Written for the Remus/James Fuh-Q Fest.

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"Great party," someone approached them, a year or two younger. "When are you having another one?"

"When Gryffindor wins the Quidditch Cup, next month," Peter announced, spur-of-the-moment. The boy smiled and gave a thumbs-up. They didn't really notice. The boy walked away.

"We are winning the Cup this year, right?" Sirius asked, turning to James.

"Of course," James answered, cocky. "Don't be thick." Then, he added as an afterthought, "even against those rat-faced, cheating, sneaking Slytherins."

The Common Room was empty now, leaving only Peter, Sirius, and James. Remus, the birthday boy, remarked on how tired he was and left, probably so he wouldn't have to clean up. The others had let him- it was his birthday, after all, and he more than anyone deserved a good one.

"Man, that was a fun party. You do know how to make birthdays good, Prongs," Peter said. "The fireworks were a nice touch."

"I'm just getting started," James grinned, and flicked his wand, sending wrappers of Ice Mice and empty Butterbeer bottles into the trash.

"What else are you planning?" Sirius threw a wrapper at James.

"I'm taking him to the Hog's Head." James threw the wrapper back, after checking it was empty.

"You'll get him drunk!" Peter said. "That's cruel."

"Yeah, Prongs, I don't think Moony'll take alcohol too well."

"Oh, what do you know. You," he pointed at Peter, "can't preform a Bat-Bogey hex and you," he pointed at Sirius, "can't preform a full Patronus."

"I'd be able to if I tried," sirius mumbled.

Peter laughed. Sirius shot him a dangerous look and tackled him to the ground.

James sighed as he watched his wrestling friends. "This isn't making the common room get any cleaner." Then, after sending another wrapper to the trash, joined his friends on the floor.

The place was dark- Remus blinked a few times, waiting for his eyes to adjust, then followed James to the bar.

"I'll have two large Firewhiskys, two meads, and two Butterbeers for now," James was telling the bartender, who looked eager, probably thinkg of the price it would all add up to.

"James!" Remus hissed. "We won't be able to drink all that."

"Just wait," James grinned at Remus, running his fingers through his hair to make it stand up, though there wasn't anyone around to impress, except a group of men sitting around a table- and one of them seemed to be asleep. "This is just a tiny bit of what we'll have tonight."

Oh, perfect, Remus thought. He didn't know why he had excepted James' invitation. The Hog's Head really wasn't his kind of place-it was dark and people just went there to get drunk. Besides, it kind of smelled. Though he did know why- sometimes Remus thought he'd do whatever James asked. But not quite. He accepted because he knew James really wanted to do this for him, but James should have known this wasn't his kind of thing, Remus thought furiously. The drinks arrived.

Remus was staring at his glass as if the twinkling of his drink could uncover some of the universe's secrets.

James shoved him gently. "You're supposed to drink it."

Remus's gaze shifted from the glass to James, as if comparing the twinkle of his drink to the one if James's eyes.

Remus sipped his Butterbeer. Butterbeer, he could do.

"Moony," James shook his head. "That is not that way." James held up his Firewhiskey and with a glance at Remus took a huge gulp. "Try it."

Remus grasped his own glass for Firewhiskey, looking at it closely. He took a sniff. James rolled his eyes, a "come on!" gesture. Remus sipped.

James rolled his eyes again. "Don't SIP!"

Remus sighed, closed his eyes for a moment before taking a big gulp. Then, he coughed as a warm sensation passed through his body.

James started laughing. "Great, isn't it?"

"Strong," Remus mumbled. No way I'm drinking that again, he thought. But after a few moments he decided he liked the taste, and took another sip. "Not bad," he remarked. James smiled.

