THC, Round 8, Gryffindor, Stand-in, Potions, Drabble, Special bonus character: Remus. Prompt: "Why do you keep lying to me?"

Hogwarts 2.0, Slytherin, Gather Your Party, Blood Hunter - (Character) Remus Lupin.

QL Bingo, Envious.

Word count: 761

Betas: Charlie Manx, BellWhether. Aya

Comment/Notes: Jealousy. Canon-compliant. Marauders Era.

Remus hadn't planned on attending Hogsmeade today. He was extremely tired from the full moon the previous night and should be resting. But something made him wander out here, ignoring the tiredness and the pain. After all, this transformation had been better than most, so he might as well try.

He had thought that it was his friends that had made him try instead of staying in bed, but he realised only once he was there. Then he remembered.

Lily had agreed to go on a date with James today at Hogsmeade.

He watched her through the window as they both drank from separate butterbeer glasses. He hoped she didn't enjoy it.

Remus shook his head; what was he thinking? James was head over heels for Lily; why wouldn't he want his friend to be happy?

He knew why. But he didn't want to say it out loud. He was lying to himself.

"Remus!"

His thoughts were instantly disrupted when Sirius appeared beside him, Peter in tow.

"You made it!"

Remus forced himself to smile and threw an arm over Sirius' shoulders; a little more support would be perfect right now. "And miss James' date with Lily? Never!"

Sirius hooped an arm around Remus. "She hasn't hexed him yet! It must be going well."

"I can hear wedding bells," Peter added, moving to Remus' other side but not touching it.

Remus wrinkled up his face involuntarily—the thought of Lily being stuck with James for all of her life was disgusting; she deserved better.

"Dude," Sirius started, and Remus' expression went blank—he knew. "Let's get you in and sit down; you must be in pain."

Remus looked at his best friend; he didn't know. No one knew. And now the lie continued. He nodded. "Thanks. I think coming here wasn't the right choice."

"I'm glad you came, though," Sirius said, helping to lead him into the same place James and Lily were. He didn't want to go in, but he did need to sit down.

He held onto Peter's shoulder as they chose a booth.

Peter stayed with him while Sirius disappeared.

"Do we have charms homework?" Peter asked. Peter wasn't always good at being aware of the feelings of those around him.

"Yes, due in on Tuesday."

Sirius came back with some drinks and handed one to Remus. "Drink up."

"I'm not thirsty."

"Don't lie. You're parched."

Remus rolled his eyes but picked up the drink anyway. He noticed Peter downing his out of the corner of his eye—that boy could drink for England. However, it wasn't long before his eyes moved to James and Lily. He was happy, smiling widely. Usually, only the Marauders and pranks made him smile like that.

"It's going well," Sirius commented.

Remus nodded but didn't reply.

"Hey, Pete. Want to go get yourself another drink?"

Peter looked at his empty glass and jumped up. "Want any?"

"Nah."

"You don't want them together, do you?" Sirius asked, seemingly out of nowhere.

Remus looked at him. "What? No, it'll be great. James will be thrilled."

"Tell the truth, what do you think?"

"I think they look cute."

"Why do you keep lying to me? You don't think that… I don't think that."

"You don't?" Remus asked, giving Sirius his full attention. Did Sirius like Lily, too? Or James? "Why?"

Sirius leant in closer. "James just likes the idea of her. Maybe I'm wrong, but I don't think it'll last. And I'm unsure how he'll survive with that idea gone."

Remus nodded. "Same."

"I know when you're lying."

"Fine," Remus relented. He took a deep breath and looked over at the two of them. Lily was laughing—that almost stopped him. "I like Lily, and I think she can do better."

"You're envious!" Sirius exclaimed. "Jealous that she agreed to go on a date with him!"

Remus shook his head, which slowly turned into a nod. "Okay, maybe a tad. I don't care if she dates me… but I think she can do better than James. Come on, we know how he treats others if he doesn't like them."

Sirius nodded. "Well…" He stopped abruptly when Peter returned with the next round of drinks.

"Did I miss anything?"

"Not at all." Sirius looked at both of them and smiled. "Remus needs help getting back to the castle. Want to help?"

Peter nodded. "Of course… can I finish my drink first?"

Remus laughed for the first time today. Peter always managed to cheer him up. "Yes, of course."

Peter grinned, completely unaware, as he began downing his own again.