A/N Written during a dialogue heavy period of my writing life, this may have a follow up chapter but I'm not really too sure what I'd do with it, so any input would be welcomed! Rating for some language, so trusting we're all mature here. As ever, borrowing from JK Rowling, so at least a tiny amount of credit goes to her. Reviews would be loved and will probably earn a gushy message in return!
There was going to be a storm. The air crackled with unseen electricity and the threat of something that could arrive at any point. And all those who had experienced such a storm before knew that it could only leave devastation in its wake.
It was gone midnight by the time a key opening the front door rang out through the silent flat, and Sirius found himself submerged in darkness, his senses scrambling to sort themselves out in a startled way as he kicked off his shoes and put a hand out to touch a wall. He moved slowly through the house, exhaustion slowing him down as it well and truly took over. The bedroom door was shut, but he could make out the glow of a light creeping through the cracks between the frame and the door. Heading in the direction of the light he wasn't surprised to be able to make out the sound of pages turning. It would be like Remus to be reading at a time like this. With a more than gentle shove the door opened, and momentarily blinded by the glaring light he was unable to see Remus slamming his book shut and getting out of bed.
"Where have you been?" he demanded, trying to maintain an air of dignity while stood in pyjama bottoms and a jumper he had grown out of at some point during their third year.
"Work, where else would I have been?" Sirius shrugged his jacket off and slipped out of his jeans, deciding that a t-shirt and pants were acceptable nightwear when on the tail end of a shift that had run over by several hours.
"So you just chose not to let me know you'd be working late?" Remus clenched his jaw as Sirius languidly pushed back his hair and shot him the defiant look he had perfected so brilliantly over the years.
"I could hardly ask them to drop everything so I could let my boyfriend know I wouldn't make it home in time for dinner."
"Because it's that much better to have me sat here thinking you're dead? When you bloody well know that I'm supposed to be researching." An angry finger was pointed in the direction of the book he had been reading.
Sirius couldn't help but smirk at that. "Terribly sorry that my demise would distract you from your precious books."
"You know that's not what I meant" the other man snapped. "You can't just carry on running off trying to save people with no regard to those who are left behind."
"Says you!" Sirius snorted indignantly. "No, I'm the only one who can do this. No-one else is right for this, I should go. Does that sound familiar?"
"That's a completely different matter Sirius" Remus sighed at the sight of the overdone conversation rearing it's head again. "Besides, you know when I'm gone, and I have the courtesy to make sure that you know if there are changes to any plans."
"Mm," he contemplated, "you just risk being torn to pieces by vicious monsters at any random point." He knew they were the wrong choice of words and yet still said them, determined to make his point, despite the fact that the lack of sleep was catching up with him. And it was showing.
Remus took a few 'calming' breaths. "And why am I there? Because I am one of them, Sirius. They would kill you as soon as look at you, do not forget that. I'm the only one doing this because I'm the only one that can. Don't compare what we do; they're not the same thing."
Sirius sat on the bed and ran a hand over his face. "So what you're doing is better?"
"No, that's now what I said."
"But it's what you wanted to say. It's what you were trying to say" he tossed the book off of his side of the bed and onto the floor. Not surprisingly Remus immediately bent to pick it up and ran his hand soothingly over the cover, like you would over the nose of a startled horse. "Always with the fucking books" Sirius muttered.
Remus's ears pricked. "What was that?"
"You heard what I said. It's like I don't even matter anymore. All that exists is your precious work for Dumbledore. Piles upon piles of stupid arse bollocking books! No photos of us, no clues as to who lives here. Just books!"
"What?" Remus couldn't help but shriek, the book slipping out of his hand and falling onto the floor with a thud. "I have been sat here for four fucking hours waiting for either you to come back or a knock at the door from some stranger telling me that something happened to you! These shifts are getting ridiculous, I never know where you are or if you're safe, and I can't live like it anymore!"
And Sirius knows it's the wrong thing to say, but can't help himself from looking up and snapping, "No-one's forcing you to stay!"
Remus stands silent for a few seconds, teetering on the edge of some great revelation, and Sirius is fully expecting to be ranted at, but an air of resignation settles. "No, I guess they aren't." Beat. He's thinking. He's pondering. "If we didn't have to work, would things be better?" Could things be better?
"If we didn't have to work there'd be nothing keeping us centred here" Sirius answers truthfully, more truthfully than he's answered a question in years. And the worrying thing is he doesn't know where it comes from. "This isn't working" he states, as calmly as the last line was delivered. "We aren't working."
"It's just an argument. We have enough of them." Desperate reasoning.
He smiles sadly. "Exactly. We have too many. Because we're not happy anymore."
"It's just the stress; it would make anyone argue. But when it's over, when we're all done with this, things will be good again, better than they were before."
"We don't know if it will be over. It's stupid for us to carry on hoping that things will get better, when there's a real chance they won't."
"We could be happy, we will. This is just, it's just a glitch or something" Remus's hands fly into his hair. "Everyone has them. We'll be alright, I know we will. If we just make more of an effort, or set aside more time."
"You and I both know we're doing all that we can, but maybe we should just stop."
Remus blinked incredulously at him. "You want us to give up? To just forget everything that happened between us? To not even be us anymore?" Sirius walked out of the room, the sound of the bathroom light being put on and the door shutting echoing as Remus opened his book.