Regulus sighed as he watched his older brother and his best friend waiting by the giant entrance doors of the castle, their luggage in tow. Sirius was laughing at something that James had said, tossing his red and gold scarf over his shoulder as he did. James had a grin on his face and was leaning back on his trunk. As though he could feel someone staring at him, James looked over at the stairs where Regulus sat, and Regulus quickly looked away, feeling his cheeks burning.

He was jealous, he couldn't deny it. Sirius had left the family home in the summer, so he wasn't going back to Grimmauld Place for Christmas. Instead he was going to the Potters' house. Regulus would normally go back home, but he couldn't face spending Christmas without Sirius, so he'd told his mother and father that he was swamped with homework and would rather spend Christmas at Hogwarts.

If he went back to Grimmauld Place, he was undoubtedly going to be attacked with questions about Sirius. His mother would pretend she had no interest in knowing about her eldest son, but she would still pester him with queries, and when Regulus didn't give her the answers she wanted, she would become angry and probably break something. His father would blame Regulus, naturally. It would be a miserable Christmas, and Regulus wanted no part of it.

He'd sooner have a miserable Christmas alone at Hogwarts.

"Hey, Regulus." A familiar voice broke through Regulus's gloomy thoughts, and he looked up from his perch on the staircase. Sirius and James were standing in front of him, their trunks still waiting by the door. Sirius looked a little uncomfortable, but James was smiling. "You're not going home for Christmas?" Sirius shifted his feet as he spoke, struggling to make eye contact with Regulus.

Regulus understood why Sirius was uncomfortable. Since they'd been back at Hogwarts, Sirius had tried his best to avoid Regulus, even though Regulus had been desperate to speak to him.

"No," Regulus replied. "Not that you care."

"Of course I care," Sirius said. "This is pointless, James, he doesn't want to talk to me. Lets just go—"

"No," James interrupted. "I'm sick of you moping about because you miss your baby brother."

Regulus looked between the pair of them, his brow furrowed, and Sirius rolled his eyes. "I just wanted to see if you were okay, Reg. I...I don't want you to be sitting at Hogwarts on your own for Christmas. Aren't any of your friends staying back?"

"This is taking too long," James cut in. "Regulus, do you want to come and spend Christmas at my house with me and Sirius?"

Both Sirius and Regulus looked at James in shock.

"Uh," Regulus began. "I don't think Sirius—"

"Sirius, what do you say?"

Sirius opened his mouth, then shrugged. "I mean, it's your house...I don't want to leave Reg here on his own...so…"

"I'll take that as a yes. Regulus?" James turned back to Regulus.

Regulus didn't know what to say. He continued to look between his brother and James for a few moments, unsure how to react.

James grinned wider, and his hazel eyes glittered. "Another yes. Go get your stuff."

…

"My mother and father aren't actually going to be here for most of the holidays," James explained as they trudged through the snow into the Potter cottage. "They're spending time with family until Christmas Eve, then they're going to come back for the rest of the holiday. So until then, it's just us."

Regulus dragged his trunk into the cottage and took a look around. The Potter's house was quaint and warm, with mis-matched furniture and plush textiles, lanterns lit with glowing candles and portraits of happy, smiling faces all around. It was nothing like the dismal decor of Grimmauld Place. Regulus actually felt himself wanting to smile as he took in the interior.

"Remus will be coming tomorrow," Sirius added. "He's seeing his mum and dad first, though."

"Normally Sirius shares my room," James continued. "But seeing as his boyfriend is coming, I've said they can have the guest room. So you can share with me, if you like. I have a camp bed."

Regulus nodded. Sirius was already halfway up the stairs, his trunk elevated in front of him. Regulus went to pick up his, but James nudged his hands out of the way. "We can use magic outside of school now; why bother lifting a finger ever again?" he grinned and pulled his wand out of the back pocket of his jeans, flourishing it at both his and Regulus's trunks. They jumped a foot off the ground and started to float up the stairs after Sirius.

