An Escalation of Aggressions (Harry Potter: Remus Lupin)

[queenie]

This is a Marauder's Era Harry Potter fanfiction, about allergic Remus Lupin and all his friends, with an eventual lead-up to Remus/Sirius ship.

Here is Part 1!

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They had just sat down in the Great Hall when it happened. James and Peter were wrestling over control of the pot of jam when, next to them, Remus pulled back from reaching for the butter dish to smother a delicate ehkscht to the back of his wrist before returning to the business of his breakfast.

Beside him, James's eyes slid uneasily to meet Sirius's. A sneeze from Remus was not an uncommon thing, with spring coming on, but that didn't mean it wasn't cause for concern. 

"All right, Moony?" Peter murmured.

Remus sniffed, but he smiled. He hadn't yet realized what his friends had. "Of course." Peter could be such a worrier, Remus thought, making sure to smile extra brightly. He cleared his throat before taking a bite of his toast.

He didn't notice the furrow forming between Sirius's brows. 

No, a sneeze from Remus was not an uncommon thing, with spring coming on, but neither was it uncommon for him to be unable to stop once he'd started. That the first sneeze had come before his first bite of breakfast was a bad harbinger indeed for the day to come.

Sure enough, it was scarcely more than a minute more before his breath began to hitch softly. "James, would you mind passing th-heh..." Remus paused and swallowed, "the cherry juice, heh... please?" He turned his face politely to the side and sneezed a soft heh-kish. "Oh, excuse me."

"Bless, Moony," James offered, sliding the jug of cherry juice as asked.

"Thank you," Remus said.

He raised the napkin in his hand to rub the tip of his itchy nose and set off a dainty eksscht, which he followed up with an irritated sniffle. If he hadn't seemed bothered at first, he was starting to now; he frowned down at his plate.

Next time, his mouth was still full when his nose started to tickle with a teasing hiccup eh-eh-eh- and Remus barely had time to swallow before he was overcome. Heh-kshoo! Huh-ksha! He'd clasped his napkin to his face at the last minute, but still felt the heat of the near-miss flushing across his cheeks. Already the sneezes were becoming harsher and more ferocious.  "Oh, blast." He dabbed at his nose with the napkin and caught another ticklish hek-nip-shoo! into its folds before standing and tossing the cloth into his now-vacated seat. 

Sirius glanced up at him in alarm. "Where are you--"

"Back to the Common Room," Remus sniffed frustratedly. "I'm obviously not making any progress here. I'll-- heh-eh-- I'll see you in classes, yeah?" And he swiveled on his heel and took off toward Gryffindor Tower, head bobbing twice more in sneezes his friends could see but not hear before he was out of their sight.

"Poor sod," James muttered, "must feel wretched."

"Yeah," Sirius agreed glumly, glancing at Remus's plate, where his breakfast was less than half-eaten.

It was going to be a long day.

Edited March 13, 2016 by queenie
Edited to fix formatting.

[Sophie<3]

Okay, even though allergies aren't normally my type of thing, you said this would lead up to Remus/Sirius, so in that case... count me in!  You know, I'm just always on board with that ship (pun intended). And everyone being so worried about Remus was really cute! Looking forward to more!

 

[Hovercuke]

This is absolutely adorable and well written! Can't wait to read more. 

[queenie]

Back so soon? It would appear that, yes, I am. Thanks to the few early peekers who left kind words!

PART 2

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Sirius climbed through the portrait hole and was surprised to find an empty Common Room. It wasn't like Remus not to be where he said he would be. Sirius fumbled with his cargo to find his watch-- could Remus have gone on to class already? But, no, as he thought, it was too early for that.

He put one foot on the first step to the dormitory and heard a faint hekshoo echo down the stairway. A small smile playing on his lips, he bounded up the stairs to the room they shared.

He emerged from the corridor just in time to see Remus muffling another huh-ingsht against his closed fist and letting out a soft groan of misery. "Wotcher, Moony," he said, waving around the burden he carried between his chin and elbow.

Remus looked up from the window where he was curled up. "What are you doing here?" 

"I brought provisions," Sirius said, setting his bounty before Remus. "I thought, seeing as you were run off before you finished your breakfast, you might be hungry." 

Remus smiled weakly. "Ta, Pads," he said, picking at a sausage bun. "How'd you get all this out of the Hall?"

Sirius grinned, tucking himself easily into the opposite corner of the window seat. "Prongs and Wormtail may have created a distraction. I wouldn't know anything about it, of course, especially if any Prefects were asking." He flicked his too-long fringe out of his eyes and bit his lip. "Did I do all right, then?"

"Well, I can't condone any rule-breaking on pain of losing my Prefectly honor, but this is really very generous, you know, and-- oh, bollocks--" Remus ducked his head under his arm to stifle a fit of sudden sneezes. Hiksh, eksh, ungcht, inkscht, eh-scht, ek-shuh. He gasped, sniffled, blinked back tears, but the next breath was not a sneeze.

"Merlin, Moony, bless y--"

"Save it," Remus snapped, "I'm not done-- huh-kish-oo!-- not done yet," he panted. Esssht. Isshoo! He waited a moment, then lowered his arm. "Sorry," he mumbled, rubbing his nose.

"Are you sure you aren't ill? That was quite a display." Remus looked miserable, honestly. If he were ill, Sirius could bring him to the Hospital Wing for Pepper-Up and then bring him tea and collect all his homework, and then he would be all right again. Sirius didn't know what to do if he wasn't. 

