Regulus didn’t want to go to the girls’ dorms. He’d rather sleep on the floor in the common room.
Unfortunately, he knew he had no choice. Before he was sent off to Hogwarts, his mother had called him aside and told him to do the family proud, unlike Sirius had the year before. He was already on the right path after being sorted into Slytherin but now he has to keep going and do the right thing for the family.
He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, stepping up the first few steps of the staircase towards the girls’ dormitories. After he was around halfway up, he felt something jolt under his feet and tumbled backwards, hitting his head against the floor at the bottom as the staircase shook itself back into its usual form.
He could feel his head throbbing and didn’t even bother to try sitting up. Just as he had finished collecting his thoughts again, a face appeared above him. It was a boy he was fairly certain was in the same year as him, beaming down at him with slight amusement.
“You alright there, mate? Looked pretty painful from here, you’re lucky there's nobody else around, would’ve been a pretty embarrassing first impression, don’t ya think?” The boy’s smile didn’t drop an inch the entire time and it made Regulus slightly worried as to how it was possible to smile that much without your face splitting in half.
“Erm, yeah, I’m fine, thanks. I don’t know why…-“
The boy laughed. “Probably because you tried sneaking your way into the girls’ dorms, you did read Hogwarts: A History, right? I would have assumed you have, you look like a bookworm.”
“I wasn’t trying to sneak in! I’m supposed to go to the girls’ dorms!”
The boy shrugged, still smiling. “Yeah, apparently not. If it upsets you, we can go to Dumbledore tomorrow and tell him you want to-“
“No! No, it’s fine, don’t worry about me. I was just surprised my mother was wrong, that’s all.”
The boy tilted his head, still looming over Regulus. “Wrong? About what?”
Regulus looked away and thought about lying. He didn’t know this boy and didn’t want to embarrass himself in front of him so soon, he might go and tell the whole school and that would only make everyone hate him, especially his parents. But the boy wanted an answer and Regulus wasn’t able to think of a lie quick enough so he decided to just be honest. “Mother told me when I was 7 that when I went to Hogwarts I would have to stop being silly and I would need to go into the girls’ dorms because I am a girl and I will never not be one.”
The boy frowned and held out a hand to help Regulus up, smiling when he took it. “Well, I think your mother is a bitch.” Regulus felt his eyes widen as the boy laughed again. “You’ve never sworn before?” Regulus shook his head. “Well, I have so many words to teach you! By next week you’ll be as bad as me!” Regulus doubted it but didn’t say anything, he didn’t want to make the boy angry after he was so weirdly nice to him. “So, you’re a boy then?” Regulus paused, then nodded slowly, looking around for somebody who might be listening, ready to go and tell everyone else. “Nice, let’s go up to my dorm then, we have a spare bed so it’s perfect. Oh, and there is only one other person with us but he seems pretty nice at the moment so I think we’ll be okay. Oh! I almost forgot to introduce myself! I’m Barty. What’s your name?”
Regulus hesitated, not making eye contact. “Surely you heard-“
Barty rolled his eyes. “Of course, I heard what McGonagall said, you dolt. That isn’t what I asked. I don’t want to know what your parents called you, what’s your name?”
“Oh, erm…Regulus? Like the lion star?”
“Is that a question or an answer?”
“Oh. Sorry. Regulus. My name is Regulus.”
The boy nodded, satisfied and then reached out his hand and waited for Regulus to do the same, giving a handshake that was much friendlier than those he got from his parent’s friends. “Well, it is a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Regulus. I think we’re going to be great friends, don’t you?”
Regulus liked that, he didn’t have friends growing up, his parents never let him, and anyway, mother always said he was too weird for friends and that they didn’t matter anyway. But Barty wanted to be his friend despite all that and for that, he was grateful.
“I really hope so.”