aj :)

“That’s likely,” Regulus grumbled sarcastically under his breath, grabbing his cloak and fastening it around himself before fixing the cuffs of his white button-down.

None of the boys spoke to him after that. They talked amongst themselves about which classes they had in the morning, but Regulus couldn’t have cared less who was in his classes. He just grabbed the textbooks he needed and made his way out of Slytherin house and up to the Great Hall for breakfast.

Regulus had been dreading this moment for the entire morning. So far, he couldn’t find anyone besides his cousin who he got on with in Slytherin, and he didn’t want to be that one weird kid sitting out from all of his peers. He also didn’t want to cling to his cousin and look like he can’t handle himself. He fiddled anxiously with his tie the entire time he was walking up the steps, until he heard a familiar, melodic voice calling out for him.

“Regulus! Regulus!”

He turned his head towards one of the many sets of moving staircases (he wasn’t quite sure he’d ever get used to that), to see a blonde girl practically hurling herself down the stairs to get to him.

“Pandora!” he said, letting out a sigh of relief. In his rush to get away from anyone and everyone in the castle after his sorting, he had forgotten to find Pandora and ask what her house was. Though, the blue and bronze patch on her cloak, and her blue and bronze necktie, silently answered his question.

“I’m sorry you got sorted into Slytherin. If it’s any consolation, I think you’ll be a lovely addition to Slytherin. Your family never let down that house before. While they were in there, of course,” she said with a happy smile,

Regulus raised an eyebrow slightly at her comments, not really sure how to take her words before deciding it was too difficult to even try to be upset with someone whose voice rivaled the sweetness of treacle tart and honey.

“Uhm… thank you,” he mustered out, his hands falling from his necktie to his sides. “Do you know what your first class is for the day?” he asked, not sure how else he was supposed to keep a conversation going with her.

She smiled and nodded, holding up a potions textbook. “Potions, with Professor Slughorn. Everyone says you already know him quite well,” she commented, her light voice fluttering through the nearly empty hallway,

Regulus smiled ever so slightly - you probably wouldn’t think it was actually a smile, considering how faint the quirk of his lip was, but he smiled nonetheless. “I have Potions first, too,” he said, patting one of the deep pockets of his cloak where he had shoved the thin book earlier.

“How lovely!” she exclaimed, her pale face lighting up as if she had heard the best news in the world. “You must sit with me, Regulus. I don’t really know many other people here yet,” she told him, nodding her head towards the Great Hall so they could grab something to eat before their first class.

“What about the other girls in your dorm?” he asked curiously, blindly following her as she guided him out of the hallway and towards the Ravenclaw table.

“They all seem to know each other already. It’s a bit awkward - it’s like I’m just decoration in our room,” she told him, with only the tiniest hint of sadness in her voice.

She didn’t seem to be the type to care too much about whether or not she was accepted in her house. Regulus was a bit jealous of that.

“Yeah, I know what you mean,” Regulus sighed, running a hand back through his hair as he stood at the edge of Ravenclaw table while Pandora sat. “Are you sure I can sit here? Isn’t it a big thing that you need to sit with your house for meals?”

Pandora shrugged, taking a piece of toast and putting a bit of butter on it. “We’re one of the only people here. I don’t think the house elves would care that much,” she hummed, sprinkling just a bit of cinnamon on the slice of toast before taking a bite. “Sit.”

Regulus raised an eyebrow but slowly sat across from her, looking around all sides of him to see if any of the other people in the room were watching him, but no one seemed to care.

Thank Merlin.

Regulus looked over the selection of food set out for the students, not even sure where to start. He was so used to his parents making one thing and not having a say in what to eat. It wasn’t exactly overwhelming to be able to have his own choice, just… different. He eventually settled on a piece of toast as well, grabbing some jam and spreading it on the slice of toast.

“You seem rather nervous,” Pandora commented, tilting her head slightly as she chewed her toast and watched him.

“What made you think that?”

“You took three minutes to figure out what to eat, and another two to decide what to put on your toast.”

“Are you always this observant?”

“It comes in handy.”

Regulus couldn’t help but grin a little bit, taking a bite out of his toast as they talked. “This is all new to me, I suppose. I’ve never even been to a proper school until now. It’s all very… different from what I’m used to.”

Pandora nodded slowly, a few bright-blonde pieces of hair falling in front of her face as she did so. “Different can be good, you know.”

“You’re awfully optimistic. Weren’t you homeschooled before coming to Hogwarts?” he asked, taking another bite of his toast. His mother told him it was customary for wizards to be homeschooled until they go to a formal wizarding school, so it was odd to him that she seemed so comfortable in this setting.

“My family worked with a few other families of the Sacred Twenty-Eight so I could at least socialize with other children before coming to Hogwarts,” she explained to him. “We learned a few basic spells and magical history together, but I was mostly taught by my father.”

Regulus nodded again, folding his hands together in his lap as he listened to her. “Aren’t the Sacred Twenty-Eight mostly made up of Slytherin families? Weren’t you… left out?”

“My family was notorious for being in the Slytherin house for many years,” she said with her lulling, fluttering voice. “My mother was the first of us to not be in the Slytherin house. I suppose they just had high hopes for me,” she shrugged. “But yes, I was not exactly the most welcome in the group. But their teachings were rather biased anyhow, so I wasn’t very bothered by it.”

“How were they biased?”

“Mr. Black,” a heavy, hoarse voice spoke from above him. He turned his head gently to see a tall, skinny man in purple robes looming over him, peering down at the much younger boy through half-moon spectacles. If Regulus had bothered to stick around during the Welcoming Feast, he might know this man’s name and not feel horridly rude as he stared up at him gapingly, trying to figure out what to say to him.

“While I’m aware you made quite the exit at our feast and are not aware of our meal time rules, we tend to prefer when students sit at their own house tables.”

“I understand, Professor-”

“Dumbledore.”

“Professor Dumbledore. But I didn’t think it would be an issue seeing as it’s very early in the morning, and there aren’t very many students even in the Great Hall yet. Besides, I haven’t been able to meet anyone else besides Pandora yet, so I thought it would be alright for this morning… until I meet some more members of my house,” Regulus explained rather quickly. He knew it was a longshot to try to debate with a professor, but seeing as it didn’t result in him getting in trouble the night before, it was worth another go around.

Professor Dumbledore hummed softly, his hands folded together delicately in front of him as he pondered over what Regulus had said. “I’m sure you’re aware I cannot continue to make excuses for you, Mr. Black.”

“Of course, Professor.”

The professor glanced through his small glasses at the girl across from Regulus, before nodding slowly down at the pair. “You’ll see to sit with your own house for the upcoming meals, yes?”

“Of course, Professor.”

He nodded once again. “If any other professor asks, I let it go this once. I will not be so lenient next time,” he said, before he began a slow, leisurely stroll up to the front of the Great Hall. He walked so eloquently and smoothly that it looked like he was just hovering over the floor, sailing up to the Professor’s Table.

Regulus swallowed thickly, grabbing a glass in front of him and taking a sip of it, not paying any mind to the liquid inside of it.

“That was lovely,” Pandora laughed softly, and Regulus swore her laughter could have cured any disease, Muggle or Wizard.

-

“Alright, students, settle down,” Professor Slughorn called out over the large group of eleven-year-olds. Regulus and Pandora seemed to be the only ones who noticed him, as they were the only ones to immediately silence themselves.

The professor looked very distressed as he looked out across the students, pinching the bridge of his nose for a brief moment before hollering out, “ Quiet!”

The students all froze, turning slowly to pay attention to the professor. He gave a warm, jolly-looking smile to his students, standing in front of the class with a potion vial in his hand. “Good morning, students,” he said, his hands tight around the vial. “I hope you all found your way down here fittingly.”

All of the students just sat frozen, blinking up at him emotionlessly as he spoke. His smile faltered awkwardly, before he just nodded. “Yes, well. To put it plainly, I am Professor Horace Slughorn, you all can call me Professor Slughorn or just Professor, whichever you fancy more. I’ll be your Elementary Potions professor, and will most likely be your Potions professor for your entire Hogwarts career,” he told the class, finally setting down the clear vial.

“We’re going to jump right into instruction. I want you all to turn to page six of your textbooks. There, you should find the ingredients you should need to brew a Forgetfulness Potion, as well as the instructions on how to brew it. There will be a time where you need to let your potion sit, and that’s quite alright. You can use that time to prepare for other classes or to look through your books, just do not be disruptive to other students. If you need help finding anything, do not hesitate to ask,” he explained, looking out over all of the students. “All of the ingredients should be out for you. Good luck!”

Regulus glanced out of the corner of his eye to Pandora, who seemed to already be getting to work. He shrugged a bit, not really sure what to think of their professor. He didn’t want to pay much mind to it, and instead just got to work. He opened his textbook to page six as he was told to, and looked over the instructions.

Step 1: Add two (2) drops of Lethe River Water to your cauldron.

