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Chapter Text

Thursday August 24th, 2175

It had been exactly ten weeks since his mum died and ten years since his father never returned on the day his letter arrived .

Remus had never understood why they still send the letters because everyone knew when they had to leave, but they still did it.

Dear Mr Lupin,

You are required to be at the Academy starting from 1 September this year. Your attendance is expected on 31 August. Headmaster’s Office

He sat there on his mum’s old couch, staring at the fancy paper used, thinking about The Academy.

Schools had names before the apocalypse—he’d learnt that from his dad’s books. But apparently, no one had bothered to name this one. and well it wouldn’t really matter since it’s the only one.

He’d also learnt from his dad’s journal and books that this—his way of living—wouldn’t have been acceptable before the apocalypse. because apparently a fifteen-year-old boy shouldn’t be living alone. he would have been sent to what they’d call a boy’s home, which Remus thought was a stupid idea. but again, it wouldn’t really matter anymore—because in this world, no one cared for such things.

Saying this world sounds kind of lame but he can never imagine a world as dark and limited as the one he lives in as the same world in his dad’s old books, the same one his dad dedicated his life to write about.

He couldn’t quite imagine how a beautiful world full of Art ended the way it did and turned into Orrima, A world where you can’t even see the moon that poets adored staring at.

Remus would have the rest of the week to mourn a world he’d never known. but right now, he needed to go see Mikey to share the news—and, well, to nick some fags, since he’d run out after staying up all night smoking, listening to his mum’s old records, and reading his dad’s research on pre-apocalypse music.

He found mickey sprawled on the dirt in the middle of his family’s farm, smoking. he made his way to him and flopped down beside

him. “Oi, Mik.” Mikey cracked one eye open and grinned at Remus “Hello to you too Wolf boy” Remus scowled at the stupid nickname “I’m starting to regret telling you the story of my name”

“Nah, it’s a good nickname Wolfy, what brought you here? Came to Nick some fags?” Remus smiled despite the even stupider nickname “well, you know me Mick.” Mickey gave him a light chuckle and took his cigarette packet and lighter and tossed to Remus Remus took a drag of his fag and started feeling better already “Isn’t it a bit early for a nap?”
“Nah Grandpa is in a git mood today, woke me at the crack of dawn”

“Your grandpa is always in a git mood” Mickey laughed a faint laugh that for some reason made Remus’ stomach do flip flops.

“I got my letter today” he found himself saying without thinking while he sat up.

“Whatchu mean what let-“he stopped himself mid talking as realization draw over his face took over his face, Mickey sat up too and remus just stared at his shoes “yeah”

“Don’t worry—if i got out then you’ll get out too Wolfy we both know you are much smarter than me, and yes it’s filled with posh people but there are a lot of southerns too and don’t worry southerners always stick together it’ll be easy for you wolfy”

Remus looked up towards the sunlight beaming through the holes in the roof and sighed,

he kept looking up and said “I’m not worried about going out Micky but thanks” because he is not-he is more worried about getting in- but well how would Micky know? After all Remus hasn’t told him anything. Remus kept looking at the roof. and even though he had never seen the sun or the sky in his life, he had never felt like he needed to more than he did right now.

He looked back at Micky who laid back down, hands behind his head, his blonde curls were shining as the sunlight fell on them, Remus smiled to himself and thought well maybe some things are better kept as secrets.

Later that night

Remus took the fags he got from Micky, his dad’s journal and one of his old books and the dinner Micky’s grandma sent him and snuck into their farm

well snuck isn’t really the right term since they are very aware of his night visits but well—

He found his gaze drifting upwards this time too, there was a very faint light coming through the small holes in the roof.

The moon.

He sat down, lit his torch and started reading about life under the moon again while eating his dinner and feeling the cold breeze on his face. He tried not to think about The Academy, his mum, what’s behind these stupid walls, how does it feel to gaze at the stars and definitely he tried not to think about his dad.

Chapter Text

Tuesday 31st august 2175

It was a bad night.

It was one of those nights, when as soon as Remus closed his eyes and drifted to sleep…. he saw her—his mother.

At first she looks healthy and young,

She’d be wearing her blue dress and red lipstick, drinking her tea elegantly like a true lady with her blonde hair sprayed over her shoulders, she would see him and she would give him a wide smile and say “that’s my beautiful baby boy.” But then—

Suddenly her beautiful smile would turn into a scowl and the twinkle in her eyes would disappear and change into something lifeless and dim and she’d start crying.

He’d try to stop her of course, to tell her that her boy is here, that everything would be okay.

But she’d just stare at him like he’d said something ridiculous and start laughing an ugly, loud laugh , nothing like Hope’s real laugh, and she’d start saying, over and over again, “it’s his fault Remus, he did this to me, he did this to you! He was selfish, a selfish man”.

Remus woke up gasping for air as if something was choking him in his sleep, he felt something tickling his cheeks, it’s tears— of course. he was crying.

He had fallen asleep on the couch in the living room and his back was aching from the weird sleeping position, it was four in the morning, still early but he has to head toward the academy soon if he wants to make it in time to settle in before tomorrow.

He had decided to wear his brown shirt considering that it was the best thing he had and well, wasn’t he supposed to dress well for his first day?

His uniform arrived a couple of days ago, plain white shirts and gray slacks, he was just glad that there was no tie included in the uniform or he’d have strangled himself with it.

With a headache from lack of sleep, a backache from sleeping on the couch, and the stress with leaving home, he definitely didn’t feel like having breakfast..

So after packing his trunk, which wasn’t very hard… after all, he couldn’t take Lyall’s books… he didn’t know how his roommates would react if they found it, since he had no idea what kind of people they would be.

One of the things he was most nervous about was the roommates thing, he had never shared a room with anyone in his life—well, except for his mother on her bad nights….

But that was different, Micky had told him about his Academy days and his stinky posh roommate from midtown,

and Remus did not want a posh boy from midtown with stinky socks as his roommate.

But well, it’s not like he could do anything about it.

But he just couldn’t leave Lyall’s journal behind so he decided that this was a risk he was willing to take—he is taking with him.

But he needed to see Mickey first.

Remus stood at the front door while Micky’s grandma went to get him, he felt like he was three minutes away from vomiting, in his fifteen miserable years of life, he’d never left home, even though he’s been uncomfortable in it ever since his mum died, it was still his home.

And well, he was going to miss Mickey— A lot.

Remus had known Michael Radford since he used to wet his knickers.

Mickey was four years his senior, living with his grandparents since he was five after his parents caught the disease and died. the same one that had taken Hope.

And many others in the south, but well— that was just the way life went in Orrima.

Mickey had taught Remus how to throw a punch, gave him his first cigarette, bought him his first drink, got him his first dirty magazine when he turned thirteen, and his most recent lesson was how to roll a joint.

And he knew Remus enough to not to ask about his dad, and to not to ask him how he was after his mum died, and Remus appreciated that about Mickey—he always knew when not to ask questions.

He was lost in the haze of his mind when he felt a hand nudge his shoulder, he turned around and saw the familiar blonde curls and warm brown eyes that can melt a person in them— mickey.

“ Aren’t ya looking good, wolf boy. didn’t recognize ya without your old tatty T-shirt”

Remus looked at his brown shirt—it was a bit big on him but he’d grown into it since his mom got it for him last year, he looked back at Mickey “Are you ever going to get bored of that stupid nickname?”

“Nah, not very likely wolf boy, anyway what brought you here? came to tell me how much you are going to miss me?”

“Ha, you wish, ya old git.”

Micky gave a light chuckle and smiled at him a smile that made Remus’s cheeks burn a little.

“I am going to miss ya, y’know? I’ll have way too many fags without you nicking them from me.”

Remus’s heart felt like it was going to explode for a second, so he just tried to sound casual.

“Just save them for me, I’ll be back for Christmas after all”

Mickey looked at him with his brown eyes and gave him a sad nod, Remus was sure that this time his heart is going to explode.

Suddenly Mickey opened his arms and hugged Remus, he was sure that he was blushing right now, his neck suddenly felt very hot, and it took him and awkward moment until he hugged Mickey back.

“Stop getting taller kiddo”

“I’ll stop when you stop getting older you old twat”

Everything was fine until Mickey broke their hug and took Remus’ face and his hand and gave him a huge kiss on his right cheek—

This time Remus was sure that his heart had stopped for several seconds and his face had turned red, he lifted a hand to his cheek and just stared at Mickey in shock because what the fuck was that?

“What the fuck was that!” He screamed as long as he was able to think again.

Mickey just shrugged and said “What! Gran told me to give ya a smooch for good luck”

“Yeah, well—thanks. but don’t do that again, you bloody twat.”

Mickey let out a laugh that showed his broken—tooth and somehow, that smoothed Remus’s heart a little.

“Hey,I gotcha a gift to take with you. don’t use it all in one day—or maybe do.” he winked at him while pulling a flask from the pocket of his jacket.

“Really? who is Michael Radford without corrupting minors?”

Mickey laughed at that while shaking his head “I think you were born corrupted my dear Remus Lupin”

“Ha ha. now give me that—I have a bus to catch.” He took the alcohol flask from mickey and hid it in his jacket hoping it won’t get confiscated in The Academy.

“I guess this is goodbye now, Wolfy.”

Remus smiled a sad smile and nodded, “yeah it’s goodbye Mick, but hey—I’ll see ya at Christmas, right?”

“Well, innit like I’d be going anywhere, Wolf boy, you know?

“Yeah, Mick—I know”

This time, he gave his best friend one last quick hug and headed off to catch his bus, thinking about how fucking much he was going to miss that stupid nickname.

Chapter Text

Remus had never been to the North before—

Not that he had travelled much, but well—even though his mum didn’t like talking about it,  it was the truth: Remus was born in Midtown, and he’d lived there for the first five years of his life.

But to him, those years counted for nothing.

he had never considered himself a Midtown boy, maybe Lyall was, but he certainly wasn’t.

He didn’t spend his childhood among expensive tutors, Instead, his mum taught him reading and writing and everything she knew—even if it wasn’t really much.

He hadn’t been to the posh rec center, he watched Southern kids who loved sports play on the streets, using plastic bottles filled with dirt instead of balls because actual ones were too expensive.

And he certainly didn’t have his future already planned and secured before him.

He thought that maybe he did one day, back when Lyall was alive maybe he had a few plans for his son…

But that was a long time ago, Now Remus is a Southern. he’d never thought anything else of himself. after all he’s just like any Southern teenager, with his smoking habit and a bad education, so it doesn’t really matter where he was born or how his dad might’ve lived once.

All his memories—good ones and bad ones—were formed in the South.

He discovered that he’d arrived early, courtesy of his shitty sleep. Only a few students were at the Academy, and most of them were prefects anyway. One of the prefects—Benjy Fenwick—had given him a small tour around, it looked boxy from the outside and the inside, grey and lifeless despite being filled with life. But at least there were a lot of open grounds and a lake nearby thanks to the beautiful nature of the Northern side, which made Remus consider it a bit bearable.

The boys’ dormitory wasn’t as bad and stinky as Remus had imagined. they even had a common room with a bunch of couches and a small rusty kitchenette at the corner. his room itself wasn’t horrible either—even better than his actual room— but what made him a little distressed was the fact that there were four beds.

He’d have to share a room with three other boys .

They could be some nasty gits as far as he knew, and he’d still be stuck with them for three years.

He was still trying to accept his fate when Benjy handed him his schedule…

Physical training at six a.m…

Everyday…

Even on weekends.

And Combat Training I? Who the fuck is he going to combat?!

Orrimian History just sounded like endless hours of the professor praising the Founder Families.

Civic Order gave him the creeps and he didn’t even understand what Logic and Rhetoric was, and he just hoped that he won’t throw up when he sees blood in First Aid because it sounded like it’d full of blood, science studies was just too posh even for the academy considering that only Midtowners could have access to further science studies.

But what really caught his interest was Pre-Apocalypse Studies — Professor Turner.

Lyall’s major was pre-apocalypse studies…

Knowing the Academy, it’d probably just be endless hours of lectures about the war and Founder Families, but Remus let himself hope that there would be something interesting about it.

Considering that he was the first of his roommates to arrive he decided to claim the bed closest to the window as his, and after coming to terms with his miserable fate— he had no idea how he was going to do Physical Training at six every day— and unpacking his trunk, he decided to take a walk around the open grounds to calm his nerves.

A few more students were roaming the halls now than an hour ago, He was on his way out when something ran into him—well, someone ran into him, literally.

It was a girl—well, he assumed it was a girl. he couldn’t really see much of her because of the huge box that’s probably twice her size that she was carrying other than smooth locks of the reddest hair Remus had ever seen.

The box almost slipped from her hands when she ran into Remus, but he managed to steady it just in time, the girl let out a relieved sigh and peeked out from behind the huge box to look at Remus.

She gave him a horrified look with her huge emerald-green eyes and when she saw that he wasn’t going to snap at her anytime soon, she just smiled guiltily, shrugged and said “sorry…, my friend was helping me with the box but he ditched me for a tour around the boys’ dormitory, I’m really sorry, but could you just keep holding that until I find someone to help me with it?”

Remus really wanted to say no—he just wanted to go for a walk…

But then she just stared at him with wide sad puppy eyes and he found himself saying “yeah, sure. alright.” without realizing.

The girl immediately pushed the entire weight of the box towards Remus and flashed a smile that lit her entire face and said “Uh, thank you veryyy much. i swear to God I’m going to strangle Severus when i find him.” then she reached out a hand and said “ I’m Lily Evans, first year.”

The way she was buzzing with energy just made Remus dizzier and more nervous than he already was, he forced himself to relax a bit and introduce himself “Remus. Lupin. Uh-First year. I would’ve shaken your hand, but mine are kinda busy right now.” and he tried to steady the heavy box a little— like, seriously what does she need this much stuff for?

The girl—Lily—just gave him a guilty look and said “ sorry about that, I’ll just go to find someone to help me with that” , she was on her way towards the girls’ dormitory when she turned around, smiled and said “Oh, and it is nice to meet you, Remus.”

After several minutes of standing awkwardly at the hallway with the stupidly gigantic box, his palms started to feel clammy, and he was three seconds away from dropping the box and running away when Lily finally emerged from the girls’ dormitory with a blonde girl.

Unlike Lily, She was a bit tall for a girl, her hair was slicked back into a long blonde ponytail.

Lily gave another apologetic smile and said, “Sorry again, Remus, it was very kind of you to help me with that. Er— this is my roommate Marlene McKinnon. She is a first year too”

Marlene gave Remus a silent, shy nod, He Returned it with a polite smile and nod, appreciating the lack of talk.

He handed them the box to carry back to their dorm, just as a boy with a sour look on his face— like he’d swallowed a whole lemon—approached them.

Now, Lily might’ve had the reddest hair Remus had ever seen, but this boy definitely had the greasiest hair anyone had ever seen.

He looked at Remus as if he was gum stuck at the bottom of his shoe, then started talking to Lily as if Remus and Marlene couldn’t hear him “Lily what are you doing! You should’ve just waited for me.”

Well that must be Severus, Remus thought.

“I couldn’t just stand around with that box while you were off having fun in your tour, i nearly ran right into poor Remus—but he was kind enough to help me.”

Severus shot Remus a disgusted glare— really, Remus was a second away from punching him— and said, “Lily, you can’t just walk around here being chummy with everyone! You know theh let all sorts of people in here.” And with that last sentence he looked directly at Remus.

Normally, that would’ve earned him a punch from Remus—but for Severus’s good luck, Remus didn’t fancy his chances starting a fight at the Academy before term had even begun.

So instead, he just said “Yeah, you’re right, mate. apparently they even let in  the ones who don’t know how to take shower.” Fixing his eyes on Severus’s hair.

Marlene chuckled at that, while Severus’s face turned as red as Lily’s hair. “ You Southern scum, how dare y—“ he hissed,but Lily cut in before he could finish.

“Severus, this is ENOUGH.”

now Lily might’ve been— at most—a 5’2 girl in a floral dress, but the look she gave Severus made even Remus afraid of her for a second.

“B—but Lily, He—“ Severus began stumbling over his words.

“NO, Sev. i won’t take any excuses for this behaviour. now, if you could please leave” Lily said it like she was an angry mother scolding her child.

Severus, who was apparently used to being scolded by Lily, slumped his shoulders, shot Remus a murderous glare and walked away.

Well, good to go Remus — you just made an enemy before lunch hour, you’d certainly make Mickey proud.

To his surprise, it was Marlene who broke the awkward silence.

“You’ve sure got such a friendly bestie, Lily.”

Remus couldn’t help but laugh at that— he was starting to like this Marlene girl— but Lily started mumbling apologies, and when she turned to face him, she looked like she was three seconds away from crying.

“Don’t worry about it, Lily. It’s okay.” Remus said in what he hoped was a reassuring tone. “I mean, he’s obviously an arsehole—but really, i was expecting a lot worse.”

