Regulus Black and The Elemental Trials

James broke the silence as he watched his world fall apart around him. 

"No, no, no! Please!" James cried ramming against the barrier. 

"We'll be seeing each other very soon, James." The man sneered before slowly fading away. 

One last ram into the barrier and it fell. 

James scrambled towards Regulus, pulling the boy into his lap. 

"Come on, Regulus!", James begged as he shook the boy, "Please!" 

Eva stared in shock as she was covered in her brother’s blood. 

Jacques was furious, all he could see was red- unable to completely grieve his little sister. 

"W-What do we do?! Please!" James cried as he looked up at the other, tears streaming down his face. 

James sobbed as Jac and Eva shared a look. 

Jac levitated the cup towards them as Eva moved Ivan and herself towards James. 

Jacques picked up Claudette before joining the pair. 

Jacques grabbed one of James' hands, before they all touched the cup. 

With a swirl, the trio was back onto the ground. 

Oblivious cheers erupted all around them. 

James looked up towards McGonagall and Dumbledore as they gaped at them. 

"Bring him back!", James begged, "Bring him back!"

The crowd went eerily silent. 

Sirius shot up pushing through the crowd as Remus and Peter followed close behind. 

McGonagall looked towards Dumbledore, unsure what to do. 

"Please! I love him!" James sobbed. 

Sirius was by his side in an instant. 

Sirius held his finger under Regulus' nose- nothing. 

Remus and Peter stepped back, watching in horror. 

"Come on kid, breathe." Sirius begged. 

***

Regulus' eye popped open, to see blue skies. 

Puffs of white clouds traveled overhead. 

Regulus' pushed himself up onto his elbows. 

In front of him was a rolling hill of yellow flowers. Willow trees shading the area. 

It was oddly silent- no chirping birds, no breeze whistling against the blades of grass. 

"Wow." 

Regulus scrambled to his feet as he spotted the boy. 

Circular glasses and unrelentingly messy hair. 

He was practically a carbon copy of James- except not, something was different.... 

"Your eyes." Regulus breathed. 

The boy chuckled. He mustn't have been older than Regulus. 

"Oh- sorry. You just- look like someone I know..." Regulus continued. 

"You look exactly like he described you." The boy muttered in awe. 

"Sorry?", Regulus questioned confused, "Who are you?" 

The boy shook out of his thoughts, sticking his hand out, "Right. Harry Potter." 

Regulus furrowed his eyebrows, "As in-"

"James Potter." Harry finished with a nod. 

"Who's your mother?" Regulus asked letting his curiosity get the best of him. 

"Don't have one." Harry explained. 

"Well who birthed you?" Regulus quizzed. 

"You, of course." Harry gleamed. 

"Me? James and I have a son?" Regulus spat in disbelief. 

"Yes, well no. Not yet anyways. Right now I'm merely a figment of a thought in the back of your head." Harry explained. 

"I- I have so many questions." Regulus admitted as he gaped at the boy. 

"I have answers, for the most part at least." Harry explained. 

"Where are we?" Regulus questioned. 

"Well, we're somewhere in your head- it's a safe place I'm guessing- for why here exactly, I'm not sure", Harry explained to the boy, "Why is this your safe place?"

"Your father kissed me for the first time, under that willow over there", Regulus pointed his finger, "Of course it doesn't look like this anymore- they cut down the trees, now it's farmland as far as the eye can see." 

Harry smiled as he pictured his fathers happily together. 

"Am I dead?" Regulus asked speedily. 

"No", Harry explained with a smile, "It takes a lot more than a killing curse to get rid of us Potters'." 

"If I'm not dead, then what's happening?" Regulus quizzed, wondering if the boy was tired of his insistent questions. 

"Ooooh", Harry grimaced, "How do I explain this?"

Regulus watched as the boy thought for a moment. 

"You see", Harry started, "You're aware of the 'cats have nine lives' phrase, correct?" 

"Uh yeah." Regulus answered hesitantly. 

"Well it's kind of like that, this is your conscience's preservation, while temporarily.... incapacitated." Harry explained. 

"So what's going on outside of.... here?" Regulus questioned gesturing around them. 

***

James paced around, wondering how he was to go on without Regulus. 

Without the boys small cold fingers intertwined in his own. Without his late night cuddles. Without his musical laugh and perfect smile. 

The thought was too much for James as he aggressively rubbed fallen tears from his irritatedly red face. 

James couldn't look at the lifeless boy, unable to completely deal with the crushing pain of grief that only grew in his chest. 

Bile burned in the back of his throat- it hurt, so bad. 

