Give Me Your Hand

.~*~. Give Me Your Hand .~*~.

Chapter Three

Memories

****

"Oh, God, Severus," Remus sighed. "I'm so sorry for you. You can't believe how sorry I am."

"I think I have a rather good picture," Severus said, "considering how sorry I am for you. And, considering the fact that I rarely care enough to be sorry, I can very well imagine just how sorry you are in all your Gryffindor sympathy."

Remus couldn't help but smile. It was a weak, wavery smile, but a smile anyway. "And here I was thinking that just the Gryffindor character was what made you marry Sirius."

"You're right," Severus said simply. "Among other things, of course. Like his good looks, or the way he laughed, or the way his eyes twinkled when he'd again done something he thought was hilarious." It was obvious that he was already regaining his mask; otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to talk about Sirius so calmly. "I loved Sirius, Remus. Not just one part of him. The fact that he was Gryffindor, well, I just had to live with it, right? With time, I learned to love his unselfish character, even when he was so overdaring that he almost got himself killed. Like he did in the end," he added unfeelingly.

Remus swallowed. He knew Severus, of course, and considered him even a good friend as well as Lily, Peter, and Sirius had been his friends. He knew that the Slytherin was this way; seemingly unfeeling and cold. Also, he knew that it was just a mask. This knowledge, however, didn't stop him wondering just how the dark-haired man managed to discuss things in such clinical, cold distance, no matter how near they were to him.

"I maybe loved a Gryffindor, but I am still a Slytherin. That fact hasn't changed. It didn't change when I started dating Sirius. Remember? I scared the Hell out of your friends."

And Remus, oh, yes, he remembered, he truly did.

*****

5th of October, 1976

***

"Okay, Padfoot, what it is?" James asked, bemused. "You've been bouncing up and down like somebody had tucked a bunny into your pants!"

"I can't help it, Prongs," Sirius laughed, pacing the front of his bed. "I'm just so excited!"

"So what is it, Sirius? Blurt it out," Remus commanded. Like James, he couldn't help but feel amused. Sirius was always enthusiastic about everything he did, true, but this was truly too much even for him. "We know you're keeping something from us. Just tell us what it is!"

Sirius stopped on his trace, watching intently his friends. They were all sitting on James's bed. Peter and his girlfriend Lily, sitting next to each other and holding hands, were both following Sirius with their eyes. Remus sat next to James, his head resting on his boyfriend's shoulder, feeling very comfortable with James's arm around his waist. Sirius had told them to gather together, announcing that he had something to tell them. And now, they were waiting for him to tell it.

"I," Sirius said dramatically, taking a step forward, "am dating someone."

"Way to go, Padfoot!" James laughed. "Took you truly long enough!"

"Whoever would take you?" Lily asked with an amused tone, and Peter added, "Is it a girl or a boy?"

"A boy," Sirius said carefreely. "The sexiest, most intelligent, cunning, and good-looking boy in the world!"

"Hey, wait," Remus cut in. "You and James aren't dating behind my back, are you?"

They all laughed. Sirius shook his head and said, "'M sorry, Moony, but no. There indeed is someone even better than your beloved Prongs."

"You must be joking," James said, and grinned. He then turned his head a bit to kiss Remus on the forehead and murmured, "Thanks for that, Moony."

Remus grinned at him. "Any time," he replied happily, cuddling up to James even more comfortably.

"No, my love isn't in Gryffindor," Sirius continued his melodrama. "He's on our year, still." He glanced around at his friends. "Any guesses?" he asked, his eyes twinkling with mischief.

"You truly are enjoying this, aren't you, Sirius?" Lily giggled. "Let's see... It is Jonas Brown, from Hufflepuff, isn't it?"

Sirius rolled his eyes. "Honestly, Lils, why are you beginning from the bottom? No. Absolutely no. I'd kiss Filch rather than date that self-centered git!"

"Nicholas Milan, from Ravenclaw?" James offered. "Or Terry Garner?"

"Timothy Marcings, from Hufflepuff?" Peter tried.

"No, no, and no," Sirius laughed. "Moony? Any guesses?" he asked, turning towards Remus.

Remus thought rapidly. Sirius was fooling around even more than usually, so it had to be something big. And... He had caught a stranger's scent in Sirius yesterday, hadn't he? Not even really a stranger's, to be honest. He knew that scent... Knew it from some class...

