"I told my sister to come down and watch the match. She has no idea what's about to happen. I promised I would get revenge for her." Levi paced back and forth, continuing to ramble on and on. The cold January air whipped viciously, causing his knees to shiver and cheeks to turn scarlet. Esmeralda stood not far from him, her expression unreadable as she stared out across the quidditch pitch.

"Thanks for this, by the way. I really appreciate it." Levi turned to face the girl, but was met with no reply. "Avery?" He waved a hand in front of her.

Snapping out of her thoughts, Esme looked across at him, "Excuse me?"

"Were you listening to any of that?"

"Not really, no."

Levi frowned, sensing something was wrong. "Is everything alright? You seem kind of... Off."

"Off? What? No." Esme blurted out, "Don't worry about it. I've just been preoccupied with... The OWLs. That's all."

"Alright." He shrugged, "But, are you sure the charm will work?"

Esme laughed, "The real challenge was convincing Ignatius to sneak me into the Slytherin common room. The charm will work."

"Ignatius being... Oh, he's your brother, isn't he? I thought you guys didn't get along." The boy inquired.

"We don't, really." She admitted, "He's an idiot."

"So... How was he convinced to help? You didn't tell him the plan, did you? Because he'll tell Selwyn, and then we're screwed."

"Well... He's been getting a lot of slack for this embarrassing story I let slip to some Slytherins before Christmas. So... I kind of suggested I might let slip another story about him, if he didn't help." She shrugged, gazing down at the floor.

"Oh, blackmail, lovely!"

The two were distracted by the sounds of a large crowd shouting in the distance. Esme turned her heard to see hoards of students making their way over the hill and down towards the quidditch pitch. Above the roaring wind, she could just make out the familiar sound of the Slytherin chants as they hoped for yet another win.

Winter still very much encased the Hogwart's grounds although it seemed as though a storm was looming in the sky, threatening to remove that last traces of snow. The dark weather matched Esme's mood about the whole situation. It practically offended her that there were wizards and witches going missing, but the make focus of Hogwart's students was on whether Slytherin would win the quidditch cup for another year. Did nobody care about the Death Eater attacks? Esme couldn't seem to get the thoughts out of her mind.

"I'll tell you another time." She faced the boy and offered a slight smile.

Levi sighed slightly, noticing a distance in the girl, "You said this charm you're going to cast relies on it raining. It might not rain before the match is over. Are you sure this is going to work?" He asked.

"Oh, I'm certain."

Not long after, Regulus Black stood in the centre of the quidditch pitch, glancing around the stands above him. To say he'd been distracted recently would be an understatement. There was the constant worry about what his future held, but at that particular moment, stood in front of that enormous crowd... All Regulus could think about was that Esmeralda Avery was somewhere in the stands, about to watch her first quidditch match where he was playing.

"Black? You deaf?"

The boy snapped out of his thoughts, staring over at Emma Vanity who stood across the way. She had been addressing the Slytherin team, but upon addressing Regulus, all of their teammates turned to face him.

"You've been off recently. Pay attention!" The girl snapped before clicking her fingers to draw attention back to herself. "You all better be bloody listening. If any one of you messes up this match, I'll have your neck." She warned, jabbing her finger out and pointing it at each of the players.

"Players!" Called out the professor, stood at the centre of the pitch with her whistle balanced gently between her lips, "Gather!"

The teams gathered around the box containing quidditch balls, they mounted their brooms, the quaffle was thrown up in the air, and they kicked off from the ground. The game had begun. Regulus could feel the blood pumping in his ears as he shot above the stadium, somewhat tempted to do a flip or skim over the top of the crowd to show off a little. Coming to a slow halt, far above the ground, the boy wiped his sweating hands down the front of his robes. Just as he was settling in to scan the grounds for the snitch, the heavens appeared to open above him.

Looking up at the clouds, rain smashed against his goggles and burnt his cheeks with the cold water. It was almost as if the storm had come out of nowhere.

