Chapter Text
Sirius Black strolled down a lesser traveled lane of Diagon Alley with a lumpy, blue, slightly misshapen handknit hat on his head. He whistled softly despite the biting chill in the early February air, messenger bag bouncing gently at his hip as he walked. He slowed as he reached his destination and peered into the glass of the windows at The Black Sheep to see the proprietor sitting at the work table with a mess of knitting in his hands. He grinned and pushed the door open, making the bell above it jingle and startling the man at the table.
“You finished it!” he exclaimed as he stood and walked to Sirius, examining the hat he wore.
“D’you like it? It’s a bit lumpy and I can’t figure out why . Remus, I followed the pattern exactly …” Sirius trailed off and pulled the hat off his head and turned it over in his hands. It was certainly lumpy and while it looked like a hat, it looked nothing like the picture that accompanied the pattern he had followed. Remus took the hat from him and smoothed it out onto the work table in front of him.
“Oh, I see,” he murmured. “You didn’t block it.” He reached for the copy of the pattern Sirius had dug out of his bag and read to the bottom. “See?” he said, pointing. “‘Wet block to shape,’ which basically means soak it and let it dry but there’s a spell for that,” Remus explained. He pulled out his wand and muttered an incantation under his breath. As Sirius watched, the hat slowly softened and gradually smoothed out. The stitches became clearer and more distinct and the hat took on a much more proper shape. When the process was finished, Sirius scooped it up with a soft cheer and waved it in Remus’ face before kissing him soundly.
“Moony, you’re magnificent,” he grinned as he jammed the hat back on his head.
Remus shook his head a bit to clear it and smiled softly before a small frown crossed his lips. “‘Moony’?” he asked incredulously.
“Yeah, Prongs suggested it. We all have names, y’know, and since you’re a Marauder now you need the nickname to go with it. And with your, er, furry little problem, it seemed fitting.”
“‘Furry little problem’!” Remus laughed out loud. “You make it sound like I have an ill-behaved rabbit in my flat, not a terrible monthly curse.”
“Now you’re making it sound like you have a different condition altogether,” Sirius countered, slinging an arm around Remus’ waist and crowding into his space.
“Sirius,” Remus warned, “I’m technically at work.”
“Shop isn’t technically open for another 3 minutes,” Sirius murmured next to Remus’ mouth before pressing their mouths together.
The bell above the door jingled and a voice called, “Sweet Merlin’s tits, you two, get a room!”
“I have a whole shop, Dorcas,” Remus growled around Sirius’ tongue. Sirius chuckled and pulled away to hug her.
“It’s alright,” Sirius says. “I promised Pete I’d meet with him to test the latest improvements to the ‘top secret new development’ project he’s got at work. I wanted to stop in and see you first, show you my hat,” he added. “Dinner tonight?”
Remus righted himself and smoothed out his shirt (which had been rumpled by Sirius’ grasping fingers). “Yes, er, that’s good. Meet here or are we going to Godric’s Hollow?”
“I’ll pick you up,” Sirius said, giving Remus one final peck on the lips. “Ta, Dorcas!” he called and slipped out the door and down the street.
Dorcas let out a long whistle once he was gone and looked back at Remus. “So the honeymoon phase is still going strong, eh?” she asked with a cheshire grin.
Remus glared at her lightly and huffed. “That isn’t any of your business, Dorcas.”
Dorcas threw herself into one of the squashy armchairs arranged around a coffee table and hummed. “So… Do you have any plans for Valentine’s? It’s coming up fast, Romeo.”
“You know I don’t go in for the schmaltzy, overwrought declarations of true love or expensive dinners or any of the Valentine nonsense. It’s ridiculous to say really important things or false romantic nothings just because greeting card vendors and chocolatiers want to make a few extra galleons between Christmas and Easter.” He picked up the project he’d left at the work table and settled into one of the other armchairs.
“It’s fine to hate on Valentine’s Day when you’re single, Remus,” Dorcas began. “But you’re in a relationship now.” She leaned forward. “You have another person’s thoughts to consider.”
