Camp Casanova 51-100

Miracle

"Ahh! There's a SPIDER in my hair!" Sirius screamed as he flung his head around, jumped around on the spot, gained the attention of Remus, James and Peter that stopped in their tracks to watch Sirius scream.

"How did it get there?" James snickered as Sirius started stomping on the ground while shaking his now messy hair back and forth, like a head bang.

"How am I supposed to know!? Get if off me!" Sirius shrieked, back hunched as he started stumbling in James' direction.

James flew an arm over his stomach as he laughed at Sirius. Peter joined him as well, but kept a safe distance to Sirius, probably afraid of the spider.

Remus sighed.
"Stay still Sirius." He ordered. Sirius stilled instantly.
"Are you going to help me?" Sirius pleaded, voice uncharacteristically high.

"Yes," Remus said as he approached Sirius that bent his head in front of him. Remus reached out and threaded his fingers through it, searching for the spider. He combed through the hair twice but when he couldn't find the spider he let go. "There's nothing there." Remus shrugged.

Sirius frowned. "Yes there is! I felt it!" He declared, but then looked panicked and started swatting his hands all over his body. "Wait- what if it's in my clothes!?" Sirius started jumping around on the spot again in total panic.

Remus glared at James and Peter that had bent over from laughing.

"Stop panicking and I'll help you look." Remus reached his hand out to grab Sirius' overarm, making him stop fretting around. With a whine Sirius closed his eyes and pouted. "I think the spider's in my shirt." Sirius cried as he opened his eyes to plead at Remus.

But Remus' eyes were focused on something else. Quickly, before Sirius had time to panic, he reached his free hand out and clasped it over the small spider that sat on Sirius' shoulder. He lifted his other hand as well and cupped them both over the spider just before he heard Sirius scream again.

"It's on my shoulder! It's on my shoulder, ahh!" Sirius started running around in circles, hands brushing over his shoulder with force. Luckily Remus managed to trap the spider in his hands before Sirius took off.

"Open the door for me, would you?" Remus asked Sirius patiently. Sirius turned around, mouth forming into an 'o' when he saw Remus' cupped hands.

"Oh, ehm, you- you found the spider, ehm...?" Sirius cleared his throat, cheeks turning pink. Remus smiled at him as he shook his head. Sirius could really act like a princess sometimes.

"Yes. Now would you please open the door for me, miss?" Remus teased. He ran around the room laughing as Sirius chased after him shouting "What did you call me!?"

After a while Remus got Sirius to open the door for him after threatening to let the spider loose on Sirius' bed if he didn't help him. On Sirius' demand Remus left the spider on the stair leading up to cabin 8. Then he walked back in to find James and Peter roll around on the floor, chests heaving with laughter.

Sirius aimed a light kick at them both and muttered for them to stop it but it took several minutes before they calmed down enough to be considered fit for conversation again.

When they did the four boys agreed on continuing with their plans for the evening. They all changed into their pajamas', Remus changed in the safety of their bathroom, and then they started empty their beds of their contents, moving them on the floor in the middle of the room instead.

Remus smiled to himself. They were going to have a sleepover.

Peter placed their nicked snacks in the middle of the mess that were their bedsheets, pillows and blankets. Peter had nicked the sweets from the kitchens earlier, with the others keeping watch outside. James had nicked a couple of candles from Slughorn's office that he lit with the nicked matches. Then James placed the candles next to the snacks and turned off their lamp to the only source of light came from the candles.

Remus reached for a chocolate bar and smiled as he broke off a piece and let it melt on his tongue. He really loved chocolate.

They had placed their beds in the form of a x, with the candles and snacks in the middle. And when Remus saw Sirius lay down on top of his sheets next to him he did the same. He had brought Teddy with him and let his palm run over his soft fur as he made himself comfortable.

Peter lay himself down on the bed to Remus' right and James lied down on the bed across from Remus. They all munched on the nicked chocolates, tarts and cookies for a while until James fumbled around and then lit a torch.

"Where'd you get that?" Peter asked in between bites of his favorite chocolate cookies.

"Where do you think? I nicked it from Filch's office of course." James grinned mischievously. He looked funny with the torch lighting up his head from beneath his chin.

"Wow, you walked in there alone?" Peter sounded astonished.

"Pfft," Sirius voiced. "As if he would dare that. I was with him the entire time, watching out for the old geezer." Sirius sounded cocky, and James mumbled something incoherent in response. Remus didn't understand how they dared to break into the kitchens, Slughorn's office and Filch's office. What if they got caught?

Remus patted Teddy for a while as he munched on his second piece of chocolate that he let melt on his tongue. He wondered if this was what people did on slumber party's; lay silent on the floor next to each other, munch on sweets. He had never been on one before so he didn't know.

"So, what do you want to do?" James yawned and Remus felt himself yawn as well. Suddenly he felt tired and was going to suggest that they simply fall asleep right then, but then he got a better idea.

"Why don't we, ehm... why don't we tell each other stories?" He suggested, voice uncertain. He loved to read, tell and listen to stories, especially during the evening with a warm blanket in his lap. But perhaps it wasn't something you did at a slumber party? And he didn't even know if he was any good at telling stories, after all his only audience had been Teddy.

"Sure," He heard James sing excitedly before he placed himself on his back atop of his bedsheets and pillows.

"That's a great idea, you start." Sirius turned so that he leaned on his side and placed his hands under the pillow beneath his head, eyes locked on Remus.

Peter hummed approvingly and made himself comfortable on his pillows as well, taking another handful of cookies along the way.

Remus swallowed. He hadn't actually thought they would agree on his idea, or that he would end up doing the storytelling first. What would he say?

"Should I, ehm, tell a story made by someone else, or, ehm, m-make one up myself?" He stuttered, not used to the attention of others. He didn't want to make a fool out of himself by accidentally doing the wrong thing. He would like to impress his new found friends if that was possible.

"I've heard all the usual ones already," Peter mumbled from where he lay on his back, eyes closed. "Why don't you make up a new story that no one has ever heard of before?" He suggested.

Sirius and James hummed approvingly.

"B-but I don't know what to say. I haven't thought of something." Remus confessed, feeling his cheeks burn.

"It doesn't matter." He felt a hand pat his arm reassuringly. Turning his head to the side Remus found Sirius smiling at him, strands of his hair covering his left eye. Remus didn't know why, but seeing Sirius smile at him like that made him calm down.

"Just make something up, doesn't have to be long." Sirius told him, and James and Peter agreed.

"Alright." Remus nodded at Sirius before he turned his attention back to stare at the candles. He frowned at them, his mind searching for something, anything to say. Then he spoke in his best storytelling voice that was low, but clear.

"Once upon a time there was a little boy who lived in a small village. He had light hair, but dark eyes. He had several siblings to play with and parents that loved him, but he felt that something was missing.

All his days looked the same. He woke up, went to school, went home, played with his siblings, fell asleep. The next morning it all started over again.

He sulked. He cried. He mourned. He didn't know how, but he felt that something was missing.

The aching hole in his chest grew as he got older, his heart screaming for its missing piece. He searched everywhere, spoke to anyone he thought could help him, but the pain wouldn't go away.

Then one day as he helplessly sat in his room and thought about his missing piece he heard clattering from his window. Jerking his head to the side he saw a beautiful barn owl fly outside so he opened his window to let it in.

The owl brought with it a letter, sender unknown. At the card stood a date and location, and feeling his curiosity take the overhand he found himself heading for the oak tree at three PM the following Saturday.

But when he reached the location he found himself stop to a halt. There was already someone

there. In his forest. By his tree.

Walking closer he saw that the intruder looked the opposite to him. Because the intruder had dark hair and light eyes. Pale skin and arched features. He looked proper and misplaced in the vegetation of the forest.

"What are you doing here?" He asked the dark-haired boy that had turned around to face him. "Why, I got a letter with a date and location. Are you perhaps the sender?" He quirked a brow.

"No..." Our narrator trailed off, but soon he realized something. As he looked at the dark-haired boy he felt the aching in his heart fade, all the way until it was all gone. Instead he felt warmth take its place.

He felt a smile splay on his lips as he walked toward the dark-haired boy.

He had found his missing piece."

Remus finished. He barely knew what words left his mouth, when he got into it they just kept flowing. Something told him he'd dreamed a similar story a couple of days ago, but he'd forgotten all about it until now.

Glancing to his side he saw that Peter had fallen asleep with a cookie still in his mouth. Remus frowned at him. He didn't know whether to feel annoyed or hurt by the fact that Peter probably thought his story was boring. He poked Peter on his belly but he only snored in response.

Looking around some he saw that James had turned around and was leaning his head on his hands, eyes boring into Remus that startled under the intense gaze.

"Did you make that up just now?" James asked.

"Yeah...?" Remus trailed off, was James going to make fun of him?

"Wow." James whistled, making Peter jerk awake and grunt as he spat out the cookie.

"That story was really good." Sirius spoke honestly. Remus turned to face him and was met by a serious expression.

"But what did it mean?" Sirius wore a quizzed expression.
"Yeah?" James pryed curiously. "What did they mean by 'missing piece'? As a friend or...?"

Remus' eyes widened. He tried to think back at his story, but he only remembered bits and pieces of it. He'd been in such a hurry to make something up he'd lost the main thought of it. Had he said something weird?

"It's, ehm, it's up to the listener to decide. It's an open ending, so you can interpret it however you want." Remus tried to sound convincing but James and Sirius only looked more confused.

"Why did the narrator feel lonely?" James asked. "And who sent the letters? And why didn't they have any senders?" The questions rained from James' mouth but before Remus had any time to avoid them Peter sat back up quickly.

"Did I miss something?" He slurred, then yawned.
"You fell asleep." Sirius rolled his eyes at him before he sat up as well.

"This slumber party was awesome but I'm tired, so can we go to bed?" Sirius yawned into his hand, making the other three yawn as well.

The four of them agreed on going to bed even though Remus thought the slumber party was unusually short. Though, at last James stopped with his questioning.

After taking out the trash, blowing out the candles and brushing their teeth they walked back to their beds in the middle of the room and got ready to fall asleep.

The last thing Remus remembered was Sirius smiling at him, having just ruffled Remus' hair. ''''''''
"Look, he's scratching his back again!" James whispered to them under his hand.

Remus turned around in his usual seat by their breakfast table. He spotted Snape scratching his back furiously while sending death glares to anyone that looked his way. Remus looked away quickly when he saw Rosier, Malfoy and Lestrange follow him across the dining hall.

"Serves him right, the greasy git." Sirius snickered. "I only wish we could have dumped an ant farm in Malfoy's bed as well. That would have been wicked." He chuckled.

Peter hummed something; trying to make the other think he was listening when he was actually busy eating as many pancakes as possible in a minute. Remus turned back to his own plate and slammed a big spoon of sweet strawberry jam onto his last piece of pancake, rejoicing in the feeling of being able to eat fancy jam to his breakfast.

"Listen up campers!" Came Slughorn's bellowing voice from the front of the desk when most of the boys had finished with their breakfast.

"Today we'll have the honor of hosting the sweet ladies from my dear friend Minerva McGonagall's girl's camp across the lake."

The dining hall erupted in loud cheers, some even applauding.

Slughorn cleared his throat, obviously not done with his speech but too happy about the attention to stop the cheers.

"They will arrive in the company of the director and her closest personnel at six PM for an enjoyable evening by the bonfire that we will set up by the lake. Please note that the dinner will be served roughly one hour earlier due to the arrangements, and curfew is pushed back one hour." That earned Slughorn another set of loud cheers.

"When the ladies arrive I expect proper behavior from you boys. You are to show them what gentlemen you are, and treat them with respect. If I see anyone act improper at or with any of the girls you will be sent to spend the rest of the evening in your cabin. Understood?" Slughorn tried to sound stern but failed as his moustache fluttered in tandem with his chuckles.

As Slughorn made his way out of the room Remus turned his attention back to his mates. He found James almost bouncing in his chair from excitement.

"We're going to meet the girls!" He exclaimed, too happy. Remus didn't understand what the fuss was all about. It was just girls.

But when he looked around the hall at the excited boys that patted each other on the shoulders or

babbled excitedly with each other he thought that perhaps it was a big deal.
He frowned and wondered why he didn't feel the least bit excited, but let it go when he realized it

might have something to do with the fact that he didn't like meeting new people. He shrugged and then followed his mates out of the dining hall.
''''''''''

They sat around the bonfire in a large circle when the girls arrived. A stern looking woman walked at the front while having a conversation with Slughorn. Her sharp gaze swept over every boy in front of her as she approached.

After her were over thirty girls of different ages, or perhaps even more. At the very back walked two other women, one who was chubby and another one that was thin. They both looked kind and more laid back than the woman at the front that Remus suspected was McGonagall.

Slughorn introduced the stern looking woman for his boys. It was McGonagall.

The women that walked up to stand next to her were called Sprout and Pomfrey. Remus felt a smile tug at his lips when his eyes locked with Pomfrey's and she smiled at him.

"Oh, come on." Remus turned his head to the side to look at James who gave him a funny expression. "Here we have over thirty of girls to talk to and you flirt with Pomfrey? One of the old women?"

Remus felt his face turn scarlet. "I did not flirt with her!" He hissed as he elbowed James' ribs, making him huff. "And she's not old. She's probably only about twenty or so..." He trailed off.

"You were so flirting with her!" James teased, snickering under his hand that he had slammed over his mouth. Remus sent a glare his way but stopped talking when he found McGonagall stare at them warningly.

Remus muttered something under his breath as he stared at his lap. He did not flirt with Pomfrey. He was just surprised, and happy that she seemed to take an instant liking to him. He thought she seemed kind, and nice, as a friend. And why would he even want to flirt with her? Didn't James understand that you could look at a girl or a woman without wanting to flirt with them?

"Hey, you alright?

Remus looked up from his lap when he felt a hand pat his back. He found Sirius gaze at him looking concerned.

"Yeah," Remus mumbled, forcing himself to smile reassuringly. "James was just bothering me..."

Sirius rolled his eyes. "He can be such a twat! But don't worry about. Whatever it was he will have forgotten about in five minutes anyway." Sirius tilted his head to motion to James who had already proceeded to stare at every approaching girl.

Remus smiled at Sirius before he thanked him for making him feel better before he also turned his attention back to the girls, but he turned his focus to Sirius again when he heard him growl.

"What is it?" Remus asked when he saw Sirius narrow his eyes and form his hands into fists. Following his gaze Remus soon found himself looking at a couple of older girls who babbling made their way over to the other side of the bonfire.

"Bellatrix and Narcissa. My cousins." Sirius murmured, sounding furious.

Remus watched as one of the girls, the one that looked slightly older, snorted at most of the boys. She made her skirt flow around her dangerously from where she walked on the path. Her hair was dark but less shiny than Sirius', and her facial features reminded Remus of Sirius as well, with the small nose bridge and high cheekbones, but they didn't look as defined on her.

