high adventure! → regulus black

[13] hogwarts

⋆☆.* ✧✰ .✦⋆*☆

NOT THAT STELLA WOULD ADMIT IT, but excitement was bubbling up inside her at the mere thought of visiting Hogwarts. With the stories Regulus and the others had told her, it sounded like the most magnificent place in the entire wizarding world. A magical castle with all sorts of secrets sounded like something straight out of some fantasy novel her father would have read to her when she was little. Yet there it was, within reach. It was a dream come to life, and she'd be there in less than half an hour.

And, after seeing so much bad in the magical world, the thought of seeing some good brought her immense joy.

"Stay close to us, all right?" asked Sirius her as they readied themselves to leave. The two of them were slipping on their shoes as Regulus finished up in the bathroom.

"Of course, got it."

"Hogwarts may be one of the safest places in the magical world, but all they have to do is be tipped off in one way or another and they'll be there ready for a fight," he continued, and she nodded.
"Just don't leave our sight—"

"Sirius," she interrupted, unable to help herself.
"I'll be fine, really."

"Good, because if you aren't, Regulus will have my head. Lily too, no doubt," he teased, and she beamed at him before double-knotting her trainers' laces.
"Reckon you didn't plan on your life turning out this way?"

"That's one way to put it," Stella murmured, though her smile didn't fade.
"Here I thought I'd be somewhere in Liverpool or god knows where working at some dead-end job until I 'found my purpose'." She did air quotes around the last three words for emphasis.
"But here I am, helping fight a wizard war."

"Well you're making a difference. Just in case you needed someone to remind you." Regulus entered the living room at that moment, straightening his blazer.
"Why must you always look like you're going to work at the Ministry?"

"Why must you always look like you're going to a muggle pub?" Regulus shot back teasingly, referring to his brother's white t-shirt, denim jeans, and black leather jacket.

"I do not! Do I?" he added quietly, looking to Stella, who merely shrugged, holding back a few giggles.
"Anyway, we should get going, all right?" Stella and Regulus exchanged an amused glance as she stood, readying herself for the adventure.

The three of them stood in the center of the room, Regulus extending his arm for Stella to take. When she did so, the two brothers looked to one another.

"Ready?" asked Regulus, a faint smirk dancing across his features at the thought of returning to Hogwarts.

"Always," remarked Sirius, and in an instant, the three of them were gone.

⋆☆.* ✧✰ .✦⋆*☆

STELLA COULDN'T BELIEVE HER EYES as they landed deep in the Scottish Highlands. Mouth slightly agape, she stared with wide eyes at the magnificent castle sitting before her in all its glory. Even in fairytale drawings had she not seen anything quite so grand.

"It's been a while," murmured Regulus as he too stared up at Hogwarts.
"A lot's changed since I was last here."

"All for the better," Sirius reassured, giving his brother a pat on the shoulder and starting on the trek up the grounds, the other two in tow.
"To muggles who don't know the truth, the castle just looks like a bunch of dangerous ruins," he called over his shoulder to Stella.
"And Dumbledore's got countless enchantments on here, many of which have been on the castle since before even he was born—which, believe me, is saying a lot."