“We’ve been dating for a month, Dorcas, I hardly think it’s time to get down on one knee.”
“I’m not saying propose, you prat, I’m saying maybe it’s time to evaluate your intentions and consider a grand gesture.” Standing, Dorcas ruffled Remus’ hair. “Think about it, hm? And give me all the dirty details,” she winked lewdly and made for the door.
“There will be no dirty details!” Remus called after her, slumping back into his seat.
No dirty details indeed. While dating Sirius Black was certainly exciting - racing along country roads on the motorbike in the middle of the night, sneaking into clubs to see bands no one had heard of, participating in the prank war he and the other Marauders were involved with - he had to admit that he wanted a bit more.
Kissing Sirius Black was akin to a religious experience and after the first one there had been quite a few more. Eventually kissing had led to touching and touching obviously led to tasting but… Sirius always backed off before things got much further. Remus tried to be understanding and asked if he had done anything wrong, but Sirius always brushed it off saying it wasn’t Remus’ fault and that Sirius didn’t want to rush into anything too soon.
Remus wouldn’t dream of pushing Sirius along or making demands of any kind. That didn’t mean that he wasn’t feeling a bit frustrated with the situation. He felt the situation called for an expert opinion.
That evening, after he and Sirius had dinner with the Potters, Remus managed to get James alone to discuss the situation as obliquely as possible.
“Moony, it sounds like you’ve got to just talk to him, mate,” James said.
“I’ve tried!” Remus said, running his hands through his hair. “He always gives me the brush off like it’s nothing but it’s obviously something! It’s like he’s holding back because…” Remus looked up at James as he realized. “He thinks this is just a fling, doesn’t he?”
James looked somber. “ He certainly doesn’t feel that way, but he may assume you think of it that way.”
“James, he’s not… Erm, that is, he has - before, right?”
“Of course he - Remus, that is not what this is about, I can promise you that,” James spluttered. Sirius bounded in before Remus could ask anything else and the rest of the evening passed with further discussion of the baby and how Lily’s pregnancy was progressing and the foul prenatal potions the mediwitch had prescribed. There was also an awful lot of James looking at the other two men with looks of fondness and concern and Sirius flouncing around being completely oblivious.
A couple of hours later saw Remus sitting on the couch in his dark flat with Sirius squirming in his lap, kissing him lazily while Remus ran his hands up and down Sirius’ back. Sirius shivered and leaned into the touch. Remus’ hands grew bolder, firmer, and Sirius let out the softest of moans before kissing Remus forcefully and pulling back with a gasp.
“Remus?” he asked, voice unsteady.
“Hmmm?” Remus hummed, kissing and nibbling along Sirius’ jaw and down his neck.
“I don’t mean to be a tease but I think we should stop.” Remus’ hands immediately dropped to his sides and he pulled his head back to look Sirius in the eye..
“Sirius,” he said. “Can we please talk about this?” He was trying desperately to be direct and get some answers. “Are you… worried about taking this further?” He carefully placed his hands around his waist, hoping he was being reassuring rather than suggestive.
Sirius sighed and looked at Remus. “It’s not that I don’t want to,” he said at last. “It’s that - and this is going to make me sound like a sappy schoolgirl, but - I want to be sure , before we, you know?” He looked up into Remus’ eyes and then laughed nervously. “I know it sounds daft but -”
“You don’t do casual.” Remus finally understood.
“ Yes ,” Sirius breathed out, relieved and laughing a bit more as the tension leached out of them both.
“Okay,” Remus nodded, a plan already forming in his head. He would convince Sirius that he was - damn, why isn’t there another word for ‘serious’? - committed.
xoxo
“Hiya Lils,” Remus said as he sidled up to her in the kitchen of the cottage in Godric’s Hollow.
“What do you want?” Lily deadpanned.
“I need help,” Remus said, shoulders drooping.
“James told me all about your sex troubles and I don’t think I’m someone who can help you out there,” Lily said, sipping her tea and glancing at him over her mug.
