Professor Regulus

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The afternoon sun shone on the Black Lake, making the surface shimmer in patches that opened and closed with the waves.

The lawn was warm from the sun, and it felt pleasantly cozy to sit on.

Laughter drifted from afar; several young wizards were running and playing on the grass, making a ruckus. Some were pushed down, but got up and continued the chase.

Several people sat under the tree nearby, watching them and laughing.

Lily stood beside a rock by the lake, jumped up and down several times, and laughed out loud. Her clear voice was carried far away by the wind.

Marcia watched her jump and laughed along.

When Lily had finished dancing, she stopped, her cheeks flushed, her breathing a little rapid, but she couldn't stop smiling.

She looked down at the note in her hand, intending to put it away, but the moment her fingers touched the edge of the inner pocket, the paper began to change.

The color changed from grayish-white back to deep yellow, the edges curled up, the veins reappeared, the thickness thinned, and the stiff paper surface returned to the soft, slightly waxy texture of the leaves.

Lily looked at the leaf, pouted, and then carefully put the leaf into the inner pocket of her robe sleeve.

The leaves are nice too; I can take them home and use them as bookmarks.

Marcia stood beside Lily, watching Lily laugh and jump with glee, and a name popped into her mind: Regulus Black.

Lily knew last semester that she was seeing that Slytherin, it wasn't a secret, and Lily didn't hide it from him.

Sometimes, after returning from the Library, Lily would sit on the edge of her bed, lost in thought, a smile playing on her lips that she herself wasn't even aware of.

Marcia saw it, but didn't ask any questions.

She's a grown woman now. Last semester, she learned to share and made a friend named Lily.

Now she has learned to be discreet, knowing that some things are better left unsaid.

But she'll think to herself.

Slytherin and Gryffindor, Pure-bloods core and Muggle-born, Black family and Evans family —these terms don't seem right when put together.

What are the Black family's ingredients?

One of the Sacred Twenty-Eight, needless to say, their family tree alone can be traced back more than ten generations.

What about the Evans family?

An ordinary Muggle family in Town of Cokeworth.

Putting two surnames together just feels awkward, like they don't match, like things from two different worlds being forced together.

Marcia wasn't looking down on them; she was Pure-bloods. Although the Flint family wasn't among the Pure-blood Circle, they knew all the proper rules.

She had seen the tone of her family members when they mentioned the Black family, and heard the ladies at tea parties gossip about people who associated with Muggle.

But she didn't say it aloud, because when Lily smiled, she was genuinely happy.

She composed herself, suppressed those thoughts, and put on the smile she had just worn.

Lily is so happy right now, so all she needs to do is be happy too. We can worry about the rest later.

She sighed inwardly, thinking how much she was worrying about her best friend. How could she be so young, already thinking about such trivial things? What would she be like when she grew up?

Lily tidied up the leaves, looked up and saw Marcia staring at her. She paused, surprised, and asked, "What's wrong?"

Marcia leaned closer, resting her chin on Lily's shoulder, her voice low but her tone rising. "Who wrote what?"

Lily turned to look at her, smiling brightly, "A friend."

Marcia raised an eyebrow, her voice still low, but the last syllable lingered. "Slytherin's Black?"

Lily was a little troubled; Marcia always seemed unable to call Regulus by his name, always referring to him as "Black of Slytherin."

The addition of Slytherin is simply to distinguish it from the Gryffindor Black.

She didn't know if the Flint family had a certain opinion about the Black family, or if Marcia herself had some other thoughts.

Lily had tried asking before, but Marcia always hesitated, Lily stopped asking.

She has friends on both sides, so there's not much she can do.

The troubled expression flashed by quickly, and Lily smiled and nodded, "Yes, it's him."

Marcia's expression changed; her eyes narrowed, the corners of her mouth turned down, and her expression became serious. "So, are you going back to your Dormitory tonight?"

Lily's eyes widened, as if she had heard something unbelievable.

She reached out to grab Marcia, Marcia laughed and dodged backward, taking quick steps and almost tripping over a stone.

"I mean—" she steadied herself, panting, and laughed heartily, "Is this a little early?"

Lily glared at her, annoyed. "What are you thinking about? Regulus told me to practice my spells."

Marcia paused, her eyes widening slightly.

"Then you'd better study hard," she said seriously. "Learning even a little of Slytherin Black's skills will be enough to make you amazing."

Lily looked at her and tilted her head slightly. "Do you know how amazing he is?"

Regulus never brought it up himself; aside from letting her experience the Shield Charm in the Library, he almost never demonstrated his power to her.

Lily knew he was capable and powerful, but she didn't know exactly how.

Marcia thought for a moment, then shook her head. "I don't know, but my family says that a remarkable person is going to emerge from this generation of Black."

She leaned closer, lowering her voice as if sharing a secret.

"I also overheard people chatting at home and in other people's homes saying that they should make sure their little wizard gets along well with Black from Slytherin, and even if it doesn't work out, they shouldn't let him dislike him."

As Lily listened, she suddenly had a feeling she couldn't quite describe.

She felt a little happy. Who those Pureblood families wanted to curry favor with was none of her business. Her happiness stemmed from Regulus.

But besides happiness, there was something else, a feeling that slowly rose from some corner of my heart, like bubbles at the bottom of water.

After those bubbles burst, it felt a little empty.

I was genuinely happy, but there was something else besides happiness that was also real.

She quickly pressed the small object down, and a smile returned to her face, "Let's go."

She grabbed Marcia's hand and walked quickly toward the Castle, dragging Marcia along for a few steps.

"Slow down, slow down--" Marcia called from behind, her voice drawn out by the wind.

Lily ignored her and quickened her pace, her laughter echoing back from ahead.

