March 10th - Marauder's Dorm 

Nephera had left her dorm in the dungeons earlier than usual that day, making her way to Gryffindor Tower. Normally, the brunette avoided the red and gold dorms because Lily and Marlene were, more often than not, in the common room and tended to shoot her looks that the girl supposed were meant to look menacing.  

If Marlene McKinnon and Lily Evans thought they could actually scare Nephera Winchester, they could only be described as delusional. 

Alas, the girl avoided the tower, in favor of not getting into an argument with the two, more for James's sake than hers or theirs. 

That day, though, was an exception, for it was Remus Lupin's eighteenth birthday. It was early in the morning, and everyone had a few hours until they were supposed to wake up, but Nephera had decided to leave at the dead of dawn for another reason. 

She had missed sleeping next to Sirius, the past few nights having been spent down at the dungeons were particularly cold, and she missed the human heater she got to call her boyfriend. 

So, she snuck through the portrait fo the fat lady, willing her to keep quiet and not wake everyone up, and climbed up the stairs to the marauder's dorm. She set Moony's present on his nightstand, a gift card from Honeydukes, which would allow him to buy as much chocolate as he wanted for free for the next month. 

Sneaking a look into the werewolf's sleeping figure, to ensure that he hadn't woken up, she smiled and then moved over to Sirius's bed, sliding the curtains open to find him hugging a pillow. 

Barely being able to contain a laugh at the adorable state of her boyfriend, she decided to have some fun and transformed into her animangus, creeping on the bed and nudging his cheek with her nose. 

Sirius woke up with something heavy next to him, and he twisted and turned in the blankets, "We're not children any more Prongs, go back to your own bed," he grumped 

The boy extended an arm, presumably to push James off the bed, only for his palm to meet soft fur, "I swear, if you've transformed into a bloody deer on my bed-" he said, sitting up and rubbing his eyes

His face lit up when he saw an admittedly very annoyed panther looking at him, "Oh, hi love," he said, scratching behind her ears

The animal purred and leaned into his touch, transofmring back into Nephera in the process, "So you feel something on the bed and your first thought is James?" she asked, cocking an eyebrow 

Sirius let out an incomprehensible string of words moving so he was lying fully on top of her and nuzzling his head in the crook of her neck, "Early," he mumbled, placing a kiss on the soft skin there. The Slytherin understood what he was trying to say, and raked her fingers through his hair gently, lulling him to sleep, as well as herself in the process.

A few hours later, James woke up first, as usual. It didn't take long for the fact that it was Moony's birthday to register in his mind, and he crept up to Peter's bed to wake the mousy boy up before the two of them walked over to Sirius's bed. 

They flung open the curtains only to find the two purebloods curled up around each other before they got startled awake by the sudden light and sound. Sirius snapped up, placing himself in front of Nephera, and scowled once he saw that it was not, in fact, Voldemort that was attacking them, but rather James. 

"Get up you lazy asses," whisper-shouted Peter, "It's Moony's birthday," 

The two immediately shot up at the reminder, running around the room to get everything ready. Sirius pulled out the box with the cake that the house-elves had baked last night from his closet, while Peter started lining up the candles and lighting them up. James left to go fetch the girls, who also insisted on being there for the werewolf. 

Nephera probably had the most important job of all when dealing with three rowdy marauders, and that was being in charge of the silencing charms. Whenever Peter almost dropped a lit candle on the carpet, and he gave a loud yelp, Nephera was there to silence him and not wake the scarred boy up. 

Once everything was set, the Slytherin gave the signal, lifting all silencing charms as everyone started bellowing out a very large version of happy birthday. 

To say Remus woke up frightened was an understatement, although Alice supposed she too would've jumped if she heard their singing, which sounded more like someone skinning a cat more than anything else. 

Apparently, the comparison to cats was more than correct, for Crookshanks was startled awake by the sound too and was so startled he runs towards Nephera and hid between her legs, "Happy eighteenth, Moony," smiled the Slytherin, picking up the ginger cat 

"Thanks, guys," muttered the boy, blowing out his candles 

He never believed in birthday wishes, not since he was a child at least. When she was younger, he'd always wish for the same thing, for a cure for his lycanthropy. This year though, as he was looking in front of him, he was greeted with the smiling faces of all his family, and he stared for a few seconds, trying to imprint that image into memory. 

So, after approximately ten years, Remus Lupin's wish had changed, for he no longer wished that he'd be normal, but rather wished for nothing to change, ever. 

Alice, Peter, and Nephera's eyes connected with each other, and the three of them quickly and quietly snuck out of the room amidst all the commotion. 

"We need stuff dor tonight," said the pixie-haired witch, "A lot of stuff," 

Peter, who was looking more confused than ever, looked between the two girls, "Why are we whispering? Moony knows about the party," he spoke but dropped his voice to a hushed tone as well 

"Dramatic effect," replied Nephera, rolling her eyes, "Besides, if any smaller ones hear we're having a party, there's no way we'll be able to keep them out of the common room tonight," 

Peter looked at Alice perplexed, "Smaller ones?" he asked 

"She means children, all fifth-years and below," replied the witch hastily, "When are we sneaking off to Hogsmeade," 

The Slytherin shook her head, "Not Hogsmeade, no, let's go to Diagon Alley," she suggested

"Mortem, no," stated the mousy boy firmly, "You're a target for you-know-who, you should be avoiding crowded places like Diagon Alley, not seeking them out," 

Alice knew where this was headed. While she agreed with the other marauders that Nephera should, in fact, go into hiding for her own safety, she also understood the girl's point of view. Nephera had been kept captive one way or another for most of her life, first by her parents, who held her back with ridiculous and unnecessary rules and expectations, and then by Voldemort. She wouldn't willingly enter another cage, she wouldn't sit on the sidelines while everyone else fought in the war. 

