Golden Black

Chapter Two: Dreams and Detentions

James sat in the dormitory on his four-poster, prodding the flashing dots on his face with his wand, muttering counter curses, but to no avail. All he knew was he was going to get Snape back for this. That, and that he wasn't going to classes until the little spots disappeared. It was an unspoken agreement amongst rivals. They were not to go to Madam Pomfrey when they were pranked by the other. It just wasn't done. But James wasn't sure about the agreement on the part of the opposing party. Severus Snape was, after all, a Slytherin and Slytherins couldn't be trusted. But James was a Gryffindor, and he was a man of his word, or lack there of. He lied back in his four-poster, head resting on his pillow, the same pillow he'd use to whack Sirius over the head with for stealing his Chocolate Frogs. It was also the same pillow Sirius, Remus, and Peter decided to put toads in last October.

James stared up at the ceiling, trying to come up with ways to prank Snape back for the lovely spots still flashing on his face. He figured it had been an hour at the most since he stormed through the common room. He wondered why his friends hadn't ran after him. Sirius was probably exploding chairs in the Charms classroom. Just give that boy a bunch of grapes, three tablespoons of baking powder, a-.

A crashing from downstairs interrupted his thought process. He sat up and stared at the door, debating whether to go downstairs or not. He decided against it and flopped back into the bed. No sooner had he regained his thoughts had the door burst open and Sirius came flying in, hands raised to the air, and mouth opened wide in a victory screech. "Ay-ee-ay-ee-ay-ee-ooo!" Remus and Peter followed behind him, grins plastered to their faces.

James's eyes traveled to each of his friends' faces at a time. "Wha- what's up with you?"

"We just saved your title, Potter. Be thankful." Sirius dropped down onto James's bed.

"What do you mean?"

Remus chuckled softly and sat down on the other side of James's bed. Peter scrambled over the footboard of the bed and landed at James's feet in between Remus and Sirius.

Sirius's lips curled up in a grin. "What we mean is we went down to the Slytherin Common Room and paid a visit to old Snivelly."

"What'd you do?"

"You'll see tomorrow."

"Padfoot!"

"Nope. You won't get it out of me." He shot the rest of his friends a look. "Or Remmy. Or Petey."

"You suck," James said with a slight grin. He couldn't help but feel a burning pride for the friends he had.

"All right." Sirius pulled out his wand and rolled his sleeves to his elbows. "Let's get rid of these spots."

~*~

The four Marauders exploded into the Great Hall for breakfast. Remus had discovered a spell to get rid of the flashing dots after Sirius's 87th attempt. James's skin was now flawless like it had been this same time yesterday. Sirius slid into his seat and looked around the Great Hall. His eyes scanned the crowd for a crooked nose and the light reflecting off the grease. James watched Sirius and frowned when Sirius met his eyes, shaking his head.

"Sorry, he's not here yet. I wonder if he's having trouble getting here." He grinned and glanced at Remus and Peter who shot similar grins back at him.

"What?" James looked at each of his friends- frown deepening. He didn't like being left out of anything- especially pranks and jokes.

Sirius's eyes crept toward the door at the sound of laughter. He sniggered and pointed toward the door. The rest of the Marauders turned to look in a synchronized motion. Severus Snape was walking into the Great Hall, feet 50 times larger than usual. He was having a terrible time walking and kept tripping over his own huge feet and falling face first into the wooden flooring. James fell off of his seat, clutching his stomach and barreling over with loud, booming laughs. Sirius and Peter leaned over the table to get a glimpse of him. Remus turned his head slightly to see the hysterical James. The three exchanged a look of satisfaction and smashed their heads onto the table, laughing with the rest of the Hall.

After the laughter broke off and disappeared into the stone walls, James was able to clamber back up to his seat and breathe. He looked at each of his friends with grateful hazel eyes. "You guys are the greatest. How'd you manage that?"

~-~

"Shh, quick. In here," Sirius whispered, pulling Peter and Remus into an empty classroom. "Go, Wormtail."

Peter nodded and stepped away from his friends. A look of fright flashed across his face but quickly turned to an eerie sort of calmness. His nose grew longer and rounder and pointed at the tip. It grew a faint gray color as fur started sprouting and covering his nose. Whiskers popped out from the sides of the tip. He fell to his hands and knees but they were no longer hands or knees, they were tiny little feet. His entire body started to condense until he was around the size of a shoe. A long pink tail shot out from his back and his beady, watery eyes glanced up at his friends. He let out an affirmative squeak. His rat transformation went without flaw.

"All right, Petey," Sirius said, a grin wrapping around his face. He pulled out a small vial of a soft blue liquid with a string attached to it. He bent down and tied the string around Peter's little rat neck. The bottle rested underneath him. "All right. What you're going to do is get into the common room. Wait for a Slytherin to come by and open it up. Get in there and find old Snivelly's Room. There's cotton in the top of that vial. Easy access for a rat. Ditch the cotton and pour that in his shoes. Don't get any of that liquid in your mouth or anything. It's powerful stuff. We'll wait here. Go."

And with that, Remus opened the door of the classroom and Wormtail scampered out into the dungeons. As he ran up to the entrance to the Slytherin Common Room, a 5th year Slytherin with long blonde hair was just walking through the sliding wall. Wormtail jumped into a sprint and made it through the entrance just before it closed.

