The Marauders: The Legend Before Harry Potter

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The Marauders: The Legend Before Harry Potter

The First Year

Chapter Two

Days to Remember

When James awoke, he saw Sirius putting on his robes and Peter still lying in bed, his beady eyes wide open, but when he looked at Remus' four-poster bed, all he saw was a made-up blanket, sheet, and a pillow.

"Where's Remus? Up early or something?" he asked, yawning and stretching as he sat up.

"No idea. I've been awake for an hour and haven't seen him," Sirius said rather grumpily, putting on his socks and shoes. "Maybe he's gone to research his Quidditch teams."

"What's that supposed to mean?" James asked coolly as he, too, began to change into his robes.

"Well, James, if you ask me, this Remus is a bit of a show-off. You ask him something he knows about and he starts talking about it as if he's an expert on it. I dunno...he just seems strange." With that Sirius opened the door of the dormitory and went down the stairs to the Common Room. James followed suit and Peter, tripping on his face as he buckled his shoes, followed soon after, nursing a bloody nose.

Classes went on and the teachers did assign homework, but nothing too hectic that James couldn't handle...yet. The hardworking first-years, however, did become very distracted from their work when Flying Lessons began. Madam Hooch, the instructor, was a strict but very intelligent woman who walked out onto the field rearing to go. She told the Gryffindors and Slytherins--who were flying together, despite anger from both houses--not to be afraid when getting on their broom stick.

"The more afraid you act, the less likely the broom will listen to your commands. So, everyone ready to begin?" Everyone nodded--some excitedly, while others seemed to be turning green as they nodded. "Good. Simply place your right hand above your broom and say 'UP'."

"Up!" everyone shouted concurrently. James's broom went right to his hand and he caught it, grinning, looking around to see if anyone else had noticed how much control he had over the broom. Almost everyone had their brooms in their hand as well, except Peter, who was flinching terribly every time he looked at the broom.

"Pettigrew, what's the matter?" inquired Madam Hooch, stepping over in front of him. Her hawk like eyes baring down at him made him all the more nervous.

"It's not going to hurt you!" yelled a Slytherin boy with dirty red hair. "Wait...it might...but breaking your neck is probably the worst thing that could happen, apart from dying." Peter shook with fear and James heard several of the Slytherin's snigger.

"Madam Hooch, please don't make me do this," he whispered so only the people beside him could hear. James could have sworn he saw a tear gathering in Peter's eye.

"Come on, Peter, just think about how much fun you'll have up in the air!" said Sirius, who was leaning against his broom as if it were a wall. That didn't help.

"Peter, pretend like your calling a dog or cat to come to you," James said. Peter closed his eyes as if in deep thought.

"U--up!" he squealed. The broom flew to his hands and he staggered slightly as he caught it in his pudgy hand, sighing with relief.

"Good. Now I want you all to take your right foot, when you are on the broom, and push of the grand slightly, then hover in the air, and then touch your feet back to the ground. Ready? Go!" She blew her whistle and everyone did as told, Peter and a few others having a little trouble. For instance, when Peter was trying to get on his broom, he slipped and fell forward, hitting his already-hurt nose on the ground. A lot of the Slytherins laughed gleefully. Madam Hooch, however, wasn't paying attention to their snide remarks because she was busy helping a girl who was refusing to fly.

"Got some grass on your nose? Run and go tell mummy," said one very ugly girl. Her friends beside her laughed. Peter looked very ashamed and started to whimper like a little mouse.

"Oh, he's crying," said another Slytherin. "What a poor, poor baby, do you need a hanky?" All of them laughed.

"Leave him alone!" said the girl named Lily Evans, walking over to Peter to defend him, her long hair flying madly around her face, her green eyes squinted with anger. "He tripped! Have none of you ever fallen? Nobody's perfect, you know!"

"Oh, sticking up for the little baby?" said one greasy-haired boy from Slytherin.

"He's not a baby!" she said back, putting her hands on her hips. "You're just jealous because he was put in Gryffindor, the house of the daring and brave, and you got stuck in Slytherin, a house for power-hungry cowards!" The Gryffindors watched proudly as the greasy-haired boy got a disgusted and angry look on his face. Lily looked quite surprised that the words uttered had come from her own mouth.

