Ministry of Magic…

John Lupin looked at his son through the corner of his eyes but said nothing. Last night's transformation had not been any different from the others – lots of blood, bruises and broken bones. He had healed them all of course, down to the very last scratch. There wasn't a single sign that could point out how rough a night his boy had really had. But then, there was the fatigue, and that was one thing John Lupin could do nothing about. He'd given Remus some Pepper Up potion but judging by his son's expression, it was wearing off quickly, and they had only just gotten to the ministry.

Remus swayed dangerously as they walked down the corridors of the Werewolf Registry, and John held him firmly by the shoulder. He would have preferred carrying him all the way, but Remus would whine and complain all the way about how embarrassing it was and how he was old and strong enough to walk by himself. Stubborn little bugger.

John rapped the door with his fist lightly and it immediately swung open to reveal his old high school mate and co-worker, Lionel White. Even now, they were the best of friends, and often met up for a drink or two. John Lupin admired him, mostly because he was one of the few people who'd been there for him when Remus had been bitten. Apart from that, Lionel had an excellent sense of humour, his name often being the butt of his jokes. Ironically, he was anything but white.

'Been waiting for hours, mate. What took you so long?' he asked, embracing John in a one armed hug.

'Remus needed to get a judicial report and a medical examination done before the registration. He was exhausted by the time we were done, so I let him sleep for half an hour. I hope you don't mind,' said John, handing over the files he'd been carrying.

Lionel waved it off. 'Spare the formalities, Lupin. I don't need a bunch of papers to tell me Remus is clean. Haven't seen you in quite a while. How have you been?'

John picked Remus up, ignoring the weak sounds of protests and set him down on the examination table. 'I've been better.'

Lionel bit his lip, his eyes reflecting the sympathy he felt for his friend. His gaze shifted towards Remus who was trying very hard to stay awake and he felt himself smile. 'You seem to have grown since I last saw you, Remus. They feeding you something extra in Hogwarts?'

Remus chuckled quietly but said nothing, choosing to lean against his father's arm instead. His eyes drooped slightly, shot open again and then settled to a half close.

Lionel looked back towards John. 'Can I talk to you for a minute?'

John nodded and looked down at Remus, brushing his hair out of his eyes. 'Can you stay awake a little longer, lad? We'll just be a moment.'

John moved away only when he'd received the affirmative nod from his son, and Lionel quickly pulled him aside, making sure he was well out of earshot before saying anything. 'Listen, John, I'm not going to sugar coat this for you. This process isn't going to be easy on Remus. Ten percent of the ink composition is silver. Ministry rules. They want to make sure the code stays imprinted forever. Do you understand what I'm trying to say?'

John blinked, not believing what he was hearing. 'Like a scar or a permanent burn. But Len, I-'

Lionel cut him off. 'I know you, John. You're going to break. I've seen you before. You can't seem to control your emotions whenever Remus is involved. But I'm begging you now - do not show your fear. If Remus sees you panic, the pain will only be more pronounced to him. I need you to stay calm, okay?'

John stopped himself from running a nervous hand through his hair. He could feel Remus watching him intently. So instead, he smiled. 'Can't you give him some sedatives or something?' His tone was desperate, pleading.

Lionel shook his head. 'Reacts violently with the ink. It's better off this way.'

John just stood there for a moment, eyes closed, trying to gather up all the information he'd received. Finally he nodded and straightened his shoulders. 'Let's get over with this then.'

Lionel nodded and walked back to his desk, giving Remus a smile on his way. He knew Remus was watching him, soft amber eyes curious and wide with apprehension. But when Lionel turned to look his way, Remus just smiled bitterly. He knows, thought Lionel, looking intently at the boy. John was right. The kid's too smart for his own good.

'I need you to take off your shirt and lie down on your stomach, Remus,' he said quietly, as he ran his index across the register, searching for Remus's name.

John knew he was supposed to remain stoic and unfeeling, but as he watched Lionel load the code into the apparatus and position it at the base of Remus's neck, he couldn't help it. He twined his fingers with his son's and held on loosely. Remus squeezed back in assurance and John closed his eyes. Let it be quick. Please God, let it be quick. There was a low hum from the device, followed by a click as the ink shot out, and then there were only mind numbing screams that echoed in John Lupin's mind long after his son had passed out.

XxxxX

'Remus.' Lily shook the slumbering boy by his shoulder. 'Remus!'

'Ungh…' was all Remus said before digging his head deeper into the circle of his arms.

Another violent shake. 'Remus, get up!'

