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Regulus absently watches the darkened viscous blood drip onto his shoes and glimmer briefly under the only lamp inside that room, hanging somewhere above his head. Black stopped fighting hours ago when his Death Eater comrades put him in magic cushioning handcuffs.
They are all around him now. Silent shadows summoned to witness his ''trial''. The boy wonders if Barty and Severus are part of the audience. He hopes not.
But that wasn't really the case. Was it? He had willingly bound himself to a man mad enough to commit the most repulsive act imaginable. Tom Riddle became an abomination of nature from the moment he started defiling his own soul.
'' Was it worth it? ''. One of the Death Eaters demanded as Black lost his voice screaming from the effects of the third round of the Cruciatus Curse. The amber eyes staring at him with disgust and dark pleasure from beneath the mask makes the boy suspect that it's Rosier.
If the betrayal was worth it? The answer was yes. Unlike his associates, Regulus was not such a coward as to remain inert while a psychopath destroyed their world. He joined the Death Eaters out of a sense of duty as a Wizard and as a Black. He was tired of the stupid restrictions against the Dark Arts and the corruption in the Ministry, rotting their community one step at a time.
But that? The extermination of Witches and Wizards based on something as irrelevant as whether they had Muggles in the family or not?. Regulus refused to condone such idiocy. The Crabbe's and the Goyle's served as living proof that the Pureblood families weren't as divine as they liked to pretend.
For this, Black wanted to brag, to make fun of the blind servitude that will eventually kill all Death Eaters, only he doesn't have the strength to do so. His actions boil down to closing his eyes and silently pray for everything to be over soon.
He's eighteen and doesn't want to die, but he will anyway. He knows too much.
Regulus began extensive research to discover Lord Voldemort's true identity, and what that locked was when Kreacher appeared in Grimmauld Place, half-dead.
Tom Marvolo Riddle, an orphan raised in a muggle orphanage in London, Slytherin, one of the most brilliant students Hogwarts has ever had. You'd expect someone with such a talent to now hold a high position at the Ministry, but Tom Riddle disappeared after a short stint working at Borgin & Burkes, a shady ''antique'' shop in knockturn alley.
He disappeared and came back a monster.
Suddenly a door opens in the distance, and there are muffled conversations in the chamber again. The sound of heavy footsteps reverberates inside the room.
Within seconds, another pair of black shoes joins Regulus's in the boy's peripheral vision.
Black's breathing becomes shallow. His time has come, and he feels the crippling terror of knowing he will have an awful death. They'll never find my body. I couldn't even tell Sirius I'm sorry.
'' What do we have here? ''. Voldemort's voice is soft and cold. His gloved fingers tangle themselves in the boy's hair and pull his head up without decorum.
Regulus faces the Dark Lord's crushing gaze without flinching. There's something different about his former master's features, but the bloodlust behind those eyes is still the same.
Voldemort clicks his tongue against the roof of his mouth, looking frustrated. ''Cat got your tongue, Black?. Won't you explain yourself? Beg me for your life, perhaps... ''. The wicked smile that takes over his lips makes it obvious how much the last possibility delights him.
What could Regulus say? He was a traitor. Everyone there knew that. Black shook his head and accepted his fate. He was the son of The Noble and Most Ancient House of Black and would die as such.
"This is very disappointing. I've come a long way, and you're barely answering me. You know, I don't handle rejection well." When the Dark Lord almost pouted, the boy realized something was wrong.
The man looks like the marble statue of an avenging angel, distant and inhuman, but his eyes are brown and not red. He seems too young. That wasn't Voldemort.
Reading his mind, the man facing him from above smirked. "Ah, but I am."
" No, you are not ''. Regulus grumbles, regaining some of his courage. The smile on non-Voldemort's face grew.
Black almost opened his mouth to ask if he could skip the villain's monologue and kill him, but he got silenced when that man pulled his hair again. ''Hmm, apparently, you're not just a pretty face''. He comments, ignoring the presence of the Death Eaters.
''The old man is paranoid. Dumbledore started appealing to the International Confederation of Wizards, so your beloved Dark Lord gave me a body because he only trusts himself ''.
The boy wished he hadn't understood. He was talking to a Horcrux, and if that was the case, Voldemort had Horcruxes, plural.
'' So smart ''. Tom Riddle praises rather indecently, and Regulus blushes, despite the situation. What the hell was wrong with him?. "Anyway, you're distracting me. I came here hoping you'll tell me where you put my beloved mother's locket."
His intonation made it clear that his mother was as beloved to him as Walburga was to Sirius. Black bit his tongue. "I deserted, do try to keep up. I won't say shit. I won't help V-Voldemort anymore."
A delighted laugh escaped Riddle's throat. "Oh no, you're getting the wrong idea of me. I don't intend to help that despicable lunatic."
His words triggered the commotion of the Death Eaters present, and the man blinked as if he had just remembered their presence.
