Chapter 17: Marauders to the Rescue
"Watch where you're going, Mudblood." Lucius Malfoy hovered at a boy who was much shorter and smaller than him.
"Apologise." Vaness Crabbe sneered at the blonde haired boy while Gordon Goyle pinned the poor boy on the wall and tugged his hair.
"Sorry." The boy muttered inaudibly.
"Louder." Severus Snape yelled at the now messy haired boy.
"What do you think you are doing?" James yelled across the corridor, directly at Lucius.
"Look, it's Potty, Blackie and Loony again." Lucius told the other three guys and they broke into laughter.
"Let him go or we shall not let you off." Sirus came forward and glared at Lucius.
"Well, you don't think you're a hero, do you?" Severus returned the glare at Sirus.
"Let him off." Remus said in a calm and composed manner.
"Why should we??" Lucius replied, grabbing the boy's collar tighter as he spoke. The boy winced and looked like he was about to burst into tears.
"Four guys bullying a poor fellow. What do you think people will say about you, Malfoy?" James retorted, holding onto his wand in his pocket.
Malfoy and his gang took out their wands and pointed at The Marauders.
"Expelliarmus!!" Several female voices were heard. They turned and saw Lily, Arabella and Stefanie walking over with their wands in front.
"So big boys Marauders needed little girls to protect them." Lucius said and the few of them started laughing as they retrieved their wands.
"So are you going to let him off??" James asked menacingly. The passer-by students saw the two groups of second-year students all rushed off as quickly as possible, sensing trouble in the air.
"What if we say no??" Severus replied and pulled the boy's hair until he winced in greater pain.
"Expelliarmus!!" Lily shouted but missed. Suddenly many other spells were said.
"Petrificus totalus!!"
"Furnunculus!!"
"Densaugeo!!"
"Tarantallegra!!"
"Locomotor mortis!!"
"Stupefy!!"
"Rictusempra!!"
All the spells were said at the same time by each of them. Sparks came out from each of their wands and hit someone opposite. The next thing everyone stopped and reacted towards the spells.
Lily and James gotten the leg locking curse and fall backwards knocking Remus down together. Sirus front teeth suddenly enlarged until it dragging his head down until he fell forward supporting his head from being weighed down using his hands. Arabella dropped in a full body-bind and knocked onto Stefanie and landed on top of her.
At the opposite side, Lucius was stunned and fell backwards stiffly. Severus started laughing hysterically due to the tickling charm. Gordon started dancing along the corridor madly while Vaness had a serious outburst of boils all over him.
"WHAT ON EARTH ARE YOU ALL DOING??" Came Professor McGonagall's voice from the end of the corridor, which was now cleared for the duel between the two groups.
All of Gryffindors were injured in a way or another responded while the Slytherins were in no condition to reply Professor McGonagall. She conjured up stretchers to take the eleven twelve-year-olds to the hospital wing.
"Where am I??" Lily muttered. She heard noises around her and sat upright.
"Cool off. This is a hospital wing!!" Madam Pomfrey was shouting around the hospital wing, trying to stop the fight.
"How dare you stun me, Potter?" Lucius shouted across the hospital wing at James, ignoring Madam Pomfrey pleas.
"Well, you offended me first." James said calmly as he tried to move his legs.
"So The Marauders are just cowards who don't dare to admit their mistakes??" Severus growled at Sirus as he massaged his aching muscles.
"You tried to disfigure my face first!!" Sirus yelled at Severus loudly.
"What do you think you're doing to body bind me??" Arabella glared at Vaness menacingly.
"Who is suffering more now??" Vaness returned Arabella's glare.
"You all are a bunch of dolts!!" Remus shouted at the Slytherins as he rubbed his back.
"Petri-" James wanted to body-bind all the Slytherins and made them shut up once and for all when Professor Dumbledore, Professor McGonagall and Professor Porky entered the hospital wing.
Everyone kept quiet all the sudden.
"One week of detention all of you." Professor McGonagall told all of them.
"It wasn't my fault. Malfoy started first."
"I'm the victim here."