With his mood thoroughly ruined thanks to greasy Severus, he decided to head back to the dorm a read for a bit, considering that it was nearly lunchtime.

But when he opened the door, he found that the room wasn’t as empty as he’d left it. There were two other boys inside— his roommates—

One of them certainly had the posh Midtowny look on him, he was tall—not as tall as Remus to his credit—, unlike Remus who was all lanky limbs, the boy was clearly an athlete, his skin was a warm, shiny brown, and his eyes like chocolate—peered through a pair of round glasses. the only thing that didn’t quite fit the polished image was the wild mess of black hair on his head…

Other than that, his clothes were clearly New and expensive, and he was carrying a football with one hand—something that would’ve gotten the attention of every kid on the South—

Now, the other boy definitely wasn’t a Southerner, but he wasn’t a Midtowner either. He looked a bit green in the gills— which, honestly, made Remus feel better about his nerves. he had mousy blond hair and wore very plain clothes.

Either west or east. Remus said to himself.

Surprisingly, it was the posh with the crazy hair that spoke first. “Hiya, mate. you must be our roommate—James Potter.” , he took remus’s hand in a firm handshake he introduced himself, —buzzing with the same kind of energy as Lily Evans—

The blond boy introduced himself as Peter Pettigrew. the poor sods hands were already shaking, so Remus didn’t bother with a handshake.

They ended up sitting together at lunch, Peter turned out to be in fact an Easterner—apparently, his family owns the very first bakery in all of Orrima, one that’s popular even with Midtowners.

Overall, James and Peter were both friendly— too friendly if you ask Remus— and James didn’t even ask Remus where he was from. instead, he asked him about football, his favorite food and his height.

He saw Lily too sitting with Marlene and two other girls— her other roommates he assumed- , one of them which he recognized, she was a southerner. He’d seen her around at the local pub back there, she probably knew Mickey too.

Well, it looked like she knew Remus too, because she waved at him and ditched her girlfriends to join him.

She sat her lunch tray down on the table casually and sat next him, she had a pretty smile—a one that felt contagious like you had to smile back even if you don’t want to.

“You are Mickey Radford’s friend.” she said.

“You know Mick?”

“Every kid around the south knows Mick, Lily told me your name—Remus Lupin, right?

“Mm, yeah, that’s me”

“Don’t think I’ve heard of the Lupins. before, what does your family do?”

Well, it looks like he couldn’t escape it here either.

“you wouldn’t have heard of them. Lupins aren’t Southerners—my mum’s family are, the Haylands”

“Mhm, I know the Haylands. our mums used to work together at the tailor’s—I’m Sorry about your mum—mine was really sad when she heard the news”

“Yeah—it was, er…sad news.”

“Alright, then, I’ll se ya around, Remus” she winked as she said his name, Remus smiled sheepishly and watched her stand and leave—only then realizing that he didn’t even caught her name…

But well…she was really fit.

He turned back to find both Peter and James staring at him, wide-eyed like he’d just won a tournament.

“W-wow…she’s p-pretty, Remus” peter breathed, eyes still stunned.

Then James chuckled. “ bloody ladies’ man, Lupin. hey—think you can set me up with her redhead friend?”

Well, At least they’d skipped the dead mum and the non-southerner dad parts.

“Sorry, mate. Saw her make a guy piss his pants with one look today, and I don’t fancy my chances of surviving if i get on her bad side.”

With nothing better to do, Peter and James had convinced him to join them exploring the open grounds, he finally got the walk around the lake he wanted…

He even saw Marlene and invited her to join them— which got him a look from James and Peter like they were about to build him a statue—

Marlene like Remus, wasn’t the very talkative type— she only spoke when someone asked her something. But the minute James mentioned football, it was like she turned into a completely different person.

She, James and even Peter went on about football nonstop until dinner time, mumbling stuff about the nasty coach at the rec center and pro players Remus couldn’t keep up with.

It only made him dizzy…and miss Mickey.

It was the last straw for him when they decided to play a match after dinner.

They were joined by Lily and the southerner— whose name he’d learned, was Mary MacDonald— and their fourth roommate who didn’t say a word the entire time other than her name: Sama she didn’t even bother with a last name.

Lily and Mary sat on either side of him, making small talk, which earned him a very jealous look from both James and Peter.

He managed to skip the game with the excuse that he was exhausted from traveling — which he was— but what he really needed was a quick fag.

There was still no trace of their fourth roommate— SOB— back at the dorm, Remus wasn’t exactly thrilled about hi,  considering that his initials spelt out “ Son of a bitch ”. James and Peter were both decently nice, so he there way no way he’d get lucky with another pleasant boy.

After a good smoke— and deciding he needed to cut back a little if he was going to survive until Christmas.

He tried to read for a bit since he was alone at the dorm, but the sounds of laughter and clatter from the outside didn’t help. and he didn’t find himself being able to concentrate with the sudden change of environment.

So instead, he settled on a warm shower to clear his head. While standing under the water, he decided to make a list of the good and bad of his first day.

He still hadn’t moved on from the six a.m. physical training, so lessons were definitely on the bad side.

James and peter were friendly—way to friendly—, but they were nice and neither of them even ask for his background… so to the good side they go.

Lily, Mary and Marlene, were unquestionably on the good side—Sama, on the other hand, wasn’t on any side considering that she’d spoken only one word during dinner…

And Dear ol’ Severus was as bad as the six a.m. physical training…

He’d heard the door while he was in the shower—but figured was just James or Peter, so he didn’t pay it any attention.

After emerging from the shower, wearing only his pijama bottoms—with the room being far too warm to bother with a shirt.

He was busy drying his hair with a towel as he said without glancing “ So How did the game go?”.

It was Only when he turned around he realized that it wasn’t James or Peter standing in front of him.

This boy’s eyes were a silvery-blue color, not like James’s warm brown eyes or Peter’s greenish blue. His skin was very fare and his hair fell to his shoulder as black silk.

He was, without a doubt, the most beautiful person Remus had ever seen—his entire look screamed old money.

Remus suddenly felt very shy about his lanky frame when he noticed the boy eyeing him.

So he tried to say something to break the ice, “Er- I, uh, sorry, I thought you were someone else”

The boy smiled handsomely and Remus’s heart skipped a beat— seriously, how can someone just be this beautiful—

“Yeah, I figured” the boy said, stepping closer

Remus couldn’t help but notice that he was tall too—probably as tall as james— as he extended a hand to Remus in a handshake.

When Remus touched his hand, it was like a jolt of electricity buzzed through his entire body for a moment.

“Sirius Black, pleasure to meet you”

And well, OH FUCK…

Black! He is a Black! Of course, Remus of all people will end up with a fucking royal as his roommate.

A bloody BLACK.

the boy was giving him a funny look, and only then he realized that he hadn’t even introduced himself “Remus. Lupin” he said quickly.

Sirius chuckled lightly and turned his attention to his trunk, it was silver, with green snakes were engraved on the handles.

“So… what did you mean earlier about the game?” Sirius said as unpacked his things.

“Er- our other dorm mates, James and Peter, challenged one of the girls to a football match after dinner.”

“mhm. and don’t you play?”

“Can’t play to save my life” Remus said with a shrug, which made Sirius laugh.

“Ha! you are a funny one Lupin, i like ya…, anyway sorry for keeping you up—you look knackered”

“Don’t worry about it. but I better sleep if i want to survive physical training, Goodnight”

Sirius nodded and smiled. “Goodnight, Remus.”

Remus shut his bed curtains and tried to sleep. he could hear the Sirius humming something that felt familiar. seconds later, James and peter flooded into the room, whining about losing to Marlene, after introduction were made, they started explaining the whole game to Sirius, who sounded very interested.

Remus drifted off to sleep, while listening to the chatter and noises of his new friends.

And for the first time in eleven weeks he did not dream about his mother—instead he dreamt of the moon.

Chapter Text

Remus saw death—all thanks to his PT teacher, couch Hooch. after a two-mile run and twenty push-ups on his first day, he briefly thought that drowning himself in the lake would be more merciful than having to do this everyday.

The only people who weren’t on the verge of tears, gasping for breath after their first PT class were James and Marlene—who breezed through every exercise as if it were nothing.

And he wouldn’t expect anything less from the heir of the great house of Black.

But hey— at least everyone else was in as bad a shape as Remus, well—almost as bad as Remus, Mary looked like she fainted for a minute, and Peter kept going on about how he’d lost ten pounds in a single run, and he still wasn’t sure if what’s on Lily’s face were sweat or tears…

Over breakfast, the boys sat alone—Lily had made up with Severus and was eating with him, while Mary and Marlene were with their silent Sama, who even during PT hadn’t said much at all.

Somehow, James and Sirius had managed to become best friends overnight—and what’s even more surprising is that Sirius was…well, just a normal teenager?

When Remus Knew his roommate was a Black, he’d imagined that he’d make them address him as m’Lorde and bow to him every morning.

Yet here he was, making fart jokes with James at breakfast…

Civic order is taught by Mrs Crowl, a scary old woman with a waist as thin as her neck and hair so neat it looked like it had been craved into place, and while it was an extremely boring subject—it was an easy one, it’s not like there is anyone who didn’t know the rules and where they fell on the social pyramid, he didn’t need two hours a week reminding him he needs to thank the founder families before every meal.

Everything else was tolerable, the Logic and Rhetoric teacher, Professor McGonagall, could’ve been speaking gibberish and he still wouldn’t have understood a word—but she did gave them tons of homework, so he’ll have to figure it out eventually—probably by asking Lily who looked like she had an idea what the old teacher was going on about. And who he was paired with in both first aid and science studies .

To his surprise, Remus found First Aid really enjoyable, and it there wasn’t any blood— well, not for the first week anyway.

Science, on the other hand, was horrible.

All teachers were treating Sirius in a special way in a suck up attempt—but Professor Slughorn was on another level, “I’ll have you know Mr Black that I have taught all three of your cousins—Andromeda, Bellatrix and Narcissa, all three of them were spectacular students. of course, I wouldn’t expect any less from The great House of Black… but I’ve no doubt that their talent will pale in comparison to that of the heir of the Black family,” said Slughorn.

So he wasn’t just a Black, he was their bloody heir?

What does that make him, a bloody prince ?

Sirius just plastered a smile and nodded politely at the obvious suck up attempt, but apparently, he wasn’t able to endure it any longer. and hr decided to shut the annoying professor forever on Friday of the first week,

“ I shall say that you Mr Black, are showing spectacular intelligence in science studies, so like your cousin Ms Andromeda, who i advised to take further science studies, did she complete her education” said Slughorn with a plastic smile.

“Nah—Andy ran away with a western lock-maker. she completed her further studies in nappy-changing, considering she was knocked up a while later, good for her—she’s always been my favorite cousin” Sirius said with a wide grin, while everyone’s jaw just dropped to the floor.

Slughorn avoided Sirius the whole class.

The first week went by without Combat Training I —which remus was grateful for— and without Pre-Apocalypse studies, their first class for Monday.

On Saturday—everyone went back to bed after physical training, most of them didn’t even bother were breakfast, they couldn’t believe that they can finally rest after PT. Remus was surprised to find out that the Academy had a big library that had a Pre-apocalypse section—courtesy of the current Headmaster, Albus Dumbledore, the same one that added Pre-apocalypse studies as a main subject in the academy.

So he spent much of the weekend there, mostly studying with Lily,though Marlene joined them for While on Sunday.

Other than that, he stayed it in the boys’ common room with his friends. Mary joined them on Sunday evening—and even managed to drag along Lily, Marlene and surprisingly even Sama.

She suggested they play a game of random questions to get to know each other better, Remus wasn’t exactly so thrilled about the idea but everyone else was giddy about it so he had to tag along.

They sat on the common room’s cold floor in a circle and began playing,

“It’s my idea, so I’m going to be the first to go” mary said with a grin. She glanced around at all of them, then pointed her finger at Remus “I already know where are you from—so how tall are you?”

“Er…I’m not really sure. i think six feet?”

Thank god she hadn’t asked something weird.

She smiled again flashing a set of pearly teeth “Wow, you’re tall, i like tall boys… you’re turn now”

His ears suddenly felt hot. “Er—M Marlene, when is your birthday?”

“Fifth of August” Remus noticed her cheeks turn slightly pink.

It started like this at the beginning, when is your birthday, which side are you from and what’s your favorite color—but, Mary decided to spice things up a little.

She choose Sirius this time, “Now Mr fancy boy, have you ever been in love”

Sirius sniggered and thought for a moment then said, “hmm, no not love, my heart’s not that easy”.

After that things started going downhill…

“Have you ever kissed anyone Remus?” Asked Sirius.

“Yes” , it wasn’t a complete lie.

“Have you ever had a girlfriend James?” Asked Mary.

“Nope”

“Really? You’re fit I don’t see why…”

“Have you ever had a boyfriend, Lily?”

“No”

“Why”

“None of your business Potter.”

“Peter, if you had to kiss one girl sitting here, who would it be” asked Sirius with a mischievous grin.

“Er—mm, that’s not fair” screamed peter looking nervous and pale.

“C’mon pete it’s hypothetical, you wouldn’t have to kiss anyone”

“Er—m, I um- i mean i, fuck i choose Sama” cried Peter, Sama’s glanced around nervously, then just shrugged and went back to braiding Marlene’s hair.

“Question to you now cheeky bastard, who would you kiss black”

“Easy, MacDonald” he said smugly looking at Mary who gave him a wink, “Lupin, who would you kiss?”

The Fucking beautiful bastard!

But really? Who would he kiss ?

James had declared Lily as the true love of his life on Friday so she was off the table.

Sama was a bit odd, and he’s never spoken with her before…

That leaves Mary and Marlene, Mary was pretty and bold and a southerner just like him, but Marlene was also pretty, quite, she had started reading one of the novels Remus recommended, and he liked her enthusiasm about football…

“Marlene” he decided, his ears were burning, he was sure that he blushing and he avoided looking at Marlene’s face the whole evening.

He’d also written to Mickey over the weekend, telling him about his friends—and the fact that he had the Black heir as his roommates.

Monday 6th September 2175

Their first class for the week— other than PT of course— was Pre-Apocalypse studies.

Remus sat at the end of the class and since the professor hadn’t arrived yet, he sat next to Peter, James and Sirius were im front of them trying to balance pencils on their noses, when their professor came in, Remus heard few of the girls giggling and when he looked at him he immediately knew why, professor Turner was a bit young for the academy’s standards—considering the rest of their teachers were halfway to the grave.

He looked in his mid thirties, even though half of his hair was streaked with white, his clothes were definitely different from the other teachers, a casual black jeans and maroon shirt with a long necklace with a strange red stone and a pair of glasses. he went straight to the board and wrote his name on it.

Professor Timothy Turner

Pre-Apocalypse studies

Then he immediately turned away to his register “Archer, Ethan?”

“Yes sir”

he kept calling out name after name till he reached Remus’

“L-Lupin, Remus?”

“Here”

Remus wasn’t thick, it had occurred to him that his professor might’ve known his father, but the look Timothy Turner gave him, made him sure that he was familiar with the name Lupin…

After finishing the names, professor Turner leaned back against his desk, looked around and said “Can any of you tell me what they know about life before the apocalypse?… Yes Mr?”

“Severus Snape sir, the great war”

“You are not entirely wrong Mr snape, but that is not what I meant, what do you know about the life before all the wars and apocalypse stuff started? How did the people use to live… mhm, yes Mr?”

“Black, Sirius Black, i believe people used to have better music”

“Yess, this what I’m talking about, they did have much better music in my opinion, are you familiar with Pre-Apocalypse music Mr Black?”

“Kind of yeah, My younger brother plays the violin and he our family owns some reserved sheets, but what I’ve also listened to a record once—my cousin had one”

“I also have a few records of own, maybe I’ll bring them to class one day, yes miss?”

“Mary MacDonald, people used to have better fashion sense, not everything had to be practical back then, they wore more jewelry and heavier makeup, different fabrics”

Marlene and James both argued over Pre-Apocalypse football with professor Turner’s encouragement, and almost everyone had mentioned a small fact they knew about life before—even, Sama had talked about the variety of languages and cultures before , but Remus had managed to stay quiet the whole time, not because he didn’t know anything—but, because he knew too much and he had no idea where he has to start from.

“Yes, exactly Mr Gudgeon, um Mr Lupin, do y-you know something that you might like to share with us”

He didn’t need to ask him about his name—he had asked everyone else, even Sirius, who was a fucking Black

And he didn’t wait for him to raise his hand…

Yes—he definitely knew Lyall

“Er— well” fuck just say something quickly “people didn’t use to live in a cage” where the fuck did that come from!?

Everyone turned to look at him— fuck, great “um, i mean—people didn’t use to live between walls and under a roof, well not all the time anyway, their world was unlimited—they were able to look at the sky, they—they even went to the moon, and they were able to travel, far from their  homelands, because the world wasn’t divided to five parts only like Orrima”

He wasn’t breathing, his face was burning and he needed to puke. But professor Turner just smiled and shook his head “Yes, Remus, people used to look up at the sky, and they did go to moon…yes.”

