Adult-FanFiction.org : Harry Potter

Saving Remus Lupin	By : AngelUpSideDownCake Category: Harry Potter > Slash - Male/Male > Remus/Sirius Views: 1503 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: Disclaimer: The Harry Potter series and all characters within that series are owned by JK Rowling. I make no money in any way from this work.

Chapter List
- 3
- 4
- 5
Chapter 4
The Flat

Sirius wasn't often shocked into a stupor, didn't often find himself without words to say, and yet this was definitely one of those times. When Remus rolled off the table and ran into the foyer Sirius dutifully followed and saw something few ever witnessed: a full-on, werewolf transformation. It wasn't a pleasant sight, and it looked painful to say the least. Pops and cracks had filled the air, Remus' hair had grown thick and coarse and began sprouting everywhere, he'd hunched over and his clothes had grown tight before ultimately giving way with rips. Only a few seconds had passed and there before him stood a huge, brown wolf with the most intense yellow eyes Sirius had ever seen. Wild, yellow eyes. Sirius didn't need to specialize in magical creatures to know that Remus was no longer in control. A howl rent the air followed by a deep, low growl. Sirius noticed that, being the first on the scene, the other Death Eaters had hung back. Cowards.
"Don't just stand there, capture him!" Bellatrix had recovered and was now standing next to Sirius, wand in air and ready to cast a spell. She needn't have bothered. The words hadn't even left her lips and the werewolf was already charging her, great maw open, eager for the kill. Bellatrix faltered, the spell failed, and she leaped to the side to get out of the way as Remus tore at her. "You fools, get him!"
A glance behind and to the right confirmed Sirius' suspicions: most of the Death Eaters had left, leaving only Bellatrix, himself, and two others Sirius didn't have the care to identify. Voldemort was going to be furious. Werewolves, Sirius knew, acted on pure instinct. Right now, Remus was preoccupied with killing. Sirius needed to get Remus' mind on escape. He'd have to distract his attention from Bellatrix and get him to see out the windows of the manor, to see that there was open space aplenty. In two bounds, Sirius was in front of the large, paned windows and facing the commotion.
"Avada kedavra!" Sirius' heart nearly stopped, the world in slow motion, as he heard and saw the beam of green light that indicated the curse. Whoever had aimed it, however, did poorly, and missed the wolf by centimeters, blasting a chunk into the fine wallpaper of the foyer. Enraged, Sirius turned toward the caster and found it to be Alecto.
"You idiot!" Sirius turned to where Bellatrix was desperately trying to counter the beast with ineffective stunning spells. "The Dark Lord has plans for him!" Alecto had the gall to sneer. Turning back to the wolf, Sirius steeled himself. Remus was huge, and still advancing towards Bellatrix. He had to distract him somehow! He gripped his wand tight, surprised it didn't crack beneath his fingers as he raised his arm to cast a spell.
"Stupefy!" The red sparks glanced off the wolf's back, but he turned to face Sirius anyway even as Bellatrix attempted a petrification spell. It would seem werewolves were resistant to magic. Angry, yellow eyes fell on Sirius' and he found himself face-to-face with the wildness he'd only glimpsed before. Now, that wildness was no longer behind bars. This creature could - and would if given the chance - kill Sirius.
Time seemed to stand still just then and it felt as though Sirius and the werewolf were the only two in the world. Sirius felt one heart beat, then another, as the wolf hunched forward, his hind legs building power, then, like a coiled spring, he launched forward. Another heartbeat, and Sirius miraculously managed to duck just enough as the great brown animal flew over him and through the window behind him.
"After him, Sirius, do not let him get away!" Bellatrix was bellowing, red and white sparks shooting from her wand and after the werewolf. As quickly as he could, Sirius turned around, but the wolf was already a brown blur heading for the woods near the manor. The plan had worked. Remus saw his escape and the wolf's instincts had taken the opportunity. All Sirius had to do now was give the Death Eaters a slip and catch up to Remus! However, he was already so far ahead. There was only one thing to do.
Animagi, unlike werewolves, were able to transform at will, without pain, and without losing their clothes, all with the aid of powerful transfiguration magic. Sirius was never more grateful for his ability then right then as he felt his muscles shift, his bones shorten in some places and lengthen in others to take shape of the large black dog that was his animagus form. No sooner had Sirius' hands turned to paws and touched the ground did he set chase after his quarry. Faster, I need to get there faster, he urged himself. He couldn't lose site of Remus!
