Disclaimer: Nope, I'm still not J.K. Rowling, so none of this can be owned by me.

A/N: So to all of those that keep reviewing on every chapter, I just want to say thank you, I love hearing from you. It also gives me motivation to post the next chapter. Now onto another note, I was one chapter away from finishing this thing, and that is why I said I was done. Took a bit of a break, and when I went to finish it, I had lost everything up the the 24th chapter. Ten chapters just, gone, poof, bye-bye. Sucks, thankfully I have some idea of what I had written in each chapter, and I'll just go do it again, hey maybe I'll do it even better. So please, please continue reviewing, if for anything else to tell me that was not a sign I should quit this.

Chapter 18

December 1977

So it was only the first of December and the Hogsmeade trip that my pups and I hadn't gone to had only been two days before. Still it was technically December, and Christmas was coming up, which meant the halfway mark. Sirius had already turned eighteen, and Remus and I only had to wait for March, only had to wait for March to turn eighteen. Then we had a year, and we were in the clear. Well except for the fact that polygamy was illegal, but I had done my research. We weren't doing anything illegal once we turned nineteen, because we weren't going to get married. Well we already were, but there would be no papers. Sirius would stay Sirius Black, Remus would stay Remus Lupin, and I would stay James Potter. Really, whose name would we all take anyways, or hyphenating, who would come first. This would be the best, yes?

Oh if only it could be that simple. Once more my life had to get complicated. Lily, Sirius, Remus and I were walking through the corridors when everything got tipped on it's head again. I had my arm slung across Lily's shoulder, her arms around my waist. Remus was walking beside me, and when no one was paying any attention I would reach out and lock our pinkies for a second. Sirius was walking beside Lily, and over the top of her head we would exchange one of our looks that looked perfectly innocent, but we knew better.

"Mr. Potter," a voice called from the other side of the Entrance Hall. Lily, Remus, Sirius, and I were on our way outside when we stopped and turned to see a man in business robes carrying a briefcase walking towards us. "Hello, my name is Ethan Bradshaw, from the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, I've been assigned your case." He had seemed like a pleasant fellow, until he said that, and I instantly hated him. That's how I worked. You were given one first impression, and I based my opinions of you off of it, and stuck to that. Ask anyone, Snape, Sirius, Remus, Lily. All relationships, because even the bullying of Snivellus was considered a relationship, had been based off of first impressions. I took my arm from its place around Lily, and shook the man's hand, and put it right back where it kind of belonged. Would have much rather had it around the boy that I had woken up with it around, actually that had been Sirius, and don't ask me how that happened.

"What can I do for you Mister Bradshaw," I thought to myself "oh, look whose being a grown up," but it sounded an awful lot like Sirius, so I'm not sure I actually thought it.

"Firstly I would like to explain why Mr. Alastar Moody is no longer in charge of your case. Is there a place where we can go to discuss this privately?" He sounded British, he damn well knew where a place would be. Remembering this, he began to lead us up to the Headmaster's office. I was too caught up in the fact that Moody had been in charge of my case. I was pretending to date someone when I could have easily continued with my life just as it had been, because Moody would have kept my secret for me well enough. I felt Remus and Sirius shoot me looks, and knew they had both had the same thought. I would like to remind everyone, having a door was Remus' idea.

"Why isn't Moody on my case anymore?" I asked as soon as Dumbledore had allowed us the use of his office. Sirius and Remus had given Lily and I the chairs. Sirius was standing to the right of my chair and Remus to Lily's left, almost as though our best friends were also our guards.

"Mr. Moody was found to have not been taking sufficient enough reports for the Minister's standards. He has thus been assigned back to what he is good at in the first place, hunting death eaters." The fact that the man had said it with a proud grin and a laugh did not help his case with me any. Okay maybe it did some, but still what did he want. "Instead I have been assigned in his place to your case. I got a report that over the weekend the upperclassmen took a trip to Hogsmeade, is this correct?"

"Yes," I answered sharply.

"In this report it came to my attention that the Marauders, which is what you and your friends call yourselves, correct?" He asked. He had pulled out a few papers from his briefcase while he explained why Moody was no longer assigned my case. When he was asking a question he would read the paper, and flick his eyes to look at me when he said, "correct."

"Yes, we're the Marauders." I answered just as sharply. I hoped I was getting my point across that I thought having a case was useless and stupid.

"There are four of you, Peter Pettigrew, Remus Lupin," he looked up to Remus. "Sirius Black," he looked at Sirius, and had the same look that most people have when they say my lover's last name. "And yourself, James Potter." He looked at me, and I nodded. "The three of you, Lupin, Black, Potter," Again Bradshaw's eyes flicked at us. "Are the ones that have been said to be involved in this polygamous same-sex relationship, correct?"

