Sirius, Mary, and Peter had settled around a window just past the portrait hole to smoke when they saw James and Lily approaching.

"There you are!" Sirius called as he stubbed out his cigarette and bounded over to them. "You've been gone ages. We came out here to-" He broke off and his eyes widened when he saw that James and Lily were holding hands. They let go and slid their hands into their pockets but Sirius had already seen everything he needed to see.

"Macdonald, Wormtail, did you see-" he began, and they both nodded. Mary's eyes darted from Sirius to James to Lily and then back to Sirius, too excited to settle in one spot, and Peter looked about to burst from excitement.

"Come on," Sirius said, grabbing James by the arm and dragging him towards the portrait hole. He gave the password and they stumbled in, grabbing onto the wall to keep from tripping in their eagerness to get inside. Peter followed, laughing, while Mary and Lily lagged behind, their heads bent close together as they communicated in intense, urgent whispers punctuated by occasional shouts of glee.

"Moony!" Sirius called when he spotted Remus and Seven standing near the portrait hole. "Where are you going? You've got to come up to the dormitory with us right now. Code red. I repeat: code fucking red!"

Remus's expression changed from irritation to astonishment as he took in the dazed but ecstatic look on James's face.

"I'm sorry, I've got to go. I'll be back in a bit," he said to Seven before hurrying off after his three friends. "Is it really code red? Hang on, is code red what I think it is, or am I getting your stupid phrases mixed up?"

"It means what you think it means," Sirius said, turning around to face Remus and missing the next step in his feverish excitement. "Just look at Prongs. Have you ever seen him look like that? It's an actual code red. Also, they walked up to the portrait hole holding hands. But don't ask him any questions until we're sitting down, because I'm worried his brain may actually explode."

When they reached the dormitory Sirius pulled open the door and ushered James inside.

"Sit down, mate," he said, then leaned against the bedpost as Remus and Peter crowded in next to him. "Okay, what happened?"

James seemed to be struggling to put his experience into words. "What happened?" he repeated, then grinned and shook his head. "I don't know if I can even describe it. I feel like my brain is completely fucked. I shook Snape's hand! But it was brilliant. It was so bloody brilliant."

"What?" Peter said. "You shook Snape's hand?"

"You're going to have to give us a bit more than that," Remus added.

"Here." Sirius pulled a flask from his pocket and unscrewed the top before handing it to James. He struggled to contain his impatience, yet he knew rushing James would do no good, not when he was in this state of mind.

James accepted the flask but only glanced at it with mild interest before handing it to Remus. Instead he looked at Peter and gestured at his trunk.

"Can you hand me my Quaffle?"

Once Peter retrieved it from the trunk and passed it to him he began to toss it from hand to hand. The motion gave him something to focus on, and his face lost some of the dreamy, bemused quality.

"Right. So I went to look for her, obviously, and I found her in the Head office. And she was-" His face fell and the Quaffle slipped from his hands. "Fuck, she was crying, and it just killed me to see her like that, all sad and alone." He bent to retrieve the Quaffle and tossed it into the air before catching it. "So I didn't really think about it, I just hugged her and let her cry. Look, you can still see her mascara on my shirt!" He pointed to the makeup smudges on his Ballycastle Bats t-shirt, a note of pride in his tone.

"And then we sort of talked a bit, I think? I dunno, it's all a bit blurry at the moment, but I think I told her she looked beautiful, which she must've liked, because she bloody kissed me! And it was-"

The rest of the words were cut off when Peter launched himself at James and wrapped him in a tight hug.

"Merlin, Wormtail," James said, laughing and patting him on the back. "If you strangle me I can't finish the story."

Peter released James and retreated to lean against his trunk. "Sorry," he said as a sheepish smile spread across his face. "It's just exciting, and I'm pretty drunk."

"It's all right." James looked around for the Quaffle, then gave up and ran a hand through his hair instead. "So anyway, she just started kissing me, and not just like one kiss. It was proper snogging, and it was bloody excellent. You know how sometimes when you want something for a long time and you build it up in your mind so much that it ends up not being as good as you expected just because your expectations were unrealistic?"