"I dare you to say that again!" he spat at her, taking his wand from his pocket, but Madam Hooch had realized what was going on and ran over to them.

"Put your wand back in your pocket, Mr. Snape--now!" she snapped. "How dare you threaten anyone? Do you realize that if you had done anything to her you would have been suspended?"

"If he knew any spells, that is," Sirius said, loud enough so the boy heard him. The Slytherin shot him a warning look.

"Everyone--be quiet! Every year the Gryffindors and Slytherins are put together there's always trouble. I'm speaking to Dumbledore and telling him that these two houses should never--ever--take flying lessons again together. Now, if you want to learn how to fly you should not say another word." Madam Hooch held her hands out, separating the two houses. All was silent for a few long seconds when someone dared to speak.

"Oh, we'll get to be Ravenclaw's partners instead, what a joy!" said a dark Slytherin girl, sarcasm apparent in her tone. Madam Hooch bared her teeth.

"Okay, that's it. I warned you--everyone back in the castle! No flying lessons for you students!" Everyone groaned, and even the Slytherins didn't talk to the girl who had spoken out. As the teams crossed paths back in the castle, Sirius leaned closer to the dark girl and whispered to her through clenched teeth, "Nice going, Bellatrix." The tossed her head around and glowered at him.

"At least I saved your skin. I'm sure you wouldn't have liked to be embarrassed when all the Slytherins saw how terrible you are at flying," she hissed, and turned around towards the staircase.

"Not true." Sirius made a face and turned back to. "It stuns me how terrible that girl is."

"Come on, let's go," James said and they made their way in the opposite direction. Back in the common room, James had gone straight to Lily Evans, the girl who had stood up for Peter. For the first time, he had noticed her and realized what an attractive girl she was, especially as he got up close to her. She was thin with smooth, flawless skin, and her head was covered in a thick, shiny coat of silky auburn hair. But what really stood out were her huge, piercing green eyes that seemed to light up like fire when she got excited.

"Lily, you were great, telling that Snape fellow off," he said to her, his hands buried deep in his pockets. Without knowing it, he took one hand and mussed up his hair a little more before hiding his hand once again.

"Oh, I feel so awful though," she said, plopping down into one of the big red armchairs. A slight red blush was apparent in the cheeks of her normally white skin. "We didn't get to fly, just because I opened my big mouth...and I was really looking forward to it! I've never flown before, you know."

"I wasn't you fault, it was those Slytherins. That Snape and that other ugly girl especially. They're just a bunch of stupid snobby wizards, those Slytherins. They only care about themselves. But, if you want..." he said slyly, avoiding Lily's stunning eyes as he was suddenly struck by an idea. "I could teach you how to fly."

"Oh...er..." She seemed to be scanning the Common Room and, obviously, something inspired her to so yes, because she looked James in the face and smiled slightly. "Ok, how about tomorrow?"

"All right. Say around lunch time? I can bring some food and...yeah..." He was trying to hide the glowing feeling coming from his throat, trying not to smile to much. Without thinking, he added, "But, be warned, even though you may try hard, you can never get as good as me." Meaning this as a joke, he was shocked when Lily didn't laugh, and turned to go to the girl's dormitory.

"Boys," she muttered under her breath. "No sense of dignity.

"Girls," he said, frowning, watching her go up. "No sense of humor."

***

The next afternoon James went to lunch early to gather some food, which he stored away in a towel and took it to the Quidditch pitch. Lily was waiting for him, two brooms by her feet, also with some food spread out beside her on the ground. Her arms were crossed, and she looked serious, and ready to begin.

"Morning!" she said cheerfully as he approached. She had changed from her robes to a red silk blouse and jeans, all the clothes that were better to fly in. "I asked Madam Hooch if we could borrow these old school brooms and she said it would be alright. So, should we eat first?" She noticed the towel James carried, bulging with food.

"All right," James said. "If there's anything I like better than Quidditch, it's eating!" Again Lily didn't laugh, she only looked curiously at him as though wondering if he were serious or joking. James stayed quiet as they sat down and began to eat the delicious sandwiches and fruit from the castle.

"How do you know how to fly, James?" Lily asked, taking a furious bite from her apple.

