"There's A Lot Of Damage In Both Of Those Relationships. I Did See Andromeda Recently, I Spoke To Her

Pandora never seemed to shy away from him, and it was that amongst other things that kept drawing him back. A firm hand pressed against the small of her back, pressing her to him. When the two of them were like this, the rest of the world seemed to fade away - there was only the curious, beautiful witch in front of him, and the hours that they could snatch away for themselves. Desire burned within his veins at the brief sharpness of her teeth, and he hummed a noise of approval. "Over, and over again," he vowed with a smirk.

Pandora's attention felt almost as powerful as the spell that had held him, though he knew that she was looking with a curious eye to see whether the magic worked. He'd spotted the brief flash of surprise in her eyes, though he knew that he had made it clear that Magnus was his only family. Anders Greyback was an unwelcome memory, but that was all. Fenrir hardly thought of the older man at all these days, and the only time he did was on mornings when he woke up with Magnus after the full moon and saw his son recovering better than young Fenrir ever had cooped away in that cellar under his father's hateful eyes.

Brushing the decades old bitterness towards his father away as Pandora summed up his patricide with simple words, Fenrir couldn't help but agree. "Fucking arsehole is more like it," he said, moving his arms to support her as she jumped him. "Oh, I know I am," he grinned, walking a few steps backwards to a nearby tree that he could press Dora against. After a few moments, he drew back ever so slightly, speaking against her lips. "Are we going back to mine? Do you need that clock still?"

A shiver rippled down Pandora's spine with the words he confessed to her. There were those she spent time with, but there was an appeal when she was the object of their desire and wanted to take her. Her teeth grazed along his bottom lip when he pulled from the kiss, a wanton need burning in her amber hues from him. The last thing she ever wanted to do was to tame Fenrir, it was his beast that called to her, captured her in this world they had built within the woods. "I know you will. You always make good on your word." There was sexual innuendo wrapped in her words, the anticipation slowly breaking her.

There was an intimacy formed being confined in his arms with him helping her achieve success with her spell. That he would be willing to take a risk for her and Fenrir would never know how much that would mean to her. Intent hues studies his facial features, his words, they surprised her, but she did not judge him. Pandora knew there was more to the story and when he was ready, he would tell her - her attention turned elsewhere.

An ecstatic smile appeared on her lips. It worked. Pandora couldn't contain the feelings that swirled inside of her, that all she wanted to do was to celebrate with him. "He was probably a jerk anyway." The words slipped free and she didn't waste time, wrapping her arms around his neck and jumping up that she could coil her legs around his waist. "You are so sexy." She murmured softly before capturing his lips in a heated kiss.

"There's a small dash of mustard in there too, and some nutmeg," he said. He may work in a pub kitchen, he may be looked down upon within society, but he saw no reason to serve shit food. He kept his employers happy, and they continued to turn a blind eye to the days off that he requested each month like clockwork. "I find that the two work very well together. Just the right balance of each, and some finely sliced potatoes and...voila, or whatever the French say."

"Oh cheddar and parmesan together is a great idea. Usually people shy away from combining two stronger flavor profiles but I do find that they compliment each other well."

Regulus was trying to balance too many spinning plates between his family duties, his duties to the war, his own misgivings, and the secrets he was trying to keep. He did not want to sit here under Bellatrix's beady eye, knowing he had disappointed her since he was a boy and that he continued to be an ever present reminder of what the Black family could have had, and that they were left with him instead. He had tried - nobody could say that he hadn't tried. Merlin, he'd torn his soul in two trying to be good enough. He'd cast curse after curse, he'd trained and trained, he had gone on plenty of successful missions - yet it had stained his soul until he was truly fit for the Black name. The pressure from all sides was drowning him, pouring down his throat and choking his airwaves. He couldn't continue like this, but he couldn't see another way out. He felt like there was only one way this ended for him, and it was a permanent closure to the story of Regulus Black.

Taking a deep breath to steady himself, Regulus kept his eyes trained on his cousin. He would not cower in front of Bellatrix, no matter the way his insides were twisting with anxiety and fear about what she may demand of him. He loved her, truly, he did. A large part of Regulus resisting against the conscience that had been gnawing at his soul for so long had been that he did not want to go the way of Andromeda, of Sirius. He did not want to lose Bella, or Cissa. Even his parents, twisted and awful though they were, Regulus would mourn the loss of them in his life. It was all he had ever known, and stepping out into a complete unknown terrified him. At his heart, he felt like a scared little boy. He did not want to lose his family.

