Loyalties | Barty Crouch Jr

The Birthday Girl

May 11, 1978 - Thursday

Ever since she came to Hogwarts, Leonora had found herself waking up early on her birthday to watch the sun rise from the Astronomy tower. She enjoyed the alone time, sitting in silence as the darkness turned to orange. 

A light jacket hung from her shoulders as she ascended the spiral staircase up the tower, as although it was now May, the early mornings could still be quite chilly in the mountains. She climbed slowly, rubbing the tiredness out of her eyes.

As she reached the top of the tower, she veered off to the spot she would normally occupy, before realizing that she wasn't alone. Another figure was at the top of the tower, sitting in her spot. She slowly stepped forward, a frown adorning her face. Whoever it was must not have heard her come up.

As she got closer, she easily recognized the mop of hair that sat on the figures head.

"Regulus?" she asked, hesitantly taking another step forward. Why was the boy up here so early?

The boy jumped lightly, before whipping his head around to face her.

"Merlin, Nora," he sighed out. "Don't scare me like that when I'm sitting on the edge like this."

The girl smiled sheepishly. "Sorry," she apologized, before closing the gap between them as she moved to sit besides the boy. She dangled her feet over the edge, swinging them back and forth. "What are you doing up here so early?"

"I could ask you the same thing," he answered with a smirk. "Especially on your birthday."

Leonora playfully rolled her eyes. "I always come up here on my birthday to watch the sunrise. And you? Why are you up here?"

The boy sighed. "I haven't been sleeping well recently. I have a lot on my mind."

"Like what?" 

"The Dark Lord, mostly."

Leonora frowned. "What about the Dark Lord?" she asked. "Do you want to talk about it?"

Regulus shook his head. "I don't think so, at least not right now."

Leonora eyed him for a moment, wanting to press the boy further, but ultimately decided against it. He didn't look to be in the mood to talk. "Well, when you do want to talk, you know I'll be there to listen." 

The corners of his lips upturned slightly. "Thank you, Nora."

.........................................................

Usually, Leonora would return to her dorm before her friends awoke so that they wouldn't be curious as to where she had gone, though today, she decided to stay by Regulus's side until the sun shined through the tops of the trees. It was only then that they decided to head down to breakfast.

It was still fairly early, making them some of the first students there. The Slytherin table was still completely empty, though they decided to sit at the very end, closest to the doors.

As time passed, more and more students filed into the great hall, Illyria and Thalia among them. The girls spotted Leonora immediately, and Illyria practically ran over as Thalia ambled behind her.

This was Regulus's cue to leave. He stood up, faintly smiled at Illyria as she arrived at the table, and made his way further down the table to sit with his other friends.