ADDICTED | j.p x oc

58

Hogsmeade, as always, was far colder than London, and covered in a thick layer of snow. Eleanor and James found Regulus tucked into a dark corner of The Hogs Head, hunched around his glass of something that was undoubtedly far stronger than butterbeer.

"El!" Regulus said in a relieved yet excited whisper. He hugged her tightly, she could feel the underlying tension in his body.

James eyed the scene with a clenched jaw, stepping closer to El when the hug parted. "Black," he greeted through gritted teeth, sending Regulus a threatening look.

"Potter," Regulus nodded, if he noticed the message James was trying to convey, he did not show it.

They sat at a booth, Regulus on one side, James and El on the other, his arm round the back of her seat as it always was. Looking down at his cup awkwardly, Regulus cleared his throat, clearly thinking what to say first.

"So umm. . .how have you been?"

"Small talk, Black? Really?" James leant forward, "whatever you wanted to tell her, get it over with."

El kicked James' ankle.

"I—" he paused, "the dark lord is recruiting people, not just Sacred Twenty Eight families now. He has a spy in The Order, someone who's relaying information to him, he's five steps ahead of you, all the time."

"But no one in The Order would—" James began

"Well someone is. I don't know who it is, The Dark Lord is hiding them from everyone, but every mission The Order go on, he already knows about."

An old man walked over to the table, "order or leave," he grunted.

James, who was closest, spoke but didn't look up at the man, "two firewhiskeys."

They waited for the man to walk far enough away before continuing the conversation. "But why would anyone betray The Order?"

"Fear. Threats. He has people everywhere. It would take one word for someone's entire family to be slaughtered."

El and James shared a glance, he stroked her arm gently as a form of comfort. Neither knew what to say.

"It's too dangerous for you to stay there, Reg."

Regulus shook his head just as the barman placed the two glasses of amber liquid on the table. He held his hand out expectantly until James placed several coins in it, then walking away without a word.

Regulus' voice diminished in volume. "I'm fine while at Hogwarts, i don't know what will happen when i leave."

El tossed back a sip of her firewhiskey, enjoying the burn down her throat as she thought. "There must be somewhere you can go, somewhere you can hide."

Regulus shook his head, "no, no he'll kill me."

"Not if you went to Potter manor," James suggested casually, "no one lives there since. . ." he never finished the sentence, but they all knew what the rest of it was. "We can put up protection charms, no one will know you're there, and even if they did, they wouldn't be able to get in."

El and Regulus were both silent for a moment, "that's actually a really good idea," El said finally.

James shrugged, "i have those sometimes, y'know. You can go straight after you leave Hogwarts."

"Is it safe?" Regulus asked, his eyes back on the glass in his hands.

"I wouldn't suggest you move in if it wasn't."

"But what if—?"

"Black, as much as i don't like you, El does. I don't want you dead. I promise it is safe," James said firmly, holding eye contact with Regulus so he would trust his words.