From the Retrospect of an Indubitably Anti-Impulsivist

A/N:sigh: I didn't realize how much I missed you guys. It's killing me not to respond to your reviews, but for the sake of quickly updated installments I mustn't. But don't worry, they're coming soon. So, dum dum de dum, here's Remus : )

Ooh, and I know bobble heads weren't around in the seventies, but I couldn't find the name for those little ducky toy thingies that bob into water, so just imagine I'm refering to those. You probably have no idea what I'm talking about, but that's okay. If you'd really like I could draw a cyber picture for you.

Remus

"I'm not nervous."

My stomach's about to explode with the feeling that I just drank a bad elixir and I fear I'm going to dehydrate from the severe loss of liquids by means of my sweaty palms.

"Really," I gulped. "I'm not."

Grace squinted a suspicious eye at me. "You're such a liar." She took my hand, "Really, you've got nothing to worry about."

Oh no, not the hand. Can't she grab my shoulder, or something that isn't well... moist?

Either her sense of touch is frighteningly off or she just doesn't care, because she's still holding my hand tightly. Her big eyes glance towards me, and although her mouth's moving I can't seem to remember how to listen as her eyes ensnare me in a trap of sapphire blue.

"Now that's really important," Grace's words finally transferred to my brain, "all right?"

What was really important? Oh no, I'm nodding, my head's nodding involuntarily and now she thinks I know what's really important. Why do I keep nodding? Right now she's probably regretting taking a bobble-head boy to meet her family, because who wants-

"You'll be fine," Grace assured as she guided me slowly up the porch steps. "And if you need to," she squared her shoulders and placed on a brave expression, "use me as your shield. I'm willing to sacrifice myself, especially against the wrath of my insane family members."

Her words were comforting, and as far-fetched as they might've been, they reminded me of the reason I was here. Spending two weeks with Grace was going to be worth it, no matter what the circumstances were. "Insane?" I arched an eyebrow jokingly. "Well, they did raise you..."

Grace smirked and playfully kicked the heel of my shoe. Unfortunately, holding the trunk one handed and being impelled with a toe turned out to be not the greatest combination, and sent me stumbling back down the steps. Since Grace was clutching the hand that should've been clutching the trunk, she went stumbling as well.

Grace sighed as she began to untangle her limbs from the mess we created at the bottom of the steps. "We've got a serious problem with stairs, you know that?"

I laughed reluctantly, recalling the memorable night in the common room. "No broken bones this time, right?" Grace shook her head, smiling. "See," I said happily from my spot on the hard concrete, "we're progressing!"

Grace grimaced and nudged my shoulder. "Get up, you lug. I can't get my leg out until you move." She gave a poor endeavor to free her leg, brushing her high-top converse against my ankle.

It was just then I realized how very near I was to Grace. How very, very near.

I couldn't help it. My eyes were glued to her face, and I must've looked like quite the fool squinting intensely at her (my glasses lay two feet away, but it wasn't exactly the opportune time to reach for them...) taking in every perfect and imperfect detail that I had never been close enough to see. Her demanding look faded away, and somewhere in the back of my mind I noted she had surrendered the feeble attempt to release her leg. Distantly I felt a pebble pierce into my elbow, but there was no way anything was going to deter me from this moment, and my body apparently agreed, shifting forward as it now acted without directions from my brain and on its very own accord. Her deep gaze was the only thing holding me up as we both inclined forward; she was so close, closer than I deserved to be to such a wonderful girl, and as the seconds raced on I could even smell the faint scent of-

"Corned beef and cabbage, fifteen minutes!"

My head snapped up at the exclamation, and to my horror viewed an elder lady standing five feet above us, ladle in one hand and apron in the other.

The lady drew the spoon to her mouth. "Oh my Word!"

"Ooh," Grace squealed, hurrying to weave her leg out from under mine, which of course happened to be the same time I rashly attempted to get up. We clunked heads and twisted into an even more- if possible- unusual position.

A woman with fiery red hair and a man with receding sandy brown stepped out of the house arm in arm, and three seconds later another man and three ladies followed, trailed by a group of toddlers and two older boys.

Oh, Merlin help me.

