Chapter Text
Friday 1st of October 1971.
The definition of “home-schooling” is often misinterpreted and wrongly judged by people because the word was formed by the word “home” and “school” which often led people to the mistaken belief that it could be funnier and easier to study at home than going to school. From Regulus’ point of view it was the silliest thing someone could think. He’d give anything to be at Hogwarts with Sirius if he only could.
He felt really lonely. He used to attend his classes with Sirius before but now that he was gone, he had to go through it on his own and it was definitely not fun. He hated every minutes of it.
Regulus was eager to learn, he always loved to and his natural curiosity led him to search for hours for answers to questions no one even asked him in first place. That was one of the reasons why he read that much but also why he would always ask Sirius a excessive amount of questions. He genuinely wanted to learn as much as he could compress knowledge in his brain.
Home-schooling took away every drop of interest running in his blood until it dried it entirely. He was not comfortable with the concept and he couldn’t wait for the day he’d pack his things for Hogwarts just like Sirius did at the end of August.
Annoying, boring, soporific.
Three adjectives which described perfectly the class Regulus was currently attending. Truthfully, he didn’t leave Grimmauld Place, the class was literally in his living-room and he was the only student but still. Waking up in the morning and going downstairs just to hear his teacher’s voice telling him about things he had no interest in felt like pure torture. There were many things he’d rather do than sitting there for hours and listening to the grumpy old man who was desperately trying to teach him Latin.
His mother insisted he learned the language event though it had been dead for centuries because she thought it was necessary if he wanted to speak French properly, as if he wasn’t literally born in France. The thought made him want to roll his eyes furiously. He didn’t see the point and he didn’t like the subject but he couldn’t complain so he took it on himself and he focused as much as his brain had the ability to – which meant not much.
Subconsciously, his thoughts went from Sirius to Evan and before he knew it his thoughts were fully focused on the latter. He was so bored he began to regret Evan’s company. Evan was annoying but he couldn’t be worse than Latin, besides Regulus wanted to know if Sirius had answered his letter. When they went back to his room after they met Walburga downstairs, Regulus added a line to his letter which told Sirius to send the letters to Evan instead of him so he would give them to Regulus. He had to make sure that what happened during the past month would not happen again.
He kept that in mind as his thoughts recalled him every moments he spent with Evan so far. Regulus didn’t know what a friendship looked like but he supposed it must have been somewhere between what he had with Sirius and what he had with Evan because they shared secrets together now and he had had to put his trust in him.
On second thought, Regulus realised how ridiculously dangerous it had been to manipulate Kreacher in front of Evan and basically to do anything he had done that day when the other boy was right there to witness it. However he was aware it was not very clever to act like this in front of someone else, Regulus had not really had a choice. Kreacher would have burnt the letter if he had waited too long before bargaining with him. He had run out of time and he had been forced to act quickly.
He didn’t regret it though because Sirius was worth it and thanks to his impulsiveness, he managed to find a way to get around his mother who was nothing but an obstacle on his path to meet with Sirius. She should have known it would’ve been harder to keep the two brothers apart, especially because both of them were very stubborn. Regulus couldn’t help but think that if she’d really wanted to keep them apart she would have tried a little harder and the thought comforted him in his idea that he had done the right thing.
He promised himself not to be as imprudent as he had been if he ever had to do something like this again. He couldn’t risk to challenge the odds twice.
Regulus’ quill broke beneath his fingers and he winced when the ink spilled over his parchment and stained his fingers. His teacher tsked and he shook his head as if he was disappointed – maybe he was but Regulus couldn’t care less. Who had never broken a quill before? It wasn’t big deal. Regulus suspected his teacher to be annoyed because it meant he’d have to shut up for five minutes and give Regulus a rest while he’d go to his room to pick another quill.
Regulus contemplated the idea to break his quill on purpose every day if it meant he could get five minutes break from his class.
Fortunately, the class didn’t last long after that. Unfortunately, he had been asked by his mother to spend some time with Bellatrix on the afternoon which meant after lunch he’d have to go through hell one more time. If Rodolphus was not there, maybe it’d be easier? He wasn’t sure.
Bellatrix was particularly gifted with a brush between her hands and paint to use to colour the world inside of her head, not that it was very colourful. Bellatrix art was dark mostly, triangle shaped and often related to death and creepy things like that. Regulus hated her but he loved her art. It was honestly beautiful in a very unconventional way. She managed to put so much life into death and it was always so bright even on her gloomiest piece of art. It was unsettling.
Her abilities to create such things had made her the perfect candidate to teach Regulus during art classes. His former teacher had been fired – and probably killed, that wouldn’t be so surprising – after Walburga found out he was gay and was fiancé to another man who happened to be a muggle. If he had only been gay, Walburga would have just fired him but since he was also fiancé to a muggle she’d probably killed him. She hated anyone who didn’t fit her lifestyle and gay people definitely didn’t. She associated with people who shared her belief and together they tried to revoke the gay marriage law which had been voted barely a year ago in the Wizarding World.
Too bad her own son was gay. Sometimes Regulus had this twisted thought that crossed his mind, the one which whispered to his ear that she knew and that was the reason why she hated him so much. At least, it’d be comforting to know he hadn’t done anything wrong, that she was just too narrow-minded to welcome love and its different forms into her life. This thought was reassuring somehow because Regulus couldn’t stand the idea she hated him for no reasons.
Regulus was just ten but he already knew. He had always known. He didn’t ever have to question it, it was just something he felt inside. For a while he wondered if he was simply too young to care about girls but he quickly put two and two together after reading many books because he always ended up thinking about the male characters for days afterwards, like they stole his heart. He never cared about the female characters. Of course, it didn’t mean he was gay but he knew he had a strong preference for the other boys. His suspicions had been proved right when he was nine. He developed a harmless crush on one of his male teachers, the one who taught him English. He had such a beautiful accent and he was really handsome. Regulus was so flustered around him and he understood why later.
So it didn’t matter if he was gay or not, his inclinations for the male sex was a fact no matter what he’d label himself and it would be enough to set his mother off if he ever dared to speak it aloud. Fortunately, he was not that stupid.
He left the living-room to join his mother for lunch. When he arrived in the room, he was surprised to see there was no one other than just his mother. Regulus could count on the fingers of one hand how many times he got to spend lunch alone with his mother. She was always too busy to have lunch with him and when she wasn’t, she would invite Bellatrix, Druella or his father to have lunch with them. Regulus felt wary about it, he didn’t know why but he didn’t think it was a good omen.
