He was unlovable. It was a fact; he was a Dark creature, and Dark creatures were worthless and generally contemptible. The fact that he was piss-drunk probably didn't do much to refute this stereotype, either.

As if it mattered.

Nighttime in Hogsmeade was quiet, and he sat in the pub alone, drinking away all that was left of his senses—not that it bothered him, much. These days he rather preferred the numbness. He heard the low scraping of a door opening behind him and didn't care to turn, figuring it was probably a patron coming in for a drink before heading home.

"Lupin," he heard someone say, acknowledging him. It was a voice slightly familiar through the haze of drink, sending a ripple of irritation down his back. He didn't turn, opting to take a shot of whiskey instead. A figure saddled down at the stool next to him, barely discernible in the dim lighting. "Gin," the figure murmured to the barman.

"What are you doing here?" said Lupin harshly, the alcohol turning him fierce. There was a still moment, followed by a deep sigh.

"Getting absolutely pissed. It is a Saturday, after all."

Lupin smirked. "So because you've no classes tomorrow, you get smashed?"

The man gulped his drink. "Exactly, Lupin. Exactly."

"I rather liked teaching, you know," Lupin said quietly, hissing his bitterness through clenched teeth. The other man snorted.

"I apologize, Lupin." The voice was neutral.

"Is that the drink talking, then?"

"Obviously." To the barman; "Another."

"Then why did you have me fired in the first place, Snape?" The man shifted.

"I don't really remember. Revenge is a probable explanation."

"I didn't fucking do anything to you!" said Lupin, turning to look at the man, pointing his finger. If there had been others there, they would have made quite a scene-- however, their only company was the nondescript barman and a couple of men sitting in the corner. Snape didn't look at Lupin, merely fingered his glass of drink, turning it and staring into the deep amber liquid. The man seemed miles away, and it infuriated Lupin. "You sought revenge for no reason, Snape." And to the barman; "Another whiskey, man. Cheers."

Snape gulped the entire glass, his Adam's apple bobbing. He plunked the glass down and licked his lips, eyes closed. A silence passed, the only sounds being the gentle hum of other patrons, the clinking of glasses, and Lupin's angry breathing. Then Snape opened his eyes and scowled at no one in particular. "I had to enact revenge against someone besides Potter." He was beginning to slur, though not as much as Lupin.

"For what?"

"I needed it, Lupin. You don't know the hell-- "

"I don't know hell? Fuck you, Snape."

Lupin received a glare.

"As Iwas saying, you have no idea what hell I went through as an adolescent. I know you went through your own hell, but at least people liked you." There was silence, and Lupin shifted angrily forwards, facing the bar again. Snape hadn't looked at him at all, and took another gulp of his drink.

They sat in the quiet unease of their own thoughts, Lupin feeling stubborn. Then Snape slurred, "So how is dear old Nymphadora?"

"Shut up, Severus," Lupin warned.

"Is she doing well, then? She pines after you, you know. Have you seen her Patronus?"

"Did I not just tell you to shut the fuck up?"

"What is it, then?" Snape continued, a sneer stretched across his angular features. "Are you not interested in her?" Lupin spun and grabbed Snape by the collar, threatening to choke him. Snape looked amused.

"You're a bloody bastard," he hissed, bringing his face close to the other man's. Then he let go, shoving Snape away, and attempted to leave. He slid off of the barstool in anger, but he stumbled and nearly fell. A hand had grabbed his shoulder, steadying him. Lupin knew it was Snape's, but he shrugged it off and walked dizzily out of the pub.

……………………….

The next time they met was the next week, at the same pub. It was again a Saturday night, and Snape was slumped at the bar, collecting the condensation off of his glass with a thin white finger.

"Why are you here, Snape?" asked Remus as he took up a stool next to the thin man.

"What, have I interrupted your private time?" Snape retorted without turning, a small slur in his words. Lupin could imagine the sneer that was on his face, but refused to look.

"Wanted to see me again?" Lupin taunted. He ordered a shot of whiskey.

"Amusing, Lupin. No, I'm here for the same reason I was last week," he muttered, downing the last of his drink. He motioned to the barman for another.

"What? Pissing me off?" Lupin growled, taking a swig.

"Don't be so narcissistic," Snape said. The two men sat at alone the bar; the silence between them filled with sips of alcohol.

Lupin planned on ignoring him for the rest of the night, but curiosity got the better of him. Or perhaps it was just the drink. "Does Tonks really love me?" he asked quietly.

"I believe so. Do you love her?" asked Snape, the bitterness usually in his voice gone.

"No," muttered Lupin. He downed the rest of his drink. God, he didn't want to have to deal with this.

