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As James wandered the corridors, doing his rounds as Head Boy, he heard soft cries coming from down the hallway, the sounds echoing through the empty castle.
“Are you okay?” He whispered, walking closer to the figure hunched down against the wall, burying their head in their knees.
The person lifted their head and James faltered in his step, coming face-to-face with Regulus Black. The Slytherin’s eyes were red and puffy, shining with unshed tears and James felt a pang of sadness at how vulnerable he looked.
“Regulus?”
“Go away, Potter.” He hastily wiped at his tears, “Take points from me for being out after curfew and then be on your way.”
James stubbornly shook his head and slipped down the wall to sit beside the younger wizard, “No, don’t think I will. What’s going on?”
Regulus rolled his eyes and laughed bitterly, “You don’t care, you’re just doing your Head Boy duties.”
James sighed heavily and shook his head again, “No, I’m not. Head Boy duties aside, you’re Sirius’ brother and he loves you. So, it’d be wrong if I just left you here to yourself.”
“I don’t want you here because you’re doing a favour for Sirius, I can look after myself.” Regulus growled, moving to shuffle away but stopped when James wrapped a hand around his wrist, tugging him back.
“I know you can.” James whispered softly, “But, I’m not here as a favour for Sirius, I do care. Honest.”
Regulus rolled his eyes, “Sure, you do.”
James sighed and turned to face Regulus, a determined look in his eyes, “You’ve been eating less lately, barely a couple of mouthfuls before you’re done. You spend less time in the Library, but when you are there you’re distracted thinking about other things. You're out of your bed most nights, roaming the corridors, and I try to avoid the corridors that you’re in so that I don’t have to give you detention or take points. I know that’s biased, but bugger it. You’re dealing with something, but you haven’t told any of your friends, so that suggests that it’s a home problem and not a school problem. So, tell me again how I don’t care.”
Regulus stared at him in shock, jaw dropping open and eyebrows shooting into his hairline, “How?”
James smiled softly and reached forward to grip Regulus’ hands in his own, “Because I see you, Regulus, I see that you’re struggling. Let me help you.”
Regulus closed his eyes and took a deep breath, his words coming out in a jumbled mess as he exhaled, “My parents want me to become a Death Eater.”
The Gryffindor recoiled, taking a few seconds to process the information and he refrained from his initial response of telling Regulus not to do it. He took a deep breath, fixing the younger wizard with a soft look.
“Okay, do you want to?” He questioned.
Regulus rested his chin on his knees, staring unseeing at the wall in front of them, “I don’t think so. I just wish I was like Siri, I wish that I was brave enough to run away.”
James squeezed Regulus’ hand, drawing the Slytherin’s attention back to him, “You are. If you need a place to go, you can come to me. We have more than enough room and mum would be more than happy to take you in, she knows what you mum can be like.”
Regulus narrowed his eyes, staring at James with a wary look, “You mean that?”
James nodded, “Of course.”
The Slytherin shrugged, averting his gaze to their joined hands, "I don't know."
James sighed and nodded again in understanding, squeezing his hand affectionately, "Just think about it, okay? I'll be here for as long as you need me or want me. If you need to talk, come find me and I'll listen."
Regulus bobbed his head thoughtfully, "I will, thank you, Potter."
They sat like that for a few more moments, in comfortable silence, enjoying each other's company with Regulus taking comfort in James' steady presence. But, when it came time to separate and return to their respective common rooms, both boys hesitated, not quite ready to leave the newfound comfort that they had sought out in each other.
"This isn't the end, Reg. You're going to be okay." Regulus nodded softly, slowly pulling his hand away from James', fingertips lingering on his own, "Get back to your common room."
Regulus grinned, "You too. You might be Head Boy, but you're not immune to Minerva McGonagall's wrath."
James chuckled, head thrown back, exposing the column of his throat and Regulus found himself tracking the movement of his Adam's apple as he swallowed.
"No one is immune to Minnie's wrath- even Dumbledore is scared of that woman." He joked, hoping from one foot to the other.
"You'd be stupid not to be." Regulus rolled his eyes, a soft smile spreading across his lips.
"Okay, okay. Time to go, for real now." James whispered.
"For real." Regulus confirmed, nodding gently before he turned and walked away. James stayed until the younger wizard got to the end of the corridor, smiling softly when he turned to look at him over his shoulder.
James turned on his heel and walked back to his dorm room, mind fixated on Regulus, hoping that the boy would be okay and that he would leave that awful house, just as Sirius had.
It was one night during the Winter Holidays that the floo roared to life and out tumbled Regulus Black, bloody, broken and bruised.
