Continuation from the previous chapter. Enjoy :)

Two days before the moon, Remus was getting itchy. He'd been enjoying his alone time with Sirius, both of them taking full advantage of the uninterrupted time to explore each other's bodies thoroughly. And when they weren't tangled up in bed, they were mostly in the Common Room, tangled up in a single armchair, Remus reading a book and Sirius watching the fire or watching Remus read. But as the change got closer, Remus found that it was getting a little uncomfortable to be so close to Sirius all of the time with no other distractions. His sense of smell was only growing stronger, and the scent of Sirius, of his arousal, was so intoxicating that Remus was finding it hard to resist him.

But last night had scared Remus. They'd been making love, and Sirius had asked that they try with him on his front. Remus had eagerly complied, and soon he'd been staring down as the other boy's pale spine arched beneath him, watching as Sirius turned his flushed face to look at Remus over his shoulder, teeth firmly embedded in his lower lip. God, he'd looked heavenly. He'd breathed in Sirius' scent as he leaned over his back, and just at that same moment the change of position had caused Sirius to swear in French.

Remus had felt his control slip away completely, even if it was only for five seconds. When he came to, he was slamming into Sirius roughly, his teeth buried into the boy's neck so hard that he'd almost broken the skin. Remus had recoiled, realisation hitting him so hard that it knocked the breath from him. The wolf had surfaced, taking charge and pinning its mate underneath it as it took what it wanted, what it needed. Remus had felt sick for hours afterwards, even after Sirius had talked him down enough that he could sit in his lap and hold Remus, telling him over and over that everything was alright, that he was fine, that Remus hadn't done anything wrong.

Remus still felt wrong, even more so than usual. The idea that he could have really hurt Sirius had made him promise to himself that he would never put them in that position again, would never be intimate with Sirius in the week leading up to the moon, if it meant risking his boyfriend's safety.

So Remus had very carefully avoided touching Sirius all day, making sure to only take shallow breaths when he sat close, ignoring the way his body ached at the lack of contact, the way his mind screamed at him to touch Sirius, to taste him, to claim him. He'd made them go for a long walk that afternoon when it was all getting too much, and as soon as they'd returned to their dorm room he had pointedly picked up his book and sank down onto his bed, spreading himself across it so that Sirius would struggle to join him.

He didn't know what Sirius thought of this sudden change in his behaviour, but so far the other boy hadn't really questioned it. He'd just gone along with what Remus wanted, chattering away as though nothing was different. But when Remus started to read, something seemed to change. Sirius had paused at the foot of Remus' bed for a moment before he walked over to the study desk next to his own bed. He sat down on the chair in the most awkward position possible, his legs folded up against the edge of the desk and his back slumped against the back of the chair. He sighed loudly and repeatedly to himself, and after a while Remus found that he couldn't resist commenting.

'You're going to get a cramp if you sit like that,' he said, without looking up from his book.

'Ah, see Moony, you do care about my wellbeing!' Sirius crowed, spinning in his chair to grin at Remus, who just rolled his eyes and kept reading.

'No,' Remus teased, turning a page. 'I just don't want to have to listen to you bitch about your pins and needles for the next 20 minutes.'

'Sure, Moony,' Sirius chuckled, but he shifted in the chair anyway, sitting sideways on it and swinging his legs. Remus watched discreetly over the top of his book as Sirius' eyes took a slow tour of the room, clearly looking for something to do. When nothing was sufficient to catch his attention, he turned back to look over at the taller boy. Remus quickly returned to the page in front of him, not having read a single word on it. He carefully kept his face straight as Sirius whined, 'C'mon, Re, I'm bored.'

'Then be a good boy and find something to entertain yourself,' Remus muttered, feigning complete interest in his book. From the corner of his eye, he saw Sirius stand, and stiffened as he began to wander towards him. When he reached the foot of Remus' bed, Sirius reached up and gripped the end of the four-poster, letting himself hang from it. Remus tried desperately to ignore the stirring he felt in his jeans, and his eyes stung with the effort of not looking up, of not taking in the small sliver of pale skin that he knew he'd see where Sirius' shirt would have ridden up.