Remus wasn't sure when the room started to get blurry. He didn't really notice; the room had been dark and smoking to begin with, and anyway, James's smell was distracting him. James smelled different that night. James usually had a manly smell of guy sweat and grass. Remus had only smelled girl sweat a limited times but he knew it smelled different from guy sweat. And James didn't have his guy sweat smell that night. He smelled manly anyway, of musk and something else Remus would have reconized if he'd have thought of it before he'd had a Firewhisky, a mead and two Butterbeers. And another glass. But was it Firewhisky or mead? Or maybe it was the different thing that James ordered after finishing his drinks? James...was talking.

"You know? You can spell Remus.. spell muse out of Remus. You've always been my muse."

"Really..." Remus mumbled, gripping his glass more tightley.

"Really-really. And, y'know, since the day you became, whaddya call it, Prefect, that's it, Prefect... oh, anyway, since that day, I sorta looked at you... looked at you different... you were stronger, y'know?" James giggled.

"Hrmpf." Remus replied. "I'm getting sleepy."

"What are you talking about? The night's still young!" James was shouting.

"You're shouting," Remus said.

"You're shouting!" James retorted, still shouting.

Remus said something or the other, but instantly forgot what, as he was distracted by the fact that his words were slurred. iStrange,/i he thought. iMy throat must be dry./i He picked up his glass to take another gulp of Firewhisky, found it was empty. "You!" He pointed to the barman. "Another one of this!" He held up his glass.

"And of this!" James held up his.

The barman frowned but complied. "Money."

James reached in his pocket, took out some coins, squinted at them, counted and gave them to the barman. They made the trade, money for drinks.

"Thank you!" Remus held out his glass to the bartender. The bartender rolled his eyes.

"How RUDE! And we're paying him!" James huffed. "You wouldn't be so rude, right, Moony?"

"Right!" Remus agreed, nodding furiously. "Right... umm..."

"So...anyway..." James propped his head onto his hand, almost tipping over. "Where was I?"

Remus shrugged in answer.

"You... you need to relacks." James hiccuped. "Thee, that's why I brought you here."

Remus giggled. "You're talking funny..."

"You are!" James retored. "Anyway... so, anyway, so as I was saying I think Lily could be, or um, um, might be, this cool...specail person, but y'know something Remus? Moony? Y'know? I don't really know her. Not like I do with you and Wormtail and Padfoot... and I like you even though I know you make strange noises at night and pick your nose."

"Do not," Remus argued half-heartdly. "'m tired..."

"Tired? Want to go to bed?"

Remus nodded. "Sleep."

"See, we go even though the night's just starting, that's how much I love you, Moony... I'll do anything for you, seriously... come on, let's go." James put his arm around Remus and they started to walk back to Hogwarts, careful not to fall on the way.

_

Remus woke up with his head pounding some rythem he had yet to unearth. He pulled the pillow over his head, as if wishing everything could just go away. then he smiled, and got up, only to shut his eyes tightly against the sun streaming in through the dormitory's window. "Are you up?" He yelled to James.

"Sort of," Remus heard James mumble. "Are Peter and Sirius here?"

Remus waited for Sirius or Peter to say something, his eyes still shut. "I guess they went down to breakfast already." Then, he added as an afterthought, "or lunch."

"Lunch? What time is it?" James sounded panicked. "There's the Ravenclaw versus Slytherin game today!"

Remus shrugged and struggled to open his eyes. When finally got them open, James was getting up, moving towards him. He sat down on Remus's bed.

"So, say... can you remember anything from last night?" James just wanted to make sure. He didn't remember everything that happened the night before, but he did know he had said some embaressing stuff.

"Not a thing. Why?"

"I just...said some stuff that you'd be better forgetting."

"Why? Because you mean them and don't want me to know, or because you didn't mean them?"

James considered. "The first option. But it doesn't really matter."

"Oh, it does," Remus said, getting closer to James.

James felt his heart start beating faster. "Why?"

Remus kissed James. "That's why. I was just testing you," Remus said with a grin. "Wanted to see if you meant it. I knew I'd get you to confess."