Boys Will Be Bugs

Chapter 54: In Town

Peter had to go home the following morning, but not before Remus gave him a proper tour round his house and asked him to stay for breakfast at least. Hope and Lyall directed most of their questions at him, since they'd hardly met him as much as James or Sirius. Peter answered politely enough. He lived in Manchester, but spent a lot of his time in Blackpool. He didn't have any siblings, but plenty of cousins, he was doing alright in school but academia wasn't really his strong suit, and he didn't know who his dad was. This last revelation was new to Remus, but Peter assured them all that he didn't care. He didn't want to know him.

At around ten am, Peter said goodbye to his friends, thanked Remus's parents, and left in a blaze of green flames. After he'd gone, James turned to the other two.

"So what are we doing today?" They wandered outside as they decided, and Remus noted the unusually warm weather they were having. The sky was clear, and they hardly even needed light jackets. They were all in their shorts and t-shirts.

"There's a lake near here," suggested Remus. "We could go up and have a dip. Take something to eat, make a day of it."

"I could go for a swim," agreed James. Sirius nodded, and they went back inside to pack a lunch for themselves. Some sandwiches, and crisps. Hope made them bring some water too, in case they got too hot.

"Be careful," she warned, before they headed off. "Stay by the edge of the lake, and don't do anything dangerous."

"We'll be fine, mum."

"Take your wands," added Lyall. "You can use them in an emergency." The three boys slotted their wands inside their pockets and shut the front door behind them.

The lake was chilly, far too large for it to ever truly warm up in the occasional spells of sunlight. But since they were all sweaty from the walk over here, it still felt nice to dip their feet in. James predictably got into the water, never satisfied with just sitting there.

"It's bloody freezing," he exclaimed.

"What'd you expect?" scoffed Remus. "We're in Wales." James shivered miserably for a few minutes before he attempted a few front strokes.

"You're gonna get pneumonia," said Sirius lazily, squinting at him through the sunlight.

"I'll run around a bit later, it'll be fine."

"Do you guys wanna go into town later?" asked Remus. He was sitting up on his elbows, his legs lightly kicking the water. "Not the village, the town. It's a few miles from the village."

"Alright," replied Sirius. "How do we get there?"

"Bus. I've got enough money for tickets, and it's only a few stops away. Won't take long."

"Why do you want to go to town?" asked James.

"They've got a record store, a proper one. Not a small village one, one that's up to date and all. I can see if they've got a record of some of the Eurovision songs."

"Oh, brilliant, you can get the ABBA one," said Sirius.

"Exactly. Besides, the town's fun. You'll like it, there's plenty to see. I've never been there on my own, though."

"You won't be on your own."

"I mean without an adult. Perhaps we shouldn't tell my parents we're going."

"You're gonna make us lie to your parents?" asked Sirius, incredulously.

"It's not a big deal, I know my way around town and we'll only be gone for a few hours."

"I know, but I'm surprised at you. I keep forgetting you're not as goody two shoes as you look."

"Thank you." James got out of the water, drying himself off with the towel they'd brought with them. The boys ate their sandwiches and soon packed up, eager to get into town before it got too late.