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Challenges at the bottom

Word Count - 734

Lie To Me

Sirius lay on his back on his bed, playing catch and release with a practice snitch. A cigarette hung loosely from his lips. He didn't particularly care much for smoking, but the smell drove his mother to distraction, and that was more than worth the damage he was probably doing to his lungs.

A knock on the door made him lose his concentration, and the snitch flitted away from his reach.

Huffing, Sirius picked up his wand, summoning the snitch back to his hand before he turned it on the door, spelling the lock open.

Regulus pushed the door open, lingering for a moment in the doorway before he pushed in and closed the door behind him.

"You know mother will be mad at you for that, right?" he asked, waving a hand at the cigarette in Sirius' mouth.

"I have… zero fucks to give about what mother will be mad at," Sirius replied after a moment. "It's her perpetual state with me."

Regulus rolled his eyes. "Maybe if you didn't provoke her so much…"

"She'd still find something to be mad at me for. She always is. She doesn't even bother to dangle her approval just out of arm's reach with me anymore. What do you want, Reg?"

"I just… You're going to leave, aren't you?"

Sirius blinked. "What made you think that?"

"I heard you shouting it at mother lost night. She doesn't think you're serious but… you're going, aren't you?"

Sighing, Sirius sat up, tossing the cigarette end into the overflowing ashtray on his side table. "This house… it's not a home to me, Regulus. It's… captivity. It's a prison cell. I can't… I can't do it anymore."

Sirius couldn't stop himself from noticing the way Regulus' eyes seemed brighter, shining with unshed tears.

"What about me?" he asked, quietly. "What about… we had good times, didn't we?"

Regulus pointed to a picture frame on the wall, the picture inside it a happy one of when the two of them were still young and innocent enough to believe that family was everything.

Sirius nodded, closing his eyes for a minute. Leaning over the side of the bed, be picked up a box, tossing it across the bed.

"There's cookies in there, Mrs Potter sent them. Try them, you'll like them."

Regulus scowled at him, before his curiosity got the better of him. Biting into one of them, his eyes widened.

"They're good."

Sirius nodded. "Take them," he murmured. "You should head downstairs. Mother will be calling for dinner soon, and you don't want her to find you here with me."

"Sirius… we had good times, right?"

"Yeah, Reg. Once upon a time, we had good times."

Regulus smiled, picking up the box as he left the room. Sirius watched him go, his heart hurting for his little brother. He decided that he would leave that night.

…

Regulus was sitting on the stairs. Sirius found that he wasn't completely surprised by that, as he slipped past his little brother.

"You're really going then? Just… running away?"

Sirius sighed, hefting the backpack he'd put his important things in into a more comfortable position. It made him sad that he could carry everything important to him in a single rucksack.

"There's nothing to hold me here. I don't fit into this family, Regulus. I never have."

"Lie to me," Regulus begged, his voice little more than a whisper. "Please. Tell me that I won't ever have to face you on a battlefield."

Sirius shook his head, his eyes hard. "I can't lie to you about that. I plan to fight for what I believe in, Reg. If you fight for that monster, I'll see you out there. Voldemort must die, Regulus. I intend to help make that happen."

"Sirius," Regulus choked. "You're my brother."

Hand on the door handle, Sirius snorted. "Blood only. We haven't been family for a long time. Stay out of my way, Regulus."

Sirius opened the door quietly, slipping out into the windy night. He paused at the gate, taking a look at the house that he'd lived in for all of his life. His little brother would still be on the stairs he knew, and the thought made his heart clench.

He could only hope that his hurtful words would make Regulus think twice about fighting in this war.

He could only hope that he'd keep himself safe.

Written for;

Character Appreciation - 5. Siblings

Disney - C1. A runaway.

Shannon's Showcase - Czech Republic - Lie To Me / Backpack

Book Club - Captain - Cigarette / Captivity / Hurting Someone To Protect Them

Days Of The Month - Brother's Day - Write about Brothers

Buttons - O5. Picture Frame

Showtime - 41. Wind

Geek Pride S2 - Star Trek - "[Name] must die."

Geek Pride S4 - Keychain - Dangle / Lock / Carry

Cooking Corner - Chocolate Chips - Cookies

Chocolate Frog - Firenze - Someone who doesn't fit in

Insane - 462. Bed