Dinner Time Frivolities // ... everyone

[Peter E. Pettigrew]

Peter was glad he'd got the sauce off his chin, he knew from experience that if it dried on, it was usually kind of hard to get off without a wet cloth and a lot of scrubbing. Well, not a lot of scrubbing, but a bit and that always hurt his chin and made it red after, making it look like he had more pimples than he actually did. not that he was covered in pimples, but he had the odd few here and there. His mummy told him it was because of his hormones, one of his older sisters told him it was because he was ugly. Peter just ignored her because she was always mean to him and he didn't know why.

Peter's comment about Snivellus seemed to go a miss as remus and James talked about some inside thing he knew nothing about and as such, he zoned out, looking over at the Ravenclaw table, just in case Fin had arrived while he'd been looking at James and Remus, apparently his luck had not changed. She still was not there and from the quick glance he got at the Hufflepuff table as he'd looked at the Ravenclaw one, Nessa was not here either. Not that he would go over and talk to her, but it was nice to know she was around and not just a figment of his imagination. It was nice and comforting to think that there was still someone around that would look out for him if the Marauders were't there for him for whatever reason. Nessa seemed really nice, at least to him anyway.

"Wha'? Oh. Gross! Why's Skeeter seen you naked?" Peter was drawn back to the company of his two fellow Marauders that were sat with him by a disturbing conversation. Why had Rita seen Remus naked? Not even the Marauders had seen Remus fully naked. Sure, shirtless and stuff, but never fully naked. Peter wondered if Rita was naked too and got grossed out, but for some reason, the member in his pants wasn't entirely grossed out. Peter was pretty sure he was sick in the head, but he sat still and hoped that his friends didn't notice. "Was she naked too, ewww!?"

post status:
.finished.
tag:
everyone . . . so you better join!
word count:
382 // ...
outfit:
take a .peek.
comments:
Peter has his back to the wall so he can look out over the great hall too James ... He likes to stare at Fin .... he's a pervert ... sort of ... lol

[caradoc]

Tan jumped slightly when he'd put his hand upon her shoulder, she'd never learn would she? After all this time that she'd known him, she still jumped when he touched her. Why would that be exactly, he pondered, but shoved the thought away for later. Now was not the time to think about issues like that. She shrugged his hand of her shoulder, and he let them fall casually by his side before putting both of his hands in the pockets of his faded jeans...

He was about to go into the offer Tan was about to make when a voice made him turn around. If it wasn't Adrian Nott. Well, you see, you've got Quidditch rivals, which were mostly made on the Quidditch Field, but some of them even managed to be friends off-pitch, like Amos Diggory and him.. But with a few others, it just wouldn't connect. Mr Nott was one of those people. Actually Car didn't really know when they'd started to hate each other as much as they did, but it probably had started when Car had made it as a beater for the Ravenclaw team.

Car just shrugged his shoulders. "Got a problem Nott?", he answered him while he looked sideways at the Ravenclaw table. Yes, there was the option of just leaving this thing alone and sit at his own table, but since Tan had been so nice to ask him, and well, a gentleman couldn't decline the question of a lady, he was more determined to sit down at the Slytherin table for once... And since he didn't want to let Nott think that he ruled this school, he just smiled. Nothing to aggravate your enemy more than just be happy..

It was then, with that smile plastered upon his face that he was taken by surprise as Tan actually stood up against Nott. Her voice might have been feeble, but Car was certainly proud of his best friend to come out of her shell like that. "I think I'll do that." he answered, putting actions together with his words as he sat down next to Tan, helping himself to some pumpkin juice. "You want some?", he asked Tan, offering to pour some of the juice into her glass if she desired to.

Now this action, so silly, yet so important could lead to multiple outcomes. One being him being knocked down from where he was sitting by Adrian Nott - of course the dude would have it coming at him then. Car wasn't a fighter, but he did not let anyone hit him. - or the dude would just let it slip... Probably not, but one never knew, right?

[Sirius Black!]

Sirius threw down his rucksack onto his bed. His grey eyes glanced at the window in the dormitory to discover it was raining. Again. He tried to not let it get the best of him, but after months of not seeing girls in little tank tops and their legs without nylons, he was beginning to seriously hope for warmer weather. For some reason, it was easier to get girls down to their skivvies when they were already lacking in clothing anyways. In the winter time, girls just seemed to want to be covered up and left alone. It disappointed him greatly, and Sirius spent more time actually talking to girls lately than actually snogging them.

As Sirius glanced at the time, he realized that he was late for dinner. Quite late. A cute fourth-year Hufflepuff girl had gotten his attention in the corridor, and he supposed that the conversation had dragged on. He didn't bother to change into casual clothes, and instead chose to lose his cardigan, loosen his tie and roll up his sleeves. As he rushed out of the common room, he hastily untucked his shirt, but only really managed to untuck half. Sirius ran his hand through his black hair, a trait that was typically owned by James, but Sirius' behaviour was occasionally influenced by his best friend.

The one door to the Great Hall was closed, probably by someone being miserable. The other half of the door was not flooded with students like Sirius expected, but was just a couple students leaving from finishing. Sirius quickened his pace for his stomach was growling. He had spent his lunch hour with Professor McGonagall doing lines, after he had persuaded another House-mate to blow up the mouse they were trying to Transfigure into a pen. Well, he had to do the lines after he cleaned up mouse brains and other organs from the ceilings. Extra lines were added when he laughed at how much insides mice really had.

