Chapter 8
“Are we really going to do this?” James said quietly as the two approached Remus and Sirius’s door.
Regulus stopped dead in his tracks, not caring that they were in plain sight and that someone could hear them, it wasn’t a secret anymore, right? “Are you fucking with me, James?”
James turned to him and stopped in his tracks too confused, “What?”
The boy laughed, “You broke up with me because you wanted to tell him about us. And now that we have a chance to do it, you’re regretting it?”
“I didn’t say that. I’m not regretting it!”
“Yeah, sure, Mr. Are we really going to do this?” Regulus said, mimicking the boy’s voice as he rolled his eyes,
“Well, I’m sorry if I’m worried about how my best friend is going to react to the fact that I fucked his little brother, his most untouchable person in that regard.” He then blurted out, starting to walk towards the door again, while Regulus followed him,
“Oh please, it's not like I've never dated anyone!”
“That's the point, isn't it? How many people have you date Reg? I mean, really date and not just shagging around with?”
Regulus made an indignant face, “That's a low blow even for you. How many people have you date, huh?” He said hitting James on the arm,
“Because I was in love with you!”
“Yeah, well, if you talked to me more!”
“You wouldn't let me!” He said too loudly and then asked, “Why are we even fighting?” In an exasperated tone and Regulus shrugged,
“We are not fighting. That wasn't a fight. This is not a fight. It is just a talk.”
James looked at him skeptically, “Really.”
Regulus leaned closer to him, “Yes, really.”
James tilted his face down slightly to meet the boy’s face perfectly, “And what if I say that this is a fight?”
Regulus took another step forward, his face not even an inch away from James’s, “I’m not fighting with you.”
“We are fighting.”
“We,” he leaned his face closer, “Are,” even closer, “Not.” Their noses were now touching and their lips were barely touching, “Now shut up.”
“No, you shut up.” James promptly replied without moving from that position,
“Don’t tell me to shut up.”
“I’ll tell you to shut up how many times I want!”
“Really? Then two shut ups for you!”
“Pfff. Four shut ups!”
“You—” Regulus began but the door swung open and the two turned just as quickly to meet Remus’s gaze,
“I thought I heard you talking. You’re early.” He said before the two separated just as quickly, under the now amused gaze of the boy, “Were you arguing?”
“See? Thank you!!” James said turning to Regulus who rolled his eyes, crossing his arms over his chest in an offended manner,
“We weren’t fighting.”
“Right.” Remus nodded slowly, “Would you like to come inside then?” Asked then uncertainly,
“After him.” Regulus said stubbornly and James’s face broke into a smile,
“Oh, no, after you.”
“I’ll not enter before you.”
“You will because I won’t enter.”
“Then we can stay here for all day because I’m not going to do what you tell me.”
“Guys,” Remus tried but was completely ignored by the two, who were now looking into each other’s eyes again,
“I never enter before you.” James said, And it was the truth. Regulus, for obvious reasons or for obvious occasions, had never entered after him.
“Things change and I’ve changed with them.” The boy said,
“I’m not moving.”
“Me neither.”
“Good.”
“Good.”
“Good!”
“Are you—” Remus began but was shushed by both,
“Oh shut it Moony.” James and Regulus said at the same time,
“Yeah, shut up Remus.”
“Are you kidding me? You are the one who called us!” The boy said exasperatedly as the two still did not move. “I have something to tell you. It’s important they said. They said it was serious.” He continued before adding, “You have one minute to solve it. I don’t care how but you have one minute. And I don’t want to hear excuses.”
“You know I—” Regulus started rolling his eyes but Remus quickly cut him off,
“One minute Regulus.” And with that he closed the door as he rolled his eyes again,
“Great, you pissed Remus off.”
“Me? I pissed Remus off? You’re the one who doesn’t want to come in the house!”
“I’ll come in the house but after you!”
“But why?!”
“Because I’ll always be behind you!” James said and Regulus went quiet the next moment. “I’ve got your back.”
He stared at him for a few seconds in silence, “Okay, first of all, that was smart. I’ll give you that.” Regulus said after thinking about it for a few seconds and he smiled involuntarily, “Second of all? No. I don’t want you to be behind me.” He continued miming with his arms, “I want you to be next to me.” He stood next to him, “Shoulder to shoulder.” He turned his face to his, “Okay?”
“Okay.”
“Good. Now, let’s do this.”
James smiled, “After you admitted we were arguing.”
“We weren’t.”
“Mi amor.”
“Okay, whatever. Peace made.”
“Of course peace made.” James said before giving him a kiss on the cheek as Remus opened the door again,
“Great, you made up.”
“Shut up, Remus.” Regulus shushed him,
“Peace made.” Instead the satisfied boy next to him said as the two entered at the same time, albeit with some difficulty, while Remus watched them with a roll of his eyes.
“Moony! Can you—oh, you’re here!” Sirius said as he saw them appear in the doorway, while Remus went to get the cup that was on the table, going to hug them. To hug James, who returned his hug quickly, while Regulus took a step back, trying to avoid his brother’s arms, but in vain, since Sirius was (this time) faster and pulled him towards him. “I missed you, little shit.”
