"Sirius? I'm going to go to Diagon Alley with Lily and Harry. Do you need anything?" Remus shrugged his cloak over his jumper, tucking his wand and a small bag of gold into his pocket.

"I don't think so. Oh! Get another bag of those crisps I like. What are they called? Farters?" The sandy haired man rolled his eyes, smiling at his boyfriend's ignorance.

"Fritos, Sirius." Grinning cheekily, he rounded the corner and wrapped his arm around the slightly smaller man.

"Whatever. Those Muggles come up with the strangest names for their food but it's damn tasty. Just like you," Remus chuckled as Sirius planted a sound kiss on his lips.

"I know what you're trying to do! You're trying to seduce me. I need to go meet Lily! Harry needs a new romper and you're nibbling my ear. Oh, Sirius you know what nibbling my ear does to me!" Remus leaned into the embrace of his boyfriend, sighing with pleasure as Sirius' lips traced a path from the base of his ear, down the side of his neck to his collar bone where he was sucking on a love mark that he'd put there the night before.

"Are you telling me you don't want it, Rem?" Sirius chuckled when all he got was a breathy sigh in response. Pulling his lips away and adjusting his lover's scarf strategically around his delicious throat, Sirius slipped his hands into his pockets and took a step back.

"Get out of here, you. You have a date to keep." He opened his eyes, scowling at the other man briefly before walking over and placing a gentle kiss on his lips.

"I'll be back before long. I love you, Siri." Sirius tenderly brushed the back of his fingers along his cheek at his words.

"I love you too, Rem. See you soon." Remus turned and opened the door when Sirius remembered something that he was supposed to ask.

"Oh, you wouldn't mind if I have the boys come round tonight for some cards and some drinks, yeah?" Golden eyes met silver in a skeptical look.

"We won't get out of control, I promise!" The lycan frowned, staring the other man down before sighing and shrugging.

"I suppose not. Just remember my mum and dad are coming tomorrow. You have to be up in the morning to help me clean it up." A grin cracked across his face before he walked back into the kitchen. Remus cringed when he heard something crash to the floor.

"I don't want to know..." he muttered before shutting the door behind him.

"SIRIUS FUCKING BLACK GET IN HERE RIGHT NOW!" The dark haired man groaned pitifully, pulling his pillow over his head to drown out the sounds of his boyfriend's screams from the living room. The light streaming in the window made his eyes burn, the volume of Remus' voice made his head pound, any little bit of movement he made caused his stomach to churn unpleasantly. His mind was far too foggy to try to comprehend why Remus was screaming so early in the morning. It was early, wasn't it? Opening his eye a crack, Sirius read the neon numbers on his clock beside his bed. 12:26 pm. Okay, so maybe not early.

"ARGH!" Sirius screamed as he was doused in cold water, sitting bolt upright and facing a livid werewolf. He instantly regretted his decision as the bedroom swayed before him.

"Sirius. What did I tell you when you asked me if you could host a drunken game night at our apartment?"

"Ungh." Remus watched as his boyfriend's face paled and the silvery eyes looked around for the rubbish bin before leaning over it and retching his stomach's contents into it.

"Feel better?" Sirius shook his head as he heaved into the bin again. Having mercy on his pathetic lover, Remus pulled his hair back and handed him a combination of anti-nausea and hangover potion. The animagus just scowled at him, ejecting more leftover firewhiskey from his stomach.

"Ungh, Rem do you honestly think I can keep anything down right now?"

"Hush you and take the potion." Sirius took the vial, swallowing hard before pouring it into his mouth, grimacing at the taste. His stomach was on the verge of spitefully contracting again as he waited for the potion to kick in. Buggering fuck, it wasn't going to happen. He heard Remus sigh as the potion came back up with a vengeance, his eyes watering as he coughed and sputtered.

"I feel like I should pity you on some level except for the fact that I told you that you shouldn't have that party last night because my parents were coming by to see the flat today and not to go too crazy. You never listen until your head's practically in the bin when you swear up and down that you'll never do this again." Remus kept scolding him, ignoring the weak heaving from his boyfriend as he conjured a cool, wet towel and put it on the back of the animagus' neck.

"Wait here, I'll go see to James."

