JO FEELS A BIT UNTOUCHABLE. She floats down the hallways. She smiles without realizing it. She gets an E on her next Defense essay. McNair has a bruised eye and swollen lip. No one dares to come near her.

She also has this sort of buzz in her; a low humming, an endless vibration in her chest, nerves of excitement lingering in the tips of her fingers, a head full of clouds and pink sunsets. She can hardly even recognize herself anymore-Jo looks in the mirror and doesn't see dark bags or a dissatisfied frown, she sees a blush in her cheeks and an unfamiliar smile. It's almost nauseating. And despite the fact that she doesn't crawl into her own bed until the sun is about to rise, she feels awake, constantly, like that constant buzzing she feels is making her too excited to sleep, to even shut her eyes.

It grows every night.

Jo thinks about Regulus a lot as well. That's not something particularly new to her, but it gets worse. She thinks about him in class, during practice, in her dorm. She counts down the minutes until Potions. She steals glances in the Great Hall when she thinks no one will see. She sneaks out of bed earlier. She bites down on her tongue to keep her from bringing him up in almost every conversation she's in.

And Jo doesn't really see any relation between him and her change in demeanor-that's still a mystery to her. She just chalks it up to the way the sun's out for longer, how Quidditch practices are warmer, that she can sit in the courtyard and feel it on her skin.

And as she sits in the Ravenclaw common room, Alice braiding her hair and Hestia resting her head on Jo's lap, she thinks about how good she feels. She thinks of how she laughs more and how she's started holding Dorcas's hand as they walk from class to class again. She thinks of her rising grades and how she's playing Quidditch better and better. She thinks of Regulus and how she can still slip down for a quick visit because, even though he's not expecting her, the more time she has with him the more she values it and suddenly nightly walks and Potions and now library study-sessions don't feel like enough.

"Jo," Dorcas calls from the armchair opposite her, drowning in a blanket and with a mouthful of Pumpkin Pasties, "you paying attention?"

She blinks, dragged down from her thoughts back down to the floor where she sits. Suddenly, Jo is aware of the way Alice's fingers work through her hair, brushing against her scalp, of the weight of Hestia's head on her lap. "No," she responds after a moment, blunt in delivery.

Dorcas scoffs, rolls her eyes. "What are you thinking about over there?"

"Nothing."

"What is going on with you?" Emmeline questions from her spot next to Dorcas, eyes narrowed. "Just sitting there smiling and not saying anything."

Jo didn't realize she was smiling but when Emmeline points it out, she feels the soreness in her cheeks. "Isn't it obvious?" Alice chimes in from behind her as she sits on the arm of a sofa, "Jo's in love, clearly."

This elicits shocked laughter from Hestia, who rolls her head to stare up at Alice. "What?" she questions, perplexed, as if the idea of Jo being in love is so foreign it's inconceivable. And for whatever reason, Jo is offended by this before she remembers what Alice just accused her of.

She stares straight ahead, dizzy smile now replaced with a harsh scow. "I am not," Jo insists, arms crossed over her chest.

But the room seems taken with the idea. Emmeline leans in closer, smiling broadly while Dorcas has the decency to try and suppress hers. "Who is it?" Emmeline presses, practically squealing as she stares Jo down, almost ravenous in her quest for information.

"I am not in love with anyone," Jo insists once more, feeling absurdly childish as she does so. Her heart is hammering against her chest, and she thinks her body is reacting in a way her mind can't understand.

"Bollocks," Hestia objects, poking Jo in the ribcage before she gets swatted away. "You should see the look on your face right now. Who is it?"

"There's nobody."

Dorcas lets her grin break out as she interjects. "There's obviously somebody. You can't be sneaking out of the dorm every night for no reason."

"That's true," Alice confirms, tugging on a strand of tangled curls.

Jo feels cornered. Somehow, she thinks that telling them she goes out every night to walk with Regulus Black will not make her situation any better. She stumbles. "I just," she lets out, exasperated, hands grasping for some sort of relief, "like going for walks, is all."

"Is it Moss?" Emmeline questions with wide eyes.

Jo furrows her brow and looks back at her with narrowed eyes. "Moss?" she questions.

"You know, Ewan Moss?" Emmeline clarifies. "He's in Defense with us, stares at you all the time."

