A/N: Okay, this was supposed to be a short chapter and I was going to post this on the weekend, buuut...there you are!

Reviews make me more than happy :)


Chapter 2: Out of Focus

Grimmauld Place, August 1st 1995

I'm still groggy from the poison I washed down, my body aches and the room spins, but I'm rather certain that I've somehow apparated into my home. Into the library. It's either that or I'm dead. And I really hope I'm not dead because then I'd have to assume this to be my heaven. I mean, I like the place but…This is not really something I imagined spending my eternal life in. Even I'm not that much of a swot.

It's dark, and I try to focus on my breathing. The pain is slowly ebbing away, and it feels like I've drunk a healing potion, but I know I haven't. What in the name of sweet fucking Salazar is going on? Am I really dead? No, I don't feel like it. I don't feel like dreaming either. Everything's too detailed, the room, the smells.

I hear a small groan from the sofa in front of the fireplace. Someone's here. Is it father? Mother never comes in here. Perhaps it is father – which is odd, because it is the middle of the night. I approach him slowly. He stands up and I realise the man is not my father. It is someone I thought I would never see in Grimmauld Place.

James fucking Potter.

I could recognise him a mile away. Sirius's best friend. They were sort of…attached to one another in school, and I reckon afterwards as well. If Potter hadn't been with the Muggleborn, and Sirius with a different girl every other week, I would've thought they were together. You know. As lovers.

Potter pulls out his wand, and I regrettably notice that my wand is missing. I must've left it in the cave. He suddenly turns around and stares at me in shock.

I look back in utter bewilderment, because I can't comprehend what the hell he is doing in my house, never mind sleeping here.

"What the fuck are you doing in here, Potter?" I say, and he gapes back at me.

A couple of seconds pass. Then he seems to remember that he has a wand, so he points it at me as he speaks. "Who are you? How did you get here?" He asks with a demanding voice, although I can detect a hint of dread in it.

What the…?

"What the hell are you playing at? What are you doing in here? You must be out of your fucking mind, Potter. Did Sirius put you up to this? Is he here?" I ask, or, well, hiss at him, and he slowly walks towards me, his eyes running over my face.

"You know who I am?" He asks suspiciously, the determined look in his eyes faltering slightly. "Who are you? You look…familiar. What happened to you?" He warily asks as he takes in my evidently rumpled appearance.

I roll my eyes. "I don't have time for this. Kreacher!" I snap and call for my Elf.

Potter's eyes widen when hearing my words and he lets out a strangled voice as Kreacher pops in front of me.

"Master Regulus!" The Elf squeals, its eyes filling with tears. My annoyance dissipates slightly. Kreacher has probably been beside itself with worry, since, well…we both thought I was going to die, after all. I give my Elf a pat on the head and I observe Potter as he nearly chokes in his own saliva while looking extremely alarmed.

"R-Regulus?" Potter whispers in horror.

Okay, now I'm intrigued. He is horrified to see me? In the place I live? What in the name of Salazar is going on?

"Yes?" I drawl.

He splutters. Again.

I turn to my Elf. "Kreacher. Would you kindly escort Mr. Potter to his own house?" I ask tightly, narrowing my eyes at the stupid boy in front of me. Boy…He sure does look a bit younger than I remembered.

"No. Kreacher, do not move me anywhere!" Potter commands as the Elf takes a step towards him, and I almost snort. As if Kreacher would listen to anyone else than me. The confident feeling I have disappears when Kreacher hesitates. What the hell?

"Kreacher. I order you to get Sirius. Now." Potter says to my Elf with a tight voice. Kreacher glances at me unsurely.

I stare at the situation in utter bafflement. Then I roll my eyes. "Whatever." I say and nod at Kreacher, who disapparates. They have probably blackmailed the poor Elf to obey them. "You're both going to regret this when mother finds out." I say to Potter, because it's the truth. Sirius ran from home a couple of years ago and was blasted from the family tree right after my mother told me that she'll strangle him if he dares to take a step into our home again.

Potter swallows with unease, a deep frown between his brows. Well, he's right to fear my dear mother. She can be quite the hag sometimes.

