"Salazar," came a whisper from a dark corner. Sirius looked up to see Regulus cautiously
approach. "Are you even still alive?"
Sirius coughed in reply, the metallic taste of blood burning the back of his throat. It was getting
harder and harder to breathe.
Regulus's eyes widened. "Why didn't you just do it?"
Sirius tried to smile, but his muscles seized, and he grimaced through the pain. "You know me,
Reg. I've always been a trendsetter—not one to follow blindly." He fought for a breath but it took several
tries to fill his lungs. "Besides, you saw their robes. Fucking hideous. I wouldn't be caught dead wearing
those ugly things."
"You're out of your mind."
"Nope." Sirius swallowed hard as relief came over him at the feel of cold silver against his chest.
He had not had a moment to think about it until now, but when he remembered Mia's gift, he almost
cried. "I'm out of here. Reg, come with me. Come with me, get out of this place... 'cause you're next."
Regulus shook his head. "I'm not like you, Sirius. I'll go willingly. They won't hurt me."
"They will. One day," Sirius said regretfully, pulling his broken and burnt left arm to his chest,
hissing at the sharp, stinging pain. He looked up at his brother one more time and sighed, gripping the
silver chain around his neck. "Portus!"
The Healers had been able to put a stop to Sirius's seizing, but when one caused
him to involuntarily flinch while applying a burn paste to his arm, Mia and James both
stood defensively, drawing their wands. It was the last straw for the Healers who—after a
sizable donation by the gracious Potter family—allowed Mia to tend to Sirius on her own.
James eventually fell asleep in the corner of the room, and she took the time to send
a message through the charmed Galleon to Remus to let him know what had happened
and to insist that he not come. She and James were having a hard enough time keeping
their own tempers in check, the last thing they needed was an overprotective werewolf
roaming the halls of the hospital.
Alphard Black stood out in the hallway with her parents, Mia listening to every
word.
"As Head of your House, Alphard, you have the ability to do it," Dorea whispered.