A boy with wild toffee colored hair stopped when he reached the bottom stare, eyeing our odd placement upon the rough concrete. "What are you two up to?"

"Oh, get off it Ryan," Grace said, pushing herself up and hurrying off the ground. "We just tripped on that faulty stair dad's been telling you to fix."

Her family's still watching, I'm still lying on the ground, vision going slightly hazy... Breathe in, breathe out, breathe in, breathe out...

His eyes traveled to the left of us, and for the first time I realized my trunk had clunked down with us, lying upside down on the lawn, but still clasped securely closed with my rusty old lock.

Grace's family began bustling around once more, the toddlers waddling back into the house, several couples stepping down the stairs with a nod in my direction and then a stroll around the garden, and the young women and older ladies leaning against the porch to chat. The man with the receding hairline placed a hand around his red-headed wife, and they stepped down the stairs along with two rather lofty boys.

"Well here's the family," Grace said, gesturing her mother and father over. She tilted her head towards me and widened her eyes, signaling for me to stand up.

"Right," I immediately sprung up, scolding myself for the delayed reaction. "H-hi, wonderful to meet you ma'am, sir, great house, really nice."

"Daniel Shadron," Grace's father said, holding out his hand for me to shake.

His wife smiled broadly. "I'm Kelly. It's wonderful to finally meet you, Remus."

I tried to pull the most polite expression I could, nodding and smiling in return. Her parents smiled back pleasantly, but seemed to be waiting for some kind of response. Should I say something? I should say something. Am I still shaking Mr. Shadron's hand? What do I say? Sirius's advice rang throughout my head...

"I can see where Grace gets her good looks from," Sirius's words tumbled out of my mouth. Oh... I- did I just say that? I can't believe I just said that... Well, well maybe it won't be so bad, maybe-

Why is her mother's expression turning all funny? And why is her dad looking at me like that? What did I do? I did something, I know it, but I don't-

"Remus," Grace leaned in and whispered out of the corner of her mouth. "I, er... I thought I told you I was adopted."

Grace was adopted.

If Grace was adopted, she wouldn't look like her mother.

Of course I knew she was adopted, she told me she was adopted so why wouldn't I know she was adopted? What kind of horrible person doesn't remember when someone tells them something so very important like the fact that they're adopted? Now I look insensitive, and I must be insensitive, because I surely did not remember that being adopted would mean a different parent and therefore different looks.

I told her mother I could tell where Grace's good looks came from.

Grace didn't get her good looks from her.

Oh Merlin... I just called her mother good looking.

"Well," Mrs. Shadron clapped her hands together. "Ah... Dinner in fifteen minutes. Grace, you can show Remus around if you'd like."

"Uh, sure," Grace said slowly, sending a worried look in my direction. Nodding her head encouragingly she beckoned for me to follow her up the stairs and into the house. Seconds later we were alone in her upstairs hallway, Grace looking at me strangely as I stared back at her with earnest apologies.

"I'm sorry," were the first words that popped out of my mouth. "I- oh, I knew you were adopted, I just-"

"That's all right," Grace waved me off. A weak smile formed on her face and she shook her head, black locks bouncing. "You're the absolute worst at first impressions."

Well that makes me feel better.

"Gee, thanks," I said, sinking against the flower spotted wallpaper. I sighed, clasping my hands behind my head. "It's only been five minutes and I've already mucked it all up."

"Yeah," Grace agreed, nodding her head dismally. "Can you imagine how horrible it'll be the rest of the week?"

My stomach churned. "I don't want to think about it."

Grace sighed, looking at me intently. "You should probably just leave."

"Oh," Her statement was rash, but I understood. "Yeah... Okay. I guess I'll go get my-"

"Remus!" she punched my shoulder roughly. Ouch... Grace really doesn't know her own strength. She linked my elbow and pulled me away from the stairs. "I'm only kidding; you did fine, really."

I frowned wearily. "I don't think so."

"Sure you did," she widened her eyes and cooed, pinching my cheeks. "With that cute little face who couldn't adore you?" I laughed reluctantly, rubbing the spot she had squeezed. Her smile changed from joshing to genuine. "You did fabulous, Mr. Lupin, fabulous."

I smiled. She always did have that distinct way of making me feel better. "Thanks."

