come as you are

11

There are many reasons why Regulus does not like violence.

Starting with the fact that his parents used it as a punishment in all forms growing up, and when one grows up always feeling up against someone they can’t win against, they start to believe they’ll never be able to get the upper hand with anyone.

Regulus has never been good at arguing. He doesn’t like to hurt people, he doesn’t like to cause harm. Yet, he’s a selfish person, because in his fear of hurting himself or others, he builds walls around himself so high and thick and impenetrable that he refuses to see the consequences he’s left on the other side.

Sirius has always been the strong one out of the two of them. He always stood up to their parents, he always took the fall, and when they beat him down, he always got up again. He held the strength Regulus couldn’t even fathom, and even now they’re out of Grimmauld, Sirius still holds his strength like an armour. He’s not afraid of it, he’s not scared to back down. If anything, his parents made Sirius stronger.

All his parents ever did for Regulus was remind him off his weakness.

Regulus has never been a strong individual; physically, emotionally, or metaphorically. Physically, he’s below the bar on everything. He’s short, he’s scrawny, and he’s as thin as a twig, the constant swirls of emotions and anxiety inside of him seem to make any ounce of fat on his body to drip off and leave him gangly and unsightly to look at.

Emotionally, Regulus can’t handle anything. He runs away from his problems, hides from them, pretends they don’t exist until they go away. Regulus was always an emotional child, and it became something that angered his parents and Sirius when Regulus was too soft, too attached to things, or when he cried as an immediate reaction to something he didn’t like. Now, usually he’s good at shutting it off to be able to move through the day, but sometimes it just fills him like a balloon. He just gets so overwhelmed that he feels like his skin is melting off his body, that his ears are filled with bugs, and that his ribs have turned into clawed hands around his lungs and squeeze and squeeze and squeeze. Regulus hates feeling, yet he seems to be hardwired to feel everything.

When Regulus is faced with confrontation, all he can feel is the attention. Being invisible is Regulus’ superpower, because it’s the only thing that has kept him alive for this long. He couldn’t fight his parents in Grimmauld, so he hid. He stayed invisible. He can’t fight the power of his peers at Hogwarts, so he stays invisible. Attention leads to consequences, which is why Regulus likes to stay hidden and invisible.

It is why Regulus has made it a person mission to be alone.

If Regulus is alone, there is no one to try and hurt him.

That’s what James Potter has ruined.

Before James came along, Regulus liked being alone. It was his safe space, his place of comfort.

Now?

Now it’s all ruined, because Regulus allowed James to come into his life and leave a shadow of himself there.

Now, just when Regulus was beginning to get used to James being around, he now has to learn to erase it again. He has to get used to James not being there, because it’s not safe. With James comes courage, comes bravery, and while those qualities are great for him, they’re a danger for Regulus. He’s too cowardly and weak to stand beside someone like James, who jumps in to help people and will put himself in danger to protect them. Regulus isn’t like that. He can’t do that.

It's been six days since Regulus witnessed the chaotic showdown between the Marauders and Slytherins. Apart from sneaking in that same night into the infirmary to make sure Sirius was okay, relieved to find him sleeping but patched up, Regulus has been avoiding everyone. The only person he hasn't been hiding from is Pandora, much to the Hufflepuff's pleasure as she is, for once, not being exiled with the rest of society.

Regulus is not ashamed to admit that he has been lying. He’s gone back to his comfort roots of spending all his time in class and his dorm. He avoided the library until today, knowing it was a prime spot for people (James and Sirius) to be able to find him. He hasn’t eaten in the Great Halls, instead surviving on the food stuffed and stored in his trunk. He hasn’t been very hungry anyway, his stomach in permanent knots and flips and making him feel almost permanently sick since the 'incident’.

Today is Regulus’ first day in the library, and that is solely because he has run out of books in his trunk that he has not read from front to back various times. He has some Ancient Rune homework he needs to do, but all of his books are failing to provide what he needs, so he unfortunately has to risk the venture to the library.

Regulus is just hoping that it’s been long enough that James and Sirius won’t be on the prow still to find him.

He just wants peace.

Is that too much to ask?

The answer to his question comes not even 10 minutes into the library.

Regulus is scanning the shelves in the Reference Section, eyes skimming rapidly over every title, when he see’s a head of blonde hair come bounding up in his peripheral vision.

