Anti-Hero (Nat, Barty, Reg)

[Deleted]

10, Nov. 1978
I have this thing
Where I get older
But just never wiser
Flo, Nat, Barty, Reg

If she had known that agreeing to pick potion ingredients from the grounds with Sylvie would take all evening and make her miss dinner…okay well, she still would have gone. Alright and really she didn’t miss dinner, it had barely started as they were finishing up but they were gross. Neither girl had any desire to join the others looking like mud and smelling like dung and opted instead for a stop to make use of the showers on the Quidditch pitch and scourigfy their clothes as clean as possible, add to that popping in to snag them food from the kitchens, and students were beginning to pour out of the Hall by the time they parted ways. Now, they had missed dinner.

Flo danced ahead of the crowd in time to miss the mass of first-year Gryffindor's that came barreling out, no doubt going to get up to mischief on their Friday night. She smiled back at them, remembering her own early years and how lighthearted she felt then. Her smile faltered a little -some of that lighthearted energy had been leeched from her over the years, but not all the way, not yet- but she quickly picked it back up again, presenting her common room with a happy face as she entered. As she suspected, it was mostly empty, most of her house still supping together. The thought made her stomach rumble and she pulled a face; she was exhausted and more importantly, starving. She picked out a secluded spot along the glass wall, a ring of chairs around a low table and enough out of the way to stay off of anyone's radar, hopefully; settling herself onto a puff and eagerly removing the lid from the dish the elves had graciously provided. Immediately she felt a charm lift and stem billowed up from what could only be described as the most beautiful thing she had ever seen.

Shepard’s pie, bangers, beans, and Yorkshire pudding. “It’s like they know me.” Flo said in wonder, leaning forward to breathe in deeply through her nose. “This is amazing.” The seventh year wasted no time digging in and was already halfway finished devouring the entire meal when her roommate entered and Flo was immediately on her feet. “Nat!” she shouted around a mouth of beans. “Over here.” She swallowed thickly, going over to the sideboard to pour herself a glass of water from the pitcher. The darker girl was back in her seat when Natalie joined her. “Sorry I wasn’t at dinner.” she said sincerely, picking up her utensils again. “I would have told you if I’d have known, promise. But, you see, I didn’t know. Picking ingredients can be very time-consuming.” She jabbed her knife in the direction of her bag, slung over the chair behind her, and chock-full of ingredients she would probably never use. “Especially when you find a litter of mooncalves, we spend ages staring at them. Anyway, sorry I wasn’t there.”

[Regulus Black]

Restless.

Being at Hogwarts this term was more trying than the young wizard had anticipated.

He'd been gifted his Mark this summer, he had duties to perform for the Dark Lord - as soon as he could safely communicate with the man again, Barty's was the first name he'd give as a promising recruit - and his family was proud of him. His parents couldn't be more thrilled that he'd already been recognized as a talent, an asset, in this vital fight for their future. His cousins had helped to make it happen and to make it stick - Bellatrix's words to the Lord gave him a seat at the table, Narcissa, Lucius, Rodolphus, and Rabastan's additional approval of his presence led to less doubt from other imposing figures. Sirius and Andromeda would have endless arguments against his actions, he knew, and would be tireless in them if they came face-to-face again. If they had not given up on him already. It was altogether better not to think of them. But there was only so much he could do to make a name for himself, within the cause, while stuck at school. He had to keep quiet, on the whole, about his observations and what his post-Hogwarts plans were.

He could blame his discontent and melancholy on missing his partner, which he often did, and not untruthfully, even at the teases that almost always ensued. But no one could expect Regulus to be content when he and Wyn were kept apart by circumstance, hmm? Wyn had been a trusted friend and confidant for an age now, but last year they had taken their relationship to new heights, and he'd grown all the more accustomed to her presence and attention. Not knowing when they would next see each other - plans to meet in Hogsmeade could be interrupted by a call from the Lord, or any other emergency - was unsettling and frustrating, and made worse by knowing that she was already out there doing the work. She'd taken a huge step to her independence from her family and was living on her own, she'd taken on an internship at the Ministry, she was working with his family and idols. He was proud, immensely, of her and to be known as her fiancé. But did that mean he couldn't be jealous that she was so far ahead of him? Worry that she'd tire of their distance before he graduated?...

