A/N: There's just something about this time of year that makes me come back to old stories. Thank you to everyone who's left me a kind review over the years. I still go back and read them.
The Comfort of Knowledge, Chapter 23
Strange. The way your feelings about a place could change. Hogwarts, once an escape from his overbearing, pureblood-loving family, felt less like home now than ever before. Perhaps this was due to the fact that, whether he liked it or not, there would be no returning to Hogwarts once the school year ended.
He didn't mind.
All that mattered, really mattered, were the two people he cared most about in the world. They would be his home; the only two things he would need after graduation.
Sirius' summer had been spent poring over books with his bespectacled friend… all in preparation for what was to come. For their future. For Remus.
His mind recalled their encounter at the station in Hogsmeade that evening. The longing he'd felt for the other boy in summer returned full-force.
"Later," he'd promised him.
Sirius fought the urge to shiver at the memory of the golden eyes staring down at him.
Impatient to return to the warmth of the common room, to Remus, he glanced over at the dark-haired wizard keeping stride with him.
Dimitri Lambrakis.
The man couldn't be more than 20 years old. What reason could he possibly have for approaching Remus the way he had? Sirius had seen the man's all-too-tight grip on the younger boy when the two of them had shaken hands. His jaw tightened at the thought.
Sirius hadn't spoken a word to the man since they'd stepped outside the common room. He didn't know Lambrakis personally but he knew enough of him to want to keep him away from Remus. The man's family was prominent in the same circles as his own pureblood father.
"So," the man said finally, breaking the silence as they rounded another corner. "Sirius, of the noble and most ancient House of Black…sorted into Gryffindor. How humiliating that must've been for your father."
Sirius didn't immediately respond to the comment — humiliating his father wasn't something he minded — in fact, he rather took pride in his ability to do so.
"Undoubtedly," he agreed. "And, you, Dimitri, of the lesser known but equally loathsome House of Lambrakis…a security guard at Hogwarts. Your father must be proud beyond measure."
The man's lips thinned but he made no reply.
All pretense of playing tour guide was long gone. They continued their trek until Sirius' impatience got the better of him and he broke the silence once more.
"What are you really doing here, Lambrakis?"
The man did not appear perturbed by the question.
"You heard your professor." He replied smoothly, his words spoken with a tone of practiced concern. "I'm here for your protection, Black. There's much going on in the wizarding world, and the safety of the future generation is, of course, paramount."
Sirius led the way up another staircase.
"And how is it that you know Remus?" He'd tried to ask this casually but the words came out with more bite than he'd intended. He sensed the dark eyes on his face, trying to gauge the meaning behind the tone.
"He and I have a mutual acquaintance." The man answered. "I promised to keep an eye on him."
Sirius frowned. "A mutual acquaintance?"
"Well, I daresay if you'd taken your place in your family as you ought, you'd know." Here the man slowed his pace and leaned closer. "Let's just say Remus is…known outside of Hogwarts. And, unlike you, he'll be expected to take his place when the time comes."
Sirius stopped in his tracks.
"And what does that mean?"
The man stopped, too, and turned to face him squarely.
"Oh, his place is yet to be determined, Black," he said. Then, at the sound of footsteps down the hall, he leaned in close and continued. "Personally, I think he'd make a great little pet, don't you?"
Grey eyes flashed murder and Sirius' hand had grasped the front of the man's robes before he could stop himself.
"Although perhaps," Lambrakis continued, unfazed. Their faces were still inches apart and he sniffed a couple of times in Sirius' direction. "The same could be said about you."
Sirius released the man with a hard shove.
How could Lambrakis possibly know about that?
Laughing, the man took another step backwards.
"Thanks for the tour, Black." He said coolly. "But I sympathize now more than ever with your father. You really are quite the disappointment. I think I'll have better luck finding my own way around here. Give your friend my regards. I'll catch up with him soon enough."