Grace nodded in response, and began to walk down the hallway. "Much better than all the other boys, anyway."

---

"Well here's your room," Grace announced, showing me into a well-polished guest room. Everything was in place and excessively neat; the border on the wall even matched the bedspread and pillowcase.

"Don't worry about keeping it tidy," she said, waving at the neatly folded sheets and dustless dresser tops. "I know that's not exactly your forte."

I grumbled silent curses at James and Sirius. Grace was still under the impression I was as messy as she had viewed my room that night after the holidays, no matter how hard I tried to explain the situation.

"C'mon," Grace tugged on my sleeve. "You've got to see Cha Cha."

I wrinkled my nose in confusion. "Cha Cha?"

"Uh-huh," she nodded. "You know, the chinchilla."

"Oh..." I gulped. Bugger, my helmet was still downstairs in my trunk. "I uh- well you know, we could see that later-"

"Nah," Grace scooted me down the hallway. "We've got plenty of time before dinner."

Before I knew it I was standing before the door, tall and purposely shut tight. "Well.. er, shouldn't we have gloves, or something?"

Grace squinted her eyes at me. "My room's not that bad."

I watched in wonder as she reached to open the door. I knew Grace was daring, but keeping a venomous sharp-toothed evil creature in her bedroom? Wow.

If my guard wasn't so high up against this poisonous animal, I would've laughed at how very different Grace's room was from the rest of the house. While the downstairs and halls and been refined and orderly, only colored with pastels and plain colors, hers was the complete opposite side of the spectrum.

Bright splashes of color dressed the walls, and at least thirty crystal stars of violet and blue floated along the windows and ceiling, held up by invisible lengths of string. Posters of bands I didn't recognize, such as 'Aerosmith' and 'Taxi', were pasted everywhere, a mass of pictures -some moving, some muggle- sat on a collage above her dresser, and a big canvas surrounded by a plethora of glue bottles, paints, and brushes stood beside a personalized Quidditch embellished desk. In one word, it was Grace.

"Mind the paint," she cautioned, motioning towards an abstract sketch, its colors still bright with the wet paint. I marveled at the pieces as we walked by; I knew Grace was creative, but I had no dea she was such a good artist.

Grace stopped at a tall sheet covered object I had assumed was just another of her extravagant artworks. "Here we go," she said, pulling at the sheet and raising her hand to tug it off. A rustle sounded underneath, and I realized the lethal creature was right in front of me. As she lifted the cloth I immediately fell into a defensive stance, arms held up defiantly and feet planted firmly on the ground.

Grace grinned as her eyes flicked from me to the tiny animal. I examined it, my guard slowly decreasing as I took in the small and furry chinchilla. The claws didn't look too monstrous... and venomous spit was seeming less and less likely to be a probable characteristic.

Grace reached in and picked up the Chinchilla. "Were you afraid of this little thing?" she asked, smiling at me from above the tiny creature.

"Er..." I began uncertainly, "No?"

I am going to kill Peter. Why do all of my friends hate me?

"Dinner!" Mrs. Shadron's shout sounded from downstairs, saving me from having to explain further to Grace about Peter and his warped view of harmless little creatures.

"Okay," Grace began, setting the animal back in its cage. "Just remember to avoid sitting on Aunt Margaret's left, she's the one with the big red hair, or across from Uncle Edward." I nodded, ordering myself to do everything right this time. "Oh," she added, pausing before leading me out of the room, "and if someone offers you something brown and foamy, don't take it. The Irish like their liquor."

---

I'm in a slight state of shock. Dinner went surprisingly well, and I actually began to enjoy it once the Shadron's got routinely and humorously drunk, reminding myself that whatever stupid thing I said tonight would most likely be forgotten by morning. I hadn't been expecting Grace's grandmother to offer me a mug of the brew, however, and that almost proved disastrous. Other than that, everything went all right. I was glad Grace had briefed me about football on the train-ride back to King's Cross Station, because it was all her brothers talked about. The rest of the night was spent talking with Grace and her brothers about football (they were all very, very obsessed) with an occasional reference to quidditch. Finally her mum -tipsy, but not as smashed as the others, specifically her Grandmother- announced with surprise how very late it was, and that everyone was to head up to bed immediately.

