A/N: This is the end, as promised! Thanks so much to those who reviewed, favorited/alerted. Any feedback is welcome.
Remus was in the Hospital Wing. Madam Pomfrey was fluttering around him, scolding and tutting, waving a finger in his face as she went about healing his ankle. "You should take better care of yourself, Remus," she told him in between spells. "With what you have to go through every month, you should try really to stay injury free for the rest of the time. And that includes not getting hit by hexes."
"Yes, Madam Pomfrey," Remus said duly, watching without interest as his ankle reduced from its imitation of a swollen tomato back into its original shape.
"There. All done." She cast a final diagnostics charm and then stowed away her wand, suddenly giving Remus a warm smile that made him feel a little better after the rather tormenting events of the day. "Off you go."
Remus stood carefully, relieved to have both ankles functioning normally. He'd hardly taken two steps when Madam Pomfrey asked suddenly, "Where are your little troublemaking friends? At least one of them is usually with you, especially when you're injured. Mr. Black usually can't be separated from you while you're here." She gave him a shrewd look, a question in her eyes.
He shifted his weight from one foot to the other. He thought about answering truthfully, which would probably go something along the lines of: "Actually, Madam Pomfrey, today I basically told Sirius Black that I'm hopelessly in love with him and he ran away and it all turned out to be one of James Potter's insidious plans for which he will suffer a highly painful death. That is why Sirius is not here at the moment."
No. No need to share his humiliation. "Um, I think Sirius had some work he needed to finish." That was, at least, only half a lie. He would bet his prefect's badge that Sirius had not yet done his Transfiguration essay, so he really did have unfinished work. Only, he probably wasn't doing it right this moment. Remus had no idea where Sirius was right now.
Madam Pomfrey raised an eyebrow. Before she could comment on the likelihood of Sirius doing any work at all, the door to the Hospital Wing burst open and Lily ran in, eyes wide with alarm.
"Remus! I was looking all over for you and a couple of first years told me they saw you limping to the Hospital Wing – are you all right?"
"I'm fine," he said, attempting a reassuring smile, which wasn't very successful judging by the expression on Lily's face. "It was just a sprain and – er, nothing. Madam Pomfrey said I could go now, anyway."
Lily glanced suspiciously from him to Madam Pomfrey, as if verifying the degree of truthfulness in his words. "Are you sure? Cause if you need to rest you can, who cares about Potter and his pl—" She clapped a hand over her mouth and started coughing violently. "My point is," she said, when she'd recovered, "you can stay if you—"
"Miss Evans, Mr. Lupin is completely fine," Madam Pomfrey interrupted. "It was a minor injury. Go on now, you're both dismissed."
"Oh, thanks, Madam Pomfrey. Remus, we have to – Remus?" She whirled around only to see the back of Remus's robe disappear through the door. "Wait, Rem!" She hurried after him and latched onto his arm in an attempt to slow him down. "Where's the fire? Where are you going?"
Remus slowed down with a sigh. "There's no fire, Lily. I'm just really tired, that's all – I was hoping to go back to the common room to rest." He gave her a resigned look. "I guess you have somewhere else you want me to go?"
To his surprise, she shook her head and grinned in an uncanny resemblance of James's familiar Marauder smirk, which only served to heighten his apprehension. "No, actually, I think that's a brilliant idea," she said, sounding far too happy about the idea than it warranted. She hooked an arm through his and attempted to drag a now completely halted Remus forwards.
"Do you?" he said, not moving. "Why?"
She scowled at him. "Does a friend caring about friend's own health need a reason? Come on."
He matched her scowl for scowl. "You're plotting something."
She looked immediately defiant. "I am not! I have not sunk to the Marauder level yet, Remus Lupin. How dare you suggest such a thing!"
"Uh huh," he said, somehow managing to insert a million accusations into those two syllables. He paused, and then asked almost casually, "What was that about James before?"
Looking cagey, Lily attempted an air of casual disregard. "What was what about James before?"
He gave her skeptical a look that said I'm not fooled, not even a little bit."Lily. I've already been the butt of one of James's ingenious plans today and I've got no desire whatsoever to be involved in another one. Whatever it is you two are planning, leave me out of it."
He turned around to make a run for it in the opposite direction only to be blocked by Lily, who had premeditated his move and had settled herself into a firm stance in front of him, hands on her hips, feet planted wide. "Common room is that way," she said pointedly, jabbing a finger over Remus's shoulder.
He thought quickly. "Actually, Lily, I think it's best if I do rest overnight in the Hospital Wing. My ankle feels a little strange, now to think about it."
She didn't budge an inch. "Madam Pomfrey said you were completely healed."
"Well, no offence, I think I know how I feel best."
Lily shrugged. "We can go back inside and get her to check you up again, I have no problems with that."
He gave up. He had learned long ago that when Lily was in her stubborn mood, it was easier for one to just go with the flow than attempt to head upstream – since one would ultimately be taken in the same direction anyway. No need to prolong the pain.