But the man's otherwise cool departure was interrupted by someone rounding the nearest corner at the same exact moment he turned to make his own way around it.
Lambrakis was knocked to the ground with a loud "oof" and his wand slid from his pocket coming to a stop under a nearby statue. From his place on the ground, the man's eyes narrowed in fury.
"Ah, my most sincere apologies, Mr. Lambrakis. It appears we all had the same idea." The calm voice of Albus Dumbledore served to pull Sirius from his own murderous thoughts and he watched the pair's exchange in silence.
"I find an evening stroll about the school always calms my nerves," Dumbledore went on. "Here, allow me."
Dark eyes studied the older wizard's outstretched hand with barely concealed disdain but Lambrakis nevertheless grasped it and pulled himself to his feet.
"Dumbledore." He acknowledged through clenched teeth. Retrieving his wand from below the statue, the man stalked off without another word or glance in their direction.
Sirius watched the man's retreating back with a dislike so strong it rivaled his feelings towards a certain greasy-haired Slytherin. Shaking himself, he turned to find blue eyes watching him closely.
Sirius had a great many questions he'd like to ask the older wizard. How could Lambrakis possibly know he'd become an animagus? Did he know about James, too? How was Remus involved? And, why, why had Dumbledore even allowed outside wizards and witches into the school in the first place?
Dumbledore, perhaps guessing some of what passed through Sirius' mind, answered quietly.
"For now, I think it is important we keep our enemies in sight, Mr. Black."
Hardly reassuring, the words served only to raise more questions in his mind…but this was not the time. Right now, all Sirius wanted was to get back to Remus.
It somehow felt more imperative than ever that they not be apart for too long.
With a nod to the headmaster, Sirius turned to make his way wordlessly back to Gryffindor Tower.
To Remus.
Stepping inside the common room, Sirius was relieved to find it almost exactly as he'd left it. Although students had no doubt discussed McGonagall's earlier announcement, they'd returned to their respective groups, and to the excitement of the first night back at Hogwarts.
James was now lounging on the floor by the fire with Peter at his side. As Sirius advanced into the room, hazel eyes met his in an instant. He gave his friend a nod to convey they'd talk later, and the messy head nodded in response before lying back down on the floor.
Sirius' scanned the room.
Ah. There he was.
Remus and Lily Evans were seated together on a sofa along the far wall. At the sight of the younger boy, the agitation of the last half hour or so evaporated instantly and his good humor returned in full force.
The moment the golden eyes met his, Sirius felt pleasure course through him — just as it always did when he had the other boy's full attention.
As he approached he grinned at the pair and thought he saw a flush creep up the boy's neck. Sirius bowed in the direction of the red-head with mock formality "Miss Evans," he said.
Sirius received a half-amused smile in response. Had he not been so distracted by the tawny-haired boy, Sirius might've found it interesting that Evans was still in the common room when only last year the mere presence of James would've driven her away hours ago.
"And, of course," Sirius continued, turning to the object of his thoughts with another low bow. "Mr. Lupin."
Remus had the same concerned look on his face that he'd had when Sirius first left the room with the other wizard. The distracted smile he gave Sirius in response didn't quite reach his eyes.
Always worrying.
"Is it true what Pettigrew's saying?" Lily asked bluntly, pulling Sirius from his thoughts. "You and Potter rented a flat in Hogsmeade over the summer?"
He gave her his most charming smile. "Why, yes, it most certainly is true, Miss Evans. Compliments of my Uncle Alphard."
"Let me guess," she continued unimpressed. "You and Potter used it all summer long to… entertain? And, if what Pettigrew said about the lease is true, I'm assuming it will continue to be your little clubhouse for the remainder of the school year."
Sirius thought he detected a note of jealousy in there…or was that merely the exasperation of a newly-appointed Head Girl? Either way, the red-head's direct nature amused Sirius.
"Why, Evans," he said, feigning shock. "What could you possibly mean by that?"
She rolled her eyes.
