April 1979

Freya continued to find life as Regulus's pet fox much more agreeable than her life as a Hogwarts student, but things settled into an easier routine as the weeks passed. The stares and whispers every time she sat down with Regulus and his friends at the Slytherin table ceased; her Gryffindor friends no longer badgered her to tell them what was going on and let them "help her." James sent fewer and fewer owls as time passed, and Sirius sent none at all since the wedding. She ended up spending every night as a fox in Slytherin as Regulus's fox, Vixen, and during the day she spent the majority of her time in the library with Regulus and Barty who, when they buckled down, made surprisingly good study partners. Freya tired easily of the constant droll in Regulus's dorm about the Dark Lord and the superiority of purebloods, but it did make her feel a little better after fights with Charlotte occasionally. Currently, Freya was hiding in an abandoned classroom, waiting for her prey to come by.

At long last, Freya reached out and grabbed Regulus by the arm as he walked past her hiding spot, pulling him into the room. She shoved him hard against the wall and pressed her body up against his, even as Regulus aimed his wand at her, ready to defend himself if necessary. When he recognized his wife and what she was doing, Regulus laughed. Smirking at her, he asked with a husky voice, "What are you up to, Freya, darling?"

Freya dragged her hands slowly down his chest. "You haven't touched me hardly in months," she whispered lustfully. "Ever since that stupid fight about becoming an Auror. I'm sick of it."

Regulus sighed. "I've not been withholding sex on purpose, you know," he said softly. "We're both always studying, and whenever we're not studying, I can't find you anywhere."

Freya brushed her lips teasingly against Regulus's mouth. "I know; I've been avoiding you. At first it was because I was so angry with you for asking me to be a spy; then once the anger passed, I didn't want to be with you because I was so depressed."

Regulus held her face in his hands, concern filling his eyes. "What do you mean, you've been depressed? Sweetheart, why didn't you tell me? You know I would've done anything to help you feel better."

Freya wouldn't meet his gaze. "This time you couldn't have done anything to help. It's this whole war that's been making me depressed. I love you so much, but not being able to talk to or be with my friends and family because we're supposed to hate each other, it hurts. I've felt so alone; you know I'm not exactly close with any of your friends or family."

Regulus offered her a small smile. "Yeah, they can be difficult to tolerate at times. You'll get used to them though."

Freya shook her head. "No, I won't. I don't want to be around them any more than I have to, but I know that means that after graduation in a couple months, I'll be more alone than ever, isolated in that house with you and your parents and Kreacher."

Regulus frowned. "What are you saying, Freya?"

Freya took a steadying deep breath, then said hesitantly, "I'm saying that you better start reminding me every damn day how much you love me, and how much I love you, because without that, I don't think I'll be able to handle being the spy you want me to be."

Regulus's eyes grew wide. "Are you saying you're going to become an Auror?" Freya nodded as she slowly tangled her fingers in Regulus's dark hair. "Are you sure about this? It's a huge risk that you're taking, and it's not going to be easy."

Freya answered quickly, "Yes, I'm sure. I love you, Regulus, but I can't live like this anymore, never talking to anyone but you and Barty. I don't just want to do this; I need to do this. Besides, this will just strengthen your position with the Dark Lord, right? It just means we'll be that much safer in the long run, no matter who wins the war, right?"

"Right," Regulus said, a proud smile appearing on his face.

Freya tightened her grip on his hair and pulled his face to her until her lips brushed his as she spoke. "Then you'd better take me now before I change my mind," she whispered. Regulus didn't need any more encouragement; his hands immediately gripped her body roughly and pulled her hips against his as his lips crashed into hers.

June 1979

Graduation night was easy for Freya and Regulus. The Potters and their friends all came to support Freya. Regulus was surprisingly at ease mingling with Freya's parents, brother, and sister-in-law, Sirius, Remus, and Peter. Lily, Remus, Sirius, and Peter all eyed the married couple suspiciously throughout the celebration at the Three Broomsticks, but said nothing. James laughed with Regulus at the bar at something the Slytherin had said, slapping him on the back of the shoulder good-naturedly, as Freya sat at a table wedged between Sirius and Remus, smiling away as she watched the two of them. Sirius leaned in and whispered in her ear, "What are the two of you up to, Freya? I don't think I've ever seen Regulus be this friendly with non-Slytherins."

Freya offered Sirius an innocent smile. "Sirius, I honestly have no idea what you're talking about. Regulus is just making an effort to be nice to my family, and you, Remus, and Peter are part of that family."

