The silence of the library was deafening. Sirius could feel his frustration growing with each minute that passed by with nothing - no sound of interest at all - to relieve the painfully monotonous quiet that filled the vast library which was his cage for the day.
Forbidden to go outside and play in the sunshine on the last day of their holiday as punishment for the previous day's crimes, Walburga had suggested (with a look which assured them that this was far from a suggestion at all) that her sons occupy themselves in Noire House's vast library for the afternoon.
"You might spend your time looking at some of the volumes on magical history" she'd said to the miserable-looking pair over the breakfast table that morning. "And give yourselves a headstart for when you begin studying the medieval period with your tutor when we get home"
Sirius had burned with annoyance at the thought of spending the last day of his summer holiday studying, of all things. He'd allowed himself to be ushered off towards the direction of the library along with Regulus, but instead of heading for the historical section as semi-ordered, he'd flung himself down onto the window seat overlooking the front meadow and had not moved from the spot in over an hour.
The only interruptions to the endless quiet were the monotonous ticking of the tall grandfather clock which stood against the wall beside the fireplace, and the occasional growl-like chirp of Hades, Arcturus's ancient, balding augurey.
The vulture-like bird had always been widely-disliked throughout the Black family, with his ugly, naturally-scowling face and unpleasant tendency to let out a piercing, mournful shriek whenever rainfall approached. He had been given to Arcturus as a hatchling by a visiting Irish wizard, as a token of goodwill to seal a deal, and in his youth had at least been a handsome creature. But now, approaching fifty, the bird's greenish-black feathers had dulled to a shade of grey as depressing as the cloudy sky he cried to, and he had begun to malt horribly, leaving him with untidy bald patches. The pinkish skin around his sharp face had begun to sag into layers of wrinkles, leaving him with a striking resemblance to a grumpy old man.
Which Sirius would privately snicker, reminded him of Arcturus.
Sirius looked away sharply as he caught the eye of the bird from where he sat on his perch beside the oak writing desk across the room. The library was home to just one of the bird's many perches throughout the house. His favourite spot was beside his master's desk in the study upstairs, but with Arcturus holed up in there for the day with Orion, attempting to organise an enormous stack of aging family documents, the door and window had been kept firmly shut to Hades.
After all, the old parchment scrolls were delicate enough without them being filled with moulted feathers. And the fact that Orion couldn't stand the hideous old bird was such a badly-kept secret that even his young son was well aware of why he was lumbered with the augurey's company for the day.
Sirius wished the bird would buzz off out through the window and leave him alone - it was bad enough being confined to the house on the last day of his summer holiday without feeling as if Arcturus himself was peering critically at him through the eyes of his hideous pet.
He turned his back to the bird and curled himself up on the window seat, staring mournfully out at the sun-drenched grass of the meadow below. His gaze wandered automatically into the distance, towards the kennel block, and felt his heart give a painful lurch as he remembered the fate awaiting the cruppie with which he had struck up such a bond. The cruppie which he wanted so desperately to save.
"Sirius?"
Sirius felt a fresh wave of annoyance wash over him at the sound of his younger brother's meek, nervous voice from across the room. Regulus, in his true, obedient nature, had selected a small pile of books from the historical shelves and had surrounded himself with them on the rug before the fireplace at the centre of the library.
"What?" Sirius snapped in reply, still staring out of the window.
"I- I thought you might want to look through some of Grandpapa's old books together? You can choose the theme, if you want. I'll even let you choose the scary ones"
One of the very few inside activities which Sirius enjoyed during visits to Noire House was to go rifling through his grandfather's vast collection of books in search of something of interest. He would set a specific goal; to find the oldest books, the ones containing the most intriguing spells, or the ones which looked as if they might lash out at he who dared attempt to open it.
With his natural aversion to anything that might get them into trouble, this favourite game of Sirius's was normally a hard sell to Regulus. His little brother must be desperate to win back Sirius's favour to suggest it unprompted.
But Sirius was unswayed in his displeasure.
"I don't want to play with you" Sirius mumbled sulkily and curled himself tighter against the window. He pressed his forehead to the glass, warm from the sunshine, and screwed his eyes shut, as if willing the barrier to disappear and set him free.
"Why are you cross with me?"
Sirius craned his neck round at the sound of the surprisingly demanding tone of his brother's voice.
Regulus had risen from his spot on the rug, the brick-like copy of Medieval Magic: A History of England he'd been reading cast aside. He stood, facing his brother with a look of deep hurt on his face. His large, grey eyes shone, and Sirius wondered with irritation whether his brother was about to cry.