“I didn’t.” Regulus promptly replied, but remained for a few seconds longer in his brother’s arms, before pulling away. Sirius smiled at him satisfied, making as if to say something but he simply shook his head, silencing him. For one of those few times, Sirius listened and only winked at him which obviously made him roll his eyes.
“Wormtail said he doesn’t know when he’ll arrive, he said he has some special meeting with the press.” Remus said leaning against the wall, the cup now in his hands,
“We can wait for him—” James said but a look from Regulus made him change his mind, “No, actually. No, it’s okay, we’re ready.”
Sirius let out a half laugh as he sat down on the couch comfortably, “Are you? Since when did you agree to something together?”
Regulus looked at James for a few more seconds, who could see on his face that he didn’t know what to do, before sighing, glancing quickly at Remus who understood immediately and slowly put the cup down, “Sirius, we have something to say to you. I mean, two things to say, but I’ll go with the first and you don’t have to react in your way.”
“My way?”
“Yes. We all know your ways.”
“Okay?”
A breath, “We are together. Me and James. James and me. Together like in a couple. We are a couple.” He finally said and Sirius looked up at him, before moving his gaze to James who was looking at him nervously and back up at him, before starting to laugh,
“Yeah, of course. That was funny.” He said with a quick glance at Remus, who wasn’t smiling though he chose to ignore it, “But what do you really want to tell us?”
“He took it well.” James said quietly as he shook his head,
“He doesn’t get it.”
“Yes, he did.”
“He doesn’t believe it. Sirius, we are together. Seriously.”
“Please, Reggie. I know you. You don’t like James. You and James? That’s impossible, it doesn’t make sense. I’m not stupid, thank you very much.” He said still with a smile on his face emphasizing the last word more,
“We’ve been together for more than a year.”
“Yeah shit, and I love Pete. It was funny in the beginning but now it’s just—I don’t like this. Can we be serious now?” Sirius turned with a wink to Remus, “Even if I’m Sirius.” Provoking a skeptical look from the other, but a slight upturn of his lips.
Regulus sighed heavily before turning to James, “Kiss me.”
The boy nervously sent a quick glance to Sirius who was still watching them, the smile now not seeming as happy as before perhaps, “What?”
“He doesn’t believe that we’re together. So, kiss me.” Regulus said looking at Remus who shook his head, already knowing how this was going to end.
“I can’t.” He replied, now clearly hearing Sirius shrug,
“Why?”
“Okay, can you two stop it? You’re too close anyway.” Sirius introduced himself, now standing up from his chair,
“Because if I kiss you—” James began as Regulus took another step towards him,
“What?” He asked, tilting his head innocently, “You can’t stop until you take my breath away?”
“Pardon moi?” Sirius asked now with a decidedly different tone as his gaze went from one to the other, but Regulus ignored him,
“C’mon Jamie, kiss me. So we can prove that you love me.”
“You’re not playing fair.” James said, remaining still in place as the man approached unstoppably, before grabbing his shirt and pulling him towards him, placing his lips on his and of course the kiss was returned instantly, because how could he not?
That is until Sirius lunged at them, grabbing James by the shirt, where Regulus’ hands had been a moment before, pulling him away from the latter and then hitting him hard in the face, so much so that the sound of the blow could be clearly heard, and then slamming him to the ground with force, the boy’s head hitting (too hard if you ask Regulus) the floor.
“Sirius for fuck’s sake!” Remus said, grabbing him by the arms and trying to pull him back with force from above the boy who immediately put his hands to his face even though Sirius was definitely using more force than he usually used,
Regulus moved quickly then, kneeling beside him and looking at his face, his lip completely split, with blood still coming out of it, while the boy groaned in pain when he grazed his so-called bloody lip. “I’m so sorry, maybe I used the wrong strategy. I’m sorry.” He said sounding mortified.
“Maybe.” He whispered back,
“Don’t touch me! He knows that Reggie is off limits—” Sirius said as he tried to break free from Remus’s grip, who was trying to pull him as close as possible,
Regulus looked up as he helped James up from the floor, “Oh, please,”
“—and he decided to fuck him? Are you kidding me, James?!”
James pulled away from the boy’s grip as he tried to get a better look at the wound, “I’m fine, Reg, really.”
“Do not call him that!” Sirius butted in before pushing forward, “Fucking leave me, Remus!”
“Of course I’m not going to leave you, Sirius!”
“I love him, Pads.” James tried to say in vain, still trying to escape from Regulus’a grip,
“You love him? Really? My little brother?!” Sirius said, managing to free himself from Remus's grip, who shot an apologetic look at the two, and lunging towards him, but bumping into Regulus who stepped in at the last moment, who didn't move, “Shit, are you okay?” He asked the next moment, all the anger seeming to disappear, replaced by obvious concern for his brother,
“No, I'm not okay! Can you please stop for a fucking second and listen to us?”
