All Of Me | A Jily Love Story

Chapter Five: A New Era

- JAMES -

After several hours of drinking butterbeer, snacking on chocolates and sweets, playing 'never have I ever' and exloding snap, the right of us had eventually all crashed somewhere in the common room. Alice had been the first to fall asleep, sometime after four. Gradually, everyone else had followed her lead.
A rasping groan escaped me as I attempted to rub my eyes, only to find my fingers restricted by something poky and cold that I soon realised was my glasses. I wrenched my eyes open and absorbed my surroundings, surveying the damage. An excessive amount of empty bottles and sweet wrappers were scattered around the room, one of the table stools upturned. I assumed that the house elves didn't know about this area, or perhaps, chose not to know. I'd have to tell Dumbledore about that - there were going to be many more nights like this.
Glancing around in search for human bodies, I discovered Remus sprawled on the carpet, passed out infront of the fireplace. I snorted, glancing a few feet from him where Marlene lay on her stomach: in nothing but skinny jeans and a black bra, spread eagled on the three seater couch with her arm draping over the edge. Besides herAlice was knocked out cold with the top half of her body snug on the loveseat, and the bottom half slumped into the carpet. Feet from Alice, Sirius was spread out like a star fish. He was, unsurprisingly, unconscious on top of one of the round tables - a puddle of drool pooling on some parchment that I prayed hadn't been Lily's charms essay. Across from me were Mary and Lily, slumped face first on top of a dozen pillows. Lily had a purple sweet wrapper stuck to her cheek. Her rosy lips were slightly open, each breath fluttering her loose strands of hair.  My mouth tugged into a small smile as I admired the way she slept, all adorable in her emerald green cotton shorts, white shirt and loose braids. Merlin, watching her was something I could do for hours.
My eyes slid to where Mar clutched an empty butterbeer bottle to her chest and snored onto Lily's head, her mouth gaping wide open.
I dazedly glanced down to my watch to discover that it was 11:00 AM - and thank merlin it was the weekend. I slumped into the pile of pillows I'd been sleeping on, when Lily suddenly began to stir. She towards Mary in her sleep, her pretty braided head slamming directly into the empty beer bottle. A loud yelp escaped her at the impact, and she started. Lily jumped from the pile of pillows, flying straight into the corner of the coffee table. A choice curse escaped her lips as she rubbed her bruising kneecap and temple, her bottom lip stuck out in a pout.
"God, why?" She whimpered, massaging her limbs and wincing.
"You okay, there?" I asked in the most flat tone I could muster, barely concealing the laughter that shook my frame. Lily's eyes flew open in surpise at my voice, and she swore again, her cheeks warming instantly.
"No." She groaned, screwing her face up. "That hurts like a bitch."
I snorted at grumpy sleepy Lily, thinking miserably that this version of herself only made me love her more.
"What in Merlin's name?" She mumbled, glancing around at the sleeping figures. Lily snorted, muttering "Amateurs."
"Sirius Black, The new sleeping beauty." I announced hoarsley. She laughed a lovely, tinkling laugh and flashed her bright white teeth at me.
"Last night was fun." She grinned slightly, still massaging her head.
"Sure was." I sighed, stretching my arms up above my head. I was close enough to inhale her Vanilla perfume, the scent overwhelmingly comforting. "Welcome to the average Marauder Friday ni-"
A sudden earsplitting crash sounded from somewhere in the room, followed by a yell and a loud string of profanities.
"Wha-?" I exclaimed in alarm, too full of fatigue to recognise the voice. Lily crawled over the pile of pillows she had been snuggled in and seized herself up from the floor. She hurried around the corner of the couch to see what the noise was, her face still screwed up in pain.
