All the Young Dudes ( Sirius' Perspective )

Seventh Year : The Marauder's Inter-house Prank Planning Co-operative

Wednesday 15th February 1978

“I can’t believe you’re holding this thing here,” Christopher said, wringing his hands as he watched Remus unlock the Charms classroom. Sirius rolled his eyes.

Remus shrugged. “Best way to avoid detection. Flitwick always lets me use it.”

“Exactly! It’s so brazen!”

“Brazen is our middle name!” James grinned, stepping into the room after Chris.

“Your middle name is Fleamont, you prat.” Sirius followed him, “And this place is genius, no one will ever suspect anything. I knew your swot lessons would come in useful one day, Moony.”

“A lot of people find Remus’s study group very helpful, actually.” Christopher sniffed. Sirius turned to stare at him, flatly, raising an eyebrow, and he shrank back a bit.

“Oh Chris, he’s just teasing,” Remus said amicably, glancing at his pocket watch. “We’re all nice and early, James, have you got an agenda?”

“A what?” James looked up from the blackboard, where he had charmed the chalk to draw a truly magnificent lion above the ever-so-regal slogan: Gryffindor Rulez OK.

Remus shook his head. “Never mind.”

“So who else got an invitation?” Christopher asked, thumbing through the book that had suddenly materialised in his hands.

“About twenty or thirty people, maybe.” Remus replied, “Anyone who expressed an interest before Christmas who seemed trustworthy.”

“It was an extremely rigorous vetting process, actually,” James told him, balancing atop Flitwick’s desk and attempting to see if he was tall enough to touch the ceiling.

“Yeah, we almost didn’t let Wormtail in,” Sirius chuckled, leaning out the window and puffing on a cigarette. It was an unusually nice day for February, sunny and bright, though still cold.

“Why do you all call Peter that?” Christopher asked.

“Just a nickname,” all three boys chorused, simultaneously. Sirius caught James’s eye, grinning.

It wasn’t much longer before Peter showed up, followed closely by Mary, Lily, and Yasmin. After that came a crowd of older students from Remus’s study group, along with Dorcas – apparently things were still chummy between her and Peter. Mary’s favourite boy from her three Valentine’s Day dates – a Ravenclaw named Jonty Simmons – walked in looking a bit dazed to be there, and the last two to show up, much to Sirius’s surprise, were Emmeline Vance and Roman Rotherhide.

It almost felt a bit like a party; the room buzzed with chatter, everyone talking and laughing and glancing around to see who else had come. Sirius stood at the front of the room next to James, smirking and leaning against the wall with his cigarette dangling from his lips.

“Now, we all know why we’re here,” James began, clapping his hands together to call everyone to attention. But before he could continue, Emmeline stuck her hand in the air.

“Sorry, but I don’t…”

A few seats down, Remus snorted. Sirius raised his hand to his lips, adjusting his cigarette to hide his smile.