He looked across the table at the different ingredients laid out, before grabbing the vial labeled accordingly. He tapped the side of the vial twice, letting two drops fall into his cauldron with a quiet plop.

Step 2: Gently heat for twenty (20) seconds.

Regulus lifted up his cauldron and set it on one of the four burners set at every table, flicking on the heat and counting to twenty before removing.

Step 3: Add two (2) Valerian sprigs to your cauldron.

Regulus, as you might have guessed, did as he was to, before continuing to look at the instructions.

Step 4: Stir three (3) times-

“Are you almost finished?” Pandora asked him in a hushed voice. “The other Slytherin boys are taking up all of the burners,” she added, glancing over to the two boys sitting with them. With just Regulus’ luck, it was Barty and Evan. Probably some of the last people he would want to sit with at the moment.

“You can use mine. I’m past that part already,” he replied softly, carefully nudging it over towards her carefully.

“Thank you,” she said with a smile, lifting her own cauldron up onto the burner.

Step 4: Stir three (3) times, clockwise.

This seemed almost too elementary for Regulus. Either he was doing something very, very wrong, or he shouldn’t be in a class like this.

He stirred the potion as he was instructed to, before looking down at the textbook again.

Step 5: Leave to brew and return in 45-60 minutes.

He glanced at the clock on the other side of the room, sighing gently. 9:09. He huffed out a bit, not sure what to do with himself. He looked around the classroom, seeing that he was the only one of his classmates finished.

Something was definitely wrong here.

“Everything alright, Mr. Black?” the jolly voice asked, clapping a hand over his small shoulder.

Regulus jumped slightly, but then nodded. “Y-yes, Professor. I just think I might have messed up, seeing as I’m the only student finished with the first half of the potion,” he said, swallowing thickly as he looked up at him.

Slughorn just hummed, looking over his shoulder and into the cauldron, mulling over it much too intensely for Regulus’ liking.

“It looks perfect so far, m’boy,” he said with a hum. “Have you brewed potions before?” he asked, suddenly very interested in the young boy.

Regulus shook his head quickly. “No, sir. I just… followed the instructions?” he answered hesitantly. Did people really not get how to brew the potions even with the instructions? How stupid can these students be?

“Well, you’re doing fantastic for the first round. Anything you’re particularly interested in that you want to look at while you wait?” Slughorn asked him, his round face bright with a smile much too excited about an introductory potion.

Regulus looked around the dark room, chewing on the inside of his cheek. “What do you find most interesting, Professor?” Regulus asked, tilting his head ever-so-slightly to the side.

If the Professor’s face was excited before, he was absolutely over the moon at this question. “Well, m’boy, I’m afraid I won’t have time to explain it in great detail, but I have a personal favorite potion that I can show you,” he started, heading over to his desk. “I keep it as a prize of sorts for my Advanced Potions class for the first day. It’s called Felix Felicis, but it is more commonly known and referred to as Liquid Luck,” he told Regulus, digging through a drawer before pulling out a small, clear vial. The potion inside of it looked like he had just melted down a bit of gold, and it was almost entrancing to look at.

“It takes six months to properly and fully brew this potion. If a student can properly and perfectly brew the Draught of the Living Death on the first day of my Advanced Potions course, I give this as a prize,” he explained to Regulus, looking at the vial longingly. “I haven’t had the pleasure to give this to a student yet, but I have high hopes for some of my students,” he told Regulus, handing him the vial to inspect.

Regulus grabbed it carefully, the golden liquid looking as if it was stirring itself. It was almost hypnotizing. “Why is it called Liquid Luck?” Regulus asked, tearing his eyes away from the glittering vial to look up at his professor.

Professor Slughorn carefully took the vial back with a hum, looking it over again before slipping the small vial back into his pocket. “Well, it’ll make you lucky. Simple as that. It’ll turn your ordinary day into an extraordinary one!” he said with a jolly smile. “Everything you try to do will end up being successful, no matter what it is.”

Regulus raised his eyebrows slightly, though that would be the only thing to indicate he was by any means impressed. “Have you ever used it yourself, Professor?”

“Twice, actually! When I was twenty-four, and another time when I was fifty-seven. Both times I used it, it resulted in the absolute perfect day,” the man beamed, shoving his hands into the tiny pockets of his tiny overcoat. “It’s not meant to be used too frequently, though. If it is used in too great of a quantity, it can be highly toxic to the drinker.”

Regulus’ eyes darted quickly over to the clock hanging off the dingy brick wall. Fifteen minutes had passed.

Lovely.

“Do you have any other potions that you enjoy, Professor?”

The professor grinned from ear to ear, like Regulus had just made his entire teaching career worthwhile. “Well, m’boy, there’s a plethora of potions. Is there any type you want to know about specifically?”

Regulus just shrugged, looking around the room a little bit as he thought. “I don’t know, I haven’t dealt with potions very much so I don’t know where to even begin,” he answered, his wandering eyes landing back on the older man.

“Ah, yes. I believe your brother mentioned you both were studying under your uncle, correct?” he asked, moving towards a shelf stacked with different ingredients and tools used to make potions. “His great-grandfather wasn’t the best headmaster, but he was a marvelous potioneer. Easily one of the most intelligent professors we have had at Hogwarts,” he mentioned, grabbing what looked to be a stone, “A shame he was so hateful towards the students. He had great potential.”

“This here is a bezoar,” he said, quickly changing the subject. Regulus couldn’t tell if Slughorn thought he had offended him, or if he didn’t have a better way to segway into the new conversation. “This is a stone found in the stomach of a goat. It is used as an antidote to most common potions.”

“Most?” Regulus asked, folding his arms across his chest, tilting his head to the side inquisitively. “What wouldn’t it work on?”

Slughorn hummed a bit at his question, looking down at the stone before placing it back in a box labeled Bezoars. “It’s a growing list sometimes, but it most notably will not work with Basilisk venom,” he answered. “It’s obviously impossible to know every single potion it will or won’t work on, especially when one considers the fact that we don’t even know all of the potions created or that will be created.”

Regulus nodded slowly, his eyes glancing over at the box of bezoars as Slughorn talked a bit more about them. “It seems very… improbable that it would work with so many potions, though, don’t you think?” he asked, looking back to the professor.

“It does, and I thought the same thing when I was a young potioneer like yourself,” he answered, looking around to make sure none of the students needed his help before looking back to Regulus. “But we’ll get into the logistics of why it does work on so many potions in your third year. If you’re so interested in it now, you can always come visit me in my office and we can have a bit of a more in depth chat about them. For now, though, it looks like your potion is just about done brewing,” Professor Slughorn said, nodding towards Regulus’ cauldron.

He looked back to his table, where the two Slytherin boys were talking, and Pandora sat silently, reading through the potions textbook. “Thank you, Professor Slughorn,” he said with a polite smile he’s had mastered since he could talk, before heading to his table again, sitting next to Pandora.

He looked down at his textbook, ready to finally finish the potion so he could move on to whatever else they were supposed to do that day.

Step 7: Add two (2) measures of Standard Ingredient to the mortar.

Easy enough. Regulus carefully with a steady hand measured out just the perfect amount of Standard Ingredient before adding it into the mortar as instructed, wiping his hands off on the sides of his cloak as he grabbed a handful of mistletoe berries.

Step 8: Add four (4) mistletoe berries to the mortar.

He pinched up four berries and dropped them in the mortar, chewing on the inside of his cheek before looking back to the textbook.

Step 9: Crush into a medium-fine powder using the pestle.

Regulus grabbed the pestle and looked down at the mixture, shrugging gently before carefully crushing the ingredients up.

“You work awful fast,” a mellowed voice said.

He looked up for a moment from his mixture, which was just about the fineness it needed to be, to see Pandora hadn’t even looked up from her book.

“I’m just doing it how it says to.”

“But you’re the farthest along in the class,” she added, nodding towards the Slytherins at their table that were lost in their own conversation. “No one else is even onto the second half of the potion yet. Except for you.”

“Is that a bad thing?”

“I suppose that will depend on how your potion turns out,” she shrugged simply.

And that was the end of their conversation.

Regulus carefully finished crushing up the mixture before turning back to the textbook to finish off the potion.

Step 10: Add two (2) pinches of the mixture into your cauldron.

He nodded gently at the instructions, picking up the mortar and holding it in his hand carefully before pinching a small amount between his thumb and forefinger. He dropped the powder into the cauldron before repeating his movements, brushing the excess of it off into the mortar before grabbing his stirrer to move onto the next step.

Step 11: Stir five (5) times anti-clockwise.

Regulus did so, humming quietly to himself once he finished the fifth stir.

Step 12: Wave your wand to complete the potion.

And with a quick wave of his wand, he looked around the classroom for their professor while some students were just beginning the second half of the potion.

Once he caught sight of Professor Slughorn, his hand shot up quickly into the air. “Professor!” he called out over a few tables. “Could you come look at my potion, please?”