"Like that bloke in The Great Gatsby," Sirius said.

Remus grinned. "You mean Gatsby."

"Right," Sirius said with an emphatic nod. "Fuck Gatsby."

James frowned and looked from Remus to Sirius. "Who's Gatsby?"

Remus shook his head. "Never mind."

"Yes, just ignore us. We're excited for you and, as you know, we're complete idiots," Sirius added.

James laughed and nodded. "Right. So anyway, I thought kissing Evans might be like that, because I imagined it and built it up in my head for years, you know? So I thought there was no way it could live up to my expectations. But it did! It was just as great as I imagined. Actually, it was better." The Quaffle rested forgotten in his lap as he gazed around at his friends, his face regaining the dreamy smile as he recalled the finer details of the last hour. "It was bloody perfect. I couldn't believe it was real. I actually pinched myself to make sure it wasn't a dream. And then - fucking hell, she had her hands under my shirt." He shook his head in disbelief. "This is the best day of my life."

There was a beat of silence as his words hung in the air, and then Sirius crossed to James's bed to clap him on the back. "I'm so bloody happy for you, mate." He hesitated, then shrugged. "Fuck it," he said. "I'm sort of drunk, too, and this is a big deal." Before James could respond Sirius had wrapped him in a hug. "Where's that flask? Moony, take a sip and pass it over." He released James and reached for the flask. "I feel like we should have champagne or something."

"Oh, hang on." James stood up and went to his trunk, then returned a moment later with two bottles of champagne. "These were leftover from the team breakfast."

"Excellent." Sirius grabbed one of the bottles and opened it with a pop, then took four glasses from his own trunk and divided the bottle between them. "No complaining about the Cannons glasses, Prongs," he said as he handed James a glass. "If you're in a good enough mood to shake Snape's hand, you're in a good enough mood to enjoy champagne out of my favorite drinking vessels."

"I wouldn't dream of complaining." James held his glass in the air and glanced around. "Shall we do a toast, then? Seems like the sort of situation for a ridiculous toast."

"Of course we need a ridiculous toast," Sirius said, raising his own glass and waiting for Remus and Peter to do the same. "To our dear friend Prongs, who on this momentous occasion has finally achieved his longtime dream of snogging Miss Lily Agatha Evans. May this be the start of a lifetime of happiness and snogging."

They all clinked their glasses together and drank; Sirius drank half of his in one swallow and frowned down at his glass. "You know, that toast would have been better if I had on my cowboy hat. Does Evans still have it?" His eyes widened as a thought occurred to him. "Prongs, was she wearing the hat when you snogged her?"

James thought for a moment. "Bloody hell, she was. You know, I reckon that hat is lucky."

Sirius finished his champagne and beamed. "I knew that hat was going to come in handy. You all thought I was an idiot for buying it, but who's the idiot now?"

"I'm pretty sure it's still you, Padfoot," Remus said. He sipped his drink and glanced down at his watch. "Should we go back downstairs, do you think? Maybe play another round or two of Exploding Snap and share the other bottle of champagne with the girls?"

"Excellent idea. Come on, all of you," Sirius said, gathering up the full champagne bottle and his Chudley Cannons glass and heading for the stairs. "You good, Pete?"

Peter had walked into James's trunk and almost dropped his champagne, but he nodded and drank the rest before following Sirius out the door. Remus and James grinned at each other before heading down to the common room to join them.

"Lily Evans, you tell me everything right now!" Mary did not even wait until she had finished dragging Lily up to the dormitory before beginning her interrogation. "Don't leave everything out. I want all the juicy, disgusting details. I'm talking the kind of details I always give you about Black even when you beg me not to."

"Hang on, give me a second," Lily said as she pushed open the dormitory door and rushed into the room, giggling as the nervous excitement that had built throughout the last hour threatened to burst forth. "Oh, bloody hell, Olivia is asleep."

