Since I've been getting the same questions repeated multiple times over the past couple months I am going to do a very quick FAQ and hope that helps :)
1. Remus is Gay. Not Bi. This will be the last time I say this in an A/N
2. Marlene, Dorcas, and Frank are in the story, they will become prominent characters! They will be coming in later. They are in a different year from the Marauders because I feel it's odd to have everyone from the Order be the exact same age.
3. Remus's scars are actually not book canon! They are movie canon only. So he does not have them in Shifting Lines, other than his bite mark.
4. I'm sorry but Kingsley is not a Gryffindor in canon. It never once said his house. I like him as a Ravenclaw so he is a Ravenclaw.
5. And finally I update every Tuesday and Friday currently! Sometimes I'll get a bonus chapter out on Sundays depending on how I'm feeling.
Thank you so much everyone for all your support, I appreciate it so much. I am slowly catching up on comments I promise. And PLEASE feel free to keep asking questions, I honestly don't mind them. I just got so many of the same ones recently I wanted to do a quick rundown. Thank you!
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
It was way more of a reward than any of them could imagine. By the time Defense Against the Dark Arts let out, half the school was talking about what happened. Of course, most of what was said was exaggerated rumors but it was very clear that the Hufflepuffs were livid. Several Hufflepuffs even glowered at the Marauders as they walked through the school, clearly blaming them.
"We have such a lovely reputation!" James laughed after passing a group of fifth year Hufflepuffs, all of whom gave them dirty looks. "What on earth did we do to be so popular?"
Not all of the badgers were mad. There were quite a few who found it entertaining, as the third years who had been attacked were apparently bullies. Remus wanted to find Bones but didn't see him until supper. By then the rumors had gotten so out of hand that one would have thought the Hufflepuff dorms had been blown clear out of the castle! It was very hard for the Marauders not to laugh.
Bones was waiting a little ways down the corridor near the Great Hall, and darted out as soon as he saw them. He grabbed Remus, yanking him down a side corridor with the others following closely. Remus's heart began pounding as he worried Bones didn't like the prank.
"That was absolutely incredible!" Bones wheezed, doubling over. "Bloody HELL! You shoulda SEEN how FURIOUS they were! After lunch when they came back, oh man—all of a sudden—"
"Screams," said another voice, and all five boys jumped, but it was only Rivers. He had followed them, eyes shining. "Brilliant, completely brilliant."
"So many screams and shrieks and explosions and—I swear I heard that one fast-paced song!" Bones added.
"F—Flight of the—the B-Bumblebee," Remus said.
Bones snorted, clapping his hands. "Yes."
"The stench," Rivers snickered.
"Oh the STENCH! What in Merlin's name did you DO?!" Bones demanded. "I could smell them clear down the hall! They spent forever in the showers trying to get cleaned up. They still stink a bit though!"
"I take it the arsehole party was a big success, then?" James asked.
"Biggest success ever! Apparently there is glitter stuck everywhere?" Bones looked at each of them, and James nodded. "Yes, haha! You guys are terrific. I don't even know how you came up with something like that. Ooh, that was—that was perfect."
"Thank you," said Rivers. "I know it's not going to change anything. I mean, regarding me. But it's nice to know they got something done to them. Something super awful."
"Do they suspect anyone?" Sirius asked.
Bones shrugged. "Some of the others are blaming you, but I mean… if anything like that happens in the school it's pretty much time to blame your group." That, of course, made James and Sirius puff up with pride. "I wouldn't worry about it. Sprout says it's very unlikely anyone outside Hufflepuff got in—"
"Most secure common room in the castle," added Rivers, with an amused smile.
Bones waved his hand. "Pfff, yeah as if half the older students don't sneak their boyfriends and girlfriends in? Please, most secure dorm my foot. But yeah," Bones turned his attention back to the Marauders, "Sprout thinks it was another Hufflepuff. Course, they are bullies, everyone knows they're bullies, so if that happened to anyone it isn't too shocking."
"How much do we owe you?" Rivers asked, cutting Bones off. "Before we forget."
"Ooh, er… I—I don't remember," James said.
