Author's note: Hello, and welcome to my story! I have read many FanFictions about the Black family recently, but I decided it was time I wrote my own. I hope you enjoy the story, and please leave a review. I would love to hear your ideas and thoughts on the chapters!
Disclaimer: J. K. Rowling owns Harry Potter. I am just doing this for fun.
Chapter 1: Promises Made in Death
Sirius Black glared at his cousin, Bellatrix Black-Lestrange. He could not stand her. She was loyal to Voldemort more than anyone else he knew. Sirius looked over at his godson, Harry Potter, who was battling with Lucius Malfoy.
"Sirius!" Bellatrix called out, cackling before she sent a dark spell towards him. He had not been prepared for it, even though he should have been. The spell hit him straight in the chest, and he found himself falling through the veil.
He couldn't believe what was happening. He was going to die. He would never get to see Harry graduate from Hogwarts. He would never be a free man. He couldn't believe that he had let his guard down for even a moment. He was not a good dueler like the majority of his family. Just another reason for him to be a disgrace to the house of Black.
Sirius found himself at… King's Cross Station? He blinked. Is this where people went in the afterlife?
"Sirius," a familiar voice whispered. Sirius spun around to meet face-to-face with Regulus Black.
"Regulus?" Sirius asked, hardly able to believe what he was seeing. The last time he had seen his brother was the day he ran away from home. Staring at his brother, it brought back so many emotions. "Regulus, I'm sorry," he said weakly. "I only had my thoughts for company for a long time and I realized that even if I tried to escape my family, I act more like them."
"Okay?" Regulus responded, showing that he was listening.
"When I ran away, I only thought of myself and in that way, I was acting like a Slytherin," he said with a sigh. "I talked to Harry about you, and I called you a 'soft idiot' and about how much you wanted to be like our parents. I should've tried to get you to come with me, but I also knew that you would refuse."
Regulus smiled sadly. "But I was soft, Sirius," Regulus responded. "I had no idea what I was getting myself into and yes, I agree that I would have refused. You saved us from an argument."
Sirius gave him a small smile. "Sometimes, the only way to learn is going the hard path," he replied thoughtfully. "Going after Peter cost me a lot. Maybe, I won't go straight into danger as much." They laughed. "Maybe, maybe not, but I hope it's true."
"I hope so too," Regulus told him truthfully. Then Sirius sighed again.
"But if I couldn't protect you at home, then I should've done that at Hogwarts," he stated.
"Then it would've been favoritism," Regulus reminded him.
"But everyone knows that we're brothers," he pointed out. "We can't be mistaken for any other family." Regulus smirked.
"Some Hufflepuff first year mistook me for you when I was in second year, and you were in your third year. You only started to file out a bit then," the younger remembered fondly Sirius burst out laughing.
"That's hilarious!" the dog Animagus shouted. The sleeve of Regulus' robe rose to reveal his wrist. There was a scar there. The good mood was gone. "And I'm sorry for every spell I cast towards you whether that be at Hogwarts or after."
"Family and war pulled us apart," his little brother answered softly. "However, I forgive you and I'm sorry for the hurt I've made you feel. We're both at fault."
"I forgive you as well, Reg," Sirius replied. "And maybe it's too quick, but time gives us a clearer perspective." Regulus nodded.
"And it gave me the opportunity to realize that you were right, Siri," he said. "Apologies can only go so far though." Having heard his younger brother call him 'Siri' made him realize that Regulus was hardly older than Harry. Their age difference was larger than it had been in life.
"If only I could change it all," Sirius commented. They were silent for what seemed to be forever. They shared what looked like a staring contest. They were both winning. Sirius broke their eye contact and Regulus smiled. His hands had been clasped behind his back before, but now they were slightly extended out from his sides in a silent invitation. Sirius took it without having to be asked twice. They'd used to be affectionate to one another when they were younger. Regulus came up to his mouth.
They stood like that for several moments before they broke apart.
"You said you'd like to change the past?" Regulus asked.
"Yes," Sirius answered strongly. Regulus nodded to himself. Then he spoke.
"Sirius, you don't belong here," Regulus informed him. "Look." A screen showed up in front of them showing Harry running after Bellatrix with angry tears falling down his face. "He's really upset. He just lost the one person who actually cared about him. Merlin knows his aunt and uncle treated him like scum."
"Wait, was he abused?" Sirius asked, hoping he was wrong.
"Yes," his brother answered simply.
"But, Dumbledore cares about him, right?" Sirius asked. "If Harry tells Dumbledore, he can move Harry to a safer place. The Weasleys would be a good place."
"Sirius Orion Black!" Regulus snapped. "If you think for a second that Dumbledore cares about Harry, here's something you should see. It's from his first year." He waved his hand, and the screen changed again.
Harry was eleven, and he was in the Hospital Wing talking to Dumbledore.
"Sir, I really don't want to go back to the Dursleys this summer," Harry stated.
"Why ever not, dear boy?" Dumbledore asked.
"They don't like me, and they don't like magic," Harry explained. "I'm called Freak, I have to do all of the chores, I slept in a cupboard until my Hogwarts letters came, I…"
"My dear boy, surely it is not that bad?" Dumbledore asked.
"Yes Sir, it is that bad," Harry responded. "Please, don't let me go back there. I'll go anywhere. I'll even go to an orphanage, or maybe to Ron or Hermione's house."
"I'm afraid you will need to stay where you are," Dumbledore said firmly. "You are protected at your relatives' home."
Sirius growled like the dog he was. He was shaking with rage. "How. Dare. He. Ignore. Abuse!" Sirius thundered. His trust in Dumbledore was shattered.
"And, when he told Molly Weasley about his home life after Fred and George had to break him out of his room, she didn't believe him," Regulus continued. "Siri, they put bars on Harry's window. That alone should have been enough for Molly to respond to."
Sirius couldn't believe what he was hearing. Molly Weasley seemed like the type of person who would not tolerate a child being abused. Then again, she was loyal to Dumbledore through and through.
"But, I'm dead! What can I do?" Sirius asked.
"Like I said, you shouldn't be here," Regulus stated. "You can fix things, Sirius. You can go back in time to fix things. I don't know how far back it'll take you, but you can change the past, present, and future for the better."
"But what if I go back to being a boy?" Sirius asked. "I don't want to deal with our family again."
Regulus sighed. "Sirius, listen to me," he said firmly. "It's true that our parents were horrible people, along with Bellatrix and a few others, but not everyone in the family is evil. So instead of automatically thinking that all Blacks are evil, have an open mind." Sirius snorted.
"Why should I?" Sirius asked. "They're too focused on pure-blood talk to care about anything else."
"Please, Sirius, please, promise me you'll have an open mind," Regulus urged. "You might need the help of the Black family in order to get things done."
Sirius felt like protesting, but after seeing the pleading look on his little brother's face, he sighed. "Fine, but our parents don't get a chance with me," he warned.
Regulus laughed. "I agree with you on that one," he agreed. "Now, go. And change things for the better." Sirius nodded.
"If I can save you, Reg, I will," he promised before he felt like he was being whisked away. He just hoped he could keep his promises to Regulus.
Author's note: I got a review regarding this chapter, and the reviewer had some good points. So this chapter has been revised to add clarity and more detail.