A/N: This can be read as PART 2 to my Jegulus one shot (i still got love for you) but you do NOT need to read that to understand this. The two pieces stand on their own, but I think they also compliment each other nicely. So they both get folklore titles. This one also ends much more hopefully than the previous one. So there's that too!

Remus knows what's going to happen next the moment he realises what the golden glinting thing on the ground is.

James is closest to it.

The air is still thick with the scent of ozone and magic. Whoever had just accosted them has apprated away, leaving all of them winded and confused. This wasn't an Order mission. Just three out of the four Marauders taking a stroll on the outskirts of Godric's Hollow. The Autumn air is sharp but still warm and as the sun sinks behind the horizon in the distance. The breeze is gentle, blowing the long grass around them in waves. Sirius is cursing softly and adjusting his leather jacket. The sky is streaked in sunset red like an omen…

And James notices the thing on the ground.

Remus swallows.

His best friend's eyes light up in confusion, then quickly, the gears start spinning. He exhales softly and stands while he scoops the necklace into his hand. James raises his head to meet Remus' stare. James can tell that Remus knows. Remus can see the apology creasing the sides of his eyes, his gorgeous brown eyes going all puppy dog pathetic, way better than Sirius has ever managed in human form.

"What have you got?" Sirius' voice cuts through their staring and both boys turn to look at him.

They're all so young. It's November 1979. They just graduated from Hogwarts last year.

Why is this their life?

James struggles to form words, and Remus can't take his eyes off of him. He knows where this is heading. It's a disaster in slow motion. A tragedy. Somehow, someone, or something was always leading them here. And it was going to destroy the boy he loves.

"It's…a time turner, Pads." Remus says softly, eyes darting over to Sirius. He wonders if Sirius will figure it out. Wonders if his mask will finally fall off.

Sirius has been pretending since before they left school, that this would all just be one big laugh. It sounded so fun to him, putting Death Eaters in their place. Fighting in battles. Being a hero. Mcgonagall had once called it 'the invincibility of the young' because it takes time to feel your own mortality. Sometimes it just takes a near death experience. Other times it takes someone else's death to make you more cautious with your own life.

Remus has felt his own since he was five.

But Sirius flirts with death like it's an old friend. And James is normally the same. Reckless Gryffindors to an absolute fault. Except… James has been different lately. Since the news broke he hasn't been sleeping. The bags under his eyes, the skipped meals, and long lost stares. He's grieving. Sirius is too, in his own way. Usually when no one else is around. It shows up in broken dishes, and holes punched in walls. It isn't healthy. Remus is drowning in their contradictions. Pulled thin between anger and sadness.

James' grief is everywhere. Palpable. A shroud around him like his invisibility cloak.

It has only been one week since the article in the paper.

Remus knew James wasn't thinking rationally right now. But Remus also knew there would be no way to stop him.

Still… had to try.

"Oh. Right, well. We should probably give that to someone who actually knows how they work." Sirius says evenly. Remus looks at him and he gives a smirk of mischief that normally bodes trouble, but this time sends chills down Remus' spine because Sirius hasn't figured it out yet. "Not that I wouldn't love to give one of those a test drive, but even I know my limits." It's forcefully jovial. Remus feels nauseous.

"How far back can they go?" James asks, drawing Remus' attention again. His eyes are locked on the golden circle in his palm. He's tracing the hourglass gently with his index finger. There's this heartbreakingly hopeful expression on his face that has Remus biting his tongue to keep from screaming. James looks up at him. Remus knew that question was for him but he couldn't just-

"Not far enough to take out baby Voldemort. So it's not worth the style points I could get from using it." Sirius says flippantly, and it annoys Remus because the energy radiating off of James is so obvious. It's so strong. James' magic usually is, and his magic is all wound up in his emotions. Maybe as a werewolf Remus is more sensitive, but there's no way they aren't all feeling this.

James is going to use it.

His eyes still haven't left Remus'.

"James-"

"It's an hour, isn't it? I think I read that once. One turn is an hour."

"Prongs-" Remus tries again, but James isn't listening.

