The Forbidden Spare

He had been right.

Fucking rain, getting him fuckingsoaked.

What the actual fuck was he expecting? It was March and he was located at the ass crack of fucking Wales.

With those resentful thoughts swirling in his mind, Regulus got off his bike and reached for his school bag and jacket. He had taken it off to wrap it around his bag, making it resemble a cocoon. He couldn’t risk ruining his laptop.

He sprinted towards his front door, his green sweater sticking to him uncomfortably. As he finally entered the house, Regulus set his bag to the side, dragging his hand through his hair, pushing the strands away from his face where they had been sticking to for the entire duration of the ride.

Regulus could vaguely hear footsteps coming closer.

“I can be created in the present, but the future can never taint me. What am I?” He looked up and saw Pandora looking right back at him. She was clearly amused, while doing an absolutely terrible job of hiding it, and maybe a bit exasperated. Regulus scrouched down, trying to remove his shoes while pondering her words.

The future can never taint me

He lifted his head up to look at her, understanding dawning over his features “Memories. The answer is memories.”

“Correct.” She smirked, looking equal parts proud and disappointed he solved it so quickly. “Speaking of, we really need to stop meeting like this, Reg.”

-------

Regulus could faintly hear someone murmering something somewhere by the kitchen table as he stepped inside, soaking wet from head to toe due to the heavy rain he had to ride though after his shift. He wasn’t really listening, too distracted by his own shivering to really notice someone was even there.

‘What?’ Regulus gruffed out, letting maybe a tad bit too much of his annoyence show, but his focus was currently directed at removing his shoes that seemed to hold on to his feet for dear life.

He heard footsteps coming closer

“You can catch me, but never throw me. You can feel me, but never see me. What am I?” Pandora repeated the words, sounding a lot clearer now that the violent ringing in his ears had mostly dissipated.

Regulus just stared at her blankly for a few moments that seemed to draw out. She didn’t seem at all uncomfortable by his silence, almost like she was used to people reacting to her that way, she most likely was.

“…Did you just ask me a riddle?” He squinted his eyes a bit, trying to convey the absurdity of this… conversation starter.

She grinned, a toothy thing, with her hands clasped together at her front, fiddling with one of her many unique pieces of colorful looking jewelry charms. Most of them were probably made wth some kind of glass, cause they would make little sounds whenever she moved. Not loud, but just enough for anyone to hear her coming from a few feet away, unless they were very distracted. Which, to Regulus’s own dismay and Pandora’s eternal delight, he usually was.

“Do you like riddles?” She asked, tilting her head to the side. The grin was replaced with a look of curiosity, while her eyes seemed to widen like she was looking right through him instead of at him. Even while gazing straight into his eyes, her gaze seemed a bit hollow.

Regulus raised one eyebrow, probably looking bored. “No.” She tilted her head  back, not completely as it was still anlgled slightly to the side, seeming not at all bothered by his rather blunt reply.

Her mouth scrunched up a bit, like she was trying to repress a smile while her eyes narrowed in challenge, “So, do you give up?”

He let out an exasperated sigh. “Look, Pan-“ Before he could finish his sentence, she swiftly cut him off.

“A cold. The answer is a cold, which you will undoubtedly catch if you don’t take a warm shower and change into some dry clothes right this instant.” She gestured to the stairs, not looking in that direction, but instead her eyes were glued to him. With a raised eyebrow and her lips twisting until they looked a bit like a duck beak, she seemed to be trying to have a silent conversation with him. And the oddest bit? It was actually working.

‘Are you really just gonna stand there and make me wait all day?’

Regulus hesitaltly walked towards the stairs, having already decided on leaving his school bag behind. It was soaked anyway and he would put it somewhere else to dry after he had first dried himself off. Usually he might have stubbornly cleaned everything up before taking care of himself. Regulus preffered to do certain things his own way and not being able to fully relax before knowing everything was in order was one of them. Taking a shower and putting on a fresh change of clothes felt like removing his outer skin. The thick layer of stress and responsibility could finally wash away, down the drain, along with his bodywash and rediculously overpriced french shampoo. He could finally relax, knowing he had already done everything he had planned to do that and getting it out of the way.

However, he was too tired to argue and the thought of a dry change og clothes was just too tempting. Especially since the ones he was currently wearing were sticking to him in very uncomfortable places.

Pandora had been right, he really needed a warm shower and there was a very high likelyhood of him catching a cold within the next couple of days. Even after he had spent aproximately 25 minutes under the warm water, having already finnished washing his hair and rinsing himself off, his hands where still blue. Regulus had never really been bothered by the cold. Eli once joked that it was most likely because he was cold-blooded. His mum had then proceeded to smack him hard on the head, whisper-shouted some threats into his ear, then changed the subject while Eli sat dazed, probably having just seen his life flash before his eyes.

