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year two
The Marauders, as Professor McGonagall had taken to calling them shortly before the Easter holidays, have a new yearly tradition when they come back to Hogwarts in September. Find as many Slytherin students older than themselves and pull pranks, change hair colors, grow teeth, plug nostrils, whatever they could think of. Whoever managed the longest without getting detention won.
At least, that was the tradition they were supposed to have.
Instead, Sirius had only spent a few minutes each day with them since they’d returned to Hogwarts. It annoyed James for a few reasons. He didn’t like not knowing things, he had a lot to discuss about the summer and how Evans had cut her hair, and Sirius was the only one who had planned to participate in this new yearly tradition. Remus had outright refused and Peter had gotten detention after pointing his wand at Snape in the hallway and getting caught by Professor Slughorn.
Idiot.
Both Snape and Peter.
James let out a breath through his nose, rolled his eyes, and kept his ears open as he walked down the hallways. It was late, nearly curfew, and there were very few students left out. He walked slowly, quietly, to keep from getting caught. The last thing he needed was to get put into detention before he and Sirius had even started cursing Slytherin students.
“I’m not mad.”
“Don’t lie to me.”
James’ head whipped around at the quiet sentences because he recognized the first voice. He frowned, wondering what might be happening. What had Sirius saying he wasn’t not mad? As carefully as he could, he crept towards the curtain he heard Sirius’ voice from, pushing himself close to the wall. There was the narrowest split in the curtain that he could see Sirius and a boy he vaguely recognized standing close together in a small alcove.
“I’m not lying to you,” Sirius said, sounding more exasperated than anything. “I’m just… disappointed, I guess. I was hoping we’d be in the same house.”
There was silence for so long that James wondered if the other person was even going to respond. Just when he thought he should move, the other person responded and James abruptly realized who it was. He should’ve known immediately Sirius had been incredibly disappointed during the sorting ceremony although he’d tried to hide it.
“I couldn’t. Our parents. They said… they were saying awful things. I’m just not that brave. I couldn’t go into Gryffindor like you,” Regulus said and James was disappointed in himself that he hadn’t recognized him either.
Sirius had a picture of him and his brother in their younger years in a frame on his nightstand.
“That’s a stupid excuse,” Sirius responded, sighing quietly because it was obvious that he wasn’t going to argue. James was very surprised by this new side of his friend that he’d never seen before. Something quiet and maybe soft. Letting out another breath, Sirius shook his head and reached out, taking one of Regulus’ hands. “I just missed you during my first year. There. I said it.”
A furrow creased James’ brow and he wished he could get a closer look. He was surprised to see such an affectionate side of Sirius but he supposed it made sense. James didn’t have brothers or sisters but he knew there was a certain bond that siblings tended to share.
“Of course you did,” Regulus said, a smirk on his lips and he sounded like he was teasing his brother. “You’re hanging around with a bunch of idiot Gryffindors.”
James frowned, a bit offended by Regulus’ words. Sirius responded quickly, though.
“Don’t say that about them. James, Peter, and Remus are great friends,” Sirius said, his voice firm although his fingers were still tangled with Regulus’.
“If you say so. Mum and Dad say the Potters are blood traitors and since they don’t know the last name Lupin or Pettigrew that you should’ve ignored them.”
Sirius laughed but there was no amusement in it. James had heard him laugh like that before and it generally meant something mean was going to come out of his mouth. Sirius tended to be careful about who he directed his dark meanness towards, though. “Mum and Dad are fucking stupid and they have no idea about my friends or most of the world. Don’t blindly follow them, Reg. I’m serious.”
The fact that Sirius didn’t even make a pun really proved how much he meant his words. James leaned in just a little bit to be able to see Regulus’ face, watching as something softened on his face as well.
“You just want me to blindly follow you,” Regulus responded easily, not at all affected Sirius’ rough words.
There was silence for several moments then Sirius leaned in, pressing his mouth to Regulus’ in a kiss that only lasted a moment. James frowned, brows furrowing because that didn’t seem like something a sibling would do. But what did James know? His mother kissed him regularly and it wasn’t weird.
That thought made James nod to himself as Sirius pulled back, looking closely at his brother. There was something dark in his best friend’s eyes but something affectionate on his features.
