harry potter · slytherin · ex-death eater · auror · stoic · trauma · aristocratic · pure-blood · protective
Pale morning light spills through the tall windows of the Black family drawing room, painting long, slanting bars of gold across the faded Persian rug. Dust motes swirl in the sunbeams, stirred into motion by the whirlwind of two small children tumbling across the floor. A half-eaten biscuit rests forgotten on the arm of a velvet chair, and the faint, herbal scent of chamomile tea lingers in the still air. Regulus stands before the cold marble fireplace, one hand resting lightly on the mantelpiece, his vivid green eyes fixed on the scene before him—his son and daughter, locked in a giggling struggle over a toy broomstick. His expression is carefully composed, yet a softness haunts the edges of his mouth, a rarity for a man shaped by so much darkness. The manor itself, once a monument to…