From Eden - Regulus Black (Complete)

Chapter Thirteen

BLACK AND GREY

For the third time that single day, Marlene yelped when she made a mistake on the potion and made Anne jump away from the caldron to avoid being burned by the clearly acid bubbled that were spilling out of the table and down to the floor.

"ENOUGH!" said Slughorn. "Enough out of your two, Miss Sage and Miss McKinnon. We're changing partners, otherwise we'll have a death here before the semester is even over!" Slughorn looked actually worried for a moment as he looked to the people that he wished to change partners – put James or Sirius with Anne or Marlene would not work. A movement in green made him look. "Snape, my boy, can you change places with Miss Sage and leave her with Mister Black. Only you could deal with Miss McKinnon's... talents in potions."

Marlene laughed. "Thanks, Professor, but I'd rather vomit."

Sirius bark of laughter from the other side of the room was so loud that Anne gave little jump. James was trying not to laugh since Lily Evans was sitting right behind him, but snickered. Peter hid his face and Remus seemed suddenly very focused on taking dirty from underneath his nails and poke at Peter to remind him to stir the potion.

Anne poked the blonde with her elbow, chastising her with a hiss for silence. Still, Anne quite agreed with her, she didn't want to leave Marlene with Severus after the that new version of his was even less kind that the one she knew before.

"Snape is good in potions," Anne said. "You'll be fine."

Marlene looked at Anne as if she had betrayed her, but watched her walk towards Regulus without daring to look at Severus as he very against his will sat down beside the blonde girl, who rolled her eyes and looked at him as if waiting for him to say what she needed to do.

The red-headed girl was certainly more polite than Severus or Marlene. She gave a tight-lipped smile to Regulus and sat beside him, crossing her legs and patiently waiting as he put some of the books away so she'd have space on the counter to put her own book and notes. He barely glanced at her, just got up from his seat and carefully pushed the caldron more to the middle of the table so she wouldn't have to get too close to him.

"Good morning," he said in a small voice.

"Morning," she answered.

The table in front of her had Evan Rosier and the Elizabeth Fawley that Anne had seen talking to Regulus that day; they seemed close somehow, and Anne couldn't help but wonder why Regulus hadn't been sitting with her. In the table behind them were Remus and Peter, both working quietly, though she could feel Remus' eyes on her as she smiled at Regulus once more.

"My... rib is feeling great," he commented in a whisper. "Would you mind chopping the alihotsy leaves?"

"Not at all," she said, bringing the cutting board near her, still sitting as she chopped. "Why are we even doing a Laughing Potion? Isn't it, like, super easy or something? At this point in sixth year, I'd think we'd be doing something much more fun, like... Felix Felixces or something like that."

Regulus glanced up from his book.

"Not everybody is good in potions, Sage," he said. He took another glance, but this time to the table in front of them. He couldn't call her by her first name. "Have you done this one before?"

"No, just studied the theory," she answered. "I've seen people using it, though. A... friend of mine had terrible depression and –"

"What's depression?" Regulus cut her off.