It was silent for a moment as I sat there, half asleep, scratching my head like a dazed monkey. I was just contemplating whether I should follow her to investigate, when I heard her begin to laugh. She laughed louder, the sound ringing around the room like a beautiful alarm. Then she started laughing so hard that she wasn't breathing properly, excessive wheezing noises issuing from her lungs. That noise was the only thing that could've gotten me up so fast from my state. I jumped up from my armchair and raced over to see what had happened, a hand automatically ruffling my hair. As I rounded the corner of the couch, I was abruptly faced with the most confusing scene I'd ever laid eyes on. Well, that's an overreaction, I've definitely seen more confusing shit in my lifetime. But it made the list.
Sirius lay on the floor, the table he had been sleeping on sitting flat on its side. I blinked, wondering how he'd landed himself in such a situation, when my eyes were drawn to the table leg that was clutched in his palm. Sirius blinked up at me in shock, a matted clump of hair stuck In his eyes and his mouth agape. I turned to Lily, who had a stream of tears racing down her cheeks, and back to Sirius - completely, comically disorientated - and simply howled with laughter. My knees gave out on me as I fell to the floor, peals of hysterics ripping from my lungs. I banged my fist against the carpet, gasping for breath.
"That - is- priceless." Lily choked out. Sirius grumbled loudly in reply and muttered something indistinguishable about his hair. Somewhere over the other side of the room, there was a soft thump and scream. Seconds later, a bedraggled looking Marlene and and angry Mary appeared. Mary's hair was fuzzy and in knots, Marlene's bent and frizzy. Both resembled badly done muggle perms. They took one look at us, then looked at eachother - and burst out laughing. Mary was laughing so hard that she fell backwards onto the couch, her legs soon disappearing after her body. Marlene practically screamed with mirth at this; which made a now conscious Alice stomp over to the group of screaming people with an irritable expression plastered to her face. She blinked multiple times and glanced around, her eyebrows knitted together. Alice began to laugh. She laughed harder, and harder, and harder until she was choking like the rest of us - a group of crying, hungover, clumsy kids.
"What the flying fuck are you screaming at?" A voice mumbled irritably. Remus came staggering over to us clutching a red cushion into his bare chest. He rubbed his eyes tiredly and yawned widely, clearly oblivious to the situation. Remu's eyes widened in surprise when he came face to face with Sirius scowling on the floor holding the table leg, Me sitting on the carpet on my knees, trying and failing to stop laughing, Lily kneeling down next to me and patting my back whilst clutching her stomach, Marlene sitting back on her heels, her chest heaving with silent laughter, Mary, who was hanging over the side of the couch simply howling, and Alice who was wiping the tears from her face and clapping her hands together like an amused seal.
"Have I missed something?" He asked warily, a hands  waving around in confusion.
He bent down and yanked Padfoot up from the floor, his wand already out and repairing the table with a simple wave.
"Gits." Sirius grinned dazedly, giving Remus a clap on the shoulder.
By my side, Mary was now pointing to Marlene's chest, noticing the minimal clothing.
"Wha -" Mary gasped, before the two of them wheezed even harder, Marlene collapsing promptly on the floor.
"Did something happen last night that we should know about?" Lily asked Marlene, wiggling her eyebrows. Marls glanced down to her exposed breasts, then back to Lily, and merely shrugged.
"I can't remember much." She admitted in a strangled whisper, massaging her throat.
"Good grief." Alice mumbled, glancing up to the ceiling and crossing her heart.
"Whore." Mary giggled, rolling back onto the couch to compose her laughter. I glanced over to Sirius, stifling a snort at the drool threatening to drip from his chin. His eyes were fixated on Marlene's chest, widening generously. I shot Remus a look, jerking my head to the salivating dog. Moony stifled a laugh, subtlety kicking Sirius in the foot to gain his attention. He started, wrenching his eyes away.
"I'm starving." I announced, looking at him pointedly. He blinked in a dazed manner, shaking the hair from his face.
"Merlin's beard," He exclaimed, shooting me a grateful grin. "What do you know - so am I."
"Let's clean up and get dressed," Remus said tiredly, gesturing to the mess. "Then we can go down to lunch."