"My dad taught me when I was about four and some friends of mine used to practice with me in my back yard where I used to live," he answered, groping for another sandwich. "Since then I've always loved it." They finished the food quickly as possible, because James could tell how impatient Lily was. When they stood and walked over to the brooms, James began instructing her, Lily hanging onto every word he said. "First of all you call it. Up!" The broom jumped to his hand.

"Up!" yelled Lily and the broom obeyed. She chuckled. "Well, I've got that part down at least. Now what?"

"Now, you mount." James put his leg over the broom and Lily did the same, watching him closely. "Then you just push off a little and then lean forward and put your feet on the ground again." He hovered a little then landed easily. Lily tried, and did very well, though she was a bit wobbly and unsure of herself. James nodded as she put her feet firmly against the ground. "Good. Now you can fly a little longer, just make sure you move the broom right if you want to turn right, left if left, and lean forward when you want to land." Lily did so and flew in a sharp circle just above the ground.

"Brilliant!" she said, laughing, doing a second and then a third circle, faster each time before touching back down.

"Now see if you can get some air," James instructed, enjoying himself by just watching her. Lily kicked harder off the ground and flew straight up in the air, twenty feet above the ground.

"Whoa!" she called, loosing her balance for a moment before regaining it with confidence. "This is great." She flew higher and then swooped down, then quickly back up. "This is amazing!" She flew even higher. "I can see the whole castle from here." She made a few large circles in the air and then slowly and reluctantly came back down.

"It's about time to go," James said, tapping his watch. "Maybe we can come back again and practice more."

"Yeah, okay." And she gave him a quick smile and skipped off to the castle and James followed several minutes later, ruffling his hair and smiling contentedly.

***

The days at Hogwarts went by fast--almost too fast--and before they all knew it, a cold Halloween was upon them. On the afternoon of October 31st the grand night feast was already being prepared, and McGonagall along with a few other teachers were busy putting up floating pumpkins over spooky, yet wonderfully colorful decorations. The students were busy in classes, though from time to time smells from the kitchen would waft through the classes, disrupted them from their studies, and the students would dream about the feast to come.

Mrs. Yen put on quite a show that day. "You know, class," she said in her peculiar accent. "The first Halloween is celebrated because it was the day I was born, many years ago." No one believed her, but she went along and the pretended to nod in agreement. "People from all around would come to see the amazingly frightening...ME!" She held her hands out like claws and opened her mouth wide, showing her shiny, long teeth--or fangs, as some student liked to call them. "I was the scariest looking child in the world and, since my nickname was 'hollow' (because I was born with no intestines) people called the day I was born 'Holloween'. Then in time the word transformed to Halloween, and the holiday was born!" She laughed wildly and, just to be polite, a few other first years laughed with her--not at her, with her.

The Great Hall was full ten minutes before the feast even started. The were teachers looking very dull in plain black robes; especially compared to Dumbledore, who looked tremendous in his bright orange velvet gown. It truly made him stand out...as usual. If you looked hard enough at him, you could also see tiny specks of orange glitter in his grayish-white beard. It was darker than normal in the hall, as clouds hung ominously low in the bewitched ceiling. Pumpkins hung from the air, and the pumpkin and spider decorations along the tables were covered in spider webs bewitched to change shape. Dumpledore stood up, silencing everyone, eyes twinkling. "Let the feast begin!" he exclaimed happily and the food rapidly appeared.

Everyone immediately grabbed slices of turkey and roast chicken and pork, covering it with rich gravy; then they got yellow corn and sweet potatoes, and they poured the scrumptious, thick pumpkin juice in their goblets.

Pumpkin pie appeared for desert and it certainly was the most wonderful treat imaginable. Even a few kinds who didn't like pumpkins tried some, and loved it beyond belief.

Everyone's hunger was satisfied as they walked off to bed, talking and laughing. James and Remus stood by each other going up to their dormitory. "That pumpkin pie was great!" said James. "I just love Halloween, don't you?"

"Uh, sort of. If it's cloudy I do," Remus answered.

"Whatever, Remus," James said, figuring the boy was too tired to answer anything straight. Up in the dormitory the two of them began to get into their night clothes alone when Remus suddenly asked:

"Where are Peter and Sirius?" They looked around.

