The Marauders - Order of the Phoenix - Part One

VII: 1 September, 1993

"Pardon me, but this is sort of our compartment," Sirius said, bursting into their usual place on the Hogwarts Express. A couple of first year Hufflepuffs had slipped in ahead of them and were standing on the benches trying to shove their stuff up on the racks overhead. 

One of them looked at the other. "Sorry, but I didn't see a reserved sign on the door or anything," he snickered rudely.

"Yeah," said the other one, "It's not like it's got your names on it, does it?"

Sirius shoved his way into the compartment, drawing his wand from his pocket. "You want our bloody names on the compartment?" he demanded, "I'll put our names on it then!"

Remus was looking over James and Peter's shoulders, "Sirius - don't..."

But Sirius had already leaped forward and waved his wand about the room. "SCELERO!" he said, and with the tip of his wand he drew the letters S.B., J.P., R.L., and P.P. into the trim on the wall paneling. "There you have it, our names are on the compartment. Now get out of here, you lot before I hex you all."

Sirius laughed...

He laughed and in Remus's memory, his head swung wildly with the mirth and his eyes were dark grey, darker than they usually ever were, and suddenly Sirius wasn't the second year carving initials into the train wall but he was the wild and manic young man, clutching the Azkaban identification card with his number on it - laughing insanely, his mouth wide and evil. Howling with laughter. The sort of laughter that Remus had only ever heard him utter after a particularly brutal move in a battle... That laughter had always accompanied Sirius's voice shouting out cruel hexes and spells, followed by the neon colored sparks flew from his wand clutched in his fist of victory... Explosive magic, impressive in its power... Power that had steadily grown greater and greater, power that could only have come from....

From You Know Who.

"What's been going on Sirius? I've a right to know, as your husband I've a right to know!"

"We've both got secrets kept from one another, Remus! I haven't got to tell you anything..."

"Your magic's been so much stronger lately. Why? I demand to know where you're --"

"Don't believe I could simply be learning how to do it myself? That maybe I have a lot more to lose than I've ever had before? Maybe I'm just that bloody good?"

"We both know that it's very tempting to --"

"Tempting to WHAT, Remus? What exactly is it tempting to do? Go on and say what it is that you're insinuating."

"Sirius..."

"Go on and say it -- that I've always been a bit of a loser, that my magic isn't nearly as good as YOURS is? So now you think I've betrayed you... Well. HA. Let's talk about betrayal, shall we, Remus? SHALL WE TALK ABOUT WHO IS BETRAYING WHO THESE DAYS, SHALL WE?"

Remus could see the color in Sirius's face, the heat in his cheeks and the fire in his eyes... the anger... the -- the hate.

The laughter echoed in his head again and again... and then... through the echoing of the barking laughter came... James Potter's voice...

"Sirius Black's come for me... That's what's got everyone so worried, he's mad and he's - he's gotten out in order to come and finish what he's started - to finish me off..."

Scenes from news clippings of the house in Godric's Hollow began flashing upon Remus's closed eyelids and his fingers tightened in his robes pockets. Another voice - Lily's perhaps?