Sirius raised an eyebrow at her as the music changed to some Latin number, clearly not believing a word Freya said. Before Sirius could voice his doubts, however, James dashed across the room and pulled Freya to her feet. "Come dance with me, baby sis," James insisted. Freya laughed as he pulled her to the dance floor that Rosmerta's mum had created at her daughter's request special for the night. James pulled his sister close and started doing the salsa, and Freya followed easily. Learning to dance well had been one of the only pureblood traditions that their mum had insisted on in the Potter household, but it was one that the two siblings had been enthusiastic about. As they danced, James murmured in her ear, "I'm impressed with Regulus's friendly behavior tonight. You could almost believe that he doesn't despise every single one of us with every fiber of his being."

Freya laughed softly at her brother's words. "He is pretty convincing, isn't he?" she whispered back.

James smiled at Freya. "I hope that you're just as convincing around him and his Slytherins. I hope you realize how dangerous this game you're playing with the Death Eaters is," James said, growing serious, though no one could ever tell that from his face. To the rest of the room, it was as though Freya and James were still laughing and having fun dancing with each other.

Freya answered, "Trust me, I know. I'm terrified about what's going to happen in the coming weeks."

James said softly, "It'll be ok. Just remember that if it gets to be too much, you can always come stay with Mum and Dad, or me and Lily. You know we'll always protect you."

Freya grinned, shaking her head slightly. "That's why I came to you with this, remember? I trust you, James. I probably should have turned to you about all of this a year ago when Regulus and I first started dating, but it's too late for all of that now." The two were silent for a moment, then Freya asked, "You'll keep this secret, right? I don't want anyone to know where you're getting this information from. Regulus is being so friendly to support my position with the Aurors, to keep suspicion from being cast on me when the Aurors start getting screwed over, but he doesn't know about our deal. Sabotaging the Aurors while helping the Order at the same time is going to be nearly impossible without getting caught by one side or the other. I don't want to end up in Azkaban or dead because one of us slipped up."

James had to fight not to frown at that. "I haven't even told Lily about the letter you sent me back in April. I burned it as soon as I finished reading it. I don't care how many Unforgivable Curses I get put under, no one will ever find out that you're feeding me information about the Death Eaters and their movements. I swear," he said firmly.

"Solemnly swear?" Freya teased, making James laugh softly and shake his head as the dance ended.

"Yes, I solemnly swear," James replied as Sirius came up behind Freya and wrapped his arms around her, swaying to the music as the next song started.

Sirius murmured in her ear, sending shivers down her spine, "Dance with me?" Freya nodded hesitantly as he pulled her flush against him for the tango. Sirius asked, "So, I gather that James is in on something that I don't have a clue about?"

Freya glanced over Sirius's shoulder at where James stood having an easy conversation with Regulus, as though the conversation the two siblings had just shared had never happened. "Yes, he is," she said under her breath.

Sirius heard her words anyway. "Why are the two of you keeping secrets from the rest of us all of a sudden?" Sirius demanded, his lips brushing the skin of her jaw as he said it, making her shudder as she remembered what it was like to have him take her. Sirius continued, "I've gotten used to you shutting us out and keeping secrets from us, but James? This isn't like him at all; James has always told me everything. What have you gotten him involved in?"

Freya leaned into Sirius's lead, dragging her foot sensually up his leg before hooking her knee around his hip, their lips mere millimeters apart. She answered, her voice tantalizing him, "Nothing that's any of your concern, Sirius."

Sirius ran a hand up her now mostly exposed thigh as his stormy gray eyes stared into her hazel eyes. "Don't keep pushing me away," Sirius whispered. "I know you've married him already, but that doesn't change what there is between us. You used to trust me every bit as much, if not more, than James."

Freya didn't break eye contact as he gently pushed her back off him to stand on both feet, and the skin of her thigh still tingled from Sirius's touch. "Sirius, I love him," she replied mildly. "We had sex a few times, but you had no feelings for me. If you're trying to tell me that you have feelings for me now, you've waited for too long."

"You could leave him," Sirius pointed out, his hold on her waist tight. "You'd be leaving behind Voldemort and his followers in the process; you can't tell me that the idea doesn't appeal to you."

Freya bit her lip thoughtfully, then after a few short moments said, "Leaving that world behind does appeal to me, but if that ever happens, I won't be leaving alone."

"Regulus would never leave his precious little Slytherin pals," Sirius said scornfully.

Freya hissed, "You don't know him as well as you think you do, Sirius Black. That's why I'm not sharing my secrets with you. You might be good at keep secrets, but something like this…" She shook her head. "You're too reckless, too confrontational. You'd try to barge into the situation like a bull in a china shop, and if you tried to fight this I'm going to end up dead."

Sirius frowned. Freya turned her head to follow his gaze, and his eyes landed on Regulus, who was standing alone at the bar ordering another drink. Freya suddenly felt Sirius's hand close around her wrist, and he tugged her toward the back of the pub, slipping around the bar, through the employees only door to the kitchen, and out the back door as the song ended. He pinned her to the back wall of the tavern and easily wrestled her wand from her hand before she could fire a spell at him. "What has he been doing to you?" Sirius demanded.