"No idea. I haven't seen them since this evening as a matter of fact. Maybe they're down in the common room," James answered, shrugging.

"Er, do you think we should go check? They could have gotten lost or something."

"Okay, I guess, since I'm not that tired anyway." So James and Remus, still in their robes, but without shoes and socks, walked down to the Common Room. The only people there were a few second-years and one Virgil Seeweed reading.

"Let's look outside the portrait hole," James suggested. They did; still no Sirius and Peter.

"Huh, that's strange..." Remus crawled out of the portrait hole and looked around. James followed. They looked right, down the dark passageway and saw a shadow moving quickly toward them. When the light from one of the torches fell over the shadow, it appeared to be Sirius running towards them, his face pale and anxcious.

"Guys, come up here quick. Wait till you see this!" he said panting, motioning them to follow. There was a mischievous glint in his brown eyes. The three ran up four flights of stairs until they got to a long wing of the castle they had never seen before. Sirius led them to the first door where Peter was standing quietly, his hand over his mouth to stifle giggles. "Look through the keyhole," Sirius advised. James bent down and did as he was told and saw a large room with many curtains and chairs all in a circle. The room was very dark and quite empty, except for a few large white figures that seemed to be transparent. When James looked closely he saw that they weren't just figures--they were ghosts!

"The Hogwarts ghosts!" he exclaimed, moving over so Remus could get a peak. "What are they doing in there? I haven't seen them all year, now that I think about it."

"Listen!" Remus said who was now looking in the keyhole, motioning for them to come closer. James, Sirius, and Peter put their ears to the large mahogany door. It was easy to hear what the ghosts were saying as all of them were talking in extremely loud voices.

"Perhaps," came the monotonous voice of one ghost. "We should simply wait for someone to come find us..."

"More tea, Prunella?" said another.

"Yes, thank you. And some tea cakes please."

"I think that Nick should unscrew his ugly head and throw it out the window and talk to the first person that comes along," came an ugly, deep voice.

"Pish-posh," said another.

"That Peeves'll pay for it this time. When I get out he'll regret it terribly!" growled another.

"It seems like they're trapped or something," Remus said, standing up.

"Should we open the door, then?" asked James.

"No, it's too scary," cried Peter, shuddering.

"Oh, shut-up Peter," said Sirius walking to the door and opening it with a heave of strength. The ghosts looked up at them.

"Oh, thank goodness! We're free!" The transparent, glassy ghosts got up and glided across the room to the door. "Thank you, kind sirs! We have been in that cold room for one month since Peeves the Poltergeist locked us in."

"But--" said Sirius, scratching his head. "Why didn't you just walk through the walls like ghosts are supposed to do?" The ghosts stopped suddenly and looked back and forth from one another.

"Well? Why didn't anyone think about that?!" said one very large male ghost.

"Why didn't you? You're the friar!" exclaimed another. The ghosts began to bicker and quarrel until they were all screaming at the top of their lungs.

"Well, BYE!" Sirius shouted over their voices, jumping to see them all. The arguments died down and one ghost stepped forward to them.

"Gryffindors, I see!" said he, gazing at their robes. "I am the ghost of Gryffindor house, Sir Nicholas de Mimsy--"

"Or just call him Nearly Headless Nick!" said another ghost, shooting Nick a look. "Who cares about that silly title that only you can remember, anyway?"

"Now, now, everyone, settle down," said the fat ghost they had called 'Friar'. "We should set an example for these young--but very intelligent--new students. Even if they are in Gryffindor."

"Everyone knows Slytherin is the house to brag about!" said one very sinister looking ghost. "I bet you couldn't even name one powerful wizard from Gyrffindor, Hufflepuff, or Ravenclaw."

"Dumbledore!" said Sir Nicholas.

"Pfft! He can barely even control Peeves! I have more power over that rascal than he does!" said the frightening Slytherin ghost.

"You're dead!" said one ghost. They all slowly began to drift away, some laughing, some still arguing. Sir Nicholas stayed behind, bending his head to a point where it nearly fell off.

"Thank you for opening that door for us," he said in a monotone. "Too bad the others didn't appreciate it. What can I say though? They're not Gryffindors! Perhaps I'll see you four again."

"Sir Nicholas, come along!" called one of the ghost from down the hall.

