'My dearest Marley,
If you're reading this letter then I can only apologise and pray to every deity I know of that one day you will forgive me for what I'm about to say. You see the war can not be won so easily by your side if what I suspect the Dark Lord has done is true. And if it is Marley, my sunshine, my light, there is no hope for anyone let alone us. I must fix this and in order to do that I will have to sacrific myself. There is no other way. It has to be done. Keep Sirius from causing too much trouble. Stay safe. I love you.
Always yours,
R.A.B'
Regulus carefully penned the note, the last he suspected he would ever get the chance to write before burning the Black family wax seal on the back and sending it away with his owl. He was home alone for the evening and had plans. His parents were out funding yet another ministry gala with the Black vaults while they attempted to keep the family name in high regard. Sirius had moved to the Potter's a couple of summers previously and he had already gotten all the information he could out of Kreacher who was currently resting in his cupboard, an order he had received from his young master. Everything was in order, Marlene's letter was the last of the things he had left to do. He didn't have anything to leave for anyone and his parents would only miss him because their 'heir' would be dead despite him being the younger Black brother. He woke Kreacher with a softly spoken command and the pair apparated to a cave he had never known existed until the day before.
Regulus was still a teenager, only of age for a year on that fateful night he sacrificed his life for that of the greater good. He expected to die. From the way Kreacher explained the effects and the tests that would be before him death was a certainty. He had gotten his affairs in order, had prepared, in what little time he had, to die. He did die. But only for a minute or two.
Only for a minute until a Grim, of all the things to appear in a cave filled with death, dragged his arse out of the lake with dead hands. Inferi he later realised. The grim growled at the man under him, pushed him onto his side and forced the water out of the man's lungs before he passed out either from the coughing or the exhaustion.
Later Regulus wouldn't remember that the Grim was just a black dog that looked bigger and more threatening in the shadows, that the growl wasn't a hunter looking to its prey but one of a man frustrated with his brother. He wouldn't remember the feeling of magic and the sight of the animal shifting into the human form of one Sirius Black or the pull of apparition as his older brother, his shunned brother who he wasn't supposed to call brother anymore, apparated them away to someplace safe.
He wouldn't even know he was alive for nearly a week after the incident. Kreacher had been stunned, his memory had been tampered with and Sirius had sent him back home under strict instructions not to tell a soul what had happened.
Walburga and Orion Black would mourn the death of their youngest son and remaining heir the next day. Though, as predicted, they were more bothered about their ancient and noble house than his actual death. There was no body of course but tapestries didn't lie. As far as the wizarding world was concerned Regulus Arcturus Black was no longer alive. The Death Eaters blamed the Order and the Order blamed the Death Eaters. One person knew the truth though since the truth was lying half dead on his couch in his small London flat.
It took six days for Regulus to finally wake and even then he was in and out of consciousness for the next twenty-four hours. Sirius claimed he was sick. He told the Auror department and the Order of the Phoenix that he had Dragon Pox ensuring nobody would go near him and holed himself up in his flat as he waited for his younger bother to come around.
"Where-where am I?" Regulus finally managed to choke out of the seventh day.
"Not dead"
"No shit, I bet even death looks better than this place" Regulus answered as his eyes begam to focus on his surroundings.
"Well you can always just pop on home to Mummy dearest"
"Fuck!" Regulus shouted as he sat up, apparently realisation setting in. "What happened?"
Sirius explained what had happened in the cave that night and the events since, explained how Regulus had been confirmed dead and that there had already been a burial in his honour. "But the tapestry, won't it say?"
"Technically you managed to die before I could save your arse. You must have been gone long enough for the stupid magic to register. Though I think this time the tapestry is saving your life, not me. By the way, nice tattoo you have there." Sirius said as he poured them each a glass of firewhiskey and inclined his head towards Regulus' left arm.
Regulus instinctively covered his forearm with his sleeve. "It's not what you think"
"Try me"
Regulus swallowed the amber liquid down in one before he went on the explain the locket and his theory on Horcruxes. He explained that he had never had a choice but to take the mark though that much Sirius already knew. He explained how he had never truly been 'one of them' and had used his status and name to stay out of the thick of things and keep casualties as low as he could. He had tried, he had wanted out and Merlin, he had done his best but when he found out about the Horcurxes he knew, just knew there was never going to be a way out. Knew it was only going to get worse. "You did get it didn't you? The locket?"
