Peter Pettigrew awoke in a small pool of his own drool.

He pushed himself up off the table, feeling his back pop in multiple places as he did so. Peter groaned as he moved. The boy felt much too old to be sleeping anywhere other than his own bed at this moment. He looked around the abandoned Library, both his friends were gone. He'd been left alone, again.

Peter felt something settle in the pit of his stomach, something he really didn't like. His friends cared. They had to care.…right? He tried to shake the negative feeling away, tightening the hold he had on himself. It was only then that he noticed the old moth eaten blanket wrapped around his shoulders.

He looked down at the faded blue piece of fabric with a mixture of feelings. First was disgust, because this blanket was hardly recognizable as such. It was so threadbare that not even his Mum would use scrap pieces of it for cleaning. Even still, he tightened his hold on the smelly thing. It was no doubt from Remus, the guy really forgot how good he was at magic sometimes, but at least one of his friends had thought of him.

The youngest Marauder was pulled from his thoughts when his stomach growled loudly. The young man pushed himself away from the table and slowly made his way down to the kitchen. He stifled a yawn as he walked, still holding the blanket closely wrapped around himself.

When Peter reached the kitchen he noted that James and Lily were no longer here, probably long gone. The young man walked over to the counter, spying a small plate of food steaming under a stasis charm and a newspaper beside it.

The smell made Peter's mouth water. Oh how he truly loved food! This plate was a simple but lovely breakfast of eggs, sausage and toast as well as a lovely cup of tea. It sat innocently before him, but being a Marauder made him pause.

Peter closed his eyes and carefully sniffed the food. Most people just assumed he enjoyed smelling his food, but they would be wrong. He could pick out the spices used in the sausage, a lovely combination, but more of an afternoon sausage in his opinion. The toast was only lightly crisped, but heavily buttered. The eggs had been cooked a little longer than he'd do himself, but he couldn't pick out anything suspicions about them. He easily could tell that someone used fresh cream to cut the tea, just how he preferred. It really was a lovely plate.

This was Peter's skill. This was his element, though it didn't do much to help the war effort, he still took a small amount of pride in it. Over the years most of the Marauder's food based pranks had been heavily inspired by himself. He could usually tell when someone had messed with a meal just by the smell, something further improved by his own animagus form. Being a marauder required a certain sense of self preservation, one he had developed, not that many knew that.

Peter had been able to warn his friends of other people's counter pranks on many occasions, causing the other marauders to wait for him to start eating before they did. It was a silent communication. He would inspect the food, and if he ate it then they knew he hadn't found anything unusual.

However, he'd also been the one to 'test' most of their food based pranked, allowing them to make the most undetectable concoctions over the years. It was a double edged sword, but one he would happily wield for his friends. It was the least he could do.

Peter smiled fondly and the youthful memories he'd just relived. Oh how he wished to go back to such simple times. He shook the childish thought away, it would only sour his morning. Instead the dusty blonde gazed down at the food fondly, only just now noticing a small folded piece of paper folded under the tea cup.

He lifted the cup, and removed the paper. Unfolding it, his eyes glided across the familiar scribble.

'Mornin' Pete,

Hope you aren't too sore from sleeping in the Library, I know I've started to feel it in my bones lately. Sirius too, he wouldn't stop complaining about it all morning. I've already set off, but wanted to give you something as we haven't seen each other in a while. Sirius had no hand in the making, I assure you, though he did try. Please enjoy this, and stay safe out there my friend.

Sincerely yours,

Remus '

Peter couldn't help the chuckle that escaped his lips as he read the small letter. Warmth filled his heart. He felt his worries vanish as he imagined Sirius trying to 'help' Remus make the food. No doubt The former gave the latter a good deal of trouble this morning. And they hadn't forgotten him… The warmth Peter had felt was replaced as guilt welled up in his chest. He needed to be a better friend.

The young man nodded to himself, promising to do more. He unconsciously flipped the paper over, staring at the blank space he found there. He stared down at it for a moment before tucking a hand under his 'blanket' to fetch his wand.

Peter tapped the small paper with his wand and muttered one of the spells he knew by heart. Sure enough, there was a bit more written. You never know what hidden secrets a small piece of paper could have.

'P.S.

Sirius said he'd stop by to check on you later. Try not to let him talk you into anything while I'm out. '

Peter's eyes went wide. He had mixed feelings about this. On the one hand, he would love to see Sirius and hang out with him more! On the other… He very clearly remembered last night. Remus' warning was a very real one. Peter had the hardest time saying no to Sirius. No doubt, his book loving friend knew this and was trying to look out for him. Hopefully nothing bad happened….

Pocketing the note, he slid his wand into the past day's newspaper and tucked the makeshift package under his arm. Not trusting his wand work, he opted to bring the food over to the table the muggle way, with his own hands.

