#remus tries his best bless him!!!

[polaroidcats]

A little au based on u teaching me not to accidentally tell someone they looked good naked when I am trying to say good night in German :)

SKYE I AM SCREAMING THIS IS EVERYTHING TO ME!!!! Sirius getting naked because he thinks Remus is finally admitting his feelings, them escaping the slow burn trope via german miscommunication trope, it is all so so perfect, thank you for drawing this I am OBSESSED!!!! 💖💖💖💖💖

[sunnami]

the (poly) marauders + lily as reversed tropes.

a/n: i tried moving to a new blog.. possibly got shadowbanned... that other blog is now my dump blog, LMAO. pls enjoy this drabble!

i. academic rivals except it’s two teachers who compete to have the best class.

“It’s driving me mad, Prongs,” says a frazzled Remus Lupin, pacing back and forth in his nearly-empty classroom. Sirius watches from where he sits backwards on a wooden chair—not at all concerned with the woes of his lover, rather preoccupied with the derriere of the DADA professor, hugged beautifully by his trousers. (He makes a mental note to thank Lily and her shopping sprees in Muggle London later. And, thoroughly.) Lily eyes Remus warily, ignoring the way James is tugging at her newly-trimmed hair like a lovesick fourth-year. 

“I’ve fought in the bloody war, what do you mean my ‘pronunciation could do with some work’?” Remus scoffs, a bewildered expression on his flushed cheeks. Then, he points to the basket of lemon poppy-seed muffins, “And, the gall to send me that. Can you believe it?”

“No way,” Lily widens her eyes in mock outrage, gasping for melodramatic effect. “How dare anyone send our sweet, darling Remus homemade muffins?”

Remus dangles the swing handle of the wicker basket by his hand, nose scrunched in disgust as though it could turn him into a werewolf for the second time. “It’s not about the baskets, Lily! It’s a fear-mongering tactic—a threat, if you will. If Gryffindor doesn’t win the house cup, I might as well resign from my post.” 

James chortles, leaning back against his seat to fully stare at Remus. (And what a lovely face he has.) “Don’t you think you’re going overboard there, Moony? We’ve won the bloody thing every year—and if we’re running behind Hufflepuff, I can always give ickle Harry a hundred points for being our son. Quite a feat, wouldn’t you agree?”

Lily smacks him on the arm. “Don’t you dare, James Fleamont Potter!” 

Sirius whistles. “Full name. Yikes. You’re on your own there, mate.” 

James glares at him. “I’ve had my tongue down your throat, don’t call me ‘mate’.” 

Grinning, Sirius diverts his attention back to the pouting werewolf, struck by whatever magical spell you’ve cast on him—and their happy little wedded bunch. (He particularly likes the way you raise your voice when the Weasley twins charm your greenhouse with the colors of maroon and yellow. The upturn of your nose and raw fury in your eyes does something funny to his heart.) “Be honest, Moony, you’re just frustrated because our favorite professor is wearing those bell-bottom jeans that make their legs look just utterly delectable,” he grins salaciously. 

“Can confirm,” replies Lily with a chirpy nod. “The back view is even better.” 

“Well, yes, but that’s beside the point, my love,” Remus splutters with a cough. “It’s a matter of legacy and pride now. If—”

“While I appreciate being the topic of conversation, I’ve come to collect my students’ papers on Hinkypunks and Dugbogs,” you enter the fray with a knock on the door, startling them from their conversation; a wide smile on your face and a yellow scarf around your neck. “You see, I like to give them points myself when they score above a hundred percent. It really motivates them for the end-of-year exams.” 

James beams at your arrival, like a sunflower blooming under sunlight on a summer day. He stretches his arms wide, a space perfectly carved for you. “Come here, darling,” he calls out for his spouse, quickly affirming that the jeans you’re wearing is a blessing to the wizard kind. (He wonders if you’d let him peel it off you tonight.) As you perch yourself atop his lap, James nuzzles the crook of your neck, pressing soft, butterfly kisses to your skin. “How was your day?”

He captures your lips and you eagerly lean into his warmth. “Perfect now that I’ve found you all. Why were you hiding here, anyway?” you ask innocently, fluttering your lashes at Remus. “Did you get my gift, Moony? The elves helped me with it last night.”

“He’s just cross because you’ve become the entire castle’s favorite teacher in your first year,” Lily points out treacherously, flashing her doe eyes at Remus. (Great, now he’s got two pairs of the prettiest eyes on earth staring into his soul. He’s so beyond in love with everyone in this room.) “Not even the Malfoy kid complains about you, and he still grumbles when I have to do my yearly check-ups.”

You laugh knavishly, beckoning him over. “Is it my fault that I’m so lovable?” 

Remus scoffs, yet finds his feet drawn towards you in long, impatient strides. He leans down until the scent of ambrarome and coconut overwhelms your senses. You tug on his duck-printed tie, smiling as he grumbles lightheartedly into your lips, “Not at all, darling.”

“Shall I lock the doors now?” Sirius offers mischievously. “I’ve always wanted to do it in a classroom.”

ii. it’s too hot to cuddle!

“Mmmrgh, Lily, get off, you fiend,” you groan into the sweat-soaked pillow, suffering from one of the worst heat waves Godric’s Hollow has ever seen—swatting your wife away as she throws her leg over your thigh, impishly nibbling on your neck. On any other day, you’d relish the feel of her skin on yours, the tendrils of her flaming red hair tickling your bare arms—or the times you’d wake up to a tangled mess of crimson in your mouth. But today is just not that day.

Lily sniffles. “Ah, woe is me. My own son doesn’t want to hug me anymore, and none of the people I married want to cuddle me on this dreadful—what ever happened to ‘til death do us part’, you traitors?” 

You roll over on the bed to face her with an incredulous glare—the pretty witch has the nerve to smile at you. “Don’t be so dramatic, Lily. Just cast another cooling charm, or something.”

Lily flops onto her side of the king-sized bed, breathless and flushed, arms splayed out like an octopus—wincing apologetically when she hits you in the face by accident. “I already did. We might just have to get naked to put up with this heat.”

James pokes his head through the door, glasses forgone and black hair messily strewn over his eyes; the damp fabric of his white shirt clinging to chiseled, dark skin. (Ah, the joys of marrying an active Auror and former Quidditch prodigy.) “Did someone say get naked?”

“Way ahead of everyone,” says Sirius as he steps out of the bathroom, having taken his fourth shower today, and wearing nothing but his birthday suit, face towel strung over his shoulder and toothbrush in the side of his mouth. 

“Oh Gods, Sirius!” Lily squeals as she throws a pillow at him. “Get back in there and put some clothes on!” 

“What?” he retorts quizzically, swirling around to give everyone a show—and a generous view of his abs and firm backside. And, well, the other thing, too. “It’s not like you haven’t seen any of this before.”

Last to join the party is Remus, who barely spares a second glance to the naked Sirius Orion Black. “Pack your things, I got us a room at a Muggle inn for an hour. Harry’s downstairs waiting for everyone. He says he’ll rip off the stuffed Padfoot’s head if no one accompanies him to the pool later.” 

That is all he says before swiftly exiting the room.

You stare at the spot where he had been standing previously, whispering in awe, “God bless the Remus Lupins of the world.” 

iii. too much communication.

“—and the thing is,” you say through your weepy blubbering, nose swollen and eyes stinging from crying for the last thirty minutes. “When you guys get all secret-ey and start avoiding me, it really makes me feel like shite. And. . . and then—!” you pause to hiccup, breaking down into sobs once more when Sirius gathers you into his arms, laying his love all over your skin, kissing your tears away as he coos into your ear. “And then, Gilderoy Lockhart comes and says that you all hide away in this h-house, or shack, or whatever and meet your secret girlfriend there! I know you said it was just us and you’d never, ever cheat—and I trust you all more than life itself! But I have to know why you disappear from me every month on a particular night. A-Are you tired of me or something?”

Sirius hushes you with his lips, brows contorted—as though he’s in pain because you are in pain. He cradles the back of your neck, placating your worries with whispers of devotion. “Oh, darling, I’m sorry. We didn’t mean for it to get this far. We just wanted to keep you from harm. You’re our world, our entire heart. If you’re hurt, it hurts worse for us, little love.” 

Remus kneels by your feet, grabbing your hands in his; eyes dripping with fondness and warmth. The gold flecks in his eyes glimmering like stars in the night sky. “There’s something you have to know about me, love. We should have told you this long ago—but I was afraid you would look at me differently.”

You end up in another crying fit, overwhelmed by his kindness and sincerity. “I’ve seen you when you had food poisoning, Remus Lupin, I was the one who cleaned your vomit on the floors—nothing on this earth can make me look at you differently.”

Remus chokes, before gathering his bearings, hiding wet chuckles in your lap. “I’m a werewolf, my darling. That’s why we avoid you during full moons. To keep you safe. Your safety is always going to be one of my highest priorities. I’d die before I would let Moony harm a pretty hair on your head.” 

“Is that it?” you croak, whimpers subsiding as relief floods through your veins. “Truly?”

Remus nods. “Truly.”

“Oh, our poor love,” Lily murmurs, delicately running her hand through your hair, a worried knit in her brows. “I’m sorry we let it get to this point. Look at you—you’ll cry yourself sick.” She procures a daintily-embroidered handkerchief from her skirt pockets, gently dabbing at your damp eyes, eyes creased with love. “I’m sorry,” she says once more, pressing her lips to yours until all you feel is her instead of hurt. “No more secrets, I promise.”

James scratches the back of his head with a crooked grin. “Well. . . there is one more. Remember that time you saw a stag in the corridors? That was me. And, the dog trying to get a look under your skirt was Sirius.”

You blink. “What?”

iv. child hero has very involved parents.

Harry James Potter is known as the Boy-Who-Lived, the beloved Chosen One of the wizarding society, if you will. He has a destiny to follow and all that—well, if he could actually do anything heroic.

“What do you mean there’s a basilisk in the castle!” you shriek, a poor vase in Dumbledore’s office shattering to a million pieces. Harry drags a hand down his face—this is going to be a very long night. Suddenly, he regrets writing a letter to home about the happenings in the castle. (How was he supposed to know that all five of his parents would march into Dumbledore’s quarters the moment they heard about the blood on the walls and the petrified students?) “Why haven’t you shut down the school yet? Are you waiting for more students to get hurt?” you press on heatedly, James and Sirius flanking your sides like protective bodyguards. 

“Have you taken any protective measures?” Lily asks worriedly, holding onto Remus’s hand that’s resting on her shoulder. (Honestly, Harry thinks, rolling his eyes inwardly. The lot of you are worse than Molly Weasley at this point.) She turns to Harry, “What about Hermione? Is she safe? Oh, her parents must be worried.”

“You know what,” you say standing up, pivoting on your heel as your flock of lovers follow in suit. “We’re leaving, Harry dear, let’s go.” 

“Go?” the twelve-year-old echoes dumbfoundedly. “Go, where?”

“Home,” you reply with no room for arguments. “Until the matter is resolved, you are staying home. And tell Hermione she’s welcome to stay with us, too. And, Ginny. Ronald, as well. Actually, darling, why don’t you just tell all your friends the Potter manor is open to them whenever.”

Harry thinks you’ve just decided that on a whim, but he knows that Lily and his fathers will go along with whatever you want, regardless.

Your gaze slices to Dumbledore with a low hiss, venomous enough to rival a Slytherin’s taunt. “Fix this or I shall hunt down that basilisk myself.” 

Harry’s shoulders slump. 

So much for fulfilling prophecies and defeating dark lords.

a/n: drabbles are so fun!! this was so fun to write (but not trying to set up another blog.. NEVER AGAIN, I AM STAYING HERE!) i might do some more drabbles since my brain is fried after my last few fics which were long as heck.

[moonstruckme]

Mae rambles;

Hello love! First of all congratulations! I was thinking about reader baking a chocolate cake for Remus when he is feeling down. Maybe he hasn't told reader he is a werewolf and she just knows he likes chocolate and sees that he is not himself. I imagine he wouldn't want to share it at all lol.

Thanks 🤍

No you're so right !

the only person he'll share with is you, and he cuts you out a big slice and then (because he's feeling poorly) eats the rest of it himself with just a fork

he doesn't really have the energy to shower you in compliments and he's not prone to verbalising that stuff anyway, so while he does tell you it's great when he first bites into it, he makes sure you know the rest of the time by just obviously, thoroughly enjoying it

bless his heart he tries but there are crumbs all over the couch

sirius and james come over to check on him and they're like "what've you got there" and he's like "the best chocolate cake i've ever had in my miserable life. sod off" and then he won't let them near it

thanks you at seemingly random times throughout the next week, just because he keeps thinking about it and feeling overwhelming gratitude and affection

is too embarassed/guilty to ask for it again during the next full moon but he does call you to let you know he's feeling poorly and when you ask if he'd like some chocolate cake again he's like "yes!...um, only if it's convenient. but yes please"

[petitemistletoe]

rewrite your elvis fic why’d you only call me when you’re high but with one of the marauders?

Title: Why'd You Only Call me When You're High?

Pairing: Sirius Black x Reader

Warnings: smut, angst, drugs, old school rocker vibes

Word Count: 1.9K+

A/N: this could only be written about Sirius I'm sorry! He's so rockstar coded! happy holidays y'all :)

… The mirror's image, it tells me it's home time

But I'm not finished, 'cause you're not by my side

And as I arrived I thought I saw you leavin', carryin' your shoes

Decided that once again I was just dreamin' of bumpin' into you

… Now it's three in the mornin' and I'm tryin' to change your mind

Left you multiple missed calls and to my message, you reply

"Why'd you only call me when you're high?"

"Hi, why'd you only call me when you're high?"

Sirius finished his line of coke, flipping his head up and sniffing harshly. He gave himself a long look in the mirror. He looked great, obviously: leather jacket over a bare chest, a tangle silver and gold necklaces of varying lengths cascading down his neck to his chest. Most of his tattoos were visible and his pair of leather pants were impossibly tight. His fingers were adorned with a number of rings and his hair was that perfect combination of messed up and carefully styled. His eyeliner was smudged around his eyes and he couldn’t quite tell if his eyes were so dark from the eyeliner or from the lack of sleep. 

