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Remus stood by the exit for the Eurostar nervously.
His parents were waiting at the nearby Cafe, allowing him to wait alone.
What if this S. Black wasn't even really eighteen? What if Sirius Black was a fifty-four year old man who attempts to abduct him whilst his parents were sitting and drinking hot-chocolates in the warm cafe?
Well, maybe not abduct him, but he could be a weirdo pretending to be Remus' age all the same.
Remus glared in the direction of the cafe. S. Black had better appreciate his standing and freezing as he waited, fiddling with the sleeve of his jumper.
What person in their right mind would choose to stay with strangers anyway?
"Excuse-moi, es-tu de la famille Lupin, par hasard?"
Excuse me, you are a member of the Lupin family?
Remus quickly nodded, understanding the words. His mother was proud of her French roots and sometimes spoke French around the house.
Remus couldn't speak it very well, but he was so used to hearing his mother speaking it, it was easy for him to understand.
"Yes... Oui," Remus replied.
His eyes met stormy grey before he realised just how handsome the stranger before him was. Gone were his contemplations about some weird old man turning up.
"Mais tu es superbe ! Les Dieux doivent m'aimer si tu es l'ange chez qui ils m'envoient ! S'il te plaît, dis-moi que c'est chez toi que je vais et que nous partagerons un lit ! Je peux être très... agréable, la nuit. Et très généreux."
But you are gorgeous! The Gods must love me if you're the angel they're sending me to stay with. Please tell me that you're the one I'm going with and that we're going to share a bed? I can be very... warm at night. And very generous.
Remus stared at the other man in confusion. He must have misheard, because it sounded like the other man had called him a beautiful angel and asked to share his bed.
No. He definitely misheard.
"My name is Remus Lupin. Je m'appelle... Remus?"
The man beamed at him, eyes slowing moving up and down his body, taking everything in. Remus felt oddly nervous under the close inspection and hoped that he passed whatever the inspection was for.
"Non, vraiment, tu es très beau, Remus. C'est un plaisir de te rencontrer. Je suis impatient d'apprendre à te connaître ! Dis-moi, tous les Anglais sont-ils beaux à couper le souffle comme toi?"
Truly beautiful, Remus. It is a pleasure to meet you. I look forward to getting to know you better! Tell me, are all English men as breathtaking as you?
Sirius' gaze moved around, before returning to Remus. "Hum, on dirait que c'est seulement toi. Ou alors, as-tu déjà volé mon coeur?"
I believe it is just you. Perhaps you have stolen my heart already?
"It's nice to… to meet you," Remus offered, uncertain whether to address any of what the handsome Frenchman was saying to him. "Here, let me help you with your bags…"
"Je m'appelle Sirius Black," Sirius offered, his stormy grey eyes sparkled in amusement. "Merci, mon amour."
Thank you, my love.
Before Remus could even think about reacting, Sirius leaned in and kissed him softly on his cheek, his lips lingering for a second, before moving to the other cheek.
Remus remembered seeing the gesture before, though Sirius didn't do it as quickly. It felt slightly more intimate the way the newcomer had done it.
Remus blushed, grabbing the suitcase and leading the way towards the cafe where he knew his parents were waiting. "I'll bring you to my parents."
"Ah, oui, voici ma future belle-famille. Je suis ravi de les rencontrer!"
Ah yes, my future in-laws. I am excited to meet them.
...oOo...
"Mr and Mrs Lupin," Sirius stated, shaking John's hand before leaning in to kiss Hope on each cheek in the same manner he had kissed Remus, though it was a quicker gesture than it had been for him.
"My name is Sirius. I would like to thank you already for allowing me to stay in your home. You are very kind."
Remus swallowed. Sirius still sounded completely breathtaking, even when stuttering over the English language, rather than the soft flow of French which he had offered upon meeting Remus. He wasn't sure how he was going to survive Sirius' stay.
"It's no trouble at all," Hope replied with a soft smile. "I'm sure it'll be wonderful having you stay with us, Sirius. You can call me Hope and my husband John, and you've already met Remus of course."
"I have. He has made a wonderful impression on me," Sirius confirmed.
Hope beamed in response. "I am glad," she replied. "I'm sure after your long journey, you must be worn out, so I was thinking that, for now, we should show you where we live, and Remus can start showing you around once you've settled in?"
Sirius nodded his head. "That sounds like a magnificent idea," he said. "I look forward to learning much from Remus."
The Lupins turned to lead the way, and Sirius looked back at Remus, shooting him an obvious wink.
...oOo...
Remus stood nervously next to Sirius as Sirius' gaze moved across the large room. Remus had recently had a clear-out, old books that he knew he wasn't going to read any-time soon were boxed and put away, and half of the wardrobe and chest of drawers were empty for Sirius to store his stuff. The desk had been cleared and the whole room was tidy.
