Masquerade

Malfoy Manor was a dark, gothic, ghastly place that felt most unwelcoming, especially to new members of the Order of the Phoenix. James Potter stood outside the distinguished mansion and scrunched his face in disgust. James loathed the Dark Arts and despised Death Eaters, and now he is about to enter the lion's, or more accurately the snake's, den. He ran his fingers through his already messy black hair, took a deep breath, and picked up his disguise: a golden masquerade eye mask decorated with the features of a stag. He couldn't understand why Sirius thought this mask would help James blend in. Bloody hell, the antlers on the mask stuck out in all directions more than James's hair did! However, he trusted his best friend and tied the mask in place, adjusting it so it fit comfortably in front of his round glasses. "I understand why we're doing this, but I'm still not sure if it's a good idea." James muttered. He stared down at his opulent dress robes. They were a forest green color adorned with subtle, yet elegant, gold embroidery. He rolled his eyes and sighed. James Potter was from an old, well respected, and wealthy pure-blood family, arguably wealthier than the Malfoys, but he never displayed his wealth like this. He felt out of place in such luxurious attire.

Sirius slid off his motorcycle and removed his flight goggles. He ran his fingers through his medium-length, wavy black hair as he addressed his best friend. "It's not like we have a lot of options, Prongs. This was the best way we could get information on what Voldemort is doing. Yeah, this is a masquerade ball for rich pure-blood families, but it's also a Death Eater recruitment party. We need to find out which witches and wizards are with him, and which ones are interested in joining him." Sirius, unlike James, didn't wear an outer cloak for his dress robes. He wore a black long-sleeved shirt with the sleeves rolled up, no tie, black pants, black shoes, and a black vest with blood red embroidery. The silk back of the vest was the same unapologetic blood red color. His grey eyes glistened with pride as he showed off his attire.

A raspy voice whispered from behind Sirius. "Sirius, this is supposed to be a quiet mission! Why did you wear red?" Sirius turned around to see a tall man wearing less luxurious, but still elegant, silver robes. His shabby light brown hair and green eyes seemed to light up the space, even in the darkness of the evening. The closer he got to Sirius, the more visible his facial scars, claw marks running at an angle across his face, had gotten. Remus Lupin adjusted his silver tie and shook his head disapprovingly. "You never wear red to a masquerade ball."

Sirius tilted his head curiously. "Really? What is the deal with formal parties and the color red? Then again, I can't remember the last time Gryffindors had a formal party." He laughed. The Animagus reached into a bag on the side of the motorcycle and pulled out his mask. It was a half black mask that had the features of a dog: snout, sculpted fur, and long ears perked up at attention. A mischievous smirk plastered across Sirius's handsome face as he put the mask on.

Remus sighed as he reached for his mask tucked away in his outer robes. This was the last time he would let Sirius volunteer to select disguises on his own. The silver mask was similar to Sirius's, but the snout was reduced to a subtle sculpt and the ears were smaller. The sculpt of the fur on the mask was more prominent and detailed. It's not a full moon, yet I will have to become a wolf again tonight. Remus thought glumly as he lazily placed the mask around his head.

The bushes rustled behind them. The three Marauders whipped around towards the direction of the noise. A figure emerged gracelessly from the brush. He was shorter than the other young men and had mousy brown hair. Peter Pettigrew brushed leaves and small twigs off from his white dress robes. "Blimey, I must have not apparated right." He shouted. He adjusted his golden tie.

"Quiet, Peter!" Remus quickly hushed his friend.

The shorter young man gasped as he covered his mouth. He dropped his hand back to his side and lowered his voice to a nervous whisper. "Sorry, Remus. I'm just really nervous about this." He clumsily put on his masquerade mask. He wore a full white mask that was sculpted to resemble a mouse. The ears, eyes, nose, whiskers, and mouth were all painted gold.

"You're not the only one, Wormtail." James agreed.

Peter looked taken aback when James said that. "You're nervous too?" Peter tried to clarify.

Just then, Lily Potter emerged from behind where her husband was standing. Her evening gown was like something out of a fairy tale. It draped loosely down to the grass. The dress was a stunning forest green with small golden flowers carefully sewn into it. She was already wearing her mask, a matching golden eye mask decorated with hints of green. Her long, wavy red hair draped down her shoulders and swayed elegantly every time she moved. She gently wrapped her arm around James's arm, before she addressed Peter warmly. "Wormy," Lily started by using her affectionate name for Peter, "we are about to go to a party hosted by murderers, for their fellow murderers, and they are looking to find more people who want to join them. I am certain many, if not all, of us are at least a little nervous to walk into that manor."

Sirius chuckled. "I'm not nervous, I'm excited." The dark-haired wizard smirked. "Who knows? Maybe I can catch up with my family."

Remus raised an eyebrow. "Do you think your brother will be here, Sirius?" The werewolf asked.

Sirius responded with a shrug. "It's possible. Regulus is one of them, right?" Regulus Black, Sirius's younger brother, was a supporter of Voldemort and firmly believed pure-blood families were far superior to everyone else, especially Muggles and Muggle-borns. They would often call Muggle-borns a name so foul that no one in the Marauders group could even think about saying it out loud. If supporters demonstrate their loyalty to Voldemort in some unique way, they get promoted to the title of Death Eater. Sirius was well aware of Regulus's status as a Death Eater, mainly because he saw his younger brother's arm, which bared the Dark Mark, a tattoo of a skull with a snake slithering through its mouth. Sirius shook his head as a way to rid his mind of the memory. "Never mind that. My brother is not the focus here. We need to see who Voldemort is trying to recruit and if we can learn anything about his plans." Peter winced when Sirius said Voldemort's name.

James looked around at his friends and his wife. A confident grin began to form on his face. Then, the young wizard extended his arm towards Lily. "Well then, we can't waste any more time. Shall we?"

Lily smiled as she took her husband's arm. "Of course. After all, we're all dressed for a party."

The group flowed into the mansion among the other guests. They soon realized all of their dress robes stood out. Everyone else was wearing black with touches of dark green and silver.