Chapter 2
A few years later
SPRING
The rehearsal had been beautiful and it took everything in Remus not to bawl his eyes out, he was great at masquerading his emotions as anything but what he truly felt. However, now giving the speech to the one person who had stuck by his side through thick and thin, he couldn't help the tears falling from his cheeks.
Standing before the crowd, he adjusted the microphone and cleared his throat, his voice steady but his hands trembling slightly as he delivered his speech.
“You are, without a doubt, the most important woman in my life, Lily,” he began, his voice tinged with quiet affection. “You’ve been the sister I never had, and I love you so much.”
The room melted into soft awes, even Euphemia Potter was dabbing her eyes with a napkin. Remus felt a swell of pride—this was exactly what he wanted to say, every word genuine.
“And I’m so grateful you found James to build…”
His sentence faltered as James, on the verge of tears just moments ago, suddenly burst into laughter. Lily tried elbowing him, and after noticing everyone's confused eyes on him and Remus frowned, turning to see what had caused the disruption, only to follow James’ pointed finger toward the back of the room.
“Look at Pads,” James managed between chuckles.
There, in full view of the wedding party, Sirius Black was snogging a waiter against the wall, his hands unapologetically on the man’s arse. The room erupted into whistles and laughter, and Sirius—ever the showman—turned to face the crowd with a shameless grin, the waiter scurrying off in embarrassment.
Remus clenched his jaw. Of course Sirius would find a way to steal the spotlight.
Clearing his throat, Remus forced a tight smile and continued, though his voice had lost its warmth. “Anyway, I was just trying to say how excited I am for you…”
Before he could finish, Sirius appeared at his side, standing on his tiptoes to drape an arm over his shoulders and leaning into the microphone.
“I love you, Lily!” Sirius proclaimed, throwing an exaggerated kiss her way. “Take care of my man here!”
The guests roared with laughter. “Padfoot, it’s my turn. You already gave your speech.”
Remus pushed Sirius away from him, trying to reach the microphone back but the bestman was faster. Padfoot stole the microphone and ran around the room like a child and Remus to his embarrassment ended up chasing after him as Sirius zigzagged between tables like a mischievous schoolboy. Lucky Lily and James seemed entertained by their best friends, already used to their antics the guest also joined in giving them space and laughing every so often.
“You always ruin everything!” Remus shouted, his exasperation earning another round of laughter.
“Don’t pretend you don’t love chasing and lecturing me around,” Sirius teased, skidding to a stop to yell back at Remus who, unable to stop himself, crashed against him. They both went toppling down, landing with a resounding crash on the table holding the wedding cake.
Remus stared in horror at the ruined masterpiece, courtesy of Mary’s hard work. “Oh, Sirius Black, I am going to kill you.”
SPRING
The wedding ceremony itself was breathtaking. Sirius's best friend and brother had finally tied the knot and gotten married, to a lovely girl might he add. The ceremony had been beautiful and although he might deny it later, he will say he cried. For now, however, he endured the ordeal he loathed most: wedding photos. And don´t get him wrong he loved having his picture taken, he even dated a nude photographer in his year abroad in France but coordinating ten different people to smile and stand one particular way for a photo taken in the middle of the day with sun at its highest and his suit suffocating definitely wasn't his idea of fun. Plus the endless instructions from the photographer were definitely testing his patience.
“Excellent. Very well, these are all turning out to be amazing.” The photographer kept yelling as he turned the camera in a million positions and took picture after picture.
“Can we have one with just the bride and her maid of honor?” the photographer called.
Sirius watched as Remus’ cheeks flushed pink. Of course Lily had chosen Remus as her maid of honor; no one was surprised by this he was the closest thing she had to family, at least that he knew given that her parents hadn't shown up to her own daughter´s wedding, Sirius wondered how much of that had to do with James being Indian.
