Friday 21st November, 1976

The next few days past by quickly. Regulus barely talked to me, electing to stay quiet during Charms and patrols. It wasn't much of a malicious silence, more of an avoiding kind. Funnily enough, it hurt me more than a malicious silence would.

Mulciber was also found beaten and bloody in one of the abandoned hallways and was still recovering in the Hospital Wing. I tried not to think about that, but the rumours flying around the castle made it a little difficult.

It was Friday night. I was lying on the floor, my head in Marlene's lap while Mary and Lily sat on the couch. The fireplace was lit, casting a warm glow in the Gryffindor Common Room. There were lots of kids still up since school was over for the week and there were many shrieks of laughter and chatter circling around the place. The marauders were who knows where, letting the tower have a rare night of peace.

I should be happy. All these facts would usually make me happy, but my mind was too preoccupied with the bad stuff to focus on the good. Regulus Black was avoiding me. Never, in my whole life, would I have ever guessed that the thought of him avoiding me would make me sad, and yet here we are.

Was he mad at me? Was he mad at the marauders? Was he mad at all of us? The questions plagued my mind, as well as the what ifs. What if he didn't want to do the prank anymore? What if he never talked to me again? I desperately didn't want him to be mad at me. The reasoning behind that statement was lost to me, but it didn't change how I felt. I didn't want him to hate me.

I sat upright, scrambling to my feet. I knew what I needed to do. Or what I wanted to do, at the very least.

"Y/n?" Lily questioned. "Where are you going?"

"I have to do something," I answered vaguely, already walking towards the portrait hole.

It was after curfew, but I found myself not caring, making bold moves as I walked through the castle like I owned it. I knew if Filch found me I'd be in trouble, but he couldn't be everywhere at once, a thought I used to comfort me as I continued my walk.

When I arrived at my destination, I cast a disillusionment charm on myself and recited the password to the Slytherin Common Room. I remembered the password from when Regulus took me to his dorm to get patched up, so why not use it to my advantage?

The Common Room was reasonably full, and even though I had a disillusionment charm on me, I tried to hide behind pieces of furniture and walls when I could. My eyes scanned the room for Regulus, but when I couldn't find the Black heir, I crept off to his dorm room.

I didn't know what I was doing. I should've turned around and gone back to the Gryffindor Common Room. I could lay back down in Marlene's lap, have a girl's night, forget about Regulus and all my problems. Instead, I opened the door to Regulus's dorm.

He was the only one in there, sitting on his bed as he read a book. His curls drooped over his head, having grown longer since the start of school. His grey eyes moved back and forth on the page slowly, like he was savouring every word. His lips were parted as he read. They were pink and looked so soft. I wanted to feel them, see if they really were as soft as they looked.

"Enjoying the view?"

Regulus's voice startled me, bringing my back to reality as I made direct eye contact with him. I hadn't noticed his eyes stop moving, having been too enraptured by his lips. I was embarrassed to say my eyes were drawn back to them, and it took all of my willpower to tear my gaze away.

I took my wand out of my pocket and got rid of the disillusionment charm, staring at the boy in front of me.

"How did you know I was here?" I asked, ignoring his question.

Regulus smirk, noticing my avoidance, but thankfully didn't press for an answer.

"You suck at disillusionment charms," he answered.

"Thanks," I said sarcastically

"You're welcome," he chirped. There was a beat of silence before, "why are you here?"

I looked down at my shoes, fidgeting with my hands as I thought of what to say. Why was I here? Honestly I wasn't sure, but Regulus was waiting for an answer so I had to give him something.

"I thought you were mad at me," I eventually blurted out.

Regulus raised an eyebrow.

"So you snuck into my room?"

"Hey! I was going to..." I trailed off, unsure how to continue.

"Going to?" Regulus prodded.

I sighed, throwing my hands up in the air in frustration when I couldn't think of what to say. "I don't know! I hadn't thought that far ahead, okay? I just didn't want you to be mad at me."

Regulus's expression softened ever so slightly, but it was enough to make my heart soar. Why was I feeling like this? Why was I so elated over a look given to me by Regulus Black? Feelings were confusing.

"I'm not mad at you Y/n," Regulus said softly.

My whole body warmed at his words. Why, I wasn't sure. All I knew was it felt... nice. That was a very dangerous thought.

"Good," I replied. There was silence before I added, "do you want to see something cool?"

. . .

Friday 21st November, 1976

The astronomy tower was a great place to look at the night sky, but it was exceptional when the full moon was out. That was partly why I brought him there; because everyone deserved to see the full moon from a place like this.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" I asked, leaning against the railing as I looked up at the sky.

"Yeah, it is," Regulus managed, his voice sounding strained.

I turned my head to look at him, only to find him turning to look at the moon. Had he been staring at me before then? No, of course not. What a perposturious idea.

A silence descended upon us, but it was a good one. There was no pressure to talk, to make conversation with one another. We just stood together, watching the stars, content with the quiet between us.

And then there was a howl.

Regulus and I shared a worried glance before our eyes fell to the land bellow us, scouring for the source of the noise. Regulus found it first, his breath hitching as he stared at something at the edge of the forest. I followed his gaze, feeling my stomach turn when I saw the deadly silhouette of a werewolf.

There were two animals with it. Something that looked like a deer, and smaller figure, possibly a dog or some other four-legged animal. Regulus and I looked at each other, our eyes wide as we tried to process what we were seeing. There was a werewolf on Hogwarts grounds. A werewolf. The Forbidden Forest was too big for it to have come from Hogsmeade, which meant it must have come from inside the school, meaning one of the students at Hogwarts was a werewolf.

I looked back on the grounds, but the werewolf was gone, along with the other two animals. I looked back at Regulus who seemed paler than usual. I could only assume I looked just as stunned, after seeing that.

"You saw that too, right?" I asked, my voice slightly breathless.

"A werewolf," Regulus confirmed.

My eyes darted back to the forest, as if saying it's species would summon it. It didn't, thankfully. "It's got to be someone from Hogwarts."

Regulus nodded his head, obviously having thought the same thing. Another silence grew between us, this time because we were both so caught up in our own thoughts.

"We should probably go," Regulus eventually spoke.

I nodded my head, and we left the astronomy tower after one last lingering look at the forest, remembering what we saw. It sent shivers down my spine. Werewolves were dangerous when they were turned, and even though it was outside the castle walls, I found myself staying close to Regulus's side as we walked.

We arrived at the Gryffindor Common Room entrance and faced each other, unsure what to say.

"Bye, I guess," I said awkwardly.

"Yeah, see you," Regulus replied, just, if not even more, awkward. We stood there in silence for a few more uncomfortable seconds before I turned around and walked through the portrait hole, resisting the urge to look back at Regulus. Even so, there was a smile on my face as I entered the Common Room, one Lily noticed when she spotted me.

"Out with your lover?" Lily teased, raising her eyebrows suggestively.

"He's not my lover," I mumbled, embarrassed.

"Not yet," Lily retorted.

It sounded like a threat.

I shook my head, waving her off as I made my way to my dorm. I crawled into bed, closing my eyes but unable to sleep. My mind was buzzing, torn between obsessing over werewolves and analysing everything Regulus had said and done that night.

A/N:

hey everyone, i'd just like to clarify something real quick.

if y/n ever came up as a werewolf hater, or discriminative against werewolves, i'd just like everyone to know she isn't. she fully supports werewolf rights and all that stuff.

hope you all enjoyed the chapter <3