Half past two in the morning, and Remus still hadn't managed to get a wink of sleep; thus the logic of him stealthily slipping out of the boys' dorm to a more peaceful spot. The youth curled up comfortably in one of the many plush chairs that were located within the Gryffindor Common Room, a book in hand and the nearby fire dancing in his eyes. Four days until the next full moon, and the 6th year was finding it rather challenging to hide his anxious, worried manner from the others around him. James, Sirius, and Peter had already taken note of the slight change in behavior, having been expecting and charting the time within their own minds. Even so, the werewolf couldn't help but find himself envying those three; although they had to put up with his slightly negative disposition for a small amount of time each month, they didn't have to suffer from the lack of sleep worrying of what was to come, thinking about what could possibly go wrong if some small slip took place.
Scratch that. They did have to worry. Due to their friendship with the Gryffindor Prefect, Prongs, Padfoot, and Wormtail each had to leave the security of the Hogwarts grounds once a month to accompany the lone werewolf to the Whomping Willow. There, they'd spend the night guarding, protecting, and taking care of the youth, risking their own safety, and possibly lives, to help out a friend. When was the last time that Remus had thanked them for such a thing? Dear lord, it must have been ages; a shame, how little the werewolf voiced his appreciation. He'd have to make sure to assure them of his gratefulness tomorrow morning.
Well, at least the number of people who had to suffer from his ill temperament was smaller than normal. It was winter vacation at the moment, and most of the Hogwarts students had gone home for the Holidays a few days ago. No classes, more freedom… And all the more time to feel miserably restless. Rather unfortunate, too, that the full moon had to fall on Christmas Eve. No doubt the wolfish youth would be feeling miserable the next day.
Sprawling his legs across one arm of the chair, leaning his head against the other, the werewolf opened his book to the last page he had read, allowing the bookmark that had been marking his place to fall swiftly into his lap. As many times as his eyes swept over the same sentence that the youth was concentrating on, though, Remus found himself unable to comprehend its meaning. His gaze may have been skimming over the words, but his thoughts were else where. Making a few more attempts to give the book his attention, the Prefect finally closed the item and placed it atop his stomach, turning his head to the fire. As entrancing as the flames were, they still couldn't manage to redirect Remus's thoughts.
"Hey, Moony, what are you doing up this late?" a voice whispered hoarsely within the youth's ear, giving him reason to jump in his seat and let out a soft yelp of surprise. The speaker laughed quietly at his reaction, and the sound alone was enough to reassure the werewolf that it was none other than his friend Sirius. Breathing out a sigh of relief, Remus turned his gaze away from the fire and towards the source of the sounds, almost slamming his head into Padfoot's in the process. Half of the onyx haired youth was leaning over the back of Remus's chair, his eyes narrowed in a mixture of amusement and concern as he pulled himself up slightly, providing more distance between their faces.
Hesitating only for a moment before replying, Remus managed a slightly sheepish grin, softly exclaiming, as not to awaken those sleeping above, "Couldn't sleep." Gently pressing an index finger against Sirius's head and pushing the other youth away slightly, he laughed quietly and added, "And what about you? I thought you were still up there asleep."
The Animagi was quick to answer, returning the grin with a wolfish one of his own. "You woke me up, mate. One would think that with all the practice the last six years have given you, you'd be able to make a quieter exit," he teased, reaching into the Prefect's lap with one arm and picking up the stray book, still hanging his other arm over the back of the chair casually. "Were you trying to use this to get to sleep?" he then questioned, tossing the book into the air a few times before gently throwing it onto another chair nearby.
