TM Prompt 213
"There's enough sorrow in the world, isn't there, without trying to invent it."
E. M. Forster, A Room With A View.
Regulus never told anyone, but the Sorting Hat had contemplated putting him in another House.
Slytherin was always a choice, but the Hat had thought both Ravenclaw and Gryffindor would be a fine suit for him. He couldn’t see it for himself, though the Hat insisted. It argued that he was quite clever and extremely loyal. However, the argument was exceedingly short.
Young Regulus Black demanded that the Hat sort him into Slytherin, not caring that the Hat was much older and wiser and respected than he. The only thought in his head was the wrath of his mother when she learned that both of her sons were not in Slytherin. His brother, Sirius, may have been willing to push their mother’s boundaries and be different, but Regulus did not wish to put their mother through that a second time.
He wasn’t afraid of her, though Sirius would probably say otherwise, he just didn’t want to cause her any more heartache.
In fact, Regulus had a theory that their mother had reacted the way she did to Sirius’ being sorted into Gryffindor out of sadness, and perhaps a little fear. Sad because she felt as though her son was abandoning her, and fear because she knew that he was at risk of being singled out as a traitor by other purebloods.
Of course, it was just a theory, and Regulus could be wrong. Still, just in case he was right, he didn’t want to make his mother worry any more than she already had. And maybe, just maybe, because he and Sirius were best friends, everything would be all right. They could show Mother that, just because Sirius was in a different House, everything would stay the same.
And so, Regulus told the Hat to place him in Slytherin, not knowing that everything would not be the same, and nothing would be all right. He couldn’t have known that his choice wouldn’t fix anything and it would cause more grief than it healed.
Regulus Arcturus Black
Harry Potter
WC: 333
E. M. Forster, A Room With A View.
Regulus never told anyone, but the Sorting Hat had contemplated putting him in another House.
Slytherin was always a choice, but the Hat had thought both Ravenclaw and Gryffindor would be a fine suit for him. He couldn’t see it for himself, though the Hat insisted. It argued that he was quite clever and extremely loyal. However, the argument was exceedingly short.
Young Regulus Black demanded that the Hat sort him into Slytherin, not caring that the Hat was much older and wiser and respected than he. The only thought in his head was the wrath of his mother when she learned that both of her sons were not in Slytherin. His brother, Sirius, may have been willing to push their mother’s boundaries and be different, but Regulus did not wish to put their mother through that a second time.
He wasn’t afraid of her, though Sirius would probably say otherwise, he just didn’t want to cause her any more heartache.
In fact, Regulus had a theory that their mother had reacted the way she did to Sirius’ being sorted into Gryffindor out of sadness, and perhaps a little fear. Sad because she felt as though her son was abandoning her, and fear because she knew that he was at risk of being singled out as a traitor by other purebloods.
Of course, it was just a theory, and Regulus could be wrong. Still, just in case he was right, he didn’t want to make his mother worry any more than she already had. And maybe, just maybe, because he and Sirius were best friends, everything would be all right. They could show Mother that, just because Sirius was in a different House, everything would stay the same.
And so, Regulus told the Hat to place him in Slytherin, not knowing that everything would not be the same, and nothing would be all right. He couldn’t have known that his choice wouldn’t fix anything and it would cause more grief than it healed.
Regulus Arcturus Black
Harry Potter
WC: 333