If I had a star to wish on [Sirius!]

[Remus John Lupin]

Who could ever ever ask for more?
Love without complications galore!
Will you persist even after I bet you
a billion dollars that I'll never love you?
And will you persist even after I kiss you?

It was evening and the fifth year boys' dorm was quiet for once. James was serving a detention for something, Peter was down at the kitchens - it would take a while before both were back. Remus was on his bed, reading, as per usual, the Friday-night common room too busy and chattery to his liking. He just wanted a quiet night tonight - and, to be honest, not so much because he wanted to read.
It was a well known fact that Remus was able to read in the common room even after his House had won the Quidditch Cup last year, no he had particular reason to be alone with his thoughts.

He sighed and dropped his book in his lap, glancing at the somewhat ragged and singed curtains of his four poster bed. If those curtains could talk.. Maybe better not. Tilting his head a little further, he glanced at the bed next to him. Sirius' bed. Thank Merlin those curtains could not speak! He did not want to know what was going on in Sirius' bed half the time.. but then again..
Lately, Remus had noticed a girl in a particular way. It made him feel silly and the scenario wasn't very original either (he hadn't noticed her until he'd started tutoring her) and Remus wasn't quite sure how to proceed. He liked Annelise, quite a bit, but part of him doubted about pursuing the idea of a relationship and the part that was positive that he should give it a try, wasn't sure how to do so. Sirius would know. Sirius only had to half-wink at a girl and she was at his feet. It was a feature that Remus was slightly envious of - not so much Sirius' security around girls only, but his natural self-confidence which Remus hadn't. Especially not around girls.

Part of him had been thinking about asking his friend for some advice, though part of him disliked the idea.. Remus sighed.
'You know what?' he thought to himself. 'If Sirius walks in within five minutes.. I'll ask him.' That seemed like a safe thing to ask, as Sirius hardly ever seemed to be up in the dorm before curfew - too busy socialising in the common room.
Remus took a final glance at the clock and waited, half impatient.

[Sirius Black!]

Sirius felt moody. Not only did he get detention when he had planned to have a 'date' with a very pretty fourth year Gryffindor, he had also been unable to tell her that he wouldn't be able to make it. He hadn't been able to find her after dinner. So, he was punished for enchanting the chalk to write dirty things on the chalkboard in McGonagall's class. Unfortunately, McGonagall didn't have a random mood swing and 'go with it,' instead she punished him. Every trophy in the trophy room he had to shine by hand. After he had left the trophy room, he came across the girl who he was supposed to have gone on a date with, and she had slapped him rather hard for standing her up. He grumbled and mumbled all the way back to the Gryffindor common room. He kept his eyes off of literally everyone, for he knew he had a very grumpy look on his face. Besides, he knew if anyone was to make eye contact at him, he'd lash out on them. Sirius only lived in extreme moods: he was either extremely happy, or extremely angry, and the two could change at a flick of a switch.

He made his way up to the boys' dormitories, knowing that most people were no doubt still in the common room or out hanging out with friends. Sirius gave up trying to have a good Friday night, and decided that maybe just going to bed early would get his mind off of his anger. Unlikely, really, for he had a habit of stewing in his terrible mood, and not even having the ability of falling asleep. He opened the door to the room, initially thinking that he was alone. Sirius walked over to his bed and laid on it, staring up at the canopy. Alone with his thoughts - what a great way to make everything fester in his brain.

He went to glance out the window, but when he turned his head, he saw Remus sitting there looking at him with a book in his hand, causing Sirius to jump somewhat, "Blimey, what in the hell are you doing?" Sirius asked, not angrily, but out of shock.

Sirius decided to sit up with his back against the head board, and had his legs crossed at the ankles. He looked at his friend, and studied his face. He seemed incredibly tense. Being able to pick up on when someone was tense was one of Sirius' strong points, for back at home literally everyone was tense all of the time. It was actually quite strange when someone in his home wasn't.

"What are you bothered about?" he asked, a bit abruptly. He wasn't in the mood to beat around the bush, and closed his eyes momentarily to collect his thoughts. When he opened them again, he looked back at Remus and said, "Don't mean to sound rude, mate, just had a terrible evening is all."