Mary shrugged and turned on the lights, then rummaged through her trunk while the occupant of the third bed protested the sudden rush of light and noise. "You're fine, Liv, just keep your curtains shut and I'll do a Muffliato. This is earth shattering stuff. Lily's just snogged James Potter." She emerged from inside her trunk with a half-empty bottle of tequila and sat down on the floor in front of Lily's bed. "At least I hope you have, otherwise I've earned a week's worth of dirty looks from Olivia for no reason."

Lily grinned and nodded before gesturing at the bottle. "I did. Are we celebrating with tequila?"

"Damn right we are." Mary unscrewed the top and took a sip, then grimaced before handing it across to Lily. "This is a long time coming, so drink up and tell me all about it."

Mary savored the warming effect of the tequila as she waited for Lily to recount her story. Somehow the evening felt important, as if she had reached a milestone herself rather than witnessing Lily accomplish something she had been longing for. In a way, this had been Mary's dream, too, because she and Sirius had spent so much time scheming and swapping information and sharing knowing glances when James and Lily brushed hands or Lily let something slip or James brought a smile to Lily's face. Now that they were getting together after all this time, Mary felt surprisingly emotional. Sirius would call me a sentimental sod.

"Okay, so I went to the Head office to be alone for a bit, and I was pretty upset." Lily hesitated and fiddled with the label on the tequila bottle. "My sister wrote me. She's getting married and doesn't want me at the wedding. My parents are forcing her to invite me, but she won't have me as a bridesmaid."

"No!" Mary shouted. "That bitch. What, are you telling me she actually has any friends to have as bridesmaids instead?"

Olivia poked her head out of the curtains to glare at them. "I thought you were going to do a Muffliato."

"You do it, then, if you're so keen," Mary said, rolling her eyes and dismissing Olivia with an impatient wave before turning her attention back to Lily. "Why didn't you tell me this earlier, Lily?"

Lily smiled and took another sip of tequila before handing Mary the bottle. "Because I knew you'd react like this. And because, I dunno, everyone was in a good mood and wanted to have fun, and I didn't want to ruin it with my family drama."

"That's rubbish. How many times have I called you in tears because my mum got drunk and did something idiotic?"

Lily raised her eyebrows, and Mary swallowed a mouthful of tequila and grinned. "All right, it hasn't been very often lately because I've been making Black listen to me vent instead. But I used to go to you about that stuff all the time. And speaking of Black, how many times has he completely lost his shit because of so-called family drama, and everyone drops everything to help him pick up the pieces without giving it a second thought? We're friends, Lily. We look out for each other. You don't have to suffer alone."

Lily smiled and nodded. "Yeah, all right. Point taken. Now do you want to hear about the snogging, or would you like to lecture me some more?"

"No, I'm all lectured out." Mary adjusted her position on the floor and handed the bottle back to Lily. "Go ahead."

"Well, James came and found me, and I was crying, so he wiped my tears away and said, 'Don't

cry, Evans,' and then hugged me until I stopped crying. Merlin, it was so sweet. I got tears and mascara and probably snot all over his shirt, but he didn't even care, he just told me how he's fond of me and he hates seeing me sad."

She broke off and started laughing, and Mary frowned in confusion. "Why are you laughing, you weirdo? None of that's funny. It's probably the sweetest thing I've ever heard." Her mind had flashed back to a summer night at the beach when she had huddled in front of a fire and cried while Sirius held her and stroked her hair. They really are the sweetest couple of idiots.

"Sorry, it's just because he put the bloody cowboy hat on my head," Lily said once she had her laughter under control. "So there I was, with my face all red from crying and mascara everywhere and wearing Sirius's cowboy hat, and he just looks at me and tells me I look beautiful. And I didn't really stop to think about it, I just started kissing him." She fell silent and gazed at Mary with a dreamy smile on her face.

"And?" Mary pressed. "How was it?"

"It was…" She sighed. "It was perfect. Even better than I imagined. Not that, you know, I imagined it-"

"Shut up, of course you did," Mary said, impatient to hear more.

Lily grinned. "All right, yeah, I did. Loads of times."

"As you should." She toyed with a stray curl and raised her eyebrows. "Did you get any further than snogging?"

