Five Days, Chapter 6
Title: Five Days
Chapter 6 of 6 (Link to Chapter 1) (Link to Chapter 2) (Link to Chapter 3) (Link to Chapter 4) (Link to Chapter 5) (link to the fic on AO3)
Total Word Count: 24450
Pairing: Remus/Sirius, James/Lily (Fake relationship), James/Lily
Rating: G (so far)
For jilyvalentinesweek! Prompt: fake relationship.
Warning, woefully unbeta’d. Still looking~ PM me if interested.
Summary: Things are resolved, one way or the other. Sirius worries. Nobody cries. I love a happy ending!
Dawn crept up on the castle, and once again Lily Evans found herself awake at an absolutely ridiculous hour of the day. There’s not even class today, it’s Sunday, she groused to herself as she fumbled around for the nearest not-dirty shirt and pulled it over her head with a yawn. Why am I doing this again?
Because this is when Remus likes to study, she reminded herself firmly, and you need to make sure the last bit of your plan isn’t going to ruin his life.
She was pretty sure he would be happy, but it was always nice to be certain. A careless brush of her hair and a slightly more thorough brush of her teeth left her finally ready to face the last day… the last day she would have to pretend to date James Potter.
Although if she were being honest with herself, she’d grown rather fond of him over the last week. It was really capsizing her image of him as a arrogant, immature rule-breaker. James Potter had a personality, who knew?
And I have to kiss him today, she thought as she wandered towards the library. She felt strangely excited at the prospect, a feeling she was going to have to examine more closely after all their plans for the day had concluded.
She pushed open the large wooden doors to the library, and they gave a small complaining creak. Sure enough, there was Remus, seated at his usual table and surrounded by dusty books. The pale dawn light streaming in through the window picked up the swirling dust motes around him and gave the whole scene an airy, ethereal sort of effect - like a Renaissance painting. She smiled a little in spite of herself, and slid into the seat across from him. He looked up, a little surprised, but smiled at her.
“Lily, a pleasure as always. Don’t often see much of you this early."
“Yes, well, I couldn’t sleep and thought I’d come pester you instead.” She pulled the book he was reading closer to her and flipped it around, examining the text inside. Remus practically leapt across the table to get it back but he was too late - Lily was flipping pages excitedly.
“'Seventeen ways to get him to ask you out…’ ‘Is he interested or is he just friendly?’ ‘What to do when you’re in love with someone impossible…’ Remus, what in the name of your lost common sense is this?” She closed the book to examine the cover, marking her place with one finger. “Witch Weekly back issues? Oh, dear, Remus, how far will you sink?"
“Shut it, Lily,” he muttered, and snatched the book back, riffling the pages until he found his place again. “Sirius has been acting stranger than usual lately and I thought this might help."
“Looking for love advice in a book.” Lily shook her head. “I have been trying to tell you all of these things for Merlin knows how long and you turn to a book instead."
“Books are objective!” Remus protested. “You have a vested interest in the matter!"
“Fair dues,” she conceded. There was silence for a moment. “So what does your book tell you?"
“Answer unclear,” he admitted. “There are quizzes and the like, but they’re mostly designed for heterosexual relationships so they can be a bit off-target."
“I really think you two should just sit down and talk about it,” Lily said, sighing as she stretched her arms over her head.
“You know, that’s the funny thing - I think we almost did yesterday in the Three Broomsticks, before Pete came in.” Lily slapped her forehead.
“I’m going to shake him until candy comes out,” she muttered.
Peace reigned for the next few minutes while Remus read, until he gave a disbelieving snort and closed the book with some force, prompting Madame Pince to poke her head around the edge of a bookshelf threateningly before silently withdrawing.
“This is utter, utter rubbish,” he proclaimed, shoving it away from him. “It’s a miracle anyone reads this with a straight face, let alone follows the advice. I’m certainly not going to eat strawberries in a suggestive manner until Sirius realizes the error of his ways and carries me off into the sunset, it’s ridiculous.” He sighed and rubbed his face with his hands, then stood up.
“I’m famished,” he said to Lily. “Ready for breakfast?” She nodded and stood herself, patting Remus sympathetically on the shoulder. They walked companionably through the still-empty halls, a comfortable silence between them. Finally, as they rounded the last corner to the Great Hall, she spoke the question that had been on her mind.
“What would you do if Sirius did confess to liking you?” Remus shot her an odd look, but gave a soft chuckle.
“I’d probably pinch myself a few times to make sure I wasn’t dreaming again. Then I’d ask him if he was positive. And then I’d probably push him against a wall and snog him until he forgot his name."
