the windows of the pub he was in shattered as the crowd struggled to get out in their panic -- he couldn’t quite see if there were any injured, though at the end there were few people who remained inside. sirius took back the butterbeer he’d previously ordered and took a sip. “bullshit. fucking bullshit -- that’s all this is.” he muttered to himself and anyone around him listening, feeling his anger rise. 

He remained in the village even after the evacuation, having wanted to stick around to offer a hand with the clean up, but he was quickly dismissed by the teachers present and told to head back up to the castle where he would be more useful. Begrudgingly, he agreed, and began the walk back up to the castle, but when he spotted someone a little way ahead of him he jogged to catch up; he thought everyone would have been back at the school already, “Hey; are you alright?” He paused for a moment to consider this, before huffing out a laugh that held no trace of humour, “A stupid question, probably.”

Regulus wasn’t sure which hurt more after his little chat with Lupin: his wrist or his pride. Probably his pride, he didn’t take lightly to people just taking things that belonged to him and then smacking his head like they were friends. The absolute fucking nerve of him made Regulus’ blood boil and he found himself wishing he had dug the knife into his stomach. It was going to be taken from him anyway, by Lupin or by a professor and at that point, he’d rather have injured Lupin. His house would have recovered in terms of house points, Lupin would have gotten the message that he wasn’t free to speak to Regulus whenever he damn well pleased and, as an added bonus, he’d get to watch Sirius’ reaction to one of his friends get hurt. That would have made it all worth it in his eyes.

The Hog’s Head was a little more lowkey than the Three Broomsticks. The barkeep was more likely to just assume that everyone was of legal age, because there was no money to be made in turning customers away. And Regulus didn’t even enjoy drinking. He found it vile, truthfully, and hated how people got sloppy after they drank too much, how they simply let their secrets spill out and would be in horrible pain the next day. 

It didn’t stop him from drinking. He could control himself, better than most of the unfortunate students he called peers. Sitting in the low lighting of the pub, he drank his red currant rum, trying to ignore the taste and the burn in his throat. It was an even pay off for drowning the butterflies he got in his stomach whenever he replayed the reaction with Lupin in his head. Fucking Lupin. 

Glancing up as the door open, he sighed seeing his cousin walk in. Hopefully he would blend in with the shadows, but there was a general piece of advice people should cover their faces at the Hog’s Head and he regretted not following the advice when she came over. “What do you want, Andromeda?” he asked, punctuating the question with another sip of rum.

sirius had decided to get as drunk as possible on this hogsmeade trip, have fun and make use of it. and what better companion would he have for this task than marlene mckinnon? their relationship was a bit complicated, sure -- but she was still his friend and lots of fun, both qualities that the black appreciated. he headed towards her when he noticed her sitting at the bar at one of the pubs and took the seat next to hers, his lips turning upwards into that usual smug smile of his. “you were looking a bit lonely, mckinnon, so i’ve decided to grace you with my presence. no need to thank me or anything.” he teased as he raised a hand to get the bartender’s attention and give his order, before turning his attention back to the blonde. “what’re you up to?”