Regulus lay on his bed, clutching his puffskein as he traced his finger along the edges of an Astronomy book. Sirius had given it to him, it was a first year Hogwarts book and Regulus felt mighty for holding it, reading it. He wasn't eleven yet, but here he was! Astronomy had always fascinated him because he knew stars and constellations were the source of most of the names in his family.

He flipped through the pages, trying to distract himself from his lingering fear and worries when a soft knock on the door startled him. He put down the book and immediately got up, knowing his parents would never approve of his lazy posture. He straightened his back and cleared his throat. "Come in."

But it weren't his parents coming through the door—it was his brother. He relaxed and sat down again, taking puffskein Sirius on his lap as he stared at his brother, who was slightly shaken. "What's going on?"

Sirius plopped down next to him. "Things are really bad out there, Reg."

He looked down. "I know, Father told me the headmaster of Hogwarts is leading that Phoenix order-"

"I don't mean that. Mother and Father, I heard them just now, this new Head of Magical Law Enforcement guy wants to go after every pureblood."

Regukus frowned. "What do you mean?"

"It means we're targets, Regulus."

"But... why? Is it because of-"

"No. It isn't because of anything except him wanting to 'nip it in the butt'. He's going after all purebloods."

Regukus didn't understand. Why would he go after all purebloods? "But we haven't done anything wrong, have we?"

Sirius shook his head. "He doesn't care about that."

"Oh."

He still didn't fully understand, but he did know that this guy wasn't being very nice by targeting all purebloods like that. It made no sense, weren't they supposed to catch the bad guys—that Phoenix order?

"Have you got to go to Hogwarts?"

Sirius sighed. "Yes. I've got to go. They say I'll be safe there, but-"

"You'll write to me, won't you? Let me know if you're all right?" He couldn't stop the tears from clouding his eyes as he thought about what could possibly happen to his big brother at Hogwarts, if their parents were wrong and it was dangerous.

"I promise, Reg. I'll write to you every week, and I'll tell you everything that happens at Hogwarts."

Regulus nodded, reassured by his promise.

"Now, come on, I was meant to fetch you for lunch."

He followed his brother downstairs, taking his puffskein with him as always. The dining room was quiet as they walking in, and neither of their parents looked up from the Daily Prophet they were reading.

He sat down, his brother next to him, and tried to figure out what the front page of the newspaper said without being too obvious about it. However, he failed, as his father slammed it on the table. "Boys, this is none of your concern."

"Yes, Father." Regulus looked down at the puffskein in his lap, trying not to look back at the newspaper as Kreacher set the table.

When he next looked up, the newspaper was gone.

"Listen very carefully," Mother said. "Your father and I have decided that until Sirius has to leave for Hogwarts, we won't be going anywhere, and nobody will be coming here."

"But my birthday-"

"Silence!"

Regulus gulped, his mother's outburst taking him by surprise. He didn't know she felt so strongly about staying at home, in isolation, though his brother's words if just moments ago came back to him. Were they really targeting all purebloods? Including... them?

"It's a dangerous world out there, Regulus," Father said. "I'm sorry, but your birthday will have to be a small one."

And small, it was. There were no festivities, no guests—not even his grandparents, or his aunts, his uncles, he couldn't say hi to his cousins... they even disconnected the home from the Floo network so there was no way to contact anyone other than owl post. He was completely isolated and nothing even hinted at it being his birthday if it wasn't for a few "happy birthday"s. It was incredibly disappointing to turn ten in these circumstances, and Regulus hoped and prayed that next year, when he was the one turning eleven and getting to go to Hogwarts, everything would be much better.

His birthday passed and the days of loneliness went on. He spent every single second with his brother, knowing their days together were limited as the first of September was growing nearer and nearer until-

"Wake up! Wake up, Reggie! I'm going to Hogwarts!"

Regulus was shaken by a very excited Sirius as he slowly woke up, the feeling of dread intensifying; he realised today was the day his brother would go to Hogwarts—the day they'd have to say goodbye to each other. The next time they'd meet, it would be Christmas.

He opened his eyes to see his brother grinning from ear to ear. He mustered a small smile as he sat up. "I'm awake," he mumbled. "I'm awake..."

His brother ran over to his wardrobe and pulled out the first set of robes he could find, throwing them at him. "Get dressed, little brother, I can't be late just because you spend hours getting ready."

"Careful! Sirius!" He caught the robes but put them aside. "I need formal robes."

