As again the characters are not mine. They are JKR's.
This chapter is also dedicated to SIG, the wonder that is her. :)
- Chapter 2 -
Remus walked back outside to pick the carrots he had been going to collect when Sirius had arrived. Although he had been expecting the other man's arrival it had still come as a shock. The whole situation was bizarre. Here was the man he had spent twelve years hating and a year missing, yet they slipped back into the old banter without a hitch. He had missed Sirius, wanted him to get in contact. He was all that was left of the time in his life when things had been perfect. His best friend. He could tell that Sirius was worried about Remus accepting him again, going into the old friendship, but there was nothing to worry about. Remus smiled. He was just happy to have his best friend back.
Remus sensed Sirius would sleep for hours so he put on a slow baking casserole. Years of depending on just himself had leant him half decent cooking skills, but he was no gourmet chef. With a glance up the stairs Remus settled down with a book in the slanting afternoon sun.
A few hours later a creak of the upstairs floorboards alerted Remus that Sirius was awake. He smiled. The casserole was just ready. Leave it to Sirius to smell food. It was good to have company again, Remus had not realised how lonely he had been feeling until the owl had arrived from Dumbledore, asking him if he minded Sirius staying with him. As if he could ever say no.
Sirius climbed down the stairs just as Remus was dishing out the food. He glanced about himself slightly nervously as any new guest in someone else's house will. Remus carried the plates over to the table, catching Sirius' attention. The silence between them as they sat was companionable, pleasant even. The sun has just disappeared over the horizon and dusk was setting in. The light in the small kitchen was a dusky reddish- blue.
Remus picked up the dishes and carried them to the sink. Sirius stood up too.
"I'll wash." He stated, claiming the spot in front of the sink. Remus objected, more for form than anything else, but Sirius insisted. The dishes were done in record time and the two wizards retired to the living room, Sirius sat down on the sofa, noticing the huge collection of books, sparking a memory of a young Remus telling him how he would one day own the largest library in the UK. Remus curled with his feet beneath him on the armchair. Finally Sirius spoke.
"So I guess Dumbledore filled you in on what happened." Sirius had somehow wanted to avoid this very discussion. He wanted to feel as though he had not come to Remus out of an obligation to Dumbledore but rather out of a heartfelt desire to be with his friend. He wanted Remus to know how much just sitting with him meant, but the danger newly resurrected in the world was too real.
Remus shifted so he was facing Sirius more. "Not really. He mentioned that things had gotten very bad, but explained that you would fill me in." Sirius took a deep breath and told Remus everything that had happened in the last year. Remus knew some, but the details of Harry's ordeal brought a tear to his eye.
"God Sirius, is he OK?" Sirius could see a look on Remus' face that his own must have held on hearing the same story. Sirius bowed his head, again thinking of the look on Harry's face. The fear, the pain, the aged eyes of the fourteen year-old boy. He could not forget it.
Remus' voice cut through the pained silence. "He's so like James." Sirius looked up to see Remus staring at him.
"He is. It's heartbreaking to look at him sometimes. Lily's eyes and the image of James." Sirius looked out of the window at the treetops.
"He's so clever too. He doesn't know his own potential Sirius. I taught him and I was amazed with his grasp of magic far above his years. He's like James that way too." The two men sat in silence for a few minutes before Remus seemed to shake off the gloom and stood up to light the room's candles. He pulled heavy curtains across the windows so no light escaped.
"So tell me. What has Dumbledore arranged? What is everyone else doing?" Sirius told Remus about Dumbledore's instructions to everyone, scowling when he came to the part where he and Snape had shaken hands. Remus laughed.
"I'd have loved to see the look on his face. And yours for that matter!" Remus' grin was infectious and Sirius felt himself grin back.
"I bet you would. He's a slimy git." Remus laughed harder, feeling for all the world like they were back in the common room in Hogwarts. Sirius was more sombre now, his inherent intensity that had once been tempered by a joking, prankish nature, was now fiercer. Well, twelve years in Azkaban will do that. But under it all he was still the same Sirius, foolish, impulsive, but funny and the ever the loyal friend.
They talked through into the night. Sirius spun tales of his travels, avoiding detection, but still keeping an eye on Harry. Remus knew half of the mad duels, daring escapes and passionate romances were made up, but Sirius knew he knew and it was a joke between them for Remus to pick the truth. Remus told of the things he had done since leaving Hogwarts, but neither of them spoke about how Remus had filled the twelve years Sirius had been in Azkaban. Remus could tell that Sirius wanted to ask, but he held back. That was for another time.
