this slope is treacherous, but i like it
September 1st was always a chaotic day in the Potter household. Even before Sirius and Regulus arrived, the week leading up to the first day of school was a whirlwind filled with last minute trips to Hogsmeade and muggle stores for supplies, staying up late trying to enjoy their last few nights of freedom before they go back to school. But before they knew it, they were standing on Platform 9 ¾, Effie and Fleamont standing with the three boys in between them. Regulus stood, holding the handle of his trunk tightly, eyes scanning over the crowd. To say he was nervous would be an understatement; his hands were sweaty and shaky, his jaw was tight, and his breathing was labored. Regulus wasn’t stupid, he knew that there was a very strong chance that his mother and father could be at the platform, waiting with baited breath to find him and drag him back to the dark and desolate home he came from.
As the bright red train pulled into the station, Effie turned to face Regulus, placing a gentle hand on his shoulder. “You’ll be alright, darling. If anyone gives you a bad time, don’t hesitate to let me know. I’ll raise hell with the school if need be,” She promised, pressing a gentle kiss to the top of Regulus’ head. He smiled warmly, cheeks flushing softly as he looked up at Effie. “Thank you, Mrs. Potter, I appreciate you and your husband’s kindness greatly.” He said, and Effie chuckled softly. “Always so polite, dear,” She teased, ruffling his hair with a warm smile. James nudged Regulus’ arm, giving him a smile. “Ready, Reg?” He asked, and Regulus nodded. He turned to watch the train pull in, catching a glimpse of Barty Crouch Jr. and Evan Rosier looking at him expectantly. Barty raised an eyebrow expectantly, motioning for Regulus to join them, but Regulus shook his head and began boarding the train.
Remus and Peter were sitting in their normal train car; Remus was buried in a muggle novel he had gotten over the summer, and Peter was watching out the window next to him. Sirius threw the compartment door open, grinning brightly. “Hello, my lovelies!” He exclaimed, sitting down on the bench next to Remus. He grimaced slightly before looking up at Sirius with a soft smile. “Hey, Pads,” Remus said softly. James and Regulus followed in suit, sitting on the bench across from the three others. James turned to glance at Regulus, sending him a small smile. Regulus’ cheeks flushed a bright pink and he pulled a book out of his bag. “Ah, finally moved on from Romeo and Juliet?” James teased, and Reg rolled his eyes. “Yeah, I read this one a few weeks ago, but I wanted some easy reading on the train.” He said, holding up the book in his hand. It was To Kill a Mockingbird, one of the books he had gotten with James in the city.
The train ride was relatively quiet for the Marauders. Peter had fallen asleep, Sirius was sitting sideways across the seat with his legs in Remus’ lap. Sirius was talking his ear off about something Remus wasn’t fully paying attention to. Remus spared a glance to the seat opposite of them, raising an eyebrow at the two boys sitting. Remus leaned over to whisper something in Sirius’ ear. “Are they together?” He asked quietly, and Sirius turned to look at him with a shocked expression. “No, why would they be together?” He whispered back. Remus shrugged, using his head to motion towards James and Reg. The two were sitting close to each other. Regulus was reading his book, and James was reading over his shoulder, making jokes into Regulus’ ear. Regulus was trying his hardest not to laugh too loud, covering his mouth with his hand as he tried his hardest to read in peace.
Sirius shook his head as he watched them, looking back at Remus. “Nah, James wouldn’t do that to me,” He whispered. “Plus, they’re just reading, that doesn’t mean they’re dating!”
Remus looked at Sirius questioningly. “Sirius, when we ‘study’, you know damn well we’re not studying. Besides, you said they spent a lot of time alone while you were out with me over the summer. Who’s to say they weren’t doing…something similar,” He whispered, shrugging. Sirius shook his head, laughing softly. “I don’t even want to consider that. I don’t think James would do that to me, plus Reggie’s still dealing with everything that happened at home while I was gone.” He whispered. Remus shrugged again, returning to his book with a small sigh. “Whatever, just don’t be too shocked when you find out that they’re together.” Remus teased. Sirius scoffed, closing his eyes and trying to nap before they got to the school.
The first meal back was unsurprisingly boring. They sat down, the first years came in and got sorted, the usual. James had filled his plate up for a second time, indulging in the familiar taste of the feast in front of him. Him and the rest of the Marauders were laughing, tossing balled-up napkins at each other, typical teenage boy stuff. James spared a short glance to the Slytherin table, seeing that Regulus was reading something on the table. He furrowed his brow before Regulus straightened up again, folding the letter neatly and quickly stuffing it into his pocket. He didn’t speak for the rest of the meal.
After the meal, the four friends stood up and headed back to the Gryffindor dorms. James hesitated, debating whether or not he should ask Regulus about the letter. “You comin’, Prongs?” Sirius asked, and James shook his head. “Nah, I gotta go talk to Minnie about something. I should be back soon, though.” He said calmly, smiling at his friend. Sirius looked down at him suspiciously before nodding. “Alright, but if you’re pulling a prank without me, I’ll hex you.” He joked. James laughed and shook his head. “Never, Pads,” He assured, before leaving the dorms and quickly making his way down towards the dungeons.
