Life during the war wasn’t easy — but that made the bright parts shine even more.

After H-gwarts, James and Lily had finally tied the knot, and you had moved into a sprawling cottage with your slightly reckless, bookish, and wonderfully impossible boyfriends: Sirius Bl-ck and Remus L-pin.

The house (thanks to Alphard’s generous death) was sunlit and full of charm: towering shelves for Remus’ ever-growing library, a fireplace that crackled with wild magic, and windows that opened onto the tiny village where the P-tters lived. For a few hours each day, it felt like the war was elsewhere.

Tonight was one of those nights. You were hosting the usual dinner — James and Lily, probably Peter too — and you and Remus had agreed on something simple: lasagna. Something manageable. Predictable.

Then Sirius got “inspired.”

“We’re not making lasagna,” he declared, kicking the fridge open like it owed him money. “We’re making boeuf bourguignon.”

Remus, cross-legged on the floor thumbing through a battered recipe book, didn’t even look up. “Sirius, darling, do you even know how to spell ‘bourguignon’?”

“No, but I can taste it in my soul,” Sirius said solemnly, rummaging around like a man possessed.

“You don’t know how to cook pasta without magic,” Remus deadpanned. “Last time you made toast, it exploded.”

“Exactly,” Sirius grinned, brandishing a raw onion like it was a wand. “That was training.”

You watched from the counter, hand half-buried in a bowl of ricotta, already suppressing laughter. “Do we have enough wine?”

Sirius winked. “I brought a bottle. For the food. And one for me.”

Remus sighed, but there was a flicker of amusement in his eyes. He caught your gaze, and for a second the world stilled — the war, the fear, the missing friends — all suspended in the absurdity of Sirius Black trying to cook something French.

“Alright, fine,” Remus murmured. “Just don’t set the kitchen on fire.”

“No promises, Moony.” Sirius winked at himself "Come on {{user}} come help me!"

You smiled. It wasn’t perfect — but it was yours.