"We kept the receipts but I'm not sure where we put them," Sirius added.
"Eh, two galleons?" James asked.
Bones seemed surprised. "Two? It had to be more than that… er, not that I'm complaining if it was two…"
"It wasn't really," said James, rubbing his chin. "I am sure we got everything for under two galleons. It's probably less, we can let you know tomorrow—"
Bones dug some galleons out of his satchel, handing them over. "Nah, keep it all. S'worth it, it really is."
James and Bones shook hands, and the six parted ways. When the Marauders stepped into the Great Hall there was quite a bit of a buzz from the Hufflepuff tables, and many other students were giving them curious looks. McGonagall gave them a look too, though remained seated so Remus figured she didn't truly blame them.
Ten minutes or so into supper, three Hufflepuff boys came in. Remus knew immediately it was their victims by the way they were walking. Even if he hadn't, the fact a group of Slytherins began humming Flight of the Bumblebee very loudly as they passed would've ticked him off.
Sprout and Slughorn had to rush down to intervene in the ensuing fight between the Hufflepuffs and Slytherins. The biggest third year tackled one of the Slytherins who had been humming, and soon both groups were in a rowdy fight while other Slytherins jumped out of the way.
Remus had a hand over his mouth to contain the laughter, while the other three weren't even bothering. Peter looked ready to fall completely off his seat from laughing so hard.
"Twenty points from Hufflepuff," Sprout said when she finished getting her students away from the Slytherins.
"Ten from Slytherin," added Slughorn.
"They fought back!" protested one of the Hufflepuffs.
Sprout puffed up, somehow looking bigger than any of the students. "And you were the ones to instigate it! Don't tempt me into making it more. Go sit down."
When the third years took their seats, a couple nearby Hufflepuffs pinched their noses and waved their hands in front of their faces. The third years looked beyond angry, while down the table Bones and Rivers both looked beyond happy.
The Marauders exchanged low fives under the table.
After they were done eating and headed out the door, they were stopped by Regulus. He was waiting at the top of the stairs, his expression hardening when they emerged.
"Sirius," he said, sounding anxious. "A moment?"
"Uh, all right, what's going on?" Sirius asked.
Regulus's eyes flickered towards the others then back to Sirius. Remus expected Regulus to take Sirius away to talk privately, but instead he gave a sigh. "Did you… do it?"
"Do what?"
"The… the Hufflepuffs." Regulus shifted from foot to foot, and Remus realized that yes Regulus absolutely sounded different when talking around Sirius than when Sirius wasn't around. Without Sirius, he sounded fine. But with Sirius he sounded so much more anxious and worried, as if he might say something wrong around his brother. "They're the ones that… you know…"
Sirius raked his fingers through his hair. "The ones who were hurting you?"
The muscle in Regulus's cheek twitched a little. "Yes," he said slowly. "You punched one of them. Now they have been…"
"Pranked?" offered James.
Regulus took a step back. "Yes. That was you, then?"
Sirius and James exchanged looks. "Do you think we could get into the Hufflepuff common room?" Sirius asked, quite smoothly.
Regulus rolled his eyes, making a little huffy sound. "Sirius, you could probably break into a Gringotts vault. I'm not stupid." There was a bit of annoyance creeping into his voice.
Sirius looked a little awed, hand going to his chest as a smile spread across his face. "You really think that?"
"It wasn't supposed to be a compliment!" he hissed out.
"Sounded like a compliment to me," James muttered so quietly under his breath Remus doubted anyone else heard, except Peter gave a snort and covered his mouth, turning away.
Regulus frowned, straightening his shoulders. "I suppose that's the answer I'm looking for."
Sirius gave him a look. "Does it matter? Is it important?"
"I'm only curious! It—it doesn't matter, really. I…" Regulus took another step back, clearly wanting to leave. "I just wanted to know if it was revenge."
"Oh." Sirius tilted his head. "Hmm. Well. They are bullies so I guess whoever did do it was probably out for revenge."
Regulus narrowed his eyes. "Right. Yes. I'd best get supper. I'll—I'll see you later." He gave Remus a look, hesitating for a second before striding off.
Sirius watched him go, arms folded.
