dedgulung "vexed italicizing trouble magnet" black (regulus) wrote in blurred_lines, @ 2008-09-14 11:12:00 |
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Entry tags: | ! [1979-09] september, regulus black, sirius black |
RP Log: Regulus & Sirius
who → Regulus Black & Sirius Black.
what → Much to his dismay, Regulus has been summoned (read: blackmailed) by Sirius to have a little chit-chat about the battle at Hogwarts the day before. A rather unfortunate discovery was made, and Sirius has some Questions That Better Be Answered. Which is never good for Regulus.
when → Sunday, 14 September 1979; 10:12am, after this entry.
where → Sirius's old flat.
warnings → Long-winded Black brothers are long-winded?
status → Complete.
[Part 1] [Part 2]
"I don't want you to shirk your pureblood responsibilities. I just don't want my baby brother becoming a murderer." If he hasn't-- He stopped that train of thought as swiftly as it had come. "But, hypothetically, would you want your old life? Your own life? To get married and have your babies and preserve the pureblood way of life through passive measures as opposed to murder? Even if it doesn't matter, just tell me anyway. Please." Another sigh. "Such a scenario is not even an attainable option, so why must we bother with dedicating any thought to it? Of course I would not be in opposition to preserving the Pureblood way of life with marriage and children and such, so I do not know why it is necessary to ask at all. Furthermore, that aside, it is not as though it is important what I want along those lines, either way, as it is not about me. And reality is what we are dealing with, and it is reality that holds the consequences. Not the hypotheticals," Regulus answered carefully, though he couldn't help the (quickly silenced) wish that the hypothetical was true. Especially after this conversation, as at least then he would be less worried for his life and more worried about the slim chance his mother would discover what had happened -- or actually, the situation would be happening in the first place. But dwelling fixed nothing, and he was proud of his opportunity to serve the Dark Lord. It was a wonderful opportunity to prove himself if he could simply stop messing things up in regard to Sirius. "Could you just give it a yes or no answer? A nod or a shake? Thumbs up or thumps down?" Sirius said, rolling his eyes in exasperation. "I'm not letting go till you answer." The answer meant whether or not it had gotten deep enough into his skin to make him happy to inflict it and he didn't think it had, but he needed him to say it or at least signal it. At least then he'd know what he needed to do. He was still drawing a blank at the current situation. Regulus raised a single eyebrow. "I just did answer your question, Sirius. Were you not listening to me?" Perhaps it was not the most direct way to go about answer, but Sirius had asked, and he had stated he had no objection -- it was simply wrapped up in the complications that twisted themselves around every facet of his life, and thus every facet of his thoughts. That was as outright as he was going to get. "So am I permitted to leave now, or am I still to be held hostage?" "You tie so many loops into your sentences that it's difficult to tell!" Alright, that was less than suave but he was panicking slightly and he was completely out of practice. He let go of his arm, knowing that probably wasn't the best way to get his co-operation and sat back so as not to scare him. "What am I meant to do with you? Half the time I want to hug you (metaphorically speaking)," He felt it important to stress that last part, lest he have a freak out, "The rest of the time I want to hit you. Why am I the only one who's freaking out here?" The thought crossed his mind to point out that there was a functional reason why he 'tied so many loops into his sentences', but Regulus failed to see a way in which that might be even remotely helpful to his situation at this point; focusing in on his tendencies for lies and the help that they served as a shielder of his identity seemed quite counter-productive. Even when his arm was released, the tenseness remained, and he lingered for a moment, looking at his own seat and opting not to sit once again. That suggested he was planning on staying, and he didn't want to give Sirius the idea that he was planning to stay -- his mission, currently, was escape, after all, and he might even get a head start... Leaving halfway through the conversation with no actual closing to it made him feel uncomfortable, however, so his fleeing could wait a little bit longer, even if he did not see need for an answer to such questions in the first place. "I have a healthier sense of self-control, I suppose. If you opt to rat me out to your friends and the vigilantes and the Ministry, then there's really nothing I can do to stop you, so -- so to lose my head is only degrading myself." "Don't make this completely my fault, I'm not the one who became a terrorist!" Sirius said indignantly. He was not going to listen to him take the moral high ground when he was in the wrong. True, statistically, he probably deserved to but it didn't mean it was right. He cocked his head to one side, "I don't think you're worried about them. In your shoes, I'd worry about your friends finding out. Or worse, Mum." He gave a slight shiver at the very idea of Walburga Black finding out her sons had been speaking, that was bad enough, but getting Death Eaters involved? Well, give him Voldemort over his mother any day. She's more terrifying. As