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The funny part about how James and Sirius met, was that James was technically right when he thought that Sirius's parents were abusing him, he was just wrong about the how. He saw the bruises on his arms and the one on his face from when he'd been sleepily walking to answer the door and walked straight into the corner of a wall, and assumed that Sirius's parents were hitting him. Sirius had tried to explain, but saying that you walked into a wall sounded like a line that people who were being abused would say. It certainly didn't help that when James saw him walking around campus, he'd just had his leg popped back in the socket so it hurt like all hell and he was limping.
Somehow they went from that to living together and being ridiculously in love.
Sirius was an author and got to work from home, thankfully. Back when he'd been working in everyday customer service, he'd gotten more bumps and scrapes than he could keep up with, not to mention that being on his feet all day just about killed his legs. He was a little ashamed to admit that he'd pretended it didn't matter so that James wouldn't leave him, which had resulted in probably the biggest fight they'd ever had, but- well, he didn't like to think about it. It was in the past, and he was doing so much better than when they’d first met. They were together and happy now, and dwelling on the past when he was a git wasn't going to make his day better.
He was staring at a mostly blank page on the screen, and he blamed his lack of creativity for the way his mind was taking a walk down memory lane. He brought up a game, playing a few rounds before going back to his writing document and jotting down a couple sentences. He reread them, sighed, and went back to the game. He wasn't going to get anything done right now, and pretending otherwise would only stand to annoy him. Just as he was starting to wonder when James would be home, he heard the lock turn, then the door opened.
"Honey, I'm home!"
Sirius grinned, spinning the chair around to see him. "Hey sweetheart. How was your day? Aw look at us; we're so domestic and cute."
"We've been domestic and cute for years."
"I know, I'm just enjoying it. Let me enjoy this James."
He held up his hands in surrender even though he knew that Sirius was just joking. "I'm not stopping you from doing anything. Enjoy this all you want. The world is your oyster."
"I'm allergic to oysters."
"Yes, and that's why you work from home," he said with a grin.
Sirius rolled his eyes. James had told this joke at least a dozen times since Sirius got his first book published (and it actually made money and it meant he could quit his job as a waiter), but he thought it was funny every single time. To be honest, Sirius didn't mind because of the way it made James smile, but he wasn't going to mention that unless James specifically asked. "You're such a loon."
"A loon who looooooooves you."
"If you love me so much, then how come I haven't gotten a kiss yet?"
"We have a firm no shoes policy, Si." James finally tugged off his other shoe, dropping it haphazardly on the floor before striding over to Sirius and kissing him tenderly. "Hullo love," he said, grinning so bright he was practically a piece of the sun.
"Hi. How was your day?"
James shrugged, giving him another quick kiss before stepping away to get undressed the rest of the way. He slid out of his jacket, but was far more careful with it than he had been with his shoes. "Lots of paperwork, as usual. Snape's been getting on my nerves again, but what else is new?" He hung his jacket by the door, then bent down and put his shoes to rights. One of the things he'd had to force himself to learn when they moved in together was not leaving things on the floor for Sirius to trip on. He didn't trip often, but when he did it tended to end with an injury of some sort and a whole lot of guilt for James.
"Same old, same old then?"
"Yep. What about you?"
"The words exist, but not on paper, and not for me, and not right now."
"How rude. You should kick their arse."
"Would if I could, darling. Give us another kiss."
James sighed and made a big show of walking back across the room, but if he'd minded he would have said something. He rubbed lightly at the velvet soft skin of Sirius's neck, careful not to press too hard and accidentally bruise him-- which had happen exactly once when James was giving him a massage, but he was extra gentle now, just in case. "I'm gonna get changed and then we can talk about what we're doing for tea?"
"Sounds good." He grabbed James's wrist and gave it a kiss before he walked away. Sirius got up carefully, bracing his hands on the arms of his chair. He grit his teeth when his leg shifted uneasily in the socket, but after a minute the sensation passed. It wasn't always a part of his day-to-day experience, but he would have preferred if it never happened again, thanks. He took a deep breath and rubbed at his temple. He should probably eat a snack and drink some water before he snapped at James over something stupid.
