Title: Dating Remus Lupin

Disclaimer: Brilliant Art Work Credits: kogepanM's siriusremus ( kogepanm. /art/ HP-siriusremus -15908325)

Warnings: Slight AU, Sillyness, Daft Sirius, Broody Remus

Rating: M

Chapter One: Introducing Remus Lupin

An appropriate way to narrate this story would perhaps be to start from the very beginning when Sirius Black was born. It was a supposedly lovely January, though one could never tell in London, where the weather usually did a limbo between dreary or downright depressing. Sirius's mother, a young Walburga Black, felt herself above the humiliation of having to spread her legs and expose herself to the healers for a normal child birth. Thus, she coped with it in the way she found most suitable (and most others didn't): she had copious amounts of illegal potion and quite a bit of wandwork. Later, these potions would be put down as the reason for Sirius's questionable mental health.

James Potter, who was born only two months before was considered a suitable playmate for the young Black. Both boys were from respectable pureblood families (unlike those disgraceful Weasleys) and both considered as the heirs to their family fortune. Thus, both were the princes of their family and bosom buddies. James Potter knew everything about Sirius Black, right down to his last quirk. If asked to write a short summary of his best friend, James would highlight the following points:

Sirius Black was a rebel. No one quite understood exactly what fuelled this rebellion, though Mrs. Black often liked to blame the Potters. In any case, Sirius liked to do anything and everything against the rules, no matter how ridiculous. Every year, he adopted a new way to make Walburga Black scream herself hoarse. In their first year at Hogwarts, it had been Gryffindor banners plastered all over his room. In their second, it had been long hair and Muggle clothing. In their third, it had been the bikini girl posters; and finally in their fourth year, Sirius introduced the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black to David Bowie and Led Zeppelin. Of course, along with the heavy metal also came the atrocious leather jacket and a studded collar.

Sirius Black was also insane. Now, when asked, Sirius would vehemently deny being anything like his parents, chiefly his mother. Unfortunately, God and genetics have a sense of humour. Sirius not only inherited his good looks from Mrs. Black, but also her temper and complete, utter insanity. James remembered a time when Sirius had tried to jump off The Leaky Cauldron's fifth floor just for fun. The concept of breaking bones or possible cracking his head and bleeding all over the place seemed quite foreign to the young Black.

Sirius Black didn't like girls much. Sirius's cootie period lasted all of second year. In their third year, after James declaring his undying love for Lily Evans, Sirius decided he to up his mate and got himself a girlfriend, lewd posters (see fact one), and more cocky charm than James ever remembered him having. It lasted up till fourth year when Sirius had his first kiss and decided his girlfriend and month old calamari tasted exactly the same.

Sirius Black was gay. James was of course completely clueless about this despite fact number three and the various posters of David Bowie and bare chested Quidditch players. In fact, even after Sirius declared himself gay to James in fourth year, James refused to believe it. Not because he was uncomfortable by any means, but because after all these years of knowing Sirius, he reckoned that fact four was simply a manifestation of fact one. In fact, James didn't believe Sirius at all until Remus Lupin came into their lives.

So while Sirius's birth would be the most appropriate start to a story like this, perhaps an easier way to go about things is start on the summer before James and Sirius's fifth year. It was a hot summer, almost too hot because both boys had spent most of the day in the pond beside the Potter residence. They were skinny dipping, of course, because swimming wasn't half as fun when you had clothes on and by the end of the day, both were sporting spectacular tans that would earn them an hour's worth of Mrs. Potter rubbing aloe-vera on to their skin. Before the aloe-vera, however, is where the pivotal conversation of our story lies.

Thus, we can say it started in the park one evening, when the sky was somewhat pinkish from the sun coming to a set. The boys were exhausted and slightly reluctant to go home and confine themselves after having such a brilliant day. So they were procrastinating in a children's park nearby, doing tricks on the swing and sliding down the sliders on their feet because they were too big to sit on them. Sirius's favourite was of course the jungle gym and it was swinging there that he made his confession to James…

'Cor, I hate being gay,' Sirius declared, swinging by his knees on the jungle gym and looking at James upside down. His long, wet hair swished around underneath him and in a moment of irritation, he swept it up in a quick ponytail and tied it securely.