"You can, I still have a whole year until I'm seventeen," Regulus replied.

"Well, you'll just have to ask me extra nicely if you need a magical remedy and I'll assist," James said with a wink.

Regulus felt his cheeks burning, and he quickly turned away, hoping James hadn't noticed.

…

James poured out three small glasses of something golden in colour and producing wisps of smoke. He and Sirius clinked glasses and swigged them back, coughing on the aftertaste.

"Go on, Reg," James encouraged.

"Regulus, it's nowhere near as bad as Father's Valerian Absinthe," Sirius offered with a laugh. "You nearly died when you drank that awful stuff."

"I did not nearly die," Regulus protested, feeling embarrassed when James laughed. "I just…fainted a bit." He swirled the Firewhisky around in the glass, unsure on the best way to drink it. He opted for just chugging it back like the others did, and instantly regretted the decision. The whisky burnt his throat and he desperately wanted to cough, but held it in and swallowed the liquid forcefully.

James and Sirius cheered, and Regulus found that the whisky warmed his belly, along with James and Sirius's encouragement.

"Will your parents notice we've drunk into their supplies?" Sirius asked. Regulus knew he was thinking about the times they had sneaked alcohol from the stores at Grimmauld Place. Walburga always noticed if even the slightest swig had been taken from a bottle.

James tapped his wand pocket. "Not anymore. So long as we don't drain the bottle, we can refill it with magic."

"Thank Merlin for being seventeen," Sirius whooped.

Regulus smiled, letting James fill his glass with more Firewhisky. The more they drank, the warmer he felt. The less awkward things seemed with Sirius. The more comfortable he seemed to feel as he let himself talk and laugh with the other two.

When the bottle was nearly empty, James reached into his pocket and pulled out a small, silver-plated flask. "More whisky?" Regulus asked, raising an eyebrow. He'd never seen James smoke.

"Not whisky," James replied.

Sirius groaned. "Remus hates that stuff."

"That's why we can indulge now, before the boyfriend arrives tomorrow." James grinned and popped open the lid of the flask. "You don't have to partake if you don't want to, Regulus," he added.

"You never asked me that," Sirius muttered. "I got roped straight in with your peer pressure."

"That is not how it happened," James laughed. "If I remember rightly, you were the first one to buy this stuff from Rosmerta—"

"Yeah, yeah." Sirius reached for the flask and poured a small measurement into his empty whisky glass. It was a brown liquid, with a reddish tinge. Sirius slung the drink back and leaned back in his chair.

"What is it?" Regulus asked, watching as James took the flask back and poured out his own small amount.

James smirked. "Tea."

"Regular tea?"

"Not regular tea, idiot," Sirius muttered. "Special tea."

James drank his tea, then offered the flask to Regulus. "You don't have to, but if you want to…"

Regulus looked at the flask in James's hand. He didn't really want to drink the weird liquid, but he also didn't want to seem stupid and childish in front of James. He wanted to continue feeling warm and comfortable and happy. He wanted to belong.

So he took the flask from James and took a long swig straight from the bottle. He swirled the mixture around in his mouth before swallowing—it was a thick, oily concoction that tasted bitter and earthy, like dirt and bark. It didn't taste anything like tea. He swallowed it slowly.

"Pretty disgusting, right?" James said with a grin.

"Why do you drink that stuff when it tastes so bad?"

"You only drink a bit," James replied. "You'll soon realise why."

…

Regulus had to cling onto James's arm as he led him up the stairs. His world had melted into an array of colours, nothing seemed to have defined lines anymore. His stomach bubbled with happiness.

"James—my brother—he's—"

"He's asleep on the couch," mumbled James from somewhere above Regulus. "Come on. You're wasted."

"I know." Regulus staggered behind James.

"I forgot to put up the camp bed," James slurred. "I think I left my wand downstairs."

"It's okay." Regulus stumbled to the floor in James's bedroom, rubbing his hands on the soft blue carpet beneath his fingers. "I'll sleep right here."

