I'm sure everyone has experienced that single sensation you get when you have a little more than just one glass of firewhiskey – or any whiskey for that matter. You know what I mean: the head lightness, like nothing could go wrong, the really high self esteem, the overconfidence, and the thoughts that you can do whatever you want and it won't matter, because you're the bloody King of the world during those moments.
Yeah, really nice, isn't it?
You know what isn't nice though? To wake up the next morning and remember shit of what you've done the night before. Even worst? To wake up the next morning, with a bloody headache and don't remember anything you've done the night before.
"Prongs, hurry up. Breakfast is waiting!"
Worst than that, thought, is having to ask your best friends how many stupid things you said the night before. And have them tease you endlessly.
"Hey, guys, can I ask you something before we go down?"
Catching their attention was the easiest part. I can see their lips curving up just as I call them. They're dying to have a laugh out of me.
"Did I… you know… do something I shouldn't last night?"
Sirius is always the first to react.
"Well, you did a strip-tease in front of the whole common room, you danced around naked and… oh, you said you were gay and were tremendously in love with Snivellus, and that was why you chased Lily."
I never believe what Sirius says, though. He likes to spice things up a little, you know what I mean?
Peter speaks next.
"You did dance in front of the common room, but with your boxers on. You proclaimed to hate them, though, and that you loved wearing girl's underwear. You also proclaimed you were pretty much gay."
Yeah… I don't trust what Peter says in these times either. He and Sirius like to play with my mind far too much. So I turn to the most reliable source.
"You danced completely dressed in the common room. You said that if you were gay you'd never date Snivellus, and that you loved Lily. The usual."
That's the problem with my three best friends. Not even the most reliable source is very reliable. This is when I look at the three very seriously and hope they'll crack and tell me what I really did the night before.
Usually, they'd start laughing like it was a very fun joke between them for about ten minutes before one of them took pity on me and told me the true. However, this time was different. They didn't laugh. They… smiled. They smiled at me like I was a small child who had no idea what he is doing in the world.
"Prongs, I'm proud of you this time. First time you've ever behaved when you have had a couple of drinks."
As Sirius spoke, I couldn't help but look at him weirdly.
"Behave? So I didn't dance naked and said I was gay?"
"I daresay no one in this school is ever calling you gay again. Ever."
When did anyone called me gay, anyway? James Potter here, for crying out loud!
"Many people call you gay, James. Not the point." Remus says. It was weird how they could read me so well.
"So... What did I do?" I ask.
They just kept looking at me with big smiles. And, to be honest, I was starting to freak a little.
"You know, I think I'm going down for breakfast," Sirius says, and, as he says it, I finally realize how serious they are about this. Whatever I did, it must've been really good.
"Yeah, me too."
"Hey, hey, hey!" I say, stopping them from leaving. "Aren't you telling me what happened?"
"You'll find out soon enough."
And they left, just like that.
I, on the other hand, decided I could very much skip breakfast. Headache, hangover and food early in the morning are three things that don't go very well together. Besides, Merlin knows what the heck I did last night; Merlin, and probably the entire castle by now. So I better just stay quietly upstairs.
Unfortunately, Merlin had other plans for me.
"HEY, POTTER! GET YOUR ASS DOWNSTAIRS, NOW!"
Oh, the dulcet voice of my dear beloved Evans. I think this time she succeeded in making me head explode. Seriously.
"POTTER, YOU BETTER HURRY UP! YOU DEFINETLY DON'T WANT ME TO GO GET YOU!"
Actually, that might not be such a bad idea. Me and my dear Lily in my bed... bedroom, I mean. Bedroom. You know, talking. Me and Lily. Just talking. In my bedroom.
"JAMES POTTER!"
Yeah, I better go.
"What is it Evans, that it couldn't even wait until my head stopped spinning?" I ask as I arrive to the common room, having practically jumped out of bed, still in the same clothes I wore last night – at least until where I can remember.
"Did you mean it?" she asks, and I see as everyone who's in the common room, instead of the usual staying and watching the show that normally follows, starts leaving. To my chagrin, I recognise the smiles on their faces, the exact same ones my so called friends had this morning.
"Seriously Evans, my head is almost exploding. Can't we leave this for another time? You know I love you, but I can barely think right now."
She completely ignores me and shakes me by grabbing my shoulders. Or she tries to shake me, seeing as dear Lily isn't all that strong.
"Did you mean it?"
The reflex question would be "Did I mean what?", but somehow I was quite sure that wasn't the right thing to say. What the hell did I do last night?
"James?"
James?
"Huh... Yeah, I did mean it." I say, hoping it's the right thing. Anything to go back to bed.
"Thank you. For everything. It made me really happy."
And then she turns around on me and leaves the common room. Just like that.
Evans just called me James, said "Thank you" for something I did (though I can't remember what), did not yell at me during our conversation and left without trying to hex me.
At this point, I'm starting to really fear whatever I've done.
