Despite having settled the dispute between him and Tonks. Remus still couldn't sleep, tossing and turning furiously in his bed, kicking his legs out from the covers just to tuck them back up a second later.
He groaned in frustration, he couldn't afford to not have a full nights sleep, and he felt that facing a classroom full of bratty teenagers while only running on a couple of hours of sleep would be a special type of torture.
Regardless of this, he still found himself kicking off the covers and padding over to his window. The street below him was jarringly empty, with only a scatter of amber-lit street lights to light up the narrow street. The moon was smiling down at him, her bright light shining and reminding Remus of just how small he was.
His mind automatically wondered to Sirius,, was he looking at the same exact moon I'm looking at right now? Does he find her brightness to be just as daunting as I do? Remus cursed himself for thinking of him. He wished that he wasn't so weak, because even at the grand ol age of thirty-one, he was still wondering what Sirius was thinking, and he wondered if there would ever be a time where he wasn't thinking about the stupid man who stole his heart and had never given it back.
He knew that as long as he continued to look wistfully at the moon, he would be thinking about Sirius and that damned tattoo that was splayed across his chest…
16 years earlier.
"Pads, May I remind you that we have a chemistry exam tomorrow." Remus nagged, but still allowing Sirius to drag him up the steps to the top of Gryffindor tower.
"Where is your sense of adventure Moonpie? Honestly!" Sirius scoffed, taking the steps two at a time.
"Remind me why I decided to snog you of all people? I could have gotten myself a nice normal, respectable boyfriend." Remus snarked, rolling his eyes behind Sirius's back.
"Why because of my impeccable wit and dazzling looks of course!" Sirius exclaimed, somehow not even slightly out of breath even though he was dragging twice his body weight up the stairs.
"I feel like we've been climbing forever, how much farther is it until we get to this so-called magical place." Remus wheezed, the stairs making his skinny legs burn from all the uncharacteristic exercise.
"Not long now. God Moony you really should've joined the rugby team with me and Prongs, you sound like a fifty-year-old smoker." Sirius laughed.
"I am a smoker! And so are you! How in the hell haven't you broken a sweat?" Remus moaned, feeling his sticky palm against Sirius's smooth one.
"Blacks don't sweat, that would be most uncivil of us!" Sirius teased, dragging Remus up the final two steps.
"No wonder yous don't sweat, all that incest must account for something." Remus snarked as Sirius continued to drag him up the steps.
"Oh hush, look prima-donna we're here," Sirius said, his grin wide and unwavering as he pointed to a huge, antique oak door.
"A door? You dragged me up mount feckin' Everest to show me a door ?" Remus asked, crossing his arms sassily.
"No you wank, it's what's inside the door - it's almost as beautiful as you are." Sirius flirted, adding a charming wink at the end of his sentence. Making Remus's face lit up in an almost luminescent blush.
"Oh bog off Black, now show us what's in the bloody room."
Remus was snatched from his nostalgia by a furious knocking at the front door, and he immediately launched into action, turning away from the window and venturing into the hallway, wondering who the hell would be knocking at nearly two in the morning.
A slither of his mind hoped it was Sirius, a fifteen-year-old Sirius that would shake him furiously and tell him it had all been a dream, and that he was late for first-period English.
Of course, it wasn't Sirius, and standing at the door was his son, a surge of guilt swept through him as he looked at his son. (who was standing at the door to their flat wearing only his pyjamas and a pair of green crocs.)
"Teddy?" Remus asked, looking at his pyjama-clad son as if he was an alien from a different planet.
"Whos Teddy? Anyway, sorry sir - do you have a moment to talk about our lord and saviour Jesus Christ?" Teddy deadpanned, crossing his arms to rub his seemingly cold arms.
"Why the hell are you here? I thought you were staying at James and Lily's?" Remus asked, stepping aside so that Teddy could enter the flat.
"Couldn't sleep, needed to know if you and mum talked it out." The blue-haired teen said, walking into the flat and immediately flicking the kettle on.