Sirius entered the Great Hall and his eyes scanned the crowd. Typical Slytherins. The lot of them were rather unpleasant to look at as a whole, so he saught out the two or three fit girls there. He checked the other House tables as well before his eyes fell upon his usual group of friends. Even from a distance, Sirius could tell he was giving trouble to Remus about something in a joking fashion, so as he rolled up his sleeves again, Sirius hurried even quicker to the table.

When he arrived, he immediately sat down with his back to the rest of the school. He had no issue with this considering he couldn't stand ever seeing any of his family members across the way. He liked to pretend they weren't there. Besides, he wasn't too worried about anyone attacking him in any way. Not only did he know he could duel anyone who tried anything and win, he also could typically tell from James' face that something was about to happen, for James usually sat across from him. Today, however, it was different.

Sirius gave a nod of acknowledgement to his friends, and then began to shovel food onto his plate. Chicken drumsticks and wings, mashed potatos, some veggies, and gravy over all of it. He then began to eat it in a fashion that most people, particularly girls, would find impolite. He swallowed, and then turned to James and asked, "What are you bothering Remus about?" as he tried to look at what was within the newspaper. "Hey, Peter, you've got some sauce on your shirt."

Sirius dug into his food again as he waited to be filled in on the conversation that was going on.

Word Count: 640

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[Remus John Lupin]

Just as Remus thought it couldn't get any worse, Peter had to stop using his mouth for eating and actually started talking with the damned thing. He reprimanded himself slightly for thinking about Peter in that way, but sometimes the boy could be.. well.. let's not go there. He was a nice boy and a good friend. There. Good.
Sirius just sat down with them pretty much at the moment Peter decided to get involved into their conversation, basically blurting out: "Wha'? Oh. Gross! Why's Skeeter seen you naked? ... Was she naked too, ewww!?"
Remus thought his head would explode with sheer embarrassment and pinched the bridge of his nose shortly in a pathetic attempt to conceal most of it. He knew he could hope Sirius hadn't heard anything, but even so he knew he'd have to respond so there was really no getting away from it. He sighed. "No, Peter. If you must know, though I don't see how it's any of your business," he muttered (hoping he could say this as quietly as he could so no one else would be able to overhear them), "she cornered me in the Prefect's Bathroom so, yes, I had no wand and no clothes and she did." He glared at Peter slightly. As if Remus would ever be willingly seen in his birthday suit by the school's gossip queen, let alone that she'd be naked with him, what sort of an obtuse question was that?!

Remus hoped this would be the end of the conversation, but knowing his friends.. Or he'd have to start on an entirely different subject. Rem glanced at his plate, filled with half mashed vegetables and potatoes, and pushed it away slightly. Lost his appetite.
He glanced at Sirius, guessing he was his best chance of starting on a new subject. Remus nudged his friend slightly. "So why were you so late? Molesting innocent girls again?" he half-teased, but he didn't sound very convincing, really.

[jamespotter]

Remus' reaction was what he expected. He knew the boy didn't like to be in the spotlight. That he was more private and kept things to himself. Especially the fact of his "furry' problem, his lycanthropy. Sirius, Peter and himself figured it out their second year with no help from Remus. Merlin knows why Remus would want to hang around them, the most popular boys in school, he would be in the spotlight by association. Of course he knew why. It was the same reason that the past 3 years the three of them have been keeping a secret of their own, friendship. They were best mates, inseparable, pranksters, marauders. Loyal to each other.

So he knew that pointed look that Remus shot him for mentioning the article. The irritated with himself, I'd rather not talk about it look. He knew Remus has been the feature article of late for Skeeter. One would think that Remus would have put it all behind him by now, or at least warn them of possible future stories. This business about Remus' scars and Skeeter knowing about them quite frankly bothered James. How did she see them? Better yet did she some way find out, does she know? If she did know and spilled the beans on Remus then the next step for his friend would be expulsion. Thrown out of school for something that happened when he was a child, something he has no control over. Utterly ridiculous! Suddenly James was very afraid for his friend.

Wha'? Oh. Gross! Why's Skeeter seen you naked? ... Was she naked too, ewww!?

Now that there was a very interesting question. Just what was the circumstances? Did Remus sleep with her? Ewe was right. Another mental picture he could have done without. Though some thinks she is attractive, he thought she was fairly average and shallow. Using her charms to get close to you to get information. Information that she skews to make headlines and gossip. Surely if she knew she would have already spread it across the page. There was no mention of it just Saige and Monoceros.

Just then a shadow fell on the table and quickly legs stepped over the bench as Sirius joined them. "Hey Sirius" he said as the boy sat down and begin to dish up his plate. James looked at him in amusement, as he piled the food on then covered it all with gravy. He was like James, eating a lot and not gaining weight.

What are you bothering Remus about?

"What makes you think I'm bothering Remus?" Truth be told he may have annoyed his friend but he was sure Remus was more bothered by the atricle. He picked up the paper and was about to show him the article when Remus answered for him.

No, Peter. If you must know, though I don't see how it's any of your business, she cornered me in the Prefect's Bathroom so, yes, I had no wand and no clothes and she did.

Ugh the mental image was back. Well at least Remus didn't sleep with her and apparently no snogging was involved. What a relief! He went ahead and laid the paper down next to Sirius. "Seems Skeeter has nothing else to write about than Remus' scars." Letting Sirius know that article was what the conversation was about although he sensed that Remus wanted the discussion to end. Confirming his thoughts almost immediatly by asking Sirius where he had been.



