Reading Between The Lines ~ Remus Lupin ~ Book 1

chapter 6

Saturday, 2 October 1976

Regulus and Lena placed the three keys into the keyholes in the desk. They took a step back from the desk as they heard a mechanism begging to turn. The top of the desk creaked upon, revealing a collection of glass. But the glass wasn't just any glass. It was looking glass, enabling one to see into another place without actually being here. Each section of looking glass peered into a different room. Regulus leaned in to further examine the looking glass.

His eyes widened. "Lena, these are looking into the rooms of the cottage! Look, there's the foyer we were in earlier."

Lena moved in. She pushed her hand on the piece of looking glass that contained people. The looking glass suddenly expanded and Regulus and Lena could hear everything the people in the looking glass were seeing. Regulus and Lena back into the chairs.

Without taking his eyes off the screen, Regulus leaned over to Lena and whispered, "That's my cousin Bella and her husband Rodolphus Lestrange. The blonde one is Lucius Malfoy. He's engaged to my cousin Cissy. The other two are Alecto and Amycus Carrow. They graduated two years ago."

Lena nodded wordlessly and listened to the group of Death Eaters speak.

"Share your news now, Bellatrix," Malfoy said with authority.

Lena doubted that Bellatrix cared that Malfoy was in charge. She had a crazed look in her eyes that told Lena that Bellatrix thought no one was above her, except maybe Voldemort.

Bellatrix rose from her husband's lap and began twirling her wand with her fingers. "Out of my own initiation, I went to Morgana's Mine in search of Increviri to please the Dark Lord. I retrieved it."

A smirk graced Bellatrix's face as her fellow Death Eater's audibly gasped. Lena turned to Regulus. "What the fuck is the Increviri?"

"How should I know?"

"Because you're a Death Eater!!!"

Regulus bit his lip and scratched the back of his neck. "You know about that, huh?"

"Yeah, I know about that!" Lena whisper-yelled at him before turning back to face the looking glass.

"As you all know," Bellatrix continued, her eyes gleaming with pride, "the Increviri will increase the Dark Lord's power by tenfold...And I intend to give it to him."

Lena whipped out her wand and pointed it at Regulus' throat. He threw his hands up in the air.

"What are you going to do, Lena?" He asked in a low voice.

"I'm going to incapacitate you or something like that. I don't know yet." Lena brought her left hand to her head, as if it would make her think more quickly. Her wand was shaking against Regulus' throat. "All I know is I can't let you stop me from stopping the Death Eaters downstairs from making Voldemort even more powerful."

"I don't want Bella to give him the Increviri! I don't want him to get more powerful! I don't want to be a Death Eater anymore! I want the bastard dead!" Regulus spoke with such conviction that Lena nearly lowered her wand, with nearly being the operative word.

"What the hell are you talking about?"

Regulus closed his eyes and breathed out. He slowly lowered his arms to his sides. He opened eyes and all Lena could see was regret and clarity staring back at her. "I made a mistake. I don't think there's a word that can explain how big a mistake I made. I joined an army of deranged psychos. But I want out now. I don't want to hurt anyone. I don't want to be like Bella. I want to be good. I want to be happy with Layla. I want her to be safe."