He remembered Sirius saying something about inbreeding and realized that perhaps he wasn't joking after all. Sirius looked similar to his cousin.

But there was one significant difference between Bellatrix and Sirius; Bellatrix eyes looked evil. She constantly alternated between looking mad or like she was planning something vicious. Her eyes lacked the calm honesty that Sirius had.

Next to her walked an ice blond girl that looked tender, but sterner than Bellatrix. Her eyes looked more alive, but colder than her sister's. Their cheekbones, lips and forehead were the same though.

Narcissa seemed controlled and sure of her every move as she held her head high, making her straight hair sway after her. She looked like she thought she was too good to be in a place like this, if her glares were anything to go by.

Remus was going to calm Sirius down when his attention drifted to James that fidgeted on the tree trunk next to him.

"My god, mates! Do you see that girl over there? The redheaded one next to the horse-face?" James vibrated from excitement as he lifted his right hand to ruffle his hair. He brought up his glasses higher on his nose before he lifted his hand to point at the girl, but Remus quickly stopped him, apparently the only one of them that noticed McGonagall's constant stare at them.

"Where?" Peter shouted over the loud noise that echoed around them as the older boys rose up to greet the older girls. Out of the corner of his eyes Remus saw Sirius send death glares in the direction of his cousins that were sure to greet Malfoy and his kind.

"Hey Pete, scoot over, would you?" James hushed as he reached out to push Peter further away from him.

"Hey! What do you think you're doing?" He shrieked, determinedly staying on his spot.

"Hurry! She's walking over here! I need to make room for her!" James hissed, pushing on Peter with more force.

Remus rolled his eyes.

The girl obviously wasn't going to sit down next to them. Not unless she was out of her mind. Sirius glared at about anyone, Peter alternated between dozing off or eating candy, James ruffled his hair constantly as he eyed the redheaded girl and Remus grimaced under the stern stare of McGonagall.

They really looked like a couple of fools.

During the next fifteen minutes the girls from the other camp had sat down and joined the circle of campers around the bonfire. And Slughorn had brought out marshmallows that the campers grilled on the fire at the end of long sticks. Remus watched as James and Peter grilled about twenty marshmallows each over the fire.

Remus munched on a piece of chocolate leftover from their slumber party the day before that he had sneaked out in his trouser pocket. He chewed on it while he let his eyes wander around the many boys and girls around them.

He spotted a redheaded older girl talk to the Prewett twins, and realized that it might be their sister or another relative.

To their right sat Dumbledore having a conversation with Sprout and Pomfrey, making them chuckle every other second or so. Remus thought Dumbledore smiled at them mysteriously, and received a couple of mysterious grins back for himself. Remus narrowed his eyes at them. He couldn't place it, but there was something about Dumbledore that made him stand out from the others.

Remus tore his eyes from them to look over at the ones sitting next to them. He saw the second year Frank talk to a girl that seemed to be of the same age. She had dark hair, freckles and kind eyes. But next to her sat James' center of attention; the redheaded girl with determined green eyes that glistened in the light of the fire, and a kind smile. She wore a flower dress, and squinting Remus thought he could make out the flowers on the pattern; lilies.

The horse-faced girl sitting next to her looked older, but she also wore a dress with flower patterns. It took Remus longer to remember the name of the flowers but then he got it; it was petunias. He wondered if the girls shared an interest in flowers or if they perhaps were related. They didn't look much alike except for perhaps their noses. They were the same.

Remus quickly looked away when he saw the horse-faced girl glare at him angrily. "See you later!" James chirped as he suddenly jumped up from his seat.

"Where are you going?" Sirius asked, finally snapping out of his glare competition with his cousins.

"Why, to the fair lady of course!" James sang, sounding too happy considering that the girl hadn't aimed him a single glance yet.

"Good luck! You'll need it." Sirius smacked James' arm, laughing at him. James grunted and ruffled Sirius' hair once before he was off.

"Should I follow him?" Sirius asked Remus, raising an eyebrow at him. "I'll do it." Peter said when Remus had opened his mouth to answer him.

Remus watched as Peter rose up from his slouching position to trail after James who had reached the girls and was receiving disapproving glares from them all the while.

"Want a marshmallow?"
Remus looked over at Sirius who had picked up James' neglected stick with roasted marshmallows. "Yes, thank you." Remus smiled.
Sirius grinned back at him.

They shared the marshmallows between them and chewed in silence as they watched the fire slowly burn out. Filch threw a couple of firewood's on it but it only made it worse.

When Remus had eaten four marshmallows James stumbled back to them, eyes positively formed into the shapes of hearts.

"He's completely mental." Peter stated as he slumped down on his seat while helping James to sit down next to him.

"She- she's perfect... she-she's an... angel." James mumbled dreamily, absolutely starstrucked. Remus stared at him. Was he serious?

"What happened?" Sirius chuckled, probably going to mock James about it later.

"Her- her name... Her name's Lily." James hugged himself as he dreamily gazed out in the distance.

Remus voiced a low 'oh' when he thought back to the girl's dress.

"Is her friend's name Petunia?" He asked James who snapped out of his dreamy state long enough to stare at Remus incredulously.

"How did you know?" He frowned, but didn't keep his focus on Remus long enough to hear him out.

Remus shook his head when James started mumbling nonsense about this Lily girl he had only met once.

"Fancy another marshmallow?" Sirius asked as he reached out his hand in front of Remus', one lonely marshmallow lying on his palm.

Remus smiled. He took it and placed it on his tongue, relished in the sweet flavor.

"Hey, those are mine!" Peter shouted as he angrily reached for the stick of marshmallows held in Sirius' hand.

"Not anymore! You left them and finders keepers!" Sirius told him, holding out the stick with at arm's length. Peter muttered a set of curses before he walked away to find another stick and hurry to roast a new set of marshmallows before the fire went out completely.

Sirius snickered when he lowered the stolen stick to lie in his lap. He offered Remus another marshmallow that he accepted with another smile.

As Remus sat there, in between Sirius and James on the bench as he watched Peter in the warmth of the bonfire he felt himself smile for real.

He realized that this was what it felt like to have friends, or no, this was what it felt like to have best friends.

It felt like a miracle. His which had come true. He wasn't alone anymore.

Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs

"You're it!"

"No, you're it!"

"Eh, no? I was it the last time!"

"Okay, Pete's it."

"Don't drag me into this, I'm not even playing."

Remus opened his eyes from where he had drifted off against a tree. He rubbed his eyes, taking in the scene in front of him.

They had played different games in the forest for hours as they searched for holes in the electricity fence. Sadly, they had yet to find a hole, but on the bright side they had laughed to much that Remus had to pause in favor of resting up, leaning against a tree.

Remus rose up to standing position and made his way over to his bickering friends. They had played tag while he dozed off.

"Why don't we play a new game?" Remus asked, eager to lose the tension that had built up among his friends.

His proposal immediately got the attention of the others that always wanted to try something new.

"What have you got?" Sirius asked as he wiped his sweaty forehead on his arm.

"Have we played it before?" James asked curiously.

"Have you made something up for us to play?" Peter asked, actually looking as excited as the others.

"I don't know if I'm the first one to think of the idea but we've never played it before." Remus explained while he stretched his limbs.

When he received encouraging nods he went on with his explanation.

"One of us is to wear a blindfold over his eyes. Let's say it's me. So when I've put on the blindfold I'm supposed to count to ten loudly and at the same time you take your positions at most ten meters around me. When I've counted to ten I'll walk around and try to find and tag you. But because I can't see it's difficult and the whole point is to strain my ears to listen for your footsteps. "

"You are allowed to move around, but only move at most one meter every thirty seconds." Remus explained and waited for the others' confused expressions to turn into one of understanding.

When they didn't Remus explained it all another time. And then a third. But then they finally understood the rules.

"What if we cheat? I'm not saying we're going to, but you know, if you can't see and all..?" James asked honestly.

Remus smacked his lips at him disapprovingly. "You can only play this game with people you trust, considering that the counter can't see and that the other players aren't allowed to move around however they want." He scolded James.

"But yeah, I guess it makes sense. It won't be any fun if you search for us in the blind while we're hundreds of meters away." James shrugged.

After they had all agreed on playing honestly they played a game of rock, paper, scissors resulting in Remus ending up as the first to count. They walked further away from the fence, not wanting to burn themselves on it by mistake, and then Remus loosened his belt to use as a blindfold, and even tucked a napkin underneath to make it less see through.

When he was set he started counting to ten out loud while covering his ears, not wanting to hear what direction his friends went.

When he was done he stood totally still at the spot and strained his ears, eager to catch on to the slightest of sounds.

He heard something fall to the ground and them a muffled "Ow!" Quickly he ran towards the spot where he thought he had heard the sound. With his arm outreached he swatted his hand in the air, trying to find the person.

He stumbled when his right foot bumped into something that voiced another muffled "Ow,". Remus crouched down with a grin as his hand came in contact Peter.

"You fell to the ground, didn't you?" Remus laughed, hands patting Peter's head until he swatted them away with a grunt.

"This game is silly anyway..." Peter muttered as he stood up and walked away from the field, or at least Remus thought he did, he couldn't see a thing through the blindfold.

He strained his ears for any sounds again. He jerked on the spot when he heard a breach break in front of him. There was someone there!

He walked forward with determined steps and arms reached out. His hands soon came in contact with a smiling face, clad with a pair of glasses. James.

"Found you." Remus chuckled.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever." James was a sore loser but he still laughed as he walked over to stand next to Peter.

Remus strained his ears as he listened for any clues to where Sirius was. But the minutes went on and he didn't hear a thing except for the light breeze and low voices of James and Peter that were meters away.

Remus frowned as he slowly walked forward. Had Sirius gone back to the camp?

"Give me a hint!" Remus shouted. He didn't know if hints were allowed, he had just made up the rules before they started. But since he was the game-leader right now he supposed he could add that possibility to the game.

"What do you mean by 'hint'?" Remus startled. He thought the question came from Sirius, but then he recognized the voice as James'.

"Ehm, I don't know? Maybe throw something to guide me in the general direction?" Remus spoke over his shoulder in the direction James voice had come from, but he might as well had spoken to a tree.

"Like what? A shoe?" Peter asked.
Remus smiled as he shrugged. "Sure, why not?"

"Okay Sirius, give him something to work with!" James shouted, making Remus snap his head from side to side. Sirius was somewhere around him after all. He hadn't left.

"Shh!" Remus scolded the other as he strained his ears for any clues to Sirius' direction.

He heard the soft thud of something hitting the ground about one meter to his right. Quickly Remus rushed over there with his arms reached out in front of him, frowning. He stepped on something that felt like a shoe, and picking it up from the ground he got his suspicion proved.

"Sirius, is this your shoe?" He asked, trying a new tactic. If he fooled Sirius to answer him he would reveal his position...

But he didn't answer. In fact, Sirius stayed so silent that Remus started to feel bored.

He slowly walked around some more, shoe in one hand, the other one reached out in front of him as he walked around in the blind. When he heard James and Peter snicker from their spot loudly he stopped his walking around and lowered his hand to hang by his side.

"What's so funny?" He shouted over his shoulder. "Nothing!" James shrieked, laughing even louder.

"Doesn't seem like it's nothing." Remus muttered, turning his head forward again. He heaved a defeated sigh before he decided to call the game to a stop. If he still hadn't found Sirius he would never find him. Remus had lost, Sirius had won. But it didn't matter. The point was to have fun and Remus had had that.

"Sirius you've won!" He shouted to the darkness in front of him under the blindfold. "I'm taking off the blindfold now but stay where you are." He started to loosen his belt. When he lowered it he covered his eyes from the bright light of the forest.

He lowered his hand and opened his eyes to look in front of him and immediately jumped on the spot.

"Sirius!"

Sirius stood not one meter away from him, mischievous glint in his eyes, hands slammed over his mouth to cover any sounds that threatened to slip out.

"You've been there the whole time?" Remus asked him in disbelief, his heart going back to its usual calm beating.

"No, I trailed after you." Sirius grinned proudly.
"Did you cheat?" James asked as he and Peter joined them.

Sirius looked offended from where he dramatically covered his mouth with his hand in a gasp. "No, I would never! How could you say that? You saw me the entire time."

"Relax, I'm just checking." James threw his hands in the air in surrender. "I didn't cheat..." Sirius muttered to the ground. Remus patted his shoulder.

"It's one-zero to you now Sirius. You're really good at this game." He complimented, earning him a smile from Sirius whose self-confidence grew immensely.

"I know, right? I'm a natural." Sirius smiled cockily, making Remus roll his eyes.

Remus gave Sirius back his shoe and watched as he put it back on.

"It's your turn." James jabbed his index finger in Peter's shoulder, making him squirm.

"Okay, okay, don't jab me!" Peter murmured as James proceeded to jab another finger on Peter's chest teasingly.

They played another round of the game, but this time with Peter as the counter, wearing the blindfold. He found James first, then Remus, but he also had some trouble finding Sirius. In the end he had to announce Sirius as the victor, earning him two-zero wins.

The same thing happened as James played as the counter. He found Peter first, and Remus a couple of minutes later. But he couldn't find Sirius.

James took longer before he declared his defeat and announced another win to Sirius who wore a constant grin on his face. Sirius really seemed to love how easy it was for him to win. Remus didn't understand how he did it. He sneaked around on the grass without making the slightest of sounds. It was almost as if he had magical feet or something.

"How do you do it?" James demanded as he gave the blindfold back to Remus when all except for Sirius were tired of the game.

"What do you mean?" Sirius threaded a hand through his hair, looking sure of himself.

"How are you so quiet?" Remus cut in.

"You're not even barefoot!" Peter exclaimed, baffled.

"I told you; I'm a natural." Sirius lifted one eyebrow at them, but James grunted and Remus rolled his eyes at Sirius' self-centered declaration.

"It's almost as if you've got pads or something." Remus murmured to the ground, watching the grass flatten out under his shoes.

"Yeah, it's like you have pad-feet! That's why you can move around without making any sounds!" Peter shouted, unnecessarily loud, making Remus cover his ears with his hands.

"What are you on about?" Sirius asked, but his voice got lost in the sudden exclamation shout from James.

"Padfoot!" James shouted as he pointed at Sirius.

Sirius frowned, reached out a hand to lower James' pointing finger that threatened to stab him in the eye.

"You are Padfoot!" James grinned, hands motioning at Sirius.

"No, I'm Sirius?" Sirius huffed, looking around, waiting for anyone to make the joke that got old the day Sirius was born.

"You're Padfoot now." James nodded to himself. "Right?" James elbowed Peter in the ribs, making him nod while whining in pain.

"I get your idea, but why would we call Sirius 'Padfoot' all of a sudden?" Remus asked James, not neglecting the idea but not approving of it either.

"Wouldn't it be cool though? If we all had codenames or something?" James' eyes glistened excitedly. "Sirius can be Padfoot and I can be, ehm, hmm..." James frowned. "We'll need to think of names for the rest of us, but for now Sirius is Padfoot!" He patted Sirius on the back.

