Don't know what's down this road, I'm just walking
Sirius can't live his old life anymore, so when his Uncle Alphard bestows him a piece of land and a cabin, he gives up his old life and sets out to start a new one. Inspired a little by Stardew Valley/Harvest Moon.
Sirius hates his job. Working in his father's offices, day in and day out. The view from his window is of other high-rise buildings as far as the eye can see. Just grey and glass and more grey. London is supposed to be beautiful, but all Sirius can think about is the thousands of people like him who are trapped in the buildings. He sits at a desk and goes to meetings and talks with boring people about boring things. He cancels plans and goes home late and has no time to himself.
He hates everything about his office. He hates all of the mahogany that lines the entire room, even the walls. He hates the name-plate that highlights his name, and the name-plaque on the door. He hates the people he works with, who all whisper about how he only got the job because he's the boss's son.
They're not wrong. Not all at. He was forced into this job. He was forced into working for his father and not having any opinion of a future for himself, because God forbid that he actually have a moment of enjoyment in his life. He's also going to be forced into an arranged marriage one day because that's out of his control too. He knows that without a single doubt. But there's not much he can do about that or anything really because this is the only path he has.
"Mr Black." Riley Beaumont walks into the office. "I need to know what we're doing about that contract with Foodigo. Your father wanted that on his desk today."
Sirius nods his head. "He'll have it in an hour," he mutters tiredly. "Maybe two at the most."
"He wanted it today," the man says, clearly annoyed.
Sirius looks up at the other man. He's not in the mood today. Actually, he's never in the mood for this. "He wants it today, and it's ten in the morning," Sirius states. "From what I'm aware, it's still today. There are still hours of today left, which means that I have time. My father will have the completed report on his desk before I leave for the day, as he expects to have. So, I suggest you leave my office, because I am not in the mood for you today."
The man glares, but that's all he can do because he's not going to outright argue with Sirius. Not with the knowledge that Sirius will one day take over this company and be his boss. He's not going to do anything knowing that his job will one day be on the line, and Sirius is fully aware of that little bit of power he holds over Beaumont. The man likes to throw the little bit of power he has around though, but Sirius has more and can do it better.
Still, Sirius reaches for the contract so the man doesn't go and blab to his dad like he's been known to do, and when Riley leaves the room, Sirius tries to find the patience to deal with it. He reaches up and pushes a stray curl from his face and sighs. If he had any say in his own life, it'd be doing almost anything. He wasn't born to work in an office, to be stuck inside here for twelve hours a day. Maybe he was born for that, as his parents always had that plan. But he's not made for it.
There's a knock on the door and he glances up. He hopes it's not Riley again. "Come in," he says. He hopes this will be quick, so he can get back to pretending to do something.
A woman opens the door. "I'm sorry to bother you, Sir, but I'm having a few problems and… and I was told by someone else that you'd be able to help."
Sirius tosses the contract to the side, glad with the distraction from the boring work. "Sure. Come and take a seat." He raises a hand and gestures to the chair on the other side of the desk, before standing up and walking over to the window and looking out. It does little to improve his mood. He doesn't really like the height of it, it makes him feel a bit queasy, and it's not the beautiful London view people like. It's merely a power status. The higher you are, the better you are. Sirius doesn't feel any better.
The woman does as she's told, smoothing her black pencil-skirt as she sits down in the chair.
"Water?" Sirius offers, turning and noticing the nervousness of the woman. He walks over to the water machine in his office and picks up a glass and fills two of them. He brings them over, handing one to the woman and her fingers clench around the glass. Sirius sits back down. He hates sitting in his chair. He wants to be moving.
The woman takes a minute, sipping at her drink, and Sirius doesn't rush her. There's a knock at the door and he stands, glad to be out of the seat once more, and he walks over to the door.
"You said to let anyone in who asks," his secretary, Mara Borne says, "but you've got a meeting soon."
"They can wait. I'm in a meeting right now," Sirius insists. Another thing he hates. Being told what to do constantly. The other meeting isn't for about half an hour and he's sure he won't be talking here for half an hour to this woman. Though he might be, who knows. They'll just have to wait for him or have the meeting without him. He couldn't really care less. He closes the door and walks back over and takes a seat. "Sorry about that," he sighs. "Your friend told you right, I'm here to help. Can you tell me what happened?"
"One of the men downstairs is being inappropriate," she admits. "I've asked him to stop, but… he hasn't done anything overly bad, but I… I don't know what to do."
"Say no more," Sirius says. He opens the desk drawer and reaches for a small flower pin inside. He sets it on the desk between them and pushes it closer. "Write everything down in a statement and wear this. Unfortunately my father isn't going to take you seriously. It's your word against someone else's word, and… well…" he trails off, sure that the woman gets the idea. "But he can't dispute recorded proof. That flower has a small hidden camera with one of those tiny sd cards. The record button is on the top, hidden by one of the petals. Get evidence, and get proof and my father won't be able to sweep it under the rug. Do you understand?"
She nods, reaching for the camera. "You believe me?" she asks.
"I do. But all my father will do is have a word with the man and then he'll learn to be more careful, more sneaky. Or leave you alone and set his sights on someone else or maybe it'll just get worse because you've told on him. I've seen it happen in all different ways. This is evidence, and they can't twist evidence."
She examines the pin.
"I'll be there to support you," Sirius tells her gently. "Tell me if there's a room where it usually happens or a time, and I'll be waiting nearby. I'm not going to just send you out to deal with these things and be hurt, okay? My extension here is seven-three-six, and you can call that anytime. It'll bypass my secretary too. What's your name?"
"Nell. Nell Byers."
"Nell, I'm on your side. If he's bothering anyone else, send them up here, okay? Spread the word."
She nods her head, visibly relieved at Sirius' reaction.
Sirius smiles as she leaves the office. The only thing he feels like he's achieved there is supporting the people in the office that are struggling for any reason. Unfortunately his father doesn't take assault very seriously, so Sirius makes it his own mission to fix that.
Nell closes the door behind her and Sirius looks at the contract again. He sighs heavily and pulls it towards himself and opens it. He hates this. He hates reading all of these documents as he attempts to understand all of the information and clauses in there. He hates everything about this job. He has about fifteen minutes before the meeting and he hopes that another distraction comes, but nothing else happens and he has to read and make notes.
He hates this. All of it, so much. But what other choice does he have?
It's this or being disowned and ending up on the streets.
'My Dearest Nephew,
As much as I've loved my life in Moonbow, I'm getting old and I fear that one day I'll be too old to do everything I've wanted to do, or experience everything I've wanted to with my life.
I went away for a year, as you know. I went to Paris, and whilst I planned on leaving after three months, I found myself staying there for the entire year. Now I'm on to my next destination because I love Moondew, but I want to see the beauty of the rest of the world.
My life is shorter than I'd like it to be. I'm in my seventies now and I may only have a few years left. When you reach my age, you become very aware of your age and how long you have left. With that in mind, I realise that it's about time I went on some adventures and got to experience what the world has to offer.
I hate leaving you, my dear Nephew. My twice-yearly visits to London were always the highlight of my year, but that's not it at all. Knowing you're stuck in those offices, the life draining out of you, and your life passing before your eyes is something I understand all too much. That was how my life passed, before I moved away and left that life behind at sixty.
I don't want that future for you, Sirius. I don't want you pushed into the same life I was forced into. That company drains people, it traps them. I want you to have freedom. That's why I'm offering something to you. My home will be empty for the next few years, because there's so many places I want to go to before my time. Maybe I'll never go back, maybe I'll find my next home whilst travelling. If I do return, I'll take a cottage in town, because this offer isn't temporary. I want to offer you something for your future in the hopes that you'll wake up to your life long before I managed to.
I have land there, in Moonbow. I've never really used it. The cabin I lived in is small, but I had very little in the way of needs. Enclosed is the information for my lawyer, who will sign the cabin, the land, and some money over to you on the condition that you go to Moonbow. That you start leading your own life.
Though you could just go and come back to this life. If that's what you truly want, you do what makes you happy. But this is your chance for an escape. Go there, make a life for yourself, and offer that life to your brother should he so wish to pursue it too. Even for a year, just see if it's something you want to do. That's all I ask. One year.
If you do go there, my old friend Charlus, the Mayor, will be looking out for you.
I wish you all the best, and you're welcome to visit me anytime. I'll be in contact, so make sure to let me know what you intend to do so I know where to forward my letters. Or better yet, I'll see if I can manage to send an email.
Your Uncle, Alphard.
Sirius doesn't do anything about the letter at first. The idea of just up and leaving his life is terrifying and exciting and he doesn't know how to handle the letter in those first few days. It sits in his drawer at work, and he's aware of it each and every time he opens the drawer to get something. He likes it there. He's not going to forget about it.
So he continues with his usual routine. He goes to work every single day and comes home again. Saturday comes, and he finds himself at the office. He sits down to dinner with his family on Saturday night at the most upscale restaurants that exist in London, just so his mother can be on the front of a magazine, or have her picture inside of one. Those family dinners are the worst, because there's nothing about them that makes him feel like he's a part of the family. They're just for show. Just another facade.
He sits at that oversized desk and deals with people. He answers the constant phone calls that are just as dull as his actual work. He reads over contracts and tries not to get distracted. He has to put up with his father's three advisors who come and hassle him over and over again. It feels worse than before, and he's drawn to that letter over and over again, but he doesn't open it or read it.
It takes him three weeks to open the drawer and read over the letter once more. It's been the most stressful day, and he's got a headache and has had back to back meetings. He's not sure about the idea of giving up everything he has. Whilst he hates it all, at least he knows what to expect from his life right now. Can he really uproot and just go somewhere without any knowledge of anything? What will he even do there? What if people hate him?
He needs a sign. He starts to fold the letter to put it away, but the sign that he's hoping for happens sooner than he realises, when Beaumont walks into the room with a stack of contracts.
"Your father wants you to start working through these. They're due to expire and he thinks that they'll fight to keep in business," the man says. "He wants them done today."
"Today? There's not enough time," Sirius says. "I have plans this evening."
"He expects them done today," Beaumont replies, turning and walking out of the office.
Maybe it's not a conventional sign, but it's something that tells him that he can't do this life anymore. He has very little in the way of a social life, and even that's been taken from him.
Sirius logs out of his email account. He collects his phone and his wallet. He stands up and puts his suit-jacket on, before walking out of the office door.
"Mr Black, you have a meeting," his secretary calls. "It starts in ten minutes."
He doesn't answer. He has nothing to say anymore. It's only a matter of time before his father realises that he's leaving and Sirius knows that he's unable to do this for another day. He's completely exhausted by this life. His uncle is right, life is too short for this and he can't imagine doing this until he's in his sixties. He's twenty-two. Forty years of this sounds like a nightmare.
"Mr Black, do you need something?" Mara follows him down the hall, but he presses the button for the lift and heads downstairs. He feels like he can't talk anymore, can't express his thoughts in the slightest. He just needs to get out of this office and away.
"I'll… mark this as an early lunch break and reschedule your appointment," the woman calls, as Sirius steps into the lift and turns, pressing the button. He doesn't answer.
He speaks to no-one. There's no-one here he's really close to in the company, no-one to say goodbye to. He merely just walks. Nothing there matters anymore. Faced with the knowledge that he'll never return, he feels lighter.
He gets a cab back to Grimmauld Place, and he knows it's only a matter of time until his father calls him to find out where he is, so he turns off his phone. His mother is out, thankfully, and Kreacher is nowhere to be seen. Sirius takes a quick look around. Mother's car is gone, and he assumes that Kreacher is probably driving her around for the day.
He may not have much time.
Another bit of freedom, he realises, as he sets the phone down on the cupboard. His father pays for that phone and has ordered him to always have it on and to always be ready to answer it. He always has done, in the past.
Sirius opens his wardrobe and he tosses clothes into a suitcase. Shoes. Toiletries. A few pictures of him and Regulus. Little things that have sentimental value. Things he will need when starting a new life.
It's a small cabin and he doesn't need a lot of his things. He doesn't want a lot of stuff from his old life. From the life he's living right now. This is Sirius Black, the man set to take over Black Industries. These things all belong to the other Sirius. The Sirius that goes to Moonbow will be a very different Sirius, a new man. Someone who can do anything with their life. Anything he wants to do, rather than follow his father's dream. Someone who isn't running a company that has been in their family for generations now.
He takes his important documents and sets them on top of everything, and the case closes, and he realises that his life can amount to one suitcase. That's all that matters to him. Less, actually. He's only taking these clothes because he needs clothes until he has himself sorted and can make his own choices.
He considers what's left in the large room, before taking a smaller, travel-suitcase and folding up three of his best suits and some shirts. He wants to be prepared for his future. A future may involve interviews, and he needs to be prepared for that at least.
He switches on his phone for a moment and quickly finds a charity that helps homeless people find jobs, and the rest of the suits and shirts are put into bags and into a cab to the charity, along with the expensive shoes. He keeps one pair of work shoes, because he can't imagine not working, and wants to be prepared for whatever future he decides to have.
He picks up the bag with his laptop in, grabs the two suitcases, and he goes and gets another cab to the lawyer's office that his Uncle suggested, because he's already wasted enough time in making his choice, and he's scared that if he sticks around the house any longer, he'll change his mind and go back to work. He's ready to leave now. Ready to give everything here up. Well, save for one thing.
Lastly, he writes a letter. It's not much, because today he has little to say to anyone about anything. But Regulus is his brother and he's the one single reason for Sirius to stay. But one reason isn't enough. He can't force himself to remain in this life just because of his brother.
'Hey Reg,
By now, I bet everyone is panicking a bit. I'm sorry if you've been worried or wondering if something has happened.
I just can't do it anymore. I can't carry the burden of this life that Father has set out for us. I can't sit in that office day in and day out and watch my life pass me by. I'm not made for this life, Regulus. I have a way out. I'm packing up and leaving London.
I hate to leave you behind, and if you ever feel the need to get away, come to Moonbow. I hope that one day you take me up on that offer, because I don't think that life is for you either.
Sometimes we gotta do what's best for ourselves - what makes us happy. I'm sorry that to be happy, I had to leave you behind. You're the only thing here that matters to me, and I think it's why I took so long to make this choice - because I didn't want to leave you.
Sirius'
Sirius sets the letter on Regulus' pillow and he makes a plan to call Regulus in a few days, when he can better explain what had happened.
He leaves the phone on his own bed. The new Sirius doesn't need this phone. The new Sirius can get a new phone instead, one that doesn't ring constantly about work things when he's not at work.
Sirius takes one last look around the room. He's always hated this room. There has never been any privacy here and he's never been allowed to make it his own. It has to fit the theme of the rest of the house
He's ready to start his new life.
It takes over a week for the paperwork to be done. Sirius stays in a small hotel near the lawyer's office. His days are spent sleeping in, or walking around, really taking in London. Several times, he thinks to himself if he's doing the right thing, but he's calm and relaxed and less stressed.
The paperwork is rushed through, and Sirius finds himself presented with the deed to the house and the keys. There is an open-ticket to Moonbow for the train, and Sirius smiles. It's valid for a year, as though his Uncle knew that Sirius needed this in the coming months. There's really nothing holding him back.
"Can I use your phone?" he requests, once everything is done and Sirius has checked the train-times.
The lawyer nods his head. "I'll go and make myself a drink, you help yourself." He leaves and suddenly Sirius is alone and ready to make this call. He dials Regulus' direct work line and listens to the phone ringing.
There's no answer. Sirius tries a second time.
The third time, he tries Regulus' mobile, and is relieved when the answer is quick.
"Hello?"
"Reg? It's me. Sirius."
"Sirius! I've been worried. You just… where are you? You just left work and didn't come back. You… Sirius, we thought something happened. I looked in your room and… your clothes were gone, and the letter. Sirius, you left me a letter. You didn't even stop to… talk to me."
"I'm leaving," Sirius says quietly. "I hit a wall, Regulus. I couldn't do it anymore. I hit that breaking point and I saw a way out and I left. Uncle Alphard gave me a small cabin, you're welcome to come with me if you want."
"You know I can't," Regulus says. "Sirius, my life is here. I can't just… up and go on a whim. You can't do it either. We have lives, jobs, and a home here."
"Had," Sirius replies. He's a little annoyed because can't Regulus see that he needs this? Regulus more than anyone should understand his life and what he's been through and why he needs to escape it. "I had a life here, a job and a home. But I only had things because Mother and Father approved of them. What about choosing my own life? That was never an option, but it could be one." He doesn't want to ruin things with Regulus, but can't his brother understand what his life is doing to him? That he'd rather run away to a place he's never been before, face being completely disowned from his family, just because he wants the freedom? Because he needs it?
"Well, maybe you're braver than I am to try and find this out," Regulus finally says. "For what it's worth, you'll always be my brother and I'm grateful for that and I hope you find what you're looking for. I… I hope you keep in touch. Please keep in touch."
"I'll always keep in touch," Sirius insists softly. "Once I'm sorted, I'll get a new phone and I'll make sure to give you a call. I'll send letters and shit, and we can still visit each other."
"When do we have time for visits?" Regulus laughs softly. "Work doesn't allow me that."
"We'll make this work. I just called to say… well, I love you Reg, and take care of yourself, and we'll see each other soon. But if you ever hit that same wall… Moonbow. That's where you'll find me. You just go there and I'll be waiting for you."
"I'll keep that in mind," Regulus says. "I better go. I'm about to go into a meeting." He lets out a sigh. "Promise you'll be safe?"
"It's a little town in the country. You don't have to worry about me. I'm sure it's going to be quiet and dull. But you know what? Quiet and dull has a certain appeal to it."
The journey to Moonbow is a long one. There are three changes due to the train being in a remote part of England, and Sirius isn't looking forward to the journey at all. He's completely terrified, and train journeys are boring. But he's used to boring things. He's had to sit for hours and hours reading boring, mind-numbing documents. The journey will be less dull than that, he tells himself.
He drags his belongings from train to train, hating the bustle of people on the first two. He's struggling with a lot of belongings and people don't seem to want to let him through, and it pisses him off. But finally he finds himself at the last station he needs to be at to change trains. He's about to board the last train to Moonbow and there's a sense of relief at that. He stands in the middle of the station, his eyes on the screens, searching. Finally he sees a train with the Moonbow listed, and he lets out a sigh as he starts to count through the many stops that he has to go through before reaching there. This train will be long, but at least it's straight there now. He won't have to drag these things on and off trains anymore. He just has to get there and maybe get a cab or something. He can relax too, rather than having to watch stations and jump off quickly.
Sirius glances around the station. It's a little after lunchtime now and he's hungry. He absently realises that he's skipped breakfast, so his eyes move over the signs on the walls. He wants to eat, and he wants to try something new. He feels daring and he wants to eat something his mother would never have approved of.
He starts walking around, glancing at each place as he passes, and he tries to work out exactly what he's in the mood for. As he walks, a smell hits him. The smell of the most amazing bread in the world (well, he assumes, because it must be amazing to smell like that) and he follows it. It leads him to Subway, and Sirius orders the biggest sandwich he can with meatballs, and grabs a cookie and a drink too. His train could be announced at any time now and he's eager to sit down and eat this. He hopes it's nice, though he'll probably eat it anyway, as he has no other snacks.
On the way back, he heads into WH Smiths and gets a couple of bottles of water, before he returns to his spot in front of the screen. There, he opens his backpack and puts his purchases inside and he resumes watching, hoping that his train gets called soon. He's ready to drop down into a seat and not move for several hours.
This is the most terrifying thing he's ever done in his life. Even more terrifying than the day he walked out of the office, knowing that he was choosing to give up his entire life when he did so. Or when he went to the lawyer to get the deeds to the cabin - that was quite terrifying too.
But it's exciting. Sirius feels like he's buzzing with excitement. Because, with each train, he's felt that sense of freedom grow and grow. The more distance between him and London, the more he feels he can breathe.
A new life awaits him in Moonbow. He's not going to know anyone there, or know the place at all. He's going to have to learn a new area. New names. New everything. He's not going to have the money to go out and do whatever he likes and eat in fancy places and buy designer clothes. (Well, he has some money for new things, but he's going to be sensible with it).
He doesn't need all of that in this new life. None of those things ever made him happy. They were just for show, so his parents could make people aware of how well off their family is. They made his parents happy, and in his old life, that was enough. Because all that mattered was Sirius' parents happiness. It made Sirius' life and Regulus' life a lot easier that way. They never fought for their own happiness, and that's why he's had to do something drastic.
Sirius is excited at the idea of buying things he likes, though he has to work out what that will be. He has time to do that, though. No one will stop him. He'll finally be allowed to express himself in any way he chooses.
There will hopefully be no expectations here. He has money to live comfortably if he so chooses, though… that's not what he wants. Maybe a few more days to himself, some time to look around and get a feel of the place, but Sirius can't imagine doing nothing for the rest of his life.
But he doesn't have to do something he hates anymore. No office job that'll take up his entire life, instead he can find a hobby, he can get a new job. He can find something he enjoys, and not have to worry about what he gets paid, because he's got the money side of things covered for a long while. If he's careful, he's sure he can live off this money for a few years, though he's not all that sure what the cost of living actually is. He only knows the cost of the expensive restaurants. Or the cost of a designer suit. He's hoping to learn soon enough.
He knows one name in Moonbow - Charlus Potter, because his Uncle thankfully mentioned that name. The man is the mayor, and is hopefully a friend of his uncle's, which means that maybe the guy will be able to give Sirius some advice about the area. Sirius is certainly going to need his help when he arrives in town - if the train ever gets announced, that is.
Sirius is sure that Charlus will help. His Uncle chose this man's name. He wouldn't give the name of someone who wasn't willing to offer any assistance. His Uncle lived in this community for years now, and Sirius hopes that the people here are okay with him and maybe accept him. Even if they don't immediately do so, he'll earn his place here. He'll do whatever it takes to belong somewhere. He just wants to settle down and have a home and a nice life. He's sure it isn't too much to ask. He wants to find a life here that he was missing back in London, because it's got to be better than there, right?
The platform is finally announced and Sirius walks quickly towards the train, his hands on the two suitcases. The big one drags behind him, and he has the smaller of the two wheeling at his side. His legs are hurting, he's tired and hungry and he just wants to sit down and relax, which prompts him to speed up slightly. The sooner he's on the train, the sooner he can drop into a seat and not move.
