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Seven has always been the most powerful magical number in the Wizarding World. It had a very important role in it ever since Bridget Wenlock established that in the XIII century. Even young children were exposed to it as by their seventh birthday, according to experts, they would reveal their magical properties. Those who were studying at Hogwarts would also notice that there were seven floors, there were seven core subjects and the education lasted seven years. If you were daring enough to explore the school, you would also know that there were seven secret passages out of the school.
If you were more into sports, the first thing you’d notice was that there were seven players on each Quidditch team and there were seven hundred fouls. If you were more into studying, you could perceive that many spells had seven letter incantations, there were seven types of transfiguration, many potions had something connected to seven and hundreds of books had seven volumes. The list went on and on. And whether you believed in it or thought it to be a conspiracy, you had to admit that it was an important number in everyone’s lives.
So it shouldn’t come as a surprise that seven people who were connected by an invisible bond would change a lot in the course of the history of the Wizarding World. And quite unusually the bond wasn’t between friends or lovers, this time around it was just as much as about them but also enemies and brothers. Every action has a consequence whether we realize that or not. Every moment has the potential to change the story. Connections may have been part of the past but how can one forget someone who used to be their whole world, even after a fight? Once there is a bond, it never truly leaves.
It all properly started when on September 1st of 1971 the Sorting Hat announced that Sirius Orion Black the Third belonged in Gryffindor. It wasn’t supposed to happen, at least not according to the Black family. It was a catalyst for creating a group of seven people whose lives would forever be entwined with unbreakable ties. The aforementioned was joined at the table and soon befriended Remus Lupin, Peter Pettigrew and finally James Potter. After just a few weeks no one had any doubts that those four troublemakers would be friends forever.
But at that time not many paid attention to another person who sat with them that day, Lily Evans. However, as opposed to them she didn’t consider herself lucky as her best friend and the only person in the Wizarding World she had known, Severus Snape, was sorted into another House. To make matters worse it was Slytherin which was the main rival of Gryffindor and there was a lot of hostility between their students so both kids knew that for the next seven years things wouldn’t be easy.
A year later another person joined Hogwarts. It was Regulus Black, who was a Hatstall, but was eventually sorted into Slytherin, a choice that made his family proud. However, not every relative, as it caused a fight with Sirius and his friend but it simultaneously inspired a friendship with Severus and therefore Lily.
All seven kids were connected by different relations, from hate, through friendship, love and brotherhood and during those seven years a lot had changed. Little did they know that it was that thing that would change their futures and everyone else’s. The seven unsuspecting kids would change history.
Their years at Hogwarts were full of happiness, jokes, fights, hatred and everything in between. Their relationships changed a lot throughout the school years. They had started as two separate groups of friends and ended at two opposing sides of the war.
Later on the drift between Regulus and Lily deepened as the boy’s Parents found it abhorrent that he was associated with a Mudblood. For some time he ignored that until it was suggested that it made him even worse than Sirius. So naturally, Regulus ended his friendship with Lily and hence weakened his relations with Severus.
There was one week when Snape, Evans and Lupin buried the hatchet when they all became Prefects. But the peace didn’t last long and soon the boys were enemies again, though the tentative friendship between Lily and Remus survived and according to some was a direct turning point in Evans-Potter friendship and love.
By the end of their Fifth Year it all changed again as it was Lily cutting Severus out of her life and the boy finding solace in Dark Arts and becoming worthy of younger Black boy’s friendship once more.
For a brief few weeks there was another odd turbulence. Regulus had been disapproving of Snape’s digging into Marauders’ lives and then for a reason only partly understood by the younger Black, his brother was left alone and that somehow reignited their siblings' friendship. Of course it didn’t last long because at the first sight of a chance, Sirius came back running to his Gryffindor friends.
There were several group projects, bumping into each other in common grounds, Slug Club, there was also a week when James and Regulus were laying at the same time in the Hospital Wing. And of course for the first few years, there were summer vacations when Black brothers would revive their relationship out of boredom.
After falling out with Severus, Lily got lonely and deepened friendships with her dormmates. Then, not long later, Remus became one of her closest friends and soon the other Marauders followed. In Seventh Year, Lily and James got together sealing the friendships and fate. Meanwhile Regulus and Severus made up and recreated their friendship as well as befriended other future Death Eaters.
With war going on outside but also inside the school, it seemed that there was no longer a group of seven people lousily connected but two enemy formations instead. At the graduation Lily was dating James and was friends with all the other Marauders and they were joining the Order of the Phoenix while Severus and Regulus were on the brink of officially joining Lord Voldemort’s followers and were hoping to become Death Eaters one day.
It seemed that nothing could change where their lives were heading but it took one week for a new turn in their destinies. In the third week of May of 1979 a lot happened for the group.
