Transfiguration classroom, Hogwarts…

'So, I had to go there and -' Minerva McGonagall's conversation with Professor Dark was suddenly interrupted by a soft knock on her office door. She turned in her seat, surprised, to see a head of rebelliously long brown hair peering through. 'Oh, it's you, Mr. Lupin. You're a bit early. Counselling doesn't start again until two.'

Remus looked at both teachers cautiously. 'I'm sorry, Professor. I'll come back later.'

Minerva frowned. 'No, no, there is no need for that, Mr. Lupin. Since you're here, we might as well get over with it. Come on in.'

Remus nodded and sat down gingerly on the seat opposite to hers. Minerva noticed that he kept wringing his hands on his lap as if unsure of himself.

She chanced a glance at Professor Dark for an explanation to Lupin's uncharacteristic behaviour, but Professor Dark himself seemed to be looking at the boy sympathetically. She shrugged and folded her arms on the table. 'Tell me, Remus. What are your plans for the future?'

Remus shifted uncomfortably. 'I haven't really given it much thought. I suppose my dad would want me to become an auror like he once was. I don't know.'

Minerva felt her fist clench instinctively. 'Are you sure, Mr. Lupin?'

Remus didn't answer and chose to stare at an ink spot on the table instead.

For the first time in her life, Minerva McGonagall lost her nerve in front of a student. The prospect of replying seemed terrifying. A sharp wave of guilt washed over her, and she found herself unable to meet the boy's eyes. What would she tell him? 'After all, auror training is extremely difficult,' she continued, hoping to seem unfazed. 'It demands a lot of your time, and the ministry will make you work -'

'Stop lying to the boy, Minerva,' growled Professor Dark suddenly.

Minerva looked at him indignantly. 'I'm not lying, thank you very much.' She was actually, but that didn't mean she would admit to it.

Professor Dark looked at her, eyes burning with repressed anger. 'He deserves to know the truth. You'll achieve nothing by mollycoddling him. He should know that the Ministry is filled with nothing but filthy bigots who wouldn't give him a second glance once they found out what he is, irrespective of how qualified.'

Minerva glimpsed at Remus momentarily and saw him clutching the arms of his chair tightly. His face, however, was completely impassive and betraying none of the emotions he must have felt inside.

The very sight of the boy slowly replaced her anger with unspeakable rage, and she glared at Professor Dark warningly. It was a known fact that Dark had a volatile temper and an admirable quality of always speaking the truth, but this was going overboard. He had no right, none at all, to belittle a student like that, especially since the student belonged to her house.

Remus, who had been quiet for so long, seemed to have finally found his voice in the middle of their staring contest. 'Is there anything else?' he asked quietly.

Both teachers whipped around to face the boy. He had a determined look in his eyes but even so, to them, he looked small and helpless.

'Are there any other careers I can pursue?' he asked again, looking directly at Professor Dark and ignoring McGonagall. In some ways, she understood his behaviour. He wanted to know the truth, and she wanted to protect him from it.

Professor Dark stroked his beard. 'There are but chances are, Mr. Lupin that people in the wizarding community are not going to be very accepting.'

Minerva stood up from her seat furiously. 'That's enough, Dark. Please leave.' Truth or not, she would not permit this.

The Professor ignored her and looked directly into Remus's darkening amber eyes. 'You have to understand, Remus that I'm not trying to discourage you. I'm only trying to prepare you for what you are about to face when you'll no longer have these school walls or your parents to protect you. You are one of my best students and a pleasure to teach, but most people outside are going to overlook that, because-'

'Because of what I am,' finished Remus coldly, getting up from his seat. 'I'll be leaving now. Thank you for your time, Professors.'

All Minerva McGonagall could think about as she watched Remus Lupin's retreating back, was how to make life as hard as possible for David Dark. He doesn't deserve this…that boy is worth much more than that, and some day he'll prove it.

XxxxX

Peter had been gathering his Charms textbooks from his trunk when the door to the boy's dormitory flung open and literally flew off its hinges. He turned, startled, only to see Remus Lupin, red faced with rage, stomping into the room and very much ignoring the broken door dangling precariously by the edge.

'Hey Remus,' he stuttered out, eyes still fixed upon the door.

Remus either did not hear Peter or was too far gone to care. Instead, he picked up the nearest book on his bedside table, stared at it for a while before flinging it out the window and breaking the glass in the process.

