Sorry if that previous chapter was a mite unsettling – it was pretty experimental and a good stress relief. There are a couple more of its ilk still to come if you enjoyed it by some chance. Thanks to my reviewers; sorry for not updating quickly enough, but here's two whole chapters. Special thanks to old reviewers (all the happiness in the world to you, please continue your god-brilliant job) and to newbies 15ShadesOfGrey and to Lousia who is just such a sweetie. THANK YOU!

"How can it be? I can taste you now. How can I see when you're everything? All my world in one grain of sand. And I've blown it. All my world in one grain of sand. And you own it."

Black Cherry, Goldfrapp.

He could tell by the position of the sun that it had gone noon. The fiery orb was hovering overhead, heating the back of his neck and making the tawny hair damp with sweat.

It had dawned a clear day. Sunny and remarkably hot for England's notoriously screwed up weather. Dressed in just a thin robe, Remus already felt too hot.

He wanted nothing more to jump down from the rooftop and go into the house. To lie in the shade of the wooden hallway, limbs splayed like a dog. He would have if he hadn't been bothering to keep what dignity remained.

There was the soft pad of bare feet beneath him and Harry's dark head came into view. Squinting upwards and shielding his eyes, the wizard hollered, "Come down, Lupin. I don't to tell Dumbledore that it's my fault that you got skin cancer."

With a crooked smile, Remus dropped to the porch floor. Straightening up, he noticed the slightly horrified expression on Harry's face. "Haven't ever broken a bone doing that."

Raising one eyebrow dubiously Harry nodded. "I'll be in the garden if you want. Snape set us some Potions homework that I want to get finished."

Remus nodded back and disappeared with relief into the darkness of the cottage.

Half an hour later Harry squinted up from the rickety old deckchair perched in the middle of the garden. "'Lo," he greeted the older man, surprised by the hoarseness of his voice.

Remus was not much more than a black splodge in front of him and the werewolf chuckled. "I've got you a drink. Butterbeer okay?" he handed down a glass of the liquid.

Gratefully Harry swallowed it, smacking his lips noisily and relishing the delighted laugh that answered his action. Remus flopped down onto the grass next to him, hands folded over his stomach.

He had changed into a pair of battered looking khaki shorts that were designed to be long, finishing below his knees. They had seen better days but Harry was surprised; they looked oddly enough in fashion.

On his torso was a plain white t-shirt with the faded legend: SOUTHAMPTON UNIVERSITY sprawled the chest in maroon letters.  "How far have you got with your essay?" Remus asked, his dark eyes following the path of the clouds above him.

"I'm thinking of slitting my wrists with my quill," Harry responded, flinging the piece of parchment onto the grass with a small snort. "List the five uses for ground tourmaline in amulet making. Was Snape drunk when he wrote this?"

Remus gave a soft snicker. "Leave it on the table and I'll have a look later."

"Thanks." Harry sunk further into the deckchair and shot another glance at his former-Professor and the man he had kissed only an hour earlier. It was strange how situations changed. At the moment he wouldn't have dreamt of doing anything even vaguely salacious.

"Are we doing anything this afternoon?" Harry wondered, tilting the bottle to his lips once more.

"We could always wander into the village," Remus mused, twiddling a blade of grass between his thumb and forefinger. "There's a nice pub that I used to enjoy going to when I was younger."

Harry raised his eyebrows, laughter in his eyes. "And here I was thinking that you were the sensible one- I've been wrong all these years, Lupin. I can see that you were the risk-taker."

Remus smiled gently at the memories of the quintessentially English pub. It was family run, occupied by the friendly grizzled faces of the farmers and local women. He remembered pretending to be grown-up when he was thirteen and taking his first proper girlfriend into the pub.

They were thrown out of course, but Remus had kept up his bluster and shook his fist at the landlord in a way that he supposed was very manly.

Remus closed his eyes and dozed off, warmed by the sun and good company.

~

"Are you sure you want this?" Harry asked, reaching down to anxiously squeeze the older man's hand.

Remus' eyes briefly flickered down to the hand before flickering back to the door. "Not really, but we ought to- to make sure that Sirius hasn't done anything to damage himself. If I'm right, he ought to be more depressed now."

Harry nodded, reluctantly letting go and allowing Remus to knock on the door.

A couple of moments later there was a shuffling sound and the door opened slightly. "I had a feeling it wasn't going to be the milkman," Sirius mumbled, his eyes scornful. "Don't drink much milk. Don't drink much"-

"Apart from alcohol," the old friends finished, their eyes meeting as they spoke in unison.

"What do you want?" the wizard's eyes were bright despite the tired circles beneath them. They snapped towards Harry and the boy felt himself slowly blushing.

There was something in the way that Sirius smirked and the way that his eyes switched between the pair that was unsettling. It was as though he knew something that they didn't.

"Social visit," Remus answered softly. "Let us in, Padfoot."

Sirius stiffened at the endearment. "There is no more Padfoot," he countered frostily.

"Why?" the werewolf felt something deep inside him stir at the man's words. It was something akin to empathy.

"Padfoot is dead. He died long ago."

Remus hung his head as he stepped over the threshold; Harry dithered behind him, unsure if he was welcome in the house, but he was pulled in. The brief touch of Lupin's fingers on his wrist was enough to tell him that he was needed.

