Hi guys!

Thanks so much for sticking around, again. I'm actually perking up a little thinking about the stuff you'll get to see in the boys' fifth year. Things are going to get really intense and some unexpected things are going to happen (as well as some expected things), so at least I think we can go out with a bang. The theme for this year is The Real World and I'm sure that is enough to give a hint at what kinds of things might be coming.

LunaReader, Thanks so much for being a constant fan. :) I hope you enjoy the next few chapters as much as you've enjoyed everything else.

Thank you to all who watch and favorite the story, and I will see you again hopefully soon! Love ya!

~SXS

FOR WARNINGS AND DISCLAIMER, SEE FIRST CHAPTER AN.


Before they could blink, September 1st had come around once again. This time it was Remus who was eager to get onto the train and share some exciting news with his friends. He had been holding this back since their Hogwarts letters had arrived in August, and could already see Sirius's face lighting up with his big reveal (James and Peter's too, but he was particularly looking forward to Sirius's reaction).

He, James, and Sirius were the first on the train, and Remus was nearly bouncing in his seat as they awaited their final friend. Sirius was truly rubbing off on him. Thankfully, Peter wasn't too delayed, and settled in quietly just as the train had started moving.

"Now that Peter's here, there's something I think the lot of you will be quite interested to see," Remus said with a little smirk, and immediately had all three boys looking at him intently. The werewolf took a Sirius-esque dramatic pause before he reached into his pocket and pulled out a small piece of metal. He let it face up from his outstretched palm so the others could see it. Two sets of eyes widened, dark-haired heads slowly lifting to lock their gazes. Then Sirius was leaning across the compartment, grabbing James by the front of his robes.

"Prongs. Prongs, do you know what this means?!"

"Of course I bloody know what it means! We need to get planning right away. Maybe we can squeeze one in before Halloween."

"Sooner than that, surely! I've already got some ideas we can get done tomorrow!"

Remus for once could follow the non-specific conversation, mostly because he'd expected that this would be exactly where his friends' thoughts would go thanks to his revelation. He tugged Sirius away from James so that he would sit up properly. "My being a Prefect doesn't mean you automatically have 'Get Out of Detention Free' cards."

"Oh, but Moony! Think of all the possibilities," Sirius said, sweeping his hand out as if creating a vision before their eyes. "So far we've stuck to meeting our quota, limiting ourselves to one measly school-wide prank a year. Yet how can we possibly call ourselves great pranksters if we don't push that limit?"

"With you as a Prefect, we can do anything," James picked up seamlessly. "Any points we lose, you can find a way to give us back. You'll be considered a credible witness as to whether or not we're doing anything wrong. In fact, we can use your duties to our advantage! Patrols, helping with the decorations…"

"It wouldn't be right to abuse my power like that, lads," Remus said. "I don't even know why Dumbledore would trust me with this in the first place when he knows I keep company with you lot." At James and Sirius's crestfallen expressions, however, he let a sly grin spread across his features. "You'll have to do most of the work from now on. If I get caught, I could lose the badge and that'll be the end of free-range pranking."

The pair had delayed reactions, Sirius being the first to crack a smile as he realized what Remus was saying. "Moony, you cheeky little devil!" Said werewolf flushed lightly, shrugging.

"I told you I'm not a Marauder for nothing. But remember, harmless and nothing permanent," he reminded them, rules they had established officially not too long ago.

"We solemnly swear," both purebloods said simultaneously, holding up their pinkies.

"This could really be good for the map too," James added as he let his hand fall. "With you being able to walk around the castle unrestricted, you could look for more secret passages." Remus raised a brow, fastening his badge onto the front of his robes. "How am I supposed to know how to look for secret passages?"

"I don't know. Just look for anything unusual," James said.

Throughout the exchange, Peter had been exceptionally quiet, and hardly smiled at the thoughts of what awaited them at school. While the two dark-haired Marauders didn't take notice to this, Remus was aware, and he turned to him, concerned. "Alright, Wormtail?"

