Regulus was growing up fast, as new feelings arose in him every day. Disappointing his parents, the first taste of harsh discipline, and now - crashing loneliness. Of course he had experienced loneliness in those two weeks Severus spent between life and death, but the fear and shame had afforded him a nice distraction from it. Now, he knew Severus was alive and well, but far away, and that nobody but him cared about that fact. Walburga decided to be proactive, and arranged near daily dinners and lunches with other pureblood families that had daughters, some of them much younger, so young they had barely got their letter, in fact - but Walburga was desperate to ensure her son's future. If she had to wait 8 more years for grandchildren, so be it, she felt - it was better than Regulus wasting his time with him. Regulus sat through meal after excruciating, interminable meal, and tried to be as dull and as thick as he could without his mother picking up on the fact that he was doing it on purpose, and without being overtly rude. "My Regulus plays Seeker on the Slytherin Quidditch team!" Walburga boasted. "He earned 5 Outstanding OWLs!" (damn your tutoring, Severus, Regulus thought bitterly), and "We have recently bought him a flat right here in London!" (I cannot wait to live there with this girl whose last name is Parkison and whose face I forgot even as I was looking at it, he continued to complain to himself.)

He wrote to increasingly desperate letters to Severus all the time, but never sent them - his parents would have noticed if the family owl was gone.

"Severus, I miss you. It is miserable here. Worst summer I've ever had."

"Dear Severus, please come back with the Mark soon or she will try to set me up with herself next, Love, Regulus."

"Severus, why did you have to be the way that you are? My life could have been easy. I wish I'd never met you - I can't think of anybody else. Let alone tolerate them. Don't be long."

Severus did not waste his time. Lucius was surprised to see him at his doorstep. It was a busy time for the Malfoys, it turned out - they were planning Lucius's wedding, and so, Severus skipped the small talk, and just said it: "I need to become a Death Eater," he announced. Lucius had already been marked, and a snake's tail appeared on his inner left forearm where his sleeve ended. "I need your help."

Lucius was surprised, but pleased. "I never expected this to appeal to you, Snape. Are you sure?"

Severus nodded. Once, but it was enough. "I must confess, I wanted to recruit you, but it has been busy here since you've graduated. I am very pleased you came to me of your own initiative."

"You did?" Severus asked, confused. He expected to have to claw his way in.

"Oh, certainly. My father sings in your praises, you know that, Snape. You will be an asset. Oh, if only you weren't part Muggle… I cannot imagine how frustrating this must be."

Lucius was sympathetic, but at the same time, obtuse. He could not imagine, and he did not really try. It wasn't only being part Muggle, it was being part Tobias Snape, but Lucius could not discern between different classes of Muggle - Severus was not sure Malfoy had ever met one. What difference did it make to him? What difference did it make to anyone? But it did not matter - Severus was ready to put all this behind him. If he never saw Spinner's End again, he felt, it would be too late.

"Yes, but I am willing to do the best with what I have. I know the path I need to take. What do I need to do, Malfoy?"

That's when Malfoy's face showed apprehension - he furrowed his brow, and sealed his lips. "Being a half-blood is one thing, but part Muggle, Snape… if only he was even a quarter wizard, I am sure it would have been as simple as showing him your NEWT results, but things being the way they are… your loyalty will be called into question."

Severus was confused. "Did you not just say you wanted to recruit me?"

"Of course I did. And I would have, as soon as you came of age, if things had been different. But it will not be so simple."

Has anything ever been simple? Severus wondered.

"If you think I am sentimental about the Muggle, I am not," he said, and his lips curled upward in contempt. "No one who had met him could be unfaithful to the cause, Malfoy, believe me."

"Very good. I am very pleased to hear it, Snape."

"So what do I need to do?"

"I'm not sure. All the other ones are purebloods. I don't know what you'll be expected to do. All the Dark Lord asked of me was a promise of faithful service. He is a legilimens. Legilimency is-"

Severus interrupted him: "I know what it is."

Lucius quickly reined in his surprise - even he did not know what it was before he experienced it.

"That was everything I needed to do - I proved my loyalty and commitment. I do not know what he asked of the others. It must be different for each one, and we are not allowed to say. What do you think you can offer?"

Severus was hesitant. He knew he was powerful, but he knew he had nothing else to offer, nothing but talent. True - Regulus insisted that his talent was rare, the spellcrafting in particular, but Severus was not sure he was right. And if he is right - when has being different helped you? If the Dark Lord could practice legilimency, he would know, anyway, and he would decide what it means. Severus held his tongue. Then, he remembered his other gift. "Can I borrow your owl, Malfoy? There is something I might be able to offer…" Severus said, cryptically, and Malfoy raised a quizzical eyebrow at him, but did not ask questions. "As soon as Athena is back from delivering the invitations to the wedding, you're welcome to her. It could be a while, though you being here and not all the way up north is definitely going to save some time." Severus forced himself to smile.

It took her days to return. When she finally did, he wrote to Regulus at once: "Reg, this is Severus. I borrowed Malfoy's owl. Join too. It will help me get in. We'll do it together. Use this owl to send your answer, not yours." All he could do after that was wait for Athena to return.

