Reg Had Just Been About To Settle Into Sleep When The Wards Alerted Him That Someone Was On His Property.

Kingsley cast his eyes over Aurora with a surveying eye, and her nervousness was evident. He didn’t want to terrify the poor girl, but equally, he was not willing to send unprepared fighters out into the field only to have to knock on their loved one’s doors and deliver the news that unfortunately their daughter had died. Rolling his shoulders as he settled himself for a defensive fight, Kingsley watched her body language with interest. He felt her need to prove herself, but he wasn’t going to make it easy for her. Deflecting her charm with a lazy flick of his wand, Kingsley sent back his own disarming charm. “Disarm me any way you can – assume your opponent will defend with the intent to attack. Next time, I will defend with jinxes."

Aurora was slightly nervous meeting with Kingsley. There was an intimidation that seemed to linger in the air and this need to make a good impression. It was important to show him that she was capable of taking care of herself, so that he would tell Edgar it was fine sending her back out on missions. "I know better than showing up late." Not that she would anyway, being prompt was one of her traits. Her eyes widen when he asks her to disarm him, glancing around where she could feel the magic of the charms surrounding them. Her wand secure in her grasp. She raises her arm, her gaze fixating on his wand. "Expelliarmus." She speaks clearly and sternly, flicking her wrist in the direction of where he is holding his wand.

Taking a deep breath as Edgar said that he too had no idea what came next, Regulus fought against the wave of anxiety that was telling him he’d made a mistake. His need for self-preservation was fighting against the conscience that Edgar had poked and prodded at, and he could almost feel his cousin over his shoulder whispering that if he killed Edgar now, nobody would ever know what they had spoken about and he could go back to how things had always been.

Brushing off that lingering darkness knowing that it would take a lot of work to dismantle his teachings and beliefs, Regulus nodded slowly. “Hiding until the war is over, with no end in sight….” He murmured, clearly unhappy at the prospect. “Mr Bones, I respect your optimism…I fear that you don’t know quite what you’re up against. You are working against hundreds of years of deeply ingrained prejudice, and a well organised, well funded, efficient army of people who believe they are right. I hope that the Dark Lord doesn’t win, merlin knows I hope that more than ever now, but I do not want to leave you with false hope. These people are ruthless, determined, and they will not hesitate to kill. Unless you have people on your side that are willing to get their hands as dirty as the Death Eaters, you may not win. But I suppose we have to try.”

Reg still wasn’t sure how much he trusted Edgar Bones, but he had little other choice. “As small as possible, please. And if possible, can I request that the protection offered is purebloods? Not through prejudice, but it is easier for me to talk off if someone were to spot them hanging around me in the meantime. If it’s not possible, I understand…and I appreciate the offer of protection, whoever it is,” he said, a tinge of gratefulness in his tone. “I will keep you updated. May I leave? The Department of Mysteries will be expecting me to catch up on the time I've missed."

This was new territory for Edgar and the last thing he wanted to do was to make false promises and then watch it all blow up in his face. Regulus didn't deserve that and if he was going to trust him, and vice versa, it was best to be honest from the start.

"I don't know how this arrangement will look. All I can promise is that we will work our best to keep you protect and try to give you some life. It might mean hiding for some time, until this war is over, but after we have won, because we will win, you will have your life to do as you please." Good always prevailed over evil.

He nods his head. "It will be." This was a start and he was eager to put some balance back in the universe. "We will keep it to those that need to know. We will meet tomorrow and I will bring you will be watching over you. They will be in the shadows at all times." He could understand needing more time to say by to his family in his own way. "When you are ready to leave that life fully behind, then we will move to the next step."

" i know i will be dead long before you read this but i want you to know that it was i who discovered your secret. "

—REGULUS A. BLACK

Narrowing his eyes at the other man's amusement, Regulus frowned. "I would qualify it as stealing. It's only polite, see, if someone's stood here first. If you had been here before myself, I would let you take as much of the stock as you needed and made do with whatever was left...like polite, reasonable people do," Regulus said, determined to die on this hill. "Oh, I've tried. Every time I come anywhere near him the owner seems to disappear, and I'm left with the poor people who run the tills."

