Sirius groaned as a faint singing voice stirred him from his slumber. As he forced his eyes open, he was greeted by a familiar ceiling, adorned with a red and gold swirled pattern that was distinctly Gryffindor. He flexed and unflexed his fingers repeatedly, cherishing the sensation of being alive once more. Slowly, he sat up and rubbed the sleep from his eyes, still trying to comprehend the surreal scene before him. He slightly jumped at the sight of a naked James singing his heart out while combing his hair in front of the mirror. Meanwhile, Remus can be seen buttoning his shirt at the foot of his bed.

Sirius was mesmerized, his hand roaming over the bedsheets as he sought reassurance that this was all real. The soft fabric under his touch was a source of profound pleasure. His heart swelled with emotion as he gazed upon the friends he thought he had lost. He noticed that Remus had fewer scars than the last time they met, which suggested that he had obtained the rest of his scars in the years to come.

Sirius was so engrossed in his thoughts that he didn't realise he was staring at James quite intensely. James noticed this immediately and playfully covered his crotch with both of his hands. "Whoa, Padfoot, don't give me that look! I had no idea you were interested in me like that." He winked suggestively. Remus rolled his eyes at his friend's joke.

Just as Sirius was about to reply with a sarcastic joke, the door to the dorm room suddenly swung open and Peter stepped in, holding the Marauders Map and an unknown bottle of potion. His eyes burned with fury as he watched Peter approach them closer. Sirius could feel the rage boiling up inside him, threatening to spill over and consume everything in its path. He balled his fists tightly, struggling to control the urge to lash out at Peter and make him pay for what he had done. He couldn't shake the feeling of intense betrayal that coursed through his veins.

Leaning back into the bed, he tried to calm himself down. 'Right.. they were friends.' he thought. He almost forgot this part due to the overwhelming feeling of betrayal Peter had caused him. He wasn't entirely sure if Peter had reached the point where he was willing to sacrifice his friends to Voldemort. Still, Sirius knew that cutting Peter off from their friend group would be a much safer and easier choice for them, but of course he needed to find a good reason in order for it to happen. Sirius was aware that James wasn't particularly fond of Peter. Remus was the one who invited Peter to join the group since he felt bad for him.

"Wormtail! You got the potion!" James exclaimed.

"Yeah, but... I don't think we can pull off the prank today," Peter said, unrolling the map and spreading it onto one of the night stands. James squinted at the parchment, trying to make sense of what he was looking at. Sirius shuffled closer and moved his head to line up with James' head until they were pressed together.

"Well, that's it. I'm off!" Remus announced, picking up his bag and heading to the Great Hall.

James yelled for Remus to stay and listen to the plan, but he ignored them and left the room without looking back. Once Remus was out of earshot, they all refocused their attention on the map. Sirius' gaze quickly landed on Severus Snape's name, who was shown to be walking with Mulciber, Avery, and Rosier towards the Great Hall.

James clicked his tongue in annoyance. He uttered a discontented exclamation under his breath as he saw that the man had chosen today of all days to lurk behind his friends for protection. His mood plummeted immediately. He gave the bed a light kick before slipping into his wrinkled uniform.

"That's what I'm saying," agreed Peter. "He rarely hangs out with the other Slytherins. Maybe he found out about our plan?"

"If he's aware of our plan and decides to take shelter behind his mate, then he's a bloody coward." James scowled, his voice dripping with disdain. "You guys still want to proceed with the plan?"

"How?"

"Just kick their arses, mate. I doubt any of those Slytherins know how to duel properly." James scoffed smugly.

'Snape,' Sirius thought. Severus and Sirius's animosity towards each other persisted even after Sirius's escape from Azkaban. Their past rivalry showed no signs of resolution and remained as intense as ever. Severus was just as unpleasant and disagreeable as Sirius remembered him from their teenage years, with a demeanour that made Sirius irked just by looking at him.

Sirius cast a glance at the potion in Peter's hand. The bottle looked quite familiar to him, and it was unmarked, filled with a radiant red liquid. He snatched the potion from Peter's hand and studied it closely, trying to recall where he had seen it before. Suddenly, a realisation dawned on Sirius, and his complexion paled. "Oh shit!" he cried out, making his friends jump in surprise.

