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The classroom had reached the particular kind of silence that was not peaceful so much as actively hostile.
It was the silence of parchment left blank for too long. Of quills abandoned in inkpots. Of chairs creaking beneath students who had already shifted position so many times that every possible angle of boredom had been explored and found wanting.
At the front of the room, the professor’s desk sat unattended.
The professor himself had disappeared nearly twenty minutes ago after another member of staff had appeared at the door, looking harassed and carrying several rolls of parchment beneath one arm. There had been a brief, muttered conversation, a great deal of frowning, and then an announcement that the class was to remain where it was while an errand was dealt with.
That instruction had been obeyed.
Technically.
No one had left the room.
That was as far as obedience extended.
James Potter was leaning so far back in his chair that only two legs remained on the floor, his arms folded behind his head and his eyes fixed upon the ceiling as though he had decided to personally memorise every crack in the stone.
Peter Pettigrew had folded a scrap of parchment into something that might once have intended to become a bird but had given up halfway through and now resembled a crushed bat.
Lily Evans had read the same paragraph in her textbook four times and absorbed none of it, largely because Marlene McKinnon was drumming her fingers against the desk beside her with increasing speed.
Mary Macdonald had laid her head upon her folded arms.
Alice Fortescue was staring into the middle distance with the patient resignation of someone waiting for death.
Frank Longbottom had tried to continue taking notes for several minutes before finally accepting that there was nothing left to take notes on.
Fabian and Gideon Prewett were playing a game that seemed to involve silently pointing at random people and attempting to make the other laugh.
Remus Lupin was the only person in the room who still appeared to be doing something vaguely academic, though the fact that he had not turned the page of his book in nearly ten minutes suggested appearances were deceiving.
Across the aisle, the sixth-years were coping no better.
Pandora Rosier had taken apart her quill.
Not broken it. Taken it apart.
Each feather barb had been carefully separated and arranged in lines across the desk according to size.
Dorcas Meadowes watched her with a faint, wary frown.
“Are you planning to put that back together?”
“No.”
“Why did you take it apart?”
“I wanted to know how many pieces it would become.”
Dorcas considered that.
“And?”
“More than it was before.”
“That is usually what happens when you take something apart.”
Pandora nodded, apparently satisfied by the confirmation.
Evan Rosier had one boot hooked around the leg of his chair and was rocking it slowly from side to side. Barty Crouch Junior had been attempting to balance an ink bottle upon the back of his hand, although the attempt had become less about balance and more about seeing how close he could let it come to falling before snatching it upright again.
Regulus Black sat between them, his expression blank, his arms folded upon the desk and his chin resting on them.
He looked deeply unimpressed by existence.
Sirius, seated diagonally across the room, noticed.
His own boredom vanished at once.
That was the danger of leaving Sirius Black without supervision. Eventually, he found entertainment.
It was rarely good for anyone else.
“Reggie.”
Regulus did not move.
Sirius’s grin widened.
“Reggie.”
One of Regulus’s eyes opened.
“Don’t.”
“I haven’t said anything yet.”
“You said my name in that voice.”
“What voice?”
“The voice you use immediately before becoming intolerable.”
James lowered his gaze from the ceiling.
Peter stopped crushing his parchment bat.
Marlene’s drumming fingers went still.
There were, after all, few classroom diversions more reliable than a Black brothers’ argument.
Sirius looked offended.
“I have several voices.”
“You have one voice,” Regulus said flatly. “Loud.”
Mary lifted her head from her arms.
Fabian elbowed Gideon.
Gideon nodded solemnly, as though Regulus had made a profound academic observation.
Sirius sat up straighter.
“I can be quiet.”
“No, you can whisper loudly.”
“I can whisper normally.”
“You cannot.”
“I absolutely can.”
“You once whispered to James from the opposite side of the Great Hall.”
“And he heard me.”
“So did the teachers.”
James raised a hand.
“In fairness, I did hear him.”
“That was not in doubt,” Remus said without looking up from his book. “So did Hagrid.”
Sirius pointed accusingly at him.
“You’re supposed to be on my side.”
“I’m on the side of observable truth.”
“That is a coward’s answer.”
“It is the answer of someone who has shared a dormitory with you for seven years.”
Peter gave a small, delighted snort.
Sirius scowled at him before turning back to Regulus.
Regulus had closed his eye again.
His decision to dismiss Sirius was immediate and obvious.
Sirius took this as a challenge.
“At least I have a life.”
Regulus spoke into his folded arms.
“Unfortunately for the rest of us.”
“At least I don’t spend all my time sitting in corners looking like an abandoned Victorian child.”
“That is quite specific.”
“You do.”
“I do not know what you want me to do about that.”
“Develop a personality.”
“I have one.”
“No, you have cheekbones and disapproval.”
Evan glanced sideways at Regulus.
“He does have very good cheekbones.”
Regulus did not acknowledge him.
Barty set the ink bottle down.
“He’s got a personality. It’s horrible.”
“Thank you,” Regulus said.
“That wasn’t a compliment.”
“I accepted it as one.”
Dorcas leaned back in her chair.
“That is most of his personality, actually.”
Pandora placed another section of feather carefully in its line.
“He is also very good at pretending not to hear people.”
“I’m not pretending,” Regulus said. “I simply decide when speech no longer deserves recognition.”
Sirius gave a bark of laughter.
“Oh, listen to you.”
“I would rather not.”
“Ignore him,” Lily said, though there was amusement lurking at the corner of her mouth.
“I’m trying.”
“Poor little Regulus,” Sirius continued, entirely undeterred. “All cold and mysterious because no one has ever loved him.”
Regulus lifted his head at last.
His face remained blank.
“Is this going somewhere?”
“It might.”
“Then hurry.”
Sirius leaned forward across his desk, his elbows planted upon the wood.
“I was just thinking.”
“That explains the smoking smell.”
James’s chair crashed back onto all four legs as he burst out laughing.
Marlene slapped the desk.
Mary’s tired expression brightened instantly.
Even Frank looked down to hide a smile.
Sirius waited for the laughter to subside, glaring around the room with the wounded dignity of a man who had been betrayed by his entire social circle.
“Very funny.”
“I wasn’t joking,” Regulus replied.
“You’re such a miserable little—”
“You started talking to me.”
“Because you looked lonely.”
“I looked peaceful.”
“You always look lonely.”
“I am surrounded by people.”
“That has never stopped anyone from being lonely.”
Regulus narrowed his eyes.
For a brief moment, the room quietened.
Then Sirius grinned again, smug and bright, and the tension shifted back into something stupid.
“But I suppose that’s what happens when you’ve never had a girlfriend.”
Regulus stared at him.
Barty slowly turned his head towards Sirius.
Evan’s rocking chair stopped moving.
Pandora continued sorting feather pieces.
Dorcas muttered, “Here we go.”
Regulus’s voice was flat.
“I do not want a girlfriend.”
Sirius waved a hand.
“Boyfriend, then.”
“I do not want one of those either.”
“Because you’re frightened.”
“Of what?”
“Romance.”
Regulus blinked.
“Romance.”
“Yes.”
“That is your theory.”
“You’ve never kissed anyone.”
Several heads turned towards Regulus.
Not because Sirius’s accusation was particularly shocking, but because Sirius had said it loudly enough to make it everyone’s business.
Regulus glanced around the room.
His expression did not change.
Sirius saw the attention he had gathered and visibly flourished beneath it.
“Never had a first kiss,” he continued. “Never held hands. Never done anything.”
“Have you finished?”
“No.”
“Tragic.”
“Don’t worry, little brother. It might happen one day.”
“I am going to push you out of a window.”
“You’d have to touch me.”
“I can use my foot.”
“You’d miss.”
“I wouldn’t.”
“You’re tiny.”
“I have excellent balance.”
“That is not the same thing as strength.”
“No, but gravity will do most of the work once you are outside.”
James covered his mouth with his hand, shoulders shaking.
Sirius jabbed a finger towards Regulus.
“You see? This is why you’re single.”
“I am single by choice.”
“Of course you are.”
Regulus’s eyes sharpened.
Sirius sensed weakness where there was none and charged directly towards it.
“Never kissed anyone,” he sang. “Never been kissed. Never even got close.”
Barty’s eyes flicked towards Regulus.
Evan’s eyebrows rose slightly.
Dorcas looked interested despite herself.
Mary twisted in her chair to get a better view.
Regulus stared at Sirius with an expression that suggested he was deciding which part of him to hex first.
Sirius continued.
“Probably never even seen anyone naked.”
Regulus’s mouth flattened.
“Oh, leave him alone,” Alice said, although she was smiling.
“I’m educating him.”
“You are humiliating yourself,” Lily corrected.
“He’s the one who’s never kissed anyone.”
“And you know this how?” Frank asked.
“I’m his brother.”
“That does not make you the official record-keeper of his mouth,” Remus said.
Sirius ignored him.
“Still a virgin, aren’t you, Regulus?”
The room went quiet again.
Regulus’s stare became glacial.
