#whimsy!reader

whimsy • eddie munson

— “princess, i found this today and thought of you.”

every time you heard those words from your boyfriend, you knew whatever he was about to present to you would be small and insignificant to most people but the most thoughtful and meaningful thing in the entire world to you. the nickname had started as a joke when you were completely oblivious to your surroundings, lost in a sketch and glancing up to eddie staring at you in wide eyed wonder at the flock of wild geese that had decided to rest a few feet away from you. after another encounter where you were sitting in the woods during lunch talking casually to a doe that just stared at you. eddie swore the damn deer was actually listening— actually agreeing with you.

you were a goddamn disney princess in his world— or some sort of nature or animal goddess; either way, you were the center of his universe. the front door creaked open and slammed unceremoniously shut behind him. he winced slightly as the birds at the feeder by the window scattered at his unintentional racket. “sorry—“ you just smiled widely at him, “it’s a heart!” you looked down at the rock fondly, then looked up at eddie lovingly.

— eddie followed you around record stores and thrift stores, listening intently as you rambled on about the music he didn’t particularly like and clothes entirely too not black. you turned to him with a huge smile, eyes lighting up, “look at this!”

you held out a white top with a corset like front and puffed sleeves, “why would someone ever get rid of this!?” eddie eyed you softly, adoring and ecstatic about your excitement, “because they knew that there was a goddamn princess who would love it and wear it better than anyone else.”

you flushed, smile spreading even more, “should i get it? i already have a lot of clothes…” you gasped again and eddie grabbed the shirt from you and folded it over his arm, smiling to himself. you were shifting through skirts, eyes falling on a patchwork brown and green one, “baby—“ eddie had followed you, smiling the entire time, grabbing everything you had stopped to consider or your eyes had lingered on for too long, fully intending to buy all of it.

— you sat on the roof of the trailer, sketch book sprawled across your lap. eddie, after the initial irrational terror that you were going to fall and die from the short roof, climbed up to join you. he grunted and cursed slightly, jacket clicking and footsteps heavy. you shushed him loudly and he froze; wide eyed and guilty as a scolded puppy.

“you’ll scare her away.”

eddie looked around frantically, eyes slightly wide. part of him actually considered if you had further evolved to be even mote superior than every human and were seeing ghosts or a fairy or some mythical creature he was not worthy of.

but you pointed with a content smile and eddie followed your finger, to where a doe stood at the edge of the trees. he had barely even noticed her, even with your help; and your ability to notice and sense animals once again baffled and delighted him.

— the morning after you first spent the night, eddie woke up to you missing. his stomach twisted, feeling guilt and anxiety that he had done something wrong and you had just fled before he even woke up. but he heard you just as the panic almost took over.

you sat outside on a picnic table, holding a mug of tea you had made. eyes closed, listening to the early morning bird songs. relief flooded him and he slid in beside you. he kissed your temple, wrapping his arms around you, “you know, it would have been nice to wake up next to you. i thought i did something wrong…”

Standing at the bottom of the stairs, he said your name. 

“Yes?” You stopped and looked back at him. 

“It’s late. Where are you going?”

He might’ve looked the other way if you were headed to the kitchens or trying to sneak into the library. But you had your cloak on. As fond of you as he was, he couldn’t ignore that. 

“The forest.” 

“The forbidden one?” 

“Mhmm.”

“And why are you going now?” 

“I need spiny fairy mushroom spores. They are only released under a new moon.”

“Right,” Regulus said. He ran his hand over the back of his neck. “Wait there.”

He turned back to his table and grabbed his own cloak from the back of the chair he had been sitting in. If you were leaving the castle, he was going with you. You didn’t say anything when he came back and nodded, a gesture that said he was ready to go, nor did you question why he needed to come with you. You weren’t going to say no to your friend.

