Of Hippos and Penguins not a Hippogriff Regs

[Regulus Black]

"It's only improving me," Regulus quipped instantly. "None of this outside influence on my mind...no conformity for me." At her joking statement, Regulus grew serious. "I do feel honored that you stay with me," he said sincerely. "There have been so many things that I expected would drive you away...and so many that should have." Regulus shook his head. "If you call me nauseating childhood nicknames, I can call you them too, Addiekins." He smiled. "I'm happy about those things too," he laughed.

"We were both seekers," Regulus replied promptly. "She'll be excellent when it comes to finding things she's lost, but a horrible shot when it comes to aim. You watch--Katie's going to play seeker. She's gotten it double from both of us." He frowned. "Oh, I forgot about the muggle Ministry."

He yelped and jerked away from her fingers again, catching her hand in his so that there wouldn't be any more tickling. "Right, well...I keep you from tossing yourself off buildings and bridges and all sorts of other suicidal things, so...it's a fair trade." He grinned at her decision about Azkaban. "I wonder if my dear cousin is doing very well there...if they've provided those accommodations for her and her husband." He snorted. "Muggles can't have more luck at potions than you and me. Anything you get from them probably won't do the job as well as a real poison would."

Regulus looked at their daughter. "Well, she'll hate Side-along apparation, but...at least we won't have to pay for tickets."

"I know you were," Regulus snapped, not wanting to get into a conversation about it. "You might have shared it with me at some point, I tell you loads of things about myself...having a horrible fear of snakes might have been something to mention," he said defensively. Regulus nodded. "Alright, I can pretty much promise that they're going to stay in their places. And if any of them get out, well...I know how to handle them," he said. "Family was completely Slytherin...always had some of them about when we were younger." Regulus smiled at the idea of a very small and Katie-like Adriana sicking her pet tiger on her brothers. What he would have given to have a tiger to send after Sirius sometimes...

[Adriana Bell-Black]

Snorting at his mention of it improving him, she shook her head "It’s making you delirious love.” She teased. "Then it’s a good thing that I don’t exactly have a normal thought process, because I enjoy everything about being with you and the little speed bumps it entailed." Grinning as he decided to call her Addiekins she shook her head. "I will call you loads of things love but Reggikins isn’t among them." She said mischievously.

Shaking her head as he proclaimed Katie would be a future seeker she looked at her daughter. "I don’t know love, she has amazing aim, I’ve personally experienced it, no matter what she plays is fine with me but it would be nice to see her take after us though." Grinning as he mentioned forgetting the muggle ministry she shook her head laughing slightly. “I know you did love, hence why I corrected you.” She teased.

Trying to frown as he grabbed her hand to stop her poking fingers she couldn’t help but smile. "Which were all perfectly safe and thought out things until you decided to intervene." She said with a grin. "Nutters the lot of them makes me almost feel sorry for the Dementors keeping them guard." Rolling her eyes as he shot down every possibility she shook her head defeated. "OK love, so ill just remember if I ever want to do you ill ask for your suggestions first."

Glancing at her daughter as he mentioned her she laughed envisioning her daughter’s expression. "She’ll definitely hate it but when she sees why we did it shell forget all about it."

Reminding herself to remain calm as they were in a muggle place with their daughter she bit her tongue from lashing out at him. "I didn’t want to talk about it, honestly if it weren’t because you were stuck in something that you needed help with you wouldn’t have told me the stuff with Berne, Scarlett and your family. Id think you of all people would understand but I guess I was wrong." She said coldly. Nodded distractedly she was vaguely aware of him promising to keep the snakes at bay, she was focused more on trying to think of something other than snakes.

[Regulus Black]

Regulus shook his head. "How do you know that it's making me delirious?" he asked. "I mean...if everyone else is thinking the same way, but differently from me...maybe all of you are delirious and I'm actually a genius." He laughed at her teasing and said, "Speed bumps? That's what you refer to as several attempts on your life and mine, torture, covert homicide, pureblood superiority propaganda..." Regulus grinned brightly. "I don't know what I did in a past life to deserve you now, but Merlin am I thankful for it, wench," he said. Regulus looked curiously at her. "What will you call me?" he asked, hearing the playful tone in her voice but wanting to hear her say it out loud.