After drying himself off, Regulus glanced at the fresh change of clothes he had brought with him into the bathroom. One of Eli’s old band t-shirts and a pair of well worn dark grey sweatpants. After putting on the sweatpants, he pulled the shirt over his head, noticing that it tugged a bit at the loose strands of his hair. It hadn’t been long since his last haircut, but it had grown beyond the length he usually preferred. While making a mental note to schedule an appointment at his usual hair salon, he exited the bathroom and walked down the stairs, towel in his right hand, still trying to dry his hair.

His backpack. He needed to check if everything was still intact. Fuck. HIS LAPTOP. THAT SHITE WAS EXPENSIVE. All of his school programs where on it and-

Just as he was about to start walking towards the foyer.

“Ahem.”

As Regulus turned his head, he was greeted by Pandora, sitting on the far end of the couch, two mugs filled with what looked like hot chocolate, with her eyebrows raised and an expectant look one her face... and was she frowning?

Why was she looking at him like that?

She bent forward, setting the mugs on the old wooden table that was honestly probably older then both of them, and then patted the area beside her. “That can wait, the cocoa can’t. Now sit your bony arse down or you'll have wasted my labour.” She leaned back, rearranging some pillows, making herself more comfortable.

“I’d hardly call making a cup of cocoa ‘labour’.”  Regulus huffed as he stepped towards her.

Pandora narrowed her eyes at him, while her lips puckered into a litter frown. “This is why you don’t got any friends. The attitude. Very unattractive.” She said, very matter of factly, while leaning forward to grab her mug and took a large chug, eyes still narrowed with a playful edge.

“I don’t remember saying I was in need of any.” Regulus sat down beside her, a comfortable distance between them.

“Didn’need to. It’s obvious. Like a little baby turtle-“

“We don’t use plastic straws around here. Have you met my mum?.” Regulus raised an eyebrow, gesturing around himself at the very homey, nature-friendly cottage his mum had raised him in.

Pandora stared at him for a moment. “... Did you just assume I was gonna go on a rant about the dangers of plastic in our oceans, just cause I mentioned turtles and am dressed like this?” She gestured at herself with a deadpan look on her face.

Regulus considered her. She was wearing a vintage styled, off the shoulder blouse, with lantern  sleeves, coupled with a flower embroidered corset. Now that Regulus was really paying attention, he could see that they were lilies, very intricately sewn into every crook and cranny of it. They were so realistic that he could have sworn he saw them moving....

That’s not possible. He’s finally going nutts, huh?

Regulus had always vaguely wondered if his birth family was cursed with some form of psychotic madness. If this shit he was imagining would grow worse over time and someday he would completely lose his damn mind, go completely mad…

Regulus shook those thoughts away, trailing his gaze downwards were the corset ended and the bodice of her skirt started. It was long, white and layered, stopping just below her calfs. It was asymetrical, but instead of messy, it looked elegeant in a unique sort of way. Her shoes were a light brown, with copper red detailing that completely clashed with the rest of her outfit, but she made it work somehow.

She always looked a bit ethereal.

Each and every one of her fingers were adored with chunky rings of all colors and sizes. None of them looked like they actually fit properly and god only knew how they were staying in place. On her left ring finger was a single tattoo, on the side, right bellow the second knuckle. A simple drawing of a white doe. Her wavy, blonde hair was tied half up, with a few small braids in odd places.  

Finally, Regulus steeled his gaze, interlocking it with hers. Icy gray meeting stormy blue. “Yes.”

Pandora held his gaze. “Touche.”  She said, while shrugging her shoulders.

“I'm filled to the brim on a cold winter's day, warmth in a cup, chase the shivers away. What am I?” She asked, but her tone carried the words like a command, like she wasn’t expecting an answer. Pandora brought the mug back up to her lips.

Regulus wondered if he should ask. The answer was easy to dechiper and he could easily choose to just brush it off, but… There was just something so peculiar. He just couldn’t quite put his finger on it…

“Did you want me to answer that?” Regulus asked, his tone nonchalant.

She paused, the edge of the mug barely grazing her bottom lip. Then she looked up abruptly, her eyes void of any emotion, tilting her head slightly to the side. “Hmm?” Her voice sounded serene and floaty, while her eyes had an almost eagle like sharpmess to them and Regulus could tell, with absolute certainty, that he had her full, undevided attention.

It was a test. He could tell.

