I do not own Harry Potter.
A/N: This is for Season IV of the Quidditch League Fanfiction Competition, Round 12.
Team & Position: Caerphilly Catapults, Chaser 1.
Base Prompt: Write a FLUFFY story about THE BLACK FAMILY
Optional Prompt: #02. (quote) 'Help me… I'm feeling!' - The Grinch, How the Grinch Stole Christmas.
Optional Prompt: #05. (opening sentence) It had happened again.
Optional Prompt: #(quote) 'Mother, I want to see him fly!' - George R R Martin, A Game of Thrones.
It had happened again. Regulus had looked at Mother with those big, puppy-dog eyes of his, puffed out his lip and adopted what Sirius called, "Cute expression number five." Whenever Regulus used one of his cute expressions, it was almost guaranteed that his parents would capitulate and give him whatever he wanted. Sirius would then get swept up in whatever maelstrom was created as a result.
Which was why Sirius was standing in the entryway of 12 Grimmauld Place waiting for his cousins to arrive. He kept sneaking glances at his parents, ready to dart away if they stopped paying attention. While he didn't think they would let him get away, anything would be better than spending the day with family. Why Regulus felt the need to put him through this, Sirius would never understand.
That fateful morning, roughly a week ago, things had started innocently enough. Somehow, the family had managed to stay on safe topics over breakfast—those that wouldn't cause Sirius to walk away with a huff and hide himself away somewhere in the house. The topic of the morning had been Quidditch. The Daily Prophet had led the sports section with news that was almost unbelievable: the Chudley Cannons, the laughing stock of Quidditch, had won a game. The surprise around the table had caused Father to read the article out loud to the family. The win was being attributed to a new Chaser, fresh out of Hogwarts, that had just been hired by the Cannons. His first game marked the team's victory.
The continued discussion on the new chaser is what led Regulus to utter those fateful words. "Mother, I want to see him fly!" Cue cute expression number five and Bob's your uncle; the family was going to see this new Chaser play.
However, wherever Regulus—the sower of chaos—was concerned, a simple family outing was not enough. The girls, Bellatrix, Andromeda, and Narcissa, were all back from Hogwarts for the summer. Regulus hadn't seen much of the girls yet this summer, so he once again turned those puppy-dog eyes on Mother, and the girls were also going to the game. With the girls invited, it was necessary to talk with Uncle Cygnus and Aunt Druella; which turned what should have been a simple family outing into a full-blown Black family production.
Sirius tugged at the collar of his shirt, the tie seeming to constrict his breathing. They were Blacks and were expected to dress the part. This meant formal attire. During the middle of summer. Going to a location that was outside, in the sun. The additional layers were already causing Sirius discomfort while standing indoors, waiting for his cousins. Everyone was meeting at Grimmauld Place before heading to the stadium so that the two younger boys could escort the girls to the game.
When the five members of Uncle Cygnus' family arrived at the door, Sirius was tasked with inviting them inside. The pomposity of his family somehow continued to surprise him. Sirius was forced to formally introduce everyone, after which there was a formal meet and greet.
Finally seeing his opportunity to duck away, Sirius quickly made his way toward the kitchen. If he could successfully get out of sight, they might just forget about him participating in the formalities.
Unfortunately, Father managed to catch him before he ducked out of the room, which set Mother off on him. "This is a big day for the family! Your cousins have been at Hogwarts for the last ten months and I expect you out here with the family spending time with them! This is something specifically requested by your brother. Do you really want to let him down?" Mother asked.
Sirius then made what he immediately knew to be a tragic mistake: he turned to look at his younger brother. Painted on his face was a brand-new cute expression. The puppy-dog eyes were still present, but he had somehow managed to get them even wider and wetter. The trembling of Regulus' lips caused Sirius to realize that all hope was lost; he would do whatever Regulus asked. Sirius grabbed his chest above his heart and stumbled over in front of the girls. "Somebody…" he said, grasping onto Bellatrix. "Anybody…" he said as he moved before Narcissa. "Help me…I'm feeling," he concluded as he tumbled to the floor in front of Andromeda, still grasping his chest as he stilled his breathing.
