—What's in these boxes, stones? — complained Sirius as he threw a box labeled "Fragile", roughly onto the new wooden table they had gotten for the dining room. There were three identical boxes splayed on the floor, all with the same label, and all of them had suffered the same fate.
—In fact, I'm pretty sure Sev has at least one load of potion stones— Remus commented, carrying the boards to set up the bed next to Prongs.
Sirius pulled his Swiss Army knife out of his pocket and used it to open the box that was, indeed, filled to the brim with rocks of varying sizes.
—Hey, Snivy, what are the properties of these stones? — Sirius asked, waving a nice smooth rock with white lines on it.
Severus, arranging the discs on the shelf alphabetically next to Lily, answered without looking up from his task.
—Oh, not at all. The magic stones will be sent in the post, I just wanted to see you trying to climb the stairs carrying a bunch of rocks on top of you,—
Sirius threw a curse at him, which was deflected by Lily as James dissolved into laughter.
—I've been carrying those boxes for three blocks, you dickhead! —
—Yes, and you threw every single one of them away as soon as you set foot in the flat — Severus turned to look at him with a sneer —Come on, Black. Did you really think I'd let you carry my things? You should have suspected —
Sirius tried cursing him again as he complained to Remus about how sore his hands were after carrying all those boxes.
—Look at him! Look who's the instigator! — he whined, waving his wand around, —For the record, I'm the one trying to keep the peace! —
Remus didn't even try to hide his grin. It was always a pleasure to see Severus and Sirius interact in a friendly manner, or at least what was ‘friendly’ to them, considering that their most peaceful form of communication was to annoy each other in the meanest and most childish ways possible.
Some would find this behaviour unbearable, due to the consistency and character of the two red-haired boys. Still, Remus could feel nothing but relief and gratitude. Their minimal bickering and fighting was something he would never have imagined even possible.
They had had trouble coming to terms with their relationship with Severus. They'd had a big fight, and Remus had spent several sleepless nights before the full moon, which had worsened his symptoms before and after the transformation. Severus had been so quiet, looking as if he was the only one to blame for Remus's condition.
—You shouldn't have to go through all this trouble... Not because of me —
Remus had kissed his cheek and then forced him to lie next to him. He couldn't hold him like he wanted to because of his still open wounds, but he could watch him rest next to him. Feeling his weight next to him was enough to soothe him.
—It's no trouble —he said in a sleepy voice as she traced the shape of his jaw with her fingers.
Severus disappeared that night. Remus woke up alone in the Shrieking shack, with some vials full of muscle relaxants and ointments for his wounds. Remus remembers how a few hours later Severus returned home with his two best friends, all three of them looking disheveled and bruised, and how they all immediately began to cry and apologize to him.
Remus remembers receiving their hugs, looking surprised at Severus, who, far from looking annoyed or impatient, was giving him a goofy grin.
—Even if you don't believe your lies, how do you expect me, of all people, to believe you? —
Remus remembered crying a lot that night. Severus had to bring him a cold compress to keep his eyes from swelling.
—Won't you give some to us? —
—No —
—Truce off. On guard! —
Neither wanted to tell him exactly what they had talked about or how they had come to a truce. But it was implied that Remus had been one of the main reasons they had settled in the first place.
It was difficult. Very difficult. There were many fights after the first one, and there would probably be many more.
But they had managed to achieve a rare and shaky relationship of mutual respect and understanding. They were adults, so it was natural.
—Sirius, I swear I´ll burn that goatee out of your face if you don't put that book down right now! — shouted Severus, one of the most acclaimed Potions prodigy teachers of his generation, as he chased barefoot after the former heir to the noble and ancestral House of Black and current Auror.
—Uhhh, what are you hiding here? Love letters for Moony? —
Sirius asked in a sing-song voice as he very deftly fled from Severus' grip, who had his wand confiscated by Remus to prevent any real harm coming to his best friend. After a couple of laps around the empty room, they ended up entering the kitchen, Remus heard Sirius' scream followed by a loud thud of two bodies falling to the floor, he remembered that the pair had never needed wands to do any real damage to each other.
