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Six months later,
"Fucking shit!" Sirius yelled in pain and frustration as he stumbled across a table, hurting his leg.
"Mate, calm down," James said, who was sitting on a windowsill.
"Calm down?!" Sirius repeated incredulously. "My marriage is in like one hour and I am not even ready yet! How can I calm down?!" He looked at himself in the mirror and he was an actual mess. His hair was tangled out of the loose bun he had done. The shirt was half tucked and he couldn't seem to find the belt for his pants. The coat he was supposed to wear was probably lying somewhere along with his nerves that were all over the place.
"Oh my, look how the tables have turned. Now, you realise how I was feeling on my wedding day, when you were just laughing at me," James said, grinning at him.
Sirius pouted. "Jamie, I didn't realize that a person gets this nervous before marriage! I swear if you don't help me, I won't ever get ready and will be late to my own marriage and then I won't ever get married and–"
"Sirius, you're overthinking things," James said, walking over to Sirius. "There's still a lot of time till the marriage ceremony. I am not really good at the pep talk thing. So I am just gonna tell you to calm down a bit. I'll help you get ready quickly. And then I assume Lily will help you with your hair. You have nothing else to worry about. The marriage is gonna be perfect."
Sirius took in a breath. "You're right. I am...I am over thinking this for no reason."
James patted his shoulder. "I am really happy for you and Remus."
Sirius smiled at him. "Thanks, James."
----
Sirius stood at the altar, heart pounding due to excitement. He clasped his hands which were a little sweaty and trembling with nervousness. It was still a bit unbelievable that this was truly happening. He was going to marry Remus!
James was standing at the best man's place grinning at Sirius happily. Sirius looked around at the happy faces of his friends sitting in the hall. James' mom and dad were also here, and Sirius had to admit he had grown quite close to them in the past year. McGonagall had accepted the invite too and was sitting near Marlene and Dorcas, who were holding Harry. Remus' parents were also present there, smiling proudly.
A seat in the front row was left empty, a remembrance of Regulus. Sirius' smile faltered for a second as he felt the sudden familiar heaviness in his heart. He shook his head to clear the thoughts, Regulus wouldn't want him to be sad today.
Sirius looked back at the entrance, waiting anxiously. Every second felt like hours, dragging on forever.
When Remus walked in along with Lily, Sirius could swear his heart stopped beating. Forget butterflies, there was a whole zoo in his stomach. He had to remind himself to suck in a deep breath because Merlin's Beard! Remus looked gorgeous! It was like everyone and everything around Sirius was blurred and he could only stare at Remus, with his blue tuxedo, his fringe falling over his forehead and a smile brighter than a thousand suns.
'How did I ever get so lucky?' Sirius wondered. He was struck with memories of the moments with Remus, leading up to today.
~~~~~
"You feeling better?"
Lupin nodded and his gaze shifted down to Sirius cloak covering him. He looked back up at Sirius with questioning eyes.
".. You were cold and there was no blanket here," Sirius explained.
Lupin got up and handed Sirius' cloak to him. "You're not so bad after all," he said, mouth curving up into a smile.
Sirius didn't understand why it made a warm feeling pool into his belly. "Maybe not."
°°°
"I was worried about you," Sirius said softly. His gaze shifted to a scar that ran across Remus' jawbone and his neck. He reached out and slowly ran his thumb over the scar. Remus' breath hitched in his throat, eyes staring into Sirius'. "I missed you," Sirius muttered. All fear of his family and all differences forgotten, he leaned forward and kissed Remus. As their lips met, fireworks erupted in his chest.
After a few seconds, Remus put his hand on Sirius' chest, pushing him back slightly. "Sirius, Are you sure?"
Sirius only nodded once, capturing Remus' lips in another kiss, already addicted. Remus grasped the front of Sirius' shirt, pulling him closer. Sirius backed Remus against the wall, one hand on his waist and the other one on the wall besides him. Kissing Remus was ecstasy, something he never wanted to lose.