It was a habit Regulus was irritatingly prone to - turning on the waterworks at every little upset. And it was not a trick Sirius was in any mood to fall for today.
"Because my crup is going to die and it's all your fault!" Sirius spat angrily, swinging himself round on the window seat to face his brother fully.
Regulus winced visibly at his brother's tone but held firm, much to his brother's surprise.
"It's not my fault that Grandfather doesn't want to keep the cruppie" Regulus argued, quietly.
"No, but it is your fault that he's going to die, because you won't help me rescue him," Sirius shot back, scowling accusingly at the younger boy.
"I'm sorry, Sirius" Regulus mumbled, fidgeting with a loose thread on the cuff of his shirt. "Truly. But we're in enough trouble already. We can't possibly steal a crup as well, everyone would be so cross with us"
"I don't care if they're cross!" Sirius jumped up from the window seat, his fists clenched determinedly. "And neither should you. They're the ones that want to kill my crup, just because his tail is the wrong colour. They're the bad ones, not me!"
Regulus, in spite of his valiant, unusual attempt to stand his ground, was clearly beginning to waver under the force of his brother's anger. Sirius could see that the corner of his bottom lip had disappeared as he anxiously nibbled on it. A tell-tale sign that the boy was beginning to crack.
"Look, Reg," Sirius softened his approach. "You don't really believe that Arcturus is right, do you? That the crup shouldn't get to live?"
"No…" Regulus admitted, reluctantly, his eyes flickering nervously away from Sirius's overbearing gaze. "It is a horrid thought"
Sirius smirked in premature triumph.
"But I don't think we ought to sneak out and try to steal it either"
Sirius's smirk disappeared instantly. His eyes darkened, his grey eyes clouding like an approaching storm.
"Merlin, Reg, why do you always have to be so wet?" he groaned, exasperated. He marched to the centre of the room and aimed a frustrated kick at the corner of the plush, navy sofa.
From his perch, Hades let out an angry squawk and flapped his wings threateningly at Sirius. A cloud of little grey feathers billowed around him, fluttering to the ground to add to the pile which had already begun to grow around the base of his perch since the house elves had cleared the previous day's sheddings that morning.
"Oh shut up, you ugly old pigeon" Sirius scowled at the bird.
Hades growled in reply, his bright yellow eyes flashing dangerously.
Of course, everyone knew augureys couldn't talk. But whenever the great bird flashed his icy eyes in such a foreboding manner, there was always a niggling fear that attempted to convince Sirius that the creature would somehow report his misdeeds back to Arcturus.
"I'm not wet" Regulus protested, unconvincingly. His fingernails dug anxiously into his palms as he faced his brother's anger head-on. "I just- don't want us to get into any more trouble"
"That is wet, Reg" Sirius snapped. He dug the toe of his shoe hard into the corner of the vast, richly embroidered rug before the fireplace.
Regulus winced at the dirt marks pressed into the shining gold thread. He always hated the way his brother took his displeasure out on his surroundings.
"Sirius, please" Regulus's half-hearted argumentative tone fell away, replaced by the pleading, defeated voice Sirius was far more used to expecting from his little brother. "Don't let's fight. It's the last day of our holiday, we ought to at least try to enjoy it"
"Oh, ought we?" Sirius mocked his brother's tone, flopping down to lay on the sofa with his arms folded sulkily. He rested his feet, still clad in shoes, on top of one of the velvet cushions - an action which would earn him a severe scolding if anyone other than his brother were to catch him.
"Yes" Regulus pressed on, undeterred. "Like I said, we can look through some of Grandfather's books. See-"
The younger boy hurried over to his pile of books on the rug, grabbing a particularly grim-looking volume bound in moulding, black leather which looked to be several hundred years old.
"I've already started. We haven't seen this one before. Look, it's got all sorts of horrid-"
"I don't care about your stupid books!"
Taken aback by the force of his brother's shout, Regulus stood in stunned silence as, in one swift move, Sirius stood up, snatched the book from him and hurled it furiously across the room.
The younger boy gasped as the book went flying, the yellowed pages flapping like wings as it hurled towards an end table on which sat a large, hideous vase. Even Sirius's eyes widened in horror as he realised what was about to happen.
But, to the surprise of both boys, the book froze in mid air, it's pages askew, mere centimetres away from the vase.
"I wouldn't want to be either of you for all the gold in Gringotts when Arcturus finds out you've broken his dear old grandmother's favourite wedding present"
Sirius whipped his head round towards the sound of the amused-sounding adult voice.