Slughorn nodded quickly, finishing up a quick explanation to another student before making his way to Regulus. “Already finished, are we?” he asked, peering over the cauldron with a hum. “What’s your question here then, Mr. Black?”

“Well, I finished a lot quicker than the rest of the students,” he started, looking down at the potion. “I thought I might have messed something up or gotten it wrong.”

Slughorn shook his head quickly, grinning like a madman. “M’boy, the potion looks absolutely perfect! Put it in a vial for me with your name and the potion on a label, I’ll let you know in a week’s time how it works,” he told him with a grin, pulling a vial from his coat pocket and handing it to him.

Regulus furrowed his eyebrows together but nodded nonetheless, chewing on the inside of his cheek before taking a pipette and extracting enough potion from the cauldron and placing it into the clear vial. He put a cork in the top of it, making sure it was secure before writing his name and the potion’s name on the label on the outside of it.

“How did you get so good at potions?” Barty spoke up, who looked to be having difficulty crushing up his powder. “Everyone says this is the hardest class here.”

Regulus shrugged simply, looking down at the vial before back to Barty. “I just… followed the instructions? It’s not difficult.”

Evan Rosier quirked an eyebrow up at his response, looking down at his cauldron that was nowhere near completed, nor as put-together as Regulus’ looked. “Did you do potions at home when your parents taught you?”

“My uncle taught me,” Regulus corrected, folding his arms across his chest. “But no. He talked about the different potions used, but we never made any of our own,” he explained, looking between the two Slytherin boys.

The two pale boys blinked blankly, trying to deduce how he was so good at something he had never attempted before in his life.

“Natural talent is a good thing,” Pandora had piped up, her voice carrying across the room like it was drifting on a cloud. “Professors here seem to adore it. It’s rather valuable when it comes to the wonders of witches and wizards.”

Crouch rolled his eyes rather dramatically, leaning forward on the desk slightly. “No one asked what you thought, did we, Selwyn? Have you not learned from your parents to keep your nose out of other people’s business?” he sneered, looking over at her with a taunting grin.

“Hey-” Regulus started, straightening his back up as he glared over at the boys across from him, though he stopped in his tracks as he noticed Pandora’s head tilting slightly off to the side.

“Pandora, if you please,” she began, her voice sounding pleasurable, as if she had not just been spoken down to. “I don’t believe my parents have much to do with this. I was merely stating that it is valuable to be naturally good at certain subjects. In fact, it could mean he’s on the road to be a great wizard.”

The two boys remained silent, their eyebrows knitted together as they did their best to try to think of some sort of smart remark that could keep her from opening her mouth again.

They couldn’t seem to think of how to respond.

“You should keep an eye on your potion. It can become deadly if you don’t add the ingredients in the right time frame,” Pandora added with an innocent smile, beginning to finish off her potion with a quiet hum.

The two boys looked at each other inquisitively, but quietly resumed to their potions without another peep.

-

“You’re barking! Slughorn is doting on you? Even after all that happened at the welcoming feast?” Sirius asked suddenly, as if he had appeared out of thin air.

Regulus, who was rather used to him popping up at random moments, just glanced at him out of the corner of his eye before nodding gently. “It seems that way.”

“What did you do? You had to have impressed him,” James asked as well, popping up on the other side of the first-year.

Regulus glanced between the two of them, peering over his shoulder as he searched for the two missing boys. Remus had his nose buried in a book, Peter guiding him by gently grasping onto the large sleeve of his black Gryffindor robe.

“I finished the potion first. I was interested in what he had to say. Everyone thinks I did the forgetfulness potion perfectly. That’s as far as I know,” he told the two wide-eyed boys, one of which seemed magnified four times more than his brothers because of his round glasses.

James’ mouth hung agape as he looked at the young boy, in complete disbelief that anyone could be naturally good at potions. Being on Slughorn’s good side was at least feasible. Good at potions? Out of the question.

“You should tutor us, Reggie. James and I got through it last year, but if you’re as good as everyone thinks you are, you could get your galleons worth by tutoring some other students,” Sirius pointed out, nudging his brother’s shoulder gently as they walked through the busy corridors.

“You guys are at a higher level than I am. How am I supposed to tutor you?”

“You can test out of Introductory Potions and be on our level. You should talk to Slughorn about it, seriously,” Sirius said, glancing back to Remus before turning back to his brother. “That’s what Remus did. He’s in third-year potions while we’re stuck in year two.”

“It’s true!” Peter called, with much more enthusiasm than necessary. Regulus noticed he seemed to do that often.

“I just told him I felt like I wasn’t being challenged enough and he got a practice final exam for me to do for him on a weekend. I ended up exceeding in it, so he talked to Dumbledore and got me put in the second-year potions after Christmas break. I just had to do some extra work over break to catch up with general knowledge,” Remus mumbled behind an old book from the library entitled Hoax and Dreams by Laura Thorn. He did not look up at any point when he was speaking.

“I don’t know. It might be too much of a hassle,” Regulus shrugged, pausing outside of the Great Hall before they would need to part ways. “Do you really think it’s that big of a deal?”

“Of course it is, Reg!” James said, clapping his hand over the young boy’s shoulder. Regulus swallowed thickly, and it felt like he was rather intimidated by the kid his brother had described many times as the personification of sunshine and happiness. “You’re not really learning anything if you’re not being challenged. That’s what Mum always tells me, at least,” he explained to him, grinning down at the youngest of them.

Regulus looked between the four boys a few times, chewing on the inside of his cheek. “I’ll think about it,” he promised finally, almost immediately avoiding the gaze of James Potter. He couldn’t place why, but just the thought of him made his stomach feel queasy.

Sirius’ face lit up like a pine tree on Christmas Eve. “Fantastic! Rem can help you study up if you need. He should have his book still. I think he made a ton of notes in the bloody thing, so you should be set.”

“It’s not for certain yet, Sirius.”

“Does that mean I can’t get excited for my little brother?”

Regulus rolled his eyes a bit, glancing over towards the stairs leading down towards the Slytherin common room and dormitories. “I should get back…” he trailed off, reluctantly turning his head back to his brother and his friends.

“We’ll see you at dinner, yeah?” Sirius asked, ruffling his dark curls up as he passed him while heading for the stairs heading up to the Gryffindor Tower.

Regulus nodded slowly, giving him a small, almost bare-minimum smile. “Yeah, of course. I might get detention if I skip out on another meal,” he chuckled weakly, scratching at the back of his neck awkwardly.

James and Sirius laughed, grinning down at the youngest Black as they made a beeline to the stairs. “I’ll see you around, Reg!” James called after him as he ascended about halfway up the staircase. Peter and Remus trailed behind them once again.

Regulus watched them head upstairs, already getting lost in some conversation he couldn’t hear, though he could see how excited and happy they all seemed.

Regulus wondered when he would make those types of friends. The ones he wouldn’t dread seeing every time he woke up in the morning and would love spending the day with; the ones he could sit at the Slytherin table with and feel like he belonged, not like he was being forced to sit with them just so he could feel a little less alone in the largest room in the castle.

Was it just a matter of time until he found those friends, or was he a lost cause?

That seemed to be the only thought clouding his mind, because the next thing he knew, he was sitting on the edge of his bed, and his roommates came bustling in, all of them talking happily and laughing like they were having the time of their lives.

“Try to find some of the other pureblood families, Regulus,” his mother hissed into his ear, holding onto his thin upper arm as she directed him through the brick wall and onto Platform 9 ¾. “The last thing we need is another embarrassing year for us. Understand?” she asked, giving him a gentle yank so he would look back to her.

Regulus nodded quickly in response to his mother’s orders, giving her a meek smile. “Of course, mother,” he replied, his voice frail and unsure. While he wanted to make his family proud and be a Slytherin as his parents and cousins were, he also wanted to be with his brother. If there was anyone that could make him feel welcome at a new school miles and miles away from his home, it was Sirius.

Though, he knew deep in his chest that it was too much to ask for.

“Aunt Walburga! Regulus!” a chipper, familiar voice called out from ahead of them, causing the youngest Black to turn his head. He smiled brightly as he caught sight of a tall blonde girl headed towards them. She set down her trunk next to her once she reached the small family, kneeling down and wrapping her arms around the young boy. He threw his arms around his cousin’s neck, letting out a quiet breath he didn’t know he was holding him.

“Cissy! I thought you were going to miss the train,” Walburga commented, her pale arms folding across her chest. “Your mother told me you were spending the summer with the Malfoy boy. How did that go?” she asked, though her dry voice made it sound like she couldn’t possibly give any less of a damn.

However, Narcissa smiled nonetheless, happy to get an excuse to talk to someone besides her siblings about her summer. “Oh, it was lovely! We went to their family’s home in France. It was beautiful there in the summer. I’ll have to take the boys along with me sometime,” she grinned, ruffling up Regulus’ hair a bit as she spoke. This just made the small boy smile, looking up at his favorite cousin with wide, hopeful eyes.