The six of us nodded in unison and pulled our wands from our pockets, random choked chuckles escaping us every once and a while.
Lily and Ali neatly put all the furniture back in order, Me and Padfoot vanished all the bottles, while Mar, Marly and Moony cleared away all the sweet wrappers. Somewhere along the way Marlene's top was discovered underneath the couch by a smirking Sirius.
"Think you'll be needing this, McKinnon." He tossed it into her chest, brushing past her shoulder. "Although - I do like you better without it." He grinned, offering Marlene a wink that made her cheeks turn tomato red.
"I'm still in love with that view." He was saying saying dreamily five minutes later, gazing out the window of my room. A beautiful blue sky gleamed over the horizon, bathing the grounds and pitch in sunlight.
"Pretty wicked, huh?" I replied, throwing myself onto my bed. I looked around my room, happily gazing over the framed photographs on the walls of the boys and I. Sirius and Remus flopped down besides me, loud groans escaping them in unison.
"So, Padfoot, my dear old friend." I began lightly, a small smirk playing at my lips. "What's ah..what's going on with you and Marly?" I glanced to him, feeling rather smug at the faint pink in his cheeks.
"Nothing." He muttered a bit too quickly, scratching his ear.
"Yeah, and I think Lily is ugly." I snorted loudly, pulling myself up into a sitting position and leaning back against my bedpost. "Aw, Padfoot. You're cute."
"Are you daft?" He shot back irritably, folding his arms into his chest. "I said there's nothing going on."
"And we thought Wormtail was the thick one." Remus sighed, rolling his eyes. "Padfoot, you really aren't as good as concealing the fact that you stare at her arse all day as you think."
I nodded vigorously, giving Sirius a knowing look. It was silent for a few moments as he stared at me blankly, before letting out a heavy sigh of defeat.
"Yeeeees?" I egged him on, waving a hand expectantly. "Care to elaborate?"
"Well...I dunno." He grumbled, reaching his arms back behind his head.
"As if." Remus scoffed, copying him. Padfoot shot him a glare, pouting slightly.
"I fancy her, okay?" He exclaimed, throwing his hands up into the air. "I really, really fancy her. Happy now?"
"Knew it!" I grinned triumphantly.
"Well, don't just stop there!" Remus urged, propping himself up onto his elbows. "Go on!"
"You're like girls, the lot of you." Sirius muttered, glancing between us in hesitation. "Merlin, I can't believe I'm going to say this..."
"Well, say it anyways." I suggested, grinning at his irritable expression.
"The thing is, I'm not just flirting for attention. This isn't a stupid game anymore, and Marlene...well, she's not just some hot chick I picked up at a party." Sirius paused, frowning up at the ceiling as he contemplated. "I don't just want to shack up in a cupboard and leave it at that. Well of course I want to shack up in a cupboard - but I also want to, like, talk to her. And be there for her, and tell her about my day. And...ew." He winced, pulling a face. "I've lost my mind, haven't I?"
Me and Remus exchanged a worried glance, turning to face Padfoot with twinned expressions of pity.
"You're deep in." I sighed, shaking my head.
"That's called a relationship, Padfoot." Moony said gently, patting him on the shoulder.
Sirius let out a low whistle, dragging his eyes back to the ceiling as though it were the most mind boggling thing he'd seen in his life.
"Merlin, I mean - " He gaped slightly, shaking his head. "She's not only hot. She's so funny, she's caring, she gets me, she's smart. I really...really care about her."
My jaw fell open in utter flabbergast. I studied my Bestfriend's similarly surprised expression, struggling to comprehend the words that had come from his mouth. Padfoot fancied Marlene for her personality. He wasn't giving a description in great detail of the shape and size of her tits, nor had he brought up the importance of sex. What in the fuckery -
"Padfoots, that's great!" Remus exclaimed, a wide grin splitting across his cheeks. "Wow, I'm proud of you mate!"
Sirius grinned right back, his grey eyes glowing.
