May- 1973
"Don't look now mate, but I think you've got a shadow."
Regulus frowns, immediately turning around. The library isn't nearly as full as it's been lately but even so it takes him a minute to spot who Barty is referring to.
Far to his right, sitting at one of the tables ahead of them, the first year girl with hair like Narcissa's is spying on him. Very badly. Her book is propped upright on the table in front of her, eyes clearly peeking out from the top. They make direct eye contact.
Her eyes widen and she quickly ducks her head behind the book.
Regulus turns back to Barty. "She's mental, yeah?"
"If she's interested in you, absolutely," Barty smirks. Regulus sucks his teeth, batting the boys arm. "Go talk to her, see what's her deal."
"I'll pass, thank you," Regulus mutters, going back to his task. He pulls a book from the shelf and leaves Barty stranded.
"Oi! Merlin, I was joking!"
Regulus heads straight for the main desk, Barty right at his heels. He purposefully does not look at the girl as they pass by.
———————
"Since the Goblin Revolt of 1907 was so catastrophic, the Ministry of Magic founded a new principle in regards to protests amongst magical creatures. As stated on page 259 in your books, 'All known allies of the opposed party shall be tried and, if found guilty, sentenced to a minimum of...'"
Regulus feels his eyelids droop lower the longer Professor Binns goes on. He would've been bored enough from the lecture itself, but as it turns out he had had a particularly rough time sleeping the previous night. Barty had kept him up for hours practicing charms for the end of year exams coming up. Though now that he thought about it, some of that may have been an excuse to see how many times he could launch a pillow into Regulus's face before he snapped.
Either way, he was unusually tired.
He rests his chin on the heel of his hand. Everything being read aloud went in through one ear and out the other as he feels his consciousness slipping away.
He shouldn't fall asleep here. That would be rude, and Regulus Black was not rude. He could wait another twenty minutes, then they would be free for lunch and he could go up to the dorm and take a nap. Just twenty more minutes, and then he would be in his own bed. His soft, warm, comfortable...
Regulus's head hits the desk and he immediately shoots up, now wide awake. His hand comes up to his forehead, rubbing the spot that had taken the beating.
"Thank you for joining us, Mr. Black."
He jumps slightly at the sudden voice next to him and looks over to see Professor Binns floating obscenely close. The cold apparition sends a small shiver down his spine.
"Uh...sorry, Professor."
"Do try and refrain from sleeping in my class. There's a time and a place, Mr. Black," the ghost drones as he slinks back to the front of the room.
Regulus wipes a hand over his face to make sure he wasn't drooling when he hears a tiny giggle.
The blonde girl is a little ways on front of him, turned around in her seat to get a better look. She covers up her mouth to try and suppress her laughs.
Something about her laughter makes Regulus angry. He scowls as a way of telling her to piss off. To his surprise, she makes a similar, more exaggerated expression right back at him. His shock must show on his face as she smiles once more before turning back to the front.
Absolutely mental.
————————
Just as he's leaving the castle to head for the quidditch pitch, Regulus realizes he's being followed. He knows it's not Barty; he would've been tackled and pinned down to the grass by now if it was.
Instead of going to watch the Slytherins practice he makes a sharp turn towards the greenhouses.
He's doing his best to not break into a full on sprint as they grow closer: he can't let his stalker know he's onto them. Once inside though, he drops down to the ground, crawling out of sight behind a thick wall of plants. He slips his wand out of his pocket as he watches between two leaves.
The girl with silvery hair steps into the greenhouse and peeks around cautiously.
Regulus reveals himself from his hiding spot, pointing his wand directly at the girl's back.
"You're following me."
She spins on her heel. Now that he's got the upper hand Regulus takes a good, proper look at her.
She's the spitting image of his cousin at eleven. Their hair is almost exactly the same, Narcissa's just slightly straighter. She's got the same rounded cheeks that Narcissa outgrew a few years ago. The only real difference is in the eyes— the girls are more rounded, and a brilliant crystal blue.
