Upside Down Mirror: A Grim Tale (Harry Potter Fanfic)

Perfect and Darling

"Padfoot, we need to talk."

Sirius hated the tone of voice that James used as said tone always involved James bringing up a subject he didn't want to talk about, most often being the family he left. A pair of grey eyes narrowed as Sirius lay on the couch looking up at the ceiling, his arms tucked behind his head. "Did Remus put you up to this?"

"What do you mean did Remus put me up to this?"

"This is about Regulus, isn't it?" Sirius continued glaring at the ceiling, angry that Remus put James up to bringing the subject up despite knowing full well the subject of Regulus was off-limits. "And I don't want to talk about it."

"I talked to him."

"I said I don't want to talk about it."

"Well, I do, because I'm bothered by it."

Sirius sat up straight, glaring at his best friend. James stood there with that look on his face, much like he did when he led Severus Snape into the whomping willow in hopes that running into Remus as a werewolf would give the git a good scare. "I said I don't want to talk about it."

"Lily insists we do."

"What does Lily have to do with this?" Sirius glared at James. "Actually, why do you..."

"Food for thought. Lily doesn't have a problem with Regulus. She rather likes him."

Sirius let out a groan, rolling his eyes before flopping back down onto the couch. The fact Lily liked his younger brother was most certainly food for thought, yet he didn't want to think about it at all. "Lily was best friends with Snivellus, remember?"

"This is different."

"Sure, it is. Whatever you want to think Prongs."

"Well, you know Petunia. No, you don't know Petunia, but..."

Sirius frowned, tucking his hands behind his head, not understanding why James brought up the woman who would most likely be his future mother-in-law. "I haven't met the woman, but you have told me about how she hates Lily. I don't see what..."

"Older siblings that hate them," James said, making one of Sirius' eyebrows shoot up as he still didn't know where James was going with the whole thing. "That's what Lily and Regulus have in common, but also what they bonded over at Hogwarts."

Sirius let out a curse, sitting up straight. "I don't hate..."

James took a deep breath. "Well, I'd honestly not expected that kind of response from you."

"I..."

"To clarify, I completely knew before you said that, that you don't hate Regulus, but I didn't expect you to admit it."

"Don't tell the little git that I admitted it. Don't tell anybody I did Prongs."

"Well, Regulus wouldn't believe me if I did tell him. He was quite adamant when I talked to him that you hated him, but then..." James walked away. "Regulus is a bit odd, isn't he?"

"Regulus is not odd. How many times do I have to tell you that he's the perfect heir to continue the Black family legacy?" Sirius got up, storming after his best friend, following him into the kitchen. "James, are you listening to me? Regulus is not odd, but anybody in the family will tell you as much. He's the perfect little darling, something I never heard enough of growing up. So he's not..."

"James, you do realize people normally stop calling someone their perfect little darling after a certain age, right?"

"What do you mean people normally stop calling someone their perfect little darling after a certain age? Where did you get that idea from?" Sirius pulled out a chair and sat down, feeling like today was a repeat of the conversation he had the day after Remus confronted him about the issue.

"Saying he's a perfect little darling makes you sound jealous."

"Bloody hell I'm not, but why do you and Remus both insist that I am?"

"Because you most certainly sound jealous," James shook his head. "You keep talking about how perfect Regulus is and how your parents favor him, so why wouldn't people think you're jealous."

Sirius stared at James, contemplating what his best friend just said, but then said what was probably one of the dumbest things he ever said. "Let me ask you this James. Why aren't you jealous of Regulus?"

James stared at him as if he were an idiot, but after a moment of silence he sat down across from Sirius before very firmly saying, "Padfoot, nothing is going on between Lily and Regulus."

Sirius rolled his eyes. "That's not what I meant, so don't be daft Prongs."

"You're the one being daft, Padfoot."

"How so? Who wouldn't be jealous of Regulus? He's got the family looks, the smarts, he's athletic, creative even when they let him be. Plus, putting aside this stupid Pureblood supremacy bit, he's rather likable. Hell..." Sirus let out a laugh. "Moony even pointed it out. I can talk and talk about how horrible my family is, but I can't when it comes to Regulus. I just can't talk bad about him James. Stew over that if you will like Remus told me to stew over it."

James sat there, his mouth twisted as if he were stewing over it, but eventually, a smirk appeared on his face. "I get it now."

"You get what."

"The entire family considers him their perfect little darling, right?"

"Correct."

"Meaning that includes you, right?" James continued smiling.

Sirius sputtered, stammering out, "What's wrong with you!"

"Well, isn't he?"

"Stop laughing at me." Sirius pointed his finger at James, his anger flaring. "I do not, in any way, think like that. You know I'm all punk rock and..."

"I'm not laughing Sirius." The smirk left James' face. "I'm being quite serious about this."

"You were smirking."

"I was smirking because I figured it out."

"You haven't figured anything out!"

"And yes, Regulus is odd, but Sirius." James looked him in the eye. "It really isn't normal for people to continue calling someone who's seventeen, almost eighteen a perfect little darling. That's something reserved for very young children. It's also okay to have a soft spot for your brother, but you should talk to him. And..."

"And what?"

"Well, that's it really. Other than Lily thinking you should talk to him, I guess."

"I'll think about it."