"There's space for your stuff," Remus began. "One side of the wardrobe, some of the drawers and some of the bookcase shelves - also the bedside table. If you need more space, I can clear more stuff, of course - also, there's a shelf in the bathroom too."
Sirius locked eyes with Remus. "You are worried that I won't like the room?" he asked. "I was aware that I may have to share a room, but I still signed up. I can see that I will be happy here. Thank you for allowing me to share your personal space."
Remus was relieved. He had thought that maybe the room wasn't as classy or elegant as Sirius may have been used to, being from France.
"I am quite relieved actually, to be sharing with someone who has been so nice to me. It may be strange, but staying in a new country alone… being in your room with you will be comforting."
"So… how come you signed up to the exchange programme so late?" Remus asked.
"My family did not want me to leave," Sirius said. "I was determined to come to England." It was clear to Remus that this was the bare minimum of an answer, but it wasn't his place to push for anything more.
...oOo...
Remus and Sirius stood outside of the local college, in which Sirius had enrolled to attend. Remus had walked him the short distance, not wanting Sirius to get lost. He could almost sense Sirius' nervousness.
"I'll meet you right here at four," Remus said with a shy smile. "I hope you have a good day."
"à plus tard, mon amour!" Sirius replied, leaning in to place a slow kiss to each of Remus' cheeks. "I look forward to seeing you when I finish my classes. Are you returning home?"
Until later, my love.
Remus shook his head. "It's my day off, but I'm going to get some studying done and maybe meet my friend, James, when he's on a break from his own classes. Maybe we can meet you for lunch?"
"I would very much like to eat lunch with you," Sirius replied, softly.
...oOo...
"James, this is Sirius Black. Sirius, this is James Potter."
Sirius pulled out the empty chair next to Remus and smiled at James.
"It is wonderful to meet you," Sirius said.
"Likewise," James replied. "Remus has told me a little bit about you."
"He has?" Sirius asked. He shot Remus his best smile. "Tell me, was it my eyes that he told you about? Or my hair?"
James glanced at Remus for a second. "Neither," he said, grinning. "But I'll make sure to find out what he thinks of them."
Sirius smirked at Remus. "I'm sure I will find something that will impress him," Sirius continued softly. "James, you must help me."
James looked at Remus again, who was staring at his lunch in fascination.
"Whatever you need, Sirius," he agreed.
"I will win your heart, Ma petite fleur des champs," Sirius murmured, shooting Remus a sultry look when Remus thought it was safe to look up again.
My little field flower.
"I have been very lucky to have found myself in the home of the Lupin household," Sirius said, turning his attention back to James. "Never have I met such kind people before. Remus is waiting around just to bring me home later. He has shared so much with me and is so kind and has such a good heart."
"You're right, he does have a good heart," James agreed.
"One that I will win," Sirius announced.
"Stop ganging up on me!" Remus said, but the pair were paying him no attention.
...oOo...
"Es-tu obligé de me taquiner comme ça ? Tout ce que j'arrive à imaginer, maintenant, c'est l'eau ruisselant sur ta peau... Une vision délicieuse, c'est sûr. J'ai envie de suivre chaque goutte avec ma langue... Remus, te rends-tu compte de l'effet que tu as sur moi et mon corps?"
Must you tease me this way? All I can imagine is water trailing down your skin. A beautiful sight for sure. I want to follow the drops with my tongue... Remus, you do not understand the effect you have on me and my body?
Remus' hands shook slightly as he threw his pyjamas into the washing basket in the corner of the bedroom.
He had dressed in the bathroom after his shower, but hadn't expected Sirius to come out with such words.
"So... we're going to meet my other friends today," Remus said softly. "You don't have to feel obliged to come with me each time, but you are more than welcome to do so. I'm not sure if you've made your own on your course that you'd rather see..."
"Thank you, you are so kind," Sirius said, sounding much too close to him. Remus turned around, finding Sirius barely inches from him.
He couldn't tear his gaze away from Sirius' face. His stormy grey eyes and his high cheekbones. The smile that usually graced his lips was gone, a more serious expression having taken its place.
Sirius reached up, a hand pushing a strand of Remus' hair behind his ear. "I am most lucky to have been placed with your family - to have met you, Remus. You have been nothing but kind and welcoming. More so than I expected."
"Well, I'm sure your family would have been the same," Remus murmured.
Sirius hesitated in his movements, before withdrawing his hand. "My family would not have entered an exchange programme, they are not like your family, mon amour. They are not kind-hearted like your parents. You are lucky to have them."
He stepped away and the spell on Remus was broken. He was able to breath again, able to move his legs again.
But he didn't. He watched Sirius get his belongings together with the distinct impression that he had said something wrong.
...oOo...
