Like the stars miss the sun in the morning sky.
It was quiet for a while. Only the sounds of the early morning bleeding into midday. The recounting of the sad and horrible life of Regulus Black had been done and over with.
James was angry. Effie was beyond angry. Fleamont was furious. But Sirius, Sirius was heartbroken. His home life had never been the best granted.
He was cursed often as a child. He was beat often. His mother’s favorite form of torture was a crystal studded belt to the back. That one was reserved for Sirius.
Walburga never hit Regulus. At least not with her own hands. But now Sirius knew why. Their mother thought that Regulus being raped by their father was punishment enough.
There wasn’t much the boy could do but wait for his younger brother to wake up. Regulus was a stubborn thing. Really and truly.
And if the dark haired boy was good at anything, it was making Sirius wait.
So Sirius waited. And he waited. And he waited some more.
Sitting with Regulus was starting to get with him. He was just so…still. He was so pale and his lips were chapped and cracking. His dark freckles stood out blazingly against his milk white skin.
He was just so still and he was so cold. He looked dead. And the longer his older brother was staring at him the more he would go insane.
So the living room was a nice change of pace. At least, it didn’t smell like St. Mungos. The living was quiet safe for the cracking on the fire. Sirius sat in a plush soft brown couch with a blanket adorning his shoulders.
The air was that was usually scented with fresh herbs and spices now smelled of lavender and honey. Soft scents to not overwhelm the homes newest inhabitants.
The cup of tea in his hand charmed to stay warm, by Effie, because Sirius dissociated quite often and she didn’t want his drink to go cold.
He was so far off that he missed Effie bypassing him to go open the door. Remus stepped into the warm home. Technically, Remus was supposed to be mad a Sirius right now. And he was.
But Sirius needed to be grounded right now. He could be mad when Sirius wasn’t on the edge of insanity. Sirius still hadn’t noticed him when the taller came to sit next to him.
Sirius just stared into the fire. His eyes a little bit hazy. The mug in his hand still as full as it was when Effie handed it to him. Remus looked at his ( ex?) loverhis best friend the other boy. (He didn’t know what the were anymore)
Remus didn’t say anything. Just stared at the lightly shaking form of the once all power Sirius Black. It was unnerving how such a large presence could be reduced to close to nothing.
His wolffish personality was now nothing worth comparing to a mere mouse. If Remus looked close enough, he could see how the liquid in the porcelain cup sloshed microscopically against the sides.
When Remus placed his hand on Sirius’ shoulder, his shaking form tensed. Like a dog preparing to flee or fight. It was unnerving.
The gray eyed boy sat rigidly for several moments, then he just relaxed. His body shaking once more. It didn’t take long for Remus to realize that the other boy was crying. His light shakes turning into violent tremors.
The quiet cries turned into heart wrenching sobs. It was then that all anger or resentment Remus had for his lover was lost. They could talk about it later. He had time to be angry later.
Sirius wasn’t going anywhere.
Remus pulled Sirius into him and just held him whilst he sobbed.
“it’s okay. I’m here.”
“You don’t have to be.”
“I know.”
————
“How do we do this, Flea? How do we take in two boys the have had no one to help them but each other?”
“The only way we know how to dearest.”
“How?”
“By loving them like there is no tomorrow.”
————
Fleamont had taken to sitting at Regulus’ beside on the evenings. It was quite nice, actually. He would read Shakespeare and other classics to the comatose boy.
They were working on the Iliad now. They’d finished Romeo and Juliet yesterday. Fleamont was a fast reader, and he had a feeling Regulus was as well.
“Sing, goddes Muse, the wrath of Peleus’s son, The wrath of Achilles with ruin fraught, That to achaians brought unnumbered woes, and many mighty souls of heroes hurled to Hades’ home, but gave themselves a prey to dogs and every fowl. ”
The older man had paused to clear his throat and looked up over the rim of his glasses to check on the young boy. Only to find startling, starling eyes already staring back at him.
A curious and intrigued twinkling in his Mercury colored eyes.
“Who Is that?” The young boy asked. His voice sounding much younger than he was. A childlike wonder hidden beneath caution and weariness.
“The author or the book?”
Regulus contemplated the question for only a moment. “Both.”
“The Iliad. By homer.”
They went silent for a moment before Monty spoke again. “Would you like me to leave-”
“No please. Can you- nevermind.”
“It alright Regulus. You can ask.”
“Would you mind terribly reading to me again?”
“Of course not.”
Fleamont rested his gaze on the young boy again. Then cleared his throat once more.
“Now where were we? Ah! Yes here we are”
————
“Morning big brother. Did you miss me, dearly?”
“Like the stars miss the sun in the morning sky.”