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To say that Remus was worried would be an understatement. At one point of the day Sirius had suddenly gone quiet and melancholy. If he hadn’t known Sirius as long as he had, he’d probably missed the sudden drop in Sirius’ mood, but if he wasn’t sure of it then, it would have been glaringly obvious when James came to ask him if he knew why Sirius was acting gloomy. When everyone else went to bed Sirius had said that he would just grab a smoke, but that had been two hours ago. Sirius had a habit of getting distracted, but factoring in Sirius’ mood, he was concerned about his friend. James and Peter had already turned in for the night. James did try to stay awake with him, but being the gryffindor quidditch captain meant that he had a habit of waking up at 5 in the morning automatically. It was a surprise to no one when he almost fell asleep on the table.
Remus was sitting at the table nursing a tea while watching out the window lost in thought. He knew Sirius was resourceful, but he was also rash and very quick to jump into action. He might have pissed of the wrong guy and gotten into a fight. He knew Sirius could handle himself just fine in a fight, but the thought of Sirius laying in a ditch bloodied and bruised gave him chills down to his very core. Sirius had a bad habit of punishing himself for just existing and Remus has had to batch him up since 3rd year, but it never became easier for him to see his friend in pain.
Somewhere deep in his mind was a tiny voice telling him not to worry about Sirius. He wouldn’t care if Remus suddenly disappeared for a couple of hours, if he’d even notice. The situation with Snape proved that. There was always a little voice telling him that he doesn’t deserve his friends, that he was and always will be just a monster. What happened in their 5th year only increased his doubt.
But he and Sirius had talked about it. He had every intention to never talk to him again, but he couldn’t stop thinking why. Why would his friend do something like that to him. One day he had had enough of the answers his brain provided and dragged Sirius into an abandoned classroom to ask why he would do that to him. He was expecting apologies or excuses. What he wasn’t expecting was for Sirius to start to break down while trying to speak. He could barely understand what was being said to him, but when he finally got what Sirius was trying to say, he had to putt a stop to it. Sirius was saying how he didn’t deserve his forgiveness, but he would try to earn it and he understood if he hates him now. He just wanted to be able to talk and eat together. When Sirius started to compare himself to his cousins, he realized that Sirius had that same little voice in his head.
That didn’t mean Remus would just forgive him or if he would ever forgive him, but they started talking again. They talked for hours in the abandoned classroom and when they finally returned to their room, James was waiting for them on his bed and the smile he gave them when he realized what had happened could have blinded the sun. They all knew that it would be a long road to forgiveness, but it was a start. He couldn’t admit it back then, but he had missed Sirius. Sirius might not seem like it, but from the four of them he was the listener. He would treat everyones problems like they were his own. There were moments when his upbringing would shine through the cracks of his carefully molded mask, but if Sirius considered you his friend, he would do anything to make you smile. It really didn’t surprise anyone that his animagus form was a dog, the idiot was too loyal for his own good. He’d probably wag his tail, while his owner yelled at him.
While Remus was still lost in thought, the back door had opened and very gently closed. ”Moony?” the quiet voice finally startled Remus enough to turn around, almost knocking the chair over. Barely a step inside the kitchen was standing Sirius looking almost as surprised as Remus felt. Remus was about to start very loudly whispering where he had been and if he was okay, but the words died on his tongue when he saw what Sirius was carrying. It looked like Sirius had fished a orange and white fur hat from the sewer until a pair of mismatched eyes stared at him like he was being in the way of a royal chariot and should move along and go on with his business.
”what is that?” his voice sounded strained, but at the moment it was the best he could manage. Sirius at least had the decency to look sheepish. The look gained a certain fondness when he looked at the fur ball currently purring in his arms ”This is Bastet.” His smile only grew when he lifted his gaze and looked at Remus. He was starting to look a little manic with that grin, but Sirius had explained that it was hereditary. ”So what do you think?” the question snapped Remus out of his staring, but he didn’t know what Sirius asked him. ”I’m sorry, what?” Sirius wasn’t deterred in the slightest. ”What do you think of the name?” he looked like a puppy waiting for a treat after doing a trick. ”It’s very unique” to anyone else that would sound like a cover up when they actually thought the name was the most ridiculous thing they've ever heard, but he knew Sirius would love the sentiment. He was right. Sirius’ smile brightened even more and started to rant about ancient sun deities and cat worship in ancient Egypt. Honestly he looked like a child retelling what they learned in school that day.
’God this idiot’ Remus thought, but couldn’t help but to smile. ”So, the mutts bringing home strays, eh?” with his arms crossed and brow raised, he wondered if this is how James feels when he’s being a mother hen to all of them. Sirius blushed and tightened his hands slightly around Bastet. ”You aren’t going to kick her out, are you?” It really should be criminal how well Sirius does the puppy dog eyes. ”Of course not, but we don’t really have anything to properly take care of her.” Remus almost regretted saying that, when Sirius’ face fell, but it had to be done. ”We could ask Lily, doesn’t she like cats?” Sirius really was desperate to keep Bastet.
He remembered the time Sirius told him what his mother had done when he brought home a stray. If Remus wasn’t dead set on helping Sirius with the cat, that last thought finalized his decision. ” If we can’t get her to help, we’ll just have to come up with another plan.” Sirius looked up from rubbing his cheek on Bastet’s. God, both of them needed a bath soon. ”Moony?” Remus really couldn’t handle how broken Sirius sounded. At that moment Bastet finally turned her head, looking him straight in the eyes. Like a silent contract between them, to make sure he never sounded like that again. ”I’ll look if we have some tuna for her.”
When he turned to the cupboards, he almost missed the softly whispered ” I told you, I’d take care of you.”