Here's the list as a reminder again:
Recap: Regulus had been teasing James with different coloured handkerchiefs, James eventually catches on and wears one to a gathering at Regulus and Sirius' house. We pick up with James on his knees in front of Regulus.
No I will not apologize.
James and Regulus went to continue what they'd be craving but they were interrupted by a loud bang of the door. The two boys adjusted themselves quickly and sat as if they had just been talking, Barty and Evan suddenly falling into the room, half their clothes already off.
Barty turned to Regulus and James with a disappointed face which changed to a smile, "if you're not going to join in, I suggest you leave now"
"It was nice seeing you Reg!" Evan smiled through the neck kisses and Regulus told them to fuck off before leaving the room with James, closing the door to block out the intense noises.
"Well that was disappointing."
Regulus and James went to think of a different spot, the house not having many rooms but were promptly intercepted by Sirius and Remus, Remus silently apologizing for whatever was about to come out of Sirius' mouth.
Sirius was clearly very drunk and judging by the look on everyone else's faces, so we're they. Sirius handed James a necklace with a ring around it, placing the necklace over James' head.
"I'm not an idiot James Fleamont Potter"
He then turned to Regulus, who was standing at him with emotions he couldn't quite comprehend.
"And I'm not one who's going to stifle the love you feel for this man"
Sirius gestured to James and Regulus who looked at each other and immediately looked away, they had just met and were planning on fucking. That was all.
"Love?"
"That's a strong word Sirius"
The two looked away from each other and Sirius' face dropped, looking to Remus who just shrugged.
"But you use the handkerchiefs?" Sirius pointed to Regulus' pocket and James hid his further down so Sirius couldn't see the colour.
"Didn't think you'd realize" Regulus raised an eyebrow at his brother.
"How do you think I caught Remus?"
Remus went red and slapped Sirius arm who practically growled in response, rubbing where Remus had hit. Regulus smiled but shook his head at Sirius,
"Sirius I don't wear them to attract romance"
James looked away, he wouldn't usually go with a stranger but something about Regulus was different and now he was hearing that difference, Regulus didn't want anything committed to James.
"But look at him! James is a nice guy!"
"Yes a nice guy who you've ruined my evening with" Regulus rolled his eyes and put the handkerchief deeper into his pocket so it was no longer viable, he started going up the stairs.
"I'm going to have a rest, don't get too wasted Sirius and, it was nice meeting you James"
Regulus left and James tried smiling but it didn't come across confidently in the slightest, Sirius went to speak but James stopped him.
"Ive actually got work tomorrow Pads, I'll see you guys later" he grabbed his jacket and waved everyone off, he went up a couple of stairs and yelled a faint 'goodbye' to Regulus but got no response.
James frowned and left, opening the gate and beginning to walk out onto the footpath with his eyes to the ground. Regulus watched him through the window, holding his cigarette tightly, he was pissed at himself for letting James go but he wasn't going to let anyone get romantically involved in his life only for them to leave him when they saw how much work Regulus really was.
The following day Regulus woke to Sirius just staring at him, he clenched his shirt in fright but Sirius didn't move. Regulus had fallen asleep on the window chair the night before, the smell of smoke coming from the ash tray next to him still lingering.
"Why'd you do it?"
"What?"
"Why'd you let James walk away?"
"Because I don't like him romantically plus Barty and Evan ruined whatever tension we were going to release"
Sirius shuttered at the idea of his best friend and brother but took a deep breath, "yeah well friends don't look at each other that way"
"Never said we were friends"
"So you do like him?"
"No, we're acquaintances who happened to meet and both have similar...sexual interests"
Sirius stared at Regulus for an annoyingly long time and Regulus tried to push him away. He got up and started getting dressed.
"Where are you going?"
Regulus put a light blue handkerchief in his left pocket, "out"
"No point with the handkerchiefs, James already knows you're gay"
"It's not for him" Regulus grabbed his jacket and left, walking to a side of town where he knew he could find a random one-timer to distract himself from James.
