CHAPTER 8

A/N : Thank you so much for the wonderful reviews everyone! So this is a pretty long chapter, (my creative juices just kept flowing :P )but don't expect chapters of this length in future. They are a pain to edit.

A longer Author's note will be at the end of the chapter, so Enjoy!

"You ready?" A voice asked.

"I was born ready." Another replied.

With almost identical smirks, both started walking towards their destination. It was time for a good old prank.

Sirius was playing with the food on his plate, deliberately ignoring Remus' concerned gaze. He knew his friend was worrying about him but he just couldn't talk about it ... at least not right now. He was quite surprised that he had opened up to Hermione but he blamed it on his vulnerable state. She just happened to be there, that's all. But Sirius had to admit, after speaking about it- if it could be called that-, he had felt slightly better. Now he was thinking about how to approach Regulus concerning the matter. Maybe it wasn't too late to convince his brother.

They used to be so close before entering Hogwarts. Sirius had never regretted anything since coming to Hogwarts, but every now and then, he felt a little sad when he thought of how things could be between Regulus and him. Sirius sighed ... no use crying over spilled milk.

He jumped as he felt Remus, next to him start and gasp. He turned to see what had shocked Mooney so much. His eyes widened as he saw James walking towards them- his expression thunderous. But that wasn't so shocking. It was the who he was walking together with part - Hermione Granger. Both him and Mooney had been hoping for a truce between their friend and the feisty witch but judging from their expressions, that would not be the case today ... well damn, now that spelled some trouble for us, Sirius thought.

Sirius glanced at Remus to gauge his thoughts regarding their friends' entrance and he could tell that he was thinking the exact same thing as him. He grabbed his wand and waited to see how it would plan out.

Hermione internally smirked seeing the wry acceptance and defeat on Remus and Sirius' faces. Oh yes, she would definitely have some fun before clearing out that particular misunderstanding of theirs.

Remus started as the doors suddenly opened with a loud banged. Just as he was about to wave at James, he noticed the dark frown on his face. The reason for it soon entered after James with an equally ferocious scowl on her face.

He sighed, seems as if the two had another fight.

Remus watched as the two stormed in glaring daggers at anyone who dared to approach them and took their seats next to him and Padfoot. Considering that they even refused to acknowledge each other despite entering the great hall at the same time, it surprised him that they sat opposite to each other. He released a breath as he realized that though they were clearly itching for a full blown fight, neither had the intention of hashing it out during the breakfast.

Remus started slightly when James, very politely asked Hermione to pass the goblet of pumpkin juice. Just when James was about to take a sip, the pumpkin juice started bubbling up. It then grew in volume. The goblet started shaking. Soon the juice started flowing out.

Sirius and Remus froze as they stared at James' goblet. The juice grew even more voluminous and took the shape of a balloon. It expanded covering the whole gryffindor table!

By then every single gryffindor had gone silent. The balloon started emitting loud groaning sound and then, Pop - it burst! Strangely enough, only James got covered in the slimy pumpkin juice-goo.

"What the fuck?" James growled.

"Didn't know you liked pumpkin juice enough to take a dip in it." Hermione quipped, her voice carrying through the entire great hall, for everyone had gone silent by then

James put the goblet down with a thud and scowled. "That's it! I have had enough of you Granger!" James shouted, standing up and wiping his face roughly.

"Me, how is it my fault if you can't drink from a goblet without feeding it to your clothes James." Hermione sniffed disdainfully.

"So you wanna fight huh, Fine! Let's do it - here and now darling." James sneered.

"Oh yeah? You think you're so great James - with just a scant few elementary spells in your repertoire that you can perform marginally well with that little wand of yours? And then you have the absolute gall to think that that makes you the god's gift to women." Hermione taunted, also standing up.

"Little wand? Witch if you want to see my cock, then say so. I'll gladly show you how 'little' I am." James mocked.

"Oh so mature! Let's bring all the dick jokes. You James Potter are nothing more than a juvenile prat who has a ... pumpkin for a brain!" Hermione shouted.

And the shouting commenced. Things just became worse thereafter and then ...

"Since you like to hear the sound of your own voice so much Potter, Cantis!" Hermione shouted while pointing her wand at him.

James eyes widened as he was forced to sing bloody carols in a loud voice. Hermione smirked at James' thunderous expression.

"Let's see you dance on them then Granger, Tarantallegra!" James managed to cast in the middle of singing. Hermione gasped as her feet started moving. This was so humiliating! Oh he would not get away with it.

"Ducklifors!" Hermione shouted.

James turned into a duck ... which was quacking quite ferociously.

James silently casted finite and immediately captured Hermione in a soap bubble, turning her into a 'soap-doll' with a modified Ebulio.

Hermione's eyes narrowed. Oh so he wanted to play it like that - well two could play the game. She softly murmured,

"Ebulious Inflatus."

"Melofors Kagebunshin." And ended her spell-combo with, "Iridis Colorem."

Hermione watched in satisfaction as James started inflating until he was a rainbow colored bubble. He finally burst with a loud pop!

No sound was heard in the great hall. Even the professors were shocked to silence. Then few started wondering what happened to James as they observed the silently smirking witch.

