Losing Dogs - The Marauders

Chapter 1

Summer 1971

Sirius Pov

He woke up in the dark, linen sheets tangled around his legs, hair stuck to his face. The August heat was unbearable as it was, even without the added warmth of the small boy that had crept into his bed during the night.

"Uh..." He groaned, pushing sweaty locks away and attempting to rid his eyes of sleep. "Reg?What're you doing here?" Sirius made a weak attempt to push away the boy who had curled himself quite comfortably against his side.

"You know I don't like the dark." The boy replied, in an equally thick voice. He was blindly swatting away his brothers shoving hands, his eyes clamped shut tightly.

"You need to grow up, Reg. I'm leaving soon."
The boy stiffened next to his brother, and as he spoke, his voice hardened.
"Don't say that." 
"Why not? I am leaving. You know that right?"
When the boy responded, his voice left him as barely a whisper.
"I know, but we don't have to talk about it."

There was a length of silence before Sirius spoke again, matching his brothers quiet tone.
"It's only a year, you'll be fine." He sounded unconvincing, even to himself.

More silence stretched out again, before it was broken by another voice.
"I'll be alone."
The two had been avoiding this unavoidable conclusion since Sirius had first received his Hogwarts acceptance letter.

He would go, and Regulus would stay.

Sirius would never admit it, but he was afraid for his brother. A distant father, a wretched mother - it had always been the boys vs. them. He'd felt the burn of his mother's cruciatus curse first hand, and he would not allow his brother to feel it. No, he decided then, Not Reggie.

He turned suddenly to face the boy.
"Do as they say. Keep your head down and don't answer back, okay? Promise me."
Regulus was shocked to say the least. His brother had never been one for rule following, especially if those rules happened to come from their cruel mother.

But it was Sirius. He'd do anything for Sirius. "Okay."
Sirius sat up now, looking down at his baby brother. The sleep had left his body completely, now steadily being replaced by a feeling of panic.
"I said promise me, okay?" He was glaring at the boy now, his tone slightly hysterical.

Regulus sat up next to him, so that they were eye to eye, and placed a hand on his brother's shoulder.
"I'll be fine, Sirius. I was only joking about! You know me, you're always calling me a wimp!" He performed the bravest smile he could manage.
They were both trying (and failing) desperately to convince the other that they would be okay.

Sirius couldn't stop the smile on his face from appearing at his brothers words.
"If you remind me of this in the morning i'll deny everything, but - and don't tell mom - if any of us will break away from Slytherin, it'll be you Reg. You'd be a great Gryffindor - too bloody brave by far."

The boy laughed
"Nah, that'll be your job. If i'm stuck here being a goody-two-shoes all year, you have to cause some trouble for me. See if you can convince that hat to put you in Hufflepuff! It'll be a right laugh!"
Sirius was laughing too now.
"Imagine Mums face!"

The boys poked fun at each other back and forth before the tiredness reclaimed them, and they both settled back down onto the mattress. "You better break every damn rule in that school, you hear me, Sirius? Every last one!"

"I will, i'll do it just for you. And you better not break a single one whilst i'm gone, understand?"
"Yeh, I got it." he grumbled back.

Silence enveloped the room again. The sky was still dark outside, and the silk curtains rippled lightly as the first cool breeze of the month wafted in.

"Hey, Sirius?" The boy whispered again.
"Yeh?"
"Don't go making too many friends, okay?"
"Not likely, if the Slytherins at Hogwarts are anything like our family." He chuckled, his eyes fluttering closed. "Besides, it'll always just be me and you, right?"

"Yeh." Regulus paused, staring up at Sirius' velvety canopy. "Just us against the world."

He was not heard. Sirius was snoring lightly besides him. Dreams full of red trains, a magical hat, and, for the first time in his life - Freedom.