Chapter Text
Sirius stared dumbfounded at the bouquet on his kitchen table. Remus had delivered it by owl with a note that said,
Dear Sirius,
I hope you know that I’ve given this a great deal of thought and I deeply care for you. I hope you will understand what I’m trying to say with these flowers and know that I’m sincere. Please meet me for supper on Valentine’s Day. I love you and I want to be with you.
-R
He looked at the flowers. Gladiolus? He wondered. He didn’t even need to recall the lessons his mother drilled into his head about courtship and the language of flowers - the knowledge was easily grasped. But, gladiolus ? And were those anemones next to the snapdragons? He felt his heart lift a little. The orange roses gave him great pause. Deceit , he thought. Why would Remus be lying to him? Buttercups for riches - did Remus want Sirius for his money? Nothing about the flowers or the note made sense. He picked out the geraniums and the chrysanthemums, considering how he might answer.
xoxo
“Okay, so peonies - especially the pink ones - mean shyness , so Sirius is reaffirming his reticence, but the bright red carnations mean desire, right? So he’s shy but he wants this. He sent back a couple of the geraniums and one of the chrysanthemums, though. Is he rejecting the meeting and not trusting me?” Remus asked, confused.
“No, no,” said Dorcas. “The return of the chrysanthemums means he believes you to be sincere, the geraniums mean he accepts the meeting.”
“Dorcas, this is so bloody confusing - why did I decide to do this again?”
“Because while you’re a bitter cynic, your boyfriend is a hopeless romantic sap, and against all odds, you love him. That’s why.” Dorcas pulled her head out of the floo and Remus went back to preparing a romantic dinner for two.
xoxo
Sirius arrived at Remus’ flat as arranged and gazed around at what Remus had done.
The tiny flat had been transformed. The sofa had been pushed up against the far wall, and a table for two was set in the middle of the room. Candles floated around casting a soft, romantic glow on the usually dim space. Remus stood off to the side of the table, which was draped with a red cloth and more candles. Red roses in a vase acted as the centerpiece and covered dishes sat before two chairs. Sirius looked around the room and back at Remus, who looked handsome - albeit uncomfortable - in his formal dress robes. The soft, jazzy strains of Celestina Warbeck’s more tolerable tune, “You Charmed the Heart Right Out of Me” could be heard from the gramophone in the corner.
“Remus? What’s all this then?” Sirius asked, charmed. Perhaps he wouldn’t need to take all the steps for his planned Grand Seduction after all.
Remus cleared his throat. “I wanted this to be special. I wanted this to be romantic. For you.” He stepped up to the table and pulled out a chair, indicating for Sirius to sit. Sirius sat and Remus vanished the lids of the dishes with a flourish of his wand and summoned two glasses of wine from the kitchen.
He offered one to Sirius and said, “To us. Happy Valentine’s Day.”
Sirius grinned and clinked his glass against Remus’. “Happy Valentine’s Day.”
xoxo
Remus had outdone himself cooking things Lily and Dorcas had assured him were appropriately romantic. He was mostly relieved that nothing was burned and everything tasted the way it was supposed to.
Sirius was clearly enjoying the meal based on the noises he was making. He hummed his way through the lobster bisque and groaned at the first bite of his linguini and scallops. Remus was finding it difficult to concentrate on his meal because of this. Every sound Sirius made went straight to his groin and he found himself shifting in his seat. Sirius however, seemed oblivious to the effect he was having on the werewolf. Remus tried to pay attention to Sirius’ conversation about his plans for James and Lily’s child - “The sprog’s gonna be a flying prodigy, Remus, just you wait!” - but it was so hard.
Finally, Sirius pushed away his plate and looked up at Remus for the first time in several long minutes. “So, I got the flowers you sent me,” he began.
“And I got yours,” said Remus, smiling softly.
“I didn’t really understand, though,” Sirius continued.
“How do you mean?”
“Well, the snapdragons and anemones, for one thing,” Sirius chuckled a bit. “I mean, ‘graciousness’ and ‘forsaken’? Bit of mixed signals, don’t you think?”
