#regulus is EXACTLY who harry would be if he was in slytherin

[oh-phoenixx]

"Harry Potter" - Jegulus microfic @into-the-jeggyverse - 470 words

Tags: @abductedhiko (message or comment if you wanna be tagged when I post :3)

-

James was not one to show any negative emotions. He liked to keep it all bottled up inside of him and just pray that it wouldn’t backfire. So, he refused to let on that he was terrified for Regulus to meet Harry. What if his son didn’t like his boyfriend? They’d only been officially dating for two weeks, but Regulus was already so special to him, and if Harry didn’t like him, James didn’t know what he would do. 

James was so busy trying to calm himself down that he didn’t hear the knock on the door. “Daddy! Someone’s at the door!” Harry had to call from the living room. James was pulled from his thoughts. He took a deep breath and made his way to the door.

The door opened to reveal a very anxious-looking (but perfect nonetheless, as he always was, in James’s humble opinion) Regulus Black. He put on a, clearly forced, smile and greeted James with a hug. 

“It’ll be fine,” James assured him, though he didn’t know if he was speaking more to Regulus or himself.

James led Regulus into the living room, where a five year old Harry was playing with his toys. At first, none of them said anything. Harry barely looked up, and James didn’t tell him to greet Regulus for fear that it would make all of this real.

After taking another deep breath, James crouched in front of Harry and said, “Harry, say hi to Regulus.”

Harry glanced at Regulus, seeming almost to size him up, before a grin, identical to James’s, spread across his face. “Hi, Regulus!” He did not, actually, pronounce ‘Regulus’ correctly, though Regulus didn’t seem to mind. 

“Hello, Harry,” Regulus responded breathlessly, kneeling beside the young boy. “It’s nice to meet you. Your dad has told me a lot about you.”

“Daddy talks about you, too,” Harry said. James blushed and looked away. “A lot,” Harry added unnecessarily, in James’s opinion.

“Does he now?” Regulus asked, an eyebrow raised in James’s direction.

And though his son had somewhat embarrassed him in front of the man James was sure he wanted to spend the rest of his life with, he didn’t care. They got along so naturally, Harry rambling on about toys and games and Regulus listening just as eagerly, with not a single sign that he wasn’t actually as interested as he made it seem. James found it laughable that Regulus had claimed to not like children. 

When Regulus got up to go to the bathroom, James turned to Harry seriously. “Harry?”

“Yeah?”

“Regulus isn’t just my friend, you know. He’s my boyfriend. You know what that means, right?”

“Mhm! Like how Moony and Padfoot are boyfriends,” Harry replied confidently.

“Exactly, Re-”

“And how Mummy and Mary are girlfriends,” Harry continued.

“Sorry, what now?” James gaped.

[my-castles-crumbling]

golden - January 16 - jegulus - @taylorswiftmicrofic - word count: 323

It took all of Regulus’s self-control to keep his voice down as he quietly stormed from the bedroom on the end of the hallway to the sitting room, where his husband sat waiting for him. “James Potter, you swore you would stay neutral!” he hissed, crossing his arms and frowning.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” James replied innocently, but the pink forming on his cheeks gave him away. 

“Oh? Harry just happened to find your old practice Quaffle in the attic?” Regulus asked, tapping his foot. 

“Yes,” James nodded, causing Regulus to snort. “Oi, it’s not my fault he liked it so much!”

“Yes, but it’s your fault you gave it to him! You’re the one who threw a fit when I wanted to give him that stuffed Golden Snitch last year! You said we had to let him choose on his own!” he reminded him, finally sitting, but making sure he was as far away from James as possible, just to make a point.

James took a look at the way Regulus sat, curled up on the opposite end of the couch, and sighed. “Fine. You’re right. I just…he’d make such a good Chaser, you know? Can you imagine?” he changed his voice to a deeper tone, holding his hand to his mouth like a microphone. “Aaaaand introducing the newest chaser for Gryffindor: Harry Potter!”

Regulus sighed, rolling his eyes affectionately at how enthusiastic his husband was. He allowed himself to relax a bit, stretching his legs out so his cold toes poked James in the leg exactly like he hated. “I think you mean ‘the newest Seeker for Slytherin!’”

The older man chuckled, grabbing Regulus’s feet and bringing them properly on his lap. “We’ll just have to see, won’t we, love?”

But, seven years later when they stood in the stands, cheering for Harry Potter, the newest Seeker for Gryffindor, they both cried tears of joy and pride.

[meelusinee]

SERIOUSLY, SIRIUS? | LITTLE LOAF

word count \ 1.0k | fluff and stuff | slash / implied wolfstar

in which the order of phoenix react to sirius reconciling with regulus (no r.b x reader in this part)

A LITTLE LOAF SERIES MASTERLIST

Remus sat at the small dining room table he had been crowded into by Sirius and James. 

It was loud at the beginning. Lily was pregnant with her baby Harry, and James was constantly fawning over her. Amos Diggory was loud like James, clinging onto anyone he could while he and James yelled back and forth. Frank was freaking out just as much as James was over Alice. Andromeda was arguing with her husband Ted about baby shower colors, the both of them being picked for the decorations.

Remus knew it felt bad. It felt worse that Sirius wasn’t loud with them. So he asked Sirius.

He regretted asking.

“Seriously Sirius?” James said incredulously, looking at Sirius with furrowed eyebrows. “Regulus? Really?”

“Yes, James. For the fifth time.” Sirius muttered under his breath. Sirius had stated that he met with Regulus, to the stunned silence of the room. Remus honestly felt sorry for him, if only for a moment. He wasn’t even sure why Sirius would want to meet with Regulus in the first place.

James seemed right. Regulus was a Death Eater, one of the most prolific. Sirius never even had a good relationship with him in the first place.

“Why? None of us knew about this beforehand,” Lily asked Sirius, though Remus didn’t see any anger in her voice. Just confusion.

He couldn’t say that for the rest of the group.

“He sent me a letter, to meet in this abandoned town. I didn’t tell anyone so nobody else would be put in danger, and I made sure I had no tracking things on me just in case.”

“But why would you meet with him?” Frank asked. “I thought that he was, like, a bad Death Eater.”

“He’s not good,” Andromeda muttered quietly to herself, nails tapping against the dining room table. “But he’s not bad. I always thought that he would fight back eventually.”

Sirius nodded, smiling softly. “Yeah.”

“I’m assuming he had a stressor, then?” Ted asked curiously. “He wouldn’t do anything unprompted.”

“Oh, yeah!” Sirius said, rummaging through his pocket before pulling out a necklace. “This!”

The room fell silent again as he pulled it out, blinking blankly at the necklace. “And what exactly is that?” Remus asked confusedly. 

“It’s, well,” he mumbled. “It’s Salazar Slytherin’s locket, firstly. But secondly, it’s a Horcrux!”

“A Horcrux?” Andromeda gasped, quickly grasping the necklace before investigating it. She turned it up, down, and ten ways sideways. Whatever a Horcrux was, it was obviously important.

“Not to sound stupid,” Amos murmured, raising his hand. “But what is a Horcrux?”

“It’s a way that people stay immortal, to put it simply.” Ted explained, waving his hand. “You kill something, it splits your soul, and you can revive yourself as long as the Horcrux is intact. As far as the universe knows, you’re still alive.”

“The question is for who?” Andromeda asked.

Sirius looked at the Horcrux grimly. “Voldemort.”

Remus sighed under his breath as the room fell silent again. Honestly, he was getting rather sick of the silence. He had just gotten used to the chaos after the last full moon, and now it was suddenly quiet? Over someone’s name?

They needed to grow a backbone, he thought.

“How did Regulus find out about this Horcrux?” Remus asked Sirius.

“Well he didn’t give me very specific details,” Sirius said, fidgeting with his nails. “But from what I was told, he was trying to use Kreacher to test out whether he had hid it well. Kreacher is, well was, our House Elf. Regulus summoned him before he died from whatever Voldemort used to hide it.”

“Regulus was always close to Kreacher.” Andromeda sighed softly, looking down at the necklace. “So he figured out about the Horcrux. He gets it himself, somehow, and gives it to you?”

“He had it for a couple of months.” Sirius clarified, clearing his throat. “But his new ‘friend’ convinced him to talk to me again.”

“Friend?” James deadpanned.

“I think it’s a lover.” Sirius said, pouting like a child.

“Not the point, Sirius.” Remus reminded him.

Sirius nodded. “Right. Well, from what I know, the Death Eaters think that he’s dead.”

“The Dark Lord can trace the marks though.” Alice reminded him. “If he has the Dark Mark, the Dark Lord would be able to tell.”

“Well,” Sirius said, chuckling awkwardly. “The thing about that is, you know,”

Remus sighed, debating whether he should start banging his head against the table. He felt like he was chasing sentient cheese around a mice maze. 