"You really think I would watch you nearly kill yourself over some necklace then leave it behind in a murder cave without finding out what the hell was going on? Here" He said as he pulled the golden chain from his pocket and tossed it to his brother.
Regulus was getting his first real look at the locket as Sirius interrupted his thoughts "You're gonna have to stay here mate, everyone thinks you're dead and I can only pretend to have Dragon Pox for so long before Mad Eye is tearing the wards down and finds us both in here."
Regulus nodded absently and the pair lasped into a few minutes of silence he had a sudden realisation. "Shit" he whispered. "I'm going to need another one of these" Regulus said as he threw his glass at his older brother who caught it with ease.
"What's up? Don't you want to be dead? Do you really want to go back to that life?"
"Of course I don't want to go back, that's not it. It's just-"
"There's a girl" Sirius said with a knowing smirk.
Regulus groaned. He really wasn't in the mood to be teased by his brother for being in love he was barely over dying.
"Little Reggie's got a girlfriend" Sirius sang as he walked back to the table where he kept the good Firewhiskey.
"Not anymore, she thinks I'm dead. Everyone does."
"Just tell her you're alive, problem solved."
"And how exactly am I supposed to do that if I'm stuck in this dump?"
"Who is she? Maybe I could tell her."
"She wouldn't believe you, besides I'm sure she hates me enough right now. I wrote to her before I went to the 'murder cave'" Regulus said with a roll of his eyes.
"Oh so that's how it is? You tell your little girlfriend you're going on a suicide mission but your brother gets nothing?"
"It wasn't like that. She's...I love her. Besides, I asked her to keep an eye on you. Make sure you stayed out of trouble."
"Oh now I have to know who she is" Sirius grinned.
Regulus groaned again "Marley" He said "It's Marley"
"Who the fuck is Marley?" Sirius asked before it dawned on him. "McKinnon? Marlene McKinnon? That's your girlfriend?"
Regulus wasn't sure if his brother was horrified or shocked at the news that he, Death Eater Regulus Black was in love with blood traitor and Order of the Phoenix member Marlene McKinnon. "The one and only. And she thinks I'm dead. I need to see her."
"Not so fast" Sirius said and, for the first time that night, he was deadly serious.
"What?" Regulus asked as he paled, he knew nothing good could come from Sirius' expression.
Sirius gulped. "McKinnon got engaged to one of the Prewett's the other day. Her father and his drew up the contract. It's all been signed."
"Then I have to stop her"
"It''s a bonding ceremony Reg"
"Fuck"
Bonding ceremonies were something only the older families participated in recently, they were for life. You literally bound your magic and soul to the person you claimed. It was a marriage that couldn't be broken. There was no way out. Ever.
"When?"
"Two weeks"
The two brother sat and drank the rest of the firewhiskey while they tried to come up with a plan to hide Regulus and save his relationship. In the end and despite his many, many objections to the idea, all they had to go on was to explain what had happened to Dumbledore. Regulus wasn't sure, he'd been bred to distrust the man, he'd hated him because of his blatant favouritism and lack of empathy towards the his Slytherin students but he had to agree there really was no other choice. The order needed to know about Horcruxes and it was best that it came from Regulus since it was him that had figured it out and nearly died trying to acquire.
After that they took to talking about how to destroy horcruxes, though neither had much clue and Sirius wasn't the type of wizard that kept books lying around unless you counted muggle motorcycle magazines and play-wizards. They resigned themselves to the fact that they would just have to wait and talk to Dumbledore the next day after the scheduled Order meeting.
oOoOoOo
When Sirius floo'd home with the elder wizard in tow once the meeting was over it was clear Dumbledore hadn't known what to expect. He seemed somehow enchanted that the younger Black son was alive. Sirius let Regulus explain what had happened with the exception of when he had had to save his brothers life and apparate him home where he faked being sick for a week in order to look after him. When the boys moved on to explaining about the reason they were in the cave and Regulus had told him of his theory regarding Horcruxes, the older wizard started to look a lot less amused and even a little scared. Something that unnerved both boys since they had never seen the man look so uncertain in all their time.
Regulus handed the locket to Dumbledore and explained he wasn't sure how to destroy it or even what the expect. The old man barely batted an eyelash, so struck with the mere idea that a Horcrux could have been made being bad enough.
