DISCLAIMER: I need to get a life, because I spend forever trying to think of something interesting to go in here. I never do, though, do I? They're not mine. Boring and to the point. But oh so true!

WARNING: Yes, this is a slash, somewhat smutty, actually, story. If you don't like it, bugger off. Er …

Sleepless or Codeword Music

By

LizzY Tears

Remus couldn't sleep. This was not an unusual occurrence, but it was still depressing and a problem. It wasn't that he wasn't tired, because he was. Bone weary and exhausted, all he wanted to do was lie down and go to sleep.

But that didn't appear to be about to happen any time soon. He was familiar with every corner of his bed, including the foot, where he had ended up sprawled flat out away from his pillows and blankets that seemed to have made it their mission in life to smother him.

He wasn't really sure what his problem was that night. Usually Sunday was the one night when he zoned right out, but the rules appeared to have changed, because he absolutely wasn't zoning out just then.

He turned over, still facing the bottom of his bed with his legs resting on his pillows, and mentally began to count the things that were keeping him awake.

1. The moonlight – unnaturally bright – was sneaking in through the gaps in his curtain that he just couldn't seem to plug. No matter which way he turned, the blasted moon was in his face, mocking him, blinding him, reminding him.

2. He could each tick of the dorm room clock as it tocked its way towards midnight and beyond.

3. Sirius' bewitched muggle music box was playing rather loudly from the other side of the room. It was this that was keeping him from his repose more than anything else. Remus was the musical one of the four of them. He didn't play and he certainly didn't sing, but he always had something playing on his record player.

Except for right now, when he wanted complete silence and Sirius, who only liked to sleep to music, wanted to play rock music. It wasn't even that it was rock music that was the problem, it was that Sirius' music box only possessed a repertoire of three songs, which played continuously.

As anyone would predict, there was only one way Remus was getting any sleep that night was to turn the blasted thing off.

This would normally not create a problem – simply walk over there and give the thing a judicious kick and a flick with a silencing charm – but Sirius had grown wise to the fact that not everybody shared his idea that rock music existed to break the peace of midnight, but also that rude awakenings consisting of people jumping on him could be avoided by a simple mine field of booby traps.

Sirius had carefully and painstakingly designed each one, all with the sole intent of keeping people out of his sanctuary and making horrible things happen to anyone who dared to try.

Remus really didn't want to go any closer to the veritable bomb site of Sirius' bedchamber, but he really needed to get some sleep, and he knew the only way to get it was to shut Sirius' blasted music box up.

So he sat up and swung his legs over the side of his bed, pulling the curtains open simultaneously. Glaring at the moon, he was momentarily grudgingly grateful for its innocuous presence at that moment, as it happened to light the room enough for him to navigate his way across fairly safely.

From where he sat, he glanced around the room, taking in the familiar layout. James' bed lay over there, his curtains open as he always forgot to close them, and Peter lay over there, somehow tangled in his curtains, snoring softly.

Sirius bed was across from his, which made it yet another reason why he couldn't get to sleep. People other people were … er … attracted to, should not be allowed to sleep so close to said people. That had to be the sleep talking, because that sentence so didn't make sense.

Shaking his head to clear it, Remus slid from the bed and moved quietly along the window.

His heart almost stopped as a sudden sound broke the relative silence of the night and something rose out of the ground near him. Remus backed up against the window in horror, his pupils dilating instantly.

The thing was sitting erect from the direction of James' bed and looked to have sticks in its – well what Remus assumed was – hair. Taking a closer, panic logged look at this feature, the blood returned to Remus' head in a rush as he realized what – or who – was apparently attacking him.

"James!" Remus gasped and cleared his throat, running his hands through his hair.

"Hey," James muttered. "Where're you off to?"

"To turn Sirius' music down." Remus hissed back. "It's driving me insane."

"Okay." James said in amusement. "Good luck. If we don't see you in a week, I'll send in a search party."

Without a further word, James flopped back down in bed and curled back up as though he had never woken. Remus waited a moment to ensure he was back in the land of nod before he continued his procession towards Sirius' bed.

He stood awkwardly before it, staring at the curtains surrounding it. This was going to be a problem.

Taking a breath, he reached forward and pulled the curtains sharply open. Before he could do anything more than realize that Sirius was curled up underneath the covers, he was suddenly not standing up and looking down on him, he was sitting next to him and looking down at him.

It took a moment for Remus to adjust to this sudden change in altitude before he realized what had happened.

"Ooh, nicely done, Padfoot." He awarded the sleeping form quietly. "Highly advanced magic, that."

"I know." The sleeping form said, startling Remus out of his wits and forcing him to scuttle away. "Took me forever to learn that from your notes."

"Sirius?" Remus squeaked. "You're awake?"

"Of course I'm awake." A slightly irate tone came from the mouth pressed into the pillow. "You land on my bed in the middle of the night, you think I'm not going to notice?"

Remus blushed and backed further away.

"Not my fault." He muttered defensively.

Sirius' face creased into a confused and irritated expression at Remus's words.

"How can it not be your fault?" He demanded.

"I'm not the one who put the Teleportation spell on their bed chamber, am I?" Remus retorted defensively.

"You are the one who tried to break into my bed chamber, however." Sirius reminded him, his eyes closed.

"Because I had to do something about your blasted music box!" Remus exclaimed, throwing his hands up.

