𝐒𝐈𝐍𝐅𝐔𝐋 || 𝐑𝐄𝐆𝐔𝐋𝐔𝐒 𝐁𝐋𝐀𝐂𝐊✔️

III• First Encounter

Astronomy had always been Cecilia's favorite subject, ever since she first started Hogwarts. There was something about it that she absolutely adored; maybe it was was tranquility and peacefulness that came with it or the fantastic view of the sky she was given when she attended the night classes, she really didn't know. It was, in her mind, the perfect subject. But since not many people agreed with her opinion, the class was a mixture of all four houses since very little people signed up for it, compared to other classes.

Cecilia mentally cursed at herself when she arrived at the Astronomy tower at 11 p.m on a Friday evening. Her eyes ran across the 30 telescopes that stood against the large, open window and those occuping them. Furtherest away from the entrance stood the person who caused Cecilia to curse at herself: Regulus Black.

Ever since Kristen had educated her about the existence of Regulus Black, Cecilia seemed to see him everywhere. Every time she entered the Great Hall for one of her meals, her eyes were instantly drawn to him at the Slytherin table. During every class that Gryffindor shared with Slytherin he was in her vision and now, here he was in her Astronomy class- the class she payed so much attention to but somehow never noticed him there. It was as if he had just appeared out of thin air.

Because of her small hesitation at the door, there was only one telescope left for her. She didn't know if she wanted to thank Merlin or curse him when she discovered that it was right next to Regulus.

She dropped her black satchel backpack at the base of her telescope, bending down after it to fish out a quill and her Astronomy notebook. As she straightened up, she met the gaze of the boy beside her. She quickly tried to straighten her skirt with the hand that wasn't preoccupied.

Regulus' eyes were one of the most breathtaking sights that Cecilia could recall seeing. Of course, they were similar to his brothers, but somehow extremely different. A grayish-blue set of eyes bore into Cecilia's brown ones, making her feel self conscious, a feeling she hasn't felt in months. She didn't have a chance to examine the rest of his face, however. Regulus nodded curtly at her before turning back to his telescope, leaving Cecilia feeling (and probably looking) like a complete idiot.

The task for the lesson was to draw a star-chart based on the sky that evening. For a while, the only sound that filled the tower was the scratching of quill against parchment. Cecilia tucked a lock of hair behind her ear while looking through the telescope. A little smile rested on her pink lips as she started filling in her star-chart, enjoying the peacefulness that came with it.

'Excuse me?' Came a voice beside her. She jumped discretly, the voice sounding unnaturally loud in the silent room. It was a fruity voice, deep and pleasant to hear. The voice was hushed; it spoke in a whisper.

'Do you have any spear ink?' With a sharp and silent intake of breath, Cecilia discovered that it was Regulus that owned the voice. Without even looking at him, she quickly dove into her backpack and pulled out a small inkpot. She handed it to him with a nervous smile, unable to stop herself from noticing when their fingertips brushed against each other's.

'Thank you.' Regulus whispered, his lips staying in the firm line Cecilia noticed they were always in. He turned back to his star-chart, adding another piece of information onto it.

Cecilia also turned back to her star-chart but she couldn't seem to be able to concentrate on it. Her chest felt tight and her hands shakey. She shut her eyes and took a deep breath. She had no idea what was happening, but she knew she didn't like it.

For once, Cecilia wished Astronomy would end as quickly as possible. When it eventually did, Cecilia was out of the tower as quickly as her long legs could carry her, leaving a confused Regulus behind her, her small inkpot grasped in his hand.