Wake Me Up Inside
Notes: Some mild religious type babble…now, really, I can't see Witches and Wizards as overly Christian/Muslim/Jewish (That whole killing all witches thing puts a sliver of doubt in my mind) so I tried to keep it nondescript. And, for the record, I love James (and teenage Peter for that matter) , but he is Pureblood, and we do recall what was said in the last chapter about Purebloods opinions of gays. However James, being James, has a more mild reaction than say Sirius' parents would have.
And Lily…well, I want to marry Lily and, I hate to invoke the 'all knowing and accepting female friend' cliché, but I can't see her being anything else. After ending up at a school for wizards, I imagine homosexuality is like "Whatever."
Oh, and this is unbeated. Most of my stuff is…But hey, if anyone would like to offer to look over my stuff and fix my mistakes, I'd love it. Besides, you'd get the privilege (coughs) of having ideas bounced off of you. (Yeah, I know, privilege is pushing it…)
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Chapter Three
Clear the Propaganda
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"I can't believe it." James said, voice hushed.
He, Peter, and Lily were sitting in the Gryffindor commons at one of the tables. Lily had made herself comfortable in one of the squashy chairs and had her legs in James' lap. James was rubbing one of her bare legs absently. Peter was sitting across from them. The subject of their conversation were in the sixth year boys dorms.
Any other time they'd assumed they were packing, but now they couldn't be sure.
"What can't you believe, exactly? That Remus likes boys, that Sirius is apparently Remussexual, or that they finally figured out the obvious and got together? Or that they have the guts to admit it freely, the rest of the school be damned?"
"What do you mean they…Remussexual?" James looked over at his girlfriend, who rolled her eyes at him.
"Obviously. Sirius isn't homosexual, anyone who watches him watch girls all day can see that, but he clearly likes Remus ergo he is Remussexual. One with asexual attraction for French, brunette, anti-social guys." Lily concluded with a smile.
Her smile wavered when she realized both Peter and James were staring at her as if she'd just confessed to having an affair with the headmaster. She frowned at them before arching an eyebrow in silent question. It was Peter that spoke.
"How can you just…be okay with it?"
"With what?"
"Remus and Sirius." Peter said, frowning. His pale blond hair was falling into his face, as it was prone to do, but he ignored it. "It's not…you know, natural." She just stared. "That's why God made two sexes, man and woman. If we were supposed to be with people of the same sex, there'd only be one."
"What about people who're both? Or neither." Lily asked mildly. Even James was peering at Peter oddly. Clearly he was surrounded…he was the only normal person around. Peter, however, looked properly perplexed, and Lily turned back to James. "And you?"
"It's…weird." James said slowly. "I know that all those polls and stuff say that there are a lot of them-"
"Remus and Sirius aren't a 'them'." Lily said, eyes flashing. Her fingers twitched and James had a feeling very little was saving him from being turned into something very nasty. "Remus and Sirius are Remus and Sirius, two of your three best friends and the people you trust more than you trust even me. They are the same people they were yesterday, before you found out they fancied each other. Sirius will still play Quidditch, help you torment poor Severus, and be in on every idiotic scheme you pull. And Remus will still be there, albeit reluctantly, to make sure you don't break you idiot necks."
Her voice was rising steadily and people were beginning to turn and look in anticipation for some sort of scene between Gryffindor's Golden Couple. James sighed.
Vultures.
"Lily, lower your-"
"James Harrison Potter, don't you dare tell me to lower my voice!" She was on her feet suddenly and scowling. James was in trouble and the whole damn tower was going to know about it. He put his hands up in a defensive gesturer.
"Okay, Lils, I'm sorry, I didn't mean-"
"Didn't mean what?" Her eyes narrowed until they became slits with the barest hint of green. He swallowed, looking at Peter for help, but the blond was just watching Lily with wide eyes. Lily was pretty…intimidating when she was so inclined.
"About you being quite."
"And?" She all but growled at him. "What about your best friends James?"
"What about them?" He asked, feeling a bit like a scolded child. He felt even more like it when he crossed his arms over his chest and slumped low in his seat, refusing to meet Lily's eyes. "It's not right you know. They two of them…like that. Sure, we always thought Remus was a bit of a dandy-"
"James!"
"We always thought Remus preferred the company of other men." James corrected quickly. Lily nodded approvingly, putting a hand on her hip. She waited, with a patient expression of her face, for him to continue. He didn't trust that look.
