Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters, events and/or places that are recognized as being written and created by J.K. Rowling. J.K. Rowling owns all the characters and places from the Harry Potter books including the ones used in this story

A/N: Hello! I'm sorry this took over a month, but...it's the last chapter! And I wanted it be perfection! It came out to be the longest chapter in history. So. Compensate? Lol! I just want to thank EVERYONE over and over again for reading this little story. It makes me really happy! And I do have another Marauder story in the works. I just heart those boys! Thanks again!-Nikki

"You've got to be cooool." Sirius ran his long, bony fingers through his hair to emphasize his point of how to appear utterly fucking cool.

James pouted, watching Sirius's fingers. "I can't do that, git," he whined. "I can scratch my scalp. I can do that. Is that cool?"

"In the society of lice breeders, perhaps."

"Well, then why don't you show me how to be cool doing something that I could actually accomplish! We all know you're cool, Pads. We don't need proof."

Sirius stared at James. Slowly he started shaking his head. "It's beginning."

"What's beginning?"

"The change."

James whipped around to look at the bed, and the boy, behind him. "Moony, did you bite him?"

Remus took an exaggerated look out the window, and at the obvious scene of bright blue skies and absolutely no moon. He looked back at James. "He has about thirteen hours before the fur sprouts."

"I'm done with cool lessons," James sighed flopping next to Remus on his bed. "I don't need them."

"You don't need them," Remus said. "Lily asked you out. She already fancies you. You don't need to impress her." Remus's voice lowered to a raspy grunt as Sirius, who was pacing the bed, looking for a place to squeeze himself into, decided that jumping onto Remus's back and settling down on his spine was good enough.

"You're right, Moony," James said, tugging at a stray strand of fabric on Remus's bed spread. He couldn't help but smile. Lily asked him out. Him! Finally! After days and days, months, (years if he was willing to admit how desperate he'd been). She finally succumbed.

"Prongs," Sirius called from his spot on Remus's backbone. "You're still coming tonight though, right?"

James looked back behind at Sirius riding Remus, and frowned. "Not if that's a preview."

Sirius rolled his eyes, but didn't move. "Are you?"

"I don't know," James shrugged. He laid the side of his head down on the bed to look at Remus. "Would you mind terribly, Moony? If I didn't?"

Remus's eyes were watering and he grunted something out of the corner of his mouth that wasn't muffled by mattress.

"Moony?" James asked, and was answered by another grunt.

"Look what you did!" Sirius screamed, gripping Remus's sides.

"What?" James snapped.

"He's all upset because you aren't coming tonight! Because you're choosing a skirt over your friends!"

"Wow, Sirius. What am I supposed to do? Tell Lily that I have to leave because I need to go to the Shack to visit my werewolf friend? Maybe mention that I become a stag too? Send us all to Azkaban?"

There was another, more panicky, grunt from Remus.

"Yes!" Sirius shouted. "You need to stop thinking of yourself and remembering your friends, who would never dump you for a girl; a girl, by the way, who has been a complete bitch to you since creation!"

Remus grunted again and threw his hand back, groping for Sirius.

Sirius grabbed Remus's hand, linked their fingers together, and used his other hand to rub over Remus's knuckles. "I'm here, Remus," Sirius said softly. Remus let out another panicked grunt, and tightened his grip on Sirius's hand, digging his blunt, chewed fingernails into any piece of Sirius's flesh that he could find.

Sirius melted over Remus, laying his head on Remus's shoulder. "It's OK." Sirius scowled up at James, who was leaning against the bedpost. "He's crying."

"You're sitting on his lungs, Padfoot," James commented, casually.

"Shite!" Sirius jumped off of Remus. "Why didn't you say anything, Moony?"

Remus rolled over. "My oxygen was cut off." He took a deep breath. "I tried to push you off, but you seemed to mistake that as me wanting to hold your bloody hand."

Sirius looked down, slightly embarrassed, but mostly absolutely pissed at James.

