Trapped - Marauders

Prologue

"Crucio"

The agonizing screams tear through the house as Sirius Black falls to his knees in pain, tears falling no matter how hard he tries to stop them.

Cassiopeia and her brother Regulus had been sent to their rooms after Sirius had talked back when Orion and Walburga started bad-mouthing the Potters. Cassiopeia would never understand why he couldn't just keep his bloody mouth shut. Honestly, what did he expect from an outburst like that? Now she was being forced to listen to her older brother being tortured while trying to be strong for her younger one. If she decided to be truthful with herself she would know that she was terrified, but that part of her was shoved down by her maternal instinct as she tightly held Regulus's hand in hers and quietly assured him their brother would be fine. They were currently sitting on Sirius's bed waiting for him.

Regulus wasn't even a year younger than her but she would do anything for him. Her little brother. Cassiopeia practically raised Regulus, being the only person to ever show him affection like a mother would. One could argue that Sirius had also taken part in taking care of Regulus but that was a long time ago and the brothers were definitely not as close as they used to be.

"He'll-" Cassiopeia stopped, closing her eyes and taking a breath trying to get rid of the shakiness in her voice. "He'll be fine, Reg. Promise." After a few seconds, the screaming stopped. Cassiopeia squeezed her brother's hand and tried to calm her rapidly beating heart as they heard footsteps coming up the stairs.

When the door opened Cassiopeia couldn't help the single tear that managed to escape as she set her sights on her broken older brother. He froze in the doorway for a split second before closing the door behind him and welcoming his sister's embrace as she held him as gently as she could. He was in pain. He couldn't do this anymore.

"Cass...I-" He looked away when the hug ended, Cassiopeia holding his hands in hers. "I can't do this anymore."

She didn't have the heart to scold him for getting himself into trouble. It was always the worst for him. Punished for the littlest of things. His punishments were always the worst no matter what. There was nothing she could do to stop them. It's not as if she could take the punishment for him, he'd never allowed it and their parents almost enjoyed hurting Sirius.

Looking into his teary grey eyes, she knew. Tears started welling in her own eyes as she turned around and started throwing his things into his school trunk.

"Then don't."

She knew that he had friends. Friends that would do anything for him. Friends that would take care of him, better than she could. The last thing she packed was a framed photo of the three siblings. With a shaky hand, she placed it in the trunk and closed it.

Regulus looked confused, but the confusion turned to anger. "But you can't just..." He turned to his sister and at that moment she knew that Reggie would never leave. He left the room in a hurry, saying nothing else.

All her hopes and dreams of one day escaping were simultaneously crushed as she pushed the trunk towards Sirius.

"Come with me," he said, almost pleading.

Cassiopeia sniffed and wiped away her tears. "I can't leave him here," she said while glancing and motioning towards the door.

Stepping towards her, Sirius looked tense and a thousand different emotions registered through his eyes. "You know he'll never leave."

She hesitated.

In that one split second of hesitation, she could imagine her and her siblings happy and away from the dreadful house, they were living in, without having to worry about their parents. She could see them free of all the rubbish they currently being crushed under. But it only lasted for that one split second before reality came crashing through and she went to hug him again.

"I know," Cassiopeia whispered, tightening her hold before letting go completely. "Now go, before they catch you trying to leave."

He looked at her, staring at his little sister before turning around, picking up his trunk, and leaving.

She stood there, silent. Listening to his descending footsteps and eventually the closing of the front door. Staring at the space he was standing in just seconds prior it finally set in. Finally set in when she heard her mother yelling trying to find him. The banging on her bedroom door before it finally opened revealing a livid Walburga. She froze looking at the messy room raking her eyes over the empty open drawers and half-empty closet before finally settling on Cassiopeia.

Cassiopeia stared at her mother. A Person she hated. She stared at her mother as a few more tears escaped.

"You stupid girl," the words came out with such venom it was like a slap in the face. Cassiopeia had never been the sole focus of her parent's hatred before. "You allowed him to leave? Do you know what this will do to our reputation?" She glared at her daughter for a few more moments before roughly grabbing her by the wrist and dragging her to the piano room with the family tapestry on the wall. Cassiopeia was pulled so roughly that when they came to an abrupt stop she fell to the floor.

Cassiopeia could do nothing as she watched her mother blast her brother's face off the tapestry. She would never be allowed to talk to him again.

"What is all the commotion about?"

A shiver ran down Cassiopeia's spine at her father's voice. The sudden realization that all punishments would now fall on her shoulders attacked her conscience. She grew numb and started to zone out as more tears flew down her face. She barely even heard the conversation between her parents when she was roughly grabbed by the hair and was being yelled at.

Cassiopeia scrunched up her face in pain as she winced before being thrown across the room by her father. Looking up, Walburga was no longer there and Orion was in front of her with his wand pointed at her. She didn't have any time to process what was happening before the curse was uttered.

"Crucio"

Pain. Burning, Blood-curdling, disastrous pain. One that Cassiopeia never had to endure before. One that she wasn't used to yet. Black spots danced through her vision.

Cassiopeia fell to the floor screaming before it all became too much and the world went black.

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Was that okay? Idk I'm stressed at the moment.