Against his will, Remus rolled out of bed the next morning. Carelessly, he dressed himself and tried his best to rid his mouth of the horrid after taste of last night's rounds of firewhiskey and dragon ale. His fellow Marauders were in no better shape. Remus tried his best to pull Sirius from his bed, but the sleeping mutt wouldn't budge and begged to be left alone.
"It'll be the best birthday present you could give me," Sirius grumbled into his pillow.
Remus gave up and looked over at James, who was lying in bed with his eyes open. "I'll make it to Herbology," he sighed, covering his forehead with his hand. "I promise. Sirius will be there too," he added after taking note of Remus' grimace.
"I reckon you're staying too then?" Remus spat at Peter.
"He can't," Sirius answered from under his blankets. "He's got to take notes for us since you abandoned our classes."
Peter's face fell into a frown but he began to dress himself anyway. Remus glanced at his watch and realized he would have to skip breakfast. No bother to him since he felt like a walking corpse and was certain the smell of food might make him nauseated. He would have liked to walk with Peter until they had to split ways, but the chubby Gryffindor made no rush to get to class and the irritation in Remus was reaching a peak.
"I'll see you later," he mumbled, and made his way out of the dormitory and through the common room. Remus wished he could afford to sleep in and miss a few classes. Damn McGonnagall for filling his schedule with an unholy amount of impossible subjects. If his schedule remained the way he made it, he would be able to sleep until the afternoon. However, things rarely went his way. Why should they start now? If it were up to him he would be in his soft four poster bed with his face buried into his pillow, continuing the dream he so unwillingly awoke from. He had been sitting in his backyard at home with the warm sun on his skin, reading some novel aloud with a girl in his lap as he stroked her hair. He tried to rack his brain and remember the color. Brown, maybe, with a reddish tint. There was definitely red involved…
Suddenly, Remus smashed his face into a head of very red hair. It seemed as he tangled himself in his thoughts, he paid no mind to the portrait hole opening, or Lily when she walked through it.
"I'm so sorry!" she shouted, rubbing the top of her head vigorously.
Remus ran his tongue over his teeth to make sure none cracked when his chin collided with Lily's head. "S'alright," he said calmly. That little bump was not going to help his headache in the next few minutes.
Recognition flashed across Lily's face. "Remus!" she exclaimed. "I came up here to look for you! What have you done to your face?"
Remus flinched as Lily slapped her hands on his cheeks and stroked them with her thumbs. It took him a few seconds to think of what she could be talking about until he remembered he never removed the enchantment he put on himself to grow facial hair. He shrugged lightly and closed his eyes as he enjoyed the tickling of his whiskers in her hands. "Forgot to shave this morning," he answered.
Lily pulled her hands away and began rummaging through her bag. "Yes, Frank mentioned you and your lot might not be in the best condition. You were drunk last night, weren't you?" Lily asked sternly, crossing her arms over her chest.
"I wasn't drunk, but I did drink," he answered dishonestly.
Lily snorted and rolled her eyes. "I suppose I should let you suffer then, shouldn't I?" she questioned bitterly. "Let you snore through class, watch you struggle to keep up and fail all your classes. I should let you be the first student ever to have to repeat a grade in Hogwarts, don't you think?"
The dreamy light headedness Remus felt a few seconds ago as he imagined himself in bed evaporated as quickly as it came. He shot her a nasty look. Perhaps she knew that she was hitting him below the belt and just didn't care because she didn't soften her expression in the slightest.
"I suppose if you think that's what I deserve for celebrating my best mate's birthday," he said icily.
Her eyes narrowed. "No, I don't think that's what you deserve. But I want you to realize the severity of the consequences you could face if you were ever caught. Sneaking around the castle? Consuming alcohol when underage? On school grounds, no less. Or maybe you snuck out into the village!" he ranted. "Do you realize what could happen to you? Prefect badge revoked, expelled, and damned to a life of being an innkeeper in Wales."
