The Marauders - Order of the Phoenix Part Three

CIII: Moonage Daydream

"A whole thing," Sirius murmured.

"An entire thing," Remus said back.

They were quiet a few minutes.

The record had switched songs several times by now and it was playing Starman now.

"Tonks sent me howlers when I was in Azkaban," Sirius said suddenly, and now he was laughing.

"What?"

"She's so fucking brilliant, that child... She sent me howlers with music."

"Noooo. Did she? That really is brilliant."

"Yes," Sirius snorted. "It was fucking awesome. I looked forward to them like you cannot imagine. She sent me one of Starman once. Suddenly an owl appears with a jittering envelope, it falls on the grimey, filthy floor of my cell, and I just stared at it... and it bursts out and starts singing, loudly, and Bowie's voice is echoing off the walls of that whole fucking jail and the dementors were positively pisser about it. Guards came running upstairs and everything. By the time they get up there, the howler's - poof - gone and they're confused as fuck. WHERE'S THE MUSIC COMING FROM?!" Sirius wheezed. "You'd hear my dear cousins shrieking with confusion. Really would cause a ruckus in there."

Remus's eyes were squeezed shut as he laughed, too, picturing perplexed dementors, confused guards, and loads of Death Eaters with their faces pressed to bars, looking about, trying to figure out how the bloody hell muggle music got into Azkaban. "She would love knowing that."

"She would."

Remus laughed, "She's quite the little woman, you know. She's very, very clever, and very funny. She reminds me a lot of you. Another thing she'd love to know."

"Yeah? How does she remind you of me?"

"Just her personality. She's funny as hell, Sirius, and she's so confident and kind. Bloody hell, is she kind. She's such a good person, and she genuinely just cares so much about everyone she comes in touch with."

Sirius smiled.

"She was the only person that I felt really understood what I was going through when I lost you, all those years... She used to just pop in and check on me, or bring meals out of no where when she knew I was struggling... Just so thoughtful... Invited me to Christmas one year."

"Yeah?"

"Yes. She was the only person who listened to me when I just... just had to talk about you. No one else ever wanted to hear, no one else knew you like I did... besides her."

Sirius closed his eyes. "The floor still moving, Moony?"

"Yes," Remus said, and he moved closer to Sirius so their bodies were pressed against each other. "Hold me closer, Sirius."

Sirius splayed out his arm and Remus moved into him, Sirius wrapping his arm around him, his fingers clutching tight to Remus's shoulder as though anchoring him, and Remus hummed happily at this.

"You know, I think this really might help the moon pains," Remus murmured. "Possibly better than aconite."

Sirius laughed. "Moon pains."

Remus laughed, too.

Neither really knew why.

Then, "Fuck I'm really hungry. Are you hungry?"

"Sort of," Remus said. He paused, taking inventory of his feelings. He felt good, that was first, then second there was a bit of a gnawing on his belly now that it was mentioned. "Actually, yes," he said suddenly, "Ravenously. I could eat a hippogriff."