Chapter Text
“Okay, let me get this straight,” Remus blinked, leaning over the kitchen table towards Regulus. “You found and destroyed four Horcruxes?”
“Yes,” Regulus confirmed.
“How?”
“Mostly by watching my family closely,” Regulus shrugged. “You'd think they'd be better at keeping secrets, but they practically preen when the Dark Lord entrusts them with something. It's pathetic. After that, I just had to do some discreet digging. I don't believe any of them even know their precious treasures have been stolen.”
“Impressive,” Remus smiled and Regulus willed himself not to blush. He was not a teenager anymore, for fuck's sake. “How did you destroy them?”
“It was a bit of trial and error,” Regulus admitted. “Sirius and I basically eviscerated the first one with fiendfyre, but decided it was too dangerous for long term usage.”
“Where did you -
“Don't ask,” Regulus said gravely. “There's a cave somewhere in the Highlands that, if you unseal our wards, you're in for a dark surprise indeed.” Remus burst out into laughter. Regulus couldn't help but smile. “We were more careful after,” Regulus explained. “Found magical ways to separate the soul piece from the object and cleanse it, then destroy the soul piece through a simple killing curse.”
“Ingenious,” Remus breathed, and Regulus basically glowed from the inside. “Then again, I shouldn't be surprised. You and your brother have always been unfairly smart.”
“That's not true,” Regulus rolled his eyes. “Weren't you top of your year and prefect and -”
“Lily was top of the year,” Remus corrected him. “I barely made the top five.”
“Oh, sorry, my mistake,” he snorted. “You're right, you should be ashamed of your inadequacy.”
Remus grinned. “I was always more book-smart,” he pointed out. “With you and Sirius, it comes natural. That's something to admire. You could have easily overtaken everyone at school if you'd had the focus.”
Regulus sighed. “Yes, well,” he shrugged. “Our family sure kept us plenty occupied.”
Remus grimaced. “I remember.”
Harry broke out into high-pitched giggles in the living room. Sirius' mock-gasp followed.
“Are you laughing at me, Harry James Potter?! That's it, no mandarines for you.”
“Pads is so good with him,” Remus smiled fondly. “It's no wonder Harry adores him.”
“I'm not surprised,” Regulus shrugged. “He was the best big brother when we were younger. He's always had a talent for handling children, even when he was still one himself.”
Remus studied him. “Why did you fall out after you started Hogwarts?” he asked. “I never understood the reason.”
Regulus met his eyes. His instinct was to tell Remus to screw himself; that it was none of his business. But maybe, just maybe, he didn't want to build walls any longer. He'd done it for the past decade and he was tired.
“Because I knew that Riri had a way to escape our family,” Regulus whispered. “I didn't want to be the thing that held him back.”
Remus' expression softened. Then, Harry let out a scream-laugh next door. They rolled their eyes simultaneously and chuckled.
“Reeeeeg,” Barty whined. “Can I copy your Charms homework?”
“Do whatever you want,” Regulus waved him off impatiently, chewing on his quill, his eyes fixed on the Gryffindor table until Evan snapped his fingers in front of his face. “What?!” Regulus asked impatiently.
“Who are you staring at?’ he asked, raising his eyebrows suggestively. “Lupin or Potter?”
Regulus flushed. “No one!” He snapped, turning to his book. “I was watching my brother.”
“Oh, darling, I really hope you're not looking at your brother like that, or we have bigger fish to fry.” Evan said with a tone of pity.
“Fuck off,” Regulus grumbled.
“Whoever it is, it's nothing to be ashamed of,” Barty shrugged. “They're both good-looking blokes, and the ‘friends with your older brother’ angle is always hot.”
“You're both disgusting,” Regulus declared.
“Fine,” Evan shrugged. “If you won't tell me who it is, I'll just tell everyone that you fancy your brother.”
And with that, Regulus sent a well-selected curse at Evan that made sure he would tell no one anything for a couple of days.
“James!” Sirius called, laid out on the ground, with Harry kneeling on his chest. “Your child is a monster! Ouch!”
“Don't break him, Haz,” James said fondly. “We just got him back.”
Harry looked up at his father, considering his words. Then he plopped down onto Sirius' chest dramatically, like a star fish. Sirius let out a tiny “ooof” sound.
James was distracted when he heard a sound from the fireplace. When he walked over, he realized that it was his soon-to-be ex wife, her head floating in the green flames, calling out for him.
“James,” she said. “Do you have a minute?”
“I guess,” James sighed, lowering himself to sit cross-legged in front of the fireplace.
“I heard Sirius was released from the hospital,” she said. “How is he doing?”
James rolled his eyes. “You made it abundantly clear that you don't actually care about Sirius' wellbeing.”
