The Color Pink

The Color Pink

"I don´t care what you say, Moony, I think you look wonderful in pink," James Potter said, looking at his friend´s reflection in the three-way mirror of the shop.

Remus Lupin looked into the mirror again and scowled. "And I think you´re crazy. I can´t believe I ever let you talk me into coming in here, let alone putting on this." Remusturned around and glared at James.

"Hey! Don´t look at me like that! I didn´t force you to do anything. Besides, you do look good in pink. I rather think that it´s your color," James grinned slyly, which earned him a swift hit in the head, "oww..."

"I can´t believe you." Remus walked away from the mirrors and back into his dressing room, slamming the door behind him. That got him a few annoyed comments from the other people in fitting rooms.

"It´s not my fault, Moony. You´re the one that lost the bet," James said calmly, leaning against the wall outside of Remus´s dressing room, "and I didn´t force you to take part in it after all."

"You cheated and you know it," was his reply, as Remus opened the door, the articles of pink draped over his arm. He began walking back into the main part of the store, James in tow. "Though, I´m not sure if it´s because you really didn´t want to wear this," he held up the dress, "or you just really like guys in drag." He couldn´t help but grin at the slight blush that was creeping onto James´s face.

"Well really now, out of the four of us, who would make the best looking girl?"

"I´m not sure whether to take the fact that you think I´d be the best looking girl as a horrid insult or a compliment," Remusresponded while hanging up a blue sweater. He then pulled out a black one. "And I´m finding it rather disturbing that you´ve actually spent the time contemplating how we´d all look in drag."

James rolled his eyes. "You agreed to the bet, Moony."

"Well, I didn´t think I´d lose. Poker´s not exactly Wormtail´s game or yours really. Now I admit, Padfoot´spretty damn good, but I still didn´t expect to lose. But, you cheated so I don´t suppose it matters." He was walking back to the dressing rooms.

"Well you seem to be enjoying yourself," James followed.

Remus shot him a look of disbelief. "Enjoying...this?! Yes, I´m trying to find something that´ll look decent, so that way, when I wear this to the dance, maybe I won´t be recognized. But I find this far from fun." He stepped back into one of the vacant dressing rooms, refraining from slamming the door.

James leaned against the wall again, waiting for him. "We´ll need to get you a wig. Or we could just grow your hair out," he smirked as he heard a loud thump, "well since you´re obviously keen on that idea, I suppose we´ll go for the wig."

The door opened and out came Remus, his face dark with annoyance. He walked over to the three-way mirror. He was wearing a short pink dress and the black sweater.

James couldn´t help but laugh. "Hmm...not bad. Though, I think you can drop the sweater. Your robes will take its place," he grinned.

"Oh bloody hell. I don´t make a pretty girl, Prongs!" he paused and frowned, "nor did I ever think that that statement would ever come out of my mouth."

"You look fine. I mean, think about it, Moony! Padfoot doesn´t have the build. He just doesn´t. And would you really want to see Wormtail in drag?"

He sighed, "No, definitely wouldn´t want to see Peter in drag."

"So see! If someone had to lose, it´s the best thing for everyone that it was you!"

"Right, because we all know that you couldn´t lose. Which brings me back to my thoughts that you had the whole thing rigged." He looked back into the mirror and frowned. "I´m telling you. Pink is really not my color."

James let out an exasperated sigh. "Look, I´ll pay for the bloody thing. You agreed to this, Moony. You´re not getting out of this just because you can´t find a dress that´s `your´ color. You´re a guy! Of course you´re not going to find a dress that works perfectly for you."

Remus scowled and walked back into his dressing rooms to change into normal clothes.

"Maybe you´re just not as good at poker as you thought." He heard grumbling coming from Remus as he waited for him to change. A minute or so later the door opened and Remus walked out, handing James the dress.

"Prongs, do you not remember the last poker game we had? I beat all of you. Quite easily if I´m correct. And weren´t you the first one who lost?" Remuswalked back into the main store, hanging up the black sweater. They began to make their way to the cashier.

James shrugged. "Too bad the bet wasn´t on that game then," he couldn´t help but smirk.

Remus rolled his eyes. "You had it rigged. I suppose you just get a kick out of seeing guys in drag." He raised an eyebrow and smiled suggestively.

The black haired boy couldn´t help but blush slightly as he handed the cashier the dress. "Maybe I just relish in the humiliation of my friends."

"Somehow I rather doubt that´s the case. Pay the woman, James." He beckoned towards the cashier, a sly look on his face.

James grumbled but paid for the dress anyway. They slowly walked out of the store and into the village. "We still need to get you a wig. And some shoes."

"I´m wearing my boots. I´m not going to even attempt to try walking in girl´s shoes." There was a look of utter annoyance on his face.

James just shrugged. "Fair enough. Oh, hey look! Here we go!" He grabbed his friend´s hand and pulled the reluctant boy into a store. A store full of wigs. He dropped his hand and picked up a wig with long sandy brown hair, "This looks like it might work."

