Don't Tell Anyone About This | Regulus Black

Chapter Twenty

Nera sat down at her usual table in the Great Hall for the first breakfast of the holiday period. On her plate was a neat stack of three small waffles and fruit, and open in her hand was a large book on magical marine life. She was concentrating on the chapter about merfolk, and absentmindedly picking at raspberries, when she felt someone quietly sit down opposite her.

"Morning." He greeted in an unusually husky voice.
Nera looked up at him and took note of his unruly hair, slumped shoulders, and sullen eyes. Had he slept at all last night?

"Er... Morning." She eventually replied. Nera was well aware that she'd agreed to help Regulus out by teaching him about muggles, but she hadn't been aware that the arrangement would start to suddenly and so publicly. As if on cue, Regulus glanced around them to check who was nearby (nobody), and then asked, "So you do want to just give me a list of books to read or something?"
She frowned, "Books to read?"
"Yeah, um..." He glanced around again, "To learn about muggles."

"Oh, right... Well, the thing is that muggles don't really write information books on themselves. Like... I don't really know what to suggest." Nera admitted, "And, I suppose... Why didn't you just take Muggle Studies?"

As soon as she asked the question she knew it was stupid. Who did she think she was talking to?

He bitterly chuckled, "I'd rather not and even if I wanted to, do you think I'd get away with it?"
Get away with it? What was that supposed to mean?

"Well, anyway..." She shook her head, "I don't really know of any books that'll teach you about muggles."
Regulus pursed his lips and hummed in thought, then asked, "Are you still happy to teach me yourself?"

Happy wasn't really the right word.
"Yeah, um, sure, that's fine." Nera nodded, "It is a bit of a broad subject though, so... What do you want to know?" She then took off her glasses and rested them atop her head.
"Well... I suppose I've always wondered about cars."

Nera masked her mouth behind both of her hands and snickered, "Cars?"
Regulus frowned, "What's wrong with that? Are you-are you laughing?"
"N-no." She laughed.

He couldn't stop a smile emerging across his own face as he asked, "What's so funny about that?"
She laughed again, "What-what do you want to know about cars? I didn't realise they were confusing."
Regulus confessed, "I've never been in a car before."

"Well, I don't really know how they work... They just kind of do. I don't think many people know, to be honest." Nera admitted.
Suddenly Regulus started to laugh, and he remarked, "You were just laughing at me for not knowing about cars and you're just the same!"
Nera smiled and laughed again.

"So... Did you... Ever come up with the favour that I'm returning?" He questioned.

Nera tugged her bottom lip through her teeth, and thought for a moment if she really wanted to ask her question. Regardless of how Regulus could make her feel nervous at times, she equally didn't fear embarrassing herself in front of him.
"Well, and you're not allowed to tell anyone about this, but... I really want to learn to fly." She expressed.

"Fly?"
"On a broom."
"Well, I did figure that bit out."
"Oh."

He asked, "What do you want to fly for?"
"I suppose... I quite want to be able to make it on to the Gryffindor quidditch team." She explained.

"And..." Regulus slowly pushed the empty plate in front of him away from himself, "Remind me again why I would do something to potentially help my opposition?"
Nera folded her arms and replied, "I'm doing you a favour, aren't I? We'll help each other out."
He thought about this for a moment, and then conceded, "Alright, but this is just between us."
"Nobody will ever know." She nodded.

Regulus extended his hand across the table and towards her. "Deal." He said.
She took his hand, shook it once, and confirmed, "Deal."

And that was that. An alliance was formed. An understanding gained.

"So... What now?" Regulus asked as he picked an orange out of the fruit bowl and began to peel it and discard the peel on the empty plate he'd pushed away earlier.
Nera watched him for a moment, then raised an eyebrow, gestured to the orange, and asked, "Is that all you're having for breakfast?"

He looked down at the fruit, then back up at her. "Probably," He said, "Do you want some?"
"Er, no, but thanks for the offer."
"Alright." He replied.

"Well, do you have any other questions about muggles? Preferably ones I can answer." Nera smiled at him and then took a bite of part of her waffle.
"Okay, alright..." Regulus snickered, "If cars are for transport, then what's the point in motorbikes?"
"Motorbikes?"
"Yeah. The two-wheel things."

The Gryffindor girl laughed again. "And you... You want to know what the point of them is?"
Regulus frowned, "Yes. If muggles have cars, why do motorbikes exist?"
"They're faster. They can weave through traffic. Riding motorbikes are hobbies for some people too." Nera explained simply.
"If they're faster, why don't all muggles use them?"
She laughed lightly, then told him, "They're scary to some people and... You shouldn't take children on a motorbike."

Regulus hummed in thought, mumbled "scary" under his breath, and placed half of his uneaten orange down on his plate.
"What next? Do you want to cover bicycles? Or maybe trams?"
"You're not funny." He stated, but couldn't hide the small grin emerging across his lips.

Nera rolled her eyes, "Fine then. When are you going to give me a quidditch lesson?"
"H-hold on a second. One more question."
"Alright." She conceded.
"What's so special about muggles?"

She stammered, "S-sp-special?"
"Yeah." Regulus shrugged and combed a hand through his messy curls, "Like... What makes them important when there's... Witches and wizards?"
"Well..." Nera thought, "For one, there's electricity. I really am all for Hogwarts discovering what a lightbulb is. There's charities, there's globalisation... There's community."

It was Regulus' turn to roll his eyes as he remarked, "We have wizarding communities."
"Yes, but they're based on need, in secrecy. Muggle communities are mostly based on acts of kindness - a want to be a community as opposed to a need." She clarified, "Obviously it doesn't always work out like that. Some muggles are just as prejudiced as some wizards."

Regulus lowered his gaze. He knew that even if that wasn't aimed at him, which it probably wasn't, Nera was too nice, it was definitely meant for him.

"Do you think I'm prejudiced?" He asked her as he finally brought himself to life his gaze to meet her's.
Nera thought carefully for a moment, then responded, "I think you dislike muggles and muggle borns because of the mistakes of their ancestors. I'm a good person and I don't deserve hate because of who I am and what I can't control."

Her words were powerful. Regulus felt like he'd been punched in the stomach. His exhaustion had been extinguished. Replaced with a surge of adrenaline through his veins.

Regulus rubbed his hands over his face and, in a hoarse voice, concluded, "It's too early for this."
Nera scoffed. The topic of conversation had soured her mood. Sometimes she could pretend life was simple. But always, always, without fail, she would be reminded of how society was set up to treat her like dirt. It wasn't something she could escape. Not ever. It was her life. Whether it was too early or not, it was her life.

"Yeah, I'm going to go." She stood up abruptly.
"Go?" Regulus asked, looking up at her with genuine concern etched into his features.
"Yeah." She nodded once, "See you."

"Hold on a minute!" Regulus stood up so quickly he almost tripped headfirst over the bench, "Are you upset about something?"
Nera slowly turned back to him, "I'll teach you about muggles. I'll teach you whatever I can. But, it's not my job to make you feel better about yourself. It's not my job to convince you that I'm a human being worthy of being treated fairly." She stared at him coldly. An expression Regulus had never seen on her before. Then she turned away from him again, and this time she was the one to walk away from him.