Pandora grins at him as she comes to stand at his side. Her long blonde hair is wavy and wild as it flows down her back and over her shoulders. His one and only friend is the epitome of sunshine, and every time he see's her he's reminded of her natural sparkle and brightness.

Regulus wishes he could sparkle like that.

"Hey, Reg!" Pandora beams.

"Hey," he smiles back, feeling his shoulders unconsciously tense up. He looks back quickly to the books, feeling the uptick of his heart a clear indicator that he needs to hurry this up.

"How have you been?" She asks.

"Fine," Regulus nods. "Just getting a book for my runes homework."

"I figured there’d be a reason why you’re out of your bat cave," she laughs softly. "Would you like to come and study with me?"

"I can’t," Regulus replies, plucking a book off the shelf. He opens it and skims through the contents page, pretty convinced this book might be his holy grail for this piece of homework.

Success, he thinks gleefully.

Pandora sighs, breaking through Regulus’ mini mental parade of success.

"Come on, Reg. I miss my study partner."

Regulus’ eyes flick up from the book to look at Pandora quizzically. "We’re not study partners."

"Well, I miss you. Is that good enough?"

Regulus feels like he’s been punched in the stomach.

"I’m sorry," Regulus whispers, because he is. He always is. He doesn’t like that he hurts people in the process of protecting himself, and he doesn’t like that Pandora is always the closest target that gets impacted.

Truthfully, Regulus doesn’t know why she’s put up with him for so long.

"I know," Pandora says, flashing him a smile. "I know you, too, Reg. I know why you’re doing this, but I miss you. I miss my friend."

Regulus misses Pandora too. He knows he should tell her, and he knows she always promises she understands why he does what he does, but Regulus doesn’t think she really gets it.

Pandora is just too good. She’s too normal, too relaxed, too sure and comfortable in her own skin to even be able to fathom why Regulus has a bone-deep hatred for attention and visibility.

He knows he should study with Pandora. He knows she shouldn’t shut her out and runaway again.

Regulus just can’t do it.

"I should go back to my dorm," Regulus says. "I’m sorry, Pan. I just…"

"James is looking for you," Pandora says, and Regulus stills at the mention.

How does Pandora know?

Is James asking Pandora about him?

Who else is James asking about him?

"Okay," Regulus eventually chokes out, wishing it came out unbothered and calm, but instead it comes out shaky and nervous.

"Apparently you're avoiding him, and he wants to know why," Pandora explains.

"It doesn’t matter," Regulus argues, though he knows it’s a weak denial. His hands begin to shake where they’re clutching the book in his hands, and he grips it hard until his knuckles bleed white.

"He really cares for you," Pandora says softly, almost tentatively.

He shouldn’t, Regulus thinks.

Why would he care for someone who is as toxic as a black hole swallowing up the universe?

That’s all Regulus is; a black hole.

A black hole of problems, of emotions, of trauma and pain and misery and—

James shouldn’t waste his time on Regulus. He’s a lost case. He’s too damaged from his parents, from Grimmauld, from his hardwired tendencies to hide and run and cower.

James is better than that.

James deserves better than that.

He deserves someone like Bridget Goldstein.

When the sixth year Ravenclaw approached Regulus last week to ask about James, Regulus had been shaken to his core. He’d been frozen in surprise that he’d barely been able to get his brain online again in time to hear Bridget ask if James was 'available'.

It had taken Regulus a second to understand what Bridget was asking; was James single.

Of course, Regulus had said yes, because James is.

What Regulus couldn’t figure out was, why Bridget was asking him.

"I’ve seen you hanging out with him recently," she’d shrugged. "I figured you knew him well enough with how much time you’ve spent with him, and it was easier to ask you than find one of the Gryffindors."

Regulus had felt like he’d been slapped. He’d physically recoiled when Bridget said how much she’d seen him.

People were starting to notice. They were starting to recognise him, identify him, talk about him.

If Regulus wasn’t already on a downward spiral, talking to Bridget sent him on a nose dive.

When Bridget seemed happy about Regulus’ confirmation about James being single, and then seeing them together talking in the corridors a day later, it made Regulus realise something.

He felt jealous.

When he saw Bridget and James, he felt like he’d been plunged into a tub of ice. His entire body had gone into a type of shock, because he realised that he wished that could be him.

He wanted to be Bridget, because he wanted to be able to have James like that.

