Disclaimer: Wizards weren't J.K. Rowling's idea. But Remus Lupin was.

A Sandwich and a Handshake

"Hey, Ramora," Bernie said as Thea came out of the kitchen from taking the last of Table Six' plates to Erin and Clyde.

"Yeah, Bernie?"

"Mr. Shabby-Clothes-and-Sad-Expression is back at Table Seven. Wants a tea." Bernie smirked. "He looked kind of disappointed to see me."

Thea cocked her head and looked out. Sure enough, Remus Lupin was sitting out there in the same place he'd sat the previous two times he'd been to Mel's. "Remus Lupin," she murmured. "What do you know? I didn't think he'd be back after last time. He went off in a hurry. But it's only been two weeks!"

"Remus Lupin, huh?" Bernie asked. "You want to bring him his tea?"

Thea looked around. Everyone except the couple she was serving at Table Two had cleared out, and they were expecting her bill. "No," she said. "I have to take care of Two. But if he stays I might say hello. He stayed a while the last couple times."

She bore the bill to Table Two. She saw Remus Lupin's head go up as she passed, and she nodded briefly. The couple at Two paid, leaving a nice tip, and Thea began to clear their dishes.

She checked her watch. "Yep," she said under her breath. "Quarter to ten. He does like to come late."

Erin and Clyde were leaving again. "Bernie just took Seven his tea," Clyde said. "See you next week?"

"Right," Thea said. "Have a good night, both of you."

As soon as they walked out the door Thea got down two plates and took out some bread. She began filling one with chicken and lettuce- her favourite, but had to consider a moment before making the other. Bernie came in then, and raised an eyebrow. "Hungry, Ramora?"

"Well I haven't had supper yet," she said. "So, yeah, I'd say so. You like roast beef?"

Bernie smirked. "Nice try. You know I ate at eight this evening. Go ahead and take it to him, Ramora. I won't tell. You're right, he is nice. Said thank you and asked me about my day when I brought him his tea. No one does that. Everyone else acts like we don't even exist. "He shook his head wonderingly. "Besides, he looks like he could use a good meal or five."

Thea frowned and turned towards Bernie, worried. "He does," she said. "He did the last couple times, too, and it's only gotten worse."

"You're so motherly, Thea," Bernie said. "Saving the world, one bum at a time." But his tone was fond. "Go on. I'm out of here."

Thea consented to be hugged, and then she tipped a generous portion of crisps onto both plates and walked out into the deserted café dining room and straight to Table Seven.

"Hello, Mr. Lupin," she said, plunking the roast beef sandwich in front of him.

"Hello, Thea," he said cautiously. "I…I didn't order a roast beef sandwich."

"It's on the house," she said.

His eyes widened. "I…I couldn't…"

"Just eat it, Mr. Lupin," Thea said. "Look, I'm having one, too. You can keep me company. I'm half-starved. I'd feel like a pig eating alone. You'd be doing me a favor, really."

Remus gave a little hesitant half smile. "In that case how can I refuse," he said, amused.

"Exactly," Thea said, taking an enormous bite of chicken sandwich. She looked down at her plate and pretended not to see Remus eating quickly, taking huge, wolf-like bites, like he hadn't eaten in days.

After a while, Thea spoke up. "I'm glad to see you, Mr. Lupin. Last time, I thought I'd offended you. I wanted to apologize for prying."

Remus looked up at her. "Actually that's part of the reason I came. I'd hoped you'd be here so I could apologize. After all, I'd been asking you questions. You were just making conversation. You had no idea."

About what, Thea wondered, but she wasn't quite stupid enough to ask. "So, has Bernie lightened up?" Remus asked after a short, awkward pause.

"A little," Thea said. "He and Ashley got into a fight last week, so I'm hopeful the honeymoon phase is ending and the rest of us might get some peace. Erin went off at him the other day." She chuckled. "Usually I'm pretty nice about it."

"And the idiots from the table over there?"

"They haven't been back," Thea said in satisfaction. "I don't know what you said to them; they usually come two or three times a week. But they haven't been by once since the last time you were here."

Remus looked slightly pleased with himself. "Good," he said simply.

Thea shook her head at him. "And you're still going to be all mysterious about what you said to them, aren't you? " She laughed a little. "You're good at the whole man-of-mystery thing, Mr. Lupin."

"Calling me 'sir' and 'Mr. Lupin' does nothing to reduce my mystique," Remus retorted. "I don't call you Ms. Ramora, do I?"

"You're the customer," Thea said.

