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"I'll do it myself," said Regulus, stretching out on the sofa in the common room. "You can proofread it and add your name and get credit for my hard work. You're welcome."
Rune laughed bitterly as she stood over him. "I don't think so."
Regulus folded his arms behind his head and looked up at her. "My Transfigurations grade is better than yours."
"By like point one percent," she huffed.
"Still better. Fine then you do it and I'll proofread it. Less work for me. I won't complain."
He shut his eyes and sighed, "Now if you'll leave me alone, I can get a break. I already see you for all ten of my lessons."
Rune remained where she was and after a few moments, Regulus' eyes shot open. "Fine. We can both do it by ourselves. And then we can see which one is better and we'll use that one."
"My one will definitely be better," she commented.
"Again. My grade is higher than yours."
Rune seethed, "We already have so many assignments and so much of homework, what's the point of wasting more time by doing a full assignment when we only need to do half?"
"So, you're suggesting that you and I... work together?" he asked, with an undertone of disgust.
"Yes!" she exclaimed.
Regulus shut his eyes again. "Not interested. Since you're so busy, we'll go back to my initial plan. I do it, you proofread it. Sorted. Goodbye now."
Rune clicked her tongue and grabbed the pillow from beneath his head, leaving his head to fall flat on the sofa. "You're so immature."
As she stomped away, Rabastan laughed, "Damn. You two act like an old married couple."
"Oh, piss off, Lestrange," she snapped, climbing up the stairs and going into the girl's dormitories and to her own room.
While Rune had her period every month like normal girls, along with her endometrium shedding, the serpent part of her went through its shedding as well.
Of her skin.
It usually occurred on day 5 of her cycle, but the 5 days leading up to it was uncomfortable and painful. Naturally, that made her more on edge, and with the way Regulus Black was ticking her off—
A sharp hiss fell from her mouth and Rune flopped down onto her bed, feeling her body coil and uncoil from serpent to girl.
Her wristwatch told her that there was still an hour before curfew. She'd wait a while before slipping out of the room and brewing a painkilling concoction which would hopefully induce a day long sleep.
To pass the two hours, despite her throbbing headache, Rune pulled out her very battered copy of The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde.
It was one of her favourite novels.
She often saw too much of herself in the main character. She wondered if she had the chance, whether she too would damn her soul for eternal youth and beauty.
Maybe not eternal, but she would definitely wish for longer youth. For a while more between where she was and her eighteenth birthday.
Rune, subconsciously reached for her journal.
Do you read?
She kept one hand on the journal, waiting to feel it warm up and used the other to turn the pages of the novel.
It took around an hour for her to get a response.
Of course, I read.
How else would we be able to communicate?
Not like that.
I mean novels, plays, poetry.
Do you read for fun?
Sometimes.
What's your favourite book?
Probably Great Expectations by Charles Dickens.
Oh no.
What?
There is not a single book you could
have said that would have been worse.
I could have said Ulysses by James Joyce.
I would have preferred that actually.
At least Ulysses wasn't boring
and had likeable characters.
And what's your favourite book, might I ask?
Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë.
I would comment, but I've never read that.
Have you read The Picture of Drian Gray.
No.
You mean to tell me you've read
an awful book like Great Expectations,
but you haven't read the classics
of English literature.
It's difficult to come across books where I'm from.
Where are you from?
The Jungle?
Do you think you'd be able to
find yourself at Greenhouse One?
In about 20 minutes, yeah.
Rune looked at her watch and saw that it was 10:30pm. Curfew started half an hour ago. She grinned.
Perfect. Make it 25 minutes.
I'm going to leave a book for you
on the doorstep of Greenhouse One.
Really?
Yes. Anyways, I've got to go now.
I'll talk to you later.
Rune shut her journal and grabbed her copy of The Picture of Dorian Gray. She had suggested Greenhouse One because it was the easiest place for her to get to.
She walked to the corner of her room where a large empty portrait hung and said, "Mandrake."
The portrait immediately swung open and revealed the unlit tunnel of darkness.
She hurried through the tunnel and passed through the cave, ignoring the longing feeling to get into the stream and shift. Once she opened the trapdoor above the entrance of the tunnel, she walked for two minutes before reaching the Greenhouses.
Rune placed the novel on the doorstep. She contemplated hiding somewhere until she could see who came down to fetch it but pushed the intrusive thought away and hurried back down the path she followed and into her dorm room.
With careful silence, she made her way out of the girls' dormitories and Common Room and to the empty Potions classroom, sending up a prayer of thanks when the door opened without squeaking.
Rune shut the door behind her before getting out a cauldron and tripod and digging around the exact drawers where the ingredients usually stayed. She was truly grateful that Professor Slughorn wasn't big on rearranging because the ingredients were kept exactly as they had been since she was in first year.
The fire started with a simple spell and once she diligently got the concoction brewing, she deeply inhaled the fumes, sighing as it burned down her throat and soothed over her straining muscles.
As more and more fumes filled her airways, Rune had to bite down on her lips to keep herself conscious and not pass out from the spinning calm it brought her.
The world swayed around her, knocking her forward and Rune watched her hand land on the burning iron of the cauldron. She felt nothing.
Her nerves were fried.
That was enough.
Nearly stumbling over her own feet, she dug into her robe pockets and pulled out the vials. She shook her head to unblur her vision as she scooped the painkilling potion into the vials and placed the bubbling liquid into her pockets.
A voice echoed through the room, making Rune jump. "Out after curfew, unpermitted use of a classroom and unlawful use of school supplies for personal potions. Did I leave anything out?"
Rune managed a laugh as her brain registered the identity of the intruder.
"Are you following me, Reggie?"
"What are you doing brewing illegal painkillers?" asked Regulus, and it must have been the fumes because his voice- there was something different in it.
"Recreational purposes," she slurred out and she took one step forward before tripping and gripping onto the desk for support. She shook her head, trying to clear it.
She wasn't sure when he reached her but suddenly Regulus had her chin gripped in his hand and had his wand shining in her face.
"Have you been breathing in those fumes?" he questioned, his voice sounding breathier than usual.
"Are you going to tell on me?" she asked, pulling out of his hold, and shoving the things into a cupboard that was never opened by anyone other than her. She'd have to come sort it out tomorrow night.
"You're going to kill yourself," he murmured.
"I've got to get to bed," she whispered, using the desks as support as she hobbled her way to the door.
"Hey, Rune," called Regulus.
"Yeah?" she answered, stopping and looking at him over her shoulder.
He shook his head. "Nevermind."
She faced forward again and, without a clue as to how she did it, she found her way into bed. Before she could pass out, she emptied the contents of one of the vials down her throat and hoped that when she awoke tomorrow, the pain would be somewhat bearable.