James pushed up his glasses to roll his eyes at his best friend briefly, before going back to the book he and Sirius had nicked from his father's study (Hexing Your Enemies). 'You're only fifteen, Sirius, you don't know if you're gay,' James replied off handedly, dog-earing one of the pages he knew he would try once school started and Severus Snape was in clear sight.

Sirius frowned, his handsome face already red from all the blood rushing to his head and his grey eyes bulging slightly. 'I thought we already had this conversation. I don't like birds…at all.'

'You've only ever kissed one,' James reasoned. 'You can't judge by that.' Briefly, he wondered if this change in sexuality was Sirius's new phase and if he was planning on telling Mrs. Black about it any time soon. For Sirius's safety, James hoped not. The Blacks weren't above hexes when it came to child discipline.

'That one was enough,' Sirius replied in disgust, forcing James to remember their conversation of Sirius's Mollusk-girlfriend. James hoped to Merlin Lily Evans didn't taste like that. Not that he would ever stop fancying her because of it, but it would be a hindrance to their soon-to-be relationship.

'Anyway, I'm gay.' Sirius repeated in case James didn't hear the first time. 'I'm a miserable gay man.'

James snorted at "man" but didn't comment any further. 'I guess you're going to whine all day long until I ask you why exactly you're miserable.'

'Of course.' Sirius grinned, straightening himself up to sit between two bars and tilting a little from the sudden head rush.

James rolled his eyes exasperatedly, conceding to Sirius's melodrama. There was obviously no way out of this situation, so he closed his book and focused all his attention to his friend. 'Alright, why do you hate being gay?'

Sirius sighed dramatically. 'I can't find anyone to ask out,' he replied, resting his head in his hands. 'I mean, it's the 70's for Merlin's sake; you'd think there'd be a couple of fairy boys running around in Hogwarts dateless.'

James had a very disturbing mental picture of Sirius with feathery wings and a pink frock. He shook it off quickly, not wanting to lose his lunch or his sanity in the bushes.

'I mean, even a pillock like you has had a girlfriend or two. Why do I have to be alone?'

James groaned, knowing the inevitable speech of vanity that was to come. Sirius was a Black after all, and the apple might have fallen a good distance from the tree, but the apple was still a bloody apple. It was not an orange.

'My charm and insatiable good looks are completely going to waste,' Sirius complained on cue as he grabbed the bar again, this time with his hands, and swung like a rabid monkey.

Sirius was wearing James's too small t-shirt this summer because he couldn't be bothered to unpack his own trunk. As a result, he ended showing more skin than covering. Not that any of the neighbourhood girls were complaining. Sirius was undeniably good looking after all, but it was still a massive blow to James's ego to know that despite being straight and available, his supposedly gay best friend still got more attention than he did. If only those girls could hear their conversation now…

'I can't be the only one there, right? Sirius asked, looking intently at James. 'I mean…I'm fifteen…should be shagging some hot bloke this year…'

In a moment of brotherly affection, James realised that Sirius's eyes were no longer holding that eternal glint of mischief or humour. He was being quite genuine, his expression almost pleading. James wondered if it was really about having a boyfriend or a companion; someone to make Sirius feel a little less alienated and perhaps more like he belonged somewhere. Maybe Sirius just needed someone to relate to and not just shag. Figuring that asking Sirius if those were his real motives would be pointless, James decided to shrug casually and provide the easiest answer he could find:

'You could ask Lupin out.'

Sirius stopped swinging. 'Lupin?'

James nodded, opening his book again to appear less intimidating and more blasé. There were limits to manly conversations, and talking about feelings and gushing about date prospects was definitely crossing the border. 'He's in our year, same dorms as Frank actually…'

Sirius looked perplexed. 'I don't think I've ever even heard of him. How can he be in our year, in Gryffindor, and still be unnoticeable?'