“You already do, Reg. I just want to make sure you continue.”
Regulus laughed, leaning forward, wrapping his arms around Sirius’ waist and pressing his face against Sirius’ chest. Despite the fact that they only had one year of a difference between them, Sirius had several inches on his younger brother. Sirius let out a breath, looping his arms around Regulus and holding him close.
It was such a show of simple affection that James almost felt like he shouldn’t be spying on them. That still didn’t stop him, though.
“Always, Sirius. Even if I’m in the superior house and you’re just some dumb Gryffindor.”
Sirius laughed, pinching Regulus’ side and grasping his hand when Regulus tried to jump away from him. The older boy looked seriously at Regulus, tugging him closer again and pressing another kiss to Regulus’ forehead.
“Love you, Reg.”
“Love you too.”
Taking several steps back, James reached up to rub his forehead. He was bored of watching them and he was ready for some cursing to begin.
James cleared his throat as he took several steps back and then approached again, louder this time. “Sirius?” he called quietly, still trying not to get caught and get detention although the hallway was clear of anybody. In fact, until he’d come searching for Sirius, he’d never actually been down this hallway.
Something like that wouldn’t do. James really did want to know the castle inside and out. It aided in their mischief.
There was a bit of rustling behind the curtain then Sirius came out, frowning at James. “How did you even know where I was?”
“I’ve been scouring the castle for you. I wanted to try to curse some Slytherins,” James said, curious but unwilling to ask his best friend about his brother. There was plenty of time to talk about it.
Sirius smiled brightly, pulling his wand out of his pocket and twirling it between his fingers. He cursed when he dropped it, picking it up quickly as James laughed. “Let’s go, then. Just no first-years, yeah?”
Those words made a lot more sense than they might’ve an hour ago but James nodded. Students younger than them didn’t really appeal to James. It felt too easy and maybe just a bit meaner than he wanted to be even if most Slytherins deserved it, in his opinion.
“No first-years,” James agreed and he pulled his own wand out of his pocket. “Let’s just be quiet. No need to get detention.”
Sirius just made a small noise of agreement. As they walked down the hallway, their wands held hidden at their sides, James looked over, seeing Sirius glancing back several times.
year three
James sighed as he looked over at Remus. The other boy was reading and denying he was tired although it was obvious. Even though James and Sirius had found out that Remus was a werewolf in the middle of their previous year, Remus still tried to deny how much it affected him. Peter had already gone to bed, tapping out nearly an hour ago.
“Remus, just go to bed,” James said, smiling slightly at his friend when Remus jerked awake again. Remus blinked drearily at him and James shrugged his shoulders. “I’m going to find Sirius and then we’ll be up there.”
Remus yawned, putting a bookmark into the book, something overly long and overly boring judging by the cover. “I thought you wanted to try to get past that statue again.”
James did want to try to get past the statue of Mavis the Musical on the second floor. While he wasn’t guaranteed that it would lead anywhere, something seemed off about it. Maybe it was nothing but James wanted to get his friends’ help to figure it out. They couldn’t do it without Sirius, though. What if they made the greatest discovery Hogwarts had ever known?
Sirius had to be there for it.
With a shrug that wasn’t nearly as casual as he’d hoped it would be, James shook his head. “We can do it another night. Really, Remus. It’s fine.”
Remus looked at him for another several moments before he seemed to take James at his word. Or maybe he was too tired to argue any longer. Whatever it was, he gave James a nod. “Tomorrow night, then? I have several ideas on spells we can try.”
“Brilliant!” James said and he was enthusiastic about it. The four of them all had their own things they were good at but Remus was the most creative. He always had great ideas and they’d found nearly half of the most exciting things they had at Hogwarts because of him.
Remus gave him a nod before turning to walk up the stairs. Once Remus was gone, James sighed dramatically one more time before heading out of the common room. It was nearly curfew and he would have to curse Sirius if he got detention before they’d gotten the chance to truly examine Mavis’ statue.
The first place that James looked was the library. Regulus hadn’t taken to the lessons at Hogwarts, distracted by his friends and too interested in Quidditch and other activities to study. While Sirius didn’t exactly need to study, he knew how so he had been helping Regulus a lot in the latter months of their second year. James looked around but there was nobody he knew there.
