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small_giftsTitle: Counter-spells & Crushes
Author/Artist:![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
fullmoon_dreams
Recipient:dustmouth
Rating: PG
Contents or warnings (highlight to view): *None *
Word count: 3172
Summary: Magical mistletoe seemed like a good idea at the time. Unfortunately, for most of the marauders, their plans never seem to go smoothly.
Notes: So this ended up being a combination of prompts 1 and 2 as well as the wildcard. I hope you like it.
Thanks to Sarah, who stepped in at the last minute to beta this one.
Remus slipped out of bed as quietly as possible, gathering his clothes together as quietly as he could, and tiptoeing towards the door. He could tell James was still asleep. Legend had it his snores could be heard all the way over in Ravenclaw Tower. Peter too was dead to the world until his alarm went off. Sirius was the problem. Always a light sleeper, he seemed to be able to sense when someone else was up and about and bounded out of bed too, much like an over-enthusiastic puppy.
He had nearly made it. Just a little farther.
“Moony?”
Bugger!
“What time is it? Did I overlay?” Sirius jumped out of bed and groped around in the dark for his robes.
“It’s still early,” Remus whispered. “Go back to sleep.”
Sirius stopped panicking but he didn’t get back into bed. “Where are you going?”
“Just for a walk. I’ll be back in a bit.”
“I’ll come with you,” Sirius suggested. He turned into Padfoot and gave a loud bark.
“Wha-!” James shot up in bed and tried to untangle himself from the covers.
“Go back to sleep, both of you,” Remus hissed. “Before you wake Peter too.”
Sirius barked again.
“Padfoot!” James threw a pillow at the animagus. “You git!”
Remus took the opportunity to slip out of the room and hurry down the tower stairs. By the time James and Sirius had finished arguing he would be safe in the Owlery with the all important counter-spell to his friends’ latest madcap scheme to cause mischief during the last day of term.
It had seemed like a good idea at first, and Remus supposed it still was, but the idea of mistletoe that was charmed to lure anyone who fancied the carrier into kissing them had one minor problem.
Sirius Black. Or more precisely, how Remus felt about him.
The last thing Remus wanted was to be launching himself at Sirius under the influence of mistletoe.
When he had asked James about the counter-spell to the mistletoe he had laughed and told him they didn’t need it. The spell would only last about twelve hours. For Remus that was twelve hours too many, and so he had ordered the counter-spell himself. Apparently the mistletoe was extremely popular and Remus’ order had been delayed repeatedly. Finally, he had received confirmation that it would be here today and so Remus hurried to the Owlery, ready to get the counter-spell so he could safely spend the day with his friends, without doing something he would all regret.
He hoped the wretched bird had arrived, and that it did as he had asked and waited in the Owlery rather than swooping into the Great Hall.
When Remus finally reached the Owlery his delivery bird was easy to spot. It was the only one holding a scroll.
“Yes!” Remus exclaimed, startling several birds in the process.
Remus hurried to the owl he needed and reached out his hand. The owl, apparently not the most sociable of creatures pecked at his fingers. Remus only just managed to pull his hand back in time.
“Come on, give me the scroll,” Remus cooed in his most animal friendly voice. The same voice he used with Padfoot with far better results than he was getting right now.
The owl flew up to a higher perch, taking the scroll with him.
“Damn it!” Remus swore as he climbed the rickety steps to the next level.
The owl waited until he was on the topmost step before giving a loud hoot and moving on again.
“I don’t have time for this,” Remus muttered. The other marauders would be looking for him before much longer, and while Remus had had the presence of mind to grab the Marauders’ Map before leaving Gryffindor Tower, it probably wouldn’t be too long before they tracked him down. He was pretty sure Padfoot was part bloodhound.
After nearly thirty minutes of chasing the wretched creature round the Owlery, Remus decided to try a different tactic. He grabbed some birdfeed and tried to coax the animal down with that.
The owl was having none of it. He gave Remus’ offering a baleful glance and stayed right where he was.
“I’m not going to go hunting mice for you, if that’s what you’re thinking,” Remus told it. “You’ve been paid in advance and that scroll is mine, so hand it over.”
The owl gave another hoot before flying up into the rafters.
*
“Where did Remus go?” Sirius asked James, who had finally stopped complaining long enough for him to get a word in.
“I don’t know,” James replied. “He disappeared before you even changed back from Padfoot.”
Sirius rushed to James’ trunk and opened it. “It’s gone.”
“The map?” James guessed.
“Yes. What do you think he’s up to?”
