Title: Perfect Angels
Author: tarotgal
Fandom: Harry Potter
Rating: G (I think)
Parings: none, though Sirius/Remus in my head so that might
have come through a little. Oh, and I suppose James/Lily
Spoilers: none
Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter and all the other concepts and lovely characters. I write this only in fun, I mean no harm, I get no money from this.
Summary: There are certain drawbacks to MWPP out marauding
on the grounds in the middle of winter. Namely, terribly sneezey head colds of
course. What a surprise ;-)
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Perfect Angels His glasses slipped slowly down his nose as he sat on the edge of the bed rocking. One hand gripped the blanket, holding it tight around his shoulders. The other slowly raised to cup his nose and mouth. He leaned back, drawing a deep breath. "ahhchoo!" The sneeze was small but strong and irritated his throat, making him shake with coughs. "Jamie," Sirius sighed, sitting down beside him on the bed and recovering the thermometer which had fallen onto his lap. "I thought I told you not to... not to... snee..." but he couldn't finish in time. He whipped his head to the side, directing a sneeze into his shoulder. "ehhhShuhhh! Uhghhh..." He cringed and reached over James to snatch a tissue from the box. He wiped his nose, then blew. A terribly wet, disgusting, miserable blow. "Yick!" James scooted away from Sirius on the bed. He took out a tissue and fanned it at Sirius. "Go away. I dod't wad to get ady worse." Sirius stuck his tongue out rudely, but then his expression changed. He grabbed the tissue out of James' hand and held it to his face. "ehhhShushhh! ehhShuhhhhh!" He folded the tissue and blew again, very wetly. James sighed and leaned back onto his bed. "Ugh, Sirius, why cad't you just be sig id your owd bed lig Beter is?" At the mention of his name, a mousey-looking boy threw back the hangings of his bed and poked out. "Did someone call me?" came a tired, weak voice. James lifted his head and shook it. "Doe, I was just usig you as ad exable. Hey, Worbtail, tell Sirius to go sleeb id his owd bed. He's drivg be crazy." Peter, looking pale and weak, turned his face towards Sirius. "Padfoot, go sleep in your own bed. You're driving Prongs crazy." His voice was raspy, and he coughed and cleared it without much luck. Then the tickle in his throat backed off to make room for the ones in his nose. "kishhh! kiiishhh!" Peter had very high-pitched, short sneezes that seemed to bother him terribly as he rubbed a finger under his nose both before and after. "Isn't Moony back yet?" he whined. "Does it loog lig he's bag?" James groaned, rubbing at his nose. Well, he didn't have to be so rude about it. Peter narrowed his eyes. "On second thought, stay right where you are, Padfoot," said Peter. Sirius flashed him an appreciative smile and punched James in the arm playfully. James grumbled and rolled over only his side, sniffling. "Everyode's agaidst be. Wish Lily were here." "We're not against you," Sirius said, lying back on his side to drape an arm around James, pulling the blanket-covered young man to him in a warm hug. "We just feel as miserable as you do and want you to quit complaining about it." James snorted. "I'b dot the odly ode coblaidig!" Sirius laughed. "All right, well, you're the one complaining in such a stuffy voice." James sniffed hard in answer and pulled a pillow over for his head. But he didn't push Sirius away. The warmth, apparently, out-weighed the insult. "ikshhhh! kiishhh!" Peter squeaked, sneezed rather, and sniffed hard, too. "I'm out of tissues," he said, holding up the empty box. "Do you guys have some I could borrow?" Sirius reached over James again to the tissue box, picking it up to toss it over to Peter, but James grabbed it first. James sniffled, holding the box to his chest. "He's dot gettig theb *all*. Are you crazy? There's two of us add oddly ode of hib," he snapped at Sirius. "Oy, Beter, cub over here if you wadt sub tissues." "kishhh! keshhhh!" He didn't feel much like getting up, but he did need tissues. So Peter coughed, hopped down, and made his way over to James' bed. Sirius sat up and offered him a hand as he climbed up onto the bed. And James sat and handed over the box of tissues as Peter settled in between the two of them. "Thanks," Peter mumbled from behind the tissues as he wiped his nose and laid his head on James' shoulder. Suddenly, Sirius
grabbed the box from Peter, pulling out several for himself. "ehhhChishhh! ehhhShhhh!" He panted,
rocking a little bit, as though trying to ease the rest of the sneezes out. "ehhhHitchhhhh!" He wiggled his nose at
the tickle, sniffling into a tissue. Then he threw his head back with a sigh. "Uhhh... it's stuck.." He sniffed and
wiggled his head, long, black hair flying back and forth. "I hate this..." Peter
patted his back reassuringly. It was almost as though that was all it took.
Sirius snapped forward, nose buried in a handful of tissues. "EHHHChuhhh! IhhSHuhhh! EhhhSheshhhh!
