Work Text:
Twigs crunched underpaw as the Wolf made his way through the Forbidden Forest. Low hanging branches snagged on his thick pelt as he padded forward, muscles ripping under ragged fur. His head lifted as he sniffed the air intently until the scent of prey greeted his nose. His head snapped to the side, eyes narrowed as he lowered until his underbelly grazed the ground. Wind howled overhead, causing the leaves and branches above to shift and crackle in unison. It wasn’t until rain began to fall that the Wolf finally caught sight of his prey.
A buck, perhaps only a year old, stood at the edge of a small pond a few meters away. Soft velvet coated the short antlers that sprang from it’s head, rounded edges still sharp enough to cause damage. It’s snout hovered over the surface of the water, breath sending ripples through the bleary liquid, unaware of the eyes watching him in the distance. It was then the Wolf struck.
Quick as a lightning strike, the Wolf launched himself forward, teeth bared and paws outstretched. He made the final bound to go in for the killing bite when a flash of black invaded the corner of his vision. A solid weight slammed into his side, knocking him off balance. He hit the ground hard, rolling with the impact before leaping back for his paws and surging for the deer instead of whatever had jumped him.
Teeth struck into warm flesh, a burst of blood spraying inside the Wolf’s mouth. The deer bleated in pain, hooves digging into the ground as it frantically twisted. The Wolf’s grip faltered momentarily, and before it could secure a better grip, the buck’s head snapped around with his left antler colliding with the Wolf’s skull with a sickening thud to match.
The Wolf yelped as he fell sideways, stars exploded in front of his vision. Eyes blinking furiously, the Wolf struggled to rise back to his paws. Head shaking, the Wolf took one step only to collapse back, the sight of the deer pelting away stirring something animalistic within in. Mud caked under the Wolf’s claws as he braced himself hard against the now slick ground and took one step before the dizziness overwhelmed him.
The last thing the Wolf saw was the rain speckled forest floor before the whole word went dim.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Remus’s eyes fluttered open and he was immediately met with overwhelming brightness from a nearby table side lamp. The pain that exploded behind his eyes was so immense that he immediately began to gag, body twisted until he realized that he was in bed. In fact, he was in a bed in the hospital wing instead of in Gryffindor Tower. How had he gotten there?
“Remus!”
Remus continued heaving only nothing came up, even as he heard the desperation of the voice coming closer to him. He hardly had time to look when he felt a hand come to rest on his forehead, cool and shaking as he continued to dry heave, which sent spears of shooting pain through his skull with each gag.
“Madam Pomfrey! Help!”
Remus winced at the volume of the voice, despite detecting the worry and desperation. He just needed everything to be silent and his body to stop betraying him. At this point he was certain that his skull was about to split open.
The sound of rushed footsteps grew louder as another presence came in view. Remus could just make out her shoes from his vantage point perched over the side of the bed, struggling for each breath as his stomach threatened to revolt. Tears began to stream down his face as he felt a scream tear through his throat. Death would’ve been preferable over this pain.
“It’s going to be alright, dear,” Madam Pomfrey soothed as she ran a hand down his back while conjuring a bin with the other. Although nothing came up, she still handed it to the boy beside her to hold. “Mr. Black, stay right here with him while I grab some more supplies.”
Madam Pomfrey didn’t wait for a response as she sprinted off in the opposite direction, leaving Sirius to whisper soft assurances to Remus while he continued to cry out in agony. Tears ran down his cheeks in steady waves, breath catching as he tried to compose himself only to be thrown on another gagging spree that he was unable to fight. What could he do to make this pain end?
Sirius found his own breath catching as he lifted his free hand and ran his fingers through Remus’s hair. Remus instinctively darted away from the touch, face now pressed into his pillow to block out the blinding light around him. At least if he kept his mouth shut he didn’t feel the immediate need to vomit, though he feared any slight movement would set him off again. Even breathing threatened to prove too much for his head to handle as he found himself taking shallower and shallower breaths.
“I’m so sorry, Rem,” Sirius whispered as he set the bin down lightly. He crept close to Remus, but didn’t dare touch him, not after that previous reaction. “I should’ve reacted sooner…..or maybe let you go after that stag. I didn’t think it would turn on you like that and then seeing Moony fall like that and you didn’t get up…..” Sirius trailed off, voice thick with emotion. He feared no apology he could possibly come up with would help, nor take away what had happened. Sirius had been beating himself up about it for the better part of a day and a half and still couldn’t get over how much he had messed up.
Remus feebly reached out to paw at Sirius’s direction, managing to hook his fingers in the hem of Sirius’s robe and give it a tiny tug. Sirius immediately brightened and looked down, and although he couldn’t see Remus’s face, he instantly relaxed. Maybe there was hope for them yet.
Before Sirius could say anything more, Madam Pomfrey rushed back into view, holding what looked to be a small briefcase. She instantly shooed the dark haired boy away, though he hovered considerably despite Madam Pomfrey’s attempts to brush him away farther. Madam Pomfrey could’ve easily ordered him away, but Remus was glad that she hadn’t. For some reason Sirius calmed him, even in his current state.