Bella's silence at his outburst was chilling, and he made a noise of discontentment at the finger pointed in his direction. "The mission was successful. There was no need for Rabastan to update you on my abilities in the battlefield, that is gossip. I knew you were getting updates on me, nothing is ever fucking private in this family is it?" he spat, furious at both Bellatrix and his mentor. He bit his tongue rather than retorting at her correct assumption that he was trying to distract her. Snatching a biscuit from the tray, Regulus considered that he must truly look like a toddler throwing a tantrum, yet he couldn't bring himself to care as he ate the biscuit with a frown. "Bellatrix, there is no hidden game to my words. I do not want you to teach me," he asserted. "My best is avada. The other two are equally poor, though I would say my imperio is slightly better than my crucio. But I am working on those with Rabastan, and that is the way it will stay."

"I appreciate your offer, I do. I have told you this before, I appreciate...the care that it shows. But I am fine. I don't understand how I can say it more clearly, cousin. I do not want your help."

Bellatrix had loved Sirius. She had admired his spirit, laughing at the way he stuck a middle finger up at every stuffy rule and regulation. She'd valued the way he had never tried to cramp her into a box, labelling her like every other godforsaken male in their family. But he had been full of deceit. His betrayal had destroyed her. It had fuelled her rage and sent her spinning for the Dark Lord more brutally and determinedly than she had known possible. Even now, sitting here with Regulus, she couldn't help but see his brother's face and feel her skin crawling with latent ire. Revenge would be sweet - for Regulus, as much as for herself. She would lay down her life for her youngest cousin, though the fact that he didn't seem to value her devotion hurt. She refused to acknowledge it, focussing only on the fact that the rejection was because she was too intense. It was a selfless consideration for such an egocentric witch, though in large part inspired by her unwillingness to admit to her own weakness.

Not once did she cease her observations. Her eyes may have turned away, but she could feel Regulus squirming beside her despite his valiant attempts at holding composure. She was proud of that. He could wear a mask like the rest of them, painting a picture of noble strength and stoic integrity. So as he sat back casually, a smile snaked her lips, which curved indecorously behind the rim of her teacup. Placing it back onto the saucer, she slid it onto a side table and sat, staring unflinching at Regulus as he spoke. They were like a pair of statuettes, dark haired and pale skinned, the familial resemblance running as strong as the blood that fuelled their limbs. Little did she know the depth of Regulus's struggles. Long may she remain unaware, for it would not please her to kill him. She took pleasure in the devil's work, but that would cause her no satisfaction.

She listened to everything he had to say. Though she had a vested interest in his success - though she desired it tirelessly - she was clever and wily. She would not allow emotional instincts to drive her this time, knowing how he desired detachment - for whatever absurd reason. Not once did she move. Not until his voice sharpened with anger, inspiring yet another twist of approval through her porcelain skin. As the tea splattered across the saucer, she narrowed her eyes and considered him, waiting until his diatribe had ceased.

"You have pride, Regulus. Rightly so." Pointing a finger, her eyes expanded indicatively. "But don't let it come before a fall. There was no gossiping. It was a mission, there were updates, I was informed. Do not use my devotion to the Dark Lord as a way to distract me." She arched an eyebrow, stern despite the amusement that lightened her tone and curved her harsh lips. "Nice try but I'm not an idiot. I know what you're doing. Biscuit?" Flicking her wand, she hovered a tray towards her cousin, not thinking twice about combining a pleasant refreshment with this darker topic. As it floated between them, she picked up a ginger snap and studied it before taking a bite. "Which is your best Unforgiveable and which is your worst?"

Edgar remaining seated was an indication that all of the power lay with him at the moment, while Regulus stood before him like a naughty child. Still, he would not sit - it was far too casual while he was being questioned on such matters. He stared down at Edgar, his jaw set firmly as he considered the man's words. Clearly, they did believe they had enough evidence to link the heirloom and it's recent use to Regulus, otherwise he wouldn't be called back.

But if that were the case, why was he here instead of simply being arrested and carted off to Azkaban?

"Mr Bones, I appreciate that you yourself have not been raised with strict, ancient family values. I know what is required of me, and that has shaped who I am. My words, and what is required by my parents, are one and the same. There used to be two boys to share the burden between our demanding parents, now there is only one...I manage as I must," Regulus said, his tone sharp. Those who had been raised outside of a Sacred Twenty-Eight upbringing could never hope to understand the demands and pressures that their parents put on them. "I'm not sure what my conscience has to do with this, Mr Bones," he said, though his eyebrows furrowed as Edgar mentioned his internal conflict that had grown so loud he could almost hear it roaring in his ears.