Regulus nodded and agreed, "Of course, whatever she ends up playing will be fine, if she ends up playing at all. But both of us were seekers..it's just fitting that she'll take after us. Even if her aim is much too good for a kid her age." He saw Adriana's grin when she corrected him, and made a sullen face. "Just because your mum and dad saw value in muggle life doesn't mean you can laugh at me whenever I mess it up," he pouted. "I think I do a fairly good job of it most of the time, given my complete and utter ignorance of muggle studies as a whole."

He caught her smirk when he grabbed her fingers, and glared back condescendingly. Adriana knew he was ticklish...no need to share it with the muggles. "All perfectly safe and thought out...Adriana, you and I were playing Quidditch and you hopped off your broomstick right next to me. How thought out could that have possibly been?" He snorted when she said that she felt sorry for the Dementors. "I don't. Serves them right...bloody creepy lot, Dementors. They make me ill," he made a face. Not to mention that they made him relive the most horrible experience...or a series of the worst moments in his life, at least. "Right," he said, smirking in satisfaction. "When you decide to kill me, you can just ask my advice on how best to do it. I'll be more than happy to help you out. You know...replace your cyanide with lemonaid and such."

"If America looks any different, that is," Regulus said, frowning. "She may not understand where we've gone...we'll have to find someplace amazing to apparate to. You know...so that it distracts her when we arrive. Otherwise she'll start screaming and crying, and all the muggles will notice that we've appeared out of nowhere." He envisioned said situation, dourly amused by the idea of muggles gasping and grabbing their children away from the generally harmless, picture-quality nature of his little family, screaming Katie included.

"I would have told you," Regulus snapped back, annoyed. "If it hadn't been for Scarlett, though, I could have told you in a much different way...at a time when it didn't seem insane to be working for the Dark Lord...when our lives weren't being threatened by people that were supposed to be on our side." He frowned at her, adding quickly, "And I told you about Berne right away. Actually, I think I told you about her the first time we ever shagged. But before then, she honestly wasn't much of a pressing issue." Regulus took a deep breath and continued, "You pretty much knew everything that I was afraid of...I can think of maybe two hundred different conversations where you might have let slip an irrational and overpowering fear of snakes."

[Adriana Bell-Black]

Grinning she looked at him mischievously. "I know its making you delirious when you go calling yourself a genius. Love that amount of false truths isn’t healthy for you." She teased. "Yes speed bumps, those were all minor technicalities, it’s not your fault your family has gone completely off the deep end..." Grinning just as brightly but with a look of mock outrage, "Did you kill someone in a past life or something? I mean you try so hard now to keep us alive." she said. Blushing as he pressed about the name, she knew his game, he loved to make her say things out loud that probably shouldn’t be said. "Not in front of the baby love.” she said knowing that it would probably only delay the inevitable.

Smiling she agreed with him, "True, she might hear so much about Quidditch from us that she might hate it but I doubt it. She’s certainly showing interest already. I showed her a picture of one of the Hogwarts games and I swear her whole face lit up." Kissing him softly she grinned at his sullen face. "I wasn’t laughing at you love, your attempts are too cute. I really do appreciate the effort you put into trying. You are doing a great job being a spoiled sod and all." She threw in teasingly.

Trying to pout effectively as he glared at her with her hand still in his, she looked down to prevent from laughing in his face. "Well I thought that I wanted to fly without the broom, so I would jump and summon it to me on time, it wouldn’t have been the first time anyway, so I jumped. It was all very thought out, maybe if I would have shared that with you before…but still very thought out." Shaking her head she could help but agree about the Dementors. "They make everyone ill, that’s the whole point." Laughing at their agreement about killing him, she shook her head, "That’s the plan them, cyanide flavored lemonade."

"Well it will look different depending on where we go I suppose" she said unsure. "Yes and set of lungs on that girl can certainly wake the dead. So I think we should look into places to go when we get home before we decide to just pop into another continent."

"You would have told me eventually" She snapped back, "Just like I told you eventually, when I wasn’t about to have a bloody panic attack because I was surrounded by snakes...especially because we have so much going on, why on earth would I have mentioned something as trivial as snakes?" Looking away from him, she wasn’t sure how much longer they could stand there arguing without attracting attention. "Yes you told me because I asked you right before panicking because we thought I was pregnant. She wasn’t a pressing issue just like snakes weren’t either." Sighing she shook her head, "It’s not the same."

