January 19th, 1977

One would think that six friends would have an easy time keeping a secret amongst each other. They could talk about it with five different people and share a burden. Even after two weeks had gone by, they still felt confined by the knowledge they sought out. The thought - or the paranoia - would creep on them at the most random times of day: Who is Mason Nagut's child?

James Potter, Sirius Black, Marlene McKinnon, and Peter Pettigrew openly believe that if there were an offspring at Hogwarts, it had to be a Slytherin. But Lily Evans and Remus Lupin were less inclined to limit the options to a single house.

"He could be anyone of us," Peter insisted fiercely to his fellow Marauders.

"Or a she," shrugged James as they sat down for their OWL potions lesson. He positioned himself next to Remus since he and Sirius were banned from sitting next to each other in Slughorn's classes (4th year hair removal explosion - yikes).

Peter nodded, "Sure. But don't you think it would have to be a Slytherin. Naturally sadistic, naturally vile, naturally... evil."

"Give it a bloody rest, Wormy," Remus grumbled, setting his books down. His eyes traveled around the room like, they did recently every class. When his friends asked why, he'd reply 'oh, nothing.' They stopped asking yesterday.

"My galleon is on Rosier," Sirius mumbled as he leaned back in his seat with his hands behind his head. He jerked his head to the next aisle of desks and said, "The prick looks mad."

"Last week, you said it was Parkinson," Peter reminded.

The Marauders did their best at subtlety while peering over at the back of the class, where Evan Rosier always sat. He was a strange one. He had pale white skin with prominent veins, a thick neck, and eyes that constantly looked hungry. Rumor has it that he nearly got expelled for killing a Threstal in the Forbidden Forest in their third year.

James blinked a few times, but turned away. Rosier seemed too easy of a choice. It would be someone unexpected, right? That's how all mysteries go. A solid 97% of James wanted to point a wand at Snape. The creep was obviously some sort of sadomasochistic genius that clearly fit the profile, but James also knew that Snape knew who his birth parents are for sure. At the beginning of last year, he had followed Lily into the library, like he would on rare occasions when he had free time. He could just watch her study, chat with Marlene, Vance, and McDonald, and just smile.

That was beside the point though.

James saw that Lily had met up with Snape that time. He was telling her about how a letter he got about his father nearly broke his mother's nose during one of their 'discussions.' He told Lily that he wants to exterminate his genetic line forever because of Tobias Snape. So, that ended that theory.

And apparently, his mother is a Prince. Not that any of the Princes interact with Severus since his mother married a muggle. So, Nagut's child couldn't have been Snape. James looked over to Severus, who was whispering, rather furiously, with Mariah Avery. He was always up to something though.

James' attention shifted when Professor Slughorn waddled out of his office. "Hello, my NEWTs," smiled Slughorn. He stood at his podium and took out attendance. He removed his spectacles and looked up, "McKinnon?"

Marlene, who was sharing a desk in the back with Emmeline Vance, raised her head and asked, "Yes, Professor?"

"Where is your friend, Miss Evans?" Slughorn asked curiously. "She's normally never late to my class."

"Don't know," Marlene shrugged indifferently. She then focused her eyes on the Potions Master more. "I know you like her more, Professor," she said in a short voice, "but I'm not her secretary."

Professor Slughorn blushed for a moment as students chuckled at the all-too-real statement. "That is not true, Miss McKinnon," he said. "You are good friends with her, so I thought you may know- ah, Miss Evans, prompt as ever."

Lily Evans looked back at her professor as she attempted to sneak into the classroom quietly. "Sorry," she apologized hastily. She appeared rather frazzled - her hair frayed in a tight bun above her head; her shirt was untucked; and she looked like she had just played the longest game of Quidditch that James had ever seen.

She just got shagged, James' mind spoke too loudly. He just stared at her as she skittered in. She took the open desk in the back and pulled out her textbooks and notebook. James snapped his head away, not wanting to focus anymore of his attention on her.

"Maybe you should start working on your stamina," Professor Slughorn joked.

