Get One Thing Straight, I'm Not

Chapter 6 Let's Limbo

Arriving again at Professor Slughorn's classroom, Remus took a deep breath and opened the door. To his immense relief, Snape was not standing there. Instead, he was greeted by a tall seventh year with dark skin that Remus recognised as a fellow Gryffindor, but could not recall his name.

"You must be Remus Lupin. I'm Kingsley Shacklebolt," he said in a deep, calm voice. "You're one of the Marauders, aren't you?"

"Yes," Remus replied, genuinely surprised that even the seventh years had heard of them. James and Sirius will be pleased. Sirius'll throw back his head in that laugh that's more like a bark and his eyes will light up. No! I can't think about him right now.

Kingsley grinned, "The teachers are always complaining about 'those little Marauders,' but most of them like you a lot despite what they say."

"Especially McGonagall," Remus agreed with a smile.

He nodded; then turned to the task at hand. "Old Sluggy says you only need help in making the potions, not writing about them, so I thought we'd start with something only moderately hard on the O.W.L. level." After beckoning Remus over to the cauldron he handed him a slip of parchment that read:

Emotion Potion (yeah, it rhymes)
pour 1 pint blue nail polish in cauldron
cut up 1 shoelace
add shoelace pieces and five clothes hangers to cauldron
boil over orange flame for twenty minutes
drink while warm for effective results

"What does the Emotion Potion do?" queried Remus curiously.

"It makes the drinker show their feelings no matter what for a certain amount of time, depending on how much they drink. What's wrong?"

Remus had gone quite pale. "I'm not going to have to, er, test it, am I?" It would not do for him to consume that and thus stare with unconcealed desire when he saw Sirius.

Kingsley asked shrewdly, "Why? Got some feelings about a love interest you want to hide?" He chuckled when Remus blushed. "Don't worry, Sluggy just wants a vial of it for me to hand into him."

Sighing in relief, Remus stated, "Okay, then. Let's start." With Kingsley pointing out to him what he was doing inaccurately in thirty-five minutes Remus had a bit of periwinkle hued liquid in a glass tube to be evaluated.

"You don't seem too bad at the ruddy subject after all," remarked Kingsley encouragingly.

"Ruddy subject?' I guess you don't enjoy Potions?"

He shook his head. "Not a bit, but I need the class to become an auror."

"I don't know what I wanna be."

"I think you'd make a good teacher."

"Why?"

"You're patient and a good listener."

"Thanks. I like to listen. Hey, since you don't like Potions what do you like?"

"Limbo."

"Ooooh, me too. Can we play?"

For a response Kingsley conjured a bar with his wand. He leaned back and ambled underneath it with difficulty as a result of his height.

Remus followed suit. The bar lowered itself and they repeated the process several times until the bar was so low that they both fell flat on their backs attempting to scuttle under it. They both laughed.

"That was fun. I'm glad you're my tutor," Remus sincerely commented, standing up and dusting himself off.

"So am I," said Kingsley. "But I've got to go; I told my girlfriend I'd be back by now." He magicked the limbo bar away and, after giving a final wave, disappeared from the dungeon.

Remus gathered up his belongings and headed back to the dorm, hoping to assure James that a bread crumb had not been his tutor. He also could not help his thoughts drifting to Sirius.

Against his better judgment he allowed himself to daydream on his way to Gryffindor Tower. Silky black hair brushes my face softly as a sensuous mouth, licks, nibbles, and sucks on my lips. "I hope your lesson went okay," a husky voice whispered against my mouth. "But now that you're back I can teach you a much more enjoyable subject." Remus shook his head. Siri wouldn't say that. Well, yes he would, just never to me. He deserves better...I shouldn't be thinking about him like that anyway. Not only is he my friend, but it'll taint my innocent mind. He sighed when part of his brain called out, I want Sirius to taint something more interesting than my mind. He knew he was in deep without any hope of getting out.

Minerva's Note: This is my least favourite chapter in the fic because even though I created the most random potion on the planet the only part I liked was Remus' daydream. Anyway, I actually am a tutor at my school for French class because, not to sound conceited (that's Malfoy's job), but I'm naturally good at it. Tutors are almost always a few years higher than the pupil, so Snape couldn't have been Remy's tutor since they're the same age. Besides, Slughorn is a pretty observant guy, and he'd know the Marauders don't get along with Snape.