When Remus woke up, he took a few minutes to realize where he was. Another few went to him figuring out why the 'bed' was moving in time to his breaths.
His eyes shot open, to see Sirius' face staring back at him, grinning. He tried to sit up, only to find his way as thoroughly blocked as it had been the night before, by Sirius' arm around his waist.
"Calm down Moony, the others already went to breakfast." He squirmed again, but gave up, laying down. He didn't really want to move, anyway.
"So, care to explain what's going on, Pads?" Sirius smiled again and shook his head.
"Nope! It's a surprise! Now, as comfortable as I am, we need to get a move-on before the others get back, so that we can go to Hogsmeade." Remus found himself freed, and stood up.
"We're going to Hogsmeade?" Sirius hopped up after him, cracking his back and looking none the worse for wear after collapsing in a drunken heap and having Remus sleep on him all night.
"Of course! It's all official and everything! Weren't you listening to Dumbledore last night?" Remus led the way to the dorm room, bemused.
"No, I guess not. And what, exactly, are we going to do in Hogsmeade?" Sirius slipped inside the room, diving into his open trunk for fresh clothes. Remus followed.
"There is a traveling theatre troupe in town today, doing something or other by a muggle called Dickens. It sounded nice, so I got tickets." Remus looked up in surprise.
"There's a play? And they're doing Dickens?" His eyes grew wide as Sirius held up two pieces of parchment, 'A Christmas Tale' clearly legible even from the other side of the room. Not that it was across the room for very long, as Remus tackled Sirius in a hug not two seconds later.
"I love that book! Oh, thank you!" Sirius, unseen by Remus (who had his face buried in his chest, still muttering praises), grinned widely, before commenting,
"We should hurry downstairs, before breakfast is gone." Remus pulled away, before quickly frowning.
"What? Is there something wrong?" Sirius peered closely at him. He wasn't sick, was he?
"Nothing's wrong… I' m just worried that what I got you won't measure up. Oh! We still have the other's gifts to open!" HE shifted, seeing them at the foots of their beds, but Sirius held him back.
"They'll be there later, and we really need to eat. And as for whatever you got me, I'm sure I'll love it. You know me so well, I always do. Now come on, let's hurry to eat."
They barely made it downstairs in time to eat, but the house elves generously made some more food when they realized that they were still eating at the one large table in the Hall. It was empty otherwise; apparently, there was some kind of snowball fight that had drawn out the rest of the students that weren't heading out to Hogsmeade early.
"When is this play, anyway?" Remus asked, as they went back to the Tower for cloaks and gloves. Sirius shrugged.
"Oh, around six, I think. We have plenty of time; I thought we'd wander around a bit, have a bite to eat, then go to the play, before coming back for a Christmas feast." Something about the way he said it made Remus pause, even as they climbed through the portrait hole. He didn't say anything, however. Whatever was going on (and it was beginning to feel like a date, honestly), he would let it run its course.
"Well, we might as well finish off those other gifts while we're here, and then head out." He said instead, as they reached their dorm once again. Sirius thought for a moment, then nodded.
"Yeah. James would kick up a fit if we didn't, anyway. Guy's so touchy…" Remus snorted a laugh, before turning to the small pile at his bed.
A few minutes later…
"So… did James get you Fire Whiskey, too?" Sirius asked, holding up the bottle in his hands. Remus shook his head, holding his own package.
"Nope. I got the glasses. I think he's hoping to find us both passed out after break, so he can show Evans how mature he is, taking care of his drunk friends." Sirius grinned, turning back to the other parcels in it.
"If we're drunks, he's the enabler. I'm not touching that stuff until we pass a few charms over it to be sure he didn't poison it. Or we could just test it on him later…" He paused, pursuing the thought, before turning back to unwrapping.
Remus ended up with a new cloak, several bars of chocolate, and a book on shielding charms he'd wanted to look into for the Shack.
Sirius was holding a bag of pranking supplies and a letter from his uncle. He was staring at the latter in shock.
