I didn't know you two agreed.
“Guess who brought the snacks?” asked Sirius as he entered the Gryffindor common room as everyone made discordant sounds. “What?” He asked confused
“Took you at least half an hour, Sirius.” Lily said without taking her eyes off the chessboard, since at the moment she was playing with Peter, who was practically unbeatable.
“I got distracted.”
“Let me guess, did you find any mirrors on the street?” asked Marlene walking past him and stealing a couple of chocolate bars and throwing one at Mary, who caught it even though she was on the couch.
“You don't appreciate me enough. That's why I need Prongs.” Sirius said as he sat down next to Remus, who was currently reading a book. “Moony.”
“I'm reading.”
“Moony.”
“Padfoot.”
“I have your favorite chocolate.” Sirius said resting his head on the boy's shoulder and putting the finger slowly on the pages of the book.
“Oh. Thank you.” Remus said putting the book down as Sirius smiled satisfied and opened the bar.
“C'mon, open your mouth.” Sirius then said breaking off a piece of chocolate as Remus rolled his eyes and Mary made a disgusted noise.
“Do these things in your room!”
“I agree!” Marlene added with a wink at Remus.
“I had more faith in you, Moony.” Peter said with a smile and telling the bishop to position himself on checkmate.
“Oh, c'mon!” Lily said as Peter laughed.
“You were an excellent opponent Lily, but unfortunately it wasn't enough.”
“Are you sure you don't bewitch the table? It's impossible that no one has ever beaten you, come on.” Said the girl continuing to look at her king who looked at her badly.
“One person actually beat me.”
“Oh?” Lily asked in surprise
“Oh?” Mary said, lifting her head from the couch,
“Who?” Marlene asked instead,
“Regulus.”
“Baby Black? No way.” The girl said with a smile as Peter nodded.
“It was once.”
“How did he beat you?”
“I don’t know.”
“How can you not know that?” Lily asked
“Because he was clever in not making me understand!” Peter defended himself as the girl sighed.
“Reggie played chess with our father every week. He was kind of their tradition or something, until things changed. That's why he's so good.” Sirius explained with a shrug of his shoulders as Remus stroked his hand lightly and Sirius smiled as he passed him the chocolate.
“Do you want to play another game?” Lily asked as Peter smiled, motioning his pieces back into position, which they happily did, ready for another victory.
“The whites start, don't they?” Peter said with a smile as Marlene craned her neck to watch the game, now she was interested.
That of course, before Benjy Fenwick walked into the Common Room after about 10 minutes out of breath.
“Benjy?” Lily asked looking up at her friend who raised a hand in greeting before taking a deep breath.
“I'm so sorry.” he said as Marlene raised her head in his direction.
“Did something happen?”
“I need Sirius. Regulus and—”
“What? What happened? Reggie? Did something happen to him?” Sirius asked as he quickly stood up as now all the boys turned to him.
“Regulus had an accident. And James. They had an accident and—”
“What?” asked Sirius again as his words hit him like arrows if not worse. Regulus and James. Something had happened to Regulus and James. His little brother and his best friend.
“What happened?” Remus asked, stepping next to Sirius as everyone had closed in.
“They fell and—I'm sorry Sirius. They're in the infirmary now but they don't wake up and Madame Pomfrey—”
“They don't wake up.” Sirius repeated in a blank stare and flat voice as what he never wanted to hear was happening.
“Are they at Madame Pomfrey's?” Remus asked as Benjy nodded. “Thanks Benjy.”
“I'm going to warn Pandora, Barty and—you get the idea.” Said the boy leaving the room quickly while everyone turned to Sirius, who wasn't moving at the moment, because as he could. Regulus and James had been in an accident. And they didn't wake up. He-
“Pads, hey.” Remus said softly as Sirius clearly heard Marlene pass him and leave the room quickly but he couldn't move. Why couldn't he move? “Look at me. They are going to be fine, okay?”
“I need to go there. I have to—I—”
“We go together. I'm here with you, Pads, okay?” Remus asked in a calm tone and honestly Sirius wondered how he could be so calm because James and Regulus didn't wake up. They had just had an accident and weren't waking up. And he was still in the Gryffindor common room. What was he still doing there? So he looked up at Remus and nodded quickly as Remus nodded as well.
