“Ow!” Of course he’d already known what it felt like, to be tugged around by the ear. But this time, it was much tighter and her fingernails dug into his skin. James tried twisting around and explaining to McGonagall about how it was a mistake, he really wasn’t trying to hit on her, yet her angular face never turned to look at his.

“Mr. Potter, you have broken two rules,” she would say whenever James attempted to speak up. “One, you were out of your dormitory when you were supposed to be in. Two, you deliberately flirted with a teacher.” Her thin mouth would barely move and her square glasses remained firm on her nose.

“I didn’t mean to… ouch!” He cringed as she pinched him harder this time. James recognized this hallway; it was the one that led to Dumbledore’s office. He’d been here enough, but not as many times as Sirius. James made a mental note to give himself one more tally on his Headmaster Visits sheet, and he would only be one more behind Padfoot.

“Here we are,” she announced. “Butterscotch toffee. Potter, what has gotten into you? I would swear, you’re getting more and more like your fath…” She failed to finish as she urged him toward the steps and left with her back straight as a rod.

James didn’t say anything, but went up the winding stairs instead. He was confused, and quite rightly. Who was Harry Potter? Was he a troublemaker or not? And would Dumbledore know it was him, James Potter?

“Erm- Professor?” He entered quietly, trying not to disturb anything. The office looked the same as always, except there was no Dumbledore. James plopped himself down on a chair opposite the Headmasters and stared at the bookcase. This provided limited enjoyment as he fidgeted and started to get up and walk around. Thoughts started to enter his head, ones he rather would not have heard.

Do they miss me, the Marauders? I think they should have found us by now. Could Lily and I really be stuck here forever? At least I have Moony… but it’s not really him. Sure, he looks the same, but he’s an adult... and different. Is Padfoot an adult? Well, I guess he is, but I can’t picture him. I still imagine him going around the school, declaring his undying love to McGonagall… A smile broke across his face as he sat down in Dumbledore’s chair, conjuring an image the popular Sirius Black. A twinge of curiosity struck him just then as he looked down at the Professor’s desk. It stood, stationary and full of secrets.

Wouldn’t the Marauders just die if I got into this desk? he thought impishly. Glancing around the room, he saw nothing, just as always. Grasping the knob of a drawer, James pulled gently. Surprisingly, it rolled open.

The contents were rather dull; there was nothing except some paperwork and an assortment of sweets. James shifted through these, hoping to discover something more interesting. Sirius certainly would scoff when James would boast how he had gotten into Dumbledore’s drawer if there was nothing exciting. “What’s so fascinating about that?” Sirius would say when James told him. Determined to find something, James moved the papers around more vehemently when his blood stopped cold. A picture, filled with waving people started back at him. His nose wrinkled in confusion, he could see a handsome man that looked like Sirius Black around the age 20. Actually, James supposed, it was Black. Next to him was Remus Lupin, smile genuine though he appeared ready to faint. Through the shining sun, the moon was still faint in the sky, near to being full. Well, that explained it. A fat, shifty eyed man stood a little closer to the camera, and James knew instantly it was Peter Pettigrew, and even closer to the photographer was James himself. It was obviously him, the untidy black hair and hazel eyes marked him so. He didn’t look so different, which was a tremendous relief to James and to his delight, at his right was Lily Evans, more radiant than ever. Something was strange about it though… he noticed their shoulders were touching. Zeroing in on the two of them, he saw something even stranger… their hands were clasped. He couldn’t hide his perplexity. Rifling through the drawer some more, he saw more photos of him, the Marauders and Lily, until he reached some newspaper articles. Hands trembling, he picked one up. It was the Daily Prophet, and its headlines screamed “FIRST PRISONER TO ESCAPE FROM AZKABAN!” Below was a particularly dirty man, blinking at James slowly. His hair was matted; his eyes haunted and empty. Skin stretched across his face tightly, giving the aura of gauntness. James skimmed the paragraph and managed to catch the names of himself, Peter Pettigrew and Sirius Black. Maybe he should read this more carefully.

Setting it roughly down on the desk, James could hardly stop his heart from beating this fast. Why was he mentioned, and Sirius too? What did they have to do with an escaped convict, much more Peter Pettigrew? And they couldn’t mention the Marauder’s; Remus’s name would have been involved also. His eyes scanned desperately across the paper, forgetting his promise to read it nice and slowly.