"With little success," the werewolf exclaimed in amusement, eyes trailing after the book, watching its movements until Sirius tossed it aside. Only then did his gaze fall to rest upon the dark haired youth that loomed before him, his grin growing into a rather meager smile. "Listen, I'm sorry for waking you up; surely, it wasn't my intention, and heavens know we need all the rest we can get-"
"No worries, Moony," the other interrupted, laughing quietly and gently flicking at
the nose of Remus, everything he did acted out in a teasing manner. "You get the least sleep of us all, and look at how far you've gotten; near perfect grades, Gryffindor Prefect, and we've no doubt that you'll be Head Boy soon…"
Going cross-eyed as he attempted to gaze at the tip of his nose, rubbing gently at the extremity as he did so, Remus softly scowled, "Now Sirius, that's merely done out of hard work and determination. If you three would just put a little more effort and pride into your work-"
Pushing up against the back of Remus's chair casually, the dark youth interrupted the werewolf for a second time. "Oh, now don't give me that bull," Sirius exclaimed admonishingly, although his soft voice was unusually cheerful. "Me and James get along just-"
"James and I-"
"James and I get along just fine with our school work, above average, even, and Peter-"
"Has to cheat in order to get any where. Honestly, Sirius, I don't understand how you guys plan on getting real jobs after we graduate, what with your grades and attitudes towards work-"
"I don't care about any bloody jobs or attitudes," Sirius whispered insistently, his voice containing just the slightest bit of annoyance at this point of the argument. "Why is it that every conversation with you is rounded off into a lecture about grades?"
Flashing the other a slightly pained frown, the werewolf turned away, returning his gaze to its original position upon the dancing fire a few feet away from him. "I'm sorry if I come off to you so close-minded that I'm only able to speak of a single topic, but I do believe you're in the wrong for making such a statement," he exclaimed icily after a few moments of silence, crossing his arms before his chest and putting on a slightly agitated air. He had come down to the common room for some peace and quiet, not to get into an argument with one of his best friends, and such happenings had quickly placed him into a slightly foul mood.
A soft sigh exited Sirius's lips from behind, and for a few moments, the youth remained where he was, carefully contemplating how to sweep away the hurt his words had obviously caused. Finally straightening himself and his position into a standing one, the onyx haired youth wound around Remus's chair and kneeled in front of the other youth, blocking his view of the fire. The werewolf's eyes narrowed dangerously as the other intruded upon his gaze, only to cause a soft, wistful smile to ease upon the dark-haired youth, who softly murmured, "I'm sorry, Remus… I guess I'm just a little tired, you know? I didn't mean to snap at you, and I surely didn't mean what I said."
The Prefect's gaze softened only slightly upon Padfoot's words, and from the look upon his face, the werewolf was attempting to judge the sincerity of the other's tone. Not exactly one to hold grudges, and surely not one to worry about a single unmeant insult, Remus managed a smile for his friend, lowering his voice to a barely audible tone as he suggested, "If you're tired, then perhaps you should go to sleep, Sirius."
The other Gryffindor laughed quietly, sitting down and leaning backwards upon the ground, placing his hands behind him and letting his head roll over his shoulders. Random strands of dark black hair fell before his eyes, of which the youth merely watched dangle in amusement. "I don't want to go to sleep, though," he whined with childlike innocence, obviously pleased that his friend had easily let his outburst fall to rest.
Remus joined softly in the laughter of the other, rubbing his eyes with one fist in a sluggish manner. Just because he couldn't get to sleep didn't mean it wasn't something he wanted, and he once again found himself envying Sirius and the rest of his friends. This bit of silent yearning brought him back to previous thoughts, though, and the werewolf gently pursed his lips, his gaze moving away from his friend and towards the ground.
"Hey, is something wrong?" Sirius questioned softly, bending his head to the side and following Remus's gaze to the ground, as if he expected to find something immensely interesting there. When all his attention met with was carpet, he returned a rather concerned gaze to his werewolf friend. When the werewolf didn't answer, he extended a hand and touched the other youth's nearest shoulder, repeating, "Moony, is something wrong?"
Flinching slightly in surprise, not having expected the touch, the Prefect's gaze jumped upwards and caught ahold of the eyes of his Animagi friend. "Huh? Oh, I'm sorry, Sirius. I was just thinking that… Well, I never thank you guys."
