Take My Breath Away

Chapter 1

It's been three months since Remus and his parents had moved to the cottage in the Scottish Highlands, but where his parents had had no trouble adjusting, Remus can't get used to the silence. Sure, that's exactly the reason why they had come to the Highlands in the first place, for the quiet, for the fact that the first town is miles and miles away from them. But Remus misses the normalcy of having a daily routine, of having something to do.

Since moving here, there is nothing he has to do except for look after himself. So he wakes up, he gets ready, but for what he doesn't know. He just sits around, waiting for the day to come to an end.

He can't complain though, because he is fully aware that his parents had given up everything for him. That they were willing to move here to keep him safe. To make sure that people wouldn't find out about his lycanthropy. To make sure he wouldn't be hunted down and killed.

But Remus is just nineteen years old, and he can't deny that right now it feels like life is simply passing him by.

He has spent another morning by himself on the sofa, daydreaming about a different world, a different life, one where he wouldn't be seen as a monster. But the rain has finally stopped, and when he looks out of the window, and he sees the rainbow over the lake, the sudden urge comes over to him to go outside.

He strolls over to the lake, and normally he wouldn't even think about sitting down in the wet grass. Why would he, when he could be inside the cottage, where it's warm? Where it's dry.

But he finds himself sitting down, and carefully touching the dark water with the tips of his fingers.

He chuckles, because what was he expecting to find? With his luck, he would probably catch some kind of bug, or get his hand stuck in an old rusty piece of metal.

He lies down, taking a deep breath, the rain having left the air feeling cold but refreshing. He closes his eyes, not expecting to be able to fall asleep, out here in the middle of nowhere, on the cold grass. But still, it feels nice to just close his eyes and think about nothing for a moment.

But when he feels a hand on his leg, he sits up, his heart beating so fast that he feels dizzy for a moment. Because who the hell has found him out here? Do they know his secret? What are they going to do to him? What is going to happen to his parents?

But when he looks down at the hand on his leg, he realises that it's not coming from someone standing over him. It's coming from someone in the water. A handsome… no, beautiful young man with dark hair, dark eyes, and a charming, almost mischievous smile.

"What the…," Remus spits out, pulling his leg away from the stranger's hand. "Who are… what…"

"I'm Sirius." The stranger smiles, as he gives a little wave.

"Yes, I'm serious too. Who are you? What the hell are you doing in the lake?"

"No, I'm not…," the young man chuckles. "My name is Sirius."

"Oh…"

"What's your name?" Sirius asks, the smile still on his face.

Remus gives him a once-over, only now noticing that he isn't wearing a shirt, that this stranger is in the lake, having a swim - butt-naked - in the freezing cold.

"What is wrong with you? You're going to catch your death in there."

"I doubt it." Sirius grins. "So… what's your name?"

"Remus."

"Nice to meet you, Remus. You live in the cottage, don't you?" Sirius asks, but Remus is still dumbstruck at this - he can't deny - very odd and seemingly very naked stranger who just appeared out of nowhere. "I watched you move in."

"You watched us?"

"I did." Sirius nods, and Remus can feel himself moving farther away from him. "I was here."

"Right… just… swimming in the lake… as you do," Remus mutters, wondering what this strange young man would do if he were to just get up and run away right now. Would he follow him? Is he dangerous? Or just odd?

"Don't worry, I'm not here to hurt you."

"I wasn't…"

"Wondering who I am, and why am I here, talking to you?" Sirius laughs. "Don't worry. I just saw you here and figured I'd come and say hello."

"You were here? I didn't see you before. Sorry."

"You wouldn't have. I was underwater."

"Oh…"

Remus is starting to wonder more and more what the hell is wrong with this guy, and he is about to get up and make a run for it, when he notices something shiny coming out of the water. At first it seems to be a fish, or maybe even a piece of plastic. But when he takes another look, he realises it is in fact a tail. A mermaid tail.

Scrap that. A merman tail? Merperson tail?

He can feel his thoughts racing, because what the actual fuck?

"You're a…"

"Mer…"

"Holy shit!" Remus spits out, before Sirius can even finish saying what he was going to say. "I'm sorry, but… holy shit!"