“Spit it out, Sirius.” he said.

“He cut off his mark!” Sirius sighed, itching at his arm. “I saw it. It wasn’t a glamour.”

“He cut it off?” Andromeda asked quietly. “Like, the whole thing?”

“I saw bone.” Sirius whispered quietly.

The room went silent once more. This time Remus understood. Seeing bone was never a good sign, he of all people in the room would know. Especially when it was self inflicted.

“Does he need to run away?” Lily asked Sirius quietly. Remus could tell her motherly instinct was kicking in. “We have room.”

Sirius mumbled under his breath before shrugging. “I don’t think so, but I don’t know.”

“Are you going to see him again?” Andromeda asked quietly, sitting down in front of Sirius. “I want to go with you if you are. He’s my family too.”

Sirius smiled softly before nodding. “I said that we could meet at a café next Sunday.”

“Then I’ll go with you.” Andromeda said.

Sirius smiled softly before looking around the room. Remus could feel his eyes darting around anxiously, Sirius always craved public approval. 

James sighed softly when Sirius’ eyes landed on him. “I don’t think I’ll go. I doubt Regulus wants a whole club at a family reunion. But Lily and I can make food.”

“Me and Frank can make room if he needs.” Alice suggested calmly. 

Sirius smiled softly before turning to Remus. “Remus?”

Remus looked between him and Andromeda before sighing. If anyone was close to Regulus in this group, it was probably him. The two of them had studied sometimes back in Hogwarts. Sometimes he would even consider Regulus a friend.

“I’ll go with you.” Remus said.

“Perfect!” Sirius clapped happily.

AUTHOR'S NOTE

thank you everyone for reading! i'm feeling rather productive right now, so i've been having a little writing burst. did i write this in 40 minutes? yes. yes i did. do i care? no, no i do not <3

AS ALWAYS - please like, comment, and reblog! love u!

[timdrakemybeloved]

rant time:

people LOVE sirius black, and they don’t even know it. they want their faves to be sirius black so fucking bad, but their faves just aren’t, so what do they do? they give all of sirius’ complex, sometimes bad, sometimes good, extremely iconic and well known character traits to their faves, and make sirius one dimensional. meanwhile canon is right there proving them wrong, and their faves are a knock off sirius black, and canon sirius just does it better 🤷🏾‍♀️. they hate him so bad bc their faves could never.

like they make barty crouch jr and that evan rosier dude impulsive and sometimes cruel copy pastes of sirius in “slytherin skittle” fanon, even though we have like two seconds of canon from rosier and everything we know about barty is from insane circumstances. we know nothing about rosier, and we only know that barty is good at dada, kind of a competent teacher, insane and devoted to the dark lord. the entire time we know barty, he’s literally pretending to be someone else. and he’s succeeding, so much so that dumbledore, who knew moody for forever didn’t realize.

they makes regulus a heroic champion for disenfranchised groups even though he literally does not give a fuck. he didn’t care until his house elf was harmed. and they make sirius a bad guy for not rescuing regulus like hello?? sirius rescued himself. it was not his responsibility to rescue regulus. if regulus wanted to be rescued so damn bad, maybe he should have done it himself. they make regulus a scapegoat in the black family as if he wasn’t the perfect son who believed in their bigoted beliefs and swore as a death eater willingly… like if you want a rebel, someone who was disowned for their beliefs SIRIUS IS RIGHT THERE. and andromeda now that i think about it.

they make sirius short and dramatic and twinky and one dimensional and dumb so remus can be a tall genius who pulls people left and right. meanwhile, sirius got all o’s while putting in zero effort his entire time at school, he’s tall and charming and he’s an extremely complex character. oh and REMUS IS SHOWN READING A BOOK ONE TIME. how does that make him a genius. sirius is in fact one of the least one dimensional characters in the entire series, one of the few people with a nuanced view on dark and light, good and bad, death eater and non death eater, slytherin and non slytherin. and he teaches harry that, he tells him how the world isn’t divided into good people and death eaters, he tells him how everyone has good and bad in them and the only thing that matters is your actions. i firmly believe that if sirius found out about harry almost sorting slytherin, he would not have been phased.

they make sirius conflate harry with james, when that’s literally not true. he lashed out when harry wouldn’t agree to meet in gof, because harry cared more about sirius’ safety than sirius did, because sirius needed to help harry. and the “nice one, james” isn’t even canon to me, or canon in the books. but his priority, always, is harry’s safety and happiness. just because molly weasley wants to hide information from harry, that he’ll later find out anyway in horrible ways from people who use it against him, doesn’t mean sirius is a bad parent. just because molly thinks hiding information from harry will signal to voldemort that harry is a child and shouldn’t be attacked, doesn’t mean sirius is a bad parent.

sirius is actually the best parent for harry, because he understands that whatever harry wants, harry will be a target. harry needs information to keep him safe. i mean, see what happens when people don’t tell harry that the dark lord wants something in the department of mysteries and would try and trick him there! sirius is VERY vocal about harry not being reckless, and harry listens to him! when he send a note not to be reckless, harry thinks snidely about sirius’ hypocrisy and then does exactly what sirius asks, like a normal teenager. this is the balance needed to be an effective parent to a child like harry potter. and you know who DOES conflate harry and james, even though they’re two very different people with very different pasts? SNAPE.

and what is it with people giving harry a third parent, and it’s like…. regulus, who they erase lily for. they erase james too bc in what world would james go for a death eater? he has SUCH rigid beliefs, to the point of harming people for being death eaters in school. or it’s remus, who doesn’t give a fuck about harry, and doesn’t even remotely have a relationship with him. he gives up chances to be in harry’s life constantly, and he’s not at all reliable or a constant figure in harry’s life. or it’s fucking snape, who verbally abused harry for the entire series… like do y’all really think the dark lord was monitering snape and crucio-ing him if he sees signs of snape being a neutral teacher? snape’s actions towards harry (and neville actually) are reprehensible and entirely his responsibility, not some act to satisfy voldemort.

and sirius is right there!! harry trusts him, harry loves him, harry VIEWS HIM AS A PARENT, and those factors literally aren’t there for any other adult in the series. sirius was there for harry the second he could be, and he reached out over and over to make sure harry knew he could come to him, and you know what? harry did come to him. when harry had a dream of voldemort and his scar was hurting, when harry was entered into the triwizard tournament, sirius did so much for harry and never complained because he loved him and he was devoted to harry.

and sirius has a fuck ton of flaws too! he has ptsd and anger issues, he lashes out at harry when he wants harry to meet (because he values harry’s safety far over his own, while harry doesn’t), he hurts people intentionally, he hates kreacher (not because he’s a house elf, but because of his actions, and sirius’s trauma), he can be reckless, he doesn’t give a shit about legality, like he’s a flawed dude. but some things he’s not are an unmitigated asshole to children, a bigot, or an irresponsible parent.

[ruinofchimera]

Hi, I'd like to know your opinion. Why do you think Peter betrayed the Marauders and blamed Sirius?

By the way, I hope you are very well.

Thank you for the perfect cue. Time to roll up my sleeves and dissect the bane of the Harry Potter fandom: Peter Pettigrew.

Why did he betray the Marauders? I like the phrasing. Because behind it, the real question to ponder is lurking. Did Peter ever betray his friends, or did he just betray the Marauders, the twisted idea of inclusion that he never really had? Oh, don’t get me wrong—there’s no denying that James and Sirius were practically the poster boys for friendship. No argument there. We’ve all heard that tear-jerking speech from Sirius: “I’d rather die than betray my friends.” And fair enough; Sirius had every reason to be an emotional wreck—he was talking about James, the only person he ever truly gave a damn about. Sure, we don’t know everything about their golden years, but what we do know makes it painfully clear: James and Sirius? They were a two-man act, a bond so tight it was as if they shared the same heartbeat.

But where on earth did this idea come from that someone else—anyone else—was ever part of that special bond? The books paint a pretty stark picture if you care to look. There was the alpha pair leading the charge, while the other two trailed behind, playing supporting roles. Look at how they chose Pettigrew to be Secret Keeper in the first place—not because they thought he was capable or smart, but because they figured no one would suspect him. Translation: “We don’t think you’re much good for anything, Peter, but hell, no one else does either, so maybe that’ll save our skins.” And yet somehow, fans cling to this rose-colored myth of brotherhood. Four souls, brought together by some unshakable bond of loyalty. Let’ get real here. There’s a very good chance that Peter didn’t even see James and the gang as friends. He was just along for the ride, hanging around like a dodgy uncle at a family reunion.