Sirius was at least comforted by the small fact that Remus didn't look to happy, either, so at least his misery had company. He was just hoping that his friend wouldn't come out and say, 'Sirius, I'm getting hairs in places I've never had before...' Which, by the way, Sirius knew would be completely unlikely considering once a month Remus had hairs literally all over his body.

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[Remus John Lupin]

Word count: 551

Remus could hear footsteps on the stairs and though he tried to tell himself that could not possibly be Sirius, he secretly already knew it was. A hunch, maybe, or an instinct, he wasn't sure, but he had made that silly promise to himself because he was fairly sure Sirius would not be back any time soon - no such luck tonight. 'Mental note to self: no more silly promises and time limits..'
And indeed, Sirius stormed in and Remus could read his mood off of his brow - it was not good. Probably the reason why he was up here so early, too. Remus guessed it was just best to remain silent, Sirius would notice him at some point.. For a moment, he doubted if he should open his book to at least keep up the pretense of reading, but decided against it - the movement would probably attract Sirius' attention and he wasn't able to focus on reading anyway.

He had hardly given it a thought before he could feel Sirius' eyes fall on him and Remus could see him flinch slightly. "Blimey, what in the hell are you doing?" Remus smiled apologetically. "Thinking," he muttered and sighed slightly, reaching over to his nightstand to place the book upon it. Remus was not in the mood for Sherlock Holmes tonight. He had enough riddles to solve that concerned himself, really.
Remus pulled up one leg, hugging his knee to his chest a little as he stared off into space, pensive. It made him look a little elfish, his other leg dangling off the bed, had he not worn such a serious expression. 'Should I? I actually don't want to, but on the other hand it's no use struggling on while Sirius knows much more about these things than I do.' As per usual, Remus said more in his head, in his thoughts, than ever got past his lips.

"What are you bothered about?" Remus had known Sirius had been watching him, it was hard not to notice, but had assumed he was just checking him for signs if there was a moon coming up or something, something to explain Rem's mood. Apparently he hadn't succeeded in coming up with something, or he wouldn't have asked - or maybe Sirius was just sick of guessing. Remus glanced over at his friend, not quite sure where and how to begin.
"Don't mean to sound rude, mate, just had a terrible evening is all." This was the point where Remus could ask 'what happened, then?' and divert all attention from his own petty problem, but he didn't - he just nodded in understanding a little and chewed his lower lip for a moment.
"There is this.. situation. Hypothetical situation," he muttered, glancing at his friend briefly. "I was wondering if you could, eh, give some hypothetical advice." Of course, it was far from hypothetical at all, but Remus feared Sirius would roar with laughter and make him feel an idiot, and he wasn't quite in the mood for that.. He knew Sirius didn't mean to make him feel like an asexual git, but compared to Sirius, wasn't everyone asexual..?

[Sirius Black!]

Thinking. Wasn't Remus always thinking? He always found Remus overthought things too much. It was what the main difference between the two boys was. Remus thought too much, where Sirius just went with the flow, probably underthinking things. He just did what he felt like, and said the first things that came to his mind. Yes, it got him in trouble a lot, but at the same time, it helped him with ladies a lot, too. When it came to girls, he found acting on impulse was always the best method. It helped you get with girls you liked, while, although rudely, got rid of girls you didn't.

Sirius didn't bother asking what Remus was thinking about. He knew he'd either be very vague about it, or change the subject anyways. Instead, Sirius changed his position so he seemed more interested in what his friend would say. He sat on the edge of the bed, leaning forward. He raised an eyebrow, and the one side of his mouth upturned into a smirk, although he tried to hide it.

"A hypothetical situation, then?" Sirius asked, trying to keep the skeptism out of his voice. He knew that the majority of the time that people asked if they could ask a hypothetical question, they were asking a real question, but just didn't want to be judged on it. "Alright then. Purely hypothetical question, go ahead. I'll give my purely hypothetical opinion and advice."

