Competitions/Challenges:

Secret Battle II: Prompts: Words: Scarlet, Hunger, Fear, Nightmare, Startle, Characters: Bellatrix, Dialogue: "Let me go." "I don't want to live." "Did you ever wonder what would happen if you didn't exist?" "You broke my heart.", AU: Beauty and the Beast!AU, Muggle!AU.

Mine and Rayniekinnz's AU challenge. Prompts: AU: Beauty and the Beast, Rule: One of the main characters must wear a dress at some point in the story. (Oh yes Sirius looks lovely in a dress!), Dialogue: "You mean…that happens a lot?". Word: Scruple, Word: Angel.

I didn't plan for this to be so long!

"I'll teach you to choose her over me," Bellatrix hissed at the man, a wand dangling between her fingers. The look of cruelty didn't fit her innocent looking face, but Lyall could see her for who she truly was. This woman had just taken his wife from him and from his son.

How had he compared this crazed woman to the girl in the story of Snow White? The pale skin, dark hair and scarlet red lips weren't those of a fairytale his son enjoyed. This woman was evil. She was insane. How had he not seen it? He had just seen her as a friend of his wife, but the woman had come to the insane conclusion that they were meant for each other. He had done nothing to let her believe this, yet his family suffered.

Lyall's eyes moved down from the cold empty grey eyes to the bit of wood between her fingers. Moments ago he had seen the power that came from it, horrified as the light hit his wife before she slumped to the floor.

Witchcraft.

"Bellatrix, I'm sorry. Its always been my wife for me," Lyall said, making sure to stay between the woman and his son. She was clearly insane, but she wouldn't hurt a child... right?

"She's gone, yet you still don't want me?," Bellatrix said, her voice sickly sweet. She pouted at him. "You broke my heart, Lyall." Her eyes fell to the body on the ground next to the little boy and her pout turned into a smile again.

"What me and Hope had - it was true-love, Bellatrix. There was no coming between that, no matter how hard you tried. True love is the most powerful thing in the world, I'm sorry."

"Lies," she hissed. "There is one thing more powerful than true-love - me!" Her wand waved through the air.

"You'll be as much a beast as your name states," Bellatrix said, a twisted smile on her face, watching Lyall fall to the ground in agony. "True love? If you can find someone to love you in this form, you'll become human again, free to live your life. When you give up, your son will take over your curse."

"But there is a cost to you, Bellatrix," an old man said, coming into sight.

"What cost, Dumbledore?" She asked, hiding her shock at seeing her old Mentor appear. He had not been there moments ago, she was certain.

"You've just cursed their family and you know magic comes with a price. The price of your curse means that you've also cursed your own family. With each member of the Lupin family that suffers this curse to become a wolf, or a Werewolf, a member of your family will be forced to serve them."

"You think we'll be their slaves?" she roared. "We will not bow to these unworthy creatures."

"Not only that, Bellatrix. Your playing with love has cursed your family to not be able to feel the joys of it."

"No, you can't do that," she cried, as Dumbledore grabbed her shoulder.

"You forget, Bellatrix. Love is the most powerful magic of them all." The pair disappeared from the house, leaving a beast whimpering on the floor and a terrified boy cowering a distance away next to the body of a woman.

That was the last time anyone ever saw Bellatrix Black.

...oOo...

Remus Lupin sat in the library of the house that had quickly become his prison.

As Dumbledore had predicted, the Black family had been taken by their curse too. The sister of the witch turning up just a few days afterwards, forced to serve Remus' father.

Remus had grown fond of the older girl. He had been eleven when the curse first set and Andromeda had served the family until his seventeenth birthday which was also the day his father died. A large part of Remus suspected that the girl was behind the death of his father. She wanted her freedom and she had waited until an age where Remus could look after himself.

She hadn't known at first that the curse just passed on through the family.

It was a few weeks before she sent someone, and without revealing himself or what he was to the man who turned up, Remus passed a note through the door.

'The illness that took my father is now mine.'

From that day on, he would find a package of supplies left at the gates every few days. It was Andromeda's way of looking after the boy she had raised when his father had given into his anger and locked himself away. Remus would collect the parcel and place a small pouch of gold into the empty basket. He couldn't let Andromeda pay for the food herself.

He was grateful that she cared enough, and Remus tried to fight the urge to draw someone to him. He had fought it for years now, he could manage a bit longer.

That's what he kept telling himself. His resolve was growing weaker by the day. He knew sooner or later he wouldn't be able to stop himself and that someone from that poisonous family would be forced to come to his house.

