everything that ever was or ever will be

To James it feels like waiting for an eternity. It has only been an hour or so, but he’s getting anxious. He can’t imagine why Regulus is taking so long to recover the item from the cave. Dread builds in James’ chest as he considers for the first time, maybe what tries to steal Regulus from him is inside the cave, not where he goes next from there.

Pressing himself flat against his broomstick, James speeds down towards the cave entrance, seeing a faint blue glow coming from deep inside as he gets closer. That’s when he hears Regulus scream. It’s agonising. Agony in how Regulus cries out and how James’ heart rips in two from the sound. He soars over the black lake inside the cave to where he can see the source of the blue glow.

James has spent the last year of his life fighting on battle fields, burying friends, and coming home covered in blood with the stench of dark magic clinging to him. But nothing he has witnessed in these last twelve months compares to the terror he sees in Regulus’ eyes as he is dragged into the dark waters by white, slimy, clawed hands.

When James reaches him, he is almost completely submerged in the lake. Just one hand reaches up, out of the water and James grabs it with all his strength, pulling him from the unforgiving depths of the lake. Reg isn't heavy, but the hands clinging to his body makes it that much more of a struggle. James’ arm shakes from effort but he holds on, letting go is not an option. He zooms back out of the cave, never letting his grip on Regulus faulter, and does not let go until he sets them both down on the cliffs above the cave’s entrance .

“Regulus! Reg!” James cries, clinging onto Regulus’s shivering body, “You’re ok. I promise love. I’m here. You’re ok.”

Regulus blinks his eyes open. They are visibly red from strain and the fight he must have been putting up against the Inferi in the cave. But as soon as James looks into the storm grey eyes, he melts. He can feel the fear drain out of his body and he swears he will never let go of Regulus again.

“Dumbledore,” Regulus stutters, still coughing water from his lungs, “We need to go to – shit.”

“Regulus just take a minute to breathe,” James tries. He is still holding Regulus, stroking his damp curls from his face, Regulus shivering in his arms, when he suddenly jerks upright, clutching at his left forearm.

“No James. The Dark – he’s – Voldemort is summoning me. He’s never called on me before.”

James can feel the colour drain from his face. No. He just saved Regulus. He won’t risk letting him anywhere near danger now, not so soon. It feels like Death is laughing at James, trying to steal Regulus away from him out of spite.

He lifts Regulus’ face towards his own and decides that he must tell Regulus everything he knows. Regulus is a Slytherin and James is praying that his sense of self-preservation will help James keep him, keep him safe. He untucks the time turner from beneath his jumper once more, watching as Regulus’ brows furrow at the sight of it, questioning.

When James finishes his recount, Regulus is still staring back at him, not looking away for a moment. James feels just as apprehensive as Regulus looks. They both know that Regulus can only escape from the consequences of this for so long.

After a minute of silently staring at each other Regulus nods his head slightly. “I need to die.”

“What? No! Reg you must have just missed the part where I literally changed time to stop that from happening!” James starts to panic. Regulus just raises one eyebrow at James, clearly waiting for something. Then it clicks for James. Regulus needs to die so that James in the future (or the past, he’s not really sure which) will go back to save Regulus.

“Ok,” he says, smiling and taking hold of Regulus’ hand. “We will let the others think you didn’t make it out of the cave, but I am not going back without you. So, Reg, we have all of time, everything that ever was or ever will be. Where do you want to go first?”

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