"Why not?" asked Snape, his black eyes turned intently towards Lupin for the first time that night.

"Because I just don't. She's sweet, and funny, but… she's extremely naïve. She can't love someone like me. Honestly, I don't think anyone could love someone like me. Could truly love, I mean. Why does it even matter? Jesus, why I am I even telling you this?" he muttered, scratching his chin. Lupin turned and looked at Snape imploringly.

"Your friends loved you. Your parents loved you. And you're telling me this because there's no one else to tell," replied Snape, looking guarded. "No one left to tell."

"Yes, well, they're all dead, aren't they? And I have plenty of people to talk to," muttered Lupin hastily, taking another shot of whiskey.

"Like who?" asked Snape, his eyebrow raised. "Kingsley? Dumbledore? Bloody Potter? No, Lupin. If you had anyone to talk to, you wouldn't be in a bar on a Saturday night, getting drunk. With me of all people."

"I didn't plan on you being here…" mumbled Lupin into his glass as he took a swallow.

"Well I am, and you're talking. What would you do if she professed her love for you?"

Lupin sat quietly for a moment. "Refuse her, probably."

Snape looked at Lupin as his studying him.

"You slept with her, didn't you?"

Lupin looked aghast. "Fuck! No, Snape, I did not!" he said, perhaps a little too quickly. Snape smirked.

"You did." His grin was interrupted by a blow to his cheek, a red mark forming in she shadow of Lupin's fist. "What the fuck… Lupin!" But he was already gone.

………………….

On Wednesday night it was Lupin's turn to patrol the school. The moonlight crept in through the high windows on the sixth floor, illuminating the opposite walls with a creamy, nearly ethereal light. Lupin was under the Disillusionment charm as to avoid being seen. He listened to the muffled sounds of his feet hitting the carpet and stopped for a second; he had heard footsteps coming from somewhere in front of him. A thin, dark figure turned the corner, coming towards the hidden man. The figure's black hair framed his face, and he looked rather drawn. His pale skin glowed eerily in the moonlight and it made him look more like a specter than a man. It was Snape, Lupin realized, and he had stopped a few feet off from where Lupin was hidden. The man was breathing heavily, and he leaned against the wall, rolling his sleeve up. There; the Dark Mark. It looked red and extremely painful even in the moonlight, like raw flesh. Snape was rubbing it fervently, scratching at it with trembling fingers, his breathing becoming erratic.

"Stupid…" he muttered, placing his forearm against his forehead, trying to ease the discomfort that the scar was giving him. It seemed to work a little, for Snape's face relaxed. He used his other hand to take a cigarette out his pocket, and placed it in his mouth. He didn't have light, but the cigarette merely being there seemed to relax his nerves a bit. Shadows played across his face, sharpening his appearance; Lupin quietly let out a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding.

"Who's there?" asked Snape, eyes darting towards Lupin's direction, the tension immediately returning to his features.

"It's Remus," said Lupin, taking the charm off of himself. Snape relaxed, slumping down the wall onto the floor.

"Good," he mumbled. "Thought you were a student. Do you have a light?"

Lupin threw him a matchbook that had been in his pocket as he approached him. "Are you allowed to smoke inside of the school?"

"I don't particularly care," said Snape, lighting his cigarette. "Dumbledore is substantially indebted to me, and I take advantage of that fact as frequently as possible." He took a puff and closed his eyes. He let his arms fall to his sides and he sat on the floor, his back against the wall. Lupin bent and sat next to him, wincing at the slight stiffness in his joints. Lycanthropes never aged well.

"Does it hurt, then?" asked Lupin, motioning to the still-exposed Mark. Snape lifted it and looked at it. He sneered, the cigarette staying put between his teeth. Lupin cringed as he saw a bruise on the man's cheek from where he had been punched a few days before.

"At first it feels like insects crawling underneath the skin. Then the burning sensation will begin to flare up," Snape murmured, almost reverently. "Then we are summoned."

"Sorry," muttered Lupin vaguely; Snape nodded, exhaling smoke into the corridor. They sat for a while and looked out the window at the grounds, the stars, the sky.

"Full moon in three days."

"Has the Wolfsbane been working properly?"

"Yes, thank you."

Snape grunted his approval, and took another drag on his cigarette. He then began to roll his sleeve back down, and got up. He held his hand out for Lupin.

"Aren't you supposed to be patrolling the school for suspicious characters?" Snape asked, eyebrow raised.

"Of course," said Lupin, allowing the man to help him up. "And you?"

"I'm going to see Dumbledore," Snape muttered, putting out his cigarette on the stone wall, behavior that seemed absurdly un-Snape-like. He then turned and left, leaving Lupin without a goodbye. Lupin smiled a little to himself.