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Protect Her


Regulus had stood there on the dock with the fake Sirius, watching the real one climb the stairs with James Potter, his heart racing as he tried to think of some way to prove to his brother he wasn’t trying to turn him in to the Dark Lord. He watched until the door at the top of the steps closed behind them, and then he turned to the fake Sirius, his eyes searching the grey eyes that stared back at him. His nose flared with emotion. There was only one person he knew who could change how they looked like that. “It’s you, isn’t it, Maryrose?” he asked quietly.

He watching in awe and horror as the features of his brother changed slowly, the hair growing out, turning a shade of blue, her eyes warming to honey coloured irises, the nose tucking up into a little button of a feature… She stared up at him. “I’m sorry,” she said quietly.

Regulus drew a deep breath and shook his head. “How very Slytherin of Potter… I bloody should’ve seen it coming. Real Sirius doesn’t wanna see me, and so he uses a decoy to get what he wants…” Regulus shook his head. “I just wanted Sirius bad enough to fall for it.” He looked at Maryrose for a long moment. “And so what was it you got out of deceiving me? What was in it for Maryrose, then?”

“Nothing!” Maryrose replied hastily, “He said Sirius needed to know what you wanted of him and that once James knew your intentions were pure he would get the real Sirius. I was just trying to prove to him your intentions were pure, Regulus. That’s all. I just wanted you to have your brother back.” She looked at him with sad eyes. “I felt terrible deceiving you. But I thought if - if it would help you get Sirius back… then it would be worth it in the end. But that was horrible. Sirius was horrible.”

Regulus shook his head, “I can’t blame him for hating me. I did sort of deserve it… I’ve treated him and his boyfriend terribly in the past.” He looked down at his trainers and shoved his fists into his thick wool coat pockets. “He doesn’t know I’ve changed since then.”

Maryrose looked down at the too-large Gryffindor robes and said, “I’m sorry, Regulus. He doesn’t know how wonderful a person you are or else he would be clamoring to be close to you again.” She paused a moment, her eyebrows stitching together. “Can you ever forgive me for what I’ve done?”

Regulus sighed. Maryrose was the only person in the whole castle he knew would never hurt him on purpose. And the only one that he felt any sort of connection to. He could not imagine what life at Hogwarts castle would be if Maryrose was not around him. Dismal and quite horrid, he imagined. Being angry with her hardly even seemed an option. He looked up at her and nodded. “I can’t be mad at you, M’rose,” he said, and a careful smile crossed his lips, “Reckon it’s impossible to be.”

She leaned forward, intending to hug and kiss him but before she could there was a terrific crack! and there stood the house elf, Kreacher.

Regulus, who had taken a step closer to Maryrose when she’d leaned in, jumped back and stared in surprise. “Kreacher!” He exclaimed, “What are you doing here?”

“Kreacher had to tell Master Regulus -- right away! Like Master Regulus asked him to. The Minchum girl -- the Dark Lord is coming to collect her! To take her away from Kreacher’s Mistress!” The elf looked distraught, “He is there now, talking to Kreacher’s Mistress! Kreacher heard them talking in Mistress’s parlour room and he was sent to get tea and Kreacher came to tell Master Regulus before he went for the tea so that Master would know! But Kreacher must hurry or Kreacher will have to punish himself for taking too long to serve the Mistress her tea!”

Regulus looked at Maryrose, panic in his eyes. “Taking her away? Why? Where to?”

“Kreacher isn’t knowing! But they is saying that something has happened at the MInistry! They is saying they is having to take the girl. The Dark Lord is being taking her with him!”

“He can’t. He musn’t. We have to save her!” Regulus panicked.

“Kreacher must go and get the tea.”

“Come back after you’ve served the tea, Kreacher,” Regulus commanded.

“Yes, Master Regulus.”

And the elf disappeared.

Regulus turned to Maryrose. “What do we do?”

“Well… obviously, we save the day, love,” she replied, smiling sweetly.




It was Maryrose that said they should go and fetch James. It was she who pointed out it would be dangerous for Regulus to go home. And so she’d gone and gotten James and they returned to the little boat dock. Regulus stood there, nervously fretting about as he waited for them. He turned when the door at the top of the stairs opened and Maryrose came running down the stairs with James. He’d brought along the invisibility cloak, which Remus had handed him when they’d reached the hospital wing with Sirius earlier.

“What’s happened?” James asked.

Regulus shook his head, “I dunno. Something at the Ministry. That’s all Kreacher knew.”

James looked nervous, “Something with Minchum, it must be.”

Regulus shrugged.

“Alright so how are we getting to Grimmauld Place?” James asked.

“Kreacher’s coming back once he’s served tea,” Regulus replied. “I’ll command him to take you lot back with him.” He looked nervous, “If I go, they’ll kill me for certain… they’ll know I’ve been a traitor.” He paced as he spoke, the anxiousness in his voice punctuated by the steps and turns. “Kreacher said they’ve been keeping her in my room… it’s on the third floor… there’s a name plate on the door, says R.A.B., that’s me.”

Maryrose glanced at James, then back to Regulus, unsure what else they needed to know before Kreacher returned.

“Is there more than one way out of the house?” James asked.

