The Marauders At Hogwarts

by Dragon Mistress

COMPLETED & WRITTEN PRE-OOTP Seven years at school with the Marauders! What will happen? Nutty pranks and twisted love triangles! Warning: Eventual SBRL SLASH

7. Year 7 Together At Last

Disclaimer: See the first chapter.... I also don't own the Study of Ancient Runes teacher, Professor Hino (Sailor Mars), or the owner of 'Miss Kaiou's Fine Magical Jewelry' (Sailor Neptune), who are both owned by Naoko Takeuchi.

WARNINGS: Just to remind you, there's going to be Remus/Sirius slash! Possibly more involved stuff ('specially since Siri is a sex-deprived seventeen-going-on-eighteen-year-old), but if you read my explanation last chapter you'd know I'm not capable of writing this stuff.

New Word!: Parachronism! It means 'erroneously placing an event or events at a later date than they originally occurred' (along those lines, that's my translation of the definition). It describes my story perfectly! By 1981 Jim and Lil were parents! But as I didn't find this out until I had.... FOUR chapters written and put up, it's far too late to change it. I apologize.

Credits: I must absolutely thank Princess Miyako for being my beta-reader for this chapter! So, thank you soooo much, Liz! ^.^ Kudos and M&M's and Snickers and all sorts of chocolately lovely desserts to you! ^.^

~*~*~*~*~

Year 7 - Together At Last

~July 2, 1981 - Remus' 17th Birthday - the Potter home~

"Where's Siri?" Peter wondered aloud, starting on his fifth helping of coconut cream pie. "He's late! He *is* coming, isn't he?"
"Don't panic, Pete," James sighed irritably (Peter had been complaining for the past fifteen minutes). "He's not *that* late. And if I know him - which I do - he's not going to miss Remmie's party."
The words were barely out of his mouth when the sound of a distant, roaring motor reached their ears.
"What is *that*?" Grace asked, bewildered, going to the window.
Her question was soon answered. A huge black-and-chrome motorcycle roared up the street and skidded to a halt at the foot of the Potters' driveway (making all the Muggle neighbors lean out their doors and windows to see what all the noise was about). When the dust cleared, they were able to see a very tall, familiar figure, dressed in jeans and a leather jacket, dismounting the motorcycle. The person took off his helmet and shook out a long mane of black hair. It was Sirius, of course.
Ignoring the neighbors' stares, Sirius reached into one of the bike's saddlebags and pulled out a present, than tucked it under his arm and sauntered up to the house. James held the door open for him, sniggering.
"Happy birthday, Remmie!" Sirius said, planting a sloppy kiss on his boyfriend's mouth and thrusting the present into his hands. "Sweet Seventeen!"
"That's *sixteen*, Siri," Lily giggled.
"Every year's sweet with Remmie," Sirius said happily, making Remus blush.
"Siri, *what* is *that*?" James asked, still leaning out the door to goggle at the motorcycle.
"Like my present?" Sirius chuckled. "Gram gave it to me as a late birthday present - said she's had it waiting for me in the garage since nearly Christmas."
"Your *gram* bought you that?" Remus marveled, joining James at the door to admire the bike.
"Does she *want* you to get killed?' Lily teased.
"Probably," shrugged Sirius, "But that's besides the point. Where's the food?"
Remus rolled his eyes. "Well, we had coconut cream pie - yes, I know you hate it - don't fret, Pete ate almost all of it while we were waiting for you. What took so long?"
"My sis had a cricket cornered in the basement and *insisted* that I kill it for her," Sirius said. "It's probably still on the bottom of my boot, if you want to see."
"Um, no thanks," Remus said, looking a tad green. "Let's have cake instead."

Lily brought out the cake (which she had made mostly herself; James had been more of a hindrance than a help), a vast chocolate layer cake with dinosaur sprinkles and fancy green script which proclaimed 'Happy 17th Remmie!'.
"Dinosaur sprinkles?" Peter asked skeptically, and they all giggled.
"I ran out of chocolate jimmies," Lily said apologetically. "These are the only things we had left in the cupboard."
"Don't fret, Lil," Remus said. "I don't mind dinosaurs."
"Make a wish, Remmie," James urged.
"Okay. I wish next year Lil has chocolate jimmies."
"Remmie!" Lily cried.
"Okay, okay," Remus sniggered, and closed his eyes for a moment. "Um - okay. I've got it." He opened his eyes, leaned forward, and blew as hard as he could, successfully extinguishing all the candles at once.
"What did you wish for?" James asked as Lily began cutting the cake. "For Snape to get expelled, I hope."
"He can't tell you, or it won't come true!" Grace said.
"Oh, it was just a silly wish anyway," Remus said, accepting a slice of cake from Lily. "But now that you mention it, Snape getting expelled would make my day.... or year..."
They sat and chewed in silence for a few minutes, Lily watching them anxiously. "Is it alright?" she asked.
"Heavenly," Remus said.
"Chocolatey good," said Grace.
"Delicious," said Peter.
"Smashing," Sirius added.
"Corking," James finished. "You can cook for me anytime."

~*~*~*~*~

Around 11 o'clock the party started to wind down. Grace was the first to leave, saying she was going to visit her aunt the next day and she needed to get up early. Peter volunteered to walk her home (she didn't live far from James).
Sirius yawned and stood. "D'you want a ride home, Remmie?"
"On that... thing?" Remus asked, paling as he jerked a thumb in the direction of Sirius' bike.
"Why not?" Sirius asked, looking put out. "I promise I'll be careful..."
Remus sighed, but he couldn't think up a good argument. "All right.... if you *promise*..."
Sirius winked at James and slipped an arm around Remus' waist. "We'll be fine.... Lil?"
"Three can't fit on that deathtrap," Lily replied, then blushed. "Besides, I'm not, um, I'm not ready to go home yet..." she trailed, glancing at James, who was looking at the ceiling and blushing as well.
"Ah," said Sirius, and he and Remus exchanged an amused look. "Looks like it's just you and me, Remmie."
They rounded up Remus' presents and a few extra slices of cake, bade Lily and James goodbye, and walked out to Sirius' motorcycle. Sirius carefully packed Remus' things into the saddlebags, while Remus paced around the bike and eyed it suspiciously.
"We have a problem, Siri."
"What's that?"
"There's only *one* helmet."
Sirius shrugged and handed it to Remus. "I'll be okay. It's you I'm worried about."
Remus was touched, but insisted, "If you ever want me to go riding with you again you'll -"
"I will," Sirius said, smiling. "Mum. Let me help you with that." He carefully adjusted the straps, winding it through the metal rings. "Feel okay?"
"Uh, I guess," Remus said, not used to wearing a helmet at all.
"This too," Sirius said, holding up his leather jacket. He helped Remus into it, then zipped it up and kissed Remus' nose. "In case you go flying." He laughed at the look on Remus' face. "I'm kidding, I'm kidding, you won't go flying."
"What about you?"
"I won't go flying either."
"Okay...." Remus said, still having some misgivings about it all. "Um, who gets on first?"
"Me," Sirius answered, knocking the kickstand back up and throwing one long leg across the bike. "Now you. See those pegs? Your feet got there, okay?"
"All right," Remus said uncertainly, clambering up.
"Put your arms around my waist. Hold on tight."
"Okay," Remus agreed, sliding his arms around Sirius' waist. Sirius started up the bike (making several of the neighbors open their windows and yell about the noise, but the bike was so loud Remus couldn't make out what they were saying), and off they went.

It was better than Remus could have imagined. He held on to Sirius as tight as he could (without cutting off his air) and rested his head against Sirius' back, watching the scenery flash by. It was almost like flying, but somehow not as scary. For someone who hadn't had a motorcycle very long, Sirius was a superb rider. In no time at all they were back at the Lupin house, which was dark except for the porch light.
Sirius helped Remus remove the helmet, then kissed him gently. "Did you like your first motorcycle ride?"
"Yes, very much," Remus said softly. He leaned up and kissed Sirius' cheek. "Thank you."
"Very welcome," Sirius said, helping him carry his things up to the house. "Where is everyone?"
"Dad and Mum went to visit my cousin, who's in the hospital," Remus said. "Gill's staying over his girlfriend's, Henri's in France, and Serena is at a sleepover."
"Oh."
They paused at the front door. Remus fumbled with his keys, finally found the right one, and opened the door. He flicked on a few lights and turned to Sirius shyly. "Would you... like to stay here tonight?"
"Remmie! Are you trying to seduce me?" Sirius teased, making Remus blush. "As much as I'd love to wake up beside you tomorrow morning, I can't. Auntie and Gram'll wonder what's keeping me."
"Okay," Remus said, both relieved and disappointed. "Then I'll see you tomorrow?"
"You know you will," Sirius said, giving him a gentle kiss. "Happy birthday, Remmie. G'night."
"G'night, Siri-love," Remus replied softly. He stood at the door and watched Sirius put on his jacket and helmet, and waved to him. Siri waved back and was gone.

~Remus' Journal - July 3~

-It's probably a good thing Siri couldn't say last night. Who knows what things could have led to. Oooh. I don't think I'm ready for *that* just yet. And Mum's likely to barge in on me tomorrow to get me up - I don't even want to *think* of how she'd react to seeing me and Siri in bed together..... probably hex us both seven ways to Sunday.... Eh, I think I'll be waiting a long time before Siri and I progress past the kissing stage... I'm blushing just thinking about it..... -

~August 12 - Florean Fortiscue's~

"Are you telling me," James demanded, "That we can even label *people* moving around on the map?"
Remus nodded, trying to catch a drip of his strawberry-peanut-butter sundae. "That's what I'm telling you."
"Unbelievable," James said, stunned. "Good thing you read that book, Remmie, I never would have."
"But it's thanks to you I found it," Remus pointed out.
"True."
"What else can we do with this thing?" Sirius asked.
"We can make *invisible* people show up on it, too," Remus said, casting a meaningful glance at James.
"You mean even the cloak won't hide me if you have the map?" James pouted.
"Oh, you'll be invisible," Remus said cheerfully. "But anyone looking at the map'll see you wandering around."
"Damn."
"But we can't start until we think up a code," Remus said. "Because we can't leave it lying around with secret passages on it only half done."
"What kind of a code?" Peter asked.
"Passwords, or pass-phrases, if you get the idea, that will allow us to reveal the map's contents, and wipe it clean once we're done. After it's all finished, the passwords will keep it so you can disguise the map as a regular old piece of parchment."
"You've really done your homework, Remmie," Sirius said, shaking his head. "Bloody fantastic."
"So what are we going to use?" Peter asked.
"I have an idea....." James said, exchanging a glance with Sirius. "Siri, remember the treehouse?"
Sirius sniggered. "You bet I do."
"Treehouse?" Remus and Peter asked in unison.
"We had this treehouse when we were little," James said, smiling. "Siri's dad built it, and my dad put all kinds of enchantments on it... expanding the inside and stuff like that."
"Then he decided we needed a password," Sirius added. "After my sister came in and turned it into a - eh - tea party for her friends...."
"So he let us make up the password," James said, "And enchanted the door so it wouldn't open unless you had the right password."
"What was it?" Remus asked, interested.
James and Sirius grinned at each other, then replied in unison : "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good."
"A perfect phrase for you two," Peter said.
"And a perfect phrase for all of us," Sirius said. "Will that do, Remmie?"
"Sure," Remus said. "And to close it.... I think 'Mischief Managed!' will do it."
"When do we get started?" Peter asked.
"Soon as we go across the street for parchment and ink," James smiled.