Sirius shrugged again, looking at James from behind Regulus, shifting his weight unconsciously onto one leg, “So you're an us now, huh?”
Regulus met his gaze, “I love him. And you have to accept that.”
“No, you don't.”
“Yes, I do. I'm in love with James Potter, Siri. Even though I didn't think I'd ever tell you or that I would ever say it.”
“Thank you, mi amor.” James said from behind as Sirius glared at him at the nickname,
“You’re not helping.” He replied before continuing, “Merlin, I really love him, alright? I have to know that you understand that.” Sirius grimaced, looking at James and then back at Regulus,
“You don’t.”
“I really do.”
“How can you love him?!” He asked in an exasperated tone,
“I’m your best friend!”
“Shut up, you brotherfucker.”
“Remember what you told me when you confessed about you and Remus?” He butted in again, drawing Sirius’ attention back to himself, “That you've finally found your home, right? Well, Siri, I want a home too. And a family. And I’m willing to fight with you and all the people who will try to go against us. But I want to do it with James.” A pause, “Who has a busted lip because of you.”
“You want a family with him?”
Regulus decided not to say anything about Harry yet, “Yes.” And to ignore the fact that Harry was already part of his, his family. His new family. His home. “I want a family with the one person you always say that is the best person you met.”
Sirius now turned to James, “Why didn’t you tell me? You tell me everything and —and now—now you keep things like this from me? Why, James? Really, why? Reggie? My Reggie?” He said while Regulus narrowed his eyes but said nothing,
James waited a few seconds before saying in a low tone, “I was scared about how you would react.” His gaze moved from the boy on the floor, “I was just scared. I tried to think about it every day. I thought about it every day. About the way I would have told you, clearly not this way but as you could see Reg took the lead, and what you would have said to me.”
“You were scared? Of me?” Sirius asked quietly, now looking at his brother, whose gaze had suddenly softened.
Oh, he didn’t like to see that.
“You were afraid and I just punched you.” Sirius said slowly,
“Because I was kissing Reg, which is totally understandable.” James said quickly, “I didn’t tell you, not exactly, I just kissed him and he kissed me and we kissed so he didn’t even—”
“You can stop saying the word kiss, James.” Regulus said as the guy nodded, even though the first one still had his back to him,
“That went even better than I thought. It’s really okay, Pads. I was afraid of how you would react, not of you. Never of you.” James said gently with a hopeful smile as the guy remained silent for a few seconds, before his gaze narrowed,
“I was not afraid of you, by the way.” Added Regulus for a good measure trying to lighten the mood while Sirius looked at him in silence, before saying,
“Who knows about this?”
“Pandora knows.” Was the first answer,
“Marlene knows that I’m seeing someone, but not who.” James added, surprising the boy,
“Are you telling me Crouch doesn’t know anything?” He interrupted them,
“No, he doesn’t.”
“Barty Crouch Jr. doesn’t know this thing about you? Really? Your Barty?”
“Yeah.” Regulus nodded slowly, “Because he would have reacted the way you reacted. And I honestly don’t want James’s face to get punched again. Especially by him. He is stronger than he looks, trust me.”
James smiled, “Thanks, Reg.”
“Anytime.”
“Only them?”
“Oh, and Peter.” he then added, even though Regulus would have preferred he didn’t, seeing the expression change on his brother’s side, almost to sadness,
“Peter? You told Peter before you told me?”
“It wasn’t really a choice, he just walked on us doing—” he stopped dead in his tracks, “—stuff.”
Sirius froze, “I’m going to be sick.”
Regulus glanced at Remus who barely nodded, “And Remus.”
Sirius barely turned to him, “Moony?”
“I found out a few days ago, by pure chance, even though I knew Regulus was seeing someone.”
He threw his arms in the air, “Great, so I’m the last person to know.”
“Not really, it’s just—all happened so fast and—”
“You said that you two have been together for over a year!” Sirius interrupted loudly and Regulus shrugged, replying in the same tone,
“To be honest I didn’t want to tell you this today but James broke up with me for—”
“Sorry, what? James broke up with you?”
“Yes, but that was before—something happened and—”
Sirius’s face changed again as did his tone of voice and emotion, “Are you kidding me, James? Who are you to break up with my little brother, huh? I’m going to kill you as soon as I can get you.”
“Wrong thing to say, mi amor.”
“Shut up, James. Please.” He said without even looking at him or moving because if he did either of those things, Sirius would probably find a way to hit him again, “We’ve worked it out, we’re okay.”
“But he broke up with you! And knowing you, you passed—”
“Just don’t.”
The boy’s face changed again, honestly he had never seen Sirius experience so many emotions in a matter of minutes, “Are you okay?” He asked again with concern as Remus watched the scene now slightly amused,
“Yes, Sirius.” Regulus said slowly, not believing what was happening and the change of subject so quickly, “I’m okay. But I’d be better if my brother accepted the fact that I’m dating his best friend.”
“You love my little brother, James?” He then asked with a low voice to the man who promptly nodded, raising his chin so that his face and eyes could be seen perfectly, showing him that he wasn't lying,
“Yes. I really really love him.”
