I'm awful, I know. But this job is kicking my ass so hard right now Dx

I promise, things will get more steady in a month or so, when I don't have work anymore. Then maybe I'll be able to actually write something. I'm kind of at a standstill at the moment, but I'll figure it out eventually I think.

Anyway, I really hope everyone is doing okay, and that you guys have some patience with my while my life is so crazy. I always feel so bad when I keep you waiting so long.

Kam, James is just sore because he can't figure out how to talk to Lily like a normal person XD

lojosmom, welcome to the story! I hope you're still enjoying it ^^

That's all for now, darlings. See you soon (hopefully). Love ya!

~SXS

FOR WARNINGS AND DISCLAIMER, SEE FIRST CHAPTER AN.


After the detention plan failed, the Marauders decided that it was better to focus their energies towards one of their other projects. It was mid-October when they found themselves in the library to research spells for the map. Their measurements were essentially complete after their nightly ventures since the first day this term, and each boy now had a book in front of him at a table, looking up the necessary charms to achieve their desired effects.

"We're going to need an absolutely tiny scale to draw this," Remus said as he scanned over Hogwarts: A History. "Either that or a very big piece of parchment. The grounds alone are enormous."

"I don't think the bro-shoe thing is going to work either," James said. He was flipping through an advanced Charms text, looking for something that might allow them to add a password system to the map.

"Brochure," Remus corrected. "And I agree. We need to find that layering charm, if it exists. Any luck, Pete?"

Peter shook his head. "So far, no, but this is a pretty thick book. I did find a charm for tracking people's position." He turned the book, The Mapmaker's Guide to Charting the Universe, towards his friends so they could see the page for the Homenum Positus spell.

"That's great, Wormy!" James said. "At least we're having some luck."

"Hey, I'm finding some good info too," Sirius said, looking up from his book, which focused on the history of the Founders. "Like the fact that we're probably going to have to make a midnight run to find the spell we need to put our personalities into the map." He slapped the book closed and huffed.

The door to the library opened at that moment and Lily walked in with Mary MacDonald. The moment that she spotted James at the table, she grabbed her friend's wrist and tugged her towards the opposite side of the library, even as Mary's gaze lingered on the boys.

"I can't believe she hates me even more now," James complained, flopping forward. His chin landed on the book, arms hanging limp below him.

Sirius put a thoughtful hand to his chin. "I wouldn't say her hatred is any stronger than it once was." This earned him a swat from James. "Hey, don't sweat it, Prongs. I'm working on a new plan that's even better."

"Oh no," James said, sitting up straight again and shaking his head firmly. "I'm never taking your advice again. It's your fault that I'm at square negative ten in the first place. I should have never trusted you with my romantic life."

Sirius pouted. "Why don't you ever give these two a hard time about their love lives?" he asked, gesturing to Remus and Peter. "They're no better than I am."

"Because, Remus had a crush on AJ-"

"No, I didn't," Remus said with only slight exasperation, not looking up from his book.

"-and actually, so did Peter."

"I'm pretty much over her after that day in the stands," the blonde said with a slight shiver at the memories. "B-But I do kind of like…Marlene," he added more quietly with a blush filling his cheeks.

James jabbed his hand towards Peter, palm facing up. "See?" he said, looking at Sirius.

"Give him a break, James. There's nothing that says he has to fancy anyone," Remus said.

"Thank you," Sirius said.

James pursed his lips. "I always thought that when we had become mature and manly that you and I would team up and have our pick of the girls."

"And yet he wonders why Lily doesn't like him," Remus said with a small smirk, to which Sirius and Peter snickered. James was not so amused.

"Look, mate," Sirius said when he had calmed. "I haven't even talked to any girls for more than a few seconds, besides AJ. I spend all my time with you lot so I don't know any of them. How can I fancy them when I don't know them?"

James struggled a bit to find an answer. "Well, because…That's just how it works. You fancy a girl because she's attractive, and then get to know her personality and see if you like her." Sirius was fairly certain that wasn't how things were supposed to work.

As he was about to retort, he caught sight of Mary, who was passing by their table on her way to a shelf. Though she tried to be subtle, her eyes were glued on the Marauders as she went by, as well as on her return with the book she wanted a moment later. James's face immediately lit up.

"Mary seems pretty interested in us, and we never talk to her. Why don't you try 'getting to know' her?" he said, reaching across the table to nudge Sirius's shoulder.

"Actually," Peter said before the dark-haired boy could respond. "It seemed like she was mostly looking at Moony." Sirius's eyes snapped in the werewolf's direction.

