Archive of Our Own

Mama, Papa
Thank you for not making me into a snooty muggle hater, there are so many of them here and I hate it.

“Thank you for introducing me to this place,” Alphard says to the couple standing near him, watching the way that little Sirius and James run off, hand in hand together. Revati is reluctantly walking away from her uncle in favour of following her brother.

Effie hums, “I’m glad you took the suggestion. Getting them some interaction with some muggle kids and people outside of the Sacred 28 will be very beneficial for them.”

The man nods, “I don’t know how long I’ll be able to take them here without their parents learning about it.”

“How are you even able to do it?” Monty asks, waving to his son before the three of them turn and walk away, “I didn’t realise that you watched over them that often?”

He shakes his head, “I don’t have them that often, but I’ll be doing this with the kids whenever my sister doesn’t want to take care of them, is upset at them, is having a meeting that she doesn’t want them there for, or is leaving for whatever reason. Maybe a couple times a month.”

“But even those couple times will make a difference,” Effie concludes. She gently hugs the man as they get into the parking lot, Monty doing the same when she pulls away. Alphard nods in agreement, wishes them farewell, and gets into his car. Effie and Monty load into their own muggle car, getting ready to head back home.

When they go back to collect their kid, upon walking into the room that the boys are all in, they see James and the Black siblings leaning against him while he babbles on about something. It’s not shocking that Sirius has clung to their son, as James is magnetic and Sirius seems like the type of kid to blend well with him. However, what is shocking is the way that Revati seems comfortable and more open around James, especially being such a subdued and shy kid.

Monty goes to check out their kid while Effie makes her way over to the corner that the kids are all sitting in. James beams at his mum when she’s fully crouched in front of them. The woman smiles back, “Hi love, how was your day?”

“Good! Are we going?”

She nods, “We’re about to, go grab your things.”

He shakes his little head, “What about Siri and Rev?”

“Their uncle will be here to pick them up soon, we have to go.”

“I don wanna leave them.”

She smiles softly, reaching forward to thread her fingers through the little boy’s hair, “I know, but we’ll have to. You’ll see them again.”

“Tomorrow?”

“Maybe.” She watches as James looks between the two siblings leaning against him for a minute before he heaves a dramatic sigh and says watery goodbyes to the two of them, standing up and grabbing his mum’s hand afterwards. The two of them walk towards James’ cubby so they can grab their things and James throws one last look at the Black siblings before being led out of the room.

Unfortunately, James doesn’t get to see the siblings for a long while until Alphard is watching over them again -- which he states might become a more common thing because Sirius doesn’t get along with his cousin Bellatrix when Cygnus and Druella watch over the two.

But when James does see the siblings when they walk into the room, he grins and nearly rips from his parents’ hands to go to them. Sirius greets James with just as much excitement, but Revati just waits until the two of them are done to smile softly at James and reluctantly accept the hug that James offers her. Effie and Monty take that as their queue to leave their son and the siblings, knowing that they’ll be alright.

They come back to nearly the same scene as before and it warms Effie’s heart to know that her son can possibly be one of the warmest things for the young Blacks, knowing that they don’t get a whole lot of warmth in their own home.

It continues happening until the children start school, James and Sirius becoming just as attached at the hip as expected. What’s really shocking to the couple and Alphard is the way that James and Revati interact. At some point Sirius started getting more social and talking with more children, but Revati struggled with it. Their teacher has informed Effie and Monty at times that their son would refuse to leave Revati’s side, even if someone else was trying to get the boy to talk to them or play with them. Revati went with James, and if she didn’t want to do something, neither did James. Apparently the only person that James let himself stray from Revati around was Sirius himself.

On multiple occasions, when the couple would get the chance to spend some time with Alphard, sometimes with their littles, they would joke about Revati and James getting together when they’re older. Because Revati was always clinging to James like a lifeline and James was a completely different kid around the girl.

…

Mama, Papa
Sirius got sorted into Gryffindor. He’s happy about that because me and Pete are Gryffindors but he’s worried. He’s scared what his family will think of it and I’m trying to keep him calm and distracted, but I don’t know what to do.

That changed as they got older. The Black siblings went to a strictly pureblood wizarding school and continued to be controlled by the reigns of their parents and James went to a wonderful muggle-wizard integrated school where he met Marlene and Peter, two half-blood kids with bright smiles and matching energies to James. Then James and Sirius found each other on Platform 9 ¾ when they were getting ready for their first year.

Effie and Monty had almost expected to see his stoic parents somewhere on the platform when they saw the boy that their son ran for -- shocked that he broke from Marlene and Pete just to talk to the boy that he hadn’t seen properly in years -- but of course they weren’t there. Instead, they saw Revati standing with Alphard. The couple make their way to the man and his niece.

“He’s in good hands,” Effie smiles, gently putting her hand on the man’s shoulder, “I know that Sirius will be alright.”

Alphard smiles at the couple when he sees them, “Those two are going to tear the school apart.”

Monty lets out a laugh, “Them, Peter, and Marlene, James’ friends from school, are going to be a nightmare for poor McGonagall.”

“We best send our apology letters with the train.” Effie smiles, her hand going to wrap around her husband’s elbow. Alphard nods gently. The woman looks down to Revati, standing straight with her uncle and staring off towards Sirius and James, “How are you, darling?”

The girl finally turns her gaze to the older, offering a polite smile, “I’m good, how are you Ms. Potter.” One can only wonder what happened to this poor girl to make her this resigned.

But the woman doesn’t let her thoughts show in her smile, “I’m doing wonderful, how about we call James over here, yeah? I’m sure he’d be upset if he learned that he missed the opportunity to see you.”

“I don’t think he’d care that much.” The girl shakes her head.

