Hey! It's me again! Things are getting to their intended R rating, or perhaps just starting to. Hey! Lily is playing Sherlock with always-there-to-ask-intelligent-questions loyal doctor Watson-James. Another character brought to the fic! Not original. You decide whether he gets in on the triangle or not. ^_^ and bloody hell, people, REVIEW! That's not so hard since the changes on ff.net. Please? Do it for Sirius, our poor little thing? /*.*\

Chapter 3

"I'm afraid."

"Why?"

"I can feel it enclosing around me. The darkness. It's everywhere, I sometimes have the feeling I can't breathe."

"Do you hurt?"

"No… it's like I'm falling. No pain, no feelings. Nothing. But perhaps it's more than nothing, perhaps I should say it's everything. I'm melting into one with the stars."

"That's beautiful. Why are you afraid then?"

"I'm alone at first. All alone."

"Then somebody comes?"

"Then I am no more." Sirius whispered softly. Remus stared at him shocked.

"Sirius… But that was just a dream, nothing more, surely." But Sirius just shot him a glance.

"No. That's going to happen. I know. But I can't help it."

***

Remus couldn't help but wonder about his conversation with Sirius earlier that day. It was obvious Sirius was worried. About what? And why the hell he was talking to him, not to his precious mate?

Because his mate was just a child. He couldn't comfort. He didn't know him like Remus did. His mate was a small, frightened boy, who'd been put through far too much considering his abilities.

But again, so was Sirius.

No, Sirius was not *frightened*, like the boy was. Sirius was *afraid*. Sirius had abilities to deal with everything, Sirius was strong.

'Shit…' Remus realized. 'I'm… what am I doing anyways?'

"Will you look at that, don't we have *Lupin* mooning here!" 'Oh great, just what I needed. Snape.'

"Will you look at that, don't we have *Snape* thinking here!"

"Leave him Severus, after all, his lover just dumped him for a younger, no wonder he's distressed." Malfoy sneered. Remus frowned inwardly.

"You're too afraid to bug Sirius, so you've come to bug me instead. What a pity Sirius is on his way here."

"Sure as hell. Right now he's probably right there with his little toy, having great time."

"I'll have great time Malfoy sending you back to hell. And I really could use some fun now." Said a cold but soft voice.

"What, your little toy left you?" Lucius did his best to maintain the level but the glares he was getting from Sirius were matching even the Dark Lord's wrath. This time Sirius only stared. Two Slytherins started to feel uncomfortable under his gaze and left.

"Thank you." Remus muttered. He stole a quick glance at Sirius, but instead his eyes landed upon the kid.

The kid who was holding Sirius hand.

'Damn it! Don't look if you don't want to see. Don't look if you don't want to see. Don't look if you don't want to see. Don't look that way at Sirius! ... Damn it! Moony, you're a lost case.' The kid glanced at him shortly, but his stare was meaningful. 'Mine.'

***

"Moony, what's bothering you?" James Potter came to conclusion something was bothering Moony after long hours spent thinking really hard.

"Nothing."

"Sure as hell. Look I know something is wrong... especially the way you stare at Sirius recently." Remus blushed slightly.

"I don't stare at him."

"No. He just accidentally happens to stand in the spot your eyes are locked on. And equally accidentally, your eyes are glued to his further location." James grew serious after that. "You know we already read everything there is in the library about werewolves, tell me, you don't tolerate others, or something?"

"No. We put up quite well."

"And that's why the kid growls every time you cross his path? And gets extremely protective of Sirius when you're around? Never leaves his side? Holds his hand, sometimes wraps himself around him? All the time looking at you like he was a bloody basilisk? That's werewolves 'put up well'?"

"Oh, bugger off! How the hell I'm supposed to know what's going on in that crazy kid's head! I don't bloody care!" Saying his final word Remus Lupin turned around and marched from the Gryffindor tower.

James Potter leaned back in his chair and stared. "Who the hell was he and what has he done with Moony?" He asked himself.

"Something is wrong with Moony?" Lily asked turning her head from where she's been helping Peter with his homework.

"Apart from the fact he just snapped at me, swore, looked generally pissed off, no, nothing."

"Shit."

"Who the hell are you and what have you done with my Lily!"

~*~

Remus was running, like he never run in his life. To get away from all of this, the further, the better. Away from the confusion. Away from the torment. Away from Sirius...

Young werewolf slowed down. Was that it? Was Sirius everything that was bothering him? But why? He was slowly getting back into his old self, his lost memories were replaced by new, equally cheerful, his attitude was back. The old Marauder they knew and loved was practically back, with a ballast of course, but at a time there would be more... It was a common knowledge James would have kids when he finished Hogwarts. Most of the school also thought that the only thing that stopped Sirius from having kids was lack of suitable partner. They used to joke that Sirius was made to be a father, if only he could keep a girl for longer than a month. Every time Sirius would raise a brow and throw a comment that would send everybody into fit of giggles ("Honestly, how can I have kids if half of the population thinks my best choice for a job would be a whore?") and laugh as well.

What was there that made Remus uncomfortable with him? Not the thing that Sirius was bisexual (he did still look at girls, until he got a mate) he knew earlier. Not his sudden cruelty, because Remus was cruel sometimes as well (he supposed it was a common trait among the werewolves).

He didn't notice when he came to the lake. The air around here was so peaceful... Remus plopped down to the ground and sighed heavily. He closed his eyes and allowed his mind to wander... from Sirius to Sirius. 'Damn' he moaned. 'That's an obsession.' His eyes snapped open and he glanced at the lake angrily, blaming it for all of the mess.