Lily was, to be frank, the most beautiful thing he'd ever laid eyes on. Her hair was the color of a flame, red intermixed with gold, and was cut short this year, fanning against the middle of her neck, and she wore her bangs so they appeared feathery and light. Her eyes were emerald green, matching her milky complexion wonderfully. And she wasn't lacking in the figure area at all…
But underneath that gorgeous exterior laid the mind of someone worthy of the Marauder. And that sort of mind mixed with that body, was nothing short of a dangerous combination. James was wary of Lily's sudden change to calm and collected.
He didn't trust that look.
"And I suppose that's fine. But Sirius…he's a ladies' man and you know it. Girls fall all over him and they'd kill to go out with them-"
"But they never get the chance." Lily said, rolling her eyes. "Have you really not noticed how little Sirius dates, for a guy who could supposedly have any girl he wanted?"
"…" No, actually, he hadn't. But now that Lily pointed it out, it did seem rather obvious. Other than a brief relationship with Raevyn Patil, who had been a Ravenclaw two years ahead of him, Sirius had never actually gone with anyone.
… "Oh."
"Quite." Lily rolled her eyes. "Boys are such idiots. Now you two are going to march up there this instant, be happy and supportive, and act as if you know all along and it doesn't bother you in the least, am I clear?"
"Yes." Both he and Peter muttered.
"Good boys." She sat down, picking at a lose thread on her shorts. "Now, do we have a plan for how we'll handle this? Because Goddess knows that if we don't do this carefully you two will foul the whole thing up without even trying."
Peter arched an eyebrow in silent comment, as if trying to say 'Why exactly do you continue to go out with her again.'
James just smiled and pulled Lily's legs back into his lap. She giggled before flashing him an indulgent smile. He went back to his earlier task of drawing circles on her legs with his finger. Why did he go out with Lily Evans, when she insulted him and his friends and was constantly on his case about pranks and not growing up?
Because, he supposed, she was exactly the sort of woman a guy like him needed.
Who else could keep him in line?
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"He likes your bum."
"Apparently."
"He went through all of this to expose you, and he really just wants to shag you?"
"So it would seem. Wait…what makes you think he wants to shag me?"
"Well, he likes you arse and I fail to see what else your bum would be good for."
"You're so…"
"Vulgar? Crude? Foul mouthed?"
"Yes."
"Aren't werewolves and vampires supposed to refrain from being asses to each other? Wasn't there some huge war hundreds of years back?"
"The Romanian War of 1712." Remus answered primly. "Wiped out half of the werewolf population and three-quarters of the vampire. Resulted in the treaty that declared an official truce, which eventually lead to the Magical Creature Treaty of 1960, that states Wizards and Magical Creatures shall not interfere in the affairs of the other, unless in the event of war."
"…right." Sirius was pretty sure he'd aced that test easily, but once he used the information he didn't remember it. It wasn't like he'd need to know that sort of thing in the real world.
"Well, on the grounds that Snape is only a vampire in your paranoid delusions, I doubt it applies to us. And even if he were, our mutual hatred transcends two hundred year old treaties."
"Mutual hatred my arse. He wants to shag you."
"Go bugger yourself."
"What's the point of having a boyfriend if I have to bugger myself? That seems sort of counter-productive, don't you think?"
"Maybe I should ask Snape…my parents would like him."
"Fine, I'm sorry. But what about his creepy girlfriend?"
"What about her?"
"I mean, she just told you? Like that? It's rather melodramatic don't you think?"
"I doubt you can spell melodramatic Sirius, but other than that I don't have an opinion. Autumn's supposed to be off her rocker so maybe this is just proof."
"Maybe."
Remus was watching from the safety of his bed as Sirius fought with his trunk. Once again Sirius couldn't seem to fit all of his things into his trunk, something that happened every holiday and summer. It was funny to watch, but also always ended up with Sirius in the infirmary with a broken toe or something along those lines.
Deciding that might not be the best thing for their little charade Remus intervened. "Have you considered a bottomless charm? It'll keep your trunk from ever filling up. We all have one on ours."
Sirius muttered something along the lines of 'goddamned know-it-alls' then fell onto the bed next to Remus with a sigh. "Why did you never feel the urge to share this before?"
"It's funny." Remus said honestly. "But it might be a good idea if your toe wasn't broken when you face my family. You know, just in case my father decides to run you off or something."