"My dearest Professor McGonagall, you can't do that to us!!"
"Malfoy and gang were bullying the poor boy."
"We were trying to help that boy."
"Potter and his gang attacked us."
"I was attacked!!"
"Keep quiet." Professor Porky shouted. Suddenly silence filled the hospital wing once again.
"Mr. Pettigrew, would you mind explaining to us what happened??" Dumbledore asked the shivering boy who was at the last bed. He started explaining about how Malfoy was bullying him and calling him mudblood until James and his friends came to save him. He went on to explain the exchanged of spells and how he ended up with the leg-locking charm.
"Well, to be fair, all of you will have a week of detention which will be settled by the head of your house. No buts." Dumbledore said calmly.
The Gryffindors and the Slytherins were exchanging death glares as their head of houses telling them the week of detentions ahead. Usually the Marauders would be ecstatic to receive more detentions for their pranks, but today, neither was into the mood.
When the three professors left, they returned to their respective beds but nevertheless constantly exchanging death glares.
"I just want to say thank you to all of you for standing up for me." The boy walked up in between James' and Sirus' bed.
"Don't mention it! We just can't stand those dolts." James told the boy.
"Thank you very much." The boy said and headed back to his bed, limping slightly.
"Don't tell me The Marauders wants a mudblood as become part of them." Lucius asked Severus loudly.
"Mudbloods might affect the pure blood Potty, whose father is none other than the Minister of Magic himself." Snape replied Lucius equally.
James got out of the bed and went to have some discussion with Sirus and Remus and then returned to his bed.
"Hey there, what's your name by the way??" James shouted to the boy at the corner bed.
"Peter Laurence Pettigrew."
"So Peter, you wanna become a Marauder?" Remus asked him kindly.
"W-What??" Peter asked, too shocked for words.
"Yeah, so Peter, you want to join us??" James asked, looking at Peter, who was looking shocked, surprised, and happy at the question.
"B-But I'm not a pure blood wizard."
"We don't discriminate muggle-born like some gits." Sirus added.
"I-I don't know."
"Being a Marauder is an honor which some people can never get in their whole life." James said pointedly.
"I-I guess that would be ok if you all don't mind." Peter replied smiling. Step one succeeded, my Master, I had followed your instructions to join the Marauders to break up the six of them. Peter turned and saw Arabella and Stefanie looking intensely at him. Master is so brilliant to cast a spell to block my mind from mind readers. They can never guess.
Arabella looked at Peter. I have an ominous feeling about this guy. She went into and read Peter's thought. Hm.. He doesn't seem to have any motive. Could he know that we can read minds?
Stefanie took a sideward glance at Peter. This guy doesn't seem to be what we think he is. She turned and saw Arabella looking at him as well. I better enter her thoughts and see what's going on.
Bell??
Stef??
You don't trust him??
I had been reading his mind since they accepted him as a Marauder.
Found anything??
Nothing so far. But I've this gut feeling that he is more than what he seems to be.
I had the same feeling too.
But so far nothing yet.
What is he thinking of now??
Food??
We better check on him.
Let ask Lily and see what she thinks??
Stefanie turned and looked at Lily while Arabella is left to concentrate on Peter's thoughts.
Lils.
Stef?? What're you doing in my thoughts again??
I'm not checking on your thoughts about James this time.
Spare me please.
I'm asking you what do you think of Peter.
Well, his eyes don't tell much. I can't tell.
What does your female instinct tells you??
He doesn't seem to be trustworthy.
That's what Bell and I thought too.
But we can't judge a person by the outlook. He looked trouble and fearful from his eyes. Lily turned to take a look at Peter who was now lying down facing the ceiling and she turned back to Stefanie.
I know. But woman's instincts are seldom wrong.
Well, we had to be sure first. Now we've no proof. He could be just a poor boy who had been through so much abuse.
Ok Lils, you always think everyone is so nice like you.
I do not!!
All right, just keep this among us. Bell and I will be checking on him until we are hundred percent sure.
I understand. Just to make sure.
Stefanie left Lily's thought and returned to Peter.