Staring silently at the photo of himself and Sirius, Regulus shook his head. "Sirius made his choice. He chose his friends, and he left me behind...he left me. He knew what our parents would do to me, and he left me anyway. He left me to rot," he said bitterly, though he reached for the photograph anyway. "Your idea of family, and my own idea of family, they differ. I have nobody, Mr Bones. I am alone in this world - and if I wanted to run to Sirius, I couldn't. I don't know where my own brother lives."

Frowning once again at Edgar's offer, Regulus paused. He'd been gearing up to leave, but the offer seemed genuine. There was another beat of silence, before Regulus finally took a seat. In a very quiet voice, he asked "what protection could you offer me against the Dark Lord? People do not simply leave the service of the Dark Lord. They serve, or they die. How can you guarantee protection, and safety?"

"And what would you ask in return? I take it this offer is not from the kindness of your heart."

"Stand if you must." Edgar did not care too much for what the boy did, there were more pressing matters at hand and he knew this situation had to be dealt with in a certain manner to work in their favour. He remained seated in his chair, hands clasped together in front of him.

Being meant with resistant was expected and he could appreciate how hard it appeared family ties were instilled in the boy, but that also would also aid his words. No matter how dire Regulus wished to keep his composure, there was always a truth written within the eyes.

"Were those your words, or words required of you?" A beat. "At times it can feel hard to free oneself of shackles so tightly encompassed around us. The weight of our conscience a constant struggle on what is right or wrong." Edgar leans back in his chair. "I see the conflict in your eyes Regulus." He was throwing all his cards out on the desk.

"Family doesn't force you to believe in what they want you to. A real family, they accept you for who you are." He pulled out a picture from underneath the one, a smaller one, of two boys together, one he had brought to him. "You have a brother who would accept you for who you are."

Edgar went to stand up, hands resting on top of the desk. "If you have nothing more to share, then I will not hold you." A pause. "But what I can offer you, if you decide to do the right thing, is protection outside of these walls, not within the ministry." Half of the people he didn't trust. "And I have a feeling you know what I mean."

Regardless of the way that this might end, Fenrir wanted to give it a shot. They'd been exclusive for a while in all but name, and it felt good to seal the deal. There was still much to consider, especially how he would introduce Magnus to the Pandora given he didn't know if this would end after a year. He didn't want his son getting too attached if the other woman was to leave again, but equally this was war and there was no guarantee that they would even make it to the end of the next year, or what the world would look like then they got to that point.

The incident with the clock had dragged up feelings that Fenrir had thought were long buried, and the whiskey mixed with the sleepiness of the end of Christmas day had made him melancholic. "My father...he took all the joy of Christmas away. As a young adult, suddenly free and learning how to be part of a pack, I didn't celebrate Christmas. I just took myself away for the day, spent all day hiking with a flask of whiskey. Now, for my boy, I want everything to be perfect. I never want him to feel the way I felt. I want him to feel the magic of Christmas, and to never doubt that he has a father who loves him with his whole heart," he breathed, knowing that any love his father may have had for him had disappeared the moment Fenrir had been saved but Freya had not.

Once the necklace was around Pandora's neck, Fenrir traced the delicate chain with his finger before cupping her cheeks as she kissed him. Opening the offered box, Fenrir touched the leather bracelets gently, almost astounded at her thoughtfulness. He slipped the bracelet intended for him over his wrist, leaving the one for Magnus still in the box. "Thank you. It's so thoughtful. Nobody's ever given me anything like this."

There were many factors when it came to what this would be like between them, but Pandora was willing to take the risk and see where this could go. There was no rush and she wanted to live in this feeling he made her feel. With the war slowly growing, they were not always guaranteed a tomorrow. All she had was now and that was what she would focus on. Fate kept pulling her towards him and she refused to push.

Any chance Fenrir would talk about his past, the way he grew up, learning recently the truth about his father, she would listen intently, wanting to drink it all in. "Magnus will know joy. You and Nancy give him that. He is a lucky boy who have two parents that love him. You are breaking all these barriers that were thrown at you." A softness to her tone, taking the moment where they could open up to each other, leaning in to place a kiss on his lips.

She didn't waste time to open the present, the necklace beautiful and seeing that it was a crescent moon, it would be a reminder that he was always there with her when they could not be together. "It's beautiful, Fen." She places it around her neck, giving him another kiss. "I have something for you and Magnus." Pandora summons a small box from her bag, holding it out for him. "I wanted to give you piece of mind." She waits until he opens the box, pulling out two bracelets. "They are enchanted with a tracker and a small protection charm. That way you always know where he is. It's my own magic. Spells I made."