She doesn't know anything about any Ewan Moss, can't think of what he looks like or what house he's in and she shoots back at Emmeline, "Clearly it's not him if I don't even know him."

Hestia shoots up, heavy gasp falling from her lips and asks with wild eyes, "Merlin, it's Lupin again, isn't it?"

This causes an uproar of squeals and giggles and exclamations, and the way Jo mumbles, "Don't be ridiculous," is lost among the chaos. There's nothing she can say now, she thinks.

"It definitely is!" Alice exclaims while lightly tugging down on her braids, knees banging into Jo's side. "That's why you two have been spending so much more time together."

"Has he kissed you yet?" Hestia demands, running away with the idea of it.

Emmeline scoffs. "Of course, he hasn't, Jo would've told us," she says, and then turns to look at Jo with harsh, accusatory eyes. "Right?"

Jo doesn't know what to say or where to start. "I haven't been kissing anyone," she states.

"But you want to," Hestia insists, and, for whatever reason, the image of Regulus leaning down to look her in the eye flashes in her head. She suddenly feels like her head is filled with cotton.

Her skin is aflame, and she feels like sinking into herself. "I don't."

"You're lying!" Hestia exclaims, pointing a sharp finger in Jo's direction. "Your ears are turning red!"

Dorcas must catch the mortified look on Jo's face and feel some sort of sympathy, because she drops the smile and says, "Lay off her alright? If Jo has anything to tell us, she'll tell us."

"You're no fun, Meadowes," Emmeline protests, but she gives it up. They all do. The rest of the conversation is fuzzy in Jo's ears.

Jo closes her eyes to sleep that night and repeats to herself, over and over, it's nobody, it's nobody, it's nobody. But no matter how many times she forces herself to think it, her last thought before sleep takes her is the way Regulus's cold hands feel on her skin.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

Juniper purrs on Jo's lap as she runs her hand over her small head, brushing her fur back. The common room is bustling, students gathered by the fire, playing loud records and pouring over textbooks as they prepare for final exams. Jo sits in the corner, Remus in the spot next to her, watching as James keeps shooting her wide-eyed stares, like he's waiting for her to sneak out of the common room and see Regulus again.

If there's anything that has come close to ruining the elated mood Jo's in, it's her brother. He probes and forces himself into her business, watching her in the hallways and watching her on the map. Remus has started stealing it from him whenever James starts to look for her name after the sun sets. He makes loose threats at Regulus and while Jo is sending him sly smiles in the Great Hall, James is shooting him looks that could kill.

Jo watches as Lily jabs an elbow into James's side as he stares down his sister, whispering something sharply at him with pursed lips and downturned eyebrows. Whatever she says to him works, because James dips his head back down towards his homework and for the first time in her life, Jo feels something warm towards the redheaded girl. "Do you think he'll tell Sirius?" Jo asks Remus as she tears her eyes away from her brother and focuses instead on the purring cat perched on her knees.

Remus doesn't look up from his book. The Picture of Dorian Gray. Jo's seen him read it before. "Nah," Remus answers easily, "he hasn't told anyone."

"He told you," Jo counters.

"He didn't tell me."

Jo snaps her head in his direction. "What do you mean he didn't tell you?" she demands.

"I figured it out," he answers with a shrug, but as Jo's dissatisfied glare continues, he sighs, closing his book without marking the page. He looks at Jo. "Did you think I wouldn't notice? I'm surprised more people don't notice, with the way you two stare at each other."

This makes Jo flinch. "We don't stare at each other."

Remus snickers. "You do. Constantly. Honestly, it's a bit sickening," he comments, eyes a bit far off before he focuses on her once more. "How long have you two been together anyways?"

Jo's reaction is natural, short, clipped. "We're not together," she spits back at him without thinking, without realizing the way her shoulders tense up, the way her voice constricts. She struggles to block out her own thoughts.

Remus raises an eyebrow at her. "You're not?"

"No," Jo replies in that same forced tone. "We're just friends."

He shrugs and reaches down for his book once more. "Could've fooled me."

But he has Jo's rapt attention. She pulls Juniper close to her chest as she adjusts, ignoring the way the cat squirms against her as she leans in towards him. "What do you mean?"