Did he just call him by his first name?

He’d decided to talk to professor Turner after the end of class—he had no idea what he’d tell him, but he just— needed to talk to him.

But class ended and he just felt too nervous and James asked him if he’s coming to lunch—and well, he was hungry, but something—or someone— stopped them right out of the door,

“Hey Loony Lupin, such a speech you gave in there” sneered Snape.

“Oi, piss off Snape” said Remus.

“What— I’m just being curious about your mindset, it seems a bit, rebellious to me, doesn’t it Sirius?”

Great, even Snape is sucking up to Sirius now.

But, Sirius Black is a person full of surprises, “no it doesn’t Snivellus, tell you what I’m curious about, how do you manage to get your hair this greasy”

Snape looked like he was about to reply when Professor Turner suddenly opened the door and looked at them “Gentleman, it is not my habit to hand students detention on their first week, and I’d like to keep so—so, Mr Snape, this is not going to happen again or else—you’d be having a lot of push-ups to do with captain Hooch”

“But prof—“

“Go Mr Snape” , so Snape walked away to save himself after giving a vicious glare towards Remus and his friends

“Mr Black, I’ll have you know that i make no discriminations, and you’d also get a detention if you repeat this behavior”

“Yes Sir” Sirius said with a wide grin like he wasn’t just scolded by his teacher…

Do it Do it Do it Do it Do it

“um—Professor Turner , do you have a moment? I want to ask you something”Remus said quickly.

“Of course, Remus. please come inside”

He closed the door behind them and pulled a chair for Remus in front of his desk.

“Tea?”

“Yes please, four sugars”

The professor chuckled and shook his head—like he did after Remus’s horrible speech, he placed a tea cup and a plate biscuits in front of Remus and sat back in his teacher behind the desk.

Come on Remus, just ask him he won’t bite…

“Er— i was wondering professor if, if you’ve known my father he was also Pre-apocalypse major, but he wasn’t a teacher—well, I don’t think so, he was a researcher?”

“Yes, i knew Lyall” fuck “and i knew Hope too” fuck?

“So, the two of you were friends then?”

“mhm, yeah something like that—i was hoping you’d come talk to me… you look just like him you know” well, he didn’t actually know…

“Yeah?”

“Yeah, but his eyes were greener, your’s are more brown, and his hair was darker, other than that you are all Lyall.”

Remus didn’t say anything.

“We’ve—we’ve met here, in the Academy, me, Hope and Lyall”

“Yeah, i remember mum saying something about meeting Lyall at the academy, but sorry I don’t believe she’d ever mentioned you”

“No, she wouldn’t had”

“So, you weren’t really close?”

“Oh no, we were really close”

“What happened then, did you fight or something?”

“Not really, we were fine but— Hope and I stopped talking after um—“

“After dad disappeared”

“Mhm, yeah Remus, after Lyall disappeared… i tried to stay in touch of course, but Hope didn’t want to, not that i blame her of course— and well, after she went back south i lost contact with her, How is she doing now?”

Oh well…

“Um—well, mum died”

“I’m sorry wh-, what?”

“Yeah, she got the Southerner disease a year ago—died in June”

The professor’s facial expression changed like he just got the worst news he’d ever gotten in his life— Hope certainly wasn’t just his friend’s wife

“Oh god, I’m sorry i just—“ tears started streaming down his face, and Remus felt really awkward…

“The doctors said it wasn’t painful”

“God, Remus, I’m sorry, she just stopped talking with everyone and— God, what about you? Who is taking care of you?”

It’s not like she’s been doing much when when was alive

“I’m good, i still live at our cottage, she inherited it from her parents, and i used to work before i came to the Academy, and our neighbors have been always good to me” he didn’t need to explain his life to anyone—even his new friends didn’t know much about his home life.

But seeing his professors shed tears over his dead mother made it feel like his responsibility to soothe him…

Professor Turner chuckled and said “God the Radfords are still around? Somethings really never change”

“You know the Radfords?—wait, you’ve been to the south!?”

This time the professor gave a real laugh “well, Remus, trust me I’d love nothing more than to tell you all the crazy stuff me and your parents did, but it’s lunchtime and you once bit me because you were hungry…”

What the fuck?

“What?”

He laughed again, “Later Remus, Later, but please, come back again, and if you need anything, anytime—just come looking for me immediately” the look in his eyes told Remus that he really meant it.

Remus just opened the door when the professor called him again “and hey Remus, please call me Tim when we are out of class.”

“Hey, Lupin where were you? You almost missed Lunch” said Peter around a mouthful of food.

Remus glanced around his three friends and sat down shoving a potato to his mouth“soothing my professor for crying about my dead mum—oh, and I’m pretty sure I’ve bitten him when I was a toddler.”

Chapter Text

Monday 6th September 2175

“Um—sorry Lupin, but what the fuck?” James said with a confused expression—Peter and Sirius looked the same ad though they’d misheard him.

“Mhm, dear ol’ professor Timmy knew my parents”

“Define knew?” Said Sirius still as confused

“I don’t know they went to the Academy together and stuff, and well— My dad and professor Turner probably worked together”

“You’re dad was a Pre-Apocalypse studies professor!” Said Peter whose expression changed to shock.

Well, that day was bound to come.

“Researcher” Remus said sheepishly “as far as i know he didn’t teach” he should’ve asked Tim about that.

“Fuck that’s cool” said Sirius

“But, wait—if he was friends with your parents why didn’t he know about your mum?” said james even more confused than he was.

“And why did you bite him?” Said Peter.

“Well—I think i was hungry or something. and i think he and my mum had a fight or something after my dad—uhm, died…”

No one asked anything more about the subject throughout Lunch— even though Sirius looked like he had a lot of questions— because, today was their first Combat Training class…

The class was being held outdoors in the Autumn breeze—Remus thought that since it’s their first class ever it must be something simple like how to throw a punch or something, but little did he know…

The minute he arrived to the training area and saw the target butts and arrows his mind immediately screamed fucking fuck.

It’s Archery…

He was going to get killed today…

Or worse, he’ll accidentally kill someone…

Peter looked even more rattled than Remus, while James and Sirius looked positively amused at the idea of using real weapons on their very first class.

The ground was divided by two lines, green and blue—which Remus had no idea what for…

There were eight targets butts lined up in a perfect row, about ten meters away from the green line, there was an old man in a black military uniform chatting with a younger guy and a girl, both in military gear as well.

Then the girl blew her whistle to get their attention and the older militiamen stepped forward “Attention, first-years, I am Captain Elphinstone Urquart, and this is Combat Training I , these are my assistants, Auror Alice Fortescue and Auror Frank Longbottom, as much as I respect all your professors and instructors, but i need you to understand—that the real reason you’ve come to Academy is Combat. the only class that actually matters. well… this and Physical Training, perhaps ” he added with a smug smile.

He talks like he’d fought an actual war, Remus said to himself , but then Sirius leaned closer to him and whispered “this barmy old sod talks like he’d actually been to a war”

Remus chuckled at Sirius’s boldness— and the fact that they thought the same thing . he was standing so close that Remus could feel his warm breath on his ear and his piercing grey eyes locked on him.

Heat rose to his face, and he wanted to step back a little, but he couldn’t—like there a magnet holding him in place.

“The things you can say out loud when you’re a Black” Remus sniggered.

“Oh please—i know you thought it too, saw it on your face. and what’s the use of my title if I can’t use it to speak my mind”

“Well, first of all, you DID NOT see anything on my face! that’s enough to arrest Southerners.” Remus hissed at Sirius. Of course pretty Mr Black doesn’t understand this shit.

“Er-yeah, sorry, of course—I mean, I didn’t know, Remus. sorry.” And then he gave Remus’s shoulder a gentle squeeze moving over to James before Remus was even able to reply.

Good job with fucking you’re friendship with the bloody Black heir Remus

He turned his attention back to Captain Urquart who began giving them instructions on Archery

“Alright First-years, you have eight important points to follow , first is your stance: you have to stand with your feet shoulder-width apart.Turn your body so your side faces the target. And Keep your back straight and relax your shoulders, watch at how Auror Frank and Auror Alice are doing it right now”

Both Frank and Alice stood behind the green line, demonstrating the perfect form with bows in their hands.

“Second is Nocking the arrow : you’ll pick up an arrow and place the back of the nock, onto the string, just under the small marker. Make sure the black feather is pointing away from the bow, keep your gaze fixed on the Aurors”

“Third is Hooking the string: Use three fingers — index above the arrow, middle and ring below it. Don’t grip too tight, just hook them around the string.”

“Four, Raide and draw: Lift the bow towards the target. Pull the string back slowly until your hand touches the corner of your mouth or your chin. This is your anchor point — keep it the same every time.”

“Five, Aim: Look straight at the centre of the target. Line up the arrow tip with where you want it to go. Keep both eyes open if you can.”

“Six, Release: Relax your fingers and let the string push the arrow forward — don’t open your hand suddenly, just let the string slip off.”

“Seven, Follow through: Keep your bow arm steady after the release, don’t drop it right away. Watch where the arrow lands”

Remus watched as both Arrows thudded perfectly into the center of the target butt.

He’ll need twenty years of training to do that…

“”Eight, try not to kill anyone—or yourselfs, now I’m going to pick eight trainees to start”

Please don’t choose me, Please don’t choose me, Please don’t choose me.

He did not choose Remus, but he ended up choosing Lily, James and Peter among other first-years.

Everyone was a disaster, none of the arrows even came close to the target butt. or—almost everyone, Lily Evans managed to land all three arrows on the target—one of them even was a little close to the center. Even Urquart praised her skill—turns out Lily has a natural gift in Archery— he just prayed she doesn’t end up killing James…

Remus was called the second time, and to his surprise he didn’t fuck up, not as much as he expected anyway, one of his arrows landed on the edge of the target.

Sirius was the last of them called in the final group. Remus watched him as he tied his silky hair into a ponytail and went through every step flawlessly, like he’d done it a million times before.

Which he must’ve—because either that or he had some kind of superpowers.

The first landed dead center.

So did the second.

And the third.

Wow, bloody Black…

Urquart nodded his head and said “

Didn’t expect anything less from a Black”

When Sirius returned behind the blue line he was smiling smugly— the bastard knows everyone is looking at him.

“Er—so, Sirius mate, don’t get me wrong but did like, sell your soul to the devil or something?” Peter said

Sirius just laughed and shook his head “Nah Petey, it’s years of training.”

“You never told me you had a Combat tutor!” James cried

“I have to reserve my mystery”

A Combat Tutor? Mickey would love to hear about that…

After that they just sat on the grass while Urquart launched into an introductory  lecture about Combat Training I and the other things they’d be studying alongside archery.

Once classes were done, Remus made his way back to the dorm before dinner to smoke, using the excuse that he’d forgotten something there.

He opened the window beside his bed, letting the cold air hit his face. He had managed to avoid thinking about Professor Turner— Tim —during lessons, but now…

The man fucking cried over his mum—they were this close that he’d cry over her after 10 years of not seeing her…

And why did she cut him off? Was it because he was Lyall’s friend? But, he was her friend too…

And why did she never mention him? He knew the Radfords, they never mentioned him too? Could it be possible that he is mentioned in Lyall’s journal but he just never noticed before?

He lit his second fag and sat on the edge of the bed flicking through the journal, when the door suddenly swung open— “it’s fucking freezing in h— oh, you are smoking, alright then, never mind” Sirius said.

Remus then realized that Sirius just saw him holding a cigarette between his fingers…

Fuck

He is sooooo dead

It looked like Sirius noticed his panic “Hey—don’t worry I won’t tell anyone”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah, of course mate” Sirius paused,thinking for a moment, before dropping himself onto the bed beside Remus. “Hey… can sell me a fag?”

“Sell you? Do you even smoke?”

“I might, from now on”

“Here just take one” Remus handed him the packet

“But—they are yours. let me pay you so you can get more”

“Sirius, I’ve no idea what you’ve heard about Southerners, but it’s just a bloody fag. and you’re my friend, dorm mate, colleague—whatever, If you want one, take it. And if you really want to buy some, I’m pretty sure there’s someone around here who sells the stuff.” Remus said with a scoff.

“What? Oh, God—Remus, no. It’s got nothing to do with you being a Southerner, really. Believe me.” Sirius hesitated, then added, “This is actually why I came here. I’m… sorry. About earlier in Combat. I didn’t know things could be that serious.”

“It’s fine—you don’t have to apologise.” Remus reached for his lighter. “Here, let me light that for you.”

Sirius leaned in, close enough for Remus to count his eyelashes if he wanted, and the flame flared between them. Sirius took a drag, then promptly coughed, spluttering.

“No—I’m really sorry. I don’t want you thinking I’m like that. I know how it looks, me being the bloody Black heir and all, but I don’t give a toss about the founder crap or where you live, or any of it.”

“Mhm. It’s alright if you do, though—I get it, really… it’s fine.”

“I don’t! And it’s crap, it’s certainly not fine.” He took another drag on his cigarette, exhaling slowly. “And hey, Remus… we’re friends, right?”

Remus looked at his grey eyes for a moment —that’s probably what they mean by cloud-grey—

“Yeah, Sirius, we are friends”

“Great. can I ask you something?”

“Sure.”

“How do you feel… about professor Turner and your parents? Do you think he was in love with your mum or something”

As if I could possibly know

“I don’t know, Sirius. I wish i had an idea…”

“Mhm. Yeah, that’s fair. can i ask you something else?”

“Go on.”

“If your dad was a Pre-Apocalypse studies researcher—why do you still live in the South?”

Good question…

“My mum moved back after he…died. She was the southerner—he wasn’t”

“Can i ask where was he from?”

Remus had no idea why he was answering Sirius without hesitation, but he just couldn’t seem to stop…

“ Midtown , my dad was a Midtowner… we lived there until he died”

“Knew that Lupin was a familiar name. Can i ask you one last question?”

“You ask a lot of questions, Sirius.”

“C’mon—I’ll let you ask me four questions too”

Well, he does have some questions about Sirius

he nodded with a faint smile.

“Who did you write to? i saw you writing a letter over the weekend?”

That is not a bad question…so why did Remus suddenly feel kinda nervous?

“Er—Mick. my friend from home.”

“Alright—go one, your turn, Lupin.”

“Did your cousin really elope with a Western lock-maker?”

“Yeah—Andy, she’s my favorite cousin. caused such a big scandal at the time… haven’t seen her since. it’s been almost nine years”

“Wow… the Blacks certainly don’t print these achievements in the news, uhm—let’s see… did you really have a Combat tutor?

“Dear Mum made sure there wasn’t anything the Academy could teach us that I didn’t already know—except for Pre-Apocalypse Studies, of course.”

“Fair enough, I guess. But—why do you say so much bad stuff about your family and the other founder families?”

“Because they deserve it. I mean it when I say I don’t agree with their crap.”

“Well, that’s bold thinking—even for the Black heir.”

“Yeah, well… the only good thing I get from my position is bold thinking. Might as well use it.”

“Mhm… well, since you mentioned bold thinking… do you sometimes find it strange that you’re named after the brightest, most visible star in the sky, yet you can never actually see it?”

Sirius’s silence was definitely an indicator that Remus had crossed the line…

The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, after all…

But then Sirius just smiled, actually looked him in the eyes, and said,

“No. Remus, I find it strange all the time that I can’t look up at the sky. You’re not the only one who feels caged… C’mon, we should get to dinner.”

Chapter Text

Saturday 18th September 2175

It had been almost two weeks since Remus’s encounter with Professor Turner, and he hadn’t managed to do it again.

He didn’t know why he couldn’t just stay after class or drop by his office in his free time—the man was clearly desperate to talk to him—but he was… afraid. Afraid of actually finding out about his parents.

His dad had always been like a fever dream; he wasn’t allowed to speak about him, never knew what had happened to him. And his mum never talked about her Academy days or her life with Lyall. And now, all of a sudden, there was this person—this man—who had all the answers, ready to hand them over. Someone who had known his parents better than he ever would.

Other than overthinking the relationship between his professor and his parents, Remus’s days at the Academy were peaceful—intense, but peaceful. James would wake him for PT every day, being the biggest morning person Remus had ever met and the only PT enthusiast in the Academy besides Marlene and Captain Hooch. After PT, he’d shower and head to breakfast in the dining hall with his friends. Then the regular classes would start. Sharing a fag with Sirius before lunch became a habit—they never played the questions game again; they’d just sit and smoke in silence. On their third day, Sirius had already found a way to pay Remus back.

“What’s this for?” Remus asked, eyeing the chocolate bar Sirius had just handed him.

“Well—I’ve noticed you like sweet things. And if you can give me a free fag every day just because we’re mates, I don’t see why I can’t give you chocolate for the same reason.”