No one seemed to notice the rat with a gray string tied around its neck. Peter definitely didn't mind being ignored in this situation. He scurried across the floor and up the stairs to the Boys' Dorms. He stopped in front of the doors, remembering he didn't know which dorm Snape slept in. He decided to check in every dorm and look for a pillow that was covered in grease. He squeezed under the door of the first dorm and gazed around, looking for something that would prove the owner. His question was answered very quickly when a sandy-haired 2nd year open the door and almost squashed him under his boot. He scuttled out of the dorm and gazed around the hallway of doors. After two more futile attempts, he was suddenly hit with an idea harder than a brick. Why not try the dorm in this hallway mirror to the one in Gryffindor Tower?

He squeezed under the door and squeaked happily. Snape was sitting on his bed, taking his shoes off and shoving them under his bed. Peter darted and hid behind a dresser and waited for Snape to move from viewing distance of his own shoes. Snape stood up and went over to his trunk. His trunk had three more locks than everyone else's. 'He's extremely paranoid.' Peter thought to himself. 'Wonder why,' he added with a snicker, or a squeak, technically. Snape fidgeted with something in his trunk- something Peter couldn't see from his current position. After about 10 minutes, Snape stood up, shoving something in his pocket, and left his dorm.

Peter flew out from under the dresser and dove under Snape's bed. He tried not to breathe as he lifted his front paws on the back of Snape's shoes. He pulled the cotton out with his teeth and spit it off to the side. He tipped the blue liquid half into the left shoe, then half into the right. Wondering what the liquid did, he squeezed out of the dorm and made his way down the steps into the common room. He grinned inwardly to himself and decided to make a quick stop to the Girls' Dorm before leaving the Slytherin House.

~-~

"Great job, Wormy!" James grinned and slapped Peter on the back. Peter lurched forward and spilt orange juice all down his front. He sent James a glare, which went unnoted. James looked to Sirius and Remus, then back to Peter. "Thanks guys. I owe you one."

Sirius shook his head, grin pulling at the corners of his mouth. "No you don't, Jimmy-Jim. We're the Marauders. 'All for one and one for all,' you know? Today we get Snape back for you; tomorrow you'll be getting us out of detention. It all works out."

Remus nodded in agreement. "After all you guys have done for me, this is the least I can do for you."

"Mmm," Peter said through a mouth full of waffles. "Oo eyes put dup wit meh." He swallowed. " That's enough reason for me to help out. Besides, where would we be without each other?"

"Doing our homework and serving detention alone," Sirius said, a full-fledged grin on his face now. "But we'd have detention together so we'd be mates anyway, so there's really no getting around it. We're destined to be mates."

"You got that right, Paddy, ol' buddy," James said, ruffling up Sirius's hair.

"What is it with you guys and the urge to screw up my hair every time you see me?"

"It's because we love driving you bonkers."

"Not like you need any help from us," Peter retorted with a smirk.

"Right," said Remus, messing Sirius's hair up even more. "You're way beyond help."

"Oh thanks, guys." Sirius flattened his hair and pouted.

"What are friends for?" James asked with a small grin.

~*~

"That was so funny! I'll bet you anything that Sirius Black did that!" The Gryffindor girl with golden-brown hair laughed and glanced down the table at Sirius with glowing honey-coated green eyes.

"Kadia! Honestly! Is there ever a time when you don't talk about Sirius Black?" Lily shook her head with disgust, even though her face held a small smile.

Kadia opened her mouth to speak but was cut off by the blonde girl. "No. She's always talking about him." She put on a high-pitched mocking voice. "'Oh, Sirius is so cute! Isn't he cute, Alina?'"

Kadia simply shrugged and glanced at the blonde Alina Ramsay. " Well, he is cute. And a pranking genius. And he's such a bad-boy. It's not like I'm gonna do anything about it, though." She laughed at herself. "Besides, I don't want to date him."

"Yes you do," the brunette said, a small grin on her face.

"Are you mad, Tara? You know how many girls have him on their lists? And do you know how many girls he's dated in the past year alone? Probably half the school. And that's another thing. He's fucked probably everyone he's dated. That's why he dates them. I don't want to be Sirius Black's Whore of the Week, thanks."

Tara Sheven shrugged and went back to her toast. Kadia glanced down at her plate grinning. She picked up a handful of scrambled eggs and threw it at Alina.

"Eww, Kadia, that's gross," Alina said, brushing the egg of out her hair and sending a glare at Kadia.

Kadia shrugged. "That's breakfast. You want some eggs, Lily?" She added with a grin.

Lily's elbow sat in a plate of maple syrup and her face rested in her palm as she gazed over at the Ravenclaw table. She sighed dreamily, answering Kadia without realizing. "Sure."

Kadia grinned again and threw another handful of eggs at Lily. She sputtered and turned to glare at Kadia.

"You said you wanted some."

"You're evil."

"I know. That's why I was almost sorted into Slytherin," she said proudly. "Would you like some orange juice to wash that down with?" She held up a goblet and grinned.

"You wouldn't dare, Cyprian."

"Wouldn't I now, Evans?"

"No, you wouldn't."

She faked a sneeze and jerked the goblet toward Lily, sending orange juice flying across the table. The orange liquid hit Lily's chest and exploded over her face and down her robes. "Oh, bad luck, Evans. I happen to have a head cold. And unfortunately that color clashes horribly with your hair. But it does go lovely with the syrup on your elbow."

"I'm going to kill you!" Lily lunged across the table, hands barred. Kadia jumped backwards off her chair, laughing.

"Oh, right. I have a few things I gotta check out. Later!" Kadia sent Lily an army salute, winked and dashed out of the Great Hall.

Lily groaned and sat back down, pulling out her wand. She pointed it at her robes. "Scourgify." The orange juice and syrup disappeared into thin air. She sent a glance at Alina and Tara who were laughing silently behind their hands, but snapped up to attention as Lily looked at them. They sent identically fake smiles in her direction.

