Disclaimer: I own nothing because if I did James and Lily wouldn't have died.

Happy New year's Eve everyone (there's still time left in my state). This oneshot is dedicated to scaredofrobots for her birthday and being a member of the blackevans trash club.

Note: This oneshot is a sort of prequel another oneshot I posted a few days ago titled The Stolen Jumper. The stories retelling of this event vary just slightly because The Stolen Jumper is told from James' perspective who was not there during the majority of this.

–

(December 31, 1976)

New Year's Eve was a day meant for thinking about every way in which you messed up the year and all those before. It didn't matter whether it was kissing a girl that had a boyfriend–not that you knew that–or almost causing one of your best friends to become a murderer. Sirius laughed bitterly at the last one.

He was the real monster, not Remus. Never Remus who was kind to everyone and would go into his self-loathing nature because of what he was one day (sometimes two) out of the month. Never James who was loyal and had offered Sirius a home and a family when he didn't have either. Never Peter who loved them and needed protection. And never Lily who despite their history was always kind and understanding. Merlin help him if he wouldn't die for each and every one of them.

He took another sip of firewhisky, enjoying the taste as it burned his throat.

'Drinking alone on New Year's Eve, Sirius?' The voice of his favourite flower filled the room. 'Isn't that a bit pathetic?'

'Pathetic, perhaps. Satisfying, yes.' She laughed as she took a seat next to him in front of the fireplace. 'I didn't know you were back.'

'James' parents were invited to go to Spain with some old friends of theirs. James, being the noble bastard that he is, didn't want to stand in the way of them going; we offered to come back a few days early. James is in the dorm sleeping, travel by Portkey doesn't agree with him.'

'Travel by Portkey doesn't agree with anyone.' She took the bottle from his hands, taking a mouthful of the drink. 'So why were you down here drinking alone?'

'Just the usual, Evans,' he swung an arm around her shoulders. 'Thinking of all the ways I've disappointed my parents this year. It's good for my ego.'

Lily snorted, 'Your ego is big enough without inflating it more.'

'It's hard to be this handsome and not get an ego, Lily-love.' He winked at her teasingly. 'What are you doing up?'

'I got a letter from my sister before term ended, I decided to burn it.' She attempted a smile as she pulled out the letter. 'She said I was an awful sister who needed to hide my abnormal behaviour and that my parents and her were spending the holidays with her new boyfriend and his family. She said not to bother coming home, that I wouldn't be welcomed.' She took another sip of the drink.

He took it from her hand and took a swig, 'My parents are cousins.' Sirius laughed bitterly at Lily's disturbed face.

'My sister calls me a freak at every opportunity.'

He handed her back the bottle, 'Let the drinking game begin.'

Lily was giggling half an hour later, dancing clumsily on top of the table.

'She threw holy water on me once, Paddy.' Her giggling was excessive as she stumbled and drank. 'She thought I would melt because I'm a witch.' Her giggling wouldn't stop, 'I'm a witch, Sirius!'

Sirius threw his head back in laughter. 'What–what did you do?' His words were slurred.

She paused in her dancing for a moment. 'I cried and ran out of church.' She shrugged it off before continuing in her drunken state of happiness.

'I think my brother's going to be a Death Eater.' His voice was no longer the one of an elated drunk as it had been prior.

'I think Severus already is one.' She took another drink from the firewhisky bottle that Sirius had enchanted to keep refilling itself. 'He called me a Mudblood.' She pouted. 'I wish I didn't care.' Sirius got up from the sofa as he saw tears in her eyes.

He grabbed the bottle from her hands. 'I think we're both drunk. James wouldn't like it if I got you drunk.'

'James, lames. He's not here right now.' Sirius chuckled at the inebriated redhead who was attempting to snatch the bottle from his hands. Her eyes widened, 'Do you want to go to the Great Lake?'

Sirius' eyebrows furrowed together in confusion. 'Why?'

'Just come with me,' was her response as she jumped off the table and took his hand in hers, dragging him out the Common Room.

Lily's plan, as it turned out to be, was to fight the giant squid.