"Curious" Dumbledore whispered as he fingered the golden necklace.
He asked Regulus to join the Order, promised protection that Regulus only laughed at. He wore the brand, he was a Death Eater, an out cast. He would be shunned in the Order and once the Death Eaters found out he would have a target on his back. Besides, there was no such thing as protection when there were Horcruxes in the world.
"I wouldn't mind helping though, if you could have some books sent I would like to find out more about these" Regulus said as he pointed to the locket "My brother doesn't have much in the way of written word."
"I'm more of a picture book type of guy"
Dumbledore left not long after that with the promise of owling some books over. He took the locket with him, a great source of relief for the Black brothers.
"Now I just need to figure out how to win Marley back" Regulus sighed and he drooped onto the couch in exhaustion. The effects of dying the week before still playing on his boy.
oOoOoOo
Sirius had already left for work at the Ministry when Regulus woke the next morning, he quickly found a sober up potion in the otherwise bare cupboards and swallowed the contents before finding the shower and cleaning himself up. He was still in the clothes he had fallen into the dead lake wearing, the ones he had worn that night he left home for the first time and the thought made him feel sick. Sirius had cast a couple of cleaning charms here and there over the week but it wasn't enough so younger Black brother found some spare clothes of his brothers, thankful that they at least had similar tastes and the same thoughts on leather.
When he was finally washed and wearing what barely passed for clean clothes Regulus walked into the living room to find his old headmasters' Phoenix waiting for him with a rather large parcel. He hastily accepted the burden from the magnificent bird and watch as Fawkes flew off from a window he was sure had been closed when he left the room.
It seemed Dumbledore hadn't, for the first time in his life, taken a Slytherin for granted. He sent Regulus tomes upon tomes of books he had found that related to anything remotely close to Horcruxes. Regulus was surprised the old man even trusted him enough to have them in his possesion. He'd known who he was, what he was and yet somehow, he had trusted, believed them when he said it was over.
Ignoring the unfamiliar pangs of hunger Regulus found himself immersed in the books and sat himself back down, eager to find any clue that could help them.
oOoOoOo
When Sirius arrived home later that evening, takeaway in tow, Regulus had already fully exhausted himself with the books. He'd not eaten anything all day, or, as he suspected, in over a week, and the smell of the Chinese food had his stomach growling audibly. Merlin how he had missed Chinese food. Merlin, he just missed food!
"Easy there tiger, at least let's find some forks to eat it with." Sirius said with a smirk.
"Well, I wouldn't be so hungry if you actually kept food in this place, how do you even survive?"
Sirius looked his brother in the eye as if he had just asked the most ridiculous question before his gaze travelled over to the takeaway he was still holding.
"Every night?"
"Or I got to Prong's place, Red cooks a mean Cottage Pie."
The brothers sat around the small table as they dug in to their meals, Regulus relishing each bite he swallowed as if it was the most delicious meal he had ever eaten.
When they had finished Sirius passed his brother a small piece of parchment.
"What's this?"
"McKinnon's address, they're under protection from the Order but I managed to get their address, when are you going over?"
Regulus gulped nervously. "Tonight." he answered hoarsely.
oOoOoOo
When it became suitably dark, dark enough to risk going outside without getting caught, the brothers both apparated to the address under the guise of a cloak that Sirius adamantly refused explain when Regulus asked.
They stood at the end of the driveway wearing near identical outfits, both sporting long black hair, it was hard to tell them apart under the moon light but even in the day time there was no mistaking them for brothers.
"What are you going to say?"
"I have no idea".
Sirius pushed his brother over the the line that held the wards, leaving Regulus no choice but to actually knock and announce his presence. His adams apple bobbed up and down as he walked towards the door. His palms sweaty and hands shaking he knocked on the door, praying for Marlene to be the one to answer.
Unfortunately he was met with Mr McKinnon, a man who he knew adamantly hated anyone named Black and him especially since he had found out Regulus was Marlene's secret in their last couple of years at Hogwarts. The man had hated him before then just because of who his parents were but Merlin, if looks could kill he'd have died a thousands times already. Every time they went home for the holidays Mr McKinnon would be waiting at the platform to retrieve his daughter and he would always, always find the time to make sure Regulus knew exactly how he felt about him.