Peter, who neither boy had realised was awake, snorted. “He’s probably gone to find somewhere to sleep in peace and quiet.”
“You’re awake early,” Sirius commented.
“I wonder why that is,” Peter muttered. “It’s the crack of bloody dawn and it’s Saturday. Go back to bed.”
“But I want to know where Remus is.” Sirius checked the trunk again.
“He’ll turn up,” James said. “In the meantime, we’ve got some mistletoe to use before the lovely Lily has departed for the holidays.”
Sirius grabbed the biggest bunch of mistletoe together with the instructions for casting the spell on it. “I’ll sort out the mistletoe, you still need to pack, or have you forgotten we’re going home for the holidays as well?”
*
Once Sirius had finished charming each piece of mistletoe he tossed one to Peter, one to James and left the final bit on Remus’ bedside table for when he returned. A glance at the clock told him Remus had been gone for nearly two hours. Sirius frowned, wondering whether he should start worrying about him, then realising he already was.
“Ready?” Peter asked, puckering up his lips ready for their descent into the common room.
“Oh yes,” James replied. He had fixed his own piece of mistletoe to the end of his school hat. Sirius and Peter had both told him they thought it was rather tacky but he had insisted.
“You don’t think you look a bit of a tit wearing your hat without the rest of your uniform?” Sirius asked.
Peter snickered as they headed out the door. Their final prank of 1975 was going to be great.
“Best thing is,” Peter said as they went down the stairs, “there’s not going to be any damage caused, which means no detentions.”
“Just dozens of broken hearts.” Sirius sighed dramatically. “This is going to be great.”
They arrived in the common room to find it surprisingly empty of girls. Three second year boys were playing exploding snap and one of the seventh year boys was getting a head start on his holiday homework, but there wasn’t a girl in sight.
“Where is everyone?” James asked the second years.
“Probably packing,” was the rather distracted reply.
“We’ll just wait here then,” Peter said as he flopped down on the couch. “They have to come down sooner or later.”
The marauders settled down to wait and sure enough students began to filter down from the boys’ tower. Some were tracking down misplaced belongings, while others were heading to breakfast. But not a single girl had appeared.
“Maybe they’re just really lazy?” Peter suggested.
“Like you, you mean?” Sirius teased.
“Or maybe they’ve been tipped off,” the seventh year commented from his place near the window.
“What do you mean?” James asked.
The seventh year gestured towards the mistletoe. “If you’re going to use that stuff to get girls to kiss you, maybe you shouldn’t have been plotting so close to one of those said girls.”
“Evans!” Sirius glared at James.
“No, not Lily,” the seventh year said. “Though I’m sure she found out about your plans the same way as the rest of them did, gossip.”
“They can’t stay up there all day,” Peter pointed out. “They have to eat sooner or later.”
“Or they could be getting the house elves to bring them meals while they wait for the mistletoe to wear off. Twelve hours isn’t it?” The seventh year chuckled as he turned back to his books.
James looked over at the stairs to the girls’ dormitories.
“You remember what happened last time,” Sirius reminded him.
“Maybe I could fly up there.”
“And maybe they’ll be expecting that,” Peter replied. “Let’s just go down to the Great Hall and see what’s being served for breakfast. I’ll bet it’s something great.”
Sirius stuffed his mistletoe into the pocket of his robes. “I’m going to see if I can find Moony.”
James continued to study the entrance to the girls’ quarters, a look of longing on his face.
Leaving James to his plotting, Sirius and Peter went down to the Great Hall to get something to eat. Sirius had hoped to find Remus there, but there were no sixth year students at the Gryffindor table.
Sirius ate a quick breakfast and grabbed a snack for later plus one for Remus in case he hadn’t eaten yet.
“I’ll catch you later,” Sirius said as he stood up, only to walk into a Ravenclaw fifth year who was loitering behind them. “Are you lost?”
The girl shook her head before diving on Peter, planting a kiss on his lips that took both boys by surprise.
Apparently the Gryffindor girls hadn’t warned the girls in the other houses, or if they had, the message hadn’t quite done the rounds.
Now he was taking more notice, Sirius realised there were several girls looking in their direction, with several glaring at the Ravenclaw. At least the mistletoe worked.
“Have fun, Wormtail,” Sirius said as he eyed up a cute little Hufflepuff girl, who he vaguely recalled being in their Potions class.
Unfortunately, before he could take a step in her direction, another girl was standing in front of him, wearing the dreadful colours of green and silver. “Shit!”
Sirius bolted from the Great Hall as fast as he could.