Peter suddenly broke from his thoughts and looked at Remus. "Oh…yeah, I'm…" He paused, then let out a sigh. "No. Actually I'm not." He reached under the bench to pull a copy of the Daily Prophet from his trunk. "I've been trying to keep up with the news lately, especially after what happened to Mary and I last year. This is this morning's paper." He handed it across the compartment to Remus.

The tawny-haired boy opened the paper and read the headline, Sirius reading over his shoulder, and their good moods instantly dissipated. Another Death Eater attack had occurred a few days earlier, this time in Lancashire. Remus could feel the heat draining from his face. "This isn't too far from where I live," he murmured.

"I thought Dumbledore was supposed to take care of this," Peter fretted, looking to James.

"I'm sure he's doing everything he can. These kind of things don't just disappear overnight," the messy-haired boy said, though he too looked unnerved.

Sirius nodded firmly. "Whatever he has planned will work for sure. Dumbledore's a great wizard and he'd never let something like this go on unchecked." Remus was still staring anxiously down at the paper, and so he gently took it from his hands and folded it up again. "There's nothing to worry about," he insisted.

None of them were very convinced.

.:~I~S~S~:.

The boys weren't the only ones unsettled by the news.

"Things are really getting out of hand…" Lily muttered to herself one morning at breakfast, though she attracted the attention of the boy sitting next to her. She was holding her copy of the Prophet, appetite quickly leaving her as she read the latest Death Eater headline. Severus leaned towards her a bit to skim the article.

"You shouldn't be worried. Hogwarts is a very safe place," he said. The Gryffindor sighed and folded the paper up, setting it next to her plate which would remain untouched.

"I'm not worried about myself," she said, thinking about her parents and Petunia. She had warned them to be incredibly careful, but there was only so much they could do when they had no possible way of magically defending themselves.

"You live in an all-Muggle neighborhood," Anjanette, sitting on the other side of the table, stated to which Lily nodded. "They've been focusing on mixed areas at the moment."

"It's only the beginning," Severus murmured severely. "They plan to put the Muggles in their proper place after removing all those of filthy blood."

Six eyes fell on him at once, ranging from merely shocked to horrified. Lily's also reflected hurt, his choice of words stinging. "And how exactly do you know that?" she asked.

Severus was silent, though he looked directly back into Lily's emerald orbs without faltering. "I hear things around the common room."

The redhead turned towards Regulus, looking for confirmation, and Severus stared at him as well, dark eyes boring into royal blue. The younger Slytherin blinked at suddenly being put into the spotlight and swallowed his mouthful of food. "There have been whispers lately, I suppose. Some of the sixth and seventh years have talked about joining up."

Though she could tell Regulus was being honest, Lily was still displeased. She couldn't help thinking of the way that Severus had brushed away Mulciber and Avery's attack on Mary and Peter the year before, one that was suspiciously similar to the Death Eaters' in motivation. She had always known he had prejudices, but she had thought his acceptance of her own background meant that they were just things he needed to learn to let go of. Lately, however, she feared that he saw the Death Eaters' 'triumphs' as validation for his opinions.

A tense silence ensued as the group went back to their meals, but moments later Lily spoke again. "You would think they would be more open-minded when most of their classmates are half-blood or Muggle-born."

"Not all Mu-…Muggle-borns or half-bloods have the natural talent that you do. Your magic is as powerful as a pureblood's," Severus said, keeping his head down.

"Just because someone is a pureblood doesn't mean they are automatically magical experts." Lily set down her fork again, though she hadn't even eaten anything when she picked it up. "Otherwise they wouldn't have to go to school."

"But you can't deny that they grasp the material more easily," Severus said. Regulus barely held back a groan. For someone who was rather intelligent, the other boy had a hard time realizing when it was better to keep his opinions to himself.

Lily let out an angry laugh. "You know, you're becoming more and more of a contradiction, Severus. You obviously think that anyone who's not of pure blood is beneath you, yet you claim to be my best friend. Or perhaps you're starting to change your mind on that because right now you're not doing a lot to make me want to keep up our relationship."

Severus actually looked bewildered. "I said that you are as good as a pureblood in spite of your origins. Why are you taking it as an insult?"