People love to reduce Peter’s Animagus form to a symbol of cowardice and betrayal, but they miss the real significance of what a rat actually represents—survival. And at his core, that’s exactly what Peter is—a survivor. Strip away all the noise, the grand ideals, and lofty heroics that everyone around him seemed so fond of, and what you’ve got left in Peter is raw instinct. He wasn’t guided by some deep-seated belief or conviction. No grand moral compass pulled him one way or another. He’s the embodiment of the quintessential “baby boy” trope—the “please take care of me” type. (Sorry, Regulus, but the Chalamet fancast isn’t enough to hold the title. Hand over the badge.)

What Peter craved more than anything was protection. It didn’t matter whether it came from James Potter or the Dark Lord himself. The man just wanted someone bigger, stronger, meaner to pat him on the head.

Pettigrew was already used to playing second fiddle to James and Sirius, who were so full of themselves they practically had their own gravitational pull. So when Voldemort strutted onto the scene, another powerful, arrogant tosser demanding followers, was it really such a massive shift for Peter? Hardly. It wasn’t life-changing. It was just a change of scenery. He did what he was best at: finding the biggest bully on the block and pledging his allegiance to survive. Sirius and James had been grooming him for it for years without even knowing.

It’s easy work, bashing Peter. Man’s got a face like a rodent and a spine to match—hardly the makings of a tragic anti-hero, is he? Sorry, Peter, but “pretty privilege” isn’t swooping in to save you like it did for Slytherin Skittles. If Pettigrew had even a hint of good looks, we’d have a library of fanworks trying to paint his redemption. But with a face like that? Not a chance. Instead, we get a convenient scapegoat for the fandom to rally against, letting the poster boys soak up all the angst. The sacred friendship betrayed! A tale for the ages, and people can boo-fucking-hoo about it for eternity.

As you can see from my lengthy ramblings, I’m doing just fine—so no worries in this department.

[floralembarrassment]

Hi I love your jegulus fanfics. Could you do one with harry getting sorted and their reaction. Also, what house do you think harry would be in if he was raised by jegulus.

hi!! Thank you so much! To be honest I don't really see Harry in any other house than Gryffindor though I could easily be swayed by a soft wind. this one was fun to write though:

The Sorting (1/1) (jegulus raising Harry)

Remus pulled the mirror off his pocket. "Pads I swear to Merlin you have to stay quiet," he whispered into it.

He was sat at the teachers table, watching as the line of timid and excited 11 year olds filed into the great hall.

Sirius motioned zipping his lips, and when James and Regulus popped his head into the frame, Remus looked at him sternly. "Prongs," he cautioned.

"I know silence and then we get out away." James repeated the the rules.

Remus held them up secretly, so they could just see the sorting hat being placed on the child who was called before Harry. They all held their breath as they McGonagall called his name: "Harry Potter."

The great hall went silent, everyone watching and waiting for the chosen one, and the son of a war hero and a spy, to be sorted. Remus watched the mirror as Regulus took a deep breath and grabbed James' arm.

Remus was positive this was the longest sorting since Sirius', and he watched as his nephew held his eyes shut tight and muttered in response to whatever the hat was saying in his ears.

No one knew where Harry would end up, though they were pretty sure it was a 50/50 Slytherin or Gryffindor. Both of his parental lineages held long standing histories in those houses, but it was just as probably that he ended up in Ravenclaw or Hufflepuff.

But also like his fathers, Harry was incredibly loyal to his friends. Remus knew instantly that when the small curly hair girl and the red headed Weasley boy ended up in Gryffindor that's exactly where Harry would go as well.

And sure enough, after 5 whole minutes of silence, the sorting hat yelled out, and applause and cheers rang through the great hall.

Remus looked at the mirror where James and Sirius were jumping around and Regulus was trying to be annoyed but fondness was clear in his eyes, and Remus could have sworn a smile was creeping up his face.

Remus waved goodbye to Regulus, sharing an equally large eye roll at his husband and best friend's celebrations, then slide the mirror back into his pocket. Regulus would be fine, his son was already a great seeker after all.

Remus looked up at the Gryffindor table to see Harry sitting excitedly next to his two new friends, shaking hands with everyone around. Then he looked back to Remus and waved, and uncle Moony well he could help but be proud and nodded back in approval.

[entitled-fangirl]

The misaligned stars.

Remus Lupin x Original Character x (past)Regulus Black

Summary: The golden trio knocks on the door of someone who can help them with the Slytherin locket.

Warnings: talks of death, drowning, death eaters, not bad

A/N: It is so hard to try to summarize who liked who and who's related and shit, so good luck.

Masterlist

.......................................................

Hermione knocked on the door of the small house.

It was Dumbledore's idea- going to the house of Cassiopeia Malfoy.

But Dumbledore was gone, and now it was up to the trio.

The door opened slowly. 

A small woman with the infamous white Malfoy hair peered through the crack. "H…Hello?"

Hermione gave a small smile, "Hello. We're looking for Cassiopeia Malfoy."

The woman's eyebrows furrowed, but her voice remained quiet, "What do you want with her?"

Harry stepped forward, "We have some questions. About this." 

He held up the fake locket.

Even Ron noticed the widening of her eyes and the quickening of her breath.

"…Come in."

…

The woman set down four cups of hot tea and sat in one of the chairs of the living room. "How did you know I knew about this?"

Ron piped up, "Kreature mentioned you."

Her head tilted, "Kreature? Kreature talked about me?"

"Yeah," Harry chirped as he took a sip of the tea. "He said you took the locket. To keep him from getting hurt."

"That's true," she said. "I couldn't leave him like that. Everyone knows where the Black house is. I could hide it away and no one would know."

"Hide it?" Hermione asked. "What's your connection to the Blacks?"

"My connection?" She almost scoffed. "I am a Black. Somewhat."

The trio gave each other confused looks.

"Oh. You… you didn't… I didn't… um…" Her eyes widened as she looked away.

"You knew Sirius. He said that." Harry said. "Did you… marry him?"

The woman gave out a laugh, "Merlin, no!" She pushed a strand of her curly hair behind her ear. "No, no. Sirius and I were wonderful friends, yes. But, no. I was married to Regulus."

"You married Regulus Black?" Hermione asked in shock.

"I didn't know he was married," Ron quirked.

"That was the point," Cassiopeia said. "After… after James and Lily died- the day they died- Regulus and I married."

"While you were still in school?" Hermione asked again.

"Yes," she said. "We loved each other so much. But, we feared that something could happen to us, and we married that day. If we were to die, we wanted to be married first."

"That's romantic," Hermione sighed.

"That's bloody ridiculous," Ron scoffed.

"Ronald!" Hermione scorned.

"No, it was." Cassiopeia said. "But, it worked. Regulus died not long after and… I still carry the name."

"Cassiopeia… Black?" Harry asked.

She nodded. "But no one else knows that." 

She snapped out of her thoughts, "Right. The locket."

Harry gripped it in his hand, "Locket? I thought it was just a pendant."

"Oh, no." She said. "A locket. But it holds something wicked inside."

"The horcrux." Hermione chimed in.

"Yes. A horcrux. Let me… um…" She stood and disappeared into one of the side rooms of her home. They heard the sound of digging in one of the drawers before she appeared again, "Here it is."

In her hand, a horcrux of Lord Voldemort dangled delicately.

Harry held a hand up to his forehead in pain.

"It was the last thing Regulus did- getting this, I mean." She stated.

Ron held out his hand, taking the locket in his hand. "What happened exactly?"

"It's complicated. You know how to destroy a horcrux?"

Harry shrugged, "No, but we intend to find out."

"Well, if surviving in that cave is any indication, I'd say you three can figure it out."

Her words provided little comfort. 

Harry moved forward in his seat, "I know I'm simply prying but-"

"-But how did he die?" Cassiopeia guessed.

Harry nodded.

"He was drowned by the Inferi."

"He died IN the cave?" Harry asked.

She nodded, sipping her tea again. Her voice was barely heard, "yes."

The three noticed the shaking in her hands.

"Please. Tell us what happened?" Hermione pleaded.

She sighed and set the cup down, "Regulus was a calculated man. He knew what he was doing. He gained the trust of the Dark Lord. He was… he was in the higher ranks. But when Sirius was charged falsely for betraying your parents, Regulus knew the truth and vowed to find a way to kill Voldemort. He… discovered the horcruxes and… well…"

Harry nodded and opened his mouth to say more, but paused when he heard the front door open and a familiar voice ring throughout the home, "Sophie?"

Cassiopeia turned her head to look over her shoulder, "I'm in here, love."

The trio felt the air leave their lungs as Remus Lupin rounded the corner.

He paused, "Oh. Harry, Ron, Hermione. I didn't… I wasn't expecting you three."

He stepped toward the woman and placed his hands on her shoulders, "Is everything alright?"

"Yes, Harry is just here to ask about Regulus."

Remus nodded, "I see."

