AN: Okay, so I've done several things in this chapter. As you'll see below, I've introduced several new characters, all of them OCs, and made a completely new storyline. The Wolfstar element of this will be put on the backburner for a long while, as I'd like to develop this idea further. I know it is very farfetched, but I think that's what fanfiction is meant to be. Creating new ideas from an original and running with it. Also, I've decided to give Lyall (Remus' father) a larger part in the story, which will be seen later. As usual, I'd love to hear your thoughts, but especially about this chapter, as it is very different and a bit longer than the rest! So please review!


Uncharacteristically, James woke up first that day. As soon as he woke up, he knew he was doomed. McGonagall was going to kill them. They were, in essence, dead meat. James ran a hand through his bed-hair, and groaned. Duelling in the corridors. Merlin. We're done for. All of his anxieties abated, as he saw Sirius' bed empty, and Remus' fuller than usual. He froze in place for a full ten seconds, before blinking several times at the shared bed. Sirius and Remus were fully-clothed (thankfully), and seemed to be hugging. James seemed to be frozen in place. Remus stirred softly, and seemed to realise he was not alone. Against James' expectation of an expression of shock, Remus simply smiled, and rested his head on Sirius' shoulder, the latter's mane of hair falling serenely on Remus' chest. Remus was in his pyjamas, while Sirius was in the clothes he'd worn when he'd finally came back to the dormitory. This told James that Sirius had gone almost straight to Remus' bed, rather than his own. I knew it, James thought with satisfaction, I bloody knew it. Suddenly, the day seemed a lot less dreadful.

Remus fully awoke before Sirius. When he did, he found the boy in his arms, still asleep. Hang on... What? Remus asked internally, assuming he was still dreaming. Still, he decided to savour the dream, and pulled Sirius slightly in, hugging him tighter. He had no clue of James' presence, but would very shortly. So shortly, in fact that, as Remus hugged Sirius, his green eyes found that of James' hazel ones. Shock hit Remus, and he propelled himself away from Sirius, falling off the bed in the process. James looked amusedly at him. Remus stammered for a few seconds, while James withheld a chuckle. "I wondered when you two would bloody get over yourselves and... Well." James laughed.
"No, we... Didn't." Remus blushed deeply. "He was sad. He just wanted someone to talk to him. And we ended up falling asleep." Remus shrugged, mumbling his words more than saying them. James frowned.
"Huh." He considered the situation. "You weren't complaining, though." James grinned at Remus, who went red again.
"Shut up, Prongs." Remus mumbled, as Sirius finally stirred.

Sirius felt very comfortable in Remus' bed. The mattress seemed to be softer, the sheets were nicer and Remus was warm. Wait. Sirius snapped alert, Remus' bed? Sirius thought frantically. He opened his eyes slowly, and saw Remus and James both looking at him. Oh... Well, bugger. Sirius sat up, sitting back on Remus' bed. Now, how do I play this? Sirius asked himself internally. Admittedly, he was currently very nervous, as one might expect, having been found inside his best friend's bed, where his best friend had been very shortly before. "Morning, Prongs, Moony." Sirius nodded and smiled politely at them. Remus was blushing, and glanced at James.
"Something you want to tell me, Pads?" James asked, looking at Sirius with amusement.
"Erm..." Sirius glanced at Remus, who blushed furiously. "No?" Sirius said, though it was definitely a question.
"Then why, mate, are you in Remus' bed and not – you know – in your own?" James asked, an amused smile on his face.
"Erm..." Sirius laughed nervously. "Funny story." He said, though left it at that, as the other boy they shared the dormitory with, a boy named Evan, burst in.
"Not to worry you guys, but McGonagall's downstairs and... She looks like she wants to hex you." Evan said, looking slightly concerned. He also saw Sirius in Remus' bed, and frowned slightly, but turned back to James. "You might all want to hurry up."