He followed you silently through the castle. He didn’t understand the route you were taking. It wasn’t to any of the main doors that Regulus knew about. And then you walked into one of the unused classrooms; well, it was used for interhouse chess club but that was about it. He closed the door behind him, keeping the knob turned until the door was nestled in its frame so the click was as quiet as possible. You had already crossed the room to the windows. You unlatched on and pushed it open. Then you climbed out. 

Right. Because why would you take a normal way out of the castle? At least it was in an area where the castle was built into the hill so the ground wasn’t a far drop from the window – it would make getting back into the castle easier. Once he was outside with you, you closed the window until it was only a finger’s width open. It would appear closed to anyone peering into the room from the door. You started towards the forest with Regulus in stride. He waited until you got closer to the forest before saying anything. 

“You are aware of what forbidden means, right?” he asked. 

“I think Dumbledore just wants to keep us out of his secret garden,” you said. 

“He has a secret garden?”

You nodded. “And it’d be picked over if Junior and Evan found it.”

Regulus clicked his tongue, understanding what kind of things you assumed Dumbledore was growing. 

“There’re no growths near the castle?” 

You sighed as you reached the edge of the forest. Regulus expected you to light your wand. Your wand remained pocketed and you headed into the darkness. He still followed you, his eyes straining to keep you in sight while making sure he didn’t trip over anything. 

“Tell me more about these spores,” Regulus said since you didn’t answer whether there were some closer to the castle, like in one of the greenhouses or something. 

“Well, I already told you the mushrooms only release them under a new moon. The mushrooms themselves glow. And the spores are good to have on hand for exams, for focusing ‘n’ stuff. If I can get enough, I can pawn ‘em off. Ravenclaws are a prime market for them.”

“What?”

“Have you never read about them?” 

“No?”

“Huh, you should. They’re fascinating and there are tons of other plants in here that can be really helpful. I’m surprised Junior has said anything to you.”

“I don’t… consume… everything he does.”

You laughed. “Wise choice.”

As you walked, Regulus had an iron grip on his wand. His eyes were adjusting to the darkness and he could sort of see, so he was scanning the surrounding areas for anything that could be dangerous. He could cast Depulso or Protego in an instant. 

He didn’t cast the first spell of the night. You did. 

“Defindo.”

Some branches that had been blocking your way fell to the ground. You took two steps forward. 

You froze. 

It was so sudden that Regulus bumped into you. You grabbed his wrist before he could even back away, and then he saw what made you freeze. You had come face-to-face with a rather large spider. 

“Confringo.” 

The spider screeched as it was sent backwards with a blast of flame. With you still holding his wrist, he pushed you forward a few steps so he could get in front of you and then shifted so he could hold your hand to pull you out of the spider’s nest. 

“Where are these mushrooms?” he asked after putting a bit of distance between you and the spider. “How deep are we going?”

You took a shaky breath. It was good Regulus came with. 

“They, they shouldn’t be much further. Pandora’s directions-“

“Rosier is why we’re in here?”

“Of course. She found the patch.”

Regulus nodded. He was debating having words with Pandora. It wasn’t that you were incapable of handling yourself, but Pandora was more actively reckless than you. Pandora would act before thinking, which allowed her to venture deep into the forest alone. You did think, but sometimes you didn’t think things all the way through. You were more than willing to find these spores with no problems with breaking the rules; you didn’t consider the beasts that lie within the forest that might frighten you.

“Should be this way,” you said once you oriented yourself with where Regulus had brought you. 

As you started to walk, Regulus asked, “Do you mind if I light my wand?” He was getting tired of not being able to see where he was going.

“Go ahead.” 

Regulus lit his wand, and although you didn’t say anything, you appreciated the light. You walked for a little while without talking. Regulus was still watching your surroundings, just in case another spider jumped out of the trees. That was probably the one downside of lighting his wand, now everything in the forest knew exactly where you were. 

“Ooh! Horklumps!” you exclaimed.

A small cluster of pink mushroom-looking creatures bristled under the light from Regulus’ wand. 

“Professor Slughorn might give me a shiny knut for fresh juice!” 