"I'm so sorry," Hermione chimed in. "I have to ask…"

Cassiopeia sighed as her cheeks turned red, "It's a… newer development. Things have been hard for us as of late, and… we find… solace in each other."

They both loved a Black brother.

And both of those brothers were dead.

Remus nodded and bent down to kiss the crown of her head. "I'll make supper. You three stay tonight."

"No, that's alright, Remus-" Harry said.

"-Nonsense." Remus chided. "It's dangerous for you three right now. Stay at least tonight. For me."

The three debated and communicated through their eyes before Harry nodded, "That would be lovely. Thank you."

…

It was relieving to Harry to finally get to see two people that truly loved each other interact in such a domestic state: making supper.

Their hands brushed occasionally and they shared a smile each time.

He couldn't help but stare.

Even as Remus pulled one of her arms towards him. She absentmindedly let him, immersed in her cooking. He pulled the sleeve of her shirt to her elbow and rubbed the faded dark mark that resided there.

She quickly turned to look at him.

He gave a sweet smile and gently kissed her wrist, then kissed her cheek.

She smiled and shooed him away.

…

"Why have you never mentioned her before?" Harry asked Remus after dinner.

The man sighed, "It's too complicated."

"Well, we have time." Harry scoffed.

"No, you need your rest. Sleep and we'll talk in the morning. I'll help you get anything you need for the road."

"Thank you, Remus."

"-Remus?" Cassiopeia almost whispered as she leaned against the doorframe of the kitchen.

Remus could feel himself melting at her tired eyes. "Yes, dove?"

"When are you coming to bed?"

His eyes flicked to Harry, then back to her, "In just a moment, darling, I promise."

She nodded and rubbed her eyes. She turned back to her room and muttered a quiet, "G'night, Harry."

Harry made a note of the light in Remus's eyes.

"Tell me." Remus concluded, "Did she tell you what you needed to know?"

Harry shrugged, "I mean…. I still don't know how to destroy it, but I have it now, and that's all I needed from her."

Remus nodded, and pulled his lips into a thin line in thought.

"I'm sorry," Harry piped up, "about Regulus. That must have been hard for her."

"You've no idea," Remus muttered. "She's always been a sweet soul. Even back at Hogwarts. Everyone loved her."

"How the hell did she end up marrying Regulus?" Harry asked.

"She was a Hufflepuff. The Malfoys were outraged. But Regulus managed to talk Lucius into keeping ties with her. After all, that was his sister. But… Regulus took an interest in her. Who wouldn't?" Remus leaned back in his seat, reminiscing out loud for Harry. "And they secretly dated for almost a year before we found out- me, Sirius, Peter, and your father. She ran around in some of our circles. Peter was infatuated with her. We teased him about it all of the time but Sirius would always get mad."

Harry felt a smile come to his face at the thought of his parents' time at the school.

"Regulus and Sophie were still in school, their seventh year when your parents died. Seeing Sirius accused and sent to Askaban. It sent Regulus into a tailspin. They were married after that."

"Yeah, she mentioned that."

"Well, Regulus came to the Order and offered information. We accepted. Not long after, we heard of his death."

Harry furrowed his brows, "But surely Cassiopeia would've stopped him from going, right?"

Remus ran a hand over his face and sighed, "No. He promised her he'd take her… to ease her spirits. But he left in the morning before she awoke. Left her a note. And never came back." He chewed on his lip before continuing, "She didn't find out what happened until Kreature came back and told her."

"And… the dark mark?"

"Ah, yes. Um… She joined when she was dating Regulus. It was to please everyone's families so they could be married. But, she wasn't ever loyal to Voldemort. And Regulus didn't make her attend meetings. He couldn't bare to corrupt her like that."

The boy who lived was finally starting to understand. "And you two…"

Remus chuckled, "We used to be wonderful friends at Hogwarts. Studied together. Never any romantic feelings. Wasn't until after Sirius died that we grew attached to each other."

Cassiopeia appeared in the doorway again, her hair awry this time and wearing pajamas, "-Remus? You promised." 

"And so I did, Sophie." He stood and walked to her, taking her waist in his hands gently. "Good night, Harry. We'll talk in the morning."

Harry could hear the two wandering down the hall as Remus cooed, "Let's get you to bed, sweet woman."

It made the boy's heart happy.

In another world, he thought, they'd be beyond happy.

He flipped the locket over and over in his hand, lost in thought.

Cassiopeia Black. Hmm.

..............................................................

[changetheprophecy81]

I've always been surprised by the way the fandom has unanimously characterized regulus. He's always in Sirius's shadow in an heir and spare situation, with his brother being smarter, more good looking, and having a better physique than him. And this is inferred from the one comparison harry makes in DH (despite the fact tht harry calls his godfather handsome some 10 times or so in the books lol), its just assumed tht everyone would make this comparison as well. And tht he was more steered into becoming a DE than actually wanting it himself coz he was clueless abt wht was going on.

There is a great possibility of this being the case, but tbh i never saw it this way. Rowling has called regulus the draco of his generation (i always took this as being in the sense tht he was all for the DEs until he saw wht it actually was). Apart from harry's comparison there is nothing to infer tht regulus felt lesser than his brother. I always saw him as being extremely proud of his values and blood status, and being more favored than his brother because of how much he fit the pureblood standards. I also think he took pride in being more 'proper' than his brother; sirius adorned his room with posters and gryffindor flags to rebel, while regulus put up slytherin flags, cut outs of voldemort and the DEs and painted the black family crest on his wall to probably show his brother up, despite the fact that these were literally the most common and basic things to be in his social circle loll. Maybe this was out of social pressure, or maybe he was genuinely proud of his choices and really thought tht made him superior to his 'wayward' brother (sirius seemed to hv a streak of rebellion in him even before coming to hogwarts and being sorted, so he probably wasn't favored as a child lyk the fandom thinks he was). Also idk y ppl hc him as being openly less smarter than sirius, he literally figured out the horcrux thing before dumbledore did. His dying note to voldy still shows pride and arrogance in his intelligence. These are not qualities of a boy who felt insecure and insignificant, again, tht assumption is purely a hc. Regulus got the Mark when he was still in school even tho his parents were never DEs themselves (tho they were undoubtedly proud of him for it), probably coz he had bellatrix vouching him; i see this as being exactly lyk draco was, being proud( not reluctant or unknowing) and eager to prove his worth until he faced the reality of being a DE. Sirius also says in ootp (in relation to his family) that a lot of purebloods thought voldemort had the right ideas until they saw what he was ready to do to get power; this is exactly how i see regulus. PPL say tht he was kind to kreacher while ignoring the fact tht he 'volunteered kreacher' to a guy known for seeing house elves as inferior beings (tho he probably did like him, given tht he drank the poison himself). His view on house elves was probably still bigoted for all we know, he probably saved kreacher coz he was specifically attached to him.

Hence, I see him as a being very like sirius- haughty, proud, and intelligent, but on the side of the DEs, and then becoming lyk draco malfoy because he was confronted with the reality of his choices (and even then we hv no proof tht he didn't hold his other preudices before his death)

[iwriteasfotini]

This is probably a VERY unpopular opinion, but I just saw a post about Jily becoming a secondary ship, I'm assuming to Jegulus? Ok, I'm not a ship purist, but I ship Jegulus over Jily (I can enjoy Jily fics though). My problem with Jily stems from canon Severus. I'm sorry, but you don't obsess about someone for like +20 years who doesn't love you back (and you don't get to be one of the most memorable characters of a seven book series if that is all you have going for you). I think there is bit more going on with Sev and Lily than we see in canon, namely because Harry is a horribly biased narrator where Slytherins are concerned, and Lily is long dead. And Sev doesn't want Harry to know anything about his past. We can be dogmatic and say it's because he regrets passing along the prophecy information which ended up getting Lily killed. Or we can be creative and think about other reasons why Severus wouldn't want Harry to know about his past. Maybe because it would be weird to tell your student (who looks EXACTLY like your arch nemesis from your school years, whose mother is your soul mate, and whose godfather is another one of your arch nemesis) "yeah, so your mom and I were destined for each other but couldn't be together because we ran in conflicting social circles in dangerous times, and your dad was in love with my other best friend (sorta stole him right out from under me to be honest), who was a dude by the way, and yet somehow you were conceived. But I promise they all loved you Harry."

Also, I've decided Lily was a badass (this is definitely hinted at in canon but not capitalized on at all). Badass Lily Evans and loving, doting, supportive James Potter doesn't work for me. I also think Regulus was a badass (also could be seen as hinted at in canon baring Sirius' annoying comments to Harry about Regulus which I may just end up pretending didn't happen; sometimes adult Sirius is more of a teenager than actual teenage Harry) and for some reason badass Regulus with loving, doting, supportive James Potter works much better. Sorry James, your badassery is limited to the Quidditch Pitch, your Transfiguration spell work, and how much you adore/support your badass boyfriend. But you're still an awesome guy.