His brother laughed. "Formal robes? Reg, you're just coming to say goodbye to me, it's not a ball."

"Easy for you to say," he scoffed. His brother was wearing his school robes—which he had been trying to wear every day since he got them—and had no need to worry about appearances. School robes were always a right fit while on Platform 9. He, however, didn't have that luxury, and going out into the wizarding world demanded a certain level of dignity; he was, after all, a Black.

"Fine. These good enough for you?" He held up a set of emerald green dress robes with silver flowers embroidered on the front.

"You're useless," Regulus groaned. He got up from the bed and walked towards the wardrobe, shoving his brother aside.

Sirius let out a laugh. "See you downstairs, princess."

Regulus ignored him as he left, picking a set of neat, formal robes. Black was the colour to go with, it was in their name and you could never go wrong with black.

He changed into them, said goodbye to his puffskein, and made his way downstairs to the dining room, where his parents and Sirius were already eating breakfast.

"How nice of you to finally join us!" Sirius grinned as Regulus took a seat at the table, rolling his eyes at his brother.

"Good morning, Mother, Father," he nodded at them and filled his plate with some sandwiches, though they felt dry in his mouth and he couldn't really swallow it. He knew it wasn't because the sandwiches were prepared wrong—Kreacher was an incredible cook—but he just couldn't stop thinking about Sirius leaving them behind. The months he would have to spend on his own, especially with this new isolation from the outside world, seemed unbearable.

His father broke the silence. "Boys, we have to be very careful at the railway station today. I have reason to believe that there may be Aurors at the platform."

"Aurors? Why?"

"For 'protection', though I suspect they're after the next pureblood family. They took Abraxas last week."

"Abraxas Malfoy?" Regulus couldn't believe what he was hearing. The Malfoys were a highly influential family, they had the Ministry wrapped around their finger. If they took in a Malfoy, they'd take in everyone.

"That's the one. He paid his way out, obviously. I doubt we will be as lucky."

His father's ominous words stayed with him as they gathered all of Sirius' belongings before Apparating to Platform 9. As they left the Apparition point and entered the main platform, they were greeted with the overwhelming sight of students and families saying their goodbyes, and friends meeting up after the holidays, but Regulus couldn't spot a single Auror. His father kept looking around as if expecting someone to jump them any moment, but Regulus shifted his focus to Sirius, as did Mother.

"Behave yourself at Hogwarts," she warned him. "You are the heir to the Noble and most Ancient House of Black, and you represent our entire lineage. We have a reputation to uphold, especially now."

"Yes, I know," Sirius said impatiently. "You've told me a million times already. Can I go now?"

Mother took a deep breath, her face betraying a hint of concern for her son before it quickly fell back to the usual stern expression, hiding her emotions to the outside world like a proper Black. But Regulus knew, and he suspected his brother had seen it too: she was worried about Sirius. And with Dumbledore at the school... Regulus was worried as well.

The train whistle startled him and he grasped his mother's arm in reflex as his father put a hand on Sirius' shoulder. "Make us proud, son. And make sure you stay safe."

"I will. And I'll miss you," he added, facing Regulus. "But I'll write, I promise."

"Good luck," was all Regulus could muster. He pushed back his tears as he clung tightly to his mother's arm. He couldn't cry, not here. Not in public.

"Sirius, you have to go now," said Mother. "You don't want to miss the train."

"Yes ma'am!" With a final salute, Sirius got his belongings and made his way over to the train, disappearing into the crowd of students.

The moment he was out of sight, Father grabbed Regulus' shoulders, pushing him forward along with his mother as he ran with them across the platform.

"What-" Regulus started as he was nearly dragged along, his small legs struggling to keep up with the pace.

"Not now," Mother yelled. The fear he heard in her voice immediately silenced his thoughts as the feeling of dread that had been present all morning intensified. They were running to safety. He clung to her arm more than ever before as they reached the Apparition point. Within seconds, the scene before him changed as they landed in an open field, far away from the bustling platform.

"We can't stay for long. They'll track us down," his father said as he appeared next to them.

Regulus wobbled on his feet, a wave of nausea overcoming him as he clung to his mother, the tears falling freely now. His mother tried to move the arm he was holding so tightly and in a moment of fear that she would leave him forever, he yelled: "Mummy! No! Please, no!"