'Let me get this right,' Sirius laughed, his prior attitude returning. 'You want us to actually fight the giant squid.'

'Yes,' came her reply as she held her wand like a sword.

He watched her in amusement before asking the most important question, 'Why would we want to fight the giant squid?'

She swung her wand again, 'For honour!'

'Whose honour? Ours?'

Sirius couldn't take her serious. Having only begun to be her friend since the beginning of the year, she was more than he was expecting from a girl like Lily Evans.

'James' honour,' she nodded her head as if that made up her mind. 'The giant squid has offended him for far too long.' And with that motivational speech, she made her way into the Great Lake to find the giant squid.

'I think you're confusing the giant squid with yourself, Evans, you mad bird!' Even if she was a mad bird, he followed her into the water because if your friend has a cephalopod related death wish, then you have a cephalopod related death wish.

An hour later, after Lily had managed to fight off the squid's tentacle attacks and attempts to drown her, they left the water.

Despite their mad adventure, she was giggling. 'You're a lightweight, Evans.' Sirius told her fondly.

'Do you think we defended James' honour enough?' Her eyes were strangely innocent for someone who had just contemplated a squid attack.

'Yes, Evans, we defended his honour enough.' He shook his head at her, before eyeing what she was wearing. 'You must be freezing, love.'

She wasn't paying much attention as she twirled her wand in her fingers, her hair and clothes continuing to drip the water from the lake.

Sirius sighed and cast a quick drying spell on her before he did the same to himself.

She smiled at him, 'Can I have a piggyback ride, Paddy?'

Sirius cursed under his breath. James had been right about her green eyes making you do anything she wanted because he just couldn't find it in himself to tell her no.

'Fine,' he pouted, lowering himself both physically and mentally for her to get onto his back. 'And it's Padfoot not Paddy.'

'Paddy is nicer.' Lily protested.

Sirius felt her quickly fall asleep as he carried her into Hogwarts and through several secret passages until they were in front of the Fat Lady.

The portrait looked down at them in disapproval.

'Well, I never…' she began before Sirius cut her off, 'Phoenix.'

She shot him one more look before allowing them to go through. He spotted James as soon as he entered the Common Room.

'Hey, Padfoot.' He rubbed his eyes. 'What are you–is that Lily?' James got up and quickly made his way to them, removing Lily from his back gently.

'What happened?' James asked as he cradled her gently. His eyes taking in the girl with adoration.

Sirius snorted, 'We were defending your honour.'

'My honour?' James' eyes widened.

'Believe me, you don't want to know, Prongs.' He patted him on the back before heading up to the door, leaving the two downstairs.

James took in the thin dressing gown that was high enough to reveal a pair of extremely short shorts. 'Lily,' he said, shaking her lightly. Her skin was ice cold.

'Hmm…' she snuggled deeper into James' arms, his heart beating faster than normal.

'Wake up,' he said, his arms running up and down hers in his attempt to warm her up.

'No,' he laughed. 'Do you want to sleep in the boy's dorm?' She nodded before continuing snuggling into James.

He went back up to the dorm, placing Lily on Remus' vacant bed. He stripped off the jumper his mother had knitted him for his birthday, and handed it to her. It had a heating charm placed on it that would prevent her from needing to go to Madam Pomfrey in the morning.

'Put it on, Evans.' He said lightly. She sat up enough to discard her dressing gown and hurriedly put on the maroon jumper that had a stag knitted into it–Sirius had sent his mother a long letter telling her how fond James had become of the animal.

'Goodnight,' he pressed a kiss into the top of her head.

He crawled into his own bed. Five minutes later, he felt a small body press into him. He opened his eyes and spotted Lily curled next to him.

'Hello, Lily.' James moved to allow her more room.

'Hey, James?' She whispered.

He responded after a short moment, 'Yeah?'

'Are we mates?'

He chuckled as he turned to her, 'Yes, we're mates.'

She was silent. 'Do mates cuddle?'

It was his turn to be silent, 'Yeah, mates cuddle.'