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Flashes and shouts are aimed towards the Gryffindor Lions team. The cameras are repetitive as they take pictures of the hockey players, who are all wearing fine attire, entering the building. The press hold their microphones and records as close to the hockey players’ face as they could get.

Sirius Black raises his hand in the air, waving to the paparazzi surrounding him, leaning on the belts cutting them off from him with a smirk on his face.

James Potter is right behind him, waving just as welcoming, but with the brightest grin on his face.

Peter Pettigrew follows right beside James, nodding to any reporter who meets his eye.

And then there’s Remus Lupin, near the end of the group, but staying with his closest friends.

He had his hands stuffed in his dress pant’s pockets. His head was lowered just a tad, not looking up at any snap of a picture. 

“Remus! Six! Are you ready for the Snakes?”

“Do you believe your team will win?”

What kind of question is that?

Remus rolled his eyes, continuing to walk at a fast pace before he walked through the double doors.

 “C’mon, boys! We have a game today, no more playing around!” Coach Weasley called from the inside of the door, clapping his hands together to hurry the team up.

“You heard Coach, lads! Let’s go!” Sirius called from the other side of the doorway, mirroring his coach.

“Yes, Cap,” Benjy Fenwick chirped as he skipped into the chilled building, high off the aura the day carried.

“Head in the game,” Gideon Prewett muttered to himself, looking a little green around the gills.

“It’s your first game as first line in the NHL. You’re allowed to feel a bit woozy, Gid,” Edgar Bones comforted as he patted the redhead on the shoulder, entering the building right after him.

“Can’t screw up,” Gideon’s twin, Fabian, murmured right back. It was his first game as well.

Remus was the first to take initiative, moving forward to find the person that’d guide their team around.

“Hi! I’m Dorcas Meadowes, the Slytherin team manager, and I’ll be showing you to the locker room. Where’s your trainer?”

“Hi, Remus,” he waved to himself humbly, like he wasn’t in his attire, wearing his number on a chain around his neck. “Lily is back there, somewhere. Probably having her ear talked off by James. Evans!” 

The two turned around to find the redhead, who was, expectedly, standing in front of James with her hands on her hips, obviously holding back her eye roll.

At the call of her name, she visibly brightened. Her smile brightened some more when she saw it was Remus who had called her over.

“Remy!” He internally cringed at the nickname. “What’s up?”

“Miss Meadowes is here to lead us around, and requires your presence.” For better representation, he gestured to Dorcas beside him.

“Hello, Lily. Just Dorcas is fine. Can you wrangle these boys to follow me?” She questioned, eyeing the boys behind the two. 

The question wasn’t aimed, and Remus took that as his que. He pocketed his mouth and let out a sharp, loud whistle.

Immediately the chatter halted, eyes turning to Remus, Dorcas, and Lily.

“Great. Cheers, Lupin. Hey, Lions!” Racket as the team let out their most un-interruptive roars, a tradition they were accustomed to. “Follow me, if you will. I’m gonna take you to our guest locker room.”

Dorcas didn’t wait for any sort of agreement, starting to walk off down the hall.

Lily was at her side, immediately chatting up about how close of access her sports medicine room would be to the locker room.

Sirius made his way to Remus’ side, flashing Remus his signature smile. “Moons,” he greeted.

“Hey, Pads,” Remus threw back, arm raised to his chain.

The chatter was mostly silent as the two followed the two girls up front.

Remus shot a glance over towards Sirius, who was staring straight ahead.

“You ready?” Remus heard Sirius question.

“What kind of question is that, Cap? The real question is are you ready?”

Sirius snorted, shaking his head in amusement. “We will see, won’t we?”

“Perhaps.” Remus shrugged his shoulders. “Or I wipe the ice with your-”

“We’re on the same team!” Sirius cried out, raising his arms above his head in astonishment. “Prongs, you hear this?!”

“Oh, I hear it, Snuffles. Can believe it, too,” James snarks.

Remus leant over to give him a fist bump. 

Sirius glared at the nickname, before glaring at the two boys on either side of him.

“I know we’re on the same team, Paddy, but that doesn’t mean I can’t do better.” Remus didn’t give Sirius another look, walking off towards the sign that says ‘ice rink’.

James and Sirius let him go off by himself in peace. It was one of Remus’ traditions.

One thing to learn about hockey: it was one of the most superstitious sports to exist, ever.

Each player had their own pregame routine they followed every game. Every single game.

One of Remus' was to visit the ice before he went to get dressed.

Remus found the small tunnel quickly, stepping through the skinny area before feeling the cool rush of air wash over his face.

He stopped dead in his tracks, just breathing the air in.

His mind circuited with different hockey techniques, his family back home, and everything he had going on with his captain.

Then it all cleared.

All there was was Remus and the ice.

He opened his eyes, stepping forward once again.

He was near one of the guest areas, a few yards away from the benches his team would be sitting on during the game.

Remus took another breath, running his hand down the front of his suit jacket.

His attention was caught to the side as he heard a gasp.

Remus turned towards the noise, raising his eyebrows.

There, leant up against the plexiglass with his face all smudged up, was a child. He was decked out in Gryffindor red, his face having gold streaks going across each cheek.

“Remus Lupin!” The boy shouted through the glass. He was easy to hear over the growing crowd, which still wasn’t huge yet.

But with the rivalry game, it was bound to be packed.

“Hey there!” Remus called up, a huge smile on his face. “How’s it hangin’?”

“Oh, my God!” The kid shouted, face white as a ghost. “It’s you! It’s really you!”

Remus chuckled a bit. “I guess so, yeah.”

“Andrew!” The boy’s mother scolded, chiding him softly.

“No, no, it’s okay,” Remus comforted. He stepped towards the glass some more, having to crane his head up a bit to see them both. 

“Can you sign my puck?! And my stick?! And my jersey?!”

Remus let out a laugh. “Sure, bud. Got something for me to write with?”

The boy’s smile deflated and his eyes went wide with fear.

His mother came to the rescue, digging into her bag and pulling out a marker. Her excuse was: “Knew he’d end up in something like this. He probably wouldn’t have left without a moment with you. You’re his favourite.”

Remus smiled the faintest bit, “Thanks, kid. Toss it over.”

He held out his hands as the four things landed one by one (after a few tries, of course) in them.

With his signature, and a small motivational message, he threw each item back over the glass.

“Nice to meet you! I have to get going though.” 

The boy smiled a bit, understandingly. “Nice to meet you, too! Win this for us, will ya?”

Remus snorted. “I’ll do my best. Might leave that for Black.”

“You’re better,” the kid answered without hesitation.

Remus let out an even louder laugh. “Oh, I can't wait to tell him. Alright, see ya!” He held a hand up for a quick wave goodbye, before turning and moving closer to the door to the ice.

Remus looked down at the gate. With a quick exhale, he kissed the tips of his three middle fingers on his right hand, placing his hand on the door.

Then he turned, heading off to the locker room to get ready.

Upon entering the Slyterhin’s guest locker room, Remus was hit with the chaotic aura. There was yelling and shouting, and players moving all around the room.

There was a media person, one of their own, talking to Kingsley Shacklebolt in the far corner. Some players were taping their sticks, one was being taped up by Lily, another was standing on one foot (a part of their superstitious routine, no doubt). 

Remus took a moment to absorb the air, the mood.

His smile filled his face as he made his way over to Peter and James, who were taking off their nice clothes and getting dressed in their uniforms.

“Boys! Hey, media, out of here! You can see ‘em after the game, but right now, they’re mine!” Coach Weasley shooed Mary Macdonald out of the room, who only let out a little whine but left without further defiance.

Arthur raised a small, yellow piece of paper in the air, waving it with a gleaming smile on his face. “What do I have here, boys?”

