#james potter x bsf! reader | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

santaasi · 12 days ago

Text

obviously blind

pairing: james potter x bsf!fem!reader

summary: for years, james potter thought he was chasing love. sirius black knew better — he’d been holding it all along.

warnings: fluff fluff fluff, friends to lovers, idiots in love, james calls reader love, no use of y/n, english isn’t my first language

word count: 11.3k

a/n: it was probably the longest idea to write and edit. i rewrote every moment a bunch of times trying to bring it all to perfection. therefore, this time I hope more than ever that you will like it and you will support me with a like, comment or reblog. have a nice time reading this work! love u <3

ᯓ★ now playing…

slaves – footprints

You left your mark on me like footprints in the snow

Would you promise me you'll never let me go

November 15, 1971 My dear best friend, Hogwarts is brilliant! You should see the castle; it’s massive, with these moving staircases that sometimes take you to places you didn’t even mean to go! I tried to get to Charms class last week and ended up in the Trophy Room instead. Sirius says it’s part of the fun, and I’m starting to agree. Speaking of fun, I made a new friend! His name’s Sirius Black, and he’s a bit of a troublemaker like me. Don’t tell Mum, but we might’ve let some Filibuster’s Fireworks off in the Great Hall during lunch. The teachers were furious, but the look on their faces was worth it. How’s Beauxbatons? Is it true your castle is magical in a totally different way? Sirius said something about unicorns roaming the grounds. Is that real? Write me everything—I want to know what it’s like over there. Hope you’re having as much fun as I am. Forever yours, Jamie

SIRIUS BLACK WAS UTTERLY SPENT. Not the charming, rakish kind of spent he might brag about after a late night of mischief, but truly, completely, soul-drainingly done. The journey to the Potter family cottage, which should have been a brisk jaunt, had turned into a Herculean trial. Blame the snowstorm that had swept through magical London like some vengeful Norse curse, burying everything in its path under heaps of frosty misery.

It started with a delayed train — no, not delayed, imprisoned. Sirius and James were already aboard when the announcement came, trapping them in a stuffy carriage surrounded by loudly complaining wizards and at least one crying baby. And because the universe clearly found Sirius’ misery entertaining, the train came to a jolting halt halfway to their destination, snow packing the tracks so thickly that it took hours of magical clearing before they moved again.

When they finally arrived at the station, they discovered that Mr. Potter, their much-needed savior with a warm car and a better attitude than either of them, had been delayed at work. Thus, Sirius and James were left to trudge through the snow-laden countryside, dragging their trunks behind them, with James’ endless chatter about Lily Evans ringing in Sirius’ ears like a persistent curse.

“Her smile, Padfoot,” James had sighed dreamily at least seventeen times, his glasses fogging up as if even thinking about Lily caused them to malfunction. “And the way she tucks her hair behind her ear when she’s concentrating—”

By the sixteenth sigh, Sirius had been sorely tempted to shove a fistful of snow into James’ face. By the seventeenth, he was mentally composing a list of Unforgivable Curses and ranking them by efficiency. Yet, even as he grumbled under his breath, Sirius couldn’t bring himself to abandon the trek. The Potters were the closest thing he had to a family, and spending Christmas anywhere else — no matter how dire the journey — was unthinkable.

When they finally reached the Potter home, Sirius didn’t so much step inside as collapse into it. He shoved the front door open with the dramatic flair of a man escaping death itself and sprawled across the polished wooden floor like a martyr for his own cause. His trunk fell beside him with a satisfying thud.

“Home at last,” he groaned, voice muffled against the rug. “Tell me, Prongs, do they serve last rites before cinnamon rolls, or do we skip straight to the feast?”

The cottage, of course, was as warm and welcoming as Sirius remembered. Strings of fairy lights twinkled across the beams, casting a cozy glow of red, gold, and green. A holly wreath hung crookedly on the wall — lil’James’ handiwork, no doubt — and the scent of pine mingled with the tantalizing aroma of cinnamon, butter, and something sweet. Sirius’ stomach growled audibly.

“Oi, shut it, you ungrateful mutt,” James shot back with a grin, though Sirius could see his friend’s eyes darting toward the kitchen. “You’re embarrassing us in front of the wreath.”

James hadn’t even set his trunk down before a figure appeared in the doorway.

At first, Sirius barely registered her presence. He was too busy muttering about the injustice of underage magic restrictions. But then — oh, then — she stepped fully into view.

A girl.

Not just any girl, but you.

You moved with a kind of quiet confidence that Sirius instantly clocked, your steps unhurried, your presence undeniable. The golden glow of the fairy lights danced across your hair, giving it a shimmer that seemed almost unreal. You were wrapped in a deep blue jumper — Sirius realized this after a moment’s brain lag — and your cheeks were rosy, likely from the heat of the kitchen.

You carried a tray of steaming cinnamon rolls, the scent of melted sugar and spice trailing after you like some kind of domestic enchantment. Sirius’ mouth went dry, and for the first time in years, he was at a loss for words.

“Well,” he managed after a beat, hauling himself upright and trying for a semblance of decorum. “Now I see why you were so keen to come home, Prongs. You’ve got cinnamon-roll-bearing angels dropping out of the sky.”

You laughed, soft and melodic, the sound so unguarded it seemed to wrap the room in warmth. Sirius couldn’t help but notice the way your lips curled into a smile that was equal parts inviting and mysterious.

“Hello to you too, Sirius,” you said, your voice carrying a familiarity that made his ears perk up.

Sirius blinked. Wait. Of course. This wasn’t some celestial being summoned to his rescue; this was James’ childhood best friend. The one James had vaguely mentioned — just a handful of times over the years, always in passing and with a strange softness that Sirius hadn’t thought to question before.

And yet, here you were. In the flesh. Standing in the middle of the Potters’ living room with a tray of baked goods and a smile that Sirius suspected had the power to stop traffic.

“Well, well, Jamie-boy,” Sirius drawled, nudging James with his elbow and watching his friend with amused curiosity. “You never told me the famous cinnamon-roll angel was also — what’s the word? Ah, yes — real.”

You raised an eyebrow at Sirius’ antics, though your smile didn’t falter. Instead, you glanced toward James, who looked like he’d been hit with a Confundus Charm.

Sirius smirked. “James, mate, you alright? You’ve gone all... slack-jawed.”

But James wasn’t paying him any attention. His hazel eyes were locked on you, wide and brimming with something Sirius couldn’t quite place. He watched as James' gaze traced over the streak of flour smudged on your cheek, the stray strands of hair escaping from your ponytail, and the red apron dusted with flour and cinnamon.

Sirius almost snorted aloud. This was the James Potter who couldn’t shut up about Lily Evans — the boy who spent half his waking hours plotting ways to win her over. And yet, here he was, staring at you like you’d just descended from the heavens.

“Jamie,” you said softly, setting the tray down on the nearby table.

It was just one word, but the way you said it — warm, tender, and utterly unguarded — sent a jolt through Sirius.

Before he could process what was happening, James crossed the room in a few long strides and swept you into his arms. You squealed in surprise, and the sound was pure delight, echoing off the walls.

Sirius blinked, startled. The way James held you — hands firm on your waist, his head dipping into the crook of your neck — wasn’t friendly, not by a long shot. Sirius had known James since he was eleven years old, had seen him charm and flirt with half of Hogwarts, but he had never seen this.

“Missed me, Jamie?” you teased, your fingers slipping into his unruly hair with the kind of ease that spoke of years of familiarity.

“Always,” James murmured, so quietly Sirius barely caught it.

“Bloody hell,” Sirius muttered under his breath.

He glanced around the room, half-expecting someone to explain this baffling scene, but it was just him, James, and you, wrapped up in some intimate little bubble that made Sirius feel like an intruder.

James murmured something into your shoulder — too soft for Sirius to catch — and you laughed, your voice light and unrestrained. The sound pulled James’ head up, and Sirius couldn’t miss the way his eyes traced your face with a kind of devotion Sirius had only read about in sappy romance novels.

It was then that the memories began to click into place. The scattered mentions over the years, the odd tone James always took when he talked about you. “She’s not like anyone else, Padfoot. She just gets it.” Or that one summer when James had come back to Hogwarts looking utterly miserable and wouldn’t explain why. Sirius had teased him about it for weeks, thinking it was Lily-related. But now, seeing the way James looked at you...

“Wait a minute,” Sirius blurted, his grin widening as realization dawned. “You’re the one. The one he’s always sneaking off to write letters to, the one he’s all secretive about.”

James shot him a glare, his cheeks burning bright red.

“Padfoot—”

“—the one who sent him that hideous scarf last Christmas!” Sirius continued, thoroughly enjoying himself now. “I knew there had to be someone. Prongs doesn’t just get that moony-eyed look over just anyone.”

You laughed again, covering your face with your hands, while James muttered something about strangling Sirius later.

Before Sirius could needle him further, the kitchen door creaked open, and Euphemia Potter swept into the room. She was radiant as always, her cheeks rosy from the cold, her dark hair streaked with silver. Her eyes lit up the moment she saw James.

“There’s my boy!” she exclaimed, pulling him into a tight hug before he could even attempt to protest.

“Hi, Mum,” James mumbled, his voice muffled against her shoulder.

Euphemia pulled back, cupping his face in her hands as though memorizing every detail. “It’s been too long, Jamie. Too long. You’re far too skinny — have you been eating properly at school? And what have you done with your hair?”

James groaned, though his smile was fond.

Then her eyes fell on Sirius, and the warmth in her expression grew tenfold.

“Sirius, my dear,” she said, moving toward him with open arms. “I’m so glad you’re home, too.”

Sirius froze for a moment, caught off guard. He wasn’t used to this — the genuine affection, the way Euphemia made him feel like he belonged.

When her arms wrapped around him, the embrace firm and filled with love, Sirius felt an odd lump form in his throat. He couldn’t help but think of his own mother’s cold, perfunctory hugs, her disdainful gaze, and the way her affection always felt like a transaction.

“You’ve grown even handsomer,” Euphemia said, pulling back to study him. “Fleamont’s going to be jealous.”

Sirius managed a crooked grin, the lump in his throat still stubbornly there. “That’s the goal, Mrs. Potter. Keep him on his toes.”

Euphemia laughed, her eyes twinkling, before cupping his cheek briefly. “You’re family now, Sirius. Never forget that.”

Satisfied, Euphemia turned her attention to you. Her face softened even more, and she reached out to squeeze your hands. “Oh, there you are, dear. I was wondering where my helper had gone. The mince pies won’t bake themselves, you know”

You shot James a quick, playful glance before following Euphemia toward the door. “I’ll be back in a bit,” you said, your smile lingering.

As Mrs. Potter ushered you toward the door to finish the pies, Sirius remained rooted to the spot. The warmth from her hug lingered, and for a fleeting moment, he thought of how lucky James was to have parents like that — and how lucky he was to have stumbled into their lives.

James watched you leave, his gaze following you until you were out of sight. Sirius couldn’t help but laugh.

“Mate,” he said, clapping James on the shoulder. “You’re a goner.”

James huffed, shoving him away, but the goofy grin on his face was impossible to hide.

And Sirius? Sirius couldn’t wait to see how this played out.

July 2, 1973 My Love, Summer’s only just started, and I can’t wait to see you. Mum’s already planning another one of her “legendary” tea parties, which means she’ll fuss over you endlessly. You’ll smile politely and charm her like always, and she’ll end up spoiling you with biscuits to take back to Beauxbatons. I’ve got so much to tell you. Sirius and I found this secret passageway that leads straight to Hogsmeade. We’ve been practicing spells to make it even harder for Filch to find us. Remus is shaking his head, but I think he secretly loves our schemes. Oh, and Lily—she’s still brilliant. She’s got the most incredible laugh. But you, my love, I bet your laugh would still outshine hers any day.

Do you still walk in those Beauxbatons gardens at sunset? I can imagine you there, glowing in the soft light. It suits you. Write me back quickly, won’t you? The days are always better when I hear from you. Forever yours, Jamie

SIRIUS BLACK HAD ALWAYS KNOWN JAMES POTTER WAS A TACTILE PERSON. James spoke fluently in the language of touch — claps on the back that lingered just a second too long, overly enthusiastic shoulder bumps that almost knocked you off your feet, and the occasional arm slung around your shoulders like he was staking a claim. But this? This was something else entirely.

It wasn’t just the way James touched you. It was the way he seemed to orbit you, like some lovesick moon drawn to its planet. Wherever you were, James was never far behind — hovering, grinning, completely and utterly besotted without even realizing it. And for someone so allegedly brilliant, he was astoundingly stupid about it.

Sirius noticed it within minutes of their arrival at the Potter cottage for the holidays. As the snow settled outside, so did James — right beside you, always beside you. If you were arranging the flowers Euphemia had insisted on, James was there offering suggestions like he’d suddenly become an expert on floral arrangements. If you were curled up in the drawing room with a book, James was sprawled across the nearest sofa, pretending to read but actually just watching you out of the corner of his eye like some hopeless romantic idiot in a badly written Muggle novel.

Sirius had been rolling his eyes so much, they were practically stuck in the back of his head.

THE SECOND MORNING WAS WHEN THINGS REALLY CLICKED. Sirius had woken up earlier than usual — a rare and uncomfortable event for him. He had no plans to do anything productive, of course, but the faint sound of footsteps in the hallway intrigued him. Padding out of his room, he peeked around the corner just in time to see James sneaking toward the kitchen.

Naturally, Sirius followed. He found James standing at the counter, sleeves rolled up like some kind of domestic god, arranging breakfast with the precision of someone preparing an offering to Merlin himself. There was a plate of toast with cream cheese and thinly sliced avocado, a bowl of berries that looked like they’d been picked by woodland elves, and a steaming cup of coffee. The smell alone was enough to make Sirius reconsider his usual disdain for mornings.

“Fancy,” Sirius said, leaning lazily against the doorframe, voice still scratchy from sleep.

James jumped slightly but recovered quickly, flashing Sirius a sheepish grin. “Morning, Pads. Coffee’s on the counter.”

Sirius eyed the tray suspiciously. “Is this for you, or is it for your favorite person in the world aka me?”

James’s ears turned pink. “It’s for her,” he admitted, almost bashfully, like he hadn’t just spent ten minutes crafting the most meticulous breakfast Sirius had ever seen.

“Of course it is,” Sirius muttered with a smirk, grabbing a mug for himself. “You realize this is bordering on embarrassing, yeah?”

James shot him a look, but before he could respond, you appeared in the doorway, still looking half-asleep. Your hair was mussed, and the oversized jumper you’d borrowed from James was slipping off one shoulder, but you somehow managed to look effortlessly radiant. Sirius rolled his eyes again.

“Morning, love,” James said, his voice soft and warm in a way Sirius had never heard before.

“Morning, Jamie,” you mumbled, your voice thick with sleep as you shuffled into the kitchen.

James practically tripped over himself to hand you the coffee. Sirius watched, amused, as James’s fingers brushed yours in the exchange, his entire face lighting up like someone had cast Lumos Maxima directly on it.

You took a long sip of the coffee, humming in contentment. “Perfect, as always,” you murmured, looking up at James with a sleepy smile that could have melted a Dementor.

And then, as if it were the most natural thing in the world, you leaned up and pressed a quick kiss to his cheek.

Sirius nearly choked on his coffee. He wasn’t sure what was more painful — the nauseating sweetness of the moment or the fact that neither of you seemed to realize how completely ridiculous you were.

“Right, well, I’ll just... leave you two to it,” Sirius said, waving his mug in mock surrender as he backed out of the room. “Try not to get married while I’m gone.”

“Shut up, Sirius,” James called after him, but the way his voice wavered slightly betrayed his embarrassment.

By the time Sirius reached the living room, Euphemia and Fleamont were already seated by the fireplace, exchanging knowing glances like they’d seen this coming a mile away.

“Is he making her breakfast again?” Euphemia asked with a smile that was far too pleased for Sirius’s liking.

“Every detail,” Sirius confirmed, sinking into an armchair. “I’m starting to think he’s auditioning for Witch Weekly’s ‘Most Devoted Boyfriend’ feature.”

“Don’t tease him too much,” Euphemia said with a chuckle. “He’s just like his father was with me.”

“Merlin, it’s contagious,” Sirius groaned, dramatically throwing an arm over his face. “If I start acting like that, someone put me out of my misery.”

But even as he joked, Sirius couldn’t help but smile. Because for all his teasing, it was obvious to anyone with eyes that James was hopelessly gone for you. And judging by the way you looked at him, Sirius had a feeling the feeling was mutual — even if neither of you was bright enough to figure it out.

AND THEN THERE WERE THE SMALL, INTIMATE TOUCHES SIRIUS COULDN’T IGNORE, no matter how much he wanted to. James’s hand resting on the small of your back as he guided you through a doorway, like you might somehow lose your way without him. The way his fingers traced lazy patterns on your knee under the dinner table, as though the contact grounded him. Or how he’d tuck a stray strand of hair behind your ear, his touch lingering just long enough to make Sirius roll his eyes and fight back a gag.

It was maddening to watch, really. Not because Sirius minded the affection — no, James deserved a bit of softness in his life, and you were undeniably good for him. It was maddening because you were both so oblivious. James was a goner, sure, but you weren’t far behind. Every time you leaned into his touch, smiled up at him like he hung the stars, or called him Jamie in that soft, teasing tone, it was like watching two wizards tiptoe around a cauldron, waiting for it to explode.

One evening, as the three of you lounged in the living room, the dynamic was on full display. The Potters had insisted on a family movie night — Euphemia’s idea, of course, because family time was important. Sirius couldn’t say no to the fire roaring in the hearth, the massive bowl of popcorn, and the ridiculous Muggle Christmas film flickering on the screen. But as the minutes passed, he started to regret not escaping upstairs.

James had situated himself squarely in the middle of the sofa, with you tucked neatly under his arm. His hand played absently with the ends of your hair, fingers twisting the strands like he didn’t even realize he was doing it. You had your legs curled beneath you, leaning into him with the kind of comfort Sirius had only ever seen in old couples who had been together for decades. James pressed a kiss to your temple, murmuring something Sirius couldn’t quite catch.

It was unbearable.

“Oi, lovebirds,” Sirius interrupted, launching a piece of popcorn at James. It hit him square in the forehead, a small but satisfying victory. “Some of us are trying to watch the movie without choking on all this sap.”

You burst into laughter, sitting up just enough to toss a handful of popcorn back at him. “You’re just jealous, Black.”

“Jealous? Me?” Sirius placed a hand over his chest, mock-offended. “Of what, exactly? Watching James Potter transform into a human puddle before my very eyes? No thanks. I’ll pass.”

James didn’t even flinch. He just grinned, looking every bit the lovesick fool he was. “You’ll get it one day, Pads,” he said with infuriating calm.

Sirius snorted, grabbing a handful of popcorn and tossing it into his mouth. “Right. Because what I’m really missing in my life is the chance to turn into that.” He gestured at the two of you with a dramatic wave of his hand.

But despite his teasing, Sirius couldn’t ignore the warmth spreading in his chest as he watched the scene unfold. James, the arrogant, Quidditch-obsessed, devil-may-care prankster he’d known all his life, was utterly, completely, hopelessly in love. And the worst — or perhaps best — part? He didn’t even seem to realize it.

BY THE END OF THESE COUPLE OF DAYS VACK AT THE POTTER COTTAGE, SIRIUS KNEW. James Potter wasn’t in love with Lily Evans — not really, not anymore and maybe not ever. He was in love with you. It wasn’t in the dramatic declarations Sirius had once teased James about making to Lily. No, this was quieter, deeper. It was in the way James’s gaze softened whenever you spoke, like he couldn’t believe you were real. In the way his hand always seemed to find yours, even when there was no need for it. And in the way his entire being lit up when you smiled at him.

And you? You weren’t much better. You laughed at his terrible jokes, poked fun at him with an ease Sirius envied, and looked at James like he was the center of the universe. It was so obvious it made Sirius want to scream.

“This isn’t normal, you know,” Sirius said later that night, cornering James in the kitchen as he made tea.

“What’s not normal?” James asked, far too casually for Sirius’s liking.

“You and her. You’re not just friends. Stop pretending you are.”

James frowned, his brow furrowing in confusion. “We are just friends. She’s my best mate, Pads. You know that.”

Sirius laughed, loud and sharp, shaking his head. “Oh, Prongsie. You’re an idiot.”

“Am not,” James shot back, but there was a flicker of doubt in his voice.

Sirius leaned back against the counter, crossing his arms. “If you’re just friends, then I’m a unicorn. Face it, Potter — you’re in love.”

James opened his mouth, probably to argue, but then you walked into the room, yawning and looking for all the world like you belonged there. James’s expression softened immediately, his gaze lingering on you like you were the only thing that mattered.

Sirius didn’t say another word. He didn’t need to.

Because James Potter was already lost, and for once, Sirius didn’t mind watching his best mate fall.

March 30, 1975

My Love, It’s been ages since your last letter, and I miss you like mad. Exams are coming up, and I’m hopeless at concentrating without your words to keep me sane. The Marauders are in full swing, though—our latest adventure involved sneaking a swamp into one of the corridors. Filch is still grumbling about it. I told you before how Lily has the most beautiful laugh, right? Well, I think she might finally be warming up to me. I’m playing it cool, but honestly, every time she looks at me, I feel like a kid with a new broomstick. And yet... you’re still the one I write to when I want to share everything. Funny, isn’t it? How’s the ballet going? I remember you mentioned your school recital. I wish I could see you dance. You’d be like a dream on stage, graceful and bright. Maybe one day. Forever yours, Jamie

SIRIUS BLACK WASN’T ONE TO BELIEVE IN LOVE — not the kind spun into poetry or whispered in secret corners of libraries. Sweet words, fleeting touches, long glances… all of it sounded like an elaborate prank. A fantasy created by people who hadn’t tasted the bitterness of the world.

How could anyone believe in love when raised in a house where affection was a weapon and the family motto might as well have been stab first, smile later? The Black family had given Sirius many things: wealth, privilege, and a last name dripping in infamy. But love? That was a foreign concept, spoken in a dialect he’d never been taught.

And yet, Sirius Black — child of darkness and rebellion — had found light. That light had a name: James Potter. From the moment James had barreled into Sirius’s life, grinning like the sun itself, everything had shifted. James had yanked him out of the shadows and dragged him into a world Sirius didn’t know existed — a world filled with warmth, laughter, and actual hugs.

It wasn’t just James, though. It was the whole bloody Potter family. Euphemia and Fleamont were like characters out of a Muggle holiday film. Euphemia, with her soft, unrelenting affection, had made it her personal mission to drown Sirius in love and sweaters. Fleamont’s laughter could fill a room, a deep, belly-shaking sound that warmed Sirius from the inside out. Together, they moved through the world as though their love was an unshakable force, a steady undercurrent in every shared look and word.

“Darling,” Fleamont would call from across the kitchen, leaning over the counter with a newspaper in hand.

“Yes, Fleamont?” Euphemia would reply, her smile soft and teasing as she stirred whatever heavenly dish she was making.

Never by name. Always darling.

Still, if love like that was rare, James bloody Potter seemed hell-bent on stumbling into it without even realizing.

James and you had been dancing around each other for years, so oblivious it was borderline painful. Sirius sometimes wondered if you two were practicing for a comedy sketch, the way you acted like best mates while exuding the kind of tension that could make a Dementor blush. If Sirius had a Galleon for every time James looked at you like you were the only person in the room, he could have bought his own Quidditch team by now. And he's only been watching you for a couple of days.

IT WAS THE FOURT DAY OF HIS CHRISTMAS STAY AT THE POTTER HOME, and the dynamic was impossible to ignore. You and James were practically inseparable, moving through the house like two planets caught in the same orbit. You helped Euphemia with the decorations while James carried boxes of ornaments up from the cellar, always hovering nearby like he was afraid you might vanish if he looked away.