Sirius smiled at him with all the reckless confidence of someone who had never once recognised an approaching disaster.
“Go on,” he coaxed. “You can admit it.”
Regulus sat upright.
He unfolded his arms.
Then, with no embarrassment, hesitation or visible interest in the topic at all, he said, “I have kissed several people, and I have been fucked by considerably more than one.”
Silence.
Complete and absolute.
James froze with his mouth slightly open.
Peter’s parchment creature slipped from his fingers.
Lily’s eyes widened.
Mary sat bolt upright.
Marlene stopped smiling.
Alice stared.
Frank’s face went very still.
Fabian and Gideon turned towards Regulus at precisely the same moment.
Barty’s ink bottle tipped over and struck the desk with a hollow knock.
Evan’s chair stopped rocking so abruptly that one of its legs scraped against the floor.
Dorcas blinked once.
Pandora finally looked up from the dismantled quill.
Sirius’s grin remained fixed upon his face for several seconds after the rest of him had gone rigid.
“What?”
Regulus looked at him.
“I spoke clearly.”
“You—”
“Yes.”
“You have not.”
“I have.”
“No.”
“Yes.”
Sirius’s voice cracked.
“No, you haven’t.”
Regulus gave a small shrug.
“I am not particularly concerned whether you believe me.”
James looked between the brothers.
“Hold on.”
Regulus turned his eyes towards him.
James appeared to struggle for words.
“Hold on.”
“You have already said that.”
“Because everyone needs to hold on.”
“To what?”
“I don’t know yet.”
Mary made a strangled noise.
Marlene slowly leaned across Lily to stare more directly at Regulus.
“You’re serious.”
“Yes.”
“You’ve kissed people.”
“Yes.”
“And slept with people.”
Regulus’s expression remained entirely calm.
“I did not say slept.”
Frank choked.
Alice slapped a hand over her mouth.
Fabian folded forward over his desk.
Gideon stared at the ceiling as though requesting patience from a higher power.
Lily closed her eyes briefly.
“Regulus.”
“What?”
“You know exactly what she meant.”
“Yes.”
“And?”
“And yes.”
Sirius looked appalled.
“No.”
Regulus turned back to him.
“This conversation is becoming repetitive.”
“You are lying.”
“Why would I lie?”
“Because I was making fun of you.”
“That does not seem like a sufficiently compelling reason.”
“You expect me to believe that you’ve been—”
Sirius stopped.
His face twisted.
He tried again.
“You’ve been with people.”
“Yes.”
“Who?”
Regulus’s brows lifted.
“Excuse me?”
“Who?”
“That is not your concern.”
“You can’t say something like that and then refuse to explain.”
“I can.”
“You’re lying.”
“I am not.”
“Then name one.”
Regulus looked bored.
“No.”
“Because there isn’t one.”
“There are several.”
“Name them.”
Barty had recovered enough to speak.
“Actually, I would also like names.”
Regulus turned his head.
“No.”
Evan stared at him.
“You have never mentioned this.”
“I do not report every aspect of my life to you.”
“You report almost none of them,” Dorcas said.
“That has generally worked well for me.”
Pandora tilted her head.
“Were any of them dead?”
Regulus looked at her.
“No.”
“Good.”
A pause.
“For them.”
Regulus stared at her for another second before returning his attention to Sirius.
Sirius looked vindicated by the fact that even Regulus’s own friends were confused.
“You see? They don’t believe you either.”
“They are nosy.”
“We are your friends,” Barty said.
“Those things are not mutually exclusive.”
“Who?” Sirius demanded again.
Regulus sighed through his nose.
It was the long, faintly exhausted sigh of someone being forced to explain an obvious point to particularly slow children.
“Severus.”
Every face turned towards him.
Regulus continued.
“Mulciber. Avery. Travers. Rabastan Lestrange. Rodolphus Lestrange.”
The silence that followed was somehow greater than the first.
Regulus thought for a moment.
“Lucius.”
Sirius made a noise that did not resemble a word.
Barty stood up so quickly his chair fell backwards.
“What?”
Regulus glanced at him.
“Sit down.”
“Lucius Malfoy?”
“Yes.”
Evan’s face had gone unnaturally blank.
“You are lying.”
Regulus frowned slightly.
“You too?”
“Yes, me too.”
Dorcas pointed at Regulus.
“You have been walking around with all of that happening and never told anyone?”
“All of what?”
“All of that.”
“That is not an explanation.”
“Those names.”
“What is wrong with the names?”
“Most things,” Lily said faintly.
James was staring at Regulus as though he had become a different species.
“Snape?”
Regulus looked at him.
“Yes.”
“You kissed Snape.”
“Yes.”
James’s eyes grew wider.
“You—”
“Yes.”
“With Snape.”
“Yes.”
“Severus Snape.”
“How many Severuses do you know?”
“One, but I was hoping there was another.”
“There is not.”
Peter looked genuinely dazed.
“Rodolphus and Rabastan?”
“Yes.”
“Both?”
“Not simultaneously.”
The room erupted.
Marlene barked out a laugh so abruptly that she nearly fell sideways.
Mary slapped both hands over her face.
Frank turned scarlet.
Alice made a startled squeaking sound.
Fabian slid halfway out of his chair.
Gideon caught him by the back of his robes without taking his eyes off Regulus.
James dragged both hands down his face.
Lily stared at Regulus with the expression of someone who had been handed information she had neither requested nor prepared to carry.
Sirius looked moments away from a medical emergency.
Regulus waited for the noise to quieten.
When it did not, he raised his voice slightly.
“You asked.”
“I did not ask for that,” Sirius said hoarsely.
“You asked who.”
“I expected you to say no one!”
“That would have been inaccurate.”
“It would have been better!”
“For whom?”
“For me!”
Regulus stared at him.
“You are not involved.”
“I am now involved! You involved me!”
“You involved yourself when you decided to discuss my virginity in front of an entire classroom.”
Sirius pointed at him with a trembling hand.
“You are not allowed to say that word.”
“Virginity?”
Sirius flinched.
“Yes!”
“Why?”
“Because you’re my brother.”
“That has no relevance.”
“It has every relevance.”
“It has none.”
“It has all of it.”
Regulus looked towards Remus.
“Is he having a stroke?”
“Possibly,” Remus replied.
His voice sounded unusually careful.
He had lowered his book at some point during the exchange and was now watching Regulus with an expression that was difficult to read.
Sirius whipped around towards Regulus’s friends.
“You knew about this?”
“No,” Barty said immediately.
His chair still lay on the floor behind him.
He looked personally betrayed.
“I knew nothing.”
Evan’s eyes had narrowed.
“Absolutely nothing.”
Dorcas folded her arms.
“I’m mostly offended that he managed to keep it quiet.”
Pandora rearranged one of the feather lines.
“I thought he had secrets.”
“You thought I had secrets?” Regulus asked.
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“You sleep too peacefully.”
Regulus’s eyes narrowed.
“That makes no sense.”
“It will.”
He stared at her.
Then he looked back at Sirius.
Sirius was shaking his head.
“No. I don’t believe you.”
Regulus’s face remained blank.
“I do not care.”
“You’re making it up.”
“I am not.”
“You expect us to believe you’ve kissed all those people?”
“I did not say I kissed all of them.”
Another horrified silence.
Regulus looked around the room.
“What?”
Mary dropped her forehead onto the desk.
Marlene gripped Lily’s sleeve.
Frank coughed into his fist.
Alice looked as though she wanted to disappear beneath her chair.
James whispered, “This class has changed me.”
Peter nodded.
“It’s changed all of us.”
Sirius dragged a hand over his face.
“You are lying.”
Regulus regarded him for a long moment.
Then he sighed.
“All right.”
The words were quiet.
Something about them made everyone become still.
Sirius lowered his hand.
“All right what?”
“I will prove it.”
Sirius stared.
“How?”
Regulus stood.
The legs of his chair scraped softly across the stone.
Every eye followed him.
He straightened his robes with an unhurried tug, apparently untouched by the tension that had seized the room.
Barty frowned.
“Prove what?”
“That I know how to kiss.”
Evan sat up.
“You do not need to prove anything.”
“That is true,” Regulus said. “But Sirius is irritating me.”
“I irritate you every day,” Sirius said. “You don’t usually start demonstrations.”
“This has gone on longer than usual.”
Sirius looked suspicious.
“What are you planning?”
Regulus glanced towards the four beside him.
“I cannot use one of my friends.”
Dorcas’s eyebrows rose.
“Use?”
“They would be considered biased.”
Barty stepped around his fallen chair.
“I’m willing to be biased.”
“No.”
“Why not?”
“Because you are a freak.”
Barty looked wounded.
“I am your friend.”
“Both statements can be true.”
Evan leaned one elbow on his desk.
“I’m not biased.”
“You are always trying to touch my arse.”
The entire room turned towards Evan.
Evan did not appear embarrassed.
“That is unrelated.”
“It is directly related.”
“I can remain objective while touching your arse.”
“No.”