"No, of course not," Lily said, but her tone contained a hint of regret underneath indignance. "I'm not, well…"

"You're not a tart like me?" Mary finished. "It's all right, you can say it."

Lily laughed and took another sip from the bottle. "I was just going to say that I didn't want to rush it. Although…" A mischievous glint appeared in her eye and a smirk tugged up the corners of her lips. "I did have my hands under his shirt at one point."

"Ooh." Mary nodded appreciatively. "The Quidditch muscles."

"The fucking Quidditch muscles," Lily agreed. "I can't believe I used to think they weren't real, because they are in fact very, very real."

"What about him?" Mary went on. "He didn't try to get handsy at all? I'd think that since he chased after you for years the poor boy has earned a bit of under-the-clothes groping."

Lily giggled. "Not really, although I think he may have grabbed my arse at one point. Honestly, I think he was half-convinced it was all a dream and didn't want to push his luck. Merlin, he actually pinched himself to see if he would wake up."

"Well that's bloody adorable," Mary said as she reached for the bottle of tequila. "Did he have that sort of dazed face afterwards like he usually does if you hug him when he's not expecting it?"

"Yes! He could barely even form coherent sentences, actually. I kept saying I'd broken him. Oh, I'd almost forgotten!" She started laughing and had to give herself a moment before she could continue. "On the way back we ran into Bertram Aubrey and Snape, and James was so happy after what we'd just done-"

"And by 'what we'd just done' you mean you snogged him senseless and felt up his Quidditch muscles?"

"I suppose," Lily said. "Anyway, he was so thrilled that he gave Aubrey a hug and shook Snape's hand."

"What?" Mary tried to picture the ludicrous scene Lily was describing but simply could not imagine it. "You're kidding."

"I'm not."

Mary shook her head in disbelief. "You really did break him. You must be really good at snogging."

Lily shrugged. "Apparently."

Mary picked up the bottle and grimaced when she noticed how much lighter it felt. "Well, before we get any drunker than we already are, should we go back downstairs? See if the boys want to play another game? You and James can feel each other up and we'll all pretend we don't notice." She smirked at Lily as she got to her feet and picked up the bottle.

"Oh, shut up," Lily said, standing up and leading the way out the door.

Mary followed, feeling drunk and giddy from the residual excitement. For a moment she had an overwhelming longing for Sirius that was separate from her desire to get his opinion on the Lily and James situation. She even considered ditching everyone else and retreating up to his dormitory to spend the rest of the evening in each others' arms, but she dismissed this thought and followed it with a swallow of tequila to make sure it did not resurface. Tonight was about Lily and James, not whatever was going on with her and Sirius. Shaking her head, she hurried down the stairs to rejoin the others, forcing the lingering thought from her mind with one final effort.

Most of the occupants of the common room had gone to bed by the time James and his friends stumbled down the steps and headed for their spots in front of the fire, but his heart leapt when he saw Lily seated in his usual chair. Her face split into a wide smile when she saw him, and she patted the seat next to her and motioned for him to join her.

"Hi," he said once he had squeezed in beside her. There was nowhere for his arm to rest comfortably without placing it on her leg, so instead he draped it over the back of the chair. "Did you and Macdonald have a nice chat?" He leaned in closer. "Did you tell her what an excellent snogger I am?"

Lily glanced sideways at him and smirked. "Maybe. Did you tell the boys what an excellent snogger I am?" She noticed his arm behind her and reached for his hand to guide it down to rest on her shoulders.

"Course I did." He tried to keep his face neutral even though he had been thrilled when she reached up and put his arm around her like it was the most natural thing in the world. "I think they're just as excited as I am, honestly. Peter hugged me so hard he nearly strangled me."

Lily giggled. "Mary was pretty excited too. I think she referred to it as 'earth shattering news.'"

"It is. I expect there will be an article about it on the front page of The Daily Prophet tomorrow." A strand of her hair brushed against his hand, and the warmth of her body pressed against him in the chair reminded him of how close they had been earlier. Her eyes drifted to meet his, and it may have been the alcohol or the dim lighting of the common room, but he hoped her flushed cheeks meant she was thinking the same thing.