"I don't know whether to feel honored or confused?" Sirius chuckled, but when he let the name set for a while he smiled to himself. Remus thought he liked the name as well.

Padfoot.

Remus let the name echo in his head for the rest of the evening that they spent searching for a hole in the fence. They all gasped when they found a great oak tree whose breaches reached high over the fence, allowing them an entrance to the other side.

After deciding who was to climb over the fence first Remus watched as James slowly climbed higher on the big tree. James slid his body over the thick breach, looking afraid as he suddenly was positioned above the buzzing electricity fence. But soon he was on the other side where the breach led him to another tree that he used to climb down.

When James was safely on the other side he laughed and threw himself on the untouched grass.

Quickly Sirius had made his way over to the other side as well, and after him came Peter.

With some persuasion Remus found himself on the other side of the fence as well. He didn't know why but being on the other side made him feel free. He watched as the forest went on for hundreds of meters in all directions, and with one glance at his three friends he started running around in the free, his friends joining him.

The four of them threw themselves on beds of flowers, climbed new trees and found a stream where they dipped their feet. They ran around until they were out of breath, sweaty and their cheeks hurt from the extent of their laughing.

Out there it felt like the only thing that existed was the four of them. Only Remus, Sirius, James and Peter. No summer camps, no schools, no chores, bullies or anything troublesome. There was just the wonderful summer air and the freedom of the forest.

They reached a glade where they laid down next to each other on the damp grass. It was getting dark and Remus could just make out the first stars on the night sky. He knew that he should feel worried about them being in the middle of nowhere as it got dark, but he didn't. He felt content and happy as he lay splayed on the grass next to his friends.

Remus laughed when James found a lily and then started caressing it, pretending that it was the girl from the bonfire the other day.

Remus folded his arms under his head as he turned his attention back to the sky that darkened significantly by the minute. He could make out most of the stars in the constellation of big dipper, and felt a smile tug at his lips when he remembered the wish he had made during one of the first

days he spent at the camp. Back then he had watched the stars feeling lonely. Feeling so much different than he did now.

Remus glanced over at Sirius that lay next to him and felt the smile turn into a proud grin. He wasn't alone now. He had friends.

He turned his attention back to the stars just as he saw the moon come out. His eyes widened and he lifted his finger to point.

"Look! It's a full moon!" Remus urged his friends to look, but they didn't even seem remotely as interested by it as he felt.

"So?" Peter mumbled, dozing off as usual.
"What do you mean 'so'? It only happens about every twenty eighth day or so. It will be a whole

month before the moon is this full again!" Remus explained, voice astonished.

"Cool." Sirius whistled, actually trying to seem interested. Remus felt another smile tug at his lips from Sirius' consideration but before he got any time to discuss the mystery of the beautiful moon with Sirius James' voice interrupted them.

"I have it!"

All heads turned to look over at James who had dropped the lily flower in favor of staring at Remus excitedly.

"What do you mean?" Peter mumbled, rubbing the tiredness from his eyes. "Moony." James grinned at Remus who frowned back at him.

"Excuse me?" Remus didn't understand what he meant, but then he heard Sirius voice an understanding 'aaa' from next to him, and Peter chuckle once.

"Your codename; Moony." James blinked at him expectantly and that's when Remus understood. They wanted to call him Moony.

"Oh... but why? He asked, voice uncertain. "I mean Remus works just fine. You don't have to make up a nickname-"

"I hereby declare you as Mister Moony!" James interrupted, voice loud, echoing around the glade. "It's brilliant, yeah?" James asked the others, earning him a grunt from Peter and nod from Sirius.

Remus shrugged, but felt a thankful smile splay on his lips. James cared enough about him to give him a nickname. It was thoughtful and funny and suddenly Remus felt so very thankful for his friends. They didn't leave him behind. Instead they included him.

Smiling, Remus turned his attention back to the moon that now acted as his namesake. Moony.
''''''''''

"I dare you to take a sip from the puddle over there." Sirius dared James whose face screwed up into a grimace.

"No way!" James gave Sirius a push that made him stumble back.

"So you're dropping out? You're a chicken?" Sirius knew exactly what to say to make James go along with just about anything.

James glared at Sirius before he turned around, heading for the stream. He crouched down and then lowered his cupped hands. Remus heard the slurp as James gulped down the water, and then watched as he stage-retched on the spot.

"I'm. Not. A. Chicken!" James declared when he rose up to standing position.

Remus rolled his eyes at them.

They had spent their free time of the past couple of days exploring the vast forest, and had added the new information they gathered to the Map. They had marked out the hidden passageway over the electricity fence as well, not wanting to forget about it later.

They had played tag for an hour but then Sirius and James had gotten bored and wanted to play something else. Now they played 'dare' with each other, and Remus and Peter had played with them in the beginning, but dropped out when the game turned into eating things. So far Sirius had licked a tree, tasted mud and chewed on his sleeve. James had done the same things but sipped water from the stream as well. Remus had warned them about bacteria and possible diseased they could catch by tasting mysterious things out in the nature, but they had pretended they were deaf when he scolded them.

Remus walked over to suggest Sirius and James that they head back since he wanted to work some more on the Map. He left a snoring Peter behind him as he made his way over to his friends. He saw Sirius take a sip of the water in front of him and sighed. If they got sick they could not come to Remus for support.

"Are you done?" Remus placed his hands on his hips as he eyed his friends disapprovingly. "Wait, just one more." Sirius urged in between 'yucks' as he wiped his tongue on his sleeve. Remus nodded and watched as Sirius walked to James and threw an arm over his shoulders.
"I dare you to eat grass." Sirius ruffled James' hair before James struggled to loosen Sirius' grip. "No way!" James shouted, successfully freeing himself from Sirius' grip.

Sirius lifted his eyebrows. "You sure you refuse? It would mean that I win." He sang confidently, making James vibrate with frustration.

"Argh, okay! I'll do it." James grunted as he searched the ground for a patch of untouched grass. Remus scrunched up his nose in disgust. What if a rabbit had peed on the grass James was to eat?

James crouched down, pulled off a fistful of grass from the ground and lifted it to his mouth. "I can't believe I'm doing this..." He mumbled just before he propped the grass in his mouth.

Remus and Sirius watched as James chewed and waited for some sort of reaction.

When James chewed on the grass and then proceeded to swallow it with an almost normal expression Remus frowned. Did James like the flavor?

"It wasn't that bad." James declared with a slightly amused expression.

Sirius laughed at him, not believing his ears. "Are you serious?"

"I think the both of us know which one of us who's serious." James grinned at Sirius, teeth green from the grass, the sight making Remus grimace.

"But yeah, I don't know? It wasn't that bad." James shrugged.

Remus was going to finally drag them back to the camp when he saw James crouch down again, hand reaching for another fistful of grass.

"What are you doing?" Remus warned.

James didn't answer. Instead he lifted another handful of grass to his mouth. Remus' eyes widened as he watched James chew and swallow the grass with a funny expression on his face.

"Are you pretending that you're a deer or something?" Remus asked him, not sure whether to feel amused or repulsed by James' peculiar behavior.

James' eyes suddenly darted to the ground. He rushed off somewhere and then returned with a set of big, long, pointy branches in his hands. He lifted them to the top of his head, probably supposed to look like antlers. He then leaned forward and dragged his right foot on the ground before he rushed towards Sirius that stopped laughing as a surprised shout escaped his lips.

Remus watched, befuddled, as deer-James chased Sirius around in a circle, both of them laughing loudly.

After a while James skittered down to a stop. He reached out a hand to drag a leaf of a tree and then chewed on it.

"Grass eater!" Sirius teased him as he walked over to pat James on his back. James grinned at him before he lowered his breach-antlers to the ground. Remus' eyes trailed them as they fell to the ground. His eyes traces the sharp points at the end of one breach and then an idea hit him.

"Prongs!"

James and Sirius both turned their attention to Remus who made his way over to them with a smug grin. Remus pointed first at the antlers, then at James. With a smile he repeated "Prongs."

James frowned, but Sirius' face lit up as he started laughing again.

"Ha! You're Prongs now James!" Sirius nudged James' shoulder.

James stared at Remus for a second but then his face lit up as well.

"Mate! That's brilliant!" He grinned before he aimed a friendly punch on Remus' shoulder.

"Glad you like it because that's your name now." Remus teased as he tried to duck another punch from James.

"Prongs!" James repeated to himself, voice astonished.

Remus shared a look with Sirius and then turned around to head back for the camp. He stopped when they reached the tree Peter was sleeping next to. He wondered how he should best wake him up but got his question answered when he heard a loud bang coming from above him.

"What!?" Peter shrieked as he forcefully jerked awake and sat up.

Remus had startled and snapped his head around to locate the sound. When he saw Sirius look up the sky Remus copied him. And looking up he saw dark clouds blow in and actually felt a light spray of raindrops land on his skin.

"It was just the thunder." Sirius told Peter as he reached out his hand to help him get up.

Remus frowned at the sky. It looked like a storm was approaching if the massive dark clouds were anything to go by.

James walked past Remus to help Sirius haul Peter up, and when they were all on their feet they started their walk back to the camp again. They walked in a comfortable silence, ears listening to the thunderstorm above them. And every other minute or so they saw a lightning light up the forest. The rain steadily got heavier, and soon they had cupped their hands over their eyes as they jogged towards the fence.

Just as James was about to climb up the tree they heard Peter a shout in surprise. "Hey, look! A worm!" He exclaimed as he crouched down.

Remus frowned. It was unusual to find worms in the summer and he had yet to find one in this forest.

"Where?" Sirius asked, crouching down as well. Remus did the same and followed Peter's index finger that pointed at the ground next to a small stone. Remus thought he saw a patch of grey fur but looked away in favor of finding the worm instead.

"There!" Peter pointed fiercely at the spot. "James, look!" He urged. Sirius started snickering. "He's Prongs now." He told Peter sincerely.

James ruffled Sirius hair and tsked when he reached them. "You can still call me James, Pete." He told Peter whose cheeks had turned red.

Remus turned his attention back to Peter's pointing finger. Remus followed it until he found the worm. Or, wait. Remus narrowed his eyes, squinting at it. It was too thick to be a worm. Too long...

Remus stared at the 'worm' a second longer. Then he gasped.

"It's not a worm! It's a rat tail!" He shouted. Suddenly the patch of grey fur he had seen made sense; a rat had been killed there.

Peter screamed in fear as he struggled to make some distance to the rat tail. He stumbled and butt first on the ground in the process.

Remus grimaced as he rose up from the ground, eager to head back for the camp already. He made to start walking when James' laughter got his attention.

"Wormtail! That's your name now!" James patted Peter's back, making him squeal.

"Oh no." Peter groaned. "Why do I have to be 'Wormtail'? What's even a wormtail? Worms doesn't have tails!" Peter babbled.

"Relax, it's a totally cool name." Sirius reassured Peter before he stood up as well, positioning himself next to Remus.

"You think?" Peter pleaded to his friends that all nodded approvingly. With a small smile Peter nodded to himself while voicing a low 'Wormtail' under his breath, getting the feel of it.

"It's a brilliant name." James smiled, but then his expression turned smug. "Don't you think so... Wormy?"

Peter gasped but before he had time to reprimand James he had sprung up and rushed to the tree. In the blink of an eye he had climbed up the tree and positioned himself above the fence. With a grin he jumped down on the other side and then ran off in the direction of the camp.

Remus shook his head at him. Though, when another loud thunder reached his ears he walked toward the tree to climb over the fence as well. And when he was on the other side he watched as Peter and Sirius followed.

Together they made their way back to cabin 7, clothes drippling from the pouring rain, breaths rugged from their extensive running. But it was with a smile that Remus opened the door to their cabin.

As he walked over to his bed he let his eyes linger on his friends. And then he glanced down on himself. They weren't just James, Sirius, Remus and Peter in cabin 7 anymore. They were something more, something absolutely brilliant but excitedly secret.

They were Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs.

Rain

Remus jerked as the thunder surprised him for what felt like the hundredth time that evening.

Sighing, he turned his head to look out the window. He was immediately met by the sight of water hitting the glass, making a smattering sound.

It had poured down constantly for over a day now. All activities had been cancelled and the campers only left their cabins to eat.

Remus had spent the day alternating between reading and working on the map. He had gotten help drawing from his friends, them all helping out for about one hour each before they got bored and started doing something else.

Remus placed his book on his nightstand. He glanced over at Peter who read some sort of comic book, or magazine. Remus didn't know, he wasn't interested. He preferred books with only text, or with black and white drawn illustrations.

He walked over to the main door to switch on the lights. It was only about eight PM but it had been dark outside all day. Though, for once Remus had an excuse for his long sleeved clothes that didn't feel as uncomfortably warm that day.

He walked over to the desk next to the door, pulled the chair out and sat down for another session with the map. It was almost finished already; he only had to add a couple of details, and, well, think of a name for it of course.

He had just lifted his pen when the door swung open, revealing the soaking wet figures of James and Sirius that ran inside, panting, slamming the door shut after them.

"How did it go?" Remus asked them, reaching out his arms to retrieve their stolen goods.

"Mission accomplished." James high fived Sirius, both of them alternating between laughing over their success or groaning from their wet clothes.

"Did you get the sour skulls? Or the treacle tart?" Peter asked from his bed, not having moved even a centimeter from his spot.

"Yeah we got it all." Sirius explained while he started taking off his wet clothes, James doing the same. They both slowly made their way over to the bathroom.

"I'll use the shower first!" Sirius suddenly shouted as he shoved James out of the way and made him stumble. Before James had time to rise up from where he'd fallen on the floor Sirius quickly slipped inside the bathroom and locked the door behind him. Remus could hear Sirius laughter coming from inside.

James banged on the door and muttered curses at Sirius while he waited for him to finish.

''''''''''

One hour later Remus found himself lying on top of his bedsheets, pillows and Teddy in the middle of the cabin floor just like he had the week prior. To his left lay Sirius, to his right Peter and across from him James. In the middle lay a pile of different sweets. As soon as James had emptied their stolen goods Remus had snatched the only chocolate bar, and now he relished in the sweet flavor of

it.

He heard the faint boom of the retreating thunder and felt himself jolt at the sound. He felt a tad uneasy, due to a combination of the dark room, the low clatter of the rain hitting the window and the sound of the wind that threatened to overthrow their cabin.

But Remus was also scared due to the fact that they were going to tell each other ghost stories.

Remus could be easily frightened at times, like during the night or if someone creeped up on him from behind. He had been afraid of shadows and monsters luring under his bed since the accident so he didn't fell all too excited for the upcoming evening. In fact he felt a crippling fear snake its way up his chest where it lingered, making him fidget nervously on top of his blankets.

He watched as James flicked the torch on, making it light up his head from under his chin, making him look creepy. James did a funny grimace before he swallowed the candy he had been munching on to speak.

"Strain your ears because here I go." James declared before he started speaking in a low, dark voice.

