Cursive Conundrums

vii

"Come back to bed." A brunet drawled, watching Regulus hungrily.

"I told you we have to stop doing this," Regulus shook his head, doing up the buttons of his shirt.

"Oh, please, you've been saying that for a year."

"I'm serious, Evan." Regulus frowned.

"And I'm straight." Evan Rosier stood up and walked towards him.

"We're going to get caught, and then we'll both be killed." Regulus said.

"Oh, but you're so pretty I can't even think about any of that," he smirked, looping his fingers in the belt loops of Regulus's trousers. "Now why don't you stop doing up your buttons and come back to bed."

"No. This is done, we—"

He was cut off by Evan's lips on his.

Regulus pushed him back, "you're getting married."

"Oh please." Evan said, "you know better than anyone what marriage means to families like ours. Beside, I know Etta is sleeping with some Hufflepuff half-blood, neither of us want this."

"You're still getting married." Regulus argued. "I will not be some sort of mistress. Save me the mortification. We're ending this now."

"I have no feelings for Etta." Evan said, "our marriage is merely a business arrangement between my father and Herbert Burke."

"And you have feelings for me?" Regulus snorted. "Evan, this was an arrangement to benefit the both of us. We have come to a crossroad, this is where we part."

"Regulus." He frowned. "You cannot stand there and say you feel nothing for me."

"Nothing but lust." Regulus narrowed his eyes. "This was never a relationship, Evan."

"I care for you." Evan argued.

"I don't care." Regulus said coolly, "we're done. This is over."

"You have to be shitting me." Evans face turned sour.

"We're done. Get out."

"Fuck you, Regulus." Evan spat, storming out of the dorm.

The door slammed shut and Regulus let out a breath he had been holding in.

"Finally ended things with Rosier then?" Barty came through the door not ten minutes later.

Regulus froze. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Oh, please, I'm not an idiot," Barty gave him a look, "and you're not very subtle."

He kicked Evans shirt to prove his point.

"That doesn't prove anything."

"Yeah. Ok." Barty laughed, "Regulus, you didn't check the room the first time you brought him up here. It was during the Halloween party last year. I  came up here to take a piss and was stuck in the bathroom listening to him fuck you."

Regulus flushed furiously.

"It's not like it's a big deal," Barty shrugged, "so you get off to a knob, to each their own. I've been dying to ask though—the girls? Are they all for show or do you...you know...swing both ways?"

"Crouch!" Regulus groaned.

"Oi! It's a fair question." Barty frowned, "you're with a different girl every day but you never bring any of them up here."

"I have no interest of taking advantage of a girl," Regulus scoffed, "especially when they're intoxicated."

"If they tell me to back off, I do." Barty crossed his arms, "and it's not like I'm sober when it happens."

"It shouldn't matter." Regulus shook his head, "Barty, when a girl is that drunk, it's never okay."

"Of course, Saint Regulus." Barty's voice was strained, "because you're always so perfect? Regulus? You don't ever make mistakes?"

"If I make a mistake, I make sure that it'll only happen once." Regulus said.

"You're just coming for my arse because you feel vulnerable that I know your secret." Barty laughed. "Regulus, I may mean shite to you, but you're my best mate. I know you, even if you want to pretend I don't."

Regulus watched him as he walked to the door, his face red.

"You think you're alone." Barty said, "you're not. It's just easier for you to think that because you can't handle letting anyone down like your brother did to you."

"You're wrong."

"For once in your life don't lie to yourself, Reg," Barty sighed. "Open your fucking eyes before everyone stops trying. Then you'll really be alone, and I promise you, it'll be a thousand times worse than it is right now."

>•<

"Do you think she'll say yes?" James paced back and forth, a bouquet of daffodils in his arms.

"Yeah!"

"Maybe?"

"No."

"Remus!" Sirius and Peter scolded as James's face fell.

"I'm sorry, I'm being realistic." Remus shrugged, folding one of his knees to his chest, "James, you've been asking her out weekly since first year. Why do you think this time will be any different?"

"We're friends now." James frowned. "Well—I think we are at least."

"I say go for it!" Peter said enthusiastically, "the worst thing she can say is no and you've already heard that too many times to count!"

"Thanks, Pete," James tried to smile, "Remus, where is she now?"

Remus opened the map and scanned it quickly.

"By the Black Lake."

"Cheers, wish me luck!" James grinned, taking off out of their dormitory.

"Why didn't you tell him!" Sirius scowled, snatching the map from Remus's hands to look at it more closely.

"He has to learn." Remus said, "or he'll never move on."

James ran through the castle, flowers clutched in one hand, chocolate in the other.

The sun was just about to set and the sky glowed in hues of orange.

This would be it. This would be the time Lily Evans finally said yes.

He walked across the grounds nervously, fidgeting with the gifts in his hands.

A glimpse of red hair caught his eye on the bank of the Black Lake.

He froze, "Lily?"

Her head snapped up and she quickly looked around, her eyes widening as they settled on him.

She quickly distanced herself from Tony Rodriquez, a seventh year Ravenclaw and stumbled to her feet, frantically trying to fix her hair, and brush sand of her clothes.

"James!" She flushed furiously, realizing some of her buttons were undone. "What're you doing here?"

She spotted the flowers and chocolate.

"Oh."

James stood there, frozen, unable to form a word.

"Are you alright?" Tony called.

"Not now, Tony!" Lily snapped over her shoulder. "Sorry, James—"

She turned back around but James was no longer standing there, flowers and chocolates laying in the grass.

"Shit." She swore.