Chapter 55: In Dreams Begin Responsibilities

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Regulus lay in his bed, staring up at the emerald canopy draped over his bed. Sleep was once again evading the boy. He lifted his hand and twisted it up in the air above his head, watching his fingers turn and dance in a silent rhythm only he knew. The movement was surreal; his hand was floating through the space and leaving copies of itself with each pass. And soon there were so many hands moving above him, Regulus could not tell which was his own. He pulled back, cringing at the odd sight hovering in the air.

Like a stone through a window, a figure burst into view, shattering the collection of hands and sending them raining down over Regulus. The boy tried to close his eyes to protect them from the falling shards, but it was of no use, his eyes remained open against his will. It did not matter though, for as the pieces of his disturbing vision reached his skin, they dissolved into nothing, leaving each place they nearly touched with a cold chill.

Regulus tried to focus on what had broken his delusional mosaic, but it was difficult. A face he knew but could not place. He reached for the smiling figure but it merely faded away before he could touch it. "Wait, come back," the boy called out, his words odd and hanging thick in the air. He tossed back the blankets and climbed out of bed, disregarding his shoes as he ran out of the room in search of the face he longed to see once more.

There was a trace of laughter in the air, calling Regulus down the dormitory hallway and out into the Slytherin common room. The boy followed it eagerly, knowing that if he could catch the sound, everything would be alright once more. Desperately, he looked all around the common room, searching each corner and under each table, unable to find the source of the growing laughter. Louder and louder it rang out until Regulus had to cover his ears to shut out the sound. He dropped to his knees and gritted his teeth in pain as the sound began to be unbearable.

"Stop it! Stop it!" he begged to no avail. He pulled roughly at his hair and let out a loud growl to combat the sickening laughter. The sound around him seeped into his mouth and trickled down into his lungs, making its way through his body and leaving him feeling twisted and sick. Fear crept over the boy and he started to shake violently as he screamed nonsense into the air.

The floor creaked below his knees and began to split. Regulus gasped loudly and tried to get to his feet, but it was too late. The small crack opened wide and the boy was soon falling through complete darkness. He swung his arms wildly, desperate to grab onto anything and stop his fall, but nothing was to be found. He continued to drop, losing all grasp of time and reality until he landed hard on a stone floor. The boy cried out in pain and rolled onto his side, coughing out a splattering of blood dislodged from the impact.

"You're not allowed in here," came a familiar yet entirely foreign voice. Regulus climbed to his feet, weak and stumbling as he forced himself across the tiny stone room. "I said you're not allowed in here," the voice repeated and Regulus pushed on, ignoring the angry tone. The closer Regulus came to the source of the warnings, the more his eyes began to adjust. He could make out a tall figure, topped in dirty blonde hair. The eyes were such a dark blue, Regulus found both fear and desire in them.

Tentatively, the boy reached his hand towards the figure. His hand was met by the other boy's. Fingers laced together and Regulus was pulled into the strong arms of the other. "You're not allowed here," the boy repeated, this time in a whisper.

"Why not?" Regulus whispered back, feeling the instinctive pull to wrap his arms around the other boy and hold him close. "Anthony?" he tried, finding surety in the name the moment it breached his lips. "I don't wanna leave. Can't I just stay here?" he begged, holding the other boy tighter.

Anthony shook his head slowly and passed his fingers through Regulus' hair. "You can't stay with me. I'm not even real, Regulus." He pushed the boy back to peer into his eyes and cast a saddened smile down at the other boy. "And that's your fault."

"No, no," Regulus argued, stepping back from Anthony. "I didn't take you. I didn't lock you in that damn room! It was her!"

"But you killed me!" Anthony shouted.

"I didn't have a choice. She was hurting you! I didn't have a choice!"

Anthony's body stiffened and his eyes closed for a moment. The boy took several deep breaths before lowering his head and sighing. "How often you say that...it's troubling. Always the same, you don't have a choice, you don't have a choice. There is always a choice, Regulus."

"No. What could I have done? Run away? I wouldn't have gotten two steps out of that room, you know it! I couldn't...I didn't... There was no choice!"

"I didn't say it was an easy choice," Anthony told him as he pulled the boy close. He ran his hands down Regulus' back and held him tightly. "So many choices you've made and all of them wrong. Regulus, you're dying inside and I can't help you. You're alone and you're weak."

"I'm not weak," Regulus whispered as he wrapped his arms around the other boy's waist. "I miss you." He laid his head against the boy's chest and tried to listen for that familiar heartbeat, but found only the silence he had created.

"It's time to leave," came another voice from behind Regulus. Two hands smoothed down over the boy's shoulders and grabbed onto Regulus' wrists, prying his hands from around Anthony's waist and pulling him back.

"Let go of me!" Regulus argued, trying to escape from the hold of the newcomer. "I don't wanna leave!" he cried out. "Let me go, Barty!" He wasn't even sure how he knew his captor to be Bartemius, but the words came out so easily, he didn't doubt them.

"Regulus! Regulus calm down," Bartemius pleaded as he shook the frantic boy awake.