“You know,” Sirius said, leaning casually against the doorway, “most people don’t need to supervise someone hanging tinsel.”

James didn’t even glance back. “She’s not most people, Pads.”

Sirius groaned, dragging a hand down his face. “For Merlin’s sake, just marry her already.”

James froze, an ornament dangling from his hand. “What are you on about? We’re just friends.”

“Sure, and I’m a Muggle,” Sirius shot back, rolling his eyes.

You, blissfully unaware of the conversation, turned from where you were perched on a stepstool. “What are you two arguing about now?”

“Nothing,” James said quickly, his cheeks tinged pink. “Sirius is just being Sirius.”

“That’s never good,” you teased, smirking at Sirius.

“Oi! I’ll have you know I’m delightful company.” Sirius crossed his arms, feigning offense. “But if you’re not careful, pretty, you’ll end up trapped in Potter’s web of undying devotion.”

You raised an eyebrow, stepping down from the stool. “Potter’s web of what now?”

James shot Sirius a warning glare, but Sirius just grinned. “Oh, nothing. Just that James here is—”

“Hungry!” James interrupted, loudly and awkwardly. “Right, Pads? Didn’t you say you were starving?”

Sirius barked a laugh, shaking his head as James practically shoved him out of the room. “Subtle as ever, Prongs.”

From Sirius’s vantage point, it was painfully obvious. James was hopelessly, stupidly in love with you. And you? You weren’t much better. The way you smiled at him, teased him, trusted him without question — it was all the evidence Sirius needed. And yet, you were both blissfully, idiotically unaware.

One evening, as Sirius sprawled on the sofa in the Potters’ living room, he couldn’t help but notice the way you and James interacted. You were sitting cross-legged on the floor, rifling through a box of Christmas decorations Euphemia had set out.

“Jamie, hand me the gold bauble,” you said, tossing him a quick glance over your shoulder.

James, who had been half-heartedly untangling a string of lights, immediately perked up. “Which one?”

You rolled your eyes, a smile tugging at your lips. “The one in your hand, genius.”

James laughed, tossing it gently toward you. It missed entirely, landing with a soft thud on the carpet.

“Good aim, Prongs,” Sirius drawled from his spot on the couch. “Truly inspiring.”

“Shut it, Padfoot,” James shot back, but his grin never faltered. He turned to you, sheepish. “Sorry, love.”

Love. Sirius didn’t miss the way the word slipped out so naturally, like James had been saying it his whole life. And he definitely didn’t miss the way your cheeks flushed as you ducked your head, pretending to focus on the decorations.

LATER THAT EVENING, SIRIUS FOUND HIMSELF LAYING ON THE SOFA IN THE LIVING ROOM AGAIN (it probably was his favorite place in the house by now), a book abandoned on his chest as he watched Euphemia and Fleamont dancing in the kitchen once, a slow, swaying movement that didn’t match the upbeat Muggle music crackling from the wireless. Euphemia had rested her head on Fleamont’s chest, his arms wrapped around her like it was the only place in the world she belonged. It wasn’t dramatic or flashy — just simple and unshakable. And it made Sirius ache in ways he didn’t understand.

And a moment later they were in the same kitchen, preparing tea and laughing softly as they worked.

“Darling, pass me the sugar, would you?” Fleamont said, his voice warm and affectionate.

Euphemia handed him the sugar bowl without looking up, her smile soft. “Here you go, darlin'.”

It was the kind of exchange that Sirius might have mocked once. But now, as he watched the way Fleamont leaned in to kiss Euphemia’s cheek, or how she swatted him away with a laugh when he tried to sneak a biscuit, he felt something unfamiliar tugging at his chest.

“They’re sickeningly sweet, aren’t they?”

Sirius turned to see you standing in the doorway, a mug of hot chocolate in your hands.

“They are,” he admitted, sitting up and motioning for you to join him. “But it’s sort of... nice. In a vomit-inducing way.”

You laughed, settling beside him. “I think it’s lovely. They’re so in tune with each other, you know? Like they’ve been dancing to the same song for decades.”

Sirius tilted his head, watching you as you spoke. “And what about you?”

“What about me?”

“Do you want that? The whole ‘dancing to the same song’ thing?”

You hesitated, your fingers tracing the rim of your mug. “I don’t know. I suppose it would be nice, but... I’m not sure it’s in the cards for me.”

Sirius frowned. “Why not?”

You shrugged, a wistful smile tugging at your lips. “Because my dance partner’s too busy tripping over his own feet to notice I’m right here.”

Sirius stared at you, his mind racing. Did you mean James? Surely you meant James. But before he could say anything, James walked in, ruffling his hair like he always did.

“Alright, what are you two plotting?”

“World domination,” Sirius replied without missing a beat. “Want in?”

James grinned, flopping onto the sofa and immediately throwing an arm around your shoulders. “Always.”

Sirius watched as you leaned into James, your head resting against his shoulder. James turned to look at you, his expression soft and unguarded.

And that’s when Sirius knew — again, because he seemed to be realizing this every ten minutes — just how much trouble you two were in.

DAYS LATER, SIRIUS WAS STANDING BY THE WINDOW OF THE POTTER COTTAGE, a steaming mug of hot chocolate warming his hands. The world outside was a vision of winter — snow blanketed the ground in pristine white, the trees bowed under its weight, and the air held a sharp, crystalline stillness. Inside, the house was alive with warmth: the crackle of the fire, the gentle hum of Euphemia’s humming, and Fleamont’s cheerful banter as he set up a chessboard by the hearth.

But Sirius wasn’t watching any of that. His attention was fixed on the two figures trudging down the snow-covered path just beyond the window.

You and James walked side by side, your mittened hands brushing against each other with the kind of unconscious familiarity that spoke volumes. The path ahead glittered in the weak afternoon sun, the frost catching the light like scattered diamonds. Clouds of breath curled into the frosty air as you laughed at something James said, the sound clear and bright, even from a distance.

Sirius couldn’t hear the words, but he didn’t need to. He saw everything in the way James turned his head toward you, his face lit with the sort of joy that was impossible to fake.

Then it happened — your foot slipped on a patch of hidden ice. Sirius’s grip on his mug tightened for half a heartbeat, but James was already there. His hand shot out, steadying you before you could fall, as if the world might crumble if he didn’t catch you in time.

“Careful there, love,” James said, his voice carrying easily through the crisp winter air.

You laughed, brushing snow from your coat as your cheeks turned pink — not just from the cold, Sirius was sure. “You’d think I’d have learned how to walk by now.”

James grinned, tugging you a little closer to his side. “Good thing you’ve got me.”

“Good thing indeed,” you replied, your eyes crinkling at the corners, your voice soft and full of affection.

And then, as if it were the most natural thing in the world, James reached out to brush a stray snowflake from your hair. His fingers lingered for just a moment, his expression open and unguarded, filled with something so pure that Sirius had to look away for a second.

It wasn’t the first time Sirius had seen that look on James’s face. It was the same quiet, awestruck gaze he’d noticed a thousand times when James thought no one was watching. But seeing it now, against the backdrop of snow and laughter, it struck Sirius like a Bludger to the chest.

That’s how Fleamont looked at Euphemia, Sirius realized. He’d seen it that very morning, when Euphemia had walked into the kitchen with a sleepy smile and Fleamont had paused mid-sentence, his face lighting up as if she were the sunrise itself.

Sirius took a long sip of his hot chocolate, the sweetness of it sharp against the lump forming in his throat. He muttered to himself, a small smile tugging at his lips, “Never by name. Always love.”

“What are you smiling about, Sirius?” Euphemia’s voice broke the quiet, warm and curious. She stood in the doorway, wiping her hands on a tea towel.

He turned, raising his mug in a mock toast. “Oh, nothing, Mrs. P. Just watching James make a right fool of himself in the snow. Again.”

Euphemia chuckled, stepping closer to peer out the window. Her gaze softened as she spotted you and James, now engaged in some sort of playful shoving match, James clearly letting you win.

“Hopeless,” Sirius added, shaking his head.

“Like father, like son,” Euphemia said with a knowing smile.

Sirius huffed a laugh. “Yeah. Exactly like that.”

They stood in companionable silence for a moment, watching the scene outside. Sirius’s gaze lingered on James’s hand as it rested on your shoulder, the ease of the gesture speaking louder than words.

And for the first time in what felt like forever, Sirius allowed himself to believe. Not just in the love he saw in James’s face or the easy affection between Fleamont and Euphemia. But in the idea that maybe—just maybe—love wasn’t the cruel, twisted thing his family had tried to make him believe.

Maybe love, real love, was something entirely different.

November 27, 1976

My Jamie, Winter has settled over Beauxbatons, and the mountains are kissed with snow. I wish you could see how the frost sparkles on the trees. I think of you often, imagining the mischief you’re up to at Hogwarts. I heard you’re Quidditch Captain now — congratulations! I can already picture you soaring through the air, the wind in your hair and that unstoppable grin. You were born to lead, Jamie, and I’m so proud of you. Your mum wrote me again last week. She’s sent another scarf, this one in Gryffindor colors. She says it’ll keep me close to you. It does, in a way — I wrap it around myself when I miss you most. Do you think of me as much as I think of you? You’re my constant, my warmth on the coldest days. Soon it’ll be Christmas, and we’ll have the stars and endless nights to talk about everything. Until then, stay safe, my Jamie. Forever yours, Love

THE CHRISTMAS CHAOS AT THE POTTER HOUSE STARTED BEFORE SIRIUS EVEN HAD A CHANCE TO GRUMBLE ABOUT THE HOUR. The sun wasn’t up yet, but Fleamont Potter most certainly was, barreling into James’s room with the energy of a man half his age. Before Sirius could properly complain — or hide under the covers — he and James were unceremoniously hauled to the garage. Their mission? Assembling the absurdly large Christmas table that Euphemia insisted on every year.

Sirius swore under his breath, wrestling with the oversized wooden monstrosity. “You know,” he grumbled, glaring at James, “if your parents had just gone for a nice, normal-sized table, we wouldn’t be out here freezing our—”

“Language, Sirius!” Fleamont interrupted cheerfully, though there was a definite glint of amusement in his eyes.

Sirius rolled his eyes but complied, though only because Euphemia’s kitchen smelled like heaven, and he was determined to earn his way to a plate of whatever was roasting in the oven.

Inside, the house was a picture of festive perfection: holly strung along the bannisters, twinkling fairy lights glowing softly in the corners, and a wireless by the fireplace playing carols just loud enough to make Sirius hum along when no one was listening. Euphemia’s soft laughter echoed from the kitchen, mingling with yours as the two of you prepared a feast fit for kings — or in this case, a house full of Marauders.

And James? Well, James wasn’t himself.

Sirius noticed it almost immediately. His best mate was usually a hurricane of enthusiasm during the holidays, cracking jokes, sneaking sweets from the kitchen, and generally making a nuisance of himself. But today, James kept glancing toward the kitchen like a puppy waiting for its owner to come home.

The idiot was besotted.

Every time your laughter drifted into the room, James’s head whipped around like he was under some sort of spell. If you so much as said his name, he’d stop mid-sentence, his eyes lighting up like the Christmas tree in the corner. Sirius would’ve teased him mercilessly if it weren’t so... obvious. Painfully, ridiculously obvious.

LATER THAT AFTERNOON, WHEN JAMES AND FLEAMONT HAD VANISHED TO THE GARAGE — probably to charm something they had no business charming — Sirius found himself tasked with tidying up James’s room. He grumbled the whole time, of course. Cleaning wasn’t his style, and James’s room was a disaster zone: Quidditch magazines spilling off the desk, parchment crumpled in corners, and socks scattered in ways that defied the laws of physics.

“Honestly, Prongs,” Sirius muttered, holding up a suspiciously stiff sock with the tips of his fingers. “How are you supposed to woo Evans — or anyone, for that matter — when your room smells like the wrong end of a hippogriff?”

As he moved to clear a particularly cluttered shelf, a box caught his eye. It was tucked in the far corner, partially hidden behind an old textbook. Sirius raised an eyebrow. Anything stashed away like that was bound to be interesting. With a mischievous grin, he reached for it, only for the entire thing to tumble off the shelf, spilling its contents across the floor.

“Bloody hell,” he swore, crouching to pick up the mess. His hand froze mid-reach when he realized what had fallen out: letters. Dozens of them, bundled in ribbons of various colors.

Sirius sat back on his heels, eyeing the pile. His curiosity, as always, got the better of him. With a glance at the door to ensure James wasn’t about to barge in, he grabbed the nearest stack and plopped himself onto the bed, cross-legged and grinning like a kid about to open a box of Zonko’s best tricks.

The first letter he unfolded smelled faintly of vanilla. Your scent, Sirius realized, and his grin faltered for just a moment.

October 7, 1971 Beauxbatons is so different from Hogwarts. The professors here are so strict, James, sometimes it feels like I’m being watched all the time! I miss the feeling of freedom you must have at Hogwarts, even if you’re always getting into trouble with Sirius. Do you ever just wish you could escape the rules and run wild?

Sirius chuckled softly, his eyes scanning the elegant handwriting. “Trouble? Me? Never,” he muttered, his tone dripping with mock innocence.

But as he reread the letter, a strange tightness settled in his chest. The way you wrote about Hogwarts — it wasn’t just about the school. It was about James. Even miles away, you saw him as something larger than life, as the embodiment of freedom and adventure.

And James? The idiot probably thought you were just being polite.

February 21, 1971 Sirius sounds like a bit of a handful, but I bet he’s hilarious. I think I’d like him, even if he does cause chaos. You all sound like you’re constantly up to something, but I imagine you get into trouble a lot, don’t you? Anyway, I’d love to hear more about his pranks— I’m sure you and him must make a great team!

Sirius barked a laugh. “A handful? Pretty, you have no idea.”

Still, the words struck a chord. He could see it so clearly now: the way you’d woven yourself into James’s world with every playful question and teasing remark. You weren’t just curious about his adventures; you wanted to be a part of them, to understand the boy behind the Quidditch bravado and the wild schemes.

Then came the letters about Lily.

March 25, 1973 James, you always talk about Lily, and I think it’s sweet that you have such admiration for her. I bet she doesn’t even know how much you like her. She sounds like she’d be really hard to win over, but I’m sure you’ll figure it out. Just don’t forget to have fun along the way, yeah?

Sirius groaned, dragging a hand down his face. “Merlin’s saggy pants, Prongs, how thick can you be?”

He could almost picture you writing those words, the careful balance between encouragement and self-sacrifice. Even as you pushed James toward Lily, your letters were saturated with love — pure, unguarded, and heartbreakingly unspoken.

It was infuriating. How could two people so obviously meant for each other be so oblivious?

By the time Sirius reached the later letters, the humor had drained from his face.

December 5, 1974 Your mum sent me another gift! She’s so sweet, and I can’t believe how kind she is to me. It always makes me feel so loved. You know, when I’m away from you, it’s like I’m missing something... like the best part of my day. I never want to take our friendship for granted.

The parchment crinkled slightly as Sirius’s grip tightened. That wasn’t just gratitude — it was devotion, raw and aching. The kind of love that didn’t need fireworks or grand declarations because it was already woven into every moment, every memory.

And James? Sirius shook his head, a pang of frustration mixing with pity. James had spent years chasing the idea of love, blind to the fact that he already had it.

The final letter undid him.

December 12, 1975 I was thinking about you today, and how you’ve always been there for me — whether it was listening to me complain about the Beauxbatons professors or laughing with me when I’m in a bad mood. You’re always there, and I think that’s why I trust you more than anyone else. You’ll never know how much that means to me, Jamie.

Sirius closed his eyes, letting the words sink in. You didn’t just see James; you knew him. The real James — the boy who laughed too loudly, who lived for Quidditch, who couldn’t resist a good prank. You loved James, not the idealized version he tried to be for Lily or anyone else.

Sirius exhaled sharply, folding the letter with a reverence he didn’t usually bother with. His heart ached — not for himself, but for you, for James, for the years you’d both spent dancing around the truth.

“Merlin, you’re both idiots,” he muttered, though his voice was softer now.

Sirius ran a hand through his dark hair, ruffling it further into disarray, his mind replaying what he’d just uncovered. The letters — those bloody letters — had been the key. Now everything fell into place: James’s barely-there smiles over the past few days, the way his gaze lingered when you entered the room, the softness in his laugh when you said something clever. James Potter, his brash, unrelenting, wildfire of a best friend, was utterly transformed around you.

Balanced. Grounded. Sincere.

It was unbearably obvious now, as if someone had pulled back the curtain.

And yet, the idiot still had Lily Evans’s picture on his bedside table in his dorm.

Sirius’s gaze fell on the stack of letters once more, neatly tied with a ribbons that seemed far too delicate for James’s usual chaos. He could have left it alone, let James figure things out in his own thick-headed way — but that wasn’t Sirius Black’s style. If there was one thing he’d learned from years of pranks, broken curfews, and bending the rules until they snapped, it was this: sometimes people needed a push, even if it stung a little.

Sirius exhaled and leaned back against the headboard, the letters still in hand. "You're a fucking idiot," he muttered under his breath.

A slow smirk tugged at his lips. Oh, the look on James’s face when he confronted him — it would be priceless. Sirius wasn’t one for sentiment, but for you? For James? Maybe, just maybe, he’d make an exception.

The door creaked open, and James stumbled into the room, his steps heavy with exhaustion. Sirius watched as his best friend all but collapsed into the armchair by the bookcase, running a hand through his already-messy hair. He looked like he’d been wrestling dragons all day — or, more likely, his dad’s endless list of chores.

But there was something else, too. A tension in his jaw, a restless energy that practically vibrated off him. Sirius could see it plain as day: James hadn’t seen her all day, and it was driving him mad. She was so close — just a staircase or two away — and yet untouchable.

Sirius cleared his throat, breaking the silence. “So, Prongs, is this why you’ve been obsessing over the owl schedule for years? Didn’t peg you as the secret pen-pal type.”

James’s head snapped up, his hazel eyes narrowing in confusion. They darted to the bed, where the stack of letters lay exposed, and then to the shelf where the box had clearly been moved. He froze for a second before letting out a long, resigned sigh.

“Pads,” James said, his voice low and uneven, heavy with an edge Sirius rarely heard. “It’s not cool to read someone else’s letters.”

The room seemed to still, the words settling into the air like dust, soft but laden with weight. James’s eyes — those unmistakable hazel orbs that always held a spark of mischief — were guarded now, a flicker of something raw and unspoken behind them.

Sirius leaned forward, a grin stretching across his face like the blade of a knife, sharp and unapologetic. “Not cool,” he echoed, his voice laced with mockery, “is keeping this from me for six bloody years. Care to explain, or should I guess?”

James flinched, the tension in his shoulders visible even through the soft knit of his jumper. He moved toward the bed with the slow, deliberate steps of someone walking a tightrope, balancing the fragile threads of anger and restraint. The dim light of the room cast long shadows over his frame, making him seem taller, older — more vulnerable.

He reached for one of the letters, his hand hesitating for the briefest moment before his fingers curled around the parchment. His thumb brushed over the faded ink, tracing the loops of her handwriting like a blind man reading Braille. The edges of the letter were frayed, softened by years of touch, and as he lifted it to his face, Sirius caught the faintest smile tugging at James’s lips.

It was a small, private thing, that smile. Reverent. It wasn’t the boyish grin Sirius knew so well, the one James wielded like a weapon to charm or disarm. No, this was different — softer, as though the mere act of holding the letter in his hand brought James closer to something sacred.

Sirius felt his chest tighten. He’d seen James in every possible state — triumphant on the Quidditch pitch, livid after a prank gone wrong, devastated when the world seemed too heavy — but this? This was new. This was James Potter unguarded.

“She’s different, isn’t she?” Sirius said, his voice quieter now, almost gentle.

James didn’t look up. He sat on the edge of the bed, sorting the letters with a precision that bordered on ritual. Each movement was deliberate, his fingers careful not to smudge the ink or crease the paper. Sirius had never seen him handle anything with such care — not his broomstick, not his glasses, not even the Marauder’s Map.

“It’s not what you think,” James murmured, but the words lacked conviction, as though he knew they’d crumble under scrutiny.

Sirius scoffed, leaning back in his chair with an exasperated snort. “Not what I think? Mate, I think you’re in love with her and too much of an idiot to admit it. Am I wrong?”

James froze mid-motion, the ribbon he was tying slipping from his fingers. For a moment, he didn’t speak, didn’t move — just stared at the letters as if they might answer for him.

“She’s…” He trailed off, his voice barely audible. “She’s different, Pads. She’s… everything.”

There it was. The confession, raw and trembling in the space between them. Sirius leaned forward, elbows on his knees, his expression unusually serious.

“Yeah,” Sirius said softly. “She is. And that’s exactly why you’re a bloody idiot for pretending she’s not.”

James let out a bitter laugh, the sound low and fractured. He raked a hand through his already-messy hair, his movements frenetic, as though he were trying to shake off the weight of the moment.

“You don’t get it,” he said, his voice cracking under the strain. “It’s not that simple.”

“Like hell it isn’t,” Sirius shot back, his tone sharp but not cruel. “I’ve watched you for years, Prongs. You talk about Evans like she’s some kind of bloody trophy, but her? You look at her like she’s the air you breathe. Like without her, you’d suffocate. And you’re sitting here telling me it’s complicated?”

James’s laugh turned hollow, empty. “Lily’s… safe. She’s who I’m supposed to want. She’s not my bloody childhood best friend.”

The words hung in the air, and for a moment, Sirius said nothing. Then, he barked out a laugh, loud and biting.

“Safe?” he repeated, incredulous. “Since when have you ever played it safe, James Potter? Love’s not supposed to be safe. It’s messy, terrifying, and completely bloody worth it. Or are you seriously telling me you’d rather be ‘safe’ than happy?”

James looked up at him then, and Sirius’s breath caught. His best friend’s hazel eyes, usually so full of fire and mischief, were red-rimmed and glistening with unshed tears.

“Do you think…” James’s voice wavered, barely above a whisper. “Do you think she feels the same?”

Sirius’s grin returned, slow and wolfish. “Mate, judging by these letters? She’s just as much of an idiot in love as you are.”

For a moment, James didn’t move, didn’t even breathe. And then, like a dam breaking, he laughed — a shaky, unsteady sound that grew louder, freer, until it filled the room.

“What do I do?” James asked, his voice raw and trembling with vulnerability.

Sirius stood, crossing the room to clap a hand on James’s shoulder. “You start by telling her everything. No more hiding. No more pretending. You owe her — and yourself — more than that.”

James nodded slowly, the faintest glimmer of determination flickering in his eyes. “You’re right.”

“Of course I’m right,” Sirius said, smirking. “I’m always right.”

As James reached for the letters, carefully tucking them back into their box, Sirius watched him with a rare sense of pride. This wasn’t just James Potter, the fearless Quidditch captain, the prankster extraordinaire. This was James Potter, a boy on the cusp of something extraordinary.

And for once, Sirius Black wasn’t just causing chaos — he was helping someone find their way through it.

THE SNOW OUTSIDE FELL IN HEAVY, DELIBERATE FLAKES, BLANKETING THE WORLD IN A SOFT, UNBROKEN QUIET. Sirius stood on the second-floor landing of the Potter home, a mug of hot coffee cradled in his hands. The rich aroma mingled with the faint scent of pine and cinnamon wafting from the decorated tree below. The whole house seemed to hum with a kind of warmth that Sirius rarely allowed himself to imagine, let alone experience.

From his vantage point, he had a perfect view of the living room below. The fire in the hearth crackled gently, casting golden shadows across the walls. Mr. Potter sat on the sofa with an arm draped around Mrs. Potter, the two of them cocooned under a soft plaid blanket. A book rested on Fleamont’s lap as he read aloud, his voice low and steady. Euphemia’s head rested against his shoulder, her eyes half-closed in serene contentment. Every so often, she’d smile at something he read or reach up to adjust her husband’s glasses, her touch so light and familiar it made Sirius’s chest ache with longing — not jealousy, but something softer. A wistfulness for this kind of unshakable bond.