James just wanted Regulus back. 

The school had been a mess. Professor McGonagall stopped by often- bringing food and urging James and the others to sleep. 

Dumbledore only ever stopped by for answers- anything they could give him about the man and what'd happened, but the three were completely lost. 

Madam Pomfrey tried everything- just for James' sake. He knew she didn't expect anything to work, nothing ever had. 

No one survived a killing curse. 

James was so angry- they only kept Regulus around to break the bind and revive Ivan and Claudette. 

And then what? Regulus was just some lost cause? They'd just forget about him? 

James couldn't forget. James didn't want to forget. 

There was so much James wanted to do with him. 

Buy a small cottage along the coast and spend the days buried in the sand and nights starring up at the stars. 

He wanted to stand in front of his family and friends and say 'I do'. 

He wanted kids- to teach them how to play quidditch. 

James couldn't imagine a future without Regulus- he didn't want to. 

He stayed curled up in the chair beside Regulus' bed, day-in and day-out. 

Sirius didn't visit anymore, the image was seared into his head and he couldn't take it. 

A breakdown later and he stopped visiting.

Remus usually came to nag James about everyday human needs. 

James never listened. 

Sometimes though, Remus would come- broken like James hadn't seen before- and he would sit beside James in complete silence. 

He preferred the company of Lily when she visited- she would cry with him and she never made him feel ridiculous about the never-ending stream of tears. 

James was more and more of a zombie as time passed. He was lost in his thoughts, more times than not. 

There was a slight commotion, but James ignored it- not even flinching. 

The blue curtain flung open as blurry figures stepped towards Regulus. 

Ivan and Claudette. 

Ivan checked Regulus' pulse, before listening for his breathing- still nothing. 

"He's not awake- why is he not awake?" Ivan questioned, he brushed his thumb over the scar that started above Regulus' right eyebrow and dragged down- in a lightening shape- towards his cheekbone. 

"James?", Claudette questioned softly as she crouched in front of the boy, "James?" 

James blinked persistently as he looked at Claudette before looking towards Ivan, like they were ghosts. 

"I don't understand, he said- he said if Regulus dies that we die, but we’re not dead-" Ivan exclaimed. 

"Which means he's alive", She said before turning towards James, "He's alive." 

James nodded before Claudette pulled him into a hug. 

"It's okay, we're gonna figure it out. We always do." Claudette assured as James cried into her shoulder. 

She looked back at Ivan as they shared a look. 

***

"I'm in a coma?" Regulus quizzed as he picked at the grass from his seat on the hill. 

Harry laid on his back with his hands under his head, starring up at the clouds. 

"Basically." Harry quipped. 

"When can I go back?" Regulus asked. 

Harry pushed himself upwards onto his elbows, "You can go back whenever you want, Regulus." 

"How- how do I do that exactly?" Regulus questioned. 

"It's hard to explain, but I'll help you." Harry assured.

Regulus paused, not wanting to waste his time, "Can I ask you something?" 

Harry turned on his side to face Regulus with a chuckle, "You just did, but I digress." 

"If I didn't die, that means the timeline is restored- which means I die before you're even old enough to remember, right?" Regulus asked. 

"Wrong", Harry said, "In the original timeline, James never competed in the tournament- it'd been discontinued- that alone changes so much like, Remus also never offered to house you, allowing you to avoid becoming a Death Eater and eventually your death." 

"So..." Regulus spoke wanting him to go on. 

"It didn't restore the original timeline- it created an entirely new one", Harry gleamed, "So- I get to grow up with both dads."

Regulus was content with that answer. 

"Do me a favor? Before you go?" Harry questioned.

***

The sun shone orange tones through the hospital wing windows.

A silence hung around the room- quiet enough to hear the drop of a pin. 

The smell of food floated around the castle. 

Every student had found themselves at the end-of-school feast, celebrating the victors. 

Around the castle was serene and peaceful.

Regulus shot upwards with a gasp, as his lungs filled with air. 

He coughed desperately trying to inhale as he clutched the white bed sheets.

As he regained his breath he got up from the bed, peaking around the curtain to showcase the empty hospital wing. 

He headed apprehensively towards the Great Hall, presuming at this time of day, thats where everyone would be. 

The walk to the Great Hall felt long, but Regulus found himself unable to grasp the correct lapse of time. 

He weakly pushed up the Great Hall doors as everyone went silent. 

Regulus scratched the back of his neck in embarrassment as his eyes met James'. 

James' eyes lit up at the boy. 

And Regulus smiled, knowingly. 

They had a whole future in front of them- together.