The professors rose from the High Table and rushed to where the gryffindors were frozen in shock. Soon the hall grew abuzz with tension and excitement. This was an unprecedented occurrence and it left everyone completely nonplussed!

Then with a loud BOOM! Something behind Hermione burst and in stepped James Potter.

"Got you." He whispered.

But then something unexpected happened. Remus rubbed his eyes to make sure he wasn't imagining things. Nope, still there.

Hermione was grinning.

James was winking.

And Hermione was winking back.

What the fuck!

Suddenly James let out a huge belly laugh and picked up Hermione from behind, "Granger my love, that was bloody brilliant! You are one crazy witch!"

" You can put me down now James. I think we have shocked them enough."

"You sure, I still have a few ideas in my mind." James wagged his eyebrows.

Hermione giggled. "I don't think they would really appreciate it now."

They both looked at Sirius and Remus, both utterly gobsmacked.

Sirius growled, "You better start talking Prongs."

They sat down and began explaining everything and soon Remus and Sirius started grinning.

"I say, we just found ourselves our first ever female marauder." Remus grinned and threw a wink at Hermione.

Finally Hermione couldn't hold it in seeing the gobsmacked expression on Remus and Sirius faces so she started giggling- softly at first trying to stifle it, but soon started laughing loudly holding her stomach. She glanced at James who huffed at her and rolled his eyes. He wanted to torture his friends a little longer but looking at the witch next to him, he couldn't help but smile. She looked adorable- cheeks flushed, curls wrecking havoc around her, she was just so sparkling. It was as if the magic of Hogwarts itself loved her, the air around her ... lit, he couldn't come up with a better word.

Well, James smirked, It was fun as long as it lasted. He looked around-,the noise level was surprisingly low and saw- to his amusement- everyone looking at them with mouths agape. James felt a small bout of pride as he realized that their prank had worked better than he hoped.

The whole gryffindor table was utterly flabbergasted! McGonagall was looking at them in horror. James winced a little, maybe they had taken their prank a little too far. But it was definitely worth it.

He saw mooney and padfoot slowly approach them, their expressions carefully blank. He cocked an eyebrow- mooney wasn't sparing him a glance. His sole attention was on the witch next to him, who was staring back confused.

When Remus got closer, he grinned wolfishly and literally pounced on Hermione twirling her around before putting her down.

"Welcome to the troop Hermione." Remus winked. Hermione blushed. She would need some time to get used how affectionate the marauders seemed to be with those close to them.

While she knew Remus and Sirius from before, they were Professor Lupin and Harry's godfather. Maybe because of all the heartaches they experienced, they had never shown this level of affection, even towards Harry. Besides, Hermione thought, a younger Remus Lupin- with a lot less worries and more cheerfulness- was definitely easy on the eye and since she knew what an amazing person he was ... or would be, she couldn't hep but blush a little.

As soon as he put her down, she was engulfed in another hug and looked up to see Sirius grinning at her. "That was marvelous Hermione! The marauders officially welcome you, Hermione Granger, you naughty little witch." He smirked wickedly then gave her a big smack- thankfully on her cheek- before bowing to the catcalls and hoots of the recovered crowd.

Hermione smiled at them. How could anyone be not charmed by them. She looked at James to see him grinning conspiringly with Remus and Sirius.

"I am so glad that you-" Sirius paused suddenly as from the corner of his eyes, he saw Regulus stand up and leave the great hall.

His jaw set, his good mood vanished. He would not let his brother go without trying. He looked at his friends who were looking at him strangely ... well everyone except Hermione. She looked at him understandingly. Her eyes conveying he should go to his brother and let her handle the situation here.

Sirius threw her a grateful look before turning, "I'm sorry guys, I have to ... I have to go." With that Sirius rushed to catch up to his brother.

"What was that all about?" James cocked an eyebrow. He hadn't missed the little something between Hermione and his friend. He looked at Remus, who was also frowning at Hermione.

"I'll tell you later. Sirius has something to talk about with his brother, that's all." She knew that Sirius wanted to tell them about the letter and everything else himself. So right now, she could only reassure them that nothing was wrong and hope that Sirius managed to convince his younger brother against taking the dark mark.

Sirius dashed across the hallway.

"Regulus, wait!" Sirius shouted as he finally caught up to his brother.

"Dammit Reg, wait for one bloody minute!" Sirius shouted again.

Regulus stopped.

"What do you want brother?" Regulus asked.

Sirius stopped, panting slightly as he looked at Regulus. It had been so long since he had last talked with him properly. Now that he was standing next to his brother, he noticed - to his surprise, his brother had grown taller than him! When did that happen.

Regulus sighed softly in frustration and repeated his question. Sirius jerked at his tone. He knew there was a lot of bad blood between them but it still hurt sometimes to see how his once kind and gentle younger brother had grown up to someone so ... Sirius sighed in regret.

"I... Reg... I received the letter from mother yesterday." Sirius started hesitatingly.

Sirius didn't want his brother to brush him off but he had no idea about how to convey his feelings to him. Dammit! This shouldn't be so fucking hard.

"I know that you're about to-" Sirius stopped before swallowing to moisten his suddenly dry throat, then continued. "I know that I haven't always been the brother needed or hell the brother you even wanted. I've let you down a lot of times" Sirius continued determinedly, ignoring when his brother rolled his eyes and snorted softly.

