FONTAINE MANOR

Sage's nightmares had stopped sometime around Harry's seventh birthday. Whether it be the idea that time heals all wounds, or she had eventually grown out of her fears, she didn't complain. Getting a good night's sleep was finally an attainable goal, and it was something she was grateful for, because waking up peacefully, with no night terrors tainting her dreams, was the best thing she could have asked for.

But when Sirius moved back into the house, her nightmares began to rear their ugly heads once more.

She woke up screaming in the middle of the night, sitting straight up in her bed, with her legs tangled in the sheets. She felt suffocated, and while her hair stuck to her neck and forehead with sweat, she struggled to breathe.

"Hey! Hey, you're alright. You're safe." Sirius said from his spot next to her, his arm wrapping around her waist. "It was just a bad dream, love. It wasn't real."

The door to her bedroom opened, and Anna-Lee came stumbling in, eyes exhausted but awake enough to check on her friend.

She sat beside Sage and cupped her cheeks, forcing her to make eye contact. "Breath, English. Breath with me, okay? In. Out. In. Out." She murmured.

Sage's breathing began to even out, and Sirius just watched as his girlfriend—were they even technically together still? He wasn't sure. Twelve years of being apart made their status quite confusing—calmed herself down with Anna-Lee's help.

"I'm alright. I'm fine." Sage whispered, pulling away from her American friend. She drew her knees up to her chest and seemed to withdraw into herself, shutting down from the outside.

Anna-Lee looked at Sirius. "You got it from here?"

He nodded once. "Yeah. Go back to bed." He replied, and he turned away as she left the room, quietly shutting the door behind her.

"What was your dream about?" He asked Sage in a low voice, guiding her to lay back down next to him. "And does that happen often? You waking up screaming?"

She shook her head. "I don't want to talk about it. I just—I can't talk about it. It's bad enough that I have to see Lily's dead body every time I close my eyes. I don't want to have to relive it again. And, no. I don't scream myself awake very often. Not in years."

"D'you think you can get back to sleep?" He brushed her sweat-dampened hair out of her face as he spoke.

She leaned into his touch, grateful to be able to be near him and feel him again. "I dunno, but I'll try." She mumbled. "Can you maybe play with my hair?"

He smiled. "Anything for you."

☾

She woke up that morning to the sound of shouting, except this time, it wasn't her doing the yelling.

It was Sirius.

"What the fuck?" He exclaimed, eyes on the door of Sage's bedroom, where Regulus stood as still as a statue, looking equally as shocked. "What the fuck. What the actual fuck."

Sage was immediately wide awake. "Oh, no."

She hadn't had time between her conversation with Remus and this very moment to tell Sirius that his brother was actually alive.

Sirius turned to her, accusation clear in his expression. "You knew? You knew he was alive?"

"He faked his own death to protect himself and us from Voldemort. I was the only one who knew." She answered, and her voice was scarily even. "If you're going to blame anyone for keeping that secret, blame me. Don't blame him. We all could have been killed if anyone knew."

His face softened, and he turned to his brother. "Is that true? Did you do it for us?" He asked surely and confidently, as if he already knew the answer.

Regulus nodded. "I did. If Voldemort and the Death Eaters had access to me, they would have made me kill you, kill Sage. It was better for everyone if I faked my death and left town, so I couldn't be used as a weapon. That way, I could protect you lot from afar. And I did check in, quite often, to be honest. In Italy, at the graveyard. I've been here when I could be."

"In Italy?"

The two brothers stared at each other for a moment, unmoving and silent, while the quiet weighed on Sage's shoulders. She was scared they would start swinging, or maybe even hex each other.

But then Sirius was leaping off the bed where he had been frozen in place, bounding across the room towards Regulus with open arms. He pulled his brother into a tight embrace, and if Sage had a better view, she'd see that they were both crying.

"I missed you, little brother." Sirius whispered into Regulus's ear.

Regulus took a labored, emotional breath. "I'm sorry."

"I would forgive you for anything."

character development !