Well, well, well... another update?? I wrote this on the spur of the moment, kinda thing in my notes app, as a sudden idea hit me at 2:30 AM--yes, all brilliant ideas happen at ungodly times--so, I'll reupdate and revise in a couple of hours. :))
"I looked at the stars, and considered how awful it would be for a man to turn his face up to them as he froze to death, and see no help or pity in all the glittering multitude."
- Great Expectations (Charles Dickens)
As the Inferi's hands grabbed him, dragging him underwater with immense force, his ears started ringing, and his lungs began to burn, begging for even a millisecond of air. His mind couldn't help but recall the events of his pathetically short life. He had read, in some muggle book during his free time, that the brain combs through memories of their life looking for a way to survive. However, he'd instead like to think of it as a way for him to remember that his life wasn't all that terrible, that he was happy at one time.
Vividly, he was taken back to the time when Sirius had a bout of accidental magic after the house elf tried to bathe him with a new shampoo. Now that Regulus was looking back, Sirius always had a penchant for mischief, although he somehow kept it down until his Hogwarts years, when he got the experience to fully express himself, mischief and all. Water squirted out of the pipes everywhere. Mother wasn't so cruel back then, and often coddled them, especially Sirius, before Father got home from the Ministry. Sirius and Regulus played in every crevice of water they could find, before a house elf would mop that up and they'd squeal and run to a different spot. Regulus reckons they were about five and three years old at that time, respectively.
Abruptly, another image breaks through, forcing another memory into his mind. It was two weeks before Sirius was off to Hogwarts for the first time, back when Mother began training Sirius, who she was so sure would be Slytherin, about the nuances of being proper and poised among those she considered beneath them. Sirius, having snuck away, pushed the solemn-looking Regulus into the lake behind their house, to distract him from the thoughts of being left behind as Sirius forged ahead in his life. They both had many races, and to this day, Regulus would argue that they weren't all tied, but he had won against his brother numerous times. The first time in many days, Regulus felt…free.
While reminiscing that peaceful memory, another one came to mind: the fight, which wasn't truly a fight. Some Slytherins were messing with Sirius and his clique (Potter, Lupin, and some mousy-looking guy he couldn't be bothered with). The messy fight ended with only the two brothers remaining; everyone else had left. Sirius healed his wounds, then the two sat in silence, not particularly uncomfortable but something they hadn't experienced in a long time. The comforting waves of the Black Lake calmed the tensions between the boys, the last moment of peace shared by the brothers.
Perhaps the muggle book was right, and a human brain searches for ways to protect itself, but Regulus preferred that his memories provided him warmth from the biting chill of the waters as he stopped futilely struggling, hoping that his sacrifice to the waters would bring better tides to his brother.