“Too many details,” Lily wrinkled her nose. “Leave that bit out when you tell me all about it."
“Not to worry, Lily,” Remus said as they found seats. “That’s about as unlikely as it gets."
Lily just smiled enigmatically and reached for the bacon.
***
Remus had long since woken up and headed for the library by the time the rest of his dorm woke up. James was the first awake, grinning like a child at Christmas. Today was the day. He was going to not only ensure the happiness of his two very best mates, he was going to kiss the girl he’d fawned over for years. I can’t lose, he thought with a grin, and threw pillows at Sirius and Peter until they groaned and rolled over in protest.
“Piss off, it’s Sunday,” called Peter, burying his head under one of the pillows James had thrown.
“No time to sleep in, lads!” he responded gaily. “I have an important announcement."
“You always say you have an important announcement, and it’s never more important than another hour of sleep,” grumbled Sirius, but he pushed himself up onto one elbow all the same. “But we’re awake now, so let’s have it and we can go back to sleep after."
Peter pulled his head out from under the pillow and squirmed until he was half hanging off the bed facing James. “Out with it,” he demanded. “I’m still knackered."
“Today, gentlemen…” James paused for effect and winked at Sirius, “I am going to ask the lovely Lily Evans to be my girlfriend.”
There was a crash as Sirius’s elbow slipped out from under him and he subsequently fell off the bed. James waited patiently, sitting cross-legged on top of his covers, until Sirius managed to right himself.
“I’m glad to see you are just as enthusiastic as me, mate!” James called over to Sirius, whose cheeks were burning bright red and whose eyes were glinting dangerously. “Thoughts, Peter?"
Peter shrugged. “Just don’t be a total cock and you might actually succeed this time. Good luck, mate!"
“I thank you most kindly.” James bowed at Peter from his seated position on the bed. “Sirius? Any wishes of good fortune?”
“I hope she chews your head off and serves it for dinner,” Sirius muttered.
“Capital! Let’s head down to breakfast, lads.” And with that James launched himself out of bed and dug around in his trunk, finding a clean white t-shirt and a pair of black pants. “This’ll do for now,” he muttered to himself. “I’ll dress more nicely later.” Peter had slipped into the bathroom to brush his teeth, which meant Sirius was able to sneak up on James unnoticed. James had pulled his shirt halfway over his head when he heard a voice right next to his ear:
“James. Please don’t make me go through with this.” James finished pulling his shirt on and righted his glasses, which revealed the extremely worried face of Sirius. He looked like he was about to throw up, he was so nervous. His hands were clenched tightly at his side, fingernails digging into the palms.
Even though he knew the outcome, James still felt a sudden wave of sympathy for his best friend. He sighed and pulled him into a rough hug. Sirius was surprised, but soon hugged him back. They stood there that way for a minute, James giving silent comfort and Sirius quietly receiving it, until James pulled back and took Sirius by the shoulders.
“Look, mate…” he hesitated, not wanting to reveal too much but still wanting to help Sirius, “you’re overthinking this. Trust me. Everything will work out in the end. Besides, Lily might not even say yes."
This last made Sirius relax a little. “Too right,” he smiled. “A week of friendship does not a relationship make. She probably still thinks of you as a moron, albeit a slightly more socially acceptable one."
“Oi, don’t push it.” James gave Sirius a mock shove and they were both laughing when Peter emerged from the bathroom. He gave them a nonplussed stare and then shrugged, reaching for his shoes.
“Time to go, lads,” he said. “We’re up this early, might as well jump on breakfast before all the good food is gone."
***
Sirius Black’s face went through an amusing amount of changes as the day progressed. Any time James got close to Lily, his eyes would widen and his mouth pinch closed. When James invariably walked away with no discernible change in their relationship, Sirius’s whole face would relax. Around Remus he schooled his expression carefully, but there was a hint of tension around the eyes still. He was quiet in the common room for a change, only taking a break from his worried staring at James to throw a poorly-concealed note at the other boy’s glasses. Fabian Prewett pulled him aside before lunch to ask if he were feeling well and would he be able to fly the next day against Slytherin, while Peter took to practicing his Stunning spells, managing to knock a few of the notes out of the air.
Most of the notes were variants along one of themes. About half of them were begging James to let him off the hook - ‘go snog Evans till your face falls off but LEAVE MY LIFE OUT OF IT PLEASE I BEG YOU’. The other half were actually considering the possibility of following through, and were inundated with panic - ‘but James what if he hates me forever or what if he thinks its weird what if I’ve been reading the signs all wrong HELP ME JAMES’. James didn’t bother to reply to most of the notes, but every now and then he would add a supportive or sympathetic phrase to the bottom of the latest missive and toss it back.