This finally had Remus's head popping up from inside the book, looking around before pointing to himself. "Me? Why me?"

"Oh come on, Moony, don't act all coy," James said with a wicked grin. "You're just as much of a looker as any of us, especially since you had your growth spurt." Sirius and Peter nodded in agreement, the former feeling his cheeks warm faintly. He still remembered how struck he was by the changes in his friend's appearance when they met up at Diagon Alley in August.

Remus's face dropped into a deadpan. "Yeah, sure. The fact that I'm covered in hideous scars is definitely made up for by my height."

"They're not that bad, Moons," Sirius said. "Certainly not bad enough to make you not look attractive."

Remus flushed but he was smiling a little. It was certainly pleasing to know his friends didn't think him ugly (or at least, they wanted him to believe he wasn't). "I'd tend to disagree, but thanks anyway. Besides, looks are only half the battle in my case. I can't imagine easily finding a meaningful relationship with my 'furry little problem'."

"But we know about it, and we like you," Peter pointed out.

"Yes," Remus agreed. "But it's different. Not everyone is as accepting as you lot, and you're my friends. It would be a bigger weight on a romantic relationship." He sighed. "Obviously, I'm not in great shape health-wise. A girlfriend, especially one who might someday be my wife, would have to worry about taking care of me, and that's not fair. Not to mention my life expectancy wouldn't be anywhere near as good as a normal man's, so I'd wind up leaving her alone sooner than she deserves. Plus she'd have to agree not to have children because I'm pretty sure my condition would be passed on, and I refuse to voluntarily put anyone through the hell I've lived."

The speech had inadvertently rendered the other boys silent, and Remus bit his lip, not having meant to ruin their good moods with his morbid predictions. "Sorry. I'm just being realistic."

"None of that stuff would matter to someone who truly loves you," Sirius said suddenly. "Someone who loves you would want to take care of you and would enjoy any moment they could get with you and would give up anything because they'd just be happy to have you. You don't deserve any less than that."

Again there was silence, but this time it was broken by James. "Padfoot, you're such a sap! Now if you only said that kind of stuff to girls, you'd be swimming in them." The quartet laughed, but Remus and Sirius exchanged a meaningful glance. The former had never heard something so sweet and sincere directed at him before. It left his heart thudding gently and his mind thinking that if Sirius ever did get to know and love a girl, that she would be incredibly lucky.

.:~I~S~S~:.

After another hour's worth of research, the boys had found essentially all the spells they'd need except for the one that could embed their personalities into the map. This, of course, led to them waiting for the rest of the Gryffindors to go to bed so that they could venture to the Restricted Section and see if they could turn up a book about magic the Founders might have used. They passed the time as best as they could, Remus and Peter working together on the latest Potion's essay while James and Sirius were locked in a game of Wizard Chess.

Remus was having trouble concentrating on the homework, however, as he could feel a pair of eyes on the back of his head. He turned and could see Mary standing across the room with Lily, whispering something to her animatedly. When she saw that he was looking her way, she immediately turned red and smiled shyly. He returned it politely, which only made her face a closer match to her friend's fiery hair. She was whispering to Lily again as he turned back to the table. Thankfully James wasn't paying attention or he knew he would have started teasing him about having a crush on her.

Late in the evening, the last straggler finally headed up the stairs to bed. James was already pulling out the cloak and wrapping it around his shoulders and holding it open with spread arms. "Alright, boys, gather in."

"I don't think we're all going to fit," Remus said. "As it is I'm going to have to double over or our feet will show."

"Let's see." Sirius, Remus, and Peter pressed in against James and he attempted to wrap the cloak around them. But with Remus practically squatting and Peter's slightly wider waistline, it was impossible for them to all fit without some part of them sticking out.

"What should we do?" Peter asked.

"The buddy system?" Sirius suggested. "I'm sure two of us could squeeze in alright. We'll just have to switch off who goes on missions each time."

"Then Moony and I will go tonight," James said. "We're closer in height so we can turn the cloak sideways and it should fit without us having to hunch." The other boys nodded in agreement, and Remus joined James under the cloak. They vanished from sight, the only evidence of their leaving the common room being the portrait door seeming to open on its own.

