A/N: See, I can update sort of regularly! Okay, I've had this written nearly as long as I've had Chapter 9 written. And because of all of my awesome readers, I'm working on one of the last chapters, if not the last chapter. I'm trying really hard to end everything, but I lost a lot of my plans when I forgot about the series for months at a time… That's what happens when I don't write things down. Anyway, because I think I'd go insane if I read through this, and I'm trying to wrap things up (in Chapter 12, if you're wondering. Chapter 11 is written), I'm not going to edit this. So it's unbeta'd and unedited. Sorry. I really hope you all will forgive me… and even send me pretty reviews (but only if you want to). Also, I go to school on Sunday, so I'll try to remember to update in my downtime (hopefully Chapter 12 will be done by then). Okay, I've rambled long enough. You're probably not even reading anymore… On to the disclaimer.

DISCLAIMER: If I owned this, do you really think this would be unedited? Actually, if I owned something and was writing fan fiction for it, it probably WOULD be unedited. So I amend my statement. Do you think that if I owned this, I would be messing around trying to get my JE videos on my iPod when I could just purchase them. Yeah. No.

Annabel was feeling a bit off. She wasn't sure what it was, but she knew it wasn't a passing bug. Something was up; call it a woman's intuition. Lady Cassandra noticed it too.

"Sweetheart, is something wrong?" Lady Cassandra was one of those nosy, gossipy women who wore bright colors and shawls and jingling jewelry, and talked about the 'old days' when they were friends with the rich and famous. Despite all this, Annabel knew the woman's concern was real. After all, she was also one of those women with a big heart.

"I'm not sure," Annabel said slowly. "I have this nagging suspicion in the back of my mind that something's going on." She wondered if she looked as confused as she felt.

"Darling, I think you're lovesick," she said as if that was the answer to all life's maladies. Of course, Annabel wouldn't be surprised if it was. Love, or lack thereof, was the reason she and Peter were constantly at odds. Love was likely the cause behind her wandering thoughts meandering to Regulus whenever they got the chance. Could love be at fault for this feeling as well?

"No," she said, lost in thought. "It's not as if I love Peter." She almost snorted at the thought, but held back.

"I didn't say it had to be him," Cassandra said mysteriously. It stood to reason, considering that the woman had married around five men (and dated a good deal more). "Why are you with someone you don't love anyway?"

"I love his friends," she replied sadly. "I don't know what I'm doing, but I figure if he dumps me for lack of love, maybe they'll take pity on me."

"Oh, dear," Cassandra said in her warning tone. Annabel had come to associate it with people doing things the woman didn't like. "But as I was saying, it's not as if everyone's entirely faithful." There was a twinkle in her eyes.

"Th-that's ridiculous!" Annabel faltered. She knew Lady Cassandra wouldn't look down on her for it, but she just felt so wrong, cheating on Peter the way she did. It wasn't even the act itself; it was the fact that she was so caught up with Regulus.

"What's his name, Darling?"

"Regulus," she sighed, knowing she'd never beat the curiosity of the old witch.

"A lovely name. Is he a lion of a man?" She wore a devilish grin.

"If you must know, he's the brother of one of Peter's best friends," Annabel huffed.

"That's a difficult spot then," Lady Cassandra said thoughtfully. "Do you meet often?"

"We only did it the once," Annabel replied snootily. "While Peter was off on… business."

"But you've been thinking about it ever since," Cassandra said knowingly.

"Not it, him," Annabel corrected.

"So it is that you're lovesick." Cassandra wore a triumphant grin.

"No," Annabel replied. "This uneasiness didn't start until recently. I've been quite infatuated with Regulus much longer."

"Oh my," Cassandra said, looking surprised. She must have another idea.

"What?" Annabel asked, not liking being left out of the loop.

"Your monthly gift, dear," Cassandra said. Annabel thought that was a bit of a non sequitur.

"Gift my ass," she muttered. "What does that have to do with anything anyway?"

"When did you last receive the gift?" Cassandra asked.

