Marauders' Love

Chapter 1: Coming Together, 1975/1976

It was a fine autumn day sometime in October. Remus Lupin was sitting underneath a beech tree in the sunlit grounds, watching two of his best friends: James Potter and Sirius Black. They were standing in the middle of a circle of onlookers, having a go at Severus Snape. And although Remus did not like this behaviour at all, he did nothing to stop them. He was feeling too depressed. The full moon was approaching. Even though his friends knew about his being a werewolf, he was feeling lonely.
His friends: what would he be without them? They were a gang of four, and they enjoyed much respect from the other students. But James and Sirius were something special even in this gang of four. They were the best friends and the most intelligent students currently at school. And they were also the worst trouble-makers of them all.

Remus got to his feet and picked up his bag. Then he made his way up to the castle. There was still time before the afternoon classes, but he didn't feel like staying in the grounds. He would see enough of them during the night.
He entered an empty bathroom and looked at himself in the mirror. His hair was of a dirty blond he had never liked, and his nose was rather prominent. No wonder that next to Sirius and James he didn't get any attention. It hurt a bit to think about all the stares Sirius was getting from girls. Why were they staring at him like he was the only male in the universe? And Sirius did not even seem to notice. A sigh escaped Remus's lips. He did not know why, but somehow he wished he could have a real best friend, someone with whom he could share everything, who understood him without words. And he couldn't help feeling that this friend should be Sirius. But Sirius was best friends with James, and Remus knew they were inseparable. He lowered his head and wished he could have more time with Sirius alone.

He left the bathroom for his afternoon Transfiguration class. Some students were already queued in front of the classroom, including his three best friends. He approached them at the same time that Lily Evans and her friends appeared from the other side of the corridor. James's hand immediately flew up to his unruly hair to make it even messier, and he did not seem to notice anything but Lily from that point on. Sirius turned and grinned at Remus, who felt his spirits rise.
"Where did you go all of a sudden?" he asked.
Remus shrugged. "Just rushed off to the bathroom."
Sirius shot him a look but did not press the matter. His younger brother, Regulus, passed them in the corridor, completely ignoring Sirius. Remus saw a shadow pass over Sirius's handsome features. He knew that Sirius had a hard time at home. His parents were quite obsessed with the pure-blood mania, and since Regulus was more in harmony with that point of view than Sirius he was much more welcome at home. But at least, Remus thought, Sirius was much nicer than his brother, and much better looking, too.

After dinner Remus did not return to the common room. With sinking spirits he bade good-bye to his friends in the Great Hall and left to meet Madam Pomfrey in the Entrance Hall. She always led him out of the castle at the full moon. Remus walked beside her, his head hanging low. Transformation was not pleasant: to feel how he lost control, how his soul was pushed aside by the wolfish character, to watch how he transformed into the monster that was living inside him all the time.
They walked past the greenhouses towards the Whomping Willow, where he picked up a stick to stop the tree attacking him with its branches. Then, without so much as a backwards glance, he vanished into a small hole at the roots of the tree and set off along the passageway behind it.
He should be grateful, he kept reminding himself whenever he walked along this passage, that he could be here at all. No other headmaster would have allowed a werewolf to attend the school. But it was still hard and painful to transform, and Remus so wished to have some distraction from the pain in the gloomy hut.

The transformation that night was as bad as any other night, but halfway through it, Remus got the distraction he so longed for.
A great black dog appeared in the Shrieking Shack. Remus dropped the chair that he had just been ripping apart and stared at the newcomer. He could tell it was no ordinary dog. It wagged its tail and came up to Remus, who growled at it at first. But with the means of communication that animals have, the dog told him he was a friend. Remus let him approach. As they sniffed each other, realisation hit him. The dog was Sirius! How could that be? But the dog told him that he was right, and after he had barked once, a stag appeared in the doorway, accompanied by a rat. He sniffed the stag, too, and found that it was James. Then the rat had to be... Peter! No! How could that be? His friends had been hinting that something was going to change soon, but Remus never thought it would be anything like this.
As the night went on, Remus found he felt less wolfish in the company of his friends. He remained in the body of a werewolf, but no longer was his soul so roughly pushed aside, no longer was he a monster. He was with his best friends, they were equals again, all of them having transformed into animal form, but still being their human selves. All in all, it turned out to be one of the best nights Remus had ever had.
They re-transformed at dawn, and crept back to the castle under James's Invisibility Cloak. Madam Pomfrey was waiting for him; not knowing that he had been in company during the night.

