Chapter Text
The faint smell of coffee being brewed and the fresh smell of new and old books is what brought Regulus out of his head, it wasn’t so busy for once, most people were out doing things for work which left him with more free time than he’d like, but there wasn’t really much to be done about it.
Working at this small book café was a nice change, there wasn’t any risk of being found nor violence being shed. If you had told him when he was seventeen that he’d betray the death eaters and allow his friends to fake his death, he wouldn’t have believed you..
Well because…
The death eaters are a cruel group to join, violence is one of the main jams that is used on their bread and once that jam is spread, it's hard for you to get out of that hellhole.
Regulus hears the sounds of fighting outside of the wall, he hopes no one will break the glass this time, it's an expensive thing to repair, considering he doesn’t have money from father or mother, but it wasn’t like he’d use it anyways.
He sighs, undoing his mouth covering and begins to wipe down the counter top, clearing it of any sticky residue.
Suddenly there’s a loud explosion and the door gets flung in and someone crashes into the wall across from the door, Regulus recognizes the order’s mask on the standing person and recognizes the mask on the death eater who is against the wall.
The way the death eater’s mask is angular and has angled eyes, the way it has more silver engraved in the markings than others.
The recognition hits him, the death eater who went flying through is Barty.
How did this stupid idiot manage to get hit by magic and somehow magically end up crashing into his shop? That is something that Regulus does not have the answer for nor the time for because he notices the way Barty holds his himself, not the usual comfortable and confident way, it's more panicked and rushed.
The way Barty or anyone would hold themselves if they were hurt.
“You can’t kill or fight in here.” Regulus says before he can even think as he steps out from behind the counter, watching the way the order member jerks their head up and looks right at him.
“And why should I listen to you? This is a Death Eater, which kill and torture people for fun to get what they want!” The order member basically shouts, power lightly showing up at the fingertips.
“My shop, my rules, anyone can stay here regardless of their organization.” He explains, crouching beside the death eater, “You all can kill and curse each other as much as you want to outside of my shop.” He looks over the death eater, no major injuries, just some scrapes and hopefully no concussion.
“So what, you're just protecting it?” The member hissed. Regulus stands up, and turns to face the member, "I'm protecting no one.” He retorts, “But I'm not letting magic go flying around and ruin everything in here.”
That sounded cold, sure, but it's easier than explaining the complex version.
Regulus knows he has no way of shielding or any sort of protection to use if the order member does decide to use their power, and it's no use if he doesn’t even know what this person’s power is.
But luckily the member sighs and the light of their power diminishes from their fingertips, “So we can fight after we leave this shop?” They ask, amused, and Regulus nods, “Very well…As long as you're not directly interfering, I suppose this arrangement can. continue…”
Once the member leaves through where the door would be, Regulus let out a sigh and shook his head as he helped the death eater up, “Really Barty? How did you manage to get thrown through my shop again? It's getting pretty tiring.”
“Sorry Regulus, I wasn’t really paying attention to my side, was kinda busy trying to get back to Evan” Barty commented, hands over his mask, making sure it was still in place, “I should probably get back before someone notices..”
“Why don't you just stay until the fighting ends? You flew through my shop and collided with a wall. I'm not some medic but I think everyone would tell you to stay.”
Barty grumbles something but sits himself in a chair nearby, “Y’know, you should really consider not stepping into my fights all the time, especially since you’re registered as dead”
Regulus grumbles, "It's not all the time, it's not like anyone knows about me anyways, if so I could always play the deja vu card.” He grabs a kit out from the counter and sets it down at the table that Barty is at, “See if you need anything from it”
Barty rolls his eyes but opens the kit and begins looking through it before closing it and pushing it away, “Ehh, I don’t really need anything.” He slides his gloves off, “However! I will take a coffee though!” He smiles as he looks at Regelus, “Cmon! Please?”
Regulus groans, “Fine—Fine! I’ll make you a damn coffee…” He rubs his face as he goes behind the counter again and grabs the needed supplies out, “You’re so lucky your my friend.”