The other boy raised an eyebrow skeptically. "How about we choose something a bit different, so that people can´t recognize me?"

There was a playful pout of James´s face. "But that wouldn´t be nearly as fun!"

"Well too bloody bad." Remus picked up a blood red wig.

"Don´t you want to pick something a bit more realistic if you want people to believe that you are indeed a girl...?"

Remus frowned but set down the wig nevertheless. "How about this one?" he held up a blonde one.

James gave him an analyzing look. "I don´t think you´d work as a blonde."

Remus shrugged and set down the wig. He wandered off in a random direction.

James walked around also, looking at all the wigs hanging around. "Hey, Moony! Come here!" he yelled, holding yet another wig.

The smaller boy walked out from behind a row of the fake hair pieces. "Hmm?"

James grinned, "Here." He handed Remus a long medium brown haired wig where the tips had been dyed pink. "The color´s pretty close to your dress too."

Remus took the wig in his hands. "Different enough I suppose." He walked to the nearest mirror and put on the hair. He turned around and looked at his companion, "Well?"

James was grinning like a madman. "It´s perfect my dear, Moony."

Remus rolled his eyes. "If you say so. Are you going to pay for this too?"

James shot him a look of disbelief. "I don´t think so. I already bought the dress."

"But I have to wear it."

"You agreed to the bet and you lost. Get over it. You´re buying."

Remus rolled his eyes. "You´d make a wonderful boyfriend, James, demanding the other to pay for everything." The sarcasm was hard to miss.

"Look, we´ll be done after this. I´ll buy us a couple of butterbeers okay? Just go and buy the bloody wig."

The smaller boy grinned in triumph and walked away to pay for the wig.

James rolled his eyes. "You probably would make a decent girl," he mumbled, following him.

A few minutes later they were in The Three Broomsticks enjoying their butterbeers. Remus was enjoying it even more than usual since he didn´t have to pay for it.

"So have you got a date for the dance yet?" Remus asked, hoping to spark some sort of conversation.

James shook his head. "Naw, I was figuring I´d just pose as your date. So that I´d be there for all the humiliation that is."

Remus cocked an eyebrow at James over the table. "Oh really? So how come you´re just telling me about this now?"

"Figured you might object."

"Oh, only that I might object? Prongs..."

"Look, it´s too late for me to find a date now, and you´re trying to be convincing. I don´t see what the problem is," James interrupted.

"Well apparently you knew there would be one, if you waited until now to tell me that my date is one of my male best friends."

"You´re going to be masquerading as a girl, Moony! If you´re going to have a date at all, it would have to be male."

"Then maybe I just shouldn´t have a date. Or maybe, here´s an even better idea, I shouldn´t go at all!" He rolled his eyes in annoyance.

"Hey! Calm down. Look, I paid for the dress, and you got this..." James beckoned to the butterbeer. "You lost the bet. You´re going. But if you don´t want me as your date fine." He took a gulp of his drink, schooling his features into one of icy impassiveness.

"I never said that I didn´t want you as my date."

James cocked an eyebrow. "Oh really? I must have missed that when you were complaining. Complaining about what? Oh what was it again? Oh yeah, that´s it. Me being your date."

"Prongs..."

James refused to look at him, suddenly very preoccupied with the table surface.

"James."

That did it. James looked up at Remus, the impassiveness not nearly as icy.

"I wasn´t as much complaining about you being my date as much as the fact that you waited till now to tell me."

James shot him a skeptical look.

"I don´t mind. Besides that way you´ll be able to `relish in your friend´s humiliation´, as you so aptly put it. Not that I buy that excuse mind you." He took a sip of his butterbeer.

The other boy shook his head. "You should know by now that I do relish in other´s humiliation."

"Namely Snape. You don´t in your friends though. Most of the time. So unless you´re saying that I´m on the same level as that insufferable git...I certainly hope that isn´t the case."

James smiled slightly, taking another drink out of his butterbeer. "If you were on the same level as Snape, I wouldn´t be here. Nor would you, actually, for I would´ve already played a prank on you and you´d be running in humiliation," he grinned.

Remus gulped down the rest of his drink. "I suppose." He looked out at the darkening sky. "We should get going. We need to be able to sneak into the Honeydukes cellar before the shop closes."

The black haired boy took one last gulp and then stood up. "Let´s go then."

Remus nodded and stood up also. They snuck into the cellar and made their way quietly back to Hogwarts. Saying the password to the very irritable Fat Lady, they walked into their common room.

"So, Moony, how about you help me with that Potion´s homework..."

***

Remus could feel the heat of the sunlight hitting his eyelids through the partially open curtains around his bed. He groaned, rolling over and stuffing his face in his pillow. That didn´t last long however for soon James had pulled the curtains open even more and started shaking him.

The sleeping boy groaned. "Get off, Prongs!"

"No! Come on! It´s eleven o´clock and the dance is tonight! Wake up!"

"I´m getting enough torture tonight, let me sleep!!"

James continued to shake him. "Come on. We have a lot to do to get you ready."

"Prongs..." Remuswhined.