David McKinnon had demanded his daughter end her 'little tryst' with the Black boy but Marlene refused. It was still kept a secret but her parents knew who she was dating and she knew how much they hated it. Eventually they came to stop talking about it altogether when they realised their daughter wouldn't listen. It suited Marlene just well as she was sick and tired of hearing them repeat the same mantra over and over 'He's a Black, he can't be trusted' 'I bet he already has the mark. It wouldn't surprise me' 'Those Black boys are more bad news than they're worth, you don't want to associate with their kind Marlene'
Regulus stood at the door, thankful for the first time in his life that he had been sorted into Slytherin and had an absolute bitch of a mother because it meant he knew how to act like he was confident and in control when he wasn't. It meant he had perfected his mask of indifference at an age where other toddlers where learning to walk.
"Godric-fucking-Gryffindor you've got to be kidding me." The older man said when the door was open enough to see who had dared disturbed them at that time of night. "You're supposed to be dead!"
"Sorry to disappoint, Sir. Is Marley home? I need to see her."
"I think you've done enough to her, don't you?"
"She thinks I'm dead"
"As it should be. What are you doing here?"
He didn't know what came over him then, David McKinnon was of the older generation and he knew he was traditional when it came to the important things. He wanted Marley, he needed her. She couldn't marry one of the Prewett's she was supposed to marry him. That's what he wanted. What they wanted. She even wore his ring. Or at least she did, he didn't know anymore. He'd taken it off and gave it to her as a sign of more to come. She was his she would always be his.
"Can I have you daughter for the rest of my life?"
"You'll never get my blessing 'til the day I die, tough luck my friend but the answer is no."
"Why you got to be so rude? Don't you know I'm human too?"
The door was just about to slam in his face as Regulus shouted "I'll marry her anyway"
With nothing else to do the brothers apparated back home, they had twelve days left to stop Marlene marrying a man she didn't love before she was gone forever.
oOoOoOo
Regulus started with the owls almost the second he woke the next morning. He wrote to Marlene and her parents. Desperate to show that he was worthy of their daughter he owled Dumbledore and officially became a member of the Order of the Phoenix before using his wand to disguise himself and going out into muggle London to buy some food since there was still none in the house and there was no way he was going to wait until Sirius came home again. Thankfully Sirius had left a small pile of muggle currency on the side and though he had no idea how to use it he decided he would just have to learn the hard way.
When he came home later on with enough food to feed them both for a week, Regulus set about making himself a sandwich before he started on the books again. He was desperate to find something, anything that would help. Desperate to prove himself.
It was about three in the afternoon when the owls returned two unopened letters and though Regulus expected it from Marlene's father he thought that she would at least open hers. He took himself to bed early after that, unable to concentrate enough any more.
oOoOoOo
Regulus continued to send owl after owl, day in day out and every time they would arrive the next morning unopened. After a full week of this Regulus finally realised he wasn't going to get anywhere, He hadn't been able to go to an Order meeting yet since Dumbledore was keeping his existence a secret from pretty much everyone, but when Sirius had accidentally let slip about a raid Marlene was on one night the younger man grew increasingly worried about the witch. He owled Dumbledore for information and when that wasn't good enough he apparated into the address he had been given. Eventually Dumbledore relented and gave him the information he needed though it wasn't good enough, Marlene was alive but had been hurt in the crossfire, she was in St Mungos for the night and though she would make a full recovery and be home the next day Regulus couldn't handle it. The witch might have been refusing his mail, sending it back and ignoring his entire existence but he still loved her, still needed her.
He used to invisibility cloak that night to get into St Mungos, he didn't tell Sirius because his brother didn't need to be in more trouble. It took him a while but he finally found Marlene's room on the fourth floor. There were no guards, no visitors, she was asleep.
Casting a quick glance around to make sure nobody was watching, Regulus sneaked into the room and threw up some wards before slipping the cloak off.
He didn't have long, he knew she was due to be checked on in fifteen minutes so he had to be quick. He watched her chest rise up and down, needing the reassurance that she was alive before checking her body over for any damage he could find. There were a few small scars on her arms but nothing that would warrant a hospital stay, he gathered whatever it was that had got her was aimed at her chest but there was just something wrong with undressing a woman in her sleep to check for curse marks despite how many times you might have undressed her in the past. Regulus brushed away one or Marlene's curls as it fell in her face and kissed the top of her head gently while he took her hand in his. He didn't know what to say the witch had been rejecting him for over a week, he knew she would have been upset, mad even about the news that he had died but he had hoped she would have changed her mind by now. It was killing him. Being there, sitting so close and holding her hand, kissing her when he couldn't have her. It was torture of the worst kind.