He reaches the front of the train where the first-class carriage is, and he takes a couple of minutes to load his suitcases into the train. He feels a fresh wave of excitement that he's finally on his way to Moonbow, because the next time he gets off the train, it'll be by the town. Then he can go and rest in the cabin and deal with life tomorrow.
He's never visited Moonbow before. He's seen a couple of pictures taken around the town, but he doesn't remember much about the background of these pictures. He's also refused to look up the place before heading out there, because he's scared that he'll find some sort of flaw about this place and he'll end up talking himself out of going there.
He puts his suitcases away in the storage area of first class, and takes his reserved seat, glad at the quiet of the carriage. He doesn't mind noise usually, but he's going to be on the train for hours, and he's not sure he wants to handle the chatter of other people, the sound of people's music, or the beep of phones. He just wants the most quiet he can get for this. He needs quiet so he can think of his new life, and try to remain positive rather than panic. He needs to be calm.
He watches the other platform as people get off a train that has pulled up, and he keeps watching until his train finally pulls away from the platform, and he tries to push away the fear inside of him. He draws his eyes from the other train and opens his rucksack, pulling his food out.
The compartment only has three people in it that Sirius can see, and there is no-one near him, yet he's still quiet as he opens the wrapper and reaches for the first part of his foot-long sub. He breathes in and enjoys the amazing smell once more. He knows that his parents would hate to see him eat something so unhealthy, but he doesn't care what they think. Let them disapprove of him, they can't get to him now. They can't stop him.
He brings the sandwich to his lips and bites into it, and it's just as amazing as it smells. Sirius has never had a meatball sub before, but it's the most delicious thing that he has ever tasted. He's glad he opted for the double cheese. He's going to eat what he wants more often, he decides. He can't really understand why his parents were against such amazing food? Maybe if they could enjoy things like this, they'd have been nicer people?
He opens the bottle of tango that came as part of the meal deal and he takes a big mouthful, enjoying the fizzy drink. These drinks aren't new to him. He often takes a way when working, needing a minute to have some air, and will head to the shop and buy a drink. Mostly, he has water. But sometimes he needs something with flavour and will try something different each time. But tango is one of his favourites.
The sandwich is gone within minutes, and Sirius turns his attention back to the window. He knows there are twelve stops, and he's going to have to wait a long time before he's free from this train and this journey. He just has to wait for twelve before he finds his freedom, and he hopes something better is on the other end. He's scared that he's wrong, but he tries his hardest not to think about that.
He reminds himself that it'll be a new life. Even if it's not great there, it's still freedom. Plus, he trusts his Uncle.
The view is boring. They've not even travelled one station yet, so there are big buildings everywhere. There is a lot of grey and Sirius is not interested in looking. He's seen enough of this from his window back in the office. So he turns his attention to the rucksack again. He has a couple of books in there and also a sketchbook and notebook. He's not really sure what he wants to do, but he's always been interested in drawing and maybe this is a hobby that he can finally explore? There's no-one to tell him that he can't do these things, though he's not really sure where to start exploring this hobby.
He can't think of anything to draw right now. There's nothing to inspire him, and it's always been that way in London, he realises. So, he leaves that book and ignores the notebook for now and reaches for the top book. It's something Regulus insisted that he should read, and Sirius has nothing better to do with his time than to try out one of Regulus' old books.
When was the last time he sat down and read a book? he wonders to himself. He never has the time to do these things, and that's what has him opening the book from Regulus. The idea of doing something he's never had time for before. He's going to be doing a lot of that.
He reads, only stopping to look out of the window at each stop of the train. He takes in the world that has been passing by, and there seems to be less and less in the way of grey buildings. The book, unfortunately, isn't as great as his brother made out that it would be - a crime-thriller, in which Sirius is sure he's worked out the killer by the third chapter. But he still reads, lacking much else to do with his time. Plus, he wants to find out if he's right, if nothing else. Sirius notices that as the stations pass, less people are getting on the train and more people are leaving, and he gets the feeling that the train will be pretty much empty by the time that they finally reach Moonbow, at this rate.
Sirius finally finishes the book and looks out of the window once more, his eyes moving over the view in the distance. They're very far from the high-rise buildings and cold-looking blocks of flats and houses now, though now and then he does see grey in the distance. But they are few and far between. Mostly, he sees green. Green fields as far as the eye can see, and a small village or town here and there. The view is picturesque and he sighs, regretting not purchasing himself a camera before leaving on this trip. If he had a camera, he'd have been able to take a picture and send it to Regulus.
He makes do with watching it intently, his eyes on the farms, the tractors and he various small towns. He hopes that the town he ends up in will be just as fascinating and pretty as these.
Looking out of the window gets boring after a little while, but Sirius doesn't want to delve into another book. He reaches into his rucksack once more and he withdraws a pen and his notebook. He puts the book back in the bag, not wanting to worry about rushing to organise once they get closer.
He starts to make a list. He's about to find his freedom, and he's sure that there is so much he's missing out on and so much that he can do, and making a list could perhaps help him organise his thoughts, because he's not really sure where to start.
But as he stares at the paper, he's also not sure where to start on the list, and it takes a couple of minutes of thinking before he tentatively draws his first bullet-point on the paper. He can do anything, and that is such a vast thought.
'Listen to music,' he writes next to that first bullet point. He's surprised that his first desire is to listen to music. Something a lot of people take for granted. He barely has time to do anything, and he's looking forward to just relaxing with some music that isn't the classical music that his parents like to listen to. He's heard other music in passing. Songs playing in shops, for example, and it's nothing like the classical music his mother enjoys, and he wants to find out what sort of music he likes.
'Catch up on tv shows'. Another thing he's not had time for. He works until he's tired, and usually goes home, eats something and goes to bed, only to go about it the next day. Unless it's one of the days to eat out, that is. Then he has to pretend to be so happy. Here and there, he'll catch an episode of something, but it's another thing that is few and far between, and he wants time to sit down properly and get into something.
As he starts to write more things on the list, he realises quickly that his list is simply activities that he wants to try. Things he's missed out on. It's not got any big boals. There are no dreams or ambitions, and Sirius isn't sure if it's because he's not ready to start choosing his dream, or perhaps he just can't think of what he wants to do with his life.
Maybe one will come to him in the future? Maybe once he knows what he intends on doing, he can add a dream or desire to the list. An ambition.
He doesn't put the notebook away straight away. He stares between the bullet points, his mind swirling as too many thoughts hit him all at the same time. Will he have time to do these things in Moonbow? Will he want to? Every so often, something gets added to his list, but he has nothing else to do except stare out of the window and write it.
It's an hour or so later when he hears the announcement stating that they'll soon be arriving in Moonbow. Sirius takes time to clear up the table, to make sure he hasn't left anything, His rubbish is put into a nearby bin and Sirius stands, his back hurting a little as he does so. He's not ready to get off the train, but he's ready to start this new life.
He walks towards the end of the carriage where his suitcases are, and he takes them out of the storage rack, ready. They're the only cases left in there. He puts his laptop bag on top of the larger suitcase, holding it there with his hand, and he takes a few deep breaths as he feels panic inside of him once more. He's so close now. This is it. Of course he'd be panicking.
Sirius focuses on the inside of the train. His gaze moves between the posters and the map. It moves over the carpet and chairs, and then he looks to see how many people are left in his carriage, and is not surprised that it's just him. One thing he doesn't look towards are the windows, because he still wants this to be a surprise. Everything will be a surprise, and he'll find out about it the old-fashioned way, rather than scrolling through internet pages. Rather than asking his Uncle.
As the train starts to slow down, Sirius looks up at the list of stations on the screen above the door. There are only two left after Moonbow, and he's so far away from London, and he's glad. There's no way his parents would follow him out here. They hate the countryside, that's why they've never come to visit Uncle Alphard, instead getting him to come back to London twice a year. He never has to see them again. A thought that he knows should make him sad, but it fills him with a joy that he's never felt before.
When the doors finally open, Sirius gets his first look at the place. The first thing he notices is how empty the station is, though there are boxes of wild-flowers scattered around and they look well kept. It's quite pretty, but he doesn't linger on those. He has things to do, places to go and people to see. He hopefully has a comfortable bed to sleep in. He drags both cases off, the laptop strap slipping up his shoulder and hurting his neck a little as he does, but they're off the train and he can take a moment to fix himself. Heglances over his belongings and takes account of everything. The train starts to pull away, and Sirius glances around, noticing that he's the only person to come to this station.
Sirius turns, watching the train leave him there. His eyes follow the windows, and he tries to see if the train still has anyone on it. It picks up speed a little, but he counts two people. Two that still have places to go. Maybe more that he hadn't noticed.
He turns his head, his gaze following the train as it disappears around a corner. He's here, he realises. The train has gone and it's not going to be back for a while. There's nothing else he can do except head into town and start this new life that Alphard wanted for him. To start the new life that he's hoping will work out for him.
He feels dizzy at the thought and has to take a couple of deep breaths to calm himself. He can do this. He's got this. This is an adventure and he has his list and he can do anything he wants. These people won't know much about where he's come from, so this is his chance to reinvent himself. Into who or what, he's not worked that one out yet.
He turns away from the tracks and is glad that there's a way off the platform that doesn't involve stairs or any kind, because he's already had to drag these cases up and down stairs, because unfortunately not all stations have escalators or lifts. Sirius walks along it and to the machine to scan his ticket upon arrival, and the gates open and he walks through. It's a little strange that there are no people here. He's used to stations having at least a handful of people, and it just hits him how small this town must be.
The outside of the station is really pretty. There's no road leading into it, just a pretty path and Sirius realises that it's for the aesthetic. The whole small town look, because they want it to look beautiful, and it does. Sirius walks down the path which is lined with trees, wishing once more that he had a phone to take some pictures for his brother. He passes some quaint benches tucked between the trees, and he slows his pace as he glances around at the flowers. There are wildflowers growing in little squares of green that are lined with decorative rocks. Some of the rocks have designs painted onto them and Sirius smiles as he stops and leans down to look closer. It's cute, and it's perfect, and he can't wait to see what else this town has to offer. So far, excellent first impressions.
The suitcases seem louder than before as he makes his way down the path and onto another road. There are car-parking spaces down here, but only two of them. Sirius follows the road around the corner, his eyes falling on an old-fashioned sign-post that points in the direction of the town. He doesn't really need the sign-post because he can see it in front of him, barely a ten minute walk. There's no need to call a cab from the phone he had seen inside of the station. He'd reach town before the cab reached him. No need to waste that money, no matter how worn out he is.
Sirius glances at his watch, pausing to do so, and he just feels so drained and tired all of a sudden. It's only six, but he's ready to sleep now, and he's sure he could sleep the moment his head hits the pillow. He hopes that the bed is fine for him to sort sheets out and drop down and sleep for a day or two before doing anything. That's what he's looking forward to the most now - sleeping.
Sirius walks into the town, and he feels eyes on him, though no one is close by. Sirius doesn't feel confident enough to meet these looks. Instead, he just focuses hard on the town hall he can see in the distance. The road curves off to the left, and he realises that there is no road in this area. No cars making noise, no crossings. Just people walking through, without having to worry about anything like that.
He notices, happily, that the buildings here aren't blocks of buildings, there are no blocks of flats. Nothing at all like that. All he can see are old fashioned houses and cottages. Some look new, but still to the style of the rest, and he loves that they're building and keeping the same feel to the town. There are no buildings that are out of place here, everything looks perfect. Though the town hall has a slightly more modern feel, it still has the same vibe as the others in the town.
The shops are quaint and cute, and it's beautiful. He can see why his Uncle fell in love with the place. He can see why his Uncle chose here to retire, and to spend so many years. It's easy to fall in love with Moonbow at a single glance.
People say London is amazing, but London has nothing at all on Moonbow. It's rare to see flowers growing around London, but as Sirius walks, he can see gates to a park and he can already see the flowers growing around the walls of it. There's also a little green outside of the town hall with a fountain and even more flowers.
In London, people would have picked all of the flowers already, or stamped all over them.
Sirius reaches the town hall and he's relieved to see a ramp at the side of the stairs. He drags his suitcases up the ramp leading up to the town hall and takes a moment to catch his breath before he pushes at the door. It doesn't open, so he gives the handle a try. Again, nothing.
Panicking once again, Sirius glances around and he notices the sign on the side of the door in curly gold letters on a black plaque. The sign states the opening times of the town-hall, but more importantly to Sirius, it states that the town hall is currently closed.
Well, great. He glances at the door, hoping to see a bell or something, just in case someone is inside, but there's nothing there. He knocks anyway, because this isn't normal town-hall business, it's more of a private matter since Charlus and Alphard are friends, and he's not looking for Charlus the Mayor, he's looking for Charlus the friend of his uncle.
But there's still no answer, and Sirius is at a loss what to do. He has no phone, he can't search the internet for any out-of-hours numbers, or to call the lawyer in hopes that he has a number for Charlus Potter. He glances around, but there's no-one nearby and he's nervous about approaching strangers and starting conversations. He's not sure he has the mental capacity to handle anything else today.
Sirius slowly brings the cases back down and he takes a seat on the edge of the fountain, completely spent. It's been exhausting today, all of the travelling, and he's also mentally exhausted, his brain going into overdrive as he thinks about this new life and decide what he should do. Perhaps he could just check into a hotel for the night and handle this tomorrow? Which begs the question - where is the nearest hotel?
He just wants to sleep. A hotel sounds like the best option right now, but it means he'll have to ask directions. Also, he'll have to stand up and his legs are hurting. He doesn't want to keep walking around in hopes of finding something. He just needs a few minutes and if he sees someone, he can walk over. He'll just wait here.
"That's a wishing fountain, you know," comes a voice, after Sirius' eyes start to droop. He sits up quickly, glancing around and there's a man there with dark hair and glasses. "People usually toss a coin in, make a wish. Even the adults do it sometimes. It's kinda a thing around here. A town tradition, if you will."
"Hi. Am I not supposed to sit here?" Sirius gets up, worried that he's upset a local already, but the guy just laughs.
"We prefer you use the benches, but people sit on the side. There's no sign, so you didn't know. You look… well, you're falling asleep on the side of a fountain. As funny as it would be for you to fall asleep and go backwards… I'm supposed to be responsible and stuff, as father says, so I thought I'd come over and check on you."
The guy gestures to the building behind them, and continues talking faster than Sirius has ever heard anyone talk, as though he's racing to get the words out. "I saw you when I was heading back to get something from the Town Hall. Dad rushed off earlier, dealing with an emergency and all, so I had to come back for his phone so he won't have to later."
"Wait. You work at the town hall? You must know Charlus Potter." Sirius feels a little more awake now. "How do I find him?"
The guy's smile turns into something more curious. "Yeah, my dad. I can't really give out personal information though but I can pass on a message. You understand, right? You seem nice enough but I don't know you and can't start giving out that sort of stuff. I'm James, by the way."
"Right. I'm… I'm Sirius Black, my Uncle lives around here. Well, he used to. He signed his place over to me and I… it was a whim and all, but I'm here and… well, I don't know where the place is and I don't have a phone to get a map and… if you could even point me in the direction of the place and…" Sirius is sure he's sounding more and more panicked with each word, and he's feeling it well up inside of him again, and by the look on James' face, he can tell too.
"Oh." James' smile fades quickly. "We weren't expecting you quite so soon. Alphard said you got the keys this morning. We thought you'd be another day or two. Or that you'd have sent a message to him to inform him that you were coming."
"It's not a problem is it?" Sirius checks. "I didn't even think to stop and do that. I just… I just wanted to get out and get going before I changed my mind. I thought that if I put it off, I might never come here."
James laughs awkwardly, running a hand through his dark, messy hair. "It's not a problem that you're here," he assures Sirius. "A new person moving into town is quite exciting, actually. Your uncle talks about you a lot. He's pretty proud of you, and he even asked me if I could make sure you're happy and that you get settled and stuff. He's clearly angling at me becoming your friend, which I'm cool with as long as you're a decent bloke and all. But…" James trails off.
"But?" Sirius pushes, not liking the nervous tone.
"So… there's actually another problem. Look, the cabin… no-one has really gone there in a year. It's private land and the post gets diverted to our house. Alphard told my dad that he was giving the place to you, and sent some money, asked if we could arrange for someone to go in and give it a clean, set it up all nice for you."
"Okay…" Sirius murmurs. "What's wrong then?" Because clearly James is dancing around the point, and Sirius just wants to know the problem so he can deal with it.
James grimaces. "We arranged for someone to go in the day before yesterday. It wasn't until last night did they come back to us stating that there is damage in the cabin. It's not… you can't live there until repairs are done."
Sirius stares at him. "I'm sorry, what?" he asks.
"We've been on the phone to your Uncle about it though and he's set up an account. Once you arrive, we're supposed to bring you to the inn because you'll need somewhere to stay. They'll give you the best room there and we'll get the cabin sorted out for you. It looks like the problem started not long after your Uncle left, and it's been over a year and… the damage got pretty bad pretty quick. It might have been fixable had we caught it earlier, but we've had a builder come out and look at it - a guy that knew your Uncle, so you know he's on the level - and he's deemed it unsafe. But Dad will go through with that soon with you. Let's get you set up in the inn and I can bring you there now, or show you tomorrow? Tomorrow might be better, but it's up to you."
Sirius deflates. "This is a sign," he mutters. "Fuck. I knew it. I just gave up everything. My job, my family. Just needed to escape… that life, and… and this is a sign that I did the wrong thing. I should have stayed in London."
He drops down onto the edge of the fountain again. "I'll stay tonight, but tomorrow I should just get the train back to London," he says, already dreading dragging the suitcases on the trains. But more than that, he's dreading seeing his parents again. Either they'll be smug that he failed, or furious that he left. Or a mix of both. Whatever the case, it doesn't bode well for him. He knows that.
James sits down next to him.
"I've heard Alphard talk about the company he used to work for," James says. His voice is a little slower now, less excited. It's like a wave of calm has taken over James and that helps Sirius a little. "It always sounded like the most miserable part of his life, and he regrets all of his time there. He always says these things when he's having a drink in the inn with us, and based on his opinion of that place… Sirius, he's mentioned you. You and your brother and he's always talked about inviting you down to stay. But… Alphard had his own things going on and that invitation never got extended before now. But he did mention that you work there, and then when he gave you the cabin and the land, it was obvious to my family that he didn't want you to feel that same sense of being trapped. I can't speak for anything else that may have you feel trapped, because that would be prying and mum goes on at me when I do. But… this is a set-back, and it's not a sign."
"I have no home," Sirius mutters.
"You don't," James agrees. "But that doesn't mean that you have no-where to go. Your Uncle is watching out for you, despite not being here. He's made the calls he needs to make and he's arranged for the place to be fixed and he's made arrangements for you to stay in the inn. You believe in signs, so perhaps it's not a sign for you to leave. Maybe this is a sign that an inn that is bustling with people is the place you need to be. There's where you'll meet the townsfolk. Look for the silver lining."
Sirius pauses. "Perhaps," he murmurs, because no-one has ever talked to him as much as James has. He's pretty sure he's known people for years, but if he adds all of the conversations with those people up, the last few minutes with James wins hands down in terms of how much James doesn't shut up.
He kind of likes it though.
"Sirius. Look," James continues. "It's half past six now and I refuse to let you leave without giving this a try. So, what we're going to do is bring your cases to the inn and order some food. I'll get the phone to my dad and I'll sit with you and answer any questions you have, and then… well, you look shattered so I'm sure you wanna sleep. I'm also convinced that you don't want to do that journey from London. It left Alphard exhausted every time. We're going to make this work."
"I don't want to do it again," Sirius admits. "That journey was hell."
"Don't leave for your old life before even trying," James insists. "It's not so bad here. It's not like London, with all the brilliant shops - though we can get a train either way to some cool shopping centres. But it's… Moonbow has so much more to offer. You're looking for an escape from your old life. You're here with… well, not much. You're alone. Let me introduce you to some people, okay? Tomorrow we'll have a drink and I'll bring the boys along. The girls too, I mean, they'll be happy for a new bloke in town." He gives Sirius a grin and Sirius chuckles. Though he's not interested in meeting the ladies. Except to make friends. Friends are always good.
"Food and sleep sound good," he admits, a little reluctantly.
"Great." James stands and takes the largest suitcase before Sirius can. "My mate Peter, his mum, Pearl, owns the inn. Get Peter to give me a call when you're awake tomorrow and ready to do whatever, and I'll walk over."
Sirius nods his head. One of his worries had been doing all of this alone, but he's got James looking out for him, wanting to meet up, and that's making a lot of difference. He reaches for the large suitcase, but James pulls it out of reach, and grins at him as he starts up the street, pausing to wait for Sirius a few steps away.
Sirius takes the small suitcase and puts the laptop bag over his shoulder again. His back is hurting him, but he doesn't say anything. He's so lost right now. But at least he's not lost and alone. Plus, he's only got the small suitcase, which makes this a tiny bit easier. James knows the way around here, and that means they'll take the quickest route to the inn.
"I'll sort you out a map of the area until you get your bearings," James replies. "It's nice here. We've got the inn, but also a little coffee-shop. There's a library, if you're into reading. We tend to do things like games nights at the tavern. There's a book club. Remus runs a Dungeons and Dragons game, he's always open to new players as long as they live in town." James pauses. "Or if they're staying for a bit, he does let them join in too. Remus is good like that, never wants anyone to be left out."
"I've never really played board games. We weren't that sort of family," Sirius admits quietly.
James nods slightly. "I got that impression by what we've heard from Alphard," he replies. "Well, I'm sure you'll find something here that'll grab your attention. So, what do you like? What are your hobbies?"
Sirius sighs. "I can play the violin and dance. Mother… we had classes and tutors to fill all of our spare time. I think… I just need to find what I like. I don't even know who I am outside of who I was just a few days ago."
"We'll work it out," James assures him. He turns abruptly and Sirius realises that they've already reached the inn, just two minutes from the town hall.
"There's also a hotel around here, but that's more of a tourist thing. This is much better. If you're looking to get to know the people here better, this is where you're more likely to find us locals." James pushes the door open.
"James, you're early!"
"Peter, look, we want the best room. This is Alphard's nephew, he's set up an account, right?" James says, holding the door open for Sirius to walk through. Sirius does, his gaze moving around the inside of the place. The downstairs is massive, bigger than he thought from the outside. There are two doors on the back wall. One marked 'rooms' and the other marked 'kitchen'. On the left, there's a staff only door, and on the right are the doors for the toilets. There's a staircase in the corner.
