a beautiful world | wolfstar

could not be discerned

Remus was outside a classroom, leaning against a wall, looking at his phone with a mildly bored expression and fairly close to kicking something.

Why, I hear you ask? Well, just through the aforementioned classroom's door sat Professor Flitwick, the music teacher, smiling at every student who came through and wishing them luck when they left.

It was Sunday lunchtime.

Remus was supposed to be signing Professor Flitwick's bloody sheet.

Instead, here he was, only about five feet away and internally freaking out.

Christ, he thought, nodding at a student who walked out of the classroom, why did I think this was a good idea? This is not a good idea.

Another student walked past. "Are you going to be signing up?" she asked nervously.

"Eventually, I hope, but not right now."

The girl giggled. "Well, good luck if you do."

"You too." Remus watched her walk in, biting his lip in thought.

He could just not do it. That was an option. He could just walk on, and never have to face singing in front of anyone ever in his life.

He could.

He really could.

No one was stopping him.

The girl walked out again. "Made up your mind?"

He set his jaw. "Yes, I think I have."

They nodded to each other, the girl walking down the hallway, and Remus walking through the door.

"Ah, Mr Lupin! I didn't know you sang."

"Well, I do now."

***

Remus entered the dormitory and was immediately face to face with a one James Potter.

"Moony! Thank God you're back!" With that, James walked over to his bed and face-planted onto it, groaning. Sirius sat next to him, patting the despairing boy's head and videoing his agony.

"What happened?"

"Have a guess," said Peter, who was also on James' bed and looking fed up.

"He got rejected again?"

James said something that could not be discerned, due to the fact he had a pillow against his face.

"Sorry mate, you're gonna have to say that again."

James revealed his head. "Why didn't it work? It should have worked!" He glared at Remus. "It's all your fault, you didn't help this time."

"It never works anyway."

"Still, it might have done." He burrowed under the blankets once more.

Remus sat next to Sirius, patting James' back. "What was the dumb plan this time?"

"You were there!" Sirius exclaimed.

"I wasn't listening."

"Rude." But Sirius explained all the same.

"James had the idea to really imprint how much he loved Lily into her brain."

"Well fuck."

Sirius shrugged. "It wasn't a bad plan."

"It was a terrible plan. You both need to buy some brain cells."

"Shut up Peter, that's mean. Anyway, we got a bunch of first years to dress up as different farm animals and sing. I conducted them dressed up as Cupid."

"Again?!"

"It was glorious."

"It was not." Peter snickered. "Do you want to know the lyrics?"

Remus thought about it for a second. "...yes...?"

Sirius stood up and started singing:

"Old Mc'Jamsie is in love
E-I-E-I-O!
And for his love he got some pigs
E-I-E-I-O!
With an oink oink here
And an oink oink there
Here an oink
There an oink
Everywhere an oink oi-"

"Sirius, if you don't shut up I will throw you out of that window."

"I'll help you, Moons."

"Anyway," said Sirius, eager to lead the conversation away from his apparently imminent murder. "I think she got mad because of the indoor fireworks."

"To be fair," muttered Peter, typing something on his phone, "Those fireworks were pretty lit."

"No."

Peter smirked at Remus. "No what?"

"No."

"So, Moony," drawled Sirius, leaning close to the taller boy's face and looking at him intently, "Where were you at lunch? We didn't see you."

Remus felt a little flustered at how close they were, but regarded Sirius with a perfectly impassive look. "Oh, Flitwick wanted to see me about some homework that I'd handed in. Said he didn't understand something."

"Dull." Sirius leaned back again. Remus didn't know if he was happy about that or not.

Now, you might be wondering why Remus lied. It's obvious: he had very low self-esteem and overthought everything, and had managed to convince himself immediately after signing up that he couldn't sing and that his friends knew that and would talk about him behind his back, but not in a bitchy way, but in a 'I feel so bad for him' way, and that was probably worse and he wouldn't be able to handle the idea that they would ever say anything like that and although he felt incredibly bad for not trusting them he didn't really think it was a matter of trust, it was just that he couldn't sing and he didn't want them to know that he had signed up to something as stupid as this.

As I said. Obvious.

The boys looked back at James, who had become fairly comatose over the course of their conversation.

"Poor James."

"He deserved it."

"Wormtail!"

"He isn't wrong."

"You are both horrible people.

"But you love us anyway," Remus said, winking at Sirius.

"Only you, babe," he replied, winking back.

Peter got up. "I'm getting some food. Screw all of your horny asses."