Frank's lips quirked before he could help it. "I'm not really sure I can qualify that as stealing, though it's definitely unfair." He knew that Regulus was young, almost impossibly young to be so well-spoken and austere, but sometimes the young age showed more than others. "Perhaps you ought to take it up with the owner. Maybe they'd be able to set some aside for you if you gave them forewarning."

Scrunching his nose up with distaste at Sirius, Regulus fought the childish urge to find the nearest object that he could throw in his brother's direction. "Ooh, good one," he repeated, his tone mocking. "Oh, I've spent plenty of time listening to mother insulting others, and plenty of time on the receiving end of it too. Look at you, the family disappointment...and yet I still cannot live up to what you could have been," Regulus said bitterly. "I'm fairly certain my hearing will never quite be the same than it was before her tone got even shriller than when we were children. She still sends howlers in place of regular letters," he'd received one just that morning, asking him to drop round for tea after work. He crossed his arms, glancing at the closed door that they were waiting before. "Are the aurors always this bloody slow?" He muttered grumpily, not wanting to spend too much time in Sirius' company. Sirius had left him, and Regulus had grown up in the shadow of that loss. Years ago, he might have begged Sirius to love him, to take him with him and hide him away from the rest of their family. Now, he knew that was simply a childish delusion, no matter how much that hurt.

"Of course you did," Reg said with exasperation. He should've expected nothing less. "You should see your place on the tapestry...I'm surprised she didn't burn the whole bloody house down, never mind your face. What a gift you are to her," his gaze hit the floor and he scrunched his nose. Hearing that Sirius had thought about changing his name had hit him more than he thought it would, and it further demonstrated the distance between the two brothers. "Course you don't. I don't know why they even bothered calling you here."

"Ooh good one," Sirius remarked, rolling his eyes at Regulus's retort. "I at least thought you'd have gotten better at insults since I last saw you but apparently not," he sighed as if disappointed. "Why don't you ask mother dearest for help insulting others. She excels at it," he said with a grin. "Avoid her volume though, people tend to stop listening once you start screaming," he advised seriously. Truthfully, teasing and antagonising his brother was just a lot easier than letting his guard down. He didn't know what Regulus's opinion was of him anymore, but from the whispers and rumours he heard it was far from good. And it wasn't as if Regulus had ever bothered to talk to Sirius after he left; not even replying to the countless letters he had sent.

"I debated it," he sighed, shaking his head. "But why would I deny mother the pleasure of something to give out about for the rest of her life?" He shrugged. "I'm just thoughtful, I guess." Sirius would have loved to have been a Potter - and was constantly told he was for all intents and purposes - but he was never going to change his name, quite proud to be the literal Black Sheep of the family. He felt a twinge of hurt something when Regulus first said 'me' instead of 'us' but ignored it, telling himself it was just a slip of the tongue. "Whatever we're here for," he started, glancing back at Regulus casually, "you can take it. I don't want it." He didn't need any reminders of what his life used to be. He left it behind for a reason.

Glancing around, Regulus was checking to see that there was nobody nearby that would report on this conversation. The last thing that Regulus needed on his plate were reports that he’d been speaking to a blood traitor that had been dishonourably disowned in broad daylight, and yet his feet refused to move. He knew the right thing to do, and yet he just couldn’t do it. It was weakness, he had always been weak despite Bellatix’s attempts to force the weakness out of him. ‘He’s spineless’, his parents had whispered when they thought Regulus couldn’t hear it. He didn’t need to hear everyone else’s relentless disappointment in him to know that something was wrong with him. He wasn’t like Sirius or Andromeda, but he wasn’t like Bellatrix or Narcissa either. He was weak. Once Andromeda nodded her approval, Regulus pulled the paper bag out of his pocket and gingerly handed a sugar quill to Dora. “These are my favourite,” he whispered, half conspiratorially and half from sheer terror that someone would see him.