You paused as you reached into your bag. It seemed to swallow your entire arm. You pulled out some tools and jars and knelt to the ground next to the horklumps to juice them. Regulus watched you work diligently, careful not to harm the plant-esque animals. He was mildly amused that you hummed while you worked; part of him thought it might calm the horklumps. 

You dusted your knees off after you were done and then you were moving into the darkness again. Regulus tried to help look for the spiny fairy mushrooms, but he didn’t know exactly what they looked like. He was going strictly off your description, which wasn’t much. Plenty of plants glowed, or emitted some kind of light or spore. After a few minutes of silent walking, Regulus accepted that his energy was better spent ensuring that the path you walked was safe. 

“Brilliant,” you muttered, more to yourself than Regulus, when you came across a small clearing with a patch of glowing mushrooms in the middle.

Standing at the edge of the clearing, Regulus thought that he could’ve realized that this was what you were looking for. Still, he didn’t say anything. He kept watch, eyeing the treeline for movement and keeping his wand raised just enough so that its light allowed you to see what you were doing. From what he could tell, you were using tweezers to pluck small orbs from the grass. 

Large spores, Regulus thought. 

“Alrighty, I think I’ve got enough. Definitely a few galleons worth if I talk to the right kids,” you said, standing up and once again dusting your knees. 

Regulus nodded. “Let’s take a different way back. I fear we might’ve angered that spider’s family.” 

“Avoiding spiders? Don’t have to tell me twice.” 

You started in the direction you thought was toward the castle. You weren't actually sure if it was the way, but you figured all roads led to Hogwarts if you walked far enough. If you did start in the direction of Hogwarts, you’d probably end up turned around somewhere, so if you started in the wrong direction, you’d end up where you needed to go. 

Well, that or Regulus would help you at some point. He was more skilled in navigation than you were, and you knew he’d be polite in redirecting you. He was always polite with you. 

The thought that you angered a nest of spiders stayed with you as you walked. You didn’t know that Regulus was watching the trees and would protect you at any cost, so you got more nervous with every step. Despite his wand, you swore it was getting darker. Every rustle of leaves made the hair on your arms stand up. 

The path was widening slightly up ahead. 

There was a rumbling noise and something appeared right in front of you.

You jumped backwards. Right into Regulus.

His hands immediately grabbed your arms and steadied you. And in front of you is a toad. A giant purple, that hopped into the path from the small pond to your right. You felt your face burn with embarrassment at being frightened by it, and that you jumped back into Regulus. You didn’t even think about how he was still holding you despite your being okay.

“Thanks,” you breathed after a few seconds. 

He hummed, as if to say not to worry about it. Neither of you moved. The toad was still in front of you. Regulus’ hands still holding onto your arms. The branches shaking slightly in the wind, just enough to fill the silence.

With a croak, the toad hopped into the brush on the other side of your path. You waited another few seconds before starting to walk again, and it wasn’t until then that Regulus let his hands fall back to his sides. You were silent until you exited the forest. You hesitated at the edge as Regulus tucked his wand into his pocket. You’d be safe out in the open, and he didn’t want to bring any attention to you if a professor just happened to look out their window. 

“Thank you for coming with me,” you said quietly as you crossed the grounds. 

“I couldn’t risk finding out you got hurt or something because you went out alone,” he said nonchalantly. “I’d rather get a month of detention.”

You were quiet, and then, “That’s really sweet, Reg.”

And it was. Perfect prefect Regulus, quidditch caption and academic genius, would rather get detention than find out you were hurt. It warmed your chest. It was almost an adrenaline shot. One that disappeared when you reached the window you needed to slide through.

“You probably want some of what I get from the Ravenclaws?” you asked with your hand on the window’s frame but not opening it yet. 

Regulus tilted his head. “What do you mean?” 

“For coming with? You’ll want a portion of what I get for selling the spores.”

“Don’t be ridiculous. I don’t want any money.”