"The floorboards creaked all around me, making me huddle deeper underneath the bed where I was- What's so funny Padfoot?" James glared at Sirius ad he threw a candy at him.

"Sorry," Sirius snickered, not sounding sorry at all. "It's just, your voice, it's so funny," Sirius slammed a hand over his mouth to hide the chuckles.

Remus had been so afraid already that he hadn't thought twice about James' voice, but now that he did he thought James had sounded a bit strange. Looking to his right Remus saw Peter hide a grin under his hand as well.

"Sod off." James muttered as he threw a candy at Peter. "I don't get what you mean but sure, I'll speak normally if my super-cool-and-totally-badass storytelling voice is too much for you. I'm a kind man." James ruffled his hair before he flashed them a confident grin.

James received three sets of tsks and sighs but then it was silent in the cabin again so he restarted with his storytelling.

"The floorboards creaked all around me, making me huddle deeper in underneath the bed where I was hiding.

Opening my eyes I caught a glimpse of the shadow that slowly made its way toward the bed. I quickly tried to push myself further back, but then I hit the wall.

I felt the panic peak as the shadow hit the side of the bed. Please don't look under the bed, please don't look under the bed, I repeated for myself, but my pleas were useless.

I watched as the shadow slowly flew in under the bed, its limbs tracing the floor just in front of my head.

I wanted to scream, I wanted to run. But before I had time for any of it the shadow had reached me and it all went black.

I was dead."

"The end!" James chirped. He flicked the torch off and reached for a treacle tart.

"That story was lame." Sirius teased James, earning him an offended gasp.

"Lame you say? I bet you got so afraid that you just wet your pants!" James laughed at Sirius, the sounds blending in with the constant clattering of the rain.

"Not me, but Wormy might have wet his pants." Sirius turned his head to the side to motion at Peter who stared at them incredulously.

"Me? I would never!" He piped, poking James on his shoulder.

The three of them laughed together, but then they noticed that Remus hadn't said a word. They turned their attention to him but felt their eyes widened when they saw his expression.

Remus lay still in fear on his blankets. He hugged Teddy tightly to his chest and had buried himself underneath his blanket. He looked afraid and was almost shaking.

Remus swallowed. He was too scared to notice the three sets of stares which made him jolt when he felt a hand land on his shoulder.

"Are you alright?"

Turning his head to the side Remus saw Sirius look at him with worry in his eyes. Remus felt himself relax some when his mind realized that the hand belonged to Sirius. It didn't belong to the shadow. Ghosts weren't real. (At least Remus hoped so.)

"Are you afraid?" Sirius asked when he didn't get an answer to his first question. This time Remus nodded slowly, unsure of how to answer him. He didn't want to be afraid, or easily scared, but he couldn't help it.

Suddenly he felt guilty for the fact that he had interrupted their slumber party. "Sorry." He pleaded, eyes honest as he looked Sirius in the eyes.

"What are you apologizing for?" Sirius smiled at him before he reached out a hand to ruffle Remus' hair, making him involuntarily smile back.

"I'm sorry that I got so scared." Remus shrugged.
"But that's the point!" James exclaimed with a smile of his own. "Yeah." Peter mumbled, mouth full of candy.

Remus frowned as he lowered his gaze to stare at his pillow. He didn't want to go on with the ghost stories but didn't know how to say it. He didn't want to destroy the fun for the others, didn't want to be a burden.

"Do you want to do something else?" Sirius asked, gaining Remus' attention again.

Remus felt his cheeks burn as he nodded.

"Is it okay?" He heard Sirius ask the others who mumbled replies.

Remus glanced at Sirius, smiling at him shyly. He was too kind. He always cared about how Remus felt.

Sirius smiled back at him as the four of them shared ideas of what else to do. They ended up telling

each other kind stories instead. That left them all feeling happy or giddy with excitement from the adventures of the main character.

They had a splendid sleep over, all four of them laughing and having fun as they ate candy and made up unbelievable stories for each other.

By midnight the candy and pastries was gone, the four of them had gotten ready separately in the bathroom, and now lay on their beds ready to hit sleep. Peter had fallen asleep within a second, James following him after a minute or two.

Remus however did not fall asleep as quickly.

He lay fidgeting on his sheets, turning from side to side as he helplessly hugged Teddy tighter. He resolutely kept his eyes closed shut, afraid of lurking shadows. He had also brought up one hand to clasp over his ear, trying to shield himself from the creaking of the walls that occurred when the wind hit their cabin from the outside.

Remus buried himself under his blanket but had to return to the outside world when it got too hot, the air too bad.

He was scared, and the fact that he lay in the middle of the cabin totally exposed for bypassing ghosts only made it worse.

He let out a small whine of fear but jolted and squeaked when he felt a hand settle on his back. He snapped his eyes open as his heart beat rapidly out of fear in his chest, his breath hitching when he realized that the hand must belong to a shadow.

He swallowed and made to turn his head to the side when he heard a voice whisper from his left.

"Moony, Remus?"

Sirius.

Remus let out a breath he didn't knew he had been holding as his body relaxed. The hand didn't belong to a ghost; it belonged to Sirius. Of course. But wait; why wasn't Sirius asleep yet?

"Yeah?" Remus whispered back, slowly turning around so that he faced Sirius in the darkness of their cabin. He wasn't sure but he thought he could make out Sirius looking concerned.

"Can't sleep?" Sirius retreat his hand, making Remus feel oddly alone.

"No," Remus piped. If he was honest he did start to feel better when he knew that he wasn't the only one who struggled falling asleep.

"Are you scared?"

"Yeah." Remus mumbled, feeling stupid for the fact that he was scared of ghosts. But Sirius didn't laugh at him, no, instead Remus watched as Sirius got up from his make-shift bed on the floor and slowly made his way over to Remus.

"Scoot over." Sirius mumbled, hand motioning for Remus to lift the blanket. He did as he was told, moving Teddy away from the side Sirius sat down on. Together they lifted the blanket again, making it cover the both of them up to their chins.

Remus felt Sirius warm body press against his, his presence making him feel safer. He turned his

head to the side to look at Sirius who looked back at him. Remus felt himself blush for some reason so he quickly looked away to stare up at the ceiling instead.

He had never shared a bed with anyone. And perhaps it wasn't that odd considering that he'd never really had a best friend before, but he still felt unsure of how to act with another person so close to him. The whole friendship thing was still new to him, and he didn't want to accidentally do the wrong thing.

But then he remembered that he'd done just fine until now by being himself so he let took a deep breath and then tried to act as himself.

But then he frowned. How did he act normally? And his arms that lay pressed to his sides, what was he supposed to do with them?

Remus' trail of thought was interrupted when Sirius whispered close to his ear. "Do you feel better now?"

Remus did. He felt safe, certain that Sirius would protect him from any approaching shadows. Though, he still wondered what to do with his arms, or how to act when being this close to another person. But before he had any time to form a good answer he felt Sirius shift from where he lay next to him.

Remus' eyes widened as he felt a set of arms wrap around him, splaying over his chest. He then felt Sirius body press up against his back, and Sirius' nose bump into the back of his head. At first Remus' whole body tensed but when he felt the comfortable heat radiating from Sirius' body he relaxed and leaned back into the embrace.

"How about now?" Sirius mumbled against his hair.

Remus felt a smile tug at his lips. It was years since he had been held like this, and then it had been by his mother who wasn't nearly as warm as Sirius, and never in bed.

He didn't know what it was but somehow he felt safe, secure and comfortable at the same time with Sirius hugging him. His fears disappeared and instead he was left with a lingering warmth in his chest.

"Yes much better." Remus smiled. He lifted his hand and gave one of Sirius' a light squeeze as a thank you. He thought he felt Sirius smile against his hair.

"Good night Moony." Sirius whispered, his arms tightening their grip around Remus' chest. Remus didn't complain though; he felt more secure now than he'd ever felt with Teddy that now lay forgotten in front of him.

"Night Padfoot." Remus whispered as he finally felt himself fall asleep. ''''''''''

"I swear! He just disappeared! Right in front of my eyes!" James desperately tried to convince them.

"But he can't just disappear though?" Peter muttered, tired after having listened to James' story three times already.

"It's impossible." Remus stated, but he was immensely curious.

"I'm telling the truth!" James almost shouted.
"Relax, you don't have to scream." Sirius rolled his eyes.

"Do you want me to explain what I saw again?" James asked, but stayed silent when Peter groaning slammed his hands other James' mouth.

James had told them that he had trailed Dumbledore after lunch, just to see where he went every day considering that he was rarely seen at dinner. James had followed him at a safe distance until he saw him stop just outside Slughorn's office. There he had turned around on the spot and disappeared.

Remus didn't know what to make of the story. He knew that James was no liar, but it just seemed too weird to be true.

"But how do you explain that he just 'disappeared'?" Remus' eyebrows were furrowed in thought as he contemplated the information again. Then he realized something.

"Wait, you don't think that he's a-"
"...Wizard." Sirius filled in, eyes wide in disbelief.
Peter mumbled something about a mental institution, but James' entire face lit up at the suggestion. "Yes! That's exactly what I think." James exclaimed.

Remus searched the sitting crowd of boys and girls around the bonfire until he found Dumbledore idly chatting with McGonagall. Remus squinted at him. He did look a bit funny; he was the only one present that had a long white beard and hair after all. And today he even wore a long robe. Remus frowned. What normal person wore a robe in the middle of July?

Could he be a wizard though?

Remus' turned the information about Dumbledore back and forth, but when he realized they hadn't got enough information to draw any conclusions he dropped it.

James seemed to have dropped the subject as well as he bounced up from his seat to walk over to Lily that sat on the other side of the bonfire, chatting with her friends.

Remus received a stick from Sirius which he used to roast marshmallows over the fire. When the marshmallows were done Sirius suggested Remus to eat them with a piece of chocolate from the chocolate bar he'd brought in his pocket. Remus did as he was told and smiled at the wonderful flavor.

He gave Sirius half of what was left of the chocolate bar, the both of them proceeding to munch on their marshmallow and chocolate treats.

Next to them Peter ate his marshmallows raw as he sneaked his fingers into his pocket to bring out a sugar skull now and then.

After a while James returned to them, his face pink and eyes dreamy. For the rest of the evening he whispered insanities about how fair or kind this Lily girl was.

Around eleven the girls retreated to their own camp with McGonagall in tow. James' eyes trailed Lily as she walked past them, sending a glare in James' direction that he didn't seem to notice.

The boys lingered by the bonfire some more but then they retreated as well. Remus watched as Sirius got up from his seat before he followed after him. Peter followed suit, hand dragging James with him as he headed back for their cabin.

When the four of them reached their door Remus swept his eyes over the grounds one last time. He rejoiced in the fact that the storm had passed, the thunderstorm now since long forgotten.

After he'd walked inside he sat down on the chair by the desk to the left of the door. He hunched over the map he had worked on for the majority of the day. He added a leaf to one of the trees before he leaned back on the chair and held the map out in front of him.

It was done.

He smiled at his masterpiece, feeling quite proud of himself. He knew that the others had helped making it, but most of it was still his work.

He placed it back down on the desk, fingers swiping over the many pictures and names on it. They had managed to fit everything on the wide piece of paper. There was the main building, the lake, all ten cabins, the forest and the electricity fence with the path leading outside marked out as well.

Remus reached for a pen that he let hover in the air above the map. What should he call it? And should he just write his name on it?

He glanced over his shoulder to get a glimpse of his friends. Shouldn't they sign it as well?

He turned his eyes to Sirius when he saw him walk up to him, and then sitting down on the chair next to him.

"Is it done?" Sirius asked, hand reaching out to trace his fingers over cabin 7.

Remus told him yes to which Sirius nodded and voiced an 'awesome'. Remus watched as Sirius called James and Peter over his shoulder, the both of them immediately walking over, positioning themselves behind Remus and Sirius', eyes finding the map.

"Cool." Peter spoke, voice in awe.

"Brilliant!" James exclaimed before he ruffled Remus' and Sirius' hair at the same time, earning him annoyed grunts.

"It needs a name." Remus stated, frowning at the map in front of him. "And we should probably sign it too." He added.

"Yeah, any ideas for a name?" Sirius asked the others.

"Why don't we sign it with our code-names?" James sounded excited. He got a set of agreeing cheers in response, making him feel proud.

"We could call it, ehm, 'The Map of the Troublemakers'." James suggested, but it was turned down immediately.

"How about 'The Brilliant Map'?" Peter's suggestion was turned down within a second. "'The Magnificent Map'?" Remus proposed, but it was turned down as well.

They went along with that for a while, suggesting the most odd name after the other. When the proposals turned into a mixture of dirty words Remus was ready to give up. But then Sirius said

something that gained the attention of the others.
"How about 'The Marauder's Map'?" Sirius asked, voice low and serious.
The cabin went silent for a while, the four of them considering the idea, gave it time to sit. "I like it." Remus told him.
"Me too." Peter agreed.
"It's brilliant!" James sent a playful punch to Sirius' shoulder. "But why 'marauder'?
Sirius gathered his thoughts for a while, hand coming up to rub his chin.

"I don't know. It's just a word I saw a while ago. I think a marauder is someone who creates a ruckus and takes and does what he wants or something. Thought it would be fitting considering that we play pranks and stuff." Sirius shrugged.

Remus, James and Peter all grinned at Sirius terrific proposal. They spent the following ten minutes deciding on a fitting place to write the name of it. They decided to fold the map twice and then sign it on the backside.

Remus wrote with his hand tilted: The Marauder's Map, and then lowered his hand to sign under it. Then he let Peter sign, after him Sirius and lastly James. When they were done Remus gave the map a look over and added 'Property of' in between the name of the map and their signed names.

And just for good emphasis he added a date as well.

Remus felt happy as his eyes swept over the map. He read the text again, not getting enough of how cool it looked.

The Marauder's Map Property of
Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot & Prongs 24.07.1971

Smiling, Remus lowered the map down on the desk. He heard approving cheers coming from his friends and it was with a content sigh that Remus rose up from his seat to get ready for the night.

The map was done.

Last Week

Remus relished in the wonderful last days of July.

He loved the warm sun, the cool breeze from the wind and the many adventures him and his marauder friends went on.

They played pranks on the other campers; they smeared glue on their seats or hid their shoes when they swam in the lake. They climbed over the fence to play for hours on the other side. They made sandcastles, read each other stories and watched the sunset.

Remus didn't want it to end.

This had been the best summer of his life. For the first time he hadn't felt alone. He had spent time with others that included him and actually thought he was brilliant.

Remus had even found himself taking a dip in the lake once, although with shorts and a long sleeved shirt. He had played Marco polo with Sirius who had won. But Sirius often won when they played games just the two of them. Remus didn't mind though; he was too happy about the fact that Sirius even wanted to spend time with him.

Remus was still in somewhat of a denial over the fact that he had friends. It was hard for his brain to adjust to the information, and somehow he got a feeling that it would be worse when he returned home. He didn't want to go home. He wanted to stay at Slughorn's camp for the rest of his life together with Sirius, James and Peter.

