Sick

Small snowflakes flittered around him, attaching themselves to his dark fur. Warm breath contrasting with the cool around him, the black dog bounded through the small mounds of snow. He hesitated slightly in his jog, shaking off the cold from his heavy coat. Jumping at the falling powder, he fell into the sea of white. Standing up from his position on the ground, the dog shook once again, but this time accompanied it with a loud sneeze.

Remus watched as his friend raced through the snow, acting as if he had never seen it before. It was a fact that Sirius had before pranced through the snow in his animagous, but he had to admit that it had been many years ago. Leaning against the frozen bark of a tree, Remus pulled his red scarf tighter around himself and then took a step forward. Giving a whistle, he smiled slightly as the dog's ears perked up and he turned to him. "Padfoot, we don't have all day!"

Feet crunching through the snow, Remus began the walk out of number twelve Grimmauld Place's yard with Sirius trailing behind him. Pulling a folded piece of parchment from his pocket, Remus scanned over the dark ink. "Alright, Molly wants a slimming, red robe from Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions. Hermione wants Advance Arithmancy from Flourish and Blotts, and the twins want exploding jellybeans from Gambol & Japes."

Only half listening to his companion, Sirius nudged Remus's leg to signal he understood. Stopping as the man kept walking; he sneezed again and shook his head from side to side.

Halting in his movement, Remus looked behind him and down at the shivering dog. Giving a sigh, he shook his head and turned around. Squatting down, Sirius padded over to him and gave a small whine. Extending a hand, he rubbed the dog under his chin. "Molly's not going to be too happy about this."

"I swear Sirius, if your mother could see you now!" Molly Weasley paced furiously back and forth in Sirius's bedroom and pointed a finger accusingly at him. "I give you one inch of freedom and you ignored me!"

Back in human form, Sirius sat upright against mounds of pillows and under a mass of blankets. Molly had insisted he immediately change into his pajamas and climb into bed to rest, he felt like he was seventeen again. Now came the scolding Remus had been so sure he would receive. "Well, my mother's downstairs, if you'd like to uncover her and have a pleasant conversation."

Molly's face contorted and her lips pursed at the bedridden man's smartass remark. Pulling out a thermometer from the confines of her robe, she marched over to Sirius and shoved it in his mouth. "Someone will be in to check on you, but if not then use this."

Sirius raised his eyebrows as Molly placed a small silver bell atop the bed sheets. "Just ring it whenever you need something. We'll leave the door cracked, so we can hear." Turning, Molly exited the room and left the scraggly haired man to his thoughts.

Grey eyes scanned the room for any source of entertainment. Finding none, Sirius's gaze dropped to the shining bell. Gaining a wicked smile, he plucked it from its resting place and rang it lightly. Waiting a moment, he was disappointed with the fact there were no hurried strides up the steps. Glaring at the small device, he rang it again but with more fervor.

Downstairs, Mrs. Weasely looked to the group sitting around the table. "Well? One of you has to move your bum up the stairs and tend to him!" Earning grunts from her sons, Fred and George, she looked to the brown haired woman across from them.

"Alright, alright. I'll go see what he needs." Standing from her seat, Hermione brushed back a few strands of hair. Moving quickly through the house, she skipped up the stairs and peeked into Sirius's room. "Sirius?"

Yanking the thin thermometer from his mouth, Sirius automatically brightened. "Oh, there you are, I was wondering when someone would hear me!" Flashing a crooked grin, he sunk into the soft pillows beneath him. "Where's Remus?"

Stepping in to the room, Hermione sat down in the chair next to the bed. "He went out to do the shopping that you were supposed to be helping him with." She stressed the 'you' and gave a half smile. "He's got his hands full dealing with you; I wish you would try to help him a little more."

Groaning, Sirius scratched his head, rolled on his side and focused his eyes on the girl sitting next to him. "I just got out of Azkaban, love. Give me a break."

Rolling her eyes at the pathetic man, Hermione gave a small sigh and began to stand up. "Well, if you don't need anything-"

Springing up, the thermometer almost flew out of his hand. "I do need something!" Sirius waited as she raised an eyebrow and he sneezed. "Some Firewhisky would be nice."