James scratched his neck idly. 'He's the bloke all those rumours spread about last year. The one who was caught snogging Beater, Patrick Orton.'

The surprise on Sirius's face was enough to know that James had his attention. No one really knew how much of the rumours were true really, but James and a few more players on the team had had front row seats to the whole spectacle that it had created. Sirius, who hadn't been on the team until last year, when Orton suddenly transferred to a Quidditch Academy mid semester, knew only the few basic facts. James wasn't much of a gossip monger and they'd never really discussed it until now, with Sirius eagerly jumping off the bars to sit right in front of James.

Sirius didn't even try to hide his excitement. Everyone knew that anything with a little danger and gossip only served to attract and entice him even further. 'So, Lupin's the one?' he asked James, eyes gleaming with simply the prospect of dating someone infamous. 'Merlin, I thought he'd be older. Orton was a seventh year…that's like child molestation or something!'

'Orton's a git. Lily thinks so too,' James added bluntly, as if Lily justified his statement, which she did. Lily was the smartest girl in school and when she said or thought something, she was always right; even she claimed the moon was made of cheese, James would believe her. 'Minute those rumours reached the Quidditch field, he backed out and blamed Lupin for everything. Don't know why; people weren't angry or anything…just curious. But he went ahead and said he was under the influence of some love potion Lupin concocted and what not. And most everyone believed him, too, just 'cause he was the Quidditch captain.'

Sirius furrowed his eyebrows in thought. 'How do you know Orton was lying?'

'I take class with Lupin… Care of Magical Creatures…' James explained when he remembered that Sirius had preferred to take Muggle Studies instead. 'He doesn't look the kind. Awful quiet. Just keeps to himself mostly and never bothers nobody. Everyone gave him a lot of shite after Orton, but he never said a word.'

James remembered how unfeeling the Lupin boy had appeared, his already stoic face looking as if he'd shut down completely. When Lily and Alice had stood up for him against the other tormenting boys, Lupin had simple looked at them in a way that warned them to back off and not get involved. James reckoned Lupin looked almost dangerous at that moment, and knew he wasn't the only one who thought so. A lot of people still teased the boy about his affair with Orton, but unlike other bully victims, no one ever touched Lupin or picked physical fights with him. It was almost as if they were scared to get too close. Then again, who wouldn't be; the boy had the most lifeless and cold amber eyes James had ever seen.

'Anyway,' James continued, breaking out of his thoughts, 'if he was the Love Potion kind, I reckon he would have done something to get revenge, don't you? You might have a hard time getting to him though. The boy's practically mute. I've only ever heard him answer attendance.'

Sirius waved it off, unconcerned. 'Fixable,' he replied, obviously confident of his own charm and influence. 'What's he sound like though, do you remember?'

James didn't remember actually and he had to try very hard not to laugh at Sirius's worried face when he replied, 'A bit like a girl actually. Sort of squeaky.'

'So he hasn't grown up yet. That's alright. I mean, your voice still squeaks occasionally.'

'It does not!' James yelled, indignant and hoping Lily Evans didn't think his voice was squeaky. 'And you know what else? Lupin's really short!' James lied vengefully. 'And he's got spots all over his face and he's bald!'

Sirius laughed loudly, falling on his back and clutching his stomach. 'He sounds like a dream, Jamie-boy. I can't wait.'

James huffed, pulling moodily at the grass underneath him.

'What else can you tell me about him?'

James considered telling another atrocious lie, but decided Sirius could use at least a little bit of information about the Lupin boy. After all, despite being a royal prick, Sirius always helped his conquests with Lily. It was only logical to return the favour.

'Good with animals,' James told Sirius, kicking him playfully on the knee when Sirius sprawled on the grass like he owned it. 'We had this class about unicorns and he was the only boy they came close to. Nearly speared Peter's fat arse when he tried to get close.' James grinned fondly at the memory. 'I heard Lily and Alice saying he's just like Snow White.'