Remus sniffled. "I'm fine," he muttered, "just can't stop-- hup-ksha-- can't stop bloody sneezing, as you can see." 

"We can skive off classes today, if it'll make you feel better," Sirius suggested. "Hang out in the Shack, you can sneeze as much as you like there and no one will care."

"I don't like," Remus grumbled, rubbing his nose vigorously. "Besides, it's Potions this morning and I can't get any more behind if I want a chance of passing marks on my OWLs."

There was a moment of awkward silence. They both knew Sirius could afford to skip as many Potions lessons as he wanted as long as he showed up to the exam, but the subject wasn't one that came so easily to Remus. Besides which, Sirius thought with a sick feeling in his stomach, of all the classrooms when Remus's nose was already irritated, the Potions dungeon was one of the least likely to help the situation-- perhaps second only to the Herbology greenhouses. 

"Thanks again for breakfast," Remus said, attempting another smile. "It was really aces of you. You brought enough food for two or three Petes, at least. I'd have been fine with a slice of toast."

"Nonsense," Sirius scoffed. "You're a growing boy. Need to keep your strength up." Sirius grinned his insouciant grin, the prior moment forgotten. "If you're very good, I'll even give you the chocolate I have in my pocket."

[LeapYearKisses]

Awww, this is adorable!  I love ticklish fits, and especially so if Remus is involved!

[Sophie<3]

Aww... Sirius bringing Remus food. How sweet.  

Also, I loved this bit!

20 hours ago, queenie said:

"Prongs and Wormtail may have created a distraction. I wouldn't know anything about it, of course, especially if any Prefects were asking."

And then this:

20 hours ago, queenie said:

They both knew Sirius could afford to skip as many Potions lessons as he wanted as long as he showed up to the exam, but the subject wasn't one that came so easily to Remus.

I think this is one of the things the fandom is divided on. Some people (myself usually included) like to write Remus as a kind of male Hermione, getting top grades, while Sirius and James, though really bright, are not as hard-working and tend to ask him for help. Now yours is a different take entirely, but I don't mind it! After all, canon says that Sirius and James were really smart, and I can imagine Remus working hard even though things may not always come naturally to him. Ah, I just wish we had more information directly from canon about this! But anyway, I just felt like bringing this up, because I think it's interesting how different fanfic writers interpret the boys differently. Anyway, good part! Thanks!  

[queenie]

Sophie<3: Thank you for giving me a chance, even though allergies aren't usually your thing! My take on Remus is this-- he's very clever, he works very hard, he gets great marks, but James and Sirius have some natural abilities that he doesn't have. So while their work is sloppier than his and they generally do less well at the things he really masters (which is most of them!), when he struggles with something, they lap him easily, which probably drives him a bit crazy. Like, here, I think I got the idea sometime in my childhood he was never very good at Potions because he had Snape make potions for him instead of doing them himself, when in reality it was probably just because Snape is a genius at potions and one of only five people in Britain who could make it properly.  And I always think it's interesting to place the driven friend at some disadvantage-- with Hermione, you've got the idea that because she's Muggle-born she feels she's always got to catch up, with Remus he's only there by express invitation and at great trouble, expense, risk, so he's got to feel the prospect of failure that much more keenly. I hope you keep liking it!

Hovercuke: Thank you so much! I'm very glad you appreciate my style.

LYK: No, YOU'RE adorable.

On to Part 3!

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Lily Evans liked to arrive to her lessons early. This gave her time to select her seat, arrange her materials, and ensure she was completely ready before the professor began class. She staked out her preferred cauldron stand in the Potions dungeon-- near the supply cupboard but not too near, so she could be first in line for the best ingredients without being constantly jostled by students going back and forth to the cabinet. The angle offered her a good vantage point in case Professor Slughorn gave any notes and excellent acoustics should he lecture. It was, in short, the perfect spot, and she and Severus had compromised their respective front-of-class and back-of-class leanings to land on it, for they could both agree that it suited their needs.

Which was why when Severus entered the Potions dungeon chained at the ankle to James Potter, of all people, it felt like such a betrayal.

"Well, well, Mister Snape, Mister Potter," Professor Slughorn said, looking up from where he was arranging vials on his desk. "What have we here?"

"I've got a letter for you from Professor McGonagall, sir," James Potter said in that infuriating authoritative way of his. He stepped forward, jerking on the chain that was attached to Severus. "Ugh, come on, Snivellus."

"Shut it, Potter," Severus snapped, scampering to keep up.

Slughorn read the letter Potter handed him with barely-controlled amusement on his face. "I see," he said finally. "The two of you had better partner in lessons today, and I suppose you'll think twice about dueling in the Great Hall again, won't you?" He smiled brightly. "Now, you'll all be working on the Draught of Peace, which is found on page one hundred and seventy-eight of your textbooks."

Lily gaped.

Behind her, there was a soft heh-kush, which is how she became aware of the presence of a cluster of other spectators. She turned in time to see Remus shelter another gentle tssch behind a cupped hand. 

"Bless you, Remus," she said with a smile. 

"Thanks," he sniffled, returning her smile as best he could. 

"It seems I'm out a partner," Lily said ruefully. "Would you mind?" James's being otherwise occupied meant there was a loose student somewhere; Lily had to act fast to get her choice of the boys instead of odd man out. Remus was by far her preference of the lot-- better him than Pettigrew, or, worse yet, Black. 

Remus's eyes darted away for a moment and then back. "Er, all right," he said, "if you really don't mi-iii-- eh--" He paused, eyes half closed in anticipation, hand raised partway to his face in case it needed to catch a sneeze. 

