The Son of the Stars

☆

Sirius’ helmet was too big for him. It was the only one that he could find on such short notice, belonging to James’ head counselor Kingsley, but it was so massive that it kept slipping down over his eyes. He had to constantly push it up off of his forehead, and the fidgeting really wasn’t helping his nerves. Neither was the heat, beating down from the bright sun and onto his metal armor. Sirius felt like his back was melting. I wonder if James’ dad would consider taking the day off, he thought.

He stood at the back of the crowd gathered at the entrance of the forest. James had left a few minutes to prep last-minute medical supplies, leaving Sirius alone in the throng of campers. Although he couldn’t see much at the front, he spotted Lily’s bright hair shining in the sun as she stood in a clearing with a blonde girl. Sirius recognized her as Marlene McKinnon, the head counselor of the Ares cabin that James had pointed out the day before. 

Chiron wound through the crowd, towering over all of the campers as he made his way to the front. “Campers, your attention please!” he boomed, and the chatter around Sirius faded away. “Welcome to our first game of capture the flag of the summer!”

The crowd roared, brandishing their weapons in the air. Sirius shifted on his feet, his grip tight on Firebolt. It suddenly struck him that he was supposed to actually fight other human beings, not to mention ones that had been training for years. It was somehow far more terrifying than fighting a Minotaur, because he was sure that these demigods had far more developed senses of strategy and complex weaponry skills than a bull-man who was charging blindly in every direction. He didn’t have the first clue how to use a spear. Besides, he was pretty sure the only reason he won over the monster was sheer rage, and to the best of his knowledge, none of his fellow campers had killed any of his loved ones. Every bone in his body screamed at him to turn around and hightail it out of there. There was no way this could end well.

“A quick reminder of our rules,” Chiron continued. “Your goal is to get the opposing team’s flag across the creek running through the middle of the forest. Athena’s team, you are able to hide your flag anywhere in the forest on the west side; Ares, hide yours where you wish on the east. You can use any weapons, armor, or other offensive or defensive abilities you may have at your disposal, but no major or fatal injuries. Taking hostages is allowed, but extreme measures to get information out of them are strictly forbidden.”

Before Sirius had any time to digest that information, James appeared at his side. “Hey, sorry, I just had to grab some final things,” he told Sirius, holding up a burlap sack with a laurel wreath embroidered roughly on the front. “All set now.”

“Is this real?” Sirius asked, trying to mask the tremble of apprehension in his voice. “Does he really have to warn against accidentally maiming people?”

“No, he has to warn against intentionally maiming people,” James replied breezily. “The game can sometimes get a little out of hand.”

“Each team will have twenty minutes to strategize and hide their flag before we begin, signaled by the sound of the war horn,” Chiron was saying, patting the instrument strung at his hip. “After that, you are on your own. Is everyone ready?”

The campers cheered again. Chiron turned to Lily and Marlene, who approached each other and firmly shook hands once. Sirius could sense the fiery anticipation between them from the back of the crowd.

“Proceed!” Chiron ordered.

Lily began moving toward the left side of the creek, calling out to her team to follow. Sirius and James, along with the rest of their team, untangled themselves from the horde and followed. Remus was the first person to reach her, falling in step on her right like it was second nature. The team began their trek into the woods.

Sirius looked around their group, trying to see if Regulus had joined them, but to no avail. He hadn’t seen him at all that day; when he woke up in the morning, Regulus’ bunk was already empty and neatly made. He hadn’t made an appearance at the mess hall for breakfast either. For a moment, Sirius was struck with concern that Regulus would join the game without eating enough. What if something happened?

Stop it. It’s not your job to worry about him like that anymore, he tried to convince himself. After repeating it enough times in his mind, it started to feel almost believable.

They finally finished their hike uphill, emerging into a small clearing. Lily stopped leading them and turned around to face her troops. 

“All right. Here’s our strategy,” she said. “The Ares cabin’s modus operandi is offense, offense, offense, so we can expect most of them to be attempting to take our flag. That leaves them vulnerable, because they won’t have as many people defending their flag on their side. I think it’s safe to assume that they’ll keep at least two people guarding their flag, but other than that they will have fewer defensive patrols in their territory. This is good for us, because we’re going to have to use most of our forces to defend our own territory from them.”

As she spoke, Sirius noticed that the campers were listening intently to every word. Everything about Lily commanded attention. She had a natural authority, especially when giving orders on a battlefield, that Sirius didn’t think just anyone could replicate. 

“Our game plan is to send a small group into Ares territory,” Lily explained. “We only need six people to accomplish our offensive strategy. The entire group will go as far as Zeus’ Fist. If you aren’t familiar, it’s a big pile of rocks surrounded by vegetation and other rock formations, so it’ll be easy for four of the six to hide while the other two scout out the Ares flag. The pair will take the flag and lead any Ares defenders to Zeus’ Fist, where the others will be waiting to ambush them. The ambush will keep the Ares team occupied while one person runs the flag across the river. Any questions?”

Benjy Fenwick, who Sirius was pretty sure was one of Dionysus’ children, raised his hand. “Who’s going to be in the group of six?”

“Myself, Kingsley, Evan, and Barty will be the ambush group,” Lily replied. “As for our scouts, that honor goes to Remus and Severus.” 

At the mention of Severus’ name, Remus’ eyes widened. On the other side of the group, Severus’ face was unreadable. “Are you sure that’s the best strategic decision, Lily?” he countered. “Don’t you think you should be one of the two retrieving the flag?”