"Oh Ted, of course, we talked," Remus said, following Teddy and grabbing their mugs from the cupboard.
"I hate it when you two fight because you never fight, so when you do I know it's really bad."
The scorned look on Teddy's face made Remus's heart drop, He knew that his son worried a lot about Remus's friendship with Tonks - and he cursed himself for being visibly upset about it.
"Well we aren't fighting, so there's no need to worry," Remus assured, giving Teddy a toothless smile as he chucked the tea bags in their mugs.
"I'm sorry," Teddy said, his voice thick and head down, eyes focused on the table below. Remus immediately went over and crouched down to Teddy, looking up at his face from underneath his veil of faded, blue hair.
"What are you on about? what do you have to be sorry for Ted?" Remus cooed, his tone quiet as he reached out to brush Teddy's hair out of his eyes.
"I'm sorry I told you before Ma got a chance to tell you." Teddy apologized, his voice thick and the tears spilling from his brown eyes.
"Oh shush annwyl, you did nothing wrong, and I wasn't even that mad about the fact that she didn't tell me." Teddy looked up at that, sniffing as he looked up at his father with confused, tear-filled eyes.
"You weren't?" Teddy sniffled.
Remus let out a dry laugh and shook his head, slightly embarrassed of his childish anger.
"I wasn't"
"Then what were you mad at? Cause it had to be over something." Teddy asked, the tears drying.
Remus awkwardly shuffled and blushed, deciding whether or not to tell Teddy the truth, (which was - to say the least, quite embarrassing.)
"Well… the truth was…" Remus blushed, and it was his turn to hide underneath his curls. "- The truth is" He corrected, not daring to meet Teddy's eye. "- that I was jealous." Teddy pulled a confused face at this father before barking a laugh.
" Jealous ? Jealous of what?" Teddy asked, and Remus looked up from the counter and let out a breezy, insecure laugh.
"Jealous of your Ma really, I was stupidly jealous and I didn't know how to express it other than getting angry."
"You're jealous of Mum ? Why?" Teddy asked, clearly baffled by his father's bashfulness.
"Well, I stupidly thought that as soon as she moved here that you wouldn't want to live with me anymore.." Remus admitted, a fresh blush appearing on his face.
"Da! Are you mental?!" Teddy laughed, batting at Remus with his hand. Remus rolled his eyes and shrugged shyly.
"I know, it was silly but.." Remus laughed nervously, standing up and walking over to pour the hot water in their mugs.
"Da, why would I want to live with her? She's got two kids under the age of six - I do enjoy sleeping at night" Teddy laughed, standing up to retrieve the milk from the fridge.
"Sugar?" Remus asked, already reaching for the sugar tin.
"Always," Teddy said, putting the carton down on the kitchen counter.
"No but seriously, It's totally okay if you eventually want to move there. They're gonna have a huge house and everything-" Remus began.
"Da, shut up. This is my home. Sure I'm gonna stay at Mums, but this is my home." Teddy assured, raising his eyebrows at his father.
Remus nodded, feeling himself release a breath that he didn't know he'd been holding.
"Okay annwyl." Remus handed Teddy his mug, smiling a soft, warm smile.
Sirius rolled his eyes and turned to the door, twisting the squeaky doorknob and pushing it open with his shoulder. A wave of dust and age seeped out of the room, filling Remus's nose with the familiar smell of old books.
"Ladies first." Sirius grinned, holding the heavy door open and gesturing for Remus to venture inside. Remus rolled his eyes but entered the room. It was mainly dark apart from a small corner which was lit by a singular oil lamp.
Heading towards the light, Remus walked in with extreme caution, being careful not to trip - deciding that now was not an optimal time to faceplant.
He jumped slightly upon hearing Sirius close the door, the creaky, unoiled hinges squeaking.
"Scared Moony?" Sirius teased, walking forward to join Remus in the darkness.
"Fuck off Black."
"Want me to hold your hand? I promise I won't let you fall." Sirius flirted, reaching and successfully intertwining Remus's boney hands with his soft, elegant ones.
