Chapter 5
Regulus took a deep breath, trying to shake the nerves that evidently always came with entering the Headmaster’s office, regardless of the fact he had long since graduated. It was just the same as he remembered, tall ceilings, grand windows, every surface littered with items from Albus’s many years doing who knows what. A phoenix sat in a golden birdcage. Well, the ashes of one, anyway.
Albus Dumbledore was sitting behind his desk, half-moon spectacles sitting far down his nose. His robes were a deep, royal blue, with glittering stars and a bright half-moon on his left shoulder. He looked up at Regulus with nothing more than a hint of shock.
“Albus,” Regulus said with a small bow.
“Mr. Black. This is certainly a surprise.” He walked over to the fireplace, his hands behind his back like a wise sage. “Have you reconsidered my offer?”
Regulus blinked. It had been so long that he’d almost forgotten Albus had offered him a position at Hogwarts, given he became an official member of The Order of the Phoenix and revealed what he’d done for the resistance.
“It’s Regulus. And no, I haven't, though I thank you for it all the same,” he lied. The reminder made him want to spit at the headmaster’s feet. Regulus hated plenty of people, but he had not known he could hate someone the way he hated Albus Dumbledore.
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Regulus had begged Sirius not to join the Order. It was the first time the brothers had talked without fighting in years. He had overheard Sirius and Remus debating it in the hallways of Hogwarts when they thought they were alone. As soon as the werewolf had left, Regulus grabbed Sirius and begged. It was the first time Sirius had hugged him since leaving Grimmauld Place.
“I have to, Reggie. I have to prove I can be good,” he’d said. That was when Regulus started to hate Dumbledore. Sirius was exhausting, dramatic, hotheaded, and impulsive. But he was good, and everyone knew it. He shouldn’t have had to prove anything.
Regulus had refused to join the Order when he defected from the Death Eaters. He couldn’t understand how they could all swear loyalty to a man who never got his hands dirty. In every attack Regulus forced himself to remember, the old wizard was nowhere to be seen, sending children to fight his battles. With every sighting of Sirius bloody, broken, or battling, Regulus’s contempt grew.
When Regulus learned of Voldemort’s plan, he’d begged James and Lily to leave the country, somewhere Voldemort would never find them. They refused.
“We made a promise, starlight,” James had said. “And how could we leave, even if we wanted to?”
“We have Harry to protect,” Lily had insisted. “We have you to protect.”
“Dumbledore will help.”
He hadn’t. He gave an empty speech full of empty promises. James and Lily had died. Sirius had been put in Azkaban. Harry had been sent away and forgotten.
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So no, Regulus had not reconsidered his offer. He had never considered it in the first place.
“Well if that’s the case, what brings you to my office?” His tone was polite and even and so fake Regulus wanted to break something just to see a falter in his constant mask. Instead, he forced a small smile of his own.
“I recently ran into Remus Lupin,” he started, letting himself into the office and taking a seat in front of the desk. Albus paused for only a second before taking his own seat once again. “It was quite a shock for him, as you can imagine.”
“I see,” Albus said simply.
“When we were talking, the subject shifted to the Potter’s son, Harry. And I realised, neither of us knew exactly what had happened to him. So, I told him I’d ask you.”
Albus leaned back in his chair, his demeanor shifting. “Is that so?”
“So? Where is he?”
Albus sighed. “I can understand your curiosity, but I assure you, he is safe.”
“That is not what I asked.” Regulus leaned forward, channeling every bit of the imposing Black Heir his mother raised him to be. “Where is he?”
“Mr. Black-”
“Regulus. Not Mr. Black, Regulus. Now, where is Harry Potter?”
“He is with his family.”
Regulus stared at the old wizard in front of him, hatred no longer concealed by fake smiles or respectful words.
“And what family would that be, Albus? The people that hate magic almost as much as my own hated muggles? The family that cast Lily out for doing nothing but fall in love? The family that would shun him without a second thought? That family?”
Albus remained quiet.
“Why?”
“I have my reasons.”
“That is NOT. GOOD ENOUGH, ALBUS! WHY?” Regulus was standing now, still leaning on the desk.
Albus was unbothered as always.
“I have my reasons,” he repeated softly. Regulus leaned over the desk, as close as he possibly could.
“You keep saying that, and yet I don’t believe you any more than you believe yourself. So tell me, Albus, why?”
When he got no answer, Regulus sighed and straightened out, smoothing the front of his robes.
“He is a boy, Albus,” Regulus whispered.
“He is not just a boy.” Regulus looked at the headmaster who had leaned back in his chair, giving him a meaningful look.
“He is Albus, he’s just a boy. And he will not be a pawn in whatever game you feel you have to win. You and I both know this war isn’t over, not yet. You want to win? Get your fucking hands dirty and win it, you pathetic coward.”
Regulus did not wait for a reply, instead walking back to the fireplace in long strides and making his way back to Remus and Mary’s flat as quickly as possible.
Like it or not, Harry was his responsibility now, and he was going to keep the boy away from Dumbledore’s schemes as long as he possibly could.
Mary was waiting for him on the couch, Harry in her lap as she showed him old photos of his parents during their Hogwarts days. The one she was holding was evidently of James and Sirius after a game.
“What’s Quipit?”
“Quidditch. It’s a sport. People fly around on brooms and throw balls into goals and at each other. It’s like football and dodgeball combined,” she explained. “This was the first game they won after your parents started dating. Lily cheered so hard she lost her voice,” Mary recalled with a smile.
“I remember that game,” Remus said, coming in with three steaming mugs in his hands. “James didn’t stop smiling for weeks. Coffee?”
Regulus took the mug and sat on the armchair as Remus sat next to Mary.
“Can I have coffee?” Harry asked.
“Absolutely not,” all of them answered in unison. Harry pouted, and Remus ruffled his hair. And for a moment, Regulus felt at peace. Here, in this cozy flat with two people who were practically strangers, with a child he had no clue how to care for.
Mary looked over at him, a question evident in her eyes. Regulus gave a small nod before turning to Harry.
“I think it’s time for a nap,” she said, putting his mug onto the dark mahogany table and scooping Harry out of Mary’s lap.
“Nooooooo! I’m not-” Harry yawned. “I'm not tired at all!”
“Perhaps not. But if you don’t sleep now you’ll be too tired for shoe shopping, and we can’t have that, now can we?”
“He can sleep in the guestroom. First door on the left,” Remus said. Harry pouted once again but allowed Regulus to carry him away to bed.
“Regulus?” Harry stopped him before he closed the door.
“Yes, Harry?”
“Are you going to leave me here?” Harry’s eyes were half closed and his words were slurring with sleep. Still, he sat upright, waiting for an answer.
“Of course not, Harry.”
“Good,” Harry said through a yawn, before flopping down dramatically and pulling the blanket over his head.
“Sleep well, Harry.”
Regulus took his seat again and let out an explosive breath.
“Had a bad conversation, I take it?” Mary asked sympathetically.
“If you could even call it that. All he did was insist he ‘had his reasons’.”
“I'm sure he did,” Remus said, voice dripping with sarcasm.
“So where do we go from here?” Mary asked with a strange sort of eagerness in her voice.
“We get my brother, find the other horcuxes, and destroy them. Then, we have a nice, long chat with Harry’s aunt and Uncle.” Regulus nodded to himself rather than the other two, but they both grinned with morbid delight.
“Well then,” Mary said, stretching her arms above her head. “What are we waiting for?”