"You don't know how much I regret leaving you with our mother when I left the house. Hell even before that but trust me, I never wanted you to become like this."

Sirius cursed, he knew then that he had said the wrong thing as he saw Regulus tense.

"Become like this." Regulus said quietly, his voice filled with menace. "What exactly have I become big brother?"

Sirius shook his head furiously, "You know I din't mean that. Oh Merlin Reggie, you know what I'm talking about. There is not a second in a day when I don't regret what happened." He looked at Regulus, trying to see if what he was saying was having any effect on him but is eyes were shuttered and his expression was completely stoic.

"You know what I think brother, I think that you just want to appease your stupid little gryffindor heart and want to make yourself feel better. Well that is not going to work. I hope you realize that I will never forgive you for that day." Regulus said, breathing heavily. The memories trying to resurface but he forced them down. No, he was not going to let himself fall into that dark pit. Never again!

Sirius looked at his brother helplessly, tearing slightly. He knew, god he knew- no matter how hard he tried to forget but he couldn't. And he knew that nothing he did could ever make up for that but still Sirius continued. He couldn't let his brother go down that path. All it would give him was pain, misery, fear and death.

"Regulus, you are my brother. We share a bond nothing and no one can break. It might have been weakened or stretched tight but it is not broken! Never doubt that I love you and I want the absolute best for you. I will never abandon you again. I know that you will probably never trust me again, but please hear me out." Sirius pleaded.

Regulus clenched his fists. He knew what his brother wanted but he didn't, couldn't understand his circumstances. How could he, when he was safe and protected behind the gryffindor tower and Dumbledore. How could he understand the darkness in his heart, its' temptation, its' call, its' hunger. How could he understand the thrill of dark magic.

Regulus knew that the path he had chosen would never bring result in his happiness. He was aware about his ... future prospects, once he agreed. Hell his ability had told him all he needed to know about the people he chose to surround himself with but he had no choice.

His brother was making him waver and he would not let Sirius Black affect him again! But looking at his brother's pleading eyes, he couldn't refuse him either. Regulus thought bitterly, his brother still had a hold on him. He clenched his fists, not giving another reaction to imply to his brother that fine! he would listen to what listen to what he had to say.

Sirius chest grew tight as he saw his brother glaring at him. He prayed - something that Sirius had only done once before - that his brother would let him in.

Regulus stood a little straighter as if to show that he was no longer the little boy hiding behind his brother. Sirius began to get a little hopeful as his brother did nothing more. If all he received was a glare, then Sirius counted himself extremely lucky that his reluctant brother would hear him out.

Sirius took a breadth and began speaking, "I almost tok the dark mark. I know you know that but what you don't know is what happened that day. What I saw that day... scared me Reggie. I will never forget what he did to his men. No human could do that. It was sick, disgusting yet none of the remaining lifted a hand to help. And that was only the beginning. You don't want to live that life Reg.

I'm not going to convince you to join the light. I know I can't tell you what to do. You've always been the more vigilant so I know you probably have a good idea of what you are getting into. But what you need to know is that once you get in, you can't get out Regulus.

It will kill you. I don't know, can't know what's best for you but I can tell you that, that definitely is not it." Sirius paused. He still had a lot more to say but he didn't want to freak Regulus out. He could tell that Regulus was just itching to find an excuse to leave. With one wrong move, he knew he would loose his brother.

"Regulus ... I beg you, don't take the dark mark. We can think of something. You don't have to do it on your own." Sirius wanted to that Dumbledore could help him but instinctively knew that that would be like walking on a landmine.

Regulus stoic expression wavered slightly. He knew some of what his brother was telling him but ... He raked a hand through his hair, his magic prickled as he tried to control his turbulent emotions. The darkness in him hungering for something he didn't know. He could tell by his brother's aura that he wasn't lying and he believed everything he was saying.

Regulus knew, even before his brother approached him that taking the dark mark was not exactly a brilliant idea but something was stopping him from making the right choice. He knew part of it was due to his pride. Both the Black brothers were prideful, sometimes a little too prideful for their own good. But he couldn't just agree with his brother. Regulus released his breath with a hiss and looked at Sirius, the grave and humbling expression looking a little out of place on his proud gryffindor brother.

Regulus didn't know what to say to his brother, he didn't know what to do!

Sirius looked at Regulus, trying to understand what his brother was thinking. But they had spent too many years apart. the bond hey shared- once so strong- now a mere shadow of what it was. He just couldn't understand his brother's magic. No matter how hard he tried.

Too many things had gone wrong, too much time had passed, too many regrets, too many broken promises ... But he knew his brother was still not completely won over by the other side. He could tell that his brother wasn't exactly thrilled by the idea of taking the dark mark and that thought alone filled him with hope.

He would take even the smallest sign. They may no longer be that close, but they were still brothers, nothing could break that.

"Regulus..." Sirius began.

Regulus threw him a look, telling him to stop. He didn't want to hear anything more. He knew his brother was genuinely concerned about him but their talk had reminded him about the past he was trying his best to forget. He did not want to feel so raw. But maybe he wouldn't shut his brother out completely.

"I will take you what you said into consideration." Regulus said stiltedly. "But that is all you are getting from me. Do not even dare to hope for anything more." He sneered.