“Where are they?” Sirius asked as the boys ran to the infirmary door to find McGonagall standing in front of them.
“Mr. Black—”
“Can I come in? Please.” Sirius interrupted as the headmistress gave him a softened look.
“Not yet, Mr. Black. Madame Pomfrey is taking all necessary precautions and—”
“Please, Minnie. I have to see them with my own eyes. My best—my brother—please.” Sirius said of her looking into her eyes as his heart couldn't stop beating so fast.
“Narcissa is with them. Euphemia and Fleamont are on their way. I need you to listen to me right now, Sirius.” Minerva said glancing at Remus, who nodded putting a hand on Sirius' shoulder, who stiffened in the shoulders but didn't move, glancing at Marlene, who was sitting, with her back against the wall and with her glance at the floor as Mary spoke to her in a low voice. Finally Sirius nodded and, pulling away from Remus, went to stand next to Marlene. A few minutes passed before Pandora, Dorcas, Evan and Barty arrived too and obviously met the same fate as the other boys. Dorcas stood next to Marlene and the girl rested her head on the shoulder of her girlfriend closing her eyes while Pandora did not move from the door, while Barty stood next to her.
“Narcissa.” Suddenly the girl said and Sirius suddenly raised his head, as did the others to see Narcissa leave the room with a tired look.
“Pandora, hey.” Said the girl as Pandora hugged her impulsively.
“Cissy.” Sirius said standing up and walking over quickly while Narcissa smiled sadly at him.
“Sir. Hi.” She said as Sirius moved in to give her a quick hug.
“Did they wake up? They are fine? Reggie and James—”
“They are fine. They are in excellent hands.” the woman said as Sirius caught her eye.
“They didn't wake up.” Sirius said even though he didn't need confirmation, because he already knew.
“No. Not yet.”
“Are they—how did that happen?” asked Marlene as Narcissa glanced at Minerva who gave an imperceptible nod.
“Apparently they fell from a height of about 20 meters. From what we know Regulus has suffered damage to the head and James to the right leg but all will be seen when they wake up.” Narcissa said to the boys and Sirius as he glanced towards the door.
“Minerva, how are they?” asked a voice that everyone knew too well by now, as Euphemia entered her, the next moment.
“Effie…” Sirius said in a cracked voice even as he desperately tried to hide it as she turned to him and her gaze instantly softened as she pulled him into her arms.
“Oh, my boy. Are you okay?”
“Yeah, of course. I'm sorry, I—” Sirius said trying to break away from her embrace because he probably would have collapsed if he hadn't and Euphemia pulled away slightly to stroke his face.
“It's okay, Sirius.” The woman said softly as the boy nodded taking steps back and bumping into Remus, who was silent. “Narcissa. Hi.”
“Mrs. Potter.”
“Call me, Effie. C'mon.” Said the woman giving her a smile while the girl nodded.
“Euphemia.” Madame Pomfrey said at that moment walking out of the room as all her eyes rested on her.
“Poppy. How are my boys?” Euphemia asked in a calm tone as the woman glanced at the boys uncertainly.
“I need you two to come in.” She only said as Euphemia took a light breath following her inside her, followed a moment later by Narcissa.
“That's—that's bad, right?” asked Marlene at McGonagall who shook her head, albeit lacking conviction.
“They're just talking, Miss McKinnon.”
“But she called them both. And Narcissa just left the room.”
“It was probably something she needed to tell both of them.”
“Yeah, sure.” Marlene said leaning her head against the wall as Pandora approached her in silence and McGonagall entered the infirmary, after Madame Pomfrey had opened the door slightly for her.
More minutes passed in silence as the voices of the women inside the room were not heard. But finally, after what really felt like months, if not years, the door opened and Professor McGonagall and Madame Pomfrey stepped out.
“We did everything we could do, but unfortunately not much has changed. The decision has been made that Mr Potter and Mr Black will be moved to San Mungo.”
“Can we see them?” immediately asked Marlene getting off the ground as the others did the same.
“Miss McKinnon—” McGonagall began but Marlene shook her head.
“You said they will be transferred, so they are still here at the moment. Please professor. To Merlin, Regulus is Sirius' brother.” The girl said as the older woman sighed.
