The Story of Regulus Black - Years 5-7

XXII. Private Memories

CW: mentions of self-harm, mentions of homophobia, & homophobic slurs

Regulus was stuck in a room that looked oddly familiar. However, he was not able to think properly; he wasn't able to place exactly where he knew the room from. This was because of the temperate. It was just so fucking cold.

Regulus shivered so intensely that he was afraid he would look as though he were convulsing. He looked 'round the room, searching for anything that might help keep him warm. A jumper, perhaps. Maybe a blanket.

As he looked around, he noticed something. It was as though the entire room had taken on a blue hue; as though the temperature had affected the coloration of his surroundings itself. It sent a chill down his spine that quickly doubled and became another attack of violent shivers.

He watched as clouds of vapor escaped his nose with every exhale, evaporating into the air and teasing him with the fact that it could escape the horrid temperatures but he could not. He began searching harder, wanting desperately to find an escape from the blindingly cold temperatures that were engulfing him and turning his lips blue.

Suddenly, a far-too-familiar voice rasped at him from an unknown location.

"Far colder than it was last time," the voice commented, causing Regulus to whip around in search of its owner.

Regulus could have sworn that his eyes had already roved over the chair that was now occupied. Though, as soon as he saw the face of the man sitting before him, he realized what was going on. The temperature suddenly made much more sense, and Regulus internally cursed himself for allowing his mind to become weak enough for the Dark Lord to slip in without an issue.

The Dark Lord stared at Regulus Black, reading the expression of the boy and trying to discover what he was thinking. For, despite how cold his mind was, he could not deny the fact that Regulus Black was an incredibly skilled Occlumens. So skilled, in fact, that even with the two of them inside of his mind, Regulus was still managing to hide things.

The Dark Lord gave up his efforts; he would get it out of him eventually.

Instead, he stood from the chair and began pacing the room, seemingly completely unaffected by the cold that was biting at Regulus's skin and giving the world itself a blue hue. Regulus followed the Dark Lord with his eyes, his teeth chattering so loudly that they could be heard by the other man.

"It seems to be colder every time we visit this mind of yours," the man commented, also having noticed the blue hue. "Why is that, Regulus?"

Regulus put all of his self-control into action and attempted not to stutter from the cold that was threatening to swallow him whole. "I am not sure, my lord," his voice was steady, and he internally thanked himself for achieving it.

The Dark Lord shot Regulus a look of disbelief, but he didn't comment. If there was something that Regulus was hiding, he would find it.

"Well, Regulus, I'm sure you're wondering why I'm here?" He clasped his hands behind his back as he paced, shooting occasional glances at the boy in the middle of the room.

Regulus nodded but couldn't find his voice to respond. His vocal cords felt as though they were filled with ice, taking away his ability to speak as he swallowed desperately hoping to ease the frozen feeling of his throat.

"I simply felt that it would be proactive to check-in. After all, you are steadily becoming a much more important member in my ranks, and I felt it necessary to know what, exactly, is going on in this head of yours." He glanced around the room, noticing for the first time how dim it appeared to be since the last time he had been there.