“But you came out with me and-”

“To make sure you were safe. Figured it’s easier to come with and see for myself that you’re safe than to wait up in the common room.” He huffed a soft laugh. “What good would pacing have done me?” 

“You could’ve gone to bed. Or… finished whatever you were working on. Was it an essay I’ve forgotten about?” 

“I wouldn’t have been able to sleep. And it’s just quidditch. Your safety is far more important to me than quidditch.” 

Your grip on the window frame loosened. “I’m more important than quidditch?” 

He flexed his hand quickly before placing it on top of yours. He stared at your hands for a second, relishing in the fact that you didn’t pull your hand away. 

“You’re more important than a lot of things.” 

You looked at Regulus. Even in the darkness, albeit brighter than the forest, you could see the lightest blush across his cheeks. Then you looked down at your hands. You let go of the window frame so you could flip your hand to hold his. 

“Maybe… you could come with… more often?” you asked slowly. “If you aren’t busy. Like when I go to the greenhouses on Sundays?” 

Regulus nodded. “And whenever you go into the forest. Too many spiders in there.”

“I agree.” With your other hand, you grabbed the window and pulled it open. “And maybe to the Three Broomsticks sometime?” 

“I think that would be agreeable.” 

“Oi, Regulus, you coming?” Barty calls from across the common room. 

“Yes,” he replies dryly from where he is sitting near the fireplace.

Your friends are going to the library in an attempt to study and actually get something done. A group of third years playing exploding snap in the common room wasn’t allowing any of them to focus. Dorcas had been the one to angrily slam her hands into her book and swear at the younger students, and then you suggested the library. At least Dorcas would be able to study there. Regulus assumes that he’ll end up sitting across from you, or next to you, and he won’t be able to focus. 

Regulus follows behind the group. You’re in the middle holding hands with Pandora. You have a floral print tote bag slung over your shoulder that likely has Pandora’s things in it as well. Maybe he’d be the one holding your hand and carrying the bag one day… And now he’s smiling. 

“Excited to write that essay for Slughorn or something?” Barty asks, falling into step with Regulus. 

The smile disappears as quickly as it appeared. “Because essence of dittany uses is such an interesting topic,” he says sarcastically. 

“You’re the one who was smiling, mate. Something made you crack.” 

“Remembered something funny. Merlin forbid…” Regulus gives Barty a sideways glance, hoping that his answer would satiate him. 

Barty just flexes his eyebrows and adjusts his stride to match Evan’s. Regulus doesn’t mind that the rest of the walk is silent for him. The rest of his friends, including you, take part in livelier conversations, but Regulus is content just listening in. 

Just as he predicted, you sit down next to Regulus in the library. You place a hand on his arm.

“Could you help me with this Charms assignment? Unless you’re doing Potions with Junior?” you ask. 

He had already finished that assignment, but it is you asking. How could he say no to you?

“It’d be my pleasure. Have you started it?” 

You shake your head.

“Alright. That’s no problem. Let’s get the books you need.”

He stands up and you follow him into the shelves. You hum to yourself as he selects a few books. You like how easily he finds everything in the library and that he just knows which books you’ll need for the assignment. He doesn’t hold them out for you to carry. You see it as a polite gesture. Regulus is just nice like that. 

Back at the table, Dorcas is working earnestly on her homework. Evan, Barty and Pandora are having a hushed discussion that gets even quieter as you and Regulus retake your seats. Regulus starts flipping through the books to find the pages you’d need to reference. You watch him for a minute before realizing that you should be taking the assignment out. 

Once you look ready, Regulus moves one of the books right in front of you and explains which part of the assignment the passage relates to. Instinctively, you scoot your chair impossibly closer to his. Regulus tenses slightly; being so close to you will certainly make focusing on your assignment. He takes a deep breath to steady himself. You don’t notice. You’re too focused on trying to understand the point of a knitting charm. 

“But I can knit. I enjoy knitting. Why would I bother learning a charm to do it for me?” you ask in a defeated voice. 

