So I was rereading HP PoA today, I know shocker right, and I found the section where Remus has stamped 'Professor R. J. Lupin in peeling letters' and I wondered, why were they peeling? If he was only given the job over the summer it shouldn't be faded out already? So I came up with this, hope you enjoy
"Moony, what on earth are you doing?"
"Having an argument with this book, and losing," he sighed, glaring down at the pages before turning his full attention on Sirius. One glance was all it took, and he could see what he hadn't gathered from the tone with his hands stashed behind his back, he was up to something; which put a bit more suspicion in his voice then was called for. "Why do you ask?"
"Because the correct response was, getting ready to go back to our dorm, though I was supposed to be there hours ago."
Remus glanced at his watch and rolled his eyes stating, "yes, I know you lot were planning to ambush me with a birthday surprise, I'm just not in the mood this year."
"You're not in the mood any year," Sirius reminded, taking a seat beside him and still managing to keep whatever he was hiding out of sight. "Something I will never understand, who doesn't enjoy their birthday?"
"I just don't understand making a big deal of it, I've only turned fifteen, it's not all that," he muttered, though he knew that they knew the reason anyways. He could hardly afford his books, and whatever extra money he scraped together he could hardly ever use on getting his friends anything for their birthdays, yet clearly five years in a row now they'd decided they were going to do something for his anyways.
Sirius ignored him anyways and kept going like Remus hadn't spoken, "so, we decided if you won't come to us and get it all over at once, you get them whenever we catch you and it just drags out all the more. That's your own fault, so here." He plopped down a box onto Remus' text, successfully dropping the essay he'd been trying to use it for to the floor.
Remus gave the box a rather dirty look, but considering the last time he'd tried to ignore a gift from Sirius he'd retaliated by filing a classroom with dancing pineapples and disrupting a group of first years whole class period, which he'd somehow managed to get the blame pinned on Remus; he decided it was best to get this over with. He plucked with no enthusiasm at the tape until it came off, then cracked it open and gave a peak inside, all for exclaiming a thanks and going back to ignoring him for the day, when he really saw it.
It was a simple brown case, with the words Professor R. J. Lupin stamped on in shining letters.
Madam Pince was likely to come around the corner any moment now and tell them both off Sirius began laughing so loudly at the stunned look on his face. He couldn't help it though, he hadn't even told his friends this, how on earth? "I, Sirius how-" the words just kept trailing off as he gently lifted it out.
"You're not as subtle as you think Moony," he chided, still looking abundantly pleased with himself.
He was clearly sitting there expecting a 'thank you' any second, which is why it took him by surprise when Remus actually hugged him instead. Sirius tried to wiggle free, now laughing all the harder, which Remus took no notice of.
Might do a companion peace on Remus pulling this out of his old stuff, and using it later, I've done some really short ones in the past and this one wasn't too long either, so I might do it.