In the doorway of the library, his wand casually aimed in the direction of the book frozen in mid air, stood Alphard Black. He leaned against the doorway, as though he had been standing there quite comfortably for any amount of time, a bemused half-smile aimed at his two young nephews.
"Uncle Alphard!" Regulus squeaked in alarm at the presence of an adult - even if it was only Alphard. "We're sorry! We were just-"
"How long were you standing there?" Sirius demanded, unashamed.
"Oh, not long" the elder wizard chuckled in amusement at his nephew's impertinence. "Though I daresay I arrived just in time, from the looks of things"
He strode forward into the room, waving his wand at the book suspended in the air. It gracefully closed itself and fluttered down onto the writing desk in the corner.
From his perch beside the desk, Hades craned his long neck down at the book and let out a disapproving, growl-like chirp. His blue eyes narrowed accusingly at Sirius.
"Now then," Alphard pocketed his wand inside his robes pocket and walked forward to stand before the pair. "What possible cause would you two boys have to be squabbling about that would warrant attempting to destroy a priceless family heirloom, hmm?"
Regulus opened his mouth to answer. Sensing the danger of his brother's terminal honesty, Sirius quickly jumped in front of him.
"Reg just wanted me to play some stupid game with him, but I didn't want to. That's all"
"Really?" Alphard cocked an eyebrow, amused. "It must be a truly dull game if it's gotten you so riled up"
Sirius shrugged and scuffed his shoe against the carpet.
"I expect you're feeling glum about being stuck inside on the last day of your holiday" said Alphard knowingly.
Sirius nodded, staring down at the black mark his shoe had left on the carpet.
"I can't say I blame you. It is a lovely day out" Alphard glanced in the direction of the bright sunshine streaming in through the tall windows.
Sirius's wistful gaze followed, letting out a longing sigh.
"Here, I know what will cheer you two up"
Alphard gave a click of his fingers. With a loud pop and a cloud of purple smoke, a large, wooden travelling trunk appeared at his feet. It was a particularly impressive feat of wandless summoning magic which the wizard had mastered during his time spent with a tribe of wizards in rural Siberia.
Sirius's face instantly lit up as he recognised the trunk. It was the one in which his uncle stored his collection of weird and wonderful artefacts, gathered from his worldly travels. The vast majority were destined for his own personal collection, the minority for the family vaults.
But experience had taught Sirius that there were always one or two items destined for - in his mind, at least - a much more worthy recipient.
"Presents!" he shouted, grinning excitedly.
Even Regulus's drooping demeanour instantly perked up, like a wilting flower given a shot of growth tonic.
Alphard chuckled at the children's predictable response.
"Yes, indeed. Though I do wonder-"
Alphard took out his wand and gave it a flick at the trunk. The brass latches clicked open loudly.
Sirius twitched with excitement at the sound, reminding his bemused uncle of a pup at the sound of a treat jar opening.
"-if the pair of you ought to have any presents at all"
Sirius's face fell instantly.
"What?" He stared, open-mouthed in disbelief at his uncle.
"Well, what with all this squabbling going on between you, I doubt your mother would approve of either of you being given any treats" Alphard gave a half-smile of mock disappointment. "She might accuse me of rewarding your bad behaviour"
Regulus stared sadly down at his shoes, subdued.
But Sirius pointed an accusing finger up at his uncle.
"You're fibbing!" he said. "You don't care what Mama thinks. She doesn't like you giving us presents whether we've been good or bad. And besides, you wouldn't have brought down the trunk if you didn't have anything for us"
Alphard let out a hearty laugh.
"My my, aren't you a clever little scamp?"
Sirius beamed at the praise.
"Alright, I confess, I was bluffing. However, I will say that these are not exactly gifts, per say, but more of a business transaction. I'll let you have them, so long as I have your word - both of you, man to man - that there'll be no more of this silly fighting between you"
The elder wizard took a moment to gauge the reactions of the two boys. Regulus looked solemn. No doubt he would have declared he would behave better in an instant if ordered to, without any need for gifts as an incentive.
Sirius, however, looked far more critical of the offer, no doubt weighing up whether the promised gift was likely to be worth upholding his end of the bargain.
Alphard's silver eyes twinkled down at him curiously. His limited but memorable encounters with the elder of his two nephews left him with no doubt that the boy would never turn down the offer of a gift from far off and exotic lands, in spite of the reluctant impression he tried to give.
"Alright. It's a deal" Sirius finally announced.
To his uncle's amusement, the boy stuck out his hand in the offer of a shake to seal the deal.
Alphard couldn't help but chuckle, earning himself an indignant scowl from his young nephew. Sirius's face softened, however, when Alphard grasped his hand and gave it a firm shake.
