Few days later, Dumbledore made an announcement during breakfast. "I am pleased to announce that a few ex-students of Hogwarts will be visiting us tomorrow for nostalgia's sake. I hope you will make them welcome."

The visitors turned out to be Lucius Malfoy, Rabastan Lestrange, Bellatrix Black and some of their cronies.

While going to Herbology that day, Sirius had to double back to fetch his spade. He came across the group of ex-students standing in the corridor with some current Hogwarts students, Regulus among them.

Regulus and his friends were staring at the older boys with unmasked admiration on their faces.

With a sinking feeling, Sirius thought he knew what they were talking about.

As if to rub salt on his wounds, later that day, Sirius saw Snape and Regulus walking together in the grounds as if—as if Snape was Regulus' elder brother.

Sirius felt like he hated Snape more than anyone else in the world.

--------------------

"Did Regulus tell you anything about their meeting with the ex-students?"

In the deserted corridor of the Hogwarts, two tall boys stood facing, each with equal hatred on their faces.

Sirius Black, with black hair and flashing gray eyes, looked devilishly handsome; Severus Snape had an ugly sneer on his face.

"What is it to do with you? Can't you keep your slimy nose off anything?" asked Sirius scornfully.

"As if that Potter of yours can! Tell him to stop dancing after Lily Evans first. She is my best friend, not his. Or is he too arrogant to realize that?" said Snape.

"Don't talk about James like that!" cried Sirius furiously.

"What about Remus Lupin? Where does he disappear to every month?" asked Snape quietly.

It was the last straw.

"Why don't you find out yourself? Go to the Whomping Willow tonight and press the knot at its base. You'll get a nice surprise, Snivelly."

As Snape's eyes turned calculating, Sirius turned away so that the other boy could not see his grin.

--------------------

"What! You told Snape how to get into the Whomping Willow?" cried James, looking aghast.

"What's wrong with that? You look as if your date with Evans has been cancelled," said Sirius.

"How thick can you be, Padfoot?"

"I didn't know you were so concerned about Snivelly's feelings, Prongs."

"Remus will kill him, you idiot! And then Remus will likely spend his life in Azkaban!"

"But...Remus never affects us in that way," protested Sirius.

"That's because we're in Animagus form!" said James, rummaging in his trunk. Pulling out his Invisibility Cloak, he turned to Peter, pointedly ignoring Sirius. "I'm going after Snape. I have to get there in time!"

"James, wait! I'll come too," called Sirius. But James was already gone.

"Wormtail, you stay here. I'm going to help James," said Sirius, and then he was gone too.

--------------------

James crept through the corridor between the Whomping Willow and Shrieking Shack, hurrying as much as he could, furious with Sirius. At last he saw Snape's shadow in front of him. He ran after arch rival, shuddering to see the door of the room so close to him.

"Snivelly!" hissed James. "Don't open the door!"

Snape whirled around, pointing his wand at James. "No, Potter, you are not going to stop me today."

"Don't be an idiot! Snape—don't—" cried James, but Snape had opened the door.

The werewolf inside the room howled loudly. Snape turned to look at James' face, which had gone white. "Lupin is a werewolf? That's why he's been disappearing every month? What if the teachers knew? Do you think—" Snape was so busy sneering at James that he failed to see the werewolf lung at him. James reacted swiftly; he dived and pulled Snape out of the way.

"Run, you idiot!" shouted James, scrambling up. Snape seemed to have realized the danger, for he obeyed his enemy without a word. James muttered a few incantations, and managed to close the door—barely. The he too ran for his life.

--------------------

When Sirius reached the Whomping Willow, he saw a shaken looking James emerging with a nearly faint Snape.

"James!" cried Sirius. "Thank goodness you're safe."

James didn't answer, but glared at Sirius.

"You two planned it! You two and the werewolf! You wanted to kill me—" began Snape, his voice rising.

"He knows, and it's all your fault," said James in a low voice to Sirius, who looked dismayed.

"I am sorry, James—honestly, I am. I didn't think," said Sirius.

"Do you ever think?" demanded James.

"I didn't mean it to get so serious. I just wanted old Snivelly to get a fright," said Sirius desperately.

James shot him a cold stare.

"I'm sorry," said Sirius, meaning it.

"Can you realize its magnitude, Padfoot? Snape will tell the whole school, and..." began James.

"Lupin will be expelled, yes," said Snape spitefully.