...oOo...

The carriage they had ridden in had overturned, and Sirius clutched his arm. It wasn't broken, but it was sprained quite badly. He used his good arm to help his brother from the wreckage and they looked around, wondering what had caused it.

Not seeing the cause, they checked the horse's condition. The poor creature hadn't made it through the accident and the brothers looked at each other in alarm, before looking at their surroundings.

"I would assume we're walking home," Regulus finally said. Sirius nodded in agreement and clutched his injured arm against his chest as he led the way through the forest, his brother walking a step behind him.

Sirius had no way of knowing where they were or where they were going, but he felt an odd pull - one that urged him to keep walking in the direction he was going in. One that told him it was when he needed to go. He knew all they needed was either a path or a cottage, maybe a woodcutter had a cottage here and they could ask for food and lodgings for the night?

He had gold to pay them for their troubles of course. Not much, but it would be more than enough for lodgings for the night.

Finally the pair of them stumbled upon some large gates, a large house looming in the distance. Sirius looked at the house for a long moment before finding the strength to turn away. He spun back around at the sound of Regulus pulling the rusty old gates open.

It seemed that with the more he fought going in, the quicker Regulus was slipping through that gates and going in himself.

"Reg, I think we should keep walking," Sirius suggested, but his brother shook his head.

"I'm exhausted, Sirius. Its got to be past midnight and I'm sure whoever lives here can help us. I'm sure this is the place for us. It just feels like we should be here."

Sirius looked at the house doubtfully, but Regulus had already started up the path. He wanted to question Regulus on what he meant but he just couldn't get the words out. It was almost as though something was stopping him from insisting they leave. He wanted to pull Regulus away, but he found he wasn't able to.

It took a few minutes to walk up to the house in the dark, due to the path being uneven and possibly dangerous. Hedges covered most of the path, and there were some low branches on the trees that made Sirius and Regulus have to duck underneath them. Regulus knocked on the door, but there was no answer.

Regulus tried the door and it opened easily. He pushed it and stepped through. The moment he was in, the door slammed shut and Sirius heard a lock click.

No amount of shouting, cursing or throwing himself at the door made any difference. He rushed around the house, checking all the windows, and to see if there was a way to climb up.

Nothing. All he could do was go for help.

...oOo...

The search party couldn't find the house and his mother blamed him. Of course she did, it was his fault after all. Sirius should have been more careful when they were walking through the forest, he was also the one to find the house. He should have insisted that they leave the house. Sirius should have been the one to walk in first, not letting his younger brother enter.

Plus, Regulus was mother's favourite and that made it even worse.

Sirius' mother paced the room, screaming and shouting about Regulus, leaving Sirius no time to go and see the doctor about his arm. His mother didn't care about the injury either as she pushed him out of the room with enough force for the same arm to hit the door frame, causing him to cry out in pain.

Sirius knew he could find the house again and get his brother back. As night rolled around, he put on a disguise and took a large bag of gold and some weapons. He climbed on the horse and left their home.

...oOo...

Sirius walked up the dark pathway of the house. There were no lights to guide him and he had to watch carefully as the ground was rough and uneven.

It didn't help that he was wearing his mother's heels... or her dress.

Yesterday he was a threat to whatever took Regulus, but who would suspect a woman to be dangerous? Even the cruellest man surely wouldn't turn away a woman in need of help and shelter?

And once he was in... well, he'd offer the gold for his brother, or he could subdue whoever took Regulus. The knives were a last resort really, and he'd get Regulus home safe and things would get back to normal.

He reached to push his hair back, but quickly remembered that his hair was pinned up in an elaborate hairstyle, a bow with a ribbon down the back. He also had opted for a bit of mother's make-up. He realised that he could pass quite easily for a woman.

Choosing to worry about this fact later, he knocked on the door of the house and hoped his disguise would hold up.

His mother would kill him if he didn't return with his brother this time... or if he ruined her dress.

Finally the sound of a lock pulling back caught his ears and he nervously tried the door again. This time it opened.

...oOo...

Sirius stepped into the house, the door shutting behind him and a figure quickly locked it. Sirius looked at the figure, but it was too dark to make out a face.

"Who are you?" came a whisper.

"I'm just looking for my brother," Sirius said, softly, trying not to sound like the man he was. "He was lost here last night and I just came to bring him home."

The figure in the shadows stared at him for a long time.

"Your brother has a job to do here, he can't leave," someone eventually growled.

