Author's Note: It's about time I wrote something. This is my post-Death Hallows addition to the fanfic world. Also, it's been ages since I wrote something to do with Harry Potter so, really, how could I resist?
Disclaimer: It all belongs to the fountain of genius that is JKR. I own nothing. NOTHING.
SPOILER Warning: In case you haven't guessed yet: THERE BE SPOILERS HERE. In other words, if you HAVEN'T READ DEATHLY HALLOWS then you SHOULDN'T READ THIS. Should you choose to make the decision to read this, and then get mad at me for spoiling, it is no fault of mine. I've made it painfully obvious that there are DEATHLY HALLOWS SPOILERS.
... Oh, yes. And there is also SLASH.
A fic for Court, because I finally understand how she felt at the end of Order of the Phoenix.
Remus Lupin's vision shuts down temporarily against the sudden brightness which is surrounding him. In moments it corrects itself; something registers within Remus' brain as odd. He has a feeling he was just outside Hogwarts and not inside Hogwarts. It is also considerably lighter and less chaotic than he feels it should be. Brown eyes blinking, Remus swivels about as he attempts to make sense of what's happening. Right now, he is sure of one thing: Remus Lupin, in his entire existence, has never felt more alive than he does at this very moment.
"… Moony?"
Remus' breath nearly hitches. He stares at the person standing only feet away from him.
"Sirius," he breathes out, "you came back!" It is a bit strange, Remus thinks, that Sirius looks much healthier and, indeed, much younger. It must be the effects of the veil. He takes a few hesitant steps forwards.
"I – you stupid –" Sirius is staring at his friend with a mixture of annoyance and joy etched on his face. He closes the space between them, pulling Remus into a strong embrace which reminds him of their school days. "You idiot," Sirius says affectionately. "Of all people … You weren't even forty!"
A funny look gleams in Remus' eyes.
"What in Merlin's name are you talking about?"
But there is hardly time to register Sirius' own look of confusion.
A sharp pain shoots through Remus' side. His vision once again blurred, his other senses inform him that there is a battle going on and he is lying on the ground. What is going on? Where had Sirius gone? In a moment of panic, he opens he mouth but a woman's voice is there. It is telling him to be quiet and that he will be fine. A shaking hand slips into his own. Remus realizes, with a sickening lurch, that he is dying. Above him, he can make out the blobby shape of Tonks who is no doubt watching him with worry in her eyes. Another lurch, this time accompanied by a throbbing pain everywhere there is feeling, and he is suddenly back in Sirius' arms. He has turned a sickly pale colour.
"Sirius," Remus croaks out, "Padfoot. You haven't come back, have you?" Sirius shakes his head. It was Remus' last hope. "Oh God … But I'm not actually dead! Just … Dying." The words sound foreign and stupid.
"You'll know when you're dead," Sirius replies grimly.
An awkward silence falls between them. Remus feels the tension in the air as Sirius fists his hands in his shirt. In from of him, he sees flickers of his last moments and then there is something within him that feels like an elastic snapping. It startles Remus. He would've fallen over had Sirius not caught him.
"I'm dead." For the second time, Remus thinks he sounds stupid. Although he feels that he is no longer alive, his body is once more screaming with a sense of life that Remus has never felt before. Or maybe that is just the feeling of Sirius crushing their mouths together. When he can breathe again, Remus asks, "You've been wanting to do that this whole time, haven't you?"
"Shut up. I'm trying to tell you that I've missed you. And," Sirius flicks his eyes wickedly down Remus' body, "you look bloody good. For a dead guy who isn't me."
Remus follows Sirius' eyes downwards.
"Oh … I look twenty years old again. I guess this death thing isn't so bad," Remus muses as he examines himself. Indeed, he looks as young as Sirius does, and there is far more colour in his skin than there ever was. Much to his regret, though, he still maintains a bit of shabbiness that seems to have cursed him, even in death. The low growl next to his ear tells him that Sirius doesn't seem to mind.
"C'mon." With a quick brush of their lips, Sirius grabs Remus' hand. "Come say hullo to James and Lily so I can take you away to … Discuss what I've missed."
The shifting of eyes doesn't go unnoticed by Remus, who only now recalls that he has – or, rather, had – a wife and son. Had Tonks survived? Would she mind him running off to make-out with Sirius like they used to when they were seventeen? He tries to will himself to feel guilty or at least reasonable, but a voice whispers through him, reminding him that he has an eternity ahead of him to sort things out. Sirius pulls him down a Hogwarts corridor, and Remus Lupin's last peculiar thought about life is if he died with a smile on his face.
Author's Note: Ok. It's not my best piece. But, I had to. The first step to recovery is admitting the problem ... And it kills me inside that it's a bit ... Cliche, I suppose, and slightly fluff-tastic. BUT. Reviews on how wonderful it is anyway still make me happy. :D