"Yes, sir," Remus answered for us.

"Can you believe that? The biggest player in school, is said to be in a same-sex relationship, with his best mates, the two of them." Sirius said, making sure Bradshaw saw how ridiculous it sounded.

"That is what we are trying to disprove, and believe me boys I am on your side. I find the very notion ridiculous." Bradshaw said. We all bit back our laughs, he was on our side he said. Wonder what he would say if he knew he was trying to disprove something true. "That is why I am here, to find out where you three were this weekend." An image of Remus' cock in my hand, while Sirius' was in his mouth flashed before my eyes, but just for a moment.

"James was sick." Lily answered for me. "I checked his temperature. I've been accepted to St. Mungo's Healer Program next fall, and so I've been doing a lot of studying for that as well as my N.E.W.T.S. His temperature was much too high for him to go with me. We've gone to both September's trip as well as October's, and he was supposed to spend the day with his friends, well at least Sirius and Remus, Peter had gotten a date. I'm not one of those girls that thinks his life should revolve around me, I can't stand girls like that. So my friend and I had plans for that day. When I saw how sick he was I offered to stay with him, but Sirius and Remus said they would take care of him. His fever broke just after dinner, and now look at him. All better."

"It's as simple as that?" Bradshaw asked looking at me. I nodded. "And you two took care of him."

"Yes sir, good friends like Lily said." Remus answered.

"Yep, fever broke and he's good as new. Maybe I should be a healer." Sirius added. Remus, Lily, and I all looked at him like he had lost his marbles. "What?" He asked looking at us. "I could do it, I'd be very good at it. Healer Black, paging Healer Sirius Black." He said as he cupped his hand around his mouth.

"Yes Mr. Black," Bradshaw agreed. "I'm sure you would be very good at it."

"No he wouldn't," Remus said a bit to loudly, before shrinking when the three of us looked at him. "I mean, you can do whatever you set your mind to." He said in a small voice. Oh, someone was going to be in the dog house tonight, and he knew it. I knew that at that moment he so wanted to add an "I love you," to the end of his comment, but it was so not the right place for that.

"Now, Miss Evans," Bradshaw said turning the conversation away from Remus. "You and Mr. Potter have been together for..." He trailed off allowing her to finish the sentence.

"Nearly a year now," she said without missing a beat. We hadn't actually ever discussed our cover story. "We had our first kiss in mid-January, not long after Christmas break, and after a few mishaps, got together in late-February." I had almost forgotten about that kiss.

"Mishaps?" Bradshaw asked.

"Yes," Lily answered. "I got a little scared after that first kiss, and foolishly started dating this boy named Cormac, he's a Ravenclaw."

"What did you get scared of?" Bradshaw pressed.

"Um, really it was just the idea of it." She said almost shyly, if I didn't know her like I did, I wouldn't have known she was totally acting. "James and I had a really rocky start, and I didn't know if I was ready for that."

"Rocky?" Sirius said with a bark of his laughter. "Sure, if by rocky she means she wanted to push a boulder onto his head." Remus howled his laughter at that.

"You're supposed to be on my side," Lily pointed out looking over her shoulder at him.

"I love you, you are one of my best friends, you know this, but..." He replied.

"They come first, always have, always will." She finished for him the statement she had heard him say many times.

"Now Mister Lupin, I also have report of you being of the homosexual persuasion." Bradshaw said, continuing his business here.

"Yes, I am still a virgin," I was so glad Bradshaw was looking away from Sirius and I. We shared a look that said "virgin my ass" and "unless virgin means talking dirty while my prick is ramming into his ass at three o'clock in the morning." The first from me, the latter from Sirius. "But, females do not physically stimulate me. I have not done anything illegal, and thus nothing wrong."

"So you are physically stimulated by males?" Bradshaw continued. Remus nodded. "By say, Mr. Black and Mr. Potter?"

"Come on Moony, you know you want us." Sirius teased.

"You realize you don't help your case when you do that." Remus pointed out with that look that we had long ago labeled his "prefect." We both mumbled a sorry. "I am not blind, and only someone not secure enough in their masculinity would say that James and Sirius were not good-looking young men." Oh, and his professor's tone. I didn't know about Sirius, but I was totally seeing a role playing night coming on. "They are, however, my best friends, and thus I would never go there." Bradshaw nodded, accepting Remus' answer.

"Mr. Black," He said turning to Sirius. "You have said that you are the biggest player in the school, but I have no reports of flings or flirtations."

"Well now, how can you keep a reputation if people just go slinging it through the mud?" Sirius asked. "Anyways, that was before," none of us knew what he was doing, but he had started to walk to the other side of my chair, and was now knelling besides' Lily. "Wasn't it dear?" He said before taking Lily's hand in his and kissing her knuckles.