“Well, what if I needed something knitted? I don’t know how to knit,” Regulus says in a fairly quiet voice, being that you are in the library. 

You tilt your head slightly and rest your chin on your hand. “I could knit it for you. I’m quite good. Remember that shirt I knitted for Cas’ girlfriend?” 

You casually leave out that you charged Dorcas for the shirt. You wouldn’t charge Regulus. If he needed something, you’d be more than willing to make it for him. 

“Then it’s for all the poor sods who don’t know the same wonderful people I do,” he says before realizing that he’s just called you wonderful. Outloud. To your face. 

His face burns in embarrassment.

“Oh, you’re so sweet!” you coo, hugging Regulus and being completely oblivious to the red shade of his face. Then you school your own emotions and turn back to your assignment. “Right, poor sods who are lonely and friendless.” 

Regulus puts all of his attention on the assignment. He needs to ignore the way his body still feels your warmth minutes after you let him go. 

“Right, ‘m bored. Kitchens?” Barty announces after some time. 

Pandora and Evan agree immediately and stand up. Dorcas waves them off, still working on her homework. The three don’t even wait for you or Regulus to respond. You both had your heads down, exchanging whispers about your assignment. Regulus is trying not to think about how close you are, and you’re grateful that Regulus is being so patient with you. 

After a while, Dorcas excuses herself and says she’ll see you back in the common room. It’s just you and Regulus now. You’ve almost finished your assignment. You’re tired of it, if you’re being honest. You would have given up a while ago if it was anyone else helping you, but it’s Regulus so you’re trying your best to stay focused. 

“And you’re done!” Regulus says with a small smile. “You did it.”

“Thanks to you,” you tell him. “I would’ve turned in a half-finished assignment.”

“Do you do that often?” 

You shrug. “When the assignment is stupid and pointless.”

Regulus chuckles softly as he stands up to put the books back. He wasn’t expecting you to follow him into the shelves but you did. You don’t say anything, rather humming to yourself again and watching Regulus. You like the way he carries himself and he’s just pretty in general so who wouldn’t want to watch him? Once your things are packed up from the table, you walk back to the common. In your usual fashion, you’re holding onto Regulus’ arm, which means you’ve unintentionally disabled his ability to think clearly.

“Sorry you didn’t get to work on your Potions essay,” you say.

“Don’t be. I wouldn’t have made much progress on it anyway.”

“You know, I find dittany to be quite pretty. Wish it grew naturally around here. My mum grows them at home, a large section of our garden actually. It’d actually be helpful if our dorms weren’t in the dungeons. Then I could grow it in our dorms. I’m sure Pandora agrees with me,” you ramble and you keep going. 

Regulus can’t help his smile as he listens to you. He fully meant what he told Barty earlier; he didn’t find dittany, nor its essence, all that interesting. Your appreciation for the plant? He’d be willing to write down every word that was coming out of your mouth. Before you start to descend down the final staircase before the common room, Regulus puts a hand on yours where it's holding onto his arm. His gut is telling him it’s now or never. 

“Would you like to go to Hogsmeade with me this weekend?” he asks, his voice steady but stomach flipping with nerves. 

“Of course! If the weather’s anything like last weekend, it’s going to be beautiful out. Although, I wouldn’t mind if it was a tad less windy.”

“It was windy last weekend, wasn’t it?”

“It was.” 

You give his arm a little squeeze before you head down the stairs and into the common room. Once in the common room though, you spot Pandora and Dorcas and rush over to them. Regulus doesn’t mind your sudden departure. The warmth of you on his arm not only lingers, but the fact that you agreed to go on a date with him? He could catch a snitch without his broom. His smile doesn’t falter as he strolls through the common room and disappears into his dorm. 

“Oi, you’re smiling again,” Barty says when Regulus sits down at his desk with the intent to work on that stupid Potions essay. 

“Smiling illegal now?” he deadpans. 

“No… but it’s weird when you do it. You’re not a smiler.” 