 Frowning at his cousin as he shoved his hands back into his pockets, Regulus stayed stubbornly silent at Andromeda’s rebuttal. After all, what could he say? He knew he shouldn’t be stood here offering sweets to his niece and making small talk. “You made your choice, Andromeda,” was all he could offer. Watching Dora’s hair change to match Sirius’ messy locks sent a pang of hurt through Regulus chest, and he had to drag his eyes away to look at Andromeda instead. “I’m…glad he sees you still. I bet it’s good for him,” Regulus choked out, his brows furrowed. “Getting by,” he paused, wondering how much of himself to offer to a cousin that he never saw. “I work for the ministry now. It’s good work, honest work…I love it. How are you? And…Ted.”

If Andromeda had been an outsider to this sight, she likely would have found it amusing. Both of them so unsure of the other, unsure how to react or handle the situation. She was on edge, prepared to bolt with Dora if that was what the situation called for. She could handle the dirty looks and words of harassment, but she’d be damned if her daughter had to deal with such venom. She hesitated as he offered a sugar quill for Dora, but softened at the way her daughter’s eyes brightened at the mention. A peace offering? Her eyes locked with Regulus and finally after a moment she nodded, smiling softly down at Dora. “Go on then, just one so you don’t ruin your dinner.”

The moment Dora had her hands on the sweet treat she was distracted, perhaps for the best as she straightened and turned her attention back on Regulus. “Well everyone has done a magnificent job of avoiding me as best they can. After all, I don’t exist anymore. No better than the dirt on the ground, yes?” She couldn’t help the bitterness in her voice, she missed her family, an integral part of her that felt like living with half her heart missing. At the mention of Sirius, Dora perked up. “Uncle Sirius?!” The green hair immediately replaced with a dark mess of hair as Dora got excited. Suddenly the girl looked so like Sirius and looking between the two, so much like Regulus as well. “He’s not here Dora.” She pointed out, taking a moment to brush the mess of hair back from her face. Andromeda straightened once more and offered Regulus a small smile. “We do. Dora is rather fond of him, but then again he lets her get up to all sorts of trouble. It’s frightening how similar to him she can be.” A beat of silence. “How are you?”

It wasn't often that Fenrir bought work home, but there were occasions were the location was just too perfect. He'd shipped Magnus off to a trusted member of the pack because Nancy was busy, but he didn't want his son in the house while Fenrir tortured a man outside. He was free of all responsibility for the evening, they were guaranteed to be undisturbed, and his focus had narrowed solely onto the man in front of him. "Mm...he's lowly enough not to have known anything of note, but still, the Dark Lord cannot have traitors amidst the ranks," Fenrir said, his claws still in the man's cheek as he used the leverage to turn the man's head and look into his eyes. Staring back at him were pools of terror, and another weak 'please' bubbled out of the man's lips. There was no forgiveness here.

Fenrir's smile as he looked down at the man was bright, which should have been a warning sign in and of itself, but the man was clearly an imbecile. "I'm full of grace and of mercy. It's your lucky day! Evelyn and I have other matters to attend to, so if you can run fast enough..." Fenrir trailed off, eyebrows raised expectantly as Evelyn started counting. As the man raced away, Fenrir could still hear his heavy thudding footsteps amidst the foliage. "He won't get far at all. He's barely gone 100 meters," he said, head tilted slightly as he used his heightened senses to focus in on the path that he was taking. "Oh, I'll keep him alive for you, dear. I enjoy working with you too much," he said with a wink, before stowing his wand in his holster. He'd promised no magic, but Fenrir didn't need magic - just his preternatural senses, and his sadism.

"I think we could even give him fifteen seconds, don't you? Just to let him think he's won."

Evelyn had to appreciate the benefits of Fenrir’s home near the woods. Out here no one would be looking for them, no one would hear the man’s screams as they carried out their work. They had all the time in the world to draw this out and have their fun. She stood back, giving Fenrir the opportunity to have his turn even as a pleased laugh slipped from her lips. “Oh I don’t know that he’s much a danger.” Her lips curled in distaste at the thought that he was some threat to their cause. “Certainly a weak link that must be dealt with appropriately.” Her smile grew as she watched him dig his claws into the man’s cheek, delighted at the sight. There had never been any question when it had come to choosing sides in this war. There was something so intoxicating about the power it provided her. The thrill of being able to bring people to their knees like this as they begged for forgiveness. There was nothing like it.