Remus didn’t argue—he loved chocolate, and if Sirius Black wanted to give him fancy chocolate every day, who was he to say no?

After he finishes his classes, he’d spend his time either studying with Lily or reading every pre-apocalypse book he could find in the library. He’d thought about asking Tim if he had any books he could borrow, but that would mean actually talking to him after class, so…

On weekends, everyone usually slept until noon after PT. After that, he’d write to Mickey and then go outside to watch the others play with James’s football. Sometimes he’d just read; other times, he’d listen to Lily talk about her day—or, in less fortunate moments, Mary going on about how hot Sirius was while they played. He just wanted to read his book in peace, not hear about how attractive his friend was while chasing after a ball! If Lily was with them and not with Snape, she’d usually tell Mary to shut up—seeing as she doesn’t understand the hype over Black, or poor Potter, who is still convinced she is the true love of his life.

But here he was today, Lily was walking with Snape, and Sirius and Marlene had insisted on teaching Mary how to play… which just left him and Sama.

At least she never talked, so he could read in peace…

But today, with Mary joining them, there was a lot of extra shouting, making it impossible for him to focus on his book.

Silence would take him back to the Timothy Turner spiral, so if Sama wasn’t going to speak, he would.

“So-um, did you finish your Logic and Rhetoric essay?”

“Mhm”

That is not even a word!

“Great. Er—do you not like football?”

“I enjoy watching but not playing”

“Yeah, i kind of get it, except I don’t even enjoy watching”

“Then why do you do it?” She said, furrowing her brows.

“Because my friends enjoy it when I watched them play”

“uhm, you are a kind person Remus, I’ve noticed you”

She did what now?

“You did?”

“mhm, you help Marlene with history and Mary with Civic order, you gave Lily your water bottle in PT the other day, and I’m sure you’ve done a lot more to the boys beside watching them play”

“Er—thanks. they are just ordinary things… friends help each other”

“Yeah, they do, I’ve also noticed you look up a lot, at the light coming through the holes in the roof”

Fuck

Fuck

Fuck

He didn’t say anything—because what would he say? I’m a freak with rebellious thoughts who has a strange curiosity toward the moon?

“I know what you’re thinking right now, Remus. You don’t have to worry.”

“Worry?” Fuck yes, I have to worry.

“Mhm. Regular people wouldn’t have noticed that—or understood it.”

“Normal people?” Remus liked her better when she was silent.

“Do you know what ‘Sama’ means?”

“Your name?”

“Yeah. Sama means sky. I was named after the sky… and you don’t notice, but I look up a lot too.”

Remus was speechless…

She looks up too…

She wants to see the sky she was named after…

TO MUCH INFORMATIONS FOR ONE DAY

“Hey, Sama, do you mind if I ask something?”

“I don’t know” huh?

“Um—why don’t you speak? You almost never do.”

“I don’t know. Sometimes I want to say so much that I just end up saying nothing, and other times it just feels useless to speak.”

He didn’t get the chance to think about her answer—Lily dropped herself between them with a scoff, annoyance practically radiating off her.

The second James saw her, he just stopped mid game to wave at her “Oi, Evans, i love your hair… it’s braided very neatly”

Braided very neatly?

“Sod off Potter, you are gonna lose your game” Lily said, her scoff growing sharper.

“Hey, Lils. What’s wrong—did Snivellus do something?” Remus asked, concern in his voice.

“I don’t want to talk about it, but thank you, Remus. You’re very kind,” she said, leaning her head on his shoulder.

They sat like this for a while, watching the others play. Every couple of minutes, James would flash Lily a smile. His team was winning—not that Remus understood anything about football—but Peter was a good goalkeeper, and while Marlene and Sirius were great, Mary couldn’t catch the ball to save her life. Still, Sirius would smile and pat her on the shoulder every time James’s team scored.

After a while, Remus felt a drop of water on his neck. He looked up to see faint droplets falling from the roof—it was raining…

In Remus’s childhood, rain had always meant a good day. Hope had loved it; whenever it rained, she would step out of her depression bubble and act like  a real person. She would bake, put her records on, and talk to Remus…

And today was the first drop of rain since her death…

Soon, the rain grew heavier, and students all around them began running for cover—but, of course, his friends had a different opinion…

Mary tried to cover her curls with her hand, but then Sirius took off his jacket and wrapped it around her head. She turned to them and asked, “How do I look? Do you think I could make it a fashion trend?”

“You look like my great-grandma,” Sama replied in her usual emotionless tone.

Sirius took Mary’s hand and spun her around under the rain, while James and Peter started a chasing game, and Marlene and Lily twirled each other in delight.

Remus stayed on the bench next to Sama, feeling the cold water soak his hair and skin.

“I understand what you mean, kind of.”

“hm?”

“Yeah, sometimes i feel like i have so much to say, so I just end up saying the wrong thing… or nothing at all”

Suddenly Sama reached over and took his hand in hers and squeezed gently— this is the first time Remus saw her touch anyone…

“I think it would’ve been lovely to be able to look at the clouds right now, don’t you Remus?”

He squeezed her hands back and looked up “yeah, Sama. I’m sure it would’ve been lovely.”

When the air turned cold and they were utterly soaked, they headed inside to change before dinner. Lily held Remus’s elbow with one hand and Marlene’s hand with the other—

until Snape stepped in front of them, a sour expression on his face.

“Lily, please—let’s talk.”

“No, Sev. I’m done talking about this.”

“But, Lil—”

James cut him off before he could finish. “She told you she doesn’t want to talk, Snape. Leave her alone!” he said defensively.

“It’s none of your business, Potter. See, Lily? They don’t even respect you!”

“It is none of your business, Potter,” Lily snapped, before turning to Snape. “And Sev, for the sake of our friendship, stop this!”

“For the sake of our friendship?” Snape sneered. “As if you care so much about that. You’d rather spend your time with rebellious Midtowners and filthy Southerner scum.”

Mary gaped— because even for Snape, that was too much.

Remus couldn’t take it. He wasn’t going to just stand there and watch Snivellus insult him, his friends, and his home like this.

Remus reached forward, fisting Snape’s collar and yanking him closer.

Snape’s eyes widened in horror at the contact. “Get your filthy, disgusting hands off me—I don’t want to catch your disgusting Southerner disease .”

That was it—Remus was going to kill Snape and get executed at fifteen.

Sure, that would make his dad proud.

But to both his and Snape’s good luck, a voice rang out behind him.

“That is ENOUGH .”

Remus turned and found himself staring at none other than Timothy Turner.

Fuck.

Remus released Snape’s collar, and Snape immediately started blurting like he’d just been held a hostage.

“Professor, Lupin attacked me!”

Lily cut in before Turner could respond. “NO! He didn’t. Professor, Severus was saying really horrible things to him!”

Everyone else nodded in agreement.

“I’ve already heard most of your conversation, Miss Evans,” Turner said evenly. “Were Mr Snape and Mr Potter causing you distress?”

Lily shot both Snape and James a deadly glare before clearing her throat. “No, Professor. It was just a little misunderstanding.”

Turner didn’t look convinced. “Alright then. Mr Snape, you’re still getting a detention for insulting a student. This is the second time I’ve heard you do it. I’m afraid that on the third, I’ll have to involve the Headmaster.”

“B-but, Professor—”

“Go, Mr Snape, or I’ll be forced to take further action.”

Snape looked like he wanted to scream, but instead he spun on his heel and stalked off toward the dorms.

“Mr Lupin, may I have a word with you? Everyone else, you can go to your rooms and… dry yourselves,” Turner said, eyeing their soaked clothes.

“But—Professor! Snape was disrespecting Remus’s background, and as a Southerner, I won’t let you punish him alone, because I would’ve done the same!” Mary blurted, her words tripping over each other.

“Don’t worry, Miss MacDonald, I’m not going to behead Mr Lupin. I just want to have a small chat with him.”

He leaned closer, lowering his voice. “Southerners always stick together—so I might suggest you don’t go around shouting about your desire to hit a fellow student.”

Tim is a southerner? Too much bloody information for one day!

“Now, follow me Mr Lupin”

Remus followed Tim into his office. The place looked just like him—two old dark green sofas, books and papers scattered everywhere—but what caught Remus’s eye was an old, fading painting hanging on the wall. It showed the night sky, a full moon gleaming among the stars. Wow…

“Do you like it, Remus?”

“Mhm… yeah, it’s a bit catchy.”

“You can have it if you want. Your mum made it.”

My mum did what now? She… what?

“I had no idea she painted.”

“And I had no idea she ever stopped.” Tim looked at the painting with a warm, sad expression before turning back to Remus. “Please, sit down. We have some talking to do.”

“I’m soaked—I’ll ruin your sofa.”

“Oh no, please, I never cared for these stuff.”

Remus sat down while Tim prepared two cups of tea. He set one in front of Remus along with a plate of biscuits before taking the seat opposite him.

Remus took a sip of his tea and cleared his throat, trying to break the tension.

“So, Pro—sorry, Tim… why exactly am I here?”

“Don’t worry, I didn’t bring you here to lecture you about your scuffle with Mr Snape. I was already looking for you. Though—if any of your classmates are giving you a hard time, you can always come to me.” He said the last part with a gentle look.

“Um—well, thanks, Tim. But I can manage on my own. Why were you looking for me?”

“Of course you can, I’ve no doubt about that. I just wanted to apologise for last time. It wasn’t my place to react the way I did. I’m sorry—for your loss, and for my reaction.”

“It’s alright. It was… a bit weird, but I get it. You were obviously—um—good friends.”

“Mhm. Yeah, we were…”

“Can I ask you something?”

“Anything, Remus.” The look in his eyes told Remus he really meant it.

“Are you actually from the South?”

“Oh, yeah. It’s not a secret—I’m proud of my upbringing.”

“So… were you one of the rare ones who actually made it out of there?”

“Yeah. I was…”

“How did you get hired here?”

“Headmaster Dumbledore has always had a… unique perspective on life. My upbringing didn’t stop him from hiring me.”

“Um, so… you and Mum were close? Since you lived in the same area and all…”

“Yeah, we were close. I actually knew your mum before—we grew up together. It was Lyall we met here.”

“You know, When you talk about her, it doesn’t feel like you’re talking about my mum. Your version of her sounds so different… she used to paint, for god’s sake…”

“I understand… you were really young when your dad’s—accident… happened.”

“Yeah, I was. But don’t call it an accident. Just say it—he went out one night and never came back.”

Tim’s throat tightened. “It was brutal. Especially for Hope. She wasn’t the same after. I could see it happening… right before she pushed me away.”

“Why did she do it?”

“What?”

“Why cut you off? You were her friend first, not Lyall’s. What changed?”

Tim let out a shaky breath. “We always remained friends,and had that special bond. But when Lyall and I started the journal—really obsessing over the pre-apocalypse stuff—we got close. Too close. And after that night… I think I became a walking reminder of him. Of why he never came back. And she couldn’t stand to look at me anymore.”

The…journal?

TOO MUCH INFORMATION FOR ONE DAY

“You… you know about Lyall’s journal?”

“So Hope didn’t burn it?”

“No… I don’t know about his clothes and other things, but the journal and his books were hidden in a box in our cottage…”

“Yeah, that sounds like Hope—keeping them even after…” He cleared his throat before going on. “The journal might have Lyall’s name on it, but I put just as much effort into it. It was supposed to be our masterpiece. Until… you know

“Then… why isn’t your name in there? I searched for it—he never mentioned you…”

“It was his idea, and he was the one who started the whole pre-apocalypse obsession.” His eyes grew distant, as if replaying an old memory. “And I think he… wanted to keep it to himself, in a way. He wanted it to be only his. He wanted you to read it and think of him—only him.”

“He wanted me to read it?”

“Of course. It began in our second year at the Academy—as a kind of legacy. Even Hope contributed a little. But in our final year, when your parents started dating, Lyall said it would be lovely to pass it on to our children. So we kept it. And two years later, you came along. Everything written after that is especially for you…”

The first entry of the year 2160 was the story of Romulus and Remus. In the corner of the page, dated 10 March 2160, he had written : The story of Remus… to my Remus.

“He didn’t write anything in 2160… not until I was born.”

“Yeah. We wanted the very first entry of that year to be the story of your name. We couldn’t pick one until you were born.”

“Who… who picked it?”

“Lyall. He was always fond of the Romans, and he thought it was funny that both of your names are related to wolves.”

Remus couldn’t help but chuckle. “My friend already teases me about the wolf thing. He’d love to know I’m Wolf Wolf the second.”

Tim let out a light laugh. “I used to call Lyall Wolf Wolf… I love to see someone keeping the tradition.”

“Um—Tim, what was Mum… Hope… like? You know, before everything…”

Tim smiled, his eyes turning a little glassy. “She was lovely, lively, and the smart one. She kept us out of trouble as much as she could… and she had this weird, unexplainable love for the rain. And she loved nothing more than you.”

“She never stopped that weird relationship with the rain,” Remus said with a small smile.

Tim laughed again. “Mhm. It’s strange… just sitting here with a combination of my old best friends. You’re so much like them… it’s like, despite everything, you managed to get the better side of both of them.”

Remus didn’t know why… but that just made him snap.

“Yeah, well, I never got to know your best friends! Mum was a depressed ghost, and she never talked about Lyall. All I know about him is from Mrs Radford—I can’t even remember what he looks like!” Remus snapped, overwhelmed by it all.

He could feel the sting in his eyes—he needed to get out of here…

Tim just smiled sadly, as if he hadn’t just been yelled at by his teenage student. “It’s alright, Remus. This whole situation is awful. You have the right to be mad—at me, at them… I loved them, but I won’t deny that they were a little selfish to you. And I won’t deny that I was selfish too. I shouldn’t have listened to Hope. She was angry and grieving… I got caught up in my own grief and left her alone.”

“Yeah, well… it’s too late. I don’t need a parent figure or someone telling me what they were like… goodbye, Professor Turner.”

Remus rushed out. Tim didn’t try to stop him; tears were threatening to spill from his eyes. Remus found the dorm empty—his friends were probably having dinner. Only then did he notice how wet his clothes were. He grabbed his pyjamas and headed to the shower.

Once the warm water spilled over his head, he began to feel a little better… he could breathe again. He just sat there under the stream, crying. Images flooded his mind: his mum, young and healthy, dancing in the rain; Tim holding a newborn Remus. And then, through the blur, a foggy memory surfaced—green eyes tucking him into bed, a large hand soothing his hair, and a whisper: “I love you, son… but I have to go.”

He stayed under the water for what felt like forever, only emerging when he heard someone knocking on the bathroom door. He opened it to find a very concerned-looking James holding a plate in his hands.

“Hiya, Remus. Is… everything alright?”

“Mhm.”

“Um—I just brought you dinner. We thought you’d be hungry. I used my charm on the kitchen ladies, told them you were unwell, and they agreed to save you some leftovers.”

Remus couldn’t help but smile; he hadn’t even realized how hungry he was until he saw the food.

“Thanks, James. You’re my bloody hero.”

“Don’t mention it. We’re playing cards in the common room—do you want to join?”

“Nah, I’m tired. I think I’ll just sleep.”

“Alright. Um… do you want a cuppa?”

“No, I’m good, but thanks.”

“So… are you okay?”

Fuck no.

“Yeah… great.”

“Alright, good night, Remus.” He started to leave, then stopped, as if he’d forgotten something. Reaching into his pocket, he tossed a chocolate bar at Remus. “Black sent you this.” And then he was gone.

Remus sat alone, staring at the fancy chocolate bar… thinking of all the possibilities of what could have been his life.

Chapter Text

Wednesday 22nd September 2175

Remus blinked awake after accidentally dozing off—third time now. Beside him, Peter was already long gone in sleep, while Sirius and James in front were whispering and passing post-it notes. Mrs Crowl was droning on about the fucking roof and fucking creatures and monsters they heard about in bedtime tales. He blinked again—he couldn’t get detention; he was not doing a trillion push-ups.

He was a second away from falling asleep for the fourth time in a row when Sirius slipped a pink post-it on his desk with the words, ‘Is Red talking to Snivelly again?’

Remus, who was looking for something to keep him awake, wrote on the back of the post-it, ‘Since yesterday, and STOP CALLING HER RED!’”And as he passed it to the front, he heard James and Sirius chuckling quietly. Sirius leaned back and whispered to Remus,

“Hey, d’you think one day James’ll piss her off so much she’ll turn into one of those outside monsters?”

Remus suppressed a laugh. “Outside monsters? What are you, five?”

“That’s what Crowl called them. Creatures, boogies, whatever.”

“Oh god—you’re hopeless, Black. And honestly, I think a really angry Lily Evans is scarier than whatever’s behind the wall.”

“Heard that, Jamie? Better find yourself another bird, because this one’ll cause a second apocalypse.”

James scoffed. “Sod off, Black, I’m not asking Emmeline out. Hey—psst, Lupin—why is she talking to Snape and not me?”

