Regulus Black stared dumbly at the clutter of girls standing in front of her. They had grouped together in a V formation, arms crossed with chins up and righteous smirks directed at her face. Vaguely, Regulus was reminded of the movie Mean Girls. She let out a reminiscent sigh, for she truly missed modern culture. After she was feeling sentimental, A loud snicker brought her attention back to the disturbance at hand. The girls seemed adorable to an outsider's point of view, but Regulus knew better. They were a bunch of delusional girls that followed someone even more deluded then they were. Regulus was suddenly reminded of a herd of bitchy cockroaches that she stepped on again and again and again, and simply refused to die. It was a never ending cycle of showing up one girl, only for another two to appear in her place. At least the boys had the good intuition not to get into a trash-talking match with her, but she couldn't apply the same wisdom to her dear female peers. Was she supposed to be intimidated at their display?

The leader of the group, Anna something, was an adorable 2nd grader with unusually pale skin and straight, mousy brown hair. She was a skeleton of skin and bones, with a permanent sneer plastered on her face whenever anyone older then her was out of the vicinity. For all her faults, never let it be said she didn't respect her elders. This seemed very ironic to Regulus, considering how long she'd been alive.

"Hey, REGGI-LOSER! I'm talking to you!" Anna shouted, waving her pointed finger at Regulus. "You think that you're better then us because you're smaller, but it's not true! You're really just an idiot that the other class didn't want!"

"Younger, actually." Regulus said, a matter-of-factly.

"huh?"Anna said confused for a second.

"You said, 'because you're smaller, but what you intended to say was 'younger," Regulus corrected, her immature side cackling on the inside. "But you know what? I actually am a little taller then you, despite that. I can see why you were confused and I excuse you for your mistake."

Regulus watched as Anna processed her words, and as her face escalated into different shades of red. It was very amusing. She went from the I'm-embaressed-red to the I'm-not-admitting-I'm-Wrong-Red, to the how-dare-you-make-me-look-bad-you-self-righteous-bitch-red. Regulus speculated that she must have been a tomato in her past life.

"I did mean to say that, you...you-uh, assbutt!" Anna said.

GASP. Oh no she didn't! Darling, you're playing in a whole different ballpark now.

Kate-at least that's what she thought her name was-, gasped."Sarah, you j-just sa-"

Sarah? It seems that Regulus was way off with Anna.

"And what of it? Are you going to tell my mother?" Sarah sneered.

"u-uh, no-nevermind," Kate said nervously.

Was this what a catfight looked like in this century? Oh, how the mighty have fallen. The cast of Mean Girls would be truly disappointed.

Anna glared at poor Kate for a few more seconds before turning on her heel and glaring at Regulus superiorly.

"You're really not that great, you know. I even heard that you were adopted!" Sadie, Anna's-er- Sarah's friend said.

The cockroach entourage all gasped, and shook their heads simultaneously. It was a bit impressive, Regulus thought, as her mind conjured up a picture of well trained dogs she had seen at a dog show with her parents. She'd tell them as much, but she didn't think they'd appreciate the comparison.

"Yeah, yeah, but do you guys wanna know why?" Sarah said, trying to regain their attention. "My mother told me that her parents didn't want her, and that she only got adopted because her Mr. and Mrs. Stewart felt sorry for her!"

Ouch. No seriously, Regulus thought she might have accidentally hit her foot on something, and it hurt.

Sarah must have seen her pained expression, for she continued insulting Regulus with renewed vigor. The enthusiasm with which she continued insulting her was a little disturbing. Slightly amusing, but disturbing nonetheless.

"The homeless man on my street dresses better then her! She's so ugly." The entourage nodded, shaking their heads in tandem.

"You do realize we're wearing the same outfit right? Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't it part of school protocol to wear a uniform?" Regulus stated, flashing an innocent smile.

A few of her friends starting snickering, and Anna went from tomato-faced to blood-red everywhere.