He could picture it in tantalizing detail - Regulus's left arm and his, bearing the same Mark, members of the force dedicated to freeing the world of Muggle tyranny. An organization that might put his talents to use, something more than just defending himself against unworthy opponents and interfering with Quidditch matches. The world beyond Hogwarts finally started to look interesting. Lucius cordially invited him to sleep in a spare bedroom - he always had the graciousness to offer, before Severus had to ask - and Severus lay on the bed and felt anticipation the likes of which he hadn't felt since he got his letter. The only problem was that it would take the blasted owl a week to come back

When Regulus received the letter, he decided to reply in person. After all, his parents could not take issue with him travelling to see the Malfoys, and so he was able to tell them where he was headed with complete honesty.

Their house elf opened the door and announced Regulus's arrival. The manor was buzzing with excitement and preparations toward the wedding, which was a months away. Lucius came down the stairs wearing dress robes that still had pins in them.

"Well, young Mr. Black! this is a surprise! I hope you will forgive my attire. What brings you here?" He asked.

"I want to join you and the Dark Lord."

Lucius contained the urge to rub his eyes in disbelief. The same conversation twice in one week, and this, of all weeks. It was good, very good - to give the Dark Lord two recruits in one stroke, one of them a Black - that could go a long way toward his goals. He would be able to position himself very highly indeed among the Death Eaters, and Regulus's pedigree was much easier to swallow.

"Come in and have a seat, Black," Lucius invited him, and they sat down on the sofa. "Elf! Refreshments for our guest, right away!" He ordered, and their exhausted-looking elf popped out of sight, and immediately returned with a tray.

Regulus shifted in his seat uncomfortably and wondered where in the manor Severus was, if he was still there at all, or maybe working at Malfoy's father's apothecary…

"Why do you want to join?" Lucius asked, and unbeknownst to him, images flashed through Regulus's mind, of scars and of Dumbledore casting a silencing charm, and he was overcome with a sense of unbearable oppression that was only partly his own, and longing for a world where he and Severus could be equals, and no longer have to fight nearly to death for every moment of happiness. Through clenched teeth, he explained: "Dumbledore is corrupting everything. Everything he touches. I cannot continue to study at that school like this. I need to know I am doing something about him."

Careful not to look overly zealous, Lucius asked him: "Don't you think you are going too fast? Perhaps you should wait until after you have graduated, see how you do on your NEWTs, see what your options are?"

"I do not need to know," Regulus said, with steely resolve. "I want to be part of the solution. Our world is degenerating. You can see that."

Lucius liked what he saw, very much. "You will bring honor to your family, Mr. Black. I could not be more pleased to be your future cousin. I am very glad to see you are not following in your brother's footsteps."

Setting the bar very low for me, I see. Regulus could not wait for the day people stop comparing him to Sirius. "Do not talk to me about him. Whatever you think you know about him, he is worse than that."

Lucius did not inquire further.

"Do you have a spare room for me?" Regulus asked, very suddenly.

"I admit it is a little crowded at the moment. We already have a house guest. I will check with him, and see if you can share. It's Snape, do you know him?"

Regulus's heart skipped a beat, but his face did not show it.

"Yes, he was in the year above me," Regulus said, as casually as he could. "He tutored me a little," he added.

"Oh yes, he is very clever, very clever. Well, let us walk up to the guest room and check."

Regulus would have ran up the stairs, but his cursed future cousin climbed at a leisurely pace, and interviewed him about his dear mother and father, and Professor Slughorn, and Quidditch… by the time his hand knocked on the door Regulus wanted to toss him aside and kick the door in, but still, he carried himself as if the Malfoy's house guest was a person of no consequence to him. "Lucius and Mr. Black, Snape. May we come in?"

"Of course."

The door opened. Severus placed a bookmark inside a book and laid it on the bedside table, and his eyes lingered on Regulus for less than a second longer than they did on Lucius, who did not notice this. He had no idea that he was witnessing the happiest moment they'd had all summer, or indeed, that it was not a happy coincidence that both of them showed up in the same week, with the same desire.

"Snape," Regulus said curtly.

"Black," Severus replied.

"My dear fellow Slytherins, I must return to the wedding business. Severus, I'm sure Regulus will be able to regale you with stories about the old stomping ground," Lucius said. "I am sorry I cannot offer you each a room, but with the wedding on the way, every room is spoken for."

"You have always been generous to me, Malfoy, I appreciate it," Severus said, and Regulus expressed his gratitude as well and said Malfoy is always welcome to stay with them - "but of course, you'll be family soon, so it goes without saying!" - and Lucius nodded excitedly and finally, finally, headed toward the door.

"Well, enjoy the rest of your evening," Lucius said, and closed the door behind him.

"I have never been happier to see the back of his hea-" Severus tried to say, but Regulus jumped on him like a cat before he could finish his sentence.

"No -" Regulus commanded, then kissed Severus's open mouth, and stopped only to look at him, to soak in his face… "More -" he kissed his neck next, and Severus's head tilted back and he exhaled… "Talking!" He finally said, and Severus was happy to oblige, as he quickly and silently charmed the door locked.