AN: Not much happens in this chapter, but there is foul language and drinking. Hope you enjoy
Disclaimer: I Don't Own HP or Marvel.
Chapter 59: A Sirius Week
Sirius was leaning against the counter in the kitchen of Grimmauld Place, dressed only in a pair of black pajama bottoms and grey socks. His hair was a mess, and a shadow of bread was starting to form on his face, along with dark rings under his eyes. Right now, Sirius didn't care how he looked; he hadn't slept in days and had been drinking day and night because every time Sirius closed his eyes, a repeat of the Killing Cruse hitting Loki replayed in his mind. Sirius had honestly thought Loki dead when he didn't immediately get back up to taunt Voldemort; Sirius didn't think he would ever get that image out of his head.
Bucky and Steve had concluded that it was the Super Solider serum Hydra made for Voldemort and Schmidt, and it enhanced their magic the same way it enhanced Bucky and Steve's strength. And now their magic was strong enough to affect Loki, the one person Sirius hadn't been worried about losing in the war, and now, thanks to a bunch of stupid Muggles, Sirius was in danger of losing everyone he cared about. After watching Loki get hurt at the Ministry, Sirius realized Loki was in just as much danger as the rest and has made Loki and Harry his top priority. The guilt of knowing he would willingly sacrifice the others if it meant his lover and son lived was getting to him, making him feel ashamed and shellfish, but those were two people Sirius knew he couldn't survive losing. He lost them once, for twelve long years, and he wasn't doing that again.
The wizarding world now knows Voldemort has returned; it was all over the front of the Daily Prophet a day after the battle at the Ministry, everything from Voldemort's return to his and Loki's battle, Regulus being alive, Reigna Ikol being Loki, and the capture of nearly a dozen Death Eaters that had broken into the Ministry, all of those subjects have been in the Daily Prophet every day this week, and when the Aurors had found Yaxley dead, and questioned about it, not wanting Sirius to be put into Azkaban again they all claimed they didn't see who cast the Killing Curse. Since Sirius had not used a wand to do it, they couldn't prove who did it because none of the others had cast the curse, so the Aurors believe one of the Death Eaters that had gotten away had done it by accident, likely trying to aim at one of them, and Yaxley must have gotten in the way.
At the moment, it was the following Saturday, and an Order meeting was taking place, along with the Avengers; everyone was here except the two Avengers who were still out of the country, Clint Barton and Bruce Banner, both due back next week. Harry had asked Tony why he had called so late to wish them a happy holiday; he knew it was still a bit early in New York, but due to the time difference, it was late in London, plus Christmas had been the day before. Bucky had been the one to answer that question with a laugh. Tony had thrown a party in the tower, had gotten a bit buzzed, and had thought waking Sirius and Loki just to scream Merry Christmas at them even though it was a day late would be hilarious, he had been surprised when Harry had answered the device and once he told the others Regulus was kidnapped, with encouragement from Bucky, they decided to help because according to Bucky, he hadn't carried Regulus out of that damn cave just to be captured by Death Eaters and possibly fall into the hands of Hydra.
Sirius took a bite of his sandwich and listened to the conversation between the Avengers and the Order; the sandwich was the first thing he'd eaten in days since he had been spending day and night drinking Fire Whiskey while using his magic to keep himself awake. Sirius was afraid. For the first time in his life, Sirius was truly afraid, and he hated this feeling; he needed something to drive it away, and wizard alcohol was doing an excellent job of accomplishing that. After a week, Dumbledore finally called an Order meeting to discuss what happened at the Ministry, and they had to confess their Horcrux hunt due to having to explain how Regulus was alive and how Remus and the others found him. After those two explanations, Loki told the room Voldemort had six Horcruxes; three were upstairs in Tony Stark's safe, and they were still out there somewhere. Sirius knew he did it on purpose, so Dumbledore couldn't force them to keep it a secret among them. Loki and Sirius respected the old wizard, but his need to keep everything a secret was annoying and dangerous.
"So, you just have three pieces of You-Know-Who's soul upstairs in a muggle safe?" Moody asked.
