Forty-seven

1.7K 108 245
                                    

Sirius' guest room is lonely. And cold.

Soft, watery sunlight creeps in through the drawn curtains in pale beams, etching patterns everywhere it falls. On the floor, the wall, on Remus' pillow.

Remus has been awake for hours, but he makes no effort to get out of bed. He should, because the Justice for Remus Club convenes every Saturday, and James and Lily will be here soon.

Oh God, Lily.

Remus knows she's going to ask what happened. Remus doesn't yet know how horrible exactly he looks, but if his sticky cheeks or dry, puffy eyes serve as any clue, he would dare say he looks really fucking horrible.

God, he wants to never face anyone again.

There's a soft knock on the door, and Remus doesn't make an effort to respond. He doesn't want to.

"Remus?"

It's Sirius, of course. Who else would it be? After last night, Remus honestly didn't think Sirius would even want to look at him again. But here they are.

Another soft knock, and then the doorknob turns, revealing a very tired Sirius.

Remus sits up, pulling his knees to his chest. Sirius doesn't quite look at him, only at the wall above his head.

"I've made breakfast..." His voice is soft, and hoarse. "If... you can..." Sirius winces, "Whenever you want," he manages to say. And then his eyes fall on Remus' for a half of a second. He quickly closes the door.

Remus stays frozen for a while, chewing on his bottom lip. He touches his face to see if he's crying, and is surprised to find that he isn't. With a sigh, he pushes drags himself out of bed and goes to get dressed.

When he goes into the kitchen, Sirius is at the counter, stirring his tea. Remus' mug is already on the table, covered with a saucer. Sirius goes tense when he hears Remus, but doesn't turn around. He almost drops his spoon while putting it in the sink. In his hurry to get away, Sirius forgets his mug.

That he was stirring a literal second ago.

"Won't you eat?" Remus asks. Sirius shakes his head, already starting to leave. "Sirius," Remus grabs his wrist.

Sirius brings his free hand to gently pry Remus' fingers off. Sirius' skin feels like it's on fire. "I already ate," Sirius says softly.

Remus knows he's lying, but he doesn't know what to say. He can still feel the burn of Sirius' fingers on his hand. Helpless, he watches Sirius grab his mug and flee the kitchen, wondering how they have, overnight, turned into strangers. Miles of distance between them.

And the prospect of never going back to how they were before terrifies Remus.

***

Fortunately or not, Lily doesn't come. Only James and Auguste do.

"So," James grins, dragging the o out, "Any news?"

No one says anything.

"Hello?" James snaps a finger in front of Remus, making him jerk back. Remus looks up to find James smiling at him.

"Uhm," Remus clears his throat, pulling the letter out of his pocket. "Here," he gives it to James. Auguste leans closer to look at it over James' shoulder.

"You smell really good," James tells him absent-mindedly, probably too busy to notice that he just paid a compliment to Auguste Bellerose. Auguste gives him a look that reads What the fuck's gotten into you today?, but doesn't say anything snarky. "Thanks," he shrugs, "You're not so bad yourself."

Bewitched | wolfstar auWhere stories live. Discover now