"Sirius," James said in his I'm Really Trying To Be An Adult Here voice. Sirius looked up. Remus's own eyes were locked on Sirius, measuring his every facial twitch, every blink of his eye, listening to every word; so that he could spring at Sirius to prevent a fight before Sirius even completed the thought.

"Sirius. Don't tell me that I'm only thinking of myself and that I'm forgetting my friends." Remus watched the lump under the tanned skin of Sirius's throat rise and fall; even Remus was scared at how overly calm James was acting. "Don't tell me that, because I have done so much for you, and Moony. I took you in when your family disowned you, do you remember that? I know I act strange around Lily, I can't help it! But, I would never forget you."

"You forgot me when you told Evans that I was dating Remus. What about that?"

James backed away from the bedpost with a gruff of laughter. "Oh, please. I said I was sorry. And you need to stop pretending."

Sirius rose to his knees. "Stop pretending?"

"Yeah. That you're not in love with Moony, because it's getting pathetic."

Remus dove across the bed at Sirius.

"What the hell's your problem, Moony?" Sirius shouted, as he was pinned to the headboard.

"I'm stopping you from beating James up!"

"I wasn't going to!"

"I saw you raise your hand."

Sirius reached for his temple. "I had an itch."

Remus squinted his eyes at Sirius, looking right into his pupils. Sirius widened his eyes and smiled. Remus nodded and moved back form Sirius. "He's telling the truth," he said to James.

"Anyways," James said, rolling his eyes. "Like I was saying. You're in love with Moony. Get over yourself."

Sirius had the decency to not look at Remus. He shook his head so that his black hair covered the sides of his face like a hood. "We wouldn't be having this conversation, if it wasn't for Evans. So forgive me if I don't like her."

James crossed his arms. "Well, you better learn to."

"I'd never let some chick disrupt my life, and my friends, just for a stupid date," Sirius said, pushing himself off of Remus's bed. Remus felt cold all of a sudden. Chilled to the bone and tired. Oh, he was just so tired. It was probably the moon, he thought. The full moon tonight, pulling his mind, pressing his emotions. Remus crawled across his bed, burying his face into his pillow.

"You don't date chicks!" James shouted. Remus could tell by the tremors in James's voice that he wasn't just upset because Sirius was trying to get him to stiff Lily. James was upset at his best friend for being complicated; for liking everything that James liked except for the one most important thing in James's world. "When was the last date you've had?"

Sirius took too long to answer.

"See?"

"Dates are dumb, James," Sirius shouted back. "All that nonsense about getting to know the other person, and the whole time you're either interested or, more likely, thinking of someone else, thinking of how rude it would be to go to the toilet and never return."

James shook his head. "Just stop, Padfoot. You can tell me the truth! I don't care if you fancy Moony!"

"Maybe Moony cares if I fancy Moony! Ever think of that?" Sirius shouted, moving inches from James face. Remus buried his head further into his pillow.

James sighed. "He's sleeping Sirius. Tell me what's going on with you two."

"Nothing!"

"Tell me!"

"Nothing! Look, I see your eyes keep dropping to your watch, so just go to Quidditch practice and forget everything that was said here."

"Not until you admit that you're a fancy mcfancypants for Remus John Lupin!"

Remus heard Sirius sigh; he heard footsteps, the thud thud of Sirius's combat boots. "I don't fancy him! OK, James. I was just trying to figure out what Evans saw, but she's wrong! I don't fancy him! So stop asking me! I hate him, in fact. Hate!"

"Whatever," James spat. Remus could hear James storm towards the door.

"You're a git," Sirius shouted. "I hope you fall off your broom!"

"I hope Snape finally decides to extract his revenge and you get hexed into an unrecognizable lump of stupid hair!"

Sirius gasped. "That's the last straw. Insulting my hair is the last straw." Sirius pulled the door to their mutual bath open. "Just get out."

"I'm gone."

Remus heard two doors slam. Then silence. Then two doors opening.

"Pads, you're still gonna help me pick an outfit, right?"

"I've already got a shirt in mind," Sirius said. Remus could practically hear his wide I Could Never Be Mad At You smile.

