Hello Fam :)

Here's the double update.

Warning: Nice Black Family feels. :P

Happy Reading...

James was startled from his sleep and sighed in relief on seeing Sirius sleeping in the bed peacefully but Regulus wasn't there beside him. He checked the time and realized it was close to dawn. The idiot might have sneaked off before his housemates woke up. James wanted to burn down the Slytherin dungeon and hide the idiot in their dorm room. Remus might not agree but he wouldn't say anything. Sirius would be jumping around. Peter might be a little scared. He panics a little because of the Slytherins but James would convince him because Regulus was just a stupid nerd, who thought Sirius was the coolest hero when he was a kid and used to follow him around like a lost duckling.

He sat upright when Sirius moaned, fluttering his eyes, before opening his eyes. James was beside him in an instant, brushing his hand on the boy's cheek. "Hey, relax. Take it easy."

"Jay?"

"Yeah", said James and helped Sirius when he tried to sit up. He still needed to rest, thought James. After making sure, Sirius was comfortable, James made him sip water. "You feeling better?"

Sirius nodded. "I got scared."

James brushed his hair. "It's okay. It's normal. I wouldn't let them hurt you again. You aren't leaving my sight again." When Sirius nodded without a protest, he understood how terrified the boy was. Sighing, James asked him to scoot over before sitting beside him, tucking Sirius's head under his arm. Sirius wrapped his arm around James's middle. "Do you remember who they were?"

Sirius shook his head. "I couldn't see. Guess, I am getting rubbish at defence."

"Not your fault. Sirius, are you feeling weak? The magic inside you", asked James.

Sirius was silent for a while. They were taught about family magic. They know what the deal about them was. "You mean Black family magic? It's been faint since I left the house."

"We thought so too", said James, a plan forming in his head. He needed to do it. He stroked Sirius's arm, letting the plan into words. "Sirius, what do you think about blood adoption?"

"What?", exclaimed the boy, pulling away from James.

"Potter magic is equally strong as the Black, if not dark. Let me blood adopt you. You already have the protection of House Potter. Everyone knows it now. This would just make things more magically bound."

"Jay, you don't have to do that. I would be better at being aware of my surroundings", muttered Sirius.

"You are the best, Siri. I need to do this for the peace of my mind", muttered James.

He's right, Sirius.

They snapped their head and found Charles and Dorea walking toward them.

"I should have thought about this earlier. Family magic is important", said Charles. "Underestimated the students of Hogwarts thinking they are just kids. My poor baby." Charles engulfed the boy in his arms as Dorea pulled James into a hug. Breaking the hug, Charles kissed the boy on his head. "We would like to blood adopt you. If you consent that is."

"Mr. P, that wouldn't be necessary. I could just-"

It was Dorea who pushed Charles aside and sat down in front of the boy, holding his hand in hers. "Sirius, love, you are our son in everything that counts. Who needs papers when we already love you? But if by adoption, you would be more secure, we would want nothing more. As James said, it would be for our peace of mind, really."

"Sirius, the last I checked, you are not disowned. You ran away but you still are part of the Black family. Arcturus put the task on hold until Walburga could come up with a decent excuse. Also, you ran away to a pureblood family, so he is okay as of now. Also, because Dorea is a Black and James is your cousin. Hence, we wouldn't legally adopt you. We could but if someday, you are back to the family, you would have the protection of both the families. There wouldn't be much change in your life, kid. Just, an extra paper and our magic binding with you", explained Charles.

James was right. Arcturus wasn't a saint but he was almost decent. There was Black madness, of course, but he fights fair. James smiled when Sirius's eyes met his. He tried to assure the boy that he was okay, that James would want nothing more than making Sirius part of the family, magically, legally, to whatever extinct he could go. When Sirius seemed to get the message through, he nodded at the Potters.

Charles grinned and Dorea threw her hands around the boy. "I will talk to Gringotts to get the papers ready", said Charles, before the two Potters disappeared, asking the boys to eat something, or actually asking James to make Sirius eat something.

It wasn't the time for breakfast yet so, James sat down beside him, pulling the boy in his arms again. "You are going to be my little brother."

"I have always been", muttered Sirius.

James cuffed his head.

"Jay, are you really okay with this?"

"What?"

"Sharing your parents, you know. It's already a big deal what you guys do for me."