"The hell you will." Regulus was momentarily aware of a hand at the back of his shirt, and he was dragged to his feet, before being pushed down onto the springy surface of a mattress.

"Hmm," Regulus murmured. "Comfy." The mattress sank beside him as the weight of another body collided with it. Regulus turned on his side, moving closer to the warmth that was near him.

"Regulus…"

"Hm?"

"I don't know if you should be...Sirius wouldn't…" James's voice sounded a million miles away. Regulus could hear him, but couldn't really hear his words. He nestled up into the warmth near him, winding his arms around James's waist and burrowing his face into his neck.

…

When Regulus woke up, he was so comfortable, more comfortable than he'd ever felt. There was a warm presence beside him, beneath him. He opened his eyes slowly, squinting in the bright light that was leaking through the curtains.

There was a quiet snore from beside him. Regulus sat up in bed, and realised that he'd been snuggled into the shirtless torso of James Potter. James was flat on his back with his arms behind his head, his mouth slightly open as he snored softly.

"Oh Merlin," Regulus muttered. He climbed off the bed, careful not to wake James, and dug around in his trunk for clean clothes, then sneaked out of the bedroom to find a bathroom.

"Morning!" a loud, chirpy voice almost startled Regulus back into the bedroom. SIrius was standing out on the landing, with a cup of steaming coffee in his hand. "I was just coming to wake you both up. How was the camp bed?"

"The camp…" Regulus had to rack his brain for a moment. "Oh, yes. The camp bed. It was fine."

"Horrible to sleep on. Not like the beds back at Grimmauld Place. That's the only thing I miss about that cesspit."

Regulus smiled weakly.

"Is James up?"

"No." Regulus said quickly, pulling the door closed behind him. He didn't want Sirius to see that the camp bed wasn't actually there, and then work out that Regulus had shared the bed with James. He didn't want to have that conversation with Sirius so early in the morning.

"Huh," Sirius murmured. "Well, Remus will be here in a few hours, so I was going to see if you guys would help me clean up last night's mess."

"Sure." Regulus followed Sirius down the stairs, happy to help his brother clear up empty glasses and bottles, so long as it meant he could forget about cuddling his brother's best friend during the night.

…

Sirius could hardly contain his excitement when Remus Lupin arrived later that day. Regulus had never seen his brother with Remus outside of Hogwarts. He knew that the two had become more than friends over the years, but Regulus hadn't exactly been in the friend circle to know exactly what was going on.

It surprised Regulus a little to see Sirius launch himself at Remus, throwing his arms around his neck and attaching his lips to Remus's face. James didn't seem fazed; he had clearly seen this many times before. After the initial shock wore off, Regulus found himself smiling. It was nice to see his brother so happy and...alive.

"You better stop." Remus tried to pull his face away from Sirius, laughing. "Your brother is staring at us."

Sirius turned around, keeping his arms firmly around Remus's neck. He grinned at Regulus. "He always was a bit of a pervert."

From the couch, James laughed out loud. Regulus felt his face burning up, and he glared at Sirius. He opened his mouth to retort, but no words came out. Instead he stomped over to the kitchen, busying himself with making coffee while Sirius bawled with laughter in the other room.

After a few minutes, James came into the kitchen behind Regulus, leaning back against the door. "He's only messing with you, you know."

"Yes, I'm quite aware of how his stupid humour works, thank you." Regulus slammed the kettle back down after pouring water into his mug. "Having known him for sixteen years."

"Don't be embarrassed."

"I'm not!" snapped Regulus, turning to glare at James, coffee sloshing around in his mug. "Though, you seemed to find it pretty funny."

James shrugged. "I wasn't laughing at you. He just says stupid shit sometimes...it takes me by surprise."

Regulus took a long drink from his coffee, still glaring at James over the rim of his mug.

James held out his arms. "Forgive me?"

"I don't know…" Regulus murmured, doing his best not to smile while he was still trying to be angry at James. "Are you going to promise not to laugh at Sirius's stupid jokes when they're at my expense?"