"And there are three more out there," Loki answered; he was sitting in Sirius' spot at the end of the table, with his feet propped up on it; things had been a little tense between Sirius and Loki. They've argued several times this week over Sirius not sleeping and drinking; Harry has either spent his time hiding in his room or somewhere else in the house hanging out with either Bucky or Thor. Sirius knew he was worrying his family, especially Loki, who kept glancing at him and the bottle of Fire Whiskey sitting on the counter beside him. Sirius couldn't help it; it kept his dark thoughts away, stopping him from going out and hunting down every last one of Voldemort's followers.
"Three more?" Hestia cried, "How could someone split their soul six times?"
"Seven." Loki corrected, "There were seven, but someone destroyed one, and there's the three upstairs, and Voldemort's sister is one, and we believe his snake is another, and one we haven't figured out what it is yet."
"His sister?" Emmeline asked, "A human can be a Horcrux?"
"Yes," Dumbledore answered. "And I believe there is an eighth one."
"An eighth?" Tony demanded, "So, now we have two to find?"
"No, you have one to find." Dumbledore said, "I know where the last Horcrux is and what it is, so don't worry about that until time."
"Until the time for what?" Kingsley asked.
"Until the right time for the Horcrux to be destroyed," Dumbledore answered.
"What is it?" Natasha asked, "And where is it?"
"I will not reveal that until necessary," Dumbledore said.
"Until it's necessary? It needs to be destroyed like all the rest of them." Loki said.
"And regrettably, it likely will be," Dumbledore said.
"Regrettably?" Steve asked, "Why, regrettably? And likely will be? It has to be destroyed, no matter what it is." For a moment, Sirius could have sworn he saw pain cross Dumbledore's face before masking it into a friendly smile.
"Again, there is no reason to worry about that just yet, my good man; just focus on finding the other and destroying the ones you have, leaving the very last to me. I promise you, I will take care of it." Dumbledore replied.
"We still haven't figured out how to destroy them," Remus said, "Plus, we were waiting to have them all; we aren't sure whether Voldemort can feel it."
"That was smart, but I think it'd be okay to go ahead and destroy them when you get the chance," Dumbledore said, "I do not believe anyone will feel it." Sirius raised an eyebrow at that. Shouldn't it be Voldemort won't feel it?
"Schmidt has Horcruxes also." Bucky said, "Two, Voldemort and a guy named Brock Rumlow."
"How are we ever going to beat them?" Hestia asked, a frightened look on her face.
"By killing them," Loki said, "First we destroy the Horcruxes we have, then find the other Horcrux and destroy it, kill the snake, kill Rumlow, make sure the one Dumbledore is talking about is destroyed, then kill Voldemort and Schmidt at the same time."
"Really?" Molly said, "You talk of murder as if it's the easiest thing in the world; not all of us like the idea of killing people. Couldn't we destroy these Horcrux things, weaken You-Know-Who and his sister, and stick them in Azkaban for their crimes?"
"So they can escape?" Loki asked, "No, Voldemort isn't going to stop until he succeeds in killing my son; I will not let that happen; he forfeited his life the moment he targeted Harry because of what that damn prophecy says."
"So, you know what the prophecy says?" Dumbledore asked.
"I do, Sirius told me, at first he didn't remember, but once his mind was back together from his stay in Azkaban, he remembered it word for word," Loki said.
"And did you-"
"Tell Harry, yes, last summer," Loki said.
"How could you?" Molly demanded, "How could you put that on him now? You had no right."
"No, right?" Sirius demanded. All eyes turned to him, and he sat his half-eaten sandwich on his plate on the counter, "Harry is our son, Molly; we can tell him whatever we want; he knows about the prophecy, and he knows about the Horcruxes. Loki and I don't keep things from him; it's too dangerous."
"The poor child, he must be so scared," Molly said. Sirius grabbed the bottle of Fire Whiskey sitting next to his plate and took a big gulp to keep from lashing out at Molly and saying something he might regret.
"Harry doesn't seem scared to me," Regulus remarked. Sirius lowered the bottle from his mouth and looked at his brother. When they returned home from the Ministry, Ted healed the cut on his face, but unfortunately, it left a scar along his cheek. When he had first entered the kitchen, there had been several protests from the Order until Regulus had snapped that this was his house. If they didn't like him being in his kitchen, they could have their meeting someplace else; Dumbledore spoke up and said that wasn't necessary, that Regulus could stay, and Regulus replied he didn't need permission to sit in his kitchen.
