𝐌𝐢𝐧𝐞 || 𝐑𝐞𝐠𝐮𝐥𝐮𝐬 𝐁𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐱 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫

Chapter 04

Monday 8th September, 1976

A week later, I was ready to complete my plan on Prefect duty with Regulus. Unfortunately I had to make it through the day first, and Charms class first thing in the morning was not recommended.

I slumped in my seat, stifling a yawn as the teacher talked about what we should expect in our fifth year of Charms. I was barley listening, dozing off, but I instantly snapped back in focus when the teacher started talking about our O.W.L.s. Looking around, I noticed others did the same.

I listened with rapt attention; all the while unease stirred in my gut. I wasn't looking forward to O.W.L.s, as most older students I knew commonly referred to their fifth year as a year full of hell. My mood turned worse when the teacher mentioned 'assigned seats'. She stared calling out names, and I wanted the floor to swallow me whole when she said my name right after Regulus Black's name.

I groaned, picking up my bag and stomping over to the vacant seat next to him, 'accidently' elbowing him in the process and knocking his ink bottle onto his robes. Regulus cursed under his breath, giving me a dirty look as he muttered a spell to clean his robes. I smiled sweetly at him, batting my eyelashes.

There was a heavy silence, both of us not wanting to be there. The fact that Regulus hated this as much as me lightened my mood a bit, and I decided to take advantage of that fact.

"Regulus," I hissed.

He didn't answer.

"Regulus," I whispered in his ear.

Regulus did nothing as he stared at the teacher.

"Regulus," I sang into his ear.

Regulus's hand curled around his quill, knuckles whitening, and yet he still didn't take the bait. I sighed, pondering what the best way to annoy him would be, when he suddenly turned to look at me.

"Listen, I hate this just as much as you, so how about you shut up and make this easier for both of us?" he snapped.

"Is poor Regulus upset?" I cooed, fake pouting.

He scoffed, lips turning into a sneer.

"I hate you," he said viciously.

"The feelings mutual," I replied, quoting his words yesterday.

We sat in silence for the rest of the class, sending each other dirty looks all throughout it. When the bell finally rang, I was quick to exit the class, leaving Regulus alone in his seat.

I made it to my next class, Defence Against the Dark Arts, which I excelled at and attended the class for sixth years. That meant sharing a class with my brother and his friends, and while I normally enjoyed their company, I was annoyed and angry at Regulus and it was taking up all my brain space.

He was so infuriating, with his perfect hair, and dreamy eyes, and strong body-

I didn't realise I was frowning until I felt James ruffle my hair. I blinked, forgetting my rant as I saw them looking at me questioningly.

"Don't ask," I muttered, slumping on my desk.

"Come on baby Potter, don't be upset," Sirius said, also ruffling my hair.

I narrowed my eyes at him, sitting back up straight.

"First off, don't call me that," I told him. "Secondly, if your brother wasn't such an annoying prick, I wouldn't be upset at all."

Sirius sighed. "What did he do this time?"

With that, I launched into my rant about why Regulus Black was the worst human being ever and should be sentenced to death. Thinking back on it, it probably wasn't the best thing to say to the brother of the person I wanted to be slaughtered brutally and slowly, but there was no stopping me now.