"What's wrong with Wales?" he asked defensively.
"Don't be cheeky," she spat. "The point is you shouldn't risk so much for one night. Do you understand?"
Remus grimaced and stared at the ferocious red head before him. She sounded too much like a nanny. His mother would love to know he's being chastised at school for his behavior. Just what he needs, another mum. But, instead of dragging it out, Remus nodded in defeat.
"We're already going to be late by the time we get to the dungeons," he informed her. "We should probably go."
As he made his way around Lily, she grabbed the front of his robes and pulled him away from the portrait hole. When Remus looked at her in confusion, she let go of him and flattened the wrinkles she made in his clothes. He wished she would stop touching him as a familiar tingling sensation made its way into stomach.
"I should let you suffer you know," she said, continuing to run her hands along his robes. "I'm only gonna do this once so don't think I'll always be here to bail you out."
Unsure if he should stop her from absentmindedly touching him or enjoy it while it lasted, Remus asked "What are you talking about?"
Sighing, Lily dropped her hands to her bag and pulled out a small vial filled with red and black liquid. "I got it from Madam Pomfrey," she explained. "Pepper-Up should have you feeling better and attentive so you can survive the day."
Remus took the vial from her hand and grinned. "You're a true friend, Ms. Evans," he said before popping the cork from the vial and drained the red and black speckled potion. Instantly a small puff of smoke omitted from his nose as a warm sensation filled him from head to toe. The symptoms of sluggishness and aches were flushed away and he felt as good as new. In fact, it was arguable that he felt downright chipper. He handed Lily the empty vial, grabbed her by her ears, ignored her squeal of confusion, and placed a smooch on her pale forehead.
Her face was a deeper shade red than her hair. "What was that for?" she asked as hastily pushed the empty vial back into her bag.
"Because, my dear, I feel perfectly well and it's wonderful," he answered, pushing her nose as if it were a red honking horn.
"indeed it is," she huffed. "But we're going to be late to class if we don't get a move on!"
Together they went through the portrait hole and made their way down the staircase and to the dungeons. Lily kept nagging to pick up his pace, but Remus paid her no mind as he glanced out the frosty grounds through the windows. Winter was making it's debut rather early this year. Usually when he took the pepper-up potion it was after a full moon and it hardly had an effect on him. Now that his symptoms were so mild, it was what he imagined drinking pure gold felt like. Mildly disgruntled with Lily's constant tugging of his robe sleeves, he raced her down to Slughorn's classroom. As soon as he made it to the wooden door, Remus regretted being so cheeky. The warmth that flooded him quickly evaporated and he felt extremely mediocre again.
"That's what you get for running," Lily sneered as she watched him catch his breath.
"I suppose you're right as always," he sighed, trying to catch his breath. "I'm not in any pain though so I'm fine with that."
That was, until he noticed the instructions for the Escitalopram potion they were supposed to brew that day. The ingredients were an unpleasant mix of wonderful aromas and wretched odors. Wisteria petals, fish liver, honey, pickled pixie wings, and down the list of ingredients Remus read until he gave up and asked Lily what the hell the purpose of this potion was.
"It's a mood stabilizer," she answered sharply. "If you weren't so busy drawing in your textbook you would have heard Professor Slughorn!"
Remus shrugged and admired the doodle of the Gryffindor lion that decorated the margin of his book. "Hey Rachel, shouldn't you be a professional at brewing these kinds of potions?"
"Sod off, Lupin," she scowled.
Remus imitated a flinch. "I suppose they don't work so well for you. I'd suggest you add more asphodel powder."
Without warning, Rachel flung her wand in Remus direction and muttered "Langlock!"
Remus felt his tongue glue itself to the roof of his mouth. Unfortunately for him, Remus had no yet mastered inaudible spells. He pointed his wand to his chin and tried his hardest to undo the jinx. After his fourth unsuccessful attempt, he made a groaning noise and looked at Lily for help.