~August 14 - Peter's bedroom~

"Okay... Dumbledore's study is right there," James said to Sirius, who was bent low over the large piece of parchment that was to become their map, sketching.
"Right then..." Sirius mumbled, carefully adding in the door. "Am I doing this right?"
"Yeah, door behind the moving staircase," James said. "You've been there enough times, you should know."
"Look who's talking. You were with me all those times."
"Ah, shut up."
Remus leaned over Sirius' shoulder to see how far he had gotten. "Hey, that looks good."
"Nothing but the best," Sirius sighed, putting down his quill and rubbing his wrist. "Your turn, Jim. Where's the food, Pete?"
"Is that all you ever think about?" Remus sighed, but just then, there was a knock on the door and Peter's Aunt Helga entered with a tray heaped with cookies.
"Hungry, lads?" she asked cheerfully.
"Starving," Peter said gratefully, taking the tray from her. "Thanks, Auntie."
"Don't tell me you've left your homework this late," Aunt Helga said, noticing Remus, Sirius, and James bent over Peter's desk.
"No ma'am," Sirius replied charmingly. "This is... a side project."
"So ambitious," Aunt Helga marveled as she left the room.
"Ambitious but not in Slytherin, thank heavens," Remus said, rolling his eyes and making the others giggle.

~August 30 - the Blacks' back garden~

A hammock was such a nice place in the summer, Remus decided. The breeze in your hair and the sun on your face....
And, of course, your shirtless boyfriend squished in with you.
Remus giggled and squirmed in Sirius' arms as Sirius nuzzled his neck. "Siri! That *tickles*!"
"Ees nozzing like I would like to teekle you," Sirius said in an overdone French accent, making Remus giggle harder.
"Siri, we're going to fall out of this thing if you don't stop!" he cried.
"Well, if *you* didn't move around so much," Sirius teased.
"You *prefer* a cold fish?!"
"Remmie!" Sirius said, giving him a wide-eyed look of faux amazement.
"What?"
"That's the closest you've ever come to being suggestive," Sirius sniggered, and kissed his cheek. "You naughty wolf, you!"
Remus blushed, "Oh, I didn't mean it that way!"
"I think you owe me a kiss for insulting me!"
"Oh, you win," Remus said, leaning up to kiss Sirius' jaw. "Can I ask you something?"
"I'm ready now, if that's what you were going to ask," Sirius said with a licentious wink.
"Oh, not that!" Remus said, blushing (besides, that had been obvious for the past ten minutes). "Where is everyone? I don't fancy having your parents - or worse, your gram - just wander out here and happen to find us snogging in the hammock..."
Sirius rested his head on Remus' chest and held up his fingers, ticking off his family members. "Mum's visiting a friend who just had a baby. Dad's at work. Auntie and Gram went shopping. And Lyra dragged Brad off to help her pick out flowers or shoes or some such crap for their wedding. I think that's everyone. Oh. and Oberon's probably sleeping in my room." He paused, then said, "We've got the house to ourselves for at least another couple of hours......."
Knowing what he meant, Remus quickly shook his head. "No, Siri," he said softly. "I'm not ready for that yet. If we had.... um, if we made love, we'd be mated for life. And I don't want you to have to...... I don't know.... make such an important decision right now.""
"Okay," Sirius agreed, somewhat disappointed. "Your call."
They stayed silent for a little while, just enjoying the sunshine and each other's company. Remus absentmindedly ran a gentle finger over Sirius' back, tracing the scars he himself had put there. Tears pricked at his eyes at the memory and he forced himself to look up at the sky until they went away.

~September 3 - Study of Ancient Runes~

It was a bit sad to think that this was his last year at Hogwarts, Remus reflected as he sat carefully copying a chart of ancient Chinese symbols that Professor Hino had put up on the board. It was going to be weird not to be coming back next year. What would they all be doing by then? Remus didn't know (as much as he liked Divination, he was not a Seer), but he was going to do his best to make sure his and Sirius' future plans included each other....
Giving himself a quick shake, he brought himself back to the present. Daydreaming in class was *not* recommended. He had to get his top N.E.W.T.s if he ever wanted to be a professor.Well, he hadn't messed up - even in his momentary fugue state he had managed to copy down the Chinese characters perfectly. He hid a pleased smile behind his hand and cast a furtive glance around the classroom. Once again, he was the only Marauder in this class (Sirius hated runes, James claimed they were boring, and Peter claimed runes made his head hurt). Well, he supposed you could count Lily as sort of an unofficial Marauder, so okay, there were two in the class. Right now Lily was absentmindedly wiping a spot off her Head Girl badge with the hem of her robes.
Remus smiled. Lily as Head Girl - it had been just perfect. If anyone else had gotten it Remus would have demanded to know why. Lily was just the perfect Head Girl. And just luckily, James was Head Boy. Just another coincidence, but Remus supposed there'd be at least *one* Head Boy and Girl in the history of the school who stayed up late for snog sessions behind the greenhouses. He hid another smile, and turned back to the board, focusing more intently on Professor Hino's words. Professor Hino was a rather thin woman with pale skin and amazing hair. It was amazing not because of its length (though it hung to her knees), nor its perfect quality (though it was as straight as sticks and incredibly shiny - in Remus' opinion only Sirius had a more beautiful head of hair), but because of its color, which was a lovely deep plum color. Professor Hino insisted it was natural, but Remus had a sneaking suspicion she had been hit by a particularity stubborn curse at one point. He liked black better anyway.

The bell rang for lunch, and Lily and Remus wandered downstairs to the Gryffindor table, animatedly discussing their class, and joined James, Sirius, Peter, and Grace at the end of the table.
"You're never going to believe who I just saw your sister with, Remus," Grace said.
"If it's Bobby Bennett again...." Remus grumbled.
"No. It's Grub Jointly. From Slytherin."
Everyone made a disgusted face. "Are you *sure*, Grace?" Remus asked.
"Of course I'm sure!" she replied, nettled. "D'you think I could mistake a face like *that*?"
"No, I suppose not," Remus said apologetically. "I'm sorry." He frowned in the direction of the Slytherin table. "They're all such a nasty lot. I really wish she'd open her eyes and look before she leaps."
"Sirius, whatever happened between you two?" Grace asked curiously.
Sirius arched a slender eyebrow. "Nothing happened - and I regret every second I spent with her - no offense, Remmie."
"Not at all," Remus replied. "I'm her *brother* and I regret half the time I've spent with her."

~September 6 - Gryffindor Tower, Seventh Year Boys' dorm~

It was a miserable day outside, and the Marauders were taking advantage of the boring Sunday afternoon to work on their map. Remus was sketching now, while Sirius carefully recited the dimensions of the Astronomy Tower, tapping each line with his wand. James was frowning over 'Ancient Map-Making', still struggling with the concept of making people appear on the map.
"Boy, I hope you know how to do this labeling thing, Remmie."
"I think I've got it," Remus said calmly, sitting back and watching Sirius carefully enchanting the tower. "You just concentrate on making invisible people show up too."
"Will do."
Sirius finished enchanting the tower, and stretched. "You know, we ought to take this out for a test run soon as we figure out that people thing."
"Like now," Remus said calmly, touching his wand to the parchment and murmuring a few quick words. "Done."
"That was fast," Sirius said, gaping.
"It's actually an easy spell," Remus said, picking up the map. "Now, people'll only show up on the parts of the map we have finished... so, since, for instance - we haven't finished the library yet. So every teacher could be hiding in the library to ambush us and we'd never know... but we *have* finished this floor - so... come on..."
They left the common room, and Remus unfolded the map once the Fat Lady swung shut behind them. "See?"
On the map appeared four tiny dots, labeled 'Remus Lupin', 'Sirius Black', 'James Potter', and 'Peter Pettigrew'. And just behind the dots was a thin line with one thick piece indicating an entrance. Just next to this thick piece appeared curly green writing, reading, 'To Gryffindor Tower'.
But that wasn't all. They hadn't completed much on their map yet (just vague indications on each floor of where everything was supposed to go), but in the Great Hall they could see dots labeled 'Minerva McGonagall' and 'Albus Dumbledore' side-by-side. 'Rei Hino' was currently in her office, and 'Argus Filch' was lurking near the dungeons. And yet another dot indicated that 'Rubeus Hagrid' was in the Owlery.
"This is *incredible, Remmie," James whispered, pushing his slipping glasses back up his nose. "God, I could *kiss* you."
"So could I, and I think I will," Sirius said, putting an arm around Remus' shoulder and kissing his cheek. "What else can it do?"
"Well, let's see if your Password Charm worked," Remus said, turning towards the Fat Lady. And sure enough, the password, 'Peanut Crisp', appeared in curly green writing in front of the portrait.
"Good job, Siri," Peter said. "Let's check some more!"
So they trooped down to the third floor, and stopped by the statue of the one-eyed witch. The tiny ink Sirius tapped the statue with his wand and a speech balloon appeared over his head, reading, 'Dissendium!'.
"You know, we could get in big trouble with this," Peter said, but still unable to keep the impressed note out of his voice. "This is *incredible*."
"More proud work by Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs," James said. "Hell, we could win an award for inventing something like this."
"Maybe not," Remus said, tapping the map with his wand. "'Mischief Managed'! Imagine if some Dark wizards got a hold on something like this."
"True, true," James sighed as they started back up to the seventh floor.