Ordinarily, Lily would have softened in sympathy at that sort of thing, but these were desperate times. She grabbed the sleeve of his robes and tugged him toward her table. "Great!"

Hepshuh, ehk-shah!, Remus sneezed helplessly.

"Potions getting to you already?" she asked quietly, thumbing through her text until she found the correct recipe. It wasn't at all unusual for the strong smells produced in Potions lessons to coax a few sneezes out of Remus, who it seemed was more than usually sensitive to that sort of thing. But it was a bit early.

"Not much isn't-- heh-- getting to me, today, it would seem," he replied, running a hand over eyes that were starting to look a bit pink and tender. He turned away from her to shield another sneeze, this one a tired and restrained heessh.

Lily frowned. He really looked quite unwell, poor thing, and she wished she had some way to help him. "Oh!"

He looked at her out of the corner of one eye. "Did I remind you of something?" He asked, then sneezed again. And again. Ekscht! Essch!

"Yes," Lily said, by now elbow deep in her schoolbag. "I know it's in here somewhere... ah!" She produced a handkerchief. "Here," she said kindly. "It's a gift."

Remus opened his mouth as though to reply, but before he could say a word, he was cut off by a watery sneeze that he hastily buried in the soft folds of his new handkerchief. Tchmpf. He snuffled into the handkerchief for a moment, then looked up bashfully. "Ta, Evans. That feels amazing."

She beamed. "It's charmed. I made it myself. Infused with Murtlap and self-cleaning."

"You're a marvel."

"I'll make you some more once we get back to the dormitories, but what do you say you grab the hellebore and moonstone and I'll get the porcupine quills and unicorn horn?"

"Deal."

The self-cleaning function of the handkerchief came in particularly useful, as it must have gotten so much use by the time Remus returned from the ingredients cupboard that it would have been utterly sodden. That was an argument for the Murtlap Essence, too, now that Lily thought of it-- his poor nose would have been in absolute agony, else. Not that it was having a pleasant morning as it was.

Huh-impf umpf ekmpf etchh etchhmpf, Remus stifled into his handkerchief.

"I'm sorry, sending you for supplies was a bad idea." Lily patted his shoulder sympathetically while she set the hellebore to boil.

Eh-kshmmpf eksshh tschmpf tschh ekshumpf eh... eh... 

Remus hovered on the edge of a sneeze for the entire time it took Lily to saw through the necessary length of unicorn horn, his breath hitching with desperate eh eh ehs until her own breathing began to itch and tease in sympathy.

EHSCHI! Remus rubbed his nose with the handkerchief and groaned, whether in relief or misery she couldn't figure.

"Bless you," she said, setting the unicorn horn, moonstone, and three porcupine quills in her mortar for grinding. 

He blew his nose into the handkerchief. "Can I help?" He sounded slightly congested, even after the blow, which had probably been a bit too gentle for his needs. Remus always had been easily embarrassed in public. 

Lily bit her lip. She'd really done most of the work already, while he was struggling to breathe, but that hardly seemed fair to point out. Remus was nothing if not a hard worker. "You can stir the hellebore, if you don't think it'll set you off again."

Remus nodded. He stirred the hellebore solution, which was thickening nicely under Lily's watchful eye, and released a fragrant steam. Remus coughed a bit but managed to hold off the sneeze building in his nose until the stirring was done-- thrice clockwise, twice counterclockwise, then the reverse.

Eksha, eh-hishoo! He sneezed into his shoulder the instant the spoon was out of his hands, perhaps too itchy even to retrieve his magic handkerchief.

"Are you all right?" Lily murmured. 

"Ah, it's slowing down," Remus sniffed, picking up his handkerchief now to catch another heh-tchmpf before leaning in to watch her work. "I want to learn this."

Lily nodded and tapped the powder into the bubbling syrup on the cauldron.

Then the air exploded.

[Dusty15]

52 minutes ago, queenie said:

Then the air exploded.

O_o  Oooh that doesn't sound too good!

I'm LOVING this so far! I'm such a sucker for anything involving Remus  I love the sweet touch of Lily having such a practical handkerchief on hand and how adorable kind Sirius was in bringing him breakfast in the dormitory. 

I totally agree with you on the version of Remus that has to work a bit to master some of his school skills. Even with things that came more naturally to him, I feel like he'd still be pretty diligent about taking his time to do the work carefully. I've always had the idea that he was hopeless in Potions too! All those smells must make it hard to concentrate! 

Can't wait to read more  

[LeapYearKisses]

Lilly, yay!  I love that you put her in this.  I love the details of the perfect spot and James and Snape fighting.  And umph magic handkerchiefs and more fits!  Yessss.

[Sophie<3]

12 hours ago, queenie said:

My take on Remus is this-- he's very clever, he works very hard, he gets great marks, but James and Sirius have some natural abilities that he doesn't have. So while their work is sloppier than his and they generally do less well at the things he really masters (which is most of them!), when he struggles with something, they lap him easily, which probably drives him a bit crazy.

Yeah, I understand perfectly. That headcanon works for me, too.

Also, aww at Lily and Remus being so close!  They're one of those BrOTPs that took me a while to warm up to, but now I'm all for it.

And poor Remmy (am I allowed to give him ridiculous nicknames when he already has one? ) is sneezing almost constantly at this point! Poor baby!

 

[RiversD]

Ah, this is sweet! I feel like you're balancing their personalities well, and I also like that it still feels like they're bound by the constraints of the school day, if you know what I mean- basically, I dig your respect for the source material.