Sirius blinked his eyes rapidly, to dry his suspiciously wet eyes and nodded. He wanted to smile and hug him or even a clap on his back but knew his brother wouldn't take it well. He also realized that it was still too early to express how hopeful he felt so he just held his breath and waited to see what his brother would do next.

"Thank you Regulus." Sirius said seriously, his expression grave.

"Know that I'm here for you if you ever need me." Sirius knew how much it took for his brother to simply say even that much so so he wanted to make sure his brother knew where he stood.

Regulus didn't say anything, his composure sully regained. He didn't want his brother to see anything that might any hope. He was a slytherin after all and he still hadn't forgiven his brother.

With a slight nod, he turned and left without a glance, the memories still fighting to let lose. But he would win this time. He knew what he needed.

He just hoped Kieran was not hiding anywhere to read his books in some privacy ...

Sirius blinked. The rest of the day seemed to pass in a haze. He was just coming out of it as he returned in his quidditch gear. Flying had cleared his mind a little but it still wasn't enough. He needed a drink and Sirius knew just where to find it.

The marauders always had a secret stash of firewhiskey and chocolates for such occasions. He went near James' bed and opened his trunk with a modified spell known to only four of them. He didn't even smile at the newly added items in there. For once his mind was not on what pranks could be done.

He took a bottle, paused, then took a few more. Tonight Sirius was planning on getting ape-shit high and for that he needed a lot of booze. Fortunately the common room was relatively empty so he just went and sat near the fireplace and took a large swallow, enjoying the burn in his throat.

Oh yeah, Sirius thought. This was precisely what he needed- to drown his sorrows in firewhiskey. He had finished a quarter of the first bottle when he heard the door open. He looked to see the remanning members of their group enter.

"How are you Padfoot?" James asked carefully. They had all been very concerned about Sirius. When they had seen him after rushing from the great hall, Sirius had looked a mess. He didn't respond to any questions and seemed to function on auto pilot.

Sirius laughed sardonically, "How am I? I'm bloody great! Never better. My brother is probably about to throw his life away and the only thing he wanted to say before was how he much hates my guts!"

Remus quickly casted a silencing charm along with a modifies notice-me-not charm. He shared a look with James and Peter. Sirius had always been touchy regarding his family but had been a long time since they had seen the haunted look in his eyes.

"You do realize that you can tell us anything, right mate?" James said as he plopped down near Sirius and snatched the bottle from him.

"Hey that's mine! Get you own, you bastard." Sirius shouted half-heartedly.

James just laughed and took a large swig from the stolen bottle and smirked at him. Remus shook his head. Maybe this is what Sirius needed. He turned and asked Peter to get more bottles, because at the rate with which his two friends were chugging, it wouldn't be enough. Remus then went and sat down on the opposite side of James and took an unopened bottle.

"Look here Padfoot, we finally converted Mooney!" James laughed, trying to dispel his friend's dark mood.

Sirius didn't laugh but his lips twitched a little at the glare Mooney threw their way. Merlin, he loved his friends.

They drank and laughed all night, ignoring the often curious and disgusting looks thrown their way. It was almost enough for Sirius to forget what had happened in the morning.

He looked to see James snoring next to him, his head on his lap. He groaned as he saw a wet patch and Remus leaning against him, drowsily gazing at the crackling fire. They had casted a refill charm on the bottles and mixed chocolate for Mooney. They bloody werewolf refused to get sloshed without any chocolate with his booze.

Sirius still hadn't reached the state of inebriation where he could forget everything. Out of all of them, he had the maximum tolerance- for firewhiskey. So sadly, he was the last man standing ... or sitting, whatever. All three had forgotten about the fourth member, who curiously enough, never returned.

"Mind if I join in?" Sirius blinked drunkenly, his thoughts scattered by a female voice.

He rubbed his eyes trying to focus. All he could make out were a mass of curls. He grinned. There was only one person with gravity-defying curls who shared their love for mischief.

"Yo Granger, ever had firewhiskey before?"

Hermione raised her eyebrow.

"I'll have you know Mr Black, I'm known far and wide for my tolerance of this particular liquor. So don't think you can beat me." Hermione teased.

Sirius laughed and gestured her to sit and handed her a bottle.

"Then shall we Ms Granger?" They clinked their bottles together and started drinking.

"So what more secrets are you hiding from us Hermione?" Sirius asked after a while.

Hermione sighed. She could see that Sirius was fast approaching his limit. She really wanted to share at least some of her secrets but she was sober enough to realize the folly in that line of thinking. But still, it was just so hard. Sometimes she felt so alone here.

"Oh Sirius, if you only knew. I'm not sure you or anyone else here would still like me after hearing what I have to say." Hermione whispered.

Sirius blinked owlishly, trying to focus, but he was having a little trouble- there were two Hermiones in front of him! Merlin, when did that happen.

"Well if you don't wanna tell yours then I'll tell you mine!" Sirius nodded to himself. That seemed like a good idea in his head. She could always go after him.

"You know my brother Reggie, I think he wants to follow Voldy and you know what the worst thing is, he probably thinks that approaching me is worse than going to that ... madman!" Sirius slurred.