'Remus?' Peter asked again hesitantly. This was not good. Not good at all.

Remus laughed maniacally and shrugged his bag off his shoulders, attempting to throw that out the window too. He let out a shout of rage when the damn thing got stuck halfway through the glass. Peter flinched as his friend took out his wand from his pocket and shattered the glass into a million tiny shards.

Remus smiled satisfactorily and caressed his wand with a single finger. 'Won't be needing this either, will I?' he said to himself bitterly, tossing it out of the window with disdain.

That was the last straw for Peter, and he hurriedly ran out of the room, perhaps out of fear of being thrown out of the window as well. Remus loved his wand and things must have gotten too far for him to chuck it out that way. He needed to find James and Sirius, and fast. Judging by Remus's mood, things were obviously going to get worse. His friends would know what to do to calm the werewolf. They always did.

Lucky for him, Peter found both of them at the foot of the stairs, playfully arguing about the best Quidditch team.

'I'm telling you, the Chudley Cannons will rise-' James smiled as he saw Peter descend down the stairs. 'Hey, Wormtail! Up for a game of Exploding Snap?'

Peter rested his hands on his knees, panting. Who knew running down the stairs could be this energy consuming.

Sirius grinned. 'Been trying to lose some weight working out, eh Wormtail?' He patted the boy's bulging stomach.

Peter shook his head, still trying to catch his breath. There was a loud crash from upstairs and all three of them looked up, confused. 'It's Moony,' said Peter finally. 'I don't know what's wrong with him, but-'

He didn't have to complete his sentence because both James and Sirius had pushed past him and ran up the stairs, two at a time. As they got closer, they could hear the distinct noise of more things breaking, and Sirius nearly missed getting hit in the head by what looked like a substantial piece of their windowsill.

Both of them stared at the broken remains of their door, then at Remus who was now peeling another half of the window frame with his bare hands. Finally, they tore their eyes from the spectacle and looked at each other, a message of understanding passing between them. This wasn't going to be any different from the full moons they spent together, where the wolf would sometimes be angry and bitter and hurt; and Prongs would always stand in front while Padfoot stood guard at the back in an attempt to try to control and console Moony at the same time.

Sirius walked into the room and placed his hands on Remus's shoulders, squeezing lightly. 'Why don't you give that thing in your hands to Prongs, Moony,' he whispered forcefully.

'No,' replied Remus, sounding more like a petulant child. That is, until he decided it was a good idea to hurl the entire piece of frame towards the wall, just brushing past James's ear. James didn't flinch. Both of them knew Remus had missed on purpose. It was a warning: try me and next time, it'll be your head flying out that window.

'Come on, Remus, tell us what's wrong,' said James, cautiously stepping closer to his friend so that he had barely enough space to move.

Sirius himself had already pressed his front against Remus's back and was rubbing soothing circles down his friend's shoulder blades and spine.

'What's wrong?' Remus exclaimed, waving his hand roughly to the right. The water pitcher on Sirius's table shattered. 'What, you didn't notice, because the whole world seems to have!' Another wave and Peter's bedpost cracked.

Sirius and James looked at each other, silently reminding themselves never to get on Remus's bad side. In addition, the damage Remus was doing seemed a little…irreparable. McGonagall was not going to be happy.

'Don't even know why I bother!' continued Remus. Pieces of parchment and quills were now rising from their tables and swirling around angrily over their heads. 'Why should I give a damn about my OWLs! Don't need to study for them, don't need to give them!' He brandished his hand to the left and another small pile of books flew out of the window. 'It's not like they're going to be put to any use. Especially since I'm going to spend the rest of my life eating little children. That's what they want, isn't it? You know what?' He glared at his bed and his trunk shot out from underneath it. ' I don't even know why I stay here!'

James grabbed Remus's hands before he could did anymore damage – to himself and their room. 'You stay here, Moony, to defy all odds.'

There was silence after that, and Remus just stared into James's sincere hazel eyes, his hands shaking in between his friend's as James's words sank into him. His breathing was heavy from rage but seemed to be slowing down to normal, as he leaned back against Sirius. His knees threatened to give away, and he was only held upright by Sirius's firm grip on his shoulders.

