HP Fic- Too Many Cooks 5/???
Jan. 13th, 2004 04:14 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
tarotgalI know, it's been a month and a half, but I didn't abandon it... Just blame the challenge *G* This part's a little light and short, but I think it's all right. Poor James just feeling miserable, really.
Part 1- http://www.livejournal.com/users/tarotgal/183693.html
Part 2- http://www.livejournal.com/users/tarotgal/187366.html
Part 3- http://www.livejournal.com/users/tarotgal/188816.html
Part 4- http://www.livejournal.com/users/tarotgal/190584.html
Same ratings apply to this part
Too Many Cooks...
Part 5: Chicken Soup
James sat down at the coffee shop, looking over the menu. They seemed to have as many soups and sandwiches and other little things like scones and cookies as they had coffees. He was in the mood for soup, probably because of his cold. But as he looked across the small table at Lily, he decided against ordering one. She might suspect he was sick if he went and ordered chicken soup. Best to stick with some coffee. Or better still, find out what she was getting and then pretend to want the same thing. Her beautiful green eyes sparkled back at him, and she leaned more on the table, coming very close to him indeed. Slowly her eyes closed, and he suddenly realized she wanted a kiss. A kiss. But he was sick. How was he supposed to kiss her without giving her his cold? Oh, but her lips looked so inviting that he couldn’t resist. He leaned in and tilted his head.
“James?”
James woke with a start, looking around frantically.
Remus felt James’ forehead. “I think your fever’s getting worse.” Remus sat down on the edge of James bed. “You were making sounds in your sleep, you know. Not having nightmares, were you?”
James’ heart was still racing, but slowly it all came back to him. The date wasn’t for another two days. He didn’t have to worry about having germs and having to kiss her until then. And if he trusted what his friends said, he’d be fine by then and have nothing at all to worry about.
“So how are you feeling?” Remus asked, plumping one side of his pillow absentmindedly.
“Okay,” James replied. “Been sleeping mostly. I didn’t realize how tiring going to breakfast and the kitchens could… could be.” Apparently, another tickle was in his nose. He felt around for the tissue box, and Remus located it first, tilting it towards him. James gave a nod of thanks before covering his nose and mouth with a handful of tissues. “ahhhCHooo! ahhhChushhh! ahhhTchooo! ahhhhChooo! hahChishhhh!”
“Bless you!” said Remus, pulling the used tissues from James hand and inserting fresh ones for nose blowing. James was a little startled by the treatment, but glad for the new tissues. He spent the next three minutes blowing his nose until it felt sore but clearer. By then, he couldn’t remember what the topic of conversation had been but didn’t much care. If it was important, Remus would bring it up again.
“Sirius is doing a bang-up job being you,” Remus told James just to make conversation, and a fresh wave of panic and worry swept over him. That was right. Lily still thought him well because Sirius was pretending to be him all day. “But Peter’s keeping a close watch on him while I sneaked upstairs to bring you, pretending that you were Sirius with a broken leg, some lunch. Are you hungry, James?”
His head spinning from the explanation, James shrugged. There was something he was quite in the mood for, just couldn’t quite figure out what it was. He had the strange feeling it might be coffee, but he was less a fan of coffee as he was of tea, so he was relatively sure that wasn’t it.
“I brought you a cold glass of apple juice,” Remus said, taking it off the bed stand and handing it to James. “And of course the best thing to have when you’ve got a cold, a nice bowl of chicken soup.”
“Chicken soup!” James exclaimed, looking suddenly very eager. “Yes, that’s it!”
Remus narrowed his eyes and felt his forehead again. “Yes, I know it is. I brought it up myself. Are you sure you’re all right?” He flipped his hand over to get a better feel of James’ forehead.
James nodded. “It was… never mind. Long story. Thanks, Remus,” he said, drinking some apple juice, then exchanging the glass for the bowl. But no sooner had he picked up the spoon, than he had to hand it back. His nose was wrinkling, which meant sneezes approaching in mere moments. He did his best to hold them back until the soup was safely out of spill-able range. Remus took it from him and placed a tissue at his nose for him to take instead. “huh… hahKuhshhh! hehChooo! Choo!” He rubbed his nose into the tissue and gave a deep, congested sigh.