Now I just have to figure out exactly what went down when Harry was conceived... and my head canon will be complete.

BTW my HC Lily is bi. And does NOT let Sev and all his annoying character complications hold her back. But yeah, Lily and Sev are "Always."

And I realize I actually aired two unpopular opinions Snily and Sev and Regulus being friends. I guess it depends on what other fanfics you have read which have stuck with you, because I haven't read any which have Sev and Reg as friends (although I can't remember what their dynamic was in Choices), but for some reason I've always assumed they would have been (they are only a year apart in age, both Slytherins, and both a bit moody, IDK?). Characterization of Sev is important here though, because I don't portray him as a dick. And the adult he turns into (bit more of a dick than he is as a teen, which I have some straight up issues with in canon) is born from immense suffering and trauma. Story of the Marauders if we are being honest.

[grimst4rs]

i think that we often do forget that the black brothers were not inherently good people; they were more or less morally grey, more or less leaning towards the good/bad side. it's hard to fully unlearn beliefs of your family (and i think that many people resonate with this statement, whether we are talking about fictional characters or real, fully-fledged people), and i think that morally grey characters are far more interesting than people who are inherently good or evil.

sirius black

many people (including myself) would say that sirius is leaning more towards the lighter end of the spectrum, given the fact that he actively tried to unlearn his family's beliefs, he ran away from home at the age of sixteen and decided to move in with people who were recognized in the wizarding society as good people, he joined the order as soon as he finished hogwarts, and, even after the unfortunate ending of the first war, he decided to join the order again and stay inside a house that was never a home for him, to ensure the safety of himself, the order, and harry, too. his last act was the attack at the ministry where he found himself, despite the fact that he was supposed to stay inside grimmauld place, and where he died.

however, we cannot deny that sirius, too, had slip-ups. one of them was the prank (to review what happened, essentially, he told snape how to get past the whomping willow, therefore revealing remus' secret to him). in this situation, sirius shows recklessness and a lack of thought towards the consequences that his actions could have towards not only himself, but severus snape and remus, too. his behavior showed a lack of altruism, and a lack of consideration for the people around him, being willing to put them in danger for whatever may have been the reason.

another one would be swm (snape's worst memory), where james is a part of the action too, but the tormenting of snape was unjustified (j&s started the fight, and snape responded) and ended badly. now, i am in no way a defender of severus snape's, but both j&s and him were acting based on either boredom (the aforementioned) and a need for revenge caused by the actions that had happened against him (the latter).

in canon, we are also shown that he does not exactly think the words he says, and the effect they have on people. (“You're less like your father than I thought.” — GoF). i think that sirius had no right to say this to harry, who was just trying to make sure that sirius would be safe. what we need to remember is that, by the time of the action of GoF took place, sirius was still on the run, and the ministry was still looking for him; it would have been dangerous for both him and harry (and whoever might have joined them) to go out of hiding and go meet up somewhere near hogwarts (hogsmeade). harry's response to sirius' request was logical, and sirius' response was reckless and not well-thought.

regulus black

we do not have enough information on regulus to fully state on which side of the spectrum he finds himself on. however, he was known to have held the same beliefs that his parents did and to be an open voldemort supporter (The Slytherin colours of emerald and silver were everywhere, draping the bed, the walls and the windows. The Black Family crest was painstakingly painted over the bed, along with its motto Toujours Pur. Beneath this was a collection of yellow newspaper cuttings (of voldemort), all stuck together to make a ragged collage.)

therefore, to some extent, we can safely assume that he held the same beliefs as him (and, implicitly, his parents). the voldemort collage might have been on the wall for either research purposes or an act of devotion (this interesting perspective has been added by @/werewolfenthusiast) we cannot be sure; however, i am inclined to think that it might have been a mixture of both.

furthermore, i think the fact that regulus only started actively betraying and going against voldemort only after voldemort's actions had direct consequences on him and the ones he loved — kreacher, and this is shown in two acts; (wording taken off the hp wiki)

After becoming a Death Eater, Regulus began to consider abandoning Lord Voldemort, partly because his master mistreated and intended to kill the Black family's loyal house-elf Kreacher whilst setting up the security measures for one of his Horcruxes.

One day, Voldemort asked Regulus for the use of his house-elf, Kreacher and Regulus eagerly accepted as he wanted to please his master. Voldemort used Kreacher to test the defences around his locket Horcrux, leaving him to die afterwards. Kreacher was able to escape using house-elf magic and told Regulus of what had happened. Regulus worked out that the locket was a Horcrux and was the reason behind Voldemort's immortality. This was the deciding factor in Regulus's defection.

therefore, regulus has been shown to feel remorse and to start to realize the lenghts lord voldemort would go through only when his family (implicitly, his house-elf) were targeted. however, by researching horcruxes and trying to destroy one of them, regulus (un)willingly helped the wizarding world towards voldemort's fall.

all in all, the black brothers are two complex characters who, to some extent, held their family's beliefs and values. whether they had actively tried to unlearn them (sirius) or their betrayal was slow and silent (regulus), and neither of them can be fit in the category of inherently good or bad people.

[twhos-fests]

Gothic Fantasy Fest 2024: Day 9 Reveals (Part One)

Today's GFF highlights are focused on the submissions we received where the prompt was from our curated list of gothic tropes and themes. Mind the tags & Happy Reading! 🦇

Dream a Little Dream by @purplepoetrywasteland

"Panic surged as the root crawled up her legs, her waist, her wrists. The pain spread like wildfire across her skin..."

Warnings: Visions | PTSD | Enemies to Lovers | Hurt/Comfort |

Rating: Explicit

Character(s)/Ship(s): Hansy (Harry Potter/Pansy Parkinson)

Word Count: 26,377 words

Summary: Later, Pansy would be able to pinpoint the exact moment everything went very wrong. As it so happened, she’d been trudging through the Forbidden Forest with Harry Potter at her side.

(In which Pansy is being haunted and she doesn't understand why)

We Must Be Killers by @drusillas-tales

"That addictive taste of power and the cathartic desire to unleash all that violence...."

Warnings: EWE | 8th Year | Morally Grey!Draco | Obsessive!Draco |

Rating: Mature

Character(s)/Ship(s): Dramione

Word Count: 6,626 words

Summary: When in Azkaban, Draco dreamed of his wand after it had been taken from him. With the help of Granger, he finally had the opportunity of getting it back. But when his wand started acting in a very weird way, little did it know that the nightmare it would live was only beginning.

Sweet Dreams (Deep in the Hollow) by @orangecoluredsky

"There were no crashing waves, no birds nor sea life. It was as if everything else had died as he had..."

Warnings: Dead Dove | Witch Hunts | Sirens |

Rating: Explicit

Character(s)/Ship(s): Regulus Black

Word Count: 2,354 words

Summary:

Regulus Black died in 1979. This is the story known by, well, everyone. His body was never found and yet... The war went on, life went on, and no one bothered to ask questions.

And the Truth? The Truth is something far more sinister.

The Woman Who Drowned on Dry Land by @midnightstargazer

"It was hard to tell why she saw some deaths so clearly..."

Warnings: Canon-Compliant | Divination | Visions | Narcissa POV |

Rating: Mature

Character(s)/Ship(s): Narcissa Black Malfoy

Word Count: 4,301 words

Summary: Since childhood, Narcissa has seen glimpses of the future thanks to an old gift - or perhaps a curse - passed down from her mother's family. She knows exactly how the people in her life are going to die. It doesn't make anything better.

Complete fest information under the cut!

Fest Disclaimer

Due to the darker subject material of the prompts, please mind every tag of the submissions you choose to read and engage with from our fest. Some fanworks include triggering and taboo content. So, take care of yourself, honor your limits, and enter at your own risk.

Fest Information

Gothic Fantasy Fest is a Harry Potter fanworks fest dedicated to and centered around our love for the gothic horror genre!

The inspiration to host this fest came out of our desire to see more fanworks in the fandom where the darkness within us all is celebrated, embraced, and reveled in.

This fest is hosted by The Writing Heirs of Slytherin Discord Server.

Important Links

AO3 Collection

Official Fest Spotify Playlist

Official Fest Mood Board

Discord Server

[acertifiedwitch]

I feel like people just took severus personality and gave it regulus

This one is interesting, because I can see why people think that even though it is essentially not true exactly! Their characters build up on very similar foundation which (obviously) makes them have similar traits. Among those are:

- betraying Voldemort for someone they love (Kreacher for Reggie and Lily for Snape)

-> therefore betraying a cause they once believed in and changing their worldview because their eyes were opened due to their loved ones getting hurt

- Growing up in an abusive household making them shut off the rest of the world / causing them to grow up in prejudice (Pureblood Racists for Reg and an abusive Muggle father for Snape)

- Loosing the only person they had that wasn’t morally screwed over (Sirius for Reg and Lily for Snape) due to their own actions which they have done because of self preservation and in the process self destructing

- They are both extremely loyal to the people that matter to them

These events have shaped these characters individually in different yet similar ways. But they are fundamentally very different characters with different flaws and strength.