"Great," James sighed happily.

Remus heard the door to the dorm click shut. He shook his head, feeling like he was really going to drift off into a slight rocky slumber; rocky because of the approaching full moon, and the odd incessant twist in his stomach.

Just as Remus was about to slip into sleep, he heard that familiar thud thud, and then long, bony fingers threaded themselves through his hair.

"Moony?" Sirius whispered. Remus grunted. "I hate you." He pulled a blanket over Remus, and thud thudded his way over to his own bed.

Remus laughed. "Make up your mind," he said into his pillow.

"Do it!"

"Padfoot." James was all sorts of seriousness. He stood in the middle of the dorm, a so called friend flanked on almost every side, topless, hair as messy as wizardly possible, surrounded by a dozen tiny piles of clothes, and he was in no mood.

"I vote do it," Sirius said, with a causal shrug.

James stuck his finger out at Sirius as a last warning. Remus was poised at the end of his bed, eyes on Sirius. He was ready to pounce again. He had to hold onto the bedpost to stop himself from just pouncing Sirius anyways because the eyes Sirius's sent him were just asking for it.

"No, Padfoot," James whined, despite his tough guy stance. Secretly he loved standing there, baring his well chiseled chest to….well, Peter was the only one looking at him. Those damn pups. "Hey," James screamed.

"Do it."

James's whole body drooped. "But it's girly."

"James," Remus finally spoke up. "I do believe more than half of our counter in the bath would agree with me when I say, you're already girly."

"Moony! Prong's needs all those products. You've seen his hair." Peter hid his face when he was done talking, mistaking James's sharp turn towards him as a prelude to a good whacking.

"What do you think, Wormtail?" James asked. Peter sat up again. "Should I do it?"

Peter's watery eyes went from Sirius's glare, to Remus's annoyed pursed lips, to James's straight face, and then down at his watch. "Well, we do have a couple hours to kill," he said. Peter's life goal was to never have to be the one to make the decision. He could just see himself siding with James and then having to witness Remus jumping Sirius because he thought Sirius was going to start a fight. Better to play aloof.

James growled, and bent down to scoop up the pile of clothes closest to his feet. "Fine," he shouted, stomping into the bathroom, and slamming the door.

Sirius crawled out of his position of lying on his stomach, and sat cross-legged at the end of his bed. He threw a look at Remus, and beckoned him with a long finger.

Remus got up from his own bed, but pointed his wand at their dorm door before joining Sirius. "I'm locking it," he said. "No one needs to walk in on James's fashion show."

"First," Peter announced. "In the Marauder's collection of What Prongs Should Wear On The Night He Bags That Troll Evans-"

"Wormtail, don't repeat Pads!" James called from behind the bath door.

"-is the chosen ensemble of one Peter "Mister Wormtail" Pettigrew."

James reluctantly tore open the bath door and walked into the dorm room.

"Swagger!" Sirius groaned. "You know, shake your tail feathers!"

"You're an awful model, Prongs," Peter laughed.

"This," James snapped, spinning around to face his three friends. "Is an awful outfit." James held his arms out, watching as Sirius and Remus knocked into each other with peals of laughter, and Peter sat in front of them with a look of total approval.

"I like it," Peter said, proudly. It was Peter's outfit that James had on. He had James in a pair of Gryffindor shorts, with bright white knee socks, a black and gold sweater vest (with nothing but his skin underneath), and a long black cape. If Peter admitted that he was either joking, going for an artsy original look, or completely daft, James would have let the whole thing slide. But, Peter seemed to actually like what he picked out. "If I was Lily, I'd like it," Peter said."

"No," Remus said, appalled. "No you wouldn't."

"Wait!" James's face lit up with the sudden spark that only an ill-fated idea, thought brilliant at the time, could achieve. "Maybe Lily'll hate his outfit so much, she'll rip it off me and then-"

"Go change."

"I smell like, sniff sniff, Remus." James was back in front of Sirius's bed, now with Remus's pick on. It was actually Remus's clothes that James was wearing; a tan button up Oxford, under a brown jacket (with very worn elbow patches), over brown corduroys. James new it was a No from the moment he saw it; especially since Remus's thin frame was two sizes smaller than his.

