! If any of you even sniffle in my company you'll be doing laps until you pass out. This game is important and it needs your full attention this entire week. Inside NOW!"

The three boys exchanged long glances and silently agreed it was best to follow their team captain's instructions.

"Carry on," McCoy muttered at the rest of them and he also left. Everyone looked unsurely at each other. The two boys who had organized this were now gone and the magic of the fight had disappeared with them. They were now left with the wet and cold reality of the snow. The girl with curly hair who had been yelling at Gideon took charge, calling the fight officially over and to start returning to the castle.

"That was fun, wasn't it?" Ellie asked brightly as she and Adrianna joined them.

"Too short," Adrianna remarked and she turned to Cory looking displeased. "I saw what you did."

Cory gave a guilty shrug. He did not have the gift of being able to lie. "What was that?"

"You were the one to hit James with the snowball."

"So? It was a snowball fight," he answered smartly.

"Potter's on your team!"

"It was only a joke," Cory replied echoing the same statement Black had used a short while ago.

"You should be grateful that neither James nor Sirius noticed," Adrianna stated.

"He deserved it," muttered Cory, but Adrianna did not hear, she was already walking up ahead with Ellie, Grace, and Mattie.

Lily smiled at Cory though knowing it looked forced. "It doesn't matter."

They started for the Great hall to fill up on a delicious warm breakfast to chase out the cold of their bodies.

Sirius Black was walking back to the castle with Remus and Peter on either side of him. The snowball fight was over and there was now no reason to idle outside. He wasn't as cold as his mates. The heavy, expensive cloak with the Black crest was very warm and kept him dry. He just wished the Black family crest embroidered on it wasn't so large and visible on the left breast.

Why did everything he own have to be ruined by that emblem? He disliked the extent his family went to parade who they were and the nobility of their heritage.

Sirius wondered where James had gone off too. He knew there was a Gryffindor practice scheduled for the late afternoon and he hoped McCoy wasn't going to make James, Darien and Gideon practice extra. The scene had been very amusing, but surely there was little danger in some of the team members in participating in a small snowball fight. Then again having an unhealthy obsession with quidditch seemed to be a prerequisite for joining the team, and McCoy did have the pressure of captaincy and delivering a win for Gryffindor after all those losses the past few years.

"Did you see Cory hit James with a snowball?" Peter asked. He looked rather pleased with himself to be the bearer of such information. They were now inside the castle.

"Did he?" Sirius replied. Remus was giving Peter a disapproving look; he never liked when trouble was brought up.

"Rather foolish of him, really," Sirius said off-handedly. He viewed Cory as only a slight nuisance. When he had his cousins and Snivellus to worry about, Cory was brought to the bottom of his list.

"Don't worry," Sirius quickly stated before Remus could interject his wisdom. "I'm not going to tell James. It's not worth the trouble."

"Good," Remus said with relief. "Let's stop by the common room before going to the Great Hall."

"Maybe James will be there," Peter pondered.

Down the hall right before they were ready to ascend the steps toward the Gryffindor Tower, Frederick stood blocking their way.

"I've been looking for you, Black," Frederick said, "I've got a note from Professor McGonagall."

He handed over the note roughly and left with a derisive nod. Sirius knew if James had been around Frederick would have been politer.

Sirius opened the note. McGonagall wanted to see him as soon as possible and it stated she'd be in her office for most of the morning. He wasn't looking forward to the visit, since visits to her office were generally unpleasant, but it was best to get this sort of thing over with.

"I better go see what McGonagall wants."

"Do you think you're in trouble?" Peter asked.

"Probably…I just don't know what…"

Sirius had been all too happy for the week to end. It had been a tiring time. The snowball fight had been the perfect way for them all to let out their pent-up energy. Now that they knew Remus' secret, things had generally improved, but they also had new things to deal with. None of them wanted to act differently around Remus or treat him differently, but pretending nothing had changed or nothing had been revealed felt just as insincere. And finding a balance between the two was not as easy as it looked.

He knew it was wrong, but Sirius couldn't help imagining his mother's and father's reaction to one of his roommates being a werewolf (or half-breed in their minds). He would never let it slip, he had promised Remus to keep the secret, and he wouldn't back out of his words. Still it was tempting. He could picture perfectly the way his mother's face would contort and the sound of her raving on for days and days about how the school had gone to the dogs. In actuality his parents had never pressed on the subject of werewolves when educating him on the right and wrong sort of people. Perhaps because they didn't feel werewolves were as meddlesome in wizard affairs as mudbloods and blood-traitors. You didn't hear often of werewolves speaking out on behalf of themselves or for their rights.

McGonagall's door was half open and Sirius knocked lightly on the door. As he stepped in, he wished he'd taken the time to shed his warm cloak because the office was stifling hot.

