Diagon Alley
The Wizarding World was talking about it, the rumours were spreading faster than ever. People will always remember the day the darkest wizard of all time had fallen, the day he was defeated by just a baby.
Regulus Arcturus Black.
He was one year old when it happened. The memory wasn’t clear, it’s just a vague glimpse of green light and the sound of an agonising scream. That scream had haunted Regulus all his life, always visiting him in his sleep.
Those were evil times, times when people thought they wouldn’t see the light anymore. There was no hope, each day that passed was another day Voldemort grew stronger. More people joining his dark cult, more people fearing him and trembling at the thought of his name. There was no one who could stop him, except… Regulus.
It had been a mystery, no one could find a logical explanation to what happened that night. As the rumours said; Walburga Black had left the house with her eldest son, Sirius, leaving Regulus with his father, Orion.
The Halloween night, October 31st, 1962. When Regulus was just one year old. It had been a stormy night, fog claimed over the streets. Then, a sudden explosion coming from downstairs interrupted Orion’s calm behaviour. He knew what was going to happen, and he had to protect Regulus.
The sound of steps in the stairs grew louder with each minute that passed. Orion kneeled in front of Regulus, his grip on his wand tightening. ‘Regulus, you are so loved’, ‘Regulus, be strong’, ‘Be safe, little one’, were the quiet murmurs Orion told his son before they could open the door.
At the sound of the door opening Orion stood up immediately, pointing his wand at the threat. ‘Expelli—’
‘Avada Kedavra.’
Orion crumpled to the floor, all life leaving his eyes. He was gone. What happened next was a blur, still unknown to all the wizards and witches. Some said Orion had done something to Regulus, a protection of some sort, others that Voldemort’s spell failed, others believed it was just pure luck.
But whatever the reason, Regulus survived that night. The spell had done nothing to him, except changing the colour of his eyes. His eyes had once been silver, like his brother’s and father’s, but now they were green and silver. His right eye remained the same colour as before, but the left one had turned a deep shade of green. That unusual feature was a reminder of the tragic events of that night, it would stay with him forever.
He would forever be The Boy Who Lived.
Now focusing on Walburga Black, well… she had been sent to Azkaban. The Aurors believed she’d been involved in the attack, she was the only suspect in the case and there was no way to prove her innocence, so they arrested her.
Sirius was two years old when it happened, too young to remember any of it. After her mother went to prison he and Regulus were sent to Aunt Druella’s and Uncle Cygnus III, his mother’s brother. Sirius had been welcome, they adored him, they treated him like the boy they never had, but regulus… Oh, Regulus.
Uncle Cygnus had always held a grudge with him. On his eyes Regulus was the only reason his sister was in Azkaban. Besides, the colour of his eyes made him a freak, so that’s how they treated him. Like a freak.
His aunt and uncle had forbidden Bellatrix, Andromeda and Narcissa to play with him or talk to him, or look at him. They had to act like Regulus had died that night too, like he wasn’t in the house.
They had expected the same of Sirius, but he had always been a rule breaker. No matter how hard they tried to separate them, the brothers had always found a way to be together. Many were the nights when Sirius had to share his food with Regulus because his aunt and uncle said they had ‘forgotten’ about Regulus, so they didn’t make enough dinner for him.
Many were the days when Sirius had to leave his own room and sneak into Regulus’ cupboard to comfort him while he cried and asked why he was so different from the rest, from him. It broke Sirius’ heart to see his little brother like that, all sad and feeling so unworthy. That’s why Sirius Black promised to himself and to Regulus that he’ll never leave him alone. That it was always going to be the two of them against the world. No matter what, no matter the circumstances, nothing would separate them.
To Regulus, Sirius was a god. He was his role model, his best friend, his whole universe, his everything. Some would say that being so attached to someone was unhealthy, but Regulus couldn’t care less. He knew that without Sirius he wouldn’t survive. No kidding, no humour, it was the truth. Regulus needed his brother, and nothing was ever going to change that. Sirius had been his favourite person since the moment he started memorising faces and recognising people. The level of love and affection he had towards his brother was insane. That’s why the day Sirius left to Hogwarts Regulus became miserable.
The day Sirius parted Regulus behaved badly. He spent all the time crying, holding his brother as long as he could. He knew he looked pathetic and he was being ridiculous and childish, but his body couldn’t stop clutching to Sirius as if he was a life buoy and Regulus had just been drowning. He swore he could feel his heart breaking into millions of tiny little pieces.