Word count: 525
Comment: Not sure as to whether they are using their "nicknames" yet as they haven't revealed to Remus they are Anamagus. Thinks Remus would be very curious about the names. Though I could be wrong : /

[Sirius Black!]

Sirius didn't ever have to be told when someone was feeling mad, happy or upset. The mere fact of the matter was that the vast majority of the people in the world wore their heart on their sleeve. He himself was not excluded. In fact, Sirius was probably the easiest to read out of the lot of them half the time. His anger just had the habit of overwhelming him, even in the pettiest of situations. He never really meant to, but it was the Black in him. No matter how much he tried to deny his blood, it was there. Sometimes he even reacted to things that were meant as a joke. He was lucky to have friends like the ones around him, because to begin with, they never caused him to lash out, and if he did get a little moody around them, they understood without getting angry. Or so he thought, at least. Sirius wasn't a mind-reader after all.

However, the look on Remus' face was clear as day. He was bothered. In fact, it seemed to Remus like he walked in at exactly the wrong moment, for they actually looked like they were mid-conversation. It happened a fair bit to him to walk in at the wrong time. He always managed to get distracted by other things, and miss out on the conversation. Sirius honestly tried to do it less often, he really did, but lately he also wanted to do something else: tell Remus what he, James and Peter had accomplished. The secret was almost right on his lips, and he always felt as if he'd blurt it out by accident. Sirius wasn't one at all to keep secrets from his friends, and even keeping a secret from just one of his friends was driving him crazy. All he wanted to do was come forth; not only to get the secret off his chest, but also a bit to perhaps show off.

James put the newspaper in front of Sirius and Sirius chuckled the moment he saw Remus' awkward portrait within it, trying desperately to hide his face. He leaned back in his chair casually and opened the paper, and said while looking out the side of the paper, "What makes me think you're bothering Remus? Perhaps the look on his face as if he's swallowed a toad. Remmy wouldn't have done anything to himself to warrant such a look... and what? How does Skeetbag know that Remus has scars?"

Suddenly completely fascinated with the article, Sirius read it through. His eyes skimmed over the page quickly, and with each word, his eyes grew larger and larger as if he was reading about someone's death. However, the grin on his face told a completely different story. Sirius took a sip of his pumpkin juice, and just as he got to the part about Rita 'having the pleasure' of seeing Remus' scar-riddled body, he sprayed the pumpkin juice out of his mouth and all over the people sitting across from him, Remus included.

"SKEETBAG SAW YOU NAKED?" Sirius shouted without meaning to, merely acting on impulse. He began to roar with laughter, and even went so far as bang his fist on the table. "I mean, she's alright and all, but really? You think you would have found someone of better taste to ravage for your first time, wouldn't you?"

Instead of finding the story worrisome (other than the disturbing mental image of Remus standing there all awkward and naked as Rita did the interview that popped into his brain for some reason) he found it downright amusing. It was a very Sirius Black thing for his mate to do, and he couldn't help but continue to laugh. Sirius' laugh was one that was usually infectious, but in the least always loud.

"And you're the one teasing me for being a ... dog... with girls. Now my reason for being late to dinner is completely excusable!" Sirius turned around to chance a glimpse at Rita Skeeter sitting at the Slytherin table. He turned around and leaned forward and said, "Honestly, I didn't know you had it in you!"

Trust Sirius to make a big deal out of everything. He didn't even bother asking questions before completely judging Remus and assuming the worst. Well, in Sirius' head, he was assuming the best. What was better than doing the most annoying girl in Slytherin House? It was almost like a reward. Of course, her ranting and presumtious interview just had to be the repercussions of Remus sleeping with her and no doubt having no interest in her romantically. Sirius had been there, he understood. Or at least, he thought he did.

Word count: 830
Comment: You're right, James. I realized that after I read it over. I fixed it, however!

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[narcissablack]

Narcissa had….well. She didn’t really know what she’d had last period. She hadn’t gone, in her typical fashion. Well, it wasn’t her typical fashion to skip in general- just the classes she disliked. And if she hadn’t gone, she didn’t like the course. She must have, in some past moment, known what the class was and made the decision that she did not like it and would not attend it. It was either Care of Magical Blood Thirsty and Vicious Beasties, Bugs, and Monsters Creatures or History of Magic. Neither of which garnered even the slightest praise from the blonde. She despised the courses with a passion that truly filled her being. So she’d spent the period in the baths, and then tending to the lovely crown of golden locks upon her head.

It took just as long, if not longer, than most people thought for Narcissa Black to deem herself presentable. She had always been very particular about her looks, largely influence by appearance-tyrant that was her mother. The most important thing for a woman is to be a good companion and wife; to be picked to be a wife, one must be beautiful. To be beautiful, one must be attentive to her appearance. Such thoughts had been drilled into the blonde from the very first moment she could remember. Narcissa had clung to her mother’s beauty mantras more so than her other sisters. She wanted to, strived to, longed to be perfect. It would not due to settle for Echo when she could achieve Aphrodite.

And her hair was Narcissa’s best feature. It separated her from the rest of her family’s dark looks, and framed her delicate visage. It was imperative that she take care of it; it would not due for her locks to become a ragged mess, fall out early, turn hideous shades of gray, or darken. She dedicated a time each day to stroking her sun-touched mane of hair; one hundred strokes with a boar-bristle brush. Then it would shine, be as soft as satin, and reach her expectations. It was much nicer to skip a boring class and attend to her beauty than to spend time doing it in the evening- when she could be spending time with her friends and alliances (waking up earlier in the morning was out of the question; beauty sleep was just as important as her hundred strokes for perfection).