They pulled back when oxygen became necessary. "Sirius what about yo-" Remus began but Sirius cut him off, "I don't care. I don't care about anything else. I just know that I want you. I like you. I really like you, Remus."
Remus smiled at him fondly. "I like you too. A lot."
°°°
"I am a werewolf," Remus said matter-of-factly, like it explained everything. He probably understood the look of confusion on Sirius' face as he added, "I can't get married and have a family. There are laws against me. I can't get a job easily because no one would want to hire a werewolf."
Sirius' hands clenched around the railing. He sucked in a sharp breath, suppressing his anger. "Maybe when the war ends, the laws might change," he said, trying to be optimistic. He stepped closer to Remus. "Maybe things will get different and better...Just hypothetically speaking, if that happens, would you maybe then think about getting married?" he asked Remus, "To me?"
Remus looked thoughtful for a moment before a smile formed on his lips. He took a step closer as well and now their noses were almost touching. "Well, to be honest, the thought of having you as my husband is very alluring."
Sirius forgot how to breathe properly hearing Remus say the words 'My husband.' He brushed his lips against Remus'. "Say that again," he murmured.
"What? My husband?"
Sirius shut his eyes, feeling like his heart would explode. "Hypothetically speaking, if we ever do get married, call me that every day."
Remus brought his hands up to Sirius' cheek. "Sure," he muttered before pressing a soft kiss to Sirius' lips.
~~~~~
Remus glanced at Sirius from across the hall and as their eyes met, Sirius could see the emotions in his about-to-be husband's eyes, like he was thinking back to their past times too.
Remus walked up on the altar and stood in front of Sirius. "You look so fucking beautiful," Remus whispered, letting out a breath.
Sirius stepped closer, taking Remus' hands in his. "You should stop swearing or I might not be able to wait till our vows to kiss you."
Remus chuckled softly, cheeks turning light pink. "Well fuck, that makes me want to swear even fucking more."
Suddenly, Sirius felt a hundred degrees hotter. He opened his mouth to say something back, but the officiant cleared his throat and told them to say their vows, making Sirius remember that there were people here other than him and Remus.
Remus' hands were gripping Sirius' tightly as he said, "I, Remus Lupin, take you, Sirius Black, as my lawful husband, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do us part."
Sirius swallowed hard, feeling his eyes well up with emotions. "I, Sirius Black, take you, Remus Lupin, as my lawful husband, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do us part."
If possible, Remus' smile grew even brighter, as the officiant proceeded, "May I have the rings?"
Harry walked towards them, smiling happily and holding the pillow with the rings. Taking them, the officiant held them out.
Remus took a ring with a slightly trembling hand and slid it on Sirius' finger. Sirius breathed out shakily as he did the same, slipping a ring on Remus' finger.
"It's my honour to pronounce you husbands," the officiant announced. "You may now kiss each other."
Sirius wrapped his arms around Remus' waist pulling him in for a kiss and Remus' hands came up to Sirius' shoulder, holding him close. Though they had shared so many kisses before, this felt different somehow. Maybe it was because Sirius felt like the happiest person ever, maybe it was because today was the day he had been dreaming for so, so long, maybe it was because the kiss was a promise of their new life together.
They pulled back, both breathless, just staring into each other's eyes, wanting to savour this moment. Sirius could barely hear the loud claps and cheering of their friends over the erratic beating of his own heart.
"I love you, Sirius Lupin," Remus said softly, breaking the silence and making Sirius' stomach do a backflip.
"I love you, too," Sirius murmured, placing another kiss on Remus' lips.
Remus interlocked their fingers and they walked down from the altar James and Lily also walked down, attacking them with hugs and cheerful congratulations.
The others also gathered around them, congratulating them happily.
After McGonagall congratulated them, Sirius said, "You know, without you, we probably wouldn't be together today. Thank you."
McGonagall looked at him in confusion. "And how is that?"
"You put us together in detention in sixth year. That's when we first started having civil conversations," Sirius explained.
"So, thank you for putting us in detention," Remus said.