Sirius was going through a bit of a depressive episode, and, as usual, James didn't quite know what to do because he was shooting in the dark and hoping that when he missed it wouldn't hurt Sirius. Needless to say, he hated these times for the feeling of helplessness that he couldn't shake. It also didn't help that this time he didn't know what-- if anything-- had set him off.
He knocked tentatively on their bedroom door. At first there was no answer, but then Sirius made a wordless noise to let him know he could enter. He opened the door quietly, stepping in and shutting out the light of the hallway. "'ello love," he said softly. He walked over and sat on the bed slowly so it didn't jerk Sirius from where he was currently laying face down on the duvet. "Did something happen?"
Sirius didn't say anything, but silence could go either way right now.
James decided to let it go for the moment and asked, "Are you hungry?"
He made a noise that was probably yes, but he wasn't sure enough about it to actually fetch something for him. He took the noise as a good sign all the same and scratched lightly at Sirius's scalp. "So Snape found all his pens in jello in a drawer in his desk, and he decided it was my fault. Marlene said like twenty times that it was her, but he didn't listen, so I'm expecting some sort of 'retaliation' tomorrow. Which is a shame, because I could have done better than a prank from a popular show on the telly." James kept up a one-sided conversation, sharing stories that weren't necessarily interesting but filled the space without putting any pressure for a reply.
It overwhelmed Sirius how much he loved him, sometimes, and he turned his face into James's leg as he continued to listen to his work stories. He hadn't meant to drift off, but that's what ended up happening to him, lulled to sleep by the cadence of James's voice and his comforting presence.
James understood that failed Valentine's Day plans were not the end of the world. He knew that how well and how romantic the date went had absolutely no bearing of the healthiness and longevity of his relationship with Sirius.
All that being said, he hated when their Valentine's plans fell through. They'd just had their tenth anniversary, so he wanted this to reflect how much he'd loved the past ten years with him. They'd celebrated their actual anniversary on the day it happened of course, but that didn't mean he wanted to stop celebrating when the day was done. They'd made it ten years for god's sake. So he started making plans for Valentine's a few months ahead of time, scoping out places for accessibility, romance factor, and of course, good food. He found the perfect place, made reservations, and told Sirius that he had it all taken care of so they didn't end up with the fateful confusion of a few years ago, where they had both planned a surprise. They didn't have good luck with this holiday, which was why James was determined to make this one good.
Fate disagreed with him apparently, because in January at Sirius's doctor visit, it was recommended that he have surgery on his left leg. "Recommended for surgery" when Doctor Shacklebolt said it meant "it isn't life threatening so technically you could choose not to have it." Which meant that Sirius was having it.
"Doctor Bones has two openings in her schedule from now to the end of February. The eighteenth-- this coming Saturday-- and February tenth, which is a Tuesday."
Sirius made a face. "I promised my editor I'd finish this draft by the end of the month, so I guess the tenth is good."
Doctor Shacklebolt nodded, and they went through the rest of the details by rote. No liquids the night before, take these meds as soon as he wakes up that day, et cetera, et cetera.
Sirius insisted on going in alone to get the prescription, so James got out his phone and called the restaurant. "Hell this is James Potter, I had a reservation for two on the fourteenth of February."
"One moment." Something clacked in the background, and then they said, "Yes, I'm seeing that reservation for you at seven o'clock Mister Potter, we'll have a table ready and waiting for you."
"Actually I'm calling to cancel my reservation," he said apologetically.
"Oh," they said, sounding surprised. "Of course I can do that for you." More clacking the background as they logged it into the computer. "Do you mind if I ask why you're canceling your reservation? Going to a different restaurant or...?"
"No, nothing like that. My husband's having a medical procedure done and won't be up to go anywhere."
"Ah. Well I hope you have a happy Valentine's Day sir, and thank you for calling to let us know."
"Yep. Have a good day."
"You as well."
James hung up and sighed. Now he had to find some other way to make this Valentine's Day great, and he didn't have the faintest idea for how to make that happen.