~September 20 - Great Hall~

"Quidditch tryouts are day after next," James announced at dinner, wearily sinking into a seat. Remus' heart went out to him. All his responsibilities as Head Boy, and all the homework their teachers had piled on them, now with Quidditch weighing on him as well, was sure to make him busy enough for two Jameses.
"Fancy coming out, Siri?" James asked, ladling chicken soup into his bowl. "We've got to have a new Keeper, and a new Beater as well."
Sirius shrugged. "I might," he said through a mouthful of noodles. "What do you think, Remmie?"
"With a thick head like yours, I suggest you become a Beater," Remus said, not looking up from his Charms work.
"Hey! I'm not thick-headed!"
"Sometimes you are."
Sirius started to reply, but James cut him off. "Sorry to interrupt this little lovers' quarrel, but we were talking about *Quidditch*......"
"Right," Sirius replied. "I'll think about it, Jim, but I dunno. Watching Quidditch is one thing... but playing it is another thing entirely."
"Suit yourself," James replied, then lowered his voice. "I figured it out."
"What?" Peter asked.
"How to make invisible people appear on the map," James said. "I managed to get a book out of the library last night while Lil and I were up there doing homework, and I copied it all down."
"Brilliant, Jim!" Sirius said. "We can do that when we get upstairs.... I'm sure our 'precious' homework won't mind waiting a few minutes."
They finished dinner rather hastily and hurried up to Gryffindor Tower. James pulled the map out from its hiding space under his Quidditch robes, then rummaged in his bag and pulled out one of his notebooks. He flipped rapidly through it, paused, and grinned. "Okay. We're in business. I solemnly swear that I am up to no good!"
He took out his wand and tapped the parchment. Ink lines began to appear and spread, stretching into their partially-completed map. "Okay..." he murmured softly. "Let's see..."
He held his wand to the parchment and murmured the spell softly, reading it from his notebook. When it was done, he tapped the parchment three times and murmured, "Fini!"
"Did it work?" Peter asked.
"Let's see," James said, digging the Invisibility Cloak out of his trunk and disappearing from sight as he put it on. "Okay," his voice said from their left. "I'll go into the common room - keep an eye on the map."
The door swung open and shut, and Sirius, Remus, and Peter bent low over the map. And sure enough, heading downstairs..... walking around the common room.... and heading back up the stairs was a dot labeled 'James Potter'. The door opened and closed again, and then an anxious-looking James appeared out of thin air. "Did it work?"
"Brilliant, bloody brilliant, Prongs, old man," Sirius said, astounded. "That was perfect."
James beamed and joined them on the floor beside his bed. "It worked?"
"Of course it did," Remus said, smiling. "Incredible, Jim!"
"Yes, really neat," Peter added enthusiastically.
The four boys looked down at their map, frankly glowing with pride. Just to think they had done this all by themselves.... it wasn't likely there were many seventh years around who could. But then, there were precious few people who became Animagi at fifteen, Remus reminded himself.

~October 12 - History Of Magic~

Well, Sirius had ended up going out for the Gryffindor Quidditch team, and was now the new Beater (replacing Roger Wentworth, who had graduated last year). This was a rather frightening prospect, considering the possibility that Sirius might try hitting Bludgers at Snape and his greasy friends during games. But it was not as horrid as having Sirius on the same team as James. They goofed off a lot - but it didn't make a difference; as in their lessons, they never took anything seriously but got it right every time, just the same. As aggravating as they could be together, the team's captain, Jane Goodwind (Joe had graduated three years ago), couldn't get really mad at them. The fact remained that James hadn't missed the Snitch since that disastrous match against Hufflepuff in second year, and Sirius was a natural Beater, as it turned out. Gryffindor had slaughtered Ravenclaw in the first match of the year, two hundred and sixty to eighty.
But there was a down side, of course. What with Quidditch practice and homework, James and Sirius were working harder than ever, and the map had to be put off at times. But it wasn't really *so* bad, Remus thought, it was still coming along well. Sirius insisted on study-breaks (he claimed he'd go mad without them), so they'd take turns sneaking off to the kitchens to get some snacks, then do a little more on the map. Remus had had to temporarily disable the people on the map; having them move around while they were drawing was very distracting. But since they had the major parts of the castle - from the first floor up to Gryffindor Tower - done, making test runs once and awhile was a necessity. So far, it was working splendidly.

Right now, the Marauders were in History of Magic, a perfect opportunity to get some rest. Sirius was dozing, his eyes half-open and glazed over. It was creepy. And James was just staring glassily at Professor Binns, randomly writing down a name or date in an unintelligible scribble. Remus shook his head and poked them both in the ribs. Sirius snorted, and jumped, startled, then blushed when Remus and Lily started giggling at him. James looked down at his notes, sighed, and began trying to decipher his writing.
"Quidditch'll wear us out," Sirius sighed, leaning over to peer at Remus' notes. "Goddamn, Remmie, you're so.... so...."
"Thorough?"
"No, the other word."
"Rigorous?"
"No! The *other* word!"
"Diligent?"
"That's the one!"
"Thanks," Remus replied as Sirius scribbled away.

~October 14 - Hogwarts Grounds~

Remus kissed Sirius back, rather timidly, but enjoying it nonetheless. No, kissing Snape couldn't compare to this. This was just lovely.
Sirius pulled back, panting. "Take it easy, Remmie," he teased. "Unless you want to take care of the - ah - resulting problem."
"Siri, that's not funny," Remus said reproachfully.
The truth was, he didn't really feel comfortable with the issue of sex (and never mind the fact they were right behind the greenhouses, where anyone could see - they could be the only people on the planet and he'd be just as uneasy). Within good reason - or at least, what he considered to be good reason. He really didn't want Sirius to see the scars from all his old transformations, and he was sure to get all nervous and self-conscious and spoil the whole thing. Not to mention the werewolf factor. He didn't really want to take a chance only to split up with Sirius later (though he doubted that would happen, *seriously* doubted). The prospect of being mated for life to someone who didn't care about him was *not* a happy one. He had never mentioned any of these reasons to Sirius; but he made it plain that sex was not on his mind.
"Sorry," Sirius said humbly, and put an arm around Remus' shoulders. "I always forget, don't I?"
"It's okay," Remus said, closing his eyes.
"No, I should remember," Sirius said, a note of self-disgust in his voice. "I don't want to upset you." He paused, and kissed Remus' forehead. "Here. I'll put it this way. I promise I won't talk about it to you anymore - I'll let you decide."
"Me?" Remus said, surprised.
"Yes, you," said Sirius softly. "I'll leave it all up to you. I'll wait until you decide *you're* ready, and I won't say a single thing about it until then... okay?"
"Okay," Remus sniffled, touched. "You're so good to me......"
"Don't cry on me, now," Sirius warned, pulling out his handkerchief and handing it to Remus. "I like seeing you happy, but you cry too much as it is."
Remus giggled through his tears, and wiped his eyes. "Okay. I'll try."

~Remus' Journal - October 14~

-Sometimes I really think I don't deserve Siri. He's so good, and so patient, considering I'm not willing to go along with something he really wants. He's just..... I dunno, perfect, I guess. Like an angel, almost. Well, okay, perhaps 'angel' is NOT the best word for him, considering what he and Jim get up to sometimes. Oh, and okay, all the... er... *misunderstandings* we've had in the past. But I'm willing to overlook all that.... I mean, we're only dorky teenagers. We're bound to screw up every once in a while, right?-

~October 20 - Full Moon - Hogsmeade~

With a loud bark, Padfoot tackled Prongs and knocked him into a tangle of shrubbery. Moony and Wormtail followed, and if they had been able, they would have been laughing. Prongs raised his head only to find his antlers tangled with the bushes, and gave Padfoot a disgusted glare. Padfoot rolled onto his back and thumped his tail on the ground, and Prongs snorted irritably, shaking his head to free his antlers from the bushes. Then he jumped up and charged at Padfoot, who dodged and and bounded away in the opposite direction.
Moony jumped up to follow, Wormtail clinging to his long fur in an effort to stay on his back. Padfoot barked, his tail wagging joyfully, and jumped at Moony, who snapped playfully at him, then galloped off down the path toward the school, Padfoot and Prongs at his side.
They bounded straight down to the lake and plunged in, barely feeling the cold water through their thick coats, and swam to the other bank without hesitation. As they emerged, dripping, from the icy water, Moony caught sight of the round, silver moon, hanging in the velvety purple sky like a coin. He tilted back his head (nearly upsetting Wormtail) and howled, a long, melancholy note that echoed around the empty grounds. The sound delighted him, and he howled again, Padfoot joining in this time. That was better, and he tackled Padfoot (sending Wormtail flying, but he was deftly caught by Prongs). This was what he had craved more than anything during his transformations - a pack. Friends who he was devoted to, and wished to protect, and who would do the same for them. Loneliness was one of the worst feelings in the world, he was sure of it. He wouldn't trade his friends for anything...

~November 20 - Hogsmeade~

The rare peaceful Hogsmeade trip, Remus thought to himself, chuckling. Well, it was only peaceful because they had all decided to go off by themselves today, to do a little Christmas shopping. Right now Remus was in Dervish and Banges, browsing through the enchanted instruments and doodads. He was sorely tempted to buy Lily a self-applying makeup kit, but he knew very well he'd most likely get a smack upside the head for his troubles. Lily was *very* sensitive about her looks (almost as vain as Sirius) and a present like that would probably give her the wrong idea. Instead he ended up getting her a book, 'Advanced and Rare Charms', that he knew she'd like - Charms was her best class, and she loved learning obscure spells.
Hmm. Now that he had Lily, James (a Sneakoscope, because he knew James wanted one), Peter (a vast box of all his favorite sweets, including Exploding Bon-Bons and Wintergreen-flavored Jelly Slugs), Grace (an album for her Famous Witches and Wizards cards - she'd been hinting around), and his family, it was time for Sirius. Hmm. This would be hard. He wanted to give Sirius something... really smashing, something meaningful. Whatever it was, it wasn't likely he'd find it in Zonko's, or Honeydukes'...
He wandered past Gladrags Wizardwear and the Three Broomsticks, thinking hard. Hmm. Now, if *he* were Sirius, what would he really want? See in a store and not rest until it was his? Maybe even drop a few hints to his boyfriend about?
A sign caught his eye, and he stopped dead.
"'Miss Kaiou's Fine Magical Jewelry'," he read aloud. Well, that sounded like an excellent place to look. Sirius loved silver jewelry, and Remus was willing to bet this shop had some.
He pushed the door open, and a small, silver bell tinkled overhead.
"Coming," a woman's voice called from around the corner.
Remus put his parcels down and looked around as the sound of high heels clicking on the hardwood floor came closer.
"Good morning, dear," a woman said, appearing from the back room. "I am Miss Kaiou, how may I help you?"
She was a short, slender woman with brilliantly blue eyes and long, wavy hair, which was a lovely ocean-green color. She wore robes of teal and cobalt, and she gave Remus a warm smile as she approached him.
"Well, I'm looking for a present for someone," Remus said, feeling immediately at ease with this woman (a surprise, since he was usually very awkward around strangers).
Her smile widened. "For someone special, I take it," she said. "A romantic interest, am I right?"
Remus blushed and nodded. "Yes, ma'am," he replied, and even though he was growing redder by the second, he couldn't resist adding, "Someone *very* special."
Miss Kaiou laughed, a sweet, tinkling laugh much like that of the bell over the door. "I see! And you want them to be impressed, do you not?"
"Yes, very much," Remus said.
"Very well, let's see what we can do," Miss Kaiou said pleasantly. "What does he like?"
"Well, he -" Remus stopped, and looked curiously at her. "How did you know...... it was a he?"
"Oh, my dear, I've seen you with him," Miss Kaiou answered. "Tall, with long black hair.... he's quite handsome. What's his name?"
"Sirius," Remus replied shyly. "Like the star."
Miss Kaiou beamed. "I think I have the answer..... follow me...."
She lead Remus over to a wide selection of astrological-styled jewelry. Remus' eyes widened as he looked at it all. Gold, silver, copper, platinum, turquoise.... necklaces with planet charms; rings with birth signs; tiny comet-shaped badges with glittering, color-changing tails..... It was some of the most beautiful jewelry Remus had ever seen in his life, but most of it was just a little too fancy for Sirius. But then something caught his eye.
*Why* it caught his eye he could never explain, not even to himself. It was just a star pendant on a delicate silver chain, but as soon as his eyes landed on it, Remus knew it was *perfect*.
Miss Kaiou noted the direction of his gaze and carefully handed its box to him. He ran a fingertip along the fine chain, marveling at such a beautiful thing. He could just picture it around Sirius' neck, contrasting with his hair and skin...
He looked hopefully up at Miss Kaiou. "This is perfect, I know he'd love it.... how much is it?"
"Seven Galleons," Miss Kaiou answered, and Remus' heart leapt. That would be the last of his Christmas-shopping money, but it would be worth it, just to get this gorgeous necklace for Sirius.
"I'll take it," he said, and Miss Kaiou beamed.
"Very good!" she said happily, taking the box from him and bringing it over to a small counter nearby, where she began to gift-wrap it. "Your Sirius will love it, I'm sure..."
And as Remus started to walk over to her, something else caught his eye. Similar in style to the star necklace, it was a moon pendant on a silver chain. Usually Remus detested anything and everything that had to do with the moon, but this necklace somehow sparked his interest. Oh, but he didn't have enough money... That was all right, he thought as he handed his money to Miss Kaiou. He always got money from his aunt and uncle for Christmas; he'd come back later and buy it.
He thanked Miss Kaiou, who kissed his cheek and replied, "You come back soon, and bring your friend. I want to see how that necklace looks on him!" Remus promised, and left, heading back to Hogwarts and feeling happier than ever.