"I'm glad you find my distress humorous."

Alina shrugged, smiling. "What are friends for?"

~*~

Sirius rested his head in his folded arms as he sat at a small round table in the dark Divination classroom. The windows were covered with a thick black curtain. Dark black drapes hung in the corners of the classroom and over bookcases. Sirius wondered if there was a point to this, or if Professor Nostradamus thought this would give the room a more mysterious air. 'If that was the case, he failed miserably,' Sirius thought to himself. 'It looks like the room was attacked by an Interior Decorating School Drop-out.' Oddly shaped candles floated around the sides of the room. Every once and a while, Sirius would poke them, entertained by how the candle would move a few inches off and then rocket back to it's original spot. After poking got boring, he'd shove them and watch the candles zoom back to the starting position after flying 10 feet. Before the end of class he would throw them across the room while Professor Nostradamus had his back turned. He would start poking them in a few minutes, but he was just so comfortable resting his face in his arms at the moment.

He suddenly lifted out of his seat, floating high above the class and it's occupants. No one seemed to notice he was flying, either. Professor Nostradamus was drawling on about palms and freckles and everyone was sleeping. Sirius pulled open the black curtain, shedding light over the room. The sleeping students mumbled and looked up at the light. Professor Nostradamus didn't seem to note the light. He was saying something about lifelines. There were murmurs of 'Oh, look!' and 'Light!' and 'Turn off the light. I'm tired.' Sirius fidgeted around with the lock on the window, trying to open it, but failing. A force seemed to be pulling him out the window and before he could stop himself, he had broken through the window, and showered the class with crystal shards. He was out of the class now, floating over the grounds and gazing down at the lake. Before he knew it, he was standing in front of the lake on the cool September grass.

The calm water of the lake exploded, sending huge waves from every angle. A gold light protruded through the waves and made its way toward Sirius. He then realized it wasn't a light at all, but a figure- a human. Male or female, he couldn't tell. It stood in front of him, inches away from his face and he squinted through the light to get a better grip of details on it, but failed. He felt the sudden impulse to touch it, to reach out and grab it. He lifted his hand and started to approach it, slowly, as if any sudden movements would scare it away. Just as his fingers were less than an inch away from what Sirius was sure was it's face, it leapt backwards. Not because it was refusing his touch, but because it was shot. A small hole appeared in its chest and expanded. The other side of the lake was visible through the amplifying hole. The gash seemed to be eating at the light, tearing it away. A scream echoed out through the grounds. It seemed to be right there with him, right next to him. But no, it was him. He hadn't remembered ever opening his mouth or screaming out the word. He tried to stop, but his voice kept echoing out over the lake and across the grounds.

"NO!"

"Sirius!"

Sirius sat bolt up right at his seat, glancing around at his surroundings. He spotted a very irritated Professor Nostradamus along with Hufflepuffs and fellow Gryffindors gawking at him. He shot a cheeky grin at all of them and ran a shaking hand through his hair.

"No, what, Mr. Black?" Professor Nostradamus asked, brows raised.

"No, I don't like learning about the lines in my hand." A few students snickered.

"Then what do you-" Professor Nostradamus was cut short by the ringing of a bell, signaling the end of class.

"I'd love to hear what you have to say, professor, but I've got Arithmancy! Maybe next time, yeah?" He leaped up, grabbed his books and jumped down the hatch out of the Divination classroom, ignoring that ladder. Once down the hatch, he scooted away from the ladder and waited for his friends. James climbed down, followed by Remus, then Peter. James gave Sirius a skeptical look.

"What was that?"

"I think it was a ladder, Jamsie."

"No, I mean, back in the class. You were shaking and then you screamed."

"I had a dream that I got knocked in the groin by a bludger and, well, let's just say it snapped my broom and I couldn't fly it anymore."

James, Remus and Peter exchanged the same glance of pain, then all burst out into a hysterical state of laughter. Sirius grinned; he didn't feel like sharing the dream he had. They'd have to settle on the bludger story, but that wouldn't stop him from thinking about the real dream.

Remus and Peter had Study of Ancient Runes next and James and Sirius were due for Arithmancy. Remus turned to James and Sirius to bid them farewell when there was a small crack and then a dozen more cracks followed by screaming and a horrid odor floating down the hallway. The quartet held their noses and ran down the hallway Remus and Peter were about to turn down. They stopped at the end of the corridor and let go of their noses.

"Ugh! I can still smell it!" Sirius slapped his hand over his face again.

"What was that?"

"No idea, Prongsy. Smelt like a Dungbomb, but extra strength." Sirius glanced at Remus and Peter. You two go to class. Jamsie and me will find a way to the classroom without trekking through that stench!" Remus and Peter ran up the stairs covering their noses and disappeared around a corner. Sirius gave James an annoyed look and started off down another corridor, expecting James to follow. Before James had the chance to even think about following, a crack was heard in the corridor just ahead of them, followed by another precession of cracks and screams. And the smell. Without thinking, Sirius and James turned on their heels and ran through the opposite corridor.

After running into another three explosions, Sirius and James made it to class ten minutes late. Professor Corsly would have been extremely irked about their tardiness if it weren't for that fact that they were among the only four students there. Orion Harolds was sitting up front, robes covered in light brown liquid. He had obviously ran through a corridor as it exploded and gotten coated with the Super-Strength Dungbombs. Orion took out his wand and cleaned off his robes. The smell remained. Sirius and James sat in the back-the far back- away from Orion. It didn't do much good twenty minutes into the class when fifteen other people walked in, covered from head to toe in the brown liquid. Silently, without being ordered to do so, friends turned to other friends and started 'Scourfigy'ing each other's robes. The roomed smelt worse than the hall. Neither Sirius nor James paid attention to the lesson. They couldn't tell you if anyone else paid attention since their heads were buried in their respective arms.