Sirius kept reassuring him that he was going to be fine, that he’ll write to him every single day and that he could never forget about him or stop loving him. But Regulus couldn’t truly believe that, not because his brother was a liar, but because how could Sirius, someone so cool and amazing, still love Regulus when they were so far apart? He was absolutely sure his brother was going to make thousands of friends, like really, how could he not? How could someone not like Sirius? Impossible.
Even if his brain kept telling him all of this was so so wrong, he nodded anyway, not wanting to worry his brother. So with a last big hug at Platform nine and three quarters, he said goodbye to Sirius. The moment he stepped back home he knew it was going to be hell, without Sirius to protect him or share food he’ll probably die. If not from boredom then from starvation. No one was even talking to him anymore, nor looking at him. He felt completely alone.
However, Sirius did keep his word. By the second day since their goodbye the owl came with his brother’s letter and a little box. The letter was short, but it made Regulus smile.
‘Dear Reggie,
Here I am, writing to you as I promised. I’m a bit busy, so I’ll make this quick, but I promise I’ll write more as soon as I can.
To begin with, I was sorted into Gryffindor. Can you believe it?! Me! Gryffindor! The first Black in Gryffindor in like… ever!
Anyway, I met the coolest guy ever, his name’s James Potter. I think we’re best friends.
I also met two other guys, Remus Lupin and Peter Pettigrew. We’re all in Gryffindor so now we get to spend a lot of time together. Things in class have been good, a bit boring for me, but good. I’m doing well so far.
Inside the box are some sweets and chocolates James bought on the train. There were quite a few, so I saved some for you. I know it’s not the healthiest meal and it’s not much, but you can eat them in case you get too hungry. I know they ‘forget’ to feed you.
Miss you loads, Reggie! Please take care and try to sneak to the kitchen at night to grab some food, if you take two or three slices of bread they won’t notice.
Love you,
Sirius.’
Regulus chuckled, but soon the tears started to fall. He really missed Sirius. How could his brother be so kind?! He sent him sweets for Merlin’s sake! Sweets! How thoughtful is that. He cared for him enough to save him sweets, even if he had been distracted with his new friends, he remembered.
The fact of this ‘James Potter’ being the coolest person Sirius has ever met made him feel a bit uneasy. What if he’s your replacement? He thought, but decided to ignore the thought. It was stupid and selfish, Sirius could have as many friends as he wanted. He deserved to have friends.
So he smiled and wiped his tears, opening the little box, everything looked delicious. Once he took the first bite of a chocolate frog he thought he had died and went to heaven.
Things went on like that for the whole year. Sirius writing to him nearly every day, some letters were shorter than others, but Regulus didn’t mind. He was so happy thinking about how his brother remembered to write. Sirius remembered and that was all he really needed.
When the Christmas break came Regulus was practically jumping in excitement. He had begged his aunt and uncle to take him to Platform nine and three quarters, he wanted to be the first one to hug Sirius after all these months they had been apart.
When he caught a glimpse of his brother he ran and jumped into his brother’s arms. Sirius laughed and it was music to Regulus’ ears, his brother returned the hug with the same intensity and Regulus felt safe.
For the first time he understood what people meant when they said sometimes home isn’t a place, but a person. Sirius was here and Regulus was finally home. The Christmas break was like stepping into the sun after being held in the dark for too much time. He felt genuinely happy. He got to spend every day with his brother who made him feel so loved and wanted. Regulus was in a dream.
But before he even realised it was time to wake up. The Christmas break was over, Sirius was gone and the same loneliness and coldness returned, pulling Regulus into the shadows again. The day he turned eleven felt like an ordinary day, nothing special at all. Sirius’ letter said he should be excited and happy, but without him there it was absurd. His aunt and uncle didn’t remember it was his birthday, they decided to ignore him, just like they did since the day he came to live with them.
Oh, but July was an exciting month. Regulus had been in a good mood the whole time. Sirius came back and now they got two months to enjoy, but that wasn’t even it. The reason of his joy was the fact that he, too, was going to Hogwarts this year, which meant he got even more time with his brother. The whole year! Regulus was so happy that the times they didn’t feed him weren’t even as important as before, the hunger was pushed into the back of his mind, nothing could make him upset.
Now, it was time to go to Diagon Alley. Sirius told Regulus it was an amazing place, truly impressive. When they arrived Regulus felt his jaw drop, Sirius hadn’t been kidding. Diagon Alley was more than impressive. It was a bit crowded, much to Regulus dismay, but it was still perfect. There were shops on every corner! If he looked to the left he found the Quidditch supplies shop, if he turned to the right there was a shop selling cauldrons and if he looked to the front— Merlin’s beard! What was that building?!
