Work Text:
The Gryffindor common room was quiet and mostly empty, the fire burning low in the grate. Remus Lupin was sitting in his favorite chair next to the biggest window, staring out at the thumbnail-shaped moon peeking through the clouds. Beside him, Lily Evans made a disgruntled noise.
“If they take much longer, I’m not waiting up. It may be Friday night, but we’ve got a 12-inch Charms essay due Monday and I’ve hardly done any studying!” Remus lifted his head and met Lily’s eye, shrugging. The two of them, along with Peter Pettigrew and his on-again, off-again girlfriend Mary MacDonald, were waiting for James Potter and Sirius Black to return from what they promised was a “most auspicious and excellent adventure,” which in this case meant sneaking into Hogsmeade and buying liquor and sweets. Gryffindor had just won the final Quidditch match of the year against Slytherin, ensuring the house cup would be theirs for another year. James and Sirius believed that this warranted a celebration. Just as Lily had spoken, as if on cue, the two boys burst into the common room.
“Evans, if you wanted to study something 12 inches long, you just had to let me know! I didn’t want to be too forward!” James winked at Lily, who rolled her eyes but smiled in response. Sirius gave a barking laugh and nearly hit a first year over the head with a large bag he was brandishing like he’d just plundered a pirate’s treasure.
“Let’s get up to the room and start this party, you lot!” Sirius sang out, grabbing Remus by the hand and pulling him up off the chair. Remus tried not to blush at the sudden contact, knowing Sirius didn’t mean anything by it. Remus had been harboring a crush on Sirius since the day they’d met 6 years ago on the train to Hogwarts. Remus had been even smaller and quieter then, with no friends and grubby clothes. Sirius, the handsome, polite aristocrat, had asked if he and James couldn’t join Remus’ carriage. At the sight of Sirius’ long black hair and perfect smile, Remus was smitten. No one knew, of course. Remus was an excellent liar, he always said it was a free gift he’d been given the day he became a werewolf.
The six of them settled around the boys’ bedroom, lounging on beds and chairs. James, ever the dramatist, stood on his own bed and cleared his throat.
“Ladies and Gentlemen and dogs-“ Sirius punched the back of James’ knees at this, causing James to buckle and fall rather ungracefully onto the bed. Undeterred, James continued his speech in a lounge position.
“Ahem. Ladies and Gentlemen and mutts, we are gathered here in this dorm to celebrate the achievements of the most noble and attractive Gryffindor Quidditch team, yes, but most importantly-“ he paused for effect, motioning to Sirius for the bag they’d brought in, “most importantly, we’re here to get shitfaced, am I right?” He reached into the bag and lifted out three bottles of liquor in various colors, then spilled out the rest of the goods, sweets from Honeydukes, some of them laced with more liquor.
“And that’s not all; oh no it couldn’t be all! To go along with these glorious treats, we are going to play… strip truth or dare!” James grinned and pumped a fist into the air. Remus caught Sirius’ eye and swore Sirius had winked at him, but it couldn’t be. Across the room, Lily stood up.
“James Potter, if you think this is just some clever ploy to get us all drunk and naked so you can do something stupid-“ James hopped down from the bed, looking genuinely concerned.
“Evans, I’d never take advantage of you if you weren’t willing. It’s all just good fun, right lads? Mary?” He surveyed the room, glancing at the nervous and excited faces around him. Mary and Peter both nodded, Peter looking more concerned than Mary. Remus smiled and nodded, but his heart was pounding. Truth or Dare? What could possibly be in store for them?
“Oh, all right then. Let’s have some good, safe fun.” Lily sighed and smiled, sitting on the floor next to Remus. Sirius joined them on the floor, plopping two pillows down next to Remus and lounging back on them, looking cool and calm as always.
James, heartened by the enthusiasm, conjured some shot glasses. “Here’s how the game works. We’ll go round the circle. You can ask whomever you want, but the same person can’t be asked twice in a row. We’re not playing with Veritaserum because, well, I didn’t brew any. But I wouldn’t anyway because that’s a bit like cheating and James Potter never cheats unless it’s off Remus in Charms. Anyway, we may not be using a Truth potion, but if the group thinks you’re lying or not telling the full truth, or if you don’t do your dare well enough, we can elect to make you take a piece of clothing off or take a shot. In the same vein, if you refuse to tell the truth or do a dare, the asker chooses whether you lose clothing or take a shot. If you’re naked or too drunk to play, you’re out. Sound all right?”
“Can we make it a rule that dares can’t involve anything illegal or… I dunno, morally wrong?” Mary asked quietly. Lily nodded in support, which made James sigh and agree.