Sirius frowned. "Regulus is just a kid - he's only just turned seventeen. Please let him go." Sirius contemplated fluttering his eyelashes as girls usually did when looking at him, but he wasn't sure if he could pull it off.

"He also doesn't have a sister, just a brother." The figure moved forward before he could even withdraw the knife, clawed fingers wrapped around his hands. Not hard enough to hurt, but enough to make him unable to move. He winced in pain at what the movement done to his injured arm.

"I know all about his cousins though," the figure growled. "Are you her other sister? Can you do what she does?"

Sirius shook his head. "No," he choked out. "Let me go."

The figure tensed, his grip on Sirius tightening. "You're not a woman," it growled, a knife pressing against his throat. Sirius was shaking slightly. He had to reason with this man before the man killed him.

"It seemed a good way to get into the house," Sirius admitted. "I wasn't able to get in last night, and I thought that you wouldn't be able to turn away a lost woman in need of help."

The figure snorted, and Sirius hoped this man was amused. Amused might get him and Regulus out of here. Amused might keep him alive. "Look, how about I get my brother, we leave and we just don't return? We won't mention this to anyone. I can pay you - I have gold," he said, trying to keep the fear out of his voice.

Slowly the knife eased up against his throat and Sirius sighed in relief. The clawed fingers moved from around his arm, and he quickly clutched his sore arm against his chest again.

"I have no use for your gold," the figure replied. "Your family are cursed as much as mine is. He has to stay here. None of us have a choice."

"Why?" Sirius asked. He had never heard of a family curse before.

"It's the curse," the figure growled. "The curse means one of your family has to stay here with me."

"I'll make you a deal," Sirius said. "There is a horse outside and it'll be getting light soon. Let my brother go, I'll stay here in his place. He's just a kid and he's probably terrified."

The figure hesitated for a long time, and Sirius waited impatiently for an answer. He was relieved when the figure agreed.

"Weapons on the table over there. If you try to attack me... well, let's just say that I wouldn't consider it wise."

"Who are you?" Sirius asked, curiously.

"A beast," the figure replied, his voice filled with sadness.

"Can I see your face?" Sirius asked. He wanted to see what he was getting himself into.

The hood slowly slid down, and the beast stepped into the light, startling Sirius.

Sirius' eyes darted across the beast's face. The beast looked like a mix between a wolf and a man. His features were all wolf, but his body was partly that of a human. His limbs too long, claws instead of hands and brilliant amber eyes that were fixed on him.

He was even more certain by his choice now. He couldn't leave his brother with this monster. Attacking it would be stupid as it would be too strong. It was safer to do as the creature asked and make a plan.

He placed all but one knife on the table in case this was a trap, and the beast led the way upstairs.

...oOo...

Regulus' door was opened and the beast strode over to Regulus.

"Reggie," Sirius shouted, but the beast grabbed his brother and was halfway down the stairs with him.

"Reg - "

"Sirius, why are you in a dress? What -"

"There is a horse at the gates. Leave," the creature growled. "Your brother has offered to stay in your place."

Regulus hesitated at leaving his brother alone with the creature.

"If you do not leave, I'll keep you both here, do you understand?" The beast growled.

"Go, Reggie. I'll be fine," Sirius said, with more confidence than he felt. "There's apparently a curse, one of us has to stay. It'll be me, yeah?"

Regulus reluctantly left the house and Sirius turned back to the wolf-man, whose amber eyes turned to meet his.

Sirius shivered.

"So, I'm to serve you - I'm a servant?" Sirius asked.

The beast just stared at him for a long moment. "I'll show you your room," it finally said, turning back to the staircase.

...oOo...

Sirius followed the beast up the staircase, and it led the way back to the room that Regulus had been in. Sirius stepped in and looked around at the minimal furniture. There was a wardrobe, a bedside table and a bed.

"There are some clothes in there," the beast pointed at the wardrobe. Get changed into something that's not a dress. I'll wait outside."

Sirius sat down on the bed and started taking off the tight heels he had worn, before slipping off the stockings. Next he removed all the hairpins holding his hair in place and the bow. After running his hand through his hair, checking for stray pins, he started to remove the dress, pulling on a pair of pyjamas instead. Those dresses were awful - why would women wear corsets? Were they insane?

"I'm done," he said, and he shuddered as the beast came in and moved close to him.

"Take your top off, I want to see what's wrong with your arm."