"I'm…Y-You think I'm James?" Potter asks with confusion, his wand hand shaking a bit.

I give him an incredulous look. "Um. Yes." I say slowly, as if I'm speaking to a child. Which he very much resembles. "Why do you look so…young? Did you take something?" I ask with irritation.

Potter lifts his brows and looks shocked. "No…I'm…I'm his son."

What the fuck?

"I'm sorry, what?" I ask disbelievingly, even though I heard him the first time. I just need him to utter it again to be sure I heard him say such fucked up things.

"I'm Harry. James's son." He repeats, and steadies his wand hand, the end of it trained at me. I give it an assessing glance before turning my narrowed gaze back to him. The look in his eyes seems genuine enough, and now that I think about it, his behaviour seems to be lacking the overly confident trait Potter certainly masters…but how can that be? If my brother and his friend are not taking the piss, and the bloke in my library really isn't James Potter, then something has seriously gone wrong.

"Now, answer to me! How did you get in here?" He continues, evidently trying to reach more authoritative voice.

What a prat. I arch a brow at him. "I'm a Black. I live here." I say with a hint of a sneer.

Potter – 'Harry' – rolls his eyes and mutters something about my brother under his breath. "No you don't. Not anymore." He says, slightly hesitantly, and I stare at him in puzzlement.

"Yes. I do." I argue. He shakes his head in frustration.

"Where is Sirius…" He mutters, almost helplessly, and as if summoned, the door opens.

I turn towards it, and stare at the man standing in the doorway. He distantly resembles my brother, but is it really him? Someone care to tell me what the fuck is happening in here?

"Reggie…?" The man mumbles, staring at me in a sleep deprived shock. I'm fairly certain he's my brother, but Merlin, what has happened to him? Potter and him – they must have been taking some potions or something like that.

"W-What the hell is happening in here?" He says, his eyes darting over Potter, the library, ending at me.

"Yes, thank you!" I say, nodding with agreement. "I came here minutes ago, and found that on the sofa," I say and jerk my head towards Potter. "Then he has the nerve to sass at me, in my own home, might I add. You do realise what will happen if mother finds out that you're here, brother?" I snappishly ask, and study his appearance more closely. He's wearing pyjama bottoms and a t-shirt. "What the fuck are you wearing? Do you walk like that in public?" I ask with disbelief and give him a look of distaste. He looks so dishevelled I want to look away. Years of education regarding pureblood manners have apparently been washed down the toilet during his short stay at the Potters. I squint at him. He looks old. What the hell are they playing at?

"Reggie?" Sirius repeats, walking slowly towards me. He's staring at me in shock. "Is it really you? How is this happening?"

I frown. "Of course it's me." I bite back and glance around. "Look. You two ought to leave. Now." I say firmly. I'm in a desperate need of a long, relaxing sleep and handful of potions to make me feel better. "Mother and father will kill you if they find you here, brother. Same goes to your friend." I hiss at Sirius, and I'm not exaggerating. My parents can be a bit…deranged.

Sirius's eyes widen. "M-Mother and father…" He stammers. "Reggie…I thought you were dead." He says slowly, confusion thick in his voice.

What? I'm beginning to feel a bit frustrated with the situation. I sneer at him. "As you can see, I'm quite alive."

Potter coughs awkwardly. I send him a glare.

"Should I get someone?" Potter asks unsurely, eyeing my brother hesitantly.

I stare at my brother in confusion. "One of you better explain to me what the hell is going on. Now." I say with a low voice. I'm pissed off now. "Where are our parents, Sirius?"

"You're alive?" Sirius breathes, gaping at me.

"In the flesh," I say dryly. In addition to the frustration and irritation, I'm beginning to feel slightly alarmed. Why did my brother believe I'm dead?

"You're alive." Sirius mutters and walks to me, taking me by surprise as he crushes me into a brotherly embrace. Well…This was certainly not what I expected.

I wrench myself away from him. "What is going on? Why do you look so…old? And what was he mumbling about being James Potter's son?" I ask and glance at Potter.