"Yeah, it's all good. Mum is just going to send the bill to his lawyer and it'll be sorted," Peter says. Sirius gets his case through the door and closes it behind him, before looking over. A man a little shorter than him is wiping down some tables. He's blond with blue eyes and a warm smile. "You're Alphard's nephew then?" Peter asks, turning his attention to Sirius.
"Yeah. Sirius Black, good to meet you." Sirius strides forward, hand out, and Peter looks amused when he reaches to shake it.
"Sirius, this is Peter Pettigrew. His mum owns this place," James explains. "Peter, are you busy in here tonight?"
"Nothing planned," Peter says. "We'll probably have music on until about midnight. Mum is just going to set up the pool tables and darts and that sort of stuff. Just the casual stuff, and the jukebox going."
James nods his head. "Great. We need to get some food and book Sirius into the room. Anyone around that can run an errand?"
"I'm just about finished here," Peter says. "I'll book him in and then make a move. I need to get some fresh air anyway. What do you need?"
"Dad is at Alphards, sorting the cabin issue out. He's with Frank and they're assessing the place and Alice is trying to get an idea of how it can be fixed. Dad needs his phone, but I'm trying to help Sirius. Any chance you could run it over? I'll owe you a pint."
Peter laughs as he holds his hand out, and James passes over the phone. "You do know that we run this place? I can have a pint any time I like," he points out. "Mum just ran to do something out back, but I'll get you the room-key and you can come order food in a bit. I'll bring the phone when she comes back through."
Peter walks back behind the bar and pulls out a large book and it hits the bar with a loud thud. He opens it and he slowly moves his finger down the list, searching. "Yup, best room we've got, all ready for you," he confirms. His finger moves across the line as he reads the information of the booking. "You're the first we've set up with all inclusive meals, your Uncle really didn't want you to be put out. Three meals a days. You miss any, we'll just roll them over and add them onto the end. You're in room twelve. Head on up."
Sirius thanks him and takes the key. All inclusive meals. The best room. It's not sounding as bad as it did half an hour ago. If his Uncle has paid for this, Sirius should make the most of it for a few days at the very least.
"Second floor," James says. "There's no lift in here, unfortunately. But there are a couple of rooms downstairs that are suitable for anyone with a disability, though they tend to go to the hotel." When Sirius reaches for the case, James shakes his head. "Look, you're knackered, mate. Let me handle this, and you get the rest of your stuff up there." He glances back towards the counter. "Thanks Peter, we'll have a drink in a bit."
Peter nods, and as they start up the stairs, the door opens and Sirius can hear a woman's voice, and Peter responds. He can't make out what they're saying, and just assumes that it's Peter's mum talking to him.
He continues on after James, and they reach a room at the end of the hallway.
"Here we are," James says, coming to a stop. "Come on, let's get you set up." He takes the key from Sirius and unlocked the door, before pushing it open. Sirius walks in first, surprised at the room as he looks around.
"Oh, it's the new bathroom they put in last year. I forgot that this place had an en-suite."
Sirius has stayed in posh hotels before. The best of the best, because his family only deserve the best, or so his mother likes to tell them. But this is so very different. His mother would never set foot in here, let alone stay here, but Sirius doesn't care because he can see that it's excellent in its own way. The bed is a four-poster with warm looking red and gold sheets, and what Sirius imagines is a hand-made blanket on the top. There's a desk and a wardrobe and a comfortable arm-chair. On the side, there's a small television with a strange box attached to it.
"What's that?"
"Oh. That's… Freeview, or something," James says, inspecting the box for a moment. "I'm not sure, actually. We don't have one of these. It's not got the best shows, but it's something."
Sirius nods. It is something. Maybe not brilliant shows, but he can watch what's on there. He's free to do what he wants. He also has his laptop so he can watch shows on that. He's beyond excited and his worries are starting to fade away.
"It's nice," he admits. "I'll… I'll give it a few days. See what I think." He doesn't want to commit to the place just yet. He wants to be sure.
James nods, before hesitating. "The room is paid for monthly, I believe. Give it a month at least. A real chance. I mean. Get to know the place and the people. You up and left your old life, Sirius. I'm guessing that there's no special someone back home?"
"The only person back there that I could say goodbye to was my brother," Sirius says, a little bitterly.
"Friends?"
"Who had time for friends in a job that started at 8 and ended twelve hours later?" Sirius mutters, with a shrug. "Acquaintances, at the most. People who won't really notice that I'm not there anymore."
"Relationship?"
"None," Sirius says bluntly, not wanting to go into any more detail than that.
"And you're considering returning to that? Maybe this isn't going as well as you hoped it would, but you're here. The journey is done. Maybe the cabin isn't ready, but you've got a nice room to stay in. Nice meals being cooked for you. Probably not fancy stuff like Alphard talks about when he comes back from his trips to London, but good home-cooked meals. I'm here, and I'll help you out. Can't have too many friends, and as long as you're not an arsehole, we could be friends."
"You really seem to want me to stay," Sirius comments, his lips twisting into a small smile. A stranger he's known for less than an hour cares more about him than almost everyone else in his life, save his uncle and brother. It's a nice feeling though.
"I like people being happy, and you don't appear to be all that happy," James admits. "I just feel like you could be, you know."
Sirius doesn't know how to respond to that, so he says nothing. He lays the suitcase down and opens it. If he's going to be staying for a month, it's best to unpack and not live out of the case. Maybe he'll be more tempted to stay if he's not living out of the case. It might feel more homely that way.
James offers to help, and they hang the clothes up quickly. The toiletries are put in the attached bathroom and, when the suitcase is empty, they move onto the smaller one.
The laptop is removed from the bag and put to charge, and Sirius empties his rucksack. He throws the rucksack and the small suitcase into the larger one, zips it up and slides it under the bed. He puts the laptop bag underneath the desk, before looking around.
It looks mostly the same, but it's nice that everything is organised.
"Come on, we'll eat and then you can get some rest. I'll come get you tomorrow to show you the land and the cabin, just—"
James is cut off by the sound of his phone ringing. "One sec, it's my dad," he says, before answering it.
"Hey Dad. Yeah, we've just finished unpacking… no, he's really tired. The journey from London… yeah… I'll have dinner here tonight, and… yeah, I'll collect Sirius tomorrow and we'll come to the town hall, or… we can bring him tomorrow. Gotta go." He hangs up the call and shoves his phone back into his pocket.
James turns back to Sirius. "Dad has had an assessment done on the place. He wants you to make the call on what to do next, since it's your cabin and you're the one who will hopefully be living in it. So, it's the back of the cabin that's ruined, but Charlus always talked about extending it. My dad can get it all repaired, but he's saying that since you're here for a month, maybe rather than repairing it, you might be interested in getting the place made bigger instead? It's a good time to do that since the wall would have had to be taken out for the extension anyway. You don't have to decide now though. Come on, food." With that, James leaves the room, and Sirius grabs the key and follows.
"Do I need my wallet?" he checks.
James just shakes his head. "Not at all. You're all-inclusive, remember. That should be all meals. Not sure about drinks, but you can just bill your room."
"I'd rather my bill for drinks and whatever be separate than the room bill. I don't want that to all fall to my Uncle too," Sirius comments. "But that sounds good, it'll save me having to bring it with me each time."
James nods, smiling. "You can request that. I'm sure Peter or his mum can set that up." They walk up the hallway and Sirius takes his time to look around. The wallpaper is a pale green and white in vertical stripes, with a small thin line of gold separating each stripe, and the carpet is an almost matching soft green too. It's what he expects from a beautiful town like this, and it's just a comforting and soft colour. He likes it. It makes him feel warm.
They start back down the stairs and Sirius' body protests a little. He struggles to keep up with James, but James patiently waits at the bottom of the stairs for him.
"You're being really nice for someone who doesn't know me," Sirius comments.
"Well, you seem like you could do with a friend," James comments. "Let's see what's on the menu. The food here is the best you'll ever taste, just you wait and see."
Sirius doesn't want to say goodbye. He listens to James and Peter make plans to have a couple of drinks, and the invite is extended to him with such enthusiasm, that Sirius hates to refuse.
He has to excuse himself and say goodnight, and James reminds him to get Peter to call when he's awake.
Sirius' legs hurt going up the stairs once more. He goes into the room and closes the windows and he looks around once more.
It's almost eight. At home - no, that's not home anymore, he reminds himself - at Grimmauld place, he'd still be working. If he hadn't left home, he'd still be at work, reading documents and trying to get done for the day so he could go home.
Or he'd be out to dinner at a fancy restaurant. Whilst the meal he had today isn't fancy, it's a hell of a lot better than the food he's used to eating. Mrs Pettigrew was cooking up an amazing stew, and James' face lit up at the sound of it, so Sirius decided to take the risk and try it out.
He has no regrets. Is it crazy to stay somewhere because of the cooking? Perhaps. But it warms him a little more to the place. Everything is warming him to this place, and already, he can't see himself heading back to London any time soon. Whether that changes or not, he's not sure right now.
He wonders what Regulus is doing right now and he wishes his brother could be here with him. Both of them could be getting their new start, gaining their freedom, and not just him. He knows Regulus is a little more suited for the office life, maybe, but he still doesn't wish that future on his brother. He wants his brother out of there too, and maybe he can convince Regulus to visit and see this town for himself. Maybe if Regulus did that, he'd realise that it's the perfect place to escape to.
Sirius reaches for the pyjama bottoms he left ready on the bed, and he strips out of his own clothes, folding them over the desk chair as he does. He pulls the pyjama bottoms on, not enjoying the material against his skin. They've always felt stiff and uncomfortable, and he's never liked the ones that his mother purchases.
He suddenly realises that he doesn't have to even wear these. He can wear what he wants, because this is freedom.
He takes them off and sets them aside, approaching the bed in just his boxers. He gets under the covers, and pulls them up to his chin, before having a little wiggle around, getting a feel for the bed.
It may be because he's so tired, but this bed is the most comfortable thing ever. He fixes his pillows as he decides to take five minutes to really think about his first experience in Moonbow. Maybe make a list of pros and cons of the place in his head, so he'll have an idea tomorrow of how he wants to proceed.
But he's so tired that he can't keep his eyes open and he's asleep within seconds.
He's woken the next morning by a loud knock on the door, and for a moment, he forgets where he is. The room is still somewhat dark because of the drawn curtains and Sirius doesn't know what time it is. It takes a few seconds for him to register where he is.
There's a second knock and Sirius gets up from the bed and grabs for the pyjama bottoms. He pulls them on and opens the door a crack.
"Peter, is it?" he asks, still quite muddled. He rubs at his eyes, trying to wake up a little.
Peter smiles. "Morning. Well, afternoon I should say. James said not to wake you for breakfast - you missed it - he said you were tired. But it's twelve and I thought you'd want lunch soon."
"Yeah. I'll go shower and come down in a few. Thanks mate."
"You're good," Peter says, with a nod. "I'll let James know you're up. He'll probably be here in a bit. James is like that."
"Yeah he seems nice," Sirius comments. "Did you say it's twelve?"
"That's right. You've had a good sleep, but James thinks that you needed it."
Sirius grins. "I think I did. The bed is really comfortable. Probably the best night's sleep I've had in a long time." He realises how true it is. He's not woken early by an alarm. No silk sheets in sight. Just a comfortable bed and soft, inviting sheets.
"Good to know. Mum is slowly upgrading all of the rooms. This is the first one we've completed, but the others will get updated too," Peter tells him. "Well, I better get back to it. I'll be downstairs when you're ready."
Sirius closes his door and walks across the room, the carpet soft on his feet as he moves. He walks to the window first and draws the curtain and realises that the view if of the town. He stares, amazed. It's even more beautiful today than he realised yesterday. There's so much green, and the town isn't ugly like looking over the high-rise buildings in London. It's a stunning view and he appreciates it so much. He could look out of this window every day and never tire of this.
Down on the street, there are people milling about, but not to the same degree as the crowds in London. It's less crowded here, and people aren't in as much of a rush. People walking with dogs, and stopping to talk to each other. It's just a nice, friendly vibe.
Sirius considers going out onto the balcony, but he resists. He's hungry again and he's still shocked that he's slept for sixteen straight hours. His mouth tastes weird and his hair is all over the place and he really needs a shower. He meant to have one the night before, after arriving, but completely forgot about it. He didn't have the energy to drag himself into the shower either.
He opens one of the smaller windows to let some air in, and retreats to the bathroom, his fingers moving over the towel for a moment. It's thick and fluffy and even though it's such a small thing, Sirius takes a moment to appreciate it. Not everything here matches in terms of colour, but it's more like a home here than back in London.
Sirius removes his clothes, dropping them to the floor and kicking them aside before he reaches into the shower and turns it on. He takes a minute, fiddling with the knobs to get the temperatature to what he wants it to be, before he steps under the spray, the water feeling amazing as it falls onto his skin, trailing down his body. He washes himself even more thoroughly than usual, taking twice as long in the shower as he usually does, but he tries to be mindful of the time. Once out and dry, he puts the pyjama bottoms back in, since he had only worn them for a few minutes, and he picks up his boxers and sticks them in a small washing bag that's attached to the door.
His first day here. He wants to look presentable, so he glances through his clothes and picks something a little less formal. A smart polo top and some black trousers. He looks himself over in the mirror and starts to fix his hair, trying to sort out the curls. He's never really liked his hair, but his mother has insisted that it be cut into the latest fashion, and the curls fall around his ears, just about reaching his chin.
He heads downstairs at a quarter to one, to find James sitting on a stool by the bar, chatting to Peter whilst Peter works. He grins widely as he notices Sirius approach, and Sirius looks around at the handful of people at the other tables and wonders if these are locals too?
"Morning," James says. "Peter called, said you were coming down for lunch and I thought I'd take my lunch break and meet you, then we could get on with things. I can show you around, bring you to your place, work out what we're doing." He hands over the menu. "Sandwiches here are amazing, or the jacket potatoes. Or… well, everything is good. You'll work it out."
Sirius looks over the menu and decides on a tuna sandwich with chips on the side. He's here for a month so he'll have a chance to try everything. Maybe longer, his brain supplies, but Sirius doesn't want to rush into this choice. He's already rushed into decisions and that hasn't helped thus far. James opts for a cheese and ham sandwich and they put in their drink orders and move to one of the tables.
"Right, so what do you know about the cabin?" Sirius asks, getting straight to the point.
"Dad got a proper eval on it last night," James says. "The back wall is falling apart. Some animals got in and used the place as a home. He had people in this morning to relocate the animals and we've put something over the back to stop them getting back in, but you can't live there."
Sirius nods. He knows the last part. "And repairs or extensions?"
"Your Uncle is covering it. He said you might want a bigger place, so Pops is getting some blueprints drawn up. You just pick what one you like and we'll get Frank to start the work."
"Won't that take a while though? You've got to get it all approved."
James grinned. "Dad is the mayor," he says. "Around here, we get things done quickly. You don't have to give notice to neighbours because your place isn't all that close to anyone. It's not miles away, but you've got a bit of privacy that you don't need to let people know you're doing the work. There's no issues with noise either. We run things our own way around here, and it works for us. You won't find sixteen-week waiting times around here, Sirius."
"So the work could start…"
"You pick which design you like, Pops puts a notification in the newspaper about the work. We give it a week and then it gets approved and Frank will get started on it. It gives him and his team time to get the materials sorted too. The cabin is currently a bedroom, a living room with a kitchen as part of it, and a bathroom. But the bathroom is pretty basic there. So not sure if you want to request any other changes whilst you're at it? The rooms are all pretty tiny."
Sirius considers this. He wants his own space, and tiny is fine, but if there's a chance to make his home bigger, he'll possibly take that. He wants to see it first before he makes this choice. "I'll see what's on offer," he says instead. "You know, I've never had to make choices like this before."
"You've never been free to do so," James comments softly, reaching for his glass of lemonade and taking a sip. "Look, you're a grown man. If there's something you want in your new place, don't be afraid to ask for it. You want a better bathroom, that can be done. You want a bigger room, fine. You want a kinky sex room… well, probably don't say that to my dad, but just ask for another bedroom and you do you." James smirks and Sirius can't help but laugh. He can't help but like James. He's glad his Uncle asked James to help him out. He's even more glad it was James that found him sitting by the fountain.
"I'll give the sex room a miss," he says. "But I'd like a study."
"Oh. A study?" James gives him a lavish wink. "That's what we're calling it these days?"
"It'd be good to have the extra room in case I can convince my brother to come down too," Sirius says, trying not to laugh at James' reaction. "I miss him. It's weird, I used to see him every day, even if it was just passing him in the hallway. I'd try make a habit of going to lunch with him on the days where we had time for lunch-breaks. Now… I can't see him, and that's the biggest con of this place. So many pros, and they're all adding up, but two very big cons - the cabin, and my brother not being here."
James nods, a kind smile on his lips. "I'm sure he's missing you too. Who knows, maybe you can get all set up and invite him down for a break, and he'll enjoy it so much he won't want to leave?"
"That's a good plan," Sirius agrees. He grins as the plates are set on the table. "Bloody hell, this sandwich is massive."
"Pearl does amazing food," James comments as his own plate is set down. "Peter, joining us?"
"Yeah. I'll go let mum know," Peter says, putting down a couple more drinks before walking away. It's not long before he takes a seat too, a jacket potato in front of him and with a glass of coke. "So, what are we upto today, boys?"
"Sirius needs to go and see the cabin and then there's a bit of boring office stuff but I'll be showing him around the town if I can."
"Sounds fun, dull and then fun again," Peter comments. "I've got an hour before I gotta get back to work. I might go check in on Remus."
"Oh, Remus is back?" James asks, looking delighted at the news, and Sirius wonders who Remus is.
"Yeah. They discharged him yesterday. He got back at about ten last night. Hope popped in this morning and was telling mum. He's probably not long been up himself. I texted to see if he wanted to pop over for lunch, I said you were in here too, but no reply. He must still be recovering."
"Is Remus another one of your friends?" Sirius asks. James and Peter both nod their heads.
"Remus is… how do we describe Remus?" Peter asks, glancing at James.
"The nicest bloke you'll ever meet. Half the girls in town are in love with him and he doesn't even realise."
"Or maybe he does but doesn't want to break hearts so pretends not to realise," Peter says.
"Or swings for the other team, which is fine - we're all accepting here. We really don't know. You'll hear people taking guesses really soon. It's one thing that Remus doesn't talk about: relationships. He moved here with his parents when he was… thirteen, I think?" James glances at Peter who nods in confirmation.
"Yeah. His mum grew up around here but his parents moved to Wales before Remus was born. Lyall lived in Wales and Hope just packed up and went. She said she missed this place too much and Remus was having some—"
"Peter, private matters," James mutters.
Peter shrugs. "Troubles," he says, vaguely, "so Hope made the call to return here. They're over at the library and coffee shop. You'll meet Remus soon enough. As much as we love Remus…"
"We'd do anything for him," James adds, and Peter nods again.
"Yup, without a doubt. But let's discuss something a little more important. Let's talk about the ladies in this town."
"Yes, let's," James says eagerly, and Sirius quietly wishes they'd talk about blokes instead. If they're all accepting, they should mention which blokes are gay and single. Not that Sirius wants to know of course.
"Well, you've got Alice. I had a massive crush on her when I was a kid, but she's married to Frank and they've got a little boy, almost the same age as my son. My ex, Lily lives on the other side of town. Joint custody of our son. She's gorgeous, I dunno what your type is, but…"
"It might be a little weird dating the ex-girlfriend of my new friend," Sirius fills in with a laugh. "Don't worry, I'll steer clear."
"Ex-wife," James admits, and Sirius raises his eyebrows.
"I got her pregnant. We panicked. Rushed into a wedding, but… well, we were arseholes to each other. We're good now, but neither of us were really ready for marriage. She wanted to go to university, I had my own plans. None of our plans involved being parents. I think she blamed me, and I blamed her. We were both at fault, though I have no regrets because my son is the most amazing person in the world. Lily thinks so too. We were just… scared, I suppose. But Harry stays with us during the week or when there's exams, and Lily does weekends and a bit extra on the holidays, though we handle them holiday by holiday."
"Sounds like you've got it all figured out," Sirius comments. "What's it like, having a kid?"
"Hard work. I'm still learning," James admits. "It's why I still live with my parents. Honestly, I don't know what I'd do without them. Harry needs them too. I'd probably be a broken down mess if I were raising a son alone." He reaches for his drink and takes a sip. "Marlene."
"Marlene," Peter echoes, a grin on his lips. "Hey, you like blondes?"
"Guys, as much as I appreciate you trying to set me up, don't you know these people?" Sirius asks, frowning a little.
"Yeah, and we want them to be happy," James points out.
"I'm not really looking for anything right now," Sirius insists. "I just got to town and I don't even know if I'm going to stay. I'm still deciding on what to do. Relationships can wait until I've made that choice. But, you should get to know me before wanting to rush me into meeting these ladies."
"Yeah, good point," Peter mutters. "Make sure you're good enough for someone in town." His eyes narrow slightly as he observes Sirius. "Are you, Sirius? Are you good enough?" He tries to look serious but the corners of his lips twitch.
"Get to know me and find out," Sirius insists.
There's a beep and Peter pulls out his phone. "Remus," he says, his grin widening. "He's a little tired and won't come to lunch, but he said if we're here for dinner…"
James hesitates. "I wasn't planning to," he admits, "I was going to come after dinner, because isn't there a pub quiz tonight? But... I wanna catch up. So yeah, let's do it. Dinner first, drinks and then we see how smart Sirius is."
Peter returns the text and the group get back to their food.
James leads the way out of town. "There are sign posts everywhere," he says, pointing one of them out. "You'll get used to town pretty quickly. We have the town centre, which is the town hall and the surrounding shops. You'll find the public buildings here too, the library, the doctors, that sort of thing. Then there's the high-street that runs behind the town centre, and a few small streets that lead off from it. Markets happen in the town centre sometimes, and when it's the summer, stalls get set up between the station and here for the tourists. We don't have an actual tourist shop here. They never really make that much money, so stalls are better. People love a good little stall and are more likely to stop. We do all sorts. Candles, home-made jewellery. We get a lot of tourists." He points down another road and they turn and start walking once more. "If you drive, the road does a very wide look of the main town. You'll find the more chain-type places if you follow the road from the station," James adds.
