Book Club: Red Rising

Prompt:

[dialogue] "Are you doing a naughtynaughty?"

Word Count: 521

The sound of moaning reverberated through the kitchen of Grimmauld Place, and four-year-old Regulus stopped outside the door to listen. He wondered why his brother was making such noises and decided to peek inside to find out.

Slowly opening the door, he looked through the gap and let out a soft gasp. Sirius stood near the table with a spoon stuck in his mouth, his eyes closed in bliss. Regulus caught sight of the bowl on the table, and he stood up on his tiptoes to see what was in it.

When he realised there was chocolate custard in it, he threw open the door and stormed inside. Sirius' eyes immediately snapped open, and he cried, "Reggie! What are you—"

"Are you doing a naughtynaughty?" Regulus demanded, crossing his arms like his father usually did when he was angry. He began tapping his foot on the floor as he waited for Sirius' answer. He didn't know how much he resembled his mother when he did that.

"Reggie, don't tell Mother," Sirius said, slowly moving over to him, but Regulus scowled and shook his head.

"Mother told us not to do the naughtynaughty! And you're doing it! I'm going to tell Mother." He turned around and was about to walk out of the kitchen to tattle when Sirius suddenly grabbed his arm and yanked him back. "Hey, what—"

Before he could say anything, Sirius grabbed a spoonful of custard and shoved it into Regulus' mouth. Regulus choked and spluttered, but Sirius didn't pull it out. Only when he was sure that Regulus couldn't spit it out did he remove the spoon.

"Why—" Regulus swallowed and almost moaned at the delicious chocolate custard sliding down his throat. "Why did you…"

"Now, you've done the naughtynaughty, too," Sirius said with a huge grin on his face. "Should I go tell Mother?"

Tears pooled in Regulus' eyes as he thought of Mother punishing him for eating the dessert. He sniffled audibly, and Sirius groaned. "Reggie, no… Don't cry."

"I'll tell Mother you made me eat it," Regulus said as his shoulders shook with suppressed sobs. He didn't want to seem weak, but Mother was scary when she was mad. Her eyes would get darker, and her lips would turn down in a deep scowl. If the vein in her temple began to pulse, Regulus knew it was time for them to hide.

"But you did eat it, too," Sirius said with a smirk. "She'll be mad at you, and she'll even punish you for not spitting—"

Regulus burst into loud sobs, and Sirius quickly grabbed some of the custard and fed it to him. "There, eat it and we'll keep this a secret."

"I don't like secrets," Regulus mumbled, but he absentmindedly enjoyed the rich flavour of the chocolate. "But… this is nice."

"It is, isn't it?" Sirius prompted him, grinning widely. "How about we take this to my room and share it? Father always tells us to share things, doesn't he?"

Regulus nodded, unable to refuse. Father did tell them to share their things, so Regulus decided Father wouldn't mind them sharing the dessert.