"Oh no you don't, I'm not getting in trouble with Mrs. Weasely." Hermione sent him a stern look, the look that she usually reserved for Harry and Ron.

"Fine, I'll just ask the twins. I'm sure they would be nice enough to get some for their favorite person in the whole world." Sirius rolled away from Hermione, glancing back childishly.

Biting down on her bottom lip, Hermione rolled her eyes. "Fine, but don't say a word of it to anyone."

Turning back around, Sirius flashed her a smile and gave a wink. "Much obliged."

Opening the door to number twelve Grimmauld place, Remus carried the bag full of goods in his arms. Almost bumping into Fred, he dodged the other twin and carried the bag into the kitchen. Looking around, Remus was surprised to not find anyone in the room. Setting the bag down, he moved back toward the door, but was startled to find a very irritated looking Hermione in his way.

"Remus, I swear to Merlin if you don't do something I'll hex him into next week; him and that damn bell of his!" Cheeks flushed and eyes blazing, Hermione was livid.

Blinking in confusion, Remus briefly wondered what she was going on about. "Hermione dear, what's got you so upset? Has Harry been-"

"Harry is out playing quidditch with Ron; it is Sirius who's been making me run around the whole damn house and blaming it on his being "sick"! First with the firewhisky, then the candles, and books!" She let out a heated breath and headed past him and slumped in a chair.

Placing a hand on the girl's shoulder, Remus offered a smile. "No worries, I'll go take care of him. Thank you for all you've done already." He waited for her to nod, then took off for the stairs. Once he had reached the top, he stopped upon hearing a sharp ringing sound.

"Hermione darling, I'm in need of fresh pillo-" Sirius's words faded as Remus appeared in the doorway and raised an eyebrow. "Moony, just who I wanted to see."

"I trust you're feeling better." Moving in from the doorway, Remus moved over in front of the window. Looking out at the falling snow, he subconsciously stretched his coat around his center. Taking a quick scan around the room, he didn't notice any of the items that Hermione had rambled about.

"I'm much better, now that you're here." Watching Remus tense slightly, he had to suppress a teasing chuckle. He knew it was wrong to taunt him, but nevertheless he felt inclined to. Besides, it wasn't as if Remus never returned the gesture.

Giving a sigh, Remus sat down on the bed next to Sirius, the man eagerly scooting over to give him room. Extending his legs in front of him, he leaned up against the headboard as Sirius finally sat up straight.

Hands sliding sneakily under his bed sheets, Sirius gripped the base of his wand. Pulling it out quickly, he smirked as Remus turned just in time to see him. "Accio chocolate."

Dodging the flying sweets, Remus rolled his eyes at his gleeful companion. A sudden flutter of annoyance passed through him as he thought of the poor girl downstairs. "If you had your wand all along, why would you have Hermione spend all that time getting you those?"

Dropping his wand and pulling the top from the silver chocolate box, Sirius plucked one from its shallow holder. Biting it in half, he merely looked at the man next to him and enjoyed the sweet taste on his tongue. Licking his lips of the dark evidence, Sirius shrugged. "I was waiting until the bell actually worked."

Picking up one of the chocolate treats, Remus examined it carefully. "Apparently it was working quite well considering what you put Hermione through." His bright eyes caught Sirius's as the man shook his head. "Well, then what was it supposed to do?"

"Molly told me to ring it whenever I needed something. I never did get what I actually needed." Sirius said this as convincingly as possible, but he noticed that Remus still seemed to pity his former student. "I didn't actually need her to bring all those things."

Having eaten the chocolate that was in his hand, Remus licked at his stained fingers. Glancing up at Sirius, he retracted his tongue. "What did you really need, Sirius?"

"You." A small smirk played lightly on Sirius's lips and his grey eyes glistened with mischievous intent. Leaning in, he pressed his lips to the corner of Remus's mouth then pulled back. Biting his tongue, Sirius had to stop himself from jumping on top of the man.

Amazed with Sirius's display of control, Remus would've laughed if his mouth wasn't once again being captured by his childhood friend. Opening his mouth to allow Sirius entrance, he kissed back lightly and lovingly. Letting go of his reserve, Remus moved his hand to Sirius's waist as their kisses became less controlled.

Just before the sun set and the snow faded, Remus would sneeze, and realize that he was now sick as well.