He swallowed but showed nothing as he sat next to her. She broke the bread and handed a piece to him in silence. He took it and he spread cheese on it while his mother sipped on red wine. They began to eat in silence, Regulus knew better than to speak and his mother looked like she wasn’t in the mood to talk.
Good, I don’t want to talk to you either, he thought bitterly.
He was busy with his meat when she put down the glass she was holding a moment before and she locked her eyes on him. Instinctively, he straightened his back and he made sure his elbows were not touching the wood of the table. Other than that, he didn’t give away he noticed her eyes on him. She cleared her voice and he lifted his gaze calmly towards her as he put the cutlery down on the table.
“So, I’ve been discussing a lot with Evan’s father the past few days,” she began and Regulus was sure a stone just fell in the pit of his stomach. He didn’t like where this was going already. “He suggested you’d sleepover at his place since Evan slept here a few days ago,” she wiped her mouth elegantly with her napkin.
“What did you say?” He asked with a remarkably steady voice considering he wanted to throw up already. It was not even the conversation they were having that made him sick, it was simply the way she was talking to him like nothing happened the night before.
Regulus had had a nightmare and he had woken up sweaty and crying, his voice had been so hoarse because of all the screaming he had done during his sleep. His mother had heard – of course she had – and where a good mother would have held her son who was terrified and needed comfort, Walburga had hit him for waking her up in the middle of the night. Her nails were so long that when she hit him, they scratched his bare skin.
Regulus didn’t know if he could bare this much longer. He was done already and it had barely been a month. He couldn’t control his nightmares but he could control what he was doing during the day when he was awaken and he had decided he’d become the perfect son she wanted him to be so he’d give her less reasons to hurt him. He’d comply to anything she’d want him to do.
He had no idea how Sirius could bare the permanent beating he received from her but Regulus was not as strong as he was and he decided to put himself first.
“I agreed with him. I think it could be good for you to spend a night at their place,” she replied.
For me, or for you? He gritted his teeth before he forced his jaw to relax. He nodded slowly. “D’accord, quand?’ he asked.
“Tonight”
“Tonight?” he repeated, startled. “Why tonight? Can’t it wait a bit longer?”
“I don’t recall saying you could ask questions,” she shot back firmly.
Regulus pressed his lips together and didn’t add anything which seemed to satisfy Walburga who resumed eating her dish. Regulus did too after a few seconds and he ducked his head as low as possible. If his mother wanted him out that day it could only mean one thing; she had a meeting tonight with important people and she didn’t want him around so she took the first opportunity that was offered to her to keep him as far away as humanly possible from Grimmauld Place.
He didn’t know what was the worst: spending more time with Evan or being thrown out of his house for his mother’s interests. The latter, definitely. He would never admit it but he began to like Evan and leaving the house was something he desperately needed. In the end, the sleepover was a deal which benefited both Walburga and Regulus so he didn’t complain, although that didn’t mean it didn’t hurt to know he meant so little to his mother she could get rid of him as she pleased.
Why couldn’t he have a loving mother like the ones in his books?
Walburga’s disgust for her children was easier to deal with when Sirius was around because the affection and love he didn’t get from her, Sirius would give him twice of it. It was a lot more difficult to be deprived from affection at all, especially after the episode in the well. Besides, Regulus never knew how to ask for love, he felt unlovable most of the time and he knew he was unworthy. Sirius just gave it to him randomly when their eyes quietly communicated together because Sirius always knew what Regulus needed.
A look always spoke louder than words, that had always been like this between them.
Regulus was convinced that if they tried to communicate with actual words, they would misunderstand each other or they wouldn’t be able to find the words to put on the emotions they felt deep inside so they never tried. Not that it had been necessary in any case anyway.
Communication was not a skill their family mastered so Regulus and Sirius invented their own communication language and it had always been enough.
The letter he had written to Sirius had been really difficult to shape. The words formed in his brain but it was like they were stuck up there and he had no way to put his hand in motion to draw them on paper as well. There was so much he had wanted to say and the letter was messy and sad but Regulus managed to tell Sirius everything he had wanted except that it felt cold, lifeless. He had wanted to tell him how he felt and how scared he was but it was almost impossible to open up on a letter. Sirius would have known if he had been there to take a look in his eyes but he wasn’t and Regulus didn’t know how to express whatever it was he felt so he didn’t. The letter was just a list of the things that had occurred but at least Sirius would know what he had been through during the past weeks.
When they finally finished to eat, Walburga stormed out of the room to do Merlin knew what and Regulus remained alone in the big quiet room. He sighed and rubbed his face with more strength than needed. He tried to postpone the moment he’d have to join Bellatrix in the art room but they didn’t ask for his opinion anyway and time didn’t slow down – if anything, it sped up.
The only comforting thing he could think about was that he’d leave the place soon and he’ll see Evan that night which was odd considering how much the other boy pissed him off easily. His relationship – friendship? – with Evan was disconcerting but it was the best thing at the moment in his lfie so he learned to enjoy the small things for as long as they lasted.
Regulus was young but not clueless. Everyone left one way or another and it couldn’t last forever. Evan would leave him someday. Maybe that was the reason why he struggled so much to let him in.
He reluctantly opened the door of the art room and he walked inside. He was surprised to see Bellatrix was late because she was never late when it came to art but he supposed torturing poor animals were more important to her nowadays. He sighed and decided to prepare everything before she arrived so they would be ready to work as soon as she’d step into the room.
He picked up a canvas leaning against the wall on the ground and he placed it on the empty easel he usually used. He searched around the room for the brushes and he made sure they were cleaned and the hairs were not damaged. He chose brushes from different sizes, with different tips – round, thick, thin, etc.– and he put them in a pot. He chose a palette as well and he prepared containers in which he poured water and medium since they were likely going to paint with oil paint today. Then he took a bottle of turps from the shelf and he put it on the table next to his easel and he waited for Bellatrix to join him.
She showed up almost a hour later and Regulus was pissed off but he kept it for himself. They worked harder and faster than they usually did to catch up their session. That day, Bellatrix decided it would be best if Regulus tried to reproduce something in the room so she placed a fruit basket in front of him and he painted that. His technique was not very precise and he still needed to practice but Regulus could see how much he had improved since he had begun to paint. He didn’t particularly liked painting but it was relaxing in a way and his mother insisted both Sirius and Regulus learn to paint so they both learned.
