CHERRY // marlene mckinnon

-twenty eight

Aurora Black knew that her family had a dark history, being blood supremacists and all. But she never would've thought that her younger brother would become a Death Eater. Pledge his allegiance to the Dark Lord. Give away his life like that.

"What. The. Fuck." Was all she managed to say after she saw the dark mark on Regulus's forearm. "Why the hell would you do this? You know the type of person he is. He kills innocent people and you go and show your support for him."

"I- I had no choice." Regulus simply replied, looking down. And even in the dark, his regretful face was visible.

"What do you mean? Did mother and father make you do this?" She asked him. And when he didn't reply, she took that as an answer.

"It was actually meant for Sirius. He was supposed to become a Death Eater, not me." Regulus continued. "But then he left and all of the weight he carried fell into my shoulders."

"Oh Salazar. You're only sixteen, you don't deserve this, Reg." Aurora said, pulling her younger brother into a hug.

"I'm scared." Regulus said, while still being in her embrace. "The Dark Lord, he has these blood-red eyes, and pale snake-like skin. It's honestly terrifying. I don't know what to do."

"I'm here for you, just know that. And we'll get through this together. We'll find a way out-"

"Don't you understand? There is no way out. The only way I can get "out" from this is if he kills me." Regulus snapped, now crying once more.

It broke Aurora's heart to see her younger brother like this. How could her parents do this to him? He didn't deserve any of this. He was only sixteen, merely just a boy.

*****

A few days had passed since Aurora found out about Regulus being a deatheater and to say that she still had a bit of shock in her was an understatement. She still couldn't grasp onto the fact that her brother, her sixteen year old brother, was forced to become a deatheater. To follow the Dark Lord. And now, her parents acted as if nothing was wrong. But why would they? After all, they too, support the Dark Lord and his devious ways.

Aurora was reading a book she found on the bookshelf in the living room, sipping her tea every once in a while. And Regulus was playing peaceful tunes on the piano. It was peaceful until Walburga entered the room.

"Mother." Aurora simply stated, not even looking up from her book.

"Aurora, Regulus. I have come to inform you two that this evening, we'll be having dinner, with the Avery's." Walburga said, in her usual monotone voice, causing Regulus to accidentally hit the wrong key and Aurora to choke on her tea.

"What?" Was all Aurora managed to say after she gathered herself together.

"Well, you guys are to be married in a year and we thought it would be best to let you two at least get to know each other." Walburga replied, with a faint smile, which wasn't really genuine.

"It's bad enough that I have to see him at school, and now he's coming to my house too?" Aurora snapped at her mother, now putting her book down.

"I don't see the problem with him. He's a nice boy and-"

"Oh, Mother, he's the farthest thing from 'nice'. Do you even know the things he did? Well allow me to enlighten you. He first outed me in front of the whole Slytherin common room, about how I was with a girl. Then he kept bugging me to go on 'dates' with him. Oh, and did I mention that he cornered me?" Aurora let out a deep breath after everything that she had just said, while Walburga stood there, trying to find more reasons to defend Avery.