The situation was a bit awkward at first. In all the time that they'd been friends, Remus couldn't remember too many instances when he and James had been alone together. Not by choice, but simply because there hadn't been a reason. Ever since Sirius and James's rivalry had ended, they had existed as a group. The only times Remus had been alone with one of the other boys was over holiday breaks with Sirius, or during Quidditch matches when he sat in the stands with Peter. But now that he was under the cloak with James by himself, he was realizing how much his and James's friendship had developed through their mutual friendships with Sirius. Not that he didn't like or care about James on his own, but he didn't know if they would have connected the same way had the circumstances been different.

When they reached the library, Remus unlocked the door and they headed inside the darkened space, removing the cloak. Being experienced by now in the art of late night Restricted Section research, the pair didn't hesitate to step right between the shelves and light their wands to read the spines.

"I have to say, you're surprisingly supportive of the map idea," James said, breaking the silence that had followed them down from the common room. "I would have thought that you'd come up with some kind of list of reasons why it was dangerous."

"I do think there are some potential dangers," Remus admitted as he scanned slowly over the titles on the shelves. "And definitely some level of privacy invasion. But there are benefits too, and if we can actually pull it off, I do think it would be something to be proud of."

"Yeah. An eternal legacy as long as no one sets it on fire. Although I bet we could find some kind of fireproofing charm," James said and they both chuckled. "You should have this attitude more often with our pranks."

Remus gave a wry grin, though he was still facing the books. "I've already had this conversation with Sirius. Contrary to popular belief I actually do enjoy pulling pranks. I only seem like I'm against mischief because I keep you two from doing anything potentially harmful."

James took a moment to respond. "Now that I think about it, you haven't ever tried to stop us from pulling pranks."

"Exactly. I'm not a Marauder for nothing." Remus crouched a bit to scan over the next shelf down.

James suddenly snapped his fingers and Remus turned, thinking that he'd found a book that might have what they were looking for. But instead he found the bespectacled boy looking at him with a mischievous smile. "You should come up with our prank this year. You haven't ever picked out what we do."

Remus pursed his lips. "I don't even know if I can. You and Sirius are better with the big ideas. I'm more of a find out how to get the job done kind of person."

"Don't sell yourself short, Moony. I'm sure you have a good idea up there somewhere. You just need to find your inspiration."

Remus's lips twitched up at the corners as he turned back to the shelves. "How do you become inspired?"

He heard James shifting, likely getting back to the search himself. "Personally, I like to think of ways to exploit situations that are already awkward or embarrassing and make them worse. Like the mistletoe. That's probably my favorite of all the pranks we've pulled."

"Even though you had to kiss Lucius Malfoy?"

James made a gagging sound. "I try to block that out. But that's exactly why the prank was so good. Anything involving kissing or unwanted romance is already uncomfortable, which is why it's hilarious to force it upon unsuspecting victims."

Remus was now on the fourth shelf down, but his mind was no longer on searching for books. He just might have found his inspiration. Turning slowly back towards his friend, he said, "Valentine's Day is an awkward romantic holiday, especially when you're not in a relationship."

James whipped around with a bright grin. "I like where this is going."

The cogs in a previously unused part of Remus's brain kicked into motion. He pushed away the part of his consciousness that tried to reprimand him for thinking such devious thoughts, and let the ideas flow. "What if everyone had to speak in cheesy rhymes all day?"

James nodded clinically. "This is good. More. Think bigger."

Bigger. What would be even more annoying? "What if everything tasted like chocolate?"

James's face was nearly splitting. "It would be well-worth the sickening overload of sweetness to see everyone else miserable. Keep going!"

Remus had to take a moment to expand further. What else was a big part of Valentine's Day that could be used for a prank? Flowers, cards, Cupid- "What if we charmed the statues to shoot arrows?"
James's eyes widened as he caught on to Remus's implications. "Yes! But we'd have to make sure it only lasted until the end of the day."

"Zonkos has cheapy stuff already bottled," Remus said.

"Perfect! And we should get more Spyballs."

"We should keep the albums for ourselves this time."

"Of course." James was beaming. "See, I knew you had it in you."

Remus was grinning now too, surprised and pleased with himself. "Is this how it is for you and Sirius?" he asked in regards to their volley.

"Yup. It's great, isn't it?"

"It's an interesting experience," Remus admitted. "And definitely more enjoyable when you're actually involved instead of just watching." They both laughed lightly.

James sighed and looked back at the shelf. "I don't think there's a book here for what we're looking for, but maybe we can look at my place. You lot are still coming over for New Year's, right?"

