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Immediately after Professor Flanagon had left the common room, Maxym went to her room. She wanted to be alone. But she had not thought about Katelyn. So she left the room and the Slytherin common room.

Outside, she walked purposefully towards the next secret passage. She had seen several on James's map and knew she would be undisturbed there. As soon as she was protected and hidden, her vision blurred and the first tears rolled down her cheeks.

She wept bitterly. She could no longer hold anything in. The dam had broken. It had been too much. She got pressure from every side and had to put up with snide remarks and nasty looks. Maxym sobbed out loud. She could take no more. She didn't want to anymore.

Apathetically, she cried on and on and was lost. Lost in her pain. She wanted to go home. To her parents, far away from this whole wizard thing. She had nothing to do with any of this. She didn't belong in this world, with these people.

Suddenly she felt a hand on her shoulder and she jolted up. Immediately she wiped the tears from her face, but new ones were already making their way.

»Maxym?« She had recognised that voice anywhere. It was James. But how had he found her? It didn't matter. Nothing mattered.

The young Malfoy threw herself into his arms and wept bitterly. James, perplexed by the situation, didn't know what to do for the first minute. It broke his heart to see her like this. He wanted to kill the one who had made her cry. But that didn't help her now.

So he swallowed his anger, put his arms around her quivering body and offered her comfort. That was all he could do.

After several minutes, it seemed like hours to James, Maxym's tears dried up and she calmed down. Still pressed against James' chest, he kissed her hair and then whispered softly, »What's wrong? Did someone hurt you?«

Maxym shook his head, barely noticeable, and hugged the young man closer. »Do you want me to kill someone for you?« James did not give up.

»Then you'll go to Azkaban,« Maxym murmured so softly that James barely understood.

He shrugged his shoulders. »Heard I'm in good company there these days.« That made Maxym grin.

She pushed away from him slightly and looked down at his chest. »It's just all been a bit much for me right now.« She wiped the last of the tears from her cheek.

James, still standing close to her, didn't let up. »There was a trigger after all. So? Who do you want me to beat up?«

Max shook his head. »No one, I already told you that. Let it be. Scorp has defended my honour enough.« She looked straight at him now. »But what are you doing here, anyway? And how did you find me.«

James grinned at her. »You're not the only one who knows these secret passages.« He turned serious again. »I thought I'd take advantage and see if I could eavesdrop on the inspectors.«

Maxym took a step back and straightened her clothes. »Then I don't want to stop you.« She turned on her heel but was pulled back against James's chest.

»Wait a minute,« he murmured and kissed her long. »I need my luck,« he breathed against her lips as they parted.

Smirking and with a red head, Maxym turned and disappeared out of the corridor.

Meanwhile, in the Room of Requirement, Remus and Tonks were packing their things.

»What are you doing?« asked Sirius, who had joined them.

»We're packing. Ted's in Azkaban. He shouldn't be there. You know that better than any of us,« Remus explained to his best friend.

»I understand that, but you can't just leave because of that. We don't know how to get there or where he is. Azkaban is big and one of the best prisons. You can't just walk in and pick him up.«

»We know that better than anyone. But what else are we going to do? We can't just sit here,« Remus complained, slamming his bag on the floor.

»Please darling, don't get upset. We'll save him,« his wife reassured him.

»Hey, what are you doing?« Remus` and Sirius` conversation was interrupted by the sudden appearance of Al. »You're packing?«

»Not us. Remus and Tonks are playing Parents of the Year and they want to save their son without help.« Sirius undertone clearly showed that he thought little of the endeavour.

»That's madness. At least let us help you. We're all a team now, aren't we? Why else do the Rebels exist.«

»Not for that reason, grandson. You will not go near Azkaban.« James Senior joined in and looked at Al critically.

»We'll see about that.« And before anyone could stop him, he ran back out.

»He's right, though. This is madness, what you're trying to do. And Sirius has a point. You can't just get him out of there.« James, too, tried to talk his friends into it.

»We just have to try. What would you guys do if Harry was in Ted's place?«

»We'd get him out of it,« Lily interjected. »And you guys would help us. So you can forget about refusing our help right now. We'll get through this together.«

Remus didn't like any of this. »We can't ask you to do that. You have to think of yourselves, of Harry, of the children. They need you.«

»We're marauders. You don't go it alone. How many times do we have to tell you.« Sirius patted his friend on the shoulder.

After Al left the Room of Requirement, he immediately went in search of James. He tried the Gryffindor common room first. But he wasn't there. He was also nowhere to be found in the Great Hall. In one of the corridors he met Dominique.

»Hey, do you know where James is?«

»I last saw him with the Slytherins. They're all hanging around the lake.« But before she could ask why he wanted to know, he was already running towards the lake.

»Find the others and go to the Room of Requirement,« he called out to her before disappearing around the next corner.

Dominique shook her head at his volatility.

Al, on the other hand, sprinted towards the lake. And right there, sitting on a blanket next to Maxym was his brother.

