Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. It owns me. JK Rowling owns my soul

Light filtered into Alex's bedroom window softly touching his face. Groaning in annoyance he turned over trying to ignore the emerging sun making more appearances to spring back in full force. He expected Ron to also avoid the bright sun but he jumped and sat up at the sudden shout of joy.

"March first! Our letters!" Rushing over to the owl pecking the window, Ron hurriedly slammed open the window. Raising his voice he shouted, "ALEX! Our Hogwarts letters are here!"

Yawning and not really registering what was going on, Alex grumbled, "Close the window, it's still cold out."

He laid himself back down and buried himself deeper into his covers hazily wondering why anyone would send a poor owl out this early before 10 am on a Saturday. He then felt a heavy letter hit the side of his covers while his brother trampled down the stairs to show their mother the letter.

…

…

…

Oh. Alex scrambled out of bed, accidently tangling himself in the sheets and falling onto the floor. He winced at the pain and told himself to calm down. Deep breaths, the letter was going to be addressed to Alexander Septimus Weasley. His hands were trembling in excitement and fear of the future. Moving his blankets around he found the misplaced letter, weighing the letter heavy parchment he looked at the front of the letter addressing it to him.

Mr. A.R. ██k. Weasley

Bedroom to the Right on the Third Floor,

The Burrow,

Ottery St. Catchpole,

Devon

He stared at the letter in a bit of shock. He didn't think it was possible for the quill writing out the letters could mess up so badly, perhaps it was confused. The concern grew, what would happen when he was called out for the sorting? Lost in his thoughts, he didn't hear Ginny tiptoe into the room and then tilt her head in confusion, "Why haven't you opened your letter?"

Snatching his letter, she looked at the mailing address and raised her eyebrows. In a puzzled voice she said, "I suppose they outta replace that dictate-quill of theirs."

Alex inwardly sighed in relief, that was a good excuse. Smiling at his sister, and taking the letter from her he was about to open his letter when she smiled good naturedly, "Don't open it yet!. Open it during breakfast, I bet Ron's waiting downstairs." He chuckled and decided to go along with his sister's idea even though a small part of him warned him to open it by himself.

After being congratulated by his mother and sitting down for breakfast he placed the letter at the back of his mind while enjoying the delicious birthday meal. Conversation and excitement for for Hogwarts came up and Ron asked his brother about his letter, "Have you opened your letter yet? I'm bummed out that first-years can't bring a broom…"

"Oh, no I haven't," Alex jokingly smiled sardonically, " Ginny thought you might actually wait. I don't know where she's been living for the past ten years if she doesn't know you would've opened that letter the moment you laid your grubby hands on it"

Ginny defended herself, "Excuse me for hoping he would have the emotional sense to wait for such a big moment."

Ron countered with a grin, "I don't have any emotional sense to make up an emotional sense about emotional sensibilities"

"That doesn't make any sense!" Ginny replied in frustrated while Alex snorted in laughter beside her. Alex found that Ron took some pride recently in confusing people with his words. Alex had a feeling it was a similar joy Ron experienced whenever someone was stumped in a chess game with him.

Arthur came in and grabbed a piece of toast on his way out to tinker with muggle things, "Now now. Ginny, you know your brother is just teasing you," Arthur nodded at Alex as he opened the kitchen door to the backyard, "Why don't you open up your letter now? It's not everyday that a wizard gets a letter from Hogwarts."

Nodding nervously, Alex took out his letter from his pocket and tore open the letter. His father smiled at him and closed the door on his way out. While Ginny began to read over his shoulder.

