Sirius had watched the young man sitting in the window, almost daily, every since the family had moved into the cottage. It had been empty for years, so when one day Sirius noticed a van standing outside, he had watched, curious as to who would be moving in. A little nervous he would have to stay away from the lake from now on. But the family had seemed harmless, and there was something about the young man he had seen, that had made him come back every day.

He watched him staring out of the window, looking so lost, so sad, that all he had wanted to do was step out of the water, go over to him and wrap his arms around him. But his parents had always warned him what would happen if he were to ever leave the water. He would have one, maybe two minutes of suffering, before a painful death followed.

He had never had a reason to step out of the water and see if it was true, but the more he saw the young man's suffering, the more he felt like he had to help.

So when this afternoon, the young man finally stepped outside, Sirius had jumped for joy. This was his chance to meet him. But he had almost messed it all up by scaring the living daylights out of him by grabbing his leg.

Luckily he had been able to fix it before Remus ran off, and he had even managed to get him to join him in the water.

But as soon as Remus had let himself slide into the water, his sadness, his hurt, had filled the water. Sirius could feel it in every fibre of his being, and it had almost made him want to swim away, just to get away from the pain.

Instead, he had tried to tell silly jokes, and he had used his tail to scare Remus, to make him think the fish were getting to him.

Within seconds, Remus had started laughing, and soon enough, the water had started to feel lighter again.

"Does it hurt?" Sirius asks, as he watches Remus, who is leaning against the side. "When you turn?"

"It feels like that… thing, is tearing me apart from the inside out," Remus admits, the water growing colder. Heavier. "It doesn't feel like I'm myself anymore."

"You don't have its memories?"

"It," Remus scoffs. "But no, I don't. Flashes, but not real memories. It's like a dream you can't reach."

"I'm sorry," Sirius says, but Remus just shrugs his shoulders, a forlorn, faraway look in his eyes.

"It's not your fault."

"It's not yours either," Sirius says, and a small smile forms on the other man's face. "Besides, who am I to judge? I have this…"

Sirius uses his large, silver tail to splash water onto Remus, and it immediately makes him snap out of his sadness.

"How does it feel?" Remus asks, tentatively reaching out his hand towards the tail which is still poking out of the water.

"Touch it."

"No!" Remus laughs, his cheeks flushing red.

"I don't mind." Sirius grins. "Go on."

Remus very gently brushes a finger over the scales, and his face goes even redder.

"Do you feel that?"

"Of course. It's part of me," Sirius laughs, getting ticklish from Remus' slight touch.

But then he pulls his tail away from him, and he moves closer to him, so their faces are almost touching. He can tell that Remus isn't sure what is happening, whether he should be scared or not. But when Sirius ever so lightly brushes his fingers over one of the scars on his face, his shoulders relax again.

"I want to kiss you," Sirius whispers. "But I don't think I should."

"Why not?"

"I don't want to hurt you."

"Then don't," Remus whispers back, even though there is no one around to hear them. "I want you to kiss me."

Sirius knows he shouldn't, because there is only one was this can go, isn't there? He's a merperson, Remus is a werewolf. This will end in heartbreak.

But there is something between them, something that makes the air feel different. Something has brought them here, as though they were meant to find each other, right here, right now.

So Sirius places his hand on the back on Remus' neck, and he pulls him in for a kiss. Remus's mouth tastes of something sweet, something which reminds Sirius of the berries he had once eaten. His mouth is soft, warm, and for a moment Sirius wonders what Remus must be thinking about him. About his cold lips, his icy, shimmering skin.

"I'm sorry about the cold," he whispers, his hand still lingering on the back of Remus' neck.

"I didn't notice it," Remus mumbles, a dark blush on his cheeks.

"We shouldn't be doing this."

"I'll come and see you," Remus quickly says. "We'll find a way to see each other."

"What about your parents?" Sirius asks, thinking about his own parents, and what they would do if they found out about this. "What will you tell them?"

"I don't know. But I want to see you again," Remus says, before resting his forehead against Sirius'. "Promise me you'll come back."

"I promise," Sirius whispers, before bringing their mouths together. "I'll come back."

Remus had left shortly after, knowing his parents would get worried if he stayed out any longer. So Sirius had watched him as he made his way back to the cottage, and only when he was sure that he was safely back inside, did he leave.

He had swum back to his family, not planning on telling them anything about Remus. Because they wouldn't understand. They would only tell him about the dangers, and he didn't want to hear it.

But ever since he had gotten back, there had been something about the way his parents were watching him, that made him feel like they knew. There was something about the water that felt uncomfortable, angry.

"Reg?" Sirius whispers, "Did you tell them?"

"Tell them what?"

"About the boy from the cottage."

"Of course not," Regulus says. "You know I wouldn't do that. Why?"

"I met him," Sirius whispers, looking over his shoulder to make sure that his parents aren't close enough to hear. "I kissed him."

"How is that going to work?" Regulus asks. "You, falling in love with a human? You can never be with him, Sirius."

"We'll find a way."

"They'll kill you if they find out," Regulus sighs, but then he shakes his head, smiling to himself. "I can't believe you went and met him."

"He's beautiful, Regulus."

"You look happy, brother." Regulus smiles, before pulling Sirius in for a hug. "If I can ever help…"

Sirius can feel the happiness coursing through him, and there's not a doubt in his mind that he will figure this out. But as soon as his brother lets go of him, he looks up into his father's eyes.

"Father!"

"How could you!" Orion spits out. "How many times have we told you not to go anywhere near the humans?"

"I didn't…"

Before Sirius can even finish his sentence, his father has slapped him across the face, leaving a burning mark on his cheek.

"You think I don't know these waters' secrets?" Orion asks. "I know exactly where you've been Sirius. With that… that… boy!"

"He's not going to hurt me," Sirius tries, his cheek still burning hot. "and I won't leave the water for him."

"It would kill you," Walberga chimes in. "Would you really be willing to die for this boy?"

Sirius asks himself this question, and he is surprised to find himself thinking that he would. There had been something between him and Remus that afternoon that had convinced him that they were meant to be together. That they were each other's other half. And yes, he would die for him. Without a doubt.

"You are not seeing him again," Orion says. Sirius can feel the anger building up inside of him, because who are his parents to stop him from seeing Remus? He is – technically – an adult, and he can do as he please. He appreciates that they are worried for his safety, but this look on his parents' face, it's not one of worry. It's rage.

"You don't get to tell me what to do."

"Sirius…," Regulus tries, but before he can even try and calm his brother down, Sirius has already turned to swim off.

But before he can go anywhere, he can feel something brushing against his tail. It seems to grow tighter quickly, and within seconds, it has wrapped around his waist, and pulled him down to the bottom of the lake.

"What are…"

"Let him go!" Regulus cries out. "He told you he wasn't going to go anywhere. You can't do this to him!"

"Watch me!" Orion spits out, Sirius struggling to get loose from the plants, which have seemed to cocoon themselves around him.

"You can't keep me here forever!"