But his gaze didn’t linger on the Potters for long. It drifted to the corner of the room, where the Christmas tree’s twinkling lights bathed two figures in a kaleidoscope of warm colors. You and James sat on the floor amidst the chaos of torn wrapping paper and open boxes. The morning’s gifts had already been exchanged, but it seemed James had saved something special for last.

Even from here, Sirius could see the faint nervousness in his best friend’s posture. James wasn’t one to fidget, yet his hands moved restlessly, smoothing invisible creases on his trousers, brushing imaginary dust from the tree skirt. His eyes, though, were unwavering as they watched you. You were cross-legged on the fluffy white rug, your hair falling in soft waves over your shoulder as you picked idly at a ribbon. Sirius noticed how your gaze lingered on James, curious and full of quiet affection.

James leaned closer, his voice low but carrying an unmistakable lilt of mischief. “One of the owls was late,” he said, holding up a slightly weathered envelope. The parchment looked a little worse for wear, its edges crumpled as if it had been handled too often. “It dropped this off this morning… asked me to give it to the most beautiful girl in the world.”

You laughed softly, shaking your head as you reached for the envelope. “Still using that line, are you, Potter?”

“Can you blame me? It’s worked wonders so far.” His grin was cocky, but Sirius saw the faintest flicker of uncertainty in his eyes as he handed it over.

You rolled your eyes, but the way you bit your lip betrayed your own anticipation. Turning the envelope over in your hands, you ran your fingers along the black-inked scrawl of your name before carefully breaking the seal. Sirius leaned forward slightly, his coffee forgotten as he watched the scene unfold.

The moment the letter emerged, the air seemed to shift. Your eyes darted across the page, your expression softening with each word. Sirius could see the precise moment the meaning settled in — the way your lips parted in surprise, the way your shoulders tensed, then relaxed, as if letting the weight of something long unspoken sink in. James’s hand rested on your knee, his thumb moving in small, nervous circles.

“Love?” James’s voice was barely above a whisper, his usual bravado stripped away. He was watching you as though the world rested on your reaction, his fingers tightening ever so slightly around yours. “You’re awfully quiet. Should I be worried? Say something. Anything.”

You didn’t answer immediately. Your eyes stayed fixed on the page, even as a tear slipped down your cheek, catching the light like a tiny diamond. James froze, his face paling slightly.

“Hey, hey, no…” His voice cracked. “Don’t cry. If it’s rubbish, just say so and we can forget it. Burn it, even.” He laughed nervously, though it sounded forced. “I’ll… I’ll pretend it never happened.”

That’s when you looked up, meeting his gaze with eyes so full of emotion it made Sirius’s breath hitch even from across the room. You didn’t say anything. Instead, you reached out, cupping James’s face in your hands. He stilled under your touch, his wide-eyed surprise melting into something softer as you leaned in and pressed your lips to his.

It wasn’t the kind of kiss Sirius might have teased him about — not fiery or impulsive. It was quiet, deliberate, and full of a tenderness that made Sirius feel like an intruder, even though he couldn’t look away. James’s hands found your waist, pulling you closer as though you might slip away if he let go.

Sirius smiled to himself, feeling a rare swell of pride. James had always been the heart of their little group, the one who wore his feelings openly. And now, here he was, finding a kind of love that Sirius knew would anchor him forever.

A sharp click shattered the moment, and both of you turned your heads to find Sirius standing at the bottom of the stairs, a wide grin plastered across his face as he waved a freshly developed photo in the air.

“Perfect!” he announced, shaking the picture. “This one’s going in the family album. And when my godchildren ask how their parents got together, I’ll tell them Uncle Sirius orchestrated the whole thing.”

You laughed, leaning your forehead against James’s shoulder, while James groaned, though the corners of his mouth twitched upward. “You’re a menace, Pads,” he said, though his voice held no bite.

“A charming menace,” Sirius replied, retreating toward the couch where the elder Potters were watching the scene unfold with amused smiles.

“Everything alright, dear?” Euphemia asked, her eyes twinkling with affection as she glanced between you and James.

James nodded, his hand still firmly clasping yours. “Yeah, Mum. Everything’s perfect.”

Mrs. Potter’s smile widened, and she reached over to pat your hand. “Welcome to the family, my dear. Though, truth be told, you’ve always been part of it.”

“Thank you,” you said softly, your voice thick with emotion.

THE REST OF THE DAY PASSED IN A GOLDEN HAZE OF LAUGHTER AND WARMTH. Euphemia roped you into helping her in the kitchen, insisting you learn the secret to her mulled wine. Sirius watched from the doorway, sipping his coffee and grinning as you tried to follow her directions, only for James to sneak in and steal a taste from the pot, earning himself a playful swat on the arm.

By evening, the fire burned low, and the snow outside had blanketed the world in an even deeper hush. Sirius sat in his favorite armchair, a blanket draped over his legs as he watched the scene before him. You and James were curled up together on the rug, a cozy tangle of limbs as you whispered to each other, your laughter soft and unguarded. The Potters sat nearby, sharing quiet conversation, their hands intertwined.

For a moment, Sirius closed his eyes, letting the warmth of the room and the sounds of contentment wash over him. He thought of his own childhood Christmases — cold, sterile affairs devoid of joy. And then he thought of this… the home James had built, not just for himself but for everyone he cared about. It was the kind of love Sirius had always believed was out of reach. Until now.

“Merry Christmas, Prongs,” he murmured, raising his empty mug in a toast to his best friend.

James glanced up, catching his eye. “Merry Christmas, Pads,” he replied, his grin soft but unmistakably James.

James had turned to you, his hand cradling your cheek as he pressed a lingering kiss to your temple. You smiled up at him, your fingers tracing lazy patterns on his arm.

"Merry Christmas, love," James murmured, his voice low and filled with a tenderness that made Sirius’s chest tighten.

"Merry Christmas, Jamie," you replied, resting your forehead against his.

Sirius chuckled, settling back into his chair, the warmth of the moment settling deep in his bones. The world outside might be cold and uncertain, but here, in this house, surrounded by love and laughter, everything felt exactly as it should be.

He thought about how James Potter had once given him the home and warmth he never had. And now, it seemed, Sirius Black had helped his best friend find his way home, too.

FROM THE ARCHIVE OF SIRIUS BLACK:

To my future, undoubtedly brilliant, devilishly handsome, and wildly talented nephews,

Listen up, you little rascals. You don’t know me yet, but let me make one thing very clear: I’m the reason you even exist. That’s right, your ridiculously perfect Uncle Sirius is the mastermind behind it all. Without my charm, wit, and expert meddling, your parents might still be doing the whole "will-they-won't-they" nonsense.

So, when you’re out there ruling the world, remember to thank yours truly. The coolest, suavest, and most humble uncle you'll ever have — Sirius Black. You're welcome.

December 25, 1976 My Love, It’s Christmas, and the house is quiet now, the soft hum of the tree lights the only sound. I’ve been sitting here for hours, staring at this parchment, trying to find words big enough for what I feel, but they don’t exist. Still, I need to try. Love, I see it now—what I’ve been too blind to see all along. I’ve always thought of myself as brave, fearless even. But when it came to you, I was a coward. I didn’t want to risk losing you. You, who have been the brightest part of my life since the moment we met. You, who’ve filled every corner of my world with warmth and light, even when we were miles apart. Every summer, when you stepped into my life again, it was like the sun breaking through a storm. You’d sit by the lake with that book you never quite finished because I was always distracting you. You’d laugh at my terrible jokes, your nose crinkling just so. And you’d hum when you thought no one was listening, always off-key but somehow more perfect than any melody I’ve ever heard. I thought I was looking for the kind of love my parents have — their unshakable bond, the way they look at each other like the world begins and ends with them. And all this time, it was right here, under my nose. You were under my nose. I think I was afraid, love. Afraid that if I let myself feel what’s always been there, I’d ruin us. That I’d lose the only person who’s ever truly known me, the only one who can look past the pranks, the bravado, and see me—the real me. But Sirius, being Sirius, knocked some sense into me. He said I’ve been acting like a fool, and for once, he’s right. Rereading our letters with him was like seeing my life laid out before me, and every line, every word pointed to you. Even when you were far away, you were my everything. The letters you sent were more than ink on parchment; they were lifelines. When Hogwarts felt too big, too chaotic, you were the quiet in the storm. When I felt lost, you reminded me who I am. Do you know how many times I reread your words, just to feel close to you? I kept your letters in my trunk, hidden from the others like a secret treasure. Because that’s what you’ve always been — my treasure. How could I have been so blind? How could I have wasted so much time thinking it was Lily I wanted when it’s always been you? I’ve spent so long chasing a dream when the real thing was right in front of me. I see it now, clearer than I’ve ever seen anything. You are my stars, my moon, my sun. You’re the laugh that makes everything brighter, the voice that feels like home.

I love you. I love the way your handwriting gets messier when you’re excited. I love the way you argue with me over the silliest things just to see me smile. I love the way you hum when you’re nervous and how you always know exactly what to say to pull me out of my worst days. I love you. I don’t know if you feel the same way, but I hope with everything in me that you do. And if you don’t, I’ll understand. Because having you in my life, even just as my friend, has been the greatest gift I could ever ask for. But if there’s even the smallest chance you might love me too, then I promise to spend the rest of my life proving I deserve you. Merry Christmas, my love. You’ve been my greatest gift every day since I met you. Forever yours, Jamie

thankx for reading <3

god, this is my biggest work and I was so afraid to publish it, cause it seems to me that no one reads such long fics (I myself adore long fics).

and if you've finished reading this, thank u and I love you so much! I hope you enjoyed every part of it and I will be very glad if you leave a comment, because it seems to me that I have left all of myself in this work!

you can always share your opinion in comments or my inbox. btw my requests are open so… make a wish :3

– your santi 🪐

masterlist

#– santi 🪐#james potter fluff #james potter fic #james potter x reader #james potter #james potter x you #james potter imagine #james potter x y/n #james potter fanfiction #bsf!james potter #james potter x fem!reader

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unconventional-lawnchair · 27 days ago

Text

Just Kiss Her

James Potter x BSF!Reader

Summary: You find a few unsent letters with your name on them- literally.

WC: 2.1k

CW: use of {Y/N} - typo and nonsense it's 4am and I can't sleep.

The Gryffindor boys' dormitory was unusually lively for a day when James was absent. You sat cross-legged on James’s bed, surrounded by the mess that only four teenage boys could call normal. The faint scent of James’s shampoo lingered on his pillow behind you, a small comfort as the chatter of the room swirled around you.

Sirius groaned dramatically from his own bed, his leg propped up on a stack of pillows. He had injured it during their last Quidditch practice and was now milking the situation for all it was worth.

“Darling,” Sirius called, drawing out the word as he tilted his head toward you. “I demand attention. Do you know how utterly dull it is, lying here with nothing but Moony’s dull bookishness and Wormtail’s horrible color sense for company?”

“I’m literally right here, Pads,” Remus replied flatly, not looking up from his book.

“And you love me,” Sirius shot back without skipping a beat, grinning lazily.

You rolled your eyes and turned your attention back to Peter, who stood in front of the mirror with a tie hanging awkwardly around his neck. “I think the green one is better,” you offered. “It brings out your eyes.”

Peter frowned, his hands fumbling with the knot. “But is green too Slytheriny?”

“Not unless you start hissing and cursing muggleborns,” you replied with a teasing smile. “Just pair it with a gray jumper. Neutralize it.”

Peter nodded, muttering something about giving it a try before swapping it for a blue tie. Meanwhile, Sirius groaned again, this time louder.

“I’m dying, and none of you care,” he complained, flopping back against his pillows like a tragic figure in a poorly acted play.

“You’re not dying,” you said, leaning back on your hands. “You’ve got a bruised leg.”

“Bruised? Bruised?” Sirius gasped as if you’d mortally wounded him. “That’s how they minimize war injuries, you know. Next you’ll say I’m malingering.”

“Which you are," Remus said, still not looking up from his book.

Sirius turned to you, ignoring Remus entirely. “Come on, love. Entertain me. Read me a story or sing me a song or- oh! Recite poetry! You’re good at that.”

“I’m not reciting poetry for you, Sirius.”

“Why not?” Sirius pouted. “You do it for James.”

“That’s because James actually asks nicely,” you quipped, smirking.

At that, Sirius clutched his chest as if you’d stabbed him, his grin betraying his dramatics. “Et tu, Brute? I thought you loved me.”

“Loved, past tense,” you teased. “You’re officially too high maintenance.”

“You wound me,” Sirius said, throwing an arm over his face. “Moony, tell her she’s being cruel.”

“Not getting involved,” Remus said quickly, still reading but now smiling faintly.

Sirius turned his face toward you again, his pout morphing into a cheeky grin. “Fine, if you won’t entertain me, at least come sit over here so I can lean on you while you’re ignoring me.”

You rolled your eyes but stood anyway, walking over to Sirius’s bed. “You’re unbearable.”

“I prefer entertaining,” he replied smugly as you perched beside him, letting him lean his head on your shoulder.

The room was quiet for a moment, save for the sound of Remus flipping another page in his book and Peter muttering to himself as he fiddled with another tie. Sirius, still leaning on your shoulder, let out a long, exaggerated sigh, clearly waiting for you to indulge him.

“Alright,” you finally relented. “I’ll read something to you. Happy now?”

Sirius grinned triumphantly. “Ecstatic. Now, find something good. None of that boring rubbish you usually bring in here.”

Rolling your eyes, you stood and glanced around the room. “Fine, but I’m not wasting my time reading some textbook or Quidditch manual. Let’s see if James has something decent for once.”

Sirius perked up, watching you make your way over to James’s trunk. “Careful, darling, you’re stepping into dangerous territory. Prongs’s secrets and all that.”

“Oh, he won’t mind,” you said, waving a hand dismissively. “Besides, if he didn’t want me snooping, he’d have locked it.”

Remus glanced up from his book. “I’m not sure that logic holds up, actually.”

You knelt beside the trunk, lifting the lid to find the usual James Potter mess: a tangled heap of robes, a few textbooks with worn edges, and a Gryffindor scarf stuffed haphazardly into the corner. But what caught your eye was a small, battered box tucked near the bottom, half-hidden beneath a crumpled cloak.

“What’s this?” you murmured, pulling it out and turning it over in your hands.

Sirius’s eyes gleamed with interest. “Oh, now that looks promising. Open it.”

Remus let out a quiet sigh. “I wouldn’t- ”

“Of course you would,” Sirius interrupted. “It’s Prongs. What’s his is practically hers anyway.”

Ignoring their back-and-forth, you pried open the lid. Inside was a disorganized stack of parchment, some neatly folded, others crumpled and torn. Some were even singed at the edges, as if they'd narrowly escaped being thrown into the fire. Every single one had your name scrawled across the top in James’s messy handwriting.

Your heart skipped a beat.

“What is it?” Peter asked, peeking over your shoulder.

“Letters,” you said softly. “They’re… they’re addressed to me.”

Sirius’s grin grew impossibly wider. “Oh, now this is good."

Remus closed his book, his brow furrowed. “Are you really going to read those? They’re personal.”

“They’re addressed to me," you replied, a mixture of curiosity and nerves stirring in your chest.

“You’re doing him a favor,” Sirius said breezily. “If he didn’t want you to read them, he’d have gotten rid of them properly.”

You hesitated for a moment before unfolding the first letter. The parchment was slightly wrinkled, and the ink looked rushed, as though James had written it in a moment of unfiltered emotion.

Dear {Y/N},

You probably think I’m an idiot. Honestly, you wouldn’t be wrong. I’ve tried to write this letter five times already, and I keep throwing them in the fire. But this one… I don’t know. Maybe I’ll keep it. Maybe one day I’ll find the courage to actually give it to you.

You laughed today. I can’t even remember what I said to make you laugh, but Merlin, it was the best sound I’ve ever heard. I keep playing it over in my head like an idiot, and it’s driving me mad.

I think I love you. No- scratch that. I *know* I love you. But I can’t tell you. What if you don’t feel the same? What if it ruins everything? Maybe it’s better this way. At least I can still be near you, even if it kills me to pretend.

Your voice caught, and you lowered the letter, your hands trembling slightly.

“Bloody hell,” Sirius said, looking genuinely impressed. “Prongs has it bad.”

Peter nodded mutely, wide-eyed.

“You really shouldn’t be reading those,” Remus muttered, though his tone lacked conviction.

But you couldn’t stop. You reached for another letter, this one more crumpled, as though James had balled it up in frustration before deciding to keep it.

I tried to burn this one too, but I couldn’t. I can’t seem to get rid of the things I write to you, even if they’re pointless. You’ll never read them anyway. But writing them feels like the only way to stop my chest from caving in whenever I see you with someone else. Merlin, I’m pathetic.

I wish I could just tell you. But then what? You’d laugh, or worse, pity me. I couldn’t stand that. So, I’ll keep pretending. Keep being your best friend. Keep loving you quietly.

“Wow,” Peter said softly.

You sat back on your heels, clutching the letters tightly. All this time, James had been carrying these feelings- for you- and he’d never said a word.

“See?” Sirius said, looking smug. “Told you this was worth it.”

Remus shot him a glare. “You’re not helping.”

You looked up, your heart pounding. “Why didn’t he tell me?”

Sirius leaned back against his pillows, crossing his arms behind his head. “Because he’s James bloody Potter. He’d face down a hundred Death Eaters without flinching, but one look at you and he’s a goner.”

The door to the dormitory burst open, and James Potter strolled in, looking thoroughly windswept from Quidditch practice. His broom was slung over his shoulder, and his Gryffindor scarf dangled loosely around his neck.

“Alright, lads, miss me?” he asked cheerfully, dropping his broom beside his bed. He glanced at Peter, who was still fiddling with his tie. “Wormy, mate, what’s that? A tie? You look like you’re about to slither off into the dungeons.”

Peter huffed, pulling at the tie. “It’s green with gray accents. She said it works.”

James’s laugh was loud and carefree, but then his gaze landed on you, sitting on the floor with a stack of letters clutched tightly in your hands. The open box on the floor beside you caught his eye, and his face immediately fell.

“What are you doing?” he asked, his voice suddenly sharp.

You froze for a moment but quickly regained your composure, hugging the letters closer to your chest.

“Reading,” Sirius said from his bed, his tone positively delighted. “Turns out, Prongs, you’re a regular Shakespeare. Real heartfelt stuff.”

James paled as he took a step toward you, his eyes wide with a mix of panic and embarrassment. “Put those down. Now. They’re mine.”

You stood quickly, holding the letters tight to your chest as if they were a treasure. “No, they’re mine. They’ve got my name on them.”

“{Y/N},” James groaned, his face turning a deep shade of red. He lunged for the letters, but you stepped back just in time.

“I don’t think so,” you said, grinning as you unfolded another letter. You held it up dramatically, clearing your throat. “Let’s see what this one says- ”

“Don’t you dare!” James exclaimed, his voice cracking slightly.

“Dear {Y/N},” you read aloud, dodging James as he tried to grab the letters again. “You’re going to kill me one day, and I’ll probably thank you for it. Today, you- ”

James groaned loudly, lunging for you again. “I mean it! Give them back!”

But you were faster, darting around Sirius’s bed and laughing as James scrambled to catch you. “Today, you laughed at my joke in Transfiguration, and I swear I forgot how to breathe- oh, that’s good, James! Real poetic!”

Sirius howled with laughter from his bed, clapping his hands. “Oh, this is gold. Absolute gold.”

Peter, wide-eyed, muttered, “Should we stop them?”

“No,” Sirius said quickly, waving a hand. “This is the most fun I’ve had all day.”

James was completely flustered now, his hair even messier than usual as he chased you around the room. “You’re impossible!” he said, his voice breathless.

“And you’re in love with me,” you teased, waving the letters in the air. Suddenly you paused, as if reality hit you. Your smile grew tenfold as you looked at the letters then to him with wide eyes. “Merlin, you're in love with me!”

That made him freeze for half a second, giving you just enough time to read aloud again. “You’ll never read this, but Merlin, I can’t stop thinking about you- ”

Before you could finish, James lunged and finally managed to catch you, his arms wrapping around you tightly. You squealed in surprise and delight as the two of you toppled backward into the open closet, the letters scattering around you.

James pinned you gently, his face mere inches from yours, his chest rising and falling rapidly. “You’re an absolute menace,” he said, though his tone was more fond than frustrated.

“And you’re a hopeless romantic,” you shot back, grinning up at him.

For a moment, he just stared at you, his hazel eyes filled with something intense and unspoken. Then, before you could say another word, he kissed you- soft and sweet at first, but quickly turning urgent and consuming.

You forgot about the letters entirely as his hands framed your face, his lips moving against yours like he’d been waiting for this moment forever. Your laughter melted into the kiss, your hands clutching the front of his Quidditch jumper as if to anchor yourself.

From outside the closet, Sirius’s voice rang out. “Bloody hell, Prongs, save some for later!”

James pulled back just enough to rest his forehead against yours, his face flushed and his smile wide. “Remind me to hex Sirius later,” he murmured, his breath warm against your lips.

“Deal,” you whispered, leaning up to kiss him again.

Sirius groaned loudly. “Merlin, they’re hopeless. Wormtail, fetch me a bucket; I’m going to be sick.”

Remus sighed, his tone amused. “I think we’ve just lost James for the rest of the day.”

#harry potter #harry potter fanfiction #sirius black #james potter #harry potter x reader #remus lupin #harry potter x you #james potter x you #james fleamont potter #james x reader #james potter x y/n #james potter x reader #james potter fic #James potter x bsf!reader #bsf!james potter #friends to lovers #idiots in love

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amiableness · 5 months ago

Note

dad!james not being able to contain himself around reader and just kisses her 24/7 he’s always trying to press a kiss against her lips or cheeks and maybe henry’s picked up on it too so he starts kissing readers cheeks every time he’s close

Dad!James Potter x Bsf!Reader ☼ 817 words

i changed it a tad but hope this still works! series masterlist ; main masterlist

After sleeping with James, a sickening worry had settled in—you feared things might become awkward, or worse, that he’d want to slow things down to avoid confusing Henry. You understood��completely, knowing how important it was to keep everything stable for his son. But after wanting James for so long, feeling his hands all over you and the heat of his kisses. The idea of returning to the way things were felt almost unbearable.

“Strawberries or blueberries?” Holding up a container as you say their name, you stand at the table in front of Henry, who looks terribly sleepy but still flickers his eyes back and forth as he weighs his options. His waffles sit before him with a dollop of cream slowly melting from the warmth.

Nerves swirl in your stomach at the thought of seeing James, but you try to push them down. Waking up before him, you decided to make breakfast, hoping the simple task might help dodge any awkward conversations. It’s a desperate attempt to keep things normal, a way to distract yourself from the uncertainty of what might happen once he walks into the kitchen.

“Both.” Henry finally affirms, giving a confident nod that makes his messy curls bounce. All he needs is a pair of glasses, and he’d be a miniature version of James—not that he isn’t already.

You sprinkle both types of berries over Henry’s waffles, his little hands directing you to add just a few more each time you try to pull away. As you remind him to eat what he has first and that he can always have seconds later, you’re so focused on him that you don’t notice James entering the kitchen.

As you turn to place the berries on the counter, you startle at the sight of James standing in front of the coffee maker in nothing but plaid pajama pants. Your gaze instinctively trails down his chest, and when you look up again with a nervous swallow, you find him watching you with a knowing smirk.

“Morning, darling.”

You offer him a soft smile and murmur a quiet “good morning.” To your surprise, he strides directly toward you. When you instinctively take a step back, a puzzled frown crosses his face. Without missing a beat, he wraps an arm around your waist, pulling you in and pressing you against his chest.

