"Mr. Black…Mr. Black."
Remus glanced down at his friend with a look of exasperation. He was fast asleep, head rested on the wooden desk and he had a trail of drool dripping out of his mouth, leaving a nasty wet patch on his textbook. Remus flicked his nose, attempting to rouse him. "Sirius." He whispered.
When he saw that his efforts were futile, he decided to take more drastic measures. "Wake up." Remus growled, giving him a rigorous kick in the ankle.
"Ow!" Sirius yelped, jumping up from his seat. It took a few moments for his brain to process what had been happening. He noticed the class had fallen silent and were all staring at him, so he sheepishly sank back down into his seat.
"You were saying, Professor?" Sirius prompted, offering her the sweetest smile he could muster. Then, he nudged his elbow into Remus' ribs, who in response muttered a pathetic "Ow." under his breath, and rubbed the area he'd been hit.
"I said, what is special about tomorrow's full moon in particular? Or are have you been too preoccupied with napping in my class that you haven't been listening?" Professor Sinistra repeated, taking umbrage in his lack of respect for the class.
"Well, that's easy, I…uh…" he garbled helplessly.
Remus sighed and tore off the corner of his parchment and scribbled down 'Supermoon', before covertly sliding it across the desk to Sirius.
Sirius glanced down at the answer, his brow furrowing in concentration. "It's a…a sunken moon!" he announced proudly, as if he'd known the answer all along.
There was a moments silence as everyone registered what he had just said, then all of a sudden the class erupted into fits of laughter. Well, that was certainly not the response he'd been expecting. Remus buried his face in his hands, attempting to hide his cheeks that had flushed crimson with embarrassment.
"Alright class, settle down, settle down. I think you'll find it's called a Supermoon, Mr. Black. There is no such thing as a sunken moon." Professor Sinistra corrected him with a sigh of exasperation. "That'll be 15 points from Gryffindor. 10 from you Mr. Black , and 5 from you Mr. Lupin. Furthermore, I expect both of you to be in my office next Thursday at 5pm sharp for detention."
Remus' head snapped up in surprise, much to Sirius' amusement.
"I am not as naïve as you think I am, Mr. Lupin. Don't think I haven't noticed you helping Mr. Black with his answers."
Remus blushed profusely again, and gave her a weak nod. "Sorry, Professor." He grumbled.
Once the class had ended, the boys decided to head over to the common room to see if they could find James and Peter.
"Your handwriting is bloody awful, Remus. I mean look at this…" Sirius exclaims, holding up the piece of parchment with 'Supermoon' scribbled on it.
Remus scoffed. "It's not that bad…in any case, I can't believe you slept through the whole class and got me my second detention this week. You know how much of a hard-arse Professor Sinistra can be. You owe me one." He retorted, but his reply was light-hearted. He didn't mind detention that much, as long as he was with Sirius. Despite having the capacity for being an annoying git half the time, Remus actually enjoyed his company.
"At least it's just one detention." Sirius added optimistically.
"I guess." Remus replied, but his mind had wondered back to the class' topic of discussion. Tomorrow there was going to be a Supermoon. What could that mean for him? Surely, his transformation would be just like any other month? Yet, he couldn't help but doubt himself. He chewed his lower lip nervously.
"Why the long face?" Sirius quipped, prodding him in his side.
"Huh?" Remus replied, snapping out of his daze.
"Moooony…pay attention to me." He pouted.
"Sorry, Pads. I was just thinking about what the Professor had said about tomorrow's Supermoon."
"What about it?"
"Well, it's supposed to be much larger than a normal full moon. She said the closer the full moon is to the earth, the more powerful it is. That's why plants picked during a Supermoon are used for some of the rarest and most potent potions. And…"
"And you think it's going to affect you."
"Well, yeah."
"Moony, you worry too much."
"It's a legitimate concern, Sirius. I can't help but worry. What if I put you lot in danger?"
"You're a lyCANthrope, not a lyCAN'Tthrope. Even if your transformation was particularly bad this time, you'd deal with it like you always do. You're tougher than you think…and as for us, we can take care of ourselves."
Remus rolled his eyes at the pun, and let a small laugh escape his lips. If it had been anyone but Sirius, he probably wouldn't have found it so funny. There was just something about Sirius that made him feel at ease. Whenever they hung out together, he would become enthralled in whatever joke or prank he had concocted, and would, even if just for a moment, forget about the bloody full moon for once. In short, Sirius made him feel like he was just any other 16 year old boy. He made him feel normal.
A while later, they entered the Gryffindor common room, pleased to see that both James and Peter were there too. James was slouching on the armchair, shuffling through his stack of exploding snap cards, whilst Peter sat by the fire, facing him as he nibbled on a bright blue Sugar Quill. James glanced up from the deck and gave them a grin. "Fancy a game of exploding snap?"