HOGWARTS SCHOOL of WITCHCRAFT and WIZARDRY

Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore
(Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc., Chf. Warlock,
Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards)

Dear M̡͕̪̤͍̺̒͘ŗ̺͙̺͕̟̣̄͑͐̊ͤ̓̂ͤͨ͝ ̡̔͂ͮ҉̠̲̫̹̭̳█̢͎̼̹̰͇̲̬̟̬̔͑̿͆Ą̘̺̬̙͇͍̼̦̈́ͬ̉̽ͪ͗̅̋͑͟ ̜̗͓̹̹͓͉͍̎ͯ͂̎ͬ̃͑ ̸͕̭̺̜̥̤̹̯ͩ̋͂̕͝.̴̷̡͈͎̿̌͑▀͓̣͔̬̣̻̰̇͒́█ͫ̆̽͏̰̱̜͚̳͘͞█̹̼̱̭͎̈́̾̅ͩͩ̽͜█̢̜̾̏R̙̟͉̼̞̗̟ͬ̉̾ͮ̏̾ͨ̾.̵̹̦̥̥̹̭̔͗͌ͯ ̷̙͈͍̣̱̠̞̩̠ͤͪ̅͐̍B̸̞̜̼͙̝̑͒l̵̹ͩ̅ͨͭ̓̍a̴̼̙̣̖͔̬̺ͨ͐̂̍͞█̵̥͎̻̤̬ͨ̃̈̌ͤk̬̤̭̳̥̤̜̼̅̄̆́͞ͅ/̣͇̦ͧ̈̄̉ͦͪͧ́͘͝W̦͍̞̙̳̪̞ͨ̿͐ͮ̅̀e̡̽̈́ͫ̀ͬͫ̓̐҉͖̖̫̳̞͇̩a̸̠̫̺͑͗̑̂͛͆̀̀̀s̸̠͇̱̪̺̙̙̃̋ͥͮ̏͊̎ͨͪ̀͢l̟̦͇̰̙͖͙̱̉͑̓̍̓̃̓͂͌͢e̝͙͉̣̻̤̮̽͒̆̋̅͆ͬ͆́́̀y̢̛͙̘͖̰̭̙̥͕ͧ̃͒̋̄̃̋͌̿

Mr. Alexander S. Weasley

Mr Regulus A. Black

Mr. Alexander S. Weasley,
We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. We apologize for the quill's erratic behavior, the school's quill write out the names of future students in order to prevent any fraud. We recommend you attend a magical check up after your sorting on the growth of your magical core. Given the circumstances, please enclose your given name to have the headmaster fix the quill of any future mistakes and future school documents. Enclosed are a list of all necessary books and equipment. Term begins on 1 September. We await your owl by no later than 31 July.
Yours sincerely,
Minerva McGonagall
Deputy Headmistress

Over his shoulder Alex heard Ginny whisper, "If magical objects can go senile, I'm pretty sure that quill might be reaching that point."

Pointing to the various names on the letters Ginny amusedly said, "Regulus? Imagine if your name was actually Regulus. That situation would be worst than the older twins! Mum would mess up names more often."

Alex smiled jokingly, "Maybe I should adopt the name just for that. I'm sure the twins would be proud of Ron and I."

Ginny fell back into her chair with a giggle, "Ronald and Regulus! Ron and Reg! Sounds like the perfect mischievous duo. Too bad that title already belongs to Fred and George."

Ron was looking confused. The letter was pushed to the other side of the table and he was shown the letter in explanation.

"Blimey," Ron said looking at the letter strangely. He then began to laugh, "Regulus Black? I'm calling you Reggie, it's only fair for all those years of being called Ronnie. It's just hard to properly make fun of a name like Alexander."

Ginny giggled quietly and whispered, "Reggie & Ronnie!"

The said 'Reggie' smirked, inwardly he thought this was the perfect opportunity to get his family to use his real name. He wasn't going to start demanding to be called Regulus Black of course. But a deep inner part of him yearned to be called Regulus. He could see himself as Regulus Weasley.

Quickly taking action before the opportunity left him, he used his cup as a gavel. Eyes dancing with excitement he tapped his gavel and stated with a monotone voice, "Hear, hear. Those who agree to address me as Regulus, Reggie, or Reg, say aye!"

Two enthusiastic "Aye!" were shouted in agreement.

A thrill of excitement flows through him and Regulus grinning at the two of them, "I suppose I better set Professor McGonagall straight on the name change."

Forgetting to bring his parents up to date on the matter, Regulus ran up to his room and wrote a reply of acceptance to Hogwarts under the name of Regulus Alexander Septimus Weasley. After signing off the letter with a name he was truly satisfied with, it felt like a breath of fresh air.