Dorcas looked at Regulus.
“And me?”
“You bite.”
“I do not.”
“You bit me last week.”
“You took my quill.”
“You were not using it.”
“I was going to use it.”
“You were asleep.”
“That does not mean I was finished with it.”
Regulus looked towards Pandora.
Pandora smiled pleasantly.
“No.”
“I didn’t offer.”
“You once attempted to perform an autopsy on me while I was sleeping.”
Pandora’s smile widened.
“I wanted to know what you looked like inside.”
“You will not be receiving my DNA.”
“That is sensible.”
Regulus looked over his shoulder at Barty.
“And Barty is simply Barty.”
Barty spread his hands.
“What does that mean?”
“No one knows,” Evan said.
“I know.”
“No, you don’t,” Dorcas replied.
Barty scowled.
Regulus turned towards the seventh-years.
The mood of the room changed at once.
James straightened.
Peter stopped breathing for a moment.
Fabian sat upright.
Gideon released his grip on Fabian’s robes.
Frank looked alarmed.
Sirius looked more alarmed.
Lily stared at Regulus.
Mary slowly lifted her head again.
Marlene whispered, “Oh, this is going to be awful.”
“For whom?” Alice whispered back.
“All of us.”
Regulus studied the Gryffindors.
Not flirtatiously.
Not nervously.
He examined them with the cool consideration of someone choosing the least unstable ingredient for a potion.
James’s eyes widened as Regulus’s gaze passed over him.
Sirius immediately stood.
“No.”
Regulus did not look at him.
“You do not know what I am doing.”
“You’re looking at them.”
“They are in front of me.”
“You’re choosing one.”
“Yes.”
“No.”
“You are the one who demanded proof.”
“I have changed my mind.”
“That sounds like a personal problem.”
“You are not kissing James.”
James looked offended.
“Why am I the first one you rule out?”
Sirius rounded on him.
“Because you’d make it weird.”
“I would not.”
“You make everything weird.”
“That is unfair.”
“You once proposed marriage to a suit of armour because it complimented your hair.”
“It was a very emotional evening.”
Regulus’s eyes moved past James.
Peter sat very still.
“No offence,” Regulus said.
Peter nodded rapidly.
“None taken.”
Fabian leaned towards Gideon.
“He considered Peter longer than James.”
“I noticed.”
James pointed at them.
“I can hear you.”
Regulus looked at Fabian and Gideon.
Both of them smiled.
Regulus immediately moved on.
“Rude,” Fabian murmured.
“Accurate,” Gideon replied.
Frank looked increasingly nervous as Regulus’s gaze reached him.
Alice placed a hand lightly over Frank’s wrist.
Regulus paused.
Frank swallowed.
Regulus moved on.
Frank exhaled.
Alice smiled at him.
Regulus looked at Lily.
Lily raised one eyebrow.
“No,” Regulus said to himself.
Lily’s eyebrow rose higher.
Mary grinned.
Marlene leaned back as though presenting herself for inspection.
Regulus regarded her.
“You would laugh.”
“Almost certainly.”
“No.”
Alice received only a brief glance before Regulus’s attention moved at last to Remus.
Remus had not moved.
He sat with his book open before him, one hand still resting upon the edge of the page.
Regulus looked at him for several seconds.
Remus met his eyes.
Sirius followed Regulus’s stare.
His face changed.
“No.”
Regulus ignored him.
“No, absolutely not.”
Regulus stepped into the aisle.
Sirius moved around his desk.
“Regulus.”
“You wanted proof.”
“Not with Remus.”
“Why not?”
Sirius opened his mouth.
Nothing came out.
James looked between Sirius and Remus.
“That is an excellent question.”
“Shut up.”
Regulus continued walking.
The sound of his shoes against the stone floor seemed unnaturally loud.
Barty watched him go with his arms folded and a dark frown upon his face.
Evan’s gaze followed Regulus with cool intensity.
Dorcas appeared fascinated.
Pandora had abandoned the feather entirely.
Regulus stopped beside Remus’s desk.
Remus looked up at him.
From where he sat, the height difference was less obvious.
Even so, Regulus was small beside him, narrow through the shoulders, composed and pale beneath the classroom light.
Remus’s voice remained even.
“Why me?”
“You are the least chaotic.”
James scoffed.
Remus ignored him.
Regulus continued, “You are also less likely to do or say something stupid.”
Remus glanced towards Sirius.
“Compared with the available alternatives, that is not much of a compliment.”
“It was not intended as one.”
“Of course not.”
Sirius came closer.
“Moony.”
Remus looked at him.
“What?”
“Don’t.”
“I haven’t done anything.”
“Keep it that way.”
Regulus turned his head.
“Sirius.”
“What?”
“Sit down.”
“No.”
“You are embarrassing yourself.”
“I am protecting you.”
“From a kiss?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because—”
Again, Sirius failed to find an answer.
Regulus stared at him.
Sirius stared back.
Remus’s mouth twitched.
Sirius saw it.
“Don’t you smile.”
“I’m not smiling.”
“You’re thinking about smiling.”
“I cannot promise control over my private thoughts.”
“You can try.”
Regulus looked down at Remus.
“Are you going to object?”
The room held its breath.
Remus’s eyes flicked over Regulus’s face.
He seemed, for perhaps the first time since the argument had begun, genuinely unsure what to say.
“I don’t know.”
“That is not an objection.”
“No,” Remus said slowly. “It isn’t.”
Sirius made a furious sound.
Regulus paid him no attention.
He reached out.
One hand caught Remus lightly along the jaw. The other settled against the opposite side of his face.
Remus’s eyes widened.
Regulus’s fingers were cool against his skin.
For one suspended instant, neither moved.
Then Regulus pulled.
Remus bent forward automatically, dragged down by the grip on his face and the certainty in Regulus’s hands.
Regulus kissed him.
The room vanished into silence.
There was no hesitation in it.
No awkward brush of lips. No uncertain pause. No searching attempt to work out where noses were meant to go or what anyone was supposed to do with their hands.
Regulus kissed Remus as if he had already decided exactly how it would happen.
His mouth pressed firmly to Remus’s, head tilted just enough, fingers holding Remus’s face in place. The first contact was controlled and deliberate, deep enough to shatter every trace of disbelief in the room.
Remus made a small sound of shock against his lips.
It escaped him before he could stop it.
His book slipped from his hand and landed flat upon the desk.
Regulus did not pull away.
Instead, he deepened the kiss.
Remus went rigid.
For the length of a heartbeat, he seemed entirely unable to understand what was happening.
Then Regulus’s mouth moved against his again.
Remus groaned.
The sound was low and startled, dragged from somewhere beneath thought.
His hands moved.
One caught Regulus at the waist.
The other followed a second later.
Remus’s fingers closed around him, and the shock of how narrow Regulus was seemed to strike him all at once.
His grip tightened.
Regulus made a quiet sound into the kiss.
Remus’s entire posture changed.
The surprise remained, but it broke beneath something warmer and far less controlled. He leaned into Regulus, mouth opening beneath his, one hand spreading across the small of his back while the other held his waist as though he had forgotten there was an audience.
James’s jaw dropped.
Peter covered his mouth.
Lily stared.
Mary’s eyes became enormous.
Marlene gripped both sides of her desk.
Alice had turned bright pink.
Frank looked away for half a second, then looked back despite himself.
Fabian’s hand found Gideon’s sleeve.
Gideon’s hand found Fabian’s wrist.
Neither spoke.
Barty’s expression had become murderous.
Evan looked frozen.
Dorcas whispered, “Oh.”
Pandora watched with open delight.
Sirius stood absolutely motionless.
Remus pulled Regulus closer.
The movement brought Regulus between his knees, their bodies pressed together, Remus’s hand tightening instinctively at the smaller boy’s waist.
Another groan slipped out of him.
Regulus’s fingers shifted from Remus’s jaw into his hair.
Remus shuddered.
The hand at Regulus’s waist slid lower.
Slowly at first.
Then, as Regulus kissed him harder, Remus seemed to lose whatever remained of his caution.
His palm moved over the curve of Regulus’s hip and down.
He gripped Regulus’s arse.
Regulus made a soft, muffled noise into his mouth.
Marlene’s eyes nearly came out of her head.
Mary clapped both hands over her own mouth.
James whispered, “Holy fuck.”
Lily smacked his arm without looking away.
Remus squeezed.
Regulus’s body pressed closer.
The sound Remus made this time was rougher, his fingers flexing as though the smallness of Regulus’s waist and the softness beneath his hand had overwhelmed some final part of his ability to think.
Then Regulus used his tongue.
Remus jolted.
His head reared back.
The kiss broke with a sharp, wet sound.
Remus stared at Regulus, breathing hard, one hand still locked around his waist and the other still very firmly upon his arse.
Regulus looked mildly inconvenienced by the interruption.
Remus blinked.
“What was that?”
Regulus’s brows drew together.
“What was what?”
“Your tongue.”
Regulus stared at him.
Remus looked dazed.
