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“If Remus Lupin interrupts me when I’m trying to answer a question one more bloody time, I am going to lose it!” Sirius snarled as he came barreling into the dorm room.
“Er, sounds like you’ve already lost it, to be honest,” Peter said.
James, meanwhile, groaned loudly. “I cannot listen to you complain about Remus Lupin today. Can you just add this rant onto the next one?”
“No, James, I cannot just add this rant onto the next one,” Sirius said mockingly, true frustration in his voice.
James rolled his eyes and flopped down onto his bed, hanging his head off the side despondently.
“So, we were in History of Magic–”
“We know,” Peter and James mumbled at the same time.
“And Professor Binns asked which famous family had a descendant that founded Ilvermorny, which obviously the answer was Morrigan’s family, but what most people probably don’t know is that the Gaunts were also involved because one of their family members kidnapped the descendant of Morrigan and held her hostage.”
“Sirius, please,” James pleaded.
“Anyway, I said the first part,” Sirius continued as if he hadn’t heard James’s desperation, “and I was about to say the second half, when that smarmy bastard–” Sirius broke off with a growl of frustration. “He’s such a bastard.”
“So, you just said,” Peter muttered.
“Peter, I swear to Merlin,” Sirius snapped, biting off the ends of his words. He took a deep breath. He knew he was being annoying about Remus Lupin, but everything about Remus Lupin was annoying. He had been the one constant school annoyance in Sirius’s life since he started at Hogwarts.
There was one moment, early on, where Sirius thought they could have been friends, but that was before Remus one-upped him in Defense Against the Dark Arts, a transgression that Sirius could not abide. He couldn’t stand to lose. He blamed his upbringing. Blacks did not lose.
Peter and James eyed each other as Sirius struggled with his irritation. A silent conversation passed between them before they both began quickly grabbing their things, and made to leave.
“We’re going to leave you to your dramatics,” James called over his shoulder, and before Sirius could protest, they both rushed out of the room. Sirius huffed, and flopped over to starfish on his bed, staring up at the canopy.
“Fucking Lupin. Always messing up everything,” Sirius mumbled, closing his eyes, and trying his best to regulate his emotions. He had to remind himself this was all just another day of dealing with his sworn enemy.
Remus Lupin was brilliant, Sirius begrudgingly admitted – not that he would ever say that out loud, only in the quiet of his mind. Sirius just had to be better.
“All right, class. I am going to pass back last week’s essay. Some of you did remarkably well as usual.” McGonagall’s eyes passed almost imperceptibly over Sirius and Remus. “While some of you could use improvement.” She frowned at a few students, most of whom were barely paying attention as it was, not even noticing her disapproving look.
Sirius practically vibrated as she levitated each essay back to the appropriate student. He couldn’t wait to see his grade. He’d worked for hours on it before turning it in. He just needed it to be better than Remus’s. Remus was his only real competition in the class. Although James and Peter were both excellent at Transfiguration, they didn’t care as much about marks or homework so he easily outscored them on every assignment.
Remus remained the only person that could give Sirius any thrill of competition, and Sirius was determined to win out by being top student at the end of the year. He’d lost the spot to Remus in sixth year after managing it in both fourth and fifth year. It had been a tough blow, and he wasn’t about to lose again.
His essay settled in front of him and looked at the mark at the top. E. He blinked, looking at it again. E? Exceeds Expectations? He looked around, glancing at James’s paper to see an identical grade.
“Peter,” he hissed. Peter was sitting at the table next to them. “What did you get?”
“Acceptable,” Peter said with a frown. Sirius turned back to his own essay, glaring down at the E marked at the top. He’d worked so hard on it and he didn’t even get an O? Whatever. McGonagall was a tough grader, maybe he still got the best score, it just wasn’t a perfect score.
“What did you get, Lupin?” Sirius asked. Remus was sitting diagonally behind them, leaning back in his chair, his long legs stretched out in front of him. He rolled his eyes at Sirius, then turned his paper to show the mark at the top. O. He got an O.
