Work Text:
"Where are you taking me, James? If you don't let me take this blindfold off right now, I'm going to murder you," Regulus threatened.
James had insisted on planning a surprise for Regulus' birthday, and Regulus had relented because James was very stubborn, and it was a sweet idea. As a rule, Regulus hated surprises but James had seemed so excited: to say no would have felt like kicking a puppy.
"Just another minute, love, we're almost there," reassured James, "It'll be worth the wait, I swear."
"It better be."
The birds were chirping loudly above them, and Regulus could hear leaves swaying and rustling in the wind. He heard a twig snap, and he realised where he
was.
“James, why have you taken me to the Forbidden Forest?"
“Because it's pretty and it's hidden away. Just like you," he replied. Regulus couldn't see his face, but he just knew that James had winked at him.
"Do you not understand the word "forbidden"? We're not meant to be here, it's dangerous. It's full of creatures that will attack us for being on their territory."
"Love, don't worry, I have a plan, "James replied, "Besides, the nymphs are really lovely, and the dryads. The pixies have agreed to distract the centaurs if we need them to, but I don't think it'll be an issue, they never come over to this part of the forest."
"For Merlin's sake, how often do you come into the woods?" Regulus
asked irritably.
“A lot. It's really peaceful as long as you avoid the centaurs and stuff. Most of the creatures in here just want new friends, and they'll happily leave you alone if you ask. Anyway, we're here, Reg, take off your blindfold."
Regulus yanked it off, grateful to finally see again. The sun was bright, and it took a moment for his eyes to adjust, and when he saw what was in front of him, his mouth fell open.
They were standing in a sort of natural room in the woods, framed perfectly by trees. The ground was covered in blossoms, and there was a beautiful lake with lilies on the surface. There was a huge weeping willow tree, and underneath its sweeping branches was a blanket and a picnic basket.
"Happy birthday, love," James said with a soft smile.
"Shut up," Regulus said, pulling him in for a kiss.
A few seconds later, James pulled away.
"As much as I would love to do lots of that, I did make you a lovely, delicious picnic, and I'd rather it was eaten by us, not ants," James joked with a laugh.
James led Regulus to the blanket, clutching his hand, and they sat down together. The floor was surprisingly soft, probably because of all of the blossoms on the ground.
"I know you said you didn't really care about your birthday, love, but I wanted to do something anyway. if you want, we can pretend it's not your birthday, or or we can go if you don't like it," rambled James.
"James," Regulus said.
"Yes, love?"
"This is the sweetest thing anyone has ever done for me. I love it."
"Really?" James asked, still uncertain.
"Well, I haven't seen the food yet, so I couldn't possibly judge it properly yet, but so far? It's perfect," Regulus answered.
"Speaking of food, " James replied, "We all knew that you wouldn't want a huge fuss or anything, and we know you hate eating in the hall, so everyone has made a different food you love to put in the picnic."
Regulus was astounded. "Everybody?"
"Yep! Well, we didn't let Sirius do any baking, but he told us most of the stuff we made. All of your friends made stuff, and most of mine. Some of them were joint efforts. Me and Dorcas came up with the idea and asked everyone and they all said yes straight away."
Regulus reached for the basket, eager to see what was inside. He opened the lid and looked inside.
There were chocolate covered strawberries, which he had tried once at a stuffy family party and immediately loved. There was a small pie, labelled in neat handwriting. There was even a pack of those muggle biscuits, Jammy Dodgers, among a few other things.
"It's perfect, James. Thank you so much."
"Not trying to rush you, but can we eat? I'm kind of hungry, and there's something else I want to show you tonight, and it doesn't happen very often," James said, practically vibrating with excitement. If you didn't know better, you'd think it was James' birthday, not Regulus'.
Regulus picked up the pie and a fork, and took a bite. It wasn't as good as the ones he'd had in France or at fancy family banquets, but it was really quite good. Once he'd finished with the pie, he moved onto the other things in the basket. Everything tasted so lovely, ranging from good to incredible.
James was scoffing down the food like he hadn’t eaten in a month. Regulus and James enjoyed food very differently: Regulus liked to savour each bite and take his time to properly enjoy it all, while James liked to eat as much as he could as quickly as he could.
When they had both had all they wanted, James pulled Regulus to his feet and brought him in close.
“I love you, Reggie,” whispered James.
The light from the sunset was piercing through the leafy branches of the towering trees around them. Regulus thought that if he was asked to paint a romantic moment, this would be it. There was no other moment that could compare to this evening; a sweet birthday surprise with his amazing boyfriend, no big fuss, just a nice night together.
“I love you too, you dope,” Regulus replied, rolling his eyes affectionately, “Now, are you going to tell me what this thing you wanted to show me is, or do I have to guess?”
“Oh shit,” James yelped in alarm, “We need to hurry or we won’t make it in time. Come on!”
James picked up the picnic basket and blanket and started sprinting further into the forest.
“James, slow the fuck down!” Regulus called, running after him, “Where are we going now?”
“Just follow me, you’ll see,” replied James, “I’ve got a plan, now hurry up!”
“You always have a plan,” muttered Regulus under his breath, “It just isn’t always a good one.”
Still, he followed James as they weaved their way between trees and bushes without further complaint. He may be a slight lunatic (okay, a major lunatic), but James was Regulus’ boyfriend, which meant that Regulus was at least somewhat responsible for keeping him alive. If he didn’t follow, there was a solid chance that James would die.
Eventually, James stopped in a clearing. It wasn’t a particularly special looking clearing, just some grass and a few common flowers, so Regulus wasn’t quite sure why this was what James had been so desperate to show Regulus.
“Look up, love,” James said softly, a look of pure joy on his face.
Regulus complied. He didn’t know what he expected, but it certainly wasn’t this.
There were hundreds of bright streaks of white light shooting across the sky. A meteor shower, probably the Perseids since it was summertime. They were beautiful.
“James,” Regulus gasped with gratitude, “I don’t know what to say.”
“You don’t have to say anything, love. Just watch,” replied James, grasping Regulus’ hand in his own.
Regulus’ hands were shaking, so he squeezed James’ hand to try to calm down. He rested his head on James’ shoulder and gazed in awe at the scene in the starry skies above him. He’d always wanted to see a meteor shower, but his mother had never allowed it; it wasn’t proper to fawn over those phenomena, however much Regulus and Sirius had pleaded.
He’d only told James that once, nearly a year ago, and he’d remembered it all this time. Regulus must be the luckiest person in the world, for someone as pure and sweet as James to care so much about him.
“Thank you, James. For the whole night,” Regulus whispered.
“Anything for you, love. Happy birthday, Regulus.”