Still whenever they mentioned the maid of honor Remus wasn't exactly the person you pictured, instead of a slim, tall, blonde girl you´d get a tall, lanky flustered boy. In all honesty Sirius preferred the latter, but he'd never admit it as he watched the boy hug and spin Lily around for the camera both smiling so genuinely and happily it was tooth achingly sweet. And though Sirius would never say it out loud, he found the sight of Remus, flustered and radiant in his tailored suit, surprisingly endearing.
When it was Sirius’ turn, he posed next to James with his trademark grin. “How many photos does she need?” he muttered through clenched teeth.
“As many as it takes for her to remember every second,” James replied, equally amused and exasperated.
“Why does he need so many pictures?”
Sirius asked through smiling teeth.
“Oi, shut it Pads, you know you love it, plus if Lily wants a thousand photos, she´ll get a thousand photographs.”
Sirius tsked, but said nothing more looking at how in love his friend was and he couldn´t help but be incredibly happy for him. That being said they couldn't leave without some good photos and with just one exchanged glance they quickly changed from a semi-formal position to goofy and iconic poses. Everything from kissing faces to James Bond reenactments back against back.
“And now, one of the best man and maid of honor together,” the photographer instructed, switching lenses.
The photographer asked as he switched lenses. Sirius turned to Remus, who was already mouthing, Please kill me now, as Lily stifled a laugh. With a resigned sigh, Remus stepped into the frame, forcing a polite smile. James hugged Sirius one last time before leaving the designated spot and patted Remus on the back as he walked past. Remus had the decency to muster his best smile for the picture and Sirius did his best not to make his smirk obvious.
“Closer,” the photographer directed. “A bit more…”
Sirius couldn’t resist. His hand drifted down toward Remus’ backside, earning a warning glare.
“Don’t you dare Padfoot,” Remus hissed through his teeth.
Sirius, grinning wickedly, delivered a swift pat. Remus immediately pulled away, glaring at him, as Lily scowled and James did his best not to laugh in the background.
“I knew you were gonna do that, you jerk.”
At the photographer's scowl Sirius lifted his hands in surrender “Sorry, it's just reflex,” Sirius replied unapologetically. “It’s an excellent arse, Moony.”
Remus scoffed and reluctantly stood next to him again. They stood peacefully for about ten seconds before Sirius wrapped a hand against the boy's waist and sloppily licked the side of his face. Prompting an audible gasp. Remus shoved him away, wiping his cheek furiously.
“God, you’re the worst!”
“Actually I’m the bestman” Sirius corrected.
Remus pushed the laughing boy away as he turned to look at his friends and shook his finger at them and then to the boy now laying on the grass quite doglike laughing.
“And you two Do. Not. Encourage him.”
“Sorry I'll behave, I promise come on, one photo.”
“I swear, if you don’t behave…”
“Okay, okay,” Sirius said, holding up his hands in mock surrender. “One serious photo. Promise.”
Remus walked back next to the much shorter boy and as the photographer clicked the camera, Remus ´s fist hit Sirius straight on the balls and as Remus laughed loudly while Sirius bent over until he fell.
“Jackass” He yelled from the grass and Remus leaned over to whisper over the fallen boy.
“Oh you had it coming love, you reap what you sow.”
James laughed at his friend and Lily high fived him. All in all it was a great photographic session. Some years later that photo of Sirius falling over and Remus laughing with his eyes closed would be on top of the Potter's chimney for everyone to see.
WINTER
It was Christmas night, and the Potter household was alive with laughter and festive chaos. James was in his element, his new video camera practically glued to his hand. Ever since Lily had gifted it to him for his birthday, he’d been documenting every family moment, convinced he was creating something on par with an auteur’s masterpiece.
“Here we are at the holiday party,” James narrated with mock seriousness, zooming in on his father. “There’s Dad. Say hi, Dad.”
“Hi, Dad,” Monty quipped, earning an affectionate eye roll from James.
“And there’s cousin Jenny over there,” James continued, panning across the room.