Regulus doesn’t answer, but he knows what Barty means. He can’t help it though. You agreed to go on a date with him.

---

You meet Regulus at breakfast on Saturday, dressed nicely and casually at the same time. Regulus outdressed you easily, but that was to be expected. Even his most casual outfits tended to be more formal and expensive. He is a Black, afterall. 

Regulus did eventually tell Barty about the date. After some teasing in their dorm, Regulus managed to convince him to not make a big deal about it. If it didn’t go well, Regulus didn’t want everyone knowing about it. He fully hopes it’ll go well, but given the chance it doesn’t, he wants to be able to move past it without any issues. 

You grab Regulus’ hand when you leave for Hogsmeade. Holding his hand rather than his arm makes Regulus’ heart pound in his chest – oh, the effects you have on him. 

“Do you need to go into Spintwitches? Didn’t you say you were running low on broom polish?” you ask.

Regulus stares at you for a moment before nodding. He barely remembers having said that sometime this week, before he even asked you out. He appreciates that you actually pay attention to what he says more than he can express.

“Okay, so we’ll go there and then, if you don’t mind, can we walk around Tomes and Scrolls? I’ve been talking to the owner about expanding his stock on Divination products and I want to see if he’s got anything in yet.”

“Erm, yeah. Anywhere you want to go, darling.” 

Even though you’re on a date and holding hands, Regulus’ face still heats up when he realizes he let a pet name slip. He silently thanks the fates that Barty and Evan didn’t “just happen” to tag along today; if they had heard him call you that, Regulus would never hear the end of it. While you notice him looking away from you, to hide the blush, you don’t think much of it. It’s just an odd quirk that he’s been doing around you more and more. 

Regulus tries to not take too much time in Spintwitches. He only ever uses one brand of polish, but since he’s buying it, he has to mentally debate if he needs more rags or a sharpener for his tail-twig clippers. He decides against both. The whole time in the store, you held onto his hand until he needed it to get out his money to pay. 

You swing his arm a little bit as you head to Tomes and Scrolls. As soon as you step into the shop, you pull Regulus toward a “New!” stand. Regulus feels apprehensive as he eyes the stand. It has more mainstream Divination books, but also ones that are more focused on crystal energies and aura readings. Regulus has to bite the inside of his cheek to prevent himself from scoffing at a “Nargle Repellant Kit.” He is fairly certain that nargles don’t exist. You scan the whole stand, even dropping Regulus’ hand for the second time so you could crouch to see the lower items.

“This is brilliant!” you exclaim, pulling out a book with depictions of constellations and crystals on its cover. “Dora will be thrilled when I show her this!”

You almost make a comment about how you’re surprised that she didn’t come today. It’s rarely ever just you and Regulus. You like that it is, but the point still stands. It’s not common. 

You grab two more books and head to the register. When the owner tells you the cost, you go to grab your money, but before you can even open your coin purse, Regulus has placed the correct amount on the counter. 

“Oh, I could’ve gotten that,” you say, a bit shocked.

“It’s my treat.”

“Then thank you, kind sir.”

Regulus gives you a soft smile and takes the bagged books from the owner. It wasn’t your tote of school supplies, but it was close enough – Regulus would carry it until you returned to the common room. 

“Anywhere else you want to go or should we go for butterbeers?” Regulus asks. 

“Hmmm…” you hum, taking Regulus’ hand again and giving it a squeeze. “Butterbeers. And then Honeydukes before we go back to the castle. I will eat all my Bertie Beans in the Three Broomsticks if we stop at Honeydukes first.”

Regulus chuckles. “That I know. Nothing like butterbeer to wash down the delightful flavor of earwax.”

You giggle and squeeze his hand again. The Three Broomsticks is busy, which isn’t surprising in any way. You find a booth for the two of you and a small wave of guilt falls over you. It feels wrong to take up an entire booth with just two of you. You make a mental note to invite any of your friends over if you see them. 

“Tell me, how did you get Mr. Brown to order these books?” Regulus asks, patting the Tomes and Scrolls bag next to him.