Slowly, his gaze fell back to the ground, and the still-roaring stands packed with students. He raised a shaky hand to wipe his goggles clear and silently cursed himself for not having worn gloves.

Then the grounds fell silent.

The only sound that could be heard was that of the roaring winds and rain ferociously hammering against the wooden structures below. It was like something out of a dream.

Regulus couldn't figure out what was going on.

Then he saw it.

Darting through the air below him, was some sort of bright pink object. Squinting, Regulus was barely able to make out its silhouette through the rain. It must have been on a broom, nothing on land could travel that fast.

Then the chants started.

"Selwyn! Selwyn! Selwyn!"

His fellow Slytherin player's name was being chanted around the grounds, drowning out the noise of the storm.

That's when it clicked in Regulus' head.

Selwyn hadn't scored a phenomenal goal or taken out an opponent. Instead, he was the player subjected to flying about the pitch in bright pink robes.

But... he hadn't been wearing that before.

Levi was sure to be over the moon, knowing his sister's tormentor had received some well deserved punishment, and Esme was feeling pretty chuffed with herself too. She made her way back into the stands, hoping to find a relatively quiet little corner in the Ravenclaw seats. Truthfully, she hadn't been entirely certain she could get the charms to actually work. She was just as surprised as anyone else that everything had gone to plan.

Watching the quidditch match seemed to drag on for hours as Esme tried to spot Regulus in the sky, yet it was hopeless. All of the players looked the same from so far away. Yet, when it all ended, Esme let out a grateful sigh. Levi was sure to be waiting for her somewhere nearby and as she made her way out of the stands, there he was.

Levi could not believe it. The sight of Selwyn shooting through the sky wearing bright pink robes had practically made the Gryffindor boy's year. His sister was sure to be proud. Strolling back up to the castle beside Esme, the sound of chatter from nearby students wasn't about how Slytherin had won by a record margin, but all about what happened to Selwyn.

"You sure are lucky, Esmeralda!" He laughed, the memory replaying in his mind, "I don't know how you knew it was going to rain. We're unbelievably lucky it did."

"Very lucky..." Esme hummed, a small smirk playing on her lips that she wouldn't allow the boy to see. Light rain was still pattering down onto the damp grass, causing the ground to squelch as they climbed the hill back up to the castle. Esme tightened her robes around her and clutched her hood over her head.

"Despite Slytherin winning, some of the other Gryffindor's are going to celebrate the embarrassment they suffered. We were going to have a bit of a party in the common room, and you could come if you want. I'll sneak you in. I mean, once everybody hears about what you did, they'll welcome you with open arms." Levi grinned giddily.

"Rogers, I'm not-"

"Esme! Esme! Stop a moment!" A voice called from down the slope behind them.

She stopped, spinning around on her feet to see Regulus jogging up towards them. "I need to speak to you." He exhaled raggedly, pausing a second to catch his breath.

"Everything alright?" Levi asked, eyeing Regulus with suspicion.

Esme nodded, "Fine, thank you. I'll pass on the party. Go celebrate with your sister. Oh, and don't tell anyone it was me who did that. I could do without the attention." She spoke shortly, staring directly at Levi.

"Oh... Right, that's okay. Maybe another time. I just thought-"

She interrupted, "I'll see you around."

Levi snapped his jaw shut, cheeks turning red. He nodded once, tightening his jacket around himself before turning and quietly walking alone back to the castle.

Esme watched him for a moment, waiting for him to be out of earshot before she turned back to Regulus.

"Is something wrong?" She asked, scanning her eyes over him to try and figure out if something was wrong.

"You did something." Regulus spoke blankly, not giving away any sign of what he was thinking or how he was feeling.

She frowned, "Did something? That's slightly vague."

"Esme." He warned, "You only came to the match to mess with Selwyn. What-how did you do it?"

"I don't know what you're talking about. Me attending the match and Selwyn embarrassing himself in front of the whole school, are totally unrelated. Independent events. Completely unrelated." She shrugged, perhaps piling it on a bit too much.