Sirius watched Remus carefully as he walked into the room after his shower. His shirt clung to his slightly damp skin and Remus' eyes roamed his body for a moment, before Remus caught himself, his eyes moving to the book.
As Remus stared blankly at the book, Sirius watched him, noticing his eyes would only move to view Sirius, but not over the words on the page.
"Are you almost ready, Mon Amour?" he asked.
He watched carefully as Remus' face reddened slightly, a look of pure longing in his eyes as they met Sirius'. Sirius knew that Remus had understood every word uttered from the moment they had met - Remus wasn't that good at pretending, after all.
And Sirius could see that Remus wanted him too. He saw the hurt expression in Remus' eyes every time the mention of France came up, and Sirius just knew that Remus was only holding back because he thought Sirius was leaving.
Sirius knew he was in love with Remus, and he had already decided to stay, in fact, he had already posted the letter to his parents informing them of his choice.
Sirius followed Remus from the room, admiring his form. He knew he had fallen fast, but he had also fallen hard. Sirius Black had never even considered the word 'love' before - but that was until he walked across the platform, drawn to the shy-looking man.
He had looked into Remus' eyes and had just known that Remus would be everything for him, and he hadn't been wrong so far.
He could spend hours listing what he loved about Remus, from the adorable expression he wore when concentrating on a book, or the way he opened up when in a heated debate. The way Remus would run his hand through his hair when he was embarrassed, or the way his eyes would light up at the mention of chocolate.
It was all Sirius could do to not climb into Remus' bed at night, just to feel what it was like to have Remus Lupin in his arms.
Flirting was one thing, but he'd never cross a line like that with Remus. He would wait until Remus wanted him in his bed.
...oOo...
Sirius had practised so many times for what he could say to Hope Lupin, but he was drawing a blank. She could be angry and throw him out that day, though he doubted she would do that - but she could say no.
He had money on him, but he didn't want to leave.
"Sirius, something is in your mind, isn't it?" Hope asked.
Sirius nodded, taking a deep breath. "I have been thinking hard," he began, "about how my return date to France is quickly approaching."
Hope nodded, watching him carefully.
"And I find myself… I have become very attached to this new life I have been living."
The sound of scraping alerted him to Hope pulling out the chair near his and sitting down.
"Sirius, are you trying to tell me that you want to stay for a bit longer?"
Sirius shook his head. "Hope, I am in love," he admitted. "I wish to stay in England."
"But your life in France, your family -"
"My parents didn't realise I had left until a month had passed," Sirius informed her. "My parents only care for image, they do not care for their children. It was a shock to arrive here and be treated so wonderfully. I will admit I was full of jealousy towards Remus for having such wonderful parents."
"You were? It didn't show?"
Sirius smiled softly. "I could hardly be rude towards Remus now, could I?" He tried to keep his voice normal when saying Remus' name.
There was a long silence as everything clicked for Hope. "My son?" she asked softly.
Sirius nodded. "I am not someone who falls in love. I was told before that when you meet the person for you, you just know it. When I met Remus the first time, I just knew. I believe he feels the same, though he is reluctant in the matter. I know I shall need to prove to him that I am not leaving the country before he will even consider."
Sirius watched Hope as she remained silent.
"I hope for your and John's blessings for this, I would not pursue him if you would rather me to stay away, but I love him and I would look after him and do everything in my power to make him happy. My old life doesn't matter, Remus does."
"And your goals if you stay here?" Hope asked softly.
"I have one more term of my course. I was going to look for a part-time job whilst I finished the course… but if I wasn't able to stay here any longer, as it would be rude to impose on you, I would leave my course and find employment immediately. Once I have done this, I will have proven to Remus that I intend on staying here - maybe then he will love me back. Then we shall marry."
"You want to get married?" Hope began to smile.
"Of course," Sirius said. "I would ask him today if I thought he would accept. But your Remus is not spontaneous like this. He likes to think things through and plan and I like that he does. He's different than anyone I've ever met, Hope."
She took his hand. "I'm sorry for the questions, I just needed to make sure that you were sure about a future with Remus before I accepted it. You can stay."
Sirius jumped up. "I must tell Remus -"
"Or," Hope began, with an innocent smile. "We could not tell him and let it be a surprise?"
Sirius laughed. "What a wonderful mind you have, Hope, you must share your plan with me."
...oOo...
Remus was feeling miserable that day. He kept asking himself why he had turned Sirius down time and time again. Even though Sirius was leaving that night after dinner, to catch the last train, Remus could have still had months with him before losing him.
He was a fool for not accepting Sirius' advances.
But maybe they could visit each other? It was only a long train across London and then a train out of England after all, France wasn't that far away.
He sighed, resting his chin on his hand as he stared at Sirius. Sirius had pulled his hair back into a bun and was wearing his mother's floral apron, having insisted on cooking them dinner on his last night.