He remembered the potion—it was the erumpent potion, known for causing explosive reactions upon contact with any foreign substance. Sirius shuddered at the memory of how their plan had gone wrong. They had not intended to dump the potion on Snape himself, of course; that would be psychotic. Their goal was to pour the potion on his belongings and bag, ruining the items they knew he wouldn't be able to replace. But to their surprise, Snape went and hung with the Slytherins that day, throwing a wrench in their plan.

Instead of giving up on their prank, they chose to take Snape's bag forcibly, resulting in a huge fight with the four Slytherin students. Sirius remembered clearly the moment the potion slipped from James' pocket and shattered, causing a massive explosion that left all of them injured. The whole thing was a stupid idea, and they all spent a month recovering in the hospital. Staying in the same space as four Slytherins was a nightmare. Madam Pomfrey had to take away their wands to avoid any further fights and injuries.

"What's up, Padfoot?" James asked, placing a hand on Sirius' shoulder.

Sirius quickly snapped out of his thoughts and slipped the erumpent potion into his pocket without a hitch. "Nothing, maybe we can try the prank another time. Today wasn't a good day, after all," he shrugged. With a flick of his wand, his wrinkled uniform that was hanging beside his bed smoothed out. He grabbed his towel and headed towards the bathroom.

James grinned and leaned against Sirius' bedside table, crossing his arms. "Trying to impress the ladies, mate?"

Sirius was momentarily puzzled, but then he remembered he had never ironed his uniform other than during the graduation. He chuckled and went along with it. "Yeah, I am," he replied, slamming the bathroom door.

He walked over to the sink and placed his hands on top of it. He gazed into the mirror, admiring his face. It was perfect, with no dark circles or signs of weariness from the stress of the dementors. "Shit," he muttered under his breath. He didn't know where to begin now that he was back. There were so many things he could change, but where should he start?

He settled down on the toilet seat, letting his mind wander through all the opportunities he had. It would be great if he could keep James from having a child before Voldemort was defeated. He could definitely stop James' death by either delaying his wedding to Lily or completely breaking them apart. But ending their friendship with Peter was definitely one of his top priorities at that moment. He cradled his face in his hands and sighed heavily. Knowing the future was not a gift at all, it was a burden. There were just too many things that weighed heavily on his mind.

Suddenly, he jolted as he remembered something important.

Regulus.

Unfortunately, Sirius never learned the exact cause of his brother's death, but he wished he could have stopped it from happening. Despite their complicated relationship, Sirius still held a deep love for Regulus and wanted only the best for him. The memory of Regulus' pained look after Sirius told him he was going to leave their home was still fresh in his mind. Sirius tried reaching out to Regulus several times after that, encouraging him to join him, but Regulus chose to remain as Walburga's obedient son. Sirius often wished that Regulus would have had the courage to defy their mother and her oppressive beliefs.

He knew that the only way for him to convince his brother to leave was to fix their broken relationship and start from scratch. This might require putting aside his defiance towards his family's beliefs for a while.

Sirius cringed at the thought. He had no intention of becoming a Death Eater, all he needed was a way to show Regulus just how dangerous and harmful the Death Eaters truly were.

A knock on the door made Sirius jump. "You good in there, mate?" James's voice came through, likely concerned that there was no noise coming from the bathroom.

He replied, "Yeah, I'm fine," before turning the shower on. He let the hot water run, focusing on its calming sound as it cascaded down his body. He turned off the shower after spending a full 20 minutes in there and wrapped a towel around his waist.

"What made you take so long?" James asked as soon as he entered their dorm room. "The sorting ceremony is over, I can hear loads of kids outside the common room."

Sirius quickly slipped into his uniform and replied, "Just taking in my good looks in the mirror."

"Typical," James chuckled in response.

Sirius scanned the room as he walked into the potion class with James and Peter in tow. They breathed a sigh of relief when they saw no sign of Professor Slughorn. James and Sirius quickly claimed the seats in front of Remus, while Peter took the seat next to him.