Sirius lets out a huff. "I don't look that old," he mutters sullenly. "And this is Harry. You…you don't know what happened to James and Lily? …Or mother and father?" He asks with a deep frown.

I lift my brows in bewilderment. "What do you mean? Where are mother and father, Sirius?" I ask with dread. Has something happened to them? Has my brother done something?

My brother grimaces. "Reggie…They're…they're dead," he says slowly, looking very uncomfortable. "They died somewhere in the mid-eighties or something like that," he says with a deep sigh and rubs his neck. "Wasn't exactly around to witness that, unfortunately." He mutters the last part, and I can feel my face pale. I feel nauseous, and I suddenly have trouble breathing.

"W-What? They're w-what, Sirius?" I rasp in shock, and it feels like someone is pressing my windpipe, like the blood in my veins has turned ice cold. Mother and father are…are dead? How is that even possible? I realise that he has said something else as well. "Mid-eighties?" I mumble. "But…I-I'm…" I stammer, and my cool and composed demeanour has vanished, the walls guarding my mind crumbled down in mere seconds. This is something I definitely hadn't anticipated.

"You died before them." Sirius says, seeming to be quite at a loss. "What happened to you? Where have you been all these years?"

My brain processes the information. All these years? Old Sirius. James Potter's son. Fuck. I have a rather decent understanding of what has happened to me.

I don't know what to say to him. I mean, the thought passed my mind right after Potter insisted his name was Harry – that someone or something had tampered with Time Magic – but it was immediately discarded since it certainly did sound ludicrous.

"What year is it?" I ask mutedly, trying to push everything else into a dark corner of my mind, trying to put myself together. This has to be the freakiest situation I have ever got myself into.

"What?" Sirius asks with a perplexed look, and then realisation crosses his features. "You…don't belong in this time, do you?" Sirius asks slowly, his eyes roaming over my face and body.

"Sirius. What. Year." I grit through my teeth. My voice is trembling and I can feel blood rushing in my ears. The room is spinning.

Potter clears his throat. "1995," he says quietly, and I swallow deeply and close my eyes briefly. This can't be happening.

I run a list of swearwords inside my head and clench my jaw as I try to slow my speeding pulse and ease the pounding in my ears. 1995. I can deal with this. All I need to do is to stay calm. I assume I'm not in an immediate danger, since neither Potter nor my brother seem to be cursing me. I can figure this out. I have to.

The realisation is ringing in my head; I have somehow managed to time travel into the future.

"Circe…" I breathe and move towards the sofa as anxiety threatens to take over. I need to sit down before I pass out.

"Reggie?" Sirius asks with a tone what I assume is concern as he follows me to the sitting area in front of the fireplace. He takes a seat in an armchair next to the sofa onto which I have slumped. "Where were you before you came here?" He asks, and I think hard what I can say to him. I don't exactly trust him, even if he is my brother and apparently happy to see me alive. I don't even know who to trust anymore. I don't really have any friends. Not anymore.

"Nowhere important." I say.

"What year?" Sirius asks flatly.

Fuck. This isn't going to be easy. "1979." I say rigidly.

"Fuck me." Sirius mutters. "How did you do that?" He asks with a hint of suspicion in his voice.

I shake my head slightly. "I have no idea," I mutter and stare into the empty fireplace. How I managed a time-jump like that is beyond me. I really can't wrap my head around all of this. My parents…No, I can't go there, not now. What I should figure out is exactly what my brother asked from me. How did I do that? How did I travel through time without doing anything? Perhaps there was something in the poison I drank?

Potter – who is still a Potter, regardless if he is the spawn of the original Potter – comes to stand next to the fireplace, and eyes me distrustfully. What's with that?

"What are your intentions? Did Voldemort send you here to help him?" Potter asks, and only then my brother seems to remember that there is a close to zero amount of brotherly love between us, despite him caring if I am alive or not. My brother points his wand towards my chest, the look in his eyes hardening.

"Reggie. Please, for the love of Merlin, don't tell me you're here because of that son of a bitch?" He growls. I can see a hint of alarm in his eyes.