“All right then, I’ll help with the soup, just to be sure you get some.” After a slight bit of protesting by James, he settled down to have Remus spoon-feed him the soup, and hand him tissues as needed. And they were needed, after every few mouthfuls, in fact. He finished off most of the soup and all of the juice before fatigue overtook him and he, ashamedly, yawned instead of swallowing the soup. Remus chuckled and cleaned up the mess, ignoring the red tint that had overtaken James’ face. Quickly, he searched for a subject to address to distract James, and came upon the inevitable. “I’ve written down your assignments,” Remus said, “But I don’t want you doing them right now. We’ll take care of them tonight after classes.”
Had James not just finished swallowing, he would have lost his last mouthful of juice. “What? Remus Lupin telling me not to do my homework?” He felt his own forehead this time. “I must be a lot sicker than I thought. However will I… learn…?” He broke off, raising a hand to his mouth, but to cover his yawn, rather than a sneeze.
Just the same, Remus pulled a tissue from the box. “When you’re feeling better, we’ll catch you up on your lessons,” Remus explained, though James picked things up so easily that it was evident no catching up was really necessary. “We want you to spend your time this weekend recovering, not trying to do homework.”
James nodded in understanding, and then dragged a finger against his nose. Remus lifted the afore-gathered tissue to James’ nose just in time. “hah-Ahshoo! ehhChoo! hahChooo!” He sniffed hard and sighed.
“Ah-ah, come on, blow your nose.” Remus instructed, not letting James out of it so easily, and adjusting his grip on the tissues over James’ nose. James flushed and blew his nose a half dozen times, until it sounded as clear as it would for the moment. “Good,” Remus complimented, clearing away the dishes. “Now have you had enough to eat, or should we tell the house elves to bring something else?”
James shrugged, sliding under the covers with a shiver. Remus pulled the covers up over him and felt his forehead again with a worried sort of look. He didn’t say anything more about James’ fever, just finished tucking his friend in, then gestured towards the thermos on the bed stand. “You didn’t have any of that tea, did you?”
James shook his head, looking at it warily. Remus sighed. “I know you don’t like tea particularly, but it’s not bad with honey and sugar, is it? And it will make you feel a lot better.” Remus, who had risen in order to tuck James in properly, sat back down on the edge of the bed. He poured a cup of tea, sipped it to be sure it was all right, then handed it over to James. “I want to see you drink a little of this before I go.”
Thinking he’d rather have another bowl of chicken soup, James took the cup and sipped a bit. Warmth flooded his mouth, and the strong taste of the tea struck him, even though he was stuffed. Remus smiled as James took a second sip. “Good,” he declared, standing. “Well, I’d better get back to lunch before too many people wonder why I’ve been gone so long.”
James swallowed his fifth sip and grinned. “Anyone who knows how you and Sirius are together wouldn’t question why you’ve been gone so long.”
Remus hit his arm playfully, the smack a dull thud against the blankets. “Well, it’s the folks who don’t know about how he and I are together that worries me.” While he and Sirius didn’t exactly hide their relationship, they didn’t go snogging in the middle of the great hall, either. Middle of the common room maybe, but not the great hall.
Noticing James’ facial expressions, Remus picked up another few tissues and handed them over. “hah… hahEKShooo! hahSchooo! ahhhShoo! KChoo!” He sniffled and blew his nose a few times, feeling Remus pressing him to do so, even with his eyes closed after the sneezes. Remus was awfully convincing even in silence. He lay back against his pillows, sniffling miserably as he set the used tissues aside and took his cup of tea back from Remus who hadn’t wanted him to spill it. Even though the next sip was good, James was feeling too miserable to feel better from it. Tired and a bit restless, he set it aside, then took it back yet again to hold it for the warmth. “Remus…” he started, wanting to complain about how bad he felt, about how he wasn’t sure he’d ever get better.