“Wanted for murder… twelve muggles… James and Lily…Peter Pettigrew… betrayed… Harry… is working for the Dark Lord himself… Sirius Black… escaped.” That was all he caught before a creak at the door was heard. Stuffing the paper quickly back into the desk, James hurried to his seat when Dumbledore walked in. He prayed his heart would stop thumping as the Professor glanced down at him. His eyes were shining broadly and his long white beard almost shimmered in the moon light.

“Up to some mischief, James?” he asked.

“How do you know I’m… well, me?” James asked in return. Dumbledore smiled again, this time perhaps savoring a secret.

“Mr. Lupin has already informed me. Very trusted man, I can assure you.”

“That’s probably why he went up to talk to you. Anyway, I got sent up here for hitting on Minnie. Fifty points is probably all I need, and then I’ll be on my way. Thanks, Professor.” James inclined his head toward Dumbledore and started to get out of his chair when Dumbledore chuckled.

“Ah, I had forgotten how Minerva was Minnie for seven years… to the Marauders at least,” he grinned and his blue eyes twinkling. “We also have a little more to discuss- about this situation. No, not about you and Professor McGonagall… that was just one of your old tricks I presume. It is more about this future circumstance.”

“Oh.” James sat down again, unhappy to be in the office longer than necessary. “I see. Kind of. Couldn’t we have this another time?” He wanted to look back at that paper; he knew it held answers only he could have dreamed of. What turns would his life take?

“No. This is urgent, James. We don’t want you finding out any more about the future than we have to. For example, you’ll need to know that Severus Snape is Potions teacher- no pranks.” But he gave a sliver of a smile, granting at least a tiny one. “Minerva is Transfiguration.”

“Still after all these years? Wow, I swear, I thought she would have discovered her love for Sirius and married him.”

“Professor Sprout is Herbology, Charms is taught by Professor Flitwick, and Defense Against the Dark Arts is currently teacher less, but we do have a substitute in. That’s Mr. Lupin- I am almost positive you know him from your Hogwarts years? I suppose I should call him Professor…”

Inside, James was exhilarated. Honestly, the practical jokes he could get away with when Moony was teacher… Dumbledore seemed to sense this thought as he added, “I’m afraid he will teach you as a pupil, and you will see him as a teacher.”

“Aw, I know him, and he was our friend! I just can’t imagine Moo- I mean Remus being so… well… strict.”

“He’s changed,” said Dumbledore, staring directly at James. “We all have, since the old days.” There was no hint of a smile now, and James was rather perturbed. He had never seen Dumbledore like this, ever. “Oh, he’s still the same person, but some of his views have changed, and he’s matured since we knew him. Like you did.”

“Me?” James could hardly let this out; it was only a wheezing breath. “What… am I like? Who am I?” He was crazy for information, anything. He was like a starved animal, reaching for the tiniest piece of food in sight.

“You’ll see in a good twenty years,” smiled Dumbledore, though it barely reached his eyes. “All you need to know will come with time.”

In an instant, he knew the Headmaster was not just talking about who James was, or how he had changed, but everything, from the newspaper article to whether his hair would ever sit flat. “I understand, Professor,” replied James, hoping to convey comprehending in his eyes. “I really do.”

Dumbledore acknowledged this with a small nod and he went on to say, “You and Lily will take regular classes under different names. We don’t want everyone to know about this, right?”

“I think Minnie already suspects something,” James admittedly rather abashedly, but keeping it down to a mild level.

“I trust Minerva. I will tell her later… would you like a lemon drop?”

James narrowed his eyes and said, “Did you jinx these?”

Dumbledore laughed and handed him a small sweet from the drawer James had opened previously. “Somehow I don’t believe you would mind if they were.”

“Hit me right on the nail, Professor,” replied James and popped it into his mouth. “Right on.”

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

“I can hardly see a thing!” complained Sirius as he almost crashed into an overturned chair in the restricted section of the library.

“Don’t worry, we’re almost there,” Remus assured him, holding the invisibility cloak a little higher than before, hoping to let in some light. The pitch dark library held only fear for poor Peter as he barely said a word throughout the whole journey.

Peter squirmed uncomfortably and gazed out at the looming bookshelves, staring eerily down at him. “I don’t feel so good about this,” he moaned, nervously shifting his eyes about. They decided to carry out their plan later that evening, near midnight when no one would be up for sure.

Sirius rolled his eyes as he slid out of the cloak. “Let me look around. I’ll have that book in no time. What would the book be under again… Charms?”