"If you think keeping secrets is dangerous, why didn't you tell Dumbledore or the Order about Regulus being here?" Molly demanded, "It's a good thing I came over for Christmas; I was able to owl Dumbledore when I got home and warn him."
"You did what?" Sirius demanded. "You put that in an Owl? Anyone could have gotten it."
"Dumbledore is the Order's leader, and this is Order headquarters; he has a right to know who lives here," Molly said.
"It's my house," Sirius shouted, "Just because the Order has meetings in my goddamn kitchen doesn't mean they have a right to know every little thing that goes on in my house."
Sirius slammed the bottle on the counter and ran his hand through his hair. He noticed Loki giving him another worried look, and everyone else (except Regulus, who was also watching Sirius) avoided looking at him. Sirius could feel an awkward tension in the air following his outburst. But he didn't care. The whole reason Sirius was standing here and not sitting at the table was so Sirius could keep an eye on everyone and see if anyone acted suspicious. After finding out there was a spy at St. Mungo's giving Voldemort information, he wasn't taking the chance that there could be a spy in the Order, like last time, so if anyone seems too interested in this information or asked to see the Horcruxes, Sirius will have to take them aside and have a little talk.
"I thought you didn't care about this house," Molly said.
"It's our ancestral home," Regulus said, "this house has been in our family for generations; it doesn't matter if we care about it; it's still ours, and no one can dictate who lives here and who doesn't."
"Not much of a family to be proud of," Molly mumbled.
"Hey," Tonks said, "why shouldn't he be proud of us?" ever since Andromeda had gotten hurt in the Ministry, she'd been a bit defensive over anything negative said to any of them. Especially since Andromeda was still in bed recovering, with Ted staying by her side.
"I don't mean you, dear," Molly said.
"And my mum?" Tonks demanded.
"Of course, I don't mean your mum," Molly said, and Sirius snorted; he doubted Molly wasn't including Andromeda, considering the two didn't get along very well.
"What about Harry?" Regulus asked. Loki smirked at his question; Molly's eyes snapped to Regulus and narrowed,
"Harry isn't a Black," Molly stated, and Regulus turned to Sirius.
"Sirius, would you mind telling us your last name?" Regulus asked; Sirius grinned, amused.
"Black." He replied, and Regulus turned to Molly with the same smug look that Orion Black often wore on his face.
"And who is your son?" Regulus asked while still giving Molly that smug look.
"Harry,"
"Yes, well, Harry's last name is Potter." Molly pointed out.
"But it should be Black," Regulus replied, "Harry is a Black, just like I am, just like Sirius, just like Andromeda, and just like Nymphadora, his last name doesn't matter; it's the blood in his veins."
"Is this relevant?" Snape spoke up, "We are not here to argue over the Black family members."
"The lad's right." Moody agreed, "We have more important things to discuss."
"How was that one Hocrux destroyed?" Dedalus asked.
"A basilisk fang," Bill said.
"A basilisk fang?" Dedalus demanded, "Where..how.."
"Too long of a story to explain." Bill replied, "Just know basilisk venom can destroy them."
"Where are we going to get that from? It's not exactly easy to come by," Emmeline asked.
"Feindfyre can also destroy them, but that can be dangerous if you don't know how to control it," Regulus said.
"That's dark magic," Molly said.
"Sometimes you have to use dark magic to beat dark mark magic," Regulus argued, "I can control Feindfyre. If it comes down to it, I can destroy them."
"I have an idea of how we might do it." Dumbledore said, "But, at the moment, let's just concentrate on finding out the last unknown one; we'll meet again here, same time, same day next week, right before winter break is over, but at the moment I must bide you all a fare well, I am due back at Hogwarts for a meeting with Fudge."
Dumbledore stood, tipped his hat to the room, and then left; Snape immediately got up and followed without a word to anyone; the Order members followed, Molly and Arthur being the last to get up and go after stopping at the stairway and called their children down.
"Well, that was entering," Tony said. Sirius picked up the Fire Whiskey and walked over and sat across from Thor, who was on Loki's left, putting Sirius on his right; Regulus was sitting next to Thor, Bucky on his other side. Sirius took a drink and then sat the bottle on the table.
"I can't believe he wouldn't tell us anything about the eighth Horcrux." Steve said, "I know he said he knew what it was and where it was; why not tell us and have us retrieve it."