They talked it all over the following day, and Remus was impressed by what his friends had done to help him. Turning into an Animagus was very difficult, and Peter had needed all the help he could get from Sirius and James. But for Remus it was more than he had ever dreamed of. He was delighted at the prospect of never having to endure a lonely transformation again, and that effectively raised his spirits.

~*~

Remus was sitting in the common room alone late one night. Peter had gone to bed, and Sirius and James were spending a detention together. As he thought about that, a grim look appeared on his face. Admittedly, James and Sirius were the best in school, and he was immensely thankful for what they had done for him, but he still didn't like their bullying behaviour. He sometimes wondered why they were still so popular. Maybe it was because most of their victims were Slytherins, eternally hated by Gryffindors and by parts of the other houses as well. And then Severus and James hated each other, and most people would rather side with James than Severus. Remus had no trouble imagining why.
His thoughts were interrupted by James's and Sirius's return. They were both laughing about a good joke, and Remus saw James's eyes flicker through the common room once. After seeing that they were quite alone his smile slipped a little and he said good night shortly afterwards.
Sirius sat down opposite Remus and gave his friend a piercing look. Remus felt slightly uncomfortable, and lowered his eyes to the Transfiguration essay he still had to finish. It was an awkward situation - some sort of tension seemed to have settled between them. He decided to break the silence. There should be nothing awkward about two friends sitting together late at night.
"How was detention?"
"Nothing special. We just made Filch really upset when we tried to question him about his private life. But there was nothing really interesting there, boring bloke."
"I guess he loves imagining himself reintroducing the old punishments."
"Yeah, or talks to Mrs. Norris about how bad the world is."
Remus joined in Sirius's laughter. They looked at each other across the table. Silence fell. Remus was just about to turn back to his essay when Sirius spoke again.
"Would you come out for a walk with me?"
"Sirius,... it's the middle of the night. You surely can't hope to get out undetected?"
"Ah, come on, Remus. You're a prefect, nobody will dare tell you off, and I can transform into the dog. I'm quicker out of sight that way."
"I don't know..."
"Come on, I'd really like to be out with you now."
Remus looked at Sirius and considered it. After all, he had been wanting to spent more time alone with Sirius. And this looked like a good chance.
"All right then, I'll come."
Sirius grinned at him, got to his feet, and transformed into the great black dog before they left through the portrait hole.

Out in the grounds they walked towards the lake, a soft breeze ruffling their hair. Neither of them said anything. They stopped behind a bush at the edge of the lake, and Sirius stared out at the water.
"Remus, there's something I feel like talking to you about."
Remus turned to look at his friend. Sirius's handsome face looked rather troubled. He gave a nervous laugh. Remus wondered what was troubling him; he had never seen Sirius nervous and uncertain before.
"You know that James is my best friend. He is one of the most important people in my life."
Remus felt his spirits sinking. He knew that he could not possibly take James's place at Sirius's side.
"But the way I feel about you is different."
Of course, Remus thought.
"Although no less emotional. In a way even more."
What did Sirius want to tell him?
"I... I just want you to know... to know that... ah, damn it!"
And with that he turned, seized Remus's head and kissed him fiercely. After the initial shock, Remus gave in to the kiss, realising what his feelings for Sirius had meant all along.
When they broke apart, Sirius lowered his gaze.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to..."
"It's okay Sirius. I think I feel that way, too."
Sirius raised his head.
"Really?"
"Yeah, really. Although I never really realised it until now. I always thought I wanted the kind of closeness you have with James. I thought I was jealous because of him."
"But this is different. I want you to understand that."
"I know, I don't think you and James ever snogged."
Sirius's grin was short-lived.
"So you don't mind? You don't think I'm disgusting?"
"Of course not, I kissed you back, didn't I?"
"Yeah... but you have to understand that we can't be open with that."
"I know, it's like being a werewolf."
"Exactly. I'm definitely going to tell James about it. He might even suspect it - he's my best friend and nobody knows me better than he does."
"Sure. But I think then we should tell Peter, too."
"Yeah, you're right, we better do."
With that Sirius stepped closer to Remus again and hugged him.
"Sometimes I wonder why it has to happen to me. Why I can't be normal?"
"But it's wonderful," Remus said.
"Yeah, it is," sighed Sirius, and pulled Remus into another kiss.