Marcia chased after her, her skirt billowing in the wind. She pressed it down, only for it to billow again.

The two ran into the Castle gate, one after the other.

In the Dormitory, Lily started rummaging through her clothes. The wardrobe wasn't big, and it contained her few robes.

She moved the left switch to the right, then moved the right switch back, and then moved it back again.

Marcia leaned against the bedpost and watched her.

For some reason, Lily just wanted to change her clothes after Regulus told her to practice the spell.

Perhaps it was out of politeness?

Yes, it's about politeness. People spend time teaching you, so you should at least be polite.

"This one?" She pulled out a dark blue robe with silver trim at the collar, a gift from her mother last Christmas.

She was quite happy when she opened it, but after putting it on, she felt the color was too dark and made her look old, so she kept it at the bottom of the closet.

Marcia glanced at it. "Too formal. Practicing spells isn't like attending a banquet."

Lily put the dark blue one back in and then pulled out another one.

It's light gray with subtle patterns on the cuffs. She picked it out herself before school started; the material is softer than the school uniform and it's comfortable to wear.

She picked it up, looked at it, and then put it back. "Too plain."

Marcia watched from the side, a smirk playing on her lips. "You're just going to practice spells, not to—"

Lily turned and glared at her, but Marcia swallowed the rest of her sentence and adopted a serious, advisory look. "What about that one? That one's nice."

Lily followed her finger and saw a light purple robe with simple white trim on the collar and cuffs—not flashy, but clean enough.

She wore it a few times last month, and Marcia said it looked good.

She picked it up and held it up against her body; Marcia nodded in approval.

Lily draped her robe over the back of the chair and began flipping through other things.

Scarf, headband, should we change our shoes?

Marcia offered her suggestions one by one: no hairband, the scarf was too thick, the shoes didn't need to be changed, and the robe could be paired with a white lining.

At that moment, the Dormitory door was pushed open, and Susan Hopkins walked in.

She was holding a few books when she saw the clothes scattered on the bed and paused, then asked, "What's wrong? A date?"

Lily's face flushed red, and she hurriedly explained, "No, I was practicing Magic with my friends tonight."

Susan drawled out an "Oh," her gaze shifting from Lily's face to Marcia's.

Marcia nodded solemnly, though it was unclear what message she was conveying.

Susan's expression immediately changed from curiosity to understanding. She threw the book onto her bed and moved closer.

"And this one?" She picked up the light gray one.

Lily shook her head. "Too plain."

Susan picked up another item. "What about this one?"

The three of them rummaged through the wardrobe for a while, and finally settled on that light purple robe, paired with a white shirt, with the collar turned up and the cuffs tucked in.

Her red hair was tied in a ponytail and secured with a light purple ribbon.

Marcia took two steps back to look, then nodded.

Susan also took two steps back to look, and nodded.

Susan Hopkins is also Muggle-born and has a good relationship with Lily, but not as good as Marcia's.

She always seemed to be competing with Lily.

Lily was practically the best witch in the third year, excelling in all subjects, especially Potions Class, where Professor Slughorn gave her extra points almost every class.

Susan, also from Muggle family, wanted to catch up academically, but the competition was friendly and focused on academics.

But Lily just gets along better with Marcia, I can't explain why, maybe that's just how people are.

Evening, Great Hall, Slytherin table.

Regulus finished his last bite, put down his knife and fork, and said, "You guys practice on your own tonight. I'll be there later."

Hermes didn't even look up, just mumbled an "oh" and continued poking at the potatoes on his plate with his fork.

Avery and Alex exchanged a glance.

Their eyes met briefly in the air, a mixture of curiosity, gossip, and hesitation about whether to ask.

They both looked up at Regulus, trying to glean something from his face.

Regulus's face remained expressionless. He picked up the Pumpkin Juice, took a sip, put it down, and glanced to the side.

Avery immediately lowered his head, stabbed his fork into a piece of beef, and it wouldn't come out.

Alex also lowered his head and began to eat, munching away at twice the speed he had before.

But the subtle movements continued. Avery kicked Alex, Alex kicked back, and the two of them kicked each other's legs under the table.

Regulus ignored them, but decided to give them extra training later, the amount depending on his mood.

Eight o'clock, at the end of the Third Floor Corridor.

This floor is usually deserted, and it's even quieter at this time.

The torches were spaced far apart, casting a dim, yellowish glow that shone through the Corridor in a half-light, half-dark manner.

The Portrait hanging on the wall were all quiet; some had their heads tilted, while others were simply turned over, revealing only the back of the portrait.

The door to the Abandoned Classroom was ajar, and when Regulus pushed it open, Lily was already there.

She was standing by the window when she heard the voice, so she turned around and greeted them with a smile, "You're here."

Regulus nodded, silently casting the Colloportus, and the latch slid in by itself.

He glanced around the classroom. The desks and chairs were piled up in the corner, the desktops were dusty, and there were writings left from the previous class on the blackboard, half of which had been erased, while the other half was too blurry to recognize.

With a wave of his hand, the tables and chairs moved on their own, sliding to the sides and creating an open space in the middle of the classroom.

Regulus turned back, his gaze landing on Lily.

She wore a pale purple robe with white trim at the collar and cuffs, and her hair was tied back with a matching ribbon, revealing her ears and neck.

The light from the window made her hair look redder than usual.

The purple of her robe made her green eyes appear exceptionally bright.

He looked at it a couple more times, and it seemed like something was different.

Her face was still the same; she stood by the window, the darkening sky behind her, the window frame framing her silhouette.

But it just feels different.

Lily noticed his appraising gaze and the corners of her mouth turned up.

She walked up from the window, tilted her head, and raised her voice. "Professor Regulus?"

Regulus caught it, a smile playing on his lips, "Lily."