“‘Forsaken’? The anemones were for eagerness!” Remus quickly went and fetched the Victorian flower dictionary upon which he and Dorcas had relied.
When Sirius saw it, he burst out laughing. “Remus, is this the book you used to send me those flowers?” he asked.
“Yes! It’s Victorian - what’s wrong with it?” Remus was terribly confused. This conversation - this evening - was not going exactly as he had hoped. He and Sirius seemed to have gotten their wires crossed somewhere and he hoped they could clear it up and get to dessert.
“Remus,” Sirius chuckled, flipping through the book quickly. “This is a Muggle flower dictionary. The meanings are… slightly different than the ones I grew up with. They may not necessarily be wrong , but the meanings are probably very different in some situations. Like anemones. Or snapdragons. Or orange roses.”
Remus felt the blood drain from his face as he understood what Sirius was saying. His carefully thought-out bouquet probably meant something horrible to Sirius when he’d only been trying to be sincere and romantic.
“Oh Merlin,” Remus mumbled, covering his face with his hands. “I was trying to be romantic! I was trying to convince you that I was sincere, that my affections were genuine! I’m in love with you, Sirius, and I wanted to say it with flowers but clearly I only know how to say it with words.” He walked to Sirius and took up his hands and kissed his knuckles. “I’m so sorry for whatever my stupid flowers said to you. I didn’t mean it.”
Sirius hummed thoughtfully and looped his arms around Remus’ shoulders. “Really? Because the buttercups told me you were ‘dazzled by my charms and riches’ and the gladiolus promised you were sincere, and the chrysanthemums said I could trust your love. Were those flowers lying, too? Or just the ones that came out and said they were lying outright? The orange roses and snapdragons and anemones?”
“Maybe not all the flowers then,” Remus agreed. “I mean it though, I’m in this for real, Sirius. I love you and I want to be with you. Whether you want to sleep with me or not, I want you to be comfortable and confident in how I feel about you.”
Sirius was quiet for a moment, content in the circle of Remus’ arms. “Alright then,” he said, and moved back to the table.
“Alright?’ Remus asked, blinking. This evening was very confusing.
“Alright,” Sirius said. Then, “Isn’t there dessert?”
Remus took a moment to get the gears in his head to start moving once more and summoned the dessert dishes to the table. Chocolate covered strawberries - two for each of them - sat plump and rosy on small plates.
“Strawberries?” Sirius said, waggling his eyebrows. “Really pouring on the romance, aren’t we?” He took up one of the strawberries, placed it half in his mouth and took a bite, letting the juices drip through his fingers and down his forearm.
Remus’ mouth went dry. “I, erm, thought that was what you wanted. Romance, I mean,” he was stammering like an idiot, staring transfixed at Sirius’ lips, which were wet and red, stained by the strawberry he was still eating. Very slowly.
“Don’t you want yours?” Sirius asked, reaching over to Remus’ plate to pick up one of the strawberries. He leaned over the table and held it to Remus’ lips. “They’re divine, take a bite.”
Poor Remus (poor, poor Remus) could do nothing but obey. The strawberry was perfect: juicy, soft, sweet on his tongue. The chocolate cracked and mingled with the juices in his mouth and his lips grazed Sirius’ fingertips. The air in the room suddenly took on an almost electric charge - like a summer storm that promises lightning, but no rain.
After they finished feeding each other bites of strawberry, Sirius banished the dishes back to the kitchen. Instead of leaning across the table, he walked around and deposited himself in Remus’ lap, ducking his head to chase the taste of chocolate and strawberries on Remus’ mouth. Remus’ tenuously held control snapped and he pushed the table back further, pulling Sirius in closer and deepening the kiss. Sirius moaned in approval and Remus captured the lingering bits of sweetness in Sirius’ mouth with his tongue.
Remus pulled back for a brief moment to search Sirius’ eyes. “This is okay, right? All of this is okay? Please tell me if it’s not,” he said, keeping Sirius at arm’s length to be sure he got an answer.
“Remus, if you don’t start kissing me and take off your shirt right this minute, we’ll have a problem. Until then, keep going and I’ll tell you if I need to stop. But don’t count on that happening anytime soon.” He pulled Remus back in for another breath stealing kiss and Remus got them turned around toward the bedroom.