Ninety-eight….ninety-nine….one hundred. Narcissa placed the brush down on her bed, admiring herself in her compact for a few moments before letting a smile slip upon her face. She could hear, faintly, the sound of a clock striking well. Dinner. She pouted slightly, realizing she was going to have to give up her solitary beauty time and make an appearance. It wouldn’t do well to have people think she was starving herself, or worse- that she was spending alone time with a boy or her studies. Being labeled a whore or book worm were almost equally as unpleasant as rumors she was fat and needed to starve herself.

She dressed quickly. A school blouse and pencil skirt, freshly pressed and smelling like perfume from her trunk slipped over her body, followed by a jacket in case there was a draft. Her toes were forced into a pair of shoes (carefully picked, mind you) to hide in the warmth of the patent leather. She grabbed a set of robes, freshly cleaned and pressed, tossing them over the entire ensemble. A headband was slid onto her head, keeping her shinning hair away from her soft, freshly cleaned face. Her wand went up here sleeve and her bag over her shoulder. She examined her appearance for perhaps the millioneth time that evening before allowing herself to ascend to the Great hall.

There were already people there, and already people fighting, she realized as she clicked a few steps into the room. She did a quick inventory of the students already arrived; the disgusting pack of wild, tainted boys her cousin clung to, neither sister, and few of her peers from her own table. But there was something out of placed. One of these things is not like the other…. Her eyes narrowed at the Ravenclaw perched at the Slytherin table as if he had the right to join them; the right to partake of dinner with them. She scowled.

With a few brisk steps (ignoring the roar from the Gryffindor table) she placed her bag on the bench and took her usual spot- currently a few seats over from the Ravenclaw(well, and Tanith and Severus) and a few feet from Nott on the other side. When she was settled, her robes hanging jauntily off of her shoulders, she gave Tanith a pointed look and gestured her head to her guest.

Deciding to just ignore the two, she filled her plate with her usual meal; lettuce, small tomatoes, a slip of chicken breast, and a goblet full of water. Her mother was quite strict with her diet; she’d never been tormented by spots or a pouch of fat, but school was not the time to let those sorts of things arise. Perhaps, if she was daring, she’d allow herself a small desert with her tea this evening. Narcissa dug her fork into a piece of crunchy lettuce, took a small bite, and tried not to look impatient or bored as she chewed. She could have painted her nails if she’d know her group of friends would be late to dinner. Now she was stuck here, waiting (for either them or some sort of pleasant conversation).


Notes: Dislike the ending. :D Someone entertaiiin her.
Outfit: click!
Words: 931
Muse: Pandora 'Cats (OST)' playlist
Peers: Everyone!

[Remus John Lupin]

Word count: 495

Remus knew that he'd be in the spotlight by association when hanging out with James and Sirius, but he also knew he could be easily overlooked and stand in their shadows in stead of in the spotlights. Besides.. what would he do without his best friends? Remus wouldn't know what to do, really, they were the best support he could've wished for.
His expression wasn't so much turned to James, indeed, Remus was mostly angry with himself for letting Rita get to him the way she did and he felt sorry for half taking it out on his friends. Then again.. his friends probably knew that, they knew him pretty well, after all.. It was just that the whole thing about the scars especially bothered him, and scared him shitless. Remus guessed it was a good thing that Rita Skeeter wasn't notorious for using her brains..

Needless to say.. Remus would NEVER, EVER, NEVEREVER sleep with that women skank. Never. Overall, Remus tended not to give in to his teenage-boy-going-through-puberty urges; he didn't want to. He never got to trust a girl enough to even think about getting physical. For one: she could freak and tell everyone on him (girls were so unreliable, after all..). Secondly: he was basically dangerous to be around and even if she said she'd accepted it at first, who knew how she'd feel about it in the long run. Remus knew he should feel lucky that his current friends were still holding up at all.
He sighed slightly and glanced at Sirius, half expecting some sort of sexual or obnoxious comment. He was not disappointed - Remus knew what he was into as soon as he saw Sirius' grin grow wider. "SKEETBAG SAW YOU NAKED?" Remus visibly cringed. "Wow, Sirius, thanks for making sure the entire school knows now.." His shoulder slumped a little as Sirius started laughing (though he couldn't help but sort of feel light-hearted at Sirius laughter, he always did, it sounded so careless). "I mean, she's alright and all, but really? You think you would have found someone of better taste to ravage for your first time, wouldn't you?" Remus dropped his head on the table in a pathetic attempt to hide his blush. "Sirius-"

"And you're the one teasing me for being a ... dog... with girls. Now my reason for being late to dinner is completely excusable! Honestly, I didn't know you had it in you!" "I don't!" Remus blurted out, sitting up again and not sure to be angry, embarrassed, or (against all odds) amused. "I don't date girls," he muttered, aimlessly prodding his half-eaten meal again, then winced as he realised how stupid that had probably sounded, and added: "Or- or anyone. Anything. No one."

[jamespotter]

As usual Sirius was so totally not serious about anything. Putting his own brand of sexual humor on just about any situation. He knew that Sirius was only half paying attention, until he picked up the article and started reading it himself. He glanced at Sirius from time to time as he ate, quite amused at the changing expression on his face. James burst out laughing when Sirius spewed pumpkin juice across the table. Apparently having the same reaction as he did which was quickly verified by bellowing the words ... SKEETBAG SAW YOU NAKED? For once he was glad he was not in his normal spot, he'd be wearing said juice. Then there was the fact that he had front row view of Remus and the look on the boys face was priceless. He couldn't help but laugh. After all laughter was contagious.

