CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
First Haunting Floor
June 25th, 1979.

After a few days spent there, on the first floor, Regulus was now convinced it was haunted. Every night, when the hallways were as dark as the sky outside, there'd be wails and light scratches heard. The nurses were the only ones walking around and checking on patients. Regulus even had heard from a resident there that only the nurses were allowed to roam the hospital's hallways at night or the visitors would be taken away by the spirits.

Regulus wasn't much of a believer when it came to spirits but after spending a few nights with Mallory, he could understand where the whispers came from. Mallory had been put to sleep for a week under a healer's suggestion, he had said her wounds were too deep to heal by themselves if she was awake, so Regulus allowed them to do whatever was required to keep her safe and alive. 

When Mallory began to wake up, he was there. By her side. He had wiped the sweats off her forehead and had pressed a gentle kiss on it, promising that she was okay. Mallory did not utter a word, just smiled before drifting back to sleep.

On the next day, the Prewett came. None knew the reason why she was here but it was clear that Fabian was convinced it was Regulus' doing. Even Gideon seemed a bit distant to Regulus' dismay. But, he knew Mallory well enough to know that she wouldn't want them to fight, so he left the room and went on the last floor to get a warm chocolate. When he went back, they were gone and Mallory was looking a little happier than before.

Then it was visitors on visitors and flowers on flowers. He had no idea that Mallory had so many friends. Even Emmeline Vance had sent flowers to her Dear Mallie and the thought made Regulus laugh, but Mallory had simply hit his shoulder playfully before smiling as well.

On a Tuesday, knocks echoed from outside and Regulus, as usual, went to open the door. His eyes opened wide when he saw his mother and cousin, Narcissa, standing before him. 

"Mother?" He quizzed, casting an unsure look at Mallory who was quietly eating her apple. "What are you doing here?"

Walburga frowned, "Regulus, why did you not tell us Mallory had been sent to the first floor? Is she alright?"

"He didn't want to scare you, Mrs.Black," Mallory's little voice echoed from behind him, and Walburga lightly pushed her son out of the way to rush to Mallory's side.

Narcissa, on the opposite, offered a warm smile and kissed his cheek, "Aunt Walburga and I were terribly scared for Mallory. Is she going to be alright?"

Regulus sighed softly, "She should be."

He closed the door behind Narcissa before reaching Mallory's side again. Walburga had one hand wrapped around Mallory's hand, and the other one was firmly pressed against her forehead—as if she was checking for her temperature. Regulus could not recall a day where she had behaved so motherly, perhaps during old times when Regulus was sick but either way, she used to send a Healer named Maria.

"Oh, dear," Walburga breathed out, kissing the top of Mallory's hand. "We were so scared. Orion and I."

"There was no need to be," Mallory smiled softly and grabbed Regulus' hand. "Your son was a true gentleman and brought me here. He even threatened a nurse."

Walburga gasped as Narcissa snorted, "Oh, Salazar. Why?"

Regulus shrugged, "She refused to take care of Mallory when I asked to, so I pointed my wand at her."

The reason seemed to ease his mother as her shoulders relaxed, "Good boy. If people nowadays don't want to work anymore, I will be sure to send an owl to the Ministry where I'll be complaining about the welcoming at the front desk," she muttered.

Regulus kept being surprised by Walburga's attitude. The way she moved some hair away from Mallory's forehead, the way she held her hand so tightly that Mallory's hand turned white,  how she smiled or how scared she looked when he opened the door.

"Mallory, you ought to get better, alright?" Walburga whispered softly, kissing the hand she was holding. "Orion and I would be very saddened to not see you anymore. And I'm sure Regulus will be too."

As Walburga and Mallory continued to talk with each other as if they had known each other since the beginning of time, he exited the room to breathe a bit better. Narcissa soon joined him, watching him carefully.

"Something is different," she started, licking her lips as she continued. "Between you and Mallory, I mean."

