He plays Bass

James would never admit it to Sirius but coming to this concert was definitely not a bad idea. I mean, James was actually enjoying the music and the guy playing the bass was hot. Like honestly, James doesn’t think he had ever seen someone so attractive.

The guy was wearing all black and there was some kind of aura surrounding him that pulled James in. He knew how to perform and he seemed to have most of the crowd wrapped around his finger.

During one song that Marlene informed him after was called Playing Dangerous, the singer that Marlene was madly in love with sang to her and James had to admit, it was fun watching Marlene totally lose her cool.

In the middle of the song, the music slowed down and the hot bass player stepped up with a microphone.

“Hi everyone,” He whispered, smirking. “How are all of you tonight?”

The crowd went absolutely feral and James couldn’t help but smile. At least he wasn’t the only one who was absolutely infatuated with this guy

“Alright! I’m glad to hear it.” The man said when the crowd quieted down. “Now I’ve been looking through this crowd of truly gorgeous people and I’m not going to lie, one of you has really caught my eye.”

Once again, the crowd blew up cheering.

The guy laughed and honestly, it was such a wonderful sound. When the crowd gave him a little room to talk he pointed to the area where James and marlene were standing. “So, dashing man in the front, I have a question for you.”

James froze a bit. At first he thought the guy was pointing at him but as he looked around he saw a lot of good looking guys.

Suddenly, the light flashed to where James was and he fully jumped which made him blush and so instead of saying anything, he stood there, frozen, looking like an idiot.

“Okay fine,” the bassist smirked. “Don’t say anything. Here is my question.”

The drums kicked in, still rather quiet and regulus began.

Do you have a girl?
I don’t see a ring on your finger

The music slowed a bit, giving a bit of a pause. Unfortunately, James had yet to collect himself. He hadn’t heard the guy sing on his own yet and although he was basically just talking with music behind him, James loved the sound of his voice. Marlene however was not frozen and she decided to yell, “He is single! He's got no girl or boy!”

The man chuckled and finished

Well, that’s interesting
Have you ever thought of dating a singer?

James felt his jaw drop. He nodded his head a little, not breaking eye contact with the singer. He had to admit, this guy was bloody fit.

The guy held his eye for a moment before snapping out of it, and winking at James before he went right back to playing bass as the crowd went wild.

People started slapping James on the back and congratulating him but he was still focused on the singer.

Finally, Marlene caught his attention. “Are you fucking kidding me!”

“What?” James asked, startled

“I mean come on, don’t you know who that is?” She asked, smirking

James raised his eyebrow. “He’s the bassist. Why?”

Marlene laughed. “James, don’t you remember how we got tickets? He’s the one who got them for us. Have you seriously never seen a picture of him? I mean, god, I've even seen old photos of him and Sirius.”

Suddenly, it all hit James. That was Regulus. The totally hot guy on stage was Sirius’s little brother.

Whipping his head around, James found Sirius and Remus who were both looking at him with very different expressions.

Remus looked like he was about to piss himself from laughing so hard but Sirius looked exasperated.

James just shrugged and turned around to watch the rest of the show, trying his best not to shag the bassist with his eyes.

*************

When the concert ended, James and Marlene met up with Remus and Sirius towards the front.

Sirius had his eyebrows raised towards James

James immediately put his hands up in surrender. “I didn’t even do anything! Don't look at me like that. I didn’t know which one was your brother till after that and it’s not my fault your brother is hot.”

Remus snorted and put his head down and Marlene did the same thing.

Sirius just sighed and turned around. “Well, it’s time to go backstage to greet my brother and his friends. James, I'd like to request that you keep the eye shagging to a minimum while I’m here.”

James laughed. “No promises man.”

Remus shook his head and said, “You know, that song at the end was really good.”

Marlene nodded. “It was. It was utterly lacking Dorcas’s angelic voice but it had a lot of emotion behind it. Who hurt your brother Siri?”

Sirius shook his head while still walking. “Who hasn’t hurt my brother is the real question.”

James felt a small twinge in his chest. He realized that he really didn’t know anything about Regulus but he could infer a lot about his past just from what he knows about Sirius’s past.

As they got to the door backstage, a girl was waiting. “Hi there, my name is Mary MacDonald. I am friends with the Serpents as well as their Security manager. You must be Sirius.”

Sirius nodded. “Yea, I’m Reggies older brother.”

Mary laughed lightly. “If he heard you call him that he’d probably kill you.”

“Actually, I think I’m the only one who can say that without being murdered in my sleep.” Sirius said with a grin.