"Mary and I drank some tequila," she murmured, lifting her head to speak into his ear. "I think I'm drunker than I thought."

James grinned. "Does that mean you're going to get handsy again?" He traced his fingers across her shoulder, still not quite able to believe that he could touch her like this, that she wanted him to touch her.

She pressed her lips so close to his ear that it made him shiver. "Maybe."

Before he could reply he felt a hand on his shoulder and looked up to see Sirius looking down at him, grinning and holding the bottle of champagne.

"Are you two going to have a drink with us, or are you just going to giggle and whisper sweet nothings all night?"

"Hang on, where's Moony?" Sirius called. "Moony, get your arse back here and play Exploding Snap with us!"

"I'll be back in a second," Remus said over his shoulder as he headed for the sofa on the other side of his friends' cluster of chairs. This part of the common room was deserted except for the thin, dark-haired girl curled on the couch underneath a blanket with her nose buried in a book.

"I wasn't sure you were coming back," she said, closing the book as she heard him approach. "And then when you did I wasn't sure if I should interrupt. It seemed like, I dunno, sort of a private moment of celebration with your friends."

"Don't be silly," he said as he sat down next to her. "You've had to suffer through years of James pining after Lily, too. Of course you should come celebrate with us." He held out the Chudley Cannons glass. "Do you want some champagne?"

"Thanks." Her fingers brushed his hand as she took the cup, and he tried not to stare as she put her lips to the glass and drank. "I hope you don't mind that I borrowed your blanket." She gestured to the blanket covering her lap that was usually folded across the back of Remus's chair or draped across his lap.

"I don't mind sharing," he said, and his mind presented him with the image of the two of them snuggled underneath the blanket in an empty common room. "Do you want to come play Exploding Snap with us? You can bring the blanket. They always tease me when I do it, but I'll tell them off if they say anything to you."

She smiled and threw back the blanket. "No, that's okay. I think I'll be warm enough without it." Before she stood up her hand rested on his for a moment, and he found himself wishing they could skip the game and finish what they had started earlier. Instead, he got to his feet and followed her over to the fire before sitting down next to her on the floor.

"Sorry for the delay, but look! I found one more for our game," he said, reaching for the deck of cards to deal Seven in. "I think we all need to agree not to gang up on Peter again, because he's not going to make it much longer at this rate."

"Look at them." Sirius nudged Mary and nodded across the table at James and Lily. Their heads were bent close together as James whispered something that made Lily laugh. Their fingers were laced together even though they had to keep letting go every time either of them played a card, and neither of them had stopped smiling throughout the entire night. "Bloody adorable, isn't it?"

"Probably the cutest thing I've ever seen," Mary muttered. "It's about time. Even though we had nothing to do with them getting together, I sort of feel a sense of satisfaction, don't you?"

"Don't minimize our efforts like that, Macdonald," Sirius said as he tugged at one of her curls. "We most definitely helped. All the times you got her drunk and talked about shagging then brought up James? And the times we snogged in front of them to encourage them to do the same? And I told her James looks great naked at least twice. You're telling me you don't think that's what convinced her to snog him?"

Mary laughed and rested her head on his shoulder. "It probably just convinced her you're a weirdo."

"Rubbish! I really talked him up. I bet if you'd been there, you'd want to see him naked, too."

"I'd rather see you naked." She trailed her fingers up and down his arm and glanced in the direction of the staircase.

"You want to go up to the dormitory?" he asked, following her gaze.

"We can stay and finish the game if you like." She surveyed his cards and the pile in the center of the table. "You're winning."

Sirius frowned down at his hand. "Hmm, I am winning. It would be a shame to leave the game now." He took one last look at his cards before tossing them onto the table. "I'm out. Have a lovely evening, everyone." He hopped to his feet before offering Mary a hand up and heading for the boys' staircase.

"Does this mean we should wait a while before coming to bed?" Remus called, grinning.

"Depends if you want a show or not," Sirius said over his shoulder before giving them all a wave.

They stumbled up the stairs and into the dormitory, laughing and leaning on each other, before shutting off the light and collapsing onto the bed.