"What even is this place?" Remus asked, grateful for Sirius who was now leading them towards the light.
"Hmmm, guess we'll just wait and see.." Sirius teased, dropping Remus's hand to pick up the oil lamp, holding it ominously to his face.
"I am the ghost of Gryffindor tower! Fear me!" Sirius joked, making dramatic 'ooo' sounds as he reached for Remus.
Remus leapt back, shrieking girlishly.
"Sirius! You absolute knob!" Remus huffed, feeling embarrassed over letting Sirius hear his unmanly shriek.
"That's too good! Who knew Mr Mature Moony was scared of the dark!" Sirius laughed, pulling Remus back towards him.
"Shut up, I'm not!" Remus defended, sounding wildly unconvincing as his voice cracked, only sending Sirius further into laughter.
"It's okay Moony, it's cute." Sirius laughed, tweaking Remus's cheek.
"It's not 'cute' because I'm not scared of the dark!" Remus huffed, pulling his head away from Sirius's hand.
"Okay Moons, you're not scared of the dark, I believe you" Sirius grinned, grabbing Remus's waist and pulling him towards him, kissing him lightly on the cheek.
Suddenly Remus was thankful for the dark, as he felt his face heat up in a crimson blush, still somehow not over the fact that Sirius could and would kiss him now.
"Now come on, I wanna show you the main event." Sirius grinned grabbing Remus by the hand again and pulling him away.
After a night of treacherous, restless sleep - Remus was now slightly awake and at work, fighting the urge to doze off with immense effort. He had woken up to about a million texts from Tonks, Teddy and Lily, with Tonks creating a group chat including Herself, Lily, James, Teddy - and of course, Remus.
Dora (Baby Momma): Added you to a group.
05:04 am
Dora (Baby Momma) named the group: Family
Teddy Bear renamed the group: Teddy Lupin fan club
Teddy Lupin fan club
Dora (Baby Momma)
Edward Lupin! Get your arse back to bed!
05:07 am
Teddy Bear
I should say the same to you!
05:07 am
Dora (Baby Momma)
I'm an hour ahead you wank
05:08am
Lilypad
I don't think you can call your son a wank Dora.
05:09 am
Dora (Baby Momma)
Lily? Why are you up?
05:09 am
Lilypad
Uhh hellooo? Four-year-old son who woke us up at half four in the morning
05:10 am
Dora (Baby Momma)
Bet you wanna call your son a wank for doing that
05:10 am
Prongs (wanker)
To be fair, our son is a bit of a wank
05:11 am
Lilypad
James! The betrayal!
05:12 am
Dora (Baby Momma)
Aha! Knew it, Your sons a wankerrr your sons a wankerrr
05:13 am
Lilypad
Dora. Your son may be a wanker but my son is an angel.
05:14 am
Prongs (wanker)
Angel my arse, he puked all over my favourite rugby shirt!
05:15 am
Dora (Baby Momma)
Wait I take it back, Lily - your son is an angel.
05:20 am
Teddy Bear
Who's calling me a wanker?
06:24 am
Dora (Baby Momma)
Me.
06:30 am
Teddy Bear
Fair enough
06:55 am
Me
Do you guys not sleep?! God, you're annoying
07:23 am
Dora (Baby Momma)
Mornin' sunshine!
07:40 am
Remus decided that it was too early in the morning for Marlene Mckinnon.
"And I caught that little bugger stealing some of my alcohol markers! And they're like three quid a pop".
Remus nodded and smiled, Marlene's stories about students stealing supplies from the art department seemed endless, just last week she was telling Remus about how she almost tackled a student over missing glue sticks.
"Like I pay for this shite out of my own pocket! And I'm not letting some greasy year seven steal my markers that are worth fifty quid a pack!" Marlene complained, her arms waving around passionately, causing her many bangles to jingle on her wrists.
Marlene was undoubtedly the student's favourite art teacher, mixed in with the fact that she was the only guidance counsellor who actually cared about her pupils, she was mainly adored by all.