As he rubbed his thumb absently over her hand he came into contact with a ring, he hadn't taken his eyes off of her face except to look for scars, he hadn't bothered to look at her hands. He was expecting to see some awful and gawdy engagement ring when he looked down but what he was met with shocked him. She was wearing his ring. On her ring finger. She hadn't taken it off. He quickly looked to the other hand for confirmation and sure enough there was no other ring to be found. She still loved him. She was still his.
He smiled then for the first time in weeks and kissed her cheek. He wasn't expecting her to wake up, however brief it turned out to be. He froze as her brown eyes opened and locked with his.
"Reggie" She whispered, a smile playing on her lips "You came back"
She was back asleep before he could answer but he did anyway. "I'll always come back love"
oOoOoOo
Regulus managed to get in and out of St Mungos without being seen, not that it was particularly hard to do so since it wasn't exactly guarded. He apparated back to his brothers small flat to find he had gone out for the evening and, with a new found spring in his step he opened up the books once again. He was close, he knew it.
The next day he was called to a meeting with Dumbledore, the two sat and discussed what they had found so far, both coming up empty, before he went back home to continue his reading. He had just three books left to go through and four days until Marlene was due to bind herself to someone else for eternity.
He went back to the McKinnon's that night much more confidently. If he could just see Marley he knew, knew he could get her to listen to him. She still wore his ring after all.
Her father opened the door again, he didn't even have time to knock, it was almost as if the older man was waiting for him.
"You were at the hospital"
Regulus knew well enough to know it wasn't a question and he didn't treat it like one, the man wanted respect so respect he was getting.
"She saw you" He carried on.
"Well what did you want me to do? She was hurt I'm her-"
"You're her nothing. Not anymore, she's engaged and getting married in a few days, the sooner the better."
"Look I know you don't like me but I love her. Please, just... can I have your daughter for the rest of my life?"
"You'll never get my blessing 'til the day I die, tough luck my friend because the answers still no."
"Why you got to be so rude? Don't you know I'm human too. I'm gonna marry her anyway."
Regulus apparated home again after that with the intentions of going back every night until the wedding, there were just three days left before he was out of time and he wasn't wasting any of it.
He sent owls two or three a day though they all came back and each night he would have the same conversation with Marlene's father. Never once did he see her. Not since that night in the hospital.
He continued to pour over the books until he was sure, sure he knew the answer to Horcruxes. As ridiculous as it sounded. Where the hell were they going to find Basilisk venom?!
oOoOoOo
When Marlene woke in the hospital the morning after the raid she was first unsure, the healers had given her a lot of pain potions and even a sleeping draught but, if she were a betting witch, and sometimes she was, she would have put all her galleons on that odd feeling she had that Regulus had been there the night before. She was sure of it, he'd kissed her and held her hand and she'd heard that beautiful voice she'd missed so much.
But how? Regulus Black was supposed to be dead, even his mother thought so. The Black family tapestry had shown a date of death, it had been in the Prophet, front page news. There had even been a burial. Though there was some speculation on why there had been no body.
Marlene had received a letter in the middle of the night, the night before he was declared dead. She had sobbed when she read it. She knew who he was, what he was. She knew he was a good man who was working with the best he had been given. He didn't have the same opportunities as she did but he promised her, promised he was actually helping from his end, not making things worse. She cried for hours that first day, cried herself to sleep in the end. Her parents' relief was evident. It made her angry and even more sad. She cried every day after, barely leaving her room to use the bathroom.
A week into her grief and her father had drawn up a marriage contract which had been signed and sealed even with her protesting. He decided she needed to move on and what better way to do that than marriage. When she later looked over the contract and found that it was actually a binding instead she actually threw up. There was only one man she was willing to bind herself to, they'd even talked about it. They were going to run off together soon and elope. It was the only way, nobody could do anything once they were bound, it was for life. Unfortunately that meant nobody could do anything about her being a Prewett when it happened either. She was well and truly fucked.