"Loki caught him off guard," Remus said, "Dumbledore thought he was the only one who knew about Voldemort's Horcruxes; he was planning to keep that to himself until he had to reveal that information. Loki announcing it to the room took that from him, and by withholding the information on this eighth Horcrux, he still feels in control of something."
"We are by no means talking down on Albus Dumbledore; he is a great man and a great wizard," Loki said, "But, his brilliance sometimes blinds him; he thinks he alone can only do the tough decision-making."
"It's his way of protecting everyone from war and from information he thinks they may not be able to handle," Bill added, "He has a habit of underestimating Order members; we are a lot tougher than Dumbledore gives us correct for, we can handle more than he thinks."
"Maybe the eighth Horcrux is another person," Natasha suggested, "Dumbledore did say it would regrettably be destroyed."
"Dumbledore has always hated the thought of taking another's life," Remus added, "Even in war, he always told us Order members, if attacked, try to get away without killing; he thinks everyone can be redeemed."
"But, who would be willing to become a Horcrux?" Thor asked. "Besides Schmidt."
"Voldemort could brainwash any of his followers to do it, or it could have been unwillingly," Remus said.
"Bellatrix would," Sirius said, "But unless Voldemort made it recently or before her stay in Azkaban, I doubt it's her; how would Dumbledore know if it was? We had to be told by our spy that Schmidt was a Horcrux, and Harry saw it happen, though we didn't know that was what his dream was."
"What do you mean Harry saw it?" Regulus asked, "What dream?"
"Harry used to have visions of Voldemort; they appeared to him mostly at night in dreams, but I used a spell to break the connection," Loki explained, "Harry's scar still hurts sometimes, and he still feels Voldemort's emotions, but he does not have visions anymore."
"I've never heard of anything like that," Regulus said, his eyebrows narrowed, "Do you know what caused it?"
"Dumbledore said when the killing curse rebounded off Harry and struck Voldemort, it caused some of Voldemort's powers to attach to Harry, causing a connection between the two," Sirius explained. Regulus stared at him with his eyes wide and mouth open.
"What?"
"Are you…are you sure that's the reason?" Regulus asked. Sirius nodded.
"That's what Dumbledore believes," Sirius said, "Why? Something wrong?" Regulus shook his head.
"Let's not worry about the eighth Horcrux right now," Regulus said, "We should figure out the seventh one first. I think it might be something that belonged to Helga Hufflepuff."
"Hufflepuff?" Tonks asked, "Why do you say that?"
"Well, he used Slytherin's Locket and Ravenclaw's lost diadem-"
"That crown thing is Ravenclaw's lost diadem?" Sirius asked, "How did Voldemort get his hands on it? It was lost centuries ago."
"What is Ravenclaw's lost diadem?" Loki asked, frowning in confusion.
"The crown Voldemort turned into a Horcrux." Regulus explained, "Rowena Ravenclaw created it centuries ago; it's rumored to have been bewitched to make the wearer more intelligent."
"Did it work?" Loki asked.
"I doubt it," Regulus said, "I don't know of any spell or charm that can enhance a person's intelligence."
"Why something of Hufflepuff and not Gryffindor?" Sirius asked.
"The only known relics of Gryfindor that still exist are the Shorting Hat and Gryffindor's sword, and we know the Shorting Hat isn't housing a part of the Dark Lord's soul-"
"Call him Voldemort, will you?" Sirius interrupted, "It creeps me out when you say the Dark Lord."
"And I don't see how Gryffindor's sword could be a Horcrux when it's said to only appear to a true Gryffindor in need." Regulus continued. "Though I guess there is a slight possibility The Dark Lord-
"Voldemort,"
"Voldemort somehow found it." Regulus finished.
"The sword is not a Horcrux," Loki said.
"How do you know?" Thor asked, giving Loki a suspicious look.
"I just do," Loki replied.
"Do you have any guess what of Hufflepuff it could be?" Tonks asked.
"A cup," Regulus answered, "Hepzibah Smith was the last decedent of Hufflepuff who owned a cup that belonged to Helga Hufflepuff; it's a silver goblet with a badger on the front; Hepzibah died of being poisoned, her House-Elf was blamed-"
"House-elves can't kill their owners, or Krecher would have killed me a long time ago." Sirius interrupted.