"Pinky promise." James grinned. "Now come on, let's hug it out."

Regulus placed his mug down on the counter and tentatively moved towards James, letting the older boy wind his arms around his shoulders and wrap Regulus into a hug.

…

By early evening, Remus and Sirius had whipped up a buffet of nibbles and party food for their dinner. James and Regulus had sat in the living room, laughing as they listened to Sirius and Remus bickering good-naturedly over sausage rolls and mozzarella sticks.

This time, James didn't crack the Firewhisky out after they'd eaten. Instead, Remus poured our four mugs of butterbeer. Regulus didn't mind—he'd nursed a headache for the entire day, and he didn't fancy dealing with another hangover. He noticed that James's suspicious flask didn't make an appearance either, and it didn't get mentioned in Remus's company.

It was only half past eight when Sirius started dramatically yawning and hinting at going up to bed. Remus followed him upstairs, spreading his fingers in goodnight at James and Regulus. Once the door slammed shut up on the landing, James rolled his eyes.

"I already regret offering the pair of them that spare room."

"Why?"

"Give it five or ten minutes, and you'll soon understand why."

It took less than five minutes before the sounds of banging and bumping echoed through the living room. SIrius could be heard moaning almost immediately, and Regulus sank down into the couch. "Merlin. I wish I was dead."

James laughed. "It'll be better if we go upstairs," he said. "Their room is directly above us, which is why it's so bloody loud. It won't be so bad in my room."

"Sure." Regulus stood up from the couch and followed James upstairs. Once they were on the landing, James waved his wand and all the lanterns and candles went out.

Once they were in the bedroom, James turned to face the wall and started to take off his shirt. While he did, Regulus busied himself with pulling the camp bed out from under James's bed. James turned around at the sound of the metal frame grinding against the wooden floor. "What are you doing?"

"Getting...getting the camp bed out…" Regulus murmured. "Isn't it obvious?"

"Put it away." James rolled his eyes. "You slept in my bed last night. I don't think there's any point in changing that now."

Regulus dropped the camp bed, but still stood awkwardly beside it. "I...I don't mind…"

James threw his discarded shirt into the corner of the room and crossed over to where Regulus stood. He kicked the frame back under his bed. "That thing sucks," he said. "Believe me. I've had to listen to Sirius complain about it every summer for the last seven years."

"Honestly, it's not a big—"

"I want you to sleep in the bed with me." James said suddenly. Regulus felt his face flushing. "Do you?"

Regulus took a breath. It had been nice to sleep beside someone, even if he had been mindlessly drunk. "Yes." He looked down at the floor, too embarrassed to look up at James.

"We'll just keep it our little secret though, yeah?" James grinned. Regulus looked up at him. There was a glint in James's hazel eyes that Regulus didn't quite understand, but he knew the connotations of keeping it a 'secret'. Not letting Sirius know.

Regulus nodded. Sirius did not need to know.

James stepped out of his jeans and climbed into bed, just in his boxer shorts. "Come on. Don't be shy, I'm not going to bite you." Regulus hesitated, and James rolled his eyes with a smile. "I won't look." He waved his wand at the lights, and the lanterns flickered a few times before plunging them both into near-darkness. Feeling slightly better, Regulus pulled off his sweatshirt and trousers, and followed James into bed wearing just his t-shirt and underwear.

As soon as his body hit the mattress, Regulus wished he'd had something more to drink. It had been much less awkward the previous night when he was absolutely wasted. While sober, it felt a lot more embarrassing sharing a bed with James.

James didn't seem to feel the same awkwardness, however. He turned on his side and edged closer to Regulus in the bed. Regulus couldn't see him very well through the dark, but he could feel the warmth of his body and smell the butterbeer on his breath. "Are you having a good holiday?"

"It's only been two days."

"What would you have done if you'd been back at Hogwarts?"

Regulus shrugged in the dark. "Homework, probably. Hung around with Barty."

"Barty?" Regulus could almost hear James's eyebrow raise. "Oh, yeah. That skinny kid you hang out with. I've seen you two."

