1998// A Mauraders Era Fanfiction

(1) First Year- 1972

I'd be fine with any house, I'm always up for a challenge.

Maxima Potter repeated the phrase in her head. She was eager to convince the hat she was brave enough to be sorted into the lions house. The house of Godric Gryffindor. She figured that if she said brave things and had a smile on her face, there would be no doubt what house she belonged in. She had always been crafty like that.

She had been sitting on the stool for 6 minutes and 37 seconds. The wooden legs creaked as she shifted back and forth. She was beginning to get worried about what the sorting hat, which sat on top of her head, would say. The entire hall sat in anticipation, but some were just plain bored, picking at their nails and twirling their wands.

Despite Max's intense worry, she kept her head up. A confident glimmer evident in her eyes.

But the most anxious one of all was not Max, it was her idiot brother James, who desperately wanted her to be in the same house as him.

She saw his face and her facade fell a little, and her posture faltered. She wanted desperately for him to be happy, as much as he was annoying (so very annoying), James and sadness didn't mix. It not only ruined his day, but everyone else's, since he was always the life of the party.

The hat raised a brow, seemingly seeing right through her brave act.

"SLY-"

Max's eyes opened wide in fear and she urgently whispered, "please" just loud enough so the hat could hear, and of course the wise sorting hat picked up on what she wanted. The hat huffed, and directly after opened its suade mouth wide, but lazily.

"GRYFFINDOR" the sorting hat bellowed. A feeling of relief rushed down Max's spine as she made her way to the cheering table, teeming with warm assortments of red and gold. She couldn't help smirking to herself. Duper's delight.

Her shaggy black hair bounced up and down, her honey brown eyes glistened under the pale light of the Great Hall. She was so elated she was almost skipping.

Ever since her brother came back from his first year as a Gryffindor, she'd been worried she wouldn't be sorted into "the brave house".

James being a Gryffindor was very evident. He was a charmer, he won over every adult, never got in trouble that one (until he arrived at Hogwarts of course. Professor McGonagall could not be fooled). Not one self conscious bone in that boys body. Confidence practically spilled from his crystalline blue eyes.

Max knew that if she weren't sorted into Gryffindor, James wouldn't fuss about it, but she also knew he would be gravely disappointed. So would her parents, I mean, a Potter in a house like Slytherin? Absurd.

After all, the entirety of the summer James droned on about having his little sister on the same quidditch team as him. He also mentioned something about her consideration for a position as a "junior marauder recruit", not that she knew what that meant.

James went on and on about his best friends, Peter, Sirius, and Remus. She'd met Peter many times, Sirius a few, but she'd never encountered this "Remus" James spoke of so fondly. But, she was hoping to meet him today.

James waved over Max vigorously with a smile evident on his gleaming face. She saw Sirius and Peter smiling as well, while who she assumed to be Remus smirked into his book.

'Who reads on the first day of school?' She asked herself before shyly walking over to her brother.

James opened a space between him and Sirius and they smothered her with an unexpected embrace.

"GRYFFINDOR GROUP HUG!!!" James and Sirius screamed while engulfing her into their arms. Sirius and Max's shared the same shade of hair, and to be honest, they looked more alike than James and Max did.

"James! Stop being so embarrassing. I'm not a baby." Max whispered to him, but they didn't stop, still smiling and laughing

"But you know what you are though?" Sirius said

"What" Max said plainly, rolling her eyes.

"A GRYFFINDOR SANDWICH." They both screamed, again in unison.

She sighed, entangled in their arms, before finally giving in and laughing.

The rest of their crew started laughing too when Remus closed his book and joined in.
He pushed up his reading glasses, his eyes were forgiving. 'You have no idea what they have in store for you' they told her.

-

Several more students were sorted, but none of the cheers for them were quite as loud as the vigorous claps and screams from the Marauders. Warmth and happiness surrounded Max, she smiled from ear to ear. Max felt at home, she was rather tired of being all alone with her parents throughout the school year. Don't get her wrong, she loves the pair, but they can be rather exhausting at times. Especially without her brother. But, she couldn't shake off the feeling that she didn't really belong with the other Gryffindor students.

Max's thoughts were forced to a halt. Seemingly as soon as it started, the warm feeling ceased. The air became thicker and the voices lowered to whispers as Dumbledore called

"Regulus Black"

With that, Sirius' smile faded.

•

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Hi!!! This chapter is just an intro to the setting, we will get more in depth into the plot & character traits in the future chapters! I'm super excited about this story, really hope you all enjoy.

Any suggestions? Predictions? Leave them here!