The four friends were sitting together in the common room the next evening. All the other students had already gone to bed. Sirius sat next to James, not quite managing to keep the nervousness out of his eyes. James turned to look at his best friend.
"You've been acting odd lately."
Sirius said nothing, and so James took closer look.
"You're nervous! Why?"
Remus looked over at Sirius. James did not take his eyes off Sirius.
"Is it because of Remus?"
Sirius looked up, and then slowly nodded.
James turned his head to look at Remus.
"Are you in love then?"
Remus cast Sirius one more glance before nodding. Out of the corner of his eyes, he saw Peter's mouth hanging open. James leant back with a satisfied expression.
"I knew it."
"How?" Sirius asked him.
"Well mate, it was kind of obvious. You were getting all the stares from the girls, but you never cared. I would be so happy if I got half the attention from Lily that you're getting from almost every girl in the school, but you didn't seem to even notice. And then I saw you looking at Remus when you thought nobody was looking."
Peter finally moved his mouth to speak, too.
"So you're okay with it, James?"
"Of course! For one thing, I'm glad that they're happily in love with each other. They both deserve it, with the otherwise difficult time they're having. And of course I'm a bit relieved that my best friend fell for another good friend, because I don't have to fear he'll fall for me at some point. And it's even better that it's Remus, because it stays all between us four."
"But you've got to understand that we have to keep it quiet. As quiet as Remus's secret about being a werewolf. If anything like that reaches the ears of my family..."
"Of course. I'm not as stupid as I look," James retorted and they roared with laughter.
"We need your word. Yours, too, Peter," Remus insisted.
"You have it," James said at once.
They all turned to look at Peter.
"You have it," he repeated.

The next months were the best yet in Remus's life. He was together with Sirius. And though they couldn't show it during the day, the nights were even better when Sirius shared his bed (after casting the muffliato spell on the other boys in their dormitory). Sirius's body felt smooth under the touch of his hands, and he loved the feeling of his muscles when they made love.

The nights were the best part of his life anyway. During his transformations, he now left the Shrieking Shack with his friends at his side. Sirius and James could control him if he got too close to human flesh. But the risk was low, the grounds were deserted at night, and they found out how many possibilities were suddenly open to them. They started roaming the grounds and even the village of Hogsmeade. They discovered secrets of the area they doubted any other student had ever found out. They made a joke of giving each other nicknames that were somehow related to the animal into which each of them transformed. Remus was Moony, Sirius was Padfoot, James was Prongs and Peter was Wormtail.

~*~

When the Christmas holidays were approaching, Remus could feel Sirius's spirits sinking. He thought about what he would feel like if he had to return to such a home and could quite understand Sirius. The three of them were doing the best they could to cheer him up.
"Just think about what we're going to do under January's full moon, Padfoot." James said.
"Yeah, remember that you will be able to leave them soon," Remus told him.
Peter tried his luck. "Think about us, then you'll keep in mind that there're also decent people in the world."
But nothing they said seemed to have any effect.
"I know, I know. But I will miss you," Sirius said with sad eyes. And he cast a piercing look in Remus's direction meant to express 'especially you.'
James tried again. "Maybe you can get away from there after Christmas."
"Yeah, maybe. I can try, but I don't think my mother will let me."
It was a rather moody group on the Hogwarts Express back to London, where they all bade good bye to each other.

Although Remus was looking forward to seeing his family again he knew he would miss Sirius terribly during the next two weeks. And indeed, he found he had never known time to move so slowly. He had not told his parents about himself and Sirius, so they assumed he was unhappily in love with a girl. His mother especially took care of him. She seemed to think Remus was afraid of getting involved with that girl because he was a werewolf. So she encouraged Remus to tell the girl: after all, his best friends already knew, and had stayed. He had told his parents that Sirius, James and Peter knew, but he stopped short of telling them that his friends had become Animagi for him.

A couple of days before the end of the holidays Remus received a letter from Sirius. He took it, his heart beating fast with excitement, and tore it open.

