...and in the beginning, there were the marauders

Chapter Four: He Arrives

James was surprised at how loudly such a tiny person could scream. But he covered her mouth quickly enough, so hopefully no one would have heard her.

It was immature, sure. Maybe a little mean. A little. But it was funny. But when he saw the look on Lily's face, he knew that she would not share his opinion.

She had been struggling in his arms, fighting to get away, but he finally let her go. She turned around, a look of fear on her face. But when she saw James, Remus, and Peter, she looked ready to kill.

And they laughed. Loudly. After a few minutes, James found it hard to breathe.

"What is wrongwith you?" Lily demanded. "Are you insane? Were you trying to give me a heart attack?"

They laughed even harder. That is, until Remus collapsed into another one of his coughing spells.

For the past two days, he looked the way he had the first time James met him. It had been getting increasingly worse, but he had refused to go to the hospital wing so far.

"Well, that's it; you're going to see the nurse," Lily said. "After I finish yelling at you."

"Aw, Lily, it was just a joke-" Peter began.

"I don't care!" Lily exclaimed. "You scared the living daylights out of me! It wasn't funny!"

"Lily, stop being such a girl," James said.

"Stop being such a girl," she repeated, crossing her arms. "Oh, that's so easy, I've only been one for almost eleven years. You start to get used to these things and being able to act-"

"Lily, you're raving," Remus interjected.

"I can rave if I want to," she retorted. "I was just attacked, and for all I knew, I could have been raped, killed, or tortured, but why worry about that? And there's only some madman wandering around Europe, working his way to Britain, leaving death and destruction in his path, but why should I be worried about that? I could have ended up in The Daily Prophet, I can see the headline now-"

"Who told you about that?" asked James.

"About what? The Daily Prophet?"

"No, the madman wandering around Europe working his way towards Britain leaving a path of death and destruction in his path, actually."

"Oh. Hagrid."

"He shouldn't have gotten you so worked up."

"He didn't! You did!"

"Well, how were we supposed to know you knew?" Peter questioned.

"You didn't have to, and that's not the point, the point is that you ATTACKED ME!"

"Lily, calm down," James said.

"No."

James sighed. "Well, are you going to come with us to take Remus to the hospital wing or not?"

"I can go by myself," said Remus.

"Don't be ridiculous, Remus," Lily said.

"I'm fine," he assured them, coughing again. "You don't want to be late for dinner. Go on."

He walked off, waving as he went. Lily turned on her heel and stormed ahead of them into the castle. Peter and James followed, keeping a safe distance. She sat as far away as possible from them, eating with William Brigsby, and, they could be sure, telling him about their little trick.

"I think she's blowing this out of proportion," Peter said, pouring gravy on his beef.

"I can't believe I missed it," said Sirius. "McGonagall made me re-stuff all the pillows in the common room. Wonderful way to spend your afternoon off."

"She was pretty upset about it," James said.

"She'll get over it," Sirius reassured him. "she's not a total girl."

"What are you talking about?" James asked. "Have you ever seen her? She's about as girly as they come."

"That's not what I mean, you idiot." Sirius replied. "I mean, she doesn't start crying evry five minutes and all that nonsense."

"In a few years, when you start-" James began.

Sirius cut him off. "Don't want to hear it."

After they finished eating, they started to walk back to Gryffindor Tower. But before they exited the Great Hall, a tall figure blocked their path. Professor Cartwright.

"Might I have a word with the three of you?" he asked calmly. "This concerns Mr. Potter and Mr. Pettigrew, but I'd imagine that you'll need to hear this as well eventually, Mr. Black."

James and Peter went pale. James felt as though a giant lead weight had been dropped on top of him. The three boys followed the professor out into a corner of the hallway.

"About your little prank on Miss Evans-" he began.

"She got a teacher already?" interrupted Peter.

He earned himself a glare from the professor.

"No," Cartwright said, mildly annoyed by the interruption, "but I was outside the castle before dinner. I heard Miss Evans scream and went to see what was wrong. I heard the two of you and Mister Lupin."

"Oh," Peter said.

"I have half a mind to take you to the headmaster directly," he continued. The lead weight on James's shoulders grew heavier. "But I think a reprimand from myself will suffice."

The weight lightened.

"This was not one of your more intelligent decisions," the professor said. "What you did to that girl was cruel. She had every right to be as frightened as she was. I know you're fond of your little pranks-yes, I know you're the ones behind the trick candy and the Dungbombs, I'm not as stupid as you might think-but this crossed a line. In the current climate of uncertainty, which Miss Evans mentioned earlier, your behavior is especially inappropriate. I trust we will not have to have this conversation again?"

"No sir," James and Peter said in unison.

"Mr. Black?"