“There was something—”
He stopped, apparently unable to describe it.
Regulus’s expression cleared.
“Oh.”
“Oh?” Remus repeated.
Regulus released his hair.
“It was probably the piercing.”
No one moved.
Remus’s hand loosened.
“The what?”
“My tongue piercing.”
Sirius’s face went white.
Barty’s anger vanished beneath shock.
Evan’s lips parted.
Dorcas sat up straighter.
Pandora clapped once, delighted.
Regulus gave a small shrug.
Then he stuck out his tongue.
The metal caught the light.
A small silver bar sat cleanly through the centre of it.
Remus stared.
Everyone stared.
Regulus withdrew his tongue and closed his mouth.
“There.”
No one said anything.
Regulus looked around the room.
His gaze settled upon Sirius.
Sirius appeared to have forgotten how to blink.
Regulus’s face returned to its usual blank calm.
“Proof.”
Sirius opened his mouth.
Nothing emerged.
Regulus waited.
Sirius tried again.
“You—”
His voice failed.
James slowly turned towards him.
“For once,” he said, sounding awed, “I think you may have actually broken him.”
Peter nodded.
“Completely.”
Remus still had one hand around Regulus’s waist.
He seemed unaware of it.
His eyes had not left Regulus’s mouth.
Regulus glanced down at the hand gripping him.
Then at the other hand, which remained lower.
“Lupin.”
Remus blinked.
“Yes?”
“You may release my arse now.”
Remus jerked his hand away so quickly that he struck the side of the desk.
The crack echoed through the room.
His face went scarlet.
Regulus stepped back.
Remus’s remaining hand slipped from his waist.
The loss seemed to register visibly.
Regulus adjusted the front of his jumper.
Calm.
Unruffled.
Entirely composed.
Remus looked as though he had survived being hit by lightning.
Barty pointed at Regulus.
“You have a tongue piercing.”
“Yes.”
“How long?”
“A while.”
“You never told us.”
“You did not ask.”
Evan’s eyes narrowed.
“How did we not notice?”
“I usually keep my tongue inside my mouth.”
Dorcas snorted.
Pandora tilted her head.
“May I see it again?”
“No.”
“May I have it when you die?”
“No.”
“You won’t need it.”
“You are the reason I do not share information.”
Pandora smiled.
Regulus turned back towards his desk.
Sirius finally found his voice.
“Regulus.”
Regulus paused.
“What?”
Sirius pointed at his mouth.
“You have metal in your tongue.”
“Yes.”
“And you just—”
“Yes.”
“With Remus.”
“Yes.”
“My Remus.”
Remus looked up sharply.
“Your what?”
Sirius ignored him.
Regulus stared at Sirius.
“I was under the impression he belonged to himself.”
“That is not what I meant.”
“What did you mean?”
“I—”
Sirius stopped.
Regulus waited.
Sirius’s pointing hand lowered.
“I don’t know.”
“That seems to happen to you often.”
Regulus returned to his chair.
Barty moved aside to let him pass, still staring.
Regulus sat.
Evan looked at him.
Dorcas looked at him.
Pandora looked at him.
Barty retrieved his fallen chair but did not sit.
Across the room, every Gryffindor remained fixed in place.
Regulus folded his arms upon the desk.
He looked at Sirius.
“Do you believe me now?”
Sirius’s face twisted.
“No.”
Regulus blinked.
“No?”
“I believe you can kiss.”
“That was the point.”
“I don’t believe the rest.”
Regulus stared at him for several seconds.
Then he looked towards Remus.
Remus was still red, still breathing slightly too quickly, still staring back at him with an expression somewhere between shock and hunger.
Regulus turned to Sirius again.
“I am not proving the rest in a classroom.”
The room exploded.
Sirius shouted.
James fell sideways against Peter.
Peter made a sound like a strangled laugh.
Lily buried her face in her hands.
Mary collapsed over her desk.
Marlene howled.
Alice’s cheeks turned an even deeper shade of red.
Frank looked at the ceiling.
Fabian and Gideon clung to one another, shaking with laughter.
Barty began loudly demanding further explanation.
Evan told him to shut up while continuing to stare at Regulus.
Dorcas leaned back in her chair, laughing under her breath.
Pandora picked up one of the dismantled feather pieces and held it thoughtfully towards the light.
Remus said nothing.
He simply touched two fingers to his own mouth.
Regulus lowered his head back onto his folded arms.
His eyes closed.
Sirius’s voice rose above the chaos.
“You cannot say that and go back to sleep!”
Regulus did not move.
“I can.”
“Regulus!”
“Be quiet.”
“You kissed Remus!”
“I remember.”
“With tongue!”
“I was there.”
“You have a piercing!”
“Yes.”
“You let him grab your—”
Sirius stopped himself with a visible shudder.
Regulus opened one eye.
“You wanted proof.”
“I wanted you to admit you were a virgin!”
“That sounds like poor planning.”
Sirius stared at him.
Regulus closed his eye again.
Around them, the classroom remained in absolute uproar.
Remus continued touching his mouth.
And Regulus, apparently satisfied that the matter had been resolved, went back to being bored.
It should not have been possible.
Not after the shouting. Not after the accusations. Not after Sirius had begun pacing between the desks as though attempting to wear a trench into the stone floor through the force of outrage alone.
Not after Barty had retrieved his chair, dragged it close enough to Regulus’s desk that the legs shrieked against the flagstones, and sat down sideways upon it with all the grim determination of an investigator preparing for an interrogation.
Not after Evan had abandoned every pretence of casual indifference and begun watching Regulus with narrowed eyes.
Not after Pandora had started asking increasingly specific questions about the mechanics of tongue piercings.
Not after Dorcas had announced that she intended to write down every name Regulus had given and question them individually.
Not after the Gryffindors had collectively lost whatever little remained of their sanity.
And certainly not after Remus Lupin had stopped functioning.
Yet Regulus simply rested his chin upon his folded arms and stared towards the empty professor’s desk.
Blank.
Calm.
Uninterested.
As though he had not just kissed Remus breathless in front of fourteen horrified witnesses.
As though Remus’s hand had not closed around his narrow waist.
As though Remus had not grabbed his arse.
As though Regulus’s tongue had not brushed against his with a small flash of cold metal that Remus could still feel even now.
Remus sat motionless.
His book remained open on the desk before him.
He could not see a single word.
He could not see anything except Regulus.
Regulus’s mouth.
Regulus’s waist.
Regulus between his knees.
Regulus making that small sound when Remus had squeezed him.
Regulus’s fingers tightening in his hair.
Regulus’s tongue.
The piercing.
That terrible, impossible, brilliant little piece of silver.
Remus stared straight ahead.
His face had gone blank.
To everyone else, he appeared almost calm.
Inside his head, something had torn loose.
Want him.
The thought did not arrive in Remus’s own voice.
It came from deeper.
Lower.
Rougher.
The wolf had always been present.
Usually as an irritation beneath his skin. A pressure at the base of his skull. An instinct that had to be controlled, ignored and occasionally fought into silence.
It disliked crowds.
It distrusted strangers.
It resented confinement.
It had opinions on scents, threats, territory, food, sleep and every living creature that came within reach.
Remus had spent years arguing with it.
Years refusing its impulses.
Years insisting that he was a person before he was a beast.
The wolf spoke again.
Want him.
Remus swallowed.
For once, he had no disagreement.
Regulus had returned to staring at nothing.
The pale line of his profile was visible between Barty and Evan, his dark hair slightly disordered from Remus’s fingers.
Remus wanted to fix it.
He wanted to touch it again.
He wanted to run his fingers through it slowly and feel every soft strand.
He wanted to pull Regulus back between his knees and keep him there.
He wanted to kiss him until that cold silver bar was the only thing either of them could feel.
He wanted to know whether Regulus always made those quiet sounds or whether Remus had dragged them out of him.
He wanted to learn every sound.
Every expression.
Every small movement of that narrow body.
He wanted Regulus in his arms.
On his lap.
Under his hands.
He wanted to hold him close enough that no space remained between them.
He wanted to lift him.
Carry him.
Pin him against a wall and kiss him until that blank expression shattered.
Throw him over his shoulder when he became difficult.
Pull him down onto a bed when he became worse.
He wanted to protect him.
The thought arrived so abruptly that Remus’s fingers tightened against the edge of his desk.
Protect him.
Provide for him.
Give him whatever he asked for.
Food. Books. Clothes. Jewellery. A home. Safety. Silence. Noise. Anything.
Everything.
Regulus could demand the moon, and Remus would spend the rest of his life attempting to wrench it out of the sky.
Mine, the wolf said.
Remus’s heart slammed against his ribs.
He should have rejected that immediately.
He should have recoiled from the possessiveness of it. Should have forced the instinct back behind whatever barrier usually contained it.
Instead, his gaze dropped to Regulus’s waist.
Mine.
The wolf pressed closer beneath his skin, utterly certain.
Omega.
Remus closed his eyes.
That was ridiculous.
Absurd.
Regulus was not—
Mine.
