The Story of Regulus Black - Years 1-4

X. Christmas at Grimmauld Place

Minerva McGonagall was sitting in her office late on the evening of 14 December; she was grading a stack of essays that she had received from her fourth years. Just as she was looking up at the clock to check the time, she heard a frantic knocking on her office door.

She stood up and walked swiftly to the door, wand in hand. When she opened the door and laid eyes upon a breathless Sirius Black, to say she was shocked would be an understatement.

"Professor!" He said, and he quickly walked into her office without an invitation.

"Mr. Black! This is highly inappropriate! It is half past ten at night! What on earth do you think you're doing? What is in those bags?!" McGonagall was becoming increasingly more worried with every sentence that left her mouth.

She shut her office door and walked stiffly to her seat at the other side of the desk. She sank into it and fixed Sirius with a very stern gaze.

"Oh, come on, Professor! Don't pretend you don't like this little late night visit from your favorite student!" Sirius smirked.

McGonagall took her spectacles off and pinched the bridge of her nose, taking a deep breath. "What do you want, Mr. Black?"

The smirk melted from his face, and he suddenly looked quite... well... serious. "I need to go home tomorrow. For Christmas."

"Mr. Black, the lists have already been made. You told me that you wanted to stay here, so I am afraid that that is what must happen. I'm sorry." McGonagall said. She placed her glasses back onto her nose and turned back to the stack of essays. "Anything else?"

Sirius Black was silent.

McGonagall looked up at him, and she sighed. "Why the sudden change of heart?"

"Well... it's just, my - er - my little brother. I feel like I should be there with him. I feel like I should spend the holiday with him," he was staring down at his lap now, fiddling with his hands.

"And... why have you only come to this decision now?"

Sirius shifted in his seat and looked up, meeting eyes with McGonagall. "I talked to him." McGonagall stayed silent a moment, waiting for Sirius to expand; he didn't. "Please. I need to be there with him."

She eyed him a moment and then sighed, pulling open the drawer to her left. Sirius watched as Minerva McGonagall's eyes roved over the parchment before her; she reached Sirius's name and crossed something out, quickly scrawling going home in its place. She tucked the parchment safely back into the drawer and closed it.

"Was that all, Mr. Black?"

Sirius was absolutely beaming. "Thank you, Professor! Yes, uh, yes, that was it! Thank you!" Sirius Black stood up and darted out of the office, and out of sight.

McGonagall shook her head and turned back to the essays in front of her, a small smile playing on her lips.

The next morning, the castle was bustling with students who were getting ready to go home for the holiday. Regulus and Barty both had their bags packed full of everything that they would need for their brief amount of time away from the school.

However, neither boy really wanted to leave the castle.

The train ride was long and boring; there was really nothing to do. Both boys had resorted to getting a head start on their holiday homework, which did, indeed, take up most of the time. Barty fell asleep halfway through, sprawled out across the upholstery bench across from Regulus.

When Regulus had finished his homework, he shoved everything back into his bag and looked out of the window. He watched the landscape outside whir past; watched as their surroundings melted from forests, to small villages, to empty and vast plains.