James and Lily had started dating, and there was one thing they couldn’t understand: How the fuck they had done it before Remus and Sirius when they had been clearly in love for years. It was so annoying being around them, pining for each other without acting on it, that they knew they had to do something.
To be fair, in the last few months, they had been behaving differently, less scared, maybe. Before, when after the full moons, Remus returned to the dorm, Sirius would linger on the edge of the bed; now, he spent almost all day lying next to him. Remus had always seemed kind of scared of touching Sirius, and now he would caress his scalp when he was studying, and his friend had his head on his lap, after giving up on pretending to study too. There were times when they were laughing, faces closer than usual and a sound that was almost a giggle. And when they talked to each other, and they thought no one was near, their voices were softer, and they didn’t avert each other’s gazes when they were so obviously looking at each other with heart-eyes.
So, they just needed a little push. And one of Gryffindor’s post-match parties was the perfect occasion.
They convinced them—or rather, they convinced Remus, because Sirius didn't need convincing—to play truth or dare. They were playing with a watered-down version of veritaserum, and Remus’s was adulterated for the sake of his furry little problem not being discovered. The game started as usual, with some stupid dares being played, a couple of embarrassing truths being shared… James and Lily didn’t care about it that much; they were a couple on a mission.
Finally, Sirius's turn arrived and, by the rules, he had to choose truth.
“Okay,” James said, smirking. Sirius usually didn’t fear his best friend, but there was something in his eyes that made him frown. “Sirius, my dearest friend, the question I have for you today is: are you in love with someone who is playing this game?”
The potion they were using wasn’t as strong as the original, so Sirius didn’t answer immediately; he had enough time to panic, feel his mouth opening, trying—and failing—to fight his gaze so it didn’t turn to Remus, and accept his destiny.
“Yes.” The word finally left his mouth.
There were some whistles, giggling and even a gasp or two, but Sirius didn’t care, not when he could see Remus inhaling deep and being unable to look away. Sirius hadn’t said it out loud before, even if he was sure James knew he was head over heels for their other friend, but the last few months… he was sure it was pretty obvious for everyone, too. That included Remus.
Just… Remus would believe Sirius fancied Slughorn before thinking that all the nights laughing in bed with their pinkies intertwined meant that Sirius wanted him. That’s why, after answering the question, he didn’t look away either, and smiled, a sincere and fond smile, which managed to make Remus blush.
“So… who’s next?” he asked, raising his eyebrows.
The game continued, and two truths later, it was Remus’s turn.
“I know I have to choose dare,” he said, rolling his eyes, but a small smile could still be seen on his lips.
The year before, hearing Sirius say he was in love with someone would have broken his heart. But not that year, not when a glimmer of hope had been born from the moment he fell asleep on the train to Hogwarts with his head resting on Sirius's shoulder, and woke up with his friend stroking the back of his neck. A hope that had grown bigger and bigger every day.
And then, after saying he was in love with someone there, Sirius had smiled at him. And Remus was insecure and afraid of a lot of things, but he was in love and, for the first time in his life, he thought it could be okay.
So he was happy and ready to do whatever Lily wanted him to do. Enchant a statue? Perfect. Doing an impression of Dumbledore? Ready. Sing a song and make it sound everywhere in the castle? He had done worse.
“I dare you to kiss the person who you think has the most beautiful eyes in this room.”
Oh. That.
Okay, one thing was letting himself believe his best friend could be kind of in love with him, and other was kissing him in front of all his friends and admitting something as cheesy as that his grey eyes were the most beautiful thing, not only eyes, he had ever seen.
He had been dared to do it… in a game of truth or dare. He could kiss Lily; she had amazing eyes, and it would be just a stupid peck that they would forget the next day. But... Sirius was now looking at him, trying to hide a smirk, meanwhile his teeth bit into his lower lip—a gesture that after so many years, he had started to recognise as anticipation, before a prank or… a kiss, it seemed.
So Remus took a deep breath, looked at Lily, and nodded. With his hands shaking a little and his heart hammering in his chest, he got up and approached Sirius Black, with his grey eyes, stupid messy bun, and broad shoulders. The object of all his dreams. His best friend. The boy whose pupils lighted when Remus kneeled in front of him.
Under the amused gaze of their friends and classmates, Remus placed his hand on Sirius’s cheek. He couldn’t believe what he was about to do.
Sirius tried to seem calm, but with every inch that Remus got closer, it got harder. His heart had skipped a beat when he heard Lily’s dare, and he hadn’t had time to overthink before Remus moved towards him. And now he was there, grabbing his face and leaning in… to kiss him.
It seemed like slow motion, but finally their lips touched.
They didn’t hear the wolf-whistles, nor the applause: they were focused solely on the moment, their moment; with Sirius kissing Remus back and running his fingers through his hair, with Remus getting more confident and opening his lips.
They tasted sweet and felt soft, and they could feel the heat of blushing creeping up their necks and faces, but not in a shy way, more like the blush you get when you’re too excited. Because their mouths now knew each other, and the rhythm of their breathing was irregular in equal parts; because Sirius was opening a door to a different facet of Remus’s behaviour, and Remus was exploring an unknown, gentle version of Sirius's touch.
