𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒔 - regulus black

chapter forty-one

"Have you said goodbye to Ivanna?" asked Ariel from where he was sitting at his desk, writing, crossing out and then rewriting before letting his quill down and tearing apart a new piece of parchment.

"Yeah, did it," replied the boy quietly.

"She doesn't suspect anything, right?"

The raven-haired boy nodded his head to approve. "You're going to see your mother tomorrow?"

"Hm. Do you want to come?"

"No, it's fine. I will go home speak to Kreacher," answered Regulus.

In this moment, it seemed like the boys didn't have a lot to tell each other. For the past hours, they had been talking with Daisy, trying to reassure her as well that their fate wasn't sealed and that they had a chance to survive, but she was too smart to be convinced. They obviously had more chances to die. It was like fighting against the Dark Lord himself; only a few wizards had a real chance to stay alive. And no matter how skilled were Ariel and Regulus, they weren't one of those wizards. For their age, they knew that going this far, getting so deep into Lord Voldemort's secrets, was already something incredible.

They didn't speak much and went to sleep early, holding each other close. They stayed quiet and unmoving, and both knew the other wasn't sleeping neither. They couldn't sleep easily in such a situation. However, when Ariel managed to fall asleep, at a late hour of the night, he wished he could hold the younger boy in his embrace forever.

Being back home - more like back in his parents' house now - Ariel felt uneasy. It could be the last time he saw them, he knew it. He met his mother in her study - after sharing a few uninteresting words with his father. She was reading, as always.

"It's been so long, I'm glad to see you!" she said, hugging her son tightly before inviting him to take a seat by her side.

"I've been busy," said the boy.

"Busy? Doing what? Have you found a job?" asked the woman curiously.

"No. Not really."

"What then?"

"It's complicated. And I'll have to leave," quickly rejoined the boy, not hiding the truth more longer.

"Leave? What do you mean?" she asked, confused.

"Just leave. I came to say goodbye actually," nervously said Ariel. He could hardly meet her questioning blue eyes.

"When are you coming back?"

"I don't know. I'll let you know..."

He hated himself for lying so easily but the surprise in his mother seemed to vanish a little.

"Okay. As long as you come back before the wedding. Don't leave Daisy alone for too long as well... or maybe you're going together?"

"No, I'm going by myself," he told her. He knew she was getting curious.

"Is this a mission for the Death Eaters?" she asked in a hushed tone even though there was nobody to hear her.

"Yeah. Somehow. That's all I can tell you."

"I see. Stay safe my son."

They hugged each other tightly and Ariel didn't want to let go but he had to. He felt very sad, he didn't want to cause his mother pain, but by now it inevitable.

"How did it go with your parents?" asked Daisy that night when all three of them were sharing dinner. Regulus looked up from his plate, interested by the answer too.

"Fine. My mother seemed worried about me going on a Death Eater mission but as long as I'm here for the wedding she's reassured. I feel bad for lying but it's better for now."