Feeling small and foolish, Regulus had wanted to launch himself off the top of the astronomy tower. He can’t have James, he can’t even allow himself to think of it.

With an ache in his chest, Regulus had to remind himself that James deserves someone like Bridget. He deserves someone sure of themselves, who would be happy to talk to James for hours, who he can play Quidditch with and do fun things with. He deserves to be with someone like him, who is bubbly and happy and normal.

Regulus is too stiff. He’s too quiet. He doesn’t like talking, he doesn’t like sports or parties or people.

Regulus likes books, he likes being alone, and he likes being tucked away where no one can see him.

James is seen. James is impossible to not be seen; he’s loud, charismatic, popular. James is in the spotlight, and he deserves to be there, and more so; he wants to be there. James loves the attention, he loves the praise and the crowd and he loves the recognition he deserves.

James and Regulus don’t click.

He could click with someone like Bridget. Someone who embraces him, who pushes him up instead of dragging him down.

Bridget and James looked good together. They really did. They looked like two people who would make the other shine to their true potential. Regulus won’t do that for James. It’s one of the reasons why Sirius made friends with him; because Regulus doesn’t make people shine, it makes them dimmer, lifeless, soulless. Regulus almost did it to Sirius, and he doesn’t want to do that to James.

"He seems really worried about you, Reg," Pandora admits, and Regulus just wants to shrivel up in a corner and disappear. "He said you saw him last week with your brother and the Slytherins, and—"

Regulus shakes his head. "I need to go."

"Reg…" his best friend sighs, and Regulus knows he’s infuriating her, but he doesn’t care.

He needs to go.

He needs to hide.

"Goodbye, Pandora."

"Reg, please don’t leave," Pandora calls to him, but Regulus keeps walking. "Regulus!"

Regulus doesn’t stop. He doesn’t turn back. He marches straight out of the library with the book clutched against his chest and his head down. He can hear Pandora shouting for him, the librarian shushing her angrily, and Regulus keeps walking.

This is why he didn’t want to come to the library.

***

Regulus manages to keep his bubble intact for a three more days.

Three more days of hiding in his dorm room, of avoiding the library and the Great Hall, of keeping his face in his books to avoid seeing or thinking or suffering.

He risks coming out of his dorm today, but not by choice: his dorm mates have taken over his dorm room because one of them is sick and deciding to use the dorm as their own bloody hospital ward. Regulus wouldn’t mind, except no amount of privacy and silencing charms are enough to make Regulus not feel like his skin is crawling and being surrounded by people.

Hence, why Regulus is out of is dorms during the afternoon.

Regulus is tucked into the windowsill in a corridor looking over the courtyard. He’s got his legs folded, a book on South American Medicinal Herbology open on his lap. Rain drops run down the window, the world outside muted and dampened by the dark clouds causing the downpour lashing against the windows and walls of the castle. The sound of the rain against the glass brings Regulus a calming sense of peace, combined with the quietness of the castle and the corridor.

Regulus is completely emerged in the pages of his book, his entire focus on the words and the knowledge he’s drinking up when a hand lands on his shoulder.

Brutally thrown off guard, Regulus gasps in surprise and his head shoots up so fast his neck cracks.

His eyes almost budge out of his sockets when he see’s James standing in front of him.

"James?" Regulus breathes, chest tightening frighteningly. "W-what—"

"You’ve been avoiding me, Reg," James says. "Again."

Regulus opens his mouth, but all that comes out is a croak.

He hasn't seen James in over a week, and he hates to admit to himself, now that the boy is standing in front of him, how much he missed James. Is this what he needed? He's been running and hiding all this time, but now James is here, Regulus is relieved.

But Regulus can't even take a moment to relish in the odd relief that James is here again, that he's in front of him and somehow, he's washed away half to the anxiety that has been crippling Regulus for days, because James is staring at him with such fury.

James looks wild; hair a mess and eyes wide. He doesn’t look shocked he’s found Regulus, but instead, he looks annoyed.

Regulus has never seen James look this annoyed at anyone.

Certainly not at him.

"I… I-I haven’t—"

"You have," James interrupts again, and holy shit, he seems pissed. "Nine days, Reg! Nine days you’ve been basically bloody missing and avoiding me and everyone else, and fucking hell, Reg! I’ve been so worried! I didn’t— you haven’t—" James breaks off with a growl so deep it rumbles out of him like a roar. "What did I do this time, Reg? I thought… I thought we were getting along! I want us to get along, but you just keep running away from me at every chance! I can’t fix it if you won’t tell me what I’ve done to upset you!"