if Sirius's shiver had traversed the floor between them, Regulus was struck with the same at the thought of the Death Eaters or his mother finding out about the conversation -- most certainly the greater fears than just prison, at the moment, though he supposed that shouldn't be the case for a normal person in a normal situation. He pushed down the flash of fear once again. Control. "Neither my friends nor Mother will be finding out unless you tell them, or if you tell someone who will ignite the spark of a hint to them -- which is not difficult to do, I assure you -- because I will not be telling them. Unfortunately, your record is not particularly comforting, considering the last time we played this little 'speaking about your problems' game that you seem fond of, but as I have already said, I cannot control whether or not you decide to betray the situation to your friends and comrades who will inevitably betray it to either the Ministry or my friends...if said comrades of yours do not opt to take the situation into their hands, as I sincerely doubt that they care about me or my family that remains in opposition." Looking up at Sirius again, he permitted a dash of the fear to unmask itself; manipulative in a sense, he supposed, considering the intentional element, but fashioning the genuine emotion to appear an accidental slip could at least possibly prey on his brother's sympathies. There was a selfish bit to it that did actually want Sirius to care, even separate from self-preservation, but that wasn't the important part, after all, because that was a weakness -- the simple truth was that if he wanted to get through this alive, keeping Sirius sympathetic seemed the only viable option, and Regulus did not want anyone to find out. "I suppose it is your choice, then." The fact that he had brought that up ignited a spark of curiousity in the other boy. What was going on there? There wasn't much of a chance he'd actually tell him what happened there, if he even knew, but there was no harm in asking. Or defensively commenting on it, as the case may be. "I don't know what happened there. I have no idea how any of it happened but I've been a great deal more careful with certain sensitivities since. If you wouldn't mind excusing my, er, ourburst afterwards." Colour flushed his cheeks with embarrassment and he moved swiftly on. He just shrugged petulently at the idea that this was all his decision because he didn't like making the big decisions, if he was honest. He was more worried what would happen to both of them if this ever got out. "No, this is both our choices. Don't pin it on me." The memory of Sirius's 'outburst' was certainly a powerful one in the recesses of his mind, and Regulus made a concentrated effort not to cringe at the finality of it. The finality that suddenly did not feel very final, just as it never seemed to stay final, hence the existence of almost every problem he faced in regards to the senior Death Eaters and the pain faced by those family members who remained acknowledge by the greater tree as a whole. That warded outburst was still a jabbingly unpleasant to think about, and Regulus could never resolve if he was more hurt or irritated by it, but neither of those were appropriate to express, were they? How many time had he changed tactics already? He could not even be certain if it was serving to be more effective to follow Rodolphus's instruction to refrain from showing you're hurt or to carry out his own attempts at manipulation (or rather, his own slip-ups in carrying out the stonier method, though he preferred to consider them all to be manipulations for greater purposes). Sirius simply had to be difficult to deal with. Regulus did not like confrontation. "If that is the case," Regulus responded after a silent moment, "then my choice is for you to not say anything, for me to not say anything, and for the two of us to pretend that this simply never happened at all. It seems to be the safest option for everyone involved, to be honest." Sirius could agree to that, under certain conditions. He wasn't one to let an advantage go to waste while he had it. "There's a problem with that, genius. What if something like that happens again and we get in each others way? I might be pissed off with you, but I by no means wish to kill you." That was a generally worrying thought and one he'd had when James had first put forward the idea. They had been in a simpler situation of the Death Eaters being in retreat but what if it was a face off? What if they were going to be put in a situation where they needed to help their friends by doing damage? Was he going to be thinking 'who am I hitting' all of a sudden? It was a very disturbing thought, to say the least! With a slanted mouth and a little huff, Regulus took a moment to consider the point; it was a downfall to the anonymous nature of the Death Eaters, he supposed, but it wasn't exactly a common occurrence that someone fighting the Death Eaters would care much either way which Death Eater he was attempting to annihilate. So perhaps it wasn't a downfall for the Death Eaters so much as it was a downfall for Regulus, but that did not mean it was insurmountable... "To walk around and advertise my identity in a mission or a battle, even to have you avoid me, is of course completely and totally illogical -- quite counter-productive to the idea of remaining anonymous for our personal safety, that is for certain, but I suppose it does pose as a problem in this particular case. There are a fair number who are either taller than me or shorter than