James wanted to yell at the boy that what they were doing was the bare minimum. Every child should be felt safe irrespective of who they were. Instead, he pulled away and stared at him. "How about a deal between us? Let me adopt you into my family and I would let you be the godfather to my son."

Sirius huffed. "I am already the godfather of your son. Your logic sucks."

James laughed and ruffled his hair. "Hey, they are your parents too. Have been for a long time. Anyway, it's just a stupid paper to make it official. You were and always will be my little brother", he said and grinned. "Speaking about little brothers, guess who sneaked away from their dungeons to check on you?"

"Don't say", exclaimed Sirius, all the gloom was forgotten. "Reggie?"

"Yeah, he was a sobbing mess when he saw you. Lily was a witness. The little shit stayed with me all night and sneaked away right before dawn. I think it's the bright side of this shit, Sirius. He might be coming around. Otherwise, I have my plans."

Sirius was grinning by the end. It was a good look on him. Now, just the murder of the idiots who dared lay their hands on his brother.

XXX

James waited for a week. One whole week, where he stuck close to Sirius, watched every person who came in close contact with him, searching for a twitch in their expression, anything amiss, anything that would give away if they were the culprits. Everyone who talked to Sirius seemed genuinely concerned for the boy. The dog that he was, he was basking in the attention. As expected, Regulus was back to ignoring them again and James was two days short of implementing his backup plan. First, he needed to figure out the murder plan.

Hence, he found himself in the headmaster's room, brushing the feathers of Fawkes. The bird fascinated him.

"Mr. Potter, what are you doing here?", asked Professor Dumbledore, surprised to find him in his chamber. "I don't know you knew the passwords to my office?"

"They are sweets. You have sweet tooth, everybody knows. I guessed. Got wrong for the first couple of times", he said. Finding the office was harder but the map helped.

"Very well", said Dumbledore, sitting behind his desk and asking James to take the seat. "How can I help you, Mr. Potter?"

"I want to know the progress of you finding the culprits of who had hurt Sirius", he asked.

"They are punished, Mr. Potter, appropriately."

"Yeah?", said James. "Good, but I need the names."

The professor sighed and leaned forward on the table. "If I do, what would you do?"

James didn't answer. He would kill them. He knew that. He also knew that Professor Dumbledore knows that too.

"Mr. Potter, we don't have to become killers to satisfy our urges", said the man, softly.

"It's not about satisfying any urge. It's justice. To Sirius. Doesn't he deserve to know who did that to him?", he asked. Sirius wasn't bothered to know. Said, it didn't matter because he had already expected it. It pissed off James even more.

"Mr. Black deserved to know and I might tell him if he asks. But, killing them would only taint your soul. Mr. Potter, do you know why we don't use the unforgivables?"

James frowned at the change of the topic. "Because it is unforgivable. It's illegal."

"True. But there is a reason why they are unforgivables. Willingly killing a person, breaks the soul. The more you kill, the more broken becomes your soul. Hence, it's unacceptable. Broken soul tampers the person until there is nothing but a hollow shell in place of their body."

"We kill in wars", said James.

"We do, yes. And yet we say, no one fully recovers from war. War defeats everyone irrespective of which side wins. You are not a killer, James. You are a protector. So, protect your friends instead of tainting your soul. It's what your friends would want for you."

"So, do you want me to ignore what happened to Sirius? Do you want me to just sit there and wait for someone else to hurt my brother?"

Dumbledore sighed. "I have set up wards around Hogwarts. If any student is hurt again like this, it would alert me or one of the Professors in the school. I would make sure nothing like this happens again. No brawl fight or no pointing wands between the corridors."

"And the students who did this?"

"They are expelled, Mr. Potter. Their families are called, informed about their actions, and they are expelled. Hogwarts would be a home to everyone who is in need but if one child is almost killing the other, they need help. I would allow them to take their exams in isolation or they could take admission in other wizarding schools."

James nodded. It wasn't a solution but it was the most the Professor would do. Hence, he stood up, thanked the Professor for his time, not for taking the action because James didn't think it was enough, and left the room without a word.

XXX

If Regulus was ignoring James, James was ignoring Lily Evans after being outright rude to her at the hospital wing. Sirius was her family too, as she and her family had mentioned during the summer. Thus, he was surprised when she cornered him in a corridor as he went towards his dorm from Professor Dumbledore's office. Surprisingly, there was no wand pointing at his throat like the multiple times before but the look in her eyes made him wish to dig the ground and hide there.