A few months afterwards Regulus admitted what he did to his parents to explain the new name. Regulus learned that parents generally don't like it when you suddenly decide to change your name for a 'joke'. Actually, his father didn't really seemed to mind and was under the impression that it was a new nickname his son wanted. His mother however… Didn't find much humor in it and stubbornly continued to call him by his name at birth. She actually began to call him Alexander instead of Alex, as if it would help others call Regulus by the correct name. Ginny took a liking to calling him Reggie, while Ron ultimately prefered Reg.

In his own words he said, "I think by calling you Reg we've beaten Fred and George at twinning for now. Sure they can say things at the same time. But it's not difficult to confuse their names, they just look so alike they confuse people. But our names will have people tripping over their words wondering if they're calling us by the right name!"

Over the summer Regulus managed to convince the rest of his brothers still going to Hogwarts to call him Regulus. His twin brothers easily agreed and and admitted they felt slightly jealous they hadn't thought up joke names for their first year. But they were ultimately proud of 'their little firsties'. Percy was a bit more stubborn to convince but Regulus managed to convince him using his little brother powers. However, it took Percy a while to remember to call him by the correct name since their mother seemed exasperated by the name.

Regulus wondered if it was his innate magic that recognized the Weasleys as family but his soul and himself always knew that his true first name was Regulus. Perhaps magical contracts will work differently for him. Pondering this, he wondered how it could be that his blood would give him a Weasley heritage but he could keep his magic. At least it felt like the magic he felt before... Could it be that magic and blood are not so closely linked and instead it was magic that influenced the blood? Shaking his head in surprise at his own thoughts. That could explain competent muggleborns. Perhaps in this life he could work with Unspeakables to learn more about the influence of magic cores.

Sighing and shifting his attention back into a random book he had chosen off Percy' shelf, he was perplexed by all the different types of magical fish. Apparently wizardkind have explored even less of the ocean than muggles considering how many entries were 'sightings'. It was a book on the history of policies for magical fishing. Regulus briefly wondered where Percy got such obscure and strange books sometimes. Briefly looking up at the calendar on the door he groaned in dismay. There was still a month until Hogwarts. How is it that the few months before Hogwarts seemed like the longest in his life? They hadn't even gone shopping for supplies yet because his mum had decided all the discounts would occur closer to September.

Sneering slightly he remembered that he would be receiving Bill's old wand. Ron would be getting Charlie's. He felt frustrated and knew he likely was going to have trouble with the wand since it wasn't matched exactly to him. There really are many advantages to wealth, like your own bloody wand for Hogwarts.

At least he wouldn't be competing with other Slytherins on who has the nicest wand and whatnot. Come to think of it, he mused, it was a really silly competition considering what a nice wand means when you're older...Coughing a bit to distract himself from that train of thought, he hoped Gryffindor didn't care as much about wealth. Gryffindor was practically a shoe-in for him now that he's a Weasley. All Weasleys get into Gryffindor, Regulus hasn't heard of a Weasley being sorted outside of Gryffindor. And after all, it was in his blood now.

Weasleys were a lot of things. Loud, sure. Brave? That was a given. Prepared to leave for the train on time?

Never.

Regulus' eye twitched in frustration, as he waited downstairs with his father and Percy. While everyone else was in a rush to prepare for Hogwarts. Regulus didn't even know what Ginny was doing to prepare for Hogwarts, she wasn't even going this year. Meanwhile Ron had only packed a quarter of his things before this morning and the older twins were always a ruckus around this time anyways so Regulus didn't have much hope for them initially.

Sighing, he began tapping his wand against his other hand watching the old wand give off sparks for him. The wand wasn't as accepting as he remembered his previous one was but he had to make do at the moment with what he had. Additionally, his mother refused to allow them to use magic with their wands during the summer, so Regulus ended up practicing in secret. He was very aware that this wand likely didn't have the Ministry's tracking charm. Which to Regulus sounded like a very big advantage if he somehow saved up enough money to buy a new wand by the end of the year to avoid the professors checking before summer. He already had a small fund he had started when he was younger. Regulus knew he was pretty close, he only needed about two more gallons. Looking closer at his wand he noticed at least Bill took better care of his wand than rambunctious and animal loving Charlie.

