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Goodbyes, Supplies, and Other Things


After the camping trip ended, the summer started to end and James wished it would slow down a bit because as much as he wanted to go back to Hogwarts, he also was enjoying the time spent with the other Marauders being complete lie-abouts in Godric’s Hollow. Peter came by via the Knight Bus nearly everyday and the four of them would hang about doing a bunch of nothing. Most mornings started with the four of them sitting along the wall watching Ace Dante leave for the morning while Sirius drooled over his fancy cranberry red motorbike (“Doesn’t it just remind you of Gryffindor? That colour?” Sirius asked with reverence; “Everything reminds you of Gryffindor, mate,” answered Remus, “I swear if you had a plate of chips with castup it would remind you of Gryffindor!”). Then they’d go walking along down the street to the lake and if it was hot enough they’d take a swim, sometimes going all the way out ot the little rock island in the center and taking turns belly-flopping back into the water and splashing at Remus, who preferred to wade to his knees with his pants rolled up than to actually strip off and get in (“We’re technically in public and my scars are awful,” Remus said; “They aren’t awful, stop it,” Sirius argued). Another thing they did a lot of was eating - Mrs. Potter always had some sort of sweet for them to pick up from the kitchen at the Potter house, along with bags of sandwiches to take with them on their adventures. Bacon sandwiches with thick slices of tomato and lettuce or else corned beef with spicy mustard. She made towers of butterbeer cookies and lollipops, cups of puddings and muffins and granola bars with chocolate drizzled over the top... And they spent a good deal of nights in the tent in the woods behind the Potter house, or else sitting ‘round a fire and talking nonsense for hours and hours, Peter roasting marshmallows while Remus tried at explaining what s’mores were and how to make them. They played card games and chess and exploding snap and Sirius would break out in song at random, his voice carrying through the dark trees while they roasted frankfurters or great chunks of beef or lamb on kebobs with cut peppers that Mrs. Potter would send out with them for their dinners...

It was the very, very end of August when Newt Scamander’s werewolf scratches were healed and he announced that he, Tina, and Ned needed to be on their way. There’d been another litter of Crups that needed attention not too far away and he still had the matter of appeasing Mr. Patra’s bent feelings and delivery of the Charkorais birds, whose singing was starting to get quieter as they craved the full moon coming just days away.

“You’ll come and visit me again sometime, won’t you?” Remus asked tearfully as they said goodbye in the Potter living room. It’d been decided, since there would only be a few more days before they’d be departing on board the Hogwarts Express, that Remus would spend the last of the summer with the Potters as Newt and his magic briefcase laboratory got on the move…

“Of - of course we, uh, we will,” Newt stammered, always so terrible at goodbyes. He petted Remus’s back awkwardly, then smiled and hurried off to catch the Niffler from stealing one of Mrs. Potter’s knickknacks while nobody had been looking.

Tina Scamander smoothed Remus’s hair and she smiled at him, her eyes looking a bit red about the edges, trying not to cry. “We’ll be back,” she said thickly, “To check on you and be sure you’re doing okay…” She smiled sadly, “Be good, Remus Lupin, and goodness will come back to you.” She held his head by his ears and gently kissed his forehead before going to join her husband at looking busy to staunch the tears that threatened.

Ned Veigler was the hardest of all, though. Remus stared up at him and he stared back and smiled and he said, “You heard Tina. Be good.”

“Yes, sir,” Remus nodded. “I’ll do my best.”

Ned used the wrist of his robes to reach out and polish Remus’s Prefect badge, which was still pinned to his chest… Ned smiled. “Imagine that. A werewolf for a Prefect.” He smiled. “I’m very proud of you. Did I mention that?”

Remus blushed.

Veigler took a deep breath, “Remus, I know you’ll do great things in this world. Don’t limit yourself. Believe in yourself, push yourself to live beyond the stigma. You’re too good a heart and too talented a wizard to allow the world to to hold you back. Moon’s the limit…” Ned smiled.

“Don’t you limit yourself, either, Professor,” Remus answered.

Ned smiled, “I intend not to…” He put a hand on Remus’s shoulder. “Just know, Mr. Lupin, that if ever you need me… my doors are always opened for you. We’re family, you and I.” He pulled back, ruffling Remus’s hair as he did and he winked. “So this isn’t a good-bye, really. It’s just see you later, baby brother.”

Remus hugged Veigler. “Thank you.”

When the goodbyes were all said, and Remus had bid farewell to Burt and Ernie and shaken the Niffler’s little claws, Ned and Tina climbed into the briefcase and Newt Scamander closed it, locked it, spun the Muggle Worthy dial and been off once he’d thanked Dora and Charlus for their hospitality.

Remus watched out the window by the door until Newt crossed the threshold of the Fidelus and disapparated away.

As sad as it was saying goodbye to Professor Veigler and everyone else, Remus really didn’t have time to dwell on it. There was a lot to do to prepare for Hogwarts and so very little time left to do it in - especially since the boys had planned another camping trip for the 21 through 23 of August for the last full moon of the summer. They had trips to Diagon Alley to make to get supplies - books and robes and potions kits… Remus had done some near magic budgeting with the meager amount of money his father had left to him, trying to figure how many terms he could afford to buy both himself and Sirius Black new robes, but much to his surprise Dora and Charlus Potter absolutely insisted on giving Remus, and Sirius each the money for all of their supplies.

“I feel guilty,” Remus said, looking at the handful of galleons as they walked through Diagon Alley together after leaving Mr. and Mrs. Potter at Gringott’s, under the command to meet back at the Leaky Cauldron in three hours’ time.