[Regulus Black]

"False truths..." Regulus frowned. "I'm not saying anything that's not true. I'm sorry if my genius eludes you, and your average brain," he teased, frown easily twisting into an amused grin. "I'm so relieved to hear you say that. Sirius would say that it was my fault all of those things happened...my fault for allowing them to. I just never felt as easy about confronting the family as he did," he explained honestly. He leaned over and kissed Adriana lightly. "I'm happy to keep us alive, and I don't care what I did in a past life to cause all of this. Everything has turned out so well...as long as I have you, I can deal with anything." Regulus smirked when he saw Adriana's blush, knowing that it'd only take a little bit more teasing to coax whatever she was thinking out of her. "Not in front of the baby?" He leaned over and covered Katie's ears, his daughter immediately looking up at him and flashing a toothy grin, thinking they were playing a game. "Problem solved, now talk, wench," he prompted.

Regulus looked at her thoughtfully. "I'll bet we can take her to a game somtime," he suggested. "Not Hogwarts, perhaps...but I know some people that will have good access to first-class World Series tickets." He couldn't continue to pout when she kissed him, but smiled softly instead. "I can't help it that you're a muggle-hugger, wench," he teased back. It made him relieved and thrilled all at once to know that Adriana appreciated his efforts towards living the muggle way...Regulus privately felt like every time he turned around, she was giggling over some mistake or another he'd made. Non-magic lifestyles weren't something you could pick up over night, he'd learned.

Laughing at her explanation of the long-ago death-defying stunt, Regulus shook his head. "No, it probably would have been better if you'd told me, wench," he said, chuckling. "If you'd told me every time you'd decided to pull similar stunts, they would have worked out better for you." He made his best puppy face, looking at her with wide, tear-filled eyes and sticking out his bottom lip. "Adriana...you wouldn't do that," he pouted.

He nodded. "That's why I said that we should go next weekend. I think I have some friends that have taken that trip before...perhaps we could just silence her and pop into a place that's mostly uncrowded," Regulus suggested thoughtfully.

He shook his head, not caring if people noticed that they were arguing. "Yes, but I told you much sooner than you told me. That's one of the basic things you're supposed to know about people you love--what their favorite foods are, favorite music, what they want to be when they grow up...if they're afraid of anything." Regulus narrowed his eyes when Adriana shook her head at him. "Yes, but when you asked me, I told you. The first time it came up in conversation. My mother's bloody twisted family planning is a lot harder to just bring up in conversation than something like, 'Oy, Slytherin boyfriend of mine, did you know that I'm afraid of snakes?' or 'I really dislike the dungeons and your common room because of all the snakes. They really scare me, a bloody lot.'."

[Adriana Bell-Black]

"And how do you know its not the other way around, you forget my genius did save your butt quite a few times, almost as much as it got you in trouble" she teased, grinning happily. "I'm sure he would, but you have no control over much more that yourself I wouldn’t blame you even if you intentionally did something. Confronting your family is never easy no matter what the situation but everyone is different." She reasoned. "I'm happy too, and now with Katie everything makes much more sense." Adriana wrinkled her nose when he smirked mischievously, nothing good ever came out of that. Adriana couldn’t help but laugh at her daughter’s grin, who apparently thought they were playing a game. Faking a thoughtful look, she tipped her head to the side flashing him a bright smile. "Actually I forgot" she said perkily.

Adriana grinned and nodded enthusiastically. "Oh that would be wonderful. She would love it, especially a cup game; I hear Puddlemere is a favorite for finals." She said brightly. Poking her tongue at him she could think of anything to say when he called her a muggle-hugger. "So…you’re…you’re a ninny." she teased back.

Laughing she found herself shaking her head at him this time. "No, it probably wouldn’t have been better if I told you, because you would have tried to stop me which only probably would have made things worse." she said, chuckling. Adriana melted at his pouty look, he could get her Avada anyone with a pout like that, she wondered if that’s where daughter picked it out from. "Of course not love, I would miss your Slytherin arse way to much, I rather enjoy having my own spoiled sod around."