Wow, Sirius, thanks for making sure the entire school knows now.

James laughing pointedly looked about the Hall, noticing Cissa stroll in as he did. Sweeping his eyes about the hall, seeing most were eating, not paying them any mind. But then again they were usually rowdy at means so most were probably use to their antics. Turning back to the table he tried to look serious. "Nope there seems to be quite a few that didn't hear. I could stand on the table and announce it." Which probably wasn't a bad thing come to think of it. Get Remus' embarrassment over all in one day so he won't have to hide out the rest of the week until everyone had something else to gossip about.

mean, she's alright and all, but really? You think you would have found someone of better taste to ravage for your first time, wouldn't you? ... And you're the one teasing me for being a ... dog... with girls. Now my reason for being late to dinner is completely excusable! Honestly, I didn't know you had it in you!

Oh Gawd! If he could he would have taken a picture of the look Remus had then. He laughed harder if it was possible, his side beginning to hurt from it.

I don't! ...

Remus was totally flabbergasted. How could he not be. James suddenly stopped laughing and looked at Remus. "You saying you haven't? Like never ... ever? Man we need to get you laid, no wonder you spend all your time reading about it. That's nothing compared to experiencing it." A plan began to formulate ...

I don't date girls ... Or- or anyone. Anything. No one.

"You know that can be fixed." He looked at Sirius and grinned before looking back at Remus. "Done ... you are going with us ... in fact all of us are going." He tossed a napkin at Peter. "You too." He knew that Remus and Peter probably had no clue to what he was thinking or talking about. But he was sure Sirius would. He was thinking of the Masquerade Ball. He and Sirius had been planning their outfits and welp now seemed a good time to spring it on the others. "And now for dates!" He stood up, throwing a wink at Sirius, as he stepped up on the bench. Clearing his throat his eyes flickered towards the staff table. Not too many were there yet. So there was a slight chance he could pull this off without getting detention. He let out a loud whistle to get the attention of everyone.

"Attention all you beautiful and charming ladies!" He called out in a loud voice flashing a smile. "We, the Marauders" he wildly gestured to the other three. "have graciously accepted the invitation to the Masquerade Ball. Since we want to be fair to ALL of you who have been begging to be on the arm of one of us incredibly handsome and infamous Marauders we decided we will be holding auditions this weekend ... don't settle for a date, come and win THE date. The one to show you a good time and give you the time of your life. Thank you for your attention, you may now talk excitedly about the upcoming weekend." With that he stepped down turning he looked at Remus. "There you go mate... you get first choice since you still are a virgin."


Word Count: 625
Comment: hehe Remus

[Sirius Black!]

Sirius couldn't help but chuckle when Remus accused him of letting the world know. "Come on, it can't be so bad... y'know, unless you have something to be ashamed about..."

He winked at Remus in a joking fashion, but hoped dearly that that was not the reason why Remus seemed so ashamed that someone had seen him naked. It wasn't like Sirius ever put any serious thought into what his mates looked like in the buff, but the only one he ever assumed might be lacking in that general area would be Peter, and that was for obvious reasons. Obviously he and James were not lacking, due to their love of women. It was rare in which a 'small' guy was a whore. Not to exactly call James a whore, for he wasn't as bad as Sirius due to James' infatuation with Evans, but he certainly wasn't innocent either.

As James began to speak of how Remus needed to lose his virginity, about a million different ideas began popping into Sirius' head. Many of which were completely unrealistic, but amused Sirius nonetheless. However, when James' eyes met his, he knew exactly what James was talking about, even before James began to climb onto the table. Before his best friend even opened his mouth, Sirius was laughing again, his eyes watering. He didn't even care for a second that every single pair of eyes was on the Marauders'. Sirius was just honestly used to the attention, and most of the time craved it. This time was no different. He distinctly saw looks of interests from many of the girls, and unfortunately, a lot of the much younger students as well. He was full aware at that point that probably about half of the girls who showed up would probably be about 11 or 12. He was actually curious to see who would show up. What kind of desperate girls would do such a thing anyways? The only way he could ever go to an audition for a date with a girl was to prove something to himself, and that he definitely would get the date.

As James stepped down from the table, Sirius stepped up. A few recognizable boos sounded from the Slytherin table, but Sirius easily ignored them and bowed at a lot of the people who were wolf-whistling. They weren't necessarily wolf-whistling at Sirius, but at the Marauders as a whole. It wasn't common that all four of the Marauders did something so egotisical: it was usually just Sirius and James. Sirius allowed the room to settle down a bit before holding his hands behind his back and announcing to the room, "Yes! You heard my associate, Mr Potter, correctly! A date with any of us! Including the ever-so-handsome scar-riddled Remus Lupin! Maybe he'll tell you the real story of those imperfections!" Sirius threw in a wink to the crowd to keep them all laughing and interested. He knew that no one would be able to figure out the actual reason to Remus' scars, but assumed he or James, or possibly even Peter could fabricate a story that would make him sound like some kind of war hero. More than anything, he wasn't going to humilate Remus, he was more trying to poke fun at Rita Skeeter's story. "Maybe even the elusive but cunning James Potter, or the shy but extraordinarily good lover that is Peter Pettigrew!" There were a few laughs at that comment, but Sirius attempted to speak over them, "Or maybe even with the exceedingly sexy me!" He paused for drama, and then added, "Girls in years 4 and up only."