“You and Remus know these woods like the back of your hand,” Lily answered. “Plus, you’re some of the fastest runners we have. You’re the best candidates for the job.”

Severus didn’t seem especially pleased, but he relented. “You’re in charge, boss.”

Lily smiled at him. In the corner of his eye, Sirius saw Remus’ shoulders stiffen. He nodded rigidly when Lily looked to him for confirmation. Seemingly satisfied with this, she turned her attention to the rest of the group. 

“Fabian and Gideon, you two are leading our defense initiative.” She was talking to two Hermes kids, twins with orange hair that rivaled her own. “I need you to set up traps for the Ares cabin all around our flag, plus more throughout the woods. We need the fewest people possible to reach this clearing. Use any means necessary to keep this flag safe.”

The brothers’ faces split into identical wicked grins. 

“We hear you loud and clear, Lily,” Fabian (Gideon?) said. 

“Those Ares kids won’t even know what hit them,” Gideon (Fabian?) grinned. 

“Perfect,” Lily said. She pulled a piece of rolled-up paper out of her back pocket and handed it to the brothers. “Here’s the map of where I want the traps to be placed. I need you to rig them in all of these locations and then burn this map. We can’t have it getting into the wrong hands.”

“Copy that,” the first of the twins– Sirius had decided learning which was which was a priority for later– said. “We’ll go get started.” Both brothers shouldered large duffle bags and ran off in the direction of the creek.

“As for the guards of the actual flag,” Lily continued, “I need at least one Apollo healer to be stationed here, so that the rest of you have somewhere you know you can go if you’re injured. James, if you don’t mind, I’d like you to take that on.”

“Sure, Lily,” James beamed.

“Great,” Lily replied. “You’ll be paired up with Regulus, then.”

James’ smile faltered. “What?”

“What?” echoed a voice to Sirius’ left. He knew before he turned his head that it was Regulus, emerging from where he had blended into the crowd of armored bodies.

“Yes,” Lily said. “We need a strong warrior to hold off the Ares team. That’ll work out well.”

By the looks on Regulus’ and James’ faces, it didn’t look like they agreed with that statement, but Lily conveniently ignored them.

“Everyone else, you’ll be on defense,” she said, addressing the entire crowd. “You’ll be sweeping the woods for Ares troops and looking to stop them from getting any closer to the flag. Fight them, let them chase you in the wrong direction, anything to lead them astray. The Apollo healers will be canvassing the area too, to help anyone who needs it. If you’re badly injured, try to find your way to James, but make sure you aren’t being followed. Is everything clear?”

The crowd murmured assent. 

“Excellent.” Lily clapped her hands together. “Come talk to me about your starting locations and head there immediately. We don’t have much time before the game starts.”

Sirius moved out of the way of the line forming in front of Lily, pulling James aside. “You can talk to her, you know. I’ll offer to guard the flag with you, and Regulus can find something else to do.”

“It’s fine,” James cut in. “It’s just for the game. I’ll survive.”

“Are you sure?” Sirius asked. 

James managed a small smile. “Don’t worry about me. Worry about yourself. You’re going to be fighting off huge Ares campers armed to the teeth, while I’ll be standing around giving people Band-Aids. Who do you think really has it worse?”

“Fair enough,” Sirius grinned. “Stay safe.”

James pulled Sirius into a quick one-armed hug. “You too. Be careful.”

Behind him, Sirius caught a glimpse of Regulus watching them. It was only for a second, until Regulus noticed his brother looking back. He turned on his heel, hiding his face from Sirius’ view, and walked over to Evan and Barty.

Sirius pulled away from James. “I’ll see you soon,” he said, and started walking over to Lily. The crowd had mostly dispersed at that point, so Sirius approached Lily directly. “Reporting for duty.”

Lily looked him over. “Are you sure you’re ready for this?”

Sirius certainly wasn’t, but he crossed his arms in mock confidence. “Are you doubting me?”

“You got here yesterday, you have no training, your helmet is too big and your armor is too small, and you’ve never even thrown your spear,” Lily countered. “I’m not exactly over-confident in your abilities.”

“I’ll be fine,” Sirius insisted, although his doubt was growing by the second. “Besides, I’ve been told I can’t miss my first game of Camp Half-Blood capture the flag.”

“Suit yourself,” Lily said. “My advice? Enthusiasm is everything. You aren’t anywhere near as trained as the other team, so you’re going to need to make up for that in effort. Whatever motivates you– passion, anger, pride– use that.”

Sirius nodded. “Understood.” He certainly had no shortage of anger to get out.

“You’ll be positioned close to the front lines,” Lily told him. “The rest of us are headed that way, so I can show you to your position if you come with us.”

“Lead the way,” Sirius said, motioning for her to proceed.

Lily called out to her team, who stopped talking amongst themselves and picked up their weapons. They headed into the wilderness as a unit. Sirius glanced back once at the clearing, at Regulus and James now standing alone, before the trees closed in behind him and hid them from view.

☼

As Sirius disappeared into the forest, James was faced with the deafening silence in the clearing. Everyone had cleared out more quickly than James had realized, and now it was just him and Regulus.

James had no idea what to expect from this. He had never imagined that he would be alone with Regulus before Sirius had even had the chance to. He didn’t really know what Regulus had been like before Sirius had left home, because Sirius hated talking about anyone at all in his family, and he certainly had no idea what Regulus was like now. 