Sirius and James were on their feet in a second, discarding their schoolwork and kneeling down beside Regulus. James pulled the boy into his lap, gently cradling his head on his knees.
"MUM!" Sirius yelled, staring down at his brother with a grief-stricken look, hands shaking as he brushed Regulus' hair out of his face, "MUM, HELP!"
Hurried footfalls sounded from downstairs and it was only a few short moments before Dorea Potter skidded into the room, wide eyed and frazzled, eyebrows knitted together in concern, searching the living room for her sons before her gaze fell on the three boys in front of the fireplace.
"Merlin and Morgana." She gasped, hand flying into her robes to retrieve her wand as she registered Regulus' battered form, lying limp in James' lap. She ran over to them, crouching beside James and set about healing the young Slytherin, brows knitted together in concentration.
His cuts slowly knitted back together and broken bones realigned themselves before Dorea turned to her sons, "There's little that I can do for his bruises other than some healing paste, but we'll get him set up in the room next to James' so he can rest and recover."
James nodded and tucked one arm under Regulus' knees with the other cradling his head before he stood up, cradling the unconscious Slytherin close to his chest as he carried him up to the bedrooms, Sirius leading the way.
His fellow Gryffindor pushed into the room, holding open the door, and pulled back the covers of the bed so that James could lay him down on the mattress.
Sirius pulled the cover up over his shoulders, tucking them underneath him to keep him warm, and brushed his hair out of his eyes, tucking it affectionately behind his ear.
"You're safe now, little brother." Sirius whispered before he turned to James, "I'm gonna take a shower, will you-?"
James cut him off, laying a hand on his wrist, "I'll sit with him, go on."
Sirius nodded in thanks and disappeared out of the door, shutting it behind him with a soft click.
James frowned at Regulus' prone form, a flash of anger bubbling deep within his stomach at the thought of why Regulus was in such a state. He wanted, more than anything, to march over to Grimmauld Place and give the Blacks a piece of his mind, but he knew that it would only make matters worse. But, that didn't matter anymore, what mattered was that Regulus was safe and on the mend.
James pulled a chair up to the side of Regulus' bed, lowering himself onto it, and sat forward, resting his elbows on his knees and his head on his hands, watching the gentle rise and fall of the younger wizard's chest as he slept.
James jerked awake when Regulus let out a hacking cough, groaning loudly. He sat bolt upright, brows furrowed in concern and reached for Regulus' hand.
"Are you okay?" He whispered, gently squeezing Regulus' fingers.
Regulus coughed again, "Can I get some water?"
A glass appeared on the bedside table and James mentally thanked the house elves, picking the glass up and holding it to Regulus' lips. The Slytherin smiled thankfully and gulped down the water like a dying man, sighing in relief when James pulled the empty glass away.
James smirked in amusement and arched an eyebrow at him, "Thirsty much?"
"Positively parched." He replied, the ghost of a smile on his lips, his voice still scratchy and gruff from the damage done to his throat.
James cringed and reached into the bag at the side of the bed that his mouth had left, "Mum said that your throat might hurt, you have some pretty harsh fingerprints on your neck." He passed Regulus a packet of unfamiliar red-coloured sweets, "They're Jakemans. A muggle invention, they do wonders for a sore throat."
Regulus plucked one from the packet, eyeing it warily before he unwrapped it and popped it in his mouth, recoiling in shock, "It's an interesting taste."
"I quite like it." James replied, taking one for himself and sucking softly on it, "Mum says I shouldn't eat them like normal sweets, but I do it anyway."
"Ignoring your mother's rules? Quite bold of you, Jamie." The nickname slipped from Regulus' mouth before he could stop it and he blushed darkly, averting his gaze, "Sorry."
James chuckled and shook his head, laying a soft hand on Regulus' bicep, "It's okay. I've had worse nicknames from Sirius."
Regulus snorted, wincing slightly when the action pulled at his throat, "I can imagine that. Sirius has a knack for weird nicknames."
James chuckled and nodded, "You can say that again." He glanced briefly at Regulus to see the other teen looking at him with heavy-lidded eyes, "You still tired?"
Regulus nodded softly, "Yeah." He yawned.
"Go to sleep, okay? You need rest to heal up." James replied and sighed at the panicked look in his eyes, giving his bicep a comforting squeeze, "I'll still be here when you wake up. If I'm not, then Siri will be."
Regulus nodded softly, allowing his eyes to slip shut, falling back into a peaceful slumber. James stayed vigilant at his bedside, drifting in and out of sleep until Sirius crept into the room and kicked his ankle, jerking him awake.
"Wha?" James mumbled, shooting out of his chair, "Wha's wrong? S'everything okay?"
