Disclaimer: If I owned Harry Potter, do you really think I'd be writing fanfiction?
It Must Have Been The MistletoeThe Great Hall was so lavishly decorated on Christmas that three of the four marauders actually considered that it was like this for the seventh years and their last Christmas.
"Come off it," Remus snapped, as James tried to point out that it might have even been for the Gryffindors, because the lion on the banner seemed to be bigger. "There are Gryffindors here everyday, there's seventh years here every year, and nobody in their right minds would decorate a school hall just for four nosy people who always wind up in detention."
"What bit you this morning?" Sirius asked bitterly to Remus, loading his plate with Christmas pudding and skipping the dinner feast.
Remus frowned at him, lowering his spoon. "You'd think that after seven years of magical education that some sort of sense would have gone through your skull." Remus accused coldly, turning away from the three.
Peter was too busy gobbling down chicken to listen to James whispering something to Sirius in an undertone.
"He and that nosy Hufflepuff – Bertha Jorkins – were caught stuck underneath the mistletoe in the library after Charms. There was a whole crowd there until he gave in and kissed her." James said, not being able to help the smile.
"What was Bertha Jorkins doing in the library?"
"Don't you care that Moony kissed someone?"
"Why does it matter? He's kissed someone before." Sirius said dismissively, shrugging.
James looked uncomfortably at his plate.
"Actually, he hasn't really…"
Sirius dropped his spoon, and cinnamon pudding dropped in a dollop on James' robes.
"Ah! Darn you, Sirius!" James shouted, snatching up a napkin.
"Sorry – he's never kissed anyone bef–?"
"Excuse me?" Remus shot across the table waspishly.
James smiled into his bowl of soup and Sirius returned to his Treacle Tart after glancing apologetically at Remus.
But the thing that bothered Sirius was that Remus had kissed someone. And that someone wasn't him, Sirius – it was the chattering Hufflepuff that Sirius always gossiped about. Maybe Remus had even planned it… he could have snuck behind a shelf and waited for the chubby incomer, and jumped out from behind the books and cornered the girl –
"Sirius? Sirius? Are you coming?" Sirius looked up from his plate – realizing a scowl was on his face, and saw James standing up and tugging at his arm.
"Coming where?"
"Um – back to the common room…" James said blankly, and Sirius, complying, got up and followed.
"Potter! Pettigrew!" The four marauders were tiredly heading back to their common room, the first to leave the tremendous feast, when Professor McGonagall stopped them.
They all whirled around, and McGonagall put her hands on her hips.
"Potter, Mr. Filch wants to see you for your detention. Pettigrew, you need to come with me for yours." She told them sternly.
By the look of surprise on James' and Peter's faces, Sirius and Remus concluded that they had forgotten.
"Professor, it's Christmas Eve–" James said wearily.
"Then maybe you should have thought about Christmas Eve before you set a dozen dungbombs off in the dungeons, Potter. Now unless you want your whole house into trouble, I suggest you set off for Mr. Filch's office. You are already ten minutes late. Pettigrew, come with me, you're also late." McGonagall told the two of them stonily.
Peter gave one desperate look behind him at Sirius and Remus before grudgingly following McGonagall.
"Get going, Potter." She warned over her shoulder, and James took off too, cursing under his breath.
Sirius looked awkwardly at Remus, who held a hand in front of him to motion asking if they should continue to the common room.
They began walking, Sirius finding nothing else to think about except Remus – kissing Bertha Jorkins heatedly on the mouth, maybe even making out with her – that awful Hufflepuff – oh, the chubby little –
"Sirius, are you alright?"
Sirius turned and saw Remus looking at him rather hesitantly.
"What?" He snapped.
"You were muttering. Well, swearing, more like." Remus added on after a sigh.
"So what? It's Christmas – I'm allowed to swear, aren't I?" Remus stayed quiet from then on until they reached the portrait hole.
Sirius had a plan snapping into his head suddenly.
A mistletoe – as he remembered vividly – was hanging somewhere in library… if only he could get in there with Remus without it seeming suspicious.
"Fa–" Remus began to the portrait.
"Remus, I left my Transfiguration book in the library. Want to come with me?"
Remus turned and looked at Sirius suspiciously.
"You did no such thing, Sirius. You don't go to the library to read, especially on Christmas Eve or anytime during break, and you don't read in the first place anyway, either. Fairy Lights." He finished to Sirius, whose face fell, and the portrait swung open.
But a little piece of greenery was floating right over their heads when they entered the common room, very empty – since everyone was still at the feast.
"What the–" Remus started, as Sirius' grin widened. He looked upward and blushed.
"Oh, that's just great." Remus said sarcastically, a look of panic flashing across his face.
"What, am I unattractive to you, Moony?" Sirius asked innocently, and Remus blushed again.
"I – of course not, Sirius, but–"
"Shut up, Remus." Sirius asked gently.
Remus fell silent, still nervously eyeing mistletoe and Sirius.
"It's only the mistletoe, Remus." Sirius murmured, and he leaned forward, brushed his lips against Remus' once, who tensed, softly brushed them over his again, and then fully captured his mouth.
While Sirius was sure this wasn't was Remus was expecting, and that Remus was sure to expect a quick peck or brush on the mouth, or maybe even Sirius squealing away from the mistletoe in fright, that didn't bring him down from his goal.
Sirius ghosted his tongue gently across Remus' lips, receiving a moan from Remus and access to explore deeper.
The next moment Sirius found his hands on Remus' waist, while Remus' hands were on his neck and hair at the same time, and this time Sirius was the one who moaned into Remus' mouth.
And the next second, it was over, Remus pulling away, with slightly red lips and a flushed face.
"Well," He said briskly. "Um, thank you, for that, Sirius." He said smiling, and leaned forward to kiss Sirius on the cheek before heading up the stairs.
Sirius hung his head, but he still smiling. For anything that Remus could do to make him fall in love with him, this was by far the best. And this time, it must have been the mistletoe, and not him trying desperately for Remus to notice him and ending up making a fool of himself.
Just realizing that Remus was upstairs, probably immersed in a book again, Sirius whipped around and darted up the stairs.
He was right; Remus was flicking through a thick novel that certainly was still a textbook. He flung himself on Remus' bed.
"Yes, Sirius?" He asked, even though his eyes were still on his book.
"I just need to ask you one more thing," Sirius said with a straight face. "Was that only the mistletoe?" Sirius asked, suddenly panicky as he said the second sentence.
Remus looked up from his book and looked Sirius straight in the eye.
"I don't know." Remus said simply. "It must have been the mistletoe, and maybe just a bit more–" He said casually, but Sirius cut him off.
"Yeah, maybe a bit more, too," Sirius muttered, before leaning in suddenly and claiming Remus' lips.
Remus let out a 'mmph, Sirius!', before letting go of his book and laughing silently against Sirius' mouth.
Sirius nibbled impatiently on his bottom lip, but just as before, at one time – they had to stop – just because of bloody oxygen. For Sirius, if he had to choose Remus or oxygen, he'd choose Remus, and for Remus, if he had to choose Sirius or books, he'd have to choose Sirius as well.
And to think that all of it was because of a mistletoe.
And maybe a little bit more, too.
Author's Note: So how about that! You have to have mistletoes in Christmas fics, so that is what this is dedicated to. Poor Remus getting cornered with Bertha Jorkins, though… But I had to do it. Grin.
Anyway, R&R and I'll give you a… um… a smiley! Like there -- :D