Lord Voldemort (pt. 2)
The next thing Regulus could remember was Sirius grabbing his arm and practically dragging him to the door.
“Wha-what're you doing?” Regulus mumbled, wrenching his arm out of Sirius's grasp. His brother looked frightened but was trying to hide it, scanning the room over Regulus’s head as if he was looking for someone.
“Come on, Reg. We’re leaving.” Sirius said distractedly, trying to pull him towards the exit. People were walking out around them, talking excitedly to others and whispering urgently, but no one looked terrified, as his brother did now.
“Why?”
“It's over.” Sirius muttered, walking even faster and forcing Regulus to almost jog beside him. Regulus’s head felt heavy and thick, his mouth dry and vision blurry as he stumbled after his brother. He felt as if his brain was coated in honey, slow and sticky as he struggled to piece together what was happening. He had been listening to the strange, thin man with scarlet eyes speak, and then…
Sirius and Regulus were almost at the exit when a reedy voice called his brother's name. Sirius stopped, dread written clearly on his face as he turned slowly towards the woman that had addressed him, standing in the crowd with an expression of cruel expectancy on her fine boned face. Regulus felt another surge of hate, even stronger than when he saw Lucius Malfoy standing in the front of the room.
Bellatrix Black.
Bellatrix, while young, was more accomplished at the dark arts than anyone Regulus knew. Freshly out of Hogwarts, the young witch had returned to London, and the last Regulus knew, had been working with his mother and uncle on some matters that Regulus was uninformed of. She inherited the classic Black features of angelic beauty, high cheekbones and full lips complimented by a pair of heavy lidded, dark eyes. Rage rushed to Regulus’s skin at the sight of her, countless memories of cruel hexes and taunting flashing through his mind.
“Why are you leaving so quickly?” Bellatrix said softly, gazing at Sirius in a predatory way that sent a thrill of terror down Regulus’s spine.
“I'm going home.” Sirius said shortly, turning back towards the door and making it three steps before Bellatrix whispered a charm and Sirius froze, immobilized and helpless amidst the crowd of people. Regulus didn't know what to do, and stared uselessly as Bellatrix strode over to Sirius with a smirk on her perfect lips.
“No, you aren't.” she whispered sweetly. “Come on, your family and I have something to say to you, darling.”
Sirius, although still frozen, gave her a look of such hatred that Regulus was surprised she didn't wince.
“Don't give me that look” Bellatrix cooed, delight in her onyx eyes. “I'm just trying to help you. Come with me, or I'll have to do worse than immobilize you.”
Sirius seemed to struggle with himself for a second, fighting fruitlessly against the spell that held him. Defeat colored his eyes as he seemed to give in, still immobile but sagging miserably against the invisible constraints around him. Bellatrix gave a smile that reminded Regulus uncannily of a cat cornering its prey.
“Come on.” she said briskly, muttering the countercurse and striding back towards the center of the room, away from the color light now streaming through the stained glass and illuminating Sirius’s fearful face. Regulus put his arm comfortingly on Sirius, who seemed to know exactly what Bellatrix wanted to do and looked utterly terrified at the prospect, knowing his brother had no way out, and could at least face it with courage. Sirius jerked his arm away, glancing at Regulus balefully before striding after Bellatrix, his spine straight and head held high. Regulus let out a sigh, and followed.
His mother was deep in conversation with Bellatrix, Lucius, and a tall, willowy blond Regulus recognized as Narcissa Black, a cousin of his that graduated Hogwarts just last year, when the two brothers approached them. Walburga’s eyes glittered with triumph when she saw Sirius walking slowly towards her, every inch of his body poised like he was about to run.
“Sirius.” she called, as if her son was some slow reacting dog. “We have something to discuss with you.”
Sirius met her gaze squarely.
“I know,” he said simply. Regulus had to admire the way the fear seemed to disappear from his face. Their mother wrinkled her brow and looked over at Regulus, appearing to just remember he existed.