"I didn't do anything!"

"Mister Black?"

"No."

Professor Cartwright still looked unhappy. "I expect better of my students."

But he was looking straight at James when he said it.

Breakfast began to be served an hour later on weekends, so, naturally, most people slept for at least an extra hour on Saturdays and Sundays. Except for Arwen.

She had accidentally woken Lily up when she rose at her normal time. Lily didn't really mind; perhaps she would be able to go down to breakfast with somewhat-dry hair. So she followed Arwen into the bathroom and took her shower, having hot water for once.

By the time she walked back out into the dormitory, Arwen was dressed and ready to go (although her long, dark braid was still dripping).

"Are you going to go down early?" Lily asked quietly, hoping not to wake the others.

"Probably," Arwen replied. "Beat the rush. Do you want me to wait?"

"Don't bother," replied Lily. "I'll probably read for a while, since I have the time."

After Arwen left, Lily began the long process of drying her hair. She was stuck using towels until next year, when they learned drying spells. She did not braid her hair right away, hoping for it to air dry a bit more. She then made her way down to the common room, where she could read without waking anyone.

But when she reached the bottom of the stairs, she was stopped by a disheveled William Brigsby.

"Back up, Lily," he said, gasping for breath.

"William?" she questioned. "What's wrong?"

"Can't explain now. Go back, wake all the girls. Tell them to be in the Great Hall in ten minutes."

"But why?"

"Dumbledore will explain. Just do it."

"The older girls won't listen to me, William-"

"Just do it, Lily!" And with that, he ran off to the boys dormitories, pushing his glasses back up his nose, into their rightful position.

*****

James hurried to the Great Hall with Sirius and Peter, after being awakened by a panicked William Brigsby. No one knew what was going on, but everyone was on edge. A low buzz was going through the crowd as they all rushed to the Great Hall.

"Honestly, don't we have any girl prefects in Gryffindor?" a voice from behind them demanded.

They turned to see a frazzled Lily, her long hair, still slightly damp, flowing behind her. She had obviously forgotten that she was mad at them.

"The Bright sisters-Lizzie and Sarah," James replied. "Why do you ask?"

"I had to herd all the Gryffindor girls down here because William couldn't go into our dorms," she replied. "Like anyone would listen to me."

"But you've got the whole prefect act down so well," Sirius said with mock sincerity.

"Whatever's going on, it must be big," James said, before Lily could reply. "I've never seen William look so messy."

"He needs to comb his hair," Peter added. "I didn't recognize him with it all out of place."

The Great Hall was abuzz when they entered. The teacher's table was empty. The Head Boy and Girl were missing also, and the prefects were trying to calm the members of their houses with little success. James and Lily took seats across from Peter and Sirius.

"Speaking of the girls, where are the ones in our year?" Sirius asked.

"Arwen came down early, and I have no idea where Daphne, Eve, and Eden are," replied Lily. "I didn't have a chance to go back to our dorm. I was too busy convincing Helen Traynor to take orders from a first-year. I didn't even have time to do anything with my hair."

"You should leave it down more often," James said. "It looks nice."

She turned to him and opened her mouth, but before she could say anything, the teachers filed in, looking very somber.

Professor Dumbledore remained standing as the others sat down. A hush fell over the Great Hall. He paused for almost thirty seconds before speaking. It seemed like forever.

"Many of you know of the dark wizard who appeared in Britain over a year ago," he began. "We had hoped that his sudden disappearance some months later indicated that he had given up, although the disappearance of several other members of the community forced us to hold on to some suspicion. Seven months ago, our fears were validated with an attack in Albania. I cannot tell you why this attack was linked to the dark wizard we had here, for it is information classified by the Department of Mysteries.

"Fear has been growing as the attacks continue, getting closer and closer to Britain. And today, I am sorry to announce that this wizard's first attack on British soil has occurred."

A collective gasp went up through the hall. A few people screamed. Dumbledore held up his hands, and they fell silent again.

"I am also sorry to report that the victims of this attacks were Thomas and Clarissa Bright, the parents of two of our Gryffindor prefects, Elizabeth and Sarah."

James saw Lily go pale. Murmurs went up through the Great Hall, and the prefects jumped up and tried to silence them. Dumbledore again raised his hands, and again, they had the desired effect.

"Elizabeth and Sarah have returned home to mourn their parents, and I hope that upon their return, they will be treated with the respect and compassion they deserve. I warn you all to be on guard, but to try to continue your lives as normally as possible. Thank you."

He sat down, and for a few minutes, no one knew what to say. Food appeared on the table, and slowly, students began to eat and talk softly. Lily stood up.

James grabbed her elbow. "Where are you going?"

She just shook her head and walked off, still looking shaken. No one followed her.