He was now standing in front of a three-story building. It was huge!
“That’s Gringotts, Reggie!” Sirius explained when he saw him staring, “It’s the Wizarding Bank. Here we’ll get some galleons so you can buy your stuff.”
Regulus made an ‘O’ shape with his mouth and nodded, too impressed to say anything.
“Hurry up, boys. We don’t have all day.” Uncle Cygnus said with an annoyed voice.
They walked towards the building and Regulus felt his jaw dropping to the floor again when he saw the inside. It was so elegant! And there were— Were those goblins?!!!
Regulus thought he might faint. Real goblins?! What?!
He heard Sirius chuckling from behind. “Cool, aren’t they?”
Regulus nodded rapidly. “Very.”
They walked a bit more, ending up in front of a very big desk where a grumpy goblin was writing, too focused to even look at them.
“Name?” He asked in a monotone voice.
“Regulus Black.” Uncle Cygnus said.
Now the goblin finally looked up. He raised an eyebrow. “And does Mr. Regulus have his key?”
Uncle Cygnus looked in his pocket, a few seconds later he pulled out a golden key. “Here.”
The goblin nodded. “Very well.”
Turns out, Gringotts it’s big. But like, enormous. They even had to take a ride to get to Regulus’ vault. During the whole thing Regulus held Sirius’ hand so tight he thought for a while he had left bruises. Sirius just laughed in his face, the bastard.
Another goblin had taken them there, when they arrived he jumped out of the cart and walked towards a black door.
“Key, please.” The goblin said, raising his hand.
Uncle Cygnus gave him the key with a look of disgust. Sirius had to bite his cheek to stop himself from laughing and Regulus felt kinda bad.
The door opened, revealing at least thousands of galleons. Regulus’ jaw dropped once more. Seriously, it might hurt later if he keeps doing that.
“We’ll only take the necessary.” Uncle Cygnus said, telling the goblin to take out a specific amount.
“Sure.” Regulus said.
When they got out of Gringotts the first shop they went to was Ollivander’s, the most famous wand shop in town. Making wands since 382 BC! Wow!
The shop was quite old and a bit filthy, there were wands on the walls covered in spider webs, but other than that it was a nice place. Regulus didn’t mind the old vibe. Perhaps it could even be considered as old fashioned! Well, perhaps not, but it was a nice place nonetheless.
The three of them were greeted by an old man with white hair, Ollivander himself, Regulus assumed. “Mr. Cygnus,” he called from the back, walking towards them, “and who else do we have here? Oh! Young Sirius Black!”
Sirius grinned. “Hello, Mr. Ollivander.”
“Welcome! Welcome! And— Oh. You must be Regulus Black.” The man said, his voice changing ever so slightly.
Regulus swallowed. “Hello, Mr. Ollivander. You’re right, I’m Regulus.”
The man hummed, eyeing him curiously. “I was starting to wonder when would I have you here, I see the day has finally arrived.”
Regulus smiled weakly.
“I would appreciate if you could speed up the process, Mr. Ollivander.” Uncle Cygnus harsh voice interrupted them.
The man turned to look at him and nodded. “Yes, yes. Let me have a look at my wands.” He walked to the back of the shop, his figure barely visible. Regulus could hear him whispering to himself.
“Perhaps…” Mr. Ollivander said, walking towards them again. He handed Regulus a small brown wand.
Regulus stared at it, dumbfounded.
“Well, what are you waiting for? Give it a wave.” Ollivander said.
“Right.” Regulus nodded and waved his wand, but a light exploded, crystals falling on top of them. He gasped. “Sorry!” And he placed it on the desk, not wanting to cause more trouble.
Mr. Ollivander shrugged. “Perhaps not.” He sighed, “let me see…”
Then, he came back with another wand, this one was a bit bigger, but it still felt weird on Regulus’ grip. He gave it a wave and a wand box fell on top of his uncle Cygnus’ head. Sirius snorted and tried to cover it poorly with a cough. His uncle glared at him before looking at Regulus with a mix of anger and disappointment.
Regulus looked down. “I’m sorry.” He whispered.
Mr. Ollivander disappeared again for a while, but when he returned he had a curious look on his face, he was holding another wand. “I wonder… I wonder…” The man murmured as he handed Regulus the wand.
