The Marauders: Year Three | #Wattys2016

Bullies in Hogsmeade

They walked next to the Three Broomsticks for the mandatory butterbeers - Peter got distracted watching a vendor serve up warm pretzels along the way, and scrambled to catch up just as the end of Sirius's longer-than-life scarf disappeared through the doorway. They took a booth in the corner and James went to get some warm steins of the butterbeer from the barmaid.

A table full of Slytherins, including Severus Snape and Evan Rosier, weren't too far away and Sirius could feel the Slytherins looking over at them with smirks on their faces, just waiting for a reason to start something. "Here, you sit there," Sirius said, pushing Peter into the center of the round booth seat, so that he himself was on an end, away from Remus.

James came back and pushed the butterbeers around the table.

Later, they were at the Quidditch supply shop and looking around at all the fancy Quidditch things they carried. James showed Sirius some really top-of-the-line beaters bats and gloves that Sirius drooled over, wishing for. Peter yawned, bored with the shop, and nudged Remus, "Let's go outside. It's hot in here."

"Alright." Remus told James and he and Peter went out onto the main street and sat on the edge of a fountain that stood in the square, comparing how much of the chocolate they each still had from Honeydukes.

"There's the Puffer Fish."

Remus looked up to see Evan Rosier looking at him, his cheeks puffed up mockingly, accompanied by a couple of the other Slytherins from the pub, all snickering nastily as they walked by. Remus reddened.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Peter asked, glaring after them.

"It's just more slurs is all," whispered Remus.

"Where's your boyfriend?" Antonin Dolohov called, "Why isn't he here to save you?"

"Does he only like you when you blow, Puffer Fish?" called Rosier.

Remus sighed and stared down very hard into his bag from the bookshop, reading the label on his inkpots with an immense amount of concentration. Then a snowball hit him squarely in the face. The crystals of snow hurt and he winced and looked up to see it was Dimitri Goyle that had thrown it and he was high fiving Evan Rosier and laughing horribly at him.

Peter stammered, "We should go back inside probably."

Remus nodded and got up as Dolohov was forming another ball. "What's a'matter? You don't wanna play with me, Puffer Fish?" he called. Remus ducked the snow ball that was chucked at him, quickly following after Peter toward the door of the Quidditch supplies store. Antonin cackled and caught an icicle from a shop awning and threw it like a javelin in the general direction that Remus and Peter were going. It fell short, but the threat of it was enough to upset Remus a good deal and his heart was slamming off his rib cage by the time they skid into the Quidditch shop, pink faced and shivering - though less from cold than the emotions of what had just happened.

Peter looked up at Remus. He was about to say something when Sirius and James spotted they were back and started coming over. Remus looked at Peter, "Don't say anything," he told him.

"But --"

"Don't." Remus's voice was firm. He didn't want Sirius to go after those guys - they were cruel and who knew how far guys like that would be willing to take a duel when they were off of school grounds? He didn't want Sirius to end up in trouble or to end up hurt.

Peter didn't look like he much liked the idea of it, but he kept his mouth shut as Sirius and James eagerly showed them the cool stuff they'd found - including a spray that made the broomstick less slippery when riding upon it and a funny instrument that clipped onto the broom that read the speed at which you were flying.