But his mother tore her arm away from him and he fell to the ground, bawling his eyes out as he felt completely alone and abandoned. He barely felt himself being lifted by a pair of arms, he barely noticed them moving again, running, as he cried and the world became a blur.

After what felt like an eternity, he started to calm down a little and he looked up through his tears to see his father carrying him. He flung his arms around his neck and pressed his face against his chest as he let himself be carried away, safe in his arms. They reached a small village and Mother 'convinced' the Muggle inhabitants to leave. Father carried him inside and towards the living room, putting him down on the sofa, softly tearing Regulus' arms away from his neck. "Come on, son, let go, that's it, there you go," he whispered as he lay him down. He looked up at his father who smiled softly at him. "We're safe here."

Regulus wiped his eyes and his nose with the hem of his sleeve, much to the disapproval of his father—he could see it clearly on his face. "I'm sorry," he mumbled.

"It's all right. Try to rest."

With that, his father left the room and Regulus was all alone again. He sat up and took his time to gather his thoughts and looked around the room. It was small, with only this one sofa in it. Across the sofa was a big box, black at the front, but it seemed to be made out of wood, or something. He didn't have much time to be curious about this object, however, as his mother entered the room and walked up to him, crouching down in front of him.

"Do you understand what just happened?"

Regulus shook his head.

"Your father saw Aurors at the platform, and they were watching us from the moment we got there. We had to run, because they were approaching us—we cannot risk them taking us in for questioning. Do you understand?"

Again, he shook his head, trying to make sense of it all.

"The Ministry is very much against the Dark Lord and his followers. There's a new Head of Magical Law Enforcement—Crouch—who thinks that the way to go forward is to bring all pureblood wizards in for questioning, because according to him, all of the Lord's followers are pureblood. If we get caught and brought in for questioning, we'll lead them straight to your cousin. Do you understand?"

"But why? I won't betray Bella!" He protested, he couldn't imagine him telling anyone like that about Bellatrix!

"You will if they get their hands on you," his father said as he stepped into the room. "They'll feed you enough Veritaserum to make sure you can't resist telling them anything they want to hear. And unfortunately, we aren't Malfoys," he added.

"Now, come on, get up, dry those tears—can you be brave for us?" His mother asked, a soft smile on her face but her eyes betrayed her lasting fear. Regulus nodded and slowly got up from the sofa, straightening his back and wiping the last tears from his eyes.

"Good boy," she said as she got up as well. "Tears won't change this situation."

"We're in a small Muggle village now, we'll probably be safe her until at least tomorrow—it'll take a while before anyone suspects us to be here," Father explained as he started to pace around the small room, something he always did when he was nervous.

"I don't want to be with Muggles!" Regulus blurted out as he realised, in horror, that they were in a Muggle house, and he had been sitting on a Muggle sofa.

"There aren't any Muggles in this house," his mother comforted him as she pulled him close. "It's only temporary, none of us want to stay here."

Regulus nodded against his mother. "I understand," he mumbled, his voice barely audible as it was muffled by his mother's robes.

His mother let go of him and smiled sadly down at him. "It's going to be okay."

Regulus smiled back, feeling slightly better than he did before. Behind his mother, he saw the mystery box again, and he couldn't contain his curiosity again.

"Mother?"

"Yes, dear?"

"What's that?" He pointed at the box, and she turned around to look at it.

"I'm not sure..." she took a careful step towards it.

"I'll have a look," Father said, hurrying over. He cautiously approached the box, reaching out a hand.

"Be careful!" Mother yelled as Father's hand crept closer to what seemed to be some sort of button. But he pressed it nonetheless, and Regulus held his breath as he watched what happened.

Loud noises and bright light came from the box, and all three of them yelped and ducked for cover. "Out!" His father yelled. They crawled across the floor to the door as the box continued to emit bright lights and loud noises Regulus had never heard before.

They got to the other side of the wall and his father slammed the door shut. "We must be cautious," he said. "We don't know what this... this thing is capable of. It could be used to track us, it could be a trap. We all know how fond the Ministry is of these Muggles and their devices."

Regulus' heart was beating loudly in his chest as he had been thrown into yet another scary experience. This was exactly why he didn't want to be here in this Muggle house, with their Muggle things! Those vile creatures were out to harm them, and this box was evidence of that. He couldn't wrap his mind around why his parents would choose to stay here, voluntarily. There had to be better places to hide, right?

His mother nodded. "Don't go near this room again, Regulus. It isn't safe."