You let out a surprised gasp and glance over your shoulder at Henry, who watches the scene intently as he takes a bite of his waffles. A hint of purple stains the corners of his mouth.

“He’s watching us, Jamie.” You whisper, casting a warning glance. James looks between you and his son, his expression one of confusion.

“Is that a problem?” He asks, his voice calm.

“Well, I—” You begin, but the words falter as James presses a slow, tender kiss to your cheek. His lips curl into a teasing smile as he pulls back and watches you struggle to gather your thoughts.

“What, baby?” He teases, his voice a soft murmur against your ear.

“I didn’t think you’d want to act like this in front of him.” You reply, your voice barely above a whisper.

“Like what?” He asks, his tone curious as he holds you close.

“A couple.” You clarify, feeling the weight of your words.

James raises an eyebrow, a playful glint in his eyes. “Are we not?” He questions, his voice laced with a hint of amusement.

“We didn’t really talk much about that last night.” You admit, your voice faltering slightly as you struggle to find the right words.

“You’re right. We didn’t,” he agrees, his hand gently cupping the side of your cheek. A smug glint dances in his eyes as he leans in, his warm breath mingling with yours before his lips meet yours in a soft, lingering kiss. The touch is tender, as if he can’t get enough, his lips moving slowly against yours, drawing you deeper into his arms. As he pulls away just enough to look at you, a playful, yet affectionate smile tugs at his lips. “I just sort of assumed you were mine after last night.”

You’re flustered, staring up at James with wide eyes. He smiles down at you, brushing his thumb over your cheek as you roll your lips together to hide your smile.

“Why does Daddy get kisses?” Henry squeaks out, his words tumbling over each other. “I want kisses from darling too!”

James laughs, giving you another quick kiss before letting you go and heading towards Henry. He scoops his son up, showering him with kisses all over his face. Henry bursts into laughter, his giggles punctuated by playful sputters as he repeats that he wanted kisses from you. You stand in the kitchen, your fingers lightly tracing your lips as you watch the sweet exchange between them, a smile tugging at the corners of your mouth.

please consider reblogging or leaving a comment! it keeps me motivated to write! 💌

#dad!james and bsf!reader universe #dad!james potter x reader #dad!james potter #james potter fic #james potter oneshot #james potter x reader #james potter baby blurb #james potter blurb #james potter x you #james potter x fem!reader #james potter x y/n #james potter fluff #james potter fanfiction #james potter hc #james potter headcanon

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moonlightspencie · 1 year ago

Text

tenderly, tragically

Description: Silly, lifelong best-friendship leads to a lot of meaningless teasing. Though, sometimes teasing comes from a place of truth. It’s just that sometimes, those getting teased are the last to know why.

Pairing: Best friend!James Potter x fem!Reader

Warnings: fluff, some angst, smut 18+ (p in v, praise kink, whiny james, size kink, first time for both), drinking, its really idiots to lovers

Word Count: 7.8k (just fluff): 9.4k (smut)

A/N: smut is at the end, and there’s a warning before it starts since it’s kind of like an alternate ending/extra bit. if you JUST want fluff, it ends at a good point for that before the smut starts :) ALSO: as with all of my marauders fics, characters are aged up (19-20)

fic playlist

“Jamie,” I squeal a laugh, chasing after him.

He laughs, continuing to out-run me. The bastard.

“Not my fault you’re slow,” he calls back. “Catch up, love, or you’ll get caught.”

I run harder, jumping on his back when I get close enough. We both knew he’d slowed down to let me get closer, but neither of us bothered to mention it. He laughed, holding onto my legs as they wrapped around his waist, slowing until he was walking.

“You’re going to get us caught, you know that?”

I snort a laugh. “Please. There wasn’t even anybody there.”

He rolls his eyes playfully, finally dropping me from his back, and instead slinging an arm around my shoulders.

“They could have, though.”

“But they didn’t,” I say pointedly. “Besides, Remus, Peter, and Sirius are still actually in the Slytherin dorms. Lousy look-outs we are because of you.”

He chuckles, walking us towards the stairs.

“They’ll be fine,” he shrugs with a cocky smirk. “Besides, I doubt even most of the Slytherins would object to a little prank on Snivellus.”

I hum, nodding a little. “I guess. Still. You’re a bad friend.”

“You ran too,” he accused, his brow furrowing. “Don’t go and pin all this on me.”

“You told me to run!”

“You didn’t have to listen!”

I scoff, shaking my head. He gives me an irritated look, but pulls me a little closer under his arm. We get into the common room, and without even asking, he starts ushering me to their dorm room.

“Why?” I ask, knowing he knows what I’m asking.

“Sue me for wanting to spend some time with my life-long friend,” he says, quirking a brow.

I push him away from me, but he doesn’t really let me get far. He opens his door, pushing me in first. I immediately flop onto his bed face-first.

“Not complaining now, are you?” he asks, laying next to me.

“Not my fault your bed is so comfy,” I say, my voice muffled by the mattress.

I feel the mattress dip, and look up to see him also turned on his stomach, right next to me.

“If you really wanted to get me alone this bad you could’ve asked,” I say with a wink.

He rolls his eyes, but a smile gives him away.

“Please. I know you’re secretly hoping for it, but we both know that’s never going to happen.”

“Me?” I laugh. “As if. What would I do with a quidditch player?”

He scoffs, an offended look on his face.

“I’ll have you know that I am very desirable, and half of that has to do with the fact I’m the seeker, thank you.”

I roll my eyes. “Uh huh. And what’s the other half?”

“You seen this face?” he asks, a cocky smirk on his lips.

“Unfortunately I have.”

“You’re mean,” he says, a laugh breaking up his attempt to be offended.

He pushes me a bit, but I hardly budge. I laugh at his attempt, but apparently that was the wrong thing to do. He perks up, trying harder to fully push me off the bed, now.

“Hey!” I say in protest, fighting back against him.

He laughs, both of us practically fighting as he keeps trying to push me off. I see an opportunity a moment later and take it: I grab onto one of his arms with both of mine.

“Ha!” I say loudly. “Can’t push me off now unless you also fall off.”

He pauses, then an evil smirk comes onto his face. My face drops as I realize what he’s about to do. He scoots over, dropping both of us onto the ground. I squeal as we fall, and I end up taking the brunt of the fall as he lands on top of me.

“You should never threaten me with a good time. You know I can’t resist,” he says, not bothering to alleviate the pressure of his body pinning me down.

I groan. “You suck. I didn’t think you’d actually push both of us off just to get me.”

“Then you don’t know me very well,” he replies with a quirked brow.

“Please. I know you better than anyone and you know it.”

He opens his mouth to snark back at me, but the door opens before he gets a chance.

“You two are the worst,” Sirius says, clearly out of breath. Then, he scoffs as more footsteps follow behind him. “And look at this! They ran off on us to… Canoodle on the floor.”

I furrow my brow, pulling a face as I try to see him around James.

“Canoodle?” I repeat in disgust.

James finally starts getting off of me, kneeling on the ground next to me as I start pulling myself up. Remus and Peter give us a look.

“We’re not… canoodling, and you can blame Prongs for us ditching. He’s the one who took off running and told me I had to, too.”

Remus quirks a brow at that as Sirius goes to sit on his bed.

“You didn’t have to listen to him,” Peter pipes up.

“That’s what I told her,” James says, giving me a self-satisfied look.

I make a sour face at him, pushing his arm a little. He pushes me back, and I straighten up. Though, Remus must notice that look on me.

“Don’t you two start up again,” he says, pointedly looking between us. “If I have to watch you two flirt any more I might throw up.”

“We’re not flirting,” James grumbles. “She’s just fun to mess with.”

“Mm. And you’re just easy to win a fight against,” I add.

He looks at me quickly. “You didn’t win the last one.”

“Because you pushed us both off the bed!” I exclaim.

“Oh, shut it, you two,” Sirius says, his arm draped over his face. “We’ve been back for three days and you’re already acting up.”

I snort a laugh at Sirius’s annoyance, climbing back onto James’s bed. I sigh with my face in the pillows, feeling him climb over me to get to the other side a second later.

“You got us in trouble,” he whispers.

“Your fault, not mine,” I reply.

“You’re the one who insulted my perfect face.”

“You’re the one who pushed me first,” I argue back.

“Oi!” Sirius calls out again, leaving us both laughing.

Our first few weeks of school go off without a hitch. The boys continue pulling their little pranks, occasionally dragging me along with them. I settle into my space this year, glad to still have Lily, Marlene, and Dorcas as my roommates. We always tended to get along quite well.

I start reading a new book one night, absolutely enraptured with the story, probably even more so considering it’s helping me to avoid the homework that I really should be doing. I get through the first couple chapters before I notice Lily staring at me.

“What is it, Lils?”

“Can I tell you something?” Lily asks suddenly.

She looks around the room, seemingly to make sure the other girls are really gone for whatever she’s about to say.

I look at her over my book. “Sure.”

“Promise not to tell anyone?”

I nod. “Promise.”

She sighs, sitting up a little straighter. “I think I have a thing for someone… Well, for James.”

My eyes widen. “Really? You wanted nothing to do with him a little while ago.”

“I know. I just… I don’t know. Maybe I’m just bored or something, but I’ve been thinking about telling him.”

I nod. “Yeah. You should.”

“Really?” she asks, surprised.

“Why not?”

She smiles to herself. “Yeah. Why not? Do you think he’ll say it back?”

I shrug. “I don’t know. Maybe? He did have a crush on you before.”

She hums to herself. I laugh a little, shaking my head.

“I think I’ll do it tomorrow. Better to do it sooner than later, yeah?”

“Yeah, I guess so,” I shrug noncommittally. I really just wanted to get back to my book.

“You don’t even care,” she groans after a moment.

“This is a really good book, Lils,” I laugh.

“Fine. I’ll stop bothering you.”

“Thanks,” I smirk to myself.

She scoffs again, though I know she isn’t really offended. I wish her good luck as we head off to our classes that day, knowing she was planning on telling James sometime in the morning.

I end up finding him later, though I try not to press for answers the second I do. We sit on the grass in the late afternoon, watching some first years play a little quidditch match for fun. It’s uncharacteristically warm outside, and the sun shines down on us. After half an hour of watching the kids play, I glance at James.

“I wanna show you something,” I say suddenly, standing.

James looks up at me in confusion. “I’d prefer not to move.”

I roll my eyes, crossing my arms over my chest.

“It’s a nice day. Sunny and no clouds. Please, just follow me?” I ask, almost whining. “Promise you’ll like it.”

He leans back on his hands. “How do you know?”

“Because I found a secret place in the woods, and you’ll be the first person besides me to see it,” I offer.

He quirks a brow. “Yeah?”

“Yeah. Now get up.”

He grumbles to himself as he gets up, following me as we walk towards the woods. I start leading him through the trees towards the destination I had in mind.

“What were you even doing in here? It’s dangerous,” he says quietly.

“I was fine. Just had a long day and wanted to explore. It was in the daytime anyway,” I say matter-of-factly.

He hums to himself, clearly dissatisfied that I went out here by myself. But as I finally lead him to our destination, his annoyance wears off.

“Whoa,” he says, his eyes a little wide.

I smile. “See? Told you it would be worth your while.”

He looks on at the small clearing. There’s a little pond with clear water, the space in the trees allowing some sunlight to reflect on the water. It looks peaceful at least, and nearly-heavenly at best. I look at him expectantly.

“How’d you find this?” he asks, squatting by the water. He dips his hand it. “Whoa. It’s warm.”

I nod, still standing. “I found it when I was exploring, like I said. A few weeks ago. I charmed the water to stay warm, so I’ve been out here two or three times to swim. Thought I’d show you before it gets too cold.”

He smiles, standing up. “You want to go swimming? You didn’t bring any—”

His eyes widen as he finally looks at me. At this point, I’ve already started taking off my robes and my shirt.

“What?” I ask, brows furrowed. “You act like you’ve never been around me getting dressed. We’ve been friends since we were like six years old. Now, hurry up. Faster you get undressed, the faster we get to swim.”

He rolls his eyes at me, begrudgingly taking off his clothes, even though part of him still looks excited that I’d found such a nice little place.

I start wading in once I’m down to my underwear, the water feeling nice and warm in contrast to the slightly-cool air. I hear him come in after me in a moment, and turn to watch him.

“Nice, isn’t it?”

“Can’t believe you were hiding this from me,” he says, hiding a smirk.

“Oh, please,” I reply, floating on my back in the water. “You’re lucky I showed you at all. Nobody else knows about this. You should feel honored.”

I hear him hum and splash around a little, though my eyes are closed. I bask in the warmth of the sunlight on my face.

“Did Lils talk to you today?” I ask after a few minutes of silence.

“Yeah.”

I upright myself, looking at him as he aimlessly walks around in the water.

“And?”

He glances at me, giving a shrug. “I don’t know.”

“You don’t know?” I press, furrowing my brow. “What’s that supposed to mean? What did you guys talk about?”

“I have a feeling you already know,” he snorts a laugh.

I roll my eyes, wading closer to him. “So she told you?”

“Yep.”

“Well, what happened? What did you say?”

He sighs dramatically. “Does it matter?”

I splash him a little. “I’m gonna hear about it no matter what. She’s my roommate. Just wanted to know from you before I see Lily later.”

“Told her I wasn’t interested,” he says quietly, splashing me back a little.

I pause. “Why? You always had a massive crush on her.”

“Not in, like, a year,” he says.

“So you just rejected her?”

“I didn’t reject her,” he furrows his brows, looking away from me. “She told me she liked me, and I just told her I wasn’t into her like that. She didn’t ask me a question, so it wasn’t a rejection. Just being honest.”

I groan. “Jamie, she’s going to kill me. I’m the one who encouraged her to tell you.”

His eyes widened. “Why the hell would you do that?”

“I thought you liked her!”

He pauses for a moment, then splashes me again, this time fully soaking me. I scoff a laugh, in shock as the water hits me. I glare at him, then splash him back just as hard. He starts going on the attack, practically throwing the water at me repeatedly.

“You absolute tosser,” I say, continuing to splash back, though I can’t help but laugh.

I start backing up as we both continue, now laughing and barely able to see with how rapid-fire we’re going. Eventually, I turn and start running for the shore as much as I can while being chest-deep in water. I squeal as I hear him closing in on me.

“No, no, no,” I laugh, getting closer and closer to safety.

“Should’ve thought about trying to run a little harder, love,” James says back, still giggling to himself.

He catches up to me when the water is finally below my hips, and grabs around the waist, pulling both of us backwards. The water goes over our heads for a moment, and I gasp out a laugh as we emerge again. He sits us up in the pond.

I turn in his arms, smacking him lightly on the chest. “You’re awful!”

“You love me,” he smiles brightly, still sitting on the ground in the shallow water. He pulls me in a little closer. “You’re just mad that I won.”

“Still can’t believe you said you didn’t like her,” I say, brushing some of his wet curls away from his eyes.

“Not gonna lie to the girl,” he shrugs, swatting away my hand.

“Still. I thought for sure you’d be excited.”

“Hm. I don’t know. Maybe a couple years ago, but not anymore.”

“At this point I’m convinced you’re driving girls away on purpose. When was the last time you dated someone?” I laugh.

He looks at me, mockingly offended. “Excuse me?”

“What?” I exclaim, still laughing. “Last girl I remember seeing you with was some Ravenclaw a few quidditch wins ago, and even then, you were just sucking face because you were drunk.”

He finally pushes me away from him, trying to hide a smile. I chuckle, gaining my bearings, and finally landing comfortably on my knees in the water a foot away from him.

“You wouldn’t be so offended if I were wrong,” I tease.

“Yeah? And when’s the last time you dated somebody?”

I scoff. “You scare off every boy who tries to ask me out.”

“Cause they’re all ridiculous,” he states, making a face. “Are you seriously telling me you wanted to go out with that Johnny kid from Hufflepuff?”

I smirk. “Touché. But still, it’s not my fault I’m not dating anyone. You, on the other hand…”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” he quirks a brow.

“You’ve got all kinds of girls chasing after you. What’s your excuse?”

He pauses for a moment, then smirks. “Who else would waste all their time with you if I were too busy with some girl? You’d be all alone. I’m doing you a service by staying single.”

“Please. You and that ego, I swear,” I shake my head. “I have plenty of friends outside of you.”

“I’m the best one, though,” he says, a brow raised with a cocky smile.

I make a face, then splash him once more for good measure.

“That’s it,” he mumbles, tackling me.

I yell a little with a laugh as his arm wraps around my back and drops me onto the bank where the water was scarce. I keep my head propped up as much as I can, though the rest of me is still covered in a little bit of water. It doesn’t help that James is pressing me into the ground.

“Admit it. I am the single greatest person you’ve ever met.”

I laugh again. “In your dreams.”

“Not letting you up until you admit it.”

“Guess we’re stuck here forever, then,” I argue back.

“Guess so,” he says plainly, dropping his full weight on me. I groan, my breath getting squeezed from me. “Best to make myself comfortable, then.”

“You’re so heavy,” I whine.

He chuckles, just quietly observing me for a moment. I tilt my head in question as he doesn’t snark back. He swallows, a small smile still on his face, but a little bit of color now in his cheeks. My eyes widen a little bit.

“Jamie—”

He doesn’t give me a chance to get anything else out, his lips pressing to mine softly. I freeze, in shock at the sudden change of circumstance. My best friend is kissing me. He stays there for a moment, and only pulls away when he realizes I wasn’t kissing him back, his cheeks taking on a deeper shade.

“I’m sorry, I don’t…” he shakes his head, looking at me with his lips still parted. “I shouldn’t have done that. I’m sorry.”

He gets off of me quickly, getting out of the pond and back to where we left our clothes. He casts a drying spell on himself and starts getting dressed. Meanwhile, I’m still in the water, feeling like I’m stuck. I swallow with a dry throat, turning to see him starting to pull on his pants. I finally get up, quickly moving towards him.

“Jamie—“

“I’m sorry, I don’t know why I did that,” he shakes his head, not looking at me.

I let out a frustrated groan. “We have to talk about that, James.”

“Not right now. Just,” he sighs, looking at me quickly. He takes out his wand again, casting that same drying spell on me. “Get dressed. We don’t want to miss dinner.”

I stare at him for a moment as he continues putting his clothes on, then finally move to get mine on. We finish getting dressed in an uncomfortable silence, that kiss playing on repeat in my mind. Why would he do that?

I look at him when I’m done to see him staring at his shoes, his hands shoved in his pockets. I walk nearer to him, though he takes half a step back when he notices. I furrow my brow.

“Don’t start that.”

“Start what?” he asks, his voice uncharacteristically quiet.

“Pulling away from me,” I say, grabbing his arm and tugging him closer to me. “I don’t know what just happened, but I’m not going to lose you as a friend all because you—”

“I’m not pulling away from you,” he rolls his eyes. “I just— I don’t want to… I’m embarrassed. I shouldn’t have done that.”

“You don’t need to be embarrassed.”

He scoffs. “Right, because there’s nothing embarrassing about trying to kiss your best friend while she looks at you like you’re crazy.”

I sigh. “I just didn’t know what was happening. You’ve never done anything like that before.”

He looks away, chewing at his lip. “Can we just forget about it? I really don’t… I didn’t mean to.”

I fall quiet for a minute, trying to gather my thoughts, but they’re all seeming to escape me. I let go of his arm, taking in a deep breath.

“You know I love you, right?” I ask.

He nods. “Yeah. I know.”

“Okay. Yeah, we can forget about it,” I nod. “You want to go get dinner, then? I heard a rumor they’ll have those apple tarts you like.”

He looks at me, smiling a little bit. “Yeah?”

I nod again, smiling back. “Would I lie?”

He chuckles a little, nodding towards the way we came into the woods. I start leading the way back out until we see the castle again. He catches up to me at that point.

“Sorry again,” he says quietly.

“About what?” I ask, raising a brow. “All I remember is us swimming around. Unless you’re apologizing for tackling me in the pond, in which case, you’re forgiven only if you get me some chocolate frogs next time we’re in Hogsmeade.”

He smiles a little. “Yeah. Promise I will.”

“Good,” I say, knocking into his shoulder a little.

He nudges me back. Of course. I go a little harder the next time I knock into him, until we’re both practically pushing one another over as we head towards the castle. He gives me a particularly hard shove, barely catching me by the arm before I actually fall to the ground. We’re out of breath from laughing when we finally get to the castle, feeling wonderfully back to normal by the time we reach the Great Hall.

We walk up to the marauders, taking our usual seat across from the three boys.

“Hey,” I greet.

“Where were you two for the past hour?” Sirius asks with a quirked brow.

I snort a laugh. “Wouldn’t you like to know?”

“I would, considering we saw you wander off into the forest,” he says, leaning forward on his arms with a smirk.

I roll my eyes. “None of your business.”

“Always so secretive,” Remus says, stabbing a few potatoes on his fork before looking between us.

I glance at James who laughs as soon as we make eye contact. Though, I also catch another pair of eyes when I turn towards him, and wince a little. Lily looks at me with her brows furrowed from a little ways down the table. I shrug at her, unsure why she looks upset with me. She rolls her eyes, going back to her conversation with Dorcas. I sigh.

“Great. Now Lily’s mad at me because you had to go and turn her down,” I say to James.

Peter laughs. “He turned her down?”

“When did this happen?” Remus asks, looking much more curious now.

“You need to learn how to shut it,” James says to me, his voice a little high as he shakes his head.

“They would’ve found out anyways,” I say, barely feeling sorry at all.

I hold back from chuckling as James is pelted with questions from the boys, focusing more on my food and trying to ignore the occasional sour glance I get from Lily.

Though, I couldn’t escape her forever.

I walked into my room after a night of sitting around with the boys and Marlene in the common room. I thought I would be going to bed and falling asleep, but clearly it was wishful thinking. Lily stared at me from her bed as Marlene and I shut the door behind us.

I raised a brow. “Hi?”

Marlene looked between us, excusing herself to take a shower. The traitor.

“What the hell?” Lily said, crossing her arms.

“Yeah, what the hell? Why have you been giving me sour looks all day?”

She scoffed. “You told me to tell him, and you know what he did? Oh. Wait, of course you know. Because of course he already told you. Because of course—”

“Oh my god, Lily,” I roll my eyes, going to sit on my bed next to hers. “I’m sorry that I was wrong about how he’d react, but I had no clue. I thought he still had a thing for you.”

She huffs a sigh. “I should’ve known you were setting me up. What, do you like to see me embarrassed?”

“If I did, I would’ve gone along to watch it happen,” I say, annoyed at her attitude. “Sorry I was wrong, but I didn’t know. And you said you wanted to tell him, anyways.”

“You don’t seem to be that sorry considering you were back to hanging around him again all day.”

“He’s my best friend, Lily. I’m not going to ditch him because he didn’t have feelings for you,” I say, shaking my head.

She stands up suddenly. “Well, maybe you should. Maybe if you weren’t like… In love with him, you’d be a better friend to me.”

I stare at her in annoyance. “You need to get a grip. I wouldn’t have encouraged you to try telling him if I was ‘in love’ with him. We’re friends. You’re being insane.”

“Well, clearly he at least has feelings for you!”

I furrow my brow. “Excuse me?”

“Why else would he reject me?”

I laugh against my better judgement. “Are you serious? One boy doesn’t like you, so it just has to be because he’s in love with someone else? Lily, I love you, but that is the most egotistical thing you’ve ever said.”

“But you’re not denying it.”

“James isn’t in love with me. Have you considered that he just doesn’t like you anymore? It happens. People move on,” I say, sighing. “Just… Go to bed, Lily. This is a ridiculous and pointless argument.”

I lay back on my bed, closing my eyes while I wait to get into the bathroom. I hear Lily mutter something under her breath, but choose to ignore it. The more she got angry with me, the less I cared that she got her feelings hurt. I didn’t want to be unsympathetic, but it was getting hard to be concerned when I was blamed for a boy not liking her. Obviously James didn’t like me.

