I Would Give You The Moon

by River_29, starsarecool_23

Summary:

Remus Lupin was struggling, physically, mentally and financially. He’s struggling to get to work at the Stardust cafe. But he’s also struggling with his Grans obsession to get him a boyfriend.

Please don’t repost this anywhere else!!

Notes:

I genuinely hope you guys enjoy this. This is so fun to make.

Chapter 1: The Usual

Remus:

Waking up for Remus Lupin is not easy. He considers checking himself in a nursing home most days. There, he would at least be with his Grandma Eunice, also known as Gran. Yet here he is, looking at the cane leaning against his side table, debating whether he feels the need to use it today or not. He makes his way to the kitchen caneless, holding back a wince with each step. Taking a deep breath once he finally reaches the kitchen, he rummages through the shelves until he finds a horribly tacky Christmas mug. It was of course September, but it’s his favorite mug anyway. On his more painful days Remus tends to look for tacky mugs to make him smile at least a bit.

“Bad day?” A tired voice behind him asks.

Remus turns around, seeing his roommate rubbing his eyes, exhausted but already dressed for work. He shrugs noncommittally.

“Do you need your cane?” Regulus questions, concern lacing his tone.

“I can get it, I still have to get ready anyway.” Remus limps out of the kitchen, Regulus’ gaze lingering on his back as he leaves.

As much as Remus loves his friends he hates when they give him those sad and pitiful glances. It makes him feel guilty. Guilty for not being able to do more., and guilty for making them worry.

 

✩✩✩✩✩✩

 

Remus Lupin is struggling. Struggling to stand up straight, struggling financially, and struggling mentally. His job is not much help either. At the Stardust Cafe and Bookshop, it’s all standing around. At least Remus gets to work in the cafe section, so he doesn’t need to walk around all day hunting for books and cleaning shelves. Unlike Regulus, who enjoys that work more, both because he loves literature and because he hates interacting with people.

Remus has mixed feelings about his job. He gets annoyed at the stupid questions people insist on asking relentlessly, but he can’t say anything back without getting fired, so he just smiles and answers politely. On the brighter side, he gets to work with people he actually likes. He looks over at Regulus, who looks like he’s seconds away from strangling a customer, definitely already in a bad mood from being forced to work the cafe today. Then at Lily who is blabbering about her obsession; Mary Macdonald, famous model and Lily’s favorite thing to never shut up about.

“Remus!” An awfully cheerful voice rings through the old cafe. Who is that cheerful at 8 am? Honestly.

“Morning James! The usual, I assume?”

Before James could say anything in response, Regulus stalked up to the counter and slammed the drink down in front of James. He shots James a randomly very frustrated glare and hurries away. On the counter right there is a hot mocha latte. James’ favorite. Lily smirked at Regulus and gave Remus a knowing look. James, of course, looked like a deer in headlights. Remus was getting worried James was actually having a seizure. Like, he genuinely looked slaphappy. He finally shook himself out of his trance and paid Remus, rushing out of the store with an idiotic grin on his face and flushed pink cheeks. Remus noticed Regulus staring at James' retreating figure.

“What was that?!” Lily doubled over laughing. Remus just shook his head with a chuckle and a fond smile. Regulus looked bored, if not a little awkward.

Regulus vehemently denied that entire interaction had meant anything. Unfortunately for Regulus, Remus and Lily were never planning on letting him live it down. That is until Lily got a notification Mary posted on her story, and immediately dropped everything (including a scalding coffee) to check. Seriously, the girl is obsessed.

 

✩✩✩✩✩✩

Sirius:

Sleep used to be hard for Sirius, plagued with insomnia and nightmares. Now, he woke up from a peaceful night's sleep (almost) with his best friend at his side. Literally. His best friend had woken him up, shaking him violently by the shoulders.

“Sirius! He knew my order!” It was way too early for this. Sirius groaned, grabbing his pillow and violently smacking James in the face with it. He shot an evil glare at his best mate, then rolled over onto his stomach, burying his face in the mattress.

“Prongs, what the hell do you want?” Sirius’ voice was all muffled.

James belly flopped onto Sirius’ back, causing the smaller man to screech indignantly and try and fail to sit up. “Regulus! The barista! He knew my order! Sirius, he looked at me!” James squeaked.

Sirius honestly didn’t know who James was talking about, but it seemed like James' new crush was gonna become an obsession.

“James, mate, don’t you have work to do?” Sirius finally lifted his head as James rolled off of him, looking for an excuse to go back to sleep.

James sobered up immediately, frowning in concentration. “I took today off, I wanted to look more into Harry’s files. That kid has gone through so much Sirius, I need to think of more ways to help him.” Sirius' mind flicked to the polite little 5 year old boy. Harry had recently been taken from a horrible home, and thrown into the chaos of foster-care. James had made it his mission to adopt Harry after becoming his therapist.

“You can’t save everyone, James,” Sirius turned to face him, mind drifting to his sibling, the sibling he couldn’t save. The one he had to leave behind.

“I can damn well try.” James whispered, almost to himself..

“Fine then. Well since you’ve woken me up at such an ungodly hour-”

“Padfoot, it’s 9 AM.”

“And I don’t start work until 10! I could have easily gotten another half hour of sleep. But that’s not the point. I guess I might as well get ready.”

James laughed fondly and ignored the snide tone and exasperation in Sirius’ voice.

Sirius loves his job. No, it’s not the most ideal job for him at the moment. He works it just to make enough money to scrape by. His passion is his art. But hey, seeing as he didn’t go to college like James had, at least it gets the bills paid, and at least he gets to see his favorite people. You see, Sirius works at a nursing home. He has some days where he feels me may just vomit all over the old floral sofas. Changing bed sheets for a bunch of old geezers with incontinence can be a wicked task.

When he arrived, made his way down to his very favorite room, Eunice Howell. What an interesting woman. Loud too. She might just be his best friend. You don’t need to tell James that though.

Sirius rapped on the door, making sure Eunice was awake. “Rise and shine Nessie! The sun is still freakishly bright, the leaves are falling, It’s gonna be a great day!”

Sirius heard a shuffle from inside. He let out a small smile as she threw open the door confidently. Eunice Howell stood (hunched) before him in all her glory, Her brown curly hair streaked with shades of gray, her brown eyes sparkling with life and mischief, and who can forget her obviously mismatched shoes this morning.

“Hey Nessie?” Sirius asked, looking at her questionable attire. “Are you making a fashion statement today?”

Eunice looks at her feet, frowns slightly, slams the door in Sirius’ face, and comes back a few minutes later with matching shoes. The caretaker smiled, amused, and walked Eunice down to breakfast.

Eunice sat next to her old friend Debbie, and before Sirius could even sit down next to her, she questioned;, “You single, Sirius?”

“Why’re you asking, Nessie? You interested?” Sirius flashed her a teasing smile, but that smile faded as Eunice gave him a disgusted once-over..

“Not me, my grandson. You’re gay, aren't you? I feel like everyone is gay nowadays,” Eunice gives Debbie a meaningful look, “I’m telling you Deb, he’s just Remus’ type. Speaking of, I think Rem is coming later. You should come meet him, Sirius.”

“As much as I love you Nessie, and would love to meet him, I have an art show later.” He wasn’t necessarily lying to her. He was still working on his art, just not having a show. He loves Eunice deeply, he trusts her too, he just really doesn’t trust her matchmaking when it comes to this.

 

✩✩✩✩✩✩

 

Remus:

That evening Remus went to go visit his Gran. The home had these beautiful flowers in the front, a disperse of yellows, blues, and reds across the entry. Remus strolled toward the dining room. There his gran was, sitting with a book in hand. He plastered a polite smile on his face and hurried toward her.

“You’re late.” was the first thing Eunice said to Remus, looking him up and down. “You know, I told Sirius about you. Told him you were single.” Was the next thing she said, in a way that made it sound oddly like an accusation.

“Gran… what??? Who’s Sirius?” Remus asked, trying to wrap his head around what she’d just said.

“The French one that takes care of me, ya know? The pretty one. Debbie!” She turned towards her friend, “You know the pretty boy? Wouldn’t he be perfect for little Remus? Just his type too, you know what I’m talking about Rem. Tattoos, long hair, don’t know why he’s working here actually,” Gran looked at Debbie with a smirk, “I mean I’m not complaining, I have eyes.”

Remus did not know what was going on. He was just standing there, cane in hand looking between his Gran and Debbie. Gran kept talking. She just wouldn’t shut up about this Sirius, you’d think she was in love with him.

It was actually Gran's idea to be put in the nursing home, and she seemed to be loving it. She was living with Remus and Hope before, but thought it would be too much work for them if she stayed. Gran had lived with Remus for most of his life. Lyall, Remus’ dad left pretty early, and Eunice offered to help Hope with raising the kid. When she got old enough that she started to fall over and need help standing up, she no longer wanted Remus to see her like that. Eunice thought it would be easier for everyone involved if she just put herself in a home. Remus was against it at first, saying he would always help her. However after his diagnosis, things took a turn for the worse and he had to cave.

“Remus are you listening?” Gran snapped at him, drawing him out of his reverie. “I’m telling you about your soulmate and you're not even listening! Kids these days. Anyways, how’s Lily?”

Chapter 2: Pudding and Pictures

Summary:

Sirius POV!!!

There is some misgendering in this chapter!!!! You have been warned

Sirius and Eunice's friendship is everything

Wolfstar meet?!?

See you guys Thursday !! (Maybe Friday..?)

Notes:

Thank you River (we all say in union). If it wasn't for River wolfstar wouldn't have met yet. Also Rivers idea for the iPad picture mishap, especially Eunice and Remus' conversation, so once again thank you River (we all say in union). Also credits to River for writing the whole wolfstar meet and editing all of this..

(Also this is the updated version)

Sirius:

Sirius’ least favorite part of the day was driving to work. He couldn’t stand being alone, even if it was only a 15 minute ride. Sirius shook the car with music so loud that his thoughts were completely drowned out. When he was alone, the thoughts were louder, tugging at the corner of his vision, begging for attention. Images of his mother and of the rest of the Black family. The voice in his head still telling him that he’ll always be a disgrace, a disappointment, a Black. Her voice. Mother. Mother. Mother. Always there. Watching him. Making him.

However, the worst part of these vivid flashbacks by far was that familiar voice, the only kind one he remembered from his youth. That small, fragile voice, belonging to a small, fragile girl. Rocking back and forth on the floor, crying, begging him to please just don’t leave her here. But it was always inevitable.

Sirius used his art to express and escape. Often he didn’t realize what he was painting until the canvas was completely covered, loosing himself in the voices and the music. People often described his work as ‘morbid’ or ‘disturbing,’ and yet they were an anchor for Sirius. A tether to reality and a place to forget himself and his memories. Art always has been and always will be his safe space. The only thing Sirius had liked about that house was being taught how to paint (and her, her, sist- forgot, don’t forget- ‘don’t leave me,’ me, me- her. Always her. Never here. Please be here- but she can’t be. Can’t be here. Not her, not anymore. Gone, gone, gone.)

And he was at work. His fingers slowly retreated from their death-grip around the wheel. The memories slowly faded from his focus. He lived on.

✩✩✩✩✩✩

 

Sirius keeps wondering how and why he’s still working this job. Right now he’s looking at Eunice, with chocolate pudding all over her face.

“You want some? It’ll make you feel better.” She gave him a toothy grin, speaking in a sing-song voice, chocolate coating her wrinkled lips. Sirius just grimaced, passing her a napkin.

“If I had a picture of my grandson, would you consider dating him..?” She mused. Oh lord, she's not giving up any time soon, is she?

“Do you have a picture?” Sirius raises an eyebrow, knowing damn well Ness doesn’t know how to work technology.

Eunice pursed her lips and shrugged, smiling wickedly. “I can get you one. He’s coming later, after you leave. I’ll catch the lad off guard.”

“I feel bad for him Nessie, having to deal with you all the time” Eunice just gave him a teasing smile and finished her pudding.

✩✩✩✩✩✩
Wednesday
Eunice:

Eunice woke up from her nap with a smile on her face. He’s coming to visit today. She’s gonna get him, she’s gonna get that picture. Really, it’s for the best. As a knock graced her door, she snatched her iPad and went into camera mode. Remus walked in, and she held the camera up high.

“Gran, what are you doing?” Remus said, deeply confused.

“Hold on,” she stuck her tongue out in concentration, her right eye squinting, and snapped the picture.

“Don’t mind that,” Nessie giggled, then grabbed a book on her side table.

“Gran, Honestly- what are you up to now!?”

“Oh, Nothing~” The elderly woman smiled innocently. “Just wanted a photo, that’s all.”

Remus folded his arms, leaning impatiently against the doorframe. He sighed, clearly annoyed. “What for?” He asked, digging for the answer he really didn’t need.

Eunice giggled mischievously. “None of your business.”

“I’m fairly certain it is actually, if you’re doing what I think you are with that photo.”Remus huffed.

“Oh come on, Rem. He’s pretty, I promise.”

“Gram, you’re 76, I’m not sure how much I trust your taste in men. Now delete it.”

“No!” Eunice said, pouting much like a rather wrinkly, gray-haired toddler.

“Gram- please.” Remus tried to reason with her. “Can I at least see it before you show it to him?”

“Fine. It’s only fair that you approve of the photo I give to your future husband.” She said, sounding way too serious for comfort. She flipped the ipad around and passed it to Remus. The man did a double take, choking a little bit. This choke turned into a full on cough as he gaped at the photo.