It didn't even matter if there would be other boys staying at the camp as well. It wouldn't matter if Malfoy, Snape or Rosier lingered either; they hadn't dared laying a hand on Remus since he started hanging out with Sirius, James and Peter. Remus was happy about the fact that for the first time in his life he didn't need to feel the constant fear of bullies.

He thought it was odd how he ever could've felt homesick before now that it was the other way around. He hadn't given his parents, or home for that matter, a single thought for the past couple of weeks. He hadn't thought of them because every time he did it hurt. His chest constricted painfully, making him clutch at it, face contorting into a grimace.

Remus knew that when he went home he would be left alone again. He would spend the rest of the summer locked inside his room reading, or walking by himself outside. When school started he would be chased by bullies, would need to climb trees to escape them or to skip lessons, pretending he's sick so that he could stay at home.

Remus felt his heart clench as the panic threatened to devour him. He desperately didn't want to return home.

Looking up from the page he'd stared at for the past hour or so he saw Sirius stand by the window, arms crossed, teeth biting on his lower lip as his eyebrows furrowed in thought. Remus guessed that Sirius was reluctant to return home as well. He had gotten more irritated as the days slowly drifted to the 31st. Remus also thought he could spot the haunted look in Sirius' eyes more often.

Remus watched as Sirius lifted his hand to bite at his nails, but then quickly dropped his hand, looking almost as if someone had scolded him. Remus frowned. There was something about Sirius, no- something about Sirius' home that wasn't right. Remus knew it. And the memory of the scars he'd seen on Sirius' lower back didn't help his suspicion.

When Peter yawning made his way out from the bathroom Remus turned his attention to him. He noted that Peter acted as normal, and switching his eyes to James who read a magazine on Peter's bed Remus saw that James acted normal as well.

It was just Remus and Sirius then. Only Remus and Sirius that desperately didn't want to return home for reasons that could be as similar or different as day and night.

"You want to get going soon?" Peter yawned again, eyes drifting to James who lowered the magazine to the nightstand table.

"Sure mate, just got to visit the loo." James jumped off from the bed, his mood bright, eyes glistening. Remus wondered why he looked so happy, wondered why he didn't feel the lingering ache in his chest as well. But then he remembered that Slughorn had invited the girls from McGonagall's camp over for one last evening by the bonfire. James was eager to see Lily.

Remus rolled his eyes but still got up from his bed to get ready. Sure, he liked the comfortable evenings by the bonfire as well but he could do without the smell of smoke that stayed on his clothes for days afterwards.

Twenty minutes later the four of them left their cabin and headed for the bonfire by the lake. Remus saw that the girls had arrived early, but tensed when he saw that their usual spots were taken. He wondered where they were supposed to sit now, but then James steered them to a spot across from their usual one.

Remus sighed when James positioned them in front of Lily. Of course.

"Hi Lils." James dug his hands in his trouser pockets and actually looked shy. Remus raised his eyebrows at the scene. James was always so cocky; he had never thought James even had the capability of looking shy.

"What do you want, Potter?" Lily glared at him. Remus got the feeling she didn't like him very much.

"Why, I just wanted to say hi to the prettiest girl on the earth, that's all." James flashed her a confident grin which only made her look more irritated.

"What do you want?" She repeated, her horse-faced friend now joining in with the glaring. Remus thought James would do best in leaving them alone.

"Is there a problem?"

Remus startled at the low voice. Turning around he came face to face with Albus Dumbledore, who wore his usual half-moon shaped classes over his slightly crooked nose. Remus saw that he was smiling and he involuntarily smiled back.

"No sir." Remus told him at the same time he nudged James' side, making him turn around to face Dumbledore as well.

"Are you bothering these ladies?" Dumbledore asked James, his eyes twinkling mysteriously. Remus suddenly remembered their suspicion about Dumbledore being a magician, and standing this up close to the man didn't help the matter.

"No sir. I simply told Miss Lily that she is the prettiest girl earth." James grinned.
Dumbledore smacked with his tongue. "I believe you, I honestly do, but why don't you leave these

young ladies alone for now?" He looked James in the eyes and blinked at him.

James nodded, sighed and made to start walking away, but stopped and he jerked his head to look at Dumbledore again.

"Sir!" James gained Dumbledore's attention again. "Are you- ehm, are you perhaps a... a wizard?" He blurted out, making some of the girls around them giggle at him, probably thinking he was ridiculous.

Remus, James, Sirius and Peter however did not laugh. They all watched as Dumbledore's lips quirked into a mysterious smile, his left eye blinking at them before he turned around and slowly walked away, leaving them staring after his retreating figure.

What was that?
"It's true..." James whispered.

Remus didn't know what to answer. He didn't even know what Dumbledore had meant by his wink, or why he had smiled at them mysteriously.

The mystery of Dumbledore was the subject of their conversation for the next hour. They found four seats next to the Prewett twins and their sister where they sat down.

When their conversation about Dumbledore ended Remus spoke with the Prewett sister and got to know that her name was Molly. He liked her a lot, and even though she was older than him she didn't treat him like a child. He thought she was nice and pretty and thought that if he had a sister he would have liked her to be like Molly.

''''''''''
"Are you in?" James asked Remus, eager to start the game.

It was late. Most of the campers had already left for their cabins but here Remus found himself in front of the cleaning cupboard that stood next to the main building. All around him were other boys and girls, all eager to play the game of '7 minutes in heaven'.

Remus grimaced. He had never played the game before and he didn't like the sound of it. The mere thought of being locked inside a cupboard left him feeling ill as it brought back many horrible memories from his childhood where bullies had locked him up.

But even though he was reluctant Remus found himself nodding to James, making him grin back at him. James turned his attention back to the small group to present the rules.

James brought an empty bottle from somewhere in the cupboard before he went on with the rules. " Me, or someone else, we can go in a circle, are to spin the bottle twice. That way they'll choose two people that are to walk into the cupboard. But instead of seven minutes inside we'll go with one." James used the bottle to motion for the cupboard.

"What the two chosen have to do will be decided by a third person, also chosen by the bottle. It can be everything from a hug, a kiss, or more..." James wriggled his eyebrows. Remus stared at him incredulously. As if James would have any knowledge about 'or more'! He was eleven for god's sake!

But then he narrowed his eyes at James. Perhaps he'd already gotten some action after all...

"I you refuse to do what you're told you'll drop out of the game and have to eat grass." James chuckled and Remus and Sirius joined in as well. The others stayed silent as they didn't understand their grass eater joke about Prongs.

When James stopped chuckling he continued. "You win if you don't lose. Sorry, but I don't have a prize." James shrugged, not looking sorry. "Any questions?"

Remus didn't like the sound of the game, nor the rules. Who made up a game whose sole purpose was to lure people into kissing one another? Remus didn't understand but figured he might do as he got older.

When everyone stayed silent James motioned for them to sit down on the ground in a small circle. James made them all present themselves and Remus memorized the names and ages of everyone present.

He swept his eyes over everyone in the group and rabbled in his head: Frank 12, Alice 12, Sirius 11, Rebecka 11, Peter 11, Mary 11, Marlene 11, James 11, and then himself, Remus 11.

James placed the bottle in the middle and then spun it three times. It landed on Alice, Frank and Sirius. Remus watched as Alice and Frank rose up and then walked into the extremely small cupboard. Suddenly Remus was glad they were all so young; they wouldn't fit otherwise.

When they were inside he heard Sirius shout "Kiss!" before he slammed his hand over his mouth to cover his chuckles.

James vibrated from suppressed laughter as well when he heard Frank answer with a muffled "Okay!"

Remus was supposed to keep track of the time so he kept his eyes on his arm watch, getting ready to call out when it'd been one minute. When he did they all watched as a blushing Alice and Frank retreated from the cupboard. James whistled at them, looking proud of himself.

Remus sighed. He could be reading his book now. He had absolutely no interest in either hugging or kissing a girl. He simply stayed because his friends did.

The game went on, Remus keeping track of the time. He watched as James walked inside the cupboard to hug Marlene, Peter to kiss Rebecka, Mary to give Alice a massage, Sirius to hug Rebecka, James to brush Sirius' hair, Marlene to kiss James on the cheek and then as Alice walked inside to hug Frank.

Remus thought he had fate on his side. The bottle hadn't pointed at him once.

But then he thought it might have something to do with the fact that he had positioned himself as far back between James and Frank as possible, resulting in the bottle pointing at either one of them every time. It was only a couple of centimeters between them where the bottle would be able to point at Remus.

He felt proud of himself. He had outsmarted the game.
He watched how Mary spinned the bottle, making it point at Sirius. She spinned it again, and

Remus felt his heart skip a beat when it pointed at him.

With wide eyes he looked over at James, hoping he would be able to talk him into thinking it had pointed at him, but he found James smile at him smugly.

Damn.

Remus turned his eyes back to the bottle as Mary spinned it a third time, making it point at James. Oh no. Remus did not like the feeling of this. James smirked at him, motioning for him to get up already, and Remus tried to swallow down his nervousness as he rose up, but failed. He didn't like the feeling of having eight pair of eyes on him. He didn't like the fact that he would be locked in a cupboard for one whole minute.

But when he saw Sirius step inside the small cupboard in front of him he felt himself relax a bit. He liked Sirius so perhaps it wouldn't be as horrible as he'd initially thought. At least he wasn't being locked inside to be left alone.

When Remus had stepped inside the cupboard he thought it felt even smaller on the inside. He stood face to face with Sirius with their noses almost touching, ad for some reason Remus blushed.

He frowned at his own strange reaction to Sirius' close proximity. Why did he feel so embarrassed? Sirius was his best friend after all.

They both startled as they heard the door being locked from the outside. Remus strained his ears, listened for James' voice as he was supposed to tell them what to do.

"Kiss! For thirty seconds!"
Remus' jaw hit the floor, his eyes widening in shock. What was he saying? "W-what?" Sirius blurted, head jerking to the closed door.

"You heard me!" James voice came suspiciously close to the door; Remus suspected he had his ear pressed to it. When Sirius aimed a light punch to the door and James shrieked Remus got his suspicion confirmed.

"Time is ticking!" James sang. "Are you a chicken?"
"No, you're a chicken!" Sirius shouted at the door, sounding frustrated. James seemed to have hit a

nerve.

Remus thought he could make out James' retreating chuckles while he watched Sirius try to control his breathing. Sirius easily got riled up.

Remus reached out a hand to pat Sirius' shoulder reassuringly.

"It's okay. He's only teasing you." He spoke softly. He smiled when he felt Sirius relax under his hand.

"I know..." Sirius trailed off.

Remus dropped his hand to hang by his side. They looked each other in the eyes for a moment but then Sirius swallowed and his gaze flickered to the ground.

"We have to, ehm..." He mumbled to his shoes. Remus felt his cheeks heat up again.

"To kiss?" Remus didn't know why, but suddenly the word made him feel excited, if not a bit nauseous. He had never received a kiss before. He had wondered what the fuss was about, but never even felt the need to kiss anyone before. But now he suddenly felt interest stir in his chest.

"Mhm," Sirius mumbled as he quickly flicked his gaze back to lock with Remus'. Remus' eyes

widened when he felt Sirius' place a hand on each of his shoulders as he slowly leaned forward. When Remus saw Sirius close his eyes he realized that he was supposed to do the same.

He felt Sirius lips swiftly brush against his own, making Remus' heart jump at the contact, before they pressed onto them more firmly. Remus' felt his heart rate speed up and something in his stomach flutter at the contact. It felt strange, but not unwelcome.

He tentatively pressed his lips back against Sirius', the action surprising him with the small tinglings that spread through his limbs.

He wondered if this was how it always felt when people kissed or if it had something to do with the fact that it was Sirius. Then he wondered if it felt different to kiss a girl from kissing a boy.

Remus stopped thinking when he felt Sirius slide one of his arms down his back, and Remus didn't know what it was, but he felt a small explosion of some kind in his stomach.

He felt Sirius tilt his head more to the side, making their lips press even tighter together. And even though Remus felt his cheeks heat again he quite liked the feeling. He was just about to lift his own hand to swipe over Sirius' back when he felt Sirius break the kiss. Confused, Remus opened his eyes to stare at Sirius incredulously.

"It' been thirty seconds." Sirius panted as he wiped his lips one his sleeve.

Remus didn't understand why but he felt disappointed, and a bit offended by the fact that Sirius wiped his mouth so quickly. And Sirius didn't look him in the eyes either.

Frowning, Remus mumbled an answer before he wiped his mouth on his sleeve as well. Then he started to wonder why he still felt excited. He glanced over at Sirius but quickly looked away when he found him staring at him. Remus heart skipped a beat, making him frown again. That was odd. Why did his body act so funny all of a sudden?

His attention was turned to the door when he heard the lock clatter against it. He saw Sirius quickly reach out a hand, slamming the door open. Remus thought he heard a shriek, and then he saw James stumble to the ground in front of them. Had he been eavesdropping?

"Did you do it? Kiss for thirty seconds?" James asked curiously.

Sirius aimed Remus a quick glance but then turned his eyes back to the ground before he walked to his spot in the circle and sat down. "Yeah... on the cheek."

Remus' gaped at Sirius. He was lying! To James! Why?
"Really? Okay..." James eyed Sirius in disbelief. Remus did the same.

Remus didn't understand why Sirius had lied about their kiss, but then he dropped the subject. Perhaps Sirius thought it was awkward that he had kissed Remus. Perhaps he hadn't liked it.

For some reason that thought made Remus feel incredibly sad.

He quickly put that thought at the very far back of his mind where he left it to haunt him for another time. Instead of thinking about it Remus sat down on his spot next to James and watched as the game went on.

The bottle didn't point at him any more times during the game.

''''''''''

A looming sadness clouded the camp. It was Friday; the day before they were heading home and Remus walked around with a growing lump in his throat. He didn't want to leave.

He played with his food while he let his mind wander during his last dinner with his friends in the dining hall. The next day he would only get to spend breakfast with them before they all headed home.

Remus sighed. The last time he'd seen his parents they had promised to come get him as soon as possible. That had been what he had wanted back then, but now he scolded himself for telling his parents to retrieve him as early as nine in the morning. James, Sirius and Peter weren't leaving until sometime after lunch.

Remus lifted his head to look over at Sirius. He played with his food as well; it didn't look like he'd even tasted it. Remus sympathized with him. He understood what it felt like to dread something.

Their table had been silent for over twenty minutes now, like so many of the other tables in the dining hall. Remus guessed there were more boys that were reluctant to leave.

Remus swiftly let his eyes wander to Sirius' lips before he lowered them back to stare at his plate again.

Sirius hadn't mentioned the kiss they'd shared in the cupboard the other day. Remus didn't know whether to feel relieved or disappointed. He didn't even know why he cared msince it probably didn't mean anything. But still.

He looked to the side to gaze at James who munched on his kidney pie like any other day. Remus wondered why James had told them to kiss in the first place. He couldn't have intended to make fun of them, could he? But he hadn't even mentioned it once afterwards...

