Disclaimer: Not mine unfortunately…

You wake up hungover, with a blinding headache only aggravated by the open curtains letting light stream into the room. You wonder vaguely who would open the curtains in your room while you were still asleep but decide to abandon that line of thinking as your stomach lurches and head throbs.

You know that you really should stop drinking so much but…it's easier to drink and to forget even if the price is this pain. The pain of knowing what you've done and knowing where you are is far worse.

'Sirius?'

You open your eyes slowly, wincing as the light hits your retinas, and see Remus sitting in an armchair near the bed. Then you remember, it must've been Remus who opened the curtains.

'Mm, wossthematter?' you mumble, your mouth dry.

'You were drinking again.' It's a statement, he's disappointed in you.

'Yeah. So?' You try to sit up, attempt to ignore the nausea and headache.

'You promised me you'd stop.'

'I said…I'd stop while Harry was here,' you correct in a desolate sort of voice.

'Sirius…' he says wearily.

'What?' you demand, becoming angry with his - you think - condescending manner.

'I don't want to come back here to see you passed out on the couch again.'

You shrug, half-closing your eyes against the glare from the window.

'And where did the get the Firewhiskey anyway? There was nothing left in the house yesterday morning.'

'Oh you checked, did you? Don't trust me, eh?'

'I was right not to,' Remus pointed out, frowning at you.

'Well since you also asked every Order member - including Snape - not to buy me any drink,' you make a face,' I went down the road to a Muggle off-licence,' you finish, practically daring him to give out to you.

'What?'

'That's right, I went outside, walked down the road, went to a Muggle shop, and didn't get caught or recognised.'

'Sirius, you can't just-'

'It doesn't matter, no one so much as blinked at me.'

'What if there was a wizard there or something? Or a Death Eater?'

'If there was a Death Eater, you'd have been in as much danger as me,' you point out.

'That's not the point,' Remus persists.

'Remus, I really don't care what the point is at this stage,' you reply, your head feels as though trolls are clubbing it savagely.

'Sirius, I swear to God-'

'Do you have any potion for a hangover? Mine's run out,' you interrupt.

He glares at you for a moment, then stands up and walks out of the room, leaving you and your hangover in peace. You fall back onto the pillow and shield your eyes from the light, cursing werewolves who always seem to be right, the sun and your family.

Five minutes later - though it seems like hours - you hear the door swing open and someone - something - muttering mutinously under his - it's - voice about scum and blood traitors. You groan and tell him - it - to get out. A little while later you open your eyes and glance over at the bedside locker to see a little vial of bright blue liquid, and a note in Remus's handwriting.

Sirius, if you keep on going the way you're going, I swear I will leave you. I can't put up with this any longer. Please Sirius-

You stop reading here, scowling at the little piece of parchment, and scrunch it into a ball and throw it at the wall opposite you. Then you collapse back onto the bad and tell yourself that there aren't any tears in your eyes. Of course there aren't. Why would there be?

AN: this is set before 'You Wake Up Early' and after 'You Wake Up Slowly'. I'm not sure yet how many more of these I'll do, just that there'll be two set after Sirius's death. Please review :D