Hermione blinked. She knew Sirius and his brother had a somewhat strained relationship, but she didn't realize it was that bad.

Sirius barked a laugh, "The funny thing is, it's probably true, or at least part of it." Sirius said bitterly, lost in thought.

"What I did to him that day, oh god I wish, how I bloody wish I could change the past. I would give anything to change the past Hermione." Sirius whispered brokenly.

Hermione swallowed, her throat dry. She didn't know what to say. How could she console him, how could she reassure him when she didn't know. His words had hit a little too close to home. She wondered what he would do if he knew her secrets. The thought was too painful so she pushed it back.

"Sirius..." Hermione began hesitatingly, "I might not know what happened between the two of you but I do know that you still love him and would do anything to protect him. Isn't that enough? Just be there for him." Hermione continued seriously.

Sirius stared at her, his eyes a suspiciously wet.

"I don't know how much of tonight you will remember but trust me, I know that you are strong enough to do whatever you need to do. Remember Sirius Black, you are a gryffindor! And you always have your friends to rely on. Trust them. I'm sure James and Remus will never betray you." Hermione said, trying to convey something through her eyes but Sirius was too far gone to understand.

Sirius smiled softly, "You're a nice girl Hermione. I wish I had been there to-" Before Sirius could finish what he was saying, he slumped, loosing consciousness.

Hermione stared at the drooling marauder in affection. She wished Harry was here to his his godfather before Azkaban took away his youth. She wondered what he was about to say but shook her head. He deserved the rest after today.

She placed the empty bottle of firewhiskey on the floor and stood up, swaying slightly. Guess she also had a little too much. Before she further lost her senses, Hermione softly started whispering a few spells to make the boys comfortable and placed blankets over them. She went to the girls dormitory and came up with three vials of hangover potions and placed them carefully next to the sleeping marauders.

Hermione smiled wistfully at the site they made. Even with just a few weeks, she had grown so fond of the three. She decided that she would do everything in her power to make sure they all survived the coming years, even if she was the one to die. With a new burst of determination, Hermione went upstairs, silently bidding them goodnight.

What an eventful day!

Regulus Black stormed into the Slytherin common room, scaring the younger students with his thunderous expression. They gave him a wide berth as he stalked directly to his room, which he shared with Kieran Malfoy.

He saw Kieran reading a book while lounging on his bed. Though his expression didn't change, his shoulders relaxed, the change too minute for anyone to detect but Kieran knew him better than anyone else so he knew when there was something troubling his friend.

Kieran closed his book with a snap and looked at his friend carefully. Something was very wrong with his friend. He frowned as Regulus shrugged off his robe and plopped down next to him with a sigh. Regulus very rarely let himself behave in such a fashion, so Kieran grew even more worried.

"Regulus, are you alright?"

A muffled curse was his answer.

"What happened Reg?" Kieran asked again.

Regulus turned his head and looked at his blonde friend. He had the trademark Malfoy hair and pale skin but where Lucius' expression was forever marred with a sneer, Kieran mostly remained taciturn and calm, smiling only when it was just two of them. Kieran was the antithesis of everything a Malfoy stood for and therefore was ostracized from the rest of the slytherins from the very begining. Of course nothing too overt but such mind games were a speciality of their house.

Regulus had quickly become friends with the serious and quiet boy upon their first meeting- a little before they joined Hogwarts at one of the parties thrown by the Malfoys.

Flashback

5 and a half years back...

Regulus was getting bored. His brother had as usual escaped on the first opportunity and he was left alone to attend the party at the Malfoy Manor. He had never understood the relationship between his parents and the Malfoys. On the outside they always looked very close but he had heard his mother talk about Abraxus Malfoy and his wife as if she was ... almost jealous of them. But why would she be, Regulus was confused though he didn't dare ask her for fear of punishment. He had seen his mother curse his brother a lot of times so Regulus was smart enough to keep his mouth shut and his eyes open.

His eyes wandered, taking in the splendor of the Malfoy Manor. Naturally all the prominent families of wizarding britain were in attendance. He spotted the Notts and Zabinis whispering to themselves in a corner. He knew that today's party was somewhat different. He had seen his mother casting almost nervous glances towards the doors from time to time.

"Oh there you are Walbura, I see your eldest is as disgraceful as ever." The Malfoy matriarch sneered. "I do hope you are punishing the boy for his defiance, you know he won't be happy." She smirked.

Walbura Black rose to her full height and sneered back at Mrs Malfoy, "How is Kieran Patricia?"

Mrs Malfoy frowned and turned to look at him. Regulus straightened. His mother had beaten the manners into both her children as soon as they were able to talk.

"Good evening Ma'am, It's a lovely party. Thank you for the invitation." Regulus said politely. Mrs Malfoy nodded begrudgingly and continued exchanging disparaging remarks with his mother.

Regulus sighed, somehow he knew it wouldn't be ending anytime soon. He peeked to see that both were still busy with their conversion so with one last look he wandered off.

The manor was quite large, so Regulus was always excited to explore and discover something new. Of course he was always careful as it wouldn't be good if he got caught. He made his fay further inside, the noise from the gathering disappearing as he crept closer to the silent hallways. He saw an unlocked door with a soft glow emanating from inside. Looking back to make sure he was alone, he slowly pushed the door open and peered inside.

