American Pie

When Remus went to check on Sirius the next morning, he was still asleep. He lay face down on the mattress, head turned to the left so he could breathe. Remus watched curiously as his face twitched every few seconds, sort of like when a dog had a dream about chasing a squirrel. At this point, Remus would not be entirely surprised if Sirius started slobbering over the bed. Stranger things have happened. Harboring a prissy Englishman in one’s barn, for example.

Englishman might be a bit of a stretch, though; the boy looked to be about Remus’ age, maybe a year or two older. He did say he bought a plane ticket, and while Remus didn’t know much (or anything) about planes, he supposed you probably had to be a legal adult to purchase a ticket on your own. Maybe things were different in England, though.

For half of the previous night, Remus lay awake, tossing and turning, hoping to God that Sirius didn’t sleep walk. He doubted that he would be able to make his way across the entire farm without any help, or without falling into any animal enclosures, but he stirred nonetheless. Remus also worried that Sirius wouldn’t be able to get any sleep at all, due to the guaranteed discomfort of the mattress. Then he mentally berated himself for worrying in the first place, because Sirius should take what he could get and be happy with it. Beggars can’t be choosers, or whatever.

Long story short, it had been a very sleepless night.

By the looks of it, though, Sirius was doing just fine with what Remus gave him. The blanket was curled up in his arms, pressed against his chest where he lay flat on the bed. He seemed to be hugging it, which was oddly endearing and very conflicting with the rigid standard Remus had held Sirius to in his mind for the last 24 hours.

Careful not to make much noise, Remus crouched down and set a plate next to the mattress. Mickey had made waffles for breakfast, using the fancy waffle maker one of her well-off girl friends bought her for her birthday. The bright-red color of the machine had stood out so starkly against the rest of Hope’s stained cast-iron skillets and tarnished pots, it was almost comical. Judging by the half-burnt yet oddly soggy-looking appearance of the waffles in front of him, Remus decided that a fancy contraption could only do so much when its user was about as useful in the kitchen as a slingshot in a gunfight.

Remus found that the waffles tasted half-alright if you doused them in an overwhelming amount of syrup, hence the bottle of Mrs. Butterworth’s that he then placed next to the plate. As a last minute decision, and because it’s how he liked his own, Remus also grabbed a bottle of whipped cream and chocolate sprinkles on the way out of the door. He set those down next to the syrup, too.

Crossing his legs into a more comfortable position, Remus reached forward and lightly prodded Sirius’ shoulder with a nervous hand. He flinched at the contact, but remained asleep. Remus cleared his throat a bit. “Sirius?” He whispered, leaning forward a bit in hopes that his words would take. After a few more light taps, still to no avail, Remus picked up the plate of waffles and waved it in front of Sirius’ nose. “Sirius,” he crooned, drawing the name out in a sing-song manner. When the other boy’s nose scrunched up, brows drawing together, Remus suppressed a laugh.

Sirius’ eyes popped open, staring directly at Remus in surprise. “What—” he started, glancing at Remus, then down at the waffles. Placing the plate back on the floor, Remus smiled as Sirius buried his head into the mattress. The sound of a deep inhale was muffled by the bed, and Sirius’ back rose with the effort. Remus leaned forward, resting his elbows on his crossed knees. Slowly but surely, Sirius pushed himself to a sitting position, rubbing his eyes with the heels of his hands. They were now facing one another, Remus on the floor and Sirius on the mattress, both in criss-cross positions. “How long was I out?”

Remus shrugged, regarding Sirius as he cracked each of his knuckles, then his neck, then his back. “ ‘Bout a day.”

Blinking with heavy-lidded eyes, Sirius let out a breath of air. “A day? Jesus.” He looked down as he fiddled with his fingers, then up at Remus a bit sheepishly. “Sorry. I don’t mean to… intrude or anything.” Sirius stared as Remus’ response died on the way to his mouth. He was already planning on letting Sirius stay, he’d decided as much yesterday. But there was something so daunting about the way the other boy’s almost-silver eyes pinned him down with their attention. Remus didn’t like it. He felt like he was being stripped naked, like Sirius already knew he’d gained Remus’ approval and he was just waiting for Remus to say the words. When Sirius’ probing stare faltered, though, and it became obvious that he actually wasn’t so self-assured, Remus cleared his throat, shaking his head. He was just being stupid.

“No, not at all. I don’t mind, um, if you stay.”

Sirius drew his head back in surprise, furrowing his eyebrows. “Really? You’re serious?”

Scratching the back of his neck, Remus shrugged again. “Well, if I let you go, you’ll probably be mugged, then kidnapped, then have your eyes scooped out and sold on the black market. Happened to the last person I turned away, ended up on the news the next week. Felt awful ‘bout it. Couldn’t let that happen again— does terrible things to a man’s conscience.”

Sirius’ brows drew impossibly closer, and his countenance gained a slightly-nauseous air. “You’re— are you messing with me again?”

