I slept in late, exhausted by my emotions once I could actually go to sleep. I must have stayed awake obsessively fighting my impulse and thoughts until five. The sun started to rise as my eyes began to close.

I decided I didn't want to tell Remus I was falling in love with him straight away, out of nowhere. We had only kissed a handful of times, only passionately once. We hadn't been on a true date yet, only spontaneous meetings or in a group.

I decided I wanted to show up for him, romantically, in small ways. Until I felt it was appropriate to reveal that information to him.

I had no plan to be subtle about my feelings anymore but there needed to be more of a natural progression to that conversation. I wanted to spoil him a bit.

I still felt groggy. My eyes slightly swollen by the water retention from my tears and awful sleeping pattern. My mind hasn't spun out like that in a while, if anything I've been living in peace since running away. Only short bursts of anxiety here and there but my brain hasn't become overwhelmed and overly stimulated like it had last night.

Because of that, my body just felt achey and my head was pounding. I felt like I could crawl back into bed and sleep for three days straight.

I poured myself a cup of tea and sat on my armchair, watching the world go by outside. It was slightly overcast but looked warm. Many people wearing short sleeves.

I can't believe I was the one to encourage Remus to begin to wear short sleeves. The scars across his arms were hardly noticeable. I had thought about them before when I was wondering about him being a werewolf. You couldn't see them unless you intensely stared at him. Then again, I know that feeling insecure can make you feel like people are intensely staring at you.

He took his entire top off around me. I wonder if his confidence had grown that much over these years or if that was just a behaviour reserved for people he trusted?

To go from always covering yourself to taking off your clothes without fear...though I suppose he did tense up, the same way I did when I couldn't hide behind the clothes I hid myself with.

I wasn't particularly insecure. I didn't mind wearing a fitted dress, but I do understand the feeling of believing someone is staring at you into exposure. I hid behind loose and ill fitting clothes some days because of that feeling. Not wanting to be looked at for longer than a second, or at all.

Today was one of those days. The thought of wearing sometime feminine and fitted, making me want to gag. There was always a correlation between how I felt and how I dressed. My outfits sometimes acted like a mood ring. Especially now that I have more say in what I can and can't wear.

I looked at the clock, after snapping out of absentminded thought. One in the afternoon. Remus is three hours into his shift, five to go.

I wanted to see him.

I pulled myself up from my spot and began getting ready to leave the flat. Keeping comfy but more presentable. I didn't want to look like I had just rolled out of bed so late, though I had.

I was going to see him.

First stop though, Diagon Alley.

-

I wandered through the street Diagon Alley, stopping off at Sugarplums sweet shop. Going in and collecting a bar of the chocolate that Remus once bought in our days at Hogwarts. The cinnamon flavour, his old favourite. I hope he didn't grow sick of it. I also picked him up an apple sour jaw breaker because I wanted one too.

I sucked on the sour jawbreaker as I began to make my way out of Diagon Alley and back into the muggle high street...until I almost bumped into my Mother.

I ran into the nearest shop that was open, Gambol and Japes. Thank god, my Mother would never step foot into a joke shop.

My heart was thumping at the sight of her. I should have known. On Tuesdays she would occasionally allow me to come to Diagon Alley with her and we'd grab some tea and cakes. We never spoke, I was merely an accessory to make it appear like she was a good Mother. The thought completely slipped my mind that her routine and reality still existed without me being there.

I stepped away from the door and held my breathe as she walked by the window. Keeping her head held high, wearing an elegant, tailored dress in a shade of deep plum. A new one it seemed. It also seemed as if life was treating her just fine in my absence.

"Can I help you, love?" Someone spoke behind me making me jump horrifically, still in fight or flight mode. Almost making me choke on the jaw breaker that I had already crushed into bubblegum with anxiety.
"Oop sorry to startle ya." The person said again.

I turned around to see a man who appeared to be in his mid forties, behind me with a name tag on. Samuel. He must work here.

"Oh sorry. I was actually just hiding from someone." I awkwardly laughed.

"We sell some disguise glasses if you need the help." He laughed.

"I always thought those brought more attention than acting as a disguise." I said.

"It's all fun. Can I interest you in any of our sale items? We have crackle snaps, half price. The best fake mini explosions they are. That'll cause a distraction for your get away." He pitched.

"No, I'm okay thank you." I politely declined.

"Alright then." He sighed defeatedly and dramatically.
"Gum? While you wait to leave?" He offered, holding out a pack of gum.

I nodded and smiled, the gesture was nice until-

SNAP.

Another joke. A fake packet of gum that released a harmless mouselike trap when you tried to pull out a piece.

The man started roaring with laughter and I couldn't help but join in, out of shock.

"I'll take one of those." I accepted defeat, knowing I had to buy something small as a thank you to the universe that I wasn't spotted by my Mother.

"Brilliant!" Samuel clapped and started running my trap gum through for me to pay.

When I thought the coast was clear and that my Mother was now probably staying put inside for an hour or two, I could finally leave the joke shop.

I felt on high alert. Just in case. I couldn't imagine what would have actually happened if she had spotted me. Would she have said anything? I did claim a lot of their money as my own. That's not something she'd ignore.

Suddenly I was shoved into an a dark corner.

"Artemis!"

"Narcissa?"

"What are you doing here?" She spat.

I felt a little dazed. She made sure to slam me against a wall with force.

"Chocolate." I said a little scared, holding up the brown paper sweet bag.

"Tuesday is Tea day." Narcissa looked at me bewildered.

"I forgot." I said, keeping my voice as hushed as she was keeping hers.

"You need to take the back route out of here. She's meeting me outside this shop in a moment." She said pointing to the shop I was just walking in front of.

"But I've already watched her pass, in that direction?" I questioned.