James beat his fist up against the locker beside him, which had most of his things hanging out of it.

“Line-up!” Edgar Bones, left wing for the second string line, howled.

“Right you are, Skeleton! Black!- Where’s Black?” 

Everyone turned their heads around, searching for their captain.

Coach sighed as Sirius sauntered into the locker room, a sandwich full of tuna hanging out of his mouth. 

“Right, okay. Potter! You’re reading.” Coach extended the paper out to James, who stood from his stall, taking the yellow sheet.

“Right, right. Let’s see here,” James muttered mischievously to himself.

Sirius made his way to his locker, right between James’ and Remus’. As he passed Peter, on James’ other side, he gave the man a fist bump. When passing Remus, Sirius gave the man a nod and a friendly shoulder tap.

James raised his hand to make a fist, holding it up to his mouth as a microphone. “Your starting line-up for your Gry~ffindor Lio~ns!” 

There were shouts, roars, and howls. Fists and hands banged on locker doors. There was a lot of noise, practically taking over the whole hallway and locker room.

Coach watched on with a beaming smile.

“Your starting line…” James paused for dramatic effect, bending over to add to the suspense. Sirius created a drumroll on his locker. “Taking the role of our defending men, our defensemen–original–our very own: number 83, Gideon Prewett, and 49, Benjamin Fenwick. ‘Grats, lads.”

More banging. 

“Our goalie, our ultimate hero for the night… the beloved, the caring, the deadly– Peter Pettigrew!”

Hollering.

Peter blushed a deep pink, shoving his face in his hands.

“Left wing. Oh, buckle in, lads. This one will knock you out of your socks before you even blink. The fast, the furious, the blurry storm of thunder and lightning, the speedy– Remus fucking Lupin!!”

Sirius barked loudly, and the others howled– it was courtesy of Remus’ nickname.

“Right on, Moony!!” Sturgis Podmore called from his side of the locker room.

“The Snakes better watch out!! Wolves eat snakes,” Diggle added on, snickering.

Remus waved them off with a hand, “Who’s our right wing?”

James gave him a fake stern look, “Now, now, Rem. Slow down, take a breather. I’m getting there. And I’m offended,” James looked down at the paper to make sure of something, “it’s your beautiful James Potter, me.”

The players around laughed as James gestured to himself, in between confident and shy.

“And… for our centre…” The room cascaded with thrumming and quiet growling. Remus was standing up, Peter on the other side of him. “Our legendary captain, SIRIUS BLACK!”

On cue, Remus and Peter lifted Sirius up on their shoulders, parading him around.

The team each took their turn to pat on Sirius, no one daring to go near his hair.

Frank even gave him a good luck kiss on the cheek.

“Okay, that’s enough, the lot of you. We got work to do. Get dressed. I want you on the ice in fifteen minutes, warming up. Shacklebolt, you’re on reserve goalie. Be prepared to come in the third period. Longbottom, prepare your own line. I better see some points out there!” Coach gave them all an encouraging(terrifying) look, raising his fist in the air before turning around and leaving the locker room. “…And have fun, I guess.”

Laughs followed. Then, everyone started to finish getting prepared.

Remus rushed to finish getting ready, sticking to his routine(of course).

“We ready? Anyone feeling weary, speak now.” Sirius stood in front of them all, taking over his role beautifully.

“We’re going to smoke those Snakes,” Peter threatened darkly.

“There, there, Petey.” Frank playfully patted Peter on the shoulder, giving him a smirk. “We won’t get on you for spoiling your knickers.”

Peter gave him a shove, grumbling under his breath.

Remus bent over his right foot, sliding on his skate and tying it on tight.

“Remus!” He heard Lily call from somewhere in the locker room. He raised his head up, searching around for her fiery hair.

“Over here, Lils.” He raised his hand, standing up with one skate on, half-tied.

“Hey, let my left wing get ready,” Sirius interrupted, only half-joking.

Lily glared. “I am your trainer, Black. I have one job, and that’s making sure you all stay healthy on that ice. Let me do my job.” She gave him one more harsh look, before turning back to Remus. “Anyways.”

Sirius balked and Remus chortled.

“How’s that hip feeling? Any stinging, sharp spikes of pain, or soreness at all?” Lily stepped forward, reaching out as if to graze her touch on his right hip.

Remus cringed, dreading the topic. “I’m fine, Evans. Thanks.”

Lily turned her soft gaze into a stern one. “Don’t lie to me, Lupin.”

Remus let out an exasperated sigh. “I said I’m fine, Lily. Leave it. Please,” he added as an afterthought.

“Will you at least let me wrap it?” Lily questioned, eyebrows raised and equipment in hand, her mind already made up.

“The injury was six months ago,” Remus defended.

Injury. Car accident. A drunk driver’s fault. Busted up his hip real bad. He almost wasn’t allowed back on the ice, but he fought. And now he’s here.

“And? You think I don’t know what I’m doing?” Lily shot back, just as fierce.

“I’m already dressed,” Remus added.

“Okay, fine,” Lily breathed, raising her hands in surrender.

“You think the media will bring it up?” James was referring to the accident.

“Well, everyone heard about it. I hope not, though. Snakes might try something. They’re slippery like that,” Sirius commented.

“It’s alright. Let’s just go shoot some puck.” Remus gave another huff, deciding the end of the conversation.

He sat back down on the bench, finishing tying his skate and sliding the other one on, tying that skate as well.

Peter gave him a quick squeeze on the shoulder before joining the rest of the players in the hallway to line up to enter the arena.

James followed after, hollering different various things to hype up the team.

Remus finished up his skate. He set his elbows on his knees, lowering his head below his hands.

A comforting hand landed on his back.

Remus looked up to stare into Sirius’ striking, stormy grey-blue eyes.

“It’ll be okay,” Sirius whispered, almost too quiet for Remus to hear.

Remus nodded, standing up.

The two, last out of the locker room and last in line, joined their team.

“All right, boys!” James crowed.

“Hey, Lupin!” Sirius called from just behind Remus.

“Right here, Black,” Remus stated.

“Wanna make a bet?”

“A bet, Black?” Remus threw back, voice volume rising as the music outside started and turned louder.

“Whoever scores the most points has to buy the other dinner,” Sirius gambled.

Remus was taken aback. Was this Sirius’ way of asking him out?

“You in?” Sirius questioned after a moment of silence.

“Yeah, sure. You’re on. Again, wiping you on the ice.” Remus let a smirk spread itself in the corner of his mouth, turning back to Sirius, who always was last to go out on the ice.

Sirius copied his smirk. “You’re that confident in yourself, Lupin?”

“Are you?” Remus turned back around, his left skate on the ice before his right followed, pushing himself across the rink.

He could hear Sirius’ laugh over the screams of the crowd.

The lights were lowered, green spotlights circling around the arena. The crowd was berserk. Even though it was an away game, the crowd was still littered evenly with Gryffindor fans.

The announcer spoke loudly over the speakers, announcing the away team. Remus paid it no mind, lining up in-between James and Sirius on the offensive blue line, on their team-bench’s side. The Lions faced off the Snakes, who were now skating out a full speed, like green blurs as they were decked out in their home jerseys.

Remus looked down at his own away jersey, the bright gold.

He smirked, eyes drifting up mischievously.

“ And those are your Slytherin Snakes !” The announcer called. Just after, the half of the crowd in green and silver hissed for their team.

Sirius rolled his eyes and leaned over towards Remus’ ears and whispered, “Sneaky wankers.”

Remus laughed as quietly as he could, raising his hand to cover his mouth.

“All right, come on,” the team heard their coach call from their bench. The team skated over, lining up.