He looked around the Potions classroom, feeling a sense of nostalgia. The last time he was at Hogwarts, he couldn't fully appreciate his surroundings. Being a wanted man, he had to be cautious and avoid any attention. Looking around the school was definitely not on his mind at all.

"Where were you guys? I was waiting for you at the Great Hall," Remus asked as soon as they were all seated.

"I promise you this one is not on me," James said, pointing at Sirius. "Sirius was taking forever in the shower."

Sirius gave James a playful jab with his elbow. "Well, sorry for wanting to look my best on our first day. Gotta make a good impression on the ladies," he said, chuckling lightly.

"I know who you're trying to impress." James wiggled his eyebrows and gestured towards a table with two Gryffindor girls. One of the girls had been stealing glances at Sirius ever since they arrived at the class. Sirius turned to face the table James was gesturing to and caught the girl off guard when they accidentally locked eyes. She swiftly pushed back her long, light brown hair, avoiding eye contact as a warm flush spread across her cheeks. "Didn't she ask you last year?"

It took Sirius a while to recall that specific memory, and when he finally remembered it, he exclaimed, "Oh right!"

Marlene Mckinon had confessed her feelings on the last day of his fourth year. He didn't have the chance to give her a proper answer because she ran away as soon as she handed him the flower bouquet. "Are you giving her an answer today?" Peter asked.

"No, I forgot," Sirius shrugged. He was sure he had rejected her in the past, but who knew... some of his memories were a bit blurry so he couldn't be totally sure.

"You forgot?!" Peter asked, and you can hear the shock in his voice.

"I know you're popular and all, but that's a little cold, don't you think so?" Remus said.

"I'm just... not feeling like dating anyone right now," he said.

"Don't get your knickers in a twist, Moony. It's not the first time Sirius has turned down a girl," James said, trying to reassure everyone.

Remus raised an eyebrow in confusion. "So you want to impress the ladies, but don't actually want to date them?" he asked skeptically.

James grinned. "What a tease. Too bad Lily isn't as easy to charm," he said, his eyes darting to the table where she sat. Sirius chuckled as he watched his friend gaze at the back of Lily's head, looking absolutely love-struck. He then turned his head and cast a glance towards Severus who was sitting next to Avery and his expression immediately twisted into one of disgust. "That ugly bat... Just wait until we catch him alone."

"Don't even think about cornering him," Remus warned, his tone serious.

"Unfortunately, we were supposed to pull off a prank this morning, but something came up." James spoke with a hint of disappointment in his voice.

"Good. I don't know what type of prank you guys were planning, but you guys really should knock it off. We're in our fifth year now, for crying out loud, act a bit more mature," said Remus, with a sigh. He had always tried to put a stop to his friends' bullying of Severus, but never gone far enough to actually make a difference. And since Remus was a well-liked student, they would sometimes manage to avoid their punishments and detentions.

James snickered as he listened to Remus ramble on about their mischievousness and bullying towards Snape. "You're extra nagy today, Moony. Did we miss anything else besides the sorting ceremony?"

Remus abruptly stopped his nagging and turned to his friends, wearing a satisfied smile as he pulled out his prefect badge from his pocket. "Guess who just got chosen as a prefect," he said.

"Bloody hell, Moony, that's incredible! No wonder you're nagging a lot today." James exclaimed, grinning wickedly. "Can you use your power to get us away with our pranks?"

Remus let out a laugh. "Not happening, Prongs. If Lily ever found out I had something to do with your schemes, she'd be livid."

James wore a smirk as he asked, "Wait, Lily got appointed as a prefect too?" He seemed to have a plan up his sleeves.

Knowing James too well, Remus shook his head, warning him not to break the rules just to impress Lily. "If you're planning to sneak out every time she's on duty just to bother her, don't. Lily won't appreciate it, Prongs."

James was about to defend his idea when Professor Slughorn strutted into the room, beaming. "Good morning, everyone... I'm so sorry for being late. I had to take care of something very quickly," he said, quickly taking a seat at the front of the room. With a wave of his arm, several cauldrons appeared and were distributed around the tables. "As you all know, our first topic this year will be wit sharpening potion. Would any of you students like to explain its purpose to the whole class?" he asked, scanning the class for a brave soul. Lily, who was sitting in the most front row, vigorously waved her arm in the air. "Ah yes, Miss Evans. Could you please explain it to everyone else?"