“Rem? Are you okay?” Eunice questioned. Remus set the IPad down quickly on the end of the bed, bidding a quick farewell to his grandmother before leaving. He barely made it to the hallway before he collapsed into a fit of giggles so violent that tears welled up in his eyes and he had to slump against the wall.

“Uh, you alright there mate?” A voice above him said. It had a distinct French accent, almost like Regulus’.

Remus looked up in surprise, and actually did mistake the stranger for Regulus for a moment.

That was, until he studied the man’s face. There was no doubt in Remus’ head that Regulus was an attractive man, but the man before him was an absolute god. Unlike Regulus, his hair was wavy and not curly. It was done up in a messy bun on the back of his head, but his face was framed by a few jet black pieces, seemingly accidentally. He had on a ripped band tank top, that showed off his muscles a little too well for Remus’ liking. He suddenly felt very very insecure of his scrawny figure and chunky old sweater. The man had a pair of blue clothes thrown over his shoulder.

Oh. He had been asked a question. What was it? Oh. Was he okay? Well he had been. Up until the point where some god of a man had caught him on the hallway floor giggling and coughing like a maniac. How does he answer that?

“Yerry.” He landed on, not being able to decide between ‘yes’ and ‘sorry.’

“Yerry..?” The man in front of him asked.

Shit. Remus cussed himself out. Of course that didn’t make sense. “Fuck you.” He hissed.

“What did I do?!” The man asked incredulously.

“No! Fuck!” Remus smacked himself upside the head, standing up quickly. “Me!” He added as an afterthought, in some strange attempt to clarify.

“I’m afraid I’m not following. Sorry.” The man apologized, grinning at Remus in both a confused and slightly amused manner.

Remus promptly gave up. Face flushed completely red, he whispered “goodbye,” and hurried off down the hallway, effectively giving up.

“Uh, Goodbye?” The man called after him. “Thanks for the invigorating conversation, I think?!”

Oh god. The entire way home Remus prayed to any god he could think of that he never saw that man again. Yet, the blue clothes over the man’s shoulder had been a uniform. The one the hospice nurses wore, so it was very likely that the universe would screw him over.

✩✩✩✩✩✩

Sirius:

Sirius’ mind couldn’t help but wander to the man he saw in the hall. A part of Sirius thought he was on drugs, and a second part thought he was just embarrassed. A third part of Sirius thought he was attractive, if not clinically insane. Sirius couldn’t help but recall how cute he looked in his thick dark green speckled sweater, his battered baggy jeans, and with his windswept sandy hair. Sirius’ mind drifted to the freckles on the man's face and his tired but incredibly kind brown eyes. The scars that ran up his neck and face somehow were not gruesome, just intriguing. But most importantly, Sirius couldn’t get the sound of the man's laugh out of his head. It rang like church bells between Sirius’ temples again and again, such a lovely and joyful sound.

“Sirius!” He snapped out of his trance. It was Eunice with an iPad in hand waving it around in the air. “I got a picture!” She beamed at him.

Sirius didn’t know what to expect when she handed him the IPad. He moved to the camera and pressed photos. Once he did he burst out laughing.

“Nessie, what is this?” He wheezed, not quite breathing at this point.

“I didn’t think he was that funny looking?” Eunice was offended.

Except it wasn’t her grandson on the screen. It was a close up picture of Eunice, tongue out, eye squinting. Eunice looked at Sirius and grabbed her iPad.

Once she got her hands on the iPad she let out a gasp, “Oh that is awful,” she wailed. “Who would take such a photo? Sirius be a dear and delete it.”

After Sirius deleted the picture he left to get Eunice’s chocolate pudding. She is addicted to them, and she should probably get that checked out.

“Wait! Sirius!” She grabbed her walker and started rushing toward him. That was honestly a pretty intimidating sight.

“He’s on my screen! Remus! He’s the picture on my screen!” He froze as she raced toward him in determination.

Sirius grabbed the Ipad and studied the IPads wallpaper. The picture must’ve been taken years ago. It was very grainy, obscuring almost all detail that might’ve been there at some point. Remus must’ve been in his late teens in this picture, standing in the middle with what must’ve been a friend on the right and Eunice on the left. Obviously he recognized Eunice, even if the detail was god-awful. Remus’ friend was a young girl, with amazingly distinctive features. By that, he meant bright red hair, like flames pouring over her head and down to her waist, and absolutely piercing green eyes, almost startling to observe. She gave off the vibe of someone highly intelligent and definitely head-strong.

Turning his attention to the boy in the middle, Remus, Sirius saw something completely different. This boy was quiet, still undoubtedly quite smart, but very unassuming. It was as is he tried his hardest to be unremarkable. He didn’t succeed though. Sirius noticed a unique sad aura to the young boy and a cane in hand. He couldn’t help but wonder what Remus’ story was.

“Hey Nessie?” Sirius asked. The full question wasn’t really necessary.

“He’s got Fibromyalgia, but don’t ask for the long version.” Eunice looked at the photo and sighed. “It’s been rough on him, you know? But he’s a strong boy. I’m proud. That’s his friend, Lily Evans, and that’s me!”

Sirius smiled softly, all the more curious about who Remus Lupin had been, and who he had become.

Chapter 3: How to Milk an Oat 101

Summary:

Remus and Regulus friendship!!

JEGULUS INTERACTION!!!

Regulus POV!!

Guys James is so stupid.

Notes:

Guys I got River to edit all my work!! (They're doing it for fun).

Also Link and I couldn't stop laughing talking about oat milk.

Shout out to Patience who keeps telling me to finish the story...it's not finished yet... I'm working on it!

Guys literally thank River, they corrected all my mistakes...it was a lot. And they added more scenes!! (more detail to scenes...)

get ready for next chapter... :)

Remus:

When Remus woke up, he knew immediately that he was going to struggle today. His legs screamed at him not to push them more than necessary, but he knew he had to. He made his way to the kitchen, clinging desperately to the wall for support. His teeth clenched as he forced himself to hobble over to the island stools, where he sits now, jaw clenched, staring blankly into the distance.

“Remus? Are you alright?” Regulus put down a galaxy patterned mug in front of Remus, no doubt already full of Remus’ morning tea, just the way he preferred it. That’s the thing about his roommate. From an outsider's perspective, Regulus might seem cold and selfish, but it was far from the truth. Regulus was never one for over the top gestures of public or physical affection, but that has never meant that the boy didn’t try. Regulus loved quietly, in small gestures such as learning how his roommate took his tea in the morning, or his favorite snacks so he could purchase them on grocery runs. He loved by simply offering his quiet but unwavering company and attention when Remus was in pain or upset, and needed someone to talk to or even just to sit with.

It was why Remus loved Regulus more than almost anything else he could imagine. Regulus might not have been the brightest shining star in the sky, but he was a constant. Slow to burn up, unlike the brighter ones. Quiet and immovable, there when you needed him and when you didn’t.

Remus nodded in response, his eyes brimming with unshed tears, thoroughly in too much pain to trust himself with words.

Regulus, with an uneasy glance at Remus’ shaking hands, left the room and came back seconds later with a heating pad and pain meds in hand. Plugging the pad in by the sofa, he handed the medication to Remus.

Regulus shook his head in mock frustration, “I can’t believe you’re leaving me alone to deal with James today. Seriously Rem? With us being this understaffed, the cafe needs more employees, which means I won’t get to work in the bookshop again today.”

“I never said I wasn’t going to work, Reg,” Remus gave him a small innocent smile. Regulus’ eyes widened and he glanced at Remus incredulously from his place by the fridge, where he was pouring himself a glass of old almost stale energy drink. (Remus side-eyed him tiredly for this. Regulus really needed to stop with the energy drinks.)

“No, you’re staying. You can barely stand up and you still want to go to work? Honestly, how much lack of self-preservation can a person have?!” Regulus spat tiredly, while dumping a rather alarming amount of 5-hour energy into his glass. He mixed up his (probably heart-attack-causing) concoction, then, without a second thought, crossed to the coffee machine and dumped half of the pure black coffee right into his cup.

Remus watched in pure wide-eyed astonishment as the scrawny boy threw back the glass, downing the entire thing without even needing to take a breath in-between.

“You’re staying.” Regulus coughed, struggling to stomach whatever the hell that was. He grabbed his keys and stormed out the door, on his way to work.

Remus was too horrified and mildly impressed to argue anymore.

✩✩✩✩✩✩

Regulus:

Gods above, why did Regulus pick this job? He hates people. He despises the repetitive and pointless dialogue of polite conversation. He loathes how long they take to decide on something that they’ve had their entire time waiting in line to decide on, and he especially abhors the customers that attempt to start ‘small talk.’ Today was destined to be an especially exhausting day for Regulus, as he was lacking in the assistance of one Remus Lupin, the traitor. Obviously he wouldn’t ever actually hold it against his friend for hurting. Remus couldn't help it. But gods damn it, that meant that Regulus had to actually take orders and socialize, instead of just tidying up the shelves in the back, lost to his thoughts.

8:00 on the dot. That was when the bane of Regulus’ entire customer-service-related existence walked in. Oh how Regulus detested him, he really did. His stupidly cute crooked glasses, the trademark red button up that really suited his tan skin and broad muscles, and definitely his unruly dark brown hair and doe-like eyes. Regulus found himself scanning the approaching—and unfortunately very familiar and talkative— figure (in a scrutinizing and very judgmental way, not an ‘I’m checking him out’ way, he promised himself).

Regulus suddenly snapped back to reality as a small yelp escaped James’ mouth. He unhooked his button up shirt from where it had caught itself on the cafe door. He made sure to laugh (or snort mockingly, as this idiot would not be one of the few people to get him to laugh) at the scene, trying to embarrass James enough to make him leave. Instead of leaving, however, James apologized to the door profoundly (???) and strolled confidently up to the counter. Regulus stood, arms crossed, eyebrow raised, staring judgmentally at James.

“Uh, is this where you order?” James stutters, his confidence quickly evaporating under Regulus’ spiteful glower.

“Obviously, you’ve been here before.” Regulus said from behind the till, eyes boring into James’ in a rather condescending way.

“Yeah, I knew that.” James laughed awkwardly. Regulus sighed, the ‘then why did you ask?’ hanging unsaid between them.

“So,” Regulus sighed, “Your order?” He asked this despite having it memorized. Regulus enjoyed making James stutter through his order every now and then, it brought him some form of twisted joy to see the usually confident man struggle to get out a few words.

“Oh! Uh, yeah. Right. That. I’ll have a mocha latte,” James pauses, waiting to see how Regulus would react to his order. He’d given it to the barista a million times before and yet he still scanned his face for a hint of judgment every. single. time.

Regulus gave an altogether bored look. “Iced or hot?” He said, very monotone.

“Uh, hot.” James pauses, scrutinizing Regulus’ reaction closely. Just this once, out of curiosity, Regulus decides to sigh a bit and roll his eyes, almost unnoticeably. The one simple change in his demeanor seemed to make all the difference. James quickly decided that Regulus was indeed judging him, and quickly changed his mind. “Iced..?” It’s almost a question, whispered alarmingly quietly. When Regulus doesn’t seem annoyed this time, he speaks up. “Iced! Yeah. Iced.”

“Any milk preference?” Regulus kept his eyes down on the paper that he was pretending to write the order on, but was instead just drawing little stars. He knows he’s never asked James this question before, and it’s a petty attempt to prolong the conversation. He’s enjoying the struggle.

“There's more than one milk?” James whispered, sounding more defeated than confused, his shoulders sagging slightly and his eyes going wide.

Oh. Regulus hadn’t actually expected that outcome. Is he… is he that stupid? “Do you need me to read you the options?” He asks, trying to hide his smirk and weasel some annoyance into his voice.

“You’d do that for me?” James asked excitedly, seemingly failing to notice that it is part of Regulus’ job. “Yes please, that would be great.” He smiled warmly. It was unreturned.

“Cow milk, oat milk, alm-” before Regulus could finish, James interrupted, eyes blown even wider than before. He truly was like a toddler at heart.

“There's oat milk!? Since when is that a thing? How do they get it out of the oat? Do oats have nipples?! How do you milk it?! With tweezers?!”

…what? Genuinely, what the fuck? Regulus bit back a laugh so violently that it turned into a coughing fit. He hunched over the counter, tears in his eyes, gasping for air. When he had finished choking on pure idiocy, he resurfaced, picking up his notepad as if nothing had happened. (Hey, he had promised that this idiot wouldn’t make him laugh.) James looked very concerned, a hand half reached out as if to help. Regulus stared at him blankly.

“Yes, you have to milk every oat individually. It’s a difficult process. They have these special tweezers made specifically for oat nipples.” Regulus responds, completely monotone, not caring that he isn’t allowed to be an ass to customers. This one deserves it. After a moment of watching James try to process that information, seeming to take it very seriously, Regulus decided that he probably should clue James in on the sarcasm. However, he’s an ass, and will not be doing that.

“Who thought of that?! That's so random, I mean, who just picked up an oat and was like ‘oooh, special tweezers, let me just-” James’s rambling was cut off by Regulus tapping his fingers impatiently, no longer amused. James stood there for a moment, staring blankly at Regulus’s hands before looking back up at him, realizing he was meant to finish his order.. “You have nice hands!” James shouts, making quite a few heads in the cafe turn to stare. Regulus’ cheeks flushed pink from embarrassment, and he snatched his hand up. James was already holding up the line. He didn’t need to make more of a scene.

James seemed to realize what he had just said, purely on accident. “I mean- yes! Oat milk sounds great. Thank you!” He shouts awkwardly before pulling out his card, getting ready to pay.