"I can see your bits," Peter squeaked, his eyes promptly covered.

"Yep," James continued, his nose buried in the arm pit of the jacket. "Smells like old books, ink and, sniff, and, sniff, um…"

"Copper," Sirius mumbled. He smiled weakly at Remus.

"Oh," James nodded.

Remus tried to smile back at Sirius, but all he managed were rapid twitchy lip movements. Unlike James, Remus hadn't even registered the fact that Sirius knew his smell immediately; he was more embarrassed, and upset. Remus knew he had A Smell, everyone did. He just didn't like learning the fact that one third of his smell was the scent of blood. He didn't like learning that not even his smell escaped the wolf.

Sirius scooted closer to Remus. "It's not bad," Sirius whispered. Remus frowned. Sirius copied Remus's frown, but then his face rippled into a great smile and he buried his head in Remus's neck, sniffing obnoxiously loud. Remus laughed despite his uncomfortableness and shooed Sirius away. "Ahh," Sirius moaned, as if he just stuck his upturned nose into a pot of the warmest tea.

Peter rolled his eyes, and turned back to James, who had missed the whole scene because he was flexing in the mirror.

"This makes me look so buff," he squealed. "Look at my muscle-riiipppp."

"No! No. No. If you're going to model my outfit than put some effort in it! I would never walk like a sodding zombie tap dancer."

"Well, I guess I'm not going to model your outfit then."

"You're no fun," Peter pouted, letting himself get into the game.

"It's just that…" James sighed. Wordlessly, he scanned the room, his hands flying everywhere. "It's just that there's no music. No ambiance."

Remus smirked. "Why didn't you say that in the first place?" With a graceful flick of his wand, Remus's wizard friendly phonograph started up; streaming an upbeat jazzy rhythm through the room.

Sirius shook his head. "That's not Bowie."

"No," Remus said. His eyes were closed, his whole body swaying to the beats. He opened one eye giving Sirius a look that made him smile with wild joy. Remus hadn't looked at him like that since last June; since before Lily's letter was found; since before they were forced to dissect their friendship.

Peter let out a crazy laugh, snapping Sirius back to reality and James, who was walking with long, swaying steps, his head held high, his hands on his hips. Sirius wolf whistled, barely making a sound from laughing so hard. James posed, and opened up the leather jacket he was wearing. Underneath he had a black tank top over black trousers.

"You're so one color sided, Black," James called over the music.

"I think Next!" Remus shouted. James nodded and flicked his wand, transfiguring himself into his next outfit.

Flick. Flick. Flick. James must have gone through a dozen outfits, until Sirius, Remus, and Peter all clapped loudly and cheered.

"That's it! That's what you should wear," Sirius said, turning the music off.

"You look good, but not like you're trying to look good," Peter added.

"You look normal too. It's not a costume, which is what Lily probably expects you to be arriving in."

James looked himself up and down. "This is what I was wearing in the first place, you brain-dead gits!"

"I think I need to be reminded about manners."

"No you don't." Remus watched James dribble soup down his front. "Let me revise that statement."

James dabbed at his dribble. "Allow me to remind you why we are here, oh wise Moony. To discuss things I should talk about with Lily."

Remus rolled his eyes in the slow way one does when their head is about to implode all over the place. That night was the full moon. He already felt it. He itched like crazy. Yet there he was. No, not resting in his bed, getting some work done. He was sitting opposite James in the Great Hall, having an inane conversation about James's date. All day James felt the need to over prepare himself, and Remus was just in no mood. Peter was plopped down rather uncomfortably at the Slytherin's table for another round of tutoring, so there was no pawning James off to him. Sirius was coming to lunch late due to his serving of a detention he earned for one of his many "misunderstandings".

"You're slipping again, mate," James said, waving a hand past Remus's eyes. Remus blinked rapidly, and swatted the offending hand away. "What are you thinking, ahem, excuse me, who are you thinking about? And does it rhyme with fadput?"