Shoulders bouncing up and down with silent laughter, Sirius gave Remus's arm a gentle squeeze before releasing his hold upon it. "Liar. Just this morning, you thanked James for saving your back from one of Snape's hexes, and you thanked me after dinner, albeit sarcastically, for letting you help me with my homework. You're thanking us all the time."
I thank you all the time because there's always something to be grateful of, the youth mused, although he dared not speak his thoughts to the other. Instead, he merely smiled gently, feeling that the handsome youth before him didn't completely understand his words. "I don't mean thanking you for those everyday things, but instead for what you guys do merely as friends… Especially helping me out each month. It means a lot to me-"
"Aw, Remus, us hanging out with you when you go werewolf every month is great! Thanks to you, we know our way around the school like the back of our hand, along with Hogsmeade, and we have some of the greatest, most unimaginable adventures, and we get to know a werewolf personally, and-"
"And you risk your safety and lives once a month for my casual well being. You guys… You guys don't need to do it, and-"
Sirius continued the series of interrupting in a hushed, earnest whisper. "We do to! We're your friends, Remus, and friends stick with eachother, no matter what. You told us that for the first four years, you'd sit there at night chewing and biting at yourself because you couldn't help it. You think we'd let something like that go on? No, no, we couldn't do that… I couldn't do that." The onyx haired youth paused for a few seconds, biting his bottom lip in what seemed to be hesitation, but he quickly continued on when Remus opened his mouth to reply. "No, I couldn't do something like that… Not when I love you as much as I do."
The werewolf's heart gave an unexpected leap upon his friend's last comment, his yearnings and desires taking it in a way other than his logical side did. Instead of replying the way that his heart wished him to, though, Remus's tongue took another path. "Well, of course you love me! Friends love eachother, don't they? I mean, I love you, and James loves you, and Peter loves you, and we all love eachother back, right?"
Sirius's earnest, almost eager expression quickly melted into a slightly pained way and he turned away, black hair falling before his face and preventing Remus from any further examination. "Yeah… That brotherly, friend love, you know?" he agreed, voice suddenly flat and hollow as he viciously poked an index finger at the plush carpet below him.
Dearie me, what have I said wrong now? the light haired youth questioned himself silently, eyes narrowed in considerable concern. He had intended his words to be reassuring, not harming, but he had obviously gone wrong somewhere. Oh, this was not a good time to be given so much to think about. His head was beginning to pound with a slight headache, and the strain that his lack of sleep was causing brought no more ease to such a situation.
After a few moments of silence and watching Sirius abuse the Common Room carpet a little bit more, Remus grabbed the bookmark that still lied on his stomach and tossed it into another chair before pushing himself up out of his. Placing his arms on his hips and digging his toes into the comfortable material that lay beneath, the youth merely loomed over the onyx haired youth for a few more moments, to no avail. Sighing quietly, Remus sat himself down on the floor beside Sirius, turning his head and giving the other his full attention.
"I guess it's my turn to ask now… Is something wrong, Sirius?" he questioned softly, his voice lower and quieter than it had been yet that night. All he got was a slight shake of his friend's head, and the Prefect wasn't about to accept that as a suitable answer. "Oh, c'mon, Padfoot, mate, if something's bothering you, then just tell me!"
Silence came over the Gryffindor Common Room for a few moments more, the only sounds being the crackling of the fire and the soft breathing of the two 6th years. It seemed as if Sirius was contemplating his answer, and taking quite a large amount of time in doing so. Finally, he murmured in a barely audible whisper, "I already told you. I love you."
Remus let out a slightly exasperated sigh, although made the sound soft enough to where even the youth sitting beside him couldn't hear it. Confusion was hinted in his voice as he bluntly exclaimed, "I don't understand. How can something like that be bothering you?"
The onyx haired youth shook his head and turned away, once again placing both his hands onto the floor, digging his fingers into the carpet in a violent manner. By the way he was acting, Remus couldn't help but feel that he was making things worse, and he was tempted to leave his friend in peace and go back up to his bed. Even so, curiosity nagged, and the youth found that he couldn't let the subject drop at this point.