When the bell rang, they couldn't have been happier to leave the classroom. The hall wasn't any better. It seemed that the teachers couldn't get rid of the smell fast enough. It was spread through the entire castle. Every corridor, class and closet smelt horrible the rest of the day. Sirius wondered whom it was who had pulled this one off.

~*~

"I gotta find the guy who did this. I gotta shake his hand," Sirius said when he got back to the common room at the end of the day.

James laughed softly, putting a hand on Sirius's shoulder. "We've done better than this."

"True, but this was good. Why didn't we think of this?"

"We probably could have, but I wasn't wasting my money on all those Dungbombs."

Sirius shrugged, but he couldn't help wondering who did it and what he could do to top this. It shouldn't be too hard. He was, after all, Sirius Black, Prankster Extraordinaire, Master of Manipulation, Duke of Deduction, Lord of Laughter, and King of Comedy. There was no way he couldn't top this. He could do it in a snap- in his sleep. Before he had time to think over a few plans, a voice interrupted his thoughts.

"Don't you have detention with Scruple, Padfoot?"

"Oy, shit! I forgot about that!" Sirius let of a string of swear words making James raise a brow. That's a good 10 points for creativity. "I'll catch you later, Prongs! See you!" And he bolted out of the portrait hole, swearing under his breath.

~*~

"You're late, Black." Professor Scruple's narrow black eyes starred daggers in his direction. She pointed a long, bony finger in the direction of a small Gryffindor girl in the corner. Her golden-brown hair color was present even in the shadows of the dungeon. "You will be serving detention with Miss Cyprian." Her finger shifted to a stone basin filled with soapy water. "You're to clean the corridors of the great stains caused by today's little... prank." Her eyes darted to Kadia, glaring as if trying to bore a hole through her. Her eyes shifted away from Sirius and Kadia and landed on a scroll of parchment on her desk. She picked it up, glancing at Sirius and tossing it to him. "Here. It's a list of all the corridors that need scrubbing. No magic. Leave your wands on my desk." She sent both of them an icy glare and sat at her desk, holding her head and muttering something about juvenile delinquents. They quickly emptied their pockets of their wands and left them on her desk.

"Get out of my sight." Neither Sirius nor Kadia could have been happier to oblige. Sirius grabbed the side of the basin and dragged it into the hallway. Kadia shut the door behind them and placed her hands on her hips.

"Stupid old bat. She thinks she's better than everyone else and what's worse, she's the Head of Slytherin." She let out a frustrated yell, which she quickly stifled. "I hate her. And Slytherin House." Sirius didn't think she was really talking to him, but merely venting her anger out loud. He chuckled softly.

"I couldn't agree more, er, what did you say you're name was?"

"Kadia and you're Sirius Black."

Sirius's lips swept up into a grin. "You've heard of me?"

"Heard of you? Who hasn't? Sirius Black, James Potter, Remus Lupin, and Peter Pettigrew are the most widely known names in the entire school!" She threw her arms out, making a huge dramatic gesture. Sirius chuckled again and she composed herself. "How'd you get landed a detention this time?"

"Nothing big. Just a little back talk to Scruple in class." Sirius started to drag the basin down the corridors. He didn't need to check the parchment yet. There was a line of some sort of brown stains in about twelve separate splotches, obviously when the bombs exploded, down the first corridor.

"Oh, right. I remember that. It was right before she started pairing us up," she said, following after him and stopping at the beginning of the corridor. A smirk played on her lips for a moment before she stashed it away and pulled out a disgusted look as the next thought entered her mind and out her mouth. "I was paired with Wilkes. I hate that slimy Slytherin."

Sirius grinned and dropped to his knees next to the basin. He dipped his hand in and pulled out a rag, tossing it at her feet. "No magic. This should be loads of fun." His hand plunged into the basin again and pulled out another rag. He started scrubbing briskly at a brown spot in the floor. She bent and picked up the rag, kneeling by the closest spot to where he was scrubbing.

"I wonder who did this," Sirius said, rubbing the spot more rigorously than before.

Kadia let out a small smirk, not bothering to answer his question.

"Why are you here anyway? You seem too nice to get a detention. You forget a homework assignment or something."

'Only Sirius Black could call someone nice and have it come out like an insult,' She thought to herself. "No, I-"

"Forgot to raise your hand in class?" Sirius asked, a hint of malice tugging at his tone.

"No, I-"

"Snuck candy in Scruple's class?"

"No! Do you want an answer or not?"

Sirius was taken aback. Never before had someone risen their voice to him, unless they were a teacher or Moony, Wormtail, or Prongs, and occasionally Lily Evans, but she would usually scream at James, which was always fun to watch. He looked at her and tilted his head. "Yeah, I'll take an answer. What'd you get detention for?"

"This."

"What?"

"This," she said, putting a bare hand over the stain.

"You? You pulled that prank today?" His voice was full of amazement and his eyes were wide. He never would have thought a girl would pull a prank to this magnitude.

"Yes. Is it so hard to believe?"

"Yes, it is, actually."

She tilted her head curiously, which, Sirius thought, made her look cute. But he would never say that. Sirius Black didn't say 'cute.' "Why?"

"I never thought a girl could pull off a prank like that."

Her brows furrowed and she pushed her lips to the side of her face. "A girl? Let me tell you something, Black. Girls can do anything guys can do."

He smirked at her expression. It was rather humorous. "You're wrong."

Her mouth opened slightly in astonishment. How could he possibly be so big headed and sexist? "Are girls just there for your enjoyment? So you can shag them then move to the next girl?"