'I hate you guys,' he whispered, letting go of James's hands and burying his face into Sirius's neck. 'I hate you so much. You always do this. You're always trying to bring my hopes up. I hate you. Why can't you just leave me alone?' He wrapped his arms around Sirius's waist, relaxing into the long fingers now rubbing soothing circles down his back.

Sirius looked at James and smiled, raising his hand to run his fingers through long brown locks. 'Because, your hopes…are our beliefs,' he whispered, kissing Remus's hair and feeling ridiculously sentimental.

XxxxX

'So, anyway, I was hoping you guys would come over to my place for a week or two,' said James, practically jumping. It had been the last day of their OWLs today, and the Marauders were the only ones awake in the common room after an entire night of celebration. All four of them were sitting on the floor behind the couch, a conspiratory air surrounding them even though they were being perfectly innocent tonight. After all, they had to keep up their appearances should anybody decide to venture into the common room at this hour. 'Padfoot will already be living at our place, and we could even complete that map of ours. What do you say?'

Peter squeaked a yes, and Remus smiled warmly. 'I'd like that,' he said, resting his hand on top of Sirius's who was sitting right beside him.

Sirius startled a little at the sudden touch. This sort of intimacy was alien on Remus's part, who, Sirius figured, was still a tad uncomfortable with their relationship. Also, they were both flat, rugged, manly men – holding hands never really came into the picture. Sirius turned his hand to meet their palms and entwined his fingers with Remus's. Still, he had to admit, the gesture felt…nice, girliness be damned.

James clapped Peter's back enthusiastically. 'Excellent. You can't believe the books my dad's got. We can learn so many things…'

Sirius grinned when he felt a thumb rubbing slowly across his knuckles. 'Yeah, maybe we can find new ways to torture Snivelly.'

Remus groaned, rubbing the bridge of his nose with his other hand. 'Can't you guys just leave him alone? He's never done anything to you. I mean, how would you like it if someone showed off your underwear to the whole school?'

'I'd ask them if they liked what they saw, or maybe if they preferred briefs instead,' said Sirius, winking at Remus but there was a hint of guilt in his voice.

James smiled knowingly, as he watched the exchange between his two best friends. He shot a glance towards their entwined hands and then turned towards Peter. 'Hey, Wormtail, fancy a trip to the kitchens? We can even get some planning done about what we'll do over the holidays.'

Peter smiled widely. 'Yeah, okay.'

'What about you two?' asked James, already knowing the answer.

'We'll stay here for a while,' said Remus, tightening his hold possessively on Sirius's hand.

Sirius waited until the common room was empty before climbing on top of Remus, straddling his knees and curling up to rest his head on his friend's stomach. He snuggled comfortably and sighed against the soft white cotton. This was truly his most favourite place in the world because for someone so skinny, Remus was incredibly soft and cuddly – like Mr. Magic Marshmallow Man or Martha's Puffy Cupcakes.

Remus chuckled quietly and rested a hand on the crown of Sirius's head, scratching lightly. 'You know, Padfoot. According to most Animagus books, the animal is supposed to be you, not the other way round.'

'Sod the books,' mumbled Sirius, as he nudged Remus's t-shirt up with his nose.

'Stop sniffing me, you mutt. It tickles.'

Sirius kissed the soft expanse of skin and sat up. 'I can't help it.' He grinned, shifting himself closer to sit on the werewolf's lap. 'It's just that you smell so nice.' He wrapped his arms around Remus's shoulder. 'Like pure milk chocolate,' Sirius murmured, digging his nose into the junction of Remus's neck and inhaling his scent. 'Everything you own smells like chocolate, you know. I bet even the teachers recognise your homework by sniffing at it.'

Remus rolled his eyes. 'Of course. I can just imagine the scene in the staff room, Flitwick smelling our papers. If it smells like chocolate, it's Remus Lupin's. If it smells like wet dog and grass, then it's Sirius Black.' Remus buried his fingers into soft black hair, as Sirius kissed a trail up his neck to his jaw. 'It's probably the stash of chocolate I keep in my trunk,' he said, arching his neck up a little.

'Mmm…that could explain things, but,' Sirius's tounge swiped at Remus's lips. 'You taste like chocolate too. You must be made out of the stuff.'

'You're just being stupid,' said Remus chuckling before pulling Sirius into a kiss.