Remus looked down at his plate pointedly. Thea blushed. "Call me Remus," he said. "Mr. Lupin makes me feel old, and I can't imagine I'm more than two or three years older than you are. What are you, anyway, eighteen?"

"Nineteen," Thea said. "I know I look a little young. But two or three years, really? How old are you?" She tried to mask how curious she was. She really had been unable to make up her mind since she'd first met Remus five weeks ago.

"Twenty-one," he replied.

"If I look a little young, you look a little old," Thea observed. "I would've guessed maybe twenty-five."

Remus made a face. "Really? Twenty-five?"

"I wasn't sure," Thea defended herself, popping a crisp into her mouth. "So. What've you been doing these past two weeks, Remus?" She stressed his name, pleased at their new first-name status.

Remus grimaced, and Thea was slightly disappointed. She'd thought she'd been doing a decent job at putting him at ease. But he answered, so that was something. "Job hunting still," he said wearily.

Thea frowned, thinking how much that explained about his reluctance to order more than tea and his ever-decreasing girth. "Where are you looking?" she asked.

"Here and there," he said, looking away.

"You said you can do just about anything?"

"That's right."

Thea thought a moment. Then she grabbed a napkin off the table. She felt for her apron pocket and grabbed her pen. "If we had an opening, I'd mention it to Mr. Foster," she said, tucking an escaping curl behind her ear again. "You could try waiting tables. As it is, we don't, but I've seen a few signs. Thelman and Russ is looking for a secretary, and that health food store down on Third wants a clerk." She jotted down the addresses quickly, and then paused. She tapped the pen against her cheek and looked hard at Remus. Then she added a third address to the list. "That's the children's library at the university," she said. "My friend Ms. Austin is head librarian there, and she's always looking for some help. I like you, Remus, or I wouldn't mention it. She's a family friend. She's the sole reason I survived those first few years of high school." Thea slid the napkin across to Remus. "If you apply there, tell her to give me a call. I'll vouch for you, and she'll be fair."

Remus was staring at her. "You don't even know me," he said quietly, but not at all angrily. "You'd really do that?"

Thea shifted, and ate another crisp. "Sure. Like I said, I like you. You're nice. Any other fellow would've probably told me off ages ago for singing nonstop and coming to bother his table." She snorted. "I might've told any other fellow to clear off at ten."

Remus smiled slowly: a big, real smile. It was a wonderful thing to see, like the sun had broken out across his entire face. His cheeks filled out, his eyes brightened, and Thea couldn't help smiling back. It was natural to smile back when Remus smiled. More than that, Thea felt that it would be wrong not to. He stuck out his hand again, and Thea took it. "Thea Ramora," he said slowly. "You are something else. Shall we be friends?"

Thea bit her lip, touched. She nodded. Remus started to tuck the napkin into his coat. "Wait," Thea said.

She took up her pen again, and jotted down one last number on the list.

"Which one is that?" Remus asked.

Thea looked up at him. "Mine," she said. Remus nodded, and gently took the pen from her fingers. He circled her number on the list, and put it inside his coat.

He looked up. "So. What do you study at University?"

A/N: These first three chapters came pretty easily, but I am struggling very much with the next three. As Thea and Remus get to know one another, it gets a lot more angsty, and I have to balance the fact that Thea's a Muggle against the facts that everyone in London noticed the weird goings-on on November 1 (c'mon, Vernon DURSLEY noticed), everyone in ENGLAND knows about the Sirius Black explosion, and Thea's both open-minded and no idiot. Then you have Remus' natural secretive demeanor and the wizarding law to balance against the exceptions that are made in said law all the time (prime minister, Vernon and Dudley Dursley, parents of Muggleborns), and the fact that Remus is so VERY alone right now. I've written some exercises in this story's timeline from his POV, just to make sure I'm getting it, and you won't BELIEVE how messed up he is. Feeling he should be able to do something about Harry, guilty and angry he can't, grieving for James and Lily, angry at Peter for going after Sirius, unbelievably betrayed and furious at Sirius, feeling he should have known because of the Snape incident, unable quite to hate Sirius and wishing he could, the list goes ON. And of course against all that little Thea Ramora the Muggle university student waiting her tables is very small. But she's there, and she's solid, and I can't help thinking that Remus knows it'd be wrong to clutch at her, to use her as a shield against the dark, but he's going to try anyway.

Please, I have a basic idea where I'm going with this, but any suggestions you may have would be more than welcome. Review what I've written, and bear with me! I am trying very hard to deal with this honestly and plausibly. Thank you, and sorry for the long author's note

God Bless,

LMSharp