Dear Moony!
Guess what? I've finally left my home and am currently staying at Prongs's place.
I just couldn't stand it any more. Christmas was as bad as ever with all our closer relatives being here, going on about 'the noble and most ancient house of Black'. My mother was especially terrible, she's so proud of Regulus. But instead of ignoring me, as she usually does, she kept making out I'm the shame of the family. The only one who had any sympathy for me was my uncle Alphard.
Well, after Christmas was over, I asked - as Prongs had suggested - if I could leave to see a good friend of mine. Along with other things, it caused an uproar of the sort I have never seen, and in the middle of it I just lost my nerve, packed my stuff and left.
So as I said, right now I'm staying at Prongs's place. Try to come over, too. We can have a really good time here, without having to hide all day. And Wormtail said he'll come, too. He'll be here tomorrow.
Hoping to see you soon,
In love,
Padfoot

This cheered Remus up more than anything. He hurried to ask his parents if he could leave, and when they agreed, he replied to the letter, telling James and Sirius he would arrive that very day.

It turned out to be a really good time. Remus's life became more focused on the daytime than when he was at Hogwarts. Although Mr. and Mrs. Potter did not know about his love-relationship with Sirius, the boys could be reasonably open, because James's parents left them alone most of the time.
Much too soon, it was time to go back to Hogwarts, and Remus thought about how time was always making a fool of him, either going far too slowly, or passing by so quickly he didn't even notice.
But on the plus side, Sirius seemed much more cheerful at the prospect of finally having abandoned his house in London forever. He would still be seeing his brother at Hogwarts, of course, but since they heartily disliked each other and hardly talked to each other anyway that was nothing to worry about. Remus quietly admired Sirius for handling his life all by himself, without anyone looking after him; he was not sure if he would be able to do so yet. But then, Sirius had learned to look out for himself quite early when his parents' dislike had become obvious.

~*~

Back at Hogwarts he resumed his night life once more. He still did not like Sirius's and James's behaviour of bullying others, especially Severus. But he was far too fond of them both to try to do anything to stop them. Together with Peter they were the best part of his life at Hogwarts. So all he did was tell them of his disapproval one day during breakfast in the Great Hall.
"Well, take it the way you want, Moony, but I won't stop on Snivellus as long as he's around. And you know perfectly well why," James told him straight away.
"Nor will I, the stiff, slimy git," said Sirius with an almost doglike growl.
James snorted into his cereal.
"Stiff?" he repeated amused and shot Sirius and Remus significant glances.
Sirius seemed rather relaxed about James's remark and joined in with James's laughter. At first Remus was astounded, then he remembered that since Sirius had run away from home he was bound to be a bit more easy with public hints to their relationship.
Come to think of it, he possibly had no objections to a bit more openness during the day.

They talked it over that night in Sirius's bed.
"Padfoot?"
"Hmm..."
"I thought, today, when Prongs laughed about stiff, that since you ran away from home we might be a bit more open about our relationship during the day, don't you think so?"
"We could, Moony, but I don't think I like snogging in public. I mean, it's private, it's no one else's business what we do."
"So you don't want to be open in public? You don't want to stand by our relationship in front of everybody else?"
"It's not that. We can hold hands or hug each other during the day, you're right about that. But I don't like acting the way we did at the Potters', because here there are so many more people around."
"But what's your problem with it? Everyone else does it!"
"A lot of couples do it, that's right. But I don't like their behaviour either. I don't have to watch that, and I don't want people to watch me when I'm doing it."
"You wouldn't even do it for me? Be a bit more open about us?"
"Of course I would do it. And I will. As I said, holding hands or hugging should really be no problem from now on. But can't you refrain from kissing me in public? Wouldn't you do that for me? I'll be a bit more open for you now that I've run away from home, but in return I'd like you to not do anything more when others are around."
"Well, I suppose that's okay then. But can't I even give you a kiss on the cheek?"
Sirius silently laughed at this point.
"You can. I love seeing you being so much in love with me."
And with that he pulled Remus closer and started running his hands up and down his scarred body, kissing him fiercely.

So from then on they started being a bit more open, giving each other significant looks, small kisses on the cheek for greeting, and stayed closer together when they sat down somewhere with James and Peter. But still they insisted that their two friends not tell anyone.
Life could have been really cool if not for the fact that their OWLs were getting closer all the time. Especially for Remus and Peter, that meant an increase in work. Sirius and James were so good they hardly studied at all, but still outshone every other student. This resulted in their being bored, and they ended up in detention more frequently.