Sirius couldn’t remember the last time he had had a solid night of sleep, but that was the nature of touring. Of course his bandmates weren’t like he was. James was boring and married with a kid, who Sirius obviously doted on, but James spent all his time when they weren’t performing or practicing with Lily and Harry. Remus was dating this guy Grant who really got under Sirius’s skin. Was it because Sirius and Remus had had a fling, an excellent mind-blowing fling, and when Remus pushed for more Sirius said no and Remus moved onto Grant? Maybe. Was it because Grant was disgustingly kind and sweet and felt like the absolute antithesis of Sirius? Maybe. Was it because Grant had gotten Remus into tea and biscuits rather than coke and pills? Maybe it was that too. And then there was Peter. Peter, bless his heart, tried his absolute best but the coke made his nose bleed, pills made him constipated, and liquor made him vomit. So most nights after a show, James would go home to Lily and Harry, Remus would go home to Grant, Peter would go home to god knows who (probably his cats or gerbils or whatever), and Sirius would go anywhere but home. 

He had liked groupies, townies, the international girls and guys, but he liked you most of all. You were a bit of a forbidden fruit, you were his brother Regulus’s best friend, but that made it all the more appealing. Sirius only went home, only spent the night in his bed, if he knew you would be there too. 

Sirius dialed your number as he made his way home in the backseat of his limo. He was rolling something that he wasn’t sure if it was a joint or a cigarette as the phone rang. He did a double take as he drove past Newt Scamander’s house. Newt Scamander was an old school rocker, a living legend basically, and even though he was a little past his prime looks-wise, he was still a sex symbol. But it wasn’t just Newt’s house that caused Sirius’s double take, it was the fact that he thought he saw walking out of Newt’s house, carrying your phone in one hand and your heels in the other. Sirius shook the thought from his brain, figuring that he was so high he probably just saw a tree branch or something. Sirius got your voicemail but he knew, despite the late hour, that you were not asleep. He dialed you again. And again. And again. Until finally he heard your voice.

“Why’d you only call me when you’re high?” You sounded annoyed but he just laughed it off as he walked into his house, stepping out of his boots and kicking them off somewhere, stripping his sweaty clothes haphazardly and letting them fall off his body haphazardly. 

“That’s how you answer the phone? No hi?” Sirius teased, falling back on his bed and stretching his sore muscles. 

“Hi.” You said pointedly, “why’d you only call me when you’re high?”

“I’m not high.” Sirius said, taking a long drag of his spliff. 

“It’s three in the morning, Sirius.”

“Come over baby.” Sirius crooned. 

“You’re still talking the same shite you always did.” You were rolling your eyes, Sirius knew you were. 

“It’s harder and harder to get you to listen, baby.” Sirius said, a bite of annoyance coming through. He was on the come down from his earlier line and and was getting irritated. 

“Luckily for you I’m incapable of making alright decisions. I’ll see you in a few.” You disconnected the call. 

Sirius finished his spliff and began to roll another one. There were a few messages on his phone from James, he was probably up at one of those late night feedings for Harry. He started to read through them when he heard his door open and shut and after a few moments you were in his bedroom, crawling your way up the bed towards him. 

“That was fast.” Sirius frowned. Usually it took you at least fifteen minutes to get from your place to his, even in the dead of night when no one was out on the street. 

“You complaining?” You asked, pulling your shirt over your head as you straddled him. Sirius was going to question things more but suddenly your tits were in his face and he forgot all about that. 

… Somewhere darker, talkin' the same shite

I need a partner, well, are you out tonight?

It's harder and harder to get you to listen

More I get through the gears

He buried his face between your tits and groaned,

“This is my favorite place in the absolute world.”

“Well make yourself useful, Black, and stimulate my nipples.” You said, gripping his hair harshly. Sirius obliged, wrapping his lips around one of your hard nipples and his nimble fingers flew to other one, tweaking and pinching it. You were grinding down in his lap against his hard-on until his lips moved from nipples up around the curvature of your breast, then up your clavicle, then up your neck, until he got up to your lips. Before he could connect his lips to yours, you pulled back and made your way down his body and wrapped your hand around his cock. Sirius gasped as you ran your hand between your legs to lubricate it and then started jerking Sirius off. You laid flat on your stomach between Sirius’s legs and continued jerking him as you lightly sucked one of his balls into your mouth. Sirius went from the light gasps to strangled, intense moans and he felt like his lungs were about the collapse. 

“Get up,” he choked out, “I need to be inside you.”

You lifted yourself up and without much warning you seated yourself on Sirius’s cock. Sirius groaned and held your hips hard in place, preventing you from moving. 

“Sirius, come on.” You whined, your nose touching his as you tried to move again. Sirius released his grip and started fucking up into you hard. Sirius lifted his jaw, capturing your lips in a deep kiss. You pulled away harshly, pushing yourself up so you were no longer pressed against his chest. Sirius thought about saying something but then you moved your hips in the most delicious way and he forgot all about it. Sirius pulled you off of him and flipped you over, bending you over so your chest and face were pressed against the mattress and your hips were up in the air. There was a tattoo at the base of your back that had have been new. He pushed into you, his hands grasping your hips like he was about to fall off the edge of a cliff. 

He was close, so so close to finishing, but he was distracted by the tattoo on your back. It looked like a constellation, it was vaguely familiar looking, maybe it was something that he had studied in an astronomy course. One of the stars on the constellations was darker than the rest and it had a small green glow mark around it. 

“Did you snort too much or something? I’m getting rug burn here.” You said, turning and looking over your shoulder at Sirius. Sirius’s eyes snapped back up to yours and as he locked eyes with you he came. He always tried to pull out but he was caught off guard this time that he came inside you.

Incapable of makin' alright decisions, and havin' bad ideas

… Now it's three in the mornin' and I'm tryin' to change your mind

Left you multiple missed calls and to my message you reply

"Why'd you only call me when you're high?”

“Fuck Sirius!” You snapped, jumping off him and running to the bathroom. 

“Sorry,” Sirius murmured. It was weird…that tattoo was so so weird. It felt like something was sitting on chest he was so strangled by the idea that he had seen that exact constellation before.

“Fuck Sirius,” you repeated, walking back into his room and shaking your head, “I gotta get a morning after pill tomorrow.” You walked over to Sirius’s discarded tight leather pants and pulled out a few crumpled up bills that were in his pockets. “This is why I fucking hate having sex with you when you’re high.”

“I’m not high,” Sirius said weakly, still staring at your tattoo as you were bent over digging through his pockets.

“You only ever call me when you’re high.” You said, straightening up and starting to pull on your clothes.

“You aren’t staying?” Sirius felt like he was running out of time.

“I, uh, have to be up in the morning so I need to have an…early night.” You said, not looking Sirius in the eyes. 

“Am I starting to bore you baby?”

"Hi, why'd you only call me when you're high?"

… And I can't see you here, wonderin' where am I

It sort of feels like I'm runnin' out of time

I haven't found all I was hopin' to find

You said you gotta be up in the mornin'

Gonna have an early night

And you're startin' to bore me, baby

“I’m fine, Sirius. I just have an early morning.” You said in a snippier tone than Sirius had ever expected to hear from you.

“What’s that tattoo on your back?” Sirius stormed across the room and grabbed you by the arm harshly. 

“It’s the constellation Leo.” You snapped back, glaring up at Sirius.

“And what’s the glow on that star?” Sirius didn’t know why he was getting so upset but his blood pressure was only continuing to rise as he looked at you and thought about that tattoo.

“You really don’t know?” You smiled cruelly. “You really don’t recognize it.”

“What is it?” Sirius could feel his nose bleeding and he wiped at it. There was a streak of smeared blood on his cupid’s bow.

“It’s the star Regulus.” You grinned.

“Why’d you have to be such a bitch?” Sirius screamed.

“Why’d you have to be?” You retorted.

“Why’d you always lie?”

“Why’d you only call me when you’re high?”

Why'd you only call me when you're high?

… "Why'd you only ever phone me when you're high?"

"Why'd you only ever phone me when you're high?"

"Why'd you only ever phone me when you're high?"

"Why'd you only ever phone me when you're high?”

[reguluskeys]

jegulus snippet - 1036 words - i’m a very amateur writer </3

cw: self hatred (im projecting)

cody if you see this no u don’t

The moment James saw Regulus in the astronomy tower that night, he knew something was off. He had his legs to his chest and was resting his head on top, staring at the stars. James slowly walked towards him, and sat down with one leg dangling over the edge.

Regulus either didn’t notice him or was simply choosing to ignore him, so James tried again to get his attention.

“Reg? You ok?” James nudged the boy's shoulder. When Regulus finally looked over, James saw the face he’d seen a million times from Sirius, only- well it was different. While James could read every signal on Sirius’ face to know exactly how he was feeling, Regulus seemed to have a wall up. His lips were pressed into a line and his eyebrows were knit together into almost a scowl, but his eyes… His eyes were filled with a deep sadness that James wished he could pluck from Regulus and give to himself, just to never see it on the boy again.

Regulus’ eyes flickered, looking James over, before turning back to the night sky. “I’m fine,” he mumbled. James let the silence sit between them for a minute as he too stared at the Stars. He wondered if Regulus or Sirius were out tonight.

“Well… Something’s definitely wrong… but you don’t have to talk about it! I’ll be your ‘shoulder to cry on or whatever they say!” James gave Regulus a smile that could melt anyone’s heart.

Regulus tried to hide the small smile but James caught it immediately and laughed. “Oh! Is that a smile? Did Regulus Black just smile?” Regulus rolled his eyes but the smile didn’t fall. “Well this must go in the history books. Wizards for generations must learn of the- dare I say gorgeous - smile that you have. Personally, I feel blessed-!” Regulus cut him off with an elbow to the stomach but James just kept laughing.

“Shut up!” Regulus said, laughter in his voice. “My smile isn't- it's not ‘gorgeous.’” He let one of his legs fall and dangle over the edge, mirroring James.

“Uhm, yes it is! You even give Sirius a run for his money! Don't tell Remus I said that. Or Sirius.” At the mention of his brothers name, the smile on Regulus’ face faltered. James immediately noticed.

“Hey, you ok? Did I say something wrong?” James leaned towards Regulus and lightly put his hand on the boys shoulder. Regulus tensed and went slightly red, though James barely noticed.

“I’m fine,” he paused for a moment. “Merlin it’s just, why does Sirius treat me like I'm still 9?!” Regulus let out a frustrated groan and let the other leg fall over the edge. “Yes, I love Sirius and I want to make amends but I can fight my own battles, I can make my own decisions! He acts like I'm still the crybaby who would sneak into his room at night because I was scared a bogart was in my room, or the kid who never spoke to anyone but him because I was scared to embarrass myself.”

Though it was probably not the best moment, James was enchanted by Regulus. He’d never heard the boy speak that many words at once, let alone the amount of passion and emotion.

“I love him but sometimes I just want to strangle him or drown him in the lake!” Regulus made a vague gesture, strangling the air in front of him as though it was Sirius’ neck. James let out a small snort that Regulus thought sounded weirdly similar to that of a stag, but the thought was overtaken by the sudden embarrassment. His face was suddenly bright red.

“Well now that someone has heard my incoherent ramblings about my brother I must either kill you or myself, and right now I'd rather it be me, so goodbye James. Tell Barty he can’t have my money.” Regulus said in a completely monotone voice and began to stand up on the ledge.

“Hey wait! If you kill yourself now you’ll never be able to beat gryffindor at the quidditch match- well not that you would, i’m the best captain the schools ever seen, but you wouldn’t even get to try!” James scrambled to pull Regulus back down next to him. Regulus huffed and rolled his eyes.

“Fine, i won’t kill myself. But in exchange for you hearing that… I need to hear one of your secrets now. Not that James Potter would have much to hide.” Regulus rolled his eyes and James let out a chuckle.

James had never been a private person, everyone knew when he liked a girl or if he hated a class. Everyone could tell when a marauders prank was about to be in motion because James simply did not have a poker face.

There was one thing though. Something not even Sirius knew. His small smile didn’t falter as he looked straight ahead and spoke.

“Sometimes, I really, really hate myself.” James spoke in a calm voice, as if he’d just stated his favorite color, and not something that had just shattered Regulus’ view of the entire world. The boy just stared at James, and when he finally realized Regulus wasn’t going to say anything, he continued.

“Don’t get me wrong, I don't think I'm a bad person… I have great parents, great friends, I get good marks, I'm a quidditch captain, and if I tried hard enough I could get almost any girl I wanted, but…” James moved his glasses off his face and held them infront of him. “I don’t know I guess, sometimes there’s just something in the back of my brain telling me i’m a terrible person- that everything I do is wrong or that i’m not doing enough. Then I think about all the things i’m lucky enough to have and I hate myself even more for even having those feelings in the first place.”

Regulus took a moment to truly look at James. Not the dumb-jock facade he showed the school, no he looked at the James who despite being the embodiment of sunshine, was burning inside. The James who had bad days and the James who sometimes hated himself.

[moonyswife]

SPRING BREEZE

MASTERLIST

SPRING BREEZE  PART 1

Remus Lupin x Sirius Sister!Fem!Reader

Summary: Remus has an unbearable crush on his best friend's sister. “he was sure he was bound to her every life he’s lived, and he’ll look for her in every life from now on, because in this life he just got blessed with her.”

Warnings: None

G: Fluff, absolutely whipped Remus, friends (kinda) to lovers.

Length: 1,06k

NOT proofread.

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As the late spring breeze sweeped into the open windows of the library Remus couldn't help but notice the way her hair moved with it, at least the little ones that weren't braided, the two brunette braids sat nicely on her shoulders dressed with her uniform and her house’s robes, she was too focused on her essay to even notice the small disturbance on her scalp, eyebrows furrowed, quill fiercely working on her paper sheet, Remus couldn't look but he was sure she was bouncing her left leg.

´Stop gawking at my sister, moony. I'm sure if you go say hi, she'll be more than pleased.´ As soon as Sirius words reached remus ears he couldn't help but groan, his best mate Sirius Black always had a way to annoy him, ‘I was not gawking at your sister’,Remus blushed slightly, he was indeed staring profusely at his sister, he always was, if she was in a room he’d know, and somehow he’d find a way to be near her, like a moth attracted to the shining lights. ‘Alright, but mate you can’t deny the way you look at her, can’t really blame you she’s a Black, not me, but a Black’ the one to groan now was James ‘We are not talking about you, pads, we need to find a way to match you and y/n together!’ ‘While I agree you should get it together Moons, let’s not let prongs play matchmaker, he’s awful.’ Peter chips in little in conversations, but his rare voice of reason it’s always needed. Now an overwhelmed Remus tries to end the weird conversation surrounding his life, ‘Guys do not, I was just thinking, not staring at anyone. We need to focus on our homework’ ‘Cut the crap moony, you’re obsessed with my sister.’ 