Poor Remus, though. He's such a natural magnet for sympathy and awww. I feel like "the air exploded" can't bode well for him...

[AngelEyes]

I love this. Poor Remus! And I love James and Snape shackled together. LOL. Yay for Lily!

20 hours ago, queenie said:

Then the air exploded.

Oh no!

[elizachoo]

Such a cliffhanger! Being a new reader I haven't had to do a lot of waiting for continuations and so I'm on tenterhooks here waiting to hear about the exploding air! 

Also, I love the idea that Remus can hold off his sneezing as long as he needs to if it's a matter of doing his schoolwork properly, but then can't hold back at all once he's in the clear. It's so true to the way you've developed the character in the first couple of parts.

[queenie]

Dusty15: I'm so thrilled you're here and enjoying it! I wanted all along for someone to offer him a handkerchief, and then I had the idea for Lily to make the gesture, and even though it meant putting it a bit later in the action than felt natural, she seemed perfect for it! And once it was her, well, she WAS the cleverest witch of her class, right? So I thought maybe she'd have improved on the concept, magically. I hope you love the next bit as much! I've got a couple of ideas left in me. 

LYK: <3

Sophie<3: Yeah, he's having a rough day.  But he's about to get a little relief, as you'll see...

RiversD: That is such a thoughtful comment, thank you soooo much for it! I take dedication to source material v. v. v. seriously-- that is an actual potion recipe from the fifth-year curriculum, as though anyone cares about that! (I know perfectly well no one except me does! No one is fact-checking me, probably, and if they are, who cares? Me, I guess. )  But you're absolutely right that he's not going to take well to the next bit!

AngelEyes: Yes... I know. 

elizachoo: "the way you've developed the character" is such a sweet thing for you to say, and I'm glad to hear you've felt any minor suspense because it means it's working!

And now for Part 4!

It really wasn't that bad, or it wouldn't have been. It was James Potter's fault, really-- if Severus had been her partner instead of sullenly bickering with Potter on the other side of the dungeon, Lily would never have misread her instructions and added all the dry ingredients at once instead of saving the porcupine quill for last. Lily hated even to think it, but Remus's sneezing hadn't helped her concentration any, either.

Though, of course, he was paying for that now more than anyone.

Both Lily and Remus initially recoiled from the blast of hot smoke, but while Lily recovered, Remus stayed recoiled, face pressed urgently into his elbow. Hih-kitch! Itch! Hii-ektch! Ketch! Etch! Essh! Issh!

Wordlessly, Lily tugged the handkerchief from Remus's pocket.

He took it and clasped it hastily over his face, not even attempting a thank you because the next sneeze was already upon him. Kissh! Kesh! ETCH-oo! IsshOOoo! IKtchEW! ETCH! KETCH! KETCH! 

A sizable portion of the class had looked up in alarm either at the initial boom of the potion combusting or at the continued combustion of Remus's nose. This included Peter and Sirius, who had both abandoned their station to float the few steps to be by their friend's side. 

"Cor, Moony, are you all right?" Peter gasped, eyes wide.

Sirius shot him a look-- a common one-- that said shut up, Wormtail as plainly as if he'd spoken. Instead, he took Remus firmly by the shoulders and pushed him down into a seat.

Remus would have thanked him if he had the breath; he was starting to get dizzy. Etch! ItchOO! Etch-Oo! The sneezes, which had been regular enough to set one's heartbeat to, began to slow. The next Issh was practically subdued, and the ragged breath he drew after it might have gotten as far as his lungs before he expelled it with a quick ticklish ek-kutch hep-kupch. 

Sirius rested his hand on Remus's back, between his heaving shoulder blades.

Remus, suffering evident in his red face and streaming eyes, shook him off. Ek- chmmpf. He coughed into his handkerchief for a few moments, then sneezed another desperate hessh. 

"All of you, back to your potions," Professor Slughorn shooed the onlookers off. "Even you, Mister Black. I don't believe Mister Lupin is your cauldron."

Sirius cast one last worried look at Remus, who was stifling another humpf into his hands, before returning to his table.

"Miss Evans, perhaps you had better escort Mister Lupin to the Hospital Wing," Slughorn suggested. "It would appear that your Draught of Peace has gone slightly awry."

Lily felt her cheeks grow hot with shame, and knew they must match her hair. She hated messing up in class. "Yes, professor." She leaned down to gather her things and Remus's, and also to whisper to him "do you think you can walk?"

He seemed to consider it for a moment before, still not trying to speak or remove the handkerchief from his nose, he nodded slightly. 

Relief charged her almost as strongly as the shame of her failure. This was going to be much simper if he could walk. "All right," she said, shouldering both schoolbags. "Let's go."

It quickly became apparent that progress was going to be slow. Remus was unsteady and winded and kept stuttering to a stop to blink his way into harsh kumpfhs or heh-ikshimps. When they were halfway down the corridor, Lily offered him her arm for support and he leaned on it with a look of gratitude in his red-rimmed eyes that made her ache.

When they arrived in the Hospital Wing after what felt like hundreds of sneezes and at least half an hour, Madam Pomfrey pushed Remus into a chair much the way Sirius had done in the Potions dungeon. "You poor dear," she tutted. "Thank you for bringing him by, Miss Evans."

Over her years as an exceptional student, Lily Evans had developed an excellent sense for what an authority figure wanted from her, and she knew a dismissal when she heard one. She set Remus's bookbag on the floor by his seat. "Feel better, Remus," she said.