The day quickly faded to dark and Regulus went upstairs to his bedroom to pack his things for the night. He chose clothes which made him feel comfortable and he took his favorite plaid with him. Regulus didn’t have a teddy bear like most kids did, all he had was this plaid and he couldn’t sleep without it. He barely slept already so he thought it would be better to take it with him, just in case. It used to belong to Sirius but it had been Regulus’ since he was three and it was the only thing that seemed to help with his anxiety when he needed to sleep.
He caressed the fabric and rubbed his face gently with it as he pressed it against his cheek. He felt already a lot better. A soft smile curled his lips and he tucked it in his bag, under his clothes and he closed the door behind him. When he went downstairs, Walburga was waiting for him. He said goodbye to his father and then they went outside of the house and they walked for a while until they reached the closest spot where they could apparate.
Walburga took his arm and their bodies twisted around before they disappeared in the night. Regulus felt his stomach falling down his feet and he thought he would be sick for a second. It was like he was continuously falling and while he did it felt like his body was spinning again and again at the same time at full speed. Regulus thought his organs left their initial spots and mixed up together inside of his body. It was disturbing and really hard not to be sick. He regretted eating a cookie before leaving.
He had apparated once before when they took Sirius to King’s Cross train station but it didn’t feel half as horrible as it had been to go to Evan’s. Regulus wondered if it had been so difficult this time because of the distance. King’s Cross was not too far from their house but Evan’s place was literally on the other side of the sea. He lived in Ireland because his mother was Irish. It was really far from his home. This observation led to another question: how far could a wizard apparate from their starting point? Regulus promised himself he’d check it out at some point but it’d have to wait.
His feet finally met the earth beneath him and he stumbled before his body crashed on the ground. He scratched his knees and he grazed his cheeks when they collided with concrete. Walburga rolled her eyes and sighed impatiently. She firmly grabbed his arm, maybe even a bit too tight and she lifted him from the ground until he was back on his feet.
“You really can’t do anything properly, tu me fais honte” she hissed.
“I’m sorry,” he whispered, the tears in his eyes made his grey look lighter.
His body hurt and he was ashamed. He knew he shouldn’t give her words so much importance but she never failed to hurt him. Whenever she said something like that, he hated himself for being such disappointment and he felt like sh*t afterwards.
“Don’t you dare crying,” she hissed when she noticed his watering eyes. She swiftly raised her hand to fix her hair but Regulus’ heart missed a beat and he flinched violently. He had thought for a second that she’d hit him again and he was terrified. He swallowed thickly and he tried his best not to breakdown. His hands were shaking so he clenched his fists to hide it. If Walburga noticed how fearful he was, she didn’t mention it but Regulus saw the smug smile on her face and he couldn’t help but thinking it was because she knew she scared him.
He blinked quickly to keep his tears from falling and they walked to Evan’s doorstep. His body was numb due to both fear and the disturbing trip, so it was hard to follow his mother’s pace but he tried anyway. Walburga’s heels hit the concrete loudly in the dark of the night but Regulus couldn’t even focus on the sound, his head was buzzing and his heart kept beating fast and hard in his chest, he could even feel it in his neck which was a bit scary.
He didn’t know why he was so upset about what just happened but he felt on the verge to cry his eyes out when Evan’s father opened the door and after they exchanged polite salutations, Regulus went upstairs with Evan to where Evan’s room was. As soon as the door was closed, Regulus shoulders began to shake. At first it was barely noticeable but after the pain built up in his body, his shoulders were shaking rather violently and the silent sobs died in his throat. Evan was behind him so he couldn’t see the streaming tears on his face which Regulus was thankful for.
He was truly embarrassed by his own weakness.
Regulus put his hands on his mouth to contain the sobs and he knelt before he curled up as much as possible to contain the overflowing emotions. He had no idea why he had broken down, nothing that had happened was new, he was used to being verbally abused by the one he called Mother but it was the final straw before he broke down. It had been brewing for days and yet Regulus hadn’t seen the signs because he had been too busy to feel to think about it all.
He couldn’t contain his sobs any longer and they escaped his lips no matter how hard he tried to keep them inside. Since his hands didn’t even muffle the sound, he decided to wrap his arms around his body in a protective way but he was also hopeful that it would help to restrain the emotions and keep them all inside. Regulus was acutely aware of Evan’s eyes on the back of his head and he hated himself even more for being so weak in front of somebody else. Regulus thought he had learned how not to be weak anymore during the past month but he had not.
Of course, he cried and had panic attack but it was always when he was alone so it hardly counted for something. As long as no one saw it, he wasn’t weak. He simply was purging his body from the negative emotions draining his energy and making him feel so low. It was healthy. However, breaking down like he was in front of Evan was not healthy and it did make a weak person of him because he had no control over it. It was one more failure to add to the very long list already existing.
The thought made him cry harder.
Evan didn’t know what to do, Regulus could tell. He knew the other boy was desperately trying to find something to say, something to do that would bring comfort to his friend and ease the raging storm in his heart but at the same time Evan never had to deal with that before and he didn’t know what he was supposed to do. He put an hesitant hand on Regulus’ back which only managed to make Regulus flinch once more. Regulus’ position was not the best to keep his balance so he stumbled and fell on the floor. Thankfully he was already close to the floor, he didn’t hurt himself.
Evan took a step back and Regulus crawled backwards until his back met the wall. He folded his legs against his chest and he buried his head in his knees to lash out everything he was still keeping inside. Now the valve was opened, there was nothing else to do but wait until he freed himself from all the pain. Evan sat next to him but not too close from him so he wouldn’t touch him and Regulus found comfort in their proximity. He wished he could stop crying because it truly was embarrassing but he couldn’t.
It took ten more minutes before his tears dried. He wiped his face and he took deep breath. He threw his head back against the wall and he sighed. He was so exhausted and he felt a lot more better. He didn’t dare to look at Evan, he was so embarrassed with himself. Truthfully, he wished he had an invisibility cloak to disappear from the world for a while. He felt the urge to hide.
“I’m sorry,” he whispered.
“Don’t be, it’s alright,” Evan whispered softly. “Do you feel better?”
“A bit, but I still feel like sh*t” his voice cracked and he thought he’d begin to cry again. Evan must have thought the same because he magnificently distracted him in the best way he could possibly think about.
“Sirius sent a letter today too,” he announced.
Regulus’ eyes lit up as soon as he heard his brother’s name. “Really?” he asked hopefully.
