Lazy Fall Afternoon
All four Marauders were lying in the grass lazily, enjoying the fall afternoon. It was one of the last days of the season where the sun was bright enough to keep them feeling warm and cozy in the grass.
Peter was lying on his back sleeping soundly, snoring softly.
Sirius and Remus were lying on their stomachs next to each other staring down at a muggle magazine. Sirius was attempting to enchant the motionless figures to sing to them, and so far his attempt to get David Bowie to sing “Rock ‘n’ Roll Suicide” had only been successful for about ten seconds before the tune had fallen flat and the little drawing of Bowie had given up sadly. Sirius seemed undeterred.
James, for his part, was lying down on his back face up, just relaxing in the afternoon air. He wasn’t totally asleep, but he could feel himself falling in and out of sleep for brief periods. He might have even been snoring a little bit, but he couldn’t be arsed to be bothered enough to stop. After all, Peter was snoring too.
Sirius continued working on his magazine, but James could hear Remus shuffling around in his bag to grab something. Eventually, he settled back down into his spot.
James tried to tune out the conversation between Sirius and Remus so that he could keep relaxing, but their voices cut through the silence, even though they were very clearly attempting not to interrupt their sleeping friends.
“Professor Kettleburn gave me top marks,” Remus was saying quietly, “said it was one of the best student essays he’d ever read.”
Sirius’ voice sounded proud when he replied. “That’s my boyfriend,” he said, so quietly it was almost inaudible, but definitely clear through the afternoon air.
James’ eyes snapped open. There was no mistaking what he’d heard.
He turned his head sharply towards them, and Sirius’ body language matched his words: they were both still lying on their stomachs, but Sirius’ head was now laying on Remus’ shoulder comfortably.
Both boys noticed James’ attention and jerked up into sitting positions guiltily.
“That’s your what?” James asked, before he could help himself.
Sirius and Remus stared at him, equally silent and wide-eyed. Peter slept on.
Sirius gave an awkward laugh, and then with forced casualty said, “Hey, James, I have something to tell you.” He laughed again, but neither of the other boys joined in.
“Remus, do you mind if we-” Sirius began, gesturing between himself and James.
Remus nodded sharply. “Go for it,” he muttered.
Quick as a whip, Sirius was up on his feet. He held out a hand for James, who took it and felt himself pulled easily to his feet.
James and Sirius walked away in silence.
After a moment, James continued the conversation. “So…boyfriend?” he asked, tentatively.
Sirius sheepishly ran his fingers through his hair. “Yeah,” he admitted, “boyfriend.”
James shook his head, feeling frustrated. Why couldn’t Sirius ever be clear and honest about anything? This - him being Remus’ “boyfriend” - made absolutely no sense, and Sirius still hadn’t offered any real explanation for how (or why) it had happened.
“What the fuck are you thinking?” James finally snapped, when Sirius didn’t offer anything else. Sirius head faced in his direction instantly. “Don’t play him like that!”
Sirius shook his head. “What?!” he asked.
“Fucking hell, Sirius, I know you’re never serious about anyone-”
Sirius spoke up before James could finish his thought. “No no no!” he said, “when’s the last time I dated anyone else, eh? Last year, right? That’s because we’ve been exclusive since the camping trip.”
“The camping trip!” James cried out, realizing belatedly that he shouldn’t raise his voice to draw attention to their conversation. When he continued, his voice was at a more conversational tone. “But that was months ago!”
“Yeah,” Sirius said, nodding emphatically, “and there was stuff even before that too, but it’s been official since then. I like him so much, James.”
James softened a little bit at that. “You do?”
Sirius nodded, and fiddled with his hands. “Yeah, more than anyone before. It shocks me sometimes, just how much.”
James smiled despite himself; Sirius rarely went this soft over anything, so it was sort of sweet that he was doing it over someone he was dating, even if that was shockingly Remus.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” James finally asked, “Did you think I’d be bad about it?”
Sirius kicked at a rock on the ground.
“I don’t know, I didn’t want you to look at me differently.”
James frowned. That felt a little unfair. Hadn’t he been supportive enough of Remus when he’d come out? It would be the same with Sirius, obviously.
“I didn’t look at Remus any differently when he came out. Why would I treat you any differently?”
Sirius smiled sheepishly and blew out a breath. “Yeah, I know, you were great.”
James grinned. “I know I was.” Sirius laughed. “And now I know about you too, and it’ll be the same.” He squeezed Sirius’ shoulder once before letting go. “Just…don’t hurt him, alright? I know you guys rile each other up a lot, so try not to hurt him.”
Sirius nodded, which James saw in his peripheral vision. “I can’t promise anything, but I can…I can try.”
James nodded. “Of course.”