Runaway love | Jegulus

Chapter 7

Wholesome/happy chapter. Isla

A month had passed since the return to Hogwarts and everyone was settling into the new normal. Regulus would write to Euphemia every other day, not necessarily because he had to, but because he wanted to. He liked her messy handwriting and the way the page was always covered in flour or chocolate from where she baked as she wrote. She had told him that the ministry had not been able to obtain his belongings from Grimmauld Place and that he shouldn't worry because the Potter's would buy him anything he wanted. After that, their next letters were all about how Regulus wanted his room decorated, what clothes he liked and what posters and pictures he wanted put up. Euphemia wanted it to feel like a safe place for him to be, somewhere that was his,  when he returned for Christmas.

Another part of the new normal was that every student who annoyed or questioned Regulus ended up mysteriously being jinxed. Regulus wasn't doing most of the jinxing, he didn't see the point of bringing that much attention to himself. The Marauders, on the other hand, had no issue with jinxing every wizard in sight. Regulus had been avoiding Sirius and James for the most part. He tried not to meet their eye across the Great Hall during meals. He tried to get to lessons as early as possible so they couldn't bump into him in the hall. These were all futile attempts of course. No matter where he went, he always encountered one of the Marauders, it was as though they had a tracker on him, they were always there. It was starting to get on Regulus's nerves. He knew they meant well but it meant that every other student avoided him, through constant fear of being hit with an Ebublio, Ice or Jelly-Legs jinx. So, as a result, Regulus had become quite lonely.

He'd never had a huge number of friends at Hogwarts, so he didn't mind it too much. The Marauders were unfortunately acting under the assumption that he still had friends in Slytherin that he could talk to, which they soon found out, he did not. Throughout his Hogwarts life he had, for the most part, stuck with his Slytherin housemates, favouring Barty Crouch Jr. in particular. Regulus had been forced into a quick realisation that everything was different this year. He had assumed that his family would be too embarrassed to tell others what he had done, but this was apparently not the case, as Regulus found out from Crouch on his return from the hospital wing.

When Regulus had entered his dorm for the first time that year, he instantly knew something was off, there was a hostile atmosphere in the room. Crouch had been sat on his bed, reading a book about Magical Warfare. As Regulus had crossed over to his own bed, Crouch had muttered something under his breath. Regulus chose to ignore it, not feeling like conversing with the other boy. Crouch was always aching for an argument and Regulus was too tired to engage in one. As he'd unpacked the few items he'd managed to salvage from his trunk, Crouch muttered again but louder this time. Regulus turned to face the other boy, leaning on one of his bed posts, sighing deeply.

"For Salazar's sake Crouch, spit it out!" Regulus said in a frustrated tone. Crouch was on his feet in an instant, face inches from Regulus's, fists clenched.

"Don't you dare speak to me like that, filthy blood-traitor!" Crouch spat the words at Regulus's shocked face.

"You don't know what you're talking about Crouch, back off!" Regulus shoved the other boy away from him.

"You'll regret that one day. You'll regret every silly decision you've made." Crouch shouted angrily as he walked out of the room.

After that encounter Regulus and Barty Crouch Jr. didn't speak again. It was much easier than Regulus had anticipated, to go through his life without speaking to the boy who slept in the same room as him, it was as if they were invisible to each other. The only light in the situation was the new place that Regulus spent his free time, the Gryffindor Common room.