The girl – he thought her name might be Maisie – ran after him. Forgetting that he could simply have tossed away the mistletoe and put an end to the whole thing, Sirius instead raced through the castle, leaping from one staircase to the next in a manner that would have seen him marched straight to Professor McGonagall had he been caught, and generally looking like a lunatic. The Slytherin matched him pace for pace.
Every now and then he thought he had given her the slip, only to find her reappearing a moment later. Would she ever give up?
*
“Give it here,” Remus pleaded. He was conscious of the fact that his friends were probably already looking for him.
He couldn’t believe he had got up at the crack of dawn for this. If his plans had gone smoothly he’d already have the counter-spell and could have gone back to bed for a couple of extra hours kip.
Instead he was stuck at the top of the dirty and smelly Owlery, trying to get the most stubborn bird on the planet to give up his scroll.
Even worse, he hadn’t had breakfast yet and if the bloody creature didn’t start cooperating soon he’d be missing lunch too.
*
Sirius panted and wheezed as he struggled to get away from Maisie. He hadn’t thought she looked that fit, but she was certainly giving chase like she could run professionally.
“Maisie Grubb, stop right there.”
Sirius blessed Professor Slughorn for his timing.
“What have you been told about running in the corridors?” the professor asked.
“But, it’s Sirius Black,” said Maisie in a dreamy voice, as though this explained everything. The girl wasn’t even out of breath, Sirius noted with a fair amount of resentment.
“I can see that.” Professor Slughorn waved her away and she reluctantly went.
Sirius clutched his side as he gasped out a thank you to the professor.
“Perhaps now might be a good time to get rid of the mistletoe,” Slughorn suggested with a wink. “Clearly it isn’t attracting the kind of girl you want.”
Sirius grinned and found himself with a new sense of respect for the Potions Master. Taking the plant from his pocket he held it out for the professor to take.
“I don’t want it,” Slughorn replied. “Just put it in a bin somewhere.”
Sirius did as he suggested, thankfully without further incident, and returned to his task of finding Remus.
*
Remus sat on the floor of the owlery, glaring at the delivery owl, as he tried to come up with a new plan. He closed his eyes momentarily, or at least that was his intention. Having spent so much of the previous night worrying, then getting up at the crack of dawn, meant he was even more tired than he was the day after the full moon. Within a few seconds he was fast asleep.
*
Sirius had looked nearly everywhere for Remus. Lunch had been and gone and there was still no sign of him. James, who was still waiting in the common room, confirmed he hadn’t come back there. Peter had vanished, probably with the Ravenclaw girl, but at least he knew he was okay. Remus could be lying in a ditch somewhere for all he knew. Okay, it was pretty unlikely he had to admit. He was probably holed up somewhere trying to get a head start on his holiday homework, though since he wasn’t in the library that was looking increasingly doubtful.
He was still trying to think of where to search when he ran into Regulus.
“Sirius.”
“What do you want?” Sirius snapped.
“I got a letter from Mother this morning. She said you hadn’t even sent her a Christmas card.”
Sirius snorted. “I can’t imagine she’s expecting one from me.”
Regulus shrugged and walked off. “Suit yourself.”
Sirius shook his head. He hadn’t sent any of his family a card, including Regulus. He wanted nothing to do with any of them. Well, except Uncle Alphard of course.
“Bollocks!” He hadn’t sent his uncle his card and present. It was still in his trunk. Even though there were several days before Christmas, Uncle Alphard was travelling abroad at the moment. He hoped it wasn’t too late to reach him in time.
Sirius ran back to the tower again.
“No, he’s not here,” James said the moment he saw him.
Sirius waved him away and ran up to the dormitory. He grabbed the parcel and headed for the Owlery.
There were plenty of birds in the building, but unfortunately his own, a lazy creature, prone to hiding, was nowhere in sight.
Sirius climbed the steps, trying to locate his owl. He located Remus first, nearly tripping over him as he rounded the corner.
“Of course, where else would he be?” Sirius muttered to himself. “Asleep in the Owlery. Why didn’t I think of looking there first?”
Sirius poked Remus with his shoe. “Wakey-wakey,” he cooed.
Remus opened his eyes and stared at Sirius with what looked to be total utter horror. Not the reaction he was expecting.
“Oh shit!”
“Nice to see you too,” Sirius replied with a grin. “I’ve been looking all over for you.”
“What time is it?” Remus asked.
“About two. Why?”
“Bollocks, bollocks, bollocks!”
Sirius backed away a little.
