Industry, Baby!

Regulus’s mind felt foggy, in a good way for once. It was 5:34am, much earlier than he usually woke. He had some fancy music party that evening, he was not looking forward to that.

Regulus Black was not a stereotypically normal person, Regulus Black was a part of the music industry. He was the lead singer of The Old Gods, one of the biggest bands of the 21st century.

“Shit!”, he exclaimed, realizing he'd forgotten to send the demos to his producer the night before. Not the first time, he thought, shrugging it off. He muttered to himself, “I’ll do it later,” as he stretched, shadow morphing into different positions in the orange glow of the sunrise.

   Regulus picked up his phone and checked Twitter—his usual way to start the morning. Today, his feed was full of tweets and retweets about another band as popular as his own: the Marauders, and specifically James Potter. Apparently, there was a new James Potter interview. Oh, of course the Daily Mail posted it, he thought as he clicked on the article, intrigued.

JAMES POTTER TALKS ABOUT HIS LIFE, NEW MUSIC, AND RELATIONSHIP WITH REGULUS BLACK

His life, new music, and… relationship with Regulus Black? Regulus’s boredom turned to confusion. But with his name in the headline, he had to know what was going on.

Interviewer:So, James, we hear you have a rival band.

James:A rival band? (He flashes an innocent smile at the camera.) And who would that be?

Interviewer:Oh, come on, it’s all over the internet. You’re the lead singer of The Marauders, one of the biggest bands on the charts, but there’s also The Old Gods, right up there with you.

James:Oh yeah— (he shrugs) —but we’re mates.

Interviewer:Isn’t Sirius Black, the guitarist from your band…his brother—

James:Oh yeah, Reggie.

Interviewer:Yes, Reggie. (The interviewer chuckles.) I’m guessing you and Regulus are pretty familiar with each other, then?

James:He pretends he hates me, but I know you’re watching this, Regulus. I know you love me!(He grins, winking at the camera.)

Interviewer:Oh?

James:Yeah, The Old Gods are really good people. We get along just fine. (He laughs, leaning back.)

Regulus shut off his phone, resisting throwing it across the room and screaming into his pillow. Potter just loved to get under his skin, didnt he? he thought clenching his fists. And the thought of seeing him at the party that night made his stomach twist. Regulus just wanted some breakfast. He shuffled downstairs, popped some bread in the toaster, and grabbed his phone again—this time, opening the band’s group chat.

fatherless (barty):reggie did you see the james potter interview

skittle muncher (evan):oh my god bahaha

dorky (dorcas):i think everyone saw it be fr

fatherless:of course he's not answering. come on, regulus—or should i say, reggie.

Regulus rolled his eyes, typing his response.

reg:end it all.

dorky:awwww did we make you angry

reg:shut uppp

skittle muncher:we can see you smiling at your phone, reg

Regulus’s lips twitched as he glanced at the toaster, pretending he didn’t see Evan’s last message. But he couldn’t help it—a small, reluctant smile had definitely slipped through.

reg: what is that mans problem

fatherless:you love him really

reg:barty, i hope your car crashes on the way to my house.

dorky:don’t worry, my king o mighty barty. evan and i shall strive to protect you.

skittle muncher:yes, fair sir.

reg:you guys won’t get past me. i’ll call james potter on you, and he’ll beat you up.

fatherless:OH SO YOU’RE TEXTING JAMES NOW? I KNEW IT!!!

reg:i’m not. we haven’t spoken in like two months.

dorky:oh, they’re playing hard to get.

skittle muncher:star-crossed lovers, honestly.

reg:shut up.

fatherless:bet you’re texting him right now, you’re blushing aren’t you?

Regulus sighed, typing with way more force than necessary. His phone buzzed again.

dorky:already writing your wedding vows?

skittle muncher:“I, Regulus Arcturus Black, take you, James Fleamont Potter…”

reg:i hate you all. now i’m hungry go away. im making toast

skittle muncher:fattie

reg:says you, skittle muncher

fatherless:fight! fight!

dorky:skittles vs toast… who will win?

skittle muncher:my money’s on me

Regulus giggles as he sits down, toast in one hand and phone in the other.

fatherless: anyway reggie what time are we going to your apartment

reg:its regulus or reg to you and like 1. its literally 6:45am though

dorky: oh so reggie’s reserved for james. i see how it is

fatherless: whats your nickname for james then? tell usss

skittle muncher: oh my god yes

Regulus rolled his eyes, smiling despite himself, and took a big bite of toast, pretending to ignore his friends’ messages. Instead, he opened Twitter again, ready for some distraction—only to be greeted by an unexpected blessing.