She did not meet his gaze no matter how much he grunted at her. After his third guttural squeak, she shook her head and said, "You did that one to yourself, Remus. I can't help you."
Remus huffed and puffed and tried to explain without opening his mouth that he would need to vocalize in order to complete his potion or all the struggle she went through to get the pepper-up potion for him would be a waste because he would fail the day's work anyway. However, Lily continued to work in her cauldron and did not respond when Rachel said "Merlin, he's more annoying when he can't speak."
He hissed at Rachel and went back to chopping, grinding, and mixing his ingredients while simultaneously trying to unlock his tongue. He felt it wiggle a little on one of his attempts, but nothing came of it. It wasn't until he was purple in the face from concentration that he felt his tongue peel fro the roof of his mouth.
"Finally!" he exclaimed to himself. With few minutes to spare, he worked as fast as he could to get his potion up to par. in comparison to Lily's, he was a few shades away from the described hue.
"Professor, how are we going to test this potion?" Rory-blasted-Shepards asked aloud.
"A color test will suffice a long with the correct chemical balance," the rounded professor answered. He held up a little stick that was no bigger than a quill that a vary amount of colors and number to it. "The proper potion will have a reading in the yellow margin, or somewhere close to it if you missed a step or two. If you will all step away from your cauldrons, I will come examine."
Remus peaked at Rachel's and grinned as he saw her potion looked more like tar than something digestible. She met his gaze with a look of pure murder. Remus shrugged his shoulders at her potion and mouthed an insincere apology before watching Slughorn dunk the little glass rod into his cauldron.
"Ah! A slight off the mark but you are improving, my dear boy!" Slughorn said happily. "I see making the right friends has been beneficial for you!"
"I think so too, Sir," Remus agreed. Rachel made a gagging sound behind him and was quickly shushed when Lily kicked her foot underneath the table.
Slughorn made his way around the class and announced Lily the greatest student to ever grace Hogwarts like he did every other day of the week. The three gathered their things and made their way up the staircase bickering back and forth until Remus found James, Sirius, and Peter waiting for him at the top of the stairs.
"Made it to class then?" Remus asked the silem looking lot of Gryffindors.
"Said we would, didn't we?" Sirius grumbled. "Why do you look less miserable than we do?"
Remus shrugged and then turned his attention to Lily who stood by him with an impatient Rachel. "Mind if I walk with them to class?"
Taking the hint surprisingly well, Lily nodded and looped her arm through Rachel's. "Not a problem. I shall see you later, Remus," she said and continued her journey through the corridor.
The four boys walked towards the Charms classroom. Sirius seemed to have over-celebrated his birthday judging b the frown and winces of pain he made every time a loud noise erupted from somewhere in the castle. James didn't look too hot either but he wasn't in the same boat as Sirius. He at least tried to joke around. Peter kept asking the two if they needed anything or if he could carry their things for them.
"What are we doing for the holidays?" James questioned as they entered the classroom. "There will be a Christmas dinner at my house. Sirius will be there this year. He's staying the whole break with me."
"Can I stay too?" Peter squeaked.
"For a few days, if you'd like," James nodded. "Not the whole time though. My mum will have ripped out all of her hair by sundown if all of us are there together. IS your mum gonna do Christmas tea, Moony?"
"I dunno," Remus answered, taking his seat. "I'll have to ask her. Nor sure my dad will be up for company so close to the...you know."
James nodded knowingly and looked around for eavesdroppers. "Got ya. Well, let us know. I love your mums apple kugle. Maybe if I send her an owl she'll make it."
"Wouldn't hurt to try, I suppose," Remus shrugged. "You'll have to ask your mum to make onion soup for me if my mum makes the kugel.
"Deal," James agreed. "I'll write her during lunch."
After Charms the clan went to the Great Hall for lunch and wrote their respective pleas for their favorite foods. Sirius didn't fancy walking in the cool November air so he stayed behind in the warm castle with Peter. Remus and James walked to the owlery, wrapped in winter gear, to send their letters. Remus brought some owl treats he bought on his last Hogsmeade trip with him for Widget. Perhaps his moody owl would be more willing to make a hasty return if he was bribed.