“Nonsense, we have time before the train arrives and starts boarding.” Monty shakes his head, “James, come here!” The boy looks to his parents and grins even wider -- if possible -- at seeing the group of people.

He rushes over to them, “Hi Alphard,” then he looks down to Revati, a small bit of red tinging his cheeks, “Revati. It’s been a long time.”

The girl nods solemnly, “Hello, James.”

“Don’t be like that,” they open their arms in request for a hug, but the girl shakes her head. His hands fall to his sides, “I can’t wait until you’re getting on the train with us. By then, Sirius and I will know so much about the school and we’ll be able to show you all the best parts of it. We’ll tell you about the good and the bad teachers and who you should avoid, it’ll be awesome.” Revati offers a gentle nod, though she seems a little overwhelmed.

“James, please lower your voice.” Effie hums, resting her other hand on his shoulder.

James nods, a bit wide eyed, “Sorry mum, I’m just excited.”

“I know love, it’s been a while since you last saw your friends. Just try to keep your voice now.” The sound of the train pulling up distracts them for a moment before Sirius bounds over to them as well, Pete and Marlene just behind them, looking a bit confused.

“We have to go now. Thank you Alphard for bringing us here!” Sirius smiles, although there isn’t as much light in his eyes as Effie and Monty remember from his childhood. The boy goes to hug his sister, but stops short when she flinches away from him, “I’ll see you during Winter break Revati! I can’t wait to tell you about everything.”

The girl nods, “Have fun at school, brother.” Sirius seems a bit taken aback, but is quick to recover. He gives an enthusiastic greeting and farewell to Monty and Effie before taking up James’ hand and drags him and his friends away to the train, bags in free hands. The four watch them board the train and give final waves when it starts to pull away.

“Can I ask why you’re dropping Sirius off?” Effie asks, voice low.

Alphard sighs, “Their parents couldn’t bother. They could’ve gone with my nieces, but the girls refused to let them come along. I offered to take them, and my sister reluctantly agreed.” He shakes his head, “But let’s not talk about that here. I hope to speak with you all soon.”

“Of course,” Monty nods, “You’re always invited to our house for the holidays.”

“And I appreciate that.” And with that, the Blacks and the Potters split and go their own ways to get back to their places.

And when Monty and Effie are finally alone, Effie breathes a sigh, “I feel horrible for those kids.” She shakes her head, “I wish there was more that we could do to help protect them.”

Monty nods, “I hope that Hogwarts will help them, being away from their parents for so long.”

“James will help too, I’m sure.” She hums, smiling at her husband when he opens the car door for her. They don’t talk until he rounds the car and gets into the driver’s side, “I’m so glad that he was just as excited to see them as he was when they were younger.”

Monty nods and starts the car, “Did you see the way that James blushed at seeing Revati?”

“I didn’t want to comment on it, but oh it was so sweet.”

“Do you remember those conversations we used to have with Alphard when they were younger? When we thought that Revati and James would get together.”

Effie laughs, “Oh, how right we might’ve been. I can’t wait to see how they turn out when Revati gets to Hogwarts.” Monty agrees and the two of them bask in the comfortable silence for the rest of the drive back to their home.

…

Mama, Papa
Revati got sorted into Slytherin. She’s happy about it since it’ll be good for her and her family. Sirius is upset, he’s worried that she’s going to let Slytherin change her and that it’s going to make their parents more harsh on him. I don’t know what to do, but I’m going to try and keep her away from the worst of the Slytherins. I just hope that she lets me.

Things changed quickly over time, Effie and Monty got a panicked letter from James telling them that Sirius got into Gryffindor and he didn’t know how to help. The boys got close with their other roommate Remus and started a wild reputation for themselves in school. James had come home distressed during Winter, worried endlessly for his best friend.

But before either of the Potter parents know it, James is going off to his second year of school, and he’s running up to Sirius at the train station again. This time Alphard is nowhere to be seen, but neither is Walburga or Orion. Revati is standing near her brother when James goes running up, but they’re all close enough to Effie and Monty that the Blacks can give their polite nods to them. James, who despite running up to hug Sirius and Remus and Pete immediately, walks over to Revati and smiles at her, his cheeks tinting just a bit. He says something to her, clearly quiet enough that the others don’t fully hear it, and Revati nods politely to whatever he says. Effie elbows her husband at it, and Monty lets outs a soft laugh.

The couple waits for a while, watching their kids get onto the train and wave enthusiastically to them.

James’ first letter is telling them that Revati got into Slytherin and, while she’s happy about it, Sirius is a bit stressed out about it. But he vowed to keep her together and make sure that she and Sirius stay together and their family doesn’t freak out any more than they already have, and Effie’s heart soars at the way that her son is so caring.

She and Monty both know that James would go to the ends of the Earth to protect Sirius and Revati.

But by the end of the year, James is coming home talking about how Revati found friends and that James isn’t sure how he feels about her friends, but he knows that he can’t do anything about it. And Effie gently puts her hand on his cheek and smiles down at her sun, “You have so much good in your heart, love. I know that you want to protect her, but you need to let her find herself away from her family.”

To which James nods, “I know mama, but it’s hard…”

“I know, mere raajakumaar.” She shakes her head, “I have a feeling that nothing can change Revati so long as you and Sirius stay in her life.”

“How can you be sure?”

“Mama’s intuition.”

…

Mama, Papa,
Can Sirius and Revati come and stay with us over Winter Hols. I don’t know if you saw it at the train station, but Revati came to school with her hair cut really short and they both refuse to talk. We haven’t been able to get Sirius to smile or talk at all. I’m really worried about them.

Revati is with her friends when the Potters arrive at the train station. Sirius is nearby his sister, looking at her worriedly. But he looks away and puts on a smile that Effie can’t help but notice doesn’t reach his eyes when he hears James call for him, Remus and Pete not far behind in joining the group.