me, so if all else fails, you can try to guess. Who knows, if you accidentally target me, I can always lash forward and break your nose, too. It could be like a secret code," Regulus said with a dry touch of humour; it was not really a joking matter, but in the defence of his own nose, he felt it was necessary to add. "Shockingly enough, baby brother, I do raise good points from time to time when not resulting to blind panic." Sirius noted, with a slight smile. He understood the problem as posed, even if it did irk him that he seemed pre-occupied with protecting people he had every desire to destroy in the process of protecting himself. He did a very swift double take and a look of utter disbelief mixed with humour crossed his face, "Did you just make a joke?" He shook off the question, knowing that somewhere underneath all that, they still had the same blood so they shouldn't they both have a sense of humour. "The thing that's wrong with guessing is that James has already seen one about your height meaning there would be a great deal of confusion and judging by the viciousness of the attack, that's not someone I can afford to go half way on. I suppose I could apologise in advance but..." He stopped as another thought struck him and he cocked his head. "Your dueling's improved by the way." With the same dryness still lingering in his voice, Regulus responded, "Let's be reasonable, Sirius. Everyone knows I don't have a sense of humour." He knew he ought to be scolding himself for falling into that rut of familiarity, for not leaving when he ought to have left and thus allowing himself to speak amiably when that was not meant to be an option in this argument they were having. They were arguing. So why in Merlin's name was he having a discussion about how to properly avoid each other for safety when he was supposed to be angry? Frustrating. But unfortunately not frustrating enough. Shaking the thoughts momentarily from his mind, he was stoicly determined to not to be flattered by the compliment and responded, "Plenty of spare time on my hands. Lots of practice for NEWTs that is suddenly quite useful when you go above and beyond, I suppose. I am uncertain of what else could be a tip-off for you, as speaking aloud is too risky. Not only would it be suspicious for me to purposely speak, should anyone notice, but it would be suspicious even if we were not heard, for you to relocate elsewhere for no apparent reason...but at the same time, I suppose I could simply busy myself elsewhere, as you will not be masked." Once again he glanced to the door. He oughtn't get too comfortable. This conversation far too pleasant, but he couldn't overlook the possibility of not being attacked in battle...and it's not as though his fellow Death Eaters would know that it was intentional. "You could well be hiding it. There are a lot of masks in this family; even some physical ones, I'm finding out." The tone was meant to come out a great deal more bitter but it seemed to becoming out in an odd mix of amusement and teasing. That was slightly irritating in himself. Perhaps people were right and he was now incapable of being completely serious. Perhaps it just all felt too intense for him. Maybe it felt nice to have this comfortable light humour that had been their younger relationship because all hell had broken loose. "I always thought you preferred to study rather than practice when it came to spells. I guess people do change. Or I...wasn't paying attention. Anything is possible." He left it there to keep to the issue at hand. Right. He needed away not to end up killing him to give himself some peace of mind when fighting. "Won't that cause problems for you? I know people would be pissed off with me if they thought I was trying to avoid a fight because of personal reasons. With the fact we're not anonymous, it'll be obvious to anyone what you're trying to do and I can't guarantee anyone else not trying something. I don't want you to get your arse kicked because of me." He sighed, heavily. "This is entirely too complicated." "Strangely enough, it came to occur to me that throwing books at people -- thick and heavy as some texts may be -- is not the most effective way to go about surviving in a duel, and passively reading a book in the midst of a battle even less so. But that is beside the point, I'm afraid," Regulus quipped evenly before refocusing his attention. He feared there was no real, completely flawless solution, and despite his continuous stream of analyzing and recounting every aspect of his life on a regular basis, this one did not seem suited because it broke the natural order of his life. Unfortunately, there didn't seem to be a better way to keep Sirius from running his mouth. "In all honesty, I do not know that anyone would notice whether or not you are the first person I set my sights on. Depending on the nature of the mission, chances are they will be too distracted with fighting their own vigilantes to care either way who I am fighting so long as I am fighting. Standing uselessly to the side would be far more noticeable and unacceptable. I have avoided ever facing you until yesterday, and my battle preferences were not the instances being used as examples when I was called into question on the matter, so I should imagine they shan't be now. Such things are hectic, and so long as I am not fighting my own comrades or aiding you in any manner, I do not know that they will stop long enough to pick out which among our ranks I might be, if there are more present than myself who stand at a similar height, and