He wasn’t even sure how he was supposed to feel about the whole situation. He had spent years hating the entire Black family, including Regulus. Anyone living in that house was someone who contributed to the pain that Sirius had gone through, and that was unforgivable. Sirius had every right to resent his brother, which meant by extension that James did too. But try as he might, James couldn’t entirely forget the face of that boy with the giant glistening blue eyes, who wanted so badly for his brother to see him.

True to his godly parentage, James had always felt a duty to help those who were hurting. And despite his anger and his loyalty to Sirius, it wasn’t in his nature to entirely write off someone who was so clearly in pain.

He couldn’t quite bring himself to turn around yet, so he busied himself with checking the medical supplies he had brought with him. He had counted and re-counted them before the team had set out, but he laid them all out on top of his bag and sorted them again. Twelve packs of ambrosia. Twenty-four small bandages, twenty-four large bandages, a box of gauze. A bottle of antiseptic. Tweezers, gloves, needle and thread. 

James heard a sudden loud thump behind him. He started, whirling around on instinct as his hand went to the sword on his hip. Regulus was still facing away from him, turned toward a large oak tree about fifteen feet away. A dagger was buried deep in its bark, Regulus already reaching for another. Before James could blink, Regulus had thrown the knife into almost the exact same spot as the first, their hilts knocking together as the knife quivered from its impact. 

Seeming to sense he was being watched, Regulus turned to face James. James considered looking away, pretending he hadn’t been paying attention, but it was too late. 

“Did you need something?” Regulus asked coolly. 

“No, sorry,” James muttered in response. “I just heard a sound, and I didn’t know what it was.”

Regulus nodded curtly, taking out a third dagger. “I’m just warming up.”

James’ gaze went from the knife in Regulus’ hands to the two lodged side by side into the tree’s trunk. “Seems to me like you don’t need to do much practicing.” 

Regulus tilted his head slightly, giving a small smirk. “I can always do better.” He let the final knife go, its aim true as it landed directly between the first two. After pausing for a moment, as if to consider his work, Regulus approached the tree and started to dislodge the weapons from his target.

“Well, either way, it’s impressive,” James said. 

He really wasn’t sure why he was still talking to Regulus, let alone complimenting him. Every word was a reminder that James’ best friend hadn’t spoken to his brother in years, and here James was chatting with Regulus about his talent with a dagger. But James couldn’t stand here in silence and let the weight of their circumstances hang in the air. He couldn’t stand awkward silences during the best of times, and this one would have been nauseating.

Regulus raised an eyebrow at James’ compliment, and for a moment, James saw through the guarded expression Regulus had been wearing for the first time. He looked confused more than anything else. Before James had time to read any further into it, Regulus’ face was back to a stony facade. 

“I’ve been training here for years, and I haven’t ever gotten the hang of throwing knives,” James pressed on. “It definitely takes a special skill set.”

Regulus shrugged as he pulled the final knife from the tree, starting to make his way back towards James. “It’s always been my weapon of choice. I haven’t ever really thought about it more than that.”

“And you’ve only been using it for less than a year?” James said. “That’s definitely an accomplishment.”

Regulus’ face darkened. “I didn’t say that.”

James frowned. “What do you mean?”

“Just what I said.” Regulus was walking toward him, taking another knife from his holster. James took a cautious step back, but Regulus was right in front of him now, holding the knife by its blade. James flinched, but Regulus only held the weapon out so James could see the design etched into its hilt. It was a small crest, featuring a skull, three birds, and a tiny inscription at the bottom. If James squinted, he could make out the words TOUJOURS PUR. 

“This is the knife I’ve been training with for as long as I can remember,” Regulus said. “It was the only weapon I brought with me when I came here, the only thing that protected me. I’ve learned since that it’s made of Stygian iron. Probably a gift from Hades to my mother when I was born. Complete with our family crest.”

James felt the weight of everything he had been avoiding, everything that hadn’t been said, crash down upon them, shattering the illusion of pleasant cordiality. All he could think about was everything that crest represented, every time he had seen his best friend in pieces and tried his best to put him back together.

He took a step back, looking incredulously at Regulus. “And you’ve kept this all this time? Carrying that knife around, flashing your family’s pride?”

Regulus eyes flashed, his sharp gaze boring into James’ own. “Don’t you dare say that to me.”

“Why not?” James could feel his anger growing, threatening to overflow. “I bet they really are proud of you, you know. Perfect Regulus, a son of Hades, a child of the Big Three.”

Regulus clenched his fist. “Don’t talk about things you don’t understand. You know nothing about me. Absolutely nothing.”

“Oh, but I do,” James shot back. “I’ve heard about what it was like in that family. What you were like. You were the perfect son, the best student, the smartest, the strongest. You let Sirius take every blow for you, while all you cared about was their approval.”

“I was ten years old!” Regulus was getting louder now. “What was I supposed to do? I was a child!”

“So was he!” James exclaimed. “And he did everything to defend you, and you did nothing for him.”

“And what do you think happened when he left me behind?” Regulus retorted. “Why do you think I ran away in the first place?” 

James faltered for a moment. “What are you talking about?”

“I was alone in that house for three years,” Regulus said icily. “And unlike Sirius, I didn’t have anyone who I could go to for help. I didn’t have a friend who had loving, caring parents who could take me in. I was completely alone. My parents weren’t going to make that same mistake again.”

James opened his mouth, but nothing came out. 

Regulus smirked mirthlessly. “Don’t think that I forgot about you, either.”

Before James could say anything, Regulus strode off into the forest, leaving him once again alone in crushing silence.

