DISCLAIMER: It all belongs to JKR, except my own ideas!
A/N: I'd like to say a special thanks to these people who have reviewed almost every single chapter and have stuck with this story; remuslives23, dristi, lovefan81, Draco Malfoy Equals Love, and rekahneko. Thank you so much for being faithful fans! A huge shout-out and thanks to my beta as always, Pickles and Twigs. I'm so glad there are people who appreciate my story and want even more!
Here's chapter seven for you! It's a bit shorter, but I like this chapter for some reason lol. I know my Sirius is a bit out of character, as he's not as surely and pissy as book- or movie-Sirius, but the personality I've created for him is kind of stuck and it'd be really hard to change him. Just think of it as my artistic license to represent Sirius the way I thought he should be.
Updates may get slower because, alas, I'm moving out of my parents house and I have to pack! Woot for college! Oh ya, I'm looking for staff for my C2, if any of my faithful readers are interested (or any reader at all lol), message me and I'll add/invite you to staff it! The link is in my profile so check it out!
Ch 7.
The Other Guests of Grimmauld Place
"Oh God...I think I'm dying," Sirius muttered as he opened his eyes slowly. He clutched his head in pain and groaned. He felt Remus stir beside him and felt a hand rubbing his back slowly and soothingly.
Remus was trying not to laugh. Sirius' first hangover since prison, and it was quite amusing. He rubbed his back gently and leaned over to place a kiss on Sirius bare shoulder. "It's just a hangover, love. You'll be fine," Remus said with a smirk. He didn't mention the hangover potion he had, but he figured Sirius would remember it and ask for it eventually.
Sirius snuggled closer to Remus, frowning and squeezing his eyes closed. There was a dull pounding in his head that just wouldn't go away. "Moony, make it stop," he whined, clutching onto his lover. He simply wanted the hammering in his head to go away, was that too much to ask?
Remus sighed and pulled out of Sirius' embrace. He stood up and walked over to a small duffel bag laying on a chair in the corner of the room. He unzipped the front pocket and pulled out a small vial of purple liquid. "Here, drink this. You'll feel better right away," Remus said as he crawled back into the bed and handed Sirius the potion.
Sirius took the vial of purple liquid without question and knocked it back quickly. He lay on the bed, his eyes still closed and his head still pounding, until suddenly everything stopped. He opened his eyes and found that the light didn't feel like it was stabbing him, and his nausea was replaced with hunger. "Thanks, Moony. I take it we never went down to dinner last night?" Sirius said as he sat up and leaned his back against the headboard.
Remus shook his head as he raised his arms and stretched. He smiled and yawned a little before answering. "No, we both fell asleep. We must have been really tired," Remus said as he scooted closer to Sirius and placed a small kiss on his neck.
Sirius smirked and tilted his head to give Remus better access to his neck. "Well, we did tire ourselves out thoroughly, remember?" Sirius whispered, biting his lip in ecstasy as Remus kissed and nibbled all the right places. Sirius let his hands roam around the werewolf's body, feeling every inch of flesh he could reach.
Remus chuckled and pulled away from Sirius' neck. He kissed Sirius firmly on the lips before crawling out of bed. "How could I forget, Padfoot? That was the most amazing shag I've had in fourteen years. Well actually, it was the only shag I've had in fourteen years," Remus said with a smile as he put on a fresh change of clothes.
Sirius stumbled in shock as he got up out of the bed. He quickly regained his balance and looked over at Remus with a loving smile. "Really, Moony? No one else?" Sirius asked quietly as he walked forward. He had wanted to ask Remus for the last couple of weeks whether or not he had been with anyone else, but was afraid to hear the answer. The spell that Remus had placed on his side of the bed in their old flat was a clue, but he still wasn't sure.
Remus shook his head and stepped closer to Sirius, wrapping his arms lightly around him. "No, Sirius. No one else. It's always only been you, and I just couldn't see myself with anyone else," Remus answered truthfully. He leaned in and kissed Sirius gently. He'd never been with anyone but Sirius; ever.
Sirius smiled and let out a content sigh as he kissed Remus back, wrapping his arms around the werewolf's neck. It meant more to him than he could ever say that Remus had stayed faithful to him, even though he probably didn't deserve it. "What if I would have stayed in Azkaban for the rest of our lives? Would you have found anyone else then?" Sirius asked quietly, resting his forehead against Remus' chest.
