Disclaimer - I don't own Harry Potter. This is written for the first regular challenge - entertainment - for the month of October 2021 for the Froday Flash Fiction challenge.

Upside Down Mirror: Granger Yet
Distraction

Regulus lay on his stomach in a hospital bed in a small cottage hospital run by the Grangers, the parents of Olivia Granger. The start of snow falling outside brought a welcome distraction from imagining himself holding a conversation with the rabbit sitting on the nightstand next to his cot, not that he found himself able to vocalize much of anything since he awoke to find himself alive thanks to the intervention of Olivia's parents.

He needed the distraction, as his mind kept drifting to thoughts of Bella bursting through the door to kill him for defecting from the Dark Lord's cause, which only served to remind him that he'd placed Olivia and her entire family in danger by showing up in a bloody state at the Granger family home. The fact he never intended to show up there, let alone knew where they lived didn't soothe the feeling of disgust Regulus held himself in.

He hated himself before entering the cave, but now he hated himself even more.

Worse—he found himself completely useless, entertaining himself with imaginary conversations with the rabbit on the nightstand as his ability to speak for some reason locked up. He couldn't even scream in frustration, which was in itself a frustrating matter that was driving him as mad as being stuck on his stomach unable to move, which in turn—

Somewhere Regulus lost his wand, yet having the wand nearby would have brought little to no comfort with the knowledge that he found himself unable to move an inch from the hospital bed he awoke in with Olivia's mother telling him he was lucky to be alive only for him not to feel lucky at all, not when the fear of getting Olivia and her family killed as well as himself lurked through his mind.

There was something about Olivia that he couldn't place his finger on, a feeling so to speak that he couldn't quite put into words. "No. You know what the word is, but don't want to admit it simply because you know it's forbidden. If mother knew…"

He'd fallen in love with a Muggle girl.

Regulus still didn't understand any of it, beyond the fact there was an inkling in the back of his mind that his feelings for that Muggle girl resulted in whatever magic that led to him escaping the cave and landing as he did in the front room of the Granger family home.

He wanted to be with Olivia, but that also gave him a reason to live, even if it was forbidden, filthy and ever so wrong.

Except, lying there watching the snow fall, it didn't feel wrong or filthy, though the fact falling in love with a Muggle was forbidden and would get him blasted off the tapestry didn't change. Regulus also knew in the back of his mind that he'd not had his own reasons for living that truly felt like his own, something Regulus found quite strange.

Yet—he'd not seen her since he crash landed in the front room of the Granger family home, or at least Regulus thought he'd seen her.

"Olivia's not allowed to visit yet…" he remembered her mother saying, his mind not understanding why at first.

That was the first time Regulus up in the hospital bed, lying on his stomach with every injury carefully bandaged and he'd thought nothing of what she'd said. The bandages wrapped around his left arm, but also his entire torso and upper legs, which Olivia's parents came and changed multiple times over the course of the next couple of days.

"It doesn't faze you?" Olivia's father finally asked, with Regulus mind still not following, not that he could answer the question even he knew what the man was getting at.

"Why would them changing my bandages bother me? They're kind and gentle, beyond what I deserve. And ever so patient as well, given nothing comes out of my mouth."

"You know he's not been able to verbally respond, but perhaps you should clarify?" Olivia's mother asked.

The man pulled a chair over while she continued working on changing the bandages. "You're not fazed at all by either of us seeing you completely naked."

Regulus simply stared, still unfazed by what Olivia's father said, although his mind did start wrapping around the fact he didn't have a stitch of clothing, though this made sense given the extent of his injuries. What puzzled him and kept him staring at the man—although not in the eye, was the fact the man felt he should be fazed by the entire matter. He wanted to ask why, although words simply didn't want to come out.

"My sons certainly would be."

"We're also their parents, but I'm also their mother."

Which made the thought of Walburga Black seeing him naked cross his mind—and yes, it was mortifying.

"See. You can tell from that slight blush on Rabbit's face that he would indeed be mortified if his mother were to see him naked."

"Because she'd find some kind of flaw, just like I do when I look in the mirror. Like how scrawny I am, but with the scars this is going to leave."

"Of course, if it were Olivia…"

Regulus felt his cheeks heat up, the thought of being intimate with her again running through his head, but he couldn't help but turn his head and bury his face.

"See."

