Chapter Text
It was the Marauders' last full moon at Hogwarts. They were pure adrenaline and instinct. The boys were running through the woods when a glance at Moony told them they would need to go to Hogwarts soon. The werewolf was beginning to slow down. His body preparing itself for the painful shift back into Remus.
Wormtail, too small in his ratform to help, watched Padfoot and Prongs corral Moony under the Whomping Willow and towards the Shrieking Shack. Once through the tunnel, they watched Moony get more and more agitated until the moon dipped below the horizon. It was then that the transformation began. Moony howled in pain as he turned back into a man. Remus becoming human allowed the Marauders to change back into their human forms. Wormtail grew from rat into man. Prongs’ stag form shrunk back into James. Padfoot, a giant black dog, lengthened into Sirius.
Before they left, Sirius checked to see if Remus was sleeping comfortably. The boys moved as quietly as possible. So they wouldn’t wake the sleeping werewolf. The boys quickly walked through the tunnels to change their clothes before visiting Remus in the Hospital Wing. When they got to the dorm, Peter noticed a piece of parchment under his pillow. He started reaching for it, but Sirius threatened to leave without him. Together they left the dorm.
Sirius ran toward the bed, yelling, “Rem, you're awake!”
Remus nodded and reached out to hug his boyfriend. Peter laughed as Sirius tried to speak to Remus, even though he always lost his voice the morning after the moon. He watched as Remus tried to communicate with Sirius with gestures and points before giving up and just listening to Sirius talk.
“Hey Pete, we should probably give the lovebirds some space, mate,” James grinned as he watched Sirius’ antics. Peter nodded, allowing himself to be led out of the Hospital Wing.
James and Peter had walked into the Common Room when one Ms. Evans approached them.
“Hey Pete, could I steal my boyfriend?” Lily said.
Before Peter could respond they had walked away. Now alone, he continued the walk to the dorm. He pushed open the wooden door and sat on his bed. The brunette was about to lie down to take a nap when he remembered the piece of parchment still sitting under his pillow. Peter's breath caught when he saw what was on the folded paper. It was the Dark Mark.
Peter stared at the mark in horror, hardly able to breathe. When he gathered his senses, he stood to go to Dumbledore. Peter stood to see something even more horrible, Voldemort. The man smiled at Peter before casting a silencing spell. Peter was frozen in horror as he watched the man move closer. Two pale hands reached out to straighten Peter's tie. Peter jerked backward violently, desperate to get away.
“Hello Peter,” The cold voice came. Peter's eyes followed the voice, causing him to look into the eyes of the man above him.
Peter found his voice rasping, “W-what d-do you want?”
“I need someone on the inside for this fight, and you seem perfect. Look at you shaking in fear. You act as though I’m about to kill you. I won’t, that is, kill you at least not yet. See, no one else from your side of this war will listen to me, but I think you’re smart enough to know this is how you'll make it through alive.”
The Marauder squeaked in fear when Voldemort put a hand on his shoulder. The deathly white skin contrasted harshly with his black robes. The hands were cold, Peter felt as if a corpse was touching him.
“I w-won’t d-do it,” Peter stuttered in a quiet voice, preparing himself for torture.
“You don’t have a choice.”
“Do w-what y-y-you want to me, but I won’t do it,” Peter was steadily gathering his courage, but Voldemort said something horrible.
He sneered, “Alright, I’ll start with Black. Torture him nice and slow, maybe I’ll take the bloodtraiter to his mother as she has so many plans for him. Then I will find Potter and his mudblood girlfriend. It would be a shame to let his pureblooded line be tainted by her after all. Then, when those three are finished I’m going to take the filthy halfbreed you call your friend. Fenrir would love to have his disgusting pup back. This is why you will join my side, Peter, to protect your so-called friends. Without you, I’ll have to kill them all.”
The young man swallowed thickly and closed his eyes, praying that this was all a dream, but when they opened the other man was still there. He knew that he could never beat Voldemort alone. He had to do it; the other Marauders were in danger. Peter had no choice.
“Please don’t h-hurt them, p-please,” Peter begged. The ragged sobs tore their way out of his throat.
“I won’t have to, will I Peter? Because you'll keep this parchment with you at all times. So I can contact you. Otherwise, I will turn to more extreme measures to find you. Neither of us wants that. I trust that you understand you cannot tell anyone else I was here. If you do, your little group will suffer the consequences. It would be a very bad decision to cross me, Wormtail.”
Peter looked up and saw that Voldemort had gone. Only a blank parchment remained from his visit. Peter reached out and grabbed it. It took a moment before he found his feet, unsure of when he fell to his knees. Peter moved to the door. He had to make sure Voldemort didn’t do anything to the other Marauders. He sprinted out of the room and toward the Hospital Wing. A sobbing first-year was almost knocked over in his haste. When he got there he saw Sirius and Remus. They were sleeping soundly on the same bed. They were safe. Panting, Peter sat next to the bed and waited for the boys to wake up.