Raising an eyebrow at his mention of friends. "What sort of places, you already know that I will not just pop in anywhere with my daughter."

Adriana took several deep breaths trying to remain calm, the last thing they needed was some accidental magic to be seen by muggles. "Yes and what the bloody sodding hell have you told me your afraid of Regulus, if we are going to talk about sharing let include you too." Glaring at him she stood taller than she felt. "That’s exactly why I haven’t brought it up, there was always something going on, whether I got pregnant, we were hiding, dealing with your bloody family. Every time was bloody inappropriate and I was not going to make the dam situation about me when there was so much more to worry about. You can sit here and talk about the bloody snakes all you want but I am going to take my Daughter to the rest of the Zoo as I promised.” She said coldly walking away from him into the polar exhibit with her Daughter in hand.

[Regulus Black]

"Your genius was usually what got us into trouble in the first place," Regulus teased back instantly. "Whenever it was me getting us into trouble, I didn't have to do anything to accomplish it other than exist." He shook his head, replying, "Sirius just made it look bloody easy," with a grimace at the thought. He nodded at Adriana's statement about Katie making their lives right, agreeing instantly. Bent over with his hands on Katie's ears, Regulus looked down at his still grinning daughter for a moment, trying to decide if she could still hear him. Looking back up at Adriana, he said a choice word and, "Of course you'd say your forgot." Letting go of Katie's ears, he ruffled her hair and smiled down at her. "Let's go see the polar bears, baby," he said to Katie.

He smiled at his girlfriend's enthusiasm. "You think that Katie wants to see Puddlemore, or do you? Should I call up Sirius?" he joked. When Adriana stuck her tongue out at him, Regulus knew that he'd won. "I'm a, I'm a...what? Can't you think of anything more original?" he laughed, wanting to see what she'd come up with.

"Trying to stop someone from doing something utterly suicidal isn't a bad trait, thanks," he replied snappishly. "And I would have let you...jump off the bridge, at least. After you'd let me see what sort of muggle ropes you were using." He smiled lightly when he saw her give way to his pouty face, then brightened even more when she spoke. "You'd miss my Slytherin arse?" he repeated, grinning. "Adriana, not in front of the baby. We can talk about this later," he teased.

"I wouldn't just pop in anywhere with my daughter either," he replied instantly. "And I wouldn't take you with me when I went to visit my friends. Though they're not the Azkaban friends...so you wouldn't have to be worried."

He set his jaw, seeing Adriana take a deep breath before she started going off on him. "You know what I'm bloody afraid of, and you bloody know it," he snapped back. When she drew herself up to glare at him, he knew that he was in trouble. But Regulus wasn't going to back down...he was right, she should have told him. "You should have made the situation about you--because every bloody situation we get into is my sodding fault, and at least then I would have known! How bloody often do I talk about bloody snakes? We've. got. them. all. over. the. bloody. house." When Adriana grabbed Katie and started walking away, Regulus was more annoyed than he should have been. Standing there with the stroller for a minute, he glared at it, not really wanting to follow her. Then he took a deep breath and grabbed the handles, pushing it after his girlfriend in sulky silence. He'd just been trying to look out for her...didn't she know that? Even if it was just one, physical thing that scared her...at least he could feel sometimes like he was protecting her. Making her go to the bloody reptile house was something pig-headed and selfish, and he never would have done it if he'd known. He glared around at the muggles, in generally a sour mood.

[Adriana Bell-Black]

"Well it certainly kept you on your toes," Adriana said grinning at the many times she remembered her brilliant ideas and dragging Regulus with her. "When it was you it was a whole other scale of problems." She teased, "Sirius makes even makes the most ridiculous things look easy, a talent he was unfairly given." She said knowing that it definitely was possible. Grinning mischievously while hoping to look innocent she shrugged, "I forgot, ‘snot my fault." Adriana smiled at her daughters face when Regulus ruffled her hair.

Grinning sheepishly she bit her lip. "Well I suppose Katie might like em, It’s a plus that I like them too. Only if you plan to invite him love, he wouldn’t miss Quidditch, he’d take Katie with him and probably Harry too." she joked. Pouting she thought about another name to call him. "Well you hugger of muggle-huggers, so meh" she said trying to keep from laughing.