“Yeah, all right. Nothing illegal or morally reprehensible. For example, no daring someone to sodomize the giant squid.” James was passing out shot glasses full of Firewhiskey as he spoke. “This one’s free, just to encourage bravery!”
The six of them toasted their shots and gulped them down. The whiskey burned Remus’ throat, but he didn’t cough fire like the last time. He was already feeling braver. He felt Sirius shift on the pillows beside him and he tensed slightly. Why was it getting so difficult to be next to his best friend? Just because he wanted to snog his brains out didn’t mean they couldn’t be normal friends. Remus sighed and swore under his breath.
James had elected himself to go first. “Sirius Black, truth or dare?”
Sirius, suddenly paying attention, sat up. “Oh, truth. Let’s start off slightly vanilla.”
James grinned. “All right, Padfoot. Truth: which professor do you think is the best lay? Go on, don’t be shy.”
Peter looked scandalized at the question, but Sirius, looking thoughtful, said “Oh, you know… probably Dumbledore. He’s old, so he’s probably got a lot of experience, and he’s weird as fuck, I bet he’s into some weird shit.” He grinned, lying back on his pillows.
Since Lily was to James’ left, she went next. “Mary, truth or dare?” Mary jumped a little.
“Oh! Um. Truth.”
“Have you ever been caught snogging?” Lily smiled, her eyes shining mischievously. By the way she grinned, Remus suspected she had some Marauder blood in her.
Mary had turned a deep red. “Well… yes, actually. I… er, well I was on Prefect duty last month, and I met up with someone and we snogged in what we thought was an empty classroom. Well, McGonagall was in the store room, but when she came back in the room… we got in trouble. That’s why I’m not a Prefect anymore, too.” She smiled wryly, not meeting anyone’s eye.
Peter was staring at Mary, a shocked look on his face. “Wh- we were on a b-break! Wh-wh-who was it?” Mary bit her lip and didn’t answer.
James spoke up then, probably sensing Peter’s rage. “Wormtail, mate, it’s not your turn. Have another shot or some sweets!” He tossed a chocolate at Peter, who took it, still sputtering at Mary.
Now it was Remus’ turn. “Prongs, truth or dare?”
James grinned. “Dare. Oh please, Moony. Dare.”
“All right, just give me a minute.” Remus tapped a finger on his chin, thinking hard. There were so many options; he couldn’t decide what to do. Finally, he settled. “James. I dare you to literally Charm the pants off someone in this room. But don’t tell us who. We’ll know.”
James pretended to wipe a tear from his cheek. “Oh, Moony, I knew I could count on you. I’m going to need you all to close your eyes for just a minute.”
The room complied, and hardly a minute passed before someone yelped and screeched “James!”
They all opened their eyes and looked around. Lily was the reddest Remus had ever seen a human being. She was practically steaming, glaring daggers at James, who looked beside himself with glee.
“James Potter, if you’ve stolen my knickers to wank into at 3 o’clock in the morning while you cry and think about your short-comings…”
James held up his hands, his eyes wide. “Honestly, Evans. They’re in your handbag. I promise. They can count as your next item of clothing to lose if you refuse a truth or dare.”
Lily seemed to calm down, but grabbed a bottle of Yewbeam Bourbon and poured herself two generous shots, knocking them back one after another.
Next it was Sirius’ turn. “Right. Wormtail, truth or dare?”
Peter squeaked, but disguised it with a cough. “Er… Ah. Dare?” He looked at Mary for support, and she squeezed his hand in response.
“Hmm… I dare you to as sensually as possible, take off Moony’s shoe and sock and lick his foot. The uh, the left one.”
Remus’ eyebrows shot up into his hairline. “Er, shouldn’t I get a say in whether Wormtail licks my foot? I mean, it’s my foot.”
Sirius shrugged. “Are you okay with Peter licking your foot on a dare?”
“All right, get on with it.” Remus grinned and began unlacing his left shoe, but Peter protested.
“I’m not licking his foot! It’s been in his sweaty sock all day” He whined.
Remus did his best to look offended. “Peter! I will have you know that I have excellent hygiene. In fact, I showered just last week!” Sirius and James roared with laughter, but Peter wasn’t having it.
“I refuse. I’ll take off my shirt, but I’m not licking Moony’s foot.”
Sirius shrugged again. “Fine, fine. Take off your sweater, Pete. Your loss, though, I’m sure Moony’s feet are delicious.” He winked at Remus and nudged him with his own foot.
Remus blushed red. “Anyway, Pete, it’s your turn.”
Peter, as it turned out, was rubbish at Truth or Dare and at being a boyfriend. He asked Mary truth or dare, and when she answered dare, he demanded she tell him who she was with in that empty classroom. Mary began crying and refused to answer. He in turn refused to let her take an item of clothing off or take a shot, which made her furious. She smacked his leg and ran out of the room, tears streaming down her face. Peter followed her, muttering under his breath about “women who don’t know what’s good for them.”