On Monday, Regulus accompanied by his House-elf, Kreacher, entered the Cave to retrieve a Horcrux. It was a secret mission and no one else knew about it, not even his family or friends. He was successful and that evening while Kreacher came back to Grimmauld Place, Regulus had disappeared into thin air taking the Locket with him.
On Tuesday, Lily and James got engaged. They along with other Marauders celebrated the betrothal.
On Thursday, Regulus’ disappearance became a problem and Walburga and Orion started to actively look for him.
On Saturday, the Black family announced that Regulus Black was missing and most likely dead. As it happened that was also the day Sirius and Bellatrix bumped into each other on Death Eater’s killing spree and Order’s rescue mission and it turned into the cousins’ private fight. On a positive side, all Muggles were saved and neither one of the Blacks was seriously injured physically. They both blamed each other for what had happened with Regulus in many different scenarios but it finally ended when Professor Dumbledore appeared with James Potter. Weirdly enough, it was the latter who really stopped the quarrel by influencing Sirius rather than Headmaster because neither one of the fighters listened to him. However, his presence did make Bellatrix Apparate at the very last.
On Sunday, Severus’ dream finally came true and he got the Dark Mark he had wanted since he, Regulus and a few other Hogwarts’ students had heard about it. It was a bit bitter as he had always hoped that it would happen alongside the Black boy and now his friend was gone, possibly dead. Severus was acutely aware that a huge part of why he was even being honored was that he was a replacement for Regulus who had offered his House-elf as a token of devotion. The same day, late evening Severus even dared to send his former best friend a letter asking her to tell him, if she knew anything. Lily took mercy on him and wrote back a short note how she knew nothing and asked in return for any updates he had. But neither one was able to send a second note as Regulus disappeared without a trace.
In August, it was the first time Lord Voldemort graced one of the fights, between his followers and the Order, with his presence. It was clear he was furious. It was dangerous but luckily members of the Order all survived but one of his own followers was killed as well as many Muggles. He delivered a vague threat that he would not be stopped the next time. He said that in an ominous way but not even Dumbledore knew what could have had happened to warrant that.
One day in January 1980 during a Death Eaters’ meeting, Voldemort got enraged again. He killed two unlucky people who happened to have butchered their last mission of killing Prewett twins. Severus and many others were starting to wonder if and why their powerful Master was starting to lose it.
On a few other instances the Dark Lord would attack his people, from threatening through Cruciatus Curse and even Avada Kedavra . Naturally, it wasn’t a completely new behavior but in those few instances, it was different, like he was losing control over himself. His followers were slowly questioning his sanity as well as were outrightly scared of him and his sudden outbursts of violence.
He also started to trust less and less people. He still had his most loyal Death Eaters but no one new was allowed. Severus was one of the last new people.
Voldemort also changed his focus. Instead of purifying the world and gaining power, he chose the Lestrange Manor as his place and made Death Eaters become guards rather than warriors.
Some followers were starting to lose faith while others were more than ever supporting him. Severus found himself to be one of the doubting people. On one hand, he believed in the Dark Lord and his plan but on the other, he had always been a bit skeptical and calculating and it was clear that something was happening but as far as he knew no one was let in on this secret.
At the same time on the other side of the war people were getting suspicious as well. After two months without any killing and torturing or any other attacks, the Order was suspecting that something huge was coming. They had no intel on what was happening though and it was making everyone anxious.
In October there was a happy event in the lives of the Order’s members. Two of their favorite people got married. In a beautiful ceremony Lily and James became Mrs. and Mr. Potter. It was a great wedding and fortunately it was calm and nothing happened. Sirius, who was James’ Best Man, along with Marlene, Lily’s Maid of Honor, took every single precaution to make sure that the wedding was uninterrupted but little did they know that it was unnecessary as Lord Voldemort had basically moved into hiding. They all had fun, ate, talked and danced until early morning. They were glad to have a happy day in the midst of the darkness, deaths and war.
As it turned out for months the war was almost on hiatus. Every once in a while a bored or frustrated Death Eater would attack but there were no official orders. The general public was slowly starting to believe that the war was over, especially since the new Minister has been hinting at that. There were plenty of different rumors from He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named being dead, to him and Dumbledore striking a deal, to people preparing for the worst attack yet.
It was the Easter break of 1981 when people, while still living in fear, decided to celebrate by gathering with families and friends. On Monday noon, Regulus Black Apparated in the suburbs of Hogsmeade. He was proud of everything he had accomplished while he was gone and was glad to be only a few steps away from making Voldemort mortal. He glanced at a small cup he was holding in his hand. It had once belonged to Helga Hufflepuff but now the innocently looking artifact was emanating dark energy.
Regulus’ plan was simple. To destroy the Cup near Hogwarts, then enter the castle to find the last Horcrux. After a lot of sneaking he had managed to find out that it was a diadem and it was connected to Ravenclaw. In the time it would take to find it inside the castle, he was betting on Voldemort appearing.
