The Marauders: Year 2

"I can't believe he let you name that thing Monster," Remus replied several hours later as they staggered towards the castle.

"You're just upset because Pomegranate tried to kiss you. I thought it was sweet, really, you could use some action, Remmy."

"Not from a creature with a poisonous tongue, Sirius. Only you could manage to bond with a, what did Hagrid call it?"

"Crintotoris. Well, actually Hagrid tended to refer to them as his ickle bitty petsies, the man's not all there I'd wager."

"No kidding? Are you aware that the rough translation of that from Latin is tail of torture?"

"Is it really? No surprise there really, those things have some nasty tails on them."

Remus groaned slightly and rolled his eyes, but brightened as he saw Peter and James emerge from the dungeons.

"Oi, James! Peter!" Remus started off towards them with Sirius at his heels, but stopped short and took a step back when he got near. "What is that smell?"

"Do we smell, Peter?" James looked curiously at his friend.

"No idea, if we do, my nose accustomed itself to it a long time ago."

James turned to Remus, "Sorry, we were disemboweling and mashing Newts, lovely time. How'd you lot fare?"

"Ever heard of Crintotoris?"

The two boys shook their heads.

"Then consider yourself lucky and let's hope that Kettleburn never gets his hands on them."

James smirked, "Well, Hagrid can be a bit excitable about his animals."

"That's one word for it."

"Stark raving mad is another."

The four boys chuckled and headed towards the Common Room.

~~*~~

"I'm sure you all know why you've been called here today," Peter Bell announced to his team. They'd gathered in an empty classroom for a final Quidditch team meeting.

"To rub it in that Slytherin won the Quidditch Cup, no doubt," Emmaline Vance muttered quietly to Marlene McKinnon. James overheard and sighed in agreement.

"Not necessarily. The man is a lunatic, I suspect he noshes on alihotsy regularly before anything regarding Quidditch, so who knows where this is going," Marlene whispered back.

Peter cleared his throat loudly. "There are only two and a half weeks left in the term. I know I'm taking away valuable study time for myself and Wood, as we're both in preparation for the N.E.W.Ts and Meg has O.W.Ls coming up next week, none the less, I feel this is important."

Peter sat down and ran his hands through his curly blonde hair and grinned somewhat sheepishly at his teammates. "Our season's over, you all know that. I screamed bloody murder at each and every one of you about whatever mistakes you made during that game the week after we played it. The fact of the matter is, though, that you were all one hell of a team. The Slytherins played dirty, we all knew that and Ravenclaw, well... hell, they were damn near unbeatable this year, but we did beat them. I'm trying to say," he paused, took a deep breath and then nodded his head slightly, "good work guys. It was a pleasure playing with you."

The rest of the team sat back in shock. Every one of them had appeared to be expecting a berating for their performance from Bell.

"Which leads us to our next order of business," he continued on quickly. "McGonagall usually picks the new captain, but last year, when it was just the three of us left, we had a meeting with the team and we chose. She let us keep our decision. I think it works better like that, so I'd like to know who you'd all like to consider as the new captain next term. I'll bring the team recommendation to McGonagall after this."

"Well that's easy, it's either Meg or Beamish, don't you think?" Emmaline offered.

"I say we give it to Meg, but just so you know, I'll be going after it when she graduates," Alan Beamish told the team.

Meg's eyes widened and she shook her head, "I... er, actually, I don't want to be Captain."

James and Rebecca looked at her as though she were mad.

"But you'd make a fantastic captain, Meg," Rebecca said. "You've spent all year working with James and me and look how much better we are because of it. You could do that with the whole team."

"I think you'd make a really good choice, Meg. You know as much about Quidditch as your brother and you're not as insane. That's a bloody fantastic combination," James put in, deflecting Peter Bell's glare with an innocent grin.

"No, it's not that I don't think I'd be good at it, it's just that... if my O.W.Ls go how I'm hoping they will, then I want to train to be an Auror and that's a really heavy course load on top of Prefect duties," she grinned apologetically.

