We could not figure out how exactly to include this in the Funtime project, so I'm posting separately, but some credit for the idea of doing this should go to darling lore, without whom I hate to even imagine this comm. *kiss*
Here's what we did. mnemosyne_1 wrote a gorgeous Snupin ficlet for the prompt "anniversary," and I recorded it in audio. It's a two-for-one! Read, listen, ENJOY!
Title: Adjustments Author: mnemosyne_1 Audio version here, at Jinjur's Audiofic Archive Read by: westernredcedar Summary: After the war, Remus and Severus have had to learn to adjust. Rated: PG-13 Word count: 636 Length of audio: ~4 minutes
It was an adjustment, after the war, but Remus had managed reasonably well for one suddenly unable to see or hear. He missed the sight more than the hearing. The one thing he truly wanted to hear, he wouldn't have anyway. Severus' voice was gone; he would never again berate students or argue with other members of the Order.
Remus suspected he compensated for that with gestures.
After the war, after the recovery, after the trials, they settled into a small cottage with a lovely back garden and a laboratory in the basement. Remus learned to tend the garden by touch, though he suspected Severus came behind him and fixed everything he missed or accidentally pulled. He learned to slice and chop for Severus, fingers carefully holding the ingredients and knife. He learned how to feel Severus move by the slight currents in the air and the soft vibrations through the floor. He was attempting to learn Braille, which, so far, had been a less successful endeavor than the others.
He had always known how to touch Severus; there was no need to learn that.
Remus always spoke to Severus, even though it felt very odd not to hear himself speak. Severus responded with a touch here, a kiss there. When they were naked in bed, Severus drew words on Remus' skin. They developed their own language, not bound by words and looks, but with touch and taste.
When Severus was annoyed, he made spicy curry. When content, roast and Yorkshire pudding. When affectionate, Remus' favorite Italian pastas. When wanting sex, asparagus.
Remus still hadn't figured that last one out.
Today Remus was sitting at the desk in the living room, breathing in the fresh spring air that flowed in the windows and practicing his reading. He still wasn't very confident with all the little raised dots, but he read a little every day and it was slowly getting easier. He felt movement behind him just before Severus' slim hand touched his own. Remus could smell flowers, and he smiled. Memorizing the meaning of plants and flowers had been a whim of Remus' long ago, but it was helpful now when Severus wanted to say something. He felt Severus sit down next to him. Remus held out his hand for the first offering.
Rosemary, Remus thought, breathing in the herbal scent.
"Remembrance," Remus said, and Severus touched his cheek once for 'yes'.
He set the rosemary aside, and accepted a flower.
"Nasturtium?" Another touch.
"Conquest. Victory in Battle."
Two together this time. Poppy and zinnia. "Eternal sleep and daily remembrance."
Remus' voice shook and Severus laid his hand on Remus' cheek.
"One year sinceā¦?" Remus asked once he had regained control himself.
Severus lifted Remus' hand to his face and nodded. Remus ran his thumb over Severus' jaw and leaned in for a kiss. Severus submitted for a moment, but then pulled away and pressed another flower into Remus' hands.
Peony. "Happy life?" Severus touched his cheek, then handed him another.
"Ivy. Fidelity," Remus said, and a burst of affection swept through him. He wound the ivy around his wrist instead of setting it aside with the others.
Severus drew a "1" on Remus' cheek. One more flower. Thorns pricked Remus' fingers as he accepted the last flower. He bent his face to smell the soft, lovely scent of the rose.
"I love you too, Severus," Remus said, then set the rose and the ivy aside and reached for Severus.
Yes, it had been a long year of adjustments. They had come a long way from the bloody, chaotic battlefield of Hogwarts. There had been things lost and things found, things forgotten and things learned. Most importantly, there had been Severus, here with him throughout it all, freely choosing Remus.