Sirius snorted but the look on Remus' face was so serious it was almost scary. "You're just kidding right?"
"If Pere thought you were doing something inappropriate to his little Remmie he would revert right back to the Victorian Era." There was a pause. "That only applies to me and Raven of course, since there is nothing wrong with my brother sleeping with every girl in sight."
"Have I ever mentioned how little I like your family?"
"Once or twice." Remus smiled slightly. "If my father has his way you probably won't have to worry about sharing a room with me at least."
Sirius didn't respond to that but instead rolled onto his back. "So now, on top of everything else, I have to remember to act like your boyfriend but not too much like a boyfriend, least your father challenge me to a duel over his precious son's honor."
"My father wouldn't duel." Remus scoffed. "He'd just shoot you and be done with it."
"That…wasn't comforting."
"Wasn't meant to be." Remus smiled mischievously then gestured towards Sirius' trunk. "You want to ask Lils if she'll charm it for you?"
"I suppose that'd be safer then doing it myself." Sirius muttered then frowned. "So…where do you think she is?"
"With James."
"Obviously. I meant other then that." Sirius rolled his eyes. With James was a given, Lily was never anywhere but with James.
"Oh. Umm-" The door opened and James, Lily, and Peter walked in, an upset looking Lily at the head. "In our room apparently. That was pretty easy wasn't it?"
"Mm." Sirius said, pushing himself up onto his elbows. "Do you think we're in trouble?"
"Looks like." Remus said tilting his head off to the side. It was a little known fact that Lily kept the four of them in line, so if Lily was looking upset someone was going to get it. "Uh…Lils-"
"Don't you 'Lils' me Remus Lupin." Lily said, sounding all too much like Professor McGonagall. Maybe a little too much for Sirius' taste. He yelped and ducked behind Remus who frowned.
"Chicken."
"Love you too Moony." Sirius said, sticking out his tongue.
Remus rolled his eyes at the other teen, wondering what it'd be like to hear Sirius say those words and really mean it, before turning his attention back to the angry young woman before him.
"What'd we do?"
"You know good and damn well what you did."
"Or perhaps who would be more accurate." James muttered from behind the safety of his girlfriend.
"…huh?" Remus looked around, confused. "I haven't done anyone."
Remus very narrowly missed a smack and succeeded in knocking both him and Sirius from the bed instead. They fell in a tangle of limbs and robes. Peter snickered and James snorted. Even Lily's lips twitched a little before she continued her scolding.
"Why didn't you tell us you were together?" She demanded, hands on her hip. "We're supposed to be your friends you know, your best and closest friends. We shouldn't have to hear it from Lisa Row of all people, nasty little gossip that she is."
Remus stopped his effort to be untangled form Sirius and ended up falling back in the other teen's lap. Which, now that he thought about it, wasn't going to help them explain this any. He looked back at Sirius for the help and saw that infamous glint in the cool black eyes.
That wasn't good at all.
Instead of trying to get away from the brunette Sirius put a hand on Remus' leg to make him stay put, and graced him with a very loaded look, clearly trying to relay something him. Remus was pretty sure he understood Sirius' intent.
If they could fool their friends then Remus' family would be no problem.
"What exactly did you hear?" Sirius asked, tone perfectly innocent. In Remus' opinion that should have tipped somebody off, but apparently it didn't.
"That you two were in one of the private study rooms and doing something other than studying, some people heard you talking about that wedding Remus is going to, that he can only bring dates to, and that you were seen whispering to each other outside of the library and holding hands." Lily listed looking impatient. "So?"
"You build a very strong case Lils." Sirius said evenly. He moved his hand from Remus' leg to his hip and raised an eyebrow. "So what if we are together?"
Lily's anger vanished and she smiled widely. "Really? Since when? And why didn't you tell us?"
"A little after Christmas I guess." Sirius shrugged some, and Remus was very thankful that he was willing to take over this part, because he was nothing short of embarrassed as hell. "And we didn't tell because we wanted to keep it to ourselves for a while. In case it didn't work, we didn't want you all to be weird around us."
Lily frowned a little then sighed. She dug into her pants pocket and pulled out a few coins. Peter did the same and James smiled like the cat that'd gotten the proverbial cream as he accepted the money. Both of the teens still on the floor looked…confused.