"So, just holiday markets?" Sirius asks.
James chuckles. "You'll find around here, we love a good market. Sunday markets every week too. People go to church pretty early and then head over to the market and set up. You religious?"
Sirius shrugs. "Is that a requirement here?" he asks.
James shakes his head. "Not at all. I was just going to tell you mass times if you are. We're a pretty open community, welcoming to everyone. You seem quite worried that we'll find a reason to not like you, but relax."
"It's hard to relax. I don't think I've relaxed once in my entire life," Sirius comments. "Is that the place?"
He can see in the distance a farmhouse with land that is very overgrown. But it's so beautiful and he hopes that James says yes.
James nods. "There it is. Star Acres."
"Star Acres?" Sirius asks, pulling a face.
James snickers. "Yeah, maybe change it for something cooler. But dad loves the name. He says it fits with the town. You'll find cheesy names everywhere around here. The older generation think it makes the town sound even more quaint. Especially when you're directing tourists. Imagine telling someone to go to Sunset Ridge, or Eclipse Grove or whatever."
"Sounds corny," Sirius laughs, though he secretly loves it. "So… this is all mine."
"All the land in that area is yours. Massive place. Yours to do with as you like. We always thought Alphard would get into farming. He considered it a few times, but I think the idea was too much on his own so he decided against it. He rented it out. We made use of it during autumn for Halloween, which was fun."
"Sounds it. I'm going to be busy just trying to keep up with the market," Sirius jokes. They move closer and Sirius glances back. He's not that far from the town. A fifteen, maybe twenty minute walk to the closest shop.
"Hey Dad," James calls, as they walk through the gate and onto the land. "This is Sirius Black. Sirius, this is my Dad."
"It's nice to meet you, Mr. Potter."
"Charlus, please," the man says, walking over and shaking Sirius' hand. He looks a lot like James, with the same hazel eyes and messy hair and smile. "A great man, your uncle and he's only had good things to say about you. I'm glad you're here. I'm less glad about this place, but hopefully we can get it sorted soon enough. I trust my son has been looking after you?"
"He's been amazing, thank you," Sirius says.
Charlus gives James an approving look as he leads the over to the cabin. Sirius notes that it is really small. "Take a look and then you'll get an idea about the plans that Alice has drawn up. We can get work started in a few days once the paperwork is done." He fishes out a key from his pocket and opens the door.
Sirius walks in. The place is nice, but some of the furniture is ruined. That doesn't upset him that much, because it means he can do whatever he likes to the place. He can pick his own bed, he can pick his own sofa. He can paint the walls any colour he likes. He can start afresh in making this his own home.
"So, what are you thinking?" James asks after a long moment.
Sirius glances around. "I'd like it bigger. If my brother comes down…" he trails off. He misses Regulus and wants him here, but the thought of Regulus just makes him feel really sad. "Maybe a bigger bathroom too. I can use the second bedroom as a study until Reg is here. Can I get my room bigger? Would that be a problem?"
Charlus nods his head. "That's possible," he confirms. "Alice sketched a few things. We don't have official plans though, but we'll make them up once we've got an idea of what we're doing." He leads them back outside and over to a work-bench that is set up around the side of the house, with a man and woman standing over it, talking quietly to each other as the woman fiddles with a pencil in her hands.
"This is Sirius," Charlus says. "Sirius, these are Alice and Frank."
"Hey," Sirius says.
"Hey," Alice replies. Frank gives him a warm smile. "Right, so I heard you say you're looking for bigger. Two bedrooms and a better bathroom. I've got you. Did you want an open plan or a seperate kitchen?" Alice readies her pencil, watching Sirius for an answer.
"Open is good," Sirius says, because he doesn't want too many rooms and doors. Just the minimum that he'd require.
Alice nods, and her pencil flies across the page. "We're thinking of bringing it out at the side, almost to the shed, but the major work will be at the back. We'll leave a good space at the back of the house so it's not against the fence. We'll have to take up the path that runs around the back of the house too, but that's easily replaceable. We won't have to take down any trees or anything. Best of all, What I'm thinking, it'll work if case you ever want to add a room, we can add to the side. Or we can extend upwards."
"I'm not sure if I'm staying yet," Sirius blurts out. "Uncle Alphard said a year. I think… I'm going to take that year before making my mind up. I want to make sure that this is the life for me, you know."
"Got it," Alice says. "Right." She draws a few lines and scribbles some notes down, notes that Sirius doesn't quite understand. "This is the basic floor plan. Is there anything you want changed? Anything you don't like?"
Sirius looks over it, glancing at the numbers. It's looking good and he's not really an expert on these things. Charlus looks impressed, as does James, and Sirius decides to trust the pair. Even if it's not what he expects, it's still somewhere to live that's his.
"I like it," he says.
"Right, I'll draw it up properly today. Charlus, I'll have it with you by Monday and we can start planning."
"I'll put the notification in tomorrow's paper," Charlus says. "Frank, you're good?"
"Yeah. I'll sit down with these plans and start working out materials. My boys will be ready to start on Monday morning. We'll start taking down the unneeded parts of the old house, and once you've got the paperwork done, we'll be ready to get right on with it."
Charlus beams at him. "Good to know. We'll leave the key with you, if that's okay with Sirius, and you can get in and out as you need."
Sirius silently hands the key back, and Frank thanks him before slipping it into his pocket. Alice rolls the paper up and slips the pencil into her handbag.
"We'll catch you guys later. Sirius, where are you staying if we have any questions about the plans?"
"At the inn," Sirius says. The pair beam at him and leave, hand in hand.
"They're so friendly. You know what, everyone here is really friendly. Is the entire town like this?" he asks.
"The majority. Wherever you go, you're going to get some arseholes," James admits. "It's just the way of the world. But all in all, I think it's nice. The people here are mostly great."
"Welcome to the community, and the town," Charlus adds. "Whether it's for a year, or if it's for longer."
Sirius can't stop the smile on his lips. "Thanks!" Because he's never belonged anywhere before.
The inn is busier that evening than it had been the evening before, and they get a good table near the little stage. Sirius is extremely full from the shepherds pie that he had for dinner, and he almost forgets about this Remus bloke, only remembering because of James' disappointment at a text message from Remus saying that he's going to be late, After meeting with Charlus, James had to return home to look after his son, but he turned up once more at dinner-time to meet Sirius.
"Thursdays I spend here, and Fridays, Lily comes to get Harry," James explains. "Sometimes Lily's parents have Harry, so my parents will come here on those days too. But they don't see him as much as mine."
James heads to the bar around the same time they announce for people to get into teams, giving them a twenty minute warning.
"Am I with you guys?" Sirius checks, as James returns to the table, a tray of drinks in his hands.
"Course you are. Us three and Remus. He's on the way," James says. He sets the drinks down and walks off with the tray, just as a blonde woman walks around with sheets of paper and pencils.
"You know the drill," she says, glancing at Peter. "Oh, hey. You must be Sirius, I'm Marlene."
"Oh. Yeah, great to meet you." Sirius smiles at her, but her gaze moves across his face and down his body and he gets the impression that she likes what she sees. He's not interested in women at all, and he doesn't want things to be awkward.
"Maybe I'll have to join this team," she says, her eyes on Sirius. "I'll get someone else to run this and come sit with you guys."
"We've got four," James says, coming back over. "You alright, Marly? Met our new resident, Sirius. We've got to convince him to stay, so if you can think of any ways, let me know."
Her lips curve into a wicked smile. "I'll have a think, I may have some ideas," she says. She winks at Sirius and walks away.
"You're in, mate," Peter says, a little awed. "You've got some sort of gift. Teach it to me."
"So you can finally ask Dorcas out?" James says, grinning. "Sirius, help him talk to the ladies. He won't listen to my advice."
"I don't trust your advice. I still don't know how you got Lily to go out with you. Blind pity, perhaps?"
Sirius expects James to be offended at the words, but James merely laughs. "I still wonder myself," he jokes, and suddenly the conversation is not on Sirius giving advice anymore.
"Don't be so hard on yourself. One day another girl will feel sorry enough for you to date you." It's a new voice from behind Sirius, and he turns to look at the newcomer.
The man standing before him is unlike anyone he's ever seen before. He's tall - a little taller than Sirius, with dark blond hair that falls into his eyes and is a little too long. His lips are a little thin, but his smile is beautiful and his eyes are breathtaking.
Sirius' gaze moves down. A deep blue cardigan, jeans and converse.
He quickly stands up from his seat. "Hey. I'm Sirius Black. I just moved here. Good to meet you." The words fall quickly from his lips and he has to stop himself from saying anything that'll possibly embarrass himself, such as something about how beautiful this guy's eyes are.
The man's lips twist up a little more as he extends his hand. "Remus Lupin. I've heard… well, not much, but your name has appeared a few times in texts today. I think I heard your name in passing a few times over the years too. It's good to meet you." He reaches out to shake Sirius' hand, his eyes moving down Sirius discreetly, though Sirius notices, because his eyes are fixed intently on Remus.
"I've been looking forward to meeting you," because now Sirius realises that there's nothing he's ever wanted more than this exact moment. Fuck. Has anyone ever been this beautiful? "Come on, I'm on your team. So. Tell me all about yourself."
His gaze shifts to James and Peter who are watching this as though they're watching a movie in the cinema, but fuck them because Sirius doesn't need to explain himself.
"Oh. There's not much to tell," Remus says, his Welsh accent sending a shiver through Sirius as he takes his seat again, discreetly shifting it a little closer to the vacant chair as Remus moves to sit in it. "I grew up in Wales, we moved here and I work in the library, sometimes the cafe. I'm sure you're much more interesting. Tell me about yourself. Tell me all about London. I'd love to visit there one day." He sounds genuinely interested.
"I plan to go back and see my brother there and stay for a weekend. You're more than welcome to come with me. I'll show you around, show you the sights," Sirius insists. He didn't have plans to return there ever, but he likes the idea of showing Remus around. He's heard that going on the London eye can be pretty romantic. In fact, there are a lot of romantic things in London. Plus, he'd get Remus' undivided attention on the journey there.
Oh. And the hotel stay, because they can't go there and back in a day. Maybe they could share a room? Or even a bed? His mind starts to wander, and he firmly stops himself from letting his thoughts go in that direction.
"That sounds amazing." Remus beams at him, reaching for his beer and taking a sip. "You arrived… yesterday? Have you been shown around yet? I mean, if you haven't…"
"Oh. Nope, haven't seen the place. You wanna be my guide?" He purposely doesn't look at James at this line, considering James has offered.
"Get your pens and paper ready, it's time to start the quiz," Marlene says, stepping up on stage with the microphone. She glances at Sirius and gives him a sultry smile, and he tries to smile back, though he feels awkward doing so, because what if Remus thinks that he's interested in her? "Don't forget to write your names at the top of the page. For those of you that are new, I'm Marlene, and I'm your host for tonight."
Remus reaches for the paper and pen and starts writing names across the top. "Guess you're a Marauder now," he murmurs to Sirius as he lists Sirius' name under the team name of The Marauders at the top. "Any good at quizzes?"
"We'll find out, won't we," he murmurs in reply, hoping that he can answer some questions and prove that he's really smart. He wants to impress Remus, and he feels like this is the way to go about it.
"The prize - a round of drinks and a meal on the house for any day you like, or desserts if you're Remus." She grins over at Remus, and he smiles back, looking quite amused.
It doesn't sound like much to Sirius, but everyone seems excited at it, and it takes Sirius a moment, but he realises that they're just doing this for fun and not because they want to win the prize. He can't really blame them though, the food is really good, and he wants to know more about Remus' like of desserts, because that comment clearly singled him out. A little joke that he might one day be in on, perhaps?
"We can't let the Death Eaters win again," James says darkly, glancing towards a table on the other side of the room. "Sirius, those are our enemies. Snivellus and his friends. Barty, Malfoy and Dolohov."
Sirius' gaze moves to Remus, because he's the best thing to look at, but he notices a tiny frown, gone as quickly as it appeared, at the mention of Dolohov's name.
"I can show you around tomorrow," Remus comments quietly. "If you're free."
"I'll be here, waiting for you," Sirius says smoothly, giving Remus his best smile. Remus' eyes widen slightly.
"Oi, if it's alright with you both, we've got a quiz," James says, a wide smile on his face as his gaze moves between the pair. "We can't let the Death Eaters win again. They've won the last four in a row."
Remus frowns at the reminder.
"Remus hates to lose," Peter says quietly, with a smirk. "Free chocolate desserts are the way to his heart." That couldn't have been more obvious, could it?
Sirius watches Remus, and Remus keeps looking up and meeting his gaze and smiling, and it's so adorable and his cheeks get red each time, and Sirius can't help but smile at him.
"Okay. Question one," Marlene says, walking down the stage, her eyes moving between the tables. "Who wrote the Hunger Games books?"
Remus scribbles an answer down quickly, his eyes darting up to Marlene. The other three lean in to look at the paper, but Sirius has never heard of the author. He's only heard of the book in passing, so he'll trust Remus on that. He's a little disappointed that he didn't know it, so can't show he's smart to Remus and impress him. He can only hope that he can be useful and earn his place on the team.
"Question two," Marlene continues after a minute, looking at the cards in her hand. "How many keys are there on a piano?"
Remus pauses and frowns, his lips moving as he attempts to count.
Sirius leans closer, his lips just a bit closer to Remus' ear than necessary. "Eighty eight," he murmurs.
"You sure?" Remus asks, shivering, and Sirius smirks.
"Mother made me learn piano for years," Sirius insists. "Trust me."
Remus nods and notes the number down.
Two questions about films and music follow, which Peter answers, and then Sirius finds his chance to shine once more.
"Question five," Marlene says. "What is the capital of New Zealand?"
The other Marauders pause as they think. Across the room, Barty leans in and whispers something and the team start writing.
"I heard someone say Auckland," James whispers uncertainly, but Sirius shakes his head.
"No. I think… I might be wrong, I mean, it's just from reading some boring contracts and crap, but is… Wellington in New Zealand?"
Remus nods. "Yeah. I'll put that."
"Wait. I might be wrong," Sirius says. "Maybe Auckland is right?"
Remus shakes his head. "It's fine if you're wrong, we're not going to be mad. Some of these are guesses, and we can only do our best." He gives Sirius a smile that makes Sirius' stomach do the butterfly thing.
Sirius relaxes as Marlene continues with the questions. He answers another couple, feeling a little smug at knowing the answers to some that the others don't know (though he is no good with the film, music or tv ones) and hopes that Remus is fully impressed. He knows he's impressed by everything about Remus, and this isn't a situation he's really sure about because how does he deal with a crush on another man here?
Back home it was a case of just ignoring it and pretending the crush didn't exist. But Remus is more important than a crush. Remus is beautiful and pure and… those eyes are amazing, and he wants Remus to keep smiling at him like he is now.
They reach the end of the quiz, and swap sheets with the table next to them. As they go through the answers, Sirius starts to count up how many they got right themselves, and he realises that there were only two wrong answers. He whispers the number to the others before they even get their sheet back. In big red numbers at the top, with a circle around it, is the number.
"That's good," Remus says, eyeing it. "Could be enough to beat them."
"Okay, now to see which team is the winner," Marlene says. "Anyone here with full marks?"
No-one responds. James turns to look towards the Death Eaters.
"Twenty-Four?" Marlene says down the mic, but there's still no reply, so she lowers the number by one.
James snatches the paper up and waves it, but Sirius nudges him and nods over to the Death Eaters who also have theirs up in the air.
"The Marauders and the Death Eaters," Marlene says. "So, we're in a head to head battle now. Let me pick one of my tie-breakers at random." She takes the pale blue cards and puts them into her pocket, and starts to shuffle the rest of the cards. "Just for fun, you've both gotten twenty-three, so two plus three is five. Question five."
She stops and looks down at the first card. "First team to shout the correct answer, wins," she says. "Iff the first team answers wrong, the second team will get a chance to answer. If they're also wrong, we'll move onto another question. Are you all ready?"
"We are," Remus says urgently, and Sirius smiles over at him because how adorable is he?
"What is the brightest star in the constellation, Ursa Minor?" Marlene starts. But as the words leave her lips, Sirius is already shouting the answer. What are the odds that it turned out to be an Astronomy question. "Polaris. Also known as the Pole Star and the North Star."
Marlene beams at him, and he's a little worried for a moment, but then Remus throws an arm around his shoulders and he's distracted by that. Marlene announces them the winners, but Sirius pays little attention because his heart is hammering against his chest.
"Congratulations guys, sort your prize out at the bar later. We'll be back next week for your next pub quiz. I heard something about pastries in the cafe for next week's prize."
Sirius basks in the praise. He's never had people call him clever before, and he likes it. He feels his own face going red at the kind words.
"You know, I'm really liking it here," he admits, once the group calms down. "Maybe… maybe I will stick around." His gaze shifts to the side, to Remus, and Remus beams at him, looking delighted. When he looks back at James and Peter, they both smirk at him.
"You're finding more and more reasons to stay," James observes.
Sirius wakes up a bit earlier the next morning. He's up at nine, and ready for breakfast at ten. He had stumbled to bed the night before, after having drinks with the three guys and just having a laugh. Music had followed the pub quiz, and so many songs he hadn't heard before but loved.
He's not had a night out like that, ever, and it's amazing. He has friends. He has a crush on someone who is amazing, and the best thing - he gets to see Remus today, for the whole day.
He's downstairs by ten, and he just walks into the bar as Remus opens the door.
"Hey, do you want breakfast here and then we'll set off?" Remus asks. Sirius looks him over. Today Remus is in a white t-shirt. He's wearing jeans and converse again, but instead of a blue cardigan, he's wearing a pale grey one, which is open. He's also got a beanie on, and Sirius is just even more captivated.
"You look nice today," Sirius comments, somewhat shyly, and Remus' smile is just as shy.
"So do you," Remus replies. His cheeks redden and he quickly turns away. "Peter, are you joining us?" he calls.
"Oh. I've just eaten. It's just you two," Peter says, with a smile. He's looking a little smug and he's texting on his phone. "Let me know what you're ordering."
"So, Remus, what would you recommend?" Sirius asks, as they make their way over to the bar. Sirius glances over the menu, but Remus doesn't stop to look at it. "Full English," Remus requests.
Sirius glances over the menu. "I'll have what Remus is having," he says. "Shall we?"
They head over to one of the tables, and Sirius asks Remus about his life in Wales, and just enjoys the sound of his voice as they wait. The food comes out, and they eat quickly and Remus heads to the loo, as Sirius waits by the door.
"You remember what we said about Remus, right?" Peter says, walking over and leaning against the wall. "Great friend. We'd do anything for him…"
Sirius nods.
"Well, make sure you're good enough for him," Peter murmurs.
"What? I… I'm not interested in him. I'm… not into blokes," Sirius lies, panicking quickly.
"Of course." Peter is not convinced. "But if - hypothetically speaking, you did find yourself interested. You're our friend, but so is Remus. So…"
Sirius nods. He's more comfortable answering this in a hypothetical situation because he's not admitting to anything that way.
Peter grins. "Anyway. It's Friday today, which means tonight is Friday night. We've got karaoke. See you for dinner?"
"Do you guys always eat here?" Sirius asks. "You guys don't have to do it all the time just for me."
"Me and mum do," Peter says, with a shrug. "James and Remus less often because they don't live here. But I'll hand over my free dinner here to Remus. His mum is a nurse and sometimes she has to work late, so he comes and eats here on those nights. He usually just joins me and mum at a table, or whoever is here. But sometimes he ends up eating alone."
"He does? I mean, he could join me on those days so he's not eating alone," Sirius says, trying to sound casual.
Peter looks amused at this. "Right. Sure. Have fun today. See you later." He waves to Remus when Remus returns from the loo.
"Alright, what should I show you first?" Remus asks.
Sirius honestly doesn't care. As long as he's seeing the place with Remus, that's all that matters.
"You're going to need some trainers or something," Remus says, a smirk on his face as Sirius huffs and puffs up the hill. "You can't wear shoes like that all of the time. Not somewhere like this."
Sirius reaches the top and he pulls a face at Remus. Remus sits on the grass and Sirius drops down next to him.
"Sunset Ridge," Remus says, laying back on the grass. Sirius follows suit. "Other people come up here for romantic dates. I come up here to look at the stars sometimes."
Sirius wants to ask why Remus brought him to a date spot, but he's scared to ask and even more scared of what the response could be.
"I never got to pick anything in my old life," Sirius comments. "Not even my clothes. But… if we're going to be coming to look at the stars, I'll have to invest in the right clothing for that."
"Sounds tough," Remus comments softly. "There's not much in the way of clothes shops around here. We'll have to go to the next town. I'll bring you sometime, if you like."
"I'd like that," Sirius admits. "I up and left. I just… I hit a wall. I was working in an office, starting before nine and finishing hours after everyone else. I was miserable. I couldn't be who I wanted to be." Over the last hour they've done a bit of talking, and Sirius just wants to let it all out and share. He just needs someone to talk to.
"And who do you want to be?" Remus asks.
"I honestly don't know," Sirius admits. "I never even considered that I'd be allowed to make that choice. Until Alphard left me the cabin and the land, I thought my life was all planned out. Working in the family business. Probably an arranged marriage. I'd live a very set life. But… but I was offered freedom and I just… I can't see myself going back. I've never had proper friends before."
Remus is silent for a few minutes. "You know, that sounds tough. You deserve to choose your own life," he says. "The arranged marriage, nice woman at least?"
"My parents wouldn't care about that. They'd go by the status of the family. A more powerful family with a single daughter. That's the requirements. I don't want that. I never did. It's really sad. I was on the train and I started making a list of things I could do…"
"Things to do down here?" Remus checks.
Sirius nods. "Yeah. Things that I felt I missed out on. The list… compared to what you guys talk about, the list sounds stupid. It's things like listening to music and watching films. Because I've lived such a controlled life, I couldn't do these things that others take for granted. There's nothing important on the list, but it matters to me all the same."
"Shit," Remus murmurs, and Sirius grins at the word coming from Remus' lips. "But that just means that you get to learn all these things now and be amazed at them. I'm going to make you a playlist of music. Or a few. You tell me what you like and I'll find you more songs like that and you'll start to get a handle on it. I could… text you recommendations?"
