Hello Fam :)

Happy Friendship day. I thought what better way than write a chapter on the greatest friendships ever. :P

Just kidding. It was difficult to get back to writing after not writing for more than a month. But I am taking it slow. There's another chapter that I need to edit and I will update that if I find some time. 

Happy Reading...

Sirius felt settled when he woke which hadn't happened in a long time. Charles had started the defence lessons a few days prior and it was only a week until the Christmas break. For the first time, he was looking forward and not only because he would be able to cast his first non-verbal spell but also because, for the first time, he has a family to look forward to. Whenever he felt too giddy about it, followed by a dread that his happy bubble would burst out soon, his eyes would find James, and irrespective of whatever they were doing and wherever they were, Jay would grin so wide that it would erase all the insecurities from Sirius's mind.

"Sirius, did you see that?"

Sirius snapped his concentration to the voice and saw Charles there. He forgot he was still in his class and nonetheless paired up with Lily Evans out of all the people. He didn't understand why would Charles pair him up with Lily instead of James but maybe because he really wanted his son to learn something in the class than ogle the redhead which would happen if Jay was paired with the redhead. "What to see, Mr. P?", he asked confused.

Charles was in front of him and beside Lily. "That's where your eyes should be when you are practicing. On the partner you are practicing with. You would understand the logic behind it if you are not busy making heart eyes with James", he teased, making the whole class laugh at them.

"Dad", cried James.

"Mr. P", said Sirius, almost at the same time.

"Now don't coordinate your sentences too. Concentrate on your partner."

"He would concentrate on his partner if only you had paired him up with me", retorted James.

"James, do I look like I am stupid to put my class into chaos knowingly?", said Charles.

"I am so going to complain to mom about this", he yelled for the whole class to listen, making Charles roll his eyes.

From the corner of his eyes, he saw even Regulus rolling his eyes. Another good thing about Charles's class was, that he had clubbed everyone interested in the same room. Though after Jay's initial warning, Charles limited his interaction with the boy openly.

"Thank you, Mr. Potter. You just don't know how often this happens that I am not even surprised", said Lily.

Charles sighed heavily. "I feel so sorry for you and your whole class", he said.

James huffed but Sirius couldn't put the grin off his face and it just got wider when Charles squeezed his shoulder after taking him into a brief half-hug before wandering off towards other students. When he glanced at James again, the boy threw a wink at him before concentrating on his partner, Remus.

"I understand why you love them so much", said Lily, raising her wand.

Sirius just answered her with another grin. No combination of words would ever justify how much he loved the Potters.

XXX

After the class, Charles asked Sirius to stay back. James tagged along and the elder Potter rolled his eyes at his son but didn't say anything. Once they were alone, Charles pulled Sirius into a hug. "How are you doing, kid?"

"I am fine, Mr. P."

"Your concentration is more wavering today than the other days. Do I have to be worried?"

Sirius glanced down at his shoes. "I am just happy. I am sorry."

Charles raised the boy's chin, forcing the boy to look at him. "Hey, you are allowed to be happy. I would prefer if you can't concentrate because you are happy than you are sad, okay?"

Sirius nodded, feeling a lump forming in his throat but just as soon Jay was beside him, putting an arm around him and everything was alright. At least, it would be.

"Dad, tomorrow is the full moon."

Charles nodded. "Do you guys want to skip the class?"

"We could attend but Remus might want to skip the class. He would be feeling weak closer to the moon", said James.

"Makes sense. It's fine. I will try to wrap up early tomorrow. Maybe we could plan something light."

XXX

The moon was tough this month and they realized it within two hours of the evening as Sirius clued in all the little things Remus did throughout the day. Charles was still at Hogwarts ground and despite James assuring him that things are fine and that his dad was cool with Remus's furry little problem, Remus panicked. He tried talking them down into not following him to Shrieking shack this month. When James asked why, Moony said he didn't want to accidentally hurt anyone and get into the bad side of Charles Potter. James outright slapped his head before pulling him into a hug but Sirius understood what he was trying to tell. He would never want James to step into Grimmauld's too for a similar reason. But it was James and he talked Remus down and they were at the shack.

Moony tried resisting them, hurting himself in his eagerness to protect his friends. In the end, Padfoot and Prongs wore him down until Moony was unconscious before the three of them turned.

"Moony scared us", said Peter.