"Yes, sir. Wit sharpening potion presumably allows the drinker to think more clearly," she answered confidently.

"Good job, Miss Evans. Five points to Gryffindor."

James leaned his chin on his palm, his eyes dreamy with admiration as he murmured, "Merlin, she's so clever..." Sirius, Remus, and Peter struggled to keep their chuckles in at the sight of James bemused gaze. It was clear he was besotted with her.

"Now, I want you guys to work in a pair and start collecting the ingredient. I'll return in fifteen minutes to check your progress." With that, he disappeared towards the back of the room.

Sirius opened his book and read the ingredients out loud. "Ground beetle dust, chopped ginger root, armadillo bile, and true morels," he said, before something suddenly caught his eye. At the bottom of the textbook, there was a cautionary message; Be mindful of the difference between false and true morels! The outcome of making a potion using false morels and true morels would be indistinguishable. Consuming the wrong type of morel mushroom can lead to vomiting, abdominal discomfort, headaches, muscle cramps, bloating, and exhaustion.

Sirius cast a mischievous gaze around before taking his place alongside the other students at the ingredients cabinet. The shelves were lined with an array of glass jars containing vibrant and exotic plants from the herbology class, all meticulously organized in neat rows. The true and false morels were situated side by side, looking deceptively similar with their rounded caps and earthy hues, but upon closer inspection, the true morels were more lustrous and plump compared to their impostor counterparts. However, it would still be a challenging task to distinguish between the two mushrooms once they were chopped into small pieces.

He and James were the last two students collecting ingredients from the shelves. He quietly took James by the arm and pulled him close as he was about to return to his seat. In a low whisper, he shared his plan with James, causing a wide grin to spread across his face. "Brilliant, Padfoot! Avery knows nothing about potions, I bet he wouldn't suspect a thing if we swapped one of his ingredients."

He surreptitiously took a false morel from the cabinet and placed it in their basket before making their way back to their seats. Suddenly, Remus asked, "What are you guys planning?"

Sirius and James looked at Remus in surprise. "Umm... What do you mean?" James asked, his voice betraying a hint of nervousness.

"I've known you two for five years. I can tell when you guys are up to something," Remus said, eyeing Sirius and James suspiciously.

"Merlin, Moony... Ever since you were appointed as a prefect you've been so uptight. We are not planning anything, okay?" James said, trying to calm Remus's suspicions.

Remus raised an eyebrow, still not convinced. "Just be careful," he said sternly.

James and Sirius shared a knowing gaze before taking out all their ingredients and laying them down on the table. "We need to distract those two so I can switch them without them realising," Sirius said as he cut the false morel into small pieces.

James cast a glance towards Severus who was busy stirring the cauldron and Avery who was clumsily chopping the ingredients. "I'll distract them for you," with a smirk, he sauntered over to them and called out, "Oi, Snivellus!" Severus and Avery both jumped to attention at the sight of James. Severus snarled and whipped out his wand, gripping it tightly in one hand. "Whoa there, getting a little too defensive, wouldn't you say?" James said, lifting both of his hands in the air mockingly.

"What do you want, Potter?" Severus sneered. Avery, who was standing on the inside, had already moved to stand in between the two. Mulciber and Rosier, who were seated at the table behind them, had also stopped their progress to check on their two friends. The rest of the room seemed unaware of the situation, as they were all deeply absorbed in their own potion-making endeavors.

"Are we not allowed to check on a classmate?" he asked, with a sarcastic edge to his voice.

"Just get to the point and tell me what you want," Severus' eye showed signs of annoyance as he spoke.