Sirius blinked. No one, not even James, had said that to him. He was thrown completely off guard and astounded by the cheek of this girl. Everyone he met had been afraid to voice their opinion to him, save for his three best friends, afraid that he would throw such a prank at them, they wouldn't be able to show their face to society again. "No, that's not what-"

"They're just objects to you, aren't they? Like a broomstick. You go for a few rides and then get a new one when you see a better model, isn't that right? And you'd be damned if you could be outwitted by a broomstick or a pillow, am I right?"

"No, that's definitely way off."

"Is it? Is it, really?" She sent him a piercing glare, hardening her sharp caramel coated green eyes.

"Yes. Yes it is." He tried to return the same glare, but found that he couldn't break the surface of her glare, so he turned his glare to the stain on the floor.

They worked in tense silence for 20 minutes, before moving to the next corridor. After 10 corridors later, Sirius had to check the parchment. He groaned and glared at her. "How many corridors did you ruin?"

"You have the list. You tell me!"

"Looks like we have about..." He stared at the paper, keeping a toll in his head. "26, 27, give or take."

Contraire to what Sirius thought, she broke into a grin. He gaped at her. "We're going to be here all night and all you can do is grin like you're insane?"

"I am insane," she said simply, shrugging her shoulders.

"You can say that again."

She sent him a small glare and crossed her arms. "Okay, where next?"

"Left wing corridor, second floor."

"We're only on the second floor? I thought we'd be higher by now."

"Don't complain to me, you're the genius who made this mess." She glared at him and walked off down the corridor and up the stairs.

"Oh, sorry, Black. I thought you could take the basin up the steps, being such a strong man and all. I'm just a weak little girl and couldn't possibly manage," Kadia said with a grin, not bothering to wait for him when she got to the top. She smirked the entire way as she walked to the left wing.

He growled, sending a glare at her receding back. He lifted the stone basin and started carrying it up the stairs. The gray water sloshed around in the basin and splashed into his face and down the front of his robes. He tried to think of ways to prank her when he got back to Gryffindor Tower.

~*~

"Hold still, Lily! How am I supposed to braid your hair if you keep turning around to glare at James?"

"Tara, do you see what he's doing? He deserves to be glared at."

Tara pulled a strand of Lily's hair a bit to roughly. "Sorry," she said, even though she didn't sound the least bit sorry. "Hand slipped."

Alina smiled and shook her head, sitting down on the couch behind her two friends who were sitting on the floor, sparring. She brushed a long strand of blonde hair out of her eyes, peering across the room at the trio of mischief-makers. Sirius was perplexingly absent. James was flying in circles around his friends on his StratusSurfer. Everyone knew James as an excellent flyer, so she didn't have a clue as to why he was going to show off in the common room. She had a feeling he might have a thing for someone with bright red hair and green eyes, or he was just being an arrogant, show-offy bastard. 'Yeah, let's go with the second one.'

"Prongs! Get down from there!" Remus ducked as James flew over his head.

"Yeah! You've made your point," Peter said as he made a diving leap to the floor, missing being stabbed by the broom tip.

"Yeah, yeah, all right." He landed in the middle of the common room and hopped off his broom moodily. He slung it over his shoulder and slumped into the couch, sour-milk expression drawn across his face. Alina giggled softly. He apparently thought people were interested in watching him fly around the common room. It was very clear. They did not.

"Where's Padfoot?" Peter looked nervously around the common room as if expecting the walls to explode, the ceiling to turn orange, and the chairs to change into naked leprechauns that do the Cha-Cha.

"Detention," James stated bitterly.

"For what?"

"Were you in a coma during Potions, Wormtail?"

"Potions? Oh! Right."

James gave Peter a dubious look. "Padfoot was right in asking. How do you remember your own name?"

Alina's focus shifted from James and Peter over to Remus. It was only then she realized he was walking over to her. She shot her eyes down to the floor in front of her.

"Excuse me?" His voice was soft and patient. It was nothing like that of his friends. James's was deep and sharp. Peter's was squeaky and shaky. Sirius's was a low, playful, melodic tone. Remus's voice made her melt.

She glanced up at him, her face flushing a light pink. "Yes?"

"You're my partner for Potions, are you not?"

She nodded.

"Would you mind if I borrowed the text for the reading?"

She shook her head and turned to shuffle through her bag for the text. She pulled out the rust colored book and held it out. "Oh, wait. I have to do it, too."

Remus smiled warmly and rose his shoulders slowly into a shrug. "Would you mind doing it with me?"

"No, not at all." She gave him what she thought was a confident smile.

He laughed softly and sat down next to her, taking the book into his lap. "Here," he said, opening the book up to chapter 6 and setting it between them.

Alina smiled. She stared down at the page, reading the same few sentences over and over again, not really taking in any of it. 'The Amordelego Potion is a myth passed down with each generation. The legend is said to take the bloodline of a child of the Goddess of Love and bestow it through the potion as a transfer to another body and have the victim fall hopelessly in love with whomever puts part of himself into the potion. The only way this legendary potion would fail to make the victim to fall in love would be if...'

She gazed at Remus's hand resting on the side of the book and started the chapter over.

~*~

He set the basin down at her feet and stood up giving her a deep glare. She took one glance at him and burst out laughing. His hair was plastered to his face and the front of his robes were soaking wet. She put her hand on the wall to steady herself.

He sent her another glare and clenched his fists. "If only I had my wand, I'd-"

"Oh!" Her eyes lit up and she sobered quickly, shinning him a smile. She quickly wiped it off her face when he gave her an inquisitive look, mixed with a glare.