“Great,” Regulus adds dryly. “Can I get a name for the order?” Unfortunately, asking for a name was part of Regulus's job, even though he’s known James’s name since grade school. Even if James doesn’t remember him.

The tall man’s face went from confusion to panic, as he had been distracting himself by reading a poster off to the side about some charity. Anything to not look into Regulus’ eyes anymore. “Lincoln!” James said quickly, listing off a name from the article in his panic. He froze in horror, debating whether or not he should correct himself. Regulus obviously knew damn well his name was James, however this was mildly amusing, and so with no hesitation he accepted the name.

“Okay, Lincoln.” Regulus wrote it down without question, smiling just a little bit so James would know he was judging him. The man slumped, face flushing red.

8:32 was when James Potter left the cafe, taking his drink to go. Regulus was slightly shocked that anybody could order one single drink for a full half hour. Honestly, Lincoln had a skill for wasting time.

Chapter 4: Please Do Not Harass the Nurse

Summary:

James acting like a 5 year old (nothing new)

More Eunice this chapter!!

Finally a Lily pov!!

Sirius and Lily meet?!?

Regulus ranting.

Notes:

It's looking too fluffy right now... :)

Ok, but in all realness... sorry for not posting earlier.. I had a lot going on okay?!?

Also guys, America is fucked. Who tf allowed those two idiots run for president again.

Happy late birthday Regulus!! I'm sorry I'm about to put you through it! (no I'm not)

Also all the chapters have been updated!!

James:

James wanted to slam his head against a wall. Repeatedly. Preferably for the rest of his short and miserable life. He tossed his keys on the side table, with just a little bit too much force. They slid off and landed on the floor immediately. With a sigh and a withering glare at the inanimate object that had the audacity to mock him, he stumbled his way over to the couch. He stared at it for probably a solid 2 minutes in complete astonishment —as if he had forgotten that they owned a sofa— before throwing himself onto it violently, face first. He ripped a pillow off and pressed it into his face, violently screaming all of his idiotic woes into an abyss of faux leather.

“Uh, You alright there, Prongs?” James heard a slightly perturbed voice call from the doorway. James craned his neck to peer at Sirius, who was staring intently at him, concern and mild amusement coloring his face. His arms were crossed over his blue work uniform, which he must have decided to put on early today. His roommates (absolutely gorgeous) hair was tied back in two artful Dutch braids, his sharp and intelligent eyes carefully observing (or judging, probably) him.

James let his face fall back down onto the pillow with a -flump- and let another stickies groan. “He thinks my name is Lincoln.” Came a mortified whisper.

Sirius choked a bit, and he collapsed inward on himself in a fit of giggles. “Prongs, I love you, but sincerely, what the fuck? How did that happen!?” He laughed so hard whilst observing his best friends absolutely miserable state (which, mind you, is a 23 year old man sprawled face first out on their shared couch and reduced to a heap of pure embarrassment) that he had to sit down as well.

 

“Pads,” a small and defeated voice interrupted.

“Yeah, Prongs?” Sirius questioned, wiping tears of amusement from his eyes.

A sigh. Then; “Could we go out for ice cream?”

Sirius gave his friend an adoring look. “Definitely. As soon as I get off work.”

“But that's so far away. Can’t you just skip work?” James whined like a five year old, which Sirius would not be surprised if he was at this point.

He didn’t bother indulging his friend with an answer. He just grabbed his keys and strolled out the door, almost not hearing James scream “TRAITOR!”

Almost..

✩✩✩✩✩✩

Lily:

Lily was ecstatic that she finally got a chance to see her friend, Eunice. This visit has been a long time coming. Was it strange that one of Lily’s best friends was Remus’ grandma? No clue.

Either way, Lily bounded in the front door with a smile on her face and made her way to the room. That is, until she saw him. She hesitated, thoroughly studying the poor bloke. He had his hair in two dutch braids and a mesmerizing smile, with a very mischievous aura. Strange for a hospice worker, which she could tell by the not-so-flattering uniform. She was smacked upside the face suddenly with a spectacular idea. Her smile widened brightly as she rushed to walk next to him.

“Hey! You!” The man turned around, his eyebrows scrunched in confusion, likely wondering why an excitable red head in a sundress was stalking him suddenly.

“Hi? Did you, uh, need help with something?” He asked gently, freezing in his tracks.

“Are you single?” Lily questioned, always straight to the point. The man in front of her choked a little bit, looking even more taken aback than before. Lily realized that it might have been a bit too forward. “Oh, no. I only meant, are you gay?” The workers eyebrow rose, and he seemed at a loss for words. “Well, I mean, I’m gay. No, Lesbian. Not gay. Women do it for me, you know? Gotta love women.” She rambled. Silence still. “Unless you’re gay! Then you don’t have to love women!”

He looked unimpressed and mildly amused. “Well I’m afraid I’m not a lesbian, if that’s what you’re asking.”

“Haha, yeah, I figured.” Lily gestured at him vaguely, then proceeded to give up and smack herself on the forehead. “I just meant that you’re totally my friend’s type. Not that it’s creepy or anything! He’s really lovely though, I swear. Sure, Remus is a bit shy around new people…but I swear you’d love him!”

The employees eyebrows shot up even further, and a clear, exhausted understanding washed over his face. “You wouldn’t be here to visit Eunice, would you?”

“Oh my gods! You’re the one Nes was talking about! You’re Sirius! Well I’m Lily. Oh, she was right, you are easy on the eyes.” Lily exclaimed, her dignity nowhere in sight.

“Thank you..?” Sirius chuckled, still looking very surprised. “Speaking of Nessie, I'm going to her room right now, if you want to come along?”

Of course Lily accompanied him. Why wouldn’t she? This was her chance to get to know him. She needed to know if he was right for her best friend. Also she had just startled him and then brutally interrogated him. What else should she have done at this point?

“So, Sirius. Do you maybe like coffee? I know a really good place.” Lily tilted her head as she gave him an innocent smile, already scheming.

✩✩✩✩✩✩

Sirius:

Sirius would be lying if he said Lily did not scare him. She wasn't necessarily frightening, just… a lot. He had not been emotionally prepared for a chubby, excessively short redhead in a summer dress charging toward him, rambling about lesbianism and her friend Remus. A part of him was alarmed and nervous, but the other part wanted to be her friend. She genuinely seemed like a sincere and intelligent girl. Lily’s curly coppery hair was half up half down, a white ribbon tied in the back. Her hair complimented the green in her eyes, making them glow almost. Her dress was green to match, and she wore white platform sandals. She was absolutely gorgeous, to put it simply, and obviously had a very nice fashion sense.

Once the two of them arrived at their destination, Sirius rapped loudly on the door, letting Eunice know he had arrived. After waiting a long while for a reply, he started to get nervous. Every worst case scenario runs through his head, which is quite a few if you’re experienced in hospice care. He glanced over at Lily who appeared completely unbothered.

“Eunice?” There was no answer. “Nessie?” He tried again, nothing.

Sirius tugged his keys off his lanyard and quickly opened the door. He scanned the bedroom, however she was nowhere to be found. Lily was still standing outside of the door, with a confused look spread across her face. Sirius gave her another glance , trying not to reveal how anxious he was. What the hell?!

A hand darted out of the nearest closet, nails digging into Sirius’ shoulder.

He jumped, letting out an embarrassingly feminine squeak. “What the fuck! Nessie?!? You’re gonna give me a heart attack!” He placed over his heart, feeling the rapid thrumming of adrenaline.

She gave him a disapproving look before a stern; “Watch your fucking language, asshat.”

Lily doubled over, promptly laughing her ass off. That’s when Eunice finally noticed her. “Oh, Lily! Is that you? What a pleasant surprise! It’s so lovely to see you, dearest. I see you’ve met Sirius? Did Rem come with you this time, or did he not feel up to it? I really should send one of those… What do you call it? Oh! I should send him a text on my new technologies! Sirius, you need to show me how to send those again. I’m afraid I’m not all that skilled yet.” She rambled, seeming to never run out of words.

“Nessie, slow down.” Sirius laughed lightly. The old woman glanced at Sirius and apparently suddenly remembered something important. She frowned politely.. “Sirius, dear, I need you to leave.” No other explanation from her.

“What?” Sirius just looked at her, eyebrows scrunched in frustration and confusion. “I can’t just leave, I have a job to do Ness.” She cut him off by waving her hand at him dismissively and turning to Lily. “I have important business to discuss with you, mêl.” She grabbed Lily by both hands and led her to the bed, where they both sat. “Sirius, just go wait outside.” Ness called over her shoulder. Sirius threw his hands up in frustration, giving up.

“Wait Sirius!” Lily called him back. “Don’t forget, Stardust Cafe!”

 

✩✩✩✩✩✩

Remus:

Regulus was acting strange, stranger than usual. When he came home from work he had a small smile plastered on his face. Yeah. A smile. Horrifying. Maybe he had finally snapped into some sort of psychotic state.

“Reg? Are you alright?” Remus asked warily.

Regulus looked at him, his face suddenly becoming very difficult to read. Remus recognized that wall that his best friend so often used to hide any important emotions. “I’m doing fine.” He shoved his earphones in, (a clear refusal to talk anymore,) and pulled out his phone, slumping down on the sofa. Remus let out a sigh that he hadn’t known he was holding onto.

The door slammed open, startling the both of them, and there was Lily Evans in all her deafening glory. “Remus!” She searched around the room before spotting him. “Remus!” Lily scampered up to him, clearly excited.

“So I went to visit Nessie today, and I totally met the love of your life! He’s just your type. Dark long hair, tattoos, he even has a weird name like you and Regul- Oh, hi Reg. I didn’t see you there!” Regulus gave a nod of acknowledgement without looking up from his phone.

“Oh, no, don’t tell me it’s this Sirius bloke again. Gran keeps telling me about him-” Regulus’ head shot up at the mention of the name. It did not go unnoticed by either Remus or Lily.

“Regulus?” Remus’ voice was colored with concern. His friend was suddenly even paler than normal, and he looked a bit sick. Any trace of the joy that had accompanied him home from work was gone now. “Are you alright?”

Regulus focused intensely on Lily, ripping his earphones off. “Black hair? Tattoos? Are you sure his name was-” he choked, almost as if he couldn’t bring himself to say the name.

“Yes, Reg, his name was Sirius.” Lily clarified. “Why does it matter? Have you met?”

“I- no.” Regulus responded quickly. “Well, maybe. That’s unimportant. Just please-”

“It seems pretty important, Regulus. You look ready to pass out!” Remus said, raising his voice a bit in frustration.

“Please, Remus!” Regulus yelled. It was the loudest he had ever spoken. Remus knew that he had an aversion to yelling, due to whatever had happened to him growing up. Remus felt guilty immediately for raising his voice.

“Please.” His voice was much quieter now. “Stay away from him.”

“Why, Regulus?” Lily asked, exasperated. Remus shot her a warning glance. She didn’t know too much about Regulus’ past, and if this guy was from Regulus’ past, it was bad.

 

“All of this because what? He’s got tattoos and shiny hair?! You deserve so much better, Remus! You deserve someone who would stay.” He hissed out the last word like it was torturing him. He had never been this emotional before. Remus realized with a sharp intake or breath that there was a tear rolling down Regulus’ cheek.

Regulus Black was crying.

Regulus Black didn’t cry. Well, not often. Remus had been his roommate for going on 3 years. Remus knew that on November 3rd (a little under a month away from now) Regulus would lock himself away in his room, like he did every year, and cry. He would never admit it, but Remus could always tell, though he had no idea the significance of the date. Other than that, he never cried. Never.

Regulus suddenly seemed to realize that he was being vulnerable, his worst nightmare, and he stormed out of the room. A moment of silence passed as Lily and Remus stared at where he had just been standing.

“What the hell was that?” Lily genuinely asked. For the first time, it was like Remus truly couldn’t figure out his best friend. He was hit with the startling realization of quite how little he knew actually.

Notes:

I feel bad for not posting so here’s a playlist River and I made. It’s just songs we feel like they’d listen to or play at the cafe!!

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1Tj1pLeDNsfuuyJ1vUyHN9?si=wPnpWo9GSAa9is-7ObVRDA&pi=u-0gnCa4k9TdKm

Let’s hope the link works!!

Chapter 5: Surviving

Summary:

….good luck.

 

ALSO GUYD THANK ASH FOR THE FRENCH TRANSLATIONS

Notes:

I’m sorry for this chapter (not really)

Rivers sorry… I wrote it but they made it way worse.

Next chapter will be better I swear

(River here. Helloooo. Just so you know, the dot line will indicate the beginning and end of dreams. You’ll see what I mean. Best of luck, fair traveler!)

:)

this one will need a TW, waterboarding, abuse, so much misgendering, both external and internal transphobia, seriously, it’s bad. I’ll write a chapter summary at the bottom, but like, I’m writing it and I’m uncomfortable. I tried to not be too descriptive about the abuse, but the point of this section is just how messed up Reg is. I’ll try to keep it short. -River

Thursday night.
Regulus:

Regulus couldn’t forget. He thought he’d been doing so well. He thought he could move on with his new job, his new relationships, his new self. He’d been driven by the foolish notion that he could hide, and that the Blacks would never find him. His past would never find him. His big brother would never encounter him. (Regulus refused to use the word ‘find.’ That would imply that his brother had been looking in the first place. Sirius had made it very clear that he had no intention of doing so when he left without a word.) Point being, He had escaped them, hadn’t he? He’d been so sure that he had, until he heard that gods forsaken name.