One afternoon during the Easter holidays they sat all together underneath their favourite beech tree in the grounds, Remus and Peter both with schoolbooks, and James with the Golden Snitch he had stolen from the Hogwarts Quidditch supply. It was the day after the full moon and they had enjoyed a rather spectacular night out in the grounds, of which they by now knew every corner.
"Padfoot and I had an idea," James said suddenly.
Remus and Peter looked from him to Sirius.
"Since we know so much about the grounds and the castle itself, how would it be to write a map with all our knowledge, to save it for future generations?"
"We don't want any ordinary map, we want a map of Hogwarts where you can not only see all the secret passageways, but also the people currently moving in the area that is shown on the map, labelled with their names, so that any wrongdoer can immediately know when Filch approaches," Sirius added.
"Cool," said Peter at once, awe on his face.
"I'm definitely in," agreed Remus.
For that he got a wink from a grinning Sirius.

So they created what they called the Marauder's Map and signed it with their nicknames. But before they could enjoy the full benefit of the Map, Filch caught Sirius and James with it and confiscated it. They had been walking through the castle, not using the map, when he approached them and demanded that they turn out their pockets. Then he made up some argument about this being a forbidden magical object, as was detailed on the list in his office. Since nobody ever bothered checking that list, they could not contradict him and had to hand over the map.
"Never mind, we know the grounds by heart anyway. And we don't really need to know if someone's around if we're under my Invisibility Cloak," James assured them.
"Yeah, but I'd have loved for future students of the school to know about the map. Would've caused Filch quite a lot of brain racking why he can never catch any troublemakers," Sirius argued.
"Maybe someone will be smart enough to nick it back from Filch and find out how it works. This way we know for sure the only ones that are ever going to use it really deserve it," James replied.
So they continued their monthly wanderings without the Marauder's map and, just as James had predicted, they always managed to stay undetected under his Invisibility Cloak.

~*~

One evening James and Remus sat alone under their favourite beech tree. Sirius was in detention and Peter had remained in the library. James was playing with the Snitch while Remus revised Defence Against the Dark Arts.
"Come on, Moony, put that book away. As though you really need to learn that stuff."
"You know perfectly well that I do. You might not need to bother, Prongs, but I'll need the best marks I can get. I'll have a hard enough time finding a job as it is."
James cast him a sideways look before saying,
"Sure, but you don't have to study at this precise moment, do you? You could put that book away and have some fun with me."
Remus's eyes travelled over the nearby students. Severus was not among them. James, seeing this, merely laughed.
"Moony, you know I can have fun without dear old Snivellus. I'd be better off without him anyway."
"Well, why don't you just ignore him then?"
"Because he won't leave me alone either. If I did nothing, I'd be in the hospital wing sooner than you can say 'stop'. Anyway, I'll never stop fighting the Dark Arts and those who practise them. And don't you try your luck with me just because you failed with Padfoot," James said grinning. He knew perfectly well that Severus was a cause for disagreement between Remus and Sirius.
"Ah, speak of the devil...," James pointed towards the castle.
Sirius had just appeared on the steps and was now heading towards them. Remus felt his stomach squirm. Sirius collapsed on the floor next to him and pecked him on the cheek. Remus's spirits rose. Who cared about Severus?
"I've just run into old Snivellus," Sirius informed his friends.
"Ha!" said James.
"Yeah, he's always sneaking around, trying to find out what we're up to, so he can run off and tell a teacher."
"But we're much too clever and much too quick for him, aren't we, Padfoot, mate?"
"Sure, Prongs. But he still doesn't give up, he's so annoyingly sticky. It's pissing me off. He's recently latched onto our disappearing once a month, and is desperate to find out where we're going and what we're doing."
"You didn't tell him?" Remus asked, shocked.
"Of course not, Moony, I'm not stupid, I thought you know that," Sirius grinned, "I merely said that if he wants to find out all he has to do is push the knot of roots under the Whomping Willow and get into that passageway at the full moon."
Remus gasped. "I thought you just said you're not stupid."
"Come on, Moony, that'll put old Snivellus off us forever. And besides it'll be quite a good bit of fun, don't you think so, Prongs?"
Remus fully expected James to support his best friend, but he was surprised to find a frown on his face.
"Padfoot, you... you could kill him. I hate him, but I'd never sink so low as to actually try to kill him. That's the kind of thing he'd do!"
"Well if he gets killed, it just serves him right, stupid slimy idiot, sneaking around and trying to get us into trouble."
"You'll get us into trouble, Padfoot, especially Moony. Imagine if he killed Snivellus, how do you think he'd feel, not to speak of the consequences?"
"You just don't get it, do you? Go ahead, then, and live with him for the next few years and for the rest of your life, but I'll make him shut up if I can! The world's better of without him."
And with that Sirius rose and walked back towards the castle. James remained sitting with a worried expression.
"I have to do something. If he isn't brought to his senses he might get us all into serious trouble. And the full moon is only a couple of nights away. Couldn't you try to talk to him, Moony? I mean, he loves you above all, and you'll be the one facing the hardest consequences if his plan succeeds."
"I know, but you know that Severus always was something we disagreed about."
"Yeah, but please try it."
Remus had never heard James plead before. He must be really serious about it, and he, Remus, had thought James would join in on the idea. After all, James seemed to be a bit more sensible than his adventure-loving friend.

