Mastermind

Brother

Warnings: corpses (inferi)
blood
torture
death (memories of previous deaths & hallucinations, Reggie does not die. There is no Major Character Death. You can proceed)

This is rather short, especially in contrast to the last chapter. But it's basically only pain.

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If I was dying on my knees
You would be the one to rescue me
And if you were drowned at sea
I'd give you my lungs so you could breathe
- Brother by Kodaline

"What is the meaning of this?" Sirius asks, putting himself between his James and Regulus.

"Are your people at the wedding?"

Sirius blinks. "Yes. We got two messages about it – both you?"

"Yes."

"You betrayed Voldemort." It is neither question, accusation, nor fact. Sirius says it like an idea that is there, but he can't quite grasp it.

"Yes," Regulus says, "Come on now, we don't have much time. Once they realise it was me, Voldemort might put two and two together and show up here. You need to be gone by then."

"What are we doing here?" James asks now, gently pushing Sirius aside. "What is this place?"

"I will tell you once we're there. We don't have time." He turns and points at a large piece of fallen cliff in the water. "Do you see that? That's where we need to go first. We'll need to swim then. Maybe you should put your hair up, Sirius."

He turns back to his brother and James, who stare at him with a shared uneasiness.

Sirius takes a hair tie from his wrist and smooths his long hair back into a ponytail. Remus usually kept Sirius' hair ties on him, so Sirius never took up the habit. He wonders where Remus is now. He wants to ask, but this isn't the time.

"Are you going to drown us?" Sirius asks, "Betray us? What's down there, Regulus?"

"No. No. And I don't know. Can you trust me? One last time, just once, Sirius. Trust me." He looks at his brother, only his brother, not daring to look at James' face. He doesn't ask for his trust. It's not his place.

Sirius and James exchange a long look. Regulus guesses, they have talked about this long and wide before today. They nod to each other.

"Well then, let's go." Sirius says with finality.

Regulus apparates down to the stone in the water. Sirius and James follow him in a heartbeat.

The wind isn't strong, but waves break against the stone. Water keeps hitting their clothes and faces. Regulus leads the way and Sirius and James follow him wordlessly. He leads them to the edge of the large rock. There, a set of smaller rocks lead from their spot slowly down into the water, continuing under the surface and leading in the direction of the cliff.

"Be careful. We'll have to get down there, then swim to the cliffs."

"To the cliffs?" James repeats.

"There's a way in."

"You want to go into the cliff?"

"Into a cave in the cliffs." He almost shrugs but Sirius clutches his shoulder and turns him around.

"Regulus, it looks dangerous."

"It is. It also may be the least dangerous part of this."

"Maybe we should get backup. Okay? Let's go to the headquarters, talk to Dumbledore, get help."