"Sirius," she gasped. "I thought we had agreed. James' heart just can't take it if we go public with the affair. Anyways, I told you it was over." She continued. He sighed and looked away, not letting her hand go. "You should, do as Mr. Bradshaw is suggesting. Find someone new."

"I can't Lily," Sirius gasped. "There is no one new, it is only you, it has always only been you, and will always only be you."

"Oh Sirius," She said trailing her hand across his cheek. "Dear, dear Sirius, how many times must I tell you? It is James I love."

"At least a million more before my heart even begins to understand it," he sighed before putting his head down on Lily's arm rest. Lily turned her face towards her shoulder, and laid her hand on his head.

"And," Remus said, "end of act three." I stood up and applauded the performance. Lily and Sirius stood up and gave us a bow. Bradshaw was looking at us in confusion, before he took a deep breathe.

"Okay," he said, "that was a little over dramatic." We all laughed, and even Bradshaw's lip twitched into a fast smile. "So let's see here," He took out a quill and a new piece of parchment and wrote something down. He looked up, pointed between Lily and I, "been dating for nearly a year." Lily and I nodded. He wrote something else down, before turning to Remus, "gay, sees that his best friends are good-looking, but would never go there." Remus nodded, and Bradshaw wrote something else down. He looked at Sirius, who flashed him a charming smile. "Too over dramatic, I'm just going to leave it alone," and finished writing whatever he had been writing. "Well I'll see you in two months time, enjoy your Christmas." We wished him the same, even though I know I for one was wishing he'd choke on his Christmas pudding. He nodded, and flooed from Dumbledore's personal fireplace.

"How did it go boys, Miss Evans," Dumbledore asked as he returned to the office part of his area of the castle.

"I don't like him," Remus answered truthfully.

"Total Cannons supporter." I added.

"Complete git." Sirius cried.

"He was doing his job, and he was actually kind of nice." Lily answered looking at us with a soft smile. We all glared at her.

"His job?" Remus asked in outrage.

"His job is to keep us unhappy." I added.

"Complete git." Sirius cried again.

"He just asked some questions, we all came up with very believable lies, except Sirius." She added with a shake of her head. "And I honestly don't think he's ever going to go there again." We all laughed at that.

"Ah, was it the disgusting route or the over dramatic?" Dumbledore asked with a knowing look in his eyes.

"Over dramatic, made me participate," Lily answered with a smile that said she enjoyed playing her part.

"Ah, of course. Well run along, don't do anything I wouldn't do." He added as we walked towards the door. The four of us turned back and gave him a questioning look.

"Sir, no one knows anything about you." Sirius pointed out.

"Yeah, what wouldn't you do?" I asked. He just smiled and winked, before turning to walk to his desk. We all shrugged at each other and hurried out of the office.

"What do you mean, I wouldn't make a good healer?" Sirius asked as soon as the four of us were alone. Remus spun to look at him.

"I think we're missing out on the important part of that conversation." He said with a shy grin. He knew he was bringing out the big guns with that.

"Oh, and what would that be, dear lover of mine." Sirius growled. Remus spun to look at Lily and I.

"You came up with that story of a kiss in January, awfully quickly." He was talking to Lily, but his glare was meant only for me.

"Yeah, had a time and everything." Sirius added, again talking to Lily, glaring at me.

"You never told them?" She asked. Really, she could lie to an employee of the Ministry of Magic, but not to my lovers. They had more power.

"No," I answered shortly. "I never thought it would be important."

"You know when it was important?" Sirius asked.

"Oh, I don't know, how about the day it happened." Remus answered. I tried to move behind Lily.

"Really is it even important anymore?" Lily said, trying to get them to calm down. "I mean really, I kissed him, not the other way around. It was still nice, but he didn't really respond." The look that they turned on her made her regret saying it was nice.

"You're the one that walked in to that tapestry that day." Sirius growled.

"You're the one that gets to be his girlfriend." Remus added.

"You're the one that gets to snog him in public." Sirius continued.

"If I didn't know better," Remus shook his head.

"Man stealer." Sirius accused.

"Oh please," Lily said standing up to them. "You think I orchestrated this? Hello, does it actually sound like something I would want? I'm dating James fucking Potter."

"Hey," I said feeling a bit offended by that. "You're the one that said you loved me."

"You said it back," she snapped, as she turned to face me. My eyes went wide, and I looked behind her to see Remus and Sirius with the look I had never wanted on their faces. The one that said, "there it is, I knew it had to end, just never thought it would be quiet this soon." With a shake of their heads, they raced away. "I'm so sorry James," Lily said, as I slumped against the wall my head in my hands.

"I'm so sleeping on a couch tonight." I sighed. Reverting to humor when my world may have just crashed around me.

A/N: So, what are you thinking?