Chapter Four Shopping with Sirius and Remus

Sirius stared down at the empty piece of parchment; he held a quill between his teeth. He was stuck; he didn't know what to write. He stared transfixed, memories rushing in and out.

"You stupid prat! That was the last piece of candy I had and you fed it to that ugly rat you have." A gingered haired girl said, pouting her lips and crossing her arms.
"Yah, well some of us have to scrap around to live. And Bloaty just happens to be 'some of us'." A dark brunette boy said with a gleeful smirk.
"You know for a seventh year, you're pretty pathetic." The girl smirked.
"Why thank you, Ash, m'love. For a sixth, you're pretty dandy yourself." Sirius lounged in the couch, closing his eyes. He opened them and she was gone. In a blink of an eye.

After the attacks started on Hogwarts, Sirius was shipped to Paris with James and Remus. Ash, sadly, had to finish yet another year at Hogwarts and Sirius couldn't find the courage to go back there. After Hogwarts, she had to go to America with her controlling parents and what he's heard of now, she was getting married soon to an American auror named Dominic Manry. From what he heard from James mum, they had met in a club down in New York.

Sirius had known Ash since they were kids, parents were friends and they hated each other. Ash was a feisty child who loved to pull his hair. He had started dating her when sixth year was over and they had a rocky start but it came together quite nicely but because of certain events that took place they were pulled apart.

He threw the paper in the garbage bin and ran a hand through his hair.
Knock, Knock.
He looked up transfixed on the door. No one ever knocked here, he thought. That's right, he remembered, he had to interview a person today.
Knock, Knock.
He opened the maple door slightly, carefully as if waiting for an attack. He peaked through to see a familiar brunette standing in front of the door, face pale from the cold, wearing a sad brown coat.

"Hi, you're Mr. Black, right?" she asked quip ply, in a very 'get-to-the-point' kind of voice.

"Call me Sirius, please come in." He said slowly, with no hurry.

She came in and took off her hat, "I know you recognize me as the girl from that restaurant but in my defense, those girls had it coming. You were in a date with very snobby girls, if you don't mind me saying so."

Sirius smirked at her, so that's where he remembered her from, "Why aren't you the opinionated one."

A pink tinge entered her white face, "Well, I am known to be so, sorry."

He raised a hand, "It's fine, as long as you can get the job done, I don't mind."

"Well, I don't have a lot of experience in this sort of job but I am willing and determined to learn--"

"You have the job." Sirius assured her, cutting her off. He had a smirk plastered on his face.

She gave him a weird look, "So soon...?"

"Well, you seem pretty..." he thought for a moment, "self-taught for the job and I don't feel like interviewing other people. So you have it. Now what did you say your name was?"

"Flower." She said with a small smile. "Flower Potter."

Sirius gave her a funny look, "What?"

"Flower Potter." She repeated, her smile gone. "Do you find it funny?"

"No, I don't...I just happen to know someone by that name. That's all..." Sirius said, regaining his composure. "You start right away, why don't you stop by tomorrow and we'll go to the Ministry together, sound okay?"

She nodded, "Thank you, Sirius you said it was?" He nodded. "I'll see you tomorrow."

Sirius paced in front of Remus, "You sent her here, didn't you?"

Remus furrowed his eyebrows, "Have you gone completely paranoid? I didn't do anything!"

"I hired her, just to let you know, but not because I think she's anything like Lily, it's because she suits the job."

"What are you talking about?" sputtered Remus, taking a bite of a bagel he had previously made.

"Flower stopped by to go for my secretary job." Sirius said, and then pointed an accusing finger at her, "Did you have any idea her name was Potter?"

Remus nodded, "She had told me that before..."

Sirius darted his eyes at him, "Don't you dare tell James."

"I wouldn't even if I wanted to..." Remus said with a bored expression on his face.

James sat on her bed, waiting for her return, he knew what to expect.

"James--is that you? It's been a while." said a gentle voice coming into the room. "You haven't come to visit me in like a month."

James gave her a warm smile, "You look much better."

The girl smiled graciously, "Thank you. How's everything? I heard you went to see Sirius and Remus; how are they?"

James sighed, "We're doing alright, things have been happening that are a little weird but none-the-less we're still in good health and alive."

The girl grinned at him, "That's good. How is my brother doing these days?"

"We actually haven't seen Peter around that much, hasn't he come to see you lately?"

She made a sad face, "No, not in a while."

James gave her a hug, "I hope you're feeling better Annabelle. I know Remus misses you."

Annabelle smiled and her brown curly ringlets moved slightly, "I miss him too, but don't pressure him to come see me. I know it must be hard for him."

James snorted, "You were his next-door-neighbor and one of his best friends for seventeen years, and let me not remind you how you guys went out for almost five years."

Annabelle gave him a sheepish smile, "Yes, but he wants to remember me the way I was back then, he doesn't want to see me in a bed here."