They sat in silence, perched on the edge of the over-padded sofas. Remus coughed into the silence before plastering a fake smile onto his countenance. "How have you been keeping?"

"I haven't drunk for a while," Sirius said with a doleful smile.

"How long is a while?"

"I haven't drunk at all today."

Harry thought he saw a tear in Remus' eyes but then he blinked and the moisture was gone. The lycanthrope smiled again, in that patronising way of someone trying to hide his or her emotions. "That's an improvement."

"It is, isn't it?" Sirius looked thoughtful for a moment before slumping back into his chair. "I'm doing it for you, you know. For you, Remus."

The former-Professor covered the space between the two sofas in a couple of easy strides and sat next to his old friend. "I know, Sirius." He squeezed his knee with a silent show of encouragement.

Harry watched the two of them, feeling somewhat in awe of Remus' calm demeanour. That was what made Lupin such a good teacher, it wasn't his expansive knowledge of the useless, or even the fact that he was work-shy with the students.

It was the fact that he was already there with a patient smile. If he was asked to demonstrate something to a student then he wouldn't stop until the student themselves could perform it.

"Harry, could you get us a cup of tea?" Remus asked. He pulled a bottle of milk out from underneath his coat. "I guessed you wouldn't have any," he explained with a shrug.

Harry nodded and left the room.

Remus removed his hand but as soon as he did so it was grasped in a steely hold. "Oh, Moony," Sirius breathed, clutching the palm towards his face and smelling it.

"I've missed you so much."

Lips pressed into the skin and Remus tried to move away. From underneath his eyebrows, Sirius' pale eyes glared upwards. "Don't play coy with me."

He managed to get to his feet but with one quick tug, he was sent sprawling into Black's lap. Colour rose into Lupin's high cheekbones and he struggled indignantly.

"You won't let me touch you, but you let him?" his voice was a hiss. The dumbstruck response was all that Sirius need and he laughed. "I saw you together. You disgust me."

Remus couldn't react quick enough to stop the hand that cracked across his face, leaving a rush of pain behind. With a growl he placed his own hand against the reddening mark, feeling relief in the relative coolness.

"Bastard," he cried.

He heard Harry entering the room and turned to call to him but a vice-like grip caught his chin as Sirius pulled him into a punishing kiss. He gagged on the tongue that thrust into his mouth.

Sirius' head snapped backwards as the first punch landed on his cheek. Shaking his head and swearing, he glared at Remus who had swiftly got to his feet. "Stay away from me."

The werewolf's breathing was erratic, his chest heaving as adrenaline rushed through his veins.

Sirius lumbered to his feet unsteadily. "And after all I do for you?" he cried. "This is how you treat me? All I have ever done to you was out of the kindness of my heart."

Remus spat, his eyes glistening with anger that terrified Harry. "Kindness of your heart? Merlin's Beard, Black, even Malfoy was more gentle with me than you were!"

"Oh yes, the all-powerful Malfoy. The boy so good that he has to pay people to shag him!" Sirius' voice cracked with emotion as he spoke.

Remus felt blood rush to his face. It had been only the once. His parent's sudden deaths had left him without money for a couple of months. It had been Sirius' and James' birthday within two weeks of each other and he hadn't been able to afford anything.

He had just informed Malfoy that their 'sleeping arrangement' was over seeing as he wanted to study for his NEWTS more. Lucius had also been told about his situation and the pureblood had gently suggested the idea.

For one night. That was all. Never again; Remus couldn't stand the cheap feeling that rushed through him as he gathered his clothes and collected the money.

"Shut it, Black!" Remus shouted, his fists clenching and his eyes blazing.

"Is that the way you got him into bed with you, Harry? Lured him with a trail of money?"

Harry couldn't stand the mocking smile of the man he had grown to love like a second father. This wasn't the man that had spent long afternoons with him, telling him all the best hexes and about secret corridors.

Voldemort's death had brought about a sudden change in Sirius.

All that remained in Dumbledore's little cottage, perched on a Scottish hill, was the echo of a crack and then a soft thud as a body hit the ground.

~

"Its enough to drive anyone to the bottle," Remus said grimly, shooting a wry smile at the boy. "Nice Stupefying Spell."

"I've had lots of practise with that one," Harry said, twirling the offending wand between his fingers. "I didn't want to listen to him staying that stuff about you."

There was something in his tone that told Remus that he didn't think Sirius' words were obvious lies. But still, the fact that he stood up for the older man made his heart swell with pride.

He latched onto Harry's waist with a tight hug. "Thank you," he muttered into a hair-obscured ear. "What would I do without you?"

Harry pulled away, blushing slightly, his coyness from the morning gone. "You'd probably be in casualty along with Sirius after punching yourselves silly. Either that or worrying yourself silly by thinking about him all day long."

"You're right," Remus said with a brief smile. "Maybe I ought to ignore him for a while; it seems to do him good. Come on, let's go out."

"Where?"

"Where else?" Remus said with a little ironic laugh, sliding one arm easily around the youth's shoulder. "The pub."

Harry's relaxed chuckles lifted into the sky as they made their way down the wild garden and then out onto the pot-holed country road.