Hmm. James wandered for a while. He wasn’t in the kitchens either, although James accepted several cauldron cakes from the house elves.
James didn’t know why he hadn’t thought to look for Sirius behind the same curtain as he’d found him the year before. But he was there and James rolled his eyes, already preparing to pull back the curtain but then he hesitated. Why bother? They weren’t going anywhere besides bed so he supposed he could eavesdrop for a few moments.
There was nothing wrong with spying or eavesdropping in James’ opinion. After all, he learned a lot by it. Like how to get into the kitchens. That was certainly one of James’ favorite discoveries but just one in a long list. Eavesdropping had always done James well.
When James peeked into the curtain, he found that Sirius and Regulus were standing close together just looking at each other for several moments.
“So, you’re allowed to talk about my friends but I can’t talk about yours?”
Sirius rolled his eyes, looking incredibly frustrated but he kept his voice carefully level. It was interesting and James was curious. Sirius had always acted like he and his brother weren’t close although they all knew it was a lie. They didn’t seem like they had much in common but Sirius was fiercely protective of him. While, as the days went by the previous year, Sirius had started managing his time better, he still spent at least a third of it with Regulus.
“My friends aren’t asshole Pureblood supremacists,” Sirius responded and it was obvious he was holding himself back from saying something even worse.
Judging by the way that Regulus looked at Sirius, he knew. James wondered what it was like to have somebody who had known you for so long, to have somebody to be so close to. He was sure it was close to having the Marauders but there was something so different to Sirius with Regulus to Sirius with the rest of them.
“Your friends are still assholes. Potter is the worst,” Regulus said, crossing his arms over his chest although he looked very casual.
“Rude,” James mumbled underneath his breath although it didn’t really bother him. He didn’t mind that the Slytherins found him to be the ‘worst.’
Sirius huffed out a breath as annoyance flashed through his eyes. “I knew, I knew you were going to do this. You were sorted into Slytherin and now you’re going to act like them. I told you over the summer. I don’t want to hear about what you hear from them. It’s fucked up, Reg. The way they act, what they think of people. Because you know they’re people, right? Muggles, Muggle-borns, they’re fucking people.”
“I know,” Regulus said quickly and he took a step towards his brother, uncrossing his arms. “I know, Sirius. I know. Don’t worry. You’ve taught me well, okay? And I remember what you said. I haven’t listened to them. I haven’t called a single person Mudblood.”
“Don’t even say that word,” Sirius snapped.
Regulus pressed his lips together for a moment before he nodded, reaching out a hand. “Sorry.”
With a quiet sigh, Sirius met him halfway, tangling their fingers and using his hold to tug him even closer. “It’s fine. I just… I hate it. I hate them. I hate the way they think and the way they talk. I wish I could-”
He cut himself off for his brother’s benefit but James knew. All of the Marauders hated the Slytherins but James and Sirius and Peter had discussed it extensively. Near the end of the last year, when they’d thought about exactly what those assholes wanted to do to people like Remus. It was messed up, Sirius was right.
James wasn’t the only one who relished cursing them, who wanted to make them hurt for it.
“They’re not all bad, you know. I’m a Slytherin,” Regulus responded quietly and he sounded so young. Generally, he walked with his chest puffed out, talked in a superficially deep voice, maybe in an attempt to be like Sirius, but he let that all drop for a moment. “They’ve been very welcoming. They’ve helped me study when you’re too busy. They keep me company and they’re my friends. I don’t want you to talk about them that way.”
Sirius wrinkled his nose and James expected him to argue. James would’ve argued, had argued extensively with people like Evans, but Sirius surprised him. “Fine. Truce. I don’t talk about your friends and you don’t talk about mine. This truce doesn’t count when somebody’s friends show off their prejudices, though.”
“Prejudices. What a big word for you,” Regulus snarked back but he took a step closer to Sirius until they were nearly pressed together.
It was interesting, watching them. James couldn’t help wonder if he was missing something. There was something that seemed to spark between them, in a way that definitely sparked between him and Evans, not that she would admit to it.
That was stupid, though. They were brothers. James just didn’t understand how brothers interacted, that was all.
“Shut up,” Sirius responded with a roll of his eyes. Then he leaned in, connecting his lips with Regulus’ in a kiss that lasted only a few seconds longer than the last one he’d witnessed between them.