"What is it?" Remus bent closer, to try and see the words. Sirius blinked, before folding up the letter.
"He's going to will everything he has to me, cause I was disinherited. Apparently, this includes a flat in London." Remus whistled.
"Convenient. That's one less thing to worry about after graduation next year." Sirius nodded, placing the letter back in it's envelope and setting it and the bag aside.
"Now, for yours. I'll bet it's just grand." He grinned at him, before opening the box. It contained a set of keys, and another small item, wrapped in cloth. It had a small note attached. Remus watched Sirius' face in silence, knowing what the letter said already.
Sirius-
As much as the very idea of you going faster than a brisk walk fills me with dread, I'm afraid I couldn't stop myself from getting this. It's a little beat up, but my neighbor was selling it rather cheap and I was assured by a mechanic nearby that it will run, with a bit of tuning.
Tap it twice with your wand and say 'Padfoot' for it to grow to full size. Preferably outside the dorm.
Happy Christmas,
Remus
Sirius looked up at him in confusion, still holding the letter and package. The keys fell into his lap, jangling quietly. Remus simply gestured at the cloth, hoping that this would go well.
Sirius opened the thing carefully, setting the cloth aside as he did so, revealing…
"A bike. You got me a motorcycle?" It sat perfectly in his palm, shining in the light from the open window. Remus grinned at his friend's surprise, nodding.
"Like the note says, it'll take a bit of fixing up, but it's in good condition, and-" The rest was cut off as he was tackled to the floor to a yell of happiness. In the back of Remus' head, a voice noted 'déjà vu.'
"It's perfect, it's amazing, you're amazing, why would you be worried, ohdearMerlin…" Remus laughed, thinking of his empty pockets from all summer, the calluses on his hands from the extra jobs, and decided that it had definitely been worth it.
Sirius pulled away, kissing him on the cheek before standing up entirely, holding out a hand for Remus to do the same.
"Er… shall we go?" He felt a bit flustered, really. He thought back to what James had been telling him, then to their plans of the day, and conceded that he was probably right. He hoped anyway, or else Sirius was leading him on for an unexplainably cruel reason.
~{}~
Well, so far so good. Sirius thought to himself, as they made their way to the large field where a stage had been set up inside a temporary building that, he was told, could collapse into a box the size of his fist, which was carried by the leader of the troupe when they traveled to the next town.
Remus was bouncing on the balls of his feet, making the bag of things they'd bought as they walked around the small village clink around against his leg. One of the troupe members led them to their seats, which were, apparently, placed in a small balcony above and to the left of the stage. Remus turned to look at him in shock.
"Balcony seating? How much was this?" Sirius shrugged, noting that he'd done that quite a bit lately.
"I just asked for seats with a really good view, and implied I was willing to spend a lot for it. As to how much that was…" He grinned, while Remus rolled his eyes, already knowing he wouldn't get answer.
"I'll tell you when you tell me how much the bike cost you." Remus smiled back, zipping his mouth shut and tossing the key.
"Fine. Well, sit down, we apparently have some of the best seats in the house."
~{}~
The play, Remus decided, had been one of the best renditions of 'A Christmas Tale' he'd seen. Ever.
And not just because Sirius was leaning into him, arm eventually ending up around his shoulders as he made a few comments or asked for clarification on something. No, not at all.
But it was certainly a large part of it.
Regardless. It was late by the time they got out of the play, later still when they finally reached Hogwarts once again. Remus admitted to Sirius, after a particularly loud grumble from his middle, that he'd like that Christmas feast now.
Sirius nodded, and began leading him, not to the Great Hall, but towards one of the towers, one rarely used. Remus peppered him with questions, before falling silent as the answers fell from vague to ridiculous.
They reached an ornate doorway, near the top of the tower. Sirius gestured for Remus to enter first. Looking around in confusion, he opened the door and walked inside. And gasped.
The room was a large greenhouse, filled with small flowers that sparkled and glowed in the moonlight let in by the dozens of skylights and the fairy lights that floated around the edges of the room.