It was obvious that the older Slytherin boy wasn't understanding, and it made Lily both furious and disappointed. "My 'origins' shouldn't affect your expectations of my abilities," she snapped.

"I'm sure Severus didn't mean it that way," Regulus interceded quickly.

Lily gave Severus a hard stare, Regulus's placating words having no effect. "Sometimes I wonder if that's true." She then stood up and stormed out of the Great Hall.

Severus watched her go, face softening just for a second before falling into its natural sneer. He whipped back to his breakfast, but now he was only pushing it around the plate.

There was another short silence before Anjanette boldly said, "At a time like this, maybe it's better not to act like you're in league with people who would kill her and her family for no reason."

Severus's head shot up, glare igniting like oil with an Incendio. "She has less to worry about than you. Your parents are more disgraceful to the wizarding world than Muggles." Regulus looked between the pair, confused.

"You have more to worry about than you let on," the Ravenclaw countered calmly, expression neutral. Severus bared his teeth and nearly growled, but when Anjanette's face remained impassive, he stood, sweeping his robes around him as he stalked away.

They watched him disappear before Regulus turned back to Anjanette. "What was he talking about?" He hadn't ever asked about Anjanette's parents. He'd always assumed she was either Muggle-born or half-blooded, but Severus's words made it seem like they were giants or werewolves.

The girl was silent for a moment, before she said, "My parents are Squibs," quietly. It was one of the few times that Regulus had ever seen her look embarrassed. Even when covering the Potions lab in goop, she hadn't really batted an eyelash. In his silence, she continued. "They have brothers who were best friends in Hogwarts, and connected because they were both the only non-magical ones in their families. No one had expected me to become a witch."

This was news to Regulus, who had only ever seen Anjanette's parents a few times at King's Cross and once at Diagon Alley. It hadn't occurred to him that he never saw them use magic. He wouldn't have thought it was possible for Squibs to produce magical children either, but he supposed if the magic was somewhere in the genes then it could happen.

"How does Severus know?" he asked, a twinge jealous that his Housemate knew something personal about his closest friend.

"He's nosy," Anjanette deadpanned, purposely picking her wording to emphasize the double meaning. Sirius would have been proud.

Regulus sighed; he couldn't deny that. And with Severus's mild obsession over blood purity, it wasn't a surprise that he would try figure out all he could about the people he interacted with, to see whether or not they were worthy of his attention. Perhaps that was why he and Anjanette had never quite hit it off.

He rubbed a hand over his face. "This Death Eater nonsense is tearing us apart."

"Nothing's really keeping us together in the first place," Anjanette pointed out. It was true, the only reason the four of them had ever sat together was through loose mutual connections. Regulus himself and Lily were friendly but hadn't actually grown close. Severus and Anjanette were curt or argumentative. He had hoped that over time that the group would find some common thread to bond them, the way his brother had with his friends, but they were just too different. The only reason they sat together now was out of convenience or maybe habit.

"Half the time Severus talks like he's one of them," Anjanette added, breaking him from his thoughts.

Regulus pursed his lips. "That doesn't make sense. He's a half-blood himself. He wouldn't support someone who was trying to suppress his own kind," he reasoned.

"He's surrounded by people who constantly belittle anyone of 'impure' blood status." Regulus didn't need Anjanette to tell him that. More and more he had seen Severus purposely spending time with the older Slytherins, who previously wouldn't give him the time of day. It had caused their own friendship to start fading, as Regulus wasn't fond of the company. "Sooner or later he was bound to start questioning his point of view." Here Anjanette gave Regulus a sidelong but critical look. He frowned. Surely she didn't think that he would start acting like Severus himself.

"Maybe he's just trying to fit in. When it comes to Slytherins you either stay out of their conversations or you agree for the sake of not being punished." He still had memories of his Housemates attacking him over simply sitting with Sirius during meals.

"Is fitting in worth pursuing the wrong ideals?" Anjanette asked, still examining him. He got the feeling that they weren't talking about Severus anymore. Regulus fidgeted and looked away.