“I know,” Remus said, running a hand through James’ black hair, the strands going every which way afterwards, lying wild and unkempt as always on his friend’s head. “We’ll get you better. That’s what all this is about. But you have to do your part and trust us, all right?”
Nodding, James obediently drank a bit more tea. Remus rumpled his hair with a smile. “Drink it all up, then you can get back to sleep and whatever those dreams were about.” Remembering his last dream, at least, James smiled.
Remus picked up the glass and bowl, but James motioned for him to wait a moment. James sat up a little more and took the spoon, finishing off the soup. “Best thing to eat when I have a cold, right?”
“That’s right,” Remus agreed, tipping the bowl so James could get every last bit. James yawned just after finishing, and turned onto his side, sniffling but full. He snuggled into the plaid sheets with a smile. Then Remus tucked the covers back around him, and made sure he had the tea and the tissues nestled beside him. “Before I leave, can I get you anything else?” Remus topped off his glass of water and opened another box of tissues since the other was getting low.
James shook his head and took another sip of the tea.
“I’ll be off to join the others and go to class then. Finish that tea and get some sleep while we’re gone?”
James nodded, his eyes already trying to close as Remus turned to go. “Remus?” Remus paused and looked back. “Could I get another bowl of chicken soup this afternoon maybe?”
“Of course, James.” By the time Remus had reached the door to their room and closed it softly behind, James had fallen back to sleep.
Next up... Part 6: The Black Ledger
Part 1- http://www.livejournal.com/users/tarotgal/183693.html
Part 2- http://www.livejournal.com/users/tarotgal/187366.html
Part 3- http://www.livejournal.com/users/tarotgal/188816.html
Part 4- http://www.livejournal.com/users/tarotgal/190584.html
Same ratings apply to this part
Too Many Cooks...
Part 5: Chicken Soup
James sat down at the coffee shop, looking over the menu. They seemed to have as many soups and sandwiches and other little things like scones and cookies as they had coffees. He was in the mood for soup, probably because of his cold. But as he looked across the small table at Lily, he decided against ordering one. She might suspect he was sick if he went and ordered chicken soup. Best to stick with some coffee. Or better still, find out what she was getting and then pretend to want the same thing. Her beautiful green eyes sparkled back at him, and she leaned more on the table, coming very close to him indeed. Slowly her eyes closed, and he suddenly realized she wanted a kiss. A kiss. But he was sick. How was he supposed to kiss her without giving her his cold? Oh, but her lips looked so inviting that he couldn’t resist. He leaned in and tilted his head.
“James?”
James woke with a start, looking around frantically.
Remus felt James’ forehead. “I think your fever’s getting worse.” Remus sat down on the edge of James bed. “You were making sounds in your sleep, you know. Not having nightmares, were you?”
James’ heart was still racing, but slowly it all came back to him. The date wasn’t for another two days. He didn’t have to worry about having germs and having to kiss her until then. And if he trusted what his friends said, he’d be fine by then and have nothing at all to worry about.
“So how are you feeling?” Remus asked, plumping one side of his pillow absentmindedly.
“Okay,” James replied. “Been sleeping mostly. I didn’t realize how tiring going to breakfast and the kitchens could… could be.” Apparently, another tickle was in his nose. He felt around for the tissue box, and Remus located it first, tilting it towards him. James gave a nod of thanks before covering his nose and mouth with a handful of tissues. “ahhhCHooo! ahhhChushhh! ahhhTchooo! ahhhhChooo! hahChishhhh!”
“Bless you!” said Remus, pulling the used tissues from James hand and inserting fresh ones for nose blowing. James was a little startled by the treatment, but glad for the new tissues. He spent the next three minutes blowing his nose until it felt sore but clearer. By then, he couldn’t remember what the topic of conversation had been but didn’t much care. If it was important, Remus would bring it up again.