Sirius was just bursting from the seams wanting to know what Remus was going to ask. It wasn't often that he opened his mind up to his buddies, and especially not to Sirius. It was almost like a record; not long ago it had been Lily pouring her heart out to him. He wasn't sure if he actually liked it or not. Sometimes people were easier to deal with when you knew less about them. Take Lily for instance: it was harder to mock her and try to keep James away when he heard the tragic story. Now he just pitied her. He was hoping it wouldn't be the same thing with Remus, and that he wasn't about to come out as gay, or something along those lines. He doubted it very much, but he kept his guard up anyways.

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[Remus John Lupin]

Oh, Remus knew he was always thinking. Thing was that he wasn't allowed to just do things. Well.. he wouldn't allow himself, anyway. Sirius could laugh things off easier, while the smallest mistakes could haunt Remus for a month, especially if he could've helped it by thinking things through.
His friend turned towards him and Remus knew there was no way of getting out of it now. The only option he had was lying, but Sirius always saw right through his lies - always had, ever since first year.

"A hypothetical situation, then?" Remus nodded, but he could hear in Sirius' voice that he'd almost already guessed that this was not hypothetical at all. He trusted his friend to understand him, though - he had his reasons. "Alright then. Purely hypothetical question, go ahead. I'll give my purely hypothetical opinion and advice."
Again, Remus nodded slightly, noticing how curious his friend seemed. Probably because Remus was usually the one giving (unwanted..) advice, not asking it.
"Well.. imagine that, eh, hypothetically, I.." Merlin, he couldn't even say it properly. Sirius was supposed to be one of his best friends, what did he have to lose? He opened his mouth and closed it again, glanced at his friend shortly and then blurt out: "What if I like someone?" That was not a very clear sentence.. "I mean.. what if I - hypothetically - " why did his voice have to be shrill now? "-meet someone.. I like, maybe, you know - like, a girl."
There. He'd said it. His usual eloquence had failed him completely, but Sirius was intelligent enough to patch his fragmented sentences into a thought.

[Sirius Black!]

Sirius could see Remus' facial expressions all fighting with each other. Sirius could tell that Remus wanted to appear calm and neutral about asking for advice, but at the same time, Remus looked scared out of his skull. Sirius honestly didn't want to appear amused, but he was. He kept it off his face, but it was in his eyes. He kind of even felt proud that Remus came to him instead of James or Peter. Sirius sometimes felt like everyone but James just saw him as a joke, and nothing more. Usually it didn't bother him. At least he could still repeatedly tell James that he needed to at least attempt to get over Lily. Typically that advice giving kept him happy. He found it funny really. Didn't it seem like those who gave advice a lot didn't want to, while those who never gave advice wanted to? Funny the way the world worked. He realized that it was probably that way when it came to most things.

Sirius tried very hard not to laugh after Remus spit it out. He knew it wasn't the time or place, but it was itching at him. "Well, I guess I'd say that I'm happy it's a girl," he joked. He let out a small chuckle, and not his usual booming laugh. He had to at least get some of the laughter that was aching in him out. Sirius paused, trying to think of the right thing to say. "Hypothetically ... who would this girl be? And what would you hypothetically mean by 'like'? As in, James obsessing over Lily liking, or the way I like a girl?"

Sirius realized then why no one ever came to him for advice. He was honestly having a hard time with it. He didn't feel like he knew the proper things to say, and every time a word came out of his mouth, he felt like it was inappropriate or wrong. He felt like he was trying to say what Remus wanted him to say. He tried not to, but he couldn't help it. He didn't want his friend to think that he had come to the wrong person. Sirius honestly did want to help out, but he was having difficulties keeping his humour at bay.

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[Remus John Lupin]

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Had this been a good idea? 'No,' Remus' subconscious answered immediately, 'not at all, but it was pretty much the only option, wasn't it?' There was no doubt about it. Remus sighed slightly, pulling his other knee against his chest as well as though he needed a double sort of barrier in front of his chest, then shifted again and eventually settled for sitting cross legged as well. He could feel that Sirius was amused and though he could not blame him (it was probably very amusing indeed) and knew he was probably making a big deal out of this, it still felt as though he didn't deserve ridicule.
Remus glared slightly at Sirius as he could tell he had trouble not laughing that barking laughter that he had. Still, he was glad his friend was suppressing his urge for his sake, apparently Sirius had realised Remus felt everything but comfortable in this situation and was trusting his friend with something he actually didn't want to say out loud.

