Chapter Text
The next day, as Regulus walked into the greenhouse, he realized he wasn't alone, which was quite strange as no one else should have been in there at that time. He confirmed it with Professor Sprout. It's only when he realized who so graciously decided to ruin his alone time with their presence that it made sense.
James Potter stared across the greenhouse at him with impossibly green eyes. He dragged his eyes over the shorter boy as he closed the door behind him. "Well? What is it?" He spat, quick to irritate when it came to anything to do with his brother, and he was sure it was about his brother.
"I know it was you," he spoke, his voice calmly drifting through the warm room. "Excuse me?" Regulus met his stare. It took everything in him not to groan as the actual Greek statue in front of him proceeded to roll his sleeves up, revealing the smooth skin of his muscled arms.
"I know it was you the other night in the greenhouse," he paused. "And I just wanted to warn you....that you shouldn't get involved, it's not safe," he spoke softly. "If that means anything." Now this was not what Regulus had expected. He was aware that there was a good chance that James knew it was him in the greenhouse that night, simply from the look he had given him throughout breakfast the next morning.
Regulus' throat tightened. "Okay," he replied, not meeting the other's eyes. He didn't want this interaction to last any longer. He wanted James to leave the greenhouse and take all of his sex appeal with him. "I'm serious."
"Okay," he turned his back to James as he rolled up his sleeves in an attempt to hide his scarred arms. He pulled a pair of gloves on before turning to a nearby flower bed. "I haven't said anything to Sirius,"
"And...I'm not going to," he continued. "I couldn't give less of a fuck whether Sirius knows that I was in there," Regulus lashed. "I was using the greenhouse for its intended purpose, and you guys burst in there on some kind of Voldemort-related matters, just for you to hunt me down and act like I did something wrong." He paused to breathe, nearly fuming out the ears. "So you can fuck right off,"
James was very clearly thrown off by this response as he furrowed his eyebrows and bit his bottom lip in a way that had Regulus praying he wouldn't get a hard-on right then and there.
"Well... I was just trying to help," he replied after a very pregnant pause. "I don't need you to warn me," he huffed, "I think I have enough common sense to know that messing around with Voldemort is dangerous."
"Okay, then," James replied. Watching him with a curious glint in his eye. "While I'm here... I have a que-" he was interrupted as the doorknob to the greenhouse jiggled before the door was shoved open. "Oi, Reg, I think 'Dora's looking for you," Barty stuck his head in. "Oh," his eyes drifted between the two boys before Evan shoved in beside him. "This is great, what's going on here?" He asked, nosy as ever.
"Oh, will everyone just leave me alone?" he grumbled as he pulled his gloves off. He let them drop to the ground in a crumpled little pile before he stepped past James, ignoring him. He pushed past Barty and Evan and made his way out of the greenhouse and up across the grounds.
When he found Pandora and Lily studying with Dorcas and Marlene in the library, he nearly groaned. It wasn't that he didn't care for them; he just wasn't in the mood to interact with so many at that moment. He pulled a chair out and winced at the way it scraped against the wooden floor loudly in the otherwise quiet room. "Hey," he whispered, his gaze falling to Pandora first.
Her white hair framed her face perfectly as her eyes met his. She smiled, impeccable dimples showing. "Would you like to study with us?" She asked. Regulus didn't see why she couldn't have just had Barty ask him that instead of making Regulus seek her out, but he nodded nonetheless. It's not like he had much better to do, and he needed to find a certain book.
They shifted around, leaning over one another and helping with equations, searching for books, and whispering incantations. By the time Dorcas yawned against Marlene's neck, where her face was nuzzled, the rest of the library was already empty. "I think I'm going to go to bed," she mumbled, not bothering to whisper anymore.
"Me too," Pandora rubbed her eye as she closed the book perched in front of her. Each of their respective girlfriends got up to walk them to their common rooms. When the girls finally left, Regulus was up and in the history section in a heartbeat, searching for the whole reason he even stayed in the library - Magical family histories.
He hastily found the book he was looking for, old and fraying, with a red cover and purple spine. He laid it carefully on the table. The sound of the chair squeaking against the floor echoed through the quiet room.
Regulus had always prided himself on his good hearing, so when Lily snuck up on him, he nearly jumped out of his skin. It wasn't his fault really; he had his nose just about touching the book, and he was quite concentrated on a passage about Tom Riddle Sr.
He scowled at her as he attempted to be subtle about his discretion of the book in front of him, sliding his hand over the page to hide it. "Ah, not so fast," she snatched the book from him. "I knew there was a reason you agreed to study with us so easily." He watched as her eyebrows furrowed before quickly raising, "Regulus! I- What do you even- I just-" she sputtered.
If Regulus didn't hate physical contact so much, he'd have half a mind to put his hand over her mouth with how loud she was being. He knew there was probably no one left in the library at that time, but he'd rather be safe than sorry. "Lily, you can't tell anyone," he said sternly.
"Why? Why are you even researching this stuff?" she asked, big round eyes peering up at him from the few inches of height difference they had. "I can't- I won't tell you anything," he replied, stacking his books and preparing to end the conversation.
She grabbed his wrist as he stood, and he yanked it back just as fast, looking at her in shock due to her audacity. Some around the school wouldn't even meet his eyes, let alone grab him. "I...I want to help," and the honesty in her eyes is what caught him.
Lily was smart, and everyone knew that. She was extremely talented at charms and one hell of a potioneer. Regulus knew it would only do him good to have someone like her on his side, but he had harboured trust issues since a very young age.
"Lily, no, Pan would kill us," was his excuse. Her face began to flush with irritation. "She's not my keeper!" she said rather loudly, earning them a harsh stare from the librarian before they were soon asked to leave. He considered walking Lily to her common room, that's what Pandora would want him to do, but he really couldn't be bothered. Lily wasn't his girlfriend.
He stared at the petite girl beside him, wondering if he could ever love a woman. It was a stupid thing to dwell on, as he already knew the answer to that question. He wished he could love someone like her; he longed for his mother's acceptance, and although he wasn't a fan of children particularly, he grieved the family he would never have.
When they finally arrived at the corridor, where they were supposed to separate, Lily wished him good night, and he did the same before they went their opposite ways, Regulus with a small smile at his newfound ally. He knew he probably wouldn't ask anything of her, but it was nice to know he had someone on his side.