Ever the Same

Chapter Fourteen: A Fetching Squid

TW for mentions of child abuse, emetophobia, mentions of torture

Regulus watched the two silently as they continued to flick what looked to be a large beach ball into the water for the giant squid to pick up. With each time the squid would wrap its large tentacle around the ball and fling it back to shore, Delphini would let out a squeal of enjoyment. 

Regulus watched Potter with Delphini, the blaringly bright and genuine smile that had overtaken his face the moment that he had saw her. 

And Regulus's stomach dropped into his knees. 

For many years, Regulus Black denied his feelings. Blaming it on the bonding magic was the easiest solution. He had been manipulated by magic itself into falling in love. He was fine alone, he was.

Until he wasn't.

Delphini looked enough like him that she could easily pass as his daughter, and Regulus knew James had noticed. The romantic sap had picked up on it probably before even Regulus had, fantasizing about what it would be like to have a family together. Raising Delphini alongside Harry, all four of them living at Potter manor. Harry had his cat, of course, and Delphini had her snake. 

He and Potter would obviously have to teach her to play quidditch. James was a fine chaser, sure, but the Black family had produced every cup winning Slytherin Seeker for the past century.  Regulus could read to them before bed, and of course Delphini and Harry would say they were too old, but they wouldn't stop him. And they would follow him back to Hogwarts when school was in, pretending to be embarassed that their-

Regulus shook his head, promptly cutting off that vein of thinking. His heart swelled at the thought, but it was too dangerous, too unsure, to dream. 

Something was wrong with the fabric of time, that much he knew, and he could only contribute the unstable nature to whatever it was that Bellatrix was doing. 

James spotted him then and began to wave him over. 

He could hear James talking to Delphini as he approached. 

"Now, Reg seems a little scary. That's his thing. But he's not scary at all. In fact, he's quite the cuddler if you can get him to admit it."

Delphini giggled, "Does he cuddle you when you ask, Mister Potter?"

"Potter wishes I would cuddle him, Delphini. But most of the time, he smells."

The little girl laughed harder, falling from her seated position on the bank onto her back. 

"I take high offense to that, Regulus."

"Maybe you should shower before coming to see me, then, and not at mine."

James didn't respond, and instead quirked an eyebrow. Regulus could feel the slightest blush form on the balls of his cheeks. 

"What did you think of the squid?" Reg changed the subject.

Delphini's eyes twinkled with wonder. "Oh, he's wonderful! I've never seen such a thing before in my life! There wasn't anything like this in Sunderland. I can't believe it even exists! Magic is real! And now I can do things like play fetch with a squid, and talk to snakes, and I never have to take that dreadful medicine ever again and I-"

Realizing that she had been blurting out her every thought, Delphini blushed furiously and snapped her mouth closed. Regulus and James, though, couldn't help but smile at her.

Regulus joined her on the ground, crossing his legs in front of him at the ankle and dropping his hands into his lap. James, much less formal, sat slumped on her other side.