"What?"

She grinned again, defiance dancing in her eyes. "Oh, nothing." She said it in such a way that would make even the world's most gullible Muggle question it.

"No, don't give me that."

The grin widened. "Oh, don't worry about it. You wouldn't want help from a girl anyway."

"You're right," He said with a glare. "I don't."

"Oh, well. Just give me half of that list, I'll finish them and be sleeping in my dorm by the time you finish one corridor."

"Is that a challenge?" Sirius's eyes lit up and a grin flickered across his lips.

"It would be, but I'm not one for unfair odds. Even against pigs like you."

"Wait, what unfair odds?"

She reached into her robes and pulled out a long piece of smooth mahogany with a black wooden handle. He gaped at her. "A wand? But I saw you give it to Scruple!"

"What you saw was me giving a decoy wand to Scruple. I had forgotten I did that."

"So you've had a wand all this time and you didn't use it? Are you mad!?"

"I though we've established that already. Besides, it's your fault I forgot."

"How is it my fault?"

"If you hadn't gotten me so angry over the entire 'Guys are better than girls' thing, I wouldn't have forgotten. I was going to show it to you, but you're head got so big I could barely move my arm, let alone get my wand out."

He sent her another glare, and then gazed at the floor. "Well, what are you waiting for, clean it."

"You did not just tell me what to do."

"I believe I did. Now, clean the floor!"

"No!"

"Now!"

Without thinking, she threw her hands into his chest, shoving him backwards. His eyes widened as he stumbled in reverse. His right leg hit into the stone basin, knocking him completely off balance and sending him toppling to the ground. His arms flew out, searching frantically for support. His hands locked around her wrists and her satisfied, smug expression was jerked right off her face as she was yanked forward. Her leg slammed into the basin, sending it flying, scattering water all over the corridor, and soaking both of them to the skin in dingy gray water.

The basin came barreling back towards them. On an impulse, Sirius pulled Kadia to the side and out of the way just as the stone basin skittered to where Kadia was lying. She glanced up at him and gave him a nervous smile.

"Er, thanks."

"I didn't mean to. It was an instinct."

She blinked and glared at him, not really sure what to say. Sirius gave her an odd stare; a look of realization hit him. He laughed lightly. "No, I didn't mean pulling you out of the way, I meant dragging you down. I thought you were being sarcastic."

She let out a small laugh, a new dawning of comprehension coming over her. She took this opportunity to glance at what kind of embarrassing stance they were in. She pulled her hand off his forearm and her right leg off of his. She turned a light pink as her hand splashed into a puddle of water next to her.

He grinned slightly, pulling his arm off her back. He brushed the hair plastered to his face backwards and stood up. He held a hand out her; the silence was a little unnerving. She grabbed it and pulled herself quickly up. They were now drenched- utterly and completely drenched. And all Sirius could do was burst out into a strand of hysterical laughter. Kadia tilted her head to the side. She couldn't find one thing funny about the situation. It was completely humor-free, and yet she was now laughing uncontrollably and grabbing onto the wall. Sirius was doubled over, holding onto his knees, and laughing big, deep, hallow laughs.

It was a good 10 minutes before they could breathe properly again. Sirius picked up Kadia's wand, which had gotten thrown in the mayhem. He twirled it lightly between his fingers and ran it along his knuckles. She watched his hand, which was running her wand through his fingers. She put out a hand. "Can I have my wand back?"

He smirked and gently shrugged his shoulders. "Maybe. How badly do you want it?"

"Just give it to me," she said, a small grin playing in the corner of her lips.

He put it in her hand, brushing his fingers against her skin. She didn't even flinch. 'Damn,' he thought. 'It's not going to be easy. She's not even flirtable. Is that a word? Doesn't matter.' "All right. Can you get rid of the mess in this hallway?"

She laughed softly. "Now that you've actually asked me instead of telling me, yeah, I'll get rid of it." She flicked her wand. "Scourgify." The stains in the hallway disappeared, as did the water on the floor. She straightened the basin and turned back to Sirius, putting her hands on her hips. She grinned. "Don't move," she said, pointing her wand at him.

He stepped backwards. "Wha- what are you doing?"

She giggled and dropped her wand hand slightly. "I said don't move!" She lifted the wand up again. "Exaresco." Sirius's robes, sagging with water, seemed to drop all the excess weight and sit on his skin as if water hadn't touched the fabric. She grinned and repeated the process on her own robes.

"Thanks," he said, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Glad you've a girl around, aren't you?" She smirked and brushed up against his arm as she passed, moving to the next corridor. He blinked, pulling out the parchment and following after her.

It took roughly a half hour to clean all the halls using magic. The stairs were probably sleeping by now and didn't think to change on them. Sirius crumpled up the paper and shoved it into his pocket with a grin. "We're done, let's go give that basin back to Scruple and get my wand."

Kadia shook her head. "No."

"No? Why not?"

"We can't. She expects we'll be working for another...well... it took us... about 20 minutes for one corridor. We did about 10 first, so that's... right... and then another 26... we should be done at 6 in the morning."

"You did that all in your head?"

She nodded. "I'm in your Arithmancy class. If you noticed I wasn't there today. It's because I got caught. Did you eat dinner last night?"

"No, I didn't have time. We started at the time I usually go down to dinner. I'm starving. We could probably hit the kitchens. What time is it now?"

"About a quarter to one." Sirius and Kadia groaned in unison. "What are we supposed to do for five hours?"

Sirius grinned and placed a hand on the side of her face. "I could think of a few things."

She shot him a glare and whacked his arm away. "Don't touch me." She stalked off down the hallway, leaving him behind.