"Twice in one day, Macdonald," Sirius said as he pulled her shirt over her head. "It's been too long since we've had a day like this."

"I know," she said, fumbling at his belt buckle. "It's depressing. We've got to make time to shag more."

Sirius wriggled out of his trousers and tossed them onto the floor. "Couldn't agree more," he murmured. "Glad we're on the same page."

Afterwards Sirius stole a chocolate bar from Remus's trunk and split it with Mary, then propped himself against his pillows to eat his half.

"Think they're going to sneak away and shag somewhere?" he asked.

Mary munched her chocolate and pushed her damp hair out of her face. "Doubt it. She's not a tart like me. She'll want to wait a bit. She'll probably expect fucking candles and rose petals and that sort of thing."

Sirius snorted with laughter. "You're probably right. With some sort of romantic music playing in the background. And after they'll probably lay in each others' arms and confess their undying love."

"And they'll fall asleep and only wake up when one of the candles catches the curtains on fire, or you burst in and moon them or something," Mary added.

"That does sound like something I would do." Sirius finished his chocolate and nestled closer to Mary, draping an arm across her waist and enjoying the sleepy, relaxed closeness of their bodies. "Merlin, we're terrible friends, aren't we?"

She giggled and rested her head on his chest. "The worst. But we are happy for them, even if we're being arseholes."

"So bloody happy for them." Sirius tugged the blanket up over them and blew a piece of Mary's hair out of his face. "Hey, when they get married, and it's a when, not if, because it's absolutely going to happen, but when they do, will you get drunk with me and dance like an idiot at their wedding?"

Mary laughed and glanced up at him. "Black, they're not even officially dating."

"I know, but, I mean, it's them. They're fucking meant to be. They're getting married eventually. And when that happens, I'd really like to drink multiple bottles of champagne with you and then make absolute fools of ourselves on the dance floor. Actually, I'd like to bring a bottle of champagne out onto the dance floor if at all possible. What do you say, Macdonald? Will you be my drunk partner in crime?" His tone was joking, flippant, and he had meant it as just a throwaway comment, but now her answer felt significant. Saying yes seemed like a tacit agreement that they would be together for this vague, unfixed date in the future, and although he was not a commitment person and would deny it vehemently if asked, he wanted nothing more than for her to agree.

"Of course I will," she said as she traced the scar on his chest and draped her leg over his. "Will you wear the cowboy hat?"

"Damn right I will." He remembered that he had no idea where the cowboy was at the moment, but it seemed like far too much effort to worry about it now.

"I'm sleepy," she murmured. "Do you want me to go back to my room?"

"No, don't go," he said, pulling her closer. "We're both so comfy. And when we wake up we can shag, if everyone else is already up. Or even if they're not, I don't much care."

"But what about Remus?" she insisted. "You told me he has nightmares sometimes and is really self-conscious about it. I don't want him to be uncomfortable with me being here."

Sirius did not remember telling her this, although he supposed he must have been drunk. "He's been better lately. He hasn't had a nightmare in ages, unless I've just been sleeping through it. Fuck, I hope that's not the case, because then I'd feel horrible. But either way, I don't think he minds having you here. He trusts you and knows you won't judge him. You're practically one of us now." He kissed the top of her head, hearing his last words echoing in his head as he settled into his pillow. "Night, Macdonald."

"Night, Black." Her fingers traced a slow path back and forth across his chest, and the soothing motion lulled him to sleep. Right before he drifted off, he wondered why they continued to sleep alone when they could spend every night curled up in each others' arms like this.

The cards dropped from Peter's hand and scattered across the floor as Seven and Remus tried to stifle their laughter. Remus craned his neck and saw that Peter's eyes were shut and his head drooped onto his shoulder. His soft snores mingled with the crackle of the fire and the whispers and giggles as Lily and James focused on each other and ignored the rest of their surroundings.

"I suppose it's useless to continue playing," Seven said. She set her cards down and gestured at James and Lily. "I don't think they're even aware that we're in the room with them."

Remus watched James murmur something in Lily's ear that made her giggle; she responded by running her hand through his hair and kissing him on the cheek.