James wondered whether all siblings kissed on the mouth like that. Something sour was twisting in his stomach and so he turned back without waiting for Regulus’ response. If he could just forget that happened then maybe he would feel better.
He would just tell Remus he couldn’t find them.
year four
This year, James had a plan. He was going to woo Lily Evans, cement the Marauder’s plans to become Animagi, curse Slytherins at least 100 times (he had a list of different curses he wanted to use and a place to mark down how many times he’d tried them), and win the Quidditch cup. Easy enough.
Sirius had left the common room nearly an hour previous, promising he would be back in a few minutes. When James had lamented that he wasn’t in any hurry to come back, Remus had shrugged and Peter hadn’t looked up from his homework. It fell to James to find their friend.
This year, James knew just where to go. It was obviously a spot that Sirius and Regulus felt comfortable in since James had found them there dozens if not hundreds of times over the past few years. Was it the fact that nobody ever seemed to use that hallway so they had plenty of privacy? Or was it because it was nearly halfway between the Slytherin and Gryffindor common room? James wasn’t sure and he wasn’t sure how to bring it up in conversation.
Sirius didn’t like admitting he met his brother there, didn’t like admitting that he saw his brother as often as he did. In fact, he didn’t like talking about his brother at all, clamming up and changing the subject whenever his friends tried to bring it up.
Remus sometimes looked at Sirius a moment too long when the conversation came up but James didn’t know why.
They were Marauders. They didn’t have secrets from each other. Not since second year when they’d figured out Remus’ big secret.
As he’d expected, he heard Sirius and Regulus’ voices as he got closer. It was almost enough to make James roll his eyes. Predictable
This time they were sitting on the ground, Sirius’ knees drawn up to his chest and Regulus’ body pressed as close to his brother as he could get. James frowned, wondering if something was wrong. Why wouldn’t Sirius tell him? Why wouldn’t Sirius talk to him?
They were supposed to be best friends.
“Andromeda sent me an owl and I read it,” Sirius said after a few moments and Regulus leaned into him a little bit, resting his hands on Sirius’ knees so he could look at him.
“Mum would burn you alive if she knew.”
Sirius smiled slightly which had obviously been Regulus’ intention. He reached up, tracing his fingers gently along the curve of Regulus’ cheek, his thumb sliding along his lower lip. James could only watch, having this weird feeling he was spying on something he shouldn’t be seeing. It was stupid. But there was something about the scene in front of him.
For maybe the first time of James’ life, he kind of thought he shouldn’t be spying on somebody. What was going on with Sirius? What was he seeing?
“She had a baby,” Sirius said, leaning his head back against the wall he was against, sighing quietly. “A little girl. And she told me she’s around if I need anything. Think she expects me to get disowned, or run away from home, before I graduate.”
Regulus stiffened, shaking his head and leaning even closer to Sirius. Seeming to sense his brother’s concern, Sirius reached around to rest a hand on Regulus’ waist, holding onto him. “You can’t go. I know Mum and Dad are stupid but you can’t leave me.”
Sirius looked almost lost as he stared at his brother and James wanted to press, he wanted to know just what went on at the Black home during the summer. Sirius had told them bits and pieces but he kept his family life so close to his chest.
It felt so wrong to be standing here, watching Regulus and Sirius stare at each other that James actually took a step back. Something was going on and James could feel it in his bones but he was scared to press. He was scared to change their friendship.
“I’m not ever gonna leave you,” Sirius mumbled and he tilted his head up to press his lips to Regulus’.
James jerked back, working his jaw as he looked around. The corridor was empty as it always was and James reached up to ruffle his hair.
Should he say something? Should he try to ask Sirius what was going on?
No. Nope. That sounded like an awful idea.
James’ quests could wait, he figured. He wondered if Snivellus was around. He could be curse number one. Yeah, that sounded like a much better idea.
year five
Sirius had been avoiding him. It was something that James wouldn’t stand for.
They’d exchanged several letters over the summer but those had stopped when James had asked Sirius to come spend the last few weeks with him. It wasn’t as if they had never spent time together over the summer. James, Remus, Sirius and Regulus had gone to Peter’s home for a week for Peter’s birthday last year.
