::dodges large objects as they fly past her head:: I'm sorry, I'm sorry! I swear I meant to update earlier! I know it's been over a month...augh, so sorry! See, I brought my laptop with me to the beach and did a lot, then kept forgetting to get it off the laptop. And so there it stayed until two days ago. I wrote the rest tonight. I feel bad...oopppss, sorry. I want to thank Prisoner-of-Sirius a lot, though- the complete randomness of your review showing in my inbox made me realize I should finish this chapter. Thanks a bunch!
I'll try not to be so slow next time, but school's starting in a week so who knows. And I'm working this whole week, so I don't have the whole day to myself. But I love Siri and Remi so very much, so I will try. I shall.

Disclaimer: ...do I have to keep doing a disclaimer? Nooo, I don't think I do....

Chapter Three: Paint It Black

Severus Snape looked at Remus and Sirius with nothing short of a loathing sneer. Remus had raised his eyebrows and sighed. Sirius stared at Snape with his mouth hanging open, then finally turned to face Mr. Wincheston.

"So…this is our roommate for the next two months?"

Mr. Wincheston nodded. "Do you all, ah, know each other?"

"We went to school together," said Remus quickly, before Sirius could say anything stupid and/or offensive.

This seemed to please Mr. Wincheston, who had worried that this whole delay business would get him sued. He shuffled a few papers on his desk and looked around at the three. "I guess you don't need to get acquainted then. I'll go turn these papers into the manager and then show you all to the house. You can get moved in right away."

They all nodded as he left the room. When it was safe for them to talk amongst themselves, Sirius spun around in his chair to look at Snape. "So, Snivelly…trying to find somewhere to live, eh? No girlfriend to stay with? Or did your parents finally kick you out?"

"Siri-" Remus began, but he wasn't quick enough. Snape's hand plunged into the inner pocket of the duster he was wearing and pulled out his want, pointing it at Sirius. Sirius in turn stood, growling and ready to defend himself.

"So you wanna fight, Snivelly? Bring it on."

Snape really did look like he was going to attack. Remus stood and moved between them, clearing his throat. "Both of you need to stop it right now. We haven't even been alone for two minutes and you're already at each other's throats. You have to survive in the same house for two months. Can you do that and be at least somewhat civilized?"

Sirius stared at him. Be civilized while living with that guy? Had Remus gone completely mad? But one look at his lover told him that Remus was willing to make things work. Sirius couldn't let him down. He sighed and said, "Fine. I'll deal if he will."

Remus looked at Snape, who glowered and stuck his wand back in his pocket. It was just as well, too, since only a few seconds later the door opened and Mr. Wincheston stepped inside.

"If you three will kindly follow me, I'll take you to the house."

Still bitter, Snape brushed past Sirius. Sirius rolled his eyes and, taking Remus's hand, followed. Remus's cheeks flushed again. "S-Sirius?! We're in public, you idiot!"

Sirius didn't appear to care; not that he ever had before, but he usually respected Remus's wish to keep their relationship a private affair. "Mr. Wincheston knows, he called me your 'partner,' remember? And Snivellus'll find out eventually."

Remus winced; that didn't seem like it would be a good idea. "…We can just...y'know, not tell him…"

Stopping mid-step, Sirius just gazed at him in disbelief. "That's not going to work."

"W-why not? It's not like we have to tell him or anything-"

Remus paused, partially because he had finished his sentence, and partially because Sirius had grabbed him by the ears and pulled him in for a rather large kiss. A secretary walking by gawked at them, but Remus really wasn't in any position to explain. Sirius broke away a few seconds later, licking his lips yet managing to look rather…well…serious. "I can't keep my hands off you for two months."

Face growing redder, Remus stared after him for a moment before following. This was very unlike Sirius- well, sort of. The recklessness was normal; the mushy, sappiness wasn't.

He really hoped he could pretend it was a sunburn.

By the time they reached the parking lot, Mr. Wincheston had already gotten into his beat up truck and was driving out. Snape, humorously enough, seemed to have acquired the knowledge of how to drive, and was following. Remus and Sirius climbed into Remus's car, Remus driving, and made their way to a small, isolated home about twenty minutes away.

