Chapter Two: 'The Selection' or 'How 200 become 40'

Marlene McKinnon looked close to tears as she proclaimed:"James, I have terrible news."

James, who had been playing a game of Exploding Snap with Sirius, looked up at Marlene with concern. His mind started racing, wondering if something had happened to Marlene's family, or if some other terrible mishap had befallen someone they both knew.

"Dorcas Meadowes is the new Slytherin captain." Marlene proclaimed dramatically.

James and Sirius looked at each other and grimaced. It was not a surprise, the dark-skinned witch was fiercely passionate about Quidditch and was sure to whip the Slytherin team into the best shape it could be.

"There's more, also on the Slytherin team…" Marlene hesitated, as her eyes flicked to Sirius. She hesitated, not sure what she should say next.

Sirius frowned, clearly trying to connect the dots on what the next piece of news could possibly have to do with him. James, not one for patience in general, but especially not when it came to Quidditch, asked:"What is it Marls? It can't be that bad."

Marlene sighed and looked up as if in prayer and said:"Meadowes has somehow managed to conjure a new seeker out of thin air. I don't know how she found him but I saw him fly James, he's as quick as lightning." She looked dejected.

James groaned. It was his final year at Hogwarts and he honestly was more concerned with winning the Quidditch Cup as Captain than he was about his exams (much to Remus' chagrin).

"Impossible. Slytherin does not have anyone on the team who could make a decent seeker. So unless they picked a first year…" Sirius stated firmly. Then, he looked at Marlene accusingly "You're having a laugh Marls." He crossed his arms petulantly and added:"We do not joke about Quidditch in this household, you're going to give poor Prongs a heart attack."

Marlene swatted Sirius on the arm, in response to which Sirius let out an overly dramatic yelp. "I am not joking."

Then, she sighed and looked at James:"I'm pretty sure it was Black." Then, taking in Sirius' confused face she added:"Baby Black".

Sirius made a strangled noise before shaking his head and repeating:"Marls, I told you, joking about Quidditch is not funny. Nor is joking about my brat little brother." He then turned to look at Marlene, a hint of desperation in his eyes. Almost as if, if Marlene simply told him that it was not true, then it simply would not be so.

Marlene, clearly done with the conversation, turned around and over her shoulder shouted:"I am not joking James. You'd better start strategising."

There was a moment of silence between the two friends. It truly should not have been that big of a deal, especially to James, but somehow it was.

James had two explanations as to why he suddenly felt funny. The first being, his sheer passion for Quidditch and his fear of missing out on the Quidditch Cup. The second being that it would simply be awkward to play against Regulus Black. A part of him still saw him as the shy, little, eleven year old boy he remembered meeting on the Hogwarts express.

Another part of him though, only saw Regulus as he was today. The boy who had not stood up for his brother, and had instead chosen to be the perfect Heir to the Noble and most Ancient house of Black. Regulus was always poised, always had that neutral expression on his face, and was constantly surrounded by the other Slytherin's who sometimes seemed to follow the every command of the perfect little Black.

Sirius, who had been lost in his own train of thought, ran a hand through his hair and sighed:"I can't believe it. When I tried to join the Quidditch team Walburga burned by broom in front of me and threatened to disown me, said it would 'distract me from my studies'"

James winced at the memory, Sirius had shown up after Christmas distraught that he would be kicked off the team as he no longer owned a broom, and it would be near impossible to keep up with the others on the school's supply of Cleansweeps. James had known immediately that Sirius would never accept any new broom James bought for him. Instead, he asked Effie to send over his Nimbus, which was only one year old (James had a tendency of spending his yearly allowance on getting the newest model every year), and Sirius had nearly cried of happiness when James had presented the broom to her.

A moment later, Professor McGonagall entered the Gryffindor Common Room and all thoughts of Seekers dressed in Green and Silver were forgotten (for now).

The Transfiguration Professor asked the students to gather around her, which they did without hesitation in hopes that the Professor was here to update them on the status of the Knight's Tournament.

They were correct, as McGonagall pronounced:"In a moment, I will be providing you with the sign-up sheet to opt in as a candidate to take the Order's Lancelot Seat. I feel obliged to remind you that the selection process is dangerous, demanding, and that joining the Order is a lifelong commitment. I hope none of you will be rash in the making of this decision." With this, she glanced at the Marauders.

