Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. (duh!)

A week passed without the slightest change in the boys' antics. Gradually, Sirius sunk more and more into the shadows as the Marauders continued to ignore his presence. The dog Animagus hadn't slept well in days and was still being silenced nightly, as his screams seemed to echo through all of Gryffindor.

Even Snape and McGonagall noticed Sirius' uncharacteristic silence. Snape just glared at him in the hallways, constantly muttering, "Murderer," under his breath. Sirius didn't even have the heart to make a comeback. With each passing day, the dark circles rimming his eyes grew darker and his voice grew raspier from its lack of use. The other Marauders either didn't notice or didn't care: most likely the latter.

Valentine's Day approached. As usual, Sirius sat alone. He didn't noticed what James, Remus, and Peter were planning mere feet away, didn't notice their uncharacteristic whispering.

"The effects are going to take place whenever Sirius drinks and Snape pick up their pumpkin juice," muttered Remus. "Should be any minute now." James and Peter's eyes lit up with anticipation, eager to see the results of their latest prank. Soon enough, Sirius picked up his glass of pumpkin juice and, with a loud POOF, pink began spreading from the top of his head to his toes. It took about two seconds for the rest of Hogwarts to notice his rapidly changing hair, robes, and skin. Sirius bolted out of the great hall, but he was definitely not hard to miss. Especially when hot pink footprints trailed after him.

In the dorm later on, Sirius stared straight ahead, trying to squash down his humiliation, but without much success. He'd never been good at blocking out his emotions, like every other Black was trained to do since childhood. "Aw, is poor little Sirius mad?" James said, mocking Sirius' scowl. He turned to Remus, straightening his glasses. "We wouldn't want to make him scream…you do that quite a lot lately." Sirius glanced at James confusedly.

"What do you mean?"

"I think you would know, Black…" Remus said, malice in his voice. "Practically the entire castle knows."

"Mummy, stop!" James taunted. Remus shot him a glance. That was cruel, even for him.

"What about my mum?" Sirius snapped. At this point, he was geting impatient. He glared at Remus, puzzled, but the look on his face said it all- he'd witnessed Sirius' nightmares. Sirius' eyes widened as the realization hit him. "Please don't tell anyone…" he whispered. Wrong move.

"You do realize Remus asked you not to tell anyone about his secret," Peter squeaked, his beady eyes bulging. "And look how that turned out!"

"Traitor!" Remus screamed. Sirius was stunned. Remus never raised his voice- ever. The other Marauders took this as their cues to all begin ganging up on Sirius.

"He trusted you! We trusted you!" James roared. "You claim to hate your family but you're the worst of them all! At least they're not traitors!"

"I'm sorry," Sirius whispered, tears springing to his eyes. "Remus, I never thought he'd actually do it. It was meant to be a joke. I'm so sorry. I deserve to die. You're right; I'm the worst of the Blacks."

"You don't deserve to die," said Remus said quietly, his tone of voice having changed very quickly. "But you did tell Snape my biggest secret. Why should I ever be your friend again? Give me a good reason to trust you."

Sirius was completely silent. "I don't deserve to be your friend. I deserve everything that's happened to me. But please, just don't hate me."

"What happened to you, Sirius?" asked Remus, his amber eyes fixed on the pale boy. Sirius shook his head, looking like he regretted speaking in the first place. "What happened?"

Sirius looked at them. "Please don't make a huge deal out of this," he said, cringing, and lifted up his shirt to reveal bruises, deep scratches, dried blood, and an a couple ribs sticking out at an awkward angle. The Marauders looked horrified.

"What the hell…this was all your parents?" asked James, looking at Sirius with pity. Sirius had always hated pity, or sympathy in any form.

"I deserved it," he shrugged, pulling down his shirt hastily. James exhaled and raked a thin hand through his hair.

"Nobody deserves that," said Remus. "Not even you."

"You should live with me, Sirius," James said. "I mean, Mum and Dad wouldn't mind, Merlin knows we have enough space. I'm serious!" He said excitedly, upon seeing the skepticsm on his friend's face. Then James and Remus groaned together, right before Sirius made the dreaded pun-

"You're not Sirius, I am!"

"God, Sirius, your horrible puns don't mean you're forgiven yet," Remus said but he was laughing. For the first time in a long time, the Marauders were the best of friends again.

A/N: Thank you SO much for the follows, favorites, and reviews! They make my day! And sorry for the kinda bad ending….Should I write a sequel where Sirius runs away?