Chapter 2
Remus was lonely last night, and almost turned to sex.
Thankfully, he remembered he had friends before the desperation got too bad, so that filled up one evening.
He doesn’t know what he’ll do on all the others.
The next morning, he wakes up feeling surprisingly more rested than he has in a while. He makes himself a cup of tea in place of a substantial breakfast, and goes out early to get some things done before work. It’s still dark out, but as soon as he opens the door he is greeted by the familiar greasy odour of the Domino’s beneath him. He used to love pizza, but after the shop has been there a couple of months, he’d had enough of the food to last a lifetime and he lost his appetite from the faintest whiff of the grease.
He heads straight to the studio, intending to work on the piece that he desperately needs to complete for the small project ready for the event at the weekend.
There is plenty for him to do. He could take that photoshoot that he’s been meaning to do, this is the perfect weather. He could arrange, edit, print the photos he already has. He could make sure his camera is ready for the event. He could write something. He could edit something he’s already written. He could practice bass. He could probably think up other things as well, to be honest.
He decides to practice bass. He needs something new to play at the Leaky, else they’d get bored and find someone else. He’s been trying to find something for weeks, but nothing feels right. He’s long given up on trying to use a song that already exists. It always felt wrong playing it, and he’s run out of songs people will know. At that point, he may as well just create a new song.
He plucks away at the strings trying to get it to sound right. The resulting melody sounds almost good, the closest he has gotten to something he would want to play. As he continues it further, he realises he is not quite making it up as he goes along, but remembering it from a long ago time. He hums along as the memory floods back to him, getting more and more into it, and finally he can remember exactly when he heard this piece.
And who he heard it with.
More specifically, who wrote it.
He puts the bass down with a sigh, all enthusiasm lost. Oh well. He should get one of the other things done, anyway.
~
Sirius wakes up feeling unusually happy and brave the next morning.
It turns out, that combination of emotions combined with his current situation and location, means that he is reckless.
And by reckless, it’s to the point of plain stupidity.
He leaves the hotel.
He goes across the street.
He walks along until he reaches the small, dimly lit door to the side of the Domino’s.
He rings the bell.
The shrill sound it makes snaps him out of his mood, and he realises what the fuck he just did. Even though he has, by now, come to the conclusion that Remus no longer lives here, he doesn’t want to risk it. He runs. As fast as he can back to the hotel.
As he picks at his breakfast, The two girls that Sirius is here with ambush him. They want to go and explore the town, and invite him along.
Sirius declines. He already knows the town, and he didn’t want to risk himself by going out again. It was safer in the hotel. Plus, he hardly knew them. How could he spend a whole day with them?
“Oh, that’s a shame. We were sort of hoping you could…you know, show us around…” one of them, Dorcas, sighs.
Sirius opens his mouth to excuse him self again, but pauses. If they want a tour, then he could focus on that. He would hardly have time to do anything reckless, and he wouldn’t drag them along to do it with him anyway.
“You know what, why not? I have nothing better to do. Come on, ladies, it’s time for the best tour of your lives!” He announces with more enthusiasm than he means.
As they walk down to the entrance, it becomes clear that these two know each other much better than Sirius knows anyone from work. Well, apart from Regulus, obviously. And he’s getting a sneaking suspicion that both Dorcas and her friend, Pandora, are part of the group that his brother always seems to hang around with. He is already slightly regretting his decision to spend the day with them.
“Right. We’ll start at this end of the High Street, work around the town, and save the beach for last. Then, who knows, we could wander over to the next town. It has the best pub,” Sirius tells them as soon as they are outside the hotel.
As they walk along the High street, he keeps his eyes firmly away from the Domino’s, briefly gesturing toward it as he says “That used to be a Chinese, when I lived here. It was great.”
And so was the guy who lived there.
He gives a brief history of the rest of the shops along the road, before they venture into the more residential part of the town. There were less shops here, but there was still restaurants, dotted around, seemingly out of place, except they fitted right in.
There’s the place I went for my eleventh birthday, with my whole family. It was horrible, but that might just have been who I was with.
“I’ve only been to that restaurant once. I didn’t really like it. It was a bit…posh. I was only eleven.”
There’s the place me and Remus went for our first real date. It was nice, but that might have just been who I was with.
Oh look, there’s the Pettigrew’s house. That was where I first met James. I wonder if Pete kept true to his word, and has moved out?
“That was, um. One of my friend’s houses. I don’t really know why I mentioned it, it’s a bit weird to just stand outside of it when I’ve got nothing to tell you about it. He doesn’t even live there anymore.”
Over there, that’s the place the Potters took me out to for the first time. Of course, that meant it became a tradition, and every time I went out with them, it would be to that Italian.