And yet - and yet - the world turned, the moon rose, Slughorn's parties provided endless entertainment, his team was doing better than he wanted to admit to Wyn, even if it would give him something honest to brag about. And he did still have friends here, and worthy competitors on the pitch - with him and Savage both in their second years of Captainship, and Vance and Potter out, he actually felt optimistic about their chances - and two final pushes to prove his academic excellence, a few more months remaining to collect shining accolades, testaments to his scholarly career. There were moments where he could be, forget about wanting to be at the flat with Wyn or training with Bella, forget about working to keep his secrets, and while they sometimes felt far and few between - they came, and he rejoiced in them, catching himself in as broad a smile as he'd known.

This night was young, and as Reg filtered into the common room with his fellows, he hoped tonight would be a night where he could forget. He chuckled, elbowing Barty in the arm, and nodded towards an energetically waving Florence. His teammate was here before all of them, even though her cheery presence had been missed at the House table at dinner. And while the girl had called for Natalie, not the pair of them - Reg didn't see the harm in joining, and directed his feet towards the girls. Seat in a seat and feet rested on the low table, he leaned back in amusement and gave the brunette a wry grin. "Am I hearing right, that we were upstaged by mooncalves? I'd be offended if this came from anyone else, Flo, count your lucky stars."

[Natalie Vanderhyde]

Her last year of school, and the first of the years she attended without her older brother. Natalie wanted to be living her best life, getting up to all sorts of trouble, but she had yet to cause any real ruckus. She hadn’t expected to miss her brother’s presence in the castle, when she’d spent so many of their years here together avoiding him and his judgments. But it was different, being here without Ethan. It wasn’t as if he was her protector - she could protect herself and her friends - but he was a familiar face that was now missing. She knew she could write to him, inquire about his duties at the Ministry and his extracurricular activities, but she didn’t want to seem desperate. And it wasn’t as if she was alone at school, she had Flo and her other friends. And it was easier now without Ethan around to be friendly with those in other houses, she’d found herself around the Ravenclaws in her year since the term had started.

At the very least, the school was an escape from the madness of her mother. While Ethan had helped her last year to do everything in their power to convince both of their parents that she wasn’t having visions, it seemed that over the summer her father had started to believe her mother’s madness once again. Natalie knew why her mother never left the house, that it wasn’t a personal choice on the part of Athena. And the last thing she wanted for herself was to be trapped at the Vanderhyde estate for the rest of her days after school was over. She needed a way out, and she hadn’t found one yet. The only thing she could think of was to run as far as she possibly could after school ended, but it wasn’t as if she had friends across the world to whom she could turn to. Flo was the only one of her peers she felt she could trust with her worries because Flo had always been there for her and Ethan over the years. Her dear friend was too good for their house, too caring and generous. And Natalie loved her for it because she knew some of their other friends had dabblings in the Dark Arts that she wanted to stay far away from.

However, her friend had been absent from dinner without a reason as to why, so Natalie was relieved as she entered the common room with the other 7th years to find her friend energetically calling for her. As she approached, it was clear that at least Flo had nicked some food from the kitchens, which Natalie was grateful for because it meant she could keep the pudding in her bag for them to share in their room later. She grinned at Flo’s excited explanation of why she had missed dinner and propped her feet up on a nearby chair that Regulus was getting comfortable in. She did love nights like this, the four of them together, and she smirked at Regulus. He was a rather easy target for teasing these days, with his pinning for his fiancée sometimes all too apparent. “At least we weren’t upstaged by, what is that, shepherd's pie? I’ll take being upstaged by mooncalves. What do you think Barty?”

[Barty Crouch Jr.]

“I think dearest Natalie, that I've never been upstaged by anything. I take personal offense to you ditching, Florence. It’s very painful for my ego, pie would have been worse, but still, to be outdone by doe-eyed mooncalf's. Oh, it hurts!” Barty declared theatrically, one hand over his heart, the other rubbing the spot Reg had poked his boney elbow into as he followed his fellow Slytherins into their common room and the absence of Flo at dinner was explained to them. It was all in jest, of course, he shot Flo a grin and a wink as he settled in next to his roommate. He had missed her at dinner, she was the lively sort and he found her entertaining, but he hadn’t missed her enough to be truly miffed about it. She was amusing but not very useful to him and it was common for his housemate to go off galivanting on her own, but it was still fun to take the mickey out of her for it.