“Guilty?” James looked over at Remus. “What do you feel guilty for?”

“Taking your parents’ money,” Remus explained.

James laughed, “They’ve got loads Rey.”

“And also Mrs. P thinks I’m like her son,” Sirius said, who had grown up around money and had had loads of money himself once upon a time and therefore didn’t think much of it when an adult gave him galleons at a time. “That would make you her son-in-law kind of.”

Remus looked at the shiney galleons (he thought briefly of the Niffler) and said, “But… I didn’t do anything to earn it.”

“You did me,” Sirius grinned, “That’s something.”

Remus blushed. “That doesn’t -- you’re so -- Sirius! They better not have any idea about that or I’ll bloody die, I’ll just die. And that wouldn’t be why they’d be giving me money, unless you fancy I’m a prostitute and then -- ”

Sirius flung his arm about Remus’s waist because standing and walking shoulder-to-shoulder as he, Remus and James were all doing, Sirius could no longer reach Remus’s shoulders like he once could because of all of the growing Remus had done over the summer. “Calm down, Moonykins, I’m only taking the mickey out of you.” He reached up and ruffled Remus’s blonde curls.

They went to Madam Malkins and one by one had robes tailored to their heights, Sirius clapping as though the other two were on a runway during their turns and pretending to be offended with neither of them did the same for him during his turn. Then it was Flourish and Blotts, which seemed to take forever as Moony got distracted by a table displaying a copy of a biography of Harold Minchum and another table with a good deal of other interesting biographies (“C’mooooon,” Sirius whined, “This is boooooring, aren’t you finished yet?”). When Remus had finished - buying the Minchum biography while he was at it - they went off down the road again to get Bubo some owl treats and the potions kits for fifth years. Then, seeing a shiny new broom model and loads of other cool stuff in the window, James and Sirius insisted they all go into Quality Quidditch Supplies (“C’mooooon,” Remus whined, imitating Sirius, just to annoy him, “This is booooooring aren’t you finished yet?”).

When they were all finished, they were laden with bags and still had another fifteen minutes to spare before meeting the Potters, so James offered to buy them all butterbeer frappes at the ice cream shop and so they went there and got in line.

Suddenly there was a rushing blur that went past James and attacked Remus and Sirius with a group hug. It was Lily. “You aren’t broken up!!!” Lily cried out, squeezing them together. “You never wrote me back!” she accused Sirius.

“You never wrote me again,” Sirius defended himself.

“I did! A big, thick letter!” Lily answered.

James flushed, realizing he’d never given Sirius that envelope the night that Newt Scamander’s briefcase had arrived with Dumbledore and he looked down quickly, glad he was standing behind her and she couldn’t see how guilty he looked.

Sirius nodded at James, smirking, “Potter, did you forget to pass along a bit of mail?”

“I… might’ve… maybe, dunno.”

Lily turned about and scowled at him, “You really shouldn’t be interfering with the post. It was a very important letter and it wasn’t addressed to you. You didn’t read it or something, did you?”

“Blimey, no. It’s probably fallen in the couch cushions or something,” he replied.

Lily rolled her eyes at him, then turned back to the other two. “Well - when you get your post from Potter - you’ll have to let me know. I’d say write me back but we’ll be on the way to school by then.”

Sirius was still smirking at James. “Yeah, I’ll let you know, Evans.”

Lily stood on her tiptoes and kissed Remus’s cheek. “We’ll talk, love. I’m glad you’re alright.”

“Alright. I have loads to tell you,” Remus said.

Lily smiled and started to walk away.

“WaitEvansDoYouWantAButterbeerFrappeWithUsImBuying?!” James said it all in one giant breath so that all the words ran together.

Lily laughed, “I’m okay. Thanks, though. Bye guys.” She turned and walked away… James couldn’t help but watch as her hips rolled with her stride…

Sirius cleared his throat, snapping James back to reality.

“You have loads to tell her, do you?” Sirius asked, smirking at Remus.

“Yeah, I haven’t told her about Newt Scamander’s briefcase and all the adventures I had all summer,” Remus said and he hurried to move forward as the line they were in moved.

Sirius looked at James, then bounced after Remus. “I’m sure there’s… other things… you’ll be telling her about?”

Remus knew what Sirius was referring to, of course, but - “Other things? What other things?”

“You know… us things?”

“Us things?”

Sirius looked around, then balled his fists and thrusted his hips in a very rude gesture. “You know. Other THINGS.”

“Oh bloody hell Sirius!” Remus turned red, sorry he’d pressed it like that as Sirius laughed at Remus’s flush. “You’re so vulgar!”

They drank their butterbeer frappes quickly - Sirius got ice cream headache and moaned as though he were dying for half of the time they were sitting outside Fortescue’s - and headed off to the Leaky Cauldron to meet up with Mr. and Mrs. Potter… They were coming up on the brick wall that would open to an archway to let them into the pub when James overheard his name being said in a conversation and turned about, pausing in the street.

It was Lily and she was standing with Ali Prewitt outside a shop for broom repairs. “...with James Potter,” she was saying, her nose crinkled up, “He’s just so bloody insufferable. I swear he’s the biggest toerag that ever walked the face of the earth!”

James’s eyes met Ali’s for the briefest seconds before he sped up to catch up with Remus and Sirius a few feet away.

“I think he’s just heard you heard you,” Ali whispered, embarrassed for Lily, as she pointed over Lily’s shoulder.

Lily turned to look at James’s retreating back and her face burned red.