Regulus accepted one side of the two-way mirror almost reverently. In the mirror, Sirius's face appeared, smiling—young, vibrant, full of hope.
All the adults who would one day protect Harry—Sirius, Dumbledore, Snape...
And Lily and James, who had faced Voldemort head-on from the beginning and died protecting Harry...
And here, in this very room, cousin-in-law Ted Tonks and little Nymphadora Tonks, and the rarely mentioned in the original story but equally tragically short-lived Uncle Alphard...
And him—
Regulus Black.
Their endings shouldn't have been like that.
…
"What's wrong, Reg?" Sirius asked, not without concern.
"Nothing. I was just thinking—these are going to be so helpful to us!" Regulus quickly composed himself and, with new resolve, turned to Alphard. "Uncle Alphard, where did you get these two-way mirrors? Are there more?"
He was urgently eager to know the source of such a magical item.
"I made them myself," Alphard replied with a confident, dazzling smile.
!?
So the genius was right here all along…
In Regulus's eyes, a divine halo seemed to appear behind Uncle Alphard.
"That's amazing..." Regulus's eyes filled with admiration. "Could you teach us?"
—Master, please guide us! Teach us!
"Uncle Alphard has his own alchemy lab at home," Sirius added. "I've even seen it."
Regulus's eyes lit up even more, unable to help silently grumbling.
The Black family really was full of talented people. It's just their family relationships were an absolute mess. Sirius had known about this for ages, and yet Regulus had no idea.
"It's not that I don't want to," Alphard said with a helpless smile, trying to reassure them. "You're just too young. A lot of advanced spells, complex transfiguration, and alchemy—those are subjects you can only take after your O.W.L.s, and only if you get a bunch of 'Outstanding' grades."
"Does a wizard's magical level really depend that much on age?" Regulus pressed.
"For young wizards, aside from natural aptitude in controlling and understanding magic, the most important factor is practice. And both of those improve with age," Alphard explained.
"For example, a twenty-year-old wizard casting the Patronus Charm—while impressive, wouldn't be shocking. But if, say, thirteen-year-old Sirius—if you could cast a Patronus, that would be truly remarkable."
"The Patronus Charm is the one that repels Dementors," Andromeda added helpfully, worried they might not know.
Alphard nodded, just about to offer a few more words of encouragement to his nephews—when he noticed Sirius had gone completely still.
"What if an eleven-year-old wizard… could cast the Patronus Charm?" Sirius Black slowly spoke, turning to look at Regulus and asking uncertainly—
"A wizard who's about to turn twelve."
The three adult wizards immediately understood the implication. Three pairs of eyes, filled with disbelief, turned to look at them.
^_^
Regulus didn't bother to be modest.
He drew his wand, focused his thoughts, and pictured happy scenes: his brother Sirius, his friend Severus, Lily, James, baby Tonks—all living cheerful, content lives—
"Expecto Patronum~~"
A silver creature, plump and furry like a little kitten, leapt from the tip of his wand. With a light, graceful twist of its body, it vanished into the kitchen behind the living room.
The room fell into a unified silence among the adult wizards—
"Sirius can do it too," Regulus quickly sold out his brother when everyone kept staring at him.
If there was going to be a family performance, then of course the brothers had to act as one—neat and coordinated.
"Sirius, your turn."
Sirius gracefully drew his wand and took a deep breath. He imagined everyone mastering Animagus transformation, little Lupin no longer having to endure the pain of turning into a werewolf, himself living independently, with Reg, James, and Remus as neighbors—
A magnificent silver dog burst forth from the tip of his wand, also dashing into the dimly lit kitchen, leaving a trail of silvery light in its wake.
The adult wizards were now doubly silent.
"Of course Sirius's Patronus would be a big dog," Regulus said with a smile, breaking the silence.
"Of course, we were in a safe, well-lit home, practicing without the threat of Dementors… so maybe it doesn't really—" Sirius hadn't even finished when he was cut off.
"What do you mean it doesn't count? Don't be so modest… It's incredible!" Andromeda rushed up to her two cousins and pulled them into a tight hug. "It's amazing. I'm so proud of you—your talent… it's truly extraordinary, Sirius, Regulus…"
Regulus was nearly being squeezed breathless by his cousin's hug. Sirius's face turned red—not that he'd ever admit it was because of the praise.
"Meda, you're going to suffocate them," Alphard said with a laugh, full of approval. "I've always known Sirius was very, very gifted. I didn't expect Regulus to be just as outstanding…"
"This is wonderful…" Cousin Andromeda looked like she might cry.
"How did you even think to learn that spell?" Alphard asked curiously.
"Reg came up with the idea," Sirius sold out his brother without hesitation.
Alphard stared straight at Regulus, waiting for an explanation.
Regulus thought for a moment before answering, "I read about the Patronus Charm in a book. First, it's a very powerful spell. Second, it turns out there aren't really any side effects from practicing it—unless you're a Dark wizard. So, it's actually pretty suitable for practicing at home…"
Suitable for home practice—hearing that evaluation, Alphard was nearly floored by his nephew's train of thought.
"So how did you practice it? What's your take on it?" Alphard asked again, clearly evaluating him.
"Casting a Patronus requires you to focus on happy memories. That is, the spell's power comes from beautiful things—even just imagining something good in your mind is enough. It doesn't even have to be real. I think… that's hope, joy, the will to live… and love." Sirius said.
"So Sirius and I figured—we'd just imagine those kinds of things…" Regulus continued.
"They have to be sincere. Strong enough."
What could be more joyful than imagining a bright future with friends and family? And what could be more sincere than working hard to make it real?
In short—motivating yourself with future dreams.
It was basically running on love and imagination.
"And we've been practicing spells every day," Sirius added. "All because of Reg. I've never worked this hard before…"
"Of course, I think it would be even better if we had a Boggart to practice with."
…
Just as Sirius and Regulus were starting to get embarrassed from all the staring, the silence was finally broken—by Alphard.
"Amazing. At your age, to have such a deep understanding of magic," Alphard concluded. His nephews had given him one surprise after another today. "My sister… your mother… sigh, she really does have two excellent sons."
Ted and Andromeda nodded repeatedly in agreement.
Regulus brought up the topic he cared about again—
"So, back to the earlier question—can we start learning alchemy?"
"When I get back from Sweden!" Alphard said, smiling as he looked at his two handsome nephews.