In the early hours the two men, one with hair and eyes as black as his name, and the other with greying golden hair and amber eyes, climbed the stairs up and parted into two rooms to sleep. Remus could hear Sirius rustling around in the next room as he stripped down to a pair of plain black boxer shorts and climbed into bed. It was comforting to have someone else in the house and, being honest with himself, even more comforting that the someone was Sirius. He closed his eyes and slipped into a deep sleep.
Remus snapped awake. He had been dreaming that someone was calling his name, but on waking he could hear Sirius was in fact shouting, his name amongst others. He scrambled from the sheets and ran through to the small spare room.
"Sirius?" He asked, wondering what could be wrong. He paused. Sirius was asleep. He was trashing about, the sheets wrapped round his gaunt frame, skin painfully white in his white shorts.
"Remus, Remus you have to stop him... Peter... It's Peter................ Oh God Remus Peter............... Harry. Protect Harry." Then Sirius moaned. The sound chilled Remus to the bone. It was a primal sound of sheer anguish. Remus could take not more and sat on the bed to shake Sirius, waking him up.. The sweat slicked man jerked awake, eyes wide. His stare fixed on Remus and he moaned again.
"Remus, you have to get to Godrics Hollow. It's Peter, Peter's the spy, he's going to kill Harry. Remus... James and Lily. You have to go, go." Remus shook Sirius slightly again. Sirius' hands were on Remus' shoulders and he could feel how clammy they were. He looked straight into the mad eyes.
"No Sirius. It's too late remember?" He spoke softly, using all his teaching experience to exude a calm. "James and Lily are dead. Harry's alive. That was twelve years ago." Sirius' eyes stopped flashing as Remus' words sank in. His face crumbled. Remus could tell that Sirius was trying not to cry in front of him so he wrapped his arms around his shoulders, giving Sirius all the comfort he could muster and allowing him to cry without embarrassment. Sirius sat with his head on Remus' shoulders for what seemed like an age before sitting back up.
"It was me Remus. I did it. I killed them." Sirius' jaw was clenched, the self-loathing clear on his face. "If it wasn't for me Harry would still have his parents, probably brothers and sisters too." Remus shook his head.
"No Sirius. You know that isn't true. If you had ever suspected Peter you would not have suggested him as the Secret Keeper. No one suspected him. I didn't, you didn't, James didn't. Not even Dumbledore. It is not your fault, it never was." Remus could see that he was getting through to Sirius. He lay him down on the bed and lay next to him, his front to Sirius' back. "Come on, you can't keep blaming yourself. Go to sleep. I'll be here." Sirius reached over and pulled Remus' arms round him. Remus was slightly shocked but relaxed as Sirius wrapped his own arms over the top. Slowly they both slipped asleep again.
The next two weeks passed quickly. The two men settled into a routine with each other, one washing, one drying, sharing the cooking and household jobs. Remus showed Sirius how he grew vegetables, explaining that he bought everything else from Kinlochard. Sirius had no nightmares a severe as the one on the first night, but a couple of times Remus was woken by the deep frightened voice and the two men would go back to sleep in Remus' bed, it being a double.
The night of the full moon approached and Remus could feel the wolf rising within him. Having Sirius with him again was a reminder of the wandering they used to do back in school. Sirius was obviously reminded of the same thing. The day before the moon rose full he sat next to Remus as the lighter man read.
"What do you do on the full moon." Remus laid down his book and looked up at Sirius. He looked slightly nervous.
"Well, I have the basement. I lock myself in. Plus even if got out and ran all night it's too far to the village." Sirius nodded as though he knew this. He cleared his throat a slightly. Remus waited.
"I was wondering... um... well I'll be about and as you said, even if you run all night you'll never reach the village so... do you want to go out instead?" Remus could tell Sirius had been very nervous about asking. It was strange. Sirius never usually was nervous about anything. Remus had to keep reminding himself that "usually" did not really apply any more. Thinking back to the question he was unsure. Should they risk going out? Sirius could control him in most situations and it was too far to the village. It would be fantastic to run again. To run with the pack, even if the pack was just the two of them now. Remus could feel his wolf self pushing for this, wanting to be released, to be set free. He read books more closer to the full moon because otherwise he was prone to snapping, growling and getting riled up over nothing. This would give him a huge realise and also do Sirius good. It was that thought that finally decided him.
"I think we should." He said simply. Sirius broke into a huge grin. He stood up and went back out into the kitchen where he had been studying "Counter curses" on the table. Remus grinned too as he left. Having Sirius here was great. He found it hard to remember what it had been like when he was by himself, the only contact when he went to buy more food and supplies. Remus stretched out and delved back into his book. Tomorrow the Marauder's pack would run again.