“Kreacher gave it to me so I suppose it means he wrote it before he received your letter,” he shrugged.
“Why would Kreacher give it to you?” he narrowed his eyes, warily.
“He didn’t exactly give it to me. I ordered my house elf to check on him and see if he had received a letter from Sirius, just in case of. I told him to tell Kreacher this letter was utmost importance for the alliance between our families and Kreacher gave it to him”
“Kreacher isn’t naive, I’m sure he knows this is a lie”
“Yeah well maybe I also used the fact our elves are friends,” he smirked.
“Are they?” Regulus asked startled and Evan nodded with a laugh. “Thank you,” he breathed.
“You’re welcome,” he smiled. “Anyway, do you want to read it?” Evan asked softly and Regulus nodded quietly.
Regulus jumped on his feet as Evan went to pick it up from his desk. His heartbeat quickened but he knew it had nothing to do with the fear he previously felt rushing through his body. This was different, this felt good and right. Evan gave him the envelop and Regulus almost tore it to pieces when he opened it impatiently. His eyes skimmed through the letter and a smile curled up his lips.
“Reg,
Today was amazing honestly, we had so much fun. We had a pillow fight in the morning and I won but don’t ask James because he will tell you that he did. We had not so many classes today so we decided to spend the day outside since it wasn’t too cold. We took the time to visit the school land. It’s so big I thought I had seen everything already but Remus told us about a place he found and so we decided to see if we could find some other hidden places! Then, we played hide and seek in the garden. Remus won but only because for some reasons he is the only one capable to shut up for more than two seconds. Pete could have won as well but he didn’t because he got scared of a rabbit and ran out of his hiding spot.
At the end of the day, James suggested we eat ice creams near the lake so we did and we watched the sunset together before dinner. It was so cool. It was a lilac sky tonight, I think you would have loved it. I hope you saw it too from your window. I missed doing this you know? We used to do that a lot together before and I got very nostalgic so I’m grateful for my friends they made my life so much better. I’m so excited, I can’t wait until you meet them.
I think that’s all I can tell you about today. I’ll write to you tomorrow again and I hope you’ll read.
I love you, I miss you, I hope you’re alright.
Sirius.”
He barely finished to read it that Evan spoke again. “I asked my father if it was okay if you slept over, I hope you’re not mad,” he said nervously.
Regulus looked at him with wide eyes. Evan had been the one behind this idea which meant he was the one who saved him for a horrible night alone at home. He was so grateful he threw himself in Evan’s arms. The boy looked startled before he laughed and hugged him back. It lasted only a few seconds, it was just long enough for Regulus to chant “thank you, thank you, thank you” like a prayer near his ear. He was so happy and relieved.
“Wow I thought you hated me,” he laughed and Regulus pulled away before he glared at him.
“I hate you. But I hate my mother even more”
“You just hugged me,” Evan smirked.
“No I didn’t,” Regulus replied matter-of-factly and sat on the floor. Evan joined him.
“Yes you did. You hugged me,” he insisted, “I think it means you like me,” he added with a smug smile on his lips.
“You wish,” he rolled his eyes and he shoved him gently which made Evan laughing harder.
“Oh come on, just admit it. We have fun together and you like being with me. We’re friends”
“Gross,” he pretended to throw up.
“You’re childish”
“I’m a child,” he shot back.
“Sure but you’re acting like a baby,” he replied and Regulus rolled his eyes.
“I’m not drooling or sh*tting my pants. As far as I’m concerned, I’m a child not a baby” Regulus deadpanned and Evan laughed.
“What do you want to do tonight?” Evan asked.
“I don’t know. It’s your house, you come up with plans not me,” he shrugged.
“You hardly have any plans when I come over, I’m always the one who finds something to do,” Evan pointed out.
“Because I don’t want you here but you planned this and forced me to come over so you better find something or we’re just going to stare at the wall all night”
“Not that you’ll mind, you already do that quite often,” he teased.
“No wonder why you have no friends if that’s your idea of a sleepover,” Regulus replied dryly.
“I have friends! I have Barty,” he said proudly.
“Is Barty in this room with us?” he asked with an honeyed voice in order to wind him up.
“What? No?” he replied confused.
“Are you not too old to have an imaginary friend, Rosier?” Regulus arched an eyebrow, the ghost of a smile gliding over his lips.
“f*ck off he does exist!” Evan laughed.
“If he’s only in your head, no he doesn’t,” Regulus smirked.
“You’ll meet him one day and then you’ll kiss my feet and apologise”
“I’d rather swallow lava than apologise to you, let alone kiss your feet”
Evan smirked and he leaned back against the wall before he raised his leg and approached his foot to Regulus face. Regulus grimaced in disgust and he smacked his leg as he tried to pull away. “Come on, just little tiny kiss. Aren’t they appealing?”
“The only thing it appeals at the moment is the content of my stomach, now move!”
Evan laughed and shook his toes while Regulus dramatically protected his face.
“f*ck off Rosier! Don’t approach me with that dirty foot of yours”
“It’s not dirty, I just got out of the shower”
“Too bad you didn’t drown! Keep your foot away from my face”
Evan laughed and he sat properly against the wall. He eyed Regulus and gave him a soft smile. Regulus was so amused he allowed himself to laugh too which startled Evan who snorted before he joined Regulus in a loud laugh. After they calmed down a bit, Evan looked at him and arched an eyebrow.
“Would you like to see something cool?” he asked with a smirk.
“I swear to God if it’s another whim of yours I’ll walk back home”
“That’s a bit far, don’t you think?” Evan teased him.
“I am aware so don’t give me any reasons to,” Regulus glared at him.
“I’m going to spare you the trouble. Come with me,” he got on his feet and reached out.
Regulus took his hand and stood up before he followed Evan out of his room. They went to the corridor and Regulus couldn’t help but notice how beautiful it was. It shared a lot with Grimmauld Place but it managed to make Regulus feel a bit warmer. It probably was because he had no bad memories in this place, he couldn’t say the same about Grimmauld Place.
They walked along the corridor before they stopped in the middle of it. Regulus frowned and gave a funny look to Evan who smiled. Evan opened a cupboard and Regulus felt shivers down his spine but he didn’t say anything. Cupboards were absolutely harmless to most people so he couldn’t exactly complain about it without looking totally insane. Although, if his previous attempts were left fruitless, maybe this would keep Evan away.
Anyway, Evan came out of the cupboard a few seconds later with a ladder. Regulus’ forehead creased deeper and he crossed his arms on his chest. Evan looked at him with a smug expression stitched on his face and Regulus arched an eyebrow.
