Astronomy Tower at Midnight

Peter paced nervously. He looked at the note James had given him.

Meet me in the Astronomy Tower at midnight. Moony and Padfoot will be there too.

Signed,

Prongs

It indeed said midnight and it was now half past. He hated to be out of bed, but James said this was important. He stopped pacing and sat, staring at the door to the hall. The Astronomy Tower had always given him the chills, but alone, he was defenseless. He heard a slight scraping behind him and turned to face nothing.

"James? Sirius? Are you there?"

His eyes and ears always played tricks on him and the dark wasn't helping. He started to pace again and as he took the second step, the heavy tower door swung open to reveal a dimly lit James and Sirius. He thought he might have seen someone else behind them, but he blamed his eyes.

"Lumos," he heard from one of the Marauders in front of him. Peter had not, in fact, imagined the person behind James and Sirius; it was Remus.

"Oi, fellas," he said in a relaxed tone that sounded more than forced.

"Hello, Wormtail. Feeling a bit jittery, are you?" said James, prodding Peter's stomach with his finger.

"Shut up!" responded Peter. "It's not my fault; you guys are a half hour late!" Sirius shrugged.

"We had to pick up Moony," he said. Remus waved apologetically.

"Pick him up? From where?" Peter asked. "Wasn't he in the Common Room like the rest of you?"

Remus shook his head. "Naw. I was hiding out in the library. I used James' cloak." Peter gasped.

"You went to the library without your cloak?" he asked James; obviously both excited and slightly worried.

"Yeah, no big deal," James said dismissively. "I've done it loads of times. Who's going to find me? Argus Filch is sleeping like everyone else."

Sirius shook his head. "That Filch is such a snitch. I bet you Dumbledore makes him caretaker one day. He's halfway there already."

The boys chuckled. Peter felt much more at ease with the rest of the Marauders there. James was so brave, Sirius was the sly one, and Remus was the brain. Peter was the only one of the group who didn't have any marketable skill or talent. He certainly wasn't complaining about his current company, though.

"So, James," started Sirius. "Have you asked Lily Evans to the Yule Ball yet?" Peter cringed a little. He was planning on doing the same. James shook his head.

"No. She won't let me closer than ten feet." Peter let a smile cross his face, but quickly wiped it off. Remus must have seen it because he smiled back at him.

"What's so entertaining, fellas?" asked James, who must have seen Remus smile at Peter. Peter panicked, but Remus' quick wit kicked in.

"Nothing. Just one of those moments when you catch someone's eye and can't help but smile, you know?" James didn't look convinced, but nodded anyway. Peter sighed inaudibly. There was an uncomfortable silence as everyone thought of something to say.

"So," Peter started. "What are we doing here, again?" James jumped up.
"I had almost forgot! Thanks, Wormtail." He cleared his throat. "Masters Prongs and Padfoot would like to present you all..." he looked around the room as if addressing a large audience. "...With some news." He removed a copy of The Daily Prophet from his robes and cleared his throat again. "Well, why don't you read it, Sirius?"

Sirius grudgingly stood, grabbing the paper out of James' hand.

"Alright...'Severus Snape, Lucius Malfoy, Narcissa Black, and Bellatrix Black, students at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, found in Borgin and Burkes, a small shop on Knockturn Alley, that specializes in Dark items. When questioned, Snape and Malfoy had no recollection of the visit, but the Black sisters were eager to tell of...' Do I have to read this, James?"

James smiled. "Yes! This is a classic story!"

"But they're my sisters!"

"They're prats."

"But they're still family." He threw the paper to Peter, who just stared at the picture of Snape, who stared down his hooked beak-like nose at him, sneering, Lucius, who had an equally terrifying sneer, and the Black sisters, who were grinning maliciously. Sirius walked out, slightly upset. James followed him.

"Come on, Sirius! I was only joking! I thought it was funny!" His pleads faded as he followed Sirius further down the hallway.

Peter looked up from the paper at Remus. "Wanna go back to the Common Room? James left his cloak." Remus nodded and stood. Peter followed suit, opening the door for an invisible Remus, smiling politely.