Remus flashes his eyes towards her, a side-eye that makes her gulp. "You seem to like him more than you liked Reed, at least," Remus answers easily.

"Well, I don't," Jo snaps back at him, "Not like that." She slumps against her chair and Juniper pounces off her chest, annoyed as she saunters away, back towards Jo's dorm. And then she spots James, leaning into Lily's side, and shoots upright once more. "Does James think that?" she asks.

"That you're together?" Remus questions, and when she nods, he says, "Yes."

"Huh," she lets fall as she sinks into her chair, feeling like her head is spinning right off.

Remus lets out a low chuckle. "I'll leave you with that then," he says as he pushes off his armchair, leaving her on her own, and Jo hardly even notices.

The idea that not only her brother, but one of her closest friends, thought that her and Regulus were involved leaves her feeling like she's been hung upside down, blood rushing past her ears. Her face is hot. Her throat is dry. She feels like there's something she's not seeing.

The thought of it lingers in her head for a lot longer than she would like to admit. In fact, Jo feels like she's doing nothing but think about it. For hours, she tries to convince herself that there just can't be any truth to it. She thinks of the way she is with him, how she giggles and feels light on her feet and how it's different than how it is with everyone else but it's not romantic. It's not romantic when Dorcas holds her hand or when Hestia sleeps on her shoulder or when Alice lies in bed beside her and sure, none of those things feel the same as when Regulus's knuckles brush hers or when he puts his hand over her shoulder but that's because Regulus is different.

She thinks of Alice's words, of her ears turning red and thinks that it couldn't possibly be true, that if she really was in love, it wouldn't be with Regulus Black. There's nothing wrong with him, she thinks, but the idea that she could be in love with him makes her feel like drowning herself in the Black Lake.

And sure, she's not experienced when it comes to love. Jo's really not even sure if she ever really liked Ivan Reed, and the only person she ever really did fancy was Remus when she was thirteen. Jo always thought she'd know what it'd feel like, whenever she felt it.

But now, she's not really sure.

And now, as she walks side by side with Regulus, she feels like there's sand in her throat, like there's light shining directly on her. She hardly says anything, she doesn't feel like she can. Her eyes are glued to her shoes as she tries to think of how she should act around him, tries to remember how she acted before, and if that's even okay anymore.

Regulus looks down at her, hands in his pockets as he matches his steps with hers. "What are you thinking about?" he asks, voice light, delicate, no pressure. Like he always talks to her. Jo wonders if he talks to anyone else that way.

"Oh, erm, nothing," she answers without looking up at him, and feels her cheeks get hotter at the sound of his voice.

"You have to be thinking about something," Regulus counters.

Jo chuckles under her breath, gut uneasy. "Do I?"

She can feel his stare, feel his eyes move along the side of her face. "You've hardly said anything to me all night," he states, voice a bit lower now.

Jo shrugs. "Suppose I'm just a bit distracted."

"So you are thinking about something."

And despite her nerves, her discomfort, there is something about his words, about the way he says them, that makes her lips tug up in a grin. "I didn't say that."

"So what are you distracted by?" Regulus asks, his stride casual as they approach the tower.

"Erm," Jo starts with a tilt of her head, "I'm not quite sure."

"I thought you were unnaturally perceptive?" he questions, and the way Jo can hear the grin in his voice makes her tilt her head up at him, to meet his gaze.

Her gut tumbles as their eyes meet. "I guess that only applies to other people."

Regulus nods, and asks, "You're alright though?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," she assures him, "I'd tell you if I wasn't."

The corridor is empty as they approach the portrait of the Fat Lady; Jo notes the way she eyes them with some sort of smug grin, like she's witnessing something she shouldn't. "I could fix it, if you weren't," Regulus says, quieter now.

"I know. McNair hasn't been able to look me in the eye," she looks up at him with a grin as the stop just short of the portrait. "Nice handiwork, by the way."

Chuckling, Regulus shakes his head, and Jo only realizes she's taking a step closer to him after she's done it. "Of course, you would find that amusing. Here I was worried that it would scare you off."

"I don't scare easy," she scoffs. "Where the brave of heart dwell, remember?"

Regulus looks down at her with warm eyes. "I remember."