Remus sighed and shook his head slowly. "No, I don't think so. What would be the point? I'd never be able to give my heart to anyone else because you would still have it," Remus whispered, placing a kiss on Sirius' silky hair and smiling to himself. Merlin did he love the man in his arms.
Sirius looked up and stared into the golden-amber eyes of his lover. He smiled and kissed him again, feeling slightly awkward that he almost had to tippy-toe to reach Remus' lips. "I love you," he muttered against Remus' lips.
Remus leaned down a little so that Sirius didn't have to reach up so much and kissed him back. "I love you too, Padfoot," he said with a smile. "Now, I'm starving since your drunken arse kept me from dinner last night. Change your clothes and we'll go down to breakfast," Remus said as he walked over to the dresser and grabbed the brush. He quickly pulled it through his hair before going into the bathroom and brushing his teeth.
Sirius chuckled and went to his closet to pull out some clothes. He pulled on a shirt and a pair of slacks, and was slightly shocked to find that his pants actually fit him. "Wow, look Moony! Pants that fit!" he said excitedly as he walked into the bathroom to show Remus his discovery.
Remus rinsed his mouth and put away his toothbrush before turning to Sirius and smirking. He bit his lip for second, unsure if he should tell him or not. "Well...I sort of found a spell in that book Dumbledore gave me. It's supposed to adjust your clothing to fit you no matter what. So as you gain a bit of weight, your clothes will adjust to fit properly," Remus explained as he dried his hands with a towel.
Sirius stared at Remus for a few minutes before he smiled and laughed lightly. "What would I do without you, Remus? You just have an answer for everything," Sirius teased, walking over and giving Remus a quick kiss.
Remus laughed and shook his head. "Come on, Padfoot, I'm starving here," he said, heading out of the bathroom and towards the bedroom door. He turned and waited for Sirius to join him before walking out, hand in hand with his lover.
RSRSRSRS
Molly gave Remus and Sirius a curious look at breakfast, but said nothing of it as she served them some kippers and eggs. "So why didn't you two come down for dinner last night? I was starting to get a bit worried," Molly said as she sat the plates down in front of Remus and Sirius. The kitchen was empty besides the two men, Molly, and her husband.
Sirius looked over at Remus curiously, not quite sure what to say. "I came over a bit ill after those shots last night, so I went up to bed," Sirius said simply, eating his eggs with gusto. His mad mood about being in this house seemed to have improved a bit, but only because he had Remus with him.
Remus glanced at Sirius before smiling at Molly. "I had to help get this oaf to bed. You should have seen him stumbling up the stairs. I decided to watch over him. He has a tendency to retch in his sleep, and I didn't want him to choke to death," Remus said, trying to sound as unaffectionate as possible while talking about his lover throwing up.
Molly pursed her lips and stared daggers at Sirius, who seemed to deflate under her gaze. He sighed and looked questioningly at Remus, who nodded his head slowly. "Well, since you two are going to be living here with us, we might as well just get this out of the way. You'll find out eventually anyways," Sirius paused, looking over at Remus, who was studying his breakfast intently. "Remus and I are together," he said simply, watching Molly's expression for any kind of disgust. He was surprised when she smiled widely, however.
"Oh I knew it! I knew there was something more between you two. It's fairly obvious," Molly said with a quiet laugh as she sat down to eat breakfast with the rest of them.
Arthur looked up from the Prophet and shrugged lightly. "Could have fooled me. Good for you, though," Arthur said with a kind smile.
Remus sighed in relief as he looked up at Mr. and Mrs. Weasley. "Thank you. Can I ask that you keep this between yourselves, however? Especially don't tell your children, we're not quite ready to tell Harry yet and they'd waste no time in doing so," Remus said with a chuckle.
Molly laughed and nodded. "Of course, our lips are sealed. And if I may be so bold, you two make an adorable couple!" she exclaimed before returning her attention back to her breakfast.
Remus and Sirius both looked at each other and laughed. It felt good to actually let people in on their secret. At least they wouldn't have to hide it around Molly and Arthur. After breakfast, Sirius decided to show Remus the library, which was still being cleaned by the Weasley kids.
"Hey George, look who we have here," Fred Weasley said quietly, nodding at Remus and Sirius as they walked in and looked around at all the shelves. He noticed a few little glances between them, something odd he couldn't really place.
