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 Posted: Sat Dec 27, 2008 3:20 pm
Remus stayed adamantly cooped up in his room, claiming that he had several gifts both to make and to wrap before he could come down again. Instead of "hiding in his books" as he liked to refer to it, however, he sat down on the floor and brainstormed about what he could make for Wendy. Pacing back and forth across his room, he accidentally knocked a glass off of his nightstand and sent it shattering on the floor. The sunlight glittered and shone brightly off of the shards of glass, and he was struck with inspiration. He sat down on the floor among the shards of glass, dug some old wire out from under his bed, and started bending it.
Two hours, eight slices in his fingers, eight curse words, and two remodelings later, Remus held in his hands a far-from-perfect little three-dimensional star. He smiled nonetheless, and sucked on his cut finger just as Wendy's tired owl landed outside his window. He let it in and read the letter, his smile widening ever further as he read about her brothers. So they were safe, then. He knew that she worried about a fraction of them being Aurors. How soon could he get away? Well, hot damn!
"DAD!"
It took well over an hour to negotiate a short stay with "one of my mates", but it had been negotiated. He would be allowed to visit as soon as it's conveniant for "my mate's" parents. He ran upstairs to write a response, Wendy's owl refreshed from a nice long nap. Good thing too, since he didn't have an owl.
Wendy,
The Overlords have released me! I'm free to visit and withstand any abuse your brothers may throw my way whenever you'd like! And please, if you think that your brothers can give me a hard time, you obvously have not met me. I'm Remus Lupin. *smiley face with a tongue sticking out*
My Christmas is much better now!
Remus
ps: Sorry, I haven't got an owl of my own. But I fed your dear bird some birdy-brand caffeine (high-energy Owl Treats), and gave it a nice nap while I negotiated with The Overlords.
Hope to see you soon!
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Posted: Sat Dec 27, 2008 4:07 pm
Wendy, in the meantime, had been wheedled into playing Quidditch with her brothers, which wasn't so much playing for her as it was trying to stay alive while she played Chaser against two Beaters and a Keeper. About an hour and a half later her father finally ended the abuse by notifying Sam of an urgent notice from the Ministry, then offhandedly saying that Wendy had received an owl, too.
The four of them went inside out of the cold, and Sam read his letter, his brow furrowed.
"Aw, hell..." he muttered, running a hand through his hair. Wendy placed a mug of hot chocolate before him, looking concerned.
"You don't have to leave, do you?" she asked. Please not on Christmas... she pleaded with the powers that be. He looked up at her and gave a small smile.
"Nah. I've just been promoted. Bennington got..." Rather than finish the sentence he mimed blowing something up with a wand. Wendy winced. He chuckled, and in a feeble attempt at a joke he said, "Can't very well do his job anymore..."
"Sorry..." Wendy murmured. Inside she was screaming in panic - SAM'S GETTING PROMOTED TO A POST WHERE A FRIEND OF HIS WAS KILLED?! She wasn't a religious girl, so she was shocked to find herself praying.
"Wendy girl," she was jerked out of her revelry by her father's voice. "You gonna read this?" He was holding an envelope with Remus's handwriting on it. She grabbed it from him and tore it open, reading it quickly. Immediately she felt better - Remus had such a sense of humor. It was like medicine. Medicine for panic. The Overlords... she thought, shaking her head.
"Hey, Dad?"
"Yes Wendy?"
"Would it be all right if I had a friend come over for a few days? Starting today? I know it's sudden, but... well, please?" She put on her puppy eyes, which had moved her father to grant her wishes on so many occasions.
Her father pondered for a moment, then asked slowly, "Which friend?"
Wendy's face grew bright red. "Remus Lupin?" She braced herself for an explosion.
"Oooooohhhhh!!!" cried Finn. "Wendy's boyfriend's coming for a stay with us!"
Sam gave Finn a threatening glare while Jude raised his eyebrows and smirked. Wendy's dad mulled the invite over. "A boy, huh?"
"Oh, I promise he's a nice boy!" Wendy pleaded. "And if you don't believe me you can lock him in the guest room at night - I'm sure he wouldn't mind!" Well, he might a little bit, Wendy thought, But he'll get over it...
Wendy's father thought on it a little while longer before letting go of a sigh. "Well, what the hell. It's Christmas, after all. But I'm warning you, Wendy Delilah Rivers, if either of you does anything..."
Wendy giggled. "I promise we won't, Dad. Thank you!" She gave him a quick hug before darting away from her brothers' jeers and nasty comments so she could reply to Remus:
Remus,
My dad's willing to let you over TODAY, which means I'll have to jump on that gift! But yeah, you can Floo on over any time! Sorry this is concise - I've got to ready the guest room!
Wendy
P.S. Thanks for resting Mercutio up - he's very grateful, I can tell you!