As they have always done, and as they plan to continue doing, Effie and Monty wait until the train is entirely gone before they turn and head to their car to drive home. They don’t say anything until they’re at home, but they both understand the worry for the Black siblings.

But they get the letter, and they immediately send back telling James that the siblings are more than welcome at their house whenever they need or want. So they’re picking up their son and the Black siblings for the Winter, bringing them back to their house.

It takes a while for Revati and Sirius to get used to being in their house, using full manners and last names and formal titles. But eventually, Sirius grows used to the house and he’s warmer, something that James had told his parents about earlier -- that Sirius was getting better but he was still worried about Revati. She just hopes that the siblings are comfortable enough in their home that they can relax a little bit knowing that they’re safe.

Monty and Effie tend to stay up late, sitting with their drinks and their books either in the living room or in their garden if it’s warm enough outside. That’s why they’re taken aback when they see Revati sitting in their living room, huddled up under a blanket and staring off into the fireplace without blinking.

“Revati, honey?” Effie asks, walking gently into the living room, “Is everything okay?” The girl shakes her head and she sniffs, Monty immediately hands his mug to Effie and turns to go make the kid some tea as well. Effie moves to sit on the couch, close to Revati but far enough away, “What’s wrong?”

“I…” she says, but she draws off. It’s not until Monty has handed her a mug of tea and taken up his own mug that she braves speaking again, “I don’t think I’m a girl.”

“What do you mean, love?”

The kid takes a deep breath, “I feel… disgusted in my own skin. When my parents force me to wear a dress, I feel sick. I cut my hair when I was having a breakdown because my hair makes me feel gross. I liked looking at myself when it was gone,” they sniffle, “even if it looked really bad. I knew that my parents were going to yell at my, my mother has always talked about how she thinks my best quality is my hair and my obedience. And then I go and disobey and cut my hair. I took out my best qualities-”

“No you didn’t,” Monty shakes his head, “Your best qualities, kiddo, are your brain and your kind heart even if you don’t let people see it. You have so much to you and, don’t tell your parents that I said this, the most shallow people in the world don’t have any right to tell you what is or is not good about you. If you don’t feel like a girl, then you’re not a girl.”

“What do you mean?”

“There’s a term for that, love.” Effie smiles, “It’s a thing that people can feel, and it’s normal. Do you feel like a boy?” He nods gently and the woman nods, “That’s alright. Does Sirius know?”

“I think so. He was the one that came in when I cut my hair, he made it look better. I haven’t fully told him what I’m feeling.”

Monty nods, “That’s okay, that’s good. We can figure it out together.”

And they do. Effie writes a letter to McGonagall telling her about the situation and the woman is more than willing to help Revati -- she hasn’t chosen a name at the moment, unsure of what to do -- figure out the next best steps and the transition back into Hogwarts. They settle for a cover story that’s mostly believable so he doesn’t have to come out to the school. They get him a whole new set of clothes for him to take back to Hogwarts, and they get things sorted out for the most part. They figure out spells that can help change his appearance but can also make it turn back if needed.

Though the Black brothers are still a bit hesitant about going back home because they know that they’ll have to.

Effie is unsure over what James thinks of the entire situation. He seems to be acting differently around Revati, but only noticeable to his parents. He’s a little more shy, a little more awkward around him. He deliberately keeps his eyes away from the boy. He talks about Revati -- who later settles on the name Regulus, which James tells them through one of said letters -- in his letters, talking rather openly about him so it’s not like he’s weirded out by the gender situation. He’s just… different around Regulus.

Either way, Effie and Monty have figured that their long figurines that James and Regulus would get together have since been squished by the recent events.

One day James comes down to Effie and Monty while they’re up late at night, after Summer holidays have started and the Black brothers are now in the clutches of their parents. He’s going to get himself something to drink, but Monty calls out to their son, “James, can you come in here for a moment?”

James takes a second, but soon enough he’s going to settle on the armchair, “What’s up?”

“I wouldn’t normally ask you about this,” the man starts, arm wrapped around his wife, “But I need to make sure about this. What do you think about the whole thing going on with Regulus?”

“What do you mean?”

“We mean that you’ve been acting differently around him. We want to make sure that not only Regulus is comfortable, but you’re feeling entirely comfortable. We also need to know if you’re… okay with it.”

He takes a couple seconds to answer before he nods, “I’m okay with it… I don’t know, it’s- I can’t explain it, I’m sorry.”

“But you are okay with it, right?” Monty checks. James nods and he seems sincere. So the two of them let him go back to his room, and they call it a night.

…

Mama, Papa
It’s bad, I don’t know if Sirius and Regulus should go back home. Can they come live with us? Permanently.

Things went south the summer between Sirius and James’ third year and fourth year. And yet both Sirius and Regulus were refusing to move in with the Potters for whatever reason. James comes home for the holidays distraught and upset and scared and not doing well.

He practically crumbles into his parents’ arms as soon as they get home from the train station for the summer, bags abandoned in the entryway. He doesn’t explain, just cries into their arms when they drag him to the living room and goes to hide away in his living room. They don’t know what to do, and they don’t know how to help their son.

James doesn’t open up to them for a while. He stays in his room for the most part and his parents are left distraught and lost. But eventually, he breaks down once again.

Effie has finally gotten the boy out into the garden with her, working on weeding their plants. And that’s when she hears him sniffling. She puts down her shears and looks over at him, “Baby, what’s wrong? What’s going on?”

James shakes his head, not talking for a while. He moves to sit back on his haunches and removes his gloves to wipe at his cheeks, where tears have begun to fall, “I’m sorry.”

“You don’t have to be sorry for crying, baby. You know that we’re never going to judge you for feeling your emotions.” She removes her own gloves, silently gesturing for Monty to come out into the garden when he peeks out the glass doors at them. Monty is stepping out of the house immediately, “I just want to be able to help you.”