Obviously.

I think.

He did kiss me.

I open my eyes, staring at the ceiling for a moment. James didn’t like me, did he? He’d never shown interest in me before. That kiss probably just happened because he was confused. He wanted to forget about it, anyways, so clearly that had to mean he didn’t mean it. And I didn’t feel that way about him anyways, so it didn’t matter.

Except, I did feel my heart pound a little differently when he looked at me before the kiss.

I didn’t hate the way his lips felt.

Seeing him smile at me on the walk back did give me a few butterflies.

But, no. That’s nothing. He’s my best friend, I wouldn’t suddenly start feeling that way about him. I couldn’t. It’d be ridiculous.

It’s not like I’d spend the rest of the night thinking about him. Except that I did. A lot.

I woke up the next morning, feeling like I was going insane. I’d never felt that way about him before. Of course, I always though he was attractive. How could anybody look at him and not think he was gorgeous? But there was never anything more besides friendship. So why could I not stop thinking about him?

My eyes feel heavy as I sit in my last class of the day, James trying repeatedly to mess with me throughout the class. With five minutes left, he leans in closer. Since when did he start smelling so good?

“Hey,” he says quietly, drawing my attention. “What’s wrong? You’re not getting mad at me.”

“Just tired, Jamie,” I shrug, staring at the notes on the chalkboard that I haven’t copied down.

“That’s a lie. I can tell.”

I sigh. “Have you ever… Has anyone ever told you something about yourself that you thought wasn’t true, and then… And then you realize they might be right?”

He furrows his brows. “How do you mean?”

“I don’t know. Like, let’s say someone tells you that you like strawberries, when you’ve never liked strawberries. But then you think about every time you’ve had a strawberry, and you realize that you actually really did like strawberries. A lot more than you thought you did. Like… you realize strawberries are your favorite fruit.”

He stares with a confused look, tilting his head. He reaches up, pressing the back of his hand to my forehead.

“Are you feeling alright?”

I lean away from him, rolling my eyes. “Cut it out.”

He smiles, nudging me slightly. “Can’t say I’ve had that experience, no.”

I groan. “This sucks.”

“Why can’t you just tell me what actually happened?” he asks. He pouts. “Please?”

I smile at him, trying hard to be annoyed, but finding it difficult. God, I’m in trouble.

“I just can’t. It’s… private.”

“You never keep secrets from me.”

“I don’t even know what secret I’m keeping just yet,” I sigh, resting my chin in my hand. “I feel like I’m going crazy.”

“Aw,” he coos. “You say that like you aren’t already.”

I push him, laughing softly, though we both straighten up when the professor reprimands us. We give a quick apology, still smirking at each other the next time we catch one another’s eye.

The next days pass by in a blur as I come to terms with what I’ve been feeling. It doesn’t help that I couldn’t talk to anyone, especially since Lily was still mad at me. Now, though, I couldn’t blame her as much. She somehow realized I was into him before I did.

“Hey,” Remus says, coming up to me as I sit in the common room. “It’s late. Why are you still here?”

“Why are you?”

He shrugs, sitting next to me. “Can’t sleep. Moon’s coming in a couple days.”

I hum in acknowledgement. “Gotcha.”

He settles into the couch, crossing his arms over his chest. He looks sideways at me as I stare into the fire.

“You didn’t answer my question.”

“Cause I can’t tell anybody.”

He scoffs. “That’s ridiculous. You’ve been off for days. James keeps complaining about how you’re not spending time with him as much.”

I shake my head, not responding.

“You need to talk to someone about this.”

“Can’t.”

“Bullshit.”

I look at him. “Seriously. I can’t talk to Jamie about it, Lily’s still mad at me, and Marls and Dorcas are too gossipy.”

“You can talk to me,” he shrugs.

“You wouldn’t get it, though.”

“Try me.”

I let out a breath. “You have to promise this stays a secret.”

He nods. “Promise.”

“Okay,” I say under my breath. “Okay. So, um, Lily got really mad at me the other day because of the whole…. Confession thing. And I didn’t understand why, and she started accusing me of things, and obviously I disagreed… But then something she said kind of stuck with me.”

“She’s just mad. Don’t listen to her,” Remus says, shaking his head. “You know how she gets when she’s in one of those moods.”

“But I think she was kind of right,” I sigh. “That’s the problem. She thinks… She told me she thought I was into James. And not like friends, like really into him.”

Remus’s eyes widen a little. “And… are you?”

“I’ve been thinking about it for the past week, and… I think I might be.”

“Whoa. I know we always tease you two for how close you are, but I never thought you…”

“I know,” I groan, my face in my hands. “And I know I haven’t been hanging out with him as much as usual because of it, but I don’t know what to do. How do you tell your best friend that you suddenly realized you’re in love with him?”

He doesn’t answer, just reaches over and gives me a hug. I accept it, sighing a little.

Our next week goes over just like that. I don’t avoid James by any means, but I try not to always be alone with him. I do find more opportunities to talk with Remus about it all, though, and it helps. Just to have someone to listen to me as I complain about my feelings. I do the same for him when he has troubles, though mine seem silly in comparison. He always tells me not to compare, though.

Unfortunately, though, as much as those chats help me process my feelings, they don’t help me get over those feelings at all. If anything, they only grow the more I think about James.

It’s super annoying.

Even more annoying is Lily’s smug look when I tell her about my feelings for James. I expected her to be mad at me, but she did something worse: she laughed at me.

“I knew it!”

“How? I didn’t know!”

“Because you are so obvious,” she shakes her head.

I scoff. “I’m clearly not that obvious or else you wouldn’t have told me you had a crush on him.”

“Alright. Fair enough,” she quirks a brow. “But still.”

I roll my eyes, walking over to hug her.

“Sorry about that. If I knew I had a crush on him I wouldn’t have told you to go for him.”

“Sorry back,” she says. “Shouldn’t have gotten mad at you that he told me no.”

“I agree,” I laugh.

She whacks me in the arm, laughing back.

I try to go about my life as usual over the next couple of weeks. There’s no sense in making myself miserable or drawing attention to my small shift in behavior. I find myself still doing most of the same things I always did. Just a bit more carefully.

I sit with the boys at dinner, laughing at their stupid jokes and the plans they have for pranks. I finish my food, pushing the plate away from me, and listening in on a conversation being had between Sirius, Remus, and Peter.

“You know, those three plan on being out all night,” James says quietly, leaning close to me as he watches the three boys talk.

I raise a brow. “Yeah? Doing what?”

“They wanted to just be out of the castle for the night. Think Sirius and Remus are going to the shrieking shack, and Peter is sneaking out to go meet up with some other friends in Hogsmeade, I guess.”

“And you aren’t running off?”

He shakes his head. “Told them I’d stay behind. Thought me and you could have a sleepover. Like old times.”

I chuckle. “It has been a while.”

“I think close to a year. They’re always in my space,” he says, feigning annoyance. “But it’ll just be us tonight, if you want.”

I push down whatever feeling rises in my chest at that and agree, despite my better judgement.

He pulls me into his room that night, immediately going to the foot of his bed, looking at me like he’s about to change my life.

“I brought something a little… fun,” he smiles, opening up his trunk to show me his secret stash of drinks. “Thought we might finally crack it open.”

I laugh. “And you didn’t think to tell me sooner?”

“Hey, we’ve had plenty at the Gryffindor events,” he smiles. “This is just for us. Our secret.”

“You’re ridiculous.”

“I’m the greatest.”

We find ourselves on his floor after a few drinks, feeling fuzzy and happy. We talk about nothing for hours, occasionally passing a bottle between us.

“Maybe we should do this more often,” he says, smiling up at the ceiling. “I miss spending time with you like this.”

“We’re always together.”

“You spend a lot of time with Moony lately. Not fair, I want you all to myself,” he chuckles, poking my side.

I laugh, poking him back. “I’m still all yours. Love Moony so much, but you’re still my favorite I think. Now, if Sirius decided to start hanging around me more, then you’d be in trouble.”

He giggles, his cheeks rosy. I watch him carefully, feeling warm in the face myself, but for a different reason.

“You have a really cute laugh,” I say before I can think about it.

He looks at me with a smile, his tongue poking out between his teeth. “Yeah?”

“Yeah,” I nod.

“You’ve never told me that before.”

I shrug. “I should’ve.”

He stares back at me for a moment, giving me a little silly smile. He leans over me, propping himself up with his forehead next to my head. He leans down, much like he did that day we went swimming. But this time I kiss him back. My hand finds his cheek, holding him gently as I let him work his lips against mine. I can’t deny the warmth that spreads over me or the butterflies I feel this time.

This time it lasts for a few minutes, neither of us bothering to pull away. Whether that’s because he actually likes it or because we’re both drunk and don’t know any better, I don’t know. I also don’t care.

He finally pulls away after a little while, still giving me that smile as if he didn’t just take all the air in my lungs away from me.

“We can pretend that one didn’t happen, either,” he says, voice barely above a whisper.

I nod, unsure what to say. I don’t want to pretend it didn’t happen, but I couldn’t tell him that without outing myself. I settle for the way his hand mindlessly reaches for mine as we go back into conversation like nothing ever interrupted us in the first place. Eventually, we move to his bed, preferring the softness of the mattress and pillows over the hard ground.

“Can I ask why you’ve been spending all your time with Remus?” he asks during a lull in the conversation, playing with my fingers as he does.

“Just became better friends recently, I guess,” I say, glancing at him. I admire his face for a moment before snapping out of it. “Some stuff I can talk to him about that I haven’t been able to tell anyone else. It’s been nice to have someone to listen.”

“I could do that for you. You didn’t have to go to him.”

“Not this time, Jamie. It’s… different.”

“How?”

“It just is,” I sigh. “I’ve had too much to drink for us to be having this conversation, James.”

He whines. “Please? I just want to know.”

“No. Maybe I’ll tell you someday, but not now.”

He grumbles, turning over and resting his head on my chest. His arm rests over my stomach. I just hope and pray he doesn’t feel how hard my heart starts beating when he does.

“Play with my hair?” he asks, his voice a little muffled.

“Okay,” I reply softly, running my fingers through his messy hair. “This okay?”

He nods a little. “Mhm. Thanks.”

We don’t wake up until the next morning, still stuck in that same position.

I find myself with Remus again the following night. I sit on a chair, and he lounges on the couch, trying not to judge me for putting myself in that situation. I don’t tell him about the kiss, but he hears about everything else.

“You can’t keep doing this to yourself,” he says after a beat of silence when I finish explaining. “You either need to tell him, or put some distance between you.”

“I tried that today.”

“I know,” he rolls his eyes. “It’s all James could talk about. Complaining the whole day that you weren’t eating with us or not going to the library when we were.”

“See? I feel like nothing I do is right in this situation,” I say, feeling defeated. “Like, how am I supposed to keep spending time with him like everything’s normal when I’m practically floating every time he so much as looks at me. It’s pathetic. And I can’t just ignore him, cause then he goes and bugs you all.”

“Maybe you just need to—”

“Hey,” James’s voice calls from behind us.

I look at him, noticing the annoyed look on his face. It doesn’t seem like he’s overheard us, but I can’t tell why he looks so irritated. Usually he’d be annoyed if I didn’t bother with them all day, but he looks… mad. I quirk a brow.

“Hey,” I say, confused.

He doesn’t reply, looking a little upset and a little lost. I turn back to Remus after a moment of silence, our conversation effectively being cut short. I stand up quickly.

“I’ll see you tomorrow,” I say to Remus, starting to walk past James in order to get to my room.

“What’s going on?” James asks, grabbing my upper arm.

I turn around quickly. “What?”

He clenches his jaw, then looks at Remus. “Moony, we need a minute.”

Remus goes to argue, but drops it quickly when he sees James looking more serious than he ever has. He gets up, giving me a sympathetic look before he heads towards the boys’ dorms. I glare at James as he hasn’t let go of my arm yet.

“Why did you do that?”

“Why are you with him again?”

I scoff. “You mean our friend? Did you ever think maybe we were talking?”

“That’s the problem,” he says, dropping my arm.

“How is that a problem? I’m going through something and he’s just trying to help—”

He sighs harshly, looking around like he’s lost. He looks back at me with his brows furrowed.

“I don’t get it,” he says, practically whining. “You never keep things from me, and now you’re telling Moony all of your secrets and ditching me for him and… And I don’t understand it. We’re supposed to be best friends.”

“We are, Jamie, there’s just some things that I can’t—”

“Why not?” he swallows, tears starting to prick his eyes. “Why can’t you tell me? You never do this. We tell each other everything.”

I freeze for a moment, my mouth drying up as I look at him. I want to reach out for him and hold him and make him feel better. But I also want answers, because it’s his fault that everything got screwed up. He didn’t have to reject Lily. He didn’t have to kiss me when we were swimming. He didn’t have to do it again on his bedroom floor. He didn’t have to treat me like I was the most important person in his life.

“Then tell me why you kissed me,” I blurt out.

He shakes his head a little. “I don’t know.”

“Then figure it out! You don’t just get to kiss me and then act like you just did it for no reason.”

His chest heaved from his breathing, staring at me. His cheeks tinged pink again as he took a moment.

“I—I just wanted to. I don’t know. You were there and you were looking at me like that and you just…” he huffed a sigh. “I just wanted to kiss you.”

“Why?” I asked, frustrated.

“Because,” he said back, his tone matching mine. “Because I always want to kiss you and I slipped up and did it one time—”

“You did it twice!”

“Okay! Two times,” he exclaims. “We promised we would just forget about it.”

“And what exactly is that even supposed to mean?”

“You’re so fucking oblivious,” he grumbles, rolling his eyes. “God, what do I have to do to make you understand that I’m—”

I wait as he stops talking. “That you’re what?”

“I’m in love with you. I have been forever, and you’ve never cared,” he says, letting out a shuddering breath. “And now you’re spending all of your time with Remus. And it’s so embarrassing that I’m sat here hopelessly in love with my best friend of over ten years while she’s running around with another one of our friends.”

“Running around with him? We sit in the common room and talk because you’re fucking infuriating!”

“Oh, so you’re gossiping about me?” he asks, voice raising as mine does once again.

“Not gossiping, just—”

“Just what?”

“I’m in love with you, too, you fucking tosser!”

He looks angry for a few moments, then it switches to confusion, then shock, and possibly the five stages of grief before he finally lands on raised brows and an open mouth.

“You what?” he exclaims.

“You’re so annoying,” I say, groaning. “Yeah, Lily had to go and tell me I was in love with you, and she always has to be fucking right about everything, doesn’t she?”

“Are you listening to yourself right now?” he asks incredulously, furrowing his brows. “You just told me you loved me.”

“I’m aware, James,” I say, crossing my arms.

“Well… Did you mean it?”

“Obviously,” I say, shaking my head at him like it was a dumb question.

“You’re so dumb,” he says under his breath.

Before I can say anything else, he’s moving forward, his hands on my cheeks as he crashes his lips into mine. I melt into him, this kiss being way more passionate than the one we shared the night before. I hold onto his waist, letting him deepen the kiss, though it only lasts for a minute or two after that.

He pulls away. “You’re infuriating. Why didn’t you tell me before?”

“You didn’t tell me anything, either!”

“I kissed you twice!”

I roll my eyes. “That doesn’t count. You said we should forget about both times.”

“Only cause I thought that’s what you’d want,” he defends, making an annoyed face.

I try to be angry, but it’s a difficult task. I reach up, running a thumb over his furrowed eyebrows.

“So grumpy,” I mutter. “Just told you I was in love with you. You’d think you’d at least try to be happy.”

He scoffs a laugh, pulling me into a hug, his face buried in my neck.

“I’ve never been happier.”

We hear footsteps coming down a few moments later.

“You owe me ten galleons,” Sirius’s voice says.

I look over James’s shoulder as he keeps holding onto me, not caring that our friends are right there.

“You were betting on us?” I ask.

Sirius nods with a smirk. “And Peter just lost. He thought you’d take until the end of the year to get together. I said it’d be in this term.”

“I didn’t bet,” Remus says from behind Sirius, holding his hands up in surrender with a small smile. “Glad you worked it out, though.”

I smile at them, shaking my head and turning my attention back on James again. He looks at me finally.

“I’m glad, too,” he says quietly. “Think I might’ve combusted if I had to keep pretending I didn’t want you like that.”

“Didn’t do a great job at covering for it, though. Still kissed me twice.”

“You say like you didn’t love it,” he smirks with a wink.

————-> SMUT STARTS HERE. 18+ <-————

James finally pulls away, taking my hand in his.

“Good, now that you’re all out the room, if you’ll excuse us…” he says, pulling me past the boys who all groan in disgust.

I giggle as he practically runs to his room with my hand in his, kissing me the second the door is shut and locked. I smile into the kiss, my arms around his neck. He starts kissing my cheek and jaw after a few minutes.

“Hope you’ve been feeling the tension as much as I have, cause I could probably cum in my pants right now if you asked me to,” he says casually, as if it wouldn’t send a wave of arousal down my body.

“Oh my…” I trail off as he bites at my neck softly. “Are we gonna…?”

He pauses, his eyes wide. “Oh. I probably should’ve asked before I assumed, huh?”

He winces a little at his own excitement, cheeks tinged pink.

“Sorry.”

I smile softly. “That’s okay. I— I want to, I just didn’t know if that’s what the plan was.”

He smiles again brightly, kissing me once more. He giggled against my lips, then starts backing me towards the bed.

“I really do love you. Kind of embarrassing, really. I think I have forever,” he says softly, laying me down on the mattress and crawling over me.

I let out a soft breath. “Embarrassing for me, I think. I didn’t even realize until someone else told me I did.”

He laughs again, starting to kiss down my neck.

“I kind of always wanted you to be my first time, to be honest,” he says against my skin.

I pause, realizing what’s really happening. “Oh. Oh my god.”

“What?” he asks, leaning up to start unbuttoning my shirt.

“Wait, have you never… You haven’t done this either, have you?”

“Not all the way,” he shakes his head, then looks at me with wide eyes. “Is that okay?”

“That’s okay. I haven’t either. Just… You know. I’ve done some hand stuff but that was it.”

He looks at me again, then starts laughing a little. I find myself laughing right back as reality sets in for both of us.

“We’re gonna take each others virginity,” I say, still laughing a little. “Oh my god.”

He snorts a laugh. “Didn’t wake up this morning thinking this would happen, that’s for certain.”

I smile. “I love you.”

“I love you more,” he teases, dropping a kiss on the tip of my nose.

I watch as he finishes taking off my shirt, getting up just enough to help him pull it and my camisole off completely. He sits back on his knees, staring at me for a moment.

“You alright, Jamie?”

He nods. “Doing great, love.”

He starts taking off his own shirt, then. As many times as I’d seen his arms and chest, you’d think I wouldn’t still feel amazed seeing him in just his trousers… But I couldn’t stop staring, either. He leaned back in, kissing me again. I let my hands run over his arms and back, having free reign to do so and enjoying it. He nipped at my lip, a little noise leaving me and making him smile against my lips. I do the same to him, both of us ending up grinning at each other again.

“This is nice,” I say quietly. “Doing this with you, it’s nice. I like that we don’t feel like we have to act… sexy.”

“Well, that because it’s never an act for me, love,” he winks with a smirk.

I pull him back down with a giggle, though the smile is wiped from my face when he rolls his hips into mine. Feeling him hard for me for the first time leaves me a little breathless, especially when he’s grinding into me. I small groan leaves me when he does it again.

“Like it when you do that,” he says into my ear, doing it again just to get another reaction out of me. “I like those little sounds you make. So pretty.”

I find myself breathing heavily, my hands squeezing between our bodies to start unbuckling his belt. He gets the hint and sits up, pulling it off himself.

“Get out of those, yeah?” he says, nodding at my bottoms as he works himself out of his.

I comply immediately, shimmying out of my trousers and tossing them onto the ground. He gets back on top of me as soon as we’re both one layers closer to what we really want. I let my hand slide into his underwear as he stars kissing at my neck again, letting out a shuddering breath when I finally feel him. He whimpers into my neck as I start stroking him, rutting his hips into my hand.

“Feel so good, love,” he says, voice whiny and desperate.

I groan back, especially as one of his hands slides under the band of my panties to slip a finger into me. I feel myself growing hotter, kissing him and swallowing the moans he lets out as my hand keeps working him over.

“Shit, Jamie,” I moan as he adds a second finger.

“Good for you?” he breathes out.

“Yes,” I say breathlessly. “Yes. Very.”

I whine as he gets me closer to the edge, his hips doing all the work as my hand stopped moving up and down his length. He adds pressure to my clit with his thumb, sending me careening over the edge with praises and his name on my lips.

He pulls his hand away from me suddenly.

“Can’t wait any longer, love,” he says, voice wrecked.

He slides my panties off my legs as I take my bra off. Then, I watch with wide eyes as he pulls his underwear off, his cock bigger than I was expecting by far. I knew he felt big, but seeing him was entirely different.

“Fuck,” I say, staring at him. “Don’t know if I can take that, Jamie.”

“Yeah, you can, love,” he nods, settling between my legs and kissing me softly. “You can take it, baby.”

He pushes himself up just enough for both of us to see him rubbing his head through my slick before prodding at my entrance. He starts pushing in slowly. I let out a loud groan, my eyes shutting.

“Shh, just relax, love,” he says, lips hovering over mine. “You’re doing so good. Taking it so well, baby.”

He whimpers against my lips as he keeps pushing in slowly.

“So big, Jamie,” I moan, watching him disappear inside of me.

“I know, baby,” he says, a few more little noises spilling from his mouth. “I know, but you’re being so good. My good girl.”

He bottoms out, both of us panting and holding onto each other as I adjust to the new feeling. It hurts a little, but not in a bad way. Especially when he starts moving. That bit of pain makes way for a lot of pleasure once he starts rocking into me at a steady pace, whining and moaning into my ear.

“S’good, Jamie. You feel so good,” I say, trying to catch my breath.

“So good for me, baby. Squeezing me nice,” he whines, pinning me down under the weight of his body. “Good girl. So proud of you taking me so well.”

“Gonna cum again,” I say, feeling it building in my stomach again.

“Me too, baby. Just a little more,” he says, pressing his face into my neck again. “Don’t want to be done so soon, but you feel so perfect. You’re so good for me.”

I moan at his ramblings of praise, his words only causing me to get closer to that peak again. I hold onto him tightly, my body wrapped around his as he fucks into me like we’d done it a million times before. I speak his name over and over and over again as I crash down, my eyes rolling back from the intensity of the orgasm, and the fact that he doesn’t stop fucking me through it.

Though, near the end of my peak, he moans out a hundred more praises, my name falling from his lips as I feel him fill me up with his cum. He whimpers again against my skin as he finishes, not stopping the movement of his hips until he’s visibility overstimulated.

We breathe heavily, holding onto one another tightly as we come down from our highs, his hair sticking to his forehead as he leans in to kiss me softly again.

“Holy shit,” he whispers. “You’re perfect.”

I breathe out, a small smile on my face. “You… Yeah. Oh my god. I thought the first time was supposed to be bad.”

“It was perfect for me. But I barely lasted, it couldn’t have been that great for you,” he says, looking a little disappointed that he might not have done a good job for me.

I shake my head. “You still made me come harder than I ever have. You were incredible, Jamie. I mean it.”

He smiles softly. “I’m gonna have to kick them out of here more often. I might be addicted now.”

“And we have more things to try,” I add. “Can’t let this happen only once a week or something. Too much to figure out, I think.”

He giggles again. “Like what?”

“I’d really like you in my mouth next time.”

His smile drops. He starts nodding quickly. “Yes. Yeah, I’ll kick them out at two in the morning if you ask. Whatever you want.”

I laugh, pulling him into another kiss.

“Now, we have to figure out that contraceptive spell, or else we might be in some trouble,” I say with a smile.