"As far as I know," Remus said. He was somewhat glad that James was giving up for the night as he was tired. "We can work on drawing and the other charms in the meantime."
"Then let's head back to the Tower." James pulled the cloak out again and they disappeared inside. As they headed back up to their dorm together, the silence between them felt more companionable. Maybe, Remus thought, he and James might not have connected the same way if they had met under different circumstances, but after tonight he had a feeling that they still would have become friends.

.:~I~S~S~:.

Since that day in the library, Remus had become acutely aware of Mary MacDonald and the fact that she'd set her sights on him. In every class they shared, during each meal they ate, and whenever they were in the common room at the same time, he could feel her watching him. It was flattering, perplexing, and unnerving.

He supposed there could be worse people interested in him. As far as he knew, Mary was a nice girl, and she was pretty. She had a round kind of face, but with a cute, small nose and well-shaped lips. Her green eyes were almond-shaped and her blonde hair was wavy and long. It was flattering knowing that a girl like her fancied him. But the constant feeling of being watched was getting tired towards the beginning of November.

The Marauders were outside on the grounds taking advantage of what could possibly be the last day of decent weather before the winter began. They sat with their backs to a large tree by the lake, a long piece of parchment spread over their legs. Peter was in the process of drawing the landscape outside the castle, carefully measuring as he went to be sure that he stayed to scale. Two figures were coming in their direction, and Remus could tell even before they were clear in his vision that it was Mary and Lily.

"Hey, Moony, there's your secret admirer," James teased, elbowing him in the ribs. Then he realized who was coming along with her and he immediately started to muss up his hair.

"Secret is the most inaccurate word that you could use in this situation," Remus said with a sigh.

"I think she's coming this way," Sirius said as they watched the pair of girls approach. Indeed, instead of stopping at a reasonable distance as they usually did, their path was leading directly to the quartet. "Is she finally going to talk to you?" His lips drew into a frown as he said this.

"Maybe," Remus said, and he actually felt a sense of relief. Maybe if she found out that he wasn't really interested in her then she would stop watching him like a Foe-Glass.

When the girls finally made it to stand in front of them, James gave Lily a dashing smile. She completely ignored it in favor of giving Mary a light nudge towards Remus. Said werewolf, as well as Sirius and Peter, all looked up at her expectantly. The blonde had a healthy flush on her face but determination in her eyes.

"U-Um…Hi, Remus," she said in a soft voice. "I was w-wondering if…Well, you know, there's another Hogsmeade weekend coming and…I thought that we could m-maybe meet there and have a butterbeer."

There was a palpable silence as Remus felt guilt bubble in his stomach. Mary looked so hopeful and he could tell that this had taken a lot of courage to do on her part. He felt terrible having to turn her down.

Then something occurred to him. Why was he turning her down? He might not fancy Mary at the moment, but there was always a possibility that he could once he got to know her. There was no harm in seeing where things led. After all, they were just having butterbeer. He smiled up at her. "Yeah. That sounds nice," he finally answered.

"Really?" She immediately brightened. "Great! So…I'll see you Saturday."

"Sure."

"Okay." Mary looked absolutely giddy. "Okay," she repeated. Then she gave them a little wave and she and Lily walked away together, the blonde casting one last look over her shoulder as they returned to the castle. She looked as if she could hardly contain the spring in her step.

James, while he was disappointed at being ignored, gave a few fake sniffles and wrapped an arm around Remus's shoulders. "Boys, I think a celebration is in order. Our little Remus has just become a man," he said, wiping away a fake tear proudly. Remus rolled his eyes.

"Congratulations, Moony!" Peter said.

Sirius was the only one who wasn't smiling. "Two minutes ago you were annoyed that she's been staring at you and now you're going on a date with her?"

"Hey, relax, Pads. There's nothing wrong with Remus keeping his options open," James said. "By the way, Moony, you've got to put a good word in for me. Maybe if Evans hears how awesome I am from one of her friends, she'll change her mind."

"Remus isn't going to want to talk about you during his date," Peter said hesitantly, and said werewolf nodded. When James pouted, however, he sighed.

"If you happen to come up in the conversation, I'll make you look good," he promised, which seemed to satisfy the messy-haired boy.

"Now that Remus is hooked up, we've got to get you with Marlene," James said, pointing to Peter. The pudgy boy flushed lightly, but smiled. "And then with the promise of Evans coming around, we can focus on finding someone for Sirius." He turned his finger on the other pureblood who looked put out.

"I'm going to fly for a bit." Sirius lifted the parchment from his lap and slid out from under it, marching towards the castle. Remus looked to James and Peter in confusion, then to Sirius's retreating back. What had caused his sudden change in attitude?