"Yeah. He doesn't usually go home."

There was a pause. "So...you and Barty."

"What about him?"

"You're close?"

Regulus shrugged again. This was getting strange. Why was James suddenly so interested in Barty? "I suppose so. He doesn't have many friends."

Another long pause. "So you're close."

"What are you saying, James?"

James shifted in the dark. It was the first time that he seemed as though he didn't have anything to say. "Are you...are you together?" He finally asked.

Regulus almost laughed. "No! He's my best friend." It was Regulus's turn to pause now. "Why would that matter to you, anyway?"

James moved closer to Regulus. "I guess I was feeling a little jealous."

Regulus's breath caught in his throat as James's hand brushed against his under the duvet. "Jealous?"

James continued to shift closer, until his face was inches away from Regulus's. "Is this okay?" he whispered.

"Yeah." Regulus's heart was almost bursting out of his chest. Suddenly, James pressed his lips to Regulus's, kissing him softly. "Oh," Regulus murmured.

"Was that okay?" asked James.

Regulus kissed him back quickly, before he could change his mind. "Yeah."

…

"Mum and Dad come back in two days," James commented the following day. "They're so excited to meet Regulus, according to their last letter."

Regulus glanced at James. He was lounging back on the couch, throwing chocolate truffles into his mouth. Sirius wasn't really listening—he was squashed in an armchair with Remus, who didn't look anywhere near as comfortable as Sirius did.

"Take notice of the reminder," James continued. "Mum and Dad come back in two days."

"You just said that," snapped Sirius.

"I know. It's important that you remember."

Remus laughed. "I think James is trying to tell us that we were too loud last night."

Sirius rolled his eyes and smirked. "At least we have two more days."

James groaned and stuffed another chocolate into his mouth. "You two make me sick."

…

Regulus was washing up when James slipped into the kitchen behind him. He almost dropped the plate he was holding when James pressed himself up against Regulus's back, sliding his arms around his waist.

"What are you doing?" Regulus hissed, flinching away from James, though he couldn't help feeling thrilled at the spontaneous contact.

"Sirius and Remus are making out in there. I had to leave, I was starting to feel like I was third-wheeling."

"Oh. Awkward. We have to go back through there to go to bed."

"Yeah. Exactly why I came here instead."

Regulus carefully placed the plate on the draining rack. "I see."

"Why are you washing up like this?" James asked suddenly.

Regulus rolled his eyes. "How many times do I have to remind you that I can't do magic outside of Hogwarts until next year?"

James pulled his wand out of his pocket and flicked it at the dishes wordlessly. Regulus pulled his hands out of the bowl, watching as the sponge magically started washing the pots. "See? Now your hands are free." James pulled Regulus around so he was facing him, his back pressed against the sink.

It was much more nerve-wracking to be up close and personal to James when they weren't drunk or under the cover of darkness. Regulus tried not to blush as James placed his hands on Regulus's hips and leaned in to kiss him. He closed his eyes as James kissed him, keeping his hands on the counter behind him, unsure what to do with them.

James grabbed Regulus's wrists and pulled his arms around his neck, then wound his back around Regulus's waist, letting his hands snake up the back of Regulus's shirt.

Regulus gasped at the skin contact, and involuntarily bucked his hips into James's. James growled and bit Regulus's bottom lip, and Regulus flushed as he felt James's arousal press into his own groin. "James…" he murmured.

"Yeah?"

There was a sound of laughing from the living room, followed by a loud moan that Regulus knew belonged to Sirius. He shuddered. "I can't do this, not knowing what they're doing right behind that door." He paused. "And also…"

"Just ignore them." James leaned forward to kiss Regulus again, but backed up when he noticed Regulus's hesitation. "What is it?"

"I haven't...I'm…" Regulus looked away, hating how embarrassed he was.

James raised an eyebrow. "You haven't been with anyone before?"

Regulus shook his head. "I haven't even kissed anyone before."