"Well, I guess I'd say that I'm happy it's a girl." Remus twitched for a moment and couldn't help but laugh softly. "..you'd think I'd tell you if I was gay, Siri? 'course I wouldn't - I'd fear for my life," he joked, desperate to lighten the mood (his mood). He did feel better now he'd laughed a little. His friends were right, he needed to lighten up more often..
"Hypothetically ... who would this girl be? And what would you hypothetically mean by 'like'? As in, James obsessing over Lily liking, or the way I like a girl?" Remus wasn't so sure if he wanted to say her name to Sirius - the chances that Sirius had snogged her once already were rather large and Remus wasn't in the mood to deal with that, so he decided to just pretend he hadn't really heard that question and answered in stead: "Not as obsessed as James, but not as one-night-standish as you?" He wasn't quite sure how to describe it. "It's just I'd.. like it if it went.. somewhere, but.. but maybe not too.. permanent." The last word was practically a whisper and Remus frowned a little pensively. Having a permanent relationship was not really an option, but he didn't want to be Sirius, either. Even though Annelise had told him she'd had a werewolf friend in the past, without her knowing he was one too, Remus didn't feel too sure about it.
"I'd like to.." He didn't finish his sentence and shrugged. "I don't know.."

[Sirius Black!]

Sirius felt happy for Remus, although he found it funny that Remus was making such a big deal out of it. Then again, as far as Sirius was aware, Remus hadn't ever had an actual relationship before. He didn't know exactly what to say, for Sirius had never really had a relationship either. He knew how to draw them in, and yes, even keep them interested, but he had yet to find a girl who kept him interested. He tried to think about what to say, but what was there to say? Sirius wasn't an idiot: he could tell that Remus really liked this girl, just by the way he was trying to talk about it 'not being permanent.' He also didn't miss the fact that Remus avoided his question about who it was.

"Well if you like her - go for it," Sirius said, trying to remain mature. Although his words were mature, all he wanted to do was say something ridiculously immature. Probably close along the lines of his virginity, but avoided it. He knew that was definitely a sore spot for Remus, and he didn't want his friend to just say something like, 'Oh never mind, this was a bad idea.' "I mean, it's just school ... it doesn't mean you're getting married or anything." Sirius laughed. "Sometimes you think too much. If it feels right, go for it."

Sirius didn't know what else to say. More than anything, he wanted to know who the girl was, and he felt like his eyes showed that. He wanted Remus to be happy, he really did, but in the back of his mind, he was kind of worried. First it was James being infatuated with someone, and now Remus. Sirius had a suspicion that Peter liked someone too. Would Sirius soon be the only one soon who had no spouse? Not that he wanted one.

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[Remus John Lupin]

Remus couldn't not make a big deal out of it. He'd, indeed, never had a relationship before she he wasn't really sure what to do, to start with, plus there was the fact he was a werewolf. Sirius was right: it was just school, it wasn't like they were getting married, but Remus was unsure if he should tell. He'd rather not and just avoid the trouble, but what if she found out later and got really mad at him for not telling him? Of course he had a good reason for not telling, but he was quite sure a girl might not appreciate it, still. Now, Annelise had said she'd had a werewolf friend, but a friend was still very different from a lover or even a fling..

Remus nodded. "I do like her," he said softly and glanced at Sirius. It wasn't the response he'd expected from Sirius. He'd expected Sirius to mainly joke about the whole thing and then give him some advice he'd have to find in between the random things his friend said. This was far more straightforward and.. grown up?
"Sometimes you think too much. If it feels right, go for it." Remus laughed softly, slightly and smiled at Sirius. "I suppose so. Thinking about it wasn't really helping, either," he admitted.