Suddenly, it hit him like a lightning bolt. Surprising even himself with his calm tone, he said, "Severus Snape, from Slytherin."

THUMB! Peter fell down from the bed in surprise. James and Lily merely laughed nervously. "Well, that was a bit too much, wasn't it, love," James said at Remus, trying to get a scowling tone into his voice.

"Not a bit too much," Sirius smirked. "Instead, it was perfectly correct."

"WHAT?" James exclaimed, his eyes wide with shock. Peter, who'd just been getting up, fell back down as Lily dropped on top of him, in a dead faint. Remus just shook his head, bemused.

"Really, Sirius, this is disappointing," drawled an almost bored voice from the doorway of the dormitory. "I would think you supposedly oh-so-brave Gryffindors would not be shocked this easily."

"Well, forgive them, Severus m'dear," Sirius said cheerfully. "It's not every day I introduce them to my Slytherin boyfriend. Only this one time, in fact."

"I should hope so," the dark-haired Slytherin teen said dryly, walking further into the room. Peter somehow managed to shove Lily back to James's bed, then sat in front of her, eyeing Snape fearfully. Remus and James only stared, James being much more shocked than Remus.

"Did you hear?" Sirius asked from his friends, beaming. "He didn't forbid me from calling him 'Severus m'dear'. This is the day of victory!" He did a happy dance with a stupid grin on his face.

Remus glanced at Snape, who rolled his eyes towards the ceiling, sighing in frustration. "What ever possessed you to decide to start seeing him?" asked the werewolf with a low voice from the Slytherin.

"I'm not entirely sure," replied the other pale boy calmly. "Though I'm pretty sure it has something to do with the fact that he's much more satisfying company in less private locations."

Now, James groaned aloud, covering his eyes with his hand. "Oh, please, spare me the details, Snape!" he whined. "I'm going to have nightmares for the rest of my life even now! Ow, my poor innocent mind!"

"Shut up, you prick," mumbled Remus, swatting his boyfriend over the head. Then he turned to look at Snape again. "I'm sorry, Severus," he said. "I've tried my best, but he still won't behave well."

"Well, I can associate with you," replied the Slytherin dryly, glancing at Sirius, who was trying to help Peter wake Lily up. "I've tried my best, but he still won't behave at all, well or bad!"

"And yet you love me so much!" Sirius's voice piped up to break into their conversation.

"In your dreams, Sirius," replied Snape, sighing. "In your dreams..."

"Yeah, and those dreams are wet! Wet-wet-wet!"

Whatever was Snape's response to this drowned into the laughter erupting from the conscious Gryffindors.

*****

With a sigh, they both broke away from the memories that had engulfed them. "What are you going to do with him, anyway?" Severus asked then, gesturing towards the sleeping boy.

The werewolf sighed as he glanced at little Harry. "Tomorrow, I'll turn the other study into a nursery," he said. "Since it obviously won't be needed anymore," he then added bitterly.

Severus nodded slowly, looking thoughtful. "I'll help you," he promised.

"Thank you," Remus replied simply. He hesitated for a moment, then asked, "Would you mind staying here tonight? There are only so many wards I can cast, and - and I don't want to be alone in the house. Not with Harry here."

"And I'm not going to let you be alone," Severus said calmly. "Lord Voldemort still has loyal followers. They would be all too happy to get to lay their dirty hands on the baby."

Little Harry furrowed his dark brows in his sleep -- he'd inherited those from his father. With Peter, nobody had paid any attention to the contrast between his light brunet hair and dark eyebrows, but with Harry's tuft of flaming red hair from Lily, the effect was quite stunning. He would be quite a charmer when he grew up -- they didn't know yet whether he'd get Peter's sapphire or Lily's emerald eyes, but either way, he would look fascinating. Both men knew this, and they both also knew that it would be the least of reasons that would attract people's attention to little Harry. He was a hero now.

After a moment of silence as they both watched the baby, Remus straightened his back, standing up from his previous half-crouching position. "Let's get some more wards up," he said briefly. "Until Dumbledore gets the Wards of Blood up around the house, I will not feel safe."

"Neither will I," agreed Severus. "Let's get to work."

And so, they did.

*