/\/\/\/\/\
Remus was expecting Occlumency to go normally until two minutes after he stepped into the room, when Fawley asked if he enjoyed the book. Remus stared blankly at her for several seconds before gasping, covering his face.
"YOUR PRESENT!" he cried out, sinking onto the couch. "I knew I w-was forgetting something! Oh, Miss Fawley, I—I'm so sorry! The weekend—I—Arthur—I'm sorry!"
"It's all right. Remus, calm down!" She grabbed his shoulder. "Please calm down, it's fine! I'm not upset in the least. Did something happen to Arthur?"
He sniffled, wiping his nose off on his sleeve as he explained everything—including the fact Sirius had given him the money for the vet. Even though his birthday had otherwise gone really well, he figured the stress over Arthur had made him forget the present. Fawley rubbed his shoulder, promising it was fine. He still felt guilty though. How could he have forgotten?
One of the first memories she saw was the vet, and another early memory was Operation Arsehole Party which made her laugh a lot.
"It's nice seeing the Hufflepuff dorms again," she admitted once she managed to calm down. "It's got quite a few more plants though. I suppose that is Pomona Sprout's influence. She was in school at the same time as me, although a few years ahead. Four. She was Head Girl in my third year, and I remember one night she caught me—ah, you don't want to hear my rambling."
"I do though," he said, wondering what she had been caught doing!
Fawley tucked some hair behind her ear, getting a mischievous smile. "I was caught sneaking back into the common room very late at night. It may have been four in the morning. I may have been… what was the word you used? Happy? I may have been a bit happy and messed up the pattern and was soaked in vinegar."
Remus stared at her in disbelief. "You w—were drunk? At thirteen?"
"Happy," she corrected him, with a wink. "It was the night after my first Hogsmeade visit. My friends and I purchased a great deal of Butterbeer, and stayed up late. We played some truth or tricks, and I was dared into sneaking out to the Great Hall and nicking one of the candlesticks from the High Table. While I was gone, Pomona came into the common room, found my friends, was informed of my whereabouts, and waited for me."
Remus covered his mouth. "Miss Fawley!"
"I told you I caused a bit of trouble in my day," she said, trying to sound serious. "In any case, Pomona finally came out of the common room and found me sitting in the hallway covered in vinegar and crying, clutching the candlestick. It was quite embarrassing, but she helped me back in, got me into a shower, gave me an earful, and didn't remove any points. I thought I got off lucky. However when morning came, she handed me the candlestick and told me I had to put it back on the table in front of everyone. Professor Diggory—my Head of House at the time, Arithmancy teacher—questioned me very intensely afterwards. I wound up with quite a few points removed along with detention."
"Wow." Remus stared at Miss Fawley in absolute awe. "That's a—a brilliant dare."
"I was not telling you this story to inspire you to dare your friends into doing the same," she chided, very lightly. "I suppose at least the Fat Lady won't douse them in vinegar. I always felt bad for Professor Diggory, for dealing with me, however I truly have sympathy for poor Minerva dealing with you lot."
The rest of Occlumency went pretty smoothly, though he did have a headache afterward. He promised to open her present immediately, and indeed as soon as he finished giving Arthur his evening medicine he ran to the dorm. The small present was inside his desk. Either it was enchanted, or else a very small book.
When he took the paper off For He's A Jolly Good Fellow began playing, and a book popped open in his lap. It had been enchanted paper! There was a card stuck to the front of the book which he forced himself to read before looking at the book. It was a fairly simple Happy Birthday! And Hope this helps your endeavors.
The book was a thick book on magical theory, hypothesis, and conception. Basically, a book any hopeful spellmaker would need in their library.
He ran his finger along the cover then flicked it open, getting quite dizzy at everything included in the tome. There were even essays written by famous spellmakers, including a long chapter by Miranda Goshawk about how she developed some of her spells. It was all incredibly fascinating, and he lost himself in the book until his friends showed up. It took them several times calling his name before he finally looked up. Despite the fact none of them were really interested in that sort of book, they all said they were excited since he was so excited.
"We need to come up with our next big plan," James said, falling back on his bed. "Everyone seems to have liked Operation Arsehole Party, so we should spread the love!"
