To Stiches: I'm so very glad you enjoyed! Indeed, Regulus and Sirius still have some things to clear out, but they're at least on the same side now...
To reviewer : I can assure you Regulus is in safe hands, the poor thing will have more development to come, as well as more good stuff!
Just one more chapter of We Were to Post Monday, poetically ending that right as Ootp ended! Then I'll start posting double updates again to get into the good stuff of HBP!
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They all found themselves blinking in stark contrast of the lazy morning sun from moments ago to a heavy orb of late afternoon beating down on them all. Alice got a particularly painful landing, smashing face first into something hot and metal, Lily found herself scattered painfully in a pile of woodchips, and Frank was somehow twisted up in a lone swing set, the other already broken. Regulus was perched ungainly on the very highest peak of the playground, the sign visible to him at the end of the road from his view trailing this as Magnolia Park.
Peter, Lupin, and Potter were visible scattered around the street as well, his friend having smacked against the chain link fence and had the mark on his face to prove it. Lupin was still dazedly in the street right in front of where one of those muggle contraptions could run over him, or fly over him if it was anything like Arthur's. Potter was looking curiously around at all the Muggle dwellings, but bypassed them as he ducked his head around the corner and immediately took to his feet, ignoring the bleeding palms of his hands for landing on the sidewalk like that as he called after Sirius. He couldn't see his brother in the alleyway but kept his balance on his wooden perch and tipped his head up to the sun anyways, enjoying the view and thinking to himself for now.
If they'd been born Muggles, would they have ever done something as simple as play at a park together before? He'd never wanted to be one before, it was base traitorous to his species he was sure to even entertain the thought, and besides, those Dursleys proved enough Muggles were no better about being scum than some wizards. What Evans had said still lingered in him though, what he'd give just to play a game at a place like this.
Sirius had been the only one to land in the shade of the alleyway and so was already brushing himself off and back on his feet the fastest, but he could see from his crooked vantage that nobody was dying, not even Regulus who seemed in no danger of falling, so he'd happily kept himself out of the way for now, leaning against the cool wall and wondering if this was the exact spot Harry had once fended off the dementors and gotten his first sight of him so long ago as he still turned everything over while James and Remus quickly joined him anyways.
"I'm fine," he told them both before they could even ask, and he really meant it this time. He told them in detail and made sure to meet both of their eyes as often as he could so they'd believe him, "I'm exhausted, and depressed as hell it came to this, and still pretty pissed all things considered, but we'll be fine."
James only studied him for a moment before relief flooded him and he seemed to take him at word. Remus though was studying him intently, a question on his lips he kept suppressing by pursing them up and glancing guiltily at James.
He had an idea what this was going to be about and so saved Moony the awkwardness of stopping their fooling around before James even did know about it. "Give us a moment, yeah?"
Prongs looked surprised at the dismissal, but not particularly offended, appraising the two for a moment before shrugging and jogging off towards Peter. Sirius watched him go, never having felt more love in his life for his brother, James still trusted him after everything. He met Peter's eyes and flashed him a genuine smile, who'd been standing on the edge of the grass. Sirius couldn't deny he was a bit glad he hadn't come over though, he really was too tired to deal with anything else right now and that swirl of emotions he couldn't avoid when he did head over there after this. He had a lot of cleanup to do.
Surprised, but willing when Remus took his hand and took him deeper into the alley out of sight of the park entirely, they could go no farther back onto the other street from the barrier once more. He braced himself, telling himself he would not hold it against Moony for cutting this off now that he'd had a reality check and that hadn't been helping, so he was fairly surprised when Remus leaned in and kissed him fiercely instead.
Sirius hummed in pleasure at how very alive he felt, the warm bricks on his back, Remus's fingers trailing lightly up his neck and hovering there, pulling him in closer and feeling very secure in how utterly good this still felt. The book finally started though, and the two sprung apart like the guilty party they still were as Evans read The Second War Begins.
"I'm, surprised," Sirius admitted quietly, the burning pain of Harry suffering through the various stages of grief only slightly easier to get through as he rubbed his thumb against Remus's bottom lip in silent question.
"Of course, you idiot," he scoffed in return, before he seemed to check himself and looked at Sirius steadily. "Look, I know we started this for the wrong reasons, but um, I've been wanting to do that this whole time, and I should have, but, I've been a coward. Look, you should know, I-"
"Think we should tell James," Sirius thought he was agreeing. Remus pulled back though and Sirius let his hand fall in surprise as he surmised, "that's, not what you were going to say?" It only just occurred to him he hadn't told Moony of his more recent conviction to even do so and probably should mention it to him first. "I know I said we'd wait until we got out of this mess, but come on Remus. You know he's no more going to be one of those pureblood arseholes who frowns upon shirt-lifters than I am. He should know why we keep buggering off."
"I just, like my business private, you know that," he muttered, no longer looking directly at him.