"Please, Sirius, talk to me. Why is that bothering you?" he interrogated further, his voice soft, eager, desperate, even his expression reflecting his words, although the earnest look upon his face had no effect, since his friend was still turned away at the moment.
Once again, it took the other several moments before he answered. "You described it as a love between friends, Remus, but I know that what I feel is more than that. What I feel for you is more… It's more like this." Without warning, Sirius turned towards the werewolf, leaning forward and lacing his hand behind Remus's head, fingers twining themselves through strands of pale brown hair. Leaning forward slightly, he pressed his lips against those of the other, the whole sequence of movements taking place before the Prefect could do anything to prevent it.
Surprise and confusion flashed across the youth's face, and it took him several seconds before realizing what was actually happening. He did not pull away after he came to the conclusion that this was indeed his first kiss, though, and perhaps that was the most obvious sign that he at least slightly returned Sirius's feelings and emotions. He instead leaned closer, the hand closest to Sirius beginning to move towards the onyx haired youth. Remus had no time to move any closer, though, for the Animagi broke away from the kiss nearly as quickly as he had moved in for it, an intense frown upon his face.
"I-I'm sorry, Remus, I s-shouldn't have done that," he began, a furious blush leaking into his cheeks as he looked towards the ground, strands of hair falling before his eyes, as if purposely helping him not to meet the gaze of the werewolf. He opened his mouth to say more, but the Prefect merely placed two fingers to Sirius's lips, gently shaking his head to and fro.
"Sirius, don't worry about it. Just… Go upstairs and get some sleep, all right?" Remus murmured softly, his expression soft, almost pleading, and his gaze darted towards the stairs towards the boy's dormitory for a split second before returning to the dark haired teen before him. Sirius opened his mouth to retort, but his words were quickly hushed by a simple, dismissing, "Sweet dreams."
Letting out a soft, barely audible sigh, the dark youth pushed himself up from the floor, looking down towards Remus and extending a hand to aid the werewolf in getting up. The Prefect merely shook his head gently, though, and Sirius settled with quietly questioning, "So you're staying down here?"
Nodding his head gently, Remus glanced towards the fire, softly murmuring, "Yes… I'll be here when you wake up." Pursing his lips gently, Sirius's expression became one of slightly reluctant acceptance as he turned his back, walking off towards the stairs towards the boy's dorm. He stopped only once, at the bottom of the stairs, to glance over his shoulder and whisper, "Sweet dreams to you too, Moony," before continuing to his bed.
Scratch that. They did have to worry. Due to their friendship with the Gryffindor Prefect, Prongs, Padfoot, and Wormtail each had to leave the security of the Hogwarts grounds once a month to accompany the lone werewolf to the Whomping Willow. There, they'd spend the night guarding, protecting, and taking care of the youth, risking their own safety, and possibly lives, to help out a friend. When was the last time that Remus had thanked them for such a thing? Dear lord, it must have been ages; a shame, how little the werewolf voiced his appreciation. He'd have to make sure to assure them of his gratefulness tomorrow morning.
Well, at least the number of people who had to suffer from his ill temperament was smaller than normal. It was winter vacation at the moment, and most of the Hogwarts students had gone home for the Holidays a few days ago. No classes, more freedom… And all the more time to feel miserably restless. Rather unfortunate, too, that the full moon had to fall on Christmas Eve. No doubt the wolfish youth would be feeling miserable the next day.
Sprawling his legs across one arm of the chair, leaning his head against the other, the werewolf opened his book to the last page he had read, allowing the bookmark that had been marking his place to fall swiftly into his lap. As many times as his eyes swept over the same sentence that the youth was concentrating on, though, Remus found himself unable to comprehend its meaning. His gaze may have been skimming over the words, but his thoughts were else where. Making a few more attempts to give the book his attention, the Prefect finally closed the item and placed it atop his stomach, turning his head to the fire. As entrancing as the flames were, they still couldn't manage to redirect Remus's thoughts.
