"So where to first?" Loralei asked them.

"You're the birthday girl." Lily told her.

Loralei looked to one of signs that led to the club. It would be far more fun than the bar where middle aged wizards and witches were. No dancing, no music, no fun. The dance club would have a little more fun, and probably younger people.

Loralei pulled them towards the club. "We're going to go dancing."

They already had to be seventeen to stay in the hotel, so they didn't have to prove their ages by doing a spell or anything. They didn't even look like they were seventeen, they looked older, easily twenty years old. They got in the club, and found a booth in the back before ordering drinks.

"Firewhiskey for everyone." Loralei told the waiter who was in his twenties as she handed him her little plastic muggle-style room key. "And start a tab."

"Yes ma'am." He said, taking her card before leaving.

"So, this is the safest possible place to celebrate the fact that we are all of age." Loralei told them. "They screen everyone before they make reservations, and the check you at the door. There has never been anything worse than a drunken fight."

"Knock on wood!" Lily interjected, tapping her knuckles on the painted black, wooden table in front of them.

Loralei laughed. "The one person here who thinks Divination is shit, and you're superstitious? Merlin, Lils, make up your mind."

Lily rolled her eyes. "Go on."

"If any of us starts being ridiculous, we go back to the room, agreed?" Loralei asked.

"What if we're all too far gone?" Sirius asked.

"Then I hope none of us get arrested." Loralei told him.
"Ooh, that might be hard..." He teased.

"Try for me?" Loralei batted her eyelashes.

"Enough flirting. That's my sister." James stated. "It's not right for me to witness this."

"But us all walking in on you and Lily snogging, and we're in the wrong?" Remus inquired.

"That's unfair, we've all seen Loralei and Padfoot." James responded.

"But they never told us it was our fault." Remus told him. "They just tell us to go away, or they find somewhere else."

"Because we are considerate obnoxiously in love people." Loralei told her brother. "That's one thing you don't get."

"Shut up." James muttered.

All this time, Lily didn't say a word, she just sat there blushing, a hand covering her face, though she looked like she didn't know whether she should laugh or not.

"Learn to be considerate, and then you won't be made fun of." Loralei told James.

"We still make fun of you and Padfoot." Remus replied.

Loralei looked up thoughtfully. "True." She looked back down at her brother and Lily. "I will always make fun of you both. I will tell your children of your hate for each other, and I will also tell them of how much you complained about each other."

"We're going to hate you, aren't we?" James asked.

"You bet your chaser arse." Loralei replied.

The waiter arrived with their drinks, and they all grabbed theirs.

Loralei raised her glass. "To growing up."

They clinked their glasses as Sirius said. "To never growing up."

"I'm thirsty!" Loralei cried, she wasn't drunk, but she was starting to get up there. She was rather surprised at her own tolerance to alcohol. She may be a bit cloudy, but it was more weightless than anything. She still knew what she was doing, and she knew she would remember it in the morning. She wasn't sure Lily would say the same though. Even if James was keeping her out of trouble.

Sirius nodded, knowing they could barely hear each other over the music they were dancing to. "Lead the way!" He yelled in return.

They already were holding hands, so Loralei led them towards the bar on the edge of the dance floor, and ordered them both water, while Sirius inturrupted to order two more firewhiskeys as well.

"Excuse me, Mr. Black, are you trying to get me drunk?" Loralei quipped.

"Wouldn't that be dishonorable of me, Miss Potter?" He replied in jest. "I have better things to do with my time then try to get you drunk. I personally prefer to have you remember every bit of me." He leaned down so his nose was touching hers.

She kissed him lightly. "Oh, and how could I not remember every bit of you?"

"Stop your flirting." The bartender told them. "Your room is upstairs if you need it."

Loralei laughed in the bartender's face. "Flirting? You can't do that in public, anymore?"

"By all means you can," the bartender quickly backtracked, seeing her face for the first time. "I'm just saying that there is a line behind you." That much was true. Loralei could still see the shock in his face when he recognized her though. Even under the blue, yellow, and pink lights, no one could mistake her face, not after how many times it had been in the papers over the last year. Being the spokes person for her family did have upsides.

"Very well." Loralei acted as if she didn't have an ounce of alcohol in her system as she walked away with her water and firewhiskey. Sirius following her.

"Wow, I really like it when you're sassy." Sirius whispered in her ear, leaning over her.

"So I've heard." She flirted back. "Well, I guess it's a good thing. I'm rather full of sass, you know."

"Oh, I know. You've turned it around on me a couple times." He said as they arrived to their booth. No one else was there. Remus and James must have taken Lily upstairs so she could sleep off her drinks. They wouldn't let her drink as much tomorrow.

"I wonder where they went." Sirius muttered before Loralei turned to him.

"Lily's sloshed." Loralei told him. "They took her back to the room to sleep it off probably."

"Leaving us alone?" Sirius asked. "What shall we do?"

A smile broke out across Loralei's lips. "Let's go swimming."

How could he disappoint the girl in front of him. They finished their drinks, and within twenty minutes they found their way to the pool. They didn't even transfigure their clothes. No one was there but them, and they just jumped into the pool, smiling and giggling like giddy schoolchildren. Like they were kids. Loralei rather felt like a kid.

That's when Loralei lost it. Tears escaped her eyes, and Sirius didn't know what to do.

"Are you okay? Aren't you happy?" Sirius begged, holding her tight against him. The water only came up to his chest. Her legs were wrapped around his waist, and her arms around his neck.

"Yeah, I am." She whispered as tears ran down her cheeks. "But I shouldn't be."

"And why not?" Sirius asked. "You deserve to be happy after last year."

"My parents are dead. It's not even been a year and I'm happy again. How messed up is that?" She sobbed. "They should've been here! For my birthday! For James'! For yours! They're gone, and there's nothing left. There's nothing left. No one to take care of us. I know we don't need money. I know, but we're kids. We're just kids."

Sirius shushed her, rubbing her back slowly, trying to comfort her. He'd never seen her as a sad drunk, a happy one, sure, a horny one, totally. Never sad. She always seemed like the one that even without knowing, would put on a happy, brave front for everyone. Even him. Looks like he finally broke down the walls she kept up for everyone.

"They would want you to be happy." He told her. "Didn't your mother say that in her letter?"

Sirius felt Loralei nod.

"See? They wanted you to be happy. All of us to be happy. Do you feel bad for being happy? Because, I swear that if they knew how brave and strong their girl was, they'd be the proudest parents ever." He whispered. "You not only took care of the press while all of this was going on, but you kept your grades up. You planned funerals, and put on a brave face because you knew no one else would." He kissed her shoulder. "You're the one with a birthday here, you're the one who deserves a break. Take your break, break down, and show us all how you feel. We'll keep you safe. Hell, I will for the rest of your life. Trust us to take care of you like you take care of us." He turned his head to the side so he could whisper in her ear. "We love you too, Loralei. We always have."

A/N: Thanks to all the reviewers! I'm sorry I've been such a bad updater, but I should be updating every Friday from now on!

Please review!

Kat