I decided I didn't like the short chapter after all. Still mostly a filler chapter, but a slightly longer one now.
Disclaimer: You know the drill.
Enjoy!
NOW EDITED
CHAPTER 11
Saturday. January 10th. Remus rolled over and groaned audibly. Waking to the first twinges of his approaching transformation wasn't pleasant and definitely wasn't something that he wanted to deal with on top of the mess with Sherlock. He had another four days, but even this first wave of nausea and aches was entirely unwelcome. "Moony, you okay?" Harry asked timidly.
"Yeah. Yeah, Harry, I'm fine." Remus glanced over at his alarm clock. It was approaching 10:00.
"I didn't want to wake you."
"It's fine, Harry. Really." Remus dragged himself out of the bed and popped his back and rolled out his shoulder on the way to the bathroom. "Did you already get breakfast? I can make us some brunch."
"I got some cereal."
"Okay. I only have to work a few hours this afternoon, so we might be able to fit in a trip to the park or something today if you like."
"Alright. That sounds nice."
Remus nodded his response and ducked into the bathroom for a shower as soon as Harry left. Remus spent his time in the hot shower thinking, but didn't come up with any answers. He'd spoken to Mrs. Hudson about the room situation the night before, but all she had to offer was to question whether it was really necessary for him and Sherlock to sleep separately since they were such a cute couple and she was sure that nobody would think any differently of them. Remus hadn't been sure how to respond to that. He'd thought about renting the basement flat, but he simply couldn't afford it. Maybe he should just buy another bed and rearrange his room to make it fit. It didn't seem very practical for long term, but neither did anything else he thought of. Except for moving out. Remus was sure that he could work a few more hours and he'd be able to rent a small two-bedroom flat in one of the cheaper parts of town. Of course, with that came the possibility of being farther away from the hospital, in which case he would have to figure out reasonable transportation. He might even have to get a car. Still, with Sherlock acting the way he was, it might be the best option. Remus cut off his musings once he'd dressed and went out to face the rest of the world. Do something with Harry then lunch then work. Other problems could wait.
As it turned out, Harry needed some things for school on Monday, so they went out to the shops quickly to get some extra notebooks and pens and crayons. Sherlock was still pouting, so Remus ignored him completely and used his card for a bit of vengeance. He knew that it didn't really irritate Sherlock as the man honestly didn't consider money and the card was really Mycroft's anyways, but it still felt like revenge and that helped. As it turned out, Harry really loved to color, so after a quick lunch, he sat down in a corner of the living area with his coloring books and got to work. Remus offered to let Harry come with, but Harry said it was okay, since he'd be home in just a few hours. Remus was honestly concerned about leaving him with a bored and sulking Sherlock, though. "Harry, if you need anything—anything at all—ask Mrs. Hudson. She can call me if necessary. Alright?" Harry nodded and Remus reluctantly left for work.
It was a boring day. Remus loved all of his patients. Well, most of them anyways. And he really liked helping them, but he couldn't help feeling like he was letting Harry down by not having the time to spend with him and nothing was interesting or involving enough to distract Remus from that. So, it was with a heart full of worry that Remus entered his flat at almost 4:30.
He let out a sigh of relief to see that nothing much had changed since he'd left. Sherlock was still pouting, and though it looked like he'd been searching for cigarettes, he'd given up by now. Harry was playing with some toy dinosaurs. That was sweet enough, but when Prongs came in to knock them all down, Remus wasn't sure what to think. He settled with trying not to think anything at all. "Hey, Harry. Having fun?"
"Yup." And Harry went back to playing.
"Did you want to go to the park like we talked about?"
Harry paused to think for a moment, then nodded determinately, and got up to put his toys away.
The evening passed without incident and Remus was left breathing a sigh of relief when he sunk into the bed next to Harry and went to sleep. When he woke the next morning to find the young boy cuddled up against him, he couldn't help but smile contentedly. When Harry woke up, he looked a little guilty. "Sorry, Moony. It's just that I was a bit cold and, well, I hoped you wouldn't mind too much."
"Does it look like I mind?" Remus grabbed Harry in a fierce hug. "You're my cub now. You can snuggle in for warmth if you want to." Harry blushed, but smiled and returned the hug. "So, breakfast?" Harry nodded and Remus rolled out of the bed, trying to ignore the aches and pains to focus on the happiness brought into his life by that boy. It was a quick shower and then Remus cooked a proper Sunday breakfast for the two of them. They enjoyed it and spent the meal talking. Harry was a little nervous about helping with the dishes again, but Remus convinced him and they got those taken care of quickly as well. They spent the rest of the morning watching telly and playing board games. By lunch, though, Remus was unprecedentedly worried about Sherlock.
Apple in hand, Remus went to his flat-mate's door. "Sherlock?" No response. "Sherlock?" he tried a bit louder. Still nothing. Remus rapped his knuckles against the door. When that didn't work, he tried the handle. Locked. "Sherlock, if you don't open that door and come out here, I'm calling an ambulance. Or Mycroft. It's been days. You need to eat. Remus waited a few moments before trying again. "Sherlock! Two bites of apple. This is nonnegotiable. You have two minutes before I call your brother." One minute later, Remus heard footsteps and the door opened, revealing a pale, much too thin man wrapped in a bed sheet. "Again?" Remus commented, looking at the sheet. Sherlock scowled.
