The Problem (Because of the Solution)
“Wake up you git!”
James felt a pillow hitting his already aching head. He opened his eyes to see Sirius glaring down at him.
“Where were you last night mister?” Sirius said in an almost motherly tone that James couldn’t help but laugh at.
“Oi! Don’t laugh at me Prongs, I waited last night for you only to find out at 4AM that you were already fast asleep” Sirius said angrily hitting James with a pillow again.
“Oh I'm sorry, didn’t realize you were my mother.” James said, sitting up fully now, “Please, forgive me mummy dearest.” James rolled his eyes.
“Fuck off,” Sirius said, trying not to laugh
After finally getting out of bed James let out a quiet “Morning Moony, morning Wormtail” in a sing-songy tone while he stretched.
“Oh what I’m not good enough for a good morning” Sirius teased James
“No people who wake me up don't get a good morning”
“To be fair I could’ve woken you up at 4AM'' Sirius retorted.
“Wow you're a saint,” James rolled his eyes, and got out of bed.
After a few minutes Peter then joined the conversation while he was still lying on his own bed “Hey, you never answered Sirius’s question.”
“Yeah he’s right, thank you wormy, where were you last night?” Sirius repeated with his hands on his hips.
“Um no where” James said, failing to come up with a good excuse, it was too early for an interrogation.
“Well, now I wanna know” Remus piped up, currently laying on his back.
“What do you care?” James said, trying, and failing, to think of a way to change the subject.
“Cause if you don't want to tell us, it has to be something interesting” Remus replied, rolling over to lay on his stomach.
“Good point” Peter agreed.
“No, not a good point” James tried to counter as he was pulling on his outfit for the day.
“I think it's a great point, where were you?” Sirius said now getting frustrated with James weirdly avoiding the question.
“Yknow,” James said, now hoping he could stall as much as possible before he was forced to answer.
“No actually, I don't know” Sirius replied getting tired of this stupid game while Remus and Peter just watched from their respective beds.
As Sirius was asking, James checked the map to see where Reg was, “Well, I best be off.”
“What no you-” Sirius tries to say before the door shuts in his face
“Why wouldn’t he tell us?” Sirius asks the other two boys who just proceed to give eachother a knowing look.
As James is leaving the common room he bumps into someone
“Oop, sorry about that, oh” James said, now recognizing the person “Morning Lily.” James looked at Lily in the eyes for a moment already expecting the familiar butterflies to form in his stomach but there was nothing he just felt, well, normal.
“Hi James,” Lily said, rolling her eyes, expecting this to be another one of James’s weird ways of trying to flirt with her but was surprised to see James just nod his head at her then walk away.
“Y'know I really can’t see why you like Potter so much” Barty laughed, teasing Regulus with a grin on his face
“His name is James and I don’t like him, I just enjoy not having someone call me a ‘wet sock’” Regulus said, teasing Barty back.
“Oh c’mon don’t be like that I said sorry”
Regulus laughs and rolls his eyes at Barty’s antics when he spots James walking toward him.
“Speak of the devil” Barty mumbles, Regulus hits him on the arm in response
“Good morning Reg,” James said pleasantly with a smile, “Hello, Crouchy” James said, dropping his smile, “I hear your daddy just got to the castle, go off and greet him eh?”
Regulus and Barty just looked at James with wide eyes when Barty responded, only looking at Regulus. “I'll leave you with your new friend Reg.”
After Barty had walked away James continued, “God what a fucking prick, I mean no wonder he was put in the snakes house, he almost looks like one,” James laughed looking at Regulus, expecting Regulus to laugh with him only to be met with a life threatening glare.
“What do you think you’re doing?” Regulus said slowly.
“I was warding off that git obviously” James said, chuckling slightly trying to lighten the mood.
“That's my best friend you asshole” Regulus said louder this time drawing unwanted attention so Regulus quickly pulled them into the nearest classroom.
“Reg I don’t see what the big deal is, I’m just doing my job.”
“Your Job?!”
“Yes my job” James said, less sure of himself “Y'know.”
“No actually, I don’t know Potter, why do you think it’s ‘your job’ to piss off my friend and proceed to insult my whole house”
“Reg, honestly I was just trying to help” James said, confused as to why Regulus was mad.
“Help? You call that help!” Regulus said, getting angrier
“Yes! C’mon Barty is obviously the worst” James said now getting mad at Regulus’s reaction, I mean wasn’t this the reason they were friends in the first place, so James could ward off assholes
“No he’s not!” Regulus yelled now. Regulus wasn’t particularly loyal but he did love his friends and wouldn’t stand to see someone slander them.
“Reg I don't know what you want me to do?” James said, throwing his hands up in confusion.
“I want you to realize what an asshole you are,” Regulus now said, in a calmer tone.
“How am I the asshole?”
“How- You just insulted my whole house, and my best friend, and then when I got mad at you for it you insinuated that I need your protection, which to be clear, I don’t, then after all of this fail to realize that you are not the good guy in this situation” Regulus said in a stern voice
“Well when you say it like that,” James starts to say when he’s interrupted
“God Potter are you that fucking dense, has it ever occured to you that maybe you aren’t actually some knight in shining armour, you don’t get to take me away from my friends, insult them, and then expect me to be on your side” Regulus said, talking with his hands, something he only did when he was at his angriest.
“I was just trying to protect you!” James defended, he really had meant no harm.
“Insulting my friend is not protecting, and I never asked you to ‘protect me’ in the first place, I mean Godric Potter, we’re not even friends” Regulus said defeated.
“We’re not friends?” James said in a broken voice.
After a beat of silence Regulus responds, “No potter, we’re not.”