The Morning After:

Blurb: James scowled. "You have no idea, just how much I hate you right now."

A/N: Written for the 'Lucky Dip' challenge at the HPFC Forum. This was rushed and it's not really my best, so do forgive the mistakes, etc. It was v. fun to write, so Kudos goes to BadMum for setting this! I was given this title, and the characters of James, Sirius, Regulus and McGonagall.

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"What the hell have you done?!"

Sirius yelled across the common room, early the next morning. James, who had just toppled of the sofa next to him, winced and covered his ears with his hands. His head was still pounding from the night before: a night, which as of now, he most definitely wanted to forget.

"I don't know mate! I wasn't..."

Sirius interjected with a loud snap of his fingers, as he reached for his wand.

"Then why is my little brother sat in a drunken stupor, in the middle of the Gryffindor common room?"

James blanched and was quick to move behind an armchair for safety, before replying jokingly.

"He walked in here and found Firewhiskey?"

At this, Sirius nearly lost it. Yellow sparks erupted from the end of his wand, before he flicked it violently in the air, causing a nearby cabinet to set on fire.

"Woah!" shouted James, leaping from behind the armchair, wand held aloft.

"Augamenti! ...What's barking up your tree this morning, Padfoot?"

Sirius sighed and flopped into the nearest chair he could find, ignoring the smoke that was now billowing from the burnt cabinet behind him.

"McGonogall's coming..." he mumbled in a very Sirius-unlike way, slumped in the chair.

"What did you say?" James leant forward theatrically, hand cupped over his ear.

Sirius tried again, this time sitting up a little straighter in the chair.

"I said that Moony's girlfriend is coming..."

James' eyes widened in shock and then, in mild horror.

"What?! McGonagall?"

He nearly tripped over himself, trying to get to his friend and then latched himself onto the front of his robes.

"Please, tell me that isn't true. ...She'll kill us!"

Sirius groaned.

"Precisely Prongs. Removing my brother from this mess would be a good start to clearing it up."

James nodded wordlessly as he leapt over toward the unmoving form of Regulus Black, who was drooling very fetchingly on the carpet.

"Wipe up that crap and then move him. Shove him upstairs, on my bed."

There was a slight pause, as James turned toward Sirius and scowled.

"You have no idea, just how much I hate you right now."

"Oh for Merlin's sake, just do it!!" cried his friend in response, who looked as though he was going to cry tears of desperation at any moment.

It took several tries and many complaints on James' part, but eventually the pair managed to haul Regulus up the stairs and into the boy's dormitory. Once they were back outside in the common room, James promptly punched Sirius in the arm.

"You so owe me for that."

Wincing, Sirius' only response was to waltz past his friend nonchalantly and flick several rude hand signals in his direction.

"Why you little –!" James started and launched himself at his friend.

...And so the fight began. Several punches were thrown, until a very unwelcome cough sounded throughout the common room. The boys instantly froze.

"Oh sh-"came Sirius' voice from the floor, muffled by the carpet as James currently had the young man in a headlock.

"Professor McGonagall!" cried James, standing up hastily and brushing down his robes. Sirius stood up quickly behind him, looking somewhat dishevelled and sporting a cut lip.

McGonagall said nothing. Instead, she stood amongst the mess surveying the two boys, before she finally spoke.

"One hundred points from Gryffindor and detention, for two months. Clear this mess up immediately and please Mr Black, remove your younger brother from your dormitory and take him to the Hospital Wing. Madam Pomfrey is expecting him..."

Then, the Transfiguration teacher turned wordlessly back around and walked out of the Gryffindor common room as quietly as she had come in.

For a while, James and Sirius just stood there speechless.

Then James broke the silence, staring after the Deputy-Headmistress in transfixed awe.

"How the hell did she know?!"

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