Boys Will Be Bugs

Chapter 92: Quiet

Remus didn't know exactly what time it was when he woke up. The sky was only just growing light, and considering it was summer, that meant it was still probably the early hours of the morning. He rubbed his eyes, wondering what had woken him up until he noticed what sounded like whimpering noises coming from Sirius's bed. He sat up and looked over. Sirius still looked half-asleep, but he was clearly having some sort of a nightmare. His breathing was quick and panicked and he kept jerking his head and his arms. Remus stepped out of his bed and went over to him. He crouched down and tried to wake him up as gently as possible. Sirius's eyes flew open and he lay there, hyperventilating. Remus rubbed his shoulder comfortingly to try to calm him down.

"Shh, it's okay," he whispered. "I'm here." Sirius's breathing slowed and he squeezed his eyes shut.

"Where am I?" he asked.

"You're in James's room," replied Remus. "It's still early." Remus looked over at James's bed. It was still and quiet. James was a pretty heavy sleeper.

"I... my parents..."

"It's okay, they won't find you. James's parents will make sure of it." Sirius started to cry silently.

"I didn't... I didn't expect them to... ." He couldn't finish his sentence before burying his head under the covers. Remus sat cross-legged beside his bed, holding his hand.

"What happened?" he asked, finally voicing what had been constantly playing on his mind ever since he'd arrived at the house. Sirius peered out of the covers, gazing at Remus for a moment before speaking.

"I... I told them. Everything."

"Everything?"

"I didn't tell them about you, obviously. But I told them I didn't want to have anything to do with them anymore and that I hated them and everything they stood for and... and I..." he trailed off as his voice wobbled slightly.

"What?" encouraged Remus, squeezing his hand tighter.

"I... don't really know why I did it," continued Sirius. "I think I was trying to make a point, or just trying to say whatever it took for them to disown me, and... ." He looked down at his and Remus's hands intertwined together. "I told them I was gay."

"Oh... shit." Sirius just nodded.

"As you can imagine, it didn't go well."

"They locked you in the basement because of that?"

"I was expecting them to just throw me out, but I guess they thought maybe they could... fix me."

"Define fix," said Remus suspiciously. He certainly didn't like the sound of that. Sirius buried his face back underneath the covers, his voice becoming muffled.

"They tortured me," he admitted in barely more than a whisper.

"Wh— what?"

"They used the Cruciatus Curse on me." The room was silent as Sirius's words sunk in. Remus felt sick to his stomach. He had never experienced the Cruciatus Curse before, but he knew it was illegal for a reason. He had read countless times how painful it was, that people had been driven mad by the pain of it. The idea that Sirius had been put through that by his own parents nonetheless, it made Remus want to go back and hex them into oblivion, punch their faces in, scream at them until they were forced to feel the pain they had inflicted upon Sirius until they begged for mercy. But he looked down at the fragile figure underneath the duvet and his anger dissipated slowly away. He put a hand on Sirius's shoulder and lay his forehead against it.

"God, Sirius, I am so sorry," he breathed. Sirius shifted underneath the covers until he was sitting up. He looked drained and... frail, almost. He sniffed and wiped his eyes on his sleeve.