Sirius's eyes widened. He didn't get her. If he were to do that to any other girl, they would have wet themselves from excitement. Kadia was different. The first thought that came to his mind was that she was just really prude. But you couldn't be prude and talk about sex like she did. When she was questioning him about his fidelity to his girlfriends, she'd said it as if she were talking about an essay. He asked himself why he was even bothering with her. She wasn't drop dead gorgeous. If she were drop dead gorgeous the detention would have had to wait a little while. Besides, there were plenty of gorgeous girls in the school. If anyone would know, he would. He found out just how gorgeous every girl he ever dated was- at least twice. Gorgeous went out with long, thin, slender legs. Kadia was not a tall super model. Most of Sirius's girlfriends came up to his face and could look straight and meet his eyes. Kadia had to glance up, since her eyes only came up to his neck. Gorgeous Kadia wasn't, but she wasn't ugly either. She was pretty, but not a normal kind of pretty. She held a strange kind of veiled allure. And she glowed- literally glowed. Her hair and her eyes had a goldish color to it, making her glow. It neither was something Sirius had never known before nor experience. And he didn't have control over her. He couldn't tell her to do something and she'd bend like a rubber band. He had to actually ask her and hope she'd agree. Sifting through all this information in his mind, he smashed head long into a wall.

"Ow!"

Kadia spun on her heel and giggled slightly, covering her mouth with her hand. "Are you all right?"

"Just... corking." He stepped away from the wall, rubbing his head. She giggled again, tried to compose herself and failed miserably. She burst out into strings of laughter. "I'm glad you find my pain amusing." He couldn't hide a small grin pulling at the corner of his mouth.

She sobered slightly and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "All right, you got any bright ideas as to what we're supposed to do for 5 hours?" She sent him a glare before he could move, paralyzing him where he stood. "You say it. I kill you. It's a two-step process. I have a wand. You don't. Do you like you're odds, Black?"

"Not very much, no."

"Good. So we're agreed?"

"No."

"Excuse me?"

"I still don't think girls can do whatever guys can do."

She laughed slightly, and tossed her hair over her shoulder. "We're back on this again, are we? If that's the case, name one thing a guy can do that a girl can't. Girls can play football. We can play rugby. We can pull pranks. We can cast spells and fly broomsticks. What can you do that I can't?"

"Piss standing up."

Kadia stopped dead in her tracks and stared at him, eyebrows shooting up into her forehead. She took one huge breath before she exploded with laughter, gripping onto Sirius's arm for support.

~*~

James was curled into a ball on the scarlet Gryffindor couch. He was sleeping like a baby who had just eaten all his Halloween candy, as well as his brother and sister's, ran around the room on a sugar high trying to elude the aforementioned brother and sister, who are now angry because they are candyless, escaped them by running outside into the street and around the block, came back home, started eating dinner, and passed out in his mashed potatoes. His hair lay fallen across his face, brushing his closed eyelids and running down the bridge of his nose. The rising sun danced through the window and kissed his face.

A crash. He stirred. Another crash. He plummeted from the couch and landed on the cold wooden floor, eyes wide and slightly confused as to why he was on the floor. "What in the-"

"Hello, there, Sleeping Beauty!" Sirius stood in front of the closed portrait hole, arms crossed over his broad torso. Kadia stood at his side, hands on her hips. They wore identical expressions of transgression. "Aww, Prongsy! You waited up for me!"

"Oh, yes," James said, voice speckled with sarcasm. "Actually, Remus brought a girl up there. I didn't think it was right to go up with him. Although Peter didn't seem to think Remus would do h-..." James's eyes seemed to finally pick up on the short girl to the side of Sirius. "Who's that?"

"Who's who?"

"That girl."

"Oh, That's Kadia. Me and her had detention together and-"

"I would appreciate it," Kadia said, rolling her eyes. "if you didn't talk about me as if I wasn't here."

"Oh, sorry, Kads," Sirius grumbled, grabbing her arm and shoving her out in front of him. She gave him a soft glare before turning back to face the dilapidated James. She giggled slightly, taking one look at James's mussed up hair. It was flat on one side and stuck out like arrows on the other. A sheet was wrapped around his leg and slung over his shoulder. "Prongs, this is Kadia. Kadia, Prongs...er, James."

"Potter," she said shortly, sticking her hands back on her hips. "Oh, and love what you did to the hair. It's really working for you." A small grin pulled at her lips as she walked over to the stairs to the Girls' Dorm. "I'll see you guys later." She reached her right hand across and waved over her left shoulder before disappearing into the dorm.

James watched as she left, eyes not leaving her back until she shut the door behind her. He turned back to Sirius, brow raised. "Another one of your girlfriends, Padfoot?"

Sirius shook his head. "No. We had 5 hours of free time last night and I suggested we do some harmless fucking and she turned me down! I was in total shock."

"Wow," James replied in a bored tone. "Sirius Black was turned down by a girl. Has the world come to an end?"

"That what I was thinking. I was waiting for the sky to fall, but it never happened."

James stood up, throwing the sheet over the back of the couch over his shoulder as he walked over to Sirius. "It happens to the best of us. No worries." He placed a hand on Sirius's shoulder and led him toward the Boys' Dorm. "Now we'll get to see if Remus joined the Pen 15 club."

James grinned and crept quietly into the dorm, motioning Sirius to do the same. Sirius concurred and slipped into the dorm, shutting the door silently behind him. The shower was running in the bathroom and Peter's bed was empty. Sirius and James's beds were untouched and unturned, still tucked tight since the house elves had made them the morning before. It wasn't the first time the beds were left like that. James, Sirius, Remus, and Peter would go out partying some nights, get drunk off their asses, and go out into the courtyard to sing 13 verses of "The Bigger the Broom the Better." Members of the Pen 15 club would find themselves waking up in a strange bed next to a strange girl and once, to James's horror, a strange man. But that is another story entirely and we won't get into it.