"Very well then, now that we've struck a bargain…"
Alphard reached down to lift the heavy lid of the trunk. Both boys craned their necks eagerly.
"First of all, Regulus-"
The younger boy's eyes widened in surprise at being called first. He hurried forward to stand beside the trunk.
When Alphard's hand emerged from the depths of the drunk, it was grasped around a most peculiar-looking item. Long, deep-brown in colour and with a slight curve.
"A rotten banana?" Sirius asked, his nose wrinkled.
Alphard laughed.
"That would be a rather disappointing present indeed" he said with a shake of his head. "No, this is something far more impressive"
He held it out to his younger nephew. Regulus took it, running his fingers up and down the rough texture curiously.
"It is a preserved acromantula fang, from the island of Borneo" Alphard announced. "Harmless now, of course. Drained of venom. But if you look here-" He turned the fang in Regulus's hand to point to a round hole visible at the top of the fang, running through the length of it. "There's the hole through which the venom once ran. Just as the creature made it's death bite. Isn't that exciting?"
Regulus looked as though he thought it was anything but. The boy's already-pale face had blanched further, and Sirius was sure he could see a greenish tinge. He prayed his wet little brother wouldn't cause a scene by being sick all over the rich, pristine carpet. That would only further annoy Arcturus, and then Sirius might not be able to keep the fang which he felt sure Regulus would toss to him at the soonest opportunity.
"Th-thank you, Uncle" Regulus stammered politely with a forced smile.
Sirius had to admire his brother's ability to sound grateful for a gift which would no doubt give him bad dreams that night. Dreams which Sirius knew he'd end up lumbered with comforting him after.
"You're very welcome" Alphard replied, not seeming to notice the way Regulus's fingers trembled with the effort of resisting the urge to hurl the fang as far away from him as possible.
"Now, for Sirius-"
Sirius, who had been staring wistfully at his brother's acromantula fang, snapped his gaze up to Alphard. Excitement rose within him as he watched his uncle reach into the case once more… and fell when he withdrew a rather ordinary-looking brown satchel.
"A satchel?" Sirius asked, obviously disappointed.
"I'm afraid so" Alphard replied, with a feigned, apologetic smile.
Sirius felt his cheeks flush as he realised what he'd said. Only last week, his mother had chastised him for his lack of gratitude when given a gift of new gobstones - a different coloured set than what he'd hoped for - and had withdrawn them entirely as punishment.
He wondered if his uncle might decide against giving him anything at all now, but Alphard's amused smirk and twinkling gaze bore no resemblance to the angry disapproval he'd have been right to expect from Walburga.
"If you'd care to reserve judgement for a few moments, you'll see-"
To the surprise of both boys, Alphard knelt down on the floor to hold out the satchel to their level. How so unlike the rest of the adults their curious, elusive uncle was. Sirius could scarcely imagine his mother kneeling on the floor in one of her ever-pristine gowns to be on his level.
"-that this particular satchel is not made of any ordinary leather" Alphard gestured for Sirius to peer closely at the texture of the material. "It's dragon leather"
Sirius remained unconvinced.
"But aren't lots of things made out of dragon leather, Uncle?" he asked, careful not to sound too critical. It may only be a satchel, but a present was a present, after all.
"That is true," Alphard nodded. "But very few things are made of Peruvian Vipertooth dragonhide"
Sirius's eyes widened. He remembered the image of the Peruvian Vipertooth dragon in his copy of An Encyclopaedia of Dragons at home. Far from an impressive dragon in size, the Peruvian Vipertooth was a dragon renowned for it's particularly soft, shining scales - and it was notoriously hard to catch.
"Wow!" Sirius grinned as he leaned in closer to examine the detailing of the satchel. On closer inspection, he realised that the brown leather was in fact a deep shade of copper which glinted in the light at a certain angle.
"You see?" Alphard arched an eyebrow, triumphant. "You ought to remember not to judge so fast. And I haven't even told you the best part about it, yet"
"What's that?" Sirius stood up straight and eager.
"This satchel is charmed so that it may carry any number of things within it, regardless of their size or weight. Why, you could fit that whole bookcase in here-" The wizard pointed to the vast, wall-length bookcase across from them. "-And you could carry it as light as if it were empty"
"Isn't that just an Extension Charm, Uncle Alphard?" piped Regulus, somewhat hesitantly. He held onto his acromantula fang by the very tips of his fingers.
