Chapter 2

Mortimer regarded the approaching group with some trepidation. The tall pretty girl with oriental looks must be Mei Chang; the little elf in a red sun frock was Polly. The three boys differed wildly in looks. One was a delicate looking individual with golden curls who looked a cissy – or would have done if he wasn't busy in a bit of fisticuffs with the dark haired untidy boy – and the third was a neat lad, tall and good looking without any remarkable features and with nondescript brownish blonde hair.

"Hi Mortimer" said Mei "Ignore Mad and Leo; Leo was so tasteless as to comment on Mad's pwetty darwling curwls."

"The curls don't do him any favours" said Mortimer.

"Are you telling me?" said Mad "My mum however likes them; she's daft that way, and I love her enough not to make a fuss – well not too much – in the hols. I cut them short for school, don't worry you won't have to associate with a figure of fun around normal people. Lydia grows them for me before the hols each time so the Mater doesn't have conniptions. I AM going to put my foot down when I have OWLs but in the meantime it don't hurt me and makes her happy so where's the harm? The people I think most of know I'm not a precious pet, so I don't care. Unless they make tasteless remarks" he added, aiming a kick at Leo.

"Pax, old man, I apologise!" laughed Leo "It was too tempting not to comment; you looked far too precious to be walking past Kordach's, how could I resist asking if you were applying for the job of one of his beauties?"

Mortimer laughed.

"I see the temptation but equally I can see why retaliation was deserved and required!" he said.

"Exactly" said Chad, speaking for the first time. "I stay WELL out of things like that; whatever I may think. The only thing I get partisan about is NOT supporting Montrose Magpies."

"I'll bite" said Mortimer.

"Eunice Murray's great nephew is in our house and he's a bit of a brat" said Chad "He's not quite so brattish as he was – unlike the GREAT Amos Leroy – but he's still known as Me-first Murray with good reason. I SIT on kids like that."

"The GREAT Amos Leroy? You mean the great AMOS LEROY?" asked Mortimer.

"Yeah. Don't say you've heard of him?" Chad looked dismayed.

"No" said Mortimer "It just seemed the right sort of comment to make. Never heard of him at all."

They laughed.

"He'll do" said Mad. "So long as he only EVER calls me Mad and doesn't ever use my real name."

"I don't even know it so that's all right" said Mortimer.

"He ought to know in case he encounters your mum" said Mei "He's – don't laugh – Amadeo Hero Lockhart and when he hasn't had his hair sorted he looks like he deserves it."

"Crumbs!" said Mortimer with deep feeling.

"Mind you, Amos Leroy looks like he deserves it and he really does" said Mad cheerfully. "He LIKES having golden curls can you believe it? He looks like that awful kid in the Fairywood tales, Chrysogon Rufus."

"They got books about him in the creche, and poems too" said Mortimer. "He seems a bit much to take."

"Oh it wouldn't be quite so bad if he wasn't really worse than the poems" said Mad mournfully "I'm afraid he's distantly related to me; he's about nine or ten now so with luck we'll have left if he comes to Hogwarts. Unless he goes to Hellibores" he brightened. "Which he might because some of my relatives do. His mother's a connection of my father and I'm afraid he has the same surname; just as I thought I'd lived down my father too! How can we ever forget that dear sweet poem that ends every verse with 'Chrysogon Rufus is feeding the gnomes'?"

"Be fair Mad" said Lydia "WE were all expecting you to be awful based on what Pris said bout you, 'cos she'd only ever seen you with your mum and didn't realise what a demon you really are. She had it all wrong; you might too."

"Well I guess" said Mad "But I fear I doubt it. Last time I saw him I tried very hard to get him to come out and get mucky - and I PROMISED I could get him clean again too – and he threw a blue fit. You'd have thought I threatened to kill the brat!"

"Hmm that does sound fairly conclusive" said Chad "Mind you, I KNOW you, Mad Lockhart; and if you said you'd let him play hurley or something similar then the poor brat could be forgiven for thinking you wanted to kill him. I've SEEN you play hurley. Hell, I've been on the opposing team and that SMARTS!"

"You play hurley at Hogwarts?" Mortimer was surprised.

