Blind Date
By weasleywheezes
DISCLAIMER: I am not affiliated with Scholastic, Warner Bros, basically any large corporation in the Potterverse. Sadly, I am also not affiliated with J.K. Rowling. I only borrow her marvelous characters out of respect and love for them.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: This story is based in part on the scene in the PoA movie, in which Professor Lupin talks to Harry about his mother being there for him in a difficult time of his life. What could be a difficult time for a boy who's been a werewolf since puberty?
"Remus, I've set you up on a date," James said, grinning. "You can't back out of it, because we don't have a lot of homework this weekend."
Remus shrugged his shoulders and pulled on the pillow in his lap. He knew James meant well. He had tried many excuses over the years, most of them succeeding, but he knew that there was no getting out of it this time. Remus didn't know why, but he just wasn't interested in dating. James, however, wouldn't take no for an answer.
"Remus, I know that brain of yours is working overtime, but there's no excuse that I'll accept. You're stuck, pal."
"So, James, who is it this time?" Remus sighed.
"It's one of Lily's friends from Hufflepuff."
"Yes, but who?"
"She's a very nice girl," James said uneasily.
Remus frowned a bit. This didn't look promising. "You're skirting the issue, Prongs. Who is it?"
"Er…well…" James was turning a light shade of red.
"It's Sarah Underwood!" a squeaky voice said from behind Remus. It was Peter Pettigrew, who was silently giggling into his hands impishly.
Remus made a disgusted face. "Ugh…James! Are you serious? Overbite?"
Peter wheezed, "Moony, imagine having to kiss her tomorrow. She'll bite your lip off!"
"Stop it, Peter," James admonished. "Overbite's a nice girl. Besides, she's dying to go out with you, Remus. And I'd never hear the end of it from Lily if you don't."
Remus sighed again. "Tell Lily not to hold it against you, but I'm not interested."
James opened his mouth, and by the look on his face, Remus knew he was about to say something harsh, but then…
"Not interested in what, Moony?"
Sirius Black appeared from the boys' dormitory and sat in the chair nearest Remus.
"James has set me up with Sarah Underwood."
Sirius let out a bark-like laugh and slapped his hand against the chair's arm. "James, you could have done better than that. Overbite! Better not hand feed her chocolates, Moony, else you'll come back missing a finger or two."
"Remus doesn't go out with anyone, Sirius. I'm looking out for his best interests here."
"It sounds like you're looking out for your own interests, Prongs. What, did Lily say she'd withhold unless our pal Remus here does his time with Underwood?"
James turned a deeper shade of red than before. He was standing now. "Listen, Black, you know I have Remus' happiness at heart."
"Perhaps it doesn't include a date with Overbite!"
Remus stood up and threw the pillow he was kneading into his seat. "Stop talking about me like I'm not here," he said quietly. Sirius and James stopped their bickering. Peter continued to giggle slightly.
Sirius draped his arm around Lupin's shoulders. "Come off it, Moony. Go out, have a good time, and make sure you bring some logs for that old beaver to gnaw on," he barked again.
Friday morning and afternoon dragged on for poor Remus, and it didn't help that Peter kept chomping at the air every time he looked at him. James gave him quiet words of encouragement. "Remus, after class, run up to the dormitory and wait for me and Padfoot. We'll fix you up, okay?"
He did as he was asked, and waited for James and Sirius on his bed. Sirius came up first, sat next to him, and turned to look at him.
"'lo, Moony."
"Hello, Padfoot," Remus said dejectedly.
"Man, you look like your dog just died," Sirius said playfully. "Of course, I'm sitting right here, so we know that's not true."
"I don't want to do this."
Sirius lay back onto the bed. "Don't blame you there, Remus. James could have picked someone other than Sarah Overbite for a blind date."
"It's not Overbite, I just don't want to do this. Go out, I mean."
Sirius sat up. "Chicken!" he barked.
"No! No, not chicken."
"Are you worried you might not look right? Don't worry about that; James and I will let you borrow some clothes."
"No, that's not it." Remus stared at the floor.
Sirius sat quietly for a moment, leapt to his feet. "Oh! I got it now! You're worried about performance!"
Remus continued to stare at the floor.
"That's it! That's it!" Sirius laughed riotously and did a little jig. "Remus, you're nervous!"
At that moment, James entered the room. "Did I miss a good joke?" he asked, grinning.
"Old Moony here is worried about the deed." Sirius patted Remus on the leg.
James started to laugh along with Sirius. "Nonsense. Overbite's a notorious prude, Remus. You've got nothing to worry about."