It was only seconds of sitting down before the announcer spoke over the speaker, “ Will everyone please rise and remove all hats and headgear for the playing of the national anthem. ”

The team stood, Sirius on one of the ends. Remus stood behind Sirius, raising his hand to hold his number chain. Sirius did the same. James was behind Remus, holding on to Remus’ shoulder. Peter held James’, and Remus held Sirius’. Sirius had his hand on top of Remus’ to complete the link. 

The four best friends were linked together like a train.

Once the lights flicked back on after the song, the team rushed back on to the ice to start warming up. Three minutes were set on the clock.

“ Good evening, folks. This is Emmeline Vance, ” one of the announcers introduced over the speaker.

“ And I’m Ted Tonks. And we’re your sports commentators for the night. Let’s start off with the most drama-seeking matter at hand. Slytherin’s Regulus Black and Gryffindor’s Sirius Black. Brothers, Vance, can you believe that? Brothers on the ice tonight. Rivals, more like. Ever since Sirius left the Black home, the brothers have never seen eye to eye. Will things get frisky out here on the ice?”

“I believe so, Tonks. The refs will have to keep a watchful eye on that pair. Both skilled skaters, no doubt. With…” 

The commentators droned on about the two brothers. Remus would look up at Sirius every so often, but found the boy focused on his warm ups.

Remus focused on his own warm ups, cancelling out everything else.

That was until he heard his name from over the speakers.

He turned his head up and glared as Emmeline stated, “ Well, let’s not pass an eye over Remus Lupin, number six on the Gryffindor team. He and Slytherin’s Fenrir Greyback have a past, and not a pretty one. As well as the injury Lupin obtained just six months ago. But he’s here, on the ice, playing with his team against their rivals. Bravery, just like every other Lion .”

Remus, reminded of the man, turned his head over towards Slytherin's side of the ice, where he caught sight of Greyback.

The wolfish man was already staring back at him, a malicious smile spread across his face.

Slytherin’s second line, right wing. 

Remus wouldn't have to encounter Greyback for the most part. 

He took the time, however, to scan over Slytherin’s first line. Tom Riddle as centre, Regulus Black as their right wing, and Severus Snape as their left.

Remus would have to encounter Snape the most, the slimy git.

“ One minute, ” a voice warned over the speakers.

Remus took that as his sign to head towards the glass, another tradition he had.

Find a few things to sign for kids, make some little friends.

It always puts Remus in the right mindset. He loved children.

“How y'all doin’?” Remus greeted as he skated to a stop. The shed ice sprayed up the glass before falling back down, piling up.

“I love you!” He heard a woman scream over the chaos of the crowd.

Remus gave an endearing, but slightly awkward, smile. “You, too.”

The girl let out a scream, turning to her friend who had the camera phone on her.

Pucks, sticks, and jerseys were thrown over the glass, landing on the ice around him.

The fans knew he did this every game, and that this would be their moment.

 “Guys, guys. Not too much! I only have a moment.” Remus raised his hands, doing a push-back gesture.

He caught the pen thrown over, picking up the first thing and signing. He did at least thirteen items before the buzzer went off. 

He looked apologetically at his fans, giving a crooked smile.

Remus bent over, helping the ice crewmen return the items and clean off the ice. 

“We got it, you go on, Six,” the helper shooed, giving him a reassuring smile.

“Right! Thanks bunches!” Remus shouted, already skating off at high speeds. 

With a sharp stop, Remus was in front of one of  the bench boards. Benjy cleared the areas a bit for Remus, who gave him a grateful nod.

“Alright! Two minutes, listen up!” Coach called from the centre of the bench, standing behind it and against the wall.

Lily stood behind him, dressed in her athletic trainer uniform.

“You alright?” Remus caught James, who sat beside him, whispering to Sirius quietly.

“Yep, fine. Fine as a peach, actually.” Sirius shrugged his shoulders repeatedly to wash away his own thoughts.

It was obvious that the black-haired boy had gotten into his own head.

“Sirius, you don’t like peaches,” James pointed out warily.

“Is it Regulus?” Remus leaned forward to talk around James.

Sirius sighed. “I hate how much you two know me.”

“You’re just an open book, Pads.”

“Boys! Hey! Listen up,” Coach demanded. And then went on to ramble about the plays they had been over a million times.

Sirius gave him a quick look before talking again, but more quiet this time. “And who’s to say you aren’t in your own heads? James, you and Snape. And don’t even get me started on Greyback, Remus.”

“No need to be defensive,” Remus responded cooly, fully expecting Sirius’ actions.

“I’m not,” Sirius stated. Not convincingly.

“Sure, and I’m a deer,” James remarked.

“Okay, time’s up. Six on the ice,” one of the referees said as he leaned towards the team.

“You heard him, let’s go! Starting line up!” Coach screamed.

“Lions! I want to you-know-what out there!” (superstitious to say you’re gonna win) “Let’s go, let’s go, let’s go!” Sirius howled, his mood turned completely around and a wide smile spread across his face.

Remus and James knock their helmets together before sliding the protective gear on their heads.

Peter makes his way over to the goal, giving it a pat, and muttering, “Let’s be friends tonight, alright?”

Obviously he didn’t get a response.

Gideon and Fenwick take their posts, each behind either James and Remus.

Sirius skated to the middle, staring straight at Tom Riddle, who was making his way down the ice leisurely.

Remus rolled his eyes, but made eye contact with his face-off buddy, Severus Snape.

Remus scoffed.

Snape went to university with the four marauders. He bullied little kids, and took any chance he could get to make a snide comment or mean remark.

James hated him especially.

Mostly because Snape always tried to get with Lily, the girl he had been pining over for years and his trainer .

“Good to see you again, Lupin,” Snape snapped, any sentimental meaning washed away forcefully.

“Can’t say the same,” Remus stated, not batting an eye. 

“Okay, let’s keep it clean tonight, boys, please,” the referee requested as he wearily stood in the middle of the two teams who were eyeing each other with deadly glares.

The referee drew in an unsteady breath. He raised the puck in the air, right in front of Riddle and Sirius.

Sirius’ stick didn’t flinch, eyes not wavering.

Then the puck was dropped.

Sirius had gotten control over it almost instantly, a quick blur that seemed to suspend time in fast forward.

Sirius slapped it to his right, right to James’ stick. 

James took off, heading straight for Slytherin’s goalie, Evan Rosier.

His high didn’t last long as he was bodied to the ice, slammed to the ground with a sickening thud.

Regulus Black, victorious with his aimed hit, took the puck from James and shot down the ice.

“ And we’re off !” The announcers shouted through the speakers. “ Starting off strong and aggressive, just like we thought. ”

Remus was quick to react. He shot down the ice, chasing after Regulus.

He was right on Regulus’ heel when he felt two others surround him. Without giving a glance, Remus dug his skate into the ice and gave a forceful push, shooting out of the human sandwich and right beside Regulus.

The man, not expecting Remus to escape, wasn’t prepared for when Remus stuck his stick out and took the puck right out from under him.

Remus dug his skate right on the spot, did a quick turn, and left the three slytherins in his flurries.

With a sharp transfer to Sirius, and dodging Lucius Malfoy, a defenseman, the Gryffindors scored and the horn blew through the arena.

The crowd erupted in roars, literally. There were screams and boos, spread evenly throughout the rink.

Remus, still moving fast from his momentum, slammed into Sirius. The men hung on to each other, glorious and filled to the brim with pride.

Again, literally.

“Point for me,” Sirius shouted over the crowd and the song playing over the speakers. Back in Black by ACDC, a tradition the NHL had when Sirius Black scored a point.

“It’s been a minute, Padfoot!”

Gideon, in passing, corrected, “Forty-seven seconds, actually.”

