Warnings: Strong language, sexual situations, Book 7 Disregarded, slash
Prologue
Remus Lupin stepped into his office. He felt tired after the last week, despite the Wolvesbane potion, and deep shadows were visible under his eyes. What he really wanted to do was go to sleep, but he knew he had a lot of work to do before going back to his teaching on Monday. The news that Severus had decided to cover Werewolves in his absence was worrying enough on his own. He would have to try to figure out a way to return to Hinkypunks without it seeming forced. He sat down at his desk and rubbed his face. Perhaps he would rest his eyes for just a few minutes.
He was awoken by a knock on the door. It felt like just a moment later, but judging from the dusk outside he must have slept for at least two hours.
"Yes, come in," he said, trying to get the signs of sleep out of his eyes.
Severus Snape opened the door silently and stepped inside.
"Hello, Remus," he said softly. "Back to normal, I see."
"Hello, Severus," Remus replied, still trying to remember what he had been doing before he fell asleep. Ah, yes. Hinkypunks. "Back to normal, yes. What can I do for you?"
There was a short silence. Severus seemed uncertain about what to say.
"I just thought I should make sure there were no problems with the potion," he said at last. "Any side-effects to speak of?"
"None at all, thank you, Severus," said Remus. "I'm dead tired, though."
"I thought you might be." Remus almost though he saw the faintest trace of a smile on Severus' lips. "I brought you a little pick-me-up. Thought you might need it to plan your lesson for Monday." He strode over to place it on the desk. He looked at Remus and studied his face. "You were sleeping," he said.
"I may have dosed off, yes," said Remus. There was another silence, awkward. Severus turned to leave. "Why did you cover Werewolves while I was gone?" asked Remus.
Severus turned around. "I though that would be obvious," he said.
Remus was taken aback for a second. "Why would you do that to me, Severus? Why would you wish to expose me to the students? Do you hate me that much?"
Severus opened his mouth, closed it again, and turned his back on Remus once more. "Good night, Professor Lupin," he said, and left the room.
Remus closed his eyes and sighed as Severus shut the door behind him. Had it always been like this? He supposed it had been worse at some point. But all the same… Why did Severus keep confusing him this way? And why did Remus allow himself to be reeled in, confused, toyed with? Just like he always had.
Maybe he wanted it. Maybe it meant security. And yet, now that Sirius was on the loose again, and he was here at Hogwarts, faced with the memories of both him and Severus, not to mention having to see the latter, every day, he felt almost like a schoolboy again. As though he was back to the way things used to be.
Remus was afraid. What if he found himself faced with Sirius at some point? Would he be able to condemn him? He betrayed James and Lily. At least that was the story everyone knew. But how could he have done that? The Sirius Remus had known would never have done that. Perhaps he had just been a very good liar, or perhaps something had changed at some point, but Sirius hated the Dark Arts, he hated Voldemort.
And what about Severus?
Remus picked up the bottle with the potion Severus had made for him. He pulled the stopper and sniffed it. The fluid itself was orange and smelled sweet and tempting. He took a sip, and felt his entire body get warmer instantly. Another sip and his eyelids seemed to become less heavy. He emptied the bottle and suddenly felt like he'd had a good night's sleep. Severus knew medicine. Perhaps he ought to have been a healer, rather than a Potionsmaster. Remus put the empty bottle in his desk drawer for safekeeping.
He had better get to work. He knew the potion wouldn't last more than an hour or two, but that was at least something. It helped anyway.
Severus was a good man.