He could see his friend was curious as to details and he guessed, well.. Sirius was one of his best friends, it would be unfair to deny him details. Sirius also told him about his love life in detail (let's forget about the fact Remus also heard a lot of things he didn't want to hear, but still).
"She's called Annelise," he said eventually. "Hufflepuff fifth year." Remus glanced at Sirius. "You know her?" Part of him hoped Sirius knew her, would perhaps, he didn't know.. compliment him on his choice? Say she was pretty? Or something? Then again, if Sirius knew her, chances were slim that he hadn't snogged her, right? Remus wasn't sure if he wanted to know that.

[Sirius Black!]

Sirius couldn't help but chuckle. He almost found his friend to be, well, endearing. He was happy that Remus found someone who seemed to make him happy. Why else would he want to be with her? Sirius was even surprised that Remus wanted to have a relationship with this girl. He was surprised Remus wasn't shutting her out in fear of her discovering what he was. Sirius honestly didn't blame him. He personally didn't know what it was like to have a disease that was shunned by most of society, but he could imagine himself to get moody and defensive. He was actually quite impressed with how well Remus did cope with the whole situation.

"Well, you must like her, why else would you come to me?" Sirius chuckled and glanced out the window. He could hear laughing down in the common room, and he and Remus were still the only ones in the dormitories. "Annelise? Westhouse or something? Yeah, she's that hot brunette from Potions, yeah? I can see where you're coming from. I'd get with her if I had the chance."

Sirius paused, giving the girl a thought. She had to be the one. The thing that stood out to him about her was her fantastic legs. She typically had them covered up in nylons, but during warmer weather she often went without. For such a nice girl, she had a fantastic body, and it was a shame she was known for not putting it to use. He didn't mention those aspects, however, for he doubted very much that Remus would appreciate her being talked about in that fashion. Guys often became protective of girls that they decided they had a crush on.

"Blimey, mate, you know how well-known it is how she doesn't get with anyone?" Sirius asked before meaning to. He couldn't help it - it was a part of who he was, and although he was trying to be there for Remus, he was still entitled to his opinion and comments, right? "If you got with her, it just might make you a legend."

Okay,yes, Sirius was being a little dramatic. It probably wouldn't make Remus a legend, but Sirius knew that he personally would be impressed. Besides, in his mind, Annelise was out of Remus' level look-wise. He wanted to ask if Remus had ever even talked to her, but thought it would be a bit rude. Besides, it wasn't any of Sirius' business if Remus actually liked Annelise's personality or just her looks. The point was that Remus liked her.

If this is short, I'm sorry. It's hard to tell when I'm typing this on my phone haha.
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[Remus John Lupin]

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Remus blushed a little at Sirius' chuckle. He felt stupid, falling for someone like that. so easily. He'd have thought that he had more common sense than that, really. Of course he was fifteen (almost sixteen, actually) and he had a body raging with hormones, but he should've anticipated them. He should've been prepared instead of losing his head.
Part of him had the feeling the fact she didn't seem so shocked by werewolves had something to do with it.. if she hadn't said that, he probably would've been able to reason himself out of it.. or, well, eventually, anyway. Of course, he still felt a little insecure about the whole thing. Or actually, to be honest: he felt very insecure, but the proverbial mountain that was looming over him seemed a whole lot less high simply by the fact that she'd had a childhood friend who was a werewolf and of whom she was obviously rather fond, still.
"Well, you must like her, why else would you come to me?" Remus nodded again, following Sirius' glance out the window. The sky was darkening already, it got dark early as it was still February. Remus couldn't wait for summer. He looked up when Sirius spoke again. "Annelise? Westhouse or something? Yeah, she's that hot brunette from Potions, yeah? I can see where you're coming from. I'd get with her if I had the chance." Remus chuckled lowly, though it had a hint of melancholy in it. "Sirius, you'd get with basically anyone if you had the chance," he teased, pensively biting one of the knuckles of his right hand.
Why he had come to Sirius? Not so much to get his own feelings figured out, he was pretty sure of those. But how could he tell she liked him? Remus was completely oblivious to that sort of thing and Sirius was more than used to it, so he had figured his friend would know what signs to look for..