Remus would’ve never expected the outcome of a studying sesion with his friends to end up in them making a plan for him to snog a girl. As he was starting to get really  annoyed with them he looked up and made eye contact with the live image of his dreams, Y/n Black. His face failed him, he started smiling like a fool, surprisingly (not really, you’ve talked a lot of times, you would consider each other acquaintances) you smiled back and waved quickly returning to your work. ‘Moony! pay attention!’ you’d never know James was this bosy unless you’re coming up with stupid plans or pranks, ‘You know what? I’m getting tired of you, I came here to study and get some work done, not to make a stupid plan’ his three friends looked around sheepishly, ‘Sorry mate, we’re just trying to hook you up with my sister, maybe i could get a favour in return’ Sirius says as he winks pointing at his homework, ‘Do whatever you want, i don’t care, I’ll go study somewhere else’ kinda annoyed kinda mad Remus picks up his things as he heads for the door. ‘And don’t pimp out your siblings,Sirius’.

The annoying breeze was making y/n more cold than normal, she could barely focus on her essay for professor Flitwick, she could’ve stayed in her common room with her friends, but no damn her heart, she came to the library to follow her stupid heart, to see her stupid crush and to have to bear with her stupid brother who was most likely mocking her, after all she was a schoolgirl with a crush on her older (barely a year) brother´s mate, pathetic, that’s how she felt, she was pathetically sitting alone on the library, pathetic was the way her heart skipped a beat when he smiled at her, pathetic was the way he didn’t wave back. She was done embarrassing herself, as she started gathering her stuff to finally go cry it out in her bed, a small voice interrupted her hate thoughts. ‘All done?’ honey slipped out of Remus's mouth whenever he talked, she was sure of it, ‘Mmh not really, was getting a bit chilly, though, did you finish your homework with the guys?’ barely getting it out, fighting the urge to gauge her eyes out of embarrassment. She has talked with many times before, not much lately, her crush on him has been growing bigger and bigger until it smashes her frontal cortex completely.

Remus’s hands were clammy, there he stood awkwardly, desperately trying not to faint at the sight of her soft gray eyes, the confidence he quickly got to go talk to her, quickly left, ‘No, they’re daft, not really the ones to help with getting homework done’, she giggled, she didn’t really find it funny, she’s just nervous, ‘do you wanna finish your essay as I finish my homework?’ Remus cursed himself, why? why? why? his whole brain seemed to be jell-o when she’s near him, ‘well I don’t think there’s more I can do, but maybe…’ the confidence facade crumbling down, ‘maybe what?’ ‘maybe we could hang out, catch up, we haven’t really talked in a while’ that was mostly true, they were always kind of close, they used to hang out a lot actually, but since their feelings took over them, they’ve been less close than normal. ‘yes!’ he barely allowed her the chance to finish the sentence, he almost regretted it, until she blessed him with her blinding smile, he would give anything to see her wide smile every day of his life, she held her hand out for him to grab, ‘Let’s go, Rem’.

Her (hand) was the most precious thing Remus Lupin has ever held and will ever hold, following her blindly, letting her take him wherever she wanted, all he could do was look at her and wonder how did the sun managed to take human form, he was sure he was bound to her every life he’s lived, and he’ll look for her in every life from now on, because in this life he just got blessed with her. Heart racing, flushed cheeks from both of them, she kept stealing little glances at him to check if he was still there. he was. When Remus was busy imagining what it would be like to spend a lifetime with her, she stopped, the courtyard, that’s where they were, not in their shared apartment with four cats and thirty, and he was so happy she wasn’t a legilimens.

[eden-3000]

I'm in the mood for some angst🤭

in the first war, Remus gets captured by the werewolves/death eaters and is brutally tortured for info till sirius (/+order) come to rescue him??

you can decide the aftermath- if u wanna keep moony alive, sirius caring for him or 🫢

FUCK YEAH. I LOVE ANGST! (I´m also still not quite satifsied with how this turned out, but I feel like it´s the best I can do. Sorry)

Wordcount: 1229

Sirius was shaking.

It had been weeks since they had any news from Remus and now this. A Patronus in the form of a dog. All they could hear from its mouth were gutwrenching screams, Remus begging them over and over to stop, telling them that he didn't know anything.

The thing was, that he did. Sirius knew he did. Remus could end it if only he told them something - a location, names, anything! But of course, the gorgeous bastard didn't.

"We need to help him. We need to do something." Moody considered. "We can't risk them capturing someone else." Sirius' fist hit the table, glasses and mugs tipping dangerously to the side. Tears of frustration and fear blurred his vision. He hated crying. Especially in front of people - people that weren't Remus.

"FUCK 'SOMEONE ELSE'! You sent him there, you bring him back! You bring him back to me right now or I swear I will make you scream louder than that!"

For a split second, the Auror looked impressed. But not long before he regained control over his features. James put a hand on Sirius' arm, trying to hold him back. "It sounds like he didn't talk yet. Do you really want to give them the chance to change that?", he tried calmly, but Sirius could clearly hear the worry in his voice, James just had the self-control he himself lacked.

"Potter has a point there", Alice Longbottom said. Her husband - just like many others - agreed. Remus was beloved. The teachers, the girls, their Girls - that being Lily, Mary, Marlene and Dorcas, who regularly invited him to sleepovers - and now the entire Order.

"We need to get him out. He's still almost a child, Alastor", Minnie - Merlin bless her soul - added sternly. "You're all taking a great risk for one man."

"He's Remus!" Sirius' voice was still louder than strictly necessary, but he wasn't yelling anymore. Moody sighed. "This meeting is over for me. What you do in your free time is none of my concern." With that, he stepped into the fireplace, with a hand full of floopowder and disappeared.

~

Their plan failed miserably the moment they tried to get in. James had successfully used his invisibility cloak to stun one of the werewolves and bring him back to question where they held the prisoners. However, as soon as they started moving forward they walked right into two men. Those two were handled quickly - but the one walking around the corner after them was quicker. He ran off before any of them could act. Seconds later they could hear an alarm, then multiple pairs of feet coming toward them.

James tried to pull him away, together with the others, but Sirius resisted. He could still hear Remus´screams.

Fuck! Fuck!FuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckFUCK! Sirius started shaking again. He needed to find him. He couldn't lose his Moony. He couldn't leave without him

"I can't!"

He turned and ran towards the cells, the calls of his friends behind him, James close on his heels. "I will kill you if we die here, you know that, right." "Feel free, Prongs."

They were closer to the prison rooms than he'd thought and therefore didn't come across too many people. From there on finding Remus was not a problem. The cries were loud enough for them to hear through the dirty hallway. They both moved without thinking until the whines were getting so clear it was as if he could taste the pain.

Sirius didn't even need his wand, he just let the door turn to ashes with a flick of his hand, magic practically vibrating in his body like lightning. The sounds abruptly stopped as both Remus and the torturer looked at them in disbelief.

James quickly stunned the man while Sirius made his way to the wall Remus was chained to.

He looked awful. His skin was dry and pale, parts of his body were burnt, in others he found new scars. "It's okay. We're gonna get you out of here", Sirius promised, looking for the release of the cuffs.

"Hurry up!", James urged from the door. "I can't find the stupid release!" His hands were shaking. He could hardly think. Remus needed help. He needed to get out of here. And it was Sirius who was holding him back. Fuckfuckfuckfuckfu-

"Si... Sir'us." Remus' voice was hoarse, barely audible, but Sirius understood. "It's okay. It's gonna be fine, Moons, it'll be fine." He wasn't sure whether he was trying to convince himself or his boyfriend - either way, it didn't work.

"Fuck. Prongs!" James was there in an instant, one hand on his shoulder, gently pulling him back. "It's fine. I got it. You catch him when it opens." Sirius nodded, his eyes fixed on Remus'. He looked so tired like he was about to give up.

Sirius continued to whisper encouraging things to Remus. All the things they were gonna do when they got out of here. Then the chains loosened and Remus fell forward into his arms. Sirius took half a step back to steady him.

"I've got you. I've got you, Moony." He winced as Sirius' hands gripped his sides to keep him upright. Aperantly the wounds went deeper than he could see. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry", he whispered over and over again into his ear as James worked on the footcuffs.

"´m fine", Remus murmured and Sirius couldn´t help but laugh. "Of course you´d say that."

"He's out! Let's go." "Can you walk?", he asked Remus, who was almost completely leaning onto him and slowly shook his head. "Gotta carry him then." "Leviocorpus." With Remus flying between the two of them they made their way up and out of the tunnels.

~

It took longer than they'd hoped until they made it back to the quarters, where Madame Pomfrey was waiting for them. She had already prepared everything and so they lay him down on the free table.

She immediately shooed them out of the room to focus on her work. James and Sirius waited outside in the hall, where they met with the others. "Is everyone alright?", James asked, tugging Lily into his arms. "Yeah, we´re fine. Everyone made it out. How´s Remus?" She took a look towards Sirius who was walking up and down in front of the door, biting his nails. No one had ever seen him do something like that.

"He´s alive", James started quietly. "But he´s not looking good. They... I think they tortured him with every torture method there is."

"Why are you all talking like he´s dying?", Sirius snapped. "He´s fine! He just needs to heal a bit. We´ve seen him look worse after some full moons!"

James looked at him with pity. He hated it. He hated every one of them. Remus wasn´t dead. He wouldn´t do that to him. And yet...

Sirius felt like he was going to throw up. At some point during the next two hours, someone made tea, someone else tried to get Sirius to eat something. He touched neither.

Then the doors opened and Sirius half expected Remus to stand there and grin at them, asking why they were making such long faces. Those stupid werewolves wouldn´t get to him. They couldn´t hurt him. He was so much stronger than that.

It wasn´t Remus.

It was Madame Pomfrey, eyes swollen red, nose running.

"I lost him."

[easily-distracted-by-fandom]

Head Cannon: Every so often Roman will set up like "a fair day" in the imagination which is just an excuse to win prizes and play games with his friends because none of them can go to any actual fairs or events like that

Aww that’s adorable! My interpretation below!

Janus and Remus probably aren’t allowed for the longest time- so Janus will sometimes steal someone else’s invitation and go instead.

Virgil always gets spider themed plushies if he wins a carnaval game which causes some issues with Patton, who will flinch away from them (esp because Roman blessed the toys with the ability to come to life in the imagination) but he deals for his kiddos

Remus stole this idea, he has much more bloody carnivals on his side of the imagination (he’s tried to convince Janus and Orange to help him kidnap a light side to join multiple times)

Virgil HATED Remus’ carnivals and avoid Romans, assuming they’d be similar for the longest time. He was pleasantly surprised.

Logan is actually the best at the carnival games (because they’re not rigged). He usually gives the things he wins to the other sides (usually Virgil because he knows they help with his anxiety), but he has a few stuffed animals he snuggles for himself. He feels bad for keeping them but they make him feel safer (some of them are fiddle toys that Roman put in there for Virgil, but Logan really likes them)

Patton’s favorite toys are the stuffed puppies, but sometimes he’ll get a stuffed frog, and then wince and look at Roman.

Roman has made a bunch of duplicates of himself to run the circus tent part. He loves doing death-defying acts that would never work (the other sides don’t really show up to it. Janus does if he’s snuck in, and Patton tries to go to encourage his kiddo, but Logan doesn’t see the point in it and it gives Virgil really bad anxiety)

[futurecorps3]

hello! could i please request James Potter x Goth!Reader? She would be a hufflepuff, maybe he saw her once at the hallway defending some younger kids from some bullies and it was love at first sight uwu

𝐉𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐬 𝐏𝐨𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐱 𝐆𝐨𝐭𝐡!𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫

Masterlist<3

Yay, this is so cute!! I wouldn't define my style as goth but it is more on the punk/grunge, so I hope I get this right. Thanks for requesting, nonnie! x

♡ Baby boy is so :(

♡ He holds no stereotypes or at the very least tries his best not to

♡ So, when he sees you defending a Gryffindor boy -surely a first year- from a group of Ravenclaws, it's safe to say he was head over heels.

♡ "Hey I-I just wanted to say that was very kind of you" all light voices trying to be masked by an overly confident body language because you're so tall in those boots holy shit you're intimidating

♡ You are until you flash a dazzling smile to him

♡ "It's the least I could do; poor kid was terrified of them. If only he knew we're all very scared of everything most of the time..." you wondered, walking to the covered bridge with your long, black leather coat floating almost divinely behind you

♡ "I-I'm James!" he shouts, hand in his fluffy hair as he stared at you go before turning around briefly and shouting back "I know!" with a giggle

♡ He was aghast, knowing he hadn't seen you before in all his years here. How could he miss you!?

♡ While you didn't share any classes, he made sure to take an extra look at the Hufflepuff table during lunch and found you there, giggling with your friends

♡ "James, eat up" Remus mumbled with a full mouth "He's in love, Moony. Let him enjoy the fleeting moments of joy that come with the sight of his belo-" "Shut up Sirius, I can't hear her"

♡ Not long after, he saw you in the steps for Hufflepuff during a Quidditch match. In a swift motion, he flew on his broom over to you

♡ "James!" you smiled. You were wearing a dress vest, a long raincoat and dress pants all in black, along with silver accessories "I'd say your name in the same excited tone but I don't have the pleasure of knowing it"

♡ He was such a charmer, couldn't help but blush a bit 🤭

♡ "It's Y/N, Y/N Y/L/N"

♡ My man felt butterflies, fireworks and his heart skipped a beat! It felt nice to say your name, a good feeling in his tongue that he couldn't get rid of

♡ Y/N, Y/N, Y/N

♡ He took a big deep breath and turned the slut on

♡ "You're on the wrong side of the stadium, darlin'. Should be on Gryffindor's side! Let me take you there" he said, offering his hand out, so you hopped on his broom

♡ You declined kindly, saying your friend was playing for the first time today and you couldn't leave.

