ᴛʜʀᴏᴜɢʜ ᴛʜᴇ ꜰᴏᴜʀᴛʜ ᴡᴀʟʟ | ᴍᴀʀᴀᴜᴅᴇʀꜱ ᴇʀᴀ

viv. the 6th member

Sirius kept turning his head around, looking for anyone who could possibly catch them entering the shack. Regulus did the same too, albeit he's unsure why he is infected by the act.

It did not take them long to arrive in front of a tree, the Whomping Willow, Regulus recognized it.

"Get in," said Sirius, pointing at the hole on the tree using his hand.

"What?"

"I said get in."

"In the tree?"

"Did I stutter?"

Rolling his eyes, Regulus walked to the hole. Before sliding in, he looks back at Sirius and said, "If this is one of your heinous pranks, I will make sure you will regret talking to me." If all of that was only for his laugh, Regulus would be shattered. He trusted him again, something he don't easily give even to his brother.

"Don't be dramatic."

"Says the drama queen." Regulus slides down. He braced himself for any impact and he thanked his past self for doing so. He bounced off where he was sliding and landed on the hard ground with his upper body first.

Regulus stood up without letting any groan of pain. Albeit his face said just how painful his landing was, his hand caressing his side that suffered the most. He watched as Sirius slid in and landed softly on his feet as if he had done that a lot of times. Maybe he really did.

Sirius led the way, from the cave-like entrance to the stone stairs, the wooden foyer, and the room where their secret was in.

"He's here!" said Sirius as he entered.

The people inside the room stood up to greet the younger Black. But he was not entering. Sirius noticed so he looked at him and motions his head to enter.

Regulus, unsure of all of this, took a deep breath and let it out along with those uncertainties. He stepped into the room and met three familiar faces and one unfamiliar one wearing his brother's shirt.

And Callie almost squealed but prevented herself too. She kept her lips tightly pursed, biting them by her teeth above and below. Her fingers dug in her palms. And she stopped breathing.

Regulus freaking Black is in front of her! Callie had no idea how she was stopping herself from screaming her heart out and telling gibberish about how much she loved him and how brave he had been... or would be in that timeline. But fortunately, she was stopping herself from embarrassing herself in front of her favourite character.

Remus faked a cough, snapping Callie out of her silent fangirling.

"Yes, right, umm Regulus, right, Regulus." Even just by saying his name in front of him felt surreal for Callie! Her mind was in shambles, squealing that he is real and is in front of her. That thought stopped the rest from flowing.

He is real, as much as the Marauders. And he will suffer, just like the rest. Something that Callie was dedicated not to happen.

Breathing deeply, in and out, she calmed her entirety and face everyone once again.

"Do you have the Dark Mark?" Her question did only not had Regulus taken aback, but everyone else in the room was surprised by her question.

"What are you talking about?" Remus asked.

"Callie, it's not funny," said Sirius with a light smirk, trying to convince himself that his friend was just joking. He could not bring himself to believe that his brother surrendered to that monster.

But Regulus kept his mouth shut looking at Callie with pure disbelief. How did she know?

"Do you or do you not?" she repeated the question.