friday night big screen | james

[Bran Fionn O'Dalaigh]

a little closer to grace.

THOUGH THE HORIZON HAD BECOME FAR MORE hostile in passing weeks, Hogsmeade still chugged along valiantly. Bran had been shocked still at the broken remains of the school he had loved, his heart in his throat as he'd carried his trunk from the train station to his lodgings in the village. He hadn't even taken the time to unpack before he'd been out on the grounds of the centre. There was mud on his knees and hay in his hair by the time he left the place to find food back in the village. Bran liked being alone, but the nostalgia of the place made him yearn for familiar company. The message had been sent to James before he'd even gotten off the train.

The Potter boy had been something of a ring-leader while at Hogwarts. Bran had always been drawn to that kind of charisma. With a mixture of envy and relief, as James's overwhelming cheer and presence meant that Bran could fade comfortably into the backdrop. Eventually, Bran was placed synonymously with all of James's ploys. He'd even backed the boy as he'd resurrected Phoenix Rising as tensions rose in the wizarding world.

Though Bran would have happily been sitting in East Asia, learning about the complex breeding rituals of Chinese Fireball's, he happily anticipated the arrival of an old friend. He pushed open the doors to the Hog's Head with a stomach rumbling hungrily and the thought of a foamy alcoholic butterbeer watering his mouth. He ordered two at his table, asking for something on the menu that didn't have meat in it. He was treated to a begrudging vegetable stew. Gulping down on his butterbeer as he sat back in his seat and waited for James to appear - typically late, he reckoned. 

james sirius potter

NEVERLAND at ADOXOGRAPHY 2.0!

[james sirius potter]

I just wanna stay in the sun
where I find

I know it's hard sometimes

June 7, 2026
Bran Fionn O'Dalaigh

It was the interesting thing about magic. When he’d separated from Bianca and gotten up the tower stairs, he’d managed to stop the light bleeding from his head, but later on, when he’d finally been checked out by a Mediwitch, she had informed him that this would be slower healing. As he’d rolled his eyes, he realized it was the spell that had hit the wall when he was next to it before arriving at the tower entrance. Now he had a small strip bandage there like he’d seen Muggles used, and hopefully, it would come off in a day or two at this point.

Albus liked to joke, his mother worried, and Lily told him he might have a cool scar afterward to show off. All he cared about was that his family was safe and sound, but it had all hit a little bit too close to home. A message had arrived earlier in the day from an old friend. It was a nice surprise in the aftermath of such events, especially since James would be lying if he had said that he wasn’t still thinking about it. What could he have done differently? What had he done wrong? And fortunately, he’d kept his promise to Bran about making sure his sister was safe, even if Merlin himself would not have been able to stop her from going head to head with Purifiers in these very streets of the village.

Most of the damage had been repaired, the pubs reopened even in the shadow of the fallen Hogwarts Castle. James stuck his hands deep in his pockets as he walked the path to the Hog’s Head, pushing the door open, and he paused to look for Bran. Unsurprisingly the boy was gulping down his entire butterbeer, it seemed. And suddenly, James felt like he was back in seventh year at the Three Broomsticks. Instinctively he grinned, finally walking up to the table. ”I hope you left me some.” He feigned a complaint, noting the second mug on the table as he took a seat. ”You working in the village now?”

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[Bran Fionn O'Dalaigh]

a little closer to grace.

WITH THE STEW SENDING HEADY SMELLS OF gravy and roasted onion, the butterbeer simmering sweetly on his tongue, Bran felt more at home than ever. Hogwarts had served as a fundamental playground for much of the young man's youth, and by extension, so did Hogsmeade. No matter the distance, or time spent separate, everything was much the same. He curled around his bowl, the tankard gripped in his hand when he heard the bell above the pubs door give a jaunty rattle.