He saw a young boy, about his age sitting and quietly reading a book. Regulus fully pushed the door open and approached the boy.

"Hello, I assume you are Regulus Black." The boy said softly. He raised his head and smiled at Regulus.

Regulus gasped softly. The boy had blonde hair and he definitely resembled a malfoy! Not to mention that he was beautiful. But Regulus knew he couldn't be Lucius and as far as he knew Malfoys only had one child.

The boy's shoulders shagged slightly as he saw the confusion on Regulus' face.

"You don't know who I am." He said disappointedly.

"I ... I'm sorry." Regulus spluttered.

The boy looked shocked, "It's the first time someone apologized to me, you know. And it's okay, it's not... surprising that you don't know who I am. Not many do." He said bitterly.

Regulus frowned in confusion. "Are you ... are you Lucius' brother by any chance?"

The boy just looked at him.

"You are, aren't you! Merlin I didn't know they had another son." Regulus exclaimed.

The boy raised his chin stubbornly and glared at him.

Regulus blushed, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to be rude. I'm just surprised. So what's your name?"

"Kieran, Kieran Malfoy." The boy said almost shyly.

"So Kieran, why aren't you at the party?" Regulus asked, getting comfortable while sitting next to him.

Kieran sighed and looked down. "My parents told me not to."

Regulus looked at the boy. He looked so frail, smaller than his age and there was an air of sadness surrounding him. Regulus immediately knew that he wasn't like Lucius.

"Don't worry, even my parents hate me half of the times." Regulus patted his back and grinned.

Kieran looked at him confusedly then slowly smiled back. "You are not how I imagined you to be Regulus."

Regulus just raised an eyebrow and looked at the book Kieran was reading, "Hogwarts, a History? Really mate, we still have almost half a year before we get our letters."

Kieran just shot a glare at him and began discussing the fine points of reading. Regulus just smiled and that was it. After that, they met as often as possible and soon Regulus grew protective of the small Malfoy. Kieran also bloomed under Regulus' friendship and grew more confident. By the time they received their Hogwarts letter, they had become inseparable.

End of Flash back

Regulus was blinked back to the present as Kieran nudged him. Regulus sighed, he had always been able to let his guard down and relax around Kieran and right now that was precisely what he needed.

"Kie ... I think I'm way over my head." Regulus whispered softly. He was scared to raise his voice fearing what it might mean.

"Are you referring to how my brother approached you regarding taking the dark mark?" Kieran asked directly.

Regulus laughed, "Trust you to cut right to the chase." He quieted down then gazed somberly at him, "Yes, he ... they approached me and I ... said yes."

Kieran didn't react, patiently listening. Regulus continued, "I don't know what to do Kie. It's either this or go to Dumbledore and you know how much I hate the old coot. His aura is always so grey. At least with the dark lord I know where I stand and where his idea-"

"Do you?Do you really know what will happen to you Reg if you decide to follow him?" Kieran said, interrupting him.

Regulus stared at his friend's grey eyes and sighed, "Yes I know what will happen to me ... now. I'm not so sure about the future. Recently when I saw the Dark Lord, his aura was ... fluctuating. I have never seen something like it before." Regulus admitted.

"So you hate Dumbledore but you don't trust Voldemort either. The way I see it, you neither support the 'light' nor the 'dark'. What good will it do to take the dark mark then?" Kieran pointed out, ignoring the glare Regulus sent his way for saying his name.

Regulus growled in frustration, "So what do you want me to do Kie?"

Kieran hesitated, he would normally say whatever he felt Regulus needed to hear, not what he wanted to hear, except when it came to his brother. But he still continued, "What about your b-"

"Don't!" Regulus snapped. "You know how I feel about him Kieran." Regulus continued harshly.

Kieran winced. So he was back to Kieran. But he really felt that Reg needed to mend his relationship with his brother. Specially now, recently he had been feeling nervous and edgy as if something, something big was about to happen and he knew that if Reg didn't mend his bond with Sirius soon, he would be in grave danger.

So Kieran pushed forward, "Regulus, I know you hate your brother and as far as trust is concerned, well you would rather trust the words of a Knockturn Alley whore but Reg, he's your family, hell the only decent and sane family member you have." Kieran gently said.

Seeing his friend was still ignoring him, Kieran pointed out "Fine, why don't you forget he's your brother and just think of him as a lesser evil and use him till there is a better option available."

Regulus glared at him, "You're a bastard, you know that right?"

Kieran smiled at him, knowing his friend would at least consider what he had just said.

"I know."

"Just reminding you."

"Fuck you."

"I already have a boyfriend."

Regulus groaned, "Ugh, don't remind me of that bumbling block of muscle. Seriously Kie what do you see in him? He would have been in Hufflepuff if he wasn't a Goyle." Regulus complained.

"Well, you have your whores and I have my studs." Kieran pertly returned.

Regulus blinked. Then started chuckling, his bad mood gone, "you're ridiculous, you know that."

Kieran just smirked at him.

Regulus punched his thigh and got up. Yes, he was glad he had Kieran Malfoy as his friend.

Few hours earlier ...