A private message from James Potter.

“OH MY GODDD!” Regulus shouted, startling himself with the outburst. Just his luck.

He hesitated, fingers hovering over the screen, before clicking into James’s profile first.

Behold: James Potter’s chaotic Twitter account. His display name was, of course, jamesussy, part of the ridiculous matching theme all the Marauders shared: jamesussy, peterussy, siriussy, and remussy. It was so stupid, and yet… so James.

His profile picture was a cursed 0.5 shot of him mid-bite on a burrito, looking utterly possessed. Regulus knew immediately Sirius had taken it; the location was unmistakably Regulus’s own hotel room, where Sirius and James had crashed one night after a wild club night.

James’s banner was no less obnoxious—something that looked like a result on Pinterest after searching "autumn aesthetic." And he was following 1,546 people. Who even follows that many people? Regulus thought, confused and, somehow, oddly endeared.

jamesussy: heyy

Heyy?HEYY?Who does he think he is? Regulus stared at his screen, frozen. The nerve of James Potter. Showing up in his DMs for no reason. How the fuck am I supposed to respond to this? He took a deep breath, half tempted to ignore it…but his fingers hovered over the screen anyway.

reggie:what do you want

jamesussy: to talk to youu

reggie:why

jamesussy: reggie, youre gonna have to talk to me tonight

reggie:firstly, it’s regulus. i’m only “reggie” on here because i thought it was a cute name, then you ruined it. and i don’t HAVE to talk to you. i don’t want to.

jamesussy:stop lying to yourselfff

Regulus clenched his jaw, rolling his eyes. He has no idea what he’s talking about. Absolutely no idea. But even as he told himself this, he found himself typing back instead of ending the conversation.

reggie:i’m really not. say hi to sirius for me.

jamesussy:he’s too busy obsessing over remus.

reggie:oh my god, STILL?? i thought they’d have both realised by now

jamesussy:somehow they haven’t

Regulus couldn’t help a small smile, shaking his head. Those two, honestly.

reggie:that’s crazy

jamesussy: yeahh

A beat of silence hung between them. This is where he should stop. But instead, Regulus found himself typing one more line.

reggie:anyways bye

jamesussy:byeee reggieee <333333

reggie:it’s regulus

Annoying, insufferable… Regulus set his phone down, telling himself he was done. But as he picked up his toast, he realized he was still smiling.

*time skip to 1pm*

Regulus was fast asleep when Barty’s pounding on the door finally woke him. He groaned, rolling off the sofa and stumbling to the door.

“REG!” Barty yelled, bursting in as soon as the door cracked open, with Dorcas and Evan following close behind.

“Hey, guys,” Regulus muttered, still half-asleep, as he shuffled to the kitchen. He started filling the kettle, automatically reaching for enough mugs to make tea for everyone.

“Regulus!” Dorcas called from the couch, already making herself at home.

“YEAH?” he yelled back over his shoulder.

“Were you asleep?”

He hesitated, then sighed. “Would you go mad if I said yes?”

Dorcas shrugged. “No.”

Regulus rolled his eyes, letting out a resigned sigh. “Yeah, I was.”

Barty grinned. “Well, now we’ve only got three hours to get ready. Do we know when Pandora’s getting here? Evan?”

Pandora Rosier was Evan’s twin sister and unofficially the band’s manager. She handled everything they didn’t, including outfits and last-minute fixes which was strange, considering they were one of the biggest bands in the world.

“She’s about an hour away,” Evan said, scrolling through his messages. “And she says there’s traffic.”

“Of course,” Regulus muttered, setting out mugs as the kettle boiled. “Nothing like a time crunch to make everything worse.”

Dorcas laughed. “Relax, Reggie. Just trust Pandora’s got it covered.”

Regulus rolled his eyes at the nickname but couldn’t help the small, reluctant smile forming as he poured the tea. They may have been chaotic, but they were his chaos.

Dorcas’s phone started ringing, and her eyes lit up. “AHH, it’s Marlene!” she squealed, quickly accepting the FaceTime call.