“What are you doing with this?” he asked.
“I thought it was obvious, we’re going to use it to go in the attic,” Evan replied as he placed the ladder open on the floor, right under a trapdoor from which a rope was hanging in the air, a white ball wrapper at the tip of it which is precisely the part of the rope Blaise pulled to open it and he began to come down from the ladder, the rope still between his hand. As he pulled on the rope, stairs slowly unfolded from the trapdoor. He glanced at Regulus with a smile before he took the ladder and he put it back in the cupboard. He went back to Regulus and he smiled “So? You come up or you’d rather stay alone in the corridor?”
“I’m coming,” he replied. “But tell me what’s up there first”
“Nope, you’ll see when you get there,” he laughed and he went upstairs. The wood creaked under his feet and Regulus winced. His heartbeat quickened inexplicably and he panicked a bit at the thought they were going to get caught.
Evan waited for him upstairs and Regulus didn’t wait any longer before he joined him. Once they both were in the attic, Evan folded the stairs and closed the trapdoor behind him. He stretched his arms out then he put his hands behind his head as he walked towards the back of the room. Regulus eyed him carefully before he began to move slower, unsure if he had the right to be there in first place or not.
The attic was particularly clean, it didn’t even look like an attic to be honest. A mattress was on the floor under the skylight and there were furniture dressing the room. There were toys a bit everywhere, a tent – or maybe was it a lodge? – with cushions and teddy bears and blankets inside. There were fairy lights lighting the room and a fluffy rug.
Regulus had never seen an attic like that before.
Next to the mattress which obviously was a bed considering it was made to look like one, there was a bedside table. It caught Regulus’ eye and he moved closer to inspect it. On the bedside table there was something that looked like a firefly under a cloche but it was glowing in various colours. Maybe was it the wizard version of it?
Yellow, orange, pink and purple.
Regulus’ lips parted in awe as he admired the little bug. It was peacefully resting on a miniature swing seat hanging above what seemed to be grass. There was a minuscule tree on the left corner – Regulus’ left – and flowers were covering the grass. Regulus didn’t notice at first but then he saw a faux-sky displaying various stars gently shining in the dark. The cloche was sheltering a very tiny garden made specifically for the firefly which aimed to reproduce its environment – and it was successful. It was beautiful.
“What is it?” Regulus breathed as he didn’t stop to stare at the little bug.
Evan joined his side to look at what Regulus was looking. A soft smile appeared on his lips. “It’s a starfly. We call them like that because people used to think they were stars in the night sky. This one is particularly big but some other are really small, especially if they’re wild. They look like tiny dots in the night just like the stars. They don’t often move and they love to hide up in the sky, out of reach of their predators. They can sleep while flying which is very useful since they sleep more than twenty hours a day,” he explained. “They can’t be seen during the day though, I don’t know why but they become invisible in the daylight”
“This is fascinating,” Regulus replied quietly, still in awe as he looked at the little creature sleeping.
“I think so too. They’re not so hard to catch once you know how to do it,” Evan smile. “Maybe you should catch one, it could help you sleep at night. You wouldn’t be in the dark anymore,” he shrugged.
Regulus frowned and looked at him, startled. “What? I am not afraid of the dark,” he denied.
“I know you are, but it’s okay. Your secret’s safe with me and if you want to catch one I could help you”
Regulus pressed his lips in a thin line, embarrassed. He gave him a curt nod and he walked away from the starfly to sit under the tent. It was bigger inside that he had expected it. It was so comfortable and everything was so soft under his fingertips it was really enjoyable. He took a cushion and he pressed it against his chest as he sat crossed-legs. Evan joined him and mimicked his position.
“What’s this place exactly? You said it was the attic but it definitely doesn’t look like one”
“It’s my getaway, my safe place. I come here when I want to disappear from the world. No one ever cares enough to look for me anyway so I spend most of my time here,” Evan explained. His usually cheerful voice was strained with sadness and Regulus didn’t like that.
“You must feel lonely,” Regulus whispered in a soft voice.
Evan was surprised by the tone of his friend. Regulus never used a soft voice with him, he was so harsh and dry and cold most of the time Evan didn’t even suspected he could speak gently too. Regulus was as startled as Evan at the moment because the only person he ever talked to like that was Sirius.
“I do,” Evan sighed sadly.
“I know how it feels like,” Regulus swallowed the emotions which formed a lump in his throat.
“I guess that’s why I want us to be friends so badly. I never had anyone you know? I have Barty, obviously but his father doesn’t let him come over very often and we barely see each other anymore”
“How did you meet him?”
A soft smile appeared on Evan’s lips and Regulus felt slightly better. “We met when I was three. Our fathers both work at the ministry and.. Well. His father and mine would always spend the nights drinking and playing poker together. Not the muggle version, the wizard version,” Evan promptly added. “My mother would babysit him during those nights but then one day when we were seven they stopped and I barely saw Barty since then. He came over four times in the past two years. That’s why I can’t wait to go to Hogwarts. I know we’ll be together again and it makes me very happy because I am feeling so lonely since we’ve been apart”
Regulus gave him a sad smile. If there was something he could understand, it definitely was this. He had never thought he could relate to Evan as much as he did now. He felt a lot of sympathy for him. Slowly, he moved his hand hesitantly towards Evan’s. He almost changed his mind for a second but then he patted gently his hand awkwardly and Evan smiled.
“We should go to sleep, now,” Evan said. “I’m going to get our pyjamas and we could sleep here, if you’d like?”
“That would be nice,” he nodded.
Evan smiled and pushed on his feet to get up. He left the room and Regulus decided to look out the window for a while. He stargazed peacefully, his mind full of dreams and hopes about the future. Before that day, he had never realised Evan would also be at Hogwarts by his side and the thought warmed his heart a bit. Maybe he didn’t have to push him away, maybe he could let him in.
Maybe they could be friends. Maybe his heart could be big enough to host two people instead of just one. Sirius wouldn’t mind, would he? He hoped not.
Evan came back fifteen minutes later with snacks and pyjamas. They put them on, hidden from each others and then they sat under the tent where they discussed light-heartedly while eating snacks. They fell asleep next to each other in the tent, very late after midnight with an unfamiliar feeling of safety and a soft smile on their lips.
The day had been good thus far.