Ahead of Sirius, he saw the last glimpse of a brown tail as it slipped between the trees. A moment later, he was ducking into the thicket, leaping over large roots and dodging around trunks. Try as he might, however, the wolf had a head start and Sirius quickly lost track of him in the forest. Panting, he came to a stop. Running wasn't going to get him anywhere anymore. He had to think about his next move. A werewolf on the loose not exactly the best scenario for this escape. He had to track Remus down before either the Death Eaters found him, or he did something he regretted. Despite the bad rap werewolves had, Sirius was certain Remus would never forgive himself for hurting someone innocent. He just didn't seem the type.
Think, Sirius commanded himself. What can I do to get a werewolf's attention when I'm nowhere near it? He knew they were creatures of instinct. They wanted to feed, run, chase, and... mate. Suddenly, Sirius felt unsure. He'd never tried calling a werewolf before, or really done much other than spy on people and play the occasional prank in his animagus form. Still, he had to try.
As Sirius tilted his head back, he caught site of the moon and couldn't help the feeling that what he was about to do was completely and utterly ridiculous. Hesitantly, he opened his mouth and let out what turned out to be a very strange, low bark. That didn't go as intended. Sirius was extremely glad he was the only one around just then. Gotta try again. Sirius tried to clear his throat as best he could as a dog, leaned his head back once more, and this time let out a howl. An honest to goodness howl. He waited a moment, the silence of the forest eery. Had he done it wrong? An eternity seemed to pass, but then he heard it in the distance, an answering howl. Again, Sirius howled and a moment later an answer, closer. Yes! This is working!
Excited, and a bit nervous, Sirius ran toward the sound, certain it was Remus. Once more, he tilted his head back and howled. When he faced front again, he was face-to-face with those yellow eyes, and realized that he had absolutely no plan. Oh, fuck all, I am not prepared for this. What was he supposed to do? As a human he'd have turned tail and left, of course, but he wasn't really human right now, right? As far as the werewolf would know, he was just a large, shaggy, black dog, and as far as Sirius knew, werewolves didn't typically attack animals.
Wolves loved to play for dominance, and Remus' wolf form was absolutely huge. Sirius was quite certain that in a fight Remus would tear him to pieces. Right now, those yellow eyes were glaring into his own in the standoff. Was this a challenge for dominance? A low growl came from the wolf. Ok, Sirius thought, don't panic. Slowly, Sirius lowered himself to his belly and laid his head flat onto his paws. The werewolf took a step closer and let another low growl come out. Maybe it wasn't enough? Remus was very close now, Sirius could hear every rumble in the creature's growls, no matter how low, could almost feel his breath. Again, very slowly, Sirius rolled onto his side and then his back, exposing his belly to the wolf, trying to indicate that he recognized Remus as the dominant canine and that he posed no threat. The wolf circled him once, then twice, before stepping over him and then leaning for close to Sirius' face, still growling, though ever quieter.
Finally, the wolf was silent, yellow eyes holding Sirius' grey ones. Then, without warning, Sirius felt something warm against the side of his face and realized that Remus had just licked him. Thank Merlin, he sighed to himself. That had to be a good sign. Surely enough, it was. The wolf let out a bark and then jumped back and forward, his tail swaying back and forth. Sirius could almost laugh out loud. Whoever heard of a werewolf wanting to play?
҉
When the sun rose in the morning, there were a few things Remus noticed right away. The first was that his back side was very, very cold. The second was that his front was quite warm. The third was that he was no longer in that damned basement. Slowly, Remus' consciousness grew and he became more aware of his surroundings. He was incredibly sore - normal after the full moon - and completely naked - also normal. Unsure of what to expect, he opened his eyes to see thick black fur. Well now, that was unusual. Remus had no idea what it was, but it was huge and he was definitely cuddled right up next to it. He could deal with this, right? Well, he had no wand and nothing to protect himself with. This could be problematic, he thought to himself.
Just as he was about to plan out his next move, whatever it was started moving beneath the arm that was thrown over it. Remus sat up as quickly as he could and tried to back up as a great, black, beast of a dog turned around and held its nose inches from his. Were there wild dogs in these forests? Did wild dogs get this big? His heart was in his throat and he was about to try to make a run for it when the dog opened its mouth and swiped its warm, wet tongue right over Remus' face.