He followed her dejectedly, half-heartedly wondering what kind of prank James had planned and thinking that the day couldn't possibly get any worse.
He was so busy contemplating the woes of his life and he didn't pay attention as he stepped through the portrait hole into the Gryffindor common room behind Lily. It was only when he inadvertently crashed into her that he looked up, startled, and did a double take.
The room had been transformed. The usually bright lighting had been dimmed and candles lined the walls in alternating red and white. The Marauders' usual spot in front of the fireplace had been replaced with a cozy-looking two-seater couch in a plush rosy red. To the side stood a table and two chairs, on top of which a mini feast was impressively arranged. To his amusement, there was even a little basket filled with Honeydukes' finest chocolate. The most breathtaking part, however, was the ceiling – it had somehow been charmed to show a clear black night sky with pallid stars studded across the surface. He marveled at the complex charmwork, wondering briefly how on earth James had managed to get Lily to help him do that. There was no way he could have done it on his own.
A small, embarrassed cough from the other side of the room startled him out of his reverie. He looked around only to realize that Lily had disappeared – when did she leave? – but then all thoughts flew out of his head as his gaze moved to the bottom of the dormitory staircases and he inhaled sharply. There, looking slightly sheepish with both hands tucked into the pocket of his robes, stood Sirius.
###
It was a ridiculous plan.
Sirius told himself this over and over even as he helped James lay a white linen tablecloth over a long bench that Peter had talked the house elves into lending, along with the copious amount of food that was now apparently spread over the table. It continued to echo in his head as he watched James and Peter herd every single Gryffindor student upstairs to the dorms and then lock the doors shut so no one could go back into the common room. The thought seemed ingrained into him as he paced up and down the stairs in agitation, glancing at the door every two seconds. Lily had said she would go and fetch Remus – what the hell was taking her so long?
It didn't help that James had only informed him of the plan about ten minutes before it was put into action. He wasn't even sure James would have consulted him at all but for the fact he'd wanted Sirius's opinion on Remus's favorite chocolates. (It was Honeyduke's darkest dark chocolate – there was something about the way Remus closed his eyes to savor the flavor of pure chocolate richness whenever he ate it that made Sirius's stomach turn cartwheels.) James had simply assumed that Sirius would not only go along but in addition be undyingly grateful for the effort that he had gone to in getting him and Remus together.
And while Sirius had to admit that the display was pretty impressive, he couldn't help but think that a romantic setting was not really what Remus was looking for or would particularly appreciate at this moment. He'd almost talked himself out of it thirty-two times (he'd counted) in the course of his wait and had successfully oscillated between what felt like the entire spectrum of human emotion – guilt, anticipation, anxiety, excitement, fear, eagerness and nervousness to the point that he thought he was going insane. But in the end what compelled him to stay was simply the thought of seeing Remus happy again, to fix his mistake, just so he could wipe from his memory the expression of bewildered hurt and confused rejection on Remus's face as he'd pushed him away from their earlier kiss. And according to James (Sirius still wasn't entirely sure he believed him), this would accomplish that.
He'd finally sat down on the bottom step of the staircase to wait. But just as he did, the portrait hole swung open and Lily appeared, followed by a rather downcast Remus.
He stood, heart flip-flopping. Remus looked tired and disheveled, but just the sight of him made Sirius want to do a complete re-enactment of the skit they had done earlier – or actually, just a very specific part of the skit.
It probably wasn't the best way to start this off, though. And as yet, Remus still hadn't shown any sign of noticing him. Lily brushed past him on her way to the stairs, sending him a pointed look before disappearing into the girls' dormitory. He coughed. Watched Remus look around, startled, spot him, and then the array of mixed emotions that fought across his face before his guards came up and his expression became entirely neutral.
They both stood there, on opposite ends of the room, not speaking. The silence grew heavier by the second until Sirius couldn't stand it anymore.
Clearing his throat, he said awkwardly, "Hey."
Remus stuffed both hands in his pockets, imitating Sirius's pose. "Hi," he replied, then fell silent again.
Sirius was screaming inside his head. This damn atmosphere. It's making everything so awkward.
He cast around desperately for a conversation topic – anything – that could dislodge this uncomfortable quiet.
Across the room, he could sense Remus attempting to make an effort. The werewolf waved a hand vaguely at his surroundings and asked, "This James's idea?"
Relieved, Sirius gave a half-shrug, half-nod of assent. "Yeah. You know how Prongs likes to meddle."
"Thought this doesn't really seem your style," Remus said. Then, as though he couldn't help himself, his lips quirked into a smiled.
And that was all Sirius needed. He covered the space between them in five long strides and wrapped his arms around the slightly startled werewolf, burying his face in Remus's shoulder. "I'm sorry about earlier, Moony," he breathed, voice slightly muffled. "I – panicked."
Hardly daring to believe it, heart pounding wildly, Remus asked hesitantly, "So – you weren't disgusted or anything?"