"Hey, Moony, what are you doing up this late?" a voice whispered hoarsely within the youth's ear, giving him reason to jump in his seat and let out a soft yelp of surprise. The speaker laughed quietly at his reaction, and the sound alone was enough to reassure the werewolf that it was none other than his friend Sirius. Breathing out a sigh of relief, Remus turned his gaze away from the fire and towards the source of the sounds, almost slamming his head into Padfoot's in the process. Half of the onyx haired youth was leaning over the back of Remus's chair, his eyes narrowed in a mixture of amusement and concern as he pulled himself up slightly, providing more distance between their faces.
Hesitating only for a moment before replying, Remus managed a slightly sheepish grin, softly exclaiming, as not to awaken those sleeping above, "Couldn't sleep." Gently pressing an index finger against Sirius's head and pushing the other youth away slightly, he laughed quietly and added, "And what about you? I thought you were still up there asleep."
The Animagi was quick to answer, returning the grin with a wolfish one of his own. "You woke me up, mate. One would think that with all the practice the last six years have given you, you'd be able to make a quieter exit," he teased, reaching into the Prefect's lap with one arm and picking up the stray book, still hanging his other arm over the back of the chair casually. "Were you trying to use this to get to sleep?" he then questioned, tossing the book into the air a few times before gently throwing it onto another chair nearby.
"With little success," the werewolf exclaimed in amusement, eyes trailing after the book, watching its movements until Sirius tossed it aside. Only then did his gaze fall to rest upon the dark haired youth that loomed before him, his grin growing into a rather meager smile. "Listen, I'm sorry for waking you up; surely, it wasn't my intention, and heavens know we need all the rest we can get-"
"No worries, Moony," the other interrupted, laughing quietly and gently flicking at
the nose of Remus, everything he did acted out in a teasing manner. "You get the least sleep of us all, and look at how far you've gotten; near perfect grades, Gryffindor Prefect, and we've no doubt that you'll be Head Boy soon…"
Going cross-eyed as he attempted to gaze at the tip of his nose, rubbing gently at the extremity as he did so, Remus softly scowled, "Now Sirius, that's merely done out of hard work and determination. If you three would just put a little more effort and pride into your work-"
Pushing up against the back of Remus's chair casually, the dark youth interrupted the werewolf for a second time. "Oh, now don't give me that bull," Sirius exclaimed admonishingly, although his soft voice was unusually cheerful. "Me and James get along just-"
"James and I-"
"James and I get along just fine with our school work, above average, even, and Peter-"
"Has to cheat in order to get any where. Honestly, Sirius, I don't understand how you guys plan on getting real jobs after we graduate, what with your grades and attitudes towards work-"
"I don't care about any bloody jobs or attitudes," Sirius whispered insistently, his voice containing just the slightest bit of annoyance at this point of the argument. "Why is it that every conversation with you is rounded off into a lecture about grades?"
Flashing the other a slightly pained frown, the werewolf turned away, returning his gaze to its original position upon the dancing fire a few feet away from him. "I'm sorry if I come off to you so close-minded that I'm only able to speak of a single topic, but I do believe you're in the wrong for making such a statement," he exclaimed icily after a few moments of silence, crossing his arms before his chest and putting on a slightly agitated air. He had come down to the common room for some peace and quiet, not to get into an argument with one of his best friends, and such happenings had quickly placed him into a slightly foul mood.
A soft sigh exited Sirius's lips from behind, and for a few moments, the youth remained where he was, carefully contemplating how to sweep away the hurt his words had obviously caused. Finally straightening himself and his position into a standing one, the onyx haired youth wound around Remus's chair and kneeled in front of the other youth, blocking his view of the fire. The werewolf's eyes narrowed dangerously as the other intruded upon his gaze, only to cause a soft, wistful smile to ease upon the dark-haired youth, who softly murmured, "I'm sorry, Remus… I guess I'm just a little tired, you know? I didn't mean to snap at you, and I surely didn't mean what I said."
The Prefect's gaze softened only slightly upon Padfoot's words, and from the look upon his face, the werewolf was attempting to judge the sincerity of the other's tone. Not exactly one to hold grudges, and surely not one to worry about a single unmeant insult, Remus managed a smile for his friend, lowering his voice to a barely audible tone as he suggested, "If you're tired, then perhaps you should go to sleep, Sirius."