Remus shook his head. “It’s too late. Bloody owls. Bloody mistletoe.”
“Moony, are you okay?”
“Might as well get it over with,” Remus said. He rubbed his palms on his trousers and took a deep breath.
“Get what over with?” Sirius asked, right before Remus launched himself at him and locked their lips together.
Sweet mother of Merlin. Sirius had never seen it coming. He had mistakenly thought he knew everything about Remus John Lupin, yet he hadn’t known this.
Remus pushed his tongue into Sirius’ mouth, kissing him as thoroughly as he had ever been kissed before.
Sirius realised in that moment he didn’t know Remus at all. Even more startling, he didn’t know himself, because he was enjoying this kiss more than any other in his life.
Remus pulled him closer and wrapped his arms around his back, clinging onto him as the owls watched the two of them silently.
When they finally broke apart, Sirius whimpered at the loss.
He stared at Remus for several long seconds. Remus stared right back, practically daring him to say something.
An owl swooped down and landed near Remus’ hand. He held out his claw for Remus to take the scroll.
“Now you let me have the bloody scroll.” Remus snatched the scroll from the owl and tore it open. He grabbed his wand and read the spell out loud. “There, it’s sorted.”
“What’s sorted?” Sirius asked. He reached for the scroll and read the contents. “This is a counter-spell for the mistletoe.”
“I know. I wanted to get it before you activated it, but the stupid owl wouldn’t hand it over until now. Now it’s sorted we can put this behind us.”
Remus stood up and brushed off his robes. “Did James get a kiss from Lily?”
Sirius goggled at him. “Put this behind us?” he asked.
Remus shrugged. “Yes, Sirius, I fancy you, but you don’t need to let it worry you now I’ve cast the counter-spell. Just add me to the list of girls you don’t find attractive who have been throwing themselves at you all day.”
“You’re not a girl.”
“Obviously.” Remus headed over to the stairs.
“I threw the mistletoe away,” Sirius called after him.
Remus hesitated and glanced back over his shoulder. “What?”
“You weren’t under the influence of the mistletoe when you kissed me,” Sirius said. “And neither was I when I kissed you back.”
Remus didn’t say a word.
“Your sprig of mistletoe is in the dormitory,” Sirius added. “Mine’s in the bin. But we still kissed.”
“I thought I was under the influence of a spell,” Remus whispered.
Sirius stood up and reached out his hand to Remus. “No, just the irresistible charm of Sirius Black.”
Remus snorted, but he took Sirius’ hand and let him be drawn back into his arms.
This time when they kissed, they both knew exactly what they were getting themselves into. This would be the first of many.
*
“I’m glad you thought to look for me up there,” Remus said as he nodded back towards the Owlery some time later.
“Oh, I wasn’t really looking for you there. I was sending Uncle Alphard’s present. Oh bugger!”
“What?”
Remus watched as Sirius sprinted back to the Owlery once more.
“I forgot to bloody send it,” Sirius called back.
Remus laughed as he waited for Sirius to send his parcel and catch him up again. He had a feeling life with Sirius Black was going to be rather hectic, but very interesting. He touched a finger to his swollen lips and smiled. Very interesting indeed.
Author/Artist:
fullmoon_dreamsRecipient:
dustmouthRating: PG
Contents or warnings (highlight to view): *None *
Word count: 3172
Summary: Magical mistletoe seemed like a good idea at the time. Unfortunately, for most of the marauders, their plans never seem to go smoothly.
Notes: So this ended up being a combination of prompts 1 and 2 as well as the wildcard. I hope you like it.
Thanks to Sarah, who stepped in at the last minute to beta this one.
Remus slipped out of bed as quietly as possible, gathering his clothes together as quietly as he could, and tiptoeing towards the door. He could tell James was still asleep. Legend had it his snores could be heard all the way over in Ravenclaw Tower. Peter too was dead to the world until his alarm went off. Sirius was the problem. Always a light sleeper, he seemed to be able to sense when someone else was up and about and bounded out of bed too, much like an over-enthusiastic puppy.
He had nearly made it. Just a little farther.
“Moony?”
Bugger!
“What time is it? Did I overlay?” Sirius jumped out of bed and groped around in the dark for his robes.
“It’s still early,” Remus whispered. “Go back to sleep.”
Sirius stopped panicking but he didn’t get back into bed. “Where are you going?”
“Just for a walk. I’ll be back in a bit.”
“I’ll come with you,” Sirius suggested. He turned into Padfoot and gave a loud bark.