“Sorry about that,” he smirks, clearly not sorry. “I’m sure Sirius knows it.”

“Please. As if he isn’t fucking Remus whenever those two run off to the shrieking shack.”

James’s eyes widen. “What?”

I snort a laugh.

“And you called me the oblivious one.”

#james potter #james potter x fem!reader #james potter x you #james potter x reader #james potter fluff #james potter smut #james potter fic #james potter fanfiction #best friend!james #bsf!james potter #marauders smut #marauders fluff #marauders fanfiction #marauders fic #marauders x reader #marauders #luna still hates jk #luna’s james fics

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empath-bunny · 6 months ago

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Single Dad!James who trusts with his life that you, bsf!reader, will protect and take care of baby Harry.

Single Dad!James who thinks you staying over to help take care of newborn Harry are sleepovers (he didn’t mature one bit).

Single Dad!James who doesn’t correct people when they think you are Harry’s mum.

Single Dad!James who video calls you whenever toddler Harry accomplishes a small milestone while you are at work.

Single Dad!James who kisses your cheek and Harry’s crown who’s in your arms while passing beside you.

Single Dad!James who doesn’t realise women are flirting with him because he only has eye for his family, Harry and you.

Harry who looks at you like you hung up the stars 🥹

Single Dad!James who suddenly starts getting weird feelings when watching you take care of Harry and do mundane things.

Single Dad!James who apparates (had to Google how to write that fucking word) desperately at wolfstar’s house and cries out to Sirius that he likes you.

Sirius who barks out laughing, saying he doesn’t like you, he loves you.

Single Dad!James who is very vocal and close with his friends so him telling you “I love you” is a regular thing,

Until he meant it differently.

He loved you.

He wants to be with you.

He wants you to be Harry’s mum.

_______

Wrote this at 2:40 AM, so it’s rushed, sorry for any mistakes! Please let me know so I can fix them.

Tomorrow’s my first day back at uni and I wanted to write anything and get it out there, rip the bandaid off. I feel like a pop star bc one post I made got 50 reblogs!!! Like holy shit imagine 50 people in an auditorium listening to me talk shit!!!! Last time that happened I was in the theatre and I forgot the closing word of the play. I improvised, ofc.

So, Dad!james is currently the hot topic on my feed, you all know I’m a hoe for that combo, I had to put in my two cents, I’m totally projecting.

Constructive criticism is well received here! Actually, it is begged for. How am I going to improve if people don’t tell me where I fuck up?

#james potter x reader #James potter x bsf!reader #James potter x you #dad!james potter x reader #dad!james potter x bsf!reader #headlines #fanfic #first whaterever this is #marauders #marauders era #single dad!James potter x reader #I’m tired af

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katsuniverse · 1 year ago

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☀︎☀︎☀︎☀︎☀︎☀︎☀︎☀︎☀︎☀︎☀︎☀︎☀︎☀︎☀︎☀︎☀︎☀︎☀︎☀︎☀︎☀︎☀︎

bestfriend!james (kat’s version)

bestfriend james who you’ve known as long as you’ve known all the other marauders. you’re friends with all of them, knowing all their secrets and pranks and sometimes joining them on full moons w remus because you’re an animagus as well. you were never necessarily close with one of them more than the other until 5th years comes around and “the prank” happens.

remus is giving everyone the silent treatment, sirius has been moping to himself and peter busies himself with chess, too scared to interact with the others and cause further conflict. you and james are left in the middle of wanting to be there for remus (and him closing you out) and trying to get sirius to talk with remus (he’s butthurt and not listening) and are stuck with eachother. you’re now hanging out more and more and getting closer. discovering things about eachother you never had the chance to know.

one day, you and james have the dorm to yourselves and decide the unwind from the stress of your crumbling-friendgroup, by getting just a little bit high off some mary jane. and it wasn’t until you and james were on the floor, verbalizing your physical attraction to each other that you’ve ‘always kept to yourself’, that your sobriety cleared up in hot second. your lips were engraving his to your own and your hands were anywhere but being kept to yourselves.

fwb!james comes along, but he knows already that with you it’s different. he’s attracted to you of course, and he respects you as a friend enough to not treat you as one-night-stand. you tell yourselves it’s just to keep each other company and to relieve tensions until the group gets back together. however, timid glances turn into unbroken eye contact, jokingly shoving hands turn into holding hands and teasing smirks turn into smiles of endearment.

by mid-summer the marauders are back together again and happy and normal as ever. so you and james don’t need eachother anymore, right? you’ll go back to ‘normal’ right?

…right?

(a/n: to my fellow blog writers, is this considered a drabble? i feel like it’s rly specific and idk if i like it. if not, what would this be?)

#katsuniverse #katlovesall #mrskatpotter #moots <3 #james potter #james potter x reader #james potter fanfiction #james potter fluff #marauders x reader #bestfriend!james #bsf!james #fwb!james #marauders

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peri4stral · 11 days ago

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For Sweets

Pairing: Bsf! James Potter x F! Reader

Word count: 9k

Synopsis: You and James have been best friends for ages, but when you go to the potters for Christmas break, certain feelings come to light.

Warnings: MDNI! Mentions of the reader having familial problems, few uses of Y/N, eventual smut, reader is described as shorter than James, porn with a lot of plot, oral (f! receiving), unprotected piv, no pull-out

The pub you and your friends frequent is not far from campus or your flat with Marlene. You two decide to walk despite the chill in the air; Marlene never seems to get cold. A contrast to you, who began to shiver the moment you stepped out of the comfort of your flat. The walk is unexpectedly pleasant despite the cold that nips at your nose. Snow has just begun to fall, clinging to the pavement and dusting your hair when you hear a distant whooping.

Down the street opposite you, you see the familiar faces of Sirius and Remus. You immediately notice the lack of James as you hear Sirius whistle and holler. “Oi, lovelies! Are you not freezing your knickers off?” he yells far too loudly as he approaches.

“My blood runs hot, Sirius, you know that,” Marlene laughs as she runs up to him, giving him what you assume is a bone-crushing hug.

“S’pose I was talking about our lovely Y/N. James would kill me if I let his Sweets freeze!” The sound of the nickname James had given you back in your first year of Hogwarts feels foreign coming from a mouth that isn’t his.

“I’m fine, Pads, don’t you worry about me,” you reply, though your teeth chattering leaves Sirius unconvinced. With a peck on the cheek, he gently plucks the hat off Remus’s head and places it on yours. “There, all better!” Sirius grins, clearly proud of his chivalrous deed before he links your arm with his and continues on your path to the pub.

“I thought James was coming?” Marlene asks, looking back between Sirius and Remus. You’re glad that you weren’t the one to ask. There’s no need to give your friends another opportunity to pick on James and your friendship.

“Monty called him just before we left. James said he’d meet us at the pub,” Sirius shrugs. “He’s probably making sure everything is in order for when we go home.” He squeezes your arm a little tighter.

Before you know it, you find yourself at the familiar table, back to the door as you sit across from Marlene. Sirius is off grabbing some drinks for the table and Remus is setting up a game of billiards.

The leather beneath you is cracked and worn by the patrons over the years, and your fingers trace the stitching of the seat as Marlene gushes about Dorcas.

“I just don’t know, I mean I think she might like me, honest! But what if she’s just being friendly?” Marlene puts her head in her hands, exasperatedly.

“Marls, it doesn’t sound like she’s just being friendly! You said she was being all touchy,” you point out. “Friends aren’t just like that!”

“Well, what about you and James?” Marlene raised her eyebrow. You became aware of the clamminess of your palms. “You’re constantly all over each other!” She sounds more accusatory than you’re prepared to address.

“That’s different!” You assert.

“How is that any different?!” Marlene looks very pleased with herself as your eyes go wide.

“It just is!” You say a little too loud. “James and I have been best friends for years.” Marlene starts to open her mouth to say something, but her eyes focus on something behind you.

Before you have a chance to look, you feel a warmth radiating from behind you as the hat Sirius snatched from Remus for you is pulled over your eyes. “Guess who,” a cheerful voice chimes.

A smile spreads across your face before you move the hat back up your head. “Jamie!” You playfully chide. You stand and wrap your arms around his shoulders, acutely aware of his scent that reminds you so strongly of home.

“Hello, Sweets,” he says, wrapping his arms around your waist. You can feel Marlene’s eyes burning into you before you return to your seat and James takes his next to yours.

“What did Monty want?” Sirius asks as he returns with drinks and beckons Remus back over to your table. He had just finished racking and made his way over.

“Just making sure we’re still coming,” James smiles at the table.

“He worries too much,” Sirius says, taking a swig. Remus leans over the table and takes a bottle.

“Who’s up for billiards?” Remus challenges before the table breaks out in cheers.

The next few hours are spent laughing and drinking with lots of Marlene getting flustered over the game. Despite the stress of upcoming exams, you allow yourself to fully melt into the moment. The atmosphere is something you wouldn't trade for anything: your best friends, full of love and laughter.

A couple groups of students linger towards the end of your night along with a few older patrons you have come to know as regulars. You look up at the clock, noting the time. Not too late, but with your final two exams less than 48 hours away, you figure it’s time to call it a night.

“Oi, pretty lady!” a man calls drunkenly across the pub. “What does a guy gotta do to get a date with you?” He comes up to your table and leans over you. “What d’ya say sweetheart?” James takes a swig of his drink.

“Well, as much as I’d love to, I should actually be getting home,” you explain in the kindest tone you can muster. You begin to stand to walk to Marlene but the man follows your movements. You can smell the alcohol on his breath. “Come on, baby,” he says as you pull on your jacket and try to ignore him. “I don’t bite!”

“Mate, she’s not interested,” Sirius barks across the table. The man is clearly about to say more, but closes his mouth as Remus appears behind Sirius. Remus, despite his gentle nature, is very visually imposing and much taller than the man, who scoffs, and walks away.

“I’m about ready to head out, what about you, Marls?” you ask, trying to ignore the feeling gnawing in your stomach.

“Yeah about that…” Marlene begins. You look at her with wide eyes.

“You’re going to see Dorcas again?” you jeer. “I guess I’ll just have to walk home all alone!” You sigh dramatically.

“You know I’ll always walk you home, Sweets,” James says tenderly as he slips on his jacket. It glides elegantly over his toned arms and you can't help but admire him. “Only if you’d like of course,” he says. You almost think he sounds nervous.

“Yeah, of course. I’d like that,” You say snapping yourself back into the moment.

“Well, Padfoot, Moony, it looks like it’s time for Sweets and I to head out. I’ll see you later?”

“Yeah, don’t have too much fun,” Sirius quips, and Remus elbows him. You try to ignore the comment and instead, turn to Marlene.

“Say ‘hi’ to Dorcas for me,” you say as Marlene gives you her signature bear hug.

You and James slip out the pub door to find the snow still falling. Looking beside you as you start down the road you see the snow gently landing in James’s dark curls. You look at him a moment longer, tracing the lines of his face with your eyes.

“Enjoying the view, Sweets?” James startles you and you avert your gaze immediately.

“I was just thinking,” you begin, now looking at your feet. “Thank you for walking me home,” you look back to see him smiling kindly. He reaches out a bare hand to hold your gloved one; he and Marlene seem to share that kind of warmth.

“You don’t even have to mention it, Sweets. I meant it when I said I’d always walk with you. I enjoy the company,” his tender smile shifts to a cocky smirk. “Besides, you would be oh so bored without me!” You roll your eyes, but you know he’s right.

✫✫✫✮✫✫✫

“Jamie, you can’t walk home in that,” you motion to the window. The snow hasn’t stopped since you walked to the pub hours ago, and the streets are now coated in thick blankets of white while the snow comes down heavier and heavier.

“It’s not very far. I’ll be fine, Sweets,” James says reassuringly, though your years of friendship and the tell-tale tousling of his hair tell you that he is dreading it just as much as you are.

“No, you won’t,” you assert. “You’ll stay the night. It’s not like it’s the first time,” you say without waiting for a response, though you notice the tension melt from his shoulders. You don’t mean to sound bossy, but there’s no way in hell you’ll let your best friend walk out in that weather. “I’ll get some blankets and take the couch.”

“Absolutely not!” He protests. “I’m not kicking you out of your bed!” He steps closer and you take an involuntary step back.

“You're not kicking me out, James, I’m offering,” you tell him.

“Well I’m declining,” he says smugly. Merlin, that smirk.

“James, please,” you say exasperated. Something shifts in James. The smug look is replaced by something softer.

“What if we just both take the bed?” James asks, finally done protesting. Your heart pounds a little harder. It shouldn’t be weird, you and James have been best friends for years. You shared a bed when you were younger, what’s different now?

He is. He’s taller and broader in a way that makes your heart leap into your throat. His boyish charm was replaced long ago with something that makes you dizzy. You’re different. Your desires even more so.

“Fine,” you concede.

“Which side do you want?” James asks as you enter your room.

“This one,” you answer as you walk to your side and begin to turn down the blankets and sheets. James does the same, and you can almost imagine this as the norm. You observe his form clumsily turning down the sheets before he looks up.

“D’you want to have a pillow in between?”

“Only if it would make you more comfortable,” you answer almost too quickly. “I’m gonna brush my teeth,” you say as you grab some clothes to change into and walk to your bathroom. As the tap runs, you wet your brush you begin to zone out. Thoughts of James plague your mind. You imagine what it would be like to crawl into bed with him and fall asleep wrapped around each other like you'd wanted for so long. You know it is a futile thought, James sees you as one of his best friends, nothing more. Why is that not enough for you?

You finish up and pull out an unused brush for James. After slipping out of your jeans and jumper, you put on your shorts and T-shirt. “I left a brush for you on the counter,” you say as you reenter the room.

“Thanks,” he says with a smile. “D’you maybe have a shirt like that I can borrow?” You look down at your baggy T-shirt and feel heat rush to your face.

“Yeah, let me grab one,” you walk to your closet and pick out a shirt that you think will fit. He disappears into the bathroom with the shirt and you slide into bed. When James reappears, you roll to face the door as he strides towards the bed. The shirt did not, in fact, fit. Your eyes trace over his body, from his blue plaid boxers to the bit of toned waist that your Queen shirt doesn’t cover.

“Should I get the light?” he asks before slipping into the bed.

“Yeah, that’d be great,” you say. He fiddles with the switch and as the room goes dark, lays down facing you. Soft moonlight filters in through the blinds as you stare into each other's eyes, inches apart.

“You excited to go back home?” James asks, referencing your trip to his parent's house for Christmas. Home he called it. It had been your haven so many times throughout your years at Hogwarts.

“Of course,” you say, a smile spreading across your face. “I can’t wait for Effie’s cooking, Merlin, I swear there’s nothing better.” James chuckles at your enthusiasm. You just smile at each other for a moment before you yawn.

He matches your yawn. “Y’gave it to me,” he mutters through it. You fight your heavy eyelids but soon enough your eyes fall closed. You listen to James’ breathing as it slowly evens out. You roll over, back facing him, and quickly drift off to sleep.

✫✫✫✮✫✫✫

The early morning light filters through the window. Your eyes just barely flutter open to see the barely risen sun poking over the horizon. It looks cold outside. With that realization, you notice the warmth that surrounds you. You remember the events of last night and recognize James’ arm draped around your waist. The warmth is nice. A stark contrast to the cold you know waits just outside of your blankets. You feel at peace enveloped in James’ arms. You’re too tired to think about it fully.

✫✫✫✮✫✫✫

Your eyes open to the sound of the kettle whistling and a distant mutter. “Shit, shhh,” you hear faintly. You blink the sleep from your eyes and roll over to see the spot where James had slept empty. You're suddenly freezing, remembering the warmth of James wrapped around you.

Pushing that thought to the back of your mind, you pull on your pink fuzzy socks and a jumper. You leave the shorts you slept in on and step out of your bedroom door. Marlene’s is still closed and you hear careful clattering of dishes from the kitchen.

As you walk down the hall, James comes into view with a tea towel slung over his shoulder as he stands in front of your hob. The floor creaks beneath your feet as you approach and James turns, his curls bouncing as he does.

“What’re you making?” You ask noticing him still in your too-short shirt from the night before.

“Bangers and mash,” he says with a shrug.

“For breakfast?” You cock an eyebrow.

“You really need to go shopping,” he replies smoothly. “It’s what I could make with what you’ve got.”

“I didn’t even realise we had enough for that. Marls was s’posed to go days ago,” you walk into the cramped kitchen and observe the two mugs laid out on the counter. “For me?” You ask.

“Yeah, I figured this was the least I could do to repay you for letting me stay,” James says, motioning to the meal he’s cooking.

“Jamie, you really didn’t have to do all this,” you say grabbing your mug. “It wasn’t a problem,” you insist.

“Well still, felt like doing something nice,” he smiles sweetly.

“You’ll be giving your mum a run for her money with the way it smells,” you say as you sit in your dining area and watch James finish. “Plates are up —” he already knows where they are as he reaches into your cupboard and pulls out two.

“Is Marlene home?” He asks. You peek around the corner and see her door closed.

“Think so. I wouldn’t count on her being up in time for breakfast though,” you say with a fond smile. James chuckles and sets a plate down in front of you. He places his own across from yours and sits.

“What’s that?” James asks pointing to the comically tall stack of books and loose papers.

“Why’d you have to remind me,” you groan. “I really should be studying for my last final exams.” With elbows on the table, you place your head in your hands and massage your temples. You were stressed. You tried to deny it to enjoy your time with your friends but eventually, reality always creeps back in. You were stressed.

“I could help if you wanted,” James offered. “If you’d rather study alone I understand. I’d be shocked, of course, I mean, I’m a great study partner but, if you’d rather be boring-”

“James,” you cut him off. You imagine he could ramble on and on if you let him. The cocky smile drops from his face slowly. “I’d love for you to help me.”

The smile quickly reappears, this time with a softer undertone.

The two of you pick at the food James made slowly, plates being pushed farther and farther across the table as books consume the space in front of you. James was right. He is an excellent study partner. Though when you weren’t busy studying the pages in front of you, you were studying his features; sharp yet gentle in the same way he is.

Everyone knew James was a troublemaker, back in Hogwarts and still today. Not everyone knew that James is one of the smartest people you’ve ever met. He easily picks up any challenge thrown at him and promptly masters it. Yet somehow, he doesn’t let it get to his head… too much.

✫✫✫✮✫✫✫

Hours of flashcards and practice quizzes later, you’re wrapping up, much more confident than you were before when Marlene finally emerges from her room. It’s well past noon, but this is typical for Marls. If she doesn’t have to be up, she won’t be. What’s not typical for Marlene, is Dorcas following after her in a skirt clearly from last night, and one of Marlene’s jumpers.

You’re closing your final textbook when James shoots you a look as Marlene guides Dorcas to the door with a hand on the small of her back. They’re giggling about something as they put on their shoes and you raise your eyebrows at Marlene. She returns the look and walks outside with Dorcas.

The door closes and in a second you and James are at the peephole fighting to see. His height gives him the advantage. “Shhh!” he flails his hands motioning to be quiet and you give up fighting him.

“What are they doing?” You whisper-shout.

“They’re just talking,” James says, face still pressed against the door. “They’re smiling. Wait, they’re laughing.” Not being able to watch drives you crazy.

“Jamie, please just let me see!” You whine.

“Just wait, Sweets,” he says calmly. Oh, wait, hold on. " It’s silent for a few seconds. “Merlin,” James says, breaking the silence as he pulls away from the door. She actually did it.”

“What!?” You push James away from the door finally and take a look for yourself. Marlene’s hands are on either side of Dorcas’s face as you watch years of pining all pay off. “Blimey! She actually did it!” You echo James. You look away after Dorcas rests her hands on Marlene’s hips. You and James look at each other, mouths agape, dumbfounded.

The doorknob rattles a bit, and you and James scramble back to the table, trying to look as nonchalant as possible. Marlene closes the door, smiling. She takes off her shoes and looks up at the pair of you. “You guys can stop pretending y’know. I heard you against the door,” she shrugs.

✫✫✫✮✫✫✫

Euphemia Potter opens the door with a wide grin that matches her son’s and wastes no time pulling him into a crushing hug. This type of aggressive affection seems to run in the family. The house smells of incense and vanilla; Effie must have been baking. James goes to Fleamont next, Effie takes hold of Sirius, and finally you.

“How are you, my dear?” She asks warmly. “I trust James had been behaving himself?” She gives a sly smile and heat rushes to your face.

“Of course, Mrs. Potter. Jamie is always a gentleman,” your eyes glide to James, who is facing you from across the foyer when he sends a wink your way.

“Let me take your bags, dear,” Fleamont offers. You smile and hand your things over.

“Thank you, Mr. Potter,” you say.

“Oh, don’t bother with the formalities, dear,” Fleamont chuckles. “You’ve been around enough you could be our daughter.” You feel that warmth in your chest that the Potter’s always bring out.

“Why does she get her bags carried?” Sirius whines.

✫✫✫✮✫✫✫

“Now that you’re home, I hope you’d all like to help with the tree!” Euphemia’s eyes gleamed as you sat around the mahogany table. A table that has seen countless meals with the Potters and honorary Potters. A table that is worn with years of stubbed toes and bumped hips. With memories.

“Oh, Euphemia. Trust that this will be the best-dressed tree you’ve ever seen,” Sirius says, dramatically planting his fingertips against the wood.

As serving plates fly around the table and conversation blooms, you can’t help but feel a certain bitter-sweet bliss. The warm and inviting environment of the Potters is something you wouldn’t trade for the world, but that lack of warmth in your family tends to make the holidays hard.

James catches your eye. “You okay?” He says across the table as the elder Potters and Sirius engage in some talk of him and Remus.

“Yeah,” you say. “I’m just glad to be home,” you flash a grateful smile and James returns it with his upside-down smirk.

✫✫✫✮✫✫✫

The boxes fly around the room, organising themselves on the ground as James and Fleamont carry the questionably tall fir through the halls. Sirius immediately goes to open the ornaments, his eyes reflecting the glimmer of the baubles. You open the box of lights to test if they still work. They don’t, of course, not completely. You run the strand through your hands, searching to find a visible problem.

The problem, it seems, is a single shattered bulb. You unplug the lights and reach onto the table where your wand was left. “Illuminatis,” you pronounce. Your wand produces a faint yellow light as the pieces seem to reassemble. You lean across the shag rug and plug the lights back in.

“Always knew you were the smart one, Sweets,” James says, standing in Sirius’ way, as the lights illuminate the room, eyes locked onto you. You roll the lights into a ball.

“Glad you finally caught on, Jamie,” you call back, walking the lights to the tree. You see in your periphery Sirius fake gagging and James giving him a firm clap on the back. You feel the heat rush to your face again. Effie helps you string the lights up. The scent of pine envelops you as you pass the string of lights between yourself and Effie, slowly working your way up the tree. You struggle on your tiptoes, attempting to reach the top with needles poking everywhere when James appears behind you, plucking the ball of lights from your hands.

“Here, love,” he strings up the last of the lights.

“I’ll start with the tinsel!” Sirius cries out, nearly toppling over an armchair in the process. He removes the tinsel draped around his neck in a makeshift scarf and pushes you and James away from the tree. “Everyone stand back,” he spreads his arms wide. “Let me work my magic.”

You slump onto the sofa, James beside you, arm casually slung around your shoulders and you find yourself appreciating the domestic feel of it all. Watching Sirius meticulously place his tinsel while leaning into James’s embrace. You could get used to it.

“Oi, when will you let us take a turn?” James complained as Sirius moved on from the tinsel to the ornaments.

“I have more of an eye for this, Prongs, we know this,” Sirius mumbles while placing a golden bauble. Euphemia hurries into the room with a platter of ginger snap cookies. James lunges towards them before she sets them down and even Sirius takes a break from his precise decorating to snag a cookie.