Shaking his head, Remus said, “ ‘Fraid not. Although, they’d probably also take your hair. You’re low hanging fruit.” Sirius dragged an absent minded hand over his scalp, like he was making sure all of his hair was still there. His eyes bore into Remus’, and Remus was again pinned down. When he couldn’t take it any longer, Remus let out a low chortle, shaking his head. “God, you’re gullible. We’ll have to work on that,” he asserted, and Sirius looked at him incredulously until he let out a laugh of his own. It was more a relieved sigh, actually. “I am serious, though. You can stay here, if you want.”

“Yeah. Yeah, that’d be great,” Sirius said. He didn’t say how long he was planning to stay, and Remus didn’t ask. He didn’t really care, if he was being honest. Sirius’ eyes dragged themselves away from Remus’ until they returned to the plate of now-cold waffles on the floor.

“Oh! Yeah, brought you some food. You… know what waffles are, right?”

Scoffing, Sirius sent an amused glare at Remus. “Yes, I know what waffles are. I’m not some otherworldly creature, Remus. ‘M just from London.”

Remus shrugged, picking up the fork and knife and handing them to Sirius. “Might as well be. Never met anyone from London before. What’s it like?”

Taking the plate into his lap, Sirius began cutting a piece off the waffle. “The city’s pretty nice. Or at least most of the places I’ve been to. Some parts are right nasty, though.” He took the piece off his fork, chewing with a bit of a curled lip.

Remus hummed, biting his lower lip to suppress a smile. “Do you like the waffles?”

Sirius nodded enthusiastically, swallowing his bite and immediately going to cut another with forced eagerness. He popped a second piece into his mouth, smiling at Remus as he did so. His eyes were watering a bit, and Remus watched with amusement as the poor thing struggled getting it down. When he couldn’t watch any longer, Remus snorted and grabbed the bottle of whipped cream. He squirted a dollop on top of the waffle, then drizzled a sickly amount of syrup on top of that. Sirius watched, frozen, eyes wide in horror. “What are you doing?” He asked, the fork still suspended in his hand.

“You’ll see,” Remus said, then popped the top off of the sprinkles and scattered a generous amount all over the plate. With one more shake for good measure, he closed the lid and sat back on the heels of his hands. He personally would’ve added chocolate sauce, but they were regretfully out. “It’s not gonna bite you. Try it, it’ll taste better.”

Suddenly, Sirius’ mouth tilted down into a frown. His eyes weren’t on the waffles, but instead on Remus’ arms. “What happened?” He asked.

Remus drew his head back. “What do you mean?”

Sirius gestured to Remus’ arms and the small, pink scratches that lined the length of them. “Oh,” Remus laughed, running a palm over his bicep. “They’re just from lifting the hay. Stuff’s terribly scratchy.”

Sirius didn’t seem convinced, because his eyes were still pinned on Remus’ arms. His frown deepened. “Hey, I swear,” Remus reassured, craning his neck to try and get into Sirius’ line of sight. When the other boy looked up at him, he seemed to be searching for something in Remus’ eyes. It didn’t seem like he found it, though, because he just let out a breath and nodded.

Internally shaking himself off, he cleared his throat and pushed the plate of waffles towards Sirius.

He looked apprehensive, which seemed to be a common trend with whatever food Remus put in front of him. What did they feed this kid at home that made him look so disdainfully towards a plate of waffles? Smoothing out his expression, Sirius straightened his back and cut off a piece. Some of the cream fell off his fork on the way to his mouth, landing back on the plate. He chewed thoughtfully for a moment, and Remus watched as he licked a bit of syrup from where it grazed his lower lip. “Good?” Remus asked.

Nodding frantically, this time without the insincerity, Sirius swallowed. “So good,” he mumbled around the food. Remus laughed as the other boy began shovelling the rest of the waffle down his throat, cutting it up with increased speed.

When he finished, he wiped a hand across his mouth. “Got any water?” He asked.

“Yeah,” Remus said, grabbing the plastic cup from behind him and passing it over to an eager Sirius, who chugged the contents in record speed. A lone drop trickled down the pale column of his throat as he tilted his head back. After he’d downed it all, he let out a quiet burp, which seemed to startle him as much as it did Remus. He looked at Remus with wide eyes. Remus only snorted, which made Sirius snort too. Leaning forward again, Remus smirked. “Jesus, you inhaled that. Could’ve sworn I fed you last night.”

They both looked over to where the plate of biscuits and gravy, now cleared of any food, lay on the other side of the bed. The sweet tea was untouched, though. Shrugging, Sirius scooted back so he could lay out on the bed, head leaning against the wooden panels of the wall. Remus traced the boy’s side profile with his eyes, internally sighing a bit. Some things in life weren’t fair, Remus guessed. Looking at Sirius from the side was like looking at another version of the same painting— different, but alluring all the same. “Yeah, woke up late last night. Thanks for the food, sorry I wasn’t up when you dropped it off. I was knackered.”

“Yeah, I could tell,” Remus laughed, remembering the boy’s labored breathing and halo of black hair. “What’s wrong with the tea?”

Sirius turned his head, then, glaring daggers at Remus. “That,” he said, pointing an antagonizing finger at the cup. “Is not tea. Whatever that is is a disgrace to English people everywhere. Sugar water, maybe. Not tea.”

Rolling his eyes, Remus said, “God, so dramatic. Drink it or don’t, I don’t care. You’re missing out, though.”

“I assure you, I’m not.”