"We're trying somewhere new today. She probably was just going to get a perfume refill." Narcissa said a wildness in her eyes.
"Just go. If I'm seen with you or if you're seen, one of us is dead. Or both." She sighed and pushed me down the dark alley leading to the back of the shops.

I was never allowed back here before, never wanting to venture back here either. These tight dark streets led to Knockturn Alley and that was forbidden and for good reason by all accounts.

Illegal and dark magic was negotiated in these dingy streets. You had the odd interesting, small shop. Dusty and full of relics, I had been down their once with Father. He took me to pick up pixie poison from the small potion shop, that specialised in dangerous concoctions. We had a small English pixie problem in Mothers garden patch and he wanted me to lay down the poison to kill or ward them off.

The shops that were in the backstreets weren't as inviting. Weren't painted bright colours or nicely decorated and didn't have a welcoming energy about them. They were reserved for interesting folk, and not always interesting in a good way.

I didn't feel as if I was the type of witch to walk these dark alleys alone. Thankfully it was relatively dead, not many people seemed to venture out on a Tuesday afternoon.

I stopped in my tracks again, attempting to hide but having nowhere to turn. A small body with big curly hair skipped past the opening only a short distance in front of me.

Bellatrix. Which was more terrifying than seeing my Mother. I wasn't having the best luck.

I stood completely still, as if I could blend into the grey dusty walls if I held my breath long enough.

"Come on Reg." her shrill voice shouted through the alley in front of me.

My eyebrows furrowed in confusion. Was it summer break for Hogwarts already? I didn't see many students around. Surely it was a week or two too early?

Regulus began to walk slowly past the opening, but he stopped and looked at me as if he could sense someone there. On high alert of his surroundings, like I was.

I violently shook my head no and placed my finger to my lips with fear. I couldn't be approached by Bellatrix in a street where no one would see my beaten body as anything more than free potion parts.

"REGULUS!" Bellatrix screeched and he simply walked away.

A sigh of relief left my body as I finally began breathing again.

It seems as if there's a family outing, though there was something about the way Reg looked at me. So focused, so cold, and yet fearful.

He wasn't supposed to be here the same way I'm not supposed to be here and I have no idea why he's still hanging around Bellatrix. He used to cower from her as a small child, sensing her irrationality. No one found her presence anything but anxiety provoking.

I felt as if I stood in that spot for twenty minutes. Though I probably didn't. I felt too afraid that I'd make one wrong step and be face to face with another member of my family. Who I was beginning to feel lurked all around.

Eventually I could pick up my feet that felt like weights and quickly made my way back into the muggle world.

I rushed to Remus' bookshop. Almost stumbling over the pavement to my knees a few times. Not feeling like I could get far enough away from Diagon Alley.

I pushed my way through the door, the shiny brass bell ringing as I did.

"Hi" I rushed out, the anxiety not leaving my voice as I practically ran to the back of the shop where I knew Remus would be sat.

He looked surprised and stood up from the stool behind the counter immediately.

"Everything alright?" His eyebrows furrowed together at my anxious energy.

"Not only did I just have to hide from my Mother but Bellatrix as well AND Narcissa AND Regulus saw me." I rushed out, feeling myself tense even more.

His eyes went quite wide.

"That's a lot, do you need to sit?" He gestures to the stool.

"I can't go behind there." I said, I wasn't an employee.

He simply picked it up and walked it over to me and smirked at how my brain wasn't rationally working.

"Wait, you saw Reggie? Summer break doesn't start until this Friday, I'm sure." He frowned as he manually sat me down on the stool.

"That's what I thought? He was also with Bellatrix again which is concerning." I revealed.

"Again? He hasn't been getting back to Sirius lately, do you think that's connected?" Remus scratched the back of his neck whilst thinking.

"I don't know, maybe." I said, feeling a bit sad for Sirius. He had always tried his best to keep in touch with Regulus regardless of how difficult it was to.

"I can imagine you feel a bit shaken?" He asked, reaching out and tucking a strand of hair behind my ear.

I smiled up at him, feeling my tight shoulders relax a little.

"Nothing a little chocolate won't fix." I beamed at him. Holding up the sugarplums sweet shop bag.

His face seemed to light up too.

"Ooo what'd ya get?" He peaked inside and pulled out the joke packet of gum I had just thrown in there.
"Ah! bastard!" It snipped him.

I felt the anxiety automatically release from my body as he jolted back and held his finger.

"Teaches you to rummage through the bag without being given it." I laughed at him.

"I thought I was getting a treat not a trick! You're a bit early." He laughed back, but trying to pretend to still be shocked.

"I hope you still like this." I said and pulled out the big bar of chocolate he once was obsessed with.

His head tilted to the side in a questioning manner, as I placed it in front of him on his work counter.

"You...you remember the brand of chocolate I used to buy?" He asked, hesitating to pick up the packet.

"Of course I do." I shrugged.

Finally he smiled, with the addition of a pinkness that started to grace his cheeks.

"I'm more of a rum and raisin fan now but I guess cinnamon will do." He joked, but his voice was bashful. As if he was attempting to play it cool.

"I used to pay Regulus to buy a bunch for me and slide them under my door when he came back for the holidays." I revealed, holding my hand out for Remus to give me some.

"So you were the other person buying a big bulk then, huh? I could never buy as many as I wanted sometimes because of you." He looked at me with eyes that glistened with a mixture of amusement and glee. Attempting to tease me but seeming just too delighted to.

"The taste always reminded me of you. It was comforting." I said seriously, hoping he'd look at me and see that I meant it.

He did.

"Thank you." He sincerely said, holding up the piece of chocolate in his hand. Though I could tell he was also thanking me for sharing that I remembered something so trivial about him.

"My pleasure."