The dinner went quietly, Remus not making an effort to talk to anyone at all. As he waited patiently for desert, Hope poured out glasses of wine, placing one in front of Remus.
Remus immediately reached for it.
"I think we should all raise our glasses to Sirius on this wonderful day," Hope said, beaming.
Remus put the glass back down again, folding his arms childishly.
"Oui, Hope. Today is a wonderful day," Sirius said. "I have been looking forward to this for some time now."
Remus snorted, feeling even more unhappy than he had at any point that day.
"We have so much to celebrate," Sirius said.
Remus didn't want to hear anymore. He pushed his chair back loudly, standing up. When he turned, he was face to face with Sirius, who was holding an envelope.
"A gift," he said.
Remus stared at it.
"Please," Sirius murmured. "It would mean everything to me if you accepted it."
Remus took the envelope, wondering what the heavy object inside was. He opened it, pulling out a lighter.
He raised questioning eyes to Sirius, who looked at the envelope. Remus' gaze followed, and he reached in again, pulling out Sirius' ticket in surprise.
"I thought you might like to do the honours?"
After a long silence and a confused look, Sirius sighed. "Or perhaps you do not see how serious I really am at this moment." He took the lighter from Remus and flicked it open.
With his other hand, he took Remus' wrist, guiding the ticket into the flame.
"Now you will celebrate with us. I am staying here," Sirius said. "My course will continue here, and Hope will take me on part time in the Gallery. When I finish, I will become a chef and we will marry."
"You... you're staying?"
"Yes, and I will do my course -"
"Oh, I got all that, I was just… you're staying? For good - forever?"
Sirius nodded.
"Why?"
Sirius chuckled. "Have I not made it clear since the moment I met you that I want to be with you? You are my soul-mate, Remus, and I have big plans for us. Most of which involve nudity -"
"And that's our cue to go to the pub for a drink," John muttered, pushing his chair back and grabbing Hope by the arm, though her other arm had her phone up as she recorded.
The door shut behind them.
"Most of the more immediate plans involve nudity," Sirius confirmed.
"You sound like you make really good plans," Remus whispered.
Sirius nodded. "I do," he confirmed. "Tell me, how long are they gone for?"
"A couple of hours, maybe three."
Sirius smiled devilishly at him. "I will show you these plans, yes?"
Remus could only nod, his eyes fixed on Sirius as he closed the distance. "You have made me wait too long for this," he whispered, his lips moving to meet Remus', teasing over them as he smiled. Remus tugged him closer, pushing their lips to meet, and his hand moved to the back of Sirius' neck.
Sirius' hand moved down Remus' body, resting on his arse.
"Yes, I knew it would be worth the wait," Sirius said softly. "Now we will celebrate in your bed."
"If you're staying, doesn't that make it our bed?" Remus whispered.
"We will celebrate in our bed," Sirius murmured. "Do you remember what I told you when I first met you?"
"Something about angels and stuff?"
"I told you that I am very generous, mon amour. Would you like me to show you how much?"
Remus allowed Sirius to lead him from the room.
...oOo...
James Potter fished through his pockets for his phone as he began to walk towards the college. He had just wrapped his fingers around it when he felt someone's hand touch him arm.
"Excuse-moi, je suis perdu et je cherche quelqu'un, ou au moins son adresse..."
Excuse me, I am lost and need to find an address or a person.
"Sorry mate, I don't talk French. The most I know is dirty pick up lines, because of my friend…" James trailed off, taking in the black hair and the grey eyes. It was clear that this man was related to Sirius. After all, it would be too much of a co-incidence, especially with the accent.
"Can I help you?" James asked.
"Sirius Black, mon… brother," the man said. "Lives in England." It was clear to James just how little English the man actually knew, even Sirius knew more when he had come over.
James nodded and smiled at him. "James Potter, I am friends with Sirius," he confirmed.
"I am Regulus," he said, looking relieved.
"Have you asked many people?"
"Pour le moment, j'ai demandé à huit personnes..."
I have asked eight people so far.
James began to count the French numbers on his hand, before realising that huit was eight. For the first time, James wished that he had paid more attention during his French lessons back in school.
"I will show you where he is," James confirmed.
"Merci. My family have sent me to convince Sirius to return home," Regulus told him slowly.
James just grinned at him. There was no way anyone was going to come between Sirius and Remus, so he could see that Regulus would be hanging around for a while. "So, Regulus…" he began, grasping for something to say. A pick-up line Sirius had taught him popped to mind.
"J'ai envie de te baiser sur la plage."
I want to fuck you on the beach.
Regulus dropped the phrase book he had been clutching in shock, and gaped at James.
James grinned back. He would have to thank Sirius later. Clearly the 'I want to look into your breathtaking eyes' pick-up line Sirius had taught him, had worked on Regulus.