Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any characters, settings etc. related to the franchise.
"I really don't see why you're dragging us here, James," whined Peter. The cobblestone streets of London glistened in the streetlight. The rain, which had derailed most of their plans for the day, had mercifully stopped just an hour before they'd left Hogsmeade. As James could now apparate, he was eager to take them all out to London whenever the opportunity was presented. Sirius was always willing to explore the bar scene; the other two were a tad more reticent—Moony especially. Wormtail just liked to complain.
"We really should be getting back," said Remus carefully. "They'll notice before long that we've been gone awhile. McGonagall's kept a steady eye on us this past fortnight."
"Nonsense, Moony old pal," said Sirius, giving the other boy a playful slap on the arse. "McGoogles has been up to her googly eyes in work lately. The first years have been giving her a run as well. I doubt she'll be after us vets."
"If you insist," Remus said stiffly. He was thankful for the dark—it hid the blush that crept across his cheeks when Sirius slapped him. "Where are you taking us, James?"
"You'll see," said James, wiggling his eyebrows at them. They had approached a really divey section of town. The Leaky Cauldron, Remus knew, was just a few blocks away, but he'd never forayed into this section of the city before. It sort of gave him the creeps.
Loud music greeted them as they approached a small hole-in-the-wall establishment. "Well, here we are, gents," James said, opening the door that was almost falling off its hinges and gesturing for them to go inside.
"You first," squeaked Peter defiantly.
Sirius rolled his eyes. "Oh, I'll go in," he said, and he led the way. Remus was thankful they had not asked him.
The bar was packed and dimly lit. A large electric bulb behind the counter cast an eerie yellow glow across the faded white paint on the walls. Compared to the flickering candlelight in the dorms at Hogwarts, Remus thought the light seemed disturbingly artificial.
"What'll it be, gents?" said the gruff-looking bartender. Remus was nervous that he'd ask for their IDs, but he didn't.
"A pint of ale all the way around," James said, pulling a wad of Muggle money from his back pocket. Remus made a face, which the bartender regrettably noticed.
"Maybe something a little fruity for the lady?"
Remus blushed furiously, which he hated, and he hated even more that he couldn't come up with a witty retort. Fortunately, Sirius stepped in to save him.
"Yes, and something fruity for the husband as well," he winked. The bartender laughed.
"You guys are all right," he said, pouring something raspberry-smelling into a glass for Sirius and Remus.
"You owe me one," Sirius muttered under his breath.
"I'm sure I do," Remus breathed back. "Just don't let me get too wasted."
The night passed in a blur. The next thing he knew, Remus was standing on stage, swaying along to melodic disco orchestration. He sang along with Sirius, admiring the latter's strong baritone as they belted the words, half playful, half serious:
"You can dance—you can jive—having the time of your life—"
He and Sirius had never laughed so much in their lives. He looked across the room and saw James playing with a rope (where he'd gotten it was anyone's guess) and was now using it to lasso girls from across the room. Peter was following him about, wide-eyed and curious.
"Hey," Sirius said after the raucous applause, and Remus jumped. "Sorry, D'I scare ya?"
"No," Remus said, a little too high-pitched.
"What'dya say we duck out of here?" Sirius grabbed Remus by the hand, but Remus pulled it away.
"Ha ha," said Remus, trying to brush it off.
"No, Moony." Sirius grabbed his hand again. "I'm not joking."
"Sirius," he hissed, instantly feeling more alert. "Stop messing around. What if they saw you? You have to be careful…" He trailed off as he saw the look on Sirius's crestfallen face.
"Fine," Sirius said. He seemed sober all of a sudden, his eyes more clear and his voice clipped. "'Scuse me…"
He wandered over to where James was and let out a whoop as James lassoed another girl and spun her into Sirius's arms. Remus turned away quickly and made to storm out of the bar, but not before he had seen Sirius plant a large kiss on the pretty blonde's rosy lips.
It was half past one when they finally left. "Wish it was a full moon tonight," James said, hiccupping. He then took his arm off of Peter, who was holding him upright, got on one knee and howled at the moon.
Remus grabbed him by the collar of the shirt. "Don't," he said, in a quietly authoritative voice he rarely had cause to use. Some part of James's consciousness must have registered the change in tone, for he straightened up immediately.
"Are you sober enough to get us out of here?" Peter whimpered. He didn't usually like being out past bedtime.
"Relax, Wormy. We'll make it through in one piece." James sounded serious all of a sudden. With one quick motion, he grabbed both Remus and Peter and dragged them into the darkness.
When they reappeared in Hogsmeade, Remus finally worked up the strength to ask, "What happened to Sirius?"
"He said he'd apparate back with Rosie. Think that was her name," James said indifferently. "Said she lives around here."
"Got it," Remus said stiffly.
"What happened with you guys?" Peter squeaked, running to catch up.
Before Remus could come up with an answer, James cut in. "Mind your business, Pete. It's late. We should hurry on back and get into bed."
The Fat Lady was in rare form. She admonished the boys for waking her up and, taking note of their disheveled appearance, continued her tirade for another five minutes.
"It's a wonder you three haven't been expelled. I'm just thankful your other friend returned at a reasonable hour this evening."
"Sirius?" said Remus, his stomach jolting. "When did he come back?"
"Oh, two hours ago," she said irritably. That struck Remus as odd. He'd expected to see Sirius swagger into breakfast the next morning, slyly hinting at his nighttime escapade with—what was her name? Rosie.
When she finally let them in, the three crept through the common room and climbed the staircase up to their dormitory. Within minutes, Peter's and James's snores could be heard from across the room, but Remus was wide awake. He kept looking over at the bunk where Sirius had drawn the curtains shut.
Steeling himself, he climbed out of bed and tiptoed over. He drew back the curtain with one hand and—
"Moony? What the hell are you doing?"
Remus jumped. "Shhh. I just wanted to see if you were awake."
"I am. What do you want?"
"To apologize. I don't know what I'm apologizing for and don't believe I should have to, but I can't stand when you're angry at me."
Sirius rolled over, facing the other direction. "I don't see that it matters. You're mad at me quite often."
Remus gave an exasperated sigh. "Sirius, I'm not mad, I—"
"There you go again! Sighing at me. You do that all the time."
"Please keep your voice down. I just want to understand."
Sirius rolled back towards Remus, looking him dead in the eye. "And I just wanted to hold your hand."
"You were drunk," said Remus, his voice breaking. "You still are. You don't know what you want."
"I do," said Sirius. "I do know. And every time, every bloody time I try to tell you, you pretend it didn't happen. The next day you just go back to acting like nothing ever happened…"
"Because I don't know if it's real!" whispered Remus furiously. "Because how do I know it's not just Sirius slapping my arse, or drinking a fruity drink, or singing a bloody ABBA song, just messing around being 'funny' like you always do—"
Remus stopped talking. Sirius had grabbed him and pressed his face into Remus's chest. For a moment, they neither moved nor spoke. Remus could feel Sirius's slow, rhythmic breathing against his torso. Then, Sirius looked up.
"It's real," he said simply. They looked at one another for a long moment. Sirius then shifted to make room on the bunk. Remus slowly pulled off his cloak and slid into the bed. Sirius wrapped an arm around Remus's abdomen and laid his head against his shoulder.
"In the morning, you won't be drunk anymore," Remus whispered, closing his eyes and savoring the sensation. "You can play this off as a joke, if you like. I won't blame you."
"Stop," whispered Sirius. "This is what I choose. And anyway, what's all the fuss? Just another secret between friends."
"Just another secret…" Remus whispered. With that, he was asleep.