"Oh, my god, that is gross." Remus rubbed at his face with his arm, trying to get the thick slobber off.
"Well, I had to return the favor."
"Blimey! What the -" Remus opened his eyes quickly and found himself face-to-face with a grinning Sirius Black. "You git! What are you talking about? Where's the dog? What is going on here?"
"Me? I'm the git?! You're the one who didn't have the decency to tell me that you were a werewolf! You could have killed me!"
"Oh well pardon me for not saying out loud what my only hope for escape was!"
"You could have given me some warning! I wasn't prepared!" Sirius was no longer grinning. In fact, he was about as far from grinning as you could get without crying. Remus felt ashamed.
"Did I hurt anybody?" Sirius' gaze was still harsh, but Remus thought it might have softened, just a little.
"No, you didn't. You're lucky I'm an animagus. I don't know what I'd have done otherwise."
"So, the black dog...?"
"Yeah, that was me." Remus nodded and looked down, breaking the eye contact. He immediately regretted his decision as he became aware, once again, that he was naked, and then, that he was also extremely cold.
"Sirius, I'm naked."
"I see that."
"And cold." Remus punctuated his statement with a shiver.
"Well, I'd love to help you mate, but seeing as I didn't bring an extra cloak because someone decided to leave out the very important detail that they were a werewolf you'll just have to suffer." Remus glared at Sirius.
"I'm freezing my arse off here, don't be a git!" However, he needn't have said anything. Sirius was already unfastening the ties at the top of his cloak, and had it wrapped around Remus within a moment. "Thank you."
"Don't mention it." The two wizards sat quietly then, like they weren't sure what they should do next. After three days locked in a basement and a fitful night of being a werewolf, Remus was just ready to go home, take a shower, and sleep for a week. "So," Sirius broke the silence, "You're not going to ask?"
"Ask what?"
"Why I kissed you."
"What are you -" but then Remus thought of the slobbery greeting he received from the dog. "Actually, yeah, what was that about?"
"Well, Remus Lupin, you kissed me first." Sirius raised his eyebrows in a suggestive glance at Remus and he felt himself becoming flustered.
"I did no such thing!"
"Oh, yes you did! Last night, when I tracked you down, the first thing you did after I gained your trust was plant a big, fat kiss right on my face. Don't you remember?"
"That was the wolf, not me. It didn't mean anything."
"Oh, I thought that too, at first. But the whole night you kept doing it." Remus actually felt himself blushing a bit and tried to calm himself down. Sure, he'd noticed that Sirius was handsome, and, yeah, he was starting to find that he might, maybe, find that he liked him being around, but the wolf taking a liking to him? Did that mean anything?
"So what? I don't control what the wolf does."
"Come on, Remus. The wolf likes me. Doesn't that mean that maybe you like me too?"
"Bugger off." Even if Remus did maybe like Sirius a little bit, he wasn't about to start talking about it now, not when he hardly knew the man and he still had Dora.
"Aw, come on. At least admit that we're friends." Sirius smiled wide at Remus, and he couldn't help it. There it was: a fluttering feeling in his stomach, that undeniable proof that, yes, Remus was definitely starting to like Sirius. Furthermore, it would appear that even after discovering Remus' ailment, Sirius still wanted to be around him.
"Even after discovering I'm a werewolf, you still want to be my friend?"
"Absolutely, mate! You were bloody brilliant last night. Plus, I'm an animagus, so we can be friends all the time, even on the full moon. Like I said, the wolf seems to like me."
"Yeah, I guess so," Remus relented. "Sure, we're friends now." Sirius' smile grew wider, if that was even possible.
"So, friend, where do we go from here?"
"Well, we need to get to the Order."
"You're part of the Order of the Phoenix?"
"Of course I am," Remus explained. "You didn't think I was just a new auror that just happened to be wrapped up in the Potter's lives, did you?" Sirius shrugged.
"No, I guess not. Not sure what good the Order's been doing though. Most Death Eaters don't consider your lot to be much of a threat."