Sirius's surgery went off without a hitch, thank the gods. As always, James was relieved to his core that nothing had happened. So far in Sirius’s life, he’d only had a difficult surgery once and it was before he and James ever met, but it made James worry every single time. Now that the surgery was passed however, he was free from that unease. It left him feeling guilty then, to be sad that they'd had to cancel the Valentine's plans when he knew that something bad could have happened, could have very likely happened while he was sitting at work. He was a jumble of conflicting emotions, and he knew that Sirius knew something was going on.
Sirius was something of a dramatic bastard, so instead of asking James what was wrong, he dropped a stack of blank papers in front of James when he was sat at the table.
"Er, what are these?" He flipped through them, hoping that it was just the first page that was blank and the others would have some clue as to why they were in front of them; but there was no such luck to be found.
"The story of why you're acting like you are. I would've written it but I don't know why you're being so weird."
James looked up at him, because Sirius was standing there with his arms crossed over his chest, and gave him a curious look. "Was there something stopping you from asking me what was wrong like a normal person?"
"If you wanted to marry a normal person, you should've gotten together with Moony."
"Moony's your definition of normal? That explains a few things," he teased. "I er, wanted to make Valentine's something great this year. Since we haven't had a lot of luck in the past. But it ah hasn't really worked out and I guess it bummed me out a little."
Sirius's expression softened and he ambled closer, putting a hand on James's back and rubbing at him through the shirt he was wearing. "Jamie. I love you so much. And I love that you wanted to make it a special day, and I'm sorry it didn't work out, but you know I don't care about any of that right? All I need for a good day is you, me, a bed, and a few free hours."
James smiled weakly. "Thanks love."
Sensing that James felt the need to do something, Sirius ran through ideas quickly, trying to find something they could do at their house that wouldn't require any planning since they hadn't the time. "We could watch a scary movie," he offered. "One of those shite ones that's just funny and a little gross. Pop some buttercorn and cuddle on the sofa?"
James laughed quietly, turning so he could press his face into Sirius's stomach. "Yeah, that sounds nice. Thanks Si."
"It's purely selfish, don't go getting the wrong idea about me. I'm hoping for couch-sex."
He just chuckled. "I'm sure."
The movie was, as expected, utterly terrible. Unfortunately it wasn't in the hilarious way, and Sirius was coming back from the kitchen with some chocolates when there was a jump scare on screen and he jolted, ramming his leg into the table. "Fuck!" he shouted, dropping the bowl and watching as all the chocolates bounced out and scattered across the rug. James was at his side in an instant, helping him keep his balance as he took his weight off the hurt leg.
"You okay?"
Sirius grit his teeth and nodded. "Can you get me some ice?"
"Yeah." He helped Sirius get to the couch before he left, grabbing the ice pack from the freezer and hurrying back. Sirius was already in his thin sleep pants though, so he grabbed a rag from the laundry room before he sat back down, wrapping the fabric around the ice pack before he handed it to Sirius.
Grumpily, he took it, pressing it high on his thigh, just under his hip, and James winced in sympathy. That was going to bruise spectacularly, and it was on the side that Sirius usually slept on so it was even worse. He knelt on the floor and turned the bowl right side up, then picked up all the chocolates he could find because it wouldn't do for one of them to step on a piece in the morning. In the background, the movie was still playing, but both of them were thoroughly unaffected by the glaringly fake screams coming from one of the blonde women in the movie. James glared at it, fumbling blindly for the remote.
It was on the other side, so Sirius picked it up and stopped the movie. "Sorry," he muttered. "I thought it'd be fun."
"It's fine." Valentine's Day wasn't for them apparently, and James decided that he was going to stop trying to force it. The night ended on a good note though, with a cutesy rom-com on the screen and Sirius in his lap, determined to make his couch-sex goal a reality. James had zero complaints about that.
"Can we get a dog?" Sirius asked suddenly one day.
James looked over at him, taking in his excited expression and felt like an absolute jerk for what he was about to say. "I'm not sure that's a good idea."
"What?" Sirius said, just as surprised as James himself was that he'd said no. James rationalized in his mind that he hadn't flat out said no, but they both knew what'not a good idea' meant as a response. "Why not?"
"Dogs jump. They have claws, and sure they're not very sharp, but it still leaves marks. I don't think they have sharp teeth once they grow out of the puppy phase, but it's still something to consider."
"I know."