Remus glanced at Sirius, who was silent and pensive - not something he was used to, really. It made him curious, what was his friend thinking about? Sirius was usually rather easy to read, simply because Sirius didn't bother to hide his moods, but at this moment Remus had no idea what was going through his friend's mind.
"Blimey, mate, you know how well-known it is how she doesn't get with anyone?" Remus was rather proud of himself that he stopped his face from falling, though he did wince a little - just a little. He shrugged slightly, he wasn't all up to date about which girls were available and which weren't. Annelise could've had a boyfriend and he wouldn't know. "No, I didn't - but then again I suppose.." his voice faded as Remus Lupin became silent and pensive again, a slight frown on his face. Yes, well, so he liked her, but now he thought about it, how much chance was there that she perhaps liked him back? Sure, he was helping her with her Defense against the Dark Arts problem and they talked to each other in a friendly way but that didn't mean anything, did it? Especially not if she, as Sirius said, never got with anyone. Sirius would know, Remus wouldn't be surprised if his friend could point out the status on every single girl in Hogwarts (single, taken, available, not-available, available-but-not-a-good-idea-because-she's-completely-mental, etc.).
"If you got with her, it just might make you a legend." Remus half chuckled, though it was obvious he was down a little. He swallowed a lump in his throat. "Yes, well, maybe I don't want to be a legend, anyway." Lie, Remus would happily be a legend if that meant Annelise would go out with him.

Stretching, a few of his joints popped and Remus exhaled slowly. "Oh, well, just a crush, right?" He half smiled. Yes, maybe this conversation with Sirius had been exactly what he'd needed - a reality check.
It had been nice to think about it, and he still did like Annelise, but Sirius' reaction had once again shown that Remus was book-smart-street-stupid about this sort of thing and that he had missed a few vital points the moment he'd stopped trying to reason himself out of it. Well, Remus was going to reason himself out of it now; the sooner he got over this, the better. Good. Now it was all just a matter of making an orderly list why it would not work.
1) She was drop-dead gorgeous.
2) He was not.
3) He was only tutoring her.
4) The fact she'd had a werewolf childhood friend didn't vouch for anything.
5) Sirius said that she didn't get with anyone and his friend would never lie to him.

[Sirius Black!]

Sirius saw Remus' facial expression change, and he knew he said the wrong thing. He frowned, feeling a little frustrated. What was the right thing to say? Didn't every guy want to be able to get with a girl who didn't get with anyone else? Since when had it been a bad thing? Would he have rathered heard that Annelise was a slut or something?

"Look, Rem..." Sirius said, leaning forward, but no longer smiling. He tried not to think, he tried to just talk impulsively, but it was hard. No, he didn't want all of his friends to be too pre-occupied with girls to hang out with him, but deep down he did want his friend to be happy. "I can get any girl I want because I know how to work them, following? I don't 'work' nice girls. At the end of the day, they're nice, and I'm not going to take something from them if they're waiting for the right guy to..." He paused, not knowing exactly what he was saying. He shook his head, and his black hair fell into his eyes. He ran his hand through his hair, messing it up and keeping it away from his face. Sirius clapped his hands together and then continued once he got his thoughts together.

"I have sex with the girls who don't need a boyfriend in order to do so," he said, quite bluntly. In his mind, he automatically went through all the girls he had been with. Not once did he have to be their boyfriend. Sirius had no exes, and didn't intend on getting them. He'd rather have freedom. In Remus' case, however, he didn't have freedom to begin with. "So, there's a reason why I haven't been able to get with her, and no one else has. She just hasn't gotten a boyfriend, I suppose. You're the first guy I've ever even see her talk with... yes, I've noticed, how could I not notice you talking to a girl?" he laughed again, jokingly, trying to loosen Remus up a little more. "She's picky. It should make you feel proud, not discouraged."

Sirius was rambling, and it didn't happen often. He felt extremely nervous that this conversation would have a major impact on Remus' decisions on this girl, and he didn't want to force him to have the wrong one. He had never seen Remus like this, or talk about someone in that... tone. Sirius would be damned if he caused one of his best mates to be unhappy.

"Look, if you're not going to be with her due to your.. furry little problem, why do you feel as if you need to tell her?" Sirius asked, suddenly, working off his train of thought. "I mean, I know girls can be outrageously nosey, but if she does, that's when you can end it. Tell her it's personal and look completely offended. That way it makes her look like the bad guy, and you get away without having to explain anything."