Remus shook his head. He had more severe things to worry about; like the fact that he was leaving the camp in less than 14 hours. And he had no idea if he would ever be able to come back.

''''''''''

"Here, you next." Sirius voice was low and serious as he handed the knife over to Remus who nodded as he took it and held it with a firm grip.

Carefully, Remus placed the tip of the knife against the old wood of their cabin door and started carving the M, then an O next to it. Soon he had carved out 'Moony' in capital letters next to Sirius' carved 'Padfoot'.

Remus swiped his index finger over the letters, felt splinters threaten to stick to his skin. When he was happy with how it looked he handed the knife over to James who started carving his name, and when Peter was done carving his name the four of them took a step back to admire their work.

"Awesome!" James exclaimed in awe.

Remus would have enjoyed the view more if it wasn't for the aching pain he felt in his chest. So it was with a sad smile that he nodded, agreeing with James' exclamation.

Prongs & Wormtail was carved on the left side on the door, Padfoot & Moony on the right side. It was supposed to mimic their sleeping arrangements since they shared two double beds with each other.

A chill breeze hit then and they decided to head back inside. Remus wanted to spend as much time as possible with his friends this last evening at the camp.

'''''''''
Remus desperately tried to muffle his sobs as he cried into the soft fur of Teddy.

Both of his pillows, his sleeve and Teddy's right ear was now wet from his tears that just wouldn't stop pouring. He'd started crying almost as soon as he lied down in bed for the night, and he couldn't stop crying now that he'd started. He was too sad. He didn't want to go home tomorrow.

This summer had felt like a dream.

Here he wasn't constantly bullied. Here he had friends that liked him and protected him. He had spent his days laughing, planning pranks and playing games with the others. They had told each other stories, climbed over the fence and created a map. Remus had lived in a dreamful bliss, lost in its wonderful embrace for weeks.

But now reality threatened to overwhelm him.

He didn't want the uncomfortable pain in his chest to come back now that he had gotten used to the warm feeling of friendship instead. He didn't want it all to go back to how it was before. To how it was before the camp.

What hurt the most was the guilt Remus felt over the fact that he hadn't told the others he might not be able to come back. James, Sirius and Peter had all told him that they planned on coming back every summer until they got too old but Remus didn't know if he could come back even once. It was too expensive.

He knew that James and Sirius probably came from wealthy families, and Peter probably had it well off as well. But Remus knew that his parents had saved money for years for this summer.

Sure, most of it had probably gone to their trip to France, but they must have spent a great deal of money on Remus' entrance fee for the camp as well. It might be years until they manage to save up enough money to send Remus back.

He felt a powerful sob shake him, and he hugged Teddy tighter to his chest. He didn't want to think of those things anymore. He wanted to stay here.

Creak

Remus quickly snapped his head from side to side. What was that sound just then? But when he heard it coming from the end of the bed he realize it must be Sirius' ladder.

Soon he saw a figure that looked a lot like Sirius step onto the floor and then swiftly make its way over to where Remus lay, still clutching Teddy.

"Scoot over." Sirius mumbled. Remus did as he was told. He placed Teddy behind his back at the same time lifted his cover to allow Sirius entrance. He felt a small smile tug at his lips when Sirius lied down next to him and pulled the covers up to their chins.

"Can't sleep?" Remus croaked, voice hoarse from his extensive sopping. His eyes widened when he realized it gave him away. He didn't want Sirius to know he'd just been crying.

"No. You can't either?" Sirius mumbled. He brought out an arm from the covers and reached for

Remus' chin. Remus felt Sirius wipe away tears from his cheeks with his thumb and felt some of the pain in his chest being replaced by the much welcomed warmth.

"Me neither." Remus whispered. Then he frowned. "Because of tomorrow..." He felt a sob escape him, cutting his sentence short.

Sirius lowered his hand from Remus' cheek.

"Come here." Sirius mumbled as Remus felt a set of arms drape around him, wrapping him in a warm hug. Remus smiled as he lifted his own arms to hug Sirius back. He placed his head in the juncture between Sirius' shoulder and neck and breathed in.

He would really miss Sirius.

Remus felt his sobs fade as he relaxed into the hug. He hugged Sirius tighter and felt him do the same. Remus thought that if he held on to Sirius long enough he might not have to leave, so he desperately clung on to him like his life depended on it.

He didn't know what it was but when he lay there hugging Sirius he felt something dawn on him. One way or another he felt like they were the same. Sure, they looked like each other's contrasts and their families were as different as day and night, but even thought they were different he thought they were the same. He didn't know what it was but if felt like they were two pieces from the same puzzle or something.

Remus smiled when he thought of him being the same as someone else; when he thought of the fact that he hugged someone that wanted to hug him back as fiercely.

It was with the lingering smile that he finally fell asleep. ''''''''''

Remus reluctantly dragged his duffle bag over the damp grass on his way to the main building. His friends walked in front of him, looking as gloomy and sad as Remus felt inside.

Sirius was dressed in a set of fancy, uncomfortable, clothes made from thick expensive materials and next to him James wore something similar. Peter looked the same as always except for the extensive tan he'd got from dozing off in the sun so many times.

Sirius looked stiff from where he held the door open for his friends. Remus also thought Sirius had got that haunted look back in his eyes. Remus didn't like it. He wanted the carefree, cocky and playful Sirius back. Not the one who startled out of fear from every sound.

Remus threw his duffle bag on the floor next to him as he sat down in his usual chair in the dining hall. Sirius sat down next to him while James and Peter went for the loo. Remus made to stand up to get a plate of food he could play with when he felt Sirius grip his arm.

Remus turned his attention to Sirius and startled when he saw the extensive worry in Sirius' eyes. He'd never seen Sirius look that desperate.

"Why- why don't we exchange addresses?" Sirius pleaded. Remus' eyes widened before he understood what he was asking and smiled. Of course, how could he have forgotten about that? They could send letters to each other!

Remus gave Sirius his address and in return he got to know that Sirius lived in a place called Grimmauld Place 12. Remus frowned when he received it. He didn't like the sound of it; it sounded

creepy, but perhaps that fit Sirius' family which sounded horrible as well. Remus just thought it was sad Sirius had to stay there.

They just had time to promise each other to write every week until they meet again when James and Peter arrived at their table.

Remus received a playful smile from Sirius before he motioned for them to go get some food from the serving tables.

As the four of them made their way through the dining hall Remus tried to live in the moment. He would enjoy this last hour with his best friends. Later he could cry, in the backseat of their car.

He shook his head and forced himself to smile at James who gave him a funny look. He would enjoy this last hour of the summer.
This last hour of the best summer of his life.

Chapter Notes

Return

Hope you like this chapter!
I'm changing the rating to [M] Mature now, just so you know.

Summer of 1973

"Do you have everything sweetheart?" His mother asked as the car pulled down to a stop.

"Yes mom. You've asked that five times already." Remus voiced over his shoulder as he flew the car door open, hurriedly stumbling outside, his knees weak from the excitement.

As soon as he was outside he walked over to the tailgate to retrieve his trunk. It had been his father's, thus the initials L.Lupin at the front, but Remus didn't mind. The last name was the same anyway.

When he'd retrieved his trunk he made to walk over to the main building, but found himself stop as a sturdy hand gripped his arm.

"Aren't you forgetting something?" His father asked him, voice determined but warm. Remus huffed. He was so eager to get back to the camp that he'd forgotten to wave his parents goodbye.

"Bye Father, bye Mother." He told them as he hugged them both quickly. After receiving approving nods, kind smiles and a hair ruffle from his dad Remus finally found himself turning around on the spot, heading for the main building.

He heard his mother shout a "Behave!" after him but he didn't look back. Instead his eyes traced the outlines of the great stone building in front of him. He wasn't sure but it felt smaller than it had two years ago. The doors leading inside weren't as tall, and the parking lot wasn't as wide. Then he realized that he'd grown as he got older, thus making the surroundings seems smaller. Vaguely Remus wondered how small it all looked to Dumbledore who was probably the oldest one here.

When he made his way over to the que leading to Slughorn's reception desk for check in Remus started fidgeting with his sleeves. He was really nervous. It had been two whole years since he last saw his best friends, or at least he hoped they were still best friends. He hoped they were still friends at all.

Remus had begged and begged but his parents had refused to send him to the camp last summer, blaming their narrow budget. But since Remus helped his father in the store he'd gained some money of his own and then helped paying for the entrance fee this year.

Remus had spent the first year like the earlier years of his life; alone and bullied by everyone at school. But then a kind girl had moved to his village with her family, and Remus had been surprised when Lily from McGonagall's camp had walked into his classroom one day. Though, he was glad she did.

Remus had hung around Lily the past year and was immensely happy to finally have a friend in

school. She was not only kind, but determined as well. Her strong will allowed her to protect Remus from bullies, making him feel safe at school for once. And even though he knew he should feel his pride get hurt from the fact that he let himself be protected by a girl he didn't. In fact he was thankful for her friendship. He just hoped she wouldn't realize what a loser he is one day and leave him to get bullied again.

Remus frowned as he thought back to the summer two years ago, of when he'd gotten home and quickly brought paper and pens to write his first letter. He'd written letters to Sirius for a week, and got a couple back. He'd felt happy and had joyfully sent Sirius letters sometimes twice a day. But when Sirius stopped answering he'd stopped.

Remus had sent one last letter by the end of the summer where he apologized for taking up so much of Sirius' time. He'd thought Sirius finally had gotten tired of him when he stopped answering, but then he received a letter from Grimmauld Place 12, but it wasn't signed by Sirius. It was signed by 'Regulus'.

Remus had felt confused. Sirius had never told him about the fact he'd got a brother.

However, this Regulus had told Remus that Sirius wasn't receiving his letters. Apparently 'Walburga' read through the post that reached the house and had taken a habit of burning Sirius' letters as a form of punishment when he'd misbehaved.

Remus had startled when he read the name Walburga. It was the name Malfoy had threatened Sirius with once, making him get that haunted look in his eyes. Remus didn't like this Walburga person very much, especially not since they apparently burned Remus' letters to Sirius.

After Regulus had advised Remus to stop sending Sirius letter he'd complied. Instead he'd saved the letters he'd planned to send to Sirius in his drawer. He didn't stop writing, but he kept them for himself.

"Lupin, welcome back!" Slughorn bellowed as Remus reached the desk.

"Thank you sir." Remus replied with a nod. He tried to scold his expression to look normal, but it was difficult when his eyes darted to the faces of the boys and parents around him, trying to locate any of his friends. He desperately hoped that they had been honest when they'd told him they planned on coming back to the camp every summer. It would be ironic if Remus was the only one here now that he'd finally managed to make his way back.

"You'll stay in cabin 7." Slughorn nodded to himself before he reached for a folder where he scribbled something. When he was done he told Remus he was checked in and free to leave.

With his heart pounding out of his chest Remus made his way through the corridor, out the door and then started dragging his trunk after him over the grounds at a rapid pace. He could see the ten cabins ahead of him.

Remus' mouth formed onto an 'o' when he saw Sirius walk past him. He raised his free hand and was just going to greet him when he lowered his hand back to his side again. It wasn't Sirius. It was someone else.

Remus narrowed his eyes at the boy. He had Sirius' dark hair, cheekbones and other facial features. He looked almost like Sirius' clone, but when Remus saw the boy look over his shoulder to glare at him he quickly flicked his gaze to stare at the ground. It definitely wasn't Sirius.

The mysterious boy and Sirius shared the same eye color but Sirius' eyes were warmer; not cold

like the boy's in front of Remus. Then it dawned on him. Regulus.

Remus looked up again to greet the boy to tell him that he was the Remus that had sent Sirius letters, but the boy was already gone. Frowning, Remus turned his head from side to side searching for him. When he turned his attention back to the cabins he saw the boy walk into cabin 9.

Remus suddenly realized that if Regulus was here, if Sirius' brother was here, then he had to be here as well, right?

With new force he rushed the last meters to cabin 7. He walked up the small stair, placed his hand on the door handle and then took a deep breath as he steadied his racing heart. He closed and opened his eyes once.

Then he opened the door.
He felt something nearly explode in his chest as his eyes met the scene in front of him.

He saw Sirius sit next to Peter on the sofa, seemingly playing some sort of card game. In front of them sat James cross-legged on the floor, fiddling with his hair. Remus let out a happy sigh of relief when he saw them. They were here.

"Moony!" Sirius exclaimed as he jumped up from the couch and ran over to Remus before he captured him in a tight hug. Remus hugged him back and found himself start laughing when Sirius lifted him up to swing him in a circle.

"Put me down Sirius" Remus laughed as he swatted his hands over Sirius' back. Though, if he was being honest he quite liked the sensation of being hugged and swung around in the air.

"Remus!" Peter piped as he'd made his way over to envelope Remus in a quick hug.

"What's up Moony?" James laughed as he grabbed Remus' hand and made him low five him before he ruffled Remus' hair and pulled him in for a hug.

"I, I mean, we are so happy you're back." Sirius huffed as he draped an arm over Remus' shoulders. Remus swept his own arm around Sirius' waist but dropped it when he felt his face heat up at the contact.

Frowning, he turned his attention to the floor. Why did he blush all of a sudden?

"Yeah, we had to share the cabin with this Creevey kid last summer. It was not nice." James exclaimed as he flew himself down on the couch.

"He babbled all the time and tried to steal my candy." Peter muttered. Remus thought that people that made any attempts at Peter's candy got to his bad side.

"Did he sleep in my bed?" Remus asked, eyes finding his bed that looked smaller than it had two summers ago.

"Sadly." Sirius exclaimed, steering him and Remus towards it. They sat down on it, Sirius' arm never leaving Remus' shoulders.

"I've missed you." Remus blurted out, his eyes widened when he thought he might have said too much. What if James, Sirius and Peter hadn't missed him as much back?

"Yeah, we missed you too." Sirius told him, making him relax again.

"It's a shame you couldn't come last summer. It wasn't the same without you." James cut in, Peter agreeing with him.

Remus felt his self-confidence grow when he thought about the fact that they had missed him. They hadn't just forgotten about him like he'd feared. They were still friends.

"Sorry I stopped sending you letters." Sirius said sincerely, making Remus glance up at him. He saw a sadness linger in Sirius' eyes and he knew Sirius felt guilty.

"It's alright." He reassured, watching as the sadness changed into something happier in Sirius' eyes. "Regulus told me about it." Remus added.

Sirius frowned. "Regulus?"
"Yeah, he sent me a letter where he told me you weren't receiving my letters." Remus sighed. "I

think I saw him walking into cabin 9 on my way over here."
"That little shit..." Sirius mumbled under his breath, but Remus heard him and frowned at him. "Excuse me?"

Sirius shook his head, eyebrows furrowed in anger. "That little devil was the one that told Walburga about the letters in the first place. He was probably jealous about the fact no one sent any letters to him so he made sure I stopped receiving any as well. And he's only here to keep an eye on me. He hates summer camps." Sirius grunted.