There was no stopping on the way there. No pausing to kiss against the walls in the corridor, no laughing into each other’s mouths as articles of clothing were discarded and left trailing behind them. Remus cut a clear path to his bed and Sirius followed behind eagerly, their hands entwined.
Once inside, Remus shut the door and waved his hand to light the additional floating candles he set up in hopes that their evening would end like this. They looked at each other and immediately burst out laughing. Sirius wasn’t quite certain why the situation was so amusing but he knew Remus felt like the candlelight, the romantic dinner, the exchanging of flowers and romantic declarations were all out of some sappy romance novel. He knew Remus had done it all for him, and he loved him for it. When the giggles subsided, the room did not become thick with tension, but soft.
Remus gently ran his fingers down Sirius’ arms, chuckling softly when he encountered a sticky spot left by the strawberry juice Sirius has so wantonly allowed to drip. A muttered cleansing spell from Sirius and a soft smile took care of it, but Remus continued his gentle explorations, feeling bold now that he knew Sirius would not shy away. Sirius’ hands went to the buttons on Remus’ robes and began undoing them one by one, enjoying the way Remus’ breath hitched as he pushed them apart with each button unbuttoned. Remus eventually lost his patience with being unwrapped like a present and made quick work of Sirius’ outer robes and shirt.
Remus was aware that Sirius had tattoos but he was not prepared for how stunning they looked, stark against his olive skin. Curious shapes and symbols he planned to map out like constellations next time he got this. This first time, though, he wanted to make Sirius feel cherished. He shrugged out of his robes now that Sirius had taken care of the buttons on the front and shucked his shirt, throwing them haphazardly in a corner. He turned Sirius around and gently guided him down onto the bed, following him down and nuzzling his neck, whispering assurances as they went.
Sirius moved first, reaching for the fastenings of Remus’ trousers, grinning and pulling Remus in for a kiss as he pushed them down. He palmed at his erection through his pants and Remus sighed at the sensation before batting his hand away to reach for Sirius’ own trousers. Maintaining eye contact to be sure he had Sirius’ continued permission, he pushed them down and off, then reached for the band of his pants. Sirius’ hands joined Remus’ and pushed them down, kicking them off and into the corner with the rest of his clothes.
Finally seeing Sirius naked and stretched out beside him was overwhelming and Sirius laughed under the scrutiny. He glowed in the candlelight and his eyes blazed with heat. “I feel a bit underdressed here, shouldn’t you be joining me?” he teased, tugging at Remus’ underwear and pushing them out of the way.
“How should we do this?” he asked softly, a bit uncertain for the first time since entering the room.
“I really want to take you,” Remus murmured. “But if that’s not what you want, we can do it the other way, or we don’t even have to do that. We can do something else.”
“No, I want that,” Sirius said. “This time, at least.” He kissed Remus again but then quickly rolled over on top of him.
It was like a dam had been released now that Sirius was sure. He nuzzled into Remus’ neck and nibbled at his collarbones, sucked red marks into his sternum and grazed his teeth across one of his nipples. Remus groaned at the attention, delighted that Sirius was finally feeling free to touch him. Sirius was constantly getting distracted, feeling like he could finally enjoy Remus at his leisure and not sure where to focus his attentions. He kept leaning back up to kiss Remus long and deep and dirty, pushing his hands into Remus’ curls and grinding their hips together.
Finally, Remus had enough. A naked and willing Sirius was already more than he could hope for and his constant rutting against his hip was beginning to overwhelm him. He went to tug Sirius over to lie beneath him but his hand slipped against his slightly sweat-slicked skin and wound up catching Sirius round the ear.
“Ow?” Sirius muttered before the two of them dissolved into giggles once more. Remus liked this, this carefree, no pressure kind of love. But their laughter did nothing to diminish their arousal so he carefully tucked Sirius beneath him and went to work.
“You’re sure?” he asked one last time as he reached for lube. He was doing this the old-fashioned way because while a spell might be more efficient, it was nowhere near as intimate. As desperate as he was, he had no intention of rushing this. Sirius deserved slow, careful, and tender.