"I told you it's not a gift!" Annabel cried. And then it hit her. Oh Merlin. She mentally went through dates and when she was finished, it was like a bucket of ice water had been dumped on her. "Oh my."

"When was the last time you and Peter…?" Lady Cassandra trailed off.

"Ages ago," Annabel replied. "Too long ago for it to have anything to do with this."

"Then that means…"

"Yes."

"Oh dear."

"Yes."

"Merlin's balls."

"I believe we already established that."

"Annabel, you must tell him." Lady Cassandra looked quite serious. "And Peter as well."

"I don't know," Annabel said quietly.

"You can't shoulder this on your own," Lady Cassandra said.

"I'm keeping it," Annabel stated determinedly.

"I know, dear. You'll always have a job here." Lady Cassandra gave her a soft gaze.

"Thank you."

"Regulus!" Sirius sang. Regulus resisted the urge to hex his brother.

"What?" He was so close to the animagus transformation. So very close.

"The lovely and fair Annabel is here to see you," Sirius said. "Don't ask me why. It could have something to do with that abominable rat; I'm not sure." Regulus nodded, coming up with a cover story in case Annabel really was here to talk about what he thought it was, and was stupid enough to try talking about it in front of Sirius.

"Hello," she said quietly. "Can we talk?"

"Follow me," Regulus said, leading her to his room. He closed the door quickly behind her and warded it so that Sirius and Remus couldn't listen in if they wanted to.

"I was under the impression that we weren't going to have a repeat performance," Regulus broke the uncomfortable silence first. Despite his words, he couldn't help stepping closer to Annabel.

"I'm pregnant," she blurted out. Regulus was shocked at first.

"The only reason you're here is because you're certain it's mine then." Regulus was a little hurt. He found he'd been wanting a repeat of the last time.

"I am certain, yes," she said quietly, "but that's not the only reason." Regulus wondered how much she was lying. "It just gave me an excuse," she said, tentatively stepping closer.

"So you wanted to see me?" he asked quietly, taking his own step towards her. If he weren't so afraid of her rejection, Regulus would have reached out and pulled her close.

"Of course I wanted to see you," she said in a small voice. He pulled her in then, tired of holding back. She leaned into the embrace.

"I'm keeping it, you know," Annabel said in an entirely more confident voice.

"Good," Regulus said, a smile resting on his face. "I hope I make a good dad."

"You'll make a great dad," she said into his chest.

"I want you to stay here," Regulus said. "We should at least try, for the baby."

"What about Peter?" Annabel asked.

"You're the one who doesn't love him, remember," Regulus reminded.

"What about Lily and James and Severus and Remus and Sirius?" spilled out of her mouth.

"They know about his betrayal, you know," Regulus told her. "And they'll understand."

"REGGIE!" Sirius was pounding on the door. "REGULUS, DAMMIT, YOU'VE MORE VISITORS."

Regulus undid the wards and opened the door angrily. "I'm busy."

"Well Bella wants to see you, and she brought that dolt she calls a husband along for the ride."

"Tell her I'm not home," Regulus ground out.

"Gryffindors do not lie," Sirius said solemnly.

"Sirius already told her Regulus was here," Regulus amended. "Just say I pulled a Rapunzel or something," Regulus shrugged.

"And who's your prince charming?" Sirius asked gleefully.

"Annabel."

"WHAT?" Sirius cried.

"Oh do hurry up!" Bellatrix called from the living room. Sirius winked at his brother and strode back out to the living room. Regulus listened quietly.

"It seems he's decided that he's going to live the life of a traveling bard," Sirius explained to their cousin. "So, you see, he's left most of his worldly possessions in the room we so kindly lent him. He left a note though."

"I want to see it," Bellatrix said, "to be sure it's not a forgery." Regulus heard Sirius' footsteps returning to his room, and Regulus hastily scrawled a note for him.

"Ah! Here it is," Sirius called as Regulus handed it to him.

"What did it say?" Annabel whispered. Regulus put a finger to his lips. Annabel pulled it away and replaced it with her own lips.

"Dear Brother whom I love greatly," Sirius read aloud. He was embellishing.