Lily let out a breathless chuckle. "You have no right, Professor, to be giving me advice about my body," she said in a gentle, yet clear voice.

Professor Slughorn opened his mouth to speak, but everyone knew it was true. The students chuckled quietly. He cleared his throat and tapped his papers against the podium. "Let's get on with the lesson, shall we?"

The class went on boringly. It was a theory class on Amortania, which was rather long and frustrating to listen to. An hour suddenly felt like seven, and when Slughorn finally dismissed them, everyone rushed out. Lily took her time, however, as she put her notes into her bag. She was tired at this point. She had been studying all day, with the occasional snog sesh. Actually more like four thirty minute snog sessions.

"Where were you?" Marlene asked curiously as she bent down into a squat next to Lily's desk. She poked at finger at her friend's shoulder teasingly. "You're never late to Potions."

Lily blushed profusely, but said nothing for a moment. "I was with Connor."

"Fucking," Emmeline nodded confidently, "I told you she was getting shagged, Marlene."

"I was not getting shagged," Lily countered hotly as she stood up. Her blush deepened. "Just the before stuff."

Marlene let out an irritated groan. They left the classroom so that Slughorn couldn't hear their dirty talk. "Here I was thinking that I'd be proud of you," she grumbled. "I would've pulled out the champagne and the weed. Lily, how long are you going to make poor Greyson wait for you to give it up?"

"I'm not making him wait. I just… er… I think…" she trailed off and bit her lip. The silence spoke for itself. Her two friends exchanged knowing glances.

"If he's not the one, Lily, then who is?" Emmeline asked curiously. "Or, is it that you don't like him? Love, I resonate with that - trust me. But if you don't even want to shag the bloke then that's pretty much a sign. A sign that the stars just aren't aligning. He's a Taurus, isn't he? They're incredibly possessive, and Aquarius women just don't like to be tied down- "

"Ok, slow down," Marlene interrupted. "All good, Em, but not what we need right now." She stopped Lily from walking all the way into the Great Hall for dinner. All three girls noticed the Head Boy sitting by Caradoc Dearborn and the Prewett Twins; they were all laughing at one of Fabian's impersonations of Professor Binns. The three girls moved out of the entrance, not wanting to be visible. "Lily, do you even like Connor?" Marlene asked.

Lily opened her mouth, but nothing came out. She wanted - no, needed - to say yes. But, it just couldn't happen; the words refused to come out. "We have other things to focus on," Lily insisted as waved the subject away.

"Like what?" The blond asked hotly. "Come on, Lily. It's not fair to him or you. You just need to decide if you do like him; this see-saw shite has been going on for just too long."

"I know," Lily agreed impatiently. She let out an exasperated sigh, "I just can't seem to focus on that right now."

"What's got your mind so wrapped up, eh?"

"Oh, I don't know! Mason Nagut's child?" Lily nearly shouted.

…

"Fuck," she breathed as her eyes darted between her friends. "Fuck fuck fuck," she repeated as she grabbed her head. She had been so heated in the moment, so tried of this conversation that she just let it slip. "Fuck!"

Marlene rubbed the bridge of her nose quietly as Emmeline gasped at the name. "Mason Nagut has a child?" She asked lowly. "Grindelwald's follower?" When there was no answer, she let out a breath, "Fuck... How do you know that?"

"We snuck into Dumbledore's office nights ago," Lily explained in an almost guilty tone. "With the marauders. We wanted to know why haven't been getting the Prophet for those two days-"

"Wait, wait, wait, nights ago?" Emmeline said quickly. Her eyes narrowed on Marlene this time, who was now tapping her foot awkwardly and curling her lips in. "You knew about this too? That Mason Nagut has a kid?"

"Aw, come on, Em," Marlene murmured exasperatedly. "We couldn't tell anyone."

"This we shite is confusing me," the dark-haired girl said irritably. "You and the Marauders? I know Potter's your cousin, Marls, but when did Lily start hanging out with them? And when did you both start keeping secrets - something like that - from me? From Mary? Especially about something that big!"