“No, I figured that part out. What I need now are ideas.” Remus accepted the tea she offered and pressed on. “I think he wants proof that I’m serious about him - about us, our relationship - and as much as it pains me, I think it calls for a grand, romantic gesture.” He grimaced as he said this last part.
Lily looked him over and sighed. “What I’m about to say I share in the strictest of confidences and because you seem to be in dire need: Sirius may stomp around in motorcycle boots and a leather jacket but the truth is he is a massive, romantic, sap. You want to get his attention and prove your intentions? You need to pull out all the stops and turn on the romance.” She summoned a quill and some parchment and began writing as she continued, “This calls for a candlelit dinner, a heartfelt speech, chocolates, flowers…” She paused, then looked at Remus. “ Flowers ,” she said. “That’s it!” She was scribbling furiously now.
“What about flowers?” Remus craned his neck trying to read what she was writing upside down.
“Sirius was raised in a pureblood home. He knows the language of flowers and that’s how you’ll convey your affection!”
“Isn’t that rather, erm, I don’t know, Victorian?” Remus asked. He was skeptical because everything he knew about Sirius told him he’d rejected his upbringing and everything about it.
“Yes, but he’ll love it. Don’t you trust me?” her eyes turned coy and flirtatious and Remus laughed.
“Mrs. Potter, you should know better than to attempt working your wiles on me. I am immune,” Remus said, bumping her shoulder. He loved how easily he fit in with Sirius’ friends - so much so that they felt like his friends, too.
She giggled and set down her quill, looking over her hastily scribbled outline for Remus. “Now,” she said, catching her breath, “you’ll need to consult someone else for the flowers themselves. I’d recommend James but my husband can’t keep a secret from his best mates to save his life.” She said this last bit slightly under her breath, though James was out. “So perhaps Dorcas can help? I know hardly anything about pureblood courting rituals let alone the language of flowers but maybe she’ll have some ideas.” Remus nodded thoughtfully and accepted the parchment from her.
He bussed a kiss on her cheek as he stood to leave. “Thanks, Lily. You’re a lifesaver.”
“And I want all the dirty details!” she called after him, laughing.
xoxo
“Well, Remus, the first thing you need to know about floral arrangements is that they’re not exactly precise,” Dorcas said. “While you can say something along the lines of ‘Meet me at the docks at midnight on Thursday. You will need 3 eggs and a large tomato; bring the dog,’ that might get muddled in the arrangement, you understand?”
“Dorcas, I don’t need to inform Sirius of a clandestine spy rendezvous, I need to convince him that my affection is genuine and that I’m committed,” Remus huffed.
Dorcas pulled out a couple of old, Victorian flower dictionaries and set them heavily on the table. “You’re really serious about Sirius?” she asked, failing to keep a straight face. When the giggles subsided she said, “Really, though? You love him?”
Remus thought for a moment. “Yes,” he said simply. “And I need him to believe that I’m sincere.”
xoxo
Sirius, meanwhile, was having a War Council with Peter and James at Peter’s flat.
“Mate, I think you should consider it a good thing that he’s not pressuring you to put out,” James was saying around a mouthful of takeout.
“Do you have to put it in such sex-ed terms?” Sirius whined.
Peter was tinkering with yet another “top secret new development” from Zonko’s and made no comment.
“Look, I’m just saying that now that the two of you have talked like adults , you can move on,” James continued. “He said he understood and let it drop, didn’t he?”
“Yeah, but… I dunno, I feel like maybe it’s time. He’s been patient and I - I’m pretty sure I’m falling for him, so why not? Besides, Valentine’s Day is coming up and I can’t think of a better time to plan a Grand Seduction,” Sirius said.
Peter finally looked up and said sharply, “Look, I’m fine with you discussing this in broad strokes but if you’re going to plan the final details of your ‘Grand Seduction,’ please do it in the privacy of your own flat where I don’t have to hear it.”
