Peter Pettigrew, also known by his nickname Wormtail, was a wizard and son of Mr. and Mrs. Pettigrew. He began attending Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry in 1971 and was sorted into Gryffindor house. During his years at Hogwarts, he became one of the Marauders; he was best friends with James Potter, Sirius Black, and Remus Lupin, and together they created the Marauder's Map. During the First Wizarding War, Peter was a member of the Order of the Phoenix but became a double agent when he defected to Lord Voldemort. He was made Secret-Keeper for the Potters when they went into hiding with the use of the Fidelius Charm, and betrayed James, his wife Lily, and their son, Harry to Lord Voldemort. After Voldemort's fall, he faked his own death and framed Sirius for betraying James and Lily, as well as for his own murder and those of the twelve muggles he killed during his escape. Peter spent twelve years living in his Animagus form as the Weasley family's pet rat, Scabbers. However, his identity was exposed by Sirius and Remus in 1994, and Pettigrew, with nowhere else to go, sought protection in returning to the service of Lord Voldemort, whom he found in the forests of Albania.