“5 minutes. Please.”
“You can't all come in.” Madame Pomfrey said as the boys immediately nodded.
“Me, Mary and Peter will stay outside.” Lily said immediately as Dorcas nodded.
“Me, Barty and Evan too.” She said after Evan nodded to let her know that she agreed as Barty shrugged his shoulders however nodding.
“I'll stay here too.” added Remus after squeezing Sirius' shoulder to let him know he was there.
“C'mon, please.” Marlene said again as the women exchanged one last look before nodding and the next moment Pandora, Marlene and Sirius entered the room, while Narcissa and Euphemia were talking quickly.
“Guys.” Euphemia said looking over Narcissa's shoulder who turned towards them with her face slightly more tired than before but the three boys weren't looking at them, but at their friends lying on two beds next to each other. Pandora and Marlene immediately approached the two boys while Sirius fell behind unable to move as he looked at two of the people he cared about the most, don't open your eyes. The first one his eye fell on was Regulus. The boy was pale, much paler than usual. The uniform he was wearing was in order. Surely Madame Pomfrey had dried and cleaned them with a spell, since it had rained all night before and also during the game.
What obviously caught Sirius' attention was the fact that Regulus' head was wrapped in gauze that was once white, but now had a blood-red tinge that had spread from the nape of his neck to the bands covering his forehead. The curls weren't puffy as usual, but they were flat. As if they were without energy. Regulus had always hated having them like this. The only place he had to take them arranged and looking the same was Grimmauld Place. Sirius remembered that he once even wanted to cut them off. To no longer have to wear them as they wanted. But Sirius had managed to talk him out of it. The boy's expression was relaxed. As if everything was normal. As if he was sleeping one of the naps he usually took on Barty's or Evan's shoulder.
Pandora leaned slightly and the girl's blond hair ended up on Regulus' white shirt, while she whispered something to him in a low voice, before withdrawing and stroking his cheek gently, removing a curl that had ended up on his closed right eye before grabbing his hand softly while Regulus's breathing was barely audible, just as the boy's chest barely moved. He didn't seem to be breathing. He looked so calm that Sirius had to look away to look at the other boy who was lying on the other side.
The first thing he saw were James' round gold glasses sitting on the bedside table, their lenses broken, the cracks taking on branching shapes. Finally his gaze fell on his best friend. His tan skin had dulled somehow, one way or another. His eyes were obviously closed and obviously James wasn't wearing glasses, which was...different. James slept without glasses, sure, but Sirius rarely saw him since he was either asleep, or James was in a position where his face was not visible. His hair fell tiredly on his face, slightly covering his eyes, while the usual smile that the boy had was not present. He didn't have any gauze around his head like Regulus, but he had his right leg wrapped up and placed on top of a pillow, so that the ankle was placed slightly higher.
Marlene moved closer to him and her expression changed from first concern to something Sirius couldn't quite decipher. The girl raised a hand and gently, so gently, brushed a strand from James's closed eyes, then lean towards his face and give him a light kiss on the forehead. “Who am I going to tell my stupid nightmares to now that you’re sleeping, Jams?” The girl asked with a sad smile as Sirius saw that she squeezed the boy's hand lightly in her own.
“Sirius.” Narcissa said softly approaching her younger cousin, who looked up at her, meeting her clear eyes. “It's gonna be good, okay?”
“You're keep saying that.” The boy said softly as the girl took him into her arms.
“Because we believe it.” Narcissa answered him with the same low tone of voice while the boy nodded, glancing at the two boys, unable to take any step forward. “They'll be here in less than ten minutes. Would you like to come as well?”
“Mcgonagall—”
“I can talk to her, Sir. I'm asking you if you want to come with me, Euphemia, Reg and James.” said as the boy nodded slowly while the girl did the same and the next moment she left the room.
After exactly ten minutes, the doctors arrived, and after having a quick exchange of words with Madame Pomfrey, the next moment they concentrated on James and Regulus, first doing some quick and precise tests, and then disappearing the next moment, carrying the two boys, who were still unconscious, went with them to the hospital.
But before Sirius left with Euphemia (Narcissa had already promptly disapparated at the hospital) Marlene approached him with a flat expression.