♡ James feigned offence and winked before flying off with his signature smirk

♡ Two weeks later, at the match against Slytherin, he spotted a familiar face in the crowd while he stretched and played his best

♡ After that, you never really left his side

♡ You seemed to be everywhere! He found you in the library, during parties, on Hogsmeade and even in the hallways

♡ This turned you into something, making him ask you for a date eventually. A date you said yes to.

♡ Now to the dating part <3

♡ HE BUYS YOU GOTH SHIT HE KNOWS YOU'LL LIKE

♡ "Look! It's a silver cross!", "Baby I got this corset for you, they only had this tone of red though...", "I got your eyeliner refill... yes I know you still have some but it'll run out EVENTUALLY... love you too, dove”

♡ He borrows your crop tops ughhhh!!!

♡ Baby is so supportive!! Ofc you don’t care much about what people say about your style but if you ever have second guesses he makes sure to reassure you

♡ YOU BLESSED THIS WORLD WITH THE SIGHT OF JAMES POTTER WITH EYELINER

♡ He loves Siouxie and the Banshees bro, he’ll be forever grateful to you for showing him her cover of Passenger, originally by Iggy Pop

♡ Y’all go record shopping to the city <3

♡ “James, baby, I adore you but if Daniel Ash asked me out…”

♡ He gave you the silent treatment for like thirty minutes, caving when you pretended to be truly hurt

♡ James is a SUCKER for seeing you get ready

♡ Wether you wear huge eyeliner with intricate designs or just take a lot of time accessorizing, he’s there to admire and help in what he can!!

♡ Therefore, loves going shopping with you

♡ He incorporated some of your underground music knowledge to one up Sirius during muggle music discussions

♡ “Queen is great but have you heard Sisters of Mercy?” “James there’s not a point of comparison what the fuck are you talking abou-“

♡ Worships the ground you walk on pretty much

♡ You get many stares with different meanings when you walk through the school but the only one you care about is James’ lovesick gaze checking you out from one of the classroom’s doors

♡ “You’re so hot” he’d groan when you finally reach his arms before kissing you UGH SOMEONE BRING HIM TO ME NOW!!!

♡ Just imagining his linebacker figure, dressed in his jersey and being the sunshine he is next to you which are pretty much the opposite at first sight makes my heart all warm!!!!!!

♡ To end this, a random little hc I developed just now

♡ If you tend to be very all over the place and distracted like me, rest assured that James Potter knows where all your shit is

♡ “Love, have you seen my boots? The one’s with a bunch of buckles on them, can’t fin-“ “Bottom of the bed” …. “Jamie! Where’s my chain?” “Bats or coffin?” “Bats” “Top left drawer under your black shirt with the tiny holes on it”

♡ Sweet angel boy loves his goth girl!!

✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦

Marauders taglist (DM or answer to be added): @kquil

[supernova-stardust]

A Habit To Kick (The Age-Old Curse)

Rated M | chapters 1 & 2 live on ao3 | total word count: 14,052 | wip

A few weeks ago, Regulus Black jumped off a bridge. It's not that he really wanted to die, but he didn't really want to live either. He didn't think anyone would care one way or another, if he's honest. Now he's stuck learning how to live.

James Potter was used to seeing Reg every day at the cafe he worked in, until one day he stopped coming in. When he finally sees the guy he's been crushing on come back into the cafe, he knew he had to take his chance at asking him out on a date.

***This fic deals with heavy themes of depression, lack of a will to live, and suicide, but will have a happy ending***

chapter 2 below the break for those who have been reading on Tumblr | 7,889 words

In the morning, Regulus managed to get out of the apartment before either Sirius or Remus stirred. When he glanced into the living room, he noticed that Sirius had abandoned his nest on the couch in favor of squeezing himself onto the tiny air mattress with Remus. Remus didn’t seem to mind, his long body was wrapped around his boyfriend, holding him close.

It wasn’t that Regulus was avoiding them, but going through his routine without being interrupted was a blessing that calmed his nerves. The medications he was on seemed to help a bit, but he didn’t think that there would ever be enough medications or substances to quiet the racing thoughts in his head. The best he had were his routines and his coping mechanisms. 

On his walk towards the cafe, he decided to send Sirius a quick text telling him where he was and that he’d bring him and Remus coffee when he came home. He told himself that it was so that Sirius would know that they had coffee coming, not because he knew his brother would worry himself sick before he thought to check the shared location.

He was hoping that James wouldn’t be the one working today. As much as he was looking forward to their date, he wasn’t sure that he could come up with enough small talk to occupy the man both at the counter and during their dinner. Of course, James was working and he practically bounced out of his skin when he saw Regulus walk through the front door.

There was no line, so Regulus walked right up to the counter where James was smiling. He forced himself to soften his face as he pulled off his headphones and greeted him. "Morning, can I get—"

"Reg," James laughed, stopping Regulus from ordering his coffee. "I know how you like your coffee by now. Good morning, how are you?" He turned to pour the coffee, oblivious to the fact that he left Regulus standing at the counter a little breathless and thrown off kilter. 

"Of course you do, I-I just didn’t want to assume." Regulus tried to make sure he sounded confident, but he wasn’t sure how successful he really was. "I’m fine, how are you?"

"Excited." James returned with coffee in hand and placed it gently on the counter in front of him. "I’m looking forward to our date tonight."

This time, the smile Regulus gave him was genuine and automatic. "I am too." He passed James a handful of bills and grabbed his coffee before heading to his regular seat.

Regulus was surprised to find that he was able to focus on writing much longer this morning than he had in a long time. Instead of staring at the screen wallowing at the fact that no words came to him, he was able to write a few pages as the cafe got busier throughout the morning. When someone sat at his table, he was almost able to ignore them with his headphones blocking out the sounds around him and his face buried in his laptop. It wasn’t until he felt a sharp kick to his shin that he even glanced up from his laptop, glaring as he ripped his headphones off his ears. 

"Hey—" Immediately, his face softened at the man sitting across from him. "Oh, hey Evan."

"Oh, hey Evan. Are you fucking kidding me?" He kicked Regulus again, this time with more malice. "You act weird for a week, send me some cryptic goodbye text, and disappear for weeks. I had to find out from your brother what happened. You've been silent in the group chat. And all I get is oh, hey Evan."

"To be fair, Sirius told me he updated you, so I figured you weren’t worried anymore."

"Of course I was fucking worried. You’re my best friend." Evan looked at him with so much sadness in his eyes that it made Regulus squirm under his gaze. "I’m still worried. Barty says I shouldn’t be, that they wouldn’t have discharged you if you weren’t okay, but I know you. I know you know how to manipulate them into thinking you’re fine. You know how to make all of us think you’re fine when you’re really not."

"Barty is right,” Regulus replied, choosing to ignore the rest of what Evan said. “I’m fine."

"See, that actually makes me think that you’re the exact opposite of fine. Barty is never right and you’re always the first one to say it."

Regulus laughed at that. "Okay, okay. Fine. I’m stable, how’s that for an answer?"

"Now that, I’ll actually believe." Evan said as he raked his dark fingers through his platinum curls. "Did your life experiences give you any inspiration for your book?"

And just like that, Regulus was forgiven and all was back to normal with his best friend. He knew things between them would be fine, even after that first night in the hospital. In fact, the only thing that he didn’t have anxiety about was whether or not Evan would forgive him. He had stressed about everything and everyone else, even what Barty thought about him consumed Regulus’ thoughts for a time, but he knew Evan would always accept him no matter what. Despite his attempts at avoiding him all throughout their college years, every year they ended up being dorm roommates again. Later, Evan would admit that he had requested to be roomed with Regulus because he loved having such a quiet and tidy roommate. But eventually they grew attached to one another, able to communicate non-verbally in ways that he had never been able to with anyone other than his own brother. They respected one another and as time went on, their respect blossomed into a friendship that was unshakable. When Regulus had returned to their dorm after Sirius showed up in his life again, Evan was the one who convinced him to trust that his brother wanted to be a part of his life. Evan was the one who saw him sob uncontrollably over his brother and their lost time together, never once judging him. Evan was always the one who could get through to Regulus, no matter how mentally unstable he had become.

When Evan had started dating Barty, Regulus had thought that Evan was the crazy one. Barty was known on campus as a party animal–loud, unhinged, and untamed. They had met at a party that Evan insisted Regulus attend with him. Barty had offered them some pills, which they both swallowed without even questioning. They drank a series of shots together, and the three of them had become inseparable since then. Surprisingly, Barty was often the voice of reason among their little group. Despite his poor short term decision making skills—evidenced by the stick-and-poke tattoos that littered his body and the drugs often coursing through his veins—Barty was relatively level-headed. He could look at things in calculated ways that neither Regulus nor Evan ever could, balancing the weight of risk involved in everything that they did. Regulus’ anxieties often clouded his decisions, always assuming the worst outcome, and Evan simply didn’t care to think that far ahead, preferring to live in the moment and practice the mindfulness that he’d learned in his years of yoga. In a strange way, Barty and Evan seemed to have always been made for each other, and over the years Regulus shifted from feeling envious of their easy love to feeling relief that they had each other and still kept him close, never making him feel like a third-wheel or a burden.

"You know, jumping off a bridge does have its perks," Regulus said dryly. "I have been feeling inspired to write my novel again. It’s like a fresh start."

"Oh, fuck off. Your novel is a murder mystery, not some prose about the meaning of life."

"Yeah, and now I know what it feels like to nearly drown. I’m thinking of changing the entire method of murder now." Regulus sipped at his coffee as Evan balked at him, clearly unsure if Regulus was joking or not. "In other news, I have a date tonight."

"Show me his profile." Evan didn’t miss a beat at the subject change and held out his hand expectantly for Regulus’ phone. "You may say that you’re mentally stable, but I know your taste in men sucks regardless of your mental state."

This time, it was Regulus’ turn to kick his friend’s shin. "I do not. Besides, I can’t show you his profile because we didn’t meet online." His eyes flitted over to James involuntarily. He was hoping that Evan missed the movement, but of course he didn’t. Evan turned and followed his gaze to James who was behind the counter, completely engrossed in making a customer’s drink.

"Are you fucking kidding me?" Evan asked a little too loudly, drawing eyes from around the cafe towards their table. James’ head lifted from where he was working and followed the sound to look between the two of them, a burning question in his eyes. Regulus mouthed a silent ‘sorry’ towards him and scowled at his friend.

"The whole cafe doesn’t need to know," Regulus said under his breath as he leaned forward and rested his elbows on the table on either side of his laptop. He let out a heavy sigh as he ran his fingers through his hair and then cradled his head in one hand as he watched James get back to work. "He asked me out yesterday and I said yes."

"Does he know?" Evan asked in a low voice meant for only the two of them.

"Does he know what? There’s a lot of baggage to unpack here, Ev, you’re gonna have to be a little more specific."

"Does he know you were hospitalized? Or…any of the other shit, I guess."

"No," Regulus answered simply as he sat back and closed his laptop. "I don’t think he needs to, it’s just a date."

"Reg, you’ve liked him for years. Literally I’ve listened to you lament about how beautiful that guy is for hours of my life. We both know it’s not just a date."

Regulus sipped at his coffee again before he answered. He didn’t want to admit that Evan was right, this wasn’t just a date to him. But he figured it was probably just a date to James and so he had to adjust his expectations. "It’s just a date. A first date. He doesn’t want me to bare my fucking soul before we’ve even slept together. I’m keeping my expectations low."

"I mean, he could actually care about you, you know," Evan rebutted.

"I barely know the guy. He’s just pretty. That’s it. He’ll take me on a date and realize how boring I am, we’ll have sex, and things will go back to normal. He’ll make me coffee, I’ll annoy you and Barty over how attached I am to a guy I barely know, life goes on."

"Oh, don’t do that. We both know it’ll just lead to heartbreak."

"It can't lead to heartbreak if I don't open my heart to him."

Evan hummed as he leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms. "I still think you should tell him."

"Nothing sets the mood like telling a guy you tried to kill yourself a few weeks ago." Regulus rolled his eyes. "I’m not telling him. He won’t even like me, there’s no point."

"Reg, you’ve been coming here for years. I’m pretty sure he knows you enough to like you, at least a little bit. You should tell him. I think he’d want to know, if anything at least let the guy know what he’s getting himself into if he decides to take you out on a second date. You’re a great guy, amazing even, anyone would be lucky to call you theirs, but if he’s gonna seriously pursue you he should know what he’s getting himself into. It’s only fair."

"Fine. But I’m only agreeing because I know it won’t go that far."

Evan laughed and looked at him fondly. "I missed you. I’m glad you’re still here."

"I missed you too," Regulus replied with a soft smile. He couldn’t say he was glad to still be alive, at least not honestly, but he hoped that eventually he could say that he was. 

***

"I brought you both coffee," Regulus said as he came through the front door. He pushed the door closed with his hip and made his way into the living room where Sirius was scrambling off of Remus’ lap with a look of embarrassment on his face. "Don’t you dare have sex in my apartment."

Remus just gave him a wolfish smile in response.

"I shouldn’t have brought you guys coffee," Regulus sighed as he set the to-go cups down on the coffee table. 

"You shouldn’t have left us to our own devices for so long," Sirius snipped back as he grabbed one of the cups. "You know I’m a restless person, Reggie. I need to get my energy out somehow."

"Disgusting, never talk to me again."

Secretly, Regulus would always be happy that Sirius and Remus were so good together. His brother deserved someone as patient and kind as Remus was. Neither of their parents had ever offered any sort of softness to them while growing up and while Regulus had grown to be closed off and avoidant of physical touch, Sirius craved tactile reminders of love and comfort. To this day, Sirius was the only person that Regulus allowed to pull him into casual hugs. None of that meant that he was okay with finding his brother and his boyfriend having sex on his couch though.

"So," Sirius said as he watched Regulus pick up the blankets off the floor and meticulously fold them. "What’s your plan for the day?"

"I was thinking that I'd keep working on my novel until I have to get ready for my date. I also have to call the therapists’ office that the receptionist recommended to me at some point. I need to get on the schedule there soon. I was reading the reviews last night and they seemed halfway decent, at least. We’ll see. Might keep looking depending on how the appointment goes."

"That’s good. It might take a bit to find the right match. Hopefully the group therapy will be a little better than Slughorn in the meantime," Sirius said in a tone that was intended to sound casual, but Regulus knew wasn’t at all.

"I can see if my therapist's office has any openings, if you want?" Remus suggested. "I’ve been going there for years."