Loud small steps ran down the stairs, Ginny jumped out at the bottom exclaiming, "I'm ready!" Looking around she asked, "Oh everyone else is late again then?"

Regulus smiled at her enthusiasm and offered a her biscuit to help pass the time. Ginny grabbed it and settled down next to him. Regulus asked curiously, "What did you need to get ready for?" Seeing her pause and look a little nervous he teasingly asked, "Were you hoping I would smuggle you in so that you could start with us and meet Harry Potter?"

Ginny looked a little excited and whispered, "Actually that sounds like good, could you? I mean, would you?"

Regulus looked a little startled and whispered back, "I mean Ginny I don't think ―"

Her eyes gave off a mischievous glint, whispering almost inaudibly, "All we need is to find an unsuspecting student take a few of their hairs and use a polyjuice potion!"

Regulus opened his mouth, then snapped it back closed. He looked nervously at Percy and then back at her, "Um Ginny..."

She first started to turn pinkish, then looked like she was holding her breath in. Regulus grew a little more concerned that she was deeply invested in this little plan. Perhaps he had accidently corrupted her and now his little sister was turning into a Dark Witch. Regulus sudden grew more anxious and started to look a little panicked when he suddenly heard peals of giggles and laughter.

Ginny was wiping tears of laughter and gasping she said, "You actually thought I would go through with it!"

Regulus flushed with embarrassment, "Oh Merlin, you were having a go at me weren't you? I suppose I deserve that for teasing you about Potter."

Grinning she patted his shoulder, "Reggie, make sure to write to me. And tell me how it goes! You're a better storyteller than Fred and George. Sometimes it's even hard for me to tell when they're having a go at us. Oh! And make sure Ron writes too. I swear if you weren't also going he would barely write and I would be stuck knitting all day." Her nose scrunched up remembering all her botched up attempts the past winter.

Regulus chuckled, "I'll make sure to write and bore you with all the details of who likes who at Hogwart's village-like rumor mills."

Ginny laughed lightly and turned to her father. Meanwhile Regulus looked back down at his wand and continued tapping it against his other hand trying to will some more sparks to sputter out. But one thought remained at the forefront of Regulus' mind, how will he get the money he needs? Bill and Percy had done some tutoring when they were strapped for cash. The twins had their strange pranks and inventions….Perhaps tutoring would be the way to go.

Regulus was gasping for air as he was jogging across the train station. His family minus father who dropped them off before work, were rushing down London station on their way to platform 9 ¾ . His mum began to slow down, Regulus thought that was a little strange but then again Mum wasn't in shape either. He took the chance to catch his breath and heard his mother ask loudly, "Now, what's the platform number?" Looking incredulously at her, his thoughts about forgetful mothers were interrupted when Ginny piped up with the answer to the question proudly. Regulus laughed to himself knowing how much more excited Ginny seemed for Hogwarts than both him and Ron. Giving the items in his trolley a quick one over after he saw Percy and the older twins go into the platform, he almost missed a quiet voice ask, "Excuse me! C-could you tell me how to?￢ﾀﾝ

Molly quickly replied, "How to get on the platform? Yes, not to worry, dear. It's Ron's first time to Hogwarts as well." Ron smiled at the black haired first year, while Regulus tilted his head curiously. Regulus wondered if this his mother respecting his new name or choosing to ignore it. Molly continued smiling, "Now, all you've got to do is walk straight at the wall between platforms 9 and 10. Best do it at a bit of a run if you're nervous."

Ginny smiled at the other first year and said excitedly, "Good luck!"

Ron decided to go through the platform as an example to the kid asking for help and and the short kid promptly followed after him. Regulus thought he was a bit short but he figured he must be one of those students born in July or August.