“We’ll have to see about that one,” Walburga remarked, her face stoic and her mouth pressed into a line. Regulus’ smile dissipated, but he still stuck close to his cousin.

Narcissa checked the time on a large clock on the wall, humming quietly through her lips. “We best get going. The Slytherin’s have a few carts towards the back of the train. I’m sure they’d love to have you back there with us, Reggie,” she told him, resting her hand on his shoulder as she spoke.

“That would be perfect. Right, Regulus?” his mother asked, her hands clasped together in front of her while she looked down at him for an answer. He quickly nodded, setting his bag down before rushing over to his mother and wrapping his arms around her as best as he could. While he couldn’t see it, she made a sour face, and simply patted his shoulder in response. “Alright, you best be getting on the train,” she said, taking a step back away from him.

Regulus frowned softly, shoving his hands in the pockets of his black, pleated trousers before nodding slowly. “Bye,” he called out to his mother and father, grabbing his trunk once again.

“Regulus!” Orion called out, speaking to their youngest son for the first time that morning. Regulus turned his head quickly, the corners of his pink lips turning up a bit.

“Make sure your brother doesn’t get in any more trouble. I don’t want to have to send a howler again,” he grunted, holding his hands together behind his back.

Regulus’ small smile faded as he chewed on the inside of his cheek, nodding slowly at his father’s instructions before following his cousin onto the large scarlet train, who immediately led him towards the back car. He felt Narcissa’s eyes on him every now and then, though he was too focused on the shine of his shoes and the ground in front of him to say anything to her at the moment.

“You’ll see them soon. Christmas break comes a lot faster than you think,” she assured him, wrapping a gentle arm around him as she led him into the last train car.

Just by his initial glance, he knew it was a Slytherin car. He wouldn’t have needed his cousin to tell him so. Besides the fact it seemed very dimly lit as he was told the Slytherin dorms and common room looked, everyone was dressed sharply with perfect posture, and he recognized more than a few of them as families of the Sacred Twenty-Eight, most of which who are noted for being Slytherins. Just like his family.

Just like he was supposed to be.

“Narcissa!” a sharp voice called, which made Regulus’ attention turn away from the majority of the car and towards a boy with white-blond hair. He was rather tall, and a haircut that looked like it needed to be trimmed and taken care of at least once a week. He was in an all-black formal outfit, as if he were going to speak at the Ministry of Magic. As they got closer, Regulus noted the cufflinks had a peculiar emblem on them; the Malfoy crest.

Lucius Malfoy.

His cousin’s face lit up brightly as she made her way to the booth where he was, making sure to still keep hold on Regulus’s hand so he didn’t get lost. “Lucius!” she beamed, smiling wider and wider as he took her hand and kissed the back of it gently. The sight made Regulus’ stomach turn, and he couldn’t quite figure out what aspect of that gesture made him nauseous.

“This must be your cousin Regulus, right?” he asked, smiling down at Regulus, who was barely past half of his height. “Narcissa talks a lot about you. She’s certain you’ll be in the Slytherin house with us. I’m the prefect for Slytherin, actually,” he said proudly, though the way he spoke made Regulus think he only mentioned him getting into the house so he could boast about his authority position over everyone else.

Regulus just looked up to his cousin, who looked almost awestruck at the sight of the tall boy. Regulus couldn’t seem to figure out why she was so enthralled with him. He looked like every other boy he had seen, except for the fact that he looked like he dipped his hair in white paint.

“Oh, have a seat. The train’s about to leave,” Lucius offered, stepping aside to let Narcissa into the inside of the booth. “Regulus, you can sit with Severus. He’s going into his second year this term,” the older boy said, sitting next to his cousin with a smile.

Regulus looked into the other side of the booth, just now noticing a thin, pale boy with black hair so long and sleek it looked greasy. Nevertheless, he was still dressed in proper Slytherin attire, as the young boy now coined it, wearing only black from his neck down.

Not wanting to be rude or insult the boy, Regulus slowly moved into the other side of the booth, folding his hands together neatly in his lap as he felt the train lurching forward slowly, the steam engine huffing and puffing as it began to pull away the platform and out of King’s Cross Station.

“Are you Sirius Black’s brother?” The quiet boy beside him spoke up, his voice quiet yet still commandeering.

I

Regulus turned his head slightly to look at him, one of his dark curls falling into his face as his eyebrows furrowed together as an initial response. “Yes. He’s my older brother,” he answered, his voice stiff as he spoke, though he made sure he spoke louder than the thin boy.

Severus clicked his tongue and shook his head, leaning back in his seat slowly. “What a bother. I hope you’re in Slytherin. It would be such a shame if you turned out like him,” he hummed, glancing out the window as the brick wall of the train station was replaced with the London cityscape, then replaced with a lovely green landscape that spanned as far as you could see.

Regulus folded his arms across his chest at the boy’s comment, turning to face him more. “And what exactly do you mean by that?” he asked, thankful some of his brother’s courage could rub off on him when he needed it the most.

“Regulus…” Narcissa’s voice was slow and cautious, not wanting the young boy to cause a scene or embarrass himself when they hadn’t even arrived at the school yet.

“No, no, it’s alright,” Severus replied slowly, holding his hand up a bit as if to halt Narcissa’s sentence. “I just mean that… well, he’s an embarrassment not only to the school for his behavior, but also to your family. I mean, he’s the first Black in decades, if not ever, to not be placed in Slytherin. I wouldn’t be surprised if your great grandfather’s portrait groaned and complained about that up in the Headmaster’s office,” he said, his chin sticking up a bit as if he thought he was better than Sirius - or even Regulus.

This, as you could have guessed, did not bode well with the young boy.

“He’s not an embarrassment to me, Severus,” he huffed out, folding his arms across his chest. “He’s my best friend, and it isn’t fair that you say that about him. Why does he bother you so much anyway? Isn’t he on the other side of the castle most of the time?” Regulus asked, raising his eyebrows a bit as he awaited the next response that would make him gag.

The older boy shrugged, rolling his eyes a bit in response as he leaned back in the booth. “Your brother is probably one of the biggest menaces in the school. He doesn’t know when to stop. Seems like you might take after him,” he hummed, looking out the window as he spoke.

Regulus huffed out a heavy breath through his nose, before quickly standing up and getting out of the booth. “You’re very rude, and you don’t need to be,” he told him, ignoring the worried look Narcissa was giving him. He turned his back on the small group before heading out of the train car, suddenly going on a mission to find his brother.

He’d know what to tell him right now to make sure he didn’t get more upset than he already was.

He passed so many compartments filled with students that he was worried he had missed him, until he finally reached the very front of the train, where a stout woman with a trolley full of candy and snacks was practically being bombarded by four children - one of which just stood back and watched them.

The first boy he noticed was a tall boy with curly brown hair, bronze skin, and round glasses that magnified his brown eyes. He was grabbing at almost every item on the cart, handing over a bag of coins to the woman. There was a plump boy next to him who was white as a ghost and dirty blond hair that fell into his face, who salivated every time the tall boy showed him a new treat from the cart. The tallest of the four was the one who stood off to the side, a book tucked under his folded arms, his loose curls looking rather untamed, as if he had just woken up. He had pink and white scars littering across his skin, the worst of them looking to be one poking out of the collar of his shirt. It was quite obvious he was doing his best to hide them, though it was probably much too difficult to hide the ones on his face and neck.

Just in front of him was a pale boy with jet black hair, the curls in his hair defined and brushing just past his neck. He was talking back and forth with the woman and his friend behind him, seemingly buying him all of the snacks he said he liked. Every time he looked back at him, the pale boy’s pink lips spread into a wide smile, like he was just happy to be in his presence.

Regulus never saw him that happy when he was at home.

“Did you want anything from the trolley, dear?” the woman asked Regulus, who had hardly been paying attention. He blinked a few times and turned to her, about to decline her offer before his brother spoke up.

“Reg! What are you doing up here? I thought you were sitting with Narcissa and Lord Slytherin,” Sirius said, pushing past his friends to get closer to the younger boy.

He blinked up at his brother, glancing between him and his friends as he scoured his brain for what to tell him. “I… he was being mean,” he mustered out, suddenly cowering behind his brother so his friends wouldn’t be able to see him.

“Who? Malfoy? We can hex him when we get to school. We can dye his hair red and gold,” he grinned, though this dissipated once Regulus shook his head quickly, looking over his shoulder as children moved in and out of their compartments.

“No. His name was Severus,” he told his brother, shoving his hands into the pockets of his black trousers. “I just didn’t want to stay with him.”

“Snivellus was giving you problems?” the boy with the round glasses asked, moving towards the two of them, pushing his glasses farther up the bridge of his nose. “We can go and shut him up. He’s always been a pain,” he offered.