Regulus sighed, resigned. Perhaps she'd let them have a victory today, she was getting a little tired of this tedious routine. After all, embarrassing others was unbecoming of lady, or so her mother said. They were like what, 7,8 years old? It would be more entertaining to show up older people, anyway. Also, She was really in the mood to get back to practicing her wandless magic. Truly, she was pathetic at it. After 3 months of trying, only last night had she managed to conjure a faint Lumos. She'd tried doing Stupefy, Wingardium Leviosa, Petrificus Totalus- even an ambitious Expelliarmus. And the only result she got was a half-assed Lumos. But she could be patient, and she was nothing if not hard working.

Regulus was about to make amends when a teacher walked over to see what was going on. It was Mr. Smith. First name John. Seriously, she was pained on his behalf. She'd kill herself if that wasn't the most unimaginative name anyone could possibly ever think of, it was right up there with naming your kid Barbie. It seemed, though, as she watched Mr. Smith come closer, that she stood corrected.

Apparently, Regulus had been zoned-out for a while, because Sarah was already getting her ass handed to her by the teacher when she began paying attention.

"I swear, Mr., we were just joking with Reggi-uh, Regulus!" Sarah said desperately. "Isn't that right guys?"

Kate, Sadie and the rest of the entourage all echoed a loud 'yeah, totally' a bit too late.

Mr. Smith stared at them, unimpressed, before turning to me. " Is that true Regulus?"

"Absolutely," Regulus said, allowing a hopeful smile to show on Sarah's face, "Not. I was being severely bullied. I request them to be immediately punished. If this continues Sir, I might eventually consider a lifetime of cutting and self-harm. I could even come to contemplate suicide. Though not before suing the school for the unjustified way this situation was dealt with."

"I didn't realize you felt so strongly about this. As much as I appreciate your honesty, Regulus, the school does not accept the requests of student's on such things." Mr. Smith said, and was that sarcasm she spied?. "However, Sarah, since you are so insistent on your supposed friendship, I don't think you'll mind spending lunch explaining to me how this came to be."

Sarah sputtered, "But I didn't do anything-"

"I never said you did, Sarah." Mr. Smith said, staring at her evenly.

Ah, she thought, The perks of being a teacher's pet.

As the day wore on, she entertained herself by willing people she disliked to trip on nothing. Sadly, it only worked about 3 times (after about 60 attempts).

It was an oversight on her part, really, that she didn't expect to be cornered by Sarah's older brother after school. He was in 6th grade, and there was a significant strength gap between them, especially with her meager magical abilities, as much as it hurt her pride to admit it.

So, as she was being held down in the girl's bathroom by two of the friends Sarah's brother had bought, she thought she might as well make the most of it.

"You do realize that I'm only four years old?" Regulus said disapprovingly, giving them an unintimidated stare. "Tsk, Tsk, Tsk...I wonder what my poor parents' would think to know that I was assaulted by pedophiles! Aren't you a little too young to pick your preferences? I mean, you even came all the way to the girls bathroom. It's quite pathetic. I'm sure that the authorities would be quite interested as well."

Regulus could feel them loosen their hold at the word 'pedophile', but it came back again tighter at the word 'pathetic,' and she inwardly smirked. Kids were so easy to manipulate.

But, as she noticed the menacing pair of scissors in the hand of Sarah's malevolent brother, she thought, perhaps it would have been smarter to keep her mouth shut.

"Hold her down!" the brother shouted, "You think you're such a smartass, huh? Bullying my little sister? You're the pathetic one! And you'll look it too when I'm done with you!"

Regulus realized his intentions after his friend had held her even tighter, and as he grabbed a fistful of her glorious black hair, only to snip it off. As she watched a snippet of her hair fall to the ground, she felt unfiltered fury at the audacity of the boy. It was her hair! Her pride and joy! Who the hell did he think he was? What right did he have to this to her?!