"Very similar, my boy, very similar indeed" replied Alphard. He shot his nephew an impressed look at his knowledge of such spells at such a young age. "This particular spell, however, originates from a remote community of wizards that live in the Pariacaca mountain range in Peru. Their flare for such charms is rather more, shall we say, reliable than ours. Your average Extension Charms can be slippery things - quite literally. Too many items in one bag and it could all get rather cluttered. You shan't have any such problem with this bag. It will all stay far more organised. You could tip it upside down and the items inside will stay precisely how you put them. And, of course, these types of charms are not subject to the same Ministry regulation as standard Extension Charms are. Call it an added bonus"
Alphard placed the satchel into Sirius's waiting hands and stood up once more, placing his hands on his hips.
"I expect that you'll be glad of such a thing when you start school in September, Sirius" He said with a pleased smile.
Sirius looked up at his uncle, his head tilted to one side. Alphard was briefly reminded of a confused puppy.
"But I don't start school until next year, Uncle" said the boy.
Alphard frowned, clearly caught off-guard.
"Ah" he said, vaguely. He looked off to the size, deep in thought. His head nodded slightly as though counting.
"But I still like it!" Sirius added, quickly. He clutched the satchel to his chest. He hoped his uncle wouldn't now decide to withhold his present until next year. "I'm sure it will be useful even before I go to Hogwarts. Thank you Uncle Alphard"
He was careful to flash his best smile up at the wizard in the hope that it would be enough to win him what he wanted.
Alphard chuckled.
"You're very welcome. It seems I was right. That does seem to have cheered you both up"
Regulus, his face still pale, forced what he hoped looked like a grateful smile.
Sirius had no need to force a grin. His present, what he'd prematurely written off as dull, had sparked a fresh and vibrant plan in his mind - one which he was determined to put into practice immediately. If only he could find some way out of this house…
"Now then, since it is the last day of your holiday and the weather is so delightful, how about you two go and have a quick run-around outside, hmm?"
Sirius's heart leaped.
"Yes!" He grinned delightedly, scarcely able to believe his luck.
"But Uncle Alphard, Mama said we weren't to play outside today," said Regulus.
Sirius groaned. Why did his little brother always insist on being such a goody-two-shoes?
"Oh, I think we can bend the rules, just this once" said Alphard with a glint in his eye. "I'm sure your Mama would prefer it if you were both in far more agreeable moods after a good dose of fresh air before you return to stuffy old London. Nevertheless, perhaps it's best if you slipped out through the front way, where she won't see you. She's taking tea on the back terrace with Cygnus" He let out a chuckle. "Berating him about what to do with those daughters of his, no doubt"
Alphard lazily clicked his fingers again and the trunk disappeared in another cloud of purple smoke. He turned away and strode off towards the door, pausing at the last moment to turn back to his nephews.
"Best make sure you're both back inside before the hour is up, I'd say - to be safe" he said. "There's only so long my dear brother will tolerate our sister's nagging"
Sirius smiled. It felt good to hear someone speak so candidly about his mother's bossiness.
With a wink of farewell, the wizard was gone.
The second the door was shut behind him, Regulus let out a desperate yelp.
"Take it, Sirius, please!"
Sirius turned just in time to see his brother toss the acromantula fang out of his hand as though it were a red-hot poker. It hurtled through the air towards him. Sirius caught it neatly.
"You're such a wimp, Reg" he chuckled as he peered closely at the fang with interest. "It's not like it's a real spider. It's only a small piece of one"
"You wouldn't understand" Regulus replied grimly as he wiped his hands on his trousers, as if attempting to wipe away the feeling of ever having held the fang at all.
"I don't think I want to," Sirius tucked the fang inside his new satchel. "Now come on, you heard Uncle Alphard, we haven't got long!"
Sirius tore across the room - not in the direction of the door, as Regulus had expected him to, but towards the writing desk across the room.
"Sirius, what are you doing?" the younger boy asked, dreading the answer he'd receive.
"Not now, Reg" Sirius snapped as he rummaged through the drawers in search of something. Sat on his perch beside the desk, Hades's blue eyes peered down at the boy suspiciously. "Aha!"
He pulled out a small bottle of black ink and tossed it once into the air triumphantly before stashing it away inside his new satchel.
"Alright, let's go!"
Sirius ran back across the library, grabbing his brother by the arm as he passed.
"Come on, Reg. You heard Uncle Alphard, we only have half an hour or so" he urged as he ran out of the library and down the corridor, Regulus stumbling after him.
The boys' hurried footsteps were thankfully muffled by the thick carpet which covered the upstairs floors of Noire House. Once they reached the bottom of the staircase, however, they had to practically tiptoe to stop their movements echoing through the tall entrance hall on the polished wood floor.