"Your skin bruises so easily and I don't want you to just be hurt all the time like you were when we were younger."
"Wow James thanks for bringing that up, I never considered it before," Sirius said in a flat voice to convey exactly how much he did not believe what he was saying.
James's cheeks pinked in shame, but he kept talking. "I only meant that-"
"Oh I think I know what you meant. 'Poor pitiful Sirius who can't take care of himself didn't think this through even though it’s a bloody pet and takes a shite-ton of effort and constant care'."
"No," James said immediately, holding out a hand as a peace offering. "That's not what I meant at all." When Sirius continued to glare at him, James dropped his hand to the side and took a deep breath, trying to rid himself of the usual defensiveness he felt when they knocked heads like this. "I'm sorry. I should have asked you if you'd thought this through or if it was a spur of the moment idea instead of assuming."
"And?"
"And I'm sorry I continued after you said that you had."
"You're damn right you're sorry," Sirius said, but it was obvious to James that he wasn't actively upset about it anymore.
"Am I forgiven?" he asked hopefully.
"You will be in a minute," he said, but then he walked up to James and wrapped his arms around his waist and laid his head on his shoulder. James put his arms loosely around Sirius's hips, linking his fingers together to keep them in place. After a minute, he turned his face into James's neck, but he still didn't say anything.
James was starting to get restless not being able to move or shift his weight, and it was around that time that Sirius spoke up. "It's a stray at the pound. Snuffles. He's deaf so no one wants to adopt him. I'd like it if you met him before you make a decision or we talk about it more."
"Okay." Sirius had a bit of a bleeding heart, not that he was much better-- Peter and Remus claimed that he was worse, but they both thought football was stupid so James didn't trust their judgement very much. He determined that he would meet Snuffles before he'd think about it anymore because there was no point in getting prepared to say no if it turned out that Snuffles was fine-- or vice versa.
Of course then he went to the pound that weekend with Sirius, took one look at Snuffles, and said, "So what do we need to buy before we take him home?" Snuffles was a shaggy black mountain of a dog, and while he was certainly happy to see them, he didn't seem like the jumping sort-- and in this case the jumping was a concern for both of them, not just Sirius. If Snuffles jumped on anyone?
They'd go down, no question about it. The fur around his snout was grey, but Charlie-- the man running the shelter-- told him that that was common in the breed, not a sign of age.
They told Charlie they would be back, raced to the pet store and set up the house to be more dog-friendly, then went back to the shelter, brand new collar and leash in hand.
They were at St. Mungo's, sat in the waiting room. There was a rift between people that were there for lifelong issues as opposed to 'I broke my arm cause I'm a dumbarse'. It's not like Sirius ever did anything, but he knew how long the wait would be, knew where to look when someone was going to be called in for their appointment, and somehow it left an aura around him that the others could see. And, because people were shitty, sometimes they asked invasive questions or made inappropriate jokes, and Sirius would just give them a tight smile and ignore them as best he could for the rest of the time they were both in there.
"So what've you got?" someone asked one day without so much as a 'hello' or 'how are you'.
Sirius had set his book aside ten minutes ago with no intention of picking it up because all of a sudden there was a love triangle and he wasn't interested in that bullshit, so with a mental shrug, he figured that he could answer without anything too bad happening. "EDS-- Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome."
The other man's face scrunched for a second as he searched his brain for any information he had on it. "Is that the one that makes you super flexible?"
Sirius already regretted entertaining the question. "Yeah."
He got a smarmy grin on his face that Sirius one hundred percent did not trust as soon as it came into view. "You ever gone down on yourself? Self care is all the rage these days y'know and-"
"Actually," James said loudly from Sirius's other side, cutting him off, "he's got me for that." He didn't look up from the magazine article he was reading. "But I doubt you do, so how about you run off and bugger yourself? Get rid of some of that tension in you."
The stranger looked like he was halfway between saying something back and just leaving. Fortunately for everyone in the room and most especially himself, he rolled his eyes and mumbled something about learning to take a joke as he slinked away with his proverbial tail tucked between his legs. It would have been smarter overall if he hadn't said anything, but luckily James was all grown up and now knew what a bad idea it was to punch someone in the teeth because they were slightly rude to Sirius. He had been arrested once or twice, but the charges never stuck for some reason or other.