By dinner the tension had gotten so strange that even Remus was asking Sirius how he was feeling. Every time Remus would pat his shoulder or ask him in a gentle voice what was the matter, Sirius would turn bright red and flinch like he had been slapped. Lily and James sat and watched this spectacle from across a bowl of mashed potatoes.
“It’s so sad,” whispered Lily. “For someone so confident, he’s twitching like a startled deer today."
James snorted into his shepherd’s pie, and Lily elbowed him. “I’m serious, Potter!” she laughed quietly. “He looks so terrified."
“He’s worried about what Remus will say,” muttered James around a forkful of pie. “I’m half-convinced he will take off into the Forbidden Forest if we wait much longer."
“Then we’d best conclude this whole plot after dinner, wouldn’t you say?” Lily’s tone was matter-of-fact, but she felt herself turning a little red around the ears. Her best acting would have to take place in the common room, with most likely their whole House watching. James Potter would ask her out, she would say yes… and he would kiss her. And she would let him.
The girls will think I’ve gone mad, she thought with a nervous laugh. After all the complaining I’ve done about Potter...
She wasn’t complaining about him now. In fact, if she were being honest, a part of her growing steadily larger was starting to look forward to the whole thing.
Remus first! she reminded herself as she picked up her bag to head back to the common room. Remus first, feelings later. James fell into step beside her as she walked down the hall.
“You know, I must be the only girl in Hogwarts who is kissing someone purely for the benefit of somebody else,” she commented to James.
“How generous of you,” he replied. “Are you sure it’s just for him?” he grinned and wiggled his eyebrows at her. She blushed and shoved at his shoulder.
“Enough, James. I presume you have some sort of overblown, dramatic, and quite frankly embarrassing plan to ask me out in mind?"
“Whatever makes you think that?” asked James, radiating innocence. Lily snorted.
“Your previous attempts, as it were. Twenty seven of them at last count."
“You kept count?” he grinned. She just grinned back. This was going to be embarrassing, but fun.
***
Once inside the common room, the two quickly found a couch and settled in to wait. James had a scroll of parchment out and Lily had a book open on her lap, but really they were waiting for Sirius and Remus - waiting for the other shoe to drop. After what seemed like an eternity of waiting the other Marauders tumbled through the Portrait Hole, laughing at something Peter had said. Remus picked himself up off the floor and made his way over to Lily, still chuckling slightly. James sneaked a glance at Sirius - he was looking at Remus with fear, uncertainty, love, and a trembling hope written all over his face. He saw James looking and scowled, turning away. Sirius grabbed his school bag from where it had fallen and headed up the stairs to the boy’s dormitory, shoulders stiff. Remus flopped down on the couch next to Lily and threw an arm over his face.
“Christ on a bike, I’m knackered."
“That time of the month?” Peter asked with mock sympathy, and got a boot to the hip in response.
“Ha bloody ha,” Remus retorted. “I was up early working on homework and my body is in full rebellion."
“Too right it is,” said James. “No one should be awake at seven on a Sunday."
And so the conversation continued, casual and serene, as life in the common room flowed around them. Lily eventually gave up any pretense at reading her book and agreed to a game of wizard’s chess with James, who had long since tossed his essay aside. Their battle was fierce, but James had been playing with the same set since he was a child, and they knew exactly what he was thinking. Excellent at strategy though she was, Lily eventually lost her king in a pitched battle with one of James’s rooks. She groaned and threw her hands up in defeat as her little king was dragged away. Peter cheered and thumped James on the back, while Remus patted Lily on the hand. James pushed his glasses back up his nose, swept the pieces of his chess set back into their box, and reached over to take Lily’s hand. She held her breath - this was it. Soon there would be streamers, or confetti, or a chorus of Charmed fireflies singing a love song.
James took a deep breath. “Lily,” he began, rubbing his head awkwardly with the hand not currently holding hers. “I know I’ve been a major prat in the past. I’ve caused you nothing but trouble, and I’m sorry for that. But I hope you realize I’ve grown up a lot, and - well -“ he faltered. “Bugger, this is harder than anticipated.” Lily laughed a little and squeezed his hand. “At any rate, we’ve gone on a couple of dates now, and I was wondering if you would do me the distinct honor of being my girlfriend. I promise to treat you with tenderness and love, even if you are beating me about the head and calling me a toe rag.” He grinned crookedly at her, hazel eyes large behind his glasses. “So what do you say?"
