i know, i know, it's been ages since i uploaded anything, i suck. but, as anyone who follows me on tumblr knows, my granddad passed away at the end of september and it hit me really hard. on top of that, it's my final year of university and that shit isn't easy.
but, i wanted to get at least one thing out for christmas, so. what souls are is kind of on a back burner right now, just because of everything else that's been going on, but i haven't forgotten about it!
"Hello, this is Lily from Oh, Crumbs, how may I help you today?" Lily asks before she even has the phone to her ear.
There's a pause on the other end and Lily almost hangs up because her morning hasn't been great; the old oven they've been meaning to replace for months finally broke down halfway through baking a batch of cheese and bacon pasties.
"Uh, hi." A male voice greets from the other end. His voice is deep, and there's a slight crackle to it that tells her he smokes.
"Hi," she smiles at the clock on the wall, despite knowing he can't see her. Customer service at its finest, she thinks, reaching for the pad of paper and pen a few inches away from where she's sitting. "How can I help?"
"Okay," the guy says, and Lily clicks the pen a few times. "So, this is going to sound really weird and you're going to think I'm slightly mad, but I need sixty Ferrero Roche cupcakes –"
"Sixty?" Lily interrupts before she can stop herself and the man laughs nervously.
"Yeah, I know. It's ridiculous, but I'm desperate." Lily sighs through her nose and starts going through the list of things she'll need to make even half of what he's asking for. "I'd do it myself, if it weren't for the fact I'd probably burn my flat down."
Lily's lips twitch. She taps her pen against the desk top and she brushes a hand over the back of her neck. She flicks through the notepad until she finds a blank page. "Sixty cupcakes," she says under her breath, scribbling a few numbers down. She reaches for the big, clunky calculator. "When would you need them by?"
"Two weeks on Friday," Comes the swift reply and after a brief pause he continues, "If that wouldn't be too much trouble."
"It's no trouble." Lily says, wincing at the number that stares up at her from the calculator screen. "That would come to one hundred and sixty-two pounds." She holds her breath, wary of the response she might get.
"That's fine." He says, the dismissal clear in his voice. His voice becomes nothing more than a whisper when he speaks again. "I'm not the one paying."
"Lucky you." Lily snorts. "All that's left now is to take your details." She tucks the phone into the crook of her shoulder and pushes back on her chair so she rolls across the floor to the filing cabinet behind her.
The man is quiet on the other end of the phone, and she finds the gentle sound of his breathing oddly comforting as she flicks through the folders in the bottom drawer. "Okay," she says, the word drawing out as she moves back over to her desk. "What's your name?"
"James Potter." It's a nice name, Lily decides as she fills in that line on the form.
There are parts of the form that she doesn't need to ask him about and so she's quiet again for a few moments as she fills in those boxes. "Phone number?" She asks distractedly as she finishes up the last box.
Potter chuckles, low and crackly over the dodgy reception of the phone and Lily blinks dumbly at the sheet of paper. "Surely there are less convoluted ways of asking for my number?"
"Trust me, if I wanted your number, I'd be a lot smoother about asking for it." Lily grouses back, her annoyance lacking any real bite and she smothers a grin.
"Oh, I don't doubt it." She can hear the smirk in his voice and she has to double her efforts to keep from smiling.
"Alright, moving on." Lily says instead, smoothing down her t-shirt. She makes a note to throw it into her washing basket when she got home when she sees a splotch of dried purple icing on the hem. Potter huffs out what sounds like a laugh but then makes an affirmative noise. "Will you be paying by card or cash?"
Presumably he's with someone, because Potter repeats the question, his voice echoing slightly as he moves away from the phone. A second later, he's back. "Cash, please."
She makes a note of it and nods. "Well, if that's everything…"
"I, uh, yeah." Potter stumbles over himself as he tries to sign off. There's a laugh in the background and he must put his hand over the receiver because the curse he lets out is muffled. "That's it, thanks. Oh, no, wait. Is it alright if I drop by to pay later today?"
"Yes, that's fine with me. Just ask for Lily." She says. She returns his farewell before hanging up.
Lily's been glancing at the door every five seconds for the past half an hour. Mary finds it hilarious, sniggering to herself as she cleans the table in the far corner. Lily glares at her from where she's perched behind the counter. She straightens the small Christmas tree next to the till, fiddles with a string of gold tinsel and then slumps down so her chin is resting on her palm.
"Chin up, love." Mary says as she bustles past, arms stacked with dirty dishes. She seems to realise what she's said as she reaches the door to the kitchen because there's a loud laugh above the clattering of plates being dumped in the sink.
"Very funny!" Lily calls over her shoulder, pouting at the front door. She sits up so she can redo her ponytail, fingers attempting to brush out the bumps on the top of her head.