“Sirius is doing a bang-up job being you,” Remus told James just to make conversation, and a fresh wave of panic and worry swept over him. That was right. Lily still thought him well because Sirius was pretending to be him all day. “But Peter’s keeping a close watch on him while I sneaked upstairs to bring you, pretending that you were Sirius with a broken leg, some lunch. Are you hungry, James?”
His head spinning from the explanation, James shrugged. There was something he was quite in the mood for, just couldn’t quite figure out what it was. He had the strange feeling it might be coffee, but he was less a fan of coffee as he was of tea, so he was relatively sure that wasn’t it.
“I brought you a cold glass of apple juice,” Remus said, taking it off the bed stand and handing it to James. “And of course the best thing to have when you’ve got a cold, a nice bowl of chicken soup.”
“Chicken soup!” James exclaimed, looking suddenly very eager. “Yes, that’s it!”
Remus narrowed his eyes and felt his forehead again. “Yes, I know it is. I brought it up myself. Are you sure you’re all right?” He flipped his hand over to get a better feel of James’ forehead.
James nodded. “It was… never mind. Long story. Thanks, Remus,” he said, drinking some apple juice, then exchanging the glass for the bowl. But no sooner had he picked up the spoon, than he had to hand it back. His nose was wrinkling, which meant sneezes approaching in mere moments. He did his best to hold them back until the soup was safely out of spill-able range. Remus took it from him and placed a tissue at his nose for him to take instead. “huh… hahKuhshhh! hehChooo! Choo!” He rubbed his nose into the tissue and gave a deep, congested sigh.
“All right then, I’ll help with the soup, just to be sure you get some.” After a slight bit of protesting by James, he settled down to have Remus spoon-feed him the soup, and hand him tissues as needed. And they were needed, after every few mouthfuls, in fact. He finished off most of the soup and all of the juice before fatigue overtook him and he, ashamedly, yawned instead of swallowing the soup. Remus chuckled and cleaned up the mess, ignoring the red tint that had overtaken James’ face. Quickly, he searched for a subject to address to distract James, and came upon the inevitable. “I’ve written down your assignments,” Remus said, “But I don’t want you doing them right now. We’ll take care of them tonight after classes.”
Had James not just finished swallowing, he would have lost his last mouthful of juice. “What? Remus Lupin telling me not to do my homework?” He felt his own forehead this time. “I must be a lot sicker than I thought. However will I… learn…?” He broke off, raising a hand to his mouth, but to cover his yawn, rather than a sneeze.
Just the same, Remus pulled a tissue from the box. “When you’re feeling better, we’ll catch you up on your lessons,” Remus explained, though James picked things up so easily that it was evident no catching up was really necessary. “We want you to spend your time this weekend recovering, not trying to do homework.”
James nodded in understanding, and then dragged a finger against his nose. Remus lifted the afore-gathered tissue to James’ nose just in time. “hah-Ahshoo! ehhChoo! hahChooo!” He sniffed hard and sighed.
“Ah-ah, come on, blow your nose.” Remus instructed, not letting James out of it so easily, and adjusting his grip on the tissues over James’ nose. James flushed and blew his nose a half dozen times, until it sounded as clear as it would for the moment. “Good,” Remus complimented, clearing away the dishes. “Now have you had enough to eat, or should we tell the house elves to bring something else?”
James shrugged, sliding under the covers with a shiver. Remus pulled the covers up over him and felt his forehead again with a worried sort of look. He didn’t say anything more about James’ fever, just finished tucking his friend in, then gestured towards the thermos on the bed stand. “You didn’t have any of that tea, did you?”
James shook his head, looking at it warily. Remus sighed. “I know you don’t like tea particularly, but it’s not bad with honey and sugar, is it? And it will make you feel a lot better.” Remus, who had risen in order to tuck James in properly, sat back down on the edge of the bed. He poured a cup of tea, sipped it to be sure it was all right, then handed it over to James. “I want to see you drink a little of this before I go.”