"It says 'Siri', and then one of them line thingies," Bellatrix said.

"It's called a dash," Sirius huffed. "And I was reading the subtext."

"In your own brain," Remus could be heard saying dryly.

"Who asked you, werewolf?" Bella huffed.

"I've grown depressed of late," Sirius continued, "and have decided that the life of a nomadic bard is much more suited to me. I shan't be back, but you may write. I don't believe severing all ties with my current life is the wisest of decisions." This was where Sirius deviated again from the note. "Our dear cousin Bella is mad. I think she's snorted one too many caterwaulers. If I never see Mum again, which I do hope I don't, tell her that I think she's a harpy and that she doesn't deserve to have two such fine sons as ourselves. If you-" Bella snatched the note out of his hands. Regulus heard the ripping.

"You lie, Black!" Bellatrix cried.

"He really did go off to be a bard," Sirius said. "I didn't lie about that." He paused momentarily. "Moony, if you're going to sob at the lost, at the very least go do it in our room. We've company."

"I will," Remus choked out, but it sounded more like laughter than sobs that he was trying to mask. Regulus waved as Remus went by the door, so Remus entered Regulus' room instead. Annabel looked amused, Remus was barely keeping himself from laughing, and Regulus was just shaking his head.

"A bard," Remus whispered.

"Sirius' idea," Regulus reminded him quietly.

"I want a look at these worldly possessions," Bella announced loudly. The three rushed across the hall and into Remus' and Sirius' room. Regulus had never actually been inside it before, and marveled. Remus had stacks and stacks of books piled everywhere. Sirius' broom was propped up in one corner, as well as his Beater's gloves and bat. A broom-care kit was sitting next to them.

"He hasn't much," Sirius replied casually. "He must have been preparing for life as a bard before he left."

"What's this?" Bellatrix sounded appalled.

"The bra of one of his conquests," Sirius replied simply. "Women love musicians. I really should have seen it coming."

"If I recall, Aunty made the both of you take up an instrument," Bellatrix said accusingly.

"Ah, well, you'll also remember that I chose the guitar," Sirius replied. "Mum pitched a fit over that one." Regulus heard the smirk dripping from his brother's face.

"Humph. I'll be leaving then. Come along, Rodo."

"Yes love," a low voice said quietly. It was the first time Annabel and Remus had ever heard the man speak. Regulus had heard him once or twice, when he and the Lestrange brothers had gotten pissed after meetings.

"Toodles!" Sirius said cheerfully. "Don't hesitate to be strangers!" Remus chuckled at that. When they heard the front door slam, Remus, Regulus and Annabel felt it was safe to leave the bedroom.

"A bard?" Remus asked with a raised eyebrow.

"I was under pressure," Sirius sniffed. "Now, why did the lovely and fair Annabel want to speak to my rogue of a brother?"

"I'm leaving Peter," she announced definitively.

"That's a shame. You're the only thing I've liked about him of late," Sirius said airily.

"That's not true, Pads," Remus said softly.

"Memories don't count," Sirius huffed. "May I ask why you're leaving him."

"Well, I cheated on him while he was on some mission or another," Annabel explained. "And I'm pregnant with the other man's child."

"Why did Reggie need to know this?" Sirius asked shrewdly. Regulus thought he was asking a few too many questions, really.

"Regulus is the father," Annabel said softly.

"Ah. I told you he was a rogue," Sirius informed her.

"I seduced him!" Annabel yelled in outrage.

"It didn't take much seducing," Regulus pointed out. "I was pretty damn willing."

"I'm sure you were. The Black men are all whores," Sirius proclaimed dramatically. "That is, of course, until we find that special someone who can utterly destroy us if we cheat on them."

"So you're with me out of fear?" Remus asked in a dangerous tone.

"Well, I love you too," Sirius said sheepishly. "And full moons are always rather kinky, but you could snap me in half, had I the gall to cheat on you."

"Digging your own grave, mate," Regulus informed his brother. "Better stop while you're not too far behind."

