ʀᴏᴜɢᴇ ʀɪᴠᴇʀ||ʀ.ᴀ.ʙ.

S𝘆𝗻𝗼𝗽𝘀𝗶𝘀

"No human being has ever stood so close to my soul as you stand."

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Synopsis

Cynically enough the Wizarding world was a mess in 1970s, Life was fairly uncertain. And you had to choose a side before it was too late. Everything was either black or white, right or wrong. There was no grey or in between.

Regulus Black had a last year of his supposed freedom in hogwarts before he moved on towards his impending doom. He wasn't expecting much from it though. His brother had left him and hogwarts, he was out there, fighting the war, with his found family, without Regulus. Regulus had given up already. He wasn't living life, he was merely existing.

Ersilia Lupin was finally forced out of the bubble wrapped perfect life her brother and the marauders had kept her in. She wasn't oblivious ofcourse, she knew what was happening around her but she happily spent her days ignoring everything that was going on. She couldn't do that anymore. Her brother and his friends were gone, probably risking their lives as she spoke, but she was left at hogwarts, alone.

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Ersilia Lupin was a sweetheart, a proud Ravenclaw. She wasn't perfect of course. She had enemies, she got in fights and detentions. From the outsideof you'd look at her, you'd see her as a spoiled and bratty child. From a single glance you'd see her brother and his friends doing everything in their power to keep her happy, just to help her in avoide any and every inconvenience. but everything is not what it seems. If someone would bother to look closely they would see how she became an anchor for each one of them, individually. James, Sirius and Peter none of them had a sister, so when they first saw her in the summer break before their second year, running around the cottage, and obnoxiously looking for nargles so that it wouldn't cause a ruckus for remus and his friends, they couldn't help but want to protect her innocence at all costs.

Ersilia knew how much their friendship had meant to remus from the letters he wrote to her. She just wanted everything to be perfect. Remus and Ersilia had always been close growing up, Remus couldn't be more happy to have his little sister around with him at hogwarts, and as the years went by their relationship only grew stronger. Ersilia was there by his side, after every full moon in the hospital wing. She was the only one allowed to. And before full moons, Ersilia was the only one who could go within five feet of him and not have him snap at her. Her being so close to with her brother and being around him so much eventually led to her forming an unbreakable bond with the marauders.

James met Lily through Esilia in his second year, when she was helping Ersilia with her charms homework. And he would be forever grateful for that. James would often subconsciously find himself with Ersilia when he would feel his insecurities start to get the best of him, because even the ever so confident James Potter had his moments. She would drop everything to hear him out, and that's what he appreciated about her the most. She never gave him any advice, because after all he was James Potter, who was he if not the boy who would strut around in the corridors without a care in the world. But she would just listen and let him vent it all out.

Sirius and Ersilia were quite neutral up until her third year and his fourth. Sure they would hang around each other, but never had a reason to talk except when it was about remus. That was until one day when they accidentally met in the kitchens one night, both were in a rather horrible mood. Sirius because he'd just received a letter from his parents and Ersilia because she failed astronomy, yes she's a nerd. They sat in silence for a while, but one thing led to another, and somewhere down the lines while she was ranting about her grades in astronomy, Sirius forgot about his family troubles for the while. And he realised just how special the Lupins actually were to him, the boy was the love of his life and the other, like a little sister. So as Remus took on the role of the understanding brother, Sirius took it upon himself to become the protective one.

Peter was by far Ersilia's favourite marauder, after her brother. She would go as far as to call him her best friend. No one really knew how their friendship started, or who initiated what, not even themselves, it just happened. She would push him out of his shell a little and help him become the gryffindor in him. And as Ersilia had a habit of pushing herself into isolation and removing herself from existence, Peter would remind her of the fun things out, and bring her out of her slight trance. She was the confidence Peter never had. Her faith in him gave him a reason to not give up and betray everything his friends stood for.

And all this while regulus watched from far away how his brother had found a family that was not him. It hurt him when he would accidentally make eye contact with Sirius and then look away because he still went home for the holidays and would hear his parents go on and on about pure blood motto and slytherin's beliefs. He hears it so much that he believes it. But he doesn't, because Regulus still remembers the Sirius that used to build forts with him, crack jokes and make him laugh while the house was full of silence and tension. Most of all he remembers the Sirius that begged him to come with him, while he begged him not to leave.

Ersilia and Regulus had gone six years without ever having a decent conversation with each other. Regulus knew who ersilia was, he would watch from afar as his brother would shield her from everything that would try to hurt her. No he was not envious, he just missed the times when his brother used do that for him. Ersilia would watch him sometimes and she'd see him looking at his brother and his friends. And how he never seemed to pay attention in class either staring out the window or staring at nothing and still being top in their year.

She would watch how his demeanour would automatically shift from solemn to stiff the instant his friends interrupted his solitude. She would watch him as he'd try not to roll his eyes when his brother would make a fool of himself in front of everyone in the great hall. She would watch how on rare occasions when he and his brother would talk, how bright his eyes would shine, even if they were arguing. She would watch him always being silent and observing everyone but being oblivious enough to not notice the person observing him.

And after everything, they weren't supposed to meet. They were supposed to go on, graduate from hogwarts and fight each other on the opposite side of the war. While Regulus' world was dark and hollow, Ersilia was bursting with light, just looking for someone who would help her and absorb all the light that was too much for her to handle. On paper Regulus and Ersilia would have been perfect for each other. And when they met, they couldn't help but fall in love.

But would falling in love be enough?

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"Will you love me in December as you do in may?"