She threw herself into her work at the ministry, went to every Order meeting and volunteered for all the missions she could before drowning her sorrows in the pub every night. She was still grieving and the alcohol helped. She was never home, out all night and at work before the owls came in the morning. She thought if she distracted herself long enough she could forget about the pain but once work finished, once the meetings were over she would apparate to the nearest pub and drink herself stupid on the firewhiskey before the barman would floo her home.
That's how she had felt when she volunteered for the raid that night. It was supposed to be a normal raid, Death Eaters were expected to be trying to get into the ministry that night and since she worked there she knew it well so when she offered to go, not because she wanted to but because she needed to, needed to it to take her mind of off another certain Death Eater; she was chosen first.
She had been paired with Fabian Prewett, the man she was supposed to marry in less than a week and she had hated every moment of the situation. She was supposed to be using the raid as a way too forget but how could she when the ginger haired reason for half of her problem was the one watching her back?
She had to admit, it wasn't his fault the curse had hit her square in the chest, she was lucky it wasn't anything worse and he port-keyed her straight out and to St Mungos before going back alone. He'd pretty much saved her and why? Because she thought she saw him she thought she saw Regulus. One of the Death Eaters, she wasn't sure who, but it was the one that had hit her. He was the same height as Regulus, built similarly though not that you could tell under the masks and cloaks but he moved like her Reggie and that was what she spotted. Then she noticed that the sparks from this Death Eaters wand were a slightly less scary red than the others. whoever he was wasn't cursing to kill they were cursing to get their opponents down, to keep them down. They were cursing her. She watched as she ducked and blocked jet after jet of this slightly less than red light but in the end her curiosity got the better of her and before she knew it she was in St Mungos and Regulus was kissing her head and she had never been happier in her entire life.
When she woke the next morning and excitably told her parents and Dumbledore what had happened nobody had believed her, they reiterated that Regulus was dead and there was no way he had saved her the night before. Fabian had saved her, not Regulus. And he certainly hadn't been in her room in the middle of the night because he was dead. No one could explain the curse though. Not even Dumbledore. They led her to believe the medication was making her hallucinate, a healer agreed it was a possibility and suggested that maybe he even gave her too much of the potions.
She idly sat at home the next two days, unable to go to work until she healed completely and, with a bonding ceremony looming over her head she wasn't sure she even wanted to work, she couldn't concentrate enough as it was and she certainly wasn't sleeping. She tried to find a loophole, anything that would get her out of the contract. She begged and pleaded with her parents to rip up the contract but her father was adamant, he wanted to pass her off to someone trustworthy and reliable, he wanted her to no longer be an issue he had to deal with.
oOoOoOo
It was the night before Marlene's bonding ceremony and Regulus couldn't sleep. He tossed and turned on the old couch as he tried to imagine a scenario, any scenario where he could just get the witch to listen to him. she still sent his owls back unopened and no matter how many times he had been to her house the conversation went the same way every time. He was fresh out of luck and had just one idea left. One idea that could get him killed. But life wasn't worth living if he couldn't live it with her.
Regulus fingered Sirius' invitation in his hands the next morning, he already knew the time and date the bonding was to happen, but he held the parchment as he contemplated just how badly things could actually go. He had a meeting in a couple of hours with Dumbledore where he was to tell the old man of his theory with Basilisk Venom then he was free to lay his life in her hands.
oOoOoOo
Marlene got up that morning like it was any other, she had barely slept and had spent the majority of the night begging her father again and again to change his mind. She eventually cried herself to sleep in the early hours of the morning when he wouldn't relent.
She woke and showered, she ate and drank but the tears were gone. She had nothing left to try, her father had made his stance perfectly clear and her mother had no say in the matter. She was to wed Fabian later that day and there was not a damn thing anyone could do to stop it.
Her mothher helped her with her dress later on when the hair-witch and make up glamour-er had done their jobs. She hadn't told them what she wanted done, she didn't want anything done. She wanted to crawl back into bed. They piled her blonde curls on the top of her head in some fancy up do that she would never have worn herself, her make up was okay but a bit heavy, heavy enough to hide the bags and evidence of sleep deprivation and crying - it wasn't something she would have chosen though. She wore her mothers old gown but only because she had had absolutely no inclination to shop for her own. It was all lace and fit her just perfectly in fact, it was the one thing of the whole ensemble, the whole day, that she did like.
Her moves were similar to that of a robot, she didn't speak unless spoken to, didn't move unless told to. It was as if she were acting under the imperious curse and she hated it.