Regulus ran a hand through his hair, pulling at them lightly as he gulped, "I was very scared, Cissy. I thought I was going to lose her," he admitted. "It is—I have been scared before. We've all been. But, seeing her in such conditions—it was terrifying."

Narcissa nodded, "I understand."

Regulus bit his nails anxiously until Narcissa scolded him, reminding him of the good manners they had been taught, "Mother seems to like her better than I thought she would."

His cousin chuckled, "She does, she indeed does. To everyone's surprise, she is very fond of Mallory."

"I'm glad."

Narcissa entered the room once again, leaving him by himself. Burying his hand in his pocket, he could feel the pendant against his touch and it made his blood run cold. He hadn't let go of it ever since they had brought it back–too scared that someone might be on the look for it. It would be a lie to say that the horcrux didn't have any effect on him, it was as if it weighed a ton and Regulus was collapsing underneath it.

Besides, it led him to think. Perhaps, a bit clearer. After seeing Mallory badly hurt, he could not help but think that he was just destructive around her. If he thought about it well, many horrible things that had happened because of him–his world. Rodolphus had tried to take advantage of Mallory, then she had lost many friends and now she was in St Mungo's with wounds all over her body. It made him sick just thinking about it.

Despite his fondness for Mallory, he was aware that his world would only bring her chaos and misery. He was used to it but she was not. Misery and chaos was a notion she had barely experienced in her younger years. Mallory had lived a happy life until the war. Her parents were as loving as it could get, her friends loved her and she made everyone laugh.

"Regulus, my boy," the hushed voice of his mother snapped him out of his thoughts as he looked up at her. "For how long is Mallory going to stay here?"

Regulus shrugged, "Until she is feeling better, mother. She can't even stand because of the wounds," he told her. "I will be sure to tell you when she does get out."

"Please," she said, almost pleadingly. "And please, you must tell us everything about her and do not lie."

"I won't."

"Good," Walburga gave him a little nod. "I told her goodbye, now if you'll excuse me...I am going to look for that nurse."

Minutes after, Narcissa was kissing Regulus' cheek once again and promising to visit them as soon as possible. When he entered the room, Mallory seemed to have shed a few tears which made him throw her a questioning look.

"Your mother, she–" there was a slight pause and Regulus prayed that his mother hadn't done something wicked. "She gave me a little book. It's old but she said it belonged to my mother. You see, after reading about their deaths, she thought of me and how sad I was going to be so she browsed through her old books to find it."

"How touching."

Mallory took Regulus' hand in hers and brought him closer until he was laying on the bed next to her, she rested her head on his chest while she opened the notebook to show him all the little annotations her mother had done in the past. Most of the books were flowers but then the end was filled with drawings of Regulus' own mother, Mallory's father and a few faces he couldn't name.

"Your mother is different when I'm here."

"Very different," Regulus said quietly.

Mallory hummed, "She's almost delicate."

Delicate was a fine word to describe Walburga's behaviour towards Mallory. There was always so much delicateness when it came to her, as if she was a rare Muggle vase that threatened to break if one touched it too violently.

Regulus ran his fingers through Mallory's hair, earning a content hum from her, "Mother loves you."

"Weirdly, I love her too."

Mallory and Regulus could tell that the bonds she had built over the months went beyond the mission. It was not an act anymore. Everything was real; from the way she kissed him to the way she held Walburga's hand tightly.

"Reckon I will be out soon?" Mallory queried quietly once the lights were out and she had just taken her last medicine of the day. "It's suffocating to be here."

"I know, Mallory," Regulus whispered and he didn't know why or even how, but an outburst of rage overwhelmed him and he was somehow angry at the world but mostly himself. "It should be me in this bed."

"But it's not and it's oka–"

"No, of course it's not!" He said harshly, taking his hand away from the bed to bite his nails anxiously. "I–I let you make me think that it was going to be okay bringing you there. How could I be such a fool?"