“Try Ancient Charms,” called back Remus. “Here, let me help." Turning to Peter, he whispered, “It’ll only be a few minutes. Madam Pince shouldn’t even be here, she’s lying in her bed asleep, like most normal people should.” At this Remus looked at Sirius with irritation as it was his idea to execute this in the darkest of night, but Black only laughed. With that, Remus slipped out from under the cloak and looked on with disproval at Sirius’s flurried searching, calling out advice quietly.

Remaining in the robe, Peter shivered as his eyes roved around. He couldn’t shake the feeling that someone was there. “Guys!” he squealed, hopping from one foot to another, “Madam Pince! She’s…”

Sirius turned around sharply as the librarian drifted through the halls, approaching their location with dangerous precision. “Moony, get under the cloak! Peter, get out here and transform, because I’m going to need all the help I can get.”

Remus dashed to the cloth and threw it over his head as a rat scuttled from beneath it. He looked for Sirius, but only saw a black dog where the handsome male once stood. He hoped Sirius had a plan, because otherwise they could get in big trouble.

“Get awakened from a nightmare and this is what I get!” he heard her mumbling, “Intruders, probably that Black boy no doubt…” She gazed across the room, holding up her lumos-ized wand to guide her weak eyes through the restricted section.

Remus held his breath. Don’t get caught… don’t get caught… he found himself praying as he edged his way slowly toward Sirius and Madam Pince.

A sudden shriek from the librarian confirmed that she had seen the dog. “A dirty… no good… dog!” she hissed, her face contorted. “How did you get in here? Well, go away! One of those children’s pets, I suppose… filthy creature! I said, go!”

Sirius stood his ground, wondering whether to leave or stay. He’d never seen the librarian worked up into such a fury, and personally, he liked it. Eventually his mischievous side got the better of him, as he went up to Madam Pince and rubbed her leg. (Does Sirius have a side that’s not mischievous?) He growled low, showing pleasure as Remus looked on with exasperation.

What is he doing? Remus wondered, a slight grin on his face. You’d better get out of there, Padfoot, before she does anything…

Madame Pince was in pure shock as the dog licked her hand, its adoring eyes looking up at hers. “What in the world…?” she muttered, as she took her free hand and slid off her shoe quietly. This’ll teach that dog a lesson, she thought with a grimace as she began to hit the dog square over the head fiercely.

Remus started to laugh in spite of himself, but kept it silent as Madam Pince hit him a few more times. He remembered that she had never liked dogs, especially larger ones. ‘Never trust them,’ she once told him bitterly. ‘Petted one of those grimy creatures, and it bit me.’ He recalled himself accepting her advice and carrying off his book, but never thought of the information again. Until now.

Sirius grinned as well as he could in his canine form, showing his gleaming teeth. He found it unbelievably funny in the least. “You… you… smiling demon you!” The librarian’s face had grown quite red as she stuffed her foot back in her shoe. “Scamper, dirty mutt!” Next thing Sirius knew, he was being kicked with a sharp high heel in his side.

“Take that!” she cried as she booted him again, much to the amusement of Remus, but he cringed when she did it again with more force. He had to do something, or Sirius would end up looking like him after a full moon.

He sneaked over to a stack of books in the regular section as quietly as possible, still watching Sirius be kicked by the mad librarian. Groaning, he leaned against them with all of his might and it swayed dangerously. One more push, and the pile had fallen to the ground with a mighty smack.

“What in the…? I’ll be back,” she snarled at Sirius as she dashed over to the overturned pile, leaving him on the ground with sides heaving, but not without one last well directed kick.

“Jesus! Sirius, are you all right?” demanded Remus, running over the spot where he was residing and watching the woman step over the rope that separated the restricted section from the regular.

“That… was… so… goddamn… funny!” wheezed Sirius, tears streaming down his face as he turned back into a man.

“I think you need your head examined,” Remus sighed, offering a hand to the struggling Black. “That was pure idiocy.” When Sirius had managed to get back in the cloak, Remus whisked them briskly back to the portrait of the Fat Lady.

“Let’s not do that again,” he muttered, obviously shaken at the near exposure as he opened the portrait.

“I object to that!” yelled Sirius, still laughing.

Authors Note: I hoped you liked this chapter, I worked extra hard on it. (Note that this is long, sort of odd for me. Consider it an apology for the short chapter before this.) Happy Easter!