"You're quitting the team?" Alan burst out, jumping out of his seat and striding over to stand menacingly in front of her.

"No, I am not quitting the team, I just don't think I could focus on leading the team." She began to pick at the hem on the cuff of her robes.

"You'd rather train to be an Auror that play Quidditch?" Nathan McDonald piped up. "Are you mad?"

Margaret gave him a rather nasty glare, "You have noticed that it's not all fun and games out in the real world lately, haven't you?" The entire team froze up for a moment; all of them flicking glances at James who they all knew was Remus's best friend. He just sighed and crossed his arms over his chest.

"Trust me," the messy haired boy replied quietly, "we're well aware it's not all fun and games. Good for you, if you want to be an Auror." He took a deep breath as the rest of the team relaxed.

"Well then, I guess it's Beamish?" Marlene asked. "Are you up for it?"

"Am I up for it? Are you kidding? If you're going to vote me captain, I've got to go start planning strategy now because we will win next year. None of this namsy pamsy with the Slytherins. They are going down," Alan began pacing back and forth in front of the room sporadically hitting his fist into his palm as he raved.

Peter beamed as he observed, "Fantastic choice, I think."

"Another alihotsy addict," Marlene whispered to Emmaline with a grin.

"So then, are you all in favor? Wood and I'll abstain from the vote, as we won't be here."

"Sounds good to me," Margaret replied with a grin.

Rebecca nodded her assent.

"Sure," James said at the same time as Nathan McDonald.

"Well if we must have another lunatic..." Marlene commented with a grin.

"I suppose Beamish will do," Emmaline finished for her.

"Congratulations Beamish," Bell exclaimed, clapping him on the back. "Provided McGonagall approves and all, but I don't see why she wouldn't." A moment later, the old Peter Bell was back, "Now what are you all still doing here, you've all got exams and finals to study for that you bloody well better ace. It'll be hard enough to replace a Seeker and a reserve Beater next term, not to mention any of you lot if you fail out of Hogwarts." Then he strode quickly from the room, just in time to miss Emmaline, Marlene, and Rebecca burst into giggles and even Margaret to let loose a wide grin.

"Some things never change," Nathan commented, looking to the spot where Bell had just been standing.

"Well, he's right. I've got to get some studying done. So do you Meg, those O.W.Ls were pretty unpleasant," Henry Wood said, standing up and offering his arm to Margaret. "Might I escort you to Gryffindor Tower?" he asked in a false pompous voice, with a grin playing on his lips.

"I think all that studying had addled your brain, Henry Wood," Margaret offered good-naturally as took his arm and the two strolled out of the classroom.

"Are they-" Emmaline leaned into Marlene as Marlene asked her, "Do you think they're-"

"Going together?" they finished at the same time and chuckled.

"Any poor child of theirs would be beyond obsessed with Quidditch. Worse than Henry, I'd wager," Vance said, as she stood up.

"Oh I know, but I bet he'd be cute," McKinnon added, the two of them gossiping all the way out the door.

James was surprised when Rebecca leaned over. "Please, please, don't leave me alone with Alan. Will you walk back to Gryffindor with me? Now?" she pleaded in a low whisper.

James looked surprised but shrugged, "Er... sure, Becca. Ready then?" Before the words had even left his mouth, Rebecca had jumped up and was headed for the door. James scrambled after her and out into the hallway.

"Why don't you want to walk with Beamish?" James asked, noting she went slightly red when he did.

"It's er... complicated."

"Try me."

"No."

"Fine then. I'll just stop here and wait for Beamish and see what he tells me."

Rebecca stopped short and grabbed his arm, "No, please... just keep walking and I'll tell you."

He grinned at her as they continued to walk. "Well?"

"He likes me."

"Oh." There was a moments pause. "That's a bad thing?"

"I don't know," she moaned quietly.

"Er... okay."