"Now I'm not the best at maths, but I have felt every hour since I read-" James stops, swallows and presses his fist to his mouth. It's the one holding the time turner. His eyes close as he gathers himself. "When d'you think it actually ha-" James has to stop again, pressing his fist to his mouth and breathing through his teeth as he turns away.

"James, listen to me. We don't know when it happened. Or what happened. It could have been months ago."

James doesn't turn around as he answers. "No it couldn't, because I saw him. On Halloween, to be exact. He saw me and we-... it was just a moment, then he was gone. Down Knockturn but-.." He hisses in a breath. "I could do it."

"You saw who on Halloween?" Remus glances at Sirius who is now dangerously still. Fists clenched at his sides, his wand still in his dominant hand. James turns back to them and bites his lip.

He still can't say his name.

Neither of them can.

Not since the night Regulus left school.

Sirius had been in a rage. James had been drunk. A sobbing, messy drunk who had ended Sirius' rage because Prongs had needed Padfoot. The other two Marauders had been so concerned. James didn't ever drink alone. But that night, James had, and it had all come spilling out of his loosened, blubbering lips.

James and Regulus had been friends for years. Meeting up frequently. James was trying to get him out, like he did with Sirius. But Regulus had chosen elsewise. Remus knew what Sirius kept choosing to be ignorant about. James loves Sirius' brother. In a very different way than James loves Sirius.

Sirius had walked out that night. Hadn't spoken to James for two months. He'd felt betrayed because James had kept the truth from him for years. Felt like James had chosen Regulus over him. But it was never that. Could never be.

James loved all of them more than he loved himself. He gave, and gave, and poured himself out. Regulus was the first person who made James choose himself. Remus hated the bastard for that. For breaking James' heart then and never really explaining why to James. Hates him even more for going and getting himself killed.

But he couldn't hate James for doing this. Because if it were Sirius instead, James would still be here, making this choice. Remus would too. James would do this for any of them. And maybe if Sirius had actually talked to James about his time with Regulus, he would understand.

"There are…five hundred seventy six hours in twenty four days… probably do a few extra so I can catch him in the alley. So… five hundred eighty five. Could do six hundred just to be safe." James says to himself as he starts twisting the tiny knob.

"Potter! What the bloody hell are you doing?!" Sirius exclaims taking a step forward and Remus steps up too, pressing his palm to Sirius' chest to stop him.

"He's going to save him." Remus says defeatedly.

"What do you mean save him? Save who, Moony?!"

"Pads.." Remus warns, pleads practically. He meets Sirius' grey eyes and holds his gaze. Those eyes search Remus', then go back to watch James, whom Remus can hear counting feverishly under his breath. Remus feels the stiffening of Sirius' muscles as he finally figures it out and Remus tightens his grip accordingly.

"No." It's harsh and broken. He's shaking his head, eyes filling with horror as he looks back down at Remus. "Moony, we have to stop him. He-.. he can't do this. He'll-" Sirius squeezes his eyes shut painfully, unable to bring the idea into existence.

"Sirius… he's already doing it. If we try any spells, getting it away from him, or anything… we don't know what will happen."

"But we could figure something out! If he doesn't let go of it, maybe we can bring it to the Order. Dumbledore will know what to do. He can talk sense into him." Sirius is losing control, Remus can feel the shorter boy's magic ratcheting up by several degrees in intensity as he looks at James again. He's poised to explode all over and none of them want to find out what chaos magic will do when combined with time magic. Remus has to pull out his trump card or this will end worse than it's already going to.

"He loves him." Remus whispers harshly, shaking Sirius lightly. Sirius looks at him petulantly.

"James loves all of us. Doesn't mean he needs to risk everything for my Death Eater little brother!"

"He loves him." He puts emphasis on the word, feeling like he's explaining it to a toddler. Sirius' eyebrows furrow and he scoffs.

"Not more than he loves Lily."

Remus winces. "They're not together anymore."