James peered sideways and noticed Sirius had finished chopping the false morel and had secretly tucked them away in his pocket. He smirked and shifted his gaze to the four Slytherins who had all stepped away from their stations. "I came across some intriguing information recently," he began, capturing their attention away from their potion. "I heard that one of you guys was caught using a cheating quill during our last exam. I'm not sure which of you made such a foolhardy decision, but it was quite pitiful of you to resort to cheating. I heard that Professor McGonagall has called your parents in for a meeting. Too bad pureblood families place a great emphasis on reputation and rankings. I wonder what will happen if you end up getting suspended. I've heard rumours that past instances of cheating could affect our OWLs exams." he said, spouting complete nonsense in an attempt to intimidate them.

It was ironic that James was making up this story, given that he himself had been caught cheating multiple times before. Luckily, some Slytherins were stupid enough to fall for it.

"What?!" Rosier let out a yell, his face twisted in a blend of confusion and disappointment. He directed a stern gaze towards the other three Slytherins, trying to read each of their faces. Mulciber and Avery immediately shook their heads, denying the claim. When Rosier turned to Severus, he simply furrowed his brows, suggesting that he was aware that James was simply fucking around with them.

Sirius carefully approached their table undetected, as the four Slytherins were completely focused on James and his false claims. He deftly swished his wand, murmuring the spell for the levitation charm, causing the true morels to float and swap places with the false ones in his pocket. He gave James a subtle nod before stealthily returning to his seat.

"Who on earth did you get that information from, again?" asked Rosier.

"I'm not sure, but I think Professor Flitwick is keeping an eye on the three of you as well," James said with a fake smile. He bid them farewell with a wave and walked away with a cunning grin. However, before he could go too far, he overheard Severus informing his friends that everything he said was a lie and that they were foolish for even entertaining the thought for a moment. James couldn't help but laugh at Rosier's gnome-like grunts and curses that were clearly aimed at him.

Upon reaching the table, James and Sirius exchanged a high-five and shared a laugh over their partially successful scheme. Their next step was to simply wait and hope that Avery would be gullible enough to fall for their trickery. This shouldn't be a challenge, given that everyone, excluding Snape, had fallen victim to his lies just a moment ago.

Remus, who had been observing them the entire time, couldn't help but shoot James and Sirius a suspicious glare. However, he quickly let it go as soon as James and Sirius began to focus on their own potion-making.

Fifteen minutes had passed when Professor Slughorn emerged from the backroom, carrying a stack of paperwork. He placed them on the desk and clapped his hands to draw the students' eyes. "Alright everyone... Time's up. I'll now be evaluating your potions one-by-one. Please move to the side to give me some space to move through."

Sirius looked down into their cauldron and scoffed at the outcome. The potion was meant to turn bright green, but for some unknown reason, it turned murky green instead.

"Mr. Black and Mr. Potter, could you please move aside so I can check on your potion?" Professor Slughorn asked after he had finished examining the previous table. The two students obligingly shifted to the left to allow him access. "Hmm... The consistency is fine, but the colour is not exactly right. It's alright though, the potion is still safe to consume. It might not produce the desired results, but I can assure you that it won't have any negative side effects," he said before moving away to a different table.

"Not bad," James said, patting his own shoulder. Sirius chuckled and patted his other shoulder as well.

Slughorn made his way around the room, checking everyone's potions, and eventually stopped at Severus and Avery's table. "Ah, Mr. Snape, Mr. Avery! It's a pleasure to see you two working together," he said as he leaned in to inspect their potion. "Merlin's beard, this is brilliant! You are the first one today to have achieved such perfection. Ten points to Slytherin."

James sneered, "We'll see if the side effects are as 'perfect' as the potion itself."

"Okay, class, it's time to put your potions to the test. After taking the potion, you should feel more alert and productive. The effects should be noticeable right away. If you don't feel any difference, then it's likely that your potion wasn't made correctly."

Sirius observed as Severus carefully filled two small vials with their potion. He then offered one to Avery. Both James and Sirius watched with anticipation as the two Slytherins lifted the vials to their lips. However, just before they were about to drink it, Severus paused, smelling something different from his potion. "Wait!" he cried, trying to stop Avery from drinking it. Sadly, it was too late, as Avery had already consumed the very last drop of his.

"What is it?" Avery asked, right before a wave of pain hit him in the stomach. He quickly clamped his hand over his mouth as a thick green fluid began to pour out.

