The Wolf and the Raven

Ch 24 - Sibling Rivalry

 When Branwen regained consciousness, everything was dark. She was reminded of the abyss that was the Black parlour. At the thought of the Black family, the events of the Quidditch match came rushing back. She groaned.

"She's awake!"

"Finally!"

"Stand back, gits."

"Bon-Bon? You there?"

Her eyelids reluctantly stretched open. It was still dark, but it was now soft darkness of night in the hospital wing. James, illuminated by the golden glow of lamplight, was sitting on the edge of her bed, clutching one of her hands to his chest. His hair, impossibly tangled from the wind, was plastered to his forehead with sweat. He still wore his Quidditch uniform, and there were brownish stains on the scarlet robe that looked like blood. Her own, Branwen presumed.

Peter sat in the bedside chair, twisting his sweater in his hands, looking terribly uncomfortable. The painted numbers on his face had smudged, leaving black streaks across his face.

Branwen's eyes settled on Remus. "Hey. Did we switch places?"

He was mirroring the position she usually took after full moons, kneeling at the beside, her hand held in his. He smiled, but said nothing as his bright green eyes searched her over, checking for any sign of pain.

She turned to James. "What happened?"

He glanced across the room. Following his gaze, Branwen saw Sirius pacing near the dark windows. A storm was blowing outside and he was briefly lit by a flash of lightning. His hands were shoved deep in his pockets and his face was obscured by his long, tangled locks.

James cleared his throat. "You got hit by a Bludger. Broke your arm. When you hit the ground you broke your nose too."

Branwen pulled her left hand from Remus' grasp and used it to prod at her right arm, then at her nose. "All better I think. A couple of broken bones isn't really a challenge for Madam Pomfrey, I suppose."

Remus gently poked her ribs and smiled. "Be grateful that was all that happened. Probably won't even leave a scar."

"Aw," she pretended to pout, "and I was hoping we could be matching."

"James," Peter spoke up, "are you going to tell Sirius?"

James released his sister's hand and laid it on her chest. "Siri. She's awake," he called.

Sirius ran over, knocking Remus aside. "Bran! You're alive? Thank Merlin!" He fell down and started crying.

Branwen was too startled to say anything, so her brother leaned forward and whispered, "He thinks it's his fault you ended up here."

Her eyes went wide. "Why?"

"It kind of is," Peter said.

"Siri," Branwen laid a hand on his shoulder. "What happened?"

He lifted his head, tear tracks ploughing through his sweaty, grimy face. "I saw the Bludger going for Regulus. I don't know why, I just went for it. I had to get it away from him. So I just – swung. And it went for you instead. It's all my fault. My fault you broke your arm. My fault we lost the match. Bailey's already chewed me out, threatened to throw me off the team...."

"Oh, Siri," she cradled his head as best she could. "You did nothing wrong. I'm sure James would have done the same for me."

"You don't understand," he shook his head. "I was trying to protect my brother and I ended up hurting my sister. You're a sister to me, Bran, and I can't believe it's my fault you're hurt like this."