~November 21 - 10:00 AM - Hogsmeade~

Sirius frowned, lost in his thoughts as he trudged up the road to the village. Yesterday had been an almost-successful shopping day. True, he had gotten presents for James, Peter, Lily, Grace, and his whole family (even his stupid brother-in-law, Brad). But he hadn't found a single thing for Remus. Well, there had been lots of things he could have gotten for him, but none of them had that 'Remus-ness' to it... He wanted something impressive, something that just seemed to show every one of Remus' good qualities....... which there were lots of....
So he had slipped out this morning, before the other Marauders woke up (Sunday was their day to have a lie-in), determined to find that perfect gift today. It was the last Hogsmeade weekend before the holidays.......... he'd stay here all day, looking, if he had to!
He stopped in front of a small, cozy-looking store and read the sign, his head cocked to the side in a very Padfoot-esque way. 'Miss Kaiou's Fine Magical Jewelry'....... He had never seen Remus wear a piece of jewelry in his life, but something about this store demanded his attention. He pushed open the door and went inside.
When she heard the bell ring, Miss Kaiou hurried up to the counter. When she saw who was standing there, she could barely suppress a pleased smile. The friend of that nice young man from yesterday....

Sirius had been admiring a display of enchanted stick-pins which changed into a different flower each month when Miss Kaiou approached him. "Good morning," she said cheerfully. "May I help you today?"
"Boy, I sure hope so," Sirius said, returning her smile. "I'm looking for a Christmas present for my boyfriend."
"I think I know who you're talking about," Miss Kaiou responded with a smile. "The quiet one with the light brown hair?"
"How did you know?" Sirius asked, startled.
"I've seen you together several times," Miss Kaiou said. "Now, what do you think he'd like?"
"Well, I don't know," Sirius confessed. "To be honest, Remus isn't really a jewelry person. But I thought... you know, if I got him something really special... I know he'd love it, and wear it all the time..." he stopped, amazed. He wasn't shy (not by the longest stretch of the imagination), but he had certainly never expected to be telling a stranger about his boyfriend.... especially since there were precious few people who even *knew* he had a boyfriend....
Miss Kaiou tilted her head to one side. "Well, then, dear.... perhaps you should think about what would look best on him..."
"Silver," Sirius said immediately, imagining how the silver would contrast with Remus' hazel eyes and honey-gold hair. "Definitely silver."
"All right.... follow me...."

She led to a display of silver jewelry, just past the jewelry she had showed Remus yesterday. "You might want to consider some of this," she said, and Sirius gazed at it. Very nice stuff, excellent quality, but most of it just too flashy. As much as Remus loved him, Sirius thought, he wouldn't go around wearing leather dog collars with rhinestones, or rings that glowed in the dark. No, that wouldn't.....

He stopped. Almost directly in front of him (how come he hadn't seen it straight away?) was the *perfect* thing. Just absolutely perfect. A crescent-moon pendant on a fine silver chain. No magical abilities, nothing flashy or attention-getting. It hung beside a star-shaped pendant that Sirius rather liked, and wouldn't mind having... but it was the moon necklace that caught his full attention, and he reached up and took down its box.
"It's gorgeous," he breathed, not caring if he sounded like a girl. "Just... just gorgeous.... it's perfect..... how much?" he said, trying to control the wave of panic which rose inside him. Just his luck, it'd be far too expensive for him to afford..... dammit! No, he'd spend every last bit of gold he had on it if he had to. He *had* to get this for Remus.
"Seven Galleons," Miss Kaiou told him, and Sirius went limp with relief. He had brought nearly three times that much, just in case.....
"I'll take it," he said, a little breathlessly.
Miss Kaiou smiled and took the necklace over to the counter to gift-wrap it. "A good choice," she said to Sirius. "I think he'll really like it. And I think it'll look lovely on him."
Sirius handed her his money and carefully took the small parcel and tucked it into his pocket. "Thanks so much," he said to her. "I was beginning to worry I wouldn't find the perfect thing."
"You're very welcome, dear," she said, kissing his cheek. "Come back soon, and bring him with you - I want to see what that looks like on him!"
Sirius promised and bade her goodbye, then practically skipped back to Hogwarts. He just knew Remus was going to love his present...

~December 10 - Gryffindor common room~

Remus glanced up from his Charms homework and saw Serena entering the common room. A thought occurred to him, and he put down his quill and hurried over to her. "Sere, can we talk?"
"Um, all right," she replied., looking suspicious. Remus rarely ever looked so serious when he had to talk to her - what was up? She gulped. Maybe he had found out about her reading Sirius' journal? She glanced over at Sirius, but he was sitting with James Potter and the two of them were working busily on something. She looked back at Remus, who was looking graver than she'd ever seen him.
"Sere, I've got to know, what *is* there between you and Grub Jointly?" Remus asked.
Serena sighed. "I don't see what everyone's so upset about. Gregory's very sweet."
"*Gregory*?"
"Well, you didn't think his parents actually named him *Grub*, did you?"
Remus shook his head. "We're getting off the subject. He's a Slytherin, Sere - you know how nasty they all are. You shouldn't bother with him."
"As if Slytherins are the only bad ones?" Serena asked haughtily. "What about Sirius? If we go by *your* reasoning, the bastard should be in Slytherin."
"You're just mad at him for not being in love with you," Remus said angrily. "You don't know him like I do - He's a lot more romantic than -" He stopped, horrified. Oh, how could he have been so stupid?
Serena's eyes widened. "Remus! Are you saying - are you - you and Sirius.... are together?"
"Don't you dare tell anyone!" Remus said, panicking. "Especially not Mum and Dad!"
"Why shouldn't I?"
"Because I'll tell them you're with a seventh-year Slytherin!"
"At least he's not another girl," Serena retorted, but she was feeling nervous. Her parents would be very unhappy to know Remus was with Sirius, but they'd be even more unhappy if they found out she was with a Slytherin....
"Okay, I won't say a word," she said desperately. "Just don't say anything about me and Gregory to Mum and Dad!"
"All right..." Remus agreed. "But you've got to get away from him, sis." He went back to his table, shaking his head. Serena was almost *impossible* to talk to.... All right, she had a point, he knew he'd have to tell his parents about himself and Sirius sooner or later. But he *definitely* preferred later.

~December 25 - Christmas - 7:00 AM~

Remus woke up on Christmas Day when James hit him with a pillow and yelled, "Oi! Remmie! Presents!" from across the room.
With a grumble, Remus peeked over the edge of the covers. "What time is it?"
"Seven o'clock," James answered cheerfully. "Happy Christmas!"
"Happy Christmas," Remus replied, sitting up. "You could have let me sleep later, you know."
"Nah," James shrugged. "Too excited. C'mon, help me get Siri and Pete up." He launched his other pillow across the room, hitting Sirius square in the face, making him yelp and roll out of bed.
"JIM!" he bellowed. "What gives?! It's too early to get up!"
"That's what Remmie said," James sniggered.
Remus shook his head and got out of bed, going over to Peter's bed and shaking him gently. "Time to get up, Pete."
"That'll never work," James said, grinning, and Remus ducked as James and Sirius threw every pillow they had at Peter.
Peter sat up and yelped, "Avalanche!" Then he looked around and blushed. "Oh, it was only a dream," he said. "Why'd you wake me up so early?"
"It's *Christmas*, Pete," Sirius said, rolling his eyes. "Duh."
"Presents!" Peter exclaimed, finally noticing the heap of packages at the foot of his bed and reaching for the topmost one.

Remus went back to his bed to open his own presents. The first package was from his mother, containing a new sweater, several new pairs of socks, and a tin of prune fudge, which Remus hated. He usually picked out the prunes and ate the fudge plain. His aunt and uncle had sent him money as usual, and a book about historical witchcraft in Paris (which was where they lived). From James, a book called '101 Spells, Hexes, and Curses For A Rainy Day' (the title made them all giggle); from Peter, a set of fancy calligraphy brushes, pens and inks (perfect for Ancient Runes); and from Lily, a set of beautifully illustrated books on magical creatures - hippogriffs, dragons, unicorns, and the like.
Sirius had just finished opening his presents as well, and he bounced over to Remus' bed. "Ready for your present, Remmie?"
Peter gulped. "Hey, Jim and I are still here!"
Sirius sniggered. "Pete! Naughty, naughty! It's all right, it's nothing you can't see."
"I have something for you, too," Remus said shyly, starting to lean over to his nightstand. Sirius caught him by the arm and shook his head.
"Nope, you first," he insisted, handing Remus a package wrapped in sparkly blue paper. Barely daring to breathe, Remus carefully untaped the corners and folded them back. He always opened presents very slowly and carefully, setting aside the bows and ribbons for later use, and he could see Sirius was nearly dancing with impatience. But he didn't hurry - sometimes it was fun to tease.
"Enough suspense, Moony," said James, who had joined Remus and Sirius on Remus' bed. "I want to see what the stupid git bought you."
"Okay," Remus sighed, and carefully slid back the paper to reveal a gray jewelry box. Fingers trembling ever so slightly, he lifted the lid (James and Peter leaned even closer), and his jaw dropped.
"Holy cow," James breathed.
"That's beautiful," Peter said in an awed voice.

