Even with the bonfire, it was freezing out. Sirius was thankful at least that it had stopped snowing. It was a good night for fireworks and, well, maybe some drinks. He hadn't sworn off drinking entirely, had he? Ordinarily, Bonfire Night was the perfect holiday. It was a Muggle holiday, always right after his birthday, and the best way to end a week of Halloween festivities. But Atlantis was different.
Atlantis provided chances that were sometimes better off not taken.
"You'd think we were back in London with all of this." He shoved his hands into the pockets of his leather jacket, watching the scene around him. "The Muggles always have a big to-do."
“Atlantis does seem to like its parties,” Julia pointed out. This would be the third or fourth party she’d been to in the past week or so and half of those had been Atlantis-sponsored events. At least there’d been a night off in between this and Sirius’ birthday party. “Think you’re brave enough to try the drinks at this one?” She was teasing, mostly, sure his vow to never drink again would last about as long as it took to reach the bar.
"Think I might be up for it, if you are?" He had had thirty-six hours to reconsider his vow, and he was starting to think that a drink would make this entire evening much, much easier. He hadn't necessarily dwelled on the events of his birthday, but he had had enough time to know that he wanted to avoid discussing it for as long as possible. Not that, he thought, James didn't already suspect. "So long as they're not the sort of drinks that make you recite poetry. I hate Shakespeare." He moved easily enough through the crowds, doing his best to keep near Julia.
Julia couldn’t help laughing at that. “I guess it’s hard to say around here,” she admitted. She’d talked to enough people to learn that Atlantis party drinks tended to have their side-effects and unlike Eliot’s parties, those drinks didn’t tend to be labeled. She didn’t mind so much. Most of the effects had been pretty fun and harmless, from her perspective. It was possible she was even curious what tonight’s refreshments would bring. “We might just have to take our chances.”
"Suppose that's part of the fun," he agreed. He'd witnessed his share of 'magical' mishaps since his arrival. He'd figured that was just the way Atlantis was. "Never know what mischief lies ahead. Speaking of, I believe that crowd of people might lead us to the bar -- and possibly trouble?" He nodded his head in the direction of one particular mass of people, all of whom seemed to be very animatedly pressing forward.
Grinning, Julia nodded. “That definitely sounds like the direction we want to go.” Magical drinks and trouble, that sounded like a recipe for a fun time, which was why they were here. Drinks, trouble, bonfire, fireworks. Hanging out with Sirius meant a chance to get to know him better, too, which she was looking forward to.
By the time they'd got their drinks and found a less crowded part to people-watch, Sirius was feeling more at ease. It might have been the drinks (he'd gone for the Cava, first), or it might have been that being with Julia was easy. Almost as easy as being with one of the Marauders. Not that she was, officially, a Marauder yet.
"So," said Sirius, without thinking, "how's it going with you and Remus?"
That was a loaded question. Julia might have tried to side-step it if she hadn’t just popped a marshmallow into her mouth. For some reason, she found herself answering him honestly. “It’s not, really. I know Tonks isn’t here anymore, but I’m not sure if that’s changed anything between us.” It had only been a couple of days and she didn’t want to push.
Sirius would have liked to backtrack this entire conversation. Preferably to the large group of hugging people nearby. Was that normal for an Atlantis party? Instead, he said, "I get it. I thought I might have messed everything up at my birthday with y'know… stuff." He looked meaningfully at his drink. No matter how comfortable he felt, he was definitely not in the mood to detail the stuff that had happened.
Julia shook her head at that. “I’m pretty sure he liked that. I know I did,” she said, despite her better judgment telling her she should probably say something neutral and try to change the subject. Had someone put truth magic in the marshmallow? It was the most logical explanation, but knowing didn’t keep her from succumbing to its effects.
"Still. It wasn't my best idea." Of course, Sirius had thought it was a good idea at the time, a very good idea. Which was part of his problem. "But he's my best friend, and you're - not so bad either." He smiled softly, aware that was a half-truth. "I mean that as a compliment. I'm an idiot is all."
“He’s more than that.” Julia was still compelled to be honest. “The problem is that neither one of you can admit how you really feel about each other.” This probably wasn’t the best conversation for a party, but she couldn’t seem to stop herself.
"He could be," agreed Sirius, feeling compelled to say what exactly had been weighing on his mind since his birthday. "But that's a whole other problem, isn't it? He's got a wife and son, and…" He gestured vaguely at Julia. "I don't know how much his knowing would make that less complicated. I know Dora isn't here anymore, but it's like you said. I'm not sure that changes anything."
“You won’t know until you talk to him,” Julia pointed out, knowing full well the advice was hypocritical. She hadn’t wanted to push him into something the second Tonks was gone, but it was different with him and Sirius. Remus had known Sirius for a lot longer and she was pretty sure he’d loved him almost as long as that. Julia was just a girl he’d met several months ago. To her, it didn’t feel like the same thing at all.
Sirius knew that Julia was probably right. He knew, too, that he'd have to be the one to initiate the conversation as he doubted very much that Remus would. He looked down at his drink. "Maybe," he said, conceding Julia's point,"it might be worth a try." He looked up and out across the crowd of people. "How about a dance first?"
Julia nodded. “Yeah, let’s do it,” she agreed with a grin. Dancing sounded a lot safer while she was under this whole truth compulsion anyway.