“I don’t know. Maybe because she wasn’t talking to you in the first place.”

Sirius failed to stifle his laugh, which immediately snapped Mrs Crowl’s attention to them. Remus quickly nudged Peter, who shot awake, terrified.

“Is someone bothering you, Mr Black?” Mrs Crowl asked, narrowing her eyes at him.

“No. Not at all. Just, um, dropped my pen and asked Remus to give it to me.”

“Alright then.”

She turned back to the board, clearing her throat. “Now, it remains a mystery—the nature of the unsafe outside. A mystery that shall never be questioned. Some things in life should never be known; some questions should never be asked. There is a reason we have survived the Great Apocalypse, and managed to live safely for almost two hundred years. And for that reason, whoever dares to speak of the outside, to question our leaders, to harbour rebellious thoughts, is executed immediately. Rebellion is the greatest crime in Orrima. The walls and the roof are the reason we are alive.”

Remus swallowed sharply— maybe he should’ve stayed unfocused…

What made everything worse is Snape next to Lily giving him a dirty glare courtesy of his  breakdown in their first Pre-Apocalypse studies class, if the professor was anyone other than Tim, Remus would’ve been fucked.

Remus hasn’t approached Tim out of class ever since he snapped at him for no reason at all. God what’s the matter with him and doing things out of nowhere?.

But he… he just felt too much, to him Lyall has always been a mystery, something distant, and that makes everything about him less painful, less real, but suddenly there is a man out of nowhere acting like his uncle or new daddy or something telling him how much he looks like his father— as if he ever had one— and his mum used to be something that is not the lifeless shell of a person that Remus grew up with. And it was just fucking too much.

He didn’t even notice the class ending until Sirius tapped him on the shoulder. The day was done, and they were heading back toward their dorm when a voice called out.

“Hey, Loony Lupin!”

Remus and the others turned, and of course—it was none other than Snivellus.

“What do you want, Snivelly?” James said.

“Nothing, Potter. I just wanted to see if Loony Lupin enjoyed class today.”

“What the fuck do you think you’re doing, Snivellus?” Remus snapped.

“Oh, touched a nerve, have I?” Snape sneered. “Don’t think anyone’s forgotten your little performance in the first Pre-Apocalypse class. I could’ve— should’ve —reported you. A southern kid muttering about the sky and the moon? Sounds to me like rebellion.”

That was it. Remus was going to kill him.

But then a hand clamped around his wrist, so tight it might bruise—Sirius.

“He wants a scene. Don’t give it to him,” Sirius muttered.

“Oi, Snivelly—stop talking bollocks and sod off,” James cut in.

“Oh, fuck you, Potter. Call me whatever you want, but at least Lily likes me.”

“That’s it, Snivel—” James started forward, but Sirius barked, “James!” still gripping Remus’s wrist.

Sirius stepped closer, eyes flashing. “Listen to me, Snivelly. I don’t know what bloody game you think you’re playing, but this is dangerous. So here’s how it’s going to go—you shut your fucking mouth, or I’ll deal with you my way.”

“And what way is that, Sirius? Because I’m fairly certain your family wouldn’t approve of your choice of company.”

“Fuck you—and fuck my family. You don’t want to know my way.”

He shot Snape one last look before turning back to his friends. His grip on Remus had loosened, though he didn’t let go.

“Come on, boys. Let’s go.”

Sirius didn’t let go of Remus’s wrist until they were safely back in their room.

“Um—so, Black,” Peter asked cautiously, “what is your way, exactly?”

“I’ve got no fucking idea,” Sirius admitted. “It just sounded scary in my head.”

That set them off. They laughed so hard Remus collapsed onto his bed, tears stinging his eyes.

“Oh, God, Sirius,” he wheezed between laughs. “You sounded like you were about to murder him in his sleep.”

“And the way he yanked you by the wrist?” James said to Remus as they were laughing. “I don’t know how Snivellus didn’t just burst out laughing.”

“Hey—but at least I did something! Remus was about to kill him in the hallway, you were ready to take his head off to propose to Red, and Peter’s soul practically left his body.”

“I don’t work well when I’m nervous,” Peter admitted.

“It’s alright, Pete. And you,” Remus said, pointing at Sirius, “you should’ve let me teach him a lesson, Lord Black.”

“I mean, I don’t think killing him in the hallway is the best lesson,” James said.

“I wouldn’t have killed him… maybe, Remus said with a shrug. “I’d give him a black eye or something.”

“Well, we do need to teach him a lesson,” said Sirius.

“We can prank him,” said Peter.

“How? Do the classic water bucket trick?” asked Remus, not quite impressed.

“Yeah, and then McGonagall ends up opening the door, and we’re running to the other side of Orrima and back before breakfast,” said James.

“I don’t know… we could steal his clothes when he’s in the shower after PT,” said Peter.

“Thanks, Pete, but I do not want to see him starkers. I like my eyes, and I don’t feel like burning them.”

“I say we just throw him in the lake. He needs a proper wash after all,” James suggested.

“And how are you going to throw him in without him noticing?” Peter asked.

“We can blindfold him! I’m with you on this, Potter,” said Sirius.

“What? What if he can’t swim? And if we get caught, we’ll get executed.”

“Not if Evans turns into a red dragon and starts breathing fire on us.”

Suddenly it hit Remus.

“Exactly the lake!” Remus yelled.

“What! Lupin not you too!” Peter screamed with horror.

“Fuck yeah let’s throw him in the lake” said Sirius.

“No, not throw him in the lake, we can just throw all his stuff—while he is dressed so Mr sensitive eyes doesn’t get nightmares”

“Thank you My dear Mr Lupin for your kindness. Alright even though it’s not as fun as throwing him in the lake but I’m in” said Sirius.

“And how exactly are we doing this?” asked James.

“Every Sunday, he and Lily spend the whole day in the library—literally the whole day. But he’s still got three roommates,” said Remus.

“Well, Christopher never misses a football game. I can arrange a game on Sunday,” James suggested.

“And Xeno owes me a chess match. I can deal with that,” said Peter.

“Okay, but there’s still one left—Gudgeon, right? What about him?”

“Leave that one to me,” said Sirius with a wide grin, resting his ankle on his knee.

“I hate to break it to you, Sirius, but the dangerous-man act isn’t suiting you,” James said with a chuckle.

“You’ll see when I distract him in my own ways.”

“Alright, alright. But hey, Remus—wouldn’t just throwing all his stuff in the lake… you know—ruin it?” asked Peter.

“Well, we could find something that floats, put it all on that?”

“You’re being far too nice to him,” Sirius scoffed. “Leave that to me too.”

“Okay, what the fuck are you planning now, Black?” asked James.

“Wait and see, Mr Potter, wait and see,” said Sirius. He looked thoughtful for a moment before adding, “But wait—the room would be locked?”

“I can deal with that,” Remus said. He felt three sets of eyes on him but pretended to be busy with his History homework.

Sirius cleared his throat. “Well, I suppose we have a plan then, gentlemen.”

Summer 2173

“Why can’t you just do it?” Remus huffed.

“Because you’ve got to learn to do it yourself, kiddo,” Mickey said.

“I’m not trying to join a gang, and I’m definitely not sneaking into your grandpa’s storage room on my own.”

“Picking locks with a pin is a necessary life skill. You’ll thank me one day. Now—show me what you’ve learned,” he said, handing Remus a hairpin.

Remus fiddled with the door handle for a while before it finally gave way. They slipped inside the storage room, eyes darting over shelves, searching for Mr Radford’s liquor.

“Your grandpa will bury us alive on his farm if we get caught, Mick.”

“Oh, come on—it’s my seventeenth birthday, the last one before I leave for the fucking Academy and become a real man. We’re going to get drunk.”

“Who is Michael Radford without corrupting minors?”

“You were already born corrupted, Remus. Now hold this bottle and shut up.”

Friday 24th September 2175

The day before, while they were at the dining hall eating dinner, Mary joined them, which wasn’t unusual—they ate with the girls from time to time—but what was unusual was Mary coming alone and sitting next to Sirius. The friendly pat on Sirius’s back from James and the laugh that followed. But that didn’t catch Remus’s attention; he didn’t care. He had enough on his mind—he still hadn’t apologized to Tim, he’d received a letter from Mickey yesterday about a surprise , and he had a headache.

He didn’t notice anything until they were back in their room that night and a conversation took place.

“Soooo, Black, did you already ask her out or what?” James teased.

“Fuck off, Potter, I’m still reviewing my options,” Sirius said with a smug smile.

“And who are your options, Sirius?” Peter asked.

Remus still had no idea what this was about, eyes on the book he was reading in bed.

“Well, you know—every girl in the Academy, in every year. Plus Fortescue. I like older women,” Sirius said with a shrug. James threw a pillow at him.

“Alright, Potter, fine—every woman but Evans. Even though she’s got her eyes on Mr Swot over here,” Sirius added, pointing at Remus.

Alright, now he had to join the stupid talk.

“She doesn’t. Don’t give James a heart attack—we need him for Sunday.”

“Lupin, if you ditch all your admirers and go after Lily, I’ll throw you in the lake,” James said with an angry scoff.

“I’m not going after Lily! She’s not even interested. And what admirers? Sirius is the one with admirers.”

“But you’ve got the hard—no, the impossible ones,” Sirius said.

“Impossible?”

“You know, you’re the only one Red actually talks to willingly.”

“That’s because I don’t call her Red, don’t ask her out every five minutes, or try to convince her to go out with James.”

“It is a cute nickname. And then there’s MacDonald—she’ll always favour you since you grew up in the same area and all. She’s always on about sticking together.”

“Southerners always stick together.”

“Yeah, yeah. And then we’ve got Sama. Didn’t see that one coming until I caught you holding hands the other day. That’s basically a full-on snog to her.”

Peter’s head shot up from his homework, eyes wide in horror. “Uhm, you—you were holding hands?”

“Great, Black. Now you’ll give Pettigrew a heart attack. Don’t worry, Pete, we all know you’ve got a crush on Sam.”

Sirius whistled. “She’s Sam now, huh? Getting cosy. But honestly, she’s a bit odd for you. You’re both like mutes. Petey would suit her better—balance each other out and all.”

“Oh, wonderful, Black, thank you for your blessings,” Peter mocked.

“On the other hand,” Sirius smirked, “we have McKinnon.”

“What about Marlene? She talks with you lot just fine,” Remus said, incredulous.

“Mhm. She does. But she only gives you the look.”

“The look?”

“The ‘Lupin, I wanna get into your pants’ look.”

This time Three pillows smacked into Sirius’s head all at once, knocking him flat onto the bed.

“Oh come on!” Laughed Sirius.

No one brought up girls and dating after that—well, except James. He had to talk about Lily all the time. But for Remus, it was something new to overthink.

No one mentioned it again. Not until now.

It was his usual smoking time with Sirius. He was leaning against the window, waiting. He didn’t have to wait, but it felt wrong to smoke at this hour alone.

After several long minutes, Sirius burst through the door, panting like he’d been running.

“I think the smoking’s starting to catch up with us. We’ll have to cut back if we want to survive PT,” Sirius said, dropping into the bed.

“Why were you running?”

“Didn’t want to leave you waiting.”

“It’s fine if you were busy.” Busy with what?

“Nah, nothing. I just wouldn’t want you to go hypoglycaemic.” He tossed over a chocolate bar, grinning.

Remus turned it over in his hand. “This is a different kind.”

“The lady at the shop said it’s new. Thought I’d see if you like it.”

“It looks… expensive. Really expensive compared to the shite I’m giving you to smoke.”

“Come on, it’s just chocolate. And it’s Black family money—better it feeds you chocolate than funds some satanic ritual party for the Founders.”

“Sirius Orion Black, you never fail to surprise me with how bold you can get.”

“Only because I know I can trust you.”

Remus’s heart started throbbing loudly.

“How do you know that? We—it hasn’t even been a month since we got here.”

Sirius shrugged. “I just know, I can feel it.”

“Do you tell that to the others?”

“Mhm, kind of. James is very aware that my family are a whole lot of maniacs. Me and Pete don’t talk that much alone, but well, he knows stuff too.”

“Why… do you hate them that much? Your family? How bad can they be?”

They’re not as bad as a father who disappeared suddenly one day, and a mother who grieved more than she loved her son… are they?

Sirius stared at the wall, thinking and smoking—Inhale, exhale.

“Much worse than you think.”

After seconds of awkward silence, Remus tried to change the subject.

“Were you with Mary? When you came running?”

“Mhm.”

“So… are you two like… dating now?”

“Not really. James thinks I should make it official though, what do you think?”

“You’ve known each other for less than a month.”

“It’s not like I’ll be proposing to her. I’ll carry her bag between lessons and we’ll sneak to an empty cupboard to snog before curfew.”

“What a gentleman you are, Black,” Remus sighed, then added, “what about your family? Mary’s a southerner and, well—you’re a bloody Black.”

“As if I give a toss what my family thinks. If it were up to them, they’d have had me betrothed to a cousin since I was four.”

“I thought that was just a rumour, all that intermarriage between the founder families.”

“Well—you see, when your options are limited, that’s what happens. At this point, all the founder families are related.”

“Are you related to Riddle too?”

Sirius shrugged. “Probably. Lucky for me, Andy’s sisters are much older—Bella’s already married to a Lestrange, Narcissa’s engaged to a Malfoy, and my other uncle, Alphard, died unmarried.”

“God. A Lestrange and a Malfoy? The smell of your socks almost makes me forget you’re practically royalty.”

Sirius laughed. “As royalty, I command we go to dinner. I’m starving.”

Remus gave a mock bow. “As you say, your highness.”

Sunday 26th September 2175

Everything went as planned: James took Christopher to play, Peter and Xeno are in the common room, there’s no trace of Gudgeon, and Sirius went off to God-knows-where before waiting for Remus at the spot they agreed on.

That leaves Remus to break into Snape’s room, figure out which bed is his, shove as much of his stuff as possible into Sirius’s trunk, sneak out, and make it to the lake—hoping Sirius actually found something that can float.

It was a really stupid plan.

Childish, unnecessary, stupid—and he was going to get caught.

They should’ve just thrown him in the lake; at least then they’d have the satisfaction.

Remus had borrowed a hairpin from Sam yesterday, because she was the only one who wouldn’t ask why he needed it. After a little effort with the doorknob, it clicked open. The room was similar to theirs, but without James’s scattered socks, Peter’s blanket his mum had knitted for him, Sirius’s massive trunk with the serpent heads—which he was holding now—or his own piles of books. It felt strange, as if he were looking at the room they had made into a home, but it wasn’t really their room.

After circling the room for a minute, trying to figure out which side belonged to Snape, he finally spotted a small photograph tucked inside one of the books—a girl with sharp emerald eyes and fierce red hair, standing beside what looked like a younger, less vicious version of Severus.

He stuffed everything he could into the trunk—some clothes and a lot of chemistry books. leaving the picture on the bedside table as a final fuck-you to Snape. Now came the harder part—sneaking out without being noticed. The halls were empty, everyone either buried in studying or out, not trying to get a detention.

He’d agreed to meet Sirius behind the empty Compact Training area, the one place they could avoid looking suspicious since no sane person would come near it on weekends. Sirius was supposed to be waiting there, with whatever he’d managed to find something to stash the stuff in.

“What the fuck is that, Sirius?”

“It’s a small boat,” Sirius said, all innocent.

“I know it’s a bloody boat. Where the fuck did you get it?”

“Filch.”

“Filch gave you his boat?”

Sirius shrugged. “I just borrowed it.”

“Does Filch know you borrowed his boat?”

“Oh, come on, we’ve got no time for this, peasant boy.”

“We are so fucking dead for this stupid prank.”

Sirius laughed. “I actually just realised how dumb it is too.”

Remus sighed, starting to load the stuff into the boat in silence.

“Someone’s obsessed with chemistry—how’d you even figure this was his?”

“Found a picture of little Snivellus and little Lily. Guess where?”

“Oh god. Where? James would give me his firstborn for that picture.”

“In a chemistry book. Left it on his bedside table though—he’ll know it’s us. But if we’re lucky, he won’t be able to prove it.”

They unhooked the boat and watched the water carry it away.

“I wish I had a camera right now.”

“Marlene’s got one. Think she’d lend it to us to film his reaction?”

Sirius laughed and slung an arm around Remus’s shoulder.

“Come on, peasant boy. Let’s return my trunk before we miss Snivelly’s meltdown.”

The halls were still empty. Peter had left the common room. Still no sign of Snape.

They dropped off the trunk and ran back, laughing, already buzzing to tell James and Peter. On the way, Remus caught sight of a familiar figure—short black hair, hands shoved in her pockets.

“Hey, Sam.”

“Hey, Rem. Sirius Black.”

“Wait—how come he’s Rem and I’m Sirius Black ?” Sirius scoffed.

Sam shrugged. “I like him better.”

“Ouch.”