“Wha-!” James shot up in bed and tried to untangle himself from the covers.
“Go back to sleep, both of you,” Remus hissed. “Before you wake Peter too.”
Sirius barked again.
“Padfoot!” James threw a pillow at the animagus. “You git!”
Remus took the opportunity to slip out of the room and hurry down the tower stairs. By the time James and Sirius had finished arguing he would be safe in the Owlery with the all important counter-spell to his friends’ latest madcap scheme to cause mischief during the last day of term.
It had seemed like a good idea at first, and Remus supposed it still was, but the idea of mistletoe that was charmed to lure anyone who fancied the carrier into kissing them had one minor problem.
Sirius Black. Or more precisely, how Remus felt about him.
The last thing Remus wanted was to be launching himself at Sirius under the influence of mistletoe.
When he had asked James about the counter-spell to the mistletoe he had laughed and told him they didn’t need it. The spell would only last about twelve hours. For Remus that was twelve hours too many, and so he had ordered the counter-spell himself. Apparently the mistletoe was extremely popular and Remus’ order had been delayed repeatedly. Finally, he had received confirmation that it would be here today and so Remus hurried to the Owlery, ready to get the counter-spell so he could safely spend the day with his friends, without doing something he would all regret.
He hoped the wretched bird had arrived, and that it did as he had asked and waited in the Owlery rather than swooping into the Great Hall.
When Remus finally reached the Owlery his delivery bird was easy to spot. It was the only one holding a scroll.
“Yes!” Remus exclaimed, startling several birds in the process.
Remus hurried to the owl he needed and reached out his hand. The owl, apparently not the most sociable of creatures pecked at his fingers. Remus only just managed to pull his hand back in time.
“Come on, give me the scroll,” Remus cooed in his most animal friendly voice. The same voice he used with Padfoot with far better results than he was getting right now.
The owl flew up to a higher perch, taking the scroll with him.
“Damn it!” Remus swore as he climbed the rickety steps to the next level.
The owl waited until he was on the topmost step before giving a loud hoot and moving on again.
“I don’t have time for this,” Remus muttered. The other marauders would be looking for him before much longer, and while Remus had had the presence of mind to grab the Marauders’ Map before leaving Gryffindor Tower, it probably wouldn’t be too long before they tracked him down. He was pretty sure Padfoot was part bloodhound.
After nearly thirty minutes of chasing the wretched creature round the Owlery, Remus decided to try a different tactic. He grabbed some birdfeed and tried to coax the animal down with that.
The owl was having none of it. He gave Remus’ offering a baleful glance and stayed right where he was.
“I’m not going to go hunting mice for you, if that’s what you’re thinking,” Remus told it. “You’ve been paid in advance and that scroll is mine, so hand it over.”
The owl gave another hoot before flying up into the rafters.
*
“Where did Remus go?” Sirius asked James, who had finally stopped complaining long enough for him to get a word in.
“I don’t know,” James replied. “He disappeared before you even changed back from Padfoot.”
Sirius rushed to James’ trunk and opened it. “It’s gone.”
“The map?” James guessed.
“Yes. What do you think he’s up to?”
Peter, who neither boy had realised was awake, snorted. “He’s probably gone to find somewhere to sleep in peace and quiet.”
“You’re awake early,” Sirius commented.
“I wonder why that is,” Peter muttered. “It’s the crack of bloody dawn and it’s Saturday. Go back to bed.”
“But I want to know where Remus is.” Sirius checked the trunk again.
“He’ll turn up,” James said. “In the meantime, we’ve got some mistletoe to use before the lovely Lily has departed for the holidays.”
Sirius grabbed the biggest bunch of mistletoe together with the instructions for casting the spell on it. “I’ll sort out the mistletoe, you still need to pack, or have you forgotten we’re going home for the holidays as well?”
*
Once Sirius had finished charming each piece of mistletoe he tossed one to Peter, one to James and left the final bit on Remus’ bedside table for when he returned. A glance at the clock told him Remus had been gone for nearly two hours. Sirius frowned, wondering whether he should start worrying about him, then realising he already was.
“Ready?” Peter asked, puckering up his lips ready for their descent into the common room.
“Oh yes,” James replied. He had fixed his own piece of mistletoe to the end of his school hat. Sirius and Peter had both told him they thought it was rather tacky but he had insisted.
“You don’t think you look a bit of a tit wearing your hat without the rest of your uniform?” Sirius asked.
Peter snickered as they headed out the door. Their final prank of 1975 was going to be great.