"Nothing I can't han-"

"Just let me see," the beast ordered. There was a long pause as they stared at each other. "Please?" it asked, softly.

Sirius removed his top with trouble and presented his swollen arm and shuddered again as the beast touched it. The creature froze for a second, looking at Sirius before dropping its gaze. It carefully examined Sirius' arm.

"How did it happen?" the creature growled.

"The carriage crashed last night," Sirius said.

"And you haven't treated it yet? You haven't seen the doctor?" The beast asked.

"We had more important things to deal with," Sirius replied, looking pointedly at the creature.

"So your parents never checked it out themselves at home?" The beast asked.

Sirius let out a cold laugh at the thought of his mother, Walburga Black trying to make his arm better.

"My parents... I can deal with these things by myself," he replied.

The beast seemed to be in thought for a moment as he continued examining his arm, slightly more gently than it had been.

"It's a pretty bad sprain, I'd suggest wearing a sling for a few weeks. In the meantime, these vials contain medicine. The pink one you can drink and it will help relieve pain; and the green one - rub it into your arm, it'll ease the swelling. I'll have more for you tomorrow."

"I've never seen a pink medicine before," Sirius said, picking up the bottle with his good arm.

"That's because it's my own mixture," the beast replied.

"No offence, but I'm human. Just because the potion works on wolf-men, it doesn't mean it'll work for me. It could poison me," Sirius said, trying to give the potion back.

"The potion will work," the beast snapped, storming from the room and shutting the door.

Sirius stared after it wondering if it had taken offence at something. Maybe the beast didn't like to be referred to as a wolf-man?

He opened the vial with the green liquid. As he poured the medicine onto his arm, he realised it was thicker than expected. The cold liquid was rubbed in and Sirius hoped the beast was right about it working. He brought the other vial to his lips and drank.

He would rest tonight and tomorrow he would think of a way to get out of this nightmare that he had found himself in.

...oOo...

The next morning, Sirius woke up to a knocking at his door. He opened it to find the wolf hidden by the cloak he had worn the night before, the hood up, keeping its face hidden.

Sirius just stared at him. He had expected to wake up in his own bed at his own home. Clearly that wasn't the case.

"I made you this for your arm," the beast said, holding out a sling. Sirius made no move to take it.

"Here," the beast said, draping it over Sirius' neck, adjusting Sirius' arm into it.

"Thanks," Sirius finally said, surprised at how kind this creature was being. "You didn't need to do that."

"It'll heal faster if you rest it," the creature said gruffly. "I'm going to get started on breakfast."

Sirius wondered why the beast was cooking when he was supposed to be the servant for the beast, making meals to sate the beast's hunger. Why was the beast cooking for him?

Maybe it was just waiting for his arm to heal?

As they sat at the table eating, Sirius was surprised as he watched the beast eating with cutlery. He had assumed the night before that it would eat like the monster it is, but it ate like a human. He watched it carefully, how it sat as though it was human. In fact, the only beastly things about it were both its voice and its appearance.

But he wasn't going to forget that this thing was a monster. It didn't matter that it pretended to be human. It wasn't.

...oOo...

Over the next few days, Sirius spent most of his time in his room, bored out of his mind. He wasn't allowed to leave the house and he had been told not to go into the beast's room. Not that he wanted to, he could only imagine the squalor that the beast lived in. It probably had a horrible little nest in there after all. It was most likely unclean and disgusting.

He explored the rest of the house, finding nothing to explain why exactly he was there or what this 'curse' was. It would be useful had he known exactly what was going on.

His explorations came up fruitless. The only evidence that something was missing from the rooms was the wallpaper in each room, showing that once there had been pictures hanging on the walls. The paper had clean rectangles where the pictures had been taken away.

The Wolf-man clearly had pictures that he didn't want anyone to see. Sirius didn't think too much of it, because he didn't really care about the Wolf-Man's pictures. He just wanted to get out of there. Even his home with his uncaring and unfeeling parents was better than this place. At least the people at home were human.

...oOo...

It was a week before Sirius noticed that the creature had weakened. Due to the care the beast had taken in healing his arm, he didn't want to hurt it in his escape. He decided to wait until the beast fell asleep before venturing into its room.

The room was dark, the blinds drawn even though it was the middle of the day, but Sirius wasn't there to look around.

He was there for the key.

He spotted the key on the cupboard next to the bed. He quickly slipped away with it, quietly making his way downstairs and smiling as the key unlocked the door.

He opened the door and slipped out.

Sirius quietly made his way across the grounds and out of the gate.