After a few more declarations McGonagall hung the sheet, which had a Quill dangling from it, up on the wall. McGonagall had barely stepped away from the sheet when James had marched over to the sheet and written his full name onto it, fingers buzzing with excitement.

Once he had put his name on the list, his crooked handwriting vanished and the list once again appeared empty.

James had turned to Professor McGongall in horror, worried that there was perhaps some awful reason he had been disqualified from participating. McGonagall, seeing the crestfallen look on James' face had softened and said "Don't worry Mr. Potter, the sheet is charmed to protect the anonymity of all those that sign up."

James had then grinned and proclaimed "Wicked, thank you Professor". After this he had confidently passed the pen to Sirius Black, having no doubts that his adventurous friend would also be jumping to sign up to the tournament.

Sirius had instead faced him with a worried frown and stated:"James mate, it's not that I do not think the Knights are wicked but…" the older Black looked James in the eyes with a concerned frown on his handsome face: "what if I win and I actually make my parents proud? The thought of doing anything that the old hag would approve of…" Sirius visibly shuddered.

"Pads" James began hesitantly but when he realized they had a bit of an audience he turned away from his friend and while waving the quill around in his hand asked:"Anyone else feeling lucky?"

To his surprise, the always rational Frank Longbottom relieved him of the quill and confidently put his name down.

James motioned for the other Marauders to follow him back to the privacy of the dorm. Once there, Sirius threw himself dramatically atop Remus's bed, Remus moved to sit down next to the sprawled out Black. Meanwhile, Peter positioned himself onto the floor, crossing his legs and staring up excitedly at James who was still pacing around the room, running a hand through his messy hair.

"There are too many thoughts in my head right now. Moony you're the smart one, pick a topic of conversation please." James declared, nodding towards his friend.

Remus rolled his eyes but rested his head against the wall behind his head and started:"Pads, you okay?"

Sirius groaned and, still sprawled across Remus's bed, threw his hands up:"I don't know, on the one hand being a part of the Knights would be really fucking cool. On the other hand, my mother would be so smug - if I won she would actually have bragging rights."

Remus, who sat on the small edge of his bed smiled down softly:"Sirius, you are your own person. You shed the future they had laid out for you a long time ago, which is one of the bravest things I have ever seen. If you decide to sign up, that is you plotting your own course."

James only nodded along, grateful as per usual at how good Remus was with words:"I agree with Moony, Pads. If anything, not signing up just because of your parents is worse."

Sirius nodded and sighed:"I guess you're right, thanks Moony" he said, reaching over and pressing a kiss on Remus's leg (at which Remus turned a suspicious shade of pink).

James resisted the urge to roll his eyes, he wished the two of them would get it together and get together but he knew there was nothing he could do to speed things up. It was a conclusion they would have to reach on their own. Then Sirius turned to Remus and said:"To be honest, it doesn't really matter, Moony here is our resident genius - no one will stand a chance."

Remus blinked and looked down at Sirius incredulously:"There is no way they would allow someone like me into the Knights"

"Don't say that Remus, we can talk to Chang and I'm sure they can find a way for you to enter. You deserve it" James replied, at which Remus shook his head and sighed:"I'd rather not, that involves Chang knowing about my 'condition', and in case she did not know about it already I would be putting Dumbledore in a tough spot."

Then, seeing his friends dejected faces, Remus added:"It's fine guys really, I didn't really want to enter anyway"

Sirius jumped up from his bed and stormed out of the door, leaving the others to blink behind him in surprise. While on his way out they heard him muttering:"Stupid idiot." and "Most deserving person I know."

—

The following day brought with it a tall witch clad in Purple robes, a dozen new conspiracy theories about Samuel Everton's death, and a shared sense that nothing would be as it was before.

Regulus felt like the adrenaline had not stopped coursing through his veins since the announcement.

Becoming a Knight meant being free from under his parent's control, it meant freedom from the Dark Lord, and it meant proving to everyone that he was worthy. A part of him thought that he was as desperate to prove it to himself, as to the rest of the world.