Regulus finished folding the blankets and sat in an armchair next to the couch. "I appreciate that, but wouldn’t it be weird to see the same therapist?"

"Well, yeah, but there’s a lot of other people in her practice. The office I go to specializes in queer issues, so it’s a little different from the average therapy office." Remus shrugged. "It’s nice to see someone who I’m not worried about having secret homophobic biases, even if my issues are mundane things like work-life balance."

"Yeah, which is bullshit," Sirius whined. "I keep telling you to quit that job. You hate it and I have plenty of money to keep us comfortable without you working."

"And I keep telling you, I like having something that gives me purpose. This isn’t the time to have this conversation, love. Let’s talk about it later. I just wanted Regulus to know that there’s options, that’s all."

"Yeah, I’m not touching this," Regulus waved his hand at the two of them, "with a ten-foot pole. I’m gonna go write." He got up, grabbed the bag that he had discarded at the doorway, and headed to his room. 

***

"He already knows what you look like, you know," Sirius laughed.

"I know, fuck off."

Regulus had spent the last hour getting ready and he still wasn’t happy. He felt like he had tried on every combination of his clothes in his closet and at this point. Pulling his shirts on and off had made him hot and his hair was sticking to his forehead. He groaned loudly and laid back on his bed, shirtless and annoyed.

He heard someone walking down the hall and his suspicions were confirmed that it was Sirius when he looked up to see his brother leaning against the door frame with his arms crossed. "You know, he’s gonna like you no matter what you wear."

"What time is it? I feel like I need to shower again." He tried to huff a burst of air from his lungs to move the hair off of his forehead, but he was so sweaty that it did nothing.

"You’re kidding me, right?" Sirius pulled his phone from his pocket to check the time. "Reggie, you’ve only got thirty minutes until he gets here."

"I’m showering again." He pushed himself off the bed and past Sirius who just gaped at him in the hallway. He made his way to the living room. "Remus, will you pick out a shirt that matches these pants? I want to look hot, but not unobtainable." Wearing nothing but his favorite pair of black jeans, he did a spin in the middle of the room for Remus.

Remus gave him a mock salute as he stood from the couch and Regulus headed into the bathroom to shower the sweat off his body.

"Why does Remus get to pick your shirt? We all know that I have better style than him," Sirius asked from just outside the bathroom door.

"I have style," Remus rebutted. 

"Sorry, love. I always think you’re adorable, but wearing over-sized sweaters is not a sense of style."

"Remus picks because he’s not my brother and I don’t want to think about how you picked out my shirt if I get laid."

"Disgusting."

"At least you won’t have to walk in on it like I almost did today. Can I shower in peace?"

"Fine, you have twenty five minutes if he shows up on time."

James showed up five minutes early.

Regulus was fluffing his hair one last time–very impressed with himself for getting his curls to sit in that perfectly undone way that he always loved–when he heard the doorbell ring. Sirius laughed and he heard Remus tell him to behave. Regulus looked himself over in the mirror again before deciding to grab his eyeliner and smudge a bit under his eyes. 

"Can you let him in?" he yelled from the bathroom. "And don’t scare him, please. I’ll be ready in a minute."

Remus ended up suggesting he wear a simple black tee and while Sirius might have said that Remus didn’t have a sense of style, Regulus thought that the simplicity allowed his accessories to shine. He tucked his shirt in loosely, wore a silver-buckled belt, and put on all of his favorite rings. The finishing touch was his favorite necklace, shaped like a dagger, that dropped between his pecs. He did one final look-over in the mirror before deciding that this was as good as it was going to get and ambled his way into the living room. 

"Reggie, look who’s here. And he brought me flowers." Sirius batted his eyes as he fell back onto the couch and curled up into Remus’ body. Remus lightly smacked Sirius’ leg in an attempt to make him shut up.

"Uh. N-no, I brought these for you." James held out a small bouquet of flowers towards Regulus as soon as he entered the living room. "Sorry, is this too much? It seemed like a good idea at the time and now I’m not sure if—"

"They’re lovely, thank you," Regulus interrupted with a soft smile in an attempt to save James from rambling in front of his brother. "Let me put them in some water real quick and then we can go?" He reached out to take the flowers and smelled them before he walked into the kitchen to find a vase. 

"Ignore Sirius," he heard Remus say as he left the room. "He lives for making people squirm. I’m Remus, by the way. Sirius’ boyfriend."

Regulus stopped listening to their conversation as he methodically cut the stems of the flowers, filled the vase with water, and meticulously arranged each stem so they were sitting perfectly. He placed the arrangement on his counter near the window and stepped back to admire them before he returned to the living room. He had never been given flowers before and quite frankly, he always thought it was a trite tradition rooted in compulsory heterosexual norms, but now that he had received them from James? Now he understood why it was so…sweet. Sirius may have said that he hated sweet, but Regulus was finding that he was already loving every moment. 

Evan was right, Regulus really was way too deep in his feelings for James already.

"Reggie, text me if you’re not coming home, yeah?" Sirius asked in a tone that carried far too much weight for such a simple request.

He tried hard not to blush at the implication, but he still felt his cheeks heat before he nodded. "Let’s go," he said as he grabbed James’ hand and led him into the hallway. He shoved his oxfords on as quickly as possible and the two of them walked out of the apartment together towards James’ car. 

James drove an old Toyota that probably wished it could be retired at a junkyard, but Regulus could tell it was well taken care of, regardless of age. 

When they got in the car, James turned the keys and rubbed the back of his neck. Regulus was learning that this was a nervous habit of his. "Sorry, there’s really no creature comforts in this thing, but she’s reliable." He fiddled with the radio until he found a classic rock station and made sure it was turned down low enough where they could hold a conversation without raising their voices.

"It’s fine, James. I don’t even own a car, you don’t need to impress me."

"I may not need to impress you, but I’d like to."

Regulus hummed at that and they fell into a comfortable silence as James drove. It was a few minutes before James began rambling, nervously filling the space between them with his voice. 

"You and your brother seem close. I don’t have any siblings, I’ve always wondered what it would be like to have someone who’s known me from birth. Is he always like that? I’ve met him before at Galactic— he thought I was hitting on him and I swear I wasn't."

"Yeah, he’s always like that," Regulus sighed. "He mostly does it to fuck with people though, don’t take it personally. Having a brother is like that."

"Like what?" James asked.

"Constantly having someone giving you a hard time. He can’t help himself. I’ve always said he needed another brother who could keep up with his bullshit."

"I’m sure you keep up with his bullshit, Reggie."

"Don’t call me that."

"Sorry, I—"

"Sirius is the only person who can call me that," Regulus interrupted before James could finish explaining himself. "Even then, I hate it. I just got sick of telling him he couldn’t anymore. He calls me it more when I tell him to stop." Really, he loved that his brother had a special nickname just between the two of them. He wouldn’t let anyone else use it because it was sacred between them. He would never, ever, admit it to Sirius though. 

The silence that hung between them was anything but comfortable this time. Regulus felt self conscious about his outburst and it seemed as though James was afraid to break the silence himself. He wasn't sure if it was because James was afraid to say something wrong, but Regulus mentally kicked himself for having such a strong reaction to being called a simple nickname. He looked out the window as James drove, trying to discern where it was that they were going.

He heard James take in a breath as he drummed his fingers on the steering wheel. "Look," he finally said. "Can we just… start over? I feel like I'm fucking this all up. I wasn't expecting to meet your brother and his boyfriend tonight and if I'm honest, it kind of threw me off my game."

"Your… game?"

"Yeah, like… fuck." James let out a shaky breath and when Regulus glanced over, he noticed that his brows were knit together in frustration. "I just had a whole idea in my head of how I'd greet you and when it wasn't you who answered the door, it threw me off. I practiced handing you the flowers and everything. And your brother is just— He's a lot."

"My brother is a menace, it's okay, you can say so."

"Well, he seems fun at least."

"Am I not fun enough for you, James?" Regulus asked, his voice laced with sugar sweet sarcasm.

"N-no that's not what I—"

"Relax, I'm just fucking with you." Regulus smoothed his hand on James' thigh while he continued driving them into an area of the city that he wasn't familiar with. "So, where exactly are we going?" he asked in an attempt to break the awkward tension between them.

"There's a place not too far from here that I've never been to, but the reviews are pretty good. Dolce Vita, have you been?"

"You're bringing me somewhere you've never been?" Regulus asked incredulously. "What if it's awful?"

"Then we can have a good laugh about it and go get McDonald's."

Regulus wrinkled his nose at that. "I'll take bad Italian food over McDonald's any day."

"Oh, don't tell me you don't indulge in a burger after a night of drinking now and then?" James glanced over at him with mock horror, bringing his hand to his chest.

"I really don't." There weren't many things that Regulus had held onto from his childhood, but the way he ate was definitely one of those things. He was meticulous about everything he put into his body—besides the drugs that Barty shared and the alcohol he took them with.

James hummed and brought a hand down to brush his fingers along the hand Regulus still kept on his thigh. He laced their fingers together and glanced over. "Is this okay?"

Regulus nodded before realizing that James was still driving and probably couldn't read his body language. "Yeah. This is nice."

The car ride continued with little conversation, but the silence that settled between them was comforting in a way. James' thumb rubbed soothing circles along Regulus' wrist and for once, Regulus didn't feel the compulsion to pull away. It almost felt…right. Like Regulus had been made to be putty in James' hands.

When James parked the car, Regulus watched the muscles in his hand flex as he effortlessly pulled into the parking spot using one hand. He caught himself imagining those hands roving over his body and holding him down before he was pulled from his thoughts by James bringing his hand to his lips. He placed a brief peck on the back of Regulus' hand before letting go so he could shift the car into park. Then, he turned off the ignition and grabbed his keys as he turned to smile at Regulus.

"Ready?" James asked, oblivious to the direction of Regulus' thoughts. He nodded in response and they headed into the restaurant together.

The restaurant was more quaint than Regulus had imagined, but he found he was grateful for the dim lighting and cozy booths all the same. He slid into the seat across from James and looked over at him, taking in the way his warm honey eyes seemed to become even more rich in the lighting.

James grabbed the wine menu and held it towards the middle of the table, scanning through the different options. "Do you like red or white wine?"

"Um…" Regulus didn't know how to tell James that he couldn't drink while he adjusted to his medications. Suddenly, he felt like he should have put off going on this date for at least another month, but how would he have explained that? Oh, yeah, I'd love to go out, but let's wait a bit? No, I don't have any plans—I never have plans— I just need to make sure my brain is all balanced before anything happens between us.

What a joke.

"It's okay if you don't drink, I won't either." James said, saving Regulus from having to answer as he placed the drink menu down on the table. "A friend of mine is an alcoholic, I should have known better than to assume."

"I'm not— I do usually drink." Regulus let out a breath and took a moment before carefully choosing his words. "I'm just taking a bit of a break right now for my health."

"Cool, I didn't realize you were so health conscious. You're gonna make me want to take care of myself better too."

Regulus let out a real, genuine laugh. The idea of him being health conscious was honestly the funniest joke he had heard in a long time. "I think if the tone of your muscles says anything, you're plenty health conscious."

"You've looked at my muscles?" James asked with a knowing smirk.

"Who hasn't?"

"Lesbians, probably. I'll have to ask Lils if she's noticed how fit I am next time I see her."

"Lils? Is she your friend?" Regulus asked. This was the first time James had mentioned anyone in his life and he wanted to capitalize on the opportunity to learn everything he could about the man across from him.

"Lily— Yeah, one of my best friends. Her and I grew up together. Certified earthy crunchy lesbian, through and through. Don't tell her about anything you do for your health when you meet her because she will not shut up about a natural alternative."

"You want me to meet your best friend?" Regulus could hear the disbelief lacing his own voice.

"I mean, sure. If this continues to go well." James shrugged before continuing as if this was no big deal. "Meeting each other's friends is important if we keep dating, yeah? Besides, I've already met your brother and his boyfriend. Lily is the closest I've got to a sister. Do you know what I mean? I mean— I know you have an actual brother, but do you have any friends that know you like a sibling?"

"Evan." Regulus answered immediately, ignoring the rest of James' rambling. "He's got a boyfriend, Barty, who I'm close with too. But Evan and I were roommates all through college."

James hummed in acknowledgment. Their conversation paused as the server came and took their orders.

"What was your major?" James asked, picking up the conversation where they left off once the server left their table.

"Don't laugh."

James crossed his heart in a silent promise.

"I double majored in English and Journalism." Regulus answered, bracing himself for the teasing that always came after he answered this question. "I'm an author. Well, kind of. Haven't published anything yet, so I'm not sure I get to call myself an author, but maybe some day."

"Is that what you do every morning at the cafe? Work on writing a book?"

Regulus nodded.

"What's the one you're working on right now about?"

"Murder," Regulus answered plainly.

"What?" James sputtered.

"I mostly write murder mysteries. I haven't quite figured out the whole thing, but I think in this one the murder will have been committed by the narrator and the reader won't realize it until the very end. If I deceive the reader enough with an unreliable narrator, that is." This was the first time Regulus had felt like he could tell someone about the plot of a story he had been working on before he had finalized any of the plot points. He was surprised to hear himself say the words, but as their conversation went on he was finding himself more comfortable with James by the moment.

"You're allowed to call yourself an author, Reg. You don't need to write daily or publish anything to prove that you're an author."

Regulus furrowed his brow and changed the subject, unsure of how to respond to the wisdom James had to offer. "What about you? Did you go to college?"

"I'm literally a barista."

"That doesn't mean you didn't get a degree. Lots of people don't get to use their degrees and get stuck doing things they don't want to do."

"Fair, but no." James chuckled. "I've taken quite a few classes, both at university and at independent art studios, but I haven't found anything that sticks. I do like working as a barista though. The pay is good and it leaves me with enough time to take different classes and figure out what it is that I want to do with myself. I've always been one of those people who switches between hobbies at the drop of a hat. Lately, I've been really into ceramics."

"Ceramics? Impressive."

"Sounds like it, but no. I'm not very good. Still fun though, that's what counts."

Regulus smiled softly at that. "I've never been able to do anything just for… fun."

"Really?"

"Yeah, I've always had to be great for it to be worth spending my time doing. If I wasn't, I moved on."

"But how do you know if you can become great at something if you don't spend the time to find out?" James challenged gently.