Sirius chuckles, now proudly showing off his shiny silver tail. He uses it to splash some water onto Remus' legs, who can't help but laugh, the absurdity of the situation making him feel giddy.

"Do you live here?" he asks, finally taking his eyes off Sirius' tail, and looking back at his face. Only now does he notice just how much his skin seems to glow, it's almost as though someone has captured the stars and spilled them onto the young man's skin.

"Not here in the lake, no. But around here." Sirius shrugs. "I get around," he adds, making Remus chuckle.

"I can't believe you're…"

"You're not scared, are you? I promise most stories about us aren't true." Sirius smiles, as he makes his way over to the side of the lake again. He leans his elbows on the grass, and Remus can't help but smile.

Only minutes ago he had been ready to run, afraid that he was about to get killed out here in the middle of nowhere. Yet there is something about this stranger, about this magical being, that makes him feel safe.

"Can you ever come out of the water, or…?"

"No," Sirius sighs. "Well, I could, but… well, it wouldn't be pretty," he chuckles uncomfortably.

Remus looks back at the cottage, wondering if he should get back. Have his parents noticed by now that he has gone outside? He doesn't want to have to say goodbye to Sirius yet though.

"Do you swim?" Sirius asks, making Remus look back at him.

"Not really. I haven't, not since I was younger."

"Will you swim with me?"

"What?" Remus laughs. "In there? But there's… there's fish, and… dirt, and…"

"So?"

"It's cold!"

"So?" Sirius grins. "I promise I won't let you drown."

Remus knows he should say no, but he finds himself giving a small nod, the grin on Sirius' face now growing even bigger.

"You'll have to look away though."

"Why?"

"Because I don't want you to see me," Remus admits. "I can't swim in my clothes, and I haven't exactly brought my trunks with me, so… I don't want you to see me naked," he blurts out, but it only makes Sirius chuckle. "Oh, sure, just laugh at me."

"I'm sorry, but I don't understand what the big deal is."

"Well, you wouldn't, would you? You don't have anything down there, do you?" Remus grumbles, feeling bad about the comment immediately. But it doesn't seem to have bothered Sirius, because he just shrugs. "Now look away."

"Fine." Sirius rolls his eyes, and he closes his eyes. Remus still feels like telling him to actually turn around, but he doesn't want to piss him off, so he quickly gets up, and he gets out of his clothes.

But as soon as he looks up after having taken off his pants, he finds Sirius watching him.

"What are those?"

"I told you not to look."

"Who did that to you?" Sirius asks, staring intently at the scars covering Remus' body. Before now, he had seemed mischievous and fun, but now he looks serious. Older than before. "Who hurt you?"

"I did," Remus sighs. "I hurt myself."

"That was you, wasn't it? The werewolf the other week?"

"You saw me?"

Remus knew he had gotten out, and that he had spent the night out there somewhere, but his parents hadn't heard anything about anyone getting hurt. So he thought he had gotten away with it. That no one would ever find out.

"I watched you for a while. You seemed sad," Sirius says, and he reaches out his hand when Remus sits back down in the grass, pulling up his legs to his chest, feeling embarrassed and vulnerable. Sirius very gently brushes his fingers over the scars on Remus' leg, his touch cold, but fiery hot at the same time.

"What did I do? Did I hurt someone?"

"You didn't. You wouldn't," Sirius whispers, flashing a small, reassuring smile. "Now how about that swim?"

Chapter 2

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 pleases. 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!"

Chapter 3

Remus hadn't told his parents about meeting Sirius, but they could tell that something in him had changed. He seemed happier, lighter. He had shrugged off their comments off though, because how could he tell them that he had finally found hope again because of a boy? Not even that, a merperson.

He had quickly left the cottage after breakfast though, hoping to find Sirius waiting for him in the lake. But when he had gotten there, there was no one. For a moment he wondered if he had imagined the young man from the day before. Had he fallen asleep and dreamt it all?

But he could still feel Sirius' lips on his, and he knew that they had shared something. Something real, something that can't be dreamt up. So he had sat down in the grass, hoping that Sirius would still show up.

It's been hours though, and just as he is starting to get up to go back to the cottage, if only to eat something and come back later, he notices something moving in the water.