"Dumbledore hid those two Prophets for a reason, a good one," Lily said in a soft voice, just trying to calm the situation. "So, we didn't think to share it with anyone. I'm sorry, Em, but including you too."

Emmeline's face hardened. "This is important, Lily!" She almost shouted, causing a few passing by, including an unamused Professor McGonagall, to peer over at them. Emmeline took a deep breath. "There is a war outside of these doors that I continuously try to understand and figure out how I can help with. And that's my sight! Something that important should've been in my vision."

"Emmeline," Lily murmured in a tender voice.

"No, Lily, I don't want pity," she interrupted in stern voice, "I'm not in the fucking mood. Now, what is going on? What did I miss?"

Lily and Marlene exchanged glances. Marlene gave Lily a why-not sort of gesture before the ginger turned to look at her crossed friend. Recently, Emmeline hasn't been able to foresee as much, and the poor girl couldn't stand it. She's never been perfect at fortune telling because foreseeing is such a complex art, but she always had an inclination for it. Practicing at Hogwarts helped her tremendously over the years, making her one of the finest pupils that Professor Sinastra has ever seen. But recently, everything has been rather foggy for Emmeline's sight.

Lilly took a deep breath. "Apparently, Nagut believes that he has an illegitimate child at Hogwarts, one that could have been birthed by one of his victims back in the early 60s. And he would like to meet this child before his execution in a month. You know? Through the Azkaban execution process?"

Emmeline blinked a few times. "Bloody hell," she mumbled. She looked up at them and asked, "Here? At the school?"

"It's just a belief," clarified Marlene, "it may not even be real. He attacked so many women during his reign of terror that who knows if he does have a child, and better yet, is the child even magical?"

Emmeline leaned against the wall. "But, if they were at the school, maybe I should've saw something? A warning?" Her face fell as she pursed her lips.

"Or maybe this child doesn't even exist," Lily offered, "you do have natural sight, Em. Maybe the fact that you didn't detect it is a sign that this child does not exist. Or attend Hogwarts."

Emmeline appeared unconvinced. "Or the kid is waiting for their portion of Roast Beef at any one of those tables."

Marlene, Lily, and Emmeline both leaned in towards the entrance and peered into the Great Hall. At Hogwarts in the year of 1977, there were roughly three hundred students. Students of all colors, all backgrounds, and of all different kinds of blood sat together for supper. The options seemed limitless.

"You don't know that," Lily insisted.

"No, I don't know," Emmeline agreed in a solemn voice, "and that terrifies me." She turned on her heel and began to towards the Dungeon's staircase.

"Em! Aren't you coming to dinner?" Marlene asked confusedly as the two Gryffindors watched their Hufflepuff friend sulk away from them.

"No, don't feel like it," she said tiredly, not even turning back to look at them.

Later that hour, James couldn't help but watch as Lily Evans walked away from him. Well, not just him but the entire Gryffindor table. Dinner was relatively amicable between them, like it had been for the past two weeks. Apparently, keeping a secret allows for two to become more intimate.

But that doesn't mean it didn't suck to watch her walk off with the Head Boy. His arm was around her shoulder, and she smiled brightly at him. They seemed perfect, like a fairytale. It was an unnecessary punch to the gut, especially after seeing her in… a flustered state during potions. You're a jealous sod, his mind reminded.

"Oy, Prongs," nudged Peter, snapping James out of his self-deprecation spiral. "You got a little birdie flying your way," he added with a chuckle.

James turned his head and saw Camilla Henley walking down the aisle. She waved as she came closer. He waved back and scotched over for her, making space between himself and Marlene.

"Cool, Cousin," the blond said drably. "Slags before fam. I'll remember that."

"Dramatics," James countered. "You use it for your vocal lessons too?"

"It's called emotions, James," she said knowingly, "feel them." She then peered her eyes at Camilla as she sat down. Marlene pursed her lips and continued to eat her dinner.

"Hi, Potter," Camilla said in a sweet tone.