"Oh dear! Mr. Avery, what's going on?" Slughorn rushed over to them in panic, causing all eyes in the room to turn towards the commotion. The sight of Avery continuously vomiting a strange green goo was shocking to all.

"It's false morels, I was able to detect the faint scent." Severus explained to Slughorn, holding out the vial for him to sniff. "I personally gathered the ingredients before giving them to Avery to chop. Someone must have replaced our true morels with false morels during that time."

Slughorn took the vial and kept it inside his pocket and said, "Or perhaps you accidentally grabbed the wrong ingredient from the shelves." Severus shot him a glare for the stupid assumption, considering that he was the best potion student that year. Slughorn cleared his throat awkwardly. "Or maybe not... Mr. Rosier, would you be kind enough to escort your friend to the hospital wing?" he asked.

Rosier nodded before tugging Avery's arm to follow his lead.

James hummed in approval, satisfied that he had successfully pranked a Slytherin. Unfortunately, Sirius couldn't share the same sense of victory as him. The bitter taste of failure lingered in his mouth as the prank was intended to specifically target Severus. To him, the whole thing felt more like a failure than a success.

"Were you two involved in that?" Remus whispered.

"I have no idea what you're talking about, Moony," Sirius shrugged, brushing away his question. As he turned back around, his eyes accidentally locked with Severus's. Sirius watched as Severus muttered something inaudible under his breath, but he couldn't hear what he was saying from where he was seated.

"What is it, Mr. Snape?" asked Slughorn.

"Potter approached our table during the brewing process, and I'm pretty sure he or one of his friends swapped our ingredients with the wrong ones," Severus said.

James scoffed, "Got any evidence?"

"I don't think I need evidence, given that everyone in this room is aware of you and your friends' antics," Severus said as he fixed them with a stern gaze. If looks could kill, his glare would have ripped their bodies apart.

Slughorn clapped his hands together, drawing everyone's attention to him. "Alright now.. Unfortunately, Mr. Snape, I cannot punish anyone without any witnesses. It was an unfortunate situation, but luckily Mr. Avery has been escorted to the hospital wing and will be back to his normal self tomorrow. So, don't worry too much." He tried to ease the tension.

Slughorn proceeded by handing out their homework before dismissing the class, as well as the case earlier. Sirius kept a watchful eye on Severus, and as soon as the students were allowed to leave, he quickly jumped up to follow him. He pushed through the students and forced his way out of the crowd when a pair of hands pulled his arm to the side, causing him to lose track of Severus. He turned his head to see who had stopped him and found Lily looking at him with a stern expression while still holding his hand.

"I saw you switch the morels," she said in a warning tone.

Sirius raised an eyebrow. "Oh, did you?" he chuckled and freed his arm from her grip. "Sorry, Lily, but can we talk about this later? I'm quite busy, you see," he said before attempting to leave. However, she caught hold of his arm again, preventing him from going anywhere.

"You should confess to Professor Slughorn. I won't let you get away with your pranks anymore now that I'm a prefect."

"Oh really? Then why didn't you say anything earlier then?" he asked, challenging her.

"What? I- maybe because I'm trying to be a good friend and want you to own up to your mistake instead of airing you out right away?" she exclaimed in frustration.

"Well... That's not happening, so feel free to rat me out," With that, he immediately ran off before Lily could stop him once again. He looked around and muttered some curses when he couldn't see Severus anywhere. "Fuck."

Sirius felt a little embarrassed at how upset he got at his failed prank. It was as if he was going through puberty all over again. However, deep down, he knew that this was just an excuse. The sight of Severus's face alone was enough to bring out feelings of anger in him, and he found it difficult to keep his emotions in check around him.

With a frustrated growl, he spun on his heel, ready to head off to his Charms class with the Hufflepuffs. But as he stepped forward, he collided with someone and knocked them off balance, causing their books to drop onto the ground. "Fuck, sorr—Regulus?" he stammered, realising who he had bumped into.

Regulus glared at him and bent down to gather up his scattered books. Sirius tried to help, but Regulus was quicker, collecting all his books in a matter of seconds. The two stood facing each other in silence for a moment before Regulus let out a heavy sigh. "What? Not going to mock me today?"