Sirius threw an arm around the boy, squeezing his shoulder to assure him that he was fine. "It's fine, Pete. He was scared himself."

"He was trying not to hurt us. So, Remus was trying to resist Moony from playing. Moony is angry because we are pack and Remus was trying to keep him away from his pack", explained James, carding his hands through the wolf's fur.

Sirius sighed and sat down beside James, Peter curling up beside them, as they waited for the dawn.

Sirius woke up to someone shaking him and found James in front of his eyes.

"Poppy would be here soon. Let's go", he muttered before dragging Peter and covering the three of them with the cloak.

They walked towards the end of the tunnel and Peter turned, and crawled to the Whomping willow to stop the motion before pressing the knot again after the other two came out. The tree was as violent as ever. As they walked towards the castle, Sirius felt himself smiling on seeing Regulus flying on his broom. As promised, he started flying early in the morning after every full moon. He walked into James when the boy stopped abruptly, making Peter almost fall if not for Sirius steadying him by his shirt. "Jay, what happened?"

James glanced back at him silently before turning to Peter. "Peter, why don't you go ahead to the hospital wing and keep company to Moony? We have to be someplace else. Take the cloak with you. We will be fine."

Peter looked like he was about to protest but one look from James and he agreed. James waited for a few minutes before grabbing Sirius's hand and walking him in the opposite direction. He chuckled when the boy took him to Regulus but the seriousness on his face as he crossed his arms filled a dread inside him. "Jay?"

"Sirius, I have seen Regulus flying for months now and he had never questioned me about where we are coming from. It only means one thing that he knows. Explain. Now."

Sirius had imagined being in this situation. Hell, he had avoided James for days after Regulus confessed about knowing Moony's secret last year but then he thought he would worry about it later when the time comes. The time came and he felt breathing would be difficult. He would lose James again like last year and he wasn't quite ready for it. He was weighing his options of contacting Uncle Alphard when he felt Regulus grabbing his wrist.

"James, I know Remus's secret. I wanted to check you are safe and that's why I fly in the morning after every full moon", confessed Regulus.

Sirius didn't glance up from where he was staring at the ground but then James's feet came into his line of sight.

"Sirius, look up or I would cut your hair", he threatened. When he did look up, James was still crossing his arms. "What's going inside your head?"

"I didn't reveal the secret to Reg. I wouldn't do it ever. I am sorry."

James sighed and pulled him into his arms, carding his fingers through Sirius's hair. "You are an idiot if you think I wouldn't believe you. Reg's smart even if he acts stupid sometimes", he said and they both ignored Reg's cry of protest. "Hey, I believe you, okay? I trust you. I know you wouldn't ever put Moony into that situation again. It's okay. Breathe."

It took him a moment to get his breathing under his control. "I am sorry?"

James sighed again before squeezing his neck and pulling him close, glancing at Regulus, who was shuffling awkwardly beside them. "You might have questions of yours?"

"Loads", said Reg.

James nodded before pulling Sirius into their spot behind the castle, Regulus following them silently. "Did you tell him about the other secret?"

Sirius shook his head. "Not mine alone to reveal."

James rubbed his arm up and down in silent comfort. Once they sat down, James asked how Regulus figured out the secret.

"Greyback was at one of Malfoy's parties. Mother made some comments about him and I know Remus. I have seen him", said Reg. "Look, I love Remus. He is my friend but I don't want him to hurt you when he loses his mind. It was the only reason I told Sirius about it but then he said you are safe with him. Do you want to explain that or do you want me to believe you are being reckless like stupid Gryffindors?"

When James reached out to hold Reg's hand with his free one, he let him be. "Reg, what I am going to tell you is a secret and shouldn't be let out under any circumstance. If it's out, we would anyways be in trouble but a lot of other people would be in trouble too. Do you understand that?"

Regulus looked at the two of them for a moment before huffing. "I am a trained occlumens, you know?"

"I know, brat. Black training and all. But I want you to understand what I am putting at stake by telling you this, by trusting you with this", scolded James, mildly.

Regulus seemed to wrap his mind around the gravity of the situation. He was silent for a moment but then shook his head. "If it's that important, you don't have to tell me. All I wanted to know was if you two are safe or not. I would believe your word over Sirius's when it comes to your safety."