"It's a bit girly looking, but I swear it was like this when I found it!" Sirius joked as he walked forward, towards a small table in the center of the room that already had food laid out.
"How did you find it? This is amazing!" He looked closer at the flowers, not recognizing them at all.
"According to the house elves, this was the room that some headmaster, Reginald something or other, worked on breeding talking flowers like in a dream he had." Remus looked again at the flowers, which seemed to be looking back but certainly didn't talk.
"That sounds like Alice in Wonderland." Sirius nodded.
"Aye, that's what I thought. He apparently left them here when he retired, with express instructions to the door as to who would be allowed inside." Remus sat down at the table, looking at the food that was set out, mouth watering.
"Who would be allowed in?" Sirius waved a hand.
"I'll tell you later. Champagne?" He was holding a bottle and glass. Remus nodded absently chuckling under his breath.
"What was that?" Sirius held out the glass, which Remus took and sipped from carefully, smiling when the bubbles hit his nose.
"Just thinking about that bottle of Fire Whiskey in the dorm. You didn't spike this, did you?" Sirius laughed, shaking his head. They began their meal in silence, before Remus spoke.
"This has been an excellent day. But I wonder, will you ever tell me the point?" Sirius looked up, setting down his fork to rest his head on his hand.
"Perhaps. What do you think it was?" His eyes were serious, despite the joking tone of his voice. Remus pursed his lips, remembering his earlier ideas, before deciding to throw caution to the winds.
"If I had to guess, I would say I was being courted." He paused, before finishing with, "And rather successfully, at that." Sirius stared, his face lighting up.
"Well, Mr. Padfoot? Was I close, or should I guess again?"
"You were entirely correct, Mr. Moony. Would you like a prize?" Sirius leered a bit, but his eyes were shining, as they did when a prank was perfectly executed and the Hall burst into cheers, or when he'd opened that Christmas gift earlier in the day. So Remus simply leaned forward and kissed him, as carefully as he'd done the other day.
The he pulled away and turned back to his food.
The rest of the meal passed this way; flirting, kissing, and eating, until there was nothing left on the table and the plates were magically cleared away. The moon was far across the sky now, and it felt extremely late.
"We should thank them," Remus murmured as they finally stood to leave the room. He looked back as the table vanished into the floor, leaving a faerie ring of glowing stones to mark its place.
"I asked. They said that to make something like this was their gift, cause it meant this room could be used again. House elves like to make people happy, so I suppose that makes sense. I'm pretty sure there are a few working that were around when this place was built." Sirius held the door as they walked out, shutting it behind them. It melted into the wall.
"So, what was the one way the door would let us in? It has to be really important." Sirius led the way out of the tower, and it was only then that Remus realized just how late it was.
"Well…" He hesitated, which made Remus stop, looking at him in worry.
"What? Don't tell me you did something stupid, Sirius." Magical rooms could be very dangerous, as Sirius' family house could easily attest. He wouldn't really put them in danger, would he?
"No! No, it will only let in two… lovers, who are going to have a romantic but innocent night in the garden. Really, almost word-for-word here!" He grinned, then added, "That's part of the reason for all the lights and stuff. I wasn't sure how much I needed for it to count as 'romantic,' so I left everything that way." They began walking again, with Remus actually looking out for Filch or other teachers in their path.
"So, we won't be having many dinners by moonlight in the future, then?" Sirius turned to look at him.
"Probably not, unless you want to. You're my friend, and hopefully lover soon, but you're not a girl. I'm not going to treat you like one," he had turned entirely, walking backwards, to watch his reaction. Which was to grin ear-to-ear.
"Good. I've seen how you treat your dates. I'm not made of spun sugar," he paused, before holding up a finger in a 'Eureka!' pose.
"Instead, we can have pranking dates!" Sirius laughed, before turning around and walking next to him, linking arms.