Everyone indulged him, smiling or waving at the camera, but James wasn’t interested in lingering. His lens finally found what he was looking for: Lily, radiant as ever, standing by the Christmas tree. Her hands rested on her baby bump as she laughed at something Sirius had said. The idea of becoming a father made him feel terrified and ecstatic at the same time. Although knowing he had both Monty and Effy to help him along the way and also of course Padfoot and Moony relieved him immensely. He had an entire village to support him and he was proud of that.
“Yo! Pads!” James called. “Pads, come take this. I’ve got an important moment to record.”
Sirius took the camera with an exaggerated bow, smirking as James rushed over to wrap his arms around Lily.
“Look at Lily’s bun in the oven,” James declared proudly, crouching to press a kiss to her belly. “I’m going to have a kid. I’m going to be a dad!”
“Don’t squeeze the belly,” Lily warned with a laugh, swatting at him playfully.
“Noted,” James replied, planting another kiss before grinning up at the camera.
Sirius scoffed affectionately but turned his attention elsewhere. With the camera in hand, he wandered through the party, narrating in a tone that mimicked James.
“Here we have Effy and Monty, the world’s most patient grandparents,” he drawled, zooming in on their amused faces.
He captured snippets of conversation, candid moments of laughter, and the occasional sweet interaction—like Marlene sneaking a cookie to a wide-eyed Fangs under the table. But Sirius’ attention drifted as he spotted Remus.
The poor bloke looked trapped, cornered by a man Sirius could only describe as terminally boring. This had Lily written all over it. She had an uncanny talent for setting Remus up with people who were entirely not his type. Remus was nodding along to what his blind date was saying, She really had the worst taste in gay men, she kept setting Remus up with the most annoying of people but today she had taken the cake. She had barely met the bloke and insisted he was perfect for Remus. But as the dude kept talking Remus kept inching away and Sirius found that incredibly amusing.
“Well, well,” Sirius began, sliding up to them with the camera rolling. “What do we have here? Is this a first date?”
The man turned with a smirk that was far too self-assured. “Yeah, it is,” he answered.
Sirius didn’t even pretend to listen. His lens was already fixed on Remus, who was giving him the most lethal glare.
“I have to say,” Sirius continued, his voice dripping with mock sincerity. “You two make a great match. Go on, give the camera a wave.”
The man obliged, oblivious to the tension radiating off Remus, who stood rigid, likely imagining all the ways he could kill Sirius and then dispose of his body. And Sirius couldn't blame him, his date really seemed terrible. But Sirius wasn’t done yet. He couldn't help it as he dug into his pocket and produced a sprig of mistletoe that he kept in his pocket to pick up cute guys and waved it around Remus and his date with a triumphant flourish.
“And look at this,” he announced, holding it over their heads. “Mistletoe! You know what that means, Moony.”
Remus’ lips pressed into a thin line. “No, we’re fine,” he said firmly with an unhumored laugh, though his tone betrayed his simmering annoyance.
“Come on, it’s tradition!” Sirius urged, delighting in Remus’ discomfort.
The man, sensing an opportunity, leaned toward Remus with a smug smile. “It’s just a little Christmas kiss.”
SUMMER
The day was terrible, it was July and the rain had come and gone in fits, therefore the weather was terribly humid, it was one of those days that made your clothes stick to your skin and left the air feeling thick and heavy. But none of that mattered to Remus Lupin because in his arms, he cradled his godson. Baby Harry, tiny and perfect, swaddled snugly in a soft blue blanket. The baby’s bright green eyes—the very image of Lily’s—blinked sleepily at him, and Remus felt his heart twist in ways he hadn’t thought possible.
“Hi, baby boy,” he murmured, his voice soft and full of awe. “You’re beautiful. Yes, you are. Oh, you’re so lovely.”
Harry yawned, his tiny fists brushing his face, and Remus let out a quiet laugh, overwhelmed by the sheer sweetness of it all. He lightly touched one of Harry’s hands, marveling at how small and delicate it was.
From behind him, Sirius approached, his boots clicking softly against the nursery’s wooden floor. “Hi, baby,” Sirius greeted, his voice unusually gentle as he leaned over to peer at his godson.
