Chapter 2
Regulus always kept his promises. It was one of the few points of pride he had left. The only promise he ever broke was to a man he never had loyalty to, and he carried a reminder of that decision on his left forearm every day. He knew not to make promises to everyone, and he knew to be careful with what he promised. Yet somehow, Harry was getting the better of him.
“What’s your name?”
“Regulus Black.”
“That’s a funny name.”
“My parents were funny people.”
“How so?”
“Shouldn’t you be asking about your own parents?” Regulus raised his eyebrow at the boy, who was holding on to the edge of his coat like it was the only thing keeping him from blowing away in the wind.
“You promised you’d tell me everything you know,” Harry reasoned. “I wanna know about you.”
“Well I’m afraid there’s not much to know about me,” Regulus lied. He stopped walking and stuck his arm out in front of Harry when they approached his cottage. There was a broom leaning against the doorframe.
“Is this where you live? It looks old. And why are all the windows covered? Doesn’t look hard to break into-”
“Shh.” Regulus pulled out his wand, checking his wards. None of them seemed to be disassembled, yet there was someone in the house. “Revelare te.”
A faint green light spilled from his wand and formed into a vague figure. Whoever it was, they were under several concealing charms, but they had no ill intention. A sudden thud came from inside the house. Regulus motioned for Harry to hide and quietly opened the front door. He didn’t make it past the entryway before there was a wand against his throat. The figure was shrouded in shadows despite all the lights in the house.
“Well it’s about time,” a familiar voice said. The shadows fell away, revealing a woman just a few years older than Regulus. “I was starting to think I’d never find your new hiding spot, cousin.”
Narcissa lowered her wand and gave a slight bow before backing up. She looked just as Regulus remembered; The same pale blue eyes that everyone in their family had, the high regal cheekbones and soft makeup that didn’t match her severe expression, and the underside of her straight black hair dyed white-blond to match her husband’s.
“Must you always attack me when you visit?” Regulus sighed, straightening out his robes.
“It’s just a precaution,” she said with a smirk that implied it was anything but a precaution.
“Not that I don’t love a family reunion, but I was under the impression we wouldn’t be seeing each other again.”
“We weren’t. Unfortunately I came bearing news. Shall we?” she gestured to the sitting room just beyond the entryway.
“Tell me, why were you out of the house for so long? It’s not like you to wander,” Narcissa asked, twisting her wedding ring around her finger.
“You’re nervous,” Regulus noted. “Why?”
Narcissa sighed, settling her hands in her lap. “There are more of them. Four more to be exact.”
“Four? How are there four more? You said-”
“I know what I said, Regulus. I said what I thought was the truth, a truth I discovered after probing my own husband’s mind at your request!” She took a breath before continuing. “He did not know there were more. Pettigrew did.”
“Pettigrew is dead, Narcissa. I was there,” Regulus pointed out, ignoring the sting of remembering the day he lost his brother again.
“Did they ever find a body? Anything other than that finger?”
When Regulus said nothing, she kept going.
“I ran into one of the little Weasleys in Diagon Alley, the one in 2nd year. Parker? Perry? Not important. I noticed he had a rather old, rather familiar looking rat. It was missing a finger.”
“A coincidence,” Regulus argued even as the pull in his gut told him he was wrong.
“I thought so too. Until I pulled a few memories from its head. Not an easy feat in the middle of a bookshop, but I managed.” Narcissa handed Regulus a bottle full of a silvery mist from her pocket. “Your brother and his little friends are in that one. I took a few others before the two left.”
Regulus set the vial on the coffee table before burying his face in his hands.
“ Just so we’re clear; Peter Pettigrew is still alive, there are four more horcruxes and still no accessible way to destroy the two we already have, and I’m no closer to finding a way into Azkaban, so we have no help.”
Narcissa gave a short nod.
“Right. Well, always a pleasure, Cissy, but I need privacy so I can properly break down,” He said, ushering her out of the sitting room.
Narcissa stood, but did not move to leave.
“Regulus?”
“What?” he sighed, exasperated.
“Are you aware there is a child in your house, or is your ward-work not what it used to be?”
Regulus whirled around to see Harry, peeking through the doorway. He pinched the bridge of his nose.
“I thought I told you to hide?” he whisper-shouted.
“I got bored.” Harry shrugged. “Who is that?”
“Oh for Merlin’s sake- Harry! Do you see the door just past the stairs? Go in and wait there. Narcissa, please, leave. I will find you later.”
Harry scurried off without a word. Narcissa gave a small chuckle before brushing past Regulus and showing herself out.
“Good luck, dear cousin. You’re going to need it,” She called, before closing the front door behind her.