Regulus tried his hardest to block out the barrage of images burning themselves onto the insides of his eyelids. Memories he hadn’t touched in years suddenly competed for every ounce of his attention. They just kept flooding into his head, akin to an incessant river of blood, harsh, uncomfortably hot, violent, and altogether, drowning him. The house. The screams. The hits. The blame. The dresses. The smiles. A shrill voice in the back of his head always reminding him that even now, he’s just playing dress up. She isn’t Regulus.

The bathroom. The dark green tile, laced with black grout. The silver faucet. Mother, screaming. These memories were sharp, tearing through him like a knife. He felt his stomach drop as he tried so hard to push those specific memories away. He was unsuccessful. He recalled all too clearly her pale bony fingers, wrapping around his long hair. Icy water, invading his little lungs, harsh and unnatural. He wished he didn’t remember fighting desperately for air, knowing almost nothing except that he wanted to live. There was screaming, so much screaming, but he couldn’t seem to remember who it was coming from.

He hadn’t even been quite sure what he’d done wrong most of the time. The clarification never seemed quite as important to his mother as the punishment was. “What did I do?” That was the question that had haunted his entire youth. What had he done to deserve any of this? What did I do to end up in that house? What did I do to make her mad? What did I do to make him go? He had interrogated the stars every night, especially one specific star, as if his brother could hear him through his namesake, and would reappear to comfort him again. They would sit together on the green carpet floor. Sirius would run his fingers through Regulus’ hair, and for a few moments, their parents couldn’t reach them.

Regulus must have lapsed into sleep at some point, but it was no relief from the onslaught of Black, that seeped even into his dreams.

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

“Reg, qu’est ce que tu as fais?” Sirius’ eyes widened in absolute horror, looking at the scissors, and then at the mass of dark curled hair in the sink. “Putain! Pourquoi est-ce que tu as fait ça ? Mère va te tuer ! Alright…” Sirius took a shaky breath, steadying himself and closing his eyes for a moment. “Here’s what we‘ll do, je vais appeler Mère, la faire monter et lui dire que c’est moi qui t’ai fait ça, okay?” His voice was firm, leaving no room for argument.

(Reg,what did you do? - Fuck! Why did you do that? Mother is going to kill you! - I’ll call mother up and tell her I’m the one who did it,)

“Non ! Sirius ! Ne fais pas ça…please,” Regulus’ small wide eyes brimmed with tears as he whispered a confession. “Je voulais juste te ressembler.”

(No! Sirius! Don’t do that… - I wanted to look like you.)

“Reg? Look at me, tu es une jeune fille magnifique. Pourquoi tu voudrais me ressembler?” Regulus stared at his brother in shock, and broke down. How could Sirius understand him better than anyone else in the world and not get this? Was Reg just that much of a freak? Even his own brother, his best friend, would never get this. Tears streamed down his face and he looked himself over in the mirror, seeing exactly what his brother saw. A little girl determined to play dress up. A weirdo with a freakish obsession with him, and the way he acted and dressed.

( You are a beautiful girl. Why would you want to look like me?)

“Mother! Venez voir ce que j'ai fait!” Sirius yelled, smiling sadly. That night, there was more screaming.

(Come see what I did!)

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

“Maman! Please!” The water rippled, an icy chill nipping at Regulus’ nose as he fought to keep his head above the surface. Water streamed down his face already, pooling uncomfortably in his shirt. “Je ne savais pas!” He gasped frantically for air, as if he could save some extra for the next time his head inevitably breached that basin. He fought her, though futile as his mother had his arms roughly gripped behind his back, sharp nails piercing his forearms, drawing blood. It was unnaturally warm against the frozen feeling set in his skin through his soaked and chafing clothes.

(Mom! - I didn’t know!)

Apparently breathing is also not as easy when you’re panicking, not knowing if you’ll see the light of another day, or if you’ll die in this ridiculously fancy bathroom.

“You knew. Vous saviez qu’il était parti! I’m not stupid!” Walburga screeched at a mildly impressive pitch as the inevitable moment came, and she forced him under once more. Sirius was gone, Regulus was suffocating, and Walaburga was screaming. Was it always going to be this way?

( You knew he was gone!)

“He would not have left you behind! Arrêtez de me mentir! Where did he go?” Her shrill voice echoed off the walls, reverberating over and over and over. If Regulus was a much braver boy, and not a drowning one, he would point out to her that he couldn’t answer her while under water. Her grip became stronger, her nails raking across his arm, drawing a concerning amount of blood. Regulus felt the buckling in his knees and the cotton in his brain as his consciousness began to fade. Gods, please don’t let him drown. Please, don’t let him die like this. Not in the water. The water he loved.

(Stop lying to me!)

Regulus always did adore the ocean. He would sneak away at night, allowing himself the simple pleasure of exploring the caves by their seaside manor, swimming in the grottos, and adoring the way the stars reflected clearly in the ocean surface. His two favorite places, meeting in a collision of sparkling light, gently lapsing waves, and absolute silent peace. The two places farthest away from this place, this hellhole that hurt him like it was as natural as breathing.

How Regulus loved the ocean. It reminded him of himself in some ways, quiet, deep, and unexplored. In a few ways, however, it was more than he could ever be. It was powerful, immovable, and fluid. It did what it wanted. It sustained life and cared for others, but could wreak havoc on the people with no respect for its harsh and violent beauty. Regulus couldn’t stick up for himself. He couldn’t sustain relationships, because people always changed. The ocean didn’t change. The ocean changed the world around it.

That was, until his mother had found out about his affinity for water. Since then, she had made it her personal goal to ensure that he had no such simple joy, no such lifeline to cling onto. Her punishments had become specifically crafted to ensure that every time Regulus touched his greatest passion for the rest of his life, every time water gently lapped over his skin again, she was there. She was always there, haunting his mind. She’d learned that he loved to swim, so she threw him in the deep end and let him drown, because how dare he love? That wasn’t something a Black was capable of.

 

Regulus was drawn back to the bathroom sink by the sensation of his head being ripped from the water, and his lungs filling with air. He coughed desperately, not sure anymore what was tears, what was water, and what was blood.

“Maman! Je ne savais pas, I swear, s'il te plaît, s’il te plaît arrête...” The last part was quiet, though not intentionally. His throat was ripped up from the screaming and the water. His eyes were burning, everything was burning. Especially his insides. He felt them crumble in despair and anguish, because she was right. He wouldn’t have believed Sirius would abandon him either. But he had. He had left, like he had spent hours of their youth promising he would never do to his ‘little sister.’

(Mom! I didn’t know, - please, please stop…)

Regulus decided that day that he did not have a big brother. He never had, really, because they were always destined to end up like this. In every universe, he’d stay, and Sirius would go. In every universe, Sirius would find his family. A new brother, and he’d forget all about the one he never asked for. The one who was a living reminder of what he’d survived. The one that he was too brave to keep fighting for, and too scared to keep loving. Sirius would live. He was good at living.

It was alright. Regulus would spend the rest of his life learning to walk away from Sirius. He would pretend he didn’t need him, until eventually he learned to keep moving without him. He would grow on his own, being the perfect daughter his parents needed, until he reached the age of 18. He would disappear completely, never looking back at what his life had been or could’ve been. He would only ever move forward. Regulus would survive. He was good at surviving.

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

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Friday

Regulus jolted awake from the sleep he hadn’t even been aware that he’d slipped into. He sat up frantically, bony fingers clutching at his chest, almost as if they could carve out his lungs and force them to breathe. The panic did not quell one he recognized his home and his bed however. His sheets were too itchy and warm, raking across his legs uncomfortably. He could have sworn that his night-clothes were getting tighter, chafing against his collarbone, grabbing at his neck. His walls were just there, looming, ominous, and decidedly all too close to him. He could hear everything. See everything. Feel everything. Think everything. And it was killing him. He gasped for air like he was still drowning, but found no where near enough in this much too tiny room. He needed to get out. He needed to go, now.

He stumbled his way to the kitchen, not bothering to turn any lights on, and tripping over a shit ton of furniture in the process. He snagged his book and his headphones off of the entryway table, and debated the keys for a moment before deciding that he didn’t need to (and probably couldn’t, in his condition) drive anywhere. He threw a half hearted glance over his shoulder at the clock, not quite being able to make out the full time, but gathering that it was some time around 4 AM.

His thoughts swirled around in his skull like the snowflakes out in the street. Was it snowing? Regulus supposed with it being October, the first snow was destined to come soon. He decided to focus on this train of thought as he raced off down the street, not knowing where he was going but knowing that he had to get there. He’d get there. He’d keep moving forwards, no matter what. One step after another, one day after the next. He’d survive. Regulus would survive.

Notes:

SUMMARY
Regulus has some trouble falling asleep, as he’s having flashbacks of his mother and her cruel punishments, the main referenced one being waterboarding, because she knew that he loved the water. The ocean was his favorite place growing up until those punishments started.
He eventually has some nightmares about when he cut his hair off, and Sirius told him he was a “beautiful girl” before taking the blame and the punishments for him. Regulus was upset that even Sirius didn’t see him as a boy.
The next nightmare is when Sirius left without telling him. His mother is basically drowning him, asking him where Sirius went, and Regulus is asking himself the same question.
He wakes up around 4 AM, having a panic attack, and rushes out into the snowy street to just get out of the house.

Chapter 6: No Attachment

Summary:

SIRIUS FINDS OUT?!?

Notes:

Heyyyy

How’s everyone doing???

I said it would be a fluffy chapter…. Uhhh it kinda is? Idk.

Sorry for such a late chapter 😭 I was flaring and barely wrote then River went away to war. (New York)

Anyways… enjoy!!

James:

James rolled out of bed that morning with a brilliant smile plastered across his face. And honestly, it was deserved, wasn’t it? He gets the chance to meet with his very favorite (though he wasn’t supposed to pick favorites, so don’t tell his employer please) client at his office, Harry. Obviously there was also his daily visit to the Cafe and Bookstore on the corner, which he could never seem to help being thrilled about. Honestly, life was just going his way as of late, it seemed. It didn’t seem as if it could possibly get any better (though maybe he was just an extreme optimist).

Well James was wrong, because apparently it did keep getting better. The phone on his nightstand loudly chirped out his (Chappell Roan, because he was a man of culture) ringtone. He picked it up immediately, not bothering to check who it was, because it made for an absolutely thrilling surprise.

“Hello?” His voice was low and gravelly, depleted from sleep.

“Prongs! Oh my, how I missed that sexy voice,” James knew that voice. And that harassment. However it took him an embarrassing amount of time to connect the dots.

“Oh, Wormy! Is that you? Has my husband returned from war after long years of famine and hardship?! How I’ve missed you so dearly, you can’t begin to imagine! We’ve been worried sick! No note! No call!” He practically screamed into the cellphone, almost undoubtedly waking up Padfoot. Welp, that was a problem -albeit a grumpy one- for future James.

“Oh, my poor and lonesome wife! How are the kids? I’m ever so sorry that I haven’t called, the war has taken a toll on me and rendered me incapable. I shall arrive tomorrow! Don’t fret my dear, I soon shall see that beautiful face of yours!” Peter declared, rather dramatically.

“SHUT THE FUCK UP.” A loud banging echoed through the apartment, undoubtedly Sirius throwing several -heavy by the sound of it- objects at the wall connecting their rooms. James laughed heartily, hanging up the phone on his favorite traveling Botanist, Peter Pettigrew, and -quietly- began to prepare for the day.

Or to phrase it differently, he shut the fuck up

✩✩✩✩✩✩

After James’ rather productive call with Peter. he practically skipped the entire way to Stardust Bookstore and Cafe. This ceased rather quickly however, as when he entered the door, he immediately noticed a shift in the usually very comfortable energy.

Remus was too focused staring at Regulus to wish James a good morning, and Regulus… well he looked rough. He was obviously pretending to be focused on stacking books, just so that he didn’t have to look anyone in the eye. His thick black curls were not as neat as usual, though still stunning. His eyes looked sunken, tired and dead. I mean Regulus always looks tired, but today it was completely different. The look in his eyes wasn’t the one of calm disdain and annoyance that James had grown so fond of. He just looked… like a corpse. Completely dead, inside and out.

As neither of the other two had noticed him, Lily took his order. James quite liked Lily. The two had gone to grade school together, when he was honestly a right little prat. He’d been a bit obsessed with her for a while, until she made her lesbianism very clear to him, and he’d backed off. Now the only feelings there were mutual respect and a kind of polite fondness.

He sensed that he shouldn’t overstay his welcome, so he hurried out the shop door and down the street rather quickly. That was… until something caught his eye. A flower shop.

Quite literally not thinking twice, or maybe even once, about what he was doing (because he’s James Potter, thinking is for losers), he strolled right into the store and scanned the walls full of bouquets. His eyes snagged on one specifically, this beautiful cluster of Hyacinths, Lilies, Pansies Babies Breath, and a few more species which he wasn’t educated enough to name. It wasn’t the flowers themselves that caught his eye though, it was the color. All the flowers were dark, Blacks and deep purple, navy, like the sky at night time. The Babies Breath scattered through the bouquet, small stars of white against a galactic floral backdrop.

He couldn’t quite explain why, but he figured Regulus would like it. Regulus seemed to wear these colors quite often, and wasn’t he named after a star as well? Just like Sirius was. He had even managed to overhear a conversation between Regulus and Remus about astronomy, which made Regulus’ eyes sparkle with honest and child-like enthusiasm. It was beautiful. He plucked it out of the holder with great care, paying for it and strolling off again down Main Street.

A knot of concern formed in his stomach as he entered the cafe, but he didn’t stop to consider if this was intelligent. He walked confidently right up to Regulus (who, mind you, looked completely ready to commit cold blooded murder on the next person he saw) and quickly passed him the flowers. Regulus peered at the arrangement in his hands, his face shifting to something reminiscent of confusion.