Regulus trotted into the brick wall and tried to locate his brother Percy. He then realized that his older brother had Perfect duties to attend to so he should go back to say goodbye to Mum and Ginny. Ron seemed to be arguing with the older twins about something, so Regulus shrugged nonchalantly after saying his goodbyes and walked onto the train to find a compartment. All the compartments seemed either full or had intimidating older students. In the back of his mind, Regulus knew he had the knowledge of a teenager, however, that didn't change the fact the older students wouldn't easily accept a fristie trying to claim a compartment. There weren't many empty compartments, Regulus knew that would change in the next fifteen minutes when everyone would rush in to quickly settle down. He had no doubt Ron would be part of that last minute crowd. As he briefly glanced in the compartments he passed, he thought noticed a young Lucius, but quickly realized the student must be a son. With each passing compartment he realized he would soon get to the end if he didn't choose one quickly.

Deciding the next one was as good as any other at this point, he slammed open the door. A bit of clipped formality slipped into his voice at addressing strangers, "Mind if I sit here?"

A frightened chubby boy quickly shook his head in response while maintaining a desperate grip on a moving toad. The other first year across from the boy looked up at him from her book and while placing a bookmark said, "We don't mind. I'm Hermione Granger, and that's Neville Longbottom. Would you mind closing the door quickly? We're trying to keep Trevor, his toad, from escaping."

Regulus raised an eyebrow at the toad, and closed the door behind him. He thought a toad familiar was a bit strange considering he thought they were pretty dim-witted as pets go. But he swore he saw the toad give him a disapproving gaze. Settling in across from the toad just incase, he replied in a slightly more friendly manner, "Hullo, I'm Regulus Weasley. And why don't you place the toad in a cage like owls?"

Neville shook his head again, and shyly said, "I have but he doesn't like it. He just disappears and ends up in another part of the house."

Regulus and Hermione squinted at the toad, it's bulbous eyes looked even more crossed eyed and developed a stupid glazed appearance. While Regulus continued staring at the strange toad he heard Hermione say, "Well toads are an unusual pet. Most toads don't actually drink water but they soak their bodies in bodies of water. Maybe Trevor just needs a bigger water bowl."

Neville replied, "Oh! That could be the problem. I got a basic cage for amphibians for my birthday, I'll make sure to give him that when we get to Hogwarts."

Regulus frowned slightly at the toad when he noticed a slight twinkle in it's eye. Shaking his head at his imagination he told Neville, "Just ask an older student to enlarge the water bowl, it won't last long but should be enough time for you to owl-order a larger one."

Hermione perked up at this and curiously asked, "Why wouldn't it last a long time? I've read that powerful witches and wizards can cast permanent transfigurations, so wouldn't the duration of the spell or charm have the same principal?"

Regulus paused to look at her and smiled. "Are you aiming for Ravenclaw? They're always up for debating. To answer your question, technically yes. However, I doubt Longbottom here will be asking the Headmaster to enlarge Trevor's water bowl. I assumed he would ask a prefect."

Neville looked surprised at the idea of asking the Headmaster help for such a tedious task.

Hermione more enthused at Regulus' response answered, "I'm actually hoping for Gryffindor, I read that was the Headmaster's old house. But Ravenclaw would also be fine. I'm just really excited for all the classes. I've already read all the required books you see, I don't want to be behind considering my parents are muggles. What house are you hoping to get into?"

Regulus shifted a little at the mention of muggles but decided to cast doubt aside considering that at least Granger was magical. "I'm a Weasley and we've been sorted into Gryffindor for generations." Looking down at the book she was reading he answered, "I see that you're also reading Hogwarts A History." Looking back at her excited face, he continued, "Reading the spells and theory is a good place to start. I would also suggest some light reading for the electives we get to choose in our third year. However our classes consist of both practicals and theory, so I suppose you've only got to practice practicals now."

Neville groaned, "Oh Merlin, I've only read the Herbology textbook."

Hermione began reassuring him that she could help him. Meanwhile, Regulus took out his school clothes and robes then told them, "I'll be right back, I think you'll be fine Longbottom. You could read the rules if you're really worried."

He weakly nodded back in response, while Hermione opened up her book to see if there was anything there about Hogwart's rules.