It was the silver crescent-moon necklace Remus had admired in Miss Kaiou's shop; up close it was even more stunning than he remembered. He fingered the chain gently, tilting the box this way and that to see the silver glimmer in the light. He looked up at Sirius, who was watching him rather anxiously.
"Do you like it?" Sirius asked.
"I love it," Remus said breathlessly. "How did you know I wanted it?" "I didn't, actually," Sirius said. "I just saw it and thought of you straight away."
"Thank you, love," Remus whispered, leaning up to give him a kiss.
Sirius took the box from Remus and carefully took out the necklace. Remus lowered his head obediently, letting Sirius fasten the chain around his neck. The chain was cold on his skin, and he shivered slightly. He hugged Sirius and kissed him again. "It's wonderful, Siri."
"Glad you like it," Sirius said (as Peter began to retreat, sensing a romantic bit coming up). "Just - um, just remember to - um, take it off before you, you know, transform."
"I will," Remus said, and then looked up at him. "D'you want your present now?"
"Okay," Sirius agreed, and Remus carefully took the package (in sparkly purple paper with a burgundy bow - Professor Tomoe would have been proud) out of his drawer, then bashfully handed it to Sirius, who took off the bow and stuck it to his hair (joining several others) before proceeding to shred the paper into bits (he was *not* as patient as Remus). Once the final scrap of paper had been tossed on the floor unconcernedly, Sirius held up the small leather pouch. "Hmm," he said thoughtfully. "It's not Floo Powder, is it?"
"You and Floo Powder are a dangerous mix," James said. "Come *on*, open it!"
"Ah, shut up, Prongs," Sirius said cheerfully, carefully undoing the little drawstring pouch. He reached inside, snagged whatever-it-was on his little finger, and carefully lifted his out. His eyes widened when he saw what it was.
"A conspiracy!" James laughed.
"What is it?" Peter said, letting curiosity get the better of him and coming back over to the bed. "Oh, wow, that's nice."

It was nice, very nice, Sirius had to agree. It was the star necklace that had caught his eye in Miss Kaiou's. He lifted it up, so James and Peter could get a good look too, and then kissed Remus firmly on the mouth.
"A mind-reader," he teased. "You knew I wanted it."
"I didn't," Remus said, astounded. "I just.... well, I saw it, and I thought-" -he blushed - "Well, I thought I'd get a star.... for my star."
"This is getting mushy," Peter said, hastily getting up.
"I agree," James said. "Let's, um, leave them to their business, and we'll just... um, go see if Lil's up or something." And so they fled.
Remus and Sirius watched them leave, amused, and then turned back to each other.
"It's simply beautiful, precious," Sirius murmured. "Thank you."
"You're very welcome," Remus replied softly, and took the necklace from him. "Here, turn around."
Sirius turned and held his hair out of the way. Remus slipped the necklace around Sirius' neck and closed the clasp, then kissed Sirius' shoulder. "Let me see." Sirius dropped his hair and turned around. Remus' breath caught in his throat - the silver looked even better against Sirius' skin than he could have imagined.
"I take it it looks good on me," Sirius teased, before pulling Remus into his arms for a 'Christmas snog'.

~January 13 - Great Hall~

"I feel ill," James said.
"Me too," Sirius agreed.
Remus sighed. It was *always* the same thing before a Quidditch match, and now Sirius was joining in on the complaining. Today was Gryffindor's match against Hufflepuff.
"Me three," Peter agreed, poking at his scrambled eggs unenthusiastically. "It must be contagious."
"Oh, stop it," Remus said impatiently. "You know as soon as you get out there you'll be fine." he glanced at his watch. "It's almost eleven, we should go."
They got up and headed outside, joined by Lily and Grace, who met them in the Entrance Hall, and paused at the locker rooms.
"Good luck," Lily said softly, leaning up to kiss James.
"Ditto," Remus said, kissing Sirius. "Crush those Hufflepuffs."
"Maybe I'll disgust them into forfeiting by throwing up on one of them," Sirius said, smiling weakly, and followed James into the locker rooms. The others hurried up to seats in the uppermost row, to get a good view.
The teams came out onto the field, along with Madame Hooch. Izzy Jordan was commentating as usual.
"Here comes the Gryffindor Team - Potter, Goodwind, Wood, Yamachi, Black, Cleaver, and MacKenzie - the finest team we've seen in a while - and the Hufflepuff Team - Bennett, White, LaRue, Whalebone, Jamison, McLargeHuge, and Diggory. Another outstanding lineup, this could get really rough... Madame Hooch blows her whistle.... the Quaffle is released - and they're off!"
Izzy was right, both the Gryffindor and Hufflepuff teams were fantastic, and evenly matched. It was all Sirius and Theodore Cleaver could do to keep the Bludgers away from the rest of their team. The Gryffindor Chasers were passing the Quaffle so fast Izzy barely had enough time to mention their names, but the Hufflepuff Chasers weren't far behind.
"Chaser Mary LaRue of Hufflepuff seizes the Quaffle - oh! that was close! - nice Bludger work there by Sirius Black of Gryffindor - a great Beater he is, wonder where he's been these past few years? - Gryffindor back in possession, Wood passes to Yamachi...."

Remus cheered, watching as Sirius belted another Bludger at Jonah Whalebone. Sirius certainly looked delicious from down here - his hair escaping its ponytail (as it always did), and his eyes narrowed in concentration as he chased one of the Bludgers, knocking it away from Sora Yamachi. And the way he and Theodore Cleaver worked together... it was like they were reading each other's minds. But lost in his thoughts, Remus missed it as Sora Yamachi scored a goal for Gryffindor.

"Gryffindor scores! Ten to zero!" Izzy shouted, startling him out of his reverie. Ooops. He'd better pay attention. He could drool over Sirius *after* the game.
"Hufflepuff scores! Ten-ten!" Izzy shouted. "It's a tie - wait - Celeste Wood of the Gryffindor team gets the Quaffle - throws - oh! I say! - interception there by Hufflepuff Beater Jamison - watch out! Oh! Ten points to Hufflepuff...."
James soared up above the game and scanned the field anxiously. Where was the Snitch? He caught a flash of gold, but it was only one of Sora's earrings. A Bludger pelted toward him; he dodged quickly and turned to see Sirius whack it furiously toward the Hufflepuff Chasers. "All right there, Jim?" he called, and James waved and nodded at him. Where was the Snitch?!
"An excellent save by MacKenzie!" Izzy was saying, as the Gryffindor Keeper caught the Quaffle. "Caught by Yamachi - passes to Wood - passes to Goodwind - score!"

And then, James saw it - just above the Gryffindor goal posts. The Snitch was hovering just a little ways from Andrew MacKenzie, and apparently Bobby Bennett hadn't noticed it yet. James swerved around one of the Chasers and sped off to the goal posts. He was halfway there when Bobby Bennett finally realized what was going on and darted after him. But it was too late - James reached out and leaned forward as far as he could - and grabbed the Snitch.

The stands exploded with cheers; Sirius soared over to James and they whacked each other in the arm before floating back to the ground. Remus, Lily, Peter, and Grace cheered until their throats were hoarse, and blew kisses down to the Gryffindor team.
"Fantastic game!" Peter said as they pushed through the crowd, heading for the field.
"Let's go get Jim and Siri and celebrate," Lily said.

~February 1 - Potions~

It was yet another horrid Potions class. Even more horrid than usual, and Sirius was ready to kill Snape. And within good reason. The stupid evil git had evidently been studying werewolves in Defense Against the Dark Arts today; he was loudly reciting the ways a werewolf could be killed, all of which were exceedingly nasty. It was just about the closest he could get to hinting one of their classmates was a werewolf without actually naming names. Poor Remus was continuing on with his work as if he wasn't listening, but Sirius could see the tremble in his fingers, and how pale he was. He growled softly under his breath. If he could have, he would have jumped up and started beating Snape within an inch of his life. But if he did that, it would be much to easy for everyone else in the class to figure out who was the werewolf...
"But silver does it *every* time," Snape was saying loudly. "*Every* time."
"What is going on in here?" Professor Kirk demanded, entering the room from the supply room with a severe frown on his sallow face. Never in Sirius' life had he ever thought he'd be glad to see the Potions master, and he hid a smile as he went back to cutting up his daisy roots.

When the class ended and they all went down to lunch, Remus lagged behind, looking thoroughly depressed. Sirius put an arm around him. "Don't listen to Snape, love," he said. "He's just being a jerk."
"He's right," James said as he, Lily, and Peter joined Remus and Sirius. "He's probably... I dunno, still mad at us. And he always does this - you know he tries to get under your skin in any way possible..."
Remus wiped his eyes on his sleeve. "I know. But I really wish he wouldn't talk about... you know. I mean, I can take the other stuff he throws at me, but.... something I can't help, and never wanted in the first place..." his voice wavered, and he looked away, a little ashamed.
Lily gave him a hug this time. "Ignore him, Remmie," she said firmly. "You're a thousand million times better than Snape is, and something that slimy moron says to you shouldn't bother you."
"Thanks, Lil," Remus said, feeling a little better. "You're all right - I'm being stupid. I'll try not to listen to him anymore."
"That's my Moony," James said, smiling and punching Remus lightly on the arm. "And just you wait until the next Quidditch match - Gryffindor versus Slytherin! We'll show them good!"

~February 16 - Gryffindor common room~

Remus was studying for his N.E.W.T.S and absentmindedly munching on chocolate-covered cherries (Sirius had given him a huge box of them for Valentine's Day) when Peter climbed through the portrait hole and into the common room, blushing furiously. He came over to the table where Remus was studying (and where James and Sirius were working on the map), collapsed into a chair, and hid his beet-red face in his hands. "I can't believe what I just did."
"What did you do?" Sirius asked inattentively, not looking up from the map, where he was detailing the lake.
"I - um, well - that is to say, I....... well...."
"Spit it *out*, Pete!"
"I... askedGracetomarryme," Peter said in a rush.
Sirius' head jerked up. "WHAT?!"
Peter turned even redder. "You heard me...."
"You old dog," James said, grinning. "What did she say?"
"She...... she...... she said yes," Peter said, going so red he was nearly purple.
James and Sirius grinned at each other, then at Peter (it was scary, Remus decided, how much those two looked like brothers when they smiled like that).
"Kudos, Pete," Sirius said, ruffling Peter's hair. "You go."
"Ditto," responded James.
"Congratulations, Pete," Remus said, smiling at him. "Did you tell your parents?"
"Ages ago," Peter said. "When I told them I was thinking of asking her... they sent me a whole bouquet of enchanted roses to give her.... they never wilt or anything....."
"I'll say that's pretty much the go-ahead," Sirius said, impressed. "Damned if my parents'd do the same..."
"But," said Peter, "We still need a ring."
"You don't have a ring?" Remus asked.
"I have the money to buy one," said Peter bashfully, "But I didn't want to get Grace anything she might not like... and I couldn't think of a way to find out what kind she'd like without giving it all away... so... I guess what I'm asking is where did you get those necklaces, and did they sell engagement rings?"
"I dunno if they do, but we can sure try," Sirius said cheerfully. "Mind if we tag along? Turns out both Remmie and I promised the shopkeeper a visit, and we haven't been able to hold our promise yet..."
"Okay," said Peter, feeling rather relieved. (Frankly, he had been hoping they would come along - in case he needed to borrow money off them or something.) "When's the next Hogsmeade weekend?"
"March," James answered, craning his neck to peer at the bulletin board. "Yeah. The fifth."
"Problem solved," Sirius said, going back to the map.