He sat himself down and took a nice sip of tea, the blanket still resting on his shoulders. The dusty blonde quickly made his way through the food, savoring every bite. The sausage was delectable! The eggs were perfectly seasoned, but indeed over cooked just slightly. A mental image of Sirius distracting Remus while he cooked popped into the young man's mind. It made him smile even more. Peter savored the last bites of his toast, washing them down with another sip of tea. He felt satisfied. Remus truly was the best of the Marauders when it came to cooking! Perhaps it was his motherly nature showing. Godric knows Sirius shouldn't be left in a kitchen unsupervised for any reason.

Peter pushed the dishes to the side, still sipping on his tea. He then did what most adults do, he unfolded the newspaper.

'He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named Strikes Again!'

The front page title hit Peter harder than any spell he'd felt in a long while. He felt his stomach flip, threatening to rid him of his breakfast. It was too early for this. He quickly forced himself past the first few articles, searching for something that wasn't so close to home at the moment.

'Inheritance Battle Wages On'

"As many of our readers know, the Mortimer family is at odds with itself, and has been since the death of Eugine L. Mortimer over twenty years ago. As the soul heir to the family, his untimely death marked the beginning of the fall for House Mortimer. Only a third of the members of the family have survived the last two decades, many dying in the most unusual ways. Though the late Lord Mortimer did proclaim a new heir before his death, only the Goblins of Gringotts know who that person is. They are refusing to tell anyone who the person might be, saying it goes against the last will and testament of Lord Mortimer. The head goblin in charge of the Mortimer estate only had this to say,

"Any may try to claim the inheritance of the esteemed Mortimer Family, but a price will be paid by those who seek what is not rightfully theirs."

The foreboding warning was not enough it seems as several have already tried over the years and failed to attain the Title of Lord/Lady of the Mortimer Family. Sadly none of the aforementioned persons were available to comment. However, the new head of the Malfoy Family, Lucious Malfoy, said the following on the subject.

"For such a well off family to be crumbling is quite unfortunate. I do hope the heir to the family reveals themselves, before the entire family has destroyed itself. We need their family now more than ever."

In other related news, the Mortimer family lost another 14 members last night as an all out slaughter took place in the ancient Family Home. The reason for this is not known for certain, but is quite concerning. Aurors are refusing to give much detail about the mass death. We have been assured that it was caused by the family feud and not related to the current rise of You-Know-Who. Whether that proves to be the case is yet to be seen... "

Peter glared at the page before him. Even this completely unrelated article managed to slip something in about the blasted Dark Wizard. He sighed, setting the paper down.

The young man continued sipping on his tea, mulling over the thousands of thoughts spinning in his head. This war was tainting everything. Nothing was safe anymore. His friends had been attacked in the middle of a muggle neighborhood for Helga sakes!

The dusty blond's thoughts drifted to the muggle who had saved them. How had she even done that? She had no magic, no knowledge, no nothing. And yet somehow she'd been able to help James and Sirius….

Peter felt another small bit of jealousy swell in his heart. He didn't like how it settled itself there. He knew it was wrong to feel this way. He should just be grateful that the girl had done anything to help his friends. He shouldn't be feeling this way.

Peter reached out for his wand resting on the table. He took his time examining the odd swirl of the handle and the weird way the wand bent back and forth. It looked almost like a rat's tail in some ways. The wood color was rather normal, if not bland as far as woods go, but even so he loved his wand. He clenched the magical stick in his hand, feeling the magic swell inside it. The warm sensation of his own magic pulsing gave him a sense of comfort. At least he had one thing that girl would never have.

"Peter!"

The boy jumped, startled by the sudden call of his name. He held his wand out towards the voice, his hand shaking.

Before him stood Sirius Black striding into the Kitchen. He looked much better than he did last night. Freshly showered and dressed, hair falling in a neat but natural way to frame his face. The black-haired man raised an eyebrow at the wand pointing at him, but kept moving forward. Peter dropped his hand, and let out a sigh of relief.

"Sorry mate, didn't mean to scare ya." Sirius gave his friend a good pat on the shoulder. It was then that he noticed the 'blanket' he had just touched. He visibly grimaced, wiping his hand on his trousers. With that sat next to Peter.

"It's okay, I was just thinking and was caught off guard." Peter scrunched his shoulders sheepishly.

"Let's both leave that to Remus, shall we?" The Auror grinned widely as he playfully nudged friend.

Peter chuckled slightly, remembering how they called Remus the smart one for a reason. The boy stopped though, when he suddenly remembered the note he'd received with his meal. He gulped.

It suddenly felt as if the note was burning a hole in his pocket.

Tada! Chapter 8 Done and Dusted!

Hope you enjoyed it! I'll catch ya next time!

((All rights to Harry Potter Belong to J.K. Rowling))