The remaining four players sat in a stunned silence for a moment, until Remus cleared his throat.
“Would anyone like another drink? Er, to Mary. And Wormtail, I s’pose.” The others agreed, and Remus poured four shots of Luce Loran’s Lucky Liquor, which smelled strongly of lemon & strawberry. They all clinked their glasses together and drank, savoring the sweetness.
“Well, Prongs, I suppose it’s your go again, since Mary’s er, indisposed.” Sirius pointed out, pouring himself another portion of Luce Loran’s.
“Of course! My dearest Moony, truth or dare?” James grinned from the spot he’d taken on the rug next to Lily.
Remus, who was now considerably buzzed, chose Truth, which seemed to make James happy.
“Excellent! Excellent. All right, Moon-moon. Tell the truth: who’s the best looking girl in school? You’ve never had a girlfriend, there’s got to be someone you’re pining after. Tell us about her.”
Remus didn’t know what to do. His throat seemed to be closing. He couldn’t tell them the truth, but what would they think if he refused? His mind was racing, trying to think of a girl he knew besides Lily who was relatively good looking.
“Er, I… I uh… I quite fancy…” He suddenly couldn’t think of a single female in the whole of Hogwarts. Come on, Remus! Any girl!
James looked perplexed. “Remus, mate, if you don’t want to tell us, just say you’d rather not.”
Remus was doing his best not to hyperventilate. Couldn’t he just tell them the truth? Oh, I actually fancy blokes? In fact, the boy I’ve been in love with since I was eleven is sitting right here! How providential!
“I don’t… I can’t. I’m passing.” He managed to sputter out some semblance of reason, and grabbed a bottle of alcohol, pouring a full shot and gulping it down.
To Remus’ left, Sirius was giving him a puzzled look. Remus didn’t dare make eye contact.
“Well, er. I suppose it’s my turn.” Lily cleared her throat and smiled, quickly squeezing Remus’ hand. “Sirius, truth or dare?”
Sirius stopped staring Remus down and grabbed some sweets. “Oh, Dare me, Evans. Dare me hard.” He popped a caramel in his mouth and winked. Lily grinned and clapped her hands.
“Well then, Sirius Black, I dare you to strip for us. Make it hot. As much of your clothing as you like.” James looked at Lily just then with so much love and adoration Remus thought James might explode.
Sirius merely raised an eyebrow. “You’d better have some tunes for me, Evans. Or I’m not taking off shit.”
Lily nodded, standing up to fetch the radio on Peter’s bedside table. A couple of years ago, Remus had Charmed it to pick up some magical music stations, and it worked fairly well. Lily spun the dial, and settled on a station that was playing The Doxies, a punk band full of intimidatingly beautiful witches and one half-troll.
Sirius started by kicking his shoes off toward James, who had to duck to avoid being bludgeoned. Then he began removing his jacket, his hips bucking to the fast-paced music. Having been raised in a Pureblood family he was taught how to dance at an early age, and was actually quite good at it. Sirius’ hip movements were almost too much for Remus, though, who was still avoiding eye contact. Sirius tossed his jacket playfully at Lily, who caught it with a whoop and hugged it to her chest.
The rhythm of Sirius’ dance changed as the song melded into the next, a slightly slower, bluesy song. He slowed to match the pace of the song, circling his hips and moving his shoulders seductively. He removed his tie with a flick of his wrist, sending it flying toward Remus. It landed on Remus’ head, which made James and Lily laugh, but made Remus blush furiously.
Sirius was now removing his button-up shirt so slowly and sensually Remus was sure he would spontaneously combust from the pure sexiness flowing throughout the room. Sirius tossed his shirt on the floor and began working off his undershirt in the same agonizingly slow fashion. His stomach was revealed first, taut and muscled from years of Quidditch training. Remus’ eyes were following a line of jet black hair from Sirius’ belly button to the top of his trousers when suddenly Remus’ vision was obscured by a white something that had smacked him in the face. It was Sirius’ undershirt. Remus’ nostrils were filled with the scent of Sirius’ cologne and general body odor. It smelled wonderful. Remus wanted to bottle and sell it, he was sure he’d make millions. He peeled the shirt off his face, blushing, and tossed it on the floor.
He looked back up at Sirius, shocked to find dark grey eyes staring into his own. Sirius was dragging his hands down his smooth, muscled chest toward his trousers. He didn’t break eye contact with Remus as he unbuttoned and unzipped the trousers and slowly let them fall to the floor. He kicked them off in James’ direction, finally breaking eye contact with Remus, and slid his hands up his thighs to the waistband of his briefs.
