Remus liked to get up early sometimes, only when it was warm, and so far the sunny spell they'd been having had lasted. There was something about the early morning that he loved, when everyone else was still asleep and the cool morning rays shone down, half-gentle half-bright, mingling with the remnants of the dawn chorus. It was probably the most peaceful time of day, the most peaceful time of year, and Remus soaked it up like a plant. It felt like entering a completely different world.
He must have woken up Sirius though, because the boy followed him quietly outside without him even noticing.
"Hey," Sirius greeted, opening the front door and wandering over to where Remus was just setting off on a walk.
"Hello."
"You're up early."
"So are you." Sirius shrugged.
"I'm a light sleeper."
"I didn't wake you, did I?" Sirius shook his head, but Remus suspected he was lying. Sirius was as light a sleeper as you could get, a single footstep could wake him up instantly.
"Where are we going?" asked Sirius, as he fell into step beside Remus.
"Just a walk. I like it out here at this time." The birds were louder at this time than they were at any other time. It was as if the entire sky was a concert hall for their voices. To Remus's sensitive ears, it was like an explosion of noise, but it was a nice noise. A nice explosion. He felt like shutting his eyes just to take it all in: the slight dampness in the air that made everything smell newly washed and the complete lack of any human activity. He wished the days were always like this, and he sometimes even wished that he could be the only person alive. That everyone else had disappeared, bringing with it the peaceful silence that can only be replicated by the absence of human life.
Sirius coughed lightly, and shook Remus temporarily out of his usual daydream, prompting it to change slightly; he didn't want to be the only person alive. Sirius could be there too, and James, and Peter. In their little flat with a shop downstairs and a pile of beanbags by the music player.
"Do you really think we can live together after Hogwarts?" asked Remus quietly.
"Of course! Why wouldn't we? I'm certainly not staying with my parents any longer than I have to."
"Why don't you leave?" Sirius looked sideways at him.
"What, now? I'm only thirteen."
"I'm not saying you have to get your own house or anything, I know that. I just mean... James said he'd take you in, and my parents would probably allow you to live with us if you needed to. You have options."
"I've thought about it. Believe me, I have. It's all I dream about when I'm at home, running away and never looking back. But... I'm scared. This is a small island, even smaller when you're a wizard and you can get from place to place in two seconds. It doesn't take long to find someone. They'd find me. They'd come for me, and scream at me, and punish me." He paused, and wandered over to a nearby fence. Remus followed, wondering if the conversation had ended, as Sirius pulled himself up onto the fence and stared out at the rising Sun.
"I don't want to be punished anymore," Sirius eventually continued. "I just want them to leave me alone." Remus didn't know how to reply. He didn't want to offer a solution because he didn't have one, and any solution would probably sound naive. So he sat beside his friend in silence, and put his hand on Sirius's hand in comfort.
"Just think," murmured Remus. "In four years, we can go wherever the hell we want. We don't even need to stay in the UK. There's nothing here for us, we can go anywhere."
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Boys Will Be Bugs
Fanfiction[REUPLOAD] Remus Lupin has more than one secret, and there's no way of knowing who he can trust. All he has are his parents, but they can't protect him when he goes off to Hogwarts. But then Remus meets a boy and his two other friends, and soon real...