'Ree-mus,' Sirius sang, but Remus knew that if he didn't ignore him, he'd be at real risk of reaching out and pulling the slender boy onto his bed, underneath him. And he couldn't allow that to happen. He felt the tension in him rise as Sirius continued to pester, swinging back and forth slightly from the wooden post of his bed. 'Remus ... Re ... Reeeeeemuuuuuuuuus!' It was too much.

'What?!' He looked up sharply, and instantly regretted snapping. Sirius' face had crumpled in on itself, his grey eyes abnormally flat, detatched. Remus watched as he let go of the bed frame, dropping lightly back onto his feet, his head hanging slightly as his gaze slid to the floor.

'Never mind,' he whispered and moved away, his back slightly too straight as he sat down properly in his chair and picked up a quill. Remus sighed heavily and finally put his book down to scrub at his face with his rough palms. He took another calming breath, then lowered his hands. Sirius was in the same position, quill still in hand, but he'd made no move to start writing.

'Sirius.' The boy didn't respond, and Remus sat up on his bed, his chest tightening with sudden worry. He tried again. 'Love?'

Sirius turned to face him, and Remus felt his heart stutter. Sirius' eyes were still too empty, his usually handsome face set in an ugly, austere sneer. Remus had only ever seen that look on his face whenever he was reminded of his upbringing or if he received communication from his mother. It was a defense mechanism, a facade to show the world that he didn't care, to hide how much pain and fear those interactions truly caused him. And the idea that Remus' response had put him into that mindset ...

'C'mere.' When Sirius didn't immediately move, Remus' heart almost broke. But he held himself together, forcing himself to open his arms as he murmured brokenly, 'Please, Pads?'

The cloud cleared, and Sirius was up, racing across the room and throwing himself onto Remus' chest. Remus scooped him into his arms and held him close, nuzzling into Sirius' hair and taking deep, soothing lungfuls of his scent. He tightened his grip when a sob wracked Sirius' torso, and moved one of his large, scarred hands up to stroke comfortingly through the smooth black locks.

'I'm sorry,' Sirius hiccupped. 'I'm sorry for whatever it is I've done. Tell me how to make it better.'

'You didn't do anything,' Remus murmured, rocking them both slightly as he kissed Sirius' temple. 'You didn't do anything. It's my fault, I'm sorry.' Sirius pulled back, confusion and concern taking the place of that strange, frozen mask. Remus reached up to wipe away Sirius' tears with the cuff of his jumper, then cupped his face gently, holding his gaze. 'I'm sorry, Sirius. I just ... I'm really struggling to be around you right now.'

Sirius tried to pull away, hurt flashing momentarily across his features, but Remus refused to let go of his face, making him stay where he was. Panic bubbled up in Remus' chest at the thought of Sirius escaping before he could explain himself, and he instantly started babbling.

'Not like that. God, I'm really fucking this up. I meant that, well, it's so close to the moon, and my ... my instincts, I suppose, are all out of whack. My skin itches when I don't touch you, but it burns when I do. I want you so badly that I can hardly think straight, and your smell - fuck, Sirius, your smell - it's driving me insane. It's everywhere and I just can't get enough. But what happened yesterday, I can't let that happen again. I thought it would be easier if I kept some space between us, if I wasn't tempted, but ... ' He trailed off when he realised that Sirius' eyes had become molten. The boy's cheeks against Remus' palms were flushed, his breathing rapid, and his scent had shifted, too.

'Remus,' Sirius breathed, and before Remus could stop him he leaned forwards and pressed their lips together. The groan that escaped Remus was hungry, needy, but he tried to scramble backwards, out of the boy's grasp.

'Sirius, please, dont' - '

'Moony.' Remus stopped. Sirius' face was so, well, so serious, that he couldn't move, couldn't even speak, he just waited for him to go on. 'I don't think that's going to work.'

'What do you - '

'If it's an instinct, then I don't think avoiding giving in to it is going to work. I mean,' Sirius carefully picked up Remus' right hand and ran a pale finger along the raised scar on his palm. The burning trail left behind by his touch almost made Remus' eyes roll in his head, but he concentrated on keeping his gaze fixed on Sirius as he continued, 'Look at what used to happen when the wolf was denied its instincts. Think how much better it's been, since you've had us with you on those nights. When the wolf does what it needs to, it doesn't lash out at itself. I can't see things being much different in this scenario.'

