Chapter 1 - Sticker Residue
Regulus didn't wake to the sun, no, it was quite dark as he gained consciousness.
His vision was foggy for a few blinks.
He didn't move, he just laid there staring up at the canopy of his four-poster bed.
Regulus' eyes focused on the glowing stars, Sirius had stuck to the wood.
Once they'd been bright and full and now they were dim and torn.
He remembered how angry he'd been when he tore at the pesky stickers.
How angry he'd been at his brother- at life in general.
The feeling had long since gone and all that remained were those stubborn bastards still clung to the cedar.
If Regulus didn't move he could almost pretend he didn't exist- that the stars were the ones in the night sky.
Hours had passed.
The birds outside his bedroom window began chirping their morning tunes.
Still Regulus laid unmoving.
He figured the only thing that would get him up was a apocalypse or-
There was a round of taps on his door.
That.
A pop sounded and Regulus didn't even flinch.
"Master Regulus mustn't keep the mistress waiting." Kreacher muttered.
Regulus didn't move for a moment longer and then he pushed the satin green sheets off him.
His arms shook as he pushed himself up to a sitting position.
Regulus' face was neutral, but the action itself had Regulus seeing stars.
He never showed his emotions.
Standing from the bed he wobbled slightly, before disguising it as he stretched.
Kreacher was uninterested in Regulus' ruses, rather he made his way towards Regulus' trunk.
"The mistress is waiting in the drawing room." Kreacher explained before disappearing with a pop- taking the trunk with him.
Regulus followed after the elf, begrudgingly.
He made his way down the stairs, the floorboards creaking from under him.
When he strolled into the drawing room, his mother stood tall.
Her face had always been in a scowl- which made Regulus wonder if she'd done it so much that'd become permanent.
She had long dark hair that she'd tied up that morning, in a tight bun.
Regulus had never seen his mother anything but intimidating, even amongst her own family.
She had views on the world that Regulus had never grasped, and he didn't think he ever would.
His mother always had something to say, but this morning she was quiet.
With a grasp on Kreacher with one hand and Regulus on the other, they popped out of the cold and dark home.
Where they landed, people passed, dragging along trunks and animals.
The station was bustling that morning, with parents saying farewell and children ready for school once again.
Regulus knew the families around him were having much different experiences.
His mother wouldn't say goodbye, she wouldn't wish him a good year.
He wouldn't cry, wouldn't promise to write.
The pair were many things, but actors were not one of them.
With his trunk in his grasp and a desperate need to sit down, Regulus began on his way.
"Regulus."
Regulus paused at his mother's voice, spinning around to face her, "Yes, Mother?"
"Don't be a disappointment." She muttered.
Then she was gone.
Regulus figured as much.
He'd known his mother his entire life and she'd never surprised him.
Without the overbearing weight of his mother's presence, Regulus slouched a little.
His first stop was to the loading cart, where a young man took his trunk with a polite smile.
Then Regulus scurried onto the train, where he collapsed in the closest compartment.
He was in the most awful pain.
His entire body tensed up as he laid down, before he felt any relief.
Regulus craved the time where he wasn't a human punching bag.
It'd gotten worse after Sirius had left.
Not only had Sirius protected him from the sort of thing, but now he was just a release of anger.
Maybe, in some crazy logic of his mother's, he just looked a little too much like Sirius and that made him a prime target.
Regulus didn't think they looked that alike.
Sirius had grown out his hair- in rebellion- he'd gotten a tattoo, he pierced his ears.
Even if Regulus did look a bit like Sirius, they were very different individuals.
Sirius liked pranks and getting in trouble. He liked parties and had lots of friends. He even had a boyfriend.
Not that they had been particularly public about it, but Regulus saw everything.
Regulus was shy. He didn't like parties, or people for that matter. He kept to himself, he got good grades, he tried to fit in- not stand out.
Mostly, Regulus didn't believe in love- or whatever his brother and Lupin felt for one another.
As he let his eyes rest, he thought of everything and anything, but his brother.
Unfortunately, his mind hadn't wandered too awfully far.
Instead his thoughts were of messy hair and circle glasses.
And he hated it.
~
When the train came to a stop hours later, Regulus groaned.
Not only had the breaking motion nearly thrown him across the compartment, but he'd gotten absolutely no rest and could feel it in every step.
He trudged off the train and followed midst the crowd as they headed up the path towards the castle.
Regulus contemplating skipping dinner at the mere thought of his nice bed.
"Nice going, Prongs."
Sirius' voice ricocheted in his mind.
Regulus' eyes traveled to the group a distance in front of him.
Sirius placed Potter in a headlock before ruffling the boy's hair.
Lupin stood idly beside his boyfriend, unbothered by their antics.
Pettigrew was right beside Potter, only chuckling as the two boys went at it.
Regulus wondered how they could all be so touchy all the time, the idea practically made him sick.
Although, that could be due to the fact that Regulus wasn't held as a child- or at all.
"Are you going to the meeting tonight?" Evan asked joining Regulus in the hike up the hill, Barty in tow.
Regulus furrowed his eyebrows in confusion.
"You know- the meeting." Barty spoke, his voice attempting to add a different connotation to the phrase.
It clicked then to Regulus what they'd meant.
The meeting of death eaters to talk about the dark lord.
"There's a meeting tonight?" Regulus quizzed.
"Yeah, it's most likely just a headcount." Barty explained.
"If that's the case- I'll pass. I've got a date with my bed later." Regulus huffed.
"That's probably a good idea. I can practically carry my school shit in the bags under your eyes." Evan teased.
"Piss off." Regulus spat.