Silence

by Lady Cardea

We stared at each other in silence, perhaps because it had become the more comfortable way of communicating. After that night, everything changed. RBxMM Oneshot. Sad romance. Something a little different.

This one shot is called Silence for a couple of reasons. It links with the plot of the story and the general theme of the relationship. Also, many of the songs are based around 'Silence'.

Song credit to the following artists: 'Silence' by Aly and AJ, 'The Sounds of Silence' by Simon and Garfunkel, 'Silence' by Blindside, 'In the Silence' by Jason Upton, 'We Are' by Ana Johnsson, 'Lights and Sounds' by Yellowcard, 'Fate' by Bleak ft. Ana Johnsson, 'Room of Angels' from Silent Hill, and 'Almost Lover' by A Fine Frenzy. NOT IN THIS ORDER.

-.-.-

Silence

-.-.-

Detention had always been one of the worst parts of my life. In retrospect, it was more dangerous than I ever though it could be. What could possibly be harmful about a few hours in the dungeons with a cranky Slytherin?

More than I imagined.

It really started in my fifth year, when I landed a detention with the one and only Sirius Black. He was a year older than me, a known joker who liked to play all the bases. Before that instance, I had never really been acquainted with him; only heard about him from my roommate, who happened to have a big crush on him.

That night was interesting, to say in the least. He walked in ten minutes late with a grin in place on his mouth. Trouble was the only word you could pin on him, and it was a perfect fit.

Something made me scared to talk to him, which thinking back on I would laugh at. His personality was like a magnet, and he loved everyone who was not a Slytherin or part of his family.

"Ravenclaw," was the first thing he said when he saw me. The blue and silver tie gave me away. "What is a Ravenclaw doing in detention?"

I managed to smile at him. "Theodore Nott bothered me in the hallway," I told him, trying to play it off as no big deal. "So I hexed him, and Professor McGonagall caught me."

"Good for you," Sirius said with a grin. I almost thought he was mocking me at first, but his face was so genuine. "I set off a dungbomb in a classroom."

I laughed, and was immediately bewitched. There was something beautiful about the way he smiled; the way he composed himself.

And then he became one of my best friends. We saw each other less than I would have liked, because of the house and age difference, but when we were together, it was priceless. I loved him and all of his friends, and I learned worlds about them.

James Potter was in love. Lily Evans was not. Peter Pettigrew was a born follower, with no spine. Remus Lupin was a suspicious but genuine boy, the reason of the group.

And Sirius Black hated his brother.

-.-.-

Stop, turn, take a look around,
At all the lights and sounds,
Let 'em bring you in.
Slow, burn, let it all fade out,
And pull the curtain down.
I wonder where you've been.

-.-.-

My next detention was to be served alone, but somehow Sirius made his way into the classroom with me, just to keep me company. He showed up with two bottles of butterbeer, and his wand to do my work.

"What are you doing down here?" I asked him with a grin, happy to see him. "You'll get detention if a Professor comes by."

Sirius waved me away, as he had to do quite often. I was a Ravenclaw and not so used to breaking the rules. "I don't care about detention. It isn't like I've never had one or anything," he said and shook his head, popping open and bottle and handing it to me. "We haven't talked in a while. I wanted to see how you're doing."

I shrugged, taking a sip of the golden liquid in my hand. It slid down my throat, warming as it went along. "Well I was doing fine until I got detention. I think you're starting to rub off on me," I said. He liked that, showing me with a broad grin.

"A little more Sirius Black in the world never hurt anyone," he said and shrugged, looking at me.

"Oh now, I wouldn't go as far as to say that," I teased, shaking my head at him. "I think one Sirius Black is plenty for this world."

Sirius grinned at me. "You only say that because you couldn't handle more than one of me," he said looked up abruptly. The door had opened, and standing there was a boy who looked so similar to Sirius it was scary. His eyes were darker, and features not as strikingly handsome. He wore a scowl, watching us boredly.

"Regulus," Sirius said, his grin draining. He was suddenly more serious than I had ever seen him before. "What are you doing in here?"

"Serving my detention," Regulus returned stiffly, his face tense. I had heard so much about him from Sirius in the year I had known him, but never had I met Regulus Black. Our classes occasionally overlapped, but we had never spoken a word. He kept to himself mostly, and everyone around him seemed perfectly fine with him doing so.

Sirius stood, dropping his bottle in the garbage can. He turned to me, looking regretful and upset at the same time. "I'll talk to you later, Marly," he said, not looking at his brother again before leaving the room.