“With your help, of course. Our hero.” Benjy held a hand to his heart, giving Remus an endearing grin.

“Shove off, and play the game,” Remus grumbled, skating off to get back into face-off position.

Snape lined up in front of him once again. This time, with more drive(deadliness) in his eyes.

And just a second later, the puck was dropped and on Riddle’s stick. 

Remus could catch the noise of protest from Sirius from across the ice, but another second later and he was laid flat out on the ice.

Remus stood back up, a glare in his expression, locating Snape, who was standing off to the side instead of skating next to Riddle, who still had possession of the puck.

Remus skated forward, aiming towards the puck, but Snape moved in front of him.

Remus kept skating, however, now in full momentum.

Snape was seconds away from Remus, the two now at a full advance towards one another. Remus was planning to just check him then pass, to get the puck.

The whistle blew. Snape skidded to a halt, expecting this– planned. Remus was too into it to stop, just a second too late.

Remus ran straight into Snape, not without the man shoving him away. Remus grunted.

A referee nearby held his hand in the air, signalling that there was a penalty.

Remus let out a long groan, bowing his head.

He should’ve known.

Snape, moved to the side with Malfoy over him, gave Remus a slimy smile. “No hard feelings.”

Remus rolled his eyes as a referee escorted him to the penalty box.

The rink was filled with boos. Everyone who had seen the play knew that Slytherinplanned to put too many men on the ice just a second before Remus crashed into Snape.

It was ignored by the refs, of course.

No need for unfairness.

“ Gryffindor Lions’ penalty to number six, Remus Lupin, two minutes for roughing ,” Tonks informed the crowd just as the door closed on Remus.

The man turned around, keeping his face stoic as he sat down.

His team was going berserk on the bench, throwing their hands up in the air and shouting things.

A referee swung by, saying something to Coach, who ultimately calmed down the team.

The game continued.

The lines were switched, and each team’s seconds faced off. 

Remus watched as Gryffindor and Slytherin battled each other to get a puck in a goal, but it never turned out.

He looked up at his timer.

Bones was keeping a side-eye on both Remus and his timer. He neared the bench, ready to jump off the ice the moment Remus flew on.

And they did just that.

The second the timer hit zero and gave a short beep, Remus flung open the door and was on the ice.

He kept two skates behind him at all times, getting his speed up enough to get into the action the moment something happened.

Remus lowered his stick to the ice, catching the puck Frank skidded over to him.

Just as Remus swung back his stick to take aim, the whistle blew.

Out of frustration, Remus let out an aggravated grunt, slamming his hands down.

Fabian skated over to him, still in constant motion back over to the bench. “Easy there, Lupin. Keep that level head of yours, game’s only just started.”

“You good to stay on the ice, Lupin?” He heard Coach ask him.

Remus gave him a sharp nod, “Yes, Coach.”

“Good. Then get your arse on the ice and play some hockey.”

Remus gave him another nod before heading back over to his face-off position.

Sirius let his hand fall on Remus’ shoulder, silently reminding Remus he has his team behind him, with him.

They lined up, then the puck was dropped.

Sirius took possession, skating down towards Rosier. Remus was at his side instantly, glued.

Regulus had the same idea.

The younger Black brother was right on his older brother’s heels, breath loud but even.

“Leave me alone, Reg. Jeez, it’s like you're obsessed with me or something,” Sirius remarked, bouncing the puck in between his stick.

“Just playing the game,” Regulus responded smoothly, an irritated tint to his tone.

“Your team stick you to my tail? I have to say, I never liked the party game Pin The Tail On The Donkey.”

Through all the banter, Remus had unknowingly let himself get distracted enough to not notice Tom Riddle and Barty Crouch Junior right on his heels.

Then he was sandwiched between them.

Sirius was left unguarded, and Regulus took that second it took for Remus to free himself for him to steal the puck and score.

“Where’s my defence?! Hey, where’s my defence?” Remus shouted, holding his arms up in questioning.

“Calm, Remus. Calm down,” James commanded lowly as a camera flashed in their faces as they circled the rink. “You’re letting it get to you too much. Chill out.”

“Then tell my defence team to defend,” Remus growled, loud enough for Gideon and Benjy to hear.

And then they were back in a face-off.

Sirius took possession of the puck, and shot it over to Remus, who in turn shot it to James.

It was seconds after the puck landed on the ice and Gryffindor scored once again.

Remus let out the heavy breath he was holding in.

He skated over to James and Sirius, joining his helmet in as the three leant their heads together.

Their breathing was heard, hard and uneven.

“We’re good, lads. Let’s keep it up,” James encouraged.

“Yap,” Remus clipped, finally calming down. 

Sirius placed a hand on his shoulder, giving a squeeze.

“ That makes the score 1-2, Gryffindor! I believe this will be a high-scoring game tonight, Vance .”

“ I think so too, Ted ,” Emmeline agreed.

“Switch!” Remus heard from the bench. He made his way quickly to the area, sitting down silently.

For the last three minutes of the first period, there was no scoring.

However, with only five seconds left, Slytherin scored.

Then the first period was over.

Remus stood up, side by side with Peter, as the team made their way back into the locker room.

The two shed off their gloves, throwing them into the basket Lily was extending in the doorway to dry the team’s gloves for them.

“Okay, listen up! We’re tied, and we just ended the first period. We looked clean, but we can do better. I know it, I’ve seen it. We need to anticipate Slytherin’s moves. They’re cunning and manipulative– use that against them.” Coach looked each player in the eyes. “We can do this. Take these fifteen minutes to breathe, then we’re back out on that ice, fierce . We’re bloody lions, God dammit!”

Roars and shouts followed his speech, banging on lockers and stomping of feet accompanying. 

Remus and Peter took their seats in front of their stalls.

Sirius was hovering over James, who cradled his head in his hands in between his knees.

“We’ll get ‘em, Prongs,” Remus reassured, leaning over to pat his teammate on the back.

“Six!” Remus snapped his head up as Marlene, their team manager. Marlene had a finger pointed towards Mary, who stood beside her with a bright smile. “Up for some media time?”

“Sure,” he agreed, standing up.

Once in front of the camera, Mary snapped into action.

“Okay, Remus, you’re just gonna answer a few questions for us,” Mary informed as she hit record.

Remus nodded. “Alright.”

“How do you believe your team is doing tonight?”

“I believe we are keeping our own. We could push ourselves a little bit more, and I believe you will see that during the second and third period.”

Mary hit the nail on the coffin quickly, leaving behind the standard questioning. “And how does it feel to be on the same ice as Fenrir Greyback?”

Remus anticipated the question, however. “I haven’t been on the same ice as him yet. Our team is going to do great tonight. I believe in us. Go Lions.” 

He held up the hand form of their mascot before standing up and leaving the locker room to join the others back into the hallway to prepare to be back on the ice.

Lily was walking back and forth in the line, handing back each of their dried gloves.

“Alright there, Lupin?” She questioned, stopping in front of him. Lily handed him his dried gloves.

Remus leaned down, giving her cheek a soft peck. “Just fine, thank you, Lils.”

The door to the hallway opened, and the players were back in the rink. 

Remus had only gotten beside the bench before he was shooed away to get on the ice.

He noticed immediately that something was different.

Sirius was beside him, skating simultaneously with him to get to the centre lines.

“What’s different?” Remus questioned quietly, mouth aimed at Sirius’ ear.

“Don’t know yet. Glad I’m not the only one, though.”

They made it to the centre line, James on the other side of Sirius.

Remus looked up, and instead of staring into the eyes of Snape, he made direct eye contact with Avery Mulciber.

Slytherin’s second line.

