Chapter iv
Pandora Rosier was a force to be reckoned with.
She was smart and crafty, and she most definitely knew what she wanted.
She was also a diagnosed sociopath, so she usually found a way to get whatever it was she set her eye on.
On this day, what she wanted was a meeting between her roommate and his older brother. She agreed with Barty that, were it a failure, at least it would be interesting.
Regulus really hated his friends sometimes.
There was little Regulus wanted to do more than to avoid having dinner with his brother the next day. Sadly, one of the few things he wanted more was to get his quarter essay, worth a third of his semester grade, in to Professor Sinestra on time. It was due the next day, and Regulus knew there were last minute changes he could make, last edits to get it better, good enough.
At 3:00, a stink bomb was mysteriously set off in the library. The whole building was evacuated and the culprit was never found. Pandora Rosier, little rat that she was, had a tea from the library cafe for Regulus when he finally got away from the crowd. It was still hot.
How fucking fortunate, Pandora could either practice her euphonium in their dorm or a practice room. She could only stand to miss the time with Regulus, however, if she knew that at 7 the next evening, their whole friend group had dinner together. At the Bistro. With a reservation under 'Lupin.'
Regulus swore to God that if he didn't get a perfect score on his paper, he would riot. Nobody, however, breaks their word to Pandora Rosier.
---
At 6:42 pm, Regulus Black walked haughtily into a middle-grade but high-priced Italian restaurant, followed by a bored-looking boy, a content-looking girl, and a bastard who looked more like a pimp than anything else.
"Remind me again why we're 30 minutes early?" Evan was wearing his habitual it's almost boring to be this beautiful all the time look.
"Don't you mean 15?" Pandora corrected, randomly poking Barty's arm, as she was apt to do. It was her love language.
Evan looked unphased. "I said what I meant, little cousin."
He truly was a beautiful little bitch.
"We're here cause Reg is an anxious little wanker and wants to make a good impression," Barty cut in, using Evan's shoulder as an armrest just to annoy him.
Regulus chose not to respond.
Pandora seemed happy enough to fill the silence. "You know, of the four coming, three are into boys and only one is straight. We have three boys and one girl who is okay with men."
There was another long silence.
"Pandora, I dearly love you, but if you ever make that insinuation again, I will make you a noose out of your own pretty, bleached-white hair."
Pandora seemed unphased by Regulus's threat, just patting his shoulder comfortingly. Just that morning, she'd heard him threaten far worse to a wall he'd accidentally walked to. And the wall was still standing.
At that moment, Remus walked in. He was followed by the one Evan called Tall, Dark, and Handsome - TDH to the group - and an uncomfortable-looking kid practically being dragged in by -
oh.
Oh.
Regulus had expected it this time, but that didn't make it any less weird.
His undead brother.
Regulus couldn't hear his friends' banter, even knowing that it was for his benefit. He couldn't see Pandora poking her cousin and Barty to fix their postures and hair.
There was nothing but his bitch-ass zombie brother, Sirius Fucking Black.
There was an unbreakable wall of silence as Regulus and Sirius stared at each other.
Eventually, TDH couldn't take it, and he held his hand out to Pandora. "I guess you must be Sirius's little sister? I'm sorry, I thought it was your friend at first, you - uh, are you... half-siblings?"
He only grew more uncomfortable as Pandora stared witheringly at his hand.
Eventually, Evan took pity on him. "With how incestuous our branch of society is? I mean, we're probably related in like fifty ways. But wrong inbred little bastard."
TDH looked so completely and totally lost, and slowly pivoted to face Regulus. "So- uh..."
Regulus sighed and pushed TDH's outstretched hand back until it stopped at the painfully uncomfortable boy's side. "Ding ding ding. You got it." His voice was calm, even bored. He was careful to keep it that way. "Regulus. Your boyfriend's..." he trailed off. Oh, he knew Sirius was going to be pissed, but what could he say?
"My little brother, mate." Sirius's voice raised at the end, like it was a question.
"His little brother," Barty agreed, his tone deceptively light.
TDH seemed to take Barty's obvious hostility as a sign to shut up.
"...hey Sirius. Guess who's trans?" Regulus cursed his own voice for its uncertainty.
"Yeah, I kinda gathered that," Sirius agreed, his tone blank. "...cool name."
"...thanks." You chose it.
Remus cleared his throat. "So! Now that we've been introduced, how about we sit down?"
"Oh, we missed the reservation." Pandora's voice was perfectly content, unbothered. "Some birthday party took our table about five minutes ago." She seemed distantly amused at the thought.
Evan bit back a smirk. "And you didn't tell us then because..."
Pandora nodded sagely, and that was that.
"Okay, backup plan," the newcomer who had seemed reluctant to come decided. "What are we gonna eat?"
"The rich," Barty offered, winking at Reg.
Ew.
"Pizza it is," the reluctant boy - Regulus decided he looked like a Timothy - cut in, looking thoroughly uncomfortable.
"I don't know if that's the best idea," Sirius murmured. Subdued.
And oh, God. He remembered.
He remembered.
"Nah," Regulus put in after a second, hoping his voice oozed nonchalance rather than his internal panic. "Don't let his disgustingly perfect skin fool you, Evan eats greasy food all the time."
Evan's derisive response fell on deaf ears as Regulus looked at Sirius and noticed his worried look, because oh.
Oh.
Sirius was trying.
He cared.
Fuck.
Because Regulus cared, too.
He couldn't say anything.
Could barely even think.
Just like they always did, stupid lovely snotwads, Reg's friends kept a witty but ultimately depthless conversation going as the groups walked to and ate their pizza. Barty, Evan, and TDH bickered playfully nonstop, with occasional interludes from Pandora, Remus, and Timothy.
Regulus didn't talk.
Sirius didn't talk.
They stared at each other as they walked silently along.
They held their slices of pizza, but neither took a bite.
They were silent, uneating, throughout the whole meal.
Just like old times.
And just like that, they were back at the Bistro. Funny, Regulus hadn't even known they were going back.
Timothy and TDH walked away, going to start their cars.
Barty went to start his disgustingly nice Guessla, apparently (though everybody knew this was false) his father's own design.
People were leaving, but Regulus stood rooted there. Still looking at Sirius.
And then-
And then. Sirius was turning. He was going away again. Leaving again. And Regulus couldn't let him. Couldn't let him go.
"Wait." Couldn't. Couldn't. "Let's- coffee. Tomorrow. If you- you know, if you want to."
Sirius stopped, and Regulus pretended not to see the hesitation in his eyes. Because he knew that hesitation was fear. Fear of Regulus. Still - "Let's."