"Come in, Mr. Black. Have a seat."

Sirius hesitated. He'd been hoping from the Professor's tone of voice to glean the nature of the visit, but she kept it carefully under control. He warily took a seat.

"I had a chat with your mother a few days ago."

Sirius didn't hide the grimace crossing his face. It figured this meeting would somehow involve her.

"Sorry to hear that Professor."

McGonagall's mouth tightened as if she were trying to suppress a smile. "Yes well she refrained from completely bashing Gryffindor, so it was one of our more agreeable meetings."

"Was she trying to get me to change Houses again?" he asked miserably.

"No. She did however express concern about your marks in Defense Against the Dark Arts."

Sirius frowned. He couldn't see his mother ever caring about that subject. His family tended to be involved in the very type of things they were learning to defend themselves against. "I have a high mark in that class."

"You are above average, but there are three students ahead of you in that class."

Sirius scoffed. "What she wants is perfection in everything I do, which is bloody impossible."

"Mr. Black, please keep your language under control."

"So did she request you to lecture me about the importance of grades, since she's unable at the moment to lecture me constantly?"

"Your mother has requested you to receive extra lessons."

"Extra lessons?"

"Tutoring is not that uncommon in Hogwarts."

"Except I don't need tutoring. I'm not going to agree to this."

"Mr. Black, this is not up to you. The rules state that your guardian has the right to request extra lessons and to make it mandatory that you attend these. The consequences for missing these extra lessons would be the same as if you missed class."

"Unbelievable…" Sirius said more to himself than McGonagall.

"If you do not want to be stuck in detention every single night I think you should attend the extra lessons. Whether you need them or not is debatable, but they certainly will not hurt you. If your grades do improve, perhaps I can persuade your mother to drop them, so study hard and spend more time on your work."

Sirius looked away in disgust. He already thought he spent too much time on school work and the incentive to increase it wasn't very appealing. His mother would always find some other way to control him.

"Professor Adair will be in contact with you about your first lesson."

"Adair? You aren't doing them?"

"Professor Adair. As your Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher don't you think she'd be the most qualified to tutor you?" she asked peering at him over her glasses.

"No," Sirius uttered. In his opinion even Peter would be a better option. Spending time with Adair was the worst sort of torture possible. She already singled him out in class, reprehending him, chastising him and it would only increase in private lessons. There he would be Adair's sole focus of attention and his mood decreased dramatically from just thinking about being in that situation.

"Mr. Black, personal issues aside, Professor Adair is a fully qualified teacher. This will be a good life lesson for you. It is important to learn how to work with people you dislike."

"Can I go, Professor?"

"Yes, Mr. Black and I hope you heed my advice. I am giving Professor Adair full power over deciding the punishment if you are late, miss a lesson, or are not applying yourself seriously."

Sirius left the office quickly. The cooler air in the hallway helped lift his mood slightly, and he could breathe easier, but it didn't change that he was completely helpless in the adult controlled world he was living in.

The Whomping Willow loomed in front of them looking even more deadly in the light of the starry sky.

Sirius stifled a yawn. He didn't want Remus to call this off just because he was a little tired. They were all still tired from yesterdays late night celebration. The whole school had turned out to watch Gryffindor stunningly defeat Slytherin. The game had been exciting, high scoring and dirty. The score had stayed close, but it was evident in terms of skill and preparation that Gryffindor was superior. James had scored more goals than his last game and his flying was spectacular, diving and dipping as if he'd been born in the air. With Darien and McCoy as his teammates, both talented, Gryffindor's chasers made a formidable front.

During the common room celebration James received a good batch of female attention. Between Victoria hanging on his every word and Grace, Mattie, and Ellie gushing about how brave and amazing he'd been, James didn't have much time to devote attention to his friends. Even Adrianna at one point grabbed James to discuss in detail the more technical aspects of the game. Sirius didn't mind it all, choosing to hang in the back with Remus and Peter where it was quieter. He was in no mood to listen to idle female chatter or deal with their attempts to gain his attention. He was content for now to just enjoy the atmosphere.

Remus had stopped a few feet away from the Whomping Willow and it didn't look like he was going to move closer any time soon. After two weeks of pestering, Remus had agreed to show them the Shrieking Shack where he went through his transformations. Sirius knew the main reason Remus had agreed to this was he still had feelings of guilt for deceiving them in the first place.

Remus took a step forward his face creased with worry. Sirius glanced over at James who was trying to be patient. They both knew that Remus was completely capable of deciding right there and then not to show them. And since Remus hadn't divulged any information about how to actually get past the tree to the tunnel, they would have no choice, but turn around.

"You've got to promise me one more thing…" Remus said his voice very soft.

"We've already promised not to say anything, Remus. And we haven't. Have we? If we wanted to tell anyone we already would have," James reminded quickly.