~March 5 - Hogsmeade~

Remus and Sirius led the way to Miss Kaiou's, with Peter, Grace, James, and Lily trailing behind them. They passed Gladrags Wizardwear and the Three Broomsticks, and marched up the steps of the jewelry shop.
Miss Kaiou looked up with a smile when the silver bell tinkled. Her smile widened when she saw who it was, and she put down her quill and went around the corner to meet them. She kissed both Remus and Sirius on the cheek, and stood back, studying them for a moment.
"Very nice," she proclaimed. "You two have good taste." She noticed their friends, and said, "You've brought friends? If only I had known, I would have put the kettle on!"
"Well, we're here on business," Sirius replied with a grin as Lily and James pushed Peter and Grace forward. "Our friends are getting engaged."
Miss Kaiou clapped her hands together. "Really? How wonderful! Congratulations!"
"Thank you, ma'am," Peter said shyly, finding his voice at last. "Do you sell engagement rings?"
"Indeed I do," Miss Kaiou said, leading them all over to a display case filled with hundreds of rings, separated by what kind of metal they were made of - gold, silver, or platinum. The six teenagers bent over the display case, intently gazing at the rings. Some had were set with jewels that alternately changed from a diamond to the wearer's birthstone; some had diamonds in the shape of animals; others had beautiful engravings; still others changed color according to the wearer's mood - and went by moods, not like the cheap Muggle rings that went by body heat. They ran the gamut from the small and secretly beautiful to the ostentatious and flashy; Remus felt he could look forever and never see all those rings.
"Wow," James said, sounding as impressed as Remus felt. He pointed at a small selection of rings with differently-colored jewels, each marked 'DANGEROUS' and priced at ninety Galleons apiece. "What do those do?"
"Those are Element Rings," Miss Kaiou said, "Each allowing the user to harness and control the powers of the four elements - Wind, Water, Fire, and Earth. They're very limited, and extremely dangerous if you don't know what you're doing - that's why they're so expensive..." She held out her left hand, on which glimmered a plain gold band (a wedding band? but then why was she *Miss* Kaiou?) and one of the Element Rings, set with a blue jewel. "You see? This is Water. But you can't even purchase one of these rings without special permission from the Ministry of Magic."
"Wow," said Peter, his eyes widening.
"I don't need anything like *that*," Grace giggled. "But, Peter - look at this one!" It was a band of white gold, set with tiny diamonds, and a pearl in the center. "That's the one I want," she said firmly.
So Miss Kaiou went to find a ring in Grace's size, and Peter paid for it, then gulped, looking uneasy. He took Grace's hand and said shyly, "I know you already said yes, but let me ask again. Grace, will you marry me?"
"Yes, of course!" Grace said, blushing as deeply as Peter, and he slipped the ring on her finger.
"Awwwwwwww," James and Sirius said teasingly, making them blush even more.

~April 2 - Gryffindor common room~

"Finished!" Sirius said proudly, rubbing his aching wrist. "Hours and hours and hours of work - nearly nine months of it - but we're done!"
James beamed down at the map. "Our finest work yet. All it needs is a title......."
"How about... the ... Marauder's Map?" Peter suggested timidly.
"Perfect," Remus beamed. "And I have an idea... hold on..." He took the map from Sirius and turned his back to them, mumbling a few words. Then he wiped the map clean and handed it back to Sirius. "Okay, try it."
Sirius tapped his wand to the parchment. "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good."
At once, curly green words began to scrawl across the top of the map, while more lines began forming the familiar rooms and passages of the castle. The heading read:
'Messrs. Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, And Prongs
Purveyors of Aids to Magical Mischief-Makers
Are Proud To Present.....
The Marauder's Map '
And after a few seconds, the words faded away, revealing the rest of the map. Tiny, labeled dots moved throughout the corridors and paced in rooms; they could see Dumbledore heading for the staff room and Hagrid crossing the grounds, heading for the lake.
"It's *incredible*," James breathed, pushing his glasses up on his nose and leaning forward for a closer look. He glanced up at Remus and asked skeptically, "'Messrs'? As in 'monsieurs'?"
"What do you want, I'm French and it sounds classier," Remus replied.
"Hard to believe dunderheads like us managed this," Sirius said, awed. "And admit it, Jim, it *does* sound classier."
"I can't believe we're finally done," Peter said.
"Well, it's worth it," Remus said, smiling. "Pete was right - if we *could* sell stuff like this without Dark wizards getting ahold of them, then we'd be millionaires."
"Billionaires," Sirius corrected.
"Trillionares," sniggered James.
"Million-billion-trillionares..."
"Million-billion-trillion-*gazillionares*..."
"That's enough of that," Remus said firmly, a tad irritated. "Do you want to see if this thing works or not?"
"Yes yes yes," Sirius and James said in unison, bouncing up out of their seats. "Let's go, go, go!"
So off they headed towards the kitchens, keeping a careful eye on the map as they went. It worked perfectly; they were able to dodge Filch and Peeves, and narrowly avoid a nasty encounter with Professor Kirk. When they reached the painting of the fruit bowl, curly green words appeared:
Tickle the pear.
They did, and pulled open the painting to join the house-elves in the kitchen. They accepted a few eclairs and crisps from the house-elves so as not to be rude, and headed up the secret passage leading to the seventh floor, watching themselves in fascination on the map as they climbed up the hidden staircase. When they finally reached the Fat Lady, James tapped the map and muttered, "Mischief managed!" The map went blank at once and he folded it up and hid it in his robes as they climbed through the portrait hole, barely able to hide their excitement. Once safely up in the dorm, James said, "Now we're prepared - with this and the cloak, we can wander around all night if we want to."
"Some Head Boy *you* are," Sirius teased. "breaking your own rules."
"Hey, I didn't write them. And rules were made to be broken," James laughed.
"Whatever would dear Lil say if she knew?" Sirius asked innocently.
James smacked him lightly on the head. "Blame it all on you."
"Hey, I could still charm her into believing it was you," Sirius sniggered, then quailed under the furious glares Remus and James sent him. "All right! All right! I won't charm her!"

~Sirius' Journal - April 22~

-Well, that Map is definitely a *useful* thing. We went out again tonight and poked around the staff room. Dead boring, it is. About the worst thing we found was some old cloak of Flitwick's that looked like he might've swiped it from a dead relative. Ha ha. But considering how it looked, I figure he just left it there and forgot about it. We should've done him a favor and burned it, but then it would be too obvious that *someone's* sneaking around at night. Not good. And Flitwick's fashion sense is none of my business. I really do wonder what Lil'd say if she knew her precious Head Boy was wandering around after hours doing impressions of old McGonagall? But you have to admit, that was genius.... for a minute there, I felt like getting up and chasing him. Why do I always get that feeling around McGonagall? Heh. Must be the dog thing.-

~May 1 - the Library~

Things were getting quite complicated and busy for all the seventh years. Most were getting ready to take their N.E.W.T.s, starting to worry about grades and graduation, and begging professors for extra credit and make-ups. James and Sirius were actually working seriously, catching up on all the work they had been slightly behind on during the Quidditch season. The Quidditch season was now over and Gryffindor had won the Cup; Gryffindor had slaughtered Slytherin at the end of April, three hundred to fifty, and the Gryffindor team was in their glory. It had been one of the most fantastic games Hogwarts had ever seen, everybody agreed on that. But now there was nothing left to do but study, study, study.
Remus was reviewing everything he had learned since first year, and trying to learn everything his teachers were teaching now, as well as some extra things he thought might be on the tests. Almost every night found him staying up until nearly two in the morning, working; James, Peter, and Sirius watched this with some amazement and warned him not to study too hard. Yes, yes, he knew that, and he always joined them on their after-hours excursions, but most of his time was spent hitting the books.
"Remmie, aren't you tired?" Sirius asked sleepily one night. It was only eight o'clock, but watching Remus study had seemed to tire him out.
"No," Remus mumbled, flipping through 'A Guide To Advanced Transfiguration'.
James put his head on the table. "You sure take the energy out of us. Are you putting some sort of voodoo curse on us?"
"Voodoo curse?" Sirius sniggered, at the same time as Peter, who looked rather frightened at the prospect of his werewolf friend using voodoo on him.
"No, I am not using voodoo," Remus said, shaking his head. "Honestly...."

"I'm hungry," Peter said a few minutes later, watching as James and Sirius forced Remus to pack up his things and stop studying for the night.
"You need sleep, love," Sirius said firmly.
"Yeah, a bloody lot of good all this studying'll get you if you fall asleep during the tests," James said. "Besides, they're not for more than a month!"
"Okay," sighed Remus, running a hand through his tawny bangs. "Just this once...."
"I'm hungry," Peter repeated.
"Me too," said Sirius. "Let's put this stuff away and head for the kitchens, shall we?"
So they dropped all of Remus' heavy books and papers in the common room, and James brought down the map.
"I dunno if we'll need it, nearly everyone's in bed," he said, studying it as they started down the hall. "Peeves is up in the North Tower, and Filch's in his office.... but everybody else must be asleep, I don't see them on the map.... is that right, Remmie?"
"Yes," Remus yawned. "You don't see sleeping people on the map unless they're sleepwalking."
"Okay," said James cheerfully, wiping the map clean and putting it back in his pocket. "I don't suppose we really need it, then, but it's good to have handy."
They crept down to the kitchens, whispering to each other and trying not to alert anyone. Sirius paused at the top of a staircase and frowned.
"What is it, Siri?" Peter asked.
"I get the feeling we really should've taken the shortcut," Sirius said.
James pulled out the map and opened it. "It's okay, Siri, there's no one around."
"Still...." Sirius said with a sigh. "Oh well. I'm no psychic; I guess we should press on." James wiped the map and put it away again, and they continued. But this time they didn't talk, each was beginning to get a feeling of being watched.
They were very near the kitchens when the feeling became insurmountable. They stopped and looked around, standing close together.
"I can't stand it anymore, Jim," Sirius whispered. "Take out the map and have another peek."
"Sure hope it's not the monster in the Chamber of Secrets," James mumbled, and reached for his pocket. But before he could pull out the Marauder's Map, footsteps sounded, and they whirled around to come face-to-face with none other than Filch.
"Out of bed again, eh?" he sneered unpleasantly. "Come along, you lot."

