Selene hiccuped, covering her mouth as she erupted into a fit of giggling. She sat cross-legged on the floor with her group of friends in a circle. She reached for her cup to take another sip, but frowned when she peered into it, seeing that it was empty.

"Sirius?"

"Maybe you don't need anymore." Lily slurred, smiling. "You can hardly sit up straight."

"Neither can you." Selene giggled, leaning back on her hands and tilting her head to stare at the ceiling. How much had she drank already? Maybe four cups now. She felt heavy and fuzzy, and very warm. She felt as though her body had been stuffed with cotton balls. She blinked a few times and sat up straight again, handing her cup to Sirius.

"One more, then'm done."

He poured more rum into her cup and handed it to her, watching her take another drink. Her nose scrunched up in disgust, though she took another sip before speaking.

"Who's next?"

"I believe it's your turn, Remus." Sirius uncrossed his legs, stretching them out in front of them with a heavy sigh.

"Truth or dare, Selene?"

"Uh... truth."

"Come on, Pelletier, you've been picking truth since the game started." Sirius complained. "Stop being a scaredy-cat."

"Not yet. I'm saving my dare."

"You can pick dare more than once." Lily said, swaying a little. James steadied her with a hand on her shoulder. She smiled at him, her cheeks flushed.

Selene shrugged. "I'm saving my dare."

Everyone turned to look at Remus.

"Uh..." he grimaced and rubbed his eyes, staring at the empty cup in his hands. "Bloody hell, I can't think. Biggest fear?"

"Being alone." She hiccuped. "But like, not by myself. I mean like being in a room full of people but feeling like none of them are there for you. That kind of loneliness."

"That's deep." James said quietly, looking a little tired. "I think about that sometimes."

"I did too, until I ran away from home and was basically adopted as a pet by my friends." Sirius said with a silly grin, tipping his cup in James's direction. "Now it's Lily's turn."

"So soon?" She jumped, having clearly been daydreaming. "I pick Selene again. C'mon, truth or dare?"

"Truth."

Sirius groaned irritably, falling back against the floor. "Again!"

Selene ignored him. "Ask away, Lily."

"Have you ever had a boyfriend?"

There was a collective groan from all of the guys. Sirius sat up, looking between Lily and Selene with disbelief.

"Is this a sleepover or an edgy game of truth or dare?" He griped, crossing his arms.

"Shut up, Sirius, I wanna know." Lily snapped. She smiled at Selene. "What about you and Regulus? You two look pretty close."

Selene choked on her drink, coughing and spitting, her throat bathed in flames. She shook her head vehemently, looking both disgusted and in pain.

"No!" She rasped, trying to clear her throat. "No, no, no, absolutely not! Regulus and I are just good friends. There's nothing between us. And I've never had a boyfriend. Or even kissed anyone if you were wondering."

"I forget you're only fourteen." James commented. "Still innocent."

Selene raised an eyebrow. "Fifteen."

"Oh, right." He chuckled. "I forgot this was your birthday party."

"And we're not much older." Remus chimed in, resting his chin on the palm of his hand. "You only just turned sixteen this summer, Sirius."

Sirius rolled his eyes like that were a trivial fact. "Alright, well the confessionary is over. It's time for some dares. My turn. Selene?"

She glanced at him. "Are you telling me or asking me?"

"I'm asking first. But my answer depends on yours." He smirked. "But the result stays the same."

Selene grimaced. "Dare."

"Finally!" Sirius leapt to his feet, with more agility than she thought were possible in their current state, and held out his hand to help her up. "We're gonna go steal something."

Selene pulled her hand back before he could take it. "I'm not stealing anything."

They glared at each other for a moment. "Fine then. I dare you to be my lookout. Come on!"

"We're going to get in trouble!" Selene complained, stumbling after Sirius as he hauled her in the direction of the door. "I'm not a very good lookout! And it's so late now, we're not even supposed to be up. What if Filch catches us? I can't get detention!"

Sirius whirled around, clapping his hands down on her shoulders. "Live a little."

"Maybe we should just stay here a little longer, then go back to our dorms." Selene said weakly, her vision blurring with tears. "I don't—"

"I'll come too." James grunted, pushing himself up from the ground. "I'll stay with Selene while you do whatever."

"Wait, James, you shouldn't go. You're piss drunk." Lily said, grabbing his arm. "None if you should go."

"I can handle it."

"Whatever keeps her from having a panic attack while I'm in the Potions storeroom." Sirius waved over his shoulder, moving towards the door again.