"I won't," he answered, still shaken. "I don't like this at all."

"I know. But it's all going to be fine."

Regulus nodded, but he didn't really believe it.

-

That evening, he lay in an unfamiliar bed in an unfamiliar room, which, above all, was very Muggle. The people in the pictures on the wall refused to talk to him, they wouldn't even wave at him or move at all. Regulus thought it was all very rude and he didn't like it one bit. And as he lay there, overthinking the day's events, he heard a familiar crack—Kreacher. He nearly jumped off the bed when he saw those big eyes staring at him. He ran towards the elf and would have hugged him if he wasn't holding a small silver tray. He took a step back in surprise when he realised that, and saw that the house elf was hoping from one foot to the other in an almost nervous manner. Kreacher, nervous?

"Master Regulus should sit down," Kreacher said, walking up to the small desk. Regulus followed him and sat down on the chair. Kreacher handed him the small tray, placing it gently on his lap and removing the cover. It revealed some chocolate cake—Regulus' favourite.

"Kreacher!" He called out in surprise, a smiling brightly as the delicious scent of chocolate made him forget all about today. "Who's behind this?"

"Kreacher is sorry today is going badly... Kreacher wants you happy, master."

Regulus' mouth fell open, he couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Kreacher, you did this? This was your idea? You came up with this all by yourself?"

Kreacher avoided his gaze, looking anxiously at the floor. "Y-yes, master," he stammered.

Regulus reached out to touch the elf, but he flinched away.

"No, don't, Kreacher," Regulus began, his voice gentle, "I love it. Thank you. It's incredible."

Kreacher looked up, tears welling in his eyes as he bowed deeply. "Kreacher is honoured—"

"Oh shut up you!" Regulus could no longer contain himself. He placed the tray on the desk, got up from the chair and knelt down on the floor, pulling the elf into a tight embrace.

Kreacher stiffened in shock but eventually returned the hug as Regulus held him close, whispering, "I don't know what I would do without you."

Releasing the hug, he looked at his little house elf friend, who stared back at him, still in shock.

"M-Master Regulus, Kreacher is honoured to serve the Noble House of Black," came his standard reply.

"Kreacher, you're far more than just a house elf to me. You're my friend..."

"My master Regulus is young," Kreacher shook his head.

"I'm ten!"

But Kreacher simply shook his head before disappearing. Regulus rushed to the door, wanting to tell his parents and Sirius all about what Kreacher just did, when he remembered where he was. He wasn't home, Sirius wasn't here. They were on the run. He had already stepped out of the room, though, and just as he wanted to go back in a familiar voice filled his ears. One that shouldn't be here.

"What's going on?!"

The voice was unmistakably Bellatrix's, but what was she doing here of all places? Wasn't she the whole reason they had gone into hiding, to protect her, to make sure the Ministry wouldn't get to her and find out she supported the Dark Lord? That she was one of his followers?

Curiosity got the better of him and he slowly made his way down the stairs. The voices from the hallway got clearer to him the further down he went, and he heard his parents explaining to Bellatrix what had happened today, at platform 9, and Bellatrix didn't seem too surprised about it all, she went straight to the point.

"We will have to come up with a plan. You can't stay here for long. The longer you remain in one place, the more likely you are to be discovered."

There she was, her wild, curly black hair dancing on her head as she explained her plan. But just as he took the last step into the hallway, she stopped talking, staring right at him. "Regulus!"

She hurried towards him, her dark robes billowing behind her. "Are you okay?"

Regulus nodded. "Of course I am."

"Good boy," she said, messing up his hair with a big grin. "Oh, you're growing up so fast..."

He looked at Bellatrix, then at his parents. "Why is she here?"

Bellatrix laughed, cutting off anything his parents could have wanted to say. "Glad to see you too, cousin."

"I didn't mean it like that... I just thought we were here to protect you, but now you're here, and if they find us-" he was slightly panicked, he couldn't risk them catching Bella. He had no idea what would happen to her if they did, but he knew it couldn't be good.

"If they find us, we'll deal with them," Bellatrix said. "We can take on some Aurors. They have no idea who they're up against—the Dark Lord is more powerful than they could ever even dream of! And he's teaching me."

Regulus could see how proud she was to be taught by the Dark Lord. It did seem impressive, though he wasn't sure exactly what she was being thought, he knew his cousin was a clever girl.

"She's agreed to help us the best she can," Father said. "We just have to avoid being caught, that's all."