At that comment, there was almost, in Sirius' mind, an audible upset sigh went through the room. Even above the commotion that he and James had caused, Sirius could hear the snide remarks from the Slytherin table. Ignoring them, he gracefully hopped down from the table and resumed his seat next to James while not losing the large grin that was planted on his face. He almost looked like a child with the amount of pride of the idea that his friend had created. He then muttered to James, "Threw in the last bit so we don't become accidental creeps. You know how some of those younger girls look older."

He then added a wink that could have potentially made Sirius the creepiest person in the room.

Word Count: 770

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[Remus John Lupin]

Word count: 1,118

Sirius grinned at him. "Come on, it can't be so bad... y'know, unless you have something to be ashamed about..." Remus' eyebrow twitched. "I do, actually, in case you didn't notice," he muttered, though more to himself and he doubted if Sirius had even heard him. No, probably not, he just winked at him.
Remus just couldn't fathom what was so funny about the whole thing. It wasn't that he had no sense of humour or that they didn't tease each other about certain things often, I mean.. that's what friends were for - for laughing about each other as much as for laughing with each other. But this was a subject that had bothered Remus to begin with and this was only making it worse. The lycanthrope almost wondered if his friends had any idea how uncomfortable he felt, though then he shook his head to himself a little - of course they didn't, they were just having a bit of fun, there was nothing malicious in it.. right?
"Nope," James spoke and pulled Remus out of his thoughts. "There seems to be quite a few that didn't hear. I could stand on the table and announce it." Remus could swear he twitched at that, it probably looked like he was insane or about to have a nervous breakdown.. He exhaled slowly and tried to calm himself. "No, no thanks, Jim, I'm quite sure they'll find out about it sooner or later," he muttered hastily, meanwhile wondering what other things people might just find out about him.
Whether James shouted it all over the place or not, people would still happily talk about it for days - they always did. Remus would just happily pretend he was oblivious, as he had done the preceding months when he'd been Skeeter's target, but pretending would be a little difficult if his friends announced his trouble all over the place..

The moment James stopped laughing, Remus knew it couldn't mean anything good.. "You saying you haven't? Like never ... ever? Man we need to get you laid, no wonder you spend all your time reading about it. That's nothing compared to experiencing it." Remus blanched a little. He knew James' expression when he was thinking of something.. It didn't bother him that James had just exclaimed something akin to 'oh merlin, you're a virgin?' - he had assumed they all knew that, actually, but he could practically see cogs turning in James' head, and Remus wasn't sure if that was a good thing. "You know that can be fixed." He was about to object when he saw James look at Sirius. Oh damn, he was in for it now, there was no stopping those two once they had something in mind.
"Done ... you are going with us ... in fact all of us are going." Remus missed the rest of what they said, pondering about what James could possibly mean, but was clueless and he knew asking wouldn't get him anywhere, as they'd just revel in not telling him but dropping hints all the time (which was usually amusing). He started a little when he heard James utter the word 'dates' and saw him step up on the bench. Remus groaned softly, rubbing his temples and trying to prepare for the inevitable disaster that was sure to follow.

"Attention all you beautiful and charming ladies!" This couldn't be good. This couldn't be good at all.. "We, the Marauders have graciously accepted the invitation to the Masquerade Ball. Since we want to be fair to ALL of you who have been begging to be on the arm of one of us incredibly handsome and infamous Marauders we decided we will be holding auditions this weekend ... don't settle for a date, come and win THE date. The one to show you a good time and give you the time of your life. Thank you for your attention, you may now talk excitedly about the upcoming weekend."
Okay.. Remus hadn't been able to prepare for that. To be honest.. he'd completely forgotten about the Ball-thing at all, really.
James stepped down with an expression as though he'd just done his furry friend a favour. "There you go mate... you get first choice since you still are a virgin." Remus sighed and shot him a pointed look. "Shut up, James. I'm not interested in that stupid ball-thing, let alone in finding a date of any kind," he hissed. Well.. he'd meant to hiss, but Remus had the feeling it came out as though he was just muttering to himself (which James would then interpret as a 'yes, why thank you, James, you're such a good friend').

Just as he thought it couldn't get worse, Sirius also seemed to decide it was a good idea to do a public announcement. What was wrong with his friends today? Then again.. they weren't much worse than they usually were? 'Oh well,' Remus figured, 'can't possible be worse than what Jim said..' Of course - he was wrong. Note to self: never underestimate Sirius Orion Black.
"...the ever-so-handsome scar-riddled Remus Lupin! Maybe he'll tell you the real story of those imperfections!" "Maybe I'll skin you alive and use your hair to polish my shoes," Remus muttered back at him and sighed, shaking his head and wondering if his blush would ever die down. If only he could just disappear, just go up in smoke, maybe the earth would swallow him whole.. anything. Remus missed the rest of Sirius' speech (probably for the best) and although Sirius didn't mean to make fun at his 'scar-riddled' friend, Remus felt very much ridiculed and very much threatened by the idea of being near a girl, or girls. Or just anyone that wondered about his 'scar-riddled-ness'.
Really, it wasn't that Remus had no sense of self-mockery. If there was anyone who was good at mocking themselves, it was Remus John Lupin; he could stand all sorts of jokes, especially when made by his friends, because he knew they meant no harm. They always joked, didn't they? About how the only girls he ever met existed only in books, about how he always insisted on his uniform being decent, about how he lived in the library, or.. well - anything but that particular thing.