"It had hurt, you know", she said, softly. "That you thought, I would hurt Sirius like that."

James frowned. What? "Lily, I know you would never hurt Sirius. Where did that even come from?"

"You wouldn't even let me sit beside him."

James sighed. "You came right after Peter cried all over Sirius. I know you love Sirius, and I thought you would too-"

"What? Cry all over him?", asked Lily with a snort, interrupting him. "When I could just be helping you in punishing the ones who did that to him instead."

"You would?", asked James.

"Of course. That's Sirius."

James wanted to kiss her right there. He wanted to go down on one knee, or both, and profess how amazing she was. Instead, he gave her a brilliant smile and left, afraid of losing the delicate peace they had built between them. All the while to the Gryffindor tower, there was a smile on his face and one single thought inside his head.

Screw Dumbledore. The love of his life would help him take revenge for Sirius. If she approves of him, what power did Dumbledore's words even have over hers?

XXX

Lily Evans never understood James Potter. She never understood his fixation with her even though he would flirt with every girl, sneaking glances at her and trying to make her jealous, trying to be the cool guy. She never understood his obsession with Quidditch, his urge to play with that stupid snitch he used to carry around all the time even though he wasn't a seeker, his urge to mess his hair even more than his usual bird's nest. She never understood his hatred towards the Slytherins, towards Snape.

When Regulus, the usual composed Regulus who would rather strangle himself than show any emotion, cried on seeing his brother, she never expected James Potter to console him. When the boy cried all over James, she never expected the tenderness with which he held Regulus or the soft voice he used with a promise of protecting Sirius. She always knew Sirius secretly loved Regulus and showed his love mostly by annoying the boy and Regulus always said they had a complicated relationship whenever Lily asked him about Sirius but James Potter was a whole different equation. She had never seen James loving or caring anyone more than he does for Sirius, definitely not Regulus. She had seen James throwing threats and calling him the enemy during the Quidditch matches but it was the sport and for boys, it was war and death. Apart from that, James ignored the boy mostly, or he would quietly stand beside Sirius when he annoyed Regulus or any of his cousins, watching his back, a warning in his eyes, his posture always ready to defend the Black heir.

A few things became clear on that day as she saw the boys huddled close to each other as they saw Sirius lying on the bed. One, James Potter loved Sirius the most but Regulus came a close second. Two, James Potter would go to any length if his loved ones are hurt, even killing half of the Hogwarts. Three, James Potter either didn't hate Slytherin just for their house or Regulus Black was an exception. Either way, he didn't hate Regulus, quite the other way actually.

Right now, when she told James that she would rather kill for Sirius than cry over him, for the first time in months, there were heart eyes. She didn't realize how much she had missed them until that moment when she had seen them again for her.

Lily Evans never understood James Potter but when she was trying to, he didn't feel like a difficult puzzle. Family was everything to James and when he declares a friend as a family, he would go to any extent to protect and love them.

XXX

Interiorem Hogwarts. Solus. Sine esse videtur.

The paper was shoved into his hands but before he could see the person, they had disappeared but as he read the elegant cursive writing, he knew who it was. It was written in Latin. The purebloods were taught various languages when they were kids. French was Sirius's absolute favorite because of the teacher who taught him so much that when their French classes were over, he asked the tutor what other languages she knew. Latin was one among the few and she insisted it was a dead language. Sirius didn't care what the language was until he had the nice tutor to teach him. When even Regulus agreed their parents extended her contract with a condition that she teaches them some useful language too. Thus, they learned Spanish along with Latin. Also, Sirius would recognize his brother's writing anywhere. It was him who had taught the boy how to hold a pen, and how to write initially before their parents hired any tutors for him. Regulus would ask a million questions about what Sirius was studying, what he was writing, and when Sirius loses patience with his questions, he would teach the boy to focus on something. It was also one of the reasons why it would hurt to lose Regulus. He was his baby brother, the one person he had loved even before he had met James, ever since he had held the boy in St. Mungo's for the first time.

Sirius shook his head. He didn't know why Regulus wanted to meet him at the backside of Hogwarts. The place was isolated since it connected to the forbidden forest and marauders would wait there before the full moon for Poppy to return to the castle and join Moony. Regulus must have known about this. Sirius went to the dorm and searched through James's things for the cloak. On finding it, he tried to leave but Peter smirked.