"It was ruled an accident; the elf was very old, and it was believed she mistook rat poison for sugar-"
"Bullshit, an elf isn't going to do that," Sirius argued.
"Stop interrupting me and just listen," Regulus demanded, "I know it's doubtful a house-elf would make a mistake like that, no matter how old it is, but you know the ministry has been lazy and corrupt for decades; the elf confessed, so, job done, they can close the case and move on, but her family never believed the Ministry's findings, because two precious items went missing at the time of her death, they believed someone killed Smith for them and framed the house-elf."
"How do you know this?" Bill asked.
"My father told me; I got curious to know if it was true and did some research," Regulus explained.
"But why would Orion care about some missing Hufflepuff cup?" Sirius demanded.
"It's not the cup he was interested in; it's what disappeared with the cup that Hepzibah Smith owned," Regulus said.
"What?"
"Come on, Sirius, think, what has our family always been obsessed with?" Regulus demanded.
"I don't know, blood purity, riches, political power, marrying their cousins." Sirius shrugged, and Regulus rolled his eyes.
"Your family marries their cousins?" Bucky asked, giving Sirius a disgusted look.
"There aren't many purebloods left. If you want your children to keep the bloodline pure, they sometimes have to marry their kin," Sirius said.
"That's disgusting," Bucky said, Sirius shrugged.
"That's one of the reasons I ran away from home; my loving parents were trying to arrange a marriage between me and my cousin Narcissa. The wedding was to be after I was of age and out of school, and she's five years older than me," Sirius said.
"Do you mean Narcissa Malfoy?" Bill asked, "Lucius Malfoy's wife?"
"Yep, at that time, my Uncle Cygnus had arranged a marriage between Andromeda and Lucius, but then Andromeda eloped with Ted, which gave me the courage to finally say fuck it, and left, so, Cygnus offered the Malfoy's Narcissa's hand instead, since Bellatrix had already married Rodophus Lestrange by then," Sirius explained.
"Mum has never told me about that," Tonks said, "You mean I was almost Nympadora Malfoy?"
"No," Sirius chuckled. "Even if Annie hadn't eloped, there was no way she would have married Lucius Malfoy. Narcissa, on the other hand, has always had a thing for Lu Lu, so she had no objections to marrying him."
"Now that we had this history lesson, can we return to the Horcrux?" Regulus demanded; he pushed up his sleeve and showed Sirius his dark mark. Sirius immediately looked away.
"I don't want to see that, Reg," Sirius replied.
"It's a clue to what else our family is obsessed with," Regulus said, putting his arm down.
"Are you talking about You-Know-Who or Slytherin?" Bill asked.
"Slytherin."
"The locket, that's what disappeared with the cup," Loki said.
"Yes, that's why Father told me Hepzibah Smith's story; he said he'd love to find Slytherin's locket; it's the biggest reason I think Voldemort's other Horcrux is Hufflepuff's cup," Regulus said, "Smith bought the locket from Borgin and Burkes, who bought it from Merope Gaunt, Voldemort worked at Brogin and Burkes at the time Smith was killed,"
"Voldemort worked at some second-rate magic shop in Knockturn Ally?" Loki asked, raising his eyebrow.
"It was before he became the Dark Lord. He still went by Tom Riddle, but yeah, he worked there for about a year or two; after Smith's death, he disappeared, and when he reappeared, he was calling himself Voldemort, and all his mates from school became the first generation of Death Eaters," Regulus said.
"How many generations of Death Eaters have there been?" Steve asked.
"Two," Regulus said, "Malfoy, Nott, Crabb, and Goyle all became Death Eaters because their fathers were Voldemort's schoolmates who became the first Death Eaters."
"So, Draco is likely to become one?" Loki asked.
"Sadly, yes," Regulus said, "Though I doubt that's something Narcissa would want, Lucius will encourage him to get the mark."
"But isn't Draco Malfoy Ron's age? Surly You-Know-Who doesn't recruit them that young." Bill said.
"I was eighteen," Regulus replied. "Draco will be sixteen in June, and if Voldemort is staying at Malfoy Manor as he did during the first war, Draco will likely get talked into it by Lucius and Bellatrix."
"So you were a Death Eater for two years before discovering the Horcruxes," Loki asked.