“Let me know what they say.”
“Obviously.”
“And make sure they're never alone until they let us come, okay?”
“Yes.”
“See you soon, Sirius.” She said with a weary sigh as Effie gently stroked her hair and and give her a light kiss on the head before taking Sirius' hand and vanishing from the infirmary a moment later.
Doctors carefully placed the two boys in the same hospital room, before politely asking Euphemia and Narcissa to step outside to sign some paperwork. Narcissa looked away from Regulus and muttered “see you there.” To Euphemia as the woman nodded, looking at Sirius.
“I'm going with Narcissa, okay?” She asked softly as Sirius nodded.
“Yeah, of course.”
“Everything's gonna be okay, you know that, right?” The woman said as Sirius' throat felt dry.
“Mhm.” He said as the woman gave him a quick kiss on the head before walking out of the room and leaving Sirius with the two boys.
His gaze fell on both of them and the boy took a step towards them, while silence expanded more and more in the room, until Sirius gave a throaty half laugh, which was more like a sob that he tried to hide.
“I didn't know you two agreed.” He said softly as he looked from James to Regulus. “For a while I thought you hated James. And then what do I see? This. Both of you disappear. Together. And leave me here alone. It's not that funny.” Sirius said looking at Regulus now. “When we talked about going away together as kids, I meant you and me. Not you and James, Reggie. But I can understand why you chose him.” Sirius said with a smile as he turned to James. “If you have a crush on my little brother, you just had to tell me, Prongs. Was that why you wanted to invite him so badly to Christmas?” He jokingly said even though he didn't know he was telling the truth, because if he had known he probably would have done something he had never done, especially to Prongs. But hey, James Potter didn't have a crush on his little brother, right? “Right now you're definitely…” Sirius said, brushing James's hand and stopping. Amusing was not the right term. So, he chose another one. “Knowing better. No okay, that's even grosser than amusing. Don't you dare ever think of anything like that with Reggie, Prongs.” He said with a flat look at James, who, if he weren't in a coma, would surely have rolled his eyes. “All I ask is that you…come back soon. Don't you dare let me spend Christmas alone. I shouldn't tell you but I've already bought your presents, idiots.” Sirius said as his voice cracked more and more, word after word. “And with that we finally confirmed that—that you're not the funny one in the Black family.” He then added taking Regulus' hand for a second before removing it and wiping away a tear that fell down his face. “Don't leave me alone.” He then whispered as the door behind him opened and Narcissa entered the room.
“Did I interrupt your lecture?” She asked softly as Sirius rolled his eyes but nodded nonetheless.
“Mhm. I took care of Reggie. He forgets the gift this year. And to think that I had also bought him a French book with the author's notes.”
“What did they say?” asked the boy after a few seconds while the woman sighed.
“Apparently what Madame Pomfrey said only giving scientific names. Regulus suffered a head injury but until he wakes up we can't tell if he's been hurt. Same thing for James, he has sustained some major damage to his right leg and will probably have to carry his cane to be able to walk for a while, but nothing is certain until they both wake up.”
“…did they say anything about that?”
“Unfortunately not. They have no idea if—when they're going to wake up.” Narcissa said correcting herself quickly but by now Sirius had heard.
“So there's a chance they won't wake up?”
“That would be the worst case scenario. They’re not in danger of death, though.”
“But they might not wake up.” Sirius said as Narcissa glanced at Regulus, at her little cousin who hated to be called little, at the person she now shared all the holidays with, at the person who had now become her brother more than her sisters had been, at the person with whom she lived and to the one to whom she wrote a letter every day.
“He will wake up.” The woman said calmly because Regulus would never abandon her. When they had managed to move to France, they had promised each other to have dinner together every night. When Regulus moved into his house, when he’ll finish Hogwarts, they would have dinner together every Friday. It would be their Friday night dinner. Neither of them was free on a Friday because Fridays are theirs. Maybe it was a stupid plan. They both thought it was a stupid plan, but still they had sealed a promise. Narcissa had promised him and Regulus had promised her in turn, not without rolling his eyes. And Regulus Black was a guy of his word.
“Yeah.” Sirius said softly as he nodded and again silence filled the room.