"Because I can go so- hungh- fucking far, you cheeky bastard." Sirius called, leaning his forehead against the rim of the bin. His breathing was shallow and all he wanted to do was roll over and die.

Remus' eyes landed on the bespectacled young man lying on his couch on his back, snores emitting from his partially open mouth. The lycan smiled evilly as he opened another vial of hangover potion and raised his wand.

"Aguamenti!" A jet of water hit the boy whose eyes flew open with a sharp gasp milliseconds before Remus stuck the bottle in his mouth not giving him a chance to start getting sick. The lycan pinched the dark haired man's nose, fixing a stern look on him when he began to protest.

"Swallow." He watched as James' throat moved as the potion was swallowed, releasing his hold on his nose but keeping his hand clamped over his mouth in the hopes that the potion will stay down. After a minute of waiting with no negative results, Remus released his friend's face and sighed.

"How much did you two drink? I haven't seen him this bad since your stag party." James groaned, sitting up as he rubbed his eyes with the heel of his hand.

"I'm not sure how much he drank. I lost count after the third bottle of firewhiskey was emptied. We left the bottles and things over there if you'd like to check yourself." Remus turned toward the rest of the sitting room warily before his eyes widened in shock. 6 empty and one three-quarter empty bottles of firewhiskey were sitting haphazardly around the table, at least 15 empty bottles of butterbeer and various other drinks, muggle and wizard included. If he hadn't known that there were only 5 people drinking that night, he would have thought this had been a larger party.

"You drank 6 bottles of firewhiskey?! Are you out of your bloody fucking minds? What in Merlin's name were you even thinking! No, don't answer that. You clearly weren't. If Lily hadn't called looking for you three times this morning, I'd string you up myself. However, I don't think I need to because your wife, James Potter, is absolutely livid with you." James' face instantly paled at the mention of his wife's name as a look of dawning and terror filled his face in an almost comical expression.

"Buggering fuck, Lily had to work. I'm supposed to watch Harry. What time is it?"

"Probably about 12:45 in the afternoon now." James cursed and sprang up off the couch, darting over to the Floo and making his way home as quickly as he could.

"She was supposed to be in at 10 this morning. She's going to kill me." Remus rolled his eyes as his friend took a shaky breath and stepped into the green flames. With a sigh and a glance around the room, Remus vanished the empty bottles and with another flick of his wrist the cards, poker chips and crisp bags disappeared. A loud crash and the sound of gagging reminded him that he had a still very hungover boyfriend and an impending parental visit to deal with. Picking up a new bottle of hangover potion and anti-nausea potion, he made his way to the bedroom where Sirius was now lying on the floor beside the bin with sick all over the floor.

"Sirius. What are you doing?" Remus sighed before sitting Sirius up again.

"Do you think you can keep these down this time?" Taking a shaky breath, the dark haired man shrugged.

"May as well try." Remus handed the two vials over and watched as his lover poured them both into his mouth and swallowed. After a minute of waiting, they knew they were safe.

"Feel better?" Sirius nodded and ran a hand down his face. They sat quietly for a moment before Sirius chanced a glance at Remus.

"I'm sorry it got so out of control last night. I didn't mean-"

"You never mean Sirius. You just didn't think at all." Sirius frowned at his boyfriend, hurt at the unspoken 'like usual' that Remus tactfully left off.

"I said I was sorry, Rem. What else do you want me to do? I can help you clean if you want. It couldn't take a second."

"I've already cleaned up."

"Then what do you want?"

"I want you to care, Sirius!" Remus said furiously, rising to his feet as Sirius followed. "I want you to care that my parents are going to be here in two hours to meet you and to see our flat. I want you to be nervous to meet them as my boyfriend. I want you not to get completely pissed so that don't have to worry about you as well as taking care of the flat! You're not a child, Sirius and I want you to act thusly. Is that really so much to ask?" He was hurt. He was fuming. He was so beyond upset that Sirius would do this to him again that he didn't even care that he might be hurting his lover's feelings. There are only so many happy occasions nowadays, only so many opportunities to forget that they could die at any time just by being what they were and his twat of a boyfriend had made it a hassle, stressful and had yet again acted like a child turning what could have been a happy moment and made it nothing but annoying for Remus.