"Let go, Let go, Let go, let GO! Get off you fucking lunatics!" Regulus screamed as he cut more and more, her anger blinding her. She thrashed and twisted in their grip. She refused to let them humiliate her like this. She kicked out desperately, and hit the brother's knee. Hard.

He stumbled back and winced, but still continued, pulling and cutting more and more and more of her hair. She felt defeat creep on to her with every strand that fell, with every failed kick and punch that didn't make a difference. She hated the satisfied look on his face when he finally let her go, and to her utter disappointment, felt wet tears streak down her cheeks as she clawed at what was once her beautiful hair.

She felt for locks that weren't there, finding only thin strands as she touched her scalp, hating how much the loss bothered her. It was strange, the affect of hair on one's appearance, how different it could make you look. As she looked at her reflection, she thought she really did look pathetic. God, she felt ugly. She hated the feeling. Hated her disgust at her appearance. Most of all, she hated how much she cared. How her hair was no longer than a buzz cut in some places, yet shoulder length in others. She hated it so fucking much. The brother had made good on his promise, she thought bitterly. She truly felt pathetic.

She looked up at the sound of laughter. The brother was laughing, really hard, holding a hand to his stomach, with the other hand slumped against the wall. Everytime he calmed down, he'd look at her and start laughing harder."Ah wow, I don't think I've laughed that hard in a long time. Sorry, I guess that was a bit rude, wasn't it? But damn, if you aren't just the ugliest thing I've ever seen."

"Wow, is the little girl crying? Where's your smart mouth now, huh?" The brother snickered, while his friends avoided her gaze, uncomfortable."Damn, I don't think I'm cut out for hairstyling, You look the ugliest fucking thing I've ever seen. Are you sure you don't just want me to kill you now? You'd be doing the world a favor, sparing us the view." He said cruelly, with a laugh. "Come on guys, let's leave, let her cry, like the pathetic Bitch she is."

Regulus thought that maybe the worst part, was her inability to do anything. It was true, that she had thought herself better then a lot of people, with her being able to do magic and all. But, really, what was she worth? When even her own magic deserted her when she needed it. After staring for a while at absolutely nothing, Amina's side of Regulus made herself known. Regulus was physically four, and sometimes, what she felt or thought couldn't be helped because of it. However, Amina, was not four, she was an adult, mentally mature, and her and Regulus were one and the same. She was still Amina. Just a different face with a different name, and Amina recognized where such thoughts would lead her, and she had always thought herself better than that.

She wiped her face clean, and stood up slowly. She began to gather her hair in a pile on the floor, spending a while picking it all up, and fighting to keep her tears at bay when she resolved to throw it in the garbage. But she truly couldn't help the crying when looked at herself in the mirror. Ok, she thought, it's ok. Baby steps. Wiping her face again, she resolved to avoid looking in the mirror.

Regulus could not remember feeling any more vulnerable in her short life than when she had had to walk home. School had been out by then, thankfully, so the walk of shame only meant she had to endure the judging gazes of strangers, instead of acquaintances. She suffered through it with as much grace as the situation allowed her and hurried home. By the time she had finally arrived, she saw the Stewarts' car in the driveway, and braced herself for her parents' reaction.

She walked in slowly, and soon enough she heard a murmur of voices from the kitchen. Good. Her pseudo mom was cooking, that meant she was likely to be in a good mood. Hmm, was that pasta she smelled? She hated pasta.

Mr. Stewart shook his head at something his wife had said, and he had just been about to reply before he noticed Regulus in the doorway and snapped his mouth shut.

"Speechless? You should be. Imagi-Regulus! Dear God, what did you do to your hair!" Mrs. Stewart shouted, appalled, dropping the grocery bag in her hands onto the floor. "Darling, what on earth happened?!"

The shocked gaze of her mother, combined with the nervous gaze of her father gave her tears the leave needed to spill down her cheeks. Her mother now looked lost, and for good reason too. For Regulus had never been seriously upset in front of her, and Mrs. Stewart wasn't quite sure how she was to deal with the situation.