Sirius shook his head and got himself ready to go to the records store to see James and Remus who were both working. He made his way down the stairs and noticed Regulus heading down a side street as he closed the garden gate. Sirius knew he couldn't tell Regulus what to do but he was always scared that one day Regulus was going to get himself in trouble if he kept being so careless with his body.
Regulus walked through the street and saw a wizard catch his eye, the two smiled at each other, Regulus' being flirtatious but fake. He took the man behind one of the buildings and tried to think about anything besides what he really wanted to do, which was to see James.
Sirius walked into the store, James was out the back bringing boxes in that had been delivered and Remus was at the desk. Sirius came over and kissed Remus, tilting his head to see if he could see James, frowning when he couldn't.
"Is James...ok?"
"Is Regulus?"
"I don't want to say out loud what Regulus is doing today, it might hurt James more"
"He started talking to me about it, he really liked- likes Regulus, obviously love is a strong word but the way Regulus spoke and moved away from him, it's kind of, sort of, possibly, definitely crushed him"
"So he's staying out the back of the shop for the rest of the day?"
"He just doesn't want to be sitting at the counter, staring out the window, hoping Regulus walks in"
"Merlin that's depressing"
Remus nodded and they stood in silence, Sirius had never pictured Regulus and James being, well, anything to each other but he had seen that look in Regulus' eyes before when he broke up with his previous boyfriend and the way he looked at James was different to the way he looked at other guys he had hooked up with.
Sirius then had an idea, "our anniversary is coming up very soon"
"Mhm in two days it'll be four years"
"I can't believe we've been official for four years that's absolutely insane"
"I know, we should do something with everyone? I mean if it wasn't for Lily and James pushing us to talk to each other who knows what would've happened"
"Mooney you are so right, let's make it really formal as well, like a night of suits and dresses and champagne!"
"You hate champagne?"
"Yeah but I like holding the glasses, makes me feel like a boujee bitch who's got her life together"
Remus laughed and Sirius started getting excited, Sirius told Remus to tell James and that he'd go home and start making invitations for everyone.
Remus hung the "be back in 5" sign on the front door and went to find James. He walked into the back of the store and saw James on the floor, sorting through the records quietly. He sat down opposite him and slowly started helping.
"It's going to be Sirius and I's four year anniversary in two days" Remus said to James.
"I know, Sirius hasn't stopped talking about his present for you since he got it" James smiled back.
"We're going to have a party, a proper one where everyone dresses fancy and we drink champagne"
"Sirius hates champagne?"
"It makes him feel boujee"
James laughed and tilted his head back on the wall, "I'll definitely be there, can I make a speech?"
"Absolutely, you pushed us to be together in the first place. We might never have ended up as close as we are if it weren't for you and Lily"
James smiled at the floor, he had never thought about how much of an impact he had made on his friends. All the memories they had shared together, that all could've been history if James hadn't gotten Sirius to introduce himself on their first day.
"Let's close for the day, we'll go help Sirius"
"We're not getting paid not to work"
"Remus, no one comes here anyway. We'll just keep that 'be back in 5' sign up until tomorrow"
Remus shrugged and stood up, taking his uniform off and placing it in his locker, James doing the same. The two locked the store and walked down the streets back towards the Black brothers' house.
Regulus rolled his eyes as the stranger kissed his neck, it was rough but in the wrong way and to say he had been severely underwhelmed would be an understatement. He pushed the man off and fixed his pants, tossing the piece of fabric on the ground and fixing his hair in the reflection of an old piece of metal that was leaning about against the fence.
"Come on darlin' I'm not finished"
Regulus scrunched his face up in disgust, walking away. The man tried grabbing Regulus again who turned around and stunned him, sending the man flying back into the fence. Regulus flicked the collar of his jacket higher and quickly left through the streets back home. A hook up wasn't going to work because that's not really what he wanted, he wanted the gentleness that James had given him and he wanted to hear the comments that made him laugh as James kissed him, not some random man who only thought with his dick.
When Regulus got home he heard multiple voices coming from the living room. Sirius, Remus and James had pieces of golden and white paper laid out on the table and where writing different names on them. Sirius noticed Regulus first and called him in, noticing the fabric was gone which in his mind hopefully meant Regulus hadn't done anything.