Sirius winced as the front door creaked threateningly when he eased it open - Uncle Alphard might have given them permission to venture outside, but he wouldn't put it past any passing adult to revoke it in an instant, should they be caught.
As the pair slid out through the narrow opening, Sirius breathed a sigh of relief as the warm sunshine washed over his face.
It felt good to be free.
"I'll race you to that tree - that one, over there" Sirius pointed vaguely in the direction of a cluster of trees far across the meadow, right on the edge of the forest. "Ready, set, go!"
Giving Regulus no time to offer any protest, Sirius broke into a sprint and practically flew through the tall grass at an astonishing speed for a boy with a bulky leather satchel clanging against his side.
Regulus took off after him, knowing full well that he was destined to lose - Sirius was always so much faster than him - but far too relieved that the elder boy was now in a better mood to mind.
As he finally reached the shade of the trees, gasping for breath, Regulus was intrigued to find Sirius crouched behind a large tree, peering intently out into the distance, his gaze transfixed like a predator eyeing up its prey.
"What is it, Sirius?" Regulus asked, still catching his breath.
"I've got a plan to rescue my crup"
Regulus's heart sank.
"Oh no"
Sirius dealt his brother a look of sharp determination.
"Don't go all chicken on me now, Reg. I need your help"
Regulus considered. He so loathed the idea of the depth of the trouble the pair of them would be in if they were caught in their endeavour. But Sirius has said he needed him. In spite of the risk, Regulus couldn't deny that the concept of being a vital part of the plan sparked something within him. A sense of pride - a desire to please.
Sirius was always in such an agreeable mood when he was pleased with him.
"Alright…" he found himself muttering. "What do I need to do?"
Sirius's face lit up into an excited grin once more.
"You're the best, Reg!" He gave his brother a slap on the back. Regulus couldn't help but smile at the praise. "Don't worry, you have the easy job, honest. All you have to do is stand right here and keep look-out whilst I sneak into the shed and get my cruppie"
"I don't know about this, Sirius" The elder boy's face immediately darkened, but Regulus pressed on, undeterred. "There's no way you can get away with it. Even if you did steal the crup, the half-blood will surely notice that it's missing soon enough and tell Grandpapa"
"No he won't. Last night, in the passageway, I heard old Arcturus saying he thinks that Stokes is going blind"
As he always did when Sirius referred to their grandfather so disrespectfully, Regulus cringed.
"I reckon he wouldn't notice just one cruppie going missing. There's enough of them, after all, and they wriggle and run about so, surely they must be hard to keep track of, especially when they're all blurry"
"I suppose that's true…" Regulus reasoned. "But, the one you want is the odd one, isn't it? The one with the queer tail? Surely he'd notice that one was missing"
"It is not queer" Sirius scowled, offended. Regulus shrank back. "But don't worry. I've got a plan for that, see?"
Sirius gave his brother a confident wink as he dug his hand inside his new satchel and pulled out the bottle of ink he had snatched from the writing desk in the library.
"I'm going to paint one of the tail tips of another cruppie black, so he thinks he still sees the odd one out"
"But suppose the kennel manager finds you in there? He knows we're not to go back inside the compound again"
"Don't worry, he's out exercising one of the groups of dogs" Sirius shrugged dismissively as he placed the ink bottle back inside his satchel. "I've seen him through the window these last few days. He's always gone for a good hour with each group and he'd only just set out before we came outside. We've got bags of time"
"But… Suppose he comes back early? Or you can't get the lock undone again?"
"I can so get the lock undone!" Sirius's voice was indignant. "You know I can, you've seen me do it loads of times. And anyway, that's why you're the lookout, silly. To warn me if he's coming back"
Sirius dug deep into the pocket of his robes and pulled out what appeared to be a small, china ornament in the shape of a bird, painted a familiar shade of deep blue.
"A toy jobberknoll?" Regulus cocked his head, puzzled.
"It's a bird whistle," Sirius explained. "Look here, see the hole in the tail?"
Regulus peered closed and noticed the small hole in the moulded china tail feathers.
"It's charmed so that when you blow through it, it shrieks like a dying jobberknoll. You know that before they die, they scream every word they've ever heard, backwards? It's supposed to sound ghastly"
Regulus furrowed his brow in confusion at how amusing Sirius seemed to find this.
"Why on Earth would anyone want to make such a horrid sound?"
Sirius rolled his eyes and sighed impatiently.