Sirius didn't even have it in him to protest because it was true. Reg has always trusted Sirius's safety with James than himself. James, however, left his side in favor of holding both of Regulus's hands, kneeling in front of the boy. "Reg, you are important to me too. If it was like before, I would have told you about this years ago. You deserve to know. If it's out, a lot of people close to me would get hurt but you are close to me too and I trust you to keep it a secret", he explained and dropped a kiss on Reg's head to let him know they were fine.

If Sirius wasn't wrong, Reg did lean into Jay more. Making sure, Reg's fine, Jay glanced at Sirius and nodded. He was ready as Padfoot stood in place of Sirius before he turned back when Reg let out an undignified shriek.

"What was that?"

Jay's arms hovered over Reg, torn between trying to reach him and giving the boy some space as the truth sunk in. "He is an Animagus. We are Animagi."

"It was advanced magic and Professor McGonagall warned against trying to become one in class", he yelled.

James shushed him even though Sirius cast the silencing charm around them. "Reggie, we figured out Remus's secret but then we understood what he was going through right after the moon. We just wanted to help. It was the best way to help."

"Don't justify as if you haven't mastered advanced magic that many adult wizards aren't capable of."

Sirius poked his arm. "Reg, I don't understand if you are disgusted or impressed."

"Obstupuit, stulte. Stultitia me terres, sed aeque impressus", said Reg, pinching the bridge of his nose. [Appalled, you idiot. You terrify me with your stupidity but I am equally impressed.]

Sirius grinned. "He is impressed", he translated it to James, earning a glare for leaving out them being the idiots part.

"How did you even manage it?", asked Reg.

"We tried but it took us years and we only mastered it last year", said James, relaxing into a sitting position.

Regulus nodded before there was a frown on his head. "Is that why Sirius was sick last year? You two broke up for a while. Didn't Sirius manage his form? Were you mad at him because of that?"

"Black children and their absolute insecurity of disappointing their parents", muttered James.

"What do you mean?", asked Regulus.

Sirius shook his head. Jay was right. Regulus question did make sense to him. If being an Animagus was a family tradition and he couldn't achieve it, he was sure his family would give him the cold shoulder. That's where Reg would go seeing his and Jay's little fallout. He was pulled in by a groan and a hand and he was beside James in an instant, his grip reassuring.

"Reg. Sirius did something stupid. He had let Snape know about Remus, putting his life at risk", started James but then Reg gasped, looking horrified. James freed his hand to hold the boy's chin, forcing him to look at him. "No, Reggie. Listen to me completely. Snape already knew about Moony's condition and provoked him to confirm it. It doesn't give any excuse to Sirius for putting Remus's life at risk but Sirius did run to me, begging to save both Snape and Remus's lives. Sirius didn't mean it."

"I can't believe you would do that to Remus. You call yourself marauders", whispered Reg.

Sirius felt ashamed all over. Reg was right to be disgusted by him. They were a family to Remus. They had vowed to protect Moony and yet he had almost killed him.

"Don't bolt off. Stay with me", whispered James in his ear before shifting a bit closer to Regulus. "Reg. What Sirius did was wrong and idiotic and after saving Snape, we confessed it to Professor Dumbledore. He forced Snape into a silent vow and put Sirius into detention. Sirius served detention for weeks, writing lines about what he did and repenting it. On top of it, I thought it was right to let Remus forgive him first because Remus was the one most affected by it. Hence, I distanced from Sirius."

Regulus nodded. "You did the right thing. I never thought I would ever see you two apart."

"I never did too but I love Sirius and I know he wouldn't in his right state of mind harm Remus like that. We both know his lack of impulse control and the trouble he gets into because of that", he said and waited for Regulus to affirm. "Reggie, Sirius was made to relive his mistake every night but none of us have even guessed he would try to take his life because of it."

"What?", muttered Regulus, his eyes finding Sirius, a pool of unshed tears forming in his eyes.

Sirius shook his head. "It was not because of the mistake. I was man enough to accept what I have done and was ready to beg on my knees to Remus for the rest of my life", he muttered, fiddling with his fingers. "It was you not talking to me that drove me to an edge and nothing made sense. I was afraid it was a forever thing given how badly I had screwed it up."

There were two pairs of arms surrounding him in an instant and Sirius stayed still. It was the worst he had done and he would probably kill himself than betray any of his friends like that again.

"You are a dramatic idiot", said Regulus, once he broke the hug.

