Tense is the inability to relax due to nervousness or anxiety. To say things had become tense would be an understatement.

Esme could practically feel the knots growing in her shoulders as time wore on. She couldn't take it anymore.

So that was why, really, despite what trouble it might cause her with Regulus, Esme had made another plan. Though this time she swore it wasn't dangerous.

"You're bloody lucky, you know that?" Sirius grumbled as he begrudgingly followed Esme down the hill.

Regulus Black had changed.

He hadn't meant to, but he did nevertheless. No matter how hard he tried, he just couldn't get it out of his mind. Every time Dirk and Levi looked at him, their eyes were filled with guilt. He had tried countlessly to convince the boys he held no grudge towards them as a result of what had happened in the Forbidden Forest - for now they knew he posed no such threat.

However, it was the pity Esme's tone carried which really hurt.

She knew that Regulus' only real concern was his brother. For longer than he cared to admit, he had harboured resentment for his older sibling. Not only had Sirius abandoned their family, leaving Regulus struggle to fill the hole in his parent's hearts, but he'd also been angry at Sirius long before that.

Sirius has always had the courage, and sometimes the privilege, of being able to do and say whatever he wanted. It didn't help that Regulus was younger and when he came along there was so much pressure resting on him to meet the expectations of his family.

For Regulus to address his brother now, it would be to address years of dissatisfaction and that was very overwhelming to the Slytherin boy.

"Lucky?" Esme scoffed, "Having to put up with you is some sort of punishment, honestly."

Esme was tense because she could feel the stress radiating off of Regulus whenever he was nearby - which was an awful lot. Add into the mix the fact that she was now in the company of the ever-bothersome Sirius Black, Esme was under enough tension to last a lifetime.

"You're annoying as well. How does Reg put up with you?" He muttered under his breath, just loud enough for her to hear but not loud enough to warrant a response.

"Hey? Did you hear me?" Sirius hurried to walk beside the girl so he could wave his hand in front of her face.

She sighed irritably, coming to a halt as she quipped, "I'm doing this for Regulus, alright? He deserves some answers from you and you're going to give them to him."

"What? Are you hosting some sort of intervention?" He scoffed, starting to scuff his shoes on the floor as the continued walking down towards the quidditch pitch.

Esme shook her head, "If that's what it takes. This whole thing is bumming Regulus out, and that's putting a damper on my mood and I have other things to worry about."

"Like what, exactly?" Sirius asked, narrowing his eyes suspiciously, "Wouldn't happen to... I don't know, involve a certain You Know Who?"

"What?" She snapped sharply, "Shut up. You don't know anything about me."

He smirked, "Don't I? I struck a chord. I did used to know your family, very well."

"Things change. People change. You never cared to know me. Oh, and shut up!"

Finally, they had reached the doors to the quidditch pitch. Though, a eerie silence had fallen over the stands that was almost intimidating. There wasn't even a sound of rushing broomsticks or arguing teammates.

"I thought we were here to find Regulus? There's nobody here. I thought the Slytherins were training now?" Sirius asked, sharing the quiet.

Esme began climbing up the stairs towards the seats as she called back, "Gee, nothing gets past you, does it?"

"Just-"

"Be quiet! Merlin!" Esme exclaimed, "How in hell are you related to Regulus?"

Sirius muttered under his breath, "I was first."

Reaching the top of the stairs, the two teenagers paused for a moment to look out over the empty pitch and surrounding stands. The brisk air whipping past their faces flushed their cheeks red as they adjusted to the cold. A shiver coursed down Esme's spine as she looked down the row of seats and there, at the far end, was a very familiar boy with his nose tucked deep into a book.

"How did you know he'd be here? This is such a stupid place to study." Sirius complained as he tightened his robes around his neck .

"Like you know anything about studying." She huffed, tucking her hair back in her jumper so it didn't fly about her face, "He comes out here to read a lot. He doesn't know I know about it, though I suspect the cat is out of the bag now."

"Well... What now?" Sirius folded his arms, exhaling sharply and blowing some hair out of his eyes, "Do you expect me to just walk up to him? What's to stop him from storming off again?"

"We're blocking the exit." She explained simply, "Nowhere for him to go."

"Oh, lovely, I'm sure that will make him happy." He rolled his eyes, but nevertheless remained behind Esme as he followed her between the rows of seats and towards the boy. Esme was almost tempted to challenge Sirius, to claim that he knew nothing about how to make Regulus happy when he had brought him so much sadness. Yet, as she opened her mouth to argue, her eyes fell on Regulus as he looked up from his book and she decided it was probably best she stay relatively out of this confrontation.

"Christ..." Regulus sighed as he closed his book, "What are you doing?" He directed the question towards Esme.

"I'm helping. Well, trying to." She replied rather sheepishly, nearing the boy so she stood beside him as she placed a hand on his shoulder.

Regulus looked up at her through his eyelashes, "And what is he doing here?" They both turned to look at Sirius, who was lingering rather awkwardly a little bit down the way.

"Hi." The Gryffindor boy waved, then realised that perhaps that was stupid and slowly lowered his hand.

Regulus stared straight at his brother as he asked, "What exactly are you helping with?"

"Um... I don't know." He frowned.

"Merlin!" Esme exclaimed, "You're meant to explain what you were doing in the Forbidden Forest last month!"

"Oh, right, yeah..." Sirius ran a hand through his hair.

The younger boy stood up now as he interjected, "Esme, thanks, but I don't really need to know what he was doing. He doesn't owe me any sort of explanation."

"Well I blatantly disagree with you." She folded her arms, "He owes you answers, for everything, surely."

Sirius nodded solemnly, a sad darkness washing over his eyes, "I do owe you an explanation, Reg. Though, perhaps not about the Animagi."

"About what, then?" Regulus inquired.

"About why, at times, I can be such an inconsiderate idiot." He replied quietly.

The younger boy blinked, caught off guard by the sudden admission. "Well... I... You're not wrong." He exhaled, the corners of his lips threatening to rise into a faint smile.

"One thing though, first..." Sirius continued, "I'm afraid to know the answer but I do need to ask... Have you guys become Death Eaters?"

"Have we what?" Regulus snapped suddenly, feeling himself lose his calm. He knew, obviously, it was true - they were Death Eaters. Though Regulus knew what his brother was assuming: that they had willingly become Death Eaters. It infuriated him that Sirius would assume such things of him.

"Reg... Come on, I didn't mean it like that." Sirius insisted, but nevertheless he took a step back.

Regulus scoffed, "Didn't mean it like what?"

Then, Sirius made the mistake of gesturing towards Esme as he explained, "Well, I know what she's like. Her family. I wouldn't be surprised if she dragged you into that-that evil!"

"What?" Regulus' voice grew louder now, it was almost a shout. He could feel Esme stood behind him, and he felt so, so guilty that even, after all this time and all of her fighting, people still assumed the worst of her. Esme's family thought she was a traitor, and everyone else thought she was a villain.

"I can help though! If you want it. We could help you escape from them." Sirius offered, like it was a good thing. Though to Sirius it was.

"You need to leave. Now." Regulus warned, stepping towards his brother and sending him stumbling backwards.

"Reg-" Esme reached out to him, trying to take ahold of his arm in a feeble attempt to calm him down.

"No!" He shouted, "Sirius, leave! Get out!"

"It's fine, really." Esme murmured as she grasped his hand. Yet, he stayed watching as Sirius turned to leave them. Perhaps Esme had been a fool, it would take a lot more to get the two brothers to be civil to each other. She was more than willing to try again though.