"No its not," she said softly at his snappish tone, she never said she didn’t like it, she was extremely grateful that he cared and tried to keep her safe. "Well we weren’t exactly talking at the time." Nodded slowly she grinned at him. "I would far too much" she confirmed, grinning. "Oh right, yeah I suppose we can give a certain little someone an early bed time" She said mischievously.

"Well that’s good then, I suppose you can talk to them about us popping in" she said sheepishly. "Sorry I assumed love."

Finally reaching the Polar area she walked to the Penguin area. Seeing the many Penguins jump into the water and swim about freely, she pointed at some on the ice cap out to her daughter “See those sweetie, Penguins. Birdies that don’t fly.” She explained to her awestruck daughter. Adriana paid no attention to Regulus, where ever he was at the time. She knew their argument was ridiculous but there was no point in continuing something like that, what happened happened it can’t be changed. Katie’s giggled brought her back out of her thoughts. “Mummy look he walks all funny.” Katie said referring to the waddle of the penguins. “Yes love, they waddle, and look its hiding a baby between its feet.” She said pointing at the little head poking through the penguin’s legs.

[Regulus Black]

"Yeah, my tip-toes," he grumbled back, though he smiled in amusement at the many memories they had together due to one or the other's magnetisim to mischief. "Yeah, a lethal scale," he replied, nodding semi-seriously. The problems that Adriana had caused for them had simply been amplified time and time again by his allegences...anything that they usually found themselves involved in generally had a bad outcome for one or both of them. "Yes! Exactly! That's what I've been saying all along," Regulus agreed quickly. "Sirius was given more than just that unfairly though...his bloody strong will would have been nice to have when I was jumping the Dark Lord's ship and standing up to mum and dad." That mischevious and not-at-all innocent expression didn't mean anything good to Regulus. Starting Katie towards the exhibit, he leaned close to Adriana and whispered in her ear, "You'd better tell me later, wench," punctuated with a tweak of her lovely little arse.

Regulus laughed. "Of course he would. Imagine that, our kid and the Potter's watching q quidditch match together. A few years ago, they were supposedly the enemies of the Dark Lord and all his followers. Funny how that worked out," he said, smirking at the irony of it. If he hadn't defected when he did... "We should invite them anyway, if we do decide to go. They'd probably like it...Potter always was a prat when it came to Quidditch. Bloody pompus Captain," he poked, though their former opposing positions provided more for playful banter than actual rivalry, and always had. Regulus did laugh at Adriana's weak come-back. "Hugger of muggle-haters?" he repeated, unable to keep from laughing through the words. "I am not. I detest hugging those people. They're like...like...my mother, and my aunt Lucretia. Always smelled funny, Aunt Lucretia," he commented thoughtfully.

Regulus didn't respond to her soft reply, but to let all of his irritation at Adriana's flippant attitude towards his "ninny"-like behavior drain away. The corners of his mouth twitched with a smile, but never truly got there. "No, I suppose we weren't," he agreed reluctantly, not wanting to think of their first major row...though it had resulted in their first-ever make-up shag, which he wasn't reluctant to recall at all. "I' miss your Gryffindor arse, too. But then, I miss your arse whenever you go out shopping...or leave to run an errand...or speak with the neighbors," he teased. Smiling mischiviously back, Regulus said, "Isn't there a playground here? Let's make sure Katie's ready for an early naptime when we're ready to go home..."

"Not a problem, I've enough dangerous friends that you probably are better off assuming," he replied easily.

Regulus drifted behind Adriana and Katie, stopping a good distance behind them when they reached the arctic exhibit. He looked disdainfully at a sleepy polar bear and some other water-animals, half-listening to what Adriana was telling their daughter. When she began to point out the penguins, he snorted and said without bothering to keep his voice down, "It figures that muggles would have ugly flightless birds that drag their kids around on the ground."

[Adriana Bell-Black]

Adriana laughed as he mumbled about her keeping him on his tippy toes. "Not necessarily, but indeed they had to deal with other nutters." She said trying brighten up the mood. The problems they once faced were now a thing of the past, hopefully no more Death Eaters to worry about too. Laughing at his excitement of her agreeing with him, she shook her head smiling. "Well that goes to show you are a much stronger person if you had to work twice as hard for something, especially when it came so close to your heart." Giggling as he whispered in her ear and lightly squeezed her arse, She smiled at him before looking away "I can show you better later," She said not looking at him but keeping an innocent gaze toward the muggles.

