Boys Will Be Bugs

Chapter 104: Padfoot

CW// one mention of the d-slur

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"Oi! What are you lads doing?" Remus and Sirius pulled away from each other and squinted in the torch light that was pointed right at them. Neither of them had any time to even think as they desperately tried to stand back up on the ice and dive over the fence to safety. The man holding the torch was on this other side of the rink, but he was marching over fast, with fury clearly plastered across his face. Sirius managed to pull himself up and he grabbed Remus until the two were able to use the barrier as proper support. They jumped over the fence and made a run for it, refusing to stop until they were sure they had lost the man completely, which wasn't for a good few kilometres. They had to weave through alleyways until they found themselves back in the centre of town, doubled over and panting heavily. Remus was far more out of breath and had to slide down the wall of the nearest building and sit down on the grubby pavement below. It was so late by that point that no one even saw them.

"You okay?" asked Sirius in concern. "You didn't leave your cane, did you?" Remus shook his head.

"It's... in my pocket," he breathed. "We left our shoes, though." The two were both bare-footed, the hard, concrete ground having done a number on their poor ankles. Even so, Sirius began to laugh.

"Bet that guy must have got one hell of a shock." Remus couldn't help but smile back.

"This has certainly been an eventful evening." He wiped his nose against his sleeve, the effects of the cold night air beginning to make themselves known. "My dad's gonna kill me."

"Don't worry, I'll let you blame it all on me."

"Not a chance," replied Remus. "I can handle him." Eventually his breathing began to calm down enough for him to think about getting back up, but the weed had pretty much worn off by now, what with the sobering escape from potential arrest, and he could feel his muscles beginning to tense up. Neither the weather nor the exertion he'd put them through was doing him any favours, and he wasn't sure he could even stand up without quite a bit of help. He took his cane out of his pocket and unfolded it, attempting to lift himself up. His own weight was too heavy, however, and the cane slipped from underneath him, almost sending him crashing down to the floor had Sirius not rushed to catch him.

"We should head home," he said, gently lowering him back to the ground. "Do you know where the nearest bus stop is?"

"There's a night bus about ten minutes from here."

"Can you make it that far?" Remus wanted to nod and insist he was fine, but as he tried to stand up again, his cane noticeably wobbled under his weight and he had to rest heavily against Sirius's shoulder.

"Um..."

"I can carry you, if you want," Sirius suggested. "There's no one around."

"Carry me?" Sirius nodded. "I'm heavier than I look, you know."

"Well, I'm stronger than I look." Remus thought about it, decided that he was simply too drained to argue, and pulled himself up onto Sirius's back. It was surprisingly fun, actually, having a piggy back ride through an empty town at God knows what hour of the morning. It was nice looking into all the shop windows, nice in an eerie sort of way. Remus and Sirius became the only two people in the whole world, in the most literal sense possible, and even when the night bus finally arrived it still felt like they were slightly separated from reality. There was something other-worldly about night buses, as if they carried you through limbo, travelling between universes. Then again, perhaps the weed hadn't worn off as much as Remus had thought.

It was a struggle not to fall asleep, especially with the slow rocking and soft humming of the engines and the street lamps offering nightlights as they swum past in a blur. The last stop was one that barely reached the village, which meant another half an hour walk back up to the house. The bus ride had restored some of Remus's energy, so he was able to make his way through the countryside with just the help of his cane, but Sirius wrapped an arm around his waist for added support.