"Oh really? Am I acting like a child? Is that how you feel, Remus? That I'm too bloody immature for you and your proper adult life?" Sirius had risen to his feet, his eyes just slightly higher than Remus' blazing with fury and hurt.

"Well when you do this to yourself, that's one thing. When you drag your friends into it as well, oh yes that's well done."

"James could have done whatever he bloody well pleased!"

"No, Sirius. He does what you want! He's always done what you wanted. And you always do what he wants. You two are like fucking children! Now Lily's furious with him because he was supposed to watch Harry and instead he was passed out here with you. Don't you get it? He's a father. He has responsibilities to his wife and son. He can't afford to be a child anymore. For fuck's sake, we're in the middle of a bloody war! They could come here whenever they wanted. We could all be dead tomorrow. We can't afford to be complete rubbish because we drank too much the night before!" Remus' voice gradually rose through his speech until he was flat out yelling at the other man. As the words poured out of his mouth, Sirius got more and more sombre and distant until the moment when he completely shut down.

"So that's it then. You're clearly so unhappy with me and everything I do it makes me wonder if you even want me here at all. So once you figure that out, let me know. Until then I'll just get out of your hair." With mouth hanging open, Remus watched Sirius turn toward the closet, grab a bag and start shoving clothes in it.

"You're running away? That's your grand plan? Just leaving? Oh, well I suppose that's just like you then. Just running away from your problems instead of facing them because that would be fucking terrifying, wouldn't it? Absolutely petrifying for you to actually feel something. Fine! Go! Run off and drink yourself into a stupor. I won't be there to clean it up for you!" With a hateful glare, Sirius Apparated from the flat. Remus stared at the spot where he stood for a moment before rounding on a wall, forcing his fist through it with all the force he had. Pain shot up his arm as he heard the sharp pops of broken bones. He sank to his knees, tears streaming down his face and screamed out the frustration he felt at the man who'd just left and the pain that was his heart ripping into pieces.

Sirius was gone. There's no telling if he was going to come back. And even if he did, there's no proof that anything would go back to normal. Knowing him, Sirius was going to get completely pissed and fuck the first person who approached him. The thought of it made the tears come harder than before and he felt sick to his stomach. There was nothing left he could do. He'd chased the only person he'd ever loved away. And now he didn't know if he'd ever see him again.

Hell, he called him a child. He'd told Sirius that he was the reason James got into trouble. Remus paced into the living room, staring at the fireplace with every pass unsure if he should go to James and Lily's for that was almost certainly where Sirius would go once he was through at the bar. No, he wouldn't go just yet. Lily would still be at work and he didn't want to burden James with this. Not while he was to be watching Harry. No, Remus would just wait. He went into the kitchen, took out the last remaining bottle of Firewhiskey and poured himself a glass, wincing when he tried to flex his broken hand. Well, now he knew what he would do for the next few hours until he went to the Potter's. Pouring the alcohol into his mouth, Remus went to set his hand.

His hand ached as the Skele-Grow did its work but it was now time to go. Throwing Floo powder into the fireplace, he stuck his head in and said "Godric's Hollow, The Potters." Nothing. Remus frowned, pulled his head from the fireplace and tried again.

"Godric's Hollow, The Potters."

Again, nothing.

Odd, Remus thought to himself. Maybe Lily had shut down the Floo. He'd just Apparate there. It was less hassle anyway. He wrapped his cloak around him, took a deep breath and disappeared with a crack and a spin.

Something was wrong. Remus knew the moment he landed and his breath was stolen from him. Smoke filled the air, the glow of flames burned from the far side of the square and there, among the stars floated the sickening skull and snake. The Dark Mark. They'd been here.

"James...Lily...Harry!" He took off running. Remus slipped on leaves that littered the October ground but didn't slow a bit. With every step, his heart sank.

It's not their house. Please, God let it not be their house. Rounding the corner, he froze. The house was little more than rubble, the ruins smoking. The gate in the front hung off of one of its hinges and the front door was blasted straight off. Gripping his wand, Remus quickly walked into the house.

"James? James?! Lily? Where are you? Can you hear me?" Remus called into the silence of the house.