Only him.
No one else.
Remus opened his eyes.
Regulus had shifted slightly, his jumper riding up at the back just enough to reveal a narrow strip of pale skin above his waistband.
Remus stopped breathing.
Mine, the wolf repeated.
Remus agreed.
The realisation struck him with such force that he stood.
His chair scraped backwards.
Every head turned.
Sirius stopped pacing.
James, who had been arguing with Lily about whether Regulus’s list could possibly be real, broke off halfway through a sentence.
Peter lowered the parchment creature he had been absent-mindedly tearing into smaller pieces.
Mary sat upright.
Marlene grinned immediately.
Alice blinked.
Frank looked worried.
Fabian and Gideon leaned forward together.
Across the aisle, Evan’s hand moved instinctively towards Regulus’s shoulder.
Barty twisted around in the chair beside Regulus.
Remus looked at him.
Barty frowned.
“What?”
Remus walked across the room.
He did not hurry.
Not exactly.
But there was something in the way he moved that made the room quieten one voice at a time.
His attention remained fixed upon the chair beside Regulus.
Upon Barty sitting in it.
Upon the fact that Barty was leaning too close.
Barty had one elbow planted on Regulus’s desk.
He had apparently been attempting to continue his interrogation.
“Were any of those names lies?” Barty demanded, turning back towards Regulus. “Because I know for a fact you cannot stand Avery.”
“I do not have to like someone to—”
Regulus stopped.
Remus had reached them.
Barty looked up.
Remus stared down at him.
“Move.”
Barty stared.
“What?”
“Move.”
“This is my chair.”
“No, it isn’t.”
“I’m sitting in it.”
“Not for long.”
The room erupted at once.
“What the fuck?” James yelled.
“Remus?” Lily said sharply.
Marlene slapped both palms against the desk.
“Oh, he’s gone strange.”
“He was already strange,” Mary replied. “This is new strange.”
Sirius crossed the room.
“Moony.”
Remus did not look at him.
Barty leaned back in his chair, arms folding across his chest.
“I’m talking to Regulus.”
“You’re finished.”
Regulus remained lying across his folded arms.
He had not looked up.
Barty’s eyes narrowed.
“You don’t decide that.”
Remus placed one hand on the back of Barty’s chair.
“Yes, I do.”
Evan slowly rose.
Dorcas caught the sleeve of his robes.
“Wait.”
“He is threatening Barty.”
“He is about to kill Barty.”
“That is worse.”
“No,” Dorcas said, watching Remus with open fascination. “It’s funnier.”
Pandora tilted her head.
“His pupils are very large.”
“Whose?” Frank asked.
“Remus’s.”
Frank looked at Remus.
“So they are.”
Barty’s expression sharpened.
“You kissed him once.”
Remus’s jaw tightened.
“Yes.”
“That does not mean you own the chair.”
“I want it.”
“So?”
“So move.”
“No.”
Remus pushed.
The chair tipped.
Barty shouted as one side lifted from the floor.
He grabbed at the desk too late.
Remus shoved again.
Barty and the chair went over together.
The crash shook the room.
Barty landed sprawled across the flagstones with one leg tangled in the chair and his robes twisted beneath him.
For half a second, nobody reacted.
Then all fourteen spectators began shouting at once.
“REMUS!”
“WHAT THE HELL?”
“YOU CANNOT JUST THROW PEOPLE!”
“HE DIDN’T THROW HIM, HE TIPPED HIM!”
“THAT IS NOT BETTER, FABIAN!”
“IT IS SLIGHTLY BETTER!”
“BARTY, ARE YOU DEAD?”
“I’M GOING TO KILL HIM!”
“Oh, good, he’s alive.”
Sirius seized Remus by the sleeve.
“What has happened to you?”
Remus shook him off.
“Nothing.”
“Nothing?”
Sirius pointed at Barty.
“You just knocked Crouch onto the floor!”
“He was in my seat.”
“It wasn’t your seat!”
“It is now.”
Barty kicked the chair off his leg and surged upright.
“You lanky bastard—”
Remus looked at him.
The glare stopped Barty halfway through rising.
It was not loud.
It was not dramatic.
Remus did not bare his teeth or reach for his wand.
He merely looked at Barty with a cold, flat warning that did not belong to the soft-spoken boy who usually sat quietly behind a book.
“Move,” Remus repeated.
Barty’s mouth fell open.
Evan stared.
Dorcas burst out laughing.
“Oh, he hates you.”
“Shut up,” Barty snapped.
“He really hates you.”
“He does not.”
Remus picked up the chair, set it upright and placed it directly behind Regulus.
Then he sat.
The shouting became louder.
Regulus still had not moved.
Remus sat close enough that his knees nearly bracketed the sides of Regulus’s chair.
He stared at the back of Regulus’s head.
The wolf settled slightly.
Closer.
Good.
Barty stood beside the desk, looking outraged.
“That was my seat.”
Remus ignored him.
“I was talking to him.”
Remus ignored him.
“I asked him a question.”
Remus reached around Regulus and straightened the sheet of parchment lying crookedly beneath his elbow.
Barty stared.
Remus picked up Regulus’s quill.
The feather had bent where Regulus had laid his arm across it.
Remus smoothed it carefully between his fingers and placed it beside the inkpot.
The room slowly fell quiet.
James watched him.
“What are you doing?”
Remus did not answer.
He moved Regulus’s inkpot farther from the edge of the desk.
Then he gathered the loose pieces of parchment scattered across the surface and tapped their edges together until they were perfectly aligned.
Regulus remained motionless.
Remus arranged the parchment in a neat stack.
He placed the quill beside it.
He noticed a small smear of ink near Regulus’s wrist and wiped it away with the edge of his own sleeve.
Mary made a choking sound.
Marlene whispered, “He has lost his fucking mind.”
Lily’s eyes narrowed.
“He looks calm.”
“That makes it worse.”
Peter stared at Remus.
“Does he know we can see him?”
“No,” James said. “I don’t think he knows we exist anymore.”
Sirius moved around the desks until he stood where he could see Remus’s face.
Remus did not acknowledge him.
His entire attention had settled upon Regulus.
A small section of Regulus’s hair stuck up where Remus had gripped it earlier.
Remus lifted one hand.
He hesitated for barely a moment before smoothing it down.
The strands slipped through his fingers.
Soft.
Far too soft.
Remus’s chest tightened.
He combed the piece into place with his fingertips.
Regulus shifted faintly beneath his touch but did not sit up.
Remus touched his hair again.
He tucked one loose strand behind Regulus’s ear.
Regulus was beautiful.
Remus had known that before.
Everyone with eyes knew it.
There was something severe about Regulus’s face, something sharp and distant, as though he had been carved from marble and then taught to glare.
But this close, Remus could see the softer things.
The dark lashes resting against his cheeks.
The faint crease between his brows.
The curve of his mouth where it pressed against the sleeve of his robes.
The pinkness of his lips after being kissed.
Remus’s breath caught.
Mine, the wolf said.
Remus smiled.
It was not his usual smile.
There was no dry amusement in it.
No restraint.
It spread slowly across his face, soft and helpless and so deeply besotted that every person watching experienced a fresh surge of alarm.
Sirius recoiled.
“Oh, no.”
James looked at him.
“What?”
“I know that face.”
“You’ve never seen that face.”
“I have now, and I hate it.”
Remus carefully adjusted the collar of Regulus’s jumper.
One side had folded inward.
He fixed it.
Barty stared at him.
“What are you doing?”
Remus’s eyes flicked towards him.
Barty took a small step back.
Remus returned to Regulus.
Barty looked furious about the fact that he had moved.
Evan folded his arms.
“You are hovering.”
Remus did not respond.
“He’s not hovering,” Pandora said.
Everyone looked at her.
She considered Remus.
“He is nesting.”
Remus’s head snapped towards her.
Pandora smiled.
The wolf liked her observation.
Remus did not.
“Do not say that.”
Pandora’s smile widened.
Dorcas stared between them.
“Oh, that is exactly what he’s doing.”
“I’m not.”
“You sorted Regulus’s parchment.”
“It was uneven.”
“You fixed his collar.”
“It looked uncomfortable.”
“You pushed Barty onto the floor.”
“He was in the way.”
Barty pointed sharply at Remus.
“I heard that.”
“You were meant to.”
The entire room shouted again.
Regulus finally moved.
He lifted his head from his arms.
Remus straightened instantly.
Regulus blinked slowly.
His eyes moved first to the organised stack of parchment.
Then to his quill.
Then to the inkpot that had been moved away from the edge.
He touched his collar.
His head turned.
Remus sat behind him.
Far too close.
Watching him with wide, attentive eyes and a smile so warm and foolish that Regulus stared at him for several seconds without speaking.
Remus’s heart stumbled.
Regulus’s hair fell slightly across one eye.
Remus’s fingers twitched.
He wanted to fix it again.
He wanted to touch Regulus everywhere.
He wanted to pull him backwards into his chest and keep him there.