“Sure you are. What could possibly be so much better about British tea that warrants such a temper tantrum?”

“English tea. And I’m not having a temper tantrum! I’m merely stating the obvious fact that that is not, and will not, ever be tea.”

“Is everyone from London such a prissy drama queen, or is that just you?”

Clicking his tongue, Sirius shook his head. “Yeah, whatever.”

“I wouldn’t have given it to you if I knew you’d be mortally offended by a cup of—”

“—It’s not tea!”

Another laugh forced itself up Remus’ throat. “You’re too easy.”

Sirius’ eyes were pinned on Remus, dancing all over his face. His mouth was slightly ajar, and he let out a curt breath. “You—” He started, then promptly shut his mouth. Shaking his head, he ripped his gaze away.

After Remus had wiped the tears off of his cheeks, he revisited the conversation they’d been having about London, before Sirius started eating. “You said most of the places you’d visited in London were nice. You haven’t seen all of it? I thought you lived there?” If Remus lived in a big city, and not the podunk town that he’d explored every inch of in the first few years of his childhood, he’d certainly not waste the opportunity.

Sirius tapped a finger on his lap and crossed one plaid-pant leg over the other. “You were right, before. I never did get out of the house much.” He was staring at the slanted wall in front of him.

“Okay,” Remus said. “Why?” Shrugging, Sirius didn’t seem willing to offer up any more information. Remus let it be. “Do you miss it? London?”

“A bit. It’s really different here.”

Remus couldn’t really agree, because he’d only ever lived in one place his whole life. Here was normal for him. He didn’t know anything else, and he reckoned he probably never would. This was it. This farm, this family. He’d likely end up just like his dad— an argumentative sack of shit who didn’t care for anyone but himself, and occasionally the person who passed him his next beer or carton of Marlboro Reds. A man who didn’t look twice at his wife, or at his children. “I bet,” Remus said.

“Not going back, though,” Sirius declared, still gazing at the wall.

Eyes widening a bit, Remus said, “Never?”

“Nope,” Sirius drawled, enunciating the p with a pop.

Swallowing, Remus nodded. “Alright.”

Sirius swiveled his head around. “Alright?”

“Yeah, I don’t mind. You can stay for however long you need. We have the space, and as long as you don’t insult sweet tea in front of me again, I won’t throw you out.”

He scoffed. “No promises.”

They stayed like that for a few minutes— Sirius laying against the wall, staring at the wood in front of him. Remus sitting next to the mattress, legs crossed, eyes on his shoes. He still didn’t know why Sirius was here, or how. Again, he wasn’t very informed about the details of intercontinental travel, but there was no way it wasn’t expensive. The suit and shoes, too. Remus wasn’t sure who Sirius Black was, or how he managed to end up on his doorstep, but he wanted to find out. If that meant pilfering a few leftovers from the kitchen and dealing with a bit of a bitchy attitude, then so be it.

Suddenly, Remus hopped to his feet. Sirius’ eyes followed the action. “If you need a shower, there’s one just behind the barn. It’s a bit moldy, and I’d offer to let you use the one inside, but…”

Shaking his head, Sirius said, “Nah, it’s fine. Moldy shower it is.” He also got to his feet, raising an arm to sniff beneath his pit. He scrunched his nose. “I do smell a bit sour.”

“Yeah, a bit.”

“Oh, come off it.”

Both laughing, they made their way down the ladder. Sirius still did so apprehensively, so Remus opted to carry all the dishes. When they got outside, Remus pointed Sirius in the direction of the outdoor shower, and they parted ways.

Back in the main house, Remus pushed the side door open with his foot. Stepping inside and surveying his surroundings, he deemed it safe to head towards the sink. He placed all of them down to begin scrubbing.

“Where are all those from?”

“Wh— God!” Remus startled, swiveling around and placing his hands in front of him in surprise. Lyall was standing behind him, looking at Remus curiously while scratching his hip over his striped pajama bottoms. Clearing his throat, Remus crossed his arms over his chest. “They’re from my room.”

Lyall looked like he wanted to question him further, but opted out of it and let out a noise of noncommittal indifference before walking out of the kitchen. Letting out a deep breath and uncrossing his arms, Remus deflated. He resumed washing the dishes and resolved to use paper plates to bring Sirius his food in the future.

However, as he was scraping dried gravy off of a plate, a thought struck him: he didn’t give Sirius any towels. Abandoning the dishes, he ran to a linen closet and grabbed a few before hurrying out the door. When he remembered he hadn’t put his shoes back on, he swiveled back around and threw on a pair of beat-up Chuck Taylors.

As he speed-walked across the farm, the warm morning atmosphere blanketed him from all around, enveloping him in a hug. The air smelled a bit sweet, and was a little muggy. It was probably going to rain later.

When he got to the shower, it was empty. A quick survey told him that it had already been used, if the wet floor was any indication. Tentatively, Remus made his way to the front of the barn and cracked open the door. Leaning against it, he yelled through the gap, “Sirius?”

After a moment, “Yeah?”

“Are you… clothed?”

A laugh, and then, “Yeah.”