They held each others gaze, hers becoming more hollow, his more determined. Until he cracked a smile, a genuine one that where reserved for those he held close. “ You want me to drink the hot chocolate.” He emphasized the statement with a subtle headtilt to the side, towards the almost full mug on his side of the table. He may have been laying the sweetness on a little thick, but Regulus didn’t care. The emtiness in her eyes didn’t match her larger than life precence at all.

It took a moment, but her eyes slowly softened, becoming more focused. Then she smiled and it was as if the whole room lit up in vibrant turqoise.

When had it become so dark?

“You bet your arse I do. It’s the glorious product of my labour in the form of rich chocolatey goodne-“

“Pandora, this is nesquik.” He gave her a deadpan look.

She continued, unperturbed.“That took hours to mak-“

“It’s powdered chocolate and milk.”

“From my homeland-

Regulus raised a singular brow. “Switzerland."

“Switzerlad? Shite, guess you learn something new everyday. How do you know so much random stuff?

"I have a good memory." Regulus picked up his mug, still warm despite having sat there for a little too long. “If I did’t know any better, I’d assume you were a pathological liar, you know.”

“Oh come on Reg, have a sense of whimsy! There’s nothin wrong with litte fib here and there. As long as they’re not hurting anyone, I don’t see the harm. Their called little white lies for a reason, to bring some comfort perhaps. Used to cushon reality a bit. I’ve mastered them quite well over the years…” Her voice had become increasingly monotone throughout her speech.

Regulus didn’t inquire more into it. He didn’t have some automatic right to all her personal thoughts and experiences just because he posessed the common human decency to not belitle her for being herself, even if that ‘self’ was about as easy to predict as a neverending multicolored ball of yarn.

They both sat there for a while with a woolen midnight blue blanket draped over them, that Regulus would’ve sworn on his own grave had been green the last time he’d seen it. No words, not even a glance. They stared straight ahead at the same wall across from them, the one covered in his mums paintings, while they sipped their hot chocolate.

“Most people probably think I’m insane.” Pandora said, her voice calm, not moving a muscle. He thought about speaking up, but he had a feeling she wasn’t done, so he stayed silent as their breathing patterns slowly aligned.

The silence dragged on.

“It’s probably easier for them to think that.”

------ 

When he had checked on his schoolbag the next morning after waking up, everything was completely dry. His notes, penns and even his laptop seemed to have gone unscathed. Which was odd, considering the last time it got even mildly damp, Regulus was uable to turn it on for about a week.

Pandora had started coming over a lot more frequently after that day, not just for her apprenticeship, but just to hang around. Never for too long, though, she would always leave after around two hours. Regulus had, at first, assumed that she was just trying to give him some room to breathe and respecting his privacy, which he greatly appreciated, being the anti-social prick that he was. They would interact, mostly just when his mum wasn’t around and neither had anything urgent going on. It was simple, easy and he, somewhat unknowingly, started to view her as a permanent fixture in his life.

So, he didn’t really mind her staying longer, but she would always leave around the same time. Regulus had never really given it too much thought before....

Pandora’s hand froze, where she was stirring some kind of candle mixture. Her eyes glazed over and her face became impossibly paler. She was at the back door before Regulus even had the chance to blink. His mother had called after her, asking if everything was alright. Pandora’s eyes seemed to be trembling slightly as she turned back for long enough to utter a few words, barely understandable gibberish. Then she was gone.

I dress in many c-colors but never ch-change my gown; I stand without moving and live both in c-country and town. What am I?

She had sent his mum a voice-mail  the morning after, apologizing for leaving so suddenly, but there had been a family emergency that couldn't wait, but she promised to make up for the time when she came back. Regulus and his mum had shared a look at that, not because they didn't believe her, but because it was a well known fact that it was just her and her twin brother living in that cottage. She had never really said it outright, but it wasn't that difficult to figure out. All the stories she would tell them about her childood were very old and the only family members mentioned where her grandmother, who she absolutely adored, and her twin brother who was, for some reason, also always mentioned in the past tense. Regulus had never met him and Pandora had never given any indication of wanting to initiate that introduction. Pretty much all he really knew was that his name was Evan and he was exactly seven minutes younger than Pandora, but by the way she talked it may as well have been 7 years. What Regulus had gathered from listening to Pandora, that he wasn't even sure she herself realized, was that she basically raised them both and it made him respect her all the more for the incredible person she had grown into.

Regulus couldn't really imagine what it must have been like, growing up with that much responsibility. Having a younger sibling, knowing if you didn't take care of them, If you didn't look out for them, no one else would. It would be understandable for the older sibling to feel some form of resentement, not having gotten the oportuinity to be a child or enjoy their childood, but Pandora, just like she was with everything else, was an anomaly. Any story involving the younger twin alway made her eyes light up, like the memories she shared with him were the only happy ones she had.