“Can I have an arm,” Madam Pomfrey requested as she lifted Remus’s arm easily and pulled it from the covers. Remus struggled not to groan as the mediwitch pressed the tip of her wand against the crook of his arm and whispered something that Sirius couldn’t catch. Remus’s face twisted as she pulled a long needle from her robes, which had Sirius nearly yelping in surprise.
“Can’t you give him a potion instead,” Sirius protested as he shivered as the long tip of the needle pierced Remus’s skin, though the smaller boy hardly reacted.
Madam Pomfrey frowned gravely. “A numbing charm was placed on his skin. Sometimes this is still the quickest means to ease pain such as the one that Remus experiences.”
Sirius had grown up in an exclusively magic home and all ailments could be solved with magic, or so he thought. He knew things had been different from Remus, and the lighter haired boy had mentioned his time with non-magical treatments sometimes used when things grew especially grave. Sirius himself couldn’t imagine having a needle in his arm when he could just as easily take a potion, but if it helped Remus with his pain immediately, who was he to complain?
Ease showed on Remus’s face as he stopped moaning, body growing limp as Madam Pomfrey tucked his arm back under the covers. “He’s still awake, just a little less lucid. It should help with that concussion induced headache.”
“Concussion,” Sirius echoed.
Madam Pomfrey rested a hand on Sirius’s shoulder. “You’re more than welcome to stay so long as you don’t upset him.”
“Really?” Sirius instantly perked up at her response. Normally he was the first to be pushed away as Madam Pomfrey tended to be quite protective over Remus. He also had a tendency to be a little more rambunctious than perhaps he should’ve in the medical wing, but something had to keep Remus’s spirits up when he was bed bound.
The nurse nodded. “He enjoys your company. But, quietly. We don’t require your usual…..energy, Mr. Black.”
“You don’t have to worry about me. I promise!” Sirius quieted his voice when he realized he was doing exactly what Madam Pomfrey had asked him not to. Head bowed, he gave a more timid nod. “I promise.”
She hummed to herself as she left the two be, taking the various potion bottles and other medicinal supplies from the bedside table. Sirius was certain that she would be back sooner rather than later to check on him, and perhaps give him something more if the pain persisted. Sirius would be ready too if Remus showed the slightest sign of pain. He would find Madam Pomfrey immediately at the slightest twitch if he had to. After all, this was his fault and he would do anything to make it right.
Just as Sirius was about to pull up a chair, Remus’s head stirred on his pillow, dry lips parted as he breathed out a soft word.
“Padfoot?”
A stone of cold dread dropped in Sirius’s stomach. Still, he crept closer to the edge of the bed, arms folded and rested on the side. “I’m right here, Moony. I’m here.”
Remus’s lips smacked together. His breath momentarily caught in his throat as he struggled to speak. “M’tired.”
“I know you are,” Sirius chuckled. “You had quite the night. You should really get some sleep.”
Remus gave the smallest shake of his head, so small that Sirius barely caught it. However, he had been with Remus long enough to know every nuance, every tell that made Remus who he was. Those little things made Sirius’s heart flutter and made him want to kiss Remus silly. He refrained at the moment, unwilling to make anything worse. Besides, he wasn’t sure how much Remus remembered and if that forgiveness from earlier could actually count.
“Here.” Remus weakly lifted his left hand and patted on the opposite side of his pillow. Fingers curled, he stroked the soft fabric as he breathed heavily, eyes squeezed shut as even the lamps from other beds were too much at the moment.
“Me? Rem, you sure? Because I—“
“You!” Remus winced at the sound of his own voice. “Please.”
How could Sirius possibly say no to that? Any hesitation evaporated from Sirius instantly and he delicately peeled the covers back and slid in besides Remus, careful not to press too firmly on any of his tender areas, from his head and neck, to an impressive scratch down his left flank. He had also dislocated his hip during his transformation, which would make bearing weight on it a process in and of itself. None of those things Sirius could do much about, but while Remus was in his arms, he vowed to be as gentle as can be.
“This alright,” Sirius questioned as he wrapped his arms around Remus’s body with Remus facing him, head buried in his chest with Remus’s hair tickling Sirius’s chin.
Remus gave a hum of affirmation. He clutched Sirius hard, body wracked with shivers. Sirius couldn’t tell if it was from the cold or pain, though he knew that if he asked, Remus would try to deny he was in any pain. While that may be a lie, there was nothing more Madam Pomfrey could give him at the moment. Nothing he had swallowed could stay down, and there were things that he just couldn’t take with his condition. So, if this brought him even a morsel of relief, then Sirius would stay like this for as long as possible.
“I love you, Rem,” Sirius found himself whispering. “And I’m sorry that I hurt you, even if I didn’t mean to. I’d do anything to take this from you.”
Although Remus didn’t verbally answer, Sirius swore that he felt the grip around his waist grow stronger. His heart melted as he pressed a kiss to the top of Remus’s head, savoring the feel of the boy in his arms, and vowing to do whatever it took to make sure something like this never happened again.