"Yes! And the rest of the school will fear our every excursion, lest they fall victim to our combined brilliance! Truly, a better partnership could never have been imagined!" Remus chuckled, gesturing with his free arm dramatically.
"They will be legendary! Students for eons to come will speak our very names with reverence and fear, and pray that we may visit to rid them of their vast boredom from a lack of destruction and laughter!"
"Even our detentions will be the work of genius!" A new voice entered the conversation, from around the corner.
"Well, that's good boys, as you'll be heading their soon, and for a long time." Filch walked around, holding his old lamp, with Mrs. Norris curling around his feet. Sirius groaned quietly, muttering, "of all the days…"
Remus paused, mind whirring through pages of half-remembered books with ease, thanking his photographic memory.
"Lupin, Black, I shouldn't be surprised to find the pair of you wandering the halls after hours, and I will not be lenient in your punishment. Three weeks detention, I think, starting tonight, and another couple when I find out what mischief you were up to this late." He sneered at them, evidentially pleased with himself. Somewhere, a clock began to chime.
"Actually, Mr. Filch, I don't believe we're breaking curfew at all." Both Sirius and Filch turned to stare at him.
"According to the rules, students must be in their Common Rooms by ten o'clock on breaks. They do not, however, specify how early they can be out of them for break mornings. As it is," he listened to the chiming of the clock, "three in the morning, and we left our dorms, it appears we are simply very early risers. I would like to take this moment to clarify that we were not up to any mischief, either." Filch was staring at him, before rummaging in his pockets for what appeared to be a grubby copy of the Hogwarts rules.
He conceded their point after a few moments. Remus grinned.
"I will find what you've been up to! And I will have the Headmaster fix that rule today! You won't get away with this again!" HE moved on quickly, cat mewling at his legs and hissing at them as she passed. They waited for a moment, until all was silent again, before Sirius laughed out loud.
"I can't believe you talked us out of a detention with Filch, of all people! I didn't even think it was possible!" Remus grinned, tugging him a moment to get him moving again.
"I can talk anyone into or out of anything. But I will only use my powers for good, so don't come crying to me when you get another detention." Sirius pouted, looking at him with the biggest puppy-dog eyes he could muster. Considering he could call up real puppy eyes at will, this was saying something.
Remus was unmoved.
"Not happening. Now come on. As excellent as this all has been, I really need some sleep if you're hoping for me to be anything close to fully functioning tomorrow." Sirius stopped the eyes, pouting again.
"Today, you mean. As you pointed out, it is after three in the morning." Remus shook his head.
"Of course, how foolish of me. I'm still going to bed, with or without you." He walked faster, to prove his point. Sirius caught up easily.
"Is that a threat, or an invitation?" He was leering again, Remus would bet a lot that he was leering again. He glanced at him.
He would have won that bet.
"It can be both, if I don't get to the Tower soon."
"I'll carry you there, if you want." Remus glanced over at him, raising a brow.
"Exactly what kind of bed-sharing are you expecting to happen here?" Sirius, thankfully, managed not to turn it into a joke, despite his nature. Remus was glad; he wanted this day to have a happy ending.
"You said you're tired; I'd be stupid to expect anything more than sleeping. Besides, that's a third date kind of thing." Well, almost without a joke. He got his answer out first, at least.
"Good. For that, you might not have to wait until the third. But now, we're going to bed." Without either of them noticing, they'd reached the Portrait hole, with the Fat Lady regarding them in annoyance.
"Have fun, staying out so late?" Sirius grinned.
"We did. And it's early, not late! Mistletoe." She reluctantly swung open. Remus called Merry Christmas to her as they passed through, which she half-heartedly returned as they closed the door behind them.
A few moments later had them both in their pajamas, curling up together on Remus' bed (it was cleaner, and softer, according to Sirius.).
"So, did you enjoy your gift?" Sirius asked sleepily, his nose to Remus' collar bone.
"It was quite clearly my best Christmas gift ever. You'll have a fun time topping it next year." Sirius groaned, laughed, then fell silent. Remus was out not long after.