All in the Family

Chapter 186: Malfoy Manor

James and Frank landed in a nice enough drawing room before Frank smacked into a mirror and cringed as the shards scattered around him and James landed on an end table that became a mess of broken splinters, both laying there dazed and in pain despite James's stupidly pleased smile for the simple act of being able to look around, let alone the warm, lingering feeling of Lily Evans hugging him. He almost didn't want to put his glasses back on, despite his hands doing so from habit, lest the world come back into focus and that dream never come true again.

Alice landed in the kitchen sending an array of crumpet crumbs around her from a heavy tray, Lily was stumbling around a hallway and knocked several things off the fancy walls and smacked into the rest that had been charmed into place. Sirius was being attacked by albino peacocks outside next to some splendid hedges and Remus was still shivering in disgust on the front lawn next to the wrought iron gates and not even noticing quite yet for his homicidal, selfish future who could go back to Tonks after what he did to her...but at least she was still alive and Sirius was right, they just had to wait... "Padfoot, you idiot, cursing them away is only making them more mad!"

Sirius swore at him in answer and he sighed and fought off a laugh as he went over to help. They shooed the birds away and went into the entryway to smile and see Lily at the end, looking over her shoulder at their approach and pausing to wait for them to catch up before shouting for the others and hearing Alice first.

Regulus found himself in their study, the traces of the Malfoy family tree were done in intricate snake designs connecting all of the families together, all of a poisonous species. He sighed as he ran his fingers over the pretty scales and thought about the boy who'd been inducted into the Death Eaters before his time. Dumbledore had offered him a way out, but it hadn't gone through, and now he was trapped in his own home with his parents. If given another option, would they take it?

All seven froze as they heard the scream from below.

"Peter!" Regulus was looking at the floor sharply as he ran so as not to miss a step, contemplating what horrors the Malfoy's could have in their basement as he cataloged every curse he knew.

"Wormtail?" James bellowed back, already at the door and cursing Sirius fluidly in his mind as he went sprinting towards the noise without his wand, Frank right behind him.

He met them halfway up, as himself no less and not the rat darting past their feet, which in itself had them hesitating in confusion as he crashed into Regulus and continued this by trying to shove James even farther ahead with a stammered, "don't- do not go- please just- go!"

"Okay, okay," they both pacified, Regulus still trying to peek curiously over his shoulder as James turned on the spot and dragged both of them out now. Peter had the golden book fisted in one hand, the other was trembling and he looked so puke green and was breathing so harsh it was more prudent than ever to get him on level ground so his vomit wouldn't make the stairs harder to climb.

Collapsing on the last step, he finally did spill the bile before transforming just to get away from the terror raging in him and the smell still lingering in his nose, but it helped nothing in this body, only making it worse as his rodent could scent it even better and the image was still burned into his mind no matter his animal coping with the trauma slightly better, just delaying it for him...

He squeaked in protest to be dragged off the ground, the others rushing over so fast Regulus had clearly feared he'd be trampled. It was almost valid too, Sirius was ignoring James this time even as he gave Prongs back his wand and was trying to go down and find out what they were supposed to be avoiding and James was hesitating, glancing between him and the shadows with clear need as well to assess this properly so he changed back and grasped them both, pleading, "Padfoot, I'm begging you, I don't want you to see me like that, please don't! There's nothing else down there, just don't-"

Sirius opened his mouth to argue, he yanked his arm free and his eyes still passed right over him in exasperation, but he didn't even make it to the first splattered step before he froze and looked back at him, really letting the words sink in. "Merlin's tits, you? As in, you- what-"

"Oh shit," James rasped before he snatched the book away from him and gaped down at the chapter title of where they were.

Hand still trembling, he clutched it tight enough in the other he wondered if he was going to snap it off himself as he staggered back from all of them still retching in disgust, head spinning so much he wanted to change back just to alleviate that. The skin had already been tinging blue, the face contorted and as bloated as an inferi, but that silver hand had still been in place...

Regulus was pulling on him, tugging him farther away and the others were all shuffling in a kind of huddle to follow as James blabbed out his son's fate in this home of the dead and the living doomed.

Malfoy Manor was a large, accommodating home. Grand bathrooms, ballrooms, and bedrooms were at the tips of anyone's fingers, but they all found themselves frozen in place back in the dark entryway rather than traveling anywhere else, huddled together for safety and comfort as James forced himself to read the dreaded words of how his son had gotten there.

Remus stayed closest to the door, still on the fringes even if he wasn't consciously trying to now. Sirius had his arm around his shoulders, but was watching Regulus with something on the tip of his lips, until his little brother shook his head, and he swallowed but nodded.

Peter noticed none of it, he had his right wrist clasped firmly in his own left, but no matter how hard he squeezed, his fingers kept trembling, he couldn't take his eyes off the normal flesh because every time he blinked it glinted silver. "Peter?" Regulus's voice seemed to come from a long way off. "It's okay if you change, nobody will say anything." He kept reaching over to pat him on the shoulder and then dropped it after a moment before trying again.

That would have been the easy way out. His emotions muted, the words Prongs was saying about Bellatrix Lestrange putting the pieces together of what Harry had been doing would all have a distance in there, like listening to a story he had no real attachment to rather than his life. The wasted one below his feet marked just how little he'd ever done. He didn't want any more space, he already felt more like he was standing alone in this cluster. He was going to be trapped here, a piece of him forever left uncared for in the basement of those always more powerful than him-

"Wormtail," Regulus finally grasped his fingers, really made him look. "This is not inevitable. You have to believe that to stop this."

"Have to stop running," he quietly agreed, eyes on James's pale face as he whispered of Hermione's torture, Harry and Ron's desperation to save her leaving him to his fate. He looked back at him and the tremor in his hand slowed. "Just take it at a walk, right?"

"Right," Regulus promised, squeezing his hand before letting go. The shaking had stopped.