"Reggie perfect timing, we're going to throw a grand party for Mooney and I's anniversary"
"Sounds wonderful Sirius"
"Thoughts?" Sirius held up the invitation for Regulus to look at, Regulus smiled and grabbed one of the ink pens.
"They're nice" Regulus walked over to the envelopes and saw how bland they looked compared to the cards, "give me a moment".
Regulus went upstairs and brought out a wax kit he had from when he lived at the other house. It had different colours in it and came with different patterns they could press down the wax with.
Sirius smiled at the pot and lit the candle for Regulus, who handed James a handle with a rose on it. Once the wax had melted he silently showed James how to pour it without burning the paper and stick the pattern in, James copied and soon enough they had the perfect invitations for everyone. Remus left to go take the invitations to everyone's houses, most of their friends lived near him so it was easier to hand them out personally than wait for the mail.
Regulus looked awkwardly at James but was interrupted when Sirius asked them both to help him with moving the furniture. As the day went on the wizards moved everything everywhere so it looked like a proper place to throw a party, thankfully with magic they were able to change basically the whole house to almost a royal and posh aesthetic which gave the house a very formal look.
The evening had set in and the three wizards looked around the house impressed with themselves, Remus coming back astonished as he looked around at the home which now looked completely different.
"It's like walking into a fairytale"
"Yeah I could see myself being a princess in this house" James laughed, Regulus unintentionally laughed as well and his heart melted as James kept smiling at him rather than turning away.
"Well tomorrow I think we need to go suit or formal wear shopping because I personally burnt all of my suits mother gave me as soon as I left that house"
"Pandora has a beautiful shop with some suits I think you'd like Sirius, they have things like lace incorporated in them because, well it's Pandora her whole vibe is being extra" Regulus smiled
"I mean this with all due respect but am I the only one who thinks Pandora can pull off looking like a sexy goddess and just absolutely adorable at the same time?" Remus said, hands on his hips.
Sirius nodded, "no I totally get that, she's very pretty but has that like whispy fairy-like nature to her"
Everyone nodded in agreement and then James took a deep breath, "well I am going to go home now and look for my suit that's hopefully not damaged in the back of my closet"
"I know you aren't a fan of suits Prongs, you can just wear a nice top and pants if you'd like? Like the red one!"
"Hey I like suits, just on other people" James rubbed the back of his neck, "thank you though if I don't like my suit I will wear the red top". James waved everyone off and Remus gave Sirius a kiss before heading off as well, he had to go check he actually had something formal in his closet or he might end up having to go shopping with Sirius.
Regulus and Sirius sat on their front step together sharing a cigarette and watching the sunset. Sirius looked to Regulus who's eyes were heavy.
"What happened today?"
"I tried distracting myself"
Sirius looked back to the sunset, watching the smoke drag lazily through the air, "did it work?"
Regulus laughed in annoyance, "not in the slightest"
Sirius nodded, knowing that would've been the case.
"Did you fuck...what's his name?"
Regulus shrugged "I don't know, didn't ask him. No we didn't though, he was too rough, I didn't like it"
"I prefer rough"
Regulus looked at Sirius in disgust but smiled, "not that kind of rough, like the type of guy who when you ask them what the difference between harder and faster is, they say "like what? With a hammer" type of rough"
"Ugh I'm glad I picked Mooney early and didn't go through that"
"My ex was like that"
"What?"
"Our relationship wasn't good, I didn't realize how toxic it was until I got out of it. It was basically hate fucking whenever we were together, there was always something we were fighting about..."
"I never liked him."
"I know. You told him multiple times."
They stayed silent and watched as the stars appeared in the sky. They looked at all the horoscopes and constellations that were visible through the clouds and thought about their family and names.
"Do you want kids Reg?"
"I don't know, I'm not sure I'd be a good parent...uncle maybe" he turned to Sirius who smiled, "what about you?"
"Yeah, one day I want to. I'll have a boy and a girl"
Regulus grinned and the two laid back on the concrete, "what would you name them?"
"For the girl, I'll name her Kiara"
"That's nice, why though?"