Something appeared in the corner of his eye. 'Don't look. Don't look. You don't want to see, for sure.' But his head turned on its own. 'I wouldn't have guessed.' He said bitterly to himself seeing Sirius with the kid on his lap. None of them noticed him. 'Who would, while they're so busy staring into each other's eyes. Wait they aren't staring anymore... they're... oh my god... that kid is... shit...' As was told the child Sirius held in his arms slowly moved his head and touched the other's lips with his. His hand rested on the older's neck pulling him closer deepening the kiss. Remus watched with turmoil and rage in his heart as *his* Sirius kissed the boy...

His Sirius...

'What the hell. You don't like him. You don't like him.'

'Of course you don't. You're just utterly and madly furious because that kid can feel his tongue in his mouth and you can't.'

'No. I just don't like the kid.'

'No, you're not jealous Moony, in the slightest.' Having his conscious calmed he got up and walked towards Hogsmeade replying time after time the image of Sirius' smile while kissing the kid.

"Damn!" He cried to no one in particular. "Fuck!"

"Hey, Lupin." Somebody behind him hissed.

"Bugger off."

"Not friendly today. Already suffering from your PMS?"

"Bugger off Snape. I *was* addressing you, in case you didn't notice."

"You're very bitter. No surprise."

"If you're trying to say what I think you're trying to say, I'm not bitter because of Sirius."

"Of course not. You have no reason to be bitter because of Black. No reason at all." Remus snorted.

"I mean it. It's all about that kid. Isn't it?" Remus stared at his classmate speechless. "The fact that Black is not himself is understandable, and no reason to worry about. He's recovering faster than anyone would wa... suspect." Snape was about saying 'want' but decided against it when he saw Remus' expression.

"So?"

"That kid is breaking your little team apart."

"Why are you telling me this? And you better have a damn good explanation, cause I'm freaking out here."

"Well. What if I said I want to help?" Remus tripped over a rock and fell face down in mud.

"Excuse me?"

"I wasn't going to, don't worry." Snape smirked. "Worth your reaction. Now shut the hell up and listen." He said pulling young werewolf by the collar. "I have no idea why I'm doing it, and I'll most certainly regret it, but keep an eye on Black. They're going to come and get him, and brainwash him to the very end. Believe me, they can. He'll either die or be theirs." Remus gaped. And paled.

"They... you mean those who did that to him?" The other boy nodded. "But why…"

"From the kindness of my heart." Werewolf gaped at the boy. 'I'm surprised that words such as 'kindness' and 'heart' exist in your dictionary.' He almost said, but refrained himself. 'No point in being mean, he's trying to help.'

"Why are you doing it?" Remus whispered.

"Honestly? Because I pity him. He's not so bad after all, I mean I don't entirely remember why we were fighting and... It's not your damn business anyway." Snape snapped ('how appropriate') and turned his back on Remus. "If you mention anything to anybody, I'll kill you, understood?"

"Whatever." That was definitely enough to blow Remus' mind of to a distant planet. And show him new depth of his new discovered feelings. 'Why does he suddenly care about Sirius? Shut the fuck up Moony. You don't want to know.'

###

He tastes so sweet. I want to keep Him forever with me. He has to be forever with me. This feels so good...

###

"Remus is jealous."

"What?"

"Remus is jealous."

"I heard that. Of what?"

"Don't be dense, Prongsie."

"Don't. Call. Me. Prongsie."

"Whatever Prongsie." James threw a pillow on his girlfriend and started to tickle her mercilessly. After a while he remembered what she was saying and let her go. Luckily for them they were sitting in deserted dormitory, so nobody could hear the Head Girl's choice words for the moment.

"Of what?"

"You shouldn't have interrupted me, you would've known now." Lily crossed her arms and stood up.

"Damn. Liliensie, please?"

"Lilie-what?"

"Liliensie."

"You're going to regret it! Remus apparently wants one of them. He started acting odd when he saw them for the first time, so it can be Sirius as well as that kid. But he can't have neither, so he's depressed. I'd say it's the kid, cause he could have had Sirius before but he didn't act like it."

"Where the Remus-likes-boys idea came from?"

"Boy you can be dense sometimes. I never said he was gay. Not quite."

"How can you be not quite gay? You either are or not."

"What were you doing when brains were at sale? He was clear on that matter." James gave her a blank stare. "Right. You were too busy staring at me you didn't notice? That's flattering."

"Liliensie..."

"As I was saying" Lily continued speaking to James though the Head Boy was pulling himself off the floor "Remus clearly stated he didn't mind having a relationship with a boy."

"I don't remember him stating that."

"Remind me again, why am I continuing our relationship?"

"Cause I'm gorgeous?"

"You're lucky I'm not after intelligent conversations."

"What d'you mean you're not?"

"It's all about sex babe."

"If it's all about sex why me not Sirius?"

"I thought I could check him out later, but now I've lost my chances so I'm stuck with you." James was lost for words. "Anyway, to remind you. We saw Remus snogging that kid..."

"Sirius' kid?!" James yelled caught by surprise. Lily rolled her eyes in despair.

"Of course not, moron. That Ravenclaw... what's his name... Timothy?"

"Remus snogged him?!"

"You know I'm going to talk to Peter if you don't mind then." But as she got up James caught her around the waist and pulled onto his lap.

"First I'll remind you why you're stuck with me." He whispered seductively in the girl's ear.