Belly of the Beast
Sirius hadn’t been consulted on Serpentine joining the North America Tour, and frankly, he was furious. He was never one to question Minnie’s judgment, but of all the bands in the world, why did it have to be his brother’s?
It was shocking to him when he found out that his brother had accepted, because, well, it wasn’t a very Regulus thing to do. Regulus hadn’t reached out to him in years, hadn’t had any urge to see him, and Regulus was never the type to jump into something without doing his research. There was no way Regulus would’ve accepted without knowing Sirius was a Marauder.
“It’s absurd, Remus!” Sirius said loudly, pacing around their rehearsal space. “He has no reason to join the tour! Why did he agree? He’s got to be messing with me, right?”
Remus watched him from the red sofa Sirius had bought for the band when they first started working in the studio. “Sirius, did you maybe think that he might not have known you were in the band? Maybe it was an impulse decision for, y’know, publicity? Or money?”
Sirius shook his head vehemently. “No, that’s not something Regulus would do. He’s always been a cautious kid, and he doesn’t need money. He’s got dear old Wallyburger and Orion paying for him. So this has to be to get at me. Maybe he’s looking to ruin the tour? No, he wouldn’t want that type of publicity.” Sirius sighed, collapsing onto the red couch, next to Remus. “Help me, Moons?”
Remus chuckled softly, spreading his arms for Sirius to collapse in between them, which he did, gratefully. Sirius leaned into Remus’s chest, groaning against Remus’s neck. Remus smiled, stroking Sirius’s hair in the way that he knew always calmed Sirius.
“Feel better?” Remus asked after a minute. Sirius nodded into Remus’s neck.
“I just don’t get it,” Sirius mumbled against Remus’s shoulder. “He hasn’t reached out in years. He hasn’t wanted anything to do with me since I was fucking sixteen. So why now? Why now does he want to be around me and work with the band? It doesn’t make sense.”
Remus sighed, still stroking Sirius’s hair. “Look, Sirius, there’s nothing we can do about this. If you don’t want to talk to him on tour, at least outside of concerts and interviews, then you don’t have to. Worrying and wondering about why he’s there isn’t going to change that he will be there. Just… be civil with him.”
Sirius sighed. “I’m not the one you have to worry about when it comes to ‘being civil’. Regulus is an antisocial little bitch who, without a doubt, wants to make me suffer.”
Remus pulled Sirius away from where he had been leaning into Remus’s shoulder. Sirius groaned in protest, but Remus looked at him strictly. “Sirius, you have to stay civil. You know the publicity we’ll get with your brother as our opening act. It’s your responsibility to make sure that it’s good publicity.” Remus sighed, gently pushing Sirius off so that he could stand. “I’m going to give you some space, Sirius. Calm down. Figure out how you’re going to act on tour. We’re going to be meeting with Serpentine for dinner and an interview tomorrow night. Please be ready.”
The night passed and Sirius was calm now. He was completely calm, and fine, and he could deal with seeing his brother for the first time in seven fucking years for a publicity stunt.
He was completely, totally, unspeakably fine.
The drinks had helped. He had ended up crying his eyes out to some uncomfortable seeming girl at a bar who had been kind enough to walk him back to his hotel, without anyone recognizing him, thankfully. He had felt much better when he woke up, without having had any nightmares.
Remus texted him every hour or so, reminding him of the interview and dinner, and that he had to be camera ready by seven. Sirius, hoping to ignore the looming threat of seeing his brother’s face, ignored the text messages until half ‘til six, when James, the optimistic ball of sunshine, barged into Sirius’s room to cheerfully pick out Sirius’s interview outfit, which he reluctantly accepted.
He ended up picking out a black crop top over a long-sleeve fishnet top, along with black denim jeans and his favorite Doc Martens. He even let James braid his hair while he put on eyeliner. He wanted to look nice for the cameras, and maybe, just maybe, show Regulus how much he’d changed in the past seven years.
The limo ride to the restaurant was quiet. They were meeting Serpentine at some ridiculously expensive place that Sirius would probably detest. He was sure it would be the type of place Regulus would love. Normally he would be talking nonstop with Remus, James and Marlene, and maybe Peter if he was riding with them. He didn’t technically play with the band. He wasn’t exactly musically gifted. Still, this ride was quiet, the only sound being the old rock playing from the radio.
When they arrived outside the restaurant, Sirius took a deep breath, plastering that celebrity smile across his face. Marlene stepped out of the limo first, her constant energetic, excited grin across her face. Sirius loved her dearly, but she didn’t understand Sirius’s anxieties about this meeting. Remus got out second with a friendly, diplomatic smile. He had always been able to keep his cool better than Sirius could. Then was James, eternally cheerful and friendly. He would undoubtedly put on a friendly face and stay by Sirius’s side, though Sirius hadn’t told him anything, and he could not be more thankful for that. Sirius was the last one to get out of the limo, a fake smile across his face, and he knew from the minute he saw Regulus, his little brother, for the first time in seven years, that nothing had changed.
Regulus was taller now, which was to be expected since Sirus hadn’t seen him since Regulus was fifteen. His hair was longer now too, the way it framed Regulus’s face reminding Sirius achingly of how he had looked the last time he had seen his brother. Sirius could vaguely see the glint of shining black earrings hidden in his brother’s black curls. Walburga never would’ve allowed that. She wouldn’t have allowed the expanse of tattoos over Regulus’s arms either. That was… strange. Regulus wore a cropped black turtleneck and black jeans, looking like a more… Regulus version of Sirius’s own outfit.
“Sirius,” Regulus said coldly, but politely, using that formal tone used for boring business conferences and dull deals. He didn’t bother with even a fake smile.
Sirius kept up that charming salesman smile as he responded with just as little warmth. “Regulus. Thank you so much for agreeing to join us on tour.”
Regulus raised an eyebrow, keeping his expression calm and cold. “It’s my pleasure. I’m so… excited to work with you.”
Sirius smirked. “I’m glad. Shall we go inside?”
Regulus gave an emotionless smile. “Of course.”
Sirius gestured inside politely. Sirius watched his brother and his band stream into the restaurant, followed by Marlene who was chatting animatedly with one of Regulus’s bandmates, a tall dark-skinned girl with an amused expression. James gave him a concerned look before following Marlene into the restaurant. Remus stayed behind outside the restaurant.
“Hey, Pads,” Remus said, putting a hand on Sirius’s shoulder. “Are you okay?” Sirius nodded.
“Of course, Remus,” he responded, his tone neutral. Remus gave him a look.
“Drop the camera smile, Sirius, and let me know that you’re okay,” Remus said, squeezing Sirius’s shoulder. There was so much concern in those lovely amber eyes.
“I’m fine, Remus. I promise,” Sirius said genuinely. Remus nodded hesitantly, releasing Sirius’s shoulder from his grasp, leaving Sirius momentarily mourning the loss of the warmth.
“Are you ready to go in?” Remus asked. Sirius nodded, taking a deep breath. There was an ominous sense of dread looming over him, like by walking in, he was stepping into a very dangerous place. A place that he wouldn’t be able to escape.