- Snape for example is a selfish character (based on all canon)

-> he acts out against Voldemort, not to stop him, but to save Lily and Lily alone, because he’s in love with her. In fact he explicitly states that he would be 100% fine with Harry and James dying if that meant Lily would be save

-> he bullies Harry due to his resentment for James even though he swore to protect him (I know he went after Quirrell that doesn’t justify his bullying)

-> he acts selfish towards his house Slytherin and puts them above Gryffindors at all times which is just unfair simply because the people that antagonized him 20 YEARS ago were in that house (and I’m a Slytherin myself so)

-> while he is loyal to Dumbledore he does a lot of thinks simply for self preservation (I could make a list but I’m lazy rn lmao)

One the other hand Regulus is the opposite

He is a people pleaser and would always put the people he loves first (based on non-fandom information we have about him)

-> He does everything to please his parents so that they are happy

-> he joins all possible extracurriculars to please teachers

-> he joins Voldemort because („he was to soft“ - Sirius ) he was soft and gave in easily to please the people around him (-> his cousins and parents as well as class mates all joined the same cause therefore he wanted to please them)

-> he betrays Voldemort because his family (Kreacher) was threatened and he wanted to take Voldemort down for that (unlike Snape)

-> he didn’t tell ANYBODY about his sacrifice and the information he had to protect his family (he didn’t want them to die knowing that he betrayed their cause and keep them save with them not knowing) he didn’t even tell SIRIUS as to not endanger him

He hardly acts out of personal motivation which is a great part of that character.

I am NOT saying both of them don’t break that scheme - on the contrary. Both Snape and Regulus have done things that don’t fit it, but almost all of the time they do.

Another part about them is that they are both geniuses - BUT I’m different areas:

Snape in Potions and Spell Making (Halfblood Prince)

And Regulus in Quidditch and Dark Arts because it is not to be undervalued that he found out the Horcrux information in MONTHS for which even DUMBLEDORE took YEARS.

=> No people have NOT „given Snapes personality to Regulus“ instead the two are just very similar characters, they may have been good friends even who knows

Also this is based on canonical information and not the fandom versions of both Snape and Regulus which are hardly similar AT ALL and just simply different characters but that would take veeeery long to talk about. Everyone who knows their fanon versions even a little probably knows already either way.

(Side Note: Also Canonically Snape was a Loser and Regulus was a Jock lmao)

[the-invisibility-bloke]

001 harry potter/albus Severus Potter

WHAT I was not prepared. I have not met any Halbus shippers on Tumblr. We need to talk, my friend. Okay.

-

001 | send me a ship and I will tell you:

when I started shipping it if I did: I. Don’t know. It was sometime early this year and it may have been this classic but that one's not very Pottercest focused so more likely something I just ran across randomly. It’s funny because. My friend was trying to get me into Orion/Regulus and I tried, man, I did (I even wrote one for her birthday, as you can see I had to pad it with Starcest for my own well-being XD) but ultimately I kept insisting “I just can’t get into parent/child.” LOL, cute. Turns out I just needed the right parent/child to drag me in. Enter Harry/Al.

my thoughts: My thoughts have been fueled by a lot of Chardonnay but listen. I take Cursed Child canon with several grains of salt. I use what I like and discard the rest. The idea of Albus as a Slytherin who resents the fact that he’s expected to not only live up to but exceed his father’s legacy and the fact that the whole world sees his sorting as a handicap is so fucking golden because of course he would grow to resent Harry, it’s middle child syndrome on steroids, you’ve got James Sirius who is basically James Potter OG, popular and athletic and probably a bit of a prick (which tbh makes for some prime Al/James shipping but I digress), and Albus who is... good at potions? (Fanon, yes, but well done because of course he’d excel at the thing Harry hated.) What I love about CC is that it creates a very plausible conflict dynamic between them and what I hate about CC is that it completely cheapens that beautiful dynamic by portraying Harry as a tone-deaf bumbling idiot of a father and no. I’m not buying it. He’s a bit thick but he would make every effort to be the most conscientious parent who truly works to relate to all of his children and make them feel valued for exactly who they are. Again, I digress, but if we accept this dynamic on a broad scale and ignore the minutiae, it creates this lovely scenario of James S. being more Lily’s kid and Albus being more Harry’s kid and everything changing when Al goes to Hogwarts and sorts Slytherin and learns what everyone else thinks of his father and befriends the kid of his dad’s nemesis and thus eventually sheds that daddy’s-boy skin and Harry just being heartbroken about it but not really knowing how to win him back.

What makes me happy about them: I think at their core they are so, so very alike which is why the conflict exists in the first place. I think they share the same sense of humour, the same ideological passions, the same deeply sensitive core, the same need for that desperate hungry all-consuming love that Harry hasn’t had since Sirius and Albus had but never quite trusted because he always felt like an outcast and he was probably always a bit jealous of James and definitely jealous of Teddy (...rightfully so but NEVER MIND). So they are a bit Drarry in the sense that they both need the same things but are coming at it from wildly different angles, so lots of room for conflict and misinterpretation. Yay. :)

What makes me sad about them: I mean, well, if they carry on long-term, they will never be able to flourish, they will never be able to hold hands in public, they will be imprisoned in secrecy the rest of their lives, and Harry will suffer unbearable guilt over that because all he wants is for his children to have the normalcy he never did, regardless of how many times Albus assures him he doesn’t give a fuck about normal. I think they also both have the potential to truly wound each other because of the depth of their love and their volatile personalities. They both have a temper and they both need each other so desperately that one misstep can leave them feeling very unstable. They very much know how to push each other’s buttons which can lead to a very toxic albeit passionate relationship.

things done in fanfic that annoys me: Eh, don’t want to offend any fellow writers.

things I look for in fanfic: Canon compliant/adjacent is always my preference; as with most cross-gen/incest I prefer Al to be the instigator and for Harry to suffer the Burden of Unfathomable Guilt™. I love bratty but intelligent Al who just literally does not give 0.5 shits about social mores and, hey, if his dad is fit af and the only person who truly gets him and makes him feel safe and protected and cherished, why shouldn’t they get it on.

Who I’d be comfortable them ending up with, if not each other: Scorpius is probably the best choice for Al, but I’m a guilty Dralbus and Drarry/Scorbus OT4 shipper. I also love the idea of Harry/Albus/Teddy, i.e. Harry/Teddy are together but when Albus finds out he gets wildly jealous because he always had a crush on Teddy and Harry is his daddy, tyvm, so all the feelings get muddled and Teddy’s the one to eventually invite him in and mediate to help Al and Harry realize their feelings for each other.

My happily ever after for them: Best case scenario, they have to hide forever. They’re not exactly a happily ever after ship. :/

who is the big spoon/little spoon: Daddy is the big spoon. :))) But but but also I think Harry still occasionally has nightmares or just needs some of that cuddly comfort he never got as a kid, when work gets really stressful etc., and he’d never vocalize it, never admit it, but Al is very attuned to that need for occasional role reversal and knows when to simply hold him and stroke his hair and tell him everything is going to be okay.

what is their favorite non-sexual activity: I think they bond over films and music and maybe dueling. Lots of Muggle things, I think Al is curious about that world because he’s curious in general, which makes Harry feel relevant because that’s what he grew up with, and none of his other kids or friends (besides Hermione) really relates to it.

[themessedupsonata]

Rejoice

Regulus Black x Fem!Reader

Summary: You, Regulus, and the marauders are on a very dangerous mission to destroy the Horcruxes. The whole situation of the mission and of the brutal war were affecting your mental health drastically. Luckily, Reg is the best boyfriend in the world, and he knows exactly what to do to make you feel better.

Word Count: 1.9 K

Warnings: Canon level of violence, mentions of mental health/mental health issues and people feeling down because of the first wizarding war.

A/N: The sixth horcrux (Harry Potter) was accidentally made in 1981 and the seventh one, Nagini, was created after Voldemort's return between 1994 and 1996. This story takes place in 1979, so there were only five horcruxes. The song O'Children is mentioned. Let's all pretend it was released at the 70s and not at the 200s.

1979. 

The wizarding war was in full swing. Muggle-borns and "blood traitors" were murdered daily by Voldemort and his sick followers. The Order of the Phoenix had been formed a few years ago and you were finally able to join on the recommendation of your cousin James after your graduation. 