James walked up to Selene, looping his arm through hers. He gave her a warm smile, though his eyes weren't entirely focused. He was as drunk as she was. Selene didn't feel any better about what she was being made to do, but she steeled her resolve and allowed James to lead her out, the two of them trailing behind Sirius at a much slower pace.

"He didn't drink, did he?" Selene whispered, tightening her grip on James's arm. Neither of them were very coordinated.

"I thought he did." James said lamely, rubbing his neck with his free hand. "But he does seem pretty normal right now, huh?"

Selene grimaced. "I don't like this."

"You get used to it." James shrugged. "We actually do this a lot. There's nothing for you to worry about."

"Did you know about this?"

He shook his head. "I had no idea."

"What does he want from the storeroom? Is he planning on making some sort of potion?"

He shrugged again, though we remained silent this time. Selene felt the need to start crying again. If they were caught, they would be in loads of trouble. She would definitely get detention, and if that happened, her mother would find out. What would happen if she were to go home? Selene stayed out of trouble for this very reason. She kept her head down and she stayed quiet. Her friends were not that sort of type. They were going to get her in trouble.

"James, I can't do this." She whispered, breathing hard. "Please take me back."

"I'm sorry, Selene." James whispered back, peering around the corner. When he saw there was no one, he gestured for Sirius to go ahead. They stayed where they were, watching and listening for anyone.

Selene slid to the floor, burying her face in her hands. What had started out as a good night had turned into a disaster.

"I can't leave him. You understand that?" James asked, crouching beside her. She peeked through her fingers. He didn't look mad at her for being such a baby. He just look sympathetic. Maybe he could understand her situation. Then again, maybe he only could guess at what she went through only from hearing about Sirius's family.

"I understand. But I don't have to stay." Her voice shook as she wiped her eyes. "What if we get caught?"

"We won't." James reassured her, using the wall to push himself back to his feet. He swayed a little. "We're pros."

Selene didn't look or feel reassured. She looked around, slowly getting to her feet. She could vaguely hear the sound of Sirius rummaging around in the storeroom, as well as her heart beating in her ears. James was drunk, but he was definitely alert, keeping an eye on his best friend.

Selene didn't like that they were stealing. Well, she wasn't the one stealing, but she was helping them. That made her party to the crime. Her parents would kill her if they found out.

"Alright. I think I've got everything." Sirius said, slightly out of breath as he ran up to them. "But we should probably go. I made a lot of noise."

"Way ahead of you." Selene muttered, grabbing James and pulling him along. She heard Sirius laugh quietly and it pissed her off. This whole thing was his fault. If he hadn't have been so nosy, she would be fast asleep right now, warm and comfortable in her bed—far, far away from tonight's drama.

"So what were you getting anyway?" James asked, slowing down to walk next to Sirius.

"Oh, uh, just a few things."

Selene rolled her eyes. Of course it was a secret. That was the only proof she needed. Sirius had only used her birthday as a means to get what he wanted. Of course, James said that they did that sort of thing all the time, so why hadn't he done this sooner? Why had he waited until now? And why had he dragged her along?

"I'm going to call it a night." Selene said suddenly, turning to face the two of them. "I'm gonna go. Tell Lily I'm sorry for leaving so abruptly. And thanks for everything."

"I'll take you back—"

"I'll do it." Sirius interrupted him. "You guys go back. I need to say a few things anyway."

"Alright." James said, though the expression on his face confused her. "I'll see you later, mate."

"Right." They watched James walk away, though it wasn't until he was gone that Sirius cast his eyes to her, gesturing for them to keep going.

They walked in silence for a while. At some point Selene had reluctantly accepted his arm once more to keep her from falling. It felt as though the floor would suddenly rise and fall, though she knew it remained flat beneath her feet. Her fingertips tingled, cool against Sirius's warmth. The castle got very chilly at night, and despite her jacket she could still somehow feel the cold to her bones.

"I'm sorry to have put you through that." Sirius finally said as they approached the Hufflepuff commons.

"Apology accepted." She said quietly. "I just don't understand. Why did you steal in the first place? You could still get in trouble."

"I won't. Slughorn is thick-headed. He never figures it out." He cleared his throat. "Did you mean what you said earlier? About my brother?"

Selene tried to remember. "Well yeah. He's just my friend. I told you before."

"Right." He looked thoughtful for a moment. "Right, well, I'll leave you alone for now. Sorry again."

"Wait!"

He turned around, an eyebrow raised. "What?"

"Why do you care? Even if there was something there, which there isn't, why would you care?"

"My brother doesn't deserve you."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"He's not like you. And you're nothing like him." He said simply. "Goodnight, Selene."