"Found a witch to snog, Sirius?", he asked.

Sirius smirked right back without bothering to explain before leaving. Ever since he left the hospital wing, James hadn't left his side. It was so ridiculous that he initially followed the boy to the washrooms outside their dorm and waited for Sirius to finish whatever he wanted to do. The only time he did leave alone was when Sirius said he wanted to snog someone in some private location. Even then, embarrassingly he asked the person to drop Sirius to Gryffindor tower after they were done. Fortunately for him, it was mostly Marlene and she just either rolled her eyes or ignored him before dragging Sirius. Sometimes it wasn't even the snog. They just used to sit there silently, or Sirius would complain to her about Jay being a mother-hen. When Sirius pointed that to James once, James looked at him for a long time. Sirius got afraid thinking he had offended the boy when James cuffed his head, said he was Sirius's mother from now on and he would be a decent mother than Burger Black, and asked him to just deal with it. Sirius secretly loved him for that.

When James couldn't be there, he put Remus on Sirius's watch, and right now since Moony had stuffed his nose inside a book, he just smirked at Peter and left.

XXX

Sirius wrapped the invisibility cloak and went to the place where Regulus was already waiting for him. "You wanted to talk?", he asked, revealing his head, unsure of why he had asked him to meet after all this time. If Regulus wanted to have a quick talk, he would pull him into some corner, broom closets to talk.

"I am sorry?", said Regulus.

Sirius sighed and sat down beside him before lifting a part of the cloak. "You want to come in?"

Regulus nodded and the boys huddled together, hidden in plain sight from the rest of the world.

"What's up? What's going on with you?", asked Sirius.

"They are talking about getting Cissy married to Lucy", said Regulus, deflecting.

Sirius gave him time to talk about the actual topic. Until then he could wait for his brother. "Good old Lucius. But weren't they trying to marry Bella with Lucy?"

Reg shrugged. "Bella said she was in love with Lestrange. Whatever love means to her."

Sirius shuddered. Bella was always on the wilder side. "Because no one could make Bella act against her wishes. I feel sad for Lestrange. But then again, he isn't innocent either, flaunting the dark mark at the party in summer."

"Is that why they were forcing the mark on you?"

"Who knows?", said Sirius. He still wondered why they wanted to take the dark mark all of a sudden when they thought Voldemort was beneath the Blacks.

Regulus sighed. "What do you think about Lucy?"

"Does my opinion matter, Reg?", he asked with a smile. He wasn't a part of the family anymore. It wasn't really something he would be sad about it hurts a little that the family he was born in thought they were better off him.

"I could manipulate them into breaking the alliance", said Reg.

It warmed Sirius's heart that the boy still considered his opinion mattered. Even after all this time. He ruffled the boy's hair, earning a half-hearted protest. "No, Reg. As much as it pains for me to say, the only person Lucy cares about is Cissy. Bella is a lost cause. We can't do anything about her but Cissy is soft underneath all the pureblood demeanor. But make sure Lucy is what she wants. God knows if they have even asked her about it or not." It's not like the children have any say about the political marriages of the Blacks. If there was any protest, they were advised to have any affairs while maintaining the reputation of the family.

Regulus nodded before taking a breath. "Are you okay?"

Sirius chuckled when it took this long to ask a simple question. Blacks don't talk about emotions and feelings. "I am fine, Reg. Thanks to Jay. That idiot is following me around like a shadow. Do you know how annoying it is when he waits for me outside the washrooms?"

"He is protecting you", said Reg.

Sirius rolled his eyes. Regulus might hate and ignore James all he wants. One scratch of Sirius, both of them would unite to burn down the world. Reg would trust Sirius's safety with Jay the most. "Siding with the enemy I see. I heard you were there with him in the hospital wing. Forgot your little hatred?", he teased. It was always fun to rile the younger boy but he worried when Regulus blinked his eyes. Regulus was better at controlling his emotions.

"You were dead on that bed in the hospital wing. I wanted James to kill everyone. I wanted to kill everyone", he confessed.

"Glad you didn't go on a killing spree. It would be difficult to convince the crowd to follow a teen Dark Lord."

