The Final Solution

The Final Solution

By Samantha Radcliffe

The Final Solution-- what a clever name, Regulus Black thought to himself bitterly as he lay on his four-poster bed. His older brother, Sirius, had been gone for quite some time now, since the holidays were ending quickly. Upon reflection, Regulus realized that Sirius seemed to cause more harm then good. Their father, Cepheus, was at St. Mungo's as he had fallen ill over the past few days. Even their mother, Aludra, had not been quite herself. He felt as if he were the only sane person currently living at Number 12 Grimmauld Place. It was as if a part of him had been sucked into a black hole; as if a piece of Regulus was rushing down and farther away until it was so removed from him that intrinsically he knew it was gone forever, lost and scattered in the void.

"You're not yourself, Master," said Kreacher, the family house elf, as he brought some large, fluffy pillows over to where Regulus lay.

Regulus didn't open his mouth, but instead nodded his head in recognition of Kreacher's comment. Thanks for stating the obvious, Kreacher, Regulus thought as he continued to stare up at the bare white ceiling of the room he and Sirius shared. A roaring sound came from behind Regulus and, quickly after, a high, feminine voice followed.

"Hello, Regulus" said the voice.

"He's not here, Athena," Regulus sighed, still staring up at the blank ceiling.

"I know that, Reg. I wanted to talk to you," Athena replied sweetly.

Regulus raised an eyebrow in an expression registering mild surprise. Wow, that's a first. Athena was well known in the Black household for her large crush on Sirius. Once Mrs. Black found out, she tried to take matters into her own hands. Mrs. Black had attempted to set up Sirius and Athena, though she had been wholly unsuccessful. In her mind, Sirius wasn't good enough for any girl. If she had seen the amount of psychotic fangirls there were at Hogwarts for her former eldest son, she would have had a stroke.

"Well... aren't you going to look at me, Regulus?" Athena queried, his rudeness obviously agitating her.

"Not until you tell me what the hell you want," he said.

"Well, someone's grouchy. What has gotten into you? Usually you're so cheerful. I-I just want to know what happened, that's all. I hadn't heard any shouting from this house and I thought tha-" Athena began to say, her voice trembling slightly.

Isn't that why everyone has been contacting this place so much? Everyone wants to know what happened. Why can't they leave us the hell alone? Regulus thought, annoyed at how nosey people were.

"There hasn't been any shouting because there's no one to shout at," Regulus responded quietly. He got up from his bed and sat in front of the fire, smiling at the blonde haired girl.

"Happy?" he asked, rolling his eyes.

"Very" she said, giggling. "So, what happened? I want all the details!"

Regulus' smile faded. "No you don't... trust me. It'd be better not to know anything at all. Besides, you'll see Sirius at Hogwarts. And why didn't you ask my mum? I thought you two were friends."

"You know very well that your mother would start screaming if I even mentioned your brother's name, Regulus. Just tell me or else!" she exclaimed impatiently.

"Or else what?" Regulus said, laughing at her. While both he and Athena were in their fourth year at school, she was a particularly short girl and Regulus simply couldn't imagine her capable of leaving a scratch on him.

"I'll tell your mom what you did last summer with that Slytherin girl!" Athena crowed, watching Regulus' eyes bulge.

"Fine then! I'll tell you the story, but it's a bit long so you're going to be listening for a while," he said, grabbing one of the soft pillows Kreacher had brought in to sit on.

"Yay, story time!" Athena squealed, her head bobbing in the fire. Regulus blinked at her. What a ditz.

***

Regulus sat in the drawing room, reading one of his boring school books. Mr. Black insisted that Regulus read them ahead of time so that he was ahead of his class. That's what their family was all about. Being ahead of the game. Getting there before the slower ones could reach their destination. It was all about doing whatever it took to get what they wanted. Purebloods didn't lose. The Noble and Most Ancient House of Black never lost. It simply wasn't allowed.

Regulus' father walked into the drawing room and approached his son, who appeared to be deeply absorbed in his book. Mr. Black couldn't even see his son's light blue eyes.

Mr. Black cleared his throat.

"Regulus, where's Sirius?" he asked his son loudly.

Of course he'd ask Regulus where Sirius was. No matter how much they called Regulus the "good" Black, he knew very well that most of their attention was fixed on Sirius and his rumoured "ghastly ways."

"Dunno," Regulus muttered, his eyes still fixed intently on his book. It wasn't really that interesting; he just didn't feel like talking to his father. Mr. Black walked out of the room and left Regulus in peace.

