OUTCAST | SIRIUS BLACK

CHAPTER FORTY-SEVEN

YOU WILL NEVER BE ALONE
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The first week of school passed by quickly with everyone trying to adjust to their new schedules. The teachers seemed to think that since they were now in their Sixth Year, they didn't need a calm first week to settle in, so they had just started without giving anyone the chance to mentally prepare themselves. On top of that, Seraphina had to organise tryouts for the upcoming Quidditch season and book the Quidditch pitch as much as possible for the Slytherin team.

While she was certain the team would essentially be the same as last year, she still had an obligation to hold tryouts. Especially since she always held a little hope that there would be someone other than Rosier that could hold the position of Keeper; nothing would please her more than kicking him off the team but she couldn't do that without a proper reason.

But unfortunately for her, no one of the new students that tried out could surpass Rosier in skill which meant that she'd be stuck with him for yet another year. When the tryouts were over, Seraphina decided to take the opportunity to speak with Regulus since she hadn't been able to catch him alone since school started.

"Reggie, could you help me with the ball trunk?" Seraphina wondered.

Regulus rolled his eyes and walked over to her while the rest of the people at the Quidditch pitch started to leave. "You know you are a witch, right? That means you can use something called magic," he told her sarcastically. One thing he definitely had in common with his brother was their sarcasm, even though they expressed it in different ways.

"Yes, but I know that you are a gentleman of the Noble House of Black, which means that you cannot deny a distress call from a lady in need," Seraphina smirked.

Regulus snorted and looked at her blankly, "You are about the furthest anyone could be from a lady."

"Thank you," Seraphina grinned as the two picked up the trunk and started carrying it towards the storage cupboard. As usual, Regulus was quiet which truly showed how he and his brother were so different. But she knew that Regulus could talk a lot the few times he got out of his shell, which is why she always tried to encourage him to open up.

Once the Quidditch equipment was locked into the cupboard and Seraphina was certain everyone else had left because she took her sweet time, she turned to Regulus with a caring expression that immediately made him tense, "No, I am not talking to you about this."

"Here me out," Seraphina blocked his path when he tried to walk away from her. "I know that what transpired between Sirius and your parents is none of my business. But judging by what I heard from him, it was not pretty and I know your parents are not the kindest-"

"You have no right to speak that way of my parents," Regulus sneered, the apathy on his face disappearing for a moment to be replaced by anger; but while his glare was firmly directed at her, there was something broken in his grey eyes that made her think that he wasn't angry at her. "Sirius is a blood-traitor and an abomination for our family. My parents gave him countless opportunities to act in a way worthy of our good name but he constantly disappointed them."

"I saw the bruises on him, Regulus," Seraphina said calmly. Nothing good would come out of her losing her cool and yelling; especially not when all she wanted was to help him. "He told me about how your mother - how she would use the Cruciatus Curse on him when they fought."

"If he hadn't constantly provoked mother she would not have felt the need to punish him," Regulus snapped, losing more and more of his calm demeanour. It was like all of his emotions had been bottling up for weeks now, only protected by a thin barrier, and her bringing it up was all that was needed for the dam to break.

"Sirius should have the chance to be himself in his own home, with his own family, without risking being tortured," Seraphina argued, keeping her voice soft. Then she quietly muttered a silencing spell before continuing, "My father and brothers did not approve of me being sorted into Slytherin, but that does not mean that I return home every break knowing that I will get beaten and tortured because my opinions differ from theirs. Sirius had no other choice but to leave-"

"He had a choice!" Regulus yelled. It was the angriest she had ever seen him. In truth, it was the most emotion he had ever shown. "Sirius could have decided to not be selfish for the first time in his life. He could have stayed instead of abandoning me like he always does! From the moment I came to Hogwarts and was sorted into Slytherin he stopped caring about me. He found new, better brothers, that all of a sudden was all he cared about. Do you think it even crossed his mind that him leaving would affect me? That it - that it would hurt me..."

Regulus' voice died out at the end and tears had started to appear in his eyes. He clearly noticed it too because Regulus turned around but once again she blocked his path. "Reggie, your brother loves you-"

"NO! He loves you! He loves that idiot James Potter and the rest of his idiot friends! But he never even cared about me because if he did, then wouldn't have left me behind," Regulus yelled and Seraphina understood now, more than ever before, how different Regulus was from the way he wanted people to think.

From the outside, he was a perfect son of House Black; a Slytherin prefect with top grades, the Seeker of the Quidditch team who had just the right friends from the right families with the same opinions as his own family. He was apathetic, only spoke when spoken to first and never did or said anything that went against what his parents had taught him.

But on the inside he was just a scared fifteen year old boy who despite having his family's approval, did not have their love. Seraphina doubted Regulus had ever had anyone show him affection growing up other than Sirius and for years, until they both started at Hogwarts, they had been each other's rocks. But now, Regulus was all alone. He had always been pressured by his parents and now, without Sirius around, he was under even more pressure from his parents.

Without saying another word, Seraphina stepped forward to wrap her arms around him. At first, Regulus froze, since he was unused to being hugged, but then, after a few seconds, he melted into to hug and his arms tightened around her waist while he buried his face in her red hair. "You are not alone, Reggie," Seraphina whispered, rubbing his back in comfort. "You will never be alone."

After a few more seconds, Regulus pulled away and roughly rubbed his hand over his eyes in an attempt to get rid of the evidence of his tears. Showing weakness was one thing he had been taught to never do and he wasn't used to being comforted.

Knowing it made him uncomfortable to have let go of his perfectly crafted mask, Seraphina smiled kindly, "Reggie, I know I annoy you most of the time, but I want you to know that you mean a lot to me. I truly do care for you and I want you to know that you can always come to me if you need to talk. I won't push you - but I will always be there for you if you need me."

Regulus gave her a firm nod, "Thank you. I will keep that in mind." He turned to walk away but before he got more than three metres, he turned back around. "And thank you, Sera. You - you are the bane of my existence most of the time, but I really," he pursed his lips before saying, "I suppose I care about you too. Sometimes."