But Sirius had ignored the invitation, even when James had sent him another owl, saying Regulus could, of course, come too. It was a given, during the holidays, that Regulus came along with Sirius.
Sirius’ parents thought Regulus would be a good influence on Sirius considering none of Sirius’ friends were exactly Black family approved. James kind of thought it was the opposite but as long as it meant Sirius could join them for their adventures, he didn’t care.
James was so annoyed that Sirius had specifically avoided him in the week since they’d started school that he stomped immediately over to where he knew Sirius would be. Because when Sirius wasn’t with his friends, he was with Regulus. That was how things were and James was frustrated with having to pretend it wasn’t so.
This was supposed to be a great year for them.
James had managed to curse Slytherins two-hundred times last year. He hadn’t managed to woo Evans but he’d made her laugh several times, even if she tried to deny it. And they had won the Quidditch Cup. This year would be even better.
He and Sirius had figured out how to become Animagi and they’d be able to help Remus. They were nearly complete with their preparations to create their very own map. And James had ever intention of having his first date, preferably with Evans but he was starting to get desperate. At this point, he might have to date somebody else while he waited for Evans to realize they were meant to be together.
Whatever ended up happening, they had to do this together. And James was quite sick of Sirius avoiding him.
The last thing James was expecting was the raised voices and he deflated slightly, knowing he wasn’t going to interrupt them while they were arguing. Instead, as he usually did, he moved forward so he could listen to them.
“I will never forgive you if you do. I hope you know that. I won’t ever speak to you again,” Sirius spit out. This was the angriest that James had ever heard him talk to his brother and his own frustrations were nearly forgotten.
Regulus’ back was stiff as he looked at his brother. “I wouldn’t have told you about it if I was actually planning on doing it.”
“So you say! But you can’t deny that you have all this pressure on you. As if I don’t know that Malfoy and Narcissa have sent you a dozen owls. And Bellatrix? You think Bellatrix is somebody you should be talking to?” Sirius asked and oh. This was very much a conversation that James probably shouldn’t be listening to.
This was the kind of conversation that got James’ blood boiling. People were saying there was a war brewing and James had no patience for those on the wrong side. His mother had told him to try to have sympathy for his classmates who didn’t know any better but James wouldn’t. There was a right and a wrong side to this.
The dark arts, the Black family, the murders and death. That was wrong.
James didn’t know Regulus. Sirius kept his friends far away from his brother and his brother far away from the Marauders. But if Regulus was going to join the wrong side of the war… Was that why Sirius was pulling away from them? Was he worried about Regulus?
“I’m talking to our family,” Regulus snapped, sounding angry but even James could read the defensive lines of his shoulders. Regulus crossed his arms over his chest. “I’m not stupid, Sirius! I know what they’re doing out there. I know more than you do because nobody talks to you anymore except me!”
The image of Sirius and Regulus from the beginning of last year flashed in his mind, the two brothers close. As days had gone by, James had wanted to bring it up, had wanted to ask if something was going on, if there was something he should know. But he hadn’t known what to say and eventually he’d just let it drop.
When he wasn’t going looking for Sirius and Regulus, he didn’t see them. They were good at keeping to themselves. It was easy to pretend that James didn’t have a weird feeling when he looked at them, it was easy to pretend that James was still naïve enough to believe he just didn’t know what brothers acted like.
A flash of hurt passed over Sirius’ features as he looked at his brother before he clenched his jaw. “I don’t need them. Any of them. I don’t want to talk to them. Not the way that you do. They don’t care about you, Regulus! All they care about is getting you to join the damn Death Eaters and how stupid of a name is that!”
“As if the group you’re part of isn’t stupid. What do you call yourselves?”
Sirius took a step forward, his fists clenched before he stopped. He looked angrier than James thought he’d ever seen him. “At least we don’t go around torturing and killing people just because they were born without magical blood.”
“No just torturing people for being sorted into Slytherin.”
The two seemed to be at a stand-still as they stared at each other, both stubborn and sad. James expected one of them to relent but neither of them did. They simply stared at each other for several moments before Regulus took a few steps forward.
