Beautiful Things | Wolfstar

Ten

Sirius enters his office for the first time since yesterday afternoon. His eyes immediately fall upon the stacks of paper sitting at the edge of his desk. He drops his coat onto the arm of a chair and takes in his office. The pens that were tossed in a hurry are now aligned in a row beside his keyboard. His computer screen has been wiped down and the desk shines without a fingerprint in sight. Even his coffee cup has been washed and set perfectly within arms reach. He shuffles through the papers left on his desk; they're in alphabetical order and highlighted with a color coded system.

A wry chuckle escapes his lips. Organized. Everything is organized.

Sirius immerses himself back into his work, though conversation often finds its way down the hall. The usual sound of phones, footsteps, papers, and work speech drown out to nothing. But his ears almost perk up when voices greet his new assistant with a cheery note.

"Hello, Remus."

"Good morning, Remus."

"How are you, Remus?"

It appears that the office has taken a liking to Remus Lupin - even if it's only his third day working at Black Inc. As far as the workload, Sirius can't find it in himself to complain about anything. Everything is done on time and almost always early.

"Good morning, Sirius." Remus somewhat hesitates by the door, but ultimately strides over the threshold without waiting for invitation. A small bag is clutched in his right hand, and a magazine in the other. His fashion sense is still somewhat questionable, but improved by Sirius' standards. "You've got a call with Marlene McKinnon in half an hour, and you were mentioned in Forbes." He sets the magazine in front of Sirius, as well as the brown bag.

"What's this?" Sirius asks.

"A muffin." The bag crinkles as Sirius peers inside. His expression doesn't reveal anything.  "My roommate is a chef...of sorts. I brought it for you."

"What for?"

Remus licks his lips warily. "I thought you might want something to eat. You never seem to make time for a break while working."

"I eat just fine." Sirius sets aside the bag and straightens out his shirt. "Make thirty copies of this and bring it down to Elle on the fourth floor." He slides over a stapled packet; Remus picks it up slowly, waiting a beat for any further instructions. When there are none, he turns on his heel to leave.

Sirius eyes the brown bag sitting on his desk, then up at Remus' backside already halfway down the hall. "Remus," he says loudly. The lanky bloke immediately spins around expectantly. "Tell James I'll bet twenty pounds he can't go a day without speaking to Evans."

Remus smiles with a nod, his shoulders visibly relaxing. Maybe Sirius doesn't hate him completely.

The copying room is beside the break room, an open airy room consisting of a wide assortment of drinks and temporary serenity amongst the bustling office. Remus meekly smiles at the two women chatting animatedly at one of the tables he passes by. One is a dirty blonde, nearly fawn, and the other a light brunette.

He pushes open the door of the room adjacent, coming face to face with Edith. James had warned him about Edith before. Nasty, cruel, and a downright pain the ass.

"H-hi Edith," Remus says calmly. His pupils shrink with fear as he stares ahead.

The large, jet black copying machine rests in the middle of the room. Shelves of paper line the walls surrounding him in an assortment of colors. A laminating machine to the left and empty folders to the right are his only support.