Freya's eyes grew wide, slightly fearful of Sirius's sudden temper. "What are you talking about?" Freya snapped. "Regulus hasn't done anything to me; why do always jump straight to that? Like he must've cursed me or fed me a love potion or something to get me to marry him? It can't just be the simple solution — that I love him?"

Sirius shook his head and slammed his hand angrily against the wall by her head. Freya flinched hard, startled by the movement and the loud noise it created. "Damn it, Freya," he growled roughly. "I mean it, what has he done, hmm? Come on, come on; talk to me! I already know that for a long time now he's been isolating you from your friends and family, forcing you to pull away from all of us. Even your own bloody parents have barely heard from you or seen you this past year, and they're the best people that I've ever known. You're losing that spark in your eyes; it's like the fire in you is dying, like he's draining all the life out of you. You're secretive and careful and sneaky, and those are things I never thought I'd see in you. I'll bet he's even hit you before, hasn't he?"

Freya's jaw dropped in surprise at Sirius's shockingly accurate accusations before she remembered herself. She shut her mouth quickly and shook her head hard. "No, Sirius, don't be stupid. Regulus would never…" she denied vehemently before he cut her off.

"No, you don't be stupid, Freya," Sirius retorted. "Tell me the truth, right now. Has he been hitting you?"

Freya looked down at the ground, not willing to meet Sirius's angry gaze. "One time. Just one time," Freya whispered. "But he's sorry; he didn't mean it! He said it was stupid and that he should have never…"

"You're damn right he should have never done that!" Sirius said, perhaps a little too loudly. "I love you, Freya, but you're an idiot if you truly think it's never going to happen again or that it won't get worse."

"It won't; he promised," Freya argued.

Sirius rolled his eyes. "Do you have any idea how many times I've overheard my father promise that to my mother?" Sirius sneered. "It won't get any better, Freya. He's just going to keep hurting you, and it will get worse. Next thing you know, he'll be calling you nasty names every time you turn around and throwing Unforgivable Curses your way when he's angry, whether he's angry at you or not."

Freya reached up to slap Sirius across the face, but Sirius caught hold of her wrist and easily held her at bay. "He is nothing like your father," Freya said sharply.

Sirius yelled, "You don't know what he's like! You've barely met him; you stayed there a couple weeks over break. Just wait until you have to live there this summer; it won't be a pretty sight, I can promise you that. You've not seen the way Orion Black treats his wife and sons. It's not just me, you know; I just got the most of it because I pissed him off the most, but even Regulus got put under the Cruciatus Curse a few times when Orion was feeling particularly ferocious. Regulus learned how to handle a wife from our father, and what you're in for isn't pretty. I'm begging you; leave the bastard now before it's too late."

Freya cringed, pressing herself as close as she could to the wall. "No," Freya mumbled. "I'm sure everything you've said about your father being a monster is true, but you really don't know Regulus. He is such a good guy with a good heart. You've not seen the way he gets so torn up inside after… things. He goes sneaking out of the castle with his Slytherin friends and comes back and closes the curtains around his bed and cries for hours. I don't know what he does that causes that; he never tells me. But he just gets so very upset, and I just lay there with him for hours, trying to help. Nothing I do can help though; all I can do is remind him that someone still loves him no matter what he does. That's what he needs from you, you know. He needs to know that he's still your brother, that just because your mother blasted you off some stupid tapestry doesn't mean that you don't still love him."

Sirius scoffed. "You know damn well that whether or not I love my brother will make no difference at this point. Regulus has made his choice; he's a Death Eater now, isn't he? He's got his bloody mark?" Freya refused to answer; she glanced around at anything but Sirius's face. He nodded. "When did he get the mark, Freya?" he said, suddenly tender.

Freya sighed. "A long time ago. It doesn't matter, ok? He made a mistake. I think he's starting to regret it. I think he's beginning to want out."

"Well, you never took the mark, and I know you don't want to, so why are you getting involved in all of this? Just get out, Freya! While you still can, get out, please. You know nothing would make James happier." Fear flashed in Freya's eyes at the mention of her brother. Sirius gasped. "Oh, Merlin, James doesn't know that Regulus is abusing you, does he?"

"He's not abusing me!" Freya exclaimed heatedly.

"He is abusing you, Freya!" Sirius shouted back.

"Who's abusing Freya?"

James's voice washed over Freya like a wave of cold water, and Freya shut her eyes, her mind protesting the whole situation. "This isn't happening," she said faintly to herself.

Sirius sighed. "Actually, it's about bloody time that this happened. Somebody has to help you get out of there."

James, furrowing his brow, repeated, "Who is abusing my sister, Sirius?"