Remus found that the house was rather nice, not something he'd regret staying in. It was what you might call a "country home," with light blue siding, white shudders, and a garden out front. The entire yard was surrounded by a grove of trees, making it the perfect little getaway.

"Ugh, this is horrible." The first words out of Sirius's mouth as they pulled into the driveway made Remus wince. "It's like something you'd see advertised as a 'wonderful romantic cottage, just for you and your lover.'"

"Well I like it," said Remus shortly.

"Oh, don't get all huffy." Sirius rolled his eyes.

"I'm not getting huffy-"

Sirius waved his rebuttal aside. "Yes, you were. Look, I don't hate it or anything. It seems like the kind of place someone like you would like. A cute little house."

Remus sighed, looking out the car window at Snape and Mr. Wincheston, who were walking towards the front door. "I can't see Snape being too pleased with a place like this."

Chuckling, Sirius opened the door and stepped out. "Unless he's suddenly gone all flowery cutesy, he probably hates it. He'll want to paint it black or something."

Locking the car, Remus followed and grinned. "Well, we'll have to ruin his fun, then. Come on, let's have a look around."

They walked up to the front porch, and it was instantly clear that Snape really didn't like the house. Mr. Wincheston didn't seem to notice; he was obviously preoccupied with the fact that he had gotten everyone to agree to live together. He clapped his hands together as Remus and Sirius came up the steps. "Good, we're all here. Now, please follow me inside so you can get a feel for the place."

Snape didn't look pleased with the idea of "getting a feel for the place." Sirius tried and failed to suppress a snicker, walking in behind Remus. Once inside the foyer, Sirius started humming Paint it Black to himself, looking around. It wasn't an overly large house at all; a doorway on the left side of the hallway led to the kitchen, and two doors on the right showed a living and dining room. Another doorway inside the living room led to the bathroom. The stairs were located at the end of the short hallway; Sirius charged up them before anyone else.

The second floor wasn't anything too fascinating either; only four doorways, leading to a bathroom, two bedrooms, and a workroom/study. Sirius poked his head in each of the rooms before coming back down to the main hallway and Mr. Winchester.

"Does the upstairs only have one bathroom."

Mr. Winchester sighed. "Yes, sorry about that…the plans called for another one in the master bedroom, but the builders messed up. Nobody ever changed it."

Sirius opened his mouth again, looking agitated, but Remus stepped on his foot. "That's fine, the three of us can share two bathrooms."

Sirius scowled at him, but Mr. Winchester smiled. "That's good to hear. I trust you all don't need any help unpacking your things, so I'll be on my way…ah, Mr. Lupin, are you warm? Your cheeks are rather red."

Remus jumped and laughed nervously. "It is a bit warm in here, isn't it?"

"I'm actually kind of cold."

Remus cast a warning glance at Sirius before smiling innocently. "I just have a bit of a sunburn, that's all."

Mr. Wincheston nodded, completely oblivious that they were hiding anything. "Give me a call if you have any problems, you have my number."

Everyone exchanged goodbyes; Remus and Sirius stood on the front porch and watched Mr. Wincheston's car pull out of the driveway and down the lane. Sirius sighed heavily, leaning his head on Remus's shoulder. "What have we gotten ourselves into?"

Remus rolled his eyes. "Come on, the house isn't that bad…and besides, when you were upstairs Mr. Wincheston told me that we're free to do a little redecorating with the wallpaper and stuff, as long as we pay for it."

Chuckling, Sirius patted Remus's head. "I didn't mean the house…"

"You can live with him for two months…"

"Yeah, yeah…hey, what's that?"

Remus frowned as he saw the small trail of water on the porch. "Hn. I wonder where that's coming from." Pausing as Sirius grabbed his head and turned it to face the open doorway, he felt his stomach drop. The water was coming from inside the house, and the level was definitely not getting any lower.

"…This is not good."

And...this is the chappie! ::cues applause:: Yaaay. And...um...I'm really out of things to say. I smell like the cabin I just camped in x.x