"Never in my entire career," McGonagall was furious, "have I ever heard of such a thing as an eight-man duel in the corridors!" She looked at each of the students. "Now, I understand that Professor Slughorn is punishing his students accordingly. Do not think that, just because you are all from my own house, I will be letting you off easy for this!" They'd never seen McGonagall so angry. "Firstly, each of your parents have been owled informing them of your worrisome actions. Secondly, the Headmaster does not wish to suspend any of you, the Slytherins included. Avery, Wilkes, Mulciber, Macnair and the younger Black," At this, she glanced pointedly at Sirius, "will have separate punishments to you all, and you will all be together." At this, James and Sirius felt a fleeting feeling of hope, which was quickly diminished. "But the punishment in hand is reserved for only those who break the rules in a grievous, harmful and downright dangerous way." They were getting worried now.
"Professor... What is it?" Remus dared ask.
"I'll get to that, Mr. Lupin." McGonagall gave him a reproachful look. Remus knew the reason. He was meant to be the one to control his friends, to keep them from doing things like this. Instead, he'd pretty much instigated the entire thing, assaulted Regulus and allowed the other Slytherins to be assaulted by James and Sirius. "First, I must inform you that, should you not complete this punishment to a satisfactory degree, each and every one of you will be forbidden from Hogsmeade for the remainder of this year, as well as all parties held by Professor Slughorn."
"Professor!" Sirius protested indignantly. "We were just defending ourselves!"
"The students on the other end of this fiasco seem to disagree." McGonagall said shortly. "From what Professor Slughorn has told me, it started as a standoff, which the students do, in fact, take full blame for. However, after this, Mr. Lupin decided to stun the younger Black." Everyone glanced at Remus, apart from McGonagall, who was staring pointedly at each of them in turn. Remus only now realised how silent the Common Room was. Every single Gryffindor student inside was now staring at them, and the situation unfolding before them. None of them were smiling. The Marauders were being caught. "Then, understandably, the Slytherin students pursued Mr. Lupin for a short while. Another standoff, before there was a shower of sparks, and a brutal attack by you two, Potter, Black."
"Lies!" James shouted. "They attacked us, Professor." He knew this was only partly true, but he had to defend himself and his friends.
"Mr. Potter, do not shout at me! Also, do not think I take their word at face value!" McGonagall retorted, glaring James into silence. "Nor does Professor Slughorn believe their version to the word." She told them. "But you have to understand, given your... Rivalry with these particular Slytherins, the blame is going to point to you all."
"Professor..." Evan spoke up. Remus wheeled around, slightly surprised. "I saw it." Evan was lying through his teeth, and Remus knew it. Whether McGonagall did, however, they had yet to see. "The Slytherins were threatening to jinx me and hex me and... They wanted to use Dark Magic on me." Evan looked down, as if remembering the bullying. While McGonagall looked at Evan, the three Marauders involved glanced at each other, each sharing a moment of hope.
"Mr. Garnett... That is a very serious accusation." McGonagall said carefully.
"It's not the first time, Professor! They do it all the time! Usually to younger students but... They must have thought that the storm would have given them some cover to do it to an older student. They caught me by surprise. They were threatening for a few minutes, before James and Sirius found me and they got off me, then. James told me to run, and I started to. Regulus cast a jinx at me, and Remus defended me. That's why Regulus got stunned. Remus was protecting me." Evan gulped softly, looking genuinely sad. "Then, they chased Remus around into a corridor. They were threatening him and trying to get him to beg, before James and Sirius arrived. There were four of the Slytherins left, and Avery was going to curse Remus, while Mulciber, Wilkes and Macnair controlled James and Sirius. Avery must have got distracted, because James managed to jump at him. Sirius stunned Macnair, and that left Wilkes and Mulciber facing James and Sirius, with Remus behind them. The sparks were Remus, but that was just to stop them from getting James and Sirius. Then... Well, all Hell broke loose. I dunno what happened, but Remus ended up stunned, and Mulciber and Wilkes ran away." Evan finished, still looking downtrodden. The Marauders weren't letting their joy show.
"Hmm... Well." McGonagall turned to face Remus, Sirius and James. "If what Mr. Garnett tells me is true, then you can consider yourself to be redeemed, at least in my eyes. But, until then, consider yourself on a very serious warning. And you will all have detention with me tonight, and every night until Sunday." This was four days. McGonagall left, and the three rounded on Evan, looking incredulous.
"How in Merlin's name did you know all that?!" Sirius exclaimed, after they were sure McGonagall was out of earshot.
"Because... It's kinda true. I was there, and they were threatening me. I managed to get away before you lot turned up, though." Evan was grinning. Each of the Marauders that were involved hugged him tightly, laughing. The entire Common Room seemed to be laughing along with them.
"Merlin's pants, Evan... You picked a damn good time to get bullied." Sirius laughed, and looked at Remus.
"If McGonagall finds out that you weren't entirely truthful, you're in trouble too." Remus warned. "Lots of trouble."
"It'd be worth it." Evan shrugged. "We need the Marauders. Gives us a bit of a laugh, doesn't it?" Evan winked, and Remus laughed, shaking his head.