Sirius looked up inquiringly. 'What's that?'

James shrugged. 'Search me. I think it's 'cause he's so pale.'

Sirius frowned thoughtfully. 'So this Lupin…he's pale…skinny…tall and spotless…quiet…and good with animals. Not too awful. That settles it then.' Sirius gave a triumphant smirk at James and stood up to strike a valiant pose. 'Jamie-boy, Lupin is my boyfriend from here forth, and as my brother in arms and second cousin thrice removed, it is your duty to accept us as a couple and give us your best wishes and your finest china!'

James raised a sardonic eyebrow. 'You don't even know his first name.'

'Psh. Don't be so materialistic. Love knows no boundaries,' Sirius declared, head held high and hands rested on his hips. 'Names are insignificant.'

James rolled his eyes. 'You haven't even asked him yet.'

'He's just been betrayed by his boyfriend, James. He needs a shoulder to cry on, someone to hold him and comfort him, and bring a smile to his face.' Sirius grinned conspiratorially and held his arms open wide. 'Who do you think is the perfect candidate? The opportunity is ideal. He's mine!' The last part of his speech was punctuated by an oddly pitchy war cry.

James groaned, feeling the beginnings of impending doom. Well, at least it was going to be an interesting year…

Later, if asked how he and Remus Lupin met, Sirius would retell the story as love at first sight. He would quite romantically say that he had been standing on one side of the platform while Remus on the other, both of them static against the flurry of Hogwarts student and parents. Their eyes would meet and it would be as if light was shining down upon Lupin from the heavens, telling Sirius that Remus was 'the one' even before James pointed him out. There would be electricity and shivers, and time would stand still just for them.

'We were perfect opposites,' he would say with a dreamy grin. Remus Lupin, the prim and polished Mod, and Sirius Black, the rebellious rouge. It was a picture so completely imperfect that it could only be defined as art at its highest peak. Both boys would realise this perfect imperfection simultaneously of course. They would then drift closer to each other without realising and within minutes, their hands and lips would meet in perfect union. They would then of course, proceed to shag in an empty train compartment (protection used of course)for four hours, after which they would exchange I love you's.

At the end of Sirius's tale, James would roll his eyes and point out that Sirius hadn't even known Lupin's first name when they'd met. But of course, as mentioned previously, Sirius wasn't materialistic. Names were insignificant in the due course of true love. Still, facts were slightly exaggerated for entertainment value and in truth, what really happened was er…slightly more different.

'I don't see him!'

'There, farther to the left!' James yelled over the crowd, turning Sirius's head aggressively to face a middle-aged man with greying hair and a rather large school trunk, standing in front of the Hogwarts Express.

'Are you taking the mickey?' Sirius shouted crossly. 'That one's got to be at least in his thirties. There's no way he could've failed enough times to be in Hogwarts!'

James smacked him up the head. 'That's his dad, you prick! The boy beside him!'

Sirius huffed but looked back again, only to have his eyes widen and his breath catch. 'Bloody hell,' he cried, standing on his tip toes to see better. 'Shite, mate, you didn't tell me he was bloody gorgeous!'

'He is?' James asked, also standing on his tip toes to confirm Sirius's statement.

Sirius looked at him disbelievingly. Even a straight man could see that Lupin was damn fit. The boy had neat light brown hair that reminded Sirius of beach sands and calming waves; somewhat longish, but not like Sirius's which was held together in an untidy braid to below his shoulder blades. Lupin was also, blissfully, spotless, save for a single prominent beauty mark underneath his eye that Sirius really, really wanted to kiss. Those eyes though; they were what really captured Sirius's attention the most and made Lupin stand out amongst the crowd. They were amber of the lightest kind and…sad…almost mournful…

'He's Mod,' Sirius noticed further with a cringe, taking in Lupin's attire: a dark, full-sleeved turtle neck over smartly fit grey trousers, and black school robes hanging open neatly at the shoulders. He even had a cane, dark polished wood, but not the aristocratic kind that Sirius's father carried. Sirius thought it gave certain flair and personality to Lupin's stature; still, it did clash with Sirius's image terribly. Sirius, who was about ripped jeans and leather and anything that was loud, wild, and obnoxious. They were complete opposites; what would he talk to Lupin about? The boy probably liked Frank Sinatra, for Merlin's sake.