"Thanks, Moons. Still getting my head around it." The two boys glanced to me expectantly, waiting for my response.
"Give me a second to absorb this." I said calmly, a grin spreading across my cheeks. "You fancy Marlene."
"I really, really do." He admitted, grinning like a fool.
"Merlin...My Padfoot is all grown up!" I cried out, clutching my heart dramatically.
"I don't know if that's a good thing or not." He said seriously, grimacing.
"Of course it's a good thing! This is huge, Sirius!" I exclaimed, marvelling at the situation. "Mate, I am so, so happy for you."
He smiled at me sheepishly, the faint pink returning to his cheeks.
"Really though, mate." I grinned, punching his bicep playfully. "I'm glad."
"I s'pose."
We were silent for a few moments, so that the only sound you could hear was giggling going on from Lily's room. I detected Alice's laugh, before I heard Lily use one of my favourite swear words at Marlene and snorted loudly.
"D'you think she fancies me back?" Sirius asked us abruptly. He remained flat on his back, staring up at the ceiling with a torn expression.
The question was so ludicrous that I couldn't stop myself from laughing. I coughed into the crook of my arm, attempting to turn my snort into a sneeze as Remus kicked me in the shins.
"Come on, mate." He said over the top of my choked laughter, choosing to ignore me. "Do you really have to ask that? Of course she does! It's always been you two, look at all of your history."
Sirius hesitated, and something about the hope swimming in his eyes wiped the grin from my face.
"But..." He hesitated, sitting up slightly. "Do you think she's just flirting for fun? You know...to get me into bed? Does she actually mean any of it?"
It was then that I realized, as I looked into his face and saw an anxious, worried teenager, that Sirius Black really did have deep feelings for Marlene Mckinnon. And that he really was as stupid as I thought.
"Sirius, you are a fucking idiot." I said bluntly.
"James!" Remus exclaimed disapprovingly, glaring at me. I raised my hands up in surrender, flashing my eyes.
"What? It's true."
"Ahem, what James means -" Remus swooped in, and I could tell he was resisting the urge to roll his eyes. He however paused, cocking his head slightly. "Well - honestly, I love you, but you can be a bit daft sometimes." He ended up saying amusedly, offering me an apologetic glance.
"See, I was right." I declared indignantly, folding my arms. "Thanks a lot, Moony."
"James, I'm really doing my best to make this about Sirius and you keep stealing his thunder. For the love of Merlin, shut up."
Padfoot snorted loudly as I gaped at Remus, feeling rather affronted.
"Yeah Prongs, stop stealing my thunder." He teased, dodging the swipe I aimed at his head. "So, back to Marlene." Remus said calmly, running a hand through his hair. "Sirius, have you seen the way she looks at you?" I grinned at Remus's words, wiggling my eyebrows suggestively. "We've all bloody noticed it." He continued, waving an animated hand. "Plus, you two will not stop fucking flirting."
"But how do I know that means anything?" Sirius asked anxiously, glancing from me to Rem and back again.
"Padfoot, let's clear something up here." I began, turning to face him from the end of my bed.
"Girl's only flirt with that much bloody effort if they want you, to not only go down on them, but to take them on a date and hold their hand." Remus and I exchanged a knowing look. "Trust me - Marlene fancies you."
"Couldn't have said it better. I even heard her talking about you in class." Remus backed me up enthusiastically, clapping Sirius on the shoulder.
"This is true." I added in mildly. "Even Lily said so."
Sirius lips tugged up into a wide grin, his face promptly lighting up like a Christmas tree.
"Huh, well." His grin widened. "If Lily said so...Thanks, boys."
"Won't believe us, his Bestfriends for six years, but oh if Lily says so..." Remus rolled his eyes, unable to prevent his grin.
"Anyways," I cut in. "Now that that's all in the air." I cleared my throat loudly, shifting my attention to the grinning werewolf. "Remus...Mary, huh?"