"Don't embarrass him like that. You're as bad with him as you are our own boys."

"But he is ours now, isn't he? I mean, Olivia did say he can't go home and has nowhere to go."

"He has some say in the matter," Olivia's father retorted. "And even if he does save yes, save the teasing for when he's feeling better."

"Well, it's why Olivia's not allowed to visit yet, but once he's healed enough to get some clothes on she can, and I'm sure he'll want her company."

Time passed and Olivia still hadn't visited even though there was a light sheet covering him, but Regulus found himself rather lonely when one of her parents weren't visiting him. Rest, they said was key, but there was a point when the body refused to sleep which led to him entertaining himself with imaginary conversations with the stuffed rabbit Olivia's mother brother him and now watching through the window.

"Rabbit."

Regulus turned his head to see Olivia's mother there and—"Maman." Despite her face seeming to light up, he still felt guilty for calling another person's mother 'mother'. He swallowed, panic setting in. "Sorry. 'm sorry."

"Don't be."

He didn't recognize the voice of the person, but his attention turned to the person standing next to the pulled back curtain that surrounded Regulus hospital bed so he was afforded privacy should anyone else come into the cottage hospital they ran. He stared.

"You can call her maman if you want. I mean, she is your mother now, and our father is your father now. And—I'm not going to let you say no either, even though they've said it's your choice. You don't really have any choice, but—"

Regulus stared, as he didn't recognize the person standing there with a book in his hand while Olivia's mother stood there with some light weight clothes. He was definitely confused.

"Oh. Sorry. I'm Olivia's older brother Hamlet, the middle of their three biological sons. Richard is the oldest and Cassio's the youngest. We're all Olivia's older brothers, and now your older brother as well."

"But… Sirius is my older brother. Sirius is…" Regulus eyes closed.

Maman spoke, her voice strained, almost as if she picked up on the tension in the room just as Regulus did, but he wished he had the ability to go hide. "My husband is out of town and Hamlet stopped by because he thought you'd like someone to read to you. He works at the bookstore with his grandfather—the one our oldest is named after."

"I've brought The Hobbit," Hamlet responded. "It's probably not the magical stuff you're used to, but I thought it might feel someone familiar even if it is fictional, but since it's going to get a bit nippy in here, mom asked if I help get you into some light clothing and help you get to sitting up."

"Though it might hurt, Rabbit, and we still need to be careful not to break a stitch. We'll be as gentle as possible."

Which, wasn't a lie, anything she said. She gave him what she called a painkiller after they finished and slipped from the room, saying something about getting to know each other. Regulus stared, tilting his head as Hamlet sat down, pulling up a chair. "By the way. Olivia will also be able to visit now." Regulus felt the corners of his mouth twist up. "I thought you'd like to hear that, but I'm glad you said something, what with mom and dad being concerned about you not speaking."

Regulus responded with a gurgle.

Hamlet held up a hand. "Don't. You don't have to. It's kind of expected. I mean, you did go into cardiac arrest on the operating table more than once, but whatever you went through before you showed up on our doorstep…"

Regulus frowned, remembering crashing into the table.

"I know, I know. It was our coffee table, but that's the cover story mum and dad came up with to protect you." Hamlet's eyes narrowed. "Rabbit, listen to me carefully."

Regulus stiffened, remembering what happened whenever Sirius got that look on his face, always lecturing him about what a bad person he was.

"We're going to protect you. As your older brother, I'm going to keep you safe."

Regulus shook his head, not thinking Hamlet could stand up to Bella.

"Okay. So, yeah. I probably couldn't take on any magic stuff, but I'll do my best. And—"Hamlet paused. "I found your wand under the car seat, but it's at the bookshop in a safe place. I'll get it for you when you're better and ready for it."

Regulus swallowed, feeling suddenly unsure. Hamlet didn't pay much attention, but then started reading about strange creatures called Hobbits, coming back each day to read to him more and more of the story called The Hobbit. Lettie, as Regulus blurted out one of the times Hamlet came to read to him, came before and after work, but also during his lunch break.

The books were—Hamlet left them and others with him, so he'd gotten farther ahead and into the sequel series yet still let Hamlet go back and read to him—were an excellent distraction from other things, such as thinking of Bella bursting through the door and flashes of green going everywhere.

And, he liked Lettie and Olivia's parents, but felt something he'd not before.