Sirius was a little closed off after that-- and understandably so--, so James set his magazine to the side and casually put an arm around his shoulders, musing aloud about getting a new chew toy for Snuffles. He'd eaten straight through a plastic bone that was supposed to last at least a year (two! the description had boasted, but online reviews had placed it more around one), and it only took him two weeks before every sign of the bone was eradicated. They'd gotten him a Kong after that, but he didn't use it for chewing, instead opting to carry it around carefully like a prized stuffie for nap time.
"We should give up on trying to get him a permanent chew toy," Sirius decided after a few minutes of back and forth. "They sell the rawhide bones in packs, we should just stock up on those and give him one every couple weeks."
"I dunno,” James said uneasily. “They make him sick sometimes."
"It made him sick once, and that was because he'd gotten into the mini chocolate donuts beforehand. Rawhide is made for dogs Jamie, I seriously doubt his system mutated to make it unpalatable."
"Hmph."
Sirius held up one hand like he was swearing on something. "I promise that if he throws up because of it, I will personally clean it up."
"Oh come on, I'm not going to leave you to clean it up all by yourself," James said, as if that was obvious, and so out of this world for Sirius to even consider otherwise. "That would be rude, and likely to leave me without random cuddles."
"I wouldn't hold out on you," Sirius said with a laugh.
"Well no, but if you're in a bad mood you aren't going to be snuggling up to me, are you? I thought not."
Sirius shook his head, smiling. James was truly ridiculous sometimes; there was nothing that could keep Sirius from hugging James for long, and cleaning up Snuffles's vomit was nowhere near enough to make him reconsider that. The arsehole from before was forgotten, and Sirius was able to walk into his appointment with a good mood.
James stared into the freezer, a look of disbelief on his face. There was cookie dough ice cream in their freezer. Why was there cookie dough ice cream in the freezer? It didn't belong there! Cookie dough ice cream belonged no where on the entire planet, yet here it was, polluting his life. He reached in and picked up the pint, holding it with two fingers to minimize contact with it like it was a dangerous item that too much touching could set off.
"Sirius?" he called, walking out of the kitchen and heading to the loo where he was pretty sure his husband was.
"Yeah?" He stuck his head out of the room, careful not to trip over Snuffles, who was laid in front of the doorway taking a nap.
"What is this thing doing in my home?"
Sirius tilted his head, then squinted at the tiny pint. "Oh, that. I think it's Remus's."
"Why is Remus's food in our house?"
Sirius shrugged, leaning back into the loo to keep cleaning. "He finally left that arse boyfriend of his, and where he's staying now doesn't have a working freezer. He asked if he could keep a few things here, and I said yes."
"Oh," James said dumbly. Why hadn't he heard any of this? "When did that happen?"
"A couple hours ago."
"No, I mean when did he break up with Greg?"
"A couple hours ago," Sirius repeated.
"Sirius my love. If they broke up a couple hours ago, how does Remus already have somewhere to stay?"
There was an audible pause as that processed in Sirius's mind, and when it clicked he took off his rubber gloves forcefully, banging them on the squeaky clean counter. "Shit." He glared down at Snuffles. "This is all your fault, you know. I was too busy petting you to pay attention, and Moony the little worm took advantage of that." All that being said, he still gave Snuffles's stomach a scrub with his foot before stepping over him. "I'll call him, tell him to drag himself back over."
"You can't force him to stay with us," James pointed out, even though he very much agreed with the mental image of them shoving Remus inside the house and piling blankets on top of him until he was warm and happy again.
"Watch me."
Snuffles stretched and yawned, and James bent down as he saw a glint of bright blue on his paws. "Err Si?"
"Hm?" He didn't look up from where he was furiously tapping at his phone-- surely a strongly worded text to Remus about getting his arse back inside their house.
"Why are Snuffles's nails blue?"
Sirius froze. "Er. They aren't?"
James gave him a flat look. "Sirius, I am looking at them right now."
"No, you're looking at me."
James's look somehow got even flatter.