then determine if I have, at any point in the battle, fought you. It is certainly something that I am to keep in mind and actually have kept in mind in the past, but unless I am specifically and deliberately told to go find you and fight you -- something that is possible but will at least likely come with warning for me to sort through and expect ahead of time -- then furthering whatever our goal at the given moment might be typically serves enough satisfaction in itself." "I think you're underestimating your texts, but you could be right. I was just a little surprised. I was under the impression you always had your head in a book so it's a little odd for me to see you doing something so physical." He had just about managed to suffocate a comment about Marlene as it came to his mouth but he had a feeling it would completely ruin the atmosphere and that was wholly unacceptable, considering. They didn't speak often and it likely wouldn't happen again for some time. If it happened at all, the way things were going. "I'm just trying to cover everything in case of emergency. As you say, such things are chaotic and I can't always tell a persons stature in lighting or their positions or if I've gotten them before. I'm very disorganised; you know that." With that, another thought struck him that he felt was wholly important. He had to address the issue of his own 'family', as it were. "That reminds me, the guys are a no-go area for you when it comes to fatality. I don't care of you hex the shit out of each other but kill them and I'll skin you alive myself. I will be saying the same thing to them because they did see you and I expect no less from them. Aside from Remus' time of the month, they all have enough self control not to do it and I know you do." He thought for another moment about the other possible safety measures he needed to put in place. "I would also request that you be careful with your own information on me, particularly around a certain blond girl who does not need to know anything." He pushed his hair back and wracked his brains one more time for anything forthcoming. "The last thing is that if you sense you're in trouble or that someone knows about this that you're going to get your balls blown off about, that you get the hell out. One child is not their concern and if you're correct and somewhere under that skin, our mother knows what human feeling is, something tells me she'd rather have a child alive to continue the lineage in a different part of this world than a dead child." Waiting patiently, Regulus listened to Sirius's list of conditions, making an effort to restrain his eyeroll urge at some of the more obvious and sensible requirements among them. The fact that all were true pieces of advice assisted in that, but there were some things that quite obviously did not need to be said. "To start off, if you think I am planning to tell anyone anything about this, I fear you are gravely mistaken -- considering, of course, that this did not actually happen. Perhaps it was an unfortunate dream. And on a similar line to that, Sirius, I suggest you be careful with what you say to her as well. I'm going to be extremely irritated if you get her in trouble," Regulus snipped, crinkling his nose as he thought of all the ways Rodolphus's pointed speech to Barty, Demetrius, and the Wilkes twins could have been much worse for Julianne if he had known the extent of blood traitor talking, and he did not want to think about the shunning or at least terrifying conversation that could have occurred if Rodolphus had really known... "As for your friends, I have no intention of killing them. I do not know how we are going to manage avoidance if height-judgment is difficult, but I suppose we will make do. And so long as you say nothing, I am not going to get caught." Uncomfortably, he shifted on her feet, pressing his lips together with another swift glance to the door. How much time had passed? Sirius had to smile at the small lie, which would no doubt help any convincing he had to do. The level of denial was both amusing and disturbing, but he let it pass. Not everyone had someone in their life they could trust with anything and know that it was safe. Of course, his person (possibly people) were not likely to be understanding of everything and it did cause problems within the friendship itself. Sometimes he had to wonder if just lying about it was easier, if it meant you could keep things good. He didn't particularly like that line of thought, but it was times like this that reminded you how much things were changing and trust was a hard thing. "She's under the impression we haven't spoken since your last birthday. It's probably prudent to keep it that way." He didn't like the idea and it didn't sit right on his conscience but it would have to do. Sometimes a persons life outweighed feeling uncomfortable. He was fairly sure he'd agree to it. Anything to keep the peace. "Do be careful with her sister though. She has a nasty habit of poking her nose where it doesn't belong and considering your relationship with her sister, she may think it falls under her jurisdiction to find any possible flaw." "You keep saying that and that's what worries me. Are you trying to convince yourself at the same time?" He did look exceedingly uncomfortable in the backdrop of the flat, but he imagined part of that was the flat itself. Everything felt so uncertain. How long could this carry on? Till the threat was extinguished? That wasn't likely to happen for a long time. "You have been in a lot of trouble lately. I don't