James doesn’t speak for a long while. It’s long after Monty has come to settle on the ground with them that they finally breathe, “You guys asked me last year if I was uncomfortable around Reg because I’ve been acting differently around him for a while.” They take a deep breath, “He did make me uncomfortable, but it wasn’t because he was a boy… it’s more because it made me realise that I don’t… have to be the gender that I… am? That doesn’t make sense.”

“He made you confront the idea that you’re not a boy.” Monty concludes.

James nods.

They’re all silent for a moment before Effie moves to run her hand along his back, “If you’re not a boy, what are you?”

“I don’t know…” he shakes his head, “I don’t feel like boy or girl works for me.”

The woman nods, “Then just like before, with Regulus, we’ll figure it out.”

James nods, “Thank you. I’m sorry.”

“There’s never anything to be sorry about when it comes to something like this,” Monty shakes his head, “Can you tell me more about what you feel?”

“I don’t know…” And James spends a while describing how he feels, what is going on in his mind, and how he’s feeling. Monty takes that and disappears into his study for a while.

It takes several days but they settle on a title together. Non-binary, neither a boy or girl. James tries it out for a while, asks their parents to use gender neutral pronouns and terms for them, and they seem happier. Happier with who they are now. More comfortable with their identity.

They go back to school ready to take on what this new realisation could mean for them. They go back to school ready to explain to their friends that they’re not a boy, but they’re not a girl. They spend hours talking with their parents about the best way to explain it, and they’re ready.

When James does go back off to school, the two take some time to reflect on the events in the past several years. Regulus coming out to them, then James. “It is a relief,” Effie says one night, “To know that James wasn’t uncomfortable because they were being… unaccepting of Regulus.”

Monty hums, “I have to admit that I worried for a while that we messed up with them somehow.”

The woman laughs gently, “Oh what a worry to have about our sunshine.” She shakes her head, “I guess them ever getting together is far out of the ranks, isn’t it?”

“I think them getting together went out the window when James came back from school obsessed with that one Lily girl that they couldn’t stop talking about.”

…

Mama, Papa
I think I’m in love with someone, and I don’t know what to do about it.

James is nervous to send out this letter, they have to admit. They know that their parents aren’t going to judge them for it, whether they know that it’s a boy that they like or not. Not with the way that they reacted to them coming out to their parents as non-binary, and they were completely positive about Regulus doing the same. Not with the way that they didn’t blink twice at Remus and Sirius ending up together -- in fact, James is sure that they actually overheard Effie and Monty giving Sirius relationship advice one time.

But it’s more that they have to admit it to themself by sending this to their parents. They have to admit to themself that they’re in love with the boy that they’ve been sleeping with.

They have to admit that the blush that covers their cheeks and warms their face isn’t just due to the memories of a previous night with him, it’s just because he’s so fucking pretty. It’s just because his little stoic attitude and the way he leans in just slightly to James when they’re in a crowd together. The way that he clings to James’ arms when they’re walking through Hogsmeade with Sirius and their other friends like he used to when they were children.

God, James is obsessed with him, but they can’t do anything about it.

Because it was winter break when they first slept together. When Regulus first found his way to James’ room because he needed to get away from silence but didn’t want to bother his brother. When Regulus first surged forward and kissed them for reasons that they haven’t managed to get him to explain yet. Then it escalated and they started sleeping together, and it just became a thing where they were sneaking around the castle in the late hours of the night, pulling each other into broom closets for quick bouts of passion before going on with their day.

And that’s all that it’s ever been. That’s all it’s ever needed to be. That’s what was established when Regulus whispered against their lips, “I just needed to let off some steam and you know about the whole trans thing.” After one of their nights together before he stood up and started getting ready to sneak back to his own dorm, “That’s all that this is, don’t think too much about it.” And they had agreed, because it was at that point they were still denying the fact that they could possibly be in love with him.

But now they’re in too deep and they don’t know what to do about it. So they write a letter and stare at it, ready to incendio it to get rid of the evidence of their bleeding heart. But then there’s a soft knocking at the door that only Regulus does, so they’re shoving the letter into their desk pocket and standing up.

Regulus is leaning against the doorway with his arms crossed when they open the door to their room, “Reg.”

“James,” he nods, “Is my brother around?”

“Are you looking for him or are you asking to make sure that we’re alone?”

“That depends on if he’s around or not,” the boy counters.

They shake their head, “He’s out on a ‘date’ with Remus.”

“Why do you say date like that?”

“Because they got detention so they could spend time together.” They roll their eyes, “I think detention for them is starting soon if it hasn’t started already and it’s with McGonagall this time.”

“So we’ve got time.” Regulus nods, pushing James back into the room and onto their bed. They go happily, though the letter burns in their pocket.

…

Mama, Papa
I don’t know what to do. Sirius and Regulus refuse to talk to me, I know that you’ve been barely able to get them out of their rooms. I want to help them, I can hear Sirius and Regulus going to each other. I just want to help them but I don’t know how to reach out to them. What do we do? I’m scared, and I’m really worried about them.

“Sirius, is Reg in there with you?” James asks gently outside of the door, knowing that knocking would be the worst decision. They think they hear a sound of confirmation, “Mum said that dinner will be ready soon. Do you two want to come down and eat it with us or do you want one of us to bring it up to you?”

There’s nothing for a while, not until the door gently opens and Sirius looks out of it. He looks worse for wear, his eyes dark and surrounded with bruise-like bags. His cheeks are sunken in and his shoulders are sagged, “We’ll… we’ll go down to eat with you guys… just don’t expect anything from us.”

