Messr Prongs and His King|| Jegulus

Ch. 3: The Golden Snitch

On the corner of one of the many streets in the city of London, there was a pub. The Golden Snitch was what it was called, where both the not-so-rich and the straight-up-poor come to hang out with friends, pick up dates, or just drink their sorrows out while the bartenders listened to you rant about the latest hardship in your life. The alcohol was a high enough quality with an affordable price, and the bartenders had big smiles, were great listeners, and knew when you had enough.

James stared at the bright letters that showcased the pub's name with a smile. The Golden Snitch has, over time, became his second favorite place (the first being his childhood home), and the main place where he and his best mates hung out. And it doesn't hurt when you know the owners. He went in and was immediately overflowed with the familiar smell of alcohol. Soft music came from the radio Marls bought last week, James was pretty sure it was Frank Sinatra. The fact that he could even hear Sinatra's voice proved that it was a slow night, when the pub was busy the music was easily drowned out by the chatter of the customers.

James tried not to fidget as he felt that familiar feeling of being stared at. He threw out the green contacts as soon as he left the venue, but he hasn't changed out of his suit yet, making him look like a rich aristocrat who looked down on the kind of people here. He sighed and headed to the bar.
"Can I help you?", Dorcas Meadows, co-owner of the Golden Snitch asked him.
James' mouth split into a giant grin, "Dorky!"
Dorcas raised an eyebrow, "Do I know you, stranger?"
The hitman groaned. She does this every time. "Dorky, you know it's me"
She hummed and started cleaning a glass, an amused glint in her eyes. 
"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good"
"Now was that so hard, James?"
"I just don't see why I have to do that every time. You can easily tell it's me"
"Hey, you're the one who insisted we use a secret phrase. Don't blame me for making sure you stick to it.", Dorcas tossed a key to the backroom to James, "Now get out of my sight. Black has been restless the moment you left, one would think he's dating you instead of Lupin"
"Like I would ever cut between them. I don't have a death wish, Dorky", he gave her a mock two finger salute and headed to the back room.

James and his mates, the Marauders they called themselves, rented out the back room from Dorcas and her wife, Marlene. It's where they planned out their hits, along with just hanging out and getting pissed. The room wasn't small, but it wasn't grand either and when they first got their hands on it, it was dark, dusty, and a straight up mess. When Sirius said as much to Marlene, she just shrugged, said it was their problem now, and left. A great friend, she is.

Since then, the room has become more homely. They cleaned it up and brought in a couch and some chairs, along with a table. The walls were repainted and the Marauders brought a few things from their flats to add to it. Now it was like a common room, with a beautiful red and gold theme. James unlocked the door, entered, and smiled upon seeing his friends again. Peter was sitting on the floor, focused on whatever he was doing on his laptop. On the couch sat Remus, his nose in a book again while his boyfriend, and James' best friend Sirius was next to him, cleaning his sniper rifle.

This was James' team, his friends. The people he trusted his life with as they trusted their lives with him. Each of them had a role in their little group. Remus was the mastermind; any possible client contacted him and he decided whether a job was worth it or not. If it isn't, he tells them to fuck off. If it is, then he spends the next few days working on a plan to pull it off without getting caught. Of course James and the others add their input, but the final say went to Remus "Moony" Lupin. Peter "Wormtail" Pettigrew makes the plan possible. He's the one who makes the fake identities, the forged documents, can even copy almost any signature from memory. It kinda scares James how good Pete's fakes are and he doesn't wanna know how or where he learned it. Ignorance is bliss as they say. One time Lily said he must be the happiest person alive.