She was also one of Remus's favourite teacher friends, as she seemed to actually give a shit about what she was teaching, unlike some other teachers Remus knew.
"OH Rem, I almost forgot, we need to go to the library!" Marlene said, stopping and clapping excitedly, causing many students to roll their eyes.
"But my books aren't due till next week," Remus asked, raising an eyebrow at Marlene.
"Not for the books you fool! Word on the street says that there's a new librarian and she's hot!" Marlene said, lowering her voice down to a whisper so that the students couldn't hear.
"Mar... I don't think that the words 'librarian' and 'hot' should ever go together in the same sentence." Remus groaned, determined not to get side-tracked by the hyperactive girl.
"Shut up you bitter old man! We'll just pop in to say hi, maybe introduce ourselves..." Marlene offered, clearly trying to coax the unwilling Remus.
"How about you just go in and I'll wait here." Remus offered, but Marlene was already pulling her that sounds terrible face.
" Or you come in with me and I buy you a hot chocolate at lunch?" Marlene offered, putting a hand on her hip. Remus cursed her for knowing him so well as he caved at the thought of hot chocolate.
"With cream and marshmallows?" He added, eyeing the door to the library with caution.
"With cream, marshmallows and a cookie," Marlene added, looking immensely proud of herself.
Remus pulled a face as he stuck his hands in his pockets, debating the pros and cons.
"Okay, deal."
Marlene grinned widely at her triumph, grabbing Remus's arm and dragging him into the library.
Sirius reached up, pulling back an old, dusty crimson curtain and wearing a shit-eating grin.
"Now Moony, I've gotta confess, I didn't just bring you up here so that you can be terrified in the dark. I did have ulterior motives for this little trip."
Remus chuckled and rolled his eyes, still holding the oil lamp gently in his sweaty hands.
"Sirius Black, having ulterior motives? Well, I'll be damned!" Remus feigned shock, holding his chest dramatically with his free hand. Sirius chuckled and attempted to swat Remus's arm.
"You're an arse."
"I'm your arse," Remus said, loving the smile of glee that appeared on Sirius's face.
"That you are Moonstar, that you are." Sirius said, reopening the curtain wider for Remus and him to step into.
"Are you sure that this isn't some trap you've set so that you can kill me?" Remus asked, nervously eyeing the curtain.
Sirius laughed and shrugged, gesturing his arm so that Remus would step in first. Remus rolled his eyes but stepped forward, lifting the velvet curtain and stepping into the room.
The first thing he noticed was the chill, the night air filled the room with a crisp coldness.
The second thing he noticed was the moon, the full moon which was shining brightly into the windowless room.
Remus peered around and noticed that the room was at the very top of Gryffindor Tower, It was small but its main feature was a stone balcony that overlooked the entirety of Hogwarts, and it was almost perfectly in line with the moon.
"Holy shit.." Remus breathed out, immediately walking out and onto the balcony.
"I figured that I'd bring the moon to my Moony." Sirius laughed, walking onto the balcony behind Remus, wrapping his arms around the taller boy and leaning his head on Remus's shoulder.
"Pads its-" Remus said, breathlessly looking at the view, unable to control the smile that spread across his face.
"Breathtaking? Yeah pretty much." Sirius laughed, nuzzling his nose into Remus's neck.
"How the hell did you find this place?" Remus asked, placing his hands atop of Sirius's and intertwining them.
"I was adding to the map and I stumbled across the staircase and I followed it, and as soon as I saw this I knew I had to show you," Sirius replied, his voice soft and gentle as he whispered into Remus's ear.
"Well I love it Pads." Remus smiled, turning his head to look at Sirius, who was staring at Remus like he was the only thing in the universe.
"Well, I love you Moons."
"We're not here for the books you knob!" Marlene hissed, dragging Remus away from the new copies of The Picture of Dorian Gray displayed on a shelf.
"But Mar! It's Oscar Wilde ." Remus complained, looking mournfully behind him as the books disappeared from his view.
