Sybill breathed a sigh of relief as she listened to her dormmates file out of the room one by one. It had been impossible to focus on her homework while her housemates were around, talking louder than necessary and throwing the occasional insult her way. She never bothered with them anymore. It was much easier to keep her canopy closed and pretend they didn't exist.

Her thoughts shifted to the Quidditch match the girls had been talking about before they left. She had no idea who was playing today, but she had no doubt that Regulus would be there. She'd watched him play a few times, curious after he'd excitedly rambled about a match during one of their study sessions. The first time she saw him catch the Snitch, his gaze immediately turned towards the Ravenclaw stands, as if he were searching for something. She briefly wondered if it had been her that he was looking for.

Sybill slammed her textbook shut and slumped against her headboard. She couldn't help but wonder what he had been up to in the last month. She often felt his eyes on her during class, but she couldn't bring herself to look at him. Sheer anger had gotten her out of his "proposal" before. If he were to ask her a second time, she wasn't sure she could turn him down again. As ridiculous as she felt he was being, she couldn't shake the look in his eyes the last time she saw him.

Sighing, Sybill looked at the parchment she had set out for notes. It occurred to her that she hadn't written to her father in some time, as she so often did when she felt conflicted, worried, or utterly lonely. She wondered what he would think of the whole situation. Setting quill to parchment, she hastily recounted the event, not sparing any details. Once she had finished, she folded the letter neatly and clamored for a box she kept beneath her bed. There, it was placed alongside every other letter she had saved for her father over the last nine years.

"What do I do, Dad?" she mumbled, staring expectantly at the stack of letters as if they would solve all her problems. Sighing once more, she draped herself back over the edge of the bed. As she slid the box back in its place, another sight caught her eye.

"Oh, you idiot!" Sybill berated herself, hurriedly reaching for her tarot cards. Setting the deck down on her bed, she poked her head out of the canopy to reassure herself that she was still alone. Her dormmates weren't beneath sneaking back in and tearing her curtains aside to mock anything they might catch her doing. Especially divination. Taking a deep breath, she shuffled the cards, taking care not to drop any in her anxious state. She laid five cards out in front of her, but it was several moments before she forced herself to look at them.

Sybill held her breath as she turned over the first card. A two of spades. A six of spades. An eight of spades. Her frown deepened with each card. Difficult negotiations. Moving on to new experiences. Adversity and struggle to overcome.

"Just brilliant," she muttered.

The next card revealed the Devil, possibly insisting that she had a choice in this matter, in spite of everything. Biting her lip and squeezing her eyes shut, she turned over the last, praying for some light side in all of this. When she opened her eyes, she found the Lovers staring back at her. Sybill blinked. That wasn't at all what she was expecting. Resting her chin in her hands, she examined her layout, grasping for some sort of sensible interpretation.

"A difficult decision, but it's mine to make." Her eyes fell to the six of spades. "I'm meant to move on, even though it's hard." She remembered what Regulus had said, that she had nowhere to go after school. It was a terrible fact that she'd been in denial about for much longer than she had a right to be. She had been too angry at him for bringing up her mother to entertain the idea of him supporting her, taking care of her.

She looked at the Lovers once more. The card alone was obvious given her circumstances. Surely, she had some other option to move onto outside of marriage. And where was her "choice" in that? To struggle to get by or marry the first person to offer himself to her?

Shaking her head, Sybill gathered the cards up and tossed them back under her bed. There was absolutely no way love was in store for her and Regulus Black. Even if she could learn to love him, he was well out of her league. Her stomach fluttered at the notion. And yet, the cards were clear. She wanted guidance on what decision to make, and she had gotten it. Was that a yes, then? Was she really going to march up to him after class and agree to be his wife after a long month of having nothing to do with him? What if he'd already asked someone else and she made a fool out of herself? No, she had to be gradual about this. Ease back into their old routine, figure out where he stood on the matter. Flopping onto her stomach, she opened her textbook back up. Working herself up over it wasn't going to get her anywhere, so it was best that she do something worthwhile in the meantime.