James nods and opens their arms for a hug. Sirius practically falls into their chest and they take to rubbing his back, “You’re never going to be required to talk or give anything that you don’t want to. Just being there will be nice, and it might even help you two. Getting into a more normal situation, yeah? We’ll include you in conversations but you’ll never be required to answer, we can carry the conversation.” They pull away just a little bit to peer into the room where Regulus is sitting on Sirius’ bed, “If you want to say anything, then please do. But it’s not… it’s not mandatory.” They don’t drop their arms until Sirius finally pulls away from them. James waits patiently while he ventures back into his room and gently grabs his brother’s hand, bringing him to a stand.

James leads the brothers downstairs and into the kitchen, “I have brought the esteemed guests.” They joke, heading to the island and counter to get themself served up, Sirius and Regulus following in their stead.

“Hello boys,” Effie smiles, “We have the kettle on if you want to make yourselves some tea. Monty also made lemonade if you want something cold.” They nod as James moves to put their plate down at the head of the table, going to get themself something to drink. Sirius takes his and Regulus’ plate to the table opposite Effie and Monty while Regulus makes them tea.

When they’re all settled and eating, James hums, “I saw that you had gotten a couple new books papa, what books were they?”

Monty smiles at them, “It’s mostly horror books, I think I told you about that old coworker of mine that loves horror books. I picked up the newest Clive Cussler books for your mum, and I got you a nice copy of Dracula since you were thinking about looking for one.”

“That sounds awesome, I’ll have to look at the books that you got. Can I help you put them away?”

“If you want to take all the books off our shelves and reorganise them again, be my guest.”

They nod, “I might, it’ll give me something to do.”

Effie hums, “It’ll be good for us to go through our books. There are definitely some that I might want to take to Blotts to get repaired.”

Monty nods, watching his wife, “I’m sure there will be some that we want to get rid of or ones that we can figure if you can take it to your shelf, too.”

James nods, smiling at the idea, “We can make a day out of it. A book organising day and it’ll give me a bunch of time to sort through them. Maybe we can print out a list of the Agatha Christie books and other books to make a database of all of it and see what we’re missing.”

“That sounds wonderful, James.” The man smiles, “You boys are invited as well, I know that Regulus likes reading and it’ll be a good show of all the books you can borrow from us. And Sirius, if you want to join us, you’re more than welcome to.”

James hums after a couple seconds, “We can invite Remus, too, if you’re comfortable with that Sirius. I’m sure that he would enjoy it.”

“That would be lovely, it’s been too long since I’ve seen him.”

“What day do we want to do it, then?”

“This weekend?” Effie asks after a couple seconds, “If we start it on Saturday that means we can put a pin in it and finish it on Sunday?”

James nods, “That sounds lovely,” they grin, throwing their head back with a bit of a laugh, “Oh, I’m so excited about this! I’ve been craving to organise something for a while.”

Effie laughs gently, “You and your weird organising thing.” She shakes her head gently, taking a bite of her food and humming, “Oh, Merlin. Monty, this is delicious.”

Monty huffs a laugh, his smile crinkling his eyes, “Have you only just now tried the garlic bread?”

“I was busy talking to our child,” she bats at his arm gently, “Don’t do that to me, just accept the compliment.” The man smiles brightly at his wife, leaning forward to pull her into a gentle kiss.

“Guys, keep it to yourselves,” James teases, “There are children here, you can’t be doing all this.”

Effie rolls her eyes when she pulls away from her husband, “Oh don’t act like you don’t think it’s cute, I vividly remember you gushing about our pictures when we got them taken.” She tries not to let the way the brothers’ shoulders relax when she gives her gentle response.

“Don’t accuse me of such things,” James smiles, then they hum, “But really, papa, the garlic bread is divine, and mama the alfredo is delicious.”

“Oh your father is divine but I’m just delicious.” She quirks an eyebrow, pointing her fork jokingly at them.

“They just like me more than you, my love.” Monty shoves her a bit, making the woman roll her eyes.

The family descends into a comfortable silence for a while before Regulus mutters, “This is good, thank you.”

“I’m glad that you like it,” Effie smiles gently at the boy, “It’s a new alfredo sauce recipe so I was hoping that it would turn out good.”

Regulus’ eyes widen, and he seems like he’s unsure of what to say, so James smiles at his mum, “It’s really good, you’ll have to teach it to me sometime.”

“It’s not hard,” she shakes her head, “But I’ll ask you for help next time that I’m going to make it.” James nods gently.

Dinner finishes up after that, the family mostly joking amongst each other and talking about their days and giving little anecdotes. James goes to wash the dishes while Effie and Monty take to wiping down the kitchen and the table. At one point, the brothers come up to James, and Sirius mutters, “Is there anything that we can help with?”

James hums and, after a couple seconds, nods, “Yeah, if one of you can dry the dishes and one of you can put them away, that’ll be great. Or you both can dry and then one of us can put it all away.” They gesture to the two to the hand towels that are sitting on the oven handle. Sirius nods and goes to grab one of the towels, taking up his place next to James as they put things on the drying mat. Regulus stands there for a while, seemingly unsure of what to do. Perhaps he needs more solid direction.

So James, after a couple seconds of figuring out how fast Sirius is drying things, turns to him, “Can you help Sirius with the drying up? You guys can just stack everything and mum or dad will put them away.” Regulus, after a couple seconds, gives James a grateful look and nods, grabbing the other towel.

The five work in the kitchen well, Effie going from wiping down the table to putting the dried dishes in their place before they’ve all finished up. When they’ve done so, Effie and Monty head out of the kitchen, so James turns to the brothers, “We’re planning on having a muggle movie night. You both are invited, but if you don’t want to you’re more than alright to go back to your rooms.”

Sirius nods, “I think I’m going to go back to my room, if that’s alright.”