He had formed this plan about a month ago when he had cast Imperius Curse on a Ministry of Magic employee to go to Dumbledore and announce to him that he was to clear the castle of students for Easter as the Ministry would be launching a full scale investigation in the castle. It wasn’t hard to believe as the new Minister for Magic got chosen roughly around the time that Voldemort and his followers calmed and she tried to take credit for that. However, at school where there were kids from different backgrounds, the war was still going on, regardless of what was going on outside. It was such a peculiar occurrence that it drew the attention of many people so the Ministry pretending to be doing something about it wasn’t such a strange idea.
If the Headmaster was suspecting anything, Regulus didn’t know. He just hoped that the Professor had sent all the students away. Because as much as he became numb and indifferent, he didn’t want any innocent kids to get caught in the crossfire. After all, he did know what that was like.
Regulus walked a bit into the forest until he found a good place to use Fiendfyre. After using it 3 times on Horcruxes and practicing some more, he was good at containing it. However, just before he could cast it, he changed his mind. He hid his wand and the Cup and decided to inform people in case it would all go wrong. That wasn’t part of the plan but until a few hours ago, he was still in denial that he might die today.
He took out one of his vials with Polyjuice Potion and his supply of hairs that he has been collecting for the last few months and put one blond hair into the vial. He drank this concoction and went to look for an owl or some other way of communication. Due to war and Easter time almost everything was closed. He finally walked into the Three Broomsticks where he knew a nice young woman named Rosmerta was working.
“Hello,” he said with a fake accent. He was hoping that it wouldn’t raise any suspicions but the fact alone of someone during war, on Easter when the pub was almost empty was weird enough. He didn’t want to add a British accent and cause astonishment at being a stranger from this country.
“Hello, welcome to the Three Broomstick. May I take your order?”
“I came here from afar and I wanted to send a message to my friends that I am fine but it seems that in Scotland there aren’t any public places to do that?”
“No, I’m afraid there aren’t, sir,” she shook her head. “But we have a fireplace and if you want you could send a letter through that,” she offered politely.
“Yes, that would be lovely,” the blonde Regulus smiled, “thank you very much.” Then he added, “if I may trouble you even more, do you happen to have any paper and something to write with?”
“Sure, I’ll bring you everything in a moment.”
“Two pieces of paper, if you could,” he thought briefly about sending a letter to Bellatrix or Narcissa as well but he rejected that idea as they were too close to Voldemort. “And something to drink. But make it nonalcoholic.”
Regulus chose a table in the far back of the pub where he could sit with his back to a wall. He took off his coat and hat to make himself comfortable. As an afterthought he moved his chair slightly so that he had a better view of the Three Broomsticks in case someone wanted to attack him. He also laid his wand on the table as a precaution. It could look as if he just wanted to relax but truthfully, it was so that he could quickly grab it, if needed.
Soon Madam Rosmerta came back with a pile of papers as well as writing equipment and a Butterbeer. “Let me know, if you need anything else, sir.”
Regulus nodded and took a sip of his drink. He hadn’t had it since he had left Hogwarts and it brought back memories. But he didn’t let himself reminisce, he didn’t want to ruin his plan. He pushed the Butterbeer to the side and laid one paper in front of himself. He decided to write to his brother first.
“Sirius,
As you probably know I had disappeared for months and they had even thrown me a funeral. The whole world may think I’m dead but I’m not. I don’t have time or energy to convince you that it is really me but in a few hours you will find out that everything else this letter says is true. So it is up to you to decide whether or not you believe me.
Many months ago I had discovered the truth about You-Know-Who. He had created Horcruxes. I know it was me who was trying to read through every book at the Grimmauld Place library so I’ll explain. It’s an object that someone hides a part of one’s soul and therefore becomes immortal. In a moment I will destroy the second to last Horcrux near Hogsmeade and Hogwarts. I will cast a modified spell and the Dark Mark on the sky will be red. I’m hoping to get,” there was a heavily crossed out part, ” Voldemort’s attention. I will be in the castle looking for the last Horcrux that he had hidden there. After that the man will be mortal. I don’t know if I get to fight him, if I get to live but I want you to know that just one Killing Curse and the world will change. If no one kills him tonight, I bet he will just create more Horcruxes and this time they won’t be as easy to find. Or maybe he will even choose a different way to achieve immortality.
It doesn’t come easily for me to admit but you were right. For so many years I was too stupid and naive to listen. Thank you for everything you have ever done for me and what you wanted to do, even when I was a stubborn idiot. I know this doesn’t change anything but I hope that there is at least a small part of you that is happy and proud. Because had I never known you, I would probably just blackmail my way to the top of Death Eaters instead of doing the “right” thing.
Alive but who knows for how long,
R.A.B.”
Although many things in the letter pointed to him being the author, Regulus didn’t sign his full name and hoped that Sirius would make the connection. Besides, knowing his brother, that was exactly the type of thing that would interest him and hence he would show up regardless of who had written the letter. He folded the letter three times to ensure it wouldn’t accidentally open and took another paper and pondered over what to write to his friend.
