The Very First Meet
James had met Sirius on the Hogwarts express when they were still just kids. They had been on their way to their first year at hogwarts. James had sat in an empty train compartment and not many minutes after that, a young boy the same age as him had walked in. He had sat down opposite from James and they had started just some casual smalltalk. Though quickly smalltalk escalated, and soon they were laughing and chatting with two other boys too. James with his uncontrollable and messy hair, his brown eyes with the gold rimmed glasses, his heart that had more love and care in it than it could bear. Had almost instantly clicked with Sirius, Sirius with his thick black hair, the grey eyes that anyone could get lost in, the ego that was only overpowered by his kindness.
James had told Sirius about how his whole family was from Gryffindor and how he was confident that the hat would place him the there too. Sirius had told him about how everyone in his family had been sorted into slytherin, but how he hoped that he would be the one to break that tradition.
He told James about his younger brother, the brother that he loved oh so much back then.
The brother who looked up to Sirius, his innocent and kind brother. Oh the things he would give to have regulus be like that again, carefree and outgoing, Sirius baby brother, no matter what happened he would always be Sirius baby brother, or so he had thought. But unfortunately things had changed, oh how they had changed.
Regulus grew up, and with that he grew more cold and careful. Sirius never thought he would have thought of his brother like this in a million lifetimes, but here he was, thinking that his little brother became more like their parents with each passing day.
Sirius didn’t know what had happened, all he knew was that when he returned the summer after his first year, his brother had completely changed.
The summer after their first year Euphemia had convinced Walburga to let Sirius come over for a day, and Regulus too.
The years after it would still be a mystery to the three boys how in the world Euphemia had managed to convince Walburga but neither of them complained.
They had spent the day at the Potters, Sirius had immediately embraced James and started talking to him, catching up on everything he missed the two weeks they had been apart.
It had taken James a few moments to notice the boy standing behind Sirius, he looked exactly like a younger version of Sirius.
James and Regulus hadn’t talked much, though he made sure that the younger black felt included.
There was exactly three brooms at the potter house so they played quidditch and raced. Euphemia had made them cookies and hot chocolate, which, despite the summer heat, they had all enjoyed it.
At some point during that day Sirius had been inside, talking with Fleamont about Merlin knows what.
James and Regulus had been outside, in the garden.
They had been talking about unimportant things, things they would later forget.
James was never seen without something in his hands, whether it was a hair-tie, a loose string on his clothes, his wand or even anything else he could get his hands on. So while they were sitting on the grass, in comfortable silence that was every now and then interrupted by smalltalk, James had been sitting and twirling grass between his fingers. He had looked up at Regulus and in that moment taken in everything about the boy, the grey eyes and black wavy hair so alike his brother, the green T-shirt and the black pants, the piercing glare that even back then was characteristic for him.
Regulus had been sitting on the grass, leaning up against a tree. Around him there was flowers, and even though the boy could be intimidating even at the young age, James couldn’t help but think that in that moment, he was the most beautiful wizard James had seen.
The flowers around him had always been James favourite. Since he had first started helping his mom in the garden it had been a spring day, he had helped her plant flowers that weeks later would grow to be yellow daffodils. Euphemia had in secret put a spell on the leftover seeds she had of that flower, now year around you would find yellow daffodils in the Potters garden.
And of course Regulus was sitting with the flowers around him, he probably didn’t even know.
“Regulus?” James had asked, watching the boy who had his head tilted back to rest against the tree.
“What?” Regulus didn't open his eyes as he responded. There was a moment of hesitation before James spoke up again, “You’re named after the star Regulus, right? The heart of the lion”.
“Yes”
There was a bit of silence before any of them spoke or moved again, when one finally did it was James. He leaned forward to pluck one of the daffodils, he looked at it for a second before turning his attention back towards Regulus. He silently handed him the flower.
“What?” Regulus opened his eyes, his brows were furrowed in confusion as he spoke.
“It’s for you” James smiled, that stupid smile that could melt ice, the smile that outshined the sun. “Look, it has the shape of a star” he handed it to Regulus.
“Oh, I suppose it kind of does”
And there it was again, that smile that rubbed off on anyone who laid their eyes on it. And even Regulus couldn’t help the soft smile that twitched on his lips.
Regulus would deny it if anyone ever asked, no one, not even Sirius, knew that after that day when he got home, the first thing he did was hang the flower upside down in his closet so it could dry. So it would last forever.
It had been a small gesture of kindness to give him that flower, but he cherished it.
Eventually he forgot about it though. Years after, that day was just another meaningless memory amongst many others. And now, five years after, when he was about to start his fourth year at hogwarts, he would have laughed in your face if you told him that somewhere in his room, the flower that he got from James potter all those years ago was still there, safely hid away in a drawer for so long that even he had forgotten about it.