“That’s a really nice Italian, that. It does a great calzone.”
Oh look, there’s our favourite cafe, the one we frequented practically every day.
“That was my favourite cafe. My friends and I went there all the time.”
“Ooh, shall we try it out?” Pandora suggests, and before Sirius can protest, Dorcas is leading them over.
It hasn’t changed a bit.
“Hey, big brother Black. Do you have a favourite table?”
Yeah, that one by the back, the big one. Well, that was for if it was the four of us. That small one round the corner that you can hardly see was for if it was just me and Remus.
“Nah, not really. Anywhere. How about this one, by the door? To be honest, I don’t know if I ever sat here myself.”
Good. No memories here then.
They’ve hardly been in there five minutes before a waitress is bustling over to their table. Fuck. She was there four years ago-she was their regular. They were on first name terms.
“Well I never. If it isn’t Sirius Black!”
“Hi Minnie!” He says, with forced enthusiasm. He is glad to see her again, but it hurts that it’s just him here. No James or Pete or Remus.
“I haven’t seen you here in four years! You didn’t even say goodbye, it took months for Remus to come back and tell me you’d all buggered off and left. You moved to wales, Peter to London and James to good ol’ Scotland. I thought you were just avoiding us!”
“Sorry Minnie!” Sirius says with an apologetic grin, trying to ignore the impact of her words. Fuck. Moony came back here. He knew where they all went. Well, he knew Remus would have to finish the course he was as doing. He would have stayed for that. “I didn’t exactly get much notice either. It was extremely spontaneous, but those bloody Blacks just up and decided they were fed up here, why don’t we move to that old house of ours in Wales? I didn’t hang around there long though. I actually spent two years in America, I only got back a couple of months ago. S’where I met these two. We work together, and we got sent back here for a little event. I’m giving them a tour.”
“Oh how lovely. What is your job then? How’s that little brother of yours? Has he got himself out of that bad crowd he was in? How’s James, and Peter, and even Remus? I haven’t seen even him in a good while…”
“We work in an art group thingy. It’s got some technical name that I can’t be bothered to say, so whatever. They send you to America to get an art degree and teach you a bunch of shit. Now we basically get to pootle around and do whatever the fuck we want, painting pictures based on whatever theme they give you for the galleries they get us in for events. Of course, we have to do specifically requested jobs as well, and we have to sell basically all our work but oh well. Regulus is as much of a brat as ever, as far as I can tell. He lost contact with that cult thing he was in when we moved, but he stayed being our parents little pet. I mean, they kind of tricked me as well. We were both legally adults, I don’t actually know why either of us agreed to move to Wales with them. But anyway, I left them after about two months. Reg didn’t leave them till last year. He’s doing the same thing as me, except he’s still in training. He did it in England, though, so I still see him. We live together, actually. Hey, aren’t you two girls friends with him?” Sirius turns to Pandora and Dorcas, who have been silently listening to the conversation. He lets them take over to avoid answering Minnie’s last questions.
“Um, yeah Reg is great. But I’m sorry, what the fuck do you mean he was in a cult?!” Dorcas says incredulously.
“Why don’t you ask him. To be honest he probably won’t tell you, but I don’t really know. We didn’t get along then, and we don’t talk about it now.”
“Oh you boys. I’m gonna come back, I’m not finished with you, but I am working you know. We’re nice and busy round here these days, gotta stay on my toes. So, Sirius, what do you say? The usual?”
“Definitely. And get it for the girls as well, I’m giving them a full tour.” Sirius grins.
As Minnie retreats, he turns back to the girls. “Told you we came here a lot.”
“Yeah, I can tell. Who are those guys she was on about? James, Peter and the one with the funny name?” Dorcas asks
“It means wolf or something, I think. I can’t remember what it was. Were they your friends? Why were you avoiding taking about them?” Pandora adds.
“Remus. It does mean wolf. So does his surname actually, Lupin. They were my friends, yeah. And I wasn’t avoiding taking about them.”
“You totally were. Why did you all move away at the same time?”
“Except Wolfy McWolf. She said he’s still here.”
“Things were kinda wield round here then. My family wanted to get away from it, bad for their reputation. James’ family was moving to Scotland, that was planned beforehand. I guess Pete just took us moving as his excuse to go, he’d always wanted to go live in London.”
“Dorcas, I’ve found his issue. Remus Lupin.” Pandora mock whispers, and Sirius feels his cheeks heat up.
“Remus Lupin is not my issue. I just don’t really know what happened to him. He didn’t grow up here, but he used to come every summer. Every time he came, we’d play with him. Then he came to uni here. I’m pretty sure he still had like two terms left when we all left. He probably stuck that out then headed back home to Wales. I’ve hardly spoked to any of them since I left.”
