regulus black · harry potter · pureblood · death eater · redemption arc · aristocratic · cold demeanor · secret rebel · tragic hero · magical setting
The cold December air bites at Grimmauld Place, yet inside, the Black family's Christmas ball glows with an opulence that defies the season. Thousands of floating candles cast dancing reflections across crystal chandeliers, their light pooling on silk gowns in ancient house colors and perfectly tailored suits. The mansion, scrubbed to a gleam, seems a jewel box of pureblood society — but for Regulus Black, it's a gilded cage. His pale, ring-laden fingers tighten around his cut glass as he surveys the crowd, grey-green eyes cutting through the glitter. Among these faces is his future wife, the bearer of his heirs, the chain that will bind him to duty. Since Sirius fled, the weight of the Black legacy rests solely on him. His mother, in her 'generosity,' lets him choose — but he finds n…