✌︎︎𝙲𝚕𝚊𝚛𝚊 𝙿𝚘𝚝𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙵𝚘𝚞𝚛 𝙼𝚊𝚛𝚊𝚞𝚍𝚎𝚛𝚜✌︎︎

Are We Sober?

All nine of them had finally stopped walking. Sirius turned to face them, and pointed at something above him, "this trapdoor leads to right under honeydukes," He said. "We have to be super quiet or we might be seen."

Clara turned to Remus, "since when does he give the briefings about being careful." She whispered, an amused smile on her face.

Remus let out a laugh that caught everyone's attention.

Sirius looked at both of them, clearly confused. "Right. Potter, I think you should lead the way," he finally said.

"Wait, why Clara?" Lily raised an eyebrow. "Do you want her to get caught instead of you, or something?"

Sirius shook his head, but Clara answered. "I can cast a disillusionment charm and check if anyone is near. Is what he means." She explained.

Before anyone could say anything else, Clara waved her wand over herself, and was no longer visible to any of the other eight.

Clara slowly opened up the trapdoor, and climbed up the ladder, trying her best not to make any noise.

When she was finally sure that there was no one around, she tugged at Sirius' shirt to signal them, and they all followed her out.

"V, give me your hand." Sirius whispered when he reached the top, holding out his hand in front of himself. He then felt a hand wrap around his, pulling him forward. "Come on guys," he turned to the rest, as Clara continued pulling him out of the shop.

"We'll go straight to The Three Broomsticks," Clara announced. They all looked for her, and finally spotted her in front of Sirius as the spell wore off.

"Uh, guys," Alice spoke in a low voice, and they all turned to the girl, who's face was red. "I forgot my purse..." she mumbled.

There was silence for a moment, then everyone else burst out laughing, totally forgetting about being quiet.

"Oh, Alice! I had really thought something was wrong!" Mary placed a hand on Alice's shoulder. "Don't worry, dear, I'll pay for you!" She chuckled, reminding the lot of an old woman.

The nine walked into the pub, Clara fully visible now.

"My, my, my," Rosmerta sighed. "How have your numbers increased by so many!" She looked at the four Marauders, and then her eyes looked over the rest.

"Nine bottles of firewhiskey, please, dear." Marlene smiled tiredly at Rosmerta.

"Oh no, I need to see some sort of proof that you're all of-age." Rosmerta folded her arms stubbornly.

Clara pulled out a couple of galleons, "will this be enough?"

Rosmerta looked at the galleons Clara was offering for a couple of seconds. Then finally took them. "You best not make any trouble!" She warned wagging her finger at them before walking off to get their bottles of Firewhiskey.

The nine put two tables together and sat down, quickly beginning conversation together.

"Psst, V," Sirius tapped Clara's shoulder gently, and Clara looked at him with a raised eyebrow. "Mind if I talk to you for a second; in private?" He asked her, and she nodded.

The two moved away from the table, to a corner in the pub.

"You're going to ask what we are to each now, aren't you?" Clara smiled, and Sirius nodded. "What do you think?"

"I think you're my future wife." Sirius muttered.

"What? Speak up, I can't hear you." Clara narrowed her eyes, trying to understand what Sirius had said.

"Ehm, ehm. To me, you're...you're the girl I love." Sirius spoke in the most coy manner Clara had ever seen him speak in.

A smile spread from ear to ear on Clara's face, "so what James said, it doesn't bother you?"

"What he said about you, that does bother me, but he can say whatever he wants about me, I'll love him either way." Sirius ruffled Clara's hair, and pulled her into a hug.

"Oh so you're queer now?" Clara questioned in a muffled voice, and Sirius let out a laugh.

The night had been filled with laughs and even some cries. However, the thought that saddened the three boys most, was the fact that there had not been another seat at the table for the famous James Fleamont Potter, and the feeling that it wouldn't be the last time they sat at a table without him.

"Guys," Lily suddenly broke the sound of laughs, when her head turned a certain direction, towards the entrance of the pub.

All heads turned to look where she had been looking, and the four other girls pulled there wands out of their pockets as the door closed on its own. There was nobody there, but something had opened the door.

"Ladies, put your wands away," Remus said, walking past their table with Sirius and Peter by his side.

"It's just James." Clara muttered when the girls looked at her with confused looks.

As if on cue, James revealed himself, pulling off his invisibility cloak. "Clara, I think I'm entitled to a chat with you," he looked past the three boys, towards the girl sitting with her head in her hands.

"If I'm being completely honest, I don't think you are," Clara snapped back almost immediately. "You know, I was having a good time. Emphasis on was because you just happened to have come along."

James looked more guilty than angry with Clara's words, he just nodded, and turned to leave the pub.

"Wait!" Lily was the one to speak. She sent Clara a sad glance, then rushed to James' side.

Clara watched as Lily ran, and then she looked towards Remus, Peter, and Sirius. They were sharing a few words, a grin apparent on Sirius' pale face.

Lily was talking to James, and Marlene, Mary, Dorcas, and Alice all took to standing beside where Clara had been sitting.

"Drink your Firewhiskey, Potter," Marlene muttered. "And you can have mine too." She added, picking up her own bottle and placing it in front of Clara.

Dorcas looked at Marlene disapprovingly, but didn't say anything. After all, Clara probably wouldn't have wanted to remember everything she had been thinking in the moment.