"Only informally" said Mei "It's for fun and it helps us with Hockey, which is a muggle game, but we play muggle sports so we can have fixtures with muggle schools and hide us by obviousness. It's fun too. Hockey's less violent than hurley but we keep hurley up because we've had problems with the fey before. And so we may need to defeat them at Hurley like we have done at quidditch. Well, WE haven't but older Marauders have; even Hawke and Abraxus and Romulus were too young for that one. It was the original Marauders and Harry and co. By the way people, as Hawke hinted heavily and as he feels okay, are we bringing him in?"

"I thought he might like to find his feet first and decide if he's going to combine with us" said Lydia mildly. "He might find Lionel's bunch more convivial; and that's not a problem as we all work together. Or he might not want to join a blood group at all; some people don't you know. Giving Mort the choice seemed kind of a little more courteous."

"I would like to wait and find my feet before I make up my mind about anything big" said Mortimer, his head spinning a little at realising he had just been invited to join something a little more serious than just a gang.

"Yes, anyone with sense would" said Chad "Which is why we jumped in with both feet; we don't HAVE any sense. Mind, they had been working with us, the next Marauders up, before we were brought in, them and the New Marauders – that's the Malfoy Twins, Rom Snape, Kinat and part time Willow Prince-Black" he explained.

"It – it's blood ritual? And they're Marauders too? Professor Hawke never said!" said Mortimer.

"Didn't want to prejudice you against the rest of us!" laughed Lydia

Mortimer opened his mouth to defend Professor Hawke then realised she was teasing and grinned shamefaced.

"Well I SHOULD like to wait a while" he said "Find my feet on my own without feeling that I'm protected by a gang that's considered prestigious; even I know THAT much about Marauders."

"That's more than chill" said Mad.

"Reckon you're all right" said Leo – it has to be said a trifle reluctantly – glancing at Lydia to see what she thought of Mortimer.

She plainly liked him.

Leo sighed; the look she was giving him was a 'keep your mouth shut and don't interfere' look.

If she chose this Mortimer over him, and he WAS a marauder he would have to accept it; as Severus accepted Lily loving James. Leo did not know much about the original Marauders save that there had been a few issues between Prongs and Scales but that they were long since resolved. It was real Maraudery brotherly love to accept when the girl you fancied like mad chose another of your brothers.

And Hawke thought this was another brother for them.

Well Lydia wasn't blind to his partiality anyway; and she wasn't playing games, just not sure yet. And that was all right; he'd wait for her to make up her mind and he'd try to be patient about it.

Girls were weird.

Some of them marked out their man really early – like Lynx had marked out Hawke when she was in the first year! – and others seemed to take their own sweet time about realising who loved them most.

VERY peculiar.

Lydia was frowning.

"You know" she said "Chrysogon is a GIRLS name; it's ancient Greek it means golden woman. The male version is Chrysander."

"Yeah, but then there's Newt Scamander" said Chad "His full name is Newton Artemis Fido Scamander. And Artemis is the name of a Greek goddess you know."

"Yes of course it is!" said Lydia "Crumbs! How iggerant some parents can be!"

"Well only to be expected with the Lockharts I'm afraid" said Mad "Married into the Hellibores through the astounding good looks of my grandfather, and terribly keen on impressing the posh people we're associated with by picking names with what sounds like cachet. Mei, when we gat hitched, let's call our brats things like Fred or Enid; nice plain down to earth names."

Mei laughed.

"We'll call them something sensible certainly; and probably after other Marauders" she said "Keep up the traditions. James for a boy perhaps or Harry and I guess Hermione's not TOO outlandish or massage Severus into Vera or something. Or Ron into Rona or Ronalda."

"Yeah, normal sounding names" said Mad equably. "Heh HOW he's going to be ragged for having a girl's name!"

"If, alas, anyone even realises" said Lydia in a hollowly mournful voice"They let all sorts of riff-raff into Hogwarts these days, Malfoys and the like."

There was much laughter especially from Mortimer who had not quite adapted to Lydia's rather straight faced humour yet!

Lydia had lost attention; and sprang to her feet, grimly determined as a well-robed individual held his wand on a man out with his pregnant wife and a small girl of about thirteen.

