EDITED!

Yepp, I wrote the scene between Reg and Norah in between writing various essays in Indonesian. And I typed it out here, and I added some other stuff in some parts too. I'm pretty happy with it, and I hope you are too - Norah goes through quite a few mood changes in this chapter!

The plot thickens. ;)

And I've started writing chapter 12, so hopefully sometime next to next week, it'll be up. I'm going for this camp..thing.. on Friday night and I'll be back Sunday, so I won't be able to post between now and then.

Anyway, enjoy! R&R!

Some Rethinking Needed

It had been two weeks since the start of term and I was already drained. It was exhausting, to be honest - sneaking off to meet Regulus, spending time with my friends, dealing with the constant hostility from Sirius - all on top of the hectic NEWT schedule.

And so it happened that I ended up in the kitchens, late at night, looking like hell and feeling worse. I wanted food. I wanted Firewhiskey if they had it (they didn't, so I settled for cider.) But above all, I wanted some alone time.

My friends had other ideas.

I lost track of time and it was past eleven at night (curfew for seventh-years), so James Potter, being a dutiful Head Boy (cough, hack, cough) whipped out his Marauders' Map and traversed the dark corridors to locate me.

I groaned when the boy in question walked in. He was my best mate and I loved him, but in recent days, he'd been the annoying horsefly to my stinky pile of shit. According to Marlene, to whom I'd complained, this was because I was looking "wan".

There was no getting rid of him. I knew. I had tried.

So instead of making a break for it when the portrait swung open, I sat silently and continued picking at my plate of apple crumble.

"Rae."

I rolled my eyes. Such drama.

"James," I replied mockingly, mimicking his tone."It's past curfew," he said meaningfully.

"Astute observation. I appreciate your sharing it with me. What's your point?"

He sighed. "Let me rephrase. Bedtime for Pup."

I scowled. If he thought that would convince me to head back to Gryffindor Tower, he was sorely mistaken. Grovelling, maybe. Chocolate, probably. But calling me Pup? No.

"Nice try, love," I said sweetly. I pinched his cheek and turned back to my crumble.

James abruptly switched tactics. "Everyone's worried about you, you know."

I gave a faux mournful look before belching loudly.

It was the best I could do in the circumstances, alright?

While he thought out the next stage in Operation Get-Norah-To-Bed-Thereby-Being-A-Good-Head Boy-And-Impressing-Lily, I slurped down the remaining cider in my goblet. It left me feeling a tad lightheaded, so I glanced at the open Marauders' Map while I waited for my head to clear. What I saw was more than enough to shock me out of my haze. I could not afford a confrontation right now.

"Bollocks," I hissed, leaping to my feet. "Wanker alert."

Scanning the room for alternate exits, I ground my teeth to stubs as I realised my predicament.

"Damn House Elves!" I howled. "Couldn't they have put in a back door?" Shit, shit, shit.

"Oy you!" I rudely called to an evil-looking House Elf. "Anywhere to hide in this place?"

"Ar," said the elf wisely. I waited.

When nothing more was forthcoming, I snapped, "Well, hide me, then!"

The evil little critter took me by the hand and stuffed me into a pantry. I opened my mouth, ready to spout an incredulous protest, but he shut the door on me, leaving me alone in the dark with food products.

Even this was way too close for comfort to the scene I was sure was about to take place. Regulus and Sirius, coming to the kitchen from opposite directions? Disaster waiting to happen. I had deliberately only alerted James to Sirius' approaching presence, but I'd been all too aware of his brother making for the same destination.

After about two minutes, it started to get rather boring in the pantry, so I amused myself by trying to read the labels on the jars around me.

Heliotrope Sunflower Oil. (The grease without the guilt!)

Jester and Pyke's Best Fruit Jam. (It's magical!)

WANDMASTER Sardines. (A whole other kettle of fish!)

When I heard voices, though, I snapped to attention and stood stock still in order to eavesdrop.

"What would Master Sirius like?" a House Elf squeaked.

"Some alcohol and a table far away from this bastard," I heard Sirius growl. I smiled as I imagined Regulus rolling his eyes.

"And you, Master Regulus?"

"Er," I heard him say. "I don't know. Show me the pantry, I'll find something for myself."

"Oh no!" A House Elf yelped. "Master Regulus mustn't fetch food for himself! 'TIs a disgrace to House Elves!"

"I wasn't intending to procure food for myself," Regulus said haughtily. "I simply want to see what was available. Now, if you'll just show me the pantry…" I rolled my eyes at his hauteur and almost scoffed before I realised what was happening. To my horror, two pairs of feet were making their way towards my hiding place.

Not that I didn't want to see my boyfriend. Just not when stuck in a pantry, hiding from my nemesis.

The door creaked open and I inhaled sharply, waiting for the exclamation of surprise.

Instead, Regulus simply raised his eyebrows at me, asking a silent question.

I pressed a finger to my lips. Shh.

