The Bonds of Spirit are stronger than the Bonds of Blood

Chapter Twenty Five

The day had finally come. The day the Marauders returned to Hogwarts. They woke up rather sluggishly, as they usually awoke, before realizing what day it was. With bright grins, the quartet rushed around to prepare for the day. They ran around the room gathering up their supplies for the year, trying to pack as quickly as possible. Every time they turned to dart for something else they needed, they nearly crashed into each other! At one point Peter and Remus actually did collide! Both fell to the floor, but quickly scrambled back up to finish their tasks. After finally grabbing everything they needed, the boys rushed downstairs for breakfast. Remus didn't eat much, but he never really ate much in the morning. He preferred to eat during lunch or dinner. That and he loved to snack on chocolate! He had such a sweet tooth the rest of the Marauders were amazed he actually managed to eat proper food. His pockets were always stuffed with various chocolates. This time they were filled with homemade chocolate treats, made by Mrs. Potter to celebrate the boys successfully moving on to their fourth year. Each of the boys had had some, but Mrs. Potter made sure to make extra so that Remus would have plenty to take with him on the train. Peter, James, and Sirius ate their fill, trying not to have more than seconds as they would miss the train if they stayed in the kitchen for too long. Mrs. Potter gave them the alert that it was time to go, then bid the boys farewell and headed off to meet up with a friend of hers in town. Mr. Potter apparated the boys to the station and guided them to the platform. The scarlet steam engine was crowded with students and their families, all trying to say goodbye while they had the chance. Mr. Potter bid them farewell, inviting Sirius to return back with them next summer as well, before returning home. The four best friends found their usual compartment empty and waiting for them, so they settled in and resumed their conversation. Though they had spent all summer planning, they wanted to make sure they had a clear idea of what they were doing and, just in case, several back up plans. They had to make this map work, not only for their pranking purposes, but also to help during the full moon. After all, it was a lot easier to get Remus to the Shrieking Shack if they knew the safest route to take. And dodging patrols from Filch, Mrs. Norris, the Head Students, and the Prefects. There were too many patrols to try to avoid, and without the map it was incredibly difficult to sneak around without detection, even with the invisibility cloak. The cloak helped a lot, but Mrs. Norris was never fooled by it. She could smell them, and always made a fuss unless they dropped some scraps for her. Ever since they found out about Remus being a werewolf, Sirius, James, and Peter took to carrying scraps of food around with them, just in case. Sirius kept the most scraps in his pockets, since he was the one who snuck Remus out of the castle every morning before the full moon to hide away in the Shrieking Shack.

