Chapter Six

Remus hurried up the stairs, mentally cursing Sirius Black with every step.

Chivalrous, he fumed. I'll bet he thinks he's being bloody chivalrous. Protecting the weak or some such rot. Just a bloody pain in the arse, that's what he is!

He reached the bedroom door and made to open it, but the handle refused to budge.

"Sirius!" he yelled through the door. "Let me in!"

A muffled voice said, "No! Go 'way!"

"Open this door now!"

"No!"

Protecting the weak? I'll show him weak! Remus gritted his teeth and, threw his weight against the door. It shuddered in its frame.

Bracing for the impact, Remus rammed his shoulder into the door once more –

-- but it was already open.

He pushed himself off the floor, grimacing and rubbing his shoulder, as Sirius scowled down at him.

"You could have just waited," Sirius grumbled at him.

Remus hauled himself completely upright and quietly closed the door. "Explain yourself," he said, without turning around.

"He insulted you! He..."

"Not that part."

Sirius looked genuinely bewildered. "Re?" he asked.

Remus turned, pushing past Sirius to sit on the edge of the bed. His shoulder ached terribly. "What have you got against Severus? Besides the usual," he added hastily as Sirius opened his mouth to speak.

"Alright." Sirius crossed to the window, fiddling absently with the edge of the curtains. "Last night. I couldn't sleep, right? So, I went out."

"What? Are you mad?" Remus' face was ashen. "Do you listen to me at all? You're still a wanted criminal! You could have been seen! Arrested, even!"

"Went to this godawful hole-in-the-wall I'd never even heard of," Sirius continued, as if Remus hadn't spoken a word.

"Where?" Remus asked. "Nearby?"

"Knockturn Alley, actually," Sirius said, grinning. "Some place called the Severed Head."

Remus' jaw dropped. "Sirius. You didn't."

Sirius laughed at Remus' expression. "Don't tell me you know it."

"I do, as it happens," Remus said in a very strange voice. "It caters to ... Dark creatures... like me... and Dark wizards..."

"Explains a lot," Sirius scowled. "I saw Snape there, and... Hang on, what would you have been doing in there?"

Remus flushed. "It wasn't easy, you know... Getting over you. I never did, really. Wait – did you say Snape was there?"

"Yeah, him and that Malfoy kid – whatsisname, Duncan or Drano or..."

"Draco."

"That's the one!" Sirius leaned closer, voice dropping to a whisper. "He was trying to bribe Snivellus for some kind of information... And Snape as good as agreed to give it to him!"

"Did they see you?" Remus asked sharply.

Sirius thought for a moment. "No. No, I'm sure they didn't."

Remus regarded his friend carefully. Outspoken, yes. Rash and impetuous? Definitely. But known for telling lies, Sirius was not.

Maybe Dumbledore is right. Maybe we aren't out of the Dark Times yet...

"Well, that's something." Remus sighed, trying to shrug the ache out of his shoulder.

"Sorry about that." Sirius mumbled. "I seem to be doing that to you a lot lately, huh?"

"Doing what?"

Sirius moved closer. "Hurting you." Sirius replaced Remus' hand with his own, kneading his shoulder gently.

Remus moaned softly, but wasn't going to let his body rule his mind. He was still angry at the way Sirius behaved.

He tried to shrug away Sirius' administrations, but Sirius only held tighter. He now had one hand on each shoulder, gently easing the aches away. He leant forward until his breath tickled Remus' ear.

"I'm sorry for acting without thinking, Re. Really. But I couldn't let him talk to you like that without doing something. I love you too much."

Remus' jaw twitched with the effort of keeping a smile away, but he remained impassive. Sirius had to learn to control his temper. And running off like that! Remus shuddered to think what might have happened to Sirius if he'd been seen.

"Please Re..."

Sirius ran his tongue along Remus' ear, tracing the shape, and then nipping tenderly. He was rewarded with a soft moan.

"Sirius, it's going to take more than a kiss from you to make this better."

"How much more?" Sirius answered huskily, his hands leaving the slender shoulders to run down to the flat of his stomach.

"Sirius!"

Remus turned to scold him but Sirius captured the words with his mouth.

Remus gave up his fight.