Sirius gently patted him on the shoulder. “I wouldn’t dream of defiling your precious little ears, Wormtail, but I may need your help in other areas.”
xoxo
“Okay, so that’s gladiolus for sincerity, anemones for eagerness, snapdragons for graciousness - you’re trying to be gracious about his reticence, right? - and buttercups, for ‘I’m dazzled by your charms’ - sweet Merlin…” Dorcas mumbled to herself. “Now I remember why I had such a hard time listening when Gran would give me one of her etiquette lessons. This is dreadful!” She threw her quill down and looked up at Remus. “We’ve been at this for hours! Can we go for a pint and regroup yet?”
“No, Dorcas, I want to get this sorted! Sirius is important to me and I want to do this right!” Remus looked down at his notes and flipped through the tome at his elbow. “Let’s see,” he murmured as his finger swept down the page to find what he was looking for. “Chrysanthemums mean ‘you can trust my love,’ is that good or should we just stick with the gladioli for sincerity? And I want orange roses at full bloom for desire.”
“Well,” said Dorcas after she added those to the list, “it may not be the most beautiful arrangement but it’ll certainly be verbose.” She stood and stretched. “What else are you planning?”
“Dinner in my flat, music, ask him to dance and tell him how I feel.” Remus continued absently flipping through the books. “Should I send him geraniums first? For the lovers’ meeting?”
Dorcas groaned as she shrugged on her coat and left for work.
xoxo
Valentine’s Day was a week away and Remus was frustrated. Diagon Alley had been invaded by cupids armed with bows and arrows which they fired at unsuspecting passersby. When they hit, the arrows would surround the victim in festoons of hearts and flowers and songbirds, the thick cloud of which could not be dispelled for several minutes. Celestina Warbeck’s “Cauldron Full of Hot, Strong Love” blared from every other shop, and her lesser known but equally frightful ballads leaked out from others. Garlands of posies hung across the alley, interspersed with enchanted hearts which spouted love poems at odd intervals. Remus felt he was living in a nightmare.
“Whoever let that Lockhart idiot be in charge of the H.E.A.R.T. ought to be sent to Azkaban,” he mumbled as he ducked back into his shop after stepping out for lunch.
“Lockhart?” asked one of the women who had been sitting at the work table.
Sirius perked up, “I think he just got out of Hogwarts. I remember hearing the name among the younger years - liked to make a big show of himself.”
“Oh!” said one of the younger ladies who promptly plunged a hand into her bag. She pulled out a copy of the latest issue of Witch Weekly which indeed had Gilderoy Lockhart’s young, fresh face smiling on the cover. “He just won the Most Charming Smile award,” she said and the other ladies abandoned their knitting to flock around the charming picture.
“He’s just been granted a temporary post of a new department, the Handpicked Educational and Artistic Rallying Taskforce, to cheer up Diagon Alley around holidays. I hear they’re going to track down real leprechauns for St. Patrick’s Day!” one of them enthused.
“What exactly is educational about cupids shooting hearts at people walking down the street?” someone asked before being shushed by everyone who was instead listening about the new holiday initiatives.
Remus looked over at Sirius and rolled his eyes. They shared a smile and eventually everyone went back to their work. Sirius had progressed past baby booties (after knitting a veritable army of them in various colors) to knitting hats. Remus was trying to teach him how to knit in the round.
“Won’t it unravel if I just knit in a circle all the way up?” he asked uncertainly.
“Do you plan on leaving ends out so someone could tug hard enough to unravel it?” Remus teased. He adjusted Sirius’ tension and checked his stitch count, perfectly aware that he was leaning in a little closer than necessary and letting his hands linger just a bit over Sirius’ own.
“You’re doing it again,” Sirius said softly with a wicked little smile.
“What?”
“Your ‘wolf in sheep’s clothing’ act.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Remus said, but he did let his hand drag across Sirius’ shoulders as he went to assist another person at the work table, eliciting a small shiver from the other man.
“You two are such a sweet couple,” one of them said. “Any exciting plans for Valentine’s?”
“Not sure,” Sirius said which a charming twinkle in his eyes. “Remus here isn’t the biggest fan of the holiday hype.”
“It’s the cupids and enchanted hearts and festoons of confetti,” Remus grumbled. “Damn nuisance more like.” But he looked at Sirius fondly, thinking of his plan.