The Squib and the Werewolf

55. An Engagement

The Marauders all had headaches the morning after the dance, except for James and Lily.
The reason for the couples lack of hangover was soon revealed, when James announced to the rest of the group, that him and Lily were now engaged.
After getting over their shock, the Marauders all congratulated their friend, and welcomed Lily into their extended family.
The 6 of them spent the rest of the week perusing around the castle, enjoying their last few days at Hogwarts.
And on their last night, they spent the whole night creeping around the castle under the invisibility cloak, for the very last time.

"Merlin's beard, I'm exhausted" yawned Peter, as they all took their seats in a private compartment on the train, the following morning.
"Me too. But it was worth it. For we had a great time last night" replied Sirius.
"Yes, we did. And I can't believe that was our very last night at Hogwarts. It's strange to think that we will never go back there" admitted Peter.
"All things come to an end, Wormy. And we are all grown up now" sighed James.
"I don't know about that" smiled Lily, as she nestled closer to James.

"I can't believe we are never going to be at Hogwarts together again" mumbled Raya sadly.
Sirius squeezed her hand, "Even though we won't physically be there, we will still be with you. Every time you do something, I guarantee you, that you will think to yourself, would the Marauders approve of this or not".
"But we won't be able to make mischief together anymore" replied Raya.
"I know. I am going to miss getting caught by Filch and Professor McGonagall. I might even grow to miss detentions"
"I doubt you will".

"I expect the teachers are glad to have us out of their hair at last" admitted Remus.
"I bet they are. But I couldn't just finish school without leaving my mark. I wanted people to remember the Marauders for years to come. Which is why I left the Marauders Map in Filch's office, inside the highly dangerous drawer. Hopefully another batch of trouble makers will find it in the future" grinned James.
"I still can't believe you gave up the map. I could've used it without you" replied Raya.
"Not without a wand you couldn't. Besides, I don't want you getting into trouble without us with you, because I don't want anything bad to happen to you" informed James.

"I'm not a child, I can look after myself" frowned Raya.
"I know that. But sneaking around the school, without my cloak would be dangerous, as you are very likely to get caught. Which is why I don't want you causing any trouble in your last 2 years. I also felt like you were the most grown up out of all of us, so you were unlikely to do any misbehaving on your own" admitted James.
"That is true. I did often feel like the most mature in the group, while you were pulling childish pranks" replied Raya.
"Exactly. Which is why I thought it would be best to leave the map at Hogwarts, since I didn't think you would ever use it. You can't activate the map anyway without magic".

"I'm suprised you were willing to let your incredible invention fall into someone elses hands" commented Lily.
"I want it to fall into the right hands. Filch will never be able to use it, so I'm not worried about him. Even if he wasn't a Squib, he wouldn't be able to guess the password. Only another trouble maker, who spends a lot of time in Filch's office, would notice the labels on the drawers. That is the kind of person I want to get their hands on the map. And since the map is of no use to us, as we won't be at Hogwarts anymore, I want to aid the next generation of pranksters" explained James.

"And you're not worried about someone working out who the Marauders are?" Questioned Lily.
"No. No one in this group knows of the nicknames we gave each other, so I don't see the danger in someone else finding the map. Besides, making the map wasn't against the law, so even if we did get caught, we wouldn't get in trouble. It's only our animagus forms that we need to keep a secret. We also left a few enchantments on the map, that only benefit us. Like the fact that only the other Marauders can see each other on the map. So, if someone else did use it, and we were at Hogwarts, they wouldn't see us on the map" answered James.
"That is rather clever" praised Lily.
"I aim to please" beamed James, before kissing Lily's cheek.

"So, when is this big wedding of yours?" Asked Sirius.
"We were thinking the end of summer, before Raya goes back to Hogwarts" revealed James.
"That soon?" Quizzed Remus.
"Well, when you've found the perfect woman, why wait" replied James, making Lily blush.
"And with everything going on in the world, no one's future is guaranteed. Which is why we don't want to wait years to get married" added Lily.
"A summer wedding between two high school sweethearts, it sounds beautiful" said Peter.
"I don't think you can call them that, as they haven't even been dating for a year yet, and Lily spent most of her time at Hogwarts, hating James" replied Remus.

"Stop being such a downer Moony" groaned Sirius.
"Sorry. It's just, you know, a full moon tonight" mumbled Remus.
"Don't worry mate, we hadn't forgotten. Which is why you are spending the night at mine. We can roam the grounds together, like we do at Hogwarts" replied James.
"I thought I was going home tonight, as I normally do?" Questioned Remus.
"I don't want you spending any more nights locked in an enchanted cage in your bedroom, when you could be hanging out with us" informed James.
"But it's too dangerous"
"My family grounds might not be as big as Hogwarts, but we don't have neighbours for many miles, so you don't need to worry".

"But what about your parents?" Asked Remus.
"They will be fast asleep when the full moon rises, and they won't leave the house during the night. Besides, you will have me and Sirius to keep you in check. You won't be able to go off on your own, as you'll have a deer and a dog to keep an eye on you" reassured James.
"Well, if you're sure it's O.K, then I'd love to stay at yours"
"Great, that's settled then".
"I guess we are going to have another night without any sleep" yawned Peter.
"Don't Wormy, we can sleep all day tomorrow to make up for not sleeping for two nights" promised Sirius.

"If you are all going to be together, then I am going to be all by myself" frowned Raya.
"No you won't. I'm bringing Lily to my house tonight, to meet my parents. So, you will keep her company, while me and the boys are off watching over Remus" revealed James.
"Are you O.K with that, Lily?" Asked Raya.
"Of course. I can't wait for us to become even better friends. James basically sees you as a sister, and when I marry him, you will become my sister as well" answered Lily.
"Well, I guess while the boys are causing chaos outside, we will be having a girls night inside" replied Raya.
"It sounds like fun"
"I can't wait".