Lyall Lupin was stressed. His office was cluttered, the Head of Department wanted a report by tomorrow that he hadn't even started yet, and his son had been engaged in a duel in the corridors. He'd just received Minerva McGonagall's owl. Lyall was fairly friendly with Minerva, as she had been his Head of House too, before he left Hogwarts. She had been supportive of Dumbledore's decision to allow Remus to study at Hogwarts, despite Lyall's initial hesitance. For five years, Lyall had heard nothing but good things about Remus from Minerva. Now though, she brought news of disruption and dangerous conduct from her handpicked Prefect. Those damned Marauders. Lyall had met them, and they were all lovely, but Remus was too loyal to them. Remus would kill for those three boys and, though Lyall knew that they'd do the same, they did seem to get themselves into a situation that forced danger upon his afflicted son. Lyall's eyes sought the too-familiar wanted poster hung on his office wall. 'Fenrir Greyback – WANTED- REWARD: 5,000 GALLEONS' The poster read, along with a portrait of the disgusting, pathetic, beastly werewolf. Lyall was physically repulsed by the man, with his greasy, stained hair; the evil, wild eyes held within his wretched skull. It had been the stress from Remus' afflictions that had brought his wife down with a fresh round of dragonpox. Lyall had told his son not to worry, but Lyall did nonetheless. Lyall kept his eyes on the moving picture, though it simply gave an evil smirk, inspiring hatred to run through Lyall's veins. In one fluid motion, Lyall had whipped his wand off his desk, and yelled 'Diffindo!' and sliced a fine cut across Greyback's throat, the paper crinkling at the cut, and the formerly moving picture now frozen, with Greyback's smirk still etched onto his face.