"Tonight is a-" Remus paused to point towards the sky. "So, forgive me if I don't have it altogether today."

James nodded. He may have been in hyper-excited mode, but he wasn't going to disrespect Remus. The last thing he needed was a black eye for his date, which he would have gotten from Sirius if Remus was even a little bit unhappy. Surprise, surprise. "So, what should I talk about with Lily?" James asked. Really he just wanted to get Remus talking; he still wanted answers.

"School?" Remus offered.

"School?"

"Yes. Classes. That's what I talk about with Lily."

James sighed. "Well, that's because you're Moony. Pretend you're me."

Remus thought. "Wanking?" He bent his head forward giggling. Giggling was a problem during the hours before a full moon. Giggling and wanting to eat human flesh.

"I can see this is not but a big joke to you, Moony."

"I'm sorry."

James laughed. "It's alright. Here! I'll make this easier."

"Ok." Remus cleared his throat and sat up straight.

James leaned over the table. His eyes were glinting behind the frames of his glasses. "What should I say to Lily…when she asks…if you…and Sirius…are you and Sirius?"

Remus's nostrils flared out, which was never a good sign. "You tell her that that is none of her business. And that she needs to not listen to insanely blinded by love idiots passing notes to her in study hall."

"But are you?" James was leaning so far across the table that his chest was practically in his soup

"Are I…?"

"With Sirius?"

"Not at the moment."

"Metaphorically."

"You should use that word with Lily. Lily loves men who use big words."

"But are…does she?" James made a mental note to speed read a dictionary before his date.

"And you should talk about what you want to do after you graduate. Ambitions. You might want to mention having a family." Remus watched as James's face went from dead curiosity to dead serious.

"Wanna have babies. I can say that."

"But, and this is the most important thing you can do." James pretended to clean his ears out, and leaned forward some more. "Ask her questions. If she brings up a topic, don't launch into a story about yourself. Ask her questions about her story. Show her you were paying attention. And not just staring at her mouth move."

"Pay attention." James groaned, slamming his back against his chair. "This is harder than NEWTS, Remus! You can't expect me to remember all that."

Remus gave James his best soft smile where his head flopped to the right. "You'll be fine, James."

James nodded. "If I get into a bind, I'll just say to myself: What Would Moony Do?" Remus laughed. "But, you know what's more important….Who Would Moony Do? Go on. Best friends everywhere need to know." James held a fake microphone up to Remus.

Remus pretended to tap the microphone; he leaned forward to speak into it. "Sod off."

"Please just tell me!"

"Nothing's going on! Sirius already told you."

James pursed his lips, thoroughly unconvinced. "If nothing's going on then why are you saving food for him?"

To Remus's left was an empty chair, but a plate stacked high with a practical buffet of food. "You know how he gets when he doesn't eat lunch," Remus explained.

James growled, but nodded. Sirius was a weird bloke as it was, but on an empty stomach? He was certifiable. "I just don't understand why you won't just tell me! Just me!"

Remus almost screamed at James. He was sick of talking about things that weren't logical, that didn't have answers. For any lunch to have a conversation about how Pumpkin Juice really didn't flatter any of the meals they consumed, or something equally dull, this would have been the perfect lunch. Remus, for once in his life, was all for taking in stiff monotone grunts for the rest of the day.

"Why do you want to know so badly?" Remus asked James.

"Because you're my best friends."

"But," Remus looked around, making sure everyone else was submerged in their own mundane conversations. "But, aren't you weirded out by this? Aren't you mad, Prongs? Not only are we your best friends, we're two blokes. We share a dorm room with you. Why aren't you pitching a fit!"

James looked taken back. "I am weirded out, Moony," James started in a slow pace. "I am mad. And uncomfortable. And…but, why say anything? Why cause a giant riff between us all, and you know it would happen."

Remus, for one incredulous moment, was stunned speechless. "So," he started slowly. If his brain wasn't so fogged with pre-moonstrual symptoms, then he probably would have processed his thoughts in his usual speedy manner. Alas. "What you are basically saying….is that you're too lazy to be bigoted."