Sirius flushed and leaned farther into the mortar now with shame, but Remus quickly corrected, "not that I'm accusing- look Sirius let's move past that Snape shit for the last time, honestly. The arsehole is not worth the breath wasted."
"And we'll be discreet," Sirius more than happily agreed, taking Remus's hand and hoping he was caving. "Won't tell anyone else obviously, none of their bloody business, not even Peter if you don't want."
Remus still looked a tad panicked, so Sirius altered, "not next time everyone falls asleep, I'm too exhausted to stay up myself, but the one after that then?" Let him get used to the idea at least beforehand, that felt like a kind compromise anyways.
"Okay," it did seem to ease him up, he released a breath anyways and squeezed Sirius's fingers. He still tensed his shoulders though and looked like he was building himself up to say something, but then leaned in and kissed him again, with somehow even more enthusiasm than before.
He was very convinced Moony was just worried about being caught now, and hadn't the blood left in the right places to worry about such a thing as his fingers frisked lower.
"Down boy," Remus pulled back with a chuckle, leaving Sirius a panting and flustered mess. "Can't stay like this forever now," his smile was odd.
Sirius huffed and glared at the neighboring houses. "Think any of those will open for us? I'd curl up on that grass for a lie down if I wasn't worried Evans would shove those wood chips under my nails, and you know how I'd sleep even better." He still had his hand very suggestively in place.
Remus placed his hands on either side of the wall and pressed their foreheads together but seemed unwilling to do anything else, as if suspended in place. Sirius sighed but finally forced himself to be the one to pull away, ducking under his arm and jogging back out into the street to check himself. Remus already knew it hadn't worked though when he yelled at the top of his lungs, "no bed and breakfast for us, but thanks for stopping to check Evans!"
It was all too easy to picture in his head, Sirius jogging over to James's side like nothing had happened, the two still able to keep each other's spirits up through Harry's miserable coping, as if hoping their laughter would echo through time for him.
'You should have just asked,' Remus continued, accusing himself now that Sirius was long gone and it would be even weirder and more noticeable if he called him back. 'He's not a bloody mind reader!' It did matter to him though, what exactly Sirius wanted to say to James. That the two were just off shagging, or that maybe it was something more? He had time now at least, not much but some to get up the nerve and ask later.
Sirius certainly hadn't made it seem like it was going to be any such thing that full moon day he'd screwed all this up, but things had changed since then. They'd been through a lot dealing with these books and mostly each other, and he was positive enough in the enthusiasm Padfoot still showed just now his reluctance back in the Centaur's home had just been his abysmal way of dealing with this future and shutting down, which Remus should have stepped in and helped him with like Prongs had!
The hell was the matter with him, too cowardly to comfort him when he needed it but dragging him off like this at a convenient time? Or was it all just wistful thinking on his part he could have even made a difference, maybe only James really could have gotten through to him in that moment, it's not like he'd done anyone any good in this future after all.
He knew what a hypocrite he was being too, doing exactly what Sirius just had and trying to put it all off for later and avoid really talking to him. He wouldn't let it build up so bad he'd have a bloody breakdown over it though, he quickly promised himself. He just had to ask, and accept whatever Sirius's answer was, nothing else was required on his part. If Sirius didn't reciprocate he couldn't force anything to happen otherwise regardless.
Pushing himself off the wall and still cursing Prongs for these stupid too-tight pants, he leaned in the shadows for now and watched with a smile as his prediction had been exactly right.
Sirius had gone right over to James, and there was that air around him all the Marauders knew so well as he smiled at his best mate and instigated, "want to play king of the castle?" With his head cocked suspiciously in Regulus's direction.
"I'm game," James promised at once, turning back to Peter and only feeling slightly bad he already forgot whatever he'd been saying about magnolias and their plant properties. "Want to team up with him?" He offered in form of apologizing by letting them play start and including Regulus without protest.
Peter couldn't have looked more surprised if James had just blotted out the sun, but he grinned and said, "yes," at once. Hopping the fence and quickly scaling the playground nearly up to Regulus and explaining quickly while the two were already silently counting down the head-start they'd given.
Lily sighed as Potter began laughing again of all things while Harry was boarding the train once more to a home that didn't want him, now with no options left in the world even if the Order did arrive in some form of collective presence. She finally understood though, watching them play some deranged game that seemed to have no rules as the four shot spells at each other with no clear endgame to her. James Potter, much like his best friend, would never pass up an opportunity for a laugh if it was available, and she was really starting to see how that was okay as she caught herself smiling for the infectious noise and holding off far longer than was needed to on the last sentence as the park teemed with life.
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I actually managed to finish my favorite book without my whole profile being taken down, miracles happen!
As always, please feel free to guess future chapter locations, as well as what you're looking forward to seeing them react to. I have them all planned out at least in principle, but it'll greatly amuse me to see your guesses.