With agile grace Sirius turned enough to push Remus down onto the bed, straddling his legs. He sat up, looking down at his mate with pride.

"So gorgeous," he murmured, easing the shirt off Remus' body.

Remus thought fleetingly that he should really try to put up a bit more of a fight, but as Sirius' hands began to stroke his chest, teasing his nipples, the thought was forgotten.

Sirius ran his hands up his arms, capturing his wrists in one deft movement, leaning forward to kiss him again.

Remus responded eagerly, his tongue meeting thrust for thrust, his hips rising to rub against Sirius greedily.

As Sirius lifted his mouth from his, Remus whispered, "God man, you are insatiable."

"Did you want me to stop?" Sirius answered from somewhere near his neck.

Remus mumbled an incoherent answer and Sirius chuckled. The sound was more uplifting than anything Remus had heard in recent times.

"You should do that more often" Remus said as Sirius moved down to flick his nipple with his tongue.

"What, this?" He flicked the nipple again.

Remus made a rumbling noise deep in his throat.

He'd correct Sirius later.

With a grin, Sirius continued on his path down to Remus stomach, dipping his tongue into the indentation. His hands relinquished their hold on Remus hands and they slowly traveled down his arms.

Remus tried with all his might to fight it, but couldn't suppress a giggle as Sirius' hands ran across his armpit.

"Ticklish are we?" Sirius' eyes lit up at this new discovery, and a wicked gleam lit his eyes.

"Sirius...Sirius, no!!" But it was a futile attempt.

Sirius attacked him on all fronts, and Remus squirmed helplessly beneath him.

Within a few moments the gleam had changed in Sirius' eyes, and Remus shivered with anticipation.

Sirius dove at him, covering his mouth with his own, delving his tongue deep into his mouth. Remus felt frantic hands tugging at his jeans, cursing slightly when they wouldn't give straight away. Remus lifted up to aid him and they were deftly slipped down his hips. He kicked them off.

Sirius seized Remus' hard member, stroking it firmly, fingers tracing the tip with tiny circling motions. Remus moaned into his mouth, raising himself to be closer, his hands fumbling with the zipper on Sirius' jeans, intent on an exploration of their own.

A knock sounded at the door.

Sirius swore profusely.

"Bloody hell," muttered Remus into Sirius' shoulder. Raising his voice, he called out, "Who is it?" He tried valiantly to keep his voice steady as Sirius resumed his explorations. "Quit that!" he hissed at Sirius, slapping the man's hand away from his groin. Sirius just smirked.

"It's me," a voice said, muffled by the heavy door. "It's Harry."

The lovers exchanged one quick glance before frantically retrieving Remus' clothes from the floor.

"Erm... Just... Um, just a moment," Sirius said loudly. "Just, erm... Got our hands full... Won't be a second!"

Harry's voice, slightly uncertain, came again. "I could come back later if this is, y'know, a bad time..."

"No!" Remus yelled, attempting to button his jeans and smooth his hair at the same time. "We were just... ah... talking!" He gave Sirius a cursory glance to make sure he, too, was relatively decent and then opened the door as casually as he could.

Harry entered a bit apprehensively, his sharp eyes unable to miss either the mussed bedclothes or the fact that Remus's shirt was uncharacteristically untucked. "Really," he said, flushing slightly, "it's not that important."

"Nonsense," Remus said briskly. "We were just... discussing... um..."

"Snape," offered Sirius.

"Yes! Actually," Remus said thoughtfully, "we were. Tell me, Harry – has Severus been acting unusual lately?"

Sirius snorted.

"Sirius, be good," Remus said absently.

Harry shrugged. "I haven't been here much, not with Auror training. He's down in the kitchen right now, though. Seems very upset."

Sirius snorted again.

"Stop that," Remus said to Sirius. "You still shouldn't have, and god only knows what Dumbledore will have to say about it."

"About what?" Harry asked curiously.

"Nothing," Remus said hastily, just as Sirius said, "I pounded Snivellus," a note of pride unmistakable in his voice.

Harry's mouth fell open. "You did? Really?"

Remus sighed, absently rubbing his sore shoulder. "Harry... Was there something...?"

"Oh!" Harry broke out in a grin. "I nearly forgot! Erm, seeing as tomorrow is Christmas Eve and everything, we were wondering... Maybe you two would like to help us decorate the tree?"