"Yeah," Regulus replied, "I was one until I found out the Dark Lord-"
"Damn it, Regulus, I told you not to call the bastard that." Sirius snapped, then immediately regretted it at the hurt look on Regulus' face, but then he scowled and stood.
"I don't know what the hell has gotten into you this week, Sirius, but don't bloody take it out on me," Regulus said, then stormed out of the kitchen.
"Reggie, I'm-"
The door slamming cut off Sirius's apology, and he grabbed the Fire Whiskey and took a drink. He felt everyone's eyes on him, and it was making him feel uncomfortable.
"What?"
Loki put his feet down, leaned towards Sirius, took hold of the Fire Whiskey, and pulled it out of his hand.
"I think you've had enough of this," Loki said.
"Give me that." Sirius snapped; he stood and snatched the bottle out of Loki's hand; the whole kitchen stared in shock as Sirius took another drink. Thor took one look at the glare Loki was giving Sirius and stood.
"I have to…there is…yeah," Thor said, then hurried out of the kitchen; the others decided Thor had a good idea and stood.
"I'm going to go add some upgrades to my suit," Tony said, then left the kitchen.
"I'm going to check on Mum," Tonks said, and she hurried out of the kitchen.
"Buck, why don't we help Tony," Steve said. Bucky agreed, and they left the kitchen together.
"I should get back to the Burrow," Bill said, "Mum will be fixing dinner in about, " he looked at his watch. "Three hours, she'll be mad if I'm late."
"We'll walk you out," Remus said, and he and Natasha followed Bill out of the kitchen, which left just Loki and Sirius. The latter flinched at the look Loki was giving him.
"Reigny, I'm -"
"Hand me the bottle," Loki said, standing. "If you are truly sorry for your disrespect, you'll hand it over now; I think two and a half bottles of Fire Whiskey in one week is enough."
Sirius looked at the bottle in his hand then went to take one more drink.
"Without taking a drink," Loki said. Sirius lowered the bottle and handed it to Loki, who went to the sink to pour it out. "Is this your last bottle?"
"There is one more in the cabinet," Sirius answered; he felt like a child being reprimanded.
"It better stay there," Loki answered; sitting the empty bottle on the counter, he turned around and faced Sirius. "I know you're using magic to keep yourself awake. Did I not tell you that using your magic like that is dangerous?"
"Reigny, I'm sorry; I don't-" Loki held his hand up, cutting Sirius off.
"Sirius, what is wrong with you?" Loki asked, "You have done nothing but drink and snap at people all week, you're not sleeping, you haven't showered in days, you've been shirtless ever since you angrily removed your shirt two days ago when you split your drink on it, and you're still wearing the same pajamas you put on after we returned from the Ministry."
"It's not like I'm going anywhere." Sirius defended. "Why do you care what I am wearing?"
"I do not care that you are wearing pajamas; I care that you are not taking care of yourself," Loki replied. Sirius looked away and didn't say anything.
"You don't have to worry about me," Sirius mumbled.
"Darling, what is bothering you?" Loki asked. "You can tell me."
"I thought you were safe," Sirius whispered.
"Pardon?" Loki asked
"Everyone else, Harry, Reggie, the others, I've had to worry about being killed in this war," Sirius replied. "But you, I thought you were safe since our magic didn't work on you; I thought the only thing I had to worry about was Thanos returning, but now-"
"Is this about Voldemort hitting me with the Killing Curse?" Loki demanded.
"I thought you were dead," Sirius said, "when you didn't immediately get back up. You were the one person I didn't have to worry about losing, and now there's a chance I could lose everyone I care about. I can't take it."
"You do not have to worry about me," Loki said, "The curse only hurts a bit; it doesn't kill me."
"I'm afraid, Loki, for the first time in my life, I'm afraid," Sirius admitted. Loki didn't know what to say, so he changed the topic.
"You look exhausted; you need rest, darling; why don't you lay down for a while?" Loki said.
"I can't," Sirius said, shaking his head.
"You have not slept all week; you are going to have a breakdown or become ill," Loki argued.
Sirius shook his head again and glanced at the cabinet with the unopened bottle of Fire Whiskey. Loki stepped over to him and turned Sirius' face toward him and away from the cabinet; he hesitated, then laid his hand on Sirius' forehead.
"Forgive me, darling," Loki said.