Her robes are unfastened, loosely falling off her shoulders. She's chosen not to wear a sweater, however her shirt is untucked and her tie is knotted far too low from her neck. Underneath her skirt she wears a pair of sheer black tights. Her shoes have a pink and white checkerboard pattern on them.
The girl blinks before speaking up.
"You're not as clever as I thought if you've just now noticed."
That makes him stutter a bit. How long had she been watching him? He had been aware of it for about a week now, but that was only because Barty had pointed it out to him. She very well could have been stalking him since the beginning of the year. Was he really that clueless?
"Who are you?," he asks instead.
She considers him for a moment, as if she might suddenly change her mind about tailing him. "My name's Pandora. Pandora Lovegood."
He goes to speak but is cut off before he can start.
"Never mind all that. You're Regulus Black— well, Regulus Arcturus Black II, if we're being formal. You were born on the twenty seventh of March, 1961. You're named after your grandfather Arcturus Black and his brother Regulus, though Regulus is also the name of the main star in the Leo constellation."
She talks a mile a minute, never seeming to run out of breath anywhere. She struts over to an empty table and lifts herself up to sit as she speaks. Regulus keeps his wand trained on her, though he knows he won't actually have any use for it.
"Feel free to stop me whenever you like. Now then, your older brother is Sirius Orion Black III. He's named after your father Orion as well as your great grandfather Sirius. His star is actually the brightest in the sky, and it's also known as the Dog Star."
She pauses for a moment and Regulus thinks she's finished but when he opens his mouth she butts in again.
"Getting back to you, though, you were sorted into Slytherin like the majority of your family. You're an excellent student, incredibly gifted in potions making. And you seem to have your eye out for a certain spot on the quidditch team, my guess is...Seeker?"
She raises her brow in a questioning gesture.
Regulus swallows thickly before answering. "How do you know all that?"
Pandora looks at him as if that's the most ludicrous thing that's been said so far. "I'd be a pretty shit stalker if I didn't know all that."
She hops down from the table, stepping slowly towards Regulus. She walks forward until the tip of his wand presses into her chest.
"If you're going to hex me I suggest you do it now, before any witnesses show up. Unless you'd like to earn your first ever detention for cursing your housemate."
He doesn't move, refusing to give in even though she's already called his bluff.
"How do you know so much about me?," he tries again.
Pandora rolls her eyes. "Honestly, you're a bloody Black. Your entire family history is packed away in almost every wizarding library there is. Plus, you and Barty talk much louder than you realize."
That was probably more on Barty's end than his own. The boys inside voice was practically nonexistent.
"If you're not satisfied I'd be happy to come back in a week with some more information." She smiles.
Regulus isn't sure how he feels. This is incredibly strange. It's invasive and creepy and a hundred other things he could probably come up with. But at the same time, part of him is just slightly...impressed?
"Why?"
"Why what?"
"Why me?," he asks. "Of everyone you could've done research on...why did you choose me?"
Her smile grows and she gives a satisfied hum. "I like your eyes."
That hardly seemed reason enough to spy on someone. Caught off guard by her answer, Regulus doesn't react quick enough to stop what happens next.
Pandora steals his wand for herself, holding it up to the light like it's a wonderful treasure.
"Wha—Hey!"
"Shush!" She points the wand at him. He makes a grab for it but she's too quick. "Oi! Don't snatch!"
"It's my wand!"
"Hardly relevant." With that, she exits the greenhouse. Regulus storms out after her, pausing just outside the door.
"Where are you going?," he shouts, watching as she skips across the grass. She stops, turning back to him, and shakes her head like it's obvious.
"Where do you think?," she hollers back. "Hurry up, or we'll miss the rest of practice!"
She doesn't wait for him to move, trusting that he'll follow. The farther she gets the more Regulus wishes he hadn't talked to her at all. He groans, stamping his foot like a much younger child, and goes to retrieve his wand.
Absolutely mental, he thinks.