He nodded, reaching past me to grab a tin of sundried tomatoes. He backed out of the pantry, requesting a small pizza with sundried tomatoes on.

"Hang on," I heard him saying, "I want some olives too."

He pulled the door open again, moving right into the pantry so that he was pressed flush against me. "Want to explain why you're hiding in the pantry?" he breathed in my ear.

"Later. Owlery at midnight," I whispered back.

He nodded his agreement, brushing a whisper of a kiss across my lips before finding his olives and leaving.

Thankfully, he and Sirius managed to keep their differences out of the kitchen and I soon heard James and Sirius leave.

"All clear," Regulus called.

I stepped out from the pantry, stretching my cramped neck. Sitting down next to him, I shook my hair back and leaned my head on his shoulder. Smiling down at me, he fed me a bite of his pizza.

"Hi," he said softly.

"Hi," I replied equally quietly. With an unspoken signal, we rose at the same time and left the kitchens.

The Owlery, as per usual, was full of the noise of wings flapping, beaks clicking and (disgustingly enough) the soft splat of owl droppings plopping to the floor.

It was, however, free of people, which was exactly what Regulus and I needed. We moved to the large bay window, the parapet barely reaching my knees. A cool breeze fluttered at our faces every now and then, and as I looked down at the grass, a hundred feet below, I felt a familiar lurch in my stomach. It was a good lurch, something I felt when I was playing Quidditch. It was a feeling that set my blood pounding and sent adrenaline coursing through my veins.

"How are you feeling?" he asked softly, brushing hair from my face, his warm breath on the nape of my neck making me shiver. His soft side was something that only came out around me. On one hand, I felt special and privileged to be the only person to see it - and on the other, I wished he were like this all the time, so that other people could see that Slytherins weren't all bad. I turned in his arms, curling up against his chest.

"Exhausted," I murmured wearily. I could probably fall asleep right here with very little effort.

"Ah," he said with a smile. "Secretly seeing a Slytherin taking its toll?" he asked playfully. If I didn't know him so well, I would have missed the slight edge in his voice.

"Yeah, it's tough dating someone whose brother has a head bigger than his arse," I joked back weakly. He let out a small chuckle, his arms tightening around me before something occurred to him.

"Wait, have you been staring at Sirius' arse?" he gasped, wide-eyed.

"What?" I protested. "Who said I was staring?"

"Well, I assumed..." Regulus trailed off, a smirk playing at the corners of his lips.

"It doesn't take Dumbledore to figure out that a person's head is generally smaller than his arse," I informed him, turning back around to face the grounds. He chuckled again and we stood in comfortable silence for a moment before I remembered something I had been meaning to tell him.

"Your brother knows, by the way," I said softly.

He tensed and his abdomen muscles tightened against my back. "Know about?" he clarified. I nodded. He knew exactly what I was talking about. "Wait, so that time on the..."

"Yeah. He was the one watching us on the Astronomy Tower that night."

His expression was unfathomable for a moment as he looked over my head. What was he thinking? I imagined myself in his situation. I knew how he felt about Sirius, of course. Initially, he had conformed to Slytherin ways and been nasty to Sirius just to fit in. After Sirius ran away, though, he'd felt guilty for not stopping his mother and made attempts to be nicer. But Sirius, fixed in the idea that Regulus didn't give two pence for him, was so brutal and harsh when dealing with Regulus that guilt turned to hatred. If I were in Regulus' situation, I knew I'd still feel some little bit of affection for my older brother, regardless of what had happened in the past. I'd want to talk to Sirius about it, talk it over until it was sorted out. Before I could ask Regulus what he was thinking, though, he spoke, and his voice held nothing but concern for me.

"What does this mean for you and your friends?" he asked me worriedly.

"He hasn't told them... yet. Marlene knows something, but James knows nothing. Lily knows everything, so I'm not worried about that. But James... he'll be crushed if he finds out." For a second, hurt flashed in his eyes, and I hastened to soften the statement.

"It's him that's got a problem with Slytherins. I promise you, nothing anyone says can change what I think about you." He smiled and nodded to acknowledge my statement, but his eyes were far away.

He was silent for some time, lost in thought. Then, "What does this mean for us?" he asked me quietly, his voice oddly thick. When I glanced up at him, he was staring out over the grounds with a pensive expression - and, I noticed with a pang, suspiciously shiny eyes. Something broke inside me, a barrier I hadn't known I had. In that second, I put all my faith in Regulus and his goodness - and whether that was a good idea I didn't know. All I knew at that second was that I loved him.

"Hey," I whispered, cupping his cheek in my palm. "I promise you... if it came right down to it..." I paused for a moment, taking a breath to make sure I was making the right decision. The next five words would seriously affect my life if Sirius blabbed. "If it came right down to it," I repeated, "... I'd choose you over them."