The man studied his face for a good few minutes before saying, “The other news is worse than this?”
Regulus rolled his eyes so much he thought he could see his brain, “Sirius.”
“Padfoot?” James said hopefully instead,
And Remus added, in a soft tone, “Pads.”
He waited a few minutes under everyone’s gaze, before saying surrendering, “Fine! I’m happy that my little brother and my best friend are together.” His brother raised an eyebrow slightly, “And I’m happy that he makes you happy. Happy?”
“Do you promise not to hit James again?” Asked instead Regulus,
“I—how can I promise? He could always do something and break your heart and I promise you, I will break him!” He waited a few seconds, “Even if I love him too much!”
“Sirius.”
“Fine! I promise not to touch, today, James. Happy?”
“And?”
“And…I’m happy that you choose the best person I know to be by your side. Happy?” The boy said, crossing his arms over his chest,
“Stop saying happy.”
“Whatever.” A pause, “Happy?”
“I swear to Merlin—”
“Well, what ends well, ends well right?” James interjected, pulling Regulus back slightly as he had already leaned forward, preventing any further violence as his lip had stopped throbbing in the process,
“But if he breaks your heart or you break his heart—”
“Yeah, yeah, you will beat us both, got it, you asshole.”
“I’ll only beat him.” Sirius whispered and at that, Regulus’ gaze softened visibly, before bringing his hand from his chin outwards in a fluid gesture towards his brother. In response, Sirius crossed his arms over his chest quickly. Regulus just rolled his eyes with, though, a soft smile. “But please don’t do anything in front of me. Please.” Begged Sirius,
“You snog Remus everyday in front of me? In front of everyone?”
“It’s different.”
“It’s not that different!” Said Regulus before adding, “I can snog James whenever I want.”
“No, you can’t and you won’t.”
“James isn’t contrary on this so I can. His mouth, my mouth, his tongue—”
“Shut up, please shut up, shut up!”
“James can make me shut up, you know.”
“Shut up!”
As James smiled widely, Remus watched the brothers’ interaction before asking, changing the subject and interrupting them, “Well, now that we’ve settled the fact that James won’t be killed by Sirius today, can we ask the other thing?”
The younger turned to James, serious again, who nodded, before taking Lily's letter from his pocket and handing it to Sirius, who was joined by Remus, who opened it and began to read, under the eyes of the two.
Regulus grabbed James' hand, who gratefully squeezed it lightly.
The eyes of the two ran over the words written by Lily, and the sadness on both of their faces became more than evident.
When they had finished the letter, with a few minutes more than a person would expect, Sirius leaned forward “Prongs...” clearly feeling the emotions of the room change and fall like a cloak on the four,
“I think you're one of the godfathers, pretty sure about that.” he replied as Sirius moved even closer, Regulus understanding took a step back, so that he could hold James in his arms, who did the same with a light sigh, before Remus also joined them.
The three of them stayed like that for a few seconds before James and Sirius, after a sign that only they understood, each reached out and grabbed Regulus, pulling him towards them, thus making the three-way hug a four-way hug. And even though he didn’t like the idea, he didn’t move for a good while, before he broke away first, followed by Remus.
“Are you okay, Prongs?” The latter asked while James took a light breath,
“I’m okay. I was never alone these days.” He said turning to Regulus who returned his gaze quickly, “Are you okay? I know you and Lily were pretty close and—”
“That’s why she left in such a hurry. I get it now.” Remus shrugged,
“Remus…” Regulus said lowering his voice but the boy shook his head making him understand that he didn’t want to talk about it.
Sirius walked over to him and took his hand in his, “Where is Harry?”
“He’s with Ma and Pa. We thought it best if we told you all about it so we can go and introduce you to him.”
“Okay. That’s okay. We can go and meet our grandchild.” Sirius said, trying to sound as calm as possible, but squeezing Remus’ hand tighter. “I didn’t think I’d ever say that. I mean, I haven’t even had time to digest the fact that Prongs and Reggie—Reggie and Prongs—no, I can’t say it.”
“You’re so dramatic.”
James took Regulus’ hand in his, with some satisfaction, “You are too.”
“You shut up.”
“What does he look like?” Asked Remus with a low voice,
James opened his mouth to respond but Regulus was faster, “He looks just like James. Same smile, same hair, same features…but he has her eyes. Green as the grass in the spring.”
“They were that green.” Said softly Remus nodding slightly,
“Guess who’s here?” They were interrupted a moment later by a voice, after which Peter appeared in the room with his hands raised, then looked at James’s lip, the fact that he was holding Regulus’s hand in front of Sirius who was looking at him seriously and Remus who turned to him, and lowered his hands, “Oh, good Merlin. What did I miss?”
⋆⁺₊⋆ ✩ ☀︎︎☽ ✩ ⋆⁺₊⋆
“Can you please give me at least five minutes without you two holding hands? Or looking at each other like that? How did I get so blind?” Sirius asked as the five of them arrived at James’ parents’ door,
Regulus turned to Sirius for half a second before turning to the door as James knocked with his free hand and smiled, “No.”