It didn't look like Remus heard a word. "You can't ever visit me or go in the tunnel during a full moon. Ever."

"Ok," Peter said with a nod.

"You need to understand this very clearly. You cannot come to visit me. No matter how careful you think you can be…once the werewolf gets the scent of a human nothing will stop it. I could kill you or at the very least turn you into a monster like me."

"You aren't a monster," James objected seriously.

"Have you ever met a full grown werewolf?" Remus asked. James shook his head. "Then you have no idea what you are talking about."

Sirius sighed "You have our word, Remus. I can even give you my word in French and Latin if that would make you feel better."

Remus didn't look like he appreciated the attempt at lightening the conversation. "I want you to all remember we can be expelled for this if we are caught."

"Way to stay positive," Sirius muttered, "If we get caught, which we won't because no one is out here in the middle of the night, then we'll take the blame."

"They'll know I told you. I'm the only student who knows about the knot."

"We'll tell them we forced you at wand point," Sirius said. James nodded enthusiastically, while Peter seemed to be trying to remember having agreed to this plan, but he did not object.

Remus had to learn to stop worrying constantly. James had his invisibility cloak on him, which in a pinch could hide all four of them. The chances of getting caught were very slim and the longer they stayed out in the open by the tree, the greater chance Remus' fear would come true.

Remus sighed, still looking as concerned as he had when James and Sirius had first suggested he show them the Shrieking Shack. "You can't let it slip accidentally to any student that the tree is guarding anything. Especially not a tunnel. The tree was put there to protect me from students and if too many students get curious about it…"

"We know. We know," James assured, "Anything else?"

"It's my greatest fear you know."

"What?" Peter asked.

"Biting someone."

An uncomfortable silence began to form around them. Sirius was sure Remus would tell them to go back to the castle when he surprised them by asking, "Did you find a long enough stick?"

"Yes," James said cheerily, "Peter found one."

Peter unveiled under his cloak a shorter stick that James tapped twice with his wand to lengthen.

"Who's going to do it?" Remus asked.

"I will." James had volunteered before anyone else could. He gave Sirius a challenging look, but Sirius wasn't going to argue over it. James did have the best reflexes of the group.

Remus began pointing out to James exactly where the hidden knob was located. Sirius was having trouble following the directions; he wasn't sure if the knob was located more to the left or to the right. James on the other hand was nodding, his gaze steadily on the deadly tree.

"Ready?" Remus questioned carefully looking around to make sure they were still alone.

"Sure," James said with a gulp and he even managed to pull off a brave smile.

James took the stick from Peter and jumped up and down a few times to loosen his muscles. He began with a running start, suddenly sliding onto his belly, his arm stretched out as far as he possibly could and then the stick struck the tree. James had one shot to hit it in the right place or else. As quick as lightening James rolled to his right hoping that if he had indeed missed it the branches would miss him. The branches started quivering and one looked ready to strike exactly where James lied and then the tree froze.

Letting out a breath that he hadn't known he had been holding Sirius gazed up in wonderment at the tree. Helping James to his feet, he found James was breathing heavily and looking very relieved that Remus had known exactly what he'd been talking about.

There was a gap now visible in the roots.

"Let's go," James declared and there was no argument from any of them. None of them were eager to test how long the Whomping Willow would stay frozen. They had to crawl through the opening and carefully slide down a slope toward a low tunnel. No one dared speak as they all lit their wands and made their way down the tunnel having to crouch slightly. It seemed to Sirius that they were walking forever when finally the tunnel began to slope upward and twist one last time and in front of them was a small opening.

"Up through that hole," Remus instructed when James, who was leading, had momentarily paused.

They entered into a room that smelled old and dusty with all its windows boarded up with various pieces of furniture, some of them with scratches and bite marks, while others looked still to be in surprisingly good shape. Sirius roamed his eyes around taking in all the details of the room. This was the place his mate went every month; this in a way was Remus' second home.

Sirius grinned. He loved this feeling of recklessness. It was against so many school rules for them to be here, but that made it all the more alluring and exciting. And they weren't here to see the Shrieking Shack just for selfish reasons. It was important for Remus to be able to show them this place and help them understand what he went through, especially when it was so hard to understand solely through words.

"This…" Remus began with effort, "This is where I usually begin my transformations, but I have free reign of the house…You can look around."

"Is there an upstairs?" pondered James, "Can we go up there?"

"If you want," Remus said. He led them to a hall and up stairs that could crumble beneath them at any moment. There were a few doors, but Remus made a beeline for the middle one, which was slightly ajar. They entered a room quite larger than the one downstairs. There was a large oak table with chairs. There was also a couch that had seen better days and a fireplace that hadn't been used in years.