Knowing all was lost, they reluctantly followed Filch to his office. Remus' eyes darted nervously towards the highly-polished manacles hanging on the wall. Okay, maybe Dumbledore wouldn't allow Filch to use them, but their presence was unnerving.
Filch gave them an evil smirk, and addressed James. "Tut, tut. Head Boy and still breaking the rules. I don't think the Headmaster would be too thrilled with that..." He sat down and pulled another of his infamous forms toward him and began to fill it out.
James didn't say anything. Even Sirius seemed to be at a loss for words. Peter gave a frightened squeak, and Remus had to shove his hands in his pockets so Filch wouldn't see them trembling. He hated getting into trouble so much! It always made him feel ill. He noticed the corner of the map sticking out of James' pocket and gulped. How to communicate to James without Filch noting?
But he needn't have worried. Filch had seen the direction of his gaze, and barked suddenly, "Potter! What's that in your pocket?"
"Just a piece of spare parchment," James said, trying to sound noncommittal.
"Hand it here!"
Remus' heart plummeted to his shoes, but he tried to keep guilt from his face. James and Sirius exchanged a look.
"Now, Potter!"
Very, very slowly, James took the map from his pocket and handed it over, mentally thanking his lucky stars that he had remembered to wipe it.
Filch snatched it from James and peered closely at it. He looked up at them. "I believe I'll take this."
Remus gulped again. All their hard work!....
Even Sirius didn't protest. They waited quietly until Filch had finished their report, given them a detention, and then sent them upstairs. They didn't talk until they reached the common room.

"I can't believe I was so stupid," James sighed, running his fingers through his unruly mane. "We shouldn't have gone out tonight, we should have *known* Filch was going to catch on sooner or later.."
"We got too cocky," Sirius said unhappily as they climbed the stairs to their dorm. "And now we got the map taken away.... after we did *all* that work..."
"You were right, Sirius," Peter said. "We should have taken the secret way. We should have listened to you..."
"Don't blame yourself, Pete," Sirius said. "It's my fault too.... I shouldn't've tried to get you all to wander around with me..."
"Just plain bad luck," Remus said as they pulled on their pj's and climbed into bed. "But one thing's for sure... we'd better not wander around after hours anymore. Filch'd love to have us serving detention during our graduation ceremony."
"Agreed," said James, taking off his glasses. "I don't fancy cleaning the hippogriffs' paddock with my parents watching."

~May 22 - Great Hall~

The loss of the Marauder's Map had got the Marauders down for a few days, but their cheerful moods had returned after they finally were free from Filch's detention (cleaning all the soap-scummy shower stalls in the locker rooms near the Quidditch field). True, they missed the map, but exams and graduation were fast approaching, and they had little time to mourn the loss of their map. And on top of it all, James and Lily were kept busy composing a valedictory speech for the graduation ceremony (it was tradition for the speech to be read by the Head Boy and Girl). And as it was, all the seventh years were in the Great Hall right now, listening to Dumbledore, who was briefing them on graduation practice, which would take place almost immediately after the exams, June 26th and 27th.
"You know," Lily said as Dumbledore dismissed them, "It's really sad to think about. We've only got a month left here..."
"Yeah," Remus agreed sadly. "It's so much like home... I don't want to leave."
"Me neither, but look at it this way," Sirius said, slipping an arm around him. "You and I'll go out and get ourselves a nice flat - how about in London? - and a chateau in France, and a private jet, and all that..."
Lily giggled. "I think you're overestimating," she said.
Sirius pouted. "You don't think we could?"
"I don't think your parents would let you go that far away," she teased. "Right, Remus?"
"Oh, be quiet," Remus said, blushing. But Lily's words had sparked a new worry within him. However on earth were he and Sirius going to tell their parents about their relationship? He didn't even want to think of how his family would react. Disown him, probably.

~Remus' Journal - June 1~

-I've tried to talk to Sirius about our parents. I ask him, "What exactly will we tell them, Siri?" and he just tells me not to worry, we'll just tell them the truth and see how they take it. Maybe Sirius' parents are mellow enough to take it, but I just know my parents'll kill me before they let me go anywhere with Siri, never mind if it's a flat in London or a chateau in France. Let *me* go anywhere? Siri won't even get out of the house. They'll probably curse him right on the spot.
I've got to study. The N.E.W.T.s are coming up soon, I guess I'll just take Siri's advice and worry about this later. I don't want to be all preoccupied when the exams start.-

~June 26 - First day of Graduation Practice - Great Hall, after dinner~

The exams had gone rather well, as it turned out. All the extra studying Remus had done had really paid off; and the cramming Sirius and James had done each night had somehow gotten them through. Even Peter had received top marks. There was nothing they'd rather do now then lay around outside and enjoy the peaceful weather. But they couldn't. Today was the first day of graduation practice for the seventh years, and they were packed into the sweltering Great Hall, being organized into alphabetical order by Professor McGonagall and Professor Flitwick. Remus was between Karen Longfellow, one of Lily's friends, and -ugh, shudder- Lucius Malfoy. The two avoided looking at each other, and tried to ignore the tennis ball James and Sirius were throwing to each other. This was dangerous, as they were so far apart in line, and anyone was going to get a tennis ball in the head any minute now.
Professor McGonagall caught the tennis ball in one fantastic grab, making the seventh years cheer and catcall. She flushed and smiled a bit, then snapped back to her strict self and scolded Sirius and James. Professor Flitwick, who was standing on the Sorting Hat's stool, finished organizing the last of the students and called, "All set, Minerva!"
Professor McGonagall nodded and clapped her hands together for attention. When they had at last fallen silent, she said, "Now that you're all in order, take a minute and remember who you're sitting next to! I don't want any screw-ups! You all need to be in order so no one gets confused when Professor Dumbledore calls you up for your diplomas. All right, follow me... stay in line..."
Somehow they managed to trail out the door and march down to the Quidditch field without getting too badly disorganized. Professor McGonagall had them file into rows of folding chairs which were sitting in the middle of the field before a great platform. "Remember where you're sitting and who you're sitting between!" she said. "It's *very* important that you stay in order..."

After about an hour of sitting in the hard, uncomfortable chairs, when the sun began to go down, McGonagall and Flitwick dismissed them, and Remus hurried over to join his friends, very thankful to be away from Malfoy, who had been giving him suspicious glances throughout the rehearsal. He couldn't know Remus was a werewolf; that was just the old paranoia speaking up again. Remus figured Lucius had just finally figured out there was something going on between himself and Sirius.
"You should've known better than to play ball inside," Remus scolded Sirius and James as they all headed up to the castle.
"Well, it was still fun, and we didn't get in major trouble," Sirius said cheerfully, slipping an arm around Remus' waist. "You wanna go for a walk, Remmie?"
"All right," Remus agreed, and looked at James, Lily, Peter, and Grace. "Go ahead, we'll catch you up."
"All right," James said, sounding amused. "See you."

Remus and Sirius wandered over to the lake, where they stopped for a while and watched the sunset.
"Siri?" Remus asked.
"Mmm?"
"Did you really mean it that time when... you told Lily we'd live together?"
"Of course I did," Sirius said. "You thought I was kidding?"
"No...." Still somewhat skeptical.
Sirius raised an eyebrow. "Remmie, how long is it going to take me to convince you? I *want* to be with you, don't you get it? I'm not going to cheat on you or run out on you or anything like that. I love you, you daft sod." And he pulled Remus closer and kissed him.
After they ended the kiss, Remus rested his head on Sirius' shoulder, hugging him tight. Yes, he knew Sirius loved him, and he never suspected him of wanting to leave..... He knew it, but couldn't convince Sirius... but.... there was a way he might be able to...
"Siri, come with me," he said suddenly, taking Sirius' hand. "Come on." He began to pull his boyfriend in the direction of the Whomping Willow.
"Hey, wait a minute," Sirius said, confused. "What are you doing? Where are we going?"
"The Shack," Remus said to him. "Come on."
"Why?"
Remus stopped and turned to him, smiling a little. He moved close to Sirius and leaned up to whisper in his ear.
"Tonight. I want it to be tonight."
Sirius' eyes widened as he realized what Remus meant. "Y- y- you do?"
"Yes," Remus said. "Yes, I do...."
"Okay," Sirius said, unable to keep a joyful grin from spreading across his face. "Lead the way."

~*~*~*~*~

When they arrived at the Shack, Remus took Sirius' hand again and led the way up to the master bedroom. He wasn't completely sure why he wanted their first time to be *here*, of all places, but somehow it just seemed right. It was hard to explain it to himself, and he was glad when Sirius didn't ask him why they were here (as opposed to their dorm, Remus supposed. Not that the dorm was a good choice - they didn't need James or Peter walking in during a crucial moment). He closed the door and led Sirius to the bed, feeling more nervous than he ever had in his life.
"Are you sure you want me?" he asked Sirius. "Absolutely sure? Because.... if there's any doubt... any at *all*.... we can't do this."
"I'm more sure about this than I've ever been in my life," Sirius said seriously. "Trust me, Remmie. There's nothing I'd rather be than your mate for life."
Remus sniffled and let Sirius pull him into a tight hug. "You're so good to me," he whimpered.
"You deserve it," Sirius whispered into his ear. "Come here."
He pulled Remus further back on the bed, so they were lying side-by-side. "No need to rush this," Sirius whispered. "We've got all the time we need."
Mentally marveling over what a sweet, thoughtful boyfriend he had, Remus snuggled closer in Sirius' warm embrace, feeling sleepy. Mmm, this was nice. Had he once thought being held by Snape was nice? Wow, he had been naive then. This was a million - no, a billion - times better. With a promise of more to come. He closed his eyes. If it got any nicer, he was going to fall asleep. Hmm. Better do something about that.
Sirius was running his fingers through Remus' hair and humming softly. Remus couldn't identify the tune (knowing Sirius, it would turn out to be a very *un*-romantic Muggle rock song), but it was still soothing. Okay. Deep breath. 'Let's get this underway,' he thought. Another deep breath. Then rather timidly, he let his hands slide down to Sirius' hips.
Sirius stopped humming and smiled down at him. "Are you sure you're ready? It doesn't have to be tonight....."
"It does," Remus said. "It has to be tonight...." he struggled to voice what he was thinking. "I mean, graduation's the day after next and.... I mean, we *met* at school.... and... oh..." He looked up into Sirius' midnight eyes. "I can't figure out how to tell you what I mean," he said helplessly, fiddling with the charm on his necklace.
"It just seems like the right place?" Sirius murmured in his ear, making him shiver.
"Yes, but I don't know why," Remus answered.
"It's okay," Sirius said softly. "It feels the same way to me...." He took Remus' hands in his own and kissed him.
It was a nice kiss, a *very* nice kiss... hell, it was a *sexy* kiss, and Remus felt something stir in the pit of his stomach. He reached up to loosen Sirius' tie, casting it aside without a glance, and began unbuttoning Sirius' shirt, sliding the starched white fabric off Sirius' smooth, tanned shoulders. Mmm, so far so good, he thought as the shirt drifted to the floor. Eep. Trousers came next.
But Sirius must have felt Remus' unease, because he kissed him softly and instead removed Remus' tie and began to unbutton his shirt. Remus caught Sirius' hand. "Don't," he said, his voice trembling. "I don't want you to see.... my scars......."
"Are you going to leave your socks on too?" Sirius teased gently, but then gave Remus' hand a reassuring squeeze. "Don't say a word. Just let me do this...."
He undid the last button and slipped Remus' shirt off, revealing pale skin crisscrossed with old scars. Remus cast a fearful look at his boyfriend's face, but no look of pity or - more importantly - revulsion came into Sirius' eyes. There was nothing but pure love and devotion in those inky depths, and finally the last of Remus' fear and uncertainty dissipated. He wound his fingers in Sirius' silky, midnight hair and allowed Sirius to finish undressing them both.
"Beautiful....." Sirius whispered in his ear, tracing a finger along Remus' collarbone. "So beautiful..."