-.-.-

You keep watching from your picket fence,
You keep talking but it makes no sense.
You say we're not responsible,
But we are, we are.
You wash your hands and come out clean,
Fail to recognize the enemies within.
You say we're not responsible,
But we are, we are, we are, we are.

-.-.-

The first hour of my detention that night passed slowly and quietly. Professor McGonagall checked in on us regularly, and we worked on opposite sides of the room. Finally, the silence was killing me. I had been watching him every chance I got. He was so similar to Sirius that it made me want to like him, but he looked so angry; so alone.

"So you're Sirius' brother, right?" I said, the sound of my own voice strange to my ears. He looked back at me. He was surprised as well, and his black eyes were staring at me; piercing me.

"Yes," he told me curtly, returning to his work. He thought it was the end of our conversation.

I had other plans in mind. "And you're in Slytherin," I said. He looked at me strangely, a dark eyebrow raised above the other. "Right?" My voice was quiet. He was making me nervous, as Sirius has the first night, only now I had a reason to be.

"Yes," he said again, though this time he did not turn back away.

"You play Quidditch don't you?"

The questions rattled off my tongue and he watched me as if I were crazy. At first, that stare frightened me. As I grew to know it, to expect it, I welcomed it. But just then, he was making me squirm.

"Yes," he said and shook his head. "Are you going to outline my whole life for me with your inane questions?"

I was stunned. I never truly believed any brother of Sirius could be this awful, though he assured me otherwise all the time. I suddenly wanted to be anywhere but that classroom, where I was stuck.

"I was just making conversation," I said, feeling defensive from his hostility. I did not like to, but when the hostile game was being played, I put up a good defense. "No need to get touchy."

"I'm not touchy," Regulus informed me, his black eyes staring a hole through mine. "I just don't want to hear your voice."

We watched each other for moments after that and I was struck. Nothing that came to mind seemed good enough to reply with, and I was relieved when Professor McGonagall reentered, informing us that it was time to leave.

I took no extra time bolting from the room.

-.-.-

One step forward making two steps back. My, oh, my.
Riding piggy on the bad boys back for life.
Lining up for the grand illusion.
No answers for no questions asked.
Lining up for the execution,
Without knowing why.

-.-.-

The next time I spoke to Regulus Black was nearly a year later. It was the fall of my sixth year at Hogwarts, Sirius' last, and we had both changed quiet a bit – outwardly, at least. His hair had grown a bit longer, covering his eyes just slightly so he often had to shake his head to keep it from obstructing his black eyes. My hair had darkened just slightly, so that it could be classified as auburn, not red. We had both grown into our bodies in a more flattering way, coming out of the awkward stages of puberty.

He was still quiet and disturbed, and I was curious. Of course, I have no idea why. Maybe it was because I still could not understand why someone as loving and lovable as Sirius Black, could have a brother who was the complete opposite.

I found him in the library on a Friday night. The room was dark, and the tables were empty, save for he and one other student, who sat on opposite sides of the room.

I was looking for a copy of some potion book, but could not find it. It seemed he was using the only one the school possessed.

At first I wanted to turn and leave. Neglecting my homework had become somewhat of a hobby, so it seemed like a good idea at the time. I rethought myself, however, and made perhaps one of the biggest mistakes of my life by walking to his table and sitting down.

"What do you want?" Regulus asked me indifferently, not looking up from his book. I was not sure he knew who I was.

"That book your reading – I need it." All right, so I kept it simple.

"I'm reading it," he said, his eyes flicking up at me and back down to the book. I figured he was just confirming my identity.

I frowned at him. "When are you going to be done reading it?" I asked, agitation crawling into my voice.

He shrugged. "I don't know," he said. "When you leave me alone and let me read it in silence."

"I can't finish my homework assignment without that book," I informed him, my stare unwavering. He did not look back at me.

"That information will not help me finish any quicker," he said simply. "I'll put it back when I'm done. You can leave now."

I rolled my eyes. "If I leave now I won't know when you finish."

"Then stay," he said. He looked up at me and watched me indifferently. Something about the way he composed himself seemed so different than the night we had detention together. He was more subdued, or just cared less. "But stay quietly."

My arms were crossed, which he ignored. After waiting for a few minutes, I was agitated and ready to leave, so I began tapping my fingers on the desk. Part of me knew I was doing it, but mostly in was an idle habit.

He ignored me. I noticed this, and sighed loudly – more loudly than was necessary for sure. He looked at me again, one eyebrow cocked higher than the other.