"Evening, Henley," he replied kindly. He gave her a small smile, the subtle one that girls liked the most. "How can I help you?"

Camilla crossed her legs so that more of her slim leg could be shown. His eyes followed the line of his skirt before looking back at her. In the background, he saw Marlene imitate gagging on her dinner. He focused back on the brunette. "Well," Camilla started, "I have a History of Magic essay coming up. I chose to write mine about women in Quidditch, and I was wondering if I could maybe hear some of your thoughts? Maybe over some tea in Hogsmeade? My treat?" She batted her eyelashes once and gave him a slight smirk.

He knew what was going on. James Potter was no idiot. Chances are Camilla didn't just come up to him because he was the house's Quidditch Captain, but also because she wanted to get a reason for them to be alone. He didn't blame her either - they were both easy choices for each other, ever since New Year's.

"It would be my pleasure," he said politely. He returned the flirtation back with a wink.

Camilla couldn't hide her elation as her smile grew proudly. "This Saturday work for you? Say two o'clock?"

"I'll meet you in the Common Room," James finalized.

Camilla licked her lips and stood up. She straightened her shoulder a bit and gave him a slight nod, "See you then."

"See you," he replied with a wave. James watched her walk away and decide that he much prefer watch Camilla Henley walk away rather than Lily Evans. She had a nice sway to her hips and walked away with confidence. It was a much more… satisfying feeling.

"I heard she's brutal when betrayed, according to Cresswell. Almost performed a freezing charm on a lad's privates," Marlene informed, causing the Marauders to sit up a bit straighter. "You don't want to cross her, even by accident. Sensitive slags are the worst."

"She seems nice," James countered. "I could use some niceness."

Remus let out a snort. "You got enough niceness this summer to cure trauma patients at St. Mugno's."

"Sod off," James hissed, still focusing on Camilla. She peered over at him; their eyes interlocked for a moment. She blushed and turned back to Hestia and began talking again.

"Or who knows?" Peter shrugged, "Daddy may be Nagut and kill you without even looking at you. I mean, the bloke can produce a bloody patronus without a wand. I wonder what his patronus even is? You think a patronus can be a dementor-"

"Shut up, Peter!" The three others whispered hotly.

Peter squeaked before quickly saying, "Shutting."

Sirius cursed the young woman before him. He nearly pulled out his wand and actually did it. Perhaps a tongue-tying hex, or something. He followed her all this way and missed dinner for this? Why did Dorcas Meadowes have to be the freak to actually enjoy below freezing temperatures? The Slytherin was sitting on a bench in the middle of the courtyard with a lit cigarette in her mouth. Snow surrounded her body, but she didn't seem cold in her jeans, boots, trench coat, and seemingly light scarf. She looked tired with dark bags under her eyes; her skin looked paler than usual; and her usually plump lips looked dry and peeling. Dorcas had actually looked like this the past few days, in just the few glimpses he saw of her.

Sirius took a step forward, causing a loud crunch. Dorcas heard it and immediately stood up. She moved so fast that he couldn't see her pull out her own wand. "Oh…" she murmured after a moment. She put it back in jeans and sat down. "My bad."

"Someone's a little jumpy I see," he said, wrapping his cloak around him more.

"Just tired," Dorcas murmured.

"Mind if I join you?"

Dorcas eyed him carefully before nodding. She took a long drag as she sat back and watched Sirius sit down beside her. "What do you want?" She asked, letting the smoke out in one big tuft.

"Can't I just join you on this freezing cold evening?" He asked with a charming grin.

Dorcas scoffed. "What's with you Marauders? Can't you just say what you have to say instead of beating around the bush?"

Sirius crossed his arms and leaned his back against the bench, trying his best not to shiver. "Why haven't you been showing up to classes?" he asked bluntly.

Dorcas pursed her lips. She let the silence settle itself as she took another drag. "I don't see how that's really any of your concern," she countered.

"What's with you, Meadowes?" Sirius asked teasingly. "Can't you just say what you have to-"

"Sod off, Black," she hissed. "I get it."