James sits huddled over the cookies when Fleamont and Euphemia sit on the other end of the sofa, Monty’s arm around Effie’s shoulder. Your stomach flutters at the thought of you and James growing up to be them before the reality of your friendship twists in your heart. You barely notice Sirius’ spectacle of placing his final ornament.

“Monty d’you want to place the star?” Sirius asks.

“You kids do it this year, Monty smiles affectionately at Sirius and you, James still hunched over the ginger snaps.

“M’lady,” Sirius bows as he hands you the star. “Would you Like to do the honours?”

“Y’know you can be such a gentleman when you try,” you say with a smile. You take the star from his hands and walk to the tree. As you approach, you realize again just how tall the tree is. You step up on your toes again, stretching your arms as high as they can reach, just barely unable to reach it. You feel James’s presence behind you and his hands on your waist. Your hands instinctively go to push him away, a flush of embarrassment washing over you. “I could just use a stool, Jamie,” you protest.

“But I’m right here,” he says, his breath warm against your ear. “And the stool is all the way over there. Just trust me, Sweets.” you move your hands away and reach up with the star again. He only lifts you a few centimetres, an honestly unnecessary gesture, but James has always been good at being close to you. Just enough to make your heart skip.

When James sets you down, you both step back to admire the tree. “You do have an eye for it, Sirius,” you say, sitting back on the sofa. James follows you like a shadow, snagging another cookie before sitting next to you.

You all sit for a long while, basking in the light of the tree and the warmth of the fire. Effie goes to bed first. Monty sticks around awhile, telling stories of his Hogwarts days, before eventually joining his wife.

“Well, I think it’s time for me to surrender to sleep,” Sirius yawns. “You coming, Prongs?”

“Sounds good to me,” James says, catching Sirius’ yawn. “G’night, Sweets,” James says.

“Night, boys, I think I’ll stay a little while, ” you say as they begin to walk to their rooms. You hear Sirius’ footsteps start up the stairs, then, James’s footsteps padding across the hardwood floor. He grabs another cookie.

“My before-bed cookie,” he explains with a wink. He follows after Sirius and you giggle a bit to yourself before you’re interrupted by your own yawn. You fall asleep in the light of the tree.

✫✫✫✮✫✫✫

You wake up to the sound of footsteps pattering in the kitchen. You don’t remember grabbing a blanket, but you throw the one covering you off and make your way to the kitchen. You see James standing in front of the sink, in nothing but his plaid, red pyjama pants, filling a tall glass of water.

James turns around, adjusting his glasses to focus on you as you enter in your shorts and tank top. “What’re you doing up?” James whispers.

“I heard you in the kitchen,” you whisper back. “I was on the couch.”

“I know, I gave you a blanket,” James shrugs. “I didn’t want you to get cold,” “Well, there's the fire too,” you quietly say back.

“I know, I put another log on it,” he steps towards you. “I really didn’t want you to get cold.” You couldn’t help but grin at the man standing before you. It’s so easy to love him. Even when you try not to, you love him. “Why’d you fall asleep on the couch?” James’s grin turns into a face of genuine curiosity.

“I just wanted to be in front of the tree…” you admit. “My family’s never been the type y’know. I just love you all so much, ‘n it makes me so happy to spend the holidays with you,” your nose stings with tears threatening to form.

“Sweets, I-” James starts. “We love you too.” Heat flushes your face with words left unspoken. You take a step forward without registering it, and he follows suit. “Do you want to talk more about it?” Another step.

The moonlight filters through the window across the kitchen. He looks so beautiful. You think to yourself as you take another step forward.

She looks so beautiful. James’s mind flashes with thoughts he shouldn’t have of his best friend. He takes a sip of his water and takes another step.

You take a step closer and by the time he sets his water down, you’re practically chest to chest. The moonlight reflects off of his glasses. You look past them into his eyes, trying to decipher them. The same innocent look in his eyes that you always saw in moments like this shifts to a look you’ve not seen before; a certain darkness to his hazel eyes.

His brows furrow in what looks like some internal turmoil before every muscle in his face relaxes. You take a step closer and James opens his eyes, looking between your eyes and lips. He lifts a tentative hand to your face, brushing a thumb along your cheek. You tilt your chin up at him, rising to your toes ever so slightly. He lowers his face. You can feel his warm breath against your face.

His breath hitches in his throat, as you lean closer together. It’s so quiet out. The soft fresh snow outside muffles any sound surrounding the house. All that you can hear is the thumping of your heart against your ribs, and every thought in your head screaming at you to kiss him. James bends down before you can debate it any further.

He presses his lips to yours cautiously, almost scared. Every voice in your head stops at once, leaving only the feeling of his lips on yours. While he holds your face in either hand, you wrap your arms around his neck, deepening the kiss. You tug on his curls slightly, earning a deep moan against your mouth. He presses his forehead against yours. “Fuck,” he whispers. “You don’t know how long I've wanted that,” he smiles giddily, his glasses crooked.

“Jamie,” You breathe. That’s all it takes for him to be back on you. With lips anchored to your own and a hand tangled in your hair, his other hand trails down your body. From gently tracing your jaw he slides his hand down your neck, fingers brushing against your collarbone.

His hands find the crook of your back, massaging gentle circles into your skin. You bring your hands to his shirtless waist, scratching along his sides, feeling his toned abs and the heat of his skin. You shiver at his movement around your waistband. You feel his hand move to the fabric of your red thong. He runs his fingers under your waistband, just to feel you squirm.

“Jamie, stop teasing!” You whine. He only smiles against your lips before he moves his grip from your waist to your hips. He grips your ass and lifts you in the air, wrapping your legs around his waist. He sets you on the island countertop, the cool marble of the counter stings against your ass.

Your hand which was wrapped around his neck, instinctively reaches for his hair, tugging at a handful of curls. He pulls away and throws his head back with a groan. James has wanted this for so long. He has thought of this moment a million times in a million different ways. Never before did he think it would feel this good. He rubs circles onto your hips with his thumbs while moving his lips to your neck.

“You taste so sweet,” he breathes against your skin. You tilt your head to the side and let out a breathy moan. You pull him closer with your legs, craving some form of relief from the heat rising through your body. You feel him smile against your neck. “Have some patience, Sweets. We have all the time in the world now.”

You scratch your nails down his back while your face is buried in his hair. You gently move his face to meet yours and pluck his glasses off. You turn to set them on the counter and when you turn back to face him, you kiss him again. Slower, more innocently.

The innocence is soon gone when you run your hands down his chest, stroking your nails down his abs, resting on his waistband. He looks down at you, eyes dark. “James,” you whisper.

He’s on you in an instant. His tongue licks along your bottom lip, waiting for an entrance, which you gladly oblige. Your core presses against him, with nothing but the thin fabric of your shorts separating you.

James and you are so involved with each other, that you don’t even hear Sirius enter. Sirius walks around the corner of the kitchen rubbing his eyes groggily, not noticing the sight before him. He reaches into the cupboard, grabs a tall glass, and turns on the sink. It's not until his water is almost full that he hears it. Lips on lips and heavy breathing.

He turns around slowly, water still flowing. He wipes a stray hair out of his face to clear his vision. A vision of James and you, snogging on the kitchen counter. His water is overflowing now, he stares in shock, James finally fucking did it. Sirius had been telling James for months now to make a move. And he finally did. Sirius stops the sink, takes a sip of water, and walks back upstairs, a proud smile gracing his features.

You open your eyes, from the creak of a nearby floorboard. You pull apart from James, looking around for the source of the noise. “Is Sirius up?” you ask James.

“No, he was dead asleep when I came down.”

“Wonderful,” you smile blissfully and return your lips to his. You tug at the hair at the nape of his neck, earning another deep groan from his throat.

“Fuck, Sweets,” he moans. “D’you even know what you do to me?” You giggle slightly, looking up at him with wide eyes as he stares blankly. “You don’t do you?” You go silent. “I’ve wanted this for so long, Sweets. Wanted you for so long,” James holds your jaw in his hand, ensuring you’re looking at him and only him.

“Why didn’t you say anything, James?” You ask while lost in the intensity of his eyes.

“Guess I was scared. I didn’t want to ruin what we have,” James looks almost shy. “I care about you too much, Y/N.”

“What changed?” you ask. “Why now?”

“It was killing me, Sweets. Watching you talk about other guys, the idea of you move on without me. I couldn't let that happen without giving it a shot.” your tears threaten to spill, but you keep yourself collected.

You reach your hand to his face. “I’m glad you did,” you stroke your thumb across his cheek and lean in, tentatively brushing your lips against his. You close the space between you, nipping at his lip.

You feel his hands wrap around the backs of your thighs and lift you off the small counter. You cling to James’s shoulders as he carries you, giggling into the crook of his neck. Your breath tickles his skin. His hands feel warm against your marble-cooled ass as he walks you over to the mahogany dining table.

He sits you down at the head on the large table, talking care to be quiet. He presses between your legs and lifts one from behind the knee to get closer to you. He slowly lays you on the table, still holding your leg up.

You begin to roll your hips slightly against his bulge, seeking relief. James groans, throwing his head back and you pull his face back down to yours. “James, I need you,” you breathe heavily. James responds with nothing but a smirk.

He kisses you again, quickly this time, before moving to your neck, leaving clumsy dark marks in his wake. He makes quick work of your shirt, playing with the hem a bit as he looks back into your eyes. “Is this okay?” He asks.

“Yes,” you say breathlessly. “Jamie, please,” you beg. He begins lifting your shirt off your chest while you sit up a bit to make it easier. You lay back down, chest exposed to your best friend, who pulls away enough to take in the sight of you. You reach up to feel his arms planted on either side of your head. You feel heat rush through your body as he stares at you with a piercing intensity.

“Merlin, you’re so beautiful,” he says, knowing words can’t convey the intensity of his emotions. He lowers himself back to your neck, where he begins placing urgent kisses. His lips graze against the sensitive skin behind your ear, his warm breath tickling your skin. He slowly trails his lips down your body, leaving darkened marks behind across your neck and chest. He inches closer and closer to where you need him most.

He’s kneeling on the hardwood floor, head level with your cunt when he looks up at you with a ravenous look in his eyes. He loves seeing you like this. “Do you want this?” James says hooking his fingers beneath the waistband of your shorts.

“Yes,” you whine. Your shorts bunch up as he pulls them off along with your thong and tosses them away from you. James raises his gaze to your eyes with a sultry look in his. He hooks his arms under your thighs, spreading your legs open wide. He sucks and nips at your inner thigh, darkened marks left behind to prove he was there. He kisses closer and closer to your heat causing your back to arch slightly.

After what feels like an eternity, James dives in. He dips into you, licking a stripe through your folds. You let out a carnal moan and James runs a hand up your thigh, to your stomach. “I want to hear you, Sweets, believe me, but we’re in my parents’ dining room,” James says, savouring your taste.

He slides his tongue through your cunt again. “You taste so sweet, love,” his voice reverberates through your pussy, sending shivers down your spine. He flicks his tongue across your clit repeatedly, arms hooked securely under your thighs.

“You’re soaked,” he admires. He licks through you again, now pumping his fingers into you. You arch your back, a moan ripping through you that you try to muffle, hands tugging on his dark curls. His long fingers curl inside you, hitting exactly the right spot while his tongue ravishes you.

He swirls and flicks his tongue around your sensitive bead, fucking you with his fingers all the while. Erotic curses and stifled moans slip past your lips. With every tug on his hair from your desperate hands, James would moan, sending vibrations through your core. The knot in your stomach that you'd only ever dreamt of James Potter tying, began to tighten.

“Jamie,” you hiss.

“Hmm?” He moaned into your cunt. The knot tightens.

“James!” You cry out. He pulls away immediately. The climax that was just about to wash over you, drifting away.

“Sweets, are you okay?” He looks at you concerned. You brush some of his sweat-stuck hair off of his forehead, smile, and nod.

“I need more of you, James,” you plead. James licks his lips and tastes you again, savouring every drop.

“Are you sure, Sweets? If you’re not sure then-”

“Jamie,” you interrupt. “I want you to fuck me.”

James stands and wraps your legs around his waist, then your arms around his neck as he lifts you off the table all in a smooth motion. You giggle as James walks you to the staircase, hikes you up a bit, and carries you up the stairs. He walks past the door to his room, with Sirius’ beside it, down the hall a bit to your room.

He playfully but still gently tosses you onto your bed. While he turns around to close your door, you inch up to the pillows, not-so-patiently waiting for him to return to you. When he turns back to face you, his cock twitches in his pants. He’s sure he must be drooling at the sight before him. He removes his pyjamas and boxers at once, thick length finally freed.

He strides across the room to you, placing himself between your legs, he rushes to kiss you again. Frantic, sloppy kisses are all over your neck and chest when he positions himself at your entrance. He looks into your eyes again, waiting for confirmation. You eagerly nod your head. He slides the tip of his cock through your slick, brushing against your clit, sending a wave of pleasure through your body.

He pushes his cock into you gently at first, stopping before halfway, giving you time to adjust to him. His eyes are on you, checking for any signs of discomfort. You nod again, wanting him to keep going. He pulls out a bit and sinks back into you. He does this a couple of times before bottoming out with a groan.

He pulls out and buries himself into you, eyes locked on yours. His hands steadying himself on either side of your body. He’s so gentle, almost irritatingly gentle. He pumps slowly in and out of you, every whimper or whine you release is encouragement for him. He begins to push in deeper and faster, interlocking your fingers with his and pressing your hands into the bed. You grip his muscular arm with your other hand, nails digging into his skin to leave marks.

He takes your leg, lifting it to get a better angle as he pounds into you. The new angle makes your thoughts blur and a wave of pleasure washes over you. “James, ohh fuck!” You cry out. He pulls all the way out, leaving you gasping and clenching around nothing. The sight drives him wild.

He grabs your ankles, placing one on each shoulder. He strokes himself a couple of times and lines himself up at your cunt. He sinks back into you, his brows furrowed in pleasure. With your legs over his shoulders, his cock hits exactly the right place deep inside you with each thrust. You’re completely at his mercy as he pounds into you relentlessly. You feel your orgasm approaching when James slides out again.

He deftly flips you around so you’re lying on your stomach and he pulls you backwards onto your knees. He leans over your back, kisses your neck and shoulders, and then sits back on his heels.

He presses a few kisses to your lower back while gripping and squeezing your ass. You look over your shoulder and see James, beautiful as ever, glowing with a sheen of sweat and lust. Your admiration is interrupted by his sudden thrust into you. A guttural moan tears through you.

James continues gripping your hips, pounding into you at a merciless pace, fucking you dumb. He only slows to fuck you deeper. You arch your back and James moves his hands onto your ass, gripping and moving you against him. Unintelligible curses and moans flow freely from your mouth, emboldening his movements.

He reaches his arms around your body, lifting gently until your back is flat against his chest. His lips move to your neck, one of his hands to your hip, and his other to your tits. He’s so close to you. In every way someone can be close. You’ve never felt such bliss.

His hand snakes around your waist, moving to your clit, rubbing urgent circles on your sensitive bead. “J-James! ‘m so close,” you falter with each slam of his hips.

“Fuck,” he moans. “Say it again,” he says with each thrust.

“James! ‘M gonna cum,” you cry out his name again. He pushes your chest back to the bed, joining you as he presses his body against your back.

“You’re gonna make me cum, screaming m’name like that,” he thrusts deeper somehow. His lips return to your neck and his fingers to your clit.

“James, I w-want you to cum inside. I want all of you,” you say between moans. He groans against your neck and pushes your legs a little wider with his knees. He continues the abuse on your clit as his pace grows sloppy. His cock repeatedly hits the perfect place inside you.

You’re close and you both know it. James fucks you until you’re in pure ecstasy. The wave of your orgasm crashes into you, washing away everything but James.

James pumps into you a few more times, slower but harder and deeper. You feel his warm cum release inside you. He slows his pace and stops, his chest still pressed over your back. He kisses up your neck to your ear.

“You okay?” He whispers. You nod in response. “I’ll be right back, love,” he presses a kiss to your cheek and gently pulls out of your pussy, your combined fluids leaking out onto your leg. You hear the door open and close. In a blissful haze, you lay down on your side, and shiver at the sudden cold air against your body. The door opens and closes again. There’s a weight on the bed, a kiss on your cheek, and a sudden tickle of a washcloth on your legs.

James cleans you up and peppers kisses all over your body. He helps you under the blanket and joins you, of course. Your back is leaned against his chest and his hand snakes around your waist, rubbing gentle circles into your skin. “Are you sure you’re okay, Sweets?” He asks again. You turn around in his arms so you’re face to-face with him.

“I’m really good, Jamie,” you smile at him, moonlight barely illuminating his features. Your hand reaches to his cheek. You press your lips to his softly but passionately and smile into the kiss. You pull apart and cling to his shoulders like he was keeping you alive and he pulls you tighter against him. You drift into a comfortable sleep wrapped in his arms.

✫✫✫✮✫✫✫

You roll over to get the sun out of your eyes when you smell him. A homey cinnamon scent. “Jamie?” You say groggily, eyes not yet fully focused. When they focus, you see an indent in the pillows and sheets where James had been. You extend your arm and hope to feel some warmth you’d hoped he’d left behind. Instead, it’s cold.

You wonder what time it is, so you look at the clock on your nightstand. One of James’s T-shirts sits folded on top of the clock, covering the time. You sit up and lift the shirt off the clock, revealing a pair of his trunks and a note. For Sweets. The note read. You dress yourself in James’s clothes and a pair of trackies. You walk down the hall and to the stairs.

Monty and Effie sit at the dining room table. “Do you want this?” James says hooking his fingers beneath the waistband of your shorts. You remember James's words from the mahogany table the night before.

James and Sirius sit on the couch, watching the telly. Worried about if or how James wanted to go about telling your friends what happened, you sit politely next to James with a respectable amount of distance between you. You look at the boys and see James frowning slightly. He wraps his hands around your waist and pulls you toward him, draping his arm around your shoulders. You lean into his embrace, no longer worried.

Sirius clears his throat. “Finally!” He covers his jab with a cough.

“Oi, I did it, didn’t I?” James rebuts.

“Only after I begged you to stop moping and make a move!” Sirius cries out. You can’t help but smile at the bickering of two of your favourite people. They continue back and forth for a while when the doorbell rings. They don’t stop bickering.

You hop off the couch and hurry to the door, where you see Marlene standing out in the snow. You pull the door open and erupt into your ecstatic greetings. That was one of the best things about practically living with the Potters, Marlene's parents’ place is only two doors down.

“Happy Christmas Eve!” You yell together. “How have you been, darling? Has something happened?” She asks eyeing you.

“W-what do you mean, Marls?”

“Well, I mean…” She tugs at the waistband of James’s boxers poking above your trackies and the sleeve of his large shirt.

“Right…” Heat rushes to your face. Marlene looks at you with an inquisitive smile on her face. “We slept together, is all,” you shrug trying to remain nonchalant despite the butterflies in your stomach when you think of last night.

“Darling, you shagged the man you’ve loved the entire time I’ve known you!” She almost shouts. You rush to shush her, not wanting the whole house to hear Marlene’s theories.

“I don’t love him, Marls,” you insist. “I mean I do, but I’m not ‘in love’ with him!” The look on her face is incredulous. Marlene’s eyes flash behind you.

“Speak of the devil!” Marlene goes to embrace James.

“Only bad things I hope,” James stands behind you, hand snaking around your waist. “You should say ‘hi’ to Mum and Dad,” James tells Marlene with a hand stroking along your arm. She narrows her eyes but goes to greet the Potters anyway.

Once she is down the hall, James’s lips are on your neck. He wraps his arms around your waist and pulls you close to him.

“Jamie?” You ask, turning in his arms to face him. “What are you doing?”

“What do you mean, love?” He brushes some hair out of your face.

“Us? I mean, what are we doing, James?” You’re looking into his big hazel eyes and suddenly the smile on his face drops.

“Well, I thought… That y’know,” his usual confidence seems shattered. “We’ve been circling each other for so long, I just thought maybe it was time.”

“James,” you say seriously.

“Yeah?” He looks like a deer in the headlights.

“I think it’s time too,” you reach your hand to his face and tenderly kiss his lips.

✫✫✫✮✫✫✫

You take off your trackies and James’s shirt, leaving you in only his boxers. He turns down the comforters and climbs into bed, with a spot for you already carved out. You climb in and face him. Your breasts are pressed to his chest and you feel his gentle breath on your face. You fall asleep listening to the sound of James’s even breaths in his arms again.

✫✫✫✮✫✫✫

Christmas morning comes with a gentle light through the curtains waking you slowly and softly. The warmth of James next to you creates a perfect cocoon of bliss. Your eyes flutter open and when your vision unblurs, you see James, lying peacefully asleep.

You roll over and start to sit up when James’s arm finds your waist. His muscular arm effortlessly pulls you back to him. “Mmm, five more minutes, Sweets?” he mumbles. You roll back to face him and play with his hair mindlessly while admiring his features.

When you both decide to get up and go downstairs, it’s been much longer than five minutes. The sun had already risen despite the clouds that darkened the sky. You trample down the stairs hearing the commotion of the elder Potters and Sirius.

“The lovebirds are finally awake!” Sirius yells when you trample down the stairs. Euphemia squeezes Fleamont’s hand, sharing a knowing look.

“What time is it?” James asks.

“Past 9, Prongs. It’s well past time for gifts!” Sirius exclaims, shoving a box in James’s arms as he sits down. He places a box gently in your arms, he always has a soft spot for you. “Now which ones are mine?” He rubs his hands together mischievously.

“Sirius, grab that one with the candy canes,” you say pointing to a gift beneath the tree. “It’s yours.” James hands a gift to each of his parents, and you all begin to unwrap.

Sirius opens his with a gasp. “You got me Bowie?!” He squawks, holding his newest album, ‘Let’s Dance’. “You are so lovely, y’know that?” He leans over holding your shoulders. You shrug and smile with the satisfaction of a gift well-gifted.

The morning ends with a mountain of gift wrap on the floor and smiles all around. You gather your gifts and walk upstairs. You open your door to find James already sitting out your bed, with a small box laid in his lap.

“I have one last thing for you, Sweets,” James reaches out to hand you the box, which you take as you sit next to him.

“Jamie, you didn’t have to do that,” you playfully scold.

“I know, but I really wanted to,” he says with a wink. You open the box to reveal a small charm bracelet. Not only any charms but miniature candies. Sweets. You hold the bracelet in the light, admiring each charm.

“Oh, Jamie!” You wrap your arms around his shoulders. “The sweets! I love it! Do you think you could put it on for me?”

“Of course, Sweets.” You stick your wrist out and he clips it shut, his thumb tracing small circles on your skin. You admire each charm decorating your wrist.

“Merlin! Are these little lemon drops?” Your mouth is agape. They’ve always been your favourite, since back in Hogwarts. The little yellow pearls that earned you your nickname.

“Yeah, of course! It wouldn’t be a bracelet for my Sweets without lemon drops,” he says with a genuine tone. You breathe out a laugh. “What’s so funny?” He asks.

“‘Your Sweets’” you quote. “I’ve just wanted this for so long, it doesn’t even feel real,” you shrug.

“It’s real, Sweets,” he reassures. “It’s never been so real,” he takes your hand in his. And you raise your other to his cheek, bracelet charms jingling with your movement. You meet each other's lips, savouring each moment. “Happy Christmas, Sweets.”

“Happy Christmas, Jamie,” you smile against his lips.

dividers by: @enchanthings

#james potter x reader #marauders fanfiction #harry potter #x reader #james potter #background wolfstar #background dorlene

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prongsiepotter · 9 months ago

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sunbathing by the black lake | j. potter

summary: your childhood best friend james is being a little shit but in an endearing sort of way while showing his little acts of love

pairing: james potter x childhood bsf!reader

a/n: my first time writing on this blog!! i have a childhood friends to lovers playlist on spotify if anyone wants to listen to it bc i have a feeling it’s all i’ll write abt lol would really appreciate some feedback! enjoy x

──────── 𑁍︎ ‧₊°

There's no way to explain how the energy shifts when James is around. It simply does. Just like how you can feel the sun beating down on you right now. Hence, you can sense his approach without as much as a glance at him, your gaze continuing to drift across the notes Remus left for you in the margins of your essay.