A smile formed on McGonagall's face. "Well, I have never been thanked for putting someone in detention. But I am glad that it helped you two. I am happy to see you both here."
After that they made their way to the other hall, where everyone settled down to sit on the chairs.
Sirius, Remus, James and Lily sat down at a table. After a while of hushed whispering with his wife, James got up and cleared his throat. "May I have your attention, please," he said loudly.
As the people looked at him, he continued, "Being Sirius' best man, I realized I had to make a speech, which, I admit was quite a difficult task for me." He ran a hand through his hair as some people chuckled. "I have known Remus since our first year at Hogwarts and now he is a part of my family. Though I became friends with Sirius quite late, and kinda disliked him before that–"
"Kinda?" Sirius interrupted, raising his eyebrows at James.
James rolled his eyes, though he was smiling. "Okay, I really disliked Sirius before that, but that's because I didn't know him and I was not aware that he is actually a great person. And I had realized the fact that he was, in fact, a really good person, minutes after I had punched him in the face, which I am still sorry for." There was a hint of regret and guilt in his eyes. "But since then, he has always been there for me and I love him like a brother."
Sirius breathed in, feeling a heaviness in his heart.
"I have seen the ups and downs of their relationship, but
through it all, I have seen their love grow. They make each other a better person. And they have also made me a better person...I haven't really admitted it but I am really inspired by their strength. Life threw so much trouble at them, but they made it through...I don't think I would have been able to, if I was in their shoes...I am...I am not so strong."
Sirius shook his head as James finished the speech and stood up to hug him. "You're wrong, by the way. You're really strong," Sirius said, feeling a lump form in his throat at James' words.
"Yeah, you shouldn't lie in your speech, James," Remus said and hugged James as well.
Through the claps at James' speech, they sat back down, and it was Lily's turn now.
She smiled at James and got up. "I know there's usually only best man speech, but Remus and Sirius mean a lot to me, so I have decided to make a speech as well. I had become friends with Remus before I knew James and Sirius. Mostly because Sirius wasn't in our house and James was a bit of an asshole during the early years. Remus is one of the kindest people I have ever met. And as James said, one of the strongest as well. He realized that I had started to like James even before I admitted it to myself. He has been with me through a lot. I had realized that he was unusually happy during sixth year but whenever I would ask him, he would brush it off. He only told me about him and Sirius in our seventh year and honestly I was really surprised. I was so sure that the reason for his happiness was some secret unlimited supply of chocolates."
The hall burst into laughter at that. Sirius assumed that Remus had probably told Lily about them after they got back together. He turned his head to look at Remus. "After we got together again?" he asked in a whisper.
Remus nodded with a small smile and Sirius turned back to Lily as she continued. "Truth be told, I was a bit cautious about their relationship at first because I didn't know Sirius and wasn't aware how serious he was, no pun intended."
She paused as everyone burst into laughter again. "What I am saying is, I knew how important he was to Remus, but I didn't know how much he loved Remus until we met properly after leaving Hogwarts. At that time I realized that those two were made for each other and there was nothing that could break them apart, not the war, not the sides fighting against each other, not the differences, nothing." Her emerald eyes rested on them and she gave them the happiest and proudest smile. "I love you two and I am so, so happy for you."
Amidst the claps, Sirius and Remus got up and hugged Lily tightly.
Sirius looked around and exhaled a breath before speaking, "Thank you all for being here today. It means a lot that I get to share this day with all you lovely people. All the people that I had never thought I would become friends with, proved to be the best friends I could have ever asked for. It's still hard to believe this is truly happening because I had never thought I would ever get so lucky to call this beautiful person mine." He smiled down at Remus, who was staring at him with love and awe in those enchanting eyes.