know what's going on, but if you continue to fuck up, this could well be one of those things that spiral out of control before you know whats going on." With a small snort, Regulus shook his head and looked to his brother again with an even expression. "Trust me, you needn't tell me how prudent it is to keep everyone under the impression that we have not spoken since then, nor how much trouble has cast itself upon me as of late. In fact, it is difficult think of much else except the collapsing circumstances when they are closely tied with failed responsibilities, and I am not going to let July happen again. We haven't spoken until today, and given that today did not happen, there is nothing to tell, nothing to suffer." With a resolved look, Regulus acknowledged to himself once again just how well he learned from his mistakes -- just how much trouble would come if he dared fall back into consistency -- because his brother was one of those mistakes, no matter how he painted it. He could not let them down, and he would not let them down. No longer would he put in danger the ones he loved because of weakness because there was no room for emotional weakness in the path of a Death Eater, nor the path of the heir of Black -- and it was these paths he was to walk, above all else. "I have no desire for something like July to happen again either," Sirius mumbled in an almost sulky tone. It wasn't his fault that entire month had gone to hell and they had paid for it as much as anyone had. He hated listening to anyone get down on themselves, especially someone that young with a long life ahead of them. "That's not your fault, you know. You can't always anticipate what people will do and unfortunately, that's the main reason there was so much death and destruction. You're only eighteen; you have a lot of growing to do and you can't expect too much of yourself too soon or you'll fuck up." That could have been hugely hypocritical but there it was. "If you start searching for who's to blame for things like our father's death or even this, you'll just end up going back and forth between the sides of a war that's far too big to pin individual things on. Can't you see the contradiction? No teenager is sure of themselves and you're requiring yourself to be so sure that you can lie to yourself and not become round the twist from it. Careful, there." "There is no time to take for 'growing up' as we go, Sirius," Regulus countered in a clipped tone, "As you said, we're in the middle of a war, and the war does not wait for such things. None of us can afford to expect anything less than perfection when the lives of other people are in the balance, and I am not going to be the one who compromises the life or standing or life quality of someone I care for. Which, quite frankly, seems to be exactly what happens every time I speak to you." Touches of exasperation flitted across his face, and another huff of a breath escaped. "We are talking in circles." "Because you always give me the same answers and they're not acceptable ones. You're so busy warping what I'm saying that you're not listening to what I'm saying." He was starting to feel as exasperated as his brother sounded, because none of this was helping the situation. "I'm searching for a sign that you understand that murder, the snuffing out of a person's life, is unacceptable without a damn good reason. I'm trying to figure out that if and when you walk away, you are going to know that and I'm not going to be signing up to let someone else die because I'm having a cowardly moment and you have no backbone." He shook his head, "If this isn't even real, if you're ignoring it ever happened, why not reassure me? Why not just tell me?" With a subtly crinkled nose, Regulus responded in a very matter-of-fact tone, "Of course it isn't acceptable without a good reason." Good reason was relative, perhaps, but Regulus did nothing without some sort of reason, even if that reason was 'because Rodolphus Lestrange said so,' which, quite frankly, Regulus found to be a very, very good reason in his experiences, no matter what Sirius and the vigilantes might say. Just because their idea of pure motive was different meant nothing -- and it was not an argument he was going to trap himself into with specifications. "There's a line there that I don't want you crossing. Even if it comes down to a new, purer world, I don't think that's something you ought to be doing. I can cope with you beating the shit out of people with your wand or whatever it is you people do for fun, but pointless murder is completely wrong and I don't want it on my conscience." It wasn't the most righteous of reasons but they'd already covered the fact he was selfish so it didn't matter. He didn't want to ask him to lie to him but he had to admit, knowing how good a liar he seemed to be getting did take a bit of trust out of the relationship. "I don't want it on yours, either. What kind of parent are you going to be if you can't upkeep the simplest morals?" Or lie convincingly enough that they'd think they had some sort of role model. He was starting to run out of tactics to get the point across, but he had to try. "I do not believe that my future parenting is any of your concern, nor is my conscience, though I assure you I can handle each accordingly," Regulus responded with a little down-twitch of his mouth. "I don't end people's lives for fun, if that is what you are asking -- though, for that matter, I do not 'beat people up' for fun, either. My morals are fine, and I do believe it's time I should return home," he