CHAPTER THREE | LOVEBIRDS

"For once you have tasted flight you will walk the earth with your eyes turned skywards, for there you have been and there you will long to return."

~ Leonardo da Vinci

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Hate spills easily from the lips surrounding Rigel, tainting the air and blackening the hearts around them. His grey eyes blankly stare at the spot between Regulus's and Avery's heads, his mind stuck in a daydream while blocking out the hateful words. A daydream that will never come true due to how the wizardry world is. In his daydream, an older Mary and him are chasing each other in a field of beautiful, red geraniums. A few seconds pass before two toddlers — who are a perfect mix between the two adults — waddle towards them with baby lovebirds they found abandoned in their hands. Mary and him would educate their children on how to properly care for the birds and how amazing the species is. Lovebirds are known to form strong, monogamous relationships with a chosen mate and usually mate for life; however, divorces do happen very rarely among lovebirds. They sing beautiful harmonies and can mimic a human's voice. They need constant affection and attention in order to properly thrive in their environment. When given little to no affection, lovebirds become highly aggressive. After caring for the baby birds until they become full fledged adults, Rigel will have to teach his children on how to release the birds. His children will scream and cry, not wanting to let their little companions go; but, he will sit them down and tell them about how the most horrible thing one can do to a bird is to cage them for the rest of their lives. He tells them how the lovebirds will love feeling the wind beneath their wings once more and how the family will get to watch as the birds try to measure the sky while flying. He explains how the lovebirds will never truly abandon their family and that if they are patient enough, the lovebirds will come back to visit them. Birds belong in the sky and not in someone's cage. Caged birds yearn for freedom, for their wings to map out the blue sky and for their songs to be heard worldwide. People cage birds because of their beautiful singing. They wish to hear the songs all day long, but that is not fair to the birds and to everyone else on the planet. Everyone should be given the opportunity to listen to the harmony emitting from the bird's beak. For birds do no make music for the sole purpose to entertain humans. Birds were the first to sing before man arrived and they will be the last to sing long after man has died.

"God has turned his back on us," Rigel snaps back into the present at hearing those whispered words by someone in the crowd. His teeth clamps down on the top of his tongue, restraining him from releasing everything he desperately wanted to say about this entire situation. He yearned to let the metal bars around him melt and finally be permitted to freely sing the harmonies trapped within his throat. How could someone, who preaches hate and injustice, speak ill of their faith? He wishes he could shake that person and shout in their face, "We turned our backs on God first." People only turn to God when they need him and blame him for all the horrible things happening in the world; however, people are the children of God, shouldn't they be able to control their own fate? People expect God to answer their prays when they are not even praying to him. Rigel silently muses on his own sense of faith. He was raised in a Catholic home yet he never truly devoted himself to God. He never accepted God as his savior, not completely believing that there is an all powerful father. To Rigel, God is dead either way and people have taken his place on earth. It is their duty to take matters in their own hands and to not pray to a dead man for help yet here they are, asking where God is and why he has not acted in their favor. It is their duty to dictate their own fate yet here they are, wondering what God has in store for them. It is their duty to love and care for each other yet here they are, tainting the world with even more hatred. How could people — who claim to be children of god — go against his teachings?

"If your god is real, why is the world such shit?" Mulciber mumbles, tugging angrily at his hair. Rigel snorts and appreciatively pats Mulciber's back. "Are you the devil?" He jokingly inquires while ignoring the looks sent their way by a few of the girls close to them.

"Maybe I am." Rigel replies with a gentle smile. "How else did this cruelty and hatred find us?"

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Family doesn't end or start in blood. Family is always there, through the bad and good. Family has your back no matter the occasion. Rigel wonders, when did his family break? When Sirius was sorted into Gryffindor? When his mother burnt his face off the tapestry? Or maybe, his family was never unbroken to begin with.
The young boy leans against the wall in the corridor heading to the courtyard, watching the faces pass him by. He could never comprehend how lifeless some people were as they walked by as he remembered how they were once so lively. This school, this hatred, this war sucked the life out of them. A familiar barking laugh ripples through the air and his entire body tenses up. His eyes quickly flicker to the rowdy group of boys. A sense of longing grips his heart when he sees the smile on Sirius's face and pure happiness shining in his eyes. He truly misses his eldest brother and the bond they had; however, Sirius seems to be doing absolutely fine without him. Remus Lupin locks eyes with Rigel, the two seemingly having a silent conversation with one another. Rigel briefly bows his head before leaving the wall and going down the corridor. Remus and Rigel have no bad blood between them considering Professor McGonagall made them both tutors for transfiguration. They meet up in the classroom every Thursday night to aid any students that show up for extra help, but there are nights where no one shows up and the two spend the night mindlessly talking. Sirius has never been a topic either of the boys brought up in their conversations. Remus knew that Sirius left an open wound on Rigel's heart and Rigel simply does not wish to hear how better off his elder brother is without his family holding him back. 