The kiss - it wasn't hesitant or unsure like the scarce ones they'd shared over the past few months. It was confident and determined and oh so good; and it was really hard to imagine that they'd never actually been together until a couple of months ago because things were so perfect and they were definitely meant to be. Sirius had no idea what brought about the sudden transformation in Remus, or what made him change his mind all of a sudden, and he didn't care because Remus's tounge was doing the most unimaginable things in his mouth now and fuck explanations.

'I'll miss you,' whispered Remus against his lips once they'd broken apart. 'I'll miss you a lot.'

XxxxX

Serpent91: You're welcome. I haven't gotten much time to revise this one, but I hope you like it anyway. Moonshine: Yep, they're together, and the angst is slowly dissolving…for now…grins. jean kitsune: Hmm…maybe we should share those strait jackets…I think I'm contagious. runningwithscissors75: Wow, you're a goody two shoes who runs around with scissors. That could be the next teen murder flick you know. The Goody Two Shoes who was driven mad by slash. Or the revenge of the Goody Two shoes on teachers who didn't give her enough study time to read slash…or something like that. Yes, I know I'm insane, but bear with me, and don't put me on your hit list. Luermide: Hey, you're the author of Laritus house, aren't you? I have to tell you, I was really disappointed when you discontinued the fic in the middle. I'm glad you decided to start again. As for the smut…ahem…soon, maybe, I don't know. Lady Molko: Well, I'm glad I make you happy…it's an all time little drama, isn't it…this fic. Like Bold and the Beautiful, but with less people sleeping with each other. sola-bola: Lol…I like the last lines to this fic, cuz it shows that Remus is finally warming up to Sirius, and it make them both happy, and well for a change, less angsty. MagicalWinry: Wow, lots of beautiful there…thanks a lot. Sorry if this chapter isn't up to par, but my exams are going on, and I just took some time to write this down, cuz I had the damn idea stuck in my head and I couldn't concentrate. Shrink: Shit, we need to have a letter as to why we need the school computer and all that shit. It would be interesting really. Hi, I just got permission from my class teacher to read slash…can I please abuse your internet connection now? The poor religious woman. Remo: Well, good thing is, you don't have to wait much longer. Bad thing, after all my dialogues about effort, I put in very little in this chapter and I'm hoping it's still satisfactory. I promise the next one will be better in any case. TheWingedWhispered: Aw…thanks. I'm going to start working on chapter eighteen, and honestly, that's my favourite. It's sort of angst and …ah…you'll just have to wait a while. Muppetmadness: Well, I'm honoured. And I'm sure you're friends will succumb to slash sooner or later…they all do. Silver Angel 7: You should see my smile right about now. It must be a metre long. Hell, I think it just fell off my face. Leanna: The answers to your questions will come slowly…you'll need to wait, and don't go to slash rehab until I'm done, okay? Annieboo92: James is a doll, and the London Board of examinations is a dog. Littlefreeze: Yep, Remus has gotten over his angst, and he plays the angry young man in this chapter. I'm hoping it isn't too out of character. But most fics always employ his as the calm rationale one, and I figured, he had to slip some time. Illyra: Well, your wish has been granted. They're being exceptionally cuddly in this one, especially Remus. mad.hot.love.: lol…yeah, it does sound dirty…and continue to be in love with my story. It will always love you back for reviewing. Ashes of Passion: Wow! I made someone cry! I've never made anyone cry…well, not with words atleast. Um…but lets not get to that. I'm speechless…I don't know what to say…just keep reading. KawaiiMegami86: Thanks for the warning. But it's usually not until someone complains that fics are taken down, and I'm hoping no one's unkind enough to do such a thing because it's a real hassle to reply individually when I can just type it down on one page. And we should all kill the rat…though I think he's going to die eventually. Tyleet27: lol…yes, I know what you meant. I was just joking…I have a tendency to play around with words…ignore me, my parents do it half the time. Yurikitsune: Ah…the problems are just starting…you haven't even seen half of it yet. I let them easy this chapter…give the pups a chance to breathe you know. Lykaios Nyx: Thnx…keep reviewing, and I hope you like this chapter just as much. I know it isn't as long, but the next one gets better…I hope. Queen of the Paperclips: Nah, it's not really that painful. But they should keep a sign on these things: Danger, Cautious Handling. Lol…and the last bit I wrote in Sirius's pov just for you.