Author's note: Dedicated to my beloved friend, housemate, and fellow Gryffindor Marimba Panda.

Well, here's the story with this one: I started writing this back in December in a fic exchange with my friends. One of them wanted short but smutty Remus/Lily, which is one of my favorite HP pairings. The prompt was Remus and Lily are the only ones in Gryffindor Tower over Christmas break. And then this fic started to take on a life of it's own. I'm over half way done but thought I'd start posting the days to keep me motivated. Originally I had meant for this to be a short one-shot but at this point I think making each day a chapter makes perfect sense.

Also I'm completely maxed out on uploadable stories atm on this site, so I really need to keep posting. More Hetalia coming, but this one HP will be mixed in with it.

After-After-Party

23rd

"Write me every day?" Sirius whispers, one hand on the back of Remus's head holding their faces together. His lips almost brush against Remus's in that complicated relationship they have, not quite friends but not quite lovers. The other Marauders ignore them, so used to it by now.

"I promise," Remus says, kissing Sirius because it's nice to have someone care about him. He might not love Sirius like that, but he still loves him.

"Don't have too much sex while we're gone," James calls from his bed.

"All the sex," Remus jokes. "On your bed."

"It is where the magic happens." With a wink and a hug James leaves, Peter following. Sirius holds him for several minutes before kissing Remus's neck and saying goodbye.

And like that Remus has two weeks to himself in the dorms. What ever was a sixth year Gryffindor boy to do?

He's pretty sure the answer isn't to read Shakespeare in his favorite seat by the fire, but there is rarely any other time to read for Remus between prank pulling and a needy Sirius and a delusional James and a who-even-knows Peter. Remus was almost certain he was alone in the tower until there's a tut behind him.

"That's my chair," a voice whispers in his ear, a voice he knows from weekly rounds of Prefect duties, from years spent in the same class, from watching Lily be hit on and rejecting James each time.

"Make me move," Remus challenges, closing his book to look at her. "I thought you went home," he adds much more seriously. She shakes her head.

Lily moves to sit on his lap and though it makes him blush he lets her. Lily does things like this sometimes, rests her head on his shoulder, loops her arm in with his. Remus doesn't know why she does it but he also doesn't stop her, his heart beating faster despite how much he doesn't want it to. Sirius needs him and James is in love with her. He shouldn't like it when she does things like this as much as he does.

Red hair tucks itself under his chin as she settles against his chest. "How much longer will this war go on?" They both know most students went home to be with their families, the war intensifying; it doesn't leave hope for many more calm Christmas breaks like this one.

"I don't know Lily," Remus says, his eyes on the fire. Two arms wrap around his frail torso; Remus has become used to being the one to comfort Lily in quiet moments like this, at night or in the library or during rounds, when the fear creeps up unexpectedly. So he wraps his arms around her too, kissing her hair as if she was Sirius, someone he could love so easily but doesn't, instead of Lily, someone who would never be easy to love but he loves with every fiber of his body. And he reads aloud from his book because maybe if they leave this world for the world of fiction, even for a few hours, they'll come back to find the war is over and they've won.