—I'll get it — the redhead said in her accustomed voice as she got up from the floor where she had been sipping ice-cold lemonade after a long day of moving and sorting things.
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—What nickname do you think we should put him, Prongs? - Sirius questioned from his seat on the floor as he choked on biscuits and cream and lemonade, —He's bound to get one, Lily has one, why didn't we ever think of one for him? —
—Probably because your track record of nicknames directed at him specifically is not very good—
Sirius swallowed hard, and James grimaced. Lily had a knack for making people uncomfortable by presenting them with the truth as one would slap them, hard and fast.
—But it can't be related to your Patronus — she said after the small lapse of silence, her voice level and natural, —Be original, there must be more characteristics you can use besides physique and Patronus. Use your brains for a while—
—Don't push them too hard, Lily— Remus contributed, setting down another tray of cream and jam for the biscuits, —They've been carrying a lot of stuff today, they need time to recover some grey matter —
James threw a piece of biscuit at him and Sirius stuck his tongue out, not even bothering to swallow what was in his mouth first. Remus dodged the food attacks and sat down next to Severus, who had been reading the manual on how to set up the bed after James had given up on understanding how to do it and refused to use magic to figure it out (It's Gryffindor pride, Severus. You wouldn't understand). Severus immediately laid his head in Remus's lap, and Remus, began to stroke him absentmindedly as he thought very seriously about what they could call him.
—I've always said he looks like a toad, so could we call him Toadlegs? —
Severus didn't even raise his head to answer, —Another nickname involving the “paws”. Wow, Black, it's almost surprising that it doesn't hurt you to think so much—
Remus had to agree with him, not just because he didn't want his boyfriend to be nicknamed a frog, but ‘because it wouldn't make much sense. Teadlegs would be the nickname for someone very tall, and Severus was not the tallest of the group by far.
Sev was the perfect height for getting kisses on the forehead.
With this thought at the forefront of his mind, he leaned down to kiss Severus' forehead, who closed his eyes to receive it and then sent him a smile. James and Sirius made exaggerated retching noises.
—Come on, we're discussing serious things, save your snogging for later — Remus looked at James with a raised eyebrow. Of all the people in the room, he'd come here to complain?
The audacity.
—Well, anyway, the name has to be related to an animal. It's the rule, all our names have to do with an animal and a limb —
—Not true— interjected Lily, always ready to contradict Sirius, —Moony has nothing to do with his name or any limb, it's to do with his condition and his mind state —
—Remus got a pass because we had to be discreet, Lily — Sirius interjected, always ready to defend himself against the redhead, —We couldn't run around shouting ”Hey, wolf tooth, bloody fang, wolf wolf wolf, come sit with us!” It would have been obvious! —
Lily had to agree with him this time. But secretly, she swore it would be the last. James lay on the floor completely, arms and legs spread wide in a starfish position as he hummed aloud.
—Well, if we were to match Sev to an animal, what animal would it be? —-
Lily lay down next to him, legs crossed over each other and hands on her stomach.
—We could use a snake, it's the most obvious choice. But... —
—It's too obvious,’ James completed, stretching out an arm so Lily could use it as a pillow. Everyone calls it the ‘dungeon bat’, couldn't we start from there? —
Lily drummed her fingers on her chest, considering the proposal for a while.
—Yes, but at least basts have echolocation. Once, I saw Severus go about four blocks past our stop because some old lady grabbed his arm, thinking he was her son, and he didn't have the balls to tell her to let go —
—Lily! — Severus abruptly tried to sit up with red cheeks, the others laughing at the image —That was so long ago! —
—But it happened! I'm just saying, as much as you want to pretend to be this stoic, brooding persona, we all know that deep down you have the communicative ability of a stone— Remus couldn't contain the laughter that shook his entire body at this comment, so he earned himself a punch in the stomach.
—Well, I guess you're right... Mmmm, how about we pick a name to match Moony's? Like with me and Lily. It could be a couple things —
Sirius, who had taken advantage of how distracted everyone was talking about this topic to steal the last of the jam and eat it straight from the jar, decided to do his bit.