“Hi Sev!
It’s been a while but I hope you never lost hope that I am alive. I know it’s a shock but I wanted you to let you know I went into hiding and tonight I’m going to stop.
I don’t know where you stand on everything but I had found out that the Dark Lord had created truly disturbing artifacts. I’m not going to go into details as it could cause you trouble, if anyone finds this letter. Hopefully, it will all end tonight, somewhere near Hogwarts.
I hope to see you again someday but if not, I will always be thankful for the years of friendship we had.
Take care,
R.A.B.”
He folded the letter and drank some more of the Butterbeer. He had no idea what tonight and the next day would have in store for him. He was hoping for peace and reunions but he knew that death was just as, if not more, likely. He looked around. Though he stopped himself earlier, he now decided that a bit of reminiscing couldn’t hurt.
He winced as he remembered his second time here. He was in Third Year and he was so happy to finally be able to explore Hogsmeade. On his first visit he had made sure to visit every single place but on his second trip, he chose to enjoy any place he wanted. At that time he was mostly hanging out with Severus, though not Lily anymore. Since the two childhood friends were close back then, Regulus had spent the morning with Hugo Greengrass and then some time alone. He had bought himself a new set of quills and some sweets from Honeydukes and then he went to the Three Broomsticks to meet with Severus.
As soon as he walked in he heard his brother and his friends and Regulus preyed to Merlin that they don’t ruin this day for him. Lately, they have been bothering him a lot. Ever since Lily decided to spend more time with Alice and Marlene, making Severus have more free time which resulted in Regulus hanging out a lot with him. For some reason it irritated them or maybe they just realized they could kill two birds with one stone.
And just as he had predicted about an hour later they were all kicked out of the Three Broomsticks with a month of detention and ban from the next two visits in Hogsmeade. And to make matters worse, it didn’t even begin with Regulus. Sirius and his friends somehow started a fight with Mulciber and Avery which ended up as every Slytherin vs Gryffindor that were at the pub at that time.
Regulus was so mad at Sirius because of this that he didn’t even wish him a happy birthday a few days later. Little did he know that it would actually turn into a tradition in the following years.
The other visit at the Three Broomstick that came to his mind was about a year later when he invited Forsythia Selwyn on a date. Although it’s been years and it didn’t go too well as they had only gone out twice, he could feel the blood rushing to his cheeks at the memory. He quickly shook his head and tried to think about something else as he was probably drawing enough attention before he started blushing seemingly without a reason.
He tried hard to think of a memory that he could stay indifferent outwardly about. There were many times he had spent time here with his friends. It wasn’t always the same group but it was mostly people who ended up Death Eaters or followers. He felt a pin of guilt. If everything went according to plan and Voldemort would be defeated, then undoubtedly it would be followed by arrests or deaths of people who used to be close to him. No matter what views they had and what they had done, those people were Regulus’ friends and family. When did he decide that doing the “right” thing was more important than his own wellbeing and loyalty to his family?
But the young man could pinpoint the exact reason - Sirius Black. From the early days, he had always cared about others. Regulus remembered it so clearly because he was one of the people that it concentrated on the most. It wasn’t until his older brother had gone to Hogwarts that Regulus realized just how different from most of their family he was.
However, that was only the beginning. With his Gryffindor friends and his newfound rebellious streak, Sirius became someone Regulus was taught to look down on and disapprove of while secretly admiring him. Because under his larger than life, loud persona, was someone who still felt things strongly and cared about others passionately. The tough rebellious kid was in fact a protective, warm friend. And Regulus was sure that if he had a chance, he would befriend him in a blink of an eye even without his Parents’ approval. But he couldn’t because the moment the Sorting Hat shouted, “Slytherin!,” it was almost impossible.
But as it turned out sometimes unthinkable happens and for a few weeks the two Black brothers were friendly again. It was a weird time in his life as firstly, he and Severus were having tense relations due to the older boy’s obsession with Sirius and his friends. Then one night when Regulus was walking on a patrol as a Prefect, Sev ran to him in rugged dirty clothes and started mumbling about how Remus Lupin was a werewolf. The events got even weirder as one of the portraits told them that Severus had to go to the Headmaster's Office and when he came back, he refused to talk about it and avoided him for weeks.
Regulus didn’t investigate the rumor the next day as he was planning to. Instead he found his brother standing hesitantly near the Gryffindor table during the breakfast. When their eyes met, Sirius quickly looked down as if ashamed and then chose to sit down, to the shock of everyone who saw that, he sat next to First Years. Obviously, his older brother wasn’t mean to younger kids, especially from his House but he had never not sat down with James Potter. There were moments when neither of the four friends attended a feast, or only three or two were there but best to Regulus’ knowledge the only times those two weren’t together was when the other one was in Hospital Wing for longer than a few days. Because even a short stay with Madam Pomfrey or detentions weren’t enough to separate them.