Remus let his gaze flit to the right side of the ice, and– looking directly back at him was Greyback. James was lined up in front of him, gaze so sharp and dark, it was threatening– especially coming from James Potter, the man who was always so soft and caring.

The puck was dropped and Sirius took immediate control of it against Rodolphus Lestrange.

Stupid move on Slytherin’s part.

What was their motive?

Remus skated forward to Mulciber, keeping him back as Sirius shot past him.

Remus went towards the boards, giving a holler, and the puck was passed to him.

The fans banged their hands on the plexiglass as Remus skated past them, eager eyes observing each of his movements.

Remus raised his stick, preparing to pass the puck to James.

The moment the puck was out of his possession, Remus was launched into the wall.

He let out a painful shout, eyes scrunched closed as he gasped.

He was held against the glass for one more second, before being thrown to the ground.

That was unexpected.

James forgot about the puck immediately, skating over to assist Remus. Luckily, the whistle blew right as Slytherin gained possession.

Remus was laying out on the ice now, staring up at the ceiling.

His heart pounded in his ears.

One thought rang through his mind: Where does it hurt?

Head and hip.

His head and his hip.

Head injuries are never fun to deal with, and his hip is even worse.

Remus caught the shouts of his teammates. The ones on the ice ganged up on Greyback, but were all pulled off by referees almost instantly.

Remus blinked once. Twice. 

He sat up, stood back up, then brushed the ice carelessly off his pants and adjusted his slightly-twisted helmet.

“ Although that was a hard hit, no doubt, that was a clean hit. What will Lupin do? ” Ted questioned through the rink.

“Six! Hey, are you okay? Are you hurt?” A referee inquired, standing beside him and holding him up with a hand on his arm.

“Fine,” Remus clipped as his vision swam– either with adrenaline or injury, he had not a clue.

“Go take a minute, talk to your trainer,” the referee suggested.

“I’m fine. I’m staying in,” Remus answered with a hundred percent certainty.

He threw a look over to his bench, where his coach and athletic trainer– actually his whole team in general– were staring at him with question and concern written all over their faces.

Remus didn’t give another glance, skating with fierce determination over to the centre lines.

“Rem, bud, why don’t you go get checked out?” James questioned, leaning on Remus’ shoulder lightly.

Remus didn’t answer, gaze locked on the puck.

He wanted it.

Sirius recognized Remus’ expression. He skated up to Remus, tapping their helmets together for a few seconds, then positioned himself in front of Lestrange.

The puck was dropped, and Lestrange got it.

Remus was on him instantly, stealing the puck out from under him before Lestrange could take two steps.

Remus did a full one-eighty, darting up the ice with lightning speed.

Once he got to the goal, two things stood in his way.

The goalie– Alecto Carrow, and Fenrir Greyback.

Remus kept his tempo, giving a grunt as he aimed straight for Greyback.

He had to give the man credit, Greyback didn’t waver.

But at the last second, Remus stuck his foot down, circling Greyback and causing the player to land on the ice.

Remus kept forward, lifting his stick to line up the shot.

He aimed and he fired.

Time screeched to a stand still as everyone watched the puck slip right by Carrow’s left hand.

The buzzer rang out loudly throughout the rink. The crowd erupted.

Remus raised both arms above his head, a smile fully spread on his face from ear to ear.

His line crashed into him, hugging him tight and practically stacking themselves on top of Remus.

Sirius was screaming something in his ear; James was grinning, like always; Gideon was patting Remus all over in a congratulating way; Fenwick was howling, head tilted back.

“ And that breaks the tie, with a score from Gryffindor’s number six, Remus Lupin! They’re on fire tonight! I bet Lupin is on top of the world right now. Especially after that hard hit he took, ” Emmeline rambled over the speakers.

Remus didn’t care though, barely paid attention.

He scored.

“I’m tied with you now, Black,” was the only thing Remus thought to say at the moment.

Sirius let out a barking laugh, extending him a hand to pull him off the ice. Remus took it, and both skated back to the bench.

“Not for long,” Sirius promised. “How’s the hip?”

(a/n mister tell me a f-ing secret…)

Remus shrugged, giving the boy a measly grin.

Once making it to the bench, Lily and Coach Weasley were on him. Not in the literal sense, but verbal, yes.

“Are you okay? Do you hurt anywhere?”

“Do you need off the ice?”

“No, no,” Remus denied both things. “I’m staying on the ice.”

“Good, you sure?” Coach gave him a hard look in the eyes.

“Yes, Coach.”

“Atta boy. Good shot, by the way. Your Moony alter ego came out a bit,” Coach teased.

“Not you too,” Remus groaned. 

“Get out on that ice, Lupin!” Frank hollered, Fabian following with a teasing yipe.

Remus darted out of the door and on his line. He gave a sharp look at Severus Snape, as Slytherin’s first line replaced their second.

Remus was used to being the tallest out of everyone, and he used that to his advantage.

He stood a bit taller than he usually would in his crouching position, turning his gaze down upon Snape.

The puck was dropped, and Riddle took possession. The Slytherin skated down the ice, heading straight for Peter. 

Peter crouched down, preparing for the shot.

James was on Riddle, though. He blocked any shot Riddle had at making it.

But that never stopped a Slytherin before.

Riddle shot back his stick and fired the puck in one quick motion.

Peter hit the puck away, successfully blocking his goal.

Regulus let out a shout at Riddle from somewhere behind Remus, but he didn’t pay attention.

Because Peter had hit the puck away, and straight into the stick of Sirius Black.

Sirius, before any of the Slytherins could realise and act upon it, glided down the ice in impeccable time.

He got to the goal, and before Rosier could properly prepare, Sirius took the shot.

The buzzer rang.

Sirius whooped, pumping his arm up and down in the air. Back in Black sang over the speakers, as Sirius swung back over to his team.

Sirius stood in front of the little human triangle they made. He gave a confident look, raising his stick like a staff and beat it once against the ice.

His teammates fell like bowling pins.

Sirius dropped the serious look, flashing his signature smile instead.

His team stood back up, tackling Sirius to the ice.

“ And that makes the game two-to-four! The Lions’ Black is on his way to a hat trick, with two points in his pot! ” The announcer stated as soon as the song clip ended.

“First line, line up! Two more, and it’s a switch!” Coach informed the team from the bench, and the players lined up on the centre ice.

“Time out for Slytherin!” The referee announced right before the puck was dropped.

Gryffindor stepped back, allowing Slytherin to go to their bench to discuss with their coach.

“I have a bad feeling about this,” Peter stated as he skated over to his huddled first line.

Sirius draped an arm around Peter’s shoulder, avoiding the huge padding all around Peter’s body. “We’ll be fine, Petey.”

“Yeah, we got you. Just keep the puck out of our net,” James added.

Remus raised his hand, placing it on Peter’s helmet and giving his head a little shake. “You got this.”

“Moony, the motivator,” Sirius teased.

“I think I might swoon,” Benjy gasped, draping the back of his hand on the top of his helmet where his forehead was placed.

“Sod off. He’s my man,” James defended, wrapping his arms around Remus.

Remus rolled his eyes, pushing James off of him.

“Lads, listen up. I don’t like what they’re doing. They look determined,” Remus directed the conversation elsewhere.

Gideon nodded. “Lupin is right-”

“When am I not?”

“-I think they’ll try something sneaky. They’ll try to get away with something dirty,” Gideon finished, not even acknowledging Remus’ cocky comment for a moment. Then he added, “Remus, you’re spending time around Sirius and James too much. You’re beginning to sound just as arrogant as them.”

“Well, that’s just because I am good. Now, let’s play some hockey, watch each other’s six.” Remus looked at each player around him.

They all nodded in return.

Heading back towards their positions, they each tapped Peter on the top of his helmet before skating away.