"If you're going to be that obnoxious, I'll just leave and take the book with me," he said flatly.

I ignored his comment and grew more irritated. "Why do you need the book anyway?" I asked. "You're a Slytherin. Slytherin's don't need to study. You don't need school to be a death eater."

Something made me think I had said something wrong. No matter what a person thought, it was just bad etiquette and somewhat dangerous to blatantly accuse someone of being affiliated with the Dark Lord. Regulus Black did not care. The accusation rolled off him.

"No, but I need school to get a job," he said and rolled his eyes. "Take the stupid book. I'm not going to get anything done with you pestering me."

I took it triumphantly, and opened it on the spot. I could feel him throwing me a strange look, but after a few minutes he went back to his work. We both sat there for at least another hour, ignoring each other blissfully, finishing our homework.

-.-.-

I need a minute just to get to you,
I feel like I might be getting through.
Come over and say nothing;
Silence is everything.

-.-.-

After that night, it became a ritual for the two of us. Friday nights when Sirius and James were pranking, Lily and Remus were patrolling, and Peter was skulking around, I was perched in the library with a book and a silent partner. We never said a word. We did not need to.

We weren't friends, or even pleasant acquaintances, really. We were two beings in one place at a regular time, taking advantage of the others lack of words. There was no contact.

He never acknowledged me aside from the stiff nod when I arrived, and when he left. That was how it always went. I walked to the library and found him at the same table every week. He always beat me there, no matter what I did.

And then at the end of the night he always left before me. Not because I wanted to stay for a longer time, but he always finished and that was what it was about. He stood to go, his shirt untucked and tie loosened, nodding at me before disappearing into the shadows. He was good at sneaking. I could never hear him come or go.

Sometimes it was like he wasn't even there.

But I knew that he was.

-.-.-

Hello darkness, my old friend,
I've come to talk with you again,
Because a vision softly creeping,
Left its seeds while I was sleeping.
And the vision that was planted in my brain,
Still remains, within the sound of silence..

-.-.-

I didn't think it was possible to develop any sort of feeling for someone who never spoke words with me. But as school was coming to a close, and exams were nearing, things changed with us. Instead of simply sitting when I arrived, I made a point to say hello and ask him how his day had been.

I always received the same answer. "Fine," he would say – not rudely, but indifferently. But just that one word from him made my heart flutter I started to seek him out away from the library. And one night I found him.

It was the night before we were to leave Hogwarts for the summer. Exams had ended a week before, so I had not met with him in the library for nearly a week and a half. I missed him, though I wouldn't admit it to myself.

I hadn't meant to find him. I was walking alone, clearing my head, and there he was – sitting against a tree bordering the Forbidden Forest. Shadows enveloped him and all I could see was his face, the moonlight hitting it just so he was barely visible, his eyes drowning me out. They were so dark; so haunted.

"Hey," I said quietly, not realizing how nervous I was to talk to him. Not that being near him made me particularly nervous, but the way he looked at night was frightening and so dark.

He nodded at me, jerking his head to push the hair from his eyes. "What are you doing out here?" he asked. His voice seemed colder than usual. From those times when I had actually heard it.

A chill ran up my spine. "I'm just walking," I said. "What are you doing?"

"You shouldn't walk out here alone, so late at night," he said, ignoring my question completely. "It's dangerous. You don't know who could be out here, just waiting for someone to wander by. You could be hurt."

Those words spoken by anyone else might have seemed caring. From him, they seemed like a warning. "But you won't hurt me," I said quietly. At the moment, I wasn't so sure.

"I might," he said. His voice was frozen; frightening. The way he watched me made me scared of him. "I could hurt you easily."

I frowned. "I'm sure you could," I replied, because it was true. At that point I had moved past my naïve thoughts that he wasn't as evil as Sirius made him out to be. I knew that he was. "But you wouldn't."

"Why do you think that?" he asked. His eyes were no longer on me. He was watching something in the distance, or perhaps nothing at all.

"Because we're friends," I said. I had not thought about the response. Because if I had really thought about it, we were nothing of the sort. I liked the sound of it, however.

He seemed to as well, though I could tell he tried hard not to show it. "Friends?" he asked skeptically, traces of acid in his words. "I don't have friends."

"Or you don't want them," I replied.

He shrugged. "Maybe I don't," he said. "It's simple that way. Relationships tie you down and make you weak. I don't want that."

I shook my head. "You're wrong," I said. He was beginning to scare me less, or I was ignoring it more. "Relationships make you stronger. Half the time my friends are what hold me together."