After a while, Regulus' eyes began to close and his book fell to his lap. He began to doze off until the drawing room door opened, followed quickly by cries of glee. The noise echoed off the walls, the shrieks ringing uncomfortably in Regulus' ears.

"Aww... I haven't seen Regulus in such a long time ... Is that really him? ... How adorable is he? ... Sirius is quite a good looking boy too ... I was thinking of getting him and Desdemona engaged. ... Like an arranged marriage? ... That'd be so cute!"

Regulus grumbled, now fully awakened from his short lived nap. He opened his eyes and discovered that a dozen of his mother's friends were huddled around him, staring and smiling into his face. He screamed and jumped from the chair. Mrs. Black emerged from the crowd, kissing him on the top of his head.

"Hey mum," Regulus said, hugging his mother. He'd always been very close with her, probably because she was more apt to give him praise than his father. She told him to go up to his room to finish reading his book there. He was about to ask where Sirius was, but hesitated. Who knew what she would do to him if he even mention her eldest son.

***

Athena burst out laughing, imagining all of Mrs. Black's friends huddling around Regulus.

"It's not funny!" he hissed, furrowing his eyebrows. "And don't interrupt me!"

Athena, seeing Regulus' frightening expression, settled down.

***

Regulus pushed past the crowd of giggling women and walked up the stairs to the room he had shared with Sirius. He plopped onto his bed, throwing the school book aside. He lay on his back, closing his eyes once again. Maybe I can get some peace and quiet here, he thought to himself, a smile on his lips. His chest began softly rising and falling as he slowly drifted off to sleep.

A few minutes passed by before a loud hooting noise startled him. Regulus jumped, cracking his neck in the process. "Ow!" he yelled, rubbing his sore neck. The owl flew off, but not before dropping a large brown package on Sirius' bed. Regulus looked at the package then looked around the room. Once he assured himself that no one was lurking outside his door, Regulus peered at the package, examining it. He picked it up and gently shook it. There was no sound. He was about to shake it again when suddenly someone burst through his bedroom door.

Regulus held the package in his hand, ready to throw it onto his brother's bed, but there was really no use. Sirius swiped it from him, his grey eyes glaring down at his younger brother. Regulus looked at him guiltily, laughing nervously.

"H-Hi, Sirius," Regulus said, looking away from his brother's angry stare. Sirius sighed, walking over to his bed.

"Regulus, how many times have I told you not to go through my stuff?" Sirius stated rhetorically.

"Well, you're not going to stay mad at me for much longer," Regulus said, shrugging. He knew that once Sirius realised that the box was empty his little grudge towards his younger brother would disappear.

Sirius raised an eyebrow and shook the box. He tapped the box and a letter popped out. Sirius read the letter and laughed. "No wonder it seemed empty, Regulus," Sirius said, shaking his head. "It's from Uncle Alphard."

Regulus walked over to Sirius' bed as his older brother read through the letter quickly and threw it aside. Sirius got up from the bed and walked over to their fireplace. Regulus grabbed the letter and began to read:

Dear Sirius,

I got the letter from you a few hours ago talking about your plan. Are you sure you want to do this? I know my sister can get very moody, but Sirius, I think she truly loves you.

But I know I can't convince you, so seeing as you're my nephew, I want you to be happy.

Regulus seems to be fine, but I'm never sure with that boy. He's so damn quiet-

Regulus stopped reading the letter when he heard Sirius and another voice beginning to speak. Regulus turned around and saw James Potter's head bobbing around in the fire, obviously very happy that his best friend was talking to him. Regulus could never figure out what was so great about James. He and Sirius were quite popular at school, but Regulus found James to be extremely annoying.

He grabbed the box again, shaking it. This time there was a clinking sound. Regulus turned around to see Sirius still occupied with James, so he flipped the box over, emptying its contents. Regulus' eyes gazed down at the shiny silver and gold coins in front of him.

"Sirius, what the hell is this for?" Regulus asked, his eyes still staring down at the money. He couldn't understand why Sirius would ever need to borrow money; their family was well off and Regulus and Sirius wouldn't need jobs if they didn't want to work. Sirius turned around and looked at his brother and said cryptically, "You'll see, baby bro, you'll see."

***

"I think James is adorable!" Athena squeaked. "What would you know about guys, anyway?" she scoffed.

Regulus sighed, shaking his head. "Well, I'm not attracted to them so I guess you're right. I don't know anything about them. Now, STOP INTERUPPTING ME!"