Regulus took a deep breath before going into the hallway only to find Harry staring at the cupboard under the stairs like it was a rabid dog. A small, bitchy part of Regulus considered leaving Harry like that. He ignored it and carefully approached the boy. He was only a few steps away when Harry realised he wasn’t alone and jumped, green eyes wild and wide with fear.
“It’s alright,” Regulus whispered. “It’s just me.”
Harry backed up until he bumped into the stairs.
“Please don’t put me in there. I’m sorry I didn’t listen, I was just curious, and it was cold outside. Don’t put me in the cupboard. I’ll be good-”
“Woah, woah woah, why would I put you in the cupboard?” Regulus asked, taking another step closer. The boy didn’t say anything, breathing fast and starting to cry. Regulus froze, unsure of what to do.
“Bad kids sleep in the cupboard so that no one else has to deal with them. That’s what Uncle Vernon says,” Harry whispered. Regulus did his best not to show just how horrified that sentence made him and carefully placed a hand on Harry’s shoulder.
“You don’t belong in cupboards, Harry.” Oddly, that made Harry cry even more. The boy fell forward and Regulus managed to catch him before stumbling backward and falling. After a moment, Regulus patted him softly on the back. He was not prepared for the sudden rush of protectiveness that came with Harry burying his face in Regulus’s chest. He looked down at the boy and sighed. “You belong with your family.”
Harry looked up, his bright green eyes shimmering with tears.
“You belong here.”
The smile Regulus got in return was almost enough to quiet the voice that told him he was making a very big mistake. He scooped Harry up in his arms and took him to one of the many empty rooms in the cottage.
“C’mon, It’s been a long day. You can sleep here.” Regulus set Harry down before transfiguring the boxes and old pieces of furniture into a bed, a bedside table with a lamp, and enough pillows and blankets to keep warm.
“Wait! I still have questions! How’d you meet my parents? And also, you never told me who that lady was! What’s a horcrux? Who is-”
“I’ll tell you later, okay?” Regulus left the room before Harry could protest anymore. He closed the room door halfway before making his way back to the sitting room and plopping into his armchair.
Breath, breath, breath.
Regulus was right back where he started; thinking until he felt like his head was going to explode. Except now, he had a lot more to think about.
Sirius was still in Azkaban, and the two horcruxes he had were no closer to being destroyed. But now there were more, and the only person who knows anything about them is a rat, and on top of all of that, Regulus had a child to care for now. He tried his best to just focus on getting his brother back, but every train of thought seemed to crash into themselves.
“How am I supposed to do this alone?” Regulus asked no one in particular.
Maybe you’re not supposed to do it alone, a voice that sounded suspiciously like James echoed in his mind. Maybe you should ask for help.
It was a good idea, in theory. Narcissa would always be useful when it came to getting information but she never got her own hands dirty, it was how she avoided trouble. He needed someone who was strong enough to break into Azkaban while also being clever enough to not get caught. There was so little left of The Order, and none of them knew Regulus was still alive. Even then, he didn’t trust any of them. He sighed, coming to two conclusions; give up, or trust someone new.
Neither seemed like particularly viable options. But there were important things hanging in the balance, too important to risk because of his own fears.
“Don’t say I never did anything for you, Brother,” He mumbled, before pulling out his wand. He tapped the end on the table three times. “Reducitur ad magica, Remus Lupin.”
The dark wood of the table swirled and glowed as Regulus concentrated, searching for the magical signature he needed to latch onto. He found it after a few moments, trailing it as the swirling slowed and formed an image. It was a small flat in Leicester, next to a bookshop. He quickly summoned a quill and paper, wrote down the address and dismissed the spell.
Regulus had no problems with Remus Lupin. In fact, he was the only friend of his brother’s that seemed to have some sense of self-preservation, and Regulus respected that. However, in the days leading to the end of the war, Remus and Sirius had fought like dogs, and Regulus was willing to bet Remus was the kind to hold a grudge. If he had learned anything from his mother, it was how to get people to do what he wanted. He just hoped he wouldn’t have to resort to her methods of persuasion.
He would worry about that later. Before then, he needed to turn his attention to Harry. Things weren’t adding up. He had known about Lily’s sister, though not much. She’d always change the subject as quickly as possible, claiming that if her sister wanted nothing to do with her family then she would waste no more time thinking about the woman. Surely Dumbledore would have known this? If he did, why leave Harry there? Was he keeping an eye on the boy? If he was, he would know how they were treating him, and from what Harry had told him, it wasn’t good. So why let it continue? If Regulus was going to take care of Harry, he needed to know as much as possible, and that meant doing the impossible; getting answers out of Albus Dumbledore.
“I should’ve let the Inferi take me.”