The Brothers Black

Marlene McKinnon was captain of the Gryffindor Quidditch team, and a girl Remus had long since decided to avoid at all costs. Not once in four and a half years had they engaged in a conversation which did not involve her shouting - mainly because she came to him when she couldn't find James or Sirius.

Today was no exception.

' Where the Hell are they?' she bellowed across the common room, startling a group of nearby second-years and frightening some first-year boys back up the stairs to their dorm. ' Don't you understand how important this is?'

No, he thought. Not in the least.

' Of course I do,' he said, politely. ' And I don't know where they are. Haven't seen them since this morning.'

He looked across the Muggle chess set at Peter for confirmation, support, anything. But the sandy haired boy's brain seemed to have melted in the presence of the tumultuous brunette athlete, and he was staring determinedly at his idle bishop. Remus smiled back up at Marlene, trying not to sigh in exasperation.

' When you find them,' she told him in a threatening tone that clearly said she thought he knew exactly where they were, ' send them straight down to the pitch. We are going to beat those snakes this year if it kills me.'

For a few moments, she was muttering more to herself than anyone else. Then she remember Remus - who knew better than to turn away mid-rant - and raised her voice as she added, ' Understand, Lupin?'

' Yes, ma'am,' he replied, but she had already stormed away to harass Jim Hartley on the whereabouts of his girlfriend Paula Burghs, their third-year beater.

Peter had just about recovered his wits enough to make another move, and reached for his knight, when Sirius leapt up from behind the armchair the smaller boy was occupying. Peter fell out of said chair with a squeal, landing heavily on the carpeted floor, and Sirius took his place, drawing his legs up under himself and resting his chin on the chair arm.

' You are such a dog,' Remus informed him.

He grinned, then pouted. ' So I like curling up on the furniture, big deal. Or are you going to smack my nose and tell me I've been bad?'

Remus snorted at the image. ' I meant hiding behind the furniture to avoid Marlene. Stupid Mutt.'

' Hiding?' he said, affronted. ' I'd never do something so…'

' Cowardly?' Peter supplied, having finally pulled himself into sitting position. ' Childish, girly? Ooh, better yet. Something so Slytherin.'

' I was just going to go with pathetic,' Remus said, impressed. ' But you're on a roll, Wormtail.'

' How about abysmally emasculate?'

' Very good. How do you know what that means?'

' I don't,' the mousy boy admitted. ' Heard Evans say it to Prongs once.'

Ah, that explains it, Remus thought, laughing.

' I'll have to thank her for that,' Sirius mumbled, trying his best to look as offended as possible.

' That look doesn't suit you,' Remus told him, and he smiled instead.

' Is that where he's gotten to, then?' Peter asked. ' After Evans?'

' Of course. Poor Prongsie can't let it drop.'

By 'it' Sirius meant Lily and Snapes friendship. James had taken it as a personal blow. Quite rightly, Sirius assured Remus, since the girl of his dreams wouldn't look at him twice, but happened to be close friends with his enemy. Sirius himself didn't seem bothered at all by the notion, which surprised Remus more than he liked to admit.

' You took it very well, Pads,' Peter once again spoke Remus' thoughts.

The older boy only shrugged. ' I have a better memory than antler-boy.'

Remus blinked, then glanced sideways at Pete to find him with the same blank look on his face. Then the smaller boy said, very eloquently, ' Eh?'

' Didn't we ever tell you?' Sirius said, sounding genuinely surprised. ' We met them on the train, very first day of school. Old Snivelly was pally with our Evans before they even came to Hogwarts.'

' Oh,' was all Remus could think to say.

' Didn't you ever wonder why Evans hated us from the start, at the Feast?'

' Not really,' Remus answered, honestly. ' I assumed you'd upset her on the train. I never asked, never wanted to know.'

' Hm. It's your fault I didn't tell you then. Serves you right.'

' Of course it does,' he replied, dutifully. ' Shouldn't you be getting ready for the match?'