This one had a dark brown colour, it fitted perfectly on his hand. It felt… right. When he gave it a wave the light in the room went brighter, as if something had clicked. Regulus couldn’t describe it, but it felt like this wand belonged to him.
Ollivander raised his eyebrows. “Interesting, very interesting.”
Regulus frowned a bit. “Excuse me, sir, but… what’s interesting?” He couldn’t help but ask.
The man stepped closer to him. “Oh, you see, young man. This is an 11-inch holly wand with a phoenix feather core, but the bird where this feather comes from had a twin. Only one.” Mr. Ollivander said slowly, “And it’s interesting that this is your wand when its twin killed your father.”
Regulus let out a shaky breath. “You mean its twin is in Volde— You-Know-Who’s wand?”
“Yes. So it is very interesting.” Ollivander said, stepping back. “Remember, the wand chooses the wizard Mr. Regulus, not the other way around.”
Regulus nodded, still shocked from the previous statement. Why did this wand choose him? Why?!
When they got out of the shop he could feel his uncle’s eyes on him. Regulus tried to ignore him, he felt bad enough as it is. He didn’t need to hear his uncle now. He already knew whatever it was was probably negative or about him being a freak.
Sirius caught up with him quickly. “Well, that was creepy.” He tried to joke, but Regulus could tell something was off.
“Yeah…” he said, his gaze still stuck on his shoes as he walked.
“Hey… you know that doesn’t mean anything, Reggie.” Sirius placed his hand on his brother’s shoulder, “You’re fine.”
Regulus nodded sadly. “Yeah, I guess.”
Their next stop was on Madam Malkin’s, here they would get Regulus’ robes for Hogwarts. Before he could open the door a hand on his shoulder stopped him.
He turned to look at Sirius. “What?”
“Uncle Cygnus and I are going to buy something right now, could you wait here for us?” His brother asked.
Regulus frowned. “Why can’t I go with you?”
“Of course you can, but it’s better if you wait here. You know, we don’t want to waste time.” Sirius shrugged, smiling nervously.
Regulus narrowed his eyes, he knew Sirius was lying. He had never been the greatest liar, but he trusted his brother. Whatever the reason he didn’t want him to go he wouldn’t question it. “Alright.”
Sirius grinned, all the nerves disappearing from his face. “Great, Reggie. You’ll be fine, we won’t take much.”
Regulus sighed and nodded. “Sure.” And he pushed the door.
Madam Malkin’s was… interesting. There were flying pins all over the place, tape measures and robes of all kinds and colours everywhere. He saw a woman walking towards him, but her gaze was stuck in a notebook.
“Hogwarts, dear?” She asked.
“Yeah.”
“Right,” She nodded, “Wait for me on the back, dear. Another boy’s already getting measured.”
“Okay, ma’am.” He nodded and went to the back, taking a look around the place. It seemed fun. He could stare at it for hours without getting bored, all the clothes made the shop look like a rainbow, it was oddly cool. Wow, that hat looked like—
“Careful there!” Someone grabbed him by the shoulders and pulled him to the side.
Regulus jumped backwards in surprise.
“Sorry, mate, but there was a flying pin going straight to your head, had to move you before it was too late.” The person— a boy— chuckled.
When Regulus finally looked up he went still, his eyes widening. He was met by the most beautiful pair of hazel eyes in history and a grin so wide and attractive it should be illegal. No, this boy had to be illegal.
Regulus had surely been hit with that pin on his head because he was hallucinating. How could someone be this beautiful? This boy was a few inches taller than him, Regulus forehead barely reaching the boy’s chin. He had dark brown curls, thick eyebrows and a tanned skin that literally glowed in the light. Regulus’ jaw nearly dropped, but thank Merlin it didn’t because that would’ve been humiliating and traumatising for him.
However, he seemed to be staring for way too long because the gorgeous boy cleared his throat. “You alright there?”
Merlin, his voice.
Was it getting hot in here?!!!
Regulus blinked. “Er— yeah,” he swallowed, “sure, everything’s— um, yeah, fine, brilliant.”
The boy smiled warmly. Regulus melted. “I’m James Potter, by the way! Hogwarts, too?” He extended his hand excitedly.
Regulus’ stomach dropped.
Of course this piece of art had to be Sirius’ best friend.
“Yes, first year. Er— nice to meet you.” Regulus took the boy’s hand and shook it.
The boy’s smile widened. “Great, I’m a second year.” A few silent seconds passed before James spoke again. “And?”