James, suddenly feeling the awkwardness of the situation, gave Regulus a hesitant double thumbs up. No, wait, that must look stupid. Was it stupid? Was Regulus judging him?! He quickly dropped his hands, spun on his heels, and almost ran out of the shop, not daring to look back.

He paused only when he was almost a block away, standing and staring at the pavement quietly. “Shit, that was so creepy, wasn’t it?” He asked the question to nobody in particular, but he earned himself a few wayward glances. Holy fucking gods, okay, he did that. Now he’d probably try to repress it for as long as he lived. That was alright.

✩✩✩✩✩✩
Regulus:

…what?

✩✩✩✩✩✩

Remus:

Remus was utterly and hopelessly confused. He hadn’t talked to Regulus since the incident yesterday afternoon, and he really didn’t know how to. He wasn’t sure how to breach a topic he knew nothing about, especially with someone as private as his roommate.

If we’re being completely honest, Remus was scared. Not of Regulus, of course, but for him really. He’s never seen the boy act like he did yesterday. Whatever happened after he went to bed seemed to be even worse as well, because Regulus has gone entirely selectively mute today, as it seems. What on earth happened to him as a kid to make him look that defensive and desperate?

His mind had been consistently running through every single outlandish theory. Would Regulus continue to self-destruct? (Probably) Would he explain everything to Remus? (Probably not)

Remus needed answers. He knew that it wasn’t fair to pry, but Regulus didn’t just get to interfere so completely in his life and then explain nothing. He does know who he has to go to about this. He’s absolutely dreading talking to them, but it’s the only way he’ll ever learn more at this point.

✩✩✩✩✩✩

A soft and frosty chill nipped at Remus’ nose as he slid out of his beat-up, rather ancient van. He gripped onto his cane, grunting as he made his way into the Nursing home. He limped the entire trek to his Grans room, a grimace on his face with each step. Gods above, why did he deserve a flare-up today? He raised his fist to knock, and hesitated when he heard a high pitched (rather feminine) scream, followed by his Grans hearty laughter. Obviously she was busy… should he go? No, he decided. He needed answers. Giving up on knocking, he turned the handle firmly and barged in before he could chicken out.

“Stop doing that, Nessie! Holy shit, I swear to the gods that one of these days, I’m gonna have a heart- damn…” A man stood, talking to his Gran. He breathed out the last part after seeing Remus enter. Remus’ heart sped up a bit when observing the man, before completely halting in terror.

It was the man that Remus had made a complete fool of himself in front of. If he was here… then that meant that he was Grans nurse. No, no, no, SHIT. Just his luck honestly. Why couldn’t it just be his grandma? This conversation had practically ALREADY gone to shit.

“Oh, Remus! Why are you here? You didn’t mention visiting today.” Eunice squinted her eyes at him, rather suspiciously. “I mean, it’s lovely to see you…but what do you want? Money? If so, you know damn well how broke I am.”

Remus’ fiddled with the handle of his cane, clenching his jaw. “I need advice…” Remus paused, glancing warily at the hospice nurse, who showed no intention of giving them privacy.

Eunice saw his concern. “Don’t worry, dear. This is just Sirius, my nurse. He’s a doll. And attractive too.” She winked at Remus.

Remus had to agree with her, he was attractive. However that feeling was eclipsed by sudden realization. This was Sirius? This was Regulus’ big brother? Oh gods, that was both so awful and so perfect.

“Sirius?!” Remus practically screeched. Both of his companions stared at him in confusion and horror, so he quickly composed himself. “If you’re Sirius, please stay. It’s about you, honestly.”

“Me? What did I do?” His eyes were full of wonder and nervous shock. He sat down on the bed in the corner, gesturing for Remus to explain.

“Right…” Remus took a deep breath, “So you remember Lily? The red haired girl who came to visit. Well she burst into my apartment, and she was telling my roommate Regulus and I about meeting you right?” He looked for a reaction from Sirius at the name, but he didn’t get one. That was weird. “Right, okay. Regulus had this full blown meltdown about you, almost like he knows you pretty well. He kept saying something about you leaving, and now he won’t talk to me about it anymore.”

There was a moment of silence, during which both Eunice and Remus looked to Sirius for clarification. Sirius raised an eyebrow, seeming to rack his memory.

“I don’t.. I’ve never met a Regulus” This much, he seemed certain of. However there was a flicker of doubt behind his eyes, as if the name seemed oddly familiar to him. That was strange.

“Are you absolutely sure you don’t know him?” In a last ditch effort, Remus pulled his phone out, opening his photos to pull up a picture. After a few seconds of scrolling, Remus found what he was looking for.

It was a good photo. Simple, just Regulus holding their cat. However it had been taken just last spring. Sunlight filtered through the window of their flat, framing Regulus like an angel. And Regulus certainly looked like an angel. He had that soft smile on his face that was so rare to see. The one that proved that he was being his genuine self, if only for a minute. Looking between the two boys, Remus was amazed that he hadn’t noticed their similarities earlier. He spun his phone around and passed it over to Sirius.

✩✩✩✩✩✩

Sirius:

Sirius noticed the cat first, although he wasn’t so sure it was even a cat. That thing was so fucking ugly. Why doesn’t it have hair? It looks like a flesh raisin. Flinching in horror, he forced his eyes away from the hideous creature and then scanned the face of the man in the picture.

His heart raced as he studied the jawline, the short black curls, the chunky sweater that he must’ve borrowed from Remus. Why did Sirius know this man? Why was he so achingly familiar, in a way that stung? His eyes froze from where they were wandering over the picture when he noticed one specific detail. Those eyes. Those deep gray, sad and empty eyes.

All the memories flooded forcefully into Sirius’ brain. Everything started to make sense now. How had he not guessed this conclusion earlier? The way he had sliced off all of his hair without thinking twice, saying he wanted to look more like Sirius. The obvious discomfort on his face whenever their mother subjected him to those fancy gala dresses. Sirius had a brother. He’d always had a little brother.

His eyes widened and he snatched the phone from Remus’ grasp, admiring the face of the person he’d missed dearly for years. He’d so truly believed that his sibling was dead. He searched everywhere after Regulus had turned eighteen, and had no trace of him at all. It made sense now that he couldn’t find him. He wasn’t even looking under the right name.

“What the fuck,” Sirius whispered to himself, hopeful and horrified. “What the actual fuck.”

“Sirius?” It was Nessie, staring at him with concern. “Sirius, what’s wrong?” He’s never heard Nessie speak this gently before. It shook him out of some kind of trance. He finally looked up from the phone, but did not return it to Remus.

“That’s my brother. I've got a little brother.” Sirius choked on his words, and the tears spilt over finally. He didn’t stop them. He cried, for once not because of what he had lost, but because of what he had hope to gain.

“I’m sorry, what?”

Chapter 7: Permanent Promises

Summary:

Remus and Regulus talk.

YAY James and Sirius scene!

Notes:

Heyyy guys... sorry for the late chapter. River’s been in the hospital twice in a week, and lord knows I can’t do anything competent without them. (Definitely not River editing this) PSA: If you cough up blood, GO TO THE HOSPITAL IMMEDIATELY. Don't wait two weeks. (Dramatic git, I lived. I’m fine.) I also got distracted with changing the color of the docs... River got annoyed with me for turning it bright green... he said delete it all if I didn't change it back to normal. (I meant it. Bitch yells at me for not editing and then just sits there going “greeeeen 😯”)

"Your grammar isn't sexy but you are" -River after I cried about my grammar. They made fun of me... I love them though. Live Laugh love River.

Guys please comment, I need my ego to be boosted. (No they don’t. Their ego is huge. Comments are fun to read though.)

Guys i'm currently getting made fun of for calling parentheses "the little swoopy thing" I FORGOT WHAT THEY WERE CALLED.

(NO, NO MAKING FUN, IM CRYING. IM ACTUALLY CRYING. CARMEN SAYS “oh, and in some little swoopy things I wrote-” and so naturally I go… “Carmen. Parentheses?” And Carmen DIDNT KNOW PARENTHESES EXISTED. And I’m already upset about that. But then my other friend, Gracie, says “No? Parentheses is a city, right?” THEY WERE TALKING ABOUT THE PARTHENON. IN ATHENS. THIS WAS NOT MY FAULT. ALL MY FRIENDS ARE STUPID. HELP ME.)

Remus:
“I’m sorry, what?” Remus stared slackjaw at Sirius, his abject horror compensating for his sudden sense of discomfort. Regulus had a brother? Sure, Regulus never spoke of his family. Remus had assumed that it was because some nasty or unfortunate circumstance had pushed the Blacks apart. Despite this, he couldn’t help feeling surprised and a little hurt that he had never learned of Regulus’ brother. Sirius didn’t even seem like a bad person, and Remus couldn’t fathom why Regulus would stop speaking to him.

Remus immediately felt guilty for being upset with Regulus. He tried to remind himself that Regulus did not owe him information, and that his roommate was a very closed off person, but the resentment still bubbled under his skin. All this stress, all these dramatics, for one perfectly normal (albeit fairly attractive) sibling?! It was unfair. Were they just not close enough for that? But Regulus had met just about Remus’ entire family. Honestly, why was this so confusing?

His distress must have shown on his face, because Sirius was looking at him with a concerned expression. “He didn’t mention me.” Sirius spoke softly, trying to hide the twinge of pain in his voice, yet Remus noticed. Gods, Sirius looked so conflicted. Relieved, hurt, guilty for some reason. “Don’t… don’t get upset with him for that. It’s not his fault. I would have done the same thing if my brother had put me in that situation. Trust me, he’s just protecting himself how he knows best. That’s what he’s always had to do.” Sirius looked a little bit proud at this, with a faint smile. Gods, he still loved Regulus, didn’t he? Oh, he must be hurting quite badly right now.

“Sirius, dearest, if you’re siblings, how come you didn’t recognize his name?” Honestly Remus forgot Eunice was there, but she brought up a good point.

A look of guilt and anxiety washed over Sirius’ face, and he suddenly seemed very interested in the pattern on the floor. “I don’t… I don’t know if that’s something I can talk about.”

Remus will admit, he was wholeheartedly confused. He thought he was finally getting answers, but there were still more secrets. It was infuriating. Best to move on from here honestly.

“So… with that fascinating information out of the way, what the hell am I supposed to do? He won’t even look at me.”

“If he’s the same as I remember, then he’s still incredibly avoidant. He’ll be pretending it hasn’t affected him, or even that it never happened. I’m willing to bet he’s suffering. Horrific nightmares are pretty common for the two of us, and for good reason. I’ve been able to face things a bit better, but… he likes to pretend that it was never a problem to begin with. He convinces himself he’s doing fine.” Sirius took a curious glance at Remus:

“Yeah… that’s him. You’re spot on. So how do I fix it?”

“He’ll be defensive. Really defensive. He’s like a cornered stray cat when he’s upset, lashing out at anything that’ll hurt you.” Remus giggled gently at the comparison, and Sirius smiled at him fondly. “Just don’t take anything he says to heart, alright? He’s good at getting under peoples skin when he tries to push them away. It’s his way of protecting himself. Don’t let him push you away, Remus. He needs to face this, and I can tell that he’ll need you there when he does.”

✩✩✩✩✩✩

Remus got home, tossing his keys on the entryway table like usual. He paused when he saw a vase of flowers already there. Did Regulus buy them? It seemed unlikely. They were quite pretty though. He turned away from them after a moment, shuffling down the hall to Regulus’ room, and knocked gently. Three swift taps on the door, how he always knocked. He knew Regulus would recognize it.

A small shuffling and sniffling sound came from inside the bedroom. A moment of silence that made Remus uneasy, and then “Come in.”

Remus pushed open the door, meeting his roommates eyes. Regulus was sat in the chair at his desk, posture perfect, a pen in hand. It seemed like he was working on one of his Astronomy projects for college. He was currently glowering at Remus with his ‘what the fuck are you bothering me for’ glower. It was alright, Remus had practically become immune to it. He granted that it was terrifying as hell the first few times, but he’d learned that it was also usually quite insincere. Regulus Black doesn’t scare him.

He flopped down on the edge of Regulus’ tidy bed, earning himself a disapproving scoff. Why was his roommate such a neat freak, honestly?

“We need to talk.” Remus winced, realizing that he had probably sounded demanding and mean, but Regulus smirked.

“You sound like you’re about to tell me we’re breaking up, Rem.”

“Oh please, you know what I’m talking about. We should talk about last night.”

“I don’t think we need to. It’s unimportant.” Sweet lord, he was so stubborn.

“Regulus, I know it’s bothering you.”

“You don’t know shit Lupin. Don’t pretend you do.” Regulus’ tone was sharp and laced with venom. “You think you know everything, but you don’t!”

“Reggie, breathe.”

“Don’t fucking call me that!” Tears welled up in Regulus’ eyes, startling Remus. His fist was clenched so tightly that Remus feared for the pens life. Gods, he looked so much like Sirius. How hasn’t he noticed it before? Remus has called him Reggie so many times, he doesn’t get why it’s such a big deal now. Still he figured he should be cautious.

“Why? What’s wrong? Please, I just want to help.” Remus was begging at this point. He’s never seen Regulus as despondent and irritable as these last few hours.

“He called me that!” Regulus yelped, looking pained. “Sirius used to call me that. He was my brother. He was. He doesn’t get to be my brother anymore. It’s too late for that.”