They shrug, “That’s perfectly fine, if you want to come down at any point tonight, just do so.” Sirius nods and thanks James quietly before walking out of the kitchen. So James turns to Regulus after he’s gone, “What about you, do you know what you’re going to do?”

Regulus hums disjointedly, “Probably go into my room. I just- I wanted to thank you.”

“For what?”

“For bringing the conversation away from me earlier, for giving me proper instruction just now.” He hums, quiet and subdued, “I just- I just wanted to thank you for knowing me so well.”

James gives him a soft smile, “I would do anything for you, Reg. Thank you for joining us for dinner.”

He nods, “It wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be.”

And James doesn’t know what to say to that, so they let the moment pass before whispering, “Can I hug you?” Regulus is silent and contemplative for a while before he finally hesitantly nods. James opens their arms and lets him step into the hug, whispering as soon as he’s in their arms, “You’re in control of this, love.”

“I hate that you’re treating me like this when I’ve been horrible to you.”

James shakes their head, leaning to rest it on his shoulder, “You’ve never been horrible to me, and even when you’ve had your moments, I’ve never blamed you for it. Besides, you deserve to be treated like this.” A pause, “Would it be alright if I kissed your cheek?” Once again, Regulus thinks for a while before he nods. James lifts their head just a bit to press a gentle peck to his cheek, not letting it linger as much as they want to.

“You’re too kind for me,” Regulus shakes his head when they’ve rested their head back on his shoulder, “I- I wasn’t going to say it, especially because even if you reciprocate it I’m not in any state to actually do anything about it, but… I know that I said that our relationship was just sex for convenience, but I do think that I’m in love with you.”

James feels themself smiling, and as much as they want to take a second to process the words, they know that Regulus needs an immediate response. So they pick their head up and pull back just enough that they can make eye contact, “I love you, too, Reg. Just like the hug, you’re in control of this, I’ll wait until you’re ready.”

“What if I’m never ready?”

They shake their head, “I think I’ve been halfway in love with you for as long as I can remember, I don’t mind waiting longer.”

“You’re too fucking good for me,” Regulus shakes his head. He’s going to say something else, but Effie warns them that she’s about to come into the kitchen, so he pulls away from the hug, “I’m going to my room, thank you James.”

“Always,” they smile, letting their arms drop to their side. Regulus gives them one last look and leaves the kitchen, giving Effie a nod as the woman passes him on the way in.

When Regulus is long gone, Effie makes her way over to where her child is standing by the sink to grab a couple mugs to start making tea, “What was that about?”

“Just… Regulus opening up to me a little bit,” they shrug, making their way over to the popcorn holder and grabbing out a couple bags of popcorn.

Effie hums, walking to her kid and running gentle fingers through their hair, “You’re such a wonderful person, James. Such a good friend, and I’m so glad that the boys have you.”

“Thank you mama, I’m… I’m trying.”

“I know that, mere raajakumaar.” She smiles, pulling them into a hug, “And I know that it’s not easy for you, seeing them like this, it’s not easy on me and Monty either. But I also know that they appreciate you and all that you’re doing for them, even if they won’t say it.”

“I know,” they sigh into her hair, “I just want them to be better, I want to help them.”

“Unfortunately, we can’t just fix things overnight. We have to let them heal naturally, just putting a bandage over it and pretending that they’re okay would just be worse for them.” James nods but doesn’t otherwise say anything, just leans in their mum’s arms for until the first bag of popcorn needs attention. Effie leans their head down and presses a kiss to their forehead before pulling away to work on the tea. They change out the bag of popped popcorn for another one and bring out a big bowl to pour the popcorn into, grabbing some popcorn salt to sprinkle in.

Soon enough, the drinks and popcorn and some chocolate that Effie pulled out is ready and the two bring it to the living room, where Monty is sitting in front of the muggle television, putting on a movie. The lights are dimmed, ready to be turned off immediately and there are blankets thrown throughout the living room, a couple on the couch and a couple on the couch chair that James settles themself in.

Their movie night goes well, but James also splits their attention between the movie and the staircase in case the brothers come down to join them or because they need anything. When the night ends and James is tired, they head back up to their room, gently knocking on Sirius’ door, “We’re all going to bed now, in case you want to go downstairs for some reason. If Reg isn’t in there, let him know.” And they walk away into their room before either of them are able to respond.

The book sorting weekend comes quickly, and before James knows it, they’re pulling all of the books off the shelf and into large piles that are scarily unstable while Monty sets out for some scrolls and ink and Effie brings out some drinks. James has let it known to the Black brothers that they’re doing this and their company would be enjoyed but not expected, and nothing would be required of them.

By the time that James has all of the books pulled from the many shelves, Regulus and Sirius are both venturing into the living room. Monty smiles at them gently while Effie and James start organising the books into author piles, “Good to see you two are joining us for the chaos that is Potter family organisation.” He turns to James, “Did you invite Remus?”

James nods, half hidden by the stacks of books around them, “I did, I think he said that he would show up at some point.”

Effie nods, frowning at two duplicate copies of one of the books, “I’m sure we’ll be able to give some of the books we don’t want to him, that’ll be lovely. Which of these do you think we should keep?”

“We’re not doing that yet, mama!” James smiles, before leaning forward and immediately leaning back when one of the stacks precariously wobbles, “Both hardback?” Effie nods, “Then the one that looks like it’s in better condition.”

Then Monty frowns, “Didn’t your dad give you one of those copies? I thought he annotated his Agatha Christie books that he gave us.” Effie opens her mouth in the form of an ‘oh’ and immediately goes to check the pages, finding the one that is annotated and putting it into the pile of other Christie books.

Remus has just arrived through their fireplace when the family finishes sorting through their books. James gestures for him to walk further into the room, “Do you want to help us right now or just watch for a little while?”