"They shagged the other day." Sirius refutes, because he has to be right and Remus is the one determined to wake him up from this false reality. Right after being with Lily, James had come over and cried in Remus' arms. For hours. Sirius had been out on assignment. James had been tucking the piece of himself stamped with Regulus' initials away from Sirius for years.

"Black." Remus says more sternly and watches as reality finally sinks into Sirius' eyes. "He loves him. Maybe he loves them both, but Lily is-"

"Don't Remus-"

"She's alive. She's safe with Mary."

"None of us are safe, Moons. Not really. And besides he-.." Sirius swallows and then whispers, "He can't leave me." Remus' heart breaks and his grip loosens as he looks back to James who isn't saying anything.

Isn't counting anymore.

Remus turns fully to his best friend whose eyes have misted over with pain, even though the potential hope still lingers around him. James knows what he's doing is breaking Sirius. It's written all over his face.

It's the precipice. James has the knob he had been twisting pinched carefully in place and he's staring at Sirius.

"We'll go back to the Order and figure something out." Sirius says to James, desperation in his tone that hurts Remus' down to his bones. It's worse than a full moon. "You can't save everyone, Jamie."

"But I can try, can't I?" James manages a smirk, a caricature of confidence. "I have to try." He glances down at the small device and carefully starts putting the chain over his head so he's wearing it properly. "Don't know if anyone has ever gone back this far." He glances up at Remus, attempting to look lighthearted and falling kilometres short. "Do you think it'll work?" His eyes meet Sirius'. It's a loaded question stuffed into that stare. A look that's asking Sirius to trust him, to believe in him. His hand not on the knob is shaking because he's scared, and he's grieving, and he needs his best mate to think he can do this. Defy the impossible.

"I don't know! Nobody knows! The middle of a war isn't the time to be testing it." Sirius is breaking open, he feels like a volcano next to Remus. He is going to suffocate them with toxic fumes of denial and melt them with all his pent up rage. Molten lava is in his hard as steel stare that reeks of the destruction already wrought inside this boy. Of the disasters he has already lived through to find what little peace he has.

"But it's my best shot, yeah? To save him." James says the last part so reverently, letting the time turner steal his gaze again and Remus can't breathe.

"No!" Sirius yells. These two boys are going to kill him. They were never meant to survive each other. Sirius will never forgive himself if he lets James go and he never comes back. He'll never forgive Remus either.

"Sirius, shut up!" Remus snaps at him. James looks at him and Remus can feel it all ending. Their youth. They don't walk away from this the same, any of them. "Yes James. It's your best shot." Then through gritted teeth Remus adds. "Don't fucking miss."

"Prongs-" Sirius tries to plead, but James ignores him or doesn't hear him, Remus doesn't know at this point.

"Well then. I just need to let go."

"NO!" Sirius shouts, but James just keeps going, his eyes roaming all over the place as hectic as his thoughts probably are.

"It'll be fine. I know it will. I'll be with him, like I should have been. I'll figure out what he did that-.." James pauses but regains his words quickly with a determination rarely seen outside of his Quidditch captaincy. "Cause he did something. He was trying to do something big, I just know it. I know him. And I'll help him. Me and Regulus, together." James looks down at the time turner and takes a fortifying breath, then looks at Sirius again. Despite how manic he seems, Remus can tell James knows what he's doing could kill him. He's looking at Sirius like he might never get the chance to again and Sirius has to stifle the sob rising in his throat. "Moony?" James asks without looking away from Sirius, who erupts.

"Stop it! Just- JUST STOP IT!" Sirius raises his wand arm, glancing between Remus and James in a panic. He points it at James shakily. "You're not thinking James! Regulus was a Death Eater! The only thing he did was be the coward he always was and it got him killed!" James doesn't waver, doesn't even blink and Remus steps up to push Sirius' arm down.

"Pads… no." Sirius looks at him and he breaks. He finally gets what Remus has since he spotted the time turner in the grass. This was over before it even started. He looks between Remus and James a few times, eyes watering and mouth hanging open.

Remus looks at James with a finality that speaks of many things Remus hasn't the time to think of. James needs one of them to trust him and it won't be Sirius.

