1982 | Remus Lupin

Chapter One

Chapter One

The soft glow of the yellow sky captured the eyes of the girl slowly waking from sleep. A painting in which she felt happy to wake up to allow the smallest of tired smiles to paint over her dry lips in the morning starting the week ahead. Streaks of pink scattered across the sky which she could see in the small window just ahead of her bed situated right in the middle of her room and the corners of her lips tugged just a little more.

It was like a painting, the sunrise. Such beauty in such a vivid view of the sky and the city just right outside her window. It was a break in something so normal, an ordinary life and a routine so boring - but it kept her sane. It kept her mind busy, to wake up early and smile at the difference.

The sky was never the same. English weather had its quirks and how it decided to start the day was one of them. Sometimes the dark grey clouds made Romy think it was still too early to get up, and sometimes she woke to the sound of rain tapping softly at her bedroom window.

It was something exciting to think about in a life so constant. To wake up at the same time, to switch between three different things to eat for breakfast, partly because it was all she could afford and partly because she never had much time to think about what to make. To shower and then get dressed, and then off to work.

Same old same old.

Much like now, the same old. Cereal for breakfast so she didn't have to bother cooking, it was simple for tired days that had her wishing she could crawl back into bed. Her flat was cold, the wood under her feet sending shivers up her legs regardless of the oversized male pyjama bottoms she was wearing courtesy of her dad.

He didn't need them anymore, but she held onto them to hold onto him.

She switched on her small tv. She had managed to make a decent amount of money just working constantly, and having no social life allowed her to afford things she knew she wouldn't be able to if she went anywhere other than work. Her flat was her solace, somewhere she felt comfort and a place to escape the eyes of curious Londoners and oblivious muggles.

She wondered, sometimes, how the wizarding world had stayed so hidden for so long - especially with the war since forgotten.

But it wasn't forgotten, not truly. She remembered the details so harshly that she blocked them out as best as she could. She remembered the feelings of pain that struck her chest and then her entire body. Remembering the determination in her to just hold on, to keep living, to ignore the pain.

To live through a war, to fight a war...sometimes having a quiet routine seemed like a luxury she never quite knew she could have. She had always wondered what it was like once upon a time to live a quiet life, part of her longed for it to the point that it was the only thing on her mind and now that she had the chance to live it...now that the war was over, she had fully immersed herself in that lifestyle.

"Alright," she muttered to herself, soon clapping her hands. The empty cereal bowl lay in her sink along with messed plates from her previous night that she had yet to clean, but she'd do that when she got home. It wasn't like she had much else to do.

She had to be at work in half an hour, so as she tied her hair into some sort of updo - she clicked on her kettle and hurried into her room. She tried to do as much as she could before the water boiled, just to keep herself on track. She was never one to be on time and as much as she stuck to her unintentional routine, she could never learn to be on time no matter what she tried.

She had always intended to pick out something suitable for work the night before, but she always changed her mind in the morning. Keeping up to date with the latest muggle trends was a hobby of hers but most of her many outfits weren't too suitable for work.