☾

Chiron’s war horn rang through the trees, making the hair on the back of Remus’ neck stand up. He felt the adrenaline kick in, as it did anytime he was in any kind of combat scenario. His mother’s blood flowed through him, heightening his instincts and sharpening his reflexes. He was ready for battle.

Lily motioned for their group to proceed, as they had planned to as soon as the horn went off. They emerged from the trees on their side to cross the creek at one of the shallower areas, and crept into the Ares team’s territory, making their way toward Zeus’ Fist. 

Remus had an arrow notched and at the ready, but they didn’t face any major obstacles on their way. At one point, they came across one group of three opposing campers, but Lily silently signaled to the rest of the team to hide, and they dove behind bushes and in between trees with plenty of time to spare. The other team passed by without a second glance.

They finally reached Zeus’ Fist, which was luckily free of any members of the Ares team. Evan, Barty, and Kingsley went off to find their hiding places, while Lily lingered for a moment with Remus and Severus. 

“Stay together, be fast, and don’t be seen until the last moment,” she told them, giving them both a piercing look. “There’s a reason why I’m trusting you both with this.”

Remus had known Lily long enough that he understood what she really meant. Nothing got past her; she knew Remus didn’t want to be teamed up with Severus any more than Severus did with him. But winning this, proving herself, was so important to her, and she would not let two of her closest friends be the reason her plan failed. 

So despite his frustration with the boy standing next to him, he smiled at her. “We won’t let you down.”

Severus nodded. “You can trust us.”

Lily inclined her head at both of them, giving them a small smile. “Good luck.” She gave Severus a quick hug, and Remus busied himself with polishing a spot on his bow. When Lily turned to him, he tried to rearrange his expression to look reassuring. She wrapped her arms around him, and he leaned down to meet her in the embrace. 

After a moment, Lily pulled away. “You’d better get moving. I don’t want to give their team any more of a head start.”

Remus nodded, and he and Severus began their journey through the woods. 

They weren’t entirely sure where the Ares cabin had hidden their flag, but Remus thought it was safe to assume that it would be somewhere along the outer perimeter of the forest, to give any thieves as much time as possible to be intercepted before they crossed over the creek. Remus and Severus started moving toward the edge of the woods, while also continuing further north and away from Zeus’ Fist. 

“What’s our plan for when we find the flag?” Severus whispered, trying to keep his voice down as they crept through the trees. 

“Not sure,” Remus said curtly in response.

“Don’t you think we should strategize ahead of time?” Severus asked. “We probably won’t have the time once we find it.”

“We won’t know what the best strategy is until we find out where they’re hiding,” Remus hissed. 

Severus shot him a look, one that Remus was becoming all too familiar with. A look that asked what was wrong, what had changed between them. Severus never said it out loud. Remus wasn’t sure what he would say if he did. On some level, he thought it was because Severus knew why Remus had changed, and he would never admit it aloud. 

It had been about a year of dancing around the subject for them, as Remus had pulled away and Severus had stopped pretending like he didn’t notice. Before that, Severus had always been someone Remus thought he could trust. 

Remus and Lily had been on the run for about ten days before they ran into another child away from home, about eleven years old. They were immediately drawn to him, becoming their own little group of three. The boy taught Remus and Lily how to fight, gave them their first weapons, and told them about a safe place that he knew of for people like them, a refuge called Camp Half-Blood. Severus was one of the first people that made Remus’ life make sense. 

At the time, Remus noticed the way Lily looked at Severus. It was never said aloud, but it was obvious that she thought he hung the moon and the stars. At seven years old, Remus didn’t know anything about love, so he had no way of understanding what Lily felt about Severus. By the time he grew old enough to start recognizing what he had seen, Lily and Severus had fallen into a steady routine, and Lily had lost that haze of admiration in her eyes when she looked at the other boy. Remus chalked it up to a childhood crush and put it out of his mind. He never brought it up to Lily, because he didn’t want to throw a wrench into her bond with Severus, or their dynamic as a group. Everything was as it should’ve been.

And then, almost a year ago, Remus caught Severus watching Lily. It was a fall evening, and Lily was leading two newer campers around the grounds. Her hair was loose and almost glowing in the setting sun, and Remus saw Severus’ eyes following her. Severus hadn’t said anything, hadn’t even done anything that Remus could point to that was out of the ordinary, but Remus had seen him look at Lily the same way for the past eight years. And that night was something new. 

Remus wouldn’t ever be able to confront Severus. He couldn’t even really talk to Lily about this, because Lily would just assure him that it was all in his head, that nothing was strange, that she was like a sister to Severus. So for the past year, he had sat with the pit in his stomach and the simmering fury that started to rise whenever he saw Severus crack a joke that Lily smiled at, or them training together, or their arms brushing when they bumped into each other in passing. 

Because now, at fifteen years old, Remus had a better idea of what love was, enough to know it when he saw it on one of the faces he knew best. He didn’t know how serious Severus’ feelings were, didn’t even know if he recognized them himself. All Remus knew was that he would do anything for Lily Evans. He would stand between her and anyone or anything that was going to hurt her, even if they didn’t mean to. And he also knew that Severus had no right to look at Lily in that way. 

So he had withdrawn from Severus, because he couldn’t be around him without making his skin crawl. But it was also because he had started to realize that maybe this person who Remus had trusted for years, who had been his guide and his mentor and his friend, had never had his best interests at heart. Maybe he had always had his own selfish, slimy ulterior motives, and Remus was just a means to get to his desired end. Of course, there was a chance Remus was reading into everything, and the only thing wrong was his sudden coldness towards Severus, who hadn’t actually done anything wrong. But Remus’ job was to protect himself and Lily, and he had long since accepted the sacrifices necessary to do so. 