"Lumos," With wand raised aloft, Remus made his way through the foyer. Plates and dishes, pictures and furniture all shattered and splintered around the room. Scorch marks lined the walls and glass was blown out of windows. Remus made it to the hallway and choked. There was James, brave, strong, courageous, arrogant, loving James covered in the ruins of his home lying at the base of the stair. Remus kneeled down beside him, touching his cheek, checking for a pulse that he knew he wouldn't find.

"Oh, James," The knot in Remus' throat nearly suffocated him as he gazed upon his friend, the man he'd just seen that morning sleeping on his couch. The man who'd left in a fright because his wife-

His wife.

"Lily. LILY!" Remus ran up the stair, checking each room as he came to it. Their bedroom, the bath, the spare guest room. All rooms empty until he came to Harry's nursery. The flame of her hair was spread across the floor in front of her as she lay face down before Harry's empty cot. He felt his shoulder hit the door frame as his knees collapsed beneath him. Tears overwhelmed him as a sob was ripped from his throat.

"No...no, no, no, no, no! NOOO!" He dropped his wand as his hand grasped the splintered wood beside him. His breath came in rasps and he could barely see. He didn't want to see. They were gone. His best friends were gone. Their son had vanished because if he'd been killed, his body would have been left in his cot. The Potters were gone.

The sound of sirens pulled Remus out of his misery. He had to get out of there. The muggles would be there soon and he couldn't be found in there. Wiping his face on his sleeve, he picked up his wand, went over to Lily, kissed her temple and Apparated back to his flat. With a crash, he collided with the coffee table before falling to his knees and openly sobbing. James and Lily were gone. He could hardly believe it. He'd spoken with Lily that morning. James was lying on that couch. And now they were lying dead on the floor of their home.

"S-Sirius! Sirius!" Remus looked around, calling for his lover before remembering that he wasn't here. He may never be here again. He felt his heart clench even harder in his chest at the thought that he would never see any of the Marauders ever again. But there would still be Peter. No, they hadn't seen Peter in months outside of the Order meetings. Remus didn't think that now he would all of a sudden make some kind of reappearance. Instead, he remained where he lay and sobbed.

Sirius had Apparated down the block from the flat he shared with Remus. He'd spent the day walking around London, avoiding bars and trying to create some semblance of sense in his head. He knew everything was entirely his fault. Remus had every right to be angry. He always liked things to be nice for his parents and Sirius had mucked it all up. Like usual. He'd crossed the Thames twice on this line of thinking before he'd realized that night had fallen and he should be getting home to make his amends.

He stood outside the door, debating on whether to just let himself in or to knock and let Remus invite him inside when he heard the most heart wrenching sob he'd ever heard in his life.

Oh Gods I made him cry. Sirius pressed his fist into his forehead before wrapping his hand around the doorknob and walking in. Remus was sitting in the living room beside the coffee table, sobbing harder than he'd ever seen him cry.

Something was wrong.

"Remus?" Tear filled eyes turned to him quickly and that had confirmed it for Sirius. Something was very, very wrong.

"S-Sirius? W-what...?" Sirius rushed over to his boyfriend, wrapping his arms around him and rocking him.

"I'm so sorry. I know it was all my fault. I didn't mean to make a mess of everything. I know how important it is for your parents to visit. I was just being a tit. It was James, really. He thought it would be a grand idea if we took shots as parts of the bets. I'm so sorry Remus, please forgive me." Remus pressed his hand against the babbling animagus' lips, silencing him.

"Siri..." Remus choked on the words he knew he had to say as tears came anew. "Oh Siri." He fell against the strong frame of his lover, fisting his hands in his cloak and soaking the shoulder of it with his tears. In that instant, Sirius knew this went far beyond the fight they had that morning.

"What's happened, Remus? It's alright, love. You can tell me." Cupping his cheeks, Sirius forced Remus to meet his eyes. "Remus? Please, you're scaring me." With a deep hiccuping breath, Remus said it.

"James and Lily are dead."

I have almost nothing to say. This was long but I now have a bunch of ideas for this and I'm really excited about it. Let me know what you think! 3

Also, I have a facebook page! Come and check it out! WillowDream203. It'll have updates, some sneak previews and you'll be able to post a request on the wall and if there is enough interest in it, I'll try to write it up for you. Hope to see you there!

Love, Willow