"Well, got to fun. Stay out of trouble, boys!" And with that, the old ghost was gliding down the halls and out of sight.

"Nice man," Peter said affectionately.

"Er, he's a ghost, Peter," informed Sirius. "Come on, let's go. No use staying around here." He began to walk off, but halted. "Unless..."

"Unless what?" James asked.

"Unless there is a use to staying around here. After all--Nearly Headless Nick just said 'stay out of trouble'. Well, why would he say that unless there was someplace here worth finding?"

"Sirius," Remus said matter-of-factly. "It's just a hallway! What could be here?"

"There's only one way to find out," Sirius said, beginning to look around. He crept along the walls of the corridor, pressing his ear to the doors and examining each painting.

"James?" Remus whispered in James's ear. "What is Sirius doing?" James looked over as Sirius walked up and down the hall once again, examining a crack in the floor at present.

"No idea," whispered James. But he was smiling. "Sirius--what are you doing?"

"Andromeda said that there were lots of secret passages around Hogwarts. And one of them was in a hallway she had described like this one. She's found three and I'm determined to beat her before the end of this year. Come on, help me look around." They did as he had told, just for a laugh.

"Sirius, I don't understand what we're supposed to do," said Peter quietly, staring in a mirror at the end of the corridor, cocking his head to different sides.

"Just look for a hole in a wall or something. Lift up the portraits or touch the frames, you'll get the hang of it."

"Er...like this?" Peter said, running his fingers up and down the gold-rim of the mirror he stood in front of. Suddenly a crackling noise began to come from out of nowhere and they all stopped where they were and looked around. "Hey, Sirius--this mirror is gone." They looked over at Peter, who was now standing in front of a large rectangular hole in the wall looking as though nothing out of the ordinary had happened.

"Peter, you're brilliant!" yelled Sirius, slapping the boy on the back. "Come on, let's go through." James and Remus followed him.

"Go through that?" Peter exclaimed, looking into the dark tunnel. "But it's dark and scary."

"Yeah!" said Sirius, a sparkle in his eye. "Who knows what could be lurking behind the shadows?" He looked excited. Peter looked terrified.

"Yeah..." James repeated. "I'll go first!" He hurried over to the tunnel and crawled in, feeling cold stone beneath his bare feet. "Come on, there's nothing here!" Sirius followed, then Peter (not wanting to be left in the back) scrambled in, almost tripping, and lastly, Remus hoisted himself into the hole.

"What if this leads somewhere really unexpected?" asked Remus. "Like the Slytherin classroom or McGonagall's bedroom?"

"McGonagall's bedroom--that wouldn't be too bad!" Sirius joked. James snorted as he kept walking through the dank darkness, his hands outstretched.

"This tunnel sure is long," said Remus after they had been walking for nearly eight minutes. No one replied, they simply kept walking fast, for nine minutes...ten minutes...fifteen.

"I'm getting tired," Peter whined, kicking his feet about. "Can't we turn around now?"

"You can," said James, getting rather annoyed at the boys complaints.

"But--but...Remus, can you go back with me?" Peter put on a sad pout, but no one saw it in the dark.

"No," said Remus. "I want to see if this leads anywhere."

"Shhhh! I can hear noises," James said. They all stopped and listened closely, trying not to breath. In the dead silence they could make out very soft, distant voices and noises coming from above them. "It's like there's someone over us. Search for a trapdoor up above." They held up their hands, groping in the dark for a door or something besides stone (except Peter, who couldn't reach anything but air, being the shortest).

"I think I feel a knob!" said Remus who was standing on his toes. "Yes and something's opening." Soon a crack of light came from above them as Remus pushed open a trap door.

"Nice going, Remus!" said Sirius laughing. "Someone, give me a boost." He walked over to James and Remus, both of whom were smaller than he, but both gave him a big push by his ankles and Sirius clambered out through the trap door into what seemed to be a dark closet. "Come on up." Remus came next, then Sirius, and last Peter who the other three pulled up by the arms. "Where are we?"

"Lumos!" whispered Remus, his wand illuminating everything which turned out to be...basically nothing but a shelf and a broom and some old boxes covered in dust. "Why didn't I think of using that before?" he chuckled under his breath and held out his wand.