Her lips curled into a delighted smile as he slung his arm around her shoulder, winking at him before she returned her attention to the man curled into himself on the ground. “Oh I suppose.” She agreed. “He does look rather sorry after all.” There was no missing the sarcasm in her voice. She watched him pull the man off the ground, avoiding the urge to clap in delight at the offer Fenrir gave him, knowing exactly how it would end. “Isn’t he just so gracious? We’re giving you a chance, you should consider yourself lucky.” She reminded the man as she stepped towards him, tapping him on the nose with her wand. “One…two…” Realization seemed to dawn on the man as he finally took a stumbling step back and turned, racing into the trees. She watched, a laugh slipping from her lips. “Three…” she called loudly before returning her attention to Fenrir. “It’s almost a shame, he likely won’t get very far before you find him.” The amused smile said it was anything but a shame. “Try not to kill him before I get there? I’d hate to miss out on all the fun.”

If he was honest, Regulus was surprised that Sirius had even agreed to meet. Their last encounter had been tense and trained at best, and downright awful at worst. Much like when he'd reached out to Andromeda, he wouldn't have blamed Sirius if he'd declined and left it at that. The fact that this had had to be arranged via an auror was appalling enough, but their relationship was what it was - there had been damage on both sides, and he wasn't sure there was anything left to repair. But Regulus would never forgive himself if his brother heard from someone else that Regulus had started co-operating with the Order, and regardless of Sirius' response to that, he wanted it to come from his own mouth.

He flicked his wand towards the door as Sirius knocked, and then magically closed it behind him before he quickly ensured the wards he'd set were still in place. He froze his pacing, studying his brother's face silently for a moment. Sirius didn't want to be here. All of his practiced words were suddenly evading him, and Regulus frowned back. "Did Edgar tell you anything about why you're here? Or...are you in the dark?"

Sirius was in a foul humour. He had had a shitty week and a shitty Christmas, making him wish quickly for the new year to come and wash the traces of it away. His bad mood wasn't helped by the meeting that had been in the back of his mind all day. When Edgar had talked to Sirius about meeting up with Regulus, Sirius had as good as laughed in his face. Whatever Regulus had to say Sirius had very little interest in, their relationship having been severed a long time ago. But despite the frown on his face all day, and telling himself it wasn't worth going, Sirius pulled his hood over his head as he left work and rushed through the rain to The Leaky Cauldron.

He kept his hood up as he made his way through the pub, hoping it would make it easier to get through without being noticed. He tugged it down as he reached the appropriate door, running his hand through his hair with a sigh before he knocked on the door. What did he have to lose? He stepped in as the door opened, closing it behind him with a frown on his face. He just nodded at his brother in greeting.

If Regulus was deeply, truly honest with himself, he had never felt the level of devotion to the Dark Lord that other members of his family seemed to. He wasn't sure exactly how deep Cissa's devotion to the Dark Lord ran but he was loathe to ask the question, given he felt it would have landed him in this exact situation - staring across a table at Bellatrix. Bella's devotion to the Dark Lord was unrivalled, and her devotion to her remaining family members was also unquestionable but it was that intensity that had sent Regulus spinning away because he knew his own devotion did not go nearly as deep. His devotion to the Dark Lord came from a desperate need to please people, to be good and to be wanted. The more time that passed, the more obvious it was becoming that trying to please people was ripping him apart.

