The Story of Regulus Black - Years 1-4

XXIII. OH BLOODY HELL!

CW: emetephobia (towards the beginning)

The sorting took much longer than it had the year before.

Not only were there almost twice as many nervous first years, but Regulus had been so distracted during his own sorting that the time had passed at double the speed. So, by the time it was over, Regulus was half-asleep from boredom. Slytherin had gained six new first years; three boys - Ben Ward, Elis Mills, and Anthony Matthews - and three girls - Lila Davidson, Ariella Graham, and Daniella May. During dinner, the girls naturally gravitated towards Phoebe Scott, who was the only one at the table close enough to their age for them to feel comfortable.

It was while Regulus was noticing this, that he also noticed another thing - a much bigger thing. Constance Selwyn was nowhere to be found. He glanced up and down the table, just to be sure that he wasn't somehow missing her. Sure enough, Constance Selwyn wasn't there.

"Hey, Phoebe," Regulus asked, leaning over the table. Phoebe Scott looked at Regulus in surprise - the two had only talked a handful of times in class the entire year that they had been classmates. She wasn't even entirely sure that he knew her name until now. "Where's Constance?"

Phoebe's expression changed to one of cold seriousness. "Didn't you hear?"

"Hear what?" Barty asked, leaning over the table next to Regulus.

"What happened? I don't know exactly, but I heard that it had to do with the Dark Lord. Apparently, he used the Cruciatus on her. She snapped. She's been in Mungo's ever since, in the Janus Thickey Ward."

Regulus was going to be sick.

He was sure that he was going to be sick.

Without further warning, Regulus stood up from the Slytherin table. The scraping of the bench on the stone floor caused almost every single pair of eyes in the Great Hall to turn towards him, including the four Gryffindor boys. He looked 'round at everyone, and he could feel the bile rising up in his throat.

"Reg?" Barty asked - the sound of Barty's voice seemed to carry throughout the entire hall, and Sirius furrowed his brow at the odd behavior of his younger brother.

Regulus's ears were ringing, blocking out any noise that tried to penetrate his mind.

Regulus moved out of the way of the bench, turned towards the doors of the Great Hall, and started running. He ran all the way down the long table of Slytherin's - who were all whispering to one another about what on earth was going on with Regulus Black - and out into the entrance hall. He made it just in time, too, for as soon as the giant doors closed behind him, he grabbed a pot that held a strange plant that was placed on one side of the doors and emptied his stomach into it.

"Mr. Black?" a voice broke through the sound of Regulus being sick, and he felt a cold hand rubbing his back. "Let it out, it's ok. Just let it out,"

The unknown person behind him brought Regulus some comfort, but it didn't stop him from being sick. When he was finished, he lowered the vomit-filled plant pot from his face and stood there for a few moments, his hands trembling, body shaking, eyes closed, and out of breath.

"Are you alright, Mr. Black?" and he was finally able to focus enough to realize who was behind him. He spun 'round, forcing the other person to drop their hand from his back, and he stared squarely into the eyes of Professor McGonagall.

He felt a flush creeping up the back of his neck, and he wiped his mouth nervously with the back of his hand. "Er - uh - I'm sorry, Professor, I didn't - I um - didn't feel good and didn't want to - er - get the floor dirty - I'm really sorry!" he shifted his weight nervously from one leg to the other, expecting Professor McGonagall to start yelling at him at any second.