Sirius chuckled to himself. "I'm only asking because Remus seems rather preoccupied with your absence," he explained. He noted how she paused at the name of Remus' name. He had to admit that their relationship intrigued, and, maybe even, rubbed him the wrong way. "He's been looking for you in every class that we have together which is Potions, DADA, Charms-"

"I get it," Dorcas gritted through her teeth.

Sirius noted her impatience and couldn't tell if her shivering hands were due to the cold or due to her mental state. He waited for her to continue.

"I… I haven't been sleeping well lately," Dorcas explained.

Now of all the things that could be wrong with the elusive Dorcas Meadowes, sleep deprivation was not the first thing that Sirius had considered. A sickness, a sickness in her family maybe, or plan old teenage angst. But, for sleeping to be such a concern, it had to be bad.

"Like insomnia?" Sirius asked.

Dorcas shook her head. "It's more like staying asleep," she revealed. "I've tried endless sleeping draughts, and Dumbledore has also been teaching me meditation methods he learned in Tibet. Nothing works though. And during the day, I can't seem to stay awake."

"And that's why you don't show to class," Sirius finished. The dots fit together perfectly.

"The professors know too."

"You should tell Remus," Sirius advised.

"Well, I mean - what's he so concerned with anyway?"

"That's a good question for you, Dorcas Meadowes," Sirius said as he stood up, not being able to stand the cold. Or that's what he told himself. He wasn't particularly interested in hearing anymore about his former one-night-stand's and his best friend's secretive relationship. "Either way, can I tell him about your disruptive REM cycle so that he'll stop looking for you every class? It's rather irritating."

Dorcas raised an eyebrow. Sirius knew that long because he gave it to people all the time. The 'are-you-serious?' look. "No, I'm not jealous," he countered.

"I wasn't suggesting that you were," Dorcas countered playfully as she smoked more.

"That being said, if you aren't secretly shagging my mate, I would be willing to have another go at it," Sirius said with a signature smile, even as Dorcas chuckled. "Maybe it would help with your sleep?"

Dorcas chucked her cig and stood up. She looked him in the eyes; her ice blue eyes piercing into his. "I'm gonna pass."

Sirius convulsed and put his hand over his heart. "Ouch, ouch," he imitated, "Not many girls pass up the second round, Love."

"It was fun, Sirius, I mean that," Dorcas said earnestly. She let out a yawn, almost to the point of tears, "but I'm not really interested in trying to complicate anything right now."

"No complications, I solemnly swear," he said putting his hand up. "I'm good at simple."

Dorcas patted him on the shoulder. "Tell Remus thank you for checking up on me. And thank you too for being the messegener." She turned around and headed towards the staircase that led back down to the Slytherin dungeon.

Sirius couldn't help but gawk as she walked away. He let out a weak, "Ouch," in response to the girl's verbal brutality.

Lily felt weak in the knees by the time her prefect rounds came up. She and Connor had been in his room practically all day. After dinner, they had gone pretty far too. For a second, she thought might even let Connor shag her. But, time was looking out for Lily's integrity even if she wasn't; she had to meet up with Hestia. She also couldn't help but think about Marlene's and Emmeline's intervention.

This is what Lily knew for sure. She didn't love Connor; she knew what love felt like. She felt it for a lot of people like her parents, Petunia (occasionally), Marlene, Emmeline, and Mary. And even though romantic love is nothing like familial love, she did know it was supposed to be powerful. And what she felt for Connor was not powerful. Her 'love' for him was subtle, like a murmur or a whisper.

Maybe that's how romantic love starts. That's what Lily told herself. She obviously cared for Connor immensely and was most definitely attracted to him. He was bloody handsome, a rudy good kisser, and even made her cum with his mouth. But still.

"Lily?" a chipper voice called.

Lily popped her head up and saw Hestia Jones standing before her. "Hi, Jones," she said, a bit flustered. She let out an awkward chuckle. "Sorry, just got a little lost in my thoughts."

