Much to Lily's delight, Sirius did not spend the night.
In fact, Rose spent the rest of that night up talking with Lily, and the days after were spent at home, lazing about and hanging out with family.
When Regulus' birthday came around Rose found herself thinking of him all day, she'd tried to read to ignore it, but the book she'd picked was too bleak. So, she ran a bath, but that seemed to remind her of him too. She eventually sat down to write, and while he'd only planned to send an owl to James and Sirius, she instead started one to the younger Black brother.
Dear, Regulus
She began.
Dear, Regulus
Hi, Happy Birthday!
She stopped.
She wouldn't be able to send it to him anyway.
She went back to her usual letters, asking what the boys had planned for New Years, mentioning she was excited to go back to school, complaining about Petunia.
Rose felt a certain guilt when she complained about her sister, she couldn't help that she was not a witch like Rose and Lily, but she could help the way she responded to it.
Their mother took extra care to insure Petunia was happy, she had friends over often, friends Rose was not allowed to talk to, she was also the reason Rose and Lily couldn't have their own magical friends over. Petunia swore she was frightened of them.
Lily was closer to Petunia, got along with her better, while Rose took Petunia's insults and issues to heart Lily seemed to filter them through a "she's only jealous" mindset that Rose didn't have the patience to create.
Petunia was a adversary, and Rose responded by becoming invisible to her.
—
December 28th 1976
"Hey Lils!" Rose called from her room, she heard Lily yell back a response so she continued her own statement before plopping down on her bed, dropping a bag of small fireworks and sparklers beside it.
"I got the stuff for New Years Eve!" She yelled to her sister in the room beside her.
"Alright! Thanks!" Lily yelled back once more in response.
She stretched out comfortably on her bed, and closed her eyes, it wasn't too terribly late, but Rose already felt a bit sleepy.
Not long into her rest she could have sworn she heard a voice call out for her.
She tried to ignore it and get some sleep, but the voice continued, then someone shook her awake.
"Merlin, Rose, I didn't want it to come to that."
Said the annoyed sounding voice of Regulus Black.
She quickly got up after that.
"What on earth are you doing here?" She asked in a hushed tone.
"Well, seeing as you haven't taken me on any outrageous little quests recently, I thought I might take you on one, and you remember how I got here last time so there's no need in me explaining that again." He said while standing straight, hands behind his back. He was dressed nicely, the way Rose had expected him to look back home with his...noble family.
"You should get dressed rather quickly." He explained
"Where are we going?" Rose asked as she began to do just that, looking through her closet for something warm.
"A ballet in York. I'll turn around." He said nonchalantly as he did just that, allowing her to slip something on and process the information.
"You'll do the teleport thingy then?" She asked
"Yes, the...teleport thingy." He answered, turning back to look at her.
"Let me brush my teeth, quickly explain to Lily, and lock my room door, then I should be ready to go." She said as she slipped out the door to do just that.
—
It was dark and cold, but the city was still noisy. It had to have rained earlier in the day because there were small puddles littered along the cobblestone of the streets. Rose's shoes made a pleasant tapping sound as they walked together, Regulus had always walked rather fast. Rose would stop and look at things along the way, she'd take bits of ivy off old walls, for prolongation later, she'd look for spiders on frozen webs, and she'd always manage to get distracted by lights as they passed them.
"Didn't expect you to go into Muggle cities often." She said, finally catching up to him.
"I don't go often." He said looking over at her, her nose was pink from the cold and her hair had grown longer, she rarely cut it anymore these days, save for the bangs.
They both wore longer black coats, his held a familiar scent to it, something Sirius had once, but no longer smelled like.
"Is this like a date?" She asked, watching him as shadows from trees and the light of streetlights reflected onto him.
"I never called it that." He said, but a small smirk tugged at his lips, he tried to suppress it, but it kept coming back to his face.
"What are we going to see?" She asked
"Antigone."
"Tragic."
"Seems fitting, no?" He asked, rhetorically.
"I suppose...so uh...does that mean everything I've heard is true?" She asked, glancing over at his left arm. Not that she could see the mark, it was hidden under layers of fabric.
"It does. Is everything I've heard about you true as well?" He asked, rolling his shoulders back a bit as they made their way to the theatre.
Rose nodded, Regulus sighed, and all she wanted to do was hold his hand.
"Sirius and I...we're not together or anything though." She clarified, before quickly asking a question.
"Is now a bad time to say Happy Birthday?" She asked, he looked down at her again.
"Considering the Sirius thing, yes, an awful time, but thank you." He said and put his hands in his pockets as they came to the entrance of the theatre.
Once everything was handled they made their way to their seats, the lights were still on so Rose continued conversation, though quieter.
"Can I see it?" She asked
"See what?" He asked back, not in the way you ask something you don't know, but in the way you ask something you wish you didn't know.
"The mark." She said, as non-judgmentally as possible.
Regulus stared back at her for a moment, then he nodded, and lifted his sleeve enough to show the dark mark on his left arm.
Upon actually seeing it Rose's eyes filled with, what Regulus perceived as fear, but was really sorrow. Perhaps even grief.
She ran a hand over the snake, rubbed her thumb across the skull, and as her eyes began to burn with that feeling you get before you cry she leaned down, and placed a gentle kiss on it.
It seemed she'd kissed away her own tears, as they never fell.
Meanwhile a surprised gasp came from Regulus at the contact. Then, the lights shut off, signifying the beginning the performance they were there to see.
Regulus brought the mark closer to his face in the darkness, really looking it over before pulling his sleeves back down.
"Why does it smell like jasmine?" He asked in a whisper.
"Oh...it's my toothpaste, something Lily thought I would like." She said, looking him in the eyes for a few moments before focusing her attention on the music playing and the dancers that had appeared on the stage.
They all looked beautiful, like greek statues come to life, and so did he. There, the lights reflected back in his almost colorless eyes and made them appear like two little fires set aflame. A few light freckles were sprinkled across his face, and his cheeks were pink like they always were when he was there with her.
"When we get back to school, I'd like for you to come practice dueling with me." She whispered.
"Dueling?" He asked, not taking his eyes off the show, his face shifting in confusion.
"Yeah, if you're going to be a Death Eater you'll at least need to be a good one. If there's gonna be a war or something, I'll want to see you when it's all finished." She said, nervously twisting her rings around her fingers.
"If you insist." He said, and they were quite for the remainder of the performance.
After the show they walked up and down the cold streets, Rose would run under streetlights and point at their shadows, she even convinced him for a short dance, so she could watch the shadows dance, of course. No other reason.
Most of the shops had closed, but Rose didn't mind, laughing through the darkness with him was all she really wanted.
Then, a sharp, pained noise escaped the boy next to her, and he grabbed at his arm while walking away from her.
"Reggie, what's wrong?" She asked, placing a hand protectively on his back as she followed after him.
"It just burns."
"What does that mean?" She asked
"It means I have to go. I'll take you home, but I have to go." He responded, she nodded.
"Okay." She said, and he wrapped an arm around her.
Not a moment later she was home, and he was gone.
Rose changed into some clothes meant for bed, and unlocked her bedroom door, Lily must have heard the door open as she stuck her head out of her own room.
"They didn't even notice you were gone. Have fun?" Lily asked with a smile on her nosey face.
"Yeah. I did." She said, before grabbing the door to close it.
"Night." She continued before actually closing the door. Standing there for a moment before laying in bed. The cold wind from the window caused her to miss the familiar warmth of Sirius next to her.