Bewitched | wolfstar au

Six

"So,"

Potter's Herbs and Misc. has been restored to all its previous glory, bathed in the most welcoming shades of amber and gold and brown when Remus puts his bag down on the counter. The sun reaches into the shop with no hesitation, and James is glowing behind the counter as he grins at Remus.

"I hear Sirius spent the night at yours last week?"

Remus grabs the stool which James uses to reach higher shelves and sits down on it. "His bike broke down, and there was a storm coming, so..."

"Well, did you have fun?"

The pink blush that rises up to Remus' cheeks is not helping him. "We had tea," he manages to say, drawing a wave of laughter from James, who places a mug of tea in front of him. Remus thanks him quietly and takes a sip.

James takes a rag from under the counter and starts dragging it along the wood, even if it's already spotless. "He seems to quite like you," he says. The comment brings genuine surprise to Remus. "Really?"

"Yeah," James smiles almost teasingly. He reaches into Remus' bag and pulls his list out. Remus watches him waltz over to the shelves, weighing and measuring and wrapping and sealing with minimal effort, all the while humming a vaguely familiar tune.

James Potter almost loses his beloved mug reserved for Remus when the door is thrown open. Remus manages to save it from a roughly three foot drop by placing it on the counter, but at least a third of his tea spills on to the polished wood.

The bells ring out, and Remus finds himself slowly being enshrouded by wisps of smoke. It tickles his neck and creeps under his jumper, and soon enough, all he can see is grey, grey and grey.

"Spare us the theatrics, Padfoot," Remus hears James say.

"But that's not very fun, is it?"

Remus can make out James waving his wand, and the smoke slowly fades away. He spins around in his seat to see none other than Sirius Black himself, leaning against the door frame. There's something so sluggish about him, in that dreamy smile of his, and in the way his wand moves so slowly as he twirls his wand in his fingers.

James is by his side in an instant, leaning down to envelope him in a massive hug. It warms Remus' heart. There's a beauty in friendship that's often forgotten, but is not to be found anywhere else. He watches them exchange a few words.

"Remus Lupin," Sirius tilts his head as he approaches the said boy. Remus considers standing up, but before he can make up his mind, Sirius has already reached him. It's slightly awkward, having to practically lean back to see Sirius properly.

"Sirius Black," he replies, and vanishes the spilled tea from the counter. "Drinking that horrid tea again, I see," Sirius pulls himself up on to the counter, swinging his legs as he watches James move back and forth. "It's not horrid," Remus says, and takes a sip to prove his point.

"It tastes like mud,"

"So you know what mud tastes like? Why does that not surprise me?"

"Because he's a pig," James sings, carefully packing Remus' supplies into a bag. Sirius shrugs his leather jacket off and places it on his lap, pouting. "The world and its inhabitants are always so cruel to me," he sighs, a hand on his heart, "My poor heart can't bear it."

James only rolls his eyes as he sits down to write Remus' bill. "Move your ass," he pokes Sirius with his quill, which makes him jerk away. "You perverted fuck," Sirius frowns, jumping off of the counter.

"Oh, I almost forgot," James says as he scribbles on a piece of parchment, "You killed my petunias. And my hydrangeas."

"Oops?" Sirius offers.

James lifts his head to glare at him, and goes back to writing. "I'm sorry, Prongsie," Sirius leans down and pokes James' cheek with his wand. "See, I'm not all bad," he reaches into the pocket of his jacket, "I brought you some seeds. Moonflowers for your home, and zinnias for here. They change colour, the zinnias. And we made them smell like jasmine."

James lights up even brighter, and looks up with a wide grin. "Thanks, Padfoot. You're the best. Thank Reg for me," he accepts the two small white paper packets, neatly labelled Moonflower and Zinnia in green cursive writing.

"Here's your bill, Rem."

Remus pays and quickly finishes the last of his tea. "Here, these are for you," James hands him a bag of peppermint bark. "And give these to Reg, will you?" He quickly parcels some more of it and pushes it into Sirius' hands. "I haven't seen him in ages."

"Are you leaving?" Sirius asks Remus as he adjusts his bag on his shoulder. "No, I'm not. Its not like I've got everything I need, is it?"

James snorts, earning a smack on the back of his head from Sirius. "Shut up."

"Want a ride?" He asks Remus.

"I can take the Floo..."

"But that's not as fun as a ride in the clouds," Sirius looks at him expectantly, "And I came all the way here to see you." He adds when Remus doesn't give in.

That works splendidly, painting Remus' cheeks an endearing red. "No, you didn't," he says softly, "You came here to give James those seeds."

"That was a secondary reason. I could've gone to his place, you know."

"Fine," Remus says flatly, even if his heart is doing a small dance behind his ribs. "You can give me a ride."

That earns a louder snort of laughter from James. Sirius rolls his eyes and smacks him again. Remus can only sigh, "What are you, James? Thirteen?"

Sirius cracks a grin at that. "No, just really excited that you're getting a ride." James winks.

This time, it's Remus who smacks him square on his head.