Remus didn’t mind Sirius’ presence—not today. There was something sacred about holding Harry, and even Sirius Black couldn’t ruin that or so he thought. Before he could react Sirius tried taking Harry from under him and for the sake of the baby Remus let go.
“Padfoot! I literally just got him.”
Remus wasn´t the only one worried as Lily followed Sirius with every step he took, she practically placed her hands under him for safety.
“Careful Padfoot gently, you´re going to give Lily and James a heart attack.” Remus warned, sensing Sirius’ intentions before he acted.
“Relax, Moony,” Sirius replied, holding the baby securely but with a casualness that sent Remus’ blood pressure soaring. “I’ve got him. You´re more worried than Lily.”
Lily kept lingering near Padfoot, her gaze like a hawk as he rocked Harry slightly. “Padfoot, be careful!” she scolded, hovering nervously.
Sirius rolled his eyes dramatically. “Oh, come on, Lils. You think I’d drop my godson? Have a little faith.”
Remus, however, wasn’t buying it. “Padfoot, give him back. I literally just got him.”
Sirius glanced at Remus, clearly enjoying his growing irritation. “You’re acting like I’m juggling him or something. Look, see? Perfectly fine.”
A mischievous thought formed in Sirius mind, but he first checked with James, who leaned on the door frame of the nursery, they only needed one eye glance exchange to communicate. And with James' approval he gently took Harry and lowered Harry slightly, mimicking the motion of dropping him. “Whoa! You’re heavier than you look, kid.”
The collective gasp from both Lily and Remus was loud enough to make Harry startle. Although Lily yelled at James fully blaming him for Sirius´ actions.
“SIRIUS!” Remus snapped, moving closer.
“Honey! I swear if he drops him…”
Sirius' smile went soft at Lily´s concern “I'm just playing Lils, look he's fine. Look still awake and drooling”
James stayed by the doorway “See love, he's fine. Pads would never actually hurt him.”
Lily glared but smiled at Padfoot knowing full well he already adored his godson to death. But of course he also loved to goof around.
“Pads, If you don’t want to die today, I’d suggest you hand Harry back.” James said with a small, almost imperceptible wink.
“Fine, fine!” Sirius huffed, but as he moved toward Remus, a gleam of mischief flashed between the two best friends. “Catch, Prongs.”
“DON’T YOU DARE!” Lily Remus shouted in unison.
Sirius froze, pulling Harry back down. Harry let out a small coo, seemingly oblivious to the chaos around him.
“Pads, I’m warning you,” Remus said, his voice low and dangerous.
Sirius raised an eyebrow, clearly relishing the tension. “Relax, Moony. If you want to carry Harry you just have to catch him ready? One…”
“Stop it! Seriously!” Remus pointed his finger towards Sirius.
Sirius raised his eyebrow at the unspoken joke but continued counting.
“Two…”
“I know you aren´t actually going to throw him so stop it!”
“Last chance to catch him, and…”
Lily realizing his kid was safe, despite his goof of an uncle, walked back towards her husband and leaned on him as they both smiled fondly at their best friends.
“You wouldn't funcking dare Sirius Black”
“My my Moony, don’t curse in front of the baby and …THREE”
Remus scowled while Lilys smile softened slightly when Sirius kissed Harry’s forehead.
“See? I adore the little guy,” Sirius said, handing Harry back to Remus with surprising tenderness.
Relieved, Remus cradled Harry protectively, glaring at Sirius all the while. “You’re impossible, you know that?”
“Impossible? Me? Never,” Sirius replied with a cheeky grin. “Adorable, charming, maybe even heroic, but never impossible.”
Lily sighed, shaking her head at him “You’re lucky I love you, Padfoot. But if you ever pull something like that again…”
Sirius winked. “I know, I know. I’ll never survive to see another Christmas.”
The four of them stayed there just watching Harry in awe until James and Sirius sauntered out of the room to start cooking dinner.