Bran lifted his head, licking foam from his upper lip as James' broad, tall frame ducked under a low wooden support beam. Bran stood immediately, setting his tankard down and gesturing with open arms at his old friend. Bran stretched himself over the small table to slap his friend on the back and lean back with a gruff laugh, "Aren't you working for the man now, Jimmy?" Though James was notably tall, Bran still managed to stand with a few extra inches on him, the furniture dwarfed against them as they crowded into their seats. All knockings knees and elbows. "Get your own." He told him without any spite.

At the table, Bran could get a proper look at James sitting down. He looked much the same, though he'd grown a bit of scruff and he had a rough bandage standing stark on his head. Bran's smile dimmed a fraction, leaning back and shifting to give James more room as he regarded him with tongue in cheek. "Yeah- yeah the centre is only a tick up the road." He told him with a happy shrug, brows lifting towards his hairline. He had a few inklings about how James had earned his war wound, but he wondered how sensitive it was to mention, eventually his curiosity won out, tankard in hand once again. "You're looking a bit roughed, mate." He noted with a point towards his own head in clarification. "Don't get me wrong, you look hard as nails." He joked with an open palm, snorting at himself as he did.

james sirius potter

NEVERLAND at ADOXOGRAPHY 2.0!

[james sirius potter]

I just wanna stay in the sun
where I find

I know it's hard sometimes

June 7, 2026
Bran Fionn O'Dalaigh

It was good to see friendly and familiar faces. James’ family and friends were everything to him, and it gave him a warm feeling in his chest to see Bran’s cheery face. While the equally tall boy didn’t have the same fire as his sister, his heart was no less in the right place. The both of them were loyal, true, and constant in the Potter’s lives. James tried to recall the last time they’d sat for a drink—had it really been that long? It felt like only yesterday they celebrated at the end of their seventh and final year at school as they prepared to walk different paths.

”Merlin—don’t tell me you actually grew taller?” James shook his head as he took a seat. They were both still far too tall for these seats. ”Don’t let Al see you.” He chuckled, still which side of the family provided the unlucky gene that left his brother so close to the ground. At least Lily was shorter than him—though you couldn’t tell with her personality and presence. He shrugged. ”They treat me alright. I get to save the day and all that.” It was what he wanted to do. A quiet life was not something he’d ever had in mind, nor could he fathom it, and he didn’t have the patience and gentle nature of his friend sitting across from him.

The aftermath of the school’s attack had brought many people home. People were helping rebuild and people making sure their families were safe. Bran was not the first old face he’d bumped into though the questions were all becoming the same, and James had begun to avoid talking about that day with people who were essentially perfect strangers. Few could understand what it meant for him, and even fewer were there during his failure of a seventh year. James’ eyes gleamed green in this light, and they instinctively tried to look at the corner of his forehead. His fingers lightly traced the healing wound as he gave a dismissive shrug. ”Oh—it's nothing. Curse nearly got me.” Hence why the Healers could not heal it right away. ”I’m fine.” James assured him—though that was just his automatic answer now. ”So they got you working with dragons here now?” James asked. ”You know, you should really talk to my Uncle Charlie one of these days.”

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[Bran Fionn O'Dalaigh]

a little closer to grace.

LEANING BACK IN HIS SEAT, BRAN LAUGHED, tilting his chin and looking down his nose at James. "I could say the same 'bout you," He retorted, tongue in cheek. "They looked into you for part-giant yet?" Head pitched curiously with a fabricated frown on his face. It had always been something of a bet between the two growing up, who would be pinned as tallest in the school each year they returned a few inches bigger than before. Typically, it was a trophy James won, but sometimes if Bran just stopped slumping, he could steal it for a term or two. "He should investigate you for theft," He joked, eyes creasing merrily. "You've clearly knicked the lot."

Taking a pull from his butter beer, Bran used the back of his hand to dash the foam from his upper lip. He sat the glass down with a soft nod, "I'd expect as much." It was no secret that 'Saving the World' was practically perfunctory for the name 'Potter'. "Have to keep the good name." He added with a kind sarcasm. Bran wasn't serious, he knew the infamy that came with James' family name. Had seen its stretch far and wide, and watched it get old and weathered all the while. That didn't mean he couldn't have a little fun with it. It suited James, though, funnily enough.