But Regulus could clearly see that a few feet from Sirius were sitting Potter and Pettigrew. He made sure to memorize that fact to use in his debate of Lupin being a werewolf. However, after he finished breakfast and left the Great Hall, Sirius caught up with him and acted as if the last few years had never happened. Regulus decided to indulge him out of curiosity. That conversation didn’t help Lupin’s case as it was obvious that his brother wanted to know if Snape had spoken to him and what he knew.
Fast forward and they became civil, almost amiable. As both were currently having trouble with their friends and apparently didn’t want to bother making new ones, they would talk sometimes. It wasn’t friendship or brotherhood as it used to be, it was more like a backup in case of a fight. Naturally, no one dared to say anything to their faces. They each had reputations and combined, they created a strong force as well as mystery and confusion.
Current-day Regulus looked at one of the tables that was right now occupied by what seemed to be two couples. That was the table that he and Sirius spent their only visit to Hogsmeade together. It was such a bizarre experience that to this day Regulus wasn’t sure it wasn’t all an illusion.
But those days were most likely the reason why, when Regulus realized that the Dark Lord had created Horcruxes, he decided to fight against him. In their short time together, though they didn’t really open up, they came to an understanding. Afterwards, when Potter and the rest accepted Sirius back, the Black brothers were no longer enemies, simply on the opposite sides. He didn’t know how Sirius’ friends reacted to that but Severus never understood that.
It wasn’t anything in particular that they said or did, it was the quiet acceptance when they needed each other. It was the fact that when Sirius felt too ashamed to try to talk to his other friends who would have no idea what had happened between the Gryffindor friends, he chose Regulus. The Slytherin boy understood that even at his worst, he could go to his older brother, no matter what choices he had made. It felt amazing for once to be good enough by simply existing and not by achieving all the expectations. It made him enticed by the good side.
Throughout the reminiscing, Regulus was drinking his Butterbeer. When he noticed that he reached the bottom of the drink, he looked once again at the letters and decided to write the addressees on them. Then he stood up, went to Madam Rosmerta and gave her money with a generous tip and asked for the fireplace to Floo the letters. She lead him to it and after a moment decided to leave him there alone. Regulus reread the letters but he was aware that he had to hurry as the Polyjuice Potion would stop working soon. He quickly sent the notes hoping that they would reach the right people.
He left the restaurant with farewell to Rosmerta and went to the place he had previously chosen. He pulled out a basin from his pouch and laid the Hufflepuff Cup in there. He casted Fiendfyre and let it do its work. He found out that doing it quickly and directly, meant killing the soul immediately and not having to face it.
He casted his own spell Morsmordre rubrum and Apparated to the Shrieking Shack. After Sirius almost caused Severus to be killed by the werewolf and Snape telling Regulus some parts of it, he observed Lupin for a while and came to a realization that it was in fact true. Regulus knew that Severus never admitted that he had managed to share the secret before the Headmaster made him swear to stay quiet and he doubted that his friend would share that information now. Regulus didn’t care enough to cause Lupin or the others trouble, he just held it close as a possible upperhand material. It was prudent to always have some blackmail material. And since no one ever found out that Regulus got to know the secret, he could now use the Shack without any fear.
The place looked unused. Regulus sometimes wondered if Dumbledore would bring more young werewolves to Hogwarts. It was pretty safe for the students, compared to other things that happened here, while it created people who owed him their whole lives and stayed loyal to him. He knew that in the Headmaster's eyes it was a perfect plan. But Regulus believed that despite all that he was, he wouldn’t create werewolves just for fun. He was using what he was given to his own advantage but not in a way that would make him outrightly bad. But Regulus was sure that if the Professor ever came across another werewolf kid, he would invite them to Hogwarts.
It took him a while but finally he emerged from underneath the Whomping Willow. He had no idea how to freeze it though so he had to run and was almost hit a few times. Fortunately for him, Regulus was good at dodging the Bludgers and it came in useful now. Finally, he reached a safe distance and he looked up at the castle. He had thought the Three Broomsticks brought back an onslaught of memories but it was nothing compared to the Hogwarts grounds. Anywhere he looked, he could see through his imagination’s eyes scenes from the past. He used to be happy here and he was glad he got to remember that before his possible and likely death.
The lights were mostly out. He noticed that just a handful of windows were alight. He took out another vial and put in another hair. This time it was black. He didn’t drink it though but had it prepared in case he had to use it quickly.
He didn’t think it would be that easy but he entered through the main entrance unnoticed or at least uninterrupted. He went to look for the Grey Lady. The only person he could think of that might know and be willing to tell him anything. He had known her back in his school-years and that was why he hadn’t used Polyjuice. He hoped that she would help him, if he was himself.