"Because it scares the jobberknolls out of the trees, idiot! When they hear the sound of another jobberknoll dying, they get scared and fly away. That's how we hunt them - scare them out of the trees so that we can shoot them down"
Sirius spoke in the lofty, knowing tone of one who had attended many such hunts in his time.
Regulus, having had to tiptoe around his brother's stormy temper only last week after his repeated begging to accompany their father on a jobberknoll shoot had been ignored, decided against pointing out the fact that Sirius's own experience of jobberknoll shooting had yet to make it past throwing stones up at the tree branches on which they perched, unphased.
"Wherever did you get it?"
"Swiped it from the hunting storeroom during our visit last Easter" Sirius smirked mischievously. "I'd hoped we might have a chance to use it soon. Maybe today's the day!"
Sirius held out the china whistle to his brother.
"You just have to keep look-out," he explained. "And if you see Stokes coming back with the dogs, blow the whistle, hard. The sound will send the birds flying and I'll see the warning signal from the kennel block and I'll know to make a run for it. It can't fail"
Regulus wished he could share his brother's conviction. He wished he could summon the willpower to air his doubts, to attempt to spare them both what would surely be the worst trouble they'd ever been in if the plan should fail.
But Sirius looked so determined, so fired up. There was always something about him, when he was in this particular grip of determination, that made him seem happy. In moments such as this, his brother reminded Regulus of one of the crups themselves - straining at the lead, charged up and excited for the thrill of the hunt. Sirius never seemed quite as cheerful than when he was in the grip of what was - in his mind, at least - a daring and exciting plan.
Somehow, Regulus couldn't quite summon the willpower to deny his brother what he wanted of him.
"Alright. I'll keep look-out" he said, taking the whistle.
"Nice one, Reg," said Sirius. He flashed a wide grin that Regulus couldn't help but return. "I'll be back soon, promise"
Very soon I hope, Regulus thought to himself as Sirius turned away and dashed out of the trees.
Regulus stared after him as he raced across the meadow towards the kennel compound with his new satchel bouncing awkwardly against his side. He took a deep breath, steadying himself against the tree trunk he hid behind as he watched his brother disappear into the long grass.
The sounds of the forest mingled with the sound of his nervous, heavy breathing. Above his head, the tree branches rustled in the light summer breeze, peppered with the occasional sounds of the chirping of birds.
Regulus looked up at the treetops and spotted several species of birds perched on the branches, including a fair few jobberknolls. Of course, he knew that jobberknolls were silent birds, aside from their awful dying cry, but their presence among the other birds was notable in other ways. Their deep blue feathers stood out starkly against the deep green of the canopy, vividly bright and shining compared to the dull grey and brown feathers of their non-magical companions.
It occurred to Regulus, as he craned his neck further to stare at the branches high above him, that he'd never really taken the time to properly observe the birds before. Every time he'd spotted them in the trees, he'd been too preoccupied with Sirius's demands that he help him rummage around the ground for suitable stones for him to practice attempting to "shoot" them down with.
It was rather nice, he thought to himself, to simply admire the birds that sat happily in the treetops, undisturbed by any budding young hunters.
After several minutes, Regulus felt his nerves begin to grow. How long would Sirius be? He'd promised to be back soon… but just how soon was soon? His eyes scoured the meadow for any sign of approaching danger. The surrounding grass remained blissfully empty.
Occasionally, Regulus's gaze wandered back towards the house. He swallowed nervously, imagining his mother peering out through the windows of the tiny manor in the distance, her hawkish gaze catching them in the thick of their plot…
A jolt of nerves stirred in the pit of his stomach. He turned back to the empty meadow and whispered beggingly for Sirius to return soon.
At last, a figure began to appear across the meadow - but it wasn't Sirius. It was the half-blood kennel manager, returned from exercising the pack of crups milling around his legs. Regulus could just make out the silvery glow of the magical leads protruding from the end of his wand.
"Oh, help!" Regulus gasped anxiously. His head whipped round at all angles, scouring the area for any sign of Sirius, but to no avail.
His fingers trembled around the little china bird in his hand. This was it. Sirius was counting on him. He lifted the bird to his mouth and blew firmly into the hole moulded into the tail feathers.
The air around him was instantly flooded with the most awful sound Regulus had ever heard. A torrent of unintelligible words flooded out of the beak of the bird whistle, their meaning lost in the echo chamber which the forest edge had become. Regulus dropped the whistle and clamped his hands tight over his ears in a desperate bid to block out the overpowering sound.