“Regulus, I spoke to him today, and-”

“What? You spoke to him about me? No, no, no, Remus, he wasn’t supposed to know! He doesn't know me anymore- wait. Did he tell you? Please, please, please, I wasn’t ready. Tell me he didn’t-” Regulus was barely breathing now, pale as a ghost. It was scaring Remus to death honestly.

“Regulus! Listen to me.”

Regulus proceeded to not listen. He stood up from his desk quickly, setting his pen down (albeit rather violently). Grabbing his jacket from a hook and pulling it on roughly, he strode towards the bedroom door. Remus stood quickly, cutting him off. “Regulus. We’re talking about this.”

“Get out of my way.” It was a cold and harsh demand, and the look in Regulus’ eyes made Remus want to move quite badly, but he didn’t. Gods, his roommate could be scary when he wanted to be.

“Regulus. You can talk to people about your problems. Talk to me. Please, I’m begging you.”

“I don’t want to! Move!” Regulus tried to push Remus away from the door, but unfortunately for him, Remus was two years older and quite a bit taller. He gently pushed Regulus away from him by the shoulders.

“Regulus. You’re safe. I don’t know what you mean, but all I learned today was that Sirius is your brother, and he seems to miss you like crazy. You’re mad because I don’t understand, so explain it to me. Please.”

Regulus looked absolutely murderous for a moment. “Bullshit. He doesn’t get to miss me.” He sat down roughly on the bed.

“Why not, Regulus?” Remus was whispering gently, noting progress.

Regulus tugged his jacket off and folded it, setting it by the bed. He breathed deeply, running his fingers over his duvet cover, eyes closed. “I don’t want to remember it, Remus. I don’t want to talk about it. I want it to go away” His voice cracked, and he looked up at Remus, desperate and frantic, looking rather insane.

“And has ignoring it helped it go away so far?”Remus asked knowingly.

Regulus sharply inhaled, like a desperate gasp for air. He looked like he was fighting his very being. He was desperately trying to swim to shore when drowning was all he knew. And the worst part? The deep deadly ocean was all he knew. Safety was a foreign concept for him. Better to slowly suffocate somewhere you know rather than risk so much worse with the slim possibility of life, wasn’t it? Regulus knew he would die either way; so what was the point in being brave?

“Regulus, you have people waiting for you. People like me, and Lily, and your friends Evan and Barty, Dorcas, we’re here. But there’s only so much we can do. We can help you, Regulus, so please, let us. I’ll wait as long as it takes, Regulus. I’m staying right here until you’re ready to move forward with me.” He gently sat next to Regulus.

A brief moment of silence passed, with Regulus looking simply astounded. Remus’ last few sentences seemed to have the greatest impact, as if Regulus couldn’t fathom someone waiting for him. “Why..?”

“Because I love you, Regulus. You’re my best friend, and ‘I love you’ is my promise. It means I'm here for you, and I’m not leaving.”

Regulus reached his breaking point quickly. He grabbed Remus’ shirt, clutching at it frantically and burying his face in it. He seemed to be sobbing fully now, and Remus’ heart broke a little bit. He tried to soak in every ounce of the moment, because he knew very well that Regulus never touched anyone, and hated to be touched. He kept his hands by his side, so he didn’t startle the boy.

“Please, please, please, make it go away, Remus. Please, I’m scared,” Regulus choked out into Remus’ chest.

“I can try, Regulus. It will take a while, and it might not be gone for good, but you don’t have to handle it alone.”

Remus started crying himself now, thinking about how much he used to want to hear those very words.

So the two of them sat. And they cried. And that was okay, because they were crying together. They could do this together.

And when he was ready, Regulus spoke. Regulus spoke, and Remus listened, and the two of them learned.

 

✩✩✩✩✩✩

Sirius:

Sirius twisted the key into his lock, pulling open his apartment door. He made it an impressive entire two steps inside before he collapsed to the floor, staring blankly at the tile. He was just… processing. Good gods, there was so much to process.

James must have heard the full thud echo through the apartment, because he hurried to the doorway quickly, closing the door first and then kneeling by Sirius. “Hey. Hey, Sirius, what happened? Are you alright?” He wrapped his arms around Sirius’ shoulders gently, pulling him into a hug. Sirius craved the warmth, and gripped at James frantically, pulling him closer, staring emptily at his shirt.

After a moment of charged and tense silence, a whisper; “No wonder I couldn’t find my sibling. Jamie, I don’t have a sister anymore.” James tensed with concern for a moment, so Sirius clarified. “I have a little brother, James. He’s changed, that’s why I couldn’t find him. But I did! I found Ma petite étoile.” Sirius’ voice shook as he looked up at James, watching the realization dawn on his face.

“Oh. Oh Sirius.” James laughed, looking teary-eyed himself. Of course, he knew just how much Sirius had missed his sibling, even if he didn’t talk about it all that much.

A realization dawned in Sirius’ chest, leaving a hollow feeling in its place. “He doesn’t want to see me. He hates me, James. I left him behind.” Sirius whispered the final few words in absolute astonishment, almost as if he couldn’t believe them. He did believe them though. He had to. He had caused them.

More silence filled the room before James spoke up, sounding harsh but not necessarily unkind. “So what are you going to do about it?”

“What do you mean? What can I do?” Sirius cocked his head to the side in desperate confusion, begging for just a simple answer. Of course, he didn’t get one.

“What are you going to do, Sirius? Is that it? Did you find him just to do nothing about it?”

“No-” Sirius choked, nervous but determined. No, he needed to do something. James was right, being cowardly wasn’t in his nature. “No. No, James, I’m getting my brother back.”

✩✩✩✩✩✩

(Bonus Dorlene 🤭)

Marlene:

Marlene woke up to the incessant pinging of her cellphone. Groaning drowsily, she lifted it off her nightstand, shielding her face from the screen's brightness. It looked like the cause of the disturbance was James and Peter, blabbering in the group chat that James had so poetically named ‘Skibidi Slicers.’ She really needed to change that name, because honestly, what the hell? She sighed as she opened the group chat, skimming the bottom few messages. However, they were speaking pure brain rot, and she decided she did not have the mental capacity to match their energy this morning.

She sat up slowly, taking a long look around her room in the morning light. She noted that she had left her heaps of silver chunky jewelry on her desk last night, and her bright pink electric guitar was askew on its mount. She also quickly noticed the cold absence in bed beside her, meaning that her partner was already awake.

“Cas!” The bed was warm, and if we’re being honest, Marlene blatantly refused to get up. “CAS? DORCA-”

Before Marlene could finish her childish screaming, Dorcas slammed the bedroom door open, glaring in annoyance.

“Yes, Marlene?” Their tone was dipped in icy annoyance and sarcasm.

“Come here please.” Marlene smiled innocently.

Dorcas muttered “lazy ass,” stalking up to the side of the bed. “What?”

“I need to see your hand.” Marlene held her own hand out expectantly. Dorcas raised an eyebrow hesitantly, before gently passing Marlene their hand. Marlene yanked on it hard, sending Dorcas tumbling down onto the bed as well. Marlene pulled Dorcas in, gripping their jaw with one hand and nibbling on their cheek aggressively.

“Urgh, Marlene! What the hell?” Dorcas struggled in Marlene's arms, screeching indignantly. “Will you stop biting me! That’s actually disgusting!” Marlene pulled away from them for a moment, contemplating thoughtfully. “Nah, I’m good.” She smiled nonchalantly before returning to biting their face happily. Dorcas sighed, resigned, scrunching their eyes shut tightly.

✩✩✩✩✩✩

Marlene did not hate her job by any means. She found it rather enjoyable actually. She was not a fan, however, of the way the shop was run. McKinnon's Machinery was a family owned small business (obviously). She wasn’t a fan of how her brothers bossed her around the shop, assigning her random menial tasks. She easily did the most work out of all of them, and was damn good with cars, but nobody else really did seem to care. Especially seeing as her older brothers were the ones inheriting the shop in a few years, even though they couldn’t function without her.

Meadowes Antiques, the small crystal shop right across Main Street, was where Marlene went to escape. How do you think she ended up first meeting Dorcas? They were an employee at the shop, and when Marlene wandered in one day, it had been love at first sight.

*que intense mystical flashback music*

Gods above, Marlene was so sick and tired of today. She’d spent all morning getting bossed around and yelled at by her brothers, who made her work on quite a few of their projects. She got yelled at by a random man, because apparently, working in mechanics and auto-repair isn’t lady-like enough for him. She’d gone on her break only to overhear her parents talking about giving the shop to her incompetent brothers when they retired. After all that she had done for the shop and her family, it didn’t really matter anyway. She needed to escape for a bit. Just… get out of the shop. Deciding that she could manage being literally anywhere else, she decided to check out the crystal shop which had just opened up across the street.

“Welcome to Meadows Antiques.” A voice rang out through the shop as the front bell clanged loudly. “If you need help looking for anything, I can assist you.” The voice was raspy and tired, but still had a timeless elegance to it. It would be a lie to say that Marlene wasn’t immediately flustered. She cleared her throat and nodded briskly, wiping her hands on her overalls. The worker in the back was an absolutely stunning specimen of a human. Marlene felt awkward for staring, but good gods, you really couldn’t blame her. Their dark and thickly plaited locs had crystals and little trinkets weaved into them. They wore a quilt patchwork floor-length skirt, paired with a tight white halter top and a load of crystal jewelry. Marlene couldn’t breathe, and for a moment she swore that her heart was stuttering. The moment she got a look at their face, she knew it was over for her. The deep brown eyes, smooth supple features, and the lip and septum piercings were totally it for her.

Marlene pursed her (suddenly very dry) lips, noting the cool metal of her own piercings, suddenly feeling not quite as awesome. She was hit with a trainwreck of nerves, and debated whether or not this shop would actually help her relieve her post-work stress. The adrenaline kept pulling her back though, and she knew that she’d rather be here than anywhere else. Marlene was completely and utterly infatuated in moments.

In Marlene’s defense, she was very very distracted, and didn’t quite see it coming. When she finally worked up the courage to actually roam the store, her foot immediately collided with the corner of the front desk, sending her tumbling to the floor. (Or so she says, but really… we’re fairly certain she tripped over nothing at all.) She yelled in surprise, grabbing the side of a neighboring crystal display and taking the entire case down with her. The small crystal pieces scattered over the floor, knocking into things and clattering obnoxiously, before the room was filled with a deafening silence.

Marlene cautiously looked up and met the eyes of the worker. Their jaw had clenched in frustration, one of their eyes slightly twitching. Marlene groaned in disbelief, mortified and very willing to book a plane to Brazil and never come back.

Needless to say, Marlene spent the rest of that afternoon picking up small gems and trinkets from between the floorboards of the old shop, under the scornful glare of the incredibly hot employee, who she would later learn was named Dorcas.

Yup, love at first sight. For Marlene at least…

Notes:

How is everyone feeling??

YAY NEW Pov!!

Chapter 8: iPad Grandmas and Ex-Situationships

Notes:

Hey again..... guys, we should all know by now I am not consistent. OH MY GODS, GRAMMARLY IS CORRECTING ME. STFU. Why did I get Grammarly? It pisses me tf off. (I agree. Why did you get Grammarly if I still have to spend hours on end fixing your mistakes? Even your opening notes are full of typos. -R)

No, but seriously, whoever made Gr*mm*rly (Max Lytvyn, Alex Shevchenko, Dmytro Lider. -R) can go fuck themselves. IT IS SUPPOSED TO BE WRITTEN THAT WAY, STOP CHANGING IT. IT'S FUCKING DIALOGUE. Sorry, I'm really passionate about this. (We noticed. You’re also passionate about using no punctuation. It sucks. -R) You should see the amount of red lines here… oopsie. OH MY GOD, IF I SEE ANOTHER ONE IM ABOUT TO GO INSANE. (About to? -R) Wait. I could turn Gr*mm*rly off... I'm not even gonna delete that little rant. It deserves to be seen. Does anyone even read notes? (I hope for their sake that they don’t. You know what, If we’re ranting, why don’t we talk about how you literally left a section that said “I don’t know what to write here. Write the rest of this scene please?” I HAD TO WRITE LIKE FOUR PAGES. And I’m still the editor. I don’t even get to be acknowledged as a writer at this point. I’d just like to let it be known that this chapter was about 3 pages before I edited it, and it’s now close to 11. Please appreciate me. Please, Carmen’s driving me insane. -R)

Guys, is it bad that I like to watch River edit..? (Capitalize the beginning of your sentences. Commas exist. So do question marks. Also yes. It’s creepy when I’m trying to work and you’re stalking me. Focus on writing. -R) Like I see them pop up in the doc and I'll just sit there watching them retype. I have nothing better to do... (Get a life. Or learn capitalization and punctuation. Either would be appreciated. -R)

Also school started again. I hate it already. Like wdym my other class is across the whole fucking building??? (Can’t relate. I’m enjoying school. Especially my sport classes. However my sport is one of the dorkiest ones known to man… but it’s fun :[. -R)

*sighs* River is ignoring me. (theyre editing) I sent a text (i saw them pause editing to read it) I'm so sad. (river when you read this note please don't hate me, i love you 🤗) (Omg you’re such a child. I’m editing your entire fic with a horrific migraine. I keep passing out. Let me finish. 😭 -R) (Also I’m not even gonna try adding punctuation to that. -R)

Guys please comment on the chapter. I love reading them! Heres a longer chapter for the delay😔 (Also we started a TikTok acc specifically for this fic and it’s updates. Its name is eunicesipad. -R)

James:

James cranked the volume all the way up on the car stereo as he barreled down the highway to the airport where he and Marlene were supposed to pick up Peter. The two were currently screaming their lungs out to the music, and I mean, who wouldn’t? It would be a complete disservice to the goddess that is Chappell Roan if James were to shuffle her music and not appreciate it to its fullest extent. The windows were all rolled down, and harsh wind ripping through the car. Marlene’s bleach blonde hair with bright pink ends was everywhere, whipping violently and causing her to shriek in alarm occasionally.

