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##

When Remus Lupin arrived back at the flat, tired and hungry after the day's work, he found that Sirius was not at home but had left a note:

Auror training exercise tonight. Simulated attack on the Ministry of Magic. Don't wait up- Sirius.

On top of the note was a gold galleon. Remus extended a hand towards the coin and wondered what to do with it. In the end he decided a shopping trip was in order and left the flat.

##

Sirius Black crawled slowly along the ground. He was in a pitch-black room, it was unbearably hot and sweat trickled down his back. Every few minutes someone would muter a spell or a curse and a beam of red or green light would light up the room. Sirius knew the enemy was here, somewhere in the room, yet he could not see them. He was nervous.

There was a bright flash of light to Sirius' left, revealing a dark figure. In an instant, with the reflexes of a true auror, he dived to the side and just missed the curse that had been sent at him.

"Impedimenta!" he shot back at the enemy.

There was no cry and Sirius realised his spell had not met its target. "Incendio!" he muttered and red light shot out of his wand. The next moment the shadowy figure was on fire.

The fire illuminated several shadowy figures and a series of curses were shouted across the darkened room by Sirius' team-mates, before his target managed to extinguish itself and everyone was plunged into darkness.

Then the lights came on.

"Congratulations, division four! You have recaptured the ministry from enemy forces. Today's training exercise is complete," said a sharp voice that appeared to come from nowhere.

Sirius' mentor, a heavily scarred man in his late thirties came forward. He thumped Sirius on the back. "Not bad! Not bad at all! Though I think setting me on fire was a little unnecessary, Black! How about a petrifying charm next time…"

But Sirius wasn't listening; he was staring across the room.

To where Orion was standing.

##

Remus Lupin ate bread, cheese and cake alone that night. It was only eight O'clock when he climbed the short flight of stairs to go to bed. Sleep came to him quickly. Remus began to dream:

The dream started with a burnt-out cigarette and a discarded wine bottle. Remus was back in Hogwarts, staggering down a corridor, half-carried by Sirius. He was drunk and Sirius felt warm and strong.

They reached the Portrait Hall and Remus clasped on the ground. "I'm drunk!" he declared.

"True," said Sirius. He was staring at Remus oddly and the latter felt a blush staining his fair cheeks. "You're beautiful," murmured Sirius.

Remus stared back at Sirius, wondering. A thousand silent questions passed between the two- can I look at you like this? Is it wrong to think you're beautiful? Will you be scared if I kiss you?

Then the two of them were kissing. Remus was running his hands though Sirius' hair, holding him close, kissing him until his lips were sore. Sirius tasted of wine and smoke and spices. The kiss was long and almost frantic. And at that moment in time, Remus realised he was in love.

Remus awoke with a start. His breathing was rapid and uneven, and it took him a long time to calm down. He had never dreamt about kissing anyone before, let alone his best friend and flat mate. "I do not fancy Sirius," he muttered, but his voice sounded pathetic even to his own ears.

##

"Why are you here?" asked Sirius.

Orion waved a careless jewel-adorned hand at him. "I came to see you. Is there something wrong with that?"

"I'll be at work at half-past ten!"

"Yes, you will," said Orion patiently, as if he was explaining something to a particularly stupid child. "But it's only just turned nine O'clock, which leaves you with plenty of time to go out to dinner with me!"

Sirius stared at him. "Dinner?" he asked, horrified.

"Yes, Dinner. I've never been on a date with an auror before!" Orion brushed imaginary dust of his dark red suit. "You'll have to change your clothes, of course. As much as I like my men hot and sweaty, I don't think high society is quite ready for it!"

Sirius shook his head furiously. "I can't go out to dinner with you, I'm afraid. I have-"

A sinister note came in to Orion's voice. "-You have nothing to do that is more important than myself, Sirius." He smiled coldly, so that his gold teeth glinted. "I'm fully aware that you're in love with that school friend of yours but I assure you, it's not your heart I'm after!"

And with those words Orion sauntered off, leaving Sirius dumbstruck and nervous at the thought of entering Orion's 'high society'.

##

Remus Lupin discovered that he could not get back to sleep. Eventually, a quarter past ten according to his bedside clock, he gave up trying to and instead climbed out of bed and dressed hurriedly. He went down stairs and pulled on a thick pair of gloves and an old knitted scarf. Sirius was not in.

Remus shuddered as he went out into the cold night air. The streets in this part of London were still busy at this early hour. Remus began to walk, and found that after the first two miles his thoughts began to clear- he didn't fancy Sirius, that was obvious. Maybe Sirius was gay- that shouldn't affect himself. And it didn't matter that he just dreamt about kissing his best friend- it was hardly as though you could control what you dreamed about.

So why exactly was it that Remus felt a sharp stab of jealousy when he saw Sirius walking across the road from him, arm-in-arm with a blonde-haired man dressed in a red velvet suit?