—Wolves live in packs, Snape wouldn't have told us he was moving if it wasn't for Remus needing us to build his cabinets. I don't think it would suit him—
Severus smirked and turned to observe the exchange better, finally dropping his stoic, brooding persona. Remus couldn't help but admire his profile and grin, watching a dimple form on his cheek as he relaxed.
—All right, then... Remus —Remus snapped out of his trance at Severus’ profile and turned to listen to Sirius.
—What's your opinion on all this? What animal should we use for Severus' nickname? —
Remus thought about it for a moment, analyzing the possibilities and every characteristic he and he alone knew of Severus' personality. After a few seconds, he looked up to observe Severus' face and met his eyes, the depth of his pupils lost in the sea of darkness of his irises. They all fell silent, or at least Remus stopped listening to them, he was more occupied with... more important things.
—¡Moony¡— Remus was snapped out of his trance again by Sirius' voice shouting in his ear. He was beginning to consider putting the shelves together by himself. Sirius grabbed him by the shoulders and began to shake him —Concentrate, don't fall for his charms! You have to be totally honest and unbiased, what shall we call it? —
Remus looked back at Severus, watching them both with his eyebrows furrowed in confusion.
—If it were up to me, I'd call it my moon. Guide and master, distant but dazzling. And ... well, I can't take my eyes off him—
Everyone in the room groaned loudly, Sirius dropping his shoulders as if they burned - Ughh, this is why lovers can't choose their names —You guys are so obnoxious, get a room! —
James continued the conversation, throwing out more name options as Lily discarded or considered some, Sirius chipping in only to keep them from getting him a cooler one than his.
—I don't see it as very likely, but I still have to defend the title, you know? —
Severus said nothing, just leaned a little closer to Remus, and rested his head on his shoulder. No one mentioned it, they didn't tease him or stop talking to point at him. It had become so normal, watching Severus let his guard down when he was with them, watching him relax and not think too much about what the others would say.
After a while, the boys left. James and Remus had given up on putting the bed together, they were missing a few screws and their pride prevented them from putting the rest together with magic, so Severus was lying on a mattress on the floor, reading while he waited for his boyfriend to come back from the bathroom so he could go to sleep.
Remus came in and, without warning, took the book from him so he could lie on top of him. Severus snorted at the sudden weight knocking the wind out of him.
—I was just getting to the best part...—
Despite the annoyance in his voice, Severus ran a hand through his hair and arranged the blankets so that they covered them both. Remus snuggled closer against him and let out a deep sigh.
—It's been a long day...— he commented, his eyes closed and the pleasant sensation of Severus’ fingers massaging his scalp, —And tomorrow will probably be the same, we still have a lot of unpacking to do—
—Alright. Then we'll have to sleep early today—
Severus muttered something under his breath and the lights turned off untouched. After stirring for a while, he finally wrapped his arms around Remus, who kissed him on the chin and tried to empty his mind to sleep more easily.
—How would you have actually named me? — Severus asked then, in the darkness of the house Remus could not see his face, but he could recognize the sincere curiosity in his voice.
Remus thought about it for a moment. He'd never thought much about it until that moment, but now that he did...
—You'd be a raven... I guess— Severus continued to run his fingers through his hair softly and gently, so he continued, —Dark, intelligent, and full of secrets that he would only share with those brave enough to come close... Yes, a raven would be nice... —
Severus was silent for a moment.
—Ravens are traitorous birds... represent death and loss wherever they go...— Remus felt Severus's fingers in his...
Remus felt Severus's fingers stop moving, his voice again with that serious, methodical filter. Remus reached into the darkness until he found Severus' hand and brought it to his lips, kissing it lightly and cradling it to his cheek.
—Yes, sometimes... other times they represent loyalty and protection...— Remus was falling asleep, Severus’ always cold hand finally turning warm in Remus' grip. —But I like the one I said before, with Sirius and the others... that was my real answer—
—Hmm...— Severus was smiling again. Remus couldn't see it, but he knew -You're hopeless... - Remus fell asleep with a smile.
Remus fell asleep with a smile on his face.