"Sirius?" he asks, his heart starting to beat faster at the thought of seeing him again. But it's not Sirius who pops up out of the water. It's a different young man, whose features are similar, but he looks younger.

"You know my brother, don't you?"

"Who are you?"

"Regulus, Sirius' brother."

"Where is he?" Remus asks, and he can hear that he isn't coming across as very friendly. But right now he doesn't care. He is starting to get worried, and the look on Regulus' face isn't helping. "Is he hurt?"

"My parents found out about you."

"So?"

"They are keeping him trapped in a lake, not far from here. I've tried to get him out, but…," Regulus sighs. "I don't have my father's powers."

"What can I do to help?"

"I don't know. But I know he cares about you, and I didn't want you to think he abandoned you. He wouldn't do that," Regulus says, and Remus can tell that, although he still seems young at heart, he seems sincere, just like his brother. "We'll find a way to free him."

"I want to help, Regulus," Remus says. "How are they keeping him trapped?"

"My father has power over everything that lives under the water, and somehow these plants, it's like…"

"Plants?" Remus interrupts him. "Have you tried cutting him out?"

"With what?"

"A knife, something sharp… I don't know what you have."

"We don't have weapons, just…"

"Just the power to keep someone trapped?" Remus spits out, feeling frustrated. "I'll go get a knife. I'll be right back."

Remus runs back to the cottage, and he sneaks in, hoping his parents won't notice him. Because he isn't sure how he would explain to them that he needs a knife. But he grabs the largest one they have, before taking his father's bicycle, and going back to the lake.

"Where are they keeping him? How do I get there?"

"You can't go there," Regulus laughs uncomfortably. "If my parents see you…"

"Let me help. Please."

Regulus tells him how to get to the lake, before disappearing underneath the water and swimming off. So Remus gets into his father's bicycle, and he makes his way over to the lake where Sirius is being held, as quickly as possible.

By the time he gets there, Regulus is waiting for him. And without hesitating, he jumps into the water. He realises he hasn't thought this through, when Regulus tells him to follow him, and he disappears into the water.

Remus takes a deep breath, but he is already struggling by the time he sees Sirius on the bottom of the lake, plants grown all over him.

"Give me the knife," Regulus orders, but Remus ignores him, and he starts to slice at the plants, trying his best to hold his breath. The panic is starting to build up inside of him, and he can feel the pressure inside his head, inside his chest building with every second. But he keeps slicing, Sirius' begging not even getting through to him.

"Please let Regulus take over!" Sirius cries out. "You have to go up!"

"You'll drown," Regulus tries, and he makes a grab for the knife. But Remus shoves him off, and he keeps slicing away at the plants, Sirius surely but slowly becoming more visible again.

"Save him, please!" Sirius cries out, but there is nothing his brother can do to stop Remus.

He slices through the last of the plants, and as soon as he sees that Sirius is free, he tries to swim back up. But he can feel something pulling at him, and when he turns around, he notices a man with eyes that make his blood turn cold, stare at him, an evil grin on his face.

"I don't think so."

"Let go of him!" Sirius orders, and as he raises his hand, Remus loses consciousness.

Sirius had never had the power to fight his father. But he knows that if Remus can't go up for air in seconds, he will die. That gives him the strength to finally stand up against his father. He raises his fist, and a bright, blue ball of energy begins to glow inside of it. He throws it at his father, who lets go of Remus as soon as he is hit.

Sirius doesn't stick around to wait for his father to fight back though. He grabs Remus, and he drags him out of the water, onto the grass.

"He isn't breathing," he says, his brother swimming behind him, looking just as horrified. "What do I do?"

"I don't know…"

"I have to save him, Reg," Sirius says, and he shares a knowing look with his brother. "I can't stay here and watch him die."

"Then save him." Regulus nods, looking heartbroken. "Go on."

"I'm sorry. I love you."

"I love you, too," Regulus says, flashing a small smile through his tears. "Now go!"

Sirius climbs out of the water, his tail already feeling tighter. He ignores the feeling, and he crawls over to Remus.

He had always known that he wouldn't – technically- have breath as long as he was inside the water. As soon as he would be outside the water, his body would get confused, it would slowly poison itself. He would start to become human, before he would die.