Regulus didn't have an answer to that. Their conversation lulled a bit and he found himself grateful that the server had returned with their food. They both quietly dug into their dishes and while Regulus had joked earlier about the possibility of it being terrible, everything on his plate was flavorful and cooked to perfection.

"So, I have to ask…" James trailed off, blushing slightly as he steeled himself to ask whatever was bouncing around in his head.

"I may or may not answer," Regulus deadpanned as he cut into his food.

James smiled at that. "Of course, and you don't have to, I just… I wondered what your brother meant when he asked you to let him know if you'd be home or not."

Regulus raised an eyebrow as he looked up into James' eyes. "Surely you can use your context clues to figure that one out?" he said, intentionally shifting the focus to the implication of them hooking up. He didn't want to admit to James that what Sirius was truly asking was if he had to worry about whether his brother was alive or not.

Evan was going to have a field day with how many times Regulus could have told James about his hospitalization and simply… avoided it.

"I mean, sure, but— What did you tell him you'd expect out of a first date with me?"

"James, I'm going to be very honest with you, okay? I don't date. I have men that I see one time, we hook up, and I never hear from them again."

James blanched at this. "What? Why?"

"It's too… Complicated. Messy. I'd rather just get what I need from them and move on." Regulus shrugged and continued to cut into his food as if he hadn't said the most devastating thing to the man across from him. He never admitted it in therapy, but the loneliness that had taken over his every waking thought before his attempt partially stemmed from his inability to find romantic connections with people. He knew that romantic love wasn't something that everyone needed, and that he shouldn't have based his entire self-worth upon the idea of being loved by someone, but he did. He wanted to be loved so much that it consumed him.

"So, what do you need from me?" James asked.

"Honestly?"

"Honestly."

"I don't know. I've never done this before. I've never let someone pick me up at my home, no one's ever brought me flowers. This isn't how I normally operate. But how I normally operate isn't working anymore and you're so… sweet. You asked me out and I said yes and now we're here and I don't know what to do or how to behave, but I'm trying."

"Reg, I—"

"Please don't make this weird, I can't do weird."

"No, that's not… I just can't believe no one has ever wanted to treat you the way you deserve."

Regulus paused at that, unsure of how to respond. "Maybe I just never gave anyone the chance."

"Well," James gave him a sad smile. "I'm glad you're giving me the chance. But I think since you gave me a bit of honesty, you deserve a bit of mine too. I don't do hook-ups. I don't sleep with someone on the first date. And to be fully transparent, I've never dated a man before."

"Are you sure you're…?"

"Oh, I'm very sure." James laughed. "I just never felt connected with a man before in a way that made me comfortable enough to continue anything more than a date or two. And quite frankly, most of them wanted to move much faster than I felt comfortable with."

"Fair enough." They continued eating in silence. Regulus wasn't sure that there was any tension growing between them, but he was fast learning that James was more of the type to ramble than sit in silence if he was nervous, and so the quiet made him uneasy. He cleared his throat before he spoke again. "I hope you don't take offense to me asking. I just don't want to be someone's experiment only for them to find out it was simply a curiosity they've sated. But I'm open to moving slow. I can follow your lead."

"No offense taken. I'm just relieved to have these conversations and not have you freak out."

"Why would I be the one to freak out? You're the one with morals here. I'm the degenerate slut. You should be the one freaking out and leaving me to pay the bill."

James faked a gasp, clutching his imaginary pearls. "Why, Regulus, I would never dream of such a thing. Besides," his smirk became downright sinful as he brought his face close to Regulus', "I never said I wasn't a degenerate slut too." He sat back and leaned into his chair, raking his eyes over Regulus. "I just take a little longer to build enough connection to feel that way about someone."

"You are such a flirt for someone who doesn't fuck on a first date."

Of course, it would be Regulus' luck that the server would come with the check at that exact moment. The knowing smirk on their face was mortifying.

James started to pull out his wallet before Regulus tried to stop him. "Please, let me pay? You've been so sweet, I insist." Regulus said, pulling out his own wallet and digging for his card.

"I asked you out," James answered as he counted cash and placed it in the check holder. "I'll pay. You can plan and pay for the next date."

"Yeah? You want to go out again?" Regulus felt his heart beating far too fast at the idea of seeing James again.

James nodded, "I hope you feel the same?" His voice wavered. Regulus wasn't sure if it was because he was unsure of himself or of the situation, but he vowed to make sure that James always knew how wanted he was from here on out.

"I'd love to," Regulus answered with sincerity.

"Great," James beamed. "Let's get you home, yeah? Then Sirius can't say that anything nefarious happened while I was with you."

The drive back to his apartment was uneventful. They held hands and sneaked glances at each other. Occasionally, James would hum along to a song on the radio—a trait that Regulus decided was endearing. When they pulled up to his apartment, Regulus looked around and didn't see Sirius' car anywhere in the lot.

"Strange," he said. "I didn't think they were going out tonight."

"Did he text you at all?" James asked.

Regulus pulled his phone out of his pocket and checked for any missed calls or texts. There were a few from his group chat with his friends and upon a quick glance, he realized that they were all talking about his date tonight. For a moment, he wondered how they knew, and then he realized—Evan. He would have told Barty and Barty didn't know how to keep his mouth shut, especially when the potential of Regulus getting laid was up for discussion. He continued to sift through the notifications, but none were from Sirius.

"I didn't get a text or anything. They must have needed to go grab something quickly from the store or something." Regulus shrugged. "Want to come in?"

James quirked an eyebrow in question.

"Not— Sorry, I'm not trying…I-I mean if you wanted…" Regulus let out a breath, running a hand through his hair. "Fuck, I don't know how to do this. I had pure, innocent thoughts, I swear."

James tried his best to hold a straight face before he burst out laughing. "Oh, Reg. You're so cute when you squirm." He lifted Regulus' hand to his lips and kissed the back of his hand. "I knew what you meant, and yeah, I'd love to. It would be nice to see your place without being terrified of your brother."

"You're an asshole," Regulus pouted.

"Yeah, but you like it."

Regulus hummed playfully. "Time will tell."

As Regulus unlocked his door, he had a sudden feeling of insecurity sweep over him about his apartment. Sure, it was tidy and everything had it's perfect home, but he also filled his space with things. He had always kept so many things, to the point that Sirius would remind him that they weren't broke. But it wasn't about that. He kept anything that brought him any semblance of joy. And so his space was all plush blankets and soft pillows, tchotchkes from vacations lining his bookshelves, and of course, books. Lots and lots of books that took up every available surface. Suddenly, bringing James into his home felt extremely vulnerable.

He turned on a lamp—a small one in the entryway because he never, ever turned on 'the big light'—and turned towards James only to find him much closer than he expected. James took another step closer, invading his personal space, and looked down at him. The soft yellow from the lamp made his tan skin radiate a warm glow and Regulus' breath hitched as he took in the beauty of the man in front of him. James lifted a hand to brush a stray lock of hair behind Regulus' ear and cupped his jaw with the palm of his hand, tipping Regulus' face upwards.

"You're so beautiful, Regulus." James said. "Can I kiss you?"

"Please kiss me, James."

James' grip on his jaw tightened infinitesimally for a brief moment, but Regulus' nerves were on overdrive. He leaned into it, resisting the urge to moan at the thought of those fingers gripping him harder. James' pupils widened at the subtle movement. It felt as though they were both walking a fine line between what they wanted to do and what they should do. Losing all sense of patience, Regulus pushed himself to the balls of his feet and brushed his lips against James'.

They were both tentative at first, unsure of themselves, but then James buried a hand in Regulus' hair and suddenly he felt nothing but desire and need. Regulus' hands found James' waist and he pulled him in closer, afraid that if he let go then this would prove to have never been real. Their kisses became more urgent, hungry for each other in a way that Regulus had never experienced. He felt as though the void of loneliness was being filled with each kiss they exchanged and if he hadn't felt how fast James' heart was pounding against his chest, that would terrify him. Instead of pulling away as he normally would, he pulled closer, wanting nothing more than to be able to crawl into James and never be apart.

And then Regulus heard a throat being cleared.

James pulled away and looked over his shoulder at the intruder. The movement allowed Regulus a view of the open door and his brother standing with his arms crossed looking rather vexed.

"Fuck off," Regulus said.

"Me? I'm not the one getting railed in the hallway. This is a public space you know," Sirius said with mock horror.

"We were only kissing. And this isn't a public space, this is my apartment. Just mine. You're not even on the lease. So, fuck off."

"To be fair," Remus said as he pushed Sirius all the way through the door so he could close it behind himself. "We're staying here for another couple of weeks. Maybe we can just all be considerate of each other in the meantime, yeah?"

James' brows pinched together but he didn't ask the question that was clearly on his mind. Regulus was thankful for that, at least.

"Yeah, Reggie. Let's all be considerate. You said we couldn't have sex in the apartment. You can't either." Sirius said as he kicked off his boots and hung up his jacket.

At that, Regulus analyzed his brother a bit more closely. His hair was a mess and his clothes were rumpled in a way that didn't speak of simply being worn. "Is that why you were gone? Did you two seriously just go off to have sex and come back?"

"Don't ask questions you don't want the answer to, baby brother," Sirius sing-songed.

"Gross." Regulus scrunched his nose in disgust.

"Okay, well, on that note," James said. "I had a wonderful time, I'll text you, okay?"

Regulus nodded. "Yeah, sounds perfect." He hesitated for a moment before deciding to lean in to give James one last kiss before he left. "I had a nice time too," he murmured, offering James a small smile meant just for him.

After James left, the three of them stood together steeping in silence in the entryway. Regulus glared at his brother while Remus looked at Sirius with amused affection.

"Well, James seems nice." Remus said in an attempt to break the awkward silence between them all.

Sirius laughed. "James seems like—"

"Shut up." Regulus interrupted. "Don't talk about him, you don't know him."

"We've all known plenty like him." Sirius rebutted.

"Love, maybe you should ask how the date went instead?" Remus offered.

"We all saw how it was going." Sirius said.

A rage that Regulus couldn't place took hold of him at that. James wasn't like that—he was the only guy that he had ever gone out with who wasn't like that—and maybe his brother was feeling particularly protective right now, but he didn't have the patience for it. He shoved at his brother, sending him stumbling back into Remus, who swayed a bit at the impact.

"I hate you," Regulus seethed. "Goodnight."

[silentsneezes]

HC that Remus is allergic to peppermint (smelling it makes him sneeze all day and eating it gives him hives) and super embarrassed about it bc he doesn't want to be seen as “weak” but Sirius didn't know and made their shared flat smell like peppermint for the Christmas holiday

thank you for the prompt anon! i’ll (hopefully) write another fic eventually that’s more specific to your request, but for now i hope you enjoy 2.1k of a very sneezy R/emus L/upin at the P/otter’s Christmas party

The Potter’s have always been known to throw extraordinary parties. Between James’s charisma as a host and Lily’s beautifully charmed decorations, every ‘Potter Party’- as Sirius calls them- is extravagant. Their Christmas party this year is no different, despite the ongoing wizarding war.

Their house is filled with enchanted garlands that drift through the air, shifting colors through a spectrum of festive hues. A few paintings have been charmed to sing carols when people pass by, whereas others wish people ‘A Very Merry Christmas and A Happy New Year.’ There are candles suspended mid-air, casting a warm, flickering glow in every room. The candle’s soft, elegant glow is accompanied with the scent of peppermint. A sweet, sharp aroma with a hint of menthol.

The guests- who are mostly members of the Order- have forgotten about the chaos existing outside of the Potter’s household. Tonight is a night for celebration, nothing else. They’ve all lost so much to the war, and refused to lose Christmas to it too.

Which is why Remus Lupin is walking hand in hand with his boyfriend Sirius, approaching the Potter’s home with an expensive bottle of wine. He’d thought about bringing a different gift, but he and Sirius had both been too busy with missions to get something in time. So he supposes a bottle of Chardonnay will suffice.

Remus lets Sirius knock, watching his boyfriend’s excitement with a little grin. He isn’t necessarily looking forward to spending the night at a party only a few days after the full moon, but he rarely gets to see his friends anymore. Besides, seeing Sirius so happy is reason enough.

As soon as James opens the door, Sirius pulls him into a hug, smiling ear to ear, “Prongs! It’s been too long.”

Remus can’t help but grin, especially when James drunkenly exclaims, “Pads! Moony! My old friends, oh I’m so glad you could make it,” keeping an arm slung around Sirius’s neck.

“Well, I guess you won’t be needing this,” Remus jokes, holding up the bottle of white. James guffaws at the joke, proving Remus’s point as he hiccups after laughing.

Remus steps into the bustling home, smiling as he looks around. It’s relieving, seeing all his friends celebrating and happy; he’d become accustomed to only seeing people at meetings for the Order of the Phoenix, and those were downright depressing.

Tonight, however, is quite the opposite. James pulls Sirius away to get a drink, leaving Remus by the entryway. Remus walks to the kitchen, setting the bottle of wine on the countertop and admiring the decorations.

As a candle floats by, Remus is greeted with an overwhelming scent of peppermint, mingling with the warmth of the festive atmosphere. His eyes immediately start to water, and he can’t help but cough lightly, a telltale tickle forming in his throat.

“Remus! It’s good to see you,” Lily exclaims as she makes her way through the crowded room, “How’ve you been?”

Remus smiles, his discomfort temporarily forgotten as he sees Lily. He accepts her hug, replying, “I’ve been well, all things considered. How are you?”

“I’ve been good, honestly,” Lily says with a smile, a hand placed habitually on her stomach, “We’ve almost finished the nursery, and…”

Remus tries his best to listen as Lily keeps talking, but his body has other ideas. He ducks against his shoulder slightly as he stifles two quick sneezes, “ngt! ngk!”

“Oh, bless you!” Lily says before continuing on, “It really is lovely seeing everyone again.”

Unfortunately, the stifles did nothing to relieve the itch in his nose- an irritating, persistent buzzing. Still, Remus tries to reply, “It is, it’s not often we- hh.. hHngk! ngxt! Excuse me. It’s not often we get together anymore.”

“Bless you Remus,” Lily says with a hint of concern. Sure, Remus sneezing isn’t uncommon, but Lily’s well aware of the full moon cycle and how frequently he falls ill after his transformations, “You’re not sick, are you?”

Remus offers Lily a wry smile, “No, not sick. Just a little sensitive after the full moon, I suppose.”