"Things always eventually work out for the better" she said, happy that it was definitely true in their situation. "Oi, leave my captain alone, Bloody brilliant he was on the pitch even if it was a bit arrogant at times. I’ll Floo them later and ask." she said brightly excited about going to a Quidditch game, and possibly going with her old mates. Adriana pouted as he laughed at her comeback. "Well I wouldn’t know, I don’t generally go around sniffing people." she said wrinkling her nose in distaste.

Laughing as he listed all the times he would miss her she smiled brightly at him. "Well then I suppose my arse better stay where you can see it all the time then, yeah?" she said jokingly. Nodding at his mischievous comment she grinned just a deviously, "Oh yes there is, and no sand so we wouldn’t have to worry about a massive bath time..."


Adriana turned around and glared at Regulus as he snorted and insulted the penguin exhibit, "and It figures that you would have something to criticize. Penguins are beautiful and fascinating creatures. The woman lays the egg and the Mate caries is keeping it warm and caring for it until it hatches and the mother comes back. I don’t recall you be pregnant with Katie or carrying her until she was born." She said snappishly. Turning her attention back to her daughter who was looking at her curiously she smiled, although it never met her eyes. “Come on baby lets look at the Polar Bears.” She said while moving down to the next exhibit.

[Regulus Black]

Regulus laughed with Adriana, smiling over at her. He was so grateful for the way their lives had turned out. So many moments could have changed everything...decisions, threats they'd faced and overcome. If they'd failed, just once, they wouldn't be standing together today. "Thanks," he said, meaning it. "Even though you know it only took me so long because I didn't want to leave the way things were at home...I was comfortable there. But I'd do anything for you, Addie. The things that happened in our seventh year...they changed my life." He looked down at Katie, smiling and then looking back up at his girlfriend. "In more ways than one." Regulus grinned brightly when Adriana whispered in his ear, looking back over at her. "I'll count that as a promise," he said.

Regulus smirked, knowing that they could easily start a week-long debate if they brought up their old teams again. "Brilliant at losing matches," he said, grinning. "We all loved him, but for much different reasons than you did." He smiled, amused at her statement. "You also never met Aunt Lucretia. You didn't need to sniff to smell her," he explained.

"I'll have to follow you to the loo, and take showers with you..." he teased. Regulus nodded passionately. "Right, no sand. I don't want to deal with that ever again...the last time we did was awful," he said, not wanting to think about the dangers of shagging when covered with sand.

He glared at her, not caring if she was right, or about the beauty of the stupid penguins. Following Adriana, he muttered, "I might have well done it, and you know it. Got less sleep than you did, was your bloody slave for nine bloody months...don't compare me to stupid muggle animals." He sulked when she smiled at Katie. If they kept it up, she'd catch on that something was wrong and start crying. If Adriana wanted to fight, why didn't she wait until they got home, so that Katie could play somewhere else?

[Adriana Bell-Black]

Smiling brightly at his words she gave him a kiss. "You have a way with words Regulus Black which only add to list of why I love you." Looking at her smiling daughter she could be anything but happy with the way things turned out. Most people would have thought having a child at such a young age would have been a burden and would have torn her and Regulus apart, but if anything it made them closer. They by all means didn’t have it easy, issues to work through, not to mention an estranged feeling of pregnancy but it the end it was worth it.

Rolling her eyes at him she scoffed. "Yeah that why we won the cup every year he was on the team, Right?" she said, grinning. She smiled remembering the struggle for the cup which always ended up Gryffindor vs. Slytherin and a very close game in the end. "Yes I’m sure." She wrinkled her nose looking at Regulus. "Eww, just thinking about it makes me want to gag.” she said childishly.

"Because you don’t do it now anyways?" she teased not minding at all when he joined her for showers, usually quick ones when Katie would be awake. Grinning as he nodded enthusiastically. "But its only us she loves to do that with, Sirius apparently has charmed her so much he comes out dry as a whistle." she said, recalling the many times she made him give Katie a bath when they would go to the park.

