Return Of The Father (Harry Potter fanfiction) **COMPLETED**

:: Chapter 29: Never too old to be a marauder ::

"Harry," A voice whispered in his ear, the person's breath tickling his earlobes. Harry gave an inarticulate grunt as he kept his eyes screwed shut. He knew very well who the voice belonged to, and he chose to ignore it in favour of more sleep. They had stayed up late at night celebrating, and he wanted to sleep in. At least until ten in the morning.

"Harry!" The voice said, louder now, a note of conspicuous urgency in it. Harry resumed his pretence of deep sleep and ignored the voice once again.

"If you don't wake up this instant, you'll miss everything and you'll regret it. Just thought I'd tell you that.'' chanted the voice, very close to his ear again.

That caught his attention, and after fighting a mental battle between his curiosity and the sleepy part of his system, Harry opened his eyes to meet his father's amused ones, his curiosity getting the better of him.

"Why the devil are you waking me up in the middle of the night, Dad?" He asked, sitting upright. The curtains were drawn, so it was very dark in the room.

"It's not the middle of the night, it's nine in the morning, Mr Lazy Potter. Now get up!" James said, looking mysteriously self satisfied. It was rather terrifying. Harry knew that look all too well. That was the very same look that appeared on Peeves's face whenever he was about to initiate havoc in Filch's office or the transfiguration classroom. And to say in the least, seeing that look on his father's face was very disconcerting, especially since he knew all about the marauder times.

"Mr Lazy Potter?" Harry repeated with a raised eyebrow, unimpressed. When James merely shrugged, he continued, "Why are you looking so happy?''

"Do I look happy? Really?" inquired James, with a look of innocence on his face.

"Now you look plain mischievious. Dad, tell me what's going on-?"

"All in good time," said James breezily, getting up from his seat beside the bed and bringing his wand out of the folds of his dark blue robes. "Now wake up Ron and Hermione, then get downstairs. Otherwise, you'll miss everything."

"Dad, what on earth did you do?" Harry asked, becoming increasingly worried.

"Questions, questions," said James mysteriously. "Just get downstairs before you miss all the fun."

"Okay?" Harry asked uncertainly.

"That's my boy," The elder Potter said with another satisfied smile, and he walked out the door without turning back, humming to himself, leaving Harry very baffled and horrified indeed. Harry quickly got out of the bed and hurried to Ron's, shaking his best friend awake before the two of them set off to find Hermione, discussing anxiously about what they had to expect in a few minutes.

***

"Remus, if you don't stop pacing this instant, I'll have to perform a full body bind on you." said Sirius irritably.

"So many things can go wrong with our plan! I can't help pacing," argued Remus.

"Relax, besides, we have an escape plan," said James, walking in with his hands buried deep into his pockets as usual. "At least, kind of." He dropped into a seat beside Sirius and watched Remus pace.

"I still can't believe I agreed to do this," muttered Remus. "I give in too easily. Especially to you two."

"That's true," said Sirius, his eyes playful, washing away the previous irritation. "We can be quite persuasive. And don't let me you didn't enjoy the planning! After all, who's the one who thinks up all the brilliant ideas?"

A smile crept into Remus's face, which culminated in the disappearance of the many tired lines on his face, knocking a few years out of it.

'Once a true marauder-" James began, smiling from ear to ear as he waited for Remus to continue their old phrase.