"Oh spare me the gay clichés, you're better than that Rem." Marlene groans, forcibly dragging the man towards the top of the library.
"Damn Mckinnon, hold your horses!" Remus laughs, as Marlene continues to drag him over towards the Librarians desk.
"Horses don't wait for love!" Marlene announces.
"Love? So now it's Love? You haven't even seen the lass!" Remus complains but Marlene's grip was still strong on the man.
"It's a feeling Remmy, I'm telling you!" Marlene said, slowing down as they near the desk.
"Oh god I don't need to phone up U-Haul do I?" Remus sighed.
"Wheesht! Oh my god, oh my fucking god!" Marlene whispered, stopping in her tracks as she looked at the girl behind the Librarians desk.
Remus had to admit, the rumours had been true. With reddish-brown hair and green eyes - the girl was truly a sight to behold. She was talking to a student with a friendly smile, her laugh echoing through the library.
"Oh god Remus- shes- shes fucking gorgeous ." Marlene stammered, tightening her grip on Remus's arm as she slowly backed away from the desk.
"Where the hell do you think you're going Mckinnon?" Remus said, dragging Marlene back up.
"Remus! I can't talk to her , are you kidding me!" Marlene panicked, all of her cockiness gone in an instant.
Remus sighed and rolled his eyes, dragging a very reluctant Marlene upto the desk.
"Remus! No! NO, no, no, No!" Marlene squealed. Remus just laughed as they approached the desk, now standing right at the counter.
The girl looked up from her chair, smiling up at the two.
"Hello! What can I do for ya today?" The girl asked, a strong Irish accent coating her voice. Remus smiled back at her, immediately liking her attitude.
"Hey! We just wanted to welcome you to the school, I'm Remus Lupin and I teach English." Remus smiled, holding out a hand for the librarian to take.
"Remus? Like-" She asked, smiling up at Remus.
"Like the whole myth thing, yeah." Remus smiled laughing and enjoying talking to someone who was clearly as avid a reader as he was.
"And Lupin? Damn did your parents want a werewolf or somethin'?"
"Probably, My Ma was definitely disappointed when my human self popped out." Remus laughed, liking her and her sharp wit.
"Oh and this my friend-" Remus started, looking at Marlene, who was visibly nervous, flashing the girl something was attempting to be a smile but clearly had turned out more like a grimace.
"Mckinnon- Marlene. Marlene Mckinnon. I teach art and I council guidance- I'm a guidance counselor" Marlene stammered, turning a bright red.
Remus had to cough to hold in his laugh at his friend's epic failure at flirting, but the Librarian just smiled up at Marlene, seemingly unfazed by her display of nervousness.
"Well I'm Luquette Byrnes but you can call me Luka," Luka said, winking slightly at Marlene.
"So you're Irish?" Remus asked, leaning his elbows on the counter, as he ignored Marlene's stares of don't you dare Lupin.
"Born 'n bred, and you're Welsh?" Luka asked back.
"Born 'n bred, but moved to England for boarding school and never really left," Remus answered.
"Boardin' school? Wouldn't peg you the type to go ta a schmancy fancy boardin' school."
"Scholarship kid." Remus shrugged, he had recognized that Luka had a similar working-class background like him.
Luka nodded but changed her gaze to Marlene, who was uncharastically shying away.
"You're English?" Luka inquired, smiling up at the tomato faced Marlene.
"Mhm." Marlene let out, her voice sounding oddly squeaky.
Luka laughed and smiled at Marlene, her eyes scanning the girl with a similar shyness. Remus felt a sense of accomplishment as he stared at the two, and he remembered so vividly what it felt like to be in love…
Remus didn't utter a word, his widened eyes looking at Sirius with silent awe.
"You what?" Remus scoffed, immediately in disbelief over Sirius's confession.
"I love you, Remus." Sirius smiled, stating it again with full confidence.
Remus was sure his smile had never been as wide as it was at that moment.
"You don't have to say it back- But I feel it," Sirius assured.