Being a member of the Order of the Phoenix was suicide. You all had nightmares, and peace was something none of you knew when friends were injured and even killed weekly. But you were fighting for a better world, and you wouldn't hesitate to lay down your life in the cause of respect for Muggle-borns.

Almost a year after joining the order, you decided to visit Regulus Black. You had grown apart in the middle of the seventh year and due to the missions, you didn't have time to try to rekindle your friendship with him. 

But today would be the day you would corner him at his house and the two of you would talk like the civilized adults you were.

Upon knocking on the back door of Grimmauld Place, You were quickly answered by Kreacher. The house-elf looked disappointed and then furious at the sight of your face (despite the hood you wore for security) and so he hurriedly pulled you into the mansion and locked the door. 

''You shouldn't be here, brat. What the hell do you want?'' Kreacher demanded in his usual annoyed and impatient tone. But today there was something else in his posture. He seemed to be… restless.

 ''Goodnight to you too, Kreacher . I…'' You took a deep breath before completing the sentence. ''I came to talk to Regulus.'' 

''He's not at home. You interrupted my service for nothing.'' You frowned. The Ex-Slytherin's source of income was the generous inheritance of the Black family. Which meant he didn't work and couldn't be away on business. And you were aware that you were Regulus' only friend. Why the hell he wasn't home at 9:00 pm on a Thursday?

You immediately felt a bad feeling about your friend's whereabouts and suddenly your stomach dropped.

 ''Kreacher... W-where did Reg go?'' You mustered up the strength to ask. Yours hands clenched your cloak to stop them from shaking.

 The elf hesitated before answering. 

''That's none of your business, you nasty blood traitor.'' Kreacher ALWAYS looked people in the eye when talking to them to intimidate them and show he wasn't a submissive elf domestic. So the fact that he was avoiding your gaze like the plague made you freak out internally. 

All your life you have treated all house elves around you with respect and dignity. 

But today you didn't have time for that. 

''Listen here you bastard elf: Tell me where my friend went before I break your neck!'' You weren't an aggressive person and the elf who was currently being lifted several inches off the ground by the collar of his robes knew it. So seeing you threatening him like that both infuriated him and sent an immense wave of relief through his body. 

Kreacher did not verbally respond to you. Instead, he snapped his fingers and conjured up a small black notebook and handed it to you. You immediately put the Elf down and started reading the contents of the notebook. 

He was a death eater?!?! Voldemort has Horcruxes and apparently, Regulus stole one of them?!?! HE WAS GOING TO A LAKE FILLED WITH INFERNIS?!?! 

Regulus what have you done? 

* * * *

Several hours later, You heard the sheets shifting as Regulus regained consciousness. You were still reading a book about Horcruxes that you may or may not have stolen from Dumbledore's office a few hours earlier. You had your back to the boy in your bed. Your tea was still hot and your hair was freshly washed.

 ''Y/N…?'' He asked in a voice groggy with sleep. 

You finally got up from your desk chair to look at Regulus. 

''Would you like to explain to me why I found my school friend with half his forearm bleeding a terrifying amount of blood from having his skin ripped off and being dragged by extremely dangerous undead beings who intended to kill him?'' You asked calmly. With an expression showing nothing. 

Regulus looked away and concentrated on staring at his lap. A few seconds later, his shoulders started to shake and he buried his face in his hands. 

You sat next to him on the bed, but you didn't dare touch him because you didn't wanted to make him uncomfortable. 

''You didn't have to go through this alone, Reg. I promised I'd always be here for you, remember?” Yours voice was low but firm. Your confirmation that he heard you between his sobs was feeling Regulus's arms around your waist and his face buried in your chest, soaking your shirt. You stroked his back and kissed the top of his head, making the poor wizard feel loved for the first time in a long time. 

* * * 

After Regulus' arm was treated by mediwizards that supported the Order of the Phoenix, a meeting with all members of the Order was scheduled and Regulus shared everything. How he was forced by his mother to become a Death Eater before he turned 17; How he realized he was on the wrong side of the war; how he discovered that Voldemort had six Horcruxes; how Regulus stole one of them intending to destroy it and how he ripped the skin off his own arm so that Voldemort could no longer control him.

 When the young wizard finished speaking, no one had the heart to say anything. Who broke the dead silence was Dumbledore, after long minutes of reflecting on the new information about Voldemort. 

''I'm sorry for everything you've had to go through, young Black. I consider you worthy of my trust and I hope that of everyone in this room as well.'' 

The next to speak was Remus Lupin.

 ''Do you know what are the other Horcruxes, Regulus? Killing Voldemort is our only chance to win this war and we need to do it as soon as possible."

 Regulus nodded and listed the other three Horcruxes. Aside from the locket, he was only sure of the location of one of the Horcruxes. Sirius couldn't disguise his laughter when he found out that The Dark Lord™ had a diary. 

Quickly, everyone began to get involved in the operation to destroy the Horcruxes. Some members made suggestions f where the other two Horcruxes might be, other had theories of how to destruy horcruxes, and the room started to get insanely noisy. Dumbledore interrupted them, saying that he had already made the more suitable plan.

 * * * 

Two months. 

That was the time you spent hunting Horcruxes and running away from Voldemort and the Death Eaters who quickly discovered your plans. None of you could have guessed that destroying a diary (which you and Peter had stolen from the Malfoy's Manor) and a locket that was thousands of years old could be so difficult to destroy. 

Currently, you were in an abandoned cabin in a forest. The diary was tucked away in Sirius' backpack and the one wearing the locket today was James. It was a bad idea because he cried himself to sleep because he missed Lily; the wife he loved so much and that was pregnant and alone because her husband was forced to leave her. 

None of the rest of you were okay either. 

Sure, good things had happened. Regulus confessed to you how important you were to him and you started dating. Honestly, he was a much better boyfriend than you had imagined. But Sirius still felt terrible for everything he thought bad about his little brother. And knowing that he could have saved Regulus a lot of suffering if he hadn't left his brother alone in that hellish house was eating him alive. 

Remus needed to walk several kilometres into the forest on full moon nights so he wouldn't risk hurting anyone. And only one of the Marauders could go with him because they couldn't leave you and Regulus in charge of some of the wizarding world's most dangerous objects alone. Consequently, Remus was more exhausted and tired than usual. It hurt so much that you couldn't do anything to help your friend. 

Peter did not have a good relationship with his family. The Marauders were all he knew of affection and he felt helpless watching them suffer and being so impotent. He always felt like the most useless of his friends, but not being able to ease the pain of people so important to him was killing him. 

Now you… Well, you had everything to lose. Your dream of being a Quidditch player, Your loving family, Your friends, Your boyfriend and Your own life. Nightmares of being tortured or seeing someone you loved being killed in front of you kept you awake for days. 

After soaking his pillow, James was finally able to sleep. Everyone eventually made it, but you were tossing and turning in your bed for hours. Finally giving up, you put on a coat, grabbed your wand and silently left the hut. 

You mumbled lumos and found a log to sit on a few yards from the hut and finally allowed the tears to roll down Your cheeks. You barely had the energy to sob. 

You don't know how long you stayed there, but apparently, it was long because a voice that made your stomach fill with butterflies brought you out of your depressing thoughts.

 ''There you are, sweetheart.'' Regulus didn't speak too loudly so as not to scare you, but his voice was firm to try to reassure you.

You were surprised by the small genuine smile that formed on your face when you saw him.

''Sorry, Reg. I just needed to be alone for a while. Didn't mean to worry you.''  He knelt in front of you and kissed your cheek. 

''No need to apologize, Y/n. I understand.'' He replied, stroking the place where he kissed you.

A few minutes passed in comfortable silence before he asked if you'd like to vent to him. Everything you've been holding on to for those weeks came crashing down as you buried your face in the crook of your lover's neck. You tried to explain what you felt, but the sobs prevented you from speaking properly. You stayed like that for several minutes until your breathing calmed down and you started placing kisses on Regulus' jaw, making him laugh. 

Suddenly, he gently lifted you to your feet and wrapped his arms around your waist, forcing you to bury your face in his chest. Reg put yours arms around his neck and he started humming a song softly that you immediately recognized. 

Sirius was a big fan of muggle rock and you liked the songs he made you listen to so much that you showed them to Regulus. His favourite band became Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. O' Children was his favourite song and it was the one he was humming as he cradled you in his arms to dance. 

At that moment, the war and Voldemort did not exist. You didn't risk losing your family or your friends because Regulus knew how to make you feel protected like no one else ever did. You loved him. You loved him desperately and you needed to tell him before it was too late. 

''I love you.'' 

You both froze as you realized you'd said the L-word at the same time, and immediately looked into each other's eyes, shocked, before bursting out laughing like children, happy and relieved. 

He connected his lips with yours and the world became beautiful again. Not perfect or safe, but hopeful.

[starchaseriseverything]

"Reggie, my love."

"What, James?"