Sirius’s smirk fell. How the fuck did that bastard manage to get a higher grade than him? He was unstoppable at Transfiguration, practically a prodigy. He frowned, his eyebrows furrowing together, but quickly changed his face back to a neutral expression. By the grin that now adorned Remus’s face, Sirius hadn’t been quick enough.
“Oh, did I get a higher mark, Black?” Remus asked, leaning over the desk trying to get a glimpse of Sirius’s paper. Sirius glared, tucking his paper into his satchel to hide it away. He wanted to slap the smug look off of Remus’s face.
“You wish.” Sirius rolled his eyes, trying to quell the annoyance that was slowly rising. He just needed to work twice as hard on his next assignment. He got up, moving to leave the classroom and head to the library. James and Peter lingered behind, slowly packing their things.
“Wait up,” Remus called. “Maybe you’d like my help on your next essay. You know, since I’m so much better than you.” Remus caught up to Sirius, smirking and waving his essay in Sirius’s face.
“Shut it. I’d never need your help. You’re barely literate.” Sirius tried to speed up, but Remus’s lanky frame kept pace remarkably well.
“Yeah, the barely literate person who always gets higher marks than you.” Remus snorted out a laugh. The sound made Sirius fill with rage, and he spun around with a glare.
“I’ll have you know that you only barely beat me. It’s nothing.” Sirius stuck his finger in Remus’s face as he spoke. He really wanted to deck the other boy, but he didn’t want to get yet another detention or risk hurting his Quidditch hand, it was tough carrying a bat with a broken fist.
“Oh, it’s nothing, is it? Then why are you so mad?” Remus batted Sirius’s finger away.
“I’m not mad. If anything, I think it was a mistake, but I’m not going to bother arguing with McGonagall about it.” His nostrils flared, but he crossed his arms tight against his chest to stop the urge to stomp his foot and clench his fists. That would be too childish, even for Sirius. He wasn’t the pinnacle of maturity, but he wasn’t about to throw a temper tantrum.
“Sure, it was a mistake. Just like it’s been a mistake hundreds of other times, right?” Remus crossed his arms too, tilting his head and raising an eyebrow in challenge.
Sirius narrowed his eyes, and was ready to retort, when the bell chimed the five-minute warning for the next class. If they stayed in the hallway, they’d be written up.
“I’d stay and debate you, but I have things to do.” Sirius turned and walked quickly to the library, satisfied that Remus didn’t continue to follow him.
Sirius was still fuming over his paper in Transfiguration as he, James, and Peter made their way to Potions the next day. Just a few mistakes and he’d fallen behind. He could kick himself.
The three of them settled down at their usual table in the back. Remus was already in his seat in the front row. There were two other Slytherins in the class, Snape and Avery, but Remus always opted to sit alone. Sirius glared at the back of his neck. His tawny hair was getting long, curling slightly at the ends. He felt the childish urge to pull it.
“Very exciting stuff today,” Slughorn was saying when Sirius tuned in. “We’re going to start brewing a batch of Veritaserum.” He paused as if waiting for the class to exclaim in excitement. When no such sound was forthcoming, he continued speaking, a bit more subdued. “This is a very complicated potion, as you all know. It takes a full lunar phase for it to reach completion, so make sure you choose your partners carefully.”
Sirius gave a perfunctory glance at his friends who grinned back at him.
“I think it’s best if everyone is in groups of two,” Slughorn added with a frown. Sirius’s eyebrows raised in surprise and he glanced over at James who was already looking apologetic.
“James,” he said imploringly. Peter was avoiding his eyes.
“I’m sorry,” James said, cringing while he spoke. “You know that Peter won’t pass if we don’t help him. You’re the best of the three of us.”
“Who am I supposed to work with?” Sirius asked.
“Why don’t you work alone? Then we can still help each other, just from afar,” James said.
Sirius gave him a betrayed look, but grabbed his belongings so that he could move to a different table.
“Ah, excellent,” Slughorn said the moment Sirius was on his feet. “Mr. Black, why don’t you come up here and work with Mr. Lupin?”
“What?” Sirius asked sharply just as Remus’s head snapped up.