The other Gryffindor laughed quietly, sitting down and leaning backwards upon the ground, placing his hands behind him and letting his head roll over his shoulders. Random strands of dark black hair fell before his eyes, of which the youth merely watched dangle in amusement. "I don't want to go to sleep, though," he whined with childlike innocence, obviously pleased that his friend had easily let his outburst fall to rest.
Remus joined softly in the laughter of the other, rubbing his eyes with one fist in a sluggish manner. Just because he couldn't get to sleep didn't mean it wasn't something he wanted, and he once again found himself envying Sirius and the rest of his friends. This bit of silent yearning brought him back to previous thoughts, though, and the werewolf gently pursed his lips, his gaze moving away from his friend and towards the ground.
"Hey, is something wrong?" Sirius questioned softly, bending his head to the side and following Remus's gaze to the ground, as if he expected to find something immensely interesting there. When all his attention met with was carpet, he returned a rather concerned gaze to his werewolf friend. When the werewolf didn't answer, he extended a hand and touched the other youth's nearest shoulder, repeating, "Moony, is something wrong?"
Flinching slightly in surprise, not having expected the touch, the Prefect's gaze jumped upwards and caught ahold of the eyes of his Animagi friend. "Huh? Oh, I'm sorry, Sirius. I was just thinking that… Well, I never thank you guys."
Shoulders bouncing up and down with silent laughter, Sirius gave Remus's arm a gentle squeeze before releasing his hold upon it. "Liar. Just this morning, you thanked James for saving your back from one of Snape's hexes, and you thanked me after dinner, albeit sarcastically, for letting you help me with my homework. You're thanking us all the time."
I thank you all the time because there's always something to be grateful of, the youth mused, although he dared not speak his thoughts to the other. Instead, he merely smiled gently, feeling that the handsome youth before him didn't completely understand his words. "I don't mean thanking you for those everyday things, but instead for what you guys do merely as friends… Especially helping me out each month. It means a lot to me-"
"Aw, Remus, us hanging out with you when you go werewolf every month is great! Thanks to you, we know our way around the school like the back of our hand, along with Hogsmeade, and we have some of the greatest, most unimaginable adventures, and we get to know a werewolf personally, and-"
"And you risk your safety and lives once a month for my casual well being. You guys… You guys don't need to do it, and-"
Sirius continued the series of interrupting in a hushed, earnest whisper. "We do to! We're your friends, Remus, and friends stick with eachother, no matter what. You told us that for the first four years, you'd sit there at night chewing and biting at yourself because you couldn't help it. You think we'd let something like that go on? No, no, we couldn't do that… I couldn't do that." The onyx haired youth paused for a few seconds, biting his bottom lip in what seemed to be hesitation, but he quickly continued on when Remus opened his mouth to reply. "No, I couldn't do something like that… Not when I love you as much as I do."
The werewolf's heart gave an unexpected leap upon his friend's last comment, his yearnings and desires taking it in a way other than his logical side did. Instead of replying the way that his heart wished him to, though, Remus's tongue took another path. "Well, of course you love me! Friends love eachother, don't they? I mean, I love you, and James loves you, and Peter loves you, and we all love eachother back, right?"
Sirius's earnest, almost eager expression quickly melted into a slightly pained way and he turned away, black hair falling before his face and preventing Remus from any further examination. "Yeah… That brotherly, friend love, you know?" he agreed, voice suddenly flat and hollow as he viciously poked an index finger at the plush carpet below him.
Dearie me, what have I said wrong now? the light haired youth questioned himself silently, eyes narrowed in considerable concern. He had intended his words to be reassuring, not harming, but he had obviously gone wrong somewhere. Oh, this was not a good time to be given so much to think about. His head was beginning to pound with a slight headache, and the strain that his lack of sleep was causing brought no more ease to such a situation.