Sirius had a lot of fun with Remus and James and he spent the day laughing with Peter about silly things. Remus taught them how to make origami chicken and they had a lot of fun while personalising theirs. Remus explained it was a muggle thing and he told them it was a game every muggles had played at least once so they had wanted to play it too and Sirius thought it was kind of addictive despite he was aware it was as fake as divination.
At the end of the day, Peter left them to go to the owlery to send a letter to his mother and Sirius, James and Remus stayed together in the library to work on their homework. Sirius enjoyed spending time with them even if he had to work which was truthfully unpleasant but Remus insisted that they did their homework before they left to go to the lake. It was enough to motivate him to work twice harder since he loved the moment they spent together near the water.
He was finishing to write a forty-five centimeters long parchment for the transfiguration class and James was trying to memorise the ingredients for the cure for boils potion as they were supposed to brew it next week.
“Incredible!” Remus spoke aloud which draw the attention of the two others and a few students around them who asked him to shut up. “Sorry,” he whispered.
“What’s so incredible?” James asked absentmindedly.
“In this books they say Goblins crafted the most powerful weapons of the whole history of the wizarding community. Isn’t it incredible?”
“Wait, you’re reading about Goblins? Again?” Sirius mumbled as he drew a point on his paper at the end of his sentence.
“Why yes, they’re so interesting,” Remus shrugged. “They’re so smart and powerful, I wonder why they’re not at the head of the world!” he whispered excitedly.
“Because we were smarter,” Sirius replied flatly. “All you ever do these days is reading about Goblins and doing your homework. What’s so interesting about them anyway?”
“Didn’t you hear what I just said? They crafted the most powerful weapons of our whole history!” he repeated as if it was supposed to mean anything to Sirius.
“Yes and?” Sirius arched a brow.
“Their weapons are magical!”
“Yes, like a hundred percent of the things you find in the wizarding world”
“You don’t get it!” Remus insisted with a groan of frustration. “Their weapons only absorb things that strengthen their blade! They are perfectly balanced, they can cut through any materials and destroy mythical creatures like.. I don’t know, the f*cking kraken”
“The kraken doesn’t exist,” James replied, still focused on his book.
“If it did, it would be easily defeated by a weapon crafted by the Goblins,” Remus answered with a curt nod as he pointed his index towards James.
“Why did they lose the war if their weapons were so great?” Sirius asked.
“Because wizards were a lot more destructive than they were”
Sirius shrugged. “Don’t you have any homework to do?”
“Nope, I finished mine already”
“Then why did you force us to come here?” Sirius groaned and he dramatically dropped his head on his arms which were resting lazily on the table.
“Just because I have done my homework doesn’t mean you did too and I was right to think so because you didn’t! Besides, I really wanted to read a little bit more about them. The deeper I dig, the more interesting it gets!”
“Why are you so obsessed with them?”
“I’m not obsessed!” He denied, offended.
“Yes, you are,” James replied as he turned the page.
“I just think they’re really cool! They remind me of the Lord of the Rings, a little bit”
“What the hell is that?” Sirius asked as he frowned.
“One of my favorite trilogy ever! Oh my God you have to read it! I’ll lend you the first book!”
“I didn’t even read Narnia,” he mumbled.
“You should have, it’s awesome”
“You always say that about anything you read”
“And I am awfully right all the time,” he laughed.
“Okay I’m done, this is boring and I can’t process it anymore it feels like my brain is going to explode!” James interjected as he slammed the book shut. Both Sirius and Remus looked at him, suddenly more focused on him than they were on their conversation. “We should join Pete, he said he’ll wait for us near the lake”
“I’m done with my homework too. If Remus has finished to read whatever he can find about Goblins, I guess we can go,” Sirius replied, already in a better mood at the thought of leaving the library and trading its horrendous air fulfilled with knowledge and books scent for the fresh air of October.
“Yeah alright, let me lend this book first. I won’t be long,” he said as he got on his feet and he went talking to Mrs Pince. She looked as gloomy as ever from where Sirius could see her.
Sirius and James gathered their stuff and Sirius carefully rolled his parchment. When they both lifted their gaze to see who they thought were Remus coming back to their table, they saw Lily’s bright red hair as she leaned over the table.
“Where is Severus?” she asked calmly. Her voice was soft but her eyes were lit like fire as she spoke.
“How would we know? We’ve spent three hours here,” James replied.
“Don’t lie! He said he was going to the owlery to send a letter to his father and he never came back”
“Why did you think it was us?” Sirius arched a brow, challenging her to say whatever she had in mind.
“Maybe because you and your mates are bullies who targeted him!” she spat, a hint of anger in her tone. “If you’ve done anything to him I’m going to make sure you’ll pay for it”
“Lily? What’s wrong?” a fourth voice called. The three of them turned their heads at the same time.
“Oh, hi Marlene!” Sirius waved at her with a soft smile.
“Hello. What’s going on?” she asked awkwardly.
“You know them, Marls?” Lily asked startled.
“I know Sirius, yes. What’s wrong Lils?”
“Severus is missing and I am almost sure they have something to do with it”
“C’mon don’t be silly, I’m sure he just met some friends on his way darling. Don’t worry so much about him, I’m going to help you find him okay?” She wrapped her arm around Lily’s shoulder and she practically dragged her away from them. Lily glared at them one last time before heading off the library.
James sighed and Sirius crossed his arms on his chest. “Who does she think she is to accuse us like she did?” he spat, annoyed.
“She’s just worried about her friend,” James replied calmly.
“You really need to stop defending her all the time, James”
“I’m just saying I understand why she’s so upset”
“Well I don’t!”
“Severus always managed to return the situation against us, every single time. Whenever she is around he makes us look like we’re the bad guys. It makes sense she believed him,” he pragmatically explained.
“Maybe if she opened her f*cking eyes just once she’d see what kind of person she befriended”
“Give her some time. She’ll see it sooner or later,” James shrugged.
Remus came back at the same time and he packed his stuff. When he finally looked at his friends, he saw the anger deforming Sirius’ soft features.
“What’s wrong?” he asked carefully.
“Just Snivellus being the insufferable prick he always is,” Sirius spat.
“Wait when was he there?” Remus asked confused.
“He wasn’t. Lily, you know the red-haired girl who follows him everywhere? Well she came over our table and she told us he was missing and she seemed to think it has to do something with us,” James explained.
“Yes because she’s stupid enough to believe his bullsh*t,” Sirius gritted his teeth.
Remus sighed. “Don’t speak of her like that, it’s very understandable that she-”
“Yeah, yeah whatever,” Sirius abruptly stood on his feet and he took his stuff before he stormed out of the library, leaving his friends behind.