Regulus shook his head in response, tugging at the sleeves of his button up as he talked with the boys. “No, it’s fine. I just… I didn’t want to be around them anymore,” he explained to them, glancing down at his feet so he wouldn’t have to make eye contact with them.

“To hell with that, Reg. We’ll get him to swallow his own tongue,” Sirius said, pushing past his younger brother and heading towards the door of the car, before it opened on it’s own, their cousin standing on the other side of it.

“There you are! I’ve been looking all over for you,” Narcissa smiled, going over to Regulus and kneeling down in front of him. “I’m sorry about Severus. He doesn’t really get social cues very well and doesn’t know when to stop saying things sometimes,” she explained to Regulus, taking one of his smaller hands in hers. “You’re still welcome to sit with us. I have some books in my bag if you want to just read,” she offered.

“He’s gonna sit with us, Narcissa,” Sirius spoke up, looking back to his cousin and brother. “Right after I turn Snivellus into a snake,” he added, before she grabbed his arm.

“You will do no such thing, unless you want me to owl your mother and father that you’re already getting into trouble when we haven’t even gotten to school yet,” she threatened. Sirius glared at his cousin, trying to intimidate her, but a short twelve year old isn’t very intimidating to a powerful witch like Narcissa. “Go sit in your compartment with your friends. If Reggie wants to sit with you he can. But the Slytherins would love to meet you,” she told him, giving the youngest a small smile before standing up. “What do you want to do?”

Regulus swallowed thickly, before almost immediately moving towards his brother, wrapping an arm around him the same way he had in the nights leading up to him leaving for Hogwarts for the first time - like he was afraid he would lose him.

“I told you Cissy. Go make out with Malfoy and don’t be a bother,” Sirius told her, hugging his brother back for a moment while he talked to his cousin.

She just sighed but nodded, smoothing down her skirt before turning to her cousin once again. “I’ll come check up on you in a little bit. You can always come back whenever you want,” she offered again, heading towards the door. “And Sirius,” she began, looking over her shoulder to him. “If I see any of you in the Slytherin cart, especially with a wand out, I’ll be sure McGonagall has a month’s detention ready for each of you once we get to Hogwarts,” she told him, closing the door behind her before disappearing to the other end of the train.

The five of them stood there for a few moments, quiet enough to only hear the steam engine and the wheels scraping against the metal track beneath them. Finally, Sirius looked down at his little brother. “Do you wanna come sit with us, then?” he asked his brother quietly. Regulus didn’t look up, though he nodded in response slowly. Sirius just took his hand and led him towards their compartment, the rest of the boys waiting behind until the two of them were seated until they came in, sitting in their respective seats; the tallest sitting across from Sirius and Regulus, the shortest beside him, and the boy with the round glasses sitting on the other side of Sirius.

“These are my friends, Reg,” Sirius said, pointing first to the boy across from him. “That’s Remus Lupin. We’re all betting he’s at least gonna be a prefect by the fifth year. That’s Peter Pettigrew beside him, we just call him Pete. Then this over here’s James Potter. He’s the one I told you was just like me,” he said with a proud smile, looking back down at his brother once he was finished introducing them. “They all know who you are.”

Regulus gave a small, tired smile, leaning back slightly into his seat to get more comfortable. “It’s nice to meet all of you.”

There was a short chorus of “You too!”’s, before Peter and James almost immediately jumped into a conversation about the treats they had gathered up from the trolley, and Remus buried himself in the book that was tucked under his arm while munching on a chocolate frog, not even bothering to look at the card beneath it.

“How was the ride other than Snivellus?” Sirius asked his younger brother, not wanting him to feel left out in the compartment while everyone else went about their business.

Regulus shrugged, tugging a bit at the sleeves of his black button-up shirt. “It was alright. I met Narcissa’s boyfriend,” he told his other brother in a quiet voice. Sirius hummed, raising an eyebrow a bit at his answer. “He’s a bit of an ass. Pretty full of himself,” he added, which just made his older brother burst into a fit of loud, hearty laughter.

If he hadn’t seen it with his own eyes, Regulus wouldn’t have recognized that laughter to be his brothers.

“I’m glad you can see that. Everyone else seems to think he’s the next Merlin with the way they treat him,” Sirius grinned, leaning back in his seat, glancing out at the quickly passing landscapes as he spoke. He looked like he was at peace, probably the happiest Regulus had ever seen his brother.

It finally clicked why he wanted to stay at school over the holiday breaks instead of coming back home.

“Siri?” Regulus said softly, running a hand back through his loose curls to push them out of his dark eyes. His older brother looked down at him after a few moments, giving him a small, warm smile.

“What’s up, Reg?”

“I’m, uh… I’m a little tired. Do you want me to go back to the-”

“You can stay here,” his brother said quickly, already understanding how much he really didn’t want to go back to the Slytherin compartment. “Just put your head on my shoulder. I think I have a blanket in one of my bags if you want it. Remus, can you grab it for me?” he asked, looking up at the boy who was half paying attention, half focusing on his book before giving a slow nod.

Regulus chewed on the inside of his cheek as he watched the taller boy reach into one of the overhead compartments, pulling out a knitted blanket. It had the Gryffindor colors, and a simple version of the Gryffindor crest on the front of it. Remus handed the blanket to the youngest boy, giving him a warm, almost understanding smile before sitting back down and burying himself in his book.

“Where did you get this?” he asked his older brother, wrapping himself in the warm blanket as he rested his head on his brother’s arm, his eyes already becoming heavy as he craved a better sleep than he had gotten the night before.

“James’ mom knitted it for me. It was a Christmas present. Isn’t it amazing? I think she put some sort of charm on it to always make it warm. It’s my favorite,” Sirius grinned proudly, before noticing just how tired his brother really was. “I’ll shut up. Get some sleep, Reggie. You’ll have a big day once we get to school,” he said with a small smile, resting a hand on his brother’s shoulder comfortingly, his silent way of letting him know he was safe with him, no matter where they went.

Regulus nodded slowly, chewing on the inside of his cheek as he got comfortable under the blanket. He closed his eyes and fell asleep much faster than he thought he was going to.

-

“Reg! Wake up,” was the first thing he heard, along with the feeling of someone shaking his shoulder roughly. He blinked slowly a couple of times, trying to adjust to the semi-bright train compartment as he slowly sat up. “We just got here. The first years need to go with Hagrid across the lake,” his brother explained to him, rolling the blanket up into a ball before tossing it in his bag.

Regulus frowned a bit, sitting up and fixing his shirt carefully as he listened to his brother, grabbing his robe from his own little bag and beginning to put it on. “You can’t come with me?” he asked softly, fastening it around his neck after pushing his arms through the large holes.

Sirius shook his head and gave him a small smile, fixing his own robe before leading him off the train with the rest of their belongings. “‘Fraid not. After the first year, we take carriages over to the school. Next year, you’ll be able to ride over with me,” he smiled, looking around before spotting Hagrid at the other end of the train. “You’ll go over there with Hagrid. He’s really nice. He’s gonna lead the boats across. If you don’t meet anyone, try to get into his boat,” Sirius told him with a smile.

“You’ll be at the sorting ceremony though, right?” he asked him softly, looking up at his brother hesitantly, like this was the last time he would see him for the rest of the year.

Sirius nodded quickly though, giving him a warm smile. “I’ll be sure to sit at the front of the table. I’ll cheer you on no matter what house you’re sorted into. But I’m hoping it’s Gryffindor, of course,” he grinned, ruffling up his hair a bit. “Go, before they leave you behind and you have to swim across. I’m sure you don’t want a mermaid grabbing you and pulling you under,” he teased, grinning a bit more before he headed over towards his small group of friends and making their way to the carriages. Regulus furrowed his eyebrows a bit at the sight, not seeing anything pulling them, though he didn’t have much time to think about it before a small blonde girl tapped his arm.

“Are you in your first year too?” she asked in a soft, melodic voice, blinking up at him with wide eyes.

Regulus just nodded, shoving his hands in the pockets of his trousers. “Yes. I’m Regulus Black. Regulus is fine,” he introduced himself, sounding just as formal as his parents trained him to, sticking out his hand for her to shake.

The girl stared at his hand for a moment before slowly shaking it, giving him a warm smile, one that warmed his stomach a bit. “I’m Pandora. Pandora Selwyn,” she introduced herself, her voice sounding like something you would hear if you were in a dream. “Do you want to sit in the boat with me? I haven’t met many people yet,” she asked, her comment sounding like it was coming out of worry despite how soft and almost carefree her voice sounded.

Regulus nodded and gave her a small smile, leading her over to where all of the other first years had gathered, all of them carefully stepping into the rickety boats. Regulus spotted one towards the back of the group of them, stepping in carefully before holding his hand out to Pandora.

She smiled down at him and took his hand, stepping into the boat cautiously and sitting on the other end of the boat so it would stay even. “What house-” Pandora started, before she was interrupted by a skinny boy with ashy brown hair jumping into their boat, grinning from ear to ear.