"OH MOONY! I DO SO LOVE THEE! I JUST SAY THESE THINGS TO BE FACETIOUS!" Sirius cried, dropping onto his knees and begging.

"I forgive you," Remus said. "Just remember, you own me another sexual favor."

"Moony, I owe you all the sexual favors in the world," Sirius replied, standing back up as if he hadn't just been groveling.

"Is it all right if Annabel moves in?" Regulus asked, returning to the matter at hand.

"You ought to get your own place," Sirius replied. "Can't raise a family in the same apartment as a werewolf and his horny boyfriend."

"With stress on the latter person," Remus added, a sharp look at Sirius.

"Well, at least while we look for a place," Regulus replied.

"Of course," Sirius smiled.

"I cannot believe him," Severus was pacing back and forth in the Potters' kitchen, ranting. "He's going to get Pettigrew killed."

"How?" Lily asked. "And if this is a slippery slope argument, I don't want to hear it."

"Life is a slippery slope, Lily," Snape snapped.

"Of course it is," she replied calmly. "You know, Peter's a big boy. He can take care of himself. In fact, he's been dumped before."

"Has he ever been cheated on?" Snape turned and glowered at her.

"Multiple times," Lily replied easily. "He rather expects it at this point. Besides, he was cheating on her."

"He what?" Snape looked shocked. Rose let out a whimper. Harry, more afraid of his mother, just continued banging things against the tray of his highchair.

"You didn't know? I'd thought it was fairly obvious," Lily replied. "Mind, James and company did stalk me for six years, so I suppose I'm rather well-versed in their ways."

"They tormented me," Snape pointed out.

"I lived in the same tower as them," Lily added. "And I was the only prefect actually had the heart to punish them, though I hear Remus used to take points when he was feeling particularly controlling."

"Did the boys know he was cheating on her?" Severus asked.

"I'm sure they did," Lily replied. "It's surprisingly difficult to keep secrets from James and Sirius. They're ridiculously nosy, and Remus reads people just as easily as he reads books."

"Yet I had to tell you he was a traitor," Snape muttered.

"Well it's not as if we weren't used to him pouting all the time," Lily replied. "It was always fairly obvious that he felt inferior to the others. It was just a matter of time before he did something about it, I suppose." She looked thoughtful. "I guess we just never thought he had it in him."

"Petunia ought to be here any moment," Severus replied calmly. Lily nodded.

"Lily, darling, you'll never guess what!" Petunia cried from the front door. She immediately went to the kitchen, where she knew Severus and Lily had to be.

"What?" Lily asked, forcing a smile for her sister, happily taking her nephew into her arms.

"I'm pregnant again!" Petunia cried jovially. "Oh, I do so hope this time it's a girl."

"You hear that, Dudley?" Lily asked the boy. "You're going to be a big brother!"

"Did you tell Vernon?" Snape asked calmly.

"Of course, of course." Petunia waved it off. "I called him this morning at the office. He was thrilled, mind, but he really wants another boy, so we're a bit torn."

"I can only imagine how badly Vernon would spoil a daughter," Lily said, smiling. "And James, of course, is going to be ten times worse with little Rosie."

"My god," Severus muttered, only now thinking of that possibility.

"If I have a girl, I'm going to name her Cupcake," Petunia said decidedly. "All the flower names in the family would make things just atrocious."

"And you couldn't pick something normal?" Lily asked, horrified. Her sister really was cruel when it came to naming children.

"I don't want my darlings to be normal!" Petunia cried. "I have to do something to make them special next to their magical relatives."

"You know, Tuney, I wouldn't be surprised if Dudley ended up a wizard," Lily replied lovingly. "I know it would be difficult for you, but magic tends to be fickle like that."

"It's true," Snape replied. "There's a very good chance that your children will be magic, considering the fact that your sister is a witch."

"All the better!" Petunia cried. "They'll be extra special next to Harry!"

"Considering Lily, they will be talented, despite their muggle family," Severus said in a dry, factual tone, "but Harry, coming from a line like the Potters, will likely be extraordinary even in the wizarding world."