Regulus stepped into the lavatory, pausing to glance at his reflection while washing his hands, he noticed how unruly his hair was becoming. Regulus sighed trying to fix his unruly rusty hair. His Weasley hair curled whenever it got longer than a buzzcut, Regulus missed the more controlled Black hair he used to have, however he preemptively decided unruly locks would be better than his farm boy appearance when his hair was too short a few summers ago. His twin brother's was closer to a lighter color, and Regulus figured it was of the time Ron spent outside. It didn't change the fact the whole Weasley family was a bright red beacon of light. Regulus sighed and stop trying to fix his hair. It didn't stop from acquaintances from confusing him and Ron.

Walking back to the compartment, he found a disappointed Neville and a frowning Hermione. Raising his eyebrows, he sat back down, noticing the lack of toad he asked, "Did you put the toad away?"

Neville shook his head slowly, "No, we thought we saw you passing the compartment. So Hermione perhaps you forgot the compartment and called you out and heard you mutter about some tosser always disappearing. And Trevor then disappeared."

A lazy grin grew on Regulus' face, "Ah, you must have met the less witty version of me, my twin brother." The compartment door slammed open from behind him, and Regulus smirked knowingly, "My apologies for his uncouth manner."

"I'M NOT UNCOUTH!" Yelled an annoyed voice right behind his ear.

Regulus turned around and started laughing, "I'm sorry, I can't help saying that ever since Ginny screeched that at you during dinner with Great Aunt Muriel!"

Ron rolled his eyes, and turned to the other members in the compartment and stated bluntly, "He's a weird bloke, if you meet our older brothers...they're kinda strange too."

Hermione and and Neville raised their eyebrows in anticipation.

Regulus snorted, "Ron, you're pretty weird too. Being that obsessed with the Chudley Cannons and Quidditch that much can't be healthy."

His twin eyed the trunks in the compartment, "I'm going to find another compartment to fit my trunk." Ron turned around and opened the compartment door. Regulus kept it open and told him in a joking manner, "The first step in recovery is to admit you have a problem."

"Shut up Reg."

"Owl me when you admit it." Regulus said shutting the door.

Sitting back down and opening up a book, he felt some staring and looked up to see Hermione and Neville staring. Smiling, Regulus genuinely said, "Isn't family great?"

Muttering about stupid toads, Regulus looked in another closet and was planning to leave the restrooms until the end. He didn't understand why Neville and Hermione thought it would be best to check compartments if the toad was likely looking for water. Closing the closet, he opened up the one across and quickly slammed it closed when he saw two older students in it. Shaking his head and walking towards the bathrooms he realized why there were so many useless closets on a train. On his way to the restroom he saw Hermione excitedly walking towards their compartment. Peaking his interest, he got her attention by asking, "Did you find Neville's toad?"

Hermione glanced at him, "No, but I met Harry Potter!" Smiling in excitement, "He seemed really nice, and I repaired his glasses because I was so excited."

Regulus raised his eyebrow, "You met The-Boy-Who-Lived? For some reason I imagined he would already be at Hogwarts."

She shook her head in reply, "He was at the last compartment with your brother."

"My brother? Which one?" Regulus replied amused.

Hermione eyes widened a little,"Oh! Well, your twin I met earlier, Ron?"

Regulus nodded, "I hope Potter doesn't mind hearing about Quidditch matches." Tilting his head towards the bathrooms, "I haven't checked the bathrooms for Neville's toad, and I can't go into the ladies."

Hermione smiled, "I'll help then, have you checked all the closets then?"

Grimacing, he replied, "Yes."

Regulus rolled his eyes, "Honestly Ron, I don't know why you trust the twins to tell you the truth about the sorting when they told such and over the top lie about how we crossed the lake."

His twin muttered, "I was still watching out for sirens hoping to drag me down."

Harry looked worried over at Ron wondering what other parts he left out which involved sirens.

Regulus tilted his head and looked at Ron amused, "I thought that was the part you liked."

Ron blushed and averted his eyes to the large oak doors. Professor Mcgonagall appeared in front of the oak door and began a monologue about houses and and the point system. When she left, Regulus heard Harry ask Ron, "How do they sort us exactly?"