"We should do something for the pre-Easter holiday feast," suggested Sirius. "That gives us a month to plan and prep. Hmm, we could throw eggs at people."
"Make it rain eggs," giggled Peter, and Sirius gave him a thumbs up.
Remus dug out his notebook. "What are things we associate with Easter?" he asked. "Chocolate? Sweets?"
"Eggs. Pastel," James yawned. "Ham. Hot cross buns."
"Bunnies and lambs," said Peter.
"Misery. Horrible family dinner parties," Sirius muttered.
"What?" James asked.
"What?" Sirius glanced up. "Eh, nothing. Eggs. Was that mentioned?"
James narrowed his eyes. "I heard what you said, Sirius."
"We all did," Peter added. "I mean, I assume since James and I both heard, Remy definitely heard."
"Yes, I heard," Remus said, worried. Trying not to worry. But definitely worried.
Sirius glanced around at the three of them staring. "Right. Well. We all know I dislike my family. Of course the dinner parties are going to be horrible. Not important."
Yes, but misery? Remus kept his mouth shut though hoped James would at least say something. Except James didn't. James just stared at Sirius before talking about Easter things again. Sirius settled back, relaxing a little. Remus pulled his legs up, balancing his notebook on his lap, keeping his head low. Misery… He chewed his bottom lip as he doodled Easter eggs along the edges of the page. Yes, they all knew Sirius didn't along with his family—didn't like them—yet it felt like something more.
He couldn't press though. That would only serve in annoying Sirius, and he didn't want to do that. Didn't want to hurt him.
Yet, two days later he accidentally did just that.
/\/\/\/\/\
Wednesday had gone without much of a hitch, except the entire school was talking still about the Hufflepuff prank. Several people asked the Marauders if they were involved, while a couple outright blamed them. McGonagall even interrogated them briefly on Wednesday after Transfiguration, but it was obvious she didn't actually blame them.
Then Thursday started out fine. Remus was still riding on happiness from the successful prank, excitement from Fawley's present, and exhilarated over the planning for the Easter prank. Plus Saturday he'd be able to watch James's game. He knew he'd be tired, but he'd have the earplugs and hopefully be able to watch everything!
Herbology was terrific, as one of the plants they worked on was the honeybob plant and Sprout permitted them to snack on the unneeded bulbs they trimmed off. All four Marauders liked honey so it didn't take long for them to become sticky, full, and maybe a little sick. Sprout did take off a couple points from James since his plant only had one bulb left.
A couple hours later, Remus steeled himself for being around Prewett, hoping it would be a good day. Except as soon as he saw his redheaded professor he felt a quiver inside that he tried hard to ignore. He slid into his seat, gritting his teeth, reciting facts about various creatures they were working on.
All the projects were put on Prewett's desk, and Remus's group was the only one that had anything besides paper with their realistic-looking scale. Prewett glanced at it then gave their group a smile which made the quiver worse. His chest hurt a little too.
After some lecturing, Prewett asked everyone to partner up. Sirius beat Peter to choosing Remus, so Peter went with James. All the students began putting their things away as Prewett explained what they would be working on.
"The full-body bind," he said cheerfully. "One of the most devastating spells you can learn… providing you can get past the enemy's barriers. It's very easy to block. But if you manage to hit them with the full spell, most likely your duel will be over."
Remus could smell a very strong scent of fear radiating off of Sirius's body. He had gone very pale, and his arms were stiff at his sides as if he had already been hit by it. In their first year, Remus had managed to get Sirius with the spell and, after removing it from him, he knew Sirius had been terrified by being put under the spell. Remus didn't know why, but the fact was Sirius was afraid of this spell being put on him.
Everyone lined up (Lily, Colgate, and Inkwood doing their best as the trio) and Remus found himself looking into Sirius's anxious eyes. Overall he seemed fine, but even separated like this Remus could still smell the fear and the sweat.
Prewett asked for a volunteer and most of the girls raised their hand. All of them except for Twycross were wearing trousers, as Prewett had asked them last class to please wear them. He chose McNab and put the full-body bind on her. Her arms snapped to her sides as she fell to the floor, stiff as a board. Prewett quickly removed the spell.