"And you enjoy depending on others to keep yourself together?" He was sneering at me; mocking me. I felt sorry for him. "That's pathetic," he spat cruelly. His eyes were on me again and my insides felt weak, but I couldn't let him believe that.

"It's not pathetic. Actually, it's rather pathetic that you close yourself off because you think no one will care," I told him. "People would care about you if you would let them. But you're so cold, and you've got no one to rely on."

I didn't know where it came from, but as soon as I said it I knew I wanted to be away from him. I turned and walked back into the school as quickly as I could.

He did not follow me.

-.-.-

Forgive me if now I wear the face of worry.
This time alone could never cause any doubt,
But I've been cold too long.
Such a strange time to find myself coming down as the rain,
With all these holes, my love,
To fill up from the middle.
This storm could stay all night.

-.-.-

Summer passed without a word from Regulus. I had to endure a long goodbye from his brother and the rest. They graduated, leaving me alone in Hogwarts with my dorm mates and a silent, brooding Slytherin.

I did not seek him out first this time. After our last confrontation, I figured meeting in the library was somewhat out of the question. So my first Friday night was spent sitting outside, a book in hand.

The next week I sat in the same place and moments after I was seated, he was standing there, his shirt untucked and his tie loosened, dark hair still messily in place.

"Regulus," I said, bewildered that he was standing there, and thrilled at the same time. He nodded at me.

"Can I sit?"

"Why would you want to?" I asked. A touch of the anger from our last confrontation returned to me as I looked at him. "It's not like we're friends or anything." So maybe I was being a little bit childish.

He shrugged. "I know," he said, causing a small sting to reverberate in my chest. "I just felt like talking to you I guess."

I nodded. "How was your summer?" I asked. My voice was flat and I could tell he knew that I was upset to some degree. I wasn't quite sure if he cared or not.

"It was fine," he answered offhandedly, watching me closely. It was weird, the way he watched me without faltering. Almost as if he could see inside my soul, or something. "Yours?"

I shrugged. "Nothing special. I spent a lot of time with your brother, I guess. And the others," I said. I knew he would not like this, because of his hate for his brother. Maybe that's why I said it.

As I expected, he scowled at my words. "I still don't understand why you would willingly be around him so much," he said and shook his head. "He's loud, annoying and never stops pestering people."

"He's fun," I said simply. "He's loud, hilarious and he's always around to keep things going. He's so alive."

Something passed through Regulus' eyes. "Is that why you like him? Because he's alive?" he asked, his voice low, his eyes black. "Not like me. I'm dead. Where it matters, at least."

I shook my head. The tone of the encounter had suddenly changed from tense to somber and I was feeling once again like I wanted to help this boy. To save him somehow. "No you're not," I told him quietly. "You're alive. You're just sleeping. You just need someone to wake you up."

"Wake me up?" he asked skeptically, almost rudely. His eyes were on me, burning holes into me. "I'm not sure how anyone could begin to-"

I cut him off, moving forward and pressing my lips to his as I had wanted to for so long. It was not exactly the way I had envisioned it happening.

The effect was instantaneous. Like fire spreading from the point of contact and over my skin, seeping through to my veins. It was thrilling and exciting, and absolutely terrifying. For moments he did not even respond. Maybe he was shocked, or disgusted, but if he was I could not tell from his response. Within moments his fingers were in my hair, his face pressing into mine eagerly, lips moving roughly with me. I felt him bite me once, sending a jolt down my spine.

When it was over my lips were swollen and I was disoriented. We stared at each other in silence, perhaps because it had become the more comfortable way of communicating.

After that night, everything changed.

-.-.-

They won't see the fire you have lit inside of me.
They look up to the stars and wonder where you might be.
They look up.
Without realizing they're standing in the palm of your hand.
I can't explain or understand.

-.-.-

It did not matter where we were. An empty classroom, a deserted bathroom, a broom closet, his dorm (which took some sneaking), or on many occasions, the Astronomy Tower. We met often and it was always the same. Silence and quite a bit of snogging.

We only talked occasionally but it was hardly really needed. All I needed was him, right there with me. To know that he was there and he made sure I knew that. The way he kissed me was always rough and forceful. I was usually pushed back into a wall and he crushed me with his body.

They molded perfectly together, our bodies. The curves of my body fit perfectly with his and I couldn't get enough. I don't remember when I realized I was in far deeper than I should be, with someone as dangerous as Regulus. I was not even sure he really cared for me at all. Of course he never told me out right. I thought he did, but he wasn't an emotional or vocal person, who would say such things even if he was feeling them.