"Yes." James nodded. "Too much effort."

"But-"

"I only have three best friends," James continued. His voice evened out, became lower. He was being serious. For once, Remus was going to have a serious conversation with James that didn't involve answers to essay questions. He was rather excited. "I have three best friends, and no matter how weird it makes me feel, no matter how hard it is for me to understand, if I stopped talking to you and Sirius because you may or may not, or may be in love with each other, then I'm down to one best friend and that sucks. That's horrible. Especially since that one friend isn't you or Sirius."

That could have possibly been the nicest thing James had ever sad to him. So he swallowed and prepared to answer him honestly. "Sirius and I aren't dating."

"You don't-"

"We aren't. We kissed. We liked it. But, we're just…we're just being. I mean, you know Sirius. How many phases has he been through?"

"Well, there was that month where he refused to wear pants." James shuddered. "But, Moony. You're not a phase. You can shake your head all you want."

Remus shook his head purposely with more vigor. "You just have to always be right."

"That and…well you probably have no idea, right? But, I see everything. Prongs sees everything. With the way you two act on a full moon; I just shouldn't be that surprised, come to think of it." James smirked at Remus's wide-eyed look of avid confusion. "And, wait a minute, Sirius is aware of everything too….that just makes the whole situation less innocent, actually. It's almost down right obscene of him."

"What. Are. You. Talking. About?" Remus asked in horror rippled whispers.

James rolled his eyes lazily. "Oh, come on, Moony. What do you think I'm talking about?"

"Oh, Merlin!" Remus gasped, suddenly feeling sick. Sick, and disturbingly intrigued.

"Hey!"

James's eyes sprang to Sirius, who had just plopped himself down next to Remus. "Hey, Pads! How was detention?"

"What you'd do to Moony? He's pale!" Sirius gently shook Remus's shoulders. "Moony? Moony, are you OK?"

Remus finally realized Sirius was touching him. He squeaked and pulled away. "I can't believe you!"

Sirius looked like someone just took his lollipop away. "What I'd do?"

"You! You. You-" Remus leaned closer to Sirius. "-rapedme!" he finished in a whisper.

"I what? When?" Sirius allowed himself two seconds to remember if he did or not, then his thoughts were rudely erupted by low rumbles of badly concealed laughter. "James!"

"Moony was making me be all serious," James exploded. "I had to break the spell some how."

Remus's finger hooked around Sirius wrinkled chin and pulled his face to the side, locking their eyes together. "So you didn't have sex with Moony as Padfoot?"

Sirius gaped, that was the only word for the face he was making. "Moony! I would never do that. I mean we romp around, but doggy style-I mean! You know the way dogs do. Merlin. You know what I mean. Padfoot's never had sex with Moony."

Remus squinted his eyes at Sirius, looking right into his pupils. Sirius widened his eyes and smiled. Remus nodded and moved back. "He's telling the truth," he said to James.

"You know," James said. "We have no proof that you staring into Sirius's eyes competes with a lie detector."

Remus and Sirius shrugged in unison.

"Ahem, James?"

James spun around. "Hey, Ev-Lily."

Lily smiled, turning her eyes onto James's companions. "Remus. Black."

"Lily."

"She-devil." Sirius smiled brightly up at Lily.

Lily glared at him, but being the adult she ultimately pretended to be, she ignored him. "James meet me in the front hall, in about two hours?"

"OK!" James practically squealed. Lily smiled in an amused way that Remus noted would probably be the way she was going to always smile after that day.

"You sure both Heads could leave the grounds? I hate for anything illegal to happen without you swooping in to stop it. How will Hogwarts survive?"

"Are you done?" James asked.

"Pretty much." Sirius picked himself up from his position of fake fainting onto Remus.

"Good. Because I gotta dash. Only two hours to make myself pretty, after all."

"He's going to prep more than Evans," Sirius whispered mortified, eyeing James's form sprinting from the Great Hall. "All she has to do is retract her nails and pull the stick from her ass."