“-STOP THE FEELING! WHEN YOU WAKE UP NEXT TO-” James’ voice cracked as he screamed, banging his head up and down. He honestly thought he was a stellar singer. Maybe he should start a band.

“You sound like a dying cat,” Marlene shouted over the music, giggling violently and peering out of the window. Damn, okay, apparently she disagreed. Haters gonna hate honestly. Whatever, her negativity wasn’t gonna stop him.

“I DON'T HEAR YOU SINGING.” So the two of them launched into the most dramatic and off-key version of the iconic bridge. “-YOU'RE NOTHING MORE THAN HIS WIFE, AND WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT ME ALL OF THOSE YEARS AGO-”

✩✩✩✩✩✩

Peter:

Peter left his gate in the airport only to immediately cringe. He knew James and Marlene were coming to pick him up together, and he knew they were even freakier when they were together, but it was too early in the morning for this. By this, of course, he was referring to them kneeling in front of him, weeping and grasping at his feet. “Wormy, my love! Oh, how I’ve missed you!” James began to cuddle with Peter’s knee, giggling and gasping for air as Pete tried to kick him off.

“My husband! Oh, look at that beautiful face!” Marlene followed suit, except she bowed down to the floor. By bowed, I mean fully bowed, forehead to the floor, and all Peter could think was ‘…ew.’ Honestly, we’re airport floors ever cleaned? Everyone was staring at him too. Gods, it was only 9 AM. Maybe on a better day he might have matched their energy, but this early? No.

Pete gripped James’ hair, peeling his mate away from his leg. He gave both of his groveling friends one uninterested look, and promptly grabbed his luggage, walking away from them quickly. The two idiots paused before scrambling to their feet and sprinting after him. They caught up fast, and Marlene took Peter’s luggage while James slung an arm over his shoulder. Peter smiled secretively. It was good to be back.

✩✩✩✩✩✩

It was not good to be back. He clutched frantically onto his seat belt as the car skidded around a corner violently, making him shriek. Who the hell had let James drive?! Peter clenched his eyes shut, nails digging into his palm as he fought for his life not to vomit all over the back seat of the car.

“RED WINE SUPERNOVAAA, FALL RIGHT INTO ME!” James was screaming so loudly that Peter was sure his eardrums would burst. Suddenly to his abject horror, James whipped around to face Marlene, and the two of them stared into each other's eyes, grinning stupidly as they kept singing the next part.

“WELL- BACK AT MY HOUSE, I'VE GOT A CALIFORNIA KING. WELL MAYBE IT’S-”

Peter screamed louder, watching the car swerve side to side around the road, seemingly not bothering the other two. “Watch the road!”

His words fell on deaf ears. “DON’T WORRY, WE’RE COOL! I HEARD YOU LIKE MAGIC, I'VE GOT A WAND-”

“WATCH THE ROAD!”

 

✩✩✩✩✩✩

James:

“So what are we doing today?” James looked questioningly at Peter, who was sprawled on the couch, looking a bit green. Please, his driving wasn’t THAT bad. Pete could be such a drama queen when he wanted to be.

“Honestly Prongs, I need coffee if I’m supposed to make it through today. Your shitty singing took a lot outta me.” Marlene swooned, feigning exhaustion. Her caffeine addiction was chronic, honestly, and it was a wonder that her heart had not given in yet. Well, at the very least, James definitely had no objections to getting coffee. In fact, he already had a place in mind. Noticing the faint grin pulling at James’ lips, Marlene raised a skeptic eyebrow. “What’s with that face?”

James’ cheeks flushed red and he glared at her spitefully. “Nothings wrong with my face, I think it’s quite lovely actually.”

“Of course it is, I only meant, what’s got you smiling like a little school boy? I only mentioned coffee. You don’t like coffee enough to blush whenever I bring it up, do you Jamesie? Because that’s just a problem, worse than mine probably.”

“Shut up please,” whined James pitifully, burying his face in his hands. He loved Marlene dearly but gods, she could be pushy.

Peter sat up quickly, invested all of a sudden. “Prongs is blushing? Oh my word- Marlene! Do you reckon-” Marlene and Pete made eye contact, staring briefly into each other's soul as James looked on in abject horror. Gods no, he would never hear the end of this. Peter gasped, sounding betrayed and enthralled. “James Fleamont Potter. Who? Who is it?”

“Pete! Shut up…” James sank down into the armchair by the sofa, ashamed. The other two crowded around him, interrogating him roughly. They had every right to be curious, he supposed. James very very rarely loved someone romantically. Platonically was a different story, as he considered his mates to be his literal soulmates. Still, it didn’t mean they weren’t pissing him off.

“Please, I mean it! Leave it alone.” His tone shifted quickly from one of mock annoyance to one of pure discomfort, and as stupid as Marls and Pete were, they knew when not to push him. The two of them shared an equally confused and guilty look before slinking back over to the couch. The apartment was buzzing with awkward silence, and James immediately felt guilty for snapping at them. Just as he was about to apologize, Marlene groaned and looked up at the ceiling.

“So is that a no to the coffee?”
✩✩✩✩✩✩

James absolutely despised Marlene. Why did she have to suggest coffee in the first place? Bringing them to The Stardust Cafe and Bookstore had obviously been the biggest mistake of his life. The source of James’ sudden misery; whoever the fuck was aggressively flirting with Regulus right now. Why was the stranger being so touchy? Why was he so unnecessarily attractive? Who does he think he is, wrapping his arm over Regulus’ shoulders like that? (*cue That Should Be Me by Justin Bieber*-C [I’m only not deleting that part because Carmen absolutely begged me not to. -R]) Why was Regulus letting himself be touched like that? He even had the audacity to look annoyingly fond of the intruder. That was just fucking unfair, why couldn’t he look at James like that?

“Regulus, hey! I didn’t know you worked here.” Marlene shoved past a now befuddled James Potter and went to greet the bookshop attendant. James watched her go, his brain ringing in a resounding chorus of ‘Huuuh???’ He grabbed onto Peter to ground himself, digging his nails into Pete’s arm. Peter shrieked in pain, smacking James’ hand away aggressively before joining Marlene. Traitor.

“Marlene.” Regulus nodded curtly at her, attempting to duck away from the boy holding onto him so he could greet her better, and failing. He shot his captor a menacing glare, which was returned with a nonchalant playful grin. The intruding boy seemed used to Regulus’ spiteful antics, and they didn't bother him at all. Marlene laughed at the sight, reaching out and ruffling Regulus’ hair, and then the other boy’s. “McKinnon, touch me again and you lose that hand.”

Marlene huffed in frustration. “What? Why does Scumbag Jr. over here-” she gestured to the unfamiliar man, “get to give you a warm welcome but when I touch you, its amputation?”

“For your information, I’ve already informed ‘Scumbag Jr.’ that if he doesn’t get his filthy hand off of me this minute, I will end his entire bloodline. He doesn’t seem to care.” Regulus shrugged and gestured accusingly at the man.

“As long as you let me watch you wipe out the rest of my lovely family, you’ve done me a favor and I can die happy, Reggie.” James felt another sharp pang of jealousy at the nickname. Were they that close? Why did he get to call Regulus nicknames?

Regulus reached up and yanked violently on the boy’s hair, eliciting a shriek from him. He turned to look back at Marlene, looking satisfied. “What brings you here? Lupin isn’t working today, if you came to visit him. Flare-ups again.”

“How do you know I’m not here to see you? What if I just love your company?” Marlene teased Regulus, and James wondered again how they knew each other. Regulus appraised Marlene skeptically for a long silent moment until she folded. “Fine. I woke up early to pick up Wormy here from the airport, and so the three of us need coffee.”

“You and your addiction.” Regulus sighed, then seemed to notice that she’d said three. He looked up and finally made eye-contact with James. He stilled, his face shifting into something unreadable and wary. He took a harsh step away from the strange boy, who seemed to sense his sudden discomfort and let it happen, seeming concerned. Regulus tore his eyes away from James, frowning to himself. “I can go make you guys coffee, if you’d like. I’m technically on the Bookstore shift right now, but we’re running low on Baristas, so It’ll be fine.”

“Alright. Thank you, Regulus.” Marlene shifted on her feet, noticing the new sudden tension.

“Pettigrew, what do you want?” Regulus snapped his attention to Peter, who looked rather intimidated.

“Uh- uhm, I’ll just have coffee. I mean, just black coffee.” Poor Pete looked horrified, and James couldn’t blame him. When you weren’t used to Regulus, he could be right terrifying. Regulus scoffed and strode off to work the bar.

The three friends claimed a booth by the window, rather far from Regulus. As soon as they sat, Marlene turned all her manic energy right on James. “What the hell was that? How do you two know each other?”

“We don’t. I don’t think I’ve seen him working here before.” James ran his finger along the wood grains of the table nervously.

“Please, this place has little to no employees, and he didn’t even ask for your order James. He must know it.” Marlene leaned in closer from across the table, determined.

“Maybe he just didn’t think I wanted coffee.” James sighed, looking up to meet Marlene's eyes.

“He’s making three coffees.” Peter chimed in quietly, but he was met with a glare from James, and promptly quieted down again.

A moment of tense silence filled the booth, and James found his eyes wandering over to the bar, where Regulus and the stranger were conversing. (The stranger was following Regulus around and talking, and Regulus seemed to be ignoring him pretty well.) “Who is that?” James pursed his lips, frowning.

Marlene followed his gaze, glancing back and forth between the boys. “Barty? He’s a friend of ours. I mean, Reg and Barty are mostly Dorcas’ friends, they met at their fancy-schmancy rich people school, but they come over to our apartment a lot.”

James stared intensely at Barty, contemplating what his friend had said. Marls hadn’t mentioned the two of them dating… “I’ve never met Dorcas’ friends. Who else is there?”

Marlene eyed him suspiciously but began to list off some people. “You’ve got Reggie, obviously. Barty’s a bit insane, but he means well. Pandora is an absolute goddess, and the sweetest girl you’ll ever meet. Evan is Pandora's brother, and he’s intimidating but pretty gentle and a bit quieter. Helps to keep Barty, his boyfriend, in check. I think that’s everyone…” Marlene trailed off, watching James sigh in relief. Barty had a boyfriend. James watched Regulus closer, smiling genuinely.

Peter gasped frantically, smacking James on the shoulder annoyingly. Marlene comprehended next, and she gasped, shrieking; “James Fleamont Potter! Are you serious?!” Regulus and Barty looked at the group curiously, and James frantically shushed them.

“Regulus?” Marlene whispered across the table in abject horror, but with a stupid grin coloring her face. “Of all the people in the world, you fell for the heartless arse with emotional baggage? What is wrong with you?” She cackled wickedly, and James groaned, sinking further into his chair.

“That’s so mean. He’s not an arse, and he’s not heartless.”

“But you aren’t denying the emotional baggage, Potter.” McKinnon wiped a tear of amusement from her eyes. “Oh my gods, Dorcas is going to die when I tell her-”

“No.” James flicked Marlene across the forehead roughly. “Absolutely not.”

“I’m not keeping this from her! She’ll think it’s hilarious. What is it with you and people who work here specifically?”

“Oh! I’d forgotten,” Peter jumped into the conversation, giggling. “It was all the way back in grade school, before she moved away.”

“What’re you both on about?” James glanced between the two of them, annoyed. He hated not knowing things.

“Lily Evans has a job here too, James. Remember? Your ‘future wife’?” Peter smiled menacingly at him. “That’s a bit embarrassing.”

A moment of horrified and embarrassed silence.

“Are you bloody joking?”

 

✩✩✩✩✩✩
Eunice:

“Are you bloody joking?” Eunice scowled at herself in the reflection of her freshly dead iPad. She had been so close to getting to the rank of ‘Trend-Setter’ in Dress to Impress and unlocking that new ruffled dress. ‘Wait, is this quirky old woman an iPad kid?’ Valid question, and the answer is yes. To be fair, it’s not like there’s much else to do these days. After she fell down in the bathroom (rather embarrassingly), she’d been on bed-rest and hooked up to a heart monitor. Right before Halloween too. How was she supposed to pull horrifying pranks on Sirius? Being old was tough.

Eunice glanced around the room frantically. Maybe if she plugged in her iPad fast enough, it wouldn’t kick her from that round, and she could still beat the right arse that was LunarWolf339. The 12-year-old had the audacity to call her ‘cringe.’ Not to mention something like a ‘not Skibidi, L moment.’ Did Eunice know what that meant? No. Was she offended? Yes.

She leaned over her bed, yanking on some unimportant white plug and replacing it with her charger. She had just settled back down and picked up the iPad when suddenly the room filled with an obnoxious high-pitched beep. It just went on and on and on. Bloody annoying.

After a moment, the door flung open and Sirius rushed into the room, looking pale as a ghost. “Nessie?!” He froze in the doorway when he saw her, sitting up and staring at him in alarm. “Oh my god, Nessie, what the hell happened?!” The nurse hurried towards the monitor by her bedside and inspected it, before grabbing its plug and staring at it blankly. Eunice put the dots together quickly.

See, Eunice hadn’t unplugged the monitor tracking her heartbeat on purpose. It had been a complete accident. However, Sirius, who apparently had been under the assumption that she had died, did not find it to be a funny little coincidence. For some reason, he actually seemed rather upset. Eunice watched him slump down into an empty bed and rest his head in his hands uneasily, his breath rattling in his throat.