"Thangs," Remus croaked, and sniffed, and sneezed one last eh-hekscht before Lily left the infirmary.

"Now," Madam Pomfrey said briskly, turning toward him, "what brings you in looking so rough?"

Ekscch, Remus sneezed. 

She chuckled. "Sneezing, yes, I gathered. Anything else?"

"Mby throatd itdches, and mby ears-- itkch -- sorry--"

"Bless you, dear," Madam Pomfrey said kindly. "Itchy ears, itchy throat, constant sneezing, congestion-- that about cover it?"

Remus sniffled and nodded. "Coughig ndow and thend, butd ndot endough to be andy trouble." He sniffled again, dabbed at his nose again with the handkerchief, and continued. "Mbostly just the sndeezi-- heh- heh- heh-kshiew. Ugh, thatd." He coughed once or twice as if to show her what he'd been talking about.

She hummed. "Your hayfever playing up," she diagnosed. "As you know, I don't have anything that will cure it entirely, I'm afraid, but I'm sure I've got something here that might make you a bit more comfortable."

Remus nodded and curled up on himself in the chair while he waited for her to go into her storeroom. He blew his nose into his handkerchief and was glad once more for the friendship of Lily Evans, before pitching forward with yet another pair of sneezes. Esshew isschew. 

The matron clicked her tongue sympathetically as she reentered the room with a tray of vials that rivaled the post-full-moon prescriptions she brought him. "Drink these, and I'll have Goosey bring you some tea and if you're breathing all right after an hour you can go back to the dormitory."

"But-- eh-eh-ki-SHOO-- but what about classes?" 

Madam Pomfrey fixed him with the cool stare she must have perfected on classes of troublemakers before him, but all she said was: "We can reassess if you're in any fit state to attend your afternoon lessons after you've taken your medicine."

Remus understood this to mean that there would be side effects, but also that she would brook no argument about it. So he pulled out the first stopper and drank.

[LeapYearKisses]

Oh no, side effects! D:  Whimsical magical side effects?  Or sickly Remus side effects?  I know what kind I'm totally here for....   Poor Remus!  But I hope he does get to feel a little better from this. 

[Juto]

queenie, girl  

I've been following this amazing story from the start... About time I commented  

I really enjoy this. Your take on the Sirius/Remus ship is so far quite interesting and I really love the depth of the characters and all the wonderful and very potter-true descriptions and objects! 

Also, your sneezy Remus  yep... I'm goo...

[AngelEyes]

Yum. Poor Remus. Totally miserable. Looking forward to finding out about the side effects....

[Sophie<3]

Aww... I'm glad Remmy is finally getting a break! Poor darling! <3

However...

On ‎21‎.‎03‎.‎2016 at 4:11 AM, queenie said:

Remus understood this to mean that there would be side effects,

Might these include, um... I don't know... drowsiness? General weakness? Or maybe... a sliiightly elevated temperature?  (Sorry, just trying to force my cold preferences into this allergy story, I guess! But don't worry, I'll keep reading either way!)

[queenie]

HERE IS A TRUE STORY: I wrote this entire thing and then lost it and had to start over, which is a true story about why you should Be Smarter Than Me and Save Drafts, but anyway here are my comments and a new part, drafted anew and a bit later than I intended. 

LYK: All will be revealed!

Juto: AHHH *fainting* ...okay, no, I'm going to be normal, but seriously thank you so much for chiming in with your lovely and thoughtful compliments! I hope you keep enjoying!

AngelEyes: And see you shall!

Sophie<3: Things certainly take... a turn in the next bit, you'll see. (roguish wink dot gif)

HOKAY THEN, that's everyone, yes? Let's go!

 

Sirius crept up the stairs of Gryffindor Tower, muffling the sound of his footfalls as much as possible by setting the edges of his feet softly yet purposefully in the thickest edges of the carpeting. He was aware that this was behavior that some on staff, including Filch, might have referred to as "skulking," but their opinions would have been unfairly tainted by their preexisting bad opinions of him. He was doing his level best to make as little noise as possible, not to avoid detection by school officials, but to avoid waking Remus, who had missed every lesson since the unfortunate incident in Potions class, and might be sleeping. He was capable of being considerate, Sirius Black, provided the right people were involved and the wrong people weren't looking.

He paused just outside the door at the top of the stairs, listening for signs of life. His hearing was not as acute as it would have been in his canine form, but the dormitories were generally quiet at this hour, so if Remus were up and about on the other side of the threshold, Sirius should be able to tell without disturbing him.

Heh...

The first sound he heard might have been a restful sigh or wind in the shutters. 

Eh...

That was definitely an irritated gasp, and maybe an accompanying rustling. Sirius smiled to himself.

Eh...

Remus was too absorbed in his own sensation to notice when Sirius stepped into the room, breath hitching desperately where he sat on the edge of his four-poster with his handkerchief crumpled in one fist.

He-eh...

"Bless you," Sirius offered cheekily, plopping onto the foot of Remus's bed.

Remus's head snapped up. "Oh, sod off, Padfoot," he sniffled. His appearance, like his posture, was distinctly rumpled. "I nearly had it that time." He rubbed vigorously at the tip of his nose with the corner of his handkerchief, then fell backwards across the mattress.

Sirius hummed, part acknowledgement, part sympathy, but there was a grin on his impish face that reached all the way into his eyes. "Teasing you, is it?"