Lily looked at her charms assignment, her mind anywhere but towards studying for once. Ever since she had seen Severus with his fellow slytherins in the dark forest, she had been feeling so confused! She knew the right thing would be to go to Professor McGonagall directly but she couldn't help but feel that she should confront Severus first.

Decided, Lily closed her books and went to find him. She knew that her talk with Severus would definitely not go smoothly but she never shirked from her duties so Lily marched towards the slytherin common room, determined.

Severus grimaced in pain, his arm throbbed and his head felt like someone was poking inside with a hot iron. His lips twisted in self-mockery. How awed he had been when he had first joined Tom Riddle. His charming personality and great power had beckoned him like a beacon of light.

It was all a lie!

Severus didn't how things had gone so wrong in such a short time. He had tries leaving but his already bore the fresh pink scars from that decision. And what was it all for, revenge ... well fuck revenge!

He was still so very angry at Lily for taking the blasted Potter's side. He thought he had put it all behind him but sometimes regret made his stomach churn and his heart- what was left of it- clench. For, she was after all his very first friend and his first love. He doubted he loved her anymore, the thought alone brought too much heartache, disappointment and anger. But he still missed his only true friend ... occasionally.

"Severus!"

Severus turned, already aware who was calling him. Lucius was walking towards him, with his patent sneer.

"I heard the Dark Lord called you." Lucius asked quietly.

Severus barely resisted raising an eyebrow. He could see the jealousy in Lucius' eyes at the thought that their lord favored him more. Lucius was so enamored with Voldemort that it was almost pathetic. He failed to see Tom's real nature or maybe he knew and still wanted to follow him.

Severus looked away in disgust. Lucius' expression reminded him a little of himself ... how he was two years back. His fourth year was when everything changed - he had officially taken the dark mark and sided with Tom Riddle ... the worst mistake of his life.

"None of your concern Lucius. If you want to know further as Tom." Severus sneered.

Lucius failed to hide the scowl on his face. Severus was the only one who ever dared to call their lord by his name. The dark lord found this quality both amusing and annoying, depending on his mood. But he never asked Severus to stop and Lucius was highly jealous of all the attention the younger slytherin received from the dark lord. His hand twitched, he was itching to curse the man standing in front of him.

"Don't even think of it." Severus whispered, his voice filled with menace. His wand pointed towards Lucius.

Lucius eyes widened. His fingers had barely moved. No one could have reacted in time to that small a movement. He swallowed and stepped back.

Lucius Malfoy would never admit it but the younger slytherin scared him. Sometimes there was a look in his eyes that promised ... he shuddered. He didn't want to ponder further on that line of thought.

"Fine! But bear in mind Snape, one day the Dark Lord will rely on me much more than you." Lucius retorted, trying to preserve what little dignity he had left.

Lucius Malfoy bowed to no one ... except maybe his charismatic leader- Tom Riddle.

Severus mentally sneered at the Malfoy scion before retuning back to his room. He rubbed his forehead trying to dispel the headache as he sat down on the bed.

The meeting today had gone so much worse than he expected. Voldemort was a much bigger monster than he had ever imagined! Hell he doubted Dumbledore had any idea with who- rather what - he was dealing with. Then he smirked, at least wouldn't see his demise coming. That was the only thought which brought Severus even an iota of satisfaction.

Horcruxes! Bloody Horcruxes. Voldemort was stark raving mad! He couldn't believe Tom would take such radical actions Severus couldn't deny the existence of the blasted ring.

He had already made two Horcruxes.

If Severus' guess was right, then Voldemort wasn't planning on stopping anytime soon, Specially with the new request, rather order ha had given Severus. A seemingly mythical potion to separate and sever his soul into disjointed parts and prevent his body from decaying, all this without killing him. Severus' lips twisted as he remembered what had happened after ...

Flash back

"Tom but that's impossible! There is no such potion." Severus blurted shocked, forgetting who he was standing in front of.

"You dare question me Severus." Voldemort hissed, so softly that even Severus with his enhanced senses had to strain his ears to hear it.

Severus barely managed to keep his expression from changing, but something must have shown- for Voldemort smirked coldly.

With a deadly whisper, he raised his wand, "Crucio."

Severus screamed and crumpled in pain. All his nerve ending screamed in agony. His bones felt like they were about to crack. He barely managed to stop himself from howling in pain and pleading for mercy. He would not succumb to pain!

With gritted teeth, blood seeping from his mouth from biting his tongue, Severus contained his agony by whimpering and groaning under the repeated Crucio.

After a while, Voldemort stopped as if bored.

"You're no fun to torture my friend." He said almost pleasantly.

Severus just groaned. He had turned his body to a ball to keep from making any unnecessary movements. Slowly he became aware of his surroundings as the pain ebbed. The tremors remained though.

"Brew me the potion Severus or there will be no next time. You have one year. Do not disappoint me. Voldemort ordered.

Severus nodded, his eyes on the floor, not wanting to experience another cruciatus so soon. Voldemort soon apparated away, leaving Severus to lie on the ground as his body jerked with the spasms that followed after such meetings. He laid there for a few hours before he could manage to lift himself enough to go back to Hogwarts.

End of Flash Back.

Severus laid back on his bed, his hands behind his head as he stared at the ceiling, his mind miles away. He knew he didn't want to help Tom with his goals any longer. The cost was too much, his revenge wasn't worth his life.