"I don't even know what to say about you, Remus. Without you, I would probably be in Azkaban or dead, you are literally the reason I'm standing here today. Since I got to know you, I changed into a better person. James is right, you make me a better person... Except for–" He paused for a moment and sucked in a breath. "Except for Regulus, you were the first person that made me feel loved." Remus brought his hand up to hold Sirius' and squeezed it lightly. It was a simple action, but it meant so much to Sirius, knowing that Remus was by his side forever. Sirius stroked his thumb over Remus' hand as he continued, "You helped me through everything in my life and without you, I wouldn't have known what to do... I don't know what I ever did to deserve someone so wonderful and perfect like you, but I am so grateful to have you in my life and I don't ever, ever intend to let you go."
As he finished his speech, everyone clapped loudly. There were tears in Remus' eyes as he got up and captured Sirius' lips in a loving kiss. He was still gripping Sirius' hand and his other hand came up to cup the side of Sirius' face.
As the pulled back, Remus sniffled, wiping his eyes quickly. "Fuck you, you idiot. You made me emotional right before my speech," he said, biting his lip to stop smiling.
Sirius sat down as Remus turned towards the people and started speaking, "I don't know if I am going to be able to speak senseful words as my husband almost made me cry–"
'My husband'. The words were enough to make Sirius' breath catch in his throat. Did Remus know what he was doing to Sirius?
"Every one of you means so much to me," Remus said. "You all have made me feel accepted and loved. Whenever I used to feel worthless, like I didn't matter, you guys were there to knock some sense into me. You all have helped me in so many ways. Thank you for being there for me."
His gaze shifted to Sirius, sending a rush of warmth and love through him. "Sirius, I am the luckiest person in the world to be here with you today. A year ago, I wouldn't have even dreamt of this. I remember at James' and Lily's wedding, when we talked about this, it seemed like a fantasy. I hadn't thought that this would ever be possible. But now we are here and I have to pinch myself to realize that this is truly happening."
Sirius blinked as he felt tears stinging at the back of his eyes, throat choked with emotions.
"You're the bravest person I've known," Remus continued. "You have always fought for the right thing and for your loved ones. I had never thought I would find someone like you, who would love me with all my flaws, who would be with me through all the ups and downs of life. I had never thought I would get to spend my life with such a wonderful person like you. I will love you till my last breath."
Sirius got up and pulled Remus in a tight hug, some tears escaping and falling on Remus' shoulder. They pulled back and Remus cupped Sirius' face, wiping his cheeks.
"Gosh, you made me cry," Sirius said, voice cracking.
"I guess we're even now," Remus muttered, his own eyes bright with tears. "Aren't we, dear husband?"
"Fuck," Sirius mumbled, heart going thousand beats a second. "You're going to make my heart stop someday, you know?"
"Well, we can't have that." Remus placed his hand on Sirius' chest, smirking as Sirius' heart raced under his palm. "But you're the one who wanted to be called this everyday, right?"
Sirius let out a watery chuckle, leaning in so that his lips were ghosting over Remus' "I love you so much, Remus Lupin."
"I love you too, Sirius Lupin." Remus closed the gap between them, kissing him passionately.
"Hey! Forgot there are other people here?" James said loudly and they pulled back as the crowd burst into laughter.
The Muggle band that they had hired started playing a song, and they walked to the centre of the hall for their first dance as a married couple. Remus slipped his arm around Sirius' waist, and Sirius put his hand on Remus' shoulder, interlocking their free hands.
Remus took a deep breath, fingers tightening slightly around Sirius' hand.
"What is it?" Sirius asked, brow furrowing in concern.
"Nothing," Remus answered, shaking his head and smiling softly. "I'm just unbelievably happy to be here... It's kinda overwhelming, you know?"
He knew. The fact that he had Remus in his life still took his breath away. And sometimes doubt would creep up inside him, the fear that he'd lose all this still gripped him.
Glancing around the hall, Sirius looked at his friends— his family— dancing happily, and then back into his husband's warm and loving gaze, and for the hundredth time that day, he felt that his heart would beat out of his chest.
"I know," he whispered and closed the gap between them, pressing his lips to Remus' in a deep kiss.
'Cause we were just kids when we fell in love
Not knowing what it was
I will not give you up this time
But darling, just kiss me slow, your heart is all I own
And in your eyes you're holding mine'