Regulus feels like he’s shaking apart. He doesn’t want James to feel like he’s to blame for this. He’s not! Regulus just can’t cope with what he saw, with what James and the people around him are capable of, with what it reminded him of.

His heart is beating so fast he feels like it's a second away from bursting out of his chest. Pins and needles pinch his arms, his head is spinning and panic has got him tightly in its grasps.

He feels sick. His stomach is flipping and summersaulting and threatening to force the cereal bar he had at lunchtime to make a reappearance.

"I should go," Regulus whispers, his legs twitching to get out of the alcove and get away.

"No!" James snaps, and Regulus recoils so fast he almost brains himself on the glass window behind him. "Hell fucking no, Regulus! You are not running away again!"

"Please, James," Regulus begs. He feels as if his entire chest in caving in, crushing his lungs and squashing his heart. "Let me—"

"Please, Reg!" James says, voice booming and cracking with desperation. "What did I do?! Just tell me! Please! For the love of Merlin, just—!"

"I don’t like violence."

James’ face shutters with shock and confusion. "W-what?"

"I don’t like violence," Regulus repeats.

"You’re talking about the incident with Snape," James says slowly, the confusion melting away and instead, his face twisting with guilt. "Aren’t you? You saw us, and now you’re afraid of me?"

"N-no…" Regulus denies, but he can’t stop his tongue from stuttering over the word.

He’s not afraid of James. He’s not! Regulus lived with Walburga and Orion Black for 15 years, and watching James duel with Snape and dangle him upside down didn’t make him scared of James. He’s just…

"I’m not afraid of you," Regulus says, voice a bit stronger. "I promise. I just… watching you…"

"Reg, what—"

"Watching you fight like that reminded me why I’m safer alone."

James steps back as if he’s been slapped. His eyes widen with horror, but then his eyebrows furrow in a frown of confusion. Regulus can see him trying to decipher what Regulus meant by 'I’m safer alone', and Regulus hates that he’s making James feel like he’s pointing the finger at him.

"There’s nothing wrong with sticking up for yourself, Regulus. Or for other people," James argues, speaking slowly as if he’s choosing his words carefully. "What went down with Snape wasn’t unprovoked or baseless. He was being an arse, and he called Lily a mu—" James cuts himself off before he says that word, his whole body shuddering as he sighs heavily. His jaw clenches and unclenches, as if trying to explain his reasoning and remembering the incident is making him angry again. "Snape deserved what was coming to him, and they were the one’s who escalated it. We reacted to what Snape said, and I will never apologise or regret defending a muggle-born or anyone else from prejudice and derogatory treatment from people!"

"P-people are talking about it."

"Good!" James says, throwing his arms up in exasperation. "That’s good, Reg. I want people to be talking about it, noticing it, and thinking about it, because what Snape and his snakes did was wrong!"

"I told you I don’t like that," Regulus whispers.

"What?" James frowns. "Recognition that people are still being prejudice and wrong? Or that there are people who are willing to fight for what’s right?"

"Attention."

"Well, I’m sorry, Reg!" James cries. "I’m sorry that standing up for people get you noticed, and I’m sorry that because I give a shit about people, that it happens to me. But a little bit of attention for a good cause will never stop me from ever standing up for what I believe in!"

"I— I-I don’t— I d-didn’t—" Regulus cuts himself off with a gasp, curling his hands into fists to get himself to calm the bloody hell down! "I just don’t know how to-to—"

"I know, Reg," James sighs, rubbing his eyes. "I know you don’t know how to deal with it, but you didn’t have to disappear because of it! If I upset you, if I scared you, you didn’t need to run away from me."

"It’s normal to run away from things that scare you," Regulus murmurs quietly. "Not all of us are brave."

James sighs, closing his eyes and looking so pained and frustrated that Regulus just wants the floor to open up and swallow him whole.

Regulus clenches his eyes closed and hides his face in his hands.

He knows he's a coward.

He knows he's pathetic.

He knows everything James is saying is right; that Regulus shouldn't hide and cut him off because he did what was morally correct.