Regulus did his best to push himself away when the first spells were cast and fell sideways, still handcuffed to the chair. Not-Voldemort moved with surreal agility. The Dark Lord's soldiers never had a chance. In less than thirty seconds, they were all dead.
Maybe Rosier got carried away with the cruciatus, and I've gone crazy. Black thinks in despair when the man kneels before him, unaffected by what has just happened. ''Can we talk now, Regulus?''.
What other option does Black have but to accept? He nods shakily, and Riddle smiles, lifting his chair again.
''I won't lie to you, I want power and immortality, but there are better ways to conquer these things than causing a war that will destroy us all. Don't you think? And honestly, how subtle is the title Dark Lord ? ''. He allows himself a youthful eye roll that seems out of place in such a cruelly perfect face. ''Join me, Regulus Black. Help me kill the one who calls himself Lord Voldemort, and I promise you will never end up in an execution room again."
Regulus' throat is raw. He licks his dry lips and tilts his head, trying to find some sense in the midst of that madness. "Why are you offering me this?"
''Because you, like me, are the most powerful Wizard of your generation, and as I said, I need help to kill him.''
"But Sirius… ". The boy immediately inquires because Sirius has always been better at everything, the heir. The favorite son, despite his insubordination and lack of respect for his Wizarding Heritage.
But that ethereal man remains patiently standing and interrupts him, laughing as if everything Regulus had just said was absurd.
"Your brother is a closed-minded idiot who wastes his time with pranks. He's useful to me by being mediocre. You're more valuable for me alive and not wasting your potential ''.
Black looks uncertain, and Riddle smiles.
"Well, you're also very pleasing to the eye...". He caresses the boy's face and slides a gloved finger briefly into his mouth. Black tastes leather and blood. He is on a dangerous path.
''And what is your plan? Dumbledore won't be easily fooled ''.
''Dumbledore has to die, of course. I'll let Voldemort handle it. But the rest is pretty simple. I will say that I am the Dark Lord's grandson, a half-blood whose parents were cowardly murdered by his cruel grandfather. People love tragedy, and when I say that I infiltrated his followers to kill him, they will consider me a hero ''.
The Ministry was stupid and desperate for a solution. Regulus had no doubts that Tom Riddle would succeed.
''And what role will I play? ''.
'' For Voldemort, I'll declare you dead, and you will help me get rid of the most...unsavory followers, then we present you as a repentant Death Eater, the brave spy ''.
" And after this ?".
"Who do you want to be after this?".
Nobody had ever asked that question to Regulus. Tom Riddle was the first person to offer him a choice. How ironic. "I think I still need to figure that part out."
" Is that a yes?".
"...We're going to need Severus Snape too, assuming he isn't among the dead, and the Potters live," Regulus commands as if he's in a position to demand something.
Severus was the only friend Regulus had, and he couldn't fool him with that act of "I don't care about Lily Evans ''.
Riddle smiled devilishly. "Anything you want, Reggie."
ONE YEAR LATER:
Regulus Black never expected to live past his eighteenth birthday. But there he was, holding a cold glass of champagne as he pretended to care about the new research involving dragon blood done by an American Mediwitch. Distinguished guests came and went inside the Ministry of Magic's lobby, many of them nearly killing themselves over the crumbs of Tom Riddle's attention, who entertained an influential group of politicians a few feet away.
Lord Voldemort and what Britain believed to be all of his followers turned up dead about six months ago, just thirty days after Albus Dumbledore's murder.
All is well again, and Regulus tries to fit into his new role as England's darling and a man free from the Dark Lord's clutches.
''He gives me the creeps''. Sirius commented, looking sideways to where Tom was talking to two Wizards from the Egyptian Ministry.
Apparently, Sirius isn't as dumb as he looks. Tom Riddle goes far beyond just giving the creeps. He is a megalomaniac with a God complex and probably a sociopath. But he also possessed the most brilliant mind that Regulus had ever seen, saved him from a horrible death, and presented him with the freedom to do what he wanted with his own life.
''That's rich, coming from the man dating a werewolf.'' Black calmly replies, wondering why he thought making up with his stupid brother was a good idea. Sirius grunted and said something he didn't hear as Riddle chose that moment to face him across the atrium and smirk, raising his glass towards him.
That smile sent people to a precocious grave, Azkaban or St Mungo's, but that smile also took Regulus out of a hostage situation and gave him the best orgasm of his life.
''Reg, are you listening to me? ''.
''Nop, I'm leaving''. He definitely didn't want to spend his last night before heading to Rome to complete his mastery in the Dark Arts trapped with Sirius at a boring ministry party.
'' Where are you going? ''.
'' To get laid ''. Regulus responds, enjoying the indignant expression on his older brother's face too much.
''Eww, too much information, idiot''.
The boy ignores him to cross the atrium, leaning against Riddle to whisper. '' Let's get out of here ''.
Tom takes a good look at the lustful expression on Regulus's face and smiles. ''Anything you want, Reggie ''.