"Sirius," Remus scolded. But he smiled, and even laughed.

"Aw, there's my Moony being normal and getting jokes." Sirius made as much noise as he could moving his chair closer to Remus's. "Did Prongs question you?"

Remus nodded. "I told him I was just one of your phases." Remus refused to look at Sirius. It wasn't hard given the fact that any movement made him wince in slight pain.

"Like the time I would only eat things covered in chocolate?"

"Or the time you wouldn't wear pants."

"Who said that one ended?" Sirius winked, shaking his hips in his chair rather erotically. "Did Prongs buy it?"

Remus shook the disgustion from his features. "No," he answered.

Sirius mouthed an 'oh'. "Obviously he seemed OK with it all. I'd almost go on and say accepting…?"

"He's just lazy, but….he-" He doesn't have anything to accept, Remus wanted to finish. There's no reason to accept something that's not there. Remus just dropped his sentence. He didn't know what else to say, and now even his vocal chords were tired. He was hitting pre-moonstrual cycle 3: The Sleepy-Head.

Remus yawned.

"Moony," Sirius called in a whisper. His voice was shaky. He was flexing and curling his fingers across the top of the table. "If, if you're just a phase…then it's always a full moon."

Remus's head never moved faster, and he grinned up at Sirius like an idiot. Sirius's face burst like the sun. And he wanted to kiss Remus. Right there, in the Great Hall, in front of the staff, the students, the potatoes. Instead he leaned in real close, and pinched Remus's nose.

"You're crazy," Remus said. He was crazy too. Crazy because five months ago, hell, five days ago, he was rather uncomfortable with the whole situation. Crazy because in that moment he couldn't remember why he ever was.

Sirius snorted. "I'm Sirius."

"That joke is officially stale." Remus closed his eyes, chin lolling against his chest.

"And you, Mister Moony, officially need to get your blood pumping." Sirius swung his legs off the bench, and grabbed Remus's arm. "Let's go watch Prongs put his face on."

"Well, lads, today, oomph, damn it!" James quickly launched back to his feet.

"You totally deserved that," Sirius cackled. He kicked aside the villainous piece of parchment that sent James skidding to the floor.

James pouted, smoothing his clothes down. "How do I look?"

"Ravishing."

"Thank you, Padfoot, my kind gentle friend."

The four of them waited in the front hallway where James was too meet Lily. Sirius really, really, wanted to follow James under the cloak and keep an eye on him; or make his date more "interesting" for him. He thought maybe he could make Lily's top fall off; but, it was a full moon, and he wasn't going to miss that; and he wouldn't really want to ruin his best friend's life. In a small part of Sirius's brain, he was happy for James.

"I'll try to make it back before curfew," James said to Remus.

Remus shook his head. "Don't you dare cut your date short for me. Have fun. Padfoot will be there, anyways."

"It makes me feel safe to know that you'll be keeping your eye on him Moony." James pointed an accusing finger at Sirius. "I put a lock on my cloak."

"I wouldn-"

"Here she comes," James squeaked. "Go, go. See you later. Wish me luck!" Peter bolted to one end of the hall, squealing a 'good luck' over his shoulder. Sirius pulled Remus behind a suit of armor.

They watched Lily hug James, and James take Lily's hand, and the two walk out the door with the rest of the Hogsmeade wanders.

"Look at our Prongs all grown up," Sirius said, fondly, stepping out from their makeshift hiding spot.

Remus came to stand next to him, watching all the other couples leave the school with quick kisses or firmly grasped hands. Remus finally had enough. "Sirius, you are crazy! I just can't believe you don't want someone like Lily!" Remus blurted out. "You always have to be different, don't you? You thrive on doing everything your family stands for backwards." Remus was laughing now. He pointed wildly at the leaving boys and girls. "Don't you want that?"

Sirius straightened his back, stepped closer to Remus, and threaded their hands together. "Moony, you might think I'm crazy…" He squeezed Remus's hand, and started to lead him back up to the dorms.

Remus pinched Sirius's nose. He didn't like normal people anyways.