Remus considered this, and he had to admit that Sirius had a point. Remus' pain had been an awful lot worse today than it usually was in the days leading up to his transformation, and he'd felt so hot that he'd had to take off the shirt he'd been wearing under his jumper before they went for their walk, even though it was hardly 2 degrees outside. And now that he was paying attention, he could feel something moving around under his skin, in his bones, almost like the change was starting early ...

'Fuck.' He let his head fall back against the headboard of his bed with a dull thump. He closed his eyes as he tried to think of a way around this, but after a couple of minutes' silence he felt the mattress under his thighs dip. He opened his eyes again and found Sirius kneeling between his splayed legs, surveying him thoughtfully. Remus' gaze travelled down Sirius' slender neck, coming to rest on the angry red welt on the side of his throat, peeking out from where Sirius' shirt collar had shifted. Remus swallowed hard, panic rising in him again. 'I can't, Pads, we can't risk it, it's too dangerous, I might - '

'You're not going to hurt me.' Sirius' voice was soft but firm, and Remus' attention snapped back to his face. The boy had that determined, decided look, the one he got when he'd finally put together all of the pieces of a plan and could see exactly how it should play out. Remus felt a strange sense of foreboding at seeing that look, but Sirius was already talking again. 'You're not going to hurt me, because you're going to let me take control.'

'I don't - '

'Think, Re.' The glint in those grey eyes was making Remus a little nervous, but he had to admit that it was exciting him, too. Sirius with a plan - a relatively calm, controlled Sirius - was a sight to behold. 'I've managed the wolf before. Or rather, it's taken me into consideration. I've put it off from following things in the forest, and we always manage to keep it away from the castle on nights when we go out.' Sirius was bouncing on the mattress a little now, the eagerness to try his idea clearly hard to contain. 'If I can direct the wolf when it's fully present, then what's to say that your instincts can't also be directed?'

'Sirius.' Remus reached out and gripped Sirius' biceps, forcing him to sit still again. He ignored the feeling of fire in his fingers as he held the other boy's arms, looking levelly into his eyes. 'This is a very dangerous idea. What if I hurt you again? What if you can't stop me? What if ... ' his eyes flickered briefly to that mark on Sirius' neck once more, then back up to his stormy eyes. 'What if I do something worse than what I did last night?'

'You won't hurt me, Love,' Sirius soothed again, then rolled his eyes when Remus stared purposely at his neck. 'Even that didn't hurt me. I ... ' He flushed a deep red, but held his head high proudly as he declared, 'I actually quite enjoyed it.'

'You ... ' Remus just gaped at him, and Sirius let out a soft chuckle, reaching up to push one finger under Remus' chin to close his mouth.

'It's not unheard of, to like a bit of rough and tumble now and then,' he said with a wink. Remus just shook his head, trying to process what he had said while pushing away some decidedly inappropriate mental images. Sirius drew his focus back by moving forwards to straddle his lap, settling down comfortably on Remus' thighs and winding his arms around his tanned neck, resting their foreheads together. His breath tickled Remus' lips as he whispered, 'Trust me, Love. This will work. And even if it doesn't quite solve the problem, we'll just keep trying until we find something that does. The sooner we can work something out, the easier the rest of our lives will be.'

Remus felt a sudden stinging in his eyes as Sirius' words hit directly at his heart. As a young boy, a young werewolf, he'd told himself that he would never be able to find someone that would want to be with him, especially when they learned what he was. He'd been so sure that he would never know love, never be able to share his own love, that he'd just written the whole idea off. And yet, here was Sirius Black. Brave, smart, beautiful Sirius Black, already making plans for the rest of their lives together.

'I love you,' he choked, and Sirius grinned down at him before kissing him gently.

'I love you,' he murmured against Remus' lips, then kissed him again, a little more hesitantly. Remus realised that he was giving him the chance to change his mind, to stop him. But he didn't want to stop him. He wanted to find a way to manage this problem, for the future, for a future with the boy in his arms. And if Sirius thought he could do this ... well, Remus had seen him beat much, much worse odds after all.

'Promise me,' Remus panted, pulling away from the kiss to gaze up at Sirius. 'You promise me, if I get too far gone, you'll stop. You get yourself out, you use Incarcerous, you do whatever you can to get away from me, and you go get Madame Pomfrey.' Sirius nodded, and dipped his head to catch Remus' lips again, but Remus gripped his shoulders and held him back, their eyes still locked. 'Promise me, Sirius.'