Regulus shook his head, “Other than windows, there’s only the front door.” He paused, “But the kitchen has two entrances. There’s a door to it at the right off the stairs - left if you’re coming in the front door, or else if you go down the hall next to the stairwell there’s another entrance down that way - through the dining room… Sirius used to run ‘round that when Mother or Father would be trying to catch him to crucio him.” Regulus paused as the words came out of his mouth, his face flushing at the realization of how horrible those words were. His lips twitched with regret.

James hung his head at the words as well.

Regulus said, “I would’ve proved him I wasn’t lying…” he looked at James. “I would’ve.”

“I know. And I’ll tell him when he gets out of the hospital wing.”

Regulus looked up, surprise and worry in his eyes. “The hospital wing? He’s in the hospital wing?”

James flushed, “I probably shouldn’t have told you that - but… yeah.”

“What’s happened?”

“I don’t know,” James replied. “He was bleeding. Cut across the chest. I think he was attacked.” James’s jaw set a hardline to his lips, “I reckon by Mulciber or one of the others. The ones that cut his hair.”

Regulus looked quite angry at the thought of it.

Suddenly Kreacher appeared with a great crack!, his ears flapping nervously. “Kreacher is here, Master Regulus, sir.”

Regulus nodded, “Kreacher, I command you to take James and Maryrose back to Number 12 so they can save the Minchum girl. I command you not to tell anybody that they are there, even if you’re asked and to do anything you can to help them get the Minchum girl back to Hogwarts.”

Kreacher stared up at Regulus adoringly. “Yes, Master. Yes, Kreacher will do all Master Regulus asks of him. Kreacher will do it all!”

“Thank you, Kreacher.” Regulus turned to James and Maryrose. He swallowed back nerves. “Please. Please be careful.” He was speaking mainly to Maryrose, but then he looked to James, “Protect her.”

James nodded. “Of course.”

Regulus stepped back as Kreacher took the hands of James and Maryrose and he bit his lips and he paused - then launched forward. “Wait. Maryrose. Here.” He reached up and pulled the medallion she’d given him from his neck and put it ‘round her neck. She looked down at it, then up at him. “Now I’ll be wanting this back,” he said, smiling at her, “But think of this as though I’m there with you.” He kissed her cheek.

“Thank you,” Maryrose said, and she smiled and brushed his hair back over his ear. “I’ll make sure to bring it back to you.” Her eyes sparkled at him all honey-gold and pretty. “See you soon!”

And he stood back and James waved his free hand, clutching onto Kreacher’s arm and Kreacher looked at Regulus and nodded and away they went with a crack!




Alastor Moody awoke in St. Mungo’s to find Albus Dumbledore seated by his side. Dumbledore had a book in his hand and his half-moon glasses low on his nose. Moody stared at Dumbledore for a long moment, then turned his head to look about the room. He struggled to sit up, pushing himself with his hands.

Dumbledore looked up and lowered the book quickly. “Alastor --” he said, his voice gentle, reaching to stop Moody from lifting up the blankets - but it was too late.

Moody had raised the blankets to peer down to where his leg ended very abruptly at the knee, wrapped in thick bandages. He stared at it for a long moment, then lowered them and turned. “I’ve woken up early, is that it?” Moody asked, looking over at Dumbledore, “They’ve not the chance to reattach it yet? Is that it?”

Dumbledore frowned and put the book on the table to his side and stood to look into Moody’s eyes. “Alastor, it was a very strange spell that was used to sever the limb.” His eyes studied Moody’s carefully, the real eye trained on Dumbledore, the magical one whirring about, looking at the severed limb’s end beneath the blankets and then back to Dumbledore.

“What are you saying, Albus? What are you saying!”

“They tried, they tried very hard, my friend… But the limb would not hold by magical or muggle measure and so they have magically healed what remains of your leg and --”

“Nothing remains of it!” Moody yelled, flaring up at once, “Albus! How am I to be an auror with this - this stub?!” He waved his arms at the leg. “The Death Eaters will really run from a man with one leg!”

Dumbledore replied, “Alastor, they’ve done all that they could… And there are options to keep you on your feet, my good man. There are prosthetics!”

Alastor stared up at Dumbledore in horror and anger. “Rubbish. Rubbish!” He balled his fist as he roared, “I’ve been ruined! That bloody little bugger’s gone and ruined me!” HIs face was red with anger and he snapped, “Get me my leg! I’ll bloody sew it back on myself! I’ll spello-tape the bloody thing on! Just get me the limb!”

Dumbledore stared at him with apology in his eyes.

“I NEED THAT LEG, ALBUS!” Moody shouted, “I NEED MY LEGS! I NEED THEM BOTH! GET ME THE LEG! GO! GO NOW AND FETCH IT TO ME!”

Dumbledore looked quite helpless as the man roared.

“GET THE LEG!! GET THE LEG!”

Moody’s voice echoed about the ward - and, as he continued to shout and Dumbledore continued to stare helplessly, reaching out a hand to press a palm to his shoulder, the voice broke, shattered, and the tears began. Great choking sounds of defeat, even as he persisted, “I’ll put it on myself! I’ll put it on myself, please Albus… I’ll put it on myself…”

In the next bed, beyond a privacy curtain, Fabian Prewett looked up at his brother, Gideon, who sat beside him, and the two men’s eyes flashed with the shared pain of knowing that was their hero crying.