There was one day particularly that I felt I needed to figure out how he really felt. I was determined to stay concentrated on that matter and not get distracted by him, but as I expected, my plan did not go as I wanted.

I walked up to the Astronomy Tower just after midnight and he was already there, leaning against a wall, the shadows enveloping him.

"Regulus?" I whispered into the dark but I knew he was there.

"Hello, Marlene," he said in his low voice, though not hushed.

Before I could get another word in, he advanced on me and I was backed into the wall behind me, his lips and body on mine, his hands wandering. I tried to gather my willpower to tell him we needed to stop and have a serious discussion, but his smell was weaving into my thoughts and I could not resist the things he did to me. Already one of his hands was working furiously below the rim of my pants, button and zipper undone.

I let out a whimper and he liked this, his fervor increasing as his kisses traveled down my jaw line, and onto my neck. He bit at my pulse point and my head fell back, my breathing picking up tremendously. I wanted to tell him to stop, this wasn't what I wanted.

But my body was my traitor, and it was what I wanted despite what my mind was ready for. So I let go for a little while, as he drove me to the edge of insanity.

When we finished, we were both breathing rapidly and had to hurry and redress before the cold wind made us shiver. That was when we sat together on the floor. My head was in his lap, and I felt safe.

"Regulus?" I said again.

He looked down at me. His face was still a stone wall and it was as if no emotion was running through him at all. "Yes, Marlene?" he asked calmly. One hand was trailing through my hair, disproving my previous belief that brown never looked good with Black.

"Why are we doing this?" It was not the way I had exactly intended on opening the conversation, but it was all I could think to say.

"Doing what, exactly?" he asked, a smirk appearing on his face. "Shagging in random places of the school?"

The way he said this made me blush. He liked it when I blushed; it made him feel like he accomplished something. "No. Well, yes. I mean, why are we spending all of this time together?"

"To get out some carnal desire, I suppose," Regulus replied with a shrug. "It's fun for both of us and we like to do it. So why not?"

I sighed. This was not what I expected. But then, what exactly had I expected? "Do you actually care about me?" I asked, in the quiet voice I got when I was nervous. He knew this voice well.

His smirk slipped and he looked at me with a solid face and I wasn't sure what to make of this. With Regulus it could mean any number of things. Good, bad, it was hard to tell.

"That's a complicated question to answer," he said quietly and sighed. "I do care for you, but not in the way that you want me to, I think. I care about you in that I like to be with you and I want you to be safe, but I don't really think I am capable of liking you or loving you. I couldn't give you any of that."

"Why not?" I asked again in my quiet voice. He sighed again.

"Genuine care isn't something Blacks do, Marlene. We aren't capable of it because we're coldhearted people," Regulus said. "When it comes down to it, we'd rather save our own skins than worry about someone else."

"Sirius isn't that way," I pointed out.

Regulus shrugged. "Sirius isn't part of our family anymore."

I sighed. "Okay," I said. "I'll leave it alone. I just wanted to know where we were at here."

"I'm sorry if it isn't what you wanted, Marlene, really," Regulus said and sighed. "I should have told you coming in that I'm not capable of what you want. But I do care about you in some way."

I nodded and for a few more minutes we were silent. Something about what he had told me made me feel for him even deeper and I think that's when I realized I truly was in love with him. I guess it was not an appropriate thing to bring into the mix but it was how I felt. Maybe him knowing someone truly cared for him would change him.

"Regulus?" I said, looking up at him with a soft look on my face.

"Yes, Marlene?" he asked, still as calm as before. I had broken his thought train and his eyes were looking down at me. Dark, liquidy pools.

"I love you."

-.-.-

You change the sound of my name,

A moment of truth that I saw in your face.

It hurts inside, I'm one with this fire,

That you brought to life;

All the roads lead back to you.

Give me something to return to in your heart.

-.-.-

As the months wore on, Regulus became more involved with the death eaters, but less interested in their cause. He never really spoke to me about what he was doing. It was none of my business and knowing he was involved was already more than he intended to tell. But he trusted me and some how I got it out of him.

At nights he began disappearing for meetings, or to go on secret, unexplained trips for missions of his own that I could not understand. It was not long until we were to graduate Hogwarts and it was almost as if he were in a race to get some unknown mission finished before graduating. Or before he began his official death eater training.