"Don't you give me 'cured' Ulric Rolf" the aggressor snarled "I know because I checked that you've not made registry with the Werewolf office for years before the cure even came out! And you haven't even registered your daughter!"

"And that" said Lydia crisply behind him "Is because Mr Rolf was a volunteer for the experimental and more painful cures that preceded those now considered acceptable."

The man swung round and sneered.

"Beat it kid" he said "What could YOU know?"

"A sight more than you, apparently" Lydia permitted herself a Malfoyish sneer "Since MY father, Professor Severus Snape, was the one who developed the cure; and Mr Rolf lived in chambers attached to Hogwarts while he was being an experimental subject. Also I know that Kelly here is Mr Rolf's stepdaughter and as a muggle she goes to Rowan House School; she has never been a werewolf and therefore does not require registry. And I suggest you use Scarpin's Revellaspell before you go any further and lay yourself open to charges from the Rolfs of harassment, actual bodily harm and muggle baiting. And if you don't then I shall call in my cousin Draco and have you arrested. You bounty hunters are scum" she added scornfully.

The man flushed.

He did, however, prepare his wand.

"Careful" said Lydia "Make sure you say the incantation slowly and clearly so we know your intentions precisely."

He scowled; and repeated the words.

He looked bemused.

"But…. It says he's NOT a werewolf!" he said.

"Precisely" said Lydia coldly "As I told you; and as Mr Rolf had already told you. I suggest it would be better for your health to be as far away from here as is possible as soon as possible. Before I think of more legal ways to cause you grief. You were still here why?"

He took one look at her, face set with fury and scar blazing; and turned on his heel.

"Git" said Lydia "You all right, Mr Rolf, Madam Rolf?"

"Yes thank you, er, Lydia, isn't it?" said Rolf. "Very kind of you to intervene!"

"Does this happen often?" asked Lydia.

"No, fortunately! I had a little trouble at first; but that died down. Only now there's an official cure, until you can prove you've applied for it the werewolf hunters are busy hassling to see if you LIKE being a werewolf. And of course, there are still entries of me being a werewolf and of course I HAVEN'T applied because I already took the previous cure…."

"Hmmph" said Lydia "There's another werewolf too, works for Sirius Black, and of course Remus Lupin; I guess I'd better talk to Draco anyway and have him check that they ARE logged as cured, and you too."

"Thank you so much! Your whole family and Mr Fraser have been very good to me, and my family!" said Ulric Rolf sincerely.

"Well, being nice to each other is what makes the world go round, isn't it?" said Lydia dismissively. "You okay sprout?" to Kelly.

Kelly nodded wordlessly.

She was holding her own in the wizarding community as a sensitive, and now with a wizard for a stepfather felt much more a part of it; and definitely happier than in her previous much bullied existence! However, people like Malfoys DID rather make her feel a bit lost for words!

Lydia rejoined her friends and explained what had been happening.

"Gosh, is your father a relative to our Professor Snape then?" asked Mortimer.

"Oh yes, Romulus is my brother" said Lydia "Adoptive brother; all us older ones are adopted. Dad collected a selection of kids who were otherwise unwanted for some reason or other. Lilith's the oldest of us who's mum and dad's actual child but nobody really remembers or cares you know. It's a scream to us that Rom is also Professor Snape and we wind him up in the hols; which I can tell you now because you don't have to be all respectful at him any more. Dad's not teaching at Hogwarts anymore, he's head master in Prince Peak in Austria. My sister Jade's there. She's putting up for the Triwizard; will you? I would if it was at Hogwarts this time, but I'd have to do an awfully complex chant and dance to confund the Goblet of Fire to accept me under age and I'd never be able to persuade Professor Dumbledore to take me to Durmstrang to even try it" she said mournfully "Besides, you can bet your boots with the headmasters out of the school and supposedly the best warriors, Gerhardt and his minions will just LOVE to try an invasion of either us or Prince Peak!"

This necessitated an explanation about Odessa and its prince and his ambitions to control the English by controlling their education. Mortimer was shocked at what had already gone on; and said so.

"I suppose that's why our professors at the free school are so hard" he said. "Would it be wrong of me to have a shot at the Triwizard not stay as a defender?"