' You want rid of me?

' Yes, desperately.'

' Tough. You're coming to watch. Support your team, Moony!' Even as Remus argued he was pulled from his seat and pushed through the door, Peter cackling from somewhere as he followed behind.

And so, twenty minutes and a lot of shoving later, Remus found himself with a front-row seat in the Gryffindor Stand.

It was a cool, clear day, perfect for Quidditch, Remus noted as he watched the stands fill with noisy students. Equal sections were reserved for the Gryffindors and the Slytherins, with a smaller section for anyone from Hufflepuff or Ravenclaw, and the Teachers stand in the middle.

The crisp evening air stung his face and Remus was suddenly grateful of the red and gold scarf Sirius had almost strangled him with on the way down. He wrapped it tighter around his cheeks, covering his reddening earlobes. It smelt of musk and chocolate and… dog. It was an odd combination, but not at all unpleasant.

' Here they come,' said Pete, pointing.

The players flooded onto the pitch in a stream of scarlet and emerald robes and assembled in formation around the centre spot. On instruction, the Slytherin captain - a small seventh-year Remus couldn't recall the name of - forcefully shook Marlene's hand. Remus almost felt sorry for him when she took it in her stride and gave as hard as she got.

The fourteen players mounted their brooms and prepared to kick off, and Remus was sure he saw Sirius and James exchange a look. Madam Hooch blew her whistle, and in a sudden flash of colour the players were in the air. Hooch followed, shouting orders, and another official opened the box below and released the balls.

' And McKinnon gets the Quaffle,' the familiar voice of Pendah Patil - a seventh-year Ravenclaw, and long-time commentator - boomed across the grounds. ' Nice pass to Potter - returning chaser, of course - who puts it away neatly. Ten to Gryffindor.'

Remus cheered for his friend along with the rest of his House, and felt compelled to jeer when Barty Crouch scored a few minutes later.

' Nice shot there by the new chaser, third-year Crouch. But there goes Meadows while the Slytherins are celebrating - clean cross to Potter - and Gryffindor lead again, Twenty Ten.'

Peter shouted and squawked particularly loudly at Dorcas, who beamed back at the stands.

' Keeper Rabastan Lestrange clears the Quaffle, just avoiding a bludger by Sirius Black - returning Gryffindor Beater. Oh, but Thomas Knapford fumbles and McKinnon takes possession - Score!'

When Gryffindor upped their lead to fifty points, their opponents decided on a change of tack.

' Nasty interception there by Thorfinn Rowle - Slytherin Captain, no less. His team's gone for a change of strategy - obviously playing fair wasn't working for them.'

The game quickly deteriorated into all out violence. Unfortunately for Slytherin, it wasn't really helping them at all.

When Flint and Avery coordinated a joint attack on James, Sirius threw Lestrange off balance with a bludger and Dorcas scored. After that, the Slytherin beaters tried to knock the Gryffindor Keeper - Kenny Wood - clean off his broom, but James and Marlene already had the quaffle at the other end of the pitch.

Remus was so caught up in the systematic cheering and hissing that he didn't notice the blur of green across his vision until Patil spoke.

' Another clean shot. Ninety-twenty. Oh, and there goes Regulus Black - the new Slytherin Seeker - He's seen the snitch.'

Everyone seemed to freeze for a moment at the revelation, and the entire school took a breath. Even the wind stilled, making it eerily silent, and Remus shivered. Then it was gone, and everyone sprang to action at once.

Marlene bellowed at Benjamin Kane, the Gryffindor seeker, to get his arse in gear.

Kane did as he was told, but Regulus had the new Nimbus 1000 and it outpaced the Comet 180 easily.

Lestrange was still staring, gormless, at his seeker, and James and Dorcas to the opportunity to get in behind him with the quaffle.