'I promise,' Sirius whispered, his eyes sincere. Remus stared at him for a moment longer, then pulled him down with a groan, kissing the boy fiercely. Sirius sighed contentedly into his mouth, and shifted in his lap, rubbing against Remus' growing arousal. Remus growled at the feeling, one of his hands winding into Sirius' hair, the other gripping his hip and guiding him in a rocking motion that had them both gasping at the friction it caused. After a few minutes of this, Sirius reached between them and tugged at the hem of Remus' jumper, muttering a gruff, 'Off.'

Remus sat forwards and pulled his jumper off swiftly, but by the time he was free of it Sirius had already removed his own shirt. Remus' eyes fell once more to the mark on his boyfriend's pale, perfect neck, and his stomach lurched. He opened his mouth to say that he'd changed his mind, that he didn't want to do this, that he couldn't risk Sirius' safety, but the words died on his tongue when he saw the almost pleading look on Sirius' face.

'Trust me,' Sirius begged, and after only a heartbeat Remus nodded. He let Sirius strip him, following the boy's directions as he told him to lie flat on his back, told him to lift his hips so that Sirius could slide his trousers off, told him to kiss him, told him to trust him, trust him, trust him. And he did trust Sirius. If anything, Remus knew that Sirius was the one person that he trusted the most. So when Sirius disappeared from his position on top of Remus, he didn't worry. He trusted that Sirius knew what he was doing, that he would be right back.

Sirius did return almost immediately, this time with the bottle of lube from Remus' top drawer. Remus watched with rapt focus as Sirius poured out a small dollop of the liquid, then used it to coat Remus' fingers. He felt that thing under his skin writhing again, and fought to keep it under control as Sirius stripped himself of the rest of his clothing before climbing back onto the bed to once again straddle Remus' waist.

'Touch me,' Sirius instructed, his pupils slightly blown, and Remus used his clean hand to grip Sirius' hip, positioning him so that he could reach behind him and slide a slicked finger against Sirius' entrance. The boy's head fell back, his back arching slightly at the sensation, his eyelids fluttering closed. Remus' whole body was on fire as he pushed, and he felt his finger sink into Sirius' hot, tight hole. The snarl that ripped from Remus was feral, too feral, and Sirius' eyes opened instantly so that he could meet Remus', murmuring, 'Breathe, Love. Stay with me.'

Remus took a few deep, steadying breaths, and found that he was able to soothe the rumbling inside him, was able to keep control of his mind. He moved his finger experimentally, delighting in the way Sirius' eyes rolled. He pulled out, then thrust back in, the fingers of his other hand tight on Sirius' hip, guiding him, supporting him.

'More,' Sirius whimpered, and Remus eagerly obliged, sliding another finger in and keeping up his languid pace. Soon Sirius was rocking back against his hand, the flush on his chest as well as his cheeks now, his eyes glassy and his teeth firmly clamped around his lower lip, only allowing small, breathy sounds of need to escape. Remus focused on Sirius' face, on the desire painted across those sharp features, and poured all of the heat and tension that had been building inside him all day into his efforts to please his boyfriend. But then there was a hand on his chest, and he stilled his movements instantly, looking up at Sirius as he tried to catch his breath. Sirius caught his gaze and dipped to kiss him, saying, 'You're doing so well, mon cher. Très bien. Are you ready to keep going?'

Remus swallowed nervously, but he nodded. He had been pleasantly surprised by how easy it had been to retain control, and he was feeling hopeful as Sirius shifted to kneel up over him. He watched as pale fingers dropped to grasp his stiff cock, holding it steady as Sirius slowly lowered himself, his slicked and stretched hole accepting the intrusion gladly. Remus focused on Sirius' face, trying to ignore the intense need tearing through him, trying to keep his breathing steady, and he thought that he was doing well. Until Sirius sat down against Remus' hips and let out a little cry of pleasure.