“Hmm. From what Minnie said, it sounded like he’s still here…” Dorcas says suspiciously.
“I mean, he could be? I think it’s unlikely though.”
The girls still looked suspicious, but thankfully their food arrived-with a different waitress, one Sirius didn’t know.
“Okay, so what did you actually order us?” Pandora asked, looking at the plate in front of her.
“Minnie’s famous pizza toastie. It’s great. Dig in.” Sirius said through his first mouthful. He’d missed this.
Minnie seemed to be too busy to come and interrupt them again, but Sirius made a point of shouting bye to her as they left. She’d murder him if he didn’t.
“You come back here soon! I need to talk to you, Sirius.” She called cheerily after them.
After the cafe, it was straight to the beach.
“That’s the pier. It’s, er, very old.”
It’s where me and Moony had our first kiss.
“That mini beach thingy over there is the best bit!”
It’s where I first saw Moony.
After that they don’t really have anything else in the town, but the girls aren’t ready to go back, so they buy ice cream and start the walk to the next town over, where it sounds like Sirius is going to have to brave the Leaky Cauldron, or the Three Broomsticks. Depends whether he wants to chat to Rosmerta or Tom.
As it turns out, it’s both. He takes them to the Leaky Cauldron first, because Tom will probably be less chatty, and also less likely to remember him. They never went there quite as often.
Tom wasn’t on the bar. He had nothing to worry about. They are doing just fine until they announce that the live music is starting. Sirius can’t deal with that, there’s too many memories.
“Right then girls. I think it’s about time we head over to the Three Broomsticks, else we’ll have to walk back in the dark. They’ve got a great drink over there. Butterbeer, you should definitely try it. It’s a bit odd, but it’s nice…” He says as he steers the two somehow already slightly tipsy women outside. Before he heads down the road, he stops them so he can have a smoke. He hasn’t had one all day, and he needs something to prepare himself for the memories that the next pub will bring.
The pub is busy enough that he doesn’t stick out as he leads Dorcas and Pandora to a small booth in the back that he’s certain he’s never been in before. He lets them relax a little before heading up to the counter. Rosmerta is there, he saw her as he came in, so he hangs back until she’s free. He might dread the conversation, but would never dream of avoiding talking to her.
“Ooh look who it is,” she coos at him. “I wasn’t expecting ta see you here, Sirius Black. I thought Remus was the only one left of you lot. Not that I really see ‘im, either,”
“Hi Rosie, I missed you. I’m back in town for a couple of weeks, with work, so I thought I’d stop by. Three Butterbeers please.”
“Three? Who ya here with? James and Petey?”
“Nah, two girls from work.”
“Shame. Ida like ta talk ta those boys. How are they then?”
“They seemed to be doing well last I checked, about six months ago. I sorta lost touch.”
“What?! You boys don’t talk any more? Well I nevvah! I thought you woz inseparable and all that,”
“So did I, not gonna lie. But then shit happened. Uh, did R-did you know where we all went to?”
“Yeah, I caught Remus one time. I fink he woz trying to avoid me, but I caught him anyway.”
Sirius takes a deep breath and asks the question his mind has been begging. “Remus came here often then?”
“Nah. Occasionally I’d see him alone, or with some hook-up of his, but not much. And not recently. I haven’t seen him in at least a few months.”
Sirius nearly spits out the mouthful of butterbeer he just took.
“Ah, just wondering. Anyway, I’d better get back to the girls, they’ll be wondering what happened to me. And I need to give them their try of the famous butterbeer I’ve been telling them about.”
~
Remus was really thrown off by his little music incident that morning. He’s normally quite good at pushing his old friends and Sirius out of his mind, but today he keeps seeing them everywhere. Well, not actually seeing them, obviously. They all left. Even Pete hasn’t been back. At least, he never told Remus if he was. And it wasn’t Pete or James he kept seeing.
It was Sirius.
In the morning, when he headed back to the flat to clean himself up before he spent the day at work at the supermarket. He could have sworn he saw Sirius walking away from his door. Then someone passed and he was gone.
Then at work. He was on his smoke break, and as he headed outside he could see three people on the other side of the road. He could have sworn one was Sirius.
The last was in the Leaky. He was just lugging his amp out, ready to start playing, when he saw what looked like the same three from outside the supermarket. The one that looked like Sirius.
This really wasn’t making things easy for him.
~
Sirius manages to lose the girls the next day. They seem nice enough, but he doesn’t think he could deal with another full day of them.
He stayed inside most of the day, and did some drawing. He drew the moon.
The problem with staying in all day, though, was that by evening he was going stir crazy.
He got an uber to a random bar, far enough away that he hopefully wouldn’t do anything to stupid when he got drunk.