George looked up from the pile of books he was dusting off and saw the two men standing awfully close and laughing with each other. "They're quite friendly, aren't they?" George said with a smirk as he joined his twin on the other side of the table. He watched closely as they examined the spines of the books, lightly brushing up against each other.
Fred nodded and raised an eyebrow as Sirius removed a dust-bunny from Remus' hair in quite more than a friendly fashion. "Definitely more than friends, I say," Fred whispered, looking over his shoulder to make sure Ron and Ginny weren't listening in.
George snickered lightly as Sirius sneezed and was quickly given a handkerchief by Remus. "Oh most definitely, Fred," George said with a smile. Both the twins turned quickly back to their work as Sirius and Remus began to approach them.
"Hello Fred, George," Remus said with a smile and a nod of his head. "As I'm sure you're already aware, this is Sirius Black. Sirius, this is Fred," he pointed to the right twin surprisingly, "and this is George. The Weasley twins," he said with a smirk.
Sirius smirked and shook their hands as they offered them. "I hear you two took over for James and I as mischief makers at Hogwarts? Even used our map." Sirius winked at the two tall, red headed boys.
Fred laughed as he nodded lightly. "It's nice to finally meet Padfoot," he teased, though he really did find it fascinating that they were finally meeting one of the people that created that amazing map.
George winked as he shook Sirius' hand. "We owe you and Moony here quite a lot. That map saved our arses more times than we can count."
Sirius let out a bark like laugh, which made Ron jump in the corner and dropped a stack full of books. "Sorry, Ron. Didn't meant to scare you."
Ron scowled as he absentmindedly rubbed his leg where the jaw shaped scars were. He picked up the books and replaced them on a shelf. "You didn't scare me, just surprised me," he said defiantly.
There was a snort of laughter from the other side of the book shelf and a brilliantly red headed girl stepped into view, holding a large blue book in her hands. "Whatever Ron. You're just a chicken." She walked over to Sirius and held out her hand. "Ginny Weasley." She smiled.
Sirius' jaw dropped slightly as he examined the girl. He couldn't help but get a flashback of Lily Evans back in their fourth year of Hogwarts. Ginny looked a lot like her, except that her eyes were a soft golden-brown, whereas Lily's were bright emerald. "Nice to meet you Ginny," Sirius said as he shook her hand and looked over at Remus with a smirk.
Ginny and Ron returned to their work and the twins were sitting with their heads together, whispering about something. They turned to glance at Remus and Sirius and had the same exact mischievous grin gracing their identical features.
Remus laughed as he led the way back out of the library, shaking his head exasperatedly. "Those aren't even half of their children. Well, actually it is," Remus said, counting off on his fingers. He looked over at Sirius, who was still smirking. "I know, she's looks extraordinarily like Lily," Remus mused with a sigh.
Sirius nodded, letting out a quiet laugh. "Does she ever. With Harry looking exactly like James, and her like Lily...Ten to one, Harry and Ginny get married. Take it or leave it," Sirius teased, making a bet on his godson already.
Remus laughed and shook his head. "Nah, I don't think so. Something tells me Harry isn't into her...type." Remus smirked, looking over at Sirius with a raised eyebrow.
Sirius shook his head, opening his mouth the retort. "No! You think Harry is-?"
"Hi Sirius! Molly is looking for you, said something about a house elf and that crazy picture of your mum," Tonks said brightly as she bounded up the steps right in front of Remus and Sirius.
Sirius looked slightly annoyed but nodded. "Alright. I guess I better go see what that wretched creature is doing this time. You coming?" He looked back at Remus as he began to descend the stairs.
Remus was just about to say yes and follow him when Tonks stepped in front of him, still smiling widely. "Actually, I was wondering if I could speak with you, Rem. About our project?" Tonks said with a quick glance back at Sirius.
Remus frowned at the sound of his name being shortened. Only Sirius every called him 'Rem' and he didn't like the way Tonks had said it. "Uh, sure. I'll see you around, Padfoot," Remus said as he waved off Sirius who was scowling at the back of Tonks' head.
Tonks smiled even wider, her eyes sparkling. "Great! Do you want to take a walk with me? There's a little park not far away from here," Tonks asked quickly, staring at Remus with expectant eyes.
Remus felt thoroughly annoyed now. It was obvious whatever Tonks wanted to talk about, it would not be their project in the Order. Not being able to find any way out of it, Remus smiled politely and nodded. "Sure, I guess," he said, trying not to sound too reluctant.