Ron replied, "I dunno, Fred said it was some sort of test with a troll."

Harry's eyes widened in fear, Regulus saw Harry's reaction and answered in kind, "Don't worry, Fred also said that mermaids would drag us to the bottom of the lake after the sirens enchanted us to be eaten by the squid monster when first entering Hogwarts." Grinning at him, Regulus continued, "Since that didn't happen we might be safe."

This didn't stop the muttering Regulus heard from Hermione behind him, and the nervous squelch Neville's toad endured but other students seemed to have overheard and calmed down.

Mcgonagall returned and motioned in her strong Scottish accent, " Alright, everyone in a straight line."

The first years gathered in a semi orderly line and followed her to the Great Hall. Regulus smiled at the Great Hall and felt a sense of happiness and belonging. He heard students gasp at the ceiling, and he remembered the beautiful sight of it. He heard Hermione whisper, "The ceiling is enchanted to look like that, I read it in Hogwarts, A History."

He whispered back, "My brother Charlie told me that it was originally implemented to see if dragons were visiting Hogwarts."

Her eyes widened, and he quickly continued, "Of course, he could have just been messing with me. It was likely enchanted so we could tell which cycles of the year we were at."

Shaking her head at his antics, they focused their attention to Professor Mcgonagall. Who began to read out the names. Regulus knew it would take a while for his name to be reached as a Weasley. He noticed surprised at the the fact Hermione and Neville were sorted into Gryffindor. This gave him more hope of his likelihood of being sorted into Gryffindor. Glancing at his twin, who he noticed was turning slightly green.

Regulus Alexander Septimus Weasley!

Raising his head at the call of his name, he walked up to the stool and sat down, waiting for the hat.

"Oh hohoho this is different from the norm", the Hat chuckled

Regulus replied, "I know this is a strange situation, but since I'm a Weasley I guess you know where to place me this time as well."

"Not so fast, young one", the Sorting Hat cut in.

Regulus felt his heart skip, "What?"

"I don't just sort from blood, if it was that easy I would be out of a job! For a older mind stuck in the mind of child you aren't very intelligent."

Indignantly Regulus said, "Well that was rude."

"It rules out Ravenclaw. Not to say you wouldn't fit well there." The Hat wrapped itself more snugly as if trying to siphon out Regulus' thoughts. "The family who raised you doesn't indicate who or what you are. As a previous sibling of a member in the Black family you should know."

"Sirius." Regulus' mind whispered.

"Exactly," The Hat seemed to nod, "You're still ambitious—"

"Hat no—", he interrupted.

The Sorting Hat gripped his head more tightly as if anticipating it would be ripped off.

"I'm not—, I can't! My family will leave me. Disown me! It's what happened to Sirius."

The Sorting Hat sagged a little as if feeling guilty, "You do have bravery and courage to stand up for what you believe in and those you love, young Regulus. But your ambition and desire to prove yourself. Whether that be at academics or worthy of love, is an overriding trait."

"No—" Regulus brokenly gasped in his mind.

"SLYTHERIN!" Yelled out the Sorting Hat.

Wide pale blue eyes met another similar pair across a few feet away. As soon as betrayal and anger registered in the other pair of eyes, Regulus clammed up. Years of Black family training kicked into high gear, as if slipping into an old shoe. A composed mask reached his face as Regulus stood up against the hushed silence and walked to the Slytherin table. There he sat at the end of the table with other first years who moved farther away from him in disgust. The sorting continued, and the next name was called.

Ronald Bilius Weasley!

A few seconds passed, in anticipation. As if the school was waiting to see if these were the evil twins of the the Weasley family. The sorting hat opened its mouth and yelled out,

"GRYFFINDOR!"

Just one evil Weasley apparently. The last Slytherin, Zabini, was sorted and the Headmaster began made announcements. But the noise sounded like crashing ocean waves to Regulus' ears. Looking down at his hands, he wondered how the next seven years would be like.

A/N: Hey life sucks sometimes. Also I changed his name, it felt less like fanfiction and more like my weird AU. So this fixes it.