The song on the radio changes and Lily grins when she hears Mary's cheerful screech of "IT'S CHRISTMAS!" She laughs and twists on her chair so she won't whack her knee on the counter. She tilts her head back and throws her arms out as she dances along.
She doesn't hear the bell above the door tinkle, so when she turns back to find a very tall man slouched against the wall, watching her, she jumps and smacks her elbow against the counter.
"Shit." She curses, ignoring the snort the man lets out. "Sorry, how can I help you?"
He steps forward, taking one hand out of his coat pocket to push down the hood of the jumper he's wearing underneath. The hood has flattened his hair in places, but not in others and the effect should look ridiculous, but annoyingly, it doesn't. "I was told to ask for Lily?"
"Oh. I'm Lily, and you're Potter, right?" Lily asks, plucking at the edge of her apron. There's a spot of flour on her hip and she brushes at it in irritation.
"James," he corrects with a small smile. He readjusts his glasses and then runs that same hand through his hair in a failed attempt to fix it. "But, yeah, that's me."
Lily nods and beckons for James to follow her. "If you'll come with me, we'll get everything sorted."
She leads him past the kitchen, where Mary is still dancing along to the radio, and into the office at the back of the building. She leaves the door open and gestures at one of the chairs. James lowers himself onto one of them, long legs folding uncomfortably to avoid hitting the desk with his knees.
"I've got the money whenever you're ready." James says, hefting his bag onto his lap and sifting through it.
"You make it sound like a drug deal." Lily laughs, sliding into the seat opposite and rifling through the papers on the desk until she finds the form she wants.
James lifts his head and offers her a grin. "With the way Sirius goes on about this place, it may as well be." His smile becomes fond and he shakes his head. "He's been insisting on a Christmas party for at least three months, so. Here I am."
"Wouldn't it make more sense for him to come and do this, if he knows us better than you?" Lily asks, double checking the information she's written down. She doesn't need to, she knows it's all correct, but it means that she won't keep looking at his hands, which are proving to be very distracting.
"Sirius is nothing, if not a conniving little shit." James says mildly, as if that in itself is explanation enough. "He was also going on about something to do with organising a venue? I don't know, I stopped paying attention after he made coffee this morning."
Lily bites down a smile, her nose scrunching with the effort. She slides the form across the desk and then offers him a pen. "I just need you to sign here."
"Ta," James thanks her as he reaches for the pen. Once he's done, he lowers the pen and glances back up at her, his lips twitching. "So, d'you need that money yet?"
"Yes, actually." Lily watches him reach into the bag and pull out a stack of notes. "No matter how you word that, it's always going to sound like a drug deal."
She watches him count out the money, and stares determinedly over his shoulder when he starts digging around in his pocket for an errant two pound coin. "There we go." He says eventually, placing a dulled coin on top of the pile. He raises his eyebrows and leans forward to whisper, "Pleasure doing business with you."
Leaning in to meet him, Lily rests her forearms against the edge of the desk and winks. "The pleasure was mine, mate."
James ducks his head and scrubs a hand across his chin. His fingers scratch against the scruff of his beard and there are what look like ink stains splashed across his knuckles. "Alright, well if that's everything, I s'pose I should make sure Sirius hasn't got himself killed."
Lily ignores the flare of disappointment and shrugs a shoulder. "Okay, well, if you have any questions or anything between now and next week, don't be afraid to come back." She hides a wince at how awkward that was, but James doesn't seem to notice because he nods.
"Thanks. I know it's pretty short notice and a lot to ask for. But when Sirius gets an idea in his head, it's virtually impossible to do anything but go along with it." He rearranges the scarf hanging around his neck and ducks out through the door back into the hall. Lily follows, half listening to James describing his friend's plans; a party with enough alcohol to get a small nation plastered and enough food to keep a family of ten fed for a month.
Mary is still in the kitchen, although she's moved on from washing up and is instead chopping up carrots. There's a large pile of orange peelings next to her which she nearly knocks on the floor when they walk past. She meets Lily's eye as James disappears from view and her eyebrows are nearing her hairline. Lily isn't quite sure how to get the message across that she understands, but it seems to happen anyway because Mary winks before going back to her carrots.
James pauses by the door, his hand on the handle, and he turns around slightly so he can speak. "Thanks again. Look, I know this might be a bit weird, but I'm gonna ask anyway. Do you want to come to that party?" He sees the look on her face and hastens to add, "There's no pressure, but we're asking you to do a lot, so it's only fair if you get something out of it, right?"
As endearing as she finds his rambling, Lily takes pity on him and interrupts him. "I'll think about it."