Sirius looked over at the Slytherin table. "They look rather content, wouldn't you say?"

"Some of them," James replied.

"And Lily wonders why we tell her to stay away from them."

"You tell her to stay away from them," James corrected. "I like to think that I'm more open minded than that. Although you're right, ninety-nine percent of the time."

"You don't think this guy is going to come to Hogwarts, do you?" asked Peter. "You know, a large-scale massacre?"

"There's no way he could be that stupid," James said. "There are too many enchantments on the castle."

"Are you sure?" questioned Peter.

"Peter, relax," Sirius said. "We're safe for the next seven years."

"So just pray that they catch him before we graduate," James added.

Jeremy walked over to them and took what had been Lily's seat.

"Do you guys know where Remus his?" he asked.

"Still in the hospital wing, I guess," Sirius told him. "Why?"

"Well," Jeremy began, "don't you think his timing is a little strange?"

James raised an eyebrow. "What are you implying?"

"Well, did any one of you go with him to the hospital ward?" asked Jeremy.

"No, he went alone," Peter said.

"Then how can be sure that he actually went to the infirmary?"

"I'm sorry, I fail to see what you're trying to say, so will you please stop asking all these stupid questions and just tell us what you're trying to get at?" Sirius demanded.

"I think Remus is working for this guy," Jeremy said.

"Are you INSANE?" James demanded. "First of all, what use would a dark wizard have for an eleven-year-old, secondly, this is Remus we're talking about. He doesn't exactly have that whole psychotic, power-hungry personality."

"First of all," Jeremy began, "this guy is probably training a couple kids now so that in a couple decades, he'll still have supporters who are still young and strong. Secondly, you met Remus a week ago. How do you know what he's really like? And anyway, these dark wizards can be pretty good actors."

"Well, thanks for the psychoanalysis, but you're full of it," Sirius said. "You're just being paranoid."

Jeremy shrugged. "Whatever you say. Just don't come crying to me when he ends up in Azkaban."

*****

Lily sat on the windowsill, looking out the window. She felt as though she were going to throw up.

She heard footsteps coming down the corridor. A moment later, the figure of Severus Snape appeared. He walked up to the window and leaned against the window.

"Have you had anything to eat?" he asked, crossing his arms.

"No," she replied. "I've lost my appetite."

"You seem to be taking all of this personally."

She shrugged. "It's upsetting."

"Everyone's upset. You're acting like you're guilty of something."

Lily sighed. "One of our prefects had me wake up all the girls this morning because he couldn't go up into our dorms. It was a big headache; none of the older girls would listen to me. And I was annoyed because I thought one of the girl prefects should do it. And then, it turns out that their parents are dead."

"But you had no way of knowing that."

"Still. I just feel bad. I know it's stupid."

"People cope in different ways. You need to gain control of the situation, so you make yourself partially to blame."

She chuckled. "And I thought I was this year's psychiatrist."

"I do a lot of people watching."

"You're awfully insightful for an eleven-year-old."

"When your parents don't like children, you learn to not act like one."

"I'm sure that isn't true."

"It is. They've told me almost every day for as long as I can remember. They don't like children, and their only reason for having me was because they needed someone to continue the bloodline. And don't do that."

"Do what?" she asked.

"Your eyes. I don't need that pity look."

"Sorry. Why are you telling me this?"

"What do you mean?"

"This stuff about your parents. You barely know me, and I'm a Gryffindor, which makes me the enemy, remember?"

"It's not like it's a big secret. It's just why things are in families like mine. And I think you're the exception that proves the Gryffindor rule."

"What makes you say that?"

"You didn't listen to Black when he warned you about me. And I'm assuming he told you about my uncles, which I can imagine gave him a great deal of satisfaction."

"Actually, he didn't. Hagrid did though."

Severus let out a short laugh and then changed the topic. "I heard Potter and company ambushed you last night."

Lily moaned. "Is that getting around? How embarrassing..."

He didn't answer the question. "They're nothing but trouble, the four of them. Black, I'm certain of, the other three are giving me that impression."

"You're starting to sound like Sirius."

He glared at her. "I'd appreciate if you'd refrain from making such assessments."

Lily laughed. "Why don't the two of you get along? How do you know each other?"

"We don't get along because he is an obnoxious git, and I think Sirius would appreciate it if I didn't answer your second question."

"Since when do you care about what Sirius wants?" Lily asked, an eyebrow raised.

"I don't make it my business to run around exposing other people's secrets. I like to think I'm better than that."

He stepped away from the wall. "I'd go back to the kitchens and get some food from the house elves. You're too thin as it is, you shouldn't be skipping meals."

Without saying anything else, he walked down the corridor, leaving her alone.