Spells and Handcuffs (Remus Lupin)

Thousand things

The moment I closed the door to my own room, a wave of shame swept over me. I threw myself on my own bed and covered my face with my hands. How humiliating. To go out once in a century and end up in this kind of situation. I guessed it was normal to feel awkward, I'd rather feel that way and be real than any other. But hey, why always me? That was me, wearing "awkward" as if it were my own exclusive label.

How will I look this man in the eyes again? And if Sirius found out, he was going to kill me. The last time I allowed myself to flirt with a man didn't end well. Sirius noticed and let's say the man's face wasn't the same anymore. My uncle treated me as if I was his daughter and I was 15. "Men only thought about one thing and so on, and so on... " The same lecture every time.

I decided to stay in the room until this man Remus Lupin leaves. I hoped I didn't have to see him again. In fact, it was a pity. Although he was older than my standard for men I like, I'd say he looked pretty good. When Sirius told me about him I didn't think he could be someone quite handsome. I slapped my head, trying to get such thoughts out of it. Maybe I was still drunk.

The hangover felt like a balloon under my cranium, slowly being inflated, pressure mounting. I splashed cold water on my face just to feel something refreshing and instantly wished I could wash my brain free of the toxins too. The mirror showed my eyes, no longer the glamour girl of last night. As I tried to run my fingers through my disheveled hair, someone knocked on my door.

"Come on, Ash," Sirius's voice said, "get up and drag your butt down in the kitchen."

Despite my shame and reluctance, I had to go downstairs, or Sirius would suspect something.

I got up quickly, started dressing, and tried to hide the dark circles under my eyes. I combed my hair quickly and tied it in a careless ponytail. For a little longer I wondered what to wear than usual, not that I wanted to attach much importance to the reason why I wanted to look good when I go down for breakfast. In the end, I settled on tight jeans and a top, a little fitter than the usual baggy T-shirts I wear around the house.

With one last look in the mirror, which, by the way, was a talking one and said to me "You have to do something with that bored expression, darling", I managed to gather enough strength and dignity to open the door and go out. I tried as casually as I could to walk past Remus's room and head to the kitchen. In it, to my relief, was only Sirius.

"You must have gone crazy last night. " I said to him with a slight smile, nodding at the pile of dirty dishes and glasses on the table. Empty bottles were rolling around. Several of the chairs were overturned. With a few strokes of my wand, I began to arrange things in their places. "Did you manage to make that mess with Kreacher and Buckbeak?" I tried to sound casual.

"Almost," he smiled playfully at me. Sirius was in a good mood this morning, I hadn't seen him like that in a while. "I had a guest last night - an old friend". His eyes flicked to somewhere behind me.

"Part of the blame for the mess is mine," I heard a voice from the direction my uncle was looking. I swallowed in shock for a moment and turned around to see Remus Lupin, leaning casually against the doorframe. His hair was carelessly combed back, he was wearing a light shirt and a baggy vest over it. He was rolled up his sleeves to his elbows and looked at us with a thin smile on his lips. "Let me help you, Sirius was never good at household magic. "

He swung carelessly with his own wand, and the dishes began to wash.

"The Dementors in Azkaban didn't make us practice in the household spells" Sirius winked at us, this was one of the few cases in which he did not flinch at the mention of the prison. "Anyway. While you're both doing these nice tasks, please let me introduce you to each other. Remus, this is my niece Ashling. Ashling, this is Remus, my school friend I've told you about many times."