THREE HOURS LATERThere he sat, in James' pants and Sirius' warm wool sweater, on the stone benches out in the gardens. In front of him sat Sarah Underwood, batting her eyes, her hands on his, waiting for him to kiss her. Remus swallowed hard. Might as well get it over with, he thought. He closed his eyes and moved closer to her, and when his lips met hers, it felt like ice. There was no give, no yield.
He started to sweat a little, and the heat from his nervous perspiration mingled with the lingering aftershave on Sirius' sweater. He began to smell that musky scent. In the back of his mind's eye, he saw him. Sirius Black. Sirius' voice drifted through his mind, and Remus imagined for a brief moment that it was Sirius' lips on his own. Those lips became warm, supple, delicious. He wanted to reciprocate Sirius' willing kiss. He heard the soft moaning he craved, but it wasn't Sirius' voice. The kiss was abruptly broken. Remus stood up and started to walk away from his date.
"Remus! Remus, where are you going?" Sarah gasped. "Didn't you like it?"
Remus was sweating profusely now. Suddenly, Sirius' wool sweater was suffocating him. "Sarah, I'm sorry. You have a right to know…I'm just sorry, that's all." Remus said awkwardly, and sprinted back towards the castle.
He thought he'd never get back to Gryffindor Tower. Once inside the castle, he quickly shed himself of the sweater and carried it under his arm. When he started running up the stairs, he bumped into Peter Pettigrew. Wormtail giggled, snorted once, and giggled again. "Say, Remus, you look flushed. Have a good time on your date? Did she bite a hole through you?"
Remus ignored him and continued running up the stairs, gave the Fat Lady the password, and set in a dark corner of the common area, his head in his hands. He could hear snickers echoing through the room. At least, he thought he did. The laughter became clearer, and he knew who it was. "James, do me a favor and don't set me up on any more blind dates," Remus said miserably.
"Oh, Remus, did Sarah attack you?" a feminine voice cooed.
Lupin looked up. It wasn't James, but Lily Evans, leaving the boys' part of the tower and heading towards her own. She was alone.
"Lily, it's you. Erm…it was horrible. And something strange happened. Something really scary. I kissed her."
"Remus, her teeth aren't really that big, are they?" Lily teased.
"No, that's not it. I kissed her, but when I did, I thought about someone else."
Lily clapped. "Oh, excellent! Tell me who," she said, but her excitement quickly waned when she looked into Lupin's eyes. She saw a slight fear lying just below the surface. She could tell that whomever he had thought of, he didn't like it.
Remus shuttered a little. It looked to Lily as if he was on the verge of tears. "I'm so afraid, Lily. It… I should have known. I should have been aware of it the whole time."
She took his arm and patted him softly. "Is it someone I know, Remus?" He swallowed hard and nodded his head yes. "Is it…is it me?"
"No."
Lily sighed a breath of relief.
"I can't believe it. He's always been there for me, Lily. It's…I just…"
"He, Remus? It's not James, is it?"
"No! Oh, no, not James." He grinned a little bit. "Besides, I know that it'd be stupid to mess with your squeeze, Lily."
She crossed her arms and stared at him. "Damn straight, Remus. But who is it?"
He sat stoically, stared at the floor, and twirled his hair a bit. "Come on, Remus. Out with it."
He bowed his head and murmured something.
"Sleerus? Who's that?" Lily said.
Remus muttered it again.
"Who the hell is Sleerus?"
"Not Sleerus. Sirius. I thought about Sirius, okay? There, are you happy now? Gonna go tell James and Peter about Remus the nelly boy?" He flushed a deep red.
"Oh, Remus, never. I'd never do that."
He shook with a mixture of rage and fear. "Sirius. Sirius, God damn it! I'm in love with my best friend. It's impossible, Lily. It's impossible!" he sobbed.
"Remus…" Lily said softly. She drew closer to him and cradled him in her arms. "It's all right. I'll not tell anyone. Not even James. Your secret is safe with me. It's okay, anyway. I don't think any less of you, you know."
Remus dried his tears on the sleeve of his undershirt, sniffled a little. "Thanks. No wonder James loves you so much. You… you've got a good soul, Lily Evans."
"Yeah, and don't you forget it, Remus Lupin. Now, let's figure out a good reason why you ran out on Overbite."
Lupin cracked a smile. "I thought she was your friend!"
"I am her friend, but that doesn't make me blind. She's got teeth like a giant hare," Lily quipped.
Remus laughed, and it felt like a great weight had lifted from him. He and Lily sat in the two chairs, staring at the roaring fire, working out a convincing story that he could tell the guys in the morning. He gave Lily a hug and started to go to bed, but he stopped. He looked at the sweater clutched in his hand, Sirius' sweater, smiled and pulled it back on.