“You’re such a—” Sirius began indignantly but stopped when the door opened and Fleamont appeared in the doorway.
Regulus quickly removed his hand from James’ as James quickly gave him a confused look.
The man’s face instantly softened as he saw them, “Oh, mi niños, it’s really good to see you all.”
“How are you doing, Mr. Potter?” Peter asked first as he gave him a quick hug before entering,
“Everything is wonderful I’d say, Mr. Pettigrew.” He replied with a smile before accepting Sirius’s hug and Remus’s nod,
“Monty, always a pleasure.”
“The pleasure is mine, Remus.” He said before the two of them entered the house leaving James and Regulus alone with Fleamont.
James took Regulus’s hand in his although Regulus struggled slightly before saying, “Pa.”
“Mijo.” He said with a tired smile before looking down at their hands and then up at Regulus, “And you must be Regulus Black, the greatest seeker I’ve ever seen.” He said holding out his hand before adding, “And the boy who won my James’s heart.”
Regulus squeezed his hand, blushing hard while James looked at him very curious. Regulus never blushed like that in front of others. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Potter.” He said then, clearing his throat,
“Oh please, call me Fleamont or Monty, whichever you like better is more than fine.” The man said before pulling him into his arms. The boy was slightly, maybe even more, confused but awkwardly hugged him back before taking a step back, resuming his previous position, before the man turned to his son, holding him much tighter in his arms while Regulus adjusted his shirt, his face now burning.
“How is Harry?” James asked as he entered the house followed by his father and Regulus, to whom he decidedly did not give another confused look,
“He is fine. He is a really good kid, Lily did really good with him. He is very silent though, nothing like you.” The man explained fondly before leading everyone into the living room, where his wife and grandson were talking while sitting on the couch. “He just seemed a little…sad?” He added uncertainly,
As soon as they entered the room Harry looked up at them and stood up, picking up Mars, who was next to him, and then quickly reached them, going to meet Regulus, who was the first to enter the room, while the latter promptly bent down to take him in the hug that the child had proposed when he had stretched out his hands towards him.
“Hey, Haz.” Regulus said as softly as possible, the nickname that came naturally to him, while the child held him tighter in his arms, without intending to move.
Regulus looked up in help at James who smiled at him just as softly and then moved it to Sirius who was watching the scene with almost watery eyes.
He pulled away slightly from the child to meet his gaze, “Well, hi.” He said moving a lock of hair from the child’s forehead,
“You came back.” Harry said quietly before hugging him again, resting his head in the crook of his neck,
“Of course we came back, we promised you, remember? One hour.”
“I don’t know.” He replied not taking his eyes off the boy, moving away slightly first to look at his face, who still had his arms wrapped around him,
“I promise you, me and your Dad will always come back to you, okay?” He said quietly as Harry looked at him in silence,
“You promise?”
“I give you my word.” He said promptly,
“Dad promise too?”
Regulus looked up at him, signaling him to come closer, which the boy did the next second, also kneeling down, “Do you promise to always come back to Harry, no matter what?” Regulus asked in a low voice so that only they could hear even though all eyes were actually on them,
James held out his hands and the kid, after a few seconds, grabbed them in his, causing the man to miss a heartbeat. Harry almost never touched him. “I give you my word.” he then said,
“Okay.”
“You give us your word too?”
Harry thought about it for a few seconds before nodding promptly, “Yes.”
“Are you feeling better?”
“A little.”
“Do you want to meet the others? If you don’t want to we will only get Sirius’s money and buy something for us.” Regulus then asked and the boy nodded with a little smile, grabbing his hand as they both stood up but still not leaving their position.
The first to move was, not surprisingly, Peter, who approached with a huge smile, “Hi there. I’m Peter and you must be Harry.”
“Hi.”
Peter held out a hand which was accepted by the little boy after he handed Mars back to Regulus, “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Harry.”
“Me too.”
The man smiled, “I’m sure we are going to be great friends. I already like you.”
The boy squeezed Regulus’ hand lightly but smiled anyway, before Remus approached with another smile on his face. A very gentle smile. Harry looked up, “You are very tall.”
He laughed lightly, “And you are very cute. I’m Remus, one of your father and Regulus’ best friends. And I’m one of your uncles.”
“I never said you were one.” Regulus said quietly as his friend sent him a skeptical look,
“I’m totally your friend and now your brother in law but anyway. If you ever need something, like trying to escape from them, just call me, alright?” Harry looked at him with a smile as he grabbed his hand.
And then, Sirius was walking up to them, looking from Regulus to James, and then back to Regulus before looking down at the boy who was looking at him curiously, “Hey kiddo. I’m Sirius.” He said, leaning down slightly to level with him, “And I’m your uncle. Your favorite uncle actually. But you can call me Padfoot, Pads, Sir, whatever you like.”
“Padfoot? What does that mean?”
“It’s a nickname. You like nicknames?”
“Like Reg?”
“Yes, exactly. I’m Padfoot. Remus is Moony.”