Eyes pinned to the head wound, Bran's brows lifted softly, though he didn't say anything immediately. James had a way of brushing things off, everything just seemed to slip off him - like water off a ducks back. Bran went along with it, spinning the spoon in his stew idly. "Right..." He muttered, nipping at the corner of his mouth before he took a spoonful of stew and chewed it thoughtfully. "Just another day at the office," He added as he swallowed, licking gravy from the corner of his mouth as he did. "Everybody else... all good?" He thought of his sister, making him simultaneously consider James's family. Though, in reality, he knew if anything particularly traumatic had happened it would have read it in the Prophet ten times over.

"Just on-call with McFusty's for now." Bran explained, taking another bite of the stew, his rumbling stomach taking precedence. "I'm based at the wildlife reserve," He shrugged after a moment, not entirely fussy about the creatures he cared for, though he had a particular soft spot for the kind that breathed fire. "They had a better position open at the time." Bran had just been eager to come back to the mainland, he'd travelled for so long the appeal of settling for a moment had outweighed his need to specialise. "So," He set his spoon down and cradled his pint glass. "What've I missed then?" He grinned expectantly. 

james sirius potter

NEVERLAND at ADOXOGRAPHY 2.0!

[james sirius potter]

I just wanna stay in the sun
where I find

I know it's hard sometimes

June 7, 2026
Bran Fionn O'Dalaigh

The anomaly of James’ inherited height versus his brother’s had never been understood. Apparently, his father had not been as tall as he is now in his school days, but his final growth spurt had hit around eighteen, or so his mother put it. And his Uncles were all tall as well, although James towered over them as well. Perhaps James had inherited from their grandfather, who stood almost a head shorter than all his sons. James chuckled. ”I suppose we can both get evaluations.” It was not the first time he’d heard that, though he’d only get called a troll or something by his brother or cousin he’d annoyed.

But James remembered starting about their third year where one or the other would hit a growth spurt over the summer. But that was part of growing up. One day your feet felt too big for your body, and the next, you towered over everybody. ”You should see Hugo. He’ll catch up to me soon enough.” James remembered. One of his younger cousins and son of his late Aunt Hermione had grown about a foot overnight and was now growing like a rampant weed. James enjoyed the first pull of his butterbeer. One of his favorites, naturally. But he felt at ease sitting across from an old friend. More at ease than he’d felt in some weeks.

”Naturally.” James added. While the attention never bothered him, sometimes he wondered what his life might have been like without the shadow eclipsing him as he tried to shine on his own merit. But he never let it consume him. And his visible scars were only reminders of his work and how dangerous his field actually was. Or anything in Law Enforcement, really. And yet he and his brother had willingly walked this path. ”Yes, all safe and sound.” James confirmed, focusing on his butterbeer momentarily. Thank Merlin they were all safe and sound. ”And your family?” James remembered Bran’s father had been unwell. Brigh had briefly recounted the experience but not in great detail. And as someone who thought he’d lost his father, he empathized.

James nodded as he listened to Bran explain his employment status. Not even the pauses for a bite of stew bothered him. How many times had the boys chatted eagerly over lunch in the Great Hall while stuffing their faces with pies and whatever else was edible? He made a mental note to speak to his Uncle Charlie. Perhaps he could help in some way. But then the real question. ”Well, I don’t need to repeat what the Prophets reported.” Nor did he want to. Sitting back in his chair, he suddenly felt weary but brushed it off. ”Al finished his Auror training.” An accomplishment indeed, not that James wouldn’t use it to poke fun at his brother. ”I asked him if he was allowed to charm the interoffice memos rather than hand carry them now.” While Lily had shot butterbeer out of her nose at that one, Albus had been less than amused.

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