“Oi! You’re Regulus Black, right? Did you really hex Severus Snape?” he asked excitedly, another boy following him into the boat and sitting in front of Pandora.

Regulus furrowed his eyebrows together and folded his arms across his chest, not sure how to answer the absurd, unprompted question. “I- no? He was just being rude,” he huffed out, sitting up a bit more straight as he spoke.

The two boys hummed, looking back at each other before the second boy finally spoke up. “Everyone’s saying you hexed him. One of the second years said he couldn’t speak for half the train ride,” he said, his voice sharp and deep, sounding much more mature than a boy of eleven should sound.

“Who exactly are you?” Regulus interjected, deciding to ignore their comments for the time being.

“I’m Bartemius Crouch Junior, but everyone just calls me Barty or Bart. This is Evan Rosier. Evan works for him,” the first boy said, leaning forward so his elbows rested on his knees. “Did you seriously make Snape swallow his own tongue?”

“No!” he exclaimed, jolting a bit as he felt the boat begin to slowly move. He looked over the side of the wooden row boat, raising his eyebrows a bit as he noticed the boat moving all on his own.

It didn’t matter whether or not he grew up with it - magic would never cease to amaze his young mind.

“Even if you didn’t, you shouldn’t tell people that. The Slytherin’s will worship you if you hexed a second year on your first day,” Evan spoke, looking across the lake, seemingly at nothing, until it was as if Regulus’ eyes cleared of a hazy smoke.

He saw a large castle, almost every window lit up with a warm candle light. The towers stood hundreds of meters above the ground, the tops of some of them poking through the heavy September clouds. Regulus let out a breath, his eyes widening as he admired the building.

“You’ll get used to it,” Evan spoke up, looking rather bored at the sight of the castle. “My mother and father said it’s boring by the end of our first term. The Forbidden Forest seems pretty fun, though. There’s centaurs out there and a bunch of other creatures you can’t find anywhere else.”

“I have a feeling it’s probably called the Forbidden Forest for a reason, not just for the sake of alliteration.”

“Don’t worry about that part, Regulus.”

“I probably will.”

The rest of the boat ride was silent - at least for Regulus. Barty Crouch Jr. and Evan Rosier made their own small talk in the center of the boat, blocking off Regulus and Pandora from each other for the remainder of the trip.

Luckily, it was only a few more minutes until their little boat bumped into the bank just down the hill from the castle. The two boys rushed out to meet up with another group of boys, who Regulus assumed were in the Slytherin compartment with the two of them. He carefully got out of the boat and held out his hand for Pandora again, giving her a bit of a weak smile. “I’m sorry I didn’t get to talk to you more on the ride over.”

“Oh, don’t worry about it,” her voice carried a tune from her lips to his ears, one so soothing and relaxing that he wanted her to keep talking no matter what she had to say. “It wasn’t your fault they sat with us.” She gave him a soft, genuine smile, one he didn’t think he had ever seen before, and it made him feel warm inside.

“We should head inside with the others, the Sorting Ceremony should begin soon,” she hummed, nodding towards the castle before heading up the hill with the rest of the first years. He nodded, following behind her quickly and into the castle through a set of large wooden doors.

If he was amazed by the outside of the castle, he was absolutely blown away by the interior. There were candle chandeliers hanging over them as they all gathered outside another set of large doors, with portraits hanging down the hall that turned to talk to each other and even the students. There were large suits of armor that towered over them on either side of the doors, and Regulus was waiting for them to jump down to greet them.

“Welcome to Hogwarts,” a voice called from the top of the steps in front of them. Regulus turned his head quickly, seeing a skinny woman dressed in green and black ahead of him. Her Scottish voice rang loudly through the hall, capturing the attention of all of the students gathered before her.

“The start-of-term speech will begin shortly, but before you take your seats, you must be sorted into your houses,” she began, clasping her hands together in front of her as she spoke to her small crowd. “The Sorting is a very important ceremony because your house will be something like your family while you are here at Hogwarts. You will have classes with the rest of your house, sleep in your house dormitory, and spend your free time in your house common room.”

Merlin, I hope I’m in Gryffindor with Sirius. I might not see him otherwise.

“The four houses are called Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin. Each house has their own noble history and have all produced outstanding witches and wizards across the ages. While you are at Hogwarts, your triumphs will earn you house points, and your rule-breaking will lose you house points. At the end of the year, the house with the most points is awarded a great honor called the House Cup. I hope that each of you will be a credit to whichever house chooses you,” she finished, letting out a quiet sigh at the end of her speech. “If you’ll follow me into the Great Hall, we will begin the Ceremony,” she said, before turning around and pushing open the large doors to let everyone in.

The Great Hall knocked the breath out of Regulus. There were candles floating above everyone, and somehow no wax dripped down onto the people or the tables. The ceiling above them was bewitched to look just like the night sky without them needing to be outside, and it looked absolutely gorgeous. Regulus slowly walked up to the front of the room with the group, searching around for his brother.

“I hope I am in the same house as you,” Pandora said suddenly, an awestruck look covering her features as she looked around as well. “You seem like you would be a nice friend to have around,” she added, before turning and smiling at Regulus brightly.

He couldn’t help his cheeks flushing with heat, adjusting his collar a bit as he turned his attention to the front of the room. “That would be lovely, I think.”

“Welcome, first years!” another loud voice called from the front of the hall. It made Regulus jump slightly, though he swallowed and stood up straight as he turned his attention to the front. “The Sorting Ceremony is about to begin. When your name is called, please come up to the front and sit on the stool. Once you are seated, Professor McGonagall will place the Sorting Hat upon your head. Once your house is called out, you will find a seat at your house tables,” the man said, a pale white beard covering the lower half of his face as he spoke.

“But first, the Sorting Hat always has a song to sing for first years,” he said, dramatically motioning to the hat that promptly began to sing about each of the houses and their best qualities.

Regulus was too preoccupied to pay much attention, though. His eyes scanned down each and every lengthy table, looking for his brother or one of his friends he had met earlier. It wasn’t until the very end of the song that he picked out the long, black, curly hair at the front of the Gryffindor table, laughing amongst his friends about Merlin-knows-what, but clapping wildly and dramatically once the song had finished. He noticed a red-headed girl rolling her eyes at him and his group of friends, but still smiling at the Sorting Hat as the names began to be called.

“Daisy Abbott!’’

Fantastic, Regulus thought. They were going alphabetically, meaning he would be one of the first people sorted. He didn’t want to have to sit through the ceremony watching everyone else get sorted; quite frankly, he would be alright if he was to be sorted and then sent straight to his house common room.

He never really was one for big parties and gatherings.

“Hufflepuff!”

The students and teachers in the Great Hall cheered, especially the Hufflepuff table, which was on the other side of the room as Slytherin; just to the left of Gryffindor when you’re coming into the hall.

“Peter Avery!”

A short boy made his way to the front of the crowd and up to the stool on the stage at the front of the hall. He sat down on the stool and Professor McGonagall placed the large hat upon his head, though he looked smug, as if he could tell where he was going already.

“Slytherin!”

A chorus of cheers rang out from the Slytherin table, who seemed more than proud to have a new student join them.

“Regulus Black!”

He swallowed thickly, slowly pushing his way through the crowd and up to the front of the room, feeling all the color drain from his face as his stomach churned over. He slowly moved up and sat onto the stool, intaking a sharp breath as he felt the hat placed on his head.

“Hm… a challenge already,” the hat said, though it felt like only Regulus could hear it. “In your heart, a Gryffindor, though in your blood… a Slytherin. Another Black, another decision.”

Please, please put me with my brother, Regulus thought to himself, squeezing his eyes shut once he saw Sirius looking up at him, already feeling embarrassed about the entire ordeal.

“You’re too ambitious and cunning for a Gryffindor,” the hat told him, the thick voice giving him a headache despite having only dealt with it for a few moments. “You’re a Slytherin, through and through.”

But I’m brave! I’m as brave as my brother is. I left Narcissa when we were on the train, didn’t I? And this whole thing - me arguing with you - a HAT! I’m arguing with a HAT! That has to show some sort of determination, right?

“A clever point, Mr. Black. Too clever to not put you in Slytherin, I’m afraid.”

Please! I don’t want to be in Slytherin. I’ll follow whoever I have to. Just put me in Gryffindor. I’ll fit in more there. You can put Pandora in there with me.

“That’s not how this works, Mr. Black. You can’t go to a house because you want to be with someone else. You need to fit their traits.”

That’s not fair!

“Whoever said it was?”

I should be in Gryffindor. I’m brave. I’m chivalrous. I’m… I’d be a perfect Gryffindor, you know I would!

“The fact that you have been trying to persuade me to put you in another house for five minutes only further proves that you should be a Slytherin.”

But-

“Slytherin!”

