SHE'S ALL THAT ➭ SIRIUS BLACK ❨2❩ ✔︎

ACT THREE, SCENE THIRTY FOUR

HIGHGATE CEMETERY

April was the most bittersweet month of the year, at least according to Sage.

January held the first day of the new year and promises of new beginnings. February meant Valentine's Day, a holiday that she spent in some fancy hotel in muggle London with Sirius.

Even the twenty first of March was Sage and Sirius's third year anniversary. That was certainly a joyous occasion, one that would more likely than not be filled with all the love, romance, and physical affection that she could stand.

The beginning of April, however, was another anniversary, but instead of celebrating one of the best moments of her twenty years of existence, it marked the absolute worst day of her entire life.

The day that she found her brother dead in his bedroom over the Easter holidays.

The pain of the loss cut into her like a fresh wound as she walked past various gravestones and floral arrangements, the heels of her boots digging into the muddy ground. She walked until she reached her destination, a specific headstone that had an exact copy in the cemetary of her hometown, Saint-Veran.

Julien Chance Fontaine
13 September, 1958—3 April, 1973
Tout comprendre, c'est tout pardonner.*
Beloved Brother, Son, and Friend

*to understand all is to forgive all.

It had been seven years since Julien had died, and the grief was easier to bear some days than it was on others. Today, though, was especially hard. The grief and sadness sat on her chest like an elephant, compressing her lungs to the point where breathing was a nearly impossible task.

"Hey, Ju." She said hoarsely, pushing her dark hair out of her face and clearing her throat. "I'm sorry it's been so long. I just—life moved on without you. The world is darker than you could ever imagine."

She fiddled with her family ring, made of heavy white gold metal with a delicate fountain etched into its face. Originally, the founders of the Fontaine family had only made two—one for each of their young children that were meant to be passed down through the generations; but in her childhood, Sage had lost hers, somewhere in their vacation home in France one summer, if memory served. Her mother had nearly lost her head when she realized Sage had lost it, and she dragged her daughter back home, back to the family jeweler, so Sage could beg him to make a replacement.

She stared down at the ring on her middle finger of her left hand, knowing for a sickening fact that her brother wore the same one, six feet below where she knelt.

Even if the ring on her own finger was only a decade old, it brought her a small shred of comfort to know that Julien wore its twin, thousands of years older but identical in appearance and feel.

She took a deep breath, nearly choking on a sob, and wrapped her jacket tighter around her body. "I met someone. And Merlin, Julien, he's great.

"Everything I've ever wanted, really. He's the kind of man that people write romance novels about, the kind of man that Elton John wrote Your Song about. He's so bloody annoying, honestly. But he shows me a kind of love that I didn't know existed, that I didn't know I deserved." She babbled, looking down at the headstone with far away, dreamy eyes. "Can you believe it, Ju? I'm not alone anymore. I just wish you were here to see it."

She sighed and wiped the stray tears from her cheeks. "I haven't heard from Regulus since November. He faked his own death, did you know?" She paused, realizing the absurdity of her statement, and laughed humorlessly at herself. "No, of course you don't know. How could you?"

Sage pressed her hand into the grass, palm and fingers flat against the damp earth. She was content to stay there alone all afternoon, knowing that this was the only way she would be able to spend time with her brother.

The first bit of alone time she'd gotten in a long, long time was interrupted by a splashing sound, followed by someone cursing heavily under their breath.

"Motherfucker—!"

She recognized the voice, and instead of turning around and jumping at him and pummeling him with her fists for being gone so long, she simply rolled her eyes.

"You can't let me have one day with my brother without making some dramatic re-entrance in London, could you?" She said, annoyed.

Regulus simply chuckled and knelt next to her, placing his hand over hers. "I didn't mean to intrude. I didn't think you'd be here—you didn't come last year." He squeezed his fingers around hers for a moment before releasing. "Although, I kind of hoped you'd come. I don't want to be alone in missing him today."

They were silent for a few minutes after that, both staring at the gravestone with sad eyes.

She hesitated before speaking again. "Reg, you know you can stop hiding, right? I mean, around your brother and our friends. I might be the best at keeping secrets, but for you... if it meant you could be back in their lives, they'd bend over backwards if it meant they could keep you safe." She said, quietly but evenly, keeping her voice as monotone as possible.

"I know Sirius misses me, and I know you miss me, too, but I don't trust anyone with this, except for you." He told her earnestly. "If the Dark Lord even suspected that I'm not actually dead, all of us are going to end up dead."

There was a pause.

"The damage has been done, Sage. It's too late. It's better for everyone if I stay dead."

She glared at him, and for a moment he admired how much she'd grown in the years he'd known her, especially in the past two years alone. He could remember, quite recently, how she rarely showed any emotion other than anger and annoyance. But something about her had fundamentally changed since she had started dating his brother. He hated to give Sirius any sort of credit—years of their parents pitting them against each other had made sure of that—but Regulus knew that this had to be Sirius's doing.

He cleared his throat. "Listen, I've got to go. But I love you, and I'll see you soon, alright?" He said.

She sniffled, leaning over to rest her head on his shoulder. "Love you."

He was gone from view before she could properly say goodbye.

i took a nap and forgot to update