The afternoon sun shone through half-drawn blinds, casting shadows over the bed. Remus shuffled towards it, sitting on edge while fiddling with the frayed sleeves of his jumper.
Footsteps approached, and soon Regulus peeked around the door, eyes soft. “You ready, love?” He asked, waving his wand when Remus nodded, albeit hesitantly.
A translucent bottle flew into his hand from the windowsill, where the potion had been resting for a week, basking in the rays of the moon. Remus’ leg started bouncing at the sight of it. Catching onto his nervousness, Regulus walked over and knelt in front of his lover.
“Want me to talk you through it?”
Remus nodded, still looking down. “I— It shouldn’t be so scary still. We’ve been doing this for years.”
“It’s a change from routine,” Regulus shrugged. He got up and retrieved the syringe, filling it with the potion as he explained, “This new potion has a higher concentration of hormones than your used to. I’ll give the same dosage, every Saturday like we’ve always done. And if it doesn’t feel right, we’ll go back to the old one.”
He tried not to look at the needle while Reg explained, but he couldn’t help it. “Is it bigger?”
“No, the same size. You’ll barely feel it.” Remus clasped his hand and squeezed it. “Okay?”
He nodded, and Regulus softly pushed him to lay down on the bed rubbing small circles on his hand. Remus threw his other arm over his eyes, which he squeezed shut as He felt the hand in his move away to rest on his thigh, and immediately grabbed Regulus’ arm.
After counting in, Regulus finished the jab. He vanished the syringe, plugged the potion and set it on the shelf before collecting vials, allowing his boyfriend some time. He made sure to transfer the potion into several crystal vials, not willing to risk a silver one in case it altered the potion and harmed Moony.
Once he returned to the bed, Remus said he felt no different to other times and had no pain. He acted no different; he was still clingy and wanted to lay on top of Regulus’ chest and have him play with his hair. He still thanked Regulus unnecessarily and ceaselessly apologised for his fear. And Regulus still shushed him and ran fingers through his hair until he fell asleep.
And when they woke from their afternoon nap they’d try out Effie’s new recipe pinned to the Fridge. Then after dinner they’d use the leftover batter to make fresh chocolate-chip cookies and they’d eat as much as they like. But for now they slept in each other’s arms, perfectly happy.