"Well, we've been growing. New recruits and all." Sirius didn't look convinced. "Just you wait! It won't be long! We are going to take down Vol - "
"DON'T!" Sirius had practically launched himself from his seat and was now straddling Remus, a hand covering his mouth. "If you say his name, they will track you down." Remus must have looked confused, because Sirius continued to explain. "The Dark Lord has been working on having a trace placed on his name. It can be perfected any day now, so do not - do not - say it." Remus could only nod his head from where he lay underneath the taller wizard and watch as Sirius' facial expression changed from concern for their well-being to slightly embarrassed. Here they were laying on the cold, hard ground of a forest - nobody around - and Sirius was straddling Remus' exposed hips, the cloak having fallen open in the tackle. Remus felt his own cheeks begin to warm underneath Sirius' gaze. Slowly the dark-haired man let go of Remus' mouth, then moved off of him, adverting his eyes as Remus rushed to cover himself, hoping the other man hadn't noticed the slight stiffening he'd begun to experience at the close proximity.
"So," Remus began, then cleared his throat. "We should get out of the cold."
"Right, right, I Death Eaters left me to go after you - cor blimey, were they scared of you! They will come after us soon, though, I expect. So, where to?" Remus' thoughts immediately went to what Voldemort had said. Dora could be in danger! They had to get to her right away.
"We need to make sure that Dora is safe and tell the Order about Vol-" a sharp glare from Sirius stopped him in his tracks, "Er, You-Know-Who's plans to track her down and the trace on his name, but... er," Remus looked down at himself. The cloak only had the fastenings at the top and he had to keep it closed with one hand. "Let's go to my place. Dora might be there, and if she's not I can floo the Order."
"But, Remus," Sirius lifted the back of his hand to his brow and made as if to swoon, "you can't take me to your place! We've never even had a date!"
"Don't be a git!" Despite sounding irritated, and despite the seriousness of the situation, Remus couldn't help the smile on his face, just for Sirius. He supposed this was the humor and charm he'd heard of others falling for. "Anyway, I haven't got my wand, so you'll need to -"
"Actually, Remus," and here Sirius pulled out what Remus immediately recognized as the wand he'd had since he was eleven years old. "I was the one who nicked it from you a few nights back. I'd have given it to you sooner, but it would have given us away, and I was worried you'd try to take on the Death Eaters and the Dark Lord head on, and, well, that wouldn't have ended well for either of us." Remus reached his hand out and, as soon as his fingers touched the wand, he felt whole in a way he hadn't realized he hadn't felt since the alley in muggle London.
"Thank you, Sirius," he breathed. Then, he placed his hand on Sirius' arm, turned on his foot, and they were instantly out of the forest and into his only slightly warmer flat.
҉
Sirius' first impression of the flat Remus and Dora shared was that the room they were in was very small, and it was also fairly cold, and quiet.
"Dora must not be here," Remus provided as explanation. "I need to talk to the Order." Sirius nodded his agreement as he looked around the room. There wasn't anything especially remarkable about the room, nothing that jumped out and said that a wizard and a witch must live here. Sirius suspected they must be in a city of some kind, probably among muggles. There were no moving pictures on the walls, or clocks that said where people were or pointed to the different position of the stars in the sky. The fireplace certainly wasn't big enough to properly floo in (though Sirius supposed transfiguration could amend that), and there weren't any spell books in plain view. In fact, the only indication that this home may belong to a wizard at all, was the tawny owl asleep on the perch by the window.
Remus had crossed the room to the fireplace and emerged a moment later, a fire already roaring behind the grate and beginning to fill the sitting room with it's warmth. He held a small pouch in his hand that he must have taken off the mantle, and which Sirius suspected contained floo powder.
"There, that should be a bit better. It's pretty cold in here." Sirius hummed his agreement, but couldn't help but notice that Remus was a bit pale. It had been a rough three or so days. Was it just now catching up to him? Or maybe he was getting sick from the cold? Perhaps he was always pale after a full moon and Sirius was only just now noticing? "Sirius? Is everything ok?"
"Oh," he pulled out of his reverie and looked into the other man's eyes. Sirius had noticed earlier, but been too preoccupied by nakedness and close proximities to mention it, that Remus' eyes - previously a bright, honey brown - had darkened into a dark, woodsy brown flecked with green. He found it astonishing to say the least. "Yeah, I'm fine. You know, I noticed a while ago, but your eyes, they changed colors." Remus gave a half smile.
"Yeah, it comes with the territory of being a werewolf." Sirius took the couple of steps necessary to stand near the other man, and looked down into those eyes.