Suddenly, the noise of the jobberknoll cry was punctured by a sound which, at first, Regulus thought was thunder, such was it's deep, foreboding rumble. But as he looked up to the treetops, he saw that the forest canopy was alive with the fluttering of deep-blue feathers flapping about chaotically as the jobberknolls fled at the sound of their dying kin. Peppered amongst the sea of blue were the darker feathers of the non-magical birds, spooked by the jobberknolls' panic. Regulus watched in awe as the birds - far more than he thought he'd seen at first glance - took off through the branches and disappeared far off into the summer sky.
Such a spectacle could surely been seen clearly from wherever Sirius was.
Regulus stared hard at the kennel compound across the meadow for no fewer than five minutes in desperate hope of making out any sign of his brother, but none appeared.
"Come on, Sirius…" Regulus muttered. His foot tapped anxiously against a risen tree root. "Where are you?"
He'd been caught. He must have been. There was no other explanation as to why he wasn't back yet. The kennel manager must have caught him red-handed. In spite of the summer heat, Regulus shivered. Dreadful thoughts of how cross their mother would be when this most heinous of crimes was reported to her. Papa would give them one of his cold, stern looks. And when Regulus attempted to imagine just how livid Arcturus would be when he discovered that his own grandsons had tried to steal one of his prized dogs, the sting of tears began to prick the corners of his eyes.
"Rawr!"
"Ah!"
Regulus jumped as something grabbed him by the shoulders and stumbled backwards, tripping over the rising tree root and landing on his back in the dirt.
Standing over him with a Chesire cat grin, Sirius laughed.
"Got you, Reg!"
"Sirius! That wasn't funny"
"Yes it was. Where's your sense of humour?"
Sirius grasped his brother by the hand and hauled him up to his feet. Regulus noticed, with a note of relief, that he was empty-handed.
"How did you get back?" Regulus asked, brushing down his robes. "I didn't see you"
"I snuck back through the edge of the forest" Sirius airily aimed a kick at a nearby stone. "Thought 'd give you a bit of a jump. Though you gave me a fright myself with that trick with the whistle! I said only to blow it when someone was coming"
"There was someone coming! The half-blood was coming back with the crups. I thought he was going to catch you"
"Oh" Sirius stared back at the kennel compound and tilted his head, puzzled. "I must have already been out of there by then"
"I'm sorry you didn't get your crup, Sirius" Regulus offered his brother a sympathetic look. "But at least you didn't get caught. We'd have both been in such awful trouble"
Sirius's face stretched into a wide, mischievous smirk.
"I did get the crup, Reg"
But- Then where is it?"
Regulus glanced about the surrounding area, half-expecting a dog to come dashing out from behind whichever tree Sirius had bade it hide behind, ready to give him a second spook.
Instead, Sirius swung the satchel at his side round to his front and opened it slightly.
Regulus gasped as a shiny black nose shoved it's way through the gap in the dragonhide flap.
"You actually did it!"
"Of course I did!" Sirius puffed out his chest proudly. "Did you think I wouldn't manage it?"
"No, it's not that, it's just-"
An ominous chewing sound emitting from inside the bag stopped Regulus mid-sentence.
"Sirius" The younger boy's voice was low with dread. "What's it eating?"
Sirius whipped open the satchel and peered deep inside.
"Oh, Merlin!"
Regulus's eyes widened in horror as his brother dropped the satchel to the floor and dug his hands deep inside, scooping out the cruppie under one arm and prying the acromantula fang out from between his jaws.
"Won't it make him sick? Or… Or worse?" Regulus asked anxiously. He eyed the little dog carefully, only half-expecting it to roll over and die from poisoning any minute.
"Don't be daft, Reg, of course not" said Sirius as he attempted to dodge the puppy's snapping jaws which tried to snatch the fang out of his grasp. The creature practically buzzed with energy, his black-and-white forked tail lashing back and forth manically as he relished this new game. "It's harmless, Uncle Alphard said so. There's no venom left in it"
Several moments of wrestling later, watched by a worried-looking Regulus on the sidelines, Sirius had managed to shove the wriggling cruppie back inside the satchel. He buckled it tightly shut and breathed a sigh of relief.
"Are you really sure he's going to be alright, Sirius?" Regulus asked his brother.
"Absolutely" Sirius answered firmly, slinging the satchel over his shoulder. "Uncle Alphard wouldn't have given it to us if it was dangerous. Could you imagine Mama's face if he gave us a fang with actual venom inside it? And besides, you heard what Arcturus said the other night-"
Sirius lifted the remaining half of the acromantula fang up to examine it closer. His nose wrinkled in distaste as he examined the gnawed end of the fang, glistening with the dog's saliva, from which a good inch or so was now missing.
"-crups will eat anything"