The Language Of The Soul

by A Sirius Crush On Moony

A collection of drabbles/one-shots focusing on different emotions. [22] - Regulus hates himself for taking the Dark Mark, and he believes that hurting himself is what he deserves. [23] - Petunia/Vernon - Petunia likes watching him from afar. [24] - Regulus/Sirius - Sirius watches Regulus as he studies in the library much to his friends' disgust.

15. Cowardly (Regulus)

Emotion/Feeling - Cowardly

Pairing - None

Rating - K

Word Count - 432

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Cowardly

Regulus heard his name being called—he would have been able to hear it from a mile away. It was so loud in his ears, but in some ways he could barely hear his name being called at all over the deafening thumping of his heart. This was it—all of those lectures from his parents and from Sirius, all of those expectations. He was eleven years old. He was too young to be going through something as stressful as this.

"REGULUS BLACK?" Professor McGonagall called again. He was broken out of his thoughts by his name called the second time, and he hesitantly stepped forwards and took a seat on the stool. Hundreds of curious faces were all staring back at him, and he could feel his cheeks heating up. Before he could become too self-conscious, something dropped onto his head and all he could see was the inside of a musty old hat.

The Sorting Hat.

He gulped. This was it.

"Ah, another Black. Your family sure do love to breed. This shouldn't be too hard, then, should it? I suppose you want to be in Slytherin like the rest of your family?"

Regulus tried to shake his head. He tried to yell, "I'm not sure!" but he was frozen in fear. The thought of betraying his family and asking to be put in a different house was terrifying, but the thought of disappointing Sirius was also heartbreaking. Regulus had never been so frightened in his entire life.

"Scared, are we? I sense a little bit of internal conflict. You don't know if you want to be in Slytherin, but the fact that you're too afraid to tell me how you feel means you definitely can't be Gryffindor. I don't sense any Hufflepuff qualities about you. So either Ravenclaw or Slytherin."

The sound of his mother's voice started ringing in his ears. The thought of the Howler he would most likely receive in the morning, and the way she would call him a failure and a disappointment for the rest of his life was what made him open his mouth.

"S-Slytherin," he stammered, his throat going dry.

"I see. Well, better be…. SLYTHERIN!"

The hat was thrust off of his head and he was being directed towards the Slytherin table. On his way to his new House, all that Regulus could do was look for Sirius. He finally caught sight of his older brother and the glare he received could only mean one thing.

You're a coward.

And he was. Perhaps Slytherin was meant to be his House, after all.

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