Work Text:
"I hate them."
Remus looked up at the boy sprawled across his bed.
"Who?"
"Them. You know who, Moony."
Remus placed a slip of parchment in his book and set it aside.
"No, Pads. I'm not a mindreader."
Sirius nearly growled. "My family, Remus! Who else? Why do I even have to know them? I hate them!"
"Sirius? What happened?"
Sirius turned over and buried his head under a pillow. "Nothing. Nothing happened. I just hate them. It doesn't matter!"
Quietly, Remus slid off his bed to sit next to Sirius. He laid a cautious hand on his friend's back, and to his relief, Sirius only sighed and leaned into his touch. After a silent moment, the words came flooding out.
"I saw Reg today. It doesn't matter, 'cause I don't even like him, but he didn't say anything. He just sneered. He sneered, Moony! He's Reg! He's not supposed to know how to sneer. He's supposed to look cute and and look sly when he says something he's not supposed to and laugh at stupid jokes and not sneer like a bloody Slytherin who's too good for any of the mere mortals around him! I'm losing him, Moony. I've lost all of them. First it was Mum, and I know she's crazy but she's still my Mum, Moony. And Father's never really been there but I'm his son. We're family. And now I'm losing Reg, he's buying into all that supremacy shite that Mum spouts and he's all the family I have left and Remus. Uncle Alphard's dead and no one knows where cousin Andy ran off to and now I'm losing my family and I'm alone."
Partway through his rant, Sirius had started shaking, and now he broke off with a sob. When Remus pulled the pillow from his head, he buried his face in the covers, resisting any attempts by Remus to move him.
Remus gave up, lay next to him, and ran a comforting hand down Sirius' back.
"No. You're not. You'll never lose your family, Pads, and you'll never be alone."
Sirius pulled his head up to glare, but before he could argue Remus continued. "You'll never be alone because you've got family--real family--here. I know it hurts to feel like you're losing Regulus. But Sirius, your mum and dad haven't been your family for a long time. They lost that privilege--no, don't argue with me. It is a privilege--when they stopped supporting you and started telling you you weren't good enough like you are. Okay? And you've got family. Family isn't blood, Pads. We're your family and we're not gonna leave you. Ever."
"You're my friends." Sirius snorted. "You're not family."
Remus ignored the pang in his chest when Sirius spoke. "Maybe not legally."
"But if the people who're my family by law and by blood, who have to love me 'cause we're related, if they can't even care about me why would you? Why do you even care?!"
Oh. Remus felt his heart stop at the words. What did they do to you, Sirius?
"Because they're bastards. Because they're sick sons of bitches who can't be arsed to care about anything but themselves, Sirius, and because you're not like that."
Nearly snarling, Remus forced himself to breathe.
"They don't deserve you. There's nothing wrong with you, but there's a hell of a lot wrong with them. Sirius. James would put himself in front of the killing curse in an instant for you. He wouldn't do that for anyone. He knows you better than almost anyone else, and he still sees something good in you, something so good he'd die for you. That's--Pads, that's what a brother should do. I'm sorry Regulus is doing a shitty job, but you've got a brilliant brother in James."
"I. Thanks, Moony." Remus looked up to Sirius, teary-eyed and red-faced, smile.
"You're welcome," Remus smiled. "You know, I'd do the same for you, right? I mean, as James."
"Yeah, I know. Um. Me too. For both of you, I mean. And Peter. When he's not being whiny, at least."
Remus laughed. "Yeah, I know. I'm not claiming brotherhood with you, though. I don't get enough of the perks for that."
"Nah, you're more like my mum. Ugh. No," Sirius mock-shuddered, grinning at Remus, "You're nothing like my mum."
"Thank Merlin. No offense, but she's batshit insane. Family or not I might just have to kill you if you compared me to her."
Sirius flopped back on the bed, laughing. "Huh. Y'know, you're more like my wife."
Remus hit him with a pillow. "Oi!"
"No! Stop!" Sirius cried, laughing and fending off the attack. "I mean it!"
"How?! I am not your wife, Pads."
"Hey, don't get all offended on me. It's just. You just. I mean, you're always making us do the stuff we're s'posed to--"
"Like your homework?" Remus interrupted. "That's what any swotty friend would do."
"Well yeah, but no, not just that. Stuff like making sure Prongs and I remember to bring our brooms to Quidditch practice and put our clothes in the basket for the house-elves to take, and you're always taking care of us, especially me, when we do something stupid and get hurt, and even when we're not, you make us eat breakfast and get sleep and you always listen to me even when you're sick after the moon and I need to talk and I'm just rambling--like I am now. Um. Sorry."
Remus had been staring at the floor as Sirius talked, but he looked up to see him turned away and blushing.
"Hey. Sirius. Look at me." Sirius looked back to see Remus, with cheeks as red as his own, continue, "You're--you're kind of right. You and James and Peter are my family, too."
"Aw, Moony!"
Remus huffed a laugh as Sirius tackled him in a hug. "Get off me, you big mutt."
"Oh, you flatter me, darling."
"You know," Remus started, then stopped and turned away.
Sirius gently turned his face back.
"I know what?"
"It's not fair…that I have all the responsibilities of being your wife…and none of the perks."
"Oh. Moony." Remus, blushing furiously, tried hard to turn away again, but Sirius, still sitting atop him, wouldn't allow it.
"Perks like this?" he asked, and bent down to kiss Remus.
"Yeah," Remus breathed. "Like that."
"I think I can live with that," Sirius said, and bent down to kiss his friend--family--maybe something more again.