Regulus looked towards Barty, who was standing beside the overturned space where his chair had previously been.
Then towards Remus.
“What are you doing?”
Remus perked up.
The change was immediate.
His shoulders lifted.
His eyes brightened.
The dopey smile somehow became worse.
James slapped both hands over his own face.
“He looks like a dog.”
“Don’t say that,” Peter whispered.
“He does.”
Remus ignored them.
Regulus’s gaze dropped to Remus’s hands.
They were hovering near his waist.
Not touching.
Waiting.
Regulus looked at Remus’s face again.
Remus said nothing.
He merely watched him.
Hopeful.
Desperate.
Obvious.
Regulus sighed.
His eyes rolled towards the ceiling.
“Pathetic.”
Remus’s smile widened.
Regulus turned in his chair.
He caught Remus by the front of his robes and pulled him forward.
Their mouths met.
Remus melted.
There was no hesitation this time.
No stunned pause.
The instant Regulus kissed him, Remus surged into it with a rough, desperate sound, his hands closing around Regulus as though he had been waiting hours rather than minutes.
One arm wrapped tightly around Regulus’s waist.
The other caught him beneath the thigh.
Regulus barely had time to shift before Remus pulled him bodily out of his chair.
Regulus gave a startled sound against his mouth.
His knees landed on either side of Remus’s hips.
He was suddenly straddling Remus’s lap.
The room exploded.
Sirius screamed.
Not shouted.
Screamed.
James leapt to his feet.
Peter dropped his parchment entirely.
Lily slapped both hands over her mouth.
Mary shrieked.
Marlene climbed onto her chair for a better view.
Alice hid her face against Frank’s shoulder, though the gap between her fingers suggested she was still watching.
Frank stared at the opposite wall with the rigid determination of a man trying to remove himself spiritually from the room.
Fabian grabbed Gideon around the shoulders.
Gideon grabbed him back.
Barty made a sound of pure outrage.
Evan’s eyes widened.
Dorcas began swearing under her breath.
Pandora clapped with delighted little taps of her palms.
Remus heard none of them.
Regulus was on his lap.
Regulus’s thighs pressed against his sides.
Regulus’s hands were in his hair again.
Remus dragged him closer.
His arm locked around Regulus’s waist until their chests pressed together.
His other hand slid to Regulus’s arse and gripped him firmly.
Regulus jerked.
The movement pressed him closer.
Remus groaned into his mouth.
“Good,” he breathed.
Regulus kissed him harder.
Remus’s hand squeezed.
His other arm shifted beneath Regulus’s jumper and shirt.
His palm met bare skin.
Warm.
Smooth.
The feeling destroyed whatever little remained of his restraint.
Remus made a low, broken sound and spread his hand across the small of Regulus’s back.
Regulus shivered.
Remus felt it beneath his palm.
“Fuck,” he muttered into the kiss. “You’re so—”
Regulus caught his lower lip between his teeth.
Remus’s head tipped back.
A hoarse groan tore from him.
Regulus followed, mouth immediately finding his again.
The metal of the piercing brushed Remus’s tongue.
Remus’s hips jerked beneath him.
Regulus squeaked.
It was tiny.
Sharp.
Completely unlike his usual flat voice.
Remus froze for less than a second.
Then the wolf surged.
Again.
Remus ground up against him through their clothes.
Regulus’s body jolted on his lap.
Remus groaned.
“There,” he muttered. “That sound. Do that again.”
Regulus tried to pull back enough to speak.
Remus did not let him.
He caught Regulus’s mouth again before a word could escape.
His hand tightened around Regulus’s arse, holding him firmly in place as his hips pushed upward once more.
Regulus squeaked again.
The entire classroom dissolved into screaming.
“MOONY!”
“REMUS!”
“GET OFF MY BROTHER!”
“HE’S NOT ON HIM, SIRIUS, REGULUS IS ON HIM!”
“THAT IS WORSE!”
“WHY ARE YOU CORRECTING HIM?”
“I VALUE ACCURACY!”
“STOP MOVING YOUR HIPS!”
Remus ignored every word.
He kissed Regulus desperately.
Messily.
Without pause.
His tongue met the silver bar again, and he shuddered.
“Perfect,” he murmured against Regulus’s mouth. “So fucking perfect.”
Regulus’s fingers tightened in his hair.
Remus pulled him closer.
His palm pressed flat against the bare skin of Regulus’s back, holding him tightly enough to bend him slightly beneath the force of the kiss.
Regulus arched.
Remus’s breath broke into a growl.
“That’s it.”
Regulus made another muffled sound.
“Good.”
Remus kissed the corner of his mouth, then his lips again before Regulus could breathe.
“So good.”
Regulus tried to turn his face.
Remus followed him.
“Remus—”
“I’ll give you anything.”
Regulus blinked.
Remus kissed him again.
“Anything,” he repeated against his mouth. “Whatever you want.”
Regulus drew breath.
Remus’s tongue slid against his.
The attempted response became another startled sound.
Remus’s hand flexed against his skin.
“Tell me what you want.”
Regulus pulled back half an inch.
“You’re not letting me—”
Remus kissed him.
He could not stop.
Every time Regulus’s mouth left his, panic clawed through him.
He needed it back.
Needed the pressure.
The warmth.
The metal.
The taste of him.
“I’ll take care of you,” Remus muttered.
His hips rolled upward again.
Regulus’s breath hitched.
“I’ll give you everything.”
Another kiss.
“Books.”
Another.
“Clothes.”
Another.
“Jewellery.”
Another.
“Whatever you ask for.”
Regulus attempted to speak again.
Remus’s mouth covered his before the first word formed.
Remus groaned as Regulus’s tongue moved against his.
“Yes.”
Regulus shifted.
Remus’s fingers dug into his arse.
“Yes, like that.”
He ground upward again.
Regulus squeaked and clutched at his shoulders.
Remus’s voice dropped.
“Fuck, I want you.”
The room went briefly silent.
Remus did not notice.
He kissed Regulus’s mouth, then the edge of his jaw, then returned to his lips almost immediately.
“I want you so badly.”
His hips bucked beneath Regulus again.
Regulus jolted.
Remus’s eyes closed.
“Want to fuck you.”
Sirius made a strangled, dying noise.
Lily shouted Remus’s name.
Barty kicked a fallen chair across the floor.
It struck a desk with a crash.
Remus did not look away from Regulus.
“Want to hold you.”
His arm tightened.
“Carry you.”
His hand shifted under Regulus’s clothes, tracing the narrow line of his waist.
“Keep you close.”
Regulus’s cheeks had flushed.
His breathing had become uneven.
He opened his mouth.
Remus kissed him before he could speak.
“Please.”
Regulus made an irritated noise into the kiss.
Remus groaned as though it were praise.
“Please,” he repeated.
He had no idea what he was pleading for.
More.
Everything.
Regulus.
His mouth.
His body.
His attention.
His permission.
“I’ll be good.”
Regulus’s eyes opened.
Remus kissed him again.
“I’ll do whatever you want.”
Regulus tried to pull away.
Remus’s arm held him securely.
“Lupin—”
Another kiss swallowed the name.
Remus nearly came apart at the sound of it.
“Say it again.”
Regulus frowned.
“Rem—”
Remus groaned and caught his mouth.
His hips pushed up hard enough that Regulus made another sharp sound.
“Again,” Remus muttered. “Please. Say my name again.”
Regulus’s hands flattened against Remus’s shoulders as though preparing to force space between them.
Remus bent him backwards slightly instead.
One arm braced him securely around the waist.
The hand beneath his clothes held him close.
The other remained firm upon his arse.
Regulus’s hair fell away from his face.
Remus stared down at him.
Beautiful.
Flushed.
Breathless.
Mine.
The wolf pressed against the inside of Remus’s ribs.
Omega.
Claim him.
Remus lowered his mouth to Regulus’s again.
The kiss became deeper.
Slower for barely a moment, then desperate all over again when Regulus answered with his tongue.
Remus huffed against his lips.
“There you are.”
Regulus’s piercing clicked faintly against Remus’s teeth.
Remus shuddered so violently that the chair creaked beneath them.
“Holy fuck.”
His hips rolled upward.
Regulus’s body moved against him.
The friction dragged a ragged sound out of Remus.
He gripped Regulus tighter.
“Don’t stop.”
Regulus had not been given the chance to stop.
Remus kissed him again and again, speaking between each one without ever allowing enough distance for Regulus to reply.
“Perfect.”
Kiss.
“Pretty.”
Kiss.
“So fucking pretty.”
Kiss.
“I’ve got you.”
Kiss.
“I’ll keep you.”
Regulus’s eyes narrowed at that.
Remus did not see.
His mouth had already covered Regulus’s again.
Around them, chaos reached its peak.
Sirius seized James by the front of his robes.
“Do something!”
James stared at him.
“What?”
“Stop them!”
“You stop them!”
“He’s your friend!”
“He’s your brother!”
“That is exactly why I cannot touch either of them right now!”
Peter had retreated behind Lily.
