There were many things in the world that James Potter could do without fear. Despite dozens of broken bones, he still thought nothing of climbing back onto a broom at any given opportunity. Years of Care of Magical Creatures lessons during his school years meant dealing with the neighbour's slightly rabid Kneazle that invaded the back garden was a breeze. And even now, belonging to the Order of the Phoenix had hardened his nerves even more towards anything and everything, dangerous or not.

James Potter was a man of very few fears. Unfortunately for him, he thought despairingly as he took another sip of his drink in the warmth of the crowded pub that surrounded him, it would be just his luck to be downright terrified of asking the woman he had loved since he had laid eyes on her to be his wife. He groaned aloud, shoving aside the tankard in front of him and flopping down onto the table dramatically. Across the small table from him, Sirius and Remus exchanged a look.

"James, I don't know how you expect us to help you here if you won't even tell us what's wrong." Remus began, slapping away Sirius' hand from where he was prodding James' head as it lay on the table. "Are you in trouble? Is it Lily? It's obviously not Order business, or we wouldn't have been dragged all the way out here to the middle of nowhere to talk about it" he said before taking a long drink, giving up and letting Sirius slap James around the head. James quickly sat back up.

"It's not the middle of nowhere! It's…" he trailed off suddenly, looking embarrassed. He took in his friend's expressions, both of them looking at him as if he were more than just a little bit off his rocker. In the back of his mind he wished that their expressions were not quite as familiar to him as he found them, and ran his hands through his hair in a familiar agitated manner.

"I'mgoingtoaskhertomarryme." he finally blurted out, before taking refuge behind his enormous drink once again. He opened an eye to see the reaction of the table - Sirius and Remus were staring blankly at him.

"So?" Sirius asked bluntly, taking another glass of fire whiskey from the tray of a young waitress who had appeared next to their table, winking at her as she left. "I mean, it's brilliant and everything, but it's not exactly news mate. We knew you would sooner or later." Remus nodded, smiling at James confusedly.

"Congratulations. I still don't see the reasoning behind bringing us this far away from London through, if that's all you wanted to tell us." James stared back at them both incredulously, taking in their unconcerned manner.

"What? Are you both mad?" he sat up properly, flailing in a way that threatened to overturn the rickety table. "This is not something to be calm about! I'm going mental here! She's probably going to laugh in my face because I don't have the first idea how to propose to someone, and then what am I supposed to do with this bloody ring and this stupid cottage and UNF-" he stopped abruptly when Sirius reached across the table, clamping a firm hand across his friend's mouth, even as he struggled to contain his laughter at seeing him so flustered. He glared at them, effectively silenced from his ranting. Remus calmly signaled to the young waitress for a strong double fire whiskey, which he pushed across the table to James.

"You can't be nervous" Remus said incredulously and not least a little wistfully, watching as Sirius removed his hand only long enough for James to gulp down the burning drink. "Lily loves you. And not that I should be telling you this, so you didn't hear it from me, but she's actually been asking me for a while now whether or not you're going to hurry up and propose already. She's not expecting it to be perfect, you should know that. That's not Lily."

"Yeah, and while I agree with captain sensible here, what the hell was that about a cottage?" Sirius finished off, removing his hand from James' face and pushing his own half finished fire whiskey towards his friend. James groaned.

"I may have bought a house" he muttered, eyes cast downwards.

"You may have bought a house?" Sirius asked, raising his eyebrows at the thoroughly downcast man opposite him. "That's why we're - James, you bought a house in a village?"

"It's a nice place! It's really famous, and loads of famous wizard families have lived here, and I'll have you know it cost an arm and leg for it just being in a village. Not everyone needs to live in London you know" James retorted, sticking out his tongue at his friend in a way that was more suited to a child half his age. He looked over at Remus desperately. "Was it a stupid idea?"

"Possibly. But, as with almost every stupid idea you've had in your life, it will likely work out fine." he replied, finally grinning at James properly.

"Almost?"

"Third year midnight raid of the advanced greenhouses." A collective shudder ran around the table, and James nodded his head in defeat.

"I still have scars from that you know. All over my bloody-"

"Anyway," Remus continued hastily, cutting off Sirius mid-sentence. "my point is, since when have you ever let the fact something has the potential to go wrong stop you from doing it? For the first three years I knew you I pretty much assumed that you only did things with the potential to go horribly wrong, actually."

James grinned back slowly, the excellent combination of warming fire whiskey and reassurance finally beginning to calm the cold pit of nerves that had been gathered in his stomach all day. "It's a shame Pete's not here. I wanted you all to know at the same time, since you're all going to have to be involved. I will actually probably go mad otherwise". They smiled back at him, sitting happily in the corner of the warm, noisy pub contentedly.

"Just get on with it" Sirius laughed, "sooner you actually ask her, then the sooner you can get on with the actual panicking. Plus, the sooner I get to start planning your stag party" he grinned, a conspiratorial twinkle in his eyes that immediately set James' nerves back on edge again. Sometimes he wondered why he expected anything else from his friends after all the years he'd known them. Then again, he mused, finishing off his drink with a loud gulp, he must be a bit mad after all.

Hello. I'm not sure where this came from, other than the fact that as soon as I start a multi-chapter story, I become compelled to write unrelated one and two shot things to avoid writing the next chapter of things I should actually be writing. So here, have this, and take my very sincere apologies that I haven't updated JMTYT in far longer than I expected. It will be updated, and hopefully finished off, sometime in the next few weeks. Fancy reviewing this for me? 3