After a few moments of silence and watching Sirius abuse the Common Room carpet a little bit more, Remus grabbed the bookmark that still lied on his stomach and tossed it into another chair before pushing himself up out of his. Placing his arms on his hips and digging his toes into the comfortable material that lay beneath, the youth merely loomed over the onyx haired youth for a few more moments, to no avail. Sighing quietly, Remus sat himself down on the floor beside Sirius, turning his head and giving the other his full attention.
"I guess it's my turn to ask now… Is something wrong, Sirius?" he questioned softly, his voice lower and quieter than it had been yet that night. All he got was a slight shake of his friend's head, and the Prefect wasn't about to accept that as a suitable answer. "Oh, c'mon, Padfoot, mate, if something's bothering you, then just tell me!"
Silence came over the Gryffindor Common Room for a few moments more, the only sounds being the crackling of the fire and the soft breathing of the two 6th years. It seemed as if Sirius was contemplating his answer, and taking quite a large amount of time in doing so. Finally, he murmured in a barely audible whisper, "I already told you. I love you."
Remus let out a slightly exasperated sigh, although made the sound soft enough to where even the youth sitting beside him couldn't hear it. Confusion was hinted in his voice as he bluntly exclaimed, "I don't understand. How can something like that be bothering you?"
The onyx haired youth shook his head and turned away, once again placing both his hands onto the floor, digging his fingers into the carpet in a violent manner. By the way he was acting, Remus couldn't help but feel that he was making things worse, and he was tempted to leave his friend in peace and go back up to his bed. Even so, curiosity nagged, and the youth found that he couldn't let the subject drop at this point.
"Please, Sirius, talk to me. Why is that bothering you?" he interrogated further, his voice soft, eager, desperate, even his expression reflecting his words, although the earnest look upon his face had no effect, since his friend was still turned away at the moment.
Once again, it took the other several moments before he answered. "You described it as a love between friends, Remus, but I know that what I feel is more than that. What I feel for you is more… It's more like this." Without warning, Sirius turned towards the werewolf, leaning forward and lacing his hand behind Remus's head, fingers twining themselves through strands of pale brown hair. Leaning forward slightly, he pressed his lips against those of the other, the whole sequence of movements taking place before the Prefect could do anything to prevent it.
Surprise and confusion flashed across the youth's face, and it took him several seconds before realizing what was actually happening. He did not pull away after he came to the conclusion that this was indeed his first kiss, though, and perhaps that was the most obvious sign that he at least slightly returned Sirius's feelings and emotions. He instead leaned closer, the hand closest to Sirius beginning to move towards the onyx haired youth. Remus had no time to move any closer, though, for the Animagi broke away from the kiss nearly as quickly as he had moved in for it, an intense frown upon his face.
"I-I'm sorry, Remus, I s-shouldn't have done that," he began, a furious blush leaking into his cheeks as he looked towards the ground, strands of hair falling before his eyes, as if purposely helping him not to meet the gaze of the werewolf. He opened his mouth to say more, but the Prefect merely placed two fingers to Sirius's lips, gently shaking his head to and fro.
"Sirius, don't worry about it. Just… Go upstairs and get some sleep, all right?" Remus murmured softly, his expression soft, almost pleading, and his gaze darted towards the stairs towards the boy's dormitory for a split second before returning to the dark haired teen before him. Sirius opened his mouth to retort, but his words were quickly hushed by a simple, dismissing, "Sweet dreams."
Letting out a soft, barely audible sigh, the dark youth pushed himself up from the floor, looking down towards Remus and extending a hand to aid the werewolf in getting up. The Prefect merely shook his head gently, though, and Sirius settled with quietly questioning, "So you're staying down here?"
Nodding his head gently, Remus glanced towards the fire, softly murmuring, "Yes… I'll be here when you wake up." Pursing his lips gently, Sirius's expression became one of slightly reluctant acceptance as he turned his back, walking off towards the stairs towards the boy's dorm. He stopped only once, at the bottom of the stairs, to glance over his shoulder and whisper, "Sweet dreams to you too, Moony," before continuing to his bed.