Losing Game/// James Potter

Chapter 23

When Elsie walked through the door of the empty classroom, the sight in front of her broke her heart even more than it already was.

Regulus Black was sitting down on the floor with his knees pulled up to his chest, his hands entangled in his own black, curly hair. His eyes were swollen red with tears pouring down his cheeks, and his body was shaking from his sobs. He was sitting in front of a giant mirror while shouting at it in agony.

"How could you do this?!" He screamed through muffled sobs, "How could you leave me?!"

The boy stopped screaming as the tears continued streaming down his face. Elsie didn't know Regulus well at all, but she knew Sirius. And, she knew that emotions weren't taught in the Black family, meaning that this mental break down must have been triggered by something that was heavily weighing on him. She closed the door behind her and whispered the Muffliato Charm so that no one would hear the private moment the boy was having with himself.

Elsie couldn't find it in herself to leave him here alone to have his private moment because after all, he's just a boy. A boy who was never taught to love. A boy who was forced to do things and say things to please others. But right now, he was just a boy who needed someone to lean on. So, she ran over to the screaming, crying boy.

"A-are you okay?" She softly spoke while heading over to the boy.

At the sound of another voice in the room, Regulus immediately wiped his tears and put on a straight face as if he was trained to shut off his emotions. "Why are you here?" he spit out in a confident voice, no trace of crying even evident.

Elsie shook her head in astonishment at him, as she finally reached the boy on the floor. She stood over him and spoke, "You don't have to do that. You don't have to shut off your emotions around me."

"I don't even know you," he commented as he stared up at Elsie, still having a cold expression plastered on his face. Elsie sat down next to him, not minding any attention to the mirror in front of them.

She ignored his last statement and spoke again, "I put the Muffliato charm on the door so no one could hear. It's okay to cry, you know." Elsie had her eyes locked onto his, while his were staring at the ground.

He looked up at the strange girl sitting next to him and once again blurt out, "I don't even know you."

Elsie looked at him and shot him a small smile, "I'm Elsie Figg, Sirius' friend."

At the mention of Sirius' name, his entire body stiffened and anger coursed through him.

"Get out," he seethed to Elsie while abruptly standing up and pointing to the door.

Elsie stood up after him with a confused expression on her face, "Did I say something-,"

She was cut off by the angry boy gritting his teeth and repeating himself in a slightly louder tone, "Get out."

Elsie was baffled at the change in his demeanor, not knowing what she did to offend the boy at all. Not knowing how someone could switch through their emotions so quickly, so agile, so trained.

After collecting her thoughts, she spoke again, "I saw you crying and I couldn't leave you here. I just want to help you, Regulus."

It was as if he finally reached his breaking point and he shouted at the girl, "I don't need you. I don't need anyone, especially not Sirius." His fists were balled up at his sides in anger, but his eyes were filled with a much different emotion. Pain.

That's when everything clicked for Elsie. Regulus was in pain because Sirius left him. That's what he was shouting about when she first walked in, and that's why he wanted her to get out when she mentioned that she was friends with his brother. Her expression softened and she looked up at the younger boy who was taller than her. He looked tired and weak, and the rim of his eyes were filled with tears that looked as if they were about to fall at any second.