James gave him a watery chuckle before ruffling the boy's hair. "I wouldn't let him get hurt again, okay?"

Regulus nodded easily. "What is your form?", he asked after minutes of silence.

It was a method of distraction from the gloomy mood but Jay really didn't reveal his form. James grinned like a loon before turning into Prongs. Unlike Sirius, he waited for several minutes, letting Regulus pet him.

"You are magnificent", said Reg.

And when James smirked and said he knew, they both rolled their eyes at the modest idiot.

XXX

Regulus slumped down beside Lily in the library after casting a subtle silencing charm even though there was hardly anyone in the library. It was the last Hogsmeade weekend before the Christmas break and everyone was out except for maybe Remus, who was still in the hospital wing. He was sure the marauders went ahead to pick some honeydukes finest for him along with the Christmas presents. After their talk, Regulus did go to check on Remus after his breakfast once everyone had left for Hogsmeade but the marauder was sleeping peacefully and Regulus didn't have it in him to disturb the boy, especially when James told him why this moon was particularly bad. It was totally something Remus was capable of. Playing on his life to save others. The particular incident put a hamper to his resolve that his mother drilled into him about half-breeds being mindless animals who were prone to losing their minds even without the full-moon. Remus could be capable of keeping his mind even during the full moon and seriously, who would even do that?

"You look troubled?"

Regulus was startled out of his thoughts but he turned in his seat to face her. "I have a question. Is this the right time to talk to you?"

Lily glanced at him before abandoning her books and giving him her full attention. "What's up?"

"Do you remember the last time we talked about werewolves, you said you wouldn't want all of them dead. You said not every one of them was a monster and some of them have been bitten against their own wills", he asked.

Lily nodded. "I said what I believe. Do you want to add something to it?"

Regulus fidgeted with his fingers, unlike the proper Black he was trained to be but it happened every time he was in the presence of one Lily Evans because this girl shakes the entire foundation of his education he had learned while growing up. Also, he would let her because she makes him to be a better person. "Lily, I live with Severus and he has his ideas about werewolves. I know you were friends with him and you must know about them too."

"Yes, I am aware about those."

"And yet you chose to be against those even though he was your childhood friend?"

"Do you want to come to the point or beat around the bush?"

Regulus didn't know how to approach the subject. He closed his eyes and there was a flash of Sirius grinning at him. Hence, he decided to go the Gryffindor way. "I hated werewolves, thanks to my family, for the better part of my life but then I met someone and my entire thinking has been changed. I am still scared though. Have you met someone too who had changed your thinking?", he asked. Lily's wand was in her hand in an instant but Regulus dropped his, raising his hands. "I have already cast the silencing charm."

Lily nodded but didn't drop the wand from her hand. It was vaguely pointed towards him. "Do they know that you know? Does anyone else knows?"

Regulus shook his head. Lily had cleared his suspicions. "I talked to James this morning but I had already figured it out last year. I wouldn't want to hurt Remus ever."

Lily sized him up before her eyes softened and Regulus decided he never wanted to be on the opposite side of the redhead's wand. "How did you figure it out? Did Sev tell you too?"

"No. My family talks and the marauders weren't subtle. I have eyes. What about you?"

Lily snorted. "Same as you. I figured it out during my second year. I was curious too along with Severus but I have known Remus closely. It wasn't my secret to tell. Only later did I realize the stress Remus was undergoing for hiding his secret", she said, dropping her wand. "He doesn't deserve any of that."

"So, you have known all along and they don't even any clue. And they call themselves the coolest bunch. What a bunch of idiots", he told, earning a chuckle out of her.

"In their defence, their leader is James Potter and the group shares two braincells between the four of them."

Regulus grinned. "And mostly, Remus usually owns both of them."

Lily nodded, agreeing with him. "Hey, do you want to be part of my little pet project?"

"What have you planned, Evans?"

Lily just smirked in reply as she whipped out a muggle notebook out of her bag.

1. Regulus knows about Remus and now James knows that Regulus knows. 

2. Lily Evans knows about Remus and no one knows that she knows except Reg now. If you have noticed, Lily has been gentle to Remus in the previous chapter. Even made an excuse before the full moon. What all she did and how was she a silent friend supporting him rather than confronting like the marauders would be revealed in the coming chapters. For now, Lily rocks. :P