"I don't have a phone. I only had the one I was supplied by my Father. It was all for work and I'd get lots of calls throughout the evening, so I just left that behind. I need to get another one. Once I have one, I'll be happy to swap numbers and listen to any recommendations that come from you."
"We'll have to do that visit sooner than later," Remus comments. "This weekend if you're up for it? Peter has tomorrow off, and Lily has Harry, so James will be free. Boys day out. Whatever you need… we're friends now, Sirius, okay? I'll help you figure yourself out. This is your new life, and you're not alone in this."
"I appreciate that," Sirius says quietly. "I'm so lost. I thought the cabin being broken down was a sign that I did the wrong thing. James talked me into staying. He said stay for a month. Uncle Alphard wants me to try living here for a year. I think… I already think this is where I want to be. I just need to be sure about that. Is it stupid to feel scared?"
"No, it's not," Remus assures him gently. "You uprooted your whole life and left everything behind without knowing who or what to find here. It makes sense to be scared, because you don't know what to expect from the rest of your life. I imagine it's hard to go from a planned life to a life where you don't know what'll happen tomorrow."
"I left a job, my family, everything. I came here knowing one name, and that's Charlus. Just a name. I didn't even look up the place," Sirius tells him. "I thought that if I saw something I didn't like, I might have stopped myself from doing this. Gone crawling back home to my family, because whilst I… well, I hate most of them, it's familiar and it's what I know. I'm tired, Remus. We were rich, back home. I would work all day. Cancel plans. I didn't have friends, because there wasn't time for that. I didn't date, because what was the point? I knew my parents wouldn't approve."
"Because they wanted you to have an arranged relationship?" Remus checks.
"My parents didn't know the real me. I came here with what my uncle gave me and with my own savings. I could live comfortably for a few years if I don't go out and spend it all and be silly with it. But… I can't just sit around for the rest of my life and do nothing. I want to find out who I am. I don't care about the material things, I just want a real life."
"You need to find out what you enjoy so you can get a job in relation?" Remus guesses, and Sirius nods his head.
"I'm going to take a few weeks as a much deserved holiday as I try to make sense of my life, and then I'll look for a job."
"Getting a job is putting down a root here," Remus says. "Roots are things that get you to stay."
"I think I've already got some roots. The house is being built how I want it. It'll be my first home away from my family, and I can do things like buy furniture. Just having my first home. I feel like that's a root, right? Then I've got new friends, James and Peter. I've met you. Three more reasons to stick around. I'm just waiting for the other shoe to fall - for something to go wrong, because in my experience, nothing works out like this."
Remus is quiet for a long time, just staring up at the clouds, and Sirius finds himself relaxing. He doesn't feel the constant need to be moving. It's calm and quiet here. He can understand why a place like this is so popular.
"I had a hard time growing up in Wales," Remus admits, his voice soft, but captivating Sirius completely. "I have health issues and they affected me a lot more when I was a kid, because the medication and I was weaker then and… well, kids can be cruel. I came here and just expected the other kids to be horrible to me. Some were. You can't escape that, unfortunately because we don't like in a perfect world. Even the places like this have cruel people. No matter where you go, there are cruel people or people that do and say hurtful things. But… but here, there is less of that. I think I did alright because mum grew up with Dorea when they were younger, so they reconnected and we'd go and visit and James would just drag me to his room and get me to do things like play computer games and stuff. Peter's mum was a little overprotective and didn't let him out too much so James was bored and glad to have someone to play with."
"Poor Peter," Sirius comments.
"James has always had a reckless streak," Remus adds. "But I became the level-headed one. Once Pearl saw that, she started letting Peter out to play a bit more often. Peter used to hang off James' every word, so when James would dare him to do something a bit stupid…"
Sirius laughs. "I used to dare my brother to do stupid things all of the time. But I'd also take the blame for everything. I didn't want him to get in trouble." His smile slips as he thinks about the punishments. "I have scars," he murmurs. "I don't want to go back to that life."
"Mental scars, or visible ones?" Remus checks. "Or both?"
"Both."
"Me too. Though mine were from a car-crash. I couldn't walk for a long time. Just one of the health issues, I face, but not the only one. I sometimes still get pains in my legs, but… but I try to walk as much as possible now. It's not the same as… inflicted…" he trails off, and suddenly there's a hand on Sirius' hand.
"It's maybe very too late, because the damage has happened, but I'm here for you now," Remus adds. Sirius turns his head, but Remus is looking up at the sky, his cheeks a little red. "So if there's ever anything bothering you…"
"Yeah. Same with you. I've got you." Sirius means every word. He's got Remus, and he can understand why the others are protective of him. Because Remus deserves for everyone to protect him. Especially Sirius, because James and Peter said that half of the girls in town were in love with Remus, and Sirius can understand why.
Remus' hand doesn't move straight away, and Sirius is content as they look up at the sky. This moment is perfect, and he wants to voice that out loud, but he resists, because he doesn't want to ruin this. He doesn't want to scare Remus off.
He likes the butterflies in his stomach, but he has no idea how to deal with them. He's never been in this position before, able to decide his own future. He doesn't know where to start in regards to dating. But he's content in that moment. He's hoping that he'll figure it out soon enough.
Sirius wears a shirt that night and black trousers again, though the shirt is open at the top a little. They have plans to go out tomorrow to a shopping centre in the next town, and as dull as clothes shopping is, he's excited to find a new look. This clothing trip will be him reinventing himself, and picking things he likes and not having a personal shopper bringing things over, only to get sneered at by his mother.
He'll get to go and eat fast food and just look around the shops without someone deciding things for him. He'll have his friends to tell him if he picks something stupid.
James is absent from dinner too, Sirius notes, as Remus comes over with a wide smile and picks up a menu. "James said he's having a family dinner tonight. It's not like him, usually he comes here on a Friday for food, but… that means it's just us."
As much as Sirius likes Peter and James, he's quite thrilled at the idea of just the two of them.
"I've tried the stew and the shepherd's pie," Sirius says. "What would you recommend I try next?"
Remus doesn't glance at the menu. He pauses and thinks. "Mince and onions," he says. "Pearl does mince and onions in gravy and pours it over the top of mashed potato. It doesn't sound like much, but it's great."
Sirius nods. "I'll go with that."
"And dessert?" Remus checks.
"Are we having dessert?" Sirius asks.
"Of course," Remus insists. This time he opens the menu. "I'd recommend basically anything with chocolate, but the other desserts are good too - or so I've heard. I've never tried anything that isn't chocolate from here." He grins guiltily.
"Lemon drizzle cake sounds nice," Sirius says, leaning closer slightly under the ruse of needing to see the menu better. "Does that get good reviews?"
Remus nods. "My mum enjoys that. You can buy that by the loaf from Pearl too. Just give her a heads up that you want some made, she'll have it to you the same day, or the next day depending on life. I should really try it one day, but mum also orders a chocolate cake when she gets the lemon drizzle, and… well, by the time I finish mine, hers is gone too. We're both as bad as each other."
Sirius laughs. "How about you break me off a bite of the chocolate cake, and I'll break you off a bite of the lemon drizzle, just so we know?"
"You're asking me to share my chocolate," Remus says, his lips curving up even more. "You know… because it's you, I'll let you have a little taste."
"I feel privileged for some reason," Sirius jokes. "Don't you ever share?"
"Very rarely," Remus comments. "But I'm in a good mood, and it'd be polite to show others just how amazing chocolate is. It's like spreading joy and… stuff."
Sirius laughs softly. "Chocolate addict, I got it," he says. "I never ate much chocolate. Rarely. My parents were very strict." He tries to think back to the last time he had any chocolate. "I had a chocolate chip cookie on my way here, but I can't recall having chocolate in a very long time."
Remus looks horrified at this. But before he can comment, Peter has wandered over.
"What are you guys having? I'll save you having to come and order from the bar."
Remus places the orders, Sirius only speaking up to say what drink he wants. Remus has a coke, so Sirius gets a soft drink too. He can have a proper drink later during karaoke.
"So… karaoke. That's… singing?" he checks, as Peter walks away to put in the food order.
Remus stares at him. "You've never been to one?" he asks, and Sirius shakes his head. He's a little embarrassed at his lack of experiences, but he knows Remus isn't judging him. He can tell that Remus isn't that sort of person.
"When I say sheltered life, I mean very much so," Sirius explains. " I haven't done anything that people generally do, I suppose. We didn't go to the cinema, we didn't go bowling, and there were certainly no nights out with the boys. I've been to the theatre a few times because Mother says that's culture which I suppose weren't too bad, also the ballet though I hated that. Museums were encouraged, but they got a bit dull, aside from the art one. Some paintings are just a mess of colours and patterns and they're the most beautiful ones. That'll be something I miss too actually."
"It's my mission to take you bowling and to the cinema," Remus insists. "We have a small cinema here in town. We… well, we don't get the movies as quickly as elsewhere. So our films are always a few weeks behind, but it's something."
"I don't mind that at all," Sirius insists.
"And it sounds like you enjoy art."
"I like to draw. I do some doodling, but…" he trails off. What if Remus wants to see his pictures and thinks that they're crap? He doesn't want Remus to think he's an actual artist or anything.
"Maybe get an easel and see if you're inspired by something here? Or a sketchbook? We have art classes around here too. I'll find out the information for you if you want?" Remus' smile widens. "I actually suck at drawing, but I'll come along with you so you're not by yourself, or James or Peter, if you prefer. My mum runs it. I think she took a break because the hall was being used for something, but it's due to start back up soon."
Sirius smiles at him. How has he met someone so kind? How is Remus single? Does he have a chance with him? What flowers will they have at their wedding? So many questions running through Sirius' head and he doesn't understand how he's lost all common sense. He can't be thinking about things like weddings when he's too scared to even ask the guy out, or admit… well, admit that he doesn't like women. Not out loud anyway.
"Food is ready," Peter says, setting the plates down. "You guys having fun? James is here, we're just going to hang out at the bar. More drinks?"
"Yeah, I'll come and—"
"I'll bring them over," Peter insists, cutting Remus off. He sets down the cutlery, his eyes moving between the pair briefly, before he walks away.
"He's acting a little odd," Remus comments. "Him and James. I wonder what's going on."
"Does it worry you?" Sirius asks, but Remus shakes his head.
"Not at all. It used to, when I was younger. I was paranoid at being left out, but over the years, I've learnt that sometimes they might make their little plans, but sometimes one of them comes to me to do the same thing. We don't leave each other out. We just have different interests."
"Now we're four… I mean, if I'm a part of this group. You said yesterday—"
Remus laughs softly. "You're a part of it," he assures Sirius.
"Well, if they do something that you're not interested in, just give me a call and I'll find time to hang out and we can do something together."
"I'd like that," Remus admits quietly. "Very much so. But I'm not worried, because I know I'll find out what's going on with them soon enough." He smiles at Sirius before he starts to eat his meal, the same thing that Sirius has.
Sirius looks doubtfully at his. It looks okay, but he's used to things with a fancier presentation. He trusts Remus though, and Remus looks like he's enjoying that first meal, so Sirius takes a bite of his own.
He swallows the food down. "Bloody hell, this is great," he admits.
Remus smiles. "You'll find that Pearl is the best cook you'll ever meet," he says. "You won't ever get a bad meal here. It doesn't always look amazing, but it's not there to look at, it's there to eat."
Sirius nods slightly and he returns to his meal. He's never eaten this well before. Just fancy meals, even the ones at home. His mother would roll over in her grave (unfortunately she's not in a grave yet though) if she was served a big plate of mashed potatoes with mince and onions and gravy over the top.
When they finish, dessert is brought out and Remus cuts a third of his cake for Sirius. Sirius does the same with the lemon drizzle, and he glances around, noticing James and Peter pretending to not look in their direction.
Moonbow people are strange, he decides, but he likes them anyway. He takes a bite of the chocolate cake and suddenly he can understand the fuss over chocolate. It's amazing.
Sirius doesn't know the songs that everyone gets up and sings. He sips his drink and enjoys the night. In between each song, a man called Benjy plays something and it's not long before James, Peter and even Remus sing along to the songs.
"Queen," Remus murmurs, during one that everyone seems to be roaring along to. It's probably one of the few that sound somewhat familiar, like Sirius may have heard it in passing somewhere. "That's what we'll start with when I set you up a playlist."
Sirius smiles and nods. He can't help but feel left out, though it's not the fault of the others. He just wants to be able to be a part of this. He tries to push that feeling away, and he takes another sip of his drink.
"You know. I should start making a list of songs you like from today, so I can add them to your list," Remus comments, as though being able to read Sirius' mind. "You don't know what you like, so give me a nudge if you like some lyrics or you like the vibe or the beat and I'll find you the perfect music."
"Sirius, come and sing something with us," James insists, interrupting the conversation. "Boys Are Back In Town? Or maybe something cheesy. Love Shack. Remus, come and sing Love Shack."
"I'm not singing Love Shack with you again," Remus says. "That was a disaster. Please don't sing Love Shack, James."
James gives Sirius a pleading look, but Sirius shakes his head. "Maybe another time when I'm a bit more used to all of this," he says.
James goes to reply, but he meets Remus' gaze and Sirius sees Remus firmly shake his head. James just lets out a sigh. "Just me and you, Peter. Wait. Frank might join us!" He's out of his seat faster than Sirius has ever seen anyone move, and across the room to where Peter is talking to two other men.
"This place is busy," Sirius comments.
"Yeah, it can get even busier than this," Remus says. "Everyone loves a good karaoke night. I think it depends on things like whether it's tourist season, because people find themselves working harder to accommodate, or if there's something else going on in town that'd be distracting. But Pearl has great food and cheap prices, especially during off-peak, and people want to let their hair down. We have fun out here." He gives Sirius a nudge. "So… Marlene is checking you out. She might come over. I just… wanted to know your thoughts on…"
"She's not what I'm looking for," Sirius admits quietly. "Maybe I could just be friends with her."
He's not sure if he's imagining it, but there's a hint of relief on Remus' face at these words. "I just… she's very pretty so when tourists come, they all try and chat her up, and…" Remus trails off. "Do you want to meet some new people? I can do some introductions?"
Sirius sees James scramble onto the stage with Peter. Alice and a dark-haired man he doesn't know join them. Two more people make their way to the stage and Sirius sees Remus grimace at the sight.
"Get some air outside?" Remus quickly suggests, and Sirius nods. He's going to trust Remus on this too. He has the feeling that he's not going to like James' rendition of Love Shack all that much.
They make their way outside just in time, and the door shuts, drowning out some of the sound.
"How are they so good at other songs and so bad at that?" Sirius asks, causing Remus to laugh. Remus shrugs his shoulders.
"I've been asking myself that for the last five or six months since it became tradition for them to sing it. But that's not the only reason I said to come out. You were looking overwhelmed in there," Remus comments. He's changed clothes since their day out earlier. The pair had split up for a bit and gone to their respective homes (well, the inn for Sirius) to change and shower. Remus has changed cardigans again, and is wearing a black cardigan over a yellow t-shirt this time. Sirius is briefly distracted by this. How many cardigans does Remus own?
Sirius takes a minute, looking his friend over. "You wear cardigans a lot. I like them," he comments quietly.
"Yeah. Me too," Remus says, playing with one of the sleeve cuffs.
"It is a little overwhelming, but not in a bad way. It's something I want to get used to because I'm having a lot of fun."
Remus smiles. He goes to answer, but a woman's voice calls his name and he turns his head.
"Mum! I thought you were staying home tonight," Remus says, beaming at her.
Sirius turns his attention to Remus' mum. It's surprising how much she looks like her son. The same colour hair, the same eyes and very similar features. But she's wearing a floral dress and a soft pink cardigan over it. There's a streak of green in her hair, which Sirius realises is paint.
"Mum, this is Sirius Black. He moved to town earlier this week. Sirius, this is my mum."
"Oh yes, Pearl texted me already." Hope turns to Sirius. "I'm Hope Lupin, you can call me Hope. We're not all that formal around here with the 'Mrs Lupin' stuff. Well, most of us aren't. Remus mentioned a new friend, it's lovely to meet you."
"He might have some interest in the art class," Remus adds. "Speaking of which. Green in your hair." His tone tells Sirius that Remus is used to this.
"Let me know if you decide to do it. No pressure at all. It's a 'come and go as you please' sort of thing. As long as I have at least one name down for the art class, it runs," Hope explains. "Though I warn you, sometimes I have to cancel. I'm a nurse and emergencies happen and I can't always find someone to cover it." She glances between the pair. "A little paint doesn't hurt anyone either. So… what's happening in there?"
"Love Shack," Remus explains, and Hope laughs.
"I'll go in anyway," she says. "James and your friends need all the support they can get. Is Dorea here? You boys have fun and I'll see you inside." She doesn't wait for an answer, instead she opens the door and goes in, and Remus sighs in relief as the song sounds like it's coming to an end.
"Should we…" he nods back at the inn, and Remus smiles.
"Yeah. Let's."
They head back in and Sirius tries to not focus on the fact that everyone knows these songs whilst he doesn't. Instead, he tries to listen to the words. He tries to work out what he likes or dislikes from each song, and he tells these things to Remus.
And before he knows it, it's two in the morning and people are leaving. He doesn't want Remus to leave, because he's had an amazing night, but the group confirms their plans for the next day and Sirius has to tell himself that he gets to see Remus after he sleeps.
When Remus says goodbye and gives him a wide smile, the butterflies are tenfold. Sirius can't imagine not feeling them around Remus.
He has another amazing sleep.
Sirius scrolls through pictures of hairstyles on James' phone as they sit on the train. Remus isn't wearing a cardigan today. He's wearing what might be three jumpers rather than wearing a coat.
"Mate, are you sure you're okay like that?" James asks for the third time.
Remus laughs. "We'll be walking around the shops," he says. "We won't be out much. Trust me, I know what I can handle."
James nods, but he doesn't look all that convinced. Sirius glances Remus over. Remus is getting more and more adorable as the days pass. He looks completely perfect. His eyes trail over the scar on Remus' face that moves across his lip and down to his jaw, his eyes lingering on Remus' lips for a moment.
"So… anything you like?" James asks, turning his gaze back to Sirius.
"Oh. I screenshotted a couple. Two. Three hairstyles. Well, lengths rather. Mother wouldn't let my hair be below my chin. This now might be the longest I've ever had it. I kinda like the long hair in a bun look, though it'll take me a while, I think that'd look… Remus, what do you think?"
Remus nod at James to move out of the seat next to Sirius, and he sits there instead. He twists around. "Look at me," he orders.
Sirius is more than happy to oblige. He doesn't need to be told twice to look at someone as beautiful as Remus. He could stare at Remus all day.
"Can I…" Remus gestures to Sirius' hair and Sirius nods. 'Please do,' is on the tip of his tongue, but he refrains from saying it.
Remus reaches up with both hands and starts to pull Sirius' curls back. They're too short to go into a bun, so some fall from between Remus' fingers but he manages to get some of it pulled back into a makeshift bun.
"James, picture," Remus says, and he shifts around so his arms aren't blocking James' view.
James snaps one and he turns the phone so the others can have a look.
"I think you'd look great," Remus admits, glancing at the picture. "I think you're the sort that could get away with any hairstyle."
"Except bald," Peter comments.
Remus laughs. "Except that," he agrees.
Sirius likes the idea. The curls falling around his face, the strands that were too short to fit back in the bun actually make the picture look better. It gives it a messy look that Sirius can get behind. He hates that his look has always been too perfect. Designer clothes, tidy hair (well, as tidy as he can be with the curls) and just as perfect as his mum can get him.
He doesn't want perfect. He wants this look. He wants ripped jeans that he's seen people wear, the heavy boots. He wants piercings. Maybe even a tattoo if he's that daring.
"Yeah. That's the goal," he agrees. "This is weird. We're going shopping and I'm actually excited."
"Nothing wrong with getting new clothes. I need some new trainers, and Lily asked me to pick up something for her. She's got an order in store and that's where we're going anyway. It's good we're doing this weekend, because I've got Harry next Saturday so Lily can have a night out."
"We'll do a day at the park and lunch at the inn," Remus says. "Maybe go to the cinema?"
"Sounds good. Sirius, Peter?"
"Oh, I'm working next weekend," Peter says, frowning a little.
"I can, I've got nothing planned," Sirius says. This is an important invitation - he's being invited to meet James' son and that's a big deal. Well, he assumes something like that is a big deal considering he's never been invited to do these things before with other people. But that just gives him something else to worry about - what if Harry doesn't like him? He may have to buy the kid a present.
They make their way through the shops. The three guys picking up things for Sirius to try on, but without knowing what look Sirius is going for, a lot of things get put back on the shelves.
But as Sirius starts to pick up jeans, and gravitate towards certain items, the other three start to get an idea of what Sirius is looking for.
Sirius starts to work out what he likes for himself. He finds band t-shirts with fun logos, though he doesn't know the bands. He gets jeans that causes Remus to bite his lip and stare when he tries them on in the dressing room, and some clunky boots that Peter insists would suit him. But his favourite thing is the leather jacket. It sets him back a bit more than everything else, but it's the most beautiful thing (aside from Remus) that he's ever seen.
They eat whilst out and continue their shopping trip, heading to most shops and Sirius gets himself a new phone and he's excited over it. It's got a great camera, which Remus points out he can take pictures of things that inspire him, should he ever be interested in drawing. He can call Regulus. He can text James and Peter. He can text Remus and talk about everything.
Remus only buys a couple of things from the stationary shop and a new hat. James gets his trainers and Peter picks up a birthday present for his mum. Sirius, however, can't carry all of the bags. He's knackered when they get on the train once more, and he's relieved to be heading home.
They all part ways at the inn. Well, mostly. Peter goes to help his mum out, and James heads home. Remus sticks around, offering to help Sirius, and Sirius invites Remus to his room feeling a little nervous about that invitation, even though nothing is happening between them. They have fun tossing all of Sirius' clothes into the bin and replacing them with the new clothes, and Remus lays back on the bed as Sirius sorts all the other stuff out, and when he turns, realising where Remus has settled, he's not sure he can breathe.
It's a beautiful sight, just having Remus in his room, on his bed. Not that he's expecting anything to happen. It just feels right, Remus being there.
"So… I'm not expected home for a while. How about we listen to some music?" Remus suggests. He shifts up on the bed to give Sirius some space to join him, and Sirius nods weakly. He turns on his laptop, trying to focus.