"What do you do when you leave school at night?" I asked him one night when we were leaning against a wall in an empty classroom.

He did not look at me. "I can't tell you that, and you know it," he said. I knew he would not tell me. He never did. But I asked more than once, just to see if by some miracle his answer would change and he would confide his secrets in me.

He never did.

Suddenly he looked down at me with a troubled, haunted look in his eyes. "Marlene," he said quietly. It was not a question, but he was making sure I was still listening. His eyes were blacker than I had ever seen, and it scared me; made me squirm.

"Yes?" I asked in my quiet voice. He gave no response. No small chuckle. No hint of a smile. His face was solemn.

"If something happens to me and I don't come back one night-" I cut him off immediately, my heart already racing from the unwelcome turn of the conversation.

"What do you mean if you don't come back?" I asked, finding my voice. "What are you going to do?"

Regulus waited patiently until I was quiet again, watching him with big eyes. He had always liked my eyes. He said they reminded him of the ocean when it was storming. "I'm planning to do something and if it doesn't work out properly, I wanted to be sure you would not come looking for me," he said. "If I don't come back, you need to pick up and move on. Never mention our relationship to anyone."

I did not understand. Where was he going? My heart started to pound in my chest and it was the only sound I could hear in my ears. What if he never came back to me?

And one night, he never did.

-.-.-

So insignificant, sleeping dormant deep inside of me,
Are you hiding away, lost, under the sewers,
Maybe flying high, in the clouds?
Perhaps you're happy without me...
So many seeds have been sown in the field,
And who could sprout up so blessedly,
If I had died I would have never felt sad at all,
You will not hear me say 'I'm sorry'
Where is the light, wonder if it's weeping somewhere?

-.-.-

One night a few weeks after our frightening conversation, I arrived in the Astronomy Tower five minutes after the planned time. Regulus hated it when I was late, but too many people were patrolling and it was only safe at that time.

But when I stepped into the room he wasn't there. I looked around thoroughly, finding only a folded piece of parchment with no name, no address. The curiosity and fright tingled inside of me, and I unfolded it carefully. I did not recognize his writing at once. I had never seen it before. It was beautiful, and carefully scripted.

Marlene,

I should not be writing this letter to you, as I have warned you that this time would come. I still cannot disclose to you my purpose in leaving, but know that it is for the better that I am gone. I would also have you know that despite my lack of voice in telling you how I feel, I care about you a great deal.

You are part of the reason I am doing what I have gone to do. I finally realize how wrong my father, mother, the Dark Lord and a great many others are. Perhaps you showed me this.

Thank you for showing me that it is possible for someone as cold-hearted as me to love someone else. And thank you for loving me, despite every fault I have showed you.

Goodbye,

Regulus

I didn't believe what I was reading at first. After going over the words a dozen times, I folded the letter and returned to my dorm, dazed and confused.

The next evening at supper, Professor Dumbledore approached the lectern with a solemn expression, ready to address the students before him. It was bad news, I could see it in his eyes. And for some reason, he was looking at me.

"Students," he began in a loud, even toned voice. "It is with much regret that I must inform you of a loss among our numbers. Seventh year Slytherin Regulus Black has been reported dead. His body has not been found, but his family has recently informed us of the loss."

It took a moment for this to set in. Was he serious? No, of course he wasn't. I would go back to the Astronomy Tower after supper and he would be sitting there, waiting for me, laughing that everyone had believed his joke. Even me.

After I ate, I wasted no time lingering in the Great Hall. I sped through the halls and burst into the Astronomy Tower, already dark. The moon streamed in and I looked around.

"Regulus?"

My voice seemed to echo in the dark and I was waiting for a response. Waiting for moments after moments.

"Regulus?" I said again, my voice quieting down.

But his voice did not return.

Instead, I was only greeted by the deafening sound of silence.

-.-.-

Goodbye, my almost lover,
Goodbye, my hopeless dream.
I'm trying not to think about you;
Can't you just let me be?
So long, my luckless romance,
My back is turned on you.
Should've known you'd bring me heartache;
Almost lovers always do.

-.-.-

So I spent quite a while with this stupid one-shot and I don't even like it now that I'm done with it! Gah. Is there any hope left in the world?

I don't think so.

It's weird, though. Regulus is my favorite character because of all the liberties you can give him and everything you can change and manipulate. It's beautiful. But I can't write him correctly yet. Perhaps another time.

As for Playing With Fire… A chapter is almost finished and should be coming to you soon. It's been a busy few months. Sorry for the wait, guys!

Lady Cardea