Regulus flung his hands out to battle the odd sensation of falling that overtook him when pulled from his dream. He sat upright on the common room couch and dragged his hands back through his hair, trying to figure out what was happening. He still lingered in that half dream state, unsure if what he was seeing and feeling was real or not. He hugged his arms around himself and stared around the dark and empty common room, searching for signs of normality. "What happened?"

"You fell asleep out here," Bartemius whispered as he laid his hand on the other boy's shoulder. "I couldn't sleep, when I got here, you were twitching and making a funny noise," he explained, watching Regulus with worried eyes. "Are you okay?"

"Not really," Regulus whispered. He rubbed at his eyes and looked back towards Bartemius. The boy bit down hard on his bottom lip and slowly raised his hand to the blonde's face; his fingertips trailed lightly over the boy's cheek.

Bartemius batted the boy's hand away and tightened his lips. "What are you doing?"

"Making a choice," Regulus answered as he leaned forward and met the other boy's lips with his own. He reached up and once again cradled the boy's face, this time meeting no resistance. He shifted closer to the blonde and pressed harder into their kiss when he felt the boy's arms lock around his neck. After a slow, lengthy kiss, he pulled back and closed his eyes. "I'm sorry," he whispered. "I do-"

"Don't," Bartemius interrupted. "You don't have to say anything." He leaned into the boy and the two held each other in silence for a bit. "What were you dreaming about?" the blonde finally whispered.

Regulus merely shook his head in answer and pulled away from the other boy. "It doesn't matter," he said. "Dreams aren't real. This...this is real. We are real. I'm done just stepping back and letting other people control my life. I do have a choice."

"So it's off to the rice fields?" Bartemius asked with a grin.

"No, no rice fields," Regulus answered with a smile. He met the other boy's eyes and pulled him in for another quick kiss. "I can't promise you a tomorrow. I can't guarantee that things are going to work out. I can't even tell you if this is gonna last a week or years to come, but I can promise you that I won't sit back and let it be ripped away from me."

The blonde nodded and took Regulus' hands into his own. "What changed your mind?"

"I don't want to be alone," Regulus said quietly. He squeezed the boy's hands and put his feet on the floor. "We should get back to our rooms."

"Wait." Bartemius closed his fingers around Regulus' wrist and pulled the boy back down towards him. "How do I know you won't take it back?" He stared up at the other boy and passed his thumb over the heavy dark circles that hung under Regulus' eyes. "Some dream changes your mind but tomorrow you could change it back. You could decide that I'm not -" His words were cut off by Regulus' warm lips falling gently against his.

"Come with me," Regulus whispered, taking the boy's hand and pulling him from the couch. He led the blonde down the hallway and silently pushed open his dormitory door. The boy peeked inside and nodded at seeing his roommates' curtains all closed.

He didn't need to speak for Bartemius to understand. The younger boy followed him into the room and stayed quiet as they crawled into the older's bed. Regulus secured his curtains and held his finger to Bartemius' lips, unable to convey the need for perfect silence any other way inside the darkened enclosure. He felt the blonde nod and brushed his hands down the boy's chest, hooking his fingers under the boy's shirt and pulling it from his body.

Regulus' eyes closed as he felt the other boy's hands tug at his shirt. He held up his arms and shivered slightly as his skin was exposed to the chilled night air around them. Heated hands trailed over the boy's back, pulling him down onto the bed atop the other boy. He tangled their legs together and sought out Bartemius' mouth with his, their lips meeting in a needful pull.

The dark-haired boy left a trail of kisses up the other's jaw and to his ear. "Do you trust me?" he breathed as his fingers traced circles over the boy's side.

"Yes," Bartemius answered so low he almost couldn't be heard.

"I'm gonna fight for you, okay?" Regulus felt the other boy nod and pressed his lips onto his neck. He pulled back a bit, trying to keep himself from losing his breath at so much close contact.

The younger boy's hands grabbed onto Regulus' shoulders and pushed the boy down onto the bed in his former place. It was unnerving to be surrounded by such an absence of light. Regulus wasn't sure what the other was doing until he felt him move to sit across his lap. They met in another kiss, this time heated and wild. Regulus pushed his hand into Bartemius' hair and held him close, pleased that the boy was making no fuss about his precious strands being out of place.

"Barty," Regulus whispered as he grabbed the boy's wandering hand. "Wait," he finished. "I'm not gonna settle for half way. If you...if you want us, you can't have her."

A small laugh broke from the other boy's throat and he buried his face into the pillow beside Regulus' head to keep from being too loud. "Then consider her gone," he finally answered. "I want this. I want you. Please...show me that you'll fight for us."

Regulus wrapped his arms tightly around Bartemius' waist and pulled him close. "Okay," he whispered with a small smile. And the emerald canopy above stood the only witness to his fulfilled promise.


A Note From the Author: Yes; No? Maybe so? Good or bad? Any thoughts are welcome. Thank you for reading! :D –Jenna

"In dreams begin responsibilities." Cornelius Tower – Tower Prep