"Heaven forbid he inherits his father's quidditch skills and his ego," Lily muttered disdainfully.

And then, a great silvery dog that looked distinctly like Sirius' animagus form bounded into the room. Lily recognized it as his Patronus. "Lily, trouble. Headquarters," it said in a rushed manner. As this happened, Severus clenched his fists, his face looking pained.

"Battle," was all they said to each other before Severus apparated away.

"Tuney, can you watch the kids," Lily said quickly. "Take them back to Surrey, if you could."

"Of course."

"There are car seats in the kids' bedroom. I'm sure you know where." And with that, Lily apparated away as well.

Annabel was in the flat she and Peter shared, packing up her things. Sirius, Remus and Regulus had hurried off, the first two to the headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix, Regulus off to some creepy graveyard, most likely. They'd mentioned something about a battle, and Annabel knew that, reasonably, she shouldn't expect Regulus to be alive at the end of the night. From what she'd heard, these battles had a tendency to be very fatal to those involved.

Annabel didn't care about any of that. She felt that if she wished hard enough, Regulus would come back safe and sound, no worse for the wear. Her child needed a father, after all, and she was most definitely not going to let that father be Peter Pettigrew. And she couldn't keep this flat anymore. It was dark and disgusting, and she just couldn't take it anymore.

As she flicked her wand, making all her designs and fabric fold themselves neatly into organized stacks, she wondered why she was still there. Her plan had been to move out the day she'd found out about the baby, but she would have to tell Peter. Despite all of it, she still dreaded telling him that he wasn't going to be a part of her life anymore.

Peter had cheated on her. Peter had betrayed his friends. Peter was a bad man. Annabel often wondered why she'd been attracted to him in the first place. She remembered that he was a sweet, shy boy when she'd met him. Ernest and endearing, Peter had looked so dreadfully terrified when he'd asked her out. Annabel just couldn't help but say yes. As the dates dragged on, however, he'd grown more and more rat-like in appearance, and she'd started learning things about him that she didn't like. But she'd stuck with him. By the time she'd started to resent him, it was too late; she was already attached to his friends, too far gone to be saved.

And she'd been afraid they'd reject her. She wasn't the same as them. She didn't have the shared history, the funny anecdotes. She was just the clinger-on. She was what Peter felt he was. That hurt her most of all. And then, Regulus had joined them; become a part of the whole that had been just fine without him, thanks, but now it couldn't be without him. He was gorgeous and lovely and kind. It was really no wonder Annabel had fallen so hard for him; most girls did.

Suddenly, at every gathering, instead of feeling like she didn't belong, she found herself trying to be a part of the group and impress Regulus. And she'd succeeded in one area. She was now inexorably part of the group. And she'd talked to Regulus more and more and fallen harder and harder. And then, one night, when Peter was gone, she could no longer control herself, but it didn't seem to matter because Regulus felt the same way.

Annabel wondered what these people had done to her life. Before she'd met Peter's friends-the Marauders he called them, always the Marauders plus Lily or Snape or Regulus, but always the Marauders-she'd lived a normal, quiet life. As soon as she'd spent one night in their company, however, she was dragged into this world where nothing went according to plan. It was chaos, beautiful chaos, and the Marauders reveled in it, despite Remus' many protests to the contrary. Lily and Severus, even, were quite at peace in this world, but Annabel was hardly used to it.

"Shit! Shit! Cloak! Shit!" Peter cried as he burst into the flat. "Annabel, where's my cloak!"

"On the coat rack," Annabel pointed with the hand that wasn't holding her wand.

"What are you doing?" He asked, noticing the boxes.

"We'll talk later. You've things to do," she replied kindly. "Go." So he did. She sighed. He always seemed so relieved to be out of her company.

Regulus was rather angry. He hated battles. Despised them, really. He didn't like to fight, after all. He was an information gatherer. When the Death Eaters were outnumbered in battles like this, the Dark Lord didn't seem to give a flying fuck.