Regulus felt like he was going to be sick. Despite the boisterous cheers from the Slytherin table and Narcissa moving over to make room for her cousin, the second that hat was off his head, he pushed past the incoming students that still needed to be sorted and out of the Great Hall.

What happened to the Sorting Hat taking your choice into consideration? That’s what Sirius had told him. That’s why Peter got into Gryffindor instead of Slytherin last year.

This isn’t fair.

This isn’t fair.

He wanted to be with his brother. Why couldn’t he get this one thing?

He felt his face growing hotter as tears fell down his cheeks, burning his skin as he wiped them away quickly with the sleeves of his robe. How come the Sorting Hat listened to Peter? Why didn’t it listen to him?

Why did his choice not matter?

“Reg!” a familiar voice called out, the creaking of the large doors being the only other sound in the empty hall. Regulus turned around, swallowing again as he folded his arms across his chest.

“You lied.”

Sirius’ eyebrows knitted together, obviously confused over the whole situation. “Reg, what are you on about?”

“You said the hat would listen to me. You said it would take my choice into account. Why didn’t it put me in the house I wanted?” he exclaimed, huffing out heavy breaths of frustration as he spoke to his brother.

“I said it takes your choice into account. That doesn’t always mean you’ll end up where you want,” Sirius told him slowly, carefully inching towards his brother as he spoke. “I thought you wanted to be in Slytherin with Narcissa?” he asked, finally standing in front of his brother, looking down at him.

“Not after I was on the train with them,” Regulus huffed. “They were all rude, and-and full of themselves. They’d rather talk about what they’re doing and what they have instead of getting to know other people. You have good friends - I want that. I don’t want the Slytherin friends,” he frowned, letting his hands fall to his sides.

Sirius nodded slowly, taking his brother's wrist and guiding him over to a bench on the side of the hall. “You know this doesn’t mean you have to be friends with every person in your house, right?” he asked. “And you can still have friends outside of your house.”

“But Professor McGonagall said-”

“Minnie just says all of that to get you guys to have some house pride. You’ll have time outside of classes to hang out with other students and houses. There’s a kid named Edgar Bones, you’ll probably see him sitting by himself at the back of the Hufflepuff table. He hangs out with us in the library and out in the courtyards all the time. And he’s not in Gryffindor,” Sirius explained to him.

“This isn’t going to be the last time you ever see me, Regulus,” he promised quietly.

Regulus took in a deep breath and just nodded, rubbing tiredly at his eyes. “Do we have to go to the feast? I’m not feeling hungry all of a sudden,” he asked his older brother.

Sirius just chuckled, glancing back at the door before standing up and nodding. “I’ll show you down to the Slytherin common room. I’m sure one of the elves could tell you where your room is,” he offered, giving his brother a small smile.

Regulus got up as well, brushing off his robe as he heard the faint hollerings of house names from inside the Great Hall. He followed his brother towards a set of winding cement stairs, fiddling a bit with his sleeves as they slowly descended the dark, cold staircase.

“Are your dorms down here too?” Regulus asked, looking around as best as he could in the dimly-lit hallway. The hall felt like it was damp, the cold air chilling the small boy’s body.

Sirius shook his head, muttering the word “lumos” before there was a bright light at the tip of his wand. “I’m afraid not. We’re up in Gryffindor tower, on the other side of the castle,” he told his brother, looking back at him with a sad smile. “Once I get the password for this year, I’ll have an elf send down a letter to tell you.”

“Password? Password for what?” Regulus asked, until Sirius stopped abruptly in front of a large black door.

“For the common room,” he hummed, turning towards the door. “Pure-blood,” Sirius said, making sure to enunciate the word before the black door pushed itself open, and Regulus was practically blinded by green.

The room itself looked gorgeous. The forest green color swarmed the room, with accents of silver and black hidden throughout the furniture and paintings hanging off the walls. But the part that captivated Regulus’s attention wasn’t the velvet couch or the bookcases that reached across the entire wall and up to the ceiling.

“Is that the Black Lake?” he exclaimed, rushing over to the glass and pressing his hands up against it, trying to see anything through it.

Sirius grinned a bit, folding his arms across his chest. “Yup. Apparently, there’s a giant squid in there, as well as a bunch of merpeople and countless different animals,” he explained to his brother, though he was too awestruck by a mermaid swimming by to pay attention.

“I bet your common room doesn’t have anything like this,” Regulus teased his brother, tearing his eyes away and finally grinning up to him. Sirius just chuckled and shook his head, glancing out the window a bit to see if anything else cared to swim by.

“Shouldn’t you two be at the start-of-term feast?” a voice called from behind them, their tone much more serious than the jolly sound of their voice. Regulus and Sirius turned around quickly, but Sirius seemed much more relieved at the visitor than Regulus.

“Professor Slughorn! My brother was just looking around a bit. He wasn’t too happy about the Sorting Hat’s decision, so I was showing him around a bit to help him get more comfortable,” Sirius explained quickly. “If you’re gonna take house points from anyone, take them from me. I mean, if we’re being fair, I am technically the only one who knew better. Plus, I snuck into another house’s common room. Isn’t that grounds for at least a week’s detention?”

The professor that his brother referred to as Slughorn was a heavy set man, wearing a rather ridiculous hat, but dressed formally nonetheless. He even had a chain hanging from his vest. It reminded Regulus of the one his father had. The man’s nose was pink, like he had been drinking, and the expression he carried on his face made him look more worried than anyone Regulus had ever seen in his life. He wondered if the tufts of white hair peeking out from under his hat had anything to do with how worried he looked like he was constantly.

“Oh, Hogwarts’ most recent hatstall. That’s rather historical, m’boy, if I do say so. The first one I ever witnessed with my own eyes was just last year, actually. Peter Pettigrew is his name, I believe - right, Mr. Black?”

“Yes, sir. A proud member of Gryffindor house,” Sirius answered, grinning proudly.

“Yes, yes. Well, the hat is never wrong. It’s reminded us of that for many a-years now. Why don’t I take this from here?” Professor Slughorn said, descending the few stairs it took to get to the lower half of the common room.

Sirius nodded, glancing down to his brother for a moment. “I’ll see you at breakfast tomorrow, okay?” he promised, smiling at him before heading out of the common room, waving good-bye to Regulus one last time before disappearing down the dark hall.

“Come with me, m’boy,” Slughorn said, heading towards a door on the other side of the common room, unlocking it with an old skeleton key.

“You- you’re not making me go back to the feast?” Regulus asked timidly, tugging at the sleeves of his robe as he looked up at the stout man.

“Merlin’s beard, no! I needed an excuse to get out of there myself,” he said, turning on an old oil lamp by the door as he led Regulus into the room. “How do you take your tea?”

Regulus raised his eyebrows slightly, blinking slowly a few times as he did his best to comprehend the situation. “Uh… two sugar, two cream,” Regulus answered finally, looking around at what appeared to be the professor’s office. It was rather cramped compared to what he was expecting, but the walls were also lined with so many books that it could have been classified as a miniature library.

Regulus heard the sounds of tea pouring and then being stirred, before the tiny clink of the glass and saucer being set down rang through the quiet room. “Have a seat, Mr. Black.”

“Regulus is fine.”

“We’re rather formal here at Hogwarts, Mr. Black.”

Regulus nodded, sitting down across from the desk and taking a careful sip of the hot tea, feeling almost immediately at home.

“I’m afraid I have to ask the question of why you ran out of the Great Hall,” the professor asked, sipping on his own tea. Regulus saw that it looked rather white compared to what was in his own cup.

“I was upset with my house.”

“Is that the only reason?”

Regulus huffed out through his nose, suddenly deciding he didn’t want to answer the professor’s questions. “Why is it such a big deal that I left? I didn’t leave the castle, did I?”

“It’s the principle of it, m’boy.”

“I thought Hogwarts was formal?”

Professor Slughorn sighed through a forced smile, folding his hands together on the desk in front of him. “Mr. Black, we can’t have students running around the halls at their own will. You must understand that much, at least, yes?”

Regulus nodded slowly, looking down at his lap. “Yes, Professor.”

Slughorn nodded, standing up before moving around the desk to pat Regulus on the shoulder. “You best head up to bed, then, Mr. Black. The other Slytherin students ought to be joining you in a few moments,” he told him, slowly making his way out of the office before turning back to him.

“Your house isn’t always your only home at Hogwarts. You’d best keep that in mind next time you don’t enjoy Slytherin as much as the other students,” Professor Slughorn added, giving him a nearly pitiful smile before blowing out the oil lamp by the door, leaving Regulus in the dark, quiet room.

Sirius was a troublesome child - always giving problems to Walburga and Orion. He cried every night, around the same time he was born, wailing for some warm milk or some comfort he often sought but seldom received from his mother and father. He rummaged through the drawers of chests and dressers he was forbidden to touch, and tore a few skirts of his mothers, laughing all the while. Walburga and Orion never found any humor in his actions, whether or not he was just being curious or if he meant to do so. Sadly, it took almost all of their willpower not to take their anger out on the infant.