A fire ran through their bodies, and they knew they had to stop the kiss before getting too ahead of themselves. So that they did, reluctantly, and pressing their foreheads together for a second before separating. They laughed together when their eyes met again, and Sirius left a peck on the corner of Remus’s mouth.
When Remus returned to his spot on the floor, the smiles on their friends' faces were impossible to ignore.
“You can go now, we can continue without you,” James said, winking.
They looked at each other again, two big smiles on their faces that they couldn’t hide. Next second, they were on their feet. They had a lot of talking to do… and kissing, too.
[This and more in my Ao3 new work: 3 Words and a Ship]
Remus arrived home late, exhausted, his head and joints killing him and sleep falling off his eyelashes. He left the keys in their place and called for his husband, but there was no answer. He left his briefcase on the kitchen table, ready to start looking for Sirius, when his eyes caught a piece of paper stuck to the refrigerator.
“Hi, love
I know you’re hurting, so I’m not letting you pretend to be okay.
You’re home now. Come to the bathroom and relax.
I love you.”
Remus smiled. He couldn’t say his husband didn’t know him well.
When he got closer to the bathroom, the smell of vanilla filled his nostrils. It always managed to make him feel more relaxed. He opened the door. The candle was lit on the shelf next to the sink. It looked new, and judging by how much it had consumed, it must have been on for a while. In front of him, in the bath, was Sirius, his head resting on the edge, his eyes closed, and his hair held in place with a clip on top of his head.
Remus got closer to him and kneeled to be at his high. He ran his hand across the surface of the water; it was still hot. From that close, he could see that Sirius’s breathing was light, so he was not deeply asleep.
“Good night, darling,” he whispered in Sirius's ear.
Sirius reacted to the words with a slight start. He blinked a couple of times until he could focus his eyes on Remus.
“Ey,” he said, his deep voice made Remus's brain start to melt just from hearing him. “Come here.”
“Sorry I’m late,” Remus apologised as he started taking off his clothes.
Sirius stared at him, half-worried because he couldn’t help it, and Remus knew he was grimacing with almost every move, half with that glint that was always in his eyes when he saw Remus naked. It had taken time until he got used to it.
“Don’t be.”
Remus got into the bath, positioning himself in Sirius's arms, his back to his chest, which was firm and wet, and felt like leaning on an animation-like cloud. He groaned as the warm water loosened his muscles, but it was the feeling of Sirius hugging him and kissing his forehead that made his head stop throbbing.
He closed his eyes, and Sirius started rubbing his arms in that way that he knew helped his husband feel better. Remus sighed and let his head fall onto Sirius's shoulder, earning another kiss, this time on the cheek.
Sirius moved his hands to Remus’s shoulders, then to his sides and abdomen. Every spot where his fingers touched became soft after a few seconds; it was almost magic. He had started leaving kisses on Sirius’s chin and neck on return, and his husband smiled. Remus felt he was in heaven.
At some point, they started talking about their day, with long pauses, sighs and more kisses in between. Sirius started massaging Remus’s hips; he whimpered.
“You need to use your cane more often,” Sirius said, his voice light but firm.
“I know…” Remus replied. “I will.”
He was sleepy, and that was the only reason why, when Sirius lowered his hands to his thighs, his body remained almost limp.
“You always say that.”
“And every time I use it a bit more.”
Sirius chuckled, but he let it be. He was now on Remus’s knees and calves, his body bent over his husband to reach the flesh there, and a new position that he used to keep kissing his cheek and shoulder.
When the massage was over, Remus’s body felt like it and the water were the same, and his head didn’t hurt anymore. The water was not as warm by then, but they still were comfortable, their skin pressed together and their lips finding each other every few seconds.
“Thank you,” Remus said one of the times his mouth left Sirius's.
“Mmm, it’s been a very hard task.”
“And what do you want as a reward?”
Sirius smirked, took Remus by the middle and, carefully, he manoeuvred so they turned around in the bath. A splash of water hit the floor. Remus gasped, and Sirius kept smirking.
“You. Always.”
They kissed again, deep and slow, caressing each other with gentle hands that wanted to touch every inch, and stuck together as if they were one. They kissed under the water, rubbed their noses together, shared giggles and loving looks. The water ran cold, Sirius took them out of the bath, and Remus blew out the candle before leaving the bathroom to go to the kitchen to have dinner.
The note remained stuck to the refrigerator door for a long time.
[This and more in my Ao3 new work: 3 Words and a Ship]
"It's good to have you back."
"It's good to be back."
Had the absolute pleasure of drawing this Sheith postcard for @avidbeader mailing gift project, celebrating 10 years of Sheith ❤️🖤
commissioned the lovely NiahtiArt to recreate rashmika and vijay's adorable wedding pics and could not be happier with how they came out.
EDIT: i appreciate all the love on this!! just reiterating that i didn't draw this. i requested this commission from NiahtiArt and received their permission to post here and on twitter. if you want something similar, they take requests on vgen!
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