[severus snape]

There was a small fight breaking out a little along the table next to him, Nott had taken offence to Caradoc Dearborn, and was proceeding to vent the resultant anger in that typically silent 'I'm ever-so macho' way of his. Then again, both of the quidditch players outstripped him in manliness. Still, he was sure that he was tougher. Like comparing gold to granite. They were worth more and more money was spent on them, but they were soft. He was the ugly, tough slab of granite. Lord was he flattering to himself.

Severus was midway through a chip when the cry from Gryffindor went up. Apparently Rita Skeeter- here he paused to look at her, or would have had he been able to- had seen Remus Lupin without clothes on. These are the things he would have thought of had he not been midway through the chip which rather rudely decided to lodge in his throat, apparently preferring the passage down the trachea into his lungs to the passage down his oesophagus into its rightful home, his stomach.

After a few moments of coughing, he managed to breathe again and swallowed the offending piece of potato. Properly this time. He glanced at a copy of the Hogwarts rag and sure enough, and article devoted to Remus Lupin's love-life or lack of or questionable evidence that indicated he might or might not have possibly maybe liked a girl. For one jot of an iota of a millisecond he felt pity for the feckless prefect, until once more shouts went up from Gryffindor. He glanced over his shoulder, then gave a fairly good 'hmph' of annoyance and returned to eating. When Remus Lupin was mentioned again though, his head swivelled and he turned to star curiously at Lupin.

Scars all over his body...Sure enough when he checked the article, mostly hidden by a gravy stain since someone had decided the tabloid scandal mag to be worth little more than a disposable napkin, There it was. 'Mysterious' scars. All over Lupin's body. And yes Rita Skeeter had seen them. If anyone was in a relationship with Lupin it would be Skeeter. The girl was a slytherin and she was devoting an awful lot of time and attention to one person, who she had, by her own admission, seen bare-arsed naked in the bath. The whole article might be a charade to disguise her attraction to the shy, quiet boy. He could imagine it now....She was the dominatrix type, Lupin was her little slave. She probably didn't ever let him get his and just took her own pleasure. It would definiteyl serve the little shit right in Severus's honest opinion. Although..it wouldn't do to have Lupin as an experienced sexual partner..even if it was only in his mind. No, Remus Lupin was a little something on the side for Skeeter to stalk if he was anything at all. She should write about how obsessed she was with Mr. Remus "I'm-a-gryffindor-prefect-and-must-therefore-be-blameless-for-all-things-and-never-have-to-punish-my-cretinous-friends-for-their-cruel-moronic-pranks" Lupin. Hmm...That middle name was a little long, no matter how truthful it was. Perhaps stick with, Remus "Scarred-all-over" Lupin. That did sound too romantic though. Girls loved Gryffindor's with scars. They didn't so much like anti-social Slytherins with scars that had no publicly-discussable source or story behind. Damned girls and their scar fetishes. He picked at the last bit of fish on his plate.

That was strange...a little intriguing in fact, since he had noticed the boy's occasional scratches on his face or arms. He always wondered if Lupin was as hopeless in Practical Care of Magical Creatures as he was, but they were mostly clear of that surely. Either Lupin would have dropped a subject he was no good in, or continued to do a subject that he was good at. Neither possibility allowed for the boy to continue to be scratched. What was it indeed...

Black eyes narrowed at the remains of fish hand chips on his plate, a forlorn piece of batter, slightly soggy with pea juice, and a few chips scattered about the plate, their brothers already masticated into tiny tiny pieces and being digested as we speak. And then he had a flash of inspiration while contemplating the last of the mushy peas.

He looked up, a small knowing smirk on his face despite the blatant calls for attention, the typical self-loving arrogance and the utterly disgusting, puerile actions of one Sirius Black as he addressed the entirety of the great hall. He knew why Remus Lupin had scars and scratches, and why all four of the Mararses were occasionally spotted looking tired and weary as they made their way to lessons [more so than usual that is, as every student looks tired first thing on a schoolday] . He knew their big secret.

And he was going to use it against them the first chance they gave him.

[[N.b. Severus is in fact mistaken in his assumption.]]

[Peter E. Pettigrew]

Peter stayed where he was snickering at Remus' misfortune. He left all the teasing to James and Sirius, they were the kings of it after all and secretly, Peter was enjoying all this more than anyone else because he didn't really like Remus but would always keep his mouth shut about that, but who could blame him? He was just having a little bit of a laugh and Remus got all snappy and rude with him, wasn't like he got that way with James or Sirius, Remus just thought he could walk all over Peter, well so did the others, but Peter hated it more when it came fro Remus because he was a werewolf and Peter had been raised to believe werewolves were untrustworthy and not human, but Remus wasn't too bad he supposed.

The banter went on and Peter kept on snickering with a few chuckles here and there, he didn't worry too much about the tomato sauce on his shirt because there wasn't a lot he could do about it until he got back to his dorm to change. He just hoped he didn't run into Finola before then, though he doubted he would, he hadn't seen a whole lot of her. Peter's attention was drawn from thoughts of fin to James standing up and making some kind of announcement, followed by Sirius, Peter couldn't help but blush furiously and hoped that people believed that Remus was the one this was all for, he was the one that had been put in the article, still, Peter laughed heartily as Sirius sat himself down and Peter turned his attention to Remus, to see what his reaction would be, though he seemed to have sunk back a little and was just taking it all in, or losing himself n his own thoughts, Peter had to admit, it was probably a much less embarrassing place to be than in the great hall with his closest friends, which Peter included himself in considering he knew about Remus' furry little problem.