With what was going on between them, James expected them to fight, maybe even pull their wands. But Regulus stood up and Sirius met him in the middle, their lips meeting in a rough kiss. James had been trying to deny it in his head but it was clear now. Even James couldn’t try to deny it any longer.
Regulus tilted his head, his hands fisting in Sirius’ shirt as they pushed closer together, the kiss passionate and deep and maybe a little desperate. Sirius’ fingers tangled in Regulus’ hair, his other arm looping around Regulus’ waist so their bodies were grinding together.
It wasn’t a kiss that two brothers would share. James wondered for just a moment how long they’d actually been together. Were those first few kisses James had witnessed them already being together? James wasn’t sure if he wanted to know.
Both of them were panting as they broke apart, Regulus the first to take two steps back.
“You’re such a hypocrite, Sirius,” Regulus said and he sounded a little bit choked up.
Now his anger was completely gone as James actually wondered whether he should try to say something to Sirius. Should he try to fix this? It hurt him to see Sirius being so hurt. He loved the Marauders but he couldn’t help the way that he and Sirius were just a little closer. They were so similar and they understood each other.
“And you’re a child, Regulus.”
Regulus laughed quietly but it didn’t sound amused at all. When James looked a little closer, he saw that there were actually tears in his eyes. “You know what? Maybe I would rather talk to Bellatrix and Narcissa and… whoever else. So just leave me alone.”
James had to jump out of the way, moving quickly to hide behind another curtain along the wall as Regulus stalked past him. He stayed hidden for several moments, expecting Sirius to come out of the room but he was still there, still hidden.
With a sigh, James pushed aside the curtain to the alcove that he had started thinking of as Sirius and Regulus’. Sirius’ eyes were red, his arms wrapped around himself but he wasn’t actually crying which was good because James was awful at dealing with people when there were tears.
“What do you want, James?” Sirius asked, straightening his spine and reaching up to rub his nose with his wrist.
James had a dozen things he wanted to say. He wanted to apologize to Sirius, wanted to tell him everything he’d seen in the past few years, wanted to ask if there was anything Sirius wanted to tell him.
“I saw Regulus go running away,” James finally said, feeling bad to bring it up when a shadow passed over Sirius’ features.
The other boy worked his jaw for a moment before he simply nodded. There was something so defensive on his face that James was tempted to say they didn’t need to talk about it. But what kind of Gryffindor would he be if he ran away just because it was bound to be a difficult conversation?
“Okay. What do you want?”
James resisted the urge to roll his eyes, a fair amount of annoyance coming back to him now that he remembered how distant his best friend had been. “To talk to you? Considering you’ve been avoiding me since the summer.”
Sirius turned to look at him, seemingly surprised by the fact that James actually said something to him. Then some of the tension seemed to drain from him as he shook his head. “Sorry. I’ve just been… over the summer- Never mind. Sorry.”
What kind of best friend would James be if he stayed angry with Sirius when Sirius was obviously going through a lot? When he was obviously going through more than he’d ever let on? And James wasn’t just thinking of his relationship with Regulus. James would never understand what Sirius dealt with in his family.
“It’s fine,” James said slowly because it really was. He hesitated a moment as Sirius started to walk towards the corridor, to leave where they were. But James reached out for him, grabbing his arm to still him. “You know you’re my best friend, right? That we mean something. The Marauders mean something. No matter what.”
Maybe James was naïve for not caring but Sirius was his brother… in a completely different way than Regulus obviously was to him. James loved Sirius fiercely and he loved him no matter what.
Sirius stared at him with wide eyes before he turned away, his lips pressing tightly together, maybe in an attempt to hold in his feelings. James worried Sirius would try to ignore what he’d said or maybe push aside the emotional aspects of the words. After several moments, though, Sirius just nodded. “Thanks, James. Same to you.”
“Okay. Now come on. Speaking of Marauders meaning something, we should work on our super secret moonlit project.”
Sirius grinned at what they’d been referring to their goal to become Animagi as. It was admittedly a mouthful but that was okay. It was fun. “Sure. Let’s go then.”
As they walked back towards the common room, James looked over at Sirius several times. There was something lost, sad, annoyed in his eyes. James was tempted to bring it up again but it seemed like a bad idea. Instead, he decided, for maybe the first time of his life, to let it go.
year six
James looked down at the map but it was pointless. He knew where Sirius was. Remus looked up from the novel he was reading, lounging in the bed. They were all tired this morning, having been out late the previous night. Becoming Animagi was one of the best things they’d ever done and James was incredibly thankful they’d figured it out.