She chuckled a bit. "I don't expect you to understand, but I certainly didn't want you to leave me alone so... there you have it."

"But if you like him, then why wouldn't you want to walk with him?"

"Because I don't know if I like him and it's just strange. It's scary being alone with him."

James stopped and looked at her, "Did he do anything to you?"

"Sweet Merlin," she threw her hands up in the air exasperatedly, "why do all boys think that? You sound just like Frank. No, he didn't try anything. And if he did, I know perfectly well how to take care of myself, thank you very much, Mr. Potter."

"Well sorry," James muttered. "I was just concerned."

Rebecca sighed. "I know, I'm sorry. It's just... I'm thirteen, he's fifteen. That's too big of a difference now. And well, I don't really want to 'walk' with anyone just yet, if you know what I mean? I'm still getting used to the idea that your kind doesn't have cooties yet."

"Ah, yes... dragon cooties," James mused. "Well, I'm with you on that one. Sirius is the only one of my friends who seems to have completely gotten over that. It does take some getting used to."

"And he's fifteen, I mean... he's definitely over the girls have dragon cooties thing..." She sighed again as they approached the portrait of the Fat Lady. "Banana Fritters."

The portrait opened up and the two young Gryffindors scrambled through the hole. "Thanks, Potter. I owe you one."

He grinned, "Forget about it. But you might want to head in the opposite direction from me, Evans is glaring a look to kill."

"Can I help it we're on the Quidditch team together?" She rolled her eyes and the two parted for opposite sides of the Common Room where their friends awaited them.

~~*~~

"What is it?" James asked as he sat down to breakfast the next day. The Great Hall was curiously quiet and most of the seats were filled.

Remus, wearing a look strange look of anger, sadness and fear, a look, James quickly noticed, that was prevalent upon a lot of the students in the Great Hall, pushed the Daily Prophet at him. That action was enough to make James shake his head violently and try to push back from the table.

"Is it me?" he asked just above a whisper. "My parents?"

"No," Peter replied in an equally quiet voice from where he sat, his breakfast untouched.

James slumped in his seat, relieved, although as that thought crossed his mind he felt bad. Even though it wasn't his parents, that didn't mean it wasn't someone elses. "I'm not reading that." He shook his head. "What happened?"

The three Marauders looked from one to another until Remus opened his mouth.

"It's Voldemort again. He's got... followers," Remus glanced quickly at Sirius.

The boy scowled angrily, but even he could hide the fear and the feeling of being lost that was prevalent in his features, "Like my family. They supported all his idiotic anti-Muggle born legislation and now, well... a lot of them are taking it to the next step. I don't think my family still agrees with him, but..." He shook his head.

Remus continued, "The press is calling his following Death Eaters. They've got a-" he paused to search for the correct word, "-movement of sorts. They've been behind the-" He stopped short.

"So he fessed up about killing your parents? I hope he admitted it about Trixie's family too," James said angrily, his eyes searching out Trixie over at the Ravenclaw table. When he found her he was surprised to find that she seemed calmer than most of the people at her table; however, unlike the rest of them, she had a resigned but determined look on her face.

"Yes," Remus said. "Both actually, and that group of Muggles earlier in the year. The thing is... there was another attack, a big one. A group of Aurors went to try and stop it, but you know how the Aurors are right now..."

James thought of Margaret Bell and her ambition to become one, "They're understaffed, aren't they? But no one was very concerned because everything has been alright since Grindlewald fell... it's not anymore though, is it?"

Sirius shook his head, "No, so they're actively recruiting now. Earlier, no one wanted to do it because it was such hard work, you need a lot of N.E.W.Ts to apply and you've got to be calm in dangerous situations. On top of that, no one really saw a need, you know, a few was enough. Now no one really wants to do it because it's looking like..."

"It's going to get a lot worse before it gets any better," Peter quietly interjected. He'd been more quiet than usual this morning.

"Are you alright, Peter?" James asked.