"Seems that way, doesn't it." Remus put his cards on top of Seven's and picked up Peter's cards from the floor, then gathered them all into a neat pile. "That's all right. I wasn't going to win anyway."

"I wonder what time it is." Seven stretched her legs out in front of her and moved a bit closer to the fire. "Are you tired?"

Remus considered this, then shrugged. "A bit, but I don't think it's safe to go up to the dormitory yet. I don't much fancy walking in on them, as I've already seen far more of Sirius than I'd like," he said with a grimace.

Seven giggled. "Have you really?"

"Unfortunately. He's not at all shy, if you haven't gathered that."

"You know, I have seen him in just pants on more than one occasion, and I don't even share a room with him," she said. "Well, since you can't go to bed yet, and these two aren't very good company, fancy taking a walk?" Her hand reached out and found his, and she gave his fingers a reassuring squeeze as a bold smile spread across her face. "It doesn't have to be anything more than a walk. Unless you want it to be."

Remus looked down at their hands clasped together, then gazed up at her face. The firelight reflected in her dark eyes and illuminated the little pieces of hair that had pulled free from her braid and now framed her face. The memory of kissing her earlier in the evening flooded his mind until he could think of nothing else. He got to his feet and pulled her up along with him.

"I think I want it to be," he said, leaning in to whisper the words in her ear before heading for the portrait hole. "As long as you do, too." She did not reply, but came to a stop outside the portrait hole and stood on tiptoe to kiss him before smiling and leading him down the corridor. His heart was pounding and he had no idea where they were going or how far he would let them go when they got there. All he could think about was her hand in his and the look in her eye when she had murmured Unless you want it to be.

A log popped in the fire and jarred Peter from his doze. He started awake and glanced around, surprised to find the common room deserted except for Lily and James. They were locked in an embrace and did not seem to notice that they were not the only ones in the room. Peter considered calling out to them, then decided against it. The logical option would be to go to bed, but the idea did not appeal to him. He felt restless after his brief nap, and worried sleep would elude him, leaving him to toss and turn in bed for hours. Instead he stood up, sending a stray Exploding Snap card fluttering to the floor, and tiptoed across the room and out of the portrait hole.

He headed down the corridor and checked that nobody was coming before he ducked into an alcove and transformed into his animagus form. At first this had been painful and frightening, but now he could change forms without even thinking about it. As Wormtail he had the freedom to travel the castle unnoticed, and he had taken to roaming the corridors at night when he couldn't sleep or needed to clear his head. In rat form his emotions were simpler and easier to manage, and the silence of deserted corridors and empty classrooms always gave him a sense of calm. He never mentioned these nocturnal wanderings to his friends, not because he thought they wouldn't understand, but because he liked having a secret. The four of them not only lived in close quarters and spent almost all of their time together, but they shared everything. Having something that none of them knew about gave Peter an unexplainable sense of satisfaction, so he hoarded his secret and took advantage of his newly discovered freedom as often as he could.

There were several routes he liked to take, but most of the time he set out with no particular destination in mind. Tonight he headed in the direction of the Astronomy Tower, sticking close to the wall to be as inconspicuous as possible. As he approached a familiar tapestry that he knew hid a small alcove, he heard hushed voices and slowed to investigate. He never set out to spy on people, but if the opportunity presented itself he was too curious to walk away without at least taking a quick peek and catching a bit of the conversation. Last week he had overheard a fight between a Hufflepuff couple, and the week before he had witnessed a drug deal in the dungeons, but most of the time if he happened upon people in the corridors at night, chances were they were snogging.

After listening outside the tapestry for a moment, it became clear that the occupants of the concealed room were engaged in some sort of romantic encounter. Watching the people he caught in the act felt dirty and immoral, but he was always interested to see who was snogging (or shagging ) who. The voices were muffled and unrecognizable, so Peter crept closer and peered through an opening at the bottom of the tapestry. Two pairs of feet came into view, but this did little to identify their owners besides informing Peter that one of them was female and the other was male. Desperate to see more, he climbed through the bottom of the tapestry, lurking in the shadows to keep out of sight as much as possible. From this angle he had a perfect view of the couple, but he had to check several times before he could be sure of what he was seeing.