“Best thing is,” Peter said as they went down the stairs, “there’s not going to be any damage caused, which means no detentions.”
“Just dozens of broken hearts.” Sirius sighed dramatically. “This is going to be great.”
They arrived in the common room to find it surprisingly empty of girls. Three second year boys were playing exploding snap and one of the seventh year boys was getting a head start on his holiday homework, but there wasn’t a girl in sight.
“Where is everyone?” James asked the second years.
“Probably packing,” was the rather distracted reply.
“We’ll just wait here then,” Peter said as he flopped down on the couch. “They have to come down sooner or later.”
The marauders settled down to wait and sure enough students began to filter down from the boys’ tower. Some were tracking down misplaced belongings, while others were heading to breakfast. But not a single girl had appeared.
“Maybe they’re just really lazy?” Peter suggested.
“Like you, you mean?” Sirius teased.
“Or maybe they’ve been tipped off,” the seventh year commented from his place near the window.
“What do you mean?” James asked.
The seventh year gestured towards the mistletoe. “If you’re going to use that stuff to get girls to kiss you, maybe you shouldn’t have been plotting so close to one of those said girls.”
“Evans!” Sirius glared at James.
“No, not Lily,” the seventh year said. “Though I’m sure she found out about your plans the same way as the rest of them did, gossip.”
“They can’t stay up there all day,” Peter pointed out. “They have to eat sooner or later.”
“Or they could be getting the house elves to bring them meals while they wait for the mistletoe to wear off. Twelve hours isn’t it?” The seventh year chuckled as he turned back to his books.
James looked over at the stairs to the girls’ dormitories.
“You remember what happened last time,” Sirius reminded him.
“Maybe I could fly up there.”
“And maybe they’ll be expecting that,” Peter replied. “Let’s just go down to the Great Hall and see what’s being served for breakfast. I’ll bet it’s something great.”
Sirius stuffed his mistletoe into the pocket of his robes. “I’m going to see if I can find Moony.”
James continued to study the entrance to the girls’ quarters, a look of longing on his face.
Leaving James to his plotting, Sirius and Peter went down to the Great Hall to get something to eat. Sirius had hoped to find Remus there, but there were no sixth year students at the Gryffindor table.
Sirius ate a quick breakfast and grabbed a snack for later plus one for Remus in case he hadn’t eaten yet.
“I’ll catch you later,” Sirius said as he stood up, only to walk into a Ravenclaw fifth year who was loitering behind them. “Are you lost?”
The girl shook her head before diving on Peter, planting a kiss on his lips that took both boys by surprise.
Apparently the Gryffindor girls hadn’t warned the girls in the other houses, or if they had, the message hadn’t quite done the rounds.
Now he was taking more notice, Sirius realised there were several girls looking in their direction, with several glaring at the Ravenclaw. At least the mistletoe worked.
“Have fun, Wormtail,” Sirius said as he eyed up a cute little Hufflepuff girl, who he vaguely recalled being in their Potions class.
Unfortunately, before he could take a step in her direction, another girl was standing in front of him, wearing the dreadful colours of green and silver. “Shit!”
Sirius bolted from the Great Hall as fast as he could.
The girl – he thought her name might be Maisie – ran after him. Forgetting that he could simply have tossed away the mistletoe and put an end to the whole thing, Sirius instead raced through the castle, leaping from one staircase to the next in a manner that would have seen him marched straight to Professor McGonagall had he been caught, and generally looking like a lunatic. The Slytherin matched him pace for pace.
Every now and then he thought he had given her the slip, only to find her reappearing a moment later. Would she ever give up?
*
“Give it here,” Remus pleaded. He was conscious of the fact that his friends were probably already looking for him.
He couldn’t believe he had got up at the crack of dawn for this. If his plans had gone smoothly he’d already have the counter-spell and could have gone back to bed for a couple of extra hours kip.
Instead he was stuck at the top of the dirty and smelly Owlery, trying to get the most stubborn bird on the planet to give up his scroll.
Even worse, he hadn’t had breakfast yet and if the bloody creature didn’t start cooperating soon he’d be missing lunch too.
*
Sirius panted and wheezed as he struggled to get away from Maisie. He hadn’t thought she looked that fit, but she was certainly giving chase like she could run professionally.
“Maisie Grubb, stop right there.”
Sirius blessed Professor Slughorn for his timing.
“What have you been told about running in the corridors?” the professor asked.
“But, it’s Sirius Black,” said Maisie in a dreamy voice, as though this explained everything. The girl wasn’t even out of breath, Sirius noted with a fair amount of resentment.
