Name; Brothers No More
Author; Me, Katy
Disclaimer; If JKR did it first, it belongs to her.
Rating: T
Pairing; None
Genre; Angst
Summary; This is how Sirius came to leave his home, and how Regulus came to sell his soul.
ONE SHOTT!!! (p.s. if it looks familiar, I’ve posted it on ff.net and hpff.net)
Regulus was the reason that he stayed. They were brothers, they had to stick together. No matter how they acted at school, at home they were like any other siblings. Except that Sirius was strong. Regulus was too afraid of there parents to admit that he hated Slytherin. He despised his cousin Bellatrix and her thirst for pain, and detested his other cousin Narcissa who looked down her nose at everything as though it was beneath her. Sirius would always try and convince him to run away, to leave behind the pure blood life they had lead and that the Potters would take him in. But he was afraid.
At the end of fifth year however, it was different. Regulus’ parents called him into the kitchen alone. “We know you won’t dishonor us, son,” his father said to him.
“You are loyal to your ancestry,” his mother agreed.
Regulus was confused. “What are you talking about? What’s going on?”
His mother was practically giddy. “You will join your worthy,” she put a lot of emphasis on worthy, “cousins and their new families.” Regulus was still perplexed. “You will join the Dark Lord.” His mother and father looked so proud.
He was flabbergasted. “Wh-what? A Death Eater? B-but-”
“We knew you’d agree!” said his mother while she hugged him. “We can’t be of any help to him, but you will be. There are all the clippings and other things in your room, to give you a little more information. We’ll go to your initiation ceremony tomorrow. Thank Merlin you aren’t like Sirius.” She kissed him on the head and left with his father, who clapped him on the shoulder as he left.
Regulus’ fate was decided. And he didn’t like it one bit.
Sirius noticed his brother was acting differently since they had come back home. The next day at breakfast he looked pale and pasty. Sirius had planned to hide in his brothers’ room and confront him when he returned from shopping with his parents, but what he found in there horrified him. Headlines glared down from above him, moving pictures of the Dark Mark were pinned up on the walls and a single picture of people, some that he knew, in dark hooded cloaks and masks. Death Eaters. His brother was going to follow Voldemort. Sirius had failed. He had failed to save his brother from their family’s grasp.
He sat waiting for almost an hour. Finally, he heard the front door open and Kreachers welcomes. Sirius sat anxiously in the secluded corner of the room, hands shaking, fearing the worst and refusing to believe it. Regulus charged in and collapsed onto the bed, not noticing his brother. “Gone for a change of decoration have we?” Sirius spat. Regulus jumped straight back up and stared into the furious eyes of his sibling.
“Sirius, ple-” He was cut off.
“How could you Reg?! You know what these people do. They’re murderers. They kill people for fun. And you want to join them?” Sirius stared at him with a pained expression on his face.
“I don’t. Please, I really don’t.” Regulus insisted. “But mum and dad-”
“Fuck Mum and Dad!” Sirius stormed. “You are not Mum and Dad. You are different. It’s not too late to just stand up for your self for once.”
“But it is,” Regulus whispered. “It is too late.”
“No it’s no-”
“I’d say this is to late Sirius!” Regulus yelled, thrusting back his sleeve to show the Dark Mark, which was a glowing green on his pale skin. The skin around the tattoo was flaming red, like he had just recently been burned. Sirius gasped.
After a moment of thought he said. “We can escape, go into hiding, anything. You-you can’t be one of them. You might be a Slytherin, but not completely, not in your heart.”
“My fate has been decided Sirius,” his brother said, a shadow in his eye and a robotic finality in his voice. “I can’t escape this.”
Sirius nodded slowly. “I was wrong about you. I thought you were stronger than them, not a filthy follower of that git.” With a last glare he turned to leave the room.
Regulus snapped. “Well you know Sirius; you’re not so good either.”
Sirius halted mid-stride. “What did you say to me? Are you comparing me to that scum-”
“Don’t you sound like Bellatrix!” his brother laughed.
Sirius’ eyes flared. “I have nothing in common with that hellcat. But it seems you do. Never thought you would enjoy a spot of muggle hunting. Torture a wizard or two along the way.”
“You have more in common with her than you think,” Regulus sneered.
“I do-”
“Yes you do Sirius! At Hogwarts you don’t even look at me. It’s like you don’t know me, like I’m just another Slytherin. Not everyone in that house is bad. And you go around school in your little gang, hexing everyone you come across. You’re a pathetic, vain bastard who can’t see past his big ego to see the world isn’t split into good people and Death Eaters.”
Sirius stared helplessly at Regulus. “You’ll regret this decision. I know you will. One day.You will see them for what they truly are and you will wish you came with me.” He turned and went up to his own room and packed everything he could into his school trunk. Half an hour later he was dragging his trunk down the stairs past Regulus’ room. He stuck his head out to see what all the clattering was.
“Where are you going?” Regulus asked concerned.
“To James’,” he replied tonelessly. “I’ve had enough of this place.”
Regulus’ eyes widened. “You can’t leave me here alone, I’m your-”
“As far as I’m concerned I have no brother,” Sirius snapped, and that was that. The bond between them was broken, the connection they had had been severed. They were no longer children, helpless in their parents so called pure family. They were enemies, meeting at opposite ends of a battle field. Sirius met his mother on his way out of the house.
“Where do you think you’re going Sirius?” she yelled.
“To James’.” He replied curtly.
“Oh no you’re not!”
Then, looking right and his brother standing on the second floor landing, he said “Fuck you.” And Regulus knew, as the front door slammed and the last glimpse of his brother disappeared, that was what he should have said to her years ago.
What do you think?