But he couldn't come up with a better option. One thing he was absolutely sure of was that he didn't want to go to Dumbledore for help. He knew Dumbledore wanted to win against Tom, at any cost. Severus had a suspicion that if he approached the headmaster, then he would ask Severus to spy on Tom and that was a can of worms waiting to be opened. After all Severus was a slytherin and in Dumbledore's mind he was expandable.

He sighed.

He ached everywhere.

His head hurt.

His life was not going the way he wanted.

"Severus Snape? The gryffindor prefect, Lily Evans is waiting for you outside the common room." A first year informed him respectfully.

Lily? What was she doing here. The he frowned. She had continuously refused to see him when he had literally camped outside her common room for days to beg for her forgiveness. Now she came barging into his territory.

How dare she.

"Audrey, inform her that I'm currently unavailable and should she come here again, I will not be held accountable if something happens to her."

Audrey hesitated slightly before replying, "Sure."

Severus tried to listen but couldn't pinpoint their voices because of the noise from the other students in the common room. Then he scowled, he was not interested in her reply. With that he closed his eyes trying to sleep willing all his thoughts to go away.

Lily couldn't remember the last time she had been so infuriated! Even James Potter hadn't irritated her to this extent. Who did he think he was. That absolute prat. She felt like strangling Severus Snape with her bare hands! The bloody git didn't even realize she was doing it for his own benefit.

Well fine! He didn't want her her help then it wasn't her headache anymore. With that, Lily flipped her hair and marched back to the Gryffindor Tower, ignoring the slight pang in her heart.

It had been two years since their fight. The year following the fight had been hard on Lily. While she had been terribly hurt by Severus' cruel words, she had still lost her best friend. Their fight as a culmination of the strained silences and small squabbles due to the company Severus kept and the marauders in Lily's house.

After that, it just became hard for her to approach him since she could see how dark he was becoming.

For just one wild second, she wished they were back in Cokeworth where everything was simple and they were just Lily and Severus- two friends who shared everything.

But that would never be, Lily thought with regret. She allowed herself one last thought about how things could be before pushing it all in one corner of her mind and entered the gryffindor common room.

It was almost morning when Lily arrived so most of the students were in their beds. Well, Lily thought irritatingly, almost all as she saw three bodies sprawled over each other. Of course they had to annoy her even when asleep. She sighed and with one last glance at the sleeping marauders, Lily went upstairs, officially brain dead!

"Albus, I fear we were too late. It has already begun." A voice spoke from the shadows.

Dumbledore gazed somberly at the glittering sandglass, watching each grain fall. Things were moving faster than expected. Till a few days ago, the sand was falling as expected but something had triggered a change. He didn't know what it was but he didn't like it. Any unknown variables for Albus Dumbledore were a threat and were to be eliminated ... immediately.

He had felt a spike in the castle's magic recently. But it had been for a fraction of a second, far too short to pin point. But for the first time Albus Dumbledore had felt scared for he had felt the magic come in contact with the wards of Hogwarts. It should have been stopped but it had flowed through the wards as if merely brushing them aside and through Hogwarts magic, it had touched his magic.

Dumbledore had been reading when it happened. So boundless it felt that Dumbledore didn't even realize when his hands started trembling – so much so that he dropped the book in his hands, his magic shuddered, too overwhelmed.

The strange thing was he neither felt any warmth nor any animosity. It had no intent and felt ancient. It made the magic surrounding Hogwarts like an infant's, which was too scary a thought to indulge in.

Dumbledore stroked his beard thoughtfully. There had been only one strange occurrence recently ant that was coming of one Miss HermioneGranger. But she did not posses enough magic, nor was she trained enough to act as a conduit and he doubted her body could handle it. But still Dumbledore had a feeling that somehow it was related to her appearing here.

He didn't have enough information to see the whole picture but once something triggered Dumbledore's interest, he refused to let it go until he had uncovered everything there was to know about it. Besides Dumbledore definitely didn't want Miss Granger disrupting his plans regarding the order.

Soon, they might just be ready to stand against Tom. Yes, he would be keeping a close eye on his new student.

Author's Notes : *Phew* That was one long chapter to write and edit. Hope you guys liked it.

Response to the reviews:

Brian1972 – To answer your question, they live in an era where men are taught chivalry and women generally are not taught battle magic. also because he is pureblood he thought he could intimidate Hermione because in every pureblood household boys are treated better than girls , had he been a muggle born or even a half blood he would have dependent more on his magic than brute strength because like I said pureblood families in an attempt to uphold tradition and transfer of ownership to the next son born, tend to forget that girls might be smaller or physically weaker than some men, their magic is not. ( At least that was my reasoning since wizarding Britain anyways was more traditional than the Muggle world.)

Daniella2cool – Don't worry, I have no intention of making James go back to Lily. Their ship has sailed. :p

Lorna Potter – I completely agree with you! I hate it when Hermione is shown as the second choice or when James clearly likes Hermione but goes back to Lily for some asinine reason, so that's not gonna happen here. :)

The Rest – Thank you so much for reviewing, favouriting, following and reading this story. Your reviews always encourage me to write more ( one reason why this chapter was so long :p)

Till next time, Cheers!