“I can see that.” Professor Slughorn waved her away and she reluctantly went.
Sirius clutched his side as he gasped out a thank you to the professor.
“Perhaps now might be a good time to get rid of the mistletoe,” Slughorn suggested with a wink. “Clearly it isn’t attracting the kind of girl you want.”
Sirius grinned and found himself with a new sense of respect for the Potions Master. Taking the plant from his pocket he held it out for the professor to take.
“I don’t want it,” Slughorn replied. “Just put it in a bin somewhere.”
Sirius did as he suggested, thankfully without further incident, and returned to his task of finding Remus.
*
Remus sat on the floor of the owlery, glaring at the delivery owl, as he tried to come up with a new plan. He closed his eyes momentarily, or at least that was his intention. Having spent so much of the previous night worrying, then getting up at the crack of dawn, meant he was even more tired than he was the day after the full moon. Within a few seconds he was fast asleep.
*
Sirius had looked nearly everywhere for Remus. Lunch had been and gone and there was still no sign of him. James, who was still waiting in the common room, confirmed he hadn’t come back there. Peter had vanished, probably with the Ravenclaw girl, but at least he knew he was okay. Remus could be lying in a ditch somewhere for all he knew. Okay, it was pretty unlikely he had to admit. He was probably holed up somewhere trying to get a head start on his holiday homework, though since he wasn’t in the library that was looking increasingly doubtful.
He was still trying to think of where to search when he ran into Regulus.
“Sirius.”
“What do you want?” Sirius snapped.
“I got a letter from Mother this morning. She said you hadn’t even sent her a Christmas card.”
Sirius snorted. “I can’t imagine she’s expecting one from me.”
Regulus shrugged and walked off. “Suit yourself.”
Sirius shook his head. He hadn’t sent any of his family a card, including Regulus. He wanted nothing to do with any of them. Well, except Uncle Alphard of course.
“Bollocks!” He hadn’t sent his uncle his card and present. It was still in his trunk. Even though there were several days before Christmas, Uncle Alphard was travelling abroad at the moment. He hoped it wasn’t too late to reach him in time.
Sirius ran back to the tower again.
“No, he’s not here,” James said the moment he saw him.
Sirius waved him away and ran up to the dormitory. He grabbed the parcel and headed for the Owlery.
There were plenty of birds in the building, but unfortunately his own, a lazy creature, prone to hiding, was nowhere in sight.
Sirius climbed the steps, trying to locate his owl. He located Remus first, nearly tripping over him as he rounded the corner.
“Of course, where else would he be?” Sirius muttered to himself. “Asleep in the Owlery. Why didn’t I think of looking there first?”
Sirius poked Remus with his shoe. “Wakey-wakey,” he cooed.
Remus opened his eyes and stared at Sirius with what looked to be total utter horror. Not the reaction he was expecting.
“Oh shit!”
“Nice to see you too,” Sirius replied with a grin. “I’ve been looking all over for you.”
“What time is it?” Remus asked.
“About two. Why?”
“Bollocks, bollocks, bollocks!”
Sirius backed away a little.
Remus shook his head. “It’s too late. Bloody owls. Bloody mistletoe.”
“Moony, are you okay?”
“Might as well get it over with,” Remus said. He rubbed his palms on his trousers and took a deep breath.
“Get what over with?” Sirius asked, right before Remus launched himself at him and locked their lips together.
Sweet mother of Merlin. Sirius had never seen it coming. He had mistakenly thought he knew everything about Remus John Lupin, yet he hadn’t known this.
Remus pushed his tongue into Sirius’ mouth, kissing him as thoroughly as he had ever been kissed before.
Sirius realised in that moment he didn’t know Remus at all. Even more startling, he didn’t know himself, because he was enjoying this kiss more than any other in his life.
Remus pulled him closer and wrapped his arms around his back, clinging onto him as the owls watched the two of them silently.
When they finally broke apart, Sirius whimpered at the loss.
He stared at Remus for several long seconds. Remus stared right back, practically daring him to say something.
An owl swooped down and landed near Remus’ hand. He held out his claw for Remus to take the scroll.
“Now you let me have the bloody scroll.” Remus snatched the scroll from the owl and tore it open. He grabbed his wand and read the spell out loud. “There, it’s sorted.”
“What’s sorted?” Sirius asked. He reached for the scroll and read the contents. “This is a counter-spell for the mistletoe.”
“I know. I wanted to get it before you activated it, but the stupid owl wouldn’t hand it over until now. Now it’s sorted we can put this behind us.”
