The One That Got Away| Sirius Black

019| Full Moon

TW: some mentions of suicidal ideation later in the chapter.

February 10, 1975

"Are you sure you're okay to go to classes today, Moony?" Sirius asks quietly as they sit at the breakfast table.

Remus was extremely pale and had prominent dark circles under his eyes. Remus hadn't been able to sleep last night since the full moon was tonight. Typically, as it got closer to the full moon, Remus's joints began to ache as his body prepared for the transformation. He also got irritable, his mind preparing to shift into someone- or rather something- else. Sirius hadn't done much sleeping either, between his worrying about Remus and the events of the past few days. So, the two of them spent the majority of their night in the common room, working on the map.

"I'm fine," Remus answers weakly.

"We can get your homework for you, you know. And Sirius can take good notes when he tries-" James offers but is cut off by Remus.

"I said I'm fine, James," Remus snaps.

James just nods his head and turns back to his breakfast. The boys never took it to heart when Remus was moody during his time of the month. They could only imagine how hard it was on him. It was difficult to try to navigate between consoling him and letting him be. The boys wanted to support Remus but didn't want to seem smothering at the same time.

James's attention was captured by something else anyway. Lily Evans had entered the Great Hall with Marlene and Mary on either side of her. She chuckles at something that Marlene says and tosses her curtain of red hair over her shoulder. The girls see Alice Fortescue and join her at the table, Lily beaming brightly at her friend.

"I should probably go say good morning, right?" James breathes, his jaw hanging slack as he watches Lily.

Remus rolls his eyes, not up for entertaining James's far-fetched daydreams today. Sirius, however, was in the mood for cheering up Remus. "Of course, you should, Jamesy boy," Sirius grins, clapping a hand on James's back.

"How do I look?" James asks, finally taking his eyes off Lily. He runs a hand through his already messy hair and grabs a spoon to check his reflection. He moves strands of hair and wipes the sleep from the corners of his eyes. He flashes his teeth, making sure there's nothing stuck in them.

"You look great, James," Peter says, eager to reassure his friend. He was oblivious that Sirius just wanted to get a good laugh. Peter was genuinely encouraging James to pursue Lily, the poor lad.

James smirks at him. "Careful, or one might start to think you have a crush on me, Pete."

Peter's face flushes a dark red, and he begins stuttering over his words, trying to defend himself. At the same time, Remus chokes on his orange juice and begins coughing ferociously. Sirius laughs at his friends' reactions. He was also happy to see Remus happy, even if he was trying his best to fight it back. "I thought we all had a crush on James?" Sirius asks, feigning confusion.

"Who wouldn't?" James asks cockily, messing with his hair one final time.

"I can think of at least one person," Remus replies, glancing down the Gryffindor table and nodding toward Lily.

"Oh yeah? Then watch this," James says, standing up and cracking his knuckles before marching down the table.

The rest of the boys watch as James leans one arm on the table next to Lily. He says something smugly and smiles handsomely at Lily. She glares up at him, replying angrily. James doesn't let that deter him, though, as he smiles and continues to flirt with Lily. The girls look up at James in astonishment, probably wondering how James hadn't given up after four years of trying to get the girl. Finally, James says something that sets Lily off, and she stands up, so they are at the same height. She grabs a glass of orange juice and dumps it on his head before storming out of the hall. The boys roar in laughter as James stands there, dripping in orange juice and looking after Lily. Lily's friends are also laughing at James, besides Alice, who offers James a single napkin. James accepts and walks back to his friends sadly.