Chapter 6
James
When Sirius didn’t come back out of the room, James got to work. He recast all of the wards on the house and he sent an owl to Moody, notifying the Order of the situation. He thought about giving Remus a call too, but didn’t want to overstep.
Truth is, James isn’t sure what to do in this scenario. With Sirius, it was a bit simpler. Sirius was his best friend, and if he needed a place to stay, he had one. Now, with Regulus and the war, things are different. James barely knows Regulus. In school, Regulus always acts like an elitist prick who doesn’t care for anyone other than himself. He’s a picture-perfect member of the Black family, cruel, cold, and dangerous. When Sirius got kicked out for being a blood-traitor, Regulus didn’t seem to care in the slightest. He never reached out to see if Sirius was okay, or that he found somewhere to live. He didn’t seem to care about Sirius at all.
Regulus is in rough shape, and he left Grimmauld Place for a reason, but can they trust him? Is he really just a hurt kid in the same position Sirius was, or is there something more sinister going on? Regulus has other friends, closer friends, why would he come here?
James sips his tea. He doesn’t have siblings, he’s can’t pretend to understand what it’s like to share your childhood with someone like that. What he does know, though, is that Sirius cares about Regulus. Even in their early Hogwarts years, when Sirius was slowly getting pushed away from his family and Regulus was being a prat, Sirius never stopped caring. It was pretty clear he was hoping Regulus would come around to their side eventually. He’d never admit it, of course. In fact, he rarely ever talked about Regulus. He’d shut down when someone used the name, no matter how off-handedly. It was a sore subject that they’d learned to avoid.
But now, here that sore subject is, sleeping in their spare bed room.
James is still sitting in the kitchen sipping on his sixth-- or maybe seventh?-- cup of tea when Sirius enters.
James looks up from the pile of tea bags sitting on the table.
“How many cups have you had?” Sirius jokes weakly.
James looks up and returns the smile. “You don’t want to know. I’ve gone to the bathroom three times already.”
Sirius chuckles and pulls another mug out of the cabinet.
“How’s he doing?” James asks.
Sirius glances back at the hallway. “Not good.” He responds. “He… has some cuts, James. They’re pretty bad. Most of them are new, but some of them…” Sirius trails off, picturing the few silvery lines on Regulus’s back.
James hums understandingly. There’s not much else to say.
Sirius pours tea into his mug. “At least he’s here. We’ve got him.” His words are hopeful, but his voice is melancholic and downcast.
James has rarely heard his friend sound pessimistic, but he remembers what it was like all those years ago, when Sirius first showed up. He’ll never forget how Sirius’s bleeding and unconscious body fell through the fireplace. How his mother shrieked, and his father rushed to Sirius’s side. He’ll never forget how afraid he was. Even afterward, when Sirius was safe at the Potters, James still worried. To this day, James feels a little guilty about it. Afterall, Sirius is his friend, they had been living in the same dorm at school for nearly five years. He knew things were bad for Sirius at home, he knew his mum was evil and his dad was cold, but he didn’t realize how bad it was. If he had, maybe things would have been different. Maybe Sirius wouldn’t have ever had to go through that.
James shakes his head to clear away the thoughts.
“How are you doing?” he asks.
Sirius shrugs, leaning back against the sink as he stirs some sugar into the tea. “I don’t know.” He says, then sighs and quickly shakes his head. “No, that’s not true. Not good. I just…” He trails off a bit, staring into the mug of swirling tea before picking up the sentence again. “I just wish he’d talk to me, or yell at me, or something. Instead he’s completely closed off. He won’t tell me anything. I don’t think he’s even said one word yet.” Sirius looks up at James again. His eyes so pleading and sad.
James’s insides squirm. He doesn’t know what to say. He doesn’t know how to fix this.
“He probably just needs some time. You were pretty messed up too, when you left.”
It’s a bit of an understatement. Sirius was on edge for months. He was jumpy and quick to anger. He got in more trouble than usual at school. He was a total handful.
Still… the Black brothers are so different. Sirius had shown up at the Potter’s in ruins, sure, but by the time he woke up, he was Sirius again. He was bright, and fiery, and angry. He was everything Sirius had always been, except dialed up to eleven. Regulus, on the other hand… Well, James never knew Regulus that well. Except for exchanging the occasional rude remark or mean glare, the two boys mostly ignored each other at school. James would have described Regulus as stiff, quiet, aloof, and uppity-- everything a pureblood should be. Regulus was mean, cruel, and cold, but today, when he saw Sirius and Regulus hugging in the entryway, it was something else. It was like Sirius was hugging a shell. When James looked in Regulus’s eyes, it was like looking into a void. There was nothing there to look back. Vacant.
James is trying to be comforting, but really, he doesn’t have anything more than comforting lies to give.
Sirius seems to take James’s reassurance, though. “Yeah, you’re right. He probably just needs time. He’ll be okay.”
Sirius sinks back into his thoughts, chewing on his lower lip. He looks more concerned than James has ever seen him. “Those cuts, though…”
James sighs. He’s not doing enough here. Maybe Remus could do better, he’s always been good with Sirius and his wild feelings.
“Do you want to call Remus?” James asks.
Sirius snaps out of his reverie and shakes his head. “I thought of that, too. I thought if Regulus won’t go to a doctor, maybe Remus could patch him up a bit, but it’s no good. Regulus already said no.”
James sets the mug of tea down on the table, trying to catch Sirius’s eye. “No, I mean, do you want to call Remus for you, not for Regulus.”
“Oh.” Sirius ponders that for a bit. “Um, yeah. Yeah. I want him here. But, could you do it for me? I want to go back in with Reg.” he says a bit nervously. “I don’t want him to be alone when he wakes up.”
James nods, “Of course, mate. I’ll be out here if you need anything.”
Sirius puts his spoon in the sink and disappears down the hall.