Tonks brightened as she started to make her way down the steps. She tip-toed through the hallway of screaming portraits and tapped her wand on the door to open it, looking back to make sure Remus was right there behind her. As they gained the fresh air of outside, Tonks took a deep breath. "Ah, the outside world! I don't know how you could stand to live there, Rem, it's horrible," Tonks said with a slight look of disgust as they began walking together down the street. Tonks had her hand in the inside pocket of her coat on the handle of her wand, just in case. Constant vigilance!
Remus frowned again at the nickname, and even deeper as Tonks criticized Sirius' house. "Well it's not like I have much of a choice, and besides, I like staying there with Sirius," Remus said, a bit defensively. So it wasn't the grandest place in the world, but it was a sight nicer than living on the streets.
Tonks frowned slightly and looked over at Remus, trying to read his expression. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to offend you." she stayed quiet for a few minutes, waiting for a response that never came. "You've been a bit snappy with me lately, Rem. Is everything alright with us?" she asked with a curious little smile.
Remus stopped walking and let out an annoyed sigh. "Look, Nymphadora. There is no 'us', and my name is Remus. We're hardly even friends," Remus snapped, glaring slightly at the younger woman.
Tonks bit her lip and looked pointedly at the ground, feeling her heart shatter. "Right...I'm sorry to have bothered then," she said quietly before walking away, still not looking up. She didn't know why Remus didn't like her suddenly. They had been getting a long just fine before.
Remus felt instantly guilty for what he had said. He hadn't meant to hurt her feelings, he just wanted to get his point across. "Tonks, wait! I'm sorry!" he called after her, running forward. There was nothing for it though, as Tonks turned on her heel and disapparated, looking up at him long enough to show her pained expression. Remus growled in frustration as he turned back around and headed back to the house. Once inside, he headed straight for the kitchen, as it was nearing dinner time and he felt like having a drink.
"There you are! Where were you? I thought my cousin had kidnapped you," Sirius teased with a smirk. His smile faltered however when he say the angry look on Remus face as he plopped down into the chair beside Sirius. "What's wrong, Moony?" he asked quietly.
Remus scratched the back of his neck to give him time to think before looking over at Sirius, frowning. "I told her off. I feel horrible. She just wouldn't stop calling me 'Rem'. Only you call me that," Remus said quietly back as Molly shuffled around with a few pots and pans.
Sirius nodded his head bit his lip in thought. "She'll get over it. She's a Black, her skin's thicker than cold custard," Sirius teased, trying to lighten the mood and get a smile out of Remus.
Remus sighed deeply and stood up, walking over to Molly who was standing at the stove. "Do you need any help with dinner, Molly? I'd be happy to lend a hand," Remus said with a polite smile. He needed something to take his mind off of everything just for a little while.
Molly looked slightly surprised for a few seconds, but then smiled. "Well thank you, Remus! Um, could you wash and chop those potatoes over there for me?" Molly asked as she tapped the pot of water to start it boiling.
Remus nodded as he moved over to the sink full of potatoes and began to wash them under the faucet. He did everything by hand, instead of using his wand. It would have been much easier with magic, but Remus didn't want it to be easy.
Sirius frowned as he watched Remus clean and chop up potatoes, acting as if each potato had done him a personal wrong and chopping it with indecent force. Sirius was just about to walk over and take the knife from Remus out of fear for his fingers when the kitchen door opened and in paraded a number of people; Dumbledore, Fred and George, Ron, Ginny, and a girl with bushy brown hair Sirius knew to be Hermione Granger.
"Good evening Molly! I come bearing your children plus one. Miss Granger will be staying in Ginny's room with her. Is that quite all right with every one?" Dumbledore asked, looking around at Ginny, Hermione, and Molly.
Molly beamed as she walked over and hugged Hermione briefly. "Hello Hermione! Oh that should be just fine, Albus. Thank you. Will you stay for supper? It's almost ready," Molly asked with a wide smile and a nod towards the stove.
Hermione smiled and hugged Mrs. Weasley back, glancing quickly over at Sirius. "Hello Mrs. Weasley," she said quietly.
Dumbledore beamed and patted Molly lightly on the shoulder. "I'd love to Molly, thank you, but I'm afraid I have to run off once more. A rain check, perhaps?" he said politely as he checked his strange, many-handed pocket watch.