“It was so difficult. But really, I think Dora and I just wore him down. You know, asking and asking for these type of books and telling him it’s vital to our education. Little bit of forgery…”

“Forgery?” Regulus repeats.

“Well, he wanted a note from Professor Dawntry saying that they were necessary, or beneficial at least. And do you think she’d write that? No. So… we took it upon ourselves to write it. It’s all thanks to Junior for forging her signature. I think that really sold it to Mr. Brown.”

Regulus smirks. “And what if he ever talks to Dawntry in person? Asks her about the books that she’s endorsed?” 

“I already purchased the books, silly,” you say with an affectionate eye roll. “You purchased the books technically. But what’s he going to do? Force me to return them?”

“I suppose business is business.”

“Exactly! And it’s not like I’m requesting books on the Dark Arts.”

Then you start to explain the more intricate details about this particular branch of Divination that you’re looking into and how the Hogwarts library only has so many books on it. You’ve even read the books on it that are in the Restricted Section with real notes from Professor Dawntry. 

“That’s where we got the signature for Junior to copy,” you say.

Regulus nods and you continue. He’s more than fascinated while listening to you ramble. He hopes his staring is more ‘attentive listener’ than ‘creepy stalker’ or ‘you have something on your face.’ 

You’re pleased that Regulus doesn’t look bored with you right now. You’ve talked about this subject in the past to a variety of people and most of them give you skeptical looks and try to change the subject. And then there are the few who look more bored than the average student in Professor Binns’ class. Regulus is just attentive and it fuels the butterflies in your stomach. 

After a few butterbeers, Regulus hands Madam Rosmerta a few galleons before you head over to Honeydukes.

“I can pay you back for that,” you say, once again reaching for your coin purse before Regulus puts his hand on your arm.

“Don’t. Told you, it’s my treat.”

“What? The whole day? Reg, you already got my books!”

“I invited you, darling. Today’s on me.” 

A faint blush dusts your cheeks. “Damn, you should invite me to Hogsmeade more often.”

That’s the plan, Regulus thinks. He feels it would’ve been too forward, too flirty to say out loud, but it is the plan. If today continues to go well, he plans on being your Hogsmeade date quite often and being your date to the Yule Ball and asking you to wear his extra jersey to quidditch games and being your study buddy and… He is getting ahead of himself. He needs to finish the first date strong before he can plan out the rest of your relationship. 

You don’t take long in Honeydukes. Both of you know exactly which sweets you want and where they are. Having stopped there every visit since you started going to Hogsmeade in third year, it’s a well rehearsed visit. Once more, Regulus pays for your things. You don’t protest at all this time, knowing that he’ll insist that it’s his treat. It’s a tad bizarre the longer you think about it; you don’t recall him paying for anyone else that often. Usually when the whole group goes to the Three Broomsticks, everyone throws a galleon or a few sickles on the table before you leave, based on how much each drinks or if someone ordered food. Your solution? Just don’t think about it. He’s being nice and you don’t complain when someone is being extra nice to you. Definitely not when it’s Regulus. 

On the way back to the castle, you tell Regulus about the games you used to play with cousins using Bertie Bott’s Every Flavor Beans. Some of the games you’ve played at Hogwarts through the years, but your cousins have their own rules and methods of telling the flavors apart. Regulus tells you about the Chocolate Eternals that Sirius would sneak him when they were younger.

“He’d have to remind me not to chew them every time. Mum’s only given me enough to get two so we each get one. They don’t melt. Make it last.” 

You give him a slightly pitiful look. “I guess sweets weren’t too common growing up?” 

“No. Mother believes they are for special occasions and even then, they are limited… Come to think of it, I’m not sure Mother actually gave Sirius the money for the chocolates. He probably nicked it from her purse.” 

Regulus chuckles at the idea and you’re glad the conversation returns to its previous light-hearted nature. Regulus is able to keep his unspoken promise to carry your things all the way back to the common room. 