Meanwhile, Regulus was conflicted. Yes, she was feeling vulnerable about her appearance, but she was still disappointed in herself for letting it get to her, whether it was warranted or not. Nevertheless, she found herself sniffling into her mom's shoulder, with her tiny fingers tightly gripping the blue sweater. She told her mother of Sarah, and her brother. What he had called her, and what he had done to her hair. It seemed petty when she spoke it out loud, but she also felt relieved. The hurt from the cruel names she was called had still felt fresh, despite her best attempts to ignore it. Her mother grew very, angry, more than she had ever seen her in the short time they'd known each other. It showed in the way her eyes tightened at the corners and her lips thinned in fury. Her mother made a truly menacing picture, in a perfectly protective way.

"I will NOT let them get away with this, Regulus." Her mother promised, and in that Regulus had no doubt she would deliver, but what was the point?

"It doesn't matter, mom. Do whatever. In the end my hair still looks hideous." Regulus said bitterly, sniffling one last time, with her fingers tracing her scalp she finally looked up from her mom's shoulder, resigned.

"Now honey, there's no need to be dramatic. I think you look gorgeous." Mr. Stewart said, uncertainly, looking to his wife for reassurance. "In fact, I think if you wish it, your hair will be back to normal immediately!"

Mr. Stewart had said that beaming, before attempting to give his wife a discreet thumbs up. Needless to say, his efforts were met with twin looks of disbelief.

Regulus was heartened by her father's attempts to cheer her up, and honestly tried to put a smile on for him. Yet, all she could think of was how much she missed her hair, how she wished she had the glowing black locks she woke up with this morning.

"I think a trip to the Sal-Oh Dear God, Stewart LOOK!," Mrs. Stewart said, as she began leaning on her husband, looking to him for support. To assure her that she was not insane, and that she was not imagining what she was seeing.

However, it became blatantly obvious that Mr. Stewart would be of no help to his wife, in fact, it seemed that he was the one in need of assistance. At that current moment, he resembled a very well done human statue. With the gaping mouth and wide eyes, it looked like he might've just met Medusa herself.

Regulus was beginning to feel a tad insecure. Truly, if her parents thought that her hair looked this bad, perhaps she should invest in a turban. She was a little miffed though, couldn't they at least act like it wasn't that bad?! What Regulus didn't know, however, was that instead of the atrocious cut that had been there moments ago, her hair was growing back, and her ivory locks were expanding, the shining curls growing were framing her face nicely, even better then before. It wasn't the first time Regulus had done strange things in front of her parents, but it was the first that definitely could not go unexplained.

"Regulus!" Her mother said, dazed, hands shaking. " Dear God, Regulus! You're a witch!"

At this point Mr. Stewart had snapped out of his shock and decided to rejoin the conversation. "Um, just to clarify dear, did you just call our daughter a witch?"

"Don't look at me like that Stewart, for God's sake, I'm not crazy!"Mrs. Stewart snapped at him, and Mr. Stewart hastened to wipe the humoring look off of his face.

"Remember my sister, Stewart?" Mrs. Stewart said, with a sad smile on her face, and Mr. Stewart's face hardened in memory. She patted an empty seat at the dining table, and Regulus slowly made her way over, incredibly confused.

"What makes you think I'm a witch?" Regulus asked, but her parents never got the chance to answer, as she could now feel her familiar curls on her back and shoulders, and she didn't waste a moment, sprinting to the bathroom. She didn't dare voice her thoughts, in fear of disappointment, but she needn't have feared anything, for her suspicions were confirmed as she looked at her reflection in the bathroom mirror. Truly, she felt a relief like no other fill her up and as attempted to calm down her racing heart, an elated smile grew on her face. She sprinted back to the room, shouting:

"Mom, Look! It's back! It's really back! and it's even longer than it was before! Thank you!" Regulus exclaimed, jumping in her mother's arms.

"Thank you? I've done nothing, Regulus, it's all you." Mrs. Stewart said gladly, happy that Regulus was feeling okay again.

