The first rule

The first meeting was the worse. We, the six of us stood there; James, Sirius, Peter, Remus, Benjy and I. Six new recruits, six people who were just out of school and wanted to make a difference, who believed we could. This was the day we had been waiting for for years, the day we thought of when we were stuck in classrooms, when we heard of deaths, of attacks. We were excited and ready, so ready to prove we could fight, we could make a difference, we could end this damn thing. We thought we knew what we were getting ourselves into.

We didn't.

In front of us they sat, I think we all expected a better welcome, we expected smiles and open arms, not a fanfare but happiness or at least gratitude that they had new people to fight beside. New allies. Instead, they stared at us, the new recruits, they shook their heads and though they didn't say it in so many words we were not stupid, we could read in their eyes, in their words and actions. To them we were kids. Stupid, naïve kids, who had not a clue what they were getting into. (They were right about that). They thought we would become a liability, how could we a bunch of teenagers barely out of school fight?

Moody questioned us, question after question, his eyes lingering on Sirius (a Black) until finally having had enough James opened his mouth. He had never had been one to watch his friends treated with suspicion.

"Will you stop that?"

The table fell silent. Emmeline Vance pursued her lips, Marlene McKinnon and the Prewetts exchanged glances, Dorcas Meadows rolled her eyes. James however had eyes only for Moody.

"Stop what, boy?" His lips curled into a challenging smile; if it had been anyone else they would have shrank back from the intimidating Alastor Moody, but James had never been, nor would he ever be one to shy away when he's friends were being insulted.

James glared, "looking at Sirius as though he's going to bloody kill you"

"You can never be too careful boy, he" he cast a suspicious eye in the direction of Sirius; "grew up in a house with dark things...he's a Black"

Besides me I felt James tense. "And?" the anger was barely constrained in his voice.

"And, he grew up in a house filled with Merlins knows what, he's a Black Potter, and nothing can change that. He grew up hand in hand with Bellatrix Black, you know who that is, don't you?" It was Marlene McKinnon, a witch with immaculately straight blond hair and perfect posture.

"Bellatrix is nothing to me!" Sirius had practically growled but Marlene had merely rolled her eyes. It wasn't hard to grasp the situation, she did not trust Sirius and perhaps, because of our trust in him, viewed us as either naïve or hoodwinked.

"Nobody can grow up in a house like that and still turn out a half a decent human being" she had snarled and that had set it off. Sirius had growled and pulled out a wand, Remus had tried his best to restrain him, Peter shifted from foot to foot nervously but it was James, I think, who made the greatest impression.

"If" he began his eyes narrowing, " you believe that a person's birth, a person's name or parents make them who they are then you are no better than the death eaters you claim to fight. I trust Sirius with my life and…"

Moody raised an eyebrow; "with your life eh? Best not trust anybody that much Potter, or any of you in fact."

He turned around, glaring at everyone in the room in turn; "We live in dark times, and in times like this there's no time for trust. I don't care who it is, friends, neighbours; you don't trust anybody, not even anybody in this room. You get that?"

Trust no one.

That was one of Moodys first rules for us.

But despite his warnings, his tales of brother turning on brother, I trusted the Marauders with all I had, in the same way I knew they trusted each other. We would never question each others' motives. Not yet at least. It would take years and more deaths then we could even remember, more close calls that we would like to have experienced and more fear than we could ever have imagined before our trust began to fade.

Stupidly short, I know but the next chapter will be longer :D Please review!