This chapter is also dedicated to SIG, the wonder that is her. :)
- Chapter 2 -
Remus walked back outside to pick the carrots he had been going to collect when Sirius had arrived. Although he had been expecting the other man's arrival it had still come as a shock. The whole situation was bizarre. Here was the man he had spent twelve years hating and a year missing, yet they slipped back into the old banter without a hitch. He had missed Sirius, wanted him to get in contact. He was all that was left of the time in his life when things had been perfect. His best friend. He could tell that Sirius was worried about Remus accepting him again, going into the old friendship, but there was nothing to worry about. Remus smiled. He was just happy to have his best friend back.
Remus sensed Sirius would sleep for hours so he put on a slow baking casserole. Years of depending on just himself had leant him half decent cooking skills, but he was no gourmet chef. With a glance up the stairs Remus settled down with a book in the slanting afternoon sun.
A few hours later a creak of the upstairs floorboards alerted Remus that Sirius was awake. He smiled. The casserole was just ready. Leave it to Sirius to smell food. It was good to have company again, Remus had not realised how lonely he had been feeling until the owl had arrived from Dumbledore, asking him if he minded Sirius staying with him. As if he could ever say no.
Sirius climbed down the stairs just as Remus was dishing out the food. He glanced about himself slightly nervously as any new guest in someone else's house will. Remus carried the plates over to the table, catching Sirius' attention. The silence between them as they sat was companionable, pleasant even. The sun has just disappeared over the horizon and dusk was setting in. The light in the small kitchen was a dusky reddish- blue.
Remus picked up the dishes and carried them to the sink. Sirius stood up too.
"I'll wash." He stated, claiming the spot in front of the sink. Remus objected, more for form than anything else, but Sirius insisted. The dishes were done in record time and the two wizards retired to the living room, Sirius sat down on the sofa, noticing the huge collection of books, sparking a memory of a young Remus telling him how he would one day own the largest library in the UK. Remus curled with his feet beneath him on the armchair. Finally Sirius spoke.
"So I guess Dumbledore filled you in on what happened." Sirius had somehow wanted to avoid this very discussion. He wanted to feel as though he had not come to Remus out of an obligation to Dumbledore but rather out of a heartfelt desire to be with his friend. He wanted Remus to know how much just sitting with him meant, but the danger newly resurrected in the world was too real.
Remus shifted so he was facing Sirius more. "Not really. He mentioned that things had gotten very bad, but explained that you would fill me in." Sirius took a deep breath and told Remus everything that had happened in the last year. Remus knew some, but the details of Harry's ordeal brought a tear to his eye.
"God Sirius, is he OK?" Sirius could see a look on Remus' face that his own must have held on hearing the same story. Sirius bowed his head, again thinking of the look on Harry's face. The fear, the pain, the aged eyes of the fourteen year-old boy. He could not forget it.
Remus' voice cut through the pained silence. "He's so like James." Sirius looked up to see Remus staring at him.
"He is. It's heartbreaking to look at him sometimes. Lily's eyes and the image of James." Sirius looked out of the window at the treetops.
"He's so clever too. He doesn't know his own potential Sirius. I taught him and I was amazed with his grasp of magic far above his years. He's like James that way too." The two men sat in silence for a few minutes before Remus seemed to shake off the gloom and stood up to light the room's candles. He pulled heavy curtains across the windows so no light escaped.
"So tell me. What has Dumbledore arranged? What is everyone else doing?" Sirius told Remus about Dumbledore's instructions to everyone, scowling when he came to the part where he and Snape had shaken hands. Remus laughed.
"I'd have loved to see the look on his face. And yours for that matter!" Remus' grin was infectious and Sirius felt himself grin back.
"I bet you would. He's a slimy git." Remus laughed harder, feeling for all the world like they were back in the common room in Hogwarts. Sirius was more sombre now, his inherent intensity that had once been tempered by a joking, prankish nature, was now fiercer. Well, twelve years in Azkaban will do that. But under it all he was still the same Sirius, foolish, impulsive, but funny and the ever the loyal friend.
They talked through into the night. Sirius spun tales of his travels, avoiding detection, but still keeping an eye on Harry. Remus knew half of the mad duels, daring escapes and passionate romances were made up, but Sirius knew he knew and it was a joke between them for Remus to pick the truth. Remus told of the things he had done since leaving Hogwarts, but neither of them spoke about how Remus had filled the twelve years Sirius had been in Azkaban. Remus could tell that Sirius wanted to ask, but he held back. That was for another time.