“Stay here, Regulus, and watch. This will be you not too long in the future.”
“Yes Ma’am.” Regulus responded stiffly.
“Sirius, you are the eldest son of the Black family, and in only four years, you will come of age, and will be expected to continue the family's reputation and name. I brought you here today to give you a taste of the world you will one day inherit.”
Walburga looked eagerly towards the front of the room, where an empty spot was conspicuously carved out in the crowd. People were navigating deftly around the area where Lord Voldemort had stood as if his shadow still lingered there.
“The Black family is interested in allying itself with the cause of Lord Voldemort, and in exchange for our funds and loyalty, the Dark Lord--as some are calling him--will grant us the highest positions in his new order, which will soon be dominant in the wizarding world.”
She paused, looking at Sirius expectantly. Sirius frowned.
“and you want…” he said slowly. Regulus took it as a mark of Walburga’s devotion to this matter that she did not punish her son for his disrespect.
“We want to have one foot planted solidly inside this organization, if you understand, and we need to start with our youngest blood. Sirius, when you come of age, you will join this new order of Voldemort as one of his followers, and represent our family in learning the Dark Arts, practicing them on the unworthy and filthy, and showing our eternal devotion to Lord Voldemort as he rises to power. This means you must stop with all this muggle rubbish now--the Dark Lord does not take too kindly to his own being sullied by lesser races. You must be prepared for when you graduate to enter his ranks as a devoted follower, not a humiliating blood-traitor. Do you understand?” Walburga’s face was twisted in cruel triumph, her black gaze glittering in a predatory way that emphasized the trapped look on Sirius’s face. His brother’s face whitened even more, thoughts visibly racing through his head as he struggled with something to say.
“I-uh-” Sirius cleared his throat and took a deep breath. Regulus saw Lucius Malfoy give Bellatrix Black a smirk that made him want to punch him.
“I don't have to join them now, right?” Sirius asked bluntly, panic written clearly on his face. Walburga pursed her lips, unsatisfied.
“No.” she said. “But you must make yourself worthy to join this prestigious order, starting now.”
“What if I don't?”
Regulus could hardly believe Sirius dared to ask, the venomous look in his mothers eyes already was chilling his spine. Walburga’s thin mouth tightened into a flat line. Anger flickered behind her rocky gaze.
“Then there will be consequences. You are the eldest son, Sirius. You will inherit this family. You can accept this now, or accept this later, a much more painful way.” She spat, spinning on her heel and striding away towards the door, black cloak fluttering around her ankles. Lucius gave Sirius one more smug look before following after Walburga, long silvery hair swaying. Bellatrix remained, one hand still grasping Sirius in what looked like a painful clutch.
“Obey your mother” she hissed at him, her curly hair falling in her face and giving her a rather feral, and terrifying, appearance. Sirius said nothing, turning his face away from Bellatrix with a clenched jaw until she let him go angrily and caught up with Lucius. The people around them had slowly filtered out of the room, leaving them alone in the dusty chapel, colored light patterned in odd shapes on the wooden floor. The rest of the family was waiting at the door, deep in conversation and throwing pointed looks at Sirius. Regulus stood with his brother in rather awkward silence, neither knowing what to say when one of them had just been recruited to join a force of Dark Magic against their will. Guilt pricked at Regulus, though he didn't know why. He was glad, surely, that it had not been him, yet the look of despair on Sirius’s face somehow couldn't change the pang bitterness he had felt when his mother dismissed him with barely a thought.
“Let's go” he said to Sirius quietly. His brother was staring vacantly into the space where his mother had stood. Regulus thought Sirius might not have heard him, for he stood with empty eyes as if Regulus had not spoken. But after a pause, Sirius looked up, his expression stony and eyes hard, ice growing thick behind his dark gray eyes. Regulus found himself, not for the first time, wondering what thoughts were flickering beneath them.
“Alright.” Sirius whispered, walking towards their mother and leaving Regulus with no choice but to hurry after him.