"Come on or I´ll tell Snape that you love him."

Remus sat up and glared at him. "That´s not even funny."

James grinned, "Well it woke you up did it not?"

A scowl played its way to the other boy´s face. "Prongs..." he sighed. "Give me ten minutes and I´ll be down for lunch. You are not doing anything to me before I get a chance to eat, okay?"

A smile, counteracting the expression on Remus´s face, made its way, almost mockingly onto James´s face. "All right, Moony," he peacefully walked away from the bed. "Have fun." He opened the door and left the room, leaving a very confused Remusstill in bed.

"What was that about?"

Minutes later, Remus had made his way down to the Great Hall, and took a seat next to Peter. He scooped some food onto his plate.

"Looking forward to tonight, Moony?" Peter asked a slight grin on his face.

Remus scowled, "Oh bloody hell, no, of course I´m not."

"You know...I think you´ll have more fun than you think."

That got him a skeptical look. "Oh really? Care to elaborate?" Remustook a bite out of his lunch.

Peter just grinned. "You´ll see. I´ve got to go work on that Potions essay. I´ll talk to you later." He stood up and left the room quickly.

"What the hell is with everyone today?" he sighed and just dove into the rest of his food.

James walked over to him just as he was leaving. "Ready?" There was a mischievous glint in his eye.

The smaller boy sighed. "Oh god..." he moaned.

"Come on!" James grabbed his hand and pulled him all the way back to the Gryffindor common room. There stood two of the Gryffindor girls from their year.

"This is what we have to work with?" one of them asked; the skepticism was hard to miss.

"Well..." the other girl was eyeing Remus critically. "It could be worse."

Remus shot James an evil glare. "Prongs!"

"Hey, you wanted to be convincing right?" he grinned.

"I´m going to kill you for this!" he yelled as he was pulled up the stairs by the two girls.

James chuckled. "It´ll be worth it, Moony. Or, let´s certainly hope so," he muttered, as he looked around the rest of the room. "Hey, Padfoot! Wanna play a game of Exploding Snap?"

***

Many hours and many lipstick shades later, Remus was looking in a mirror. It was about time for the dance and he was all ready to go, his wig and dress in place. Though the stuffed bra was rather uncomfortable and the girls had shaved his legs. He scowled; he was so going to kill James for this. He had to admit though; he managed to look rather convincing, though that in itself was pretty scary.

He opened the door and took a deep breath. He then left the room and made his way down to the common room to find James. He wanted to get the night over with.

James was sitting in a chair waiting for him. As soon as he saw him, he stood up and bent into a sweeping bow. "My lady..." He extended an arm.

Remus rolled his eyes. "As charming as that is... Where are Wormtail and Padfoot?"

"Already gone with their dates. They figured that they´d just laugh at you when you got there." There was a grin on James´s face.

"Isn´t it a bit early to be relishing on my humiliation, Prongs?" he walked over to him. "God...why on earth do girls wear these clothes? They´re positively uncomfortable."

James shrugged. "So that guys can tell them how beautiful they look. And my my, how beautiful you look my dear Moony." His mocking grin was back, which earned him a whack on the head. "You know...I wish you´d stop doing that..."

A triumphant grin was on the smaller boy´s face. "It serves you right. So are we going to go? I want to get this over with."

James shrugged. "Sure, let´s go then. Though, if you want to look convincing, you´re going to have to play the part."

Remus sighed. "Fine." He took James´s arm. "Let´s go."

James smiled and led the two of them out of the common room and down some stairs. They made their way into the Great Hall.

Remus bit his lip, wondering what the reaction would be, however not many people seemed to notice that it was him. It was relieving, but insulting at the same time.

James led him over to where Sirius and Peter were with their dates. "Hullo all," he said, his voice laced with happiness.

Sirius took one look at Remus before bursting out in laughter.

"God, that´s great. Absolutely bloody perfect. I´ll make sure to get a picture before the night is over."

Remus scowled. "You bloody better not or I´ll tell a certain Ravenclaw that I know who pulled a certain prank on her last week."

Sirius´s laughter died. "Well, I suppose mental pictures are good enough." A slower paced song began to play. "Come on Emily, let´s dance," he quickly made his way out onto the floor.

Peter, who had been rather quiet, except for an amused smirk on his face, took his date´s hand and began to lead her onto the dance floor, however stopping beside Remus long enough to whisper in his ear, "Have fun, Moony, don´t destroy Prong´s spirit okay?"

It suddenly dawned on Remus as Peter hurried onto the dance floor with his date. He turned to James and looked at him. "James...do you..."

"Hey, how about we dance?" James interrupted, pulling Remus onto the dance floor. He wrapped his arms around his waist as Remus took up the typical girl´s position. "You know...you were right before. I did rig the game. But I didn´t do it because I like to relish in my friend´s humiliation."

"I knew that."

"I did it because I wanted to come here with you. I couldn´t think of any other way."

Remus couldn´t help but blush slightly. "James..."

"And you´re wrong, Remus. Pink is most definitely your color."