...oOo...

He rushed through the forest, running between trees, his eyes desperately searching for something to tell him which direction to go. Marks on the trees, a path - anything. It had been so easy before to find the path, but somehow he wasn't able to find it. It was getting dark quickly, and he hoped the moon would be out soon and it would give him some light. He resisted the pull to go back to the house. He could fight the curse he just knew it, all he had to do was get far enough away.

A growl to his left made him pause for a second, a dark figure between the trees. He kept moving, his fingers gripping the knife he had taken with him. The one he had kept on his arrival at the castle.

It was only a minute before another growl came from the other side. This was quickly followed by a few more growls and Sirius froze, realising that he was surrounded.

He gripped the knife. If he was going down, he'd take some of them with him.

A wolf lunged at him and he swiped at it with the knife, missing by an inch. His eyes darted back and forth, listening carefully. The wolves were circling him and terror washed over him.

Two moved forward and Sirius held his weapon at the ready, bracing himself for impact. The creatures lunged and Sirius was knocked away by the beast.

He got up, the knife ready in his hand, but the Beast made quick work of the creatures as many of the wolves ran at the sight of him. The beast looked at Sirius and Sirius could see it was weak and possibly injured. Sirius felt gratitude at what the Beast had done and realised he couldn't just leave him there. He would get the beast back to the house. He grabbed the Beast, pulling its clawed hand over his shoulder and started back towards the house.

It took only a few minutes to get back. The pull towards the house had been too great and Sirius realised that as far way as he thought he had got, he mustn't have been able to venture too far away.

They were barely inside the house when the wolf fell to the floor in agony. Sirius rushed to the box where the wolf had stored the potions for Sirius to use for his arm, wondering what to get. He grabbed the two vials he knew from the box and returned.

"Leave the room," the wolf begged. "Go to your own room until I'm done."

"Until you're done with what?" Sirius asked, determined not to leave. The Beast had just saved his life. "Look, let me get you into the sitting room."

Ignoring the creature's protests, he pulled it from the floor and led the Beast to the rug in front of the fire and lit the fire for him. He had tried to put the beast in the chair, but it had resisted even more, insisting on the floor.

It was only a matter of minutes before the beast began to howl in agony, causing Sirius to back away. Sirius refused to leave. He heard the creature's bones began to snap and watched its body shift and change shape. He listened as the bones snapped back into place and the face became more human. Finally the fur began to disappear, leaving smooth skin.

Sirius quickly grabbed a blanket, throwing it over the now smaller body of the man who lay where the wolf had been, panting heavily.

"What in the hell..." Sirius muttered to himself.

"I told you to leave," came a soft voice from the man on the floor. Sirius noted the major difference between the wolf's growl and the man's soft tones.

"Who are you?" Sirius finally asked.

"Someone cursed," the man said, looking up at Sirius. Sirius held out his hand and the man hesitated before reaching his own out.

Gone were the clawed fingers, leaving long slim human fingers in their place. Sirius took a grip on the man's hand and helped him from the floor, guiding him to an armchair in front of the fire.

"You're bleeding," Sirius said, holding out the vials of medicine. The man took the pink one and drank it down. Sirius left the room and headed back to the medicine box for some bandages. He returned with the bandages, a bowl of water and a clean towel.

"So... would you like to explain to me exactly what's going on?" Sirius asked, taking a seat on the floor next to the armchair.

"What do you want to know?" the man said.

"For a start, your name," Sirius said.

"Oh... Remus. Remus Lupin," the man said shyly. It had been so long since anyone had asked his name. It had been so long since he had to introduce himself.

"And how are you human right now?"

"Cursed," Remus replied.

"Does this have anything to do with the curse on my family?" Sirius asked, as he wrung the wet towel out and brought it to Remus' arm, cleaning the cut on it.

"It has everything to do with it," Remus replied, hissing at the contact of the towel. "The curse started about ten years ago. It wasn't me that was cursed, it was my father. A witch had an infatuation with him. He didn't return her feelings so she killed my mother in front of us, but still my father turned her away. She cursed him stating that if true-love was so important, let him find true love as a creature. A wizard appeared and said that the curse was so big it came at a cost. With each member of our family that get taken by the curse, one member of her... your family would be bound to us."

Sirius stared at him in shock.

"And there was something about love... and that your family would never be able to feel real love. That's why I was shocked that you could love your brother enough to stay here in his place. But I've researched it and that's because it's a different sort of love."

"Who cursed you?"