"Guess you're just dim," Sirius said. "If you'll pardon the pun. Okay, let's get out of this tiny coat closet, I'm suffocating in here!" He grabbed the door handle illuminated by Remus's wand and pushed open the closet door loudly and he tripped and fell onto a hard wood floor. The other three, praying that no one was around, peered out at their surroundings. They were in some sort of pub or restaurant; very cozy, very clean, and very bare of people.

"Where are we?" said Peter loudly in his high voice.

"Shhh, not so loud Peter," said Remus. "It seems to be like a village, if you look out the window." Sure enough, streetlights outside illuminated other little shops in a line.

"Hey, here's a thought," said James. "Isn't there a wizard village around Hogwarts called Hogsmeade? I think mum and dad brought me here a few years ago, but I don't remember this place..."

"Who's there?" came a loud female voice that made them all jump and look around. From a door in the left corner came a young girl, about the age of fifteen, dressed in a nightgown of shocking pink, her wild, wavy brown hair pulled up above her head.

"Well, hello!" said Sirius, leaning his elbow against a booth, a lopsided grin on his face. James, Remus, and Peter rolled their eyes. "And what do they call a fine looking girl like yourself?" The girl raised her eyebrows, not at all interested, giving Sirius a pathetic look.

"How old are you--two and half? You must be a Hogwarts students, eh? Trying to see if you can sneak some Butterbeer, I suppose. I'll give you some if you'll leave and pay twice the usual amount." She crossed her arms. Sirius lost his smooth composure.

"Sorry, what's Butterbeer? And what's your name?" Sirius asked.

"Why should I give you my name? Everyone at Hogwarts knows it. Or are you a stray?" she asked. Sirius, realizing what he was up against, stood tall.

"I haven't seen you around Hogwarts lately. Did you drop out to come live at a pub or something?" he asked.

"As a matter of fact, I'm tutored at home, and my parents own this place. They'll be home soon, and they'll love to meet you." She stepped forward, standing behind the bar that separated her from Sirius.

"Parents. Oh. That's not good. Uh, gotta' run," Sirius said, waving good-bye.

"Wait. You haven't told me your names, and neither have your little friends." The girl suddenly seemed like she wanted a little company now.

"Sirius Black at your service," he said, bowing, then tripping, somersaulting, and jumping back to the ground as he always did when introducing himself. The girl laughed a little. "And that's James, Remus, and Peter. Well, we'd best be off." Sirius began to walk away.

"Wait!" said the girl said abruptly again. The four turned on their heels. The girl smiled, and from behind the bar she reached for four tankards. "Stay for a tasty and delicious Butterbeer? And don't worry--it's okay for you to drink, so don't go running home to your 'wittle mummies. On the house?"

They talked to the girl (still not knowing her name) well past midnight until she heard her parents' footsteps from outside and they ran back through the closer and the trapdoor, arriving back at the Common Room just before one o'clock in the morning and they had to leave before they were spotted. James and Sirius, both the tiniest bit wobbly from drinking about ten Butterbeers stomped up to the dormitory loudly and jumped on their beds, Sirius beginning to snore loudly. Remus and Peter, too collapsed, still in their robes, and within minutes they were all four sleeping soundly.

***

Classes became more demanding, and they learned more spells, more dull History, and more things not to do in Potions; and things not to say to Mrs. Yen like "I think your pants are on fire," which resulted in Mrs. Yen's screams as she ran out the door and to her room, sticking her whole body in the tub and running water all over herself. Sirius didn't even feel guilty after he said it though, and James's chest was still hurting from laughter afterwards.

Professor Quirt seemed to get meaner and more atrocious each day, as well as getting balder. He had his favorite students, and his least favorites. He absolutely adored Lily and Remus and hated Sirius and James, for their constant talking and jokes. He always referred to them as "the distractions".

McGonagall, though she was excellent at Transfiguration, lost the students attention very often, especially as a cold winter crept further and the classes were cold and students were weary.

History of Magic was another problem--everyday was the same. Taking notes, and falling asleep, only to be awakened again by Professor Binns saying, "Mr. Potter, you need to pay more attention to this class because it's very important. Now, in 1446 around October 2^nd a wizard was born named Kennedy Donahue..." and so on and so forth.

