Sirius peeked timidly through the door of the Hospital Wing. He'd been in Dumbledore's office with Snape for a long time, and they'd both walked out with heavy punishments. Well, Sirius had walked out with heavy punishment- Severus only received a week of detention for being out of bed at night and walking into a situation he knew could've led to his death. No, that couldn't be true either. Snape didn't know it was a deadly situation, but he must have known it was unsafe. Why Snape received detention was irrelevant, so Sirius cast the thought aside.
He could see Remus laying on a bed near the far wall, and he was awake too. Sirius swallowed, not at all liking the way Remus' arms were crossed over his chest. He knew he'd have to go in there eventually and apologize and just take any chastisement Remus threw at him. Remus would be very angry, which was the main reason why Sirius was so afraid to walk into the room. He briefly wondered if it were a blessing that Remus was so weak after the moon. If he had his full energy and strength he may very well get up and start throwing punches. Sirius wouldn't be able to blame him if he did.
With a deep breath, Sirius mumbled "here goes nothing," and pushed the door open enough for him to slip through. He walked slowly, trying to pull together his apology. He'd acted impulsively, and selfishly. He disliked Snape so much he'd been willing to sacrifice his best friend's pride and privacy. These thoughts only made Sirius more nervous. His stomach turned with the sickened glare Remus gave him.
"Remus, I'm so-" but Sirius was cut off.
"Don't even, Sirius. How could you do that!? Now he knows! And what were you thinking!?" Remus shouted, unable to sputter out everything he intended to say. He was too flustered and furious.
"You're mad," Sirius stated, staring at his feet sheepishly as he stood and the foot of Remus' bed.
"No, I was mad when you spilt ink all over my potions essay. I was mad when you told Clara Diamond I liked her when I didn't. I'm livid now, Sirius. I cannot believe you were so stupid and childish. I could've bitten him had James not stopped him. I could have killed him. And I'd have been the one punished for it even though it was your stupid fault!" He shouted, the rage boiling in him now and clogging his throat with large lump of emotion.
"I know, Remus. What I did was petty and shameful, and believe you me I'm being severely punished for my carelessness." Sirius insisted, looking up at his best friend. His jaw was set and the cold stare from his amber eyes was unwavering.
"What, detentions for the rest of the year? Save it, Sirius. You may be serving your sentence for what you did wrong in school but this is our friendship. It's trust here, and that's a whole lot harder to fix." He hissed, unwilling to drop his angry and hurt expression.
Sirius rubbed his forehead, unsure of what to say to make things better, or at least help. "I just don't know what to say, Moony. By the time I'd realized I'd made a mistake, we were already in the shrieking shack and I couldn't stop it. That's why I told James and he went to intercept. I'm really sorry. I can't take it back, but I can promise you I am sorry."
Remus remained stony faced. The truth was, his heart was broken and he was confused. He could see Sirius felt bad, he could see Sirius knew he'd made a big mistake. Staying angry wouldn't undo what had played out last night. Much to his chagrin, Remus' mouth cracked a small smile.
"I know you feel poorly, and I know you are sorry." He said calmly, trying to approach it the right way.
"Can you forgive me?" Sirius asked quickly, looking up at Remus again.
"For being an idiot, yeah. I can forgive you for being a daft git. But how can I trust you anymore, Sirius? Do you see where I'm coming from? You led Severus Snape right into the lap of my biggest secret." He said, his tone no longer filled with resentment; just hurt.
"I do see." Sirius claimed, edging closer to now sit on the end of the bed. "You've got every reason now to not trust me with my hot headed and big gobbed self."
The fact was, Remus found it difficult to stay angry with Sirius. Even though he didn't want to, his heart swelled with affection for the boy. "Can I have a chance to be trustworthy, Remus? Please?"
He took a moment to consider, and then gave a slight nod. "Yeah. I should know more than anyone that everybody deserves a second go. But this is strike one, Black. I mean it." He said warningly. Sirius face lit up.
"Thank you, Moony!" She shouted in his excitement, launching forward and hugging Remus securely.
Remus winced from the rough hug around his tender body, and patted Sirius' back. He enjoyed the embrace, pain excluded. He hoped he was doing the right thing.
"I'm glad we're friends, Remus." Sirius admitted in a more sincere tone now than the one he'd used to thank his friend. He retreated from the hug, and just looked at Remus and his golden eyes, which were finally back to the warm state he knew best.
"I'm glad too, Sirius. I'm still mad- you're not off the hook. But I am glad we're friends." He said simply. That was that. Sirius screwed up, and Remus forgave him. The way it'd been since they met. The way it would probably be until they died.