At the same time many miles away, Severus Snape was knocking on the Potter Manor’s gate. He was hoping to get to Lily or even Potter or his friends. It was the only place he knew the address of as the Manor had always belonged to that family. It was possible that no one would be inside or that they wouldn’t hear him out but he was hoping that they would give him a chance. Especially since he and Lily had agreed to update each other on any information regarding Regulus, though he was aware that it was supposed to be through letters.
Fortunately, Sirius appeared at the Manor just a few minutes earlier and sent Patronuses to Remus and Peter and so they were all gathered in the living room. They were supposed to meet there in a few hours anyway. Sirius had just told them what was in the letter when they saw Snape at the gate.
“What is Snivellus doing here?” James hissed, asking no one in particular.
“No idea, we should just ignore him,” Remus advised, grimacing.
“Or go fight him,” Sirius proposed with a mischievous look in his eyes. He looked at Prongs as he knew he was most likely to agree with him.
“Or he also got a letter,” Lily said rationally and stood up from the coach. “We’re going to talk to him. Calmly and nicely.”
“What?” James turned and followed his wife, “Lily, wait!” He caught up and grabbed her arm, “you can’t go there!” She raised her eyebrow but didn’t say anything. “I- I mean… please don’t go there?” James asked with a pleading look on his face. “I know you still trust him somewhat but what if I go instead? I promise I won’t attack him. Please, I can’t stand the thought of you and little James Junior being in danger.”
“Yes, Lils, you and Prongslet should stay just in case. Prongsie and I will take care of it,” Sirius said and then when she looked at him expectantly, he added, “peacefully. And of course we all know you could definitely win against him… But why risk it when we can play it safe, right?” Lily still didn’t look convinced so he reminded her, “it’s probably about Regulus .”
She sighed. She was tired of them all treating her like she couldn’t handle anything but she knew they meant well and didn’t think that she was weaker now. She touched her belly and thought about her little baby Harry, because she wasn’t allowing James to name him after himself. “Fine. But not you two,” she pointed at her husband and Sirius. “Remus, Peter, could you please go talk to him? Through the gate? You should be safe and we all know that these two will join any possible fight, if needed.”
“Sure, Lily,” Peter said, smiling warmly. “We’ll try to keep it civil.”
Sirius attentively observed the three men but due to distance, he couldn’t tell what was going on. But soon enough, Remus was opening the gate and inviting Snape in. He and James exchanged glances at the obvious breach of safety but knew better than to act aggressively and both simply moved closer to Lily who rolled her eyes.
When the three men entered the house, Snape immediately waved his hand with a piece of paper and explained, “I got a letter from Regulus and it sounded like there wasn't much time.”
“I also got a letter,” Sirius gritted out. Lily nudged him with an elbow and he added more nicely, “yeah, it seems like there’s no time to waste.”
They all quickly sent out Patronuses to the Order members and after agreeing that bringing Snape to Dumbledore would be the best idea, they all Floo’ed to Hogwarts, Headmaster’s fireplace to be exact. When they got there some people were already waiting, some were still coming every few seconds.
When it seemed that everyone was there, Dumbledore told people what to do. “Minerva, destroy the defenses surrounding the grounds and enforce them just on the castle. Make sure no one can get in. Sirius, take a few people and look for your brother, convince him to work with us. Fabian and Gideon take Lily, Alice and Mr. Snape to the Kitchens. Alastor, gather the rest and prepare for a fight. Good luck everyone.”
Almost everyone immediately did what they were ordered. James was a bit torn between leaving his pregnant wife and going with other Marauders but he knew she would be safe with Prewetts and House-elves. He quickly kissed her and let her go with her group.
“Where do we go? Do we know anything?” James asked his friends.
“No idea,” Sirius shrugged.
“We should go to the corridor,” Peter made a motion with his head to indicate they should leave the Office. When they all went outside he continued, “it’s obvious we should use the Map. Do you think it’s still in Filch's Office?”
“It’s only been a bit over a year,” Sirius nodded, “let’s try there.”
“Guys, a crazy idea… But maybe we could try using Accio? It doesn’t hurt to try,” James suggested. The rest nodded and he used the spell. They waited and already thought that it didn’t work when they saw the Map flying towards them.
“Great! Now open it!” Sirius hurried James.
“I solemnly swear that I’m up to no good.” The Map started showing places and people. They all looked for Regulus but to no avail. He wasn’t there.
“Do you think he’s already gone?” Peter looked at each of his friends as he voiced his concern.
“Maybe,” Remus answered, looking pensive. “But from the letter it seemed that it would take more time and even then he would be waiting for Voldemort somewhere…”
“What if he’s dead? What if it’s a trap?” Sirius asked no one in particular. His dark thoughts coming out. James patted him on the back and muttered something incomprehensible to the others.
“What if he left the school grounds? He destroyed that Horcrux outside so maybe he went there with the new one as well?” Peter suggested, trying to stay positive.
“It wouldn’t hurt to try going there,” Sirius said, already making a step.