He was fulminating. He didn’t even hold the door as he walked away and it slammed hard when it closed behind him. He wanted to scream. Sirius had no issue with being told off when he deserved it but when it came to Severus, it was definitely not deserved. He had not done anything wrong. Sure, he called him Snivellus the first time they met and it was really mean of him to do so but he was making fun of Remus for.. Sirius tried to remember what it was about but he couldn’t. Whatever it was, Severus had deserved to be treated like sh*t. Sirius had simply mirrored his own sh*tty behaviour in order to protect a friend – who at that time was not even his friend yet.
It made him really upset to be seen as the villain of the story when he had done nothing but show kindness to people who deserved it. Severus was simply unworthy of his love and kindness and it said a lot about him because Sirius gladly gave it to whoever wanted it.
This situation bitterly reminded him of all the time Walburga had needed a culprit and had decided he would do just fine so he’d become the target of her wrath. This was one of the other reasons why he hated his father so much because ninety percent of the time, she was mad at him but she lashed out on her children, on Sirius. His father was unfaithful and every one around them knew, even his own kids but every one purposely pretended to be blind, especially his mother. He had had multiple affairs and Sirius wouldn’t be surprised if he had another sibling he didn’t know about.
Most of the time, Walburga used idle excuses to punch Sirius when she felt like punching Orion instead. She was a coward and she knew she wouldn’t stand a chance against him so she picked an easier target instead. Regulus was the best choice considering he had always been softer than Sirius but he was also too perfect to get hit and perfection had never been Sirius’ thing. An elbow on the table, a word mispronounced in French because he was slowly losing the language, a smile too wide or too tight, etc. Anything was an excuse to hit him when she felt the urge to unwind.
That’s exactly what the situation with Severus reminded him of because Lily put her anger in the wrong place, she was mad at him because she chose to ignore the elephant in the room. He was aware the anger was not only directed at him this time but it didn’t mean it was easier to accept it nonetheless. He also was hurt that his friends defended her. He knew It wasn’t fair to blame them for that because deep down he knew they were right but he needed their support, he wanted them to be on his side.
He wanted to be chosen for once.
He was aware there was no such thing as sides because they were his friends and not hers or Severus’ but when they defended her or tried to reason him in his anger, he felt like they chose her above him. It was probably silly to feel this way but he couldn’t help it.
“Sirius wait!” he heard James call behind him but he didn’t slow down.
“Sirius, please,” he heard Remus say behind him.
He bit his cheek angrily and he wiped his eyes which started watering after the awful memories flashed before his eyes. He released a shaky breath and he stopped walking. That wasn’t fair to be angry at them for something they were right about. Now, he felt stupid for his behaviour because he didn’t know how to explain what had just happened. On one hand, how was he even supposed to tell them about the things he had in his mind? But on the other hand, how was he supposed to pretend like it didn’t matter either? They wouldn’t buy it.
He took a few deep breath as he tried to calm the inner rage brewing inside. Suddenly, it felt like his anger was getting bigger than it used to be because he realised he wasn’t just mad about Lily. He was mad about Walburga, and Orion and Regulus.
Yes, Regulus was included in the things that made him mad because half of the beating wouldn’t have happened if Regulus was strong enough to take them. The thought sent shivers down his spine and his face distorted with horror. How low had he fallen to blame his baby brother for whatever happened to him? He had never been responsible. First of all, Regulus had never asked him to stand up for him, if anything he begged him multiple times not to. Two, the only person he should blame for the beating was his mother who made sure to hurt him badly all the time. Three, the only person he did blame for it was himself.
He was the common denominator to every single one of those situations.
James and Remus joined him quickly since he stopped walking and they stood on each side of him. They stopped walking as soon as they reached him and they began to talk to him to make sure he was okay. Sirius wished he knew what they truly were saying but he couldn’t hear a word, his voice was stuck in his throat as he mumbled incomprehensible things and his vision was blurry. He had never felt this amount of anger before.
“Shut the f*ck up! Both of you!” He yelled and both James and Remus shut their mouths at the same time, quite shocked he would yell that loud at them.
“Sirius..,” James whispered, his eyes full of concern for him and Sirius immediately regretted yelling. James’ kindness and the way he looked at him drained every bits of anger out of his body. He rubbed his face which softened quickly and he met his friends eyes sheepishly.
“I’m sorry I don’t know why I yelled,” he lied.
“It’s okay. We all have bad days,” James reassured him kindly.
Sirius looked at Remus who remained strangely very quiet. He looked pissed off honestly but Sirius hoped it wasn’t because of him. “Remus?” he asked hopeful.
“Mmh?” Remus hummed as he finally met Sirius’ eyes.
“Do you forgive me?”
“Yes, sure. It’s okay. Don’t worry”
“What is it?” James asked.
“I’m not sure. Come with me,” Remus replied.
The three of them walked towards the lake which happened to be not very far away now. Sirius had not realised he had walked that fast and crossed the land so effortlessly. They were almost there when they began to heard voices. They didn’t seem very friendly but they al were familiar. The closer they get, the louder the voices were.
“Give it back to me!” Pete yelled, his voice strangled by a sob.
“I think you should go and fetch it yourself, Pettigrew. I’m not handed it back”
James and Sirius ran as fast as they could as soon as they heard Peter’s voice raising in the air. Sirius didn’t know what was happening but he was ready to protect his friend against anything and anyone. James and Sirius stopped running when they arrived close enough and their eyes fell on Peter who was held back by two Slytherins: Avery and Mulciber. Snape was in front of him, making fun of Peter and a package was floating above the lake. Peter’s jaw had begun to bruise after what appeared to be a punch and Sirius felt the rage return.
Before he even thought, he strode towards them and he shoved Mulciber surprisingly hard enough to make him fall on his ass. He approached Avery, a threatening look in the eyes and it seemed to be enough because the other boy raised his hands defensively and took a step back. Peter was finally free.
“Sirius!” James called as a warning.
He didn’t even have the time to turn around to face Severus that he heard two voices speaking at the same time. Everything happened so fast Sirius wasn’t even sure what was going on.
James took his wand out and aimed the lake as he pronounced “Wingardium Leviosa” quite loudly. It seemed like it had been the moment of his life. At the same time, Remus – who was still behind Sirius – raised his wand and said “Expelliarmus”. Sirius didn’t know this spell but Severus’ wand flew away from him and Remus caught it. Sirius looked around him, a bit stunned by the quick reactions of his friends. If Remus hadn’t reacted, Snape would have probably hexed Sirius and if James hadn’t been fast enough, Peter’s package would have fallen into the lake.
