Chapter Text
Remus groaned as he opened his eyes and let them adjust to the dimly lit shack that he was kept in once a month. Morgana last night was terrible. Without the Marauders, Moony was a cranky bastard now and wanted to hurt him as much as possible in the short time frame that he was transformed for. What he wouldn’t give to put all of this behind them for good and to forgive and forget, but Sirius would never learn his lesson if he did. He would only learn that he can do whatever he wants without any severe consequences. Well, Remus wouldn’t have that. Not a chance in hell.
Remus got up slowly so that he didn’t disturb his aching joints any more than necessary, and pulled his clothes out from underneath the loose floorboard that he always hides them under and started to pull them on while waiting for the Hogwarts matron. He loved Madam Pomfrey. She is the only one in the whole school that cares about his well-being without expecting anything in return it seems. The headmaster wanted his unwavering loyalty, Sirius wanted a free pass to use his “furry little problem” for all of his pranking needs, James only ever cared if Sirius or Lilly were involved, and Peter had always been so obviously afraid of him and only went along with the Animagus ritual because Sirius asked James, and James asked him. Why did no one ever love him for who he was without wanting something back?
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Regulus woke up anxious, and yet he had no idea why. The new heir to the most ancient and noble house of Black wasn’t supposed to feel anxious. Luckily, Barty didn’t seem to pick up on it, and he could never tell if Evan knew about anything. The boy was way too good at his poker face. When they got to breakfast, Dorcas and Pandora both raised an eyebrow at him, and that was when he noticed that most of the fourth year Slytherins were as well. Checking his reflection in a spoon on the table, he quietly cursed to himself when he realized that he had forgotten to brush his hair that morning in all his worries about his classmates finding out about him wanting to deflect from the dark lord’s cause.
He hadn’t been branded yet, none of his supporters below Hogwarts' leaving age were ever marked. That was saved for Voldemort’s most loyal followers. Or in other words, his favorites. Regulus always shivered a little when he thought or heard the dark lord’s name. No matter how much he tried, he couldn’t get it out of his system. Even if his mother told him to grow up and used crucio on him every time he did it. As always, he let out a little shiver against his will, and Barty pulled the attention away from him, maybe he had noticed him after all.
He couldn’t help himself when he looked up to the Gryffindor table and was surprised to find that Lupin wasn’t among his brother’s little idiotic band of friends anymore. What was that about anyway? He hadn’t seen them together for at least the last few months, it was curious. But the more curious thing was that his brother looked nervous as well. Sirius was never nervous. He was always too confident for that. Although Regulus supposed he had always had a strange obsession with Remus. Especially with the rumors about him being a werewolf that Severus was spreading to any Slytherin that would listen. It seemed like as soon as he realized he was missing from a meal; Regulus’ mind always went to worrying about Lupin’s health. As if he cared about stupid Gryffindor half-blood scum anyway.
“I heard from father that there’s a meeting in a few days. He wants me to attend.” Evan stated quietly. That was another thing that made Slytherins different from Gryffindors. They were always cautious about what, if any, information they gave out in a public setting, whereas the Gryffindors always seemed to shout anything that came into their minds to the whole world, whether it was anyone else’s business or not. It had always infuriated Regulus how open his brother was when he himself had to hide all of his emotions. Yet somehow, when Lupin showed any strong emotions, Regulus found it endearing. He hated that most of all. After all, mother had always said that boys shouldn’t feel that way for other boys. This had always confused him, because Sirius liked boys, and his friends all seemed fine with it.
“Mother and Father wish for me to attend as well,” Regulus replied first, the others murmuring about how it was the same thing for them. Was this planned? All of the heirs in one room together with the dark lord? What was he thinking? Of course, it was planned from the beginning. The dark lord never just had any meetings without planning. If he wanted the heirs to be like sitting ducks on a pond, he was going to get his wishes at the meeting.
“I don’t want to go...” Barty muttered so that only the small group could hear him.
“Let’s take this conversation somewhere more private, hmm?” Regulus responded, almost automatically. Everything was private between the Slytherins. And rats always got caught. And they always paid the price. Regulus was terrified. And it seemed his classmates were as well.
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Remus hid in a little alcove outside of the Great Hall, breathing heavily as James and Sirius walked straight past the tapestry covering the opening, talking about him. “I mean really, did he really think we were his friends? All I wanted was a scapegoat to pin things on, and someone that I could use to play pranks on the Slytherins.” Sirius said laughing.
Remus sank to the ground, tears escaping his eyes as he desperately wished that they would go away. He got his wish soon enough as his fellow Gryffindors seemed to spot Peter down the hall. They shouted his name and ran after him, still laughing at Remus's expense. God, what he wouldn’t give to be able to get back at them. He would even give up his magic if that was what it took. And all because Sirius decided that luring Severus to the shrieking shack on a full moon would be a funny prank.
He wanted to hurt Sirius. That much was clear to him. All of his feelings for the slightly older boy had disappeared the morning after he had found out what Sirius had done. He had almost made him a killer! Surely, he of all people could understand how that had hurt him? After all, Sirius had been complaining the night before in the dorms that his parents still wanted him to join the dark lord! All Remus knew was that he would make Sirius pay for what he had done. The how and when part of his plan could come later. Right now, he needed to get to the library and read up on as many non-lethal curses as he could. If Sirius wanted him to be a monster, then he would see him become one. After all, werewolves were well known for their ability to turn into them.
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Regulus was shaking. But he wasn’t scared. He was relieved. His friends wanted to deflect as well! At least he knew he wasn’t alone now. Barty and Evan were honestly his best friends if he didn’t count Pandora and Dorcas. And the only reason he was allowed to be friends with the girls was because his parents were talking to their parents about marriage contracts. Luckily, mr and mrs Rosier were above letting their 14-year-old daughter be auctioned off like a pawn, and his parents hadn’t received a reply from Dorcas’ parents yet, so he was safe on that front. For now, anyway.