#i wanted cute baby prongsfoot fluff

[solitaire-sol]

16: Cultivation

For: @prongsfoot-microfic

Month: August 2023

AO3: Link

Notes: The echobloom, also known as the echolalia orchid, is something I came up with, so don't look for it on an HP wiki. Welspryng Grange is my HC for a "Potter Manor," less over-the-top than most of those tend to be, with an agricultural focus given the Potters' apparent affinity for potions/growing ingredients; it operates as a commercial/research farm until Fleamont retires, with most of the adjacent land sold off over time. The springs that feed it are mildly magical and it's where Fleamont and Euphemia lived until it became clear they'd never have a large family, after which they primarily lived in the Godric's Hollow house until James and Lily married and moved in.

Some were surprised to learn that James Potter ranked among the best-scoring students in most classes, despite his disinterest in studying. Sirius was never surprised by James' talents, but he had been bewildered during their first Herbology lesson, where James had been volunteering answers and getting his hands dirty, in a very literal sense, once Professor Sprout allowed them into a greenhouse. Sirius, who had never felt a particular urge towards plants or potting soil, was fascinated by James' enthusiasm, watching James deftly replant lady's mantle sprouts, shaping protective mounds around the sprigs.

“Mum and Dad garden,” James had shrugged. “More Dad than Mum, but they both like it, so I wound up liking it, too.” Gardening seemed a mismatch for James, a poky pensioner's pastime for someone who seemed most at home going too fast, too high on a broom; but James' interest in growing things was more than that of a dutiful son, as Sirius learned the first time he'd visited the Potters at Welspryng Grange.

James led Sirius around the outbuildings, the tour frequently interrupted by James' recollections of 'those sugar shrubs have been there forever, they're the only things Mum bakes with' and 'I fell off that shed when I was five, stop laughing you nitwit, you're cracked.' "Welspryng is named for the, well, springs," James explained. “They go all through the estate from underground. Dad brewed the first cauldron of Sleekeazy's with that water!” James added proudly, and Sirius couldn't help a pang of envy, though it was forgotten as James took his wrist and drew Sirius towards an elegant building of glass and weathered iron.

“I've been growing something for you,” James announced, leading Sirius through rows of potted trees and blossoming shoots in planters, stopping before what looked like a white orchid on a slender stem. It might have been a Muggle flower if not for the faint magic it exuded, but it didn't look like anything they'd come across in Herbology.

“It's an echobloom,” James said, tugging Sirius closer. “When it matures, it captures the first sound it hears and stores it! Here, give a listen--” James indicated that Sirius should lean in, their shoulders bumping together, and James breathed a puff of air across the papery white petals in simulation of a breeze. The echobloom swayed a little, leaves and petals shifting, and Sirius' eyes widened as he heard James' voice emanate from the heart of the flower, saying--

Sirius felt his cheeks redden, the blush impossible to hide on his pale skin, and when he ventured a look at James, it was with a certain relief that he saw James had also gone pink. James was smiling, though, and Sirius found that he was smiling, too.

“You like it?” James asked, and his grip on Sirius' wrist was loose, but his hand was warm.

“Yeah,” Sirius replied, already figuring out how to get a china pot containing a three-foot-tall orchid past his mother and his mother's house-elves. “I love it.”

[siriusblack-the-third]

Here, have some prongsfoot fluff and exasperated Remus.

.

"You're so handsomeee."

Remus sighed at the awed tone of James' voice and stared up at the ceiling. Oh great, he thought tiredly. Here they go again.

"You're so prettyyy," came Sirius' reply to the compliment, and Remus closed his eyes in exasperation, already done with the both of them. Mushy, lovey-dovey idiots, the pair of them.

"You're beautiful."

"And you're stunning."

"Well, you are—"

Remus slammed his textbook shut and glared at Sirius and James. "Jesus fucking Merlin, do either of you ever shut up?"

James, cradled like a baby in Sirius' lap with his face buried in his neck, sniggered. Sirius grinned, pressed a kiss to his boyfriend's hair, and winked at Remus.

Remus rolled his eyes. "We get it. You're in love. Shut the fuck up about it."

James' sniggering turned into a full blown laugh, and he stuffed his face into Sirius' chest to muffle it, clutching at the lapels of his leather jacket. Sirius tightened his arms around James and smiled at him, soft and adoring, complete with the starry-eyed look. It was sickeningly cute, and Remus wanted to throw up.

"Are you jealous, Remmie?" James teased, and Remus knew there was a shit-eating grin on his face even though he couldn't see it. "Want us to set you up with someone so you can be lovey-dovey with them?"

Remus rolled his eyes again, harder this time. "No thanks," he said, shuddering for the dramatics. "You might like being disgusting, I don't want to be any such thing."

Sirius and James both snickered, leaning towards each other for a peck on the lips. Remus scowled and pointed his wand at them.

"Owie!"

"Remus!"

He smiled smugly at the outraged looks on his best friend's faces as the rubbed their cheeks where his stinging hexes had landed. "Either stop being mushy in front of me, or get lost."

Sirius rolled his eyes and clutched James closer. "You don't have to be so bitter, mate."

Remus gave him a deadpan look. "Go eat lunch. Stop bothering me."

Sirius took a glance at James, and the wicked smile that grew on his face made the blood drain from Remus' face. Oh, no. That look was never good. Oh fuck, he thought to himself with trepidation, what the fuck did you get yourself into this time?

"I could eat lunch," Sirius said lightly, the gleam in his eyes a promise that Remus was not going to like the rest of the sentence. "Or I could eat James out."

Remus dropped his head into his hands. James squeaked, slapping a hand over Sirius' mouth, a fiery red blush exploding across his cheekbones. "Sirius!"

"What?" Remus was never trusting that innocent tone of Sirius' voice. He wasn't stupid, fuck you very much. "Do you not like the idea?"

Remus raised his head, curious despite himself, and smirked at the sight. James' lips were pursed, and his eyes were cast down, the blush still going strong. He was fiddling with the studs on Sirius' jacket while Sirius grinned down at him with a weird mixture of flirty and fond.

"... I wouldn't mind," came the faint answer before James burrowed back into Sirius' chest, hiding from the laughter that bubbled up Remus' and Sirius' throats.

.

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Tag list:

@narcissa-black-supermacy @in-flvx @soopsiedaisies @padfootastic @gracelesslady23 @mycupofrum @fiendishfyre @ad1thi @prongsfoot-wolfstar @siriuslystarbucks @strwbi-laces @roalinda @manavi-meera