"I'm not an idiot Esme. Why would you mess with a quidditch match? You know how important those are to me." He snapped, folding his arms across his chest.

"Regulus..." Her face softened, tempted to take a step closer to him but sensing that might be the wrong move.

Regulus frowned, "Did you make it rain? You could have caused serious accidents out there. What would have happened if that spell went wrong? What if the sudden rain caught someone off guard and they fell from their broom?"

"I wasn't thinking it through. I didn't mean to ruin anything for you." She explained desperately, "You know I only want the best for you."

"That's the problem, isn't it? You don't think anything through! You always do what you want and don't have any regard for anyone else." He exclaimed, growing red in the face now.

"I don't understand what's going on. Why would this bother you so much?" She placed a tentative hand on his arm.

Regulus looked down at her hand and let out a shaky breath, "It's just... I... I can't explain it."

"Explain what? What are we talking about here? This isn't just about a stupid prank."

"Esme, trust me. Just, don't do anything like that again. I know you don't like to, but you really need to fly under the radar now." He insisted.

"I don't understand what's happening. One second you're nearly screaming at me... Then, what? You're trying to protect me or something?" She scoffed, "Tell me what's going on. If it concerns me, I have a right to know."

Regulus sighed, "You don't want to know."

"Regulus Black, stop being an arse. Tell me." She stepped back, giving him an icy glare.

He shrugged slightly, the anger fading away as he finally made eye contact with the girl. "I'm just on edge due to everything that's happened. I-I can't get the thought out of my head."

Esme's shoulders slumped down, "What thought?"

"I keep obsessing over the thought of me... Of them making me... Esme..." Regulus' features softened, "I'm going to become a Death Eater. There's no way out. I'm terrified and I can't focus on anything and I feel as though everything we do is just going to come back and bite us."

"Regulus..." She sighed, "We have a plan. I'm not going to let you become one of them. Not ever. I'm with you on this, unconditionally."

"I wouldn't blame you for wanting to get out of this mess. You still can. You need to get out while you can." Esme had never seen Regulus so desperate before.

She shook her head, stepping towards him, "How selfish do you think I am?"

Regulus stared back at her, his green eyes piercing her own gaze, "You know I didn't mean it like that. You're utterly selfless, if anything."

"Regardless of my complex relationship with my family, I would never run away. Even if I wanted to, we still have the trace on us. We're in this, right in the middle of it. It isn't either of our faults. Reg, you need to remember it's your parents who dragged you into this. Our pureblood-manic families have set us down this path with not regard for our lives."

Catching her completely off guard, Esme nearly tripped backwards. It took a moment for her mind to catch up with her eyes.

Regulus Black was hugging her.

His arms wrapped tightly around her, his head resting on her shoulder. A soft smile threatened to creep onto Esme's lips as the boy's hair tickled her face. Gently, she wrapped her arms around his back.

She knew it wouldn't offer much in the way of easing his woes, but this only made Esme hold onto him tighter.

Esmerelda Avery had missed her best friend so dearly. In that moment, hugging him, she felt as if her life was bizarrely back on track again - even in spite of everything that was going on.

Regulus Black was thankful to have another chance with the only person he deeply cared for, the girl who always brightened his day and did all she could to help.

Suddenly, he stepped back, coughing slightly.

"I-I need to get going. There's something I need to do. I'll see you later though, alright?" Regulus tugged at his collar.

"Of course." Esme nodded, allowing him to walk past and up towards the castle.

Standing there alone, an unusual chill washed over the girl. A shiver ran down her spine and then she noticed something flutter to the ground.

Esme squinted before kneeling down to see what it was.

It appeared to be an envelope. An envelope that had fallen out of Regulus' pocket.

But it wasn't just any envelope. Oh, that would have been too easy.

Lifting it off the ground, Esme felt a pit open in the bottom of her stomach.

The letter was addressed to her. It had Esme's name scrawled one the front. Then... In the corner, she spotted it.

The return address was to Levi Rogers.