"You do realize how creepy this is, right?" Remus asks from his left.
"Yeah."
"And... we're still going through with it?"
"Yup."
Look, James Potter doesn't fancy himself much of one for gossip, but it isn't every day Hogwarts gets exchange students. Normally he wouldn't be going so out of his way to get a glimpse of them before the rest of the school. It's just that, rumor has it, one of them's been sorted into Gryffindor. The one of the brother's that's a sixth year too.
And it just so happens it's their dormitory that's got an extra bed after Paladin moved to Germany.
So, yes, James has made their arrival his own personal concern and will be seeing to it as such.
Thank you very much.
Even if doing so relies on the three of them laying on their stomachs underneath the stairwell in the entrance hall, peering through the gap where the top of the fourth stair doesn't quite sit right. The space is too short for Remus and too tight for Peter but James doesn't want to hear about how Peter's fingers are going numb - this is important! And the only place they'll have such a good view of the doors unnoticed.
Besides, he's the one sandwiched between them, so he's not doing too merry now either.
"I don't think James cares, Pete," Remus cranes his neck to talk around him. "He's too excited to meet his new boyfriend."
James rolls his eyes and jabs his elbow in what he hopes is Remus's ribs and not his tit.
"Shut up, I'm just lookin' out for the integrity of our dorm. We don't know what this bloke's gonna-" He cuts himself off abruptly when he hears the telltale clunk of the door's lock and immediately swivels back around the peer through the crack. "Seriously shut the fuck up, it's them."
He vaguely hears Remus mutter something about obsessive behavior, but James doesn't take it to heart, because Remus is nearly pressed up cheek to cheek with him to get a good look too.
"Do you think he'll like wizard's chess?" Peter whispers, squinting at the crack.
"I hope he'll be more quiet than you two," Remus's sighs, feigning apathy.
"Quiet!" James hisses and watches as the great doors yawn open. "Here they come..."
It's just passed dinnertime and raining, so the only light to see by are the candles and the glowing tips of three wands as the door thuds shut again. James squints harder to try and get his eyes to adjust, but it's no use because Filtch is blocking the view with the luggage he's dragging in. He hears Dumbledore's voice first.
"And, of course," he's going on, "should you need any assistance with adjusting to having your lessons given in English-"
"I think we'll be able to manage, sir," another voice cuts in, heavy with an accent.
James can just make out two figures in the light of the headmaster's wand as one of them, the taller, takes off his hat, and the other shrugs off a cloak. Unfortunately they're nothing but silhouettes from this distance.
"Our parents did have the nanny teach us both languages growing up. Though, and I talked with Professor Mcgonagall about this in our letters, I was a bit concerned about the compatibility of our classes..."
"Why does he sound like that?" Peter cuts in.
"They're transferring from Beauxbatons, remember?" Remus turns to look at him and nearly knocks the glasses off James's face because they're so close.
"Oi!"
"Sorry!"
They settle again after a bit of shuffling.
"They're French, Pete," he finally finishes his explanation. "And they sound like privileged pretentious snobs too, if that's what you meant."
James pushes his glasses up. "I'm a privileged pretentious snob," he reminds him.
"No. You're a privileged self-aware snob, James. There's a big difference."
"They could actually be nice underneath it all, is all I'm saying."
"You did say you wanted an academic," Peter adds.
"In the meantime, I wanted to offer you both dinner in the Great Hall before we take you to your dormitories for the night." Dumbledore's voice is getting louder now as the group passes the threshold of the archway, stepping into the warm candlelight.
Suddenly, Remus and Peter are interested again.
Even if James didn't know the two of them were brothers, he wouldn't have had to guess. It's not obvious in that they're spitting images of one another, but the similarities are immediate. The dark hair and pale skin, and even the way they walk. The drying spell is still working on their clothes, so the way they step against the heavy fabric is nearly identical. Still, James focuses in on the taller one, the one that's been talking, because he's their new roommate.
His hair is long enough to be held back with a clip and he's not in uniform yet, instead sporting a dark leather jacket and a shirt with a logo James doesn't recognize. His hands are in the pockets of his sweatpants. He looks... cool. Definitely the type James could see himself liking and the three of them befriending, easily.
"The fuck does that mean?" Remus mutters beside him, and James realizes he hasn't actually been listening.
"Yeah, we should be fine to have breakfast with the others in the morning," their future roommate is telling Dumbledore as the two trunks Filtch had been struggling with levitate and float off in different directions, one up and one down. "It's just that tonight... would've been too much of a scene, you know?"
"Of course. And Hogwarts is nothing if not accommodating to your situation." Dumbledore turns and starts leading the conversation up the stairs, where James, Remus, and Peter can't currently follow. "If the other students give you any trouble, I'll handle it."
"Thank you, Professor," their roommate replies and starts to follow him up, but his younger brother's hand grabs his sleeve.
"Thanks for asking. Again," he says. His accent is softer.
And they can't see their roommates face from this angle, but it sounds like he's smiling. "I'm sure they'll let you take advanced astronomy, Reg."
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