Mary matched his smile. “That is probably true. Are these three with you?”

“Yes they are. My boyfriend and two of my closest friends.”

“Perfect. I’ll lead you back to their green room then.” Mary said, pushing the stage door open and walking forward.

As they approached, the four could hear voices drifting through the hallway.

“What about you Reggie?” A female voice, presumably Dorcas asked

“What about me Cas?”

“Oh please Reg, I was on guitar and even I could see the tension between you and that bloke.” A guy said with a light laugh

“The one during Playing Dangerous?” Regulus asked

James tripped over his feet when he heard that as they got right outside the door.

“Yes, that one. The bloody fit one that you stared at even after Playing Dangerous.” the girl said.

“Okay yes. He was very hot. In fact, he was extremely hot but it’s not like I’m ever going to see him again.” Regulus said

“You guys can go in whenever. I have to go check on a few things but I’ll swing by later.” Mary said, waving as she went back the way they had come.

Dorcas sighed. “You know, him and that blonde were together. We could go and look for them.”

Marlene smiled at that and shoved the door open, pushing James inside and following right behind

James could see Regulus’s back as he laughed. “What would we even say? Hey, hot guy in the green shirt, you're hot. Wanna come backstage for a quick shag?”

James saw the two other guys in the band share a look before their grins grew large, looking at James.

Getting a sudden surge of boldness, James said, “I mean, I wouldn’t say no.”

Regulus whipped around, eyes wide looking at the scene behind him. He stared at James for a moment and then glanced at the three behind him. James looked at them too. Remus was shaking from laughter, looking at a mortified Sirius and Marlene was staring right at Dorcas who seemed to be looking at her as well.

“You must be Regulus’s brother!” The man with sandy blonde hair said, standing up and approaching Sirius.

Sirius looked relieved to not have to deal with what he had heard Regulus say. “Yes, that would be me. You’re bar- No, you’re evan right?”

Evan smiled and nodded. “Yes. I’m Evan, that is barty and that is Dorcas.” He said pointing at the two.

“And you,” He said turning to Remus, “Must be the boyfriend. Regulus has talked about his fondness for you.”

Remus smiled nodding.

“And you two,” Evan said, turning to James and Marlene. “You are the ones who have made our lovely singers swoon.”

Dorcas’s eyes went wide and she turned away but Regulus walked over and wacked Evan on the head.

“Arsehole” He muttered under his breath, walking over to Remus. “It’s great to see you again Remus. I was starting to think my brother was keeping you from me.”

Remus smiled. “Ah yes, your brother and his insatiable jealousy. I think he’s worried I’ll leave him for you.”

Regulus smirked and James had to try not to swoon. “Well, would you? I think we’d be a much better fit. I mean, we have the same taste in films and books if I remember correctly.”

Remus nodded. “That’s a good point. I can never talk to your brother about that kind of stuff. Did you ever end up reading Dorian Grey?”

Regulus’s face lit up. “I did! I cannot believe I hadn’t read it before. I absolutely-”

“That’s enough nerd talk Reggie.” Sirius said. “And enough talk with my boyfriend in general.”

Regulus glared at his brother. “Don’t call me that. And also, who are you to control who your boyfriend talks to? See Remus, you can do so much better.”

Sirius arched an eyebrow. “Did you exchange numbers or something? You seem very chummy and I don’t remember books coming up at our dinner.”

The two averted eye contact. “Oh my god you did. Moony, this is betrayal.”

“This is boring.” Barty groaned. “Can we go back to talking about Dorcas and Regulus’s weird crush on those two?”

“I’d actually quite like to hear about Dorcas’s crush.” Marlene said and James laughed.

Dorcas, who had been staring at the wall with much intensity turned to face Marlene. “Oh please, your one to talk. I see that sign that you are still holding.”

Marlene grinned. “Yes, well, I have no shame. I am perfectly up front about my infatuation with you. In fact, I really don’t mind you thinking I'm pretty. I’d rather you be up front about it but if you want to play hard to get just remember, I always get what I want.”

Barty’s jaw dropped and Dorcas smiled. “We’ll see about that.”

“Damn!” Barty exclaimed. “If this concert isn’t matchmaking central then I don’t know what is.”

Evan rolled his eyes. “It has literally made one match and I have a feeling they are gonna take a while to get together.”

Suddenly, the door opened and a girl with sandy blonde hair and the same blue eyes as Evan walked in slowly.

“What on earth have I walked in on?” She asked with a laugh

“Oh thank god Pandora.” Regulus muttered under his breath. “You saved me.”