"Indeed. Where's my thanks? Did I not say it would grow back immediately?" Mr. Stewart said amiably, his tone betraying the jokingly hurt look on his face.

"Regulus, dear, I need to tell you something important." Mrs. Stewart said, and Regulus nodded curiously from her mother's lap, and listened." I used to have a sister, a few years younger then me, and from a time when she was young she knew there was something different about her. She could do the strangest things, Regulus, the very strangest! I really don't know why I was surprised when she turned eleven and received a letter declaring her entrance in a school of witchcraft and wizardry. I was happy for her, for a time, she had found a place where she belonged in this big world, and for a while she was happy too. She told me things, though, things she never told anyone else, and I found out that her perfect world really wasn't that perfect. She lived in a time of war, when witches born of non-witch families were considered the scum of the Earth. It was the most terrible time to be who she was, when she was and she died for it. For doing nothing at all, Regulus, nothing!" Mrs. Stewart said passionately, and here her tone took a bitter turn," It may seem like you've been given a gift, but it is not! I promise you that it will only cause you pain. For all it may seem, it is not safe, Regulus! Especially not for someone like you. Please understand, darling. I suspect when you turn 11 you'll get that same letter, but understand when I say you will not accept it. You'll live a happy life here with us, darling, away from the prejudice of that world."

It was a while before she answered, for she was still in shock, processing what her mother had told her. Who would've thought that she knew so much? When she did reply, though, her words were sure."Mom, magic is everything to me. I understand your point, but I don't care if it's the most unsafe thing in the world, I'd rather die than be without it!" Regulus should have probably chosen a wiser choice of words, for her mother's arms tightened around her, and her eyes turned cold. But the truth was Regulus had indeed thought about it, and she did believe she would die for her magic. It was the experience of a lifetime, having it. She loved it more than anything in the world, and she wasn't even as scared of death as she was before. After all, she had already done it once, who's to say that she couldn't do it again?

"What would you know? You're only four! What's wrong with being normal? What's wrong with staying with us?! Are you really so eager to leave us behind?! I'm sorry to tell you that so long as I'm breathing, you will never know the wizarding world! You'll live life like the rest of us, and one day you'll thank me for it!"

"I never said that! Stop putting words in my mouth!" Regulus was beginning to get angry, and she became more enraged as she continued speaking. "You know I'm just as mature as anyone else! I can make this decision for myself! It doesn't matter if you let me go or not! I swear I'll do it anyway! You're not even my real mom!"

No sooner had she finished her sentence when she felt her head snap to the side, a bright red handprint on her cheek.

"You will not. I will not change my stance on this, and you have absolutely no choice in the matter! How dare you! I may not be your biological mother, but I've loved you in every way that counts! Have I ever wronged you?! Not supported you?! If you want to go, then go, but you will never do so while living under my roof, you ungrateful brat!" Mrs. Stewart shouted this, angry tears in her eyes, with her hands fisted at her sides.

Enraged at her mother's word, she felt fury build up inside of her, more intense then even what she had felt earlier. It was bottled up inside of her, until she couldn't stand it anymore. She was just. So. ANGRY! She could feel herself release something from inside of her and she screamed in frustration,

"I HATE YOU!"

From then on, everything seemed to pass in slow motion.

It seemed that imaginary hands had pushed her mother backwards, and as she watched, gradually she realized that it was her doing this. Her magic at work! She didn't even have the time to regret what she did before it was too late to take it back. Her mom fell backwards, and Regulus watched as she fell closer and closer to the floor, with her hands reached out to her, as if asking her to save her from the impending hurt that was sure to come. Regulus widened her eyes in horror as the knife-sharp edge of the table meet her mothers' neck, and as it seemed to slit her throat slowly before she met the floor with a resounding thud.

The blank, wide, eyes of her mother seemed to stare into her soul, blaming her. Her pale, dead face was frozen in terror as she lied in a pool of her own blood.

Regulus had just killed her mother.