"Lily!" A female voice called from across the room. "Hey, Lily!" The red-head turned to locate the source of the voice and waved at another seventh year girl. As she stood to join her friend, Lily gave Sirius a rather pointed look then turned to face Remus.
"Night, Remus," she said with a much gentler tone than she'd been using with Sirius. "Try not to let Black get you into any trouble on your first night back."
"Evans, I'm hurt," Sirius said to her retreating form as he moved to take her spot on the sofa.
Finally.
With the red-head out of sight, Sirius leaned back with an audible sigh and stretched one arm out across the back of the sofa. To any onlookers, he simply appeared to be relaxing with the sixth year boy sitting next to him. He glanced over at the younger boy and noticed Remus' left hand was clenched tightly in his lap.
Merlin, Remus looked good. But worried. Always worried.
Unbidden, his mind conjured the image of Remus' head rolling back against the station wall as Sirius took him in his mouth.
Well, maybe Remus didn't always look worried. A wave of desire washed over him.
He wanted to do that again for the other boy.
"Sirius?" Remus said quietly, in a way that made Sirius wonder if he'd already said his name once before. "What happened? What did Dimitri say?"
The use of the man's first name caused a small twinge of jealousy in Sirius.
"Well, I think we can safely say he's not actually here to help," he replied. "I didn't get much else out of him though."
Hesitating, he waited until Remus met his gaze again before he went on.
"He said the two of you have a mutual acquaintance."
Remus stiffened almost imperceptibly but didn't pretend to wonder who Lambrakis might've meant.
"My father."
Sirius nodded in understanding. He wished he could take the other boy's hand in his own.
With nothing behind them but the heavy curtains that covered the tall windows, Sirius let his thumb graze the back of Remus' neck in an effort to comfort him.
"Don't worry," he said quietly, solemnly. "I won't let Lambrakis near you."
The tawny-haired boy let out a shaky sigh at Sirius' words and touch, and closed his eyes for a moment.
"You stayed in Hogsmeade this summer then?" He asked, changing the subject. "But then—I thought you stepped off the train behind me?"
Of course Remus would think of that. Thumb still tracing the soft skin on the back of the boy's neck, Sirius lowered his voice further as he leaned in.
"I wanted to ride the train with you," he breathed. "Moony."
Remus shivered at the nickname.
Another moment and the boy seemed to process what Sirius had said. He frowned. "Ride with me? But—I didn't see you on the train until it arrived in Hogsmeade."
Sirius smiled.
Remus hadn't recognized him as Padfoot.
"I have a surprise for you, Remus," he whispered.
Golden eyes moved from his eyes down to his lips. The younger boy swallowed tightly. Sirius wondered if he was remembering their encounter at the train station.
"What kind of surprise?" Remus asked finally, his voice low as he continued to lean back into Sirius' touch.
"Hmm," Sirius murmured distractedly, pleased to have Remus so close, to be touching him again. "A good one."
The sound of a group of third years laughing loudly, caused Remus to straighten and look away from Sirius. The warm lighting mostly masked it but with their close proximity Sirius thought he could see another faint blush making its way up the boy's neck.
"Remus?" He asked quietly.
The other boy glanced at him apprehensively.
"Yes, Sirius?"
"Would you believe me if I said I need to return some books to the library tonight?"
Remus let out a low, soft laugh. The sound never failed to warm Sirius to the core.
There it was. That sweet, amused, unworried look.
Their eyes met again.
"Meet me there," Sirius urged quietly. "Midnight."
A trace of laughter still on his lips, Remus looked towards Lily, still conversing with her friend across the room. The green eyes glanced every so often in the direction of the fire.
Sirius imagined the red-head's words replaying in Remus' mind, and he wondered for a moment if Remus might heed her advice.
"Try not to let Black get you into any trouble on your first night back."
A moment longer, then the golden eyes snapped to his once more, a glimmer of mischief in them.
"Midnight," he echoed.