The upcoming competition had been the sole subject of conversation among the Slytherins. Most of the eligible candidates decided to sign up, save for Eleanor Greengrass who would be marrying her fiance as soon as she graduated Hogwarts.

Pandora had also proclaimed she would not sign up because:'She felt more of a spiritual connection with Sir Gaheris than Lancelot".

Dorcas, Evan, Barty and Regulus had all signed up the same evening the sheet had appeared in the common room, and they had spent the rest of that evening and the following day reading everything they possibly could about the previous tournament.

To Regulus' disdain, there was almost nothing to be found in the Library about the previous progresses, and he hesitated to write to his parents to ask if they had anything on it in the Black Library. No matter how great of an order joining the Knights was, a part of him worried that his Mother would still push him into the direction of the Dark Lord instead.

Every minute seemed to pass slowly, with all the students arguing and speculating about what would happen next.

Liberation came before dinner, when the students that had opted in were summoned to an empty classroom on the fourth floor. Regulus had forced Dorcas, Barty and Evan to leave dinner early so they could get a good spot. He wanted to be able to see exactly who else had signed up to become a candidate.

"You're telling me I have to spend more than the minimum required amount of time with these two?" Dorcas complained, pouting dramatically and motioning to Barty and Evan.

After some urging from Regulus the four of them found themselves in the Empty Classroom with plenty of time to spare.

Evan leaned against the wall and glanced around the empty classroom:"What do you suppose the chances are it will just be the three of us?"

Regulus snorted:"A dangerous competition? Eternal glory? I doubt there will be a single Gryffindor that does not sign up."

Barty nodded in agreement but before he could say anything else two Ravenclaws entered the room.

Six, Regulus counted mentally, trying to make a mental list of who and how many students he would have to beat to reach his goal.

As Regulus mentally counted 'Fourty', a tall witch with ivory skin and sharp eyes entered the classroom. She wore expensive looking robes in a deep shade of purple, with golden figures of dragons throughout. Her hair was pulled into a tight ponytail, and Regulus noted the scar running down her next.

The witch introduced herself as Naomi Chang, seat of Sir Geraint. The witch stood confidently in front of the hopeful students, and took her time roaming all the faces in front of her.

Standing proudly on the table behind her was a large shimmering orb, it was shiny and gold. James felt he may be blinded if he stared at it for too long. The orb looked like it had once been a perfect circle, but now small chunks of it were missing. All the missing chunks were perfect circles, and at the foot of the table stood an elegant, golden basket which emitted a soft glow from it.

"The task is simple. You will all be given a piece of this." At this, she nodded towards the orb behind her. "You will wear it around your necks, below your school uniforms. When you receive the orb it will be glowing as it is now. Make sure the orb does not go out. If you are one of the last two people with an active orb you will be selected as a candidate." the witch almost sounded bored as she said it, muttering something about having to face a dragon for her selection under her breath.

Then she took a crumpled piece of paper out of her pocket and read out:"A few extra things. The orbs are heavily charmed, you wouldn't be able to destroy them if you tried so please don't bother trying. It's not possible to remove the orb from another person, and I trust none of you will be daft enough to take your own orb off as it'll automatically die…" She skimmed through the rest of what Regulus assumed were instructions.

"... honestly it's all pretty watertight, just go about your little lives and I expect that in a few days time we'll have our champions. There will be a tracker placed in the Great Hall so we can keep track of how many active orbs there are. If the process is progressing too slowly we may add some additional tasks but…" as her eyes traveled over the students in front of her she added "this is highly unlikely."

The witch continued to provide more information about the orbs, but they mostly boiled down to:"just go about your lives, do not overthink it, it will all make sense eventually." Regulus tried his hardest to pay attention, but he found he was getting distracted by the pair of eyes staring at him.

Regulus turned his head slightly to find the perpetrator and was surprised to find his own brother's eyes boring holes into his side. Sirius had graduated from picking fights with Regulus at every opportunity, to trying to convince him to run away with him to, lately, mostly ignoring his younger brother.

Sirius had been heartbroken when Regulus had decided to stay with their parents, the final strings that connected them as brothers had broken then. Ever since, the two had stopped interacting, stopped sneaking glances at the other in the Great Hall, and had barely exchanged a word.