Harry looked up at Remus, saying slowly, “Moony.”
“And Peter’s nickname is Wormtail.” Sirius continued with a hint of excitement at having caught the boy’s attention,
Regulus raised an eyebrow at Peter before saying, “But you can call him Wormy, it’s more cute.”
Peter pantomimed a thank you while he pantomimed that he owed him a favor in return, making him smile slightly.
“Your dad’s nickname is Prongs instead.”
A little pause, “Can I still call him Dad?”
“You can call him Dada, Daddy, Dad, whatever you want.” Regulus said, but the boy turned to James excitedly now,
“Dad, can I please call you Daddy? Please? Like Reg said?”
James smiled instantly, because how could he not? Harry was beautiful. He was the most beautiful boy he’s ever seen. And he was his boy. “Of course Haz, you can call me Daddy. Or Dad. Or Dada. Whatever you want.”
Harry turned back to Sirius, “And do Grandma and Grandpa have any nicknames, Uncle Padfoot?”
Uncle Padfoot.
Grandma and Grandpa.
The man mimicked the smile his best friend had made a few seconds ago, while both Euphemia and Fleamont looked at each other in surprise because it was the first time they had been called that in that hour they had been together and it was one of the first times they had heard him talk so much, “Not that I know of. We can find someone in the future if you want.”
“I like Grandma and Grandpa, it’s okay.” Harry nodded confidently while James watched his parents smile sadly.
The child let go of Regulus’ hand before taking his lion and walking over to his new uncle, showing it to Sirius proudly, “Uncle Padfoot, this is Mars, my friend.”
“How about we introduce him to the others too?”
“Reg, can I show him to them?”
“Of course you can, Haz. But I’m his second best friend.”
James added, “And I’m his third.”
Harry smiled at them nodding, before turning to Sirius and following him towards Remus and Peter who had moved away slightly a moment before, “I like you, Uncle Padfoot. Alright!”
“This went well.” Regulus whispered to James, ignoring his phone that vibrated in his pocket, but that caught James’ attention and he asked curiously,
“Who is it?”
“Probably Barty. He’s complaining about me missing my run again and he’s making me do it in the morning before practice tomorrow.”
“What run?”
“You know, the runs you do in the morning too.”
“You never run in the morning.”
“Not in the morning.”
“You don’t run. Since when have you been running?” James asked offended even though Regulus couldn’t understand why,
“I always run. Almost everyday. Only these days I skipped them.”
“I’m always at your place in the morning.”
“That’s why I run at night. I love running at night even though lately because of you I had to stop.” The boy said affectionately, “Is it part of keeping myself in shape, since I’m a Quidditch player?” He continued now definitely laughing in a low voice, “I don’t like running in the morning, that’s why Barty is punishing me.”
“You never run with me.”
“Because you run in the mornings? And I run with Barty so—”
“Yeah, but like why Barty? What does Barty have that I don’t?”
“Because it’s Barty.” He said, like it was a matter of fact, because it was.
“He runs faster than me? That’s why?”
Regulus snorted a laugh as he continued to speak softly to him, “Are you serious right now?”
“Very serious. Now that we are—you know, in the light of day—”
“If you like you can come with us?”
“No, it’s okay. I’ll leave you two alone. I don’t want to interrupt you.”
“Are you being serious right now?”
“Yes.” James said before turning and walking towards his parents as Regulus looked at him confused.
“James.” He whispered following him while he was being ignored,
“Oh, Regulus. It’s really a pleasure to finally meet you.” Euphemia said as he approached them to still try to talk to the boy who wasn’t looking at him.
“Mrs. Potter, it’s a pleasure to meet you. I’ve heard great things about you.”
“Oh please, stop. I take that as an insult. Call me Effie, please.”
“I—okay, Effie. But what I said before was all true.” The boy said with a half smile before the woman opened her arms in question. And when he did the same more slowly she was quicker and wrapped her arms around him tightly.
“I’m really happy that you are with my James.” The woman said in his ear in a sweet tone while the man said nothing, not sure how to respond, “I’m sorry it took us years to get to this point. But I couldn’t be happier, I want you to know that, Regulus. I’ve seen how his smile has changed as the days have gone by. And I saw how he looked at you with Harry. And I should probably stop or you will run, am I right?”
The man met Sirius’s gaze, who was deep in conversation with Harry. His brother tilted his head slightly, continuing to speak but giving him his full attention, before the corners of his mouth turned up slightly, nodding, looking away from him and returning to give full attention to the child.
Euphemia gave him one last squeeze before pulling away and gently caressing his cheek.
A quick, barely perceptible gesture. A gesture that could mean nothing. That probably meant nothing to James if it was done to him.
But a gesture that meant something to the man. He knew it. Sirius, who was now watching him intently, knew it. And Euphemia knew it.
Not knowing exactly what to say, he found himself nodding, but that, it seemed more than enough for now.
The woman approached her husband sadly, “I’m sorry but I have really sad news.”
“It’s okay Ma, you can go to the restaurant, we have to go anyway. Thank you for everything and I’m—”
Euphemia interrupted almost immediately, “My fault.”