Freya shook her head as Sirius answered loudly, "Regulus, who else? He's a bloody Death Eater; he has the Dark Mark. Freya's even admitted that he's hit her before! Next it'll be the Cruciatus Curse, you know. I've been through this mess with my family before; I know how this works. Let me guess, you've covered up whatever bruises he's left on you with a Disillusionment Spell, right?"

Freya fought back tears as she tangled her fingers in her hair and tugged at the roots in frustration, fighting the urge to curse Sirius. "No, no, no, no! I told you, Sirius; he hit me once — once! That's it! He freaked out afterwards. He said he was sorry, that it was stupid, that he didn't mean it! He swore he'd never lay a hand on me again, and he hasn't!"

James waved his wand at her, muttering under his breath. As James finished, Sirius immediately began checking every inch of her skin for bruises, but as the Disillusionment Spell wore off, large patches of blue and purple skin appeared on both sides of her neck. Sirius forced the shoulders of her sleeveless dress off her to reveal even more patches of bruises. Freya slapped Sirius's hands away angrily. James muttered, "That's it. Forget our plan. I'm just going to kill him."

Freya screamed, "Don't you dare, James! I don't care that Sirius has my wand right now; you lay one hand on him, and I swear, I will rip you into so many pieces that Lily can't even figure out how to put you back together!"

"I don't care what you do to me, Freya," James shouted back. "No one treats my little sister like this."

"James, you stupid git," Freya yelled hoarsely, tears streaming down her cheeks. "He hasn't hurt me! That one time was months and months ago…"

Sirius derided, "Yeah, I bet it did. Let me guess, he wasn't happy you visited us on Christmas because it made you two look bad to the other Death Eaters, am I right? He taught you a really good lesson after you left the Potters' house, didn't he? Probably left all sorts of bruises on that pretty face of yours, didn't he?"

"Shut up!" Freya cried, attempting to slap Sirius again, and once more he caught her hand easily, but this time he was more tender, holding her hand in his firmly enough to keep her from scratching his eyes out, while still entwining his fingers with hers and caressing the back of her hand with his thumb. He held her hand to his chest, and when she threatened him with her left hand instead, he did the same with her other hand. Freya sobbed as she mumbled, "One hit. One hard slap across the face for going behind his back and doing something so stupid. He was fearful and stupid, and he admits that. He's never going to do it again, and so far in six months he hasn't hurt me. These bruises aren't from Regulus hurting me, you stupid gits; they're just hickeys. I'm sure the two of you have heard of them before. You certainly left enough of them on me, Sirius, that you should recognize them."

James frowned. "Wait, Sirius has given you hickeys? Damn it! Nobody tells me fucking anything! When the hell did this happen?"

Freya sighed and allowed herself to lean against Sirius, her forehead resting on her brother-in-law's shoulder. "Right, I forgot that was one of the things I obliviated from your memory that one time," she mumbled.

Sirius said defensively, "Look, mate, I know I shouldn't have kept this secret from you and should've dated your sister properly, but we slept together a couple times that spring semester of seventh year. That's not the important thing right now, though. What matters is getting Freya away from my damn brother before he hurts her again."

"He's not going to hurt me again," Freya protested weakly, the fight slowly draining out of her.

James sighed. "Sirius, don't think this doesn't mean I'm not pissed as hell that you slept with my sister, but I'm choosing to ignore that for now. You're right; we can't let him hurt her again."

"Damn it, James, shut up," Freya moaned. "He's not going to hurt me; he loves me, and I love him. I'm not leaving him, and there's nothing you can do to make me."

Sirius and James looked at each other thoughtfully. "Maybe the Imperius Curse?" James suggested, barely loud enough for the other two to hear.

Sirius nodded slowly as Freya sprang back to life, screaming, "Don't you fucking dare!"

James said gently, "You're in such a bad situation, Freya, even if Regulus never hurts you again. What the Death Eaters are making you do…"

Freya gingerly stole her wand from Sirius's pocket as she said, "My plan to get around that will work, and you bloody well know it, James. Please, I'm begging you to trust me. Give my plan a chance. If things go wrong, then you can get me out, but the only way I'm ever leaving Regulus is if I'm dead. Do you understand that? I have no problem leaving the Death Eaters behind me, but if you try to force me to leave Regulus, then you'll have to kill me, get it?"

James sighed in defeat. Sirius shook his head. "No, I don't know what scheme you two have cooked up, but I can't leave you in that house just to be used as a punching bag. I can't," Sirius moaned.

Freya pointed her wand at Sirius's chest and said angrily, "Petrificus Totalus." Sirius froze in place, his eyes glaring angrily at Freya. "James, please, trust me," Freya begged.

James sighed, running a hand through his hair before pushing his glasses further up his nose. "Fine, fine, Freya. But at the first sign that Regulus is going to hurt you again or that the plan is failing, you're getting out of there, with or without Regulus."

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