"If it protects you, it can be. Look at Sirius. He disagrees with everything our parents believe and so they treat him terribly." Her expression remained blank, only causing Regulus's frown to deepen. Why didn't she understand? "It's already difficult to stand against popular opinion, but in this case it's becoming unsafe. Isn't it better to quietly follow along and not get hurt or killed?"

Anjanette fixed him with a steady gaze, eyes only betraying her with a quick flash of disappointment and suspicion. "You tell me." She didn't wait for a response, instead standing and going to sit with Sirius and his friends instead.
Regulus wouldn't have known what to say anyway.

.:~I~S~S~:.

He didn't see Severus again until the evening, when he returned to the common room. The hook-nosed boy had been absent at both lunch and dinner, which incidentally hadn't mattered because Lily had chosen to eat with her Housemates. Now, the younger Slytherin found him sitting on one of the couches next to Rabastan Lestrange. They were chatting quietly, so that Regulus couldn't hear what they were saying, even when he'd come close enough to tap Severus on the shoulder. His friend whipped around with a sour face, which melted into a half-guilty frown when he saw who was touching him. "What do you want?"

"To talk to you." When neither Severus nor Rabastan moved, he added, "Alone." The latter rolled his eyes and stood, going back towards the boys' dorms. Regulus took his place on the sofa.

"I'd prefer not to talk about what happened this morning," Severus muttered, looking intently at one of the snake statues near the fireplace.

"It isn't just about this morning," Regulus said. "This has been happening every time that we get news about the Death Eaters." The other didn't answer, so he continued. "I know you and AJ butt heads sometimes, but I don't understand why you say the things you do to Lily."

Severus's head snapped back to face him. "Why should I say anything different to her than I would to anyone else?"

Regulus raised a brow. He supposed it was useless trying to cite the fact that Severus obviously fancied the Gryffindor girl. He did wonder, though, whether he was consciously or unconsciously denying it. Instead, he searched his Housemate's face. "Do you really believe in all that?" he asked quietly. "I mean, you're a half-blood. How can you say that they're inferior?"

"I am an exception to the rule," Severus said haughtily. "In general, they don't have the same magical capabilities as purebloods, and certainly you've seen that for yourself. Muggles only serve to water down our power. Then they try to suppress us out of fear." He said this last piece with a hint of anger in his tone. Then he frowned, eying Regulus. "I would have thought with your status that you would be more inclined to feel that way. Or is your idiot brother's influence getting to you?"
"Of course not. If I listened to anything he said then I'd been in just as much trouble as he always is." Regulus wasn't truly in agreement or disagreement with his brother, but this he kept to himself. There were only a few half-bloods and Muggle-borns that he considered to be as naturally talented and powerful as any of the purebloods he knew. That wasn't reason enough in his mind for them to be killed, but his friend wouldn't appreciate this sentiment. As he'd tried to explain to Anjanette that morning, it was better for him to say what Severus would want to hear rather than speak his mind.

Severus sniffed. "He's a fool. Him and Potter, disgracing their honored status. And for what? To be friends with a useless troll like Pettigrew or a monster like Lupin."

"You're not on that still, are you?" Regulus asked. He'd heard Severus trying to convince their Housemates that Remus was a werewolf, but it was a ridiculous notion. Werewolves weren't allowed to study magic for one, and the Gryffindor was nothing like the typical depictions that they learned about in Defense. "Even Sirius isn't open-minded enough to make friends with a werewolf. And James certainly wouldn't, from what I've heard. He used to fight with Sirius all the time when they first met just because of our family name."

Severus's face contorted slightly in annoyance at not being believed. He shook his head. "One day I'll have proof. Then their precious little werewolf will be expelled."

Regulus decided to let that go for now. It was another subject that Severus was going to be thick-headed about. "Look," he said, steering the conversation back to the original topic. "Whatever we may think about blood status, we shouldn't talk about it in front of the girls anymore. You and Lily are too good of friends to let it end over something stupid like a difference in opinion." And he didn't want to lose Anjanette because his own loyalties were in question.

The other boy remained silent for a few seconds, then nodded. "I'll try to restrain myself."