“I’ll thank you boys for behaving,” Slughorn said gravely.
Sirius wanted to argue, but he already felt like an idiot as the only student still standing. Plus there weren’t any empty tables left. He trudged his way up to Remus’s desk, throwing one last angry look over at James who mouthed ‘sorry’ at him. Sirius shook his head irritatedly and sat down next to Remus.
He had no idea how he was going to get through a month working with Remus. He couldn’t bear to look at him for more than a few minutes without wanting to bicker and argue with the man. He was pretty sure he would go mad by the end of the lunar phase. He thought briefly about trying to smooth things over just so they could get through the brewing process unscathed, but that plan flew out the window the moment Remus opened his mouth.
“You better let me handle the brewing. I want to get this right, and I know you have a habit of getting distracted.” Remus’s face was blank as he said it as if he was just stating a simple fact and not challenging Sirius to a fight.
“I’ve made it this far, haven’t I?” Sirius replied. “Besides, what am I meant to do while you’re brewing the potion?”
“You could take notes on what I’m doing.” Remus’s lips twitched. “Maybe you’ll learn something.”
Sirius huffed in annoyance and was a second from snapping back when Slughorn came walking past their table. He’d never quite gotten over the fact that Sirius wasn’t sorted into Slytherin and he still tried to schmooze him every now and again.
“Best get started boys,” Slughorn said joyfully. He tapped two fingers on their tabletop and smiled at Sirius. “I think you two will be able to help each other. We wouldn’t want another blunder like last time, right, Mr. Lupin?”
Remus didn’t reply, focusing instead on the potions ingredients that were already on the table, lighting a fire under the cauldron, and pouring in a liquid that quickly began to boil. Sirius felt a smirk spread across his face against his will.
“What does he mean last time ?” Sirius asked happily.
Remus rolled his eyes and dutifully ignored him, pulling out three Adder’s Forks and placing them on the table. Sirius was feeling better about this already. Remus had messed up in Potions, and Slughorn thought Sirius was the better student. Maybe this wouldn’t be so bad. Remus pulled out a knife from his supplies and slowly began cutting into one of the Forks. Sirius managed to watch him in silence for a full ten seconds before opening his mouth.
“Do you always cut things like that?”
“Like what?” Remus asked. The knife looked tiny in Remus’s huge hand, and he moved slowly as if he didn’t have the dexterity to cut things quickly.
“Like you’ve never used a knife before.”
“I’ll handle chopping that,” Sirius said, snatching the knife out of Remus’s hand and sliding over the Adder’s Forks. “Wouldn’t want you to damage it or for us to be here all night.”
“I can handle it just fine,” Remus said, moving like he was going to grab the knife back. Sirius held it out to his side so it was out of reach.
“We wouldn’t want another blunder ,” Sirius said mockingly. Remus made a noise deep in his throat, a sound almost like a growl that made Sirius’s hackles rise, then he reached across the table as if to rip the knife from Sirius’s hands. Unfortunately, he wasn’t paying close enough attention and his arm caught the side of the cauldron.
Sirius shouted in surprise as the cauldron tipped dangerously, he reached out to grab it, but Remus shoved him backward slightly. Right, Sirius thought belatedly, it probably wasn’t the best idea to grab a boiling hot cauldron with his bare hands. He didn’t have time to pull out his wand before the cauldron fell on its side, the liquid hitting the open flame and catching fire.
“Mr. Black! Mr. Lupin! What are you two doing?” Slughorn said, rushing over to see their cauldron half melted, the fire having already burnt out. “Both of you will stay after class and clean this up.” Remus glared at Sirius who gave him a smug look. Sure they were both in trouble, but it was always a win if he got a rise out of Remus Lupin.
Class ended just a few minutes later, Slughorn dismissing them halfheartedly as he wandered out of the classroom toward his office. James came up to the table and bent over so he could whisper to Sirius.
“Want us to stay back and help you clean?” James asked.
Sirius rolled his eyes. “No, James.” James looked disheartened. “It’s fine. You guys go ahead. I’ll catch up later.”