Sirius hid his laughter behind his hand, rolling his eyes at his friend's antics, "Yes, you great goof. You've been in here nearly all night. Mum told me that it was my turn to look after Reggie while you get a shower and some proper sleep."
"Are you sure?" James whispered, feeling reluctant to leave the Slytherin's side.
Sirius rolled his eyes again, "Yes. Stop being a mong. Take a break from being a Mother Hen and go rest up. I'll take good care of him."
James' expression softened and he nodded gently, "You always do."
Sirius chuckled and shoved James towards the door, "Go shower, you stink."
"Dick." James hissed playfully, glancing over his shoulder to stick his tongue out at his fellow Gryffindor.
"Pussy." Sirius retorted as James shut the door, grinning at his retreating form before focusing all of his attention on his little brother.
It took Regulus a good four days to get even half-healed, the extent of his injuries so severe that Dorea had threatened to call in a healer if his body didn't naturally start to get better.
But, after a decent amount of rest and some good company, his body started to cooperate and some of the better bruises had begun to fade.
"How are you feeling?" James whispered as he pushed into Regulus' bedroom, a cup of tea cradled carefully in his hands.
Regulus, who was sitting up against the pillows reading a book, smiled softly and set it down beside, accepting the tea with a grateful smile, watching as James leant against the wall beside his bed.
"I'm feeling a lot better." He replied, taking a careful sip, "The pain in my throat isn't as severe and my ribs don't feel as achy anymore. I'm on the mend."
James nodded softly, a wide smile settling on his lips, "Good, I hated to see you in such a state. I'm happy to see you healing."
"All thanks to you, Sirius and your mother." Regulus smiled softly, resting his teacup in his lap, "I don't know where I'd be right now without you."
James shrugged nonchalantly, "What's family for if not to help you when you get yourself in a mess?"
"You've got a point there." Regulus replied, glancing out of the window at the blackened sky, "It's getting late."
"Yeah, it's a little past ten." James smiled softly, "You should finish up your tea and get some sleep. The more the better, you'll heal quicker." He pushed off the wall and moved towards the door, stopping when Regulus' hand wrapped around his wrist.
He turned back to the Slytherin, arching an eyebrow, a concerned glint in his eyes, "Are you okay?"
Regulus blushed and averted his gaze, "Will you stay with me? I don't much feel like being alone tonight."
James nodded and settled down in the chair next to Regulus' bed, elbows resting on the edge near to his thighs, "Has something happened?"
"I just keep getting lost in my thoughts. I was reading to distract myself." He explained, briefly glancing down at the book beside him.
The messy-haired wizard frowned and made a soft noise of understanding, "Would you like to talk about it? Whatever is bothering you?"
Regulus drew in a shaky breath, "No, I don't think I'm quite ready, yet." He whispered, "But, will you-?" He cut himself off, hastily shaking his head, "Never mind."
"No, don't do that." James urged, hand coming to rest on Regulus' thigh over the covers, "Talk to me."
Regulus blushed, "It was stupid anyway."
The Gryffindor arched an eyebrow at him, "If it's stupid, then you wont have a problem telling me." He teased, "And it can't be worse than anything that I've heard from the mouth of your brother."
"No, I can imagine that it won't be." Regulus replied, feeling more at ease with the affectionate jibes, "Will you lay with me?"
James softened, a loving smile drifting onto his lips and his eyes sparkled with undisguised adoration, "Of course."
He stood up and moved to the other side of the bed, kicking off his slippers before climbing in, settling down beside the younger wizard. Regulus smiled in thanks and reached out to tangle his fingers with James', using his free hand to hold his cup of tea.
"Finish your tea and then we'll sleep." James whispered.
Regulus nodded and gulped down the remaining liquid before placing his cup on the side, smiling when it vanished from sight.
James grinned and shuffled down the bed, opening his arms for Regulus. The younger teen blushed and wiggled closer into the embrace, resting his head against James' chest to listen to the gentle thump of his heart.
As Regulus began to drift to sleep he felt James tighten his grip and bury his face in his hair, pressing a gentle kiss atop his head.
"You're safe now." James whispered, "As long as you're here with me, you'll never get hurt. I won't let you. You're safe. I'll protect you."
Regulus found himself believing the words, feeling secure in James' embrace, like nothing could hurt him as long as he had James' arms around him. He found that he fit there perfectly, as if his arms had been made to hold him, as if they were two pieces of a jigsaw coming together to make a beautiful, complete picture.
Somewhere, in the depths of his mind, he registered that this was what love felt like. Peace, security, completion. It all came together to make love. Beautiful, honest, true love. And that didn't feel so bad at all.