Lily looked ready to hex Remus off the chair.
Mary was half-laughing, half-screaming.
Marlene had begun loudly commentating from atop her own seat.
“Lupin maintains possession! Black attempts speech! Lupin refuses the opportunity! An aggressive strategy from Gryffindor!”
“GET DOWN!” Lily shouted.
“No!”
Alice had abandoned hiding against Frank and was now clinging to his arm.
Frank’s face was red to the tips of his ears.
Fabian and Gideon were yelling contradictory advice.
“USE YOUR KNEES, REGULUS!”
“DO NOT ENCOURAGE HIM!”
“I’M ENCOURAGING ESCAPE!”
“THAT DID NOT SOUND LIKE ESCAPE!”
Barty tried to get closer.
Evan caught him around the middle.
“Let go of me!”
“You’ll get bitten.”
“By Lupin?”
“Probably.”
“I’ll bite him back!”
Dorcas grabbed Barty’s sleeve from the other side.
“No, wait. I want to see how long this lasts.”
“You are a terrible friend!”
“I know.”
Pandora watched Remus with bright, fascinated eyes.
“The wolf likes him.”
Every voice faltered.
Remus’s head turned.
For the first time since Regulus had kissed him, his attention left the boy in his arms.
His eyes fixed upon Pandora.
Regulus remained bent slightly backwards over his arm, breathing hard, hair mussed and lips swollen.
Pandora smiled.
Remus’s grip tightened.
She nodded towards Regulus.
“It has chosen.”
Remus went very still.
Sirius looked between them.
“What does that mean?”
“No,” Remus said.
His voice was rough.
Pandora’s smile widened.
“It means—”
“Do not.”
“It means the wolf has decided Regulus is his.”
The screaming began all over again.
Remus’s eyes closed.
Regulus stared up at him.
For the first time since climbing into Remus’s lap, he looked genuinely surprised.
Remus opened his eyes.
Regulus’s face was inches from his.
The wolf pressed forward again.
Mine.
Remus had never agreed with it so completely.
His thumb moved beneath Regulus’s shirt, stroking once across the warm skin at his waist.
Regulus’s gaze sharpened.
Remus looked at his mouth.
The dopey smile returned.
Regulus’s expression flattened.
“No.”
Remus leaned closer.
Regulus planted a hand over his mouth.
Remus kissed his palm.
Regulus stared at him.
Remus’s smile widened behind his hand.
Across the room, James whispered, “He’s broken.”
Sirius dragged both hands through his hair.
“Regulus broke him.”
Regulus kept his palm against Remus’s mouth.
Remus gazed up at him, utterly content beneath the contact, arms still locked securely around his waist.
Barty pointed furiously.
“Get off his lap.”
Remus turned his head enough to glare at him over Regulus’s fingers.
Barty stopped.
Remus looked back at Regulus.
Regulus sighed.
The moment his hand moved, Remus leaned forward again.
Regulus caught him by the chin.
“Wait.”
Remus froze.
The entire room froze with him.
Regulus studied his face.
Remus waited.
His hands remained exactly where they were.
His expression was soft.
Attentive.
Hopelessly eager.
Regulus’s eyes dropped briefly towards his mouth.
Remus’s breath caught.
“Can I kiss you?” he asked.
Regulus stared at him.
Everyone stared at him.
Remus, who had spent the last several minutes refusing to allow Regulus enough air to complete a sentence, waited with the patience of a saint.
Regulus rolled his eyes.
“Yes.”
Remus surged forward so quickly that Regulus barely finished the word.
Their mouths met again.
Remus groaned.
His arms tightened.
His hips bucked.
Regulus squeaked.
And the classroom lost its collective mind.
Remus did not stop after the yes.
The word had barely left Regulus’s mouth before Remus took it apart.
He kissed him like the permission had snapped the last thread of restraint inside him, like every second before it had been starvation and every second after it had become claim. His hand slid back into Regulus’s hair, fingers threading through the dark strands with possessive care before tightening just enough to tilt his head where Remus wanted it.
Regulus went with it.
That was the worst part for the rest of the room.
He went with it.
The same Regulus Black who had spent the last hour looking as though human interaction was an unfortunate scheduling error was now perched in Remus Lupin’s lap with his knees braced on either side of him, his hands twisted into Remus’s robes, his mouth open beneath Remus’s, kissing him back like he had no intention of stopping.
The silver bar in his tongue flashed between them.
Remus caught it again.
He groaned so roughly that Regulus’s fingers tightened.
“There,” Remus breathed, mouth dragging against his. “Fuck, there it is.”
Regulus tried to answer.
Remus kissed him before he could.
It was not a neat kiss anymore.
It was hungry. Messy. Deep enough that their tongues brushed again and again, Regulus’s piercing clicking faintly against Remus’s teeth whenever Remus chased too eagerly. Each little touch of metal made him lose another piece of himself.
His eyes had gone dark.
Not soft now.
Not dazed.
Dark.
Fixed on Regulus with something smug and stunned and possessive all at once, as though some enormous truth had settled into place inside him and he was not only accepting it but delighted by it.
Regulus was still on his lap.
Still tucked close.
Still there.
Remus’s arms tightened around him as if someone might attempt to take him away.
Barty was absolutely planning to attempt it.
“Get him off you,” Barty snapped.
Regulus ignored him.
Remus did not.
Remus turned his head just enough to glare over Regulus’s shoulder.
Barty stopped moving.
The glare was not even loud.
It was worse than loud.
It was patient.
Warning.
Mine, it said without words.
Regulus felt the shift in Remus’s body beneath him and, instead of pulling away, dragged him back by the collar.
Remus’s attention snapped immediately back to him.
The smugness melted into devotion so fast that James made a horrified sound from somewhere behind them.
Regulus kissed him.
Remus answered with a growl.
It rumbled low in his chest, vibrating against Regulus where they were pressed together. Regulus made a small, sharp sound into his mouth, and Remus’s hips bucked.
The movement rocked up beneath Regulus.
Direct.
Deliberate.
Regulus stiffened for half a breath, not away from him but into him, his fingers clutching harder at Remus’s robes.
Remus felt it.
He felt all of it.
The way Regulus’s thighs tightened around his hips.
The way his breath hitched.
The way his body followed the motion despite the shock of it.
Remus groaned.
“Oh, you felt that.”
Regulus’s eyes flicked open.
Remus smiled against his mouth.
It was a terrible smile.
Low and smug and ruined by how badly he wanted him.
Regulus tried to say something, but Remus’s hands moved to his hips and dragged him down closer.
Regulus’s breath broke.
Remus rolled up again.
This time Regulus moved with him.
His hips rocked down as Remus’s pushed up, the friction between them heavy through their trousers, impossible to misunderstand. Remus’s trousers were tight at the front, straining, and when he moved again Regulus felt the hard line of his cock press against him.
Regulus’s mouth parted.
Remus kissed the sound out of him.
“That’s it,” Remus muttered. “That’s it, pretty thing.”
The classroom became unbearable.
Sirius had gone red in the face.
“Stop saying things!”
Remus did not seem to hear him.
Or, if he did, he had decided Sirius no longer existed.
His hands slid lower.
Both of them.
They settled firmly on Regulus’s arse, palms spread and fingers gripping like he had been thinking about doing it since the first kiss.
Because he had.
He had thought of little else.
Regulus made a quiet noise when Remus squeezed him.
Remus’s entire face changed.
“There,” he said again, voice thick. “Fuck, Regulus.”
Regulus shivered.
Remus dragged him closer by the handfuls of him, guiding the roll of his hips as though he could not stand even the smallest distance between them. Regulus followed the pressure, his knees braced against the chair, his body rocking with Remus’s until the motion became mutual.
Remus groaned like it hurt.
“Good,” he huffed. “Good, just like that.”
Regulus’s cheeks were flushed now.
His hair was a mess from Remus’s hands, and his usual blank stare had sharpened into something darker, something focused entirely on Remus’s mouth. He looked furious about how much he wanted it.
He looked beautiful.
Remus lost another piece of sense.
He kissed him again, deeper, tongue pressing past Regulus’s lips, dragging another brush against the piercing. The metal sent heat straight through him.
His hips bucked.
Regulus squeaked.
Remus smiled into the kiss.
“There you go.”
Regulus tried to pull back.
“Lupin—”
Remus chased him immediately.
“Say it again.”
Regulus’s brows pinched.
“Remus—”
The name broke Remus.
He surged forward and kissed him hard enough to bend him back over his arm, both hands still gripping Regulus’s arse and holding him steady as his hips rolled up again.
Regulus clung to him.
Remus huffed against his mouth.
“Fuck, I want you.”
Regulus’s eyes half-lidded.
“I know.”
Remus groaned.
“No, you don’t.”
He kissed him again.
“You don’t know.”
Another roll of his hips.
Regulus’s body jolted against him.
Remus’s voice dropped lower.
“I want you so fucking badly.”
Sirius made a choking noise.
Lily shouted, “Remus!”
Remus kept going.