Remus fell into his position easily, crouching down and staring into Snape’s eyes.

The Slytherins looked vicious.

Remus’ gut twisted. He had a bad feeling.

The puck is dropped almost immediately, and Riddle takes possession.

Remus grunts, before digging his skates into the ice and heading straight for Riddle.

Remus and James were huddled around Riddle. Finwick, Prewett and Sirius took care of the others, holding them back to the best of their abilities.

“Easy does it,” James muttered. 

Remus focused solely on Riddle in front of him.

The only sound he registered were the skates gliding on the ice.

Riddle, once close enough to Pettigrew, brought back his stick and swung, just before Remus or James could steal the puck from him.

It seemed as if Riddle didn’t even aim for the goal.

Instead, the puck hit Peter’s helmet straight on.

With Riddle’s momentum, he slammed right into Peter’s goal, making it move around on the ice. That also colliding into Peter.

Remus let out a angry shout, speeding up just to ram into Riddle.

James was right behind him, tearing Riddle off of Peter. While James checked on Peter, Remus was on top of Riddle, shouting the most foul language in his face.

Sirius had somehow made it to them in quick time, considering he was on the other half of the ice just a few seconds ago.

Sirius was pulling Remus off of Riddle, just to replace his spot, using his fists instead of his words.

There were hollers from around the three.

The whole ice had broken into fights.

“You don’t touch our goalie! Touch us! Not our goalie! Have you an ounce of dignity and respect?!” Sirius shouted, allowing Remus to take his turn in sending a punch to Riddle.

His helmet had come off by now– all three had.

Riddle just smiled up at them, blood dripping from his mouth, teeth covered in red.

Remus believed he saw him spit out a tooth.

Two of the referees were on them, tearing Remus and Sirius off of Riddle.

“Hey! Alright, that’s enough! He’s had enough! Box, to the box! Both of you!” One of the refs shouted in Remus’ ear.

Remus just rolled his eyes, staying put.

It took one of his teammates dragging him up for him to start towards the penalty box.

“ Wow! What an exciting moment we just saw! Pettigrew, Gryffindor’s goalie, was just taken down! Hit hard enough to knock away his helmet, Vance. Isn’t that something? No doubt he’ll be sore. Lupin and Black– Gryffindor’s– heading to the penalty box, it turns out. They’ll be in there for a bit. Good reason though. I’d start a fight like that if someone deliberately aimed for my goalie .”

“ Is that what you think, Ted? Was it deliberate? ”

“ We have eyes, Emmeline. No doubt .”

Remus huffed, throwing his stick against the boards as soon as he was in the box.

He sat down, gaze murderous.

Sirius was right behind him, taking a seat next to him on the bench.

The two, in unison, spread their legs and rested their elbows on their knees.

Their looks could kill.

People were banging on the glass around them. Some fans, some not.

“Calm down,” Sirius muttered under his breath.

Sirius had his helmet in his hands. Remus’ was somewhere in the box with him.

“Just give me a minute,” Remus muttered back.

Sirius let out a sharp breath, filled with anger. He slung his arm around Remus’ shoulders, pulling him in close.

Remus let out a heavy breath, one that mirrored Sirius’.

Remus tilted his head, letting it rest on Sirius’ padded shoulder.

The two breathed, and calmed down. Together.

“We have to stay in here for five minutes,” Remus mentioned quietly, as they watched the game continue.

Slytherin had already scored once more, making the score three-to-four.

“Yeah,” Sirius clipped.

“Pete! Aimed after Pete! And we’re allowing that?! Riddle should be ejected!” They heard from just outside the door before it opened.

James stepped inside, face red. He slung off his helmet, throwing it against the glass where one of Slytherin’s fans was laughing in his face.

“Prongs?!” Sirius inquired, sitting up.

What had he missed?

“ Potter is in the box, joining his teammates, for hooking. He receives two minutes. Is it getting crowded in there, fellas ?” Ted teased.

Remus and Sirius looked at James, eyebrows raised.

“It was an accident!” James claimed, raising his arms at his sides.

Sirius just laughed at his best friend, patting the free spot next to him.

“It is a bit crowded in here now,” Remus commented, feeling the squish of three burly, heavily padded hockey players cramming into this small penalty box.

“Claustrophobic, Moons?” James questioned, a smirk on his face.

The tension had dissipated.

The three watched in silence as their team allowed Slyterhin to score twice more.

Slytherin was up by one, the score five-to-four.

Finally, the door opens in the middle of a shift.

The three exit, heading straight to the team’s bench.

Remus avoided Coach’s gaze.

“Good work, boys. We protect our own,” Coach stated proudly.

Remus snapped his head up, eyes wide.

“Cheers, Coach,” Sirius responded, casually. “So, what’s the plan?”

After catching the three up, the first line was back on the ice.

They had to even this score out.

So, Remus did just that.

He went onto the ice determined, not speaking a word to anyone. His vision was zeroed on the puck in the referee's hand.

The puck was dropped, and Sirius immediately had it. It wasn’t another three seconds before he slid the puck over to Remus’ stick.

Remus skated up the ice, right to Rosier. 

With a sly smirk and a cheeky wink, Remus shot the puck off of his stick and into the goal.

The speakers play a celebratory ‘ …Ready For It?’ by Taylor Swift, for Remus’ second score.

“Are you ready for it? Baby, let the games begin! Baby, let the games begin!” Sirius sang loudly in Remus’ ear, shaking Remus around by his shoulders.

Remus threw his head back, laughing.

Benjy was on Remus’ other side, arm around his padding.

“ And that ties up the game once again! Both Sirius Black and Lupin are on their way towards hat tricks. Oops ,” the announcer curses.

The players (and even some of the fans) knocked thrice on what was by them.

“ Sorry about that, boys! But anyways, yes, that. Seems Gryffindor is really kicking into gear now. With these shortly-timed shots. What do you think, Vance? ”

“ I am with you, Ted. I can’t imagine a more intense game right now .”

“Keep kicking it, team! Let me know when you want off the ice!” Coach shouted from the bench.

The players gathered around the boards nodded their heads at their coach.

James and Peter giggled to themselves as they did a sort of handshake through the gloves, before Peter skated back to his goal.

They all line up after touching helmets quickly.

The air was lighter.

The Lions were in it for fun, now.

To Hell with the Snakes.

The puck dropped, and Sirius let it slide right into Riddle’s stick.

Remus trusted his captain, enough to not worry too much.

Fenwick was on Riddle almost immediately. 

James was covering Regulus, and happily skated beside him as Riddle passed the puck to Regulus.

James gave Regulus a bright smile, one filled to the brim with mischief.

Because what would the world be without a bit of mischief?

James stole the puck right from Regulus, just like that.

James stuck his skate right into the ice, swivelling on the spot to form a one-eighty. Then he was shredding ice to get to Rosier.

Remus and Gideon were at his side instantly, hoarding away the frantic Snakes.

The two flanking James circled behind the goal with their continued momentum just as James shot.

And scored.

The buzzer went off once again.

“ And another one! We have three Gryffindor Lions on their way to three shots each tonight! Isn’t that something?! James Potter, number twenty-four, ladies and gentlemen! Five-to-six, Lions !”

All of the players piled on top of James, laughing and shouting in his ears.

“Way to go, Potter!”

“Yeah, Prongs!”

“On fire tonight, mate!”

“ We’re on fire,” James corrected Benjy.

“One more, Coach!” Sirius holds his pointer finger up to their bench, signifying one more line before they switch for a well-deserved break.

Remus lined back up where he was positioned after a few more seconds of celebrating James’ victory.

He stared down at Snape, who had an off look to him.

Well, more than usual.

The puck was dropped, and Sirius took it.