Remus couldn’t take it. He scrambled to his feet, sputtered “S-sorry, toilet,” and fled the room. He rushed into the adjoining bathroom, slamming the door behind him and sinking down to the floor. They’re sure to know now. How could I have been so stupid? I’m drunk and the most beautiful boy in the world is doing a striptease. I must have been drooling! Merlin what an idiot!
His mind was racing. How could he avoid their questions and stares now? He’d have to leave Hogwarts for sure; they’d let him in as a werewolf, but as a… as… he couldn’t bring himself to name it. Whatever “it” was. His other little problem. Well, it was currently a growing problem in the area of his pants. Damn Lily Evans to Hell! Remus thought, knocking his head against his knees, hot tears spilling down his cheeks. Damn Lily Evans, damn James Potter for starting this game, damn Sirius Black and his damned beautiful hips!
There was a knock at the bathroom door. “Occupied!” Remus called, his voice shaking.
“Moony, it’s me. Can I come in?” It was Sirius, his voice gentle and kind.
Remus hesitated, and then scooted away from the door to sit by the sink. “Okay.”
The door creaked open and Sirius came in, wearing a dressing gown over his pants. He sat down opposite Remus, against the door.
“Hey,” he said, still kind and soft. “You, uh, you okay, Moony?”
Remus brought his knees to his chest, hiding his face lest his tear-stained cheeks give him away. Instead of answer, Remus shrugged.
Sirius sighed, looking at his fingernails. “Look, Moony, I should really tell you something, but I don’t want to make you hate me or anything, I just-“
Remus scoffed. “Hate you, Padfoot? Me, the unregistered werewolf hate his best friend, the unregistered Animagus?”
Sirius gave him a weak smile. “Moon, just listen a sec, all right? There’s something I’ve been meaning to say, and I never knew how or when or anything and I just… well, now I’m mostly naked and we’re both drunk and in the bathroom, so why not now?”
Confused, Remus lifted his head finally. “Pads, I don’t-“
“I fancy you, Remus. I have for… for a while. And I don’t know if this is going to ruin our friendship but I hope it doesn’t because you’re the most important person in the world to me, really and truly and honestly you’re my best friend and I lo… I just really like you. A lot. Really a lot.” He stopped speaking to take a breath, and met Remus’ eye. He was crying. Remus couldn’t remember the last time he’d seen Sirius cry. James would cry at a well done Quidditch play, but Sirius wasn’t one to get emotional over something trivial.
Slowly, without really thinking about what he was doing, Remus stood up and crossed the bathroom, grabbed Sirius’ arm and wrenched him to his feet.
“Moony, what-“ Then Remus was kissing him. It was sloppy and salty and wet and tasted like liquor and chocolate. They melted into each other. Remus tangled a hand in Sirius’ long, black hair, one of Sirius’ arms snaked around Remus’ waist, pulling him closer. Remus dipped his tongue into Sirius’ mouth and Sirius moaned softly, his other hand reaching for the buttons on Remus’ shirt.
Remus pulled away suddenly and Sirius’ eyes popped open, afraid he’d done something wrong. “Are you- I mean, is this-?” Sirius panted and dropped his hands.
Remus shook his head. “No, this is good. This is… Good. Sirius, I’ve liked you since I was eleven. I’ve dreamed about kissing you. Maybe not in the bathroom, but I’ll take it. I just… don’t want to take advantage of you. We’re both drunk. And we’re not… I mean… what are we? Do you want to be with me? What will people say?” He ran a hand through his hair, looking at the floor.
Sirius took one of Remus’ hands and brought it to his lips, kissing it. “Moony, I’d do anything for you. I may be drunk, but I know how I feel about you. Fuck what other people will say. We’ll figure it out. I’m yours if you’ll be mine.”
Remus smiled, suddenly feeling shy, and kissed Sirius on the tip of his nose. “Padfoot, I… I’d love if you’d- I mean, Merlin. I’m yours. I’m all yours.”
Sirius grinned back and they kissed again, softer this time. They were interrupted by a knock on the door.
“Lads? Lily and I were just going to, er… take a walk. You all right in there? Need a good plunging spell?” James laughed at his own joke, but then Lily was at the door. “Sirius, Remus. It was so good to see you. Take care of yourselves. And each other. See you on Monday!”
James began to ask her what she meant by “take care of each other,” but she shushed him and they walked away from the door.
Sirius smiled, still holding Remus’ hand. “So… we’re alone now, I guess.”
Remus raised an eyebrow at Sirius. “It appears so. But there is one thing that bothers me, Padfoot… you never finished your dare. So I think you owe me a piece of clothing or two.”