"Hey, don't worry too much Rem, they'll die down eventually." Peter turned his head away from the others so he could whisper to Remus without the other two seeing, hoping that he would be able to give some kind and comforting words, though they weren't really that comforting, just a reminder of where the other two boys that were sat with them, were currently in the relationship poll, "And you know they're only jealous. James has been chasing the same girl for years and she barely has a kind thing to say to him other than 'get out of my way' which is only kind because she's acknowledging his existence, and Sirius, well, he couldn't have a steady relationship if his life depended on it, it's kind of shallow and sad if you get to thinking about it, but shhsshhh, they'll kick my ass if they hear me saying it." He snickered, looking back out around the hall to see if Finola had arrived. No such luck.

post status:
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523 // ...
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comments:
He's trying to be sort of nice to Remus as well as making himself feel good >.> Poor Peter

[jamespotter]

He was dead serious about trying to find Remus a date, he figured that Peter could come up with one on his own, but if they had to help him they would. He just had to find a girl that wasn't creeped out by him. The boy had a habit of leering or staring at them from a distance which made him look like a stalker or something. Peter should bone up on his social skills and by all means get up the nerve and talk to the girls.

Sirius got up and added to his speech, James couldn't help but laugh at it. From the jab at Remus to his descriptions of the Marauders. It was PERFECT! Simply Perfect. And a flash of brilliance about setting a year limit. He hadn't of thought about it but Sirius was right. 11 & 12 year olds did not appeal to him, especially since in about a month and a half he'd be sixteen. So not into 'robbing the cradle' scene. Though on second thought they may have to go that route for Peter to offset his inadequacies. They will have to just wait for the weekend and see what develops. "Stroke of brilliance to add that, I would think Remus would want a girl more on his level anyway, one that knows her ABCs and can read." He tossed Remus a grin as he reached for chocolate pecan brownie after setting his plate aside.

With Remus' date taken care of and to some extent Peters, his thought turned to himself. He and Sirius had been talking of late about his 'obsession' with Lily. He did want her there was no doubt, investing 5 years in trying to get her attention, to get on her 'good' side to be friends. None of which has happened. He was basically still in the same place he was in that train station 5 years ago. No strike that he was in a worse position. Back then he at least got a smile from her, now all he gets is the 'annoyed glare' and ignored or told off. Clearly he wasn't making any progress. Sirius had suggested he date others. Put himself back on the market and see what her reaction would be. Thinking that Evans may get jealous, or see what she missed out. Either way he stood a better chance than what he was doing now, which was annoying her to death. So reluctantly he agreed. He would start seeing other girls, and back away from Evans. Starting with the ball. He had asked Logan to go with him, he was waiting for an answer, though he was sure that she would accept. The only thing that bothered him with this plan was Snivellus. It would look like he had won and James had lost. He hated to loose. Though is giving up on Evans loosing? He wasn't sure he just knew that Snivellus would rub it in every chance he got. So NOT going to happen.

Swallowing the brownie and following it with some pumpkin juice he suddenly stood up. "Speaking of the Ball, I have to tell Snivelly my intentions ... be right back." he stated to no one in particular. Stepping over the bench he headed directly over to the Slytherin table, not waiting for questions, which he was sure Peter would ask. Boldly he walked over there, throwing Dorcas a nod and a smile. He reached Snape and noticed an empty seat next to him. Coming up behind him he quickly straddled the bench. One leg on each side facing Snape. As he sat down he spoke. "Snivelly ... I've come to tell you my intentions ..." well they weren't intentions, it was going to be fact. As in it WAS going to happen one way or the other. "I don't care whether you are taking Evans to the Ball or if she is going alone, I WILL be dancing with her, a whole uninterrupted dance." He paused briefly. "Now you have two choices, you can keep your abnormally large nose out of it, or go to the loo and use your hand for a while. Either way I will have my dance."


word count 708

[severus snape]

Severus had moved on to a cup of coffee, just raising it to his lips when he spotted the scruffy brown hair and glasses that dictated the arrival of James potter. He drew his wand under the table ad turned pointedly away, as though the gryffindor wasn't worth an iota of a jiffy of his valuable time.
Shit..He was going to sit down. Well he could bloody well take his arrogance elswhere, because whatever it was, the slytherin didn't want to know. If he tried anything, he could always spill their big secret, and thoroughly screw with their education, provably earning them all a year's worth of detentions.
He sipped his coffee, ignoring Potter, who was being reasonably polite. For the arrogant, vagrant, nigh on criminal prankster that was James Potter, that was.

The comments caught him a little offguard, but he supposed he should have expected it.
"I'm not Lily's keeper, in the exceedingly unlikely event that she wants to dance with you, who am i to stop her. Of course..she thinks you're an arrogant toerag...but I'm sure that won't factor into your plans at all will it?" A broad smirk twisted his thin lips and he took a sip of the coffee.

"oh and Potter." He said, as offhand as he could. " Just don't try anything. I might accidently let slip to a certain housemate-" here he glanced at Rita skeeter pointedly, "about you and your friends' little night-time jaunts. And I'm sure Lupin's adoring fans want to know how he keeps getting those scratches."

The smirk widened further and he turned back to the coffee again, confident that with that threat hanging over their heads, the marauders wouldn't shove him in a bin at the masquerade ball.