Remus hums, going over to sit with Sirius, “I’ll just watch for a while.”

They nod and turn back to their parents, “How do we want to sort this?”

“Is there any other way than alphabetically by author?” Remus furrows his brows.

“Yeah, technically. Because if we put all of the books that have A and B last names, then the Hercule Poirot series might be too big then we’ll have a series that has a bunch of books, then continuing on. That would then mess up the Sherlock Holmes books.” The shrug, “I say that we do the Agatha Christie books on one shelf, see if there’s room for the Sherlock Holmes ones, and if there’s not then we can do something like put the King books or other ‘C’ author books… then a shelf with the Sherlock Holmes books and we can start from there because we don’t have any series from King…” they stare at the bookshelf for a while before nodding.

Effie hums, “If that’s what you want to do, then go for it. However you want to organise it is how you want to organise it. We’ll help you make it work.” James nods and heads off for the races, reading off the titles of the books that they’re putting in with each Agatha Christie book that they put onto the shelf. First her big series, then her other random books. It takes up a shelf and a half and they do a bit of maneuvering to see if all the Sherlock Holmes books would fit in the spare space and sigh when they’re a book short.

They go through the process of pulling books off the shelf and putting them back on and putting them back on until they’re happy with the first shelf. After that, James and Effie move around the books that are still on the floor and James stares at the books for a while. It’s only when Regulus tentatively stands up and makes his way towards where James is standing, looking at all of the books and leaning towards them, suggesting a way that they can approach putting away the next books.

The two of them silently converse for a while before James stares at the books for a while, nodding and working through the suggestions. They cast their gaze to Sirius, where Remus is saying something to him in a gentle tone, then slide it to where Regulus is softly watching them. After a second, they nod and request Regulus’ help for their work.

They finish up with the books eventually, Regulus not talking other than giving recommendations or asking something of James and James laughing and joking with their family and Remus. Sirius even joins in on a couple jokes, getting more comfortable with the group once again -- and if Effie and Monty notice James’ shoulders relaxing marginally every time their best friend talks, then that’s for them to know.

Sirius and Remus go to Sirius’ room at some point during the night when Remus has all of the books that he wants that the Potters are willing to give him. And when all of the books are back on the shelf and their book stock is taken down and magicked to the side of one of the shelves, Effie and Monty head to do their own thing, leaving James and Regulus alone.

Neither of them say anything for a while, just watch each other. James isn’t sure what they’re allowed to say, but eventually they lick their lips, “Thank you for helping me.”

Regulus nods after a couple seconds, “I know that you get stressed out with decisions like that. You were excited about it, I didn’t want you to lose steam.”

“And you say that you’re horrible to me,” they smile softly, taking a tentative step forward, “then you go and do sweet things like that for me.”

“Maybe I’m just making an effort to be better around you because I don’t want to disappoint you.”

They roll their eyes, “You couldn’t…”

Regulus nods and stares at them for a while, reaching out and grabbing at their waist, “You’re so honourable, believing in the good in people.”

“Don’t be like that.” They shake their head.

Regulus surges forward, grabbing the back of their neck and pulling them down to his face, pausing only when their lips are inches apart, “Tell me yes.” And who is James but a weak, weak person. They nod and Regulus is closing the gap between their lips and his hand around their waist is pulling them to him and James’ hand are going to his shoulders and James is where they’re meant to be.

Regulus pulls away not long after, clearly remembering that they’re in the Potters’ living room and he doesn’t want to be seen being vulnerable -- but James will pretend to not know this and pout -- and takes a deep breath in, “Sorry, you’re just… you’re so good and it drives me a little crazy.”

James smiles down at him, “You don’t have to be sorry, just… try not to string me along.” They shake their head, “I know that you need your time and I’m willing to go with you, but my heart is irrational.”

After a couple seconds, Regulus nods, “Yeah… I’ll- I’ll keep that in mind. I’ve… had enough of people for a while, can I slip back to my room.”

James nods and lets their arms drop from his shoulders, “Anything that you need.”

“What are you going to do now?”

They shrug with one shoulder, “I’ll figure it out. You go take care of yourself.”

Regulus nods solemnly, slowly letting his arms fall from their body, “Thank you, James. For everything that you’ve been doing for me and Sirius. I… we appreciate it -- appreciate you.”

James’ smile softens just a bit, “I’m almost scared of this side of you, you’re so… nice and open to admitting things.” They joke, shaking their head, “I just want to keep you guys afloat, I want to see the brothers that I know again. And I’ll do whatever I need to.”

“Just don’t wear yourself out for the sake of Sirius and I. I don’t know if I’ll be at dinner, and if not then goodnight James.” James doesn’t say anything else, just smiles and watches him turn and walk off towards the stairs. They stand there dumbly, smiling after him for a while before Remus enters his vision.

“That’s creepy, don’t stare at me while I’m walking downstairs.” Remus jokes.

James smiles at him, going to pull him into a quick hug, “I wasn’t staring at you, more the residual traces of a gay crisis.”

“Sounds about right with you.” Remus laughs, “How have you been?”

They breathe a gentle sigh, “I’m wanting to fix everything and feeling a little… awful seeing Sirius and Regulus like this, but I’m trying to take care of myself as well.”

“Good.” Remus nods, “I talked to Sirius tonight, but how is Regulus?”

“He’s…” they shake their head, “He’s very different right now, but I think that he’s warming up a bit, getting back to normal. Snarking at me just a bit.” They hum, “How is Sirius, I actually haven’t been able to get him to talk much.”

Remus hums, “He’s… I mean I can’t say that he’s good or he’s fine, because we both know that would be a lie. But he admitted to me that he’s grateful of the way that you and your parents have been handling things.” He pulls James into a longer hug, “You’re doing good.” James nods, silently thanking him.