Before he could make it, he felt his arm get pulled and he was dragged up a flight of stairs. “Ow, what the hell?” He exclaimed, trying to pull his arm away. The person refused, pulling him up the stairs until they arrived at a small room, with a large archway and wall opening up into the night sky. James turned around and looked at the person, prepared to hex them into another dimension, before he realized it was Regulus.
The boy’s silver eyes were red, the skin around them raw from tears. “Oh, Reg,” James said, reaching out and cupping the boy’s cheeks in his larger hands. “What happened? I saw you got a letter, is this about that?” He said softly, and Regulus nodded. He pulled the letter out of his robes, holding it out for James to read. James unfolded the parchment quickly, hazel eyes scanning over the perfectly clean cursive penmanship on the paper.
Regulus Arcturus,
I have warned you once, and I will not warn you again. I have given up on your disgraced brother, but I will not give up on you. Come Winter holidays, I will see to it that you are collected and brought to the Dark Lord, where you will then get the mark and become a proper member of the Black family and a loyal member of Him. It’s time to halt these foolish acts, come home, and become a proper young man. This is non negotiable. I will see you soon.
Regards,
Walburga and Orion Black
The Ancient and Noble House of Black
James seethed, folding the letter back into itself and letting it drop to the floor. “No.” He said simply, reaching out to hold Regulus’ hands in his. “I’m not going to let that happen to you. I refuse,” He said, and Regulus shook his head. “James…” He said softly.
James pulled away from him. “No! I’m not gonna let her do that to you. To Sirius. To me. I can’t let that happen. We just got you out of there, I can’t let you go back without putting up a fight.” James exclaimed, looking into Regulus’ tear filled eyes. “I can’t let you slip away.” He said softly. Regulus reached out and held James’ face in his hands, running a thumb over James’ tanned cheek.
“She’ll stop at nothing to get me, James.” He said quietly.
James reached up to place a hand on top of Regulus’ giving him a small smile. “And I’ll stop at nothing to make sure that never happens, love. I…I can’t lose you. Not after I just got you.” He said, pressing a soft kiss onto Regulus’ palm.
Regulus sighed. “I trust you.” He whispered, as though if he said it any louder, James would run away. “I know you’ll keep me safe. I’m just scared.” Regulus’ voice broke slightly towards the end, like he was going to start crying again.
“And I trust you.” James said back, leaning in to press a soft, gentle kiss to Regulus’ lips. “She won’t get you as long as Sirius and I are here, I promise you.” He promised, before the two boys left the Astronomy tower, James holding onto the letter from Walburga in a tight fist.
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“I’ll fucking kill her,” Sirius growled, crumpling the letter in his hands. “I hate her, I hate her so fucking much,” He exclaimed as he threw the crumpled letter on the ground. The group of Marauders sat in the common room, and James had let them read the letter Walburga had sent to Regulus. Remus was sat on one of the large, fluffy couches, trying his best to keep Sirius calm. Peter was sat on the other end of the couch, watching as Sirius stood up and flung his arms around angrily. James was sitting on the armchair next to the couch, running his hand over his face sleepily. They had been at this for two hours- Sirius and James ranting, Peter sitting there quietly, and Remus trying to calm the two boys down.
James sighed and stood up. “We can’t let that nasty bitch get Regulus, we need to make sure that she can’t get anywhere near him. How do we do that?” He asked, and Sirius chewed on his bottom lip.
“The only option I can think of is not letting Regulus get anywhere near Hogwarts express the day that we’re supposed to leave. Maybe he could floo from Dumbledore’s office, or he could apparate back to your house, Prongs?” Sirius asked, running his fingers through his hair.
James thought for a moment. “That’s true. We could have mum and dad come pick him up straight from Hogwarts?” He inquired.
“What if you just have Fleamont come to Hogwarts and apparate with Regulus straight back to your house, James?” Remus asked. The two boys turned to stare at Remus, thinking over the plan in their head. “Remus Lupin, you are a genius,” Sirius said. “We can get your dad to bring Reggie home; that way, even if they find him, he’s not alone.”
James nodded and ran his fingers through his tousled hair. “Now that we have a plan, can we please go to sleep? I’m exhausted, and I have an early class tomorrow.” Remus asked, and they all nodded. James grabbed the crumpled letter that Sirius had thrown down, slipping it into the pocket of his robes, before he changed into a pair of flannel pajama pants and laid down in his bed, pulling the curtains closed. He climbed under the thick blanket, setting his glasses on the table beside his bed, and begging his brain to let him sleep.
The plan was…well, it wasn’t great, but if you put four teenage boys in a room together and expect them to come up with an incredible plan, you need to lower your expectations. James held onto the hope, though, that this plan- as stupid and risky as it was, would work, and Regulus would be okay. As he thought about the plan, and the desperate hope he had that it would work, he felt himself drift off into a dreamless sleep.