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Quotable Conversationalist
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Posted: Sat Dec 27, 2008 5:45 pm
Remus was lounging lazily on his bed when the owl flew in the window he left open (no wonder it was drafty in there...) and dropped the letter on his chest. He flailed in shock and fell off the bed, hitting the floor with a thud. He devoured the letter and grinned before running downstairs to give his parents the news. His father was all for letting him go right away, but his mother was not as kind. He wasn't allowed to go until after lunch, so he wouldn't be too much of an imposition. He was surprisingly okay with that.
He ran up to his room and quickly wrote back (on the backside of Wendy's letter; he couldn't find any more parchment), his hands practically trembling with surpressed excitement.
Wendy,
I have to wait until after lunch, but I've got permission from The Overlords to stay a day or two! I'll need your address, though; I'm not that amazingly brilliant as to guess. Otherwise, I'll leave you to your work.
See you soon!
Remus
P.S. My parents don't exactly know I'm going to visit a girl-sort-of-friend. I'm so very sneaky.
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Posted: Sat Dec 27, 2008 7:26 pm
Wendy had just finished replacing the guest room's sheets when Mercutio dropped the letter before her and hooted indignantly, as though to say, "I'm not an instant messenger, though you seem to insist upon thinking that!" She patted him absentmindedly on the head before opening the letter. At first she furrowed her brow in confusion as she reread her own letter, then she flipped it over and grinned when she found Remus's note. She slapped her forehead at his request for her address - she definitely should have remembered that he'd need that.
Sneaky Remus,
411 Gingerale Drive should get you here all right. Can't wait to see you!
Hugs,
Wendy Girl
"One more time, old boy," Wendy pleaded with her glaring owl. Mercutio rolled his eyes, then grabbed her note from her and flew out the window. Wendy dashed down the stairs to tell her father that her friend would arrive soon after lunchtime. He told her that was fantastic, then ordered her to make sandwiches. Sometimes being the only girl in the house sucked.
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Quotable Conversationalist
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Posted: Sat Dec 27, 2008 7:46 pm
Remus packed the hell out of his overnight bag while he was waiting for a return letter from Wendy. When it came, he actually whooped out loud and ran a lap around his small room. He then whipped on his traveling cloak, tucked the tired and irritated owl under his arm, and went downstairs. "Dad, I'm going to my mate's place now! See you in a few days!" he called into the sitting room.
"Alright," called his father mildly. "Make sure you're back before the Moon; it's in three days, you know."
Ah, only three days until Mum's stfling presence is gone, thought Remus fondly. "I know Dad, see you!"
He tossed a handful of Floo Powder into the fire and called out "411 Gingerale Drive!" before quietly apologizing to the owl and stepping in.
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Posted: Sat Dec 27, 2008 7:56 pm
Wendy had just sat down to enjoy her sandwich when the fireplace roared. She dropped her sandwich back on her plate before ever taking a bite and raced into the living room where a disheveled-looking Remus Lupin stood in her fireplace. Her breath caught; she was having a hard time believing he was actually there.
"Remus!" she cried, wrapping him in her wiry arms. "Gah, it's so good to see you! Happy Christmas!"
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Quotable Conversationalist
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Posted: Sat Dec 27, 2008 8:15 pm
Remus felt a grin nearly split his face in two as Wendy hugged him, and hugged her back just as fiercely, even going so far as to attempt to lift her up with joy. But, alas, it was too close to the Moon, and he wasn't feeling quite tip-top. He feigned a laugh that was too strong to pick her up, and released her. "Thank you for saving me from the awkward silences!" he rejoiced, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. "A very Happy Christmas to you too, my friend!"
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Posted: Sat Dec 27, 2008 8:31 pm
She grinned up at him, giggling at his attempts to lift her. "Come on, you must meet my dad and my brothers. Don't worry about them, by the way; they just can't believe I'm old enough to tie my own shoes, let alone have guys for friends."
She led him into the kitchen, where her father and brothers were eating their lunch. Immediately upon seeing him Sam, Jude, and Finn simultaneously broke into devilish grins. Her father leaned forward, leaning his head on one of his hands and surveying the new boy carefully. Wendy blushed.
"Er, guys, this is Remus. Remus, that's my dad," she gestured toward the man with graying brown hair and wisened gray eyes, "and that's Sam," her hand moved to the tallest and most muscular of the brown-haired boys, "Jude," much leaner than Sam, but still well-built, "and that's Finn," tall, gangly, and with a goofy-looking grin. She shrugged. "That's the family!" She glanced at her brothers, as though saying that the jabs could begin.
"So you're Wendy's squeeze, eh?" Finn was quick to start off.
"He's not my boyfriend..." Wendy muttered, but no one listened to her.
"Eh, she could've done worse," Jude commented disinterestedly with a shrug.
"Yeah, at least we'll be a sure shot to win in a fight against him," Sam said, and his jokes were the only truly goodhearted ones - he smiled his warm welcome at Remus as he spoke. "That way if he hurts our Wendy girl's feelings we'll be able to make him pay up."
"Well, have a seat," Wendy's father said suddenly, having finished his scrutiny. "Wendy'll make you a sandwich. Have you eaten?"