"What am I looking for?" he checks.
"Queen. Start with the greatest hits. Do you have Spotify?"
Sirius shakes his head.
"Free trial. You listen to songs and then go by the recommendations. I'll text you songs too. Things that make me think of you. If you find anything good, message me. Speaking of… get your phone on charge."
Sirius clicks on spotify and does as he's told, sorting out the music. When Bohemian Rhapsody begins to play, Sirius starts to open up the box that the phone came in, putting it on to charge. He takes his shoes off and walks over to the bed and lays down next to Remus.
They don't talk. Remus just sings softly along, and Sirius relaxes, taking in the music. Taking in Remus' soft voice. It's the last thing he remembers before dozing off.
When Sirius wakes up, Remus is gone, but there's a slip of paper with Remus' number next to the phone, and Sirius smiles, realising he fell asleep. But he has Remus' number now, and he can't stop smiling for the rest of the evening, even though Remus doesn't come to the inn that night. He eats dinner with Peter and Pearl instead, and sets up a netflix account and watches a film instead, ignoring the noise from downstairs.
He can go out another night, but he's a little worn out from the changes going on in his life, and when Peter comes up to check on him, he invites Peter to watch the film with him.
Peter brings up some bottles of lemonade and some popcorn, and recommends a comedy.
"Two weeks," Remus says, as the four men stand at the gate to Sirius' land. "You could have another couple of weeks to yourself, Sirius."
Sirius shakes his head. "I like hanging out with you guys, but we can do that in the evenings. I need to get myself sorted, I need to get on with life."
"What's the plan?" James asks. "Do we just set fire to the entire thing, because that might be the only thing that works."
Sirius glances around, taking in the mess. There are branches everywhere. Rocks, stones. Old tree stumps and the place is completely overgrown. Who knows what is hidden in the grass that is as tall as them. The only thing that isn't overgrown is the grass around the path leading up to the cabin. That's clearer.
"I honestly don't know. I'm thinking I should get it tidied first, and then decide where to go from there," he says. "So… advice. How do I do any of this? I've never done anything except work in the office."
"You'll need an axe for the wood," James says, his eyes moving around, assessing. "Maybe a pickaxe or something for those boulders. We can get someone out to help with that if you can't manage. A scythe for the grass, and then a lawnmower - it's too high for a lawnmower right now though, and we won't see if things are hidden in the grass. I'd say tackle it section by section."
Remus nods. "Yeah, work your way from the shed all the way down and have that as section one. Work your way backwards from there. There's a shop in town that'll have everything you need. Or maybe there's some old tools in the shed?"
"Let's go and look," Peter says. "Oh. Also, you want to invest in some clothes that are more suited for this." His gaze moves over Sirius' current clothes. "There's a shop that sells more practical clothing. On the high street next to the newsagents."
Sirius nods. He knows where the newsagents is at this point.
"Right. I think the best thing to do is chop down the trees," he decides. "They're not all that tall, so I should be able to do that myself?"
"I'll help," James starts. "The four of us can do this?"
Sirius smiles at his friends. "As much as I appreciate the offer, you've all got your own jobs to do. I'm not going to have you working hard and then coming here in your spare time and doing this. I won't be doing it in the evenings or on the weekends. I'm going to work through the day instead. Working hours. I don't want to overdo anything and leave myself exhausted anymore."
"Good idea," Remus says. "But we're here if you need, okay?"
"It's good to know." Sirius follows Peter to the shed and uses one of the keys he found in the house to open it. The tools inside are old, but usable. Sirius can tell that they aren't the best quality, but he just wants to make a start on this now, and he doesn't want to wait around. He can get better tools on the weekend perhaps, or sooner if these are really that bad.
"Okay, I'll start with the trees tomorrow," he decides. "I'll get what I need from the shops today and I'll get working on it. You guys can brainstorm what I can do with the land. I want to keep it, but… what am I good at?"
"When it comes to a large field, I'm not really sure what talents you have that cross over," James admits. "But there's no rush. This project will already take a while. On top of that, you'd need to maintain the condition of it."
"What did it used to be before Alphard?" Sirius checks.
"A farm," James tells him. "The guy who lived here before was a farmer. Good land too. But we've got the Weasleys with the livestock, so she's where we get things like eggs and milk from. But our vegetables all come from the farms in the next town over."
"Still fresh," Peter points out, and James nods. "Very. It's just annoying when the stall has closed for the day and we've forgotten something though," he admits. But the idea is planted in Sirius' head.
They chat for a little bit, but Sirius finds himself looking around at the area, assessing it in a whole different way. He tries to picture what it could become. A farm. That's too big a project for him, he thinks to himself. But growing his own food has a certain appeal to it.
When they all head back towards town, Sirius gets what the other guys advise. Tomorrow is Monday and he's got a busy day ahead of him, so he makes sure to turn in early that night.
He can't wait to get started, plus, Remus has some show recommendations and is coming over in the afternoon to watch some television with him. They're going to get started on a show on Netflix, though Sirius isn't sure which one.
The next day, Sirius finds himself in the field. He has a stereo set up with batteries powering it, and Queen blares from it.
Sirius retrieves the axe and gives it a few practice swings downwards before he starts to tackle the trees. He's never chopped a tree before, and with the first stroke, he feels a new sense of achievement because he's doing this. He's chopping a tree.
It's hard work. An hour in, and Sirius is drenched in sweat. He's worked out a lot in the gym before, but it's nothing compared to this work. He remembers everything that the others told him about chopping for firewood and there's a stack of wooden pieces at the side of the farm. They're not tidy and not even in size, but the more Sirius gets used to it, the easier it becomes to hit the right spot each time.
He has to strip off his t-shirt once the sun gets high. He's so sweaty that it's just sticking to his skin and he hates the feel of it.
He tucks the t-shirt half into his trousers and he continues with his job, chopping at the smaller trees and making sure that the wood is piled up at the side. He clears branches as he goes, ensuring they're good sizes too, and he's about halfway down the field before his arms protest and he can barely lift the axe once more.
He walks slowly up the field, sweat dripping down his body. His hair is stuck to his head, and he pulls out the t-shirt and uses it to wipe his face.
As he gets closer to the front, he realises for the first time that Remus is there. Remus is settled on a large tree-stump. The bottle of water in his hands is almost empty, and he looks like he's been there a while.
But what Sirius likes the most is the way Remus is staring, as though captivated by Sirius. His gaze sweeps across Sirius' body, as though following the beads of sweat. Remus may have been staring for a good while, and Sirius feels a little self-concious because what if he looked stupid? But also, did Remus like what he saw?
"I thought I'd come and keep you company," Remus says, as Sirius gets closer. "I was just waiting for a good time to approach. I thought you'd stop for a break and…" he trials off. He's still staring and it's like he can't stop himself, but Sirius is fine with that because Remus is welcome to stare all he wants.
"How long have you been waiting?" Sirius can't help but ask.
"I think about an hour," Remus admits, his cheeks red. "It's really relaxing here. Town isn't that noisy, but there's just silence here and I can see why Alphard enjoyed it. To be honest, aside from the few events that we hold here, I've never been here. Certainly not when it's quiet and tranquil."
Sirius nods. He felt peace in the quiet too, enjoying that he could just do the menial task and not have to think. He's preferring this over his old job. He doesn't have to read things that he doesn't quite understand and try to make sense of them. He's free to let his thoughts wander. Whilst he's been chopping the wood, Sirius has been trying to think up other options for this land.
He's considered the obvious one - selling it, but he can't bring himself to do that. Even if he has no intention of doing anything with it, it just means that someone else could do anything they want. They could do something noisy, or they might even build something ugly there. Sirius likes the big field and he'd hate it if someone built a horrible building, because it'd be one of the first things Sirius saw each day upon leaving the cabin.
He could just keep it for the beautiful view, but that's not enough. He wants to do more.
Over the time chopping wood, Sirius found himself wondering just how hard it would be to get things growing here. It used to be a farm before, so the soil would probably still be good, though he's not entirely sure how to check something like that. He's already planned it, though. He could build a make-shift fence separating this side from the rest of the fields for now. He doesn't have any equipment, so he'll have to do everything himself, but he wants to try and grow things.
Even if he doesn't enjoy it, at least he knows he's tried it. If anything grows, Sirius will be thrilled with himself for managing to achieve it. Then he can cross farmer off his list of future prospects.
"How hard would you say farming is?" he asks Remus, because he trusts Remus' opinion more than anyones (except maybe James and Peter). "I'm tempted to give it a shot and see how I do."
Remus smiles. "I've actually read some books on farming," he admits. "I know that reading and having experience are two different things, but maybe I can tell you what I've read and it'll come in handy?" He holds out a bottle of water that Sirius hadn't noticed before and Sirius realises that he's really thirsty.
"Let me lock this away first," he says, gesturing to the axe. He quickly puts it in the shed and sets about with the padlock. He doesn't want his tools to be stolen, though he gets the impression that people around here wouldn't steal anything. But he can't be too careful. He heads back over to Remus, and Remus moves up on the giant tree stump, and Sirius drops down next to him and takes the offered bottle of water.
"Must have been dull, sitting here and waiting for me," Sirius comments. "You're okay to call me if you're here, and I'll take a break and come and chat with you."
"You were really in the swing of things," Remus jokes. "I didn't want to interrupt you. I'm happy to watch."
Sirius can't help but wonder if Remus means watch the work happening, or if he means watching Sirius get sweaty. He's really hoping that it's the second one, but as always, he says nothing. He just grins at Remus as he opens the bottle of water and gulps it down,
"I need to go back for a shower," Sirius says. "Are you free for the rest of the day? We still going to watch one of the shows?"
Remus nods. "I finished and came straight here," he says. "If you wanna watch one of those shows, or… well, whatever you want to do."
"What if all I wanted was to spend time with you?" Sirius asks cheekily, and he enjoys the look on Remus' face at the words. "I'll do whatever you want. Is there a film you can recommend, or a tv show? Or we can listen to music again and I won't keep falling asleep on you."
"I like it," Remus admits. "You're comfortable around me, and… well, it's nice."
"You always run away. Just wake me up or something," Sirius jokes. It's happened twice now, and one day Remus will still be there when he wakes up.
"I leave because I'm usually tired too but trying not to fall asleep on your bed," Remus replies. "That'd be awkward."
Sirius laughs. "Would it be?" he asks. "I don't mind. I've never shared a bed before with anyone, but I'm not against a sleepover."
Remus raises an eyebrow and Sirius blushes. Maybe Remus has taken his words a different way, which he has every reason to. Sirius has only been on a few dates with women to keep up appearances at home. Those stopped when his dad talked about an arranged marriage on the table one day, because then Sirius didn't need to pretend anymore. He used that as an excuse as to why he wasn't dating anyone else.
But he's not slept with any of them. He's kissed only a few. He's never kissed another man or done anything else because he's never met anyone before, and even if he had met someone, he couldn't risk that getting back to his father because he was - and still is - terrified of the man.
But he's free now. This is a new life, a fresh start. Sirius owns land and he has a cabin. He has friends that meet him on the weekends and that sing karaoke and get him into pub quizzes. Sirius has fun, he hangs out at the park with James and Harry when it's James' turn to look after his son, and he's even got to see the back room of the inn with Peter during the first cooking lesson of his life. (Remus and James came over for dinner and enjoyed the meal).
His life is amazing now. He's going to start an art class during the week with Hope, and he's looking forward to the start of that. There's a notice about it on the noticeboard that's outside of the town hall, and he's seen a lot of people approach it and read. He hopes more people join, but at the same time, he hopes not many people do so he can get to know Hope better during the lessons.
He wants to win over Hope next, because maybe he's a little bit or a lot in love with Hope's son, and he wants the woman to like him. Because it's clear that Hope and Remus are close, so if Hope doesn't like him, it might make it so there's no future for him and Remus.
So getting along with his future (hopefully) mother in law is very important. She likes art, Sirius likes art, so he's going to impress her that way. Or if not, he'll find another way to manage it.
Remus is still staring at him, Sirius notes.
"Share," Remus asks, "or share'?"
Sirius hesitates. "Both," he admits quietly. "Like I said, my parents arranged a marriage for me. That means I only went on a handful of dates to keep up appearances."
"Which appearances?" Remus asks, but Sirius isn't sure that he wants to answer that. He's gay. He's known this for the longest of times, and he's sure Remus is working that one out, or at least suspects - as do his other friends, but as much as he wants to tell Remus this and hope that Remus is delighted by the news, the words are hard to say.
"I come from a very strict family," he murmurs instead. "Some things… are hard to say, hard to admit. Not because I'm ashamed, but because I'm terrified."
"Terrified of what'll happen?" Remus asks softly.
When Sirius doesn't answer, Remus puts an arm around Sirius' shoulder. "Look, you don't owe anyone anything. If you're not ready to say the words, it doesn't change who you are inside. One day you'll feel that those words need to be said. Or feel that you can trust the people around you to accept you for all of what is inside of you. You shouldn't force yourself to… to talk about things that you're not ready to talk about, okay?"
Sirius nods his head. "Yeah, you make a point," he says. "But will I ever be ready?"
"I think you will," Remus says, after some consideration on the question. "I think that you're still affected by your old life. In the space of two weeks, you're already so different. I think as time passes, you'll start to learn better who you are, what you want, as you've already been doing. One day, the words will come and you'll find the strength to tell the world, because you're strong, Sirius. You're one of the strongest people I've met."
"How can you say that?" Sirius asks. "I'm not strong."
"You are. It takes strength to walk away from your old life. It takes strength to come to a new life without knowing what to expect. Each new experience. Everything is outside of your comfort zone. You've never had a night out in a pub, but you've had two quiz nights and two karaoke nights now. You're eating food you've never tried before. You're here, on your own. Living on your own. You're working in these fields, despite admitting to us that you've never done work that wasn't in an office."
Remus pauses for breath, and Sirius loves how passionate his voice has become with these words.
"You're strong, and it's only the words from the people in your past life that make you think otherwise. But I know you're strong. James does, Peter does, and anyone else who meets you can see it."
"Oh," is all Sirius can say. He stares at Remus for a long time. "Thank you. I don't… I can't think of the right words to tell you how much all of that means to me, but… thank you."
Remus beams at him. "You're welcome. Come on, let's go back to the inn. I'll find us something to watch whilst you take your shower. I won't be around for dinner, but I've got the rest of the day with you. I can come back after I eat, if you want?"
Sirius nods. "Don't you have your Dungeons and Dragons game tonight? It's Monday."
Remus curses under his breath and Sirius laughs softly. Remus swearing is funny, because he never expects words like that to pass Remus' perfectly kissable lips. But somehow they do.
"I do," he says, looking quite put out. "You wouldn't be interested in a bit of role play, would you?" He suddenly looks mortified. "I mean… playing dungeons and dragons. Not the other type."
"Well, I'm not versed in either type of role-play," Sirius admits. "But I'm open to it." He smirks at Remus, and Remus rolls his eyes, though a smile plays on the corner of his lips as he does so.
"We start at half-past six," Remus says. "I'll go over a character for you, and everyone else will be ready to start at seven."
"What if I'm no good at it?" Sirius asks, because that's his fear - failing. Or more precisely, failing others.
"You'll learn. Like everything else, you have to learn," Remus insists. "But you work as a team, and you'll have the other players to support you. I'll help you where I can, okay? And if you don't like it, then you're fine to stop playing. I'm not going to force you to keep playing. I won't be upset or offended."
Sirius nods. He's not too sure if he'll have fun, but last week he heard the group laughing and joking and he wanted to be a part of what was going on. This time, he will be. And if he doesn't like it, he can just bow out and at least then he'll know what he's missing.
"We also… Everyone puts in about £5 too. Pearl does that as a charge. She does snacks and as many drinks as you want for that price. You don't have to pay that, but—"
"That's fine, I'll pay my share," Sirius insists. "I can't wait." They're almost back at the inn now. "You can tell me all about the characters and the… the stuff I need to know."
"If you tell me what sort of thing you want to do, perhaps I can make up a few sheets and you can pick what looks interesting to you?" Remus quickly explains the races and classes and Sirius listens carefully, trying to process each one. Mostly, he loves how enthusiastically Remus talks about this. There's a way that Remus' face lights up, and his voice gets louder and faster as he gets excited, and it's beautiful. Everything about Remus is beautiful. He could listen to Remus talking about this forever. He can't think of anything he would rather have, than Remus' elated expression on his face whilst he talks. Well, except Remus' lips on his. He'd love to have that too.
"I like the idea of magic spells," Sirius finally says. "Rogue sounds cool, being all sneaky and shit, and so does bard. I'd like to play an instrument that isn't violin."
"Well, James is a rogue. You're welcome to be one, but then you'll be splitting duties with James and I don't want you to feel left behind because James takes over. He's been known to do that from time to time and needs reigning in. He doesn't mean to, I think he just gets excited and forgets to take turns. I don't want you to end up being overshadowed. It can get frustrating when you can't do anything because someone else is doing it first."
"Right, I'll be a bard then. I also like this cursed human deal."
"Tiefling," Remus corrects him. "Right, I'll make up two or three bards, and we'll go over them later and if you like them or want something changed, we'll have time to sort that." They turn to go into the inn. "Come on, we have time to watch a lot of netflix before dinner and before we play the game."
Scrubs is pretty old, but from the first episode, Sirius is hooked. He sits on the bed next to Remus, the laptop plugged into the television and he can't help himself laughing at the antics of the characters.
They work their way through half of the season before Remus sighs and stands up. Sirius doesn't want him to leave. If he had his way, Remus would never leave, but Sirius refrains from saying anything, because saying what he wants and feels is something he's not used to.
"I better go now," Remus says, a little sadly. "Dinner will be soon and I have to get my game stuff sorted for later."
"Hurry back," Sirius finds himself saying. "I mean… so we can make my character and you can tell me more about the game. Do you just run it, or do you play too?"
"I used to play," Remus says. "My game isn't the only game that runs. I used to play a character in Antonin's game."
"Antonin?" Sirius asks, frowning a little. He's starting to get used to names being mentioned, but he's certain that no-one has mentioned Antonin before.
"Yeah. The others call him Dolohov. You probably know him as that. But… I didn't like the atmosphere in that game, so I ended up leaving."
Sirius nods. He's curious about this atmosphere thing, but there's something about Remus' tone that tells him that it's not the right time to ask that question. If Remus wants to share it at any point, he will, but Sirius needs to mind his own business.
Still, he walks Remus over to the door, and as Remus walks down the hallway, he glances back at Sirius and Sirius smiles. He doesn't move until Remus is out of sight, and even then, he goes and peeks out of the window and watches Remus leave the inn and walk across the town square.
He heads back over to the bed and takes a moment to breathe. He's scared now, because he has no idea how to play a game that he previously assumed was for geeks and nerds (James isn't either of those, so clearly his assumption of the game was wrong). Remus is a geek, and it's something that Sirius really loves about him. He likes geeky things and he's not afraid to admit it. He doesn't pretend he doesn't like these things.
Sirius opens the wardrobe and he looks through his new clothing and starts to pull bits out, trying to decide on a look for tonight. He's still getting used to these new clothes, but he's feeling more and more like a new person with each day that passes. His old clothes are gone, save for his suits in case he needs them for interviews, though that's seeming less and less likely at this rate. Maybe he'll donate these too?
He's sure he wants to grow something, or work outdoors because he likes being active whilst he works. He's also been toying with the idea of learning what Frank does - building work, though he's not sure how good he'll be at that.
Sirius opts for something more casual. He wears jeans again, because he's almost certain that Remus enjoys how they hug his arse, and a Queen t-shirt, because it's all he's listened to so far, determined to learn the songs that the others know word for word. He wants to be able to sing along in the pub, plus, Peter is talking about a Queen karaoke night, and Sirius keeps getting asked by James to get up and sing, and he wants some awareness of the song so he doesn't have to stare at the screen without looking away. He wants to be comfortable enough with the music that he can join in and maybe have a turn on the mic because it does look like a hell of a lot of fun.
Maybe he can convince Remus to sing with him?
Sirius takes a minute to pull his hair back, checking his reflection. He can't wait for it to be long enough to tie back, because the hairstyle goes well with his new look, but he sighs and lets it down again. One day, he tells himself.
He heads downstairs to eat dinner, and when he finishes, Remus is already walking over with a satchel and a tube. "Are you ready?" Remus asks, more excited than Sirius has ever seen before.
Even if he wasn't before, he is now because of that expression on Remus' face. Anything that makes Remus this happy has to be a good thing.
They sit down, and Remus goes through the sheet and the spells. He talks about games he's played before, and given some practice scenarios for Sirius to participate in. Just a couple of small fights for Sirius to practice with, and some role-playing with an NPC.
Sirius stutters and stumbles over his words and actions, but it's easier than he thought, and he gets the idea of it quickly. He understands the dice a little better, and is privileged to be offered a set of Remus' dice to use. He grins even wider when Remus offers him them to keep if he enjoys the game and continues playing.
He's ready for the game by the time the others turn up. James and Peter are there, but also Frank and Alice, and two men that Sirius doesn't know. He gets introduced to Kingsley and Ted, and they all sit down, and Sirius is ready to play.
Remus is watching him again, Sirius notes as he cuts the grass in the one section. It's already scythed down shorter and Sirius has mentally separated the area he's been working on into another three. He's gone over the first to make sure there are no stray rocks or branches hidden in the grass, and he's got the lawnmower fired up and ready.
He moves it slowly, and cuts the grass row by row. As he completes each section, he takes the rake and starts to bag up the grass into the largest garden bags he's ever seen. Remus has mentioned that the Weasley family would want the grass for the animals, and Sirius is happy to hand it over.
He moves onto the second section. There are no trees in this part of the garden anymore, and no rocks, and he makes sure nothing is hidden in the grass. He takes his time to check everything, and when satisfied, he starts cutting that grass.
Remus hasn't called him over, and Sirius doesn't really want to stop. If he stops, he'll be distracted by Remus' beautiful amber eyes, and then he'll never get back to work for the rest of the day.
He moves on to the third. He's sure Remus is just there to observe at this point. If Remus was in a rush, Remus would approach and distract him. But Remus is watching, his eyes fixed intently on Sirius as he drinks from his bottle of water. He's still sitting on the giant tree stump, and Sirius decides that he should leave it there, so Remus always has that as a seat.