"At this point you probably won't be able to much more than lock up the limbs a little. At most." Prewett paced while he talked. Sirius shifted, smelling even worse as he gave a vaguely panicked glance at Remus. He knew Remus could successfully perform the spell. "You probably won't be able to properly do this spell for a good long while, so don't feel too bad if you don't manage. It's just I want you kids to get used to dealing with this spell. All right, this side first."
It was Sirius's side. Remus spent the next five minutes having a mildly uncomfortable feeling spread through his body as he debated what to do. Part of him wanted to show off that he could do the full-body bind. Very effectively! The other part of him didn't want to do that to Sirius.
Prewett had them switch, and Remus watched Sirius wipe sweaty palms off on his trousers. His hands were shaking very slightly. The smell was even stronger. Could humans really not smell that scent of terror? It was so strong!
Remus bit his lip as he got into his stance. "Pe… pefriblus tolalus," he muttered, flicking his wand. Sirius flinched but of course nothing happened. Sirius opened one eye, surprised. Remus gave a small shrug and 'tried' again. "Pelfilberus totylus." He also purposely did the wand movement wrong which turned out to be his big mistake.
"Mr. Lupin." Prewett approached him, a deep frown on his face. "You're doing it wrong. Let me show you. Like… this."
Remus couldn't say the spell wrong in front of Prewett! He was on the spot. Sirius waited, and Remus's stomach tightened. He couldn't do it. He couldn't! Not knowing what it did to Sirius's emotions. So when he did the spell he purposely messed up the movement and aimed wrong.
Prewett looked confused. "Hmm. You've still got it wrong. Here, let me show you."
Remus considered the possibility of dying on the spot as Prewett stood behind him, taking Remus's arm and guiding him along the movement. Prewett's warm hand was gently on Remus's wrist and part of his hand. His arm was along Remus's arm. He was right behind Remus! He was warm, and his arm was touching Remus's arm, and his hand was touching Remus's hand, and his scent was strong, almost overwhelming—his soap, cologne, he smelled so nice—and Remus's breathing became wonky while heat flooded his body. He was dizzy, and so hot, and so quivery, and parts of him like his chest and—elsewhere—ached.
"Got it?" Prewett asked?
Remus made a strange wheezy sound as a response. When Prewett let go, Remus's wand bounced everywhere from being so shaky.
"Mr. Lupin, are you all right?"
He blinked a few times, feeling as though he might faint. He wanted to faint except if he fainted Sirius would probably be put with someone else, and the spell would be put on him. Or could he get Sirius out of the class too?
"N—no," he croaked, breath and voice both catching in his throat. He knew he looked very flushed. "Don't—don't—don't f-f-feel g-g-good."
Prewett narrowed his eyes, knowing damn well Remus couldn't get sick. "What's the matter?"
Everyone was looking at him, the other Marauders beyond confused. Remus took a nervous step away from Prewett. "I—I'm n-n-not—I'm not—I don't—could—could—could I g-g-go to the hospital—hospital wing?"
"Ah." Prewett gave him a look. "If you think you can't finish the class…"
"I—I can't." He dropped his hand to his middle, breathing getting harder with each passing second. Both from what happened with Prewett (his body so close and touching) as well as humiliation from everyone watching him. "I don't—I'm s-sorry. I don't—don't feel—and—I can't—I don't think I c-c-can walk—walk well. Would—would—could S-Sirius help—help me? My legs—I don't—I'm not—"
"Very well." Prewett's voice had a touch of stoniness to it, and Remus couldn't imagine what was going through his mind other than the fact it was obvious Remus was trying to miss the remainder of class. "If Mr. Black doesn't mind, of course."
Sirius was at Remus's side in an instant, and to Remus's horror he put an arm around him. "I don't mind."
Blast it all! Remus thought, feeling the world tilt away from him from—from all of this. It wasn't fair, wasn't fair, wasn't right! For the second time in the span of what felt like five seconds Remus thought he might die from overheating in addition to his heart pounding so hard it felt like it might explode. He was so dizzy he doubted he could walk normally, and he did nearly fall as Sirius helped him out.