Knowing that he may only have minutes before that happens, he takes a deep breath. His first. He leans down, and he blows his first breath into Remus' mouth, hoping it will be enough to save him.

"Don't leave me," he whispers. "Please."

He looks down, his tail already having disappeared, and he knows it won't be long before he will get seriously ill, before his body will start to poison itself, not able to readjust to his new surroundings.

"Remus," he whispers, before pressing a soft kiss onto his lips. "I need to see you before I go."

Remus opens his eyes, and he coughs up dirty lake water, but he's alive. He's breathing.

"What happened? Am I…," he begins to ask, but when he looks down, and he sees a very naked, very human Sirius lying next to him, his mouth opens wide in shock. "Holy shit! What happened?"

"I'm dying."

"We can't leave the water," Regulus explains. "Our body changes, and it just… we can't survive like that."

"Then get back in!"

"It doesn't work like that," Sirius sighs. "But it's okay. You're alive."

"Fuck you. It's not okay! You are not dying, you hear me? You get back in the water, and you get rid of that…" Remus spits out, but then he blushes. "Those legs, I mean."

"It's okay, Remus," Sirius says in a calm voice. "I knew this was going to happen. Just stay with me, please. Both of you."

Remus is about to object, because surely this can't be the end of their story. But Sirius can tell that he is scared, and that he doesn't want to waste whatever precious little time they have left, arguing over what they can or cannot do.

So Sirius wraps his arms around him, and he pulls him against his chest. He closes his eyes, waiting for the pain to set in. To feel that horrible, excruciating pain his parents had always warned him about. He is waiting to get ill, for his body to start failing on him.

But minutes pass, and he doesn't feel anything. Except for cold. And naked.

"How do you feel?" Regulus asks, and Sirius looks up, a confused look on his face.

"Alive."

"Do you think they were wrong?" Regulus asks, before adding, "Do you think they lied to us? To keep us with them?"

Sirius thinks it over, and would his parents have lied about something so important? Would they have kept this whole other world away from him on purpose? If so, then why?

"It feels… anticlimactic," he finally chuckles. "We could have left the water all along?"

"So if I were to get out now…?"

"Don't," Remus quickly says. "We don't know what happens if you go back into the water. You might not be able to change back."

"Fine by me," Sirius spits out. "I am never going back there," he says, but when he sees the hurt look on his brother's face, he sighs. "I can't. Not after what they did to me. To Remus. They could have killed him."

"I don't want to go back either."

"Then let me try it out first," Sirius says, and he gets up, his legs feeling wobbly, but definitely like they're part of him.

He climbs into the water, and within seconds, he can feel his legs growing together. They grow bigger, and although it's painful, when he lifts his tail out of the water, it looks just as it had always done.

"I'm not going back, Sirius."

"Where will we go?"

"I can ask my parents if you can stay with us," Remus suggests, and Sirius can tell from the blush on his face that he hadn't been planning on saying it. "I'm sure they won't mind."

"Do they know about me? About what I am?"

"No, but I'm a werewolf, Sirius. I'm sure they don't mind two…"

"Sorry, what?" Regulus interrupts. "You're a…"

"He's the werewolf I saw the other week," Sirius explains, the blush on Remus' face now growing darker.

"Right… well…"

"We're made for each other, right?" Sirius grins, before climbing out of the water again, his brother quickly following.

"I'm sure my parents won't mind you two being merpeople, but I'm not sure how I'm going to explain the uhm…"

"The what?" Sirius asks, as they start walking away from the lake, Remus with his father's bicycle by his side. "Have you changed your mind already?"

"No! It's just that I'm not sure what they're going to think when I show up with two very wet, and very naked guys, and I ask them if you can move in with us," Remus chuckles. "I'm not sure they'll ever let me leave the house again," he adds, but when he sees the nervous look on Sirius' face, he can't help but smile.

He can't help but think of how miserable he had been just yesterday. How life had seemed to just pass him by. Yet here he is, with a wonderful boyfriend, and a kind-hearted young man with whom he knows he will be great friends. Life had seemed empty and meaningless, but now he can't wait to see what else it has in store for him. Because he can already tell that from now on, life is going to get breath-taking. Life is going to be beautiful.