"Bavarian Rules version?" Sirius prompted, causing Peter to stop licking his Sugar Quill and look at him aghast.
"Last time we played that, I lost both my eyebrows!"
James, Sirius and Remus all laughed fondly at the memory. Peter had even tried to paint some makeshift eyebrows on to his face, and suffice to say, art wasn't his forté.
Sirius and Remus plonked themselves down on the sofa facing James and Peter, and dumped their books on the floor as James began to deal out the cards.
As Remus glanced down at the cards, a wave of nausea washed over him. His head had begun to start pounding painfully. He inhaled sharply, as he rubbed his right temple with his fingers. He didn't think anyone could hear him, but Sirius was sitting so close to him that he'd heard his sounds of discomfort. Sirius glanced over to him with a look of concern. "Y'alright mate?" he asked, his stormy grey eyes staring at him intently. James and Peter's heads snapped up and they too looked troubled.
Remus didn't look great, that much was obvious. All the colour had drained from his face, giving him an unsettlingly pale complexion.
"Yeah…Yeah. I think it's just a side-effect of the moon tomorrow." He mumbled.
The three boys didn't look convinced. Normally Remus looked a bit peaky and complained about muscle aches and pains, but he never looked as ill as he did now. Despite their doubts, they each gave a small nod, accepting his explanation.
"I think I'll sit this round out though." He added with a yawn.
Sirius looked uncharacteristically worried. "Maybe you should lie down." He suggested, noticing how exhausted he looked.
"Nah, I'll be alright. Don't want to miss out on Peter's eyebrows singeing off again." He joked, offering his friends a weak smile.
The boys were relieved slightly that Remus was well enough to banter with them, so they did as he said, and carried on playing their game.
They hadn't even started the third round, when Remus' eyelids began to feel as heavy as lead. He struggled to keep them open and within a few moments, he was sound asleep. Sirius was leaning back into the comfort of the plush cushions, so when Remus began to doze off, he flopped backwards, his head lolling onto Sirius shoulder.
Sirius could feel Remus' soft, chestnut-coloured hair tickling his jaw. The corner of his lip twitched into a smile and he shook his head slightly. Remus always hated admitting how tired or unwell he felt, especially in the days leading up to and after the full moon. He hated being a burden to his friends. "Looks like I've got my very own sleeping beauty." Sirius announced, earning a snigger from both James and Peter.
"Careful, Sirius. Moony's a drooler." James quipped.
"Typical werewolf." He replied, rolling his eyes.
"Should we carry him up to his bed?" Peter asked.
"Nah, s'alright. Let's carry on playing. I'll take him upstairs when we've finished." Sirius responded with a shrug. He would never have admitted it to his friends, but he kind of enjoyed having Moony use him as a pillow. It was comforting. Sirius noticed that he was close enough to notice that he smelt like chocolate, parchment paper and pine trees. To him, it was the most enrapturing smell in the world. Resisting the urge to kiss the top off his head, he instead lifted up his right hand and brushed Remus' scruffy hair out of his eyes before concentrating back on the game.
Eventually, the three boys grew tired of playing exploding snap and so they decided to head up to bed.
"Are you sure you don't need help carrying him upstairs?" James asked, giving Sirius an incredulous look.
"This is Moony we're talking about. Not only is he the lankiest Gryffindor that ever walked these halls, but he's at least a head shorter than me." He said with a cocky grin.
"If you say so." James shrugged. "Night, pads." He added with a small wave as both he and Peter trundled up to their bedroom.
With no one left in the common room to see, Sirius absentmindedly rubbed his thumb against Remus' cheek as he watched his friend's chest rise and fall with every soft breath he took. He could have slept right then and there, but he didn't dare think of what the others would have thought in the morning if they had seen them both sleeping together on the sofa. With a sigh, Sirius gently shrugged Remus' head off his shoulder and in one swift movement, he bundled him up in his arms. "You're heavier than you look." he grumbled.
Once he'd finally reached the top of the stairs and entered the bedroom, he carefully placed Remus on his bed, trying not to wake him up. The others had already fallen asleep. Sirius quickly undid Remus' laces, slid his shoes off, then draped a warm blanket over him. Lying there, Moony looked so peaceful. When he wasn't sleeping, he would have a constant look of concern with his typical furrowed brow and the occasional chewing of his lower lip. Yet, in his sleep he seemed so calm, as if a huge weight had been lifted off his shoulders. Sirius sighed, hoping that the full moon would be kind to him tomorrow. "Good night, Moons." He murmured, before turning out the light.