Summary: Sirius is not feeling well and depressed. Remus
gets to the bottom of it.
Notes: Sooo PWP it's not even funny. I just felt like
playing around a little and it didn't turn out too terribly, so I'm sharing :-) Not a lot of sneezing, though.
Fever 1
Severus
Snape had aimed his wand carefully. With perfect form he had flicked it towards
the desired target. However, Timothy Nott had anticipated the movement and sent
his defense spell too early. It hit Snape squarely in the chest and sent him
falling back onto the floor with a startled yell. A scattering of laughter
filled the quiet classroom. And Nott, looking a bit stunned despite the
defense, raced over to help Snape up.
Across the
room, even Remus Lupin smiled at the spectacle. A few feet over, James Potter
laughed softly. "Serves him right for picking Nott as a partner. The guy's as
skittish as a rat."
"Hey!"
Peter exclaimed with a squeak.
"No offense
of course, Wormtail," James said earnestly. He properly blocked Peter's
stunning spell without the least bit of effort. They had been told to pair off
to practice both offense and defense in turn.
Remus
looked over at his partner, expecting to see Sirius looking quite pleased at
the sight. Instead, Sirius could not have looked less joyous. Instead of a
smile and laugh, he looked depressed. Instead of an insult to Snape, there was
only silence. Remus lowered his wand at once and quickly walked to Sirius,
covering the distance in seconds. "What's the matter?" he asked concernedly.
Meeting
Remus' eyes, Sirius shook his head and shrugged. "Nothing."
Remus
narrowed his amber-brown eyes and cocked his head. Sirius not laughing to see
Snape thrown back and sprawling upon the floor? "Like hell there's nothing
wrong. Come here." He grabbed Sirius by the tie and pulled him an inch or two
closer. He ignored the dreamy 'kiss me' look on Sirius' face and, instead,
pressed the back of his hand against Sirius' forehead. "Padfoot?" he said,
making his fellow Gryffindor open his eyes again. "Do you realize you're
running a fever?"
"What?"
Sirius said, looking rather confused. "No I'm not."
"You are,"
Remus insisted. "You've got a fever." He called over to James and Peter. "Come
here and feel this."
"Moony!"
Sirius whined softly, pleadingly. But his other two best friends came over and
placed their hands on his face in turn.
"You do feel
pretty warm," Peter said truthfully.
"You
definitely have a fever, Mate," James agreed, comparing Sirius' forehead to his
own.
"But I
can't," Sirius insisted, shaking his head. "I can't be sick right now. And I
don't feel sick. Maybe a little tired and achy, but not..." He stopped as he
evaluated himself for a long minute.
Remus
smiled sympathetically. "You feel sick, don't you?"
Dejectedly
and resignedly, Sirius nodded.
"All
right," Remus said decisively. "I will go speak with Professor Flitwick and take
you to the hospital wing."
"Moony,"
Sirius pleaded softly. "I might feel a little sick but not that bad."
But Remus,
looking determined, had already turned and headed towards their Charms
professor.
Sirius
walked over to the wall and leaned against it, crossing his arms over his
chest. He had to admit that he did feel a bit feverish. He had felt a bit warm,
but he thought that was just because it was a practical lesson in a stuffy
classroom. However, there was no convenient excuse for the soft pounding in his
ears, the tiny scratchiness of his throat, or the slight pressure in the back
of his nose. He didn't like this.
"Sirius."
Sirius
blinked and suddenly found himself staring at Remus and Professor Flitwick
standing in front of him. With a sigh, and his fingers crossed in his pockets
that Snape wasn't watching, he bent down and allowed the professor to feel his
forehead. "Mmm," Professor Flitwick said with a nod. "Absolutely. You
definitely have a fever. You are excused from the lesson, Mister Black. Mister
Lupin will walk you to the hospital wing but then he is to return to class as
soon as you are settled."
Remus and
Sirius both agreed, and Sirius hung his head, hoping his hair hid his face from
the rest of the class. Normally he wouldn't mind them all staring at him, but
not just now. He felt bad enough already, and not just because he felt ill.