Remus and Seven stood locked in a tight embrace. As they kissed, Seven guided them backwards until they reached a pile of cushions, then pulled Remus down with her, keeping their lips pressed together the whole time. Wormtail watched, unable to tear his eyes away, as she ran one hand through Remus's hair and slipped her other hand under his jumper. Way to go, Moony, he thought as she began to tug at his clothing in an eager but clumsy attempt to remove them. He turned to go, not wanting to invade his friend's privacy any more than he already had, when the sound of Remus's voice made him pause.

"Wait." Wormtail turned to see Remus pull away from Seven, panic replacing the desperate passion that had filled his face a moment ago. "Hang on."
Seven touched his shoulder and tried to catch her breath. Concern creased her face as she began to button up her shirt. "Sorry, I thought you wanted to," she murmured. "I didn't mean to-"

"No, it's not that." He reached for her hand and tried to smile, although Peter could recognize the anxiety still coursing through his body. "I just…" He hesitated, then pulled his wand from his pocket and turned out the light. "I'd rather it be dark, if that's okay."

He doesn't want her to see his scars, Wormtail thought, and he felt a pang of sadness for his friend, because he couldn't even fully enjoy a normal teenage experience without worrying about his condition.

"Of course that's okay." Wormtail heard rustling and assumed she was pulling him close to her again. "And it's okay if you would rather not take off your jumper. I just want you to feel comfortable."

There was more rustling, and Wormtail decided he had heard more than enough. He fled back to Gryffindor Tower, his mind turning over what he had seen and heard long after he had transformed , then changed into pajamas and climbed into bed. Before he fell asleep, he wondered whether Remus would share his experience, or if, like Peter, he would prefer to have a secret.

"I think we're the only ones left," Lily remarked, scanning the empty chairs and abandoned Exploding Snap cards.

"That's not surprising. I'm surprised Remus made it up to bed. He's usually one to fall asleep in his chair." He checked his watch. "It is pretty late. Are you tired?"

Lily's eyes felt heavy and the inadvisable combination of firewhisky, tequila, and champagne was catching up with her, but she was enjoying the cozy warmth of their bodies pressed close together in the armchair. The night had been so unexpectedly perfect, and she was not yet ready for it to end.

"A bit," she replied. "But going up to bed seems like a lot of effort. It's so nice down here."

"I'm not feeling very motivated to climb stairs either," James said. "Do you want to move to the sofa, though?" His eyes widened in panic and he added, "I didn't mean - I just meant, so we have a bit more room." He stretched out his cramped legs to emphasize his point.

She smiled and got to her feet, wincing as her body protested after being in the same position for so long. "It's okay, I know." She offered him a hand up, then followed him over to the sofa and stretched out next to him. James spotted Remus's blanket abandoned on the floor and draped it over them, and after some rearranging, they managed to position their arms comfortably around each other. Their faces were only inches apart, and Lily could see the firelight reflected in James's glasses and count the flecks of gold and green in his hazel eyes. The sound of their breathing sounded deafening in the hushed, sleepy atmosphere of the common room.

"I'm still not convinced this is really happening," James murmured. His breath felt warm on her face and smelled of firewhisky. "I feel like I'll wake up tomorrow and this will all just turn out to be a really excellent dream."

"I don't think so, unless we're having the same really excellent dream, and that seems unlikely." She closed the short distance between them and pressed her lips to his, savoring the sensation that was still so novel and new. "It doesn't feel like a dream."

"No, it doesn't." Her shirt had ridden up to expose a sliver of skin above her trousers, and he ran his fingers along her waist, his touch so slow and light that it drove her mad. "But I'm trying to make every second count, just in case it really is a dream." He leaned forward and kissed her, sliding his hand under her shirt to rest on the small of her back, and she pressed herself against him, desperate to be as close to him as possible. His touch felt like the only thing that mattered, and she closed her eyes and let everything fall away except the pressure of his lips on hers and the feel of his hands on her skin.