On This Home by Horror Haunted, Part 1

Notes: A follow-up to My Soul From Out That Shadow (not that it really needed one). Not really a sequel so much as a vaguely related work within the same "universe." I have a bad habit of making these. Anyway, enjoy. This is only the first half (it got pretty damn long, so I've split it up for the sake of my own sanity).

Warnings: Sexual and physical abuse. Incest. Violence. Even more explicit than last time, though it won't really pop up until I upload the second half of this beast.

Timeline: In this Sirius escaped prison in 1983, shortly after being incarcerated. Just go with it.

Time passed. Weeks went by. Then months. And all the while, Regulus hid. Winter had ended by the time he finally ventured outside Sirius's house. It was necessity that had driven him to it. His supply of food in the kitchen had run out, and while Regulus was sure more food was kept in the pantry, the door was one of the last vestiges of Sirius's original wards that still clung to life. Regulus found the door magically sealed and had no idea of when it might finally fade. After three days of starving himself, Regulus finally relented. From the few times when visitors had knocked on the front door, Regulus had determined that the wards had faded to the point where he was now able to leave the house.

But would he be able to get back in?

Without a wand, he couldn't be sure. So the first time Regulus left the house, he propped the front door open an inch or two. The second time he left, he did so through a window, which was less noticeable when left agape.

At first Regulus was utterly lost. He had no wand, and no money. So he did the only thing he knew how to do.

He went home.

It was hours of weary wandering and a ride from a strange muggle in a car, but Regulus finally made it to his parents' corner of London only to find that Grimmauld Place was locked to him.

At first Regulus thought he might cry with exasperation. Had his parents removed him from the wards of his own home so soon after his disappearance? Were they so furious with him for running away?

Regulus bit his lip and hugged his arms to his chest. He must have been a pathetic sight, standing like this in front of the muggle street.

His parents hadn't removed Sirius from the home's security when he'd run away. And they'd hated Sirius. Had Regulus really upset his mother and father this badly?

A thought occurred to Regulus that the process may have been automatic. After all, Sirius had stopped his heart with that god awful potion. Regulus had been legally dead for several minutes, long enough most likely for Walburga's tapestry and other family devices to see him as deceased. Regulus rubbed absentmindedly at his left forearm. He'd felt no summonings since his "death," either.

"Mum!" Regulus yelled, stepping forward and slamming his fist against the door. He was still a wizard, so Grimmauld Place was visible to him. He honestly had no idea what he must look like to any muggle driving by. "Dad!" Regulus kept yelling and knocking, but there was no answer. Were his parents not home? Were they ignoring him?

Had something become of them? For a moment Regulus was consumed by the very real fear that the Dark Lord may have already discovered his betrayal. After all, his stint in the cave had been less than a year ago. Had his master realized what he'd done and come after his parents in retribution.

Regulus shook his head. How ridiculous he was being! His parents were probably just out. He would come back and try again later if he dared.

Thinking of his old master had stirred fear in Regulus and he became acutely aware of how obvious he looked. Anyone would recognize him. He pressed his body up against the front door of the house, trembling. Suddenly the immense weight of everything struck him all at once and he let out a dry sob.

Sirius was dead. Just the fact that Regulus was standing here meant that the last trails of his brother's magic had faded from the world. Regulus didn't know where his parents were, they could be dead for all he knew. And his brother…

...his big brother was really dead. Dead and gone. Regulus would never see him again, and as much as Regulus hated his brother, he still loved him. He loved the brother he remembered from years ago, the brother he'd idolized in his head, the few moments of sweetness Sirius had shown him even after their whole sordid affair had begun.

Regulus let the tears fall until he felt his breath lodge in his throat. Gasping, he finally straightened himself up. As deep in despair as he was, there was sill a spark of determination within him. If he was going to die, then he wasn't going to starve to death on his own front step. He would recover his wand and he would set right his life. But first he needed to find something to eat.

So Regulus staggered about until he came to a muggle food store staffed by only one clerk who seemed quite inattentive. Regulus sat down outside and waited. When there was a significant-enough number of customers browsing about the shop, he slipped inside and pocketed all he could carry.

Getting back to Sirius's house was no small feat. Not knowing where he was, Regulus had to ask for directions. He approached the next person he saw who looked like she would give him the time of day.

"Gods, you're trying to get all the way over there by foot?" demanded the woman when Regulus told her Sirius's address. "Take the bus, dear."

"No money," Regulus mumbled. The woman frowned.

"Well then wait here with me for a minute. My friend's coming to pick me up in half an hour and I'm sure she'd be fine with giving you a ride."

Regulus was too tired and hungry to protest.

This first day of travel was so hard on Regulus that he didn't again try to return to his parents' house. The journey was too far to make safely, especially when he was defenseless and potentially being hunted.