"They're brilliant." He was nearly breathless, doing nothing more than looking into those forests, the wildness that previously haunted them having been appeased and seeming at peace. Remus broke the connection first, turning from Sirius and seeming to remember what he needed to do.
"Just a moment," he told Sirius and threw a pinch of powder from the pouch into the fire. It roared green and Remus bent down, stuck his head into the fire and stated an address Sirius couldn't quite catch. It only took a few moments before Sirius was beginning to feel quite awkward standing there while Remus was half-in, half-out of the fireplace. Whoever he was talking to, they must have been arguing with Remus, because Remus kept lifting first one hand and then the other, trying to animate what he was saying, his movements tense and fast. After a few more moments, Remus pulled his head out of the fireplace, a little ash sticking to the collar of Sirius' cloak, and sighed aloud, seeming both relieved and flustered at the same time.
"Dora is with the Order, thank Merlin. Kingsley says they haven't seen any Death Eaters, but they've been looking for me for days." Remus turned to look at Sirius. "I haven't told them about you yet. Dora wanted to come here right away, but I asked for some time. I just, I need some time, and, I, err, I need to shower. I'm filthy." Remus gestured down toward himself as though Sirius needed proof of this. "Listen, just, er, make yourself at home. There's tea in the cupboards in the kitchen if you want it. I'm sorry I'm not a better host right now, it's just..." He trailed off, at a loss for words. Sirius knew, though. Remus needed a moment to cope with everything that had happened, and Sirius was more than fine with giving him the space he needed.
"Sure, sure, you go right on, I'll be fine."
"Yeah, thanks. I'll call for them again and explain more of the situation, you know, once I've managed to clear my head a bit."
"Of course." Remus turned away and headed down a short hall that ended in a room that Sirius could just make out a bed in. The bathroom must have been attached to the bedroom. Now alone, Sirius took stock of his own feelings. It had been a long night, and though it was still quite early in the day, he decided he was feeling a bit peckish. He made his way into the small kitchen and took note of the muggle apparatus: there was some sort of large white box against the far wall that appeared to hum and something that looked a lot like a stove, but had no wood to burn, and which when opened emitted a light. Having grown up in a purely wizarding household, all of this was foreign to Sirius. He stood in the middle of the room, unsure of where anything was, and decided he would just have to handle this like the grown wizard he was.
"Accio tea! Accio kettle! Accio tea cups!" There was a light rumbling among the cupboards as a kettle, two cups, and tea zoomed out and onto the counter for Sirius to prepare. He made short work of the process, and soon there was steam coming from the kettle and the tea was brewing. Still, he was hungry as well. "Accio biscuits!" Nothing. "Accio bread!" Nothing! "Accio pumpkin pasties!" Nothing, still! Sirius had no idea what kind of food, if any, Remus would have in the kitchen, but his hunger was growing by the moment. Sirius tried a number of different foods: sausages, chocolate frogs, innumerable fruits and vegetables, before settling on what he thought would surely be an unlikely treat. However, only a moment after "Accio crisps!" left his mouth, a brightly colored package of salt and vinegar crisps - of the muggle variety - flew out of a cupboard.
"Finally! Merlin, I thought I was going to waste away!" Sirius ripped open the package and ate a handful of the salty, crispy potato thins. Sure, it wasn't the best to go with tea, but at that moment he didn't really care.
Pop!
Sirius jumped to face the sound, dropping the crisps all over the floor in the process, a hand already reaching for his wand.
"Expelliarmus!" Too late. His wand went flying into the air and landed in the outstretched hand of a thin witch with short, spiky red hair and a furious expression, her own wand pointed at Sirius' face. She had apparently just apparated into the lounge and she looked pissed. "Who the hell are you? Where's Remus?" Sirius held up his hands defensively.
"He's ok, he's ok! I'm a friend, honest!" The witch wasn't convinced. "Look, you must be Dora."
"How the hell do you know my name?"
"Remus told me! Look, my name is Sirius Black, I'm a friend of Remus'." For a moment, Sirius thought he'd convinced her to give him a chance to explain, that they would be able to work this through. That, however, was folly. She looked at him, thoughtful for only a moment, before her brow knotted again and Sirius saw the red sparks just a second before the darkness enveloped him.
- 3
- 4
- 5
You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.
Report Story

Saving Remus Lupin