"Bellatrix Black," Remus said. "It was my father at first... but he died on my seventeenth birthday and the curse claimed me instead. I've been like this for about four years now."

"And I'm the first in my family?"

"No. A girl came here days after the curse. Andromeda. She was amazing. She hated it at first but she didn't blame us. She understood what her sister had done and felt responsible for her sisters actions. Had her sister not dabbles in dark things, none of us would be trapped by this curse. Andromeda was like an older sister to me. She was here until my father died and then she left."

"She didn't stay to help you?" Sirius asked.

"She done her part. One member of my family is cursed, one member of yours is bound to them. She was bound to my father, and she ran when she was free. She drops off supplies here twice a week, though she won't venture closer than the gate. Even when I'm in human form."

"You mean…that happens a lot?" Sirius asked.

"You've heard the stories about Werewolves - well I'm like the opposite of that," Remus explained. "This is who I used to be, though I only get to be like this once a month."

"Well, you're very handsome," Sirius said, his eyes darting over Remus' face, taking in his striking amber eyes that suited his human form, his adorable lopsided smile and the shaggy dark-blonde hair that fell into his eyes.

"Thank you... you are too," Remus admitted, before closing his eyes and pulling the blanket around him.

"You wait here, I'll get you something warm to drink," Sirius said. He had finished cleaning all the wounds, knowing they weren't from the wolves attacking him.

It wasn't long before they were both sitting with a cup of tea in each of their hands.

Realising that this wasn't a beast pretending to be human, Sirius felt he could talk to the man properly now. Remus was a human trapped in beast form.

"So, what's it like out there?" Remus asked.

"Not very good," Sirius said. "Trapped in my parents home, waiting to be married off." He shrugged. "I was on my way back from meeting my future wife when all this happened."

"I'm sorry," Remus whispered. "It's all my fault."

"I'd say it's all my cousin's fault," Sirius said. "The first night, you asked if I was one of her sisters..."

"I was hoping that another sister could have the same power," Remus admitted. "I'm sorry if I scared you. I can imagine my wolf form is terrifying. I remember I used to be terrified of my father. He lost himself to the beast."

"Is that part of the curse?"

"No. I'm trying to retain my humanity. Even if I don't look it, I'm still a man inside. I'm a man once a month and it's something," Remus said, his eyes moving to the fire.

"Well, I'm here now," Sirius said softly. "I'll help you remember that you're human."

"It's not fair of me to keep you here," Remus said. "I can show you the way back to town and you can be free from this if you want?"

Sirius hesitated for a long time.

"My family done this to you, I'm going to do what I can to find you a way out of it," Sirius promised.

...oOo...

Weeks passed and Sirius got used to seeing Remus in his wolf form. He knew there was a man in there and each time he looked into those eyes, he saw Remus. The quiet, soft spoken and handsome man who had suffered a curse for no reason than a crazed witch. The lonely man who had seen his mother die at Bellatrix' power and seen his father lost to the curse, knowing that it would some day affect him too.

Things changed between them after that day. Sirius found himself making an effort. He helped Remus when Remus struggled and needed him. The pair could be found reading side by side in the evenings in the library. They would go over all the books, trying to find a way to free themselves from the curse.

But the only information they could find was that if Remus' curse was broken, Sirius' curse would break too.

In between the reading, the pair of them would talk. Remus admitted to wanting to be a healer if he had grown up normally. His medicines were taught to him by his mother and from research. He said that the house was like a prison to him and the only thing that kept him from going insane were his books. He would read his mother's healing journals and all her healing books and he learned enough to be able to heal someone else. He also made his own medicines.

Sirius admitted that he was never given a choice. He was to work in the bank, same as his father did. He was the next heir... though that was probably Regulus now, since Sirius was in the house.

As the weeks passed, the pair had a lot of time to talk and would converse well into the night. Sirius didn't see a monster anymore.

He was just counting down the days until the next full moon, so he could see Remus in his true form again.

One evening they were in the library and Sirius was reading one of the books. Remus didn't reach for any of the books, he was lost in thought and Sirius waited for him to speak his mind.

"Did you ever wonder what would happen if you didn't exist?" Remus said aloud.

"I don't think anything would have happened. My parents would have had Regulus and life would have been the same, though it would have been Regulus here with you instead of me. I doubt I've made enough of an impact on anyone's lives for my non-existence to make a difference." He looked up at Remus. "Why, have you?"