Glaring at his she put one hand on her hip as the other held Katie, "No one asked you to stay, you knew you had the option to leave when ever you wanted. Well I carried her in me for 9 months, I had her kicking my insides, getting me sick, changing my body you had it easy...I wont compare you to anything anymore because I wont be talking to you." She said coldly turning away from him. Smiling at Katie as she pointed at the penguins saying “Look Mummy, fuzzy duckies”, she laughed correcting her daughter. “Penguins love; let’s go look for the duckies then so you can play with them.”

[Regulus Black]

Regulus grinned as she responded to him, looking over at her and saying, "Adriana, love, they're not just words. I mean it." He paused for a second, eyes turning thoughtfully to their daughter. Katie was happily looking around at the people milling through the zoo, her cheeks dimpled with a smile and her pigtails wiggling as she turned her head. Occasionally a passing woman would grin at her and wave, and Katie would turn back towards Adriana and Regulus, looking shyly back and returning a toothy grin. He slipped his arm over Adriana's shoulders, easily pulling her close and affectionately kissing the top of her head. "You have to tell me what else is on that list," he joked. "And also whatever you think you'll call me besides the nicknames you love so much."

He could easily remember the games that had taken place at the end of the year, where his team would play against Adriana's for the House Cup. They had never gotten it...through a series of technicalities. Regulus had played the opposing position to Adriana, both Seeking for their own teams. It had resulted in some interesting matches...the struggle to defeat each other hadn't put much of a strain on their relationship off the field, but within it, they were vicious towards each other. "McGonagall was calling the fouls," Regulus complained, wrinkling his nose. "And there was a Gryffindor scorekeeper. Potter might have scraped your team together, but at least we got there on talent alone," he remarked. Pausing, Regulus grinned and said, "Do you remember the game where I accidentally caught the snitch, trying to keep you from getting it, and Gryffindor won anyway? I thought my team was going to drown me in the showers."

He smirked, shrugging and saying, "Of course I do it now. But if I was going to follow you everywhere, we'd have showers during naptime, love." Regulus sighed heavily at her statement. "My brother, once again, has all the luck. I don't know what twisted combination of incestuous genes he got and I didn't, but I swear to Merlin that I'd murder muggles for it."

Regulus glared right back at her. "I bloody know you did! I was there!" he protested. Starting forward, he gave a short breath of exasperation at her ultimatum. "Adriana, you bloody will be living with me, we live in the same bloody apartment!" Watching her turn away, he said, "This is absolutely unbelievable. We're not even fighting over anything," he snapped. "We're fighting over you, and how you never told me that bloody snakes terrified you. I don't even know how we can be disagreeing about this." Glaring at the penguins, he couldn't help but melt slightly as Katie pointed at the penguins, Adriana's laugh forcing some of his annoyance out of his system. Regulus didn't say anything, but followed her towards the ducks.

[Adriana Bell-Black]

She grinned as he tried to convince her that his word were true, "I know that honey, you just make it sound so pretty." She said giggling knowing he would say something about being associated with the word pretty. Grinning at her daughter’s enjoyment of their outing Adriana was elated that they were finally acting as a normal family with outings and such. Letting Regulus pull her closer to him and kiss her head she smiled mischievously. "Maybe, maybe not" she teased. "Well rests assure that your spoiled soddyness is on that list, I think it’s rather adorable."

Shaking her head with laughter she recalled the extra measures that needed to be taken when it was Gryffindor versus Slytherin. "Of course she did, your bloody teammates kept knocking everyone off their broom illegally. I reckon we would never have made it out alive from one of those games if McGonagall didn’t call them." As he wrinkled his nose she couldn’t help but think how cute he looked, so she leaned up and kissed the tip of his nose. "Jordan was an honest score keeper, enjoyed it a lot being that the poor kid couldn’t fly to save his life. Ohh that’s so not true" she remarked on his statement on talent “Lucius Malfoy had no talent what so ever. He got on the team because he bought everyone a set of new bloody brooms.” Shaking her head laughing at the memory she nodded, "Yeah Gryffindor had a very nice lead that I wasn’t in trouble for not catching it. I’m sure they wouldn’t have because then they’d have to explain to your mother why you drowned in a shower, and I’m they’d want to avoid having to deal with her."