Lily felt like her face was on fire. She had been expecting fireworks and theatrics, not… this. Their whole relationship was supposed to be fake, a vehicle for the happiness of others, but James seemed to really mean every word of what he had just said. Did she want this to be fake, or did she want to believe that came straight from his heart?
He was still holding her hand, waiting for her to say something. Lily bit her lip. If nothing else she had to keep up with her end of the plan, even if James was causing her some serious emotional confusion. She smiled gently at him and gave her response:
“James, I would be delighted.” And with that she pulled him closer and put her other hand gently on his face. She could feel his skin, soft with just a hint of scratchy stubble, cheeks a little flushed. She leaned in and closed her eyes, mentally crossing her fingers that she wouldn’t make an arse of herself in the last few seconds.
Their lips met, and it was… a lot more wonderful than she had anticipated. He smelled nice, and his lips were warm and pliant against hers. She pulled back after a few seconds and stared at him, his eyes wide. She winked and smiled, intertwining their fingers, before looking around at their two friends.
Remus was smirking, damn him, and Peter’s mouth was an ‘O’ of surprise. Lily reached over and pushed his jaw up with one of her fingers.
“You don’t want to catch flies in there, do you?” she chided.
James leaned back and draped one arm around her shoulders. “That was easier than expected,” he whispered in her ear. “Now the fun really begins.”
“Fun?” she whispered back, but James was already turning towards Remus.
“Moony, mate, would you do us a favor and go inform Sirius of these recent events? You know how he hates to be left out.”
“Me? Why don’t you do it?” Remus asked, puzzled. “You’re his brother."
“I’m a bit preoccupied here,” said James, pulling Lily closer. She felt like her face was going to be permanently stained with blush if James kept this up. Remus stared for a moment, but shrugged and stood up.
“As you like. I was getting ready to head upstairs anyway.” And he walked across the common room to the stairs and disappeared up them. James and Lily watched him walk away, staring until Peter broke the silence.
“All right, either of you want to tell me what’s really happening here?"
***
Remus opened the door to their dormitory and pushed his way inside, still shaking his head a little at James’s ridiculousness. The room was dark, with only a few lit candles to dispel the gloom. Sirius was lying on his bed, one hand tucked under his head, the other tracing silver spirals in the air with his wand. He drew idly while Remus watched - a flower, a moon, a star.
“Lovely,” Remus said, breaking the silence. Sirius glanced over and one corner of his mouth quirked up.
“It passes the time.” He sat up and gestured for Remus to join him. Remus sat cross-legged at the foot of Sirius’s bed and leaned back against the footboard, watching Sirius doodle in the air. Eventually Sirius put his wand down and looked at Remus.
“So what brings you to this vile den of sin and iniquity, Moony?” he asked.
“Well first of all I live here,” retorted Remus, “and second of all James sent me. He wanted me to tell you that Lily finally said yes. Can you believe it? Years of ignoring the big displays, and it’s the small and heartfelt effort that finally wins her over. Who knew? I, for one, enjoyed the personalized fireworks…” he trailed off when he noticed Sirius’s face had suddenly drained of all color. “Er… Padfoot? Earth to Padfoot? You all right?"
“I’m going to kill him,” Sirius muttered, and buried his face in his hands. “Prongs sent you up here, you said?"
“Yes? Padfoot, why do you want to kill James for achieving his dream?"
There was silence for a while, and finally a muffled “sod it”. Sirius uncovered his face, but wouldn’t look at Remus. He stared at his lap instead.
“I promised James I’d do something if Lily finally said yes,” he sighed. “And Merlin’s beard, I’m terrified."
“Terrified? The great Sirius Black? You must be joking.” Remus extended one foot and poked Sirius in the knee. “You’re not scared of anything. You’ve streaked through the Great Hall for a Chocolate Frog."
“That was once,” Sirius grumbled under his breath, but he was smiling.
“Twice,” Remus reminded him. “The first was third year, and the second was two months ago."
“It all blurs together after a while,” Sirius mused.
“So what’s got you so scared you’re hiding in the Tower?” Remus asked, poking Sirius with his foot again.
Sirius buried his face in his hands again. “I… it’s just… Feelings are hard, Moony!"
This startled a laugh out of Remus. “I hear you, mate,” he said sympathetically. “But you need to find your Gryffindor courage and just do it. Whatever it is."