And Sirius was gentle, ever so gentle, and the rest of the night was simply magnificent. There was only one problem - nighttime needed to be a few more hours longer, Remus decided. Either that, or humans needed to be able to survive without sleep.

~June 27th - 6:00 AM~

When Remus awoke the next morning, it took his still-sleepy mind a few minutes to figure out why he was in the Shrieking Shack. Then the memories of last night swept over him, and he opened his eyes.
Sirius was still sleeping beside him, his long legs entangled with Remus', an arm draped possessively over Remus' chest. His hair had come almost completely undone from its ponytail, and was hanging in his face. Remus brushed it back lovingly, telling himself to have Sirius let it down next time. Sirius gave a sleepy grunt, but didn't wake. Remus snuggled closer and watched the band of sunlight from the window slowly crawl up his lover's legs.
Sirius didn't wake up until almost eight. Remus was dozing and didn't realize Sirius was awake until a husky voice murmured, "Sleep well, love?"
"Very well," Remus replied, opening his eyes. "Did you?"
"Better than I have in a while," Sirius replied lazily, but then a note of concern entered his voice. "D'you feel okay?" He blushed. "I mean... the first time and all -"
"I feel perfect," Remus said softly. "Even better than I did before."
Sirius smiled and kissed his forehead. "Me too."
They were quiet for a moment, then Remus decided it was time to bring something up. "Siri?"
"Mmm?"
"Um, I have to do something," Remus said, mentally debating how to word this.
"What?"
"Um, I have to, uh, kind of.... mark you," Remus said hesitantly. "Er, you know.... as my mate..."
"How?"
"Well.... I kind of.... have to bite you," Remus said uncertainly. Sirius raised a questioning eyebrow, so he hurriedly added, "You're not going to become a werewolf - it's just a mark - um, so everybody know's you've been claimed - oh, that's not what I meant!" He rubbed his forehead in frustration. "Um, well, it's more like... so other werewolves know you're claimed - oh, I didn't mean that either!" he cried helplessly.
Sirius only chuckled. "I think I know what you mean, Remmie. So Snapey sees it and *knows* you're not interested."
Remus stared at him, then giggled. "Sirius!"
"I'm just kidding," Sirius sniggered, but then he grew -no pun intended - serious. "Okay, go ahead."
"You want me to?" Remus asked uncertainly.
"Of course," Sirius replied. "I'd be honored." He sniggered. "And at least you're not tattooing 'Property of Remus J. Lupin, so sod off!' on my forehead."
Remus giggled too, but quickly sobered. "Okay..... I'll try not to hurt you." He turned Sirius' head gently to the side and brushed his long hair off his neck, so the whole left side of Sirius' tanned neck lay open to him. He lowered his head and licked a spot just under Sirius' ear. "Right there," he murmured. "That's where it has to be."
Sirius' breathing had grown uneven. "Do it," he said hoarsely.
Remus hesitated, then lowered his mouth to Sirius' neck once more. He closed his eyes. 'Don't let me hurt him,' he thought, and bit his lover's neck.
Sirius groaned, but not in pain. A tiny dribble of blood ran down his neck. Remus licked it away, then held the edge of the sheet to the wound to stop the bleeding. It healed almost instantly, leaving a small, red crescent-moon mark just under Sirius' ear. Remus let out a shuddery sigh of relief, and whispered, "Mine."
"All yours," Sirius whispered back. "Forever."

~*~*~*~*~

They didn't head back up to the castle until almost eleven. Halfway across the grounds they met up with James, who was returning from his beloved Quidditch field. He took one look at their somewhat mussed appearances and the blush spreading across Remus' cheeks and knew they hadn't been gone all last night for no good reason. He didn't comment, but joined them.
"Saying goodbye, Jim?" Sirius asked.
"Yeah," James sighed. "I'm really going to miss this place."
"Buck up," Sirius said cheerfully. "Once you and Lil have a kid - I'm betting on at least four - you'll see a lot of this place. And hear from Dumbledore more times than you'll like - any kid of yours'll be as sneaky as us."
Remus giggled at the look on James' face. "Four kids?"
James winced. "I don't think I could stand it."

~June 28th - Graduation Day - the Quidditch Field~

"....And I wish you the very best of luck in your futures, and the very best of success." Dumbledore finished, beaming around at the graduating class. Remus applauded along with everyone else, feeling sick to his stomach. He was more nervous than he could ever remember being in his entire life, even more nervous than he had been before his Sorting (as impossible as that seemed). There were an *awful* lot of people here today, and he was *not* enthusiastic about getting up and shaking hands with Dumbledore in front of all of them.
He snuck a look behind him at James, who winked at him. Remus managed a weak smile in return, then looked back at the podium, where Professor McGonagall was now making a speech. Remus didn't hear a word she said. He hadn't even been able to pay attention to James and Lily's speech earlier. Panic had him totally in its clutches. Nervously he smoothed out a tiny wrinkle in his black-scarlet-and-gold graduation robes. His stomach felt funny, as if a flock of butterflies was fighting to get out. He gulped as Professor McGonagall finished, and he applauded weakly. Here came the inevitable...
Dumbledore, along with the Minister of Magic, Cornelius Fudge, had joined Professor McGonagall at the podium. Remus' leg twitched nervously as he watched the first row get up and start forward. His heart went out to Grace, who was the first one in line and looked exactly how he felt. But she shook hands with McGonagall, Dumbledore, and Fudge flawlessly, accepted her diploma, and made it back to her seat without tripping over her high heels or the hem of her robes. Then it was 'Darien V. Avery'.... 'Narcissa Beaumont'.... 'Annmarie L. Billings...'.... and then -
"Sirius Black!" Professor McGonagall called.
Grinning, Sirius practically bounded up to her. He paused once, looked at Remus, and blew him a kiss. Remus flushed but smiled back, and giggled when Sirius kissed McGonagall on the cheek before going to shake hands with Dumbledore and Fudge. It was just like Sirius, Remus thought, he's anything but his name.....
Lily didn't trip either; Remus felt dreadfully sorry for her all the same, because she had been sitting between Crabbe and Goyle the whole time. He gulped as his row stood, and he took deep, calming breaths as they all marched up. 'Chad M. Jones'.... 'Sara M. Josephson'.... 'Mary LaRue' .... (his hands were beginning to sweat now).... 'Esther Leaf'.... (was that a heart attack coming on?) .... 'Karen Longfellow' (maybe he'd die before he had to go up there)...
"Remus J. Lupin!"

Ack. Horrors.

Summoning all his courage, he got up the stairs. Oh, what the hell. He wasn't a Gryffindor for nothing, was he? He paused, smiled down at Sirius, and blew him a kiss. Sirius grinned, pretended to catch it, and winked at him. Then Remus shook hands with Professor McGonagall, then with Fudge, then accepted his diploma from Dumbledore.
Dumbledore grasped Remus' hand in both of his own. "I think you and Sirius will be very happy together," the Headmaster smiled. "Good luck, Remus."
"Thank you, sir," Remus said, squeezing Dumbledore's hands. "I think we will be, too."
Praise the Lord *THAT* was over, he thought gratefully as he was finally able to sit down.

~*~*~*~*~

"That's my little boy!" Remus' mother sobbed, hugging Remus so tightly he couldn't breathe. "Oh, I'm so proud of you!"
"Mum, I can't breathe, let me go!" Remus gasped.
"He's turning blue, Mum," Gill laughed, as Mrs. Lupin released her youngest son somewhat reluctantly. "Congratulations, little brother."
"Good job, son," his father said, smiling down at him.
"Now you can go get a job," Henri chuckled.
"Oh, be quiet," Remus scowled, leading his family over to where the Blacks, Potters, and Evanses were talking. After a few quick introductions, Remus, Sirius, James and Lily walked a little ways away from their families to discuss summer plans.
"More camping," James said, grinning. "And maybe sometime we can all take turns on your deathtrap, Siri."
Sirius scowled. "It's *not* a deathtrap, Jim."
"Let's see how you feel after you ride it again after a year of being separated from it," teased Lily. "We'll be scraping you off the sidewalk."
"Thanks for the vote of confidence," Sirius grumbled.

"Come on, Lily," a voice said impatiently. It was Lily's sour, mean-looking sister, Petunia. "We're going now."
"Okay," Lily said. "I'll be right there, Petunia. I just want to say goodbye."
As soon as Petunia's back was turned, Lily gave Sirius and Remus each a kiss on the cheek, and a quick kiss on the lips for James (but not as long as she'd like, in case Petunia turned around again).
"Where are Peter and Grace?" she asked. "I want to say goodbye to them, oh, and to Debbie and Zoe and Cali too...."
"I'll help you find them," James volunteered, and off they went.

Remus and Sirius turned to look at their families, who were still chatting pleasantly with the Potters and Evanses.
"How are we going to tell them?" Remus asked helplessly.
"I dunno," Sirius said with a shrug. "But look at it this way - we won't have to tell them right away......"

To Be Continued

(Coming Soon : Year 8, the first of the post-Hogwarts years! Sirius and Remus finally realize it's high time they tell their parents about their relationship. The news does not go over as well as they'd hoped, sadly. How are they going to get each other alone now? Well, with the help of a very lovely family member..... James and Lily get engaged, Peter and Grace hit a rocky road, someone dies, and a huge surprise awaits our favorite canines. What could it be?)