Sirius somehow knew how to break up with girls, too. Not like he ever had to do so, but mainly because he had to detract clingy girls. Who knew that when a girl said they didn't want 'strings' that the majority of them actually did?

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[Remus John Lupin]

Remus saw Sirius frown and almost felt sorry for his friend for being so terribly difficult. Obviously, Sirius wasn't happy with the result of his advice, or he wouldn't look so pensive, though Remus wasn't sure which part of Sirius' little speech was unacceptable to his friend.
Sirius looked so serious and sincere that it was almost scary and Remus couldn't help but wonder if that would be the expression his friend would be wearing if he ever had to attend a funeral. He couldn't help it, with the Daily Prophet announcing 'casualties' daily, it lingered in the back of his mind. "I can get any girl I want because I know how to work them, following? I don't 'work' nice girls. At the end of the day, they're nice, and I'm not going to take something from them if they're waiting for the right guy to..." Ah, so that's what Sirius felt he'd said wrong.. Remus remained silent a little longer, the way Sirius was running his hand through his hair seemed to indicate there were going to be more words, and so.. he waited. Remus wasn't sure what he should say, anyway. To be perfectly honest.. he wasn't even sure if his voice would work.

"I have sex with the girls who don't need a boyfriend in order to do so, so, there's a reason why I haven't been able to get with her, and no one else has. She just hasn't gotten a boyfriend, I suppose. You're the first guy I've ever even see her talk with... yes, I've noticed, how could I not notice you talking to a girl?" Remus blushed slightly at Sirius' laugh, though couldn't help but grin. Sirius' laughing was, and always would be, contagious.
"She's picky. It should make you feel proud, not discouraged." Remus swallowed and cleared his throat. "Oh, but- I'm just tutoring her, it's nothing like that, it's friendship - at most, really," he said with a bit of a shrug and half stumbling over his words. "I mean.. maybe I've been seeing things that weren't there or wishing for things that aren't.. realistic. Well, if she's picky.. I don't think." He raised an eyebrow at Sirius. "Let's be honest, Sirius: I'm not special in any way.." he hesitated, "well, not in any way that appeals to girls, anyway. Bestiality is not appealing." He said it in his usual, self-mocking way.

"Look, if you're not going to be with her due to your.. furry little problem, why do you feel as if you need to tell her?" Remus blinked in surprise. "Because not telling her it as bad as lying!" he exclaimed, but Sirius wouldn't hear of it. "I mean, I know girls can be outrageously nosy, but if she does, that's when you can end it. Tell her it's personal and look completely offended. That way it makes her look like the bad guy, and you get away without having to explain anything."
Remus hissed softly at the idea, wincing. "And then be on the receiving end of some serious female wrath..?" He sighed softly. "Sirius, how would you feel if, afterward, a girl would tell you she transfigured a cat into her shape and you shagged or snogged that in stead of her - wouldn't it make you feel utterly disgusted? I mean.. the mere idea.."
He chewed the inside of his cheek a little pensively. "This conversation is making you uncomfortable, isn't it?" Sirius was frowning an awful lot and Remus almost felt guilty that he'd ever asked him. "I'm sorry, I'd have gone to James, but.. he's not quite the ladies' man, now is he?" He grinned lazily. "No, it's good that I asked you." Remus nodded to himself. "I could've made a complete arse out of myself, you know?" Part of him just wanted Sirius to disagree with him again, though another, more rational, part of him argued that Sirius had been right the first time.

[Sirius Black!]

. "Oh, but- I'm just tutoring her, it's nothing like that, it's friendship - at most, really. I mean.. maybe I've been seeing things that weren't there or wishing for things that aren't.. realistic. Well, if she's picky.. I don't think. Let's be honest, Sirius: I'm not special in any way.. well, not in any way that appeals to girls, anyway. Bestiality is not appealing."

