Our Lovely Home_ Marauders Era Fanfic.

30. Confrontation at McDonald's

Buildings sprawled across the streets, reaching impressive heights. The group of youths crossed the sidewalk looking both ways five times, with more than half of the crowd amazed at what their eyes were seeing.

James was one of them, who found it impressive how Muggles had managed to build such structures, without the help of magic. Remus tried to explain to him that, instead of wands, they used machines called cranes, but James still found it a mind-boggling situation.

He got to know the so-called appliance stores, he gawked at an arcade where several children in their right hands were piling up for their turn to finally get their turn. With Sirius, they engaged in a pitched battle, after pushing a couple of kids out of the way, so they could play, and when Remus returned with the girls, he found his three friends putting on a pathetic show for the rest of the kids. Peter, even went to the trouble of making a subtle incantation, so that when one of them lost all their lives, they would instantly revive. Something that was passed off as a simple trick that happened when you win too many points.

After taking so many tokens that the basket overflowed, they gave them to a little girl who desperately wanted a giant teddy bear.

The cityscape, on the other hand, for Remus, Lily, and Mary, could not have impressed them less. Raised with Muggles in their family, living in those skyscrapers was the most normal thing in the world.

"How do they get to the top floor?" James asked, earning an astonished look from his friends "I mean, if they don't have magical elevators, it must be super exhausting to climb the stairs, right?"

"Don't be an ass, Potter" replied Mary, squinting, "Muggles have working elevators too."

Mr. Weasley, before the boys went camping, decided to take them for a ride into town. After a two-and-a-half-hour drive, the man let them wander on their own, as long as they were back with him before five o'clock.

They ate at a McDonald's, much to the regret of Marlene, who being a vegetarian in the process of switching to veganism, had to make do with French fries and a couple of vegetables she bought at the store next door.

The next entertainment for the purebloods, was clear; the playroom for the little kids, from the moment they entered, Sirius, James, and Peter, turned and nodded. Remus was also dragged into the situation because they wanted someone to explain the workings of that "sea" of balls.

The staff girl who was watching over the children to make sure they didn't hurt themselves, looked quizzically at the adults who wanted to get into the attraction. She stopped them and showed them the maximum height board. Just explaining that Peter, the shortest of the four (although James couldn't put on airs either, because it was only a couple of centimeters difference), had that sign up to his waist, was enough.

So, after gathering in a group, with Lupin thinking about how hungry he was, they decided to make a foolproof plan, which would at least leave Peter and Sirius inside. James, calculating the diameter of the slides, if they could distract the young girl, would get in perfectly, and Sirius with Peter, they only needed to adopt their animagus form.

It was clear who should be the one to perform the distraction; Lupin was going to charge them dearly, especially when one of the hardest things in the world for him was to introduce himself without sounding too formal. So, he just mimicked the words Sirius said to him.

"Say something like: 'Hi, I'm the friend of the jerks from five minutes ago, I thought you were really cute and that's why I came to talk to you.' You should also add gestures like winks or hand movements."

Lupin approached with flushed cheeks, and after standing in front of the girl for a couple of seconds, he began to speak. Sirius and Peter, the moment the girl turned to laugh at whatever, went up to the playground, accompanied by James.

Inside the slide, still listening to the girl's little flirtations with Lupin (which made Sirius nervous), they encountered a couple of children who looked at them wide-eyed, as they let a dog, a rat, and an adult go down the slide several times. A few minutes later, the place was empty of children, and only the three of them were having fun.

But Sirius couldn't take it any longer when he saw, as he went down the slide, how Lupin seemed pleased with the other girl's presence, with a friendly gesture and the girl's hand touching his hair. He exited the ride without looking back, mumbling. Minutes later so did James and Peter, who didn't quite understand what had happened, until they also noticed Lupin out of the corner of their eyes.

They reluctantly sat down at the table, with the girls arriving with trays.

"Why the pouty faces, boys?" Lily questioned, sitting down next to James, who was biting his lip.

"What about Lupin, is he in the bathroom?" Mary added, reaching for her order, "It was funny the look on the salesman's face when we asked him, we wanted more than ten burgers. I don't understand how Lupin can eat so much! The bastard doesn't even gain weight"

Sirius didn't answer, but he kept his eyes on the aisle. He found the music tiresome, and his skin crawled as he listened to Remus' laughter. That part that was so hard to get, that girl had managed it in less than ten minutes.

He pointed down the hall, and cheekily they all turned to look at Lupin, eyes widening in surprise and then at Sirius who was chewing listlessly on his hamburger. James decided to tell him all about the events.

"Sirius, you can't complain" Marlene mentioned "you were the one with the amazing pick-up line."

"Yeah, but I thought Lupin was gay!"

"You don't even know if your boyfriend is gay?" "I mean, I assumed so too, but you can never be sure when it comes to Remus, can you?"

Just as everyone was finishing lunch, Lupin appeared, a smile on his lips, rejuvenated.

"Sorry I'm late. Where's my...?" Everyone looked down, except Sirius who threw the tray at him. "What happened? Why are you so angry, Sirius?"

"I don't know, ask your little friend."

"Sirius, you're making me tired. What's the matter?!"

"So, you think I'm a nuisance?! All right, then... Then you'd better go with that Muggle! Maybe you can have more fun."

Remus, slammed the table in frustration and with slightly moist eyes, keeping his words to himself, left the establishment.

The awkward situation ended with Lupin putting his hamburgers in a bag, leaving the place, enraged at Sirius' childish attitude, and somewhat hurt, not understanding the reason for Sirius' initial anger.

Everyone was silent for quite a while until James resolutely got up from the table and confronted Sirius.

"What the fuck is wrong with you, James?!"

"How dare you say that to our Moony!"

The rest of the day passed with difficulty because Sirius was no longer in the mood for anything. The girls managed to find Lupin eating his lunch in a park, and dragged him back to the group, but both boys were somewhere between indifferent and passive aggressive.

At five o'clock, they sat at far apart ends of the car, with Lupin reading a book and Sirius changing the music all the while.

Worst of all, they had brought four tents for the next day, set up for two people each. Three for couples and one with single beds.

That was going to be a problem, if one of the couples, didn't even seem to want to sleep in the same room with six other people.

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