"Apple." He held out his hand. Remus placed the apple into his friend's palm. Sherlock wrinkled his nose in disgust, but brought the fruit to his lips and took a bite. He chewed, swallowed, then took another bite and placed the fruit back in Remus' hand.
"I don't suppose you'd like to tell me why you're not eating?" he asked, anger rising to the surface again.
"No."
"Tell me anyway."
There was a pause. Then "I don't understand. These…memories. They're confusing. Don't make sense. I need to understand."
And suddenly, Remus felt a wave of sympathy for the man. "Okay." Sherlock gave him a questioning look. "Which parts are confusing?" he prompted.
"I… all of them. They can't be real, John. In a world with 'magic' there aren't any rules. Without rules, what I do is meaningless. I can't solve cases if there aren't any rules to govern the world they take place in." Sherlock looked about ready to break.
"Sherlock, you're in worse shape than I thought. Eat the rest of the apple."
"What?"
"I said 'eat the rest of the apple.' That's doctor's orders. I will not have you dying of starvation or suffering from malnourishment while I'm here. Take it."
Sherlock looked mutinous, but took the fruit and had another bite, chewing slowly.
"Magic is real, but that doesn't mean there aren't rules." Sherlock swallowed and, in response to a pointed look from Remus, took another small bite. "I'll just have to teach you what they are. What you do is never and can never be meaningless."
Sherlock choked. "Sentiment?" he whispered.
"Eat the apple." Sherlock took another bite.
Remus left Sherlock on the couch, still wrapped in his sheet, to finish the apple and went to go find Harry, who'd been cornered by Mrs. Hudson and asked for help baking something or other. In reality, though, as soon as he was out of Sherlock's hearing range, Remus pulled out his phone and called Mycroft.
"Yes, what can I do for you, John?"
"It's about Sherlock."
"Obviously. What about him?"
"He's having a bit of trouble adjusting to the idea of magic and since you know about the magical world, well… how do I explain it to him so it will make sense and he won't starve to death trying to understand things."
"You told him about magic?"
"Of course I did."
Mycroft sighed. "I suppose it was too much to hope for for that old idiot to do a proper job oblivating my dear brother. Did he lose anything, or was he just grumpy because he woke up to see me in his flat?"
"He restored the lost memories."
"Did he really? Well, Dumbledore must be more incompetent than I thought." Remus bit his lip nervously, remembering how much he'd looked up to Dumbledore and how much he was still in the man's debt. "What you need to do is explain that magic is not magic at all, but simply a genetic anomaly allowing for the use of a portion of the brain not normally accessed by the average human. This in turn allows a person to manipulate energy fields using intent and focus. Do not tell him about magical creatures. They can be explained as well, but it is much more complicated."
"Well, err…"
"You told him you're a werewolf."
"Yes."
"Very well. I'll send over my assistant."
"Anthea?"
"Huh? Oh, yes, of course."
"Mycroft, what is her name?"
Mycroft hung up and Remus actually did go to collect Harry, who was by this time entirely coated in flour. How he'd managed it was a mystery even Sherlock probably couldn't solve. Remus cleared it away using a handy cleaning spell.
Harry sat down with a book and Remus sat looking at Sherlock, who was gazing at half of an apple in apparent loathing.
"Eat it." Sherlock's scowl deepened, but he took another bite. Remus leaned back in the chair. "So, umm… basically, magic isn't magic at all. It's energy fields. Witches and wizards manipulate those fields. They can do that because…err… it's a genetic anomaly that…er… let's them use more of their brain."
"That doesn't sound right."
"What?"
"Being 'magical' allows you to access a larger part of your brain power and yet you're stuttering like a moron?" Remus glared.
Anthea explained. And explained some more. Anthea explained so many things in so much detail that he began to wonder if she was actually human, because no one could store that much information inside their head. Things Remus had never even given a second thought to suddenly became clear and incomprehensible all at the same time. He got answers to questions he didn't know could exist. And still, Sherlock had more questions. Still, Sherlock didn't understand. Still, Sherlock couldn't accept it.
"Fine!" Anthea shouted. She picked up her jacket, slid open her blackberry, and stalked out of the flat.
"You can do your own research, Sherlock." Remus said. "Next week, I'll take you to some magical shopping centers. Maybe you can find some books." Sherlock folded his arms and resumed his sulking. Remus and Harry had eaten during the discussions, but Sherlock hadn't. "Here. Drink the tea," Remus held out a steaming mug, "and eat the food," on the plate was a bit of baked chicken and a slice of bread. "Once you've done that, go take a shower and then go to sleep. Being confused about something is no reason to not take care of yourself." Sherlock took a sip of the tea and poked at the chicken.
"John?"
"Uhuh."
"I wasn't…I wish I hadn't upset you."
"What do you mean?"
"Why didn't you use magic to heal Harrison's cut?"
'Oh, that,' Remus thought. "Many adult wizards have the pain tolerance of infants. They can't handle a bruise and their bodies can't take care of injuries or illnesses on their own. They depend entirely on magic. I don't want Harry to be that way."
Big action coming up soon. Insider information will be awarded to anyone who correctly guesses what the next big problem in Harry and Remus' life will be. Hint: why was Remus not legally allowed to claim magical guardianship over Harry in the first place?
Thanks for reading! Leave a review!
-MP