"What do you want for Christmas, Moony?" James asked as they ascended the stone staircase to the owlery.
"I'm not sure," he answered honestly. "I wouldn't mind a good coat or perhaps a nice hat for winter."
"You want clothes?" James chuckled. "I think you've been hanging out with the girls too much, mate."
"Alright, I want a new beater's bat to knock you over the head with," Remus joked. "Maybe it'll help me knock some sense into you."
"That sounds like a more Moony-esque answer. Wait," James whispered, holding his hand to stop Remus as they neared the top of the stairs. "Do you hear that?"
Remus paid attention to the air around him and heard what James was referring to. Someone familiar was crying in the owlery.
"Maybe we should come back later," Remus suggested. "Give them some privacy."
James ignored the idea and continued into the owlery with his hands flying into his hair to rumple it up. "No need to cry, Evans. I'll always give you another chance to say yes to a date with me. How about the last Hogsmeade trip before the holidays?"
Remus, who waited outside the door, smashed his head against the stone pillar in despair as James made a giant horse's arse out of himself. It took only a second before Lily registered James' stupidity and lack of tact before she started her usual fit. Remus could almost recite it word for word. He even mouthed half of it to himself. 'You disgust me, James Potter! I will never go out with someone as wretched and big-headed as you! One day you're going to realize how small you are and I will be there to laugh in your face, you foul swine!' By the time she reached the part about hexing his hair off, Remus made his presence known by appearing into the room.
James looked at him absolutely horrified as a red-faced tear stained Lily stood and inch from him with her finger a centimeter from his eyeball. James must have noticed his mistake by now, thank Merlin, and shouted at Remus for help.
"I think you should just go, mate," Remus advised calmly. "I'll send your owl and I will see you later."
James nodded vigorously, handed Remus his scrolled, made an attempt to apologize to Lily before he was screamed at again, and dashed out of the owelry.
Remus stood away from Lily and watched as her fury turned back into tears. She tried to hold it in and breathe away the heartache but a few tears kept escaping.
"Should I go?" Remus asked quietly, stuffing his hands in his coat pockets.
Lily shrugged and shook her head.
"Wanna talk about it?" he pressed.
Again, she shook her head. Then slowly, she stuck out her hand with a scrunched up piece of paper in it. Remus carefully unfolded it and began to read.
Lily,
I don't care about what you think your plans are for Christmas. I am going to spend Christmas eve and with Vernon's family in Little Whinging and so is mum and dad. They are insisting that you are allowed to be there but I have not yet decided. There are a few rules that I need you to agree to before I even consider it. First, you can't talk about that freak school you go to or any of your weird friends. You are most certainly NOT allowed to bring that greasy little snake with you either. He will never be seen by Vernon or anyone in the Dursley family. If anybody asks where you study, your answer will be 'abroad'. Second, you will not speak unless spoken to. I will not have you blab about anything and steal away the attention of Vernon's parents with your ridiculous stories or tall tales. I tried to convince mother to let me tell them you've been in a loony bin, but she won't allow it. So I am telling you that you are to stay quiet at all times!
For New Years the Dursleys will be out our house. It would be most helpful if you found somewhere else to go. If none of your freak friends will let you go with them, then the same rules I stated earlier apply. All moving pictures, those ludicrous newspapers you send dad, anything related to what you are or your world will be removed from the house. That ridiculous twig of yours must be out of sight and never brought out.
I expect a letter back immediately so I can tell the Dursleys if you will be joining us or not. Mum and Dad want you there, but I would rather you stay far away from my future family. They don't know about what you are and I hope they never ever find out.
-Petunia E.
Rage flooded his blood. How dare this cow talk to her own sister like this! Forbidding her to speak? Asking to spread rumors about her placement in an asylum? Not even wanting her around? The audacity! The nerve! Remus couldn't take it. He crumpled the letter in his fist, threw it on the ground, and pulled out his wand.