Remus's eyes snapped open and his whole body tensed as he shot up straight on his seat. He blinked rapidly and then closed his eyes in relief when he realised that it was only Lily. She could literally see his body relaxing as he leaned against the back of the chair.

'Lily…' he said slowly, rubbing his face with his hand.

'Class is over, Remus,' she said, looking around pointedly at the empty classroom. 'You'll be late for lunch.'

Remus ran a hand through his hair, nodded and got up. 'Can't help it, I guess. Binns can be such a bore sometimes,' he said, stretching his muscles and grinning up at her.

Lily raised an eyebrow. 'We were having transfiguration.' She laughed when she saw her friend blush sheepishly. 'I'm surprised you didn't end up with detention. Matthew tried to wake you up when Mc Gonagall was passing by your seat, but you were dead to the world. Oddly, she saw you but completely ignored it.'

Lily didn't miss the flicker of anxiousness in Remus's eyes, but it was gone before she could say anything about it. 'Do you think she fancies me?' he asked bumping playfully into her shoulder and winking at her.

'You wish, Remus Lupin,' she chuckled as she walked out of the classroom. She watched as her friend slung his bag over his shoulder and waited for him to catch up. He was smiling, but his posture screamed exhaustion. His face looked oddly flushed and there was a shiny film of sweat forming on his forehead. It was no exaggeration when Lily thought that he looked like he'd been run over by a bus. 'Are you okay, Remus?' she asked, concerned. 'Mc Gonagall told me you were sick.' She placed a gentle hand on his arm. 'I was worried.'

Remus rubbed the back if his neck underneath his shirt collar. 'I'm fine, thank you. A little tired, but I'll live,' he said smiling and moving his arm slightly, so that Lily's hand dropped to her side.

Oh, Remus. Lily knew he wasn't okay. Not only was it apparent in his eyes, but she'd also seen him swallow a couple of muggle pills before class.

'So, what did you guys do in Transfiguration while I was in my own little fantasy land?'

'Nothing much, really. We were just covering the basics. She snapped a couple of times at Black and Potter, but that's about it.' Lily frowned disapprovingly. 'I'd keep out of those two's way if I were you. They're upto something, I can tell.'

Remus's eyes sparkled oddly and he grinned. 'It's okay, Lily. They're really quite harmless. I think –'

But Remus never got to complete his sentence because a red beam of light hit him directly at the back of his neck. There was a second when Lily watched, horrified, as Remus's face contorted with pain and then he fell to the ground, unconscious.

'Remus!' She whipped around, pulling her wand out her pocket.

There they were, the culprits, and the bloody berks were laughing; atleast one of them was.

XxxxX

'Hm…let's see. So far, I've managed to die Snape's hair pink, grow tentacles on his head, make his potion blow up on his face, and make him fall face first in dog shit. One more, Sirius, and I win the bet,' said James smugly as they walked down the empty corridors.

'Don't be so over confident, James. There's still time,' Sirius replied haughtily.

James shrugged. 'I don't know why you didn't bother pranking him in Transfiguration itself. He was sleeping throughout class. You could have easily won the bet.'

'It's lowly to attack a man while he's not conscious of the world around him. There's no honour in such a victory,' said Sirius, brushing off imaginary dust from his sleeves.

James rolled his eyes. 'Please, since when did you care about honour? You were just too chicken to do it under Mc Googly's nose.'

'Hardly.' And it was true. Sirius wasn't afraid of anyone, Mc Googly or not. It was also true that his reason for not pranking Lupin right then had been anything but honour. When Sirius had seen Lupin sleeping so peacefully, it had seemed almost cruel to disturb him, so he let him be.

James grinned teasingly. 'Going all soft over Lupin then, are you?'

Sirius's lip curled. 'Don't be disgusting, Potter.'

James stopped suddenly and crossed his arms over his chest. 'Prove it then. Lupin's right there, walking in front of us.' He said pointing at the two figures in front of them. 'The corridors are empty save for Lupin, that red head, and us. Go on, I'm giving you a chance to win that bet.'

Sirius stared at Lupin talking animatedly with that Evans red head. He watched as she placed a hand on his arm and smiled sweetly. 'Fine,' snapped Sirius, pulling his wand out of his robes and aiming. Stupid James. Stupid Lupin. Stupid what's her name.

And then, Lupin collapsed, which was not at all what the book he'd learnt it from, had described would happen. In fact, it wasn't even close. Lupin was supposed to experience a violent overgrowth of hair, not fall to the ground, and God…was he unconscious?

James on the other hand hadn't noticed Lupin fall at all, and he thumped Sirius on the back enthusiastically. 'I can't believe you finally got him!' He whooped, but stopped from any further festivities when he saw his friend's face. What's with him?