When they left Remus looked down at Harry and murmured, “Your Uncle Padfoot is going to drive me mad, Harry. Absolutely mad.”
FALL
Halloween at the Potters’ was always an event. The sprawling house had been transformed into a haunted mansion, complete with cobweb-covered chandeliers, fake floating candles, and a pumpkin centerpiece large enough to rival Hagrid’s stories of his giant squash that won the vegetable fair. Music echoed through the house, and laughter poured out of every room.
James, naturally, had turned their annual gathering into a costume party. He’d roped Lily into dressing as Cleopatra, her red hair in beautiful twisted braids, while James strutted around in a Roman centurion costume that was just a little too tight.
Remus, armed with James’ beloved video camera, wandered through the crowd recording snippets of the evening.
“Dorcas, you look fantastic,” he commented, zooming in on her Medusa headpiece.
“Thank you, darling,” she said, flipping one of her fake snakes. “Marlene’s idea. Apperently we’re mythological lesbians tonight.”
Marlene, dressed as a punk-rock Persephone, grinned and slung an arm around Dorcas’ shoulders. “As if there’s any other kind of lesbian.”
Remus chuckled, turning the camera toward Fabian and Gideon Prewett, who were engaged in a heated arm-wrestling match at the drinks table. Both were dressed as identical vampires, their fake fangs making their trash talk unintelligible.
“Aim gaing ta beat ya”
“You wash you laser”
Further down the hall, Pandora Rosier was mesmerizing a group of partygoers with her DIY witch’s hat, which sparkled with actual floating stars. While Effy and Monty were somewhere near the punch bowl, judging costumes like the lovely couple they were..
And then there was Sirius Black. He had just entered the house seconds ago. And had turned heads the moment he walked in. His costume—a devilishly well-tailored red leather jacket, no shirt, with horns perched in his windswept hair and black tight leather jeans—bordered on unfair. He prowled through the crowd like he owned the place, enjoying the attention but constantly scanning for one person in particular.
Remus Lupin.
Spotting him leaning against the wall with the camera, Sirius’ grin turned from mischievous to petrified.
“Oi, Moony!” he called, striding over.
Remus, dressed as a very tired-looking Sherlock Holmes, arched a brow but didn’t look up from the camera. “What do you want, Pads?”
“You’ll never guess what happen to me, You studied in med school for a year right?”
To make his act better Sirius started breathing really loud gathering the attention of the people around him. Remus pulled down the camera and stared concerned at Sirius.
“What happened?! I only went to med school a semester before I dropped out”
Sirius licked his lips and took a deep breath aware of Remus' full attention on him.
“On my way here I was driving on Belinda when out of nowhere a gigantic black dog jumped out into the middle of the road and I accidentally ran over him or her”
Remus gasped mouthing at the air not sure what to say. Then shook his head in disbelief, just like the people near him who had heard.
“You what? No you didn’t.”
“I did but I swear it was an accident, I was hoping you could do something to help me I don’t know cure the dog”
Sirius shrugged as he signaled outside with his hands, along with his hazard breathing his terrified eyes made everything believable.
“You brought the dog here!” Remus yelled outraged as he started walking towards the door.
“Well yeah, what was I supposed to do?”
Sirius bit down his smile as he and the crowd that had gathered followed Remus to the door.
“Taking to the vet or something you moron. I’m not a doctor.” Remus yelled back with his hand on the door knob.
Almost in slow motion Sirius stepped back as Remus opened the door slowly, he pulled it open and from the other side a horrible and creepy looking clown jumped out screaming in Remus ’ face.
Remus, scared and startled, jumped back falling to the ground.
“You absolute—” he started, but Sirius was already skipping away, laughing like a maniac as he disappeared into the crowd.
“I got you good Moony!” Sirius called over his shoulder.
Remus sighed but couldn’t help the twitch of a smile as several people laughed at the scene too used to the boys antics at this point.