Sirius took a deep breath and sat up, looking Remus in the eye. “Okay, I’m just going to do it. I’m going to do it and I am not going to freak out and run away.” His gray eyes were intense, and Remus subconsciously leaned forward, wanting to drink in everything contained in those eyes.
“Moony… Remus… I fancy you. Rather a lot. Please don’t hate me."
There was silence for three or four horrible seconds, while Remus was frozen in shock. His brain was stuck on the words that had just come from Sirius’s (perfect) mouth.
I fancy you. Remus. I fancy you. Rather a lot. Moony.
Please don’t hate me.
It was this last that shook him into action.
“Hate you?” he said with a smile, “how on earth could I hate you when I’ve fancied you for two years.”
Sirius looked dumbstruck. “You… what?"
“Merlin, Sirius, I’ve been crazy about you for a while now.” Remus got up on his knees and scooted closer to Sirius, putting a hand on the headboard to balance himself. Their faces were awfully close. Sirius still looked confused, so Remus decided to help clarify things. He leaned forward until their lips were barely touching, and raised his eyebrows in question. Breathing quickly, Sirius gave a ghost of a nod, and Remus brought their lips into contact.
It was nothing like kissing Nicola Aberdeen, or even Gideon Prewett. Sirius’s mouth was gentle, and fit perfectly against his own. He could smell the floral shampoo Sirius favored, as well as chocolate and a woodsy-musky smell that made him think of Padfoot. His free hand found its way to the back of Sirius’s neck and he stroked his thumb along the baby fine hairs there, eliciting a shiver. Sirius shifted a bit beneath him and suddenly there was a hand in Remus’s hair and one on the side of his face, shaking slightly. Remus smiled slightly and deepened the kiss, parting his lips and flickering his tongue out between them. Sirius responded with some enthusiasm and it was some time before they pulled apart, eyes bright.
“So you’re telling me,” Sirius panted, “we could have been doing that for the past two years?"
“If only we hadn’t had our heads so firmly in the sand,” Remus shook his head. “Guess we’ll just have to make up for lost time.” He pulled Sirius towards him, but the other boy resisted for just a moment.
“Remus… are you sure?” he asked nervously. “I mean… you know what I’m like. You deserve better."
“Padfoot,” said Remus, “shut up.” And pulled him in again.
***
The fires in the common room had burned down low, and most of the other Gryffindors had wandered up towards bed. Peter was still shaking his head in disbelief at the story Lily and James had just told him.
“So you’re telling me that all of this,” and he gestured at the two of them still cuddled together, “was all a plot to bring those idiots together? Couldn’t you have locked them in a broom closet overnight and called it good?"
“I definitely considered it,” James laughed, “but this required a bit more finesse.” Lily nodded in agreement, resting her head on James’s shoulder. Peter eyed her for a moment before speaking.
“You do realize both Remus and Sirius are gone, right? You don’t have to keep up the pretense. Your plan has either succeeded or failed.”
Lily realized there would be no long heart-to-heart with herself later about her true feelings. The decision had been made - probably had been for a while. She shrugged at Peter without getting up.
“I imagine you’re right, Peter,” she said as she deliberately snuggled in closer to James, “but I was thinking… we shouldn’t let those two have all the fun, right Potter?"
James’s face broke out in the widest grin she’d seen yet. “You are absolutely right, my dear,” and he linked their fingers together.
Peter rolled his eyes. “You two are sickening. I’m off to the kitchens - picking up my picnic for my date with Callista.” He sauntered off to the Portrait Hole, stopping only to snag the Map out of James’s bag. He stepped out and away, and silence reigned once more. Lily felt her eyes getting heavy and knew she should probably head up to bed, but was too comfortable to give the thought any serious consideration.
Distantly she heard James ask her a question. She opened her eyes and turned her head his way.
“What was that?” He was looking at her fondly, glasses glinting in the firelight. Lily had to suppress a sudden urge to kiss him again.
“I said, does this mean we’re actually dating now? Did you mean it when you agreed?"
Lily thought for a moment, idly rubbing his thumb with hers, before answering.
“Yes, James, I did. But we should talk more about this in the morning, yeah? Since things happened the way they did."
“I’ll wait for you in the common room,” he said, and kissed her softly on the forehead. She stood up and stretched, and reached down to pull him to his feet.
“What are you going to tell them?” she asked, as they made their way slowly towards the dormitory staircases. James shrugged.
“I’m not sure yet. Maybe the truth. Probably the truth. We’ll see what happens.” He grinned, and gave her hand a squeeze as they turned towards their separate staircases. “Until tomorrow, Lily."
“Tomorrow,” she said, smiling all the way down to her toes.