Herbology was probably one of the better classes, since the teacher was descent and they rarely had to take notes. No matter how dull the classes were, the days had their highlights. Sirius and James had visited the Butterbeer place that they had later learned was called The Three Broomsticks several more times. Peter was too busy with homework he hadn't finished from a week before to go and Remus, who apparently had influenza in the Hospital Wing, had been gone all day and all night.

James had also had the pleasure of flying with Lily again in mid-November when the air was clean and crisp and the remaining leaves han turned beautiful hues. When Madam Hooch saw that James had taught Lily how to fly so well, she gave them each five points for Gryffindor, the first points James had been awarded all year. Lily had already gotten twenty from Professor Quirt. Perhaps the man was good for some things.

By the time they entered December, the students were already in the holiday spirit. The first snow that came, came as a blizzard. On the twelfth of December, the ground was covered in two feet of snow and trillions of snowflakes were flying to the ground in little tornadoes of wind.

It was hard to concentrate in classes for the next few days with the loud wind howling and the windows being blown open. After a week and a half of nothing but blizzard and blustery weather Dumbledore made an announcement that as soon as the wind calmed the whole school would have a huge snowball fight outside.

"Let's play hockey on the lake!" suggested Peter, once they had heard the news.

"What's that?" asked Sirius his face contorted with exaggerated confusion. The very next day the wind had subsided and as the headmaster had promised, a grand snowball fight began. Dumbledore, the four houses, including a few teachers (Mrs. Yen, Professor Sprout, and Madam Hooch while McGonagall stood on the side and watched), set out for the Quidditch field.

"We are going to start a Hogwarts tradition!" Dumbledore proclaimed. "If there is ever a snowball fight, the headmaster always gets to throw the first snowball." With that, he quickly picked up a huge handful of snow and slung it right at McGonagall, who was hit right on the forehead. McGonagall, outraged and yet laughing along with everyone else, picked up her own ball of snow and threw it back at Dumbledore with all the strength she could muster, missing him. Soon the air was full of flying snowballs, screams, laughter, and yelling.

Peter was having a blast sneaking up on people and pushing ice down their shirts as he ran away, no one able to find him because of his small stature. Sirius had gone to the Slytherins to hit them with snow above anyone else, infuriating them all when they couldn't get him back. James was having a nightmare of a time trying not to get hit, for he seemed to everyone the perfect target for some reason, but he was having fun all the same; and Remus. Remus was being chased by one frightening-looking Hagrid who was running around with snowballs the size of bowling balls in his dragon-hide gloves.

That night everyone had a break from classes, a treat from Dumbledore. Instead of finishing essays for History of Magic, they sat around the fire, warming their feet, holding mugs of warm tea and hot chocolate, talking about anything that came to their mind.

"Remind me never to come to Hogwarts if Dumbledore ever resigns," said Sirius, stretching as he sipped his Russian tea.

"I hope he's here for at least six more years," Lily said. "Or longer actually. If I have children, I'd want them to have him as well."

"Who's worried about having children?" said Sirius lazily. "I'm just worried about passing the exams. No, wait--I'm not."

"I'm not worried about having children, Sirius," Lily said, hitting his arm. "I was just agreeing with the fact that Dumbledore's the best headmaster at Hogwarts." Sirius smiled.

"So, is anyone staying at Hogwarts over the holidays?" James asked.

"I am," Lily said, but she was the only one. "My sister's staying over at my aunt's for Christmas while my parents have to go to Sweden--one of my cousins are very sick."

"Are you staying alone?" James asked, looking concerned.

"Oh, I don't mind," Lily said, twirling her spoon in her hot chocolate.

"Don't you think someone should stay with you to keep you company?" James asked her again.

"No, I'll be perfectly all right James, but thank you for inquiring about it."

"Well, it's quite a long holiday and someone should stay here to entertain you," James said.

"All right, all right, if you insist," said Sirius. "I'll stay here over the holidays."

"Thank you Sirius, that's very kind of you," Lily said. Sirius gave James a cheeky grin.

"Well, if Sirius' staying I might as well too," James said.

"I've got a better idea," Peter said. "Why don't you all just come home with me over the holidays?"

"Really, Peter?" Sirius said. "That'd be brilliant!"

~~~~~~~~~~