Wowie. First time I've used an extension. So this is what if feels like.
Prompts:
-Mystic
-Valour
-Instinct
-FLUFFY story about THE BLACK FAMILY
Disclaimer: I own nothing
Those Knights of Valour
"Psst," Sirius hisses, peering into Regulus's room.
Regulus, who is only four, is technically meant to be taking his afternoon nap. Sirius, who is three years older, is technically meant to be in time-out for throwing a fit when his nanny had tried to cut his hair. Their nanny, a middle-aged woman with deep worry lines and an Australian accent, is technically meant to be coming up with Sirius's next lesson in spelling. Instead, she's painting her nails with 'Mystic Night'—a shimmery, navy blue nail polish she'd stolen from Walburga.
"Psst," Sirius hisses again, this time louder—he knows that Regulus isn't asleep yet.
"Siri?" he hears Regulus ask.
"Regi?" Sirius responds. "Come on, let's go monster hunting."
"But I don't want to. Monsters are scary," Regulus whines, drawing out the word 'scary.'
"That's why we have to hunt them," Sirius explains, grabbing Regulus's hand and drawing him out of his room, "so they won't hurt us or anyone else."
When Regulus appears reluctant, Sirius tugs extra hard at his hand and says, "Come on, Regi, don't be such a scaredy cat!"
Regulus, who wants very much to be the opposite of a scaredy cat, pretends he is a knight of valour, like in his story book, off to go kill a beast and rescue the damsel in distress. Of course, he doesn't want to marry a distressed damsel;he is only four, after all, and besides, who would want to marry a distressed damsel? They seem to be such a handful, constantly getting themselves captured by multiple monsters for brave dogs like Regulus to rescue.
Anyway, after all of these thoughts, which are very advanced for a four year old—but hey, Regulus is a Black—run through little Regi's head, he and Sirius are on the edge of the tiny of forest that is behind Grimmauld Place.
Regulus is ignoring every instinct in his body that is telling him to go back and cling to Sirius's hand. He was trying not to stick his thumb in his mouth—a habit he is desperately trying to outgrow.
"Go in," Sirius whispers, trying to shove Regulus forward and shake him off at the same time, but Regulus refuses to budge. If he's going in, he's going to take Siri with him.
"Regi," Sirius sighs, "don't be scared. You know that knight in your story? The knight of valour?"
Regulus nods.
"Do ya know what valour means?"
Regulus shakes his head.
"It means great courage while facing danger. You want to be a knight of valour, right?"
Regulus nods.
"Then ya gotta have great courage in the face of danger, and monster hunting will be good practice for that."
"I can practice when I'm older," Regulus decides, keeping his feet planted firmly on the ground. Sirius sighs and rolls his eyes.
"I'll be right behind you," he promises, but Regulus is not convinced.
"How 'bout you be right in front of me?" he suggests.
Sirius doesn't seem to like this idea. He brushes the hair from his eyes, which is still long because the nanny couldn't get near him with a pair of scissors. He looks as if he's thinking.
Regulus doesn't like it when Sirius is thinking. Especially when he's thinking about monster hunting.
"I'll give you a cookie if you go in first," Siri eventually says, and Regulus rolls his eyes.
"No," he says, "I don't even like cookies. I like celery."
Sirius gasps, genuinely offended. "How?" he asks.
Regulus shrugs, but offers no explanation.
Sirius ponders the situation a bit more, but he can't think of any ways to get Regulus into the woods with him. Monsters have to be hunted, and who's going to hunt them if not them?
"Please, Regi," Sirius begs. "I won't make you go monster hunting for another month."
Regulus sighs and agrees.
Sirius grins, relieved. Who knew four year olds could be so stubborn?
What am I getting myself into, Regulus thinks as he toddles beside Sirius into the woods.
They don't get very far before they hear the unmistakeable voice of their nanny.
"Her nails must have dried," Sirius whispers, his frustration showing in his voice.
Regulus nods, but stays quiet. Their nanny is one of the most frightening monsters in the world, and that's when she isn't mad.
"Regulus!" she yells, her shrill voice sending shivers down both of the boys' spines. "Sirius!"
They're both holding their breath, but Regulus takes a tiny step back, and a twig snaps. He almost groans—what a cliche—but he stays quiet and hopes that the nanny didn't hear anything.
She did.
"What are you two boys doing in the woods?" she asks, trying to come across as light-hearted. The boys aren't fooled. "Get out of there! You'll run into poison ivy if you don't!"
Regulus leads a reluctant Sirius out of the woods, both of their heads hanging down in mock shame.
"What am I going to do with you two boys?" the nanny asks, trying to cover her anger with a laugh.
She's always trying to do something, but with her pinched face and fuchsia lipstick, she rarely succeeds.
She reaches down and picks up Regulus- who is much too old to be picked up- and grabs Sirius's arm, her freshly painted nails digging into his skin. She marches them inside, muttering obscene words under her breath, and locks them in their rooms.
Of course, Sirius somehow manages to find his way into Regulus's room, with a box of cookies and a celery stick, and they spend their time out telling stories about monsters and knights of valour.
Yeah hey reviews are cool, ya know?
So, I'm gonna go back to sleep, and you'll see me next round (and I already know my prompts, but, uh, spoilers ;P)
~Al (littlebluespacemoth)