I did it myyy wayyy!

Sirius shivered at the very thought of it.

'I thought he was just depressed,' James said finally, after spending a good minute surveying Lupin's clothes. 'Honestly, I think you've got him wrong.'

Sirius looked at the impossibly dark and thick lashes framing the boy's amber eyes and sighed. 'I doubt I did. 'This isn't good…I mean…he probably listens to The Jam and Wizard's Eye, Jamie. They do rock and roll in suits. It's disgraceful!'

James looked at Sirius as if he couldn't care less. 'Well, if you're not really interested. I guess Lupin can mend his broken heart alone…'

Sirius startled. 'Now, I never said that…'

'You'd better go catch him then, 'cause he's already gone in…' James replied, his expression superior. 'I haven't asked Evans out this year, so I'll leave you to yourself, shall I?'

Sirius grinned, checking out his reflection in the metal counter and straightening his studded collar. 'Don't come running to me with tentacles on your face again. Those suckers pulled out my hair last time.'

Sirius dodged James's punch and ran into the already moving train, quickly making his job to peek into all the compartments and running into quite a few couples heavily snogging. On any other occasion, Sirius would have grouched about disgusting displays and lovesick fools, but he was in an unusually good mood today. After all, he and Lupin were soon going to be one of those disgusting couples without an ounce of decency. The thought sent him whistling through the hall, bounce in every step.

He finally found Lupin at the end compartment, sitting alone and looking out of the window with the same sad expression Sirius had caught him with earlier. 'Missing home already?' Sirius asked, breaking the silence as he walked in and closed the door behind him.

Lupin looked up at him briefly and then turned back to the window, but not before Sirius saw his eyes harden slightly. The miserable expression was gone, replaced by a more guarded and reserved one.

'I don't blame you,' Sirius continued, seating himself on the seat opposite Lupin's. 'I mean, Grimmauld Place is horrid, but I do miss Mr. and Mrs. Potter. They're the best and I stay with them most of the summer. Mrs. Potter bakes the best cakes in the world. You should try them sometime.'

Lupin continued to ignore him, much to Sirius's chagrin. James had mentioned that the boy didn't speak much, but Lupin could at least make an effort to acknowledge his presence. In any case, Sirius wasn't giving up that easily. Lupin was the love of his life, after all, and love was a rocky road (or something like that).

'So, what courses do you take? I know you take Magical Creatures with my mate, James, and you have to take a couple of others since they're compulsory.' Again, Sirius found himself accompanied by silence. James hadn't mentioned Lupin's attitude problem. 'I think you sit towards the end or something, 'cause I never actually see you in class. Don't blame you, though. It's great when you want to take a nap during Binns' lessons.'

Lupin blinked and Sirius knew he'd gotten the beginnings of a reaction. It wasn't quite the smile he'd expected and Lupin didn't look like the barking laughter type, but it was definitely better than the stoic and reserved expression he'd been keeping around Sirius for so long.

'You should sit with me, James and Peter in the feast this time,' Sirius offered with a broad smile, 'We throw food at the Slytherins when the Professors aren't watching and James had been working on this prank the whole summer. He won't tell me what it is, but it's going to be brilliant! And then there are the ickle first years, of course…always susceptible to a good scare.'

'I'm a prefect,' Lupin replied stonily and Sirius thought he was going to die from overstimulation.

