MOON MAN. remus lupin ✓

i. the dreaded bell

     There Remus stood—a muggle resume in hand, his best pair of trousers secured tightly around his bony waist, and a cacophony of catcalls wizzing around his mind. He checked the poster outside of the book shop again, taking in the blocky red letters, HELP WANTED, making sure he hadn't misread it and sealed his fate as the owner's anecdote for the night's dinner.

He hadn't managed to keep a job for more than a month before either his ( wizard ) boss figured out furry little problem or his ( muggle ) boss sacked him for taking an entire week off during his first month of work.

It wouldn't happen again. It couldn't. Remus didn't want about to resort to thievery to feed himself.

Taking a deep breath, he pushed open the door and stepped through the doorway. The bell rattled ominously above him, a clear warning from fate about his inevitable failure.

Once inside the shop, he looked around. It warm and cozy-looking, the bookshelves filled haphazardly with books. Remus could see dust particles floating through the air, settling down on every surface in a thin coating. A counter rose up in the middle of the shop, and everything seemed to be situated around it.

Remus, a second-guesser at heart, asked himself if it would be less humiliating to turn around and leave or stay and hear his rejection. It was not meant to be, however, as a young man popped up from behind the counter.

"Hullo!" Said the man. He was dressed casually in a blue shirt and jeans. He left his spot in front of till and stopped in front of Remus, his hazel eyes freezing him on the spot. He held out a hand. "Liam Alderman. But please, feel free to call me Liam."

This must be how Peter felt, he thought to himself, ignoring that familiar yet entirely foreign pain in his heart.

"H-hello. I'm Remus Lupin," he said, eventually. "I came to apply for the job opening here. Would you happen to know where the owner of the shop is?"

"You're looking at him." Liam gestured to himself with a flourish. Remus flushed red. "Well," he continued, "I'm not really the owner. That's my dad. I'm just running the book shop now because he's retired, hence the help wanted sign."

His blush abated, and he managed to produce a small, awkward smile.

"That must have been very abrupt."

"It was, you wouldn't believe," Liam complained, but his smile told another story. It was a nice smile, Remus observed in his state of minor panic. "Anyway, you came in for the job opening?"

He nodded.

"Lovely. If I could just check your resume."

Remus placed it in Liam's open palm. As he flipped through the sparse few pages, making the odd noise here and there, Remus could feel the terror constricting around his spine. He felt that way every time he went in for a job. It never got old.

Liam's voice broke through the static surrounding them. "I'm glad you came in. Without the extra hands I've been drowning in chores. But my dad kept forgetting which shelf Wuthering Heights went on, so mum and I thought it best if he enjoyed his retirement." He laughed.

Seemingly finished with Remus' resume, he let his hand and the papers drop to his side. He was smiling brightly.

"You're hired."

Remus choked. "I-I'm sorry?"

"You're hired," he repeated happily. "When can you start?"

"Uh, tomorrow."

"Wonderful! I'll have you fill out a few bits of paperwork and you're free to go," he said.

Liam turned around and motioned for Remus to follow, his footsteps light on the scratched floorboards.

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