said, once again standing up straight. "Your life is my concern whether you want it to be or not." Sirius could be pretty damn stubborn when he wanted to be and this was definitely one of those times. "Your actions of late haven't exactly made you a role model for good behaviour. Your conscience may not be a problem but mine is and when you've been around Bellatrix 'never met a bit of sadism she didn't like' Lestrange, I think I have a right to worry. I'm wrestling with my sense of decency and thus, possibly proving its existence. Not everyone has the ability to say 'how high' when asked to jump so give me a damn minute to cope." He was aware he was prolonging it. Whether he liked it or not, he knew this was going to bit and that he did need to get back and so, probably, did his brother. He couldn't help it, though. They had gotten to a point they could have a sense of honesty and he didn't want that to go. He left the statement hanging in the air, but didn't address it. Riling him up now would only piss him off and as much fun as it was to watch him flare up, it was counterproductive. "Oh, honestly -- I am not sadistic," Regulus objected flatly. Perhaps his brother had not directly accused him of it, but throwing his morals into question was not fair. The ideals shat the family upheld were perfectly valid ideals, and the followers of the Dark Lord were simply going about it in a proactive manner. If it was necessary, how could be wrong? And they were doing what was necessary for the preservation of their society, thus it was not wrong, no matter the self-righteous poison that the Gryffindors had instilled into Sirius to bring about the blood traitor ideals that had not been there before he left for school. "I do not even enjoy dueling, though if it is to be considered an essential factor and will thus be given its proper attention. Pardon me for finding no surprise in your words, and you scarcely jump at all, much less ask for specifications; but you are welcome to dwell on it as you please," he said, as if it had been an actual request for time to absorb. "This is my problem!" Sirius exclaimed, trying to get his point into that thick skull. "You are quiet, non-aggressive and will do anything to keep the peace. Do you understand why I'm struggling to understand what would possess you to get in the middle of a war? It doesn't make any sense." Unless Bella had gotten her claws in. That sadistic bitch could turn anyone into a psycho and he was not about to let that happen here. He hadn't seen him regularly in years and he didn't know what might have been happening behind closed doors. That was a horrifying thought and his stomach churned; what could have happened? "Hey, she didn't do anything, did she?" There was an unspoken threat to her in the tone, but mostly, he was worried she'd done something terrible. "You have to tell me if she has." Regulus sighed. "'Done anything'? That sounds awfully paranoid. She hasn't 'done anything,' whatever you mean by that, and I have already explained that responsibility is more important than personal preference." With a more relaxed but additionally more annoyed posture, he remained a moment longer in his place. "Are you going to attack me again if I attempt to leave, or am I permitted?" "You can go if you want to. I only stopped you because you had the wrong end of the stick as usual." Sirius grumbled, not wanting to make him stay when he had no legitimate reason to. He had a thousand more things he desperately wanted to ask or make himself understood on but he had no reason he could make any arguement to him while he was like this. "If I'd wanted to attack you, I'd have...well, done what I did last night. Did I mention being sorry about that?" Another unpleasant twitch subtly pulled at the corner of Regulus's mouth, and without a thought he crinkled his nose at the memory. "I believe so, but I have yet to decide how irritated I still am. Having one's nose broken with one's own mask is hardly acceptable. However, I do believe it is time that I depart, if there is nothing else to be said -- not that I am suggesting I would wish to stay, even if there was, but no matter." Regulus stepped away with an eerie feeling of calm. Too comfortable to be comfortable, and he wanted to say something irritating or problem-inducing, just for the sake of leaving on an acceptably sour note, but -- of course, it did not happen, and it was more important to leave with as few words as possible, rather than as bitter words as possible, was it not? Or was it not? And of course -- self-preservation depended upon Sirius not saying anything...surely he would not think this changed anything... With a new height of feeling that he was off of his footing in their confusingly inconsistent relationship, Regulus turned away and walked to the door, vaguely straightening invisible wrinkles in his robes and trying to minimize the distraction of his thoughts before he returned to Number Twelve Grimmauld Place once again. His home. He knew that only his mother and Kreacher awaited him -- that no one, hopefully, would question his whereabouts if they took notice and remembered he had left at all (not that it seemed a likely thing for either of them to forget). With an Apparition spell, it took only seconds for the world around him to reshape and change, for that pull to fade, for his thoughts to suffer that jarring yank between the thoughts one experienced during a conversation with Sirius and the thoughts one experienced when looking upon the house of his ancestors. He was home once again. |