In the early hours the two men, one with hair and eyes as black as his name, and the other with greying golden hair and amber eyes, climbed the stairs up and parted into two rooms to sleep. Remus could hear Sirius rustling around in the next room as he stripped down to a pair of plain black boxer shorts and climbed into bed. It was comforting to have someone else in the house and, being honest with himself, even more comforting that the someone was Sirius. He closed his eyes and slipped into a deep sleep.
Remus snapped awake. He had been dreaming that someone was calling his name, but on waking he could hear Sirius was in fact shouting, his name amongst others. He scrambled from the sheets and ran through to the small spare room.
"Sirius?" He asked, wondering what could be wrong. He paused. Sirius was asleep. He was trashing about, the sheets wrapped round his gaunt frame, skin painfully white in his white shorts.
"Remus, Remus you have to stop him... Peter... It's Peter................ Oh God Remus Peter............... Harry. Protect Harry." Then Sirius moaned. The sound chilled Remus to the bone. It was a primal sound of sheer anguish. Remus could take not more and sat on the bed to shake Sirius, waking him up.. The sweat slicked man jerked awake, eyes wide. His stare fixed on Remus and he moaned again.
"Remus, you have to get to Godrics Hollow. It's Peter, Peter's the spy, he's going to kill Harry. Remus... James and Lily. You have to go, go." Remus shook Sirius slightly again. Sirius' hands were on Remus' shoulders and he could feel how clammy they were. He looked straight into the mad eyes.
"No Sirius. It's too late remember?" He spoke softly, using all his teaching experience to exude a calm. "James and Lily are dead. Harry's alive. That was twelve years ago." Sirius' eyes stopped flashing as Remus' words sank in. His face crumbled. Remus could tell that Sirius was trying not to cry in front of him so he wrapped his arms around his shoulders, giving Sirius all the comfort he could muster and allowing him to cry without embarrassment. Sirius sat with his head on Remus' shoulders for what seemed like an age before sitting back up.
"It was me Remus. I did it. I killed them." Sirius' jaw was clenched, the self-loathing clear on his face. "If it wasn't for me Harry would still have his parents, probably brothers and sisters too." Remus shook his head.
"No Sirius. You know that isn't true. If you had ever suspected Peter you would not have suggested him as the Secret Keeper. No one suspected him. I didn't, you didn't, James didn't. Not even Dumbledore. It is not your fault, it never was." Remus could see that he was getting through to Sirius. He lay him down on the bed and lay next to him, his front to Sirius' back. "Come on, you can't keep blaming yourself. Go to sleep. I'll be here." Sirius reached over and pulled Remus' arms round him. Remus was slightly shocked but relaxed as Sirius wrapped his own arms over the top. Slowly they both slipped asleep again.
The next two weeks passed quickly. The two men settled into a routine with each other, one washing, one drying, sharing the cooking and household jobs. Remus showed Sirius how he grew vegetables, explaining that he bought everything else from Kinlochard. Sirius had no nightmares a severe as the one on the first night, but a couple of times Remus was woken by the deep frightened voice and the two men would go back to sleep in Remus' bed, it being a double.
The night of the full moon approached and Remus could feel the wolf rising within him. Having Sirius with him again was a reminder of the wandering they used to do back in school. Sirius was obviously reminded of the same thing. The day before the moon rose full he sat next to Remus as the lighter man read.
"What do you do on the full moon." Remus laid down his book and looked up at Sirius. He looked slightly nervous.
"Well, I have the basement. I lock myself in. Plus even if got out and ran all night it's too far to the village." Sirius nodded as though he knew this. He cleared his throat a slightly. Remus waited.
"I was wondering... um... well I'll be about and as you said, even if you run all night you'll never reach the village so... do you want to go out instead?" Remus could tell Sirius had been very nervous about asking. It was strange. Sirius never usually was nervous about anything. Remus had to keep reminding himself that "usually" did not really apply any more. Thinking back to the question he was unsure. Should they risk going out? Sirius could control him in most situations and it was too far to the village. It would be fantastic to run again. To run with the pack, even if the pack was just the two of them now. Remus could feel his wolf self pushing for this, wanting to be released, to be set free. He read books more closer to the full moon because otherwise he was prone to snapping, growling and getting riled up over nothing. This would give him a huge realise and also do Sirius good. It was that thought that finally decided him.
"I think we should." He said simply. Sirius broke into a huge grin. He stood up and went back out into the kitchen where he had been studying "Counter curses" on the table. Remus grinned too as he left. Having Sirius here was great. He found it hard to remember what it had been like when he was by himself, the only contact when he went to buy more food and supplies. Remus stretched out and delved back into his book. Tomorrow the Marauder's pack would run again.