And I realise something from the nervous way they glance at each other. Dread fills me yet again. Is the Dark Lord still alive?

I frown at him. "No. I'm not. I left him." I say, and it's the truth.

Sirius gives me an incredulous look. "You must be barking mad if you think that he would let you go." He mutters.

I shrug. I know that. One doesn't simply leave the Dark Lord and live to see the next day, but to be honest, I didn't exactly have high expectations regarding my survival. "So he's still alive?" I ask curiously. Hasn't Kreacher destroyed the locket? I make a mental note to speak with my Elf as soon as possible, after I've managed to get a grasp of the situation. "Why are you here? In Grimmauld Place?" I ask from my brother. "You hate this place."

Sirius frowns. "Dunno if I can trust you with the information, brother." He says, glancing at Potter. "Harry, go wake Remus up, and tell him to floo Dumbledore in here." Sirius says and Potter nods and leaves the library with haste.

We stay silent for a while before my brother flicks his wand towards me, and I can't help but flinch. "Accio wand!"

Nothing happens. I arch a brow at him.

Sirius frowns at me. "Where's your wand, brother?" He asks coolly.

A faint smirk lifts my mouth. "No idea, brother," I answer, and can see him clenching his jaw with mild annoyance.

I decide to change the subject before he asks where I might have left it. "So, Dumbledore?" I ask indifferently. "You're still part of his little group?" I ask sarcastically, and Sirius narrows his eyes at me. I take that as a yes.

"You live here then? With the werewolf? What, did you run out of women?" I prod him, and receive a scowl in return.

I sigh. "Are we going to stay silent until your leader arrives?" I ask with a dull voice, and Sirius looks frustrated.

"Yes, Voldemort is still alive, and his antics haven't really changed from what you know of." Sirius says harshly. I'm sensing a hint of bitterness in him. "And I'm not telling you anything until Dumbledore has read your mind and made sure you're not a threat to us."

I lift my brows in surprise. Apparently my brother has finally matured enough to think before he acts. I try not to think about the fact that my brother is now so old that he could be my father. Hell, he even looks a bit like our father. "To us?" I mutter. "So is this place…a headquarters?" I ask, and see the answer flash in his eyes. I grin at him.

"Wanker." Sirius grumbles under his breath.

The door opens and my former Headmaster walks in with Potter trailing behind him, as well as a man I know from school, one of Sirius's friends, who apparently lives in my house these days. The werewolf. Lovely. I briefly wonder where the original Potter is, and why his teenage spawn is here instead. Sirius mentioned that something had happened to them. My brother and I stand up and walk towards the old wizard.

Dumbledore stares at me curiously, his blue eyes sharp as he assesses me over his half-moon spectacles.

"Regulus Black." He says and I give him a curt nod.

"Dumbledore." I say tersely.

His eyes bore into mine so intensely, that I want to avert my gaze but I know I can't. I know what comes next. I feel a sharp pain in my head as the old wizard nudges away the barriers in my mind and digs through my memories and thoughts. For the record, I'm an excellent Occlumens, but I know there's no point in blocking him out. That would only cause mistrust towards me, and I know I really need allies now.

It takes some time before he retreats from my mind and leaves behind a raging headache.

"It seems that you have spoken the truth. You truly are from the past," Dumbledore says slowly. I can see that he's shocked from what he's seen. He has a calculative look in his eyes as he mulls over the information.

"So he's my brother? Who has travelled into the future?" Sirius confirms. Dumbledore nods. "And he's not one of Voldemort's servants anymore?" Sirius continues, and smirks when I cringe.

"I believe so. His actions before he came here support my assumption," Dumbledore obscurely replies, and Potter and Lupin frown as they watch us.

Sirius on the other hand eyes at me with a scrutinising look. "And what is it that he has done for you to make that assumption?"

I stare at my brother impassively. My mind whirls back to the situation I was in right before I made the unfortunate travel through time. Hundreds of dead corpses surrounding me, pulling me under the surface. Even if I had managed to escape the cave and stay in the same year, nothing good would've happened as the Dark Lord would have soon found out it was me who had stolen his Horcrux. No, I'm beginning to see there are some advantages for me in this unintentional time-jump.