Thinking he’d rather have another bowl of chicken soup, James took the cup and sipped a bit. Warmth flooded his mouth, and the strong taste of the tea struck him, even though he was stuffed. Remus smiled as James took a second sip. “Good,” he declared, standing. “Well, I’d better get back to lunch before too many people wonder why I’ve been gone so long.”
James swallowed his fifth sip and grinned. “Anyone who knows how you and Sirius are together wouldn’t question why you’ve been gone so long.”
Remus hit his arm playfully, the smack a dull thud against the blankets. “Well, it’s the folks who don’t know about how he and I are together that worries me.” While he and Sirius didn’t exactly hide their relationship, they didn’t go snogging in the middle of the great hall, either. Middle of the common room maybe, but not the great hall.
Noticing James’ facial expressions, Remus picked up another few tissues and handed them over. “hah… hahEKShooo! hahSchooo! ahhhShoo! KChoo!” He sniffled and blew his nose a few times, feeling Remus pressing him to do so, even with his eyes closed after the sneezes. Remus was awfully convincing even in silence. He lay back against his pillows, sniffling miserably as he set the used tissues aside and took his cup of tea back from Remus who hadn’t wanted him to spill it. Even though the next sip was good, James was feeling too miserable to feel better from it. Tired and a bit restless, he set it aside, then took it back yet again to hold it for the warmth. “Remus…” he started, wanting to complain about how bad he felt, about how he wasn’t sure he’d ever get better.
“I know,” Remus said, running a hand through James’ black hair, the strands going every which way afterwards, lying wild and unkempt as always on his friend’s head. “We’ll get you better. That’s what all this is about. But you have to do your part and trust us, all right?”
Nodding, James obediently drank a bit more tea. Remus rumpled his hair with a smile. “Drink it all up, then you can get back to sleep and whatever those dreams were about.” Remembering his last dream, at least, James smiled.
Remus picked up the glass and bowl, but James motioned for him to wait a moment. James sat up a little more and took the spoon, finishing off the soup. “Best thing to eat when I have a cold, right?”
“That’s right,” Remus agreed, tipping the bowl so James could get every last bit. James yawned just after finishing, and turned onto his side, sniffling but full. He snuggled into the plaid sheets with a smile. Then Remus tucked the covers back around him, and made sure he had the tea and the tissues nestled beside him. “Before I leave, can I get you anything else?” Remus topped off his glass of water and opened another box of tissues since the other was getting low.
James shook his head and took another sip of the tea.
“I’ll be off to join the others and go to class then. Finish that tea and get some sleep while we’re gone?”
James nodded, his eyes already trying to close as Remus turned to go. “Remus?” Remus paused and looked back. “Could I get another bowl of chicken soup this afternoon maybe?”
“Of course, James.” By the time Remus had reached the door to their room and closed it softly behind, James had fallen back to sleep.
Next up... Part 6: The Black Ledger
no subject
Date: 2004-01-14 12:11 am (UTC)I really love the chicken soup thing, lol. I could see a spin off story called, "The Chicken Soup Incident." From this whole thing. Hahaha, I know, I'm weird.
This is so cute, I'm glad that you've picked it up again!
James sick, is my fave HP. Well, Harry too! *G*
~A
no subject
Date: 2004-01-14 08:40 pm (UTC)Sorry, too, for taking so long with it. Luckily, I've written the last chapter or two mentally, so it's just getting there now that will take a while. But I am sorry I let it sit for so long.
Fever dreams... very true. *snuggles Jamie* But no worries, he's got friends to look after him. And, er, smother him to death. heehee!
no subject
Date: 2004-01-14 02:45 am (UTC)Gah, it was adorable. You have such a knack for the perfect mix of humor and oh so cute sneezy! James. Simply put - it makes me happy. ;)
Wonderful job, sweetie. I can't wait for the next installment.
-circe
no subject
Date: 2004-01-14 08:37 pm (UTC)Much more fun than my next installment... which is with Peter (I needed one, since Remus has had 3 private moments with James and Sirius has had 1...)
Thanks! Glad to know a few people are still following it as I chug away at the updates... sorry for taking so long!