“Wait,” James said. “Moody and others are preparing on the grounds. We should help them. If we notice the fight is elsewhere, we can move there.”
“I don’t want to leave Reg alone,” Sirius confessed quietly.
“Do you think Snape could know something?” Remus asked. “I mean they were friends for most of the school and it’s possible that there was some place he used to go that even we don’t have on our Map…”
“No-,” Sirius shook his head.
“Padfood, that’s actually a good idea,” James said gently.
“And we could also ask House-elves to bring him to us,” Peter added.
“Fine,” Sirius sighed and made a turn to go to the Kitchens with the Marauders following.
They came to the painting and Remus tickled the pear and the door opened. They were immediately greeted by Prewett twins with wands pointed at them but as soon as they saw who it was, they put them down.
“James!” Lily exclaimed. “What’s going on?”
“We can’t find Regulus,” Remus gave her a look trying to add on the Map silently. “We thought that maybe Snape would have an idea where he could be.”
Severus was sitting at one of the tables resigned. At hearing his name he lifted his head to look at them. “How would I know where Regulus is when I came to you just for that?” he drawled sarcastically.
“Because-,” James started and it was obvious to everyone that he would soon get angry.
Remus interrupted before a fight could commence, “we wanted to know where he used to hang out, that’s all.”
“Common Room, Quidditch Pitch, I don’t know,” Slytherin shrugged. “There weren’t any special secret places. He didn’t need them unlike some people .” He was obviously taking a dig at the werewolf but fortunately all people in the room knew and immediately started defending Lupin.
“Everyone calm down!” Lily shouted and they all listened. “Be helpful or be quiet,” she snapped at Severus. She turned to the Marauders, “maybe he went to that place where he destroyed the last Horcrux? Would he even have enough time?”
“Even assuming that he knew what he was looking for and where to find it unless it was near the entrance, I don’t think so.” James answered. The Marauders knew the grounds like the back of their hands and knew exactly how much time it took to get everywhere.
“What about fabled places like the Chamber of Secrets?” Fabian joined the conversation.
“You wouldn’t have checked there and it sounds like a place Voldy would hide something-“ Gideon added.
“-but the question is would little Black be able to access such places?” Fabian finished.
“That’s possible,” Remus nodded pensively.
Snape snorted but everyone ignored him.
“I think at this point we have to stop assuming anything about Regulus,” James stated.
“Look,” Peter said suddenly and everyone glanced to see what he meant. “Hi! Do you want to talk to us?” He asked a House-elf that was standing close to them. It was odd as the others all gathered in one corner and ignored the humans.
“Hello, Master Pettigrew,” the House-elf responded. “Tibby wants to say that Regulus is in the castle. Tibby feels it.”
“Awesome!” James exclaimed. “Can you tell us where he is?”
“No, James Potter but Tibby can go to him,” he offered and disappeared.
The House-elf wasn’t sure where he would end up but it turned out that he Apparated in the strange room on the Seventh Floor that would change its contents whenever he was there and was always clean. To his astonishment, currently there were huge piles of all types of things. He felt an urge to tidy up but refrained and focused on his mission as it was almost an order from a Wizard. He looked around and finally noticed the young man leaning over a bowl.
“Regulus! Tibby comes to get you. There are people in the Kitchens looking for Regulus.”
“My brother?”
“Yes, Sirius Black is there.”
“Can you take me there?” The Wizard asked while putting things into his pouch.
“Of course, Regulus!”
They soon Apparated to the Kitchens. Regulus quietly said, “thank you Tibby,” and the House-elf went away to join the others.
The people in the room stood frozen looking at him. Everyone was eager to find Regulus but no one knew how to react now that he was here.
“Hi,” the newcomer started, “I… It’s all… Um- I don’t know what to say...”
“What happened?” Sirius asked. “You were so sure before?”
“I- It’s hard to say… What is happening with the war?”
“Order members and some Aurors are waiting for Voldemort and others to show up and fight,” James informed him. “Did you succeed?”
Regulus nodded, “just before Tibby came to get me.”
“I think I’m saying this on behalf of everyone,” Lily said, “First of all, I’m glad you decided to go against Voldemort. And secondly, Regulus, it’s really amazing what you have achieved. I’m really looking forward to listening to your story.”
He told them the short version of what had happened. The main points, the important things, no emotions. To Regulus’ surprise their reactions were verging on admiration rather than disapproval or shock.
“You should go meet Dumbledore, explain everything,” Remus suggested.
Regulus dismissed the idea immediately, “nah, I’m fine with you recounting everything to him later.”
“We should go help them. Do you want to join the fight?” James inquired.
“No, to be honest with you, I don’t want to, unless I really have to. I wasn’t doing all that for recognition. If I didn’t think he might attack with full force, I wouldn’t have sent the letter,” Regulus confessed. “And as much as I might disagree with some parts, some of those people still are, at least on my side, friends and family.”