“Of course, I care!” she frowned. “We might not be the best of friends, but I want him to be healthy, especially after what he did to protect us.”
“Could've fooled me,” James muttered, under his breath, but he was pretty sure Lily caught it, anyway.
“I was unhappy, James,” she sighed. “It made me lash out, sometimes probably unfairly. Against you, against Sirius. But that doesn't mean I don't care. I'm not a monster.”
James chewed on his lower lip. “He's recovering,” he said, at last. “The coma fucked him up a bit, but he'll be okay.”
“I'm glad,” Lily nodded.
“So, what are you really calling about?” James asked impatiently.
Lily sighed. “I wanted to let you know that I found a job. It's at Eyelops.”
“Congrats,” James said drily.
She hesitated. “I know you're angry with me right now,” she said softly. “But I'm actually really happy about this. I can keep the position and apply for university next year, study potions. I can finally go after what I want.” When James just stared at her blankly, she added: “I don't like the person I've become in the past couple of years. She was bitter and nasty and directionless. I want to find myself again. I hope you can understand all of that someday.”
“And where does Harry fit into any of this?” James asked, choosing not to answer. Maybe he would be able to forgive Lily someday. Maybe they would even be able to be friends. But that day wasn't today.
“Actually, I wanted to ask when I could take him,” she said. “Let's arrange something.”
“All right,” James nodded.
“Also,” she breathed. “I found a lawyer and prepared the divorce papers. I was holding off on starting the process because Sirius was still in the hospital, but if you have no objections, I'd like to file them now.”
James sighed and nodded. “Fine,” he agreed. “I'll contact the lawyer who handled my parents’ will.”
“Good,” she nodded. “And James?” He hummed. “I really hope you find happiness, too,” she said sincerely. “Just because I can't give you the life you want, doesn't mean I don't want you to have it.”
James looked away, wondering if it really was that simple; if they just got to have a second chance like that. After everything, it almost seemed like too much to ask.
“I don't get why you're angry with me now!” James snapped.
“No, I believe that you don't,” Lily hissed, angrily refolding the towels James had already folded after he'd done the laundry.
“I told Sirius not to come,” James pointed out, “Just like you asked me to!”
“Awesome. Do you want a medal?”
“Stop that! What did I do wrong now?!”
“I shouldn't have to ask you for some privacy in my own home!” She shouted. “I want you to consider my feelings without me asking for it!”
“I can't read your mind!” James snarled. “How am I to blame for you not communicating plainly?”
“Forget it,” Lily sighed, turning away.
“See, you're doing it again!” James hissed. “Remember, we're stuck in this house! We're dependent upon outside help and information! I'm sorry if I'm glad my best friend is stopping by regularly to keep us in the loop!” When Lily didn't respond, he threw up his hand. “Fine!” He hissed, turning to the door. “Find me when you want to talk, I guess.”
“Everything all right?” Sirius asked when James reentered the room.
“Lily,” James shrugged.
“You want to talk about it?”
“No.”
Harry was now sitting in Sirius' lap, looking at a picture book. When he noticed the tension in the room, he looked up.
“Daddy,” he said, pointing at a page. “Doggo!”
James smiled. “Yes, Harry, that's a dog.”
Satisfied that both adults were paying attention to him again, he pushed the book towards his father, curling into Sirius more comfortably. James crouched closer.
“Okay,” he said, “Let's see what Benji is up to today.”
“I wonder how in all those years, no one has managed to find a way to sack Binns,” James huffed.
“Don't complain too loudly,” Sirius snorted. “I'm not complaining about an hour or two of extra sleep after the full moon.”
“I'm serious!” James hissed.
“No, I am,” Sirius deadpanned. When James just stared at him blankly, Sirius smiled angelically.
“Are you ever getting tired of that joke?” James grumbled.
“Never,” Sirius vowed. “It's my birthright.”
James snorted and looked out over the lake. He twitched when Sirius touched his forehead.
“There was grass in your hair,” he breathed, his grey eyes connecting with James’. His finger lingered for longer than necessary. James' throat felt dry and he didn't quite know why.
“Thanks,” he said, clearing his throat. “Is it gone?”
Sirius smiled, though it didn't reach his eyes. He finally pulled away. “Yeah, mate,” he said, and the word sounded foreign in his mouth. “You're good.”
“I didn't think you knew how to cook,” Remus smiled.
“Mum taught me when I was about to move in with Lily,” he shrugged. “I wanted to impress her.” He sighed. “Helluva good that did.”
“Well, you impressed me,” Remus said mildly. “And it's going to be plenty useful now. I believe Sirius is useless at cooking.”
“It's not like Siri’s going to live here forever,” James pointed out, though the thought of him moving back to his own apartment made James feel unreasonably ill.
