Bewitched | wolfstar au

Fifty-three

Feeling a hand on his shoulder, Remus jerks awake.

"Hey," James' voice reaches Remus before his eyes focus on his face. "It's only me, no need to panic."

Remus sits up groggily, his legs cramped because of the way he was curled up. The lights have been turned on. It can't be that late, but he sun has gone down1. "You didn't find him?" He asks, rubbing his eyes.

"Uhm, when i said it's only me, I didn't mean it that literally," James ruffles his hair.

And suddenly, Remus is a whole new kind of awake.

He peers from around James and sure enough, there Sirius is, leaning against the wall by the door, looking like a stranger in his own house. His cheeks are pale, and there's a rainbow scarf wrapped around his neck, pleasantly out of congruence with his otherwise all black outfit.

Everything around him is colourless and a little bit dead except for that cheery scarf, and Remus tries not to stare.

"Uhm, I'm also here," Auguste waves from beside James.

"Hi," Remus blushes, embarrassed. If he's lucky enough, maybe the whole of Wizarding Britain will have walked in on him sleeping on a couch by the end of the year.

"Right... well, I'm..." James rubs the back of his neck.

"Maybe I should go," Auguste offers, already moving towards the door.

"No, no," James says, "Merlin, we were stuck in a car for hours, have some tea before you go."

"I'll make it," Sirius speaks up for the first time.

Everyone turns to him, and he shifts uncomfortably under their collective gaze.

"It's... my house," he fiddles with the hem of his t-shirt, not meeting anyone's eyes.

"You haven't been acting much like it, Padfoot," James tells him, his tone uncharacteristically careful. "But you can make the tea. Come on, I'll help."

Remus watches them disappear into the kitchen, James' arm slung around Sirius' shoulder, pulling Sirius into his side. It's kind of adorable.

"Uhm," Remus turns to Auguste, who's still standing where he was. "Why don't you sit down?"

Auguste gives him a brilliant smile, the kind you'd see in a toothpaste commercial. Picture perfect. "Thank you," he says, sliding on to a recliner. "Were you waiting for us?" He asks, reaching forward to pet Marshbutton, who's happily having a bath on the coffee table. She rubs her head against his palm, making him laugh.

"I was waiting for James and Sirius," Remus says, "I didn't know you'd come as well."

"Oh,"

"No, not in a bad way," Remus says quickly, "It's just that James told me that he'd bring Sirius home and, well, I really didn't expect him to go with you."

"Oh?"

"Oh God, I just... I just didn't think you were friends, James and you. That's all," Remus cringes inwardly, silently cursing himself.

"I'm not surprised at all," Auguste laughs, "Partly because it's true. Potter and I aren't friends, as he would be very glad to assure you. And I was just teasing you, Remus."

"Oh," Remus sighs in relief, "Okay. Must have been fun, watching me panic,"

"Very much so," Auguste smiles at him, petting Marshbutton's belly. He looks like he wants to say something else, but the whistling of the kettle makes Marshbutton scramble to her feet, startling both him and Remus.