Sirius rolled his eyes, finally feeling like he was beginning to settle into the conversation a little bit more comfortably. Remus was beginning to stutter again, which - in Sirius' mind - meant that Remus was caring about what he was talking about. It was nice and all, but still kind of annoying. Why didn't he just get it? Why did he have to make everything complicated?

"Listen to me, mate. If she thought you were of the same likes of Snivelly, she wouldn't willingly get tutoring in secluded places, would she? Does she make conversation with you, or does she keep conversation on tutoring alone?" Sirius asked, shooting Remus a knowing grin. There was no way he'd be this unnerved by her if she didn't seem interested herself, unless Remus was completely shallow like Sirius, which he highly doubted. Would he be a virgin otherwise? "Stop thinking. If she makes eye contact with you and smiles, perhaps looks away, it's a good sign. Look, she's spending all this time with you and not making excuses not to... open your eyes, really. He paused, not sure how to say the next bit, for it sounded cheesy. He decided to hell with it, and continued anyways, "Just because you don't think you're special, or whatever, doesn't mean she doesn't, eh?"

Sirius knew it sounded, well, gay, but he didn't care. If a boosting of ego is what Remus required, it was what he was going to get.

"And then be on the receiving end of some serious female wrath..? Sirius, how would you feel if, afterward, a girl would tell you she transfigured a cat into her shape and you shagged or snogged that in stead of her - wouldn't it make you feel utterly disgusted? I mean.. the mere idea.."

Sirius chuckled at his friend's ignorance. "Look, it's not lying unless she specifically asks. Besides, why do you think you'll randomly transform during sex? You don't at any other time. Just don't shag her during a full moon is all."

Sirius shrugged and leaned back a bit. He felt intelligent, like he had all of the answers. Besides, Remus' ego boosting about Sirius certainly helped as well. James might not be a ladies' man, but he did certainly get attention. James was typically just blind to it, was all, due to the fact that he only seemed to see Lily.

"Look, mate, you're making an arse of yourself for not chasing her," Sirius said with a grin. "Doubt you can even see what's right in front of you, can you?"

He was antagonizing Remus just a bit, wanting Remus to perhaps see what he was seeing. Sometimes sarcasm or antagonizing helped people see what they weren't, although admittedly othertimes it just irritated them.

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[Remus John Lupin]

Oh, Remus more than cared about what Sirius had to say. Sirius was one of his closest friends, a peer, and someone Remus looked up to.
"Listen to me, mate. If she thought you were of the same likes of Snivelly, she wouldn't willingly get tutoring in secluded places, would she?" Remus wanted to object, but Sirius was too fast for him. "Does she make conversation with you, or does she keep conversation on tutoring alone?" He couldn't help it - Sirius' grin made him blush. "Well, we talk about other things, I suppose.." he admitted as though he was guilty.
"Stop thinking." Remus guessed that was a fairly good advice, as thinking hadn't gotten him anywhere. "If she makes eye contact with you and smiles, perhaps looks away, it's a good sign." Remus frowned, dug through his memory - had she done that? He hadn't really paid attention to that.. Well, not exclusively, anyway. Remus had been rather distracted by the lights in her eyes and the dimples in her cheeks when she smiled. "Look, she's spending all this time with you and not making excuses not to... open your eyes, really." Remus nodded a little dumbly. Well, Sirius was saying so, Sirius probably knew best.
"Just because you don't think you're special, or whatever, doesn't mean she doesn't, eh?" He half smiled and chuckled. "Yeh, yeh, you got your point across," he assured his friend, half grinning.

He still frowned a little at Sirius' idea of how 'not saying as long as she didn't ask specifically was not lying', but couldn't help but chuckle at least a little when Sirius remarked to "just don't shag her during a full moon is all".
Sirius' plan had worked, Remus bad mood had evaporated mostly. Of course he was still not too sure what to do, but at least the idea of thinking of dating Annelise was no longer completely foreign to him. It was a first step.
"Look, mate, you're making an arse of yourself for not chasing her. Doubt you can even see what's right in front of you, can you?" He smiled apologetically. "Probably.." Remus' smile grew somewhat wider. "But fine.. maybe I'll give it a try.." He chuckled softly to himself. "I'll just direct her to you, should she ever be angry with me."