The Ring Pt. 2
Remus:
It had been weeks since Sirius gave Remus the ring and it has yet to leave Remus’s side. Most of the time the ring sat in the pocket of his trousers. Sirius hadn’t mentioned anything about the moment in the windowsill, so neither had he. It was a gloomy afternoon and Remus was cuddled up on his bed listening to the slow, constant patter of the rain hitting their dorm room window. It was perfect conditions for reading, and that is exactly what he had planned to do. That was until Sirius came storming into their dorm room nearly hitting James in the face with the door.
“Oi, Watch the door, mate!” exclaimed James, taking a step back from the door, letting Sirius rush past him.
“Bugger off, James! And stop acting like such a mom!” Sirius shouted back, not even turning his head to look at James.
“Merlin’s beard. Well, I’ll be down at the quidditch pitch. You better have come to your senses by the time I get back,” James said, as he left closing the door gently behind him.
Remus tried to stifle a laugh as James spoke. James was nothing short of a burnt-out mom. He even had the messy hair to prove it. The more he thought of James’s motherly behavior the funnier it got.
“What are you laughing at, Lupin?” Sirius practically shouted, causing Remus to look at him for the first time since he entered the room. His hair was thrown into a messy bun, Sirius’s signature stressed look. He was still wearing his school uniform, but his vest and tie were nowhere to be seen. Half of the contents of Sirius’s trunk were spilled out across the floor around him.
“Nothing. What are you doing, and why are all your things on the floor?” Remus asked nonchalantly, picking his book back up.
“I’m looking for something. It was a gift for someone important, and now I can’t find it.”
Remus felt his chest tighten. He knew what Sirius was looking for. In fact, it was sitting on his finger right now. With Sirius’s eyes still frantically searching his trunk, Remus slid the ring off his finger and into his trouser pocket. Merlin, he hoped this wasn’t what Sirius was looking for.
“What specifically are you looking for?” Remus asked, moving to get out of bed. He too was still in his school uniform, except he traded his vest and tie for one of his grandpa sweaters (Sirius’s word choice not his). Sirius glanced up at Remus and took a deep breath.
“It’s a silver ring with my constellation on it. I swear I had it with all my other rings, and now it's just gone,” Sirius said, still rummaging through his trunk tossing more stuff aside.
“Well, you’re not going to find it in there,” Remus said, the tightness returning to his chest. He had to give the ring back to Sirius.
“What?” Sirius said, with fire behind his eyes and words. A fire Remus did not want directed at him.
“You don’t remember then? I told you you wouldn’t remember.” Remus said quietly, trying his best to keep the sadness out of his voice. But as usual, his heart betrayed him letting a little more emotion out than he would have liked.
“What do you mean by that?” Sirius said, huffing out the last word.
Sirius was standing now with his eyebrows arched. His breaths were ragged and deep. Remus swore he could feel the heat spewing from Sirius. Remus knew he had to give the ring back. Even if it meant watching him give it to Mary, or any other girl for that matter. Remus slid the ring from his trousers and clutched the ring in his palm.
“I have it,” Remus said, holding the ring out to Sirius. He winced waiting for Sirius's words to cut him, and sure enough they did.
“Where did you get this?” Sirius said sternly. Of course, he’d think Remus stole it. After all, Sirius was a rich boy with expensive things, and Remus was a boy who could barely afford knit sweaters from the second-hand shop. Remus felt his hand shake as the ring still sat in his palm waiting for Sirius to take it.
“I-”
“Remus, Where did you get this!”
Remus felt his breath hitch and his eyes start to swell. God, why did his emotions always have to betray him! He can’t cry about a ring. He especially can’t cry about Sirius’s ring in front of Sirius. So, he did what he was always good at, he ran away. Remus shoved the ring into Sirius’s hand and used the movement to push past the boy. He sprinted out of the room before Sirius could say anything, slamming the door on his way out.