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"He's such a perfect little doll, Walburga," someone cooed as Regulus' fingers danced across the piano keys playing the requested music perfectly. Not a single stitch of clothing was out of place as the fingers so much like those of a porcelain doll danced across the perfect ivory in front of him while every so often Regulus opened his mouth and let his ivory whites shine, much to the delight of his mother's guests.
Once, he caught sight of Sirius, glaring at him with his mouth pressed together in perpetual frustration. Regulus didn't remember the last time his brother appeared with what their mother called an immaculate appearance, but that day his brother appeared in the doorway with his shirt untucked. Scratches covered Sirius' knees; Regulus guessed the reason was his older brother going outside and climbing trees despite knowing punishment would follow getting caught. Sirius hadn't bothered to tame the ebony black curls which both boys inherited from their mother either.
"How come she never gets onto your case, Reggie?" Sirius asked once, but when Regulus responded by tilting his head as the question confused him. His brother followed up by saying, "Don't look at me like that. Why is my hair considered messy and yours not?"
"Your hair is so soft Reggie," Narcissa cooed as she ran her fingers through his hair. "I'm jealous, but..." She leaned in so her face was right next to Regulus looked at himself in the mirror while she smiled. "I've got such an adorable doll of a cousin who lets me play with him and dress him up, right? And you look so perfect in everything, not a thing ever out of place. That's so different than Siri, isn't it?"
"I guess."
"And you're so soft-spoken," Narcissa ran a finger under Regulus' chin. "A perfect pureblood."
"Am I?"
Her arms wrapped around his small chest as he sat there in front of the dressing table looking at the mirror as she cradled him there. His mother didn't react when she saw them unless one counted the corner of her mouth curling as she watched Narcissa continue to run her fingers through his ebony locks. Sirius, on the other hand, reacted when he saw them, but he burst in with his usual loudness and latched onto Regulus' hand. "He's not a doll, you know!"
Sirius tugged him away, grumbling the entire time. Regulus tilted his head. "Siri?"
"What?" Sirius snapped.
"Did I do something wrong?"
"You're a pureblood, Reggie. Learn to act like one."
"But Cissy said I was," Regulus protested.
"Narcissa just enjoys having a living doll to play with, but you shouldn't give her that gratification, alright?"
"Why not? I like it when Cissy and Andy smile at me. It means they're happy, but when maman smiles she's happy, and she doesn't..."
"Regulus! Just, don't!"
Of course, there was a smile he didn't like, one that always sent chills down his spine. Smiles were supposed to mean that someone was happy, and for sure Bellatrix was happy when the smile appeared on her face. She also cooed like Narcissa did when she would sit him on her lap and play with his hair, running his fingers, but her actions didn't hurt.
The things Bellatrix did hurt.
He'd even say, "That hurts Bella."
"Don't worry. Be a good little doll and I'll use healing magic to heal you up. It's very good practice for me, little Reggie."
So, he let her hurt him as she would indeed heal him up, although there were also a few times she mentioned something about how, if he told any of the adults in the family about what she did that she would say it was Sirius who did those things, but he'd seen how the adults called Bella a perfect little doll and Sirius a wild child meaning they would believe her over Sirius.
"B...Bella!" Andy's voice - Regulus never heard her speak in such a manner before, but she swooped in and grabbed the arm Bellatrix was hurting which also hurt. "What are you doing?"
"I'm playing with the little doll here."
"Regulus is not a doll! He's a little boy!"
"I'm okay," Regulus muttered. "Bella always heals me after she finishes, but the Crutiatius doesn't leave any physical mark, so..."
"She's used the Crutiatius on you!"
"It hurts, but I'm okay."
He felt Andy pull him away from Bella, his mind in a fog of confusion as he was simply in that moment doing what he thought everyone expected of him. He remembered the adults speaking rather loudly after that. He sat in a chair, looking at his perfect little shoes while Sirius sat in another, staring at him in disbelief.
"Reggie? Why did they call a family meeting?"
"I got in trouble," Reggie muttered while his small fingers clutched the lip of the chair.
"You never get in trouble."
"I got in trouble." Which felt true when he was summoned to the study, something which was a constant for Sirius, but only when he was in trouble. He stood there, looking at his feet.
"This will not happen again, do you understand Regulus?"
He looked up at his grandfather, looking confused. He wanted to say no, he didn't understand as he was sure he'd been doing what he was supposed to be doing. He swallowed, looking up at the man.
A sigh came from his father's desk and the man got up and came over, getting down on his level so they could look each other in the eye. "Regulus. Bellatrix is not allowed to play with you anymore, do you understand?"
"But..." He wanted to cry yet knew Black's didn't cry. Bellatrix taught him that quite well, but he'd heard his mother telling Sirius as much when he was punished for sneaking out and climbing trees, among the other activities a noble wasn't supposed to do. "I'm sorry. I'll do better."
"Regulus," his grandfather said, "You're not the one in trouble."
"Is this like when Sirius isn't allowed to play with me?"
"Yes."
Which meant so much, yet so little as he'd always been told Bellatrix was the perfect pureblood, a perfect little doll. The same thing was often said about Narcissa and Andromeda, but never Sirius, yet now something which was said regarding Sirius was being said about Bellatrix.
Regulus fingers danced across the ivory keys as his mother's friends cooed about what a wonderful doll he was, something which continued even after he entered Hogwarts, even after Sirius ran away and he could no longer catch a glimpse of Sirius looking in. They weren't the only ones, as some of the other boys in Slytherin would bring it up, and not in the same sweet manner his mother's friends did.
Even before entering Hogwarts, there were days he simply wanted to hide under the kitchen table with his knees tucked up to his chin and his arms wrapped around his legs. Sometimes, he even wanted to avoid Narcissa despite the fact she smiled when he let her touch his hair, his eyes noting how Lucius looked on in a rather displeased manner which Regulus didn't understand.
Bellatrix was also allowed to interact with him again when she supposedly got over her phase, yet she seemed the same as she was back then which made him not understand why they'd banned her from playing with him in the first place, particularly when Andromeda's name ended up blasted from the tapestry just like the name of his older brother.
Under the table was the only place to escape from all that, or in Kreacher's cupboard, as his mother never once hesitated to enter his room which for some reason made him feel uncomfortable despite not having taken issue with such a thing when he was younger.
And then - he became on their whim the doll of the Dark Lord, a plaything which could easily be disposed of once he became bored of Regulus naive, innocent way of looking at things, for as he got older he started seeing more of the world, particularly after Sirius ran away and his grandfather took him to a wide range of different places.
"I'm not a doll," Regulus told himself despite knowing he'd lived most of his life being the perfect little doll for the Black family