Sirius blocked each attempt of Remus to talk to him about Severus, and Remus was too afraid to provoke him into something even more foolhardy by a row to press the matter.
So he resigned and decided to make a counter-plan with James and Peter. They met in the common room one night when Sirius was in detention again.
"Okay," said James, rubbing his forehead with both hands, "okay, so you'll just go to the Shrieking Shack with Madam Pomfrey as usual, Moony. But by all means, don't leave it while you're transformed! And don't expect us to turn up during that night. Wormtail, you stay here, it's not safe with Snivellus around. He must not know that we're Animagi. We'll be in even more trouble than Moony if Snivellus finds out about us transforming. I'll stick with Padfoot, see what he's up to, and keep an eye on Snivellus, too. If he really gets into that passageway I'll follow him and bring him back. I'll transform to save him if necessary."
"Prongs, that's dangerous. I'm not myself when I'm transformed. And if you have to transform before Severus's eyes... you know what you're facing then, don't you? Unregistered Animagi, that'll end you up in Azkaban for sure. And then the Ministry will start with investigations at Hogwarts. You could ruin your own life as well as that of your friends. You can by no means enter that passageway with Severus around, neither in your human form, nor as a stag!"
"Moony, I'm not going to watch someone being killed because of my best friend. Padfoot is not a murderer. His sense of fun is just a bit extravagant. I say it one last time, I'll enter that passageway if necessary."
"You can't be serious! Either you get killed then, or you'll spend a good time of your life in Azkaban, that's too much for the sake of Padfoot!"
"You're supposed to be the one who loves him, Moony. And Padfoot or not, I'm not going to watch someone getting killed, not even Snivellus, when I can prevent it! You underestimate me, Moony. Don't worry about me tonight, I'll be fine."
"Fine then, go ahead and risk your life acting the hero. I'll make sure that it's mentioned at your funeral, that you killed yourself with your saving-people-thing!"
James gave him a sneer, got up, and left the common room.

It was with a feeling of foreboding that Remus went through the grounds with Madam Pomfrey that evening, though he was careful not to let her see his worries.
His transformation was as bad as it had been before his friends had appeared at his side in animal form. He did not see a single living soul through that night, and over his own screams and roars he was unable to hear anything that might have told him what was going on at the other end of the tunnel. His heart felt lighter when he returned at dawn. Maybe James's plan had worked. But Madam Pomfrey was welcoming him with an unusual pale face. Remus's heart sank again as she guided him, not to the Gryffindor common room, but to Dumbledore's office. She did not say a word to him. Did she know what he had been doing with his friends during the other nights, or was she just in shock?