Remus’ thoughts were interrupted by Charity Burbage, a young girl from the Apollo cabin running up to meet them. “Remus! Severus! I found the flag!” 

Remus immediately brought a finger to his lips in a quieting motion, glancing at the surrounding forest to see if anyone had overheard. After a beat where no Ares cabin members jumped out to ambush them, he turned back to Charity. “Where? Keep your voice low, remember.” 

Charity nodded apologetically, her cheeks glowing pink. “It’s a little bit that way,” she explained, pointing north. “It’s in the middle of a pretty big clearing, and they’ve got two guards standing watch. Marlene McKinnon and Alice Fortescue.”

“Can you lead us there?” Severus asked.

Charity nodded again, motioning for them to follow her. 

They only had to walk for about two more minutes before they came across the flag. Charity was right; the clearing they had chosen was especially large. It was a good strategic set-up for the other team, because no one could approach on foot without attracting the attention of the guards. The two girls were on either side of the large flagpole, standing back to back. Marlene had her sword drawn, while Alice didn’t seem to be armed.

The three of them retreated from the edge of the clearing into the thick forest surrounding them. 

“What are you thinking?” Severus asked Remus. 

Although Remus mind for strategy wasn’t quite on par with Lily’s, he knew that his team looked to him as an authority because of his mother. His mind was flying through potential plans. They really only had one shot at this, so their first idea had to be their best.

“I think I have an idea, he said eventually.

After he had whispered his ideas to Charity and Severus, they all silently took their positions. Remus settled in behind a large oak tree right on the edge of the clearing.

He heard a rustling a few trees down. Marlene, who was closer to him, must’ve also heard, because Remus heard her voice saying “Did you hear that?”

“I didn’t hear anything,” Alice responded. 

The trees rustled again. 

“There!” Marlene insisted. “Don’t you hear it?” 

“Actually, I think I did,” Alice admitted, brow furrowing.

A branch cracked as Charity, the source of all the noises, purposely stepped down on it. Marlene took a step forward, holding her sword out toward the sound. She continued to approach cautiously toward the sound, a few steps at a time. 

Remus waited until the last possible moment, when Marlene was almost at the edge of the clearing, to strike. He raised his bow and fired an arrow directly into Marlene’s left foot. The arrow made contact with the top of Marlene’s foot, and its force drove it deep into the packed soil. Marlene screamed, reflexively trying to pick her foot up, but Remus’ arrow was trapping her in place.

At the sound of Marlene’s cry, Alice surged forward, but a force behind her pushed her to the ground. Severus had approached from behind and barreled into her.

Alice didn’t seem to be injured, rolling as she hit the earth and emerging in a kneeling position. She pulled a knife from her belt as Severus bore down on her, meeting his blade with hers. They were quickly locked in combat.

Remus needed to move before Marlene broke free. He sprinted for the flag. He registered Alice’s exclaim at his appearance, but he didn’t let it deter his focus. 

He had reached the flag, grasped it, pulled it from its holder, when Severus’ shout broke through Remus’ concentration. Remus whipped his head around to see Severus fall to the ground, clasping his forearm, a fresh gash under his fingers. Alice stood above him, knife at her side. She looked right at Remus and saw that he had pulled the flag free, her face darkening. Without hesitation, she reached into her pocket and pulled out a small metal object. Before Remus had time to wonder what it was, she pressed a large button on its side.

Remus heard a loud whirring from the forest to his right. He turned his head to see two glowing red lights looking back at him through the trees. Something was emerging from the woods, something huge and clanking made of Celestial bronze, coming straight for Remus. 

Without another thought, Remus turned on his heel and bolted. 

He sped through the forest, light on his feet, avoiding the knotty branches that seemed to spring out of nowhere, trying to send him to the ground. The Hephaestus cabin’s weapon was crashing through the trees behind him, but Remus kept moving forward, not daring to look back. He couldn’t draw his bow and hold the flag at the same time, so he was essentially defenseless, but he didn’t think an arrow would do much against the creature anyway. His only chance was to outrun it.

He turned a corner and saw two Ares campers about ten feet away, one of whom saw the flag in Remus’ hands and cried out. They drew their weapons, but Remus simply sped up in response, tearing even faster through the woods and leaving them in the distance. 

After what felt like miles, Remus finally reached Zeus’ Fist. He saw Lily rising to her feet from behind a pile of stones, eyes lighting up when she saw the flag Remus was carrying. Then she saw what was approaching behind him, and her smile slipped away as her eyes went wide. The others were emerging from their hiding places now, and Remus heard Evan say, “What the fuck?” 

As the others surged forward, weapons in hand, Remus risked a glimpse behind him. He faltered, staggering slightly as he lost his balance. Towering over them was a massive beast, a Celestial bronze rhinoceros with menacing red eyes and an enormous horn as long as Remus’ arm. It huffed, steam rising from its nostrils, as it surveyed the campers before it. At any moment, it could start charging again. 

Behind the rhino, Severus emerged from the trees. His forearm was freely bleeding now, along with a gash on his cheek, but he didn’t seem to notice. “They’re coming!” he shouted, making a beeline for Remus. “We have to go!” 