While his antics got a laugh from Regulus, Mother was not so pleased. "Sirius Orion Black," Mother said, her tone promised swift and painful retribution if she was not listened to, "get up off the floor this instant. You are escorting these lovely ladies to a Quidditch game, not participating in the theater!"
"Yes, Mother," Sirius said. He quickly hopped up from the floor, straightened his robes, and made a show of brushing off dirt, even though his family would never let their greeting area descend to such a state where that would be necessary—that would be barbaric. Seeing that he was still next to Andromeda, he calmly stuck out his arm and asked, "My lady, may I escort you to the Quidditch match?"
Her eyes twinkling, Andromeda said, "Of course, good sir." She grabbed his arm and the pair headed over to the Floo, leaving Regulus to take Narcissa and Bellatrix, one on each arm.
When the family arrived at the stadium, it was obvious that everyone had heard the news of the Cannons' victory last week and had decided to show up for the game. For once, Sirius was glad for his family's connections as this allowed them to use the private Floo, skipping the queues and avoiding the need to wade through the crowd. Instead, they received VIP treatment and were shown directly to the owner's box.
The sound of people as they filled the stadium was overwhelming. So, too, was the sheer amount of bright orange that could be seen filling the seats. After taking a moment to adjust to the sights and sounds, Sirius made sure that Andromeda was settled in her seat before he sat down next to her. Regulus sat down between Bellatrix and Narcissa, placing Narcissa in the center of the group. Their parents took the seats in the row behind them.
With everyone settled, Sirius looked over to Regulus and the two shared a grin. Together, they quickly pulled off their outer robes and removed their ties and dress shirts, revealing that both were wearing bright orange in support of the Cannons and their new Chaser. Seeing their antics, Narcissa rolled her eyes and let out a harrumph. Andromeda just gave a small smile before her face slipped back into her typical stoic mask.
Sirius had expected to be reprimanded by Mother, but strangely, she stayed quiet about their removal of their formalwear. He stole a quick glance back at her, and while she had definitely noticed, she seemed content to let them be. Sirius faced forward again and began bouncing in his seat in excitement, unknowingly bouncing in rhythm with Regulus, as he waited for the game to begin.
They didn't have too long to wait before the announcer introduced the teams' starting lineups, each player flying onto and doing a circle of the pitch. The Caerphilly Catapults didn't get much in the way of cheers, seeing that this was a Cannons home game, but some of the die-hard Catapults fanatics were present. When the new, fresh-faced Chaser for the Cannons flew onto the pitch, the stadium erupted in noise. Sirius felt his throat go a bit raw from his own cheers. Regulus was matching Sirius' volume, but the rest of the family was clapping politely—the same they had done for each other player that had entered.
The toss up went to the Cannons who took their possession and quickly led off with the first score of the game. The Catapults attempted to retaliate, but a bad pass resulted in the Cannons retaking the Quaffle and scoring again before the Catapults were on the board.
As the game progressed at a rapid pace, Sirius was awestruck at how quickly the players were moving and how well coordinated they were, even with the new Chaser. Even the girls were starting to loose some of their composure due to the excitement bubbling from the crowd, adding their own cheers when the Cannons scored a goal. Before too long, the Cannons had hit 100 points, double that of the Catapults.
The dive from the Seekers brought a gasp from Narcissa as the two players dove straight down at full speed. Ten feet from the ground, the two made a sharp turn to the right as they chased after the Snitch. All eyes tracked their progress, and a collective gasp went up as both player's hands shot forward, clasping at the golden ball. A tense moment later, and the Cannons' Seeker triumphantly raised his hand above his head, showing that he had managed to grab the Snitch. Everyone in the stadium, including the Blacks, erupted in cheers for the Cannons' second victory in a row.
As they left the stadium, heading for home, the five children were animatedly discussing the game and plays that they had seen. Behind them, their parents smiled as they watched their children enjoying the afterglow of the excitement from the game.
That evening, Sirius smiled to himself as he prepared for bed. While he had been pulled into Regulus' antics, he had somehow spent an enjoyable day with his family. All in all, it was a pretty good day.