James felt so in love in this moment that he thinks he might propose right then and there, without a ring, or without Sirius knowing.

"Can we tell him yet?"

"No."

Regulus and James have been in a secret relationship for about two years now. Honestly, James is surprised Sirius hasn't figured it out or that he hasn't told Sirius.

James has told Sirius everything since they were fourteen. They were immediate friends, but James didn't start trusting Sirius until fourteen. Just like with Marlene.

James has known Marlene for as long as he can remember. Their parents were friends before they were born, and they've always grown up together. But, he didn't start trusting her right away.

"Why not?"

"You know how Sirius is."

They are in the Slytherin common room. Sirius never goes in there. He's banned. Slughorn banned him after a really bad prank he did on Severus. He hasn't been allowed in there since.

Which is why they use the common room to meet up. Now, of course, their friends are always there. Especially when James' best friend is dating Regulus'. But, it's the best place.

Marlene rolls her eyes. "Yeah, dramatic."

"Who else is dramatic that we know?" James asks. "Oh, that's right, you."

"Shut up, bitch."

"Hey!" Barty yells. "I'm the only one that can call people bitches."

"Oh, I'm sorry, mister 'I won't call Evan a bitch'."

"Can everyone just shut the fuck up?"

"Sorry, Cas."

"Sorry, babe."

"Talk, now. Why can't you tell Sirius. It's not that big a deal."

"You really want us to tell him?" Regulus asks. "Fine, let's see how it goes."

Barty smirks. "Yes! I gotta go get Ev and Dora!" Barty jumps up and runs up the stairs while calling over his shoulder, "Don't start without me!"

Evan, Barty, and Pandora come bounding down the stairs. "What is happening?" Pandora asks. "B just told us to hurry and didn't explain."

Barty smiles. "Their telling Sirius."

Evan' eyes go wide. "No."

"Yes."

"They do realize what's going to happen, right?"

"Yep." He pauses. "Well, maybe. I'm not entirely sure."

"Would you two just shut up?" Regulus states.

***

"Hey, Pads. How are you?"

"What do you want, Prongs?" Sirius looks behind him. "Is that my brother and Slytherins?"

"Dora' a Ravenclaw."

"Not the point. What are they doing here?"

"Yeah, about that..." He got cut off by his best friend.

"Jamie and Reg are dating."

"What the fuck, Marls!"

"Their what!?"

Lily laughs. "He had to have figured it out at some point."

"Shut up, Lils."

"When the fuck."

Mary smiles. "Mar, no."

"Two years."

"Two years!? You've been...."

Remus continues, "Dating."

"For two years!?"

"Yes?"

"Also, when did you start calling Rosier, Dora?"

"When he started dating Reg."

"Marlene Elizabeth McKinnon!"

"You made friends with Slytherin'?"

"Technically, Dora' a Ravenclaw."

"Not the point! Do you love him?"

James knows he loves him but he's not sure if he should tell him. He's said it before, but Regulus has never said it back. "Of course I love him."

"Then, choose."

"What?"

"Me or him?"

"Pads, please."

"Pads, don't make him choose."

"Stay out of this, Moony. Me or him?"

James looks at his best friend. He knows that if he asks Marlene right now to choose between him and Dorcas, she would choose Dorcas 100%.

Marlene knows exactly what he's thinking. "You know I will be with you either way."

"I know, Marls. But I also know you would choose Dorcas over me."

"You know what you have to do." James nods.

"Pads, Sirius."

Sirius gives him a pitying look. "Great, choose my brother over me."

"He hasn't even said anything." Mary says.

"He never calls me by my name."

"I'm sorry."

"No, don't. I don't want to see you. You're not my friend. Not anymore." He walks up the stairs.

"Moony, Wormy."

Peter shakes his head and follows Sirius. Remus walks up to him. "You know I love you, right?" James nods. "But I will always choose Sirius." He nods again.

"I love you, too." He walks up the stairs.

Lily and Mary walk up to him. "You know we always will choose you."

"No, go to Sirius. I'll be fine. Besides, I'm always happy." James could hear Marlene scoff behind him.

"Yeah, right." Mary says sadly.

"Please, just go to Sirius, ok?"

"Yeah, we will. In a little." Lily hugs him, and Mary joins soon after. They stay like that for half a minute, and then they walk upstairs.

"Jamie -"

"I'm fine, Marls." He walks to the passage way to get out and stops in his tracks. "Don't follow me." He walks out.

James makes it to the Astronomy Tower and stares down at the ground. He can see the dent on the ground where he rammed his broom into it. The blood from that so-called ramming.

He can remember how he was so distracted by Regulus that he didn't see where he was going and didn't realize he was going down until he hit the ground. Luckily, his head didn't hit it, but he did get some pretty bad bruises from it.

"Jamie?" He didn't even hear the footsteps.

"I'm fine, Reg."

"No, you're not. You choose me over, Sirius. He's your best friend."

"No, he's not. Marls is."

"Not the point. Jamie, you can't just run away from your problems."

"I didn't. My problems are in my head. They always are."

"Jamie -"

"I'm fine, Regulus."

"No, you're not! You can't just do that!"

"Do what?"

"Run away from everyone!"

James finally turns around to face Regulus. "Why would anyone care?"

"I do! I love you! No one else!"

"You - you - you just -" James takes a deep breath in. "You love me?"

"Of course I do, you idiot. Why wouldn't I?"

"I don't know. Because I'm a Gryffindor?"

Regulus laughs. "Why would I care? Even if I didn't love you before we started dating, I would still love you now."

James smiles. "Really?" Regulus nods. "I love you, too."

James loves Regulus so much. He's glad it turned out this way. He would have rather kept his boyfriend and friend, but it wasn't supposed to work out that way.

"I know. How could you not?" They both laugh.

[racfoam]

hey! rac can I have a snippet from voldemort raises harry AU

Anon, I am so sorry this is late, but here you go!

This scene is from Regulus’ POV, he is an observer.

“Regulus,” greeted the Dark Lord, “what are you and my little soulmate doing this late in the kitchen?” Regulus gave Harry a little, gentle nudge on the back with his hand, encouraging her. “I was just…” mumbled Harry, “wanted… treacle tart… Mrs Malfoy says I can’t have more than one…” “And what did you say to that?” the Dark Lord asked curiously. It was common knowledge among the ranks that Harry was horrible with listening to people. She didn’t respect authority, unless it came from the Dark Lord. “I said I'm your soulmate so I can do what I want and that if she doesn’t give me treacle tart I’ll rat her out,” Harry said calmly, completely oblivious that she was one incredibly sassy child. Regulus was impressed. It took a lot of guts to threaten Narcissa Malfoy. How very Slytherin of Harry… then again, Harry was surrounded by Slytherins her entire life. You can put a lion cub in a snake den and it will pick up the behavioural patterns of snakes. It will behave like a snake. Because it doesn’t know anything else. The Dark Lord laughed. It was a booming, rich, joyous sound. Never before had Regulus heard the Dark Lord laugh like this. So… normal. “Then she thwacked me on the head with the Daily Prophet,” finished Harry. Regulus snorted. “Narcissa is a Healer among my ranks, but she does not have the mark. Therefore, if we follow the hierarchy, she doesn’t need to listen to anything I say.” “Yeah, she said that,” Harry said, looking thoughtful. “Anyway, as she didn’t let me have a second treacle tart…” “You intended to steal it?” the Dark Lord finished, amused. Harry looked properly innocent. “Not steal… I’d eat it.” “There would be no proof left.” “Exactly!” announced Harry excitedly, happy someone finally understood her plan.

The Dark Lord smiled, waved Harry forward — she ran toward him like a duckling, happy and trusting — and picked her up into his arms, cradling her to his chest.

“It will rot your teeth,” chided the Dark Lord, but moved to the fridge for the leftover treacle tart anyway, taking out one slice, handing it to a grinning Harry shining with joy. Her little fingers grabbed onto the treacle tart.

Regulus did not miss the fondness in the Dark Lord's eyes as the dark wizard gazed upon Harry, who busies herself with devouring the treacle tart.

“You are dismissed, Regulus,” said the Dark Lord. “I’ll put Harriet to bed.”

“Yes, my Lord,” said Regulus, bowing.

“Bye, Regulus!” said Harry, waving her tiny hand at him.

Not knowing what to do, yet not wanting to appear rude to Harry, Regulus raised his hand and gave a slight, awkward wave back, and headed to the doors.

“Will you read me Babbity Rabbity?” he heard Harry ask.

“Don’t you want me to read something else?” asked the Dark Lord. “The book has other stories.”

“Babbity Rabbity,” said Harry.

Regulus heard the Dark Lord sigh. “Babbity Rabbity it is.”

Regulus decided not to think how bizarre it was to hear the Dark Lord say Babbity Rabbity.