Everything seemed to happen at once. Severus’ approach seemed to spark the creature’s attack instinct off again. It pawed at the ground as its red embers made eye contact with the flag in Remus’ hand. At the same time, Marlene and Alice burst into the clearing, arms at the ready. Marlene was limping slightly from Remus’ arrow, but she didn’t seem to be feeling it, and her eyes were locked on him with a steely determination. 

Remus made fleeting eye contact with Lily. Her eyes widened, and she motioned imperceptibly with her head in the direction of the creek. Remus could read what she was thinking in her eyes, because it was running through his mind as well. He needed to get the flag across the boundary into their territory to win the game. It would likely draw Marlene and Alice away from his team, and the rest could handle the automaton until the game was over, at which point it might hopefully deactivate. Lily whipped her head back around, running into the fray as the rhinoceros bore down on the four of them.

Remus took a deep breath, adjusting his grip on the flag. Severus was closing in on him, drawing his sword. He turned his back to Remus, facing Marlene and Alice, who were seconds away. And Remus felt it again, the way it used to be when it was just the three of them out in the unknown. When the communication between them was as seamless as Remus and Lily’s, when they knew what the plan was without having to say a word. He knew that despite the twist in his gut when he looked at Severus, in this moment, he knew instinctively what Remus needed, and would help him with everything he had.

“Come on,” he whispered. “Let’s go.” 

Severus nodded once, and together, they raced into the forest.

☆

Sirius had been standing in his assigned spot for what felt like an hour, but was realistically about five minutes, when he decided he couldn’t take it anymore. He had never been the best at sitting still, and there was nothing to entertain him. None of the campers on the other team had come anywhere close to him– not that he could’ve done much in retaliation if they had, but it would’ve at least provided a distraction– and the drone of the rushing creek was making his hair stand on end.

He started wandering along the bank of the stream, kicking pebbles into the water, until he got a few hundred yards downstream and decided to turn right, wandering through the woods. If anything happened while he wasn’t at his post, he figured that he could say that he thought he heard someone in the woods and went to investigate. 

In reality, the woods were strangely quiet. Sirius wondered where the action was happening, because it certainly wasn’t anywhere close to the boundary line. Were Lily and Remus locked in a battle with the Ares team over the flag? Did any of the Prewetts’ traps successfully snare their opponents? Were James and Regulus still waiting by their own flag, or had the other team already taken it? 

Sirius was trying not to think about James and Regulus, but the thought kept worming its way into his mind. He had no conceivable idea of what the atmosphere was like in that clearing. He had a hard time guessing how James would be acting around a member of Sirius’ family, and he had been apart from Regulus for so long that he could hardly imagine what he was like anymore. 

There were familiar parts of Regulus that Sirius still remembered, that he would never be able to forget. Ice blue eyes that hardened when his brother entered the room, delicate hands gripping the hilt of a blade, the urge to either turn and run or stand and fight when faced with confrontation. Most of these traits were especially easy for Sirius to remember, because he recognized them when he looked in the mirror. 

Any time Sirius tried to think rationally about the circumstances he was in, he was so overwhelmed by anger that he had to actively hold himself back from tracking Regulus down, grabbing him by the shoulders, and shaking him until he spat out an answer. It wasn’t enough that he had to watch Effie and Monty disintegrate before his eyes and find out that he was half god within twenty-four hours, he had seen his little brother for the first time in years; and yet, he hadn’t ben able to get a word in without Regulus immediately picking up and moving as far away from Sirius as humanly possible. Sirius was almost at his breaking point, his frustration boiling over, and he didn’t even know what he would say if he actually got Regulus to listen. After all of that, he didn’t know if he would actually ever be able to put his feelings into words.

The sound of footsteps suddenly caught Sirius’ attention. He slipped behind the closest tree trunk, tucking himself into the shadows. Someone was approaching. It sounded like it couldn’t be more than one person, walking quickly and purposefully through the woods. 

Sirius wondered if someone from the other team had actually managed to take their flag. It made sense for them to be traveling alone, their other teammates holding off Sirius’ team’s defenses further into the forest. They were clearly hurrying, as if they were running away from something. He couldn’t see who it was, but they didn’t sound like they were an Apollo healer on medical patrol. They were moving too fast and too loudly, like they didn’t care about calling attention to themselves, and the only thing that mattered was escaping as quickly as possible. 

He wasn’t sure how well he could hold off any trained fighters, but he had to do something. Maybe he could just keep the Ares team member busy until someone else from his team arrived. Sirius took a deep breath, tightened his grip on Firebolt, and whirled around the side of the tree. 

Instead of a massive Ares cabin warrior carrying a lethal sword, ready to take him down, Sirius found himself once again faced with his little brother. 

Regulus’ eyes grew round as he recognized Sirius, just for a moment, before they narrowed again. He didn’t say a word, just scoffed derisively, and pushed past his brother to continue walking. 

Sirius wasn’t sure why, but this was his final straw. Here they were, alone in the woods, away from anyone else, and still Regulus wouldn’t say a word. He had ignored Sirius when he arrived, ignored him when they were alone that night and Sirius was sure he was awake, and ignored him now. Sirius was done. This wasn’t something that they could tiptoe around forever. If they were going to have it out, now was a good a time as any. 

“Regulus!” he shouted, turning back toward his brother, who was already about fifteen feet away. Regulus started at his name, his shoulders tensing, but he kept moving. 

Sirius took a few steps in his direction. “Regulus!” he called out again. “You can’t do this forever!”

“Can’t I?” Regulus’ voice was deeper than Sirius remembered, another reminder of the years that had drawn them away from each other, but it still had a cadence that would always be familiar to Sirius. 

