Hate Myself For Loving You - Chapter 2: It Will Be Beautiful

Disclaimer: I am still without ownership of these adorable characters. sigh

Summary: Remus and James head out to the ball. Oh, and Grimmauld Place isn't exactly what it was in the books. Remember, this is AU, you guys! In the 1800s, at that.

As they made their way up the winding dirt road in the darkness, Remus could feel his nerves kick into overdrive. He had butterflies. He was usually better at controling his emotions, but tonight, he just had a strange feeling something wonderful would happen. He was anxious to know if anything would happen and just how wonderful this thing would be. And if he was going to screw it up.

James seemed to be perfectly fine. And he was. Tonight, he was going to party with London's wealthiest. Hopefully even find a girl. He was dressed handsomely, grinning from ear to ear. He was oozing confidence. Remus glanced at him. When he saw how comfortable his friend looked, it made him even more nervous. His palms flooded with sweat.

Never thought these gloves would actually serve a purpose.

"Uh, James, are-are you sure w-we can get in?" He asked, his anxious feelings surfacing.

James scoffed. "Why would we be going if we couldn't get in?" At the look of doubt on Remus' face, he continued. "Yes, I am sure we can get in. Peter's arranged the whole thing. You'll see."

As they approached the house, they saw how many people were actually there. More than they expected, but not enough to where people were actually on the lawn. Remus wiped his brow.

"Calm down," James insisted.

Halfway up the driveway, James hunched over and took Remus down with him.

Of course, Remus though bitterly, we can't enter like people. No, we're probably going to have to knock the butlers checking invitations in the head.

James jerked his head to the right, indicating their direction. They made it around the side of the house undetected. Suddenly, a door burst open inches from James' face.

"There you are!" A pudgey blonde-haired young man stood before them. He had flour streaked down the right side of his face, and James wasn't sure what color his clothes were, they were such a mess. "I've been waiting. Then again, I have no idea what I was thinking. James Potter, punctual?"

James fake-laughed. "Ha ha, you're so funny."

"Okay, so... how are we getting in?" Remus asked.

Peter groaned. "I told you to tell him! You know how he gets. I'm surprised he even came without knowing the plan."

"Well, I don't think it's as exciting as he thinks it'll be."

"Nonetheless, you should've told him. It would've spared him some of his nerves."

"I knew you would say that. I just wanted to let his mind wander a bit before actually telling him."

"James, you're torturous. He probably thought you were going to- "

"Um, gentlemen, I'm still here and still unaware of our 'plan'! Care to enlighten me?"

James sniffed. "Well, if you're going to get all touchy like th- "

"You're going through the kitchen. My Dad's the cook."

Remus was relieved and slightly disappointed. Usually, James had some complicated and technical plan. He was starting to look forward to knocking a butler in the head. With what, he wasn't sure, but he was positive it would've been exciting.

"Th-that's it?"

"See Pete! I told you he would think it dull." He turned to Remus. "I was trying to convince him to sneak us a couple of frying pans. I figured we could knock the butlers out. We were gonna do it, too, but I just couldn't think of a good enough place to stash the bodies." He sighed heavily.

Remus chuckled. He knew there was a good reason he and James were best mates; great minds, after all, think alike. They stepped over the threshold to the kitchen. The food smelled delicious. James immediately found Mr. Pettigrew, shaking his hand heartily and thanking him for allowing them to sneak through. Remus rolled his eyes. James was quite the charmer, when he chose to be. It was awe-inspiring and sort of scary the way he could get people to do things for him.

After they had finished and Remus had thanked him rather shyly, they pushed open the swinging door, into the brightly lit parlor. It was a grand room, filled with young men and women. Most were flirting, some gossiping, and others were just watching.

Whatever happened tonight, Remus was sure of one thing: It would be beautiful.

Author's Note: Well, yes, that was a bit of a cliffie. Sorry to just leave you guys hanging. I'm sure after I post this, there will be a mob of angry Sirius fan girls at my door. He will be in the next chapter, I promise you. I love writing him so much, so I have to put him in here soon. Still doing the best I can with this time period. I felt like Remus was OOC in this chapter... How am I doing with the characters? Leave a review. Whether you love it or hate it, I wanna know. Tell me how I'm doing so far, and never, I repeat NEVER!, hesitate to suggest something for an upcoming chapter. If I like it, I may use it. I love all of you for reading this far!

XOXO to reviewers!

-Lady Lupin