Remus got the feeling that Sirius didn't like his brother very much. And whoever this Walburga was they didn't seem nice either.

"That sucks." James filled in from his spot on the couch, making Remus remember that James and Peter were still in the room.

"Yeah, but at least I don't have to share a cabin with him. I get to share it with you guys." Sirius returned to his usual self as the frustration he felt for his family was tucked away in the back of his mind.

Remus absentmindedly lifted a hand and placed it on Sirius' knee to pat it reassuringly, but quickly snapped it back when he felt his cheeks heat again. God, what was with him today? Why did he blush as soon as he touched Sirius?

Remus shook his head, and then turned his head to look at Peter. He saw that he'd grown some since they'd last seen each other. Peter was still the shortest out of them, and the chubbiest, but he had grown, his hair turning a shade darker as well.

Remus looked over at James next. He definitely looked more mature. His jaw had gotten more defined, and his face longer and body lankier. Remus guessed that he'd grown the most out of them. Though, his bird's nest of a hair still looked the same.

Turning his head slightly to the side Remus glanced up at Sirius. He thought his jaw had gotten more defined just like James', and he had grown several centimeters since they last saw each other. But the most prominent change was the hair. It now reached Sirius past his shoulders, draping over them smoothly as it fell over his neck onto his back. Remus had never thought he'd think a boy could look so good in long hair before but Sirius looked better than most of the girls he'd seen in

long hair.

Remus' eyes widened when he realized what he'd just thought. He quickly turned his eyes to stare at his lap. He felt a mixture between confused and excited, but he didn't understand why. The excitement he'd thought would ease when he finally saw his friends again still lingered, and for some reason his stomach felt funny.

He fidgeted with his sleeves as his stomach constricted nervously. He didn't understand why his body felt so weird. It was almost as if he couldn't control it. Though, his worries were soon washed away as James demanded that they all caught up on lost time, and they all walked over to the middle of the room where they sat down cross-legged.

They told each other some of what they'd been up to. Mostly it was Peter who spoke about his annoying cousins that had stayed with him for three months last Christmas or James who told them about how he'd gotten a dog he named Fluffy.

Remus listened and voiced some oh's and ah's at the right places. Then he vaguely told them about how he'd gotten a friend at school, and when he told them it was Lily James had looked extremely jealous. Remus had shrugged at him and told him, honestly, that he didn't fancy her.

Sirius had told them something about going to a boarding school with his despised cousins and other relatives. Remus felt sorry for him. He hoped he at least had someone to hang out with over there, but when Sirius had told him he hung around the Prewett twins that apparently went there as well he had relaxed.

The four of them caught up on lost time for the rest of the day and after dinner they grabbed the map that James had brought with them before they went out to the forest where they climbed over the electricity fence to the other side of the forest. Then they played games with each other until it got dark.

'''''''''

By the end of the first week back at the camp Remus had lost himself in the spirit of summer. In the company of his friends he had played Marco polo by the lake, played tag on the other side of the fence and played pranks on half of the habitants of cabin 8. He had almost fallen over from suppressed laughter in the dining hall when he saw Snape and Rosier walk around with feathers stuck to their hair.

Remus had run in relays with Sirius during activity, and received praise from Hagrid that was glad to have him back at the camp again.

The days spent at the camp were so much fun that Remus found himself laughing or smiling as soon as he saw one of his friends. They made him feel like he belonged again, and he was forever thankful for that.

After an evening spent by telling each other stories and taking pictures with James' new polaroid camera Remus didn't feel the need to hug Teddy as he fell asleep. For the first time he felt secure enough by the mere fact that his three best mates slept in the same room as him.

It all seemed too good to be true. Remus sometimes wondered if he was stuck in a wonderful dream as he spent every day with his friends. But by Sunday evening something odd happened. And Remus felt himself fall back into confusion.

Remus flipped through the pages of the book he'd just finished reading from where he lied on top

of his bed. He placed the book on his nightstand when he heard James suggest that they play a game of cards. Remus got up from his bed and walked over to James and Peter who sat on the couch by the window, and Remus was just going to sit down when he thought he might do with a visit to the loo, so he turned around and walked over to the bathroom door.

He opened the door and walked inside, but found himself stop abruptly as his eyes took in the scene in front of him.

Sirius stood in the shower, his side turned to Remus, allowing only some view of the faint scars on his lower back. Remus saw Sirius' dark hair cover parts of his face, his lean but pale body exposed from the lack of clothes. And Remus' eyes unintentionally darted to the faint, thin line of dark hair that trailed from Sirius' navel to...

Remus' eyes widened. In between Sirius' legs, glistening in the light from the lamp, Remus saw Sirius' member.

He stared, eyes widening impossibly more. He felt his heart beat speed up as his cheeks burned. He couldn't tear his eyes away. Absentmindedly, he licked his lips and watched as Sirius shifted, turning around so that both of his thighs were exposed as well.

Remus felt himself tentatively take a step closer, driven by an unknown urge to close the distance between them when suddenly he heard Sirius clear his throat.

"Remus...?" He asked.

Embarrassed, Remus flicked his eyes from Sirius' groin to look him in the eyes. When he saw Sirius struggle to push away wet strands of hair from his face Remus took his chance to flee.

"Sorry Padfoot, eh, I had to, ehm, had to use the... use the loo." He mumbled before he slipped out the door and quickly closed it behind him. He leaned his back against the door as he let out a breath he didn't know he'd been holding. He closed his eyes and sighed.

He made to walk over to the couch but stopped when he felt something weird. Frowning, he shifted from his right foot to his left. It felt odd... His trousers suddenly felt too small, like they were constricting him or something. And every move he made sent small sensations of pleasure through his limbs, making the hairs on his arms stand.

Confused, he opened his eyes and glanced down his body. He gasped when he saw the tenting bulge that was his crotch. God! He'd gotten an erection.

Remus quickly turned his back to James and Peter that still sat on the couch. He hurriedly made his way over to his bed, desperately trying not to whimper as his trousers rubbed against his erection with every step.

The walk was really only five meters or so, but it felt close to a hundred. When he finally reached his bed he quickly sat down on it. He looked around the bed, searching for something to cover his lap before anyone saw what he was doing, and when he decided a pillow would do he threw his main pillow over his lap.

When his little 'problem' was out of the way he sent a glare at the bathroom door. He got frustrated. Why hadn't Sirius locked the door? Did he want someone to walk in on him or something? But then Remus realized he was being silly. Sirius had probably only forgotten about the lock this one time. It wasn't his fault that Remus couldn't knock before he entered when one of the four friends wasn't present in the cabin.

"You don't want to play Moony?" Came Peter's muffled voice, his mouth filled with candy as usual.

"N-no," Remus cleared his throat. God, did he want them to be suspicious?

"No thanks, I changed my mind. I think I'll just finish reading this book instead." He motioned for the book that lay on his nightstand but quickly snapped his hand away when he realized he might draw attention to his lap.

"Isn't that the same book you just started reading last hour, though?" Peter asked with a small frown.

Damn.

Remus wasn't the best at making up quick excuses, and was even worse at making up lies. He searched his brain for some sort of explanation, for anything to make Peter turn his attention elsewhere.

"Yeah..." Remus stared at the window behind Peter, not wanting to meet his eyes. "But well, eh, you know me! I'm a fast reader and all; figured I might be able to finish it if I read for the rest of the evening." He shrugged, trying to seem nonchalant. He mentally high fived himself when he saw Peter shrug as well, finally turning his attention back to the card game with James.

"Why is there a pillow in your lap?" James asked suddenly.

Remus startled. He swallowed as he searched his brain for a fitting answer, but he couldn't think of anything except "I was cold." so he told James that while trying to make his voice sound trustworthy.

Daring a glance at James Remus saw him watch him, eyes analyzing as he smiled at him curiously.

"Okay..." James said after a while, turning his attention back to the game, making a relieved sigh escape Remus' lips.

Remus reached for the book before he placed himself on top of the bed, the position turning uncomfortable as he was left leaning his head on Teddy, his pillow occupied with the task of hiding his erection.

He hid a groan that threatened to escape him when he lowered down on the bed. He'd hoped his member would have returned to normal by now, especially after the odd and much awkward conversation with James and Peter, but no. It was as eager as ever from where it pulsated under the pillow, making Remus shift and turn, unable to relax.

He glared at the underside of the top bunk, mind trying to draw conclusions he failed to make. Sighing, he closed his eyes, eyebrows turning into a frown.

This had only happened a handful of times before, and then he'd gotten turned on from a dream that he'd forgotten about as soon as he woke up in the morning. He had never gotten a boner from watching another person before. And especially not from having a look at... at his friend's...

He felt his cheeks burn from embarrassment. He scolded himself for having even stolen a glimpse of Sirius' bits. Why was he so curious anyway? Why couldn't he just have turned around and left before Sirius noticed his presence?

Remus shook his head. He had no bloke-friends at school he could talk with, and the thought of

discussing his man-parts with his father was frightening. No, he would have to rely on books for information, as he had done up till this day. But still, the sole information about male genitalia and how it worked did not answer Remus' many questions. He wondered how he was supposed to get rid of unwelcomed erections and if other teenage boys dealt with the same problem.

Remus draped an arm over his eyes as he waited for the initial embarrassment and panic to subside. When it did he started questioning himself, trying to draw answers from his body's odd reaction.

He wondered why he'd gotten all hot and bothered after a look at Sirius. Sirius was one of his three best mates, and this had never happened before. But then he let his mind wander back to the scene in the bathroom again and suddenly he found himself desperately trying to hide a moan as he pictured Sirius' wet body in the shower. He remembered he'd trailed the thin line of dark hairs leading from Sirius' navel. He remembered how hot Sirius had looked with strands of dark hair covering his face...

Wait!

Had he just thought of Sirius as hot? But he's a boy! He's my best friend! Remus thought fervently as he shifted on top of his bed. He felt confused, and that mixed with the pleasant feeling of being turned on was an odd mix that made Remus feel extremely weird.

There must be something wrong with my dick, he decided, glancing down at it, tongue smacking disapprovingly at it.

He jerked when he heard the bathroom door open, revealing a damp-haired Sirius. Remus quickly reached for the book and opened it, but panicked when he'd accidentally opened it upside down. He cleared his throat before he resolutely swept his index finger over the lines, pretending that he was engrossed in reading it.

In his peripheral vision Remus saw Sirius stop next to his bed, and out of the corner of his eyes Remus saw Sirius give him a funny look, making Remus scold himself again since Sirius probably thought it was odd that he'd used Teddy as his main pillow for the evening. Though, before Remus got time to try and explain himself he heard the ladder to Sirius' bed creak as he climbed up.

Remus sighed. He really liked Sirius, and he didn't want his confused dick to make it awkward between them. He felt really pathetic from where he tried to calm his racing heart. He tried talking himself into thinking this was only a once-in-a-life-time-accident. It wouldn't happen again.

That fake-reassurance made Remus smile at the pages of the book before he decided to actually read them. Perhaps he could finish the book before midnight and make a point to Peter.

''''''''''
It was several hours later when Remus finally dared leave his bed to sneak to the bathroom.

Safe inside he locked the door behind him and wiped his sweaty forehead on his sleeve before he yanked down his trousers and threw them on the floor.

He was finally going to finish what Sirius had started.

Chapter Notes

Realization

Reminder: The fic is Mature now! Hope you like this chapter!

(Btw, I dreamed I was Remus Lupin and transformed into a werewolf last night. #trash)

"Sirius can you hand me the salt please?" Remus asked, hand reached out to receive the salt from Sirius' hand.

"Sure." Sirius voiced before he grabbed the salt and held out in front of him over the table.

Remus smiled at him thankfully, hand closing around the salt, but his smile turned into one of nervousness when he felt his fingers brush against Sirius'. He felt his cheeks heat up and something flutter in his stomach, making him self-conscious and he wondered if he should let go of the salt quickly to ease his panic or if he should wait for Sirius to let go first.

He flicked his eyes to Sirius and watched as Sirius' expression turned into a mix between confused and amused which somehow resulted with Remus blushing more.

Remus swallowed once before he muttered a "Thanks," to the table between them.

"No problem." Sirius responded, eyes boring into Remus, making his flush spread to his ears.

Remus was just going to drop the salt, or hand it back to Sirius when he felt Sirius finally ease his grip on it. With a sigh of relief Remus quickly snapped the salt over to his side of the table, and he resolutely stared at his plate when he salted his eggs, and he tried not to think about the fact that his fingers tingled at the places where it had touched Sirius.

Remus shook his head. His body was out of control. It had a will of its own; it didn't listen to what Remus told it to do anymore. At this rate he was happy if he could act normal around Sirius for more than ten seconds.

''''''''''

"Is everyone here? Al right, then we'll start. Today ya all will run in relays. One start here, another one by the cabins and the third and last one by the lake. The fist team to make it back get to finish early. Okay?" Hagrid bellowed, eyes kind and smile wide as he presented today's plan for the running activity class.

Remus realized that he was supposed to join a team and started looking around for any familiar faces he could team up with. He spotted Frank and they decided to be a team in the relay, but where was Sirius?

"Hi, Moony, Frank, I can join your team right?" Came Sirius self-confident voice from Remus' right, and turning his head to the side he saw Sirius stand next to him, grinning. Remus made to grin back at him but felt himself startle before he even had time to part his lips.

Absentmindedly he lowered his gaze to give Sirius a look over. When he saw that Sirius wore a pair of short shorts matched with a tank top Remus felt his eyes widen, and accidentally let slip a loud gulp, accidentally turning Sirius and Frank's eyes to him.

"Remus, are you alright?" He heard Sirius ask as his hand patted Remus' shoulder twice.

Remus heart thumped in his ears as he tore his eyes away from the sight of Sirius' bare legs in favor of looking Sirius in the eyes. But when he saw the emotional grey orbs dance in the light of the sun wonderfully he dropped his gaze to stare at his feet again. It was too dangerous to even look at Sirius.

"Hello?" Sirius pryed, voice concerned. Remus felt the hand on his shoulder slowly swipe down his back, suddenly making his skin break out in gooseflesh. Remus hid a whimper. He shouldn't enjoy Sirius touch as much as he did. There was something wrong with him today.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine." Remus mumbled before he shook Sirius' arm off his back. He thought he saw Sirius send him a hurt look, and beside them saw Frank look between them, expression confused.

Remus shook his head.

"Should we decide the positions then?" He asked them and after he received approving nods they started with the planning and tactics of the relay.

''''''''''

Remus tucked himself in under his comfortable covers, ready to hit sleep. He turned to his side and searched around for Teddy along the mattress, and when he found him he proceeded to pat his soft fur. He wasn't as afraid of monsters under the bed anymore, or felt as alone, but it was still nice to share his bed with Teddy. He had been the closest to a friend for him for years after all.