Hestia shook her head. "Don't worry," she said, "you must be terribly busy as a NEWT student and a prefect. Honestly, only you could do it! And you have a boyfriend!"

Lily let out that awkward chuckle again. "Er, thanks, Hestia. That's nice of you."

"I just don't know how you do it," she shrugged as they began to walk towards the Grand Staircase. "It must be so much."

"Yes, well, it is, but most definitely worth it," Lily clarified. "You must be studying hard for your OWLs."

Hestia laughed. "Yeah, I am. I feel good in DADA, Ancient Runes, and Transfiguration for sure. I'm a little shaky in Charms and Potions, but if I study hard enough, I think I'll be able to be able to get an E. I'm fucked for Astronomy though. I accept that."

Lily laughed. She always appreciated Hestia's brutal honesty, and at least, she knew how to keep a conversation going. "I wish Camilla was studying harder though," Hestia grumbled.

"Henley is a rather diligent student, I thought."

"She is," Hestia confirmed, "the naturally smart type too. But she still needs work in some areas, but just doesn't care about them. She could get so far, a Ministry job even, but gets so lazy sometimes. Or preoccupied." There was a bit of an umph at the end, causing Lily to pause.

"Why do you say that?" Lily asked carefully.

Hestia shrugged, "Just her Potter crush as usual."

"Potter?!" Lily asked, a little too loudly.

"Yeah," Hestia said as if it were obvious. "She always fancied him, since our third year. And it's not that I don't want Camilla to talk with Potter, especially after that New Year's Party."

Lily raised her eyebrows. Her mind flashed back to that kiss involuntarily - it just raced their like it was a bloody marathon. For a second, she was back at Marlene's castle, midnight, and with James Potter's lips against hers. "Yeah, New Year's," repeated Lily. She shook her head of the thought.

"But, I don't want it to take up all her time. Boys shouldn't be more important than our grades this year, or ever for that matter," Hestia continued, unaware of Lily's flashback. "I just want us to do well."

"Do you know if Potter is into her?" Lily asked, trying to hide her hesitation. She wanted to smack herself. What the fuck was she doing, prying into someone else's business? And why the fuck did she care about Henley liking Potter? She really hated her mind's incessant free association game. Freud would have a field day with her.

Hestia let out a loud laugh. "Apparently! Because all she does is keep talking about how he agreed to help her with a paper on Quidditch."

"He is the one for that topic though," Lily pointed out.

"That he is," agreed Hestia.

"Running around with that snitch all day," Lily grumbled. "Henley will have an entire thesis by the time he's done with her." Hestia joined her in the laughter. "You know what I'm talking about, Jones? He looks like a fucking giraffe with those gangly limbs flying everywhere."

Hestia and Lily continued to laugh at the thought of James as a giraffe. It seemed like any other prefect round until Hestia bent so far back laughing that her head tilted. Her eyes opened to a terrible sight.

"Oh my God," she breathed.

Lily looked up too and clutched her mouth to stop a scream from bursting out. Dirk Cresswell's body was hanging limp, floating in the air.

"Dirk," Hestia said. "Dirk! Dirk!" She clutched the handle bars as she ran up the stairs, closer to where Dirk hung. The stairs decided to keep changing, making it difficult for Lily to follow. "We have to get him down!" Hestia panicked, tears forming in her eye ducts.

"I know, I know," Lily agreed hastily. Her mind sped as she tried to figure out how Dirk ended up there. Her thinking however did not catch up in time. The stairs moved one more time, causing Lily to shake and loose her balance. Hestia too.

They almost did not see Dirk's body drop.

A/N - YAY! It's up, I figured out the uploading problem. (I'm a bit technologically inept hehe.) I'm so happy I got this chapter up today, so that you all wouldn't have to wait too long! Chapter 10 is a big deal for me, and I want to give a big shout out to TrueHomiePIP and other reviewers for keeping me motivated and showing some love. Thank you for following too, it means so much to me! Since it is my spring break, I will try to get another chapter up within the next few days!

Hugs!

Rose