Secret Santa: Kayleigh

Word Count: 1237

Life Can Only Get Better

Friday 28th July, 1967

Homosexuality Decriminalised

By Rita Skeeter

In an much hyped, but still unprecedented, move by the UK Government, a law was passed in the late hours of last night which has decriminalised homosexuality as part of The Sexual Offences Act.

For those of you who have not been following the debate, this means that it is no longer considered illegal for men who are 21 or older to enter into a sexual relationship.

Already, as I write, men who have been thrown into prison for this former crime are actively seeking an immediate release.

~o~o~o~

Sirius placed the paper down, deciding he didn't need to read any further. He had heard that this was working its way through Parliament but never in his wildest dreams did he think it would pass—especially since he knew what a bunch of old stiffs The House of Lords were. This he knew from personal experience after growing up in a household with a current member.

Finally, he could be with Remus without the fear of being thrown into a dirty prison cell with a bunch of murderers and rapists. Or even worse, being subjected to torture in an attempt to make him 'normal'.

Sure, there might still be narrow minded people out there would persecute him, but at least he was free to love who he wanted, when he wanted, and that was all he had wanted since he was thirteen years old and had fallen in love with another boy.

He knew that there was no chance of reconciliation with his family. They were the biggest bunch of bigots you could ever hope to meet. His parents had thrown him out at sixteen years old. They had discovered his sexuality after his loudmouth cousin, Bellatrix, had caught him and Remus snogging behind the bike sheds at school. The only saving grace in that situation was that his parents hadn't wanted anyone to discover they had a 'disgusting homo' for a son, and so they hadn't reported him or Remus to the police. But, if he was honest with himself, he didn't need or want anything to do with his family… not after the way they had treated him.

Without wanting to waste another minute, Sirius downed the rest of his coffee, jumped up and grabbed his coat before rushing out of his small, one bedroom apartment. He had a man to find and kiss without fear of persecution. And anyone who didn't like it could kiss his arse… well they couldn't, because that honour was reserved for Remus but the sentiment was still there.

~o~o~o~

Knock! Knock! Knock!

"Remus, open up," Sirius murmured, pushing his hands back into his pockets.

For the middle of July, it was a lot colder than anyone would expect and there was a slight chill in the air.

"Come on, Remus," Sirius whispered again when no one had come to the door.

He removed his hand from his pocket and knocked on the door again. It was so unlike Remus to leave him waiting on his doorstep like this.

Sirius smiled when he heard footsteps on the other side of the door followed by the click of a lock.

"Finally," he muttered as the door opened. "Remus, what kept y—oh."

Instead of the man he loved, Sirius had been greeted by the sight of Remus' wife. Her arms were crossed and she was glaring at him. Sirius was suddenly flooded with memories of the one and only time they had met… on her wedding day. She had instantly taken against him, and whenever Sirius found himself alone with Remus she appeared by his side and whisked him away to dance. He had always suspected, although never had it confirmed, that she knew about the kind of relationship he shared with Remus.

"What are you doing here?" the mousy brunette said, her voice laced with venom.

"Is Remus home?" Sirius asked, suddenly wondering if he had made the right choice appearing at Remus' house out of the blue.

"He went out," she answered sharply. "Now if that's all, I had a hungry child to—"

"Love, who is that at the door?" a familiar voice called, followed by footsteps.

Sirius offered the brunette a smirk and raised his eyebrows. He knew it was wrong of him to be so smug in that moment, but the very fact that he had caught her in a lie… trying to keep him from Remus was very satisfying.

"It's your… friend," she answered as Remus appeared by her side. "Don't be long. Breakfast is nearly ready."

"Right," Remus replied, offering her a smile and, much to Sirius' dismay, kissing her on the cheek.

As soon as she was out of earshot, Sirius reached out to embrace Remus.

"Not here. Not now," Remus said, shrinking away from him.

"Why?" Sirius asked, feeling hurt by the rejection. "It's not as though we're going to get arrested or anything anymore."

"It's not that and you know it," Remus told him. "We had an agreement when I married."

"Screw our agreement," Sirius snapped, regretting his tone almost immediately. "What I mean is: you only married because your parents made you in an attempt to cover up your sexuality. But the love we share is no longer illegal. We have been living in fear and endless shame for countless years. Too long. Don't you want to shout our love from the rooftops and declare it to the world? This is the day we have dreamed about for as long as I can remember."

"What would people say though, Sirius?" Remus asked, biting his bottom lip as he always did when he was nervous.

"I don't care what people say," Sirius informed him. "I love you, Remus Lupin. And if anyone has a problem with that then that is their problem. Let them gossip. Nothing will change how I feel. And I would be proud to walk down the street, holding your hand and kissing you whenever I like. Don't you want that too?"

"I need time, Sirius," Remus said. "My situation isn't going to change overnight. Divorce isn't exactly easy these days."

"But just think about it Remus… you and me waking up in bed together," Sirius whispered, leaning forward and kissing him on the cheek.

The round, slightly chubby face of Teddy Lupin appeared under Remus' arm and smiled up at the man.

"Daddy, I don't mind if you and Uncle Sirius want to be bed friends," he said innocently. "Oh, and Mummy said breakfast is ready so your friend has to leave now."

"Okay, Teddy, tell Mummy I'll be through in a minute," Remus said, ruffling his son's hair before he left.

"So, Remus, what do you say?" Sirius asked hopefully. "Teddy is one thing we won't have to worry about."

"He's four, Sirius, he doesn't understand," Remus told him. "I'll come round to your place later and we can talk more about it… and other things."

Sirius smiled broadly as he took in Remus' blush. He always did get shy when talking about sex.

"Great!" Sirius exclaimed, leaning forward and capturing Remus' lips with his own before he could react. "I'll see you later."

Sirius straightened himself up and gave Remus a parting smile before turning on his heel and walking down the path with a spring in his step.

From here on out, life could only get better.