'Siri-'

Sirius looked at him, his face white as sheet. 'James, I think I killed him…'

James followed his gaze, finally landing on the fallen form of Remus Lupin. 'Oh shit.' And then, all of a sudden James found himself pushed against the wall, fiery green eyes boring into him.

'You bloody prick!' screamed Lily Evans, wand raised. 'What the hell did you do?'

James struggled to keep his panic under control. Was he being attacked? Evans certainly looked capable of murder. Should he take out his wand and fight back? No, he couldn't do that. Evans was…well…she was a girl. 'Calm down, Evans!' he said, raising his hands. 'It was just a harmless prank, okay! We didn't mean anything by it!'

Her wand jabbed into his jugular. 'Does that look harmless to you, Potter?' Evans asked through clenched teeth. 'Does it? If you idiots had actually taken the time to look beyond your own self centered worlds, then you would have noticed that Remus has been sick the whole day.' Her wand drifted lower, down to the middle of his chest, and James gulped. 'But you don't care, do you? All that you, and Black are bothered about are your sick little jokes.'

'MISS EVANS! PUT THAT WAND DOWN THIS INSTANT!'

Evans growled but complied, shooting James a dirty look, before turning towards Professor McGonagall. James heaved a sigh of relief.

'I'm sorry, Professor,' she said straightening her robes. 'I lost control. But Potter and Black, here thought it would be funny to attack Remus behind his back, and he passed out before I could do anything.'

McGonagall's eyes widened and she turned around so fast that strands of hair flew out of her tight bun. 'Good grief, child! You should have taken him to the hospital wing!' She turned back to Evans and raised her arms in exasperation. 'Well, where is he?'

Lily looked around, baffled. 'He was right here, Professor. I-'

James stared. 'Wait, Sirius is gone too.'

XxxxX

'Don't you think the flowers and chocolates are a bit too much, Sirius?' asked James as they walked towards the infirmary.

Sirius finger combed his hair. It was getting a bit too long and he'd sort of grown to like it that way. 'It's called courtesy, James, but I wouldn't expect you to know anything about it.'

'Really? I thought you gave people flowers and chocolates on Valentines Day,' teased James, winking mischievously at Sirius. 'You know, as a token of undying affection and looovvee.' He mock swooned.

Sirius cuffed James and stopped at the doors of the Infirmary. 'Shut up and try to look guilty.'

James squawked indignantly. 'Guilty? I'm not the one who hexed him to oblivion and got away with it scott free, while his best friend cleans horse shit for the rest of the week.'

Sirius smiled smugly, turning the door handles. 'It's called tactics, Potter. Every good prankster must have them.'

James snorted. 'Tactics, my arse. You were busy saving the damsel in distress. The distress you created, might I add.'

Sirius ignored his friend and looked around the hospital wing, spotting Lupin in the farthest corner of the room, right beside the window. He was lying down on his side, facing away from them, but Sirius knew that mop of hair anywhere. Lupin and Snape were the only ones in Hogwarts with hair beyond their shoulders, and Lupin was the only one who could carry it off without looking like a girl or a greasy git. He walked towards Lupin's bedside and set down the chocolates and flowers on the side table.

James poked his still form hesitantly. 'Is he breathing?'

Sirius peered cautiously, trying to look beyond the veil of hair covering Lupin's face. 'He was, last time I checked. He's just sleeping.' He turned to face his best friend and shrugged. 'Maybe we should just go. I mean, I've apologised, haven't I?' he said, pointing towards the little tokens he'd placed neatly on the table.

'Last time I checked, an apology actually involved the words, 'I'm sorry', Black.' Both James, and Sirius jumped upon hearing Lupin's voice, husky from sleep. Lupin sat up on his bed, and rubbed his eyes with his fist. 'Thank you for the chocolates though,' he said, picking one up and popping it into his mouth.

'You're awake,' said James, stating the obvious.

Lupin chuckled. 'It's a little hard to sleep with people poking at my face. Want some?' he asked handing them the box of chocolates. He smiled when both Sirius and James helped themselves to a handful and shifted a little to the side. 'Sit down then. It's a weekend, there's plenty of chocolate and words of apology are really not that hard to say.'

Sirius huffed and crossed his arms over his chest, as he flopped down on the bed. 'Fine. I'm sorry, okay! Who knew you'd be such a weakling? The spell didn't even work, and you went all girly and fainted.'