Molly nodded and smiled at the old man. "Of course, Albus. Any time! I'll see you at the meeting then," Molly said as she waved to Dumbledore as he left the kitchen. "I want you lot to all go wash your hands before supper. I know you didn't do it after handling those books, Ronald. Go," she said, pointing all of the children out of the kitchen and turning back to the stove.
Remus sat down the knife as he finished chopping the potatoes and carried the bowl over to Molly. "Here you are Molly. I hope I cut them small enough," Remus said as he handed the bowl off.
Molly nodded as she took the bowl and poured it slowly into the pot of boiling stew. "Oh yes, they're cut perfectly Remus. Thank you. That's all I needed really. You just sit and relax." Molly stirred the stew quickly as she waved her wand and summoned a loaf of bread from the cabinet behind her.
Remus went and sat back down beside Sirius, feeling a bit better after taking his anger out on the potatoes. He smiled at Sirius and sighed. "Sorry...I had to do something to get it out of my system," he said quietly to his lover.
Sirius laughed and shook his head. Remus was so adorable when he was angry. "Those poor potatoes sure felt your wrath, Moony. Oh yeah, apparently Kreacher has been taking all sorts of mad orders from my mother's portrait. Scared the day lights out of Molly when she found Kreacher standing over her bed with a pair of scissors in his hand. Bloody elf," Sirius snorted in an annoyed fashion as he shook his head.
Remus frowned and raised an eyebrow at Sirius. "That's not very safe. He shouldn't be allowed to take orders from a portrait," Remus said, feeling quite sure that house elves could only take orders from living people.
Sirius nodded. "He's gone round the twist that one. I told him he's not to listen to my mother's portrait or try to harm anyone in this house in any way. Hopefully that'll stop the bloody psycho from doing anything disastrous." Sirius scowled.
The door opened and all of the Weasley children, plus Hermione, entered and took the rest of the empty seats around the table. "Hello Professor, Mr. Black," Hermione said, smiling politely at Remus and Sirius.
Sirius snickered at the word 'Professor'. "Oh please. Call me Sirius, Hermione," Sirius said with a soft laugh and a smile. He hated being called 'Mr. Black'. He was trying very hard to forget he was a Black, thank you very much.
Remus smiled and shook his head at Hermione. "You needn't call me Professor, Hermione. Remus is just fine. How have you been?" Remus asked, quite fond of the intelligent girl. She was his most gifted student, besides Harry, when he had taught at Hogwarts the year before.
Hermione blushed lightly and nodded. "I've been well. I took a trip to France recently. You wouldn't believe the amazing things I saw! Did you know that the witch hunt of 1504..." and soon after that, Remus and Hermione were engrossed in a conversation about witch hunts and History of Magic, which bore Sirius to death.
"Merlin, they're both like that," Ron said as he rolled his eyes and took a sip of his tea that his mother had just brought over for everyone.
Sirius chuckled and studied Ron for a few seconds. "They're too smart for their own good. They can't help but ooze knowledge when they find another highly intelligent being to converse with," Sirius teased.
Ron spluttered and spit some of his tea out as he laughed. He quickly wiped up the mess before his mother saw and smiled at Sirius. Maybe the man wasn't so bad after all. "You had to deal with one of them in school too, eh? I bet Lupin let you copy though," Ron said with a short laugh.
Sirius let out a bark like laugh and took a sip of his own tea. "Oh yes, I've been through 'One Thousand Reasons Why Copying Is Wrong', then turned around and copied his work anyways. He never minded though," Sirius joked, smiling affectionately at the werewolf, who was still chatting merrily with Hermione.
Ron howled with laughter as he spit tea out all over the place, getting a disapproving look from his mother, who waved her wand to clear the mess. "Now really, Ronald! Compose yourself with a little more decency than a troll, please?" Molly snapped, turning back to the stew.
Ron and Sirius exchanged an amused glance as everyone turned to look at the commotion happening at their end of the table. Maybe living in a house full of people wouldn't be so bad after all, Sirius thought. At least he'd never be alone.
A/N: I hope you enjoyed this chapter! I know it's a bit...out there...But It's still a chapter, right? This may be the last update for a couple of days, so enjoy it and review! there's still plenty of story to read, so don't abandon me! Wish me luck with my packing! XD Love y'all! (I say 'y'all' too much. I sound like a hick XD Which I'm totally not.)