At that moment, as if to provide the most dramatic finish to my statement, there was a crack of thunder and rain fell in torrents, crashing against the stone with a thunderous roar. My words hung in the air and we both stared at them (metaphorically) for a long moment. He inhaled deeply, as if trying to absorb the words before they floated out of his reach, and before I had time to let out more than a small yelp, he spun me around lightning-quick, his left hand pressing me closer to him and his right hand stroking my cheek.

"I love you," he told me. Simple words, a simple sentence, but the emotion with which he said it took my breath away. I pulled him by the collar of his robes, overcome with a desperate need to kiss him.

But just as his lips neared mine, footsteps clattered over the wooden floor and the Owlery door swung open with a slam. One second I was all passionately entwined with my boyfriend and the next, we were up against opposite walls with wands to our throats.

I sniffed. I recognised that sickly sweet, slightly musky scent.

"Zabini," I greeted distastefully. She smirked at me, flipping long, dark hair off her shoulders. She smelled like perfume and sex, I realised. Ew.

"Didn't I warn you to stay away from Regulus?" she breathed, prodding the underside of my jaw with her wand.

"Um," I said, thinking back. "Actually, no. I said that. You... you warned me that you were going to try to seduce him, if I remember right."

She frowned. My fabulous memory had thrown a wrench in her intimidation tactics. Her wand dug harder into my throat with her increased agitation and I gagged involuntarily.

"Well," she finally said, "I'm warning you now. Back off. A half-blood whore like you doesn't deserve the likes of Regulus. You stay away from him."

Anger pulsed in my veins with startling abruptness. I shoved her away from me, my rage exploding in a burst of wandless magic that knocked her and Regulus' captor out cold. I watched in shock as the flash of light burnt itself out. Shaking my hair back, I crossed the room, making sure to step on Zabini as I did so. Regulus caught me as I reached him.

"You... wandless magic..." he stammered. I was flummoxed.

"What?" I asked warily.

"That," he replied, "was so fucking hot."

I finally grinned, my lips pulling into a curve for what felt like the first time in weeks.

"What did she say to you?"

"Uh... she called me a half-blood whore," I said, frowning as I remembered. His grip on my wrists tightened.

"Are you alright?" he asked urgently, looking me in the eyes.

"I'm fine," I assured him with a smile. Cool fingers tilted my chin up and my grin widened as he ducked to kiss me. At the last second, I turned so his lips caught my cheek rather than my lips. He growled at me as I danced away.

"Tease," he accused. I simply winked at him, blowing him a kiss as I pulled the heavy Owery door open. An odd, floaty feeling bubbled up in me and I waggled my fingers flirtatiously in a manner reminiscent of Piper Zabini.

I was two steps out the door when he caught up to me, pulling me around and pressing a hard kiss to my lips.

"Bye, love," he breathed against my lips. His eyes, darkened with an emotion I couldn't identify, gazed down at me. With one last kiss, he turned and walked away, not looking back.

I watched him till he was out of sight.

I arrived back at Gryffindor Tower well past midnight, feeling almost delirious with happiness. The Fat Lady waggled suggestive brows at me before letting me past and I danced into the common room, walking on air.

"Rae," a voice said quietly from beside the fire.

I jumped about six feet. Clutching my chest, I fell to my knees next to my favourite armchair. I heard footsteps crossing the few feet between when I knelt and the fire, a sigh, and then strong arms lifted me up into the chair. "Merlin's saggy left buttock," I choked, gasping for breath.

James rolled his eyes.

"Don't ever," I breathed, "scare me like that again."

James grinned half-heartedly.

"What's up?" I asked curiously. "Is everything alright?"

He scratched his head, looking torn. "I… yeah. I just… in the kitchens before… when you went to hide in the pantry..." Horror rose up in me. What had I been thinking? "Didn't Regulus Black see you?"

I scrambled for a lie. "I cast a Disillusionment Charm before he came in. He almost caught me, though," I threw in for good measure. James looked relieved.

"Good," he said. "I wondered for a second…" he looked at me, and something in my face made him change his mind about finishing his sentence. "Never mind," he said abruptly.

"What?" I said confusedly.

"It's nothing. 'Night, Rae," he mumbled, kissing my forehead. He strode off to the boys' dormitories, leaving me bewildered and very curious.

"He suspects, you know," a voice said from the shadows, scaring the shit out of me for the second time that night.

"Fucking hell," I swore turning to look at the culprit. My expression immediately soured. "Oh. It's you."

"He suspects that something's going on between you and my brother," Sirius continued, ignoring both my cussing and my disgruntled words.

"So why doesn't he just ask me, confront me?" I retorted.

"Because he'd rather believe your lies than accept that you're actually going around with Regulus," he told me blithely.

"Is that so? How about, hmm, I don't know… he trusts me?" I snapped.

He stalked past me, turning to face me just as he reached the stairwell. "I wouldn't be so happy about that. After all, it's the trust he has in you that you're betraying."

Leaving me speechless, he, too, strode up the stairs and off to bed. For the first time since I had started seeing Regulus, doubts welled up in me. Was I really doing the right thing?

Thoughts? R&R!