“Give me my wand back!” Snape snarled.
“I don’t think I will,” Remus replied flatly as he shook his head. “Instead, I think I’m going to find Slughorn and explain him how and why I have your wand with me. I’m sure he’ll be more than happy to give it back to you”
Snape gritted his teeth and growled as he took a step forward. Remus raised his wand under his chin immediately and Snape stopped moving. “I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” he warned calmly. “You’re not the only one who knows a few spells. But I’m sure you already know that,” he waved his hand in which he held Snape’s wand.
Snape glared at him hatefully before he reached out for Mulciber who was still on the floor. “Come on guys, we have better things to do anyway”
Sirius, James, Remus and Peter watched them leave silently before the three boys turned their heads away to look at Peter.
“Are you okay?” James asked.
“Yes, I think so. Thank you guys,” he sighed.
James nodded and they sat together on the grass near the water. They all sat except for Sirius who decided to climb the same tree as before. He liked being able to look at the whole realm of school or at least as much as it was possible to see. He folded a leg and rocked the other one carelessly as it hung in the air.
“Remus, you were incredible!” Peter praised him and he laughed. Sirius smiled softly because truthfully, he had been really impressive.
“Yeah mate! What was that spell?” James asked, cheerful as ever.
“Something we’ll learn next year. It’s useful when you need to defend yourself against bullies like them,” Remus replied with a little smile.
“I can’t believe you stepped in like you did!” Sirius said, “You never pick up a fight. You even let them insult you and shove you in the corridor”
“I know but I couldn’t let him hex you”
“Oh so you defend other people but you don’t defend yourself?” Sirius asked genuinely concerned.
“I guess,” he shrugged. “They can’t hurt me, I can take it. None of you should have to though so if I can do something about it, I will”
“And I am the knight in shining armor,” Sirius sighed ironically and rolled his eyes.
“What are you talking about?” James laughed.
“Nothing, it’s just what Marlene calls me”
“Marlene, uh?” James wiggled his eyebrows in a suggestive way and Sirius rolled his eyes harder.
“No, James. This is not like that”
“What happened Pete?” Remus asked instead of pursuing the silly conversation they were having.
“I was coming back to the lake after going to the owlery and they saw I was alone so I guess they thought it would be funny to wind me up,” Peter explained.
“What’s this package?” James asked.
“A present from my mom for my birthday”
“Your.. Your birthday?” Remus asked startled. “Oh my God Pete, did we forget your birthday?” he asked horrified.
“You can’t forget something you didn’t know,” Peter replied kindly.
“When is it?” James asked.
“It was yesterday,” he smiled.
Remus got up decidedly and he began to pace. The other boys looked at him as Remus seemed like he was thinking really hard about something. He looked so focused.
“What’s on your mind?” Sirius asked.
“This can’t be happening again,” Remus firmly replied.
“What are you talking about?” James asked.
“We mustn’t forget each other birthday ever again. So I need to come up with something,” he explained.
“Why does it matter so much?” Peter asked a bit confused. No one blamed him because they were all confused.
“Because!” he replied but didn’t elaborate and no one dared to ask more. “Alright I know! Let’s go back to the dorm”
“But we’ve just arrived!” Sirius complained.
“Get down this tree Black,” Remus replied as he rolled his eyes.
Sirius groaned but he obliged.
Twenty minutes later they were all sitting on the rug of their dorm and Remus was tracing lines and writing things on a paper. They didn’t know yet what he had in mind because he didn’t tell them but they were all really invested in whatever they were doing.
“Al-right,” Remus said as he decomposed the word, the tip of his tongue on his upper lip as his head was tilted on the right and he finished to trace one more line.
“Are you going to explain?” Sirius asked.
“I thought about something really cool! At least, I would love to do it!” He began to speak vehemently, clearly absorbed by the idea he had had. Sirius thought it was adorable the way his cheek flushed pink as he got excited. “Let me explain! I thought that I could designed a calendar with all your birthday on it! It would be great! And I could personalise it so it would be truly ours and no one else. I don’t know if you know but I love drawing and I’m doing pretty good at it. What do you think?” He asked nervously.
The boys exchanged a look before they all beamed and nodded furiously their heads. Sirius got up on his feet and he began to skip in the dorm excitedly.
“Oh Merlin yes that would be amazing! And we could pick a colour and draw doodles and silly things too on each other’s month! Oh and we could add pictures and quotations and.. Oh Merlin Remus you’re a f*cking genius!” Sirius said as he kept skipping in the dorm.
“Yes! That’s the vision! I would love doing this with you! We could all participate in the making!’
“Pete has the best handwriting! He should write the months and the numbers!” James said with the same amount of excitement.
“And James should definitely furnish the materials because he always have the best papers, parchment and quills!” Peter shot back with a grin on his face.
“Can I pick the music?! Oh I have an idea!” Sirius said enthusiastically and everyone listened. “We should all chose a music for our birthday and maybe we could find a spell or something that we would cast on it so that on our birthdays we would wake up with the music of our choice!”
“That’s so cool! Remus you had the best idea!” James nodded happily.
“Thanks guys! Okay, pick a colour and tell me your birthday!”
“I pick green,” Peter said instantly. “And my birthday is the 30th of September”
“I pick red,” James said, “I was born on the 27th of March”
“Oh no I wanted red!” Sirius whined.
“Sorry, if you prefer I can pick another colour”
“No it’s okay, I should have been faster,” he pouted.
“You can’t win all the races,” James winked.
“So?” Remus asked after he finished to write down the information given by his two friends. “Which colour for you, Sirius?”
Blue came first but he wasn’t sure he really wanted it so he tried to think of something else. He did his best to find something cool but red was the best colour and he didn’t think he could ever find something as good. He frowned as he kept searching in his head for a colour he’d like but none came up until..
“Brown! I think brown is cool,” he nodded.
“Okay, and when were you born?”
“On the 3rd of November,” he grinned.
“Perfect, now I have everyone’s birthday and colour, we can begin to work on it”
“Wait you didn’t tell us when you were born,” Peter pointed out.
“Nor what colour you picked,” Sirius added while raising an eyebrow.
“I was born on the 10th of March,” he smiled.
“What about the colour?”
“Yellow, of course!” he grinned.