It was lunchtime at Hogwarts. It was unseasonably warm, especially seeming as the storm had raged their only the night before. Thankfully, the grass had been magically dried, so the Marauders felt no qualms about sitting on it. They were down by the lake, and were all lounging about. Remus was sat against the tree, and Sirius was lying across Remus' shins. James was sat a little away, and Peter, who had finally woke up, was sat near James. The conversation concerned nothing much, just homework and the next full moon (spoke in very hushed voices). The conversation was light, airy, and no-one made any mention of the position Remus and Sirius had been found in. Remus had a book in his hands,what Remus called a half-blood adventure story, meaning that it was mostly Muggle, with magic mixed in. In reality, Remus was bored. Seemingly, James was too, as he stood up, looking across the lake. "Hmm. What do you say to a bit of a game, guys?" He asked, as he turned to the other Marauders.
"Depends on what it is." Remus commented, putting his book down.
"Well... I tell you what, I'll transfigure us a load of paper." James said, and did just that, conjuring a stack of paper out of nowhere. "Right. We'll take it in turns." He said, smiling softly. "We'll turn them into airplanes, and send them across the lake. One by one, we'll jinx or hex them down." James shrugged. The other three jumped to their feet.
"Alright. I'll cast first." Sirius grinned, and brought out his wand. James nodded, and magically made the first piece of paper into an airplane, sending it over the lake. Sirius frowned in concentration and cast a jinx at it, knocking it out of the air. The airplane landed in the water and dissolved. Sirius grinned and hit the air in triumph. "Ha! Alright, your turn, Moony."
"Hmm. Alright, then." Remus stepped forward, bringing up his wand. James let loose another plane, and sent it sailing across the lake. Without a moment's hesitation, Remus brought it out of the air, muttering 'Diffindo' under his breath, slicing the plane in half.
"Impressive, Rem." James grinned. "Alright, Petey, your turn!"
"Okay!" Peter grinned gleefully, and stepped forward. James sent one flying over the lake and, despite a few misses, Peter eventually jinxed it out of the air, igniting it as he did.
"Nice one, Wormy!" Sirius grinned. It went on for a few more rounds, before Remus stopped and stared behind the tree.
"Oh, bugger." He mumbled, then turned to the other three. "James, Sirius, I'm warning you. Behave." He said, as Snape wandered down the path, head down.
"Yeah, right." James immediately went from happy to annoyed. He turned his wand upon Snape, though didn't cast. "Oi, Snivellus!" He yelled, and the greasy-haired Slytherin turned to him.
"Want something, idiot?" Severus asked, glaring at James. Sirius was by James' side, while Remus and Peter stood back.
"How about we get you like we got your friends? You're all in the same group, right? The Future Death Eaters club, correct?" Sirius asked, twiddling his wand in his hand.
"From what I've heard, it wasn't what you did to them. It was more that half-breed." Severus inclined his head at Remus. Remus felt a pang of fury, but did nothing. James and Sirius, however, aimed their wands at him.
"How dare you, Snape?" James hissed. "You dare call our friend... That? You and your Death Eater friends go around cursing anyone who annoys you, and you have the temerity to insult our friend on something he can't control?" He asked, raising his voice slowly. Severus showed no sign of submission, however.
"And you're different, are you? You used to hex any unfortunate kid who crossed your path!" Severus wasn't shouting, but the anger in his voice was obvious.
"Yeah, we're different, Snivellus." Sirius snarled. "We don't go around insulting people on their blood status. Like you have any right, anyway. You're a half-blood!" Sirius growled. Severus snarled and aimed his wand at him.
"My blood's cleaner than his!" Severus once again aimed his head at Remus, who simply stood there, remaining calm.
"Yeah, right." James snorted. "Blood purity doesn't mean a thing, Snape." James said his name like an insult. "We're all magical, it doesn't matter. He's better than you are, and you're both half-blood. Lily's better than me, and she's muggle-born." At this, Remus looked at James in slight astonishment. It was very rare he admitted anyone being better than him. He turned back to Severus.
"Hmm. When the Dark Lord takes over, blood purity will matter." Severus snarled. He began to stride off, before turning back to them. "Oh. Macnair told me to tell you that, erm... Oh yes. He said: 'You might have pulled the wool over that old bat's eyes, but there will be consequences.'." Severus said, and smirked smugly, before walking off. James raised his wand to hex him, but Remus pushed his hand down.
"It's not worth it." He mumbled.
"Did you hear what he was saying, Remus?" James asked incredulously. "He was insulting you. I'm duty-bound to get him." James once again raised him.
"No, James. I don't care what he says. Think of the trouble we'll all be in if you do." Remus warned. Sirius also looked conflicted.
"Hmm. That git'd deserve it, though." Sirius frowned.
"Yes, but be thankful." Remus smiled softly. "After all, he hasn't told anyone about me."

When James and Sirius had finally calmed down, they headed back up to the castle. It was lunchtime, and they were burning with hunger. James was walking in front with Sirius, while Peter and Remus trailed slightly behind. Everywhere, people were glancing at them, obviously having heard about the events of the previous day. Remus felt slightly abashed at everyone looking at him, while James and Sirius swelled with pride. Peter just stared at the ground, not taking any notice. James and Sirius were used to being stared at, being two of the most popular boys in school, but Remus never enjoyed the experience. He felt like he was some sort of exhibit, and people were mumbling 'That's him. The one that stunned Regulus.' Someone actually came up to them and told them how thankful they were, as the Slytherins who had been fought had been bullying them and their friends. This made Remus feel less of the already negligible guilt he felt for his actions. Looking around, Remus saw Ravenclaws, Hufflepuffs and even some Slytherins looking at them in admiration. Remus glanced at James and Sirius, who were smiling broadly around. Hmm. They must be used to this sort of thing. Remus thought, shrugging. Soon, they were in the Common Room.