Marauders stuck together.
As much as they could at least. Sirius spent more of his time with Regulus lately and Peter spent time… James wasn’t sure where. But they were best friends. They would stay that way.
“You’re going to go try to find him?” Remus asked because he didn’t know Sirius the way that James did. He didn’t know about the secret hideaway that Sirius and Regulus spent most of their time in. Sure, he could find Sirius with the map but he wouldn’t immediately know where to go.
James shrugged. “I guess. I’m bored. And you don’t tend to want to do what I do, Moony.”
Remus’ lips twitched in amusement. “You mean I don’t want to try to create a life-sized statue of Gregor the Giant in the Great Hall?”
“Why is it called the Great Hall if it shouldn’t have great things?” James asked with a grin that widened when Remus started laughing.
“You’re ridiculous,” Remus said with a shake of his head. After several moments, though, Remus cleared his throat. James turned back to him as he wrapped up the map and set it to the side. “Do you really think you should be interrupting him with Regulus?”
Furrowing his brows, James looked at Remus a little bit closer. He had several things he could say but he’d been learning to hide his thoughts a little bit more. He’d been trying to calm down, tried to figure out when was a good time to say things and when wasn’t. “What do you mean?”
Remus raised one of his eyebrows, putting a mark into his book and setting it on his lap. There was something that James wasn’t sure he liked in his eyes. “I think you know what I mean. There’s no way you haven’t noticed. Although, let’s be honest, you realized years after I did.”
“Hey!” James said, momentarily distracted from the conversation at hand by Remus’ words.
“It’s true. But it’s alright. We keep each other’s secrets, don’t we? I would be a hypocrite if I was upset about the messed-up aspects of your lives,” Remus said quietly, fingers tracing patterns on the sheets of his bed.
James hadn’t thought anybody else had noticed what he’d noticed. After all, Sirius and Regulus did a good job of acting like they weren’t close.
It had been a miserable few months last year with all of them. Sirius had been angry and had wanted everybody around them to be just as miserable. James didn’t know exactly when things had changed between Sirius and Regulus again. Maybe after Sirius had almost killed Severus Snape. Maybe after Sirius had left his own home during the winter holidays and gone to the Potters, stating he was never going back.
Whenever it was, Sirius and Regulus had made up from their fight and Regulus had started taking most of his meals at the Gryffindor table. It was just as well. James didn’t think they’d ever be super close but he didn’t hate spending time with Regulus. They might even eventually be friends.
“Marauders mean something,” James finally said, not knowing what else there was to say.
He loved his friends. No matter what. The three of them were the most important people in his life… well, and Evans but that was different.
Remus gave him a small smile and a nod. “Marauders mean something. But I mean it, Prongs. You might want to give them some space.”
“It’ll be fine. Sirius will get over it,” James said, waving his hand dismissively. Remus just shrugged and James tossed the map onto his bed and headed out of the dorm.
He could get to the corridor in his sleep if he really wanted to. As he got closer, he frowned, not hearing voices. That was odd. He’d checked the map and it was never wrong.
As he got closer, though, he realized abruptly what it was. There was a silencing charm. They never put up a charm, even when they were arguing. But there was a lack of sound coming from the small nook, indicating the spell.
The charm wasn’t perfect, though. It was obviously hastily cast because James was still a step away from the curtain when he started hearing the sounds behind it.
It took too long for James to realize what he was hearing. He moved forward, gazing past the curtain and immediately jumping back but the image was already seared into his mind. Sirius had Regulus pressed against the wall, hand in between their naked bodies doing something that James did not want to think about.
Oh. He really hadn’t needed to see that. He probably could’ve gone the rest of his life without the explicit confirmation of Sirius and Regulus’ relationship. Maybe he should tell Sirius that the other boy should really have cast more than just a silencing charm.
But no. Gryffindor bravery only went so far.
Pressing his lips together, James turned around instead.
Remus might pretend he was better than them sometimes but James knew he could convince him to pull some pranks. Because Remus had been right. Best to leave Sirius and Regulus alone for now.