"A fair match for you in that regard, I'd say," Remus sighed, pushing his hand across his eyes. This morning, when he'd done that, it had looked itchy. Now it looked like he was trying to remind them to stay open. "Aren't you meant to be in class?"

Sirius lifted one shoulder in that way he had of reminding his audience that, though he performed, it was not for their pleasure. "Who is to tell the heir to the noble and most ancient house of Black where he is and isn't meant to be?"

Remus made a noise low in his throat somewhere between amusement and annoyance. It was hard for Sirius to tell, sometimes, between the two-- he tried not to care, or else to keep talking until the answer became obvious. Perhaps Remus was only trying to clear some phlegm.

"It's only Care of Magical Creatures," Sirius continued. "If Kettleburn asks, I'll tell him I knew a magical creature that needed some care." He considered throwing in a wink, here, or the word extracurricular, to make it all a bit har-har, but in a rare moment of restraint he stopped himself. He was always stopping himself from doing things he wanted, with Remus.

It still wasn't clear to him what Remus was feeling about his being there-- skipping lessons, calling him a creature, these were things that were hit-or-miss, day-by-day-- and Sirius found he minded the possibilities of Remus's ambiguous and unreadable face much more than the possibilities of getting in trouble at school or home. He might have continued to say inane and inadvisable things had that ambiguous and unreadable face not split into a yawn despite Remus's best attempts to contain it.

"Tired?" Sirius asked softly, squeezing the back of Remus's neck like he often did during the sore after-moon days.

Remus shook his head, though it looked less like a denial than an attempt to clear said head. "Yes and no," he said. "The potions made me drowsy and I napped for hours. I can't sleep anymore, but I can't seem t-to... wa-aa-- wake up, either, quite." He stared off vacantly after his quavering voice trailed off, taking in shallow, stuttery breaths and blinking rapidly.

Come on, Sirius cheered silently, but it was to no avail.

After a long few moments, Remus gave a whimper and his tense body once again wilted in defeat against the bed.

"Poor Moony," Sirius tutted, pushing Remus's hair off his forehead. "Can't sleep, can't sneeze. Whatever shall we do with you?"

"Nothing to be done, I'm afraid," Remus said wryly. "A lost cause."

Sirius bit his lip. "Don't--"

"--what's not a lost cause," Remus cut in, avoiding his gaze, "is my Transfiguration essay."

Sirius groaned. "Oh, you're having me on. Just making the rest of us look bad for sport. Old Minnie loves you, she'd as soon give you an extension as look at you! Although," he added, "most of the professors would, just now."

"Likely she prefers me to you because I don't give her derogatory nicknames," Remus said, hoisting himself off the bed with what was apparently a considerable effort and lowering himself to root around in his trunk. "And because I hand in my work on time. An advantage I lose if I fritter the day away in bed because of a spot of... eh... of... of hayfever," he concluded, hazy expression receding from his eyes as he gave a sniff. His voice as he made his argument was alternately weakened by the hoarseness creeping in around its edges and strengthened by his determination. The unspoken context, communicated by the steel in his watery eyes and their five years' acquaintance, was this: if I put off my work every time I don't feel well, I'll never have time to make it all up. 

"You're being ridiculous," Sirius scoffed, but he grabbed Remus's best quill and his Transfiguration text. The unspoken answer, communicated between them less by this action than by Sirius's mere existence, was this: I'm here to help you, you great stubborn git. 

Remus didn't thank Sirius for the textbook for the steadying hand as he stood, which an observer might take to mean that he was ungrateful or that he was preserving his failing voice. Sirius knew better. Remus didn't need to thank him, and more than that, he'd never known how to say thank you-- not when the book handed to him was only a gesture that meant so much more. Like so many things between them, it went unsaid, at least for now, the only hint of it a smile overtaking the yawn on Remus's face.

Remus had a way of smiling with only the tiniest corner of his mouth, as though there were a ration on smiling and it would be too wasteful to use up his entire mouth all at once. This is the smile he shared with Sirius now, a smile paradoxically small enough not to give away its wearer's secret worry and tiredness, but too small for them not to have any. Sirius felt, not for the first time, the impulse to inspire the other seven-eighths of Remus's smile to appear. But he did nothing but silently escort Remus to the Common Room.

At the bottom of the stairs, Sirius pushed aside the thick velvet curtain so they could pass through astride, and a tassel brushed across Remus's face. Remus's hand seized Sirius's forearm in a firm grasp, stopping him in his tracks. Say what one would about Remus Lupin's thin physique-- he was stronger than he looked.

Sirius turned, mouth open to ask what was the matter, but before he could say a word--

huh-kish  huh-pshoo  huh-kishoo

"Oh, thank Merlin," Remus sighed. "I've been waiting on that all afternoon."

"Cheers," Sirius said, rolling his eyes. "I think you got me right in the eye."

"Sorry," Remus said, cheeks coloring, but Sirius just slung an arm over his shoulders and led him into the Common Room.

Edited April 5, 2016 by queenie

[AngelEyes]

Awww, poor Moony. Yay for best bud Sirius!

[elizachoo]

7 hours ago, queenie said:

The unspoken answer, communicated between them less by this action than by Sirius's mere existence, was this: I'm here to help you, you great stubborn git. 

Aww this is so delightful - an unspoken answer still in Sirius' distinct voice, so snarky yet so tender. Yay!

[Juto]

Eeeeeehhhhh queenie!!! *faints right back, so don't even  * 

I laughed and aww'd out loud several time. This was so good! I loved the unspoken cheer from Sirius. These two are really adorable. 