The boy let out a harsh laugh, "Yeah, James, I'm just peachy. There's a deranged wizard, a really powerful one at that, who wants to get rid of all the Muggle-borns. I'm doing brilliantly."

"He won't get you, Peter," James vowed.

"Oh yeah, who's going to stop him? Me? I can't even do a stupid primer spell for that bloody transfiguration. You? Remus? Sirius? We're just Second Years, James. Wake up, we don't stand a chance if he comes after us." He stopped and looked at the three of them. "Not that you lot have to worry about that," he finished bitterly.

"I'll stand up to him," Sirius replied quietly, a fierce determination in his eye. "He's not going to do anything to you, Pete."

"Not a thing, Peter," Remus agreed, looking Peter in the eye. "Never."

James nodded, "As long as we stick together, we'll be fine." Slowly it dawned on him that he understood the look on Trixie's face entirely. She wasn't resigning herself to give in and she wasn't stuck in between making that decision. She knew. She was going to fight that bastard. In that moment, James made the same decision.

"So then, what happened? It's not as though Auror recruitment is really going to effect us for some time yet."

"Well, to begin with, the Aurors who went out to stop him... all of them were killed. They managed to take out one Death Eater, but all six of them were killed," Remus continued, mechanically citing the facts.

"Bloody hell," James said under his breath.

"It gets worse, the Aurors he killed were Arthur Whimple, Timothy Meadows, Roger and Simone Ackerly, Linda Vance, and Harvey Zigtwith."

"Did you say Vance?" James looked in a panic down to where Emmaline usually sat with Marlene, she wasn't there.

Sirius nodded, "Her mum, yeah. And all five of the others have kids here, too. Gilbert Whimple and Dorcas Meadows are Fifth Year Hufflepuffs. Dan Ackerly's a Seventh Year in Ravenclaw and I think Harvey Zigtwith is a First Year."

James stared at his friend in horror. Sirius gave him a resigned look.

"That's..." James couldn't find the words.

"If it's even possible, it gets worse. A lot of the students got letters from their parents... a lot of them are applying to become Aurors," Remus said quietly.

"That sounds like their signing their own death certificates," James replied.

"In essence..." Remus trailed off.

"So why don't they just find the Death Eaters and put them in Azkaban? Why don't they just kill Voldemort?" James asked.

Remus shrugged, "I suppose it's not that easy. The paper said he's quite possibly the strongest wizard alive."

James cut him off, "Albus Dumbledore is the strongest wizard alive and it'd do that Voldemort git well not to forget it."

"Here, here," Sirius agreed quietly, waiting for Remus to finish.

"As for the Death Eaters, they all wear hoods, it's not exactly as though they parade around the streets going 'oi there, I'm a Death Eater'. For all we know, we could be sitting with people whose parents are Death Eaters."

Sirius snorted, "Probably the entire bloody Slytherin table can lay claim to that."

"Lovely," James muttered, sitting back to take in all he'd heard today. Then he sat forward once more. "What happened to the people the Death Eaters were trying to kill? Did they stop them?"

Remus winced and shuddered. Sirius answered for him. "They're alive. The Aurors stopped them."

"Good."

"It was the Watts."

James stared blankly back at him and then, asked slowly, "Melissa's family?"

Sirius nodded.

"Sweet Merlin, they sent her home?"

"Are you mad?" Sirius asked. "No. They're trying to figure out what to do, but for now, Hogwarts is the safest place. Though I talked with Tessa this morning, she said Mel's going mad with worry. She's got a little brother you know. He's only three. Mel's scared to death about what they could do to him."

James shook his head, "That man is taking nutter to an entirely new level."

Remus's eyes widened and then, as though he couldn't help himself, he burst into laughter. Sirius followed a moment later, and they were quickly joined by Peter. Even James felt his lips curl up into a grin. Despite the fact that the Marauders must've looked like heartless monsters to the rest of the Great Hall, the four boys all laughed until tears poured down their cheeks while the people sitting nearby them slid farther away down the table.