"Well if you're it, it's as much your duty to uphold the reputation of the English teaching system" said Lydia "And if you're not, our champion's going to need supporters there too, you know!"

"Well I guess I might" said Mortimer "Reckon if the free school was registered to be a part of it I'd be the champion of there right enough" he tried not to feel resentful.

"Yes, that's no doubt" said Polly speaking up for the first time "But really, would you feel comfortable when as yet you'd not really have any competition? After all, if you were chosen as a sixth school and then the other contestants knew much more than you, you'd feel you'd let your school down. And maybe you do know more than the French kids, say; but I wouldn't want to try for it even though I'm as hard at spells as most of the sixth you know; because I've been in education no longer than you and this is one TOUGH competition! In a few years, the free school might well be a contender and then it'll be all good; but if you want to try, reckon you ought to see what competition you're up against in just one other school."

"Harsh, Mortimer, but I'm afraid fair" said Lydia. "I guess you're used to being the tops; and don't let anyone tell you you're not good with five 'O' grade OWLs plus whatever other OWLs you have; but we have people who are taking six or seven NEWTs entering the Triwizard, and Dumbledore asked Lionel Dell to stay on a year to take two more NEWTs on top of the seven he just completed, five at 'O' two at 'E' so I've heard. Dumbledore wants Durmstrang COWED; and they did it with Viktor Krumm two competitions ago so it's not illegal. And in Prince Peak, Jade, m'sister, who's a year ahead of herself, could take on Lionel any day."

"We reckon any one of us – except maybe Polly because she's not ruthless enough – could lick any German or Frenchman in the competition and certainly any from Hellibore's Academy for Wankers" said Chad. "And we're only a little older than HARRY was when he got tricked into doing it. And actually I really would back Polly 'cos it's only Polly doubts herself at all."

"I do not doubt my ability!" squeaked Polly indignantly "I just think that I lack silly little bits of esoteric knowledge that make all the difference between just winning over these foreigners and doing it in style with – with aplomb and panache!"

"What she said" said Leo lazily. "Reckon in any school but Hogwarts you'd be in for a good shout, Mortimer; but you'll be with a tough group. A tough enough group to fight any dark wizards that decide to make our champion, whoever it is, a hostage."

Mortimer stared.

"I see" he said slowly "So chosen or no, I'd be a bodyguard….. serve a useful purpose."

"Quite" said Mad. "It's what we do. Mei's going in for it; and then we'll have one of OUR bloodgroup there and the rest to communicate with at school…..likewise Lionel will have HIS group back in England to back him and send warnings."

"It's a rather bigger matter than I'd realised" said Mortimer "And it ain't just about posh kids showing off how good they can hurl spells, is it?"

"No" said Mei "It's about overgrown adult German kids stamping their feet and hurling their toys out of the pram because they can't have what they want. And that's to rule the world. And while England keeps opposing them they're a bit stymied as to how to do that!"

Mortimer was suddenly feeling that he was entering a much bigger world than he even realised existed!

The Mad Marauders and Mortimer hung about Obscura Alley long enough to watch the auction on the Burke shop. Dimsie Burke had discussed with her father's factor that rather than sort out having a shopkeeper brought in, the sale of the shop would make sense; the proceeds to be invested carefully to pay for her and her brothers' education and any extra care her mother needed in St Mungo's Janus Thickey ward. Her father had been sentenced to fourteen to thirty years in Azkaban; and Dimsie considered herself the one in charge of the family now. And she did not want a shop, especially one with the sort of associations of wrong doing that this one had.

Lydia took a personal interest because Pete Prince Thomson was hoping to buy it – with Severus' sponsorship – to set up an apothecary's shop. An efficient one was needed in this neighbourhood; the brothers Grubbe who had sold some cures and a few dodgier potions were long since in Azkaban; and the existing apothecary was whispered to sample his own home brew.

Also bidding on the shop was Albert Jackman, who had left school that summer and whose forehead still said 'thief' under a thick layer of cosmetic cream from the sweeties he had stolen, cursed to react so if taken without permission. Fred – or George – Weasley was in the alley with samples of their new line of thief-proof-sweeties pointing at Jackman as an example, which was NOT improving his temper. What Jackman wanted with a shop nobody quite knew; but judging from his interest in buying it contents and all he was interested in being the new Borgin and Burke's purveyor of dodgy magical items.