"Could have fooled me," James said with a grin. "You're an excellent kisser."

"I don't want to…" Regulus sighed, struggling to meet James's eyes. "I don't want to disappoint you. I'm going to be rubbish at all of this."

James pressed his forehead to Regulus's and rubbed their noses together. "It's okay," he said softly. "I'm not going to make you do anything you don't want to do."

"I want to," Regulus insisted. "I'm just...I'm just so…"

"We can take it slow." James pecked Regulus's lips again delicately, and Regulus kissed him back. "Is this okay for now?" James pressed their bodies together again, and Regulus sighed in bliss, nodding. James kissed him deeper, his tongue sliding against Regulus. "Is this okay?" he asked again between kisses. Regulus nodded, letting his fingers slide into James's hair. James pushed his hips into Regulus's again, but Regulus was ready this time, and it didn't take him by surprise as much as it did before. "Is this okay?" James's voice was a breath this time, full of lust, as he needily rubbed his crotch into Regulus's.

Regulus gasped again, gripping the back of James's neck to stop from falling over. His own arousal was pressing hard and uncomfortably against the front of his jeans. James ground his hips into Regulus's, earning another strangled, quiet moan from Regulus.

James kissed him greedily, his hands sliding into the back pockets of Regulus's jeans to pull him nearer. Regulus's head rolled back, and James peppered his neck with light kisses, causing Regulus to groan and arch his body into James's. "J...James…" he murmured. He felt incredible. He was only being kissed and rubbed against through his clothes but he felt incredible. No one had ever touched him like this before. No one had ever made him feel like this before.

Stars flashed behind his eyes as he met his climax suddenly and unexpectedly, feeling a wet warmth spreading across the front of his jeans.

"Merlin," sighed James, and Regulus assumed the same had happened to him. He fell forward into Regulus, resting his chin on Regulus's shoulder, and the two remained like that for a few moments, panting. "We have to try and get past your brother like this, now." James leaned back, sniggering.

Regulus looked away, cringing internally.

"Don't worry," James said, tipping Regulus's chin up. "They'll have their tongues so far down each other's throats they won't even notice us."

...

For the rest of the Christmas holiday, Regulus wasn't sure how he and James weren't caught, either by Sirius or Remus or James's parents, when they returned home. James cornered him at every opportunity, stealing kisses in the dark or sly touches when no one was looking. Sitting beside James at the dining table became a pleasant nightmare, as James used it as the perfect opportunity to slide his hands across Regulus's legs and crotch under the table. But it was the nighttime that Regulus really looked forward to, when they could be close for as long as they wanted. As far as anyone else knew, Regulus was innocently sleeping on the camp bed.

The end came much too quickly. Before Regulus knew it, they were waiting by the door of the Potter home with their trunks, ready to say goodbye to James's family.

As they travelled back to Hogwarts on the train, James and Regulus sat side-by-side, across from Sirius and Remus in their shared carriage. Sirius and Remus were far too wrapped up in each other to notice that James and Regulus were holding hands underneath Regulus's cloak.

Regulus gazed out of the window as they travelled, focusing on the small circles that James was tracing on the inside of Regulus's palm with his thumb. He didn't know what things were going to be like when they went back to Hogwarts. Before Christmas, James had been getting close with Lily Evans. Anyone with a pair of eyes had noticed that.

But James hadn't mentioned Lily even once during the Christmas holidays.

Would things go back to normal? Or would James continue to steal Regulus away whenever he had the chance?

Regulus could only hope.

Written For:

- August Auction - Day 20/Auction 2: (action) Dry Humping

- Writing Club/Written in the Stars: 9. (color) golden

- Writing Club/This or That: Murder 13. (emotion) Lust

- Writing Club/Showtime: 13. (food) Chocolate

- Writing Club/Amber's Anime Adventure: 12. (action) eating

- Writing Club/Artist Appreciation: 3. (word) Flicker

- Writing Club/Buttons - Emotions 3. (emotion) Excitement

Word Count: 4,534