Remus pushed the door all the way open. Sirius was leaning against the wall next to the ladder, tying his shoelaces. Because he didn’t have a towel, the “Everything is Bigger in Texas” shirt was soaked through with water. Sirius’ already-black hair was now an even inkier shade, and fell over his face as he tied. When he was done, he looked at Remus, then at the towels in his hands, and scoffed. “Sorry,” Remus winced.

“ ‘S okay. Just hope I didn’t flash anyone while I was changing.”

Smiling, Remus handed the towels over to Sirius. “Like I said, no one really comes out this far.”

“Yeah,” Sirius nodded. He tilted his head to the side and began drying his hair with one of the smaller cloths. As he did so, Remus noticed the faint purple that painted the area beneath both of his eyes. Remus’ mouth dropped open, and he also detected a yellow sheen that dusted across his left cheekbone.

“What the fuck?” He blurted out, causing Sirius to stop ringing his hair out with the towel and look at Remus with furrowed brows.

“What?”

“How did you manage to get beat up in the, like, five minutes I was gone?” Remus asked, pointing to the bruises that marked up half of Sirius’ face.

Sirius suddenly looked very uncomfortable as he dropped the towel on the ground and crossed his arms. “I didn’t.” Remus blinked and Sirius sighed. “I was wearing concealer.” Remus’ confusion must have been pretty fucking obvious, because Sirius sighed. “I— some lady at the airport let me borrow some. She said it helps cover things, so.”

“How—” Remus started, but Sirius was quick to interrupt.

“Look, I’m not going to talk about it, okay? It’s fine.”

Remus noticed the way the Adam’s apple in Sirius’ throat bobbed up and down as he looked anywhere but at Remus. “Okay.”

Eyeing Remus warily, Sirius said, “Okay? You’re not going to push it?”

“No, I’m not going to push it.” Remus raised one shoulder and jutted his bottom lip out in contemplation. “If anything, it’ll make you look more Texan. Less prim and proper.”

Sirius scoffed and ran a hand through his damp hair. After a moment of reflection, Remus clapped both of his calloused hands together. “Alright. We’re going on a trip.”

“A trip?” Sirius repeated, eyes squinted.

“Yep. To get you some clothes to match your new look. I don’t have any concealer, so we’ll just have to lean into the whole rugged delinquent thing. You might want to turn that shirt inside out, though.”

“Why would I need clothes to sit around in this barn all day?”

Smirking, Remus said, “You didn’t think I’d let you come to Texas without going through all the motions, did you?”

Ten minutes later and a close call with Hope—who was up early feeding the horses—found the two of them standing in the driveway, next to Remus’ muted-red pickup truck.

“Well, it’s definitely… a vehicle,” Sirius said, lips pressed together as he raked his eyes over the 1968 Ford. On his 16th birthday, Remus’ dad had taken him to the junkyard to pick out something to fix up. Naturally, he’d chosen the Ford, and the next several months consisted of nothing but his pronounced dedication to making the truck driveable. Where it had started off as a hubcapless piece of crap, Remus now held immense pride for his car.

Remus picked off a piece of already-chipping paint from the passenger-side door, flinging it to the ground. “Sorry, sir,” he said, trying his best to fabricate an English accent. “Were you expecting another one of daddy’s Rolls Royces?”

Sirius shot Remus a sidelong glance. “That was awful.”

Snorting, Remus shrugged. “Yeah, well I’d like to hear you give my accent a try.”

“No thanks.”

“Priss.”

“Hick.” The ghost of a smile danced across Sirius’ lips. Remus leaned against the car door, crossing one leg over the other. He tossed his keys up, following them with his eyes as he did so before grabbing them right out of the air and fixing the other boy with a pointed glare.

“Listen, this truck—” he patted the truck’s side, “—is ten times more capable than any fancy limousine or luxury car you’ve stepped foot in.”

Rolling his eyes, Sirius interrupted, “Yeah whatever. Are we going, or what?”

Remus blew a curl out of his eyes. “Fine.” Sirius turned on his heel, heading for the driver’s side. Remus stopped him with a hand on his forearm, and Sirius ripped it out of his grasp like he’d been burned. Internally cringing, Remus cleared his throat. “What are you doing? You’re sure as hell not driving.”

Sirius looked perplexed for a moment before gaining an air of understanding and throwing his head back with a groan. “You Americans are so strange. The passenger’s seat is on the wrong side.”

“Uh, or maybe the English are the strange ones and we’re all normal.”

Sirius seemed to ponder this for a moment, squinting his eyes before shaking his head and opening the actual passenger’s side door. “No, I don’t think so.”

“Bitch,” Remus muttered, making his way to his own seat. He stuck the key in the ignition, awaiting the telltale rumble that signified his truck roaring to life. However, he was met with nothing but silence. He turned the key again. Nothing. Sirius snorted from beside him. “Um…” he mumbled. “This usually doesn’t happen.”

“What’d you say about it being ten times more capable?”

Without looking away from the ignition, Remus tossed the keys to the side, hitting Sirius right in the face. “Few more bruises couldn’t hurt,” he said, crossing his arms and leaning back in his seat.

After grumbling a few complaints, Sirius snapped his fingers and twisted his torso to face Remus. Resting one elbow on the center console, he smirked. “You know, I have a better idea of how we can get to the shopping center.”