Lily nods, seemingly buying Remus’s quick dismissal. “So, what’ve-,” she starts, but then Marlene McKinnon spots Lily and shrieks happily.

“Lils!” Marlene exclaims, and a moment later Lily is frisked away into an embrace.

Remus doesn’t mind. In fact, he’s rather grateful for the opportunity to slip away into an unoccupied hallway. His nose has already started twitching again, and he can feel the sharp scent of the peppermint coating his throat.

Remus pinches his nose between his thumb and forefinger, his head bobbing towards his chest as he stifles a series of sneezes in quick succession, “hhnGxt! hd’gsh! ngxk!”

He waits a moment, releasing his nose and taking an experimental breath. Wrong choice.

“hgXxt! hngt! nkXT! hh…. hhGDsxh!”

Remus lets out a little sigh, pinching the bridge of his nose before searching through his pockets for a handkerchief. He almost always carries one, especially leading up to or following the full moon, when his nose is particularly sensitive.

“Hey love. You hiding out over here?” Sirius teases with a smirk, “Or is this just an especially interesting hallway?”

Remus turns around to see Sirius leaning against the wall, a drink in hand. He looks undeniably beautiful, his hair pulled back in a bun and his shirt partially unbuttoned.

Remus rolls his eyes, “Why, are you trying to escape the spotlight Pads?”

Sirius grins, about to quip back when Remus cups a hand over his nose, his shoulders shuddering as he stifles another little fit of sneezes, “hhNGxt! hnxt! hhN’gxt!”

“Bless you, bless you, bless you baby,” Sirius says in a slightly sing-song tone.

“Thanks,” Remus mumbles, but he’s more preoccupied with holding back. His nose is twitching, and he turns away from Sirius slightly as his breath hitches.

Sirius’s smile fades a little, replaced with concern, “You alright Moons?”

“Yeah just- hngt! j-heh-hgt! hxkch! Snf, just a little itch,” he dismisses. Admittedly, it’s much more than that. There’s a constant tickle in his nose and throat, his eyes are itchy and watery, and he can’t keep his nose from twitching.

Sirius raises an eyebrow at his boyfriend, his expression making it evident that he doesn’t believe Remus’s dismissal, “C’mon love, what’s up?”

Sirius moves closer, resting a gentle hand on Remus’s back, “You feeling okay?” He murmurs.

Remus bites his tongue for a moment, debating between admitting his allergy and potentially ruining Sirius’s Christmas, or powering through. Unfortunately for him, his nose chooses something else entirely.

“tschHh!-kKTSch! hh-hNgxt! hhN’Kgtsch!”

“Bless you,” Sirius murmurs as he rubs Remus’s back, “Something setting you off?” He asks, knowing Remus well enough to recognize an allergic reaction.

Remus just nods, knowing he won’t be able to deny it. He keeps a finger curled under his nose, hoping to dissuade the itch.

“How bad is it?” Sirius asks, his worry evident.

“I’m okay, just… c’mon, not agaihhhnGXt! nnG’DSch!”

“Bless you, bless you,” Sirius blesses each stifle as he wraps an arm around Remus’s waist, guiding him towards the backyard to get some fresh air.

Unfortunately for Remus, they pass by not one but two of the floating candles on their way out, and the finger curled under his nose becomes useless in preventing another fit.

“hh- hDtsch! hn’Gxt! hhHGDsch!”

Remus stifles against his finger, letting out a little cough after the triple. On top of the persistent itch in his nose and throat, his eyes are starting to become increasingly irritated and watery. He resists the urge to rub them, knowing it’ll only worsen his discomfort.

“Bless you love,” Sirius says as he opens the back door, keeping his other hand on the small of Remus’s back.

Remus feels a little relief as he steps into the brisk air, a flurry of snowflakes drifting downwards, but he knows the damage has already been done. He’s had a few encounters with peppermint in the past, and he has no doubt he’ll be sneezing all night.

“Better?” Sirius hums, wrapping an arm around Remus’s waist. The werewolf nods, pressing his handkerchief to the base of his nose and sniffling.

“So, are you going to tell me what’s setting you off?” Sirius asks, smirking at his boyfriend, “or are we going to have to play Guess That Allergen.”

Remus rolls his eyes, but he can’t help but grin a little, “You’re an ass.”

“Now now, Moony, we were talking about your sneezy predicament, not my ass,” Sirius teases, “So, what’s-”

“n’Gck! hngXt! hhHDTsch!”

“Bless you, bless you, bless you. What’s setting you off?” Sirius asks, not minding the interruption.

Remus hesitates before letting out a little sigh, realizing there’s no use in trying to dismiss the reaction or imagine an excuse, “The peppermint,” he answers simply. His nose twitches, as if his body is even sensitive to him saying the word, “hhHGXt! hNG’tsch!”

“Bless,” Sirius says with a little frown, suddenly remembering Remus’s last run in with the scent of peppermint at a potions store- it’s safe to say Remus doesn’t go to that store anymore, “Baby why didn’t you say something when we got here? You must’ve realized right away you were allergic.”

Remus lets out a defeated sigh, shrugging and answering, “It’s Christmas, and you’ve been looking forwards to seeing everyone for ages. I figured I… hh… could dhhdeal with-hhGNSxch! hhHtschew! ktsChh! with a little allergic reaction.” Remus lets the last two sneezes out unstifled now that he’s only in Sirius’s company, catching them in the folds of his handkerchief.

“Bless you love,” Sirius murmurs, gently rubbing circles on his boyfriend’s back, “You do realize this is more than a little allergic reaction, right? You look downright miserable.”

Remus doesn’t have the energy to argue with that, and he’d only be lying. The effects of being in the peppermint filled house have already set in, despite him only being inside for eight minutes.

“Let me guess: itchy eyes, itchy throat, and incessant sneezing?” Sirius asks, grinning at the way Remus’s eyes narrow in annoyance, “I’ll take that as a yes. Any rashes?”

Remus shakes his head, holding the handkerchief over his nose again as he feels the itch return with a vengeance, “Not y- hhKTsch! hhtxchew-tscCHh-kkDSch!” The last triple comes too rapidly for him to draw a breath between each of the sneezes, leaving him slightly breathless, “Not yet,” he finishes lamely.

“Bless you,” Sirius says as he presses a kiss to Remus’s cheek, “Why don’t you wait here, I’ll let Lily know we’re heading home,” he suggests gently.

Remus frowns, looking at his boyfriend with a guilty expression, “You don’t have to, I’ll just stay out here for a while. Go enjoy yourself.” He insists, gesturing to the festivities inside.

Sirius grins, rolling his eyes playfully, “Remus Lupin, if you think I’m going to leave you sneezing outside in the cold on Christmas, then you’re poorly mistaken.”

When Remus’s guilty expression doesn’t change, Sirius softens a little, “C’mon, we’ll pick up some food on the way home and we can watch a movie. I’ll even let you pick which one.”

“Sirius-” Remus starts to protest, but Sirius is already opening the door to go back inside, “Don’t move. I’ll be back in a few minutes and then we can head home.”

As guilty as Remus feels, it’s hard to ignore the flush of affection he feels towards his boyfriend. He knows Sirius has been looking forward to this party for ages, but here he is, ready to leave in an instant all because of Remus’s discomfort. Sure, it’s not an ideal situation, but to be loved so unconditionally is something Remus can’t help but cherish.

Before Remus can even reply, Sirius slips back into the bustling house, on a mission to find the hostess. The door remains open for a moment, and Remus is hit with a waft of the intense, biting scent of peppermint. To anyone else, it might be perfectly sweet, but to Remus, it means a night of incessant fits.

“hhTSxchew!-ktsxch! tsxg’t! Ktsch-etschiew!”

Remus’s shoulders shudder as he lets out a series of rapid sneezes into the handkerchief, grateful he’d remembered to bring one with him. Each sneeze is itchy and desperate, tumbling out after one another with no hesitation.

Remus spends the next few minutes caught in a cycle of hitching breaths and little fits, his nose becoming increasingly pinker as he waits for them to subside- though he knows they won’t, not yet, at least.

Luckily for him, Sirius returns before long, leading Remus around to the front of the house and apparating the two of them home.

They spend the rest of the evening curled on the old sofa in their living room, watching Christmas classics and sharing a bottle of wine- Sirius insists that it wasn’t really Christmas if he doesn’t at least get tipsy. Remus keeps a handkerchief in hand the entire time, sneezing every few minutes in quick, rapid fits until they finally start to die down. Sirius, of course, blesses him each time.

All in all, it’s not a terrible Christmas for the couple. After all, they have each other.

The End

i hope someone enjoys this, sorry for the rushed ending and any grammatical/spelling errors!

[goldenprophetwrites]

saturday snippet (even though it’s already sunday here)

thanks for the tag @quiethauntings !!

just an angsty little one shot i started writing a while back ;)

Remus sat at the bar, his stool wobbling underneath him as he made light conversation with the man who had approached him several minutes earlier and instantly bought him a drink. He was handsome, tan skinned and blond haired. He’d introduced himself, but Remus had forgotten his name as soon as he’d uttered it.

The night was one of those blessed nights, where Sirius had gone to babysit for James and Lily and Remus was left to his own devices at their small flat. He loved spending time with Sirius, he really did, but sometimes the frustration of being in love with his lovely, oblivious, and painfully straight best friend was simply too overwhelming. On those occasions, where he knew Sirius would be spending the night at the Potters’, he could finally go in search of relief, spending his time drinking and dancing in London’s queer clubs, and usually finding a nice enough bloke to take the edge off.

They finished their drinks between amicable small talk, and Remus allowed the stranger - Charlie? Harley? - to pull him onto the dance floor. They danced for a couple of songs, before he suddenly noticed another man in the crowd, a man with long black hair and tight fitting clothes.

He had a tendency, though he tried to avoid it, to search out men who reminded him just enough of his best friend to indulge in a fantasy. It made him feel dirty afterwards, and incredibly guilty, but the pleasure of fucking a person from behind, or having them on his knees for him, when he was able to squint a little and pretend they were the person he truly longed for, was too much of a temptation for him to avoid entirely.

(not sure who hasn’t done this, but) no pressure tags: @veganbutterchicken @marigold-hills @tealeavesandtrash @sweetstarryskies

[i-think-too-loud]

i apologize for my last post and leave you with this:

-regulus threatening first years of bribing house elves to sneak gifts into the gryffindor towers for him (because he can’t be seen associating with Sirius but he can’t just NOT give him a christmas/birthday gift)

-sirius waiting outside grimmauld place in his animagus form to see regulus because he just needs to know his brother is alive, at the very least

-regulus seeing a black dog following him all summer and seeing him around hogwarts and think of him as a (pet) friend

-regulus being the one that called sirius “Snuffles” first

-older sirius hearing harry call him the same name and now seeing not only his best friend when he looks at his godson but his baby brother too

-reg told sirius he was dating james first. he even asked sirius’s permission (because that’s the type of person regulus is. and while james was content to keep it from his friend until things got more serious, Regulus was a gentleman through and through and couldn’t imagine not asking for a blessing)….and he was too scare to ask Effie and Monty

-regulus raided sirius’ room after he left (because he missed his brother and wanted to feel closer to him) and stole a bunch of records (Starman by Bowie was his favorite for obvious reasons)

-sirius tried to convince regulus to get a muggle tattoo for years and regulus always said he didn’t want to (he was too scared to.) the week after sirius left, he got one. sirius’ constellation right over his heart.

-remus taught sirius how to box and sirius started taking classes and becoming really good at it. sirius always told people it was because he was picturing reg’s face on his opponent (he was actually picturing walburga and orion and how he’d be able to protect reg from them now)

-reg never having been mad at sirius for leaving. not even for a second. (he knew what his parents would have done to him if he hadn’t and would never begrudge his brother his freedom)

AKA: the black brothers caring about each other always, even if they were never taught how to express that love and those emotions in a healthy way

[velvetcloxds]

dilf!remus lupin reaction to chubby!reader getting a wrist tattoo which is kinda related to him?

TO THE MOON AND TO SATURN | R.L.

word count: 0.8k

warnings: age gap, chubby reader not specified, cheeseee

Remus had a hard day, those weren’t as rare as they used to be, exam season coming into full swing leaving the poor professor drained, in desperate need of sleep as he sat back on his sofa sipping at the last sip of his red wine staring tiredly at the tests scattered over the coffee table. You, however, were in a much different mood, excitedly pulling your sleeve over your wrist. You’d never been one to do something spontaneous, happy with following a set plan for every aspect of your life until you’d met Remus, the most unexpected thing you’d ever allowed yourself to indulge in was losing him. You’d heard the stories of him, the rumours of a wild teen taking Hogwarts by storm and managing to surprise everyone with his genius in the process, and though you’d never known that version of him, happily loving the more mature and wise version you’d gotten the honour of falling in love despite your best intentions not to, you’d have a soft spot for your Moony and you always wanted to show him that.

You weren’t surprised to hear the soft jazz that filled the little muggle apartment the two of you shared, the music had quickly become your own reminder of home when he had to stay at Hogwarts during the full terms. You were even less surprised to find him in the living room, barely made it out of his suit, tie hanging undone around his neck as he offered you the purest smile despite sleep tugging it down.

“Darling,” Remus breathed with the gentlest tone, enough to pull you right to him and you gave in quickly, kicking off your shoes in the process of walking to him, sighing in pure delight as you fell into his lap. Your hand moved to their own accord as you began brushing his hair out of his face, smiling fondly at the sight of him, so perfect despite the state of him and somehow all yours.

“You should be in bed,” you reprimanded, and he hummed, half in agreement, half in regret that he couldn’t go to bed yet even if he wanted to. It was silly, really, the way you’d dance this little dance every night, yet every time you looked at him and held him like this it felt new, a little blessing you received anew each day. “But I’m glad you aren’t,” you didn’t think he’d perk up so quickly at that, daring hands moving lower down your back as you shifted. “I did something.”

“I’m going to need more than that, trouble,” you smiled, biting back a giggle at his curious gaze trying desperately to see if he missed a new haircut or new clothes, you were always very excited to show him either of those, but you seemed too familiar by the looks of it. You allowed the giggle to escape, excitedly presenting him your wrist, the tattoo was fresh, painful still and you were sure in an hour you’d absolutely hate yourself for the spontaneity, but Remus was smiling through furrowed brows, he was excited because you were excited but the more that he looked at it the less he knew what to do with his face.