Sirius carried their bags in one arm, his other arm firmly (too firmly, make it stop) around Remus's waist. Neither boy spoke until they got several corridors away from class. Then Sirius let go, and Remus collapsed against a wall, wondering if he was even still alive.
Sirius folded his arms. "All right, Remy. What the hell is going on?"
"I d-d-d-don't—don't—don't f-feel good—"
"You don't have to lie to me. What, you get in the mood to skip class again?" He elbowed Remus gently. "You have to do that sooner in class, we're only missing about twenty, thirty minutes at most."
Remus shook his head. "No. I really d-d-don't feel good."
"Uh-huh. Is that why you couldn't do the spell?"
"No." Remus swallowed, staring steadily down at his trainers. "I w-was just trying to—" He stopped quickly.
"Trying to what?" Sirius leaned against the wall next to him. Remus pressed his lips thin. "Aw, c'mon, trying to what?"
He sighed, glancing up through his fringe. "Help you."
Sirius's smile faded, and his body stiffened. "What do you mean?"
"I—I know you don't like the—the spell put on you…"
"Says who?" he asked rather sharply.
Uh-oh. Remus realized he shouldn't have said anything. "Er, well—I—I mean—you—you… you never said, but it's pretty obvious…"
Sirius's entire face hardened. "Obvious?"
"Well, no—no, I mean… I doubt it's—it's obvious to anyone else—"
"So why did you say that?"
Remus looked back at his shoes, panic overwhelming him in addition to everything else squirming through his body. "I—it's just… I c-c-could smell. Um. That you—you were afraid. That's all. When I put the spell—"
"Smell?"
"—on you before and—and yes. Yes, you, um, you smelled afraid?" Remus's stomach twisted, knowing how much of a mistake he was making. He should stop talking, make some joke, stop the train before it went off the cliff in an explosion. "I didn't—I didn't want to put you through that—"
Sirius pulled away from the wall, standing in front of Remus. Staring. "I am not afraid of the spell," he snapped, face going red, panic creeping into his voice. "I never said that."
"Yes, I—I know, I'm—I'm sorry. I th-thought since—since you smelled afraid—"
"No, I didn't." He sounded furious now. Remus had majorly screwed up. "How can you even smell that?!"
He gave Sirius a desperate look. "I—I—I-I-I-I—I t-t-told you—I—I told you I have—have a—a sensitive—sensitive nose—a—I—I said—"
"You can… smell… that sort of thing?"
Remus's whole body shook. "Y… yes?" he whispered.
Sirius was breathing hard, fury filling his face and eyes. "That—that—what in Merlin's—no. No, that's—you can't—that's weird, that's weird! That is so bloody weird!"
The word pierced right into Remus's chest, and he shrank against the wall. Sirius barely noticed, too upset. He was pacing now, raking his fingers through his hair.
"Don't—no, that is—how is it possible for—that's so wrong. That's wrong! What the hell, Remus?! That's not…! Don't—don't ever—you should never have—I'm not afraid of the spell, why would I be afraid of a damn spell?!"
Remus tried to apologize, tried to get the word out, tried to get the first syllable out but all that came out was a sobbing sort of hiccup.
Weird.
Weird and wrong.
His nose began burning as he fought to keep the tears back, and the wolf rose inside of him.
"Don't do anything like that again!" Sirius's voice was squeaky and loud, somehow still filled with rage. "It's an invasion of fucking privacy!"
"S—s-s-s-s-s—sss—sorry—"
He doubted Sirius could even hear that.
"Just—just don't do it again. Don't. Ever. It's wrong, okay?! What the hell is wrong with you—no. It's—no, don't. Okay? Don't!"
He wanted to explain it's nothing he could help, not something he could control. But he couldn't talk, couldn't even breathe. His nose was getting clogged up with snot, and tears finally dripped down his cheeks.
Sirius didn't notice, or didn't care. He whirled around, storming off, disappearing around a corridor.
Remus collapsed to the floor, a gasping sound emitting as he tried to suck in some air before he doubled over, sobbing into his hands.