Shopping center. Remus suppressed another eye roll, but raised an eyebrow nonetheless. “Yes?”

Clicking his tongue, Sirius kicked the door open and jumped down onto the dirt. “I’ll show you.”

Apprehensively, Remus grabbed his keys and followed Sirius as he led him past the driveway and onto the main roads. They walked in tandem, gravel crunching under their respective shoes. Unsurprisingly, Sirius walked with impeccable posture— he held his shoulders back and chin high, as though he was resting a penny atop it. The atmosphere buzzed with the threat of an imminent storm. Yesterday’s comforting sun was replaced by a hauntingly-gray sky and the eerie whistle of wind. It sounded as though someone was whispering in his ear from behind; Remus repressed a shiver. He only hoped the sky didn’t decide to open up while they were walking. Speaking of, “Were you planning on having us walk all the way there? You don’t even know where I’m taking you,” Remus said, taking a glance at Sirius who was watching the road with intent.

Instead of responding, Sirius just smirked, and when an old jalopy sputtered its way towards them on the opposite side of the road, his eyes lit up. “Watch this,” he said, raising his inside-out shirt over his head and ripping it off in one fell swoop. It was back on, the correct way this time, as fast as he had taken it off. However, not fast enough for the almost-translucent tinge of Sirius’ pale skin to escape Remus’ notice. Remus watched, transfixed, as Sirius flipped his hair over his head, running his fingers through it a bit before flipping it back over. He shot Remus a glance, biting his lip and sticking his thumb out in front of him in view of the approaching car.

Sure enough, the jalopy slowed down, engine spitting a bit with the exertion. When it finally came to a stop right in front of the two of them, Remus heard the whining of a window crank as a girl was revealed in the passenger’s seat. She took her sunglasses off, propping them atop her voluminous blond curls and pinning Sirius with an intrigued look.

Offering a smirk, Sirius placed one hand beside the window and leaned down to be eye-level with the passenger. “Hello, there,” he sang, clearly upping the poshness of his accent a notch. “Terribly sorry, my friend and I are a bit lost. Could you give us a lift?” He batted his eyelashes and Remus could do nothing but stand next to him and watch the scene unfold. He was simply an innocent bystander. Invisible.

The girl’s eyes were locked on Sirius’. Her mouth fell open when her gaze found the words on Sirius’ t-shirt, and she swallowed a bit when he tilted his head ever so slightly to the right. She looked between Sirius and Remus for a moment before turning her head to whoever was in the driver’s seat to engage in a quiet conversation. Sirius looked at Remus, biting his lip in the apparent effort to stop himself from laughing.

After a few seconds, the girl turned to Sirius with a smile on her face. She plopped the sunglasses back over her eyes and wet her bottom lip with her tongue. “Well, alright. Where do you need to go?”

Out of the girl’s line of sight, Sirius reached out his fist for Remus to bump. This was so ridiculous. Remus bumped it anyway. “Oh, thanks so much. Where was it we were headed, Remus?” Sirius asked, swivelling his head in Remus’ direction. The girl followed suit, her eyes raking over Remus’ ripped blue jeans and brown corduroy jacket.

Startled by the sudden attention, Remus swallowed and scratched his neck. “Uh… well, we— just, um…” He locked eyes with the girl and immediately looked away. “If you could drop us off at The Green, that’d be— we’d be real thankful.” Remus nodded, pointedly ignoring the amused stare Sirius was giving him. The Green was where most kids his age liked to hang out; it was really the only place with more than one shop in the whole town.

“You heard the bloke. The Green.”

The girl smiled, resting an arm out the window and tapping a single nail on the door’s exterior. “Gotcha.” She turned back to the driver and relayed the information.

“What the hell was that?” Sirius whispered to Remus, a smile playing on his lips.

“Shut the fuck up,” Remus snarled, face heating up as he looked anywhere but at the other boy.

“ ‘Kay. Hop in, then,” she said, giving the two of them one last lingering look before righting herself in her seat and rolling down the window.

Sirius threw his hands in front of him with a flourish, smiling as he winked at Remus. Sputtering a bit, Remus followed Sirius into the back of the car. He noticed the vague, lingering stench of cigarettes present as he buckled himself in, and also a mysterious wet stain on the car’s interior roof. Remus’ legs were too long to fit comfortably, and his knees were constricted by the back of the passenger’s seat. Sirius, the annoyingly perfect son of a bitch that he was, had no such issues. He crossed one leg over the other and leaned against the door a bit, angling his body towards Remus.

Turning up the radio, the girl glanced back at them both. The man in the front seat didn’t spare them a single glance, opting to keep his eyes on the road with white knuckles wrapped around the steering wheel.

“You two got names?” She asked, arm resting on the center console.

Sirius looked over at Remus, eyes dancing with humor. Remus was going to kill him. “Remus,” he coughed.

She nodded, then turned to Sirius. “And you?”

“Sirius. Pleasure,” he said, reaching out to take her hand in his own. When she accepted, he placed his other hand around the two already linked, smiling sweetly. The girl let out a shaky breath, biting a glossed lip.

