The Marauders: Year Five #Wattys2017

Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs

Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs

"Be careful," Dora kissed James's face, tugging him closer. "Remember to keep your shield and disillusionment charms up at all times 'round the camp site. It's deer hunting season."

James struggled out of her grasp, wiping the spot on his face that was still wet from her mouth. "Mum. I know it's deer hunting season." Sirius was smirking - it was as though Dora Potter knew about Prongs, but of course she didn't, she was just being an overprotective mother to what she thought was her fully human son.

"And you're sure you shouldn't cancel?" she asked, looking nervously at Remus, who was leaning against Sirius, his eyes ringed in darkness, lips chapped... Remus had been complaining of his hips and lower back hurting and his face was peaky.

"Rey insists," James answered.

She sighed and watched from the back door as the boys tromped off into the woods, carrying their camping supplies, including enough food to feed even Peter for a year.

They'd decided to go back to the woods behind the old Dumbledore house, despite James's brush with the hunters there. It was farther away from town and the Potters' so that the werewolf would be less of a hazard to people. They'd simply do their best to stay out of the field, Sirius said. James wasn't sure how easy that would be with a wild werewolf.

They pitched the tent in the same spot as they'd done before, used the same ring of rocks for the fire, even, and sat about it for the early afternoon, making plans. They'd wait 'til dusk ,when the sun started to go down and they'd walk a mile away into the thick of the trees and that was where James and Peter would change and wait while Sirius and Remus would go another half mile or so and wait for the moon to transform Remus so that Sirius had time to get him under control with their weird doggy connection before introducing the werewolf to the stag and the rat. Then, once they'd done, they could do whatever they wanted. The woods would be their kingdom.

So it was that James watched Remus and Sirius walk away through the woods in the dying sunlight, standing next to Peter in a small cluster of trees. He looked at Peter and smiled a bit nervously, knowing Peter was practically shivering out of his skin with fear.

"Ready?" James asked.

Peter shook his head, "Not at all."

James looked up through the tree tops at the purpling sky. "Not much longer and you'll have to be ready whether you're ready or not," he said.

Peter looked at James, who was standing there, the picture of calm and collected, and he wondered how James managed it, how he was always so... so sure that everything would be alright. Peter had never been sure of everything being alright in his entire life, it seemed. Every choice Peter Pettigrew had ever made - even the simplest ones - always felt like a game of Russian Roulette, bullet in the chambers, life or death. He hated that about himself, hated how afraid it made him, how much of a coward he felt like. He wished he was more like James. James Potter, the person Peter Pettigrew admired most.

"You ready yet?" James asked, looking at him.

Peter drew a deep breath. "Okay."

"Finally." James smiled and he quickly changed into his Stag form as Peter turned into his Rat and climbed aboard the back of the Stag, climbing along up his neck and settling into the space between his antlers, his tail curling around one of the prongs for stability.

Meanwhile, further along in the woods, Sirius and Remus had found a clearing and they sat in the middle of it, Remus half laying in the crook of Sirius, leaning his back into Sirius's chest, their fingers twined together before them. Remus's hands were clammy and his breath was a bit wheezy. Sirius kissed his shoulder where Greyback had bitten him twice now. Remus's skin was hot with fever and Sirius could feel him shaking.