"Like you couldn't have waited until the summer to get together." Lily muttered, sitting on Remus' bed with a huff. "I just lost five knuts because of you two."
"…You had bets on when we'd get together?" Remus asked, a note of disbelief in his voice.
Peter looked a little sheepish. "Yeah. I had between Easter and the beginning of break. I thought I had won for a minute there."
Sirius laughed and rested his chin on Remus' shoulder. Remus shivered at the contact and it took all the will power he hadn't known he had to not jump up and run. "Sorry to disappoint Pete. What about you Jamesie?"
"Between the beginning of the year and Easter. Though…who wins for Siri coming out of the closet?"
"I guess Pete should win by default since I won for Rem coming out." Lily said musingly.
"I still say that shouldn't count." Peter argued. "He was never in the closet to begin with, picking before Hogwarts was too easy."
Remus' eye twitched. "With friends like you three who needs Slytherins?"
"It's all in fun." James said dismissively. There was a pause then he smiled wickedly. "Are we placing bets on when Remmie loses his virginity?"
"Hey!" Remus flushed then shook his head. This was going very high on his embarrassing moments list. "There will be no bets!"
"How do we know Sirius and Remus haven't already…" Peter trailed off, eyebrow raised suggestively. Remus was sure he was the color of an overripe tomato.
"Sirius?" James asked, looking down at his friend. Remus glanced back and saw Sirius smiling almost as wickedly as James was.
"Now, Jamesie, a gentleman never tells."
"But you aren't a gentleman, so spill."
"Then no, we haven't." Sirius smirked against his neck. "So, does that mean I can get in on this bet?"
"No, Sirius, you most certainly can not." Lily said, putting her hand back on her hip. "You may manipulate circumstances in your favor."
"I have over the summer." James said finally, then smiled at Remus apologetically. "I mean, I've met your family…they could drive even the most pure of souls…well, into the arms of Sirius."
"Gee…thanks." Sirius deadpanned. James smiled and bowed slightly.
Remus buried his face in his hands, but what he said was more or less clear. "''Vous êtes des amis horrible et quand tout ça sera finit je vais tous vous tuer."
"''C'est méchant ça, Moony." Sirius said while poking him much to everyone's surprise. Remus shook his head some and peeked through his fingers. Lily looked on the verge of swooning.
"You learned French for Remus? I wish someone would learn a language for me." She looked at James who blinked.
"But…you speak English. Why do I need to learn anything?"
Sirius smiled while Lily went on a tirade about how unromantic James was. Remus made a noise of amusement then shivered when Sirius' lips ghosted over his ear. Was Sirius' trying to dive him insane or was fate just feeling really cruel?
"I'd say this was a success."
Remus nodded shakily then crawled out of Sirius' lap. This was either a brilliant way to get Sirius to notice him or he was condemning himself to a month of pure torture.
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About the French: I actually wrote this about a year ago and can't recall exactly what it all says… But the basic gist of the above was that Remus hates his friends and wants to kill them. Sirius replies by saying that's kind of mean.
So, first off, thanks of Obviously Oblivious, Phinea, Bishoujo, fsnake, Marauder Angel, Tanya, Xandria, and Nooka. And now on to questions and such…
The Mock Turtle: Yeah, Sirius just seems to have the 'air' of a person who gets off on tormenting those close to him…well, okay, tormenting everyone, which I don't exactly like… But when he's tormenting Remus it's cute, so it's okay.
I-Shave-Clowns: LOL. Yeah, that sounds about right. Thanks.
Korosu: I'm glad you like the Sirius character here. I had to go back and tweak some things after the fifth book came out, but I'm pretty happy with it. It's nice to know other people like it and I don't need to go try again…
Lunaris: Remus' name isn't Cerberus. Smile You're taking Autumn's words too literally and assuming they apply to Remus. They don't. You must realize…I'm nuts and this is just one story in a long series… So some things won't make sense for a while. It's that damn foreshadowing… I suck at it.
Fu: Well in my defense if you haven't read it how do you know what I have and haven't changed? I could have changed chapters I never actually posted, right? Plus I had to compensate for the Fifth Book and the knowledge that Remus is half-blood and Sirius is Pure-blood. It had to change to make sense.
PanPan: Blush Flattery will get you everywhere.
Lilsi: Autumn is strange and Snape does have idiot like tendencies, yeah. But don't trouble yourself over them, we probably won't see them again.