"Tree? Christmas? What?" Sirius looked completely baffled.

"Who's we?" asked Remus.

"Oh, you know," said Harry. "Me. Ginny. Fred and George. Everyone, really. Mrs Weasley's been trying to get Bill and Charlie to come too, but neither's owled her back yet."

"It's Christmas?"

Remus laughed. "Yes, Sirius. I guess you wouldn't have known, would you?"

"That's right," Harry grinned. "And Remus, no one's seen you the last two Christmases either, or Sirius – obviously. So you have to be there!"

"We'd love to," Sirius said. "When?"

"Tonight, I think," Harry said, turning to leave. "I'm going to grab a sandwich or something. You... You get back to... um... whatever it was you were doing..."

"Each other?" Sirius said devilishly. He suddenly prodded Remus in his ticklish ribs, making the other man squirm as he tried to hold back a shout of laughter.

"I don't need the exact details!" Harry exclaimed, pulling the door nearly shut behind him. Suddenly he poked his head back in. "Sirius," he said, "I don't know if you remember... But if either Fred or George offer you a sweet... don't take it!"

"Why not?" Sirius asked Remus as Harry closed the door.

"Let's just say that those two could easily give the Marauders a run for the money," Remus said.

Sirius pondered this a moment.

"Oh, no," Remus said. "Get that thought out of your head right now! No pranking them, Sirius, I mean it!"

"Take all the fun out of it, why don't you," Sirius said, scowling. But a moment later, he grinned. "Re? What do you want for Christmas?"

Remus stepped forward, pulling off his shirt again. He wrapped both arms snuggly around Sirius, tilting his face up for a kiss. "I think I already got my present," he said softly. "You came back to me."

"That I did," Sirius said, "and I always will." Pulling the other man back onto the bed, he deftly unbuttoned Remus' jeans, sliding them off his hips in one smooth motion. He stroked his hands lightly along Remus' backside, as the other man writhed helplessly against him.

"More of that, please," Remus murmured, already more than half hard. With his own hands he reached under Sirius' shirt, teasing his lover's nipples delicately with the tips of his fingernails.

Sirius groaned, arching his hips against Remus. "Want to taste you, Re," he muttered thickly, inching his way down Remus' body, tracing the outline of old scars with his tongue as he went.

Another knock sounded at the door.

Sirius groaned and pounded his head against a pillow.

"What?" Remus yelled. "Is it really important?"

The door edged open, and Harry peeked around the corner of it, immediately blushing a deep crimson as he took in the scene.

Remus suddenly realized he was starkers and dove for the blanket.

"Can you guys come downstairs?" Harry said quickly, his eyes clenched tightly shut. "Dumbledore just arrived – I think Snape must have firecalled him... Sirius, he wants to speak with you."

Sirius bit his lip. "Does this have anything to do with Snivellus?"

"Afraid so," Harry said, nodding. "Snape's livid. And... Well... I hate to tell you this, but Dumbledore didn't seem too happy with it either."

"I told you, Sirius," Remus broke in. "This is what happens when you and Severus start brawling like first-years. Harry, you can open your eyes; I'm dressed."

"Oh, thank god," Harry said. "Wait – I didn't mean it like that – I just – I'll be going now!" He ducked out the door, thoroughly flustered.

"Come on," Remus said heavily, heading towards the door. "We may as well get this over with."

Sirius said nothing, but reluctantly followed Remus downstairs, suddenly very, very nervous.

It was a somber scene they walked into as they entered the kitchen downstairs a few minutes later.

They had hurriedly dressed and tidied themselves, making themselves as presentable as they could in such a short space of time. Still, they couldn't hide the flushed cheeks or eyes darkened with passion.

If anyone noticed, they didn't say anything.

Dumbledore was sitting at the table, his face serious, Snape seated beside him. Harry had been right. Snape looked livid. More than livid if there was such a thing. A nasty bruise was appearing on his jaw, but it was nothing like the nasty gleam in his eyes.

"Please sit down," Dumbledore asked softly and Remus and Sirius did so immediately, opposite him and Snape. "It has come to my attention that there is some tension between some of you."

Remus heard Sirius give a muffled snort and nudged him under the table.