The eyes of the man in the front found the pair’s intertwined hands and he cleared his throat. “Amy,” he expressed through gritted teeth,

The girl—Amy—rolled her eyes and retracted her hand. Sirius laughed into his palm, pressing the side of his face into the seat. “Come on, Jer. I was just being friendly. Chill out.”

The man scoffed. “Yeah, and if I remember correctly, being friendly was exactly how you ended up with your jeans around your ankles behind Kim’s house the first time we met.”

“Jeremy!”

Remus looked at Sirius, whose face was now red with the effort to conceal his laughter. You’re insane, Remus mouthed, and Sirius just wiped a few tears from his eyes. Shaking his head with a smile, Remus looked back to the apparent couple, who were now sitting in strained silence. Amy turned the radio all the way up, the words of a Fleetwood Mac song easing some of the tension.

And if you don't love me now
You will never love me again
I can still hear you saying
We would never break the chain

The rest of the car ride passed in a similar manner; Sirius holding back laughter at some snide comment made by the man, followed by sounds of protest and annoyance from Amy. Remus was content to look out the window at the rapidly-graying sky, ignoring all the shameless flirting Sirius was partaking in right next to him.

When they got to The Green, the man all but kicked them out of the car with his own boot. They hurried out, Remus almost tripping as he did so. As the two of them wandered away from the car, Amy stuck her head out the window. “See you around?” She yelled, eyes on Sirius’ retreating form.

“Don’t think so!” He shouted back, giggling and pushing Remus to walk faster.

They passed a few miscellaneous stores and more than one judgmental onlooker— undoubtedly glaring daggers at Sirius’ shirt. Sirius raked a hand through his hair. “God, that was fun. I never do stuff like that.”

Remus felt his jaw go slack. “You’re telling me you’ve never done that before?”

Fixing Remus with a squinty glare, Sirius said, “No. Why?”

“Nothing. It’s just— you seemed like you knew what you were doing, is all.”

Sirius shrugged and turned his head away. “ ‘Dunno. Guess I’m just a natural. Poor girl couldn’t resist,” he smirked.

“Oh, God, turn it off.”

“Well, we got here. Was that not the goal?”

“Oh, it certainly was, sir.” Remus grabbed Sirius’ arm, and Remus was happy to see that he didn’t yank it away this time. He dragged the other boy into a small thrift store, the one he himself usually frequented. They were immediately hit with a gust of cool air, and the sound of a bell ringing to signify their arrival. Sirius wiped his shoes on the welcome mat while Remus surveyed the scene. There wasn’t anyone else currently shopping, so they had the entire place to themselves.

Two shelves lined the wall next to the entrance, each one filled with various boots, heeled shoes, and sneakers. In front of them were countless racks of clothing, separated by gender and size. It was in this very shop that Remus had gotten the corduroy jacket he currently wore. It was one of his all time favorites, and he rarely took it off, hence the pungent smell it often emitted. Remus made a mental catalogue of everything they’d need to get: shoes, because the leather Oxfords simply weren’t cutting it, a few pairs of jeans, some shirts, and maybe a jacket or two. The stuff this place sold was dirt cheap, so Remus could afford to be a little reckless in his spending.

Before he could drag Sirius to the racks, though, his eyes caught on a fiery head of red hair behind the counter. Lily Evans’ face lit up when she saw him, and he made his way over to her with a smile.

“Remus!” She called out, reaching for him with outstretched arms over the service desk, stepping on her toes to envelop him in a hug. He returned the gesture with ease, letting her bury her face against his chest. The height difference—and the entire wooden counter separating the two of them—made it a bit of an awkward feat, but Remus didn’t find it in himself to care.

Lily was one of his oldest friends, and the first person to speak out against the people who bullied him for his name and gangly stature all throughout elementary school. She knew all too well what it was like to be picked on, and their mutual hatred towards bullies was actually what sparked their friendship. Lily was the type of friend that, no matter how much time or distance was placed between you and them, would always be waiting with a smile and encouraging gesture as soon as their eyes met your own.

Stepping back, they smiled at each other for a few moments. Lily had always been beautiful— what with her eccentric hair, porcelain skin, and the dusting of freckles that decorated her nose— but the summer air had clearly done her nothing but favors. A light, rosy tinge painted her fair complexion, and her bright-green eyes sparkled as they looked at Remus. She wore a pair of flared jeans and white, flowy top, complete with a gold-statement belt threaded through her pant loops. “It’s good to see you, Lils. Didn’t know you were working today?” He questioned, and Sirius walked up to stand next to him.

Clicking her tongue, she pushed a rogue strand of hair behind her ear. “Well, I wasn’t, but someone insisted that we needed the extra hands. Clearly, I was lied to,” she sighed, gesturing to the empty store.

As if on cue, that someone busted out from behind the staff-only doors, a bright grin plastered on his face. “Lily! Do we have a custom— oh!” James Potter stopped short as his eyes met Remus’.

In the midst of an ever-changing world, it was comforting to know that some things would always stay the same. The sun rises and falls each day, people are born, people die, and James Potter’s hair is never well-kept. The black strands stick up in every direction, threatening to poke out the eye of anyone who dared to veer too close. He pushed his wireframe glasses up his nose and rested a hand on the counter next to Lily.