Regulus shoved at him, causing the cloak to slide down. Sirius huffed and adjusted it again properly. Regulus leaned down and put his head on Sirius's knee. He couldn't help but wrap his arms around the boy. It would be like they were kids again. What wouldn't Sirius give to get his brother back to him?

"They burnt you. Mother calls me the heir. It feels wrong. You are the heir. You always would be. Family trees don't count."

"I don't want to be their heir, Reg", whispered Sirius, from the top of his head. "Reggie, you will be fine there. You are good at controlling your emotions, you are a Slytherin, and you are their perfect son. Don't go against them and they wouldn't harass you. But if things go south and you need an escape, you come to me, okay?"

Regulus didn't answer him for a long time, probably trying to hide the tears in his eyes which the idiot forgot were falling on his knee, wetting his jeans there. When he spoke again, it was barely a whisper. Sirius would have missed it if he wasn't close enough or had the enhanced hearing ability because of Padfoot. "Would you believe me if I say I love you as if you were my own brother?"

Sirius rolled his eyes before cuffing the boy on the head. "You are my own brother, brat."

When Regulus sat up again, he didn't try to hide the tears again. "Potter said you are a Potter now. Are we not brothers anymore?"

Sirius cupped his face. "Did Jay tell you that? To not to talk to me again? Is that why you asked me not to be seen? To come alone."

The boy shook his head. "Opposite actually. He said you were hurting for me and to talk to you."

"Trust Jay to solve the problems before I even tell him", he muttered to himself before shaking his head with a smile. "Reg, you would always be my baby brother. What happens in that house doesn't matter. I have loved you ever since the moment I saw you. You were so tiny in my arms. That wouldn't go away, okay?", he said. "Is anyone bothering you in your house? Do you want me to take care of them for you?"

Suddenly, Regulus threw his hands around Sirius's neck. "I miss you, Sirius."

Sirius laughed softly. "I have always been here, Reg. I would always be here and with you. Not going to leave anytime soon, okay?", he said, breaking the hug and wiping the tears, before muttering a cleaning spell on the boy. "Now look like a pureblood snob and go back to your dungeon."

As he watched Regulus go, Sirius felt a piece of his heart returning back to him. He had his brother back to him. Once Regulus was out of sight, Sirius jumped in and went towards the Gryffindor tower. A few more minutes and Jay would send an army to find him.

XXX

When James returned back to his dorm, Remus was looking at his book but there was a frown on his face. When it didn't look like the boy was reading, he sat beside him and bumped their shoulders.

"James", said Moony, sighing in relief.

"What's up?", he asked, confused about the reaction.

"We need the map", he said. "Sirius took the cloak and went alone."

"He said he found a witch to snog. He smirked even", said Peter.

James frowned. He was still not comfortable letting Sirius out of his sight or wandering alone in the corridors. Good thing, he at least had the map. "I am up to no good", he muttered, pointing his wand to the map, and searched for Sirius. They frowned when they found Sirius at the backside of the castle but there was another dot close to him. Regulus Black. And the way, they weren't moving at all, he guessed they were sitting and talking. Finally, thought James.

Remus let out a sigh beside him.

"But he is with-", started Peter.

"Yeah. But remember, no one questions him about Regulus when he returns, okay?", warned James. He didn't know how would the meeting end up and how bad Sirius would be after the talk.

Surprising everyone, Sirius came back after a long time, whistling before making a beeline to James's bed and returning the cloak to the table.

"So?", asked James.

Sirius threw his hands around James. "Thank you", he muttered.

James only tightened the hug. His boy deserved the world.

1. So, we have the black brothers back. Next chapter, I let James and Regulus officially back too. Reggie is officially 'team us' as of now. :P

2. I read a fanfic sometime earlier, where James and Sirius were 12 and having fun with some rituals. Accidentally James magically adopted Sirius as his brother without the supervision of their parents. It was cute. Here, the Potters would adopt Sirius but the family name doesn't change. Sirius would still be Sirius Black. Why? I would let you know. Also, if Sirius isn't officially disowned, why is his magic weak? It's psychological. I guess, the magic was already strained but then Sirius feels disconnected and his magic is part of him. Hence, he feels the magic had weakened. 

3. James is officially Sirius's mom now. He would be the best mom with years of experience being the marauders' mother-hen. 

4. The students are expelled. I hope that's okay and the conversation between James and Dumbledore would be enough to justify for not making James a killer. 

5. Any more questions, let me know.