“Eunice, what the hell did you do?” It was a rather pointless question, as at this point, she had already explained it to him several times.

“It's not like I died or anything.” Eunice shrugged casually, abandoning hope of winning her DTI round. Of course, she also felt guilty for worrying him, but what could be done about it now?

“That’s not funny, Eunice! You can’t do that. If you had actually died-” Sirius’ voice cracked as he stood up, pointing at her accusingly. A few stray tears spilled over his cheeks, and Eunice frowned, ashamed.

“What in God’s name happened here?” A concerned and frustrated voice rang out from the hallway, and both of them spun around to see Remus standing with his arms crossed, waiting for an explanation with a pointedly annoyed glare.

 

✩✩✩✩✩✩

Remus:

Remus needed to go back to visit Sirius. Their last encounter had gone so awry, but he still couldn’t seem to get the nurse out of his head. Gods dammit, maybe Gran did have good taste. He’d never tell her that though. He boarded the bus at his stop shakily. He hated public transport but he was much too sore to drive anywhere, and it always took forever. Why did England have such tiny streets?

He grimaced, remembering that he’d told Regulus that he was visiting his Gran. It wasn’t a lie for sure, but he still felt bad. To be fair, ‘I’m visiting your estranged brother who ditched you in a bad place,’ might be worse.

Remus tuned out all the curious whispers of ‘isn’t he too young for a cane?’. He even managed to NOT bash a lady over the head after she pointedly told him that he ‘couldn’t have it that bad,’ and to ‘give the mobility aids to someone who needs them.’ Honestly, people were fucking insensitive, and taking his cane with him when he traveled was always a much bigger headache than it needed to be.

Finally pulling up at his stop (thank the gods), he shuffled his way into the nursing home and took the brisk elevator ride to his Grans room, which was his best bet for finding Sirius. He noticed that her door was open already, which was a good sign that the nurse was here. He heard ominous shouting as he approached however , and a pit grew in his stomach.

He slipped into the room and saw Sirius standing angrily over Gran, tears dripping down his face. “What in god's name happened here?”

Sirius met his eyes briefly before shrinking in on himself. He looked terrified. The nurse shoved past Remus and out of the room, stalking off down the hallway. Remus watched him go sadly.

“Gran, what on earth happened?” His voice shook. with concern, and he eyed his Grandma warily. What had she done to upset her nurse this much?

Eunice paused, looking thoroughly ashamed of herself. “I accidentally unplugged my monitor and he thought I died..?” It was a whisper, and her voice shivered at the end, making it sound more like a question.

“Oh, what the hell.” Remus shook his head exhaustedly. He honestly felt bad for the poor bloke, his gran was so dense. He made up his mind to see if he could help Sirius at all. “I’ll be back.” The door slammed shut and Remus limped down the hallway in search of the worker.

Remus quickly found Sirius, who was crouched down against a wall. He was shaking a bit, breathing heavily as he stared at the bland tile. He looked so… small and unsure. “Sirius?” Remus kept his tone soft and understanding. The French boy shot his head up in surprise, wiping a few stray tears off his cheeks. Remus winced at the pained look on his face and crouched down next to him, grunting in pain as he did so. He rested his cane against the wall and smiled warmly at Sirius. “Funny meeting like this again, isn’t it?” Remus didn’t necessarily want to bring up their embarrassing first meeting, but he figured it would help lighten the mood. “Do you remember the first time?” Remus recalled

Sirius met his gaze thoughtfully, puffy gray eyes connecting with friendly brown ones. Remus committed himself to memorizing every detail of this new face. The little beauty marks dotting his face on occasion, like little stars in an inky smooth sky. His red and tired eyes, ones that had clearly seen more than they were meant too. The way his lips had quirked into a slight thoughtful frown as he contemplated the question, unsymmetrical and sincere.

He could see the resemblance more clearly the closer he got. Regulus and Sirius definitely had the same frown, although Sirius’ was less intimidating. The boys did not have the same light in their eyes however. They had both undoubtedly been through so much, but it was clear in the way the two of them behaved that Sirius had been given more time to heal. Remus could only hope that Regulus would get there some day, but some damages can’t be reversed, and only some people end up finding the support they so desperately need and deserve.

Sirius evidently had long ago found his people, and learned that the company of kindred spirits helps to frighten away what dangers might prey on him. Regulus was still learning that safety does not always accompany solitude, especially when the dangers that still seek you out are the ones that eat away at only the most lonesome mind.

Remus was drawn out of his reverie by Siruis, who was answering the question that Remus had forgotten was asked. “You were laughing. It was cute.” Sirius smiled gently, not breaking eye contact with Remus as he spoke, and showing no shame in his obvious flattery. Remus’ face flushed a violent shade of pink at this, ripping his eyes away and choosing instead to stare at the tile floor. It really was awful, who had decided on that pattern? A moment of silence hung heavy in the air as Remus fought to get his face under control. It was shattered as Sirius whispered a question, sounding completely unsure of himself. It was odd for someone who usually sounded so confident. “Can you tell me about him?”

“You really want to talk about him now?” Remus looked back up at Sirius, who still seemed to be struggling to breathe. The nurse was wringing his hands together to stop them from trembling, and his eyes were watery, but he nodded briskly.

“Alright then...where do I begin? I met him when he was 19, and a freshman in the college I attended. We were both in the campus library by ourselves, studying. I remember, he had these piles and piles of astronomy textbooks. You could barely see him behind them.” Remus laughed fondly at the memory. “That’s his major, he’s decided to become an astronomer. He’s finishing up his final year now. Well… I sat down with my English Literature course books and began filling out my report. Naturally, he felt the need to mock my lack of understanding of Shakespeare's themes and the variation of the usage of Iambic Pentameter through his works. He stole my paper and corrected the whole thing, calling me a dimwitted git… so naturally we became the best of friends.”

Sirius barked out a violent laugh, clutching his gut as he snorted. “Oh my gods. He really hasn't changed at all. He’s still a right little arse, isn’t he?” Remus laughed too, wholeheartedly agreeing, and glad to see the older Black brother smiling so genuinely now.

“We moved into a small studio-apartment together that was right off campus at the start of the next year. He was the one who decided that we needed a cat, the one you made that judgmental face at. He actually found it in the dumpster outside of our building, covered in trash and maggots. After cleaning him up and sending him on a few trips to the vet, we named him Maggot.” Sirius guffawed at the name, staring slack jawed at Remus. “What, do you have a problem with Maggot?” Remus frowned defensively before continuing.

“He loves books, especially classic literature, the little dork. He also annotates literally everything. So much of his check every month goes towards tabs and highlights and notebooks, it's actually stupid. He adores poetry, both reading and writing it. He’s written some of the most beautiful things I’ve read in my life, but he prefers to write in french usually. He finds it easier and prettier.” Remus was just rattling off facts at this point, anything he could think of about Regulus. “He paints too. He doesn't often have time, but he’s so fucking good at it. Really anything to do with art, he just seems gifted in. Except music, by the gods, he’s unimaginably shitty at reading sheet music.”

Sirius giggled like a mischievous schoolboy. “Oh, that got him into so much trouble growing up. Maman was so dead-set on us both learning piano and violin, but I got all the musical talent. He could never seem to retain any lessons.”

Remus nodded enthusiastically. “He refuses to touch any instrument anymore, he absolutely despises them. Doesn’t much listen to music in general either, I think he’s jealous of the musicians.” The two boys paused for a moment to laugh in Regulus’ expense. To be fair, it was so like him to despise music just because he couldn’t make any.

“I have no clue what he does all night, probably study, but his sleep schedule is so jacked. He hates the taste of energy drinks, but he comes up with the most wicked caffeinated concoctions every morning to keep himself going through the day. It’s disgusting to watch, and sometimes I just consider forcefully inducing him every night. It cannot be good for his heart or his kidney.”

So the two of them talked, and smiled, and shared, and laughed. It was nice to have something to talk about. It was simple and easy, but at the same time, it meant far more to both of them than they could comprehend. By the time Remus Lupin got back on the bus that evening, he was too pleased to be bothered with judgmental whispers about disabilities. He had learned just what it felt like to be in the company of Sirius Black. It felt thrilling, comfortable, like something he had been dying to have his entire life, but had never known he needed. It felt right. Sirius Black and Remus Lupin. A duo penned by fate itself into the very night sky that veiled all stretches of space and time. There they were, always and forever, somewhere between the moon and the stars.

Chapter 9: Game night pt.1

Summary:

guys idek what's going on in this chapter. Enjoy!!

Also....Game night pt.2 soon!!

Notes:

Guys everything has been so hectic lately, I haven't had time to write a lot. I hope you guys enjoy this chapter.

And please comment I love seeing them :))

Sirius:

Sirius turned the key to his apartment door, still quite sobered from his nice talk with Remus. He was not at all prepared to be greeted with three complete idiots, but at least they were his favorite idiots. He stood in the doorway, mouth agape as James ran laps around the counter. He was laughing like mad, slipping constantly and almost face planting, and shrieking something unintelligible. Marlene was chasing after him, singing some song about coffee. And oh, there was Peter! He was sitting on the counter, legs crossed and eyes closed, tiredly eating from a bag of crisps and humming quietly.

“Petey, I missed you!” He smiled warmly, only to be greeted with a small nod and a sigh. Damn, they must have really tired him out. “What on Earth are those two doing?” Sirius sighed, gesturing pointedly at the others. James stopped running abruptly, and Marlene slammed into his back, sending her tumbling to the floor. She yelled a few brutal profanities at him as he shook with laughter, then lifted her arm so he could help her up.

“You’re home!” James giggled like a child, approaching Sirius and dragging him over to sit on the couch. “How was work, kitten whiskers?”

“Hell.” Sirius jumped forward, face planting on the sofa with a grunt, then letting out a muffled scream. After a moment’s silence, his fear of missing out got the better of him, and he looked up from the cushions. They were all staring at him with mixtures of amusement and concern in their faces. Peter stood, setting down his crisps and approaching Sirius.

“What happened, Padfoot?” Peter crawled onto the sofa, sitting directly on Sirius’ back. The poor squished French man flailed his arms wildly in alarm, akin to the inflatable tube men that you see outside of your local crummy grocery shops.

“Peter, you right arse! Get off!” Sirius screeched indignantly, ignoring the giggles from the other three. His complaints seemed to do nothing, as Peter stretched out, lying down right across him. “Prongs! Get this git off of me right now! No- no, Prongs put that phone away! Don’t you dare- oh you are so deleting those photos! You were supposed to help me! Traitors, all of you!”

✩✩✩✩✩✩

Sirius loved hosting board game nights with his friends. Sure, sometimes it turned out chaotic, and sometimes they got slightly murderous, but it had never escalated too badly. (Save for that one hospital trip when James had a Banana stuck up his nose and two chess pieces glued to his scalp. Don’t even ask, please, it was not their brightest moment.) He smiled contentedly at his friends, one by one. Peter was yanking out fistfulls of hair and screaming something about rules at the top of his lungs. James just looks lost but peaceful, giggling as he arranges a batch of chess pieces in different designs. Marlene was screaming right back at Peter, but it’s much less cohesive. She seemed to just be talking gibberish as she danced around the living room, throwing Scrabble pieces everywhere. Sirius has to admit, he admires Dorcas’ patience. She’s just sitting on the armchair and watching them contentedly, albeit with a mocking grin and the occasional blackmail photo taken. Sirius himself was pulling out his DND dice, because in his experience, you could never play Bop It in this household killing at least four ogres.

“That’s not how you play MONOPOLY!” Peter’s scream echoed through the room over the music they had put on in the background. (Fleetwood Mac this time, because I’m cultured. -R)

“Why are you yelling at me?! I’m following the damn rules!” Marlene threw her hands up in frustration as she finished her turn. She had used her Scrabble chips to spell ‘Yahtzee,’ for 20 points, then rolled her Yahtzee dice for a small straight, adding another 30 to that score.

James looked down at his hand of Uno cards, confused. “No, Marls, he’s right, you broke the rules. When you get past 164 points, you have to guess the mafia correctly, or your submarine sinks.” He gestured to the Battleship board in the corner.

“What?! That’s not fair, the mafia hasn’t played Duck Duck Goose in over 4 turns!” Marlene banged her fist on the monopoly board in anger.

“I don’t make the rules, Marlene. They’re scared.” James nodded solemnly.

“Oh, fuck this, honestly.” Peter looked close to tears, grabbing the rule book for Monopoly and ripped it in half. He had the (actual) rules memorized, of course, but they didn’t seem like they were going to be any help in this situation. Sirius giggled and watched fondly.

Notes:

And yes, we're actually writing rules for these games...

Chapter 10: A/N

Chapter by starsarecool_23

Hey guys Carmen here!! I just wanted to say this fic IS NOT abandoned. We're heavily editing past chapters and I'm writing pt.2 of the chapter!! I'm so sorry its taking forever.... but if you want updates for the fic our TikTok is @eunicesipad

Chapter 11: Authors note..again!

Chapter by starsarecool_23

Heyyyyyyyy miss me!

It’s Carmen! Ok so all the chapters are being edited and that’s taking a bit longer than we expected.. some things will be changed maybe?

The ao3 curse is real guys. So much shit has happened it’s not even funny.

Also I’m gonna start writing more chapters! Sorry gillie you may have to edit those too.. they decided to abandon me again (they went on a family vacation)

 

Ok Anywysd please don’t be silent readers the comments honestly motivate me more to write so!

Ok that’s all hopefully we’ll post soon!