Remus stretched his legs out, wriggled his toes before he curled into his usual sleeping position. His muscles ached and feet hurt. He was totally beat after the extreme game of tag he'd played with James, Sirius and Peter in the great forest for hours after dinner.

The game had turned into one where one person ran with the other three following, trying not to get caught. Eventually one or another would get tired, but the one that ran for the longest time won. The game had been silly and awfully last minute and Remus had known he'd get tired soon, but it had been fun. Though, he always thought it was fun to play with his friends.

When Remus thought back on the events of the day he saw James defeated fall to the ground while laughing like a mad man. He saw Peter run for ten meters before he gave up and found a tree to doze off against. Remus remembered the many fun moments of the day, but every time his mind wandered to Sirius he felt his heart jolt and a swirling sensation flutter in his stomach. He didn't know whether to laugh or cry at the strange feeling.

As he lay there in his bed with all thoughts eventually leading to Sirius, Remus wondered why his body felt so funny whenever he thought of, saw or touched Sirius. He wondered why he felt a strong urge to be near him when his presence made him feel all jittery inside.

Then realization dawned on him.

Perhaps, just perhaps, he liked Sirius. Okay, no of course he liked Sirius. They had been best friends for two years already.

Remus swallowed before he let his mind wander some more. Perhaps I 'like like' Sirius, he thought. Perhaps I fancy him.
Remus closed his eyes as he wriggled around on the bed. The mere thought made him nervous.

He wasn't sure how it felt to fancy anyone since he'd never done so before. Though, he'd read hundreds of depictions of love in the many romance novels and fairytales he'd read. And letting his mind run some more the thought his symptoms matched the ones in the books.

With a pained frown he lined up the truth in his head; rapid heartbeat, feeling lightheaded, 'butterflies in the stomach', a lingering excitement, feeling alone when apart from the other, flushing when touching the other, finding it difficult to keep eye contact, etcetera.

Remus bit down on his lower lip nervously. He wasn't sure he fancied Sirius yet, it might just be a phase or his body might be confused or something, but he already thought the signs of liking someone he'd remembered from romance novels matched his situation alarmingly well.

Nervously, Remus asked himself if he wanted to kiss Sirius. But then he felt a small smile splay on his lips as he remembered that he'd already kissed Sirius once; back in 1971 during 7 minutes in heaven. He wondered how he would react if he was to kiss Sirius now. He felt his entire body heat up at the thought. He didn't know if he wanted to or not, but the thought made him feel embarrassingly excited.

He brought Teddy up to his chest to hug him tightly but this time he didn't feel his emotions fade; he still felt his heart pound loudly in his chest and felt his cheeks burn. Perhaps Teddy's comforting powers only worked when you were sad?

Remus startled when he heard the bed above him give a low creak. First he thought it was a ghost, but when he realized it was Sirius he relaxed. Though, as his brain remembered that it was Sirius he felt his body get all excited again.

Grunting, Remus turned to lay on his back. He draped an arm over his eyes, covering them from the world.

He waited for his heart to calm down before he let his eyes drift shut as he fell asleep.

''''''''''

Remus gasped when Sirius leaned in to capture his lips with his own. Remus felt a surge of electricity shoot through his body when their lips met, making him hum approvingly.

He let slip a moan when he felt Sirius' tongue pry entrance to his mouth. Eagerly, he parted his lips to meet Sirius' slick, warm tongue with his own.

He felt his body melt under the wonderful movements of Sirius' tongue. Remus thought he walked on air, that's how light he felt when kissing Sirius.

The kiss soon turned hungry as they both felt the kiss affect them. Remus moaned when he felt Sirius' cupped hand come down to stroke over his trouser-clad erection.

"Ah- Sirius." He was already out of breath from their extensive make out session, and if Sirius' heavy panting next to Remus' ear was anything to go by he felt the same.

Remus moaned when he felt Sirius rub his hand up and down his bulge. Absentmindedly, Remus

spread his legs some more to allow Sirius better access. He threw his head back in pleasure when he felt Sirius give him a squeeze.

"Ah, please," Remus groaned, begging for Sirius to rid them of their clothes already. "Eager, are we?" Sirius teased before he bit down on Remus' neck, making him moan again.

"I love it when you make those noises." Sirius breathed in Remus' ear, making him shiver unintentionally.

Remus felt his entire body melt under Sirius' magical touch and only managed to whimper a respond. He lifted his hands to press against Sirius' buttocks, making him inhale sharply and then smirk smugly.

"Hurry up already, would you?" Remus mocked Sirius before he leaned forward to suck on his lower lip, making Sirius moan.

Remus felt himself gasp when Sirius suddenly pulled him in for a tight embrace, successfully pressing their trouser-clad erections together.

Remus held on to Sirius as he felt him pant into his ear while he worked their bodies together, rubbing their bulges against each other, making them both moan and whine.

"Remus- I" Sirius panted.

"I want you to fuck me,"

Remus awoke with a jolt.

He snapped his eyes open and fervently wiped his sweaty forehead on his sleeve. His body felt hot and sweaty all over, like he had been running as he blinked and panting tried to clear his mind.

It had been a dream. It had just been a dream.

He closed his eyes as he tried to calm his racing heart, hoping to go back to sleep soon. But then he felt it.

He felt a churning in his groin and lifting his covers and glancing down he felt his eyes widen as he saw the front of his pajama bottoms protrude visibly. Remus quickly covered himself by his covers again, feeling embarrassed, but then he felt the covers rub against it, making him gasp at the pleasure that shot through his body at the contact.

Suddenly, he felt a powerful shudder of desire surge through him and he didn't care about the consequences anymore. It was dark, he was alone, and the only thing that mattered was the throbbing in his groin that urged him on.

Before he could change his mind he positioned himself face down on his pillow before he placed himself on his knees on the mattress, lifting his ass in the air. He hurriedly yanked down his pajama bottoms and briefs enough to release his pulsating member, and he hissed when he felt his cock get freed from its cage to stand out in the open.

With no time to lose Remus reached down his right arm to wrap around it, and he gasped when he gave it a slow, firm stroke. The picture of himself being kissed by Sirius from his dream came back to him, and he remembered the sensation of Sirius palming him.

Panting, he spread his legs some more to allow himself better access before he started stroking at a fast pace, each stroke hard and urgent, making a powerful shiver run down his spine as he imagined that the hand belonged to Sirius.

He soon found himself grinding down the mattress to meet his hand with every fervent stroke. As he felt the incredible heat build up in his lower abdomen, waves of pleasure surge through him, more powerful by the second, he bit down on the corner of his pillow to suppress desperate moans. It felt too good. He had never been this aroused before.

He spread his legs even more, until his working hand came in contact with the mattress beneath him. He rut against the mattress, tried to get more friction as he imagined Sirius being there with him.

Remus felt sweat break out all over his body, and his heart pounded at an alarmingly fast speed. His mind was overwhelmed by the desire to keep moving, to keep stroking until he got release.

He accidentally let slip a whine when he let his thumb swipe over the sensitive head, but instead of being afraid of getting busted, or waking up his friends that slept only a few meters away from him, he let his hand swipe over the head again, resulting in a powerful wave of pleasure, making him bite down hard on the pillow not to moan.

He felt the pooling heat increase, and it felt incredible. His body was on fire and his mind was in a comfortable bliss. He met his hand with every hard stroke, the heat almost too much for him, until he felt his muscles start to clench. He knew he was close.

With his left hand he let go of the covers he'd been gripping, instead lowering his hand down to his crotch area. He gasped as he felt his hand cup his balls, and the feeling of that together with the sensation of his thumb that swiped over the head with each stroke was all it took to send him over the edge. With a low moan Remus felt his orgasm approach, making his toes curl and back arch as he saw stars.

Panting, he managed to stroke his cock to finish before he collapsed on the mattress. He lay there as he felt wave after wave of pleasure surge through him. He tried to catch his breath while he lay boneless on top of his mattress.

After what felt hours he felt his high fade, resulting in him snapping back to reality.

He blinked as he tried to get his brain to function again. The first thing his eyes saw was the wet spot on the pillow in front of him. He lifted his left hand to wipe his mouth that felt wet and realized that the wet stuff on the pillow was his spit.

Remus shifted some on the bed and felt that he was sweaty and sticky all over. And while still feeling befuddled from his powerful orgasm he lowered his left hand and startled when he felt something wet and sticky cover the entire front of his pajama top and stomach where the top had ridden up.

He felt a flush creep up on his cheeks as he slowly positioned himself on all fours, limbs wobbly and shaking under his weight, and glanced down on the mattress. The first thing he noticed was his flaccid dick that hung between his legs, but then he saw the wet splotches of come all over his mattress and clothes. He felt his heart do a jolt when realization dawned on him. What had he done?

Gasping, his eyes widened. He just remembered about his roommates. Had he accidentally woken them up? Had they heard or seen him just then?

Remus snapped his head to the side quickly. He squinted in the darkness, and soon he could make out the outlines of James and Peter's double bed. They seemed to be sleeping, and straining his ears Remus thought he could hear the soft snores from Peter reach his ears.

Phew, they hadn't heard him.

Sighing, Remus slumped down on the bed again, but grimaced when he landed on the now cold come that covered his bedsheets.

Remus shook his head, scolding himself. Who in their right mind wanks in a shared area? With their best mates only meters away? With nothing in between them but thin air? Remus thought it was good that he'd at least been sane enough to leave his covers on. He at least had something shielding him from the world in case someone actually would have woken up.

He felt nausea rise in his throat when he thought back to what he had done. He felt sick. There had to be something wrong with him. And the notion that he'd imagined doing what he'd just done with Sirius only made him hate himself more.

Defeatedly, and overwhelmed by shame, Remus made his way up from his bed on wobbly legs. He felt himself sway as he stumbled to stand up straight, but he managed to steady himself on the four- poster.

As quiet as he could he sneaked around in their cabin in search for clean bedsheets to exchange his soiled ones. When he'd successfully changed them he tucked the dirty ones in a bag he found at the bottom of his wardrobe. He set his alarm to thirty minutes earlier to be able to sneak out to the utility room before breakfast, hopefully ducking the prying eyes of his friends which he hoped never would find out about this incident.

When he curled into his sleeping position with Teddy pressed to his chest minutes later, after he'd changed out of his dirty pajamas and cleaned himself up, he let out a heavy sigh. He couldn't believe himself; he had only had a go with his dick a couple of times before, but those times had never been like what he'd just experienced.

He didn't know whether to feel guilty or happy about the fact that he'd just had the best orgasm of his life by imagining himself doing unspeakable things to his best mate. But then he settled on the former.

He closed his eyes, eyebrows turning into a frown. There had to be something wrong with him."Are you avoiding me or what?"

Remus startled, but he resolutely continued his stare competition with his plate.

"I don't know what you're talking about." He spoke to the plate in front of him, successfully avoiding Sirius like he had been doing for the past day and a half.

"Honestly? You didn't think I'd realize if one of my best mates suddenly ignored me?" Sirius muttered before he huffed, sounding irritated.

"Can't believe this..." He muttered, probably to James who sat on the seat between Remus and Sirius.

"Relax, it's probably nothing." James tried to reassure Sirius but Remus could hear the worry in his voice. He didn't understand, but Remus wasn't planning on explaining any time soon. He just wanted some time for himself where he could sort out his confused feelings for Sirius.

Remus lifted his hand to stare at his nails. He jolted when he felt a hand land on top of it, pressing it down on the table.

"Remus? Please talk to me." Sirius pleaded, making Remus glance over at him. Though, he wished he hadn't because now that he'd started looking at Sirius again he couldn't look away.

Sirius looked at him with a sincere expression, and when Remus felt the butterflies in his stomach flutter he realized that all avoiding-games were useless. Nothing could change how Remus felt now. It was too late.

"Sorry." Remus whispered, shrugging, trying not to gasp when he felt the over side of his hand heat up where Sirius touched it.

Sirius frowned at him. "So you did avoid me? But... why?" He pryed, eyes searching Remus' for something.

Remus blushed and tore his eyes away to look over at Peter instead, but when he saw him critically look at him as well Remus lowered his gaze to stare at the table.

"Ehm, well, ehm," He started. "I- I, ehm, don't know." He mentally slapped himself for the useless lie. He could have made up literally any excuse that would have been better than what he'd just said.

"You don't know?" Sirius repeated, voice thick with disbelief before he laughed sarcastically. "You expect me to believe that when you can't even look me in the eyes?"

Remus felt his entire face heat up with embarrassment and shame. His heartbeat echoed in his ears and suddenly he wondered if Sirius could feel it where his hand lay on top of his.

Remus flicked his eyes to their hands. He felt something flutter in his chest when he saw Sirius perfect, slim fingers lay over his, and suddenly the combination of his confrontation, the sensation of Sirius' hand cupping his own and the beating of his chest got too much.

Remus snapped his hand back from under Sirius' to place it in his lap where he covered it with his sleeve. He stared at the table as he mumbled a determined "I said I don't know."

He could feel three pair of eyes stare at him, and he hated himself for lying to his friends. But he couldn't tell them. It was his own fault that he was so weird. He didn't want them to know, and the price of that was lying even if it resulted in awkward silences and hurt feeling.

Remus thought he heard his friends mumble something among themselves as his pounding heartbeat echoed so loud in his ears he had trouble to make out anything at all. He wondered if his face was as red as it felt. If it was he probably looked like a tomato by now.

"Moony..."

Remus felt a hand pat his shoulder, and out of the corner of his eyes he saw James smile at him looking concerned. Remus sighed. He wished they would just drop it. Couldn't he act weird for one day without them worrying over him? But then he remembered that he'd never had friends who cared about him before.

"I'm sorry." Remus told James, looking up to meet his eyes. He forced himself to smile at him reassuringly.

"It's alright." James smiled back immediately and looked relieved by the fact that Remus met eye contact again.

"I'm sorry I avoided you Padfoot. It won't happen again." Remus made himself smile at Sirius, but felt the smile fade when he saw Sirius confused and hurt expression. He knew Sirius wanted to know why. But Remus refused to tell him.

"I guess it's alright...?" Sirius spoke, unsure, after a while, making Remus sigh with relief.

Remus apologized to Peter as well, just for good emphasis, but regretted it when Peter asked "Why are you so red in the face?"

Then Remus ignored him for the rest of the lunch, instead discussing the plan of the day with James and Sirius.

The four of them were just about to leave for activity when they heard Slughorn's bellowing voice coming from the front of the dining hall. And turning their attention to him they received the information that the girls from McGonagall's camp were to come over for some sort of summer party later.

Slughorn excitedly told the boys that the girls were to arrive earlier than usual. They were to eat dinner with the boys in the dining hall, and after that Slughorn would make Filch hide treasures in the sand on the beach which teams of two boys and two girls were to dig up.

Then Hagrid would light the bonfire for a wonderful evening of chatting and dance, since Slughorn apparently had bought some sort of music playing device the day to honor.

When Slughorn finally finished his speech Remus felt overwhelmed by the extensive information. It was going to be a long day; he just hoped it would be fun as well.