"How did you know it was time to leave?"
"Do you feel sick to your stomach every waking moment in that house?"
Romina stepped back for a moment and let out the breath she did not even realize she had been holding. "Y-Yes." she admitted sheepishly...
"You cannot be serious." Romina stared up at Regulus, tears in her eyes. "This summer? Why so soon? We're too young for this, Reggie! You know that, don't you?"
When Romina believed in something, she believed deeply. She was terrified of this dark lord and the mark he gave everyone and what that dark mark would bring them. She knew she would not be getting it, though things could have certainly changed since the last time she spoke with her brothers about it. She was choosing to remain optimistic about not having her skin tainted with the evil, dark magic.
"Mina, please, relax." Regulus grabbed her shoulders and gave her a slight shake. He could see her eyes becoming even larger than they already were, tears pooling in the corners as she stared up at him in shock.
"I'm sorry, I don't know what has come over me." Romina sighed, her hands now coming up to cover her face in shame. She moved to sit beside Regulus on his bed as he physically moved her body with his. They sat side by side for a while, Regulus holding tightly onto Romina's hand.
"Why have you been avoiding me? Is it because of this?"
Regulus sighed. He let go of her hand and moved to stand. He thought better when he could move around.
"Yes." He finally admitted, nervously chewing away at the inside of his cheek. "I just-" he sighed yet again. "I knew you would cause a scene. But this is my fate, Romina. Just like your fate is to marry Avery and keep our pure bloodlines going. We must do what our families want for us. There is no getting around it. There is no different destiny than what is already laid out for us."
"No, Reg, that's not true." Romina shook her head and stood up, grabbing hold of the post closest to her. "We can create our own path, Regulus."
"You're starting to sound like Sirius." Regulus scoffed with a roll of his eyes. "And I do not mean that as a compliment."
"Don't be so rash." Romina took a step forward and slipped her hands onto Regulus' chest. She looked up at him pleadingly. She wondered how much she could say to him without giving away that she, in secret, sided with his brother.
"I'm not being rash, Romina. I'm being truthful. This is what we were born for. This is my destiny. Our destiny." He placed his hands over hers and gave her a weak smile. "We'll be okay. We'll be together, in some way atleast, I promise you."