While it was true that Remus had become friends with Lily first, with Lily also came James. They’d lived next to one another since early childhood, and were completely inseparable all the while. Until high school, when their whole will-they-won’t-they thing began. Frankly, it was exhausting for Remus, and he wasn’t even involved. “Remus! You didn’t call and say you were stopping by!”

Lily turned to him, lips pursed. “He didn’t know I was working,” she relayed with a small tilt of the head.

Crossing his arms, James swiveled around to face Lily completely. “Yes, Lily, because Remus only cares if you’re working,” he said, expression neutral. Then, suddenly, his eyebrows shot up in tandem with both of his hands. “Hello! I’m also here!”

“Might as well not be,” she mumbled, looking the other direction.

“What does that even mean?”

“Oh, nothing. Just that it’s no surprise that you’ve been in the back room all day, leaving me to deal with all the customers.”

James huffed, exasperated. He looked between Lily and Remus, as if looking for some kind of reassurance that she wasn’t making any sense. Remus just shrugged. “I told you I was doing my summer reading! And there haven't been any customers all day!”

“There’s customers right here!” Lily yelled, gesturing to Remus and Sirius.

“That’s literally just Remus, Lily!”

Sirius cleared his throat, and James and Lily turned towards him in unison. “Dreadfully sorry, but would you mind pointing me in the direction of your finest t-shirt? I’m in need of something… new.” He shot Remus a sidelong glance, and Remus suppressed his own laughter at the idiocy of his two best friends and the forced formality of one Sirius Black.

Looking at Remus, James asked, “Who is this? Is he British?”

“English.”

“Ignore him,” Remus said. “But yes. We do need some new clothes, actually. I’m sure we’ll be fine on our own, though.”

“No, I’ll help!” Lily exclaimed, much to James’ chagrin. To get out from behind the desk, though, she had to squeeze past the other boy. James placed a hand on either of her hips as she did so, and Lily stilled for a moment before quickly shuffling away. James watched her walk off with a little wrinkle between his brows and a lip between his teeth. He sat down into a wooden chair, plopped a book open in his lap, and began reading.

When Lily reached Remus and Sirius, she looked between the two of them with a twinkle in her eye. However, just for a second, her gaze danced across Sirius’ face, eyebrows furrowed. Clapping her hands together, the uncertainty was gone as soon as it had arrived. She asked, “What are we looking for?”

“Your finest blouse, please—”

“Nope,” Remus interrupted, running a hand through his curls. Sirius frowned. “We need something that’ll help him not get mugged, ideally.”

“What, that shirt wasn’t doing the trick? I haven’t seen that thing in years, Rem!”

Laughing, Remus nodded. “Neither have I.” Clearing his throat, he said, “So, what do you say? Help us find some anti-mugging clothes?”

Lily offered Sirius a small smile as she twisted one of her gold earrings between two fingers, nodding her head. “Well, that can certainly be arranged,” she said, side-stepping off to the racks.

As Lily and Remus sifted through the onslaught of clothing, Sirius stood behind them. He was keen on offering various “insightful” comments, as he’d put it, regarding the quality of some of the shirts and jeans. However much he talked about disliking what the two of them were picking out, Remus noticed the muted gleam in Sirius’ eyes as he watched Lily pile various punk-rock t-shirts over her shoulder for him to try on.

“Hey, what about those?” Sirius asked, a bit awkwardly, pointing to a pair of Levi’s boot-cut jeans on one of the racks Lily was looking through.

She promptly grabbed the pair, holding them up before herself and nodding. “Yeah, these are nice. Someone just dropped them off yesterday, you’re lucky.” Leaning her weight onto one hip, Lily passed the pair to Sirius with a grin. Remus was sorting through a stack of long sleeves, looking at the interaction through his peripheral. “I’m Lily, by the way,” she said, flipping her hair over her shoulder and returning to her sifting.

“Sirius,” the boy responded, a bit absentmindedly as he roamed his eyes over the jeans. Remus couldn’t help but smile as Sirius took his lower lip between his teeth and inspected every inch of the pair, seemingly enraptured. They were a far cry from the suit pants he’d shown up in the day prior, so Remus couldn’t blame him for finding them cool. A few silver button-studs lined the top of the back pockets, and the knees were a bit faded from overuse. Hell, they looked like the type of jeans one of the cowboy’s on T.V. would wear.

After that, Sirius was content to delegate which clothes he’d be trying on, nodding his head enthusiastically at some and rearing back in abhorrence at others. Remus noticed he had a general dislike for anything disco or hippie, instead opting for items of a punkier style. He also had a pension for anything denim or leather, Remus found; he even managed to unearth a black, leather jacket from below countless other denim and corduroy ones, hidden all the way in the back corner of the store.

Soon, Remus and Lily found themselves sitting in the wooden rocking chairs perched next to the single changing room behind the front counter, waiting for Sirius to walk out sporting his first official Texan outfit. Lily had even dragged out two small chalkboards for her and Remus to write scores on.

One of Remus’ ankles rested on his opposite knee, bobbing up and down a bit to the soft music that filtered through the shop’s speakers.