[Sophie<3]

Aww, that was so cute and really well-written!  I like how you're just gradually leading up to Sirius/Remus in this. Plus, losing stuff you've written is such a nightmare, so thank you so much for rewriting it for us!

[Dusty15]

On 5 April, 2016 at 3:58 PM, queenie said:

Likely she prefers me to you because I don't give her derogatory nicknames," Remus said, hoisting himself off the bed with what was apparently a considerable effort and lowering himself to root around in his trunk. "And because I hand in my work on time. An advantage I lose if I fritter the day away in bed because of a spot of... eh... of... of hayfever," he concluded, hazy expression receding from his eyes as he gave a sniff. His voice as he made his argument was alternately weakened by the hoarseness creeping in around its edges and strengthened by his determination. The unspoken context, communicated by the steel in his watery eyes and their five years' acquaintance, was this: if I put off my work every time I don't feel well, I'll never have time to make it all up. 

MY HEART  

 

On 5 April, 2016 at 3:58 PM, queenie said:

Remus had a way of smiling with only the tiniest corner of his mouth, as though there were a ration on smiling and it would be too wasteful to use up his entire mouth all at once. This is the smile he shared with Sirius now, a smile paradoxically small enough not to give away its wearer's secret worry and tiredness, but too small for them not to have any. Sirius felt, not for the first time, the impulse to inspire the other seven-eighths of Remus's smile to appear. But he did nothing but silently escort Remus to the Common Room.

MY HEART AGAIN *clutches dramatically at my chest* 

 

I LOVE these two more than I can begin to explain and I'm always so happy to read fic with them both in it! <3 Thanks for sharing!

[queenie]

AngelEyes: Sirius is the best! 

elizachoo: Thank you, it was a fine line to walk-- for me and also for him.

Juto: Well, who around here isn't adorable? Thank you so much for telling me you laughed, especially, that is very valuable and makes me happy.

Sophie<3: Gradual is my name and also my game. I lack the work ethic for the 100,000-chapter epics you see around here, but not the patience.

Dusty15: So many feels. So. Many. Feels.

All right everyone, I've been burned by making future-telling statements before BUT I believe that there will be two more parts to this after this one, so. Make your preparations now.

FORWARD, HO!

 

Peter was having a hard time concentrating. He had twenty-three inches to write for Transfiguration, ten inches for Charms, and a full set of star charts for Divination to do, but all he could think about was Remus's halting breaths beside him. By rough estimate, Remus had been holding off this sneeze for eternity, and he seemed liable to explode at any time. Or else someone else might.

"Sakes alive, man, let it out already," James said, sounding cross but not entirely unkind. 

"Don't--  heh-- don't want to." Remus's cheeks flushed scarlet but he determinedly did not look up from the essay he was writing. 

Sirius, Peter noticed, had gotten even less work done than anyone else; his parchment was nearly blank and his textbook was still open to the page it had been on when James and Peter had gotten in from class. Sirius's focus had been elsewhere, as it was now, and he laid two fingers on the back of Remus's wrist in a gentle communication that was either inquiry or reassurance-- no one ever decoded these things for Peter, so he really couldn't say-- and Remus sniffled and relaxed slightly at his touch.

It wasn't much of a mystery why Remus might not be eager for the next sneeze to come. Since Peter had arrived in the Common Room, he'd seen as whatever mix of potions Pomfrey had given Remus had slowly worn off, and Remus had lapsed into more and longer fits of sneezes. Anyone would be tired by now, Peter reasoned, even if Remus was usually unusually patient under strain.

"Oi, Potter!" Marlene McKinnon poked her head through the portrait hole. "You coming? Goode is going to shit a hippogriff if you're late to practice again."

"Godric's balls!" James leapt up and followed Marlene's swinging hair out the portrait hole. Peter looked after him, wishing he had the excuse of Quidditch ability and House Pride to skip off a few hours' homework.

Beside him, Remus was blinking rapidly. Peter opened his mouth to ask a question, but was cut off by a series of sneezes from Remus. Heh-kipsh hah-kpsha eh-kssh ksssh tssch tesshoo essshoo eh-tesschew.

"Maybe you should go to Pomfrey," Peter said fretfully.

"I've been," Remus said, which, yeah, Peter remembered, but he knew with a prey animal's instinct when to drop a dangerous direction. 

Instead, he asked: "What does this mean, about transmogrifying animations? I can't make it out."

Remus, who was at his best when sharing something he knew with someone he cared for, softened at the question, his kindness and intelligence returning as he helped Peter with his coursework.

Lily Evans breezed through the Common Room on her way to a study session, looking harried but confident in that way she had that was totally intimidating to Peter, and paused to tell Remus she'd "left the package on your nightstand," whatever that meant. Girls were so mysterious.

"Thanks, Lily," Remus murmured, blushing softly and catching a pair of identical sneezes in his handkerchief. Hep-shh! Hep-shh! 

"And none too soon, I'd say," Lily said, reaching one of her small white hands to pat the back of Remus's own. "See you later." Then she was gone in a twirl of uniform skirts and ginger hair. 

Eh-pssht, Remus sneezed.

"Bless," Sirius muttered without looking up from his parchment. 

The Common Room had emptied of its afternoon studiers now that the evening meal was being served in the Great Hall. Peter bit his lip. "Is it time to go down to dinner, d'you reckon?"

Remus sighed. "Not really hungry. You two should go."