»Al, what are you doing here?« asked James. Al, still quite out of breath, haltingly told what had happened in the Room of Requirement and what the marauders were up to. Shocked at having gone alone, the three of them ran back to the Room of Requirement.

»So you want to do this alone?« James, Maxym and Al came into the Room of Requirement and watch the marauders packing up.

»James, this is too dangerous for you. We agreed to share our knowledge, but that's all.« James Senior tried to reassure his grandson.

»Not from our side. We want to help you. You need us.« James did not let up.

»You must understand that this is too dangerous for you. Your parents would never forgive us. Think of them too,« Lily supported her husband.

Dominique, Colin and Katelyn joined them. Maxym, who was standing behind James, glanced briefly at them. She couldn't help but notice that Colin was standing close to Katelyn. Was there something going on between them? But there was no time for that. Not now, anyway. They could talk about it later in the room.

»We did become the Rebels for a reason. We'll help you.« Al, like his brother, didn't let up.

»No, we already told you, it's too dangerous.« James Senior had the same stubbornness as his grandchildren.

»Then at least let us help you get some information,« Maxym suggested. »You don't know where to look for him, nor how to get to Azkaban. I hardly think you can get there easily.«

»No, I've already told you it's too dangerous. You don't interfere there.« Remus also joined in the conversation.

»I don't know about that. Maxym is right. We know little and have no plan yet. What's the harm in them helping us? It won't put them in danger.« Lily supported the Rebels. That way, both parties got something out of it.

The next day, Maxym and James took advantage and asked Professor Longbottom in Defence Against the Dark Arts. »Professor, how do you actually get to Azkaban?«

Maxym rolled his eyes. He might as well have asked how to get someone out of there. She mentally made a mental note to explain to him what it meant to be subtle.

»Why do you want to know?« The professor turned to his students and was flustered. They were actually going to go over the creatures of the night.

»There are so many being imprisoned there lately. I'm just interested in what this place is. And how to get there,« James explained.

Good save, Maxym thought to himself, waiting anxiously for the answer.

»That's a good idea. James. We can discuss it gladly in one of the following lessons. Now, however, let us return to page 45.« Longbottom turned to the blackboard.

»But Professor, our parents are there.« A Huffelpuff student also spoke up.

Longbottom saw expectant faces and sighed. »I notice this subject interests many.« He leaned against the lectern. »Azkaban is located in the North Sea and is a fortress. It has served as a prison facility for the British Ministry of Magic since 1718. For a long time, Dementors guarded the facility. But in 1998, they no longer lingered there and aurors were assigned as guards.«

»Why are there no more Dementors there?« asked Maxym.

»The Dementors had an arrangement with the Ministry of Magic for a long time. They guarded the prison and in return were allowed to help themselves to the prisoners and get their happiness. From 1998, however, the agreement was dissolved. You can guess why. That's why the Dementors disappeared.«

»Is it heavily guarded? Now that the Dementors are no longer there?« asked Dominique.

»Are you going to break into it? I wouldn't advise it,« Longbottom said with a laugh. It was a joke on his part, but he could not have guessed how serious the Rebels were. »Despite the absence of the Dementors, it is very well secured. You can't apparate there or fly there. Magic barriers and protective spells surround the fortress.«

»So how do the prisoners get there?« asked James.

»Initially they were apparated there directly from the Ministry. But that became too dangerous as some prisoners escaped with the help of outsiders. So they set up a safe house. Rumour has it that it is on the North Sea coast, but no one, except the Aurors, knows it. In this safe house there is a portkey. It can only be used at night. This is to increase security.«

»Al, what are you doing?« asked Rose in a whisper. She, Al and Scorp were sitting in Potions.

»I'm brewing potions,« Al justified himself.

»I can see that. But this isn't the potion we're supposed to be brewing.«

Al sighed and paused what he was doing. »Yes, I know. But I wanted to help the marauders and I thought they could use some potions.«

Rose looked at him for a long moment. »That's a wonderful idea. I'll help you, together we can do more.«

After dinner in the Great Hall, most of the Rebels ran to the Room of Requirement. The marauders, who had received their food from Magenta, were clearing the plates away.

Before any of the marauders could speak, James, Maxym and Dominique told them about their lessons and what they had learned about Azkaban. Eagerly, Lily noted everything down on the board.

»And that's not all. We still made you potions, the professor didn't get any of that.« The two placed the small vials on the round table.

»I don't even know what to say.« Tonks was overwhelmed by the help.

»A thank you would be in order. As I said, we can help you and we are not little children anymore. I hope we've made it abundantly clear to you with that.« James was proud of the Rebels.

»Indeed you have, lad. But that doesn't mean...« James Senior interrupted.

»...That we're going with you. That's understood. But we help and support each other,« Maxym finished his sentence.

I hope you enjoyed it. Feel free to write your thoughts and impressions in the comments, I would be very happy.