Sirius grabbed his hand and guided it back to his entrance. He pressed a quick kiss to Remus’ lips and said, “I’m ready. Please Remus.”
Despite his intentions to take his time, the sight, sound, and feel of Sirius writhing against his fingers tested Remus’ resolve. “By Merlin, Remus, I’m ready !” Sirius insisted after several excruciatingly long minutes.
“I’m not going to hurt you,” Remus murmured into Sirius’ shoulder, twisting his fingers just so and widening them a few more times before finally removing them. A few muttered spells later and Sirius was digging his heels into Remus’ flanks, pulling him in deeper until their hips were flush against each other.
Remus stilled and carefully drew in a breath before opening his eyes and seeing Sirius’ grey eyes gazing back at him. His features softened - a rare and precious sight, Remus knew - and he turned away to laugh when Remus bumped their noses together. “Fancy meeting you here,” he said with faux nonchalance, then gasped out a breath when Remus finally began to move. Remus set a slow and steady pace, grinning every time Sirius moaned or arched his back in pleasure.
He let out a whuff of surprise then, when Sirius suddenly gripped his forearms where he was braced above him and sent them careening sideways so that Sirius was straddling Remus’ hips.
“Wha-?” he asked before cutting himself off with a groan as Sirius sank back down onto his erection.
“This is the part where I make a joke about getting to ride a werewolf,” Sirius huffed out, shifting his hips faster and faster. “But I’m afraid I just don’t have it in me.”
“I thought the whole point of this was that you do have a werewolf in you,” Remus said.
Sirius threw his head back and laughed before doubling over and putting his face next to Remus’. He slowed his movements until they were doing little more than rocking back and forth atop each other.
“I love you, you know,” he whispered.
“I do,” Remus said, reaching up a hand to cup Sirius’ face. “I love you too, of course,” he added after a slight pause. They both started laughing again until finally Sirius started to move with purpose.
“Remus,” Sirius said. “I’m - nnngh, I’m close.” He was reaching to wrap his fingers around himself.
Remus had taken hold of his hips and was adding his own momentum to their movements, covering Sirius hands with one of his own, stroking him in time with his own jerky thrusts. Eventually they lost their rhythm and Sirius came with his head thrown back and his eyes clenched shut. Remus thought he was absolutely stunning and that was the last thought he had before his own climax washed over him.
As he came back to himself, he felt Sirius moving away and blindly reached for him. “Shh, just getting my wand,” he heard before Sirius returned. A few quick cleaning spells later they were both tucked under the covers, curled up together like Remus had imagined. He wrapped an arm around Sirius to pull him close and press a kiss to his temple.
“Happy Valentine’s Day,” he said again. “Was it what you wanted?”
Sirius snuggled in closer. “Between the delicious dinner and floral misunderstandings and the fantastic shag, I think you outdid yourself Remus Lupin. Can’t think of a thing I would’ve added.”
Remus smiled and then said suddenly, “I was going to ask you to dance! After dessert - I had music picked out and everything.” He looked down at Sirius who was rolling his eyes affectionately.
“Dance with me tomorrow,” Sirius murmured sleepily before burrowing down a bit further under the covers.
“Is that something else you’ve been overeducated in which may have different meanings depending on the alignment of the stars and the tides?” Remus teased.
“Maybe - “ Sirius began. “What on earth…?” He threw the covers to the side to reveal a few balls of yarn tangled between his legs and around his feet. “Knitting in bed, Remus?”
“Oops,” Remus said, quickly reaching to untangle him. With a glint in his eye he looked up at Sirius. “Though, it looks like you’ve got a head start.”
“How do you mean?”
“Well, instead of dancing with wolves,” he began, pointing to himself, “you’ve been dancing with wools!” He successfully undid the mess of yarn around Sirius feet and with a flick of his wand sent the rewound balls to his knitting basket in the corner.
Sirius groaned and chuckled softly. “And here I was going to say something about the balls between my legs.” The two men resituated themselves in the bed. “I liked yours better, though.” He was drifting despite the giggles.
“Happy Valentine’s Day, Sirius,” Remus said one last time before waving his hand and extinguishing the candles.