"It translates to 'the first ray of sun' in English"
"Remus would like that" Regulus closed his eyes smiling, "and for the boy?"
"Elijah"
"Where'd that come from?"
"He was a character in a book Remus read to me once, after that I just really liked it?"
"What made the character special?"
"He was funny, kind, true to his emotions"
Regulus sighed, "lucky I wasn't named Elijah"
Regulus got up, "I'm going to bed now, I'll come with you to see Pandora tomorrow though ok"
"Ok Reg, night"
Regulus nodded and went inside to sleep, tomorrow was going to be a big day of getting ready for an even bigger evening. Regulus flopped onto his bed and passed out asleep almost immediately, during the night he dreamt of James and woke up annoyed and confused with himself.
~
The following day Sirius and Regulus went to see Pandora who had left two suits out for them that she thought they would like. Sirius stared at his in absolute adoration and hugged Pandora for a solid two and half minutes before going to try it on. Regulus looked at his suit satisfied, happy as usual with Pandora's excellent taste in fashion.
Here is what I imagine they look like, art work was done by @industrations (Indi) on TikTok. Please got check them out they're absolutely amazing LOOK HOW FUCKING FINE OUR BOYS LOOK AND WAIT TILL YOU SEE JAMES AND REMUS!!
The boys left the store more than happy with their outfits, waving goodbye to Pandora as she promised to be at there's tonight in one of her new designs. They got to the house and started preparing the food and drinks, making sure all the rooms were clean and that their own bedroom doors were triple locked to avoid two certain Slytherins getting in *cough*Barty and Evan*cough*.
They heard their first knocks which were from Marlene and Dorcas, Marlene was wearing a beautiful silk dress with an intricate lace back and Dorcas was wearing a scandalous black jumpsuit with sparkly heels.
"Girls you look fucking gorgeous come in!"
The girls came in, hugging both the brothers and handing Sirius a gift from the two of them to celebrate his anniversary. Following closely behind them were Barty and Evan who were surprisingly fitting the dress code, the two were wearing very stylish and expensive looking suits which came as a shock to both the brothers.
"Did you steal them?"
"So good to see you too Sirius"
"Sorry! I'm sorry, yes thank you for coming"
"We didn't steal these, we did steal this though" they handed Sirius a small box that had two sets of matching cuff links in them, the design being that of a wolf and a star.
"Don't get why your thing with Remus is a wolf but since it's your whole vibe we figured you'd like this"
Regulus crossed his arms and smiled at the two, "I knew there was some genuine affection and human decency in the two of you"
"Watch it Reg, we stole these remember?"
Regulus nodded and smiled at them unconvinced, he let them through and watched as Peter and Pandora made their way through the gate as well.
"You guys look incredible!"
"Thank you!" Pandora blushed, "good to know because this one's going in the magazine next week"
"Well this is all thanks to Pandora, last minute she managed to whip this up for me" Peter did a twirl and everyone gave Pandora a clap as they walked inside.
Regulus and Sirius mingled with their friends, music playing and drinks being handed around when they heard the door shut and their final two people walk into the room. Sirius' jaw dropped and he figured everyone wouldn't mind if he took Remus away for a little bit. Regulus looked James up and down and had never felt more grateful for Sirius telling him he didn't have to wear a suit.
LOOK HOW FUCKING GOOD THEY LOOK
CANT GET OVER THIS ARTIST!
James and Regulus walked up to each other, looking at each other's pockets, a grey flannel handkerchief hanging out of Regulus' left pocket and the same handkerchief hanging out of James' right pocket.
"Thought you didn't like suits"
"I don't like them on me, you however..."
Regulus turned his head away so that James couldn't see his smile, "listen about the other day"
"Don't worry I get it, love is a strong word"
"It's not that I don't like you James, I do. But that was the problem at the time, I'm not good with- that and I don't want you coming into my life only to realize how much work I am"
"Keep wearing that suit and you'll never be too much work for me"
Regulus laughed and he fell just that little more in love with every second he spent with James for the rest of the night, they drank and danced and ate and laughed together the entire time and for the first time in what felt like forever Regulus felt complete.
Mischief Managed,
ThisWritersBlock