"You've made an impact on mine," Remus said, causing Sirius to smile. "But if I didn't exist, the curse would have ended with my father," he added, turning his gaze to the small fire. "You and your brother wouldn't have ended up here. You would be free to live your life."

Remus hesitated, his eyes still on the fire.

"The curse would end with me," Remus said at last. "Sometimes..." he took a deep breath. "Sometimes I don't want to live."

Sirius dropped his book and within seconds he was in front of Remus.

"Don't you ever think that again," he hissed. "You are my friend, Remus. I'm here because I chose to stay. I've stayed even though you've offered to let me go. I am going to break this curse because my family owe you that. I'm your friend and if you died, I would be devastated."

"Sometimes I wonder if Andy killed my father so she could gain her freedom. Other times I wonder if my father killed himself. I can't even blame him as I know how unbearable this curse can be."

"Promise me you won't do anything like that," Sirius said, clutching the wolf's arm. "I don't want to lose you. Promise me."

Remus met his eyes and there was a long pause as they stared at each other, neither able to look away.

"I promise," Remus finally whispered.

...oOo...

Sirius had been at the house for a month and a half before they received their first knock on the door.

Remus pulled the hood of his cloak up and moved into the shadows as Sirius went to answer it. He swung it open and looked at the two men in surprise. Their weapons lowered at the sight of him.

"Sirius," one man said, pulling his friend into a hug, his eyes darting around looking for danger. "You must escape - Regulus said -"

Sirius shook his head. "James, Peter, I'm not leaving here. Bellatrix cursed two families and I'm not leaving until I break the curse."

"What curse? Is it to do with the monster?" Peter asked.

"There is no monster," Sirius replied. "He's a man. He was cursed into that form by my cousin. I'm bound to him whilst the curse is active."

"How do you break the curse?" James asked.

"True Love," Sirius sighed. "That's all we can find so far. "He's a man, James. I've seen him turn back into one. He's not hurt me either. I swear."

Sirius stepped aside but both men were frozen and didn't move to come into the house.

"He said before that I could leave, but my family caused this, and I'm going to break this curse. His family done nothing to deserve this. It was Bellatrix."

"Is there anything we can do to help?" James asked. "Can we... can we see him?"

Peter looked terrified at the notion, but seconds later, Remus emerged from the shadows. The men knew he existed and they knew what he was, what would it hurt to show them?

He slowly drew down his hood, and James forced himself not to back away. Peter quickly moved away.

"Come back with books on curses... and let Reggie know I'm safe," Sirius said. "Promise you'll keep this to yourself?"

"We will," James said, watching Remus pull the hood up again before disappearing into the shadows. "I'm sorry it took so long for us to seek you out. It's not unusual for you to be locked up at home. When we finally managed to corner your brother..." James paused. "He was too scared to venture any closer than the gate."

"I'll return home soon," Sirius said. "Once the curse is broken. Remus is just like us. I saw him turn back one night, he's our age. He's a normal man. Trust me, we have to help him."

"I'll ask Lily at the bookshop," he said. "I won't tell her, I'll just see what she can order in for me."

"Thank you," Sirius said.

...oOo...

It was only a few days before James and a small group came bursting into the house. Before Sirius or Remus could react, the group began barricading the door.

"They've come for Remus," a woman said, finally turning around. Her eyes fell on Remus.

"Andy," he said, throwing her arms around her.

She hugged him back. "I'm sorry I never came back, sweetheart, I was a coward."

"It's okay, Sirius has been a wonderful friend," Remus replied.

She pulled away and spotted her cousin glaring at her. "I'm sure he has," she said with a smile. "It's just those Death Eaters as they call themselves from the lodge."

"How did they find out?" Sirius asked.

"Peter," James growled. "We went back to town and he had no scruples in telling the lodge about the monster he had escaped from. I think Lucius Malfoy, The Lestrange brothers and Antonin Dolohov will be here any minute now."

"What do we do?" Sirius asked.

"We defend ourselves," the man with Andy said.

"How do you know? You don't go to the lodge, James."

"Greasy Snape told Lily and she asked me if it was true. She connected the dots quickly since I asked her for books on curses. She's smart. She told me to get here first and block the doors otherwise they'd kill both of you."

"But Sirius isn't -" Remus began.

"They don't care. They are a bunch of psychos," Andy's friend said.

"Ted's right," Andy said. "They are here to kill you both and we're not letting that happen. They don't expect you to know they are coming, and we've hidden our horses around the back in the old stable. They won't expect us."

...oOo...