Remus stood up and brushed off his robes. “Did James get a kiss from Lily?”
Sirius goggled at him. “Put this behind us?” he asked.
Remus shrugged. “Yes, Sirius, I fancy you, but you don’t need to let it worry you now I’ve cast the counter-spell. Just add me to the list of girls you don’t find attractive who have been throwing themselves at you all day.”
“You’re not a girl.”
“Obviously.” Remus headed over to the stairs.
“I threw the mistletoe away,” Sirius called after him.
Remus hesitated and glanced back over his shoulder. “What?”
“You weren’t under the influence of the mistletoe when you kissed me,” Sirius said. “And neither was I when I kissed you back.”
Remus didn’t say a word.
“Your sprig of mistletoe is in the dormitory,” Sirius added. “Mine’s in the bin. But we still kissed.”
“I thought I was under the influence of a spell,” Remus whispered.
Sirius stood up and reached out his hand to Remus. “No, just the irresistible charm of Sirius Black.”
Remus snorted, but he took Sirius’ hand and let him be drawn back into his arms.
This time when they kissed, they both knew exactly what they were getting themselves into. This would be the first of many.
*
“I’m glad you thought to look for me up there,” Remus said as he nodded back towards the Owlery some time later.
“Oh, I wasn’t really looking for you there. I was sending Uncle Alphard’s present. Oh bugger!”
“What?”
Remus watched as Sirius sprinted back to the Owlery once more.
“I forgot to bloody send it,” Sirius called back.
Remus laughed as he waited for Sirius to send his parcel and catch him up again. He had a feeling life with Sirius Black was going to be rather hectic, but very interesting. He touched a finger to his swollen lips and smiled. Very interesting indeed.
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no subject
Date: 2014-12-28 11:08 am (UTC)This was so sweet and charming. James was spot on the way he insisted on not giving up, but remained waiting in the common room. And it was such a lovely touch the way Remus thought he was under a spell. Sirius' reaction to that confession was so very Sirius. I'm glad he figured out something new about himself too :) That whole scene in the owlery was absolutely adorable!
Lovely fic!
(Sorry about the edits, I'm writing on my old phone which isn't very good for typing)
no subject
Date: 2015-02-21 05:06 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-12-29 01:07 am (UTC)There was really so much to love here, but my favorite bits included that darling description of how all for boys slept, Maisie the Wonder Runner Witch, and Remus's acute distress with the owls. So funny! And, of course, Lily would be on to any mischief before James could pull it off. You're right, she was always one step ahead of that game.
Great story!
no subject
Date: 2015-02-21 05:07 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-12-29 07:36 am (UTC)The whole thing is a clever, charming bit of brightness all the way through, and I love the dynamic you've woven between Sirius and Remus! So, so lovely to see--this put such a smile on my face.
no subject
Date: 2015-02-21 05:08 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-12-29 02:22 pm (UTC)Very cute. Loved Remus trying to escape the room and the owl just not letting him near. Smart owl. And loved Remus just kissing Sirius thinking that the spell was making him do it. A very fun story.
no subject
Date: 2015-02-21 05:08 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-12-29 02:57 pm (UTC)And Remus falling asleep in the Owlery out of sheer panic and frustration with the exceedingly stubborn owl. Just too cute. I loved every second of this. It was truly wonderful!
no subject
Date: 2015-02-21 05:10 pm (UTC)Sorry for not responding sooner. Been swamped in recent months.
no subject
Date: 2014-12-31 01:38 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2015-02-21 05:10 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2015-01-02 10:17 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2015-02-21 05:11 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2015-01-07 12:22 pm (UTC)This was literally the sweetest thing, it was the classic mistletoe story, in all the best of ways. You fit so many of the things that I asked for in here, I'm so impressed- the recalcitrant owl in particular just completely stole my heart. The part at the end when it finally deigned to lang on Remus' arm had me smiling like a loon.
I am in love with so many of the little details. I loved the mental of Jame looking a complete pillock with his mistletoe hanging off his hat, and all of the girls being far too tricky to fall for it.
Sirius' worry for Remus' whereabouts was terribly endearing, as was Remus jumping to conclusions at the ending. It felt so in character for the pair of them, and it was wonderfully charming to read.
Thank you so much for writing me such a brilliant thing! I absolutely love it to bits and pieces! <3
no subject
Date: 2015-02-21 05:15 pm (UTC)I am just glad you liked the story. I always worry about whether the recipient of the gift likes what I have written or not. Thankfully most years they have. :-)