Having seen this room, Sirius and James went straight towards the other doors in the hallway to finish exploring. One held a large four-poster bed and the other was a storage room that had an assortment of things ranging from chairs to cushions to strange looking objects.

They all returned sitting on the chairs by the table. There were exactly four and the one Sirius sat down on wobbled precariously under his weight.

"What do you think?" Remus asked cautiously.

"It's bigger than I thought…and it's a great hide-away," James said his eyes shining brightly with possibilities.

"The only thing it's hiding is a werewolf," Remus grumbled.

"We should come here again," James remarked, "We could plan pranks here in complete privacy."

"No," Remus responded firmly.

"Why not?" James protested, "As long as it's not a full moon, there's no danger being here."

"Because I said so and because every trip we make here will increase the chances of us getting caught by a teacher or a student seeing us. This isn't here for that purpose," Remus explained with exasperation.

"Just think about it?" James asked.

"We should get back"," Remus said in response. The subject was obviously closed for now.

"No one knows we're gone," Sirius said.

"Cory does," Peter reported, though he shrunk back when Sirius glared at him.

"Exactly and what he knows, Evans knows," Remus said latching on to the excuse with relief.

"Well Connor won't be waking up anytime soon. Sirius and I took care of that," James said proudly.

"What did you do?" Remus asked, "Nothing illegal I hope."

"We just placed a few drops of a mild sleeping potion in that glass of water he always has on the side of his bed," Sirius explained.

"Are you sure he drank it?"

"Yes. He won't wake up until morning," Sirius promised.

"We will go back soon," James said looking rather serious all of a sudden. "Tomorrow we do have class after all. Before that we're going to have a ceremony. Everyone light your wands, place them on the table and have the tip face toward the middle."

They all gave James skeptical looks but followed the instructions.

"I was thinking since we know one of Remus' secret that we should all share something no one else knows about us. This way we all are on equal terms. By agreeing to this you swear not to tell anyone else what you hear today. You're exempt from this Remus because we already know yours. How about it gents? Are you up for it?"

Sirius felt his stomach give a jolt. He didn't like this idea of sharing secrets. His family life was full of them and he wasn't ready to share them with anyone.

"I don't know…" Sirius said slowly.

"It's fair. Isn't it? Or are you too scared?"

Sirius scowled. He wouldn't let James get away with implying he was even the least bit nervous. "I'm not scared. I just think it's stupid."

"Think what you will about it, just as long as you agree to it. Remember it has to be truthful and something important. Who wants to go first?"

"You can Potter," Sirius suggested.

"Ok." James took a deep breath. He looked them each in the eye and began to speak carefully. "My grandparents want me to marry a pureblood. As the only heir to the Potter line it's on my shoulder to keep our line pure. My family may be blood-traitors, but we still hold power in the Ministry and only because we are pure. If that changes, so does our influence."

His words were met by silence.

"Peter your turn."

"I think…no, I know," Peter stammered, "I know that my parents love my sister more than me. I can already tell she'll be the favorite."

Three heads turned to Sirius and felt as if a spotlight was on him, bright and hot.

Sirius licked his lips. His mouth felt dry. His face felt warm and he wished they'd never convinced Remus to take them here.

"Sirius?" His name echoed in the quiet room.

Sirius closed his eyes for a moment. He didn't know why this was so hard for him.

"Last summer my parents locked me in the basement or if not in the basement in my room…and at times they-" He took a breath. "They hit me."

James stood up and whispered, "Nox." Their wands went out. The ceremony was over. They stood up silently to begin the long walk back to the castle.

On the way back they slowly began talking again about mundane things and Sirius found he felt better. The secrets shared not forgotten, but circling around them and adding strength to their growing friendship.

They were at the entrance hole to get back on the grounds of Hogwarts when Remus spoke from behind, he was last in line. "Thank you."

They turned back to look at him in surprise.

"For sharing a secret…so that I'm not the odd one out."

"No worries mate," James replied smiling and patting him on the back.

"Right," Sirius said, "There should be no secrets between friends."

So they formed a pact that night, standing in the tunnel tired and sweaty from the walk. A pact stating their trust in each other and that no secrets would stand between them. It was a youthful, ideological idea. At the time they did not understand the delicacy of truth. They did not understand that so many things in the world were neither a lie nor the truth, but an in-between. They did not understand that so many adults were content in living with lies or in that in-between state as long as they were not bothered and as long as they were left alone.

A/N: Thanks for reading (and if you are a returning reader, for sticking with this story), and please take now the time to review. Constructive criticism is always welcome.

I want to finish the marauder's second year before the final and seventh book comes out. There will be about four to five more chapters, so if I want to make my goal, I'll have to update more regularly. I'll have the review responses for people who did not sign-in last chapter in my profile.