James knows that, of course, as he strides across the grass towards you. You have never really talked about it, but seeing how he can also just tell when you're about to enter a room he's in, you both have made it a habit to not announce your presence. There's just no need.

So when he plops down next to you and rests his chin on your shoulder like it's his birthright, neither of you is surprised. In fact, it’s just right. Like puzzles slotting in perfectly.

For a few minutes, the world consists of birds chirping, a warm breeze, and the distant laughter of a group of Hufflepuff girls sitting a few paces away. You flip the page and let out a huff of laughter. James chuckles, his voice low and right next to your ear as he says, "Wouldn't be Moony if everything he touches didn't have a chocolate stain on it."

"It's like he's marking his territory." You try to rub it off with your sleeve, but the smudge only gets bigger. You squint and hold the paper in front of you, trying to discern if it's that noticeable (it is) but with a shrug you decide you couldn't care less. The movement makes James' glasses slide down to the tip of his nose, and he leans forward to make a dramatic face at you as if you had done him deeply wrong. With a playful eye-roll, you push them back for him and get a signature James Potter smile in return.

"Cheers, love." He beams at you and retrieves a balled-up napkin from the inside of his robe before taking it off. You watch him roll up the sleeves of his white Oxford shirt to his elbows, placing the mystery napkin on your lap. You glance at it curiously. "Unwrap it," he says. "It's for you."

Doing as you're told, you perk up with excitement when the content reveals itself. "Effie sent them?" You hold up the mangled piece of apple crumble like it's the most sacred thing you have ever gotten to hold, which it is. James nods, smiling at your happy dance. "I love her apple crumbles. Thank you!"

"You love everything my mum bakes," he says while lying down on his side, right in front of you with his head propped up on his palm. There's a glimmer in his amber eyes.

You give him a pointed look.

"Because everything that lovely woman bakes is the most scrumptious and amazing thing to exist." You take a big bite from the apple crumble to prove your point and your eyes flutter close as you hum. "This is why we're friends, Potter," you say with a mouthful. "No other reason. This is it."

"Oh yeah?" You hear the amusement in the drawl of his voice. Then he cups the side of your face and you look down at him as he distractedly brushes off some crumbs from the corner of your mouth. He looks up at the sky. "That's a shame because this is the last time you will get anything my mum has baked."

James' gaze is still turned upward, giving the sky his utmost interest as if to check if it's still blue. You stare at him in bewilderment. "Are you insane? Why would you deprive me of Effie's food?"

"I wonder how the weather will be tomorrow," he responds flippantly, and you swear your eye twitches.

"Oh, I'm sorry," you say, narrowing your eyes at him. "I forgot you were satan's spawn."

James does not react. You don’t think he will even reply with the way how he’s squinting and examining the very much non-existent clouds in the clear sky. But then he looks at you like you had asked him to solemnly share his meteorology findings with you, and with undeserved earnestness he tells you, "I think tomorrow will be just as sunny as today."

You blink at him. Then give a long-suffering sigh. "I thought you cared about me."

"I do," James says, rolling over to lay on his back with his eyes closed. "Which is why I can't have you lose your mind over some flour and sugar. I'm doing us a favour. Preserving our friendship." He cracks an eye open to look at you. "We've been friends since diapers, not because of my mum’s food, but because I'm brilliant and extremely lovable. Get your facts straight, woman."

You toss the napkin at his face.

He laughs.

Glancing at the last piece of the apple crumble in your hand, you ask, "Do you want it?"

James shakes his head, looking fond. "You assault me and then offer me the last bite?"

"Force of habit," you say flatly. "I can take it back."

He chuckles and takes off his glasses, resting his arm over his eyes. "You can have it, love. Cheers."

You don't have to be told twice and pop it happily in your mouth. With his other arm, he sweeps the scattered pages aside and pats the spot next to him. "Sleep with me?"

You quirk a brow. "Trying to get into my knickers, Potter?"

A breathy laughter escapes his lips. "Are you offering?"

"You wish."

"Merlin, yes." He sighs dramatically as if all James Potter has known in this lifetime was the pain of longing. He grabs blindly for you and pulls lightly at the hem of your skirt. "A man can dream. But for now just nap with me, yea?"

You bat at his wrist but let him pull you towards him nonetheless. There was never any other option, really.

In the blink of a moment, you're nestled into James’ side. His arm is cushioning your head, fingers absentmindedly playing with your hair as he tells you his thoughts on a book he recently read because he knew you liked it. You listen intensely, enjoying the easy conversation and the sunlight warming your skin. The world feels peaceful, and it doesn't take long before sleep pulls you both into a cosy slumber.

#james potter #james potter x reader #james potter x y/n #james potter fluff #james potter imagine #james potter oneshot #james potter fanfiction #james potter fic #james potter x you #marauders fanfiction #marauders fic #marauders #marauders imagine #the marauders

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talesof-old · 10 months ago

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friends? | j.p.

pairing(s): james potter x reader

warning(s): nothing really, slight mentions of infidelity, breakups due to inappropriately close friendships, slightly rushed and not edited/proofread

word count: 1k

a/n: i’m so sorry this took me so long i lost track of time

masterlist

bsf!james potter + realizations

“You spend all day with him, what else am I supposed to believe!”

Your boyfriend’s—or rather, your ex-boyfriend’s—words were still on your mind, even a week later. A year down the drain, for what? You sighed and closed your Charms textbook. Studying would have to wait for another day.

Your books and parchment were shoved into your bag and then you were exiting the library, ready to put on one of your sad records and wallow in your dorm.

As you made your way to Gryffindor tower, you hear your name being called. You turned. James, followed by his three friends, all looking rather bemused. Your heart beats faster. What was once second nature, a smile and greeting, now proved far more difficult than you could’ve imagined.

James fell into step next to you, fingers intertwining with yours in a motion that appeared as easy as breathing. Your smile faltered before you caught yourself. Holding hands was normal between friends, wasn’t it? Affection came naturally when you cared for people. James squeezed your hand before all but dragging you through the Fat Lady’s portrait.

Unceremoniously, he dropped his bags at the foot of the unoccupied couch and flopped down, bringing you down with him. You fell against the plush cushions, belt digging into your waist.

“You alright? Y’seem a bit…off.” You nod your head. It was no use rehashing the events that had led up to this point. Instead, your gaze turned to where your hands were joined.

You wondered when the lines of friendship blurred between you and James. Before, you’d taken your friends’ teasing in stride, assuming they were just taking the piss at the two of you. Sure, James was attractive and unnecessarily attentive, but that was just James.

He knew all of your mutual friends schedules, knew what they liked or didn’t, always cared for each of you. The thought that he treated you in a different way hadn’t even crossed your mind.

Sirius cackled to your left and you glanced over, watching as his cheeks went red and he shook his head at Remus. You raised a brow. Had you really gotten so caught up in everything that you hadn’t noticed? Heat rushed to your face as you thought back to your boyfriend’s breaking point.

Abba blared in the Common Room, plastic cups littering every available surface filled with some far too strong mixed concoction. Lily had abandoned you to dance with Mary, leaving you nodding along to the music. Your boyfriend would likely be arriving any moment. A Hufflepuff, talented and charismatic, who’d somehow managed to sweep you off your feet in the middle of Divination class.

“There you are.” An arm wrapped around your shoulder. You flinched, your drink sloshing as you turned to gaze at the boy. James’ smile was crooked as he leaned closer to you, pupils dilated. You grinned back, nudging his ribs to curl into his side. He rubbed your shoulder.

“I couldn’t find you earlier, thought maybe you’d abandoned me for some book upstairs.” You rolled your eyes. Someone yelled from across the room, the sound followed by several drunken hollers. You turned to face him. James’ face was barely two inches from yours, eyes unblinking behind his glasses. You raised a brow.

James just grinned, squeezing your shoulders. Your cup was discarded almost immediately as he started guiding you towards the table. Two punches were gleaming in the light, though you could’ve sworn one was far pinker than you remember it being.

“What did you lot do?”

He gasped in mock offense. “Us? You think so lowly of your friends that you assume we’ve messed with the punch?”

Your blank look had him caving.

“Alright, maybe Pads added something.” You huffed a laugh.

“Just be care-“ Another student bumped into you, sending you falling into James’ chest. A ruckus started from where a group of Gryffindors began wrestling. You shook your head.

James turned you around. “You alright?” Perhaps if you’d been paying attention, you would’ve noticed just how close he was, and noted the way he held you.

But you didn’t. However someone else, watching the whole thing, did. He’d made a point to stay back and see if his suspicions held any truth. James Potter was in love with you, even if you couldn’t admit it.

You let James drag you over to your friends, plopping you down on the couch before settling down next to you. With your affectionate disposition, it was only natural to nestle into his side. Sirius wiggled his eyebrows at you; your friend’s teasing would only be taken as a lighthearted jab.

For the moment, you just savored the warmth of James beside you. In the presence of your friends you felt safe and understood. Perhaps that’s why you never questioned it. James pressed a quick kiss to your temple as he leaned forward to grab his drink.

That was enough for your boyfriend. Playing second to James was not a game he wanted in on. And for you to be so oblivious to it all? The sharp sting of betrayal was ample enough reason to show that it was time to bring things to an end.

You shook yourself out of your thoughts. There was no point in dwelling on the awful conversation you’d had with your ex. The realizations you’d had since that night were enough to occupy your time. James wrapped an arm around your shoulders. Briefly tensing before melting into his embrace, you leaned your head against his arm. Despite the hurt you felt from your boyfriend seemingly suddenly breaking up with you, the freedom you now had to question yourself was exhilarating. Perhaps you’d figure out what all this meant, with time. Maybe you could find it in yourself to pay more attention to the actions of a particular friend.

James squeezed your hand. You turned, looking up at him with questioning eyes. “We’re going to the kitchens to grab a few things, you coming with?”

You shrugged. “Don’t see why not.”

+++

#harry potter x reader #harry potter #james potter x you #james fleamont potter #james potter fluff #james potter drabble #james potter x reader #james potter #james potter oneshot #james potter angst #talesofold birthday special

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morwap · 6 days ago

Text

𝑌𝑜𝑢'𝑟𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑜𝑛 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑠, 𝐼 𝑎𝑚 𝑎𝑠ℎ𝑒𝑠 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑡𝑎𝑟.

regulus black x fem!reader

light hurt/comfort, angsty with cute moments

part 1 • part 2 • part 3 • part 4

nav • r.a.b m.list • mini series m.list

artist!regulus, swearing, platonic!regulus x pandora, jily, a tad bit of reg being obsessive and possessive, james potter x reader, platonic!regulus x evan roiser, a little bit of jealous!james he’s a dick, bsf!remus, wolfstar, dorlene

───────✧ 𓆩♡𓆪 ✧───────

you chewed on the inside of your cheek, standing in front of mcgonagalls class room, hoping regulus was inside so you didn’t have to do a little walk of shame back to your common room.

peeking into the room, a soft smile formed on your face. regulus stood by his things, his fingers covered in paint as he swiped his brush into the paint on his palette.

you tapped your knuckles against the doorframe, catching regulus’ attention.

regulus tensed, his grey eyes flicking to where you stood. regulus could feel his cheeks grow hot, you, it was you coming in here on your own time—your own will not just your curiosity.

regulus had told pandora and evan about the time you two spent together, telling evan when he arrived at his dorm and informing pandora at breakfast making her not be able to take her eyes off of you the entire time you and your friends ate, making regulus constantly nudge her arm or pull a strand of her blonde hair to tell her to stop.

pandora had always accepted regulus’ feelings for you. noticing his longing gazes on you and how he became more and more agitated with james, knowing he was and is upset that james and sirius have a relationship he wanted to have with his brother, but this was just the cherry on top to the point where regulus couldnt stand seeing james in the hallways—just the mention of his name soured his mood.

at first she did think he liked lily, thinking that the redhead that james sang love songs to was his crush and almost confronted him about because james would chase off anyone or anything that got near lily but stopped herself when she noticed that regulus didnt even bat an eye at lily, then something caught her eye.

they were both in the library, regulus was slumped in his chair after quidditch practice then suddenly perked up. pandora hadnt heard anything concerning to earn that type of reacting, so she was naturally concerned for her best friend. though for regulus this was an opportunity to just get a simple glimpse of you, to see if you were smiling or if you were okay. pandora was now flicking her eyes from regulus to you then back and forth.

pandora was taken back by how fast regulus’ face had heated up, his cheeks red and the tips of his ears grew pink. she hoped this is what Xenophilius looked like when he heard her voice. pandora just needed something to solidify her thoughts.

regulus’ sketch book was the thing that solidified her thoughts, he used to show her his newest drawings and would let her touch it whenever she pleased but now he kept it under his watch 24/7, not letting her have access to it and only allowing her to touch it and look in it if he was paying attention.

the time she actually got to see inside of it felt like it was meant to happen, evan had brought her to the slytherin common room to hang out with him, barty and regulus but regulus was gone, they waited up for him but it went late into the night and evan and barty ended up falling asleep on the common room couch. pandora was worried, her minding going wild and it drove her crazy and decided that she had to find him or her worries wouldnt ease.

pandora knew that regulus and mcgonagall set up a little agreement, now he spent a lot of time in there, whenever she wasnt using the room it seemed like regulus was. pandora made her way to the professors room, making sure not to get caught by any prefects or head girls or boys in the process. her nerves settled when she finally made it there, regulus was asleep beside his sketch book, his face on one page of it and his hair covered his eyes.

smiling and walking towards his sleeping frame, admiring him as he looked so peaceful. the only time he truly looked calm and relaxed. pandora almost didnt want to wake regulus up but she needed to get him to bed. before waking him, taking a glance at the sketch— you, it was you. furrowing her brows as she tried to think of where the sketch took place, you sitting down on the grass, then it cross her mind — realizing why it felt familiar.

it was you sitting in the courtyard earlier today, remembering you were with your friends thats why you were smiling and laughing. pandora quickly came back to her senses and woke regulus up, him being too tired to worry about the sketch book when he awoke and just nodded half listening and followed pandora back to his common room then to his bed. pandora had grabbed his things and carried them and told him goodnight before getting evan and barty.

the next day consisted of pandora mentioning his crush on you in the library which he tried to deny at first then he admitted it then the next week it had accidentally slipped from her mouth when her, regulus and evan were in the astronomy tower late at night. evan was a bit skeptical at first but just accepted it as time went on.

“would you like some company?” you asked, giving him a soft smile. regulus stood there for a second, processing your words.

“oh uh- yeah” regulus choked out, twitching in a nervous way to scratch at his temple and sniffling a bit. He could hear the little rubber grippers on the bottom of your slippers on the floor as you walked to him, coming closer and closer, way closer than he thought you’d ever get, you were basically bumping into each other.

“It’s still as beautiful as the first time I saw it” you said, a smile growing on your face. Regulus stood behind you, he had his paintbrush in the murky water to his left and his palette on his right.

You picked up his brush, “show me how” you said, looking over your shoulder at him and moving the brush in your hand to fit nicely.

Regulus didn’t move, he was zoned out on you and only came out of it when you laughed and repeated what you said. you looked over your shoulder and nodded your head to the painting.

“c'mon” you teased before looking back to the painting.

Regulus was almost shaking, being so close was intoxicating and it was like every time he wished and hoped something would happen was happening at this moment.

he stepped closer to you, moving the palette to your other hand and then putting his over yours. you smiled and leaned back against him just a bit, it was so lovely to be close to someone, like breathing fresh air after you’ve been inhaling smoke your entire life.

Regulus started to move your hand, painting some flowers he had half done. he could smell your shampoo which made him take deep long breaths. He moved your hand, light strokes on the canvas, watching the paint transfer to it. He brought your hand back to the palette to mix some colors.

Painting more flowers then dipping the brush into murky water then wiping it on his shirt before getting a new color on his brush.

“Are you going to the quidditch game?” Regulus asked, you weren’t wanting to go since you normally went to support James but you knew now wasn’t the right time, the air between you two was so thick and it just felt awkward.

“i’m not sure” you sighed.

“well what else is there to do on a friday afternoon?” regulus joked, it came naturally and he didn’t know why he didn’t feel as anxious as he did 5 minutes ago, you made him feel comfortable even though he always felt anxious around you.

you laughed, your shoulders moving up and downing slightly.

“you’re right. i’ll tell you what, i’ll go and support slytherin only if you promise that you’ll try to win” you said, turning your head to the side to look at him, you smiled.

“what if we don’t?” regulus asked and cleared his throat, he avoided your gaze.

you hummed as you thought.

“you have to wear a gryffindor sweater the next day” you said, hoping that would be on the same level.

“deal” regulus laughed softly, he was still moving your hand, guiding your hand with his, making art.

you were always so friendly, the way you were acting like you had been his friend for months made him feel warm, it was like a glimpse of what your friends had way before he could have it. the opportunity of a friendship blossoming made his lips curl up, not just a best friends brother that you felt the need to greet and be nice to, a real friendship and of course on his end a longing that he would never push onto you unless you felt the same way.

“my father would like you, he really likes art and things like that” you spoke freely, regulus looked at you again and he couldn’t fight the butterflies in his stomach. “hes really into pottery, half the cups in my house are made by him” you added with a giggle.

regulus smiled, “did he teach you?” he asked, his hand still moving yours as he mixed a new color.

“he tried, i was just so terrible” you laughed, regulus wanted to combat the degrading comment.

“everything takes practice” he whispered, regulus grabbed a paint tube and squeezed out more white.

“that's not what i've heard about you-“

regulus paused, his stomach dropping, what have you heard about him? it was evident him and sirius didn’t have the best relationship so what did he tell you, his mind wandered.

“- i heard that you practically came out of the womb with a paint brush and good manners” you finished, a smirk on your face.

regulus forced himself to break from his thoughts and give you a reaction, “now that i can agree to” he said. He had always been told he was a good child but it was never by choice.

hours passed and now you were sitting on the floor going through his paints.

“y/n! cmon we aren't going to get good seats” peter grumbled.

it was friday, a week had gone past since you were with regulus, studying had taken over a lot of your time and when you had passed McGonagall's class you didn’t see him but every time you saw him in the halls you smiled, you thought of maybe striking up a conversation but when you saw him there was slytherin boys around him and if you stared too long at least one of them would sneer at you.

you looked around for something green, you knew your friends would say something about it and others would give you weird looks.

“Okay okay im coming stop rushing me” you sighed, running down the stairs.

“What the fuck are you wearing?” dorcas gasped, her hand grabbing the green sweater you were wearing.

“James is gonna be so pissed” peter whispered.

“We have to take risks sometimes right? Lets go” you put your hands on your hips as you grabbed your wand. Remus grabbed peter by the shoulders and pushed him out of the common room.

The wind bit at your cheeks, you could hear cheering and roaring. Slytherin vs gryffindor, the tension was thick. You sometimes hated quidditch, it made people mean and stressed out but thats what others liked about it.

You sat with your friends, odd one out in the red and gold sea of people, eyes constantly wandered to you and a few dirty looks here and there which would be scared off by remus. Pandora noticed you, a slight point and Evan's eyes caught on.

The game started, people cheered and boo’d, names were chanted. James and you locked eyes, his tongue pressed to his cheek and a scoff with a head shake was made.

Regulus’ stomach was uneasy, you were on his mind while getting ready, he couldn’t lose he had been practicing and coming up with strategies for the past week. His muscles strained and sweat poured off of him. He was nervous just getting on the broom.

He couldn’t look in the crowd, he had to focus. The game started quickly and james was already playing rough, almost knocking him into the posts and beams.

Hours passed, they were tied. You chewed on some popcorn that mary got you, dorcas cheered for her girlfriend and knocked over her drink. Remus laid back against your legs, he would sometimes go from watching to writing things down in his notebook. Peter and lilly talked, she held james’ sweatshirt in her lap.

One more point, thats all and slytherin could win. The snitch, it zipped around regulus, his eyes lighting up. James saw it too, he brows furrowed as he went for it.

They were going so fast, regulus looked to the side. It felt like everything slowed once he saw you, your eyes big and you sat up straight. You looked good in green. James knocked into him.

Regulus chased him, catching up to him quickly then surpassing him. Regulus strained as he reached for it almost falling off the broom. His eyes watered from the air.

Regulus closed his fist, he got it, the snitch was in his hand.

Hollers and roars came from slytherin and silence fell over gryffindor. “Fuck” james yelled and sirius caught up to him. James’ chest heaved, his fists clenched.

You jumped and screamed for regulus. Soon later people were leaving the stands, you all went to meet up with james and sirius.

Pandora and evan waited on regulus and barty, you laughed with remus and mary rubbing in that “your” team won.

Regulus was the first to walk out, his hair wet and you smiled at him and walked up to him. Meeting him halfway. Pandora held evan back and gave him a look.

“You did amazing reg!” you said, hugging him tightly. Regulus’ body froze, he’s never felt so good in his life. The pain on his muscles faded when normally if someone touched him he’d be so sore. He could smell your perfume, it was intoxicating. You soft with your touch, so soft he wished you’d press harder against him and never leave.

“I-i- you know im just glad i didn’t lose so i wouldn’t have to wear that stupid thing” regulus tried to joke, hoping it went well.

You pulled away, smiling even more “you know supporting a different team isn’t that bad” you laughed. Regulus rolled his eyes with a smirk, he made eye contact with evan, even smiled and nodded.

“You know id love to see you at the party tonight” you said, fiddling with your rings. Regulus’ face flushed. He went to some parties, never stayed more than an hour though.

“Yeah i’ll-”

“Are you fucking coming y/n we ain’t waiting for ever” james yelled, his hands on his hips and his face flushed.

“Ill talk to you later.” you sighed and waved. Regulus blinked a few times watching you walk away, your head hanging in shame. Remus threw his arm over your shoulder as the group walked away.

–

Music was loud, but the people were louder. It was dark and lights were shining on ceiling and walls. Slytherin’s common room was cold, your arms were chilly as you sipped on your drink.

You watched lily and james, he had her against a wall, a hand beside her head dipping in and out to whisper in her ear. It was hard to swallow. Sirius was going around bumping into people and dancing while peter chased after him.

Regulus watched you a minute before approaching, evan had made him pregame just a little before going to the party.

James was keeping an eye on you.

You smiled when you saw a familiar face walk up to you.

“Hello” regulus greeted.

You laughed, “you’re drunk” you sat your drink down and took his.

“Maybe” regulus smiled. He was barely tipsy but it was sweet to watch you try and take care of him. He rubbed his arm, his eyes on the ground. “i appreciate you supporting me” regulus added.

“I told you i would, you think i just wouldn’t keep my end of deal?” you asked with a soft laugh.

“No i-”

“y/n come here” james ordered sternly, another conversation interrupted, he was doing it on purpose. Regulus scoffed and looked at james.

James grabbed you hand and nodded in the other direction, “i have to talk to you”

You looked at regulus, “ill be back kay?” you smiled and started to follow james.

Regulus nodded, his face dropping and his eyes went back to the floor. He grinded his teeth. James thought he was better than everyone, no doubt his complex was threw the roof. Regulus dug his nails into the palm of his hand.

“James you are being fucking rude” you scolded as he walked you into a room.

“What did i tell you, stop hanging out with that fucker” james huffed, his chest was puffed.

“What the fuck is wrong with you james?” you asked him, throwing your arms out.

James got closer to you, he knew how to fuck with you. His hand pushed your hair out of your face. His voice softened to a whisper.

“You’re too good for him, he’s just gonna use you.”

You inhaled sharply. His hand grazing your cheek and you leaned into his touch.

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