Regulus was a quiet child. He hardly ever cried (he only grabbed at the air towards the object that he wanted), and didn’t seem too mobile as a child. He barely even moved around his own crib, shocking everyone when he took his first steps so early in his life. No one expected him to excel the way he did. He spoke his first words months before his brother had, he picked up on both French and English fairly quickly in their house, and he overall was the perfect child to Walburga and Orion.

He still looked up to his older brother, though.

Sirius was the most amazing person to him. He admired how boisterous he could be and how he was so unapologetically himself, even from a young age. By the time Sirius and Regulus were five and four, Regulus looked to Sirius like he was Merlin himself. He marveled the way that he would blatantly disobey their parents, even over small things. He would stand up in his seat at dinner, no matter if it were just the four of them or any extended family. Regulus always looked at him like he held the stars in his eyes, the world in his hands.

Regulus never held enough courage to do the things his brother could. He grew up from a young age knowing his mother looked to him to keep the family high on a pedestal, to keep their family legacy going along, knowing that Sirius one day wouldn’t. She found it inevitable. So, Regulus felt like he always needed to make his mother proud. If you saw him at any given moment, his posture was perfect, his hair was neatly kept, and you would be lucky to see a single wrinkle in his clothes. He found himself to be uncomfortable in most of these situations, but it all felt like it was worth it to him when his mother told her how proud she was of him at the end of the night before he was shooed off to bed, Kreacher following behind him to make sure he got the laundry.

Kreacher was the only other person Regulus got close to. Yes, Sirius was practically his idol, but he had a temperament matching their parents from time to time. He would sneer at Regulus for doing exactly what their parents asked of them, saying that he was better than that. Kreacher understood him, though. He listened to his qualms when he couldn’t fall asleep late at night, worrying his brother and family hated him for small little things he did, though he probably was the only one who noticed.

Kreacher reassured him time and time again he was the perfect son of the Ancient and Most Noble House of Black. He did just what Walburga (or, His Mistress) asked of him, and if he ever did make mistakes, it wasn’t on purpose, like his older brother. While he hated to admit it, Kreacher was right, and these reassurances are what kept Kreacher so close to him. He would confide in him night after night, after every bout of anxiety that he messed up and his mother would do what she did to Sirius almost every evening.

He still knew in the pit of his stomach that no matter what, no matter what he did to appease his mother, he’d eventually meet the same fate that his brother had.

Kreacher was always there to tell him that he would be fine, and if not, he could always blame Sirius - they were bound to believe his older brother messed up more than Regulus did. While he never did blame him, the thought lingered from time to time, like when he accidentally broke the vase in the living room when he tried magic for the first time.

His cousins always looked over him like he was their little brother. Narcissa more than the others.

Narcissa Black doted on him since he was born. She thought he was the most adorable kid and always offered to babysit for Walburga and Orion if they ever needed a night out. The first time she babysat Regulus and Sirius, they were one year old and two years old. Regulus, of course, was easy - Sirius was not. She ended up having to put the eldest to bed early, then spending a bit of time with Regulus. She made him giggle for hours as she let bubbles sail into the air from the tip of her wand, and showed him different stars in the night sky, being sure to point out her favorite - Arcturus. After that evening, she was almost immediately protective over the young boy, wishing she could stay back from Hogwarts to see him more often.

Andromeda loved Regulus, but not nearly as much as Narcissa did. Of the two Black brothers, she doted on Sirius. She thought his antics and his troublesome tendencies were almost charming. It wasn’t that she ever thought less of Regulus because of this, but it was as if she could see him following in the family’s footsteps, where she knew Sirius would falter out of that line. She wanted to let Sirius know she would always be there for him, despite what Walburga ever said.

Andromeda did feel the same way towards Regulus, though she never said it as often to him, making it harder for him to confide in her as opposed to her younger sister.

Bellatrix was an entirely different story.

Bellatrix Black was the type of person to go big or go home - but going home was never an option to her. She told Regulus stories of the amazing and fantastic Tom Riddle since she met the wizard. She tried planting the idea of following him into the young boy’s mind early on, though his parents agreed with his ideologies from the beginning. Had she not been so insistent on having her youngest cousin follow in her dark and dismal footsteps from such a young age, he might have made different decisions when he was older. He might even have defied her.

Though we’ll never know the real results.

Overall, Regulus probably would have said that he had a good childhood. He practically got everything he ever asked for, especially the books that caught his eye whenever he went on trips to Diagon Alley with his family. He always found a sort of solace in his books. Knowledge was a treasure to him that he never intended to let go of. Because he was much quieter than his brother, he never made friends as easily. This was one of the first ways he dove into books the way that he did.

Anything he could get his hands on interested him - A History of Magic, Dark Arts Defense, even Advanced Potions Making, once he had made his way through most of the stock at Flourish and Blotts. He just wanted to read and expand his horizons - and it gave him a leg up for when he would finally start school. No one could really find a downside to it. Except for Sirius, who just wanted to know how to use hexes and jinxes without spending the time to learn them.

The two Black Brothers were schooled at home until they were old enough to go to Hogwarts. Walburga didn’t have the patience to teach them, and Orion refused to stoop low enough to be a teacher, so they had Walburga’s brother, Alphard, come in and teach them.

Alphard was very knowledgeable of magic, having been in the Slytherin house at Hogwarts himself, and was able to teach the boys with precision on what they needed to do in order to grow up to be amazing and fantastic wizards. While Sirius excelled in charms and transfiguration, Alphard saw that Regulus excelled in practically everything he was taught. He was able to pick up on wand movements very easily, and could figure out what he needed to do to perfect a spell if he did mess up. Alphard was awestruck, and always informed Walburga of how well he was doing. She grew more and more prideful of her youngest son, though it also meant that her expectations for him would skyrocket over the years.

When Regulus was nine, Sirius got his acceptance letter to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. While he wouldn’t be able to go for almost a year, given how late his birthday was, Regulus couldn’t bear the thought of losing his eldest brother. He almost latched onto the elder boy, trying to make sure he didn’t waste a single second of the time that he had with him. His mother scolded him often for it, saying he was too old to be so worked up over something like this. Eventually, he stopped following him around like a lost puppy, but he did make sure to sneak into Sirius’ room at night, once his mother and father were fast asleep or their cheeks were pink from how much firewhiskey they had consumed, and creeped into his older brother’s bed, finding comfort in his protective presence.

The worst part was him leaving. Regulus had the day marked on his calendar for months - September 1st, 1971. When they took Sirius to King’s Cross Station, only a short walk from their house, he was a wreck. He didn’t want to be left behind - he wanted to go follow his brother. And he would have snuck into his trunk, if Walburga didn’t notice him trying to unlatch it slowly and dramatically. His hands and arms were pink for a week after.

He was thankful for Sirius’ letters, though. After a long day of lessons with his Uncle Alphard, he would look forward to a tawny owl soaring through the window with a letter addressed to him in Sirius’s nearly illegible chicken scratch. He would tell him about his new friends that he made and all of the professors he loved (or detested, though those were few and far between). He told him about the Quidditch matches and how much he loved Gryffindor house, though he was afraid of mentioning that at first considering their family’s well-known Slytherin streak.

Regulus, of course, would have letters ready to go back to Sirius. He told him about how Uncle Alphard was doing, how he and Kreacher would make their own little mischief around the house now that his big brother was gone, and how much he missed having him at home. He always included a few pieces of his favorite candies, worried he wasn’t eating many sweets at school. Sirius mostly kept them in a jar by his bed and didn’t eat them immediately, but he loved the gesture too much to tell Regulus that or to throw them away.

The first time Regulus saw his older brother since he went to school was when he came home for summer break. He wanted to stay at school with his friend, Remus, over Christmas because he didn’t want him to be alone for the holidays. When they picked up Sirius at King’s Cross Station, Regulus had never been happier to see someone in his life. He gave him the biggest, strongest hug that he possibly could and asked him millions and millions of questions. It annoyed his parents to no end, earning him a few jabs in the back and arm with the tips of their wands on the walk home, but Sirius still answered every question he had with just as much enthusiasm.

It wasn’t long after that that Regulus received his very own Hogwarts acceptance letter. He was over the moon to finally get proper schooling like his older brother. When they were able to take a trip to Diagon Alley to get his school supplies, he was ecstatic to go to Ollivander’s and pick out his own wand. He was practically bouncing up and down figuring out which wand would work best for him, and his excitement only grew when he found out he and his brother both had phoenix feather cores.

Regulus knew he probably annoyed his parents in the months up to him leaving with Sirius to Hogwarts, but he didn’t really mind that too much. He loved learning and he loved the idea of being able to learn from the best witches and wizards in England. All of it was overwhelmingly exhilarating, and the first of September couldn’t come any sooner for the young heir.