Regulus tried to make his pitiful haul of food last as long as possible. When he could stand the hunger pangs no longer, he finally ventured outside again, this time at night. He stared longingly through multiple store windows but was ultimately too scared to risk anyone catching him. He had been lucky the first time. So he staggered back home hungry again. With what felt like knives digging into his stomach, Regulus tossed his brother's bedroom, looking frantically for any spare coins. Finally, after rummaging through a dozen drawers and turning out the pockets of all of Sirius's trousers, Regulus found several galleons and a sickle. He knew the muggles valued gold a far sight more than wizards did. Perhaps he could trade these coins for their worth in muggle money, which he could then buy food with.

Regulus's plan with the galleons worked, and after a long day of wandering and asking for help, during which many people gave him pitying looks, he finally made it home with what would hopefully be enough food to last at least until his brother's pantry door finally relented.

After that Regulus bunkered down. He was terrified that he may have been spotted by an enemy during one of his outings and spent several weeks convinced that he would wake to either the Aurors or the Death Eaters preparing to kill him.

But they never came. Eventually Regulus was able to brute force his way past Sirius's ever-weakening wards and access the canned goods in the pantry.

Regulus knew he couldn't stay hidden in this house forever, much as he might prefer that. He needed to get back out to the real world—the wizarding world. He needed to figure out what was going on and he needed to contact his family. As terrifying as the prospect was, he needed to alert his parents to the fact that he was still alive. He needed to know what was happening in the war.

But he was unwilling to present himself to the wizarding world without his wand. Even traveling back to Grimmauld Place to try again to contact his parents would leave him uncomfortably exposed. He was helpless as he was, and try as he might, he could not locate his wand. Sirius had to have hidden it somewhere in the house, and the house was not that large, so how much longer was Regulus going to have to hunt for it? With his luck, Sirius would have the thing locked behind more magic, and who knew how long Regulus would have to wait until that magic faded?

For now he waited in the house, biding his time, sleeping on the couch to stave off the nightmares that plagued Sirius's bedroom. Regulus was terrified of this house, but it was all he could be certain of right now.

Months more passed, and Regulus finally located his wand. It was in the pantry, he was sure of it. Hidden behind the wine rack was a small safe nestled snugly within the brickwork. Regulus had not noticed it until he'd given in to temptation and removed a cheap bottle of merlot, revealing the device behind it.

Regulus couldn't open the safe without the combination, but he could feel his wand behind the small, metal door. When he gripped the handle he could feel his wand reach out for him. It was there. He just needed to get to it.

"Found you," Regulus said with a small smile. Things would be okay now. He would get into the metal wall-box eventually. Now he had a clear goal in mind that he could work towards. Then, when he was once again armed, he could see about getting his life back.

Sirius didn't have many potion supplies in his home, detesting the subject as he had, but he had enough for any respectable wizard. And so Regulus set to work. Potions had never been his forte, but he'd always been competent, and now, like a prisoner serving life, he had nothing but time to make sure he got everything just right.

"Spider, spiders, spiders," Regulus muttered, sifting through jars in Sirius's cabinets and looking for the next ingredients he would need. The lock on Sirius's safe was not magical. It was a muggle contraption. And so the lock would not fade no matter if Regulus waited a century. So he was going to have to open it with force.

He was going to blow the damn thing open. And he knew just the potion to throw at it.

"Here you are," Regulus popped the cork on a small bottle of dead cross spiders and lazily poured one into his bubbling potion. It simmered and turned a violent orange. Perfect. Now all he needed to do was wait.

The prospect of once again being armed was a little bit daunting at the same time that it was exciting. Regulus would have no more excuses to keep hiding here. He would have to face whatever music was waiting for him.

Regulus tossed and turned that night. He'd been too excited to fall asleep easy. His blasting potion was almost ready to go, sealed up in a vial on the counter. In a few short days, he'd have his wand back. Regulus had to really try to get to sleep, and when he did, he slept fitfully.

His dreams were beset by nightmares not unlike those that had attacked him the nights he'd attempted to sleep in Sirius's bed.

Harsh hands and harsher words. A grip tight on Regulus's throat and an immovable weight covering his whole body. All of it holding him down, but the words most strongly of all. Words so cruel and so frightening and so real that Regulus felt he could not escape them, even if his body were free. His legs could run, his mind could not.

Everything was dark while Regulus dreamed. He never saw. He could hear, though. He could hear an unforgiving ocean threatening to swallow him whole. Distant shouting, and the feeling of sharp rocks spilling out over the ground, cutting him. There was so much lightning all around him, crashing and exploding and—

A loud bang woke Regulus from his uneasy slumber. For a moment, he was disoriented and unsure if he'd heard the sound or dreamed it.

When only silence persisted, Regulus sank back down onto the sofa, breathing heavily. He was about to close his eyes again when he heard it. A voice, calling softly to him, almost gently.

"Oh, Reggie..."