When the time came her mother floo'd to thr church. It was a wizarding church that was used specially for weddings and bonding ceremonies, a ministry official would officiate rather than in muggle churches where they used priests. Marlene and her father floo'd next, it seemed he wasn't taking chances with his daughter and giving her no way to escape.
They arrived in time to see the last of the guests pouring in, Marlene spotted Sirius as he came out of the floo next to her. She was just dusting off her dress as he approached her.
"Have to say McKinnon" Sirius said as he bowed to the witch "I was surprised to get an invitation at all, you know since us Black's are so unacceptable. Though, you do look rather beautiful I can see now why Reggie fell for you." Sirius smirked at the witch as he went in and took his seat next to Lily and James.
Marlene was stood in shock, as far as she knew Sirius didn't know about her and his brother, as far as she knew he had never told a soul and what was all that business about being unacceptable? She had no idea but her head was buzzing.
Her father, seeing the cogs working in her head, pushed her forward and suddenly the music was playing and there was no time to think, only walk.
She walked down the aisle in her mothers dress, arm in arm with her father as they neared Fabian at the alter, for every step she took twenty thoughts ran through her mind. For every breath she took she tried to explain what happened. But nothing made sense, Nothing.
She reached Fabian in sixteen steps, sixteen steps that felt like six and before she knew it the officiate was droning on and she had zoned out.
This wasn't how things were supposed to be. She was supposed to be happy, she was supposed to be excited, nervous even as she walked down the aisle to bind herself to the man she loved. Not a man she barely tolerated and liked just find in a completely platonic way. She was supposed to want this. But she didn't and then she was being asked to bind herself to the ginger haired man in front of her and she didn't know if she could.
oOoOoOo
Regulus gave his final report to Dumbledore before he apparated away as quickly as he could, time was already tight and he couldn't spare even a second.
He'd gone to the church earlier in the week, a back up plan maybe? Or just to see the place the love of his life was going to give herself to another man? He wasn't sure but he was glad for it since it meant he could apparate there.
He didn't care that it was the middle of the day, didn't care that he would be seen by everyone, he could hardly hide forever as it was anyway so he apparated to the steps and blasted the doors open.
Everyone turned to see what the commotion was and gasps of shock were rung out in the air as Regulus Black walked down the aisle.
"Oh for fucks sake I forgot the popcorn" Sirius exclaimed as he beamed at his little brother.
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Marlene turned at the noise, unsure what the expect. For a split second she almost couldn't see who or what it was that was interrupting her bonding ceremony but when he stepped out of the light and moved towards her she nearly fainted. He was real. It hadn't been a dream. He was real and he was here.
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Regulus looked at Marlene and kept his gazed fixed firmly on her, she had been about to take his ring off for another "Don't even think about taking that off Marley" He almost growled at the sight. He edged closer and closer and, just before he reached the witch, his witch, a familiar figured stepped in front of her, blocking his view.
"Not so fast, Black. We had an agreement."
"No, we didn't. I asked for your daughters hand in marriage you adamantly refused. I owled every day for two weeks and you sent them back. Did she even know I was alive? Marley?" He asked as he took a small step to his left and turned to the bride standing before him.
"H-how are you alive?" She ask as her hand reached out, eager to touch him and feel just how real he was.
"You can thank Sirius for that" Regulus answer as he cocked his head towards his brother who was clearly enjoying the show.
Boo's and hisses still rung out, shouts of 'he's a Death Eater' were thick in the air mixed with the tension of the moment before Regulus was down on one knee and said "Marry me, now. Marry me now."
Marlene shot one brief look to Fabian before she shouted "Yes" and threw herself at Regulus. "I thought you were dead" she aid as she sobbed into his shirt. "I thought I'd never see you again Reggie. You scared me."
"I know, love, I know. I'm sorry"
"Ah hem" The pair turned to see Marlene's father, his face twisted into such rage he was almost purple. "You can't get out of this contract, Marlene. You're bound to it and the Prewett boy."
"Actually, she can get out of it if both parties agree and are of age" Regulus answered as his witch curled against his side. He turned towards Fabian who smiled in relief, it was clear he hadn't wanted to marry Marlene either. "So what do you say love? Want to make it official?"
"Do you promise never to die again?"
Regulus stifled a laugh as he kissed his witch for the first time in nearly a month.