As Dimsie Burke had already agreed that it was to be a sale of the shop only and that anything within it were to be handed over to Severus and Lucius to destroy or vet he would be disappointed; but that was yet to be made clear.

The Mad Marauders were glad to see fair play done; none of them trusted Jackman further than Polly could have kicked him without magic; and that he was likely to try to confund Pete they did not doubt.

He was taken aback and lost some interest when Dimsie's factor announced that the contents were not included within the sale; but the location of the shop was good, easy to reach for a wide range of clientele, not so far off the beaten track that more up market wizards would wholly shun it; and yet near enough the shadier ends of town to acquire shadier items.

Pete had spent long enough in Hogwarts to know Jackman; and to have acquired a personal enmity for him. Pete had acted as classroom assistant while he caught up the gaps in his knowledge then joined classes with Jackman's age group; and the comments from Jackman about having to be in school alongside a servant had been edifying about the boy's nature. It was true that Jackman had shut up – in a hurry – when Lionel Dell had apprised him of the fact that Pete was Professor Snape's cousin who had been held back by what he implied was illness to prevent Jackman sneering at Pete's poverty; but Pete already knew his true colours. Pete knew that cousin Severus would let him go to any sum to buy the shop to prevent Jackman getting it; and at least he had a rich enough wife to make that feasible! He settled back to the auction therefore without any need to get tense or concerned.

Had Dimsie known that Professor Snape had been interested on behalf of his cousin she would have made a private sale despite what her factor said; but it was too late now. At least she had agreed to make a private sale of any such items as he wanted to him; as well as having the darker ones dealt with without any further trouble from aurors.

Fred – or George – was joined by George – or Fred – who had an arm around Garjala.

The goblin girl had approached them as soon as she left school for a job in their factory producing such toys as those she had invented some years before. They had promptly made her head of research, given her a small facility and some staff and left her to get on with it. This level of trust had assuaged her father's wrath somewhat as he felt it a waste of a girl who had five good NEWTs – four of them being 'O' grade – to be wasting herself in a factory job. Making toys was always Garjala's ambition; and working alongside Fred and George – whom SHE could tell apart – had reminded her of another old ambition and it was rumoured that she had the intention of being Madam Weasley and that was with both.

Fred and George were, after all, closer than most twins, even finishing each other's sentences.

They had all convened to point and giggle at Jackman and put him off his stride; and maybe to bid as well.

"Hello small Snapeling – though actually not so small really, any more" said Fred – or George "Who's this Pete Thomson character, you any idea?"

"Yes he's my cousin and dad's putting up the spondulicks" said Lydia smiling primly "I think you'd do better waiting until the other apothecary is driven out of business by his excellence and have his shop instead; besides, he's nearer the ice cream vendor and that'd be a better location for your line of goods, wouldn't it?"

"By jove that IS a point" said George – or Fred. "Is it true the apothecary is Felix Fiend?"

"Come again?" asked Lydia "I thought he was supposed to be a drunkard."

"Oh, well he may be; but we heard he was a Felix fiend" said Fred – or George. "You look confused – and there was me thinking you Snapelings knew ALL the sordid business in town! You know Felix Felicis normally brings you luck, right?"

"Yes of course" said Lydia "I've helped brew it too."

"Which is more than most people can effectively. And there's two kinds of Felix Fiend; the ones who get to rely on taking Liquid Luck and start to poison their system they take so much of it; because if you take too high a dose or take it too often you start producing something like what Mackled Malaclaws produce in their venom in your own body when you DON'T take it; only then you take more, and in higher doses it's poisonous. That's the rich man's felix. The poorer man's felix – mind it still costs a bomb – is with the failed potion, you know, it makes people FEEL like they're invincible but it's a sham. And people just take that for the feel good factor because it's not got the embarrassing side effects the Elixir to induce Euphoria can have. It's one of those scandals that's kept pretty quiet; dad thinks at least three people in the ministry were being controlled by Deatheaters by blackmail over their habit. I guess they only didn't ask Severus to brew some because Severus is notoriously full of integrity over his potioneering."