They were the first words Lupin had spoken to him in almost half an hour worth of Sirius blabbering, albeit they weren't very kind. Lupin's voice wasn't squeaky or pitchy at all, but well matured and very, very sexy in Sirius's opinion at least. It wasn't so much as his voice as the way he'd spoken – just slightly higher than a whisper and smooth as the words effortlessly flowed past his lips in an enticing melody. The same pink lips Sirius found himself staring at for a good ten minutes before registering that Lupin was a prefect.

A prefect…

Not good.

Dating a prefect was the worst move for a troublemaking prankster like him. Lupin could deduct points, try to force rules unto him, preach morals and etiquette, maybe even want to change him or make him stop playing pranks altogether! Next thing he knew, Sirius would be joining the student body and upholding his duties as a citizen and student of Hogwarts.

No. No. No.

That just wouldn't do.

Sirius bit his lip and looked at Lupin intently. Damn, but he wanted the boy badly. How was Sirius supposed to decide between such a perfect picture of gorgeousness (also potential shag candidate) and his dignity and self preservation? It was impossible!

Unless.

Unless Sirius changed him first; and turned him into a certified Marauder and mischief maker. After all, he was the most insistent of the lot and when he put his mind to it, there was no stopping until he got what he wanted. Besides, once he and Lupin were dating, Lupin would have no choice but to listen to him. That's what boyfriends did, didn't they?

'Anything from the trolley, lovies?'

Sirius looked up at the Trolley Lady – Martha (as her name tag read), and grinned. 'What can I get you, Lupin? Anything you want – it's my treat.'

Sirius turned around to see that Lupin had already gotten up and was paying the woman for a handful of chocolate frogs. 'The usual, eh, love?' she commented kindly, also adding a couple of Pumpkin Pasties into a paper bag for his convenience. 'You don't look so well this year. Are you alright, Remus?'

Remus. The boy's name was Remus.

Sirius and Remus.

Remus and Sirius.

SiriusRemusSiriusRemus.

'I'm fine, ma'am,' Remus replied in that wonderful way of his, all quiet charm and pampered words. Sirius wanted to eat him whole and then some.

The door slid shut as Martha left the compartment, and Sirius noticed that Remus was leaning quite heavily on his cane, as he switched the bag into an unused hand. It was only when the boy started limping that Sirius realised that the cane was perhaps not so much of a Mod fashion statement than a support crutch.

'You're limping,' He stated the obvious, still a little in shock as he noticed bandages wound tightly around Lupin's right leg, beneath his trousers.

'Well spotted,' Remus muttered sarcastically. The fluidity and ease with which he used his cane told Sirius that this was probably not the first time it was being used. Sirius wondered if Lupin's leg was broken.

'I mean, why are you limping?' Sirius rephrased, getting up from his seat to help his future boyfriend and love of his life.

'I enjoy it,' Remus bit back in a low, scathing voice, 'Whenever I'm free, I limp to pass time.'

Sirius would have laughed if the situation had been less serious. 'Here, put your arm around my shoulder. I can-'

Sirius had barely touched him, when Remus grabbed him roughly by the chin, told him to 'shut up', and kissed him, hard.

Sirius felt his head explode, stars and constellations dancing in front of his eyes and his brain deciding to give up function entirely. It was hot. It was very, very hot, and Remus didn't bother with the subtleties of asking entrance or progressive kissing. He just plunged in, tounge exploring every corner of Sirius's mouth, and teeth nipping almost maliciously at Sirius's bottom lip. Remus's hands were buried in Sirius's hair, fisted hard and pulling Sirius closer and tighter, making their bodies nearly overbalance.

When Remus finally let go, Sirius was dizzy and lightheaded with ecstasy, a goofy grin forming on his face. He could already see little love hearts framing Remus's face, angels trumpeting symphonies and epic rhapsodies, little green elves tap dancing over rainbows and gold coins out of sheer joy…

'You've won. Just go collect your money now and stop bothering me.'

The hearts shattered and the elves looked rather confused. 'Huh?'

