A/N: Two tonight, as promised! Did I ever mention that I don't own Harry Potter? Because I don't. If I did, Peter would be the only Marauder to die.

A Fake Mistake

After skating, we sat on Remus's couch around the television watching some holiday special that was very dull indeed. It didn't matter because we were all talking and sipping cocoa and ignoring it almost entirely. After all, Remus's mother made almost euphoric hot chocolate.

James and I were having a very heated argument over the chances that the Irish would ever win the world cup when, suddenly, Lily changed the subject.

"Is this a set-up?"

James, Remus and I fell silent and turned towards her.

James cleared his throat nervously. "What do you mean?"

"I didn't know that Lucy and Remus were dating. It seems like something that you or Sirius would set up to… I don't know, but they don't act like they are dating. It seems suspicious." She looked back and forth between Remus and I.

Time for cover up. "Oh, we are dating," I said, nodding.

Remus turned and gave me a surprised look. I elbowed him. He cleared his throat, catching on, and nodded also. "Yes. Lucy Goose is my girlfriend. Right, ummm Cupcake?"

Lily narrowed her eyes. "Mmmhmmm."

"Really," he squeaked feebly. I could tell from the look on Lily's face that we had lost her. James opened his mouth to speak, and I cringed because I knew our poor acting had let him down.

I don't know what made me do it. Due to some combination of being so near to letting James down and Remus smelling really good in his lovely green shirt, I don't think I thought at all. It was more like I was possessed by some nutter spirit that took control of my body. But I turned to Remus, grabbed him by the collar, and kissed him.

His eyes shot open in surprise, but after a second, he closed them and I could feel him smile. Good, he figured out that I was acting and started to play along.

I'm glad he figured that out because I wasn't sure that I'd worked that part out in my own mind completely.

And the whole time that my brain was going through that freak out, I was kissing him. It was the most fantastic kiss I'd ever had, perhaps because I've never been so crazy about the guy, but also because for a brief second, I could imagine that this was completely real.

But it wasn't. I realized after a moment that someone should stop me, and it probably had to be me.

I shut my eyes as tightly as they would go, trying to memorize how his soft lips felt on mine. It took everything in me to pull back, grinning like an idiot, leaving Remus hanging there in a complete daze as though he had no idea what he had just done. We stared at each other in shock for a moment before I shook myself out of it and turned to James and Lily, after having briefly forgotten they were there. "See? We are dating."

Lily shrugged casually. "Ok, you've convinced me. I don't know why I thought… never mind. Sorry."

James, who until then had been sitting there with his gab hanging open in disbelief, shook his head. "Wow guys… that was really… believable."

We all turned to him with a collective gasp of surprise.

"What do you mean, believable? What's going on?" Lily demanded.

James started to chuckle. "Well, Lily, I always seem to mess up when I'm around you, so I pretended this was a double date with Remus and Lucy so they could keep and eye on me so I didn't blow it. They aren't really dating."

Lily's eyes widened. "You mean that was a fake? It seemed so… yeah, believable."

James shrugged. "I guess I have friends who will do anything for me. I'm sorry for misleading you about that, but it really was in the best interest of the evening."

"Why did you do that, James? I…" she blushed for about the thousandth time that night. "I like you even when you do screw up. It's endearing."

He rubbed his neck. "I needed tonight to be perfect. Because Lily…" he gave Remus and me a pointed stare. Now that I think of it, he was probably telling us to leave so he could ask Lily out, but I wasn't thinking clearly at all and kind of missed the signal. Remus seemed to have finally come out of whatever glazed-over panic-stupor he was in and grabbed my wrist to lead me from the room.

Wait no, he had my hand. He usually took my wrist, but this time he took my hand and led me out. We trotted down the hall and out the front door and came to a stop on the front step when we realized how freezing cold it was.

And stood there in the most awkward and heavy silence in the world.

I realized that I had forgotten to let go of his hand and dropped it quickly, not wanting to make the moment any more awkward than it already was.

When we couldn't take it any longer, we started talking at the same time.

"Lucy, I don't--"

"I'm so sorry--"

"Oh, I'm sorry, you first."

"No, you. Please."

"Umm ok," I started. "I don't know why I did that, I thought James needed us to cover for him, and she wasn't going to believe us… other wise I wouldn't have put you through that. So I didn't mean to make things weird. You know I was just acting, right? I mean, I know better than… you know." I had to make him understand. If he thought that I really liked him, it would be awkward and he wouldn't want to be my friend anymore.

I couldn't see his face in the dark, but when he spoke, his voice was level and natural. "Yeah, totally. I knew you were just playing. I was just helping James, too. It's no big deal. I knew what you were doing."

I felt a lump in my throat. Of course he was playing along. I knew that. Why had I bothered to get my hopes up? I felt a hot tear run down my face before I could stop it and wiped it off, hoping he couldn't see me in the dark either. I swallowed the lump in my throat, ashamed of being such a baby, and tried to sound like I was smiling. "Cool. No worries then."

"No worries," he echoed.

I always knew I was going to get my heart broken. I told James, that rotten James, and he said I wouldn't. But I did.

I noticed that Remus was looking up at the sky. It was another perfect, starry night.

"It's my favorite when it's like this," I said stupidly.

"I know," he said. "I don't feel well. I'm going inside."

"Full moon coming?" I knew it was. It was coming tomorrow. I knew when the full moon was coming every month, and I asked him every month all the same. Whether I knew it at the time or not, it had always been another excuse to talk to him.

"Tomorrow," he said as he opened the door and walked inside, leaving me out in the cold.

A little later, James dropped Lily off and he and I flooed to his house. I could tell from the big idiot grin on his face (similar to the one I had when I kissed Remus) that Lily had said yes. He was completely out of it, and I was glad that he wasn't prying.

"Hey, Lucy, did you want to stay over? We can try quidditch again if it's warmed up any tomorrow."

I gave him a half-hearted, lopsided grin. "Sure your parents won't mind?"

"You know my parents wouldn't care, since you're hardly a girl to them anymore. Besides, aren't you and Remus…?"

"No."

His face fell. "Oh. Umm why not? I was so sure… I mean, you guys kissed!"

I looked up at him miserably. "We were just playing to help you."

He frowned. "That's not true. That was the most real kiss I have ever seen."

"That's because it was real. To me. Not to him. He was playing along. He even told me." I grabbed a blanket from the back of the Potter's couch and flopped down onto its soft, brown leather. "I don't want to talk about it."

He stared at me sadly, looking truly perplexed. "I don't understand. I was so sure that he…"

I rolled over. "Well you were wrong. Goodnight, James," I snapped.

I knew he was still staring at my back. I didn't care.

I closed my eyes tightly and tried to forget everything. I thought about ice skating and falling down a million times. I could still feel the bruises all over my body from hitting the ice, and I focused my whole mind onto them. But when I thought about falling down, I thought about Remus, laughing and pulling me to my feet, and that little frown line he got when he tried so hard to stay up on his skates. I felt myself starting to drift off to sleep, almost smiling. I vaguely heard a rustling by the fireplace and someone mutter something about Lupin's house, and then saw a green glow through my closed eyelids, but I was so close to sleep that it could have been imagined.

A/N: I don't know if you'll love me because something happened or if you'll hate me because I made it un-happen. I guess you'll have to review. But remember... I'd rather not hear if you hate me. Unless it is very constructive hatred.