Ooh... someone to be kind to in between the dark and the light
Ooh... coming right behind you swear I'm gonna find you
One of these nights
One of these dreams

After a few minutes, Sirius pushed the curtain aside and stood in front of them, one knee jutted out and a hand in the pocket of his straight-legged jeans. He wore a pair of brown, heeled boots and a black Black Sabbath t-shirt; Remus had picked that one out. When Lily hooted and encouraged him to give a little spin, he did so with a flourish and a wicked grin plastered on his face. The t-shirt accentuated his arms, Remus decided—it was a bit too small around his broad shoulders and even more so around his broader biceps. The jeans were nothing special, in Remus’ opinion; they were a medium wash and hung low on Sirius’ beltless hips.

He ran a hand through his shoulder-length hair and turned this way and that in the floor-length mirror next to the curtain. “It doesn’t offer much in the ass department, I don’t think,” Sirius said, turning around so he could get a better look. Lily snorted and Remus shook his head. “Well?” Sirius asked, now facing his evaluators.

Remus looked to Lily, who was already scribbling something on her board. He followed suit and promptly held it up for Sirius to see. Lily did the same, craning her neck to see what Remus had written.

“A nine?” She asked, an open-mouthed smile on her face. She crossed one leg over the other and leaned back in her chair. “Really liked it then, Remus?”

Remus sputtered a bit, looking at the cursive “7” Lily had drawn on her own board. “Well, I dunno. The shirt’s— the shirt’s nice, I guess,” he said, looking away and promptly erasing his number. When he looked at Sirius through his downturned lashes, the other boy was wearing a shit-eating grin. Remus rolled his eyes.

The next outfit had Lily’s name all over it, and Remus could tell Sirius wasn’t as taken by it as he was with the last one. He tucked a casual maroon button-up into a pair of high-waisted, straight-legged black jeans, finished off with some leather loafers. The long-sleeved shirt was rolled up to his elbows, and he tucked a lock of hair behind his ear as he assessed the outfit in the mirror.

“Lily, you’ve just dressed him like James,” Remus said through a scoff.

Immediately straightening her back, Lily’s eyebrows drew together. “What? No, I didn’t.”

Sirius and Remus both turned their heads to where James sat behind the counter, summer reading book open on his lap. The only difference between his outfit and the one Lily picked for Sirius was the color of the button up. Remus turned back to Lily with a single raised eyebrow, and she deflated in her seat. Sirius nodded happily upon reading the scores they gave him— Remus a 7.5 and Lily a 9.

It was the third outfit, though, that Sirius looked absolutely elated to be wearing, and Remus could hardly blame him. The jeans that he had gushed over back at the racks were worth every previous reaction garnered from Sirius. They hugged his thighs like they were tailored to do so, spreading open a bit wider past the knee to drape over the tops of the same brown, heeled boots worn with the first outfit. He wore a simple copper-colored belt and plain white t-shirt, but the main attraction had to have been the black leather jacket. Sirius looked like a male model in one of Hope’s GQ magazine editions. He looked cool. If the way he turned this way and that, messing with his hair and outfit was any indication, he knew it, too.

“Now these—” Sirius remarked, once again turning around and tilting his head to look at himself in the mirror, “do great things for my ass.” When he heard Remus’ scoff, he swiveled to face him. With a hand on his hip, he said, “What? You don’t think so, Remus?”

Remus swallowed. He chanced a glance into the mirror, where Sirius’ ass was in full view, and he couldn’t find it in himself to disagree. Like he’d said before, Sirius was like a male model. All male models had good asses. Remus felt a twinge of jealousy form in the pit of his stomach, which he immediately brushed off. “Don’t be weird,” he said, scratching the back of his neck and looking up at the ceiling.

“Yeah, whatever,” Sirius scoffed, turning to Lily. “Lily likes them, don’t you, Lily?”

Lily pried her amused eyes off of Remus and pinned them on the boy in question. She tilted her head to the side and clicked her tongue. “They’re something, that’s for sure. They look good on you.”

After sending Lily an appreciative grin, Sirius’ gaze returned to Remus. He stuck a hand out towards Lily, as if she had directly conceded his previous claims. “See?”

Shaking his head again, Remus wrote his number and waited for Lily to do so. As much as he wanted to shit on Sirius, Remus couldn’t deny that the outfit did look good on him. It suited him much better than what he’d wandered onto Remus’ doorstep in. He wondered if Sirius had ever gotten to explore a style of his own, back in London. It wasn’t likely, Remus decided; Sirius looked at himself in the mirror as if looking at himself for the first time ever.

Sirius clapped both hands in front of himself. “Nines across the board! Cheers, lads.”

Shooting Remus an entertained smile, Lily drew her head forward a bit. Remus scoffed and mouthed I know.

Soon enough, the three of them were ripping tags off of shirts and pants while James added up the total into the cash register. Then Remus and Sirius were saying their goodbyes, holding a few bags in each of their hands and walking out the door.

Sirius had insisted that they hitchhike again, this time using Remus for bait. The whole affair would have gone much smoother if Sirius had listened to Remus’ protests and offered himself up like last time, but alas. Remus was awkward when he tried to flirt with the middle-aged woman in the passenger seat, tripping over his words as Sirius watched with pressed lips and tears forming in his eyes.

However, they made it safely home, nothing harmed but Remus’ already-diminished ego.