He doesn't go over to Remus until he's finished with the last area. Everything is bagged and ready for the Weasleys to take away, so he shoots Arthur off a text before walking over to Remus.
"Admit it. You're just here to watch me get hot and sweaty," Sirius teases.
Remus rolls his eyes good-naturedly, but there's a redness to his cheeks that tells Sirius he might be onto something there. He doesn't push it though. A little bit of banter that might border on flirting is fine with him. If they're meant to get there, they will.
"I didn't want to distract you," Remus admits. "I finished early again and thought I'd come and spend time here. Like I said before, it's relaxing here."
Sirius nods his head. "Did you want to watch some Netflix again?" he asks. "Or do something else?"
"What did you have in mind?" Remus asks.
Sirius considers the question. Remus has mentioned the cinema and other places, but Sirius is still nervous. What if Remus thinks it's a date. Is it a date? Maybe if he asks Remus, it will be… but then he'll be admitting that he's gay.
He's really lost on how to proceed, and it's like Remus can read his mind once more, because Remus just smiles.
"How about we go for a walk around?" he suggests. "It's lunchtime. Well, it was an hour ago. Late lunch then. We'll get some chips and sausages to go from the chippy and we'll just see where we end up?"
Sirius nods his head. "Yeah. That sounds perfect."
Where they end up is on Sunset Ridge, just looking out at the view.
It's Sirius' one month anniversary since arriving in town, and of course James has decided to celebrate this by getting all of Sirius' friends to come for a drink. His friends, his friends' families, and basically everyone who has met him. It's a meal at first though for the people that are a little closer.
The cabin is taking longer than expected, but Sirius doesn't mind. He quite likes staying in the inn, he's enjoying being able to come downstairs for food, and the short walk back after having a few drinks. He likes not having to rush around outside. It's more homely in his rented room than anywhere else.
He tries to call Regulus' phone, but as it's done each and every time, it's gone straight to voicemail and Sirius is almost giving up. He's tried calling the office, but they've been unable to put him through to his brother, and he's not got through since the call just after leaving.
Had it not been for the fact that Regulus doesn't know his phone number, Sirius would assume his brother is avoiding him. But that's clearly not the case. Maybe his father is stopping Regulus from getting the work calls, and Sirius has to think of a new way to communicate with his brother.
The Potters have all come for the meal. Remus and Hope too. Peter joins them, and once Pearl has finished cooking, she brings her plate over. A few other people show up, and Sirius appreciates that, but it's mostly the presence of his three best friends that makes this evening perfect.
"So, a month ago, I met Sirius, sitting all forlorn on the side of the fountain, considering going back to London. I convinced him to stay for one month, to give this place a shot, and here we are one month later. Is it safe to say that this isn't a leaving party?"
"Very safe to say that," Sirius says, lifting his drink. "To me," he says, raising the drink in the air. "For whatever reasons James is about to say."
Peter laughs, and Remus smiles over, and yes, butterflies as always, and Sirius smiles back.
"Sirius, you're a great bloke and we've all become such good friends since you've arrived. You fit in well with this community, with our families and with the Marauders. Especially Remus. We still think you're a bit odd, but to be honest, so are most of us here, so probably why."
There are a few laughs, and Sirius laughs too. It's so freeing here.
"So - to Sirius, may he never leave, and never change," James says, and the others raise their glasses before drinking. Sirius brings his own drink to his lips, and just as he swallows the drink, he hears a voice behind him.
"Ah. So this is where you've been this past month." The voice leaves him cold, and it brings back the feelings he's spent a month trying to let go of. He drops his cup and his drink spills over the table.
He feels a wave of panic settle over him, and the voices around him seem distant now, and he's not fully aware of himself as he stands and turns around, dreading the person that he'll find standing there.
There, at the doors, are three people that he never wanted to see again (okay, two of them that he never wanted to see, and one that he did).
"Mother, Father," he says, his voice sounding flat and shaky. "What are you doing here?"
"You've had your fun," Walburga says. She waves her hand around the place. "In this… place, but we're here to bring you home now. You can't stay here any longer."
Sirius' fingers clench around the back of the chair as he tries to steady himself. Regulus, a little behind his parents, gives him a tired smile, looking quite apologetic. Sirius knows that his parents must have got the name of the town from Regulus, but he can't blame his brother.
"Hey, little brother," he says instead. "Wanna join our little celebration." His gaze moves to his parents. "You're not invited though." He turns around once more and takes a seat. "So, let's start eating, shall we?" A cloth is passed around the table and Remus leans over and wipes the wet table.
Peter leans in to whisper something to Pearl and her smile fades and she frowns. "Will you all be staying here?" she checks.
"Oh, Heavens no. We're booked in at the hotel. It's not what we're used to, but it's the best you have to offer, so we suppose it will have to do," Walburga says. There's a click of her heels as she walks over. "Sirius," she murmurs. "Did you hear me?"
"I'm very sorry, but this is a private function, and if you're not staying here as guests, I'm going to have to ask you to come back in a couple of hours when we're open to the public again," Pearl says in a kind voice, though there's a forced smile on her lips.
"Excuse me?" Walburga starts, but she goes quiet as Orion touches her arm.
"Of course, it's your business, and we'll respect your rules," he says, glancing at his wife. Sirius can see them from the corner of his eye, though he's refusing to turn his head and acknowledge their presence any more than he already has. "We'll return later. Come, Walburga. We can take the time to settle in."
There's a clicking sound as his mother walks out.
"Is that real fur?" James whispers. "More importantly, is that your brother?"
Sirius nods. He feels a hand taking his, and he glances up wildly, his eyes meeting Remus'.
"We're here for you, okay," Remus tells him. "They have no control over you. They're here because they think they do, they think they can tell you what to do or where to go. But you're strong and you are your own person, and they do not own you."
Sirius nods. Remus is right. He's not alone anymore. He has friends here. He's got people that care about him. He's spent time getting to know Charlus and Dorea. He's talked to Frank and Alice about the cabin. He has a home here. He's been working outside and he's been loving it.
It's not perfect here, but is anywhere perfect? He's loving the life he's been building for the past month and he's not going to give that up. In fact, his parents arriving here has just proven even more to him that he made the right choice.
"I'm not going anywhere," he says, looking between his friends and squeezing Remus' hand under the table. "Just a shock. They won't manage here all that long, I just have to endure."
"Are you alright though?" Dorea checks.
Sirius nods. "I managed over twenty years with them. What is another few days?"
James smirks. "Yeah, I'm very certain that they won't endure this place for long," he says, looking like he's planning something. Sirius wonders what it is.
"James, whatever you're thinking, you can stop at once. We treat all people with decency, despite…" Charlus trials off. "Don't do whatever you're thinking of doing."
Sirius doesn't know if his parents return after the meal, because he's on Eclipse pass with his three friends. They'll have his celebration drinks when his parents leave.
Sirius starts to plant the seeds by hand, though it's long and arduous. Remus supervises, offering to help him, but Sirius needs to do this alone. He has something to prove to himself - that he can achieve this if he works hard - and Remus understands without Sirius having to explain too much, and he gives advice from the farming books he's brought along.
He doesn't offer again, and Sirius is glad. He likes that Remus understands him. He likes that Remus listens and doesn't push, unless he feels that there is a reason to do so.
It takes a lot of time, as Sirius isn't quite sure what he's doing, but he's done it. His first set of crops. He puts up the scarecrows that James and Peter helped him assemble, and he stands back to admire his work.
Hopefully something grows. Just one good thing, and that'll be achievement enough, he tells himself. He turns his attention around, his gaze moving over the rest of the enormous piece of land. He's barely dented it with what he's done so far, but he knows it'll take time.
"Right, that's looking good," Remus says. "Let's go back to the inn. You shower and then we're going to see a film. The cinema is showing classics from the eighties. To be honest, I'm not sure they're your sort of thing, but we won't know if we don't go."
Sirius nods. He's not sure if this is a date or not, but he's not going to get himself worked up trying to define it. If it's a date, it'll hopefully become clear. If not, well, he's where he is now and that's also good.
"Sure. How long have we got until it starts?"
"Just over an hour," Remus says. "Enough time for you to get sorted." He stands up from the log, stretching. His hands rub over his arse and he pulls a face. "We need a cushion for that," he grumbles, before looking around. "Will you ever let me help with that?"
"Maybe," Sirius says, looking around again. "I just need to prove that I'm capable of doing things alone before asking for a hand."
Remus smiles. "Makes sense. Come on, popcorn is on me. Salted or sweet?"
"I'm sorry, what?"
"Oh. Which popcorn are you having?" Remus checks.
"I don't…" Sirius trails off. "I've never had it."
Remus stares, but he recovers quickly. He reaches for Sirius' t-shirt which is half-tucked into the waistband of his trousers once more, and lifts it to Sirius' face, wiping the sweat. He's standing so close, which Sirius can't complain about.
"We'll get one of each," he says. "You keep the one you like the best and I'll have the other."
"But… then you'll be stuck with the leftovers," Sirius mutters. "It hardly sounds fair to you. I could just ask at the counter if I could try a couple of pieces of each before I buy, to see what I like."
"That makes more sense," Remus agrees. "But I don't mind. As long as you're happy." He pauses and hands the t-shirt back to Sirius. "How are you holding up?" he checks. Sirius knows the question is really 'how are you managing now your parents have arrived?'
"I'd be happy if I never saw Mother and Father again," Sirius admits quietly. "I'd already decided that my life is better without them. I love my brother, but we've not spoken since I left. I just… I'll tell him no if he asks me to come home, but that's what'll hurt. Telling my brother I'm choosing this life over him."
"You're not choosing any life over him. You're choosing to be happy, and I'm sure he understands that," Remus insists. "You deserve happiness, Sirius. You deserve for things to go your way. I'm going to make sure you're happy, and them being here… an inconvenience. Just a test of strength. But you're strong and you'll manage through this, and you'll be stronger for it."
"I will," Sirius says, determined that Remus is right. He'll prove himself to Remus.
They walk back to the inn and Sirius washes whilst Remus lays across the bed, checking his phone as he does. When Sirius is ready, they head out together. A half-hearted invitation is extended to both Peter and James, but both decline, and for that, Sirius is glad. It means he gets Remus all to himself. They're doing that shifty thing again.
They find themselves walking with James anyway, but the subject of his parents isn't approached. They're almost at the cinema and James is in the middle of saying his goodbyes, when Remus freezes in his tracks.
Sirius stops too, head turning as he looks to see what is happening.
"Regulus," he murmurs, spotting his brother.
Regulus walks over quickly. "I'm sorry," he says, before glancing around urgently. "I was… trying to deter them. They were looking into your bank records, or they were trying to and I said that there's no point because Uncle Alphard set you up, so you're good and…" he trails off. "I think they were trying to find out how much money you even had to determine how to control you and get you back. But once I mentioned Uncle Alphard, they worked it out quickly."
"Why did you mention him?" Sirius asks.
"Because I thought that by telling them you had money, land and a place to live, they'd realise that there's no bringing you home. That you've got means to support yourself. I…" Regulus' eyes move from Sirius to James. "Can I help you?" he asks, his voice turning extremely polite.
"Hey," James says, messing up his hair and staring at Regulus. "I'm James. So… you're Sirius' brother. Nice. Look, they're off somewhere. How about I show you around?" He grabs Regulus' arm and pretty much drags him away, and Sirius breathes a sigh of relief.
"James for the win," Sirius says, though Remus is staring after them, a curious look on his face. "Come on, luv, time for our film."
"Oh right." Remus quickly starts moving again, and they head to the cinema.
For the rest of the week, Sirius does everything in his power to stay away from his parents. He hides from them in the street, and he starts eating dinner earlier. He avoids a lot of the shops that he's used to visiting throughout the days and he spends his time trying to clear the next section of the farm. Mostly, he spends time with Remus when they're both not working, and things are almost perfect.
Though the knowledge that his parents are there, watching him and judging him stops everything from being as amazing as it should be. He just needs them to leave so he can get back to his life.
"Bohemian Rhapsody," James insists, eyes wide. "Come on, Sirius. It's time that you lose your karaoke virginity."
Sirius groans. "Did you really just say that?" he asks.
"Yeah. Well, first time for everything. Speaking of which, I heard from a little bird…"
Sirius' gaze finds Remus, but Remus shakes his head urgently.
"... that you and Marlene were chatting yesterday and she thinks you're going to ask her to the town dance at the end of the month."
"I'm sorry. Marlene thinks what?" Sirius asks. He spoke to Marlene for five minutes about music and the dance wasn't even mentioned. He thought that he was achieving friend status with her, and had hoped that she had given up on him romantically. He lets out a sigh. "No, I'm not going with her. Not asking her."
James nods his head. His gaze darts to Remus for a moment. "Guess you're going stag. You and Remus should just turn up together. Both single blokes and all." He pauses. "Will your brother still be here? Maybe I should extend an invitation?"
"Hopefully they'll be gone," Sirius says. "I really hope so. Well, Regulus can stay but I want my parents out of here."
"I'm sure they will be," James says. "But I'll invite your brother anyway. I'll shoot him a text later."
"You… have his number?" Sirius asks.
"He asked me to give it to you. But I thought it'd be good to get to know him," James informs him. "So that when he does move down here, he knows people already. I thought it'd be good for him to feel comfortable here."
"Oh. That's a good idea," Sirius agrees. "He'll be more likely to come back or even stay."
"Exactly!" James says. "But you're avoiding things. Look, we gotta sing some Queen songs. I've heard you singing along to that. Anything really. Come on, Sirius."
"Only if Remus sings too," Sirius says, a little smugly at his retort, because Remus rarely sings.
"You know what, I'll sing too," Remus agrees, smirking at Sirius. Sirius narrows his eyes at his friend, silently cursing him. Now he has little choice in the matter. "But not Bohemian Rhapsody. Let me pick you a song. You have an amazing voice."
"I… do?" Sirius asks, and Remus nods.
"How about Somebody to…" he trails off as his gaze moves to the door. Sirius follows his gaze and his expression hardens at the sight of his parents. His father's gaze finds him immediately, and his mother is looking around in disgust, her fingers clenched around her purse. She looks so out of place in her fur coat and her high heels.
Orion murmurs something to Regulus, and Sirius' brother nods and heads in their direction. Sirius notices the way James reaches up to fix his hair, and he looks between James and Regulus, feeling like he's missing something.
"I Want to Break Free," Remus snaps. "That's what you're singing."
Sirius turns his attention back to the beauty that is Remus and he nods his head. "Yeah. I like that one," he says. "I like the other one too, but you choose. I trust you."
Remus beams at him and Sirius feels the familiar sensation of butterflies in his stomach.
"Or Don't Stop Me Now," Remus says, smirking.
"Both good. Both appropriate to send a message to them," Sirius agrees. "Just stick my name up for whatever. Surprise me."
Two songs later, Sirius finds himself up on the stage with James for some reason. His voice shakes as he starts singing I Want to Break Free, but Remus is grinning at him, and even Regulus has a smile on his lips as he sits in James' vacant seat at the table.
He can ignore his parents at the table off to the side, and he can focus on the table that matters. His brother, the love of his life, one of his best friends.
And the other best friend at his side on the stage.
He's not sure which person starts clapping along. He thinks it's Dorea or Hope, but soon, most of the room do so, as though sensing his nerves by the end of the first verse. But with James singing along, Sirius finds it in himself to let go of the nerves.
After all, not everyone who has been on the stage has been all that good, but no one seems to care about that. People support each other here, whether anyone is good or bad at a song. Half of the singing in here is the audience.
When the song ends, Marlene quietly points out that no-one else has put a song up yet, and would he mind going again, and Sirius nods. He loves it up on the stage. "Only if Remus and Peter join me," he says down the mic, and people chant the two names, and Remus laughs, and it's perfect.
They get up on the stage, mics are passed out, and Sirius throws an arm around Remus' shoulders as the music starts.
"Tonight, I'm gonna have myself a real good time," Sirius starts, confident as hell, because his parents aren't going to stop that. He's got everything he needs.
James bumps into his other side, and Peter joins Remus' other side, and it's amazing, and Sirius completely forgets about his parents, because this is a perfect life. Granted, he has to look at the screen a few times for a reminder, but he's getting there.
Next time, he tells himself, he'll get Regulus up here. He'll teach Regulus these songs. Regulus has always had a good voice.
And Remus… well, Sirius could listen to him sing for the rest of their lives. His grip on Remus tightens ever so slightly, because he never wants to let go.
He hands the mic back, because it's someone else's turn, and he's a little disappointed because he wants to stay on the stage, but when he gets back to his seat, James already has the book and is picking the next song for them to sing, and is sitting a little too close to Regulus.
For good measure, their next song is Another One Bites the Dust. This time, Sirius finds himself up on the stage alone, and he feels like he belongs up there. As he struts around the stage, he catches Dorea and Hope's eyes, and grins. He's convinced that he can get them up with him on the next song.
He doesn't notice his parents leaving. All he knows at the end of the night is that the table looks like it's been empty for a while.
"They think I can talk you around," Regulus admits, as they get ready to leave. "I know I can't. I'm only here because I wanted to make sure you're okay. I have a new phone. Did you get the number?"
Sirius nods. "What do you think of this place?" he asks. "My place is almost ready, Reg. Two bedrooms. One for you if you ever come and visit. Or… stay."
"I can't agree to that," Regulus murmurs. "Your life here is amazing. But I'm not you. I'm not strong like you."
"I wasn't strong until I got here," Sirius tells him. "It's the people here. They give me the strength to be this person I am now. I'm still learning to be a strong person, still learning to be myself. I have a farm, Regulus. I planted crops. They'll grow hopefully one day. Your brother is a farmer, of all things. I do karaoke weekly, I do pub quizzes. I go see old movies in the cinema and I listen to music and just hang out with the guys. It's not like London, and for that, I'm glad. There's a place for you here. But there's no pressure from me to make the choice now. You come when you're ready, and my door is open for you."
Regulus smiles. "Thank you. Now… which way back to the hotel?"
"Oh, I'll show you the way," James insists. "I'm James, by the way."
"Yes, you mentioned," Regulus says. "You showed me around yesterday until I managed to escape."
Sirius watches as James ruffles his hair once more, and wonders what on Earth is happening, but Remus is there at his side saying his goodbyes and Sirius is distracted from James once more. People are still talking inside of the building, and Sirius isn't ready for the night to end. He wonders if he should offer to walk Remus home, but Remus offers his arm to Hope and the pair start to leave.
As Remus starts to walk away, Sirius is faced with his father. He's surprised, not having expected the man to be there, and he's not sure what to say.
"You're not the son I raised," Charlus says. Remus stops a short distance away, ready to intervene.
"I'm not," Sirius says, standing tall. "I'm my own person. I'm sorry I'm not who you wanted me to be, but I'm not sorry about who I've become. I'm happy here, and if you want me to come home, you're wasting your time because I'm not leaving. I'm happy here. I have friends. These people… this is my family, Father."
Orion looks him over. "Your mother hates your clothes," he comments instead. "Perhaps it's best if you don't come back after all. These changes…." he looks disgusted. "You're not one of us. You don't fit in with us. You're not our son anymore."
The words still hurt, but Sirius nods his head. Orion is right. He's not their son anymore. Their son works in an office and has no life. He's Sirius Black, a man who enjoys life and likes working outside.
"You're right. He's not your son," comes a woman's voice, and Sirius spins around, noticing an angry Dorea approach. She puts a hand on Sirius' shoulder. "He's my son now. He's Hope's son, Pearl's son and Charlus' son. I think you've outstayed your welcome, and you're missing out on getting to truly know your son, and he's an amazing man."
Orion doesn't answer. He simply nods, before turning to leave.
Dorea hugs Sirius. "You're our son now," she tells him. "Okay? You're not alone here." As Remus approaches, Dorea moves away, eyes darting between them.
"Mum, I think I'll… stay here and make sure Sirius is okay," Remus says.
"We'll walk you home before going home ourselves," Dorea says to Hope.
Sirius is still a little shocked and panicked, but he allows Remus to take his hand and guide him upstairs.
He changes into his comfortable pyjamas, lending Remus a pair, and they climb into bed together. Remus' arms wrap around him tightly, and he feels safe like that.
He has a new family. Dorea and Charlus. Hope. Pearl. James and Peter.
Remus. Remus is his family.
He opens his eyes the next morning, and Remus' are open already. Beautiful amber.
"I'd really like to kiss you," he says. The first step to admitting his sexuality.
"I'd really like for you to kiss me. I've been waiting a month for this," Remus murmurs in return.
"I've never kissed another man before."
"Would you prefer if I kissed you?" Remus' lips curve and Sirius nods as quickly as he can.
Remus shifts closer, and lips press against his and Sirius' heart wants to break out of his chest. He's never felt anything as amazing as Remus' slightly chapped lips against his.
He reaches up with his free hand, his fingers finding the nape of Remus' neck. He lets his fingers stroke down it as lips gently pull at his. He's not sure that he can breathe. This right here is the best moment of his life.
Remus pulls away, and Sirius tries to follow, but Remus laughs softly. "There. The pressure is off now. Come and get another one. I'm all yours."
Sirius does as he's told, He hasn't got a bloody clue what he's doing. He's had a handful of kisses in his life, and nothing at all compares to Remus.
Remus guides the kiss, and the other man's tongue flicks over his lip and Sirius lets out a gasp. Remus pulls away with a smirk.
"Well? Is it what you expected? Wanted?"
"I'd very much like to do that forever," Sirius admits. "I mean that is less of a 'I've planned our future together' sort of way, and more of a 'I'm casually cool' way, of course."
"Of course," Remus replies, an amused smile on his lips. "Well, I'd like to do it forever too. Or in a casually cool sort of way."
"We're in agreement then. A casually cool sort of forever situation."
Remus laughs. "Sounds perfect.
Sirius is silent as he bravely presses his lips to Remus' once more. "Just to clarify, I'm asking if you want to be my boyfriend because I'm so confused."
Remus pulls back with a smile.
"I'm mad about you," Remus admits. "Very much so, but… I don't want to put a label on this." He looks worried when Sirius' smile falls. "Not like that. Sirius, I've fallen in love before and I've been kept as someone's secret. I don't want that to happen again. It hurts. Don't give us a label until you're ready for the world to know about us."
Sirius nods. This should be a happy moment, but… but he feels sad at those words. Someone hurt Remus. He doesn't like that.
