The Marauders: Year Five #Wattys2017

A Burgundy Smoking Jacket

A Burgundy Smoking Jacket

Regulus ran up the stairs like a mad man, his fists balled about his wand as he went, up through the castle, higher than he ever usually went. He ducked 'round a lot of Gryffindors who looked at him as he went by, muttering, "What's a Slytherin doing up here?" in perturbed tones. He raced down the hall to the hospital wing, his trainers thumping on the carpet and finally he reached the corridor and came to a halt when he saw Peter Pettigrew sitting outside, doing homework. He walked slowly forward, eyeing Peter carefully, worried whether he'd look up and scream at him.

Peter continued on looking at what looked like Potions work until Regulus was very nearly to the door and then he glanced up. "Sirius - you're --" he stopped, did a double-take, and said, "Oh, you're not Sirius."

"No, but then he's rarely serious himself," Regulus replied.

Peter laughed and Regulus smiled, relishing the fact that he'd made one of his brother's friends laugh. "I see the resemblance," Peter said with a chuckle.

"Thanks," Regulus said. And he meant it. He glanced at the door to the ward. "Is... is he still in there? What happened?"

"Dunno, really," Peter replied, shrugging. "He collapsed on the stairs right after talking to you and James and Remus said he had a big gash right across his chest. I didn't see it myself, I was getting McGonagall to come and help. He was real pale, though, when I saw him before Pomfrey kicked James and me out. Remus was supposed to, too, and he just real fierce said no and put his foot down, made Pomfrey let him stay. I've never seen anyone be so firm with any of the staff and get away with it! But he's been in there since."

Regulus glanced at the door to the ward and back to Peter. 'Is he... is he okay?"

Peter shrugged. "Dunno. I reckon Remus would've told us if there was anything too horrible happening in there."

Regulus drew a deep breath and sort of dawdled about a moment as Peter turned back to his homework. He didn't seem to care either way whether Regulus stayed there with him. Regulus slid down to sit on the carpet against the wall across from Peter and crossed his legs, looking down at the pattern on the soles of his trainers for a moment, picking at a bit of loose rubber 'round the toe. He bit his lips and glanced up at Peter, but Pete's eyes were very much trained on the book in his lap.

"Is Sirius happy?"

Peter looked up. "Sirius is always happy. He's the happiest person I know. Always laughing and smiling and takin' the mickey out of anybody within ear shot."

Regulus didn't know what it was he'd been hoping for Peter to say in reply to that question. He'd been feeling rather blue himself, with patches of happiness, a feeling that had started largely since Father had died. He'd been angry with Orion since the death of that house elf - Tizzy, he reminded himself, her name was Tizzy and she should be remembered as such! - but regardless the man was still his father. He supposed he'd been sort of hoping that maybe Sirius had been feeling the same way, that regardless of what sort of horrible relationship he had with Mother and Father that maybe Regulus wasn't alone in having unexplainable sadness over the loss just the same. He'd hoped maybe the sort of hollow feeling that he, himself, felt whenever he thought of Sirius - a sort of loneliness, he supposed - was something that Sirius felt, too.

But if Sirius was happy, then Regulus was happy for him.

"You alright, then?" Peter asked, sliding his quill into the Potions book to keep his place and putting it aside.

"Sure. Brilliant. Never better," Regulus answered.

Peter eyed him for a moment and he said, "You're just like Sirius there, too. You don't wanna tell me anything so you lie about it in the same exact tone of voice. It's fine, though, I understand why you wouldn't want to tell me anything." He shrugged, "You don't even know me."