…

Mama, Papa
He means the world to me, and he’s getting more and more comfortable with the idea of meeting you as my boyfriend. He’s perfect.

It took a long time for Regulus and Sirius to get back into the swing of things, Regulus even more so than his older brother. But the Potters and Remus are there with them through the entire thing, and before anyone knows it, Sirius is blossoming out and joking and reintegrating himself once again.

And before they can blink, school is starting again and they’re once again at the train station, saying goodbye to the Potters then hopping onto the train. The train is taking off and Effie and Monty are turning on their heels, heading out of the train station.

It’s only when they’re in their car does Monty speak, “Have you noticed something going on between James and Regulus?”

“What do you mean?”

He gives his wife a look, “Don’t be like that with me, mi corazón.”

Effie grins at her husband, “I just want to hear what you mean about it.”

“You’re ridiculous,” he rolls his eyes, “I mean… the way that Regulus had only reached out and opened up to James over the Summer. And I’m sure that you saw the way that they would look at each other and sneak off together.”

It’s quiet for a second before the woman hums, “James and Sirius also switched places at the table so they could sit closer together.”

“Do you think they’re together? Or is it just them dancing around each other.”

Effie gasps, turning and putting her hands on his arm like a teenage girl gossiping, “Do you think they even know about how the other feels? What about how they themselves feel?”

Monty laughs fondly and leans to kiss his wife, “I love you…” he shakes his head, “I can’t be sure. We know that James used to have some sort of feelings for Regulus, maybe they came to know it now. All we can do is wait for them to come to us.” Effie pouts just a bit jokingly, making her husband laugh and finally start the car to head back to their home.

It’s not until Winter holidays that they finally get an answer. It’s when Effie, Monty, and Sirius are all settled in the living room and James and Regulus are elsewhere- well, until they enter the living room, hand in hand. James is fidgeting with Regulus’ hand in theirs, looking at their feet, “We uh… we have something to tell you.”

Effie smiles gently at her child, patting at the couch next to her, “Come sit you two… take your time.”

James nods and pulls Regulus to the couch. They settle on the couch cushion and Regulus leans against the arm of the couch. James is quiet for a while, justing flitting their gaze between their parents, best friend, and Regulus. It’s only when Regulus mutters something to them do they close their eyes and take a deep breath, “Reg and I are dating… We have been since the summer.”

There’s a moment of silence while the room processes the words, but it’s not long after when Effie bats at her husband’s shoulder, “Hah! I know that we had our doubts along the way, but Alphard would be so happy to hear that! He always knew that they would get together.”

Monty rolls his eyes at his wife, “That’s not what they need to hear right now, love.” He turns to Regulus and James, reaching out and gently putting his hand on James’ knee, “That’s wonderful for you two, thank you for trusting us with that.”

James tears their eyes from where they’ve been staring -- weirdly enough -- at Sirius with worry to look at their father, offering him a slightly wobbly smile, “Thanks…”

Regulus, however, doesn’t change his focus from his brother, “Sirius… what are you thinking about?” And that’s when Effie and Monty finally turn to look at the boy. Effie had assumed that Sirius knew, but she figures that he doesn’t. Not when he’s looking at James and Regulus in a mix of contemplation and vague anger. Not when his jaw is set and James and Regulus are both watching him warily.

“I knew there was something more going on between you two…” Sirius shakes his head, “Why didn’t you tell me.”

“We didn’t tell anyone.” Regulus hums, shoulders tense despite his nonchalant words, “It just… at first it was-” he cuts his gae to Effie and Monty and clears his throat, “tentative, a lot of James and dancing around each other, but we got together this summer. And with how I already wasn’t doing well…” He trails off, he doesn’t need to finish, everyone knows what he’s saying.

James reaches a gentle hand out to rest on his knee, Regulus sends them a grateful look. Then they furrow their brows and whip their head to their parents, “What did you say about Alphard?” And that gets the attention of the Black brothers, turning to the adults as well.

Effie laughs softly, “Of course, you remember that he was the one that would take these two to the nursery that you used to go to. All three of us saw the way that Reggie would cling to you and you were so protective of him, not leaving him alone, not talking to other kids if he didn’t want to talk to them. You two were always to dependent on each other, attached at the hip. When you were together, you never left each other’s sides. It was like a package deal.” The woman smiles fondly at the memory, “We would sit and talk with Alphard about how you two were bascially soulmates.”

Monty nod after a couples seconds, shrugging with one shoulder, “And we figured that you two would end up together in the future, just from the way that you interacted. That all changed when you came out to us, Regulus. We figured that it was just a chilhood crush, but I suppose it was more than that.” James blushes and looks down at the callout, but doesn’t otherwise say anything.

Sirius, however, barks a laugh, “How golden, if only Alphard were here…” he shakes his head, though his smile is slightly downturned. Then he hums, “Oh what would mother and father say learning that they have two gay sons… dating a muggleborn and a blood traitor.” His grin turns much more genuine, “What a delight that would be to watch.”

“If it weren’t us that were being punished,” Regulus shakes his head, “You forget that we are the sons, Sirius.” The older boy just shrugs, curling back up on the couch chair and going back to whatever he was doing before. James rolls their eyes fondly at their friend, standing up and leaning to press a kiss to their parents’ cheek.

When they straighten, they grab Regulus’ hand and help him up from where he was perched on the couch, “Now, if you’ll excuse, we’re going up to my room.”

“Don’t be getting up to anything innapropriate now,” Monty calls jokingly, “It’s midday.” James makes some sort of noise in response, both flustered and jokingly annoyed, before guiding Regulus up the stairs and back into their room. Effie doesn’t say anything, just watches where the two last were for a while, before leaning into Monty and telling him that they will be discussing that tonight. Monty just shoves her a bit with his shoulder in response.