"How did he get in here? Into this time?" Lupin asks and walks closer to us. He looks a lot older than my brother. Well, we can't all age well, can we?

Dumbledore looks thoughtful. "If I may?" He asks from me, his wand pointed towards me. I almost laugh, because I really don't have the option to refuse. I give the man a curt nod.

He flicks his wand and I can feel some sort of diagnostic charm sweep over me. I'm suddenly surrounded with wisps of grey smog, circling me slowly. Dumbledore hums as he studies the results.

"It seems that young mister Black here has provoked some kind of an ancient ritual, supposedly a ritual the Black ancestors have created." Dumbledore finally explains, and I listen intently. Because I have no fucking idea how I came to be in this time. To be honest, I don't fancy going back either.

"How is it provoked?" Sirius asks, looking unsurprised. I sigh wearily. Of course our family has ancient bloody rituals that extend through time.

"By sacrifice…" Potter says quietly. I turn to look at him with my brows lifted in a mild surprise. Everyone stares at him. Potter clears his throat, looking extremely uncomfortable. "Um…Well…Hermione and I read about it earlier in the evening," He says, letting out a nervous wince.

"You did this?" I ask, my voice laced with accusation. What I would like to do is whack him in the head, but somehow I think the others might interfere.

Potter lifts his hands in surrender, his eyes flicking towards the others with unease. "We only read a couple of sentences in some book. We didn't know that it was as spell, I swear," he says hastily, a guilty look in his eyes. "And didn't Dumbledore just say you were the one who provoked the ritual?" Potter asks hesitantly, seeking a confirmation from my former Headmaster, who for some reason doesn't look into Potter's eyes as he nods back.

I groan inwardly and give Potter a chastising look. "First of all. Never read anything aloud. How thick are you? You're inside a Black ancestral home. We tend to be dark and twisty." I say sharply, and Sirius gives me a warning glare. I ignore him and continue. "What did you read? Show me." I demand and the boy scurries towards the table near the sofa to retrieve the book and to find the correct page.

He thrusts the book in my hands and I study the crumbling tome, its yellowish pages while Sirius comes next to me. I can feel Dumbledore's scrutinising stare against my left temple before he comes closer to see what is written in the book.

"I've never seen this before." My brother mutters.

"Says the boy who didn't even know we had a library…" I say wryly.

"Man."

"Whatever."

My eyes skim through the pages, my brain working to solve the matter. "So…Basically I faced death, was willing to sacrifice myself in order to restore my family's honour and you –" I say and glance at Potter, who leans uneasily against the back of the sofa with Lupin standing next to him, a reassuring hand on Potter's shoulder, " – called me into this time by speaking aloud the ritual and our house words?"

Potter nods. "I…um…Yes." He says, his voice wavering slightly.

Sirius eyes me with surprise, but says nothing. Everyone is silently processing the information.

Circe... This is really something. This is something I have never stumbled on, and trust me I have seen and heard plenty of unearthly things. I walk towards the seating area and place the book back on the table near the sofa and turn to look at the others expectantly.

Dumbledore hums in thought. "May I suggest that we continue our discussion between adults?" He says and gives Potter a kind smile. "I trust Molly will not be pleased if she finds you out of bed in the middle of the night."

Sirius clears his throat. "Sure. Um. Harry?" He says and cringes when the boy stares at him defiantly. I can see Lupin roll his eyes. I almost do too, since it's rather hilarious to watch.

They exchange some words and the young boy finally leaves with a loud huff, glaring the rest of us before he slips away from the library.

Sirius grins. "Okay then. 'Accio Firewhiskey!'" he says and flicks his wand. I roll my eyes while he pours several hefty shots of the amber liquid into glasses that hover in air and hands them to everyone. "So…You were fighting against him? Voldemort?" Sirius asks as he sips his drink.

Must he utter that fucking psychopath's name? I swear to Merlin he's doing it just to rile me up.