Rolling her eyes at him she shook her head with a smile, "More than lately of course." Laughing at his exasperation she wrapped her arm around his middle giving him an affectionate squeeze. "No love, I like you just the way you are. There is a reason I’m not attracted to your brother, you have the right combination of incestuous genes." She said teasingly.

Adriana ignored Regulus as he continued to argue. Walking in the direction of the pond she bounced her daughter on her side as she giggled happily. As Katie giggled happily she hugged her mama “Mummy sing the ducky song until we get there.” She asked giving a set of brilliantly done puppy dog eyes. Rolling her eyes at Katie who managed to pull off one of her fathers expressions she poked Katie’s side before beginning the song. “6 Little Ducks that I once knew; fat ones, fair ones, thin ones too.
But the one little duck with the feather on his back, He led the others with a Quack, Quack, Quack. Quack, Quack, Quack--Quack, Quack, Quack. He led the others with a Quack, Quack, and Quack.” She sang along with Katie. Finally reaching the little pond area Katie struggled in Adriana’s arms wanting to head to the floor to play with the ducks. “Mummy, put me down” she struggled. Grinning at her, Adriana set Katie down who immediately began to chase the baby ducks that were running away frantically from the 2 year old.

[Regulus Black]

Regulus made a face. "Pretty?" he asked, laughing. "Wow, thanks, love. All my life, I've been trying to be told I speak pretty. I think we really were meant to be together," he said sarcastically. Letting go of her when she said 'maybe, maybe not', Regulus frowned in mock hurt. "But Adriana," he whined. "You said that about the other thing too." He held up his hands, wiggling his fingers and adding, "What the baby can't hear..." Grinning at her comment, he said, "I'm glad you think it's adorable that I act like a sod sometimes." Regulus looked over innocently and added, "I think it's adorable when you act like a mischievous wench, myself. Lucky we found each other, really."

He laughed when Adriana made the remark about knocking people off their brooms. "The only thing that Malfoy ever said to me, tactics-wise, was do not let that gryffindor girl out of your sight. Wonderful life advice, really." Knitting his hands behind his head and thinking about the feeling of the snitch in his fingers, Regulus amended, "And also, knock her off her bloody broom, boy, I don't care if she won't shag you later. So I suppose you're right about the fouls." His expression melted to a soft smile when Adriana kissed his nose, and he looked over at her with an amused glint in his eye. "Yeah, Jordan couldn't fly to save his life, or his potions textbook. Malfoy told me about that." Shaking his head, he argued, "Malfoy was a great captain. None of us needed the brooms anyway...he did that so that we'd be at top performance, you know. Unlike your team...didn't your Keeper fly something horribly old? Made it bloody easy on my chasers...lucky Potter had the foresight to play the position he did. I suppose he was alright as a chaser...better than ours, at least." Regulus snorted. "If I'd drowned in the shower and they were explaining something to my mum, her only lament would have been that I didn't do it while taking a shower on the Dark Lord's orders."

Regulus grinned as Adriana rolled her eyes. "Oh, yes," he agreed promptly. Letting out a breath like he'd been holding it, he said, "Oh, good. At least I can thank my parents for one thing, then. Whatever they did differently to me than Sirius...he might have all the luck, but I have you, and I think that's a choice I'd make no matter what." He put his arm around her shoulders as she slipped hers around his waist, watching Katie watch the muggles and enjoying the time he was able to spend with his family. When he was younger, he and Sirius had never done things like this with mum and dad. Regulus had been entertained by Kreacher, if his brother wasn't chasing him through the house. He was glad that things were better for Katie.

He sulked as Adriana and Katie sang the duck song--when had Katie learned a bloody duck song, anyway? Regulus glared at the waddling little animals, expression softening as Katie ran through them, giggling as she tried to catch one of the elusive ducks. Glancing around, and then glancing for a moment at Adriana and weighing out how much trouble he could potentially be in, Regulus quietly muttered, "Petrificous Totalus," watching one of the ducks stop in its tracks. Katie caught up with it, and Regulus muttered, "Finite," so as not to alarm his daughter or any of the muggles. Slipping his wand back into his pocket, he crossed his arms and didn't risk looking at his girlfriend, who'd know immediately what he'd done. Regulus was prepared to defend himself, though, thinking defensively of the bit of transfiguration she'd done under the cover of the stroller earlier.