"And if I'm ready to tell people now?" he asks.
"I have nothing to hide," Remus tells him softly. "So… you think we can go back to sleep for another hour?"
Sirius nods.
They shower - separately, as Remus insists - and go down to breakfast together. James and Peter stare for the whole meal, watching them, whispering between themselves. Sirius pushes his chair closer to Remus' chair and he thinks about Remus' words.
"Who?" he can't help but ask as they finish eating.
"Antonin. He strung me along for months," Remus answers, already knowing what Sirius means without Sirius even asking the full question. "I had big heart eyes, he thought with his… well, let's just say it wasn't his heart. I got hurt, I never told James or Peter. They're overly protective for some reason. But you're different. You wear your heart on your sleeve, Sirius. I could tell from the start that… well, I hoped that I was right, that you fancied me. Whenever I'm around you, you make me feel like the centre of the universe."
"That's how I feel around you," Sirius admits. "Whenever I have to make a choice, I try and do whatever I think would make you proud of me. It's been a month, but I can't imagine being without you."
"Okay. Stop with the lovey-dovey eyes," James snaps. "Did you fuck?"
"No," Remus snaps back, and James takes a big step back, looking a little shocked.
Sirius looks at Remus, then looks towards his other friends. Even if he's not ready to tell everyone (he's not sure on this right now), he's ready to tell his friends at least. They've supported him through everything and they deserve to know.
"Guys, I just want you both to know. I'm gay," he says, and his voice shakes as the words come out because it's the first time he's been able to tell people. "Me and Remus are… undefined right now, but we did kiss last night and hopefully… hopefully it goes somewhere good."
Remus beams at him and reaches for Sirius' hand, and Sirius can't help but smile. Butterflies have taken up permanent residence in his stomach.
The days pass, and turn into weeks. Sirius spends his time clearing out the rest of the land. He puts more potatoes in the second and third section, and then starts on carrots. The rest of the land he leaves empty, just trying to maintain the grass, which goes to the Weasleys, and in return, he gets eggs and milk weekly, with Arthur insisting that they're on the house.
It's month three when the cabin is finally completed and Sirius takes great joy in painting and decorating. Remus is not a fan of paint on his nose, which delights Sirius, and it takes a long time to paint because he has to keep stopping so he can kiss Remus over and over again.
Furniture is built by Frank. Sirius learns everyone's names and he sings karaoke every week and they win pub quizzes often. But it's not perfect.
Because he still has to be open about his sexuality, and there's still this barrier between him and Remus. He can feel it, and he hates that. He knows that his heart is Remus'. He knows that he wants his life to be with the other man. Three months in town, and he's ready to run out and buy a ring.
He sends his Uncle a letter.
'Dear Uncle Alphard,
I'm sorry I haven't been in contact with you since the letter I sent through your lawyer. It's been quite an upheaval and I've been trying to focus on getting my life on track, but that's no excuse for not sitting down and writing this letter.
I wanted to thank you for this gift. Not just the money, land and house - though I appreciate them all of course. Thank you for those, but most of all, thank you for this new life that you've offered me. I felt trapped and I felt like there was no escape from my old life. I was so unhappy, and I didn't even realise how unhappy until I moved here and was able to experience life here for myself.
I have friends here. Something I never thought I'd have, because I never had the time. I have a family here too. Mother and Father turned up after a month and… well, the town rallied around me. Dorea said I'm her son. Charlus, Hope and Pearl. People treat me like I've never been treated and I guess there's still a small part of me that assumes something is going to happen. That something will go wrong and I'll find out this wasn't real, or something.
I know that's stupid. Sometimes there are good things in the world, and Moonbow is one of those good things. Amazing in fact.
I've been clearing out the land too. I've chopped the trees and wood myself. I cut the grass myself, smashed the rocks and boulders. I've been working daily in the sun and it's hard work but I love it. I love that I'm not sitting still, staring at papers or computers. I'm not working every hour of the day.
I planted potatoes and they're growing. It won't be long before I can eat some for my dinner just to see what I've achieved. Just to feel that accomplishment. I have carrots growing too. I've got a quarter of the land growing food, and it takes all my time to tend to it, but I'm looking into getting actual farming equipment in the future. Once these grow, I'll know that I have what it takes.
But that's not all you've given me. By offering me a new life, a new start, I've learnt to be myself. I've found my own identity and I've not had to hide anymore. I fell in love the second day here. I met the most beautiful person, and lost my heart pretty much immediately.
He feels the same, and I've never really known what it means to feel loved. I'm ready to settle down and get married, and life is perfect. So I don't know what's holding me back from being open about it, from telling the world.
It's Remus Lupin that I'm in love with. I wanted you to be one of the first to know the truth. I hope we can visit each other soon, because I miss our trips, and I hope you're having an amazing journey around the world.
Sirius'
It's two weeks before the reply comes and Sirius tears into the envelope. There are some photographs of his Uncle and another man, and it takes Sirius a minute to realise how close they're standing.
'Sirius,
With a family that doesn't know how to express love, it takes people like us longer to realise that we can do so freely.
You just need to remember that the only opinions that matter are yours and Remus'.
Be proud of the man you are, Sirius. One day you'll wake up and realise that you don't care what anyone else thinks. That all that matters is your love for Remus. Because one day you'll want to move things forward. Living together, marriage even, and that's when you'll realise. People will know the truth when you take those steps.
But you'll take them anyway because love is the most amazing feeling.
Stand tall and be proud of who you are. Me and Septimius believe in you, and support you.
Alphard.'
Sirius folds the letter and smiles. He heads outside and he checks his crops, and gets working on the farm, taking a break when Remus pops over.
"Karaoke tonight?" Remus asks.
Sirius nods. He doesn't want to hide this anymore. He's completely and utterly in love, and he can't start his future with Remus until he's brave enough to let people know. He's strong, he knows he's strong because Remus makes him strong.
It's time.
Sirius smiles as he steps up onto the stage, and his eyes linger on Remus. He smirks, and his eyes move to his friends.
James wolf-whistles and Peter cheers his name, and the music starts, and Remus starts laughing silently.
Sirius knows what Remus is thinking. He's thinking about when they watched Blades of Glory and the ice-skating dance scene to I Don't Want to Miss a Thing by Aerosmith. That's one of the reasons why Sirius picked this song. Because of that fun memory. Just laying on the sofa, his arms wrapped around Remus as they enjoy each other's company. These are the moments he treasures more than anything. The normality of the moments. Just being with Remus. That's all that matters to him.
"Gonna dedicate this to the love of my life," he says down the mic. "On my second day here, I came for a quiz night and it was love at first sight for me, and… well, be ready for some cheesy and ridiculously romantic moments." With that, the song starts and Remus' eyes widen a little. There's hope in that expression, and Sirius hates that he's made Remus wait so long to tell the truth about them.
He has to glance at the lyrics a few times, which he hates, but he's getting better with music now. He's learning these songs and he's enjoying rock music, all types of rock, and one day he plans to get a guitar and learn to play them for himself, but he tries to focus on this moment right here. This is a moment that they'll laugh about for the rest of their lives together.
He belts out the song and Dorea starts up people clapping along to the song as she's prone to do. Sirius struts up and down the stage, though his eyes keep returning to Remus, and each time, butterflies.
The song draws to a close, and Sirius takes a deep breath, and another.
"So… what name are we attaching to this song?" Pearl asks, taking the mic and setting it back on the karaoke set-up.
"Oh. Remus," Sirius says, turning his attention to Remus. "I'm in love with Remus." He beams at Remus, and James wolf whistles once more. "We'll probably get married and all that. So… yeah." He's sure his cheeks are red as he steps off the stage and returns to his table, and Hope is the next to whistle.
"How romantic," Pearl says, with a wide smile. "On that romantic theme…" she shifts through the papers. "Come on Frank and Alice, a bit of Grease for you all. Followed by… James singing Love Shack."
As Sirius takes his seat, Remus leans in and presses their lips together.
"You don't do things by halves, do you?"
"Of course I don't. Just you wait until it's time for me to propose to you. Watch what I do then."
"I'm scared to think about it," Remus admits. "But… also excited. I love you too, you know. Always have."
"Yeah I know." Sirius kisses him. "Now, let's cheer on Alice and Frank. I always love when they duet. The dancing is perfect."
Towards the end of the night, Hope comes over for a dance with Sirius, pulling him onto the dance-floor. She tries to teach him how to jive, and it's really not the song for it, but Sirius obliges, because it's Moonbow and anything goes here.
"I knew. From the start, I saw how you looked at each other," she says, after they stop to breathe. "You're my boy, Sirius. My son is happier than I've ever seen, so keep treating him as you've been doing. I expect to start seeing you on Sundays when I do our family dinners. You're family, you have been since you arrived - but you're also the person my son wants to spend his life with. Dinner on Sunday."
"Yes, Hope," he says.
"Mum. If you prefer."
He grins. "Mum," he murmurs. "I'll be there. But you might have to fight Dorea for me."
"I can take Dorea," she insists, glancing behind her to where Dorea is dancing with Charlus. In the midst of laughing and dancing, Sirius doesn't realise that someone else is there. Not until Remus comes over and draws Sirius' attention to the door.
"Regulus," Sirius says.
Sirius pulls the potatoes out of the ground, amazed that he's managed to grow anything. He takes the first one over to Remus to inspect.
Remus looks up from his book and takes the dirty potato and he looks it over.
"You did it," he says, glancing up at Sirius. "You grew your first crop. Officially a farmer now."
Sirius can't believe how pleased he is. "Potatoes for dinner?"
"Yeah. Jacket potatoes it is," Remus says. "We'll start bagging these up. What do you want to do with them?"
"Just give them to all of our people," Sirius says. "I want everyone to enjoy the first lot. I don't want to sell these ones."
Remus nods. "I'll do a bag per person," he says, setting his book down on the tree-stump. "Your brother is inside still. Are we leaving him in there?"
"I think he needs time to think," Sirius says. "It's a shock, leaving home and doing the journey. I'm not going to rush him to talk. He can rest and he'll be out when he's ready. Trust me."
Remus nods. "You know I trust you impeccably." He leans in, stealing a quick kiss. "You are officially a farmer, my love."
Sirius grins. "Who'd have thought that a big city manager would fall for a small town—"
"You need to stop watching those bloody Christmas films on Hallmark," Remus comments, cutting him off, and then pressing a kiss to his lips. "I can't get enough of you. "How did a big city manager fall for a small town librarian and become a farmer?"
"Well, it all started when I looked into your amazingly beautiful eyes and fell completely in love. It kind of spiraled from there," Sirius says. "So… I was going to ask you to come back to mine last night so we could talk and… you said no labels before, but…"
"You didn't invite me back because your brother is here, which is understandable," Remus says gently. "As for labels. I'm yours. How do you want to label this?"
"Really? I can… pick one now?"
"I said no before because I didn't want to have a word for us, but have to hide it from the world," Remus says. "People know. We're not hiding this anymore. You told people, and you deserve what you want."
"Boyfriend?" Sirius whispers hopefully, and Remus nods his head, a wide grin on his lips.
"Yeah. That's a good start. As for coming to yours to talk. Were you hoping for more?"
Sirius' fingers find Remus' hips and he pulls Remus closer. "Maybe. But I didn't want to assume."
"It's fine. I wasn't sure that you were ready. But… we'll go slow, okay." Sirius nods at Remus' words, and he leans in for another kiss.
"Your brother is awake, by the way," Remus says, just as Sirius' lips are about to find his, and Sirius pouts slightly.
"Alright, but I'm going to finish that kiss later," he says. He turns towards the cabin, but freezes. "Is that James? With flowers?" he asks.
"Yeah, looks like it," Remus says. "I think they were texting before."
"You never said," Sirius murmurs, watching as James offers a bouquet of flowers to Regulus.
"I didn't think it was anything," Remus admits. "I saw his name on James' phone, but didn't read any messages because it's not my place. I just thought Regulus was checking up on you or something."
"But you think they're…" he trails off as Regulus steps forward and presses his lips against James' lips. "Wait. No." He starts forward, but Remus grabs his arm and pulls him back.
"Regulus came here for a fresh start too," Remus reminds him. "For his own version of freedom. To me, it seems like this isn't their first kiss, so instead of getting mad or protective - or both - I suggest that you consider the fact that they've kissed, and now Regulus is here. His future may include James. James might be the reason he's come here to start this new life. I think you play a large part in that too, but falling in love is… is enough to make people do crazy things like sing cheesy songs in karaoke."
"You think i should leave them to… do this?" Sirius asks, torn at the idea.
"You're protective of your brother, and that's your right. But I know you, and i feel like you're going to go over there and make demands and get upset. I think you need to remember that Regulus needs to make his own choices. You can't take his choices away from him. You can talk about them and you can try and guide him and make sure he's being treated right. But taking his choice away is doing what your parents did to the both of you."
Sirius pauses at that, and he lets out a breath. "I'm not happy," he admits quietly. "I'm really not happy about this. James should have told me. He should have spoken to me and been honest with me."
"Maybe he thought Regulus had gone back for good?" Remus suggests.
"Maybe," Sirius says quietly. "But you're right. I shouldn't let my worry over my brother stop him from being happy. I'll have it out with James in private, but I'm not going to stand in their way. Unless James tries to sleep with my brother. Then all hell will break lose."
It's at that moment when James and Regulus look over to Sirius, and he lifts his fingers, using two fingers to point at his eyes, and then turns his hand and points over at James.
James stands still for a long moment before giving Regulus a quick kiss on the cheek and rushing off, the flowers left in Regulus' hand.
Remus wraps his arms around Sirius' waist. "So… let's get these potatoes out of the ground. Am I allowed to help you now, since you've grown them already, and picked out the first one?"
"Yeah, you can help," Sirius says. "I've proven that I can do this, Now, we do this together."
Regulus looks on the verge of a panic attack, and James is twitching in his seat, but doesn't move. Sirius, Remus and Peter fill the remaining seats.
"What have I done?" Regulus says. "I left home. Why? Am I crazy?"
"Crazy for me," James says smugly, though the look fades when he meets Sirius' gaze. "I mean… you know what. I mean just that. Sirius, I'm mad about your brother but now is not the time!"
"I didn't say anything!" Sirius snaps. "Regulus, look at me, okay? You left because you found strength. You came here and were happy and that's why you've returned. Now. Tell me what you liked about Moonbow last time?"
Regulus is quiet for a long moment. "You," he says. "You got on the stage and you were like a different person. Every interaction with you here, you've been… not yourself, Sirius. You're still my brother and I still recognise a lot of you, but you've changed so much and I felt proud. Proud that you came here and found your own happiness. Found a family, found friends. I went home feeling happy for you."
"And?" Sirius prompts.
"And I thought it'd be enough," Regulus continues. "Seeing you happy and settled should have been enough for me, then I started feeling envious of your life. You had no worries, you didn't have to work all of the hours of the day and evening. You were laughing and joking and just doing whatever you wanted. I envied that you had this freedom. Seeing that, it just made me realise just how much of a prison my own life was, and it got harder and harder to breathe and I was barely holding on. The one day - yesterday - I got out of bed, got ready for work, and found myself on the train here. Nothing but my wallet, Sirius. And I hate the clothes you've lent me, but I appreciate… thank you for taking me in. For making me welcome."
"Anything for you, little brother," Sirius says softly. "So, did you shag James when he walked you back to your hotel?"
Remus looks so mortified at the question, that it really answers itself.
"Good. Kissing is fine. But… don't rush things. Just get used to the slower pace of life here. Work out what you like, what you want to do with yourself. I'm in an art class if that interests you, and Remus has a book club. Once a week, we play Dungeons and Dragons. There are pub quizzes and karaoke. There's much more than this, and we'll figure it out. You've got all of us to help you work this new life out, okay?"
Regulus nods softly. "Yeah. That sounds good. I can do this. I mean… I have no idea what I want to do with my life, but I know that it doesn't involve Father's company. It doesn't involve staying in London. I want what you have, Sirius. I want freedom and happiness. Love. All of it."
Sirius looks between his brother and his best friend and though they're only sneaking the odd look at each other, he can see they're very taken with each other, and he can't stand in the way of that. He doesn't want to be in the way.
"You'll find everything you want here. You've got me," he says, but he takes a step back, his hand on Remus' arm. "You've got all of us when you need us. But for right now, you've got James. We'll give you two time to talk properly."
With that, he walks out of the room because James will have the words for Regulus. James will help him find his reasons for staying. That's okay with Sirius, because his brother isn't trapped in that horrible life anymore either. His brother is safe now.
Sirius jumps down from the tractor when Remus walks onto the land, carrying his overnight bag.
Regulus has decided to move out of the cabin after three six months, and into James' new place, and Sirius knows it's only a matter of time before Remus moves in with him. He has a key ready. He also has an engagement ring that he picked when out with James weeks before. He noted happily at the time that James was also glancing over rings, which makes him hopeful for the direction James and Regulus are taking.
"You alright, luv?" Sirius says, "I'm just about done here. Wheat, can't wait to make bread for us and see how it goes."
"It'll go amazingly, just like everything else you do," Remus comments softly. "But I wanted to show you this. I don't usually look at the business section, but I saw a mention of your father's company so thought you might want to see it."
They walk over to the swing on the porch of Sirius' home and Remus opens the newspaper, flicking through until he reaches the right section.
"He's brought my cousin Bellatrix into the company," Sirius murmurs, his gaze moving quickly over the words. "You know… she's probably the perfect person for the job. She's got the right mentality for it. They finally picked someone who'd be ruthless and what that company needs."
"Not your problem anymore," Remus says softly. "I just wanted you to know where they're at."
Sirius leans in for a kiss. "So… tonight?"
"Six months since we met," Remus murmurs. "Do you want me to order in?"
"I'll cook. I've been practicing." Sirius tells him.
"You finish up out here, and I'm going to take a shower and get changed into something comfortable," Remus says. "I can start prepping for dinner."
Sirius nods. "Potatoes," he says. "Just peeling them and the carrots. I won't be too much longer and I want to take a shower too. I'm going to do a roast dinner, but with things we've been growing on the farm. It seems fitting, really."
"I agree," Remus insists. "I have some news. This whole 'following your dream' thing… Well, I'm going to take some courses at the university in the next town over to become a teacher. I just wanted to run it by you."
Sirius grins. "If that's what your future is, then I support you fully," he says. "Did you apply?"
"I applied," he confirms. "Before. But they just approved me. It came in the post yesterday, but you were with Regulus and I didn't want to interrupt your brothers' day out or whatever it was, so I waited until today."
Sirius stands up. "I'm happy for you, I really am. I'll get out here sorted quickly, and once dinner is in the oven, I want to hear all about the course. Everything. You go inside and relax in the bath. No rush. I'll get everything ready."
"You're perfect. You know that?"
"And so are you, my love," Sirius says. He wants the meal to be perfect today, because he's got a ring waiting for Remus. All his boyfriend has to do is say yes.
Sirius sets the ring next to the chocolate dessert rather than in it, because knowing Remus, he'll wolf down the food so fast, he won't even notice. He sets the house-key on the dinner plate and prays that Remus says yes to both things.
Sirius has always known that Remus is his future. Remus is the love of his life, and each kiss brings the butterflies back. Every single time. He can't imagine that ever changing.
He's amused when Remus finds the key on the side of his plate.
"Is this a key to your place, or something more?" Remus asks, and Sirius confirms that it's an invitation for Remus to live with him, and Remus doesn't even need to think about the answer. The yes falls from his lips without a second to spare. He starts to suggest that maybe they skip dessert, just this once.
Sirius loves the sound of that. Remus would skip chocolate of all things for him. But if they skip dessert, then Remus won't see the ring.
"Let's do dessert and then celebrate," Sirius says instead. "Pearl taught me how to make the dessert, so I hope you enjoy it."
They eat the roast dinner - despite it not being Sunday, and somehow it all tastes better than the vegetables they get from the shop, despite them being grown just one town over. Remus insists that they taste better because Sirius made them. It's the produce from this own labour. Sirius' hands helped to create these, and Sirius beams, basking in the praise.
Then the time comes. The important moment. The most crucial one of Sirius' life (after making the choice to leave home and come here, of course). He brings out the two dessert plates and sets them down. He sits on the edge of his chair and Remus talks, barely looking at the plate. But Sirius is silent. He's waiting. Anticipating the moment that Remus' gaze falls on the ring.
He's terrified. But he's getting better at managing it. Remus stops talking mid-sentence as his eyes fall on the ring, and Sirius moves from his chair, dropping down onto one knee.
"Remus, I love you," he says softly. "How about we get married and start our future together?"
Remus grabs the ring, shoving it onto his finger as quickly as he can, as though Sirius is about to change his mind.
"Yes!" he says, pulling Sirius to his feet and kissing his lips softly. His fingers wind themselves in Sirus' curls and Remus' body presses against his and Sirius feels that familiar flutter in his stomach that he's accustomed to feeling. "Do we skip dessert now?"
Sirius smirks. "I can put it in the freezer for now," he says. "We can have it tomorrow. So… what happens now?"
Remus' smile softens and he looks at the ring on his finger.
"We don't rush into sex because we've got to work out if you're ready to take that step," Remus says, his amber eyes moving from the ring with the amber stone up to Sirius' grey eyes. "But also, if you go in there right now and strip, I'll blow your mind."
And that's an offer Sirius can't refuse.
"Right, as you may have seen, we're doing the pub quiz tonight, followed by karaoke," Pearl announces, standing on the stage. "I hope you have your papers and your pens because we're ready to start, with or without you."
"Stop pouting," Peter complains. "It's four per team."
"He could have joined any team," James complains, "but Regulus joined the Death Eaters."
"No, He's made a new team with Barty," Remus points out, his voice little more than a whisper. "James, don't be salty. Regulus made a friend. You can't just expect him to like all the things you like and all of the people you like."
"But one of them?" James mutters.
Sirius rolls his eyes. "I don't like it either," he says. "But we've got to let Regulus live his own life. He can be friends with them, but if they mess him around, we take them out."
"Agreed," Peter says. "So. What are the chances of us winning today?"
"On the plus side, the Death Eaters are one person down," Remus comments. "But on the negative side, Regulus is very smart, and so is Barty. So they're still a force to be reckoned with, I think."
He pulls the sheet of paper towards himself and starts to list their names, under the title of 'The Marauders' like they do every single week.
41,000 words
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