Sirius was
strangely silent as they walked down the halls and stairways towards the
hospital wing. He shuffled his feet, stayed to himself, and kept his eyes on
the stone floor. Even when Remus spoke and asked him questions, he said
nothing.
Finally,
Remus stopped Sirius in his tracks. He looked around to be sure they were
alone, then squeezed Sirius' shoulder. "What are you moping about? I've seen
you sick before, and you're never depressed like this. It takes a lot more than
a fever to silence Sirius Black. So what is it?"
With a
shrug, Sirius shook his head. "Dunno..." He looked down, avoiding Remus' eyes.
"Dunno."
Remus bent
at the knees, lowering himself so as to catch Sirius' gaze. Once caught, he
held it. "I think you do know," Remus said, his voice softer but still full of
concern.
Sirius
shrugged again and closed his eyes, avoiding Remus again. "I can't be sick
today."
"Ah, but
you are," Remus reminded him. "So get over it. It's not life and death, Sirius,
it's just a little fever and a cold, right?"
"Just a
cold," Sirius agreed. But Sirius didn't seem to sure about the rest of Remus'
statement.
"So then
what's wrong?" Remus asked, gently rubbing his nose against Sirius'.
Sirius
sighed deeply, shoulders sagging, and relented. "I'm disappointed is all. Don't
you remember tomorrow? We were supposed to go to Hogsmede together. You know,
the way real couples do. We were going to tell James and Peter tonight that
we're going to go public."
"Ah." Even
though Sirius' eyes were closed, Remus tried not to show his amusement. Remus was
relieved it wasn't something more serious. Perhaps it was his fever that was
causing him to overreact. "And if you're sick and stuck in hospital, we can't possibly
do that."
"Well..."
Sirius did not know how to answer. It was true they didn't exactly need a
reason to tell the others; they could do that any time they'd worked up their
courage. But he had so been looking forward to a trip to Hogsmede. Holding
hands with Remus as they walked down the streets, kissing him when everyone
could see. It had taken nearly a year to get to this point and Sirius wasn't
sure he could sustain his courage much longer. If they didn't do it now, they
might never. "I wanted to go with you." He rubbed a little at his itchy nose,
suddenly remembering he was sick and wondering if that was why this matter
seemed like life and death when he knew it wasn't.
Sirius opened
one eye, peeked at Remus' reaction. Remus was not smiling, though it was a
struggle. Sirius gave a small cough, suddenly aware of how scratchy his throat
actually felt and how much he needed to cough.
"We'll do
it another day," Remus reassured him. He stroked Sirius' throat softly. "But
nothing is more important than your health." He pressed the back of his hand to
Sirius' forehead and smiled. "And your fever's not getting any better standing
here in the hallway."
Sirius
nodded, unable to argue with that.
Taking
Sirius' hand and squeezing it tightly, Remus pulled him onward. Sirius stopped
a few moments later, cupping his hand to his face. "Need a...?" Remus didn't need
to finish his sentence. He knew Sirius never carried handkerchiefs. Remus dug
his out of his pocket and handed it over for Sirius to sneeze and then cough
into. "See? Told you there was something wrong." He slipped his arm around
Sirius' bent one and they continued down the hallway.
Remus knew
the hospital ward intimately, and Madam Pomfrey had a sort of radar when it
came to him. She was immediately drawn over and felt Sirius' forehead. "You've
got a fever, Mister Black," she declared, guiding him over to a cot.
"So I've
been told," Sirius said, sitting down and clearing his throat.
"Well, it's
nothing too terrible that a potion and a few days of bed rest won't cure,"
Madam Pomfrey assured him. Then she looked back at Remus. "Thank you for seeing
him here safely. If you're feeling well, yourself, then that will be all,
Mister Lupin."
Remus
nodded. But he waited one second more, hovering a few feet from the cot. And,
when Madam Pomfrey had her back turned towards the medicine cupboard, Remus
bent down and kissed Sirius. It was a small kiss, really only a swift peck on
the lips. But it was more than they'd ever shared out in public. It made Sirius
grin blushingly, though with already fever-flushed cheeks it was hard to tell. "I'll
come by and see you after classes," Remus promised. Sirius nodded back, still
smiling.