"Wh-" Sirius didn't get to finish his question; his eyes closed, and he fell asleep. Loki caught him in his arms before he could fall to the floor. Then, with one arm around Sirius' back, Loki bent slightly and put his other arm behind Sirius' knees, picked him up, turned to the kitchen door, used telekinesis to open it, and carried Sirius out of the kitchen, and up the basement stairs across the entranceway, and then up the staircase, and when Loki reached the landing to their room, Harry's bedroom door open. Regulus stepped out, followed by Harry, who paused at the sight of Loki carrying Sirius.
"What happened?" Harry demanded, worry crossing his features.
"He's only asleep, do not worry," Loki replied, "Could you open the door for me?"
Regulus stepped over and opened the bedroom door; he looked suspiciously at Loki but said nothing. Loki, too, was a bit suspicious; why would Regulus be in Harry's bedroom? Harry usually avoided having anything to do with Regulus.
"Are you sure he's-"
"Your father just has a lot on his mind; he'll be fine once he's rested," Loki answered.
"If you need me, Regulus and I will be in the library," Harry said, and Loki looked between the two.
"Is something wrong? You look worried." Loki asked.
"No." Harry and Regulus answered simultaneously; they looked at one another, surprised, then back at Loki, and said, at the same time, "Just worried about Dad/Sirius."
Loki raised his eyebrows, not believing a word either said, but decided to drill the truth out of them later, and turned and walked into the bedroom, where he laid Sirius on the bed and covered him up, then sat next to him.
"Please, don't be too mad at me, love," Loki whispered, running his hand through Sirius' hair; he knew Sirius was going to be mad about Loki using his magic on him, but Sirius needed rest, staying awake doing nothing but drinking was not healthy, even for a wizard.
"Brother, there you are," Thor said, entering the room, and Loki turned and glared at him.
"What do you want, Thor?" Loki demanded in a low voice, "Can't you see Sirius is resting?"
"Sirius won't be happy you used magic on him," Thor stated.
"Why are you in here?" Loki demanded.
"I haven't had the chance to give you this," Thor replied as he held out a small wooden box; Loki gave it a surprised look.
"You brought me a gift?" Loki asked.
"It's for Sirius and Harry, but I believe you'll appreciate it," Thor said. Loki took the small box, opened the lid, and gasped; lying in the box were two golden apples.
"You stole Harry and Sirius an Idun apple?" Loki asked.
"I did it for you," Thor said, "I've never seen you care for another as much as you do Sirius and Harry; I wanted to give you the opportunity of not having to watch them grow old and die but remember, it's up to them to expect it, you can not force them or trick them into eating one."
"I'm certain Sirius will eat one, but Harry, I do not know," Loki said; he felt stunned that Thor would do this for him.
"I think Harry will," Thor said with certainty. Loki closed the lid and sat the box on the nightstand by the bed, then stood and, without hesitation, hugged Thor, completely shocking him.
"This is the nicest thing anyone has ever done for me." Loki said, "Thank you…..brother."
Thor chuckled and gripped Loki tightly before letting him go, "You are welcome, brother."
"If you tell anyone I did that or called you that, I will deny it, then curse you painfully," Loki warned, and Thor laughed, "I mean it, not one word."
"I wouldn't dream of it," Thor replied; he patted Loki's shoulder, then turned and left the bedroom with a smile.
AN: Sorry if Sirius seemed a bit moody and a jerk in this chapter I wanted to show things catching up to him, and he can't handle it very well. Also since I want to end the HP storyline soon, I needed the Horcruxes and all that to come out, which let Regulus realize Harry was a possible Horcrux.
I do not know if Lucius Malfoy or Crabb Sr and Goyle Sr were ever DE or went to school with Voldemort, but I believe one of Tom Riddle's friends in Slughorn's memory was a Nott, and there is a Theodore Nott in Slythiern in Harry's year, it's never said if they are related but I assume that the Nott in Riddle's year was likely Theodore's father or grandfather, giving Voldemort's age, more likely grandfather, so I just added the bit about the others, because it being a family tmakes sense to me.
There may be a time skip in the next chapter, not a big one, but in a chapter or two there'll be a big skip and Harry will be out of Hogwarts for the summer, and if I can get it written the way image it in my head, the HP plot will pause for a couple of chapters, possibly more and the story will switch to a MCU plot briefly.