“Yes well, I am afraid I have some bad news.” She said, looking disappointed.

“Oh no Dora, don’t do that.” Evan complained. “We’ve been having such a good time here , isn't that right Reggie?”

Regulus glared at Evan so fiercely that James thinks if that was directed at him he would spontaneously combust. “Do not call me that.”

“Right, sorry.” Evan said, clearing his throat.

“What were you saying Dora?” Regulus asked.

“Benji broke his arm.” She said quickly.

“Fuck” Regulus said.

“Who’s Benji?” Sirius asked.

“He’s our photographer.” Regulus said, deep in thought. “Shit that sucks. I really liked his work. Everyone else that sent in photos was awful. How are we going to find a replacement so fast? It took us months to find him.”

Sirius looked at James who shook his head. “You know Reggie,” Sirius said, ignoring the glare Regulus sent him. “I actually know a really good photographer.”

Pandora looked at Sirius. “Could I see their work?”

Sirius nodded. “Yea, they did a photoshoot a couple of weeks ago for me. They mostly do magazine photoshoots but they have actually done a few concerts. Let me find some of those.” He said, pulling out his phone and showing Pandora.

“Damn.” She whispered. “These are better than Benji’s were. Regulus, come take a look.”

Regulus begrudgingly went over and his expression softened. “Dang. Don’t tell Benji I said this but these are much better than his were.”

Pandora looked at Sirius. “Do you know if they are even available?”

Sirius laughed a little. “Yes. They are definitely available. In fact, they have been doing absolutely nothing and have been looking for a way to get back on their feet.”

“Sirius, really? Must we-” James started

“Hush Prongs, the grown-ups are talking.” Sirius interrupted.

“Well,” Pandora smiled. “Cost really shouldn’t be a problem. We are making plenty each show so if they want to present us with a number we can see if we can go with it.”

“Sounds good Pandora.” Sirius said, turning to James. “James, how much do you cost per show?”

Regulus, who had been drinking water, choked on it and Barty broke out laughing.

James felt his cheeks turn red. “I haven’t done concerts in a long time. I doubt my photos will turn out good.”

Pandora shook her head. “Nonsense James. Even if these were 50% less good than what I’m seeing, you’re still our best option.”

“Okay, let's say that's true. How long are you guys touring for?” James asked

“We have 18 shows left over the next 2 months but only 8 destinations.” Pandora said with a kind smile. “You would of course travel with the band and your friends are welcome to come. Lodging is also all taken care of so you wouldn’t have to worry about that.”

Sirius gasped. “Wait, if James takes this job I get to spend the next two months with my darling brother!?” He asked

Regulus went to the couch and sat by Dorcas with a groan. “Really Dora? You had to go and invite my brother?”

“Don’t be mean Regulus.” Sirius scolded. “You know me being around will make you happy even if you won’t admit it.”

Regulus rolled his eyes. “You being around won’t make me anything but miserable. Your boyfriend on the other hand, now that will make me very happy.”

Remus laughed. “Oh yes Prongs, you should definitely do this. I would love nothing more than to spend the next two months with both Black brothers.”

James gave a weak smile. “Don’t you have a job Remus?”

“Well, yea but I’m a journalist and high up enough to take a break. Besides, I could write about the up and coming Serpents and we could use pictures in my next article. It could be an exclusive with interviews from all the bandmates.”

“Wait a second,” Barty said. “Are you Remus Lupin? Like the one who got to interview David Bowie before he passed?”

Remus blushed rather faintly. “Uh yeah that would be me. I got to interview Bowie a few years back. He died like 4 months later. I don’t think I’ll ever recover. I was shaking like crazy the entire time.”

“Yeah that makes sense.” Evan squealed. “It’s David fucking Bowie. If you were calm you’d be a psychopath.”

“It’s official.” Barty announced. “James is our new photographer because I am in love with Remus Lupin and I want to spend the next two months with him.”

Remus laughed and Sirius glared. “I mean, if it’s okay with everyone I’d love to be your photographer.” James said softly.

Barty cheered and Regulus rolled his eyes.

“Oh come on Reggie, chin up.” Sirius said. “Believe me, you’ll warm up to us real fast.”

“Not bloody likely.” Regulus grumbled. “As much fun as this has been, I’m off to bed. The plane leaves tomorrow morning at 6 for Spain so you all can meet us at the airport.”

“Nice to see you again Regulus.” Remus said as Regulus put his Bass away.

“You too Lupin.” He said with a smile. “Be sure to pack something sexy. Spain can get real warm.”

“Only for you Black.” Remus said with a wink.