Regulus frowned. “What?”
James chuckled. “I mean, what’s your name? Normally people say that when introducing to someone new.”
Oh, right. Name.
“Oh, sorry.” He chuckled nervously, “I- I’m Regulus Black.”
James jaw dropped and his hand fell. Regulus went still again. Did he really manage to scare him that early?
James stared in silence for what felt like an eternity. Regulus was almost starting to sweat. “Um— James?” He called hesitantly.
Finally, James seemed to came back to reality again. “Oh, I’m so sorry!” He began, “That was completely rude. It’s just— I— I mean, the Regulus Black?”
Regulus winced. He didn’t like when people did that. Treating him like he was part of a museum or something, that made him feel even weirder.
“Er— yeah?” He said, but it came out more like a question.
“Wow! I mean, that’s just— wow. Err, sorry. I- I was kind of lost there, it’s just… I thought you had different eye colours, I mean, that’s what the rumours said.” He said sheepishly.
“Oh, umm, yeah, it’s true. They’re actually different, but my uncle put on a glamour charm so people wouldn’t notice here. You know, too crowded and that.” He shrugged.
“Oh, yeah, alright. I mean, that makes sense.” James chuckled. “Do you always use that charm? If— If you don’t mind me asking, of course. You don’t have to answer that.”
“It’s fine. Answering to your question, no. I usually use it on very crowded places, but not at home. Oh, and I won’t use it in Hogwarts.” Regulus answered honestly.
“Oh? Why not?”
“Well, you know, in the sorting they’re going to call my name in front of the whole school so… yeah, don’t really see the point in hiding it anymore.” He chuckled.
James smiled. “True. Well I—”
“James? Dear, are you ready?” A woman called from the door.
James looked at her and yelled, “Be right back, mum!” He turned to Regulus again. “Sorry, I have to go. I’ll see you at Hogwarts!” James winked and ran away.
Did he just wink at me? Oh lord, I’m fucked.
Just then, the same woman from the entrance came and started taking his measures for his robes. Good, a distraction.
After a few flying pins and notes on the woman’s notebook Sirius and uncle Cygnus came back. First, Regulus heard a knock on the window. He turned to look at it and that’s when he spotted them, but they also had an… owl? Wait, what?
“Happy Late Birthday, Reggie!!” Sirius smiled from ear to ear, looking far too pleased with himself.
Regulus’ mind stopped for a moment. He blinked some times, then stared, then blinked a couple of times more, then stared again and—
Holy Shit!
That was his owl.
He laughed when the realisation hit him. Sirius’ smile grew wider, his cheeks would probably hurt afterwards. That bastard!
Once Madam Malkin told him he was ready to go he ran out of there. He opened the door and pulled his brother into a tight hug, Sirius let out an ‘oumhp’ sound and laughed.
“Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you!” Regulus pulled back, looking at the owl. “Oh Merlin! It’s beautiful! Thank you, Siri!”
Sirius flushed at the nickname. “It’s alright, Reggie. I owed you a present.” He ruffled his brother’s hair.
“Oh, but you didn’t have to—”
“Shh, Reggie. I wanted to. You’re my brother, you deserve the best.”
Regulus felt his eyes watering, he sniffed. “Oh, you’re going to make me cry.” Another sniff. “Idiot.”
Sirius put his hand on his chest, making an offended face. “You wound me, Regulus.”
Regulus rolled his eyes. “Oh, shut up.”
Both of them chuckled together.
The owl was truly fascinating. She was a snowy white owl with amber eyes. So beautiful. Besides, very useful. He still couldn’t believe he got his own owl. He loved her already.
“What should I name you?” He whispered to himself. “Hmm, I think Elodie suits you, what do you think?”
The owl flapped her wings. Regulus chuckled. “That’s settled then.”
“I like that name. I thinks it’s great.” Sirius smiled.
“Yeah, well, she’s great.” And Regulus wasn’t lying. She was awesome.
When they returned to their house Regulus was in a good mood. He was completely happy. Today had been an extraordinary day. He couldn’t wait to go to Hogwarts. He was a bit nervous, meeting new people could be… difficult, but at least he got Sirius, and that was more than enough.
Oh and James Potter.
That stupidly attractive man followed him even in his sleep. Even if he would rather die than admit it, he was sort of excited to see him too. But, you know, just a little.
It was just a stupid attraction. Really, it’s just ‘cause he had been nice— charming, even, but that was definitely it.
Right?