"I was bored!" Sirius defended. "Besides, it'll wear off in a few days and don't we have bigger things to worry about at the moment?" he asked, waving his phone pointedly.
"I suppose." Honestly James was just sorry that he had missed seeing it happen.
Remus got on his feet not long after he moved in with them, so it was only a few months before he was moving out again. "We can shag in the living room again," Sirius noted. "I suggest we celebrate by doing that."
James rolled his eyes with a fond grin. "You're insatiable."
"Don't be ridiculous! You always manage to satiate me, I just like having you often and a lot."
"Is satiate a word?"
"Why wouldn't it be?"
"That argument would not hold up in a court of law."
"Luckily for me, you're home, not at work. Nothing's going to stop me from winning this argument, so I suggest you agree with grace and take your trousers off."
"You're a true romantic."
"James," Sirius whined, tugging on his shirt as he backed up into the living room towards the sofa. "I'm plenty romantic when the situation calls for it. A quickie in the middle of your day off does not call for it."
"When we were first married you didn't need an excuse to be romantic."
"And I don't need an excuse now. Jesus James let me get my afternoon dicking down without nagging me about it."
"You are a teenager in adult clothes."
"Yep and you're right there with me." Sirius pulled James onto the sofa so he was laying on top of him, wrapping his arms around James's neck and kissing him deeply. James's complaints were superficial, more for the banter than anything else, and they both knew it. That was proven handedly when he kissed Sirius back without hesitating.
Things were just starting to get heated when Snuffles woofed lightly, pawing at the back door in a request to be let out. Sirius dropped his head back on the cushion with a disbelieving groan. "You have got to be kidding me."
Snuffles nudged the door frame with his head, and James sighed, carefully climbing off of him. "I don't think he's kidding." He adjusted himself through his trousers as he walked to the door, undoing the deadbolt then opening the door so Snuffles could nose his way out of the house and into the newly fenced in backyard.
"Come back?" Sirius asked hopefully, holding out a hand for him.
James raised an eyebrow. "Just so he can whine when he doesn't immediately get let back in ten minutes from now? I think that'd just make you feel worse sweetheart."
Sirius pouted but sat up. Much as he hated to admit it, James had a point, and it would be much worse to get close and then have to stop for a minute to let the dog back in. "It's a good thing we don't have kids, or these interruptions would be a lot worse, and a lot more frequent."
James nodded. "True. I don't know how Peter manages it."
"I'm not sure he does. I think he's suffering silently and telling us all that he's fine."
He snorted. "So trusting of our friends."
"Hey, you don't know. Peter could be a criminal mastermind, and you wouldn't even know it til you were dead because you refuse to acknowledge what a good liar he can be."
"Why would Peter kill me? Wouldn't it be smart to leave me alive."
"That's what you think," Sirius muttered with a faux dark look. It vanished in an instant when James laughed. Sirius made grabby hands, and James ambled over, leaning down for a slow kiss.
"You really are the cutest thing I've ever seen," James whispered, nuzzling at Sirius's cheek.
"Flattery will get you everywhere."
"It's already gotten me everywhere," James countered with a smug grin.
"Don't you want a repeat visit? You've had those too of course, but I think constancy is our friend here."
"You're ridiculous."
"Pot meet kettle-- hint we're both black."
That startled a laugh out of James and he collapsed on the cushion next to Sirius, leaning into him. "Maybe so, but you're a Potter now. Have been for years, so stop making fun. You're one of us and we're not letting you go."
"James," Sirius said, looking amused, "you're the only Potter left, not including me."
"Yes and we're not letting you go."
"No complaints here." They lapsed into silence, giving the occasional kiss and touch that meant sex wasn't far from their minds.
It felt like no time at all when Snuffles whined at the door, and Sirius stood up to let him in. Once he was inside though, he wanted to play, and he leaned into Sirius's side heavily, staring up at him with soulful brown eyes that he couldn't bring himself to say no to. Sirius sighed, shooting James a commiserating look.
"There's always tonight?" he offered, reaching for the knotted rope they used for tug-of-war.
"Yeah if the lil mutt doesn't decide that he wants to sleep on our bed."
"We'll wait until he's napping then."
Sirius nodded and scratched behind Snuffles's ears, both men smiling widely.