“It’s Saturn,” you explained, not explaining much in the process but still it was a start, his fingers were gentle as they took hold of you, thumb hovering over the design tracing it in the air and even though he didn’t touch you it still earned a shiver through your body. “I love you to the moon and to Saturn,” seemed simple enough but his thumb paused over the little paw prints that spread through the fine linework, he knew it was for him, he didn’t have to think too hard to note that, but he couldn’t believe it. “My moony,” you whispered, and he couldn’t kiss you fast enough, smiling against your lips when you whispered your little question, asking him if he liked it, the silliest question in the world.

“My star,” he teased, and his grip was strong as it cupped your warm cheeks, your smile was poisonous, killing him slowly as he tried to capture it into his memory. “It’s beautiful, you’re beautiful,” he was careless in stealing another kiss, not surprised when you leaned into it, into him, gentle hands traveling up his crinkled button-down shirt.

“I got it for you,” you mumbled and looked down to the little gesture, happy now with the looks of it, happy that he likes it.

“Yeah?” his tone was low, playful really despite how much he appreciated every bit of your sweet honour to him, you were shy, the biggest thing someone has ever done for him and you’re shy and he wanted to see how far he could push it. “Now why would you do that?”

“So that I can always have you with me.”

“Always, huh,” he flipped you over, smiling as your eyes daringly took in every bit of him. “I love you,” and he did, more than simple words could tell you but you knew, you felt it. “To Saturn,” he added and gently brought your hand up to look at the declaration of love painted into your skin for all eternity.

“To Saturn,” you breathed and he placed a featherlike kiss on the transparent band-aid covering the art of your love.

[goblinpuppy35]

Paw Prints in Fresh Soil

(Previous Chapter) - Part 2 - (Next Chapter)

Professor Remus x Male Reader

Summary: While teaching at Hogwarts Professor Lupin tries his best to conceal his strong crush for the green fingered grounds keeper Y/N but soon a strong friendship blooms into something more.

------------------------------------------

A week of teaching flashed past Remus at an expectational speed and he loved every moment of it. Everyday was slightly different with what he taught and he was beginning to see a genuine improvement in the students Defense Against the Dark Art skills. He felt a place of pride for them all in his heart. The connection he had built with his students did help to combat the consistently delicate relationship he held with most other teachers.

They would exchange polite nods with Remus down the hallway yet this was always accompanied with a swift step to the furthest wall to increase their distance between themselves and the Proffesor. It was an agonising staff meeting when it had been made aware to the rest of the teachers about Remus being a werewolf, several protested intensely, with Professor Snape being the biggest. During this discussion Remus had kept closest to the door with his head hung staring at his scuffed shoes. He felt a constant sense of anxiety that this whole opportunity would be whipped away from him any second.

Each day Remus considered it a blessing he was still at Hogwarts. At this point he had become accustomed to doing his scheduled night patrols alone. His eyes adjusted well to the dark night surroundings, personally Remus would have been happy to wonder without a light but to not startle any potential wandering members of the castle, he illuminated his path by the tip of his wand as he strolled down the hallway, passing sleeping paintings. 

The night had a cold but peaceful atmosphere to it which Remus took solis in, enjoying a few squares of his nighttime supply of chocolate. As Remus used his sharp back teeth to press down on a particular hard piece he froze in the middle of the hallway and observed a dull warm light grow in intensity around the corner. It was the glow of a lantern and Remus prepared himself to give a wandering student a stern yet measured reminder of Hogwarts after dark curfew rules, but the figure's size threw his focus. Taller than a student yet not as tall as the Professor himself. With Remus remaining stagnant and figure not fully looking where they were going the two almost collided.

With only a few steps to spare the lamp and the head of its carrier whipped forward in Remus' direction, their two light sources highlighting the other. "Y/N!" Remus said in surprise, "Oh Christ! " was the groundskeeper's response followed by him stepping back, clinching his chest and letting out a small nervous laugh "You really need to stop sneaking up on me Professor Lupin". Despite the shock Remus found himself pleased to see the young man again "forgive me, I didn't expect to see you of all people on my patrol, what are you doing up and about?". By now Y/N had caught his breath back, "Same as you actually" he explained "Hagrid wasn't feeling so well so asked me to do his night patrol for him. I don't spend much time in this castle, I'm honestly amazed you all don't get lost in this maze more often!". There already seemed to be an element of comfortable familiarity between the two men which Remus enjoyed, "Well we all get lost in our first year but soon you start to know Hogwarts as a second home along with all its strange passageways" he beamed towards Y/N, however this shared experience seemed to be lost on the groundskeeper who looked back at Remus with a polite but confused smile.

Remus wasn't able to speak again before the conversation was deliberately interrupted by a slow cough echoing down the hall, it's perpetrator made themselves viable from their own wands light. "Interrupting something am I?" each word was more drawn more then the last and Remus brow dropped as Proffesor Snape approached them. "The fact your granted the responsibility of night patrols is truly beyond me, especially since it seems you'd rather spend your time gossiping" Snape's dark eyes lookee between Y/N and Remus who then looked towards each other. "With all due respect Proffesor Snape" Y/N carefully began "Professor Lupin is an incredibly capable member of staff and takes his role with absolute seriousness" Remus' mouth dropped open slightly, it was rare he was ever stood up for. "In fact I was just about to ask Professor Lupin if he would accompany me on my petrol for the rest of the night since I don't know these halls as well as him." Y/N finished with an air of confidence though alas this began to diminished as Proffesor Snape came closer.

"This is NOT the kind of individual anyone in this school should be conspiring with" hissed Snape towards Y/N, "If it was put to me he would be on the first train out of here" as the ghoulish positions teacher paused he leaned in closer to Y/N making him visible nervous. "And you would be a close second Mr Y/L/N. You have no business being here, the only small positive in your gross act of misjudgement is the only person your endangering is yourself of course". Y/N's face showed he was certainly upset by these comments yet he stood his ground, gripping onto the handle of his lantern tightly.

Once Snape was satisfied with his torment he adjusted his robes and started to walk down the eery corridor "Of course, it's in my best interest for you to not get yourself harmed. I will need your help collecting the herbs I need for a certain Someone's medicine" with the word someone being emphasised as Snape briefly turned back to glare directly as Remus. It wasn't until Remus was satisfied that Snape was out of ear stop he could relax and turn back to Y/N "he's as insufferable as when he was child. I'm sorry about him Y/N please don't take his words to heart. You have a right to be here as much as anyone" in a moment of rare forwardness Remus places his hand gently on Y/N's shoulder.

This gesture was met with tender eyes and a small warm smile from Y/N which was enough to make Remus draw him in closer but by force he controlled his impulses. "Thank you Lupin" Y/N said genuinely "But Professor Snape is right, I don't exactly belong here" as Y/N contemplated he began to walk down the hallway and Remus swiftly followed. "You know originally I withdrew my application to come and work here at the school but it was Dumbeldore who found me and encouraged me to reconsider." as they walked Y/N seemed to be talking to the sleeping paintings as much as he was to Remus, nevertheless he was happy to just listen. "I knew the risks coming here and I knew it wasn't going to be easy yet at the same time I was hopeful, if that makes any sense". "Completely" Remus said earnestly suddenly finding himself connecting even more with the gentleman next to him. Was it possible they were more alike then he had originally thought?

"Well" Y/N said with a sudden chuckle "that's what I get for being a Muggle living under Hogwarts roof". Remus instantly scrapped his previous thoughts. "I'm sorry what? .. your a Muggle?" Y/N seemed shocked by Remus' own level of disbelief, "had you not noticed" he asked lifting up his hand  to Remus "no wand". This was true, Remus had never noticed a wand on Y/N's person and it would explain why he was walking at night by latten light and yet Remus was still struggling to grasp this new information. Y/N had stopped walking forward, folding his arms he leans against the stone wall, allowing Remus to remain dumbfounded "if it helps you reacting as well as most people do" there was a hint of sarcasm in Y/N's voice. This was not the first time he'd had this conversation. In this moment Remus recognised the familiar emotions of uneasiness and panic he had often bared witness from others now being expressed outwardly from himself. He took a moment to recenter himself and rejoin the conversation with Y/N, the last thing Remus wanted to do was make him feel more isolated.

Without being prompted Y/N began to talk, "I'm sure you've got questions so I'll give you the basic run down . My parents went to Hogwarts, they met each other, fell in love and had a child. A healthy baby boy who grew up to be a very capable wizard in the ministry. Then they had a second child .. a child who showed no signs of magical spell casting abilities. And before you ask they did numerous tests on me. Some just said I was a late bloomer and needed more time but nothing happened. No wand chose me and that was that". They had reached the end of the hallway which had an enormous decorative arched window looking out towards the still lake and Y/N watched the clouds reflection dance in the water ripples as he continued. "So my parents decided to send me to a Muggle school, not that I really fit in there either. But I still had such an interest in the magic world, I read all my parents books on wizard history and creatures. I got particularly fascinated by magical herbology hence why I help out in the greenhouses so much. So yes, I may be a Muggle technically but I know a lot about this world and I feel more connected to be in it then the one out there." Despair was hidden behind Y/N's eyes though he did a good job holding it from rising to the surface.

Remus said nothing at first, he simply looked at Y/N in awe, processing every word he'd said. Finally as the full murky colours of dawn began to creep into the sky and morning birds tweeted in the dark trees, Remus reached out and took Y/N's hand. It was Y/N's turn to now stand silently, in shock of Remus' sudden action. "You may not be a magic caster Y/N .. but you have me spellbound" even within the dark Y/N cheeks clearly turned a warm pink and he almost tried to wiggle out of Remus' grasp. "You are proving everyone who ever doubted you wrong by being here and that is immensely courageous, I implore you to believe in your own capabilities, or at least let me believe in them until you can" when Remus had said 'let me' he could feel Y/N's own grip in his palm get tighter for a moment. "That's .. that's quite a romantic statement Proffesor Lupin" Y/N couldn't meet Remus' eye contact until he said his name and in a heart beat both men were the same shape of pink and exchange nervous chuckles.

"Please, call me Remus" he noticed the warm colour coming back to Y/N's face which caused Remus to gaze out of the window and see that the morning sun was swiftly approaching. "And I'm just speaking honestly...Looks like our patrol together is almost done. Would you like to watch the sun rise with me?". Y/N nodded and their hands parted as they sat down of the stone window ledge and enjoyed the steady glow of the horizon. "What did Professor Snape mean when he said that you shouldn't be here either" Y/N ask and looked at Remus with curious eyes. Remus kept his eyes forward at the lake and his jaw tightened. "Oh nothing really. Just old school boy grudges really." Y/N continued to stare at Remus and then eventually turned back to face the sunshine "oh. okay then."

'Honestly my arse' thought Remus with a sigh.

[turvi]

Mrs. Lupin Knows The Best

A/N: He is so fine. Sorry, not sorry. He is my weakness.

Y/n woke up with a smile feeling his gaze on her. After all these years being together their dynamic has not changed. Remus and Y/n were best described as twin flames. They balanced each other well

While Remus was now an expert in controlling her temper and insecurities. She was an expert in handling his Moony side and anxiety. For her Remus was always in the background. Something untouchable, for she thought he is too good for her.

It only took a chance to meet between them to realize that they were made for each other. They literally bumped into each other. Remus (bless his heart) Lupin thought he hurt the poor girl but she was busy looking deep into his dark green eyes not wanting to look away.

Little did she know that he noticed this and was equally flattered and fell for her. She didn't notice the heart eyes Remus gave her whenever she passed by him in the corridor.

Remus took out a few lessons from Sirius on how to charm a girl. But it soon got chaotic when he fell face-first in front of her. While he thought he had embarrassed himself in front of her and Sirius was acting as if he never met the man, Y/n tried her best not to laugh and picked up Remus while irrevocably falling in love with him.

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

Neither of them expected this. To be married to one another, vowing to never leave each other until death itself comes for them.

Remus currently bid see you soon to his wife who had to go to help her very pregnant sister urgently. While Remus was being a bit petulant as she had to leave only for a week, she chuckled and kissed him promising she will be back before he knows it.

But she doesn't know he started missing her the moment she went out the door he felt like his heart was shattering a million times.

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

Sirius and James planned a night out for Remus of how grumpy he suddenly became. He would snap at them and grumble and growl at them.

They couldn't realize what made him so grumpy all of a sudden. He was fine just a few days ago. That's when it clicked Sirius. His best friend was grumpy because his wife was not by his side.

Right now James and Sirius felt like they were walking on eggshells whenever they talked to Remus. They both excused themselves and left Remus by himself in the booth.

"Ok, what is wrong with him? Why is he so moody? The full moon passed right?"

Sirius sighed "Yeah I feel he is just missing his missus"

James frowned in confusion "But she has only been gone for three days"

Sirius shrugged "I don't know...I am calling her right now. I love him but I can't handle his moody-moony side right now."

Sirius took a breath of relief when Y/n picked up her phone in only two rings. Her sweet voice graced his ears with "Hello Sirius. How are you?"

"Terrible love, your husband misses you dearly, and his moony side is showing up."

"But the full moon has already passed"

James chimed in "Hey Y/n prongs here, please take your husband with you before he snaps and eats any of us. Please I have yet to have a child with Lily."

"Ok let me talk to him" she chuckled

James handed the phone to Remus who begrudgingly took the phone and immediately softened when he heard her voice "Hey bun" he practically purred.

Sirius rolled his eyes as he watched his best friend talking so sweetly to her as if he was not glaring and grumbling at him mere moments ago. He snatched the phone back and put the phone on speaker "Love kindly take him with you he is being insufferable git" m

Remus would have glared at him again if Y/n would not have giggled, causing his insides to melt.

"Rem, hon what is wrong I said I will be back before you know it"

Remus pouted as if she said she would be returning after years "but I miss you"

James tried his best not to laugh out watching the calm and collected Remus become a puddle for his girl...just like James was for Lily.

Y/n finally promised to come and get Remus. Remus was giddy and smiley and Sirius shook his head in disappointment..but internally he was happy for him. Happy that after so many hardships he finally found a person he can call his home.

He hid his happy grin with his hand watching Remus talk to his wife with a smile that reached his eyes. He and James shared a glance happiness dancing in their eyes. This felt nice. He now knew Remus couldn't have found a more perfect person who would stick with him through his better or worse.

A/N: REBLOGS AND COMMENTS APPRECIATED