Remus Lupin

did you hear that [ REMUS LUPIN ] will be attending the Black Ball during the coming weekend? They recently arrived in London for the social season and we will be excited to see if they make a splash this year. I heard that they are currently working as an [ MUGGLE LIBRARIAN ] and that they have been quite successful. They always reminded me of [ oversized sweaters, sarcastic quips, lukewarm cups of tea, strolls through the woods, the scent after a rainstorm, crumpled up newspapers, stacks of unfinished books, they say you aren’t a monster but that doesn’t change the turmoil inside ] and I heard that they can be [ DROLL + EMPATHETIC ] but also [ INSECURE + CAUTIOUS ]. Rumor has it that they are [ WORKING AGAINST ] Tom Riddle, but you know that you can’t believe everything you hear. As far as I know, they are a model member of pureblood society.

Biography. Wanted Connections. Pinterest. Playlist.

A wince escaped the moment Remus settled at the bar, leaving him shifting uncomfortably until he found a position that best suited the aches along his spine. He had made it through the workday with a forced smile so another hour longer shouldn’t have felt so challenging. He likely would have been better off skipping the detour altogether but he hadn’t been able to shake the craving for fried food all day.

“Fries and whatever they’re drinking,” He murmured when the bartender approached, offering a sheepish expression at the person seated beside him. “Too long of a day for decision making past that.”

Hazel eyes scanned over books, searching for anything that would properly hold his attention. Reading Muggle and Wixen tomes alike meant a large amount of materials to work through but his interest in reading had been waning as of recent. He had been about to give up on the shelf he was closely examining when he narrowly avoided walking into Andromeda. An apologetic half-smile was all he could muster but the words for the apology were glued to the tip of his tongue, not wanting to come out.

“Sorry,” The word came out softer than he could appreciate. “You wouldn’t er, happen to have anything that’s an engaging enough read to make it through in full? Work’s only got poorly written romance novels as the ones they’re willing to part with.”

The bell to the children’s room door rang overhead, practically summoning Remus from where he was shelving books that had been returned. He maintained a small smile and had been about to stick to smalltalk when he looked up from the desk he now stood behind. Any sense of seeming overly professional was lost to a warm smile and his offering a small wave before switching over to signing.

‘Lost?’ He signed and offered a wolfish grin that shrunk to an almost frown when he continued. ‘30 minutes until I’m done for the day. Sirius may have mixed my hours up.’ Of course, Sirius may not have been to blame for faulty information but he was the first of the handful of people that knew his schedule to come to mind. ‘How can I help you?’ was added upon realizing he was supposed to be keeping up the act of friendly librarian.

The midday sun shown overhead, leaving Remus squinting at the display of vegetables in front of him. Produce shopping hadn’t been on the initial plan for the day. It was a spur of the moment decision marked by his struggling to remain still at home. There were too many thoughts and too many worries now that the most recent assignments had been given out. News about his lycanthropy wasn’t fully out with the society but there had been no stopping how high his eyebrows went up upon realizing they were serious about wanting to face Fenrir.

“He’s going to kill me,” Remus muttered and picked up a tomato, weighing it in his hand. “Sirius that is.” He added and turned toward James then dropped the vegetable into his basket, relieved to have someone join him for what otherwise would have been a boring day spent running errands. “Not that I would have let anyone else go into something they know little about but I - I’m still not certain I like acknowledging I can count as ammunition.”

Mornings were tough - more specifically, the ones that didn’t require needing to get out of bed to deal with adult responsibilities. Those moments had grown less frequent now that the world outside their bedroom had taken a more serious turn and Remus was all too happy to revel in them. Unsurprisingly, he had awoken shortly after the sun rose. Try as he may, he could never seem to sleep in past nine - a trait that had been fostered by his upbringing.

He kept his eyes closed for several minutes. The only hint toward being awake was his shifting closer to Sirius, practically enveloping the shorter male in an attempt at keeping warm. Their comforter was more than enough but Sirius always seemed to radiate heat. He could hardly be to blame for preferring having Sirius beside him over the sheet.

“Can we just stay here for the day?” The question escaped mere seconds after feeling Sirius stir against him. “Last night’s festivities came with enough excitement to last me until the full moon.”

There was truly one reason why Remus showed his face and managed to maintain a cheery disposition at the ball. Okay, technically three reasons if free booze and food was included on the list. It had come down to Sirius being overly convincing and not minding the idea of seeing and learning a little more about where he was raised. While it was a particularly lackluster event as a whole, there was no denying the space was larger than anticipated.

The fingers of his right hand absentmindedly tugged at the bowtie around his neck, shifting it so it was straight once more. He wasn’t usually one for caring about his appearance but nerves had come to play this time around, leaving him overthinking almost every little thing he did.

Remus remained lost in thought, attention shifting when someone neared him. There was no masking the startled expression so he took a steadying breath and slowly exhaled through his nose. “Sorry,” He murmured. “I missed it if you said something. Too much background noise.”