"You bought it for me." Sirius stated unhelpfully.

"I know!" Remus groaned, dropping his head. "I didn't know you were going to play it at high volume all the way through the night, otherwise I would have let you keep stealing mine."

"I didn't steal it!" Sirius shot back, his eyes flying open in offence. "I just borrowed it."

"A lot." Remus put in.

"A lot." Sirius repeated, frowning.

"Without asking." Remus added.

"Without asking." Sirius said dutifully.

"And would deny all knowledge of its whereabouts when I looked for it." Remus continued. "And would only give it back when I unearthed it and threatened you with hexes, jinxes and physical violence."

"Give it a rest, Moony!" Sirius exclaimed. "I like music, okay!"

His eyes flashed in the moonlight and Remus smiled.

"I know." He said calmly. "Why do you think I bought it for you?"

"It was a swell present." Sirius said quietly, meeting Remus' eyes. "You always know exactly what I need."

"Uh huh." Remus agreed and reached over to pat Sirius' shoulder. "Don't you forget it."

"I won't." Sirius whispered and grabbed Remus' hand as it left his shoulder. Remus glanced up in surprise as he did so, but Sirius' face betrayed nothing. Remus felt warm fingers wrap around his hand and he wondered what Sirius was up to.

"Come here." He whispered and pulled on Remus' hand, forcing him down beside him.

Remus slowly let himself be pulled until he was lying on his stomach facing Sirius in the dark. He didn't say anything, unsure as to what was required of him in this situation.

Nothing much, it seemed, as Sirius wordlessly reached up and ran a hand softly down Remus' cheek, the back of his fingers gently tickling his skin. Their hands were still clasped and Remus felt Sirius manoeuvre the grasp until their fingers were threaded with each other's. Remus badly wanted to know what was going on because his stomach had twisted itself into knots and he had the uncomfortable feeling that the only way to undo them was to either get out of there right now or lean down even further and cause irreparable damage to their friendship.

Sirius appeared to have come to the same sort of conclusion, because he suddenly let his hand fall away from Remus' cheek and Remus found himself filled with the desire to grasp it and push it back against his face.

"You can either leave now and nothing more is said." Sirius said quietly, his gaze level. "Or you can stay here and kiss me."

Remus gasped inwardly at the proposition, but tried to keep his gaze steady. A thousand thoughts and desires were running through his head, and he wondered at both his and Sirius' sanity.

"I can't kiss you, Sirius." He said finally, dropping his eyes.

He felt Sirius wordlessly attempt to separate their linked hands and tightened his grip instinctively.

"Because I don't know how." He continued in a whisper and brought his eyes back up to meet Sirius's.

Without a word, Sirius brought his hand back up and used it to bring Remus closer. The last thing Remus saw before his eyes flickered closed was Sirius' shadowy face rushing towards him and then he felt lips on his.

Sirius was gentle but demanding with his kiss, showing Remus how to kiss him. He appeared to be a fast learner because after a few moments, Sirius' hands were tangled in his hair and they were pressing themselves closer to each other.

Remus could hear what he assumed was Sirius's accelerated breathing and not his own as their lips met again and again in a frantic dance of lust and unspoken attraction.

Muttering a quick silencing and 'do not disturb' charm, Sirius found it rather hard to get the words out as Remus' lips worked their way over the skin of his neck and his hands busied himself with relieving Sirius of his shirt.

"What do you think of my music now?" He managed, before he reached up and pulled Remus against him again.

"What music?" Remus growled as he succeeded in his task and tossed Sirius' shirt aside.

"M-my music." Sirius stuttered as Remus' hands explored his now bare chest and sent shockwaves careening around his body. "You came to turn it off."

"Why would I do that?" Remus demanded.

"Why indeed." Sirius agreed and slipped his hands underneath Remus' shirt and returned the favour.

"I love your music!" Remus alleged passionately and pushed himself closer to Sirius for a deep heated kiss.

"I love your music so darn much!" He husked as Sirius nipped him gently on the jugular.

Sirius couldn't help but grin. Who would have thought that he would be the one to finally make Remus so heated he became incoherent?

"What're you grinning at?" Remus demanded, not missing the expression. Then he took stock of himself; shirtless and crazy with lust, and smiled sheepishly at himself.

"Before you say anything." He warned. "You're the one lying there all dishevelled with red cheeks and lips with your hands in my hair." He raised an eyebrow.

Sirius grinned in defeat and tugged gently on the ends of Remus' hair.

"True." He allowed. "But then I've always loved your music."

Remus' eyes widened as he realized the codeword 'music' he had unconsciously given the word 'you.' He nodded.

"I mentioned I love music, didn't I?" He wondered somewhat absently as Sirius pulled on his head again.

"Mm." Sirius agreed as their lips met again, gentler this time.

"This was a good night to be sleepless." Remus commented before he stopped saying anything at all and gave into the music of Sirius altogether.

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AUTHOR'S NOTE

Wow. Two fics in one day when I haven't given you anything at all in ages. Please love me, I need loving. No reviews in ages and I'm on a low. Lol, I just hope you enjoyed it, even if you didn't review. A bit … smuttier than anything else I've written, huh? Oh, well, just trying everything out. I want one of every kind of form of fanfic on here eventually. But somebody will have to explain canon, fanon, yaoi and the other 'y' word to me. Lol.

Love always,

LizzY