Sirius strode confidently into the beach of the Greek island, dressed in a light purple shirt and shorts, his hair tied back in a bun. He felt the not-so-subtle gazes of the muggles around him, girls giggling and whispering. He always seemed to have that effect, didn’t he? But today, he was on a mission, one he had been on for the past few months. And finally, he had found his target.
As he made his way through the crowd toward the bar, a straw-roofed kiosk standing on the sand among tourists and cheerful people, his grey eyes immediately fixed on the person he had been searching for.
The man stood casually by the bar, his elbows resting on the counter as he sipped his drink. His style had changed; he even wore sunglasses in the fading light, perhaps for discretion. Despite the Mediterranean heat, he sported a black long-sleeve shirt and a cravat around his neck. Sirius reasoned it was to conceal the scar left by Nagini after their fight, but he also knew it was a style preference.
He appeared relaxed, almost as if he had let his guard down. But Sirius knew better – he knew the lite body that had so often been in his arms like the palm of his hand. Always ready for a fight, always alert. He knew he couldn't trick him or catch him off guard, so he approached directly.
Standing beside him, Sirius gestured to the bartender, ordering a drink before hesitating. Licking his lips, he turned to the man beside him. So many things he wanted to tell him. So many questions to ask. Finally, he found his voice.
“Can I get you anything?” he asked casually.
The dark man barely acknowledged the question, his shaded eyes seeming lost in his empty glass. He raised it slowly, shaking it until the ice clinked.
“Alright,” Sirius murmured, gesturing again to the bartender.
Silence lingered until their drinks arrived, and Sirius took a sip before setting it back on the counter. “Of all the places in the world, this is the last one I would have imagined finding you,” he chuckled softly, shaking his head.
“That’s why I came here,” the man murmured, tilting his head and turning to look at Sirius, his sunglasses still covering his eyes.
“It’s been a while,” Sirius whispered, the tension between them slowly electrifying the atmosphere. “You look well.”
“So do you,” the man agreed, sighing loudly. “How did you find me?”
Sirius smirked. “I’m stubborn. And I would never fall from such a half-ass disguise like this, Severus,” he almost growled, the name bittersweet on his tongue after everything.
“I suppose I was never able to trick you,” Severus mused, sighing.
“No, I know you far too well,” Sirius insisted, one hand daring to brush a straight lock of hair that he used to love playing with in the quiet of their bed. “Why Crete?”
Severus seemed to ponder for a moment before taking a distracted sip from his drink, but Sirius didn't miss the slight shiver that ran through his body at the touch. “It seemed appropriate. A place filled with forgotten glories,” he shrugged.
Sirius's breath caught in his throat, but he managed a small, strangled laugh before he could control it. “Always so philosophical,” he chuckled, shaking his head in disbelief. “Severus, how...?”
“Sirius,” Severus interrupted, and hearing the name in the lips of his lover almost made Sirius’ weep. “It's a long story, but we have time now, if you'd like to invite me for another drink.”
“I think I will,” Sirius finally breathed out, his chest constricted. “But first… let me see your eyes, will you?”
Severus raised an eyebrow but seemed amused enough to indulge him. With a long, elegant hand, he removed the sunglasses, revealing those eyes that had haunted Sirius for too many months.
It had indeed been too long, too many nights spent with his gaze fixed on his room's ceiling, unable to banish those black eyes from his mind. Now, they were there, looking at him, alive and intense as ever. Sirius couldn't resist. How could he, when he hadn't thought of anything but that man since the war ended?
Slowly, almost shyly, he moved forward until he wrapped an arm around the man’s narrow waist. Severus looked at him intently, his dark orbs shining in the fading evening light. Without another word, Sirius leaned in until his mouth met Severus', their lips pressing together in a kiss that quickly grew desperate.
The questions could wait. The inevitable conversation could wait. For now, they were reunited in that remote corner of the world, and that was all that mattered.