The Common Room was surprisingly full. In fact, something struck Remus as being out of place. With a start, he realised there was yellow and blue mixed in with the red ties and bands on the jumpers. James and Sirius seemed to have realised this too, as they stopped and stared at the crowd. "Remus... Is this meant to happen?" Peter asked out of the side of his mouth."
"Erm... No, Petey. No, it isn't." Remus answered, blinking.
"Rem?" Sirius also mumbled. "How is this possible?"
"I don't know, Sirius." Remus answered, gulping. James frowned and walked to the front of the Common Room, having to make his way through a large crowd.
"Guys?" James asked, but no-one quietened. "GUYS!" James bellowed. Everyone went silent immediately. The other Marauders joined him at the front. "What in Merlin's name is going on?"
"They all came to me in the Great Hall and asked if they could come back to the Common Room with me. We had to beg and bribe the Fat Lady."
"How- Never mind. Why are you all here?" Sirius asked, standing by James' side. Remus stood to the side, and Peter with him.
"We want to thank you." One of the Ravenclaws answered. He was tall, and in the year above the Marauders.
"Why? They can't have bullied you quite as severely." Remus frowned. Remus recognised the boy, where the other Marauders probably wouldn't. His name was Keiran Decebal. He was one of the best wizards in the school currently, and was extremely powerful. He was also Head Boy.
"Because you showed the entire school that the bullies can be beaten." Keiran answered, smiling at Remus. The gaze shared between them lingered for a moment, before another voice spoke up.
"We want you to teach us." The voice asked. Hannah Jackson, a muggle-born Hufflepuff spoke up. "Evan said you took down five of them, just the three of them."
"It wasn't quite as... Heroic as Evan said." James frowned, looking at Evan as he said it. Evan simply shrugged, smiling.
"We know." Keiran once again spoke. "We know that he might have exaggerated. But that doesn't change the fact you beat five Slytherins, all of whom are fairly skilled, with three of you." The boy smiled, and glanced at Remus. Remus caught his eye and smiled softly, though he turned a bit red. "It's about time someone stood up to them. And everyone here's willing, if you show them how."
"Mate, you don't understand. What we did wasn't magic. Most of it was just... Punching and hitting." Sirius frowned. "Yes, we defeated five of them. But we only got three of them, and Remus got stunned. We aren't the best people to ask."
"I disagree." Marlene walked to the front. "You three took on the people that have terrorised this school for years. And you won. We all saw them, skittering into the hall with their tails between their legs. You humiliated them. And, let's be honest... They're gonna want revenge, and there's a lot of Slytherins who'd like nothing more than to get you." Marlene was staring at Sirius. "You're gonna need all the help you can get, when that happens."
"We don't want a war, Marlene." Remus warned. "There's enough of that already."
"Yeah, and if they attack you, you'll be beaten in seconds. You might be good, but you can't take on the entirety of Slytherin house by yourselves." Marlene argued, looking slightly irked. Remus paused, then looked at the room at large.
"What do you want us to teach you, anyway?" Remus asked, blinking.
"How to fight in groups. They teach us the spells, but they don't teach us how to use them properly. We need to learn how to put them into practice." Evan said, smiling at the Marauders. "When we leave, we're likely to need it. You-Know-Who's getting more powerful by the day."
"You know," James began, seeming to give in, "you could have just asked us at Hogsmeade."
"That takes the fun out of it, though." Keiran grinned. "Now, shall we get to business?"

In a few hours, it was sorted. They would all meet once every two weeks in the lower courtyard, which was very rarely used. They would practice one spell every 'session', and the Marauders were all given roles, along with the other older students. They would all be instructing, but they had specific roles. James and Sirius would be in charge of organising the meetings; Peter would be in charge of making sure no-one else found out, through heavy use of charms; Remus would be in charge of healing whatever damage came from the sessions; Marlene would be in charge of deciding the subject of the sessions; and Keiran would be in charge of organising the students attending, and keeping the teachers unsuspecting. It took almost all night to get everyone out that didn't belong there, and Keiran flashed Remus a smile and a wink as he left but, soon enough, the Common Room was empty but for the Gryffindors. James grinned at them all. "That's interesting."
"You don't say." Sirius laughed. "This should be fun."
"We have to be careful. If we get caught, we're done for." Remus interjected.
"Yeah, yeah..." James smiled softly, and looked at Remus. "You know, I think that Keiran likes you, Moony." James laughed. Remus blushed deeply.
"Hmm. I'd have to agree." Sirius smirked. "He certainly looked at you enough."
"Don't be so stupid." Remus rolled his eyes, having turned bright scarlet. "Why would he like me?"
"Good question. Maybe you should ask him tomorrow." Marlene chuckled. "I mean, you will see him tomorrow." Yes. Remus would see him tomorrow. That was their first meeting.


End of Part I - The Beginning