The owl that he had sent to Alecto earlier in the day had returned without a reply, but Regulus had taken the silence as a yes rather than a no and had prepared enough dinner for two. If Alecto didn't show up then he would simply have enough leftovers to take for lunch to work, but it was rare that Alecto didn't answer a summons from him. At least this time he was offering dinner, rather than an ongoing crisis. If his mother could see him, she would look down her nose at Regulus cooking the 'muggle' way rather than using a house elf, but he found that the methodical nature of it soothed his mind. Two of the artefacts that Regulus had been experimenting on at work were on the sideboard, surrounded by protective enchantments. Alcott had been sniffing around his work too much, and Regulus didn't trust that these artefacts wouldn't go missing if they were left at work. His wards alerted him to Alecto's presence just as Regulus was removing dinner from the oven, and with a small grin, he shouted "I'm in the kitchen." @alectocarrowx

The streets of Hogsmeade would always make Cassandra feel warm and nostalgic, no matter how many years passed since she had left Hogwarts. She'd spent a small fortune in Honeydukes before heading into the Three Broomsticks where she'd settled herself in a corner near the fire with a butterbeer. Her nose was buried into a book detailing the latest in runic magic when she spotted someone approaching her from the corner of her eye. "I'm not working at the moment. If you need healing, could you speak to someone else please?" she asked without looking up.

Regulus glanced back at Frank's basket again before plucking some ginger from the shelf and dropping it into the other man's basket. "I hear ginger's quite helpful for warding off sickness. Make her some teas or something," he offered, recalling from an advanced potions book he'd read a few years back. "Nothing like a screaming mandrake to ward off potential burglars," he said with a small smile, before the smile quickly vanished. "I think it might be too late to stop the passage of time...maybe I can study it though, at the ministry. See what I can do."

"It's gotta be a fake moustache...gotta commit, y'know. It can't be Regulus Black's shitty moustache. Maybe I should use a hair growth potion."

"Thanks," Frank said, sorting the ingredients to make sure he'd have enough for the few other things he had to pick up. "Now I'm definitely picking you up some other ingredients when I come back. I might plant a few for our apartment, they're good for security as well. Then I won't have to buy as many. Tell time to give you a break, you're too young for it to do so much damage."

He laughed before he could help himself, smothering his smile when the shopkeeper gave them both a confused look. "Well future Albert, it will be a pleasure to meet your mustachioed future self."

With the confessions he had made to Edgar, Regulus knew that this was it now. He had to entirely commit to this betrayal of all he had ever known, otherwise he was certain that he would quickly he detained and this encounter would be shown to the Wizengamot via pensieve. He wasn't in a position yet to truly trust Edgar, though he believed that Sirius knew and trusted this man based on what Edgar had said and that had to count for something. He could live a double life for a while, but there was only so long that he would be able to maintain that facade before it broke him in two.

"And what do you expect that will look like? Will I have to spend my life in hiding?" Andromeda and Sirius managed to live a public life from what he knew, but they had not actively betrayed the Death Eaters. They had never been marked, and they had certainly not shared highly confidential information to assist the aurors in capturing other Death Eaters. He was terrified as to what came next, yet he knew it was still the right decision.

Regulus' shoulders were full of tension as he expected Edgar to press for names that he did not want to give, and he slumped back against the chair with relief when Edgar didn't press. "Ensure you are there early. Muggles will be present, so the less casualties, the better. That's fine. I trust that my identify as a source will be confidential. The less people who know about this for now, the better. I am not ready to leave my family behind yet."

The confessions that were being made within his charmed office could have the young wizard locked up at Azkaban, constant state of his happiness being drained from him. The only saving grace for Regulus Black, was the notion of removing him from a side that only cared for darkness and distraction and reunite him with his family that would be grateful to have him, despite the demons he was trying to hide. They all had their demons that they fought, different from each other.

"I suppose there is only one way to find out." After his shift, he would make meet with the other Sirius brother and have a chat with him. There was no need to hide any truth, better prepare those when it all came to light.

"We will only do so where you feel safe, from there, we will pull you back and you will be done with that part of your life." The information provided did not need to be much, enough that their suspicions about some could come to public knowledge, making it a little harder for the Death Eaters and the Dark Lord's cause.

Edgar was a little disappointed that there would be no names, but the information that came afterwards, it was plenty enough. A flick of his wrist, a quill came out with some parchment, scribbling down what was being said through magic. "I will have my men ready for that." He would do a little more digging to see what would be happening that night. His head nods at the mention of Knockturn Alley, it was a given with the constant rumours of death eater activity. "I think that is enough. I will need a day to sort out protection for you." He had an idea of who, but it was about having a meeting with them first regarding their mission.