"You look after him." James' words are for Remus. So when James tears his eyes away from Sirius for a moment and looks at Remus. Remus nods just once and watches the tear slip out of James' eye as he quickly looks back at Sirius. "You be a good boyfriend and you look after him." It's a goodbye with threatening undertones of a promise that needs to be made, has already been made time and again. One that has always been there in the 'what ifs' they never say out loud because it's just too hard. But they're here now. On the cliff, about to jump off without a parachute. 'What if' lies at the bottom. Shattered into millions of pieces that will never form back into the same people they once were.

"You are messing with time." Sirius grits out. "I might never be able to see you again." He can't say what they're all thinking. What Regulus already is. That James could die. And he probably will. Were any of them going to make it out of this? Let alone all of them?

"I'll be fine. King of okay, me. I got this. Plus, I'll be with him. Smartest person I know besides us three, sorry Pete. But you're not here, so." James shrugs lightly, the levity ruined by the watery sound of his voice.

"James, please.." Sirius' is shaking, Remus can feel it from where he's still holding his wand arm down. "Just… come back to our flat. Come along, Prongs. Please." Sirius sounds almost sweet in his pleading, like if he could manipulate James into walking away right now he would. Remus knows Sirius would throw any card he could think of on the table just like Remus knows none of them will work.

"Be safe. Both of you. Tell everyone I love them." He doesn't promise to come back. He doesn't promise anything. "I love you, Sirius Black. Kick ass while I'm gone." A wistful smile plays on James' lips that doesn't reach his eyes.

He lets go.

James blinks out of existence.

Sirius screams as he drops to his knees. Remus goes with him, shaking arms wrapping around his frame.

With a heartbreaking duality Remus realises two things.

One, is that Sirius has been here before… but last time he was begging someone to come with him, not the one being left behind.

And two is that James would never leave Sirius for longer than is necessary. Especially not like this. If things had gone according to plan, he would have lived through those overlapping weeks and come right back here to this moment. Now that his original self is gone, he should be here.

But James isn't here.

Remus keeps counting the moments in sections of ten. Sirius is still screaming, though it's turning into harsh sobs. Remus counts, and counts, and counts. Sirius stops and it's eerily silent. Remus has counted to ten at least a hundred times now.

James should be here.

"Moony.." Sirius croaks. "We should… home. Please." Is all he manages before burying his face into Remus' neck.

He counts to ten one more time.

One. Two. Three. Four. Five.

The breeze blows over the long grass and folds in waves like water.

Six. Seven. Eight.

The crickets accentuate the beginnings of night with their song.

Nine.

The last coloured streaks of the sky fade to dark blue.

Ten.

Remus knows what this means.

Moony shudders as he squeezes Padfoot tighter against his chest, then apparates them both into their flat.

Only twenty minutes to sleep

But you dream of some epiphany

Just one single glimpse of relief

To make some sense of what you've seen

James feels every hour he's away from Sirius.

Even with Regulus by his side, alive and well thank you very much, he still aches for his best mate. They hear things, whispers, nothing to be trusted. They can't check up on anyone either, too risky. No one can see them yet.

No one can know what they're doing, Regulus has made that painfully clear.

Thank fuck James had the invisibility cloak on him that night. It has saved both of their lives countless times.

It's important that everyone thinks they're dead. James just desperately wishes with a hope he hasn't felt since 6th year, that everyone else stays alive until he can go home to them.

But they have a job to do. They've got a war to end and a megalomaniac to kill. First they'll need to track down all his little trinkets…

A/N: No, I'm not continuing this anytime soon. I'm devasted by this as well. All my wips are glaring at me. My actual LIFE things are glaring at me. I shouldn't even be here. It's literally 5a. But here we are. So yes, Jegulus horcrux hunt. If someone else writes it please dm me somewhere I will EAT. IT. UP

If you looked closely, this was based off a certain tragic scene in Season 7 in Doctor Who, because that is the audio I used to first create this little plot bunny that hopped through my head.

Thanks for reading. 3