Warnings: Unbeta'd!!! Post war, they both lived. No sex!
A/N: For red. Merry Christmas! Sorry I'm late (it's not quite 7:00am Christmas morning here)!!
Remus stepped onto the already scorching sand. He was at Scarborough beach in Perth, Australia. It had taken six months, but he had finally tracked down Severus. He smoothed down his khaki shorts with damp palms. It had taken him an hour, in beach-side café, to convince himself to make his final move. He'd come all this way, in for a penny in for a pound he thought.
As he walked toward the spot Severus had taken on the beach, Remus felt the warmed sand gliding over his toes and filling his sandals. He stopped near Severus' umbrella. Severus, who was nicely bronzed and was wearing only a speedo. Remus' Adam's apple bobbed as he drank in the sight.
"If you are looking for the topless women you will need to go south to Brighton beach." Severus' silky voice drawled.
"Severus." Remus breathed.
"I am not going with you." Severus stated firmly as he lay his book down.
Remus' brow wrinkled. "Going with me?"
"War crimes tribunal and all that. I will not be going back."
"Severus, you were declared a hero and awarded the Order of Merlin. The Ministry is not looking for you."
"Perhaps you can explain why you are here then."
"I was looking for you."
"Potter's report of my death was not convincing?"
Remus chuckled. "No, it was very convincing. Harry was quite certain you were gone."
"You, however, were not?"
Remus shook his head. "No body, no portrait."
"Ah. So you taken the last six months and used you super-human werewolf senses to track me half-way around the globe."
"No, nothing that taxing. I cleaned out your quarters at Hogwarts. Your personal library had been replaced with what you would consider drivel and the only book missing from the school set of Marquardt's Guide to the Wizarding World was the first volume. The letter A."
Severus crossed his arms protectively across his body. "Why are you here, Lupin?"
Remus knelt in the sand, his knees were on fire. "I wanted to see if we could finally have another chance."
"I imagine your current predilection for women would preclude another chance."
Remus sighed. "It was a ruse, Severus. If you had stayed around you would have seen my marriage make a lovely, splashy sordid headline in the Prophet."
"I wonder if back issues are available." Severus mused.
"You are a bastard."
"True. So why are you so interested in me if I am a bastard?"
Remus cocked his head and lifted his chin. "Because you're sexy and brilliant and you are stronger than any person I've ever known."
Severus pursed his lips. "And do you have some elaborate scheme to woo me?"
"Not really, but I could start by making us Christmas dinner tomorrow."
"In this heat!?"
"Australian style. Turkey on the barbie." Remus tried out his best Australian accent.
"You can do that?"
"Severus, I spent time with the werewolf packs. We didn't eat all our meat raw, and there were in Agas out in the forest."
Severus chuckled.
The warm rich sound made Remus want to taste Severus' lips. He didn't restrain himself.
Severus' speedo was quite a bit tighter when Remus pulled back.
Severus folded his hands primly. "I believe you were going to woo me with dinner tomorrow."
Remus grinned. "I am."
"Then we should probably purchase the required foodstuffs before the shops close." Severus stood and Remus followed suit.
"You don't need to go with me." Remus said as he dusted down his shorts.
"Of course, I do."
The surprise showed on Remus' face.
"I shall insist upon dessert."
"I know of your ice cream addiction, Severus. Even when you ate it at the head table at Hogwarts it was practically pornographic."
Severus smirked. "You watched."
Remus grinned broadly. "I watched and then went back to my quarters and wanked. I won't forget your ice cream."
Severus shook out his blanket. "I prefer to choose my own flavour."
Remus pulled up the umbrella and tucked it under his arm as Severus shrugged into a shirt.
"I am not easy, you know. It will take more than one dinner…"
Remus put a hand on Severus' arm. "I don't want easy. I want you." He grinned broadly before he continued. "We can even buy two flavours of ice cream."
The tip of Severus tongue peeped out from between his lips. "I am not easy, but I can behad."
Remus chuckled as they trudged side by side up through the sand, straight into their second chance.