***

"It's happening tomorrow, James. I just hope your folks are ready for my arrival," Sirius said as he walked around the large room, collecting his belongings and placing them on the bed.

"Arrival for what? Where are you going?" Regulus asked anxiously, getting up from Sirius' bed. "James, what is he talking about?"

"You haven't told him, Sirius? Your own brother?" James asked Sirius, staring fixedly at Regulus.

Sirius snorted.

"Yeah Sirius! Tell me about this plan that Uncle Alphard was talking about in the letter," Regulus demanded.

Sirius faced his little brother, placing a hand on his shoulder. "I'm leaving for a very long time, Regulus. And I don't plan on coming back to see that miserable old hag that calls herself our mother ever again."

***

The next day came quickly and it was the quietest the house had been in a long time, but Regulus knew the serene silence wouldn't last much longer. Regulus walked upstairs to his room to find Sirius doing some last minute packing.

"You're actually doing this? Leaving behind everything?" he asked Sirius, leaning against to the door.

Sirius turned around, looking at Regulus skeptically. "Leaving behind what, exactly?" he asked derisively, gazing around the room as if it were bare. Regulus couldn't believe Sirius. He forgot about the one thing that could have helped him through this--his brother.

Regulus shrugged. If Sirius thinks he's going to survive in this world without me, so be it. I don't need him anyways. I bet being an only child will be interesting, seeing as they'll be paying attention to me now. Another part of Regulus began to unfold. "Fine Sirius. Leave." Regulus began to laugh somewhat maniacally. "I'm really wondering why you're a Gryffindor. Aren't they known for being brave?"

Sirius stared at his brother, a blank expression on his face.

"You're just a coward who's taking the easy route out of this. Just a scared coward! What kind of Gryffindor runs away from his family?" Regulus was almost shouting now, but he didn't care; his chest was constricting with the force it took to hold his anger in. If he kept shouting, maybe he could escape the hurt and pain his brother's betrayal was raining down upon him. "Where's that damn courage now, Black?"

Sirius simply shrugged, apparently unaffected by his brother's tirade. Hearing his surname apparently did nothing to remind him of family honor. If anything, it seemed to have the opposite effect; Sirius' resolve was as unwavering as ever.

"See you at school then, with your little cronies," Regulus said as he moved off the door and walked down the stairs.

Regulus stepped out the door, a new emotion washing over him as he walked away from his home, his hands buried deep in his pockets. Regulus' face softened from the look he gave Sirius and he finally realized what was wrong with him. It didn't matter how many fights he and Sirius had over the years. They really did care about each other. Or at least Regulus cared about Sirius. A part of Regulus was with Sirius, a special bond that could exist only between two brothers. Regulus continued to walk in an unknown direction, a roaring sound of a motorcycle engine revving in the distance. Accompanying the sounds of the motorcycle was another familiar noise; his mother's screams.

He's really leaving, Regulus thought, still walking unhurriedly away. The motorcycle's sound came closer and closer to him, but Regulus refused to glance back.

"Later Reg!" Regulus finally gave in and broke his reverie. Sirius was streaking past him, a smile playing on his lips and his hand in the air as a gesture of a goodbye. Regulus grinned and nodded his head toward his older brother.

"Regulus!" Mrs. Black yelled out to her only remaining son. Regulus turned around, his smile gone. He was the only one left... only Merlin knew what would happen now.

***

Athena sniffed, unsettled by Regulus' sad expression. "Oh, Regulus," she sobbed, "I'm so sorry. I-I didn't think Sirius would leave you behind, honestly!"

Regulus smiled. "Forget about it, Athena. You should go. See you at school," he finished and with that, Athena waved goodbye and disappeared.

Regulus got up from the floor, pushing the pillows aside. He walked over to his night table, picking up a picture of him and Sirius taken the previous year. They were smiling brightly with their arms around each other's shoulders. Regulus' hands began to tremble. Letting out a feral scream, Regulus hurled the picture across the room where it collided forcefully with the wall. The glass refracted light as the shards fell to the floor, creating a glittering, ephemeral rainbow.

He went to his bed, resumed his original position, and blindly faced the ceiling. His mind dimly registered that it was his ceiling now; Sirius no longer shared the room with him.

Athena's departing words were playing incessantly in his head.... "I didn't think Sirius would leave you behind...."

Something shattered inside Regulus, and he whispered hoarsely, "Me neither, Athena. Me neither."

Samantha Radcliffe Page 1 8/1/2004