“I’m not going anywhere,” Sirius continued, picking up speed. “We’re both stuck here! Running away from me isn’t going to help anything.” 

Regulus laughed, a short, haughty sound. “That’s rich, coming from you.” 

Sirius’ blood ran cold. “What?” he said in disbelief.

Regulus turned to face Sirius, his eyes piercing. “You heard me. How long do you think I can get away with running from you? Do you think four years would be enough? Then we could finally be even.”

A shudder went down Sirius’ spine. Here he was, just like he’d expected; finally in front of his brother, confronting each other, with no idea what to say. “Don’t throw that in my face. You know perfectly well why I did what I did.”

“Oh, trust me, I know why you did it.” Regulus was walking backward now, staring Sirius down as he maintained the distance between them. “But I also know that you never stopped to think about the consequences of your actions. For anyone but yourself, I mean. I’m sure you settled right in with your lovely new parents and your perfect new brother and never gave us a second thought. You never wondered what happened to us after you decided that you were the only one that needed to get out.”

“I did need to get out!” Sirius retorted. “They hated me because I was the fuck-up. I was the embarassment, and you were perfect. They never stopped loving you!”

“Because I never gave them a reason to!” Regulus snapped. “How long do you think that lasted after I was the only one left?”

“You think I gave them a reason not to love their own son?” Sirius’ face burned with rage. “You’re saying it was my fault that our parents decided a child who wasn’t old enough to tie his own shoelaces wasn’t good enough for them?”

Regulus started to respond, but before he could make a sound, a loud SNAP! rang out. Before Sirius could understand what was happening, Regulus was hoisted up in the air, tangled in a tightly woven net. His foot had triggered one of the Prewett’s traps, and he was now dangling about five feet above Sirius’ head.

Sirius couldn’t help it. He laughed, throwing his head back and breaking into a grin. The anger coursing through his veins only fueled his mirth. He knew it was cruel, that he shouldn’t be laughing at his brother’s misery, especially in the midst of the conversation they were just having, but at the moment he couldn’t care less. 

“Shut up!” Regulus shouted, his cheeks glowing bright red as he fumbled for a knife at his belt. 

“Oh, Reggie,” Sirius taunted, emphasizing the nickname with a derisive sneer. His fury was at the surface, unchecked and free-flowing in a way he hadn’t allowed it to be in many years. He felt slightly dizzy, his rage making him feel powerful, almost dangerous. “Are you saying that after I left, it wasn’t so easy to be Mother’s angel boy? Did it get bad after I wasn’t there to take your blows anymore?” 

“Shut. Up.” Regulus was breathing hard. Sirius could see the rapid rise and fall of his chest as he struggled to balance on the ropes, finally pulling the knife from his holster and starting to rip at the net.

Sirius shook his head in mock disbelief. “I can’t even blame you for being angry at me. I would be too. I am. But after all of this, after everything, I can’t understand how everything Mother and Father did pales in comparison to me choosing to finally free. I mean, isn’t it ridiculous to you that I’ve become the villain in your story?”

Regulus was hacking at the net harder now. A few ropes broke loose, the severed ends swaying in the air.

“Do you want me to apologize? Is that it?” Sirius crossed his arms, watching amusedly as his brother struggled. “I’m sorry for protecting you even when you were in far less danger than me. I’m sorry for not checking with you before I left, because I knew you would just run and tell Mother in the hopes of gaining her approval. I’m so sorry that I stopped worrying about you after it was obvious that nothing was going to happen to you that didn’t happen to me ten times over.”

Regulus screamed, raising the knife above his head and bringing it down in an arc. The force of the blade sliced through the last few ropes, and Regulus tumbled to the ground. He rolled on impact, coming to rest on one knee. He looked up at Sirius through blazing eyes and raised the iron knife again, before driving it into the ground up to its hilt. 

The ground beneath Sirius’ feet started to tremble, and his smile faltered. He stumbled backward as the dirt that Regulus had driven the knife into seemed to splinter. The cracks in the ground began to widen, spreading across the forest floor. 

Sirius didn’t know what to think when he saw the first bony hand reach out from the ground, grasping the edge of the chasm and pulling itself from the earth. There were one, two, three, four, five of them, human-like forms with ashen skin and clouded pale eyes, staring unblinkingly at Sirius, crawling from the soil and standing upright. It looked like they were ready to spring into action, simply waiting on an order from their leader. Regulus pulled his knife from the dirt, holding it at the ready. 

The tables had turned, far too quickly for Sirius to be prepared for what was coming. He shifted on his feet, grasping Firebolt with what he hoped came off as defensiveness, but what felt to him like hesitation. “Regulus–”

“Get him,” Regulus said.

The undead creatures surged forward with sudden speed, their arms reaching for Sirius before he had the chance to move. He thrust Firebolt forward as he scrambled away. The point buried itself into one of the creatures’ shoulders. As Sirius pulled it back though, the monster barely recognized the wound, and there was no sign of any blood, just a dark hole in its skin. Sirius jabbed at his attackers a few more times, but nothing changed. His spear could do nothing against these things. He knew he had no chance against them. There was only one option; reason with the human being controlling them. Sirius thought that at the moment, an undead skeleton had more of a chance of sympathizing with him.

“Regulus, please–” he started.

Regulus cut him off. “There’s no use, Sirius. You were never a very convincing beggar. Obviously that hasn’t changed.”

They were heading uphill, on a spit of land that overlooked the creek. Sirius didn’t have many other directions to go other than backwards, but eventually this cliff would drop off behind him. His opportunity for escape was closing. 