"He should still come, I come every month. You were like our little sister. You were the prettiest girl in the year below us." James said shaking his head. "Don't stick up for him."

Annabelle smiled, "Let's change the subject. I'm getting out of here in two weeks. Although, they don't promise a recovery. They predict I'm terminal."

James gave her a smile, "I bet my money, you'll come out okay."

Annabelle gave him a laugh, "You are so optimistic."

James handed her white tulips, "I have to go, but I promise you Remus will come visit you before you leave here. I'll owl you when I get home, bye bye Annabelle Lee."

"Good bye Jimmy." she gave him a grin.

James apparated to Sirius' house, landing in the living room with a slight pop.
He looked around the room only to see Sirius hunched over the little desk in the corner either too preoccupied in what he was writing or indifferent about people apparating in and out of the house.
James walked silently over to where Sirius was careful not to startle his friend.

"What are you writing, Sirius?"

Sirius jumped nearly knocking over the inkstand; obviously James was not as careful as he though he was.
"A letter. To err....Ash."

"Aah." James sighed at him, amused. "I thought you told me to let go of the past."

Sirius snorted, "You're right." He crumbled the sheet of paper and threw it in the bin under the desk.

Flower stood in front of the maple door, she didn't even know why she applied for the job. She needed the money, but the bloke seemed like such a lazy arse.

She could see herself being told to get him bagels with marmalade. Oh the pride she would have to lose to do such pity work.

"You're on time," said a voice from behind her, "That is very promising."

Flower turned around startled, "Don't do that..."

"I scared you, didn't I?" Sirius put on a very childish grin.
Oh Merlin, I am working for a child.

"Just a little bit." She made a face.

"Okay, now to the matter-at-hand, we will be going to Diagon Alley today to do a bit of shopping."

"Shopping?" repeated Flower, her voice tensed.

"Well, you're going to need new attire and the boss thing to do would be to go with you to purchase them. It would be me, you and my good friend, who you know, Remus."

"I don't-"

"Don't be a spoil-sport, it'll be fun." Sirius said, his grin coming back.

Flower felt like she was being dragged into millions of stores, they picked outfits for her that she knew herself alone couldn't afford. They were so bright, so new, and so different from what she usually wore.

"I like this brown coat on you," Sirius said very seriously. "It says that you're a professional but you still have a life."

"Really? I see 'I own cats' written all over it." Remus continued leaning on the wall.

Flower sighed, "I'm not going to lie to you. I feel very uncomfortable."

"Just think we're like your little brothers, if it helps." Sirius explained buying the coat.

"Brothers..." Flower repeated. Why did that idea NOT seem so foreign?

"You know Flower, you are a very comfortable person to be around." laughed Remus, she then noted, he shot Sirius a look. "You make me feel like I'm back at Hogwarts."

"Hogwarts...that's such a..." Flower stopped. She saw pictures in her head of flying ghosts and a wondrous castle by a lake.

"I sure miss it there..." Remus sighed; he put an arm around her. "You make your lifetime friends there."

Flower gave him a smile.

"What school did you go to?" Sirius asked, heading back to the fireplace they came back. "Strange, you don't know how to apparate."

Flower blushed, "I, actually, don't exactly know..."

Sirius laughed a bit, "You just know all the magic but you don't where you learned it from?"

Flower shrugged, "I don't feel like getting into that much but I just don't remember. I was found in the hospital. No parents, no memory--end of story."

"Let's not get heated into this conversation, please." Sirius said, immediately feeling guilty.

Remus put an arm around Flower, "So where do you live now?"

"A flat downtown. It's not much but as long as it keeps me living. I'm proud of my little house." She let out a little laugh; Sirius saw Remus' eyes glow as she laughed. He was smitten with Flower. "I used to live in Wells with my best friend Heather, last news I heard from her is that she was engaged."

"A wedding? How delightful!" Sirius said in a singsong voice.

Flower gave him a side smile, "I s'pose, I would never want to."

"And why's that?"

"I have too much to accomplish to even think about marriage. I have to have a good job; I want to travel for a bit, I want to write a book, I want to get a real swell promotion... I want to find my parents...I have so much to do in so little time." Flower said running a hand through her mousy brown hair. "And to be tied down like that...sounds too difficult..."

Remus made a face, "I'm sure you'd date though, right?"

Flower shrugged, "I'm getting rather tired and my head is really starting to hurt...I think I'll be heading home now."

Remus then jumped up, pushing Sirius, "I can accompany you, if you want..."

Flower giggled, "Sure."

A/N-This my Xmas gift to all of you! Be sure to review if you like it and please no flaming despite if you don't like it. CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISM is very much appreciated. Be sure to read my buddy Ash's story, The Black Years. I HIGHLY recommend it. Her user name is ashiwashikins.