His cheeks warmed ever so slightly, but he'd recovered before I could point it out.
"I don't know what you're talking about." He said casually, seizing himself off my bed and reaching down to yank off his pajamas. I copied him, a snort of mirth escaping me.
"Moony, c'mon. I know you fancy her! Even Sirius just confessed his feelings - like the real man that he is." I pulled my pajama shirt off with one hand and rummaged in my drawers for jeans with the other.
"How flattering." Padfoot snorted.
Remus grumbled something indistinguishable and ran his fingers through his hair absentmindedly. I glanced to Sirius for backup, who was looking up at us in surpise, both of his eyebrows raised in anticipation.
"What?" I asked in defence, jerking my head towards Remus. "They are so smitten! He fancies her!"
"Well, shit." Sirius exclaimed in an impressed tone, looking Remus up and down. "You disguised that well."
"Did he?" I asked mildly, cocking my head. "Did he really?"
"Fine. I fancy her." Remus grudgingly admitted, whipping his shirt off rather violently. "Don't tease me for it, I will ruin your life." He warned Sirius, glaring at him menacingly. A large grin spread over my face as I watched the encounter.
"Remus, this is fantastic!" I exclaimed, yanking an egg yolk yellow shirt over my head. "Why would we tease you? Sirius has got a real crush, for crying out loud! If anyone's going to be teased, it's him!"
Remus grinned at me sheepishly, because he knew it was true.
"He's got a point, Moons." Sirius shrugged, ripping off his striped pants so that he was left in nothing but boxers. He straightened up with his hands on his hips, grinning like an absolute goon.
"If there's ever a moment to fall in love, the time is now." I said firmly, pulling a leg through my faded blue jeans. "And anyways. Mary fancies you, too - I can tell."
"What, because you're such a successful love matcher?" Remus asked me wryly. I felt my cheeks warm slightly, but straightened up in defence.
"You could say that." I replied stiffly. Remus flashed me a faint smile and opened his mouth to continue, but was interrupted by a soft cough. We exchanged an exasperated glance, turning to Sirius expectantly.
"Is anyone going to mention Lily at all in this conversation?" He asked, frowning as he pulled on a fresh shirt from my draw. I groaned and dragged a hand down the side of my face, dread settling somewhere deep in the pits of my stomach. I was hoping he wouldn't bring that up.
"Why would we?" I asked wearily, leaning my head back against the wall. I breathed in deeply, focusing on the rise and falling in my chest. A dull ache rested there, a constant reminder that I couldn't have her.
"Because it's Lily." Sirius rolled his eyes, emphasising her name as though it were the most obvious thing in the world. "Duh."
"She's definitely warming up to you." Remus cut in, pulling a fresh pair of robes over his head.
"I seriously doubt that." I replied with a snort, scuffing my feet into my shoes and glancing at my reflection in the mirror. "It's harder, now. I have to see her be happy, every stupid day. Live with her, for crying out loud. It's killing me." I shook my head at my reflection, feeling more and more pathetic by the minute. Did I have any dignity left at all, these days?
"She is, Prongs." Sirius said from my side. I glanced to him to discover that his frown was becoming more and more pronounced. "She is warming up. She's just... confused! You were the world's biggest prat, and now you're the world's biggest Prince. Give it time."
"Moony, I think I'm having hallucinations." I exclaimed fearfully, exchanging a glance with him. "Sirius Black just gave me valid advice."
Remus chuckled lightly, gaping in mock disbelief.
"It's a miracle!" He said weakly, flashing lousy jazz hands.
"Ah." I sighed heavily, shaking my head. "Lily...Lily is my friend." I said firmly, turning to stare myself down in the mirror. Wow, my hair was really not having it today. "We're on good terms, there's not much more I can do about it. I suppose I'm just glad she doesn't want to rip my head off anymore."
"If you say so..." Remus sung, and I watched them exchange exasperated glances behind me in the mirror.
"Saw that." I said boredly.