She left him in front of Dumbledore's office, and Remus entered with a tight feeling in his stomach. Inside sat James, Sirius and Severus, all of them with unreadable expressions.
"Ah, good morning, Mr. Lupin," Dumbledore welcomed him and gestured for him to sit down next to Sirius.
"Well, you might not know about it yet, but we had a near-fatal accident during the night. Mr. Snape, you see, was curious to know where you disappeared to once a month. And unfortunately, Mr. Black let slip your nightly whereabouts to him. So naturally, Mr. Snape set off after you the first chance he got, which happened to be tonight. Luckily Mr. Potter heard where he had gone and went after him to protect him from any harm."
At this Remus thought he saw James's expression flicker the slightest bit, but he had gained control over himself before Remus could be sure.
"But Mr. Potter was too late. Mr. Snape had already entered the passageway in question. So at brave risk of his own life, Mr. Potter followed him and pulled him back outside. It so happens that Mr. Snape was able to see you at the end of the tunnel. So he now knows about your secret."
Remus felt cold dread running through his veins all of a sudden. Would he now be asked to leave Hogwarts?
"However, he has given me his word that he will not tell a single soul what he has seen tonight. So, after all, no harm has been done. But still, I shall take fifty points from Gryffindor and ask Mr. Black to spend detention with me tonight and tomorrow night to think over his adventure-seeking side, which nearly ended fatally tonight, not to mention with huge consequences for two of his closest friends."
Dumbledore's eyes bored into Remus's for a second, seemed to X-ray him and left behind only one feeling: He knows! He knows Sirius and I are in love with each other! But before he had time to ponder that, Dumbledore continued.
"On the other hand, I'll reward Mr. Potter with fifty points for what he has done to prevent harm."

He paused to look at them all.

"You may go now, all of you."
They rose in unison and left Dumbledore's office.

Back in the common room Sirius turned to his two friends.
"I owe you an apology. What I did was not correct. I endangered your life, Prongs. And I could've made you a killer, Moony. You were right all along: Snivellus is not worth that. I do not ask you to forgive me, but know that I'll always be there for you."
With that he turned and started walking towards the boys' dormitories, his head hanging low. James and Remus looked at each other once before calling him back.
"Don't be stupid, Padfoot. Of course I forgive you! Even if something worse had happened I would. You're my best mate and I know your soul isn't Dark. Everyone makes mistakes and I'm not clean either. I let a werewolf out of his hiding place once a month!"
Sirius approached him, grinning broadly. When only a foot separated them he threw himself into James's arms and embraced him hugely. James grinned and clapped him on the shoulder before stepping back. Sirius turned his head towards Remus, though he did not move.
"Padfoot... I cannot pretend that I'm not shocked with what you seem capable of. But it turned out all right and you admit you were acting foolish. And I love you way too much not to forgive you."
With that he stepped over the distance between them, hugged Sirius and kissed him. Then he stepped back and stroked his cheek.
"Just promise me you won't do such a foolish thing again."
Sirius grinned at him. "I promise that I'll try."
And together they left for the dormitory to get some sleep before lessons started.

~*~

The weeks passed by and soon their OWLs were upon them. James and Sirius did well in every subject with an almost elegant ease. Remus did quite well, too, though he had to study much harder than his two friends. The only one having serious trouble was Peter. Once the examinations were over they enjoyed a truly wonderful time. Being freed from homework, they spent almost everyday in the grounds under their favourite beech tree, dozing in the sun, so that they'd be wide awake during the night, which they usually spent out in the grounds, at times in their animal forms, at times in their human forms.
The only times Remus actually saw a bed was when he was sharing it with Sirius after they had left their two friends to spend some time together.

Much too soon the term was over and they were on the Hogwarts Express back to London. Sirius would be staying at James's place during the holidays and they made arrangements to meet up there as soon as possible. The ride was joyful; the four of them shared one compartment and Remus sat cuddled against Sirius. To hear his slow breath and feel his heartbeat filled him with peace, although he knew how terribly he would miss that in one day's time.
They bade good-bye to Peter at the station, and then Remus followed Sirius into the shade of a pillar.
"Moony,... this year with you has been wonderful."
"This whole year has been wonderful, with you and the others becoming Animagi, you finally being free from your family and us being together."
"Yeah, you're right. But what I wanted to say is... I'll miss you. Please come as soon as you can."
"I will, I promise. Maybe you can even come around my house for some days this summer."
"Yeah, that'd be great. I'd like to see your family."
"Only, when you're there, be careful, because I don't want them to know about us. Not yet, at least."
"I understand, I will be careful, I promise. I'll send you an owl."
Then he leaned forwards and kissed Remus on the lips, in the midst of a full platform. Then he turned and walked back to James. Remus waved at James and left the platform, thinking about the happy summer ahead, and the many, hopefully no less happy years after that.