favorite crime | REGULUS BLACK

𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐰𝐨

Weighing her chances, Poppy pushed the sleeves of her white-buttoned shirt upto her elbows before nodding at her best friend. "Okay then, where do we start?"

"We might actually do better if you don't get involved─" Regulus let laughter escape his thin lips as Poppy whacked him with her old, tattered Potions book, slightly glaring at him amused. "What? It's true! I don't want to end up with half an eyebrow again."

Poppy pouted. "That was only one time!"

When Regulus raised an eyebrow, challenging the hot-tempered red-head. Poppy hesitated, before giving in, sliding the book across the desk towards the raven-haired boy. It wasn't a lie ─ Poppy was amazingly atrocious at concocting potions. Spells? Easy. History? Memorised. But forget potions ─ unlike another red-head named Lily Evans, Penelope Greengrass hated the subject.

Luckily, she had been paired up with Regulus.

The first five minutes passed slowly, the grey-eyed boy focused on the task in front of him as Poppy swung her legs, too short to reach the floor. Sighing in boredom, the sixteen-year old leaned forward, her head on her hands as she glanced at Regulus. She didn't know what she would do without him ─ not just about the potions, but for always being by her side for the past six years of her life. Poppy couldn't imagine a life without Regulus Black.

Not that she'd have a life in a few months.

Shaking the shuddering thought out of her mind, she began to count the freckles on Regulus's face. Poppy wasn't stupid ─ she knew about the history of the Black family. Not only because of the rumours, but because of what Regulus had told her. The loneliness he felt for not agreeing with his family's ideologies siding with the rising dark wizard. It was the reason why is brother, Sirius, had left ─ Regulus couldn't blame him. Yet Poppy could. For leaving his younger brother, someone as sweet as Regulus, alone to fend for himself in that horrible household.

Penelope's family wasn't too bad. Apart from her father, Poppy loved her mother and brother, and would do anything for them. For them and her friends. 

Regulus glanced at her, raising his eyebrow at catching Poppy staring. She raised an eyebrow back, smirking slightly. "What'cha looking at?"

"You, you baffoon." Poppy snorted, but her smile faded. "Trying to capture your face in a mental picture to remember when I go to heaven. Or hell ─ I'm not bothered."

Poppy's non-chalant shrug pained Regulus ─ he couldn't stand the chance of losing the young, red-head beside him. He wanted to watch her grow, watch the grey in her hair appear, and her chastised face smiling. Not her sixteen-year old face frozen in death for the rest of eternity. 

"Poppy . . . we'll fix this."

Her sad forest green eyes met his, and Regulus could see that Poppy had made peace with her fate ─ resigned to her doomed ending with a shrug. He wouldn't ─ couldn't ─ accept that. "How, Reg?"

Clearing his throat, Regulus played with the rings in his hands. He had come up with an idea ─ one he disliked, but anything to save his beloved. "I . . . I might have organised a date for you, this afternoon."

"What?" Poppy exclaimed, eyes wide as an explosion erupted in the back of the room. The two teenagers turned around to observe their friend Marah with a scowl on her face as she glared at a James Potter, who's glasses leaned crooked on his nose. Once Slughorn escorted the two to the infirmary, with Marah swating James's hand away, Poppy focused on Regulus again. 

"Before you say no─"

"No way, Reg!"

"─just listen." inhaling slightly, Regulus composed himself. "You could go on a few casual dates, here and there, and who knows? You might find your true love. Bam! Curse lifted, and a happy ever after."