"You kissed her?" Sirius asked, with a look of both disbelief and uncertainty.

James nodded, having said no more than the very same three words since he had returned twenty minutes ago.

"You can't have done," Remus pointed out with a cheeky grin, "You've got no bruises on your face."

Sirius laughed in agreement, risking an effect innate glance at Remus before he turned his attention back to James, who still didn't appear to have moved a muscle.

"Remus..." Sirius began slowly, "How likely is it that Lily could have sucked out his-"

Remus shot a look of disgust at Sirius, before he had chance to finish.

"-soul?"

A look of relief flashed over Remus' face, before he rolled his eyes and chuckled, "She might be intelligent-"

"I was thinking more... 'inhuman', but carry on," Sirius interrupted.

Since Remus didn't know whether to chuckle or shake his head, he did both it did indeed carry on, "But I don't think she's that UNIQUE."

He finished pointedly, before another voice interrupted, "She's incredible."

Of course, such words could only belong to one individual.

"James!" Remus and Sirius said together, one sounding surprised whilst the other far more notably relieved.

After a second or two, James turned to look at Remus, still maintaining his rather amazed look.

"It was thanks to you, Remus..." he began slowly, "That she realised I wasn't that bad."

"Hey, I'm a matchmaker and I didn't even realise it," Remus murmured to himself, a thoughtful expression on his face.

"I wouldn't go that far," James answered him, gradually sounding more and more like himself. After receiving a dirty look from Remus, he merely grinned.

Yes, it seemed James was back to himself again. Despite the irony that as soon as Remus thought this, he heard another whisper of 'she kissed me'.

"How's our little matchmaker?" Sirius cooed, peering from behind a tall stand of books a couple of metres away from where Remus half sat, and half lay with a book opened against his chest.

"Are you ever going to stop calling me that?" Remus asked, peering beneath the book with a tired look.

"It's the first time I've said it!" Sirius raised his voice, with a vaguely innocent look on his face.

"First thousand, maybe," Remus rolled his eyes, setting his book down upon his lap in order to sit up properly.

Sirius made a noise, but made his way down the aisle to sit on the floor near Remus.

"I'm going to be studying," Remus pointed out after a moment, almost a warning.

Sirius shrugged, genuinely not looking as though that was something off his radar. Hell, he didn't even look disgusted.

Only moderately weirded out, Remus resumed his reading and opened his book. He took a minute or so to scan the first few lines of the page to check whether he had already read it, or not, and eventually became satisfied he had found the right page. He hadn't thought to bring a bookmark, since he didn't figure he'd be interrupted but regardless, it wasn't unpleasant.

They were there for something close to two hours, with little conversation between them both. What was even more so unusual in itself was the fact that Sirius didn't appear intent on ensuring Remus did as little reading as possible, if anything he was actually on his 'best behaviour'.

Every so often, however, Remus would sigh and shuffle slightly; he'd push a hand back through his hair, or fiddle with the sleeves on his borrowed jacket (borrowed for so long, mind, that both Remus and Sirius were only distantly aware that it did belong to Sirius. Or, at least, it had done at one point.)

At first, Sirius didn't really grasp the issue, he merely figured the stress of exams - several months away, mind - were to blame. But then he noticed the odd glance Remus threw to the window a few hundred yards back; the sun shone on fiercely through the glass, though they were too far away to feel its delicate rays.

Why hadn't he realised sooner? The full moon was on its way.

"It'll be fine," Sirius whispered into the silence which had stretched for so long.

"What?" Remus snapped, completely absorbed in his coming trauma. He shook his head apologetically, "Sorry, I didn't mean to snap."

Sirius also shook his head, but his was dismissive, "It's fine." He said, before shuffling himself along the relatively shiny surface of wood on the floor beneath them to sit closer to Remus.

Sirius' fingers twitched, and he squeezed them into a fist. They were itching to move, and he knew just where but he wasn't entirely sure...

Regardless, he threw caution to the wind and put his arm around his friend. Little did he know the comforting gesture was ever so welcome. Needed, in fact. It spread a warmth through Remus that hadn't existed before.

"I'll look after you," Sirius said so softly and quietly that Remus really wasn't sure if he'd heard it.

They stayed for some time, until Remus felt himself growing tired and he rested his head against Sirius' shoulder. To anyone else, they'd have looked uncomfortable judging by the way their legs each twisted or lay, with a Remus' arms tucked together across his chest. To them, however, things couldn't have been better.

They remained that way for an even greater stretch of time; Remus' book forgotten, and Sirius too absorbed in simply watching his friend's pain ease as much as it could do within his presence. Whatever happened between them, he knew he'd forever be the one to assume this role; he'd never seen Remus relax as much with any of the others. The fact caused a rather sweet smile to brighten his face as he admired the odd flecks of blonde within Remus' hair as the sun began to set and its beams only just reached them. Though Remus would have argued they were grey, Sirius wouldn't have cared so much; they belonged to Remus, and therefore they were beautiful.

Neither of them were aware of the time passing by, until the librarian began her routine scouring for library stragglers. There wasn't a sign of fatigue in the boys' faces as she approached them, simply comfort. So much so that she felt almost guilty for asking them to head back to their common room.

They were happy to oblige, though Sirius' arm stayed around Remus; telling him he had a friend, if nothing more. Again they said nothing as they made their way back, until a flicker of awareness flitted through Remus' mind.

"Hold on...why are you in the library?" Remus asked softly, only just consciously having realised.

Sirius' answer was a light shrug, though he was sure he knew the answer. He could feel it.

Next time: With the full moon coming, how will things have changed for our favourite foursome?

It wasn't exactly a next-day delivery, but it was better than a year, surely! The end is coming... *evil laugh*

- The Writer