As the night went on, Sirius charmed his way through the crowd, eventually finding himself in the company of a man dressed as a sexy police officer. The guy was laughing at every dumb quip Sirius made, his hand lingering on Sirius’ waist just long enough to give him hope for a promising end to the evening.
From across the room, Remus watched the interaction, an idea already forming. He waited until Sirius was completely engrossed in conversation before sneaking away to find Lily.
A few minutes later, Sirius heard the unmistakable sound of people laughing around him, but he honestly did not think much of it, distracted by the plastic handcuff of the boy in front of him.
Suddenly he felt something crawling on his back, his shoulder, his head. He looked up, confused, just in time to see a small, disgusting, scrawny spider on his head. The fake arachnid landed squarely on top of him, its spindly legs catching the light in just the right way to make it look real.
Sirius yelped—a high-pitched, completely undignified noise—and swatted at the spider, while he jumped and shakes himself over and over again, nearly toppling his drink. The crowd around them erupted in laughter, including Remus, who was bent double, barely holding the camera steady.
“YOU!” Sirius bellowed, glaring at Remus.
But as Sirius looked at him—face flushed, eyes bright with laughter—he couldn’t even be mad. Sure, the sexy police officer had wandered off during the commotion, but seeing Remus laugh like that was worth it. Sirius raised his hands in mock defeat.
“Fine, Moony. You win this round,” he said, shaking his head but grinning all the same.
It was late by the time the party started winding down. Lily had begun discreetly cleaning and only a few close friends were still there. Sirius was surprisingly sober but that could not be said the same by the other guests. He had just narrowly avoided a beer being thrown into his face, though his costume wasn’t so lucky. His torso and jacket were sticky and irritated, he slipped away upstairs, were few people were allowed, to clean up, muttering curses under his breath.
The main bathroom door was ajar, the light spilling into the hallway. Sirius pushed it open, intending to grab a towel, but froze when he saw Remus sitting on the edge of the tub.
Remus didn’t notice him at first. His head was bowed, one hand gripping his knee, the other pressed against his mouth to stifle what Sirius immediately recognized as a pained groan.
“Moony?” Sirius asked softly, stepping inside and closing the door.
Remus startled, his eyes snapping up to meet Sirius’. He tried to sit up straighter, forcing a smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes. “What are you doing up here?”
“Cleaning up,” Sirius said, waving his hand above his beer-stained body. He frowned, crossing the room to crouch in front of Remus. “What’s wrong?”
“It’s nothing,” Remus said quickly, but his clenched jaw and the tightness in his voice gave him away.
“Moony, you want me to get Lily?” Sirius asked.
Remus was quick to shake his head repeatedly.
“That’s not..I’m fine”
He tried to stand up but shook his head once and sat back down on the tub. Sirius looked around then firmly, placed a hand on his shoulder. “Talk to me Moony.”
With a resigned sigh, Remus gestured to his knee. “It’s acting up again. Humidity doesn’t help. It’s fine.”
“Doesn’t look fine,” Sirius muttered, gently prying Remus’ hand away from his knee to get a better look.
“I said I’m fine, Pads.”
“Yeah, and I’m the bloody Queen of England,” Sirius shot back, standing up. He opened the medicine cabinet, rummaging through it until he found a small jar of ointment. “Here, this’ll help.”
Remus watched, aware the ointment would do nothing for him, half-annoyed, half-amused, as Sirius knelt again and began applying the ointment with careful hands.
“You don’t have to—”
“Shut up, Moony.” Sirius smirked without looking up. “This is payback for the spider, by the way.”
Remus chuckled weakly, leaning back against the wall. “Fair enough.”
For a while, they sat in comfortable silence. Sirius’ touch was surprisingly gentle, and Remus felt he might not want to murder Sirius as much as he thought maybe just strangle him a bit.
“Thanks, Pads,” Remus murmured eventually.
Sirius looked up, his usual teasing grin replaced. “Always, Moony.”
In that quiet moment, the chaos of the party downstairs felt like a distant memory.