As Regulus went to leave, James stopped him. “So what was that you said earlier about a quick shag?”

Regulus turned a magnificent shade of red. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Oh come on,” James said, not knowing where his sudden surge of boldness was coming from. “It was around the same time that you were talking about that really hot guy in the green shirt.”

Regulus scoffed. “God this is going to be a long few months.”

James smirked. “Only if you decide to hate me. I mean honestly, we could have a great time you and I.”

Regulus took a step back and looked James up and down. “Yes, I’m sure we could. Too bad I really don’t like you.”

And with that, Regulus pushed James aside and walked out the door, leaving James clueless as to what had just happened.

______________

James Fleamont Potter. Of course it had been James Fleamont Potter. The very same guy that regulus had decided at the mere age of 10 to absolutely despise. Of course that is who he has a huge crush on 3 hours after meeting him.

I mean, not only was the arsehole good looking, he was also a bloody skilled photographer. How was that fair?

His photos had honestly spoken to Regulus. Not the concert ones that Sirius had shown him but the ones that Regulus found after a light social media stalk. Some of them were just photos of random things but every single one seemed to have some deeper meaning veiled behind it. I mean really, he was sort of a genius. He had clearly entered the right line of work. He was so bloody good and yet he wasted his talent doing magazine photoshoots and being a concert photographer.

If anything, that just made him even more insufferable. Not only had he ruined Regulus’s adolescence but now he took his talent and squandered it. He was probably the type of guy who genuinely didn’t think much of his work. So bloody infuriating.

Of course, when Regulus gave Sirius four tickets he knew that there was a big chance Sirius would drag James along. Perhaps Regulus should have at one point asked to see a picture of James. I mean, when they were younger he was basically all Sirius could talk about and yet, up until tonight, Regulus had had no idea what he looked like. He hadn’t really been in any of the photos Sirius had from school but now that Regulus knows what his chosen field of work is, it sort of makes sense.

No. Absolutely not. Regulus could not be dealing with this at the moment. He needed to write or sleep. He could not be wasting time thinking about James Potter. Definitely not when the label is asking for new songs. No actually, asking is not the right word. The label was demanding new songs from Regulus and he needed to write.

The issue wasn’t that regulus couldn’t write. His songs always came out good. The issue was more that he had no idea what the type of music this next album was going to be. The label wanted another soft rock album but everything Regulus was writing was coming out folksy or some kind of indy pop.

There was one song in particular that would not leave Regulus’s mind. He had been writing it for quite some time now but he had refused to put it on paper. Putting it on paper made it seem far too real and it was far too raw for anyone to hear it.

Unfortunately, it had completely overtaken his brain. Grabbing his guitar from the food of his bed he started strumming a few cords very lightly.

You were riding your bike to the sound of "It's No Big Deal"
And you're trying to lift off the ground on those old two wheels
Nothing about the way that you were treated ever seemed especially alarming 'til now
So you tie up your hair and you smile like it's no big deal

Regulus paused, writing down a few of the cords and all the lyrics that were flowing out of his mouth. Sometimes he felt like a spout that couldn’t be turned off no matter how hard he tried. Even when he was younger he was a writer. Back then it was simple poems that Sirius always called his ‘Sad boy poetry’ but look where it had gotten him.

Well, honestly, it hadn’t gotten him very far. Sure, he had his friends and he had his money and fame but that didn’t stop him from getting cheated on. That didn’t stop his very public, very painful breakup a few months ago. He had yet to write anything about that yet and he was a bit nervous about what he would write about.

Shaking off that thought, Regulus continued to sing.

You can let it go
You can throw a party full of everyone you know
And not invite your parents, 'cause they never showed you love
You don't have to be sorry for leaving and growing up,

People would probably hear this song and assume he wrote it about himself. Only Sirius would know that it was about him. Only Sirius would hear the forgiveness in the lyrics. Regulus carried a lot of guilt everyday about how awful he was to Sirius when he left. He had every right to leave but Regulus had still felt so abandoned. Now, the scars were still there but they were lighter. Both physically and mentally. Regulus needed Sirius to know that he felt no resentment towards Sirius for how he got out of that situation.

Maybe one day he would let Sirius hear the song. For now at least, he would write the lyrics that were meant just for him.

Hey now, you talk of the pain like it's all alright
But I know that you feel like a piece of you's dead inside
You showed me a power that is strong enough to bring sun to the darkest days
It's none of my business, but it's just been on my mind

Regulus continued to jot down the lyrics until he could barely move. Then, he shoved everything in a suitcase and passed out on his bed.