Sirius let out a bark of laughter against his shoulder. "Merlin, no, Remus. It – I was probably as far from disgusted as you can get. I –" Sirius could feel a blush rising in his cheeks. "I really enjoyed it."
"Oh." Remus tried his best to remain composed, even though every bit of him wanted to break out into a ridiculous dance at Sirius's words. Then the tiny remaining rational part of his brain sounded a bell and he stepped back from Sirius's embrace abruptly, his heart leaping at the look of disappointment on Sirius's face. "Hang on. I think we have to get something clear here first."
Looking a little nervous, Sirius nodded.
"Here's the thing." Remus cleared his throat, then cleared it again. "I – uh, that is, this isn't just – I mean, I – aargh!" He uttered a growl and clutched at his hair. "Wait," he snapped at Sirius, who had opened his mouth. "Just let me say it." Taking a deep breath, he finally, after years of waiting, managed to dislodge the words from his throat. "I love you."
He closed his eyes, waiting for the apocalypse.
Nothing happened.
Cracking open an eyelid, he saw Sirius standing with hands shoved back in his pockets, looking like he was battling some furious internal battle.
Uh oh. "You don't have to—" Remus began hastily.
"I love you too," Sirius blurted.
Remus blinked.
"I love you," Sirius repeated. Astonishment reflected in his wide eyes, like he was surprised by his own confession and by how easy it was. "I love you, I love you, I love you." A look of pure delight spread over his face. "Good Godric, Moony, I do! I love you." His voice was filled with wonderment.
Remus didn't know whether to laugh, cry or shake Sirius senseless because really, why couldn't Sirius have just said so earlier?
Then again, why hadn't he done so himself?
Sirius thought of the months, no, years, wasted. Because his feelings for Remus had been harboring inside him for a long time now, the evidence gathering and building slowly over time until he was forced to take notice and confront it. And even then, which had been a good few months ago, he still hadn't had the courage to realize it for what it was.
"I am an idiot," he realized out loud.
He heard Remus let out a small chuckle. "That I won't argue with," he agreed, then said lightly, "Come here." And this time, Sirius came to him with no inhibitions at all.
Remus reached out and took both of Sirius's hands, raised the right one to his lips and pressed a kiss on the inside of his palm, just above the wrist.
The tender intimacy of the gesture sent shivers down Sirius's spine. He encircled his arms around Remus's waist and pulled him towards him until they were pressed together, then finally sealed it with a gentle kiss. He wanted the simple purity of the moment to last forever.
After a moment, Remus pulled back slightly. "Just promise me one thing."
"Anything."
"No more secrets." Remus gave him a stern look – or as stern a look as he could muster under the circumstances.
Sirius smiled. "No more secrets," he promised. "For both of us. Satisfied?" And he pulled the werewolf into a rough kiss.
Remus grinned, eyes sparkling, and proceeded to show Sirius just how satisfied he was with that answer.
###
At breakfast the next day, James watched with a mixture of pride and glee – and just a touch of wistfulness – as Remus and Sirius strolled into the Great Hall, holding hands. They sat down together, exchanging shy smiles.
Peter leaned over to James and whispered, "Good thing you managed to find Moony's essay last night. Padfoot seriously owes us for doing his for him and giving it in, too."
"Shhh," James hissed, piling his plate high with sausages. "Moony doesn't know." His attention was suddenly diverted when Lily arrived and – to everyone's astonishment – slid into the vacant seat next to James.
"Morning," she said cheerfully, smoothly slipping the serving spoon out of James's grasp (he seemed to be frozen in shock) so she could drop some sausages onto her own plate. "How was your night, Remus?" she added with a sly smile.
Remus turned faintly pink, but managed to shoot back, "Rather excellent, Lily. Thanks for helping out. Oh, by the way, what was that about not sinking to the – what did you call it – 'Marauder level' again yesterday?"
He flashed his most innocent smile as James spluttered into his pumpkin juice.
Remus turned to Peter, a small frown crossing his face. "Hey, Pete, come to think of it – you didn't ask for any help on the Transfiguration essay. Did you manage to finish it yourself and give it in?"
Peter choked violently on a bit of scrambled egg. "Erm, yeah. We all gave it in this morning." He cast an anxious glance at James. "Prongs helped me."
"One Marauder must always help another Marauder in need, Moony," James intoned, having seemed to have recovered his composure. "That's just one of my many great points, Lily," he added, with what he assumed was an appropriately charming-yet-humble smile.
"Pity I haven't seen any more of these great points of yours, Potter," she replied tartly, but there was a hint of a smile on her face.
"That's nice of you, Prongs," Remus's gaze landed on Sirius. "Hang on – Padfoot, when did you finish yours? I never saw you working on it."
Sirius looked shifty. "I finished it early," he lied.
Remus's eyes narrowed. A rather suspicious thought had just entered his mind. "Please don't tell me—" He began, but wasn't allowed to continue as Sirius had thrown himself at him in desperation and was now in the process of snogging him senseless.
And Remus decided that, really, in light of everything, Transfiguration essays didn't matter much at all.
End.