“Good luck getting rid of him now,” Remus snorted. “I'm not sure who'd make more of a fuss, Pads or Harry.”
James chuckled. “Harry would be shouting up a storm.” He frowned. “Speaking off it, they've been pretty quiet over there.”
“Go check on them,” Remus smiled. “I just need to put this into the oven and then we're done.”
James nodded and walked over into the living room, only to find Harry and Sirius spread out on the couch, fast asleep. James stood for a moment, just watching them. Harry was curled up in his godfather’s arms, his small fingers entwined with Sirius’ hair. Sirius' chin was pressed into Harry's curls.
They looked so adorable James wanted to scream.
Quietly, he walked over to them and grabbed a light blanket, covering them with it. Then he pressed a gentle kiss to Harry's cheek. The boy just sniffled but didn't wake. He glanced at Sirius’ sleeping face. On instinct, he pressed a kiss to his forehead, too. His lips lingered a little too long. When he pulled away, his heart was hammering in his throat.
‘Fuck,’ he thought. He jerked upright when he heard something move behind him.
Remus stood in the door, looking awkward. “Can you watch the oven?” he asked. “I'm going to hop under the shower.”
“Sure,” James replied, his voice a little too high. “I'll be here.”
Remus sent him a too-knowing smile before backing away. James cursed under his breath.
Sirius watched James critically. “It looked different when Effie did it,” he pointed out.
“It's not supposed to look good,” James huffed. “It's supposed to taste good. Right, Mum?”
“Ideally, both,” Euphemia smirked.
James glared at her. In the moment that he was distracted, Sirius had reached out to steal one of James’ finished products. “Hey!” He called. “Those aren't for you!”
“I'm just taste-testing,” Sirius smirked. “And you're right, they're good.” He glanced at Effie. “Yours are better, though.”
“Naturally,” she agreed.
“As long as Lily likes them, I don't care,” James shrugged.
“You shouldn't care so much about trying to impress Lily,” Sirius frowned. “If she doesn't like you for who you are yet, she's not worth it. You shouldn't have to change yourself.”
“I'm just putting in some work, not changing myself,” James frowned. “That's what you do when you care. Right, Mum?”
Euphemia hummed. “I agree to a certain point,” she said slowly. “A relationship is work, and it's always good to improve yourself. You shouldn't be doing it because you feel pressured by your partner, though, or because you're afraid to lose them. You should do it because you love them and you want them to be happy.”
Sirius raised his eyebrows at James pointedly. James threw up his hands. “Isn't that exactly what I'm doing?” He asked.
Sirius rolled his eyes. “Fine,” he muttered. “If that's what you want to believe.” And much to James' indignation, he stole more food before leaving the kitchen, effectively ending the conversation.
James spent the rest of the evening in a haze, but if anyone noticed, they were kind enough not to point it out. Now he was sitting on the bed, waiting for Sirius to finish his first sole attempt at a shower since returning from the hospital. On one hand, he had to physically stop himself from bursting in and asking whether his friend needed help. On the other hand, he was happy for the moment alone to think.
Being around Sirius had felt… different recently. Maybe that was normal, after almost losing him, but somehow, James didn't believe that was it.
James had only ever been in love with Lily. He had met her at Hogwarts and had decided, in his eleven-year-old arrogance, that he was going to marry her. But maybe Lily had just been convenient. The perfect fantasy. Maybe he'd never allowed himself to truly fall in love - for things to become messy and real and hard. He'd wanted what his parents had. The perfect family. But maybe, that wasn't what he needed.
“Jamie?” Sirius called from the bathroom.
“Yes?” James called back immediately, jumping up in alarm.
“I'm dizzy… help?”
James was already across the door, pulling it open. He found Sirius on the floor, leaning back against the bathtub, hair still damp, pyjama pants on.
“What do you need?” James asked, crouching down in front of him.
“Just help me up and to the bed,” Sirius sighed, reaching out for him.
With James carrying most of his weight, they maneuvered Sirius onto the bed. James cast a drying charm on his hair and helped him into his sleep shirt.
“I feel stupid,” Sirius grumbled tiredly. “But I was doing better, so I thought -”
“Don't worry,” James said softly. “You did a lot today. Harry alone should have tired you out.”
Sirius sighed. “I hope we can get a rehab plan or something settled at the checkup next week. I don't want to be a burden to you.”
“You could never be a burden to me,” James breathed, holding his gaze.
They looked at each other for a long moment. Sirius cleared his throat.
“I'm really beat,” he whispered.
“Of course,” James nodded. “Let's get you to bed.”
As he turned away, he reminded himself that he was technically still married and that Sirius was his best friend. This was not the time or place to get any stupid ideas.