“Ma…”
“You have a restaurant?” Harry asked the next moment and his grandparents smiled and nodded, before walking over to him,
“You can come soon if you want, just to fix a couple of tiny things. What do you say?”
“Alright.”
“Good.” Euphemia said, bending down to his level, and what the boy did next surprised her because even though he had barely spoken in an hour, he now reached out and gave her a quick hug before pulling away just as quickly.
“Bye Grandma and Grandpa.” He then said as they couldn’t help but smile widely again as Sirius approached Regulus and James, who was still sulking at him even though he was clearly giving in as the guy tried to hit him.
“Remember when you used to have a stuffed bear just like that?” Sirius asked nodding to Mars who was, of course, in Harry’s arms.
Regulus turned to him in surprise, drawing his attention away from James who looked at them out of the corner of his eyes, “I do. I didn’t think you remembered that.”
“Of course I do. It was your favorite present ever.”
“A stuffed bear?” James asked curiously as the boy sent him a flat look. “That’s so cute.”
“Before Maman found it and burned it in front of me when she found out Uncle Alphard gave it to me.”
Sirius was silent for a few seconds as James made a sad expression as he brushed his shoulder against the boy’s for support, still not trusting himself to kiss him in front of his brother again, before walking over to his parents to say goodbye properly. And with the intention to leave them alone. And with the intention to grab the keys to lock up when they left shortly, leaving the two alone.
“Harry is a really beautiful kid.” Sirius then said, still looking forward and raising a hand to wave at the two parents.
“He is.”
“He looks just like James. And of course, he has her eyes.”
“Same hair and same smile.” He confirmed again that day,
“Yeah. But he is just like you, Reggie.” A long pause, “He reminds me of when we were young and you were just a kid. Shy and so little. My little brother.”
“You were little too, you were only a year older than me.”
“True. But it was different, don’t you think? He has the same hidden smiles as you.”
“He is a good kid.” Regulus said again, because he didn’t know what else to say.
Talking about their childhood was weird. It was weird being told he was like Harry by Sirius. It was weird that Sirius remembered when they were four and five. It was weird that he still remembered his stuffed bear when Regulus hadn’t thought about it in years. He hadn’t wanted to think about it in years. It was weird.
“Did you give him the lion?”
“I did.”
“I knew it.”
“It was a gift from James actually.”
“He really likes it.”
“I think he does.”
“Nobody is gonna burn Mars.” Sirius said, suddenly, turning to Regulus, who did the same, meeting his gaze.
“Nobody is going to burn Mars.” he repeated in a low voice without stopping looking at him.
Nobody was going to burn Mars because they wouldn't have allowed it. No one in that room would ever have allowed it.
“Hey, sorry if I interrupted you two, but can I talk to you for a second?” James’s father asked a few seconds later, approaching the two and interrupting the thought they were both sharing at that moment.
Regulus looked up from Sirius and nodded, starting to leave but his brother stopped him with his hand saying, “Yes, I will leave you too alone. See you later.”
Fleamont wanted to talk to him. Alone. With Regulus. Not with Sirius.
Oh.
“I wanted to tell you that I’m here.” The man said in a calm tone while the boy looked at him in surprise, “I’m sorry if you somehow felt pressured to tell us that you were seeing James.”
“No, no, it’s okay, I swear.” Regulus said quickly shaking his head for emphasis, “We wanted to tell you. Before we found out about Harry we wanted to tell you, it was just a coincidence that it happened this way.”
Fleamont nodded, “You know, I’ve always wanted to know you better, Regulus.”
“Me?”
“Yes, you.” He let out a light laugh, “Don’t act so surprised, Regulus, you know you’re very interesting.” The man said and that made the boy blush again. Shit. “James and Effie think they’re very good at hiding their secrets, but I assure you they’re wrong. They know their faces better than I know myself.” A pause. “Aside from the whole Harry thing. That wasn’t in my sight.”
Regulus waited a few seconds before saying, “So you knew?”
“I knew. I’ve known for years, if I’m honest. Ever since Sirius came to live with us and James asked me to find a way to get you out of there. I’ll never forget the look on his face. I’m sorry I didn’t find it.”
The boy quickly shook his head, as surprised as ever, “It's okay, really. Me and Barty managed out.”
“I'm glad to hear it. Sirius didn't say much about how you run away from them and where you went after that.”
“Because he probably doesn't know. We never talked about it. Not really, anyway.”
“He wasn't curious at all? Sirius? I mean, I'm definitely curious about it. That's weird.”
“Really?”
“Of course, wasn't that like super clear? You told James and not me? It's not a good start to our relationship.”
Regulus smiled slightly, “I actually never told James neither.”
“You're kidding.” Fleamont said, running a hand through his hair with a surprised smile, “So you're saying that I'm going to be the first person to know? Really?”
“If you want to really know about this I can actually tell you. It’s funny, honestly.” Regulus said fondly towards his memories, before adding, “Without all the Mother’s reaction of course.”