James did a good thing, but he doesn't seem to understand that Regulus doesn't like how he did it.

"You didn't have to get into a fight," Regulus tries weakly.

He hears James breathe heavily.

"No," he says. "No, I didn't. But it... it was a reaction, Reg. It was— I was angry, and I didn't start it. I just finished it."

Regulus forces himself to take a deep breath. He breathes in and holds it until his lungs hurt and his head throbs, and then he exhales. He does this again, and again, until he doesn't feel like his insides are going to burst out of his body.

He eventually lifts his head, feeling exhausted and worn and raw. He didn't want to do this, this is why he avoided James and everyone else. He didn't want to talk about it, he didn't want to face it, he didn't want to be hated for his lack of backbone.

"Regulus, can you look at me?" James asks softly. "Please?"

Regulus does, because he can't deny James this as well.

"I’m sorry I scared you, and I’m sorry if I…" James trails off, his eyes racking over Regulus’ face before he seems to square his shoulders and continue, "I’m sorry if I reminded you of your parents," Regulus flinches harshly at the mention of them, but James ploughs on, clearly mentally egging himself to get whatever he’s about to say out. "But I need you to try and see that what me and Sirius did, we did it to defy people like your parents. We did it because Lily and other muggle or half-born wizards are continuing to be discriminated for their heritage that truthfully has nothing to do with their magical and humane capabilities!"

Regulus flashes James a wobbly, smile, which he's pretty sure looks more like a grimace than anything.

"You’re a braver person than I am, James."

"No, I’m not," James shakes his head vehemently. "You’re brave, Reg. Anyone who survived what you did in that house is a braver person than me any day. What I did wasn’t brave, and yeah, maybe violence isn’t always the answer, but it felt justified, and when they started on us, after that it was just self-defence."

That’s what Sirius always called it when he fought back against their parents - self-defence. Regulus always, and still, worries that Sirius thought he was so weak when they lived in Grimmauld. Regulus wasn’t brave like Sirius. He saw his parents raise their wands and he just took it. He never tried to defend himself, he never understood the point. They were stronger than him, and whatever he managed to even on the battlefield, it would only anger them more.

Regulus was the epitome of a coward, only shone so much brighter because Sirius was so brave in contrast.

"It doesn’t make you weak if you don’t like violence, Reg," James says, and Regulus can’t stop the bitter scoff that escapes him, eyes firmly on his knees so he doesn't have to look at James.

"Hey!" James barks, and then there are hands on Regulus' face. The shock of it has Regulus freezing instead of moving out of his hold, and he doesn't stop James from guiding his face and eyes up to meet his. "You're not weak, Regulus Black. You are anything but weak."

"People who are too scared to stand up for others, even when it's the right thing to do, are weak," Regulus says, unable to shake his head properly in James' gentle yet firm hold. "I'm a coward, James."

"No," James shakes his head, lips twisted down in a horrified frown. "You've spent your whole life dealing with bullies, dealing with people who have hurt you and tormented you, Reg. You're allowed to not want to risk getting hurt again. You're allowed to protect yourself. It doesn't make you weak because you don't want to get involved in fighting anymore. You've done enough. You are enough."

Regulus can't stop the explosion of emotion inside of him. His eyes burn, his vision blurs from the onslaught of tears. and a sob rips itself from his throat.

He's just so tired.

He's tired of running.

Tired of hiding.

Tired of hating himself.

Tired of feeling on the verge of breaking

And James?

He just took a hammer to the cracks.

Regulus is shattering.

"Don’t cry, Reg. Please, sweetheart, don’t cry," James says, sounding pained. Thumbs stroke the skin under his eyes, wiping away the tears that just keep fallling and falling. "I don’t like seeing you cry."

"I’m sorry," Regulus whimpers, stifling a sob, but that only seems to push more tears of out him.

"I don’t like hearing you say you’re sorry either," James says, pressing their foreheads together. "Especially when you don’t need to."

"I do," Regulus argues, "I always do. I’m always doing something wrong, or something that hurts someone, and I can’t—"

"You’re not hurting anyone, Reg," James whispers. "When you do this, the only person you’re hurting is yourself."

Regulus rips away from James then, pulling away so he can stare at him indignantly. "You’re lying, James. I’ve upset you, you said so yourself. I upset Pandora, I upset Sirius, and now I upset you. I just keep hurting other people all the time because I don’t know how to do anything else!"