'Wasn't that it?' Lupin asked coldly, his face suddenly reminding Sirius of the dolls he would see at toyshops – the ones with porcelain skin and big blue eyes that stared at you frighteningly for hours and hours unblinkingly. 'A bigger bet maybe. Seduce the school's "Fruit Lupe" and dump him in a week. Let's see if he uses a Love Potion again. Or did you have to sleep with me?'

Sirius sobered up from his gold rimmed fantasies in a flash. 'What are you talking about? What bet?' When Lupin didn't answer and went back to his seat, indifferent as ever, Sirius followed him. 'Oi, what are you on about, honestly?'

Sirius frowned when Lupin kept looking out the window, the hard, reserved look back in his amber eyes. Those eyes: they didn't look human, Sirius realised for the first time. They were eyes of the dead, that odd glimmer he'd seen on the platform just a simple trick of light. They didn't mar Lupin's beauty in any way, but left one with an empty, even wary feeling inside.

Slightly uncomfortable and being inept at handling complicated situations, Sirius decided perhaps it would be reassuring for Lupin if he just picked up the conversation where he'd left of:

'So anyway, we thought of pranks all summer. I think you should totally join us, being in the same year and all. You'll like James; he's bloody tops and maybe a little less manic than me, except when it comes to Lily Evans. Merlin knows what he sees in that spitball from hell. And there's Peter. I think you'll like him too. He's a good mate, though it's a bit annoying how he idolises James.'

Sirius's blatant effort to change conversation went completely unnoticed by Lupin, who was staring off at the distance, as if lost within grassy plains and corn fields.

'Course, I won't have you paying too much attention to them when you're with me and all. I don't want to lose you to too many pranks or nothing. Have you noticed? Even our names go together. Sirius and Remus. Remus and Sirius. We're a perfect fit, eh?'

Sirius breathed after a long time and looked at Lupin, slowly carving out the boy's profile to his memory and stopping at his lips. The same lips that had been kissing him furiously only minutes ago. Just the memory brought back little red hearts dancing in front of his eyes again, and Sirius had to wipe off the drool with the back of his hand to not look like a diseased maniac.

'You know. I told James you were Mod or something when I saw that cane. And your eyes…I thought you had on that black gunk birds put on at first.' Sirius brushed Lupin's eyelashes softly with his knuckles – they were real. 'Like amber stones,' he whispered, 'me mum wears them all the time, but she doesn't look half as gorgeous as you. You have beautiful eyes, did anyone tell you that?'

'Excuse me,' Lupin said gruffly, pushing Sirius roughly away, and Sirius found himself melting in his seat at that voice again. He really needed to learn how to control himself better around Lupin; his brains turning to mush all the time wasn't exactly desirable.

'Oi!' Sirius called out, following after Remus once he'd gathered his wits and solidified his guts. 'Oi! You're still going to Hogsmeade with me, right? Oi! Don't walk out on your date, damn it!'

'I take it went well, then?' James asked, coming out of the adjacent compartment when he heard Sirius screaming. An all-knowing smirk graced his lips and he looked at Remus's retreating back as it took a left turn and vanished into another compartment, probably the one for Prefects. 'Real charming, Black. You have him on his knees already.'

Sirius paid him no mind, giving a dreamy sigh. Lupin was hard to get – a real fighter. Perfect. Sirius was falling in love with him already. Remus.Looking at his best friend through watery eyes, Sirius smiled lopsidedly, 'Jamie, my boy, I think we've found the one.'

Yes, I'm back with a new plot. Can't believe it didn't actually take too long for inspiration to strike. Said inspiration, I have to mention, was this fic by the lovely roadside-author called Six Disasters of Love. A must read by the way. I was totally taken by her style, so I designed this fic…which by the way can either be an AU or canon, depending the way you look at it. It's just going to be a sort of humour fic of the pups in Hogwarts, with a slightly different take on Remus. Let's see how it goes.

Till then, thank you to everyone who reviewed for Momentum. Lots of love and cheers!