“No, I don’t want to hear about her. I almost can’t stand her, I’m sorry.” He said shaking his head, before adding, “Without the almost.”
“I can understand why.” Regulus replied as he leaned in slightly, lowering his face so that it was level with the boy’s,
“You have to give me a spoiler. Please.”
Merlin, he looked so much like James.
“I don’t know.”
“C’mon, a cool spoiler.”
He stayed silent for a moment. “Me and Barty didn’t actually graduate with Evan and we ran away to Italy.” He then said after thinking about it for a few seconds.
Fleamont stared at him for a few seconds before his eyes slowly widened, “I thought you were fucking with me for a second but you are not. That’s amazing!”
“Amazing?” He asked smiling,
“You’re kidding? I can’t wait to know the whole story. From Barty too, so tell him that.” Fleamont said before taking Regulus’ hand in his, then taking his wand from his pocket as the man looked at him not knowing what to say especially because of the man’s closeness.
Now, that was funny.
The boy watched as numbers slowly appeared on his hand, and once the number was complete it turned black, while the man moved his wand gently, barely touching his skin, but a very light black, until they formed a phone number. “As you can see, that’s my phone number. I hope you will text me tonight just so I know that you have my number saved so that I can bother you until you tell me everything and until we become the best of friends. Like I already know we will become.” He said looking into his eyes with a half smile, his glasses the same color as James’s which were slightly lower on his nose than before.
“I—yeah, yeah of course.” Regulus said feeling his cheeks burning.
He was blushing, wasn’t he? Damn, damn, damn.
“Now I have to go before my wife kills me. It was a pleasure.” Fleamont said, only now dropping his hand and then reaching out for his, which was grabbed by the boy promptly.
“Me too. I mean, for me too.” He said as the man gave him one last smile, before following his wife out of the room, who until that moment had been waiting for him with a smile on her face.
Great.
James appeared after a few seconds next to him, “What did you talk about with Pa?” But he didn’t receive an answer, so he leaned slightly to look at his face and let out a laugh when he saw his cheeks. “And why are you blushing? You only blush with me.”
Regulus glared at him, clearing his throat, “I’m not blushing and I’m not talking to you.” He then decided to cross his arms over his chest, pouting.
“Oh, heyyy. I don’t like pouting. What have I done, mi amor?” James asked, leaning closer to him in a low voice,
“Everything! You acted so offended in front of your parents to prove that I was the bad guy—”
“That’s not what happened.” James whined in offense, but he continued undaunted,
“—the first time I met them as your boyfriend, who ah, by the way, I might not be anymore.”
“Hey hey, let’s not do that.” James said sadly as the guy turned away,
“Don’t talk to me.”
“Reg.”
“No.”
“I was kidding! I mean, not really about the whole Barty thing, but I was kidding!”
“No.” He repeated again, watching as Sirius spun a laughing Harry around himself.
“Don’t pout, please. You know how much I don’t like that pout.” James said sadly as Regulus ignored him again, his cheeks finally seeming to cool again.
Ah, being angry at James helped.
Good.
“I’m sorry.”
“You should be.”
“Can you forgive me?”
“No.”
“Please?”
“Nope.”
“Pretty please? Please please?” James asked, reaching out and grabbing Regulus around the waist, who still had his back to him, before pulling him towards him and resting his head in the crook of his neck. “Please, Reg.”
“It won’t work.” He said but James could already hear a change in his tone of voice, so smiling he turned him around so he could look him in the eyes, risking Sirius hitting him again, and rested his nose against his.
“Please.”
“I’m immune to you, I’ve already told you.”
“I’m risking my whole life here.” James said before starting to kiss his nose, then moving down to his cheek, and the other cheek, whispering a «please» with each kiss as Regulus struggled to keep a neutral face. “I was so wrong to do that.”
“You were.” He agreed as James continued his mission of kissing every part of his face,
“I know, I know. So so so wrong.” He agreed before starting again on his nose as Regulus tried to push him away in vain,
“Stop it,”
“Not until I’m forgiven. And I know that you don’t hate being kissed.” James said in a satisfied tone as Regulus gave his first smile as he lingered a few seconds longer on his eyelid, “And should I remind you that I’m risking my life here? If Sirius sees me like this he’ll punch me again.”
“He wouldn’t—James, I swear—Harry’s here, he wants to make a good impression. Stop it!”
“Nuh uh.”
“Yes.”
“Am I forgiven?” He asked, pulling away slightly to look him in the eyes as he thought for a few seconds before shaking his head, “See? I have to do more.”
“Stop it! I swear—James—” Regulus said, fighting against him and not laughing as the kisses were increasing, “Alright, alright! You’re forgiven!” He burst out in a giggle as the boy pulled his face away to lean into his, his eyes so satisfied it made him roll his eyes.
“I’m happy that we made peace again.”
“Shut up.”
He leaned in to place his lips gently on his, his arms still around his waist, “Never.”
But then Sirius' voice suddenly interrupted them, while Sirius was looking straight at them now, “Prongs, I swear to Merlin in person—”