Ice Cream - Starchaser

Chapter 8

Sirius still wasn't here. It was Tuesday, the following week, and Sirius Black hadn't come by to say hello to his brother. Regulus was starting to wonder if his friends were telling him lies.

If it wasn't worse, Evan's twin sister, Pandora, was there.

Much to his parents' disapproval, Regulus was over at the Rosier's home. Evan was always open to his relationship with Barty. It was so shocking that Regulus didn't notice any sooner. They were always touching and loving. It was obvious they were more than friends. Yet, Regulus still didn't know what it meant to be friends.

Regulus was only invited to the Rosier's for breakfast, as it was a family special. The Rosier's were known for being opening and sweet to anyone outside of their bubble. Pandora was a fabulous example of such.

Pandora, unlike her brother, had black hair. It had some small bits of silver, barely noticeable. She had tan skin and her eyes were blue. Both Pandora and Evan were of mixed origin, being Chinese and French. They both lacked the knowledge of the Chinese language, not knowing either Mandarin or Cantonese, but they picked up on French and English.

Pandora was born a Rosier yet she married into the Lovegood family. At twenty-two, Pandora Rosier had adopted the family name of Lovegood. She had a daughter named Luna, a blonde girl just like her father. Her eyes were blue, matching her mother's. She was the perfect blend of the two. She was only nine years old.

Luna wandered in the garden. She walked without her shoes on, exploring around. Her father, Xenophilius, watched her carefully. Luna was always a curious girl.

Pandora sat next to Regulus on the couch. She smiled at him. Everyone was always smiling at him.

"Hello," she greeted.

Regulus didn't reply.

Pandora didn't take this a sign as to stop talking. She continued on. If she bothered Regulus she wouldn't notice. Pandora was oblivious.

"It's nice to see Evan has friends other than his boyfriend."

Regulus swallowed his saliva.

"It doesn't bother you?" he asks.

Pandora doesn't bat an eye. "Him having a boyfriend? Oh no," she is relaxed. "I am also queer myself." She traced the air with her fingers like a witch. "I'm pansexual. Are you aware of this term?"

Regulus watches as Barty and Evan feed each other chocolate frogs. Barty takes a break and drinks a glass of whiskey, choking on it. Evan just smiles at him. He drinks his cup of coffee just before offering some to Barty. Barty drinks it. He laughs. He looks so happy. They both do.

"No," Regulus answers honestly.

Pandora lays her hands onto her lap. "I do not see gender in who I fancy. I fancy who I do. I've loved women, I've loved men. I love them for their personality, not the gender they are within."

Luna picks up a daffodil. She walks to her father, handing it to him. He pulls her into his arms and hugs her. She places it into his long blonde hair, not caring that he held her. She had no thoughts but the enjoyment of life.

"Isn't that how everyone loves?" Regulus asked.

Pandora shakes her head. "Oh, no. Some people only love men, some only love women. Though they fall for the personality, if that person was the gender they do not consider then they wouldn't have fallen for them originally."

Regulus thought about how he only developed an attraction to Mulan when she was a boy, not when she was a woman. He liked men, not women. Maybe he wasn't like Pandora in every way.

"Evan wouldn't love Barty if he was a woman," Pandora exclaims. "It'd be sad, as Evan truly is his soulmate. They're bond by a string, you see? Not in literal but in perspective. It's like the universe was pulling them together. Even when he hadn't met Barty, Barty was around in some way or another. He was in his same Hogwarts house, he had been to the same places as he. Not everyone loves how I do. That's why we love in a spectrum. Perhaps, you do too."

Pandora looks at Regulus. He locks eyes with her.

"Are you like Evan?" she asks.

Regulus' eyes find Evan and Barty once more. "Yes."

***

It was years ago when James first loved someone. Her name was Lily Evans. Lily Evans was a perfect girl. She was kind, she was brave. She was bold, confident, and chivalrous. There was no doubt he'd love someone like her.

He had gotten Lily to love him back after many years of chasing after her. They married and they had a kid, Harry Potter. Lily was renamed Lily Evans Potter. James was so happy with Lily. He loved her, but deep down he knew there was something wrong.

The year Harry turned seven, James and Lily divorced. Harry was distraught and confused. All he knew of his parents was the love and affection they shared. How they danced in the kitchen, how they were snuggling close. He didn't understand why this happened.

James had moved out of Lily's house. He moved temporarily in with Sirius. He would visit his son, say hi to Lily. They still had a lovely relationship, but it was purely platonic.

Lily began inviting Mary over to help her care for Harry. She needed someone to help her.

It wasn't until Lily and Mary began dating a year later that Harry understood why his parents couldn't love each other how he wanted. Sometimes parents drift apart. Sometimes they weren't destined to be.

Harry watched as Mary and Lily loved each other in the way he'd seen his parents. He knew that it was okay.

James had taken the divorce well. He and Sirius enjoyed their silly roommate business. They would laugh, joke. James would take care of the house when Sirius was away on a date with Remus. Everything was going perfectly.

Lily eventually moved into a different town. Harry was with her for the school year and was with James the summer and breaks. It was a perfect balance and it was easy to understand.

The universe was a silly thing. It had everything in order for the Potters. Lily had Mary and James searched for his love. He never knew that he was right under his nose.

If there was something connecting two people together, as Pandora said, then James and Regulus were connected by a string. Everything was leading them to each other. Soulmates, she would think. If they were then it'd be perfect.

Sirius would have an aneurism over this.