James smiled slightly, his eyes gliding over to Remus for a split second, before he left.
“Sure you don’t want Potter here to hold your hand?” Remus snarked.
“At least I have friends,” Sirius said back cruelly, but Remus just shook his head like Sirius’s words didn’t bother him.
“Let’s get started.” Remus stood up as he spoke, pulling his bag away so that the area would be cleared.
“I don’t see why I should help at all,” Sirius said, leaning back in his seat and crossing his arms. “You’re the one who knocked over the cauldron.”
“Right, of course, Sirius Black, blameless as always,” Remus snapped.
“What is that supposed to mean?” Sirius asked sharply.
“Perfect Sirius Black with his perfect friends and his perfect grades. Well.” Remus smirked. “Almost perfect.”
Sirius jumped to his feet. “My grades are perfect,” he snarled.
“Except somehow I keep beating them,” Remus taunted. Sirius wanted to hit him in the face again. He wasn’t usually such a violent person. “If only you were a little bit smarter.”
Sirius whipped out his wand impulsively. He felt stupid now that they were both standing. Remus was stupidly tall and he towered over Sirius. He often had to tilt his head down to look at Sirius, making Sirius feel like a child. Now though, he tilted his head back, raising his chin proudly as he down looked at Sirius’s wand as if daring him to do it.
Sirius wanted to, fuck he wanted to. Anything to wipe that superior look off of his face. Sirius gritted his teeth, his knuckles turning white from how tightly he was gripping his wand.
Remus stared unblinking, looking completely unbothered given the situation. Sirius couldn’t stand his smug, stupid face, but at the same time, he found his eyes trailing down from Remus’s piercing and unflinching eyes to his lips. They were pouty and slick like Remus had recently licked them. Sirius licked his lips responsively.
He looked back up quickly when he realized what he was doing, but it was too late. It was clear that Remus had noticed, his eyes glowing with something that Sirius didn’t understand, something that made him feel like his body was catching on fire.
He had known Remus Lupin for a long time, and though he was tall and obviously strong, he was not a fast man. He never ran or wrote quickly, he barely moved at more than a stroll most days. Perhaps that was why Sirius was so shocked when Remus reached up, lightning-fast, and knocked the wand out of Sirius’s hand.
Sirius’s mouth dropped open in surprise just as Remus grabbed the back of his head and dragged him up onto his toes, their lips crashing together before Sirius could have a single thought. He should have pushed him away, or punched him, or something, but instead he opened his mouth even more and groaned quietly.
Remus swallowed the sound, shoving his tongue into Sirius’s mouth with a filthy noise of his own. His fingers were knotted in Sirius’s hair and were pulling roughly in a way that made Sirius’s knees go weak. Sirius gripped onto his Slytherin tie with one hand, pulling him down farther, his other hand digging into Remus’s shoulder.
He had kissed plenty of men before. Well, a few men. Enough men, he thought. But never had he kissed someone like this. It was like he was being swallowed whole. It was as if all conscious thought had fled his head, leaving behind an animalistic hunger that would never be satisfied. Remus suddenly used his tight grip on Sirius’s hair and his other hand to spin Sirius around, shoving him up against the clean table behind theirs.
Sirius caught himself with both hands just as Remus attached his mouth to the side of Sirius’s neck. He wondered if he should put a stop to this, not that he wanted to, but Slughorn could come back at any second. However, when Remus’s hand slithered down the front of his robes and gripped his rapidly swelling cock through his trousers, all Sirius could say was, “Yes.”
Remus licked the side of his throat before digging his teeth in. Sirius shouted in surprise, and Remus reached up to cover his mouth with the palm of his hand.
“Quiet,” Remus whispered in his ear. “Anyone could hear you.” Right as he said the words, he pressed his cock against Sirius’s clothed arse. Sirius’s eyes rolled back in his head and ground back against him, giving up any desire to put a stop to this.
Remus made quick work of unbuttoning Sirius’s trousers with one hand, an impressive feat in Sirius’s opinion. Sirius pulled them down himself, along with his pants, the moment the buttons were undone, and before Remus could move, he bent over the table in front of him, presenting himself to a man he’d spent yesterday swearing was his enemy.