"Incindeo!" he shouted. Lily jumped at his sudden outburst, but watched as the letter burst into flames and melted before their eyes.
"When did she become so hateful?" Lily mumbled to herself. "She wasn't always this bad."
Remus advanced towards Lily and shook his head. "It doesn't matter how she got there, she just is. I'm sorry, Lily. She shouldn't talk to you that way or treat you like this. You're her sister for Merlin sake!"
"That doesn't seem to matter much," she continued to mumble. "I don't matter much."
"Don't even start," he snapped. "Don't believe that for a second, Lily Evans. You matter a great deal to quite a few people."
"Just because James Potter has a marked me as his one true love does not mean I matter." she snorted.
Remus couldn't control the rise in his temper. "Yes it bloody well does! That means you matter to him! If you weren't around, he'd probably fling himself from the top of the castle. So would Rachel. And Shana, and Denise, and Serverus Snape, and that first year girl that follows you around, and Michael Crenshaw, and the Ravenclaw third year you hexed his bullies for. And me. Most definitely me. You matter to a lot of people so don't think for a second that you don't matter because your rotten sister thinks she's better than you!"
Lily avoided looking him in the eye until now. "Do you really think that's true?" she asked with a blank expression.
"No, I don't think it's true," he scoffed. "I know it's true! Your sister sees you twice a year and you thinks that's enough time to figure out your net worth? The whole castle spends more time with you than she does and guess what, everyone loves you."
"The Slytherins don't love me," she countered, staring intently at him.
"The Slytherins aren't people," he replied sharply. "The only one with half a heart is Slughorn and he love you a little too much."
Lily dropped her gaze. "I suppose you're right."
Remus felt his intensity drop. "I am right. Who cares about what your sister thinks when there are so many other people you care about and who care about you?"
"Do you care about me, Remus?" she asked, staring at the freckles on her hands.
"Of course I do," he answered. "I would hope you know that by now."
"How much?" she questioned.
"Quite a bit, I'd say. You're one of my closest friends."
"As close as Potter?"
Remus nodded. "Yes, just about."
Lily returned her eyes to meet his. "Good. You're one of my closest friends, too."
Remus attempted a smile. "I'm glad to hear it."
Lily nodded and looked up at the rows and rows of owls that perched themselves along the rods and windows. "Did you come up here to send a letter?"
Remus completely forgot about his original intent after his little tirade. We called Widget down from his perch and tied a letter to each leg and gave him a large biscuit for the trip. Surprisingly, Widget let Lily stroke his feathers a few times before he took off through the window and made his way across the grounds.
"I'm certain lunch is over," Remus reminded her. "We should probably head back."
Lily nodded in agreement but didn't follow him out of the owlery. When Remus realized he was alone halfway out of the door, he turned and looked at Lily in confusion. "Something wrong?"
Instead of answering, Lily launched herself into his chest with her hands wrapped around him. Thrown a little of balance, Remus stumbled until his back hit the stone wall. Awkwardly, he patted her back and tried to think of as many disgusting things as he could to keep his body from betraying him. Sirius' mother eating, Hagrid naked, Hagrid naked in front of a fireplace. Fang liking Hagrid's naked chest in front of a lit fireplace...
"Are you okay?" Remus asked. He was in a hurry to untangle himself from her before he got into some real trouble.
Thankfully, she pulled away from him and tucked her hair behind her ear. "I will be. But you're right, we should head back."
Lily wrapped her arm around his, even though he didn't offer it to her, and the pair walked down the stone steps of the owlery and back to the castle.
A/N: Finally! Another update! The next 2-3 chapters may take a little longer for me to get out because I have SO MUCH PLANNED FOR THEM! I am so excited! If you all could be so kind as to leave reviews I would love that! It really keeps me going knowing what people think about this story. :) Thank you for reading!