“You consider us friends?!” Barty gasps dramatically, Regelus stares at him. “Ive known you since we were eleven.”
They fall into a comfortable talk after that, Regulus glances at the window every now and then to see colorful lights shoot out across the scenery.
But eventually that also falls into silence and darkness and then someone else steps into the building,
“Wow, again Regulus?” A deatheater spoke, walking up to Barty before removing his mask, “Did Barty fly through your shop again?”
Regulus huffs, “Take a guess,” he walks to the same table and sets down the hot cup of coffee, steam going up out of the top of the lid.
Barty rolls his eyes, “It's not my fault I got sent flying, stupid order used stupid wind manipulation to take me away!”
“Yeah yeah, let's go home before the order comes back to this shop,” The death eater helps Barty up, “You stay safe Reg, okay?”
“I will. Evan, you’re paying for my door though”
Evan laughs, shaking his head, “Yeah yeah, I’ll send you some money when I get home, you should go home though” Evan says and Barty nods in agreement.
Regulus is quiet for a couple seconds, “I will…Eventually.” He notices Barty and Evan’s faces, “I’ll be safe, swear.”
The two look at each other before sighing, “Alright—We’ll check in though! If you’re not home I swear I'm sending you a cursed frog!” Barty said as Evan and him finally disapparate.
Regulus stood by the table for a couple minutes before grabbing his bag from behind the counter and walking out of the shop, it was too risky for him to use his magic, but it also stung when he did, whatever he did those years before he was considered dead affected his body.
He didn’t want to appear on either side’s radar, he has been considered dead for years, surely he’ll get killed and tortured if the death eaters find out about him and no doubt he’ll be tortured by the Order as well if he, the former right hand man of the death eaters was found alive and said to have a ‘change of heart’.
The smoke of collapsed buildings was still in the air as Regulus continued to walk, just how much destruction did these groups cause tonight? Whatever, it's not his problem…
He closes and locks the door to his apartment, sets down his bag by the door and goes into the kitchen to have whatever leftovers he had in the fridge from what his friends left for him.
Using money wasn’t per-say, risky… But it was a way to get caught, and Regulus had no plans on getting caught, he’s twenty-two, he faked his death at seventeen, he can handle not being caught for 5 years, why shouldn’t he be able to handle more?
Regulus feels the twinge in his throat, he closes his eyes and shakes his head, the urge to cough goes away and he opens his eyes and throws away the box of takeout after he finished the food.
Going to bed sounds amazing as he rather not get sick from whatever has been in his body. He gets changed and just collapses into his bed.
At least this apartment is better than his last one, with the entire mold problem, oh god that sucked.
Regulus can deal with whatever he needs to deal with in the morning, he can check on his stupid glowing scars on his throat later, it isn’t bothering him so why bother it?
He finally closes his eyes and everything goes dark.
“Soo… Why are we doing this again?” The order member asks, pulling down his mask and red hood of his cape.
“Because” The other started, dusting his hands off and watches as the gray smoke comes off his palms, “I feel bad, I destroyed the door and sent one of the death eaters flying through it.”
“Really James? It's just a shop.” The member deadpans, “Usually the second group does all the fixing and cleaning? Why can’t we just go home? I'm tired.” He whines,
“Because Sirius, this place has good food.” James winks, a smile on his face and Sirius groans, rubbing his face with his hands, “This is all hopeless” He complains but helps set up the door anyways.
“Yknow..” James starts, “That person in the cafe looked unusually like your little brother..” Noticing the look Sirius gives him, James rushes to explain, “No offense of anything! But he does look like him, I swear!”
“Regulus has been dead since seventeen. Damn deatheater…” Sirius mumbles, black hair falling in-front of his eyes, “Him and our old parent’s bigotry of blood status.”
The conversation dies after that, but the building’s front is fixed after awhile…
The two leave without saying anything, they don’t feel like being scolded by the second group about staying after the fight when they should have just gone home and gotten checked out so that they don’t have to deal with them