IHHHSHhhh!" He sniffed hard. Peter smiled, pulling Sirius' hair back behind
his ears, then gently stroking the "Yick, do you hab to do that here id frodt of us? You soud horrible." He rubbed at his nose. "Add stob hoggig the tissues!" James called, reaching over Peter for the box just in time. "ahhhChooo! Ahhh-ihChooo!" With a deep, resigned breath, he blew his nose. Sirius laughed. "You don't sound so great yourself, Prongsy!" James glowered at him, sniffling. With a fierce shiver, Peter leaned into James, tugging at the blanket he still had wrapped around his shoulders. "Oy, hads off! Get your owd!" James said, pulling away, blanket and all. "Just a little?" Peter whined. "I'm so cold and I don't want to walk all the way back over to my bed." He tried snuggling closer to James, but James would have none of it. "Doe. I deed it," he insisted, pulling it tighter around himself. "I thig by fever's ub." Sirius rolled his eyes. "Your fever's no worse than ours. Remus took it not an hour ago." James shivered and pulled the blanket closer, trying his very best to ignore Peter's nudges and snuggles. "Well, it could have rised sidce thed. You dod't dow." This was true. "No, I don't know," Sirius replied. "Because you kept sneezing every time I stuck a thermometer in your mouth." "Dod't blabe be!" James exclaimed a little too fervently, causing his scratchy throat to feel worse. "You have bad tibig." "Well, maybe I have bad timing but at least I can talk." James shot Sirius another annoyed look for that. With a sigh, James hung his head, reaching out from beneath his blanket to rub at his forehead. "Well, by headache's worse. There's defiditely that." He dragged a hand beneath his nose with a sniff. Then flipped his hand over to cover his nose. "ahhhChooo! Ahh-EhhChoo!" Peter reached over and pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose, back into place. James pushed him away with a grumble. "You're just sick," Sirius said, reaching out a hand to pat James comfortingly. "You need to rest." "I'b dot subrised by head hurts so buch with the two of you here botherig be." James snapped. Peter looked a little hurt that his attempt to be nice was now being called a bother. But then he saw the playfulness behind James' eyes. Apparently Sirius had noticed it, too. "Bothering, you say? Then it's only just begun." Sirius looked past him, then lunged, grabbing James' pillow. He grinned and flumped back down on his side, curling up with the pillow under his head and in his arms. "Hey!" James called, trying to snatch it back, but Peter was between them and Sirius held on too strongly. "Finders keepers," he chuckled, closing his eyes to James' expression. Peter's eyes flashed with similar mischief. "Well in that case," He scooted over and grabbed the side of the other blanket, still on James' bed, pulling the part they weren't sitting on up enough to cover part of him. While James was preoccupied with Peter stealing his blanket, Sirius snatched back the box of tissues from James. "ehhhShuhhh! ehhhChishhhhh!" He sneezed, shaking the bed which was already shaking a little from James and Peter fighting over the blanket. Then blew his nose wetly. James cringed and groaned. "Do you really hab to do that?" Though he quickly raises a hand to his face before Sirius can reply. "AhhhChishhhhh! Ahhh-hahChooo!" Then he tumbled over Peter to grab for the tissues Sirius was dangling playfully, just out of reach. "Oh, you're askig for it!" James threatened. Peter cried out as James fell on top of him, the cry dissolving into heavy coughing. And James had to fight against a runny nose to get to fight a laughing Sirius. * * * Walking ever so slowly due to a severe limp and the need to concentrate while balancing the heavy tray, it was a while before Remus made it back into the room. "Sorry," he called from the doorway, pushing it closed behind him with his only recently tailless rump. "My leg started cramping up and Madam Pomfrey wanted another look at my wounds from last night," he explained, limping slowly into their bedroom. "But don't worry. I didn't tell her about you all catching cold from nearly drowning yourself in the icy lake trying to find that secret passage to..." Remus' voice died away as he surveyed the room. Sirius' bed was empty, as was Peter's. Remus limped over, then set the tray down on James trunk. There they were, all three of them, together and asleep on James' bed. Sirius lay on his back, snoring so loudly it was amazing the other two were still asleep. Both Peter and James were using Sirius' chest for a pillow, and Sirius had James' pillow for that though the elevation didn't seem to help quiet his snores. James lay on his side, ear pressed against Sirius' heart as though the gentle beats had sent him to sleep. Sirius' hand was on James' head, his rough fingers mixed with and tangled in the messy black hair. James had one arm out, extending the blanket that was wrapped around him to cover Peter as well, whose shoulder his hand rested upon. Peter was curled in on himself to keep warm. But in one hand he gently held James' glasses, as though he had eased them off when James was to sleepy to bother with them himself. And in his other hand he clutched a handful of the blanket which they were all lying upon as it folded up to cover parts of Sirius. Remus smiled and shook his head. Carefully he slid the rather smashed tissue box out from the middle of the group, placing it on the nightstand. Then he picked up the dozens of balled-up tissues strewn about the bed one by one, tossing the lot into the trash. After collecting the blankets from Sirius', Peter's, and his own bed, he made sure each of the young men was sufficiently covered with a blanket. For Peter, Remus took James' glasses and
placed them beside the tissues. Then he pulled the blanket from Peter's hand,
letting the young man curl up a bit more comfortably. He leaned closer to feel
James' forehead with the back of his hand, just to be sure it was no warmer,
despite the flush in James' cheeks. And for Sirius, he ran his finger up and
down the Satisfied that they were all taken care of for the moment, he poured himself a cup of tea from the tray he'd struggled to bring them. Then Remus sat himself down at the table on the other side of their room and pulled out the Marauder's Map. "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good," he whispered in his softest whisper ever, giving the map a tap with his wand. It sprang to life. As it was the winter holiday, the castle was virtually deserted. And his eyes were drawn to their dormitory where the three dots that represented his friends were so close that they were on top of each other in one big black blob of PeterPettigrewSiriusBlackJamesPotter. His dot wasn't all that far away from theirs, either. But he was at the desk, with a magic quill in one hand and his wand in the other. Carefully he drew in the passageway they had tried to explore last night. It had taken them two hours to break through the thick layer of ice on the lake, a task much more difficult than it seemed for them all in animal form. And it had taken the rest of the night until nearly dawn to discover that though it twisted up towards the castle, eventually it came to a disappointing dead end just short of anything of any use whatsoever. Remus leaned back and sipped his tea as he waited for the ink to dry so that he could start recharming the map to preserve its newly-added secrets. His eyes strayed back over to his three greatest friends, sick with miserable head colds. They did so much for him, and they meant so much to him. And even sick as they were, asleep they looked absolutely angelic. Though Remus certainly knew better. |