That wasn't his only reason for being angry, of course. He'd been practicing his animagus transformation with his brother, Remus and Annabel. He'd been so close. At least, Sirius had said he had. According to the wise Sirius Black, when one started sprouting ears and tails, one was very close to mastering the transformation. Regulus had been sprouting the ears and tail for three days and he'd seen no further progress.

No matter how badly the Dark Lord wanted him to fight, Regulus always stayed off at the fringes of the battle. And by the fringes, of course, he meant up in a tree, watching and waiting to Stun people from above with the element of surprise. It worked rather well for him, and he didn't have to kill anyone. Of course, he had to use at least one Unforgivable during a battle or he'd never live it down, but that was simple. He just had to 'accidentally' use the Imperious Curse on one of his fellow Death Eaters and walk him calmly into the line of fire of an Order member.

The battle was moving away from him, but Regulus didn't want to leave his tree. He didn't want to risk sliding down, just to be Stunned by someone who didn't know he was a spy for the Order (which was a great many) or killed by someone who had figured out what he was doing with his Imperious Curses.

So instead, he decided to practice the animagus transformation. After all, if he was a cat, he could leap through the trees. Mind, a sandy-colored cat in the middle of the night was rather conspicuous, but he'd burn that bridge when he came to it. And anyways, he didn't exactly expect much.

You can imagine how surprised he was, then, that he got the transformation on the first try. Sirius had said it would come when he least expected it. In fact, Sirius had said that it would happen when he stopped wanting it so much. Remus had said that they'd been on the way to Hogsmeade for some illicit booze when it had happened. Sirius had been the first of the three to master it, but James had come not long after.

But Regulus in cat form really didn't like thinking this much. Cat-Regulus just wanted to get as far away from the damned battle as he could, so he jumped down from his tree, and wandered toward the town. He was quite glad that the battle had pulled away from it because he really didn't like killing muggles any more than he liked killing wizards. It also meant that the Order was gaining ground.

Cat-Regulus decided that, if asked, he would pretend someone had Confunded him or some such thing. That way, he couldn't really be punished for losing sight of the battle, and instead wandering off. It had worked for people like Goyle who had once tripped over his own feet and knocked himself out.

"Prongsie, are you thinking what I'm thinking?" Sirius asked when he and James were surrounded by Death Eaters. He was referring to a prank they'd pulled in their fifth year by creating a mini-tornado. James, it seemed, was thinking what he was thinking.

"597?" he asked. The boys had numbered their pranks, making quite sure that they could use them again sometime if the occasion arose. Well, Remus had numbered them, knowing quite well that James and Sirius would need to reference them at some point. Failed attempts and plans that never went through were numbered as well because Remus had numbered them as the planning sheets had appeared.

"That's the one," Sirius replied with a grin. They preformed the charm which worked well. All of the Death Eaters were knocked about and ended up lying unconscious, all about five feet away from the boys.

"82!" Remus cried to the two of them. He seemed a bit pressed considering Fenrir Greyback was moving toward him predatorily. Fenrir knew Remus was a werewolf, but Fenrir was definitely an alpha and was probably twice as broad as the frail Remus.

"ARGENTUM BONDUS!" James and Sirius cried together. Silver ropes shot from their wands and bound themselves around Greyback. The prank reference had been a failed attempt to bother Snape. James and Sirius were quite certain that Severus was a vampire in the middle of their first year and had suggested it. They'd even found the charm, thinking that silver was a great way to bind a vampire. Remus then reminded them that it was werewolves who were harmed by silver, not vampires.

"Thanks," Remus said, looking terrified at the sight of Greyback writhing on the ground, trying to get away from the silver. "I never thought that would come in handy."

"I'm very handsy!" Sirius replied jovially, stunning a Death Eater in mid-air as the man tried to jump on him.

"Guys!" Peter cried pitifully. There were great gashes all over his body, and he was lying in a dark puddle. He was losing blood and fast. The Marauders knew that if they didn't get him help quick, he'd be dead within the hour.

"What happened?" Remus asked, horrified.

"Someone used a Diffindo on me," Peter explained.

"You're bleeding everywhere, mate," Sirius said, attempting levity. It didn't work.