Remus grinned, resting a hand on her shoulder. “He’s just jealous you, Lily, and Marlene like me better.”

“It’s not like he ever tried to be friendly with them. And I think Mary likes you better too.” She said it without sparing Sirius a glance.

“First of all, I’m very friendly. Second, Mary likes me better. Third—you’re evil.”

Sam only shrugged. Sirius gave Remus a look like, why the fuck are you laughing at this?

When they finally reached the pitch, James gave them the biggest shit-eating grin imaginable, and Peter greeted them with a thumb up that somehow ended up a goal for Marlene. The three of them flopped onto a bench, watching the game.

“Sirius, wanna trade places with me?” Mary asked.

“Nah. I’m in an observing mood today. Hey, look—Red’s here.”

James instantly whipped around, dopey grin in place.

“Hey girls. And Remus,” Lily said.

“No hey James?” James asked hopefully. Lily ignored him.

“So, Lils, how was studying with Sn—Severus?” Remus asked.

“Good. Didn’t I see you in the library today?”

“Mhm. I was busy.”

Sirius and James exploded into laughter, tears running down their faces.

Just then, Peter came sprinting back, sweaty, gasping for breath.

“Hey, lads.” He tried to grin between gulps of air.

“Hello, Petey.” Sama said. Peter turned a concerning shade of red.

Everyone stared at Sam, trying to process what she’d just said. Because she hadn’t just say hello to him—she’d called him Petey .

Marlene cleared her throat.

“So, um… you two— Petey ?” She gestured between Sam and Peter.

Before either of them could answer, a voice exploded.

“You fucking thieves! Where are my things?” Snape was pointing straight at Remus.

“Sorry, Snivellus, but could you clarify what you’re saying?” James asked, barely containing his laughter.

“My fucking stuff! Everything’s gone from my room!”

“Did you ask your roommates?” Lily asked.

“Yeah, and nobody fucking knows.”

“Sorry, Snivelly,” Peter said quickly. “I was with Xeno, you can ask him. Then I came here—everyone saw me.”

“I’ve been here the whole time too,” James added, raising his hands.

Snape’s eyes narrowed, landing on Remus and Sirius.

“You two!”

That’s it. They were dead.

“They were with me,” Sam cut in.

“They were?” Lily asked, sceptical.

“Yes.”

“Where were you then?” Snape pressed, not buying it.

“In their room.”

“You were in a dorm room. With two boys ?”

“Yes. What—jealous?”

Snape’s face twisted. “What the fuck? You’re in on this too! All of you! I’m going to the Headmaster—there should be an investigation—”

“Hey, look, Snivelly,” Sirius cut him off, pointing at the lake. Filch’s boat was drifting slowly across the water, piled with all of Snape’s things.

“This is not over, Black! I’ll make you and Loony Lupin here regret this!”

“Did you just threaten a Black ?” Mary asked, incredulous.

But Snape didn’t wait. He bolted for the lake and jumped in, thrashing toward the boat to save his belongings.

“Well, now we know he can swim,” Peter said.

“And he got a fucking shower! Hey, Snivelly—need some shampoo?” James yelled.

Everyone burst into laughter—everyone except Lily.

“I can’t believe you! Remus, you’re in on this with these idiots? And Sam too?”

“We were in our dorm room, Red,” Sirius said with a grin.

“Yeah? And what were you three doing?”

“Teaching Sirius how to shave his legs,” Sam answered without missing a beat.

“Wha—” Sirius protested, but Remus nudged him in the ribs. James turned purple, trying not to explode laughing.

“Why does Sirius need to learn how to shave his legs?” Lily asked flatly.

“I bought new running shorts,” Sirius muttered, clearly annoyed.

“Oh my god, you’re all impossible,” Lily said before storming off to help Snape.

“Why isn’t Remus shaving his legs then?” Sirius asked Sam.

“I still like him better,” she replied.

Mary plopped herself down in Sirius’s lap, laughing as she wrapped an arm around his neck.

“I bet running shorts would look good on you.”

“They do—but I’m not shaving my legs for Snivelly.”

Remus laughed, ignoring the weird tug in his chest as Mary leaned in to whisper something in Sirius’s ear.

Chapter Text

Friday 1st October 2175

Remus was waiting for his turn to use the shower after James, Sirius was drying his hair in the corner of the room wearing a pair of shorts and a hoodie, Sam—which was now spending way too much time in their room since Peter turned into Petey— was sitting on Peter’s bed while he was lying on his childhood blanket on floor talking about some cat he had when he was a kid.

“Someone is knocking on the door,” Remus said still lying on the bed without even opening his eyes.

He heard Sirius moving towards the door, humming the same familiar tone that he can’t remember.

Remus cracked one eye open to see who’s coming to their room after school hours, he was surprised by a very angry crossed Lily Evans, still in her uniform, her hair in the same ponytail she had since morning.

“Nice Leg hair Black” she said, eyeing Sirius’s clearly unshaved legs.

“My hair grows fast, why do we get the honor of your visit Red?” Sirius said with a shrug.

She crossed to the other side of the room without answering Sirius and stood in front of Remus’s bed.

“We have a history assignment. that we have to do. together.”

“Hello to you too Lils”

“I am still not speaking to any of you” she crossed her arms and looked towards Sam “teaching Sirius how to pluck his eyebrows Sam?”

Sam looked at Sirius and crooked her head like she is concentrating on his eyebrows “no his eyebrows are good” she then looked at Remus “Remus could use an eyebrow pluck though”

Remus sat immediately and covered his eyebrows with his hands defensively “no one is plucking or shaving anything, well… no is not helping anyone shave anything… if you do, do it in the bathroom. and don’t tell us what the fuck are you shaving.”

Lily didn’t even blink “move over, we have to finish this before curfew, and DO NOT talk to me unless it’s about studying”

“Your wish is my command Lils”

“Don’t call me lils”

“Evans?”

“No.”

“Lilian?”

“No.”

“Red?” Sirius asked.

“You don’t get to talk to me at all”

“Alright Lily Evans” Remus said.

“Don’t call me Lily Evans, in fact don’t address me at all!”

She sat on the edge of Remus’s bed and spread her books and started working immediately, he didn’t have the energy to argue, and he had to do it eventually…

Sirius convinced Sam to draw him and was posing ridiculously in the middle of the room like he was an ancient prince waiting to be painted—he was technically the closest thing Orrima has to a prince—

After several minutes the bathroom door clicked open and James emerged from the bathroom shirtless, now James was never the shy kind, he was usually shirtless in their room when Sam was there, he took of his shirt after PT and long football hours with Marlene, but for some reason the minute he saw Lily on Remus’s bed he immediately covered himself his towel, and jumped right into the closest bed—Sirius’s— and closed the curtains.

“What the fuck James?” Sirius asked, keeping his ridiculous pose.

“I—um, I’m knackered”

“Knack—what? That’s my bloody bed you idiot”

“Really?”

“I’m pretty sure the bed with your mum’s picture next to it is yours mate”

“Are you sure?”

“Are you okay James?” Asked Peter

“Never been better”

“So now—my bed?” Asked Sirius.

“Can we switch tonight?”

Sirius looked at Lily and back at his bed “sure…”

Lily looked like she had a lot to say, but she just couldn’t get herself to actually make a friendly conversation with Remus, and about James.

Saturday 2nd October 2175

“So James, do i wanna to know why I slept with your mum’s prayer under my pillow last night?” Sirius asked while they were warming up before PT.

“Um—your bedsheets looked comfy?”

“Wrong answer Jamie, we all have the same bedsheets” Remus said.

“I wanted to be closer to the bathroom?”

“Still wrong answer” said Peter with a knowing laugh

“Alright, it just—felt weird”

“What felt weirdly?” Asked Sirius while tying his hair back in a small ponytail.

“For Lily…to see me”

“To…see you?” Asked Remus. Confused.

“To see me shirtless”

“Everyone sees you shirtless all the time James, I’m surprised you still keep your trousers when Sam is around” said peter

“I know, I know, but it just feels different… when Lily’s around.”

Sirius wrapped his arms around James’s shoulder trying to comfort him “yeah I get you mate…”

So he can’t take his shirt in front of Mary?

But Sirius never takes his shirt off in front of anyone anyway…

Remus Wondered why…

Friday 22nd October 2175

“She said no!” Sirius slammed his breakfast tray down on the table.

“Who?” asked Remus.

“And no to what?” added Peter.

“Mary.”

“What!” yelped James, almost choking on his toast.

“Exactly!”

“But… what did you actually say to her?” Remus asked.

“We had a sort of passionate snogging session yesterday, so I asked her to officially be my girlfriend. Figured that’s what she wanted.”

“And she just said no?” James asked, incredulous.

“She told me and I quote—that I’m not boyfriend material. That I seem confused and have plenty of shit to figure out. But hey, at least she said I’m lovely to fool around with.”

“Take the win, mate. At least you’re lovely,” Remus chuckled.

“You should’ve asked her right after your first kiss. Now you made her think you’re uninterested,” Peter said, wearing a wise expression.

“Oh, I’m sorry, Mr Lover Man. It’s not my fault Sam hasn’t given you the great honour of a little peek. And I wasn’t that interested anyway—I just wanted to be a gentleman!”

“Me and Sam kiss plenty. We don’t have to do it in front of you, Black!”

Remus glanced at James, who was staring down at his oatmeal, expression hard to read.

“You okay, Jamie?”

James looked up. “Hm? Yeah, great, mate.” He turned to Sirius. “You alright, Sirius?”

“Yeah… are you alright?” Sirius’s expression shifted with worry.

“Never been better. So—when MacDonald said you’re not boyfriend material, do you have any idea what she even meant by boyfriend material ?”

“I don’t know. Just… not me?”

“Remus, what do you think?”

Remus shrugged. “I’m shite at these things, don’t drag me into it.”

“Petey?”

Peter stood, lifting his tray of empty plates. “Just be like me, mate. I’m the boyfriend material guy.”

Saturday 30th October 2175

Remus stepped out of the bathroom, a towel wrapped around his head, hugging his warm jumper tightly as the weather grew colder and colder every day.

“Your turn, Sirius.”

Sirius stood, gathering his clothes and two fancy towels—oh, Remus, you can’t just use the same towel for your body and your hair!—before heading off to take his night bath. Which, if you asked Remus, always took far too long.

“Psst, Lupin,” James whispered, poking his head out of the closed curtain of his bed. “Come here.”

Remus slipped into James’s bed and found Peter already there, sitting cross-legged, while James leaned against the bedframe.

“We’re not plotting a murder, are we?”

“Nah.”

“Good, because I’m pretty sure Sirius would want to be included in that. Unless it’s his own murder… okay, even if it’s his own murder.”

“It’s about Sirius’s birthday,” James announced.

“It’s in November?” Peter asked.

“Yes! But… you both know how shite his family are, and well—they’re much worse than you think. They’ve got this family tradition thing on his actual birthday. He has to go back home for the whole day and spend it doing some fucked-up satanic rituals or god knows what.”

“But I thought you can’t go out of the Academy unless it’s a holiday?”

“Maybe they count the sixteenth birthday of the Black heir as a holiday?” Peter suggested.

“Yes, it’s not allowed, but they’re the Blacks. Even Dumbledore can’t deny their request. But I have a plan. I think we should do a small party, a secret party. Well—we can invite the girls? Maybe? Anyway, here in our room, on November 2nd. Make it a surprise for him?”

“I’ve got nothing against that,” Peter said.

“Me neither, but don’t we need a plan?”

“I’ve been thinking about it for a while. And well, Sam always stays here after curfew, says she’s got a deal with the Head Girl. Maybe she can use that deal to get all four of them out? We just stay here at night, nothing that’ll get anyone’s attention. And I think I can pay someone in the kitchens to make a small cake. Any other ideas?”

Remus thought of alcohol—it wasn’t a teenage party without being drunk, and Sirius would probably love it—but it didn’t seem like James’s and Peter’s kind of thing.

“I might know how to make birthday decorations from paper… if you… you know, want to. Colourful paper is cheaper than the actual stuff…”

“That’s great! You’re a genius, Remus. They don’t exactly sell birthday stuff at the Academy. Probably won’t be able to get a decent birthday cake with frosting either, or any balloons!”

“Do you think they can make it chocolate-flavoured? My parents can’t get a cake delivered to the north, otherwise I’d have asked them to send one. Frosting would melt.”

“Yeah, it would’ve been cool. Not sure about the chocolate, but I’ll ask. I mean—they sell chocolate bars?”

“The chocolate they sell is cheap, unflavoured, and tastes like shite. Sirius wouldn’t eat it.”

“It does taste like grass compared to normal chocolate, but Sirius always buys a bar. People have different tastes?”

“He probably does something with it. I mean, I’ve never seen him actually eat it. Could be related to how he got Filch’s boat.”

“Yeah, you’ve got a point. I think you should go back to your beds before his majesty finishes his shower and starts wondering why we’re having a secret meeting without him.”

Remus lay awake in his bed, listening to the water running in their small shared bathroom, and to James’s light snoring.

Cheap, unflavoured chocolate. Cake frosting. Balloons. Birthdays.

Remus liked Sirius. He was funny, he wasn’t snobby, he liked mischief and breaking rules—he was probably the coolest person Remus knew besides Mickey. And though Remus knew his friends had very different upbringings, he tried to bridge that gap in his mind. Sirius always claimed his family was horrible—and Remus liked to believe him, to believe that no one lived a perfect life—but he was still a Midtowner, from a founder family that owned most of Orrima’s wealth. He had grown up eating different foods, playing different games, dreaming different dreams. James was a Midtowner too—he’d grown up playing football and having birthdays with frosted cakes. Even Peter, though not a Midtowner, came from the East. His family had worked hard for their money, but they had money—probably the richest family in the East.

Remus had had birthday parties, very small ones. Now, Hope wasn’t a good mum, but she tried—not hard enough, but she tried. She would bake him a small cake—no frosting, that was too expensive. Maybe he’d had frosting back when he was a Midtowner, but the Remus from the South didn’t even dream of it. She’d invite the Radfords, put on her pretty dress, sing him “Happy Birthday,” and tell him how big eight was and how little he’d been just yesterday.

But his friends wouldn’t understand how lucky Remus was to have experienced a real birthday at all. If it weren’t for Lyall’s money, he wouldn’t have even dreamed of cake. They wouldn’t understand how the grass-like chocolate Sirius had bought was the best he’d ever tasted. Not that he’d had much chocolate before, but compared to what he’d known, the Academy ones were downright fancy.

The bathroom door clicked open, and Sirius’s humming filled the room.

“Hey, Sirius?”

Sirius parted Remus’s curtains a little so he could look at him, water dripping from his hair onto his hoodie—a solid part of his sleeping outfit: shorts and a hoodie, no matter the weather.

“What’s that song you’re always humming?”

Sirius grinned. “I’ve no clue. But let me know if you ever figure it out.”

Monday 1st of November 2175

Remus lay on his bed above the covers. He hadn’t planned on falling asleep—he still had a class left today—but he hadn’t slept well last night. He never did, but last night had been especially bad.

Combat Training wasn’t helping. They’d been working on ancient martial arts for a while now, His body was sore from kicking the air all morning in the cold. His jacket hadn’t helped much. He should probably buy something warmer over the holiday—and bring more jumpers. There were still some of his grandpa’s lying around at home.

He didn’t know when he did, but eventually he’d fallen asleep for probably several minutes before he felt a cold hand on his shoulder, shaking him gently.

“Rise and shine, Remu.”

He blinked a few times and saw Sirius above him, his black hair falling like a curtain.

“I would’ve let you nap, but McGonagall will notice if you weren’t there.”

Remus rubbed his eyes and stood, trying to smooth his wrinkled shirt, running his fingers through his hair, trying to tame it—it must be worse than James’s right now.

“Here, take this,” said Sirius, fidgeting in the pocket of his jacket for something. A second later, he handed Remus a chocolate bar. “Sugar gives you energy.”

“We are not smoking today.”

“I know,” Sirius said in confusion.

“We are not smoking today, Sirius,” Remus repeated, looking at the chocolate bar in Sirius’s extended hand.

“Oh.” Realisation washed over his face. “I just had an extra bar, and you love chocolate?”

“Not feeling it. Maybe I don’t love it that much after all? The weather’s cold—it won’t melt.”

Sirius furrowed his brows, but he couldn’t say anything because Remus was out of the door as soon as he finished talking.

Tuesday 3rd November 2175

“Remus! Wow, that looks really good. Think you could do this for a living?” Peter asked, eyeing the red-and-yellow HAPPY BIRTHDAY SIRIUS! sign Remus had made himself.

“Not sure handmade decorations would make much success in the South—or anywhere, for that matter.”

“It’s still impressive. Who taught you, then, anyway?”

Remus shrugged. “I taught myself. Guess it’s a hidden talent. Come on, let’s hang it up. You should probably go get the cake by now.”

