Andromeda chuckled at the memory, grabbing a tissue from the box next to their now abandoned mugs and wiping at her eyes. "You know, I came up with all sorts of fantasies at the end of the war. When Regulus passed, I had managed to convince myself that Sirius had taken his place, taken the mark, to save him. That Regulus ran away to wait out the end of the war, to be a kid for just a little while. I noticed Sirius withdrawing, not speaking to me as much, being away for longer periods of time and I would think, "that’s where Reggie went, his brother saved him one last time, swooped in and whisked him away like he always promised he would do.’" She shook her head. "But then Sirius got arrested for James and Lily and Peter, and the war ended, and there was no Regulus. Regulus hadn’t been saved, he wasn’t lying in wait, he was dead, and had been for two years." A sob broke free. "The worst part was that it meant Sirius