"Shit, Pete," James muttered. "We should get you to Pomfrey."

"No, you guys keep fighting," he replied. "I'll be fine. It's not as bad as it looks."

"That's still pretty bad," Sirius said. "I mean, you're covered in cuts, Wormtail, and I don't think that puddle was there before you."

"No, no, I promise," Peter replied adamantly. "I fell into this puddle, I swear. I'll be fine. You don't need to worry about me. We have to win this battle," he tried feebly.

"We know you're a double agent," James said simply. "We know that you'd be perfectly fine with the Death Eaters winning."

"And I can smell that it's all your blood," Remus added sternly.

"I would not!" Peter squeaked in reply to James. "I want the Order to win!"

"You're one of them," Sirius replied stonily.

"But I'm not!" Peter cried. "I mean, I am, but I didn't-I-" he stammered.

"It doesn't matter, Pete," Remus said gently. "Now we'll get you to Pomfrey, and she'll restore your blood. You really ought to stop talking. You're wasting too much energy. Any more blood and you're a goner."

"Just go fight! I'm not worthy of you guys anymore!" Peter cried, angry now. "I was never worth of you, but you liked me anyways, and then I went and betrayed you all, and now I really don't deserve you!"

"Wormtail," James said in a warning tone.

"You've always belonged," Remus said quietly.

"Doesn't matter how worthy you are," Sirius added. "A Marauder's a Marauder."

"That's for a lifetime," James said.

"And your lifetime's not up, Pete," Sirius finished.

"C'mon," Remus said, going for one arm, as Sirius went for the other. They were physically the strongest of the four, and Remus could probably carry Peter himself with his werewolfishness, but with Sirius' help, it wouldn't be much work at all.

"Up we go," Sirius added.

"NO!" Peter was sobbing now. "I don't deserve it! I'm evil!"

"You're not evil, Pete," James said seriously. "Now let us get you to Pomfrey."

"I can't!" Peter cried. "I just wanted to be brave like you!"

"You are brave," Remus replied. "It takes a lot of bravery to take James and Sirius seriously." There was a small, sad smile playing on his face.

"And it takes a lot of courage to tell us all this," James put in.

"But mostly, it takes loads of courage to defy one Marauder, let alone three, and tell them you don't want your life anymore." Sirius looked at Peter seriously. "Is this what you really want."

"It's better this way," Peter replied. "Annabel wants to leave me anyway. I can see it in her eyes. This way, we don't have to worry about it. No one has to get hurt."

"We're hurt, Wormy," Remus replied, tears pricking at his eyes.

"You'll get over it. You're better off without me," Peter replied. "You guys were about ready to dump me too. Sirius isn't very subtle when he's angry with someone." There was a watery smile on Peter's face and tears in his eyes. His voice was getting quieter and quieter, but that was okay. The battle was moving away from them anyways. It seemed to know not to interrupt this.

"Not a chance," James said simply.

"We told you, a Marauder is a Marauder for life," Sirius said shaking his head stubbornly. "And it's not your time to go." Peter was shocked to feel Sirius' tears splattering on his face. He couldn't remember any other time he'd seen Sirius cry. James was wiping his eyes behind his glasses.

"It's better this way," Peter said quietly. "I'm just holding you back."

"You're not!" Sirius shouted. He'd always been the one to turn any negative emotion into fury. Remus bottled it up, let his emotions come and go quietly, unless it was near the full moon, when he exploded. James just let his emotions happen. Sirius tried not to have emotion, but every once in a while, he would shout. Peter thought it was the worst, seeing the one person who was impossible to affect storming, raging, crying.

"Let me go, Padfoot," Peter replied. "It's too late.

"Once more," James said quietly. "The oath once more. I, Prongs."

"I, Wormtail," Peter joined.

"I, Moony," Remus said. His tear-filled eyes were watching Sirius, not Peter, at that moment.

"I, Padfoot, solemnly swear I, and all Marauders everywhere, are up to no good."

"Mischief managed," Peter said as he closed his eyes. Those were his last words.