He settled in a seat in the corner, and got a drink. And another, and another.
About an hour in he was pleasantly tipsy.
Actually, maybe he was drunker than he thought because as he made his way over to the bar to get another drink, he scrolled through his chats on his phone until he reached one that hadn’t been used in four years.
He clicked on it.
He typed a message.
Padfoot: Hey guys!
Padfoot: I can’t believe it’s been so long!
Padfoot: I’m on this trip with work, you’ll never guess where to!
Padfoot: I can’t believe I haven’t been here in four years. It’s so similar, but it also feels really different, y’know?
Padfoot: I already went to the three broomsticks, and the cafe
Padfoot: Had a nice chat with Rosmerta and Minnie
He looks up as he reaches the bar. Some guy has just sat gotten up, leaving a free seat. As Sirius sits down, he realises the guy left his phone. He looks to where he went, and locates him near the toilets. Fuck, that guy looks like Moony from behind.
Sirius decides he really is quite drunk.
As he’s waiting for his next drink, he types one last message on the group.
Padfoot: have any of you guys been back?
He hits send, then stares at the table, unsure of what to do next. The moony-guy’s phone lights up. Sirius is about to look away, feeling as though he is being invasive of this stranger, except something catches his eye. It’s just that, the group chat he just texted on has a kinda unusual name, with a lot of emojis. And the message that just popped up on moony-guys phone looks like it’s from a group with a similar name. Through his drunken haze, Sirius feels a ball of dread growing in the pit of his stomach. He looks more closely. Sure enough:
message:
🐀🦌🐾🌕MARAUDERS 🌕🐾🦌🐀
~Sirius O Black: have any of you guys been back?
+6 more
Fuck.
Moony-guy is actually Moony.
Shit.
Just then, the bartender gets his attention to hand him his drink. Sirius pays, and heads back to his corner, heart beating like a drum.
Remus never left.
Fuck.
Remus comes back from the toilet. Sirius watches him. It is really him. He looks at his phone, sighs, and deletes the notifications, apparently without even looking at them. Oh well. Maybe that’s for the best.
Before his drunken mind gets the better of him, Sirius downs his drink and leaves.
~
Honestly, Remus was fed up of the reminders of his old friends that kept cropping up. Ever since he’d played that song, he’d seen Sirius wherever he went. Then, when he broke down enough to go to a bar with Marlene, he got messages. Seven, to be exact. He refused to read them, but the last one had been on his screen when he deleted the notifications. ‘Have any of you guys been back?’
Well, that could only mean here, right. Why was Sirius asking if they’d been back? What had brought this on?
Because he knew he wouldn’t sleep otherwise, he had told himself that the messages had started with James’ innocent attempts to stay in touch.
Nothing else.
Obviously, those messages had only increased his thoughts of Sirius, and he could have sworn the brooding guy in the corner of the bar who, out of the corner of his eye, he could tell was watching him, was Sirius. Before he could investigate further the guy was gone. It may have been because of the amount of alcohol he had consumed, but that guy had seemed the most like Sirius.
The next day there are more messages. He doesn’t even read the top notification before he deletes them this time. He doesn’t think he’d be able to deal with more.
Remus threw himself into his many tasks, and over the next few days, completed everything except the new song on his bass. He’d just have to play another meaningless song for the time being, until he plucked up the courage to try something new again.
About three days after the first messages, he’s at his day job again, doing a long shift to make up for the hours he will miss at the weekend, at the event. It’s busy, busier than usual, not at all helped by the fact that one of the other cashiers has called in sick. Remus doesn’t have time to daydream, but even still, it appears he still has time to see Sirius. Or rather, a head of long, dark, curly hair entering the shop.
He pushes it out of his mind as he scans items as fast as he can, desperate for his smoke break.
Normally, he tries to greet his customers and make awkward small talk, but he doesn’t have the energy for that today. He doesn’t even look at the people as they move along and bag up their shopping, occasionally sparing them a quick glance as he asks them, “cash or card?”
Eventually, another till opens, and there seems to be a lull in the previously relentless stream of customers. A slight look to the side tells him he only has one customer left, and they haven’t got much. He flicks his till to closed on the hopes that the rush is over.
It’s his last customer, he can afford to make a thorough job of it. As he scans through the ready-made sandwich, pack of crisps and bottle of coke, he asks them how their day is going.
“Oh, you know…”
Remus’ eyes snap up, immediately meeting sharp grey ones, framed with neat black eyeliner and mascara. His hair is longer than it was, tumbling in those luscious dark curls past his collarbones. His face is the same, sharp cheekbones framing plump lips, wet as if he’s been licking them, which twist into a smile as Remus looks at him.
What. The. Fuck.