Remus was still shell shocked, frozen in his spot as Sirius unfurled himself from him, walking around and standing in front of Remus. He looked up at him with his big, grey eyes and Remus was once again overcome with the beauty that was Sirius Black.
"You can't love me." Remus said, his insecurities once again filling his forever doubtful mind.
"Oh but I do Remus, so much," Sirius whispered with a sly smile. Remus shook his head in disbelief.
"I'll prove it to you Moony, here - look," Sirius said, lifting his shirt over his shoulders.
Remus didn't even have a chance to blush over the topless Sirius as his eyes were immediately drawn to the ink all over the boy's chest.
"Sirius- Holy…" Remus gasped, stepping forward and tracing the tattoo.
Staring back at Remus was a large but beautiful tattoo of the Moon and its lunar phases.
"Do you like it?" Sirius grinned, and Remus looked up at the boy, disbelief written all over his face.
"You're mental Black, totally mental." Remus laughed, smiling as he gently ran his fingers over the intricate tattoo.
"Mental for you." Sirius smiled, clearly loving Remus's appreciative strokes of his tattoo, his eyes still not leaving his chest.
"I love it Pads- I-" Remus began, looking back up and into Sirius's steely eyes, bringing a hand to Sirius's cheek, rubbing his thumb along his smooth skin.
"I love you, Sirius," Remus whispered gently.
Sirius burst out into a joy filled grin, grabbing Remus by the collar and pulling him into a soul-crushing kiss, and Remus knew then that he would never be able to look at the moon without thinking about Sirius Black and his steely, grey eyes.
"What do you know about the new librarian?" Remus asked, sticking the rusty key into the door of the flat, unlocking it with an immense amount of effort.
"Oh Luka? She's really cool and Irish." Teddy answered, his hands ladened with shopping bags.
"She lets you call her by her first name?" Remus asks, finally managing to push the door open, using his shoulder to budge open the dodgy door.
Teddy nodded, walking past Remus to dump the bags on the kitchen table, letting out a huge breath of relief as he did so.
"Why ya asking? Wouldn't think she'd be your type." Teddy teased, wiggling his eyebrows at his father.
"She's not, but Marlene has it bad - do you think she's... Ya know?" Remus asked, making his wrist slightly limp. Teddy burst out into peals of laughter over this, holding his chest as he knelt over.
"Da! Stop STOP!" Teddy wheezed, and Remus laughed along.
"Well? Do you think she is?!" Remus asked, still laughing. Teddy wiped a tear from his eye before he answered.
"Well, her earrings were in the shape of toadstools today, if that helps your question," Teddy answered. Remus laughed and knowingly nodded, feeling like Marlene will have no issue with bagging the girl.
Teddy Bear
Hey, is it ok if I stay over at Liams? His Ma said it was ok
(19:23)
Aye, as long as your home for 12, Lunch at Effie & Monty is NOT optional
(19:25)
I know I knowwwww c u tomro
(19:30)
Have fun annwyl
(19:35)
Remus set down his phone and stretched his legs, he would ever complain about getting the house to himself. Finding quiet time to sit and mark essays was rare in the chaos that was his life.
However, as he picked up his pen and began flicking through the stack of repetitive papers, he couldn't find it in himself to start the tedious task. So, that's how he found himself - in front of the fridge, popping the cap off of a beer bottle.
He decided that he was truly a professional saddo, even his fifteen-year-old son had more of a social life than him.
After downing his first bottle of beer, he was interrupted by a series of demanding knocks at the door.
"Right Ted, one sec." Remus sighed, stepping over a heap of laundry to attempt to open the door. As Remus scrambled over to open the door, the knocks got more violent.
"Alright Jesus Christ, I said one SEC," Remus grumbled, finally opening the door with a mighty effort. However, instead of the fifteen-year-old boy with blue hair and a crooked smile that Remus was expecting, There was a thirty-one year old man with long dark hair and a smile that could weaken Remus in a heartbeat.
"Sirius?"