He enjoyed little things like this. Stuffing his belly, teasing his friends, taking pleasure in the simplicity of it, the familiarity. Mostly, because it would soon be ending, and he could hardly wait. Barty vowed he would take all he could from his last days at Hogwarts for the innocent times they were, in preparation for the path that lay ahead. A path that was not so innocent. He looked to Reg, the only person he knew for certain would be there with him when they left this place. Then glanced at the girls, wondering where they would end up. He secretly hoped neither of them got conned into a lame marriage, that would be a waste. But, that wasn’t really his problem. He wouldn’t be marrying either of them, or anyone for that matter, and that was all he was concerned with.

But back to the here and now. They were still at Hogwarts, still free to be young and foolish with minimal consequences. Why weren't they taking advantage of this? “So, it's Friday night, we’ve managed to pull Flo away from the mooncalfs, Natalie is looking radiant, and Reg and I are too dashing to be slumming around the common room. What are we going to do?”

[Deleted]

They loved her, she knew that, she did, really. Alright, they liked her for sure, had to, no-one else put up with her shenanigans better. Most of her house thought she was less than for certain company she kept. Maybe Natalie loved her, the blokes they liked her, and that was enough. Enough to make her smile at their response to her reasoning for abandoning them at the Slytherin table, enough to let her know they were only poking fun. “Consider them counted.” she assured Regulus, shoveling another bite of pie into her mouth as the other two joined them around the low table. Flo sent her roommate a smirk, as she listened to Barty’s obviously put-on spiel and found herself laughing. When he had a mind to, Crouch could be very funny.

Flo finished up her meal in the brief silence that followed, truly enjoying the perfect dish. The elves at Hogwarts were really the best cooks in the world, she was convinced. If she wasn't so active, she imagined she would grow as large as a hippogriff, she could just eat and eat and eat, it was all so good! For now she was full and she sat back satisfied, patting her stomach and resisting the urge to unbutton her trousers. When she and Nat were safely back in their dorm, she would be free to relieve herself; her nightdress was looking divine about now. Or perhaps not.

At Barty’s question, her head popped up from where it had dropped to rest on the cheat behind her. On the one hand, everything he was saying was true and Flo was nothing if not game for some good fun. On the other, hadn’t she just been thinking of getting comfortable and spending the remainder of the night with her roommate? Besides, there was no guarantee that whatever fun Barty wanted to get up to was the good kind. She exchanged a glance with Natalie before she spoke, choosing her words carefully. “I don't know, probably bed, I’m a pretty wiped. Why? Did you have something particular in mind?”

[Regulus Black]

Reg found himself chuckling at the antics of his housemates, Barty's dramatics and declaration, and sent him a sly grin as the girls exchanged a look. This was about to become just the sort of distracted night he needed, and he hoped Nat and Flo could be convinced too. With the four of them together, there was no way to tell exactly what directions the night would take. Perhaps he had missed some choice gossip against one in the group, and they would take the opportunity to deliver retribution; if they were in a sillier mood, it felt like years since they'd killed a night with dares that exponentially increased in both hilarity and the threat of expulsion; without the marauders around, the juvenile pranks of the younger years were piling up, they needed a better showing; and, of course, there were still unsolved mysteries of this castle that they wouldn't have the run of for much longer...

 "Should've thought about this before you went adventuring without us, on a Friday," Regulus jokingly admonished the brunette. Surely Florence couldn't be serious! It was hardly dark! Just how far into the Forest had she gone, chasing plants and mooncalves? No, no - the girl would rally, he was sure of it. She wouldn't leave Natalie behind twice in one night, and knowing how far she could push herself while training....he had trust in his Chaser. Turning back to his roommate, he asked, excitement growing, "What's on your mind, Barty? Common room's not good enough for us tonight, obviously. I've been thinking, and Professor Murray's getting more comfortable here than she should." While the Defense Against the Dark Arts course was more of a joke than anything else, from a seemingly nonexistent curriculum to the "cursed" professorship, especially for those with a knack for the dark arts - the mystery was something of legend here, and he knew he wasn't alone in long wondering what was underneath it all. Surely there had to be clues in the classroom, the office, somewhere...and if not, they could still use a quiet castle to their advantage... "I'd never do anything to hurry along her exit, it's not as if I've a few Galleons on a wager that she won't last until the holidays," he continued with a wicked grin, "and if I won, that I'd share the prize with my loyal friends."