"However, as we are all adults here I am sure you can work out any differences on your own. What I am here for is far more urgent. We have only just found out that there is a new band of Death Eaters and they are most interested in finding out about the... incident... at the Ministry."

"Do they know about Sirius?" Remus asked, worry etched over his face.

"I don't believe so, but if they did find out it could spell a lot of trouble."

Sirius shrugged. "Why? I mean, why would them knowing about me make any difference? They have no interest in me."

"They don't care about you," Snape spat contemptuously. "They care about the Veil."

"But why?" Remus started but was interrupted by Dumbledore.

"Who knows what plans will unfold if they ever discover that someone can come back."

This statement was met by silence.

Remus glanced at Sirius, trying to mentally convey to him how important it was for him to stay hidden. But Sirius appeared to have already gotten the hint, and he didn't look as though he liked it, not one bit.

Harry had been sitting on the sofa in the corner, remaining silent so far, but he stood and came to stand next to Dumbledore, the worry clear in his eyes.

"D'you...do you think they might try to bring Voldemort back?"

Dumbledore gave him a smile. "Let us not worry about things for now. As I stated, we do not believe they have found out about Sirius, but I must urge you," and at this he turned to face Sirius, "to stay here and keep out of sight. And this is not just for your protection any more. It is vital to all of us."

Sirius gave a cursory nod. Remus laid a reassuring hand on his shoulder and Sirius laid his over the top of it gratefully.

Remus didn't miss the furrowed brow on Snape's face as he watched them. He sighed. Another person who was yet to find out about them. Another reason for Snape to hate him and taunt him.

They climbed the stairs a few hours later. They had a detailed conversation with the rest of the Order about the problems and implications of the new developments. Sirius was grumbling about his new imprisonment, for every single member had reiterated to him that he must stay at Grimmauld Place.

"What the hell am I supposed to do stuck in here day in, day out?" he moaned, kicking their bedroom door open.

Remus smiled, lighting a lamp as evening settled outside. "I can think of a few ways to amuse you."

Sirius grinned, pulling off his clothes and sliding into the bed. "We can't do that every second of every day, no matter how much I'd like to." He gave a roguish wink, holding his hand out to Remus, silently asking him to join him.

Remus took the proffered hand and allowed himself to be pulled into the circle of Sirius' arms.

Sirius immediately began nuzzling Remus' neck and Remus smiled. "Incorrigible aren't you," he murmured, enjoying the wicked sensations Sirius was conjuring up.

"What do you expect?" Sirius breathed into his ear. "We keep being interrupted."

"Not this time, I'm sure." Remus stated, pulling Sirius into a deep kiss.

Sirius' hands continued their earlier exploration. "You're wearing too much," he growled.

Remus quickly shrugged off his shirt and jeans, slipping under the covers and reveling in the feel of skin on skin.

Sirius lost no time in ducking under the covers and taking Remus into his mouth. A growl rose in Remus' mouth and his fingers tangled into the silky black hair, urging him on.

Sirius flicked and licked until Remus began to shudder beneath him. With gasping breaths Remus came, every inch of his body tingling with the sensation.

With a devilish smile, Sirius emerged from under the covers, one hand still stroking and caressing his lover.

Remus leaned in to kiss Sirius, tasting himself on those talented lips. "I think it's my turn," he whispered softly, gently turning Sirius so his back nestled into Remus' chest.

Sirius wriggled closer to him and Remus felt himself respond once more.

"And you said I'm incorrigible?" Sirius teased.

Remus silenced him with a swift kiss, his hands creeping around to stroke Sirius, who was hard with need.

Retrieving the oil which sat on their bedside table, Remus trickled some onto himself before snuggling close to Sirius. He rubbed himself against the entrance before easing himself inside, savouring the groan that escaped his mate.

Remus moved inside of him, still keeping up his smooth stroking on Sirius' hard member.

It took only a few minutes for both men to reach their peak, shuddering against each other, pulling each other as close as they possibly could.

"So that's what it's like," Sirius murmured sleepily.

"What what's like?" Remus asked, brow furrowed in confusion.

"Doing it with you without being interrupted."

Remus laughed, kissing Sirius soundly. "Go to sleep, Padfoot."

"G'night Moony."