Regulus had to focus not to flinch under his brother's stare. He could feel Sirius thinking 'he is too much of a coward to run away from home, but somehow he is ready to throw himself into a dangerous process just to make mommy proud.'

Potter, noticing that Sirius was not paying attention to Chang gently nudged his side and Sirius tore his eyes away from Regulus to focus his attention back to the witch.

Regulus was immensely grateful for this, until he realized that he had traded one pair of staring eyes for another. As he found Potter looking at him with an unreadable expression on his face, Regulus turned his head slightly to make eye contact and raised a questioning brow.

At this, Potter fidgeted slightly and awkwardly focused his attention back to the witch in front of them. Chang appeared to be wrapping up her instructions and quieted for a moment.

Then, while the students waited with baited breath she continued:"I have been told to remind you not to take rejection personally. Each Knight had their own personalities and magical skills, and it is in the balance of all of this that the Knights find their strength. If you are eliminated it is not necessarily that you are not worthy, just that you are not a Lancelot." Then, more softly she added:"I mean it, I am not sure I would have been selected for the Lancelot trials, but alas, my trials were not for him so here I am."

After that announcement Chang simply stated:"That was all from my side, if there are any questions please speak to your Heads of House and if they find it relevant they will communicate it to me. Grab a necklace and off you pop, back to your lives. Please leave the room as soon as you have collected your necklace, I would prefer not to have a bunch of teenagers hanging around an invaluable object…" at this she motioned to the orb again, before continuing:"for any longer than necessary…. I think that is all. See you soon."

Chang spun on her heels and left the room, walking with the determination of a woman who had much, much more important matters to attend to.

As soon as the witch had left the room and the sound of her boots faded into the distance, all hell broke loose. Mulciber strode to the front and started inspecting the necklaces, trying to decipher if there was perhaps a difference between them or if some shone brighter than others.

Sirius scowled and walked up to Mulciber and shoved him to the side, grabbing a random necklace from the goblet and plucking it around his neck and under his shirt. When he reached in to grab another one, for his friends presumably, his hand was unable to reach into the goblet.

As soon as the other students realized what was going on they started a mad dash towards the goblet. Flitwick, who had apparently been instructed not to interfere too much, only motioned for Sirius to vacate the room and Regulus watched his brother walk out of the room with an apologetic look to James.

Mulciber had also grabbed a necklace, but not before students were all zooming around the goblet like flies around a piece of candy.

Regulus, having spotted that the two necklaces Sirius and Mulciber had grabbed looked identical, had no desire to enter into a scramble of students for no good reason - so he instead leaned against the wall and waited for the students to grab their necklaces and filter out of the room one by one.

To his surprise, he realized that Potter had decided to do the same. The tall Chaser was patiently waiting, all the while protecting some of the smaller students from getting shoved over and policing the more 'aggressive' students. Regulus scowled, even now Potter could not drop his Golden Boy act.

When there were only a few students left Potter turned and spotted Regulus leaning against the wall. Potter, who to Regulus' annoyance seemed to have regained his confidence after having been caught staring earlier, had the nerve to flash Regulus a cocky grin:"Backing out already Baby Black?" he teased.

Regulus rolled his eyes and without saying a word walked up to the pile, as he reached his hand into the goblet he looked up at James and said harshly:"I simply have no desire to be any closer than necessary to those idiots."

James grinned in response, as if Regulus had said something hilarious. Regulus spun on his heels, keen to not be in an enclosed space with Potter for any longer than necessary. As he heard Potter walk to follow behind him Regulus shouted over his shoulder:"Yes, you are included in that statement Potter."

Regulus had decided to take a detour as he had no desire to have Potter trailing him all the way to Dinner. When he entered, he noticed that all the heads in the Great Hall were staring intently at something hanging high above the Teacher's table.

It was a large sign which read: 'Thirty Five' in Roman numerals.

Thirty Five. Regulus was sure he had counted Forty students who had signed up as candidates, meaning that in the short walk from the classroom to the Great hall more than ten percent of the necklaces had failed.

As he glanced around the nervous faces in the great hall, every eye fixated on the sign at the top, he nearly gasped as he saw the sign change once again: Thirty Four.

The game was afoot.

And with more determination that he had ever had in his life, Regulus decided then and there that he would do anything to win it.