Suddenly Sirius was stricken with terrible guilt. They had reached the school and Argus Filch's voice interrupted them. "Students out of bed! Students in the corridor!"

Snape looked only too glad to be taken to the Headmaster, James determined and Sirius miserable.

As soon as they reached Professor Dumbledore's room, Snape said, "Professor, Lupin is a werewolf!"

"I am aware of it, Mr. Snape," said Dumbledore calmly.

"You knew, and you still took him?" Snape asked, shocked.

"As long as certain precautions were taken, I didn't think it would harm anybody," said Dumbledore.

"It could have! Black and Potter sent me after him—they intended to get me killed!" said Snape.

"James had nothing to do with it!" said Sirius, glaring at Snape.

"And you, Mr. Black, did have something to do with it?" asked Dumbledore.

"I am sorry, sir—I didn't want Sniv-Snape to get killed..." said Sirius.

"He did!" cried Snape. "That's why he told me!"

"No, I did not!"

"A likely—"

"Silence, Mr. Snape and Mr. Black," said Dumbledore, with such authority that both boys stopped at once. "I'd like to what exactly happened. Mr. Potter, if you please..."

James related the story briefly and accurately, unconsciously trying to make Sirius' fault seem less horrible. After he had finished, the Headmaster said, "You have been very brave, James. You saved your arch rival, just like a true Gryffindor would have."

Snape looked too outraged to speak.

"Mr. Snape, you have been extremely foolish to have listened to Mr. Black's instructions. You were not supposed to be outside at this hour of the night."

Snape's lip curled in fury, but he said, "Lupin will be expelled, anyhow."

"No," said Dumbledore.

"Headmaster, surely you understand that parents would not want their children living with a monster," said Snape.

"Remus is not a monster!" cried James and Sirius together.

"He will not be expelled, because parents will not to get to know of it at all," said Dumbledore, calmly.

"What!" said Snape, outraged.

"I am afraid I must insist that you don't spread this around the school."

Snape was dumbfounded at the injustice of it all.

"Your word, Severus?" said Dumbledore.

"Yes," said Snape, looking as if that word meant the end of the world.

"Thank you. Now you and Mr. Potter may leave. Mr. Black, a word with you, please."

Sirius was extremely glad that Dumbledore had made Snape promise to keep Remus' state a secret. But looking into Dumbledore's stern eyes, he felt apprehensive.

Sirius was given detention every day for the rest of the month.

-------------------

Back in the dormitory, James was relating what had happened to Peter when Sirius came in. James did not acknowledge his best friend; Peter's eyes nervously darted to Sirius and then back to James.

"Prongs—I am sorry. More sorry than you can imagine. Forgive me, please," said Sirius miserably.

"You betrayed Remus!" shouted James.

Sirius opened his mouth to protest. But then he closed it. Betraying Remus was exactly what he had done.

"Do you think a disloyal person like you deserves to be a Marauder?" demanded James.

"I won't do it again," mumbled Sirius.

"Yes, right! I've never seen you think before act and this—this could have had SERIOUS CONSEQUENCES!" said James.

"I know—but..."

"Oh, shut up," said James. "I don't know what I expected from you anyway. Good night, Peter." With that, James drew the hangings around his four poster bed and vanished from sight.

"Good night, Sirius," said Peter nervously and he too retired to bed. Feeling worse than ever, Sirius did the same.

-------------------

When Sirius woke up the next morning, he saw that both James and Peter had already left. He was guilt-stricken as he went down to the Great Hall for breakfast, and halfway through, he changed his direction and went to Madam Pomfrey's sickbay. He saw Remus lying on one of the beds, looking tired and weary. The scars on his arms were back.

"You all right, Moony?" asked Sirius, gently.

Remus turned to him with a slight smile, which vanished as he saw Sirius. "Oh, it's you."

"James told you what happened?"

Remus nodded, his face stony.

"Look, Remus—I am extremely sorry for what I did. I didn't..."

"Think, yes. James told me." His voice suggested that he couldn't agree with James more.

"You're awfully angry with me, aren't you?" asked Sirius, after a pause.

"Did you want Snape to find out that I'm a—werewolf?" asked Remus.

"What? Of course I didn't! He had always been trying to find out where you go every month, always trying to get us expelled—so I told him, so that he gets a horrid fright. That's all."

"You are crazy, Padfoot. I could have killed him," said Remus, going white at the thought.

"I know—sorry..."

"I could have killed Snape," muttered Remus, more to himself than to Sirius. "Go away, Sirius, I don't want to talk to you."