Sirius and Remus backed up on the balcony, Sirius' body between Remus and their attacker. Remus tried to push Sirius out of the way, but the dark-haired man wasn't moving.

"Please Antonin, he won't harm anyone," Sirius begged. "Bellatrix cursed him. He's just a man."

The man let out a cruel laugh. "He doesn't look like a man," he spat. "It doesn't matter either way. If I kill him, I get a reward and the town will worship me."

"At the death of someone innocent," Sirius said.

Antonin Dolohov smiled cruelly. "At the death of two innocent people. You see, the evil monster killed you before I got here and I killed it before it took another victim."

Antonin held his sword up, Sirius' own had been lost moments before in the fight.

He watched the sword come towards him, and felt Remus knock him out of the way. The last thing he saw was Dolohov lunge a second time, Remus dodging out of the way, and Sirius stuck his leg out, watching Dolohov stumble and go over the edge of the balcony.

Remus fell to the ground. "Curse is almost broken," he muttered, clutching his side.

"What do you mean?" Sirius asked, pulling Remus' hand away. "It's just a scratch," Sirius said, seeing the blood appear through the fur. He pulled his shirt off, pressing it to the wound, letting out a sob at the sight of the blood quickly soaking it.

"Help," he shouted, hoping his friends had dealt with the other men who had turned up. Andy and James rushed up.

"Bandages, that healing medicine stuff of Remus', just anything... he's hurt," Sirius asked.

Andy disappeared, and Sirius looked back down at Remus. The shirt was soaked with blood.

"You'll be free now," Remus whispered.

"I don't care about my freedom, just you," Sirius said, clutching the wolf close to him. "Remus, we'll make you better."

"Medicine won't work on something like this," Remus whispered.

"Remus, don't you dare die on me. Don't you remember what I said - I would be devastated if you died. Promise me you'll hold on. We'll heal you and we'll find you your true love and you'll be human -"

"Sirius, that's not going to happen," Remus said. "I found my true love, but he can't save me because he's not able to fall in love."

"Me?" Sirius whispered, tears building in his eyes. "I'm so sorry, it's my fault you're dying," he whispered. Tears stained his cheeks as he watched the life leave Remus' body.

"How could anybody not fall in love with you, Sirius?" Remus whispered, his eyes closing. The second Remus stopped breathing, Sirius felt an overwhelming sensation in his chest. His tears flowed faster as he realised that Remus' death had broken the curse. He could love, but it was too late.

Arms wrapped around him as the tears fell hard, his body shaking and his hands clutching Remus' body. The arms pulled him away and he fought against them.

"Sirius, look," James said, shaking his friend and pointing towards Remus.

Sirius look at Remus' body that was shifting back to his human form. He stared in amazement. His love had broken the curse. His eyes fell on Remus' chest as it rose, taking in a breath. It might not be too late after all.

When Remus had finally changed, James threw a blanket over him, giving him some privacy and Remus groaned.

Sirius quickly rushed to him, pulling the man in his arms as James stared at Remus in fascination. It was the first time he had ever seen anything like that.

"What happened?" Remus asked.

"You died and it broke my curse. I could feel all my love for you too and that turned you back to human," Sirius said joyfully, wiping the tears away. "You're cured, Remus."

"You love me?" Remus said, starting to sit up.

"Of course I do," Sirius said, pulling Remus closer. "You're all healed, but do you need anything?"

Remus grabbed Sirius, pulling him down so their lips met. As Sirius moved to straddle Remus, James realised Remus was only in a sheet and Sirius was topless. He didn't know much about men being together and he found he didn't want to know that there was anything more than kissing.

James was happy for his friend and Sirius could love who he liked, James just wasn't going to watch and Sirius clearly had no intention of stopping what he was doing.

"We'll wait downstairs," he decided. "Andromeda?"

She had her hand on her chest and was taking deep breaths. James quickly rushed to her in concern.

"I need to go and see Ted," she whispered. "I need to see him now."

"We'll clean up downstairs whilst you.." he waved his hand and winced slightly. "I don't even want to know what you're going to do." The pair headed down the stairs quickly away and Andromeda met Ted's eyes.

"The curse is broken," she said, throwing herself into Ted's arms. "I love you."

James grinned as the pair kissed. Lily had kissed him before he left, begging him to protect Sirius and his cursed friend. He couldn't wait to get back to see his angel.

But first they had to dispose of the Death Eaters.

This is about twice the length I thought it would be.

Review Please. :)

7689 words.