Nocturne of Stars

Pain. Clear, total, absolute pain. That's all Regulus Black could feel. Unimaginable, horrible, unbearable. It paused for a moment, but the pain would not stop... it surged through every single sinew and fiber of his body. His throat burned in agony from the screaming. His eyes flickered and came into focus on the man standing over him. He was tall, pale haired, gray-eyed, and smirking. Lucius Malfoy.

Of course it would be him. Who else would the Dark Lord send out after him than Lucius. The man with no qualms, no morals, no heart. Regulus knew something like this would happen. The Dark Lord did not take 'no' for an answer. Failure was not in his vocabulary. Nor was a host of other words - such as compassion and understanding.

"Well, Black, are you going to come along nicely or are you going to continue to act foolish?" Lucius kicked Regulus in the ribs. "Or do you need more persuasion?" He raised his wand.

Regulus was able to get on his hands and knees. He half expected his skin to be smoking. "Go to hell." Not like that was an insult, but it gave Regulus a small feeling of satisfaction to see a twitch in Malfoy's cheek.

"I take that to mean you still are a fool." Malfoy lowered his wand back at Regulus. "Crucio!"

Regulus fell to the ground again, writhing in agony, screaming. A tiny voice in his mind began to speak, however. This is what HE wanted you to do muggles. THIS is what he wanted from you... this is what you would have done. Aren't you a little bit glad you backed out, or at least, tried to? Regulus had the vague idea that the voice in his head taunting him belonged to his older brother, Sirius. His brother whom he had not seen in three years.

Sirius who walked out on the family, leaving him to be the good son. But it had been that way since Sirius started hanging out with Potter and Lupin, and that bastard Pettigrew. What would Sirius say to him if he, Regulus told him that his dear chubby little friend was running around with the Death Eaters? He'd probably call me a liar... It had been left to Regulus to be the perfect child.

Now, here he was, flat on his back, being tortured. Tortured by his cousin Narcissa's husband. The pain eased again.

"Regulus, it doesn't have to be like this. Just come along back with me and I'm sure the Dark Lord will have... a little bit of tolerance for your error. It's not as bad as you think. Muggles are just for sport.... target practice for all the mudbloods and their little friends. It's nothing, really..." Lucius watched as Regulus rolled onto his front and pushed himself up onto his hands and knees again. "Being reasonable, then?"

"No." Regulus was going to get onto his feet if it killed him. He was not going to die, wallowing on the ground. I'm going to die standing. I'm not going to die on the ground like some little rat.

"No?" Lucius watched Regulus stagger to his feet. "You're a fool, Black. You should know that there is no way you can win in this situation. There's no escape except to come with me quietly. The only other way out of this is death."

Regulus's mind raced. He thought back to the letter he had received two months ago, all the way from New Orleans. He smiled. The letter he had written and left with his parents before leaving the house two days ago. This was for the person whom the letter had been about. For a smiling baby girl, for someone he would never meet, never hold, and never talk to - for someone half a world away from here.

"What are you smiling at, Black?" Malfoy spat.

"You know you will never be rid of me." Regulus leered at the older man. "Never."

Lucicus pointed his wand straight at Regulus's heart, and roared "AVADA KEDAVRA!!"

Death rushed towards Regulus and threw him to the ground in a flash of blinding green light. Finally, the pain had ceased. There would be no more pain for the youngest Black brother.

Lucius came over to the corpse and kicked it once. Regulus's head rolled to the side, his eyes were half shut, his fingers curled slightly as he lay there on the ground, as if he was embracing death with great joy. But rather disturbing was the look on Regulus's face. Not the normal look of shock, but a smile. A calm, gentle, peaceful smile - he had died, apparently, happy about something.

"Curse you." Malfoy spat on Regulus's face and pocketed his wand. He had other things to attend to tonight.

***

"Can you hear me?" The woman's voice spoke as if from a great distance.

"Yes. I can hear you." His throat no longer burned, and Regulus slowly opened his eyes. He was crouched on a dark marble floor. There was almost no light.

"I've been waiting for you. Can you stand?" The woman spoke again. She was closer than he had originally thought.

"I think so." He drew up slowly, expecting a sharp pain somewhere in his back or legs, but none came. "What... what is happening?"

"I heard your soul scream as you died, Regulus Black." The woman came out of the shadows and she studied him slowly. "I'm here to offer you an exchange."

"What sort of exchange?"

"That thing offends me..." The woman pointed to Regulus's left arm, where the Dark Mark was still bright black against his skin.

Regulus gasped as the mark burned bright red for a moment, and then vanished completely. "Who are you?"

The woman chuckled softly. "I'm Artemis." She came closer. Now he could make out her features better. She was taller than he was, by several inches. Her hair was dark red, her eyes a blue so dark, they appeared to be black. "And I know what you want..." She touched his cheek. "So young... so handsome..."

"What do you want with me?"

"Oh, nothing much..." She sighed. "If you could have twenty four hours to exact revenge on anyone, anyone who ever wronged you... would you like that?"

"That would solve nothing." Regulus lifted his chin. "I find that revenge hardly solves anything and changes nothing."

"My - not even kill the man who killed you?"

"That would only create a widow and a fatherless child."

"What about vengeance, my dear boy. What if I offered you an act of that... no consequences to you at all. What would you want to do?"

"Are there more horcruxes? Does... does the Dark Lord have more horcruxes?"

Artemis smiled then. "Indeed he does. Is that what you choose? To destroy one of them?"

Regulus nodded. "Yes."

"Then we have a deal?"

"Yes."