“Can’t we just talk about this?” he said, trying and failing to bite back the pleading tone in his voice. 

Regulus smirked mockingly, an expression that felt all too familiar to Sirius, the same one he had worn just minutes earlier. “I think you’ve said all you need to say. You’ve made it very clear where you stand. I’m just returning the favor.”

Below them and further down the creek, cheers rang out. Sirius risked a glimpse and saw Remus break through the tree line, running at full speed towards the water with a flag in his hands, splashing into the stream. Severus was right behind him, letting out a whoop as Remus raised the flag above his head triumphantly. Their team had won. 

Teammates and opponents emerged from the woods on both sides of the creek, some grinning and some grimacing. Their teammates surrounded Remus, giving him pats on the back and jumping up and down. Chiron trotted out of the trees, smiling and shaking Remus’ hand. Sirius spotted James stroll out from behind an angry group of Ares campers who were clutching their own flag, clearly having almost made it to the creek themselves, and give Remus a high-five.

“We’ve got an audience,” Sirius pointed out, cocking his head at the gathering of campers downstream. 

Regulus shrugged. “They all avoid me anyway. I don’t mind giving them a reason to.”

Sirius’ feet were getting closer to the edge now. His heart was in his throat as he looked down at the stream below. It was a relatively far drop, far enough that Sirius was starting to think about which bones he didn’t really care about shattering.

The zombie-like creatures were closing in, and Sirius felt his heel hit thin air as he stepped back onto the edge. From below, he heard a faint shout from one of the campers gathered, but he didn’t dare take his eyes off his opponents. His gaze found Regulus, and just for a moment, the brothers locked eyes.

Please. Sirius’ eyes were wide, Regulus’ were stony. Please. 

Nothing. 

Sirius let out a breath. He knew that he had two options, either fall or face these skeletal monsters, and he knew which one would be short and sweet.

He hadn’t ever really prayed before, because he had always found religion futile. Clearly any God that existed didn’t care about what happened to him whatsoever. Of course, this was before he knew that the higher power in question was actually real, had brought him into this world by choice, might actually be listening now. Sirius was pretty sure that his godly parent still didn’t care much about him, since they had left their own son to fend for himself without a thought. But the reality was that he was running out of options, and maybe, just maybe, they had their eyes on Camp Half-Blood. 

Dad. Mom. Whoever you are, Sirius thought. I need you. 

He closed his eyes, leaned back, and stepped off the ledge.

A scream from the crowd was drowned out by the wind that whipped past Sirius’ ear as he fell, eyes squeezed shut, feeling almost weightless. He tensed his muscles, bracing for the impact, and…

Sirius didn’t feel anything. He couldn’t possibly have been falling for this long, but he hadn’t hit the ground either. Strangely, it actually almost felt like he was rising.

It wasn’t the lack of impact or the strange sensation that ultimately made Sirius open his eyes, but a voice from the campers below that broke through the roar of the wind. “Oh my gods.”

Sirius squinted as he took in his surroundings, his eyes adjusting to the brightness. He wasn’t falling anymore, but slowly ascending, a cocoon of winds whirling around him as he rose up into the air. The wind didn’t feel like it was moving of its own accord, either. It felt connected to Sirius, like it was an extension of his will. He tested it gently, leaning slightly forward, and the winds responded in turn. He floated closer to the cliff where he had left Regulus and his undead troops, his brother’s face almost as ashen as the corpses. 

Beyong the wind, Sirius felt another strangely familiar tension in the air. He had felt the same way at the museum with Kimberly, the first time he had felt threatened by something from this world. He felt charged with electricity, like there was faint static in the air all around him. It made the surface of his skin tingle, filling him with a sensation twenty times stronger than adrenaline. It felt like sheer power was injected into his veins. 

The sky was darkening above him, but instead of fearing it, Sirius welcomed the oncoming storm. He could feel the impending destruction, the raw energy stored within the churning clouds, as if they too were under his control. Lightning laced across the darkness above as Sirius turned his attention back to the ground below. 

He raised Firebolt with a confidence he hadn’t ever felt before as thunder boomed overhead. A bolt of light burst from the storm above just as Sirius released the spear, and he felt the pure force arc through him as the electricity traveled from his body to the weapon. Firebolt landed in the middle of the five monsters with a blinding flash and an ear-splitting CRACK!

When the glare died down, Regulus was standing alone and dumbfounded among five piles of ash. 

As Sirius floated towards the ground, the storm began to dissipate, along with Sirius’ rush of power. The bright blue sky peeked out again, and Sirius’ mind started moving. He was running out of excuses for what this meant, and he was beginning to realize that it was time to face the truth that he had been avoiding for some time now. He had known there was a reason to keep the story of the lightning at the Met to himself, had heard James talk about how certain gods were not supposed to have demigod children anymore, and had suspected what he now had to admit to himself was almost certain. 

The campers watching him all looked stunned, but Sirius’ eyes flitted to a few faces in particular. James looked awestruck, Lily looked fascinated, Remus looked uneasy, and Chiron looked apprehensive. 

After a moment, Sirius started to notice that their eyes were not fixed on him, but a spot slightly above his head. He looked upward to see a glowing, translucent lightning bolt above him. 

When Sirius looked back at the crowd, they were all falling to one knee.

“It is determined,” Chiron said, a slight tremble in his voice. “Sirius Black, a son of the counsellor, the far-seeing, the orderer of the cosmos. Hail, son of mighty Zeus, the king of the gods.”