“Well?” Sirius said seductively when Remus looked down at him in shock. He wiggled his hips enticingly, then pressed back against Remus again. Remus groaned, tipping his head back and exposing his long throat, as he gripped Sirius by the hips. His fingers were strong, and they dug into Sirius’s flesh bruisingly.
“Fuck, you’re so hot,” Remus said, speaking as if he was talking just to himself. “So bloody annoying though.” He started to shuck off his own trousers. “Every time you opened your mouth in class, I imagined you on your knees begging for my cock.”
“Why didn’t you say something?” Sirius said with a heavy exhale. Remus’s fingers grazed against his hole lightly and Sirius’s back arched as if to offer himself up even more.
“What? You wanted to put your smart mouth to better use, did you?” Remus asked, casting a silent lubrication charm and pushing two of his fingers into Sirius.
Sirius keened, pressing up onto his toes as if he could run from the feeling. Remus’s fingers were thick and long, stretching him open.
“Maybe,” he said breathlessly as Remus started working his fingers in and out, scissoring them periodically, “I just wanted to hear you panting my name.”
“So that’s why you’re always picking fights with me,” Remus said, his voice unaffected.
“Not – fuck, ah, ah – not picking fights,” Sirius said. “Just proving I’m better than you.”
Remus ripped his fingers out and Sirius turned to smirk mockingly over his shoulder just in time to watch Remus fist his cock twice before lining it up with Sirius’s hole. Sirius didn’t get a good look at it before it was pressing inside him, but the moment it was, he knew that it was huge.
“Oh, fuck, Remus,” Sirius said, dropping his head down onto the table, scrabbling helplessly at the tabletop.
“What was that about panting your name?” Remus said, slapping Sirius on the arse as he thrust ruthlessly into him. Sirius moaned as Remus bottomed out, his legs shaking at the feel of being so delightfully full. “Pretty sure it’s my name being moaned,” Remus said into his ear, bending over him, his wide chest against Sirius’s back.
Sirius clenched around him, the words flowing through him as easily as a love potion. Remus pulled out, almost all the way, and snapped his hips back, jolting Sirius forward. Sirius grunted.
“What’s my name, Sirius?” Remus asked. He pulled out and thrust back in again. Sirius could only moan in reply. Remus squeezed his hips tightly with one hand and then grabbed Sirius by the roots of his hair, pulling his head up. He licked his ear, nibbling on it slightly, before saying, “What’s my name?”
“Remus,” Sirius cried. He expected Remus to mock him, but instead, he started moving, really moving this time. He didn’t stop either, his hips battering Sirius’s as he shagged him roughly into the table.
Sirius was absolutely fucked stupid by it. If Remus ever wanted to beat him in the future, all he had to do was push inside him, and Sirius would be drooling within a minute. He couldn’t even be upset by it either. The pleasure that raced up his spine every time Remus’s huge cock hit that spot inside him was worth any possible grade, no matter how low.
In retrospect, they were exceptionally lucky that there wasn’t anyone near the classroom because neither of them were being quiet at all. Remus worked him over like a man on a mission, slapping him twice more on the arse, before groaning loudly.
“I’m close,” he said.
“Me too,” Sirius panted. Remus reached forward, grabbing Sirius’s hard cock and fisting it tightly, his hips forcing Sirius to fuck the tight hole his hand made. It was slippery, hot, and so filthy. Anyone could walk in at any time and see them, Remus hunched over him like an animal. That thought was the one to push him over the edge and within a second he was finishing over the top of Remus’s hand.
He could feel Remus twitch inside him before warmth filled his hole. He never wanted to leave that moment, the warmth, the relaxation as his body unwound and collapsed tiredly onto the desk. Remus fell roughly on top of him, breathing heavily.
He kissed the small part of Sirius’s shoulder that was exposed from where his shirt had become undone, a tender action that made Sirius shiver pleasantly. “Maybe being partners won’t be too bad.”