Finally settled into their seats, James started up the planning session. "Alright, we've been over this a million times, but we need to be absolutely sure we remember this entirely! Wormtail! What is plan Alpha?" Peter sat up straight, took a deep breath to calm himself, and said "Plan Alpha, proceed as usual. Begin mapping out the second floor of the castle, end the year with mapping out the fourth floor. Continue pranking as usual to avoid suspicion." James nodded in acknowledgement, then said "Alright, Moony! What is plan Beta?" Remus sat in silence for a moment before saying "Plan Beta, abandon part of plan Alpha. Begin by mapping the second floor, but only map out part of it before moving on to the next floor. Continue this pattern for the rest of the year, hopefully ending with a portion of each floor properly mapped out." James nodded once more, satisfied that both Remus and Peter knew the plans so well still, despite the excitement of the return trip to Hogwarts. "Alright Padfoot, what is plan Charlie?" Sirius smirked and said "Plan Charlie, ignore plan Alpha. Map out any available floor of the castle, systematically working around patrols and classes. Throw in some particularly creative pranks to clear out an area that needs to be mapped out. Continue this pattern for the year, hopefully mapping out a significant portion of the castle before the return trip on the Hogwarts Express." James nodded. This was going to be a good year if they could stick to plan Alpha, but their back up plans were decent enough. Sirius leaned forward with a smirk and said "Alright then James, your turn. What is plan Delta?" James gave a laugh, realizing he had no other choice but to be the test victim this time, and said "Plan Delta, abandon all other plans. Map out only Secret Passages at first. Whenever the coast is clear, map out additional areas of the castle. This plan will result in the least amount of Castle mapped, but it is our best option should we face too many obstacles. This plan is our last result for this year, but it necessary to remember nonetheless." The four boys exchanged a serious nod. They knew what was at stake here. If they got caught, they would likely never be able to finish the map. If they got caught, then they would all be in serious trouble. And if they got caught, Sirius will have to answer to Lily for breaking his word. He vowed he would do whatever he could to ensure that this plan of theirs would succeed. The quartet spent the rest of the train ride reviewing their rolls. Peter and Sirius would map out the last of the grounds before returning to map out the secret passageways. Remus and James would map out each floor, marking most of the areas they could find. Sirius and Peter would then go over the area and mark out any hidden rooms or other missed areas of the floor in question, and with this team work they should be able to finish at least three full floors before the end of the year. As for the full moon, they would proceed as usual. James and Peter would provide excuses for Remus' absence, while Sirius would sneak Remus out of the castle and into the Shrieking Shack. Peter would then make food and water runs, travelling from the castle to the Shrieking Shack and back to ensure that Remus had something to eat and drink throughout the day. Finally, at the end of the day, Sirius, James, and Peter would sneak out of the castle, disguised in their animagus forms, and spend the night with Remus. They would keep his werewolf self in check.

Lily left her family behind once more, still ignored by the sister she loved so dearly. She sighed as she stepped aboard the train and set off to find her friends. As she walked, she thought about last year's train ride. She was amazed how one little train ride could change so much. She wandered up the corridor, memories playing through her mind, as she searched for the compartment that held her friends. On the way, she stumbled across the compartment holding Sirius, Remus, James, and Peter. They were talking animatedly about something, but she and Sirius still managed to lock eyes for a moment. They shared a smile, before Sirius returned to the conversation that had the quartet so enthralled and Lily returned to her search. She was glad he was doing so well, but time would tell if he would really keep his promise. Lily believed he would, but she couldn't help worrying that something would go wrong. She continued searching the compartments for what felt like an eternity before she heard a cheerful voice call out to her. "Lily! Over here! Come on and tell us all about your summer!" Alice called out from a compartment just ahead of Lily. Lily smiled and stepped into the mostly empty compartment. It appeared Alice and Lydia had kept everyone else away from the compartment while they waited for Lily to join them. "Hey girls, how've you been?" Lily said, smiling. "My summer was dull as usual, but at least I got to enjoy a break from studying! I don't know how I'm going to properly learn anything this year! Feels like my head is gonna explode with all the knowledge I had to cram into it last year!" Alice groaned, leaning her head against the window. Lily laughed at her friend's actions. Alice was sweet, and a brilliant witch, but she struggled when she had to work alone. She could be a bit of a ditzy dreamer, losing her focus and creating brilliant ideas that could be really useful. Trouble is the ideas she came up with would not actually help her on any exam. They could be useful in the years to come, after their time at Hogwarts is over, but they were distractions when it came to preparing for exams. So Lily always made sure to work with Alice, keeping her focused and prepared to take and ace any upcoming exams. Lydia spoke up next. "I got to travel with my family. We went to France, and Italy, and Spain, and ended our vacation in India. It was a wonderful trip! The muggles in each city we visited had such silly customs! Some of the muggles there claimed that magic was evil!" Lydia laughed at this thought before continuing to ramble about her trip. Lily and Alice traded grins and Lydia animatedly told her story. She acted out some of her adventures, causing Lily and Alice to nearly fall to the floor of the compartment, laughing. Lily sighed, happy to be reunited with her friends, as she thought to herself. This year held quite a bit of promise. She had a feeling this would be their best year at Hogwarts yet.

all �h�Ple?