Regulus Black felt like he was going to explode. As if he had swallowed a hundred lit candles and he was full of matches. Ready to explode. He was nervous. He was hopeless. He was alone.
He had never looked for friends outside of the Death Eaters. He had never felt the need. Until now. He had done everything wrong.
He stopped in the middle of the bridge, leaned on the railing, looked down. He liked to stare at the water. It gave him peace of mind.
-There seems to be something very interesting about the river
Regulus gasped.
A figure stopped beside him. His throat was dry. He reached into his cloak pocket for his wand and squeezed it.
-When I'm sad, I look at the river too
She was a Muggle, with ash-blond hair, a flat nose, and lively green eyes. Regulus couldn't deny that she was beautiful. Unlike other Death Eaters, he had never looked particularly favorably on hatred against Muggles. Yes, of course, the purebloods deserved supremacy, but that didn't necessarily mean that the Muggles should be slaughtered, did it?
-Are you sad?
-I'm… disappointed
That's what he'd never told anyone. Disappointed in his friends. Disappointed in his family. Disappointed in Voldemort. And most of all, disappointed in himself.
-Mmm, is there a girl involved?
-I wish it were that simple
-Things are simpler than people think
-Not in this case- it was nice to have someone to talk to, even if he couldn't tell her everything. She would think he was crazy. Or she would get scared and run away. Or both.
-Believe me, everything will work out one way or another
-I'm not sure
-Mmm, it's not easy to advise you if you don't tell me anything
-Let's just say I made a bad choice- he rubs his eyes. He's never felt so tired.
-Did this choice hurt anyone?
-A lot of people- Reg didn't even want to think about the harm he had done unintentionally.
-Find a way to apologize
-A way to apologize?- it seemed like a sensible thing to do. Why hadn't he thought of it before? And then it occurred to him that it wouldn't be easy.
-Yes, you have to find a way to apologize, you'll see, it won't be difficult
He wasn't so sure. Despite his doubts he smiled at her. -You must be thinking that I'm a hopeless case
-We are all hopeless cases
-You… how can I find you again? To tell you how this story will end
The girl smiled. -I often pass on this bridge- she moved away from the railing.
-You didn't even tell me your name
-Next time- and walked away, shaken by laughter.