Snape was on Remus immediately, staying right in front of his stick.

Too close.

“Lupin?” He heard Sirius shout down the ice.

He was being cornered and had to get rid of the puck.

Remus was the least covered man out there.

“Here!” Remus hollered, and the puck was slid to him.

He lined up the shot and as soon as he began to lower the stick, Snape got right in the way.

It was the plan all along.

Remus let out a disapproving yelp, as his stick came down hard on Snape.

“Slashing! Ref! That was a slash!” Snape screamed, pointing over at Remus accusingly, holding his side where the stick had hit him.

That had to hurt, plan or not.

Remus grunted as Malfoy skated up to him, jostling Remus around by the shoulders.

“What the fuck is with you?!” Malfoy screamed in his face.

Remus rolled his eyes, doing his best to remove Malfoy nicely .

“ And off to the box Lupin goes, once again !” Vance chirped, amused.

“ Is it getting comfortable in there, Six ?” The other announcer added.

Remus looked up at the nearest camera aimed on him, giving it a lighthearted shake of his head. His smile was sheepish, as he shrugged his shoulders helplessly, arms out beside him in equal confusion.

The room chuckled.

Remus skated over to the box, entering just as the referee slammed the door shut on him.

With a roll of his eyes, Remus sat down on the bench behind him.

The crowd surrounding him banged on the glass, either screaming at him or teasing him.

Either way, it pissed him off.

The crowd grew wild, in absolute hysterics of the Lion player who had wound up in the penalty box once again.

Remus grew livid.

He was out for blood.

He watched with a blank gaze as Gryffindor’s second line flew on to the ice, replacing the first.

Bones shot a look over in Remus’ direction. He glanced up at the clock, which read one minute and forty-seven seconds left of game time for the penalty box.

There were three minutes left in the period.

Remus took a sharp breath in, leaning forward in his hands before standing up on his feet.

He was light on his feet as he paced the small space he had in the box which should be labelled his, at this point.

The crowd caught up on his behaviour. Their energy level raised with his.

Lion fans' anger rivalled with Remus’.

Everyone was just a bit pissed off.

Fire was fed to the fire as the time counted down.

Ten more seconds. One more puck drop.

Remus watched as the referee dropped the puck, and Riddle took possession.

He slid on his helmet, snatching up his stick from the bench.

Riddle was up the ice, near Peter. He bounced the puck between his stick, over and over.

Remus wanted that puck so fucking bad.

It was practically singing to him.

The crowd in the rink screamed their countdown, counting down from ten.

Remus stood in front of the door, ready to damn near bust it down.

As a small beep signalled for Remus to get back on the ice, he banged the door open, busting through and practically throwing himself onto the ice.

Bones had to jump over the boards to avoid the penalty of too many men on the ice.

Remus kicked himself in gear. He allowed himself to feed on the screams and roars the crowd provided. 

And they were providing pretty eagerly.

Remus was on a rampage.

He practically flew past his team’s bench, accepting his teammates’ howls. As well as the bangs of their sticks as his teammates smack them against the boards.

Remus was on cloud nine.

He didn’t let much else get into his head as he rounded to Riddle’s side.

“Howdy,” Remus clipped, just before he slammed his stick on the ice, spooking Riddle a bit.

Remus took that vulnerable second to snatch the puck for his own, immediately spinning to Slytherin’s goal.

Fabian and Frank were on either side of Remus, trying their best to level with the man that seemed to be racing down the ice.

Remus got close enough, stared Rosier straight in the eyes, then shot.

Buzzer.

Fuck, yes.

Remus continued forward, circling the back of the goal.

He did a sudden halt, looking up at the sea of green in the crowd.

He raised his arms that translated, ‘ what happened? ’, then gave an obvious wink.

Remus fed off of the screams of anger.

And the delightful ones.

Hats were thrown on the ice, accepting the first hat trick of the game.

Remus grinned, taking off his helmet with one hand. He shook his head a bit, moving his hair around.

Sweat dripped down either side of his face, down his body.

He couldn’t give less of a shit.

He just won himself a hat trick.

Versus their rival.

Remus didn’t even register his entire team trampeding towards him, until they had him on the ice.

Frank was shouting in his ear, directly on top of Remus. “You did it! You bitch, you did it!”

Remus gave a happy nod, only letting out a laugh.

Not much else would be said for a while.

He was riding on a high, that he felt he would never come down.

Sirius had shoved through the dog pile, ending up beside Frank.

Remus turned his head, trying to make eye contact with Sirius through the bodies.

“You bloody did it!”

Remus managed. He always managed for Sirius Black. “I’m winning the bet!”

Sirius’ grin spread wider. “Sock it, Lupin!”

“ And with the third score from Remus Lupin, that leaves the score at five-to-seven at the end of period two! Off the ice, fellas! You gotta let these people clean up all these hats off the ice! ” Ted called from the speakers.

Remus (unwillingly) was lifted on to James’ and Frank’s shoulders, who carried him off the ice.

The team followed around them, surrounding them.

Yes, carrying someone on your shoulders on the ice with ice skates on is dangerous. No one cared or had a lick of fear.

Once entering the locker room, Remus pushed himself off their shoulders, landing on the ground gracefully (with the help of his hands on Sirius’ shoulders, of course).

“Boys! I believe we are on fire!” Kingsley shouted, banging his fist against the cement wall.

Remus placed his gloves into the basket Lily extended.

“Yeah, for sure. Lupin, why don’t we take this time to cool down, eh?” Coach suggested as he walked into the locker room last.

“Great idea, Coach,” Peter joined, giving Remus an assuring nod.

Remus gave Peter an upward quirk of his lips back to Peter.

“So, lads, we are doing great out there! We need to keep it at this rate. Maybe take a few more breathers. I want shorter line times. No more than three shifts in a row,” Sirius broke down his plan to his team, pacing around instead of sitting on a bench.

“Eye-eye, Cap.”

“And I want us all working together. Slytherin is a dirty team, they’ll try everything.”

“You got it, Cap.”

“And have fun.”

“We understand, Sirius.”

“Wicked! Now, let’s go kick some Snake ass.”

𖤐

Remus grunted as the Slytherins scored once again.

“ And there ya have it, folks. Gryffindor seems to be starting off a bit rocky ,” Emmeline commented.

“ So rocky, in fact, that Slytherin has tied it up– seven-to-seven. And we’ve just begun the last period, Vance !” Ted added on.

Sirius let out an aggravated shout as he slammed his stick to the ground.

James was immediately by his side, gripping his shoulder and muttering into his ear fastly.

Remus gave the two a gentle shove, before jumping the boards to join his line on the ice for their round.

James gave his shoulder a little bump, before skating to Sirius’ right.

Sirius’ eyes were watching Remus as he got in position then looked at him. Sirius shot Remus a sly wink, before staring down Riddle.

The puck was dropped, and Riddle took it. 

Sirius let out a grunt, on Tom immediately.

Remus was on Regulus, as the younger Black brother was passed the puck.

“Hey, Reg,” Remus breathed, right beside Regulus.

Regulus let out a loud scoff. “Lupin.”

“You always this dramatic?” Remus sent back, lazy and not angered, like Regulus.

“I’m like my brother in that way, you’ll find. About where the resemblance stops,” Regulus clipped back. He bounced the puck back and forth with his stick, eyes focused on ahead of him.

“Well, I don’t know. Look in a mirror, mate. You two look far too similar to not be brothers.” Regulus huffed. “ And ,” Remus started, emitting a groan from Regulus. “You two skate the same.”

Regulus’ stride faltered a second. “What?”

“Skate. You and Sirius-”

“Black!” Malfoy shouts from across the ice. “Hurry your arse up! What’s taking so long over there?!”