While Grace got ready for bed downstairs, I grabbed the towels Mrs. Shadron had provided and took a quick shower in the upstairs bathroom- her brothers were friendly, but I think there was a reason my room was the farthest away from Grace's.

I grimaced when I found what pajamas my mum had tucked in my trunk. Honestly, I haven't liked dinosaurs for years. Just as I decided to wear a plain white undershirt and rough it out in the dino shorts (I had to look at least somewhat mature- what if there was a fire and I had to run outside in my pajamas?), a soft knock tapped once before the door squeaked noisily open.

"Hey!" I yelped, instinctively tugging the towel tighter around my waist. Grace glanced over at took sight of me, and I felt embarrassment for her wash through me as I anticipated her abashed reaction.

"Huh?" Grace asked distractedly. "Oh, sorry Remus. Hey is my hairbrush over there?"

I gaped at her. Here I was, standing in the middle of the room with nothing but a thin layer of terrycloth covering me and carrying dinosaur boxers, and she didn't seem the least bit embarrassed!

"Oh, nevermind," she said, spotting her brush and reaching above the mirror for it. She ran it through her hair, humming softly and calmly inspecting her half-painted fingernails.

I shifted uneasily. "Er..."

"Oh!" Grace's head shot up suddenly.

Ah, she's finally recognized the fact that I am standing here in a towel. Any moment her face is going to go all red with embarrassment...

"Let's go outside," she suggested excitedly, grinning and dropping her hairbrush carelessly onto the counter. "There's this brilliant rock garden you're just going to love."

"W-what?" I asked, thoroughly flustered by her unexpected suggestion.

"C'mon," she said, wrapping her wet hair into a long ponytail and motioning me to follow her out of the bathroom. "Everyone's gone to bed already."

"I but I- I'm in a towel," I stated dumbly.

Grace looked over me and quirked a brow, finally acknowledging the obvious fact. An innocent smile turned the corner of her lips, and she winked, remarking coyly, "I don't mind."

Oh, Merlin.

Grace laughed, probably at my stupidly staring expression. "Go put your T-Rex shorts on and meet me back in the hall. I need to get a sweatshirt, anyway."

"But we're... we're just going take a stroll in your backyard in the middle of the night?"

Grace shrugged. "Maybe we can stop in the kitchen and get some linguini too. If there isn't any we could always bake some brownies. Ooh, or pudding."

I stared back at her uncertainly. "Well it's... I mean, it's all so sudden, maybe we should plan-"

"Oh Remus," Grace sighed, shaking her head. "Does everything always have to happen according to plan?"

Yes.

"Does it always have to be normal?"

Definitely.

"Would something go horribly wrong if you decided to do something impulsive?"

Most likely.

"I am going to teach you, Mister Lupin," she wagged a finger at me. "I am going to teach you how to be wild, impulsive, and care-free..." she held her arms out and spun, nearly knocking over a row of shampoo bottles.

I started and reached out hastily to prevent the bottles from falling. "Remus," Grace reacted just as quickly and grabbed my hands before they could reach the shampoo. Her eyes flickered over my face, as she slowly pushed my hands away from the counter.

"Does it matter if they fall?"

Next to me the bottle teetered, but after a few seconds settled and remained still. "I... I think it does."

"Why?" Her hands remained on my own as she stared up at me from her kneeling position.

"Well the floor, it would be all sticky- and then what if you needed the shampoo and didn't have any? You couldn't go out because your hair would be all dirty and-"

"Yes," Grace interrupted me with a swift affirmative nod. "I'm sure of it now."

I looked up at her uncertainly, thrown off by her peculiar disruption. "What?"

"You're in dire need of a Spontaneous Day," she informed me matter-of-factly.

"Spontaneous Day?" I repeated dubiously. Grace nodded, a broad grin spanning across her face. I tried to smile back but I think it came out as more of a grimace. "When?"

Grace looked over me with exasperated wide eyes. "If I told you, it wouldn't be very spontaneous, now would it?"

This cannot be good.

A/N: Thanks for reading : ) Stay tuned for a very Sirius update.

Sorry for that horrible pun.

I promise to never do it again.

Probably.