The Marauders and the Fetch of Hogwarts

Remus had an excuse all ready for the first full moon his second week at Hogwarts but it turned out to be unnecessary. While enjoying a game of tag on their brooms, he and Peter had collided, which sent Remus straight to the Quidditch pitch ground, knocking himself cold. He awoke hours later to find Hagrid carrying him to the Willow with Madam Pomfrey right behind. It was almost dusk.

"Tha's one way to make sure no one will notice ye'r missin' from yer bed tonight, Remus," joked Hagrid as he set the groggy Remus on his feet.

"I'll help you get ready. We're extra early because we weren't sure you'd come awake in time. You head for the shack and I'll put your extra clothes and such up, Mr. Lupin," reassured Madam Pomfrey.

Remus nodded slowly, trying not to make his head ache anymore than it already did. His wand lit before him, Remus did as he was told. Madam Pomfrey magically screened him as he removed his hospital robe and then bustled away with assurances that she'd be back in the morning with some healing balm, as he'd no doubt be feeling more than miserable in the morning. A half an hour later, Remus went through the torturous shift into the werewolf.

The next morning he was feeling a little better and with Madam Pomfrey's healing spells he was right as rain and in time to join his classmates for breakfast. He kept a close eye on his friends, on the off chance they had made a late night visit to the infirmary, but nothing was mentioned so Remus quickly fell into the discussions around him regarding the upcoming Quidditch tryouts.

The day went smoothly, without any questions. Sirius had already started squabbling publicly with his brother and both Blacks had cost their respective houses 10 points from Professors McGonagall and Flitwick. Sirius and Remus, first out the door of the Great Hall following dinner, ran smack into Regulus, Severus Snape and several other Slytherins.

"Well, if it isn't the prodigal son!" sneered Sirius, already bristling for a fight.

"Sirius, don't!" groaned Remus. "You're just going to lose us more house points."

"Listen to Lupin, Black," snorted Snape with an obnoxious smile. "There's no harm in running away and fighting another day."

"If you're a Slytherin maybe," snapped Peter, edging around them both, fists clenched at his sides.

James joined in. "We Gryffindors would rather just get the fight over and collect the spoils, instead of running away and hitting the enemy in the back when they aren't looking, like Slytherins."

"Guys," moaned Remus pleadingly. His sensitive hearing could pick up approaching footsteps too heavy to belong to a student.

"Well let me tell you, big brother," snarled Regulus, reaching into his robes where his wand was, "that our parents -"

"Would undoubtedly be disappointed if you both got expelled for doing something entirely uncalled for, like fighting in the halls where other people could get hurt." The voice that came from behind the Gryffindor boys made Remus' heart sink. It was Professor Benbrook, who'd already made it clear she didn't put up with house rivalries anywhere, at anytime.

Sirius immediately swung around and plastered a charming smile on his face, but it slid away uncertainly when all Professor Benbrook did was frown at him. She then turned her gaze on each Gryffindor in turn, passing over Remus easily, and then fixing the same inscrutable stare on the Slytherins. Once she was satisfied they were sufficiently calmed down and cowed, she gave a dismissive wave of her hand.

"Now why don't you boys find something better to do with your time and I'll forget I saw this, hmm?" There were murmurs of "yes, Professor" and "thank you, Professor" from the assemblage and soon the corridor was cleared.

As soon as the four Gryffindors reached the corridor where the Pink Lady sat at the

far end, James blew out a puff of air. "Wow," he commented, "how does she sneak up on people like that?" "It's her size, probably," Peter stated. "She's so tiny, no one can hear her footsteps."

Remus halted. That wasn't right. He knew a teacher had been approaching. The footsteps didn't have the light touch on the stone floor that a lighter built student, or even Professor Flitwick, had. They'd been heavy footsteps, like Grubblyplank or McGonagall. "I heard her," he said. "That's why I was warning you guys off. I heard her coming. It sounded like an adult. How can that be?"

"Good hearing?" suggested Sirius peevishly.

Remus shook his head. "If she weighs as much as Lily Evans, I'll be surprised." James blushed furiously at Lily's name but the other three ignored the reaction. It was obvious James had a crush on Lily, though why he did was beyond the other three. Remus thought girls were silly, giggly creatures, not worth much energy in noticing beyond helping and getting help with homework. Peter and Sirius seemed to be of the same opinion.

"She is pretty tiny," agreed Peter.

"Petite," James rushed out. "Lily Evans is petite."

The three of them shot James disgusted looks. "We're talking about Professor Benbrook, James, not your girlfriend," teased Remus.

"Yeah, when are you going to ask Lily out anyway?" Peter tacked on with a sparkle in his eye. The banter quickly dissolved into three against one, with James losing the battle quickly. Professor Benbrook's light tread on the stone floor was quickly forgotten. In a world like theirs, where the abnormal to Muggles was the normal for them, such a trivial detail meant nothing.

Three nights later, the abnormal for the wizarding world descended upon Hogwarts. A scream echoed throughout the school late one night, waking everyone up. The six Gryffindor boys jolted upright in their beds, wide awake from the chilling echo.

"What the bloody hell was that?" asked Byron Buttermore.

"A scream," answered Peter dazedly.

"We know that, you berk," grumbled Basil Sexton, rubbing his stubbly cut blonde hair tiredly. "Who screamed and why are the big questions."

Another scream rent the air, seemingly right in their own chamber, causing all six boys to jump out of bed and immediately turned on the lights.

"Where the hell is it coming from?" asked Sirius breathlessly after they'd made a thorough search of their room.

Hard pounding on their door caused them to jump once again. James jerked the door open and immediately blurted, "We aren't doing it!"

"We were going to tell you guys we didn't do it!" blurted Lily Evans back, her eyes wide with fear. The four second year Gryffindor girls were clustered around her, clutching each other.

"All Gryffindors into the Common Room!" yelled the voice of Jervis Chambers. It took several minutes but the entire Gryffindor House was assembled in the Common Room and Jervis was explaining. "Now listen, Marky's gone to look for one of the Professors. I take it that all of you thought it was coming from your rooms?" There were nods. "Well, it wasn't. Just stay here and out of trouble until we get the all clear."

"Who died and made you Headboy?" asked Shirley Ansom surily. Like Jervis, she was a Prefect.

"Its not my fault you're not on the ball," Jervis grinned back. She only sniffed at him. Marky Perkins was the Headboy and keeper of the Gryffindor House Quidditch Team.

Everyone chattered among themselves nervously and, through the chatter, Remus tried to hear anything out of the ordinary. He could hear nothing. He turned to say something reassuring to Buttermore and found James staring at him with a peculiar look on his face.

"Hear anything, Remus?" he asked.

Remus started to shake his head and then realized exactly what James had asked. Carefully, Remus replied, "Why would you think I could hear anything different from you guys?"

"You heard Professor Benbrook, so your ears must be better," was James' off-hand comment. The black-haired boy looked away, took his glasses off and polished them on his nightshirt.

"Oh," Remus said. 'He can't know,' he told himself. 'It was an innocent comment. Like Dumbledore said last year, you're going to give yourself away if you act funny.'

A half an hour later Marky Perkins and Professor McGonagall came into the Common Room. Professor McGonagall had a reassuring smile on her face, though she looked tired. "It was a boggart," she told the students. "Some student out of bed must have wandered across it and the creature turned into a banshee. Now everyone go to bed, nothing to worry about." Her tired smile broadened a moment. "A good thing we don't have this excitement every night or no one would ever get any sleep." The joke was poor but still appreciated as the Gryffindors slowly trooped back upstairs, disappearing one by one into their respective year dormitories. Soon everyone was asleep once again.