"More likely they didn't want to owe him a favour" said Lydia cynically "Yaxley was in charge of subverting the ministry as I recall; owe dad a favour? I don't think so!" she was profoundly shocked at such misuse of the king of all potions!

"Well you're probably right at that" said George – or Fred. "Sorry to dash all your illusions Lydia! But you need to know these things I guess."

"I do" said Lydia grimly, glancing at her equally shocked friends "We all do. I'll let the rest of the Blood group know."

"You'll probably find Harry and Draco as aurors already do" said Fred – or George. "They'll assume Sev knows and told the rest of you I suppose."

Lydia was pretty certain this was something her father did NOT know; and resolved to contact him as soon as she might send a blood throb to request mind-to-mind communication.

He needed to be aware; even if looking for antidotes for a self-induced poisoning was not a priority.

Jackman, already rattled by being pointed and giggled at by various people was moved to turn on taunting and abuse by children he already loathed and the urchin they seemed to have made friends with; and Pete quickly put in another bid, and by the time Jackman finished telling the Snape brat what he would like to do to her, the gavel had come down.

He was serenaded by a collective seven-strong raspberry as he realised what had happened.

A job well done, the Mad Marauders and Mortimer wandered off in deep content to reward themselves with ices and to go on a tour of the rest of the Umbrous Lane complex under Mortimer's guidance.

Lydia had mollified him over that by pointing out that any of them might end up teaching here too and it would be a good idea to know the problems faced by the inhabitants as much as needing to know the vices of the rich like Felix abuse.

Mortimer was fairly well known; and known to take no shit, and so avoided by any who counted themselves hard enough in the normal way to hassle pretty and well dressed girls.

One half Goblin boy did make a few comments about how much Lydia would fetch hired out by the quarter hour; and Lydia walked smilingly up to him, kneed him painfully, nutted him as he bent forward and rabbit punched the back of his neck.

"Don't make comments like that about me again" she said smiling sweetly.

Mortimer was much impressed.

So was Leo.

He had been about to jump the boy himself but Chad had grabbed his arm and muttered 'better if she does'.

It certainly shamed the boy far more to be taken down by a girl!

The kids here could all do with feeding up.

Lydia had never seen such poverty; but she had seen the same sorts of faces, from when they had been in the orphanage; the looks of oppressed hopelessness.

She swallowed hard.

"I think" she said "I need to share something with people who don't know; have you got somewhere we can go, Mortimer?"

He nodded, bemused.

They returned to the school building and sat in the kitchen, with Diccy the head school elf making cocoa as Lydia told about the orphanage Krait had grown up in looking after Jade and her until Severus had taken them out. She described how the scars on Krait's back and Jade's counted as cursed wounds although inflicted by muggles; and how the looks in the faces of the worst oppressed in Umbrous Place North had recalled to her the faces both in the mirror and all around.

Her bloodkin were sending love and support; and Mortimer was horrified.

The idea that a posh kid like this – so beautiful a little doll of a creature too – should have suffered like that seemed wrong; and indeed it seemed almost worse than the situation of just about everyone he knew!

He reached out a tentative hand; and Lydia took it.

"I dunno what to say" he said.

She smiled tremulously.

"You said it in offering support" she said. "I had to tell you what I was being weak over; I don't have nightmares now, and it doesn't scare me any more – a boggart is just a boggart – but I get upset and angry when I see that look, specially when I know there's not a lot I can do without a lot of preparation and having to wait. You know."

The others made murmurs of assent.

"We feel the same, Lydia; only we don't know enough to recognise it the way you do" said Leo staunchly "We may not know about it the way you do, but we still want to fight it!"

"And it's like a sort of slavery!" squeaked Polly "And I'm not the first person to say so, 'cos the SAS, Roger Blake's Society Against Slavery says so too, that being kept hopeless in a bad situation is a slavery of the mind!"

"And we'll all fight it" said Mei "And THAT's what's being Marauders is about; fighting all injustice whether it's made by tyrants or just by the injustices in the system!"

Mortimer said nothing; but he was certainly being drawn to the idea of being a Marauder!