“Want to take you out of here.”
Kiss.
“Want to fuck you.”
Kiss.
“Want to hear you make that noise properly.”
Regulus tried to speak, but Remus caught his mouth before he could form the words.
He was not doing it to silence him cruelly.
He simply could not stop.
Every time Regulus breathed in like he might answer, Remus needed his mouth again. Needed the taste of him. Needed the metal and heat and sharp little sounds and the feeling of Regulus moving with him.
“I’ll make it good,” Remus muttered, kissing the corner of his mouth. “I’ll make it so good for you.”
Regulus’s nails dug into Remus’s shoulder.
Remus’s hands squeezed.
“Fuck, your arse.”
Regulus’s breath hitched.
Remus’s eyes darkened further.
“So nice,” he murmured. “So fucking perfect in my hands.”
“Moony!” James shouted, voice cracking somewhere between horror and disbelief.
Remus ignored him.
Regulus did not.
His gaze flicked briefly towards the room, and Remus immediately tightened his hold.
“No.”
Regulus looked back at him.
Remus’s mouth hovered over his.
“Look at me.”
Regulus stared.
Remus’s expression turned smug again, but there was pleading under it, desperate and obvious.
“Just me.”
Barty shouted something vicious.
Evan snapped something back.
Marlene was screaming with laughter.
Mary was making an endless, high-pitched sound into Lily’s shoulder.
Frank had covered his eyes.
Alice was patting his arm and watching anyway.
Fabian and Gideon were both yelling over each other, one of them insisting this was the greatest class of their lives and the other insisting they were all going to be expelled, arrested or traumatised in that order.
Pandora watched like she was witnessing a rare natural phenomenon.
Dorcas had her hands over her mouth, eyes bright with delighted horror.
Sirius looked ready to climb over three desks and commit a murder.
Regulus looked at none of them.
Remus’s thumb dug into the curve beneath his hip.
Regulus rocked down again.
Remus’s breath punched out of him.
“Fuck.”
The smugness cracked into something almost helpless.
“Do that again.”
Regulus did.
Remus’s head dropped back for half a second.
His throat worked.
His hips lifted into it.
The hard line of his cock pressed against Regulus through both their trousers, obvious and hot and making Regulus’s grip tighten until his knuckles paled.
Remus looked back at him with blown pupils.
“You feel me?”
Regulus’s mouth opened.
Remus kissed him before he answered.
“You do,” Remus whispered. “I know you do.”
Regulus’s tongue slid against his.
Remus shuddered hard.
“Fuck, baby.”
Regulus made a faint, strangled noise.
Remus smiled.
“Oh, you liked that.”
Regulus glared at him.
Remus kissed the glare away.
“You like being on my lap?”
Regulus tried to speak.
Remus rolled up beneath him.
The answer became another sharp sound.
Remus looked unbearably pleased.
“You do.”
Regulus grabbed his jaw.
“Let me—”
Remus kissed him.
Regulus made an irritated noise into his mouth.
Remus groaned as though even that was perfect.
“I know,” he cooed, breathless. “I know, I’m sorry.”
He was not sorry.
Not enough to stop.
His hands stayed where they were, gripping Regulus’s arse, dragging him down into each slow, firm roll of his hips.
“I just want you,” Remus murmured. “Want you too much.”
Regulus’s eyes flickered.
Remus leaned in again, but this time his mouth brushed Regulus’s rather than taking it fully.
“Come with me.”
Regulus stilled.
The room somehow managed to become louder.
Remus did not look away.
“Come with me,” he repeated, softer and more desperate. “We can leave.”
Regulus’s lips parted.
Remus kissed him before the answer came.
“Now,” he breathed between kisses. “We can go now.”
Kiss.
“I’ll take care of you.”
Kiss.
“I’ll make it good.”
Kiss.
“You’ll like it.”
Regulus’s fingers slid into the hair at the nape of his neck.
Remus’s body went taut.
“Yeah?” he asked, voice rough.
Regulus tugged.
Remus groaned.
Regulus used the tiny bit of control to pull him into another kiss, and Remus gave in immediately, hungrily, hands tightening as though that single act of want from Regulus had confirmed every wild thought in his head.
“You want it,” Remus muttered.
Regulus’s breath shook.
“You want me.”
Regulus tried again.
“Remus—”
“I’m big,” Remus said, the words spilling out against his mouth before sense could catch them. “I’ll be good, I swear, I’ll go slow if you want, but fuck, Regulus, you’ll feel me.”
Regulus’s face flushed harder.
Sirius shouted so loudly the windows might have rattled.
“ABSOLUTELY NOT!”
Remus’s mouth curved.
His eyes stayed on Regulus.
“You’re so little.”
Regulus’s glare sharpened.
Remus looked intoxicated by it.
“So little on my lap.”
His hips rolled again.
Regulus’s eyes fluttered despite himself.
Remus’s hands squeezed him.
“You’d be so full.”
Regulus’s fingers jerked in his hair.
Remus groaned.
“You’d love it.”
Regulus’s mouth opened soundlessly for a second.
Remus took the opportunity to kiss him again, licking into his mouth, catching the piercing, panting when Regulus kissed back just as hard.
The chair creaked beneath them.
The desk behind Regulus shifted an inch when his knee bumped it.
Ink sloshed dangerously in its pot.
Remus did not care.
His whole world had narrowed to the weight of Regulus on his lap and the heat of him moving against him and the fact that Regulus kept pulling him closer instead of pushing him away.
“Tell me,” Remus pleaded.
Regulus blinked at him, dazed and irritated and clearly desperate to get a word in.
Remus kissed him before he could.
“Tell me how big I am.”
Regulus’s eyes widened.
Remus groaned like the look alone had ruined him.
“Please.”
He rolled his hips up again.
Regulus’s breath caught hard.
“Please, baby, say it.”
Regulus’s fingers tightened in his robes.
Remus’s forehead pressed briefly to his.
His breathing came rough and uneven.
“I want to hear you say it.”
Regulus swallowed.
Remus kissed him again, shorter this time, almost frantic.
“Say my cock’s big.”
The room detonated.
Sirius lunged.
James caught him around the middle.
Peter caught James around the middle.
All three nearly went down.
Lily had her wand out.
Mary was shrieking into both hands.
Marlene was laughing so hard she had to grip the back of her chair to stay upright.
Alice had hidden her face again.
Frank looked like he was praying.
Fabian yelled, “THE PROFESSOR IS GOING TO COME BACK!”
Gideon shouted, “THAT IS YOUR CONCERN?”
Barty was trying to climb over Evan.
Evan was holding him back with increasingly strained patience.
Dorcas looked seconds away from collapsing onto the floor.
Pandora simply said, “Interesting,” in a dreamy voice.
Regulus was still looking at Remus.
Remus was still waiting.
His eyes had gone glassy with want.
His lips were swollen.
His hair was a wreck.
His hands were still shamelessly full of Regulus’s arse.
Regulus drew in a breath.
Remus’s gaze dropped to his mouth.
Regulus narrowed his eyes as if warning him.
Remus froze.
For one miraculous second, he actually let Regulus speak.
“You are,” Regulus said, voice low and breathless and still somehow blunt.
Remus stopped breathing.
Regulus’s eyes flicked down between them, then back up.
“Big.”
Remus made a sound that was almost a whine.
Regulus’s grip tightened.
“And you are extremely embarrassing.”
Remus laughed once, broken and breathless, and surged up to kiss him again.
He did not care about the second part.
He might not have heard it.
He only heard big.
His hips bucked hard beneath Regulus, and Regulus’s body rocked with it, his knees tightening around Remus’s sides.
Remus groaned against his mouth.
“Again.”
Regulus tried to turn away.
Remus chased.
“Again, please.”
Regulus’s mouth twitched like he might have smiled if he were someone else.
Remus caught that too.
“Oh, you like it.”
“Shut up.”
Remus kissed him.
“You like me begging.”
Regulus’s hand slid under Remus’s jaw.
Remus melted immediately.
“You do.”
Regulus kissed him this time.
Hard.
Deliberate.
Enough to shut him up for nearly three whole seconds.
Remus made a pleased sound and gave himself over to it entirely, letting Regulus take his mouth, letting the silver bar drag over his tongue, letting himself be pulled closer and closer until there was no space left between them.
Then his hands tightened again.
His hips rolled up.
Regulus’s breath broke.
Remus smiled against his mouth.
“Pretty little thing.”
Regulus bit his lower lip.
Remus groaned.
“Fuck.”
He pressed his face against Regulus’s throat for one second, breathing him in like he needed it.
Mine.
The wolf was calm now.
Certain.
Pleased.
Remus dragged his mouth back to Regulus’s.
Regulus met him there.
The classroom was still screaming.
The professor was still gone.
The lesson was still abandoned.
And Regulus Black, who had begun the morning accused of never having been kissed, was now seated firmly in Remus Lupin’s lap, gripping his robes, mouth swollen, hips moving with his, while Remus held him like a claim and kissed him like proof.