"Rigel," he blinks, glancing down to see Monte and Cindy staring up at him, "can you help us?"

"With what?" Rigel cocks an eyebrow curiously. He ignores the stares burning into the trio. Some people are probably wondering why a pure blood is mingling with two muggleborns. Some are watching to make sure he does not attack them. Some people are downright idiots. The laughter of Sirius can be heard more clearly as the eldest Black brother gets closer and closer to where Rigel is standing.

"We're having trouble completing our assignment for astronomy class. We have to write an essay about a constellation of our choice." Cindy explains, tugging at  the end of her sleeves.

"Do you have your constellations picked out already?" He inquires and to his surprise, both children quickly nod their heads.

"I want to do Orion and Monte wishes to do Ophiuchus." Cindy answers and releases the tight grip she had on her sleeve. Monte tenses at the sight of something down the corridor and reaches out to grab Rigel's hand. Rigel stares down at the boy in confusion at his action until he realizes why the boy did so when a condescending voice pierces the air.

"Is Rigel bothering you two?" Sirius Black appears next to the group with a taunting grin plastered on his face. Rigel clenches his jaw, not wanting to get into a verbal fight with his brother. "Because if he is, I could take him off your hands." Usually Sirius does not go after his brothers, but ever since the dueling club incident, it seems to be his goal to single out Rigel in every waking moment of his life. Remus sends a sympathetic look towards him, James is smirking and egging Sirius on while Peter does not make any move to engage with the duo.

"No, he isn't. He's actually trying to help us with our classes so if you could just scurry away." Cindy seethes, taking hold of Rigel's other hand.

"Getting soft, are we, Riggie?" James mockingly asks and chuckles. For a moment, Rigel wonders how it would feel to choke James and watch as the life left his eyes. This boy is the reason why Sirius turned his back on his family. This boy filled Sirius's head with hatred for anyone in Slytherin. This boy turned Sirius into the git he is today. Rigel breaths in and out, controlling his temper.

"Only people who have more than one brain cell can call me Riggie, Potter." Rigel spats and tugs on the children's hands. "Come on, lets go to the library to work on your assignment." Before they could take a step, James and Sirius block their path. Rigel knows he made a bad choice in insulting James by the expressions of anger on their faces. 

"Apologize to James, snake." Sirius growls. Rigel notices a group of Slytherins making their way towards the occurring confrontation, wands in their hands and icy expressions on their faces. Monte and Cindy seem to relax slightly at the sight of their housemates coming to their aid.

"A snake does not submit to lions." Rigel shrugs and quickly ducks as a spell is casted towards him. A brawl between the Marauders and group of Slytherins commences while Rigel briskly takes the children away from the battlefield. He glances over his shoulder, emitting a sigh at the sight of Sirius cursing a Slytherin and laughing about it.

"Rigel, why do they hate us so much?" Monte questions, narrowing his eyes at any Gryffindor that wonders by. Rigel's heart breaks at this action. Their naivety and innocence is being ripped away from them due to the hatred within the walls of this school.

"Lions are afraid of snakes because of how cunning and ambition snakes are. Lions like to be at the top of the hierarchy, but snakes could easily take their spot if they so desired." Rigel states, soothingly rubbing his thumb over the children's knuckles. The trio enter the library and Rigel leads them to the back where Mary usually sits because no one can see the table and no one goes back there. He smiles when he sees her sitting there like expected, her hair in a messy bun and her glasses sliding down her nose. "Hello, dearie." Mary jolts and glances up to see the trio approaching her. She smiles, reaching over to yank Cindy into a tight hug.

"Hello." Mary greets and kisses Cindy's head. "How is my darling sister?"

"Tired." Cindy admits causing the group to laugh. "Why is your house so mean to Rigel?" Mary furrows her eyebrows and quickly gazes at Rigel in concern.

"What happened?" She releases Cindy to pull Rigel closer to her, checking for any external injuries. He gently grabs her hands and kisses them. Neither of them are worried about anyone seeing them in the library. Monte seems a little grossed out by the public affection while Cindy awes at it.

"Just a little spat between me and my darling brother." Mary sighs and rolls her eyes. "Now, these two need help with homework. Care to join us?"

"Of course." He takes the seat next to her and she cuddles into his side. He sits there, soaking up the normalcy of this situation. Mary's cinnamon smell wafts over his nose as she accios astronomy books for the first years to read in order to write their essays. He briefly wonders, if Mary and him stood on the same side of the war, would this be them in about twenty years with their own children? Sitting at a table, helping them with homework while enjoying each other's company. Rigel decides at this very moment that he is going to enjoy everything he can to the fullest because he knows that one day, all of this happiness will be gone.

"Rigel," Rigel blinks and locks eyes with Mary, "there you are love, thought we lost you. Want to tell me where your mind was?"

Rigel cheekily grins at her, "In the future, but I quite like being in the present right now."