Regulus ignored Lucius, head tilting a bit to turn towards Remus. “How’s that?” 

“Well, instead of tearing up the ice, you glide on it– like Sirius. I assume the gracefulness is from being a danseur. Or, that’s what Sirius says to call it. It’s basically just male ballet dancer in French, right?” Remus shot the rhetoric question at Regulus.

However, Regulus answered with a curt nod.

Then blushed.

“He told you that?!”

“What? That you two did ballet when you were younger? Forced by parents, yet you both loved it? Yeah, he told me. Tells me a lot, Reggie,” Remus breathed the last sentence, before slamming his stick on the puck and ramming his shoulder into Regulus.

Regulus fell to the ground.

Remus gained possession of the puck.

Remus cackled as he skated off the other way, sliding the puck over to Sirius before he could be cornered by the oncoming Snakes.

Sirius gleamed as he shot up the ice.

With a quick recoil of his arm, he shot the puck into the net.

The horn blared.

Booya .

“ He has done it, folks! Sirius Black has done it! He made the second hat trick of the game! He broke the tie of seven, and made it seven-to-eight! Well, would you look at that! ” Ted crowed.

Sirius’ teammates attempted to give their congratulations to him, but he wasn’t having it.

“Shove off,” Sirius grunted. “Get the score back up.”

Remus was at his side quickly after that. “Hey, Black.”

“Shove off, Lupin.”

Remus was stumped. What got his panties in a twist so quickly?

Remus, of course, was on a mission to turn Sirius’ mood back around.

“I just wanted to say that we’re tied now. I’ll get that winning shot, just watch.”

The corners of Sirius’ lips twitched upwards.

And that’s all Remus needed to already have won.

“Just place some hockey, Moonbean.”

“You got it, Pads.” Remus, feeling extra confident at the time, shot Sirius a wink.

Sirius gave him a grin, before skating off to help collect the hats dropped for his hat trick.

“Cool, innit?” James questioned beside Remus, leaning his arm on Remus’ shoulder.

Even James Potter had to lean up a bit to even reach his shoulder.

“Yeah. Now, you heard the captain, let’s go play some hockey!” Gideon shouted as he skated past the pair.

The first line entered the bench area, jumping over the boards to do so.

“Nice work out there, Black,” Coach congratulated. 

“Thanks, Artie,” Sirius teased.

Coach Arthur rolled his eyes, turning away from Sirius.

Remus sat, shoulder to shoulder with James and Kingsley.

“Atta, lads,” Sirius greeted as he took his seat on the other side of James.

“Plans after the game, Padfoot?”

“Matter of fact, Wormy, I have a dinner to attend to,” Sirius answered Benjy immediately.

Remus’ eyebrows shot up to his hairline.

“Tonight?” Remus voiced, voice high. They were seriously going to have dinner together after a game?

“Tonight,” Sirius confirmed, parroting. “‘Scuse me, Prongs,” Sirius pardoned as he leaned over in front of James. “No need to worry, Moons. We’ll have a proper date during the week. But I would like to have dinner with you after this, if that’s okay with you?”

Sirius had lost all confidence, going from full certainty to a soft marshmallow.

Remus loved it.

James dropped his jaw, eyes wide as he wheeled to look at Sirius. “You told him? You asked him?!” He whispered feverishly, as if Remus wasn’t sitting right there.

Sirius ignored him for the time being. “So?”

“Yeah, ‘course,” Remus agreed, nodding his head.

Sirius beamed.

The buzzer rang, interrupting their conversation.

The four shot up, eyes on the ice.

“ Slytherins tying it up, once again. Holding an eight, the both of them ,” Emmeline informed.

“ And with only one minute and six seconds left in the game, we’re lining back up ,” Ted added.

“First line! Out now! Let’s go, let’s go, let’s go!” Coach ordered.

Immediately, Remus had his helmet in his hand, sliding the protective gear over his head. He jumped over the boards the next second, flying on the ice. 

He was in his position only seconds later, roughed up and ready.

Snape stared Remus down.

Remus smirked back.

The whistle blew and the puck was dropped.

Sirius took possession of the puck, shooting up the ice instantly. He was a black blur, with nothing but determination and adrenaline fueling him.

“Pads!” James shouted, knocking his stick against the ice a few times to call for Sirius.

Sirius slid the puck over to James before he got knocked down by a few Snakes.

Remus and Gideon were beside James, keeping him secured as he travelled down the ice.

Remus grunted as a Snake knocked him against the glass.

“ One minute ,” Ted warned over the speakers.

They would fall into sudden death if they didn’t score in the next minute.

He rolled his eyes as he shoved Malfoy off of him. He muttered, “Buggering Christ.”

Regulus had advanced on James, and after a swift movement, Regulus had the puck.

Remus grunted. He locked in, digging his skates in the ice as he charged at Regulus.

Sirius made it to Regulus first, slamming him into the ice. “Stay down!” Sirius warned in Regulus’ face.

Remus took his chance to swipe the puck from the two, skating back to Rosier.

“ Nineteen, eighteen, seventeen… ” The crowd counted down.

Remus grunted as he dodged the Snakes that were aiming for him.

He hooked a right just as Barty Jr. would have clipped him with his stick.

Remus went back towards the goal, dodging any Snake.

“Go, Lupin!” Fenwick shouted as the man guarded Remus from Slytherins getting too close.

“Working on that,” Remus clipped back.

“ Ten, nine, eight… ”

Remus let out a yelp as Tom Riddle barreled at him.

Remus lifted his right skate, drifting left in just the nick of time.

He drew back his stick.

“ Seven, six, five… ”

Remus prepared the shot.

Evan was staring determinedly at the puck on the ice, right as Remus hit it with his stick.

“ Four, three, two… ”

Evan raised his hand, reaching for the puck aiming right for the left of his head.

The Snake crumpled to the ground as he heard the buzzer.

“ One !”

Remus shot his arms in the air as he took in the sound of the buzzer.

They won.

Gryffindor won.

The Lions won.

“We won!” Sirius screamed as he fully just tackled Remus to the ice.

Remus ignored the pain that grew in his back, glad that he had padding on at least. “We did!” He responded instead.

Sirius pulled Remus’ helmet off first before taking off his own. And without an ounce of hesitation (okay, there was definitely hesitation), Sirius leaned forward.

Remus braced his lips for impact.

However, he felt Sirius’ lips crash against his forehead.

Okay, that works too.

Both men are interrupted as the rest of their team, who had all filtered on the ice, crashed on top of them.

“Whoo!”

“You did it!”

“Atta boy, Moony!”

“We won! We actually did it!”

“You doubted us, dickhead?!”

Guess who said what.

“ And that concludes the season! With a score of eight-to-nine, Gryffindor takes home the wi n!” Ted announced before victory music started playing over the speakers.

Red and gold confetti littered the ice.

“I won the bet, Black,” Remus stated in Sirius’ ear over the loud noise.

Sirius scoffed, playfully. “You really believed I would let you pay either way? Hell nah. I just wanted to coax you into a date.”

Remus rolled his eyes, just as playful. He should’ve known.

“You’ve really outdone yourself now, Black,” Remus commented.

The team stood up, all cheerfully skating around for victory laps.

“Anything for our Moony!” James chorused from beside Sirius.

“You were in on it too?!” Remus exclaimed, looking between the two in disbelief. (He should’ve known better, truly.)

Peter, on the other side of Remus, gave the three a wide grin. “What more could you expect, Rem?”

Remus just laughed. “All right, I give it to ya. You all got me.”

Sirius gave him a ‘Sirius Black’ grin, from under James’ arm.

“I, Minerva McGonagall of the National Hockey League, announce this year’s champions, the Gryffindor Lions!”