They stand there, facing each other, and Jo thinks of the smile on her face and how she couldn't get rid of it if she tried and she thinks of how she's just constantly buzzing whenever he's around, or even at the idea of him. He makes her feel stupid and impossibly happy just by looking down at her like that, close-lipped smile, and soft glint in his eyes. Jo could look at him for hours, and with that thought, she takes another step closer to him. "Thanks for walking me back."

"I walk you back every night," he dismisses.

"And I say thank you every night," Jo counters, and thinks that he might be leaning in closer to her, but she really can't tell if she's imagining it or not.

"You don't have to. I'm happy to do it," Regulus says back, almost in a whisper.

Jo grins so broadly her cheeks hurt. "My company certainly is better than a den of serpents."

"You're more right than you think," Regulus mumbles, and Jo feels dizzy.

"Goodnight, Reg," Jo says.

He tilts his head down. "Goodnight, Josephine."

Neither of them make a move to leave. Jo looks into his eyes, cool green with flecks of gray and holds her breath. She thinks if she stepped forward anymore, she'd ram her nose into his chest. She wonders if he can feel the heat in her cheeks or the nerves that roll off of her and she would give up every Galleon to her name to know what he's thinking.

Regulus leans down and places his lips on the crown of her head, something that leaves her feeling like every cell inside of her has been lit aflame. For a second, he lingers, and Jo bites down on her lip, balls her hands into fists, thoughts running through her head too fast for her to hold onto one. And as he pulls back, he gives her a smile that is met with wide-eyed shock, and he leaves her thinking that all she wants is more.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

Jo cannot think of a single reason Barty Crouch is approaching her as she waits for Dorcas at the bottom of the Astronomy tower. He saunters, hands in his pockets, smug smile on his lip as he slowly approaches. And Jo glares, instantly, hoping the harshness of her gaze will deter him, but he gets closer and closer, not shying away. Jo tightens the grip around her wand as he leans against the wall, too close for her comfort.

"Josephine," he greets her with a toothy grin and a slight nod of his head. Jo is stiff, arms crossed tightly against her chest. Her wand feels warm in her grip. She can smell the mint on his breath. "Or is it Jo?" he inquires with a tilt of his head. "Or Josie? I just can't keep track."

The width of his smirk and the easiness in his stance makes Jo's gut churn. She's always hated Crouch. She's hated him since the first moment she met him on the train, first year, when he threatened to turn Juniper into a pair of slippers. She hated him when he hit her with a hex that made her nose three sizes too small, and she hated him when he made Alice cry in fourth year and she'll hate him for as long as she lives. There's something particularly vile about him, something cruel that makes Jo's fists clench whenever he's around. There's a lingering cruelty in his smile. Jo grinds her teeth together as he stares down at her, expectant. "What do you want?"

"Just to chat," he answers with a glint in his eye. "You look lovely today, by the way. Absolutely smashing."

There's something about the cadence of his voice and the way he looks down at her that makes Jo feel like he's trying to lure her in, like a siren. She bites down on her tongue; she's learned her lesson about sweet talking boys and their wide, bright grins. "You have three seconds to get to the point before I hex you," she snarls at him, defenses up, shoulders hunched.

"Aw, Jo," Crouch winches with a hand over his chest, like he's wounded, "always so quick to jump to violence. I just want to talk about a mutual friend of ours," he assures her.

"What are you talking about?" Jo snaps back at him, teeth barred but her face turning red.

"Reg, of course," he tells her, and Jo knew it was coming but the sound of his name coming from Crouch makes her breath catch in her throat, makes her eye twitch. And Crouch sees it all, the way she physically reacts to his name like she can't even help it. He sucks in air sharply. "What, did I strike a nerve?"

"Spit it out," Jo instructs through gritted teeth, disliking how a few simple words from him have left her enraged and riled while he stands across from, relaxed and composed. It has her feeling like a wild animal he's poking at for his own amusement.

"I was just wondering if you knew," he shrugs.

"Knew what?"

The grin that spreads on his lips makes Jo feel sick. "About Regulus," he explains. "About his, y'know, his obligations. You must know, right? If you two are as close as he claims you are."

And she tries not to let it show on her face, but she feels like the stupid, naïve little girl that her brother must think she is. Obligations.