A few minutes later, Peter went to fetch the cake—which James had paid for at its insanely high price, refusing to accept anything from Remus or Peter—from the kitchens, leaving Remus alone to wait for the return of James and Sirius from their walk. Sirius had been in a solemn mood the entire day and hadn’t wanted to do anything with anyone, which had almost ruined their whole plan. But, as it turned out, Sirius Black’s soft spot for James Potter was bigger than anyone had thought.

Remus noticed a rectangular box wrapped in colourful paper tucked under James’s bed. A gift. Peter had probably got him one too.

The problem wasn’t that Remus couldn’t afford a simple gift for his friend, but there was no way out of the Academy, and unlike James and Peter, he didn’t have anyone to write to who could buy something for Sirius. He occasionally sent an I’m still alive letter to Mickey. But gifts you gave to male friends in the South were normally a packet of cigarettes or a bottle of beer. Which he had already given Sirius—half of, anyway—and Remus had no idea what the proper gift would be.

Or maybe he could give him something. A temporary gift, at least.

He could already hear James’s voice echoing through the halls, which meant Sirius was back. Remus stood awkwardly in the middle of the room under the Happy Birthday Sirius! sign. As soon as Sirius stepped into the room, Remus said, “Surprise?” with an awkward smile.

James immediately pulled Sirius into a big hug, screaming, “SURPRISE!!” Before Sirius could even realise what was happening, Peter came over too, carefully carrying the box that was supposed to contain the cake. “You got here before me! Surprise!”

As soon as James let go of Sirius, Sirius looked around at them and at the hanging sign. “You’ve got to be fucking kidding me! You seriously did not—”

James snickered. “We Siriusly did!”

“Aughh, god, please don’t make this joke a thing. And for the love of god, someone help me—this thing is heavy, my arms are numb.”

Remus took the cake from Peter and placed it on the desk while Peter hugged Sirius too. For some reason, Remus felt that a hug would be unnecessary right now.

“What do you think of the sign? Remus made it himself!”

“Really? It’s amazing. How did you do it?” Sirius asked, amused.

“Uhm… James got me some colourful paper and glue…”

“Wow. Thank you.” Sirius surprised him with a hug. Remus stood awkwardly for a second, caught off guard, but hugged him back eventually. His hair smelled nice, like the fancy smell in the bathroom after Sirius’s showers. Why was he sniffing his friend’s hair though?

Remus quickly pulled away and gestured toward the cake. “James got you a cake!”

“Of course he did,” Sirius said with a grin.

“It’s filled with raspberry jam too—your favourite.”

“Shall we eat then, gentlemen?”

“There’s one thing more.”

As soon as Peter said that, a knock came on the door.

“Red Stag?” Mary’s voice came in a whisper.

“Gold Lioness,” James answered. “Who are you with?”

“What the fuck?” Sirius said, glancing at Remus, who only shrugged.

“Marl—” Mary began, but James cut her off before she finished. “No real names!”

“But we didn’t make up names for them!”

“Then make something up now!”

“Um… let me see. I have White Dove, Pink Fox, and Green Doe? That’s all I can come up with. Let us in!”

James opened the door to reveal a very excited Mary in a short, beautiful marigold dress, her long black curls spilling down her back. Beside her stood Sam, wearing a simple white dress and a flower crown—Remus assumed she’d made it herself, the flowers looked so fresh. Marlene followed in denim jeans with a bright pink belt and a black chiffon top. And most shockingly of all, Lily—dressed in a green floral dress similar to the one she’d worn on their first day.

It was a little strange seeing everyone dressed so nicely. Mary, of course, always liked to dress up, but the occasion called for it.

“Evans!” James said, surprised.

“She wants me to tell you that she is not talking to any of you,” Sam said dutifully, “and that she came only because there’s cake—and because Mary made her.”

“Happy birthday, Sirius!” Mary said, hugging him. “Still lovely!”

“Huh, I’m always lovely, Macdonalds!” Sirius grinned.

Mary gave him a fond shove.

“Happy birthday, Black,” said Marlene, ruffling his hair. But he grabbed her into a hug instead.

“Looking good, McKinnon.”

“Even combed my hair for you, Black. But be careful—you’re not exactly my type.”

“I’m everyone’s type, babe.”

Marlene stuck her tongue out in disgust and shoved him, not so lightly.

Lily whispered something into Sam’s ear. Sam cleared her throat and announced, “Lily says she will not be hugging Sirius, for he’s had enough hugs today. But she still wishes him a happy birthday. I, too, will not be hugging Sirius, because the smell of his shampoo irritates me. And I wish him a birthday that is not miserable.”

“Thank you, Sam. As for Lily—Snivellus had it coming.”

Lily scoffed, but said nothing.

“Soooo… the cake?” Mary asked eagerly.

“Yesss, the cake! Peter, did you get the plates?”

“Yeah, they’re in the box with the cake. And I’ve got something else.” He pulled a square box from under his bed and lifted the lid. “Biscuits! From our bakery. Would’ve got you a decent cake, Sirius, but it’s hard to send a proper one through the post.”

They all sat on the floor in a circle as Sirius blew out the candle Sam had mysteriously produced from God knows where, and made his birthday wish. After that, they tucked into the cake, chatting quietly so no one would know a party was being held in the dorm.

"So, Sirius, how does being sixteen feel?” Mary asked through a big bite.

“Like I’ve just crawled out of my boyhood cocoon—a full man, ready to fly into the big wide world.”

Remus couldn’t help but laugh, joined by Peter, who almost choked on his food. Marlene just looked horrified.

“Whatt?” Sirius demanded.

“What the fuck is wrong with you, Black?” Marlene said with a laugh.

“Don’t mind them, mate. They don’t know how to appreciate good poetry,” James said, patting him on the shoulder.

“What would I have done without you in this world filled with vicious, vicious people, Jamie?”

“Pay no care, Sirius! For I shall never, ever leave your side. I will always be there to protect you.”

“Oh God, I can’t take it anymore,” Lily finally burst out.

“Hey, Lils,” Remus said.

“DO NOT ADDRESS ME!”

“Come on, it was a harmless joke—it’s nothing compared to the shit he pulled,” Sirius cut in.

“What do you mean, shit he pulled? You four have been bullying him since we first got here! I shouldn’t even be here,” Lily snapped.

“We did not bully him!” James protested.

“Maybe a little?” Peter said, lifting his head from Sam’s lap.

“We did,” Remus admitted, “but it was in return for his bullying—which wasn’t as harmless as a little dip in the lake.”

“What? What are you talking about? What did he do?”

Remus looked out the window, not wanting to have this conversation.

“He’s been an arse the whole time. But last time he called us fucking rebellions. He’s lucky we didn’t just throw him into the lake.”

Lily’s eyes went wide with shock. “Wh—no! He wouldn’t—” She stood, arms crossed tightly over her chest.

“Yes, he did. Me specifically. He had to be warned, Lils. Calling an orphaned Southerner kid a rebellion wouldn’t exactly pass unnoticed,” Remus said, still not meeting her eyes.

“But—he, he didn’t mean it! You must’ve made him angry, and he has it hard at home, you don’t get it.”

“Oh, come on, Lily, stop defending him! He’s been mean to me too, and you know it. He’s been horrible to you! Why do you keep defending him?” Mary shot back, standing as well.

“He hasn’t! You just don’t understand him. His dad is an awful man!”

“My dad is an awful man too—my mum even worse. I don’t go around trying to get people killed,” Sirius said sharply.

“What? They couldn’t find you a pony in Orrima, Black?” Lily said coldly.

“ENOUGH!” James’s voice cut through the room. “Everyone, this is Sirius’s birthday party, alright? I’m sorry, Evans—I can’t believe I’m saying this—but this is about Sirius, not Snape. He’s been an arse and everybody knows it. So please. Can we just sit down and laugh about Marlene’s aunt’s new atrocious lover like we were a few minutes ago? And then Sirius can open his presents, and we can all go to bed because we have fucking PT at six in the morning.”

Remus had never seen James like this before. He didn’t even know James had it in him to tell Lily Evans the word enough in such a context…

To his surprise, Lily sat down—not exactly happily, judging by the way she chewed on the poor biscuit. Mary followed too, resting her head on Marlene’s lap.

“Sooo, Edward’s suit?” Peter asked Marlene, trying to break the tension.

“Oh yeah, he came wearing this bright purple, obnoxious suit, with a green shirt and a green tie. He looked like a fucking clown.”

“And he introduced himself as your aunt’s lover? Not boyfriend, not partner—lover?” Lily asked. Everyone was surprised, but no one remarked on her joining the conversation.

“Lover. And he went on to tell my brothers that he was going to teach them how to seduce women. God, I hope she doesn’t marry him.”

“Then he’ll be like your new daddy, with his purple and orange suits,” Mary said.

“You forgot the yellow one with the blue straps.”

“At least we know your new daddy has better taste than Marlene’s,” Sirius said to Remus.

Remus poked him in the ribs. “Shut up.”

“Who’s your new daddy, Remus?” Mary asked, raising a suspicious brow.

“Oh God. What the fuck? No!” Remus looked horrified.

“Professor Turner,” James answered giddily.

“What?” said Marlene, just as Mary chimed, “I meannnn, he is really fit.”

“Whattt!!!” Remus yelped a little too loudly—earning a smack on the head from Peter.

“He’s his uncle!” Peter added.

“What!” Lily said this time.

“That’s a lot of whats,” Sam muttered, not really caring about the chaos around her.

“He’s not my uncle. He was just friends with my parents, that’s it.”

“So he’s actually a Southerner?” Mary asked.

Remus nodded.

“What side did he live on? I don’t think I’ve heard of the Turners before.”

“I think close to my side. He grew up near my mum. I don’t think his parents are around.”

“Wow, and he moved out? He must’ve been a genius.”

“Yeah, something like that.”

“Does he have a girlfriend though?”

“Alright, that’s it,” James cut in before the conversation could take a bad turn. He knelt in front of his bed and pulled out a rectangular box. “Your present,” he said, handing it to Sirius.

Sirius couldn’t wait—he tore the box open. Inside was a thin square. Queen. A Night at the Opera. The colours of the cover were a little faded, but it looked unused.

“Wow,” Marlene said, eyeing the album.

“Wha—how? You didn’t have to get me a music record, James?!” Sirius said, shocked.

“Don’t worry. Dad got a great deal on it. The bloke in the shop said it works just fine. But we don’t have the right record player for it. Do you have one at home?”

“As if Mum would let us. Andy had one, but she took it when she ran.”

“I… might have one. At home,” Remus said quietly.

“You have a music record player?” Mary shrieked.

“It was my mum’s. It’s sort of a family heirloom, but it works just fine. Just… can you not tell anyone? I’ll be in a lot of shit if word gets out.”

“Can you bring it after Christmas?” Sirius asked.

“I can’t sneak it in without someone noticing. And I don’t think it’s wise to move a 200-year-old machine.”

“Yeah… you’re right.”

Remus could’ve invited Sirius over for the holidays. But that sounded stupid even in his own head. Like Sirius Black would be caught dead in the South…

Peter gave Sirius a hand-knitted grey sweater his mum had made, meant to go with their uniform. None of the girls had gotten him anything—except Marlene, who liked him a little despite denying it, and who was in the best financial position out of them. She’d got him a pair of shiny black football trainers .

“I had to beg Aunt Susie not to let Edward buy you the yellow and purple ones.”

They ate everything down to the last crumb, played cards, laughed at James’s charade of Slughorn, and, at the end of the night, Sam revealed her own gift: a drawing of all of them sitting exactly as they were now—except with a birthday hat on Sirius’s head, and everyone’s name above their heads.

“You’ll forget us one day,” she said, “but with this you’ll remember this particular moment.”

An hour before midnight, the girls went back to their dorm. Everyone got ready for bed. Remus lay still in his, James was already snoring, and Peter had fallen asleep before the girls even left. Sirius had just come out of the shower and was rustling about, clearly looking for something.

Remus pushed open the curtains of his bed and whispered so as not to wake the others. “Hey, Sirius?”

Sirius turned quickly, startled by the sound. “Huh?”

“Happy birthday.”

“Thanks.” Sirius gave him a soft smile.

“I have a gift for you. I just didn’t want to give it to you in front of everyone else.”

Sirius smiled but shook his head. “You didn’t have to get me anything.”

“It’s something I already had.” Remus pulled his trunk from under his bed and retrieved the flask Mickey had given him, hidden beneath a pile of underwear.

“Thank you, really,” Sirius said as he accepted it.

“This isn’t the gift, idiot. Smell what’s inside.”

Sirius furrowed his brows, opened it, and wrinkled his nose at the sharp scent. His grin spread wide. “You fucking genius!” he whispered, almost shouting.

Remus shrugged, smiling sheepishly.

“So… shall we?” Sirius asked.

“Shall we what?”

“Drink? I’m not drinking this alone.”

“We can’t just sit here and drink. We have to be up early too.”

“So is the problem sitting here—or being awake?”

Remus crossed his arms. “Spill it, Black.”

“Want to go drink in the woods?”

“We’re going to get caught.”

“I’ll take that as a yes?”

Remus sighed, then tugged a jumper and jacket over his pyjamas. “Put something on your hair—it’s freezing out,” he muttered, wrapping a scarf around his neck and grabbing his night torch.

Sirius pulled the hood of his jacket up and eased the door open quietly.

They walked on tiptoe all the way down the corridor. Remus kept turning every two seconds to check if anyone had seen them, cursing himself for sneaking out after curfew in this freezing cold.

They sat side by side on the ground, their backs pressed against the biggest tree they could find.

“Cheers,” Sirius said, taking a large gulp before passing the flask to Remus.

“Cheers, mate.”

“What does Remus mean? Or Lupin?” Sirius asked, staring into the dark ahead of him.

Remus laughed. “Remus and Romulus—does that ring a bell?”

“I don’t think so…”

“Ever heard of Rome?”

“I think? only a little though.”

“God, you’ve got a lot to learn.” Remus tried to give Sirius a fraction of who the original Remus was.

“So… your dad named you after the twin that died? And your name is literally wolf wolf?”

“Wolf Wolf the Second. My dad’s name also meant wolf.”

Sirius chuckled. “Should I start calling you wolf boy now?”

“Nooo, that’s what Mickey calls me, and I hate it.”

“Fine, but I’ve got to find you a nickname. Give me something associated with wolves.”

“Um—fur, jaws… and I guess the moon too?”

“The moon?” Sirius asked.

Remus nodded. “Remind me to explain werewolves to you some other time.”

“That’s it then—you’re Moon Boy. No, that’s hard to say all the time… let’s see, what other nicknames do you have?”

“Wolf Boy, Wolfy, Wolf Wolf the Second, and—oh, my favourite—Loony Lupin.”

“Loony Moon? Moon Loony? Moony!”

“Moony?” Remus didn’t actually hate it.

“Moony—that’s it. I’m spreading the word tomorrow.”

“You can be Star Boy, you know.”

StarBoy. Starman?

“It’s Starman! That song you’re always humming?”

Sirius’s mouth fell open. “I think that’s the name… but how do you know it?”

“How do you know it?”

“Andy had a record. She used to play it all the time. Do you… do you have it?”

“Yeah—” Remus was cut off by a sharp light shining directly in their faces, a tall figure standing behind it.

“Remus?” whispered Tim.

“Professor Turner?”

“Fuck, Moony—it’s daddy Timmy.”

“Tim—are you two drunk?” Tim squinted at the bottle in Sirius’s hand.

“It’sa Sirius’s birthday,” Remus explained.

“Oh, I’m so sorry, please continue your celebration,” Tim said mockingly, snatching the flask from Sirius.

“Stand up, you two.”

Remus tried to push himself up but couldn’t. Tim grabbed his hand and pulled him to his feet, then did the same with Sirius.

“Walk with me,” Tim said. “And don’t breathe a word.”

They followed Tim in silence, expecting to be marched straight to Dumbledore’s office—but instead, he stopped at their dorm room.

“That’s… not Dumbledore’s office?” Sirius asked, just as confused as Remus.

“Sharp realization, Mr Black. Where’s your key?”

Remus handed over his key, and Tim unlocked the door, ushering them inside.

“Take off your jackets, and each of you get into your own bed. This did not happen. I did not stumble upon you both drunk, and not a single word of this reaches anyone—including Mr Potter and Mr Pettigrew.”

“Yessir,” they both slurred in unison.

“Happy birthday, Mr Black,” Tim said dryly as he shut the door behind him.

Fuck.

Chapter Text

Wednesday 3rd November 2175

Remus was woken the next morning at a quarter to six by a very awake, very cheerful James Potter. As he made his way to the bathroom, wondering how he was going to survive the day with his killer headache, he found Sirius already standing in front of the mirror. Unlike every other morning, when he would be in jogging shorts and lazily tying his hair back, Sirius was now dressed in black formal trousers and a black vest over a white shirt. His black hair, grown a little longer, fell elegantly over his shoulders, and the bathroom was filled with the scent of his expensive perfume.

