Marauders

The Marauders were a group of four Gryffindors who attended Hogwarts sometime around 1971-1978,a generation before that of Harry Potter. These four students had a knack for rule-breaking and mischief making and consisted of: James Potter (Harry's father), given the Marauder nickname "Prongs"; Sirius Black nicknmed "Padfoot"; Remus Lupin also called "Moony"; and Peter Pettigrew who was often called "Wormtail".

It is thought their friendship began in their first or possibly second year at Hogwarts. By their fifth year, all had secretly become unregistered Animagi (except for Remus Lupin who was an actual werewolf) in order to help Lupin feel more fit in. Potter's Animagus form was a stag, Pettigrew's was a rat, and Sirius's was a Grim. The Marauders were all members of Gryffindor House and most greatly despised their Slytherin rival, Severus Snape whom they greatly mistreated.

The Marauders would all go on to become participants in the original Order of the Phoenix, against the dark lord, Voldemort, in their adult careers.

Peter Pettigrew, however, influenced by Voldemort, would turn on his two friends James Potter and wife Lily to reveal their secret location to the Dark Lord which would ultimately lead to their murders.

In addition, when Sirius Black found about the traitorous act of Pettigrew, he confonted him, but Pettigrew cunningly exploded everything around him - killing twelve Muggles in the process - and making it look like Sirius was the traitor and even going as far as too fake his own death. Pettigrew made this look possible by actually cutting off one of his own fingers and make it appear as though that was all that was left of his annihilated corpse. Of course, Sirius was then arrested without a trial while the actual criminal, Peter Pettigrew, got away.

Pettigrew's tactics were so believable that even the fourth Marauder, Remus Lupin, thought it was his old friend Sirius that was the Potters' and Peter Pettigrew's murderer, working under Voldemort.

Now, Peter Pettigrew was an official Death Eater and immediately hid from the rest of the world, taking his Animagus form of a rat for twelve years after his faked death. In this time, he became the pet rat of the unsuspecting Weasley family named "Scabbers".

A dozen years later, the innocent Sirius Black finally changed into an Animagus and escaped from Azkaban Prison, seeking revenge on his once-friend Peter Pettigrew.

In Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Scabbers the rat is revealed as Peter Pettigrew. At this time, Remus Lupin had gone on to become a professor at Hogwarts and discovered Sirius was not guilty. The two then united to stop Pettigrew, however he escaped when Remus suddenly transformed into a werewolf and rejoined his master, Voldemort.

When Voldemort rose to power for the second time - the Second War) - a New Order of the Phoenix was established whose members included Remus and Sirius. However, Sirius was apparently killed in the Battle of the Department of Mysteries by Death Eater Bellatrix Lestrange. Remus later resigned from his Hogwarts teaching position to put his full focus on bringing down Voldemort and the Death Eaters.

Now, only Remus Lupin and Peter Pettigrew (still a Death Eater and still in hiding) remain alive out of the four Marauders.