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Quotable Conversationalist
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Posted: Sat Dec 27, 2008 8:48 pm
Remus smiled bashfully at Wendy before manning up a bit when they entered the kitchen. He nodded politely to Wendy's father and each of her brothers, and blushed furiously at her brothers' accusations even though he knew they were only joking. He couldn't help it! He had a very pale complexion, and blushed easily!
He sat down, smiling politely as he got his face under control, and tried to politely decline the offer without sounding rude. "No, thank you, that's really not necessary. Wendy, you were already eating when I got here, and I couldn't impose on you, really." He grinned in his subtle cheeky way just for fun, and then turned to her brother Sam.
"And, though I may look like a skinny little bi-..." his reddening face froze mid-word but for his eyes, which went to Wendy's father who may or may not condone swearing. He quickly changed course. "...Snidget...but I can hold my own in a wrestling match when I'm on top of my game."
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Posted: Sat Dec 27, 2008 8:52 pm
Wendy blushed at Remus and sat down to resume eating as he spoke. Wendy's brothers laughed uproariously at Remus's comment, and her father smiled, chuckling softly.
"Haha, this lad's all right!" Finn cried with a grin.
"So tell us about yourself, Remus," Wendy's father asked curiously. "How do the two of you know one another, for starters?"
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Quotable Conversationalist
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Posted: Sat Dec 27, 2008 9:16 pm
Remus couldn't fight the happy, lopsided grin from shooting across his face for a moment, then controlled himself. Her family likes me! he thought gleefully. He always felt so dejected when people didn't like him. "Well," he explained, making brief eye contact with Wendy to make sure he was telling the story right. "We didn't really meet under very extraordinary circumstances. She sat with me and my mates on the Hogwarts Express, and..." I fell hopelessly in love with her. No big deal guys. He mentally shook the thought away as quickly as possible; big brothers and dads were infamous for being pervy-boy-mind-readers, even if the boy-mind wasn't quite so pervy.
"That was pretty much it. She was nice; I, apparently, left a good impression, because we just started hanging out in the library and whatnot and became good friends." He shrugged as if he really had no idea why he, of all people, would leave a good impression on Wendy. Which really actually had crossed his mind several times since they met. Though he usually fell into that habitually with everyone he knew, so he learned to gnore it by now.
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Posted: Sat Dec 27, 2008 9:23 pm
Wendy nodded. "Him and his friends are nice to me," she said, smiling at Remus, then looking back at her father and saying, "Like, actually nice. Not like Jolette."
The brothers groaned at the name of Wendy's ex-best friend.
"God, I hope she does something illegal..." Sam muttered.
"Samuel," His father said in warning tones. Sam smiled.
"Joking, Dad."
"So, do you do well in school?" Wendy's father asked. Wendy rolled her eyes at the interrogation, but she supposed it was to be expected. Still, it kind of bored her now that she was sure her family liked him - that was really all she'd been concerned about.
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Quotable Conversationalist
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Posted: Sat Dec 27, 2008 9:43 pm
Remus, whose hand was presently clamped over his mouth to keep him from laughing, was able to turn that laugh into a cough with ease. He was a Marauder, after all. Not to mention, he was the innocent one who had the least detentions just because he looked like he would never do anything wrong.
Still, he gave a small cough before moving his hand and nodding modestly. "I do reasonably well, sir, yes." That was his default answer when it came to his grades: not too cocky, but not too modest either.
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Posted: Sat Dec 27, 2008 9:51 pm
"Bet it's because he's got Wendy now, huh? The odd Ravenclaw out," Finn said, elbowing his sister. She giggled and shoved him back.
"Not quite. If either of us needs help it's usually me," she said.
"Yeah, that sounds about accurate," Jude said quietly. Wendy stuck her tongue out at him.
"Not that kind of help."
"Play any Quidditch, Remus?" Finn asked. "Wendy may have told you that I'm Keeper for the Appleby Arrows." He took on a cocky air, pretending to brush nonexistant dust off his shoulder as Wendy had once done. Wendy rolled her eyes.
"You haven't even played a game with them yet," she said, but the way her grin widened and her eyes sparkled it was obvious that she was happy for her brother. Happy that he was doing what he loved, and also happy that he was out of harm's way.
"All the same," Finn laughed, then he turned back to Remus to wait for his answer.
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Quotable Conversationalist
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Posted: Sat Dec 27, 2008 10:05 pm
Remus grinned crookedly again. "Wendy, you are very smart," he assured her before turning back to her family. "She knows sixth-year material, you know. She's going to fly right through her OWLs, no problem." He shook his shaggy head. "I was not so fortunate. I knew my Defense, but the rest I was caught scratching my head a fair few times, and I'm the one who studies among the smaller group of friends I had last year. Now I've got two new friends who-...well, okay, one new friend and one gray spot - who study."
He then took in what Finn had said and grinned. "Wendy has mentioned it, actually. If she hasn't admitted it out loud yet: she's very proud." He sent her another cheeky grin, though it was less subtle. "I've played Quidditch in the past, but I can't garuntee that I won't fall off."
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