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Remus and Peter, both dressed to the nines for the event, had left about ten minutes before with the excuse of making sure the girls wouldn’t take too long to ultimate hair and make-up, casually leaving the rest of the Marauders alone in the small groom’s room.
“How do you feel?” the best man asked, rising slowly from the sofa he had sunk into with a glass of Firewhisky in his hand. To the casual eye, it might have seemed that James had never been better: for once, he had fixed the mop of curls on his head, and with the tailored suit, he no longer resembled the gangly boy he had met on the Hogwarts Express all those years ago, but a man ready to build a family and a career. Sirius’ grey eyes, though, were much more used to see under the mask, to search for cracks, like the fact his best friend, with the excuse of fixing the impeccable knot of his tie, stared intently into the mirror as if he was looking for confidence in his perfect reflection.
“Are you having second thoughts?” he asked, once he entered the picture, placing a hand on his left shoulder, tense like a violin string. Like he used to do before a big game, he started rubbing small circles with his thumb, distracting him from the overthinking he irreparably suffered from and annihilated the logic part of his mind when something important was coming.
“And how could I?” James asked once he had turned and their faces were so close Sirius was sure he could smell the alcohol on his breath. “I love her madly.”
“And she loves you, and although she would be a little upset if all her hard work were to go to waste, I know she would blow the wedding off without a second thought if she suspected you’re not sure,” he reassured him, and at those words, James melted into his touch, prompting Sirius to caress tenderly his clean-shaven face.
“And you?” Prongs asked in a whisper.
“I,” he replied, resting his forehead on that of the first person he ever allowed himself to truly, deeply love, “love you too, and I can’t wait to see Lily walk down the aisle in her pretty white dress, wearing a toothy grin and my father’s golden ring. Think of the face he would make if he knew it’s a Muggleborn who carries it now.”
The idea lightened the groom’s features for a moment, but they soon turned serious again, almost sad, and Sirius suspected the reason.
“One day, we too will be able to kiss in front of an audience that supports our love,” Sirius whispered, nudging James’ nose with his own. “And maybe, there will even come a day when I would be able to talk openly about how I feel for both you and Lily. We have to be hopeful.”
“I just wish I could marry you both,” James retorted.
“Look at the bright side, if you were about to marry us both, we’d be in different rooms now, and I couldn’t kiss you and then run next door, have the bridesmaids clear out, and kiss our gorgeous girlfriend senseless,” he retaliated before doing exactly what he said, James’ laughter audible through the thin walls despite the complaint coming from Marlene, Mary, and Dorcas.