Sirius was taken aback by the question. Their relationship started going downhill after he first attended Hogwarts. He would purposely mock Regulus and call him a coward for not being able to stand up against their mother. Despite all this, he was actually doing it out of love. He thought he would be able to force his brother to rebel against their mother by calling him names, but all it did was strain their relationship even more.

Sirius was not the sharpest tool in the shed, and he knew it. It took him a lifetime to understand that his brother was a separate individual with distinct characteristics from his own. Unlike Sirius, Regulus was much calmer and more level-headed, lacking the strong desire to constantly prove others wrong.

He shifted uncomfortably as he tried to find a way to talk with Regulus without making things worse. "...I'm sorry," he said weakly after a long moment of silence.

Regulus gave him a puzzled look. "What are you doing?" he asked cautiously, wary of his intentions.

"Umm... Apologizing?"

"For?"

"Everything," he said as he rubbed his neck. It had been a while since he had a conversation with his younger brother and the awkwardness was palpable. I'm sorry for calling you a coward or any other name. I was... a horrible brother."

"You still are," Regulus replied icily, his eyes devoid of any warmth. "Now what are you on about?"

Sirius was taken aback by Regulus' response. "What do you mean?" he asked in confusion.

Regulus looked away, uninterested. "Cut the act, Sirius. Just tell me what you want and let's be done with this. I need to attend my class and you also need to return to your good-for-nothing friends, so let's make this quick."

Sirius couldn't help but feel a little bit hurt upon hearing Regulus' words. "I just want to fix our relationship. What is wrong with you?!" he raised his voice a little as his feelings began to take over.

"What is wrong with me? What is wrong with YOU?! You stopped acting like my brother the moment you entered Hogwarts and got close to that Potter lad. And you're asking what is wrong with ME?! I don't know, maybe I'm upset because you've replaced me with someone else and started treating me like crap!" Regulus barked in anger. Luckily, no one was around to witness the fight between these two brothers.

Sirius felt a pang of guilt in his chest. "What are you talking about? I would never replace you with anyone. You and James are two different people," he said in a slightly quivering voice.

Regulus sneered in contempt. "Right.. Judging by the way you treat both of us, one would think that Potter is your real brother,"

"Alright, I get it. I'm so sorry, okay? I promise to treat you better from now on. Just tell me what I could do to make it up for everything," he asked, with a hint of desperation in his voice.

Regulus smirked. "You want to make up for everything? Fine. You can start by showing up at the gathering this April."

"What gathering?"

Regulus raised an eyebrow, looking unimpressed. "Really? Are you playing dumb right now?" he asked with a clear tone of annoyance in his voice. "The gathering at the Malfoy Manor."

Sirius' eyes shot open in surprise. "Oh right..." he muttered softly.

It had slipped his mind, but he remembered it now. This was the first time Sirius had ever spent his holiday at Hogwarts since he refused to attend the pureblood gathering. It was a meeting for all underage members who were set to become death eaters, along with their parents, to be presented to You-Know-Who.

"So? Are you going?"

Sirius took some time to think before finally coming to a decision. "Alright," he said. He knew that mending his relationship with Regulus was an important step to prevent his brother's death, and if attending the gathering was what it took, then so be it. Besides, he had predicted something similar to this. If Regulus could wish for anything from him, it would be for him to stop rebelling and stop maligning their parents.

"What?!" Regulus exclaimed, totally wasn't expecting his answer. "You're not messing with me, are you?" he questioned suspiciously.

"No, I'm totally serious when I told you I wanted to fix our relationship again," Sirius said, trying to assure Regulus.

"We'll see," Regulus said skeptically, his eyes narrowed as he studied Sirius. He then turned and walked away, leaving Sirius standing alone in the middle of the hallway.

Hi everyone, sorry for the slow chapter. I only managed to include the potion class in this chapter because it's getting way too long for my liking.

I really want to focus on Regulus and Sirius' relationship in this story. In case anyone's wondering, it might take some time for Sirius and Severus to become friends. I do love their enemies arc more than the friends arc, so yeah... I'm milking it as much as I can.