The screen lit up with Marlene’s grinning face. “Hey, love!” she greeted, waving from wherever she was—probably in her own band’s studio. Marlene was not only Dorcas’s girlfriend but also the singer/guitarist for The Valkyries.

“Everyone, say hi!” Dorcas spun her phone around so Marlene could see the rest of The Old Gods lounging around Regulus’s apartment.

“Hey, Marls!” Barty and Evan chimed in, both leaning into the screen—though Barty seemed more focused on nudging Evan with a grin, like he was making sure they’d greet her in sync.

Regulus gave a small wave, smirking. “Keeping you distracted before the party, yeah?”

Marlene laughed. “You know it. See you all tonight?”

Dorcas grinned. “Definitely. It’s gonna be fun.”

As Dorcas turned the phone back to herself, Barty glanced at Evan, eyebrows raised. “Think we should actually make an effort with our outfits tonight? Might be a good excuse to dress up.” His tone was light, but he didn’t look away from Evan.

Evan smirked, rolling his eyes playfully. “Since when do you need an excuse?” he teased, nudging Barty’s shoulder. The two exchanged a look that lingered just a moment too long, their small smiles shifting almost shyly before Barty cleared his throat and shifted his attention back to the group.

Regulus caught the look and smirked. “If I didn’t know any better, I’d think Barty was trying to impress someone tonight.”

Barty shot him a glare, but his cheeks turned the faintest shade of pink as he muttered, “Shut up, Reg.”

“OOOOH,” Regulus and Dorcas said in unison, laughing.

“Guys, we actually need to be getting ready,” Barty quickly changed the subject, a slight blush creeping up his neck.

“You’ve got a point, actually,” Evan replied, trying to stifle a smirk as he watched Barty grab his jacket.

   Everyone dispersed to grab their things. Dorcas rummaged through the spare closet, pulling out random shirts, skirts and accessories, tossing them onto the couch. “We’re definitely not doing anything low-key tonight,” she declared, holding up a bright jacket.

Barty rolled his eyes. “Did you actually bring that? I swear, that thing is louder than your voice.”

Dorcas snorted. “It’s iconic. Unlike your ‘loner grunge boy’ aesthetic.”

Just then, a knock on the door interrupted them. Regulus opened it to reveal Pandora, a whirlwind of energy and accessories, stepping into the apartment with an armful of garment bags.

“Alright, my lovelies, I come bearing gifts!” she said, grinning as she looked around at the mess of half-put-together outfits. “Oh, this is a disaster. Good thing I’m here.”

Pandora got to work immediately, tossing jackets and scarves around, making last-minute tweaks to everyone’s looks. “Barty, stop trying to blend in. You look way too put together for a party—let me add some of my touch.” She ruffled his hair, and Barty muttered something under his breath. “ That looks nice!”

“Evan, keep that jacket—trust me, it’s working for you,” she said with a smile. Evan gave Barty a playful nudge. “See? Someone here has taste.”

Barty rolled his eyes, but his smirk softened as he glanced at Evan. “Just remember who picked it out for you, YOUR SISTER.”

Meanwhile, as everyone was busy getting ready, Regulus felt his phone vibrate. Another message from James:

jamesussy: can’t wait to see you tonight, reggie ;)

Regulus’s stomach did an unexpected flip. He tried to ignore it, but his heart beat faster as he typed back.

reggie:don't call me that.

He quickly shoved his phone back in his pocket, hoping no one noticed. But Dorcas did, nudging him with a knowing grin. “You’re going to be fine tonight, Reg. You’re just seeing James—it’s no big deal.”

“Oh, yeah, totally,” he muttered, eyeing the floor.

When everyone was finally ready, Pandora clapped her hands. “Alright, team, we’re out. Let’s be beautiful tonight.”

Barty threw on his jacket and looked at Evan, in shock. “You’re ready already?”

Evan shrugged. “Unlike you, I don’t need an hour to look amazing.”

Barty raised an eyebrow, grinning. “Touché.” He ran a hand through his hair, pretending not to care, though he straightened his jacket after Evan looked away.

Regulus, watching them, smirked. “So, are we going or what?”

With Pandora leading the way, the group finally headed out the door, laughter echoing down the hall as they made their way to the party, each with their own anticipation for the night ahead.