"Hello again, dear Prongs," Sirius says about half an hour later when he enters our room, where I've been hiding ever since Evans spoke to me.
"Padfoot, you know you're my best friend in the whole world, don't you?"
"I'm sorry James, but I am not giving you my hangover potion. I'm saving it."
"That was not wha—wait! You have a hangover potion and didn't hand it to me? Can you not see how I'm suffering?"
Sirius just laughs at me.
"Did you want something or that was it?"
"Evans came to speak to me," I say.
Sirius looks at me and smiles, "Really, now? What did she want?"
"She asked me if I meant it."
"And what did you say?"
"I said yes. Was that a bad call?"
Sirius laughs again. "Depends on your point of view."
"What?"
"You amuse me so much!"
"Sirius!"
But he just ignores me and leaves the room, just like Evans.
It was about diner time when I decided it was time to find out by myself what I had done the night before. So, gathering up the Potter courage, I left the room and walked to the Great Hall.
As expected, due to some really idiotic thing I did last night, people keep staring at me as if I am an alien. Some smile, some point really interested, some seem like they want to send my sorry ass back home.
I sit down opposite Peter, who was the only present marauder. I keep staring at him – learn with me people, when you want Wormtail to tell you something, just keep staring at him. He'll crack eventually.
He notices I'm looking at him and stares at his food instead of looking me in the eyes. Eventually, he looks up at him a sighs.
" I can't tell you Prongs. Padfoot will kill me. For real."
I just kept staring. He'll crack all right.
"Please, James. Don't do this. I can't say anything."
Not a word leaves my lips. Peter stares around a little more, moves a lot in his chair and, finally, gives up.
"Don't tell Padfoot it was me."
I smile. And that's why I'm the king of this school.
"Here's what happened..."
"Prongs, mate, I think you had too much already," Remus Lupin said, coming up to his very drunk friend, James Potter, "Let me take that bottle for you."
"Nonsense! Sirius is way drunker than me!" He pointed out in his marvellous state of mind.
Sirius Black, the other friend, was now running from Peter Pettigrew, the fourth friend, with two bottles of an unknown drink in his hand, all because Peter was trying to stop him from drinking,
Remus rolled his eyes and sighed. "Yes, but let me just say this to you, Sirius has some hidden Hangover potion for tomorrow. You, on the other hand, don't."
James opened his mouth to speak, but Remus stoped him.
"And no, he won't give you any. Especially because tomorrow you won't even remember he has some."
James was about to whine a little more for his drink, but Lily Evans suddenly descended the stairs from the girl's dormitory. All his attention was lost to her, and Remus successfully took the drink from him.
"Okay, Gryffindors, I know we won against Ravenclaw today, believe me, I'm very happy for you all, but now it's time to SHUT THE FUCK UP!"
Evans, the current Head Girl, has quite a temper. Especially when it was three in the morning and she could not sleep. She got quite pissed at such times.
Unfortunately for the red head, almost everyone was too drunk to hear her.
"People, I'm not kidding! I'm five seconds I'll start handing over detentions!"
Again, no one heard her. Oh, except James Potter, of course. And, even though he was drunk beyond belief, he climbed on a table, decided to help her.
"Everyone!"
Contrary to what had happened to Lily, everyone, but everyone, went quiet as they heard James.
"I may be a little drunk, but the Head Girl is speaking! She says quiet, we shut up! Especially because that girl is the one I love, the sole reason for me to breathe, let alone play! And we won today thanks to me, therefore, thanks to her! And if she wants us to break the party, we will!"
Lily was kind of amazed. He had always been the one who never wanted to end parties that were related to that stupid sport.
Of course, what amazed her the best was how he managed to finish his speech before passing out and falling from the table, hitting his head on the floor, only to wake up and get up like nothing had happened. Oh, and fainting seconds later.
"And that was it." Peter said. I keep staring at him confusedly.
"That was it? Then why all this talk? It's not like that's any new."
I mean, everyone knew I loved her. What's the deal now?
And I just knew my head hurt more than most days. Did I really fall off a table?
"It was enough for Evans to say she liked you right before you fell off the table. And yes, you did fall off the table."
...
She said what?
"She said she liked me? For real? You're kidding me, right?"
Meanwhile, Sirius and Remus arrive and sit next to us.
"Guess Peter couldn't hold it in?" He asks, giving Peter the eye. And by this I mean the you're-so-dead eye.
"Why didn't you tell me, prick?"
Sirius laughs at my face. "Because it was fun to see you all worried about whatever was that you'd done that made us so proud. By the way, I was only proud of the part where you fainted twice in one minute."
I smile. Evans was sitting at the other end of the Gryffindor table.
"Hey, Evans!"
She looks up.
"Yeah?"
"Go out with me!"
She laughs at my stupid line.
"Fine!"
A.N.: First one shot in years. The end is kind off crappy, but well, I guess I'm out of practice.
Review:)
Hannah