“Thanks for everything, Reg,” you say, giving Regulus a hug before taking your things back to your dorm. 

Regulus smiles to himself as he heads back to his. He feels proud of himself. He had a great first date with you and you seemed to enjoy yourself. 

---

Regulus starts placing himself next to you as much as he can. Or, at least, that’s what it feels like. You’re not complaining by any means. It’s nice and you like it. It’s just different. But you do notice that he’s becoming more relaxed around you, more himself. There have even been a few times where it’s just the two of you and you fall into easy conversation. 

After dinner on Friday evening, you sit next to Regulus on the plush couch in the common room. He’s got out the Transfiguration textbook, clearly doing the assigned reading. You have no intention of doing so. Regulus becomes less stiff as you sit down. It’s a miniscule change but you notice it. You scooch closer to Regulus and he moves his arm around you, holding you closer into his side. 

Pandora and Barty, having witnessed this, exchange curious glances. Regulus had told Barty that the date went well and he just assumed you were on the same page, that you are now dating. You had told Pandora about Regulus buying and how sweet he was the entire time, followed with a desperate ‘Do you think he might like me?’ Both Pandora and Barty had never seen Regulus put his arm around someone like that and he definitely never pulled someone in closer to him. His apparent tolerance of touches applying to only you was one thing; this was a whole new level. 

“You smell good,” you mutter into his chest. 

“Hm, thank you,” Regulus says quietly. 

Then he musters all his courage and presses a soft kiss to your forehead. Your eyes go wide and you sit up, staring at him. Pandora and Barty have similar looks of surprise on their faces. Their quiet and previously boring evening in the common room just got interesting. 

“You… just… You kissed…” you stutter out.

You’re unable to actually finish your thought. You aren’t completely oblivious. You know that Regulus doesn’t give affection. 

“Erm, is that okay?” he asks, suddenly looking bashful and unsure of himself. 

“You don’t… You don’t… do that?” you say, sounding very, very unsure of what just happened. 

He wets his lips nervously. “I thought it’d be okay, with you, you know, since we’re dating?” 

You sit up even straighter. 

“We are?” you gasp. 

Regulus’ face burns bright red and out of the corner of your eye, you can see Barty trying not to fall out of his chair with suppressed laughter. 

“Since when?” you add. 

“Last week? I asked you on a date and it went well? At least, I thought it went well… I had a good time. Did you not?” 

You gasp louder and throw yourself at Regulus, burying him in a hug. 

“Merlin, I didn’t realize! No, it did go well!” You pull back from him with the widest grin he has ever seen. “You like me?” 

Regulus adjusts himself next to you, turning slightly to be more facing you. So apparently you weren’t on the same page about everything, but you seemed open to it.

“He doesn’t go around kissing everyone, sweetheart,” Barty chimes in, earning himself a glare from Regulus.

“Is that why you paid for everything? Because it was a date?” you ask Regulus.

He nods and you pull him into another hug. 

“So we’re dating,” you say.

“If that’s okay with you?” Regulus says, still sounding unsure of himself.

You pull back again and this time it’s you nodding. Then you get off the couch and practically jump onto Pandora’s lap.

“Did you hear, Dora? I’m dating Regulus!” you say happily. “Oh, I need to find Dorcas! She needs to know!”

And you are bounding away in search of your friend. You don’t hesitate to tell everyone that you pass that you’re dating Regulus Black, yes, the Regulus Black. You can’t help it – you’re just so excited that this yearslong crush has manifested into something real.

“About time too,” Pandora says once you’ve disappeared up the stairs toward the girls’ dormitories. “She’s been smitten with you for years.”

“I’d say you’re perfect for each other. Mr. ‘Allergic to touching’ and Ms. ‘Always touching,’” Barty adds. 

Regulus throws a pillow at Barty, which sends him into a cackling fit. Barty knows that Regulus must really like you to let him get away with that comment. After all, Regulus could’ve thrown his Transfiguration book at him.