But Peter already knew-- he could see from the way Sirius's mouth tightened-- what would happen next. Sirius stretched his legs and said, with a studied casualness, "I think I'll stay here a bit, Pete."

A frown started on Remus's face. "You don't have to--"

"Can always nip into the kitchens if I get peckish," Sirius continued, managing a soothingly conversational even tone. Peter didn't know how these things were done, he honestly didn't. Sirius was going to get high marks in his OWLS as it was, but he'd be top of the class if there was an exam in charisma. Peter would do as abysmally in charisma as he did in History of Magic; he didn't have that aptitude for people.

Even now, tired and irritable from a long day of sneezing and snuffling into his handkerchief, Remus was warming to the idea of Sirius keeping him company instead of eating dinner. Remus, normally the biggest worrier of all! It was incredible. Peter had once thought he would study this skill and learn it from Sirius, but after five years he believed it to be an inborn talent he had no more hope of acquiring than a Muggle had of learning to cast a Cheering Charm. 

Peter's stomach growled. "Erm," he said, tugging on his robes. "I'm off, then? Right." Feeling self-conscious, he walked toward the portrait hole to eat dinner with whatever Gryffindors happened to be at the table.

Sirius watched him leave with a slight frown, wondering if he'd done altogether the right thing, but Remus was busy building up to another sneeze.

Eh... he gasped. Eh-eh...

Sirius handed him his handkerchief, which was sitting on the table in front of them. 

Remus took it wordlessly, eyes still directed to that nowhere-place his sneezing seemed to come from. Eh-eh-kish aksht kshht hehkst humpft umpft... Mmmft! "Ugh," he groand, leaning forward until his forehead thudded onto the surface of his textbook. 

"All right, Moony?" Sirius asked quietly, resting one wide palm on Remus's shoulder.

Remus straightened, which pushed him closer to Sirius's arm. "Bit of a headache."

"Want to lie down?" Sirius asked, eyebrows creasing in the center in an uncustomary look of care. 

"It's fine," Remus waved him off. "Still got work left."

"My work, you mean." Sirius grinned. 

"Padfoot, you prat, if you get Lupin doing your work and not mine, I'll have your arse." They both heard James's voice before they saw him clambering through the portrait hole, flushed and smudged with grass and dirt from Quidditch practice.

"Sod off, Potter, no one here owes you diddly," Sirius spat, a cheerful glint in his eye.

"You do," James said. "Remember when I covered for you with Longbottom last week? That's worth one of Remus's essays, surely."

Remus's head swiveled. "Oi! Hold up, you lot aren't bargaining with rights to cheat off my homework!"

"Right," Sirius agreed, "Remus lets me cheat because he loves me. No amount of favors you do me will make up for your being, well, you."

"Now you've done it, Black!" And with that, James launched himself at Sirius. 

Muggle duelling was not an uncommon occurrence among the adolescent Gryffindors, who considered wrestling a sort of bonding exercise provided there was enough laughter interspersed with the pain. With James and Sirius involved, it was difficult for there not to be laughter.

Remus typically stayed well out of it, not having the clothing stipend nor the lack of inhibitions the others possessed, and also frequently having half-healed wounds lurking somewhere about his person. He really considered himself more of a scholar than a rough-houser, though he was strong enough and could hold his own if called upon. Which was why, when he took a stray elbow to the face, he didn't hesitate to join the fray.

Pushing his friends in a tangle on the school rugs felt better than he would have guessed, even if his muscles were sore from all the sneezing-- he'd craved this bit of normalcy. His sore ribs protested more from the laughing he was doing as he rolled James to the ground. James pushed back, trying to force his way back up, in the process knocking his head into Remus's own.

That was when Remus remembered what a terrible idea this had all been, because James was fresh from the outdoor Quidditch pitch and his hair was full of Merlin-knew-what that Remus's nose very much did not want near it.

Remus recoiled, letting go of James's arms as though he'd been burned. He scrubbed harshly at the bridge of his nose in an attempt to quell the tickle before it overflowed, but it was too late. The pollen and Remus's out-of-control allergies were duelling, and the defensive spells were being cast.

Hah-kishoo Ishoo Ishoo Eshoo Ih'Tishoo Tesh Etsch Etshoo Heh-kisch heh-kipsh ikssh ikssh. He blinked his eyes open, a hand cupped over his nose, to find that James had levered himself to a sitting position to watch in stricken horror as the allergy attack unfolded. He was forced to close his eyes again to cope with an impending heh-eh--kisch.

"Here," Sirius said, pressing something soft into the hand that was cupped around his nose. His handkerchief, of course. He hoped the nod he managed before the next sneeze managed to convey his gratitude. 

Hetscha. He would need to switch handkerchiefs soon, he mused faintly, or the charms would wear off. 

"I'm so sorry, Moony," James breathed, scrambling belatedly to his feet. "I'll shower."

Remus laughed wheezily, pausing to hitch for a sneeze. "I'll get you next time, Potter. Wait-- eh-kissh-- wait and see."

James smiled ruefully over his shoulder. "You've got a wager, Messr. Moony," he called as he disappeared up the stairs toward cleanliness. 

Remus pressed the heels of his hands into his eyes and slumped forward with a tired-sounding essh. 

Sirius stood calmly at his side, nervousness betrayed only by the fluttering of his hands. During the long moment of silence he allowed Remus to collect himself, Sirius occupied himself by picking at a hangnail on one of his thumbs. He would later find he had made it bleed.

Eh-KISSHT. Remus lowered his hands from his face, now looking pink and worn-out. "Does that offer to lie down still stand?"