It was the sound that broke him. As it echoed in his ears, he felt himself slip, and everything around him blurred, as though he'd just fallen into a deep pool. He watched the light of reality fading and felt the darkness around him tighten, almost suffocating, holding him there as something, something else, tried to get past him. He thrashed, desperate to keep that other thing at bay, and lost his bearings of his way back. He was losing, drowning, and that other thing was winning, slipping over him, past him, reaching for -

'Remus.'

The voice seemed to come from far away, but it was enough to catch his attention, to make him want to pull himself out of this ... wherever he was. Remus fought to swim to the surface of his mind, towards the sound of that voice. It was like pushing through custard, thick and shifting and unyielding, but then he heard his name again, and he pushed harder, determined to get to the voice.

Suddenly, he was out in the open once more. Only something was slightly different. Yes, he was there, but he could sense another presence, too, almost like there was someone sitting right next to him in his mind. He tentatively probed the area around his own consciousness, trying to sense if the other was a threat, but he found it placid, placated. Its sole focus seemed to be on what was happening outside of Remus, but it seemed content to just be there, to participate in the experience, with no desire to take control. He found that he didn't mind that other presence in this state, that he wasn't afraid of it.

'Re?' Remus blinked, and looked up into sharp grey eyes, into a pale but flushed face surrounded by soft black hair. The face was a little cautious, but full of so much love and concern that Remus knew he wasn't in any danger. His own heart swelled, and he heard another voice, his own voice, saying a word. Just one word - no, a name. A name that both of his consciousnesses seemed to know and respond to favourably.

The face above him instantly relaxed, and Remus felt lust ripple through him as the other boy - that was right, another boy, like him, like Remus - shifted against his body. The boy continued to rock against him, and Remus could feel his hard shaft sliding in and out of a slick, tight heat. The other part of his mind rumbled its approval, but made no move to interrupt. There was no need to disturb this, no need to take over, and Remus found himself more and more present as his pleasure built and built.

'Sirius,' he breathed again, and the boy above him beamed, speeding up his movements as Remus' fingers tightened on his hips, urging him on.

'Oui, mon amour,' Sirius whimpered, his head falling back as he rode Remus, his hands on Remus' chest. Remus felt his ribs start vibrating, could hear himself letting out an almost continuous sound, not dissimilar to the rumbling he'd sensed from the other consciousness in his mind. Sirius must have felt it too, under his splayed fingers, as he looked down at Remus' chest, then into Remus' eyes. Remus could hardly see any of his irises now, his pupils were blown so wide with desire, and Remus wanted nothing more than to reach up and pull Sirius down, to kiss him deeply. But he didn't trust himself enough yet to move his hands from their place on Sirius' hips, and a small whine of frustration escaped him.

Almost as though he'd spoken his need out loud, he saw understanding flash across those darkened eyes before Sirius was leaning forward to crush his lips to Remus'. The change of angle caused them both to groan, and Remus focused on keeping his hips still as he opened his mouth to let Sirius' tongue slide between his lips. Sirius shifted his hands from Remus' chest and planted one of them on the mattress beside his head, breaking their kiss as he renewed his pace, rolling his hips back and forth, impaling himself again and again on Remus' cock.

His other hand slid between them so that he could grip his own shaft, and Remus couldn't look away from Sirius' face as he began to stroke himself in time with his thrusts. The evident pleasure on his face was delicious, and Remus was so transfixed by his expression that he almost jumped in surprise when Sirius cried out and spilled onto his chest. But almost immediately, he was clenching down around Remus, still rocking as he rode out his orgasm, and the increased pressure and stuttering motions he made as he came sent Remus over the edge, growling Sirius' name as he pushed him roughly back onto his shaft, releasing himself deep inside Sirius. The boy gave one last twitch of his hips, then he collapsed forwards onto Remus' chest.

They lay there for some time, breathing hard but hardly moving. Remus felt the other presence in his mind recede once more, and let out a relieved sigh when he found that it had taken the awful restlessness with it. Cool fingers pressed against his cheek, and he looked down into anxious, searching grey eyes.

'I'm here,' he breathed, and Sirius gave him a brilliant, if tired, grin.

'Told you it would work,' he chuckled, and Remus rolled his eyes as he leaned down for a deep kiss.

'Of course.' He pulled back to stare at Sirius, winding his arms around him and holding his slim body close. 'I love you.'

'Je t'aime,' Sirius murmured as he nuzzled into Remus' warm chest.