This was written for the Mystery Competition on the HPFC forum. My prompt was to write a Hufflepuff!AU for a non-Hufflepuff character and include the word 'curious' in my story. So, after a whole lot of writer's block and a really annoying urge to write Cedric Diggory instead, here it is. Enjoy!
Remus usually wasn't so out of it. If it were any other week he would have turned in his Potions essay a week ago, but alas. So, lucky him, it was only two days after the full moon and he was officially doomed.
He didn't even really remember what the essay was supposed to be about, but he did know that it was worth a third of his grade. So he fell back upon the glorious plan of hoping Slughorn forgot that they even had something due, as he so often did. However, this was wrecked too when Snape, who had at least twelve inches more than necessary on his desk, decided it would be a good idea to remind Slughorn.
"Lupin, your essay? Do you even have one? You do know it was due today, correct?" Remus was to busy cursing Snape's existence to properly realize that Slughorn was collecting essays and was consequently left floundering for an excuse once he had reached him. He then got to caught up in his misfortune to notice the Hufflepuff beside him discreetly putting his own essay into Remus's hands. Without looking at the oh-so-important parchment, Remus shoved it into the professor's hands.
"Yes, sorry sir. Just got lost in my own little world, I guess," he said, then breathed a sigh of relief as his doom passed. Then Remus remembered the Hufflepuff.
"Thanks so much for that. I promise I'll repay-" his whispers were cut off once he realized who he was talking to.
"Oh, no worries. Slughorn likes me anyways. He'll probably just sigh and give me another week. I'm Sirius, by the way. Sirius Black," the Hufflepuff said, extending a hand for Remus to shake, forcing him out of his reverie to awkwardly shake Sirius's hand.
"Uh, hey. I'm Remus Lupin. Thanks again, serio-" Sirius grinned widely, expecting Remus's words, causing Remus to realize what he was about to say and blush. "Oh, sorry. Bet that gets annoying. Anyway, is there any way for me to make it up to you? I'm usually not so - out of it, I guess," Remus said, trying to get his act together. Sirius just laughed.
"Just don't forget your essay again, Lupin, and then we'll be fine," Sirius said with a smile that made Remus swoon. Then Sirius turned to Slughorn to explain why he didn't have an essay and Remus was left to question his sexuality.
A few weeks later, Remus finally did pay the other boy back. Sirius had been jumpy all class, and once Slughorn announced he was collecting essays, he had begun swearing under his breath.
"You forgot your essay, didn't you?" Remus asked, turning to the distraught boy. Sirius nodded.
"I was helping out my friend over the weekend 'cause she just went through a nasty break up and it just slipped my mind," Sirius explained. Remus sighed, scribbled out his own name on his essay, and passed it to Sirius.
"Take it. It's the least I could do," Remus said.
"No, no. I'm not gonna take your essay. I bet you worked really hard on this. I'll just tell him I forgot again. I'm not letting you get a bad grade because of me. We barely even talk out of class," Sirius said, trying to hand the parchment back.
"First, I really didn't. Second, if you do that again, he actually is going to give you a T. Third, the only reason I'm getting a good grade is because of you. Besides, you aren't the only one who Slughorn likes," Remus said, then winked.
"But still! I'm not taking your essay," Sirius argued.
"I took yours, you're taking mine. It's how it works, Sirius. Sorry, but fair's fair," Remus said, grinning, then turned to Slughorn to explain how he forgot because of an extra credit project for History of Magic.
Once he turned back to Sirius, he was being glared at.
"You're going to pay for this," Sirius said. Remus raised an eyebrow.
"How, exactly? All I did was repay you for giving me an O," Remus said, and couldn't help thinking that the other boy's pouty expression was incredibly cute.
"Hufflepuff's are stereotyped for a reason, Remus. I can totally use that against you."
"So you're going to nice me to death?"
"Exactly."
It didn't take Remus long to realize Sirius wasn't kidding. It started with Sirius running in front of him to open every door he could for Remus. Then, whenever Remus started dozing off in History of Magic, he immediately started taking notes for him. Not long after that, Sirius was parting crowds for Remus to pass through between classes. Remus would say it was annoying if he didn't find it so charming. Only about a week or two after Remus had given Sirius his essay, though, Remus had to admit Sirius had out done himself.
Remus had been at breakfast when he was greeted to Sirius sitting across from him with enough pages of notes to fill a book. He looked up at Sirius with a strange mixture of shock, horror, and admiration to see a huge grin paired with bags under the other boy's eyes.
"What are these for?" Remus asked. Sirius shrugged.
"You weren't at breakfast yesterday, and you never miss breakfast, so I took notes for you," Sirius answered, piling bacon on his plate. Curious to find out what exactly counted as his versions of 'notes', Remus began flipping through the pages before him.
"You aren't in arithmancy," Remus said after a moment of scanning the pack of papers.
"Oh, yeah, I got Lily Evans to duplicate her notes for the classes I'm not in," Sirius said. Remus gaped at him for a moment before standing to lean over the table to kiss him. Once he sat back down, Sirius was smiling as widely as humanely possible.
"I was hoping you would come to this," Sirius confessed after a moment. "I knew I wouldn't gather enough courage, and so I just kind of hoped you would make a move."
"That's not how you're supposed to get stuff, you know," Remus said, amused.
"Yeah. But it worked, didn't it? Anyway, want to go to Hogsmeade with me sometime?" Sirius asked. Remus gaped at him for (another) moment.
"Uh, yeah. Yes, of course," Remus said, shaking himself out of his shock. Sirius's grin grew wider.
"You know this means I win, right?"
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"I have, officially, niced you to death," Sirius said, causing Remus to roll his eyes.
"Is that what this is?"
"Yep."
"Awesome."