New Year's Eve/Day.
"Oh come on Moony!" Sirius
whined, "It's New Year! I just went a got you a whole box...the
big boxes... of Honeyduke's chocolate bars..." Remus however
said nothing; he just sniffed nonchalantly and turned the page in the
book he was 'reading'. "A whole box...." Sirius tried again
as if his friend hadn't quite grasped the magnitude of this gesture.
Remus looked at Sirius, he looked so desperate that Remus had to
give in....of course he was planning to anyway he just liked winding
Sirius up, "Fine! Fine! I'll come to your stupid New Year's
party but if you so much as suggest setting me up with Tania
Tregale again I will personally ensure your hair remains unmanageable
for the rest of your life, do you understand?" He warned,
putting his book down on his bed. Sirius nodded, he actually looked
terrified.
The party turned out to be a
reasonable event. The house elves had provided the perfect amount of
food and James had managed to procure several crates of butterbeer
(and Remus was content with his chocolate). Remus stood by the fire
listening to James whine about Lily and how she wasn't taking him up
on any of his date offers..."Yeah but she's not ignoring them
anymore is she?" Remus reasoned, "I think you're trying too
hard, just ask her to the next Hogsmeade weekend, nice and
simple...don't show off and be all extravagant like last time."
"Hey!
The last date I asked her out on was just a simple meeting by the
lake actually!" James said defensively, Remus raised an eyebrow
at him but he was saved the need to retort by Sirius, "Mate, you
asked her to join you on a moonlight boat trip across the lake
complete with views of the giant squid...and you were going to row
the boat yourself...it was a bit pathetic."
Sirius placed a
hand on James' shoulder and took a small piece of parchment from his
pocket, "Anyone up for a bet? Pete's just put one in for 2
galleons that he'll get a New Year's kiss this year..."
James
choked on his drink and Remus laughed, "You might have to pay up
actually Padfoot," he said gesturing towards a chair near the
portrait hole with his bottle, Peter sat in that chair, Helena Walker
(the only girl in their year Sirius hadn't kissed) sat on his lap.
"Oi Pete!" Sirius shouted and chucked a handful of
peanuts at his friend, "It doesn't count if it's before
midnight!" Remus and James chuckled as Peter made a rude hand
gesture but didn't retaliate verbally; his mouth was 'otherwise
engaged'.
As midnight ticked nearer and nearer
James had finally decided he was going to ask Lily to be his New
Year's kiss, something which Sirius had called "suicide". A
few minutes after James' departure, Remus set down his drink and
sighed, he caught Sirius' eye and they both nodded. There was no way
either of them wanted to be taunted by Peter for not getting a kiss.
Sirius strolled over to a group of girls in the year below and struck
up conversation with them with an air of effortless indifference.
That left Remus; he was stood in the same place he had been all
evening, trying desperately to ignore the fact that a certain Miss
Tregale was eyeing him from the opposite wall.
At one minute to
midnight, she began to make her way across the crowded common room to
where Remus stood. He tried once again to ignore her, he could see
Peter was still occupying the chair by the portrait hole and
Helena Walker; Sirius had managed to get one of the girls he was
talking to earlier on her own on the other side of the fireplace from
Remus. James and Lily were talking to each other by the staircases to
the dormitories.
Tania was right beside him now...Remus swallowed
nervously.
"10" the countdown on
the wireless had begun.
"9" the whole room echoed the
seconds. He glanced sideways into Tania's expectant
eyes.
"8...7...6...5..." There was nothing for it, he
would rather kiss Tania Tregale then endure the taunts of his friends
for being the only one who didn't get a new year's kiss, he turned to
face her, her eyes lit up excitedly, "3...2...1...."
Remus
sighed softly, so Tania wouldn't hear..."Happy New Year..."
he muttered quietly and leant down as Tania shifted forwards
expectantly.
He was kissing Tania Tregale...
Remus lay face down on his bed; his
head under the pillow waiting for his friend's to come up from the
party in the common room.
The door opened and Remus groaned he
knew what was coming. "Alright Moony?" James said, sitting
on Remus' feet (deliberately). Remus could tell without looking that
James was grinning...
"Go on then Prongs, tell me all about
it...I know you're dying to..." With that, James launched into
an extensive break down of his and Lily's first kiss which Remus was
quite willing to endure as it meant there was less time for James to
taunt him.
However, five minutes into this enthralling
description of James' kissing technique, Peter and Sirius burst
happily into the room. They both joined James on Remus' bed.
"Well
well well Moony..." Sirius said patting Remus playfully on the
back. Remus groaned again.
"What's this?" Peter said,
picking up on the fact that Sirius usually reserved that tone for
tormenting people...
"Dear old Moony here got a new year's
kiss off of Tania Tregale."
Someday Remus was going to wipe
that smug grin off of Sirius' face...and it was this thought that got
him through the following 3 hours of "Moony loves Tania, Moony
loves Tania" whilst being pelted with pillows.