Remus lie fast asleep in his bed, arm wrapped around a fluffy white pillow. James snapped his fingers. "Damn. We lost a potential member to the Pen 15 club."

Sirius shook his head solemnly. "We'll get him one day. Maybe even Peter."

"Do you two ever think of anything else?" A low voice asked from Remus's direction. He opened his eyes and sat up. "Maybe I don't want to join your stupid Non-Virgin club. You ever think of that?"

James and Sirius looked scandalized. "Rem! The Pen 15 Club is a very exclusive club and not all Non-Virgins can get into it. But, Prongs and I have decided that, when you pass the great barrier into man-hood, you will be an executive member of the Pen 15 Club. You and Petey."

"Oh, thank you so much, Sirius. I feel ever so privileged," Remus replied smoothly, standing up and making his way to his trunk.

"As you should." Sirius looked at James and they nodded simultaneously, turned and went to their respective trunks.

~*~

The week flew by with the speed of James on the Quidditch pitch. Tuesday, the 27^th. Remus cringed, pulling the covers of the Hospital Wing bed over his head. He was feeling it- feeling the transformation creeping up on him. No classes- any normal student would be rejoicing. Remus wasn't a normal student. One night- every month, Remus Lupin would change into a fearful creature- a creature that not only caused him great pain, but also was shunned by wizard folk. Most wizard folk. Not his best friends. Sirius, James and Peter knew. They had found out in their second year. They had found out and not forsaken him. They were truly his friends.

Tonight he would go to the Shrieking Shack along with a stag, a dog and a rat and go through his transformations. He shuddered, popping his head out from under the comforter to look around. His face was very pale and his usually bright saffron eyes were a dull bisque, his pupils contracted as if he had seen something horrifying. He took in a breath of air through his nose and sneezed. Not only was he 'sick' every month, but now he had allergies. Oh, the woes of a Werewolf.

Staying in bed, dreading night by oneself does not, in Remus's opinion, seem like too much fun. He was so tired- exhausted as if he had run 23 miles. He was always tired around the full moon- tired and pale and bleeding. He sighed and, once again, pulled the covers over his head, falling back into the pillows.

~*~

"Good, Jimmy. Very good. I've taught you well," Sirius approved, shoving his Astronomy charts into his bag.

"Yeah, yeah. You've taught me nothing. This was pure James Potter," James said, putting an index finger on his temple.

"Well, whatever it was," Peter chirped, sticking his head between James and Sirius's shoulders. "It was great! Snape's probably still crawling around the bushes looking for his books. And they can't even pin it on you, James. If you put your books on the windowsill... they could just fall over."

Sirius let out a breath of air in a defeated sigh. "All right, all right. It was pretty good for a spur of the moment thing. But when it comes to crafty plans- that's where you need me. That's where you all need me!" He rubbed his hands together, eyes shifting wildly from one side of the room to the other in an erratic manner. A maniacal laughter escaped from his mouth, forcing James and Peter to look at each other frightfully.

"Padfoot... just calm down. We'll find you help." James yanked on the back of Sirius's robes, causing him to lurch backwards and snap out of his mad state.

"Oh, right-o. Very good. Thanks." Sirius grinned and ran off down the hall like a bat out of hell.

James looked at Peter and raised a bemused brow. He bolted off after him. "Get back here! The insane should not roam free!"

"Oh, no! Guys, wait up for me!" Peter panted running off after them, lugging his book-bag down the hallway.

~*~

"You were up in the Boys' Dorm pretty late last night, Alina. You've been going up there with Remus a lot lately," Kadia teased, batting her eyelashes in mock-flirt. "What were you doing?"

"Work," Alina snapped, sending Kadia a small glare. Lily and Tara looked at each other and let out a stifled giggle. Alina turned to them, eyes narrowed, glowering harshly. "Shut up! Both of you- all of you! Just shut up! Nothing happened, all right?" She shoved her quill into her inkbottle and slammed 'Ancient Runes Made Easy' shut. She slapped it down on top of her book pile and pushed past her friends, storming up the stairs. The door slammed behind her, sending a thundering crash throughout the common room.

Kadia raised her eyebrows quizzically, turning to Lily. "What's her problem?"

"No idea," Lily answered, staring oddly at the Girls' Dorm door. She sighed, twisting her gaze to the window. The sun had set over the edge of the trees and the reddish-purple haze was receding into the darkness. The stars were visible just above the treetops, dancing in the sky with the huge full moon, big and bright and gleaming. Tonight would be a terrible night to go into the Forbidden Forest. She shivered at the thought, turning her attention back to the silent common room. A small click brought her attention up to the stairs of the Boys' Dorms. Sirius Black sauntered out, waving and blowing kisses to the entire female Gryffindor population. It was expected of him to go over and flirt with the blonde that was casting enticing stares in his direction. It was expected, but he didn't. He left the common room, although it looked like it pained him.

The moment Sirius shut the portrait hole, the Boys' Dorm clicked open again and James Potter stepped out. He swaggered through the common room, sending Lily a quick grin before disappearing through the portrait hole. No sooner had James left did the small, chubby figure of Peter Pettigrew come barreling down the stairs. He hurriedly pulled his cloak around his shoulders and bolted out of the door, muttering under his breath.

Lily tilted her head, watching this display. 'What in the devil are those three up to?' She glanced at Kadia and Tara, both of which seemed to be thinking the same thing.