"No. No, Reg. That’s not true! You don’t hurt people because that’s all you know how to do. You don’t hurt anyone on purpose, Reg. I know you don’t," James says, looking at Regulus like his heart is truly breaking. The older boy has tears in his own eyes now, shining and glistening so bright. "It’s an impulse for you. Hiding is your way to protect yourself, and it’s okay, because we all have our vices. We all have our own methods of protection. You hide, but do you know what I do? I fly. When I’m hurting, or I’m scared, or I’m angry, I fly. I go outside, and I will fly for hours and hours. I’ll be reckless, dangerous, even stupid. I’ll fly like I’ve got nine lives, because making myself feel like I’m a hairpin away from crashing and hurting myself is the only thing that seems to ground me. Your brother? Sirius shuts down. When he’s hurt, he hides too. He hides in our dorm, or in his room at home. He goes catatonic, won’t speak or move or sleep. He just lays there. Remus drinks. Whenever Remus is going through a hard time, he drinks himself senseless. We all have our coping mechanisms, Reg. It doesn’t make us bad people, it doesn’t make us horrible or broken."

Regulus sniffles, his shoulders shaking. James continues to swipe the tears that cascade down his cheeks.

Regulus feels like James is letting him off too lightly. He thinks James is making excuses for him, because this isn't just a coping mechanism. Regulus doesn't do this when he feels stressed or angry, he does this all the time. This is Regulus' factory setting, something he even craves when he's happy. Being alone makes Regulus feel happy, because he's not sociable or fun or exciting. Regulus doesn't like loud things, or fast paced stuff.

When he tells James this, the older boy just smiles.

"You like quiet, Reg. You like your own company, and you like books and studying. That doesn’t make you a bad person. You don’t like violence? That doesn’t make you a coward. It makes you you, and I like you, Regulus. I like that you’re quiet, I like that you are smart, that you read books, that you don’t like parties. I like you, Regulus, for you and you completely."

Regulus blinks in surprise.

James likes him?

"I... I like you too," Regulus whispers. "I don't know why, to be honest. People like you normally freak me out because you're so... opposite to me. But I... I do like you."

James grins at him, his whole face lighting up like a Christmas tree and damn, if that doesn't make Regulus' entire stomach feel like it's inhabiting butterflies that are buzzed on sugar quills.

James cradles Regulus' face like it's the most precious thing in the world. His hands are warm, instantly igniting the cold skin of Regulus' cheeks. His face feels on fire, but not in a panicking, inferno, bursting into flames kind of way. No. It feels like his skin is buzzing, the soft pads of James' thumbs stroking the curve of his cheekbone, leaving paths of heat and electricity in its wake.

And Regulus can't stop staring.

He's never been this close to James before, never had the close up view of his features. It's as if the world around them has disappeared, it's stopped turning snd  Regulus has the time to look. He can see the freckles on James' nose, the hundreds of thick eyelashes that match the equally as dark and thick eyebrows. He can see the different shades of brown and green in James' eyes, swirled together like an artwork masterpiece.

Regulus is pretty sure he's not breathing. He doesn't want to ruin this. He doesn't want James to pull away.

For the first time in his life, the touch is welcome.

For the first time, being this close to someone isn't making him squirm, but it's making him melt.

And that's what he feels like he could do. The longer he looks into James' eyes, the more he feels like he could fall in them and felt into the chocolate iris' like a bottomless pool.

"Just... please don't hate me for what happened with Snape," James begs, and it makes Regulus stomach pang with pain and guilt.

He doesn't hate James, just like he's never hated Sirius for standing up against their parents.

"I don't," Regulus promises.

"I know you think you're safer on your own, that it'll protect you from further hurt, but I would never hurt you, Reg."

"I know you wouldn't," Regulus rushes to say, because it's true. He knows James wouldn't hurt him intentionally. Regulus can't imagine a time that James would ever raise his wand at him like he did Snape.

"But you saw that I was capable, and that scared you," James says, and he hits the nail so precisely on the head that it shocks a tremor up Regulus' spine. "It's okay, as long as you know that my capabilities will never be directed at you, and because you've had enough trouble and hurt already, I will never let it happen again. I'd fight all your battles if you let me, Regulus."

And then, James is pulling their faces together again, and—

And...

And then...

Then James is kissing him.

— tbc.