“That’s-,” James started.
Peter, who was inspecting the Map, interrupted, “they are here.”
“Are we going now?” Sirius asked others.
“We should,” Remus nodded. “They might need help.”
“And it wouldn’t hurt to make sure they know Voldemort is mortal,” Peter chimed in.
“Actually, it’s better to inform them now,” James said and he and Sirius simultaneously sent Patronuses to Dumbledore and Moody.
The Marauders walked out of the Kitchens. Regulus looked around uncomfortably and decided to sit next to Severus but didn’t dare to speak as he didn’t want to talk with an audience. A few seconds later Lily and Alice sat down at another table and started whispering while Prewetts still stood facing the door.
It didn’t take long for a stag Patronus to appear which caused Severus to let out a sigh. Since it was the good news they all left the Kitchens and soon they were met with a crowd and got lost in it. Everyone was looking for people closest to them and to see who was captured and who was dead.
People who survived naturally gravitated towards the Great Hall and Dumbledore and McGonagall arranged a feast. It was odd for the adults to sit once again in the Great Hall. Some sat at their old seats, some even changed Houses but what was even more surreal was that Professors sat with them.
Headmaster still took it upon himself to start the feast with a few words. He stood up from the Gryffindor table and casted Amplifying Charm on himself, “I cannot believe that we can finally say it but it is true. Lord Voldemort is dead. We will celebrate in a moment but for now let’s all show some appreciation to Regulus Black, the person who had realized how to bring him down and did all he could to achieve that.” Everyone was clapping for a few seconds. Then Dumbledore sniggered and continued, “I have this urge to say 300 points to Slytherin but I’m afraid it won’t add any emeralds to the hourglass. But I think it is safe to say that we all deserve a feast right now so dig in.”
Everyone in the room had already heard some version of the story so they knew how true those words were and therefore they all had clapped and now talked about the Slytherin man. However, Regulus didn’t hear that because he wasn’t there.
It was already dusking outside so the visibility was bad. But with only one other person there it was easy to spot a man going down the hill and so the other man quickly caught up.
“Where are you going?” Regulus heard Sirius from behind. He stopped and turned to face his brother.
“Away,” he shrugged. Even if he wanted to, he couldn’t offer more as he had no idea where he would go next.
“You could stay. You’re a hero now.”
Regulus grimaced. “I’ve never meant to become a hero. I still feel bad for betraying my friends and our family. And I feel- I’m going to go away and hide for a while. I don’t know if I’m ever gonna come back.”
Sirius nodded tensely. “I understand. I mean, I don’t...” He cleared his throat, “anyway, I’m glad you turned out to be not so evil after all. Maybe one day we can sit and talk about everything, about where it all went wrong, how you changed and decided to help. Regulus, I’m proud of you, and I know it may not mean much to you, but I regret everything that I’ve ever done to you and how I gave up on you.”
“I’m sorry too. I think we both took it a bit too far.” The younger brother smiled wistfully, “I’m not sure I’m ever gonna be back, but I wish you all the best.”
“Thank you, and you too. Take care, Regulus.”
They stood unsure what to do but then at the same time they both decided to hug each other. It didn’t last long and soon they were walking once again in opposite directions.
Sirius walked back slowly on purpose but he did come back directly to the Great Hall and headed to the part of the table with Marauders and Lily.
“Did he go away?” The girl asked. “Dumbledore raised a toast to him.”
“Yes, he wanted to leave undetected.”
“It’s a shame. He would’ve been named a hero and would have been celebrated,” James stated, sounding almost jealous.
Sirius shook his head, “he wasn’t doing it for that and I think there’s a part of him that regrets it. I think he just wants some peace and quiet.” He smiled, “we all could use that. Guys, it’s finally over!” he said excitedly and then after looking at his pumpkin juice, he added, “let’s celebrate with something stronger!”
“Three Broomsticks?” Peter suggested.
“No, our place,” James offered, “some Death Eaters are still lurking out there. Let’s not risk it.”
They did just as they decided but not before making sure that it was okay for them to go. Lily wanted to reconcile with Severus but it turned out that he had disappeared as well. No one looked for him or Regulus but the remains of Death Eaters were slowly apprehended in the upcoming weeks. It took a bit time but the world was slowly turning back to something similar to what it was before the war.
And just as Regulus wished most of the Wizarding World had no idea that the younger of the Black brothers played such an important part in the restoring of peace. He officially had died a year ago and that was the narrative that was maintained. Just as it always is, people were just trying to move on, even though for many it was impossible, and most of them didn’t care for a long complicated story. For now they were content with the sentence ‘You-Know-Who is dead’ as it was all that mattered. Maybe one day they would grow curious and someone would take time to explain the events but it wasn’t that time yet.
But in telling this story what would be the most important was how those seven people and their interactions and relations changed everything. One thing led to another and another and the consequences were huge, especially considering how easily it all could have gone differently.