At the same time, however, she could see the toll Nephera's situation was starting to take on the marauders. The four boys cared deeply about the girl, both romantically in the case of Sirius and platonically in the case of the other three, and they just wanted her to be safe. Yet, they rarely pressured her to go into hiding, understanding how important it was for her to fight. 

However, they did frequently clash over small things like these, small outings where Nephera made herself seen to people outside Hogwarts, and potential Death Eaters. 

Not wanting this to happen on Remus's birthday, the pixie-haired witch stepped in, "Oh come on, Pete, it's Diagon Alley, and we'll go there at noon. Death Eaters won't attack in the dead of the day," 

In the end, Peter relented, and so five hours later, during the free period that the three of them shared, they stumbled back into Hogwarts carrying bags filled with alcohol, some drugs, and party decorations. 

Other years, the marauders had gone so far so as to sneak out for an entire day for someone's birthday, even if that day was a school day. However, with NEWTs growing closer, that tradition had to, unfortunately, end as they settled for a party in the Gryffindor Common Room that night. 

As all other marauder parties, Remus's birthday was huge, for he was most probably the most universally liked marauder. While the four boys were popular throughout school, they all had people who didn't like them. 

Other houses' Quidditch teams weren't particularly fond of James's natural chaser talents and leadership skills, and so sometimes turned sour towards the boy. 

Sirius Black had been the person one too many girls fawned over, the boy making feelings of envy to fester deep into other people's hearts. 

While Peter was generally quiet in front of most people, a direct contrast to how he was when he was in front of the marauders, and so didn't amass much drama, the boy was a notorious gossiper, which some people tended to be annoyed by. 

So yes, while the marauders were loved by most, they weren't loved by everyone. With the exception of Remus John Lupin, of course, whom apparently, everyone liked, as was evident by the fully packed common room that Wednesday evening.

There were some people, however, that weren't celebrating the boy's birthday, and were instead seated deep in the dungeons, working on their homework. 

After Nephera had returned from Mystery alongside the vial of Basilisk venom, Regulus had been trying day and night to extract the diadem's location from Nott to no avail. 

Sure, Nephera had taught the youngest of the Black brothers how to use words and connect them with social cues as well small bodily movements that helped him extract information out of whoever he needed, but the other Death Eater was a brick wall, not willing to give up anything. 

So, there was only one thing that remained for Regulus to do, and that was to slip him some of the veritaserum Ailani had sent over. He'd be obliviating Nott afterward so that the boy wouldn't remember betraying Voldemort, but in order for that to work, he'd have to get Crouch and Snape out of the dorm first. 

Groaning, the young Black turned on his back, "Does anyone have anything to drink?" he asked, knowing that the answer was no 

"It's Monday," replied Snape 

Barty laughed, "Come on now, Severus, don't be a bore... I could use a drink too, but I think we finished the last of it this past weekend," 

"I swear, if I have to look at Arithmancy for a second longer I'll avada my own ass," groaned Nott, "Can someone head on over to Hogsmeade and get some? I'm sick adn tired of being sober," 

Crouch snorted, "That sounds healthy," he said 

"I agree with Theo," piped up Regulus, "Someone should go get some, but not me I'm working on my Transfiguration essay," 

Nott looked over at the other two boys, "And it can't be me either, I went last time," he said 

Crouch and Snape exchanged a look, before huffing out twin breaths and standing up, "One or two bottles of firewhiskey?" 

"Three," replied Theodore, making Regulus snort out a laugh 

The other two boys left, and the youngest of the Black brothers mentally counted to one hundred to ensure they wouldn't be coming back before discreetly picking up his wand, "Restibus," he said, and invisible ropes wrapped around Nott's body, freezing him in place 

"What the hell, Black?" asked Theodore, struggling against the restraints 

"Muffliato, Colloportus," Regulus once again waved his wand, locking and silencing the room, "I'd say I'm sorry about this, but I'm really not," he shrugged 

"Wait, wha-" started the other boy, but was cut off when Regulus tipped the bottle of veritaserum into his throat  

He only forced him to drink a single sip, knowing that he only needed a single question to be answered and that the effects of the potion needed to be over by the time the other two returned in about forty minutes. 

"What was in the box Voldemort told you to hide?" asked the Black 

Nott's face fell slack and emotionless, his eyes foggy, "Roweena Ravenclaw's diadem," 

"Perfect, and do you know why it was so significant for him?" asked Regulus again, since they weren't sure yet if the diadem was a horcrux 

"No," replied Nott 

Huffing out a breath, the youngest boy shook his head, "And where did you hide it?" 

"The Room of Requirement," 

Regulus's heart was beating wildly in his chest. He couldn't screw this up, both for the fate of the wizarding world as well as for his own safety. If he didn't obliviate Nott perfectly, if even a sliver of this memory remained in the boy's mind, the youngest Black heir was done for. 

Still, that fear was nothing compared to the feeling of finally getting somewhere, "Excellent," he mused, grinning widely  

A/N

2.2k words 

kind of in a rut, I'm also on vacation for the next ten days so idk how often I'll be able to upload 

don't forget to comment and vote!

xx