Refusing to flinch as Bellatrix snapped in his direction, Regulus narrowed his eyes, head tilting slightly as he considered her words. "Is it that the Dark Lord needs to know everything, or is it your desperate need for control over us, cousin? You want to keep me and Cissa close because you're scared, and it's....fucking hell, it's too much. I don't see what good the knowledge of my brief pause on a battlefield does for the Dark Lord, but I see what it is doing for you. I doubt you've even been to the Dark Lord at all with this information," he said coolly. "Fuck, Bella. What if I'm happy being low level cannon fodder? I don't need to be in the highest ranks, I've barely got enough time to cope with the amount of missions I'm being given as it is, between training and work. I'm just fine without additional responsibility," he snapped, hardly realising that he'd announced his lack of ambition without a second thought.

The tension in the room as they ate biscuits was so thick Regulus could have carved through it with a knife, but instead he chose to reach for another biscuit from the floating plate as Bella poured him more tea. His gaze was hard and firm as he watched her, not daring to take his eyes away for even a second.

Sighing heavily at her request, Regulus reached for his wand. He could demand that she vowed it to him, but he would take her word for what it was. The swiftness of her curse finally made him flinch away from his cousin, and Reg frowned deeply. The difference in their ability was palpable even now - her wordless curse had been explosive, and Regulus's verbal spell would not do anywhere near as much damage. "Avada Kedavra," he said, using his frustration with the afternoon's events to fuel the curse which he sent shooting at a marble bust on the other side of the room. "My avada is fine," he said, having always been adept with the killing curse. It did the least harm of the three unforgivables as it was quick and easy, and if he had to kill, he wanted to do it swiftly. "Like I said, Rabastan and I are working on the other two. My imperio is improving."

Bellatrix knew his struggles - some of them, anyway. They shared a sibling fleeing from the family. The Blacks were no saints, but they were an establishment with certain reputations to uphold, and since Sirius and Andromeda had pissed off without so much as a second glance, it was left to the rest of them to pick up the pieces. Bellatrix may have looked at Regulus and mourned the fact that he could never live up to his older brother. But even she could see the hypocrisy in her own attitude, knowing how her parents had turned to her and Cissa to compensate for Andromeda's loss. Bellatrix had always been too brash, too unruly. She had achieved much, but she would never be able to fulfil the role they'd wished for Andromeda. Her parents would get no well-behaved duty from her, only an unwanted warrior. She counted herself lucky for marrying Rodolphus - yet another act that her parents perhaps regretted. The Lestranges, at least, valued her true nature. So she saw Regulus's faults, but she didn't blame him for them. She only wanted to assist him, to ease his efforts. But the stubborn little shit kept pushing her away.

It did not take too much effort to maintain the icy silence. As flamboyant as she was, she knew how to strike fear into men's hearts. It was with the sudden dissipation of her extravagance. It was the calm before the storm, though in this instance, the tempest would not be too great. She was keeping herself on a leash, determined to run a ring around Regulus before he could even realise she had done it. His persistent objections were becoming repetitive and - frankly - boring. He needed to change his attitude.

"Regulus," she snapped despite herself. "Nothing is ever fucking private, because we are the Dark Lord's servants and HE needs to know EVERYTHING. Yes, I pushed Rabastan for a true report because I could tell the smarmy wretch was keeping secrets. There can be no secrets in the highest ranks, and that is where you belong. You will not be low level cannon fodder, you will be one of the most trusted even if I have to burn myself to a crisp to get you there."

Now they both looked like petulant teenagers, nibbling on their biscuits and glaring at each other over the delicately spiced crumbs. Just to stop herself from retorting further, Bellatrix shoved the last half of her biscuit into her mouth and chewed on it noisily, leaning forward to pour them both more tea. This time when she heaped her sugar, she stirred it rampantly.

"Show me," she demanded more calmly, after swallowing what had become an unpleasant mush of ginger stodge. "Show me your curses, then I promise I will leave you be." He could take her word for it. She could lie without a second thought, but with her family she was nothing but brutally honest. Raising her own wand, she shot a jet of Avada green at a rather expensive vase gifted to her by the Mulcibers on her wedding day. The gesture was effortless, hardly any thought behind it. There was only the savage desire to kill, and it showed in the explosive way that the item shattered and flew across the room. "Take your pick of object, I really don't care what you destroy."