Remus was watching Regulus shooting towards the ground, feeling oddly invested in the result, and irritated about the imminent Gryffindor loss. He focused on the steady voice of Patil, which was still echoing around the pitch.

' That's a Hundred and forty - twenty. Not enough. And Black's almost there - He's reaching for something - I can't see what, but it must be the snitch! Meadows makes it a Hundred and fifty. Nearly -' there was a sickening crack as the heavy bludger smashed into Regulus' outstretched arm. Every member of the crowd grimaced.

' That's a definite break. Sirius Black's handiwork. There's certainly no love between these brothers. Potter's scored again. Hundred and sixty - But Regulus has straightened himself up. He's still going, blimey - that's impressive.'

Regulus had indeed pulled himself straight. He pressed his shattered wrist to his chest and spared a fleeting snarl for his brother as he hurtled towards the little flash of gold.

He made the catch with his good hand, balanced on his broom with only his knees, then skidded to a stop and collapsed into a heap. He was pale and clearly pained, but the pride was evident on his face. But he'd been just a second too late.

Sirius' hit had done it's job, slowed the younger Black down long enough for James, Dorcas and Marlene to up their score.

' Hundred and Seventy to a Hundred and Seventy. A draw! Not had that between these two teams in over eighty years! And that leaves the House Cup Standings…'

But Remus wasn't listening anymore. He was watching Sirius, who had dismounted below and was approaching Regulus. The younger boy was shouting as he scrambled to his feet, his good arm flailing in the air. His face was the picture of fury as he screamed at his brother and, bizarrely, Sirius just stood quietly and took it.

Eventually, several Slytherins intervened, calming their team-mate down and shepparding him up to the hospital wing. Sirius stared blankly at the spot for a moment, then he exited the pitch at the opposite end to the changing rooms and sprinted off in the direction of the lake.

Remus gave his quick goodbyes to a satisfied-enough-to-celebrate James, Peter and Dorcas, then headed down to the lake himself. It took him the better part of an hour to locate his friend, and when he finally spotted the bear-sized black dog it was getting fairly dark.

Padfoot was sitting under a willow tree on the far side of the lake, looking back towards the castle. Remus edged towards him and settled himself with his back against the tree trunk.

' You okay, Pads?'

The dog whimpered, shuffled closer and put it's head in his lap. Idly, Remus stroked the great shaggy head, rubbing gently behind the ears. He stayed like that for a while, silent and staring across at the lights flickering in Gryffindor tower.

' It'll be alright, you know,' He said, finally. ' Madam Pomfrey'll fix him up in no time. Probably all better by now.'

There was a shifting movement as the dog turned back into his friend, but Sirius didn't move his head from Remus' lap, and Remus kept rubbing softly behind his ear. The older boys breathing was slightly ragged and Remus tried to ignore the dampness he could feel where the purebloods eyes were pressed to his leg.

' I didn't mean to hurt him, you know,' Sirius almost whispered, his voice hoarse. ' I really didn't.'

' I know, Padfoot. I know.'

Here you are dear readers, Chapter Eight!

So, a few things. Firstly, I made Sirius a beater. I thought - Sirius with an excuse to throw heavy, unpredictable and dangerous items at Slytherins without being punished for it? And my brain replied Suits you sir, in a very posh, very phoney London accent.

Secondly, I made this an evening Quidditch match. I couldn't remember at the time whether this was ever mentioned, I don't think it was, but hey! If they can do it for football, they can do it for Quidditch.

Yeah, and I don't believe for a minute that Sirius hated Regulus. The way he told Harry he was 'too soft to say no' to his parents ideals sounded too protective for me. Disappointed maybe, but protective.

On a separate note, I keep seeing all the adverts of the Deathly Hallows film. It's kind of annoying me. I'm a definite book girl myself, so my only interest in the films in a morbid fascination to see how badly they maim the story to make it suitable for kids. But that's me, and I have been told I am different to normal people.

Anyway, thank you for reading! Feedback makes me smile! Danke shern!