Lupin chuckled, and Sirius realised right then that Lupin knew he was being a smart mouthed, annoying prat, and enjoying it too. But then, the amber-eyed boy stopped and frowned as if deep in thought. 'I guess the spell reacted with the painkillers I had earlier or something. I can't tell. Oh well, doesn't matter,' he said, popping another piece of chocolate into his mouth.

Sirius and James looked at each other guiltily. Sirius wanted to apologise again, this time a little more nicely, but he couldn't bring down his pride to do so. So instead, he changed the topic to something that had been bothering him since Lupin woke up. 'How did you know it was me?'

Lupin popped another chocolate in his mouth. 'What?'

'When you woke up. You had your face turned the opposite way. How did you know it was me?'

Lupin frowned. 'I don't know. I just…sensed you, I guess.'

James stared at him. 'You do know, Lupin, that this does nothing to soothe your reputation as the freaky kid in school.'

Lupin shrugged, but Sirius noticed a flicker of sadness in his eyes, and he mentally cursed James for being so insensitive. 'So we're even then?' Sirius asked, getting up and straightening his robes.

Lupin grinned and swiftly grabbed his wand from the bedside table. Before Sirius could react, or register what was happening, both, his and James's eyebrows were growing at an insane pace. 'Yeah, we're even,' chuckled Lupin.

They'd all burst into laughter after that. James had even parted the curtain of eyebrow hair and grinned widely at the both of them before exclaiming, 'I told you he was a bloody genius!'

They'd visited Remus everyday after that day, little Peter often tagging along. And that alone was enough to start one of the most legendary friendships Hogwarts had ever known. It wasn't that all of a sudden Remus had dropped all his reserve and caution to the wind. But he should have known from the very beginning, that a person as friendly, sarcastic, and wonderful as Remus Lupin was hard not to be friends with; and very hard to dislike, no matter what Sirius said. And after all, Sirius, James and Peter were only first years, concluded Remus after a few months. They'd never find out his secret, right?

XxxxX

remoshaggywell: Lol. Well, it would stupid of Remus if he didn't know Sirius was annoyed by him Here's the next chapter for you. Thanks for reviewing! Tyleet27: Okay, I'm all for Snape being innocent and all, but never use the words Sevvy and my together. Sorry, it just a matter of opinion, but still…I figured James and Sirius were too opposite to begin with, so they couldn't have just been friends all of a sudden. So Snape needed to be the route. Artemis Maxwell-Yuy: Well, you caught me there with Remus almost being there. They're all so cute…minus Peter of course. I'm glad you can actually imagine their conversations through my writing. It gives me the feeling that I'm atleast doing something right. BlackMercifulFaerie: I'm very attached to prudish Sirius, I have absolutely no idea why. He's toned down a bit here though…I think… Zevazo: I adore Remus's father. I always feel that most fics don't give him enough credit, especially when they make him turn out to be some cruel drunk or something. By the way JK describes them in the third book, it sounded like Remus's parents always took Remus's condition upon themselves, especially his father since he's partly responsible. Leafyaki: Well, your wish has come true about the Marauders being formed. But this is just the beginning, isn't it. And true, I love Remus's dad…I sort of wanted to create a really good rapport with him and Remus. Hopefully, I succeeded. Anon: Wow! Finally, an actual critic. I know it's hard to believe, but you've actually answered a couple of my own questions. I was actually wondering if I could get away with summarising the second, third and fourth years into one chapter each to include only the key points. That way, I can skip to their romance. I totally agree with you on including unnecessary information making the fic boring. About the songs, I was actually concentrating more on the meaning behind each song, rather than their dates, which is why I didn't actually mention them in the story. However, you'll find as the chapters move on, that a lot of the titles are from A-ha, and Queen, two of my very favourite 80's band. Thanks for pointing out the er…mistakes. Actually, I had no idea what Sirius's aunt or mother's name was, and I found out about Remus's b'day long after I wrote the chapter, but since none of these facts actually hold much significance in the story, I'm just going to let them be, and keep them in mind, next time I try to write a fic. Thank you though, it was actually quite interesting. A lot of my friends were actually critical about making Remus so happy, but I figured I'd ignore them, and judging by the responses I got, I'm guessing I did the right thing. I just thought that even now, Remus does try hard to be happy, and really, who's ever heard of a guy wallowing in self pity since the age of eleven? That's just a bit too much. Whew, I hope I've covered all your concerns. Do continue the criticism. It's actually quite helpful. Serpent91: I'm glad you liked it. Thanks for reviewing. ShaMak: Yeah, the last chapter was my fav too. I'm not so sure about this one, but hell…it doesn't matter. Keep reviewing!