The Pact
Barty felt almost like he was floating as he stumbled into his dorm. He wasn’t alone of course, Evan and Regulus were right behind him- they shared a dorm, so as much as Barty would have liked to, he couldn’t escape them that easily.
Still, he tried his best to ignore them as he sat heavily on the floor, pulling his knees into his chest. He curled into himself, trying to make himself as small as possible. After a few moments, Evan and Regulus (who he was having an increasingly difficult time ignoring) sat in front of him on the floor, mirroring his position. He had no idea why they did this, he thought it was utterly ridiculous. They were supposed to be Slytherins, Death Eaters. And here they were, sitting on the floor, curled into little balls and staring at eachother like kids at a sleepover.
Barty let his thoughts run wild as he sat silently. He couldn't bring himself to speak yet, not after his hell of a winter holiday. Evan and Regulus seemed content to sit quietly, as well, although Barty noted that they both looked concerned. …That probably had something to do with how he was acting on the train, now that Barty thought about it. (Was he still acting strange? Barty wasn’t sure how to answer that, so he ignored it for now.) He couldn’t really remember much of the train ride, if he was being honest, but…
“Dad put me under Imperio again. But like… for the entire holiday this time, not just for a couple days.” Barty internally cursed how hoarse his voice sounded, cursed the vulnerability in the words. He supposed he owed them an explanation of his odd behaviour, though. Especially as they were sitting on the floor with him. Evan responded in a quiet voice, “Is that why you were so spacy on the train?” Evan looked concerned, and he hated it. “Yeah, it takes a bit of time to, like… snap out of it, you know? Spent the whole week holed up in my own head, so it’s still… kind of weird to be… in control again.”
It was Regulus who spoke up next. His tone was more emotionless than Evan, but Barty knew that his flat tone of voice didn’t mean Regulus didn’t care about him, that was just how he was. “My winter break was also less than ideal. It’s been tense at home, since Sirius left. It used to be that all the attention was on him, but now he’s gone, so. I'm the heir now, which means I have to be perfect, all the time.”
Perfect, all the time. Barty couldn’t help but huff out a laugh, and he saw Evan’s lip twitch up, as well. Yeah, that was something they could all relate to. “That’s why I was under Imperio. I think he was trying to like… teach me a lesson, or something. If I’m not perfect, he’ll make me perfect. Or something like that.” Regulus nodded. “My parents just use Crucio.” Evan and Barty both winced at Regulus’ blunt statement. It's not like they hadn’t been subjected to the Cruciatus Curse before, but Regulus’ parents seemed especially keen on using it as a punishment. Kind of like how Barty’s dad liked Imperio.
Evan’s expression shifted ever so slightly, from concern and understanding to something a bit more anxious. Regulus obviously noticed this as well, because he glanced briefly at Evan before asking, “How was your holiday, Evan?” His tone was soft, like how Evan’s had been before. Evan hesitated for a few seconds before answering. “...I think my parents want me to get married soon. They introduced me to this girl. It’s not like I didn't like her, but I don’t want to marry her, you know?” Barty and Regulus both nodded. Barty’s dad hadn’t started talking about marriage yet, but it was inevitable. Barty figured it was inevitable for just about everyone in their position.
“Yeah,” It was Regulus who answered, “If I'm being completely honest, I don't think I want to get married at all.” Barty couldn’t help the way his brows furrowed. “Not even if you actually love the person?” Regulus shrugged, then shook his head. “I’ve never been in a relationship before, and I don’t think I want to be. It’s just.. not for me, I guess. I’ve never had feelings for anyone, and I’m not interested in sex, either.” Evan tilted his head at Regulus, and said, “I think that’s ok. Some people just have other things they want out of life, I suppose. It’s not like romance is everything.”
There was a beat of silence. Not the uncomfortable type of silence, the thoughtful type. Barty could relate somewhat to what Evan was saying, he also didn’t want an arranged marriage. He wanted to be able to choose who he married, to marry someone he loved, or at the very least, someone he could tolerate. That brought an idea to his head.
“Hey, what if we married each other? I mean- only as a last resort, obviously. But like… I would much rather marry one of you guys than some random girl my parents would pick out.” Evan nodded thoughtfully, but it was Regulus who answered first. “The idea of getting married still seems bad, but I think I would prefer being married to one of you, as well. I never thought about it, but since I’m the heir, now, I suppose I also have to worry about an arranged marriage, don’t I?” Barty snorted. “Yeah, that's why I suggested this. We all do. So are you guys in or not?” “Okay, it's a deal, then.” Evan’s voice had a finality to it, and they shook on it to seal the deal.