Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, or any of the characters mentioned in the original canon. I do however own any characters and plot lines that are not apart of that an as such, I'll slaughter you like a pig if you decide to steal them.

Halloween

The first Hogsmeade trip was scheduled for Halloween, which coincidentally was the last Saturday in October. The Gryffindor students Third Year and above buzzed with excitement over the prospect of visiting the village. The Marauders were especially excited; a trip to Hogsmeade meant a trip to stock up on pranking supplies at Zonko's Joke Shop.

Thus far in their school year, the Marauders had managed to turn Snape's hair pink one afternoon. The vibrant colour lasted well over a fortnight before it began to slowly fade to its usual shade of black. The colour only intensified if Snape attempted to change it back, which he figured out after a week's worth of attempts. By the beginning of October however, it was back to normal. In mid-September, the Marauders had turned the entire Transfiguration hallway into solid cheese. McGonagall was so dumbfounded by their accomplishment she wasn't sure whether to punish them, or give them House points in honour of their profound cleverness. In the end however, the Marauders got a night's detention but also a rare smile from their Head of House.

"Oi! Moony, get out of bed you lazy bones!" James yelled loudly the morning of Halloween.

Remus groaned in irritation, he'd been patrolling the corridors late into the night as part of his Prefect's duties with Lily. Sirius laughed as he prodded Remus in the ribs.

"Wake up Moony! We've got things to buy and ruckus to cause!" Sirius insisted.

"Seems he spent too long patrolling last night," Peter mused, "Perhaps we should inform McGonagall that being a Prefect is too much for old Moony to handle."

"It's not!" Remus yelled, sitting up abruptly to toss his feather pillow in Peter's direction. James and Sirius snickered as the pillow sailed past Peter several feet to the left.

"Easy Moony, Wormtail was just joking. Now get up! We have Marauder business to attend to," Sirius grinned.

Remus grumbled as he tossed on a clean jumper and pair of jeans. He spent five minutes digging around the bottom of his trunk for a clean pair of socks before finally pulling a pair from under his copy of Intermediate Transfiguration.

"Moony, we're going to grow beards longer than Dumbledore's if you don't get a move on!" James complained loudly.

Remus glared at him, "I haven't even had breakfast yet and you know it's nearing the-"

"Yes, yes we know. Moony needs feeding; we'll get you a bloody crumpet! Just get a move on!" James said as he pushed Remus toward the doorway.

After a hearty breakfast for Remus, the Marauders made their way down to Hogsmeade on foot. The walk was long, but the carriages had stopped moving students to the village an hour before – and wouldn't be moving again until an hour before the Halloween Feast was due to begin.

The late October air held the chill of the impending winter, but the sun shone brightly every so often through white fluffy clouds. Students were bundled in their winter cloaks already, although some chose to go without mittens, hats and scarves for now. The Marauders scrambled down the gravel path to Hogsmeade village with much excitement. The village was the only entirely magical settlement in all of Great Britain, so all sorts of interesting people and creatures turned up in the tiny village.

"Hey Padfoot, look who's with Avery," Peter said, nodding toward the pair.

Across the street, heading into the Three Broomsticks was Derek Avery his left arm being clutched by a girl with long blonde haired girl that Sirius immediately recognized as Jacqueline. She tossed her hair over her shoulder as they retreated inside the doors out of the chilly air.

"Like Avery is actual competition Wormtail," Sirius scoffed. Although in his chest he felt his heart wrenching at the thought that Derek Avery may actually have stolen Jacqueline before he'd even had a chance.

"Avery doesn't have a girlfriend for more than a month anyway," James muttered to Sirius.

The statement was true; at least it was according to Sirius' younger brother Regulus. Regulus had been friends with the blond haired boy since his third year. According to Regulus, his interest in women wasn't held long – a month was the longest stretch he'd ever gone.

Zonko's Joke Shop was bustling with Hogwarts students as usual, but the store clerk nearly wet himself after catching sight of the Marauders. He fell over himself to assist the four boys in any way they saw fit, collecting an assortment of pranking supplies as the boys wandered through the store. It was well known to each of Zonko's employees that the Marauders were their best customers – so each of them was instructed to assist the four in any way they could.

The students of Hogwarts arrived back at the school in time for the Halloween Feast. Their cheeks red and wind burnt from the chilly breeze that had picked up to a hurricane force wind sometime after lunch. But the students were more than thrilled to have gotten out of the castle for the day. Sirius took an empty seat beside Lily, whom looked highly relieved when she realized he wasn't James. She offered Sirius a rare, genuine smile before she inquired about his day roaming the village.

"Sirius, who on earth are you staring at?" Alice Bones asked. Alice was a small girl that was barely five feet tall. She was clever, sharp as a tack and happened to be Lily's best friend.

"Just admiring your beauty my fair lady," Sirius replied cheekily.

Alice swatted him in the arm, "You're full of dung Sirius Black!"

"Merlin, for someone so small you certainly pack a punch Alice," Sirius grumbled as he rubbed the spot where she'd hit him.

"You're ignoring the question Sirius," Alice said impatiently, "How can I help you woo your lady interest if you don't tell me who she is?"

"I don't need your help Alice," Sirius replied.

Alice gave him a look that clearly said he did. If Sirius was interested in this girl, he had been since the beginning of the year, since he hadn't had anyone else on his arm.

"It's been two months Sirius, I'm sure you need my help."

Sirius groaned. He and Alice had known each other since childhood, and he absolutely hated the thought of her helping him in the dating department.

"It's Jacqueline Benoit," Lily said as she spooned another helping of mashed potatoes on her plate.

"A Slytherin, Sirius? I know you have 'conquests' but, you're going to ignite the house rivalry more than ever," Alice sighed.

"You act like I haven't even considered that," Sirius said irritably.

"I know you better than that Sirius. You don't think much of anything through," Alice snapped.

"That's so thoughtful of you to say Alice, remind me why I'm friends with you again?" Sirius asked in a cold tone.