"Remus—"

"Go away!" said Remus fiercely.

Poor Sirius had no choice then but to go away.

-------------------

The breaking up of the Marauders was the prime topic of discussion that day. At lunch, James, Remus and Peter sat one end of the table, Sirius at the other. Sirius' attitude was casual, almost relaxed, as if he could not care less about who sat beside, but he determinedly did not look over at where the other Marauders were sitting. James too never looked up. Remus occasionally glanced at Sirius, his expression sad and sympathetic. People guessed that they were at odds, three against one, but they could hardly believe that James and Sirius, who were more than best friends, almost like brothers, could have fought with each other.

-------------------

As Sirius was walking alone from their Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom, a voice called his name.

Regulus was standing in front of him; Rosier stood a little behind him.

"Where are your friends now?" asked Regulus mockingly.

"None of your business," said Sirius jerkily.

"Your blood family won't accept you because you betrayed them and became a Gryffindor. Gryffindors won't accept you because you are a Black. You'll never fit in anywhere." Regulus sounded almost triumphant.

Sirius did not put up a fight. "Yeah, ok."

Regulus stared at him in astonishment. "That's it? You're not going to say anything?"

Sirius shook his head. He could not answer back because he knew Regulus was partly correct—if James, Peter and Remus deserted him forever, he knew he had nobody in the world to turn to.

Regulus didn't say anything more either, because he saw a look in his brother's gray eyes that he had never seen before.

Sirius looked...defeated.

--------------------

Remus was walking through the same corridor and he suddenly saw Sirius coming from the opposite direction. His eyes were fixed on the floor in front of him, and there was a defeated slump in his shoulders that didn't suit the bold, bad Sirius Black at all. Remus felt a pang of remorse that they had refused to forgive him. Just then Sirius looked up and their eyes met.

Neither of them looked away. After a few seconds Sirius said, "I suppose it's no good telling you again, but I'm really sorry, Remus."

"It's all right," said Remus gently. It was so unexpected that Sirius could only stare at him for some time.

"Really?" asked Sirius.

"Yes," said Remus simply. "You didn't mean anything bad. But do think before you act next time, won't you?"

"Yes—yes, I will," said Sirius fervently. "Thank you, Moony."

"'S all right," said Remus, as they hugged each other. Then Remus said, "James'll not be easy to persuade."

Sirius' face clouded over. "Yeah, I know," he muttered. "But thanks for forgiving me, Moony."

"It's all right," said Remus, punching in the arm. "I trust you, Sirius. You, James and Peter stood beside me even after you discovered what I am. One mistake can't change that."

"Thanks."

"Do me a favour—go and study for your OWLs rather than standing here and thanking me all day."

Sirius grinned; Remus smiled back. Everything was all right between them again.

--------------------

That day, in the evening, Remus said to James in a low voice, "Can't you make up with Sirius?"

"These are dark times, Remus. What's the good of having a friend you can't trust?" demanded James.

"Funny, if I asked you two days ago, you'd have said the person you trust most in the world is Sirius Black."

"Yes, but that was before he betrayed you."

"He didn't betray me. He's just a little rash, that's all," said Remus. He looked up and saw James glaring at Sirius as the latter approached them.

"Prongs, aren't you done with cold shouldering? I've told you so many times, I'm sorry."

"Don't you get tired of saying the same thing again and again?" asked James.

Sirius' eyes flashed. "Just as you never get tired of asking Evans out, I suppose."

James stood up, his hazel eyes glinting dangerously. "Isn't that the sort of a thing a Black would do? To get back at their enemies, they'll do anything, even hurt their friends. Though, Blacks don't understand the meaning of friendship either."

"Shut up," said Sirius menacingly.

"You say you are not like your family, but you behave just like them."

Remus winced; Sirius blinked and froze, unable for a moment to think of a retort to James' hurtful words. Then anger came to his defense.

"I'd rather be like my family than be too arrogant to see that a girl is tired of me."

Sirius and James glared at each other for some time.

Then James said, "I can't imagine why I ever was your friend, Black."

"Same here, Potter." And Sirius stormed off to the dormitory leaving a furious James and a horrified Remus behind him.

"I have never seen you two fight like that," said Remus sadly.

"Go and say that to him, can't you?" said James furiously.

"It was not all his fault," said Remus.

James slammed his book on the table so hard that the entire common room stared at him. He snorted in disgust and stormed out of the common room.