Regulus skin tingled. He knew that voice. Knew that voice better than he knew his own. But it wasn't possible, was it? No, it couldn't be.

"Regulus..."

No, no, no. He had come to terms with everything. He was free. His life was going to get back on track again. He had loved that voice. He had cowered before that voice. He had grieved for that voice. He had been certain he'd never hear it again.

But here it was, smooth and commanding as ever. And right on the other side of the front door. As if pulled by the strings of a marionette, Regulus lifted himself from the couch and approached the entryway, barely breathing.

"Please let me in, Regulus," Sirius cooed through the door.

Regulus shuddered. Intrigued, almost possessed, he drifted down the front hall. Sirius's voice continued to filter through the door, pleading, demanding. Regulus could feel his skin crawling. He slid up to the door and reached out a trembling hand. He let his fingertips rest upon the cool wood. He could almost feel the door vibrate with each word Sirius murmured.

"Reggie, my little one. I've missed you so. Open the door and let me come back to you."

Regulus stood there in the dark, shaking. Sirius's voice was so close to him, just on the other side of the front door. He could hardly believe it. It had been months...no, years. Sirius had left him over two years ago. Could he really be back?

Regulus narrowed his eyes. This seemed to him to be some horrible trick. He had assumed Sirius long dead…

He had thought he was free…

A rising panic took hold in Regulus's mind. Sirius couldn't still be alive, could he? Regulus retracted his hand from the door as if it had burned him. He took a frightened step backwards. He had thought Sirius dead, but here he had returned. If it was truly Sirius on the other side of that door, then...Regulus could almost cry with misery. He'd had two years to run, to hide. And yet he'd stayed here, in Sirius's house like a sitting duck. Wand or no wand, he should have run! And now Sirius had come back for him and it was his fault he'd been caught!

Regulus took another step back, but it was difficult. Sirius was still talking to him, and his voice had an almost tangible weight to it. His soft commands wrapped around Regulus's body and they tugged. They pulled at his feeble resistance, drawing him in.

Don't open that door…

"Open up, Reggie..."

Regulus panted. Was he safe in here? He should open the door immediately if he wanted to avoid making Sirius angry. But what if Sirius was locked out for good? Sirius's wards had faded, but they hadn't disappeared. The home was still magically locked. The powers had only lessened, weakened just enough to no longer recognize Sirius as the caster and allow him entry.

Regulus's heart was racing. How difficult would it be for Sirius to get in past these diminished wards? Would he just have to wait, as Regulus had? How long? Minutes? Days? Hours? Perhaps he wouldn't be able to get in at all? Regulus trembled. He didn't want to let Sirius in. If he was truly safe in here, then he wanted to leave Sirius outside. But if Sirius stood a chance of getting in without Regulus's help, then he would be so furious at Regulus for not opening the door.

"Regulus, I'm not going to ask you again."

By this point Regulus's fingertips were brushing up against the handle.

"Answer me, Regulus." Sirius's voice was getting harder. The ethereal qualities were fading, leaving only a frightening coarseness. "Are you unable to open the door?"

Regulus blinked. Did Sirius think Regulus was still trapped inside the house? That he couldn't open the door? Under Sirius's care, the wards had blocked Regulus from leaving the building via window, door, or any other opening. Of course Sirius wouldn't know for certain that the magic had weakened so far as to allow Regulus to leave.

Was Sirius even certain Regulus was still inside? Wild thoughts entered Regulus's mind. If he just stayed silent, then maybe he could convince Sirius that he had escaped. Or that he had starved to death inside the house. His fingers ghosted about the handle some more.

Maybe Sirius would leave. Give up. Go elsewhere. Seek his vengeance against whatever force had weakened him these past two years if he hadn't been dead.

"Reg?" Sirius asked softly. His voice was so small and so...young, that Regulus started. His fingered knocked gracelessly against the handle, jostling it. The door didn't open, but the sound of the handle moving had been loud against the silence of the night. Regulus's breath hitched. He couldn't see his brother, but the image of Sirius's face twisting into a predatory grin burned itself into Regulus's vision regardless.

"Ah, I can hear you, Reggie." The age came flooding back to Sirius's voice. Gone was the sound that had reminded Regulus so forcefully of his brother as he had existed when they were children. Returned was the man who had held Regulus captive. Hurt him. Used him.

Claimed to own him.

"If you tell me why you aren't letting me inside, Regulus, then I may be lenient with you. But you need to answer me now, little brother."

Regulus stumbled backwards until he hit the wall. He tightly closed his eyes, wishing desperately for this to be a mistake. A delusion brought on by isolation. A trick by the Dark Lord to trap him. Anything but what it seemed.

Sirius sighed loudly from the front steps. "Fine, be a brat," he conceded. "It's really no matter…

"I'll get inside eventually."

Regulus felt hot tears spill from his eyes.

"And when I do, you'll be very sorry, indeed."