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Rigel cannot put into words how much he despises Avery and his goons. Everyone was in the Great Hall, enjoying their lunches in the peaceful atmosphere. No glares or words of hatred were spoken as everyone conversed with their friends. Laughter filled the air, drinks were passed around. All the happiness was quickly sucked out of the room when the screaming started.

Rigel snaps his head up to watch as first year Gryffindors were lifted in the air. He quickly looks around to see who could be behind this when he spots Avery and his goons smirking at the children, their wands pointed at them. Anger overtakes Rigel's senses as he bolts up from the bench and starts heading towards them; however, someone grabs the back of his shirt and yanks him down. "Let me go, Regulus."

"No," Regulus grunts and quickly puts his brother in a chokehold, "Let them teach the Gryffindors a lesson." Something clicked within Rigel's kind at that exact second. He recalls how Avery pulled Regulus away during the meeting last night in the common room where everyone sprouted out their  hatred.

"You gave them permission to do this." Rigel goes limp in his brother's hold, staring blankly at what was going on.

"Avery had an idea on how to show the Gryffindors to no longer mess with us. I agreed." Regulus releases Rigel once he was sure Rigel was not going to interfere with what was happening. The professors are yelling, trying to put a stop to the bullying. Rigel watches in silent horror when Avery violently jerks his wand and one first year slams into the wall. His eyes widen in shock as the limo body drops to the floor. Screaming erupts from everyone in the Great Hall and people rushed towards the first year to check if they were still alive.

"Is this what you had planned?" Rigel asks, whirling around to face his twin with tears in his eyes. "To make the houses even more scared of us than before? You didn't help the situation, Regulus. You only made things worse for us." Regulus bites his tongue and decides to not talk back to Rigel. Deep within his heart, Regulus knew Rigel was right. Regulus only did this in hopes of word getting back to their family about what happened and they'll be impressed by his actions. Is making his parents proud really worth losing his relationship with Rigel? He goes to speak when Rigel disappears, appearing next to Cindy and Monte. He hordes the first year Slytherins and escorts them out of the Great Hall. Rigel quickens their pace to the common room, not wanting the children to hear the terrified screams emitting from the other students.

"What's going on?" Cheryl Caywood fearfully cries, her brown eyes wide in horror.

"Why are they doing that?" Emile Zubia grips her hair tightly. Cindy and Monte are quiet, staring at Rigel with a million questions swirling in their eyes.

"Why do people do anything?" Rigel mumbles angrily. "They're downright twats and decided to take out their anger on other people. Do not be like them, avoid them at all costs and be as nice as possible to the other houses."

"They'll hate us even more after this." Cindy comments.

"Yes, they will. Make sure you're always in a group when you're walking to and from classes. You need to protect each other at all costs." Rigel sighs through his nose, wondering why his brother would fathom why any of this would be a good idea.

"Rigel, I'm scared." Monte whispers, his body trembling and voice cracking.

"Good." Rigel states.

"Why is that good?" Emile inquires.

"Because it means you're not stupid."

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Rigel hears the door to the dormitory open and hesitate footsteps entering. He knows just by how lightly the person is walking that Regulus entered the room. His jaw clenches and his fingers around the book tighten. He waits for his brother to come further within the room before voicing his displeasure. "Your hands are going to be drenched in blood," Rigel flips the page in his book while avoiding looking at his twin. "Can you live with that?"

"Rigel, don't." Regulus sighs and flops down next to Rigel on his bed.

"Don't what? Don't tell you how horrible this entire situation is? How you're only feeding it with your speeches of hatred? What do you want me to do?" Rigel snaps his book closes and adjusts himself to be staring at his brother. The twins silently observe each other, both feeling an array of emotions.

"I want you to support me like family should." Regulus whispers.

"Support you?" Rigel snorts. "I have supported you my entire life, but even I know that you've gone too far. Do you not care about what Avery and them did to those first years?" Regulus tenses at the reminder of the incident this afternoon. "Oh, you do care, but you just can't show it."

"Rigel, shut up." Regulus darkly mumbles. Rigel can see he is testing his brother's boundaries yet he would not shut up to appease him.

"What I find most pathetic is how your lackeys," Regulus twitches, "are blaming God for all of this when they should really be blaming themselves. Our ancestors caused this strife between the houses and we continuously feed into it every year. When do we stop blaming God for our mistakes?"

"God is not real, he's a superficial entity that people go to for support when they are in need of it and they blame him when they need someone to blame for the wrongdoings in their lives." Regulus narrows his eyes at his brother, a clear warning in his eyes for Rigel to shut up.

"If you don't believe in god, then what do you believe in?" Rigel whispers. Regulus launches himself off his bed and briskly strolls to one side of Rigel's bed. Rigel tenses, preparing to flee if any harmful intentions are shown through Regulus's body language. 

"I believe in only one god, dear brother, and that is death. Do you know what we say to death?" Rigel tenses when Regulus leans in too close for comfort. "Not today."

[ "Everyone who isn't us is an enemy." ]