The Four Interchanging Lives of Regulus Black (Harry Potter Fanfic)

Which Means What?

Whatever Regulus intended to say—

The words never came as Sirius discovered himself touching air instead of his younger brother's shoulders. His hands shook as he slid down in the nook, looking where Regulus should be.

"What kind of joke is this?"

Sirius pushed himself out of the nook Regulus hid in, his hands clenching.

"Regulus! Hey! Where are you!" He swallowed, hands rising to grasp locks of black hair. "This isn't..."

His mind returned to the voice, the dreadful dark feeling as a shiver ran down his spine. "Please try again."

"No!" Sirius took a deep breath. "I did try! I bloody did try! What kind of sick joke is this? You are telling me to try again! To do what? I can't save him! I can't touch him!"

"Please try again."

The voice sounded as if it were mocking him, of taking a moment when his life ended, turning it into a miserable situation. Taking a deep breath, Sirius thought over things. "Our lives as we knew it ended when I died and went through the veil, and he died and drowned."

"Please try again."

"You bloody monster!" Sirius kicked the wall where the knock was, only to find himself hopping up and down as pain rippled through his foot, his breath sucking in. "How? If this isn't real, then no! I shouldn't."

"Please try again."

"I nearly drowned."

Not ever—

Sirius took a deep breath. "He kept saying he didn't die, that he didn't drown. That he nearly did, that he technically did or didn't." He ran his fingers through his hands. "Ugh! What is with that brat's use of words? Technically, he did die, or technically, he didn't!"

"Is he insane?"

"I don't know."

Sirius stiffened, then looked up, seeing a couple of fellow students looking at him, his behavior creeping out both girls. He straightened up, pointing at them. "What are you staring at? I can yell about random things if I want to!"

The girls shrieked and hurried off while he glared.

Sirius took a deep breath. "Well, that wouldn't have happened before, as the girls used to be fawning over me, although..." Sirius swallowed. "Yeah. It's a weird thing to say as it's only a second year. Bloody Regulus' weirdness is rubbing off on me, the bloody idiot." Sirius took a deep breath. "I need to find Regulus. Or that girl. Or something. Get James to help."

"Please try again."

Sirius stiffened. "What was that about? The fact James is also dead?" He shook his head, then took off. "There's also that Rosier brat who might help me find him. Didn't he say he followed Regulus? That means where he is. Yeah. I'll find him. I'm not letting that thing, whatever's playing around with me here, get the better of me.