Disclaimer - I own nothing you recognise.

Written for Hogwarts Assignment 6 - Spell Origins - Task #2: Write about an uncommon Light/Dark pair coming together for something. (Does not have to be a romantic pair / Pair must have less than 200 featured fics.) - Rabastan&Sirius

Word Count - 1364

Beta'd By Elizabeth, Lucy and Jane.

Written for Grandma - I love you.

sides in a war (don't matter when it comes to you)

Rabastan put his foot in the door before it could be slammed in his face.

"I know you don't like me, but just… hear me out. I wouldn't be here if it wasn't important."

Sirius glared at him for a long moment, before he huffed and let go of the door, stepping back for Rabastan to enter the small flat.

"You have five minutes."

…

Sirius Black was the last person Rabastan wanted to visit, let alone converse with, but he'd run out of options. Standing outside of his flat, though, Rabastan had had doubts that this would do any good.

Part of him—a large part—didn't think Sirius would help.

Stepping past the glaring man into the homey living room, Rabastan barely held back a sneer. Really, how was this preferable to the life of a proud Pureblood?

"I'm here about Regulus," he said when Sirius stepped into the room behind him, his wand in his hand in what Rabastan was sure was supposed to be a threatening pose.

…

Sirius stared at Rabastan for a long moment. "What about him?"

Rabastan sighed. "He's determined to join the Death Eaters."

Sirius tensed but nodded. "I know. He's made his choice, Lestrange. If you came here to rub it in then—"

"I don't want him to join the Death Eaters," Rabastan interrupted. "He's too… he's too soft and good to be a Death Eater, Black. He's too pure for that kind of life."

"What kind of trick is this?" Sirius demanded, angrily.

"No tricks. I need your help."

…

Rabastan waited with baited breath for Sirius to consider his words. It was a long shot, he knew, but he'd run out of other options.

Regulus wouldn't be able to handle being a Death Eater; that, Rabastan was absolutely sure.

"What makes you think he'd even listen to me?" Sirius asked then, and to Rabastan's ears, he sounded defeated.

"He misses you, and he respects your opinion. He always did. He's… He's not listening to me about this and I don't know where else to turn. I… He needs your help."

"Why are you so invested?" Sirius asked, and it was a question Rabastan had been both dreading and expecting.

"I love him."

…

Sirius blinked. Of all the answers he would have expected, such raw honesty wasn't one of them. "Does he know?"

Rabastan rolled his eyes. "Of course he does, we've been together for six months. I'm not here about that, Black. I'm here because I need you to get off your ass and convince your little brother not to ruin his fucking life!"

Why Rabastan thought that Sirius had any chance of convincing Regulus of anything, Sirius had no idea. He'd tried to convince Regulus to come to him after he finished school, to leave the family and the darkness behind, but it had all fallen on deaf ears.

He couldn't imagine that anything had changed.

But… would it hurt to try again?

…

"Alright, I'll speak to him," Sirius agreed, and Rabastan felt like it was the biggest victory he'd ever had.

He hoped it would be enough for Regulus—Rabastan knew how much he himself respected Rodolphus' opinion, after all.

"Are you ready now? I'll have him meet us somewhere."

Sirius sighed. "Just… bring him here, I guess."

Rabastan stared at him for a long moment before he nodded. "I'll be back shortly, then."

…

Sirius opened the door with a wave of his wand, remaining in his seat. He was undeniably nervous, although he couldn't put his finger on why.

It was only his little brother.

Though… there was a lot at stake, he supposed.

"Why did you bring me here?" Regulus demanded, turning to glare at Rabastan when he saw Sirius.

"Because you respect his opinion," Rabastan said quietly. "And I don't know what else to do."

…

Rabastan stood by the fireplace, watching Regulus and Sirius. The two of them were sitting facing one another, neither of them seemingly willing to give in to the silence between them.

He sighed. If this was all he'd brought Regulus here for, he may as well not have bothered.

"You're being an idiot."

Regulus blinked, tilting his head slightly at Sirius.

"You have a man who loves you, asking you not to do something, and you're being too damn stubborn to listen to him."

Rabastan saw Regulus glance his way before he returned his gaze to his brother.

"Why do you even care?" Regulus asked eventually. "It's not like you stuck around to have an opinion on my life choices, is it?"

…

Sirius barely resisted rolling his eyes. "I left the house, Regulus. I didn't leave you."

"I haven't seen you since you left the house," Regulus replied. "So I don't really see the distinction."

"No? I'm pretty sure I recall asking you to come with me."

"And when I said no, you left anyway!"

Sirius sighed. "Reggie… don't do this. Don't try and prove yourself this way. You won't last a year."

Regulus rolled his eyes. "Why does everyone think I'm weak?"

…

"It's not about being weak," Rabastan snapped, before Sirius could answer. "Reg, how many times have we had this conversation? You're not weak!"

"Then why don't you think I can do this?"

"Because… because you're too good," Sirius said quietly. "I always knew that, even when we were kids."

"I'm not—"

"To be a Death Eater, you have to be a super special brand of sadistic," Sirius said, before glancing at Rabastan. "Full offence meant. Reggie… you used to cry when I splatted a spider in the bathroom. You're not meant for their brand of evil, okay?"

"But… I love him," Regulus whispered, glancing up at Rabastan, even as his eyes shone in the light, brighter for the tears gathered in them.

Sirius looked up at Rabastan with a raised eyebrow, the look in his eyes promising harsh retribution if Rabastan fucked this up.

…

Sirius watched as Rabastan dropped to one knee in front of Regulus, taking his hand in between his own. It was a gentleness Sirius wouldn't have thought him capable of if he wasn't seeing it with his own eyes.

"I love you," Rabastan said softly. "You not being a Death Eater isn't going to change that."

"He'll hurt you if I refuse," Regulus whispered.

"I can deal with that. What I can't deal with is him using you against me, and he will, Reg. For every time I fail, he'll take that out on you because it's how he works. It's how he gets results, because it works."

"I don't want to let you down."

"You could never."

…

Rabastan leant forward and pressed a gentle kiss against Regulus' lips. "Don't do this, Reg. Please."

"But… he's going to come after me now, isn't he? He wants me in the ranks, right?"

"We'll hide you," Rabastan promised. "We'll hide you away from him. My Occlumency shields are strong enough, I swear. I'll keep you safe."

"You can stay here, with me and Remus," Sirius said, startling them both. Rabastan had almost forgotten he was there at all.

Regulus looked over at him. "What?"

"Your ears work just fine, Reggie. You can take our spare room."

"What about Rabastan? I won't stop seeing him, Sirius, you can't make me."

Sirius scowled. "As long as he doesn't try any stupid shit, I suppose he can visit you here. Whatever you need to keep you safe, you little idiot."

Surprising Rabastan, Regulus snorted. "I'm feeling the love, Sirius. So much."

"Uh huh," Sirius replied, nodding. "Right, go on then, get out. Go and pack your shit up, I'll expect you… whenever you decide to turn up, I suppose."

Regulus nodded and stood up, pulling Rabastan with him. "Siri… thanks."

"Uh huh. Oh, and Lestrange?"

"Yes?"

"If you hurt him, I'll kill you. Slowly. I don't care about sides in a war, that's my little brother. Watch your step."

…

Rabastan turned back when he reached the door.

"Don't meet me in battle, Black. I… I'd regret having to hurt you."

Sirius arched an eyebrow and smirked. "What makes you think you'd even get the chance?"