Chapter 6:
3 years later
Orion, Draco, and Neville have spent the last 3 years like brothers. They discovered a year after the Christmas Ball while in the Hampshire Manor library a painting whose artist was Marlene McKinnon. The painting showed three Gryffindor boys probably in their 5th year. One of them was holding a snitch, the other was surrounded by girls who were probably all smitten with him and the third was reading a book. The painting was burned from one of the sides so the fourth person disappeared from the painting. On the back of it the artist wrote: 'The Marauders, best mischief makers Hogwarts has ever received.' Since then the boys were doing research about the marauders but couldn't find a thing. Since then 2 years passed and you can still see Orion, Neville and Draco researching about it once in a while. Their Hogwarts letters came and the boys as well as Susan were all ecstatic about it. The 1st of September finally came and the trio were heading towards King Cross Station. Sirius, Hestia and their son chose to apparate there. Orion was now used to side-apparating with his father. They walked in King Cross Station and entered platform 9 ¾. Orion was so excited that he wanted to apparate to Hogwarts! Hestia hugged her son tightly and even started to cry. Orion then looked up at his father who kneeled and held him tightly as he said: "Orion, you see all these people that are staring at us, they know us as Duke of Hampshire and his heir, but I want you to be yourself while at Hogwarts, be Orion and nobody else! Don't forget to write us letters weekly. Now get on the train before all the good compartments are gone!" Sirius then hugged his son tightly and ushered him towards the train. Orion then waved goodbye at them when the train took off. He had found the compartment where Draco and Neville were sitting in.
"I can't wait to get there!"Neville said excitedly
"Same here Nev!" Draco said
"This is going to be a great year, I hope we get sorted in the same house!" Neville added
"Even if we're in different houses we'll always stay brothers!" Orion said but was interrupted by the compartment door opening.
A girl with bushy brown hair entered the compartment, she asked them if she could join them, they said yes.
"I am Hermione Granger, and you are?" Hermione asked.
"I am Neville Longbottom and these are Draco Malfoy and Orion Black." Neville answered.
"Are you by any chance related to the Dagworth-Grangers?" Draco asked.
"No, I'm a muggleborn" replied Hermione with no hint of shame whatsoever. "What about you?" she asked
Orion answered: "The three of us are purebloods"
Hermione said: "Good, so you can answer a lot of my questions. I read a lot of books but I know that I still lack experience in the wizard world."
Orion said: "Feel free to ask whenever you want."
Hermione grinned as she replied: "Thank You! So where would you like to be sorted?"
The trio looked at each other, grinned and then replied together: "Gryffindor"
Hermione laughed then said: "Me too, but Ravenclaw's my second choice."
After about two hours they finally reached Hogwarts. Students were ushered by Hagrid towards the castle where they waited for Professor McGonagall to tell them about the sorting until they finally entered the Great Hall. 'It is wonderful !' thought Orion, I was just like his parents described it. The first years stood in a row and Professor McGonagall started calling out their names by alphabetical order.
"Abbott, Hannah!"stated McGonagall. The girl was sorted into Hufflepuff.
"Black, Orion" said McGonagall as Orion walked towards her and sat on the stool as the hat was placed on his head. 'Mmmm another Black I see, or should I say Potter! But everyone thinks Harry Potter is dead and I see you want it to stay that way…So I see a lot of brains Black but lack of will to actually study…Loyalty…you're cunning too…but I see that courage and chivalry outweighs everything else…so let it be'…"GRYFFINDOR!"
The Gryffindor table broke into applause as Orion grinned happily and went to sit at Gryffindor table. Susan Bones was sorted into Hufflepuff and Orion gave her a thumbs up as she walked towards her house's table, and Hermione got sorted into Gryffindor. Neville was sorted in Gryffindor as well and Draco's sorting took a while but then the hat shouted Gryffindor and he joined his best friends.
Orion said happily: "Great! We can be the reincarnation of the marauders now!"
And as he said that two red headed third year twins interrupted him by saying: "Listen Fred, I just heard first years talking about marauders"
"Ah I see George! So you guys know about the marauders?"
Neville hastily said: "Yes! And how do you know about them? Library research?"
Fred and George stared at each other and burst into laughter: "Us? The Library? Hahaha! Yeah Right! We know about it since our first year!"
Draco gasped and whispered to Orion and Neville: "They have the map!"
The twins stared at them then said: "What did you say?"
Orion said to them: "You have the map don't you?"
George looked at his twin and then said: "Maybe we do, maybe we don't"
Orion rolled his eyes and said: "What's it going to cost us to know?"
Fred smirked then said: "Pull up a prank and show us that your worthy to be the next marauders!"
Orion grinned at his best friends and said: "Alright!".
As the Gryffindors reached their common room the trio waved their wands and frogs were bouncing all around the common room and screams echoed the place. Professor McGonagall, unfortunately was in the common room and caught them red handed. Their head of house floo called their parents and Sirius was the first to arrive, he sat in front of his son and asked him: "What was that about?"
Orion replied hesitantly: "We wanted to be the next marauders and make an entrance."
Sirius was stunned and after a minute he asked his son: "Where did you hear that word?"
"It's a long story, they were the best mischief makers ever! Messers Moony, Wormtail Padfoot and Prongs!"replied Orion.
"You will not get carried away by something like that again do you hear me?" Sirius said slowly
"But Father!" whined Orion
"No Orion! Not another word!" Sirius said as he stood up and left the office.
McGonagall stared at Orion sympathetically and then told him: "Mr. Black, I happen to know the marauders."
Orion gaped at her and then said: "You do Mam! Who were they?"
McGonagall sighed and then said: "I normally don't reveal facts about mischief to students but I think you have the right to know, Prongs was Mr. James Potter, Wormtail is Peter Pettigrew, Moony is Remus Lupin and Padfoot is…His Grace…Your father."