The Marauders: Year Five #Wattys2017

Regulus Makes a Friend

Regulus Makes a Friend

Regulus was running late. He'd slept in and none of the other third year Slytherins had bothered trying to wake him - not even Barty, who hadn't been really speaking a lot to Regulus since the summer. He dashed to get his robes on, still tugging them 'round his shoulders, biting into a chunk of the pistachio fudge Walburga had sent him by owl post - the closest to breakfast he'd get that morning. He shoved his Care of Magical Creatures book into his bag and ran out of the dorms.

"For your stupid class studying ickle bowtruckles and magical chickens are you?" chuckled Evan Rosier, watching Regulus go by. All the Slytherins had taken to mocking Regulus for taking the Care for Magical Creatures class because they'd caught him sitting in the common room pouring over the notes from the class, so fascinated in the stuff he was reading from his book that he'd completely missed the loud shrieking that had been the result of the Marauders turning Rosier into a cockroach. Once it had been apparent that the taunting bothered Regulus, they kept at it, too, laughing loudly at even the stupidest jokes on the topic, as though Regulus Black enjoying Care for Magical Creatures class was the most bloody hilarious thing they'd ever heard.

He didn't have time for it now.

Regulus ran down the corridor and out the door to the grounds, racing along across the grass, sprinting toward the green houses and the stables, where Kettleburn would be conducting the class. A sharp pain went through Regulus's side and he doubled over, trying to catch his breath, his shaggy hair falling in his eyes as he clutched his side. "Oh bloody hell -" he groaned.

It was while he was doubled over when he heard a sound coming from among the tall golde sunflowers that lined the side of the greenhouse walls. He paused and turned, squinting among the thick stalks of the flowers. There was a girl there, sitting on the ground, hugging her knees to her chest, her dirty blonde hair falling over her arm as she cried. She made soft, horribly sad whimpering sounds, her shoulders shivering.

Regulus looked over his shoulder at the stables, at the collection of his classmates on the grounds, taking out their sketchbooks and pencils, whatever creature Kettleburn might be showing them already on display. He wanted to go see what the creature was... he loved that bloody class and hated that it was only held once a week. He'd been looking forward to it - his one time of refuge from the other Slytherin boys whose humors he kept finding less and less funny, and from Snape, whose eyes never seemed to leave Regulus, always scrutinizing him, always trying to figure him out... He didn't want to give up his favorite class for some girl he didn't even know...

But... but she was sad. She was crying.

Crying alone is the worst, Regulus thought.

And so he crept closer to the flowers, ducking between them until he was standing over her, his head grazing the huge leaves that hung from the flowers stems. He lowered himself so he was crouching beside the girl. "Are you alright?" he asked.

She looked up. Her grey eyes had dark shadows beneath them and her cheeks and nose were pinkened. Regulus hadn't realized who she was before - but once their eyes met, he recognized her. It was Maryrose Jenkins, the Hufflepuff girl that had been with James Potter half of the prior term. It had gone around the school's gossip chain, of course, that they'd broken up, but he hadn't realized that she was still so upset about it.

He reached in his robes pocket and withdrew a handkerchief. "Here, you have... goop... on your nose."

Maryrose blushed and took the handkerchief, quickly wiping her nose with it and clutching it in her fist. "I thought you were Sirius Black at first. You must be Regulus, his brother."