Sirius smiled when he caught the very grumpy reflection of Remus in the mirror.

“Morning, Moony,” he said, lowering his voice to add, “Looks like you can’t handle your drink very well.”

“Shuddup,” Remus mumbled through a mouthful of toothpaste as he brushed his teeth. Sirius stood quietly beside him, both of them staring at the mirror in companionable silence.

But their moment of nothingness was interrupted by Peter in need of using the bathroom, while normally he was the sweetest and nicest of them. His morning Pre PT version is the most evil person Remus had ever met. So they both removed themselves from the bathroom trying to save their life from Peter’s evil morning twin.

Remus’s headache only grew worse and worse. He wondered if they might let him skip PT if Madam Pomfrey confirmed he was unwell—but probably not. The whole point of PT was to push them to challenge their bodies and keep control even at their worst. Unless, of course, you happened to be a Founder’s heir about to celebrate your sixteenth birthday.

As they were about to leave, Remus was struggling even with tying his shoes.

James just knelt down and tied them for him like it was nothing.Huh? Was he hallucinating now?

“You. You tied my shoes?”

“What? Yeah, you couldn’t do that. Hey, are you unwell? You look extra… grumpy today?” James asked with real concern.

Remus swore Sirius snorted silently as he was putting on his coat.

Remus scoffed and mumbled, “It’s fine, just a headache… c’mon Pete, we’re gonna be late.”

“Alright lads, see ya tonight,” Sirius said with very little enthusiasm as he left.

After what was the hardest hour in Remus’s life—and a warm shower—his legs felt like spaghetti, and he was in danger of falling asleep at any moment.

Little did he know when he sat his breakfast tray at the table that one Lily Evans would sit in front of him. Remus blinked with confusion because she was sitting next to James who also staring at her wide eyed. But she was looking at Remus with her huge green eyes. Did he do something wrong?

“Potter, Pettigrew. Leave, I want to speak with Lupin” that’s it, she is going to kill him and dump the body in the lake and he’d be eaten by fish before anyone finds him.

“But I’m eating” Peter protested. But she directed her terrifying look at him instead “leave.” Peter immediately lifted his tray mumbling something that sounded like “I would rather eat with my girlfriend anyway” James looked one last time at Lily and Followed behind.

She. Would. Kill. Him.

Her eyes suddenly softened. “I’m Sorry”

That was not what he expected?

“Huh?” Remus chocked out the words.

“I’m really sorry, I had no idea”

“For….?”

“What sev did”of course “it was unacceptable, and dangerous and stupid and I talked to him, and he won’t ever do it again”

“Why are you sorry Lils, why isn’t he here apologizing? You know what would they do to me for just his words” and my dad’s history “I would’ve been killed in prison before even getting sentenced and for what? Ha Lily? For what?”

Lily looked truly heartbroken, a new look on her that Remus didn’t like. But no one understood the dangers of the game Snape was playing, probably not even Snape himself.

Lily put a comforting hand on his and looked at him with those big green eyes, and they were so fucking green and he wasn’t mad at her…

“Don’t worry about Lils, it’s not your fault”

Lily smiled and looked at the rest of their friends in the next table “hey… how about we eat alone for now?” When Remus followed her gaze he saw Marlene and Mary holding forks and hitting James with them constantly while Peter was cheering  and Sam waving a toast like a flag.

“Yeah. We should probably eat alone”

While Remus haven’t known the boys for that long, they did spend almost every hour of every day since September together, so something did feel wrong with Sirius not being around, and the person who was affected the most by it was James, he’d spent all the day’s classes unusually quiet and well— without causing any trouble, to that point that even McGongall had noticed.

“If I’d known that separating you and Mr Black would finally give us a quiet lesson I would’ve found a way to arrange that a long time ago. eyes on the board Mr Lupin. And please wake Mr Pettigrew up.”

Food breaks had been… civilized? No one was throwing food around—well, Marlene did make an attempt to throw a pea on Remus but she didn’t get him— there was no sword fights with butter knives and no horrible poetry telling from Sirius. It was a really weird day.

At ten at night James had officially lost it.

“Maybe he is staying the night? Trying to avoid PT tomorrow” Peter suggested, but James was stressed in a way no one had ever seen him in before, he was walking in the room in circles and biting on his nails. Remus didn’t think he even ever saw James stressed.

“No! He wouldn’t want to stay there, they did something to him!”

Remus had no idea what that something could be, he knew that Sirius told James stuff that he didn’t tell him or Peter. But he couldn’t really guess what they were and in what way his family were really horrible. Orion and Walburga Black were names that everyone in Orrima had heard before as they were the head of the most ancient and noble house of Black. While Orion had lived a life in the shadow, Walburga was the head of the founder families which means she had more power than Tom Riddle himself. But How did Walburga choose to parent her children? Remus had no fucking idea.

“I mean it can’t be that bad! Come on James his parents lead the world I think they can handle their household” Peter said in at attempt to calm James’s nerves, but that seemed only to make him angry.

But he was cut off as soon as he opened his mouth by the door opening.

Sirius looked… fine? He only looked tired. He was wearing different clothes and carrying a bag that he wasn’t this morning.

As soon as he closed the door behind him James jumped on him in a hug, but As soon as his body actually touched him, Sirius flinched a little. And that move didn’t go unnoticed by James who scoffed immediately.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing.”

James tried to reach for Sirius’s left hand again but he immediately shrugged it off “I told you it’s nothing”

“Why won’t you let me touch your hand then?”

Sirius scoffed and moved his right hand through his hair “look Jamie, I’m tired, I’ve had a long day and a long trip. Let’s go to bed alright? I need you to drop this.”

James didn’t look happy at this and almost opened his mouth in a protest but seemed to actually know better than this.

“Fine. But tomorrow we are talking.” He said it like he was stating a fact and not asking. He probably was. But Sirius ignored him and went directly to his bed and shut the curtains off.

Well, that was strange. Sirius was very specific about his night routine. And always wore shorts to bed. But… maybe he was tired from the trip?

Remus wasn’t stupid, he didn’t like to intervene in things, especially between people, and especially between James and Sirius. The two boys had formed a special bond ever since their first day, and it was very clear to Remus and Peter that they often shared stuff with each other that they didn’t with them. And Remus was fine with that. If you ask anyone about the people they’ve met in their Academy days, they’ll tell you that they last saw them in their last day of third year. The Academy was an experience, for most people it is the only place where they would encounter someone from another side, it was the only place where the Black heir, a spoiled kid from a self made family, an eastern kid and a Southern nobody with a rebellious family history can be in the same place, and call themselves friends, Remus liked his current friends, despite the intense routine that was only getting harder and harder day by day, he considered himself lucky to be placed in one room with James, Peter and Sirius, and very lucky to decide to go for a walk in the exact moment Lily Evans was running the halls with her giant box which Remus still has no Idea to this day what was in it, things could’ve been much worse. What his parents had was very rare, for a Midtowner to fall for a Southerner girl, Remus could only imagine the names his mum had been called, his dad was disowned as far as he knew, people in Midtown usually had more than one kid, maybe he has an uncle or an aunt out there somewhere. And what Tim had was even more rare, for a southerner kid to get a higher education, move out to Midtown and BE a professor, yeah Remus couldn’t even dream of that. But it’s not like he dreamed a lot.

Shit. Tim…

Remus didn’t see him during the day, at all? Huh. That was weird… professors were allowed to leave, maybe he has a northern girlfriend or something.

He should probably apologize. Fuck.

Thursday 4th November 2175

Remus was awakened earlier than usual today according to the watch on his nightstand that read five fifteen, he wasn’t awakened by James’s soft nudges, but James’s shouting at someone. James was shouting?

“Come on Sirius I know you are lying!”

“I didn’t! I fucking fell on my hand!"

“Bollocks”

Remus got up from his bed trying to see what the fuck is wrong with these two before Peter wakes up and ends up killing them all.

“Look you’ve awakened Moony, happy now?” Sirius said angrily pointing to Remus.

“Care to tell me why are we having a screaming match at five seventeen in the morning?” Remus asked.

James rubbed his eyes from under his glasses and sighed. “Nothing I’m sorry Mo—“ he suddenly realized the name Sirius had used “Moony?”

Sirius nodded. Clearly happy to change the subject “It’s his new nickname” he answered.

“Nah-uh I’m not talking to you” James said pointing towards Sirius.

Sirius huffed and grabbed his PT clothes and went to the bathroom slamming the door behind him.

“You are gonna wake Peter!” Remus hissed.

“Sooo? Monny?” James asked.

“God, you two are insufferable!”

“Heyyy! I don’t like this vicious version of you, what’s the Moony story?”

Remus shrugged “Sirius can tell you when you two make up”

PT was hell, well—it’s always hell, but today even worse, with much less sleep, and the stress between James and Sirius felt contagious, even Peter was unusually in a grumpy mood today.

By the end of PT he just fell on the ground trying to catch his breath, he reached for his water bottle but it was already empty—stupid rules, why would they be allowed only one during PT?

A full bottle was thrown on him out of nowhere.

“Drink before you die Moony” Sirius said.

Who the fuck would go through all this physical exercise without drinking water?

Remus didn’t have it in him to protest, he drank the whole thing and looked up at Sirius.

“Work. things. Out. With. Potter.”

But Sirius just ignored him and went to help Mary get up instead…

Breakfast was even worse, James and Sirius sat as far away from eachother as possible, and they were both…eating? Quietly?

“Okay I can’t stand you two anymore, I’m eating with Sam” announced Peter, leaving Remus alone to be the third wheel…

“So, do you feel like the egg is kinda overcooked today?” Remus tried his best to do something, but Sirius just lifted a skeptical brow and James had barely blinked.

“Fine, I give up”

Even Mcgongall didn’t miss the tension, with James sitting in the back with Remus and Sirius with Peter.

“Mr Potter, are alright?” Asked the professor raising her brows after catching James squinting hard at the board.

“Yep, great professor”, Mcgongall didn’t look convinced but she didn’t have any interest to change things considering the unusual disiplin the four boys were showing today.

After dinner, even Remus couldn’t deal with the shit going on between Sirius and James, and well… he had somewhere else to be.

He stood in front of the Pre-Apocalypse studies class, hesitant whether to actually knock on the door, or run away.

After more minutes than he likes to admit he finally knocked two faint knocks—there was a good possibility he wasn’t there anyway, he could be at his home? His place in the Academy? He could be with someone!

As Remus was about to turn around and pretend like nothing happened, the door opened.

“Remus.” Tim said with his usual pleasant smile.

“Professor Turner”

He opened the whole door silently inviting Remus who accepted and got inside, he closed the door then behind him and looked at Remus.

“Tea? Or perhaps some whiskey?”

Ah shit.

Remus swallowed “Tea is great, without whisky! Or any alcohol in fact”

Tim opened a drawer and pulled out the flask, and handed it to Remus.

Remus looked at the flask hesitating.

“Don’t worry, it’s empty and washed”

“About that prof—“ Remus tried to apologize but Tim squeezed Remus’s shoulder gently, gesturing him to stop, he sat on his chair behind his desk and took a sip of his tea.

“I might be old Remus but I’m not ancient”

“I hate to be the one breaking it to you professor but you are not old”

“What! I have grey hair and I wear glasses?? I’m practically a grandpa”

“You also clearly work out and dress like… not a grandpa” said Remus eyeing the tight dark green shirt his professor was wearing “and a lot of accessories”

“I have a style and I like to stay healthy but I’m old!”

“No you are not, Mcgongall is old, Pomfrey is old, Binns is old and god knows Dumbledore is old”

“I have white hair!”

“I don’t think it’s appropriate to say who said this but you’re being called a silver fox” Mary

“A silver what? Kids nowadays read a lot of old magazines, anyway… don’t change the subject kid”

“I know, I just wanted to say I’m so—“

“Stop. I don’t need you to apologize to me, or thank me. I was fifteen before, and as your teacher it’s not ethical to tell you what me and your parents where up to back in the day, and I understand why you and Mr Black felt like the need to go get drunk in the woods, but I also want you to understand that this is not the wise choice… and if anyone else had caught you thing’s would’ve been really unpleasant, to you especially…”

Remus nodded, his face turning hot from shame “I know…”

“That’s it then, I’m not asking how did you get alcohol here, how did you sneak out, what was the occasion, why did Mr Black call you Moony and why did he call me daddy Timmy…” Tim said with a light smirk.

“Oh god” Remus groaned, covering his face with his hands “he meant it as you know, father? Dad? Parent? Because you are technically my uncle?”

He laughed “Don’t worry Moony, I was messing with you, I’ve been called worse things by students… sometimes to my face”

“Moony is better than Wolfy I guess…”

“Nah s’not a bad nickname”

“Thank you professor, for the Tea, and the talk, and not telling Dumbledore… I should probably go now…”

“anytime kid.”

Remus saw James asleep on a couch in the common room, so the fight is still on…

He went up to his room finding Peter and Sirius fighting… great.

“Go and tell him what he bloody wants to know and end this crap!!”

“There is nothing to tell! Leave me the fuck aloneeeee”

“I don’t careeeee, I have to live with you two, eat with you two, study with you two!! Look at Remus??? He’s been god knows what for the past hour because of you two! And why no one is telling me why the fuck is he Moony now? What does that even mean!”

Sirius slammed the bathroom door behind him and locked the door on himself.

“Hey Pete…” Remus said

“I can’t anymore with them Remus, I’ll sit with the girls… you deal with them!” Peter said angrily, also slamming the door behind him.

Fuck…

Remus knocked hard on the bathroom door “open the fucking door Sirius, we are solving this”

No answer…

“You know James is doing this because he is concerned for you right?”

No answer…

“You tell him everything, you can tell him what happened… I know that you didn’t fall on your hand too, and I know that it’s not my business… but it’s James’s business…”

“Is it… Was your family mad because of… your choice of company?” Remus said quietly, barely a whisper

Sirius opened the bathroom door, not meeting Remus’s eyes. Remus took this as a yes.

“I am sorry. We, we can stop hanging out, I’m pretty sure they’ll move me to another room if you asked” Remus felt weird pain in his he heart. But that was the right thing. The normal thing. The order of life.

Sirius looked at him shaking his head “No? No! My mum can whine about this all she wants she is not taking my friends from me… and it’ll have to be the one to move if I did what she wants”

“What? Peter too? But he is… he is good he is not like me!”

“And James”

“Wha—what? James’s dad is a lawyer and his mum’s is an artist! He lives in a mansion”

Sirius laughed a humorless laugh “Oh Moony you have no Idea how low the Blacks can get…, even if they overlooked the fact that his parents are self made… he is—he is not the kind of people they want around…”

Realization drew over Remus “no fucking way”

Sirius laughed “uha fucking way…”

“Did… they hit you? Because of us?”

“Nah it’s nothing, just a little disciplinary sprain, Regulus put this bandage like thing on it, and it doesn’t even hurt”

“That’s—that’s really fucked up Sirius!”

“Tell me something I don’t know, I can’t tell James why my dear mum doesn’t want us to be friends”

“I’ll… I’ll talk to him, to James. You won’t have to tell him anything”

“Thanks Moony” Sirius said with a small smile not quite reaching his eyes.

“Do they do this often?”

“No” Sirius shook his head.

“Good. I mean not good, nothing is good about this… um— and good your brother is good right? Not good I mean” Remus blurbed.

Sirius stared at him with a cold expression, and for a second Remus felt like he really fucked things up, but then Sirius exploded with laughter, loud and real.

Remus couldn’t help but smile. “Alright Alright laugh at me all you want, I’m going to smack James on the head”

As Remus turned around to go, he felt Sirius’s hand squeeze gently on his shoulder “you are good too Remus” Sirius said softly.

Remus didn’t answer. Couldn’t answer.

He found James still asleep on the couch with his history book in his lap. Remus grabbed the book and smacked him with it.

“What the fuck!” James woke horrified, breathing fast.

“Go and talk to Sirius” Remus said firmly, crossing his arms.

“No I won’t”

“Yes you are, he needs you, and he needs you not to ask him about it, you are not a kid James, you can’t know everything you want to know.”

“But he—“

“No! Not buts. You are gonna get your arse up, go apologize to him, and do your thing, while I’m  going to tell the good news to poor Petey” Remus said, fixing James’s collar.

“You do the dangerous man thing better than Sirius”

“GO!”

Remus went back with Peter almost twenty minutes later because Mary needed his honest and necessary opinion on her lipstick.

Remus wasn’t sure that sending James to Sirius like this would work things between them. But only he could do was hope to not open the door to a bloodbath.

And When he opened the door he saw both Sirius and James lying on the floor and bursting their hearts out laughing. 

“You are my fucking hero Moony” Peter couldn’t hide his joy.

In this moment Remus realized that what James and Sirius have is just as rare as what his parents had, he just knew that they weren’t just a phase in eachother’s life. Finishing the Academy won’t separate them, those two were friends for life.