"Regu–"

"No, you charmed me so you could come along!" He argued as Mallory frowned, her eyes swelling with tears. Perhaps the medicine tended to make her a bit more emotional than usual. "You–you lied to me by whispering sweet words but you meant none of them, didn't you?"

"I did!"

"Lies!" He shouted back, making her jump slightly in the bed. Regulus froze as if he was realising what he had just done and took a step back. "I–I'm sorry. I need air."

Regulus did not care if the hallways were haunted, he needed to breathe some fresh air or he was going to suffocate in this room. This was a type of anger he had never dealt with before. His parents had raised him well and Regulus knew better than to call someone a liar without proofs. And it was just a stranger who he had called a liar, it was his Mallory.

Burying his head in the palm of his hands, he tried to think of a safe way for Mallory to continue her life without him being a problem. And as he thought, his mind couldn't help but create bad thoughts that led him to think that perhaps Mallory was playing with him. Again, he didn't think she would ever do that—she seemed so sincere.

When Regulus finally decided to return to the room, a few nurses reminded him the rules bitterly and Mallory was asleep. Her breath short but relaxed. By examining her face, he could tell that she had cried because her cheeks were glowing in the moonlit room, and her nose was slightly red.

Quietly and delicately, he leant down and pressed his lips to the side of her head before exiting the room. Surely, she would understand why he had left. As fast as he could, he tried to leave St Mungo's but a nurse caught him, and cleared her throat in the dark.

"No one should be out in the hallways, it is a rule," she said and Regulus could tell the voice was familiar. "Is there any particular reason why you are out? At night?"

Regulus cleared his throat, turning his body towards the voice, "I am leaving."

"Ah," she clicked her tongue, stepping in the dimming light and now he could see clearly who was behind the voice: Pandora Lovegood. "Regulus Black. I presume it is you who pointed a wand at my colleague, is it not?"

Even now, he chuckled, "Guilty," Regulus said.

"What is it that you're doing here? Are you wounded?"

"No, my friend is."

"Oh, I see. Your friend," she emphasised on the word friend, making Regulus snort softly. Pandora always had been clever. "Is she alright?"

"She will be now," Regulus told her and he could not really tell what emotions crossed her face, but for now she seemed angry.

Pandora's hand wrapped around his wrist, pulling him into a tiny room that he suspected to be a sort of headquarters for nurses who worked at night. When she spun on her heels to face him once again, her brows were furrowed and her lips formed a thin white line.

"You are not abandoning her here, are you?" Silence. "Regulus Black!" She exclaimed with a screech, it reminded of his mother. "How many times will I have to tell you that we do not run away from problems?"

"But Pandy, I am the problem," Regulus argued. "I do not know what's wrong with me but I feel this anger within me, and I have no idea where it is from or why all these negative thoughts are creeping in my mind."

"Oh, love," Pandora cooed, kneeling next to him and caressing his cheek. Pandora always had been very delicate with Regulus, even at school. "Your world can be very pressuring and—"

"I know, I know," Regulus breathed out, pulling himself away from her touch. "I—I need you to tell Mallory Abbott that I am sorry for leaving but when I will feel a bit saner, I will come to her once again."

Pandora seemed to be hesitant but agreed nevertheless, "Alright, I will tell her but you must promise to go back to that woman, yes? I see a very bright and happy future ahead of you when she is there," she whispered softly, moving a curl out his forehead. "You have to let her in, alright?"

Regulus noted everything she had told him in the back of his mind and hummed. Pandora rose up again, offering Regulus to walk him outside as the spirits would come for him if he went alone. As they walked through the dark hallways, they managed to exchange a pleasant conversation.

"Take care of yourself, Regulus," Pandora said, kissing his cheek as he could finally feel the breeze hit his face.

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authors note, so... i'm back with an update and boo regulus! BOO YOU! 😔