"What an astute observation, brother." I say with a snide curl on my lip.

Sirius looks exasperated while Dumbledore and Lupin exchange a meaningful look.

"You gonna help us then? To finish him?" Sirius presses on.

I can feel everyone staring at me intently. Do I really have a choice in the matter? "It seems like that, yes." I reply eventually and take a sip of my drink. The Firewhiskey burns wonderfully, warming my insides.

"Brilliant." Sirius says simply, pouring more alcohol into his tumbler.

Dumbledore clears his throat. "Am I right to assume Voldemort wouldn't be overly delighted from the news of your existence?" He asks and eyes me sharply. What is it with these people, uttering his name like he's just someone insignificant? Although I do see the appeal in it, that they're not making a big deal of his name. I'm sure the Dark Lord would be quite unhappy if he knew.

I smirk inwardly and I nod. "Well, I'm sure the Dark Lord would be overly delighted for having the opportunity to rip my head off." I say dryly.

Dumbledore nods. "Then may I suggest that you stay here, in Grimmauld Place, and not leave the house in any circumstances. If Voldemort finds out about you and the fact that you haven't aged a day since 1979, he will be particularly interested and most likely will want to use the information for his gain." The old man says, and I scoff.

A house arrest? Really? I can do magic, you know, to disillusion myself or something. But then I remember I don't exactly have a wand on me. I sigh. "I guess I don't really have any options here." I grumble.

Dumbledore seems satisfied. "You and I have some things to discuss, Mr. Black." He says vaguely to me, and I nod. I know exactly what he wishes to discuss about. Sirius eyes us with suspicion but says nothing. "We will organise an Order meeting in a few days, into which you may participate if you are willing. That being said, I would like to speak with you before the meeting and go through some important matters." Dumbledore says, and I nod in agreement.

Fuck, really? I'm going to participate in an Order meeting? As in the Order of the Phoenix? The secret society, which by the way is not that secret they were hoping for. Yes, we know all about them. Or the Dark Lord knows. He apparently has a spy inside the Order. At least, that was what I learned some time ago. Some time indeed…

"He has a spy amongst your group, did you know that?" I ask, because, well, if I'm going to be near these people, I have to know I'm not ratted out to my former master.

Sirius and Lupin exchange a grim look. Dumbledore nods. "We are aware. He's not with us anymore, and instead has opted to fully join Voldemort."

Oh. "Who is he?" I ask curiously. Based on the looks the others give each other I'd say they know the spy.

"Pettigrew." Sirius growls.

I lift my brows in mild amusement, because, well…I'm not that surprised, really. I remember Pettigrew from school, and even though he was one of Sirius's friends, I knew he spent an awfully lot of time in the Slytherin dungeons as well.

Dumbledore clears his throat when he sees my brother becoming quite the moody himself. "Gentlemen, it is quite late, and I think each of us would like nothing more than to retreat for a good night's sleep. Mister Black," he says and turns to look at me, "I will come by tomorrow, and we can continue our discussion then. Can I rely for you to stay put until my arrival?" He asks as he prepares to leave, and his eyes flash at me with a warning.

I know what that means. I'm not to leave the house. I almost snort. Where would I even go, might I ask? But there is another message in his gaze, requesting me to stay silent. I know I am not to reveal the circumstances I was in before I came here. I suspect that Dumbledore wishes to learn everything there is to know, as I'm quite sure my memories gave him only a vague outline of the events. Based on the evasive way Dumbledore has spoken in front of them, I doubt that neither my brother nor the werewolf knows about the Horcrux. And it seems like Dumbledore wants to keep it that way.

"I'll be here." I say, almost sarcastically. Dumbledore nods and leaves the room.

Sirius smirks. "Come on, brother. It can't be that bad. I'm in the same boat as you." He says, bitterness seeping from his voice as he sits down on the sofa and pours himself another drink. Lupin says nothing but sits in the armchair, opposite to him.

I frown at him. "What do you mean?" I ask and sit next to him on the sofa.

Sirius barks a laugh. "Oh, Reggie…That's a long story."