There may be countless doubts in the world, but there was something no one in their right minds could deny: Pandora was an incredible person and older sister.

After finally removing his shoes, Regulus’s gaze naturally drifted back to her.

Pandora’s arms were crossed, her fingers fiddling with the many rings adoring them. Pandora was never much for coordination or matching colors. She wore gold and silver jewelry, all with different stones and crystals, each with different names and meanings. His focus zeroed in on her pinky finger, on the ring that matched perfectly with his own. It was silver, made to resemble branches of a tree, surrounding the midnight blue lapis lazuli crystal at the center, while his own resebled waves crashing against each other, with only one thing separating them, a green paradot crystal placed betwwen them. Each ring was so intricate, so detailed, it was almost hard to believe she had handcrafted them herself.

Almost….

Pandora tugged at the loose strand of hair that had escaped her perfectly crafted hairdo of the day. “Where have you been? Your shift should have ended ages ago.”

Regulus stood up, having finally removed those damn shoes, before speaking. “Got held up. My boss had an ‘urgent matter’ to attend to and left me in charge and never came back.”

She threw her head back with a laugh. “HAH! Sounds about right, that bloke’s got some serious time management issues. Hey, remember that time-“

Regulus held his hand up, halting her, mid sentence.“Whatever it is, yes and it was probably just as traumatizing for me, if not more.”

She grinned. “He really needs to learn that locks on doors serve a purpose.”

“He said, and i quote: 'I get claustrophobic, Reggieee!! I don't like feeling trapped! What if there's a serial killer behind meeeeee!!' Then he did a fainting gesture like some maiden from one of those historical dramas mum loves so much.”

Pandora stared at him for a moment. “ So, he can exist comfortably in an enclosed space for a prolonged periond of time, on the condition that the door remains… unlocked?” She asked, her voice all prim and proper, professional like a tourguide at a museum or a secretary dealing with a guest demanding something unreasonable and beyond her paygrade. The mental image alone brought a smile to his face.

Pandora would never tolerate a strict, routined job.

"I can't belive men used to hunt." She muttered, looking dead serious. She pobably was.

Regulus just shrugged his shoulders while trying to regain any semblance of control over his hair and failing miserably. Pandora, of course, noticed and, with a warm and sligtly bemused smile, decided to take pity and help him out, gesturing for him to bend down a bit, so she wouldn't have to stand on her toes. Pandora began to rake her fingers through his curls with gentle precision. She was so close that if she moved just an inch or two forward, their noses would be touching. Physical touch had never really been Regulus's thing, sure he hugged his mum and maybe Eli on special occasions. Pandora, on the other hand, viewed physical affecion as an anchor of some sort. It seemed to keep her grounded, made it easier for her to breathe. So, unbeknownst to Regulus, she had begun easing him into it bit by bit. Small touches here and there. Exposure therapy in the form of cuddles on the couch while listening to his mum tell stories about her adventures. 

"Let's relocate this party to the couch, alright?" She lead him to the couch, placed her hands on his shoulders and then sat him down. "I would banish you to the shower, but there was somthing wrong with the pipes apparentley, so Eli's probably gonna have to take a look at them tomorrow."

"What."

"Yeah. Did you shag Amphitrite in a previous life? Cause the sea god seems to hold a mighty grudge against you, elskan." She noded her head in sympathy before zeroing inn on his hair again. She dragged her fingerst through the wet locks. "You know, I could just shampoo and condition your hair here and then we was rinse it off in the sink?"

"Like a dog?" 

Pandora grinned, looking him up and down, appraising him. "You'd make such a pretty poodle."

"I'm more of a cat person."

"Oh, trust me. I know." Then she whipped out a shampoo bottle, seemingly out of thin air. Regulus considered how she did that and with his own shampoo to boot, but decided against it. Asking usually lead to more questions since Pandora loved making her answers as cryptic as humanly possible. Sometimes it was just easier to stay in the dark.

"You think you're funny, don't you?" He asked as she began massaging the shampoo into his scalp. It felt ridiculously nice.

"I think I'm adorable." Pandora replied as she gave him a proud, overexaggerated smile. They continued like that for a while, trading stories and anecdotes. Pandora told him about a new book she had started reading while she carried on with his hair. She had aready decided who her favourite character was and proceeded to defend them with a fierceness that would send even the most stubborn debater running for the hills.

Throughout their entire conversation, Regulus could feel a pair of dark eyes watching him. His every move, every breath.